Hugs and Kisses
by DCFanatic4life
Summary: A sweet, little Jericho-Stephanie story...with secrets, plans, and set-ups galore...oh, and lots of other characters as well...Updated every week...
1. My Return, October 11, 2004

Disclaimer: The characters and real people portrayed in this story do not belong to me. The characters belong to Vince McMahon and WWE. The real people own themselves. This story contains mild language, you've been warned.

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A/N: Things you learn in the week you are banned:

- It is a lot easier to cope with the loss of 170 odd reviews rather than 1500 reviews. That, at least, is something good.

- People are really, really kind, and more than make up for one person who seems to be out to get me.

- This doesn't make me want to stop writing Jericho/Stephanie stories.

- The meaning of life...ok, so I didn't actually learn that, but if it has anything to do with Jericho and Stephanie, I might be getting closer to it.

Once again, I'm back, third times a charm huh? Right, right? Or not, who knows...surely not me. Thanks for sticking with me during this thing, and thanks for all the e-mails, I fear that I didn't get to respond to them all, and if I didn't, know that I thank you seriously for sending me an e-mail or an IM, and it really means a lot to me to know that people actually cared that I was banned, and that my story was deleted.

I got dinged on language again, which I don't know, I think is stupid, but whatever. I hardly swear in this story anyways, so it leads me to believe that it was a malicious attack on me. If it was, sad, that's it, just sad, and that's all I'll say about that.

So on with the story, and this chapter is inordinately boring, but I'm sorry, Monday's Raw was really boring, at least I thought so. Any show that ends with Edge is not going to be on my lists of favorites, yeesh. Anyways, this chapter is setting up some ideas I have for future chapters, and brings in a few things from previous chapters, which aren't gone, just need to be reposted, which I will try to do on a more frequent basis. And for those of you keeping track, this is Chapter 235.

Enjoy.

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It wasn't their first fight, it wouldn't be their last. With two people as stubborn and complicated, and most of all, egotistical as Stephanie and Chris, there were bound to be fights, and there was bound to be days or a week passing where they weren't talking to each other.

Such was this week.

But this time was different. Stephanie didn't run to Connecticut like she usually did, going to her house, which they still kept and had decided to keep even after they were married (Chris affectionately dubbed it the "summer home"). Instead, she had stayed put right there in Florida, relegating Chris to the couch. It wasn't a mutual decision at all, but the door slammed in his face was a pretty good indicator.

But still, this was different from all their other fights in that she didn't leave. They fought and she was still there. They didn't talk past the most necessary of words, and she spent most of her time in her office, but she hadn't run away, and this was an actual step in their relationship. Now they just had to actually talk to each other.

It made the trip to England very awkward when they sat next to each other the entire time. Thank God for the in-flight movie or they might actually have to say more than two words to each other. The only time she had spoken was to ask him for his pillow, which he readily gave up. He did love her after all. Being mad at her didn't change that.

"She still not speaking to you?" Christian asked as he and Chris walked down the hallway of the arena later that day.

"Yeah, she's off with Trish, shopping or something," Chris said, "But you probably know that already." 

"Well, she has a different room, so no, not really."

"Steph has a different room too. She thinks that's going to keep us apart. I'm going to talk to her later though. I don't like not speaking to her, it sucks. I keep having to avoid her at home and stuff, and it's just hard trying to maneuver through my kitchen trying to avoid her in the mornings."

"But at least she's still there to avoid. She could be over at Hunter's." Christian meant it as a joke, but that thought didn't settle well in Chris's stomach. Stephanie had let Hunter kiss her...maybe it wasn't conscious, but she had enjoyed the gift that he had given her, and that was something that just stuck in his gut in the worst way.

He didn't think it was the fact that Stephanie could just as easily leave him like she left Hunter. Or maybe it was that a little bit, a very tiny bit. He knew Stephanie back then, she knew what a barracuda she was to the men that loved her. She had broken Test's heart without a glance back in his direction. She had broken her father's heart with seemingly no regret, and she had broken Hunter's heart to the point where he had to come up with asinine plans with which to get her back. What made her any different now? He could think it a million times, say it to himself, repeat it like a mantra, believe it like a religion, but did he really know that Stephanie was different?

"Hey, why you so quiet?" Christian asked.

Chris shook his head, he wasn't going to let this fight cloud his thoughts like this. They were stupid. Stephanie had been with him for a long time and she was still the same Stephanie she usually was. She was a bitch and everything, but she also loved him, hell, she said so enough times for him to believe it. "Nothing, I just want to talk to her. I don't like this thing."

"So talk to her. You were both wrong anyways."

"Thanks for taking my side," Chris scoffed. "I thought at least you would side with me."

"Well, I think she was wrong for sticking around with him, but come on, I think you overreacted a little. But you're Chris Jericho, that's what you do, you overreact to everything you freaking drama queen."

"I am not a drama queen!" Chris cried indignantly. "How would you like it if Jeff Hardy suddenly showed up, got Trish this great present, and then kissed her."

"That freak would be dead," Christian answered with gritted teeth.

"Now do you get where I'm going with this feeling of mine?" Chris said, patting Christian on the shoulder.

"Ok, I get where you're coming from now," Christian answered with a sigh. "But seriously man, do you want her to just get more mad at you. Stephanie is one toxic woman...in the best way though."

"Yeah, I like how you added that because she is my fiancée and I do love her." 

"Yeah, wouldn't want you kicking my ass. What do you have tonight on the show?"

"Rhyno. Stephanie at least told me that much. Then she got this weird smirk on her face. I'm afraid I'm going to be going through another set tonight. After all, Rhyno was her little boy-toy with me. I think my back is still hurting from when I went through the set. That was brutal."

"God, how much did she hate you to have someone orchestrate that?"

"She hated me a lot, a helluva lot," Chris answered, but then she smiled, "But she loves me now, so it doesn't matter at all. She apologized for everything she did to me, and I apologized to her for everything I did to her...and now Hunter is trying to woo her!"

"Woo?"

"You know, trying to get her...probably trying to get her in bed. I bet that's his plan, if he can get Stephanie in bed, he'll have her all to himself...because I'll dump her or something!"

"I can't believe you're thinking that Stephanie would actually get in a bed with Hunter."

"He drugged her once, he can do it again! Oh my God, where is she? What if he's trying to drug her again!"

"Whoa, slow down there Chris, I don't think Hunter would even know where to find Stephanie right now, let alone send her telepathic messages to get a drink so he can slip a drug in it."

"He could, he's wily like that," Chris said, looking around furiously.

"Ok, I'm going to go find Kurt, and you can go find Stephanie and prevent her from getting drugged," Christian said, a snicker on the edge of his lips that he wasn't going to let loose, lest Chris go psycho on him and start shaking him or something.

Chris was out of his seat before he could even think about what Christian was doing. So crazy was he about Stephanie that he had tunnel vision and could think of nothing, but finding her right then and there. Stephanie was in a boutique, trying on different outfits with Trish, the both of them trying to look outrageous.

"So when are you going to talk to Chris again?" Trish asked as she tried on a big hat with feathers on it.

"When I feel like it," Stephanie said. "I'm upset with him...but I'll talk to him. He just never gets anything."

"What do you mean?"

Stephanie came out in a short red dress, which Trish shook her head at as Stephanie went back into the dressing room. "He doesn't understand what really happened and until he does, he's just going to be irrational."

"But you didn't want the kiss, I get that."

"I get it too, what Chris has a problem with is the fact that I liked the gift, and I didn't stop the kiss fast enough for his liking. And yeah, I'm guilty of that, but I think I was just too in shock over it."

"Yeah, I know how that goes," Trish said, looking at some tops. "But you guys will be fine right?"

"We'll be fine, I have no doubt. He hasn't called off the wedding at least," Stephanie giggled, picking out some of the outfits she had tried on. "Do you want to go to one of those cool tea places and have high tea?"

"I've always wanted to do that whole formal tea thing," Trish said, "Call me a sucker for old traditions."

"Cool, I actually know a place that I went to with my mom the last time we were over here. Leave it to my mom to know the best place."

Stephanie and Trish went up to the cashier and paid for their outfits before stepping outside and walking to the place they wanted to go to. They were spotted by someone who was walking a few paces behind them. Trish could feel someone's presence and she turned to see Randy trying to catch up with them in the throngs of people.

"Hey!" he said, out of breath as Trish stopped Stephanie from walking forward. "Geez, what were you guys doing? Trying to get a speed-walking world record or something?"

"Sorry Randy," Trish said, "But what are you doing following us?"

"Did Chris send you?" Stephanie asked suspiciously.

"No, not at all," Randy said, sincerely so Stephanie actually did believe him. "I was actually having lunch with someone."

"You were!" Stephanie and Trish said at the same time, then giggling when they realized they did that. Stephanie spoke first, "Why didn't you tell us!"

"So I have to tell you everything now?"

"About this, yes!" Trish added. "Who! Who!"

"Not telling," he said smugly. "I'm going to keep it under wraps for awhile."

"You do know who you're talking to here," Trish said, gesturing between her and Stephanie. "You really should've given up this information to Christian or Chris because they probably wouldn't care and congratulate you or something stupid like that. But we want details!"

"Well you are just going to have to wait." "Waiting is not my strong point," Stephanie muttered. "Why can't we know?" 

"Because I don't want you to put the pressure on the girl. I know you two and how you work. You're both nosy, and you would both try to butt in and try to make this girl fall in love with me or something, and you'd scare her off."

"Hey, I run the show, and Trish is the Women's Champion. That pretty much means we're the two most dominant females on Raw, and any girl would love to hang out with us," Stephanie said.

"That may be true, but ladies, you're not going to know," Randy said, wrapping his arms around the both of them as they sent him simultaneous scowls, to which he simply smirked devilishly at. "So where we going?"

"Tea."

"Is this going to be girly?" he asked with a groan.

"Very."

"Oh well, I don't have to pay right?"

Stephanie rolled her eyes, "What a moocher, no, I'll pay."

"Great! Now I'm definitely coming along."

"Didn't you just eat?"

"Yeah, but I'm a growing boy. A strapping young lad, don't you think?"

"You're more trouble than you're worth."

Stephanie, Trish, and Randy found the place that Linda had suggested and walked inside, getting seated pretty quickly. Randy tried not to feel out of place, but he kind of did. Luckily he was with two women, so it looked mostly like he was being their escort around town. As soon as they had ordered their tea, Stephanie got a call on her cell phone and excused herself from the table to answer it outside.

"Stephanie McMahon."

"Steph, it's Hunter."

"Hi," she said, her voice a little sad. She had hoped it would be Chris calling her to talk to her. She missed him in a way, not that she hadn't seen him, but she just wanted to talk to him and now here was Hunter. Although a lot of the anger that Hunter had currently occupied in her mind had seemed to dissipate in the last week. How could she stay mad at someone who got her such a meaningful gift.

"I was just wondering what you were doing today? Besides the show."

"I'm having tea right now," she said, glancing into the building to see Trish and Randy pretending to be posh while eating little tiny cucumber sandwiches. She would rather be in there than out here talking to Hunter of all people.

"Oh, I didn't mean to bother you, but Dave and Flair are out, and I thought I'd see what you were up to."

"Well, I'm kind of busy. And you have a big match tonight, so I'd be more prepared if I were you."

"I've got it taken care of."

"Ok...is that all you wanted Hunter."

He paused and she checked her fingernails in the interim. She wondered what he was doing on the other line. Well, no, she didn't really wonder what he was doing. She was actually wondering what Chris was doing right now. Was he thinking about her? And if he was, was he hating her right now?

"Well, I was wondering if you wanted to come over or something..."

"Come over where?"

"Here."

"Huh? I don't get you."

"I wanted to hang out with you."

And here came the ramifications of the gift he had given her. She knew that it wasn't going to be a "no-strings attached" kind of gift. Hunter wasn't the kind of person who gave gifts readily and without some way of repaying him. He always had something on his mind, it was just the way that his mind worked. The brooch had been so thoughtful that she had been momentarily blinded to Hunter's true nature.

"I don't think that's a good idea Hunter, so I'm going to have to decline."

"Stephanie, come on, I'm really bored, and it won't be for long, you can even do whatever you want over here and I won't complain."

"That's beside the point, do you know how much trouble you've caused me already." 

"So Chris can't take the heat then," Hunter said, and she knew, she just KNEW that he had a smirk on his face.

"What heat? There's no heat."

"Between us there is, and you know it."

"Oh please Hunter, the last time we had heat, it was probably because we were near a fireplace."

"Stephanie, can't you feel it between us."

"Disinterest, sure, but heat, nope, and if you'll excuse me, I'm out with friends, and I'm being rude, see you later Hunter."

No sooner had she hung up the phone when it rang again. She growled lowly, and flipped open her phone angrily. He just didn't get the point did he? He never got the point. She'd spell it out for him, every single week, and he just never got it. It was really sad and it made her mad, and she wished beyond wishes that Hunter would move on...

"What the hell do you want this time Hunter, I told you I was busy and I'm not going to hang out with you!"

"Steph?"

"Chris!"

"Yeah...Hunter wanted to hang out with you?"

"Where are you?" Stephanie asked, ignoring his previous statement.

"I'm around," he said, "Hunter wanted to hang out with you?"

"It's not a big deal."

"But you weren't going to."

"Of course I wasn't going to, what do you think I am, stupid or something?" she said, trying to hold back a laugh. 

"Well, I thought you might want to hang out with him now." Chris was trying to guilt her, or he was trying to extricate information from her. She knew his little tricks all too well.

"Sweetie, I wouldn't want to hang out with him if he were the last man on Earth, and I was the last woman. I would rather hole myself up in some bunker, living off of rations and bottled water for the rest of my life "

"Rations?"

"Yeah, really gross rations too, like chipped beef."

"Rather than Hunter?"

"Much rather. I'd rather befriend a volleyball than befriend Hunter."

"Ok," he said, and his voice sounded shy. "I'm across the street."

Stephanie looked up quickly and saw that Chris was, in fact, across the street. He waved to her and she grinned while flipping her phone off. She looked both ways along the street, and seeing very few cars coming her way, she decided to risk it and ran full speed across the street. Chris laughed at her as she tried to dodge some of the traffic, ending up in the middle of street for a moment, then she ran herself into his awaiting arms.

"You forgive me?" she asked.

"Forgive me?"

"Of course," she said, hugging him tighter. His arms tightened around her waist and he buried his face into her sweet-smelling hair, kissing her neck softly. She laid her cheek on his shoulder, staying that way for a good long moment. "Let's never fight again."

"We'll probably fight again tomorrow."

"Ok, let's not fight again for the rest of the night," she told him.

"I think we can do that."

"I missed talking to you."

"I missed talking to YOU."

"I shouldn't have taken the brooch," she told him.

"It reminded you of your grandma, I should have been more sensitive to that fact rather than the fact that Hunter gave it to you."

"No, I shouldn't have even taken it, I should've known it would make you angry."

"No, I should have understood why you took it."

"I didn't want Hunter to kiss me."

"I know, and you don't want him to kiss you now."

"Never, I'd rather kiss a dead fish, actually, I'd gladly kill a dead fish."

"So this means you're not going to have Rhyno gore me through the set tonight right?"

She pulled away and gave him a funny look, "I wasn't planning on having Rhyno gore you through the set, where did you get that idea?"

Chris laughed guiltily, "Nowhere."

"It had to come somewhere," she pointed out.

"I was being stupid earlier, ask Christian for the full story."

"You couldn't have called me earlier before I got the separate room?" she told him. "Now I'm going to have this extra room and it's all for nothing."

"I'm sorry?"

She laughed, "How did you know where I was."

Chris nodded his head towards the restaurant, where she could see in the window, Randy and Trish looking intently through the window and across the street at them. When they saw that Stephanie was staring at them, they turned quickly away from the window and she shook her head. She turned back to Chris, but before she could say a word, he was kissing her and she was returning the kiss eagerly.

"God, I've wanted to do that for a week," he told her.

"I think that those two will be ok if I ditch them, don't you?" Stephanie said.

"Yeah, I think they'd be ok with it."

They walked across the street to the restaurant place and told Trish and Randy that they were leaving. Holding hands, they went back to their hotel so Chris could grab his things and Stephanie could grab her briefcase before heading over to the arena. It was a new thing to have the show be overseas, but for once, Stephanie actually agreed with one of her father's ideas. It was good to show that they could have shows overseas, and appeal to more fans, and the fans seemed to be very into having shows here.

When Stephanie and Chris walked into the arena, they caught Hunter sitting by the door, looking like he was waiting for someone. When he saw Stephanie and Chris, his face fell a little bit. Stephanie rubbed it in a little bit by situating herself nearer to Chris. Chris tightened his grip around her waist, and she was content to let her show him off.

"So Randy is seeing some girl here, and he won't tell us who it is. I think you could probably get it out of him," Stephanie said as she set her things down and grabbed a schedule.

"I'm not butting into his business," Chris told her. "If he wants to tell you, he'll tell you."

"He's never going to tell me," she whined. "What if she's just using him?"

"For what?"

"I don't know," she admitted sheepishly. "For sex?"

"Stephanie, if that's the reason why some girl is using Randy, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that he's perfectly fine with it."

"Guys and sex," she mumbled, rolling her eyes. "Nothing for you tonight, but your match."

"Fine with me, I'm in no mood to work."

"Why?"

"I haven't even gotten some makeup sex, and I think that I'm entitled to it."

"Later," she said absently as she highlighted certain parts of the schedule that would require a little more work to be done on her part. Getting Gene Snitsky to be on the show was one of them since he wasn't here tonight. She had to coordinate that and make sure it aired properly. She had a sneaking suspicion that Bischoff had gotten him to do this. Poor Lita, having to be put through such torture.

"Promise?"

"Sure," she told him, "But it's work-time now."

"Fine."

She looked up at Chris, "Hey sweetie...I think I've thought of a way to get Hunter off my back."

"You what? When did you have time to think of a plan?"

"Well, I was thinking about Randy, and it came to me."

"You actually think that you can get Hunter off of our back?"

"I think I've got just the way."

Christian was talking with Edge, even though Edge was being a jerk again. "And the people have to vote for me. I haven't even gotten the shot yet. Benoit and HBK, they're out, and I'm in, I'm the future of this company, and it's my time to shine."

"If you say so Edge."

"I do say so, and I've got to convince the crowd that they want to vote for me. I'm going to do it tonight with the tag match. I'm going to prove my worth to these people and then they'll have no choice but to vote for me. I mean, the other choices, people have GOT to be tired of seeing those matches. I'm a shoe-in."

"Don't you think that you better not count your chickens before they hatch?"

"Are you saying you don't think they're going to vote for me?"

"I'm saying, why don't you give the people credit instead of automatically thinking they're just sheep who are going to follow someone because they tell them to. I'm a little sick of your attitude."

"Well if that's the case then you can just leave."

"Oh, I'm leaving, and you know what I'm going to go do?"

"What?" Edge sneered.

"I'm going to go make out with my girlfriend, who loves me, LOVES me, why don't you go try finding something like that instead of just going from woman to woman. Oh, that's right, you probably couldn't get a girl to stay with you for more than one night before she'd get sick of you!"

Christian stormed out of the dressing room, not even caring that he had just yelled at Edge. He was so pissed off that he ran right into Dave Batista who shoved him back. Christian looked up, ready for a fight before seeing the huge man before him.

"Watch where you're going," Dave said. 

"Watch where YOU'RE going," Christian snapped back, ok, so maybe he was ready for a fight.

"I'm not in the mood to kick your ass now, so just tell me where the hell your friend Jericho's broad is."

"Stephanie?"

"Yeah, I got a bone to pick with her."

"I don't know where she is," Christian told him.

"Fine, just tell her I'm looking for her, and if I don't find her, I'll find Jericho, and I won't hesitate to relay the message from him to her."

The message came in the form of a beat-down, under the pretense of Dave wanting a match with Chris a Taboo Tuesday. But as Stephanie watched, she knew, she knew that Hunter was talking about her again, and Dave had gotten wind of it. And for some unexplained reason, Dave didn't want her near Hunter. Maybe because he wanted to be Hunter's favorite person, maybe Dave was simply using Hunter to get to the top, and she would ruin that for him.

Didn't matter, not after what she had planned.


	2. I Wonder Who Steph Endorses, October 18,...

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews guys, I'm glad you guys are still interested in this story, despite the problems and stuff. The reviews are greatly appreciated, so thank you all so very much. :)

Oh, and the Taboo Tuesday chapter will probably be up Wednesday at some time, maybe late Wednesday night/early Thursday morning, but it might be Wednesday afternoon because I only have one class on Wednesdays which gives me more time to write. I just don't think I'll have the time to write it all tomorrow night, but there WILL be a Taboo Tuesday chapter.

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Chris picked the index card out of his pocket. He unfolded it and looked down at it, reading it quickly. Then he looked up at Randy, a very insincere, almost cheesy smile on his face. Randy sat there, his right arm extended against the back of the couch, while his left was on the arm of the couch. Chris looked down again and then looked up.

"Randy, I think that you should tell me who it is that you are going out with. I am a trustworthy person, and I will keep your secret to myself. I have kept many secrets and I will keep yours, but curiosity has gotten the better of me, and I want to know, so tell me please," Chris said, in a monotone voice, obviously reading a prepared statement.

Randy started laughing, holding his stomach, trying to catch his breath from laughing so hard. He could just imagine Stephanie shoving Chris around and making him read this to her so he could find out who he had gone to lunch with last week. He still had not given up the information, not to Chris, or Christian, and especially not to Stephanie or Trish.

"So how hard did Stephanie shove you to make you come here and read that?" Randy said, once his laughing fit died down.

"Pretty hard, I might have hand prints on my chest, and then how the hell am I supposed to explain that in the ring? I have a dominatrix fiancée who will shove me around to get her to do her bidding?"

"Yeah, that sounds about right," Randy said, "What's the safe word?"

"My secret," Chris said. "You don't have to tell me who it is. Stephanie is a hurricane, but she's reasonable. I can get you a ten minute head-start, but that's as far as I can do man. After that, you're on your own."

"So you'll just unleash your woman on me?"

"If she heard you call her my woman, she'd be kicking your butt right now," Chris told him, and Randy didn't doubt the validity of that statement. He did know Stephanie after all, and everyone knew what she was about.

"Well, thanks for trying anyways. I'm sure that I can duck out of her sight for the duration of the evening."

"You haven't seen the schedule then have you?" Chris asked with a laugh.

"Oh great, what do I have?"

"You're actually tagging with yours truly against Batista and Flair," Chris said with a smirk. Then he opened his arms and gestured to himself. "Think of how lucky you are tonight to be able to tag with the greatness that is me."

"Oh, I'm real lucky," Randy said with a sarcastic chuckle.

"Ok, ok, I get it. I'm off to incur the wrath of my lady love, bye," Chris said, pretending to tip his hat, even though he wasn't wearing a hat, but he was trying to appear debonair, though Chris Jericho didn't readily possess that trait.

He didn't have to wait long to find Stephanie, since she was around the corner, waiting anxiously, her hands clasped in front of her. She gave him her excited eyes, her mischievous eyes that got him into trouble on more than one occasion. She looked like she was about to jump out of her skin and seeing Chris brought her the relief of actual answers.

"Did you tell him!"

"Yup," he answered.

"And? Tell me you got a name, tell me what I want to hear," she pleaded with him. Her eyes were closed, like she was waiting for a surprise and he was just going to dangle it out in front of her like a pretty necklace.

"Now what makes you think I'd tell you?" Chris said, leaning on the wall next to her and watched as she paused, eyes still closed, then opening them up slowly, her eyebrow popping up simultaneously, regarding him with a sharp scrutiny.

"What do you mean? I'm the one who sent you in there? I'm the one who gets to have the information because I'm the puppeteer."

"But in the little speech you wrote for me," he got out the note for proof and unfolded it, holding it up and pointing to one point in particular, "You said that I should keep it a secret, that I'm a good secret-keeper, and what kind of secret-keeper would I be if I just let this information flow from these gorgeous lips?"

"Chris," she whined. "We're getting married and you're not supposed to keep secrets from me. It's like one of the vows or something, and are you already going to be breaking a vow to me. It starts with a secret and then it balloons into something bigger and more horrible, like cheating. You're setting yourself up for cheating on me. And one day I'm going to walk into our home, and I'm going to find you in bed with some woman, and what then Christopher? What then? I'll leave you. You know what you're doing here don't you? You are just setting the tracks down for our inevitable divorce! You're divorcing me!"

Chris's face was frozen into a weird scowl/grimace, and he couldn't even comprehend what Stephanie was trying to imply here. Divorce? They weren't even married yet, and wouldn't be for another three months, and they were getting divorced. Stephanie had some of the weirdest logic he had ever heard. Must be the McMahon in her, Chris thought to himself, must be.

"Stephanie, calm yourself down."

"Not when you're just going to divorce me," she said, a strangled sob coming from deep down in her throat.

"I'm not even married to you."

"But you're already keeping secrets, it's truly sad," Stephanie said, looking away and appearing to be blinking back tears.

"Fine, here, I'll tell you, I wanted to keep it a secret, but I just can't anymore...I gave you whole milk in your cereal yesterday morning instead of fat free because I forgot to go to the store like you asked! I'm so sorry," Chris said, dropping to his knees and clasping his hands together, as if in prayer. "Please forgive me Steph! Please forgive me! I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to!"

Stephanie looked around to see people were staring at them. This wasn't unusual, but her father was here tonight, and there were a lot of press and legal people around because of Taboo Tuesday the next day. So there were people there who weren't used to the crazy relationship of Chris Jericho and Stephanie McMahon around, and with Stephanie in the position of power she was in, this was not a good sight, not a good sight at all.

"Chris, get up!" she hissed loudly, trying to pull him up.

"Not until you forgive me," he said, pouting.

"I don't care about milk, just get up, there are important people here tonight because of the show tomorrow night, so don't act like you normally do."

"As long as you forgive me," Chris said, batting his eyelashes as he stood up.

"I do...so tell me, who's the girl?"

He shrugged nonchalantly, "Don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know!" 

"I don't know, he wouldn't tell me. He's got mighty tight lips that kid does...oh God, did that just sound as bad aloud as it did in my head, because in my head it sounded really bad."

"Sounded like you were making out with Randy."

"Who was making out with Randy?" Trish asked as she walked up on the two. Then she got excited. "Oh my God, did you find out the girl?" 

"No, doofus over here couldn't pry it out of him," Stephanie said, giving Chris a little shove, to which he shoved her back, though very carefully, so as not to hurt her.

"I prefer to be called fiancé if that's all right with you Miss McMahon," Chris said.

"Oh, that stinks. So get this, Molly is trying to be all buddy-buddy with me. I don't know why, but I have a feeling that it involves my belt. She couldn't possibly want to be my friend for any other reason. I mean, she fooled around with my boyfriend."

"So keep her close then. You know what they say, friends close, enemies closer. Let her think that she has you where you want, and tomorrow, when I'm sure she's going to pounce on you like a cat on a mouse, you'll be ready for her, and then you can retain your belt and everything."

"She's so logical isn't she?" Chris said, wrapping his arm around his fiancée, despite her making almost no sense not ten minutes earlier in her rambling about them being divorced. He knew when she was right, and when she was being loopy.

"Yeah, that actually does make a lot of sense," Trish said. "Who'd have thunk it?"

"That was an insult," Stephanie said. "Which reminds me, I have to start writing my wedding vows." 

"Is it going to be like a roast?" Chris asked, "Because if it is, I've got some great insults for you. Filthy, dirty, disgusting, man, I'm going to have to make a comeback with all of those. What better way than to incorporate them into my vows."

"Oh that's fine, just remind me to go to Titan and get footage of when you spilled the coffee on Kane and peed in Regal's tea...oh, and when Hunter beat you up, because I've GOT to remember to show that footage. How long an extension cord do you think we'd need to get a giant-screen television out on the cliff? I want everyone to see you with blood pouring down your face." 

"Not cool at all," Chris scowled. "Now I really will insult you during the wedding, you just wait, I'm going to slip in an insult somewhere."

"Heaven help us," Trish said. "I was just looking for Christian, and I walk into this." 

"Here, we'll help you find him," Stephanie said, wrapping her arm around Chris's waist as they turned and walked down the hallway.

Meanwhile, had they just turned the corner, just one of them, they might've seen someone slip into Randy's locker room, virtually unnoticed save for an errant stagehand, who could really care less about who had snuck into Randy Orton's locker room.

"What are you doing here?" Randy asked.

"Just wanted a follow-up from last week, make sure you didn't find me repulsive," she said.

"No, not repulsive at all," he smiled. "I've just been--"

"Busy," she answered. "Doing interviews and everything, I understand, was just hoping that you wouldn't forget about me. But I don't want to sound desperate...and now I sound really desperate don't I?"

"A little yeah," he said with a laugh. "But I like my girls a little desperate."

"You're sad Randy Orton, very sad."

"Have you seen who I hang out with? It's eat or be eaten, I've had to step up the sense of humor before I get pulverized by their rapier wits."

"Ooh, and you're smart too, you are quite the catch...dinner tonight?"

"Can't tonight, got the show tomorrow, remember?"

"Oh yeah, I knew about it, of course...after the show tomorrow?"

"Yeah, definitely. Um...can we meet at the hotel though? Stephanie and Trish are really nosy, and I just don't want them to crowd you and try to make you, well, they're good at heart, but not at execution."

"So you're keeping me a secret?"

"For now," he said, "If that's ok with you?"

"It's fine with me, I better go now though," she responded. "Good luck in your match. I'm sure you'll win."

"Thanks, bye."

"Bye."

Randy sat down as the girl left. He really liked her, and liked that she was really down-to-earth, or at least that's how she was around him. He didn't really observe her around other people, and really hadn't until she asked him out. He wasn't really looking for anyone, but if someone wanted to fall right in his lap, then he wouldn't object. Especially not for someone he found so attractive, and she was quite attractive. She didn't have that exuding power and confidence that Stephanie had, or the vixen-like ways of Trish, but she was something else that he couldn't quite put his finger on, and he didn't want to find out right now, he was happy with the mystery.

Vince shook Chris's hand as he greeted him and his daughter. "Good to see you tonight Chris."

"Likewise Vinnie, what's up?"

"Making sure the show goes well...I don't think I can trust the woman in charge," he said, giving a sly look to Stephanie.

Stephanie's mouth opened in shock. "Daddy! That wasn't very nice."

"I have to make sure that the polls open correctly and that we get the proper endorsement for the show."

"I could've done that Daddy."

"Yeah, but you take on too much as it is, how you have any time to do anything else baffles me."

"Obviously you've never met Stephanie then," Chris said, "The woman is amazing."

"Oh stop," Stephanie said, flattered, but when they did stop, she looked at them. "That didn't mean stop."

"Of course not, not with you," Chris said.

"So you ready for tomorrow's match Chris? You're in the most difficult position because there are so many choices for you. It could be anyone. Are you hoping for anyone in particular?"

"Coach," Chris said, causing Vince to laugh heartily. "Mainly because I know that I'd definitely get the win over him, and that's reassuring to go into a match knowing that I'm going to win."

"But you still have no clue."

"No clue. I don't know if the people will vote for Batista, because he's in Evolution, but you never know. Maybe they do want him, but I'm going to defend this belt like nobody's business."

"You do know that if you wanted, we could have easily inserted you into the title picture, if you didn't have the Intercontinental title that is. Stephanie could pull a few strings and have you get a title shot, with any stipulation you want."

"That's really kind of you Vince, but I don't want people thinking I'm with Stephanie for her power or anything, and I'd rather earn the title shots I get. It's not like I'll never get any ever again, I'm Chris Jericho after all, is there anything that I can't do?"

"Nope, nothing," Stephanie interjected. "But if you'll excuse me, I've been neglecting the show, and it's already starting without me. Not that it matters cause I do have a competent staff, but well, I do have work to do."

"She just wants to impress you," Chris said to Vince once she left.

"She's doing a good job here," Vince said proudly. "She'll be a great owner to this company. I hope the both of you and Shane make great owners."

"I'm just going to leave that up to her Vince, she's more than capable."

"She is incredible isn't she?" Vince said, once again proud to call Stephanie his daughter. She was everything he could've hoped for when she was a little girl, clinging onto his leg, not wanting him to go to work. And she had turned into something pretty special.

"You have no idea Vince," Chris answered, feeling a little proud himself that he had been able to win over the feelings of Stephanie McMahon.

Stephanie was sitting on her desk, biting her bottom lip. She crossed her legs and listened in to the director calling the shots for the camera, making sure that it looked good on the monitor. In actuality, she was just pretending to work, not really caring either way, knowing that her staff could take care of everything. The women's match was coming up next, and the females in said match would be coming soon. Stephanie spotted the girl she wanted to talk to, and took off her headphones and walked over to her.

"Gail."

"Yeah?" Gail asked, looking over, and not caring that she was looking at Stephanie, even though Stephanie was her boss. "Want something?"

"I do want something. How much would it take for you to be paid off for a favor?"

"I don't do favors," Gail said shortly.

"That doesn't seem to be the case when you slept with Bischoff to get on Trish's bad side not too long ago. Or am I thinking of someone else? Tell me if I am, because I wouldn't want to mix up my people."

"No, that was me, but that was for a friend."

"And this is for money. You can't tell me that the prospect isn't the least bit enticing."

"How much?"

"I'm willing to negotiate," Stephanie answered.

"What do I have to do?"

"I have a problem. A big problem, and his name is Hunter Hearst Helmsley. I don't know if you keep up with gossip--"

"What do I care about gossip?" Gail interrupted. "If it doesn't involve me, I don't really care."

"Fine, he wants me, and I'm getting married, and don't want him ruining this for me. So I need your help to get rid of him."

Gail looked upwards for a second. "Five thousand to sleep with him."

Stephanie had expected more, but she wasn't going to say anything now. The price was very low, it would barely make a dent in her savings. It was so small that nobody would even notice that it was gone, should anyone look. She nodded her head in agreement.

"I think that's more than fair."

"So that's all you want me to do, sleep with him?"

"No, that's not all. I want you to make sure he doesn't forget he did. And when you try to remind him, there I'll be, and I'll make sure that he knows he blew any chance with me, not that he had a chance in the first place, but he's a little dense when it comes to not getting his way."

"Fine, you have yourself a deal," Gail said, sticking her hand out.

Stephanie shook it firmly. "Not a word to anyone and I'll throw in an extra two grand."

"At your service Ms. McMahon," Gail said with a decidedly devilish smirk.

"Good."

Stephanie stepped away and back to her table before people starting getting too suspicious as to why she was speaking for so long with Gail Kim. She figured Gail would do the deed for her. She was tough, and she wasn't a virgin like Molly was, so Molly had been out of the question, not to mention Molly was a bitch and would probably spill the word to Hunter and get her in more trouble than she wanted. Gail was the perfect accessory to getting Hunter off her back. She would just notch this investment down as protection for her wedding. She wasn't taking any chances.

Later on, Chris came to join her, before he had to go out for his match. She didn't tell him what she had done. He knew the plan, or at least the very basics, but she told him that she had to take care of the details because this was her ex-husband trying to win her back, and if he was to get it through his head she didn't want him, then she would have to do it herself.

"I wonder if the girl with Randy is a diva?" Stephanie wondered aloud.

"Leave it alone," Chris said, kissing her temple.

"Sorry, it's just so intriguing a mystery."

"And you love a good mystery?" 

"I do. Why is it so wrong for me to want my friend to be happy?"

"It's not, but you butt into other people's business."

"People butt into my business all the time, and I take it all in stride, don't I? You'd think that people would return the favor. I mean, like last week, Randy and Trish felt like they could call you and tell you where I was, what's up with that? And he won't tell me his potential girlfriend."

"No, he won't, and you have to live with that," Chris said. "Be patient, it'll come out eventually."

"Unless they break up."

"Even then, it'll come out, things like that always do."

"Our relationship wasn't known publicly for almost two years," she pointed out. 

"We're really good at keep secrets," Chris told her. "We had the perfect secret relationship. We were discreet, and we were able to hide it perfectly. I mean, how else could no one have ever figured it out?"

"It was a little, tiny bit fun, wasn't it?" she said with a smirk, remembering a time when she couldn't just sit here and chat with Chris, a huge ring on her finger and not a care in the world, not worrying that someone they knew might see them and spill the secret. She could remember vividly the nights where she would have to wait at the hotel for him, like a patient wife, awaiting her husband's return. And she would leave him too, going to SmackDown, coming home to him. Looking back, it was no way to live, but it was fun while it lasted.

"It was. Having you all to myself, not sharing you with anyone, you were all mine, and nobody even knew. It was like a little game...this is better though."

"Well obviously," she said with an exaggerated eye-roll. Of course me being here with you is going to be better. You don't have to leave me every Monday night in a dark, lonely hotel room by myself." 

"Yeah, and I can do this," he said, leaning over to kiss her gently. She let her tongue into his mouth, running it over the familiar territory. Even after a million kisses, it was still like every one was different, special, unique in its own way. She didn't think that she would ever get tired of kissing Chris, not as long as she lived. Every kiss was something new, a little memory to hold to her.

"That is nice," she answered when he pulled away to lick his lips, tasting her strawberry lip gloss.

"I can do it again if you want, I'm just talented enough to duplicate a kiss like that."

"I would let you, but Randy is about two feet away, glaring because he probably wants to talk strategy and you're here kissing me instead of trying to figure out a way to win your tag match which is coming up in," she checked her schedule and looked up at him, "Four minutes."

"That's just enough time for three kisses," Chris said, leaning in again. Stephanie tilted her head at the last second so that he kissed her cheek, much to his disappointment. She pointed to Randy and Chris reluctantly got up. "You have a secret girl Randy, you should know that you don't interrupt when someone is trying to get some kissage!"

"Kissage? I don't think that's a word," Randy answered.

"Stephanie renders me speechless," Chris said loudly, looking over to Stephanie winking. "Every kiss, no words, speechless."

Randy rolled his eyes. "Are you going to float down to the ring or walk, so I can inform Stephanie of the development?"

Chris slapped Randy in the chest. "Wait until you get engaged Randy, and then we'll see exactly how you're like, and I'll point and laugh at you."

"Yeah, while having a wedding ring on your finger at the time, right?"

"Shut up," Chris muttered. "Think you're better than me."

"Nobody said that Chris...but now that you mention it, sure, I do think that."

"Let's just get this damn match over with before this turns into a backyard brawl or something," Chris said, walking closer to the gorilla.

Chris's match ended with him getting (surprise, surprise) pummeled by Dave Batista. Chris was starting to think that Dave had a personal vendetta against him. He didn't know what he had done to the bigger man, besides being cooler, hotter, sexier, more talented and an all-around better guy than Dave. If those were reasons enough to hate someone, Chris must have a lot of enemies.

"Chris, are you all right?" Stephanie asked as he hobbled backstage, leaning on Randy.

"I think I'm actually getting used to those," Chris laughed sardonically. "Can someone's back adapt to those clothesline. Jesus Christ, that guy's arm is like a log."

"Well, at least he didn't knock your sense of humor out of you," Stephanie said, but wincing when she saw Chris was in pain.

"He just wants the shot, he's trying to soften me up for tomorrow in case he gets to me."

"Yeah, but if he softens you up anymore, you're going to be Silly Putty."

"I can handle him," Chris said, stepping away from Randy, "Thanks man, but I think I can stand."

"Ok, you sure you're going to be ok, did your head hit or anything?"

"Well yeah, it hit, but I'm fine, God, what is with people worrying about me? I'm tough."

"You won't look so tough as Silly Putty," Randy said, laughing along with Stephanie at the reference.

"Laugh at my pain, that's really nice of you two," Chris said, walking away from them. Stephanie waved to Randy and ran up to catch Chris.

"You're really all right?"

"Yeah, just wish that I knew why Dave hated me so much."

"It's because of me."

"Oh God, don't tell me he's in love with you TOO!" The last thing that he needed was for another guy to be in love with Stephanie. Sure, it was flattering and all that, having a hot girlfriend who everyone wanted, but this was just getting out of hand.

"No, it's about Hunter. Dave sees me as a threat to Evolution, and I guess he sees Evolution as his way to the top and he doesn't want me jeopardizing that."

"Like that would happen," Chris muttered. "He's a few lemons short of a barrel huh?"

"Might be," she answered. "Anyways, I don't think that Hunter's going to be a problem anymore."

"What makes you think that?"

"Wheels are turning sweetie, wheels are turning."


	3. Darn, Chris Lost, Taboo Tuesday, October...

"Shh!"

"Stephanie, I didn't say anything," Trish whispered.

"I know, I'm just taking every precaution here, I want to know who Randy is with."

"So do I, so don't crowd the door," Trish said, trying to push Stephanie out of the way.

"I'm not."

Stephanie and Trish were now camped across from Randy's locker room. They knew they were pathetic, but they wanted to know so badly who Randy was dating, that they just decided to forgo any pleasantries and haggling of Randy, straight to out and out spying. So here they were, each on either side of the door, on their hands and knees peeking out of the slimmest of slim spaces that the ajar door left them. But they still had the perfect view of Randy's locker room door.

"What if she doesn't come?" Stephanie asked.

"Oh, she'll come. Do you really think she'd be able to stay away from Randy for long?"

"He is cute," Stephanie observed, quite correctly.

"Yeah, and he's a good kisser too," Trish added. She looked up and saw Stephanie was giving her a smug look. "Shut up, I dated him, I'm allowed to say it. Just because I'm with Christian doesn't discount that about Randy."

"If you say so," Stephanie said in a sing-song voice.

"I'd ask how Hunter and Kurt measured up as kissers, but I have a feeling you'd balk at both of them."

"Yeah, and you probably kissed them too," Stephanie answered.

"Ooh, low blow McMahon, very low blow," Trish joked, pretending to be offended.

"I have those ready for when I need them."

"Well, back to the subject at hand. Is Randy even in there?"

"Yeah, he came earlier to check in with me and see if I'd reveal what his match was for later."

"Did you tell him?"

"No, I have to keep it a surprise."

"So you know all the results then?"

"Of course I do. I'm in charge around here. My dad received them, then he faxed them over here to me. I discussed them with Bischoff, and he decided that he'd just have Coach read the results during the show because Bischoff said that he had to 'prepare' for his match against Eugene. Whatever that means," Stephanie ended flippantly.

"So you can't even tell me what I have to dress up as?" Trish said. "I hate that we have to dress up as anything. Talk about trying to degrade us. I think that Stacy Keibler is the only girl who would feel comfortable wrestling like that, but she dresses like that anyways."

"That was a little bit catty, is Molly getting to you?" Stephanie asked.

"I wouldn't say that Molly is getting to me, but she is right about some things, like Stacy being...well, you know how it is," Trish said. "I hate to even think that Molly could be right, but she's right and that's it, that's all she wrote."

"Don't worry, even broken clocks are right twice a day...I bet you're hoping secret girl isn't Molly or Stacy then," Stephanie laughed quietly.

"It would make it a lot easier for me to like them at least, but Randy's been through so much so fast recently, that anyone who can make him laugh or show him a good time, I'll probably like, if only for Randy's sake."

"Yeah, I agree," Stephanie said. "Now that I'm happy, I just want everyone else to be happy too."

"That's pretty corny."

"Yeah, but it comes with the territory."

They heard footsteps coming down the hall and they quieted down, deciding mutually that they sounded decidedly feminine. They widened their eyes as they saw Gail Kim walk pas their door and then stop in front of Randy's door. Stephanie almost gasped. She hoped against hopes that she hadn't asked Randy's new girl to sleep with her ex-husband, that wouldn't do, that wouldn't do at all.

"Is it Gail?" Trish mouthed to Stephanie. Stephanie just shrugged and watched as Gail lifted her hand to knock on the door.

Randy answered moments later and Stephanie was holding her breath. "Yeah?"

"You're friends with Stephanie right?" Gail asked and Trish turned her head to give Stephanie a confused look. Now Stephanie was worried that Gail would reveal the plan to Randy, and Randy would probably subsequently chew her out for thinking of doing what she was doing.

"Yeah, I am, what's that have to do with anything? Why are you even here asking me that?" Randy said.

"Look, I didn't want to come find you anymore than I wanted a root canal all right. I'm just looking for Stephanie, and I couldn't find her and I couldn't find Jericho or anyone, and I know you're friends with her and I came here to see if you knew where she was. No harm, no foul right?"

"I don't know where she is. She should be near the ramp, or checking over the set construction," Randy said. "She's not here if that's what you wanted to know."

"Thanks for nothing," Gail mumbled.

"You're welcome," Randy said, shutting the door.

"Well, I think it's safe to say that Gail is NOT the girl," Trish said after Gail had walked away.

"I think it is safe to say that," Stephanie answered, her voice laced with relief. She would've felt terribly guilty if she had asked Randy's girlfriend to seduce Hunter.

"I wonder why she wanted to talk to you," Trish mused.

"Probably about something with the match," Stephanie said quickly, hoping that Trish wouldn't get suspicious. She didn't even know if it was for the plan, and she didn't want to jump to any conclusions, but at the moment, she couldn't think of any other reason for Gail wanting to see her. She couldn't possibly have slept with Hunter already...and if she had, man, she was good, but Stephanie figured that it wasn't that.

She didn't have any more time to think about when the door flung open and splayed both Trish and Stephanie out onto the floor. Startled, they looked up in horror, expecting it to be Randy coming and catching them. Instead they were looking into the eyes of their significant others, neither of which looked too happy with them. Trish gave out a nervous chuckle.

"Well, look what we have here Christian. It seems we have two little spies in our midst."

"Spies?" Stephanie scoffed. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Oh really," Chris answered, folding his arms. "So what are you doing then?"

"Yeah Trish, what were you guys doing?" Christian added.

Stephanie and Trish looked like two deer who had been caught in headlights. Their eyes were wide and they were still sitting on their butts on the floor, looking up at their fellows, who were looking down at them derisively. They couldn't know what they were really doing or they were going to get mad at them, since they had both promised (though with fingers crossed behind their backs) that they would stay out of Randy's business.

"We were..." Stephanie paused, which gave Trish enough time to blurt out a very stupid answer.

"Making out!"

Stephanie's eyes got impossibly wide as she swung her head almost violently to Trish, whose face was turning about fifty shades of red at the moment. Right now, she was going for the ketchup look. Chris's eyebrows raised as he nudged Christian and Christian just smirked in response. Not that they believed them or anything, but it was pretty funny that Trish would just blurt that out of all things.

"Making out huh?" Chris said, licking his lips to try and hold in his laughter. "And here I thought that I'd have to worry about a guy stealing you away baby."

Christian allowed himself a little chuckle, "Trish, I never knew you'd be a woman-stealing brazen hussy."

"See, that's not what I meant," Trish said, her face now a lovely shade of maroon. "What I meant was we were making out..."

"A map to the next arena," Stephanie said decisively, her voice firm and as calm as it could get considering Trish had just tried to make up an excuse that involved the two of them kissing. The thought made her shudder as she thought of that horrible HLA thing Bischoff tried to pull a while ago. Thank God she was running the show now.

"Oh really?" Chris said.

"Yes really."

"With no maps," Christian pointed out.

"Well..."

"And no lights on," Chris said, gesturing around.

"Well, we were practicing because we might have to travel during the nighttime and usually during the nighttime, you can only see by streetlight, so we were practicing like we could only see by a thin sliver of light," Stephanie said, to which Trish nodded vigorously.

"You can never be too well-prepared," Trish said.

"Do you have a mental map?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, we're well-traveled, we know our way around the country pretty well. I've been traveling for years now," she said haughtily, trying to sound like a know-it-all.

"From here to the next arena?"

"Yeah," Trish answered.

"When we're planning on going home tomorrow and flying to the next arena, next Monday morning," Chris told Stephanie.

"Well, Trish and I were discussing, when we were SO rudely interrupted that we thought we might just go around and you know...sightsee."

"Really?" Christian said.

"Yeah, we want to sightsee," Trish said.

"Steph, we're meeting with the cake people this weekend to decide what we want the cake to look like and the flavor, what about that?" Chris said.

"Oh yeah, well, there goes these plans," Stephanie shrugged.

"You guys are so sad," Chris told them. "Get off your asses, and stop spying on Randy."

"Spying! Why whatever do you mean?" Trish said, standing up and then helping Stephanie up. "We were doing nothing of the sort!"

"Yeah right," Christian said with a snort. "Why would you be right across from Randy's locker room, and tell the both of us bogus stories about having to go shopping really quick because Stephanie's skirt ripped?"

"Because you're stupid," Trish said.

"I gave you money to buy a skirt!" Chris said. "I would like to think I'm going to see that money back in my hands."

"Nope," Stephanie said, kissing his cheek. "It might rip sooner or later and then I'm going to need the money."

"I don't know if I can trust you again, lying to me like this. This breaks one of the vows doesn't it. And then what Stephanie...it'll lead to cheating, and I'll walk into our home and find you in bed with another man, and you'll divorce me. This is just setting us up for divorce! You're divorcing me!"

"Oh shut up," Stephanie said, giving him a little shove. "When I do it, it's cute, when you do it, it's annoying."

"Ok Christian, I think we need to split these two ladies up. It's obvious that they get really weird when they're together."

"I agree with you there," Chris said, "I think we need to take them to their separate corners before they do something that would just make the entire arena erupt in chaos."

"Like what Chrissy, steal all your clothes?" Trish teased.

"Schoolgirls Trish, that's what won," Stephanie said as Chris started to pull her away.

"Thanks Steph!" Trish called out as Christian pulled her in the opposite direction.

Chris put his arm around Stephanie and she couldn't help but think that he was doing that so she wouldn't run away. She felt like she was being punished right now and started to pout a little, not liking the fact that Chris had caught her and Trish, and had known exactly what they were doing. She was startled out of her thoughts when Chris pulled her closer and kissed the corner of her mouth.

"When are you ever going to learn?" Chris asked quietly.

"When I'm dead. Then it'll all come back to me won't it. And then I'll probably burn in hell for all of eternity."

"I will do everything in my power to make sure you don't burn in hell for all of eternity," Chris told her.

"Oh, you are the best," Stephanie gushed, reaching up to pinch his cheek. He annoyingly slapped her wrist away.

"So who am I facing tonight? Christian? Dave?" he said, Dave's name being drawn out because he really didn't want it to be Dave. Not that he didn't think that he could beat Dave, cause he could, he just didn't want to face him is all.

"Neither," Stephanie answered. "Although Dave came in second, but you're not facing either of them."

"If Coach won, I'm going to laugh myself silly."

"Go get ready for your match, it's coming up first you know. Once you're ready, then I'll tell you who it is."

"So this is considered a perk?"

"It's considered a perk," she nodded.

"Awesome, I'm still getting used to those."

Chris walked away, giving her a parting kiss before he left, as Stephanie made the short trip back to her desk near the ramp. Gail was waiting for her there, looking awfully impatient as she sat there. Stephanie ignored her for the moment and sat down before looking up at the diva in question.

"Can I help you?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, I just wanted a time frame for when the women's match was. Because I can't for the life of me find a damn schedule around here, and I kind of need to know if I'm going to be doing some stuff for some people," Gail said.

"I can find that out for you," Stephanie said, picking up her clipboard and flipping to a page of the schedule. "You're on at the beginning to find out what you're wearing and then the match is second on the list."

"Thanks, that's all I needed to know," Gail said, standing up and walking away. Stephanie sighed, glad that she hadn't directly wanted to talk about the plan. Happily, she went back to her work, and awaited Chris's arrival. He would probably sit next to her, like he always did (she always left an open seat for him), and either kiss her cheek to let her know he was there, though she could always feel his presence, or he would just sit there and watch her work. He had told her he loved to do that, though she had yet to figure out just why he liked to watch her so much.

It was in these daydreams that Dave Batista found Stephanie. She was sitting there, so smug and thinking that she was the best of everyone, and it bugged him. Everything about Stephanie bugged him. Just here being here bugged him, but what bothered him most of all was the way Hunter was acting around her. He was like a lovesick puppy or something, and he never shut up about her when they were out, it was frustrating to see his leader acting like such an idiot.

"Hey there," Dave said to her.

"Yes Dave," Stephanie said, trying to stay professional while not giving anything to Dave that he could use against her.

Dave sat down in the seat reserved for Chris and watched her. Stephanie felt very uncomfortable with him doing that, and she was trying to ignore him, but he was such a large presence it was hard to just forget he was there. But she did try, until she noticed Dave's hand was creeping closer and closer to her.

"Maybe you can show me why Hunter has so much invested in you," Dave said in a low tone.

"Hunter doesn't know anything, and he doesn't know me. He's holding onto someone that doesn't exist anymore."

"Well, obviously you gave him something that he couldn't forget. Mind sharing what it was?"

"What are you implying?" Stephanie asked, turning to face Dave. "I hope that you're not suggesting what I think that you're suggesting. Because if you are, I'm going to have to turn you down. I know, it's going to crush you, but you have to be strong Dave."

"Well, you know, now that I look at you, you're really pretty," Dave said, running a finger down her jaw line. Stephanie snapped her hand up and swatted him away from her, staring him down.

"Obviously you don't know who you're messing with here Dave. You haven't been here all that long, and that makes you think that for some reason, hanging around with Hunter will make you invincible, and without reproach. Rude awakening Dave, Hunter is not the guy in charge, maybe he is in that little group of yours. But nobody wants to play with you guys anyways."

"Do you really hate me Stephanie?"

"Do you really want me to answer that Dave?"

"It would certainly help."

"You're associated with the one man I wouldn't mind seeing drop out of sight forever. I think that by association, I'm going to have to hate you...or at least dislike you greatly. I know it must crush your fragile ego."

"You know it does," Dave said. "As long as you don't want Hunter, we're cool."

"Then we're cool Dave, and that's all that needs to be said."

"Until I beat your fiancé later for that tile of his," Dave said, standing up.

Stephanie smirked. She knew that Chris wasn't going to be facing Dave. He was going to be facing Shelton Benjamin, who had won by a considerable margin. She supposed that her father's endorsement really did mean something to the fans. But she would leave it up until later for Dave to find out that he had been beaten fairly and squarely by the fans. It wasn't even their choice, the people didn't choose Dave, and that was going to be humiliating enough.

"Yeah, you keep thinking that Dave, you just keep on thinking that," Stephanie muttered to herself when Dave left. Chris came up moments later, having seen the tail end of that scene.

"What was that all about?"

"Nothing, Dave is just making sure we were clear on where I stood with Hunter."

"Ok...so who am I facing tonight?"

"Shelton," she answered calmly. "God, I wish Dave would just leave me alone. He's such a nuisance."

Chris was distracted the entire match. He knew what Dave was up to, trying to fake out Stephanie, or something of that nature. And when he was distracted by Stephanie, she tended to preoccupy all of his thoughts, and this was the case. He just didn't like Dave messing around with Stephanie. It was one thing to lay him out on the mat, but he didn't want Dave interfering with Stephanie in any way, he just didn't want to think about it.

So he lost his title, and it was like the many losses before that, except this time, he was mad. Usually Chris could take losing the title with a certain amount of dignity, and poise that set him apart from other guys, like Edge and Hunter, but this time was different. It was the first time that he felt he had been legitimately robbed. Not because the fans had chosen Shelton, but because he had gone out there distracted, and it was probably how Dave had planned it.

He went backstage pissed, he passed by Stephanie pissed, and he walked into his locker room pissed, the door slamming behind him loudly. He could've broken the door off its hinges if he wanted to right now, he was that pissed. He picked up the nearest folding chair and flung it into the wall with a loud crash. It fell against the table, knocking his bag off of it, the contents spilling all over the floor. So he just went and finished the job, knocking the table over, leaving it on its side.

This was the scene that Stephanie walked in on, though she wasn't surprised to find any of the stuff in disarray. She had seen how angry Chris was, and she knew that she might find things this way. She tried to be discreet walking in, but it was unnecessary because he didn't even notice that she had walked in, and so she stood by the door and watched his meltdown happen.

"Son of a bitch!" he yelled at nobody in particular as another piece of furniture met its untimely demise. Things were getting knocked over and thrown left and right, right and left and Chris was huffing and puffing for breath now, being so worked up he was sweating more now than he had his entire match. He had angry tears in his eyes, Stephanie could tell when the light glinted off of them, and this was when she decided she had to step in. If she didn't, Chris might just collapse in the middle of the locker room.

She walked up to him and gently took a hold of the vase that he had picked up, taking it from him without too much struggle. "Hey, hey, no need to break other people's property."

"I'm pissed!"

"I know, but sweetie, taking it out on the furniture isn't going to solve anything."

"It'll make me feel better," he said, trying to take the vase away again. She put it behind her back, not letting him get at it.

"Why don't you let me make you feel better."

"It was Dave's fault, he distracted me."

"You'll get your hands on Dave," Stephanie said. "I can make sure of that."

"You can?"

"Of course I can," she answered. "Who do you think you're talking to? You're talking to me, the incomparable Stephanie McMahon. Don't worry about this in any way. We'll take care of Dave. I promise."

"Good...good."

Meanwhile, Gail Kim was stepping up to Hunter's door, wondering if Dave or Flair would answer. To her relief, neither one did and Hunter himself was at the door. She pressed her lips together, spreading the lip gloss over them and smiled enticingly.

"Do you mind if I come in for a second?" she said simply.

Hunter, intrigued, opened the door for her.

Gail walked in, the door closing silently behind her.


	4. Hee, Nice Ending, October 25, 2004

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews guys, much obliged. I love this chapter, which is so rare for me, but I loved writing it, I loved what happened, and it was like the show wrote the chapter for me. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. :)

Sorry for the lateness of this post, but was down last night.

* * *

Stephanie sat in her office when the phone rang. She didn't want to pick it up as the show was starting shortly and nothing seemed to be going right this evening. She had tried to have her weekly meeting with Bischoff, but he was having none of it. Seemed he was a sore loser. Even she had taken her firing better than this. She didn't act like a petulant child who was told they were going to get no dessert.

He refused to even participate in the conversation and so she was left to do most of the work herself. She wasn't prepared for that, and it was an important show. The shows after Pay-Per-Views always were, and this was no exception, despite it taking place six days after Taboo Tuesday. But right now, with no cooperation, and her staff seemingly feeling like taking the day off, she was left to be in charge. She glanced briefly at the phone, thinking she should answer it, but everyone she wanted to talk to was here already, but then she saw that it was Edge calling her and she picked it up.

"Stephanie McMahon," she said, just because it was habit to answer the phone, not because the people wouldn't know.

"I can't make it there tonight," Edge told her.

"What do you mean you can't make it!" Stephanie screeched. Now she had to deal with Edge not showing. Would the night get any worse, she hoped not because she was three seconds away from finding a corner and just chewing on her hair for the rest of the evening.

"I can't make it, there's some big delay over here and I can't make it out, and you know what, I'm sorry I can't be there, but this is what is."

"Edge, where are you?" Stephanie asked wearily, running a hand over her face in frustration over the situation.

"I had contract negotiations with your dad today, and I'm in Greenwich."

"I had you scheduled tonight for an interview with JR about your actions last week...can you go back to headquarters. I'll call personnel there, and we can conduct an interview straight from the offices."

"If that's what you want."

"It's not what I WANT, but it's just going to have to do now isn't it?" Stephanie said, now getting irritated by how nonchalant Edge seemed to be about the whole thing. Just like he was nonchalant when he had walked out on Benoit last Tuesday. Edge was really starting to develop a bad attitude.

"I guess, so I'll go back."

"Fine, good, ok, see you later."

Stephanie hung up on the call and went back to her work. Chris was off hanging around Christian and Trish, trying to stay out of her hair like she asked him to, and he was doing a good job, but she found herself missing the companionship. She was getting bored with all of this paperwork. She wanted someone to talk to right now. Her wish came true moments later, but certainly not in the fashion she wanted as Gail Kim walked in without even knocking.

Gail sauntered up to Stephanie's desk and plunked down into an empty seat in front of it, smacking her gum loudly and looking like she didn't have a care in the world. Maybe Stephanie should try to hook her up with Edge, they seemed apropos for each other. "So, I've tried to break in to Hunter's inner sanctum so to speak, and he didn't budge last Tuesday, but he was intrigued and told me to come by tonight."

"That's good," Stephanie nodded, her fingers perched to a point under her chin. "What did you do?"

"You only tell me what I have to do, I don't have to tell you what I do to make it happen."

"True, just as long as you get it done, I don't have a flying fig how you do it," Stephanie responded. "I won't tell you when you have to do it by, but the sooner the better, I'm getting married in January, and I don't need this on my back, or in my mind."

"Well, I'll get it done before January, I can tell you that much. I don't doubt it will happen, it'll happen."

"Good, I'm paying you good money."

"I know," Gail said, getting off the chair. "Just letting you know where we stand is all."

"Well sounds good, keep up the good work."

Gail slipped out of the room and that brought Stephanie's first smile of the day, thinking about how soon Hunter would be off of her back. And if Hunter got off of her back, then maybe Dave would finally get off her back. It was like a two-for-one deal with this, and it wasn't costing her that much money, though she wished that it had cost her no money at all. But sometimes life dealt you rotten apples and you had to make do with them.

"Can I come in, or would that be against the rules?" Chris said, peeking his head in through the door.

"No, I want to see your face," Stephanie said as Chris came over and occupied the seat that Gail had just sat in.

"Of course you want to see this face, I've got a gorgeous mug," he said, turning his face from side to side so she could see it from all angles.

"I can't argue with that. So why'd you come back?"

"Because Lita and Trish got in another fight and Christian had to get her, and it's ugly out there, and I fear that if Trish gets to see Lita again it's going to erupt into a fight. This time was Lita's fault though, surprisingly. You know how Trish is to people that betray her. Cold shoulder, frozen shoulder...you don't even want to get near her because she's so cold."

"You make her sound like a cube of ice."

"Cube of ice! That's what I was going for!" Chris said, snapping his fingers together.

"What was the fight about?"

"Oh, Lita said something about Trish and Christian and how Trish is probably using Christian or something, I have no idea, I just made that whole part up. There was lots of screeching, I think some hair-pulling. If I found Lita attractive at all, I might have remembered the fight more because of the whole two beautiful women thing."

"Pig," Stephanie muttered.

"Coming from the girl who made out with Trish Stratus last week," Chris said with a soft laugh.

Stephanie turned red, "We were NOT making out!"

"Could've fooled me; two girls, crouching on the floor in a dark room. I don't know what the hell was going on there. Not that I wouldn't take all the gory details, because I would sit here enraptured if you felt the need to say what it was like," Chris said with a lecherous wink.

"You're such a pig," Stephanie said to him. "Makes me rethink this whole marriage thing."

"I'm thinking about you...and Trish herself said you were making out."

"Trish just blurted that out and you know it."

"Do I? It's pretty suspicious. You and Trish always go off together. You say you're 'shopping,' but really what could that mean? Are you having an affair with her? I mean, you can tell me if you are. I might have to rebound by going out with Christian."

Stephanie narrowed her eyes and got up from her desk, pressing her hands to the top of it. Stephanie watched as he put his innocent face on, flashing her a smile that was both charming and mischievous. She walked around to the other side and stood in front of him as Chris looked up at her, the smile still on his face. She leaned down and started mock strangling him.

"Can't breathe!" Chris wheezed. "Murder! Police! Constable!"

Stephanie laughed at the last one and put herself down smack down in the middle of his lap, straddling him. She leaned down and kissed him, running her hands across this neck until she was holding onto him. Chris wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her so she was kneeling with her legs on either side of his hips. She was above him, her head down and his head almost looking straight up as she kissed the life out of him. He deepened the kiss and let himself play with the top of her skirt.

"Ah geez," a voice said as Chris and Stephanie broke apart, gasping for air. Stephanie was facing the door and looked up to see Chris Benoit.

"Hey Chris," Stephanie said, out of breath and with smeared lipstick. She pushed her hair behind her ears and smiled guiltily. "Did you knock?"

"For three minutes," Benoit said, succinct as usual.

"Sorry," Stephanie laughed.

"I'm not," Chris said, having a chestful of Stephanie at the moment since she was leaning up to talk to the other Chris.

"I'm not surprised," Benoit said. "I just wanted to know if I would having anything to do tonight."

"Um, can you just stick around Chris, tonight had just been a comedy of errors, and I have no idea what's going on right now."

"Could that be because you've got Chris trying to play tonsil hockey when he can't even play regular hockey?"

"I resent that!" Chris said, standing up and sending Stephanie to the ground in an ungraceful lump. She had to stand up quickly to avoid giving Benoit a private show of her private parts. "I can play hockey better than anyone on this roster. I'd like to see you take me on."

"Any time pretty boy," Benoit said good-naturedly.

"Ok, one thing I DO know, nobody's playing hockey tonight. So no need to argue, take this fight somewhere else."

"What's the use of marrying you if I can't have my way ALL the time?"

"Watch out before you turn into Hunter."

Chris started shuddering violently. "You know I only came in here to ask the same question as Benoit, which was to ask who I was going to face."

"Benjamin, rematch," Stephanie told him. "Now you have time to prepare and win, and do all that good stuff, and if you boys will excuse me, I have to make sure that this show goes ok, because I'm on my own since Bischoff has decided that his life is over and he wants to go write it in his diary and cry all night to the sad sounds of Sarah McLachlan."

Stephanie walked out and Chris watched her walk away, in the very male sense of the word as his head tilted and he focused in on a very specific area of her body. Benoit shoved him and Chris stumbled backwards. "What the hell was that for?"

"You've got her lipstick on," Benoit said simply before he left as well. Chris wiped vigorously at his lips.

Trish was swearing up a storm in her locker room, pissed that Lita would dare lay a hand on her. Christian was wincing with every curse word that slipped from her lips, the words becoming more graphic and uncomfortable each passing second. Trish had been able to get some good shots on Lita, but he felt like this was only the beginning of something bigger that was going to happen. They were about to abrupt.

"You could just leave her alone," Christian suggested, and immediately regretted it as he saw her look.

"Forget it! Oh yeah right, after she tried to hurt me! Chrissy, how could you just let her get away with that?"

"I'm not going to hit a woman Trishy," Christian answered. "No matter how much you dislike them."

Trish sighed, "Well, I guess if that's the route you want to take. Though you had no problem in the past."

"Well, I do have one now," he said, sticking his tongue out at her. "And I'm not going to get in the middle of whatever this thing is between the two of you. I know that you're mad about what happened between her and Matt, but don't you think. She did lose her baby Trish."

"She didn't want it, and I have that on good authority, straight from Matt himself. Maybe she changed her mind at the end, but still...the point remains."

"Hey, hey everyone!" Randy said walking in. "I am feeling good tonight."

"Oh shove it Orton!" Trish said, storming into the bathroom and slamming the door behind her.

Randy looked at Christian and asked quietly, so Trish wouldn't hear through the door. "What's wrong with her?"

"Lita," Christian answered, shrugging.

"Another fight?"

"Yup, another fight."

Trish flung the door open, "Don't look at each other like that, you don't think I don't see it! Or feel it, you both think I'm dumb! Don't you!"

"No--"Christian said quickly.

"Not at all!" Randy said, finishing Christian's thought for him.

"Just tell me this Randy, please tell me this, whoever girl you're seeing, whoever she is, please tell me she's not Lita. Anybody but Lita. Prissy Stacy, I don't care, mannish looking Jazz, I don't care, but Lita, please tell me that it's not Lita and you have some perverted fantasy about sleeping with a married woman."

"It's not Lita," Randy said.

"Look me in the eyes and say it, straight in the eye."

Randy rolled his own eyes and looked to Christian, who just looked amused with the situation, sitting back against the couch with a smirk on his face. He looked heavenward and walked forward, standing just centimeters away from her face. He leaned down and touched foreheads with her, staring her dead straight in the eye.

"The girl I am seeing is NOT Lita."

"Swear on something Randy," Trish said, her breath brushing his lips.

"I swear on my love for the World Title that Lita is not the woman that I am seeing. Besides she's married, and I have this policy about respecting a person's marriage," Randy said, stepping away from Trish. "But that's just my own personal belief working there."

"Ok, I believe you, and thank you for swearing. I just don't want to have to deal with her. If it were her, you'd probably try to make us the best of friends or something, set us up on a shopping trip."

"But then you'd get Stephanie and the two of you would double-team her until she dumped me because she would be so scared of you and Stephanie, she would have no choice but to run away screaming."

"Well, you've got that right," Trish said, crossing her arms under her breasts. "She'd be so gone."

"Ok, well now that my word has been questioned, I think I'll leave before you ask me to swear on a stack of Bibles. You may go and tell Stephanie now that the woman I'm seeing is not Lita. And it's not Gail Kim either you nosy girls," Randy added as a footnote.

"Who told you?" Trish said, glaring at Christian, who shook his head.

"Unless you two really were making out, and then you just should've told me, I'm sure that could get two hundred dollars a ticket, don't you think so Christian?"

"Two easy. Stephanie and Trish making out, guys would pay good money to see that."

"You did tell you little brat," Trish said, throwing a shirt she had lying on the table at Christian, hitting him in the face. He took it off and threw it back at her, but she caught it.

"I'm going to kick your ass!" Trish yelled as Christian made a scared face and hopped off the couch and out of the room. Trish was in hot pursuit as she ran after him. Randy stood there, alone, in the middle of the locker room.

"I wonder how much I could make if I made something like that happen," he pondered aloud to nobody. Might as well get out of here though, his mystery girl had wanted to see him. They were going out later that evening, since both of them had nothing to do tomorrow, they could stay out late.

"I have no idea what's going to open the show, Bischoff won't come out of his office, and we've got nothing to start the show," Stephanie said, that earlier plan of hiding in the corner and chewing on her hair sounding better and better by the second. She knew this night was going to be screwy. She just hoped that it wouldn't and it would go off without a hitch.

"Just do the best you can baby," Chris said, sitting next to her. "It's not your fault that he wants to take the night off and shirk responsibility because he lost a little bit of hair. And some of his dignity...he deserved it anyways."

"That may be so, but still, now I'm the only one in charge, and it's easier when you have a puppet like Bischoff."

"I know, but if anyone can do it, then you can."

Stephanie crossed her arms on the table and let her head fall against them facing down. She almost started crying, but she wasn't in the mood for any crying. She just sighed deeply and closed her eyes. She felt Chris scoot closer to her and he rubbed her hands, dropping a kiss to the crown of her head.

"You do an amazing job around here," he started, his voice a whisper, for her and her alone. "You are the best boss any of these guys have had. Bischoff doesn't do a good job at all, and you are the saving grace of this show week in and week out. You make this look easy, and I know that I could never do what you do ever. I wouldn't even know where to begin."

Stephanie turned her head to the side to look at him. "You mean that?"

"Hey, I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it. You're amazing Stephanie McMahon."

"Thanks, I don't know what—what the hell is going on!" she yelled as she looked at the television screen and saw Evolution out there. She quickly turned up the volume to hear what they were saying and groaned loudly as they declared themselves in charge. She got up from her seat and started pacing right in front of where the wrestlers entered as they arrived backstage. When Evolution got back there she went straight up to Hunter and said, "What the hell was that!"

"Just telling everyone who's in charge," Hunter said.

"Well unless you've suddenly become ME in the last few minutes, I'M in charge!" Stephanie told him in no uncertain terms. "Do NOT forget who is boss around here Hunter, or I swear to God, it will bite you in the ass."

"Stephanie, come on, we both know that you don't run the show around here. You're just here for decoration."

"Well, my "decorational status" aside, I own you, and don't forget it."

Chris let her take care of this battle be herself, knowing that she could handle it. Stephanie was good at standing up for herself and he saw that manifested right now as she let Hunter know that she was in charge. She was still yelling at him, and Chris was starting to get mad, but before that anger could manifest itself into anything, they were gone and Stephanie was sitting beside him angrily.

"I hate him, hate him so much," she said, scribbling madly onto a notepad. "Stupid...can't stand...do anything to get rid of him."

"Steph, you handled that as best you could."

"He's such a scourge," she told him.

"I know. I have to go warm up over there for my match, but looking at Randy right now," Chris said, gesturing to Randy who was standing there staring at Stephanie, "He's either picturing you making out with Trish, or he's incredibly impressed by how you just laid into Trips."

"A little bit of both actually," Randy said, sitting down where Chris had just been. "You know, I have a feeling that Hunter listens to you more than he listens to anyone else."

"But he barely listens to me."

"Better than anyone else who he never listens to. That's Hunter for you though, never listening to anyone that isn't the voice inside his head. Damn that voice too, always telling him to be a jackass."

Stephanie laughed. "He is a jackass."

"A big one, which is why I have to go make sure that I win this match against Flair tonight so I can try and beat said jackass into the ground and regain my title belt."

"You go do that, I have to make sure that nothing else screws up with this show. We've already been having audio problems that the truck can't even explain to me."

"Good luck," Randy said sincerely and walked off in the direction of his locker room. He was pleasantly surprised to see his new lady sitting on the couch in his locker room. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I saw Christian and Trish running around a little while ago, and Jericho has his match on right now, and I figured Stephanie is near the ramp waiting for him or something, and so I thought I might actually find you alone."

"Well, when you're popular like me, you find people wanting to talk to you everywhere."

"I still don't get how you started hanging out with them."

He shrugged. "I dated Trish for a while, and it just ballooned until I found myself with a group of people who actually liked Randy, and not Randy, the guy who can get you women."

"You got me, so I don't think that you've lost any points in that department," she said, standing up and walking over to him.

"I did, didn't I? And lucky me then," Randy said, leaning down to give her a small kiss. "I like doing that."

"Then do it more often," she ordered, but he could tell that she was joking around with him. But just to prove his point, he kissed her again. "So what was the funny story you HAD to tell me?"

"I was going to save it for tonight," he said.

"But I'm here now, and you might as well tell me now, don't you think?"

"Fine, well, Stephanie and Trish were spying on me, trying to figure out who you were...as in, who my girlfriend was."

"Oh, but I get the feeling that's not the half of it."

"It isn't, but I think I gave you a little sneak peek, so you can just live off of that until I tell you the story later."

"They didn't find out who I was though?"

"No, and Trish actually made me promise that it wasn't Lita, because she doesn't like her."

"Nope, I know for a fact that I'm not Lita."

"That's a good thing to know."

Stephanie waited for Chris, despite the bearing down of her work on her. She wasn't going to let some audio snafus get in her way. She was just going to bear with it, and live with it. Oh hell, she just needed to stay away from it for the moment. Besides, Chris had just lost, again, and he had gone up to Shelton and congratulated him. The boundless amounts of kindness of her fiancé exhibited never ceased to surprise her, and here he was again, showing how good a man he really was. You would never see Hunter shake a guy's hand for a good match.

Chris walked backstage, and though he had put on a show of bravado, he was feeling pretty low. He hated losing, what guy didn't, but he did lose and it was a bad loss. He had had Benjamin, he could feel it, and he made a stupid mistake, one second of being unaware had cost him, and now he was titleless, and left with nothing...well, nothing except the beautiful blue eyes that were searching his right now, or the soft, manicured hands cupping his cheeks, or the warm heat coming off the body he knew almost as well as his own.

"You are amazing," she whispered, using the same sentiment he had earlier when she was breaking down. "I don't know how you do it, or where it comes from Chris Jericho, but you are an amazing man."

"I lost," he told her.

"Yeah, you did, but how many men can take a loss and come out looking like the winner?"

Why her words always got through to him, he would never know, and neither would she, but mainly because she never looked to find the reason why. They just did, and she just had the knack for knowing what he needed to hear, and never failing to say it when it was the appropriate time.

"You think I'm a winner?"

"I think you're a lot of things," she answered. "As far as I'm concerned, you're always a winner if you have me."

"Had to get that in there, didn't you?" he said.

"Stay with me."

"I'm always with you."

"Come on and sit with me here, you can shower later, and I can help," she said with a wink.

"Ok, just let me go get a towel from my locker room," he said, "Then I'll come here and be with you."

"You better be back soon or I'll fill that chair with someone else," she teased as she patted him on the back when he walked away.

Chris walked back to his locker room, feeling dejected again. Why was it that when he was with Stephanie, everything just seemed to fade into the background? It was a talent she had. And it wasn't exclusive to now, when he loved her. He was pretty sure that when he hated her, she had the talent to make him focus on nothing but his hatred for her. She was just simply...mesmerizing, casting her spell on the oblivious, who only found out about her tricks too late.

Without Stephanie there, he simply looked down, plowed forward and walked to his locker room. Little did he know that he had just run into Hunter, but he did notice that he had run into Flair. He walked past, not wanting to deal with those guys at the moment, but Hunter had other plans (like usual) and pulled him back. Chris was just tired and wanted to get back to Stephanie so she could say something cute, or teasing, or sweet and he could forget that he was a loser. But nope, Hunter didn't want that. Hunter wanted to lay him out...jealousy was so ugly when wore on the backs of other people.

Chris wanted to tear into Hunter, tell him that Stephanie was in charge, that she was the one who was running the show, and that he had to get over this weird crush he had on his former wife, but never got the chance. He was almost perturbed to see Maven come up and try to stand tall with him. He was more than capable of dealing with this himself, he had put up with Hunter and his antics for years now, and he REALLY wanted to tell off Hunter on Stephanie's behalf. Oh well, that would have to come another day.

Before he knew it, most of the roster was there, seemingly to back him, and the other part because they too were sick of Evolution. Sudden mass mobs can be a beautiful thing in the right situation, and this was the right situation if there ever was one. Hunter, Dave, and Flair backed off, and they at least knew how to count, though Dave could probably take on a good lot of them (judging from personal accounts that made the man out to be a monster, which he was, not that 'monster' should be a derogatory word, especially not in Dave's case, because he'd be liable to beat you up over it). Still, it was a minor triumph on a crappy day.

He went and got his towel, ignoring the sudden meeting that took place between the other Raw guys. He didn't feel like talking, not after his loss, and maybe the other guys understood, or maybe they could see, but they made no attempt to talk to him, save for Benoit. But Benoit would come up to him later, he was sure. Benoit had a knack of always showing up when you didn't want him too, but then doing something brilliant that you were glad he was there.

"The audio crapped out again," Stephanie said, "I didn't get to hear what Hunter said to you."

"The usual, he hates me, I'm a punk, he wants to fight me to the death so he can win your hand in holy matrimony," Chris answered as he sat back down again, toweling himself off.

"Oh, that's all, I was hoping he was saying something along the lines of, 'Chris, you ARE the perfect guy for Stephanie, and I see that now, and I'm so sorry that I've been causing you guys trouble, congratulations on your marriage, and I'll be sure to check out the registry to know what to get you,' but I'm guessing that's too much to ask."

"Much too much."

"Darn, I was hoping for a second there," she said, pretending to be upset. "I love you."

"Well that was out of the blue."

"I know, but sometimes that's when you mean it the most."

"Oh, I didn't know that, and now I do."

"Yeah, so hopefully the audio is better. I can barely get two words from the truck. Bischoff is probably in there, boozing it up or something and causing me to have a nervous breakdown. My hair is going to be as white as Bischoff's by the end of the night," she said with a sarcastic, and yet truly frightened laugh.

"I love you," Chris said, gazing at her.

"See, it means more now," she told him, leaning in to kiss him. "You're getting the hang of this whole 'I love you' thing. I thought you would never catch on."

"I'm a slow learner," he told her.

"Yeah, well, right now you'd be better than my entire crew I'm sure," Stephanie said, going back to work, knowing that Chris could occupy himself for a while.

Which he did, but it wasn't in the form of watching her, or doodling on her notes, or playing tic-tac-toe with the Tic-Tacs she kept around (nothing worse than being a boss with less than fresh breath). Benoit came up to him, signaled simply by nodding his head in Chris's direction, and through the power of telekinesis (or the fact that that Chris had partnered with Benoit before for a long period of time and thusly knew what Benoit meant) Chris got up, pecked Stephanie on the cheek and followed Benoit, not knowing for what reason, but knowing there was a good reason.

The reason was Evolution, and Bischoff's theory of the inmates running the asylum, and the fact that Chris (Jericho) had been weirdly appointed the chief of this little set-up that was going on. (It must have happened at the meeting he ignored, majority rules after all, although people will tell you it was unanimous, probably because Chris had already staged the biggest upset of all, stealing Stephanie from Hunter.) But there it was, and he found himself standing up to Dave, though he wasn't really afraid of Dave, much to Stephanie's chagrin, when she told him to be careful around Dave.

It felt good for some reason, but the best was truly yet to come. He sat there, with Stephanie, but there was a rumbling going on, he could feel it. There was whispering abound, and an occasional look to him, though he couldn't figure out why. There were some normal moments, an exhausted Christian running away from Trish, who they had seen get in ANOTHER fight with Lita, and of course, Gene Snitsky talking on the phone telling someone it wasn't his fault. But there was the rumbling again, even Stephanie could feel it as she leaned in closer to Chris.

"What is going on around here?" she asked.

"I have no idea," Chris said, looking around, like there were eyes on him somewhere. Maybe there were, he had no idea, but the feeling was a little unsettling.

"I feel like there's some weird energy here tonight," Stephanie said.

Benoit came up to Jericho again, "Chris, you ready for a fight."

"With who?" Chris asked, knowing who, but wanting confirmation.

"Me and you, and Randy, we've been having the most trouble with Evolution lately, but they aren't very liked by anyone."

"True on both counts," Chris said. "So what's your point?"

"Something's going down, and we need you."

"What's going down?" Stephanie asked. "What are you guys planning?"

"You in Chris?"

"Getting my hands on Hunter, you bet your ass I'm in."

"In what?" Stephanie asked again, feeling very confused.

"I'll be back baby," Chris said, kissing a confused Stephanie, which was like kissing a dead fish. He followed Benoit and waited for him to speak.

"We're staging ourselves a little bit of a coup," Benoit told him.

"I'm liking this more and more."

And so Benoit explained the plan, and Chris's grin got wider and wider. Until they ran out to help Randy, where Chris automatically went into hyperdrive. Beating on Dave was good, but it wasn't great, and when they went backstage, Chris knew, he knew it might finally be the moment. The moment might finally come. For what you may ask yourself? Well...stay tuned.

Chris, Benoit, and Maven (odd choice, but all right, Chris wasn't going to argue) walked out onto the ramp, Chris in the middle (he was the leader remember, and he had the most hatred for Hunter) and he was looking Hunter dead in the eye as he backed up, and when Hunter and Flair tried to leave, poof, there were Raw guys, waiting, and Chris was in the ring, the fallen Randy struggling, but getting on his feet. But Chris was there, and Chris was mad. Every sore feeling he had had for Hunter in the last five years spilled over into the opportunity of a lifetime, and there were many things for which Hunter needed to pay.

A short list would include:

-Having his first WWF title win revoked by the referee for a fast count (like Hunter had never won with one of those before.)

-Having him beat with that sledgehammer to the point where he needed medical attention and bandages.

-Beating him in the Last Man Standing Match.

-Telling him that he wasn't even a challenge against him at WrestleMania X-8.

-Sending Stephanie out of the business she loved, and away from Chris.

-Beating him in that Hell in a Cell match, which he should've won easily.

The list went on and on, and on and on some more, but number one on that list, the most important thing for which Hunter had to pay, was summed into one word, and one simple word at that. Nine letters really, nine simple letters that formed the most important word in Chris's wide array of language.

-Stephanie. (Because didn't it all really boil down to her anyways?)

And for her, he would do anything, and for her, he would stand there, look Hunter in the eye, and let the anger flow. There was no bitterness, no resentment, just anger, residing in his gut for a long time, that was no being set free. And Hunter had nowhere to run. The situation...would be perfect if Stephanie were here and helping in this beatdown, maybe telling Hunter that she wanted to rip his heart of his chest and then make him eat it (the tests are still pending on whether or not Hunter has a heart).

Hunter tried to evade the guys and make a break for it, but it was too late. He was grabbed from behind, and Chris smiled in satisfaction as he was thrown back in the ring, a ring of people now surrounding the champion. Benoit took him first, giving him a few German suplexes and then, Chris didn't have time to think before he found himself flying carelessly through the air, knocking the wind out of Hunter as he gave him the Lionsault. That was a rush almost better than sex, if he was having sex with anyone other than Stephanie, that would be a rush better than sex.

Chris was pumped now, the adrenaline rushing through his veins like gasoline through a car getting ready for the Indy 500. He was ready and he walked up to Randy, grabbing onto his head and bringing him so they were forehead to forehead.

"For Stephanie," Chris said, a hard edge to his voice.

Randy answered back, his voice just as energized, "For Stephanie."

Chris went immediately back to Hunter, dragging the man up onto his knees, Benoit and Maven helping him while Randy riled up the crowd. Chris was in front of him now, a look of triumph and eerie calm in his eyes as he stared into Hunter's eyes.

"You know who this is for don't you! DON'T YOU! This is for Stephanie you bastard, and you better remember that," Chris said, spitting in his face as he pulled the man to his feet, the other's holding him back. And then Randy RKO'ed him and life was perfect. Life was perfect, if only for a few moments, a few minutes, an hour, time stretched, and he was cheering and looking down at the fallen man, and life was perfect. Hunter was the one on the ground, he was the one suffering, not Chris.

And life...for a moment...was perfect.


	5. Dave Was Looking HOT, November 1, 2004

A/N: I've gotten several reviews asking either why Trish is so mean to Lita, and why don't I make Lita and Trish friends. I thought I gave the reason, I may have, I don't read the chapters regularly, but apparently, it wasn't very clear, so I guess I have to come up with a new reason.

It also has to do with the fact I don't like Lita...in the ring or out of it. I don't think she's that great, and I think she's not a very good actress. And I like Trish a lot more, especially tonight, I thought she did a good job tonight in her promo, but I digress. I just really don't like Lita, and I guess that's why I don't make her a regular in this story. I'm sorry if that disappoints people. Not to mention, it wouldn't make a whole lot of sense for Trish to be so angry with Lita one second and then really nice to her the next. I don't know why it works for Chris and Christian and not Lita and Trish, but it just doesn't. Maybe if Trish and Lita ever become friends again, I can write that in, like I had before, but not right now. I think I enjoy heel Trish far too much for that. ;)

But thank you for all the reviews, I'm glad you enjoyed the last chapter. :)

* * *

Stephanie went over the pricing sheet for the flowers for her wedding. Chris had offered to help, but she had refused the help and he had wandered off, leaving her to her own devices. She wasn't mad or anything, she would rather just take care of this herself rather than burden Chris with figures and decisions that he had no clue about making. She was just about to decide whether she wanted white lilies or blue ones when Bischoff walked into her office.

"Stephanie, we need to talk," Bischoff said flatly.

"Are you breaking up with me Bischoff, please don't give me the, 'It's not you, it's me,' routine. I don't think that my heart could take it," Stephanie said sarcastically, setting her papers down on the desk to look hardly at Bischoff.

"I'm serious here," Bischoff told her, and he dared sound exasperated. Stephanie was curious enough to want to know just what this was about. She hoped it wasn't him complaining about last week, and how her fiancé had ruined the show. But knowing Bischoff, that was probably what this was all about.

"Ok, and now I'm in serious mode," she said, folding her hands on her desk and leaning in a little to hear what he had to say.

"I liked what happened last week?"

Stephanie furrowed her brow and sat back, "You mean you liked having the time off? Well, if that's the case, then why don't you just quit and I can take over your job."

"That's not what I meant Stephanie," Bischoff deadpanned.

"Oh, well, excuse me. I guess it was wrong of me to assume, considering that you did nothing last week, and left it up to the roster to decide what to do, which they did. I'm so glad you just decided to blow everything off, and leave me with so little notice that the whole show was just a big does of chaos."

"You can't tell me that you didn't mind the outcome of last week. I figured you would love anything that made your ex-husband look like a fool in front of millions of people."

"Regardless of what I thought about last week does not make it any nicer on me to do what you did. Next time, at least give me a little bit of notice."

"I liked what happened to Evolution Stephanie, if you haven't gotten that far in your thinking yet."

Stephanie looked at him. There was NO way that Bischoff enjoyed what happened. Evolution were Bischoff's golden boys. He did everything for them, catered to their ever whim. He never disciplined them, even when they were in the wrong, which was most of the time. This had to be a trick. Maybe Hunter, Dave, and Flair were waiting outside to beat her up, or make her life miserable.

"You've got to be kidding me," Stephanie scoffed. "What are you playing at Bischoff? Cause whatever it is, I ain't falling for it."

"I'm not joking with you, look at me Stephanie! Look at me! I had my head shaved! And did Evolution even help me, NO! And that is something I'm not willing to overlook. So I think that Hunter got what he deserved."

"You're serious?"

"Very serious. And I think I know just the thing to make sure they know that they're being punished."

A slow smile spread across Stephanie's face as Bischoff outlined just what he had in mind. She had to admit, that when Bischoff wasn't being an all-around jerk, he could indeed be pretty good at the whole mastermind thing. And now was no exception as the plans for Survivor Series started to unfold. The icing on the cake was when Bischoff slid the tape across the table to her and told her that it was a planned tape with Hunter, announcing that he wouldn't be on the show tonight. That almost made her jump out of her seat and do cartwheels across the room.

When Bischoff left, knowing exactly what he was going to do tonight, Stephanie took the tape of Hunter and put it in the VCR that came standard with her office. Lounging back in her leather chair, she watched as Hunter talked to the people. She had never pegged Hunter as a coward before tonight, mainly because he had never shown himself to be a coward, but this was just about the most cowardly thing she had seen in quite some time. Hunter was running away because he was outnumbered. She wondered what Dave and Flair thought about this. The numbers for Evolution were dwindling slowly.

She laughed when Hunter said that he was the meal ticket for all these guys here. Was that the most delusional statement she had ever heard? Well, it ranked among the highest. It was just like Hunter to discount the hard work of everyone on the roster in light of the achievements of himself. It was just like him to put himself first, the title second, and everything else a distant third. She had grown tired of being the bronze medal a long, long time ago.

"Stephanie," Trish said, her voice bubbly and high-pitched, "Have I thanked you today for being such a wonderful friend?"

Stephanie looked up from Hunter's monologue, already growing weary of the little pity party Hunter was throwing for himself. Let him wallow, maybe he would even wallow in the beds of some other women and get off her back. She looked at Trish and smiled at her friend, though not knowing why she was being thanked, though she appreciated it nonetheless.

"No, but why am I a wonderful friend?"

"For letting me into the vaults at Titan. I got all the video footage I need to spring on Lita. And guess what?"

"What?"

"Bischoff just told me that I'm going to be in a match with her at Survivor Series. I can't wait to take her fake red hair and--"

"Hey Trish?"

"Yeah?"

"Why do you hate Lita so much? I mean, you guys were friends, for quite a long time. And now...excuse me if you think I'm being forward, but now you suddenly can't stand her guts, and I'm a little perplexed. I mean, I could see if she was going after your title, but really Trish, she did just lose her baby, and that's gotta be hard," Stephanie said, wondering what kind of motivation Trish had for hating Lita so steadfastly.

Trish looked down. "I don't know...a mixture of things I guess. I know that people see me as the bad guy in all of this, but I think people fail to see that Lita is in no better position than I am. In fact, she could be in a worse position than I am."

"How do you figure that?"

"Matt was heartbroken to know that he wasn't the father of Lita's baby. He called me five times that week, just to talk, and he actually CRIED because Lita had lied to him about sleeping with Kane. She was never going to tell him...or at least that's the impression that she gave him. And it bugged me that she would do that to Matt."

"But still...she lost her baby."

"Christian had a crush on her," Trish said quietly. "Remember when Chris was pursuing me for the plan?"

"Of course, I thought I was going to pull my hair out over that damn plan," Stephanie said with a sad chuckle; she would rather just forget that whole episode happened.

"Well, I know that Christian and I were broken up, but he had a crush on her...and I was jealous," Trish answered, her voice soft, and extremely sad. "I was so jealous that he could just move on while I was still in love with him."

"But Trish...you're with Christian now," Stephanie said. "You don't have to do this to Lita."

"Why should I ease up now?" Trish said defensively. "She...she's done so much crap to people and yet nobody sees her as anything but a victim!"

"Trish, calm down," Stephanie said, standing up.

"No! I don't want to calm down. I'm sick and tired of Lita being everyone's princess. Of her being this goddess or something that you can't speak badly about because she lost her baby. Do you know why she did? Huh? Because she didn't leave well enough alone! She let her baby be put in danger the second she was in that ring. How reckless do you have to be to put your baby in danger like that! I mean, she was getting this gift, this really special gift and she threw it away. She got in that ring to stop that Snitsky guy from hitting Kane...like Kane has never taken a chair shot before, the man has been set on fire! And I'm sorry, but I'm tired of people feeling sympathetic for Lita when she wasn't even smart enough to protect her child," Trish said, storming out of the room even as Chris entered it. She ran right into him, but kept walking, ignoring him, and leaving not only him, but Stephanie confused as well.

"Lover's spat?" Chris teased.

"For once in your life, keep your damn mouth shut," Stephanie said, sitting down in her chair, obviously angry. "Seriously, just once, learn to keep your mouth shut."

"Are you talking to me, or yourself?"

"You, just shut up, don't talk and leave me the hell alone," she pouted, skulking down into her chair until she looked like a five-year-old, trying to look self-important even as ribbons flowed down their back.

"Ok, so I'm guessing that you and Trish had a fight, and now you're mad."

"Wow, did you come up with that all by yourself. And they say the Canadian school system is the pits."

"Who said that?" Chris asked.

"I made it up, it's what they say about America's school system, so it must be the same in Canada...or something, I don't know."

"Ok," Chris said slowly, approaching Stephanie's desk with the utmost precaution. You never knew the reaction you were going to get with Stephanie. She was like an active volcano. You knew they could erupt, but you never really could predict it until bam, you were running from lava. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Do I look like I want to talk about it?" Stephanie said, and her stance, posture, and eyes told him not to touch the subject for fear of his life. He nodded and just sat down across from her, not saying a word. She turned her chair sideways so she wasn't looking at him dead-on; she didn't want to look in his eyes and cave. But Chris just stared at her, not speaking, just...looking at her. It was almost maddening, almost like that Poe classic where the beating of the heart drove the man insane. Chris's look was driving her insane until she swung her chair towards him, her eyes bordering on violent. "Would you stop looking at me!"

"Well, you didn't want to talk about it," he shrugged.

"You make me so mad sometimes."

"You're cute when you're angry," he said cheekily, knowing that her eyes were about to go into that supernova they usually did, bursting with anger. It was like watching the night sky twinkle with the stars, waiting for that comet to burst through. So too were Stephanie's eyes. Dark and cloudy, yet filled with light that he couldn't explain, like he couldn't explain the stars.

"Oh shut up," she repeated from earlier, except this time her voice was definitely less angry, and more amused than anything else. She ran her finger along the edge of her desk, not knowing how to proceed, or talk to Chris, but she was Stephanie and plowed on. "You're going to be in the main event for Survivor Series."

"So I heard," Chris said. "Bischoff told me. Guy seemed a little too happy to tell me."

"He's turning over a new leaf, or so he says. Did you hear the stipulation?"

"Now that I did not hear," Chris said, leaning in to hear her.

"If you win, you get to run Raw for a month. And by run Raw, that means go through me, but you pretty much get to rule the roost around here. You can show my father that you'll be great management material."

Chris groaned, "Stephanie, when will you learn--"

"I know, I know, you don't want to be a business man, well, regardless, if you were in charge, you would be in charge of Hunter."

"Wait a second," Chris said, "You mean, I would be in charge of what happens with him?"

"Yes! Chris, what do you think running Raw means? You will get free reign, you will be like...me...except you won't be me, but you get the drift."

"Well, now things just got interesting," Chris said, rubbing his hands together. "It's just too damn bad that we have Maven on our team, I mean really? Maven!"

"The other team has Gene Snitsky."

"Oh well then that levels the playing field a little."

"I thought you might like to know."

"I do, and thank you," he said, then paused, deliberating his next words. "So what happened with Trish?"

"She explained her hatred for Lita...though I still think there's something that we don't know about. I'm not going to pry," she said quickly, seeing that Chris was about to open his mouth and tell her not to butt into anyone's business, but she didn't need a talking to tonight. Stephanie may be nosy, but she knew when to keep her nose out of other people's business. Being nosy was fun when it involved something fun, but there was nothing fun about the speech that Trish had given her earlier. "I'm just worried about her. It's not like Trish to hate so maliciously."

"Ok, so Trish is mad. Let Christian take care of it, that's what he's there for."

"Yeah, true, very true...I promise not to pry!"

"Just making sure...now does daddy get some sugar?" Chris said, tapping his cheek with his finger.

Stephanie's lip curled up in disgust, "What the hell did you just say?"

"Nothing."

"That was disgusting...don't ever say it again."

"Done, and done."

"So do you have any covert operations for tonight?"

"I might have a trick or two up my sleeve," Chris said mysteriously. He got up from his chair and walked around her desk, kissing her chastely on the forehead before leaning down to connect his lips with hers. She held his head in place to prolong the kiss and finally let go when she felt satisfied.

"See you later?" she asked.

"Like I was going to go anywhere," he answered, stepping out of the room moments later, leaving Stephanie.

Chris met up with Christian a few feet from Stephanie's door, and he looked particularly worried. Chris walked up to him and put a hand on his shoulder, startling the other man. Christian's eyes looked different, concerned, and he was looking all over the place. He turned to Chris and let a smile come over him.

"Hey stranger," Chris said. "I haven't talked to you all week."

"Well, we're on different sides of the fence now, and you have this little barricade of Raw guys around you. I tried to make an appointment, but was told I wouldn't get to see you for a while."

"I'm not the leader, I would say Randy is. Where's Trish? She and Stephanie had a fight."

"Hey, can we just...Trish and I are going to keep to ourselves this week. She's pretty upset, and I don't want anything else to upset her. This whole Lita thing has her on edge. I don't want her getting really angry, because I'm the one who has to sleep with her at night."

"Um...yeah, I'll tell that to Stephanie," Chris answered. "Would it be wrong of me to ask why Trish is so mad?"

"Just...stuff," Christian said, "It's hard to explain, and I'm sure she told Stephanie a big chunk of it, and knowing you and Stephanie, the word is going to travel pretty quickly between the two of you."

"Ok, well...tell Trish that I hope she feels better."

"She'll appreciate that, thanks man," Christian said. "I'm gonna go talk to her."

"Bye," Chris called out, then felt two arms wrap around his waist. "I thought I just left you. What are you doing? Stalking me?"

"And if I was."

"I'd buy you a ski mask," Chris told her.

"Nope, you can't buy me anything, you're the almost-birthday boy!"

"No I'm not," Chris said in a sing-song voice.

"Is it, or is it not your birthday in approximately eight days?" she asked.

"I don't know who you're talking about lady, but it's nobody's birthday in eight days."

"Is someone apprehensive about turning the big 3-4."

"No," Chris said, elongating the vowel for much too long.

"Aww, sweetie, its ok, I like older men. It makes you distinguished."

"Steph, I'm not robbing the cradle," Chris told her, "You're not that young."

"Well that just earned you nothing tonight, and to think I was going to let you score and then run off and tell all your friends that you bagged one of the hot chicks."

Chris turned around and wrapped his arms around her neck, leaning his forehead against hers and staring deeply into her eyes. Stephanie smiled coyly and batted her eyelashes, almost comically at him. Chris opened his mouth to say something, but Stephanie seized the opportunity to shove her tongue down his throat and otherwise engage him in a passionate kiss. She didn't care that she had only come out here because she had to do her job, Chris tended to fog her mind to the point where she couldn't even tell you what year it was.

"You have work to do," another voice said, and she broke apart from Chris to see Randy smirking at the two of them, "And I have to steal your boyfriend."

"Fiancé," Stephanie corrected. "But you can have him. Take good care of him. He gets cranky sometimes in the morning, but I'm sure waking up next to you will put him in a cheery mood every single day, since you're so cute Randy."

"Oh, so I'm going to be passed off like a cheap cigarette, well it's nice to know that I'm loved around here," Chris said, pretending to sob.

"Hey, come on, I've got some ideas for tonight," Randy said, tugging on Chris's shirt.

"Do you need my help little man?" Chris said in a patronizing voice.

"I'm bigger than you are."

"In height only," Chris said with a snicker.

"Yeah, and I'm sure I'm bigger in other places too, at least that's what the ladies say."

"When you two are done whipping those things around, why don't you leave me alone so I can actually get some work done. You two don't know about that, you just know how to go out there and fight with each other."

"No Steph, we don't fight against each other, we fight WITH each other."

"Not from where I'm looking right now you aren't," Stephanie said as she started to walk backwards. She blew Chris a kiss before turning around to get to work. She had gotten in the habit of always arriving to her station after the show had started. But she blamed Chris for that.

Chris and Randy were just hanging around, talking crap about Evolution and Hunter in particular when Maven happened upon them. Chris had nothing against him personally, but he just couldn't shake the feeling that Maven was like the little kid trying to play with the big kids. He was tempted to start singing that song, "One of these things is not like the other, one of these things just doesn't belong." He could make great arguments for his other two members, but Maven...he was still scratching his head over that one.

"I'm gonna go talk to Evolution," Maven said, fired up. Chris remembered those days when everything was a new adventure. He had settled down, learned to pick his battles, but sometimes, it was fun to just go balls out on whoever, whenever you wanted to.

"What are you going to say?" Randy asked, leaning back against the wall.

"Who the hell cares? Triple H isn't here tonight, I think that they should know again just who has the strength."

"Go for it," Chris said with a chuckle. And then Maven was off, bouncing on his heels looking for Evolution's locker room. Chris just sat there, watching him walk off, wondering if young Maven wanted a death certificate. He turned to Randy, "You think we should follow him?"

"Probably," Randy said, but made no attempt to get up.

"He might get hurt."

"He might," Randy said.

"We should probably help."

"We should."

"Stop copying me."

"I might."

"So where's this girl of yours?"

"None of your business," Randy said with a smirk. "I'm sure she's around here somewhere."

"Yeah, I just bet she is. I'm a pretty good secret-keeper you know."

"I also know you're marrying Stephanie."

"Wait...is THAT what that ring is? God, I thought that I was just giving her something nice. So that's what all those plans are," Chris said with a nod.

"You're such an ass," Randy said, shaking his head.

"Yeah, but I'm still popular. People just want to like me Randy. It's really a disease. I'm just too sexy for my own good."

Randy rolled his eyes, "Let's go help the young one."

"Isn't he older than you?"

"I don't know."

"Oh...because that would make that young one sentence sound really dumb."

"Well, I'm not old like you are, where I can pretty much say that everyone on the roster is a young one."

"I'll have you know that there are plenty of guys that are older than me. Hunter for instance, he's older than me."

"I never thought I'd see the day where you would voluntarily compare yourself to Hunter. But I guess since you've both done Stephanie that you can make some comparisons. I wonder who Stephanie would say is better in bed."

"Me of course," Chris snorted. "No competition."

"Yeah, I'm so sure."

"Why? Do you want to have a little romp in bed with Hunter and see what it's like?"

"You're sick man, real sick," Randy said, giving Chris a shove just as they entered Evolution's locker room to see Dave and Flair baring down on poor Maven. Randy and Chris nodded to each other before going to stand behind the two present members of Evolution.

Chris had a few choice words for the men, and said them in the way that only Chris Jericho could. He knew that would probably spell a little bit of trouble later, but knowing that Hunter was nowhere in the vicinity, well, it made his life a little easier and his day a little brighter. Mondays were no longer something to dread because he would have to come up with a whole new way to keep Hunter away from Stephanie, which was a job in and of itself.

"That was great!" Maven said as he patted Randy and Chris on the shoulders. "They aren't going to know what hit them."

"Hey Chris," Randy laughed. "I think I know what you're going to do if we win when you get to run the show."

"What?" Chris asked, curious to know what Randy was thinking. He hadn't much thought about it.

"Torturing Hunter," Randy laughed.

"Oh come on, I'm not that petty am I?"

"You're right, you'll probably end up doing whatever Stephanie wants you to do anyways."

"That's more like it," Chris said. "You know she's just going to take over and make me do what she wants."

"Which will be torture Hunter," Randy said again. "You two have one brain. They're both intent on torturing Hunter." 

"Geez, I get it, I get it, I like torturing Hunter."

Trish watched the tape over and over again. She hadn't meant to be so harsh with Stephanie, but she had just snapped. She watched the short clip of Jeff that was playing on-screen. As much as she hated to say it, she missed him sometimes. Not in the romantic sense, but he was a good friend. She wondered what would happen if she got in touch with him.

"Feeling better?" Christian asked as he handed a bottled water to Trish.

"Yeah, a little," Trish answered.

Christian looked to the television screen where she was watching the video she had made. "Did you catch my match?"

"I caught it," she said, turning to smile at him. "You were good to ignore Edge. I think that just goes to prove that he's jealous of you. I mean, why else would he interrupt your match. To try and draw attention to him and away from you."

"Yeah...I didn't even look at it that way," Christian said, kissing her softly. "You sure you're ok?"

"Yeah, I'm great. I'm going to win that match against Lita at Survivor Series, and she'll never know what hit her."

"If that's what you want."

"It's what she deserves," Trish said, her voice low. She wiped at her eyes a little. "She just makes me so mad sometimes." Christian took her in his arms and rocked back and forth with her, letting her rest against his chest. He massaged the crown of her head with his fingers, lacing them through her soft blonde hair. She held him close to her and he whispered sweet nothings into her hair.

"I like you better when you're making out with Stephanie," Christian said at random. Trish smiled against his chest.

"Only you Chrissy, only you."

Stephanie was surprised when she saw Bischoff catering more to Chris, Randy and Maven than to Evolution. He must really be pissed off about his hair being cut off, but last week's hissy fit really should've tipped her off. Bischoff was voluntarily giving them a handicap match, knowing full well that Hunter wasn't here. Dave and Flair actually looked scared, this was definitely a new one for them. She couldn't wait until the match.

She hardly noticed her fiancé and his friends running around, and wouldn't have because she was too busy with her plans and her files. She would look up occasionally to see people whispering to each other, but this was not out of the ordinary. The show was running smoothly for the most part, and she couldn't really complain. She was still worried about Trish, but she vowed not to pry, and she wouldn't. She could always just focus on whoever Randy was seeing. That was a worthy mystery.

"Baby..."

Stephanie knew that tone, "No, I'm not going to sleep with you in my office."

"That's not what I was going to ask."

"Oh...what then?"

"Can you call the sound guy?"

"Why would I do that Christopher?"

"Because you love me."

"I do love you, but I'm not going to call him and not know the reason why," she said, her voice calm and placating.

"To cue up Hunter's music," he said sweetly.

"Hunter's not even here."

"I know," Chris grinned evilly.

"Christopher Jericho, what do you have hiding up your sleeve?" Stephanie asked suspiciously.

"Cue up the music and we'll find out."

"Fine...the things I do for you," she mumbled as she picked up her headphones.

"I love you," Chris said, kissing her quickly before rushing back to Randy and Maven, who were standing on the other side of the room. "It's all set, she'll do it."

"You know, you REALLY have got to use these perks more often. Think about it Chris, you could have anything done for you at any time, why wouldn't you take advantage of that?" Maven asked.

Chris looked over at Stephanie, who was simultaneously speaking to the sound crew and looking over something wedding related. "I went a lot of years not relying on any perks, why should anything change now?"

"Because you're marrying Stephanie McMahon," Maven drawled. "I mean, you're going to be a McMahon."

"Well no, she'll be a Jericho," Chris said. "Besides, the last thing I want from Stephanie is her last name."

"What he's trying to say," Randy said, slinging his arm across his friend's shoulder, "Is that he's whipped."

"I am NOT whipped," Chris said, shoving Randy off. "I love her."

Randy and Maven teased him a little bit over that, but it didn't matter. He loved Stephanie and that was that. Besides, they had a match to focus on. Even though it was a handicap match, Dave was pretty much two people. And Maven was still pretty inexperienced, so they didn't know if they could really count on him.

But the match ended up just the way they wanted it to anyways. Dave and Flair were about to give up, cowards, and then Hunter's music hit. But it wasn't Hunter that came out. It was Tajiri dressed as Hunter. Just another guy who was sick and tired of Evolution thinking they ran the joint. Chris smiled, glad that Stephanie had come through for him, like he knew she would. After he delivered his Lionsault to Dave, he sat on the top rope as he watched Randy give Dave the RKO for the win.

Things were looking up. He hadn't felt this happy in his career since...well since he was holding the Undisputed Championship. Hunter had a lot to do with the low points of his career in WWE, but now, it was like Hunter was the one with the tail between his legs instead of Chris constantly being the one beaten down. Hunter may not have been there tonight, but the message that Chris, and Randy, and all the other Raw guys were sending to him were clear. It seemed Hunter's days were numbered, or at least Chris sincerely hoped so.

Maybe if he won, torturing Hunter wouldn't be that bad an idea.


	6. Well, This Doesn't Bode Well, November 8...

A/N: Thanks again for the reviews, I'm glad that you like it. :)

Jimmy, thanks for the correction about the Lita/Kane/Snitsky thing, I guess I wasn't paying attention, but thanks for pointing it out. :)

Hope everyone enjoys the chapter.

* * *

"Daddy, how could you!"

Vince winced over the phone. He loved his daughter, but her voice when she got angry was very sharp and hard to listen to. She could probably break glass with that screeching. He silently wished Chris luck with her in the future. He had just answered his cell phone and was greeted with this hello.

"Stephanie, what are you talking about?" Vince asked, hoping she would take her voice down a few notches.

"With all the firings, I mean, I know we need to slim it out and everything, but firing all those people, do you really think it was necessary."

Stephanie was furious that her father had fired Gail Kim. She could care less about the other people (she was shallow that way), except maybe Test. There was a small stirring in her heart over Test. She had been engaged to the guy after all. She kind of felt bad that it had ended badly with him, but not so bad that she wanted him or anything, talk about gross. She had Chris Jericho for God's sakes. But her mind was getting off the subject.

Gail Kim had been fired, and her plan had gone straight down the drain. Gail was supposed to sleep with Hunter, and now she was gone. And she wasn't going to be around any time soon, and so what kind of position did that put Stephanie in. Luckily she hadn't wired Gail the money yet, so since the services were not rendered, she wouldn't lose out on almost seven-thousand dollars. That would really suck.

"Stephanie, you know why I had to do it. I told you that I was going to do it. Does it interfere with any of your plans or something."

"You can say that," she mumbled, but then cleared her throat. "You know me Daddy, I can adapt to anything, I'm just...shocked that you would fire so many people in so short a time. Some of them were just on Raw last week Daddy, like Gail Kim, she was on Raw helping Trish, so she had a purpose on the show."

"Princess, I had to cut away some of the talent that we just aren't utilizing, or aren't utilizing themselves. I'm sorry if this is a shock to you, but you're a smart girl, you'll figure something out."

"Fine Daddy, just next time warn me about who you're going to fire. I don't want to have Shane call me and tell me after it happens. Aren't I an important part of the show Daddy?" she said, with a pout in her voice.

"You're one of the most important parts of the show. It wouldn't even run without you Stephanie."

"Thank you Daddy," she said, knowing when to take a compliment. "But next time, please tell me so I'm not blindsided and wondering why some of my talent is going to be missing."

"Ok, I'm sorry Princess, now how is everything?"

"It's fine," she said, sighing a little. She now had that stupid fear of Hunter looming over her again. And things were going so well for her recently. Well, it might be ok if Chris and his "team" got the better of Hunter, and gained control of Raw. Stephanie suddenly gasped as she thought of Hunter running Raw. He might want her to sleep with him or something.

"Stephanie, is everything ok?" Vince asked.

"No Daddy," she said quickly, "I was just thinking about something. I have to...get chairs for the wedding. I completely forgot!"

"Oh, well, yeah, those would be smart since you don't want everyone to have to stand," he said with a chuckle.

"Yup," Stephanie said. "Wouldn't want that..."

"How's Chris?"

"He's good."

"Treating you well?"

"Always."

"Good, good," Vince said, nodding in appreciation.

"Daddy, I've got to go, I have a meeting with someone, I'll talk to you later though."

"Ok, you go do your work, bye Princess."

"Bye Daddy."

Stephanie hung up the phone and sat back in her desk. Now she was going to have to deal with Hunter in some other way. She didn't know how to proceed. She didn't trust many of the females in this company, not enough to offer them money. They were just sneaky enough to tell Hunter, and if he got wind of it, then he would retaliate of course.

Chris walked in on this scene, seeing Stephanie deep in thought at her desk. He wondered what she was thinking about, but knew better than to interrupt her. When she was thinking like that, it was best to just let her think. He walked over to her desk though and grabbed the schedule she kept sitting on her desk. He scanned it and saw that he only had the Highlight Reel tonight and that his guests were going to be Trish and Lita. That was going to be a pretty toxic combination.

Neither he nor Stephanie had figured out what was wrong with Trish, not for lack of trying. They had invited Christian and Trish over for dinner this weekend, but the conversation was terse and cautious. It left Chris and Stephanie asking more questions than having answers for them. But Stephanie was being surprisingly compliant with his insistence of her minding her own business. She hadn't pried once, and that left him impressed.

Since Stephanie had barely noticed him at all, he went and sat down on the couch to think of things to say at the Highlight Reel. He felt really badly for Lita, having just lost her baby, but he didn't know how Trish would take that. It had to suck to lose a child, especially one that you never even got to know. He couldn't imagine the kind of pain that you would have to go through to deal with that. Thinking about Stephanie being pregnant with his child, but never getting to hold them or anything, it almost brought tears to his eyes just thinking about it. He truly felt bad for Lita because of that.

Trish, on the other hand, had seen the schedule, and was thinking that Chris would be on her side. Chris was her friend, and he would probably side with her. She didn't want to think about the situation with Lita, would much rather focus on their match this Sunday, but she wasn't going to escape that, and the fact that she was going to have to come face to face with Lita later. She wondered what was going through the redhead's mind at the moment, if she was thinking about her lost baby, or maybe her fallen husband. Or maybe she was just thinking about herself, being selfish like that.

Christian had been talking to Tomko, who had a match against Shelton later that evening. Christian was going to accompany him to it to scope out Shelton for their match on Sunday. He wanted that Intercontinental title back in his possession. Having the belt put him in a position of power, and that's what he wanted, the power. But he was also worried about his girlfriend. Trish had revealed to him why she was so upset with Lita, and he was probably the only one. He wouldn't compromise her trust by telling Chris or Stephanie, or even Randy, but sometimes, he wished she would tell so that she wouldn't seem like such a bitch to everyone in the company.

That's what they saw her as right now, those who weren't her friends. They saw her as a bitch who wanted to ruin Lita, or humiliate her for sport. They didn't know the real Trish. When they looked at her, they probably still saw the woman who was having an affair with Vince McMahon, or who tried to make people's lives a living hell. But Trish wasn't like that; Christian didn't want people to see her like that. He wished she would tell people so they wouldn't look at her with sneers on their faces and harsh words at their lips.

"I have the Reel with Lita tonight," Trish said, looking up at Christian.

"That's good, you'll be out there with Chris."

"Yeah," she nodded. "But I don't know if I'll be able to handle myself around Lita. The thoughts that run through my mind Chrissy...they scare me."

Christian knelt in front of Trish and grabbed her hands, kissing both of them before staring up at her. "You would never do anything to seriously hurt anyone Trishy. I know you...better than anyone, and I know that you aren't capable of it."

"Thanks Chrissy," she said softly, and with a sad smile. "They're all going to call me names out there."

"So what? They call me names too. It's just part of the territory. If you aren't someone's golden boy, then people see you as not worthy of their time, but the both of us, we're more than worthy."

"You are so wise Chrissy," Trish said with a laugh.

"Hey, I try. I can't always be about loving sodas and being in Tiger Beat."

"You've definitely matured," she said, leaning down to press a soft kiss to his lips. "I love you."

"I love you too."

"Chris will take care of me, I hope..."

Chris was now watching Stephanie. She had barely moved since he was last looking at her. He decided that the silence was killing him and walked up to her desk. He swung her chair to face him and pulled her arms so she was standing up. She looked at him with angry eyes, mad that he had broken her thoughts. He grinned impishly at her, and felt the best approach was to take her mind off of the show.

"So what'd you get me for my birthday?" he asked with a grin.

"I got you a business suit, specially tailored. I figured you would need one."

"You better not have," he said, kissing her cheek before wrapping his arms loosely around her waist, pulling her so that her chest bumped against his, which wasn't too difficult, considering Stephanie's...assets.

"I don't know how I'm going to top the office you built for me. I'm going to have to buy you a yacht or something. A jet maybe."

"You don't have to do anything. I don't really want to do anything for my birthday," he told her.

"You're a big, fat liar," Stephanie told him. "You don't want to do anything for your birthday? In all the time I've known you, and this will be our third birthday of together, you have wanted me to do something. So I've done stuff, and now I have to think of something else...if I haven't already."

"Well next year, I don't want to do anything. I'll be thirty-five, and I don't want to celebrate being that old."

"Sweetie, tomorrow, we will do anything you want, whenever you want. All you have to do is say something, and I'll do it, no questions asked."

"No questions asked?" Chris asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You heard me, don't make me repeat it."

"Good to know," he said, already mentally plotting all the things that he was going to do with Stephanie the next day. He was going to make sure that he had a great time for his birthday. All he had to do was make it through the night. He knew that he wasn't only going to be doing the Highlight Reel. He had a huge match this coming Sunday, and he couldn't take it lightly. Tonight was going to define how well they did on Sunday, and he had to be prepared for anything and everything that might happen tonight. At least none of his guests on his show were in that main event.

"I don't like the wheels turning in your head," she said. "I'm not going to regret giving you this kind of power am I?"

"No, I think you'll find it very nice," he said, popping up both of his eyebrows. "Now I'm going to go find Lita and ask if she's ok with being around Trish tonight."

"You're so sweet," Stephanie gushed.

"Well, you know, she has been having a tough time, and I used to hang out with Matt and Jeff quite a bit back in the day, and well, I know that if it were you who was pregnant and then senselessly had our baby taken away, I'd be pretty upset too."

Stephanie looked down and smiled gently at that. Sometimes Chris could surprise her and say something that maybe wasn't intended to be sweet and sentimental, but then it hit just the right part of her heart. And it was in that moment that she thought she and Chris cold overcome any onslaught that Hunter sent their way. Never before had she felt so secure in a relationship, knowing that it was right, and safe, and everything she had always wanted.

"I think that's a nice reason to go check up on her. She doesn't really have anyone around, what with Matt being injured, and Jeff being with another company. I don't really recall any other friends she may have with the exception of Stacy."

"Yeah...I'll go check on her, you going to be all right here by yourself?"

"Well, I don't know, do you think I can take care of myself?"

"I think you can take care of yourself, and maybe take care of four or five wrestlers if they ever got fresh with you."

Stephanie giggled. "Yeah, that's really true."

Chris kissed her goodbye and then went to find Lita. He knew that Trish probably wouldn't be too pleased with him, but a lot of stuff that Trish was doing lately confused him to the point where he didn't know if talking to her would result in a nice, friendly conversation, or with his head being bitten off in some terrible argument. With him going to see Lita, he was figuring on the latter.

He saw Benoit and Maven hanging around and went up to them, saying hello to each guy. He was better friends with Benoit, obviously, so he started up some conversation with him. Randy came up moments later, announcing that he had won the match he just had against Dave Batista. It wasn't a win Sunday, but it was a win nonetheless and could set the momentum for Survivor Series.

Randy asked the guys if they knew what they were going to do when they were running Raw. Chris had a few ideas in mind. He wished that he could reinstate Stephanie as an on-screen persona, but he had a feeling that wouldn't be too well-received with the higher-ups since she wasn't under contract to actually go out to the ring. She would be a liability, and personally, Stephanie getting hurt was the last thing that Chris wanted, especially when it was closing in on just two months before their wedding.

Before Chris had time to respond to Randy's question, he was met with a blow to his entire body. It took him a second to realize that Dave had pummeled him. The big man knocked him back, but Chris was agile and went after Dave with a gusto. All of them were fighting, trying to start a brawl, but they were soon separated and Chris threw off the guy who was trying to restrain him. Dave was taken to a different part of the arena forcibly and Chris went up to Randy.

"That man really needs to learn to take a loss," Chris said, staring after the man getting dragged away.

"You're telling me," Randy said, dusting himself off. "But did you see that win? I was fantastic out there. He didn't stand a chance."

"Someone's not cocky," Chris said, rolling his eyes. 

"I only learn from the best," Randy said, patting Chris on the shoulder.

"Don't tell me you learned it from me, you were Trip's lackey for over a year," Chris pointed out.

"God, don't remind me," Randy said, pretending to puke. "But his cockiness is not like your cockiness."

"Well, I'm better than him, so it shouldn't be."

"Thanks for proving my point man," Randy said. "But I've gotta go, I'm meeting up with someone in a few minutes."

"The mystery girl," Chris said, nudging him suggestively.

"None of your business," Randy answered. But Chris knew better. He could tell by the tone of voice that Randy used that he was going to meet a girl. He knew that voice, he used that voice whenever he was talking about Stephanie to someone else. Randy could not have fooled him any worse than he just did.

"If I were a nosy person, I might be inclined to follow you and report back to my fiancée who it is that you're seeing, but one, I'm not nosy, and two, I've actually got to meet with someone myself."

"Stephanie?" Randy said, taking the predictable route.

"No," Chris said, "I wanted to talk with Lita before the Highlight Reel."

"Don't tell Trish," Randy said quickly, then looking around before he leaned in closer to Chris. "You know how she gets on that subject."

"Yeah, I know, which is why I'm trying to stop a catastrophe from happening later on tonight. I'm doing damage control."

"Good thinking. Trish got really upset when she even thought that I might be with Lita. I hate to think that you would be talking to her and Trish finding out."

"I'm a big boy, I think that I can handle Trish."

"Good luck with that."

Chris and Randy parted ways, and Chris went down to the ladies locker room. He knew it was going to be sparse nowadays, having known about some of the firings, not beforehand though, as Stephanie told him (about fifty times). He couldn't understand why she cared until she told him about the whole Gail Kim thing. Luckily she hadn't paid Gail or anything, but that was not the point at the moment. Chris knocked on the door, and Stacy answered a few minutes later with a smile.

"Chris, nice to see you."

"Hey, is Lita here?"

"Yeah, she is, do you want me to get her."

"I would love you if you did," he said with a charming smile.

Stacy smiled politely, knowing that if Stephanie caught her smiling at Chris in any other way that indifference, she would get her ass kicked, and with the recent rash of firings, she didn't want to upset anyone in management, especially someone with the last name of McMahon. Stacy disappeared into the locker room for a moment before Lita came into vies, walking up to the door.

"Chris, hi," Lita said, and he could only say that she looked weary. "I guess I'm your guest later on."

"Yeah, that's what I wanted to talk to you about. I know that you're having a tough time, so I'm thinking of having Stephanie let me bring a referee out there so that everything can remain under control. I just don't want anything to happen out there."

"Thanks," Lita said, smiling at him. "I sometimes forget what a good guy you can be. It's almost a shame we had to lose our friendship."

"People change though," Chris shrugged. "You can never time when things will change, but they eventually do."

"That's the truth. But I remember we used to have so much fun," Lita said with a nostalgic look in her eyes. "We'd go out clubbing and God, every girl would try to pick you up, and you would just lead them on."

"I did lead on a lot of women," Chris said appreciatively, rubbing his chin. Then thoughts of Stephanie glaring at him popped into his brain and he quickly made an impassive face. It wasn't that he was scared of Stephanie it was just...that he was really scared of Stephanie.

"Yeah, those were the days though, just having fun and everything, and now I'm so freaking screwed up," Lita said, wrapping her arms around her abdomen, which reminded Chris of why he had come here in the first place.

"I'm really sorry about your baby," Chris said genuinely.

"Thanks," Lita said. "It hurts, but I can't dwell on it. It just makes me long for what I can't have."

"I get that."

"I don't know if I've ever congratulated you on your engagement. That's so exciting for you. And with Stephanie! I mean...never...did I think that you would be with Stephanie."

Chris chuckled. "That was my first reaction too."

"CHRIS!"

Chris's eyes widened before he turned around to see Trish standing there, her eyes flashing with a fire and her hands on her hips in defiance. He wondered if he could get the referee back here right now because he could feel a fight brewing between the two woman...or maybe that was between him and Trish.

"Hey," Chris said, trying to be nonchalant, but Trish was having none of that.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm just talking to Lita, she is going to be my guest tonight."

"So am I, and I didn't get a little visit," Trish spat out, then glaring at Lita with venom in her eyes.

"Trish, I was going to come see you."

"Why would you even talk to her? She's the one who's being a bitch in all of this!" Trish said, yelling now. Lita looked at her, about to pounce and maybe pull out a good chunk of her hair.

"Trish, I'm just talking to her, I don't see why this should even be an issue. I can talk to whomever I want."

"But we're friends. We are friends, you're not friends with...her!" 

"Ok Trish, enough," Chris said, noticing that Lita was feeling very uncomfortable. He took Trish by the arm and almost dragged her over and around the corner. He looked into her eyes momentarily. "Ok, what the hell is going on with you?"

"I thought we were friends," Trish said coolly. "But apparently, we're not."

"You know we're friends," Chris said, thinking it was a moot point.

"I thought we were, but it turns out we're not because a friend wouldn't betray another friend like this. You wouldn't be talking to her if you were my friend. I can't believe you would do this."

"Trish, I'm not doing anything, I don't even know what the hell I'm doing. All I know is that you are suddenly being irrational towards Lita. This has been going on for a while Trish, and I'd like to know why."

"You don't have the right!" Trish yelled, wrenching her arm free of Chris's grasp.

"You were being horrible to Lita...she lost her baby Trish, can't you be sensitive to that!"

"NO! I will not be 'sensitive to that!' I will not," she said, her voice cracking at the end of that sentence. "I'll see you on the Highlight Reel, and you can be friends with that whore if you want to, but I'm not your friend any more Chris."

"I don't get you Trish, why do you have to be such a bitch?"

Trish just shook her head and left, leaving an angry Chris in her wake. This was just getting ridiculous. Trish was being such a bitch to someone who had just been through a traumatic experience. Instead of being sensitive to it like most people were, Trish decided to be a putrid excuse for a human being, and Chris could not get behind that.

Randy, meanwhile, had been making out rather heavily with his new lady. There was certainly no turmoil there, and it was times like these, well he was glad to be away from his kooky group of friends. He smiled at the girl, and she licked her lips, not making it overtly sexy, but definitely exuding some voluptuousness.

"So what are you going to do when you win on Sunday?" she asked.

"I haven't really decided yet," he said, thinking about it. "Probably something having to do with Hunter, but I know that Chris is going to do that too. I'll figure something great out though."

"I can't wait to see," she said. "You in charge? Randy Orton, the General Manager. It has a nice ring to it."

"Not as nice as Randy Orton, World Champion. But I guess that can wait a little bit."

"Yeah, it can," Randy said, turning on the television in his locker room. "I wanted to watch Chris on the Highlight Reel."

"I think I'll stick around to see this."

Chris was out there, ready for his show. He didn't know what was going to happen with Lita and Trish, but he was glad that Stephanie had gotten him that referee. He had a feeling that would come in handy. He introduced Trish first, and she came out there, looking rather peeved, partly at Chris, and partly at Lita. Trish didn't say anything to him as she climbed in the ring and barely acknowledged him at all, so he went on to introduce Lita.

Trish immediately verbally jumped on Lita when they were in the ring together, calling Lita the "Kiss of Death" once again. She commented that the "kiss of Death" would make Chris's show be cancelled, and Chris, feeling the malice in his heart, and the sympathy for Lita in that moment, called Trish a slut. He knew it hurt her, though she wasn't showing it, but he blurted it out, and couldn't ever get it back.

It was soon forgotten however when Snitsky himself came out, fake baby in his arms. Chris watched silently as Snitsky came down to the ring to torment Lita. He could see Lita's face as she backed up, and it looked so devastated, understatedly so, but still devastated. Then he didn't really regret calling Trish names, because this was destroying Lita, and he actually felt really badly for her. She didn't have anyone in the company right now to protect her, and she was all alone, in every sense of the word. Matt was gone, Kane was gone, every friend she had was gone, her baby was gone...

That was the motivation for attacking Snitsky. He wasn't going to stand back any longer and watch this guy, this no-name, good-for-nothing guy torture a woman who had never done anything to him. Lita was not in the wrong here, and she shouldn't be punished for something she had no control over. That was why he went after Snitsky.

Did he regret it after being smashed into a pole? Not really, if it was meant to help someone else. Chris did help people, and when he was helped backstage, he didn't regret helping Lita, or attacking Snitsky, even as he was taken to the trainer. Stephanie was by his side in an instant, throwing down her headphones as she went to help him.

"Hey there hot stuff," she said with a smile as they walked slowly to the trainer. 

"What's this? No concern, no worry, no nothing."

"I've gotten used to you being pummeled. Although tonight was for a good cause."

"You think?"

"Yeah, Trish was out of line, and Lita...well, I don't know what's going on, but you did the right thing. If that had been me out there, God, I would've ripped Snitsky a new hole."

"I love when you get brutal," Chris laughed, then winced as the pain flared up. "Ok, no making me laugh."

"Too bad, I just heard a great joke," Stephanie said sarcastically.

The trainer gave him a pretty clean bill of health, but made him put a back brace on, just to be safe. Chris thought it made him look like an idiot, but Stephanie insisted he wear it. She also insisted that he sit with her at her station during the show, just so she could be sure he was wearing it. The last thing she needed was for Chris to get hurt.

"Why don't you want me to get hurt?" he asked her.

"Because then you'd probably have to stay at home, and then I'd make you do all of the wedding plans, and then I would have a horribly ugly wedding, and you'd probably accidentally tye-dye my wedding dress and then I'd have to make the wedding a hippie wedding just to compensate...oh, and I'd miss you."

"Could that have been any more of an afterthought?"

"Oh, my love and need of you is not an afterthought," Stephanie said, leaning over to kiss him. Chris scooted his chair closer to her while their lips were still pressed together, amazingly enough. Stephanie wrapped her arms around his neck and let the kiss get progressively deeper when they heard someone clear their throat. It was Christian and he looked none too happy.

"Hey Christian," Stephanie said.

"Hey, um, I just wanted to say something to Chris. I know that you were mad at Trish, but please don't be mad at her any longer."

"Christian, she was way--"

"Yeah, well, you just don't know what's going on with her, and please, just cut her some slack because she's...there's stuff, and please."

"I'll try," Chris said, "I really will."

"Thanks man," Christian said, shaking Chris's hand before leaving.

"That was weird," Chris said, and Stephanie nodded in agreement.

It was later in the show when Randy came up to him, telling him that they were going out there to "make the match fair," since Hunter and Dave had decided to go out there to "watch" the match between Edge and Benoit. Chris got up and went out there with Randy and Maven. Chris locked eyes with Hunter, and could actually see the fear in Hunter's eyes. It was a new feeling, seeing Hunter be the one who was scared, but it was most welcome.

The two sides stood off, watching the match, each encouraging their own teammate. Eventually, as things are wont to do in WWE, a huge fight broke out, and Chris found himself beating on Dave. He didn't know how he got the upper-hand, used to falling to the giant man. But he was clearing the ring now, Batista, Hunter, Edge, and Snitsky on the outside, almost like they were looking in. Chris could feel it, and he locked eyes with Hunter again. If they won on Sunday, if Chris's team won...

He stared into Hunter's eyes, and that said it all...


	7. You Mean H Lost? Survivor Series, Novemb...

A/N: Sorry this didn't go up last night, but I was feeling a little under the weather. The Raw chapter for tonight will be up tomorrow night, and that should catch me up to everything. I didn't see the show, so if anything is wrong, I apologize.

Also, this chapter is dedicated to Liz, because she is totally my new hero. If you didn't know or had read, she brought a can of Crisco to Edge's book signing, and thusly got kicked out of the event. For that, she rocks so much. I don't think it's any kind of surprise that I really don't like Edge (the character mainly), and well, for bringing Crisco for Edge, that deserves at least a dedication. :)

* * *

"So I'm thinking, making Hunter take his title defense."

"Always a good idea."

Stephanie smiled coyly at the man whose lap she was currently occupying. She was trying to think of all the great things that Chris was going to do once his team won later on. She had full confidence that they could win. She knew that Maven was going to be the weakest link, considering he had never even held a major title. Benoit, Randy, and Chris had all held the World Title, and Chris had been the first ever Undisputed Champion, so he was doubly decorated.

She knew that he was probably going to want a title shot with Hunter...that was pretty much a given. Whether or not he would win it was a toss-up though. But she loved him, and believed in him. She wondered what other kinds of things he was going to do if and when his team won. She just had to have faith that Raw would not be a disaster with Hunter, Dave, Edge, and Snitsky running it.

"Yeah, I thought so. I would think that having a title shot would be a headlining match. People would pay to see it. Triple H versus Chris Jericho. I mean, it's a big money match, has been for years."

"I agree."

"Kurt, are you just trying to appease me," Stephanie said, looking down at the man.

"Yes, I am," he said with a laugh. "You're not the only one with a match tonight...that came out wrong. I meant...Chris's match is not the only match that's on the card tonight."

"I know, but it's the match that I have to worry the most about. Not only because my fiancé is in it, but because I'm the backstage leader of Raw. Can you imagine Hunter running it Kurt? That is the worst possible thing that I can think of."

"Me too," Kurt agreed, then thought about it, shuddering at the thought. "He'd probably want something to do with you."

"That's what I said!" Stephanie exclaimed, making Kurt wince at her tone. "Chris said he would protect me though."

"I'd imagine that was his job."

"Yeah, but I like to say it every now and then you know, makes him sound wonderful."

"I've missed you, you know," Kurt said, his voice sounding sullen. "It's just not the same without you around, or Chris, or any of my friends. It's so different now. I feel like I have to compete with all these guys, and I just don't have a lot of actual friends, lackeys sure, but no friends."

"I'm sorry," Stephanie said, kissing his cheek. "I wish I could be there with you on the show, but I don't think I can do both shows. Chris and I finally have a schedule that works for us. And with the wedding coming up...God, everything is so mushed together. I mean, there's Thanksgiving with my family, because his family's was last month, then there's Christmas, and this year we're trying to merge the families, that's going to be a peach, they're all coming to my house. And then about three weeks after that is the wedding, so I'm completely bogged."

"And the honeymoon?"

"No honeymoon, sad huh?" she said. "We're both ok with it though. But after the wedding, maybe I can come and work on a few SmackDowns. In between dodging questions of when I'm going to get pregnant."

"Which is?"

"In the very far future," Stephanie said with a laugh. "There will be no pitter-patter of little Jericho feet anytime soon."

"But there will be."

"If the cards are right, and if we actually CAN settle down. It's hard when both of us are on the road."

"You could always just work from home, or you know, take a step down," Kurt said.

"Kurt, did you know me when I was fired? You saw me moping around. You don't want that, I don't want that, Chris doesn't want that. Nobody wants that."

"Yeah...so I've been meaning to ask you something."

"Yes, it IS a new perfume," Stephanie said sweetly.

"No, I wasn't asking what that horrible smell was. I wanted to ask about Trish. I was talking with Christian yesterday, and Trish seemed upset or something when I talked to her for a little bit. Is everything ok with her?"

"Who knows," Stephanie shrugged. "Nobody but Christian knows what's really going on with her. We're all in the dark. Not for lack of trying."

"I was just wondering if it was nerves for her match against Lita. I know that Lita has it out for her. What with the whole Trish teasing her and crap. What's up with that too while we're on the subject?"

"I don't know the full truth, but it has to do with Lita not appreciating the fact that she was having a baby, and not protecting her baby to the fullest of her abilities, and the fact that Lita betrayed Matt by sleeping with Kane."

"Yeah, that makes sense. I just haven't seen Trish hate someone that much for a while. Molly maybe, definitely Torrie and Stacy during the Invasion."

Stephanie groaned. "I thought that I was past that part of my life."

"Steph, you will never live that down."

"I did not have very many shining moments during that time period. Getting hit in the face with a pie, getting a zit tattled on, my implants being known, God, that was horrible."

"I also find it funny that every scenario you mentioned happened with Chris."

"Oh...well there was also that horrible man who squirted milk on me," Stephanie sighed dramatically. Kurt chuckled at the memory. He couldn't imagine doing that to Stephanie now, but back then it had been rather satisfying to see the Alliance get their comeuppance. "I just realized something Kurt, it was three years ago that you turned on me and got me fired."

"And maybe this is my time to leave."

"Yeah, when you're in a compromising position with my fiancée," Chris said as he walked into the locker room. "I can't leave you alone for a second can I Stephanie? It's always sitting on guy's laps, or kissing their cheeks. I don't think that I can trust you."

"I'm heartbroken," Stephanie said, getting up to greet her husband-to-be. He kissed her intensely, putting the palm of his hand lightly against the small of her back, pulling her against him until their bodies were pressed up against one another. Kurt cleared his throat, but got no response from the couple before clearing his throat to the point of screaming at them. Only then did they take their tongues out of each other's mouths and look to Kurt.

"When's the wedding again?" Kurt said jokingly.

"It'll only get worse after," Stephanie said. "You been thinking of your best man speech?"

"I know what I'm saying already. I better go though. I have to talk to my team too."

"Good luck with that," Chris said, patting Kurt's shoulder. "I hope you win."

"I hope you win too. I don't think I want to tune in on Monday to see Hunter running things around here. I've already had one McMahon-Helmsley Era and that was enough for me. I certainly don't need to see a Helmsley Era. That's gotta be ten times worse. See you two, don't get too caught up with the making out and miss the show entirely."

Kurt left and Stephanie turned to Chris, wrapping her arms securely around his waist. He returned the gesture and leaned forward to bump noses with her. She nuzzled against him for a moment before lightly kissing him, letting her lips linger a bit on his mouth, licking them gently as she pulled away.

"I love you," she whispered.

"I love you too," he said. "Have you been thinking of things for me to do in the event that I should win?"

"Hmm...just a few things. How would you like to be carried in on one of those like velvet rafts that are carried by people. You could have Dave, Hunter, Edge, and Flair carrying it. Now granted, they might feel compelled to drop you, so I think that having guys with whips would be good in the long run."

"Way too elaborate, and sorta scary," Chris said with a laugh. "I was just talking to the boys, and we think we've got a good strategy going. We know that Maven should probably be the sacrificial lamb if it comes to it."

"Well, let's face it, he pales in comparison to you and the others," Stephanie reasoned. "I don't think you should say sacrificial lamb as much as he's the decoy."

"I guess that's better, if not the same term."

"So I don't really have to go to work tonight, I can just hang around, since the SmackDown crew is here also."

"That's good, but I'm going to be busy, so you should just work anyways."

"What makes you think that I need you around to be busy? It might have slipped your mind while you were stroking that massive...ego of yours, but I do run this show, and I am plenty busy even when you don't see fit to deign me with your presence."

"Like what?"

"Wedding plans. It's hard trying to plan one of those things. Almost makes me thankful that Hunter drugged me and whisked me off to Vegas like he did. Saved me a lot of trouble."

"So when do you want me to whisk you away and drug you so that I can marry you."

"I think three days before the actual wedding should do it," Stephanie said. "It'll give us enough time to alert everyone that the wedding is off because we got married before."

"Ok, I'll have to write that down," Chris said with a nod. "My offer still stands you know. Anything you need help with, I'm there for you baby."

"I know that you are, and it's much obliged, but I'm fine," she paused mid-sentence and then looked over Chris's shoulder. She stared so hard that Chris looked over his shoulder to make sure nobody was there. "Damn it...I have to talk to Trish."

"Uh oh," Chris said, his voice staccato on every syllable. Trish was not in a good place right now, and she was easily angered nowadays. The only one she seemed to WANT to talk to was Christian, for obvious reasons. "Why?"

"Fittings again. I wanted to change the back of the dress because it resembles the back of my dress, so I needed her to come in...man," she said, swearing under her breath. "I really don't want to talk to her."

"Get it over with now though," Chris said. "Because if she loses to Lita, she is going to be so pissed, she'll be spitting fire."

"You're right, come with me," Stephanie said hopefully, looking up at him with doe eyes. Chris kissed her nose, a small smile spreading across his lips.

"Do you really want me to?"

"No," she admitted with a laugh. "I'm going to go talk to her, and then I'm going to go sit in on the production crew, see how they're doing. I may not have to be in charge, but you know, it looks good on me if I'm actually do work around here instead of just hanging around with you."

"True, but I'll see you later?"

"We've got to stop asking that," she said, partly to herself. "We will always see each other later."

Chris laughed as Stephanie ducked under his arm to leave. She looked both ways, for no particular reason. Although if Hunter had shown his face, then maybe it would've served some kind of purpose, but as he did not show his face at that moment, there was no reason for her to look. She took a right and walked down the hallway. It was going to be a lot harder to find Trish's locker room, because there were so many people there tonight.

She saw a lot of the SmackDown people milling around, and it was strange to see them all again. She knew that she had seen them at SummerSlam, but it was still odd to suddenly see all of these people that you didn't see on a regular basis. She smiled at a few of them who smiled at her, but that phase of her life was really over. She turned another corner and saw the tell-tale sign of Randy's on his locker room door. She was going to stop in and say hello when she saw Stacy walking down the hallway.

She didn't know what had compelled her to stop and watch, but she did, and she saw Stacy walking up to Randy's locker room. Stephanie's eyes grew even wider than they were when she saw Stacy reach her hand up to knock on the door. It was a few tense moments, but Randy opened the door, and seeing Stacy he smiled. Stephanie couldn't decipher the smile, but it was a smile. The two of them chatted for a bit before Stacy was led into Randy's locker room. Stephanie stepped out for the shadows she was hiding in and she had a triumphant smile on her face as she marched past Randy's door to find Trish's locker room. If Trish was feeling better maybe she would share this information. It had been much to easy to get. Much, much too easy.

Meanwhile, Christian was sitting with Trish, going over some of Shelton Benjamin's recent matches. Christian wanted to make sure that he knew his opponent inside and out. Trish pointed out a particular counter that Christian hadn't caught and he leaned over to kiss her cheek in thanks. Anything, he would be willing to use anything to gain the Intercontinental title back.

"If you can counter some of these moves, you'll have it Chrissy," Trish said to her boyfriend.

"Yeah, and you can take Lita later. I know that you're going to beat her," Christian said with confidence. Trish smiled at him; she loved how he could make her feel better. She leaned her head on Christian's shoulder for a moment, and then pulled away to look at him.

"I'll kick her ass," she said resolutely. If anyone could take on Lita, it was Trish. She was the better wrestler after all, and she had proven that time and time again. Besides, Lita was probably rusty in the ring from her condition. She hadn't wrestled in a long time. She couldn't say that she missed any of Lita's matches, she wasn't the most sharp tack in the ring. Every time she got a Hurricanrana put on her, she feared for her life.

There was a knocking at the door and Christian momentarily paused his tape of Shelton's matches to go open it, ruffling Trish's hair as he passed. Stephanie was on the other side of the door and she sent him a wary smile. She didn't know if she was going to be welcome in their locker room, but Christian moved aside to let her in. She was grateful that she wouldn't have to plead her case to be let in.

"Hey guys," Stephanie said, her voice still tentative as she stepped into the room, trying to find where she should stand. "I just needed to talk to you Trish."

"If it's about what happened last week, I don't really want to talk about it," Trish said sharply.

"That's not it at all...look, whatever that was about, that is your business and not mine. I'm learning to not be so nosy, and if you have something that you can't talk about then that is your business...Chris told me to say that kind of stuff. I don't necessarily believe that's correct all the time, but he's teaching me."

"Oh," Trish said. "I guess I was being mean, so I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too," Stephanie said, shifting her feet a little bit. Trish sat there for a second before getting up and rushing over to Stephanie and giving her a big hug. Stephanie returned it, knowing that at least for now, things were cool between the two of them. She still wondered what was bothering Trish so much, but she had to take a step back or lose a friend.

"Ok, I'm getting out of this female bonding moment," Christian said, leaving quickly.

"So, guess who I saw walking into Randy's locker room," Stephanie said, grabbing Trish by the hands and sitting down with her on the couch. Trish looked anxious to know who Stephanie had seen. She had been a little bit preoccupied with her own problems, that she hadn't had time to think about much else. But this was just the kind of thing that would make her feel better.

"Who?" she asked excitedly.

"Stacy Keibler!"

"NO!" Trish exclaimed in shock, and a tiny bit of horror. Not that Stacy was a horrible person, but she certainly wasn't what she wanted for Randy. Randy deserved someone who was beautiful and intelligent, and she just didn't think that Stacy had the latter. Not that she was judging, she wasn't judging.

"Yeah, I know, I didn't expect it either. But she was going into his room. She was going into his room!"

"Hotel room!"

"No, locker room, I thought that was a given," Stephanie said with a laugh. "I'm going to go harass him for a while, you want to come with?"

"Unfortunately, I can't, I have that match with Lita later," Trish sighed. She didn't want to keep her mind off of this match. She wanted to win; she wanted to beat Lita.

"Yeah, I understand."

"But you MUST tell me everything you find out."

Stephanie gave Trish a parting hug, "You know that I will."

"Good."

"Good luck in your match. I know you'll beat Lita. No problem."

"Thanks," Trish said as Stephanie got up and left.

Stephanie walked back towards Randy's locker room. She hadn't spent too much time with Trish, and she wondered if Stacy was still in the locker room with Randy. Maybe the two of them were doing things like she and Chris used to do before she banned the doing of said stuff at work. If that were the case, maybe she shouldn't be bothering them. But then again, she wouldn't know unless she actually knocked on the door. So she went with that explanation to herself and knocked on his door. It didn't take him long to answer, and she noticed that he had opened the door rather wide. Stacy must not have been there.

"Hi Randy," Stephanie said, trying to look over his shoulder a little.

Randy looked over his own shoulder, wondering what she was looking at, "Hey Steph, what can I do for you?"

"Nothing," she said. "I just wanted to come by and say hello, see how you were doing, wondering if you were nervous about your match later on."

"Not really, I think that I've got it covered."

"That's good, have you talked to Chris?"

"Yeah, we talked. I think we're going to be fine. Why? Does he want to talk some more? I can head on over there right now if you want me to."

"Actually, I don't know where Chris is at the moment."

"Shocking."

"I know," Stephanie said with sarcasm in her tone. "Because I can't go anywhere without him. I simply can't function if he isn't here with me."

"Good luck Chris," Randy muttered to himself.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Stephanie asked.

Randy walked up to her and took her chin in his hand. "What it means my dear friend is that you are nearly impossible to deal with, and I don't envy Chris for marrying you."

"Well that was slightly rude," Stephanie said, jerking her face away. "Chris loves me."

"Yes, and I think that the both of you are too much like each other, which is good for you, and good for the rest of the world cause you can just concentrate on each other."

"Enough about me, what about you?" Stephanie asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

"What about me?" Randy asked.

"Well, I mean, what about you and your mystery girl, how are the two of you?"

"Stephanie," said Randy, a whine in his voice. "Do we have to get back on that?"

"Yes."

"She's fine."

"Good to hear. And again, I'll ask, how are the two of you?"

"The both of us are fine, I don't know why you have to be so nosy about this. It's none of your business who I'm with or not."

"I know who it is," Stephanie said, smirking at him. She had him right where she wanted him. He was going to admit he was with Stacy and she was going to win. She liked winning; she was good at it.

"You what!" Randy said, not believing that. He had been so careful.

"Yup, and I'm not telling you who, so you can just stew about it for a while," Stephanie said, sitting on the couch in his locker room and crossing her legs, trying to look intimidating. She had a way about her though, when you knew that she was the boss and you were but a lowly wrestler.

Before Randy could try to charm the truth out of her, Chris came rushing into the room. Stephanie and Randy both looked at him like he had grown two heads. He seemed to take no notice of Stephanie as he eyed Randy only. "Maven just got attacked by Snitsky, and he may be too hurt to compete."

"What!" Randy said, running out of the room, Chris followed him, leaving Stephanie all alone. She knew the situation was pretty dire, but she couldn't help but feel very left out. Not that she wanted to go out and wrestle for Maven if he was injured or something, she judt didn't like to be left alone. She sighed to herself and leaned back against the couch.

She didn't have time to mope anymore because Chris had rushed back into the room. Stephanie, thinking there was going to be another emergency that needed her immediate attention, sat up straight, looking at Chris in question. He came over to her and instead of spouting off about how she was needed, he leaned down to kiss her, seating himself down next to her, even while his lips were still on hers.

"Hey you," he said as he pulled away only enough distance to speak.

"I thought Maven was attacked."

"He was."

"So shouldn't you be seeing how he's doing?" she asked, though she didn't want him to go anywhere.

"Well, he has Benoit and Randy, and since he just got attacked and everything, I highly doubt he's going to be coherent enough to realize if I'm there or not."

"So you would rather see me, then check on a teammate, who is giving you the opportunity to run the show for a week?"

"Hell yeah," he said, doing his best imitation of Stone Cold. "If it came down to Maven and you, I think that it would be a big no-brainer. I mean, guy who is mildly annoying, and very clingy because we're teammates, or the woman who I love, and who is very willing to put out?"

"Who's this woman who is very willing to put out?" Stephanie questioned with a laugh. "But if you want to stay with me, I guess I can't argue with that. I mean, you are your own person, and you can make your own decisions."

"So how mad do you think Randy would be if he saw me groping you in his locker room."

"Pretty mad," Stephanie said, even as she leaned back against the cushions.

"Yeah, I think he'd be pretty mad too," Chris said, but he was still leaning in towards Stephanie. "How did things go with Trish?"

"Good...damn it, I forgot about the dress fitting," Stephanie said.

"You can tell her later, or tomorrow," Chris said, brushing his lips softly against Stephanie's. She leaned up a little bit to make the contact firmer, grabbing the back of his head to make the kiss deeper. Chris rolled over so that he was half on top of her. She wrapped her arms around his bare waist, running her hands all over his back. She noticed he had yet to put the baby oil on his body, which she was grateful for because she didn't want to get her outfit dirty. Chris's left hand was just underneath her skirt and sneaking up.

They weren't going to get hot and heavy in someone else's, but that didn't stop them from making out pretty heavily. Chris threw his left leg over Stephanie's leg, pushing her even more onto the couch. Stephanie moaned at the contact. They didn't realize how long they had been making out, but it had to be a while. Randy came into his locker room, expecting to find nobody in there, but instead saw Chris looking like he was trying to maul Stephanie. He groaned loudly and turned his back to them.

"Ok, you guys, I have something to say and you need to stop making out," Randy said, fighting the urge to cover his eyes.

Chris broke away from Stephanie guiltily. "What is it?"

"Well, Bischoff said if Maven can't come out tonight then we're on our own."

"Are you freaking kidding me!" Chris said. "How is that even fair!"

"I don't know, but there's nothing we can do, so we have to suck it up if Maven can't go."

"I knew we never should've taken that damn rookie," Chris muttered. "Baby, I'm going to have to cut out of here. Randy, we've gotta talk and compensate for that rookie being gone. Damn it, just when I think that I can get a minute alone with my fiancée, this shit pops up."

"You guys, Lita is attacking Trish!" Christian yelled as he ran past the locker room on the way to the gorilla.

Randy, Chris and Stephanie looked confused for a moment before they ran out to follow Christian. By the time that they got there, Trish was already headed back, with the help of some people. Christian rushed over to her and took her, letting him help her. Stephanie and the others crowded around her, not too close, but close enough to see if she was going to be all right. She didn't look good at the moment though.

"I'm going to take you to the trainer," Christian said, physically shuddering as he saw all the blood on Trish's face. He had never seen her quite like this before and it scared him. Usually Trish was so pristine, beautiful, and to see her in such a mess, it was scary. It made him realize that he couldn't protect her all the time, no matter how much he wanted to. And he wanted to take care of her so badly. He hadn't been able to...before, but he wanted to now.

Stephanie leaned back on Chris as she felt him wrap his arms around her. She looked back to where Trish and Christian were retreating and she felt so incredibly sad about this whole situation. Maybe since her life was practically in order, it made her quite oblivious to other people's pain, but this situation with Lita and Trish, it was just hitting her hard. She didn't know where the anger stemmed from, and Trish was her friend, one of her best friends, and to see her with such animosity towards someone, it was pretty scary.

She didn't realize she had been crying until she felt Chris press his cheek against hers, pressing the wetness into her skin. She reached her hand up and surreptitiously wiped away the tears, but it did no good, Chris already knew they were there. He laced his hands through hers and kissed her damp cheek.

"You know, I was thinking that ice cream sounds really good right now," he said. "When I'm the GM for the week, after we win, will you be the one to do all my bidding?"

Stephanie gave a watery laugh, "No, I have people that do that."

"So if I were to request a giant bowl of just green M&M's, then you would have someone get it for me?"

"Yes, I would."

"And if I wanted to have someone pick up my dry-cleaning, they would."

"I guess so."

"And if I wanted to have sex on my desk, then you would send someone over to please the King of the World?"

"I think that I would take that request on my own."

"I think I'm going to like this," he said, then kissed her cheek again. "Trish will be fine, you know."

"I know...I better see if anyone needs me, and you need to concentrate on your match."

"Who says I need to concentrate. I'm the best there is in this company, I'll be fine."

"That may be, but if you end up with four people to go up against, then it's going to be a little bit difficult to overcome those odds."

"This is me Steph. The man who beat Stone Cold and The Rock in one night. Without any breaks in there. I wrestled for almost an hour straight, I went against all odds to win that match. Nobody believed in me, and I pulled it off."

"Yeah, I didn't really believe in you," Stephanie said, tapping her chin.

"Geez, thanks."

"I was married at the time, sort of happily, and I hated your guts, so of course I wouldn't have wanted you to win. I wanted Kurt to win if you must know. Even though he had betrayed me, it was really slim pickings."

"But what about that moment we shared?"

"What moment?" Stephanie asked, looking at him strangely.

"God, you have the worst memory. The moment on Christmas Eve and you came to see your father. We shared a moment."

"We did?" she asked, her brow crinkling in thought.

"Yeah! You don't remember."

"Nope, must not have been that good a moment," she said. "Good luck in your match."

It was those words of luck that he took out with him for his match against Team Evolution plus Edge plus Snitsky (he was working on a name). Jericho wasn't in the match first, Benoit was, but when Chris got tagged in, he got the man he wanted. Hunter. Things had been pretty quiet with Hunter for the time being, but he didn't know how long that would last. Perhaps Hunter was just planning something really big and holding off. Either way, Chris went after him. It was nice to be able to have Hunter across the ring, ready to get his ass kicked.

Eventually, it came down to Randy, and much to Chris's surprise, he was able to overcome the odds and win the match. Chris had been waiting with baited breath backstage, feeling like his life was on the line. When Randy got the win, Chris didn't know what to do. Stephanie was jumping up and down next to him, patting him on the back and when he looked to Benoit, he was smiling to himself. Stephanie threw her arms around him, muttering with happiness and he just hugged her back.

Time to think of just how he was going to run Raw.


	8. I Miss E&C Sometimes, November 15, 2004

A/N: Ok, this is the Raw chapter from the other night. I have to say, it was really nice seeing E&C if only for a moment. I was a huge fan of E&C back in the day, and well, if they had actually worked together, I may have, for one night only, liked Edge, but nope, I guess that streak is not broken.

Hope you like the chapter, and sorry for the delay. :)

* * *

"So tonight is your night to run Raw, do you have any idea of what you want to do?" Stephanie asked the new General Manager.

Maven sat across from her in her office. Usually this would be a weekly meeting with Bischoff, but since he had decided to run off to God knows where, she was now having to deal with the people who had won last night. Not that that was a bad thing, it wasn't, because she could easily be sitting here across from Hunter, and she could just imagine what that meeting would be like.

But no, she just had Maven sitting there, dressed nicely for the show, even though the necklace he was wearing seemed really large, but she trained her eyes to focus away from that. She was quietly tapping her pen against the table as Maven seemed to be thinking of what he wanted to do with the show. She would give him some suggestions, but it was his show to run, not hers, and so she didn't want to encroach upon this special opportunity.

Not to mention she couldn't wait for Chris's week to run Raw. Now THAT would be a fun meeting...if they even got to the meeting that is. She could just imagine them trying to be business-like and ending up having sex on the table. He was the one going to be running Raw and she could do nothing but obey his every wish.

"Well, I want to face Triple H, I think that's a given," Maven said to her. She knew that it was going to come up. She nodded her head, thinking that would be the main event.

"I figured you might do that," Stephanie said. "You can have the main event for that."

"Great," Maven said with a smile.

Stephanie smiled too, but knew this kid had no chance of winning it on his own. He may have been in this company for more than three years, but he was still a rookie in everyone's eyes. To have the opportunity to even get a shot at the World Title was something he should take advantage of, but he was going up against Hunter, who was going to fight tooth and nail to keep that belt around his waist.

Even if Hunter had no help whatsoever, he had a ninety-nine percent chance of winning the match. She had been married to Hunter for two years, and she knew that he was great in the ring. If anyone had a chance to beat him, it was the other three people who were going to be running Raw, and not Maven. But she wasn't going to deny the kid a chance.

"Anything else you've got in mind?" Stephanie asked.

Maven smirked at her, and she could only imagine what was coming. "Well, you know, that new girl, Christy, she hasn't really gotten the chance to show what she's got. So maybe tonight, she can show us everything she's made of."

Stephanie put on a fake smile. She didn't know Maven well, or really know him at all. She hadn't taken him for the smarmy type, but the way he had just said that last statement kind of gave her the creeps. Figured he would be just like any other male in control, making stupid matches for women who had no talent in the ring. Not that she had been so talented when she was in the ring, but at least she knew some of the most basic of wrestling moves, and hadn't gone out there completely clueless.

"What kind of match did you want for her, if you want a match?"

"Lingerie Pillow Fight," he said, so quickly that Stephanie knew that he had been thinking about this for quite some time. She looked down to roll her eyes, covering it up with the fact that she was writing this down.

"Ok, what else?"

"I was thinking about a Tag Team Elimination Match too, with the Tag Titles on the line. Maybe get like three teams or something."

"I'll figure that out."

"And I want to put Benoit and Shelton in a match against Edge and Christian," Maven said.

Stephanie cringed when he said that. Things between Christian and Edge were still very unresolved. She knew that they were still at odds with one another, though luckily Christian had given up his rather stupid plan of trying to get back at Edge. Now there was just a touch of animosity between them. A touch that extended three years, but she had no choice but to appease him.

"Ok, I can do that."

Chris interrupted them before the meeting could go any further. He looked guiltily at the two of them and Stephanie rolled her eyes again. Chris made his way to his bag and threw some of his clothes over his arm and his wrist tape. He was very aware that the other two people in the room were looking at him, waiting for him to do his business.

He turned to them, "You know this is my locker room too."

Stephanie laughed. "I know, you don't have to explain yourself."

"Well you were looking at me like I was crazy for just walking in here. I'm allowed to just walk in. It may be your office, but it's also my locker room. It's not like you would be in here doing something that I can't walk in on."

"I get it sweetie," Stephanie said. "I was just in a meeting with Maven here since it's his week to run the show."

Chris came over to sit on the arm of Stephanie's leather desk chair. He threw his arm across the top and Stephanie leaned back against the chair. "Yeah, I've been thinking about what I want to do with my week."

"Good...Maven, I think that we've got pretty much got everything set, and the matches are all doable," Stephanie said, instantly transferring to her business mode. Chris grinned at nobody in general, just the fact that he loved when Stephanie got into this kind of mood.

"She's awesome isn't she?" he said to Maven, letting his hand come to rest on Stephanie's shoulder.

"Chris, I'm trying to work," Stephanie said in exasperation. Though she did appreciate the compliment he was giving her. She wasn't so into her work right now that she wouldn't take a few nice words.

"Yeah, but you're just...great," he said, his voice still proud.

"Maven, you can go now, and announce whatever you want to announce when the show comes on. Be sure to announce all the matches that you want, it'll probably draw people in who want to see the matches."

"Thanks Stephanie, bye Chris," Maven said as he stood up.

Stephanie turned her head up to look at Chris. "You shouldn't interrupt me when I'm working. I'm supposed to be professional and business-like. What if I had been meeting with an investor or a sponsor, and you had just come barging in here, telling me that you loved me or something."

"Hey, that's where you're wrong. If I saw you in here with someone important, I would leave. But Maven isn't really that important is he?"

"He's running the show tonight, so I'd say he's pretty important tonight," she answered.

"Don't be mad at me," Chris said, his bottom lip jutting out in an obvious pout. Stephanie put her hand to the back of his neck and brought him down so she could kiss him. Chris kissed her back, but the uncomfortable position that he was in made it difficult to kiss her for a long period of time. He pulled away and sat up, hearing his back crack in the process.

"I'm not mad at you," she said, though he knew that was the case anyways. "So I talked to Trish this morning, and her nose is definitely broken. She has to wear that horrible face mask. The one that Test wore."

"God, Lita was so brutal last night," Chris said. "I mean, she was ready to tear Trish's head off."

"Oh God, that reminds me."

"Why is it that whenever I mention Trish, it reminds you of something?"

"Because it triggers something in my brain, and then I remember."

"So what do you remember?"

"That Maven wanted Edge to team with Christian tonight," Stephanie said, clicking her tongue at the end of the statement. It still left a really bad taste in her mouth. Looking up at Chris, she noticed that his face had turned to a scowl.

"Does he not know anything?" Chris asked.

"Apparently he's really dense. I mean, I let him do it since he's the one running things, and I can only put my two cents in, and not actually dictate what happens, but he seemed really high on it. But Edge and Christian, the two of them cannot just co-exist with each other."

"I know," Chris said. "Should I go warn Christian?"

"You might want to. At least then hearing it on-screen won't be such a surprise. Maven didn't here until late, so posting the schedule is going to be cutting it really close. I might have to call a meeting with everyone."

"You want me to go around and tell people that there's a meeting...in say, catering?"

"Would you?" she asked, her voice already sounding grateful because she knew that Chris would do it for her.

"What do I get out of the deal?"

"Let me see," she said, pretending to think. "Nothing. Because everything I have, I have already given you Chris, so I think this should just be because you love me."

"Well that's not much of a reward. I was hoping for something more," he tapped his cheek. She tilted her head for a second to regard him before giving in and kissing him lightly on the cheek. "Ok, I guess I'll spread the good word."

Chris stood up from his perch on her chair and went to the door. Stephanie held out her hand in front of her and curled her fingers in until just her pinky was held up. "I totally have you wrapped around my little finger."

"Yes, Stephanie, you have me wrapped around your finger, I admit it."

"Hey Chris?"

"Yeah?" he said, turning to her.

"Do you think I'm too much in control?"

Chris leaned against the door. "What do you mean by that?"

"I mean, it's not my job to run Raw this week, or next week, or the week after that and so on, and here I am, calling meetings and everything. Should I just let Maven announce the matches for later and be done with it? I mean, he is the one supposed to be running it."

Chris walked back over to where Stephanie was and crouched down next to her chair, resting his arms on it. "No, that's your job. But how about you let Maven do whatever he wants tonight, and see how it works out. Just let him handle matches and the like, let him decide the matches he wants to happen. If it works, then you can do it with Benoit and Randy as well."

"And you?"

"Well, you've got me wrapped around you finger, so I'm thinking that I'm not going to have much choice when it comes to my week."

"Can you get Maven back in here?"

"Yes Boss," he saluted, kissing her quickly before leaving the room. He walked down the hallway, looking for Maven and telling him that Stephanie needed to see him again. After that, he went on his other mission, telling Christian who he was going to be tagging with that night. He didn't find Christian in his locker room, but he did find Trish, laying on the couch, her face mask on as she tried to lean her head back. "Hey there Trish."

"Hey Chris," she said miserably. "What are you doing here?"

"I was looking for you boyfriend."

"He'll be in here soon, he's trying to find out if he has a match tonight."

"Oh, that's what I wanted to talk to him about," Chris said, sitting down next to Trish's legs. Trish moved them to the side a little so he had a little more room to sit down.

"I'm sure he'll be back soon."

"How's your nose? Stephanie said it was broken."

"Yeah, and I look horrible in this thing, but the doctor said if I wanted to come to work tonight that I would have to wear this thing. I look ugly!"

Chris chuckled a little and patted her on the knee. "You look fine. You broke your nose, it's not like you're wearing those for vanity."

"True. So what did you want to tell Christian?"

"He has a match with Edge tonight."

This caused Trish to sit up and look at Chris. His image of her face was a little obscured by that...thing on her face, but he could tell she didn't like it one bit. She brought her legs in a little so she could shift herself so she was sitting next to Chris. She rested her chin in her hand a moment, collecting her thoughts before looking over at Chris.

"Who decided this?"

"Maven."

"Damn it," she mumbled. "Doesn't he know about those two?"

"Nope. I don't know, I know that Christian can be a professional though. He can handle it."

"Yeah, he can handle it. He can handle anything," she said softly, more to herself than Chris. The two of them sat there silently for a second or two, not really feeling the need to say much else.

Chris turned to Trish after a moment, "You know Trish, whatever it is that you're going through...I'm really sorry about what happened last week, with me defending Lita. I just...I don't get it."

"I wouldn't expect you to," Trish said. "It's fine Chris, you didn't know. And you're such a good friend that you always do the right thing. I may have overreacted to seeing you talking to Lita, but I was so hurt. You know how much I hate her."

"If I knew the reason though, I might be able to help, or at least listen."

Trish's eyes teared up and it wasn't because of her broken nose. She was sporting some pretty nasty bruises on her face that she had covered with makeup pretty effectively. A tear ran down her cheek and she had to take off her mask to gingerly wipe it away. Chris didn't try to pry, but he did wrap his arm around her shoulder and hold her comfortingly.

"I just don't like how Lita didn't protect herself or her baby. She should've known how lucky she was to be having a baby, and it just seemed like she didn't know how lucky she was, regardless of the baby's father, she should've protected herself better. And she didn't. There are people who would give anything to be where she is," Trish said, putting her face mask back on.

"I know. I can't imagine the pain she's in, but I would be so protective of Stephanie if she was pregnant. I don't know why Lita went out there that night, and I don't know why she allowed herself to get in that ring, but she did...and I think that we should at least be sympathetic to her loss."

"But what about the people who lose their children through no fault of their own?" Trish asked. "Why should I feel sympathetic for her when some people don't even want to lose their children and then they do?"

"I don't know, I'm sorry," Chris said, kissing her forehead.

"You're a good friend Chris."

Chris had a feeling that he was missing a pretty important story here. Though he thought he was getting the gist of the story, he didn't want to intrude and ask her point blank if she was saying something. If she wasn't saying a particular thing, he would feel pretty foolish so he kept his mouth shut, wisely. He just kept holding her until Christian came into the room and saw Trish. He rushed over and looked at Chris for an answer. He mouthed that she was ok and then relinquished his position with Trish so Christian could take over comforting her.

"Christian, Chris came here to tell you about your match later," Trish said, leaning her head against her boyfriend.

"I could NOT for the life of me figure that out from everyone."

"It's cause Maven's in charge and he's announcing it later during the show, but since my fiancée is the head of this here show, I get the information first-hand. And Christian...you're not going to be happy," Chris said, preparing for Christian's temper tantrum.

"Oh great, why?" Christian asked.

"You're teaming with Edge."

"WHAT!" Christian said, standing up so abruptly that Trish fell on her side on the couch, losing the guy she was leaning on. "I can't tag with him."

"That's what is happening though."

"Chrissy," Trish started, pulling him down by his sleeve. "You can do it. You can just show him how much of a bigger man you are. If you go out there and try your best and put your best foot forward then you can show Edge that you are the better of the two. Take the high road Chrissy, don't stoop to Edge's level."

"You're right," Christian said. "And I think I can do that."

"Of course you can."

"I'd kiss you, but you have that thing over your face, and I don't think I can get in that close," Christian said.

"Ok, I'm going to leave you two now, and you can just go about your business. Good luck with Edge though," Chris said.

"I'll need it."

"Yeah, I know, that's why I don't envy you. Apparently Maven has not put me in a match tonight, so I just get to hang around with my lady, I'm a lucky guy," Chris said, grinning then he pointed at Trish. "You feel better all right, I want to see your pretty face soon."

"Go away Cassanova. What would your fiancée think if she saw you calling me pretty?"

"I don't think she'd care. She might even try to unload you on me."

"Yeah, she might."

Stephanie left after her meeting with Maven. She wanted to try and talk to Randy again. She hadn't gotten to finish their conversation from the night before. She wanted to lord it over his head a little more that she knew Stacy was the girl that he was seeing. She just wanted him to be honest with her, that wasn't too much to ask. Maybe now he would just give up the information.

She tried to find Randy's locker room, but she was having trouble. She was walking down a hallway and saw Hunter standing around with two women who she had never seen before. It actually made her smile though; maybe Hunter was finally starting to keep his distance away from her. She went on her way, intending to just walk by him, but Hunter, as always couldn't let things go easily.

"That's my ex-wife," Hunter exposited to the ladies.

Stephanie turned at the comment. "Aww, say that like you mean it Hunter."

"I was just telling them who you were."

"Well, I guess your ex-wife is a title that I'm forced to hold. But don't let that fool you ladies, he was the one who married me, I didn't give him any consent to marry me, and then you know, I stopped loving him, and then I dumped him, despite what he may think."

"I was the one who dumped you at the altar."

"I was the one who lied to you to try and get away from you," Stephanie countered, then stage whispered to the women, "Because he wasn't the best husband."

"I still dumped you."

"Yeah, and who did I run to...oh that's right, the man I'm now marrying and love more than I ever loved you. And I've been with Chris longer than I've ever been with you."

"Cause you have no taste."

"That used to be true, when I married you, but now I have great taste."

Hunter stalked up to her until they were face-to-face. "You think that Jericho is a great guy. He's nothing. He can't even beat me. He's never beaten me, not one-on-one, never, remember that next time Stephanie, he's not as good as me."

"I never should have had that referee turn over the decision to make him the WWF Champion," Stephanie said. "Fast count my ass."

"That was stricken from the record books, that match never existed," Hunter said with a smirk. "Remember that Last Man Standing Match, I kicked his ass then too."

"Yes, I know, I was there, and he put up a valiant fight," Stephanie said, though she'd rather not remember that match. "I'm sorry you're sad that your team lost last night. I'm sure that Chris will be merciful when he runs Raw."

"Bitch," Hunter spat. "We both know that the both of you are out to get me."

"You bet your ass we're out to get you," Stephanie said, then off Hunter's look. "What you expected me to deny it? You expected me to be little Miss Sunshine and be the bearer of good news. Well listen up Hunter...when Chris runs Raw, I'm going to try my damnedest to make sure that you are humiliated, and left in a pool of your own damn blood. Mark my words Hunter...Chris running Raw is going to be your worst nightmare. Oh, and you might want to get ready, you have a title match against Maven later. Good luck."

Stephanie left the speechless Hunter in her wake as she continued to Randy's locker room. Upon finding it, she politely knocked, lest he was naked or something. He answered the door with a smile. "What's up you? You need to stop coming around here? I'm getting tired of you."

"You could never get tired of me Randy," Stephanie said. "And what about the girl of yours, she's not getting tired of you is she?"

Randy groaned loudly. "Stephanie, trust me, you are not getting that information out of me. And I have to go talk to Maven right now because he wants me to do something for him."

"Then I'll walk with you," she said, following him as he started to walk away. "So come on Randy, spill the beans!"

"No, Stephanie."

"But I saw _her._"

"No, you didn't."

"I saw her last night," Stephanie said again, being more specific.

"I didn't even talk to her last night," Randy said.

"But I saw her go into your locker room," Stephanie said, nudging his side with her elbow. Randy caught her arm and took her hand and pushed it back towards her.

"She did not go in my locker room last night, I think that I would know if she did."

Stephanie stomped her feet. "I saw Stacy going into your locker room!"

Randy laughed. "Steph, I'm not seeing Stacy!"

"I don't know why you just won't—wait, you're not seeing Stacy."

"Unless she gets me drunk a lot, then no, I'm not seeing Stacy. No offense to Stacy, but I'm going to need someone with a little more up top, if you catch my drift."

Stephanie stopped in her tracks, causing Randy to stop and look at her. She shoved him hard, sending him flying backwards and almost into the wall. "How could you say something so disgusting like that! Just because a girl is not well-endowed means nothing!"

"Stephanie McMahon, soon to be Jericho, I meant her brains, as in she's not that intelligent, as in I can't hold a conversation with her."

"Oh...well then say that, and don't say stupid...words," she said, folding her arms across her chest.

"Besides, I don't really care if those are big, as long as she's got them, ya know, heh," Randy said, then quickly shut his mouth when he realized he was talking to a woman and not a man. "I mean...looks mean very little to me, I'm not shallow like that."

"So then why was Stacy going into your locker room last night, huh?"

"Oops, got me there," Randy said in a dopey voice. "Stephanie, it's not unusual for people to go into other people's locker rooms to talk. You barge into mine all the time. And it seems to me that last night, you were making out on my couch. She just wanted to talk."

"Fine," Stephanie said, "I guess that I have no choice but to believe you. But let it be known that I'm going to find out who this girl is, and when I do...you're in for it buddy. I don't know how, or when, or the details, but you're in for it."

"For what?"

"I don't know yet!"

"Well, there's Maven, get to gettin," Stephanie said, pushing him a little so she could go to work. The show had already started a little while ago, but she wasn't in charge tonight, so the pressure was kind of off of her.

Trish walked backstage, feeling pretty pissed that Lita had hit her again. Did she want to make her nose cave in or something? She still couldn't believe that Lita had done that to her. She shouldn't have stood for it, and she didn't at first. But she made the mistake of getting into the ring. A mistake that she quickly regretted. Christian wasn't waiting backstage for her, since he was probably either getting ready for his match or sharing some terse moments with Edge.

It was the former, but it was soon to be the latter as Christian went to find Edge. He wasn't happy about teaming with his brother. There had been a time, not too long ago that he though this would've been pretty awesome, the reunion of E&C, but it wasn't to be. Too much had passed recently for him to just forget about all of his brother's harsh words.

The two collided in an interview with Todd Grisham. Edge was of course being petulant like usual. Christian tried taking the high road, tried to not sound as bitter as Edge. He thought that he had succeeded, but of course, still managed to get a few zingers in on his brother. Christian was so very tired of Edge, and so he walked away, but not before asserting the fact that he was going to be the leader tonight, and if Edge didn't like it, well Christian could tell him just the right place to shove it.

Stephanie happened to be at the controls when this was happening. She had her headset on and everything. She smiled as Christian asserted himself, and then scowled when Edge continued to ramble on and on. And then on some more about how he was something or another, she wasn't really paying THAT much attention. But then Edge said he was going to do a five-second pose. Stephanie couldn't have him try to be entertaining and let her tongue slip a little.

"Let's get the bumper for the next match on-screen immediately," she said into her headset. Then she giggled to herself as Edge was suddenly cut off before he got to do any posing of any kind.

Christian and Edge fought fairly well through the match, only getting in a skirmish here and there. They did have tons of practice while Benoit and Shelton didn't really have much practice. Edge and Christian had been at this for years, had won many Tag Team titles, and TLC matches, and there was an easy rhythm to fall into. It was almost like old times, not really, only when they were concentrating on the match, but for a brief moment, it might've seemed like they should be donning huge novelty cowboy hats and saying that sodas rule.

But of course, that nice, safe, nostalgic feeling was not enough to keep Edge happy with their loss. He couldn't see past the fact that this match meant almost nothing, that it was just a match, not for belts. But Edge, so furious that he was not getting a World title shot any time soon (because let's face it, there are at least five other guys who would probably be better deserved of a shot), decided to take his anger out on Christian, for no apparent reason other than the fact he was mad.

Christian was not expecting this, but he should've. The anger that lie behind Edge's eyes erupted into this violent display as Christian was hit and thrown into one of the corners of the ring, his body bouncing off the hard metal. Christian felt very sad in that moment. Just very sad, maybe for himself, but mostly for his brother, who deep down, he still loved, and would always love. Brothers, they were brothers, and that transcended any bond they had with anyone else. But Edge had changed, Christian had too, but not this drastic, not this quickly.

Once upon a time, Christian had been the disgruntled brother. Edge was riding high, winning titles and matches and King of the Ring. Christian had harbored that jealousy and anger until he erupted and turned on Edge, and that's what led them to now, except it seemed the roles had reversed. The two of them were more alike than anyone could realize. He was taken backstage, and his worse for the wear girlfriend was there to greet him.

They were such a sad pair, her with her face mask, him with his now aching body and cut up forehead. All at the hands of his brother and Trish's ex-friend. It suddenly made him glad to have friends like Chris and Stephanie, or Randy and Kurt and Shane too. He could trust those guys, knew that they were good people. He didn't need Edge, though he wanted his brother back, but not this recent incarnation of him, but he didn't need his brother to be happy. It all really boiled down to Trish and his best friends.

"Let's go back to the hotel," Trish said quietly.

"That sounds good," he responded, thinking that nothing would be better than just lying in bed with his girlfriend, not thinking about how at the drop of a hat, things change, and you can never regain them. He needed to forget that hard life lesson for a little while.

Later that evening, Chris found himself going to and trying to teach someone else a valuable life lesson, and that lesson was: Never Trust or Listen to Triple H. It was one of those lessons that you need to tuck in the back of your brain and never forget. Never trust that man, Chris knew more than anyone. Everyone could say that Hunter and Shawn Michaels had been the ones with epic battles, but Shawn and Hunter paused every now and then, holding their feud off. With Chris and Hunter, the feud never ended. It extended itself from the ring to backstage, to their personal lives. Their hatred and dislike was rooted deep, very deep, years deep. While Hunter and Shawn had been friends, Chris and Hunter had never been friends, not once.

How could he be friends with the man? There had been so much that went on between them. Most of it stemming from Stephanie, but that was only the beginning. There had been trouble brewing between them since forever, and it had not let up. Maven was by no means one of Chris's good friends, but he didn't want to see someone fall into the clutches of Hunter. He knew Hunter, Stephanie had told him quite a bit about him, sometimes WAY too much about him, but he knew what kind of man Hunter was.

Chris was not shocked to see the two women hanging all over Maven when he walked into his office for the evening. Probably sent over by Flair or Hunter, or Dave if the case may be. They did look quite skanky, so it was probably their job to woo the young man over to the dark side, so to speak. Chris tried to squeeze past the blonde one, but she was too stupid to move two inches out of the way and he ended up bumping into her. Stupid skank, he thought to himself, not even giving her a second glance. Ok, so he gave her a second glance, but it was one of disgust and hope that he couldn't catch anything by touching her skin.

He tried to talk some sense into Maven, but he wasn't sure if Maven was going to take the bait with it. Maven was essentially a good kid, and he didn't want to see him screw up and join Hunter. Hunter didn't want Maven in Evolution, Hunter just wanted to get out of his title defense. It was pathetic the lows that Hunter was willing to stoop to try and get out of a match. Chris knew he was bad, but seriously, this was ridiculous. When he was the Undisputed Champion (for those glorious months of birds chirping and babies laughing and Hunter crying into his protein bar), he defended his belt all the time, and wasn't afraid to go out there and defend it (his match against Kurt and The Rock notwithstanding, though that had been about the numbers, all about the numbers...this was also the moment that he and Stephanie had shared that Stephanie had forgotten about).

He left and went to check on Stephanie. She was sitting there, watching the show, looking bored. He sat down next to her and put his feet up on the table. She leaned her head on his shoulder as she continued to watch the show, with her headphones on no less. She took them off at the commercial break and looked at him.

"So do you think he'll make the right decision?" she asked.

"Yeah, I think he will. There's no way that he could go with Evolution. Even the rookie should know that Hunter doesn't want him in the group."

"Yeah, but you have to admit the thought can be pretty alluring to a guy just starting out."

"You're right, but he seems to have a good head on his shoulders."

"Yeah...so how did the Edge and Christian thing go?"

"Not well, but I'm sure Trish will help Christian out with that. Edge attacked him at the end of the match."

"Typical."

"Jericho, we're going to go back up Maven out there," Benoit said in his usual voice, which made everything sound quite mundane.

"I swear to God, every time I try and get a moment alone with my fiancée, I get interrupted. I am going to just not show up one of these days and spend all my time with you."

"Well, you're actually going to be spending a lot of time alone, since I'd actually be at the show."

"Fine, duty calls. When did I ever get sucked into this thing in the first place? I blame Randy, I think Randy is to blame."

"Just go," she told him. "Go help the kid out. And you know, Hunter was right about one thing. Maven would be an easier target to beat if he had the title. Just about anyone could take him, so you know, if you have to look out for anyone tonight, think of yourself first, I know that you hardly ever do that."

"That was too sarcastic for my tastes," Chris told her.

"Oh come on Chris, we all know you always look out for everyone else first," she said, again with sarcasm in her voice.

Chris just left her, not wanting to argue, because she was right...again. He went out there with Benoit, to look out for his best interests. He could pretend that he was supporting Maven, but really, if Maven was the champion, he was as good as in if he got to take charge next week. He started picturing himself being the World Champion. It did warm his heart a little.

What also warmed his heart was throwing Hunter into things. That made him smile. Throwing Hunter into any solid object was bound to get a smile on his face. And then getting to do his Running Bulldog on him, followed by the Lionsault. Unfortunately, Maven could not capitalize on ALL the help that he and Benoit were giving the rookie. You would think that he could move just a little bit faster to get the pin.

In the end it was a moot point as chaos broke loose and somewhere in the middle of it, Hunter had pinned Maven. Chris wasn't going to complain, beating Hunter for the title would be pretty sweet. Then he could lord that AND Stephanie over Hunter's head for the rest of his life. That would be pretty entertaining. Besides, didn't Chris deserve ONE, just ONE win over Hunter in this lifetime? He was way past due.

As Chris watched Hunter literally crawl himself up the ramp, Chris was actually satisfied by this outcome. Hunter's time was ticking by, not slowly, not quickly, as time is indiscriminate to any circumstances, but time was ticking by. Chris would get his chance, maybe next week, maybe the week after, but he would get his chance. Just the thought of having more than one thing to have over Hunter made the though of beating him even better. It was good that Maven hadn't won, because he knew now that he wanted Hunter, he wanted to beat Hunter.

That's the kind of epiphany you have when you're looking out for number one.


	9. Dave Was So Close to Getting Out, Novemb...

A/N: This would've been up sooner, but the site was down.

And I really wish that Dave's thing hadn't been a fake-out, I had such nice plans.

And for those that celebrate it, I hope you had a happy Thanksgiving. :)

* * *

Stephanie and Chris were holding hands as they were sitting in catering. Stephanie was writing something down with her right hand while Chris played with her left hand. He dawdled around with her engagement ring, systematically taking it off and then putting it back on. Stephanie looked at him occasionally, sensing that he was bored, and most likely he was bored with her.

"You said it would be fine if I brought my work," she told him.

He nodded, "But I'm done eating, and now I have nothing to do. Give me something to do. I'm sure there's something around here that needs checking on."

"Nope, nothing needs to be done. Actually, you know, Benoit is pretty efficient when it comes down to it."

"What do you mean?"

"He said he would take care of everything having to do with the schedule of the show. I thought that he was joking around, but he was absolutely serious. I don't even need to think of anything, because he has all the matches covered."

"Well, that's Benoit, one organized son of a bitch."

"And he's your friend."

"Yeah."

"Well, he's great. I didn't even need to do anything. I wish he was the normal General Manager, then I could spend more time with my guy."

"What guy?" Chris said, pretending to sound angry.

"Come on, let's go back to my office. I can finish my work in there, and you can go bug someone else around here."

"Are you saying that I bother you?"

She smiled. "Why yes Chris, that is exactly what I'm saying. I don't think you get the concept of my position. I spend more time with you during the shows than doing my actual job. That's almost grounds for termination."

"No way is your father going to fire you."

"Oh yeah, because he's NEVER done that before," Stephanie said, rather sarcastically. She knew very well that her father was more than willing to fire her if he was more than inclined. He was just so temperamental like that. Not that she wasn't the same way, she was, but she was a little bit more aware of it than her father was.

"But he wouldn't do it now, you're on good terms again."

"With Daddy, it's always one step away from being disowned," Stephanie said, a bitter laugh ringing from her mouth. "I don't delude myself into thinking that he will always love me and care about me. It's a roller coaster with him."

"Well, you always have me," Chris said, wrapping his arm around her. "I'll love you enough for everyone."

"Yeah, until you find yourself at an altar and then you throw your ring at me," she said, smirking. She knew she was just revisiting an old scenario, but it was much funnier trying to picture Chris being as irate as Hunter was that evening so long ago.

"I wouldn't throw my ring at you," Chris said, shaking his head resolutely. "I would pawn it. Oh, and I'd rip that engagement ring right off your finger and go pawn that too."

"No, you said I could always keep it," Stephanie said smugly. Then she held it up and wiggled her fingers around, as if taunting him. Chris grabbed her hand, too quick for her reflexes and kissed the back of her hand before entwining his fingers with hers and bringing it down between them.

"Yeah, I guess I did say that you could keep it…but I won't be happy about it."

"You'll never divorce me," Stephanie said with confidence. "Not ever, ever."

"Where's your crystal ball?"

"Oh, wouldn't you like to know."

Stephanie leaned across the short distance and they paused as they shared a sweet kiss. They didn't make it too long, since there had been complaints by people that they showed way too many public displays of affection. They mostly laughed it off, but it was actually bothering people, they would at least try to restrain themselves, but it was difficult since they were both madly in love with the other.

"Should I actually go work now?" Stephanie asked as they went into their locker room. Chris took the files that he had been carrying for her (he was a gentleman, after all) and put them onto the desk in front of him. Then he went up to Stephanie and gathered her up in his arms.

"I thought that Benoit had everything taken care of?"

"He does, but you know, technical stuff."

"You can do that later," he said, kissing her neck, brushing her hair away from her gently, laying it against her back. Stephanie giggled when he hit a particularly ticklish spot and swatted him away, although reluctantly.

"Ok, I guess that we can have some fun now…which reminds me--"

"Oh dear God, Stephanie, everything reminds you of something. I'm a man, I have needs," he said, leaning in to get at her neck again. Stephanie pushed him away once again.

"Yeah, needs that get met rather frequently," Stephanie said. "Ok, I was wondering, should I go shopping for all the Thanksgiving stuff tomorrow or on Wednesday?"

Chris groaned loudly. "I can't believe that while I'm trying to kiss you, you are thinking about grocery shopping. This is what my life has been reduced to. I'm second to shopping…and not even shopping for clothes, which I know you love, grocery shopping!"

"Oh, you are not, but it's our first Thanksgiving at our house, with both our families. And I'm cooking! Me! Cooking!" Stephanie sighed, "Oh God, this is going to be a disaster."

"No, it's not, because I am going to help you. But go tomorrow so you can get everything. And I know that our parents are bringing liquor, liquor and more liquor. I bet that's how I'm going to get lucky that night."

"Yeah, getting me drunk is the ONLY way that you're getting any because our parents are going to be in the house, and I'm sorry, but I find that disgusting."

"What if your parents are going at--"

"If you love me at all, and I'm guessing that you do, you will NOT finish that sentence. Never finish that sentence, never finish that thought, banish it from your mind forever. It was bad enough hearing my dad talk about it on-screen, but I don't need to think about them doing it in my home, where I live, where I work, where I…do stuff. So just, please, for me, leave THAT thought alone."

"…And it's left alone," Chris said, laughing as he kissed her. She was so cute when she got all unhappy. "But Thursday is going to be great. You are going to make the best meal ever, and you will get all the credit, and we all know how much you love to be great at everything that you do."

"That is true," she said. "Come on, let's get out of here."

"But I was having fun," he said, grinning lecherously.

"Oh be quiet," she said, pulling him out of the office. "If I stayed in there with you any longer, I was bound to get a little bit…hot."

"And THAT was the entire point," Chris said, gesturing with his hands at the word, "entire."

"I'm sure it was," Stephanie said, "But—Daddy!"

"Whoa Steph, I love you, but don't ever call me Daddy."

"No dumbass," Stephanie said, looking at him briefly, then past Chris, "Daddy!"

Stephanie went running to her father, throwing herself into his open arms as he hugged her tightly. Chris watched as she ran over, obviously delighted to see her father there. Chris walked over nonchalantly, waiting for the hug to end. Stephanie pulled away and let Chris shake Vince's hand in a friendly gesture.

"Daddy, what are you doing here? Oh no, is this a surprise check-up on me!" Stephanie said jokingly, nudging Chris in the side until he, too, laughed at her rather bad joke.

"No, my PR department wanted me to film a parody opening to tonight's show."

"I haven't heard anything about that," Stephanie said. "Why wasn't I informed?"

"Because you are not the one who's going to be in it Princess. It's actually going to be with Trish Stratus and Shelton Benjamin."

"Well, I'm a little disappointed that I wasn't invited to be in it," Chris said, slinging his arm around Stephanie's waist, and then pouting rather pathetically.

"Yeah, it's not what you're thinking, but I better go get ready to film it. If you see Trish, tell her we need her at the filming location," Vince said, then turned to Stephanie alone, "You and I will talk more later."

"Ok Daddy," Stephanie said, smiling at her father. "I wonder what that's all about."

Trish was sitting on the couch, while Christian sat across from her in a folding chair. His chin was in his hand, and his arm was rested on his knee. His eyes were squinted and his brows furrowed as he was deep in thought. Trish looked at the offending object sitting in between them. Christian made no movements, as he was rather far off in another world altogether. Trish cleared her throat at him.

"So, what do you think?"

"I think that my girlfriend is going to be going out in a towel and jumping practically naked into her boss's arms. A man who she did have an affair with."

"It's just for fun Chrissy," Trish said. "I think I deserve it after everything."

"But Trish, it's kind of gross don't you think?"

"Yeah, but I was asked. Not Stacy or anyone, me, and I think that I can at least feel a little bit privileged because of that. I'm not going to be completely naked. I'll be wearing short shorts and well…pasties."

"Oh great," Christian said. "That's just what I want, for every guy in the known universe to be able to picture you naked tonight while they're lying in bed, or standing over a toilet."

Trish laughed at that, though she quickly covered her mouth with her hand. "Come on Chrissy, it's not that big a deal. It's a one time thing, Vince said the PR department had me in mind for it, since I'm so marketable. It wasn't like this was Vince's idea. If you haven't listened to Stephanie in a while, her parents are doing well…together."

"Yeah," he said. "I guess that's true. But Vince has seen all of it before, and…"

"Can we not be reminded of that?" Trish asked, cringing at the thought of her former relationship. She was young at the time, and monumentally stupid. She didn't know what she had seen in Vince…except the money, the money was a good thing. In fact, she didn't really have the best taste in men before Christian. She got up and sat down in Christian's lap, his arms instinctively wrapping around her. "I'm with you now, I love you, and only you, and you are the only man that I want to be with. Definitely not Vince."

"Ok, if you want to do it, you can do it. It's your choice. But I swear, if I catch any of these guys back here eyeing you in any inappropriate way, I'm going to bash their head through a mirror."

"I guess that's a deal," she said, kissing him softly.

"You're in a better mood," he observed.

"Yeah, after the last few weeks, you know, I feel better about the situation as a whole, but I think I'll be pretty pissed at Lita for a long time to come. You don't get over that kind of hurt."

"Do you think it's maybe time to tell Chris and Stephanie and all of them what happened?"

"It's not really my story to tell though, and I'd feel badly if it got back to them," she answered. "But I think they do deserve to know the truth. I guess I can spill it to Stephanie, who will tell Chris, who will tell Randy, and it'll filter through until all our friends know why I've been feeling pretty crappy lately."

"I think that's smart. You don't want it to get so bad and then they get mad, and then Chris and I will have to sneak around to be friends, and then we might get caught in a dark room together, and you and Stephanie will think that we're making out."

Trish pushed him lightly. "It was a slip of the tongue."

"Uh huh, into Stephanie's mouth I'm sure."

"I hate you, I have to go, see you later."

"Good luck jumping your boss," Christian said, his tone rather snarky.

"Not as much fun as I have jumping you."

While Trish was busy filming the rather steamy opening to the show (which was a take off on the opening video segment of the Monday Night Football game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Dallas Cowboys, in case people didn't know. As Monday Night Football tends to do, they start off with a video, and this one involved Terrell Owens, the wide receiver from the Eagles and an actress from an ABC show.), Christian went to catch up with Edge.

"Are you visiting Mom this weekend?" Christian asked.

"No, why would I?"

"I was just wondering because I was going to go visit her, and the last thing I want to come across when I'm there is you. It's bad enough I'll be surrounded by pictures of you while I'm there."

"I can't help it if I was always the favorite," Edge said.

"Oh give me a break," Christian said. "If you're the favorite then I'm the freaking Queen of England. Give it up Edge, nobody likes you anymore. And that's why you're all sad and boo-hoo-hoo, you're pathetic, and this 'quest' you're on for the World title, ain't gonna happen. Just ask around, nobody thinks you deserve it, least of all me."

Christian shoved Edge out of his way and walked away, intending to locate Trish. Hopefully she was finished with her little skit. He figured she was as he passed by a monitor and saw that the show was already in progress, so she must be done. That was good news, he was actually glad that he hadn't seen the skit, it might've made him see red enough to kill, or at least kick someone's ass.

Stephanie and Chris stared at one another. They had been staring at each other for a few minutes now. There were no words exchanged, no sounds emitted, just them staring at each other. They had not moved since the end of that skit between Vince, Shelton, and Trish. If they knew how to react, they weren't showing that they knew how right now. But then the dam of laughter broke and they both started cracking up, doubling over until their stomachs hurt.

"Oh my God, I don't know what the people working for my dad were thinking!" Stephanie said as she tried to stop laughing. "That was so wrong…and so bad it was funny."

Chris wiped his eyes. "Great, how the hell am I going to get through tonight without laughing?"

Stephanie sobered up after he said that, "You are facing Dave…"

"For the seventh million time. If this keeps up, I'm going to start to think he has a crush on me or something. I mean, we all know how much I loved to torment you, and now I'm marrying you."

"Well, if I have to compete with Dave over you, I'll just let him have you, I don't think I can take him," Stephanie said.

"I don't wanna be stuck with Dave," Chris laughed.

Trish and Christian walked by at that moment, but took no notice of Chris and Stephanie until they were hailed by the couple. Trish and Christian looked to the side and Christian raised his eyebrows in greeting as they hung a left and walked over to the table.

"Nice skit," Chris said to Trish. She just rolled her eyes. "I thought you played that well."

"Shut up," Trish said good-naturedly. "I was asked, it's not like I was giving a strip tease or anything. It was all just a joke."

"It better have been. Do you know how disturbing it is to see your best friend jumping naked into your father's arms? There are some things I don't ever want to relive, and that is one of them. I've fought with you about it enough."

"Oh yeah, and I do not want a bucketful of slop dumped on me again. I was finding crap in my hair for days after that," Trish laughed. Stephanie and Chris both noticed that she seemed to be in a better mood. They had discussed what she had said to Chris last week, and had both come up to a rather educated conclusion as to what was really bothering Trish. Neither one of them really knew how to breach the subject with the blonde, but they were definitely on the same page.

"You sound pretty happy this week," Stephanie said lightly, not wanting to dig into Trish's personal business, no matter how much it was killing her to know what was, or had, been going on with her friend.

"Yeah, I really do owe you guys an apology. I was a really huge bitch there for a couple of weeks."

"Or months," Chris added, until Stephanie hit him in the side, causing him to grunt harshly. "Geez, I was just making a point."

"Shut up," Stephanie hissed. "It's ok Trish, we understand. If we had been in the same situation, we would've felt the same way."

"Wait, how did you know about the situation?" Trish asked, then looked to Christian, "Did you tell them?"

"No," Christian answered, shaking his head to prove his point further.

"Well, after what you told me last week, we kind of figured it out," Chris said, a sad frown on his face. To think of all the pain that Trish had been through over the past couple months. Chris couldn't imagine it, and he hated to think of Stephanie being put in that situation. She and Christian were so strong to go through that kind of tragedy.

"Really?" Trish asked. "You did?"

"Well, from what Chris told me, you didn't leave much to the imagination. We just didn't know how to bring it up to you."

"Oh," Trish said. "Well, now you know then I guess."

"Yeah, and I'm so sorry," Stephanie said, getting up to go hug Trish. "You know you could've told me, or Chris, or all of us, we would've been there for you."

"Well, Christian was really the only person I needed," Trish said, pulling back from Stephanie. "I mean, he's the one that got me through."

"Christian, I'm so sorry for you too, it must've been devastating," Stephanie said, hugging Christian too, though he gave her a confused hug back. "I'm just so sorry that you guys had to go through it alone."

"Well, it wasn't alone, you know, I mean, we didn't just handle it alone," Trish said.

"I can't believe you guys lost your baby," Chris said, standing up as well. "I'm sorry for being pretty insensitive when you were on the Highlight Reel, if I had known that you two were going through that, I wouldn't have been so harsh."

Trish's jaw dropped open, "What are you guys talking about?"

"Trish, we know. You talked about how people lost their children when they wanted them so badly, and they couldn't do anything, and Lita not protecting her baby, while some people have no choice, and lose them even though they take every precaution. Trish, we know. When did it happen?" Chris asked.

"You guys, no," Trish said, waving her hands in front of her face. "I didn't lose anything. I've never even been pregnant before."

"What, but all that talk about…babies, and stuff, we thought," Stephanie said, shaking her head in confusion.

"You guys, it was my sister that lost her baby, not me and Christian. She and her husband were so excited and you know, things happen, and it happened to them. And I spent all my time with her for a couple of weeks when I wasn't working, and you know, she's my sister and I saw what she was going through, and it broke my heart, and then to see Lita, not even taking care of her baby, while some people never get the chance to even get that far…it made me angry. I just didn't tell you guys because it wasn't my story to share. It was my sister's, and I didn't want to betray her trust. But she's doing better now, I mean, Lita is still not on my list of people I care about, but I feel better knowing that my sister is better than she was. I have no sympathy for Lita when she could've prevented it. I'm sorry if you thought it was me, but no, not me," Trish said, looking at them. "But thank you for caring so much."

"Oh, that's still horrible," Stephanie said, though she was relieved to know her friend hadn't been the one in pain. "I'm really sorry for her and her husband."

"Well, that's life isn't it?" Trish said, thinking about her sister. "But now that you know, we can focus on more important things, like finding out who the hell Randy is dating."

"He's not even here right now. I think he's out on a date with her," Stephanie said, pulling Trish aside. Chris and Christian were left standing there.

"Gossipers," Christian muttered. Then he looked to Chris. "Don't you have a match coming up?"

"Damn it, I do!" Chris said, glancing at the countdown from commercial on Stephanie's screen. "Crap, I'm supposed to be out there in exactly one minute and fourteen seconds."

"Hey Jericho, did you hear about Dave and Triple H?" Maven said, rushing up to Chris as he was trying to do some quick warm-ups. Stephanie was certainly the distraction nowadays.

"What about the behemoth and Trips?" Chris asked the rookie.

"They were having a fight or something. Just a second ago. Seems Evolution is breaking down," Maven said with a laugh. "This is great."

"Yeah, great," Chris said as Maven ran off, probably to tell somebody else. He turned to Christian, "Dave's out for blood. I'm doomed."

"Yeah, you are," Christian nodded. "You can take him in a wrestling match, but I would not want to see that man just let loose. Good luck though."

"Thanks for the positive words," Chris said. "I better not tell Stephanie. She doesn't have to know about it. She has enough to worry about without thinking about Dave pummeling me…again."

"You know, this could be good news if they do break up. I mean, think about it, Hunter will be so focused on that, and having to be out on his own, that he won't even think about you and Stephanie."

Chris thought about it for a moment, and the more he thought, the more right Christian sounded. If Hunter had his mind on other things, other problems that he was dealing with, then maybe he would back off of Stephanie and him. But more importantly Stephanie. He knew how much she wanted their wedding to be perfect, and if Hunter was off their backs, it would take a load off of Stephanie's mind.

"You've really got something there," Chris said, patting Christian's shoulder. "That's almost too easy. Of course, I'm probably still going to get murdered by Dave."

"Yeah, you probably are," Christian said, shoving Chris towards the stairs as his countdown started.

Chris went out for his match, and when Dave came out, Chris knew that this was not going to go well; not going to go well at all. Dave was out for blood. Chris didn't know what Hunter had said to him, but whatever it was, it could not have been good. Judging from the look in Dave's eyes, it was going to be pretty brutal. If it was a regular wrestling match, then Chris would have a pretty good chance, what with his quickness and agility, but Dave was looking for a fight, and he had a good hundred pound advantage on Chris.

And as expected, Chris got hurt…by Dave…again. It was almost becoming predictable. Chris would go out there, get hurt by Dave, come back and then Stephanie would worry about him. He was going to have to make sure that when he was the one running Raw that Dave was not in a match with him. It might be the one time that he wouldn't have to forcibly face him.

Chris was taken backstage by the trainers, and he expected Stephanie to be there, worried, wondering how he was doing, and poring over him in a worrisome tone. But she wasn't there, and he had to have the trainers take him to the room to check him out. He looked around briefly for Stephanie, but still didn't see her. The trainers took a long time to check on him as he had gotten clocked pretty hard in the back of the head. All the price to pay for doing nothing. Not that he had never provoked Dave, because he had, but he didn't remember provoking him recently. Of course, he could barely remember anything at the current moment.

Stephanie had been talking to her father during Chris's match, just catching up, and then discussing business. More often than not, the talk of business would get focused on so much that they forgot about anyone else. And so it came to pass that Stephanie had forgotten that Chris even had a match. She finally finished her conversation with her father and walked out into the hallway, going back to work at her station.

She came across Hunter leaning on a trunk and went about her way. "Sorry about what happened to Jericho, I feel like it's my fault."

Stephanie stopped and turned. "What happened to Chris?"

"Seems I riled up Dave, and he went ballistic on Jericho," Hunter said nonchalantly. "Looked like he was trying to break Jericho's neck."

"Break Chris's neck," Stephanie said to herself, her voice soft. Was Chris hurt and she didn't even know it?

"Yeah, and then that clothesline to the back of the head. Man, that was brutal, but I always knew that Dave had it in him," Hunter said.

"Did you order him to do that!"

Hunter held up his hands in his innocence. "Course not. I just think that your fiancée can't take it. If it were me--"

"If it were you, you would've hired someone to take the beating for you while you hid out somewhere," Stephanie said, walking up to Hunter. "I know what kind of game you're playing here Hunter…don't try and fool me."

"Game? There's no game."

"No game huh? Well, I had the people in the truck replay your little 'fight' with Dave, and I'm not buying it Sunshine."

"I have no idea what you're talking about. Dave just needs to learn his place and what role he plays as a member of Evolution. He's the one who's being irate. I have nothing to do with that."

Stephanie tilted her head and raised an eyebrow. "You don't marry Hunter Hearst Helmsley without picking a few things up along the way. So what's the plan Hunter? Is this your way of getting out of your title match? Are you going to stage some sort of coup or sneak attack later? Wait, wait, I've got it, you're going to have Dave pretend to beat you up, and then you won't have to fight Benoit in the cage. You're so afraid that you won't make it out of this month with that title."

Hunter pulled back a little, his face showing all the answers that Stephanie needed to know. She knew him too well, and yet he was still shocked that she had him so figured out. But he was married to her once, and he had shared all of his secrets with her, and her being Stephanie McMahon, he didn't expect her to forget anything she had ever been taught. But he tried to make his face impassive as he shrugged.

"Don't know what you're talking about."

Stephanie patted him on the chest. "Don't worry, I'll keep your little secret…among other little, very little secrets that you have."

Stephanie left to go check on Chris. She wasn't that worried that he was really hurt. Hunter just loved to try and rile her up like that. It was probably just like every other week, and he was going to be fine. Hunter wouldn't really try to make Dave so mad that he would actually hurt Chris seriously. But then, Hunter was pretty vengeful. This worried Stephanie. This worried Stephanie so much that she broke out into a dead run towards the trainer's office.

She burst through the door, out of breath, and pretty sure that her ankle was about to buckle from trying to run in the heels she was wearing. She tried to get her breath before she looked up to see Chris sitting on the trainer's table, looking at her like she had grown two heads. She bent over, trying to catch her breaths, almost gulping for air.

"Steph, everything ok?"

"Hunter…said…"

"Wait a second, was Hunter harassing you?" Chris said, ready to hop off the table.

"No…he said…you were hurt…came as fast as I could," she said, starting to get her breath back. Chris leaned over to grab her hands and pulled her towards him. She stumbled towards him, falling against him, her breath slowly returning to normal. He wrapped his arms around her. "Well, obviously you're all right."

"Yeah, I'm fine. I've gotten used to Dave beating me up. I think that I've just been hit by him so hard so many times that I'm immune to it. So ha! He can't get to me anymore."

Stephanie let out a breathy laugh. "Well, as long as you're fine."

"Yeah, but there was one part of the routine that didn't happen….there was no beautiful woman waiting for me when I got backstage."

"Really? I figured one of those bimbos from the Diva Search would've been more than willing to care about you."

"Yeah, I don't want any of them. They wear less clothing than your ex does when he wrestles."

Stephanie laughed. "That's not a lot huh?"

"Not so much, but did you see how he had his shirt tucked into his wrestling tights. That's just sad. That's like tucking your shirt into your underwear."

Stephanie laughed some more. "Ok, now I definitely know that you're ok. So now I have to go find Randy."

"So this was just a stop by then. You weren't even really wondering how I was doing," Chris said with a loud, overdone sigh.

"Oh, you know I love you," she told him, cupping his cheek in her hand. "But I've got something that might interest Randy about Hunter and Dave."

"You mean Dave being pissed at Hunter right? Everyone is talking about it and how it's been coming."

"No," Stephanie said, smiling mischievously. "I was talking to Hunter, and I called him out on it, and he and Dave aren't angry at each other, it's his way of getting out of his title match. He tried to deny it, but I can read him."

"So you're saying it's all a ruse?"

"Yeah, and so I'm going to tell Randy because I pulled some strings, and you are going to be the last guy to run Raw. I figure that you should end it with a bang, and so I finagled it with my father for you to go last."

"Another perk?"

"Another perk," she concurred.

"Great," Chris said nodding. "Why don't I come with you? The guy said that I was fine."

"Ok, if you want to."

"I want to."

Chris hopped off the table, and took Stephanie's hand in his. They went to find Randy, who seemed impossible to find tonight. They weren't going to ask where he was, because they might not want to know. A guy, disappearing for a long time when he's supposed to be working? It was a story that Chris was very familiar with, being with Stephanie and all that.

Stephanie finally caught sight of him speaking with Maven of all people. "Randy!"

"Hey Steph," Randy said, giving her a charming smile. "What's up?"

"I've got a tidbit of news for you, this whole thing with Hunter and Dave is fake. They're not fighting at all. It's a bunch of bull, and they're planning on getting out of the title match."

"Better not tell that to Benoit," Randy said. "He'll be furious."

"So you're not going to tell him. No…I think we'll let it play out, and then we can do something about it."

"You're GM next week Randy," Stephanie informed him. "So anything you want to happen next week you can have happen."

"Anything?" Randy said, a gleam in his eye. Stephanie and Chris knew the gleam well. You didn't come up with numerous plans over the years and not know the look that signified the wheels were turning in someone's head. That look was plainly on Randy's face at the moment. "Chris, stick around will ya."

"What do you have in mind Randy?"

"I think there's an ultimatum in Hunter's future," Randy said with a cynical laugh. "I know that I have that stupid stipulation, but I might have a way around it. How would you like a title shot next week?"

"I'd love one."

"Well, I think everyone should get a chance…and that's just what I intend to do."


	10. Ack, Anyone But Edge, November 29, 2004

A/N: Since the site was down, I didn't get a couple of reviews, but thank you for the reviews anyways. :)

* * *

"I am the man, and I am in charge!" Randy called out as he walked into the arena. Never mind that there wasn't that man people around. He was just happy to be the man in charge. He could make anything happen because he was the one who was going to run the show, not Hunter. It was good to be the best.

He knew that he should probably go check things over with Stephanie, but then, knowing Stephanie, she was probably making out with Chris somewhere, while trying to avoid doing any work of her own. She and Chris were pretty predictable nowadays, not that it was a bad thing or something like that, but they were usually doing one thing or the other, making out or working.

"There's the man," Maven said as he walked up to Randy, giving him a high five. Randy popped his eyebrow up at the other man. For some reason, Maven thought that just because they had been on the same team, that made them friends by default. Sure, Randy didn't think the guy was all bad, but he wasn't the type of guy that Randy usually made friends with. Neither were Chris and Christian, but they weren't Maven, and why that should be a good enough reason, he did not know.

"Hey, what's up?" Randy asked.

"Nothing, just waiting for this Battle Royal to go down, I expect to make it pretty far," Maven said, nodding his head and smiling cockily.

Randy nodded as well. "Good luck, there's some great competition in there."

"Yeah, but come on, I was on the winning team, I'm sure I can take out half those guys easy."

"Yeah, you go do that," Randy said. "I'm sure that some of those guys will have something to say."

"Hi Randy," Stacy said as she walked up to him, wrapping her arm through his, without his permission. "How are you tonight?"

"I'm good Stacy, and you are?"

"I'm fabulous," she said, her smile flirty as she gave his arm a squeeze. "I was looking for you at the hotel earlier, but I couldn't find you, no matter how hard I looked, and I looked hard."

"Maven, you'll have to excuse me, I think that this needs my immediate attention."

Maven smirked and slapped him on the back as he walked past the two of them. Randy wasn't planning on doing anything with Stacy, but he was going to let her think he was going to suddenly give in to her every desire. He knew the kind of trick she was playing. He wondered if she had done this for Maven and for Benoit, though that last one probably was a big no, considering Benoit wasn't the easiest guy to sway. He broke his thoughts and turned his full attention to Stacy.

"Now what were you saying beautiful?" he said with a charming smile. He may be, "spoken for," in a general sense, but it didn't hurt to flirt a little bit. It wasn't like the girl he was seeing and him were that exclusive. He was very reluctant to call her, his girlfriend; it was still pretty casual at this point. He hadn't even slept with her yet.

Stacy giggle, "Oh, nothing, I was just wondering what you were doing for the show tonight, anything special…or with me?"

"Well, I don't know, I guess that would be up to my whim. Anything goes tonight," Randy said with a wink. "Did you want to escort me to my locker room?"

"I would like that very much," Stacy said, tossing her hair back and over her shoulder. She held onto Randy's arm the entire time that they were walking, and Randy wanted to laugh. This girl was just desperate enough to do anything as long as it got her on television. "So what do you think of my outfit?"

"It looks good on you," Randy answered, giving her the once over. "I'm sure you look good in most things you wear."

"Well, I can't help it you know, not with these legs," Stacy said and then actually proceeded to run one of her hand's up her leg. "If you ever want to…I don't know, see for yourself what they're like, I wouldn't object to it."

"I'm sure you wouldn't." He meant it as a back-handed insult to her, but Stacy was a little bit too dense to actually pick up on that, and she just giggled in response, running her hand over his arm.

"There's my boss," Trish said as she and Christian walked up to Randy. "And there's Stacy on his arm."

Christian gave a knowing nod in Randy's direction, which went unnoticed by Trish, since she was sizing up Stacy. The other blonde had a good several inches on her, but she was no match for Trish. She didn't really care for Stacy, maybe it was her constant need for attention, or the fact that she was always bending over, so many times you didn't know if the moon was in the sky, or just underneath Stacy's skirt. Either way, Trish didn't like the other blonde, and liked her even less when she was hanging all over her friend.

"Why are you on his arm?" Trish asked Randy politely, but the tone was very measured, and Randy and Christian both knew that she was not pleased by this situation. Stacy, once again, didn't pick up on any vibes.

"I was just escorting him to his locker room," she answered. "He is the boss tonight, and I felt like treating him like one."

"Yeah, you better not do that next week with Chris, I think that Stephanie would break those legs of yours, and then what would your gimmick be?" Trish said. Christian almost had to physically hold her back.

This…Stacy picked up on. "Randy, I'll talk to you later...I don't think I'm wanted here."

"Oh, was that the impression that I gave you?" Trish said, tilting her head in mock remorse. "I really didn't mean to, it was just instinct. You see a snake and you automatically freeze up."

Stacy high-tailed it out of there in a hurry, knowing that she was no competition for Trish. Trish laughed while Christian and Randy stared at her. "What? So I don't like her, sue me. She's horrible. You know she was only hanging off your arm to try and get something out of you. Maybe something like my title, which I'm not giving up to someone like her."

"I know what she was doing Trish, I just wanted to see what it was that she wanted. You can't fault a guy for wanting to know what's going down."

"Ok, so I overreacted, I tend to do that."

"Never," Christian and Randy said at the same time, and then laughed at each other.

"That wasn't funny," Trish pouted, "That wasn't funny at all."

"I thought it was," Christian said.

"Yeah, me too," said Randy.

"So what do you have planned for me tonight Randy? Do I have to defend my title or anything, show off how great I am, and how the other women wrestlers just wish they could be me?"

"No, I'm putting you in a tag match. And yes, you are going to be facing Lita, so you can get your hands on her. I know that you aren't liking her right now, so I'm giving you the opportunity to stick it to her."

Trish hugged Randy tightly, "You are the best. I love when I get to go out there and kick ass. I guess this means you heard about my sister?"

"Yeah, Stephanie told me. I'm sorry to hear it, but I'm happy to know that you're ok. That's all that counts."

"Oh, everyone loves me Chrissy, they all adore me," Trish said, basking in the glow of such compliments.

"Yeah, I know, it's bad enough I have to hear how much everyone loves you, but then to have you rub it in my face, there's only so much a guy can take," Christian said jokingly.

Trish looked over Randy's shoulder and saw Vince McMahon walking in their direction. Trish nodded her head towards him, and Randy turned his head to see Vince was there. He didn't think that this could be good news. Unless he was here for Stephanie, but they had all had lunch earlier that day, and Stephanie had not mentioned her father being at the show.

"Vince, what're you doing here?" Randy said, shaking his boss's hand.

"Well, I figured I'd see how the show was running. I was distracted last week talking to my daughter," Vince answered. "And I needed to discuss this Battle Royal with you."

"Ok, should we do that now?" Randy asked, glancing towards Trish and Christian.

"Yes, I think we should do it before the match begins. But first, before we speak, you three are friends with my daughter and Chris?"

"Yeah, we are Vince," Trish said, speaking for the three of them.

"Do you happen to know where they are? I cannot seem to find them anywhere. I tried calling their hotel, but they weren't there, and I called Stephanie's cell phone and she didn't answer, and I've been looking all over this arena for them, and I can't find them anywhere. Any ideas?"

Trish and Christian looked at each other and scoffed a little. They both looked to Randy and the three gave a soft chuckle. They all knew what Chris and Stephanie were probably doing right now, but they didn't know how to tell that to Vince. They were sure Vince was well aware that the two of them were crazy about each other, but it was one thing to know he knew it, but to say that his daughter was probably off somewhere, being groped by her fiancé, well, nobody wanted to say that.

"I'm sure they're going to turn up somewhere," Christian said. "You know how it is, people turn up where you least expect it. Earlier, I was walking down the hallway, minding my own business, then all of a sudden, there was Benoit, right next to me. It scared the bejeesus out of me!"

"Ok Chrissy, I don't think anyone wants to know about that," Trish said, patting his arm companionably. "Vince, I'm sure they're around. They usually are."

"Thank you, I guess I'll have to look for them some more. I wanted to discuss her wedding present. I'm expecting you all to be at this wedding."

"I'm the maid of honor, so I have to be there," Trish laughed. "Christian, let's go, I want to discuss strategy with you."

"Ooh, is that code for 'let's make out'?" Christian asked, none too softly. Trish just pulled him along.

Vince let himself in ahead of Randy into the office. Randy was thankful this was one of the times that Chris and Stephanie did not try and sneak into his locker room (though tonight it was an office) and make out on his couch. It would be so like them to do that, but the room was thankfully empty.

"So what's this about the Battle Royal Vince?"

"I don't think that you should have Triple H fight for the title in a Battle Royal," Vince said, point blank, but he was never one to use excessive words. Just like Stephanie. Or rather, Stephanie was just like Vince.

"Why is that Vince?"

"Well, it's your decision, but I feel that it leaves the title too up in the air. If we restrict it to the best of the best, then we lessen our chances of someone like Steven Richards getting the title. I don't want to ruin the credibility of the belt any more than it has been ruined."

Randy gave Vince a look, and paused before speaking, "Is that to say you don't like the belt on Hunter?"

"No, in fact, I don't," Vince answered. "Why should I like the man who broke my daughter's heart, and neglected her? I don't want to see that title on him at all, but there's not much I can do about it save for going out there myself and fighting him for it. Or I suppose I could send Chris out there, but he has this thing about morals and working for himself. I'll have to beat that McMahon doctrine into him one of these days. Damn nobleness."

Randy, though he knew that Stephanie had been hurt by Hunter, still found himself surprised that Vince was so adamant about Hunter not holding the title. Of course, by the time that he had come into WWE, Stephanie and Hunter were already divorced. Their relationship had never seemed real to him, despite hearing Hunter speak about her, or them in nostalgic moments. He had only really seen Stephanie with Chris, and that's who he automatically pictured her with. He had to remind himself that she had been with Hunter, and for a long time at that.

"Well, I guess I see your point, even though I think that it would make it slightly more exciting to have everyone out there. Isn't it the suspense of having no clue who is going to win that will propel people to watch?"

"You make a good point Randy, but I'd feel safer in the company's image if it went to someone who at least found himself worthy. The winner of the Battle Royal is free to go on to the championship match against Hunter."

"And if, say, Steven Richards wins that match?"

"Then he'd be more than deserving of getting a title shot," Vince said with a laugh. "How about you let me go out there and announce it?"

"Well, you are the boss Vince, and I can't deny that to you."

"You're the boss tonight, I'm just asking you."

"I still think that you outrank me."

"Walk with me to the gorilla, I have other things that we might want to discuss about tonight. Just what makes a good GM."

"If you think it'll help," Randy said courteously. He knew better than to cross Vince, or say no to Vince. He might be "sucking up," but other guys would do the same thing in his position.

They were walking down the hallway to the gorilla, hearing some of the wrestlers already going down to the ring before the show started. They passed by a janitor's closet and heard a loud bang. They stopped a second, wondering what that sound could be. Was somebody stuck in there? They found out a moment later when Chris and Stephanie stumbled out of the closet, Stephanie's blouse untucked from her pants, and her jacket askew on her shoulders. Stephanie looked over and almost threw up.

"Daddy!"

"Vince!" Chris exclaimed, pulling away from Stephanie as she quickly tried to tuck her shirt in and make herself look presentable. "This wasn't what it looked like, I mean, I spilled soda in my locker room and Stephanie's office, and we needed to mop it up, and we needed a…"

"Mop!" Stephanie shouted, quickly grabbing one from the janitor's closet. "We needed the mop to wipe it up. We didn't want it to get sticky and then you know, more work for the janitors, and we're nice like that, and you know, it's our mess, we should clean it up with the…mop."

"Yeah, with the mop," Chris said, running a hand through his unruly hair.

"I was just in your office, looking for you," Vince said calmly, looking between Chris and his daughter. Stephanie opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out, she just kind of shrugged and looked pretty.

"The janitors must have gotten to it already!" Chris said. "We have go to come back to Baltimore more often. The janitorial services here are amazing. It almost makes me want to spill spaghetti on something white and let them get to work. I bet they'd do wonders…I'm so freaking screwed aren't I?"

Vince nodded, "I guess I can let it slide, knowing that you're going to marry my daughter. But if you weren't, I might jump to horrible conclusions and beat your head in. But luckily you put a ring on her finger before dragging her to any…janitor's closets."

"Daddy, we just…we're allowed, we're getting married in a little over a month, and I have so much to do with the wedding and the planning, and it's just so hard sometimes, and I sometimes need a break from all the plans and…" She started sobbing and Vince rushed over to her and hugged her. "It's overwhelming Daddy, I don't know how Mommy did it with my almost wedding to Test. I'm up to my ears in wedding plans."

"Princess, it's all right, it'll be fine. Your mother can help you, and you know that I'm always around to lend you money for a shopping spree if you need it."

"Oh thank you Daddy, you're the best, I mean, the wedding, it's supposed to be small, but I have a feeling it won't end up that way. How about I tell you my ideas Daddy, and you can tell me if they're good or not. I trust your taste."

"Of course Princess, anything for you," he said, wrapping an arm around her as they walked. "Let me just make a quick announcement with this Battle Royal and we'll talk."

Stephanie looked over her shoulder and sent Chris a surreptitious thumbs up. Chris had known it was an act. She was the best at being able to divert the attention away from one thing and onto another. It was probably why she used to frustrate him in the past. He could never figure her out then. He heard his music playing and rushed to get out there and into the ring.

The Battle Royal was going to be difficult, he knew that, having been in his share of them. They always started with chaos. The ring was not supposed to have that many people in it, and you couldn't move without hitting someone, inadvertent or not. Then it would thin out, and you would just try to eliminate everyone, until you were the last one standing. That's how it always went, and Chris ventured to guess that's how it would always go.

Benoit patted him on the back as he entered, and he spoke briefly with him, before eyeing up his competition. He knew that Dave was probably going to be his stiffest competition. Dave had it out for him. And if Chris could get his hands on Edge for a little bit, that would probably work in his favor as well. He was surprised when Vince came out, and surprised by his announcement. He probably would've known sooner, had Stephanie and him not been otherwise "engaged." (pardon the pun)

And just as predicted, the Battle Royal started and it was complete chaos. Chris went after anybody that he could find. When the herd thinned out, for some inexplicable reason, he found himself fighting Steven Richards. Maybe it was his unconscious desire to avoid Dave Batista. Or maybe it was conscious since he didn't want to get pummeled for the seventh million time at the hands of that giant man.

But as push came to shove, lo and behold, surprisingly (or not, depending on if you had watched the shows for the past several months or so), Dave eliminated Chris by unceremoniously throwing him over the rope and onto the floor below. One of these days, he was going to do something like key Dave's car or trip him in the hallway. How much of this could one man take after all? Didn't matter, his turn was coming next week, and besides throwing the biggest party this show had ever seen, he was going to make sure that someone worthy got a shot at that title, namely him.

Stephanie was busy talking with her father when he got backstage, so he simply went over and kissed the crown of her head before walking towards his locker room to get a shower. Stephanie smiled at him for a moment over her father's shoulder as he passed from her view. Then she went back to her conversation with her father, a welcome distraction from what she had been doing with Chris in the janitor's closet. If she could make Vince forget it ever happened, she would be golden.

A short time later, Randy watched the Battle Royal unfold before him and knew that he had a tough decision to make. He knew the one he WANTED to make, which was to automatically declare Benoit the winner, and let Edge stew a little bit more with his lack of a World title shot. That would be so poetic, and it would make so many people happy, himself included.

Vince told him that he had a tough decision to make as he had crept up on him while he was going over the footage. And then Edge himself had to show up and demand that he be declared the winner. Randy was having too much fun pulling his chain around. Edge was so on…well, edge (pardon the pun, part deux), that Randy had to mess around with him. Edge didn't take too kindly at being made to wait, and Randy thought he might actually pull his hair out because he refused to grant it to Edge.

Randy was still contemplating his decision when one of those Raw Diva Wannabes came up to him. Candice, her name was, and predictably, she asked him if she looked good. Randy told her she did, because he was a charming guy, and he didn't want people to hate him during his short stint as the General Manager. Of course, the woman was beautiful, but a bit too…desperate for his tastes. All these girls were throwing themselves at him for absolutely no reason. It wasn't like he could declare them supermodels or anything. He wondered if some of them even watched wrestling or knew the different between a DDT and a German suplex.

That's when he was interrupted yet again, and it was in that moment that he found he did not envy Bischoff, or Stephanie. They both had to run the show, and if it meant being constantly interrupted and bothered, he was glad that he was just a wrestler, and didn't have to hear all the trials and tribulations of every single wrestler on the roster. Was it sad that he suddenly respected Bischoff? He did as he shuddered a little and listened to Benoit.

He came to the most obvious decision in the known universe and went out to the ramp to tell it to everyone, with the added match of Lawler and Flair. He didn't know why he felt like making that match, call it temporary insanity, but he felt like he had to make something else happen. Then he announced the Triple Threat for the World Title. It seemed the best choice, and lessened Hunter's odds at winning, which was a huge plus. He knew that he could beat Edge, no problem (the guy had been in the company how long and hadn't won a World Title or WWE/WWF title? Yeah, that had to say something to see someone so barren. Randy had been in the company for a far shorter time and he had been champion). Benoit would be a bigger challenge, but Randy could take him too.

Trish's match was next, and she was just grateful for the chance to pound on Lita some more. If beating on Lita could be considered a hobby, then Trish was all set. It wasn't like she was really doing any damage to Lita, because all the damage that could be done there, had been done…yikes, was all Trish could see when she thought or looked at that "Kiss of Death." Much to her chagrin though, Lita beat her, which only incensed Trish.

She stormed backstage, not intent on finding Randy, because he could do nothing for her, but intent on finding Chris. She figured he was in his locker room, and made a beeline for it. She reached it and threw open the door. Chris yelped, yes, he yelped and wrapped the towel he had had around his waist, tighter against him. He had almost taken it off to get changed when Trish just barged into the room.

"Trish, Jesus Christ, what are you doing here!" Chris said, holding onto his towel.

"Next week, I want Lita!" Trish said, slamming the door behind her, almost causing Chris to jump.

"What?"

"Randy can't grant me another match tonight, but you are running Raw next week, which means you can give me the match. I don't care how you explain it Chris, I just want the match. Oh…you know what…you should go tell Lita that it's for her. That you're doing it for her, and then you can pretend to surprise me, and I'll be all mad, but really, I'll be strategizing. She'll think I'm not up for it, and then I will be, and I'll knock her out, or you know, pull some of her hair out so she has a bald spot…"

"Hey, don't say the 'b' word around here, the hair is very sensitive to those words," Chris said, running his fingers through his hair.

"You get the point though. Will you do it Chris? Will you give me what I want?"

"You know, someone could get the very wrong idea if they walked in here right now and heard you say that while I'm in this towel."

"So you'll do it?" she asked eagerly.

"Do I have much of a choice?"

Trish rushed to him and hugged him tightly, "Thank you so much!"

"Ok, now people will get a very, very bad impression if they walked in on this."

"Oh God, I'm sorry," Trish said, blushing as she pulled away. "I completely forgot that you were in the towel."

"So I don't turn you on?"

"No, not at all," Trish said, rubbing her chin. "No, I think I find you even less appealing without any clothes on."

"Good, I'm sure Stephanie will be glad to hear that. I better get dressed and go find Lita so I can deliver the good news."

"Which will be bad news," Trish laughed, her tone evil, and only evil.

"Ok you conniving wench, out of here before you get an eyeful, and I do mean an eyeful," Chris said with a lecherous smirk.

"Eww, that's too much information," Trish said as she left.

Once Chris was dressed he went to find Lita. She wasn't that hard to find as she was sitting on a large trunk, speaking to Victoria about their match earlier. Chris cleared his throat and Lita looked up to him with a small smile. Victoria excused herself and walked off somewhere, presumably to go watch the show on a monitor. It didn't hurt to know what was going on.

"Hi Chris," Lita said personably. "How are you?"

"Well, other than Vince finding me and Stephanie together in a janitor's closet, I'm doing pretty well."

"I don't even want to ask, though I'm sure there's a story in there somewhere."

"Well, what can I say? She finds me irresistible and dragged me in there."

"I seem to remember lots of women finding you irresistible."

"Yeah, the past. I was the chick magnet if I recall correctly. A girl on both arms, every night, all night, if you catch my drift. But I think you do, so I'll shut up about it now."

"I so wish that I could go back to those times. Life didn't suck as much then."

"Life doesn't have to suck now."

"Well, you're with Stephanie…that still sounds so dirty you know," Lita said. Chris sat down next to her on the trunk, letting his legs dangle over the side as he leaned against the wall that the trunk was sitting against.

"Dirty?"

"Well, remember around the time that Dean was harassing me. I mean, during that time, you were pretty much harassing Stephanie. And you hated her…right? I mean, I know that the past has secrets, but it was just one thing that you hoped would remain constant."

"Well rest assured, I did hate Stephanie, I hated her guts. I wanted to see her writhing around in hell."

"Ok, good, I'm glad to know some things remain the same. And now you're getting married. One woman forever…I just never thought that Chris Jericho would settle down. THE Chris Jericho!"

"Well, it's not like I settled. I got the best."

"Yeah, you did, the best," Lita said. "The boss's daughter. So you love her then?"

"I do love her," Chris said, a smile on his face when he thought of Stephanie.

"Good, you don't want a loveless marriage like mine," Lita said. "I always thought my first marriage would stick. But it's not with Matt, so I don't think that this marriage will last."

"That's too bad. It's weird for me too, you know, what with you NOT being with Matt. And I know you were forced into this situation, but still, it's weird."

"Not as weird as you and Stephanie."

"Yeah, but Stephanie and I have been together for two and a half years almost, so it's not like this is new to anybody."

"God, what a difference a few years make. It's shocking really."

Chris got the distinct feeling that Lita was trying to do something here. Maybe plant the seed in his brain that he still hated Stephanie, which couldn't be farther from the truth. Or maybe the thought of being with Stephanie for the rest of his life would scare him. He knew that thought could be pretty frightening, that being with one woman forever and ever could be scary. But then he thought about it, and he couldn't picture himself with another woman. He could only picture himself with Stephanie. She had just integrated herself into his life.

"Look, I'm offering you a match for the Women's title next week, if you want one," Chris said, taking the subject away from the past.

"Are you kidding me? I'd love it, thank you Chris," Lita said, hugging him tightly. "I'll make her pay."

"I figured you might."

"Chris!" he heard Stephanie yelling. Chris sat up a little bit and saw Stephanie a little ways down the hallway.

"Steph!"

"Oh, there you are, God, I needed to get away from my dad," she said as she walked up to him and gave him a quick kiss to the lips. "He keeps trying to pay for things. And things I don't need….that we don't need. I mean, do you think that setting a bunch of doves free after the ceremony is a good idea? I don't even think doves can survive in Hawaii. And he wants ice sculptures…of me and you! And the WWE logo! He wants a freaking ice sculpture of the WWE LOGO!"

"Ok, calm down," he said, wrapping his arms around her waist. "There won't be doves or ice sculptures, although, it would be kind of cool…or not."

"Yes, or not…oh, hi Lita," Stephanie said curtly

"Hi Stephanie," Lita said, just as curtly.

"Was I interrupting?" Stephanie asked.

"You never interrupt," Chris told her. "Come on, we'll go back to the janitor's closet. Nobody will find us there."

"You're on…bye Lita," she said, still curtly.

"Bye Stephanie, bye Chris."

"What was that about?" Stephanie whispered to Chris as they went back to the closet.

"Something with Trish, don't worry about it."

Randy peeled off the lingerie that was on him and threw it somewhere. He figured some horny guy would pick it up and take it home or something equally disgusting. Yes, he had been a stereotypical male out there, but he figured there was no harm in doing it. As he took off the last of the articles on him, he opened up his locker room and was surprised to find another scantily-clad woman in there.

"If you wanted a striptease, you should've just told me."

Randy's jaw dropped. Not that he hadn't seen this woman scantily clad before, but not like this, and not in that, because he was wowed by what he saw in front of him. "Wow."

"It's just a sneak preview for tonight, if you feel so inclined to come to my room."

"I'll come, you better believe that. Sorry you had to see that out there," Randy said, kissing the woman.

"Yeah, I'm sorry too. But what do you expect with those kind of women? Not much."

"Well, as long as you know," Randy said, kissing her again. "I have to go make sure the title match goes according to plan."

"See you later?"

"In that? Hell yes."

Chris and Trish shared a wink as he walked off. Knowing that she would get a chance to get revenge on Lita for breaking her nose made waiting a week very worthwhile. She would go over every one of Lita's matches if she had to, to be able to know every single one of Lita's weaknesses. Because come next week, she was going to take Lita down, hopefully for good.

"What's this about bringing all the hot chicks?" Stephanie asked as she ran into Chris in the hallway.

"For all the other guys of course," Chris said. "We all know that you're going to be the hottest chick there."

"And?"

"You are the hottest chick everywhere."

"Ok then, let the party begin."


	11. Holy Moly, Jericho was HOT, December 6, ...

A/N: Wow, wow, wow, wow, wow…I got Jericho and Batista in suits in one night. How is a girl supposed to type coherently when she has to look at that? Although I could probably fill this chapter with just wow and humina, humina, humina, and nobody would mind. God, it's hard to concentrate even now…

Oh, and if I'm going to be as far out as Pluto, can I at least be as far out as a Cepheid variable star although those are spotted in just about every galaxy, since every galaxy is both isotropic and homogeneous? Because those can be used to measure light by use of the Luminosity-Period Relation. I like to feel important like that. (Wow, who knew I would actually get to use all that I learned in astronomy class?)

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_Chris walked into the arena around lunchtime. Tonight he was going to be playing the General Manager. He had to get his script from someone, even though there was probably going to be a meeting before the show that pretty much went over the show._

_Stephanie, Vince, and the other writers were probably still finalizing the script for tonight. Fifty bucks said that the show would only served to make Paul look like a winner. God forbid anyone steal the spotlight from him. Chris had never cared for the man (rumor had it that Nash had warned Paul about Chris before he entered the WWF), and he cared for him even less than he had before, now that he was married to Stephanie._

_Stephanie herself had changed as well, since her marriage. She seemed happy enough with Paul, but she was also different. He had considered himself friends with Stephanie for years, and it was well documented that she was one of his biggest backers in the production meetings. There were even pictures of them together (in cars, walking out of airports, and what not). But now she spent most of her time around Hunter, which puzzled some of her former friends._

_Things had definitely changed since they had gotten married, but he had his own family and his own career to think about. If Stephanie and Paul were happy, he guessed that's just how things were going to be. Sure, the morale backstage was down, the ratings and buy-rates for Pay-Per-Views not great, but he still loved this business with everything in him, and was loyal to it, even when most of the time it didn't pay off._

_He was slightly bitter that he hadn't had another title reign since early 2002. Anyone would be who had worked so hard, and it hardly paid off. But the belt seemed to be permanently attached to Paul's waist. Not that he was going to complain. He let other guys do that. Chris wasn't a complainer, never had been and he was never going to be either._

_He found the men's locker room and claimed one of the empty lockers, dumping his duffel bag onto the ground and pulling out his tights. He was going to be wrestling later, he knew that much. He hung them up, since he was playing GM tonight, he figured that what he was wearing was going to be what he wore as the GM. Now that the new dress code was in place (something he was very against), he was always dressed nicely when coming to the arena._

_He ventured out into the arena, and came across some of the guys. He saw Benoit looking over a script and he was glad that the script was out already. A couple of weeks ago, the script had been in the works until barely before the show started, and it had been pretty chaotic in terms of what was going to happen. He walked up to Chris and shook his hand._

"_The script came in," Chris said, glancing over his shoulder._

"_Yeah, they just came out. You can go grab a copy from someone. The meeting is in an hour though, but since you have a big part, you'll probably want one now."_

"_Yeah…so how's the wife and kids?"_

"_Great," Benoit said, even in life he wasn't much of a talker. "And yours?"_

"_Couldn't be better. It's harder and harder to leave with the kid you know, but what can I do? I love this business."_

"_I know what you mean," Benoit answered._

"_Ok, I'm going to pick up a script."_

"_Chris, I've been looking for you," a female voice said behind him. He turned and saw Stephanie. She was dressed casually, a pair of khaki pants, a black t-shirt and a headset. She was carrying what appeared to be scripts._

"_What can I do for you Stephanie?"_

"_I just have a script for you," Stephanie said, handing him one. "Of course, we didn't really script your parts all too much, as we trust you to fill in the spots. You'll be doing a Highlight Reel with my dad and Paul, and other spots here and there. There's also going to be some spots with some girls, I hope that your wife doesn't mind."_

"_Nah, she didn't even care about the Trish storyline, and I had to kiss Trish."_

_Stephanie laughed, "Well, she's a good wife to put up with that."_

"_I like to think so," he answered with a smile as he thought about her. "Should I be going to the production meeting or anything?"_

"_No, we've got it covered. Just show up to the company briefing. Even though you don't even need to do that. My dad might want to talk to you about what he wants to say, but that's it."_

"_Thanks Stephanie."_

"_No problem," Stephanie said, even as Chris saw Paul sneaking up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist. "Paul, what are you doing? I'm working."_

"_Not hard," Paul said with a smile. "I actually needed the script."_

"_Oh, well then," she said, handing him one._

"_Thanks," he responded. "So Chris, you're 'running things,' tonight. I wonder how that's going to go."_

"_Non-stop partying," Chris answered succinctly. "Just like Chris Jericho. He's got to be the party guy."_

"_Yeah," Paul said, then mumbled to Stephanie, "Which is why he's never taken seriously."_

_Stephanie nudged him in the stomach, "Shut up honey. We'll see you guys later for the briefing."_

"_Yeah, later," Chris said with a short wave, already looking over the script._

_He didn't give a second glance to Stephanie, and didn't feel like he should give her a second glance. She was just a co-worker, someone he saw on some days of the week. She provided him with scripts and he worked for her. There was nothing more to it, nothing less. They were merely colleagues, and they used to have a storyline together, but that was a long time ago, and better left forgotten. It hadn't been that great anyways. It wasn't even supposed to be a big deal, he was supposed to call her a ho, and that was supposed to be it. But nothing had ever come of it, and there was nothing about them worth remembering._

_But he had called the angle hot…_

"Chris, wake up, you doof."

Chris mumbled and then turned over. He was awake pretty quickly because he his back had just met with the cold, concrete floor beneath him. He opened up his eyes to stare at the ceiling. His butt was starting to hurt because it had gotten the brunt of his fall. Suddenly a face appeared above him, although the glare from the neon lights overhead obscured the face in darkness. It was Stephanie though, because he knew her.

"What is it?"

"Nothing, I just thought you might like to know that my father needs to speak to you," she told him, and only then did he notice that Vince was standing right behind Stephanie. He was hard pressed to figure out what was more embarrassing: Vince catching him and Stephanie in the janitor's closet last week, or him falling off a couch after being asleep.

He remembered the dream for a moment and didn't know what to make of it. It had seemed so real, that maybe perhaps, it was his life as seen from another perspective. Like a what if. Maybe it was a what if as to what if Stephanie had stayed married to Hunter, instead of her. But in the dream he had called him Paul…and Paul wasn't his name. Must have been one of those weird dream things, like when you were swimming in a pool of rice.

"Chris, did you hit your head?" Stephanie asked.

"No," Chris said, even as he was rubbing the back of his head as he sat up. Stephanie offered him a hand, but he shook it off, getting up of his own free will instead. He dusted off the suit that Stephanie had made him wear, although he had fought to be able not to wear a tie. It was a long, hard battle, but worth it. He didn't want to be choking on the tie all evening.

"What did you want Vince?" Chris asked as Stephanie went to sit at her desk, or his desk rather, for tonight at least. The room was decorated rather garishly, and Stephanie had to keep averting her eyes from this horrible disaster. She hated how unprofessional it was, but it was Chris's night.

"I'm going to be making the announcement tonight about the World Title, but I wanted to warn you that Hunter is going to be coming out there. He told me he wanted me to present to him personally. Imagine his surprise when I declare him not the champion."

"That'll be great," Stephanie piped in happily, but then went back to her work, when both her father and fiancé gave her a funny look. "I was just saying."

"Well, yeah, I just wanted you to know. And not to…beat him up or anything. Let me doing the beating up tonight," Vince answered.

"Ok Vince, I think I can relinquish that for one night. Although it will be hard to refrain from the thought of kicking his ass in my head."

"Just this once Chris," Vince chuckled. "Ok, I think Stephanie has something to say to you though."

"Daddy," Stephanie whined. "Why do you have to ruin all my surprises? Yes, I wanted to talk to Chris, but I was perfectly content in waiting for him to finish up his conversation with you. I could just admire all the fancy decorating in my office."

"MY office," Chris said cheekily, tapping the picture of him that hung on the wall.

"I don't NEED pictures of me hanging on the wall to know that I'm in charge," Stephanie said sweetly, with that touch of venom in her voice that she was known for. Chris leaned down to kiss her as Vince snuck out of the office. They didn't even know that he was gone by the time they pulled apart.

"Ok, tell me now, what you needed to tell me."

"Ok, you know how you bought those beautiful wedding rings for our anniversary?"

"If you tell me that you lost them or something, I'm going to flip out and trash the office," Chris said jokingly.

"No, but see, my dad and mom, well, they didn't know that we had already bought the rings, and being the nice, kind parents that they sometimes are, because let's face it, sometimes they're really a nightmare. But anyways, being the nice, kind parents that they are, they bought us some wedding rings. Now, I'm not saying we have to use them, cause we don't, but I know it would make my dad SO happy if you considered it. That's it, just considered it. I'm rambling," she said, furrowing her eyebrows.

"Ok, I'll see what they look like."

"You will!" she exclaimed jumping up from her…er, his desk chair.

"Yeah, sure, I can even wear it for a while, and tell Vince that I'm trying to see if the size is right and everything," Chris told her good-naturedly. Anything to make her happy, right? That was how he felt about it anyways.

"You're the best!" she said genuinely, throwing her arms around him. "You're too nice, you really don't have to do this. I'm sure he would understand and everything. He would probably understand if you didn't want to. He's not an unreasonable man…ok, he is a lot of the time, but he wouldn't be mad about this…and I'm rambling again."

"You didn't need to be nervous to ask me this baby, you just needed to ask, I mean, the worst I could've done was throw the ring across the wall or you know, flush it down the toilet, but would that really be the nice, gentlemanly thing to do. Now I'M rambling."

"It's contagious," she told him, then sneezed. "Damn it, I cannot get rid of this damn cold."

"You look better today though," Chris said, inspecting her face. She had gotten a bad cold over the past week, the cold weather and constant traveling not helping matters any. The stale air in the airplane had made her feel worse this morning, and she feared that she was going to suffer a relapse. Her face looked pale to him, and her nose was red-rimmed from all the sneezing and tissues.

"I look like shit, you're just trying to be nice," she told him.

"You're not sniffling though."

"Yeah, but I still have the sore throat and the watery eyes and everything. I look horrible."

"You wanna come out there with me tonight, kind of be my assistant?" Chris asked, knowing that would probably make her feel better. "We can go out there and rule again. Go sit in whatever match we wanted, wreak havoc, call people names. As long as we don't like them…or you know, they hit me in the head a number of times."

"You honestly want me to go out there, looking like this?" Stephanie asked, gesturing towards her face.

"I think you look beautiful," he told her softly, kissing her cheek.

"Have you been sneaking into my cold medicine?" she asked playfully. "There is no way in hell that I look good. Besides, I'm not allowed to go out there. I'm not under contract to actually appear on television."

"So even if I'm the General Manager, I can't have you out there."

"So says the rules."

"But I'm Mr. Manager."

"Actually, that's just Manager," Stephanie said to him. "But its fine, go out, let this be like your bachelor party or something. You can do whatever you want, within reason of course, and I won't say anything."

"So if I wanted to…party with chicks, I could?"

"Yeah, sure, it's not like you're going to do anything with them. I think you like all your body parts, and you wouldn't want one vital one missing."

"But Raw can still be Jericho right?"

"Yeah, I'm not restricting you. And your band is already here, I saw them while you were being an old man sleeping on the couch."

"I was not being an old man," Chris countered. "I was sleeping because someone kept kicking me all night because they couldn't get comfortable."

"Whose bed were you in last night?" Stephanie said with a quirky smile.

"Stacy Keibler's," Chris answered, just as quickly. "And the leis, did you get the leis?"

"I got the leis. You know, it's not very much fun being your lackey. Maybe you're right about this whole, 'I'm not management thing,' I don't particularly care for having to cater to your every stupid whim."

"Well deal—hey, what stupid whim!"

"Nothing, I have to go…find someone." Stephanie said smugly, shrugging her shoulders. She knew she was just baiting him, but it was fun to bait him, and see him get all confused and hot.

"What stupid whim!" he told her, grabbing onto her blouse.

"Nothing! I swear," she said, snickering softly. She pulled a box out from her purse and opened it. "Here, try on your ring."

"You are stalling! What stupid whim!"

"Just put it on, tell me if you like it?" Stephanie said. "Actually, just put it on, tell me you hate it and I'll tell Daddy that we don't really want them."

"Fine, fine," he said, then muttered. "I don't have any stupid whims."

He took the ring and jammed it onto his finger. He had to really push it down on his finger. The ring was rather plain, but it was nice enough. Stephanie didn't want to hurt her parent's feelings, and he felt the same way with his parents. It had been hard to tell his mother that he wanted to buy Stephanie her own ring and not to use his grandmother's ring. He was sure that his mother would end up giving it to Stephanie on some holiday anyways.

Stephanie took his hand and looked at it, "Yup, not what we wanted. There, we were true to what my dad wanted, you can take it off now."

"Ok," Chris said, then attempted to pull on the ring. "Uh Steph?"

"What?"

"It's stuck."

"No!" she said, grabbing his hand again and trying to pull it off. It was indeed stuck. It was like a size too small on his finger, and Stephanie was now hurting him, almost pulling his finger out of the joint. "Chris, spit on your hand."

"What! I'm not spitting on my hand. Do you know how nice my hands are?"

She looked up at him, and raised a delicate eyebrow. "Oh yes, I do know just how good those hands can be."

Chris shrugged nonchalantly, "Well, when they have all that to work with, they're bound to be good."

Stephanie leaned in to kiss him, the room suddenly becoming ten degrees hotter. Chris closed the gap between them, pressing his lips hard against Stephanie's. The ring was completely forgotten about as Stephanie pressed herself against Chris so forcefully that he stumbled backwards. The backs of his legs hit the side of her…er, his desk and he fell backwards on top of it, a bunch of papers cradling his fall. Stephanie fell on top of him, her legs in between his as she was almost laying flat.

"I like being the General Manager," Chris mumbled against her jaw as he began kissing her neck.

"Because this is so different."

"Is this your way of reminding me that I shouldn't be fondling or touching other girls?" Chris asked. Stephanie just covered his mouth with hers, effectively shutting her up. At that point, he didn't care what the reason for kissing him was, if there was a reason at all.

Trish laughed. "Be a sport Chrissy."

"I'm not wearing this Trish."

"I think it's cute," Trish said, holding in her laughter. "Come on, for me. Chris is just having his fun. You know he just did it because he knew you would agree to it. And if you haven't forgotten, we aren't exactly fan favorites."

"You're always a fan favorite as long as you have those," Christian said, gesturing towards her chest. Trish covered them up slightly, a little offended. "You know they are important to your image."

"Well, you didn't have to point my breasts out. They're not the only thing."

"I know that, I'm just saying, with those, you can always be somewhat of a winner. With me, I've got things like ass cream following me around."

"Well, at least you're not mental like your brother. He's taking everything too seriously lately. He's starting to get a little bit scary with this whole pursuit of the title. I mean, I've heard of wanting it, but you'd think that he could marry this belt or something. I don't think that's legal in the continental United States."

"Do you think he wants it the most?"

"Tied with Hunter. Put them in a cage, and you'll be lucky that it's there to catch the flying body parts of those two tearing into each other. But Chris knows that you are willing to self-mock. That's what this is about."

"I'm not happy about it."

"But you're going to do it."

"How would you know?" he asked.

"Because I have you wrapped around my teeny, weeny finger…don't I Tyson?" Trish said, looking to the inconspicuous man sitting in the corner. Half the time she forgot he was there, but there he was sitting, wordlessly. He nodded silently. "See, even he agrees with me…I think…"

"I do," Tyson said shortly. True, he had been working for Hunter, but after the man hadn't paid him, Tyson was out on his own, and fell comfortably into a place with Christian, and sometimes with Trish. He wouldn't consider them his friends, but they were decent enough.

"Damn it, I'm talking about this with Chris later!" Christian said, throwing down the costume that Chris had wanted him to wear.

"Ok, but you know you're not getting out of it, he's in charge."

"Oh, you're just advocating this because he gave you the match that you wanted," Christian said, sitting down heavily next to his girlfriend.

"That is true, he treats me well," Trish smiled. "AND he doesn't make me wear stupid costumes."

"Don't rub it in Trish."

Trish kneeled on the couch and started rubbing his shoulders. "I'll just rub your shoulders then."

"Ok."

"At least he's giving you a chance at Shelton right?"

"Yeah, you're right," Christian said, more calmly than before.

"As usual."

"You going to teach Lita a lesson tonight?"

"You better believe that I am," Trish said with a smile. "She broke my nose. After you break your nose once, you're more susceptible to it again. I mean, one hard bump, and I'll have to wear the horrible mask again. As it is, I'm still using it in my matches. It's ugly, and it makes me look ugly."

"I hardly believe that you can look ugly at all."

"Buttering me up isn't going to work, I suggest you go to Jericho to do that."

Chris was looking furtively as some ladies that happened to be hanging around. They looked like waitresses and they were probably Vince's waitresses from his private box that he had for the show. He finished tucking his shirt in, after Stephanie had practically ripped it open earlier. Then they had tried to get the damn ring off (he had spit in his hand), but it did no good, and they were going to just get butter for it from catering when they had a moment.

As it was, the show was starting at any minute. The two girls were kind of hovering and he wondered if they wanted to talk to him. They seemed to be looking in his direction every now and then, although he was looking hot tonight. He knew it for sure, and Stephanie had told him about a hundred times, saying that even without the tie he looked good enough to…well, it got really naughty at that point, and probably would do best not to think about just what she said, because he was going to be out in front of thousands of people shortly, and well…problems could arise so to speak.

"Can I help you?" Chris asked, finally biting the bullet and asking these girls if he was the one that they wanted to talk to. Stephanie was off trying to make sure that the mechanism for dropping his leis was in working order. She had rushed off muttering about stupid whims and Chris had to stop himself from grabbing her and kissing the life out of her.

"We were just…um…well, you're the General Manager, and we were, we want to be around you," one of them said. "I'm Lana."

"Oh, nice to meet you," he said, "I don't really have much for you to do right now. But stick around, party in my office, why don't you go find it."

"Ok," Lana said, turning around and pulling the other girl with her. She whispered to her when they were out of earshot. "You know what Hunter said, we have to come on to him at every possible turn."

"I know," the other girl said. "We'll stick to the plan, the other girls will too."

Chris was trying to wait for Stephanie to return, but the show was already at hand, and he walked out to the ring to a chorus of cheers. He was looking good, and despite losing feeling in the ring finger on his left hand, he was feeling good too. He welcomed the crowd with his usual enthusiasm, but it was different tonight, because he was the one in charge. What a great feeling knowing that he didn't really have to answer to anyone. Even Vince had said to him that he was in charge. Of course he also said this was like an interview for later in his life, which didn't settle all too well with him, but he swallowed that scary feeling and proceeded.

The lei trick got over like gangbusters. People love to get souvenirs like that. Either that or a lot of people really liked leis…maybe cause it reminded them of Hawaii…which reminded Chris that he was getting married in just over a month, which, if he had been wearing a tie, he would be loosening right now. He got a lei of his own (he had gotten a lay from Stephanie earlier), put around his neck and everyone seemed to be having a good time. He introduced the music accompaniment for the evening, his very own band, and then it was time to bring Vince out there.

Vince strutted out there, belt over his shoulder, like he himself was the champion. Scary thought for newcomers to the show, and a visual reminder of a dark past for long-time fans. Nobody wanted nor needed to see Vince as champion once again. Chris and Vince talked for a few minutes about the controversy last week, and Chris was comfortable talking around Vince, seeing as how he was going to be his father-in-law in just over a month (again, if he had the tie on, it would be a little looser now).

Then, just as Vince had predicted, Hunter came out. It was almost like Hunter wanted a procession or a big flourish when he arrived, but Chris hung back, letting Vince take care of this, like he had asked. That didn't stop Chris from thinking very violent thoughts about Hunter. It made him laugh though when Vince mentioned Hunter playing a vampire in the new movie Blade or whatever. Was it bad that Chris was suddenly having images that he was something like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and driving a wooden stake through Hunter, the vampire's heart? Nah, it was good to have an active imagination.

When Vince announced, much to people's surprise that Hunter was no longer the champion, Chris almost did a little jig of joy. And why shouldn't he? Hunter not having the belt was a good thing. You can't be a belt hog and have people like or respect you…well, that probably only applied if you were Hunter. Because if he were the champion, it would be months of birds chirping, and babies laughing, and love in the air. It would be a magic moment that would be too soon to end, so it would just have to never end. Would a perk of being in the McMahon family be that you could declare yourself the champion for the rest of you life? Would that cause bad morale? Whoa, there was that stupid dream again.

Before Chris knew it, that segment was over. He walked backstage, and was going to say hi to his fiancée, but she looked like she was having a coronary, yelling into her headset. He hoped it wasn't over one of his "stupid whims," cause that would make him feel pretty bad. He didn't even attempt to go over and kiss her, because he would probably be rewarded with a nice slap to the face. And he didn't need to lose feeling in one of his cheeks AND in his left hand ring finger, which he was fighting to get circulation to.

The two girls that he had seen earlier, were in his and Stephanie's office, and they had seemingly brought friends. He looked around, trying to figure out who any of these girls were. Lana came up to him and slinked her arm through his, and held on tight. So tightly, that when Chris tried to pull away, his arm was abruptly pulled back.

"Let me introduce you to everyone," Lana said. "It was a special occasion tonight, and let's just say, we're here to help you celebrate."

"Ok," Chris said, in an agreeable voice, already looking to the bartender off in the far corner. He had to stay sober because he might fancy a match later, but for now, he could have one drink. Lana took him around and introduced him to all the girls, Chris forgetting their names as soon as they passed him. He let them hang around, but he wasn't really interacting with them, instead finding an immense amount of joy in seeing Hunter so angry.

Not only that, but it seemed that trouble was brewing in Evolution again. Batista seemed to be ill at ease with Hunter, and the cracks in their relationship was starting to show. Chris could only hope that meant that Batista would be out of Hunter's grasp and soon. Maybe then his head wouldn't be so banged up so much. But then again, he was on such a high tonight, maybe he could schedule a little something. Stephanie was going to kill him, but he felt he needed to make the match.

Christian came in to complain about the costume, but Chris put his best face forward, trying to make his friend see the light. Christian was having none of it though. He knew he was going to end up doing it, because Trish thought it was funny, but it was still humiliating, and he would rather try to get out of it at least once, but to no avail. Oh well, there went his dignity for the five hundredth time. At least this wasn't ass cream.

Chris got no moment of peace when Benoit showed up right next him, nearly scaring the crap out of him. Benoit should work for the FBI or something, he was so damn stealthy sometimes. Chris mentioned the controversy and Hunter, and could see the fire in Benoit's eyes; he was ready for a match. So was Chris, as he announced the match that would happen later, with him and Benoit against Batista and Hunter. What better way to get his hands on two men that he really hated than to just put them together so that he could take them both out (hopefully).

He went back to the drink he had been handed, coughing a little because he wasn't expecting that much alcohol in his drink. He didn't even know what he was drinking, but it was strong. He took another sip and set it down, surely to be forgotten about. Stephanie walked in then, looking around skeptically, and certainly not fitting in as she put some papers down on her food and drink laden desk.

"This place looks like a bad frat house," Stephanie said in distaste. "It looked even worse on the television."

Chris expected her immediately to go into a diatribe about how he shouldn't be partying with any women that wasn't her. "I think it has character."

"It has bad graffiti," she deadpanned. "I guess I was too preoccupied earlier to really notice how tacky this place looks. And your picture, it's actually really cheesy. I mean, the whole, 'thinking man,' cheesy pose. Not you Jericho."

Uh-oh, maybe he was in hot water. She didn't use Jericho unless she was playing or she was angry. "I just came in here and they were here."

"I don't care," she said and meant it. "I just needed to drop some papers off, feel free to do whatever you want. I know you're having that stupid, what did you call it? Limbo-a-Go-Go? Oh God, I'm marrying a man who calls a limbo contest, 'Limbo-a-Go-Go,' I must be out of my mind," she said, rubbing her temples.

"Not only that, but a really tacky guy too," Chris said. "I was actually thinking about redecorating the house with graffiti on the walls."

"Yeah, no," Stephanie shot that idea down immediately. "I scheduled your, 'Limbo-a-Go-Go' next, and you might want to go-go out there."

"I think you just like saying Limbo-a-Go-Go," Chris said suspiciously.

"I do not!" she giggled. "Now go."

Limbo-a-Go-Go was more like Limbo-a-No-No for Chris. Sure, he was the "moderator" of the limbo game, but he was not as, shall we say, interactive with the ladies as Randy had been the week before. While Randy was completely gung-ho about hugging and touching all those women last week, Chris didn't want to. So he would talk about them, and what not, but he didn't touch them, it was a personal no-no for him. The only physical contact he had with them was raising Christy's hand in victory. He didn't really feel the need to hug or touch any of them, he had Stephanie, and really, why would he want to pretend with these women, when he had a great woman sitting backstage, probably barking out orders at someone.

He was sure that Randy would've stayed in that ring and danced around with all of those girls, but Chris had a better, more sensible idea. He just went back up the ramp to sing with his group, circumnavigating his way around them and up the ramp. He started singing, "Don't You Wish You Were Me," and was just getting into it when all the lights went off.

For a split second, he thought Stephanie might come out. It was a deep, down desire for him, and just for a second, he thought that maybe, just maybe, this was a surprise for him. And it would be a surprise, akin to…well, he didn't know, but it would be damn good. But no, it was that new wrestler. He didn't remember his name, but they announced that they would be debuting next week. Why did they have to interrupt during his concert? Why couldn't they have waited during the SmackDown rebound or something?

He went back to his dressing room to get ready for his match coming up, and found that all those girls were in there, and that Lana and the other one had just walked in as well. He had to get ready and was ready to throw them out when Lana stepped forward.

"So Chris, what're you doing after the show? Us girls were going to go hit a few clubs, hang out, and you are more than welcome to come."

"No thank you," he said politely, already starting to push them out of the room.

"Come on, you can have fun with us."

"Yeah, no thanks, again," Chris said.

Lana put her hands on his chest, "Come on, you look so tense being the boss."

"No, I don't."

"Sure you do, so come on, just hang out with us for a little while," she said seductively. Chris looked at her with suspicion, not liking the way she was talking. It all started to come together in his mind, or at least he could put fragments together and fill in the pieces with a familiar equation. "So why are you here again?"

"To party," she answered.

"But who told you to come?"

"We…got passes."

"From who?" Chris pressed.

"I don't remember now."

"Ahh, you don't remember. That's a convenient story. I mean, some of us have really bad memories, not our faults right."

"Right," she nodded. "So come out with us."

"And so you forgot who gave you the passes…today?"

"Or yesterday, or something like that," Lana said, obviously flustered.

"But you don't remember who would let you come to a big event like this. And bringing all your friends too. I mean, that must've been some person."

"Yeah, I wish I could remember them."

Stephanie came in holding something over her head, "I got the butter."

Chris, momentarily forgetting about Lana and her lies, looked to Stephanie, "Kinky."

Stephanie looked around and saw the girls were still there. "Ok, every girl that's not Chris Jericho's fiancée, clear out of the room!"

"Why should we?" Lana said.

"Because I am one button away from security. And I wouldn't want your hair to get messed up, it's really pretty," Stephanie said with false niceness. "So like I said, unless Chris Jericho bought you an insanely expensive ring, get your ass out of the room."

The girls reluctantly left, Lana the worst of them, trying to salvage Hunter's plan. He had promised her an extra thousand if he could get them away from each other for an entire evening. She gave Stephanie a dirty look, and Stephanie kicked the door closed while Lana wasn't even half-way out, the door very literally hitting her with the good Lord split her. Stephanie rolled her eyes and walked over to Chris, setting down a bunch of butter packets on the desk.

"Now give me the finger," Stephanie said, groaning when Chris made the obvious joke of flipping her the bird. Chris smiled innocently and she forcefully grabbed his finger, causing him to pout. "God, your finger is like purple."

"I know, I lost feeling in it like fifteen minutes ago."

"I had to scrounge around for this butter," she said, taking a packet and smearing it over his finger.

"Why did you bring so much?"

"Because I have some bread in my purse and thought that I would stock up on the butter so that I'm never without a delicious snack," she said sarcastically, wiping off her hands on a napkin that she had brought. "Ok, let's get this off of you."

"Stephy, baby, I don't think now is the appropriate time to be wanting a dose of Vitamin C."

"Yeah, because I'm so hot right now, oh take me baby, take me now you studmuffin," she deadpanned.

"How's the cold?"

"It's fine, says hello, wishes you could share in my misery, ok, now let's pull," she said, grasping the ring. She pulled it one way, while Chris pulled his hand the other way, and in a matter of moments the ring was off and Stephanie gave a cheer. Chris looked as the blood rushed back to his poor finger and sighed happily.

"I may never regain use of that finger."

"Oh, I'm sure there'll be an occasion where he'll want to come out and play again," Stephanie said, taking another napkin and handing it to him so he could take the butter off of his hand. "And now I must go divert another disaster, because Christian may be Captain Charisma, but I'm…something that sounds cool, and possibly has corresponding letters…"

"Yeah, that wasn't funny," Chris said.

"Well thanks, I hope something else can make you laugh," Stephanie said, giving him a parting kiss. "I love you."

"Love you too."

He got a good gut-busting laugh out of seeing Christian in costume. Looks like most other people were getting a kick out of it too. To seem more in charge, Chris stood around looking important, watching the show. Trish came up to him and hugged him from the side, leaning her head on his chest.

"Hey you," Chris said as he ruffled Trish's hair a little.

"Thanks for the laugh," she said, nodding her head towards Christian. "I had to convince him to wear it, but it is so worth it, and surprise, surprise, it actually got my mind off my match for about a minute and a half."

"That nervous?"

"Anxious is a better word," she told him. "I just want this done with…but it's probably just the beginning."

"So goes the story of my life with Hunter. One time, you say something nasty about his wife, four years later, you're still paying for it."

"I doubt he's mad about THAT…I think you've done a few more things to him in the recent past."

"Oh really, like what?"

"It escapes me at the moment," she told him. "I've gotta go get ready, but promise me you will go out there and make fun of him. It'll make him so mad, that he'll let me do whatever I want and he won't say a thing."

"You're on."

Chris did as he was told, and not thinking, started singing the same song that was sung to Stephanie when she was forced to leave after that fateful Triple Threat match so long ago. She looked so downtrodden when he got backstage, and he was mad at himself for making her look like that. He didn't know it still affected her like that. He walked over to her and put his arm around her, crouching down to he would be eye-level with her, but she shirked his embrace and walked off.

Chris couldn't think about it though, because his match was coming up shortly. Finally, a chance to get his aggression out. And as good a team that Batista and Hunter were, Benoit and Jericho were working better tonight, if he did think so himself. They had been tag team partners for a while, even fighting in that match that put Hunter out of commission for months and months and saw his rise to the top as a result. So both teams were used to each other, and worked well with each other.

At the end of the match, Hunter went seemingly crazy at not having his title. Chris was having a hard time getting up because of Batista (aren't you getting tired of reading that sentence?), and was held by him, as he saw Hunter wielding the chair. But for ONCE, Chris had enough strength to duck out of harm's way and instead Batista got decked quite nicely with the chair. Thinking that Hunter was spent, or at least had dropped the chair to check on his teammate, Chris got up and was hit in the arm…hard.

He rolled out of the ring then, leaving quickly, not wanting to see what Hunter was going to do. Trish was backstage stretching and she gave him a look and nodded his head towards Vince's office for the evening, which was right across the hall. Trish mouthed, "She's in there," to him and he smiled gratefully, still holding his arm. He was going to go see her when he got spun around and decked hard in the jaw.

He stumbled backwards and saw that it was Hunter, and the fury was still in his eyes. Chris let his arm drop to the side, and did his best to lunge at Hunter, but Hunter had two good arms, and Chris only had one at the moment, but it didn't hinder Chris much as he gave a nice right hook to Hunter's cheek. Hunter tackled Chris, and they rolled around on the ground, trying to fight each other.

Chris didn't know what the hell was wrong with this man. He was mad when he lost the belt too, but this fury was purely Hunter. Chris threw him off of him, making Hunter land on his back, and Chris dove for him, trying to give him some hard shots to the face. He felt himself get pulled back and looked over his shoulder to Flair. He elbowed Flair in the face, but it was too late because Hunter was already on his feet and he gave Chris a very hard shot to the temple.

The world faded to black.

-----------------------------------------------

A/N: Yes, I know this is rather abrupt, and you hardly ever see me post a post-script Author's note, but I apologize for the abruptness of this ending, but I felt like this was the right spot to end it tonight, and I had nothing much more to say, though I guess you'll find out what happened next week, or sooner if I'm feeling particularly motivated.

And if you need an explanation of the very beginning of this chapter, e-mail me, and I'll be glad to explain...or IM me if you prefer, but I have finals this weeks, so it's probably easier and quicker to send me an e-mail...if you're particularly confused about it or just want to comment. :)


	12. Hee, Dave is Always Cool, December 27, 2...

A/N: I hope that everyone had a very happy holidays. :)

I'm sorry that there was no chapter two weeks ago with the show. I got pretty sick with a cold and sinus infection, and so I found it hard to find time to write since I was pretty sick. Then when I got better just recently, I found that I had developed a bad case of writer's block. So instead of trying to catch up, I'm just jumping into the next chapter. Sorry for making you wait such a long time, and I hope that you enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

"Where's your lady?"

"She's taking the night off, per my request," Chris told Randy as they sat backstage before the show. "Kind of a Christmas thing."

"How was your Christmas by the way?"

"It was fine, nothing special. Stephanie and I had our parents and Shane over at our house for Christmas Eve and Christmas. Stephanie thought it might be nice to bring the families together again. I'll never understand why she thinks that we all need to be one, big, happy family, but I'm not one to argue with her, especially since she was mad at me."

"What did you do now?" Randy asked, knowing that Chris frequently made Stephanie mad in one way or another.

"Nothing, she's just mad that I got into a fight with Hunter two weeks ago. I tried to explain that it was his fault, but she was still kind of mad that I got into a fight at all."

"It's because you got hit so hard you were knocked out for a minute. You should've seen her freaking out over you," Randy said. "I don't really blame her for getting crazy over you. She was just worried."

"I know that, but I'm a grown man, I need to handle my own fights, in my own way, despite the fact that the fight may or may not have been over Stephanie."

"You know, I'm not married, and I'm not seriously dating anyone, I'm dating someone, but not seriously anyways, but I think that since you're marrying Stephanie in…oh, like twenty days."

"Trust me, I know, there's a big countdown on our calendar at home. And why do you think I sent Stephanie off to a day spa. She's been freaking out once she realized that we're less than a month away from our wedding."

"Has the cold feet set in yet?"

"No, no cold feet from me. I don't think Stephanie has time to get cold feet. I never knew there was so much work put into a wedding. And ours isn't even that big either; it's relatively small."

"Too bad though, I can imagine it in the ring, with everyone watching."

Chris grimaced. His mind flittered to the images of Stephanie's first wedding. That had been all about the pomp and circumstance, and subsequently, the shock that this was not her first wedding, but was in fact her second wedding. Stephanie bawling that she hated Hunter was not a sight that anyone would soon forget.

Hopefully her fourth wedding would go off without any problems. Yes, this was her fourth wedding, but only her second marriage. If you're confused, don't worry, when you have that many weddings, you tend to get confused as well. The only difference this time was the fact that this wedding was what Stephanie wanted. The vow renewal ceremony, it hadn't been what she wanted, not really. She was only doing it so that she could get away from her ex-husband, which went off as planned.

"No thank you. I would much rather keep my personal life private and my professional life in the spotlight."

"Yeah, I know, which is why she's not even going to be known as Stephanie Jericho."

"Even you have to admit it sounds wrong," Chris argued. Not that he didn't want her to be Stephanie Jericho, but it just sounded like he was talking about the two of them, as it was common for him to be called Jericho by his friends and family.

"It sounds a little wrong, I'll admit that."

"Anyways, she's going to go by Stephanie McMahon-Jericho when she signs checks and things like that," Chris told him. "So she is taking my name in certain situations."

"Well, I guess that makes it better then. And McMahon-Jericho does sound better than just Jericho."

"Yeah, I agree," Chris said.

Randy was about to answer when he saw Dave walking down the hallway. It looked like he was looking for his locker room. Randy had noticed a change in Dave over the past several weeks. He was becoming more rebellious and although he was still a part of Evolution, Randy would venture a guess to say that he wasn't exactly as happy with that position as he used to be.

And he didn't blame Dave one bit. His main problem with Evolution had been with Hunter, and the way that Hunter saw the group. To him, the group was about boosting himself up. It was never about being a group, and being on even keel. Hunter was the leader, and he was the only one who wanted to have the spotlight. There was no room on that pedestal for Dave, or Randy, or even Ric Flair, a legend; it all had to be reserved for Hunter. It made Randy frustrated, because he knew that he was good enough to be in the spotlight, to be recognized, and to make his own name for himself in the ring.

He figured that Dave was starting to see just why Randy was so willing to go against the group, and why he had refused to go back in the first place. Randy had needed to leave if he ever wanted to be where he was today. Perhaps Dave was starting to see that he could move beyond Hunter and finally break out on his own. Maybe then Randy could be friends with him again.

He wouldn't admit it to anybody, and he hadn't told anybody, not even his quasi-girlfriend, but he missed Dave's friendship. They had been closer than brothers while they were in Evolution, and it had hurt the most when Dave had betrayed him. A part of him hoped that Dave would also break away, and then maybe Randy could have his friend back. It would be nice to be able to hang out with Dave again.

"Randy?" Chris said loudly, snapping his finger in front of his friend's face.

"Huh?" Randy said, looking over at Chris.

"Where were you just now, you shouldn't ignore me when I'm talking, don't you know who I am after all. King of the world and all that."

"I think you're the only one who believes that," Randy countered. "I was just looking at Dave, do you think he wants out of Evolution?"

"Why do you ask that?"

"Because he looks like he wants out of Evolution."

"Speaking from experience?"

"Nah, just a vibe I guess, I'm gonna go walk around and…I'll see you later Chris, tell Steph I said hi, and I hope that you're not being too much of an ass and not helping with the wedding plans."

"Shut up," Chris said, pushing him away as he sat back against the wall.

He watched people come in and look for their locker rooms, and couldn't help but feel kind of lonely without Stephanie here. But she deserved a night off; she was a workaholic and it took everything in him to get her to not work on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, no matter how loud her protests got.

"Hey Chris," he heard a voice say to his right. He looked over and saw that it was the new girl, Christy.

"Hey, what's up?" Chris said, being friendly. He knew what was like to be the new person around, and sometimes it was hard to integrate yourselves into the system of WWE.

"I was just saying hi to people," she said, and she was actually not acting as peppy as he had seen her in recent promos and interviews, which was a rather refreshing change. "I'm the official timekeeper tonight, for one of your matches actually."

"Well, do a good job," Chris joked.

"Thanks, I'll try. I'm kind of surprised that Eric even asked me. I'm new and everything, so you wouldn't think that he would trust me with such an important job."

"It's not that hard when you think about it, you ring a bell and then you ring a bell again. You just have to know when you have to ring it, and actually pay attention to the match at hand," he explained, even though that explanation was rather sparse, and any idiot would be able to figure that out.

She laughed, "Yeah, I guess it is easy then. Do you know who you're facing tonight?"

"Nope, it's a surprise. I don't exactly know why, but it just said Jericho vs. mystery opponent on the schedule. I'm ready for anyone though, you gotta be when you're as great as I am."

"First ever Undisputed Champion," she mused. Chris smiled; it was nice that people remembered that he was the first-ever Undisputed Champion. It seemed like ages ago now, and in essence it was a long time ago. That's why he wanted to beat the other five guys and become the World Champion once again. Forget the fact that two of the other guys were his friends, he was going out there to win, and he expected nothing less from himself.

"Damn straight, I beat Austin AND Rock in the same night."

"Pretty incredible, when you think about those two names," Christy said. "So how do you really get yourself noticed around here?"

"What do you mean?" Chris asked.

"I mean, to get people to respect you and not view you as this sex object."

"I'm sorry? Is that not how you want to be viewed?"

"Well, partly, of course, I want to be the prettiest girl out there," she told him. "I think that's every girl's want, you know, to just be the best."

"I think that's pretty much what every person wants."

She laughed at that, "True, true. But I don't know…it's harder because all these girls are so damn pretty, it's hard to compete with it."

"You're pretty too," Chris said off-handedly.

"Thanks," Christy said with a nice smile.

"Don't mention it," he said. "So just go out there and do a good job."

"I hope to…you're getting married aren't you?" she asked all of a sudden. Chris wondered why that had come up. Not to mention he thought that everyone knew that he was getting married to Stephanie. It wasn't like it was a secret. That thought gave him a little bit of a chuckle. It brought back a time when they had to hide their relationship. And hide it they did, doing so good a job that people were downright shocked when they found out the truth about him and Stephanie.

"Yes, all that wedding talk that you have heard, it's all about me," Chris said proudly.

"Yeah, you'd be crazy not to have heard, I mean, people talk and…" Chris was giving her a look that she couldn't decipher. She hoped that she hadn't said anything to offend him or make him angry. She had seen him angry before, and he was one of those people who had a hidden temper.

"Who talks?"

"I don't know, just people."

"But you must have heard specific people, right?"

"Well, you know, I've heard Triple H mention it every now and then."

"Hunter," Chris muttered, "What has he said?"

"Um…that it's not right, or something," she said, looking at him with trepidation.

"Damn him," Chris said, hopping off the chest he was sitting on. "I can't believe that guy. Just when you think he's off your back, there he is again, spouting off his damn mouth. I swear to God, he needs a muzzle."

Chris left Christy then, now focusing more on what she had said than anything else. He wasn't going to go after Hunter, not wanting to get into another fight with him, which would get Stephanie mad at him again. He would just have to make sure that Hunter didn't ruin his and Stephanie's day. He knew that it had been too quiet, that things had been too calm. It seemed like Hunter was getting off his back, but he wasn't, he was just lying in wait until he could strike.

"Chris, where's the fire?" Trish said as she jogged up to Chris and hugged him. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Chris told her, "I'm just going to go get ready for my match later, we'll talk later?"

"Yeah, sure," she said, but she narrowed her eyes as she watched him leave. She knew something was wrong with him, but didn't want to find out at the moment. She stood there for a few more seconds before she looked around, trying to figure out what to do with herself, considering she didn't have anything to do on the show tonight. She hated that, not having anything to do. It made her feel very complacent. She liked to be moving, but ever since losing her title to that bitch, Lita, she wasn't at the forefront any longer; despite being the better female wrestler.

Trish would venture to say that she was the best female wrestler in the company. She knew that other women would dispute that claim, but really, look at her accolades. When she had come into the company, she was really only a valet, on par with Stacy or someone equally untrained, and only competing the type of match that resulted in her having less clothes than she began with.

But she had worked her way up. She had gotten herself trained, and now she could compete with the best of them. She wasn't as sloppy as Lita tended to be in the ring. Thankfully she was getting her rematch against Lita at the next Pay-Per-View. She would show them that Lita's win was just a fluke, and that she should be the true champion. She was determined to be on the top again.

"Get out of the way bitch."

Trish turned around abruptly and sneered, "I'll get out of your way when I feel like it."

"Well, you better feel like it right now."

"And if I don't?" Trish challenged as she looked at Lita. She wasn't about to back down from anything Lita had to offer.

"I'll make you get out of the way."

"That's the best you got? That's all you're going to deal me with. You're pathetic, you know that Lita."

"No, I think you are, since you don't have this," Lita said, patting her title.

"You think you're going to hold onto that thing for long. Yeah right, I plan on winning it back. So get used to losing. You can start tonight with Molly."

"Get over yourself Stratus, nobody wants to be around you anymore. You are old news."

"That doesn't even make sense."

"What doesn't make sense is the fake that you're still trying to pass yourself off as a blonde. I mean, it does fit in with your persona…the whole bimbo thing."

"Like you're a natural redhead, please sweetie, I've seen better coloring on dogs."

"Jealous."

"Oh that is it!"

Trish lunged for Lita, not giving Lita any time to duck away from her. Trish speared her to the ground and landed on top of her. Lita tried to push her off, but Trish was coming out fighting. The two of them tussled on the ground until Trish felt herself get pulled off of Lita. She struggled against whoever it was, trying to break free so she could get another shot at Lita.

"Trish, calm the hell down," Randy said as he held her back.

Chris hearing the commotion had gone to see what was happening, and rushed to grab Lita before she could try and tackle Trish again. It didn't take a doctorate to figure out the two girls were getting in a row. The animosity between them had risen between them so much that it was just a matter of time before it boiled over.

"What is going on?" Chris asked.

"Ask that bitch!" Trish screamed.

"You're the bitch!" Lita screamed back.

"No, you are!"

"You are!"

"YOU ARE!" Trish yelled again.

"You guys need to quit this," Randy said, wrapping his arm around Trish's waist from behind. "You don't need to be fighting in the back. Save it for the ring."

"It won't be soon enough," Lita said through clenched teeth.

"I'll take you here and now," Trish told her. "Just say the word."

"Oh, I'll say it."

"Ok, you two need to be separated," Chris said, looking between them. "Randy, you and Trish can go that way, and Lita and I will go this way."

Randy nodded and, without releasing his grip started to pull Trish in one direction. Trish almost seemed to growl at Lita before being dragged away. Chris pulled Lita in the opposite direction, noting that she had also sent Trish a very dirty look. It was about now that he wished Matt were here so he could keep her in control.

"What the hell was that?" Chris said when they had reached a safe distance.

"Nothing," Lita said, giving up no information.

"Well, obviously it was something if you guys were fighting."

"She just hates me, and I hate her."

"Well, I can understand hating someone."

"How can you hang out with her?" Lita asked in disgust.

Chris answered, "Because she's been my friend for a really long time, and she's really cool, and how do you define why you're friends with someone, you're just friends with someone and that's that."

"Would you say you're my friend?" she asked, turning to him.

That was a tough one. At one point, sure, he would've considered that, but it was a lot different now, they were a lot different now. Not to mention that Lita's life was pretty screwed up at the moment, what with Kane and Matt, and Snitsky.

"I don't know," Chris said honestly. "We don't really hang out or anything anymore, so I wouldn't say that we're really good friends or anything. More like good acquaintances. I think that works."

"That sucks…I'd like to be friends again. What are you doing after the show?"

"Nothing."

"No Stephanie?"

"She's at a spa back home. I made sure that she had a night off. She deserves it every now and then. But that means I'm all alone for the evening."

"Let's go out…like we used to. I know it'll be a fragment of how we used to be, but I know that it'll be fun, what do you say?"

Well, he didn't really have anything planned that evening. He was just going to go back to his hotel room, call up Stephanie and then watch television until he fell asleep. Not exactly what you'd call an exciting evening. But being alone was never that exciting. He remembered when he had won the Undisputed Championship, and he hadn't really done anything that night either.

"Sure, I've got nothing else I need to do. We'll meet up after the show."

"Great," Lita said, hugging him quickly before running off. "I have to get ready for my match, see you later."

Chris watched her as she ran off. He knew that Trish wouldn't like this situation, but maybe if he just didn't tell her than everything would be alright. Ok, so he was probably kidding himself, but still, he could pull this off. But right now he had to think about his match, because it was coming up very soon. He walked out to gorilla in time to see Bischoff explaining just what was going to happen tonight, and why they were all going to be playing Beat the Clock.

Chris groaned because he was going first. First was the absolute worst position that he could be in. He had no time to go against, and nothing to do but set the bar. He would've much rather have gone last, but that spot was probably going to go to Hunter, since he was the big movie star, or whatever crap he wanted to believe about himself. He got a job as a vampire in a third-rate movie, and suddenly the guy was having illusions of grandeur. It made Chris yawn, just like seeing him in a movie would make him do.

He went out for his match, smiling briefly at Christy as he waited for his surprise opponent. It seemed this was the night for groaning because that's precisely what Chris did as he saw Christian come out. Of all the people on the Raw roster, he had to fight Christian. But this time, he had no time to think about Christian or how much he didn't want to fight a friend. Essentially this was for survival. To Chris, being last in the Elimination Chamber could be considered trivial. He had been in both of the previous Elimination Chambers, and both times he had never been the last guy to enter it, and both times he had made it to the final three. He figured that it didn't really matter at which position he entered, as long as he had the chance to vie for the title itself.

What this match came down to was that he had to win. He knew that Christian was not going to take him lightly, and he, in turn, was not going to take Christian lightly. Christian knew how great an opportunity this could be; this could be his way in to the world title picture. So the two friends went at it as if they were two enemies. And they pulled out all the stops, because they were professionals and they had no reason not to go out there and give their best performance.

At ten minutes and forty-seven seconds, Chris made Christian tap. He was hoping that it might be a slightly lesser time, but really, it was inconsequential, and he was just glad to win. He waited backstage for Christian and the two amicably shook hands with each other, knowing that they had put up a good fight.

"So I heard my girlfriend was fighting earlier," Christian said as they stood around and spoke to each other.

"Yup, she's got quite the mean streak."

"Coming from the guy whose fiancée has fired people, set up people, hit people, slapped people, etc. etc…"

"Yeah, but she didn't get in a fight tonight, and your girlfriend did," Chris pointed out rather glibly.

"Touché."

Randy walked up and leaned in towards Chris's shoulder, "I'm gonna go beat your time."

"Go for it," Chris called out as Randy turned to walk backwards so he could face Chris and talk to him. "I don't care about the time."

"I don't either, I just want to beat your time," Randy said with a laugh. "Show you who's the better wrestler out there."

"Not you," Chris said. "Besides, I had a formidable opponent. Who do you have?"

"No clue. If Stephanie were here, I'm sure I would know by now, but nope, you had to make her take the night off."

"It's not my fault."

"It's completely your fault," Randy said, pretending to scold him. "How am I supposed to get the inside track around here if she's gone? You two better not be going on a honeymoon, I can't afford to lose her again around here."

"Well you're in luck, there will be no honeymoon."

"That's so sad," Christian piped in, but his voice was rather sarcastic. "You have to work like the rest of us normal folk."

"Chris could probably get a year off if he wanted," Randy joked. "All he'd have to do is ask his new daddy, Vince McMahon."

"Ok, so is this what I have to look forward to now?"

"Yup," Christian answered.

"Ok, you're both fired then," Chris said, in a completely straight-forward, serious voice. "Both of you, you can just pack up your stuff and get out of the building, because you're both fired."

"What?" Randy said, tilting his head to the side to look at Chris.

"Well, I DO have power, or I will, and you know, Vince IS going to be my father-in-law, and he'll probably want me to get into the business aspect of the company, and what better way that to instate my hiring and firing powers. So you two can go."

"Very funny," Randy said. "You'll be just like Hunter with that thought."

"Ok, you've sold me, I will NOT do that to anyone…unless I catch them hitting on Stephanie. Then I will fire their ass."

"Well, I WAS planning on flying to Tampa tonight and then trying to have sex with her, in your bed no less, but I'm probably going to have to nix that plan now, thanks for the heads up," Randy told him.

"Just go beat your mystery opponent you jackass," Chris said, wanting to go over there and shove him.

"I'll see you later man, I've gotta get Trish out of here before she goes postal on someone else."

"Bye," Chris said.

"Yeah, see ya," Christian responded before leaving.

Chris walked back to his locker room, grabbing his things and heading straight for the shower. Just as he was about to go in though, his cell phone rang and he put his things down quickly, knowing that it was Stephanie. He plopped down on the couch and grabbed the phone, bringing it up to his ear.

"Hello?"

"Hey sweetie!" came the jubilant reply.

"Hey," Chris said happily, settling into the couch. "How was the spa thing?"

"Relaxing, but I had had enough of it by the time I was done. I hate the whole ta-da where you have to drink the tea that flushes out your system and all that crap. I need my work. I'm still reeling from not being there. Only Bischoff would come up with something like this 'Beat the Clock' thing. I mean, I guess it's an alright idea to bring in viewers, but I don't really think it's fair to the person who goes first…which, as it turns out, was you."

"Yes, it was, but you know I don't care."

"Yeah, I thought you wouldn't. But I still wish you had won. Less time in the Chamber means less chance that you'll be smashed through one of those chambers…again. Do you remember that?"

"I remember."

"Do you remember how much it worried me?"

"Yes, I remember that too."

"Just making sure that you remember."

"I get the fact that you're giving me a preemptive warning not to get seriously injured when I go into that match," Chris said.

"Well, I'm just glad that you could pick up on it. So what's going on there? Anything fun and interesting? Maybe something that needs my immediate attention?"

"Trish and Lita got into a fight, um, I talked to that girl Christy and she told me she overheard Hunter saying he wanted to mess up our day or something like that."

"Won't happen, made sure of that. And this Christy girl…"

"She wasn't."

"I said nothing."

"You didn't have to."

"Well, I didn't anyways, so it doesn't really matter then, right?" Stephanie said.

"No, it doesn't really matter. What are you doing tonight?"

"Nothing much, going over some things. Maybe write my vows, nothing special. What are you going to do tonight without me there keeping you warm in bed?"

"Find someone else to keep me warm in bed," he told her.

"Make sure she's pretty," Stephanie replied.

"I'm actually going out with Lita."

"That's…different," Stephanie said, not quite sure what to make of that. Not that she worried that her fiancé was going out with another woman (Lita WAS married after all), it was just strange the company that he was keeping. Never before (not while they were together) had he gone out with Lita.

"Yeah, I know, but she asked, I felt bad, I've got nothing to do, you're not here, I thought I might as well do something tonight."

"Well, be careful while you're out there, I don't want you to come home in more than one piece."

"I'll try, but you have to--" A knock came on the door, and Chris got up to answer it, speaking to Stephanie in the process. "There's someone at the door, I have to see who it is, hold on."

Chris opened the door to Bischoff, who was not looking too pleased. "Jericho, where the hell have you been?"

"Right here," Chris answered.

"We need you for the last match, Hunter's match!"

"Why?"

"Because you need to be there, all the other guys are, and you can't be the odd one out."

"Fine," Chris said, then held his finger up to signal that he was still speaking, "Steph, did you hear that?"

"Yeah, bye sweetie, I love you."

"I love you too, bye."

Chris saw Bischoff roll his eyes, but he didn't care. He closed his phone and set it on the couch before going out and taking his designated seat, right in between Randy and Edge. How was that for great positioning? He sat there, not really knowing what he was supposed to be doing. He didn't really want to watch one of Hunter's matches, but what could he do?

"I told you I would be your time," Randy joked with him as they waited for Hunter to show.

"Shut up," Chris said good-naturedly.

Finally Hunter came down the ring, and deciding that he was better than everyone else, decided to have a little face-to-face time with all the other guys in the Elimination Chamber. The visual itself was just what Hunter wanted. He was above the other men, looking down on them, as if from a high perch, looking down at the little ants below, that nobody cared about, that nobody wanted to see. It was just the way that Hunter wanted to see himself, as being better than everyone else in the business. Chris found it funny that he would want to exalt himself that much. Maybe it was just irony, this position of Hunter trying to appear as the top of his game, but the visual was just too staged, Hunter was just too clever not to think of this visual metaphor.

When Hunter decided to stare him down, Chris just stared back. He was most definitely not afraid of Hunter. They had been in too many fights, and too many matches for Chris to feel intimidated or frightened by him. Hunter didn't phase him anymore; he just didn't. Too many years of hatred had passed through them to care what the other thought now.

The match was really quite boring for him, as much as he was rooting for Shelton. He knew, in his gut, that Hunter would win. The real shocker came afterwards in the announcement of HBK, Shawn Michaels, as the guest referee. As he looked around the ring, it seemed that only he and Dave Batista didn't really care that HBK was the guest referee. He didn't even know how you could really have a guest referee for that match, because he remembered there being more than one referee in both matches before. Yeah, these were his thoughts as Hunter became livid at the sighting of Michaels.

Ok, so that sight alone made the entire night worthwhile. There was something so fun about seeing Hunter go crazy.

Now he just had to think of how this could help him with the World Title…


	13. Happy New Year, January 3, 2005

A/N: Happy New Year! Hope you all had a wonderful holidays in whatever you did. And I hope that in the new year, you keep enjoying my stories. :)

And for a little self-pimping, if you go to my Jericho/Steph fanlisting, there are a bunch of videos of our favorite couple on there, so go check them out and enjoy. :)

* * *

"Taking it in is a good thing right?" 

"Well, yes, I guess you can look at it that way," the seamstress said.

"Actually, probably not."

"Have you been dieting?" Trish asked, looking up at Stephanie.

Stephanie turned her head as far as she could to look at Trish. It was a hard stretch, and she could still only see half of Trish's face. "No, I've been working a lot though, running around. I guess I should probably eat more. Lord knows that Chris wants me to."

"Aww, it's cause Chris cares about you," Trish said with a dreamy sigh.

"I should hope so, I'm marrying him in a little over a week."

"I can't believe you guys are getting married so soon. Remember when I found out about you guys? Man, that was such a long time ago."

"It was a while ago. I think I had just moved into the house."

"You were running down the stairs looking for something, a shirt or something like that, and I was completely shocked. Of all the girls I expected to see Chris with, you were probably last on the list, just above Chyna."

"Oh great, bring THAT up," Stephanie said. "Chris was seriously crazy when they were feuding with each other."

"Yeah, what was with that?"

"I don't know. So how does the dress look on me?"

Stephanie was currently standing on a little stool, her wedding dress on. She hadn't had time to have a fitting, so she had paid the designer to send one of the seamstresses out to do another fitting on her dress. There would be one more the day before the wedding, and then a final look at the wedding itself, just to make sure. So here she was, getting fitted at the arena, in her office, because she was so busy.

"You look beautiful, and I'm not saying that because you're my best friend. That dress is perfect on you," Trish said. "And it makes me want to get married."

"Are you and Christian thinking about it?"

"We've talked about it, briefly, but I don't think that either one of us is really ready to make that ultimate commitment. So I don't think that we're going to be taking that long walk anytime soon. I'm perfectly happy just being in your wedding and not being the bride. I just want to wear such a beautiful dress."

Stephanie laughed, "Well, I like to think we picked a great dress for you as my maid of honor."

"I love the dress."

Stephanie's cell phone went off and Stephanie almost stepped off the stool to answer it, but the seamstress was holding her in position and there were already pins sticking into her, and she feared that if she moved that she would start bleeding, and the last thing she needed was blood on her pristine, white wedding gown. Trish, sensing that Stephanie wanted the phone, but was unable to get it, lifted herself off of the couch and got the phone for her, handing it to Stephanie.

"Thanks," Stephanie said as Trish handed her the phone. She answered it shortly thereafter. "Stephanie McMahon."

"McMahon, where the hell are you?"

"Shut up Bischoff, I'm in my office," Stephanie said testily.

"We had a meeting."

"Look, we can have the meeting right now. I don't think your vocal chords are malfunctioning, although that would make my life easier, so just tell me what you have planned and I'll clear off on it."

"This is way too easy," Bischoff said. Despite Bischoff's new "I'm a nice boss," approach, he and Stephanie were still not friends or anything that could be construed as on friendly terms. They worked together because they had to, not because either of them particularly wanted to. Stephanie was pretty sure that Bischoff hated her, which was just fine, because she hated him as much, if not more.

"Well, let me tell you a little secret, I'm getting married in twelve days. Now that does not afford me a lot of time to do things because I'm already just about ripping my hair out with plans and everything. So now is the right time to get your way, because after January fifteenth, then you'll get the old me back."

"Fine, I'm not going to question it."

"Only cause you want your way."

"Maybe, maybe not," he told her, and she could just picture the smirk on his face.

"Don't get any crazy ideas Bischoff, I still have veto power."

"I just want to put the guys in the Elimination Chamber into separate matches together. Is that too crazy an idea for you Stephanie?"

"I don't want you putting Hunter against Chris. I know the way you think Bischoff, and I know that you're probably rubbing your hands together like a comic book villain thinking about how you can manipulate the situation. I don't care who you put against whom, but you are NOT putting Chris and Hunter into a match together, other than that, go to town."

"Fine, I didn't need the spiel Stephanie, I'm perfectly competent on my own."

"Sure you are. Now is there anything else that you really need my attention with."

"No ma'am, please don't hurt me ma'am. I don't want to lose my job ma'am."

Stephanie rolled her eyes and hung up her phone. She was not in the mood to have him insult her with thinly veiled insults. She threw the phone back to Trish who put it next to her on the couch. The seamstress was almost finished, or so she had said as soon as Stephanie had hung up.

"So I heard something," Trish said uncomfortably.

"What did you hear?" Stephanie asked.

"That Chris went out with Lita last week," Trish said succinctly.

Stephanie froze. She had known about Chris going out with Lita, since he had told her over the phone, but she hadn't bothered to tell Trish. Trish and Lita were still on the outs, and Stephanie didn't see the situation getting any better any time soon, especially with their match that weekend. She didn't know how Trish would react, but hoped that she didn't think that they were betraying her, or Chris was betraying her rather.

"It's true," Stephanie said, her answer short and to the point.

"Why did he go out with her?"

"She asked, and he felt bad for her because she has nobody around. You know how Chris can be sometimes, the good Samaritan. He didn't mean to hurt you or anything Trish, he just didn't want to cause any fights between you guys."

"I guess I understand, he's not my boyfriend, I can't tell him what to do," she said. Inside, she was a little upset that Chris would even go near Lita when he knew the reasons for Trish disliking Lita so vehemently. "He can hang out with whoever he wants.

At that precise moment, Chris happened to actually be with Lita. He had been sitting in catering, having been relegated their by Stephanie, and listening to music by himself. Christian and Randy had gone off to get food at a nearby restaurant, but he and Stephanie had eaten earlier and decided to forgo the trip. Lita had come in, wanting to get some food and a water, and seeing Chris, she plopped herself down in the seat across from him. He had taken off his headphones to speak with her.

"I had a really fun time last night, it's probably the most fun I've had since the miscarriage," Lita said, her voice hitching at the end. Despite everything, Chris did feel bad that she had lost her baby. He wasn't a cruel, heartless fellow, and was sympathetic to the (dyed) redhead's feelings.

"I'm glad, good to take your mind off of things, especially bad things."

"Yeah, it was just like old times. I'm surprised you didn't get wasted though. Have you cut back on drinking?"

"I'm not used to drinking so much anymore. Steph and I aren't really club-goers anymore."

"What the hell is it you guys do then?" Lita asked with a laugh.

"Lots of stuff, but I would do anything if she was there. I don't really care. I'd rather stay at home and watch a movie with her than be out clubbing without her. Things are just more fun when she's around. She's got my sense of humor, so she can keep up with me when I'm at my best."

"That's nice. But I guess it's for the best that you don't drink anymore, not like you used to, because you would find yourself in someone's bed the next morning."

"Well, not all the time, but yeah, sometimes. I can't believe I actually lived that way."

"I can't believe that you live the way you do now!" Lita exclaimed. "You are definitely not the Chris Jericho that I remember from the old days. I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing right now."

"I think it's just a thing that happens. I don't want to be a party guy forever, look what it did for Ric Flair. I'll be damned if I end up like him, kissing some younger guy's ass and being around way past my prime. I'd rather go out on top so the fans can still appreciate my good looks and charming wit."

Lita giggled. "True, true, I don't want to see you end up like Ric Flair either."

"I've got to get back to my locker room, do you want me to walk you to yours?"

"Yeah, I'd like that," Lita answered with a smile.

Chris and Lita got up from the table and started walking down the hallway in a comfortable silence. Chris noticed that Lita would occasionally glance at him, and he wondered why she kept doing that. He didn't look at her because he didn't want her to know that he could see her looking at him, lest it lead towards an awkward situation, but she was definitely giving him an eye. What kind of eye, he couldn't decipher from the limited gaze he had on her.

They came upon Chris's locker room, and he paused for a moment. "Hold on, let me ask Stephanie something."

"Ok," Lita said, stopping, and Chris noticed that her lips were in a tight line, almost like a frown. Chris gave her a suspicious smile and turned to the door. He went for the doorknob only to feel that it wouldn't turn, obviously being locked.

Stephanie heard the door, "Who is it!"

"Me!" Chris yelled.

"You can't come in here!" Stephanie yelled back.

"You're STILL not done!"

"NO! So go away!"

"I'm eventually going to have to get in there, you know?"

"I know, but not now, what do you want!"

"I need to know what I'm doing tonight!"

"You're facing someone from the Elimination Chamber!"

"Please tell me I have Hunter!"

"No, I'm not putting you two in a match!"

"Why not!"

"Because I said so, and I'm the boss of you!"

"I know you are! But why not!" Chris yelled, not caring that everyone could hear him. He was getting a few strange looks, but nothing that he couldn't deal with, with a little smacking around.

"Because, you two are crazy, and you hate each other!"

"So I'm going to be facing Batista or Edge then, because the other two guys are my friends!"

"Yes! They're not as dangerous!"

"Unless Batista decides that my head doesn't have enough dents from his forearm!"

"Better him than Hunter!"

"Fine! Please be done soon or I'm going to be stuck wrestling in my jeans!"

"I'm almost done!"

"I still don't understand why I can't come in there!" he screamed.

"I'M IN MY WEDDING DRESS, NO!"

"Geez," Chris muttered. "I'm coming back in fifteen minutes, and if you're not done, I'm going to unhinge this door myself and come in, wedding dress or not!"

"The hinges are in here!"

"Fine, I'll just kick it down," Chris told her. He turned to Lita, "Come on, let's go….be back soon Steph!"

"OK!"

He faced Lita again. "She's crazy; it's half the reason why I love her."

"I bet you'd make a great husband," she said, and she sounded, dare he think it, wistful.

"Well, I don't exactly have a resume filled out yet, but after a little while with Stephanie, I'm sure I'll be able to get a few references. Then, maybe I'll distribute it around, see if I can lure anyone in."

"I bet it'd be fun."

"Well, anything with Stephanie is fun."

"Oh," Lita said, tersely. "I better go, I have a phone call I'm supposed to wait for, I'll see you soon."

Lita practically ran off, leaving Chris to look at her running away. He was confused by her behavior, but didn't care enough to actually delve deeper to find out what was going on in her head. He had bigger things to think about, like his upcoming wedding. The day was getting closer and closer, and with it, well, the nerves were starting to pile up, though he didn't want Stephanie to know that he was slightly nervous.

"Chris, my man, what's up!" Randy called out as he and Christian walked towards him, having just gotten back from their food run.

"Hey! Nothing, I've just been continuously kicked out of my locker room cause Stephanie is in there in her wedding dress."

"Damn, it's coming up really fast now," Randy said. "Nervous?"

"Shut up, the King of the World, the Highlight of the Night does NOT get nervous. Not in the slightest."

"Liar," Christian said. "Come on, you're getting married, be nervous, it's normal."

"And who the hell are you to tell me what's normal?" Chris asked, leaving Christian stumped.

"Did we just see you with Lita?" Randy asked, looking over his shoulder like Lita would still be there when he looked.

"Yes, you did."

"Since when did that happen?" Christian asked.

"Since before I was friends with you," Chris said in a "duh" kind of way.

"Well, I knew that, but I was wondering why you guys are so buddy-buddy all of a sudden, are you two dating each other?" Christian joked.

"Oh yeah, right in plain view too, where it can get back to my fiancée, who would probably rip my head off if she even suspected something. Lita and I are just friends, nothing more, trust me, I haven't even looked at a woman that way since Stephanie."

"Well, there was Molly."

"Molly couldn't compare."

"Wait, what's this about Molly?" Randy asked, breaking into their conversation. "You dated Molly?"

"I thought you knew that…oh wait, you were either injured or embroiled with your Evolution buddies. Short story is, I broke up with Stephanie over something that didn't happen the way I thought it happened and in a futile attempt to forget Stephanie, I dated Molly for a while, before I came to my senses and realized that Stephanie is, was, and always will be the only woman for me."

"I can't believe you dated Molly, that must've resulted in a lot of sexual frustration," Randy said with a slight chuckle.

"I never even thought about that," Chris said, then tapped his chin, "I guess Molly didn't have what it took to become a notch on the old bedpost."

"Good thing for Stephanie…speaking of, is she cool about this whole Lita thing?" Randy said.

"Yeah, she's cool with it, I think if maybe we weren't getting married in less than two weeks she might be a little jealous, but she doesn't care cause she's got so much stuff to do. Trish, on the other hand, I think she might have a word or two."

"And that's where I step in," Christian said. "I will keep her in check, which is going to be hard, but I'm bigger than her, I can take her by force if I have to."

"That's the spirit," Chris said, slapping Christian on the shoulder. "And what about your girl Randy?"

"Well, we decided to take it easy for just a little while. I mean, I like her and everything, but well, the secret thing, it was weird, and we're seeing if we like being with each other, or other people before we decide to go public."

"Which is the bullshitter's way of saying, I wanted to have one-night stands with all the new divas around here," Chris laughed, though the guilty look on Randy's face pretty much gave it away. "So which diva are you most eager to nail?"

"Stacy," Randy said sarcastically.

"I never thought that Stacy would be the butt of someone's jokes," Christian said. "So come on, you must have a prospect."

"Well, that Maria chick is kind of hot, so she wouldn't be so bad. I mean, if she wanted to, or something," Randy said, and for the first time ever, he seemed uncomfortable talking about a girl.

"Randy's got a crush," Chris stage-whispered to Christian.

"I do not," Randy protested. "She's just pretty. There are too many pretty girls around here, it's liable to drive a guy crazy. And with these looks, all the girls are willing to fall at my feet, so it's really just a matter of who's around at the right moment."

"Definite crush."

"I do NOT," Randy said, raising his voice like a child who was getting teased on the playground. "Admit it, you guys know that all of the women on this show are hot!"

Christian and Chris looked at each other, thinking of their respective girls, then shook their heads, and replied in unison, "Nope."

"I can't say that at all," Chris said.

"I don't see it," Christian said, shaking his head. "I think they're all kind of mediocre to be honest."

"I don't think your girlfriends keep a camera trained on you at all times," Randy said, folding his arms across his chest.

"You'd be surprised what they can find out without even trying," Christian said. "I don't want Trish mad at me. Have you seen what she's been doing to Lita? That could be me!"

"And Stephanie, have you met Stephanie. She has all the power in the world. She could probably kill me and legitimately make it look like an accident and nobody would be the wiser."

"I know what this is, you two are whipped, shoot me if I ever fall down at the feet of some woman. Seriously, just kill me, because that is not how I want to live my life. I'll go around screwing whoever I want."

"Ahh, the force is strong in this," Christian said, clasping his hand to Randy's shoulder.

"Yes, the will is strong, but the body, he is weak," Chris said, clapping Randy's other shoulder. "You're so young, my friend. So young and stupid; thinking that some woman won't come along and have you wrapped around her finger."

"Won't happen."

"So he says, can I get that in writing, cause I want to show it to you, years down the road."

"Fine, I'll sign whatever you want me to sign."

"I'm going to hold you to that."

Stephanie saw the seamstress out to her car and then walked back into the arena. She saw Dave walking to Evolution's locker room, or at least that's where she assumed he was going. She had been watching him closely, and she could sense a lot of tension between him and Hunter. She leaned against the wall and thought about how she could use that to her advantage. She had to be able to use that to her advantage somehow.

Before she could fully come up with a plan, the show had started and the first match was already underway. She went back to her office just in time to see Chris pulling on his boots. She sat down next to him and leaned her head gently on his bare shoulder. He finished up with his boots and wrapped his arm around her tightly, pulling her against him as he leaned back against the couch.

"The dress look good?"

"Mmhmm," she said, kissing his neck. "We're getting married in twelve days."

"What! When did I agree to that!"

"Are you excited?"

"Do you want me to be?"

"Are you?"

"Yeah, I'm excited. This has been a long time coming."

"Do you think this'll change things between us?"

"Well, I can finally let myself go now that I don't have to impress anybody. So if I gain about a hundred pounds in the next two months, you'll know why."

"Great, I can let myself go too."

"Don't you dare," he said, then thought about it a moment, "Fine, I won't let myself go, as long as you won't."

"Deal," Stephanie said. "Do you think it's going to be different?"

"No."

"You don't?"

"Well, I'll wear a ring on my finger, if that's different. But otherwise, no, I don't think it's going to be all that different. I mean, we live together already, so I know what it's like to be with you every, single day. We've been together for about two and a half years, so we know how to be in a relationship. What is this really going to change except for your last name in certain social situations?"

"But we're going to be bound together by law, forever. We're going to be together…forever."

"I was planning on being with you forever anyways, this will just make it all the more official. Even if we never got married, I would've been with you forever."

"I would be with you forever too."

"Of course you would, look at me, I dare you to leave someone as good-looking as I am."

"Don't let that ego get so big that you sink all of Hawaii."

"I'll try not to."

"Don't go out to your match," Stephanie said softly. "Stay here with me."

"You know I can't. I've got a match with Edge."

"But you hate Edge."

"All the more better to fight him then. This way I can channel all my anger to him."

"Yeah, that's true," she said. "I guess you have to go out there huh?"

"Yeah, I have to go out there. Occupy your time with work, I know you love to do that," Chris said, kissing her forehead. "And next week, you don't have to work at all because it's your wedding week."

"OUR wedding week."

"Yeah, but my dad's not the boss and isn't letting me get the night off, unlike you."

"He doesn't want me to be stressed," she said, "But I'm telling you now, January 17, I'm back to work, and I'm going to be better than ever. Cause I'll be Mrs. Chris Jericho."

"Yikes," Chris said, raising his eyebrows a little. He leaned in to kiss Stephanie and she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him tighter against her. She snaked her tongue into his mouth, deepening the kiss as he put his hand lightly on her hip. She was trying to get him closer when he pulled away. "Match baby, we'll finish this later."

"Ok, later."

Chris went out for his match against Edge. It was nothing special. The hatred had festered between the two of them, and it was just lying there, not escalating in any way. They didn't like each other anymore, and since it was so close to his wedding, Edge's words rung loudly in Chris's head. The match wore on, with neither of them getting the clear pin. Eventually Edge got the pin, but only by cheating, which seemed to be Edge's newest maneuver. If he couldn't beat someone, he would just cheat. In this case, Edge knew that he was not as good as Chris, and therefore had to cheat to beat him. It was underhanded, but what more could you expect from Edge, he was underhanded.

Chris was mad that Edge had won by cheating, but he would get his revenge; if not tonight, then it would come Sunday, when he faced him in the Elimination Chamber. Edge didn't even know what he was in for, the match was brutal. It didn't even just look brutal, it was brutal. Or maybe that was just from his experience, seeing as how he had the pleasure of actually being thrown into a chamber, breaking the plexi-glass. He knew that Batista could easily do that, and he hoped that he wouldn't end up going through another chamber this weekend.

He walked backstage and saw that Randy was giving some interview, and he gave a small wave of recognition as he passed. Randy was talking about wanting to beat Hunter. It seemed fitting to start off the new year with a win, and what better way than to do that tonight, and then do it again on Sunday. When he was through with his interview, he saw Maria just sitting around. Randy started walking towards her, intending to talk to her, but for some reason, bailed at the last minute. It wasn't like him, but he had chickened out. This was not good for the ego.

Stephanie was walking around, and once again saw Dave. She knew that now was probably her opportunity and she sped up her steps to catch up to him. She took a deep breath and reached up to tap him on the shoulder. He turned around abruptly, almost hitting her in the jaw, which would be disastrous with her upcoming wedding. He stared down at her a moment and she felt very…she didn't know, but she couldn't explain it either.

"What?" he asked shortly.

"It was a good joke you played on Hunter earlier," Stephanie said, then kicked herself at the stupidity of that. That was not how she intended to start the conversation.

"He didn't seem to like it," Dave answered, and she wasn't expecting that. She was expecting him to snap at her. This was a good sign.

"Can we talk?"

"I don't think so," Dave said, starting to turn around. Stephanie grabbed his shoulder and spun him back around, which surprised the big man. "Who the hell do you think you are?"

"I'm your boss. Which basically means that you are obligated to speak to me when I want to speak to you." She might as well play the "boss" card when she could. If that was the only way to get Dave to talk to her, than so be it.

"Fine, where do you want to talk?"

That she didn't know. The chances that Chris was in her office were good, but they certainly couldn't go back to Evolution's locker room, how would that look? She decided her office was just the better of the two…unless…

"My car."

"For business, you want to talk business in your car?" Dave said, squinting his eyes at her.

"Yes, because this is private business and I don't know of anywhere more private. Or we can go to your car."

"Yeah, my car," Dave said. "I'd feel safer and not like I'm going to be walking into an ambush."

"How am I going to ambush you?" Stephanie said, spreading her arms out and gesturing towards herself.

"Don't play coy."

"Fine, let's go."

She let Dave lead the way as she thought of what she needed to say to him. This was a risky move, talking to him like this. He could easily turn around and tell Hunter, but it was a risk she was going to have to take. Sending Chris over as a spy had been a risk, and that led her here, and it was worth it. She hoped this had the same outcome. They reached his car and he beeped it open and she slipped in. He sat on the driver's side, and when he closed his door, they were ensconced in darkness.

"So what the hell is this about?" Dave asked, looking straight ahead.

"You're not happy in Evolution," she stated simply.

"Who the hell are you to tell me what I feel?"

"I'm Hunter's ex-wife. This is how it starts with him. You want to leave, desperately, but then he looks at you, or he does something to show HE'S loyal to YOU, and then you have to feel loyal to HIM. But you know that it's over."

"I'm not dating the guy."

"I know that," she said, letting herself laugh a little. Dave DID have a sense of humor; it was a refreshing surprise. "But it's the same, you guys are like brother, or just really close teammates. But in the end, it's going to all come undone. It always does with him. He gets so drunk with power, or he gets so motivated on something. Dave…you want the World Title."

"It belongs to Hunter."

"No, no," she said, shaking her head furiously. "It belongs to whoever earns it. Tonight, you never, not once, said that you would actually just lay down for Hunter. Ric said it, Ric said the belt would be around Hunter's waist, where it belonged. But you want a chance. And what kind of chance will you get if you're the one who does all the work, only to let Hunter pin you."

"Look, they're my friends," Dave said, but his voice was different.

"But you want that title. You wouldn't have worked so hard last week to get the last entry. You wouldn't be working so hard to get where you are. Do you really want Hunter to take that away? He will, you know, he'll hold you down, keep you out of the spotlight, and just use you to get what he wants. You can't let him."

"You know NOTHING about this!"

"I know more than you'll ever know!" Stephanie said, running a hand through her hair. "You've been watching for a long time. You saw what happened between Hunter and me. You saw how miserable I was, how at a moment's notice, Hunter dumped me."

"You lied to him."

"He discarded me, told me he didn't want my help, but he wouldn't be where he is without me. And he wouldn't be where he is now without you Dave. When you turned on Randy, who was made to do the dirty work?"

"I was," Dave said quietly, his voice deep and low-pitched.

"And Randy was your friend, wasn't he?"

"Might've been."

"But Hunter made you do that, Hunter was the one who wanted it."

"Look, he got me where I am."

"Maybe, in the broad sense, but I don't think he gave you that physique, I don't think he gave you the in-ring talent that you so obviously possess. All I'm saying is, if you want the World Title…take it, go for it, don't let Hunter get it, because then he's just stepping over you to get it."

"And what's in it for you?" Dave said, finally looking over at her. Stephanie smiled, and even in the darkness, Dave could see it. Dave was not scared of anything, but the smile Stephanie had was quite sadistic.

"Nothing, except the pleasure of knowing that Hunter might actually have to do something for himself."

"There's gotta be more."

"I don't trust you, Dave. Sorry, but I don't. You could go tell Hunter right now what I said. When I trust you, really trust you, then maybe I'll tell you what I really want from you," she told him.

"And your fiancé?"

"My fiancé is not going to be involved in this. This is all me."

"Don't you think that's going against your vows or something?"

"Don't worry about Chris, he's mine to deal with. What I have to discuss with you has nothing to do with him, except I want to protect him if I can, and let him watch the man he hates be miserable. That's all Dave. And if I can trust you, then you'll know. But only if I trust you."

"Smart move. Because I could go tell him right now, and you'd be in deep--"

"Yeah, I know, and you could do that. But better just me, than Chris too. If Chris were involved, and you told, then Chris would be the target of an Evolution attack. But I have a feeling I'm going to learn to trust you Dave. Because what I saw tonight, what I've seen every night since….you want out Dave."

"Don't assume."

"I assume nothing. I just know what I saw. I've been there."

"Like hell you have."

"So you admit there's something there that needs changing."

"You think if I go with you, then everything is suddenly going to be roses and champagne."

"Who the hell do you take me for Dave? Some country bumpkin with no brain. I've orchestrated plans that you could only dream of orchestrating. I've done things that you see in your nightmares. I don't presume anything, and I don't make mistakes."

"So says you."

"Check the track record."

Dave paused. "I'll think about it."

Stephanie nodded and smiled. She knew that she had read the situation correctly. She knew that Dave was unhappy. He may cover it up with jokes and bets, but she knew. And like many things in Stephanie's life, she was going to use it to the fullest of her ability.

"That's all I wanted."


	14. Break Away Dave, January 10, 2005

A/N: The wedding chapter, two and a half years in the making will be put up on Sunday morning, so look out for it. :)

And thanks for all the reviews, I'll have a better author's note with that chapter. I hope you enjoy this one. :)

* * *

"I told you to be careful!"

"Stephanie, I was as careful as I thought that I had to be," Chris said as he sat on the trainer's table. The night before, in the Elimination Chamber, he had gotten pretty beat up, as did all the men…except for seemingly Batista, but that man was like a tree. Stephanie had told him to be careful, to not get hurt because they were getting married in less than a week, and now here he was, getting his bandages rewrapped.

"Well, you were careful enough now were you?" Stephanie chastised. "You look awful. You've got this huge bandage on your face, and a huge bandage on your arm."

"Nobody will see the arm," Chris said, "I'll be wearing a jacket."

"Your face?" Stephanie said, gesturing to the fresh bandage that was standing out garishly against his otherwise perfect skin.

"It'll be fine before Saturday," Chris said, looking down in order to roll his eyes. Stephanie was being especially paranoid tonight. It was probably due to a combination of wedding nerves and not being able to work tonight.

"If you're not, I swear, I'm going to kick you. Then I'll leave you at the altar and make a fool out of you," Stephanie said to him. "Chris, I just want everything to be perfect."

Chris took both her hands into his and held them tightly. "Stephanie, everything is going to be great on Saturday. I think we've got everything planned that possibly needs planning. Why don't you relax and enjoy the week. You get to do all kinds of fun stuff, especially being married to someone like me."

"Don't be calm, I don't want to be the only one who's not calm. Freak out with me!"

"No way, because if I freak out, then you're just going to freak out more, and we'll probably end up running around the block fifty times in our underwear just for kicks."

Stephanie took a deep breath. "I don't know why my father insisted that I not work tonight. It's not like I have anything better to do. I don't want to just sit here. I can't just sit here. I need to do something. The cake! How's the cake! Do we need a different flavor, or design, is the design we chose stupid?"

"The cake is fine. It's plain vanilla cake, with what was it?"

"Lemon essence," Stephanie supplied.

"Yeah, lemon essence, whatever the hell that is. And the decorating was fine. Beautiful really. I've never seen a cake so beautiful as the one that we're getting. And the menu is fine, and the flowers are fine, and the setting is fine, and we have enough chairs, and everything is fine. Stephanie, everything is going to be fine."

"Your head might be scratched up," she pointed out.

"It'll be fine. You need to learn that sometimes, things DO go as plan. Just make sure that you don't get drugged the night before our wedding and marry Hunter. Other than that, I can't see anything ruining our day for us."

"Do NOT bring that up. Trish and I are going out on Thursday night. Just a girl's night out kind of thing, my mom might come, I'm not sure. But we're just going to dinner, have a few drinks…"

"If you recognize the bartender, don't take the drink!"

"Funny," Stephanie deadpanned, then sat down in the chair next to the trainer's table, which Chris had yet to hop off of. The trainer wasn't around so they felt no rush to get out of there, even though there were other injuries that needed to take care of. "But it's nothing special…are you having a bachelor party?"

"I might. Talk to Kurt about that one," Chris said. "And then we have the rehearsal dinner on Friday night."

"Rehearsal dinner!" Stephanie exclaimed, jumping out of her chair. "I don't think I have the--"

Chris covered her mouth with his hand, muffling her words. "It's all planned out. You told me that I was in charge of the rehearsal dinner, and trust me, it is. Everything is perfect. The restaurant is booked, and things are going to be great!"

"And the rings, please tell me you took care of the rings?" she asked, closing her eyes and clasping her hands as if in devout prayer.

"Yes, I got them changed, and everything is great. You wanted more traditional rings, and that's what we have. Stephanie, please, you're going to make me lose my mind."

"Am I bothering you? Should I leave you alone?"

"Yes."

"You're not supposed to say that!" she said petulantly. "You're supposed to want to be around me all the time because I'm going to be your wife!"

"Yeah, and screech like that some more, and I might take back the invitation," Chris said, laughing at his own joke, even as Stephanie was glaring at him. "It was a joke. Don't tell me that the wedding plans have taken over your ability to sense a sense of humor."

"Ok, I'm going to go. Do you know what you have tonight?"

"Nope, I came straight here. I'll go find out right after I get some extra bandage."

"Ok, I love you," Stephanie told him sweetly, leaning over to kiss him. Chris tilted his head a little to get better access to his mouth. It was peculiar to think that by this time next week, he wouldn't be kissing Stephanie, his girlfriend and fiancée, but Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, his wife. Wife…

"I love you too…against my better judgment."

Stephanie stuck her tongue and made a funny face as she walked out of the room. She had to find Bischoff right now and make sure that he took it easy on Chris tonight. It would be ideal if he could do a Highlight Reel (remember those?), but if that wasn't in the plans already, she'd have a hard time changing it. She wasn't going to have Chris be even more beat up for their wedding. She had to draw the line at the injuries that he already had.

She walked purposefully to Bischoff's office, ignoring everyone in her way. If she didn't get there soon, then Bischoff would finalize the schedule and she had to get there before he did that. She threw open the door to his office and saw him schmoozing up one of the diva wannabe's. Stephanie didn't care which one it was as she watched the girl run out of the room.

"To what do I owe the displeasure?" Bischoff asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Who is Chris facing tonight?"

"Don't worry Stephanie. Your father told me the situation and I put him in a tag match."

Stephanie's frown didn't wane. "That doesn't mean anything. Who is it against?"

"Christian and Tomko," Bischoff answered plainly.

Stephanie was ok with that. Christian wouldn't hurt him because Christian was his friend and he was going to be in the wedding and knew how important this day was for her. Yet, she still had her suspicions, "Ok, but who is his partner?"

"Benoit," Bischoff said, giving her a smirk that told her that he was the one in charge around here, and that he knew that she had no comeback.

"Don't give me that look," Stephanie sneered. "I'm fine with that, but don't send anyone out there. I swear to God Bischoff, if you so much as send someone out there to do anything to Chris, I will make sure that next week is your personal living hell."

"You can't go out there and denounce me if I did."

"Oh, I have other reasons, but I'm telling you now, don't you even think about doing anything."

Randy was pacing back and forth. He should've won last night, but the fates were conspiring against him. They didn't want him to have the belt back, even though he wanted it back so badly. He had fought the good fight the previous evening, but it just wasn't enough. And he so wanted to beat Hunter too. He could've killed two birds with one stone. Tonight, he hoped he got another chance.

There was also the pressing issue of this strange crush he had developed on Maria. He just didn't feel like he could talk to her, and he had no basis for this whatsoever. He was usually so cool around women, and he…wasn't around her. Maybe it was because he had never talked to her…no, that couldn't be it, he went up to woman all the time.

Well, he wasn't going to stand for this. He was Randy freaking Orton for God's sakes. He could do whatever the hell he wanted to. He wasn't attached to someone at the moment, and he could talk to her. She was just another woman, and she might not even be that great to talk to. She could be a real airhead and then anything he felt right now, this nervousness, well, he would feel pretty stupid.

He marched out of his locker room and was literally stomping down the halls to the women's locker room. Unless you were really special, you didn't get your own locker room. He didn't really know why that rule was instated, but he didn't argue. He went up to the door and knocked loudly, wondering if anyone was going to be there at all. The last person he wanted to answer the door answered it.

"Hey," Randy said, feeling a pit growing in his stomach.

"Randy," Victoria said kindly. "And to what do we women owe the pleasure?"

"Hey Ree," Randy said, using his pet name for her. "You alone in there?"

"Actually, yeah I am. I think all the other women went to dinner or something, while I was just working out in the gym. But it's nice to have it all to myself. I didn't need the incessant giggling. You'd think it was a sixth grade slumber party."

"Probably worse for me."

"Oh no, they'd just squeal when they saw you and run to go put makeup on." Randy laughed at that and then looked around. "It's just a women's locker room Rands, nothing special, and nobody has underwear lying around."

"Actually, I was looking for Maria," he said, then off her look, "I think she was supposed to interview me later or something, and I just wanted to know what she was going to be asking me."

"Oh, no, she's not here, she probably went out with the rest of them."

"I'm just not sure, I should check the schedule again," he said, his voice hitching.

"Are you nervous to be around me?" Victoria asked, amused.

"What! No way!"

She laughed and patted him on the shoulder. "I'm not going to jump you or anything. I understood perfectly what you were trying to say. It's fine."

"So if I were going to ask Maria to Chris and Stephanie's wedding?"

"Go for it, have fun," she said good-naturedly. "Don't let me stop you from having fun."

"Thanks Ree," Randy said, hugging her rather abruptly. Victoria hugged him back. "I guess I'll go and save the both of us from further embarrassment and further awkwardness."

"That would seem best. I'll see you later Rands. Don't be a stranger."

"Bye Ree."

Chris spotted Randy and Victoria talking and walked up after Victoria had closed the door in Randy's face. Chris's face was impassive, but a smirk slowly started to grow as he sauntered over to Randy, who was still facing the door. Chris tapped him on the shoulder, causing the other man to jump. Randy turned to face Chris and stared angrily at him. Chris laughed, a deep bellow of a laugh.

"So that was her?"

"Her who?"

"The mystery girl. I didn't think that you two would really go together."

"Well, we didn't, we're just friends, it was casual," Randy said, brushing off the questioning. "Nothing at all."

"Because of your massive crush on Maria right?"

"Look, I don't even know Maria, so whether or not I have a crush on her is yet to be determined. She's just one of many pretty girls around here. How do you know that I don't have a crush on Stephanie or something?"

"Because that would be crazy."

"Maybe I'm crazy then. Maybe I'm planning to ruin your wedding and take Stephanie for myself," Randy snapped.

"Be sure to let Stephanie know so she can factor in the time for that. She wants everything to go as planned on Saturday."

"I'm leaving, don't follow me," Randy said, stomping off again, like a child.

"Lighten up!" Chris called after him, chuckling to himself.

"Chris?"

Chris turned around and saw Lita hobbling towards him. She was on a pair of crutches, on account that she hurt her knee the previous night. It had looked pretty bad last night, but word was that she had a sprained knee (which really, really hurts, and never fully heals, trust me), so it could've been worse. Chris walked over to her to save her the trouble of crutching it all the way over to him.

"Hey, how's the knee?"

"This sucks, not only do I lose the title, but I also get injured."

"Yeah, that sucks about the injury," he said, conveniently leaving out the part about Trish winning. He was actually happy for Trish, she deserved it. Not to mention that the victory party had been a blast the night before.

"Well, I'm trying to look on the bright side. I haven't found a bright side yet, but I'm sure there is one," she said with a self-deprecating laugh. "I've been injured worse anyways, not that that's a good thing, but it's something."

"Yeah, I'm lucky, no real injuries for a really long time. Thank God, I don't think I could take it if I had to sit at home for any prolonged period of time."

"So you and Stephanie aren't going away on a honeymoon or anything?"

"Not a real one. We'll be spending the wedding night, and the next day in Hawaii, but Monday morning, it's back to work for the both of us, and not a minute too soon for Steph. She has the night off tonight because her dad wants her to rest up for the wedding, and she's going crazy. She's going so crazy that she's driving me crazy. And nobody cares that I might need to rest up for the wedding too."

"She's driving you crazy?"

"In the very broad sense of the word, yeah. Although I don't think she could fully drive me crazy."

"Not even when she was orchestrating a beatdown on you?"

"Oh, well back then, yeah, I hated her guts; she was the bane of my existence, now she just is my existence. Whoa, that is absolutely going into my vows," Chris exclaimed, making a mental note. "But enough about me and my woes, where are you going?"

"I was going to see Kane," she answered. "Just to see if he needed me for anything."

"Be careful with him. Do you need help getting there?"

"You would be willing to help me?"

"Sure, I can just carry you there, no biggie," Chris said, turning his back to her, "Hop on."

It didn't take Lita more than a second to ditch her crutches and jump on Chris's back. He let out an obligatory, "oof," before adjusting himself to carry her easier. Lita held onto his neck with one hand and had her other hand around her crutches. Chris started walking once he was situated and turned the corner, almost running into his fiancée.

"Hey," Stephanie said, "You're facing Christian and Tomko with Benoit."

"Cool…did you have anything to do with that?" he asked.

"Surprisingly…no, I can't work tonight," she said with a sour face. "Oh my God, what about the centerpieces!"

"Taken care of," Chris said.

"And the d.j.? What about our first song? My shoes?"

"All taken care of, lighten up."

"I will not lighten up until January sixteenth and not a moment sooner," Stephanie said, kissing him quickly. "Oh hey Lita."

"Hey," Lita said, feeling a little bit awkward with the positioning.

"You giving her a ride?" Stephanie asked amused by the situation. The Stephanie of old who didn't know she was marrying Chris would have been fuming at this, but she was secure in his love for her, and thusly, this did not bother her in the slightest. Like Lita could be competition anyways.

"Yup, knight in shining armor?"

"Come give me a ride later," Stephanie whispered, but due to Lita's dog-like hearing, she was able to hear what was said, and she winced.

"You better believe I will," Chris said, kissing her softly. "Mmm, love you."

"I know," she said, giving him a peck on the lips. "Bye Lita."

"Bye," Lita said sullenly. Chris resumed the ride and dropped Lita off in front of Kane's locker room, safe and sound. "There you go. Have a nice evening."

"Hey Chris," Lita said as he turned.

"Yeah?"

"Why do you love Stephanie? I don't see any redeeming qualities in her," Lita said bluntly. Chris was stumped for a moment, having not really ever been asked such a forward question before. It was like asking someone why the stars decided to form, it was beyond explanation.

"I guess because when it comes down to it, when I picture life without her, I don't like what I see."

"But do you ever think there's someone else out there for you?"

Chris smiled, more to himself than to Lita before answering. "Nope, because when I'm with Stephanie, that's pretty much where I want to be. Not many people can treat me the way she treats me and get away with it. I've got to go, bye."

Chris walked off, and got a funny feeling from Lita again. Whatever it was, it was quite unsettling and he wished she would quit with it. He almost damned his good nature, because if he didn't have it, he wouldn't have to deal with her. She was a former friend at best, but he didn't want to hurt her, and make her think that he hated her, but the time when they were friends was over.

Trish looked over to Christian, "Chrissy, do you think we'll ever be married?"

"That was out of the blue," he responded.

"Well, I have to go talk to Stephanie about what she wants to do on Thursday, and I was just thinking about the wedding. And you should see how pretty Steph looks in her wedding dress, and I was just wondering if I would ever get to wear one."

"Well, yeah, I can see one in your future."

"What about OUR future?"

"I thought you didn't want to any time soon."

"Well, I don't, but I was just thinking how it might be nice for us to…get married and have all that," Trish sighed. She was jealous of Stephanie, for reasons she knew, but didn't want to admit. She wanted to have everyone stare at her, and see her marry the man she loved. She wanted the reassurance of knowing that you would be with someone forever. She wanted to know that it could be forever with Christian.

"Are you asking me to marry you?" Christian asked, and he was semi-sincere.

"No, I would hope the asking comes from you. I just…I sometimes don't know how serious we are, and it's frustrating."

"So you want to have a discussion about our relationship right now?"

"Not right now, but I think that we need to sit down and figure out where we're going, if anywhere."

"Trishy, you know that I love you," Christian told her, sitting down and kissing the corner of her mouth. "I mean, I know that I don't say it that often, but I do. I'm just not a guy who's good at that kind of stuff."

"I know you love me," Trish smiled. "But I still want to figure out if this is a long term thing. I know that we've been together for years, and we've had a better go of it than a lot, but still, just indulge me this once, pretty, pretty please."

"With a cherry on top?"

"Always," she said coyly, kissing him with fervor. When she felt satisfied, she pulled away and licked her lips, savoring his mouth on hers. "I have to go find Stephanie now. Need to discuss her second-to-last night of freedom. What are the guys doing for Chris?"

"Probably a strip club and getting drunk out of our minds."

Trish's face scrunched up in disgust. "Sounds horrible."

"To you," he said, kissing her again. "But I haven't seen any other girl's goodies since I've been with you this second time around, and I deserve a little glimpse."

"Oh, and you think that it's going to be better than mine?" Trish asked, leaning back so he could get a better view of her.

"Never, but I need to learn new appreciation for what I have," he said, with a rather smarmy wink. Trish shook her head at his crazy explanations and hugged him before getting up to go find Stephanie.

Stephanie had been standing next to the monitors, watching the beginning of the show. She tapped her foot impatiently as she saw Hunter out there with his damn belt. She was angry that he won (what was this, the 1500th time that he had won the belt, who the hell is running this thing?), but what could she really do? She wished that she was running the show so she could cut this self-appreciating buffoon's time down. Unfortunately, she wasn't "allowed" to work. This was so damn frustrating.

After the fracas ended, she stayed, there. She could hear Evolution walking behind her, Dave's voice couldn't be heard, but Hunter and Flair's certainly could, and they were apparently trying to suck up to Dave. Stephanie rolled her eyes and waited until the voices disappeared down the hallway. She turned around and gasped; she was face-to-face with Dave.

"Can we meet in about twenty minutes?" he said plainly. Stephanie withheld her smile and nodded. "Parking lot."

"Ok, twenty minutes. Where in the parking lot?"

"I'll find you," he said succinctly and walked off.

Stephanie went back to watching the show, but now she also had to check her watch to make sure that she met with Dave on time. She had a feeling that this was going to be beneficial for the both of them. The time wound down and when she only had to wait five more minutes, Chris and Randy came arguing down the hallway.

"Just go talk to her, you damn chicken," Chris said, shoving Randy's shoulder.

"Don't tell me what to do! You're not my dad, though you're probably old enough to be."

"I'm 34 you dumbass, you're what? 25? That's nine years, what f'd up world do you live in that nine year olds are having kids?"

"Oh shut up, I'm just trying to prove a point."

"Which is? That you're crazy?"

"No," Randy said, shaking his head and pouting. "Hey Steph."

"Hi," Stephanie said nervously, glancing around. "Hey sweetie."

"It's taken care of," Chris blurted out then spoke again, "Sorry, force of habit."

She allowed herself a smile. "What are you boys talking about?"

"Well, Randy wants to ask Maria to our wedding, of which everything is booked, but he's too chicken to actually go and do it. I might have to write a note that asks her to check a box if she likes him or not."

"Aww, Randy has a crushy-wushy," Stephanie said, pinching his cheek. Randy swatted her hand away and looked down, embarrassed. "It's nothing to be ashamed of hun, I had a crush on this egotistical bastard, and I did nothing about it because I thought he would laugh in my face."

"I probably would have, for a few seconds, just to get it out of my system," Chris added.

Stephanie hit him in the chest, "Don't say that!"

"Hey, that could leave a mark, and then everyone would know I have a bruise for my wedding."

Stephanie narrowed her eyes, "Do you really want me to respond to that?"

"No Mrs. Jericho," Chris said, giving her a large grin, one that hopefully made her forget about the previous anger in her eyes.

"Oh, this is gross," Randy said.

"Well, you don't have to endure it any longer, I've got an appointment, I'll see you guys later, especially you sweetie," Stephanie said, pressing her lips to Chris's.

"Don't go," he whispered.

"Have to," she said, waving quickly. "Later."

Stephanie walked quickly out into the deserted parking lot. It was dark, save for the orange glow of the streetlights in the lot. She was dressed in layers tonight, a t-shirt under a sweater, which kept her pretty warm, and jeans. She was hardly looking the professional that she was. She jumped up and down a few times, wondering if Dave was going to show, when he mysteriously appeared out of the shadows. If she hadn't been expecting him, she would've thought it was very creepy.

He gestured wordlessly for her to follow him. She did willingly, falling into step a few paces behind him. They walked to the far side of the parking lot, where there was nothing but cars around them. Stephanie was feeling kind of chilly, despite being in Florida. Dave stopped and turned to her.

"You cold?" he asked. She shrugged, and then he surprised her. He took off his suit jacket and handed it to her. She smiled gratefully and slipped it on. She was practically swimming in it and it went down to her thighs, maybe even past them. She pulled it tautly around her. She had to admit, he wore really nice cologne.

"You sure you won't be cold?"

"I'm fine," he told her.

"So what is this about?" she asked, not wanting to stay out here longer than was necessary.

"I'm sure you saw what happened tonight," he said, pacing a little. "What Randy said, and what happened."

"Yeah, I think everyone saw."

"Yeah, and I do think that H is playing me. Or at least using me just to be in Evolution. I'm his decoy, his big man, or whatever the hell else he calls me."

"I think monster has come up every now and then," she said, "Sorry, wrong time to say anything."

"It's ok, I'm used to the names. It's good to be intimidating, it works for me. But I've been thinking about what you said. And I don't know if I want to out and out break off from him, but I know that I can't do this much longer."

"I know how you feel," Stephanie said quietly. "He ruins things. He ruined my wedding."

"He ruined my chance at the title. He probably could've helped me last night, but he didn't. And I helped him the best that I could. Teammates should work for each other, not one for the other."

"Yeah, that's very true. I don't think you're a bad guy Dave. For what that's worth. Randy has told me far too many nice things about you for me to completely hate your guts. I mean, I have to take Randy's word on it, but I don't think you're like Hunter."

"Randy and I were tight," Dave said, "I probably shouldn't have done what I did, but it can't be stopped. So when do I get you to start trusting me enough to know what you want me to do."

"I don't want you to do anything Dave. Not really, I just need to know that we're on the same page and working towards the same goal…which is to ultimately bring down Hunter. It doesn't have to be anytime soon, but it should be coming."

"So what do you want to do?"

"I want Hunter to know that I had a part in it. Dave, anything you need me to do, I will do for you, I have the power around here, not Bischoff. I don't know if I can get you the title, but I can let you know things, I can let you have say in things that you normally wouldn't have say in. All you have to promise me is that one day, you will get Hunter, and you will get him good."

"Isn't this something that would be better suited for your husband?"

"No, because for Chris it's WAY too personal, it's years worth of personal and I'd rather not start out my new life with my old life trying to work it's way back in. This hatred between Chris and Hunter though, it transcends even me and goes way deeper. I just want Hunter to go down, by any means necessary."

"I can do that."

"Good."

"I've heard about you and your plans from him you know," Dave said. "He would talk about how masterful you were."

"He had no idea how masterful. He still doesn't. I don't think he'd think that I'm staging this coup."

"But you are."

"He doesn't have to know that."

"Does your fiancé know how ruthless you are?"

"Absolutely," she said proudly, then stuck her hand out, "So we have a deal?"

"We have a deal," he said, shaking her hand. They started walking back to the arena and Stephanie handed Dave his coat back as he slung it over his shoulder.

"I'll get in touch with you to give you my phone number and things like that," she told him as she opened the door. "Wait a few minutes before you come in."

"See you later," Dave said, "I've got a match to prepare for."

Stephanie nodded and walked inside. She had an extra bounce to her step and was feeling a lot more calm about the whole thing. With Dave on her side, she felt like everything would fall into place. Dave still didn't know the plan that she had set forth, but better he not. She was really just planning to take everyone away from Hunter. First Randy, now Dave. She laid the groundwork, and Hunter would just finish the job for her.

And now she could make sure that Hunter wouldn't be crashing her wedding on Saturday. If he even got the idea, she could get Dave to distract him. He wasn't going to ruin another of her weddings. She wouldn't allow it and she was willing to do anything to ensure that the day ran smoothly.

She was going to have at least one wedding that went right.


	15. The Wedding, Part 1, January 13, 2005

A/N: Before the start of this chapter, I just want to pause and take a moment to thank all of my readers. You guys are THE reason that this story is still going. It's been two and a half years almost to the day that I started this story. That's a long time, and that's a lot of chapters, and a lot of words that you've had to read. I apologize if the story has dragged at any time.

But thank you for sticking with it, whether you review it or not. Anyone who has ever read this is special to me, and I hope you have enjoyed it. You've stuck with it through two deletions, and cumulatively, over 1700 reviews, which still amazes me to this day. As many of you know, this story was just supposed to be a one-parter. Just to explain why Stephanie didn't hug Chris. To this day I'll never know how I let it get this large. I promised myself that I would end this story when we got another Chris/Stephanie scene, and maybe that's another reason why it's still going (we need another scene damn it!).

Still, thank you, from the bottom of my heart. Without you, this would still be a one-part story stuck in the annals of the wrestling section, but it's not. And that is because of you. Because of you and how you've enjoyed this story, you've all given me the confidence to write 27 other stories. Who knew that Jericho and Stephanie could amass such a fanbase? (Ok, I knew that one, but still, they're awesome!).

This is the 249th chapter of this story, and I thought it appropriate that this chapter, the wedding go on until the 250th chapter. Not to mention this was already hitting the 14th page, and if I continued it, it would end up about 30 pages long. And I wanted the 250th chapter to be a good one, so expect this to be updated late tonight/early tomorrow. By no means is this the end of this story, I just wanted it to extend to two chapters. I hope you enjoy the first part of the wedding. :)

Also, this is probably going to get a little sappy.

* * *

**Thursday**

Stephanie jumped out of bed and squealed. Chris was asleep up until that moment, but Stephanie's excited yelling woke him up. He rolled over onto his back and looked at the clock. It was only 8:30 in the morning and she was up. This wasn't like Stephanie; she usually slept in until the last possible moment. For someone who loved to be in control, she sure loved to sleep. Chris buried his head in his pillow.

"Stephanie, what the hell is wrong with you?"

"Only two more days Chris! Then it's our wedding day! OUR wedding day! The perfect wedding, I'm finally getting an actual wedding," Stephanie said, jumping back on the bed and straddling Chris. "Two days!"

"Get off me," Chris said, pushing her shoulder so she fell to his side.

"Chris! Come on, get up, we only have two days left to be single. You have to get up and enjoy these two days."

"I would enjoy them more if you let me sleep," Chris mumbled, "Why are you in such a rush anyways?"

"Because I'm excited dumbass. We have to pack last minute stuff, and then we're flying to Hawaii in four hours, and then we're going to be out partying away from each other tonight, and I'll miss you so get out of bed!"

"Ok, only because it'll shut you up," Chris said, "And the fact I haven't packed yet."

"What! I told you to pack last night! Chris, we're never going to leave on time if you don't get your lazy ass up," Stephanie exclaimed, hitting him on his backside.

"I've come to the conclusion that you aren't Stephanie. See my Stephanie would not be this chipper in the morning. My Stephanie should be buried under a mountain of blankets, complaining that the sun comes out to play too early."

"Well, that's true, but I can't wait, I'm anxious. I wanna get married!"

"See, this is probably why Hunter just kidnapped you. He didn't want to deal with this side of you."

Stephanie's jaw dropped, "You have GOT to be kidding me! Christopher Jericho, don't start with me. Or…or else I won't show up at that altar!"

"I should only be so lucky," Chris chuckled, climbing out of bed. He walked over to his closet and picked out his biggest suitcase, laying it open on the bed. "So tell me, do you think that the living situation is going to be different now that we're getting married? Am I going to have to get used to any of your silly quirks? Do you have any silly quirks?"

"Well, I like to clean the gunk under my toenails in bed, that's not going to bother you right? And I have to wear my hair in curlers every night, and cold cream, lots of cold cream," she told him, grabbing her already meticulously packed suitcase and unzipping it so she could add a few more items to it.

"I didn't know that when I married you. I'm not sure I could live with those things," Chris said jokingly. He started grabbing some clothes out of his closet and his dresser and putting them into his suitcase while Stephanie went into the bathroom to take a shower.

"Steph, are you sure that you want to go out tonight with just Trish?" Chris yelled over the water.

"Why shouldn't I?"

"I don't know, don't you want to be with me?"

"I'm planning on being with you for the rest of my life, I think that you can live without me for one evening."

"But I'm not going to be able to see you tomorrow either," Chris said, walking into the bathroom. "How am I supposed to go on without you? Not to mention it's going to suck sleeping in a big bed without you next to me. I've become used to you Stephanie McMahon."

"Then get one of those big body pillows to cuddle up to. That should be good enough for one night. But you are NOT going to see me the night before this wedding."

"Why?"

"Because I just want this to be kind of traditional. Chris, you know that my previous weddings were all crap, and I just want this one to be what the other ones weren't."

"Ok," Chris said, "Whatever you want goes, so can I join you in the shower, or is that forbidden?"

Stephanie tapped her chin and pulled open the glass door. "No, that's not forbidden at all. I think that just might be a welcome addition to the wedding thing."

About an hour later, they were finally dressed and Chris was putting his things into his suitcase, Stephanie coaching him on what to bring. All their clothes for the wedding were en route to Hawaii, so they just needed to worry about what they were going to bring for all the other time they spent there. When Chris was done packing, they went downstairs to grab a quick breakfast before driving over to pick up Christian and Trish, who they were flying to Hawaii with. They were meeting Kurt at the airport, Randy was getting in a couple hours after that, and then both Chris and Stephanie's families were flying up later that evening.

They pulled into Christian and Trish's driveway, where Christian and Trish were sitting on their front step. Christian's head was laying on Trish's shoulder while she ran her hands up the back of his head and through his short hair. Stephanie climbed out of the car and screamed in happiness, and Trish jumped up from where she was sitting, leaving Christian to fall over. Trish ran over and hugged Stephanie tightly while they jumped up and down.

"I'm so excited," Stephanie said, a huge grin on her face.

"So am I!" Trish exclaimed. "Let's get the bags so that we can get out of her and on the plane."

"Oh God, this is going to be so perfect, I can feel it, I can feel it in my bones," Stephanie said, closing her eyes for a moment. "Have you ever just known that something was going to be good?"

"Oh yeah, this is going to be beautiful Steph," Trish answered, then walked over to Chris and hugged him. "And you, congratulations to you too! Are you excited?"

"Not nearly as excited as the two of you are. You guys are excited enough for the entire wedding party."

"Oh, he's excited, he's just not showing it," Stephanie said, wrapping her arm around his waist. Christian got up and grabbed his and Trish's bags and nodded to Chris as Chris walked over to open the trunk for Christian. Stephanie went and linked arms with Trish, leaning in close. "He's excited. I can tell, he's just trying not to show it."

"Oh, I know," Trish laughed. "I think he wants to yell or something, he looks like he's restraining himself."

"Definitely. You should've seen him making sure we had gotten everything. I think he'd never forgive himself if everything didn't turn out well."

"It's because of you. He wants everything to be perfect for you," Trish told her. Stephanie didn't respond with much more than a small smile. Chris looked up from the trunk as he closed it and caught her eyes. He smiled a meaningful smile at her and she ducked her head a little, not wanting him to see the slight blush coming on her cheek. Oh great, now she was the literal blushing bride.

"Ok, we're packed up and ready to go," Chris said, slapping the back of the car as he went to the driver's seat. Christian climbed into the passenger seat, while Stephanie and Trish slid into the backseat, probably to gossip or some such nonsense.

The ride to the airport was quiet in four-sided conversation; Stephanie and Trish kept the conversation to themselves while Chris and Christian discussed mundane things, like whom they would each be facing at WrestleMania and whether or not they were going to enter the Royal Rumble match later this month. And this was the same situation they were in when they arrived at the airport, parking in the lot outside the airport. Chris got them a cart and they stuffed their bags on it, Chris pushing it up ahead with Christian.

"So Lita is coming," Stephanie told Trish as they had gotten a little bit behind the boys. "I know I should've told you earlier, but we only just found out yesterday."

"But I thought she wasn't invited," Trish said incredulously.

"She wasn't actually," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "She's coming as Matt's date. Chris invited Matt and Matt is bringing Lita. It was a last minute thing, I almost had a freak out over the extra plate, but Chris thought ahead and bought a few more, just in case. But we didn't think that Matt would bring her since she's married to Kane, but that's not exactly a marriage, so I guess she thinks its fine to come with Matt."

"Oh wow, that's weird," Trish said. "I know that you're worried, but I promise that I won't make a scene. It's your wedding day and you should have the best wedding day possible, and I will not ruin that for you at all."

"I didn't expect you to, I just wanted to warn you," Stephanie said. "I know that the wedding isn't going to be perfect, because nothing is ever perfect, but I know it's going to be good, and the important thing is the by this Sunday, I'm going to be Mrs. Chris Jericho…and that still sounds wrong. Stephanie Jericho." Stephanie made a face at that, one that Trish echoed moments later.

"Definitely stick with McMahon."

"Definitely," Stephanie agreed.

They got their boarding passes, and waited patiently for the plane. If patiently meant that Chris and Christian wadded up tons of napkins and were playing trash can basketball. Stephanie and Trish felt badly for the poor janitors who had to clean up after their significant others, who had no future in basketball. Finally the plane took off, and Chris stared out the window rather intently.

"Goodbye old life," he lamented and Stephanie hit him in the arm. "Oww, what was that for? I didn't say anything!"

"You said enough. If you're so content with your old life, you can just fly right back home when we get off the plane."

"And let your perfect wedding go down the drain?"

"Well I don't want to hinder you at all," Stephanie said sarcastically. "Far be it for me to interrupt the rock and roll lifestyle you've built for yourself. Was that your box of bran flakes in the pantry?"

"You shut up," Chris said, good-naturedly, kissing her. "If I was going to back out of this, I would've hired a body double and you would be flying on this plane with someone named Juan."

"Well, as long as he was cute, I wouldn't know the difference," she answered, leaning her head on his shoulder. "I'm going to miss you tonight."

"No you're not. You're going to get drunk and then come back to the room and looking for sex. You're just using me Stephanie McMahon, and I refuse to be used in such a manner. I'm not a plaything for you," Chris said, rather indignantly.

Stephanie just hummed a response and closed her eyes. The trip was long and she didn't think she could keep up a conversation for that many hours. The best course of attack seemed to be falling asleep. There was something about the dull roar of the airplane that she found strangely soothing. And her head was so used to Chris's shoulder, it seemed to just fit there. Chris wrapped his arm around her and grabbed her right hand with his right hand, running his thumb gently over her knuckles.

"My old life sucked without you," he whispered, but she was already asleep.

The trip finally ended, with Chris practically bouncing off the walls of the plane. It was hard to sit on that tiny aircraft for hours and hours and not be able to walk around. He felt like a sardine in a tin can. Even their first class seats didn't help, it only made his "cell" (the seat) a little bit bigger in comparison to others. They gathered their overhead items and de-boarded the plane, where Kurt was already waiting for them, bags in hand.

"If it isn't my best man!" Chris said, giving Kurt a manly hug. "I'm expecting the wedding toast to be kickass Kurt, you better come through."

"I've got about 5 years of experience on the both of you, I think I can come up with something," Kurt said, going over to hug Stephanie. "Hey beautiful, how are you?"

"I'm great Kurt, excited and nervous, but otherwise great."

"Good to hear, I don't want to have to drag Chris out of the aisle if you stand him up, talk about embarrassing."

"If that happens, I'm going to go on a fifty minute rampage so you better not embarrass me Stephanie," Chris said with a scolding voice. Stephanie just grabbed his hand and intertwined her fingers with his.

"I wouldn't dream of it," she answered. "Knowing you, you'd hunt me down and kidnap me or something."

The five of them went down to the rental car area and got their rental cars. When that was done, the little convoy of cars drove to the hotel where they were staying. After checking in and putting their things into their rooms, they met downstairs for lunch at the hotel. The lunch was light and fun, filled with laughter and jokes. Anyone who looked at Stephanie and Chris knew that they were very much in love, and you could also tell that they loved to tease and fight, but that was just them, and a signature move for them as well.

They went back to their respective rooms after lunch, planning to get settled in. Stephanie and Chris went back to their room and Chris collapsed on the bed as Stephanie started to unpack while Chris watched her. With her nerves on end, she had become way more organized than she used to be. When she was done, she opened the balcony and let the warm air waft in. She turned and smiled at Chris.

"It's beautiful. I'm so glad we decided to get married here. It's going to be magical."

Chris rolled his eyes, "Magical? Did you hire a magician?"

"Why do you have to go and ruin the moment," she said, folding her arms on her chest. "I'm just trying to get in the mood of the island. We're getting married here, it's going to be a special place for us from now on."

"Uh huh," he said.

"Chris, be more enthusiastic," she whined.

"I'm tired, can I be more enthusiastic later?"

"No, because we're spending the night apart."

"Yeah, but we're not sleeping apart, that crap comes tomorrow night. Why do we have to hold up such a silly tradition? I don't think that anything is going to happen if we see each other the night before the wedding. Is there a hex or something?"

"Sweetie, I'm not taking any chances with this one. I want everything to be just right, and I'm not going to intentionally jinx myself. What do you think I am? Stupid?"

"So you DO think there's a hex," he said, getting off the bed as he heard a knock on the door. Kurt was on the other side, and Chris let him in. "What do you want Kurt?"

"Nothing, but I was bored in my room, so I came here. I miss you guys. SmackDown is fine, but man, sometimes I wish I was on Raw."

"No, you don't," Chris answered. "The boss is a real bitch. Thinks she owns the place or something."

"I do own the place," Stephanie said, plopping herself down on the couch. They had gotten one of the bigger suites in the places, not necessarily a "honeymoon suite," but it was certainly large. It even had an upstairs and a downstairs. "Kurt, you should come over to Raw, we'd love to have you."

"Then I wouldn't have to find new friends, I could just hang out with the ones I already have."

"Yeah, it's good times all the time," Chris said in a false chipper voice. "Hey, maybe if Chris is there, he can help me make fun of Edge!"

"Something I'm good at," Kurt interjected, sitting down next to Stephanie. "So how are you two holding up? No nervous jitters or anything?"

"Why do people keep asking that?" Chris said, "There are no nervous 'jitters' on my part. I'm perfectly calm. I've been waiting to marry that woman for years now, I can't be nervous."

"Yeah, I'm so sure."

A few hours later, Chris and Stephanie were going down to the lobby to meet with their parents. As soon as they said their hello's and other greetings, the groups were going to split up and have their respective "bachelor" and "bachelorette" parties. The only people not going were Chris and Stephanie's parents, who were going to have dinner by themselves, since they were going to become family on Saturday.

Stephanie and Trish went out to one of the nicest restaurants on the island, getting all dressed up and everything. Their night was not going to be raucous like the boy's night was probably going to be. They were sitting at the bar, enjoying their drinks when Stephanie's name was called out over the speaker. She downed the rest of her martini and looked to Trish.

"I wonder what that's about," Stephanie said, "I'll be right back."

She walked up to the host's podium and said, "Hello, I'm Stephanie, you called my name."

"Oh yes, we had a message come in for you, here you go," the host said, handing her a slip of paper. Stephanie thanked him and took a few steps back, unfolding the piece of paper.

_Steph, _

_Meet me at the beach outside the hotel after dinner. I miss you._

_Chris_

Stephanie smiled and folded up the piece of paper. It was so sweet of Chris to be thinking of her when he was supposed to be out with the boys. She went back over to Trish, who had ordered another round of martinis and sat down, taking another sip of her drink while taking a small bite of the accompanying olive.

"What was that about?" Trish asked.

Stephanie smiled dreamily. "Chris was thinking about me and he wants to meet me after dinner on the beach. I think he wants to do something romantic for me."

"Lucky girl," Trish said enviously.

"Doesn't Christian do romantic things?"

"He does…and he doesn't. He does little romantic things, that aren't really romantic until you think about what's behind it. Like when I don't like something I'm eating, he'll just kind of nonchalantly give me whatever he's eating because he knows I'm unhappy."

"That's so sweet," Stephanie gushed. "That IS romantic."

"Yeah, but he doesn't do that huge overt romantic gestures like huge bouquets of flowers or anything. Not that it's bad, it's just…sometimes I'd like the big things."

"But you're happy with Christian?" Stephanie asked. Christian and Trish always did look like a great couple, and they were always having fun with one another. It was a serious relationship, but it also was very casual.

Trish didn't hesitate to answer, "Of course. Christian is just what I needed. He's different from anyone I've ever been with, and that's good for me."

"Well yeah, he's not my father, so that's good."

"Stephanie!" Trish exclaimed, making a face. "Don't bring that up!"

Stephanie laughed and made a face as well, "Ok, I won't, it disgusts me too you know, oh how it disgusts me."

The rest of the dinner was copasetic and the food was delicious. When they were tired and slightly buzzed, on their way to drunk, they grabbed the cab that had taken them there, and went back to the hotel. Stephanie and Trish said their goodbyes in the lobby and Stephanie walked to the bar they had downstairs, which opened up to the beach. She figured that's where Chris would meet her because that led down right to the beach and it was a place they had explored earlier that day.

The air was calm, and the bar was buzzing with people. Stephanie wrapped her arms around herself a little as she stepped out into the open air area of the bar. There were a couple of steps that led down to the beach and she went down there, not caring that her heels were going to sink right down into the sand. She could just dust those out later. She sat down on a bench and listened to the waves crashing against the shore. A few minutes later, she felt a presence to her left and she smiled, looking over.

"Oh, you've GOT to be kidding me," Stephanie said with a loud groan. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Last chances."

"Hunter, please tell me you didn't follow me all the way to Hawaii?" Stephanie said, standing up to face him.

"I followed you all the way to Hawaii," Hunter confirmed. "Did you really think I was going to let you go through with this without letting you know that you have options?"

"No," she confirmed, "But I prayed every night that you would."

"So you did get my note?"

"I should've known! Damn, I'm an idiot," Stephanie said, kicking herself inwardly. "Of course you would send the note. Because you couldn't even give me one wedding in peace."

"Stephanie, listen to me, you've got a day to back out of this wedding, and I'm asking you to do it. Jericho is a little bitch. He's not talented, he's not good-looking, he's not smart, he's not a good wrestler, and he's not the champion."

"What makes you think that I would WANT him to be champion? Him having a gold belt does not make him lesser in my eyes Hunter. If you've been on this path of destruction for the belt because you thought it would impress me in some way, you're as deluded as I remember," she told him.

"Stephanie, I've got power, and we could be great again. Remember!"

"Hunter, I did love you…I really did, for a while too. But by the end, I was driving myself crazy trying to think of how I could just get the hell out of that marriage. I figured out a way, of course, but it was never the same again Hunter. And then Chris came alone, and I found out that he and I are way more compatible than I had ever imagined."

"You guys HATED each other!" Hunter said loudly, getting irate. He had to make Stephanie realize that Chris was not the right man for her. He really believed that he was the only one who could make Stephanie happy. He had to prove it to her.

"Yeah, and I HATED you when I found out you married me by drugging me!" Stephanie screamed at him. "You took me away from a guy that I was going to marry, why are you doing it again!"

"I love you!" he yelled.

"Give me a break," Stephanie scoffed. "If anything, you want the power that my name afforded you. You know when you loved and adored me the most Hunter? When we were running the show. And you only loved me then because you had the power to run the show. Now that I'm back in charge, here you come rumbling back into my life, trying to take over again. Are you afraid that Chris is suddenly going to get all the title shots, and he's going to get the rules bent for him? Because that's not going to happen, Chris prides himself on earning everything that he gets, I'm not going to be giving him any special stipulations, none."

"And how long until he wants those? He's selfish Stephanie, he's a selfish bastard," Hunter said, taking a step closer. Stephanie held up her hand right in his face.

"If you even think about kissing me, I will kick you where it hurts, and then shove you head first into the sand and have people play volleyball on you. You are NOT ruining my day Hunter, you are not ruining another wedding for me."

"I'm trying to save you!"

"Save someone who wants to be saved! I don't need saving, I'm happy Hunter. Do you ever see me? I mean, do you ever really see me with Chris? Or do you imagine that I'm locked up in some sort of tower and I need rescuing?"

"He's not the right kind of guy for you," Hunter said, trying to pull every cliché saying out of the book.

"And you are? Why?"

"Because we're like each other, we belong together."

"No, Chris and I are like each other. I'm over you Hunter, why aren't you over me?"

"We were married, doesn't that mean something?"

"Yeah, it means we WERE married, but we aren't anymore…listen, I'm sorry you feel this way, I really am. But I'm getting married on Saturday, and I'll be damned if you do anything to ruin it for me. I've got security on hand to make sure you don't get within two hundred feet of this wedding," she said, looking at his face, "What, you didn't think that I had planned for this to happen. You're not going to ruin this wedding Hunter, I won't let you."

"You're making a huge mistake. When you and Chris get divorced, you'll realize that."

"Good luck Hunter," Stephanie said sincerely. "I hope you do find someone, and I hope that you're able to get over me."

"Stephanie, we're not finished here!"

Stephanie looked towards him, "Hunter, try and stop this wedding. I have more tricks up my sleeve than you could imagine. You wouldn't even know what hit you."

Hunter looked at her strangely. She turned to start walking away, a smirk on her face. She had seen the look on his face. He had no clue about Dave, and her plans with him. Hunter could try and stop her from getting married, but it was going to be all for naught, because she had taken every precaution in making sure that he wasn't going to ruin it.

"I'll call Chris!" Hunter called out, a desperate attempt at getting her to stop and change her mind.

"What?" Stephanie asked, pivoting to look at him.

"I'll call him and tell him we slept together," Hunter said, grabbing his phone.

"When?"

"Right now," he said.

"He won't believe you, you idiot. Give it up Hunter, you lose, you LOSE…it's not my fault that you couldn't pull together the ultimate scheme. But I'd watch my back if I were you…things aren't always going to go your way," she winked, turning around and walking out of the bar and back into the hotel part of the lobby.

She went back up to her suite and saw that Chris wasn't back yet. She got ready, putting her pajamas on, and getting ready for bed. She climbed into the large bed and turned on the television, flipping through it mindlessly. She didn't find it hard to believe that Hunter had followed her here. She should've expected it. She kept flipping through the channels, when her cell phone, which was sitting at her bedside, began to ring. She picked it up and saw the number.

"Stephanie McMahon."

"I'm sorry I let him get to you," Dave said.

"Don't worry about it, he was just spouting off crap to me, but I managed to get away. His threats no longer bother me."

"Just wanted to apologize, and good luck with the wedding thing."

Stephanie had to smile, that was Dave's way of expressing emotion. "Thanks Dave, I really appreciate this."

"I know," he said, rather smugly. "Bye."

"Bye," Stephanie said, hanging up the phone. She wanted to get to know Dave better. He was such a mystery, but one that seemed like it would be fun to unravel. She didn't think he was the monster that everyone made him out to be. Not that he was gentle or anything, but she had seen his sense of humor and thought that that was the real Dave.

"Ok, I'm never going out again!" Chris yelled as he walked into the suite.

"Why!" Stephanie yelled.

"That was chaos," Chris said. "Randy, Shane and Kurt were going crazy with the strippers. If I see one of them get another lapdance, I'll never recover."

"I did NOT need to hear that about my brother," Stephanie said, making a disgusted face as Chris ascended the stairs up to the bedroom. "That's disgusting."

"They're depraved. They need more women in their sad lives. Although Randy is bringing Maria or what's her name…if she shows. Randy said she might not make it, but I don't know. Christian and I just sat there and drank, what a joke."

"It's because you know that you two have very strong women to come home to. One's who might not take too kindly to a girl shaking her goodies right in your face," Stephanie answered.

Chris shrugged off his clothes and clad only in his boxers, went into the bathroom to brush his teeth. When he was done, he ran and jumped on the bed, flopping down next to Stephanie, leaning up to kiss her in greeting. She moaned softly as she settled herself against him once he had gotten under the covers.

"I missed you," she whispered.

"Oh come on now. Second to last night of freedom, you shouldn't be missing me," Chris said with a smile. "When I was staring at those naked women, I was reminded of just what I'll be missing."

"Do you want me to flash you?" Stephanie asked. "Or is it the whole dancing to cheesy music aspect that you're going to miss?"

"No, the whole, one woman forever and ever and ever part," he said, turning his head to look at her.

"Are these second thoughts?" she asked, biting her lip. "Because if they are, it's really bad that you got this second thought while thinking of strippers. Because if you dump me, I don't want it to be because of strippers. Maybe a model, but not strippers."

"No, I'm not having second thoughts, I'm just thinking, this is a huge thing for us. I mean, it's a huge thing for anybody. It's strange really, how we started, and how we've ended up."

"Started how?"

"Like really started. Meeting you for the first time, never interacting with you, and then suddenly you were always there."

"Well, you thought I was one of Godfather's hos, if you thought I would let that slide--" He cut her off with a kiss.

"If I remember correctly, and I usually do with this impeccable memory of mine, I sincerely apologized that evening and you stuck me in a handicap match anyways."

Stephanie giggled and covered her mouth, "You deserved it."

"I did NOT deserve it, I apologized!" he argued.

"But you still thought I was a hooker or something, a girl doesn't take too kindly to getting compared to a lady of the night."

Chris ran his hand down her face and cupped her chin in his, letting his thumb run across her chin a couple of times. "I love your face."

"Ooh, here comes the sap!" Stephanie said. "Lay it on me Jericho. I want to know everything you love about me."

"I'm just saying. I was thinking about how I was going to be with you forever, and it kind of freaked me out that I was going to never wake up to another woman again. But…I love your face," Chris said, feeling incredibly stupid for admitting something like that. "I mean. I love your face, and I know that it's a face I could wake up to."

"Shouldn't you be saving this stuff for your vows?" Stephanie teased.

"Nah, this is the kind of stuff I need to tell you in person. It's been a long time since you and I got together, but I never get tired of you. It could be the fact that you're beautiful, or that you're loaded…or even the fact that you're a huge bitch when you want to be, and you never back down from me."

"Thank you," she answered, kissing his cheek and then leaning down to lay with her head just under his chin.

"Thank you for being with me for this long. No girl has ever been able to stand me for this long."

"Some say I need to be committed."

"Wait until after the wedding so I can get full control of your money."

"Ok. It's no easy task putting up with me either," Stephanie said. "Although two men want me, which is unprecedented."

"Me and Hunter?"

"He showed up tonight," she told him quietly, dreading his reaction. Chris just stroked her shoulder, though his touch was quite firm.

"He did?"

"Yeah, I rebuffed him, insulted him, and then left," she said. "It was nothing really. But what an idiot, following me all the way here."

"Yeah…"

"Chris, it was nothing, I promise, he won't do anything, I swear."

"I know, I was just thinking," he said, kissing her hairline. "Let's get to be ok? We have a big day tomorrow and then the day after…"

"Mr. and Mrs. Chris Jericho…"

Chris turned out the light, and they fell into a comfortable suite, the next couple of days approaching quickly.

**To Be Continued…**


	16. The Wedding, Part 2, January 15, 2005

A/N: Sunday was a really, really crappy day, and I had absolutely no desire to write anything, so I put this off until today. I'm sorry to have kept you waiting, and I have to keep you waiting again. I'm posting this chapter tonight, and then the Raw chapter will come tomorrow night (which, btw, they gave me tons and tons of good stuff to work with). Thanks for the reviews on the last chapter, and please, please, please review this chapter, because it took me a LONG time to write it and I really want to know how everyone responded to it.

This chapter is sappy, I'm sorry, it is, how could it not be? But I think I interlaced it with just enough humor not to make it totally fluffy, not that there's anything wrong with fluffy, but too much is not that good.

And this is the 250th chapter according to my count, so thank you all for reading this story, which I'm told is insanely long when printed out, and for those of you who have read from the beginning, I feel like sending you a basket of muffins or something to reward you, I've never even read the entire thing through.

And a warning, this chapter is long, I'm talking very, very, very long. So you might want to break it up into chunks if you're pressed for time. But nonetheless, I hope you enjoy it, and I hope you review it, and I hope you like the direction I chose for it.

* * *

**Friday**

"I can't believe Hunter would just show up like that," Trish said as she and Stephanie got their nails done.

"I can believe it. It's just…Chris seemed kind of quiet about it. I mean, didn't go insane like he usually does whenever Hunter does something to me," Stephanie said, scrunching up her nose. "It was like he didn't care."

"Maybe he doesn't," Trish suggested, glancing over at Stephanie. "I mean, maybe he's so used to Hunter trying to get you back that he knows it's going to happen."

"Yeah, that might be it," Stephanie said, though she sounded skeptical. "It just didn't settle right with me. I know I shouldn't worry about it, not with everything else I have on my plate, but…why didn't he care more?"

"I'm sure it's because you two are getting married tomorrow. Time is running down for Hunter, and Chris has got to be secure in your love. I mean, you've put enough effort into this wedding to show that you really love him. He's probably just not worried about Hunter."

"I hope you're right," Stephanie said. "I'd hate to think that he really just didn't care about it. I mean, care a little, you know? Just for my benefit."

"Stephanie, listen to me. Chris loves you, just look at all the things that he's done for you over the years…wait, I thought of a good reason why he probably didn't care," Trish said, then continued, "Think of it like this. If Chris freaked out, if he got really angry, that would just get you worked up. He probably didn't want you to get so worked up so close to the wedding. Chris knows how important this day is for you; he doesn't want to ruin it for you."

Stephanie shrugged and looked down at her fingers. "That's probably true. He does want me to have the perfect wedding. He says the last one should be the best one."

"See? Now the rehearsal dinner is tonight right? Cause Christian and I want to go sight-seeing after we finish here. I just need to know what time to come back."

"The dinner is at seven. So as long as you're at the restaurant before then, everything is fine. It's not a big thing. It's just us, Chris, Christian, Randy, Kurt, Shane, my parents and Chris's parents. Kind of intimate."

"Sounds like a good time."

"We just want to get everything squared away. Tomorrow a lot of the guests are arriving, since the wedding doesn't start until sunset, so it gives them time. If everyone were here, we'd probably just invite them all."

"That's smart. I like that it'll just be us…hey, did you ever wonder if Edge would show up?"

"You know, it never even crossed my mind," Stephanie answered. "I know he was our friend for a while there, but he's such an asshole now. I mean, insulting me, and what he was trying to do to you and Christian. That boy has issues."

"You know who he reminds me of right now?"

"Who?" Stephanie inquired.

"Hunter, what with all this belt nonsense. He's obsessed with winning it. It's like a sickness or something. But after the things he did and said to us, I would be perfectly happy never to see that belt around his waist. What a joke."

Stephanie laughed at the venom in Trish's voice. She didn't mean to, but Trish seemed so mad. But Edge was Christian's brother and so she knew more about the situation than Stephanie did. Stephanie had pretty much blocked out everything that Edge had said about her, and to her. She was good at that, brushing off the bad things that people said about her. She'd been doing it for years. People were quite unforgiving.

"Yeah, he has been crazy with that belt. I don't even think that Chris ever got that crazy about it. But I guess it's easier for Chris because he actually got the belt before Edge, and Edge had already been here longer than Chris had."

"Yeah, but Chris is definitely a better wrestler than Edge. And Chris was the first Undisputed Champion. That's something that nobody can take away from him," Trish said. "Edge is just really jealous."

"Yeah, but let's not think about that," Stephanie said. "This is supposed to be a good weekend. I think it's going to be good. I have a feeling."

**Friday Night**

After the very successful and very fun rehearsal dinner, Stephanie and Chris found themselves alone and with nothing to do. Stephanie tilted her head towards the outdoors and grabbed one of Chris's hands in her own. She pulled him outside and out onto the beach. The moon was glinting off the water, just letting you see the horizon. Stephanie's sandals sunk in the sand a little bit but she trudged on going a little bit towards the water.

Chris pulled Stephanie a little closer as they walked along the water's edge, not close enough to get wet, but just enough to smell the salty air that the ocean afforded them. It almost felt like they were on some deserted island and they found themselves alone forever. The sky stretched overhead, the twinkling of stars so bright. The water stretched on as far they could see, seeming endless and vast. She leaned her head just below his collarbone.

"You nervous?" he asked.

She sighed, "A little. That's natural right?"

"Sure. I wouldn't know though, it's not like I have experience in the department."

"Do you think we're ready for this? I mean we've broken up twice before. Should we look at that as a sign? Maybe we're not meant to be."

"But we always come back to each other. I wasn't happy without you. I bought your engagement ring when technically we were apart."

"That's true. You must've had it bad," Stephanie giggled.

"I just found myself there, buying a ring for you. I think it helped reassure me that you were mine and nobody else's."

"So all of this is just making sure people know that I'm yours?"

"You bet. Chris Jericho does not share his woman."

"I'm still going to be the only girl you'll have sex with for the rest of your life. You will have just me forever…are you prepared for that? I'm it for you…nobody else."

"I haven't slept with another woman since like four months before we got together."

"Really?" She would've figured that there would've been a woman closer to when they had hooked up. Chris Jericho was no slouch in the ladies department.

"Yeah. If you remember, I was pretty embroiled in a feud with your ex. I had Hells in Cells to prepare for. That takes up a lot of time."

"Wait, four months before we started dating," Stephanie paused and thought back, mentally calculating the months backwards, "That's right around the time that I was kicked out of the company…"

"Is it?" Chris said, but his voice cracked slightly, and he turned his head to stare out at the water.

"Chris?" she questioned, the word being all the question that she needed.

Chris sighed then looked at her, "I was upset that I got you kicked out. I went and drank that first night I got home. I met up with this old girlfriend of mine, and I still felt really bad about the situation with you, and you know, whatever happened, and that was the last woman I slept with before you."

Stephanie stopped in her tracks. She remembered Chris apologizing to her about what had happened, about her getting kicked out of the company, but she didn't think that he had been so upset. Enough to want to drink himself into oblivion? Over her? She wished she had realized how much that hurt.

"But Chris, you apologized for that," she said, "why would you be so upset over it? I accepted your apology and told you repeatedly that it wasn't your fault."

"Because you shouldn't have been kicked out in the first place! I should've protected you better," Chris said loudly, obviously berating himself inside. Stephanie stopped his arms flailing and pulled them down to his sides.

"I love that you would've wanted to protect me, but I wasn't exactly being the best partner out there. I shoved you and I tried to pin you, and you probably shouldn't have helped me. I slapped you too, I was horrible."

"But that still doesn't mean I wanted to see you leave," he said, looking down. "I had gotten so used to you being there, nagging me, making me do stuff for you. I felt like…"

Stephanie looked up at him earnestly, "What did you feel like?"

"Like you were already mine," he said, his brow creasing. "You said we should be more than friends."

Stephanie fought to keep the smile off of her face. "You thought I was already yours?"

"Yeah!" he said, looking around for a moment. "I mean…we spent all of our time together. I was so attracted to you I'm surprised I didn't throw you up against a wall and rip your clothes off."

"That would've been interesting," Stephanie said with a laugh. "But I don't think that would've been the best idea. I think that we got together at just the right time."

"If you say so."

"I can't believe you were so upset at me leaving," Stephanie said with a small chuckle. "The things you learn the night before your wedding."

"Yeah, yeah, so I was a lovesick idiot, I know that now. But you must be happy it was over you."

"Of course I am. After years of you teasing me, saying that I had a crush on you…when I didn't, I might add. It's nice to know that YOU were pining over me."

"I wasn't pining. Pining constitutes being upset and everything. I wasn't upset when you were gone. I was angry at myself for not protecting you; that is NOT pining. I was not pining for you. And besides, if I WAS pining for you, I would've went after you. I did the night you came back didn't I?"

"And would you have if I had hugged you?"

"I probably would've done something stupid and smelled your hair and you would've asked me what the hell I was doing and then I would've run out like a scared, little boy," Chris laughed.

Stephanie shook her head and kissed him, "I'm glad I didn't hug you. You never would've come storming into my room if I had."

"Yeah, I was pretty mad at you."

"With good reason, a girl should never turn down a hug from Chris Jericho. That's just asking for it, you know," Stephanie said with a mischievous smirk. "I better get going though, it's getting late, and I don't want bags under my eyes tomorrow, and I have to get some sleep, though it's going to be hard, what with us getting married and all."

"Don't leave," Chris whined, hanging onto her arm. "Just stay with me, buck tradition, we don't need any stinking tradition. One last night as single people."

"We're not single. Single denotes that we are not with anyone, and I'm with you in case you've forgotten. Have you forgotten?"

"I do get selective amnesia ever so often, what's your name again? Sandy? Sarah?"

"Serena," she said, "Nice to meet you….Chase was it?"

"Oh yeah, that's my name…so come on, just stay."

"I'm going to have to pull a Cinderella here sweetie. The clock has struck midnight and my carriage is about to turn into a pumpkin. I'll see you tomorrow, at the altar," Stephanie said coyly. She kissed his chin before moving up to kiss him fully.

"Yeah, I guess I will see you tomorrow…and hey, don't change your mind or anything ok?"

"I wouldn't dream of it," Stephanie said, patting him on the chest. "Have sweet dreams without me all right? And don't be nervous, cause I get to be nervous for the both of us."

"I'm going to be a little nervous."

"We have no reason to be nervous," she told him, and truly believed that. People made such a big deal out of getting married, but that wasn't even the part that Stephanie was afraid of. She was just afraid that her stupid ex-husband would come and ruin her wedding. But she had back-up for that, and she hoped that security and Dave would come through. "Nothing is really going to change except my name and the fact that we're going to wear rings on our fingers. We're still going to live in Florida, we're still going to fight all the time, we're still going to work together, and everything will still be the same. I'm not pregnant so there's no change there."

"Well, that's a relief," he said, pretending to wipe his brow.

"I'll see you tomorrow?"

"You'll see me tomorrow, but before you go." Chris wrapped his arm around Stephanie's waist and pulled her towards him. He leaned down to press his lips against hers. Stephanie pulled him closer by the neck and they almost toppled over onto the sand they were kissing so intently. Stephanie finally pulled away and licked his lips a little.

"Bye sweetie," Stephanie said, taking a few steps backwards. "Sweet dreams."

"Bye Steph," Chris said with a grin as he watched his soon-to-be wife walk back towards the hotel.

**Saturday**

Stephanie was taking deep breaths to calm herself down as her hair was getting done. Trish was getting hers done in the chair next to her, but her hair was already in the blow-dryer and she couldn't hear her even if Stephanie spoke loudly. She was still getting her hair curled into the rollers after having her highlights touched up. Her hair was going to be simple enough, curled the way Chris liked it and then just letting it flow over her shoulders with a couple of diamond barrettes to hold it out of her face.

After she finished up with her hair, she was getting a manicure and pedicure. Then her makeup was getting done and then finally she'd put her dress on. She was trying to calm her nerves to the best of her abilities, but she was about three seconds away from jumping out of her skin. This was her wedding day; it was so exciting. She couldn't really remember all the preparation that went into her first wedding with Test. Looking back at it, she probably didn't even look that great.

But today was going to be perfect. There were going to be security guards to make sure that Hunter would be nowhere near the wedding, and that made her day that much more enjoyable. She didn't have to worry about Hunter ruining everything for her. She didn't want him ruining everything for her. Today was the start of the rest of her life, and she was going to enjoy it.

Meanwhile, Chris was having lunch with Kurt, Randy, Christian, and Shane. These were his last moments of freedom, and he was trying to enjoy them, and not put too much emphasis on his impending nuptials. He didn't want to get so nervous he would faint, especially considering he was already nervous for later. The other guys were talking amongst themselves while he stared off into space.

"Hey Chris, wanna come back to the land of the living," Randy said, nudging Chris's shoulder.

"Sorry, I was just thinking."

"About Stephanie," Kurt teased.

"Yeah, and about the wedding, I'm just trying to remember my vows."

"Didn't you write them down?" Randy asked. "I would've written them down. Can you just imagine standing up there, and then you have absolutely nothing to say? I'd freak out."

"Thanks Randy," Chris said with an eye-roll. "That's just what I need to think about, I have some notes, but I didn't write them all down. I can remember them."

"I can't believe our little Chrissy is getting married," Kurt said, pretending to wipe an imaginary tear away. "Of all the people I knew, I figured you would be the last to get married."

"Oh, and why is that?"

"Maybe because you're such a jerk," Christian suggested.

"Oh, come on now, my future brother-in-law isn't a jerk," Shane said, patting Chris on the shoulder. "He's just a moron."

"Thanks, I think I'm gonna go find my parents and see what they're up to."

Chris got up, leaving the four men down there, just grabbing the sandwich off his plate and eating it as he went up to his parent's room. He knocked on their door, and his mother answered. He went inside and sat down on their couch, lounging himself on it as his father walked out of the bedroom.

"Christopher, shouldn't you be getting ready or something for your wedding?" his mother asked. "Because there IS still going to be a wedding?"

Chris laughed. His mother was probably worried that he would come out of this day not married, and that would be one of her worst nightmares. He was still trying to convince her that having kids right away was not the way that he and Stephanie wanted to start their marriage.

"Yes Mom, there's still going to be a wedding. I was just having lunch with the guys and they were messing with me, so I thought I'd come see what my mom and dad were up to."

"Oh, isn't that my sweet boy," Loretta said, going over to pinch his cheek. Chris pulled out of her grasp.

"Mom," he complained. "Don't do that."

"Are you nervous Chris?" his father asked.

"Not really," he said, completely lying.

"He is," Loretta said, sitting next to his feet on the couch. "I know my son."

"I'm just a little bit nervous," Chris said. "But it's nothing."

"Christopher, you have nothing to worry about," his mother said. "And if you do have something to worry about, swallow it, because I've been waiting thirty-four years for this day, and you are not taking it away from me."

"I'm so glad you're just worried about my happiness Mom."

"Oh you know your mother, she wants what's best for you, and this is exactly what she thinks is what's best for you. And you must admit, it was pretty shaky for a while there. We thought you might never get married."

"Thanks for the confidence."

"Oh, and that endless parade of women you went out with was supposed to give us confidence," Loretta told him. "We were led to believe that one of them might be the one. And then the next week, we'd hear about some other girl that you had started seeing. Where in that time period were we to believe you had found 'the one?'"

"I don't know," Chris said. "I didn't really like when you tried to set me up with women though. That's pretty embarrassing."

"You never liked any of them anyways."

"You picked ones that you liked! I'm sorry Mom, but my taste in women was very, very different from your taste in women. All of them were too…I don't know, girly or something."

"Well, we're just lucky you found Stephanie. Cause if it weren't for her, I'm convinced you would've been a womanizer, and I would've gone to my grave worrying about you."

"Yes, we're all lucky I found Stephanie."

"She is a beauty," Ted said. "If I were your age, and not your father, I would go after her myself."

"Ted!" Loretta said, sending him a look.

"But I'm not," he chuckled.

"Well, don't worry, later today all your fears will be put down," Chris said with a grin.

"And when are you getting ready?"

"In a while."

"No Christopher, you go get ready now," his mother scolded him. "You don't want to be rushing today. You want to be ready and waiting when Stephanie is."

"Mom, Stephanie is," Chris looked down at his watch, "Just getting her hair curled. She still has to get a manicure, pedicure, and then get her hair set, and then her makeup done, and then she's getting ready for the wedding. That's a long time, I've got a long time."

"So you're just going to throw on some clothes then?"

"No, I have a tuxedo. But I'm not wearing a tie or anything, so I don't have to wait for so long."

"And your hair, the least you could've done was get a haircut before you got married. I mean, you're going to be taking pictures and you're going to look like a damn rock-star in a music video."

"Yes Mom, I'm sorry Mom," Chris said dully. "I'm just going to brush my hair back and tuck it behind my ears. Is that satisfactory for you?"

"Well, it was better when it was longer because you could pull it back into a ponytail, which always looked very dignified, but I suppose this will have to do. Sometimes I feel like I had a daughter," she said, flipping his hair back.

"I cut it anyways Mom, so I look better now, according to you. Even though the guy butchered me," he sighed.

"And you've got everything you're going to need?"

"Yup."

"Ok, well I guess you can stay then."

"Gee, thanks Mom."

Stephanie blew on her fingernails as she got the curlers taken out of her hair. Trish was already done with her hair and was getting her make-up done upstairs. Stephanie's hair dresser took the last of her curler out and tousled her hair a little, letting the curls spread out. Stephanie looked in the mirror and was pleased with how she looked. It was very whimsical without looking too princess-y.

When she was done with her hair, she went carefully upstairs into the Trish's suite where she was getting ready. Trish was still getting her make-up put on and she sat down on the chair next to Trish, smiling over at her.

"Your hair looks great," Trish said, "Chris is going to die."

"Well, I hope he waits until after the ceremony, that way I can get all his money legally," Stephanie said as her make-up artist started on her.

She quieted down so that they wouldn't mess up on her make-up. She vaguely wondered if Hunter was still on the island. She didn't like him skulking around, and hoped that he had finally gotten a clue and left. But she wasn't going to dwell on it, not with her wedding in just over two hours. She had to focus on that, and how special it was going to be.

Chris looked himself over in the mirror, deciding whether or not to shave. His facial hair grew pretty quickly anyways, so if he shaved today and then didn't tomorrow or Monday, he's still look like he was growing a beard. He decided to shave, knowing that Stephanie would appreciate it.

"Ok, so how do I look?" Kurt asked, coming out from the bathroom in his tuxedo. Like Chris, he wasn't wearing a tie, but had the first few buttons unbuttoned.

"Fine," Chris said, running his electric razor over his face. "How much longer do I have?"

"About an hour," Kurt answered, checking his watch. "Christian, Randy, and Shane are getting ready in Christian's room. So once we're ready, we can get down there."

"There's a tent we can hang out in before the wedding. That way we can just walk out there when it's time for the wedding."

"And I just talked to Randy, and once they're done, they're going downstairs to help the guests to their seats. So you don't have to worry about that. So pretty much just relax."

"Good, good," Chris said, running his hands over his now clean-shaven face. "I'm glad that everything seems to be going according to plan. That's always a good thing."

"Yeah, it is," Kurt said, giving Chris a strange look. "Do you want to go down to the tent?"

Chris answered in the affirmative, and glancing one more time in the mirror, he deemed himself gorgeous and nodded his head to himself. Kurt and Chris went down to the lobby and outside, where a golf cart was waiting for them. Kurt drove it up to the hill that he and Stephanie were getting married on. Chris hopped off the golf cart delicately and let himself inside the tent off to the side of the altar. There were a couple of chairs in there and he took a deep breath before peeking out at the altar itself. There was an archway laced with flowers, and a long, white carpet leading up to the altar with white chairs to either side. The whole ceremony overlooked the water.

It was then that it hit him. This was it. This was going to be it for him for the rest of his life. Stephanie him were really going to be getting married. It was then that the thoughts ran through his mind. Thoughts of him just being with Stephanie. Could he be with her forever? What if they reverted back to their old ways? What if it didn't work out? He didn't want to go through a divorce.

1Chris was more nervous than he had ever been in his entire life, and he had been nervous. Going into matches like Hells in a Cell were nerve-wracking, but right now he would give anything for those kind of nerves. His palms were sweating profusely and he kept wiping them onto his pants.

"You nervous?" Kurt asked as he walked over to Chris, who was now pacing a little.

"What makes you think that?" Chris asked with an eye-roll.

"Oh, no reason, just the fact you look like you're going to throw up at any second, I mean, that could mean anything."

"What if she changes her mind?" Chris asked, hating the worry in his voice. He wasn't supposed to get this nervous. He was a brave guy, and yet, this one woman was tearing him up inside.

"She won't," Kurt told him, "She's getting ready right now and she is going to knock your socks off."

"Yeah, but what if she doesn't want to marry me…what if something goes wrong…what if--"

"How much coffee did you have this morning?" Kurt asked. "You need to calm down because we're going to be going out there soon and you don't want to faint or something. It's your wedding day man, live it up."

"Later, I'll live it up later," Chris mumbled, "But right now, I just need to make it to the ceremony in one piece."

"I'll make sure of that. I don't want Stephanie to have to become a widow on her wedding day," Kurt laughed.

Chris was so nervous that he was starting to hyperventilate. He bent over and tried to get some deep breaths in and Kurt patted his back. Kurt helped him stand up by taking him by the arm and literally lifting him upright. Chris looked over at Kurt, biting his lip and it was as plain as day that Chris was scared. Kurt couldn't figure out why though, so he had to ask.

"What's up? You DO want to marry Steph right?"

"Yeah, of course, I just...wow, it's here you know, it's really here and it's like, I'm getting married and this is forever. And I want to spend forever with Stephanie, but what if she doesn't feel the same way...what if she...what if she treats me the same way she treated Hunter when they got married?"

"She's a different person now Chris," Kurt reassured, "She isn't that girl anymore, you have to know that, I mean you spend every freaking minute with her."

"But what if she gets tired of me?"

"I don't think she's going to get tired of you, mainly because you're crazy Chris. I didn't want to have to tell you, but you're crazy, and you're not the least bit dull, so don't worry about it."

"Ok, I'm going to try not to worry about it, try mind you."

Stephanie pulled up the dress letting it sit right above her breasts. The dress was strapless mermaid dress, with a wrap-around bodice and flowered embroidery through out the dress. It fitted perfectly and the designer and seamstress made sure that there wasn't any loose string. They fixed a stitch in the dress and Trish stood in front of Stephanie and fixed her hair, so some of it fell over her shoulder, and some in front of her shoulder.

Trish's eyes gleamed, "You look so beautiful."

"Yeah?" Stephanie said, biting her bottom lip slightly. "You think Chris will love it?"

"He…you just look so beautiful," Trish said, lightly hugging her best friend. "I'm so happy for you."

"You look beautiful too," Stephanie said. Trish had on a navy blue dress that had an empire waist with a light green sash belt around the bottom of the high waist. The skirt flared a little bit at the skirt, but not so much that it became poofy.

"Thanks," Trish said. "Chris is going to fall in love with you all over again. He is going to know that he wants you for eternity."

"Yeah…eternity," Stephanie said, her voice quivering slightly.

Kurt looked at Chris, waiting for some kind of sign that he was going to be alright. Chris nodded and straightened out his suit jacket. Once he saw Stephanie, everything would be fine, and he would feel ok, and he could and would definitely go through with this. He exited the tent and walked up to where he was supposed to stand.

Chris stood there, trying not to get antsy. Kurt was standing by his side, occasionally patting him on the back in order to qualm his friend's nerves. It didn't seem to be working as Chris wiped his hands on his pants, fearing they were getting sweaty. The wedding was supposed to have started ten minutes ago, but everyone knew these things often took a few minutes, the bride needing to make any last minute changes.

Chris hoped that she came soon though. He didn't want them to miss the sunset for their wedding, as that was to be their entire backdrop for the entire thing. He expelled a breath and gave a small smile to his mother and father, who were sitting in the first row, his father looking proud, and his mother already looking weepy. He knew she was going to cry, seeing as how this had been what she always wanted, but he hoped that she wouldn't make too much of a commotion.

Linda and Vince weren't here yet, probably still with Stephanie. Vince had convinced Stephanie to let him walk her down the aisle. She wanted to go by herself, but her father had not attended her first wedding, and so this was his only shot. Linda came walking up the aisle and took her seat, sending Chris a reassuring glance. He smiled at her and Kurt patted his shoulder again.

"Where IS she?" Chris hissed to Kurt.

"She's a woman, they need to take their time getting ready, and this IS her wedding day, she's going to want everything to be perfect. You know how much of a perfectionist Stephanie is."

"You're right, I just feel really stupid standing up here, and there's no bride."

"She'll be here."

Trish rushed across the grass and down the aisle, startling everyone there, thinking that she was supposed to be walking slowly, and preceding the arrival of Stephanie, but she was looking urgently towards Chris. Fear hit the pit of his stomach, and he thought that Stephanie had run out on him, that she had left, with the help of her father, and was halfway to California by now.

"Chris, you need to come with me," Trish said, grabbing his hand with one hand and holding up her skirt with the other.

"Is something wrong with Stephanie?" Chris asked frantically, trying to remain as discreet as possible, despite the fact that everyone was already starting to stare.

"She just wants to talk to you, she's…just come with me," Trish said, pulling him along.

"Everyone, the ceremony should be starting shortly," Chris called out to the confused crowd. He followed Trish up to Stephanie's room, and let him in. Stephanie was nowhere in the room, and Chris panicked again, thinking she was gone.

"Steph!" he called out.

"Chris, is that you?" Stephanie said from inside the bathroom.

"Yeah," he said, walking towards it. "Can I come in?"

"NO! You can't see me in my wedding dress!"

"Ok, I'll stand out here then, what's wrong?"

"I'm going to leave you guys alone, Vince is downstairs, I'll just go wait with him," Trish said, slipping out of the room.

"Ok, we're alone Stephy, baby, what's wrong?" Chris asked, sitting next to the door.

"I'm scared," she said simply. "I don't want to screw this up, what you and I have. I screwed up once, and I don't want to screw up again."

"And you waited until now to express this concern?" he asked with a chuckle.

"Well, it didn't really hit me," she said, biting her lip as she stood up off the edge of the bathtub and looked at herself in the mirror. She was in her dress, ready to walk down the aisle and it hit her that she didn't really know what she was doing. She was scared that she was just going to end up breaking Chris's heart like she had broken Hunter's.

"Ok, well, I can tell you that you had me worried that you had left," he said, "And I didn't like that feeling, so if you're doubting how much I love you, you don't have to."

"No, I know how much you love me, I'm just scared that I don't love you like you love me, and that I'll just end up doing to you what I did to Hunter. And Chris, I don't want to hurt you. I don't want me to be the end of you."

"Don't you think that means that you love me just as much though? So much that you wouldn't want things to end up like they did before. You're trying Steph, and I'm not going to be good at this marriage thing at first either. I've never been married, I don't know what it's going to be like to know that I'm going to be sharing a future with someone else, for the rest of my life. But I want to try with you. We can't know what's going to happen five years, ten years, fifty years down the line, but I do know that right now, I love you more than anything, and I want to marry you in front of all those people, show you off and then call you Mrs. Jericho."

"Why do YOU have to be so confident, and I can't be that way? I'm Stephanie McMahon damn it, and I'm strong-willed, and I don't get nervous."

"Hey, you say I'm confident, my palms were sweating waiting for you come out there. I thought I was going to lose five pounds before you hit the aisle."

Stephanie laughed, "So you think I'm ready to be your wife?"

"As ready as I am to be your husband."

"I didn't want to kiss you that day," she said with a happy sigh. "When you barged into my office. I didn't want to kiss you or touch you or anything, but you saw otherwise…I'm glad you did."

"I'm glad too, now why don't I go back downstairs, inform everyone there IS still a wedding, which will probably let my mom exhale, and you can go downstairs to where your dad and Trish are waiting, and we'll meet at the altar in about ten minutes, sound like a plan?"

Stephanie walked over and reached her hand out of the door, "Sounds like a deal partner."

Chris shook her hand, "I'll see you out there, I'll be the guy looking sweaty and uncomfortable and nervous."

"Ok, I'll be the one all in white, looking equally nervous."

"I hope I'll be able to spot you."

"Likewise…I love you."

"I love you too."

Stephanie didn't realize, but that talk had calmed Chris down immensely. It was nice to know that Stephanie was equally as nervous as he was, and that they had an understanding. He was reassured that he and Stephanie were perfect for each other, and that things were going to end well. He walked back outside and up the hill to where the ceremony was.

"Sorry about that small interruption everyone," Chris said as he took his place. "There was just a little snafu with the arrangements, but it's all squared away now. The ceremony will start once Stephanie gets here." Like Chris predicted, his mother took a deep breath out of relief.

He looked to his right and saw the sun was dropping in the sky, and the first signs of night were starting upon the horizon. It was beautiful with the light reflecting off the water. He turned to his left and down the aisle. His mother was dabbing her eyes with a tissue and smiled proudly at him as his dad patted her arm. He nodded to them with a smile and heard the procession music start.

The string quartet in the back started playing. Chris had to chuckle a little bit as they started to play "Stairway to Heaven." That had been one of the compromises between him and Stephanie, he remembered. She had wanted Pachebel's "Canon," but he didn't want something mushy, so they agreed that he could pick the procession music and she could pick their first dance music. He didn't know what she had picked telling him it would be a surprise later.

The music had put him in an infinitely more comfortable mood and he sighed and smiled as Trish approached them, a smile as wide as the horizon itself on her face. Christian smiled at her and she winked at him, and then at Chris, raising an eyebrow to him. He looked at her curiously, wondering just what she was doing.

He looked away for a moment, then heard the first strings of the wedding march. He took a really deep breath and a smile became plastered on his face. He didn't know what was coming next, and nothing could've prepared him for it. Nothing could've prepared him for what he was about to see. The sun was a deep orange and made everything glow. Stephanie was no exception. She was glowing, like a bright star.

She appeared over the hill, on the arm of her father, and Chris, to put it lightly, forgot that he was capable of any functions except breathing, and even that was stunted. Stephanie had never looked more beautiful than she did in that moment. He had seen her in plenty of situations, in every outfit she owned, but nothing could've readied him for her in her wedding dress. He had seen her in her first wedding dress, in her second, and this one made her look more radiant than any of those other ones.

Stephanie saw Chris and the look on his face told her everything she needed to know. Her father patted her arm lightly and she smiled wider, never taking her eyes away from Chris. The long walk seemed agonizing as she just wanted to be able to touch him again, to see him standing next to her. She held her bouquet in her right hand, kind of holding them up, but also holding them to the side.

Chris couldn't stop staring, and Kurt leaned over for a moment to whisper, "You lucky son of a bitch."

Chris didn't answer, he didn't think that he could answer to be quite frank. He was simply entranced by Stephanie. Finally, she seemed to make it up to him and to the minister who was overseeing the proceedings. Stephanie ducked her head a little and then looked Chris straight in the eyes, undaunted and not at all the blushing bride. She had never looked more in control than she did that moment. She handed her bouquet to Trish and turned back to Chris.

"We are gathered here today in the sight of God and angels, and the presence of friends and loved ones, to celebrate one of life's greatest moments, to give recognition to the worth and beauty of love, and to add our best wishes and blessings to the words which shall unite Christopher Jericho and Stephanie McMahon in holy matrimony," the minister began. Christopher and Stephanie, today you celebrate one of life's greatest moments and give recognition to the beauty of love as you join together in marriage."

He continued, "If there is anyone here with just cause as to why these two shall not be married, speak now or forever hold your peace."

Chris, Stephanie, Kurt, Christian, Randy, Shane, and Trish all held their breaths. They expected the worst right now. They expected someone to stand up, or speak out, or Hunter to magically climb over that cliff in order to interrupt the wedding and claim Stephanie as his own. They were expecting it, anticipating it, knowing that it would happen…

Only it didn't.

The minister finished his pause and spoke again, much to the relief of Chris and Stephanie, "Who is it that presents this woman to this man?"

"Her mother and I," Vince said, kissing Stephanie's cheek before handing her over to Chris. This was how it was supposed to be. This was how her first wedding should've been. Vince went over and sat down next to Linda, holding her hand as they watched their daughter getting married. They were happy they actually got to see this wedding.

"Christopher and Stephanie," the minister began again, "life is given to each of us as individuals, and yet we must learn to live together. Love is given to us by our family and friends. We learn to love by being loved. Learning to love and living together is one of life's greatest challenges and is the shared goal of a married life.

Love is never to be taken lightly, or without the utmost importance. Love is a creation of God, and should be seen as such. Today, you two express your love, and join your love into an infinite circle that will extend to yourselves and all those you love. Christopher and Stephanie have elected to write their own vows, which they will now recite to one another. Stephanie?"

"Why do I have to go first," Stephanie said with a small chuckle. "I was going to write this down, and I did write down some vows, because that's who I am, I plan, and I work, and I organize. That's what I do. So when I sat down to write my vows, nothing came to me. My first thought was, 'Wow, Chris must be really boring and uninteresting,' but then I came to my senses, because you're anything, but boring and uninteresting, in fact you're almost to the realm of annoying and egotistical. But then I realized it's because I can't write down why I love you, or why I want to marry you because the reasons are so much that I would still be writing them down if I were to make a list.

And yes, the reasons are both good and bad. Good, in the sense that you care about me, and you love me, bad in the sense that you really like to talk about yourself, a lot, all the time…to anyone who listens. But I love that quality in you, because when you talk for twenty minutes straight about yourself, I can just go right back and talk twenty minutes about myself. And I think that's what makes us go; I think that's why I wanted to marry you, because we balance each other, in the good ways and the bad ways.

When I'm freaking out, you keep me in check, and when you get annoying, I can give you a nice slap to the back of the head and you're fine. You're a difficult man to live with, Chris Jericho, but I'm getting too old to settle down with anyone else. I guess what I'm trying to say is, I love you, you're great, you have nice hair, your eyes are like the ocean, you have a nice smile, you are one of the greatest wrestlers in the world, you look great in spandex, you can cut a promo like nobody's business, you have a ton of musical talent, you're sweet, kind, funny, smart, and most of all, you love me, and I'm going to be there to make sure that you are happy for the rest of our time together."

Chris laughed at that and squeezed her hand. Only she could get away with calling him annoying in her wedding vows, but he did appreciate the sentiment that he looked good in spandex, that was always nice to hear. Stephanie grinned at him, knowing that those vows were going to be hard to top.

"Christopher, your vows?"

"Stephanie, Stephanie, Stephanie. You are a filthy…dirty…disgusting…brutal…skanky…bottom-feeding…trash-bag….ho! No, this isn't my way of leaving you humiliated and alone at the altar. It's just history, and pretty much, how we came to be in each other's lives, even before we started dating. I didn't really remember the first time we met, it wasn't monumental, but I can certainly remember the first time we really interacted. You made me a co-Intercontinental Champion, and I called you a jackass. I was wrong. Very, very wrong, as you love to point out. I'm not going to get mushy here, but kissing you was the smartest idea I ever had, as I now have job security for the rest of my life." Everyone laughed at that.

"But you already know I'd do anything for you, I switched shows to prove that. You already know I'd buy you anything you ever wanted, you have tons of jewelry to show that. You know that I'd shave my face for you, as I've done multiple times because my facial hair got on your nerves. I've fought people for you, I've done tons of stuff for you, and I think that actions speak louder than words, and so there you have it, I think my actions have spoken louder than my words. You've been my girlfriend and fiancée for two and a half years now, and we've been through a lot, a lot…much more than I can get into now. And all that has been worth it in my book. And that's all I have to say about that, except, I love you Stephanie McMahon."

Stephanie was not on the verge of tears, and one might think that's not a good thing. One might think that a woman is supposed to tear up at these kind of vows, but Stephanie did not cry. Chris had been perfect. He had written the perfect vows, not too mushy, and filled with laughter, just like he was. And she would not cry when she laughed at least three times at what he said. He knew she wouldn't want to ruin her make-up with tears. (This didn't stop Chris's mom from tearing up and needing a couple of tissues.)

"Christopher and Stephanie have also elected to say traditional vows, so if you two will join hands and face each other now, I will proceed." They did as they were told. "Christopher, do you take Stephanie to be your wife, and promise to love her, cherish her and protect her forevermore?"

"I think it goes without saying," he said, "but you bet your ass I do." Stephanie giggled and slapped his hand a little.

"Language," she scolded.

"Sorry, I mean, I do," he said, making his voice sound dignified, to which everyone chuckled at. They were already acting like an old married couple and everyone could see that.

"Stephanie, do you take Christopher to be your husband, and promise to love him, cherish him, and protect him forevermore?"

"Yes, I most certainly do," she said, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Now we will exchange the rings," the minister said. Chris turned to Kurt who took the rings out of his breast pocket and handed them over to Chris. Chris gave them to the minister who held them in his hand.

"These rings are circles, which go on forever, much like love, an endless cycle which has neither a beginning nor end, and cannot be broken." He handed Chris, Stephanie's ring. "Christopher, as you put the ring on her finger, repeat after me, 'With this ring, I thee wed.'"

Chris slipped the ring onto Stephanie's ring finger and looked her straight in the eyes, "With this ring, I thee wed."

The minister then handed Stephanie, Chris's ring. "Stephanie, as you put the ring on his finger, repeat after me, 'With this ring, I thee wed.'"

"I hope this fits," Stephanie winked as she put it on. "With this ring, I thee wed."

"Now you two are joined by the eternal bonds of marriage. Christopher and Stephanie, so much as the two of you have agreed to live together in Matrimony, have promised your love for each other by these vows, the joining of your hands and the giving of these rings, I now declare you to be Husband and Wife. Congratulations, you may kiss your bride."

Chris put both of his hands on either side of Stephanie's face. He pulled her towards him, and kissed her. It was a passionate kiss, but somewhat subdued due to everyone watching them. They hardly noticed the raucous applause that this garnered as they pulled away and smiled at one another.

"May I now present to you for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Chris Jericho."

Stephanie laughed and yelled, "But call me Stephanie McMahon-Jericho!"

"Oh no, not married for two minutes and she won't even take my name!" Chris said, his voice lamentable. "Everyone, there's a huge reception in the hotel, so if you'll follow the ushers, you guys can head on down. Drinks are on Stephanie and I so get trashed, but don't expect me or her to get into bed with you tonight, we're officially taken!"

Everyone cheered and started milling around. Stephanie hugged Chris around his waist as he kissed her head. Nobody was congratulating them as they would do that at the reception. They knew that the newly wedded couple wanted a little bit of time together, and they wanted to give them a few moments alone.

"I didn't get to tell you, what with the whole ceremony, but I have never seen you look so exquisite," he told her, kissing her head again. "Everything about you blew me away. I know why you were keeping that dress hidden from me. I think I forgot how to spell my name, which is not a good thing, because if we had had to sign the marriage license right then, I think I would've failed."

"You look good too," Stephanie said. "And what did I tell you? It ran off without a single hitch."

"I didn't doubt you," Chris argued.

"Well, you were probably thinking it. But I made sure that everything was perfect."

"Besides your little disappearing act right at the beginning."

"I did NOT disappear, I just had a little bit of a set-back."

"You were two steps out the door baby."

"I was not, you can't say that," she said.

"But I thought as your husband, I was allowed to say anything I wanted to say to you."

"Wow, you ARE my husband, scary, scary, scary," Stephanie said, nuzzling herself against Chris as the sun set behind them. "I really did love your vows. Only you would start them off with calling me a filthy, dirty, disgusting, brutal, skanky, bottom-feeding, trash-bag ho."

"I try," he shrugged. "Do you think we should head to the reception?"

"We probably should," Stephanie said. "That was a very nice ceremony. I was so sure that someone would interrupt. I expected--"

"Hunter," Chris finished.

"Mmhmm, I expected Hunter," Stephanie said. "But I'm glad nothing happened."

"So am I," Chris said. They headed down the hill, hand in hand, to their reception. They went inside the hotel and could already hear the music playing inside. They were about to open the door when Kurt hopped out into the hallway.

"Hold on you guys, you have to be introduced."

"No," Stephanie said. "That's so stupid. If you're at our wedding, you KNOW who we are already."

"You can't just walk in," Kurt reasoned. "Come on, just a second."

"Fine, but make it quick, I'm hungry," Stephanie said, tapping her foot. She turned back to Chris and kissed him, running her hands through his silky, clean hair.

"Ladies and gentlemen," they could hear Kurt's voice saying. "I am proud to introduce, for your viewing pleasure, weighing in at…just kidding Steph, I wouldn't reveal that…from Greenwich, Connecticut, and Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, but both currently residing in Tampa, Florida, the beautiful, the dashing, the crazy, the powerful, the rich, the newly married, Stephanie and Chris Jericho!"

Stephanie pushed open the door and rolled her eyes, "Could you take any longer Angle? I think I gave birth to my first child while I was waiting."

"Guys, aren't you upset that you didn't snag that gorgeous woman?" Kurt said to the crowd.

"That's my wife you're talking about buddy," Chris said as he and Stephanie got to the head table and sat down.

"We know, we know," Kurt said, "Dinner is going to be served now."

Kurt went to sit down on Chris's left as Stephanie was on Chris's right. Someone started clinking their glass which everyone knew meant that the married couple had to kiss. Chris leaned over and kissed Stephanie much to everyone's delight.

Trish hugged Stephanie, "How does it feel to be Mrs. Jericho?"

"In the fifteen minutes I've been Mrs. Jericho, it feels pretty damn good," Stephanie said, hugging her friend. "I fully expect the next one of these to be for you."

Trish laughed. "In a long while. You might have three kids by then."

"Scary," Stephanie answered.

The meal was as delicious as Stephanie had known it would be and afterwards, Kurt took to the podium as champagne glasses were filled all around the room. He clinked his glass to get everyone's attention and they quieted down as they turned to look at him.

"I've been friends with these two for a really long time. I was friends with Stephanie first, and no, we did not have an affair."

"It's true, it's true," Stephanie said as she leaned her head on Chris's shoulder to hear Kurt speak.

"And then I became friends with Chris, and for a while there, we were a great tag team, and partners in crime. Especially cutting off some of Edge's hair."

"I'd love to do that again," Chris called out.

"Yeah, me too. But I think it's great that I've known the both of you for so long. Everyone in this room knows that you two hated each other. And not just hated each other, but I mean detested each other. If I tried to fill a book with everything you did to one another, it would be a very long book. It extended even to pie-throwing. It was like a bad episode of the Three Stooges. But I think we all noticed the change one December day when Stephanie showed up to give her estranged father a Christmas present, and Chris said nothing to her. Maybe he saw that she was hurting, I don't know, but it was the first time he hadn't been mean to her in forever. And then one day, he was interrupting her, and the next thing we all knew, they were business partners."

"JUST business partners," Chris said.

"Yeah right," Christian interrupted.

"And that's when it changed. I was the first person to know about Chris and Stephanie. I heard them talking on the phone and Stephanie confided in me. It's always been my pleasure to be their friend, and I feel like I'm the most excited for them, only because I've been around the both of them longer than anyone. I was in that very ring when they first kissed, I've defended her against him, I've fought against him when they were business partners, and I also tagged with him when they were business partners. I feel like I've been on this long, strange trip with them. And if it weren't for me, they never would've had that first kiss."

"How do you figure that Kurt?" Stephanie asked.

"You were interfering on my behalf Steph, I don't think you would've run out there if Chris was facing someone like Rikishi. But since it was me, you ran out there, and Chris laid a big, fat kiss on you."

"Ok, you've got us there," Chris said.

"Would you let me continue, geez, this is what I'm talking about. I've put up with the two of them as long as they've been putting up with each other. Now these two are married, and I know that it's just going to be the same ride they've been on, except with more jewelry. You guys don't need luck, not with the conniving, scheming minds the two of you have. So to Stephanie and Chris Jericho, we salute you and your marriage."

Everyone lifted their glasses and toasted the couple. After that the real party began as the band started up. They wanted live music, but they also had a d.j. to help out when the band was finished with their sets, and also for their first dance, the song of which Chris had yet to know.

Linda and Vince walked up to the couple and Stephanie hugged both her parents as Chris shook hands with Vince and hugged Linda. Vince spoke up then, "That was a beautiful ceremony. I'm very happy for you two."

"So Pops," Chris said, patting Vince's shoulder. "How soon do I get the title belt? I'm sure you can strip it off Hunter and put it on me."

"That's Vince to you," he said jokingly, "And if you married my daughter for that purpose, you're severely mistaken."

"But the benefits, I heard all about the benefits!"

"Thank you for being happy for us Daddy," Stephanie said, linking arms with Chris. "And thank you for walking me down the aisle."

"It was my pleasure, thank you for including me in your wedding. I finally got to give my little girl to the man she wanted to marry. I never got to do that before."

"Glad I could help then," Stephanie told him. "What did you think of it Mom?"

"It was lovely, and we wanted to welcome you to the family Chris. Even though you've been with us for a while now, it's official, you are part of the McMahons."

"I can feel the power already seeping through my veins," Chris told her.

"Good, we're going to need that," Linda winked at him. "Vince, let's go dance."

"Ok, but first, you take care of my daughter all right, if I hear one thing--"

"Daddy, no threats," Stephanie said, putting a placating hand on his arm. "You can threaten him later."

"You can count on that."

Shane was the next one to come up to Chris and Stephanie and he hugged his sister tightly. "I'm so happy for you baby girl."

"Thanks Shaners. I'm happy for me too."

"And you Chris, you better take care of my sister all right, if I hear one thing--"

"Did you and Daddy have a meeting before this?" Stephanie inquired. "Because Daddy just said the exact same thing?"

"You mean I just sounded like Dad?" Shane questioned, a look of pure terror on his face. Chris and Stephanie both nodded and Shane's look of terror morphed into something even more horrible. "Oh God, I need the bar, now! Congratulations you two!"

Shane was off and running and Stephanie laughed after him. "So I'm guessing your parents are going to be coming over next."

"Nah, I say it's going to be Christian and Trish."

It was neither as Randy and his date came over to speak to them. He had convinced Maria to come with him, and she smiled shyly at the couple as Randy embraced Stephanie and Chris gave him a suspicious look. Randy shot a look at Chris, knowing what he was thinking. There prior conversation they had, where they jokingly said that Randy was actually going for Stephanie.

"Thanks for not ruining the wedding," Chris said in jest.

"You're welcome, it was hard, I almost jumped out of my seat."

"Well, we thank you for not doing it," Chris said, "Thanks for coming Maria. I'm sure Randy is thrilled that you could come."

Randy shot him a glare telling him to shut up. Stephanie was just looking confused as to what Chris and Randy had been speaking about, but wanting to be polite she, too, turned to Maria. "Yeah, thanks for coming Maria."

"It was really nice," she said sweetly. "Congratulations to you both, I hope that you're happy together."

"Thanks," Stephanie said again, and had nothing else to say. "Why don't you guys go dance? I'm sure Randy would like that."

Randy's face dropped again as Chris and Stephanie both laughed at him. He shook his head and put his hand on Maria's lower back, pushing her towards the floor. Just as Maria was out of earshot, he turned to them. "I swear, if it weren't your wedding, I'd be yelling at you two."

"Have fun Randy," Stephanie said coyly, waving at him as Maria pulled him out on the dance floor.

"Christopher!"

"Mom! Dad!" Chris said, letting them embrace him. His mother hugged him tightly as she kissed his cheek, instinctively wiping away the lipstick stain she left there.

"I can't believe it, I'm so happy," Loretta said. "Finally, all my prayers are answered!"

Stephanie laughed, "Poor Chris, couldn't get a girl to marry him before me."

"And what does that say about you, that you're the only one who would."

"I should be wearing a straitjacket?"

"Stephanie, I'm so happy that you're in our family now," Loretta said, "I know that I gave you a hard time at first, but you are just what I've always wanted my daughter to be like. Always."

"Well you don't have to worry Loretta--"

"You can call me Mom if you'd like."

"Loretta, don't pressure the poor girl," Ted added.

"Only if you want to," Loretta continued.

"Well…Mom, you don't have to worry about that now, because I'm officially your daughter, so I can be the daughter you always wanted. I know it must've been confusing when Chris had the long hair."

"Thanks a lot, she's already selling me out," Chris said, pulling Stephanie against him more tightly.

"Well, I just wanted you to know that we love you both, and we're so happy for you both. And Stephanie, thank you…thank you for marrying my son so that I wouldn't have to constantly live in fear that he would be alone for the rest of his life."

Stephanie kissed Chris's blushing cheek. "You're welcome…Mom…I really have to get used to that."

"You call me whatever you want," Ted said. "And next time you're in Canada young lady, we're going to play hockey. You're a Jericho now, and you can't be a Jericho if you don't know the family sport."

"I'll make a mental note," Stephanie answered, hugging the both of them. They walked away and Stephanie pulled Chris to a chair and sat down. Chris sat down next to her and then pulled her into his lap, leaning his head against her chest.

"The party is great," she said, getting congratulations from many of the passing people. "Everything has been great."

"Yeah," Chris said. So when do we get to leave?"

"Not for a while," she said, running her hands through his hair. "You tired?"

"I didn't sleep well without you last night. I kept rolling over, expecting to get warmth from you, and you weren't there, and so I was so cold."

"I'm sorry, but you'll sleep better tonight."

"You think I'm going to sleep tonight? You're crazy."

"We don't HAVE to have sex on the wedding night," Stephanie told him.

"Then the marriage is not legal."

"Sex does not a legal marriage make," Stephanie countered.

"I'm not sleeping tonight. I can sleep all day tomorrow, but tonight is about you and me and nothing else. You got that Mrs. Jericho?"

"Just because I'm Mrs. McMahon-Jericho doesn't mean that you can boss me around."

"Damn it, why did we get married again?"

"Beats me…something about love," Stephanie said, tapping her chin. Chris kissed the side of her neck, sending shivers all over Stephanie's skin.

"You sure you don't want to cut out early."

"No," Stephanie said as she saw Kurt walking over to them. "Hey Kurt, nice speech."

"Well, what can I say, I'm a great guy. How are you guys?"

"Married."

"Is that a condition now?"

"Yeah, I'm an old, married man," Chris said, "My life is all downhill from here. I have nothing to look forward to. Nothing to look for. I already found the woman I'm married to, and that's all there is."

"Oh how tragic," Stephanie said. "Hey Kurt, I think my cousin is eyeing you, you better go check that out."

Kurt was out of there in no time and suddenly she heard someone (who sounded suspiciously like Christian) come over the loud speaker. "Ok, everyone, I think it's time for a certain couple's first dance."

Stephanie got off Chris's lap and walked up to where Christian was, "Ok, you guys, I picked the song, and I know some of you are going to think I'm crazy, but I let my husband pick Stairway to Heaven for our wedding, so I thought of a song that was appropriate for the both of us, and it does not extend to just how much we love each other, but I went back to Chris and my history, and it hasn't always been the best of relationships. So keep that in mind. And I'm sorry I have to explain the song, but yeah, I didn't want you guys to think that I hate Chris or he hates me. So play the song!"

Everyone started laughing as the song, "You've Really Got a Hold on Me" by the Beatlesbegan to play and Chris just smirked and shook his head. He was glad it wasn't some sappy song that was all about love and flower and roses and candy. Stephanie was realistic and he loved that about her. He walked up to the podium and held out his hand for her. She took it and let him help her off the stage.

He whisked her onto the dance floor and pulled her into his arms. She rested her arms comfortably around his neck and he gallantly started leading them around the dance floor as everyone watched the two of them dance as a couple for the first time, and for an oddly appropriate song.

"So best day of your life or not?" Stephanie asked as they twirled around the dance floor.

"Well, there was this one time, in high school," Chris started then gave her a peck on the lips. "Best day…well…remember when I won the Undisputed Championship by beating Rock and Austin in one night?"

"Yeah?"

"Doesn't even come close," Chris told her. Stephanie nodded her head in agreement.

"They look good together, don't you think?" Trish said, her arms laced around Christian's waist as they watched Stephanie and Chris.

"Yeah, they do," Christian said to her. "Do you want that?"

"Yeah," Trish said dreamily. She didn't notice Christian staring at the top of her head intently, like he was thinking very hard about something. Trish looked up at him and saw how he was scrutinizing her. "But not right now."

"Ok…ok."

"One step at a time Chrissy, one step at a time."

She leaned up to kiss his cheek as the music continued.

Lita stared jealously out at the couple. She should've had a nice, beautiful wedding, but instead, she was married to Kane. At least she was here with Matt, but what she was with Matt, she didn't know. Technically she was married, and she wanted to be with someone else. Even if that someone else was married. She was married too, but that didn't mean that marriage lasted forever.

She would never really believe that Chris loved Stephanie like he did. There had to be an ulterior motive to all of this. Maybe it was for the power, or for the money, but there was no way she was going to believe that Chris loved Stephanie. Not a chance. She had been around Chris in the past, and he used to berate Stephanie for every little thing. He'd spend hours just insulting her and cursing the ground she walked on.

She'd never believe.

The song ended and everyone clapped as Chris spun out Stephanie in order to bow to the crowd. He pulled her close again when the next song came up. She rested her head on his shoulder as a much slower song came on. They were satisfied to just sway to the music, not really following the beat, lost in their own world.

"I love you Stephanie McMahon-Jericho."

"I love you too Chris."

"So does this change things?"

"I wouldn't know, we're just getting started."


	17. Hmm, Chris Looked Happy, January 17, 200...

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews guys, I'm so happy you liked the chapter, and for those wondering, the song is called, "You've Really Got a Hold on Me," and the version that I like best is by The Beatles. :)

Enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

"This is so silly!"

"No it's not," Chris said. "I think its fun."

"This is not fun. I can walk you know. Maybe you should save this for, oh, I don't know, when we get home, or when people aren't around, or you know, never," she countered.

"But arenas are like our home. We spend so much time here as it is," he told her. "Why can't I do it now?"

"Because I feel like an idiot. People will think we've regressed back to the cavemen era and I'm in charge again. Ahh, that feels good, I'm in charge again."

"I'm doing it whether you like it or not," he told her.

"Fine, do what you must Chris, like I care. All I care about is that I get in there and get to work," she said, rubbing her hands together. "A week off is too much. I can't go that long. I need my office and my pens and my files, I need to feel needed!"

"I need you."

"Yeah, because you haven't gotten that pesky rinse cycle thing down yet."

"Ok, here we go."

Stephanie, in case you hadn't figured, was nestled in Chris's arms. He wanted to carry her into the arena, though she protested greatly and loudly. He had had to chase her around the parking lot, finally cornering her and lifting her up, much to her dismay. She felt stupid and silly, but part of her thought it was cute. Of course, that part was being held hostage by the part that wanted to get inside and get to work.

She waited for Chris and he set her down for a moment so that he could open the door for them. Stephanie tried to make a run for it, but Chris's arm was around her waist and held her firmly. She stomped her foot and folded her arms petulantly. Chris put the doorstop on and whisked Stephanie off her feet once again. She didn't look at him as he carried her over the threshold and put her down on the other side.

"Finished?" she asked, sticking her tongue out at him.

"Yes Mrs. Jericho."

"McMahon-Jericho," Stephanie said, then looked around. "Ok, I've got a meeting with Bischoff to finalize the schedule. I'm sure he thought I'd be too wrapped up in my new marriage to think about the show. Well shows what he knows, because I am ready for work."

"Well, you COULD be wrapped up in your new marriage…or your new husband," Chris said, pulling her over by the waist and nuzzling his face into her neck, kissing her soft skin.

"Yeah, that would be nice and all, but I have work to do. You know that next to you, work is what I love the most," Stephanie said, though she was getting distracted by Chris. The past two days they had been married had been filled with…well, what do you think it was filled with? But now it was time to get back to work and back to the show.

"I don't want to leave you alone," he told her, his voice keening and whiny.

"What are you going to do, follow me all night long?"

"Yes."

"No, you're not. I have to go meet with Bischoff, and then I have meetings, so you are on your own."

"Stephanie, we JUST got married," Chris said.

She waved her wedding ring at him, "I know…oh, and you better give me your ring before you go out there to wrestle, I don't want you wrestling with it on."

"Yes Stephanie," Chris said, pulling his ring off his finger. "This feels wrong."

"I'm not letting you lose that ring."

"But we're not supposed to take it off. It symbolizes whatever it was that the minister said it symbolized, what did he say?"

"I don't remember," Stephanie said. "Do you really think I was paying attention to what he said? I was having a major freak-out inside my head. Telling myself to breathe, and to remember to blink, and respond accordingly. I think he said rings are circles."

"Well that's pretty obvious. Should we have gotten a better minister?"

"I think it's too late to rectify that now," Stephanie said slowly, then kissed him. "You know, if we could, I would've taken a week off to be with you."

"Yeah, but we both have work to do. It's cool, I'm fine with not having a honeymoon. What is that but going somewhere you don't live? We go places we don't live every week, it doesn't matter."

"Really? I mean, are you really, really sure that it doesn't matter, because I do feel bad that we have to work only a couple days after our wedding."

Chris smirked, "You don't feel bad at all. You're happy to be here baby, and if you're happy, I'm happy. Isn't that how this thing between us is supposed to work?"

"Well, if I'm happy having an affair, I don't think that you should be happy for me in that case, but otherwise, sure."

"You better not have an affair," Chris said, his voice way too perky. "Or I'll kill the guy, and I'm not even joking."

"I'm married now, no fooling around for me," she said, leaning up to kiss him. "I love you."

"Yeah, I know. I love you too."

"Be good," she said, her voice already holding a warning in it. "I'll come find you when I'm done, and don't barge in on my meeting with Bischoff. Let me take care of it myself."

"Fine. I'll see you later."

"You always seem to come back, it's a pesky habit," she winked.

Stephanie waved to Chris then, and he walked off, looking for nothing and nobody in particular. But he was bored. Life was boring without Stephanie, but luckily he wouldn't have to go without her anymore. He had to smile at that, and then he saw Christian hanging out in the hallway, reading some magazine.

"Yo Christian!" Chris called out and Christian looked to him, nodding his head in his direction as Chris walked over.

"Hey man, how's it going?" Christian asked, putting his magazine down. He looked down to Chris's hand. "Oh no, where's the ring? Are you and Stephanie getting divorced already! This is worse than Britney Spears's first wedding!"

"Stephanie made me take it off because she doesn't want me to lose it when I'm wrestling."

"Geez, not even two days and she's got you whipped."

"I was whipped before, you're whipped too."

Christian sighed and nodded, "Yeah, I'm totally whipped. So why aren't you with Stephanie?"

"Meeting with Bischoff."

"And you didn't go along, I'm shocked, very shocked," Christian told him.

"Do you really think Stephanie would let me go to one of her meetings? Man, when that woman wants to do business, she wants to do business. And she is so sexy when she gets all in power," Chris said, going off into his own world, oblivious to the fact that he was grossing out Christian.

"I didn't need to know that. Unless you want me to think that she's sexy or something."

"That's my wife you're talking about," Chris said, threatening Christian with a fist. "Actually I just wanted to say that cause it sounds pretty cool. Stephanie is my wife. She's my wife. Hey, this is my wife. Are there any new divas or wrestlers, I want to go introduce my wife?"

"No, I don't think so, and even if there were, don't you think that Stephanie would introduce herself first, because she kind of runs the place?"

"Oh yeah, that's what I get for having a hot, powerful wife."

"Ok, I get it, you like calling her your wife. If this is how you're going to be from now on, I don't think that I want to be your friend, or your wife's friend."

"See, it does sound cool," Chris said, grinning.

"Oh get a life."

Stephanie sat down with Bischoff to discuss the show. Bischoff couldn't help but notice the wedding ring on her finger. He had known she was getting married, but it was still weird to think about it. Stephanie looked up at him, staring at her, and she gave him a look, raising an eyebrow in question.

"What the hell are you staring at?"

"Nothing, let's just talk about the show. Hunter wants the top of the show to discuss--"

"No." That was it, she just said it like that, no frills, no explanations forthcoming, just a plain, simple, no.

"What? But he--"

"I said no Bischoff. I don't want him spouting off his mouth again. We get it, he's the champion, but I could care less what he's holding. I don't want him leading off the show, and that's final. So that's it, I veto it."

"So what do you want to start the show with?"

"Oh, I don't know…Highlight Reel," she said beaming and Bischoff groaned.

"Just because he's your husband now, doesn't mean he gets favoritism."

"Yes, it does. He is part of the McMahon family now Bischoff, as loath as you are to admit it. Oh, and my God, what does that make him? That makes him one of your bosses. Why, isn't that something?"

"What! How the hell is he one of my bosses!" Bischoff yelled.

"See, my dad owns fifty-one percent of the company, making him the main stockholder. But, I own ten percent of that, and so does Shane. So while my dad is still the predominant stockholder, I own a lot of shares in the company and stand to inherit another fifteen and a half percent when both my parents pass. And I'm married to Chris, so therefore, he also owns ten percent of the company as I speak, and therefore…how do I put this nicely? He owns your ass Bischoff, so you better not treat him too badly."

"Fine," Bischoff said dully, "He can have the top of the show for the Highlight Reel. And as for Hunter's time…"

"No time. He got more than his fair share of time last week. I wasn't here last week and you let him run roughshod on the entire top half the show. I didn't particularly care for that Bischoff."

"I didn't either, which is why I went out there to stop it."

"Only after you got the confrontation that you wanted. If Hunter wants time, he'll have to find it himself, I'm sure he will, he's never failed to somehow get his face on the screen before."

"So basically, you just want your husband to be all over this show from now on?"

"No, that's not it at all Bischoff. I just want it tonight. I'm happy, and I'm a newlywed, and newlyweds do nice things for their new spouses, and this is my nice thing for Chris."

"You are ruthless," Bischoff said, and dare we say it, it sounded like he admired her.

"Thank you, I know. Now back to the rest of the schedule."

Chris was so bored he was ripping up a napkin in catering. Trish came up behind him and hugged him. She had been talking with Benoit just a few moments ago, and Benoit was actually looking for Chris to talk about their match but she had found him first. Chris turned hi head and smiled at Trish.

"Hey you, what's the matter?" Trish said, sensing something was amiss.

"I miss my wife," Chris said sullenly.

"Aww, how adorable are you?" Trish cooed as she sat down across from him and took his hand in hers. "Where is your wife?"

"Meetings, working, doing the things she does to make this show run. She's amazing."

"Well, I'm glad to see that your marriage hasn't deteriorated," Trish said, patting his hand. "But you don't have to miss her. You're married to her now. You get to see her whenever you want."

"I know, but she's working and I have nothing to do."

"Actually, Benoit was looking for you to speak about your match later. So go meet with him and you'll have something to do and you won't miss Stephanie so much."

"Yeah, I guess that's a good solution," Chris said with a sigh. "I still miss her though."

"Chris, you'll see her!"

"It's just very boring without her."

"I'm glad to know that I'm boring."

"Not you, just…ok, where the hell is Benoit, because I'm not going to get this worked up over my wife having to work."

"Thatta boy," Trish said, standing up. "Now if you could tell me where to find my boyfriend, we can both be on our way."

"I know where he is, I'll show you and then I'll find Benoit."

"I'm so glad I ran into you."

Chris and Trish started down the hall after Chris had thrown away all his trash. They were talking amicably about things, how the sight-seeing they had done was, and how beautiful the wedding was. Occasionally someone would stop Chris and congratulate him again. Trish saw Lita up ahead and cursed under her breath.

"What is she doing here?" Trish hissed to Chris.

"I don't know, her husband is here."

"But she's injured, it's the least she can do to get her ugly face out of here," Trish responded.

"Trish, be nice."

"I don't want to be nice," she pouted, looping her arm through Chris's. "Don't make me be nice Chris, please."

"Be nice," he repeated, more firmly this time and the snorted in disbelief. Lita came hobbling up to them. "Hey Lita."

"Hey," Lita said nicely, not even looking over at Trish. Trish returned the favor by resting her forehead on Chris's shoulder, closing her eyes and not even acknowledging Trish's presence. "You look good tonight."

"Yeah, well, life is good."

"I'm glad," Lita said, her voice tight and controlled. "You look happy too."

"What's not to be happy about?"

"Chris!" Stephanie called out from behind him. Trish opened her eyes and sent Stephanie the most grateful look ever. Stephanie laughed as Trish mouthed her thanks to Stephanie. She let go of Trish as Chris turned around fully to embrace Stephanie for a moment, giving her a chaste kiss on the lips.

"I've missed you."

"Don't be a big baby," Stephanie teased, slapping him lightly on the chest. "If you can't do without me for an hour, what does that say about you?"

"That I love you?"

"No, that you're needy and desperate," she filled in for him. Lita bit her lip. She didn't know why Chris would take that kind of abuse from Stephanie. Her words seemed cutting to her, and not at all joking, whereas Chris, you could tell she was joking. She was convinced that Stephanie had something up her sleeve.

"So I just have the match with Benoit tonight and then we can go home right?" Chris asked, smiling salaciously.

"Well yeah, but…you're opening the show with a Highlight Reel," Stephanie said, giving him a puckish look.

"What?"

"Well, Hunter wanted time, but I nixed that. You're opening the show, I think the new guys, Hassan and Daivari I think it was, I think they're going to be on the show. But you are first out there, so you better get ready."

"Stephanie McMahon-Jericho…"

"Hey, you're my husband, and if I can't treat you better than anyone else, then what can I do for you."

"I can think of about fifty things you can do for me right now," Chris said, clucking his tongue a little.

"I guess I have to drag you to the locker room myself. Trish, we'll see you later?"

"Yeah, oh wait, Christian?"

"Oh, go down this hallway and turn right, and there he is," Chris said, letting Stephanie lead him by the hand to their dressing room/office.

Once they were out of the picture, Trish turned to Lita, who was still looking off into space. Trish was tempted to kick the crutches right out from under her and watch her fall to the ground. Instead, she cleared her throat loudly and Lita turned slightly on her crutches to face Trish.

"I know we're not the best of friends Lita, but let me give you some advice. You need to mind your own damn business."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Lita said, sneering at Trish.

"You think I don't see it. You may think I'm stupid Lita, but I know exactly what's on your mind. And it ain't going to happen."

"Oh please, you have no idea what's going on with me."

"I know enough, and you can just leave it alone ok, just leave it the hell alone." Trish brushed past Lita, intentionally bumping into her, and almost causing Lita to fall over. She just needed to find Christian right now and calm the hell down.

Chris didn't have lots of time to get ready, and so he just threw on one of his vinyl jackets and his wrestling trunks and went out there. He didn't know if the people in the audience and at home could tell, but he was really happy. He was super happy tonight, and he thought it showed. He let the audience know he was going to be in the rumble, but he was rudely interrupted by the men he was going to be interviewing. Sometimes, he could never get a word in edgewise.

Stephanie pulled away from the monitor and watching her husband on-screen. He always handled himself well, even in the face of people who wanted nothing more to humiliate him. She turned her chair towards the other person in the room and she smiled at them, tapping her fingers against the desk.

"So you told them you'd be late?" Stephanie said.

"Yeah, Flair and Hunter think I'm going to be late tonight, so I've got time," Dave said. "I'm facing Viscera tonight?"

"Yeah, don't worry about it, you can handle it. I'm giving you easy matches," Stephanie told him. "Have to keep you fresh if you ever want to go after that title."

"Shouldn't you want your husband to have it?"

"Chris would never want my help, and I know that you would appreciate the help."

"I can do it myself too, you know."

"I know that, but it would give me much pleasure to know that if you got the title, I had a hand in it. My own personal touch in this personal war I have going with Hunter."

"I can understand where you're coming from."

"He's trying to lure you in Dave. You just have to not give in to him."

"I wasn't planning on it," he answered. "I wouldn't give him the satisfaction. If he had his way, I'd be his lackey forever."

"Yeah, and I'd be his wife," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "Hey, you hear things around here right? I mean, you're pretty quiet, I'm sure you can go places and nobody would notice."

"Yeah, because I'm such a small guy, nobody notices me."

Stephanie laughed, "Sorry, I should've known better. But still, I mean, you do hear things."

"Occasionally I do, what do you want to know?"

"Lita, what's her story?"

"I heard she's pretty much helping out Kane. They're kind of tight I heard, but I don't know if that's true."

"She can't love him."

"No, I don't think so. I did hear her talking once about a guy, but I don't know who."

"Ok…"

"You worried she'll steal your husband? Jericho seems pretty devoted to you."

"Chris is devoted to me, I know that for a fact, but if that little bitch is even sniffing around my man, well, I control this show, and I won't act too kindly, if you catch my drift."

"So if that's the case, then why don't you mess with Hunter more than you do?"

"He's too clever. And don't you think it's more fun when you completely surprise someone with an ambush. It would be no fun if I put Hunter in stupid matches, because he'd know I was doing it on purpose. But stealing his friends from him, one at a time, until he's left all alone, now that's my brand of scheming."

"So you're stealing me?" he asked, nodding his head slowly.

"If you can be friends with Hunter, you can certainly be friends with me. I was always the one who was more liked."

"I can see that…I better go though, Jericho just got saved by Benoit, and I'm sure he'll be heading back here, later Stephanie."

"Later Dave, and thanks for keeping Hunter at bay on Saturday," Stephanie told him.

"You'd be surprised how well sneaking vodka shots in his beer helps to knock him off his game, whatever lame game he plays."

Dave snuck out of the room, and Stephanie was left to laugh by herself. Dave was really funny when he wasn't trying to be. It was more sarcastic than anything. She leaned back in her chair, proud of herself for not losing her edge in all of this. She looked down to her wedding ring, playing with it for a moment, twisting it around on her finger. She wanted to think of other people to mess with, and the only name that came to mind was Lita. She didn't know what designs she had, but there was something definitely fishy going on there.

"Stephanie McMahon!" a voice she knew all to well yelled. Hunter barged into her room and slammed his hands on her desk. She stared up at him, pretending to yawn.

"That's Stephanie McMahon-Jericho to you," Stephanie said glibly.

"I don't care what your damn name is."

"That's too bad, because if you don't address me by my actual name, I'm going to get confused and think you're talking to someone else."

"You know I'm talking to you, why didn't I get any time to speak tonight!"

"Because I said so. After your little stunt on Thursday, I wasn't particularly liking you very much, and well, consider this payback. Find your own damn time to speak."

"I can't believe you went through with the wedding, we're just going to get back together someday Stephanie, we're connected."

"No…we're not," she answered, holding up her wedding ring. "This means I'm connected to one Chris Jericho. My name now is Stephanie McMahon-JERICHO. See how there's that little added on name. Don't worry, it's taking me a while to get used to as well."

"Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley sounds better."

Stephanie pursed her lips, "No, it really doesn't."

Chris walked into the room at this moment and looked between the two of them. "I hope I wasn't interrupting something."

"No sweetie, someone was just complaining cause they don't get to go out there and speak. I denied his request."

"This is all just personal, you can't separate business and personal matters," Hunter said angrily. Stephanie shook her head and scoffed.

"Of course I can. And that's just what I did. Ok, I AM Stephanie McMahon right now, because I'm working, so let me consult with myself over what to do. Oh…it's the same, no time. The schedule is set."

"So cancel a damn match! Cancel Jericho's match with Benoit."

"Hey!" Chris said, taking a few steps to Hunter. "Why don't you get off your ass and wrestle tonight."

"Why don't you shut up!" Hunter yelled at him.

"I don't have to shut up, this is my dressing room!"

"I was talking to my ex-wife, if you don't mind."

"Yeah, who happens to be my wife!"

"For now!"

"Oh, now it's on you ass," Chris said, starting to charge at Hunter.

"ENOUGH!" Stephanie yelled, freezing both men in her tracks. "Don't act like children. You're both grown men, and yes, you two have both been or are married to me, we get that, now both of you just shut up. Chris, sweetie, your match is still on. Hunter, I'm not canceling a match just so you can go out and spout off about nothing, because that's what you do, week in and week out, you spout off about NOTHING, and nobody cares, least of all me. And next time you want to insult my husband, remember that he owns you. Now get out of my office before I buzz security and have them escort you out of the building."

"This isn't over Stephanie."

"Oh, it's never over Hunter…never."

Hunter stormed back out and left Chris staring at Stephanie. She took a deep breath and tried to get her emotions under control again. She looked to her right and saw that Chris was still staring at her. She snapped her fingers, but he was still just looking at her oddly. She initially thought he was mad at her for yelling at him.

"Sweetie, I'm sorry I yelled at you."

"It's cool, I just don't understand what you meant when you said that I own Hunter, what's that about?"

"Oh," she laughed, relieved he wasn't mad at her. "I just mean that we both own ten percent of the company and so you know, we own part of the company, a good amount of it, so essentially, you're everyone's boss. I thought I mentioned this before."

"No, you've never mentioned this before."

"Maybe because I entrust it to my parents. I own it, but I'm more of a silent partner at the moment. Shane too. Once my parents are gone, then I own a quarter of the company, and Shane owns the other quarter, so you know, we own the company. You had to have figured."

"Yeah, but not now, when your parents retired, that's just weird. I'm everyone's boss."

"Yeah, technically, but I don't think you have a lot of power," Stephanie laughed. "Ooh, look there's Randy."

Randy was walking out to speak with the crowd, but was stopped for a second by Stacy. She leaned up to kiss his cheek and he stood for a moment, watching her walk away. That was the most bizarre thing to happen to him in a long time. He kept on walking, but that kiss was plaguing his mind. His date with Maria had been fun for the most part, and he might see her again.

It was on his mind, even throughout Hunter's little tirade. It was on his mind as he went backstage and he barely even thought about Hunter beyond what Hunter had said. He as planning on kicking Hunter's ass at Royal Rumble, and that's all there was to it. He stood around for a little bit when Victoria walked up and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hey Ree," he said, smiling shyly.

"So what was with Stacy giving you a kiss on the cheek?" Victoria asked.

"I have no idea what that was about. Hey Ree, you want to go out to dinner with me? I've got nothing else to do tonight?"

"But Rands, I thought that…"

"I think I need to get away from the crazy ladies around here. I went out with Maria on Saturday, as you know, and then Stacy tonight. What does she want with me I wonder?"

"She probably likes you," Victoria said, smiling a little, but very, very little.

"Or she wants something. She's always seemed…off to me."

"Off?"

"Yeah, the first night I was in the company, she wanted me to take off my sweatshirt and show off my physique, like she was an inspector or something. She's never really sat well with me after that."

"My poor Rands, getting manhandled by Stacy Keibler."

"Have you seen her legs, she could poke an eye out with those," Randy chuckled. Victoria linked arms with him, and leaned her head on his arm.

"So are you trying to say her legs are like sticks?"

"You're a smart one Ree," Randy told her patting her hand. "Come on, let's go, it's on me."

Stephanie jumped up and down for Chris when he came backstage after his win. He took the towel she was holding and wiped himself off before he gathered her up in his arms. She hugged him and while he wasn't looking, she slipped his wedding ring back on his finger, pulling back to kiss him deeply. He kissed her back eagerly, this being the only thing he really wanted to do tonight. The match with Benoit had been fun, and starting the show had been a nice surprise, but he just wanted to be around Stephanie tonight.

"Let's get out of here," Chris whispered.

"You know that I have to stay until the end of the show," Stephanie whispered back, leaning her forehead against Chris's and staring him in the eyes.

"Ditch, just this once."

"I can't sweetie, you know that," she told him. He pouted and kissed her bottom lip. "But you'll have me for the rest of the week and we can go home, and get in our bed, and I really just want my pillow."

"That sounds nice," he said, "I want my pillow too."

"So how have the last two days been for you?"

"No complaints. This married thing isn't so hard."

Before they could say anything else, Christian was tearing through the room and towards the ramp. Chris broke away from Stephanie and had to run to Christian and pull him away from the stairs to the ramp. Christian tried to break free, but Chris was stronger than he was and held him back.

"Christian, what is going on?" Stephanie asked.

"Trish, she's hurt, she got hurt, Trish needs me."

Some trainers ran past Christian to go help Trish. Christian looked absolutely helpless and babbled that she had gotten a chokeslam from Kane. Stephanie heard the commercial starting from her headphones around her neck and nodded to Chris to let Christian go. Christian was out of Chris's arms in a flash and ran out to the ramp to help Trish into the back, knowing that nobody would see him because of the commercial.

There was one person smiling though, through all this concern. There was one person who had told her husband to hurt Trish, by any means necessary. She may not love Kane; she may not even like him, but she was an asset to her when she needed him. She was proud of what happened.

Yes, Lita was especially proud.


	18. H Creeps Me Out, January 24, 2005

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews guys, I really appreciate them. :)

And letting everyone know ahead of time that next week's updates are probably going to be a little bit late. Sunday, I'm going to the Royal Rumble, so the chapter for the show won't be up that evening, since it's kind of a long drive. So the Royal Rumble chapter will be up next Monday night.

Then I'm going to Raw on Monday night as well, so that chapter won't be up until Tuesday night. Worst case scenario, Royal Rumble chapter will be up Tuesday and Raw on Wednesday. It's just I'll be going to a lot of shows and I won't have that much time. But I just wanted to let you know so you aren't looking for updates at the wrong time. :)

Enjoy.

* * *

"Whoa-ho-ho! Looking snappy Chris!"

"As if I could look bad," Chris scoffed as he twirled around. He was wearing a black suit with a sky blue dress shirt underneath, the top two buttons unbuttoned.

"Why are you so dressed up?" Christian asked.

Chris groaned, "There's an investor's meeting in about ten minutes that I have to attend."

"As a representative of the company?"

"Nope, as one of the primary investor's and owners of the company," Chris said with an unaffected shrug.

"Why?"

"Because Steph and I are huge stockholders. We own ten percent of the company, so we have to go. Something about first quarter projections. I think we're just going to hear about how the company should be doing throughout the first four months."

"Heh, sounds like a great time," Christian said sympathetically.

"Oh, it's my idea of a great time," Chris deadpanned. "But I kind of have to go. Steph's making me, and everything. It's kind of daunting, because then I'll see how the product should be doing, and I'll want to make sure it gets that much, and step up my game."

"Oh, it's a sad, sad world we live in, isn't it? When you're making money off of me and my girlfriend and friends. Why don't you just retire right now, it's not like you won't be well-off," Christian joked.

"Well, I never did think of that," Chris smirked. "I'm a very, very rich man."

"Don't rub it in man."

"So how's Trish? Steph told me that she hurt her back and her neck."

"She's just really sore. The doctors said it wasn't anything that some good rest won't get rid of. But he did say that traveling was not a good idea because it would just stiffen her up more and she's stuck at home."

"I'm sure Steph is going to be unhappy to hear that," Chris said. "You know how she loves to see Trish."

"Yeah, but you guys will see her I'm sure. She's at my house, and you know how bored she gets, she won't want to waste all her time at home, so she'll probably be over at your house more than she'll be at mine."

"Great, girl talk," Chris replied, rolling his eyes. "Expect me to be over at your house more than my house then."

"So the honeymoon period is over, I assume?"

"I never said that," Chris winked. "I'd say we're right in the thick of the honeymoon period, if you catch my drift."

"Yeah, be careful, or you're going to end up with a little Jericho running around here, trying to control everyone and everything in its path. And no offense to your wife man, but I think that the last thing we need is another Stephanie McMahon-Jericho."

"That's my wife you're discussing, and any kid that we have would be the most kick-ass kid in the entire world," Chris responded, patting Christian on the shoulder.

He looked to his left and saw Stephanie walking towards the two of them. She looked perturbed, and ran her hand through her hair. Chris smiled over at her, his eyes flitting over her wedding ring before returning to her eyes. She let her arms drop to her sides and stopped next to Chris, smiling at Christian before kissing Chris's cheek.

"I swear to God, I hate Bischoff, I can't stand him, and I wish that I could oust him, but he has a rock-solid contract. Damn him for knowing how to write one up," Stephanie said, her voice exasperated and frustrated at the same time.

"What happened baby?" Chris asked, wrapping his left arm around her waist, rubbing her hip softly.

"I told Bischoff that you had a meeting to attend, I told him, but you know what happened, he passed a match for the beginning of the show with you involved. I mean, the man has no sense. He's just doing it to make me angry. He just wants to make me mad by putting my husband at the beginning of the show when he had other commitments," Stephanie ranted.

Chris looked at Christian with a shred of hope, "Does this mean I don't have to go to the meeting?"

"No, you're going, you'll just have to leave early."

"Gre—man, and I was looking forward to it," he said, giving her a charming smile and a kiss to the cheek to try and cover up for his little gaffe.

"I know you don't want to go sweetie, but you would go for me, wouldn't you?" Stephanie asked, giving him a little bit of a pout.

Chris shook his head, "Yeah, of course I would."

"Whipped," Christian coughed.

"Ok, well, I have a short little thing that I have to do before the meeting," Stephanie said.

"Steph, the meeting is in five minutes," Chris reminded her.

Stephanie looked at her watch. It was indeed in five minutes. She thought she had more time, but obviously, Bischoff had taken up more of her time than she had thought. "Damn it, Bischoff kept me in there for so damn long. Next time, I swear to God, I'm going to punch him or something."

"Be sure to sell tickets to that," Christian said with a laugh. Stephanie sent him a glare and he quickly shut up. "I'm going to go see what Randy is up to. I'll see you later Chris."

"During the match," Stephanie interrupted.

"Huh?" Christian and Chris said in unison.

"Oh, six man tag, you guys are facing each other. Sorry, but it works," Stephanie shrugged. "Tell Randy I said hi."

"Yeah, ok, I'll just go think of the match then," Christian said, waving to the two of them.

Stephanie turned to Chris and straightened out his collar, even though it was straight as it was. She smiled shyly up at him, the corners of her mouth tugging upwards in a toothless smile, almost a smirk. Chris tilted his head and kissed her, tasting the strawberry lip gloss she was wearing. She moved her hands to the nape of his neck, lacing her fingers in his soft hair.

"You look really good," Stephanie said.

"Thanks," he responded. "I always do though."

"Yeah, I know," she said, "We better go or we're going to be late for the meeting. Mom and Daddy are there, I'm sure they'll be happy to see us."

"Yeah, and I'll be happy seeing all those graphs and charts that I don't understand."

"Don't worry, I'll explain them all to you," Stephanie said, grabbing his hand as they walked towards the meeting room.

Victoria laughed as Randy told her another story. He had been regaling her with jokes and stories about Evolution for the past hour. It was one of the best laughs she had had in a long while. Randy had a knack for story-telling, and he make the most mundane things seem hilarious. She patted his hand and buried her face into her other arm, holding in her laughter.

"Wait, tell me again how Hunter didn't see the trash cans and ran right into them."

"Ok, so he's turning the corner, and it's dark and he just didn't see them. So all of a sudden, we're behind him and we're not paying attention because we're a little bit buzzed, and we hear this loud crash and the most horrible screeching. So we run up to see what's going on, Hunter is spilled over these garbage cans and this stray cat has jumped on him and he's trying to defend himself against the cat."

Victora busted up and couldn't stop laughing, "Oh man, Hunter against a cat, that had to be a five-star match at least."

"That cat had some moves," Randy laughed.

"Oh God, I don't know how you kept a straight face."

"I was buzzed!"

"You're not one to exactly clam up when you're drunk," Victoria said, speaking from experience.

"Yeah, but how are you supposed to respond when you see your friend being attacked by a cat?"

"I don't know, doubling over in laughter comes to mind?"

"Ok, so I held it in. I even caught Dave with a smirk. It was funny."

"Sounds like it," Victoria said. "God, I bet you have millions of stories like that."

"I've never catalogued them, but I'd guess that a million is about right. You'd be surprised how many times Hunter has inadvertently embarrassed himself."

"Yeah, I just wish it happened more on television."

"You win some, you lose some," Randy shrugged.

"Speaking of winning some, how are things with the other ladies in your life?"

"I don't know what's going on with that," Randy admitted. "I think I should maybe take Maria out one more time, see how that works out. I don't think that a wedding was an appropriate first date, especially when the people getting married are friends, because I was too preoccupied with Stephanie and Chris."

"Yeah, you can take her out to dinner or something."

"Yeah, maybe," Randy said.

"And Stacy?"

"Don't get me started with that? I don't know what's wrong with her. All of a sudden she's trying to be all over me. She has to have ulterior motives, I don't believe for a second that she's on the up and up."

"Maybe she just really likes you," Victoria reasoned.

Randy thought back to the kiss the other night. It was just so weird and so out of the blue. He admitted that Stacy was an attractive woman, but she wasn't exactly what he was looking for. He supposed that letting it develop wouldn't be such a horrible idea, but he still got a weird feeling about Stacy.

"Maybe," he agreed. "Or maybe she's trying to get something from me. She tends to leech herself onto a guy and suck them dry. Look at the track record."

"I'd rather not, if it's all the same to you," Victoria jeered. "There's no reason I should think about her unless I was stuck in a tag match with her."

"True," Randy said. "She's not much of a wrestler either, is she?"

"No, she just takes advantage of being on better wrestler's teams," Victoria said. "She really should learn. Pretty soon, even a pretty face isn't going to help her."

"Little cruel, aren't we Ree?"

"I only call 'em like I see 'em," she reasoned. "But come on Rands, you have to admit there are prettier women then her."

"Oh definitely, I'm looking at one right now," he said persuasively. She hit him in the hand.

"Don't remind me of what I had," she teased back. "But thanks. It's always a pleasant day when I can garner a compliment from you Rands."

"Well, I'll have to start calling you everyday so that you can have a pleasant day everyday."

"Wow, so many lines, so little time to process."

Randy was going to respond, when he saw someone bounding over to him. He turned briefly, thinking it would be Stephanie, but he saw the flash of blonde and realized it was Stacy. He let out a sigh at the inevitability of her coming over to him and Victoria. He didn't particularly want to talk to her, but he was pressed for an excuse except to get up from the table, and she would probably follow in that case.

"Randy!" she called out, waving her hand in front of her.

"Speak of the devil," Victoria said knowingly.

"Yeah, the devil indeed," Randy answered, then turned to the approaching Stacy, "Stacy, hi."

"I've been looking everywhere for you!" she said chirpily. "I just wanted to wish you luck later with your match against Flair, and if I don't see you on Sunday, then good luck then too."

"Thanks."

"And I was wondering if you were doing anything tonight?" Stacy asked shyly.

Randy looked to Victoria for a moment, his eyes wide, like a deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming big rig, Stacy being the big rig (probably the first time she had ever been compared to something that wasn't a stick or equivalent to a stick). Victoria shrugged quickly, mouthing something indecipherable to him.

"Actually, him and I are going out," Victoria said, making a sorry face to Stacy. "He already asked me out for later and well, I'm sure he's really sorry."

"Yeah, very sorry," Randy said.

"Oh well…another time then?" Stacy said, looking at Randy and avoiding Victoria's gaze like it burned her skin.

"Sure, yeah, maybe," he said, regressing through the appropriate affirmations.

"Great!" she said, "Bye!"

Randy looked to Victoria after Stacy had left. "Thank you SO much Ree. I don't like being put on the spot like that."

"My pleasure," she answered. "But now you owe me Rands, you owe me big."

"And if you look at this pie graph right here, this is the estimated totals for all Pay-Per-View buy-ins for this quarter. We expect the WrestleMania totals to be higher than all the other shows. Also with the inclusion of the movies produced by WWE, we project this total…"

Chris sat there in a trance. This guy's voice was so boring that Chris felt like he was going to start drooling at any moment before going into a catatonic state. Stephanie was nodding her head next to him, analyzing the endless stream of charts that this guy produced. If he saw another red pie chart, he was going to scream bloody murder and run out of here.

Stephanie spoke up just then, causing him to turn to her, "Now, you say that the revenue for these movies should make up for production costs, do you have any data that supports this?"

Chris may be bored, but he did have to admire his wife. She was just so amazing to him, so smart and in charge. She was the one asking all these intelligent questions and he really wanted to poke the guy in the chair next to him and tell him that she was HIS wife. Some people might think that Chris would be intimidated by Stephanie and her obvious business prowess, but he was just proud. He was smart too, but Stephanie, she was simply amazing when it came to this stuff. And she was his, he wanted to just say that, just to everyone, to let them know.

"Now, do you have budgets already drawn up for upcoming projects, or is that something I should take up with the accounting department?" Stephanie asked as a follow-up question.

As the man launched into another boring answer, Chris leaned over to Stephanie, drawing her attention away for a second, "Steph, the show's starting soon and I have to go get ready."

Stephanie nodded slightly, "Ok, see you later."

He knew that was all he was going to get, since she was so engrossed in the meeting. He looked down and noticed that she had even been taking notes. Damn, this woman was on top of her game in the worst way. Chris kissed the top of her head as he passed by her, Stephanie trying to maneuver her head so that she could still see. Chris slipped out of the room and went to find his locker room to change.

The first match actually lasted a long while. Christian was not thrilled to be teaming with his brother…again. Last time they had teamed up, alone, Edge had pummeled him. Needless to say, these two were on the outs. But they still worked well together. Years together in the ring had seasoned the two of them, and it was almost like clockwork. It was just instincts with them.

Chris was just unhappy having to face Christian. It was just weird facing one of your friends; pretending to hate them. It was easy with Edge, because he didn't like Edge, but it was increasingly difficult with Christian. Funnily enough, they seemed to collide with each other a lot. If not in tag matches, then in six man tags, or in singles, it was non-stop. He just guessed that they had good chemistry in the ring. Unless this was all Steph's doing so that neither one of them would be the tar out of the other. He was always pretty sure that he would be fine against Christian and wouldn't come out of the match with an injury.

Chris was still wrestling when Stephanie got out of the meeting. She walked back to her office and opened the door, gasping when she saw Dave sitting there by himself. She wasn't expecting him, and she wondered what he was there for. She went and sat down, smiling at him.

"Have you been here long?"

"Nah, a few minutes, I noticed that Chris was wrestling and came to talk to you…I'm taking the qualifying match."

"Good, good," Stephanie said. "You should. This is a good opportunity for you."

"Hunter's going to hate it."

Stephanie smirked, "Isn't that even better?"

"Yeah, I think it is," Dave said, also smirking. "That man is getting on my last nerve. He's so fake, you know. Trying to keep me contained."

"Yeah," Stephanie agreed. "You are going places Dave."

"I hope so, I hope I win the Rumble on Sunday," he said.

"Well, I wish you luck with that, I can't actually root for you, since my husband is in it and all. Kinda gotta root for the man that I'm married to."

"I understand," he said. "I don't know what Hunter is up to, but there's just something tonight. I think he's going to do something."

"He's always up to something," Stephanie said. "But you're up to something too, so don't count yourself out of this by any means. If anything, you have the upper hand in this situation."

"I can't believe I let him control me for so long. He's scum."

"I'm SO glad that you're seeing that now," Stephanie said. "It's about time Dave. But he's a very persuasive man, and that's the best thing about him. He's a silver-tongued devil, I'll tell you that much."

"So does your husband know about us?"

"You make it sound like we're having an affair," Stephanie said, pretending to be indignant.

"Jericho may be smaller than me, but I think that if he caught us together like that, he'd be able to take me down…but you better not tell him I told you that."

"I wouldn't dare. You'd be liable to put another dent in his head."

Dave smiled, "Sorry about that."

"Do you know how many times you knocked him out? I've lost count after three!"

"I'm sure if he thought there was something between us that he'd be the one putting dents in my head."

"Yeah, he would. He gets mad really easily. You may be a monster Dave, at least that's what they call you, but I don't think you've ever strapped a woman down and threatened her with a hammer."

"No, I like to think I have a little more respect for women…but that was with Chyna right?"

"Yeah, but let's just forget about that one," Stephanie said with a scared laugh. "I didn't even know Chris back then. He was just some guy in the company."

Dave laughed, and it was actually a really nice laugh, "I'm well-aware of the history."

"Isn't everyone?"

Stephanie looked to the television. "I think Chris might come back soon, if you want to leave. You can stay though, I don't really care if Chris knows. I mean, isn't there some saying where you aren't supposed to keep secrets from your spouses."

"Yeah, that's what they say."

"Well, he really doesn't know about this one at all."

"I'll go, I don't want to cause a rift between you guys, besides, Evolution might need me, and I've got to be their go to guy, whatever," he sneered. "See ya Stephanie."

"Bye Dave, nice talking to you, and you know, show some more emotions," Stephanie said. "I mean, to Hunter, let him know that you aren't going to take his crap."

"I'll try," Dave nodded.

Stephanie looked down and heard the door open again. She smiled up at Chris, wondering if he had seen Dave leaving her office. He didn't seem in shock or anything, so she guessed that Dave had made a clean getaway. She knew that she should tell Chris about Dave, but sometimes, scheming was more fun when you were the only one doing it. It had been the same way when she had tried to get Gail Kim to sleep with Hunter.

"Hey, good match," Stephanie said, knowing that it had been from what she had seen; the very little of the match that she had seen at least.

"Thanks," Chris said, toweling himself off. "I think I'm going to go take my shower, and then you can tell me the high points about the meeting."

"Yeah, you missed the bar graphs!" Stephanie exclaimed excitedly.

"Yippee," Chris said, twirling his hand around pathetically. "Just what I want to hear about."

Dave was watching as Hunter proceeded to assault Stacy Keibler. He scowled at the display. Hunter was rotten, but sometimes he was just damn scraping the barrel of rotten. He wasn't an advocate of hurting innocent women. He never had been; he had just been brainwashed by Hunter before, but now that he was seeing more clearly, he saw just how awful Hunter really was. And he really didn't like what he saw. He was glad, now more than ever, that he had taken up with Stephanie. It was a smart move on his part.

Randy felt sorry for Stacy, and also felt a weird sense of obligation towards Stacy. Either that or he had a really bad "hero" complex and really felt the urge to help a female in need. Or maybe the real reason was because it would upset Hunter even more, and right now, getting under Hunter's skin was the best incentive for his match. He hoped she didn't get any ideas from this. He was just being a nice guy here, that was it, that was IT.

Dave pretended not to have seen what happened, letting Hunter explain what happened. It was even more appalling the way he described it. The way he made it seem was like he was just taking a stroll in the park instead of hurting defenseless people. It was worth listening to though, when he told Hunter of his plans for the Rumble. That look was definitely worth it, definitely.

Randy helped Stacy backstage and she looked to him gratefully. "Thanks, I'm so glad that I didn't get Pedigreed."

"You're welcome," Randy said, starting to walk away.

"Why did you do that Randy?" Stacy asked.

"I'm a nice guy I guess," he answered.

"But, I mean."

"Look Stacy, Hunter was out there, and he was going to hurt someone defenseless. I don't like the guy, and I wasn't going to let that happen if I could help it. Don't flatter yourself thinking that I was just thinking of you."

"Oh," she said, looking down. "But thanks anyways."

She looked sad, and Randy felt bad for making her feel bad. It wasn't his intention to make her seem insignificant. He just didn't like her in that way, despite her best efforts to make it seem like he enjoyed being with her. Maybe it would be best to go out with her and then let her see that he wasn't really that interested. He felt no chemistry when he was with her, and he didn't know why she didn't see that either.

"Stacy, that came out wrong. I went out to help YOU, but I mean, I would've gone out to help anyone. But I'm really sorry that he tried to hurt you," Randy said, grabbing her hand. "And if you want to feel better or something, call me, and we might do something."

Stacy smiled, "I'd really like that. But are you with Victoria?"

"Ree and I…don't worry about that," Randy said, not wanting to define that relationship just this moment. He had bigger things to worry about.

Later that evening, Dave was fuming. He had just been ejected from ringside and Hunter didn't do a damn thing to try and stop it. Hunter was against him, and he just wanted Flair in that Rumble match because he was in it. He had a strong feeling that Flair had only one task come this Sunday and that was to finish off Dave, and then let some other poor shmuck win the match. Dave was not going to let that happen.

Hunter's jealousy and fear was slowly coming to the surface. He saw it from time to time, saw that he knew that Dave could dominate him. The good part was that Dave knew it too, and he would take advantage of it. He was just biding his time really. He was just waiting until the right moment to pounce and strike Hunter where it hurt. If he won this Royal Rumble, he was going to take on Hunter, if Hunter won on Sunday. His quest was for that belt, not to make sure that Evolution stuck together. At this point, it was a tertiary thought, he just wanted that belt. Hunter didn't think he was capable, but he was more than capable.

At some point, Hunter wasn't going to know up from down.

Courtesy of one, Dave Batista.


	19. YAY, Dave Won, Royal Rumble, January 30,...

A/N: So the Royal Rumble was actually a good show, and I wasn't really bored like I thought I would be for some of the regular matches. The Rumble itself was a lot of fun to watch, and yeah, I freaked out when Dave won, if only he hadn't eliminated Jericho.

Now, the highlight of my evening. The show was in Fresno, and I live nearer to San Francisco, so it was a good 3 hour drive to the arena and back. On the way home, my brother and I stopped at a Chevron for gas, and we needed to get change, so I volunteered to get it. So I walk in and this guy walks out and he looks familiar and I walk inside and there was Maven in line, paying and grabbing stuff, and the other guy was Mike Chioda. So I'm thinking that this is pretty cool, having them in front of us, but yeah, I wasn't like freaking out or anything.

Until Randy Orton walked out of the bathroom…

Yeah, then I went into a complete fangirl, pre-pubescent mush. I'm not in love with Randy or anything, but as you know by reading this story, I do like the guy. But he was within arm's reach of me, and I was shaking like a leaf, especially when he passed right in front of me. Then, as if that's not enough, the Big Show walks in, and that guy is HUGE. All the while, I'm trying to keep my cool and not freak, which I'm two seconds from doing. Randy only grabbed a water and then made Maven pay for it.

I was going to ask him for an autograph, but unfortunately, he actually got knocked out during his match with H, and he looked seriously dazed, and like he was about to fall asleep at any second, so I didn't want to keep him if he wasn't feeling well. He did talk with me and a few other people for a couple of minutes, so that was pretty cool. He pretty much said that he had gotten knocked out during the match, but not for long, and he didn't have a real concussion and that he was fine.

Hope you enjoy the chapter, and keep in mind that read this like you didn't see Raw last night. :)

* * *

"I feel good tonight; got a chance at a title shot, and got my best girl on my arm." 

"Best and only girl."

"That too."

"I think you have a great shot at winning," Stephanie told him, "You're good at these Rumbles."

"So good I've never won," he laughed.

"If I could fix the match-"

"I wouldn't let you," he finished, "I don't want any special treatment, that's not why I married you, and that's not why I'm with you in the first place."

"I know, but it would be nice to be able to do nice stuff for you once in a while."

"What you did the other week was just fine," Chris told her, "Schedule me early in the show, or give me a few extra minutes, but don't go fixing matches for me. I may own this company now, but I'm still an employee."

"Oh, don't be so diplomatic," she said, slapping his arm lightly. "I think that you're going to kick ass out there. And yes, I'm terribly biased because you are my husband and I love you."

"Well, good, maybe I can bring some of your faith out there when I'm staggering around looking for a moment's rest."

"Promise me that you won't go nuts out there tonight. Do what you have to do to win, but don't go do something crazy like flipping off the top rope or something like that."

"I don't do flips off the top rope," he said, "So you don't have to worry about that coming to fruition."

"Fine, I won't worry about you, I'll just worry about how the show is going to be doing. Daddy's here tonight, and he wants to control the show, but I'm going to help him out the best I can."

"So you can spend more time with me then?" he asked hopefully. It was getting harder and harder for him to want to part from her. He figured it was mostly just the fact that they were in the honeymoon period of their marriage, and he wanted to spend every waking moment with her, but he also just loved being around her. There was a certain energy that Stephanie brought to the table that nobody else had.

"Maybe, maybe not," she shrugged. "I do have work to do. There IS a show tomorrow night that I have to plan for, and on short notice too, because we don't know who is going to win tonight. If it's you, we are going to have the biggest celebration you've ever seen."

"Great, now if only you could be out there with me," Chris said, tilting his head down to kiss her. She stopped walking to deepen the kiss and let her tongue run against his lips.

"If I could, I would, but I can't," she said. "Besides, it's a big day for us. The Rumble is the start of the road to WrestleMania, and it's our second biggest show of the year. As it is, I have to go out and see if the set looks good. Dad wanted it to look very West Side Story-ish because of the theme that we have going."

"Yeah, like that commercial."

"I thought you looked cute in that wig."

"I looked like a loser," he said vehemently.

"Nah, you always look cute to me," Stephanie said, kissing his cheek. "So shall we part ways here?"

They were standing in the middle of one of the hallways backstage. Stephanie wanted to go out into the main arena to check on the set, and she thought that Chris would want to go hang out or something. She knew that her doing work could potentially be very boring for him, and she didn't want to subject him to that.

"Yeah, I guess we can," Chris said, with a pouty sigh. "I'll just go find Kurt or Christian. He's still bummed that Trish can't be here tonight. He's figuring on her being back tomorrow, but that's still up in the air."

"Yeah, go talk to him, he's probably really lonely," Stephanie responded, patting him lightly on the chest and then leaning up on her toes a little to kiss him goodbye. "I'll see you in a while?"

"Yeah, I still have to pick my number for the Rumble."

"If you want I can get you-"

"No," he said, kissing her firmly in order to make his point, "No, no, no."

"I didn't even finish my thought!" she protested.

"I know, but I know what that thought is. I haven't been with you for these past two and a half years without picking a little something up," he winked.

"Ok, you don't want my help, I get it!" she said, smiling. "But you still love me for trying right?"

"I love you for everything," he said, winking at her again.

"Do you have something in your eye?"

"Go away smartass," he said, shoving her away lightly, but almost causing her to fall over anyways. It probably wasn't the smartest idea for her to wear such high heels, but they were really cute shoes and they went great with her outfit (black asymmetrical skirt, with a pale pink quarter-length sleeve blouse), and Chris appreciated that.

She flipped him off playfully and then walked off, and out to the stage. There was no ramp tonight, just a curtain which led out into the aisle and to the ring. She looked up at the handiwork of the road crew and had to admire the set, it looked pretty good. She went down to the ring to make sure that all the tables were set up and they were, just like she hoped they would be. She wished that she had her clipboard with her so she could make some quick notes.

"Stephanie?"

Stephanie turned, "Daddy, hello!"

Vince walked up to Stephanie and hugged her, kissing her cheek. "How's my Princess?"

"I'm great Daddy," she said, a big grin on her face. He studied her for a minute and then nodded his head a little bit, as if in approval.

"Marriage suits you I think," Vince said, studying her again. She looked happy, and not just happy, but very content, as if she was floating or something. It wasn't a condition that you could ignore; it seemed to engulf her.

"I guess," she laughed, "Or maybe I'm just so happy to be working that I'm happy about that."

"How's Chris?" Vince asked.

"He's fine," she answered. "He's backstage somewhere, I didn't want to drag him to do my work. He would just be bored. He doesn't like the behind the scenes aspect as much as I do."

"I did see him during last Monday's meeting, he didn't seem too enthused."

"Yeah, he was bored," Stephanie said with a slight shrug. "But he's a wrestler and you can't ask him to be a businessman when he wants to be a wrestler."

"I suppose you're right," Vince said, leading Stephanie backstage as they spoke. "So are you ok with your old man taking over your job tonight?"

"No," she said, really seriously. "But you're my boss, so whatever you want I have to go with. I don't think my patented pout is going to work now that I'm twenty-eight and married. It works on Chris, but I think I've worn it out on you."

"I trust you, but sometimes I like to assert my power," Vince said, his words and tone strong, like he was.

"It's fine Daddy, but don't expect this to be permanent. I'm the one who runs things back here. I instill just as much fear as you do, maybe more because they know how vicious I can be."

"I don't doubt that."

"Steph!" Chris called out from out ahead of her. He jogged over to her, letting her stop to wait for him. She smiled and let go of her father's arm and hugged him, even though it had only been about thirty minutes since she had seen him. He slung his arm around her waist and held her to his side. "So when are you setting up the number drawing?"

"You'll have to take that up with Daddy," she said, nodding towards her father. "He's taken over the show, not me."

"Once the show begins Chris," Vince said.

"Thanks Vince," Chris said. "Or should I call you Dad? Is that something I'm allowed to do? Or is that reserved for like Mick Foley or something?"

"You can call me Vince," Vince said. "Unless you have a burning desire to call me Dad."

"Oh yes Daddy," Chris said in a high-pitched voice. Stephanie turned to him with a look of consternation.

"Are you mocking me!" she asked indignantly. Chris's lips tightened.

"I would never do such a thing," Chris said, lifting her hand to his lips and kissing her palm. Stephanie laughed and saw Hunter lurking over her father's shoulder. Her eyes darkened and she stared a hole through him and straight to the wall behind him. He was staring right back at her, a tiny smirk on his face, like he had a secret that nobody else knew about. Chris didn't notice him, being too wrapped up in Stephanie, but Vince had glanced over his shoulder.

"Daddy, I'm going to go check on that for you," Stephanie said hastily, wanting to get away from Hunter. "Let's go Chris."

"Whatever you say baby," he answered, following her.

Once he left, Vince stuck his hands in his pockets, rocking back and forth for a moment, in deep thought. He turned around and saw Hunter straighten up. Vince proceeded to walk over to him, seeing Hunter tense more and more as he stepped closer and closer. It was wise of Hunter to be frightened; Vince had seen the looks that he was giving Stephanie, and he didn't care for them.

"I don't think I've congratulated you on regaining the belt," Vince said to him. Hunter smiled, a bit warily, but still enough to seem cocky.

"Thank you Vince, but it wasn't likely to go around anyone else's waist, being inferior and all."

"Well, it certainly seems so since you are the one that came away with the title."

"There was no doubt in my mind that I wouldn't get it back."

"Hunter, I think it would be prudent of you to stay away from my daughter," Vince said, his voice changing dramatically. Hunter straightened up a little bit more, knowing that this was not fun Vince, this was business Vince.

"I do stay away from her."

"I saw the way you were looking at her."

"Vince, honestly, did you ever want her to end up with Chris Jericho? Of all people, Chris Jericho?" Hunter asked.

"Jericho has been a valuable asset to this company since his arrival. He has fought on my side during the Invasion, representing the company. He was the first-ever Undisputed Champion, and he is one of our most charismatic superstars."

"But for Stephanie? Don't you want her with someone like me? Someone with good breeding, with an upstanding family? You can't tell me you imagined this kind of life for Stephanie. I seem to remember you telling me that I was exactly the type of man she should be with."

"If my daughter is happy, then I'm going to be happy for her. I spent too much time being at odds with her to care what she does. Chris is a good man, which is more than I can say for you Hunter. I've never seen Stephanie happier than she is now. And I think it would be sensible of you to stay out of her business."

Hunter held his hands up in defense. "I do stay out of it. All the damn time."

"Make sure of that."

Randy sat back as Victoria leaned her head against the back of the couch. They were just hanging out, and she was trying to calm him down for his match later that evening. He was more anxious than anything. After not really getting the chance for the title, he was finally getting his chance to get it tonight. He wanted it very badly, so badly that it hurt. He was willing to go great lengths for that belt, he just wanted to touch it again, feel it around his waist, know that he was the best wrestler in the company today.

"Don't be nervous," Victoria said, touching his arm lightly. "You have nothing to worry about, because I know that you can win."

"Yeah, I just want to get it over with. I want to get out there and wrestle and everything, and I can't because I have to wait for this damn show to start."

Victoria laughed, "Then go take your mind off of it. Go take a walk, clear your head, warm up a little, you know, be one with yourself."

"So you're trying to get rid of me, that's what you're doing huh?"

"Yeah, so I don't like you and want you to go away, you can't blame me can you. I mean, really…"

"I'm out of here," Randy said, shaking his head at her.

As soon as he was out there door, what happened, Stacy Keibler was practically there to jump him. She didn't quit, and while he admired perseverance, it was an entirely different thing when it was him she was persevering for. He didn't hate Stacy or anything, he just felt really off whenever he was with her, like she had this entirely different agenda that nobody by her knew about.

"Randy, I wanted to wish you luck," she said, her voice too perky for his liking. Who was that perky?

"Thanks," he said politely, he was nothing if not polite. She was still a woman and he liked to treat them with some modicum of respect.

"So what are you doing after the show?"

"Driving to San Jose for tomorrow's show," he answered.

"Oh really, cool, and tomorrow during the day?"

"Nothing," he said, not being quick enough to think of some lie. He cursed under his breath for not having Victoria here to come up with some cover for him. As long as she was hear, he could always just lie and say he was going out with Victoria, which would actually be a good thing because he really liked Victoria…obviously.

"Cool, you want to do something?" she asked, perking up considerably, which was scary because Randy had thought she was as perky as she was going to get, but apparently, she still had a little bit of perk store up for just this occasion.

Randy sighed, blowing out his breath rather slowly. "Sure, why not?"

While that was not exactly the answer that Stacy was looking for, she wasn't going to complain about it when she had finally gotten Randy to agree to do something with her. She found herself very attracted to Randy, and she had been innocently pursuing him. Unless you asked Randy, to whom, "stalking" would be a better word to describe the situation.

"Great!" she said excitedly, hopping on one foot a little bit. She was finally ensnaring him.

"Ok, we'll talk," he said, already beginning to walk away backwards. He pointed to Stacy in parting and then turned and caught himself speed-walking in the other direction. What the hell had he gotten himself into?

The show began and Stephanie found herself very bored. She didn't have anything to do tonight, and she just felt incredibly…bored. She knew that it was silly, that her father wanting to control for one night was not stupid or weird, or out there, but she hated feeling stagnant. Chris was only in the Rumble itself and had nothing to do before then, so she couldn't help him prepare or anything…unless she went and found out all the numbers of the other guys, which would give Chris the advantage of knowing who was coming out when. But then, he probably wouldn't like that very much, and she did want to respect his wishes.

She thought about going to see what Dave was up to, but that would be very risky, especially tonight. Seeing him during Hunter's match would be the best time, since Hunter would definitely be out there and not backstage where they could be caught by him. They were playing this out slowly, and if they got caught then that would be the end of that.

She thought of going to see Chris, but he was off getting his number and probably talking to Christian or Benoit or someone along the way. She sulked behind her large desk, fingering the papers lying atop it and wondering if maybe she could do some menial work for her father instead of just sitting here doing nothing. She saw Chris's old CD player sticking out of his bag, and went over to grab it. She looked inside and saw that he had been listening to his band's newest CD. Finding nothing better to do than this, she sat back, listened to Chris's music and tuned out everything else.

Chris was walking with Christian, but they had stopped to check out Edge's match for a second. Edge and Michaels were pulling double duty tonight. Chris was grateful that he would at least have one or two less people to worry about, seeing as how they would probably be tired from their earlier match and thus, more susceptible to getting eliminated quickly from the Rumble later on.

"Are you rooting any for Edge?" Chris asked Christian, wondering if there was still a little bit of good will between the brothers.

"Nope," Christian said, "Not that I'm cheering on Michaels or anything, but Edge has really change since he's thought he could win that title."

"Yeah, he's gotten a lot meaner…I think I know why you were so eager to get away from him years ago."

"Yeah, I think everyone is finally seeing what I had to see for months on end," Christian said, his laugh bitter and full of resentment. "I really need Trish here to curb my anger."

"She'll be in San Jose tomorrow though right?" Chris asked, remembering that Trish had said that while she was over at his and Stephanie's house over the weekend.

"Yeah, she's planning on it. She doesn't want to be stuck at home again this week. She'll definitely be here."

"Great, Steph will be happy."

"Hey, I better go grab my number so I actually know when I'm going to be entering this Royal Rumble match."

"Yeah, I'll get mine later, I'm going to go see if I can find Kurt and say hi," Chris said.

"Cool, tell him good luck in his title match for me," Christian responded.

Chris nodded in the affirmative and went to go collect his number. Unfortunately, it was the same time as Cena, who had, by some mystery, become quite the crowd favorite. Christian didn't know what Cena had that he didn't. He was certainly more charismatic than Cena, and better looking to boot. But somehow, some way, these people were all behind Cena.

Perhaps if Trish had been by his side, had told him that he was going to look stupid and dumb, he wouldn't have done what he did, but the fact remained that Trish wasn't there to correct him when he was about to look stupid. That had to be one of the reasons why he loved her, for the sheer fact that she made sure that he wasn't going out there and looking like a fool about 99 of the time.

And so he entered a "rap-off" with John Cena, and it had to be one of his worst ideas ever. He shouldn't have expected Tomko to give him a beat, as if that would help him in the long run. He knew as soon as he started "rapping" that he was going to be schooled by Cena, but since his lovely girlfriend was thousands of miles away in Toronto, he had not been stopped of this most embarrassing situation. But he knew he was not going to hear the end of this one. At least he ended up with 29, second to last in the Rumble, that certainly helped his chances.

Speaking of chances, Kurt and Chris had just been discussing Kurt's chances of winning that evening against JBL and the Big show, but that topic had soon worn itself into the ground and they were talking about Chris's personal life, a topic which never seemed to get old, especially as of late, "That's good that married life is treating you so well."

"Yeah, I don't really have any complaints."

"It's nice to have these joint shows, it lets me see you guys, you know," Kurt said, shrugging casually, but you could tell that he was a little bit bummed out that he was the odd man out, and hardly ever got to see his friends.

"If you could get yourself on Raw, do it, we'd love to have you around. I know that we could tag together like the old days, and Steph would love you here. It'd be one more guy on her side, and you know how she likes to have people on her side."

"Problems with Bischoff?"

"When aren't there problems with Stephanie and Bischoff? I love my wife, but she is difficult to deal with, factor in Bischoff, and you're talking about two very opinionated, bossy people."

"You better hope that Steph is not within earshot. She would kick you if she heard you calling her bossy."

"You're right, but," Chris looked around furtively, "She's not around right now. I don't know where she is actually. Is that a bad thing? Am I supposed to know where she is at all times?"

"As long as she's in the building I don't see what the matter is."

"Yeah, she's around here somewhere, but I'm not going to go searching for her, she'll eventually come to me, she always does."

"And there you go making me NOT want to get on Raw."

Chris scoffed and was about to punch Kurt in the shoulder companionably when she saw Kane and Lita walking down the hall. That was quite the jarring picture for anyone's mind to wrap around. It wasn't that he oftentimes forgot that Lita and Kane were married, it was just the picture of them married was a very odd one. But it was an odd marriage to start with, and they were just building on it.

Kane walked faster than Lita, who was still injured and he turned to grunt something at her before walking ahead, probably to pick out his number for the Rumble or get into some other kind of trouble. Lita hobbled around after him, Kurt turning his head to look at her too. She was too far away for her to really see them looking at her, and Kurt turned to Chris, who was still staring.

"How's that for a match made in hell?" Kurt joked.

"I feel bad for her," Chris said sympathetically. "It's like, what if I was forced to marry someone like…one of those diva ditzes from the search? I would be very unhappy. She's got to be very unhappy."

"Got a crush on her?" Kurt teased, to which Chris gave him a hard shove and a dirty look, which Kurt responded to with laughter.

"Yeah, I have a crush on Lita, what are you smoking man?"

"I'm kidding!"

"I know you're kidding, but still, that's disgusting. Like I would honestly want someone like Lita when I have someone like Stephanie. Talk about your downgrades, I mean, come on…" Chris need not say anymore, because it was crystal clear to Kurt. Stephanie was…she was Stephanie and that was all you had to say. Stephanie was made from a special brand; she was unique without being strange, and exciting without being crazy. She was perfect.

"Shut up, she's coming over," Kurt said, nudging Chris in the ribs.

"Watch where you jab me!" Chris said, punching Kurt in the arm, not too gently, but Kurt could take it.

"Hey guys," Lita said amicably, settling her eyes on Chris for a moment before smiling at Kurt. "Big night for you guys?"

"Yeah, pretty big," Kurt jumped in. "I'm going to try to get that title back. It should be on my waist and not someone like Bradshaw. I mean the guy was…well, we all know the history there right?"

"And I'm in the Rumble, with a shot at the title. But like fifty thousand times before, I would probably just lose to Hunter in the match. It seems that's how it always goes. If it's just us, he wins, if it's a bunch of guys, he wins, if it's a three-way with Stephanie, he wins by pinning her."

Kurt chuckled, "That was a classic match."

"Yeah, I couldn't even protect my wife."

"She wasn't your wife then," Lita said. Chris looked at her for a moment, wanting to challenge her statement, though it was correct. Was it appropriate for him to refer to Stephanie as his wife when it referred to past altercations? Could he really say something like that?

"Yeah, I know," he said, settling on that for an answer. "But she's my wife now."

"They say that the first year is always the hardest," Lita said. "I don't think that Kane and I will last a year."

"How long have you guys been married anyways?" Kurt asked, honestly curious.

"Um, well, a while," Lita said, not actually knowing the date when she had married Kane. Memory obviously wasn't her strong point, though it could be; Lita had yet to find any strong points that she possessed.

"We all know that Chris and Stephanie have been married for two weeks and a day," Kurt said, pretending to swoon at the thought, then started to sing, badly, "Isn't it romantic?"

"Why do YOU know the exact day thing Kurt? I'm the one who's supposed to be all like, counting the hours that Steph and I have been married," Chris said, holding up his hand with his wedding ring on it. "Don't forget who is married around here and who isn't? Besides, things between Stephanie and I are the same. I don't see this first year being any different from the other years that we've been together."

"You two broke up in each of those years didn't you?" Kurt said, this piqued Lita's interest, content to just let the two men talk, and let her listen in on these juicy tidbits of information.

"Um," Chris thought for a second, "Yeah, we did break up in the first year we were together. And as for the second year, we had a sort of break-up, but it was more of a fake thing because our stupid friends thought they could keep us apart."

"You wanted to have the perfect proposal!" Kurt protested, defending his own case.

"How did you want to propose to Stephanie?" Lita asked, curious to know.

"I had bought the ring about eight months before I actually asked her. She was out of work, and we were kind of on the outs when I bought it, but I actually wanted to get her, her job back, and then I was going to give her the pen to sign her new contract and the pen would have the ring on it, and I would've proposed," he explained.

"How did you end up proposing to her?"

Chris laughed, thinking back to the most unromantic proposal in the history of the universe. He had not planned on asking Stephanie in that way, but what could he do with the ring staring him right in the face? Lita was puzzled by his laughter, not expecting a funny story from him, but more of a romantic, sweet, caring, grand gesture, simply grand.

"We were going to break up, and Stephanie was packing up her things because she thought that she could leave me and then Trips would get off my back. She couldn't find a watch or something, and she opened my nightstand to see the ring box, she found out what it was, since it wasn't hard to figure out. She came downstairs, threw the ring at me, asked me to explain, which I did, and how I really wanted to propose, and she told me that didn't matter and all that mattered was the proposal, and so I did what I had to do in that situation, I proposed to her, and she said yes, and the rest, they say, is history."

Lita was stunned to hear that THAT was the way that he had proposed. It sounded like Stephanie had practically forced the proposal out of him. He hadn't even been prepared and she had been clamoring for him to propose. Lita would've let him do it any way that he wanted to do it.

"And on that note, I'm out of here kiddies," Kurt said, patting Chris on the shoulder, "I've got to warm up for my match, good luck in the Rumble later Chris, and nice seeing you Lita."

"Bye," Lita said softly, still stunned.

"Don't break a leg man," Chris said, "And win so that the championship will be on someone worthwhile, and not a crackpot wrestler."

"I'm going to try my hardest."

Chris turned back to Lita once Kurt had left and sent her a small smile. "Oh come on, the proposal wasn't that bad."

"I'm sorry, I just thought it was a lot more…romantic I guess you could say. I mean, she finds the ring and then forces you to propose, what's with that?" Lita said, trying to sound unaffected, but coming off quite poorly.

"She didn't FORCE me," he said, stressing the word he found to be offensive. "She found the ring, wondered about it, and I told her what she wanted to hear, and haven't you ever had a moment where things weren't going like you planned, but it was still a perfect moment. That was definitely one of those moments."

"Oh," Lita said, feeling suddenly deflated. "Sounds nice then."

"Yeah, and if you'll excuse me, I have to go pick my number for the Rumble," Chris said, feeling angry that someone would think that Stephanie had forced him into proposing. He was the one who had held onto a ring for months and months; Stephanie hadn't forced anything on him. "And for the record, my wife would not force me into doing anything that I didn't want to do in the first place. I wanted to propose to her, she just helped me do that."

Chris's wife was still listening to his CD, finding that it did effectively take her mind off of the show. She wasn't even watching it right now, which was rather strange. She would definitely watch the Rumble though, wanting to see Chris of course, but she also had other friends in the match as well…Christian, and of course…Dave.

She looked up and saw two blue eyes staring down at her and she smiled as two hands slipped the headphones off her head. She smiled and Chris leaned down to kiss her, his chin bumping her nose. She sat up and then stood up, looking a bit sheepish.

"I was bored, and I was listening to your CD, good stuff," she said, "Did you get your number?"

"Yes, yes, I did," he said, holding it up for her to see. "It's the same forwards and backwards, number eleven."

"Eleven, that's a good number, I guess, not too early, but not too late, you can work with that," she nodded helpfully. "And what's wrong? You look troubled."

"I look what?"

"Troubled, you know, like you've got something on your mind. And I know you, and I know when you have something on your mind that isn't how much you want to hop into bed naked with me right now."

"Lita was trying to imply that you forced me into proposing to you."

"That I FORCED you, like held you at gunpoint and said, 'If you don't marry me right now, I'm going to kill you,' kind of forcing?"

"I don't think it was quite that violent, and I'm suddenly terrified of you," Chris said, pretending to shake, so much so that Stephanie wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.

"I didn't force you, I simply asked what the hell it was," she said, looking at her ring over his shoulder. "A gorgeous ring that looks fantastic on my finger, and that came with a husband of course."

"I love how I was the afterthought."

"You aren't my after thought. I think Lita has a crush on you," Stephanie said, her voice melodic and teasing at the same time.

"Oh geez," Chris said, pretending to spit the dirty taste out of his mouth. It did taste very dirty. "Why do you think that?"

"A girl can see that. I know that she wants you, and it kills her that she can't have you. I mean, she wants probably because you have nothing to do with her situation. Matt and Kane, they were both involved in that pregnancy thing, and there you are, this nice, charming, good-looking guy that she used to be friends with, and is still that same guy, and yeah…she completely wants your body," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes at the end of her speech.

"Crazy," Chris muttered. "She knows I'm with you."

"Like that would stop her," Stephanie said. "You might as well know what you're getting into, than try to turn a blind eye to it. I've accepted it, you can accept it too."

"Well thanks for being jealous!" Chris said, pushing away from Stephanie and pouting pathetically, an obvious cry for attention. "You'd think that my wife wouldn't want some other girl ogling him, but not my wife. My wife is cool with it, she thinks I should just go with the flow, because she's accepted it too."

"You have millions of girls ogling you every week!" Stephanie argued. "Am I going to go to every one of their houses and start lecturing them on how they shouldn't look at you like that."

"But Lita is someone we see every week, be a little bit jealous woman! What happened to my jealous, fiery Stephanie?"

"You put a ring on her finger," she answered sweetly, "And she calmed down immensely."

"God, if I had known this was going to happen, I never would've married you."

"Gee, thanks," Stephanie said, "That makes me feel so much better."

"I don't want to think about what Lita wants with me, if anything. I'm married now, and I definitely don't want another woman, and even if I did…Lita would be far, far down on that list, far, far, far down on the list, I'm talking-"

"I get it, far down on the list," Stephanie said, nodding for a moment and the looking down to make a face.

Suddenly the door opened and a piece of paper was thrust into the air, "And guess who is officially in the Rumble."

"Kurt, you're not supposed to be in the Rumble," Stephanie said, glancing at Kurt, who was holding up the number twenty in his hands. Chris looked down at his number eleven in distaste, throwing it down dramatically.

"No fair! You got a better number," Chris said petulantly, dropping down onto the couch. "Wait, how the hell did you even get in the Rumble?"

"I bullied my way in. I lost my damn match, and so I'm going to enter the Rumble, and I'm going to win that damn thing, because I want that damn belt."

"Well damn," Stephanie said. "And you barged in on a private conversation to say that to us. Thanks a lot Kurt."

"Private conversation? What about? Oh no…you two weren't going to…" Kurt made a gesture between the two of them and then kind of made a sound like, well, like a sound.

"We don't do that at work," Chris said dully. "It's one of Stephanie's rules."

"Ok you two, the Rumble is starting shortly, so let's go," Stephanie said, pushing them both out the door.

When Chris entered the Rumble it was to a rousing cheer, and he was glad to hear it. He pretty much immediately went after Edge, knowing that he was going to be tired from his match earlier. It also had to do with the fact that he didn't like Edge, and that probably had more to do with it. But he went after Edge nonetheless. But these matches are nothing if not chaotic and he found himself floating around.

He did join the gang up on Hassan when he came out, though he was mainly just following the group. They were like vultures on him, and eliminated him immediately. Then he was almost eliminated by Benjamin, but he was able to avoid that. He was good at avoiding elimination. As one of the top superstars, he was definitely going to be a target at times, but if he could keep his cool, then he could last in this thing.

Eventually he noticed a pattern that he was setting for himself. He kept going back to Edge. He just guessed that he wasn't as over his former friendship with Edge as he thought he was. There was still quite a bit of lingering anger there. Maybe that was motivation speaking, and maybe that was just an excuse to give it his all, but every time he saw Edge, he saw red.

His Rumble dreams for this year faded as Dave came in. Chris, in his haze of fighting, went after Dave, like an idiot, and got eliminated. Dave, in his defense, felt kind of bad for eliminating Stephanie's husband, especially after everything that she had done for him, but it was every man for himself, and if anyone understood that concept it was Dave. Stephanie would still want in on the plan, even if he had just eliminated her husband.

Chris stumbled up the ramp, not entirely sure of where he was going. He tripped a little on the carpet and started to turn to the right, only to have Stephanie waiting just outside the wings. She was right there, like she always was, watching over him, like she always would be and it lifted the haze that had covered him when Dave had so unceremoniously dumped him onto the floor below.

"Hey," she said, her voice tinged with sympathy. "You don't look so good."

"I'm fine."

"Are you still not sorry that I didn't fix the match for you?"

"I'm fine with what happened," Chris said. "I'm probably just never going to win the Rumble. Doesn't discount all my other accomplishments. I just want to take a shower, and then get out of her when the show is over."

"Ok, if that's what you want," she said sweetly, grabbing his hand as they walked back to the dressing room. He loved that just holding her hand seemed to wash away his disappointment. It wasn't like he was hurting or anything. He just had to remind himself that he owned everyone here, and he controlled everyone here (Yes, so he had thought that wouldn't be a factor, but really, when you're feeling bad, doesn't it make you feel better to think that you are better than a lot of people?).

Stephanie was still watching the Rumble while Chris was in the shower, and she saw her father fall and was worried until she saw that Dave had won. She leaned back in her chair, lifted her feet up and onto the table and smiled with happiness. If Chris couldn't win, then this was the next best thing. Dave had won and he was going to face Hunter at WrestleMania, and finally, Hunter would get what was coming to him.

She celebrated by climbing into the shower with Chris.

He had no complaints.


	20. Not Much to Say, January 31, 2005

A/N: Sorry for having this up so late. The show was a little underwhelming to watch (not be at, that was fine), and I just didn't have any inspiration whatsoever.

Although Jericho did see my Steph/Jericho sign at Raw, and gave me the most funny, confused face ever. I don't think he was expecting to see it…oh well.

And on the subject of the story, I'm sorry if you think that I'm being abnormally mean about Lita. I make it no secret that I don't like Lita, and I am an unapologetic mocker. As of right now, she is an antagonist in the story, and therefore, in the forseeable future, she will not be treated too kindly, and I'm sory if you're offended by it, but I'm not going to change it. I do have other stories where Lita is a nice character and there is no mocking and she's a good character, but this isn't that story, but please feel free to read those other stories, because I'm not always cruel about Lita, I swear. ;)

Enjoy. :)

* * *

"Ok Daddy, I hope that you feel better soon." 

Stephanie ended her call and put her phone back on top of her desk. Her father had injured himself last night at the Royal Rumble. What was funny was the fact that he hadn't been doing anything. Guys had been thrown over the ropes, and suffered no injuries, yet her father walked to the ring and hurt his knee. She felt bad to admit it, but she had giggled a little when she saw him fall on his ass. She was human, and it was a human response.

She did feel slightly bad for laughing at her father, but that feeling soon passed when she thought about the show tonight. It was an inflated show, consisting of both Raw and SmackDown. She didn't have to worry about SmackDown though, because she didn't run that show, and they had someone else who ran it. Though she would venture a guess and say that whoever it was wasn't as good as her.

"Hey Steph," Kurt Angle said as he walked into the room.

"Kurt, this is a surprise," Stephanie said happily. One thing she did like about the show was that Kurt was here, and she could talk to him at leisure. She missed Kurt, and though she hadn't told him that to his face, she was sure he knew. It just wasn't the same without Kurt around. He was so much like Chris and Stephanie that the three of them felt like…almost like a family. And it hurt to think that one of the family was somewhere where you couldn't go.

"Miss me?" he asked, giving her that patented Kurt grin.

"When don't I miss you?" she said flirtatiously. "You need to come by more often."

"I know I do…but I'm sure you have fun with Christian and Trish, and even Randy," Kurt chuckled, sitting atop Stephanie's desk, facing her. She leaned back in her chair and patted his knee companionably.

"I do, but they're not you. You know that you are my very best friend in the entire world, and have been for a while…minus any back-stabbing during any invasions," she said slyly.

"That was for your own good you power-hungry woman," Kurt shot back.

"So I like the power, nothing wrong with that," she said, sticking her nose in the air. "I want there to be another draft just so I can have you on my show!"

"Arrange it," Kurt said. "If anyone can do that, you can."

"I might be able to, but why don't you ask Chris, let him embrace the sudden power that he has over everyone," Stephanie laughed. "He said that knowing that he was in charge of everyone made him feel better about losing the Rumble."

"Whatever works right," Kurt laughed. "Although that is a good pick-me-up. If he had complete control, I'm sure Hunter would suddenly find himself out on the streets huh?"

"Chris is compassionate, he would find a suitable place in the company for Hunter, scrubbing toilets or something."

"Where is your boy toy?" Kurt asked, looking around as if Chris had just magically shown up without him knowing it.

"Around," she said, shrugging. She didn't know where Chris was at the moment. They had parted ways when they got to the arena, and she hadn't seen him since. He was probably having fun or eating, and she wasn't in any rush to see him.

"And you don't know?"

"No, should I?" Stephanie said sarcastically. "Chris is perfectly capable of walking around of his own free will. He doesn't need my help. He went thirty-four years without me being married to him, and he can cope, I'm sure."

"Geez, you ask a simple question and you get lambasted by the answer," Kurt said, then furrowed his brow in thought. "So we were talking to Lita last night…"

"And she has a crush on Chris, I'm well-aware," Stephanie nodded, then raised an eyebrow when Kurt's eyes widened. "I know what goes on around here Kurt, you'd be surprised what I know around here."

"You know that Lita has a crush on Chris, and this doesn't bother you?" Kurt didn't know who the hell this woman was that was standing before him. Stephanie would never stand for someone going after her man. Look what she had done to Trish…

"Should I really be worried?" Stephanie asked. "Do you think that Chris is going to have an affair? I'd be ever so devastated!"

"Well, remember when Trish was going after Hunter, you were so pissed."

"Because I knew that Hunter had the potential to cheat on me. Saying that Chris would cheat on me is like saying that the sun isn't going to shine tomorrow, and we both know that's not going to happen."

"So you're ok with it?" he asked, still a little bit confused.

"Hell no, I'm not ok with it. I just know that nothing is going to come of it. Chris loves me."

"Yeah, he does, so I guess there is nothing to worry about with you two and her."

"Aww, were you concerned for us Kurt?" Stephanie cooed, making googly eyes at Kurt.

"No, like you said, I know that Chris loves you."

"Now that we're talking about Chris, I do kind of wonder where he is, I haven't seen him for like two hours."

"Wow, I wasn't entirely sure that you could be away from each other for that long."

"Trust me, we can. We almost killed each other on the drive from Fresno to here. We couldn't agree on music for one. It was late and I didn't want to listen to metal and he would not back down at all. Then he was driving like a man possessed and we fought over that too. Just because we're married doesn't mean the world is going to be rosy."

"You've ruined the illusion," Kurt said sadly.

"It had to be said Kurt," Stephanie said sympathetically.

"Ok, I understand, it pains me, but it still hurts, deep down."

Chris was not lamenting his marriage, nor was he discussing his marriage. He and Benoit had a tag match tonight for the championship belts (how much of this was Stephanie's influence he didn't know, but he knew people were going to speculate nonetheless, everything he did from now on was going to be scrutinized). They wanted to discuss a little strategy before the match happened later that evening.

"So how did we get this match?" Benoit asked, and Chris knew that he was thinking what Chris himself had been thinking.

"I don't know," Chris answered truthfully. "If you're thinking that Stephanie did this, she might have, but I don't know."

"Ok, I was just wondering, it's a good opportunity. We're better than La Resistance, by the end of the night, we should have those belts, I'm sure of it, but if the match is getting too rough, I'm sure you can have your wife send out a referee to make a fast count for us."

Chris rolled his eyes, "God, is this what it's come down to? I was the Undisputed Champion before I met Stephanie you know, don't forget that!"

"I didn't," Benoit smirked, "You won't let anyone forget that."

"Well, it's not a statistic that just anyone can say, I was the first one, and nobody else can say that."

"Well, I made Hunter tap clean at WrestleMania," Benoit countered and smirked at Chris, because that was not a feat the Chris could duplicate. Sure, Chris had put Hunter in the Walls on the announcer's table knowing that Chris was hurt, but this was different.

"Fine, you've got me there."

Benoit laughed at the face that Chris was making at the moment. It was like a mixture of disappointment, anger, and bitterness. Benoit just patted Chris's shoulder, to which Chris scoffed and shrugged off. He caught a flash of red out of the corner of his eye and saw that Lita was coming over. He resisted the urge to sneer and walk away. He wasn't through talking with Benoit anyways, and Benoit was not the kind of guy who liked to be stood up.

"Well, you did face him that one time, you lost though."

"I know, don't remind me please."

"At least you can say it was because you were protecting Stephanie though," Benoit reasoned. Chris nodded slightly; somehow, everything he did came back to Stephanie. He really had to go back to the very beginning of his WWF career to think of something he had done that didn't (indirectly or directly) have to do with her. He could also make the claim in reference to his previous jobs in other companies, so that was something.

"That's true," Chris shrugged, becoming increasingly aware that Lita was still approaching. Now she was right up to them and Chris managed to not make eye contact of any kind with her.

"Hey Chris, and Chris," she said, laughing uncomfortably. She turned to Benoit then, "Chris, do you mind if I have a word alone with Chris."

"Yeah, sure," Benoit said, confused, but complying. "We've worked together before Chris, I think we'll be fine for the match later, you agree?"

"Yeah, we'll win, hands down," Chris said, shaking Benoit's hand before Benoit left. He knew that he was going to have to talk to Lita now, but he was still avoiding eye contact at all costs. He was still peeved that she had the audacity to say that Stephanie forced him into marrying her. Stephanie was a persuasive bitch when she wanted to be, but he loved her and wanting to marry her was an idea that he thought of all by himself.

"Chris," Lita started, then paused when she saw that he wasn't even looking at her. She took a deep breath, combined it with a sigh, and then continued, "I wanted to apologize for what I said to you last week. I feel terribly about it."

Chris snorted in disbelief, but he was a good guy and calmed himself down enough to respond, "It's cool, whatever."

"No, not whatever. Stephanie's your wife, and obviously you love her enough to settle down with her. You just have to excuse me, because I still can't see why you would marry her, of all people. I guess I still have the image of the Jericho I used to know in my head, and that Jericho would rather shoot himself than marry Stephanie McMahon."

Chris allowed himself a laugh. It was true. There was still a part of him that hated Stephanie's guts. That wanted to see her pay for everything she had done to him. He had been in hospitals because of her. He had had stitches because of her. She was a thorn in his side, someone that made his life a living hell, and that part would always exist, but it had been replaced. Just when that replacement had happened, he could say for sure. He didn't know when his thoughts about Stephanie had started to change, slowly but surely. It wasn't a sudden thing. He didn't wake up one morning and think that today was the day that he was going to like Stephanie; it was a process, a long process.

"It's true," he admitted, not reluctantly. "You knew a very different Chris Jericho."

"I miss him sometimes," she told him. "I miss the old gang. The whole lot of us, I miss it. Times have sure changed."

"You can say that again," Chris said. "It's cool Lita. Sometimes we just get carried away I guess. I'm just protective of Steph's image."

"I'm sorry too," Lita said. "I hope that we can still be friends."

"I'm never short of friends Lita," Chris said, sticking his hand out. Lita shook it quickly, smiling at him. She was glad that she had been forgiven.

Stacy was hanging onto Randy's arm as they walked into the arena. Randy was smiling…very little, but he was smiling. Spending the entire day with Stacy Keibler was quite trying on his poor soul. She wasn't a difficult person to deal with necessarily, but…she was, if that made any kind of sense. She was difficult in the way that he didn't exactly want to be out with her, and that put a damper on his whole evening.

"So then they want me to wear these really high heels, and it makes me look like I'm seven feet tall. I can wear heels, but I have to be with really tall guys," she said, then looked at him coyly, "Just like you are Randy."

"Thanks," he said, though it was an odd response. He was thanking her for calling him tall. Yeah, he had just about enough of Stacy at this point. "I have to go get a schedule."

"I'll come with you," she said, still hanging onto his arm. "I'm not quite ready for our day to be over yet."

"Oh, well, after I read the schedule, I was probably going to go visit with Chris and Stephanie, and then maybe Trish and Christian." Randy hoped that would put her off on the idea of hanging around him so much. He didn't know Stacy's rapport with either of the two couples, but for his sake, he hoped that she was frightened of them.

"That's fine, I'll just go with you, I'm nothing if not friendly," she said sweetly. Randy wanted to puke…the sugar was getting into his system. He just chuckled and kept walking with the human anchor on his arm.

"So you're not seeing anyone?" Randy asked, a stupid question, but a valid one if he ever had a chance of breaking away from her.

"Nope, Test and I broke up. It just wasn't working out, you know, but I'm sure you know that, because it was a while ago. But after that, nobody. I mean, look at me, you'd think that I would be snatched up!"

"Yeah, I would think that. Oh look, someone with a schedule," Randy said, walking quickly over to one of the production crew. He practically snatched the schedule from the guy's hand and studied it. Stacy, being as tall as she was, looked over his shoulder to look at the schedule, and read what he was doing.

"You have a tag match," she noted, obviously. "Doesn't sound too bad."

Oh, way to put that into an understatement, Randy thought to himself. He was in a tag match against Hunter and Flair. Now Flair, Randy could take easy, that was a no-brainer. But he was facing Hunter, and Hunter was a formidable opponent, as loath as Randy was to admit it. He would focus much more on what he was going to do with Hunter than what he was going to do with Flair.

"No, doesn't sound bad at all."

"How are you feeling though?" Stacy asked. "I mean, you were pretty out of it last night, and I hope that you aren't still suffering from the concussion."

"I'm not, I swear…not too much anyways."

"Good, I don't want to see you get any more hurt tonight," Stacy told him, patting his arm.

"I'll try my hardest not to."

"Ok, can I meet up with you later?" she asked. Randy sighed, but then put on a dazzling and rather charming smile for her. Stacy giggled softly, not being able to resist the charm that Randy seemed to ooze.

"Yeah, sure, if you want," Randy said, not wanting to put her out. It wasn't that he didn't like Stacy, let's get that straight, he didn't really mind Stacy, she was just…sometimes too much to handle in large doses. But if he got a break every now and then, well, then he could deal with her a lot more.

Stacy actually squealed in happiness. Randy had to physically take a step back from her, hoping that she was ok. She leaned in closer to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek, and none too discreetly either. She was almost pouncing on him, but before he could react, she was bounding away happily, intent on finding Torrie and telling her all about Randy. Victoria passed by Stacy, and then saw Randy up ahead and she gave him a wave.

"Hey," she said, stopping in front of him.

"Hey," Randy said, winking at her. He was expecting more from her, conversation, a smile, anything, but he wasn't expecting her to stand there for a moment and then completely bail. He stood dumbfounded for a moment and then looked to see her retreating figure, confused as to her behavior.

He didn't know what to do so he figured his best bet was just to go see what Stephanie was doing. The show had started, as he could see it on a monitor that he had passed by, so he figured that Stephanie would be watching and mediating over the show. He was correct as he saw her sitting there, headphones on, but she didn't seem too much into the show. Kurt was sitting atop the table, facing her, and she was laughing at something he was saying, so hard she had to hide her face in his leg to keep from cracking up. Randy figured that Kurt was better than watching Hunter, who was currently on television, waxing poetic about something or nothing, who knew with him.

He walked over to them slowly, not wanting to interrupt them if they were in serious discussion. They didn't appear to be, and so he felt a little bit more comfortable approaching them. He knew that Stephanie was great friends with Kurt, and it felt to him like he was intruding on their relationship, or friendship, which was a better word.

"God, I miss you Kurt," Stephanie said smiling at her friend, then seeing Randy over Kurt's shoulder. "Hey Randy, what's up?"

"Just wanted to see what you were doing, I'm not interrupting, am I?"

"Of course not, Kurt was just regaling me with hilarious stories about when he traveled with Chris. I think this was around the same time that you were just starting out in the company."

"Oh, so like 2002?"

"Yeah," Kurt said, "Chris and I, man, we were men about town."

"Well, I don't need to hear about any women or anything that you might've picked up, trust me Kurt, I love you, but our relationship is not so close that I want to hear about any girls you took to bed."

"Ok, I guess I'll keep it from you then."

"Good, I don't have to worry about Chris because I know exactly how many women he's been with and when," Stephanie said proudly. Randy and Kurt both knew she was just happy about her marriage, and the fact that she was with someone like that again. She had that glow that she had when she was first married to Hunter (after she got over the whole kidnapping thing), but without all of the bitchiness. "Speaking of, have you seen him! I don't even know where he is!"

"Sorry Steph, I haven't seen him all evening," Randy said.

"Weird," she said, tapping her chin thoughtfully, wondering where her husband could be. "Eh, I'm sure I'll see him for his match."

Hunter came backstage after his little spiel out in the ring, and much to Stephanie's chagrin, he came over to the table. She was expecting the worst, but all he said was, "Stephanie, can we talk?"

Stephanie looked to Randy and Kurt, who both looked ready to pounce on Hunter at a moment's notice. She loved having tons of boys to protect her (mainly because she knew that she could protect herself and didn't need them at all), but she put a calming hand on both of them before standing up. She took off her headphones, nodding to her assistants and pointing out that she was taking a break.

She followed Hunter, who had left Flair with Kurt and Randy, who were still watching them leave. She was a little bit wary of what he wanted to discuss, but she knew that he wouldn't pull anything with her while so many of her friends were in the building. They arrived at his locker room and he opened the door for her. He motioned for the couch, but she declined, preferring to stand.

"Your father came up to me last night and told me to stay away from you," Hunter said, pacing the floor in front of her. Stephanie winced. She was going to kill her father for meddling, especially with this. It made her seem weak, despite his good intentions.

"I never told him to say that," Stephanie said firmly.

"I know," Hunter answered, then looked at her. "I've come to some hard truths today…you hate my guts."

"I do," she said with a smile, "And I don't."

"You don't," he said incredulously.

"Hunter," she said, not knowing where to begin, but her voice already seemed thinned out. It was carrying a burden, and they could both tell. His name, simply his name, held so much grief and bitterness, but then, other feelings too, deep and buried, but still lingering. NOW she felt like she should sit down. "What I feel for you is so complicated."

"We've never been easy to figure out Stephanie. One second we're great, fine, the next we're at each other's throats. I thought it was passion."

"It was, but I was younger, you were the bad boy, and I was…stupid," she said with a laugh of hindsight, which one only gains after the event has occurred.

"I never do this, and I never will again," Hunter said, his eyes changing, "I'm sorry, for everything, everything I've done to you, for the past four years, everything, there you have it, you are free."

Stephanie's jaw dropped. This was a moment she never thought would come. This was a moment she didn't even dare try to hope for because she knew that it was so far off-base that it would never come true. But Hunter was apologizing, for EVERYTHING, every insignificant thing that he had ever done, and he was apologizing for it all. Christmas had arrived late this year, way late.

"You do?" she said, truly gobsmacked by his apology.

"You're married, what can I do now?" he said. That was true.

"Thank you," Stephanie said genuinely, giving him a smile. She awkwardly reached out and kind of gave him a half hug/pat on the back.

"Least I can do," he said.

Stephanie smiled widely at him and stood there for a moment, just staring at him gratefully. She turned to leave and then looked back at him incredulously one more time before exiting the door. She closed the door behind her and her face immediately fell into a suspicious scowl. What had just happened shocked her alright, but not the good kind of shocking.

"Oh he's up to something," she muttered to herself, "He is definitely up to something."

Chris was still talking with Lita, the both of them having fallen into easy conversation. A lot of it was full of reminiscing the past, and the times they had together. Chris didn't really think much of those times now; his life was very different, and changed, and he just didn't feel the need to relive a past that didn't have Stephanie in it, but it was his past and they were things that he had done.

"Yeah, I talked to Jeff just the other day, he's doing really well, which is good for him. The change of scenery was just what he needed," Lita said.

"That's cool. I can't imagine leaving the company now," Chris said. "I've been her for so long, longer than I've been with any other company ever, I think, yeah, I'm pretty sure."

"I don't think you could leave now, right?" Lita asked. "I mean, word has it that you own the company."

"Word has it right, I do own the company, or part of the company, but not really, you know. I mean, Stephanie and I, well, she mostly, well, no, not just she, the both of us, we own ten percent of the company," he stammered, still not entirely clear how this all went. He was totally hazy on this whole, "owning the company" thing.

"But still, that's owning the company, and that's huge. I mean, did you EVER think you would be owning it all?"

"No," he said honestly.

"Well you are," she said, resting her hand on his knee. He noticed, but made no note of it. He wasn't stupid, and now Stephanie's words were coming back to haunt him. But still, Stephanie wasn't worried, so why should he be worried? It was just a harmless crush right. She was just reaching out for the nearest guy, and he was it.

"Yeah, I am, and it's strange, let me tell you. Stephanie is my wife, my WIFE," he said, none to subtly, but her hand was still there. "I thought that the day that happened, flying pigs would be ice skating in hell."

Lita laughed, "You're funny."

"And I also have a match that I should get ready for," Chris said, getting up rather quickly and letting her hand drop off his knee. "See you later."

"Bye Chris," she said companionably.

He walked away from her and around the corner, leaning up against it, closing his eyes. "She is up to something, I know that she is up to something."

Chris went back to his dressing room, and for the first time in hours, he saw Stephanie, and was glad to see her. She was sitting at her desk, with the television on, but apparently, she was doing other work. She looked up at him and smiled, then went back to tapping her pen on a rather large file.

"Where've you been?" Stephanie asked, pausing a moment.

"Nowhere, around," Chris said, not revealing that he had just been with Lita. The jealousy might not be here now, but he had a feeling that it would show up sooner or later. "Where've you been this entire time? Avoiding me?"

"I was around too," she said, giving him a radiant smile. No use in telling him about Hunter. It would only get him riled up and she didn't want him distracted for his match.

Chris nodded and walked past Stephanie to gather his things and put his wrestling gear on and get ready. When he was ready, he sat next to Stephanie's desk and watched her work diligently. She tapped her pen for a few seconds but then looked at him sternly, not appreciating being watched.

"Can I help?" he asked nicely.

"You want to help me?" she asked slowly, wondering if she had heard correctly. Chris had never asked to help her with her work before. Why was now so different?

"Well, you're obviously annoyed by me…and since you did put up with my music tonight-"

"You threatened to throw me out of the car in the middle of cattle country!" she argued.

"Regardless," he laughed, "I'm trying to make amends because I don't want to have our first fight as a married couple."

"We fought the day after we got married because you wanted to go see a volcano, and I wanted to go to the beach," she told him, but then continued. "Didn't matter because we ended up in bed, but there was a fight. We fought last night for God's sakes, over the music."

"I'm talking major fight, those are like…fightlets, not real fights, but just little arguments. I don't want you to get really mad at me…not yet anyways. I mean, I have to figure fighting is worse within a marriage."

"How do you figure that?"

"You've got two rings woman!" he said loudly, "If you were to sucker punch me with those, you could take my eye out!"

"I'm not left-handed, so I'd have to switch hands and then punch you."

"And you'd do it too," he nodded.

"I'm looking over Dave's contract," she told him. "I'm just trying to see if there's any clause which says that he can't go over to SmackDown. Then I'm going to look over the Royal Rumble contracts and disclaimers and see if this is legal. I thought that it was squared away after last year that you couldn't switch shows with a title shot, but now I'm not so sure. God, if I were a lawyer, it would be so much better because then I could just draw up the contracts."

"And you're good with the whole arguing thing," he added helpfully, or so he thought as Stephanie dumped a large file in front of him. "Oh man, so this is what you're going to be doing on the entire trip to Japan."

"You betcha," Stephanie said. "I wasn't going to go and join the Mile-High Club or anything if that's what you were thinking."

"It wasn't, but now I am."

"Get your mind out of the gutter, and get to work," she ordered, tapping her pen on the file. He sighed and opened it up, starting to read the first page. The things you did when you loved somebody were astounding.

Later in the evening, Randy found himself not able to escape from Stacy, not that he tried hard. He kind of liked having someone worry about him, and Stacy wasn't so bad. So she wasn't GREAT or anything, but it was kind of nice having someone around. Especially after the almost cold shoulder that he had received courtesy of Victoria. He had to admit, that one hurt.

After Chris's match with Benoit against La Resistance, he needed to cool off, seriously. They should've won and to have a double disqualification was bullshit, plain and simple. Benoit had not given it his all, and apparently, Benoit did not think that he had given his all. It made for a very awkward situation wherein they both thought the other was wrong, and in this business, you only settle that one way…

"Stephanie, I want a match next week!" Chris said petulantly as he crossed his arms in front of his bare and still sweaty chest.

Stephanie looked up from her document. "I swear, if I lose my place, I'm going to murder you, and then get all your money."

"Stephanie, come on, I want a match with Benoit, next week, one on one. He said that I wasn't giving my all, I was absolutely giving my all!"

"I know you were sweetie," Stephanie said, standing up and walking over to him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned in to kiss and suck on his neck a little. It helped calm him down a little as he became distracted by Stephanie's lips. They were such nice lips.

"Mmhmm," he mumbled, and she laughed against his skin, her breath hot and warm as she made her way to his collarbone.

"You can have any match that you want," she told him. "You just have to tell me."

"Benoit, I want Benoit," Chris said breathily.

"You sure you don't want me," she answered with a slight giggle.

"Oh yeah, I want you," he answered, tackling her to the sofa.

A short while later (they were in the arena, and Stephanie only allowed a quickie), Chris was relaxed, but not by much. Stephanie ordered him to go take a walk and clear his head from thoughts of Benoit while she called Bischoff and told him to book a match between Chris and Benoit next week, whatever else he wanted to add was fine.

She was satisfied with that and then went back to looking over the document. She was still listening to the show and heard Hunter's match starting. She watched disinterestedly until she heard them throw out Dave. She looked up to the screen and saw him smiling; it both alarmed and amused her. She pulled out her cell phone and when she saw Dave safely backstage, she called his cell phone.

Dave pulled his phone out of his breast pocket and answered it with a simple, "Hello?"

"Dave, it's Steph, I just wanted to know what that was."

"That was me not caring about what the hell Hunter thinks."

"Are you going to SmackDown?" Stephanie asked, concerned for both the show and herself.

"I want a belt, that's what I want."

"And Hunter."

"We'll see what happens there."

"He's up to something, I know it."

"We're up to something too, so I guess at some point, we're going to butt heads."

Too bad that Dave didn't see someone skulking around, listening to his conversation.


	21. A Chris, Chris Feud Please, February 7, ...

"Ok, time to stop being antsy," Stephanie told her pacing husband.

"I'm not being antsy," Chris argued, falling down on the couch. "I Just want to fight Benoit!"

"Ok, that's it! I am going to put your match first. I'm NOT going to deal with you when you're like this."

"Ha ha! My plan worked!" Chris yelled triumphantly.

Stephanie's eyes narrowed at him, and he shot her a charming, and somewhat apologetic look. She couldn't stay angry at him when he was looking at her like that. She sat down in his lap and snuggled against him. He turned his head slightly and dropped a kiss on her forehead, feeling very serene.

"Hi," he said sweetly, looking down at her.

"Hey," she said shyly, kissing him softly, "How are you?"

"I think I've settled into this marriage thing," he nodded proudly, "I'm completely in husband mode."

"That's…good…I fail to see the difference," she told him.

"Oh, I was just talking about getting used to my wedding ring," he said. She laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck, gazing at him lovingly. It was really quite sickening if you were on the outside looking in.

"You do NOT control me Christian!" Chris and Stephanie both knew who that was. There would only be one female who would yell at Christian like that.

"Ok, so we've been in Japan for almost a week," Chris said, to which Stephanie nodded in agreement, "And not one day has gone by where those two were not fighting. We've been sight-seeing and everything, and it erupts into a fight."

Stephanie rolled her eyes, "He's being stupid, she was getting revenge."

"During a steel cage match! With Kane! In a steel cage! I'd be mad at you if you did that."

"I did, before we were together."

"I don't care about before we were together. That was before after all, and I probably didn't like you."

"You did, it was when we were business partners."

"Oh, well then, I don't know why I didn't yell at you for being so stupid."

"I had Kurt," she said to him.

"No wonder I didn't care, he can take good care of you, you know if anything should ever happen to me."

"Don't say things like that," Stephanie said, chastising him gently. "I don't like to hear you talk about things like…things happening to you that aren't good."

"Cause you love me," he said, irritating her by rubbing their noses together.

"Yuck, don't do that to me again, on punishment of torture," she said. "And I swear to God Chris, if you do anything next week for Valentine's Day…head on a stick…that's all I'll say."

"I already know that you hate the day, but I'm still going to treat you a little bit better."

"I'm not going to treat you any differently."

"I know."

It was then that Trish and Christian burst into the room, startling Chris and Stephanie. Christian and Trish ignored them, though it was their locker room/office, and kept arguing. Stephanie just looked at Chris, who knew that the moment had been ruined. Just like Christian and Trish had been ruining every moment of their trip to Japan. Even locking their hotel room had not worked, Christian and Trish getting around that by pounding on the door at all hours, interrupting…things between Chris and Stephanie.

"Christian, it is NOT your decision to make whether or not I do something, that is MY decision and my decision only."

"Oh fine, so say sometime in the future you tell me you want to marry me, just because you say it, it's going to be true with no input from me, I'm just going to have to go along with it because it's YOUR decision."

"That's different and you know it!" she yelled at him.

"HOW! Either way, it's me caring about your well-being."

"But it's NOT your body on the line!"

"Yeah, it's yours, and I love you, and I'm not going to tolerate walking by a monitor only to see you, in your neck brace no less-"

"Trying to exact my revenge on Kane," Trish finished. "It's been the same line all week long, the same EXACT LINE!"

"Um, that's what you've been saying all week," Chris said, and both Christian and Trish sent him a death glare, and he held up his hands in defense, "Look around, you guys are in OUR locker room."

Trish looked around, "Oh, I guess we are…I'm sick and tired of him."

"You're the one that's being a bitch," Christian said and Chris knew immediately that was going to get him in some hot water. He made a face like he was getting burned, and Christian had yet to see what he had done, but seeing Trish's jaw drop, he knew that he was going to probably get slapped.

"HOW DARE YOU SAY THAT TO ME!" Trish roared, which was incredible because she wasn't that big a woman, but man, she yelled so loud that Chris and Stephanie were plotting their escape routes at the moment. It was going to have to be stealthy and quick so as not to anger Trish any more than she was already angered.

"But you are," Christian said, getting himself into more hot water. "You're the one who doesn't even care that I'm caring about your well-being. Excuse me for not wanting to see the woman that I love be hurt while she is still recovering from an injury she got from the same guy she's trying to screw over!"

"Are you listening to this!" Trish scoffed, turning to Chris and Stephanie who greeted her face with forced smiles.

"Um…what?" Stephanie said, pretending to be hard of hearing. This was not their fight to be involved with, even if they both had clear-cut sides that they were on.

"Christian, you are making me so angry," Trish said through clenched teeth.

Christian folded his arms in front of himself, "I don't care, I'm not budging on this until YOU apologize."

"APOLOGIZE, and why don't you tell me just what I'm going to be apologizing for?"

"Making me worry," he said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the entire world.

"Hey guys, what's up," Randy said, walking nonchalantly into the room, then seeing Christian and Trish, he cringed. He had heard them yelling, but thought they were in another room. He had learned quickly that if they were loud enough, you could hear them wherever you were in Japan, it wasn't a large country. "Damn it."

"We got caught too," Chris stage-whispered to Randy, who was frozen in the doorway.

"Um, I think I'm going to…go," Randy said, slowly backing away from the room, but Trish suddenly looked at him, her eyes fierce, and he seriously almost yelped in fear.

"Randy, do you think it was unreasonable for me to want to go out there last week? And be completely honest," Trish said, looking at him.

Randy mulled his choices, and decided he might as well just tell the truth so that Trish wouldn't kill him. "I don't think it was that bad. You didn't expect Kane to catch the door, and chances were certainly good that you would get out of there unscathed, and you had that thing on your neck to protect you, so I don't think it was that big a risk."

"Oh, I see how it is," Christian said, looking between them, "I see how it is now. I'm out of here, and Trish, don't speak to me for the rest of this trip!"

"Gladly!"

"And you Randy…well, you just don't get it, do you," Christian said, poking him in the chest as he walked by.

Randy knew he was pissed, so he just stood there and took it because he knew that Christian did have valid reasons for being angry with Trish. Trish, for her part, smiled victoriously. She walked up to Randy and kissed his cheek, leaning up on her tiptoes to do so. He stood there awkwardly as he left.

"I really didn't want to have to do that," he said.

"And I think I speak for Stephanie when I say that we really don't want you to have to stay," Chris said, then yelling oww when she hit him. "Or, you know, that's just what I'm thinking."

"Yeah, that's more like it," Stephanie said kindly. "You can stay."

"No thanks," Randy said, "Now I'm just feeling all kinds of uncomfortable, and yeah, I'd rather…hide from Christian."

"That might be a good idea," Stephanie laughed, then added, "The hiding from Christian part, not the whole feeling uncomfortable so you have to leave, Chris and I weren't going to do anything, we were talking, not to mention with the fighting duo stomping around, we're not safe."

"That's true, well there goes my plans with any girl I wanted to bring back to my locker room."

"Stacy, right?" Stephanie said, raising an eyebrow, but knowing that she was right.

"She hangs around me," Randy said dully. "I mean, she's nice, and you know, pretty, I guess, but she's the one that's constantly around me, not vice versa."

"But you like her a little?" Stephanie asked.

"Very little."

"I know who he really likes," Chris teased, and Stephanie turned to him, surprise on her face. He just looked at her and said, "For someone who likes to know everything, sometimes you don't know anything at all."

"Well, fine then," Stephanie said, "Maybe I'll go see someone else and…and…do stuff!"

"You have to get back to your contracts, for the fifth time," Chris told her, and she gasped, remembering that she did still have to look at the contracts. She alighted from Chris's lap and to her desk, taking out her pen and highlighter and getting back down to work.

"She's my little worker bee," Chris said, standing up and then leaning on the back of the couch, looking at Stephanie briefly before turning back to Randy. "So do you have anything for the show tonight?"

"Not that I know of, and now it'll give Stacy more time to both-no, hang out with me," Randy said, correcting himself and trying not to think of Stacy as a nuisance. She wasn't a nuisance, she was…well, ok, so he was going to admit it, she was nice, and sometimes she was funny, and if he had to say it, she was kind of pretty.

Randy saw movement out of the corner of his eye and saw Victoria walking right past the door. He had been looking for her before he had come in here to interrupt Christian and Trish. He excused himself from Chris and chased after her. They hadn't talked since last week, which was sort of unusual, since they usually talked at least twice during the week when they weren't working. He knew that she had blown him off on Monday, but she still couldn't be in that weird mood, or so he hoped.

What really perplexed him though, and made him scratch his head was the fact that Victoria was going to be in a diva fashion show tonight. That was totally not like her. Not that she wasn't beautiful and everything, and her wrestling outfit was already pretty skimpy, but it was still weird. This was more up Stacy's alley than it was up Victoria's. Victoria was an amazing wrestler, and Stacy couldn't wrestle so it seemed to make more sense to Randy for Stacy to be in the show and not Victoria.

"Ree! Wait up!" Randy said, jogging up to her.

Victoria stopped and turned around, a terse smile on her face. "Hi Randy."

"Hey, um, I saw what you were doing for the show, and I have to say that I was surprised."

"Oh," Victoria said, crossing her arms, and giving him a look, "Is that a problem?"

"Um…no, I just found it a little strange since we both know that your real skill is wrestling in the ring, not prancing around it in little to no clothes."

"Oh, so you're saying I'm not pretty enough to do anything besides wrestle?" she asked flippantly.

"No, I think you're beautiful, you know that, I mean, you KNOW that," he said, reiterating his point to make sure that she did indeed know that. Because she was…beautiful that is.

"Sure," she said, looking anywhere but at him, and there was the problem, at least from what Randy could see, or not see, it was unclear whether he really got the point.

"I just don't think it's you Ree."

"Well you know what Randy? Before I actually learned wrestling, I was one of the Godfather's hos, and I was gorgeous, and I still am, and I don't care what you think, or who you're with, ok, you don't matter to me. I'm going to go out there and I'm going to stun that crowd, and stand with those divas and not think of myself as just a wrestler. I can wrestle Randy, but I can also feel a little pretty once in a while."

She stormed off and Randy called out weakly to her, "Ree, wait, please!"

But she didn't stop, she just kept on walking and Randy sighed deeply. He was struggling with feelings for a few different girls, and it confused him. He didn't want to settle down, he wasn't Chris, or Christian, and he wasn't even sure what he wanted right now, but he knew that he didn't want Victoria to be mad at him.

He didn't have long to think about it when one of the girls that he was quickly developing feelings for bounded up to him, greeting him with a chaste kiss to the cheek and a sweet smile. "Hey Randy, how're you feeling?"

"You asked me that already," Randy said to Stacy, but in a kind tone, not at all snappy or condescending.

"I'm just making sure," she told him. "You want to escort me to catering?"

"I'd love to," he said, taking her hand and starting to walk with her.

Later on in the evening, Stephanie pushed Chris out to the ring with a parting kiss. It had been a while since he had been in Japan, and it was always a good feeling. He had used to wrestle here back in the day, and the good people of Japan had not forgotten and gave him a warm welcome, one which he appreciated and reveled in. But there was not too much time to revel because he knew that he was in for a fight with Benoit.

Benoit did indeed put up a fight, even in the first few seconds of the match. The two clashed like they had last week, nose to nose, eye to eye, staring at each other with an unbridled intensity (it helped they were the same height). They locked up soon after that, and since this was a submission match, they were going to have to break out all the counters that they knew of. This was not to be such a high-flying match, but a cerebral match where they would have to outmaneuver their opponent. Though it did get a little high-flying when Chris got shoved to the floor. He felt his face and the warm trickle of blood met his fingers.

He was assailed with what he could only call a barrage of suplexes, and he was amazed that he could get up after that, but he could, and he could still try to win this match, which was what he was doing. Counter after counter, after counter, but nothing seemed to work. He knew that he and Benoit would be great fighting against one another, but he just hoped that it didn't end in a stalemate. It didn't, as it happened, when Chris was starting to get light-headed, and coupled with the Crippler Crossface, he had no choice but to tap.

After the match, like the true competitors that he and Benoit were, they shook hands like good sports, and then Chris held Benoit's hand up in victory because it was the right thing to do and he knew it. He fell to his knees when he was going to the ropes and grabbed his shoulder. Benoit had really tweaked that doing the crossface, and it was now hurting like a bitch. He held it the entire time up the ramp and as he went over to Stephanie.

"I think I should go see the trainer," Chris said, for one of the first times admitting that he was not ok. But he respected Benoit and knew that he shouldn't hide something like this.

"Did he wrench your shoulder?" Stephanie asked, looking at her husband's arm as it kind of dangled there.

"Yeah, I just want to make sure I didn't sprain it, it's not dislocated or anything, I know that much from experience," he said, then looked at her worried face. "I'm fine, don't worry. I just want to make sure. I'm thinking of you right now, and how you worry and I don't want you to worry about me all night."

Stephanie smiled a little, the corners of her mouth turning up into a small smile. She was happy that some things had changed a little since they had been married. He was a little more concerned about what she thought and she leaned over to kiss him before he went to the trainer's. He looked at her strangely, trying to decipher why she would kiss him out of the blue like that.

"I love you so much," she said sincerely and with all the emotion that she felt for him right then.

"I love you too," he said, "Can I go get checked now?"

"Yeah, and then tell me how you are so I'm not wondering ok?" Stephanie said.

"You're my wife, I would tell you," he said, kissing her one more time before walking off, flexing his shoulder the entire way. Stephanie sighed and watched him. She was thinking that maybe she should go with him, but instead she went and sat down at her desk.

While Christian was talking to the reporter, he saw the perfect opportunity to get the one-up on Randy for siding with Trish. He saw Stacy, who was now Randy's "special friend," or some crap like that, and went up to her, practically challenging Randy to a match. Practically because it was actually for Tomko and not for himself. He knew that Randy could be handled by Tomko, and that he could plan a little bit of revenge on Randy, nothing too big, but just enough to make sure that he knew how it felt to hurt...and to watch someone you liked being hurt.

Stephanie wrote down some notes on some minor problems that she had with the show, ready to have them be addressed later so they wouldn't happen again. She was biting her lip and waiting for Chris to get back and tell her how he was. She wasn't too worried, but she was worried because the potential was there for him to be hurt. Benoit was relentless, and when you got him in the ring it didn't matter if you were friends, or enemies, he just wanted to win at all costs.

"Stephanie, hi," Hunter said cheerfully and Stephanie put her best face forward. She knew that he was up to something, but if she had to get closer to him in order to find out what, than so be it. She had made sacrifices before.

"Hey Hunter," Stephanie said, patting the hand he had resting on her table. She resisted the urge to squeeze it so hard that his fingers turned blue.

"I saw what happened with Chris, you think he's going to be ok?" Hunter asked, and the concern seemed genuine. SEEMED genuine, which probably meant he was a snake and didn't feel anything about Chris.

"Yeah, he should be, I was really worried, but it's so sweet of you to worry with me."

"It's this new leaf, I want to be friends, and if that means accepting you and Chris, then I'm prepared to do that."

"Hunter, this is…it's incredible, and thank you so much," she said, giving him a sincere smile. And do you know why? Because two could play this little cat and mouse game.

"So has Dave come to you about going to SmackDown?" Hunter asked, and she knew that was one of the reasons for his recent change in attitude. Typical.

"Nope, he hasn't responded, and I'm still trying to see if there are any clauses that would prevent him from going. You wouldn't want him to go, would you Hunter? I mean, he is your friend and everything."

"But it'll be a great opportunity for Evolution, to have a representative, if you will, on the other show. Then Evolution could rule over both shows, to an extent of course, I know that you're in charge here," he said with a careful shrug.

"You got that right," she said playfully. "But come on? You don't want him to go."

"Well, no, not really, but you know, you can't help these things," he shrugged. Stephanie glanced down suspiciously and then glanced up at him before he asked his next question. "Do you have any idea who is playing those videos?"

"I haven't the slightest, they seem to just show up in our stack," Stephanie said. She had her suspicions though, and her biggest suspect was right in front of her. "I have to get back to work Hunter, but it was so pleasant speaking to you, don't make yourself a stranger."

"I won't, bye Stephanie," he said jovially. He turned the corner and she frowned. Snake, definite snake and she was not going to be the rat that got eaten by the snake, she would be the eagle who grabbed the snake and tore him to shreds.

Chris had been detained by Lita, who was just making sure that he was going to be ok. Chris vaguely wondered why she had even come to Japan, but he wasn't going to quibble with her. But it seemed like someone with such a bad injury wouldn't be traveling, but here she was, traveling. Maybe she just liked the business or something, or would've been lonely at home.

"I saw Stephanie coming out of Hunter's locker room last week," Lita said lightly. "I hope that nothing bad went down."

Chris frowned. Stephanie hadn't told him that she had been in Hunter's locker room last week. "That's the first I've heard of it."

"Oh really, she was probably just telling him that he had a match or something," Lita said, flipping her hair over her shoulder. "It was probably nothing, I didn't hear any yelling or anything."

"That's good to know," Chris said, "Because then I would have to dismantle Hunter."

"I bet, you two have never gotten along."

"It all traces back to Stephanie," Chris chuckled, but it was strained.

"It sure does seem that Stephanie has been in your life for a while," Lita said tensely, quietly rubbing her temple.

"Yeah, a while," Chris said, then furrowed his brow. "Lita, I'm going to go find Stephanie…she's wondering how my arm is doing, but I guess we'll talk later or something, and you can tell me how your leg is doing."

"Ok Chris, bye," Lita said cheerfully, and as he turned his back, her smile turned into a mischievous grin as she hobbled off, whereabouts unknown.

Chris strode down the hallway to where Stephanie was sitting. She appeared to be on the phone with someone, but he couldn't hear the conversation. She hung up a moment later, laughing a little to herself and he rounded the corner, muttering under his breath about what he had heard. He wasn't going to get angry, he wasn't going to get angry.

Stephanie looked up and smiled, "You look ok."

"I am ok," he said, finding that her smile was one that was so difficult to resist, and so he smiled himself. She reached out to grab his hand and stand herself up to face him.

"I'm glad. So after the show, are we just going to go back to the hotel, maybe fill that huge Jacuzzi tub with water and candles and have ourselves a very relaxing evening, I think we both deserve it," she said seductively, leaning in so she was whispering in his ear. As tempting as that was, he needed to know what was going on with Hunter.

"So, I was just talking with Lita," Chris said, not responding to her idea for their plans later that evening, and pulling away.

"Oh, and did she hit on you?" Stephanie giggled. "I'm sorry, that's mean."

"She saw you coming out of Hunter's locker room last week," Chris blurted out, then looked at Stephanie, who was surprisingly cool. "Care to explain?"

Stephanie rolled her eyes coolly, "I was looking for Dave."

"Huh?"

"The contracts Chris," she answered, lying smoothly. "I wanted to know when he signed them, who was there, just the logistics of his contract. If I'm going to go over this thing with a fine-tooth comb, I want to make sure that Dave knows it, and that I know all the information I can about it. Yeah, I went into his locker room, but it's also Evolution's locker room. You know how they share."

"Oh, of course," he said, feeling quite stupid. "You've been poring over those like your life depended on it."

"I'm not going to lose Dave to SmackDown is all," Stephanie said, kissing Chris. "Now, no more worries."

"No more worries," he said, kissing her back, "And the bath sounds great, it'll help my shoulder."

"I know, that's why I suggested it, now why don't you go clean yourself up and we'll be ready to go when the show is over."

"Ok, I'm sorry I questioned you like that, I should've known it was for work," he said, feeling so silly now. Stephanie felt bad for lying to him, but she didn't want him involved in this one. Hunter was playing very dirty and it was better if just she was in on it. She had never promised to tell Chris all her secrets, it wasn't even in their vows.

She looked around after Chris had left and started walking down the hallways quickly, slipping out into the deserted parking lot, reaching the far corner of it where there was sure to be no cameras whatsoever. She saw Dave and smiled, walking over to him.

"Dave, you cannot leave for SmackDown," Stephanie said. "I have spent the last week going over your contract and there's nothing there that says you have to stay on Raw, but I'm asking you, please stay."

"I had no intention of leaving, not right now," he told her simply. "I have too much unfinished business here."

"Thank you," Stephanie said, grabbing his hand and shaking it profusely. "Just…don't change your mind. And I know that I'm so blatantly using you, but…I just want this so much. Not to mention you are an asset to this show and we'd hate to lose you. Bischoff and I aren't even collaborating on this and we both want you."

"That's flattering," he told her. "I'm not going. I want Hunter's title."

"He's acting weird around me," Stephanie sighed, leaning against a car. "I don't know what he wants, but it's something. I can't put my finger on it though."

"I'll try to find out what it is, but I'm not sure I'm his number one confidante right now. Although judging from how he thinks, he sees me over on SmackDown already."

"Oh God, did you SEE him practically planning out your future for you?" Stephanie said incredulously. "What WAS that?"

Dave had to laugh at that, "See, he thinks that I can't think for myself, half of the reason why I'm trying to bring him down. I may be quiet sometimes, but I'm still thinking."

"I know," she said, then looked around. "I better go back inside before I get caught, and before the show goes to hell, who knows what's going on."

What was happening was not pretty. Christian, in his temporary state of dementia, had dragged Stacy out to the ring during Tomko's match against Randy. He wanted Randy to feel concern over someone he cared about. Had Christian been a little bit smarter, he would've brought out Victoria, but Stacy was enough to get him riled up. He was pissed that Christian would do this just because he had sided with Trish. But as the concern rose in his throat, he knew where Christian was coming from, so in a roundabout way, he understood.

Christian had no intention of hurting Stacy. He was mad, pissed, seeing red, but he still had enough sense to not really hurt Stacy. Of course, this didn't extend to Randy as he gave him the Unprettier after the match was over. Oh Christian, when would he learn that this was not the right way to solve his problems? Because as it was, his problems were only going to get worse as he walked backstage.

"What the hell was that?" Trish said icily, tapping her foot as she saw Christian emerge from in front of the curtain.

"He didn't understand, and now he does," Christian said calmly, big, BIG mistake.

"Are you crazy? Have you lost your mind!" Trish yelled. "He's our FRIEND, or do you not get that concept? It would seem you didn't because you hurt him, you HURT him, he had a concussion last week, and you took advantage of that. I'm sorry, but you are not a person I want to be around right now."

"Fine! Then don't be around me!" Christian yelled childishly.

"I won't be," Trish screamed back. "And you are not sitting anywhere near me on the plane back to the States, do you hear me! NOWHERE NEAR ME!"

"I DON'T CARE!" Christian shouted after her as she walked towards Randy, who was getting helped backstage. Christian stomped off in anger.

"Are you ok Randy?" Trish asked. "I'm so sorry that happened, he's been such a jerk about this, and I swear, I'm so sorry, it's my fault, I never should've asked you to tell me what side you were on."

"This is your fault?" Stacy asked, coming to Randy's side, and aid.

"Indirectly, what's it to you?" Trish said, looking up at Stacy because of the height difference.

"He's hurt because of YOUR boyfriend!"

"I know! I apologized."

"Well, a lot of good that does," Stacy said sarcastically.

While Stacy and Trish were fighting over Randy, Victoria came up and saw Randy sitting there dazed as a trainer checked out his eyes. She looked to the fighting blondes and shook her head, heading straight for Randy and taking his hand in hers. He looked dazedly at her, and smiled, despite the haze in his brain.

"Ree, you're here," he said slowly, his words slurring together like he had been drunk for hours. The trainers were still checking him out.

"It'll be ok Rands, I'm here now, and I won't let anything happen to you."

"Thanks Ree," Randy said, then letting his head droop in seeming exhaustion.

In a room in the arena, which room was unclear, but a room, there were a couple of people sitting on a couch. Well, one of them was sitting on the couch and the other one was straddling said person on the couch. The man was blocked, but the woman was Lita and she was smirking at the guy, whoever he was.

"So I told him about Stephanie and about how she was in Hunter's locker room," Lita said, smiling like she had just won a medal or something.

"Great," the man said. "The sooner we get them apart, the sooner that I get what I want."

"Mmhmm," she said, kissing the man softly. "But you'll still want me most of all, right?"

"Of course, there's only one thing I want out of Stephanie McMahon."

"You're jealous of Chris."

"I'm not jealous of Chris, but haven't you seen that since they got married, he's been getting things here and there. Well, if I have Stephanie, then I'll get the one thing that I want most of all."

"What's that?" Lita said.

"Don't play coy with me Lita."

"I'm not ok. The only reason I'm with you, is because you promised to help with out with Kane. I don't want to be married to him. Any way that you can get me out of this marriage, I'm willing to do what you want. But don't think I'm actually happy about this. I'm not."

"I'm not asking for you to be happy, but you're desperate and so am I."

"You're right, I am SO desperate to be rid of Kane! Do you know how it feels to be married to someone you HATE!" Lita said, frustrated. "I just want it over with, please."

"Then you better be good at snooping, because I just want what Chris Jericho has."

"Stephanie, I get it."

"No, not Stephanie, just the fringe benefits that come with her."


	22. Love May Be in the Air, February 14, 200...

A/N: There are a couple of reasons why this is late. I was really sick and unable to, and I wanted to find out Dave's roles on SmackDown and during the Pay-Per-View. Anyways, here's the next chapter for you. Nothing too exciting, I'm going to save that for tonight. :)

Enjoy. :)

* * *

"A wilted flower for my lovely wife."

Stephanie laughed and looked over at Chris, who had just taken a seat next to her. He held out a wilted daisy in front of her, and she took it from his gallant fingers. He knew that she despised Valentine's Day, and wanted to have nothing to do with this stupid and mass-produced holiday. She pretended to sniff the flower and laid it down on her desk.

"I told you no surprises," Stephanie answered coyly, letting him know through her words that she was joking, and not angry that he had given her something so not pretty.

"Well, I had to do something," Chris answered. "I figured that I should at least acknowledge today. I don't know the exact rules for Valentine's Day."

"The rules are that I don't want anything, and I don't want to even think about today. It has no bearing on my mind. The only thing on my mind is the fact that we have a show tonight."

"Ok, well then don't go out of this room," he told her, "because everyone is paired off, and it's kind of sickening. I don't know how I got so fortunate as to have a wife who doesn't want anything for Valentine's Day. Outside, there are guys who have bought out entire Hallmark stores, and I didn't have to do anything."

"Oh yeah, you're a lucky, lucky man," Stephanie answered, rolling her eyes. "They're all fools though. I mean, really, what is so special about the day? I love you, you love me, we tell each other that everyday; I don't need one day for you to love me that much more."

"And me, and my wallet thank you for that."

"I'm sure they do, since you're so hard up for money," Stephanie laughed, then went back to her papers. "Supposedly, Dave is going to choose which opponent he's going to face next Monday."

"That should be exciting for you. It'll show how much your work has paid off."

"Hopefully," she said, sounding a little bit despondent. Chris leaned down to kiss her temple. She turned to give him a sidelong glance, and a small smile, showing off her pearly whites. She hadn't talked to Dave since Saturday when Chris had taken Christian out for some reason or another that related to Trish still being mad with Christian.

Dave had told her that he was contemplating going, but he was almost positive that he was going to stay. He had no other reason not to stay, and he really wanted to get his hands on Hunter's title. He couldn't think of a bigger coup than stealing Hunter's belt right out from under him. Stephanie couldn't think of a bigger one either, except maybe Chris winning it, and then showing it and her off; that was liable to make Hunter's head explode, and she was all for that happening.

"Even if he does, it's not like I'm going to be jumping shows, because that would be a little bit awkward," he said with a goofy smile.

"And it would not bode well for what people think of our marriage. The people who don't like us, or don't know us are already speculating that you're just with me for my money and the power, and all that supposedly good stuff."

"Yeah, they're completely off-base. Don't they see that I married you for your body?"

"Aww, Happy Valentine's Day," she said sarcastically, turning to him fully so that she could kiss him. There was a knocking on the door and Randy stuck his head into the room a moment later, smiling at the couple.

"Hey, looks like some people are celebrating Valentine's Day," Randy said, trying to act cute.

"Actually, we don't celebrate it," Chris answered, looking to Stephanie, who confirmed that with a proud nod.

"Well, I guess this is not needed then," Randy said, pulling a single, long-stem, white rose from behind his back and presented it to Stephanie who took it with a guffaw. "It means I think you're heavenly."

"Ok, that's enough," Chris said, standing up. "Who the hell do you think you are Orton?"

"You wanna step up Jericho," Randy said, challenging Chris and spreading his arms out, inviting a fight with the man. Jericho took a few menacing steps towards Randy, cocking his head from side to side.

"I don't know who the hell you think you are, coming after my wife, but it's gonna stop right now because I'm going to bash your brains in," Chris said cockily. "That should teach you that Stephanie is MY wife, and she's not going down with any stupid, immature asses like you."

"Whoa, look at the big words from the little guy," Randy said, and Chris charged.

Stephanie rolled her eyes and sighed sarcastically as the boys continued to spar. She didn't even dignify them with the word "man," because neither one of them were acting as such at the current moment. They were wrestling like little boys and right this second, Chris was giving Randy a noogie, messing up his hair as Chris laughed.

"Do I need to call your parents?" Stephanie said, leaning back in her chair and folding her arms over her chest.

Randy and Chris pulled away breathlessly, tried from their descent back into childhood. Randy gave her a charming smile while trying valiantly to fix his hair. "You don't have to call my parents, but you might want to call Chris's because he's the one that started this."

"You're the one constantly hitting on my wife," Chris argued, making a face.

"I can't help it if the lady is the loveliest woman in the entire world," Randy said, his voice becoming poetic and with the hint of a bad English accent. Stephanie just smiled at him, but it wasn't a, "gee, I'm happy" kind of smile.

"You're just avoiding all those women who do like you," Stephanie said shrewdly. "I've seen you work over quite a few of these ladies on Raw Randy Orton, and I have a feeling that you're trying to hide in here so that you don't have to go out there and face any of them."

"You're a liar," he said, then turned to Chris, "Your wife is a liar."

"I'm going to have to agree with her," Chris said, "I think there was a stipulation in the vows, something about always agreeing when we think that Randy Orton is wrong. I'm going to have to go by those rules, they're pretty strict."

"Well, fine," Randy said, "Maybe I am a little bit conflicted. But I'm hoping that the universe provides a path for me."

"Well, I know I shouldn't butt into this," Stephanie said and shot a glare when both Chris and Randy looked at her like she had just said that hell was filled with ice rinks and ski runs. "And you can both shut up…but I'm just saying that I like Victoria."

"You told her didn't you?" Randy said, turning to Chris accusingly.

"Told me what?" Stephanie said, then looked at Chris, slack-jawed. "Did Randy tell you something that you didn't tell me!"

"No," Chris said, shaking his head like she was crazy. "He told me nothing that you didn't know."

"Right," Randy said. "But Ree is a good choice. But Stacy has been hanging around more, and she's kind of cool too. Hell, I might even still have a shot with Trish."

"Do NOT let Christian hear you say that," Stephanie said, "He is still so pissed off at you Randy. He went to Bischoff and requested a match with you tonight. And Bischoff, because he hates me, put it through before I had a chance to veto it, so you're facing Christian, and he's very angry."

"I didn't know what to do!" Randy said, trying to plead his case to the two of them, even though they did feel for him. He had been put on the spot by Trish, and he had answered as honestly as he could. And what did he have to show for it? A match with a man that had a strong vendetta against him; that was what he had to show for it.

"It's cool, neither did we," Chris said. "And Trish is still mad at him. I don't know what's going to happen there."

"They'll probably fight for a week and then make up, I'm sure that's what's going to happen," Randy said, "Well, now that Stephanie has the token of my affection, I've got other flowers and other girls."

"So I'm not special?" Stephanie said with a fake pout.

"Aww, doll, you know you're special," Randy winked, and Chris gave him the evil eye in return for his troubles.

Randy walked back out into the hallway and saw what Chris had warned Stephanie of earlier, everyone was paired off. It was like the love bug had hit everyone backstage, and it was a little sickening. He had two more flowers to deliver, one for Victoria and the other one for Stacy. He figured that he would cover all his bases tonight and just give one to every woman who he was attracted to, and who he thought had a remote interest in him. Now he just had to find them.

"So you told Randy what he was doing tonight," Chris said, "But I have yet to know what I'm doing tonight."

"Another one of Bischoff's little coups," Stephanie said, annoyance prevalent in her voice. "You're going to have Candice Michelle on your Highlight Reel tonight."

"Who's Candice Michelle?" Chris asked, looking down to see if he could remember which one she was. Honestly, he could barely tell any of the new girls apart, save for Christy Hemme, but that was because she acted like she was three and needed to be bouncing off the walls at all times.

"She was the one in the Super Bowl commercial, remember, the one that made fun of how strict television has to be," Stephanie explained, but Chris still looked confused. "Yeah, I think we were making out when it was on."

"Figures," Chris said, "But I remember the commercial, it's her that I'm not sure I remember. I didn't even know she worked for us."

Stephanie gave a little giggle, "You said she worked for us. Look who's getting all into the power."

Chris rolled his eyes, "I am not. But fine, I'll have her on the show. Am I supposed to flirt with her too? Maybe hit on her?"

Stephanie clenched her jaw, "Not unless you want to sleep on the couch when we get home."

"It's a comfortable couch," Chris reasoned, which just made Stephanie angrier. Chris gave her a quick peck on the lips and she scowled, but pulled him back to her and kissed him. She gave him one last kiss and then pulled away.

"I trust you to make the right decision," Stephanie said smugly. "So what are we going to do about Trish and Christian?"

"Nothing," Chris said. "We're not going to get involved."

"You never let me do anything," she said, stamping her foot down on the ground underneath her desk.

"That's right, because I don't want people to think that you're nosy and that all you do is butt into everyone's business."

"I don't butt into everyone's business. Just my friends," Stephanie answered. "And you know how other people like Valentine's Day, with all the lovey-doveyness of it all. And I'm sure Trish is going to be upset with Christian, that he's mad…or whatever is up with them."

"Stay out of it."

Trish sat sulkily in catering, picking at the food in front of her. She was still fighting with Christian, and it was getting harder to be away from him. But he was still mad at her for going out there while Kane was out there, and while she was still injured; she was still mad that he didn't let her make her own decisions. She saw that he was only trying to help, but it still bothered her that she was trying to be possessive.

She stabbed a carrot with her fork and bit into it, chewing thoughtfully. She was lost in those thoughts until a white-stemmed rose was lain down next to her plate. She swiveled in her seat, and saw Randy standing over her, a kind smile on his face as she slid into the chair next to her. She put her fork down and lifted the flower, inhaling its rich scent.

"Happy Valentine's Day," Randy told her, putting his hand on her hand and giving it a squeeze.

"Thanks," Trish said, staring down at the flower. "It's beautiful."

"I'm glad you think so, I'm giving them to all my best girls today," he explained. "Just a little love from me to you."

Trish had to smile at that. Leave it to Randy to be so damn charming that she couldn't resist anything he was saying. "So who else got flowers?"

"Well, Stephanie already got hers, and I'm giving them to Victoria and to Stacy."

"Oh, because you can't decide?"

"Yup, you got it exactly right," Randy said. "I figured I would cover all my bases."

"Good idea," Trish said, sighing to herself, but then putting a smile on for Randy's benefit. "Thank you though, I love that you thought of me."

"I figured after I basically screwed up your relationship, it was the least that I could do."

"You didn't ruin anything, Christian is just too overprotective of me. He forgets sometimes that I'm a wrestler, and I've been defending myself for ages. He had to let me make my own decisions, not the ones that he wants."

"Yeah, but Stephanie told me that he's still pissed at me, and I just feel badly for it."

"Don't, Christian and I will work things out hopefully," she said, trying to reassure herself that it was true. "And if things don't work out, then Christian and I had a really good run."

"Don't think like that," Randy chastised her gently.

"I'm trying not to, but we haven't spoken in a week, and I don't even know what he's thinking. This is a major thing, I mean, he doesn't trust me enough. He should know that I'd never really put myself out there if I didn't know that I'd be safe. But he doesn't seem to."

"I'm sorry you feel that way," Randy said. "Do you want me to leave you alone?"

"I'm probably not the best company right now," Trish said sullenly. "You'd be better off going and delivering those flowers of yours."

"Yeah, I wouldn't want them to wilt and fall apart," Randy laughed. "You going to be ok?"

"I'll live," she answered. "I've got plans for tonight's show, ones that I passed with Stephanie, so that should take my mind off of all my personal problems. You know, I've never been jealous of Chris and Stephanie's relationship, not really anyways, but I'm just really jealous of them right now. Not necessarily their dynamic, but the fact that they know where they stand."

"They are lucky," Randy agreed. "I've got at the very least, two women who both want me, and who I find myself wanting, and I wish that I had something that I could rely on instead of having to decide."

"Well at least I know that I'm not alone."

"Nope, you're not, but we'll keep this our little secret," Randy whispered to her. "Wouldn't want it getting back to the two of them, they would lord it over our heads for all time."

"I know," Trish said, "Bye Randy."

"Bye," he said, standing up, then leaning down to kiss her cheek. "And just so you know, you look beautiful tonight."

"Thanks," she said shyly as Randy walked away.

Chris headed out for his Highlight Reel, trying to mentally prepare himself for his guest. He had been informed by Stephanie that they had the commercial on tape, and they would be ready to show it when necessary. The only bad thing about not knowing who would be on his show ahead of time was the fact that he sometimes had no idea what he was going to say once the guest was out there.

Of course with Candice Michelle it was fairly easy. She was one of the new divas, and a lot of guys would find her attractive. Chris didn't particularly, but there was the fact that he was married and while he still checked out women every now and again, he knew that nobody he ever saw would ever compare to Stephanie, and that was fine with him. Not to mention that once Candice Michelle opened her mouth, anything attractive from her faded. She had a really ugly voice. And people thought Stephanie's voice was brutal.

They obviously discussed the controversy over the commercial that had aired during the Super Bowl (which some people only watched for during the Super Bowl, since sometimes people teams got ousted in the divisional round of the playoffs), because other than that, what had Candice Michelle really been doing in the company? Chris couldn't remember anything significant. Maybe she had been in a fashion thing, or some other stupid even that was meant to make all the guys drool, but he certainly couldn't think of anything worthwhile.

Even so, he tried to be as polite and cordial as possible, without flirting too much. He thought he was doing a pretty good job, and then he had to be interrupted. It wouldn't be a Highlight Reel without him getting interrupted. Once again, it was by Hassan and Daivari, and Chris was getting pretty sick and tired of the two of them and their annoying interruptions. Chris tried to take it in stride, but it was certainly difficult when they were persistent.

It ended up with a match being put on the spot. Chris wasn't really prepared for the match and he felt that it showed. Which had to eventually lead to his loss. It was a sucky, stupid loss, and he felt that he had gotten the short end of the stick. It wasn't even really his fault, and he was pissed off when he went backstage. He wasn't the only one pissed off as he saw Stephanie arguing with Bischoff. She was yelling and flailing her arms everywhere.

"Who the hell gave you permission to let them go out there and start that match!" Stephanie yelled.

"Look, I'm also in charge around here-"

"I can have your job Bischoff, you just said the word and I'll call my father and you will be out on your ass so fast…"

"I dare you to do it Stephanie, I dare you!"

"Shut up, next time you want something like this, you clear it through me. I'm sick and tired of you playing your little games and signing off on matches when I'm not around. It either goes through me or it doesn't go through."

"We'll see McMahon, we'll see," Bischoff said, stalking off.

"That's Jericho to you!" Stephanie screeched at him as she walked away. "And don't you forget it buddy!"

Chris laughed to himself and walked over to his irate wife. "Hey you, maybe you want to use your indoor voice before everyone in the arena can hear you yelling."

"He just makes me so mad," she said through clenched teeth. "He thinks he runs things around here. I run things around here, not him, and he better not forget that, or he'll regret it."

"I know he will, you're the best boss a guy could have."

"That's only because I'm your wife," Stephanie said, giving him a hug. "So how much did that match suck?"

"It sucked pretty bad," he agreed and then looked around. "Jesus, people are completely paired off, it's like it's the end of the world and everyone wants one last chance to be laid."

"I love how you just put stuff into beautiful terms like that. Have you ever considered being a writer, you have such a way with the words," Stephanie said, pretending to swoon.

"I've considered it, yes, but now that you're encouraging me to, I think I'll take up a career as a writer. I think I would be very successful."

"No thanks," Stephanie told him, scrunching up her nose. "I love you just the way you are."

"And I love you just the way you are, Valentine's Day hating and everything."

Valentine's Day had sprung up all over the arena. Flirting and kissing, and…plotting. Well, the plotting wasn't so much Valentine's Day related, but it was related to Chris and Stephanie, and it did involve love, so one could make the stretch for that. Lita was sitting in a locker room, her chin in her hands as she watched the person in front of her pace like a madman.

"It's Valentine's Day and you haven't even given me anything," Lita whined.

"I wasn't aware that I was supposed to," he said.

"Well, it would've been nice is all I'm saying," Lita told him.

"That's all well and good, but we've got bigger things that we have to think about. Like how we're going to get Stephanie and Chris apart."

"I'm working on him! But he's always around her, or she always shows up when I'm with him."

"Then you have to work harder."

"Why don't you try doing your share for once," Lita muttered.

"Look, I am doing my share, you just need to shut up and do your job. I'm not helping you out with Kane for nothing you know. There is a purpose to what I'm doing, and you better believe that I'll get you out of your marriage."

"Yeah, but the stipulation was not until I help you with Stephanie and Chris, and I'm trying, but the situation is not getting any better. Maybe if I had you as back-up…"

"Oh, they'd never believe it," he said. "They wouldn't fall for it because it would be totally out of character for me."

"But you—"

"But nothing, look, if it were me and I was trying to do it, they'd suspect something, especially with how I've been acting, but you. He thinks you're completely depressed about the way that your life has been going."

"I AM depressed!" she lamented.

"Yeah, I know, trust me, but that doesn't change the fact that he just thinks that you need a friend, and he is that friend. He's too nice a guy to turn someone down like that. I guess that's one of his downfalls."

"Fine, I'll try harder, but tonight isn't going to work, because he's going to be around her the whole time, with the holiday and everything."

"Fine then, next week, you go to work."

"I know, and I will."

While love was not blossoming between those two particular people, the chance for love was blossoming for Stacy and Randy. He had given her the flower, which she had accepted happily. She was just ecstatic that he had done something for her despite the fact they weren't official or anything. But then she went out on a limb and asked him out for another date. Randy couldn't say no, because this thing with Stacy, well, it might be something that he'd want to pursue, and he might as well find out of there was something there between the two of them.

"I'm really looking forward to it," Stacy said as Randy told her that he had to leave.

"I am too," and he was genuine about it. It was strange that someone who he found so annoying not a few weeks before had made him completely change his mind. He probably didn't give Stacy enough credit though, because she was a nice person, perhaps a little too bubbly, and a trifle ditzy, but she made all that up in the nice qualities that she had.

"I'll call you?" she asked hopefully.

"You know the number," he said, pointing at her and winking before going on his merry way. There was one more woman that he had to see before he really got ready for his match against Christian later. He knew where to find her as he headed for the women's locker room.

She answered on the second knock, "Rands?"

"Hey Ree," he said, then thrust the flower forward, "Happy Valentine's Day."

"Rands, you didn't have to do this!" she said, but took the flower eagerly. "Thank you."

"What kind of guy would I be if I didn't give my best girl a flower," Randy said.

"Who else got one?"

"You know me too well," Randy told her, "Stephanie, Trish, and Stacy."

"Oh," she said, fingering the soft, almost silk like petals of the flower. "You gave one to Stacy."

"Yeah," Randy said, but it was a careful tone, knowing that he was treading on very thin ice right now. He didn't know how much to reveal in front of Victoria; how much did she want to hear about his escapes with Stacy? He had a great deal of feelings for Victoria and she knew that, but it hadn't been the right time for them.

"Well, thank you for the flower," she said, her tone now resigned.

"Ree, I know how you feel about this whole thing."

"I know you know," she answered, sitting down on a chair, "but it doesn't mean that I like hearing about it."

"Look, you know, things can still work out between us, you know that I care about you so much," he told her, kneeling next to her chair. "But I'm young, and I'm stupid and immature, and I get myself into trouble, so let me do that, and then when I'm ready, I'm hoping you'll still be there."

"And because I'm an idiot, I will be," Victoria said with a bitter laugh. "You're not completely immature."

"I know I'm not," he said, "But when it comes to you, I'm usually feeling like a little freshman trying to ask the head cheerleader out on a date."

"Sweet comparison."

"I thought so," he said, leaning over to kiss her. Victoria returned the kiss reluctantly, but reveled in the way that he kissed. He pulled away and kissed her cheek. "You're the best."

"I know that too."

"Good, because someone around here has to hold that title."

"Have you kissed Stacy?"

"No," he answered quickly. "And I'm not sure I'm going to any time soon."

"Well, I don't want to know if you do. I mean, I don't want you to come running and tell me about it."

"Trust me, I'll restrain myself. Now I've got a match with a very pissed off man."

The rest of the evening went by pretty routinely. That is until Dave almost got run over by a limo and then vowed to go to SmackDown that Thursday to straighten things out. Stephanie almost went into a panic over that, and she was now furiously writing things down in her notebook. Her cell phone rang and she grabbed it quickly, thankful that Chris was off trying to talk some sense into Christian.

"Stephanie here."

"Steph, it's Dave."

"Dave, thank God, you can't go to SmackDown, you have to stay with Raw."

"Stephanie, the guy tried to run me over!" he told her.

"I know, but you can't switch shows, this is just what…oh my God, it all makes sense."

"What makes sense?" Dave asked.

"The limo, Hunter pushing you out of the way, everything. It all makes sense."

"To you, but not to me."

"It had to be Hunter behind this. Dave, it's Hunter who's behind all this!"

"How do you know?"

"I just do…instincts. Don't go to SmackDown."

"Steph, I have to cover all bases. All I'm thinking is that Bradshaw's ride is going to be modified a little bit."

"Ok," she said warily, "But don't change your mind and sign anything."

"I won't, I swear."

"Bye."

"Bye."

Dave may not believe it, but Stephanie knew…she just knew that Hunter was behind this all.


	23. Conchairto! Dave! February 21, 2005

A/N: Wow, for a show that was mostly boring, I sure do love this chapter. There were two parts of last night that I adored. I bet you can all guess what the first one was? It involved H going through a table. Ah, beautiful, I love Dave so much.

Second, who wanted the conchairto! I was marking out so much for that move and then it didn't happen. I want E and C back damn it! They reeked of awesomeness.

I hope you enjoy the chapter because I enjoyed writing it so much. Let me know, reviews are welcomed and loved and always appreciated. :)

* * *

"Sweetie, my dad is coming tonight, and he said that he wanted to talk to us." 

Stephanie looked sweetly at her husband as she said that. He groaned when she said it though. He didn't know why, he and Vince were not on bad terms or anything, but just seeing the father of his wife was not a pleasant situation. Although Stephanie did say that he wanted to talk to them and not to just him, if it were just him, then he might have to worry.

"What for?"

"I'm not sure," Stephanie said, but she didn't sound convincing. Chris was starting to get the feeling that she did know exactly what he was going to talk about. He pursed his lips and regarded her. She sent him a smile, but it was too cheery for his tastes.

"Stephanie, what is this about?"

"Nothing!" she said quickly. "I mean, it's really nothing. He just wants to talk to us. I'm sure it's not going to be bad. I mean, nothing's been going on around here that can be considered bad, especially not between us."

"You do know what it's about I'm sure," he said suspiciously. "But I can wait. Is he going to be here before the show?"

"Yeah, he should be here before the show, in fact, when he called me, he was on his way over. He's in a wheelchair though, so he's going a little slowly, but I'm expecting him soon at least."

"Did you meet with Bischoff already?"

"Don't talk to me about him. We got in a huge fight over Dave and his decision tonight. And then we couldn't agree on anything, and it's just not fun dealing with him. I want to talk to Dad about it, but you know, that would just be under-handed. Bischoff annoys me, but he knows how to do his job, so any firing would be completely personal, and that's not right."

"You've matured," Chris said, ruffling her hair. "I seem to recall someone firing Mick Foley in a Pink Slip on a Pole Match. But look at you being all mature about this."

"Oh, I wasn't mature about twenty minutes ago when I was yelling at him, but I've had time to calm down," she said.

Chris shrugged and laughed, "Well, as far as I can see, you've matured. So if you already had a meeting with Bischoff, what am I doing with the show?"

"You have a match against Simon Dean," she answered, looking down at her paper. Chris stared at her a moment, in mostly confusion. Chris was a big enough name that he shouldn't be going against someone so…well, not as good as he was; that was the nice way to put it.

"Simon Dean?" he questioned. "That's an…interesting choice."

"Well, everyone else has matches, and he's been insolent lately, and you can show him who's boss around here. You're a great wrestler and everyone loves you, and it's a good choice, I think, when you think about it," she said quickly.

"Ok, that's fine, I just said he was an interesting choice, I didn't think that you were going to go into a whole speech about it."

"So what's up with Trish and Christian?" Stephanie asked, changing the subject quickly. Chris knew she was changing the subject, but he didn't say anything because he didn't want to start a fight when Vince was going to e there. That wasn't exactly the way that he wanted to show his marital unity with Stephanie.

"I don't know," he said, squinting his eyes in thought. "They're still mad at each other, and they're still not talking to each other. But I know that Christian was really upset that she got that black eye."

"Well, that thing is ugly, I'm sure he's a little concerned."

"Yeah, but he can still use that as fodder for her getting hurt."

"Yeah, but that was in a match wasn't it? I mean, he has to know that when she's in a match there's the potential that she's going to get hurt, that's a given."

"I guess, but he can also just add that to the list of why he should be able to worry about her," Chris reasoned. "But he's still not ready to forgive, and he's still mad with Randy over what happened, and I don't see that being mended."

"That's too bad," she said. "I would suggest that we do something about it, but I know that you'll just get mad at me if I even think about it, so I won't even say anything."

"Good," he told her. "Very, very good."

"Shut up, you won't even let me help my friends. I don't want them to break up. Do you remember how miserable they both were when they broke up?"

"Yes, I'm well aware of how miserable they were, but it's not our place to interfere in their relationship. Steph, if they want to work things out, they have to do it for themselves. Remember when we weren't together, our friends were trying to keep us apart because they thought it was what was best, but we figured it out and got it together…for good. If that's going to happen with Trish and Christian, then we have to let it happen with Trish and Christian."

"Fine, I see what you're saying, and I will respect it. I'm not happy about it, just so you know, but I accept it."

"Finally, I win one!" he yelled in victory.

"Don't," Stephanie warned, and he grinned charmingly. She just sighed and shook her head at him. "It wasn't even a fight."

"But it was a serious discussion," he pointed out.

"Fine, you won a serious discussion, congratulations," Stephanie said

"Thanks, I'm very proud over this."

Randy sat looking over the schedule by himself. He had a tag match with Shawn Michaels against Edge and Christian. He sighed; Christian was still mad at him. He didn't know if he should try to explain himself to the man, but he felt like he should at least try to explain the position he was in. He folded up the piece of paper and started searching for Christian.

He didn't want Christian to be angry with him anymore, but he had a feeling like this conversation he wanted to have wouldn't do any good. Christian, he knew from experience and observation, was not one to just easily change his mind. If he wanted to hold a grudge, he held a grudge pretty strongly. But there was a lot of bad blood between the two of them and Randy really wanted to clear the air, at least for Trish's sake.

He knocked on Christian's door, noticing that it lacked the other sign that was usually on it that said Trish's name. Seems things had still not cleared up between the two of them. Nobody answered and he figured that Christian wasn't around, but then the door opened and a stony face met his eyes. Christian was not happy to see him standing there.

"Hey man, I thought we could talk."

"We have nothing to talk about, you made your allegiances clear," Christian said, starting to shove the door back in Randy's face, but Randy stopped it with his large hand.

"Come on Christian, just give me a chance to explain."

"Have you ever cared about someone so much that it makes you sick to see them get hit, even get a simple clothesline?" Christian said, narrowing his eyes at Randy. "Cause I have, when I saw Trish go out there during Kane's match. I felt my heart drop down to my throat, and I couldn't do anything about it. Then you come in and say that Trish did the right thing…trust me, that was like getting stabbed in the gut."

"I was put on the spot!"

"And you chose to side with Trish!"

"Chris and Stephanie did too!" Randy argued.

"No, they didn't, they didn't say anything, and maybe if you hadn't said anything I wouldn't want to rip your head off right now. I hope to get to do that later during our match, it'll feel so good."

"Fine, then I'll be forced to defend myself," Randy replied.

"Good, I look forward to it." Then the door met Randy's face.

Stephanie had just gotten the phone call from her father and she was going out to meet him in the parking garage. She was glad that he was here because she wanted to know definitively what was going on with him and what he needed to talk about. She had a feeling, a strong feeling, but her father had not told her anything definitely. She met the limo at the entrance and hopped from foot to foot a little bit.

The driver got out and went over to the back, opening the door, and then getting the portable wheelchair out of the backseat. Stephanie bit her lip when she saw that her father was in pain. It was always scary to see your parents were vulnerable to injury, it made them more human than she would like to believe. Not to mention the fact that he had done it in the most awkward and embarrassing way.

Stephanie stepped up to the limo and leaned in to smile at her father. She gave him a hand and he took it, letting her help him into the wheelchair. She tried to hide her chagrin at having to help her father when he was usually so in charge. But she held it back and tried to focus on what he wanted to tell her and Chris.

"How are you feeling Daddy?" she asked as she started to roll him into the arena itself.

"I've been better," he chuckled, and it wasn't bitter or anything, it just was. As they were walking, some of the employees came up to Vince and told him to feel better soon. "But I'm not going to complain."

"Good, because then Mom would leave you. And how's Shane?" She only asked because she knew that Shane had tried to help her father out and that had ended up in him tearing his other quad even worse.

Vince looked up at Stephanie with a stern look, "He's fine."

"Just asking," Stephanie joked. "So what is this you wanted to talk to me and Chris about?"

"I'll tell you when we get to your office, its official business."

"So I'm told," she said, "Does it have to do with our joint ownership?"

"I'm not telling you until I see Chris," Vince said again.

"But Daddy!" Stephanie said, acting petulant. At least they were at her office at this time and Stephanie knocked on the door. Chris, who was inside, walked to the door and opened the door for them, holding it so Stephanie could push her father inside. Stephanie stopped a moment to kiss Chris in thanks. She pushed her father in front of her desk and then sat herself in her desk chair. Chris went over and sat on the arm of Stephanie's chair, his arm across the top as Stephanie set her left arm on Chris's right leg. "So Daddy, what is this about?"

"Well, as you know, Chris is my son-in-law now."

"Yeah, I kind of figured that out," Chris said, nodding his head. "If this has to do with Stephanie and I together, I think you're a little bit late."

"No, it doesn't, not directly anyways. Although if I do hear that you've hurt my daughter, it would put your entire life on the line, and I'm not exaggerating."

"And I understood that when I started a relationship with her," Chris said solemnly, "but that's not what you're here to discuss."

"No, but Chris, as my son-in-law, you are now the part owner of the company. When Hunter got a hold of this news, as you know, he went to town with it, firing people at will, inserting himself everywhere, resulting in the McMahon-Helmsley Era."

"I remember it well," Chris said, biting his tongue. He had started a running hatred for Hunter then, and for his wife, although his opinions of the latter had changed drastically (the feelings for the former had only disintegrated more and more).

"Yes, I'm sure you do, considering that you made my daughter's life a living hell," Vince said, "But what I'm trying to say is that you are now in a position of power. By extension, you are a McMahon, and you are a part of the family that runs this show."

"I understand that," Chris said, "And I think I'm handling it well, I haven't asked or gotten any special treatment."

"It's true Daddy, I've been very impartial and Chris never attends any meetings with Bischoff and I so he doesn't get a say in what happens. And I'm very objective when it comes to the show."

"I know you are Stephanie. Bischoff does have his complaints about you, but I tune him out."

"That little snot!" Stephanie said, outraged, and slamming her fist on Chris's leg. "I have a laundry list of things that I hate about him, but I haven't told you because I'm not a snitch. I can't believe he would stoop that low!"

"Well, it seems the feelings between you are mutual," Vince laughed. "But what I'm trying to say is that someday Chris, you will be in charge of this company. A lot sooner than you think because look at me, I'm in a wheelchair because I injured myself trying to walk essentially."

"But Daddy, you'll be fine, it was a freak accident," Stephanie said. "It could've happened to a lot of people."

"But it didn't, and so Chris, if it's all right with you, I'd like to start grooming you more for a managerial position in this company so that when I do decide to retire, or die working if the case may be, that I know the company will be in good hands."

"Vince, with all due respect, you have a son and a daughter that are perfectly capable of overseeing and running this company," Chris answered. "I appreciate that you want me to run it, but I'm in no position to actually run this entire company."

"Yes, Stephanie has brought that to my attention, and I don't want to force you. However, I would like you to at least get the ropes down. If not for running the company, then at least for running the show."

"How do you want him to do that Daddy? And why?"

"If you're going to be running the company, who is going to have your job Stephanie? Chris, I think that you would be perfect running the show, doing what Stephanie does."

"She's amazing Vince, and I'm no Stephanie." Stephanie smiled up at her husband when he called her amazing, reveling in the way that he loved her work ethic. It was one thing to love her intelligence or her looks, but to call her amazing because she worked hard, in a position that was higher than his, she was rather happy for him to say that.

"Well, nobody could be Stephanie, they'd fail immediately," Vince said proudly. "But still, you are a McMahon, like I said, and you will be running this company. I won't have it any other way."

"Daddy, don't force him into this," Stephanie said. Her and Chris had long discussions about this, and she knew that Chris didn't feel like he was up to snuff for running this business. He would just rather be something that didn't require him to juggle millions upon millions of dollars.

"It's ok," Chris said reassuring her, "Vince, if you really want me to, then I will."

"Chris, don't do this because you have to," Stephanie said, looking up at him. "If you don't want to run the company in any capacity, you don't have to. I would be perfectly happy if you just wrestled until you were Ric Flair's age, without the whole 'making a fool out of yourself' thing."

"I think the mere fact I would wrestle at that age makes me a little bit of a fool," Chris answered. "This is for you Stephanie. This is your family's business, and I've been in this company for over five years, and I plan on being married to you for the rest of my life, so that means that I'm going to be in this company for a good amount of time. At some point, I'm going to have to step up. I might as well know what I'm doing when I have to."

"But I don't want you to feel obligated."

"I might learn to love it," Chris said. "And this way, if you ever need help, I can be the first one you ask. I'm trying to be a good husband here Steph, and you're not making it very easy on me."

"You're already a great husband, appeasing my father isn't going to make you a saint," she scoffed.

"Vince, I'll do it. I'll learn how to run the joint. Just don't give me hiring or firing powers because I might go to town with those. There are a few people who've been bugging me lately."

"Ok, you can do anything you want but hire and fire people," Vince said, grinning. "You won't regret this. Now, we have to get some things out of the way first, let you know what's what around here."

"Daddy, do I have to stay around for this part?" Stephanie asked. "Can I just go…I have to go check up on some things because the show is starting soon and stuff, and everything."

"Yeah, you can go."

"Thanks," she said, standing up. She pat Chris on the leg and then kissed him goodbye. He sent her a sort of pleading look, and she just shrugged and left them to their conversation. After all, she knew how to run the show and the company. She turned a corner and pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and discreetly dialed Dave's number. She needed to speak with him before the match and find out what was going on with him.

She had seen him on SmackDown, looking cool and tearing up JBL's limo, and she had seen him at No Way Out, just generally kicking ass. As cool as it was to see, it was not what was supposed to happen. Stephanie had a feeling that it was Hunter behind all of this, but she didn't have the proof. She could only hope to convince Dave with her words. She may not have been married to Hunter for that long, but she picked up quite a few things, and this had a Hunter set-up written all over it.

"Hello?"

"It's Stephanie. Where are you?"

"I'm outside the arena, across the street actually. I'm letting Hunter and Flair stew a little before I actually go there."

"So you've made a decision."

"Nah, but it's just fun to make them sweat," Dave laughed.

"I need to talk to you," she said urgently. "Now, not soon, now."

"I've got time, you got time?" he asked.

"I've got time."

"Well, I'm across the street."

Stephanie contemplated for a moment. "I'll be there in five minutes."

It was a chilly night, but luckily for Stephanie she was wearing a sweater and wasn't too cold. She was under the cover of darkness as she walked away from the arena, her hair whipping in the wind a little. She could see Dave's limo from the entrance to the arena. It was parked in a parking lot to a little shopping center. It looked odd being right there, in the midst of all the not-so-nice cars and small shops. She waited for the walk signal and then ran across the street and over to his limo, knocking on it.

The door clicked open and she opened it the rest of the way and slipped inside. The light was on and Dave was sitting against the back. She noticed momentarily that the partition was up between him and driver, but that was probably for the best, because she was trying to be incognito. Not that she was in all black or with a ski mask on, but she didn't want anyone seeing her and compromising what was going on.

"So Dave," Stephanie said with a kind smile. "You haven't made a decision."

"No," he said, "Part of me says SmackDown and part of me says Raw."

"I understand," she nodded. "Dave, you have to believe me on this one. Hunter is behind this entire thing. He's the one who's been showing the videos and he probably hired the limo to try and run you over."

"How do you know?"

"I just do. I don't have solid proof, but I know. It has Hunter written all over it. Dave, who was it that pushed you out of the way when the limo was coming after you?"

"Hunter…"

"Did you ever stop and think about that? I mean, look at it like this. You had told Hunter to get out of your way right and to let you take care of Bradshaw alone, right?"

"Right."

"So why did he follow you?" she asked, trying to rationalize with Dave. "Because he knew what he was going to do. And wasn't it oh so convenient that he pushed you out of the way just in time? Like he knew the exact second that the limo would burst out of the shadows and try to hit you."

"It does seem very convenient, all of it."

"I know it does, because he did. I will give you a thousand dollars if it isn't him," she told him.

He laughed, "I don't want your money. I'm going to believe you on this one Stephanie. I've had my suspicions too, and though I'm not as outspoken as you are, I see your point."

"I'm going to choose to take outspoken as a compliment."

"Alright. But I'm going to trust you and I'm going to stay on Raw."

"Oh you won't regret this!" Stephanie said, lunging herself at him and hugging him rather abruptly. Dave kind of just patted her shoulder as she pulled away sheepishly. "I'm sorry, I just got carried away. Although you do look really nice tonight."

"Thanks," he laughed. "Nice cover-up. But keep this a secret all right."

"Of course, and then we can say we're friends…not tonight of course, but in the near future. And Hunter will have a fit. Let's make sure that the entire company is there to see it."

"At a meeting maybe?"

"Oh, you're devious," Stephanie laughed. "Thanks for staying on this show. It would've sucked to have lost you to the other show."

"I know, I'm such a commodity."

"Ok, I better leave before I get found out, not to mention I have work to do. My dad is here and actually doing my work is probably a good idea."

"Bye Stephanie."

"See ya Dave, and thanks again."

"Thanks for tipping me off about Hunter."

"I couldn't have more of his sins not get punish…and Dave?"

"Yeah?"

"Punish him."

"You better believe I will."

Chris now understood why he had been put in a match with Simon Dean. Stephanie may not have known what her father was going to talk about, but she must've had a pretty good idea. Vince was trying to explain all this business jargon to him, but he was picking it up pretty quickly. But since he only had a match tonight, and with someone so obviously not in his league, he had to figure that Stephanie did it because she knew that he was going to be busy learning the ropes around here.

He was surprised to see that Stephanie wasn't at her table when he walked by it for his match. He wondered where she could be. She was probably around doing something, being all in charge. Stephanie WAS amazing with all that she did, but sometimes he worried she was in over her head, and if he could help alleviate that, then he was going to do what it took. And Vince had taken a limo all the way up here so it was the least he could do.

He didn't think he'd make a great executive, but if Hunter thought that he could do it, then Chris knew that he could. Stephanie had a good educational background, and he trusted her to be in charge, and he would be like her right-hand man. He could succeed in what he did. He knew that people questioned his motives, and he knew that many people questioned Stephanie's leadership. He had read the rumors, the things saying that Stephanie being in charge was going to lead to the downfall of this company.

But how much did those people know about Stephanie? Sure, she didn't like the criticism, but honestly, who did? Who liked to be told that they weren't doing well? Stephanie was trying the best she could with the company, and that was all that could be expected of her. He would love to see some punk off the street come in and try to run things half as well as his wife did. Sometimes it made him so angry to think that people that didn't even know Stephanie could be so judgmental about her.

Did they know that sometimes she would stay up until two in the morning trying to make things perfect for the next week? Did they know that she was working twice as hard now that her father was injured because nobody else was there to pick up the slack? Did they know that she sometimes fell asleep at her desk at home and Chris had to literally carry her up to bed? People didn't see that side of Stephanie, nobody but him saw that side of Stephanie, but it was there. He would defend his wife with his life, and just thinking that people could say horrible things about her made his eyes boil over with anger.

Chris would've been distracted during his match with Simon Dean had it not been this anger that he felt for every single person who thought that his wife was not doing her job well, when she was doing it about as well as any person could. He took that anger out on Dean, and Dean was lucky that Chris managed to keep some of that anger in check. Make fun of his wife? Call her names? Talk crap about her? Yeah, he wrenched Dean's back a little more each time he had that kind of thought run through his head.

And then the match was over and he had won. He had won because he wanted to fight so vehemently for his wife. He wanted to say to everyone there, to grab a microphone and say that Stephanie was the best thing that had ever walked into his life, and that he would not let people talk about her the way that they were talking about her. He was Chris Jericho, damn it, and his word mattered, and the people would listen to what he had to say.

Obviously, he didn't, but clenching his jaw, he walked stoically up the ramp, ignoring the hands that were trying to give him a high five, or touch him for just a second, to say that they had touched Chris Jericho. He wasn't in the mood for that right now. He had to go back to learning about the business so that Stephanie didn't fall asleep at her desk, or think she was doing a bad job, or lament over the fact she would never be as business-savvy as her father and mother. Yeah, nobody saw that part did they?

"Back to work?" Stephanie asked as she had appeared at her table by the time his match was finished. He walked over and pulled her out of her seat. Stephanie went to smile at him but was surprised when his mouth descended on hers in a passionate and all-encompassing kiss. She felt herself go weak in that kiss and clung to him so she wouldn't topple over. When he pulled away, she gazed dreamily at him. "Wow."

"I love you."

"I love you too," she said softly. "Is something wrong?"

"I appreciate everything you do for this show, and for this company. I appreciate the fact that you try your best and work your hardest at what you do, even when it's thankless, even when you're criticized, even when you think that you're not doing a great job. I want you to know that if you ever think you're not doing an amazing job that I will always believe in you."

"Are you joining the army?" Stephanie asked, searching his eyes with her confused ones.

"No, I just now realize how much pressure is on you at all times, and I want you to know that nobody knows shit about what you do, and you are amazing."

"Thanks," she said, tears coming to her eyes. She felt stupid, but Chris could be such remarkable guy most of the time. He would just say the things that she didn't know she wanted to hear. But when he did say them, it hit her how much she wanted to hear them.

"Why are your eyes filled with tears?" Chris asked, running his thumb across her cheek.

"Because you're just…you just surprise me is all," Stephanie said. "I'm very lucky to have found you."

"I'd say stumble on me is more accurate. Or rather, you're lucky that I stumble on you."

"How is that?"

"Three years ago, this woman was yelling at her husband, hating him, and God, I wanted to shut her up. Little did I know that she would want to be business partners."

"Oh my God, that was three years ago?" Stephanie exclaimed, covering her mouth with her hand.

"Yup, three years ago today. I remember because it was one of the first times that I was with you and didn't want to slap you and put you in the walls."

Stephanie smiled. "Well then I'm lucky that I wanted someone to kick Hunter's ass."

"Yeah, very lucky, I'd say. So I might go back to your dad, or I might stay here and find out just what you do," he said with a smile.

"Well, you have much to learn young one," she said, pulling him over to her table and handing him some headphones. "First off, timing is very important."

Lita crutched away as she heard the end of that conversation. How the hell could she go up and flirt with Chris now? He was completely enamored with Stephanie, and it was one of their freaking anniversaries. There was no way that she could fulfill her duties tonight. She would just have to tell her partner that tonight was not going to happen. He was going to be so pissed.

Even after his little speech, Randy still felt bad for having to fight Christian. The door to his face hadn't changed that. But he had to, and he would. He wasn't going to let a friendship compromise his in-ring ability. He did wonder the status of Edge and Christian's relationship though, because Trish might be upset about that, seeing as how she didn't like Edge.

Christian, for the first time in a long time, felt a sense of camaraderie with his brother. It was like they were on the same page again, and they were going out there as EC, instead of just Edge and just Christian, two guys who happened to be paired together for the evening. Maybe it was the fact that he was away from Trish, but something inside him and inside Edge just clicked and they were partners again.

That was not to Randy and Michaels advantage though because they didn't have as much experience. Edge and Christian were a well-oiled machine. They worked well together, and it showed. They knew when the other was tired and needed a tag, they knew all the tricks in the book with double-teaming and they most definitely used that to try and win the match. It was four, five years ago, and they were the best of friends, and they were pulling out all the stops, every single one of them.

And then they grabbed two chairs.

They were going to do it, they were going to do a move that had become synonymous with them, and had just never felt right being done by just one guy. They grabbed those chairs and looked at each other, and they were E and C, they were thinking about five-second poses, and huge novelty cowboy hats, and Elvis costumes, and at that moment, they both totally reeked of awesomeness.

But damn that Michaels had to duck out of the way and dash the hope of millions.

And then they ended up losing, but it was different this time. They were both angry this time and they walked up the ramp angrily. They were both on edge (no pun intended…maybe), and wanted to just let their aggression out. Edge more so than Christian, because Christian was better at holding things in.

"Hey bro, you want to go out after we get cleaned up?" Edge asked calmly.

"Awesome," Christian said, high-fiving his brother.

"Cool, I'll be back," he said calmly, "I've got things to take care of."

"Yeah, I'll catch up to you," Christian said, then turned to walk away and saw that Trish was there. He walked over to her and she looked down for a moment. He took a deep breath and waited for her to make the first move.

"Hey."

"Your eye looks bad."

"It's ok…now," she said. "It hurt before."

"That's too bad," he said soberly.

"Yeah. So you and Edge looked good out there," she commented. "Like a team."

"We were a team," he answered. "The best team."

"Yeah, I know."

"Look, we've got plans and I've got to go get cleaned up, so unless you have something important to say to me, I've gotta go."

Trish stepped out of the way and said sadly, "No, I don't have anything to say…I was hoping that you did."

"Nope, nothing," he said, then walked away, but turning back at the last moment, calling over his shoulder. "You might want to watch who you get into fights with. You shouldn't be thrown into walls by girls who are nowhere near your league."

A ghost of a smile turned up on Trish's lips. It hadn't been much, but it had been something. There had to still be hope for her and Christian. She would just have to work on him and maybe get an apology out of this. Or maybe she had to apologize too, because she hadn't exactly been the best and most mature person during this fight. Realizing that she was still standing there, she walked somberly to her locker room, and then back to her lonely hotel room.

Stephanie was taking a bathroom break later, leaving Chris to run the show in her absence. He had begged her not to let him do this alone, but she reminded him that he had a whole sea of production people, and all he had to do was make sure that they were doing their jobs right. She had to admit though, it was a strange sight seeing Chris there, headphones on, trying to direct traffic. It wasn't necessarily bad, it was just…different. She knew that he was doing this for her, and only for her, but she didn't let on that she knew that was the only reason.

He would have her believe that it was also for the good of the company, that he would someday be the primary owner along with her and Shane, but that wasn't the case. She could read him, being with him for so long and knew that this was all for her. He wanted her to be happy, and he was happy doing things for her, so she let him, knowing that in turn it would make him happy.

She was so filled with happiness she almost missed the conversation that she was hearing. She gasped silently when she heard Hunter admit to Flair that he was responsible for the entire thing with the videos and the limo. She looked around, as if trying to look for someone and spotted Dave at the other end of the hallway. She took a step back and waved him over quickly. He picked up his step and came to the other side of the door while Stephanie mouthed and pointed inside.

Dave heard the entire conversation and he just shook his head. Hearing Hunter call him stupid had put the entire thing in perspective. If he had not known what he was going to do beforehand, he sure as hell would know now after hearing Hunter basically insult him and call him nothing. He looked over at Stephanie and she simply mouthed, "I told you so" to him. He nodded and ran his tongue along his teeth, before telling her to go. Stephanie just rubbed her hands together and grinned all the way back to where Chris was.

She had been gone all of ten minutes and Chris looked like he was in a state of frenzy, looking over the messy notes that Stephanie had written to herself. He looked doubly relieved to see her and she rushed over, and grabbed her own headphones, once again taking charge.

"You are so much more incredible than I could ever imagine," Chris whispered in her ear, but her grin didn't wane. "What are you smiling for?"

She turned to him, grin on her face, "Something good is about to happen."

"With the contract signing?"

"Uh huh," she nodded as she saw all the men in question head out to the ring. Over the top of his sunglasses, Dave gave Stephanie a wink.

"How do you know?"

Stephanie just shrugged, "I just do. Watch."

Something great did happen during that contract signing. Dave remained stone-faced throughout the entire thing, even Hunter's stupid little speech about how he should do what was best for Dave. He managed to hold it all in. Because he was good at that. He had always been good at hiding what he was really feeling. It was a talent really. He had Hunter right where he wanted him, giving him the thumbs up to signing the SmackDown contract.

But just like Hunter had done to Randy, Dave gave Hunter and Flair the thumbs down. And they knew exactly what it meant.

The power-bomb through the table was magnificent, probably the best one he had ever done, and he signed that contract, showing Hunter, and then grabbed the belt, holding it, not for Hunter, not as his lackey, but as the next champion. He was going to show the world, and especially Hunter that he was the best thing in this company, that he was the future, and he was the top of the heap.

And he was not stupid.


	24. Hmm, Chris Making Matches, February 28, ...

A/N: Coors, I do in fact like Stephanie, but I respect that you don't. I just feel like a lot of blame gets blanketed on her when in fact no one person can say, "Stephanie is responsible for…" and then give off a laundry list of reasons, which is unfair to her. I do like Stephanie, I always have, and while she does have her faults, I don't think that she should be given as much blame as she is given. Stephanie does run a lot of things, but Stephanie has a staff as well, and I don't like when people feel the need to concentrate all their hatred for the state of the product on one person while ignoring the fact that this is not an individual effort, but a group effort and Stephanie is just the figurehead we see. I've never seen Stephanie do her job, and I don't think that most other people outside the company have seen her do her job so to say she does bad at this, or she can't grasp that, I just think its unfair unless you know Stephanie, and have observed her working style, and I'm willing to give her the benefit of the doubt, I know that I probably couldn't do what she does. This is all just my opinion, and I totally respect yours, but I felt the need to say why felt like going on a mini-tirade. If you want to e-mail me, that's cool, we can talk further if you want. :)

Anyways, enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

"What are you doing here?"

"Is it so wrong that I want to see my best friend," Kurt asked, lounging in Stephanie's office. "Just don't tell anyone that I'm here."

"And I'm not supposed to think that you're here for alternative reasons?" Stephanie asked, knowing full well that Kurt was lying to her. She had a pretty good idea what the reason for him being here was, and she had a strong feeling it had to do with a certain challenge that he had gotten.

"No, of course not…as long as you don't tell anyone that I'm here."

"What about Chris? Am I allowed to tell Chris? Or are you going to hide in the bathroom every time that Chris comes in here, because this is his locker room as well as my office."

"Chris can know," Kurt said sarcastically. "I wouldn't want you lying to your husband."

"I don't think he'd care if I were lying about this," Stephanie said. "But I'm just speculating on that one myself. Chris is not the type of guy that is going to get all anal about that."

"You make no sense McMahon."

"Jericho," she added. "Don't worry, I'm still getting used to that too. I still answer the phone as that…but then when I'm doing business I still just go by Stephanie McMahon, so it's all just really confusing."

"And that should be the reason why you just change your name to Stephanie Jericho," Kurt answered.

Stephanie made a face that stuck for a few seconds before slowly relaxing into an uneasy smile, "Um, Stephanie Jericho sounds completely horrible. I hate it."

"And yet that should be your name," Kurt said, rubbing his chin a little.

"No, it shouldn't be," Stephanie said. "I can choose to have whatever name I want. This isn't the 1800's Kurt. A girl can keep her last name if she wants it. Besides, I'm a McMahon and McMahons are a special breed."

"You can say that again," Kurt told her, but then cut himself off when he saw the look on Stephanie's face. "But I really like all the McMahons, especially you. You're the best, and you're very pretty."

"Now that's what I like to hear," Stephanie said, writing something down. "So you're just going to stay in here for the entire show? Because I didn't schedule Edge and Shawn until the last match of the show. So you're going to have to wait in here for a good long while."

"Well I…hey, wait, who said I was going out during that match?"

"Well, you pretty much just gave it away right there, so you might as well come out and say it because you're really not fooling anybody…or just me since there's nobody else in the room. You're just going to have to stick around here."

"That's fine, I've got the company of a pretty lady, and that's all I really need."

"Well, I'm going to be leaving once the show starts. Chris might come in at some point, maybe. He's usually helping me at the desk with running the show."

"Um…I was under the impression that Chris was a wrestler, and that his job was to actually wrestle."

"It is," Stephanie nodded. "But Daddy wants him to get acclimated with running the show, and that's what's going to happen. Chris is learning the ropes so that one day, when I'm running the company, he won't look like the stooge that's married to me."

"I don't think Chris would make himself look like a stooge."

"You know what I mean. Anyways, it gives us more time to spend with each other, and that's always a good thing."

"But the two of you work together as it is, you spend all your time together, don't you think that you two are going to get sick of each other at some point. Maybe it's just me, but I can't imagine having to spend that much time with one person."

"Do you see him anywhere around me?" Stephanie asked, gesturing to the otherwise empty room. "When we're at the shows we're usually so busy doing other things that we aren't able to see each other that much. And when I'm running the show, he's usually doing something else related to the show, and we're both working so we're really just sitting next to each other."

"You make things so very complicated."

"I know, it's meant as a tactic to get you off my back for spending too much time with my husband. He's my husband for God's sakes, that should mean that I'm allowed to see him whenever I want to."

"Where is he now?" Kurt asked.

"Hell if I know," Stephanie shrugged. "He's off somewhere with someone, and that's all there is to that."

"And you're not even curious?"

"Nope, not a single bit," Stephanie replied and meant it. "It's not like I don't trust him or something."

"I know that, but you usually know where he is."

"Oh, my poor delusional Kurt," Stephanie said, talking down to him like he was a three year old. "Welcome to the world that is Raw. I hardly ever know where my husband is, and he hardly ever knows where I am."

Chris was looking at Lita rather sympathetically. She seemed to be really down right now and he felt bad that his life was so on track while his life. He had no complaints really, but Lita, it was as if everything that could go wrong, did go wrong. He vaguely remembered a quote or a law that went like that, but he couldn't exactly place who said it. He didn't have time to dwell on that though because he was trying to engage in a conversation with Lita.

"So I wish that I was back in the ring," Lita said, feeling pretty low about herself. "Just when I get back in the ring, everything gets shot to hell."

"That has to be rough."

"Do you know what I mean though? I mean, something you love keeps getting taken away from you over and over again. After working so hard to get back from my neck injury, only to have this thing happen with my leg, it's like a string of bad luck."

"Well, actually, I thankfully don't know," Chris answered. It was true, he hadn't gotten seriously injured in a long time. Yeah, he'd had some concussions and some stitches and what not, but nothing that had taken him out of commission for a long period of time, not since he had broken his arm, but that was way back when he was still in the indies.

"Lucky," Lita said. "And I don't even have a partner to help me you know, just someone who'll pick up the slack and everything."

Lita rested her arm on Chris's arm, trying to garner sympathy, or so she wanted Chris to believe. She was actually trying to get in his good graces, and by good graces, she meant…well, she could leave that up to the imagination. She was willing to go through any means to get Chris Jericho, only because it meant her…associate could get what he wanted. And in turn, she would get what she wanted, and then everyone would be happy…maybe not Chris and Stephanie, but Lita didn't care about that. Stephanie had never been her favorite person, and they had never been on good terms.

She thought back to her history with Stephanie, and it had never been good. There were so many times when Stephanie had been the cause for her beatdowns, or for the Hardys to get beat up, and then the week that Stephanie had left, Chris had gone berserk on her and Matt, seemingly because he had lost her. And that had stuck in her craw for all this time. If she was making Stephanie miserable, then it would just be the icing on the cake.

"It is a great feeling," Chris answered. "I mean, I haven't been put in a position where I needed Stephanie to pick up some slack, but it's definitely nice to know that someone is always going to be there with you."

"Yeah," Lita said, "Someone to just hold your hand with you when you're feeling low. I want that."

"You'll find it," Chris said amicably, patting her hand. "You just have to believe that there's someone out there for you."

"Maybe there is," she said, rather suggestively as she tried to give him a flirty eye. Chris didn't notice though, because he had become rather oblivious to the advances of other women. All the divas on Raw and on SmackDown for that matter knew that he was Stephanie's husband, and they would be crazy to try and go after him when the woman in question was Stephanie McMahon, part owner of the entire company. She had hiring and firing power (Chris still didn't).

"Of course there is," he smiled at her. "Just buck up little trooper, he's out there."

"Oh, I know that-"

"Chris!" someone yelled out and Lita cursed as she recognized Trish's voice. Another thorn in her side. How was she ever going to manipulate Chris if she didn't get a moment with him? Her associate was getting impatient with her, and she was getting impatient with herself. This wasn't like her; she had never had trouble using her womanly wiles before, why was this time so difficult?

"Trish!" Chris said happily, hopping off the bench that he and Lita had been sitting on. "I haven't seen you since last week."

"Um, I'm going to go," Lita said quickly.

Chris turned to her, "Ok, see ya Lita."

"Bye," Lita said, cursing under her breath as she hobbled away. Damn Trish Stratus having to interrupt.

"I know, but I can't go down to Florida right now, not with that asshole I call a boyfriend there. I was in Canada, where I belong," she told him, hugging him tightly. "Where is Christian tonight?"

Chris winced the tiniest bit and Trish picked up on it. Her stomach fell and she swore that he was going to say that Christian had shown up with another girl, or that he was off with another girl. If Chris said that he was with Christy Hemme, Trish might have to go punch a wall or two. Trish would not be able to control her anger if Chris told her that Christian was off with another girl. She would completely freak out in the worst possible way. She was dreading what Chris was going to say, absolutely dreading it.

"He has a cold," Chris told her. "Doctor told him he had a mild ear infection and that he shouldn't fly, and he didn't want to drive all the way from Florida to Rhode Island, so he stayed home. He cleared it with management, so it's fine."

"Oh, thank God," Trish blurted out, and then blushed, realizing that she had let that slip. She had meant it as a thank God that he wasn't with Christy or some other diva, but Chris was interpreting it as something different. "I'm just glad he's ok."

"Oh," Chris said.

"Wait, did you say he cleared it with management. You mean, he actually called Vince to tell him he had a cold."

"No, he called me, I told him it was cool that he stayed home."

"Wait, wait, wait," Trish said, holding up her palm, signing for him to stop, even though he had yet to say anything else. "We can call you to tell you that we're not going to be at the show. We don't have to call Vince, or Bischoff, we can call you…Chris Jericho?"

"Yeah," Chris said. "I own part of the company, I'm part of management as of last week, you can call me. I mean, don't let it get around so much, because I don't want guys calling me up thinking that I'm going to be lenient, but yeah, if you have something and you need to tell someone, call me."

"That's so freaking awesome!" Trish said, clapping her hands a little. "God, why didn't I know this before today?"

"Because Steph and I don't want people to start resenting me like they resented Hunter. So we're trying to keep my involvement to a minimum, at least to the other wrestlers. I'm certainly not getting any special privileges."

"Of course," Trish nodded seriously. "But this is still so cool. I don't think it's really hit me that you own part of the company."

"You knew that Stephanie did, so what difference does it make now?"

"Yeah, but that's who Stephanie's been her entire life, but you, you were just pushed into this position recently. I mean, you and Stephanie have only been married for a little over a month."

"Well, I'm still just Chris Jericho, the wrestler, I'm not Chris Jericho, the executive, or anything. I don't even have any hiring or firing powers."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't want them," he answered. "Do you want me to walk you to your locker room?"

"Yeah…so…um, you obviously talked to Christian recently…"

"Yeah, I did," Chris said, then looked over at her. She looked hesitant, and he could only surmise that she was trying to talk to him about the situation with Christian, but that she was nervous about what she might hear. "He misses you Trish."

"Did he say that?" she asked quickly, and hopefully, definitely hopefully.

"Not in so many words," Chris answered, because, in truth, Christian had not said that he missed Trish, but, "You could tell that he did. It was just his tone of voice, you know. I'm sure he's missing you."

"Good," Trish said. "I mean…I still want an apology."

"Trish, I think he's looking for an apology too."

"What for? He doesn't deserve one. I did nothing wrong."

"I'd be angry at Stephanie if she put herself on the line while she was injured," Chris said, frowning. "I mean, you have to look at it from his perspective. You were going after a seven foot tall, three-hundred plus pound monster of a man. I mean, even normal guys wouldn't mess with Kane, but you go out there, hurt, and try to hurt him. Trish, that was ballsy, yes, but it was also incredibly stupid."

"But I don't see it that way…Randy didn't see it that way."

"Yeah, and have you talked to Randy lately, he's completely up in arms about this entire thing. He thinks that he's responsible for breaking the two of you up."

"He thinks that?"

"I don't know, but it would make sense, I think."

"I have to go talk to him!" Trish said suddenly. "I can't let him think he's responsible for this!"

"I think I saw him in catering reading," Chris said, pointing in the right direction.

Trish was off and running…well, walking quickly. She didn't want Randy to think that he had anything to do with this horrible fight that was brewing between her and Christian. If it was anyone's fault, it was hers and Christian's. They were the ones in the fight, and they were the ones who were having problems. Randy was a good friend, and she didn't want him thinking otherwise.

She caught up with him in catering where he appeared to be reading a SmackDown magazine. Trish sidled up to him and sat down next to him. He shot her a wary smile and then went back to his reading. Trish gently put her hand on the top of the magazine and pulled it down so that she could see his face.

"Haven't really gotten to talk to you lately," she observed.

"Yeah," Randy said.

"Have you been busy with your ladies?"

"You could say that."

"I've seen you around Stacy a lot lately, you guys look kind of cute together. I mean, I think you could do better, but you do look cute together. Is there something serious going on there? Something that has potential?"

"Maybe," Randy said, turning his chair so he was facing her a little more. "I just don't know. I find myself attracted to her, because she is really cool, and nice, and everything, but sometimes she's just too nice, and I don't know what to do about that part of her. But then there's Victoria, and she's…great too."

"It'll come to you…Randy, you know that you had nothing to do with what's going on with Christian and me right?" she asked, pressing forward.

"I know," he responded, but it didn't sound confident.

Trish rubbed her temples gently. "Trust me, it had nothing to do with you. I has a lot to do with how much he trusts me, and how much I feel like he should control me. It had nothing to do with whose side you chose to be on. Nothing at all, and I just needed you to know that. You don't have to feel badly, because you did nothing bad at all."

"Ok, thanks," Randy smiled.

"Good, now that that's settled," Trish said, then patted the magazine. "What has you so intrigued with SmackDown."

"Undertaker," Randy said, showing the cover.

"What for?"

"No reason, just reading about a legend," Randy said, getting up and kissing Trish's head. "I'll see you later Trish."

"Randy!" Trish called out, but was too late. The way that he had said legend though, it had intrigued her. Randy was up to something, and she had a feeling that he wanted another legend to fall.

Stephanie was still in her office, and sitting down at her desk. She was trying to finish up this one last thing before she went to production truck to make sure that everything was running smoothly. She couldn't break away from the thing she was reading, which was the set-up and format for WrestleMania. It looked to be an awesome show, with Steve Austin coming back, that always got the fans pretty excited, which was a good thing. She was enthralled with his contract when her cell phone rang.

She picked it up blindly and answered, "Stephanie McMahon."

"Hey Steph, it's Dave."

"Oh hey," she said happily and Kurt's ears perked up from the schedule he was reading. "What's up?"

"I just got the arena, I'm still in my limo, and I had my drive snag me a schedule, and saw that I had an interview with J.R. and that's it for me?"

"Yeah, there's just so much stuff going on, you know. Besides, I have a feeling a certain someone is already having a fit. In fact," she said, turning on her television and seeing that Hunter was, in fact, having a fit, she laughed and continued, "yup, just like I thought, he is."

"Good, he deserves it," Dave said. "I'll let him stew for a little while, get that anger up."

"You are awful…and I love it," she said evilly.

"I learned from the best, I mean, we have to give it to Hunter, he does know how to make you angry."

"That's for damn sure," Stephanie said. "Underneath it all, he's scared, and you can tell."

"Maybe, but you obviously haven't seen his ego lately, it's worse than ever. I think once he hit double digits with the World Title thing, it completely went to his head. The hubris that man has, it's over-the-top."

"I know, trust me, I know."

"Hey, I needed to meet with you about something," Dave said, "Do you have a moment right now?"

Stephanie looked down at the contract. "Yeah, I think I have the time. I was just reviewing stuff for WrestleMania, where are you?"

"Parking lot, white stretch limo," Dave told her.

"I'll be there in a few."

"In a few then."

Stephanie hung up the phone and stood up from her desk. Kurt looked over at her suspiciously, wondering who she had been talking to. He didn't watch Raw close enough to know every little thing that happened, but that phone call, at least Stephanie's end, had been very strange. Stephanie set her pen down and walked over to Kurt a little.

"I have to go meet with someone, but I'll be back, Chris might come in here, he has a match with Maven later. Don't ask."

"Why does he have a match with Maven?" Kurt asked, regardless of Stephanie's request.

"Because Chris is learning the ropes, so he's getting a little less stage time than we would like. But he's taking it like the champ that he is, and that's all that I can ask for. But I've really got to go meet with someone, so I'll speak to you later."

"Fine," Kurt said, smiling.

Stephanie walked out of the room, and Kurt waited a couple seconds before ducking out into the hallway. He had put his sunglasses on, and he was darting in and out of the hallways, following Stephanie, but also trying to remain covert. It wasn't that hard because the show was going on and people were hustling and bustling places to make sure that everything was running smoothly. They didn't have time to figure out who the guy skulking around was.

He saw Stephanie walk out into the parking lot and shiver a little bit, even though she was wearing a thick sweater and long pants. It was definitely cold there tonight, as evidenced by the weather, but Stephanie was sticking it out as she walked over to a limo. She climbed in swiftly and Kurt stood there, a little cold himself and wondered who was inside that limo.

Dave turned up the heater for Stephanie, "Better?"

"Yeah," she shivered. "I should've known it would be freezing, but I didn't realize how bad it was out here. That's what I get for hardly leaving the arena during a show."

"It's your job to stay in there though, I don't blame you."

"So what did you want to talk about?" Stephanie asked.

"I just wanted to make sure that there was nothing in my contract that Hunter could use against me. No stipulations that say that I would have to leave the show, or clauses saying that I can't touch him before the match. Things like that, and I know that you've read my contract a number of times, and so I had hoped that you would know."

"So far, I can't really tell," Stephanie said. "I went over the contract that you signed before the Rumble, which everyone had to sign, which stated that you could choose where you wanted to go after you had won the Rumble. But I haven't really had the time to go over the match for WrestleMania contract. It's on my list, but I haven't read it yet, I'm reading over Austin's contract for his appearance. Just making sure that everything sounds ok, not legally, but stipulation wise. I'll look over yours next if you want me to."

"Yeah, I'd really appreciate that. I don't want that bastard to have any ways of getting out of this match."

"I wouldn't dream of it," Stephanie said. "You've worked too hard to get here, and I've been waiting too long to see it. It's just so damn frustrating when you see opponent after opponent beat Hunter, but then he makes them look stupid. I don't think he could do that to you. But don't worry, I'll find out about this contract."

"Thanks Steph…it is ok that I call you Steph right, I never asked."

"Yeah, it's fine," she said, waving him off.

"I really appreciate the stuff you've done for me."

"It's been easy, trust me," she dismissed his praise. "You're the one putting yourself out there. I better go though, before people start to miss me and the show goes completely to hell. Good luck with your interview. You know Hunter is going to show up."

"I'm ready for him," Dave said, smirking and raising an eyebrow. "He forgets sometimes that I'm actually bigger than he is."

"To Hunter, nobody is bigger," Stephanie said with a sarcastic laugh. "Bye."

Stephanie climbed out of the limo and shivered when she met the cold. Her cheeks were going to get all rosy from this. She walked back into the arena, intending to check in on the show and make sure that everything was running smoothly. She didn't even notice when she walked by Kurt.

Kurt stayed in his spot, careful not to move lest Stephanie see him. He wanted to know whose limo she had just spent a good amount of time in. And he would stay out here until he did find out whose limo that was. This was just all very strange to him. A secret phone call, a secret meeting, and had Stephanie actually looked pleased when she walked out that limo? She really did seem happy when she had alighted from the backseat. Kurt shook his head of the thoughts that were threatening to invade. He would not think ill of Stephanie until he found out who—

It was Dave Batista who got out of the limo, dressed to the nines and making any other man pale in comparison. Kurt was physically shocked to see that it was Dave in the limo, and Dave, with a smile on his face no less, that was having smiles and hello's for everyone he came across. This was the monster that everyone talked about? And what the hell was Stephanie doing getting out of the limo that Dave occupied?

Things were starting to smell fishy around here, and he wanted to go find Stephanie and see what the truth was. He didn't want to think affair, but it was just so strange and so secretive. If it wasn't secretive, Stephanie would just said that she was going to go see Dave for a meeting. But then she had said it was a meeting, but disclosed no details, so it didn't seem like it would be for business. Kurt's muddled brain fueled him to the production table (so muddled that he wasn't paying as much attention as to who saw him) where Stephanie and Chris were laughing as she stuck the headphones on his head, while he tried to fix his hair.

Stephanie saw Kurt and got up quickly, rushing him back to her office and pushing him inside. "Kurt, what are you doing, you said you didn't want to be seen!"

"Why the hell were you in Dave's limo!" he said loudly.

Stephanie's eyes widened. "You saw me?"

"You're damn right I saw you. Why were you with him? You're…not, if you're doing something to Chris, I can't be your friend anymore. The guy is my best friend, and if you're cheating on him…"

"Kurt, NO!" Stephanie said emphatically. "I would NEVER do that to Chris, not in a million years."

"Then what the hell were you doing in Dave's limo!"

"Dave and I are friends, ok, that's it," Stephanie explained.

"Are you sure?"

"Well, let me see…." She said, pretending to think about it, but then giving Kurt a dull look. "Of course I'm sure about it. What do you think? I married Chris a month ago. Why would I do that if I were sleeping around with Dave? That's stupid. Don't make me look stupid Kurt."

"But why are you meeting in his limo?"

"Because nobody knows we're friends. I've been helping him out with some of the stuff with his thing with Hunter. We're out to get him, and we're doing a pretty good job, but we don't want anyone to know until the time is right. I told him that Hunter was the one doing the stuff, and I got him to trust me that Hunter was out to get him."

"Does Chris know?"

"No, Chris doesn't know. This is entirely my thing."

"That's not cool Steph."

"It's fine Kurt, Chris will understand, he'll think it's brilliant. Dave and I want to tell Hunter we're friend when we feel it'll hurt him the most. Don't you see what I'm doing Kurt, I'm staging a coup on Hunter. First, I took Randy from him, now I'm taking Dave. Hunter won't even know what hit him, but he will know that I am the one behind it, and that I am the one who single-handedly broke up Evolution."

"But you really didn't," Kurt said, "I mean Randy and Dave, they had some say in it, right?"

"Of course, they had some say, but who planted the seeds in their head that they could actually break free from him?"

Kurt was just amazed at Stephanie's brain. He wondered if when she was dead she would donate it to science so that future scientists could study it, and learn from it. Sometimes she could be overtly brilliant, and other times, she was so subtly brilliant, slowly snatching the tablecloth from underneath Hunter until he was left with a bare table and all his food dumped on the floor.

"Ok, I concede to the brilliance that is you, I'm sorry I ever doubted you."

"Now let me get back to work," Stephanie said. "And Kurt? I'm a little hurt that you would even think that I would have an affair with anyone? It's not like there's some guy carrying me backstage and kissing me…"

"Touché, Stephanie," Kurt said as she walked out of the room.

Stephanie went back to her station and Chris, who was a little less lost than last week, and was starting to get the hang of all of this. She was proud that he was taking it up so easily and had high hopes for him in the future. She gave him a short kiss in greeting, not wanting to get distracted when she had things to do, and he had things to do. She rubbed her chin a little and frowned.

"Are you growing a beard again?" she asked.

"Uh huh," Chris nodded, grinning like a little boy.

"Well, I guess it's better than some of the other stuff you've gone through. You're worse than me you know that right. I have never changed my hair as much as you change your facial hair. Although, you do have the one up on Hunter, because I don't even know what he's trying to go for with that whatever he wants to call it, throwback to the 70's maybe."

"I promise, I will never have my facial hair like that."

"Says the man who had such a long goatee that he actually had to tie it up so it wouldn't break free from his face and run grow rampant over the country."

"Shut up," Chris said, flicking her bangs.

"That was not cool Jericho," Stephanie said, fixing her bangs and then tussling Chris's hair.

"That was uncalled for Jericho," Chris said, using her married name.

"Fine, I'm not talking to you for the rest of the night," Stephanie said, turning to look at the monitor and facing away from Chris.

"Fine, I will not talk to you for the rest of the night," Chris said, turning to face a different monitor that did not face Stephanie.

Stephanie watched with a small smile on her face as she saw Dave go out there and talk about Hunter, and everything. Like clockwork, Hunter went out there, and Dave…well, he didn't exactly own Hunter tonight, but he sure showed him who was boss when he took Flair to school. Hunter looked extremely funny throwing that temper tantrum on the ramp. Stephanie couldn't keep in her laughter as Hunter stomped backstage.

He saw Stephanie laughing hysterically and stalked over. "You think this is funny huh?"

Stephanie took off her headphones. "I think it's better than Arrested Development and that's the funniest show on television (true story, watch it!)."

"Oh yeah, laugh it up, but April 4, I'm still going to be the champion, and I'll be the one laughing."

"Uh huh," Stephanie said, trying so hard to hold in her laughter, but it just burst out again and she grabbed her stomach to keep from doubling over. "You looked like you wanted your mommy when you having your temper tantrum. Did you want to get a cookie? Would a cookie make you feel better? Maybe some juice from your sippy cup?"

"Shut up bitch!"

"Ok, that's enough," Chris said, starting to get up and defend his wife.

"Chris, no," Stephanie said, patting his leg so he sat back down. "Hunter is not even worth it. Not worth it at all."

"Ok, I'll look at it that way," Chris said, calming down.

"I guess she's got you good and whipped," Hunter said, but Chris just clenched his jaw and didn't respond."

"Don't worry Hunter, on April 4, I'll send you a nice consolation basket," Stephanie told him. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have work to do."

The ignoring worked because Hunter went away soon after. But Chris went away too, with a kiss for Stephanie, and a smile, he went down to the ring for his match against Maven (ugh!). While Chris was waiting for his opponent, it became abundantly clear to him that he had no direction going into WrestleMania. He had nothing to go to, no big match or anything. Dave and Hunter were pumped for their match, and he had nothing.

It bothered him during his short match with Maven (like the kid had a chance), and it bothered him so much after he won that he took the microphone and thought for a second. He was a bit hesitant to do this, but it was well within his rights to do so. For the first time ever, and Chris really felt like this was the first time, he felt like he was in power. He felt like he was in charge of this show, and of this company and that he could have a place here, in management.

Maybe that was why he made a match, right then and there. It felt…good to just dictate what HE wanted to happen. He couldn't insert himself into the main event, that contract had been signed, and other matches he would've felt like a third wheel, so Chris did the only thing that he felt he could do. He made his own damn match, and to his own stipulations. He thought a ladder match would be awesome, and so Chris was going to get his damn ladder match.

Walking backstage he saw Stephanie with a surprised look on her face, and he walked over with a smirk and sat down at his chair, sticking his headphones on, intending to finish out the show. Stephanie took his headphones promptly off and her expression was exactly the same, no change in emotion or anything.

"You just made a match," she said incredulously.

"Yes I did," he said nonchalantly.

"You just asserted your power," Stephanie said, still incredulously.

"Uh huh."

"You used a benefit," she said, and not surprisingly, still incredulously.

"Indeed I did," Chris said, giving her a little mischievous smile. "I mean, I still have to clear it with you and Bischoff, and I don't know exactly whose going to be in it, besides maybe Benoit and Christian, or what it'll be for exactly, but I did."

"I'm…you went out there and you made a match!"

"Don't act so surprised," he joked. "Your father said that I was being trained, and I figured that I could do what I wanted."

"You can, I just…I never expected…I'm just surprised is all."

"Well, it's not like I did it just for myself."

"Well Jericho, welcome to the big leagues."


	25. So Much to Say, So Little Time, March 7,...

Stephanie walked into Bischoff's office, ready for her weekly meeting about the show and the goings on of the show. This was a thing where they pretty much planned the show, or if they were going to be honest, fought over what was going to be on the show. The two of them hardly ever saw eye to eye, and especially today, she figured it would be a struggle.

"Bischoff," Stephanie greeted professionally.

"Stephanie," Bischoff said with derision, and then noticed another person behind her. "What the hell is he doing here?"

"Is that any way to talk to me?" Chris said as he wrapped his arm around Stephanie. "You don't look happy to see me Eric."

"Stephanie, you know that he's not supposed to be here," Bischoff said sternly.

"Well, were you watching the show last week?" Stephanie asked sweetly, "Because if you weren't, I don't think that reflects well on you as a General Manager."

"I was watching."

"Good, good," Stephanie nodded. "And since you WERE watching last week, then you saw that Chris made a match last week as well."

"He's not allowed to do that," Bischoff said, even though deep down, very deep down, he knew that it was a good idea. A ladder match would separate Raw from SmackDown in the best ways. Part of Bischoff's job was to make sure that Raw always came out on top.

Stephanie laughed and it made Bischoff cringe, "That's where you're wrong Eric, poor, poor Eric. You see, it's like this, my dad wants Chris to get acquainted with running the show, because he owns part of the company now, and being a part of management, it means he gets to sit in on meetings whenever he wants to, and you can't say a damn word about it."

"Don't you love her?" Chris joked, pointing at Stephanie. "I love this woman, don't you love her?"

"Oh sure," Bischoff deadpanned.

"So much love in the room," Stephanie laughed. She walked closer to the table to one side of the room. Chris pulled the chair out of her and she kissed him lightly before sitting down. Chris sat down next to her and scooted his chair a little bit closer. "So we have much to discuss and I think that WrestleMania has to come first."

"Yeah, look, I know I made the match last week," Chris said, "But I'm willing to get clearance on it from you and Stephanie, that's the main reason that I'm here. You two are the ones the run the show. So you get to make the choices."

"I already approved," Stephanie said. "I think it would be in your best interest to approve too Eric. Let's be honest, we want to stack the show in favor or the Raw brand. And I think this is just the way to do this."

"Fine, I'll approve, on one condition," Bischoff said. "I get to choose the stipulations and the competitors."

"Fine," Stephanie said. "I can deal with that, what and who did you have in mind?"

"This does not leave this room Jericho, do you hear me?" Bischoff said, sending a deathly look to Chris. Chris just rolled his eyes and nodded. "I want it to be Benoit, Christian, Edge, Benjamin, and Kane."

"Kane? In a ladder match," Chris laughed. "That's funny, but fine, I can deal with that. Stephanie?"

"Fine with me," Stephanie said. "And what is this match going to be for? The Intercontinental Championship since Shelton is the holder of that belt?"

"No," Benoit said. "You want to up the ante for the show, and so do I. I think that it should be for something a little bit bigger. Something like a World Title shot."

"I'm definitely all for that," Chris said, causing Stephanie to laugh and pat his arm.

"I know you are, and that's fine with me, do with that what you want, but make sure its legit Eric, I don't want any of this crap that you seem to like so much. If you want to give a title shot, you give a title shot and nothing like they have to jump through rings to get it. If they win, they get it."

"Fine," Bischoff agreed.

"You know what would be really good along those lines?" Chris said, not knowing if it was his place to interrupt, but both Stephanie and Bischoff turned their eyes to him, so he figured that it was ok if he were to interject his opinion into the discussion. "If you had all of us facing each other tonight, not like all in one ring, but like individual matches."

"That's a good idea," Stephanie said, trying not to sound like she was patronizing him, because she honestly thought that was a good idea.

"Yeah, it is," Bischoff said, cursing under his breath for not thinking of it first.

While this meeting was going on, Randy was at his hotel, having a coffee with Stacy. He wasn't really a big coffee fan, but Stacy had wanted some, so he found himself sitting here, in an uber-trendy place, sipping on a drink he didn't even know the name of. Stacy smiled over her coffee cup.

"This is nice, don't you think?" she asked sweetly.

"Yeah," he answered in the positive, although it wasn't really nice. He really didn't like coffee, and to have to act like he did was kind of…mean, but what could he really do?

"So you're going to challenge the Undertaker huh?" she asked, remembering what he had said.

"I need to go after a real true legend. Undertaker has never lost at WrestleMania, do you know how awesome it would be if I was the one to end that streak? I mean, God, he's been in so many WrestleManias, it's unbelievable, and I have a chance to beat him. It would be the biggest thing I've done."

"I know, even Triple H has tried to go after him, and failed, and if you did that, I think that would make you better than Triple H by comparison."

Randy laughed. "That would be even better."

"Are you making fun of me?" she asked with a pout.

"No, of course not," Randy said, holding his hands up defensively. "But if we're going to be honest, let me be honest say that this coffee really sucks."

"Then why did you drink it!" Stacy asked with a giggle.

"Cause I was trying to be nice," he answered, pushing it away. "It's gross. Did you want me to give you a ride to the arena?"

"I would love it if you did," she said, standing up. "I like spending time with you Randy. I don't know if you feel the same way, but I really like spending time with you."

"Thanks Stace," Randy told her, wrapping his arm loosely around her shoulders. "I think I feel the same way."

"Think?"

"Yeah, I wish I could say definitely that I feel a certain way for you, but I can't. I'm sorry, that's probably not what you want to hear, but if you want to hear the truth, that's what it is. I really do like spending time with you, but as for it being more, I'm really not sure."

Stacy smiled and then gave him a look, "Well, I'm just going to have to try harder to change your mind."

Chris walked out of Bischoff's office and felt pretty good about himself. Stephanie was still in there ironing out the more boring details, but she had told him that he need not stay. He was glad at the way he had asserted himself. He didn't know when it had happened, possibly last week, possibly just an hour ago, but somewhere in that time, he had come to enjoy his position of power. Did he like it more than wrestling and being in front of a lot of people? No, of course not, but it was different and new, and he really, really liked it. Now he knew why Stephanie always got so depressed when she was out of a job.

It was still pretty early and not many people were there, so he found himself walking around aimlessly. His cell phone rang in his pocket and he fished it out, checking to see who it was, and smiled as he saw it was his wife, who he had just seen twenty minutes earlier. "Miss me already?"

"No, actually, I'm discussing something, and I don't have time to check on the ring set-up, can you just go make sure that everything is where it should be. There should be a clipboard on my table with a checklist, you just need to go through that and make sure that everything is where it should be."

"Cool, that'll give me something to do," Chris said. "I'm on it boss."

"Thank you, love you," she said quickly, probably because Bischoff was staring at her.

"Love you back," he said, hanging up shortly thereafter.

He went to the table and grabbed the clipboard, reaching up to loosen his tie a little bit. He was going to change anyways, he didn't see the need for looking good any longer. He walked out on the stage, checking things off, and wondering why Stephanie liked to do this herself and not have one of her assistants do it, she had enough of them to do the menial task work. He observed a couple of females in the ring and upon looking for a moment saw that it was Lita and Christy Hemme.

Curious as to what they were doing, he walked a little bit closer and saw Lita instructing Christy on different moves. Chris tried to hold in his laughter at trying to see Christy actually wrestle. He had to quickly go back to his checklist to keep from laughing. He was their boss, he should be trying to encourage talent, not laugh outright at them. Oh, but the temptation was so great.

"Chris, is that you?" Lita asked, ignoring Christy for the moment as she saw Chris hanging around where the timekeeper and Lillian sat. She saw this as a good opportunity to flirt with him. Although Kane had really let up on her these past few weeks, her partner-in-crime was getting impatient with her.

"Yup," Chris said, biting his lip to keep from laughing. It was the imagery, the imagery! "What's up?"

"I'm training Christy to wrestle," she said proudly.

"Oh…that's good," he said. He was trying so hard to keep it in. It was difficult, but he was doing to keep from laughing if it killed him. He could go tell Stephanie later and then they could laugh together. It wasn't that it was a bad thing she was learning to wrestle, but from the few moves that he had seen them do, she was not good, not good at all.

"What are you doing though? You look all busy."

"I'm going through Stephanie's checklist for her. She's busy."

"She has you doing her dirty work?" Lita scoffed. What was Chris to Stephanie? Her little puppy dog that was just around to do her bidding at all times of the day? God, what did he see in her?

"No," Chris answered. "I'm doing this because I'm in management."

"You're in what?" Lita asked, her eyes widening.

"I am in management, I help run the show. That's why I haven't been doing anything really of note, I'm learning how to run all of this," he said, gesturing towards everything. "I'm in the McMahon family now, what can you do right?"

"Oh, so you're like a boss?"

"You can think of it that way," Chris shrugged, "If that makes it easier. But don't let me interrupt you from your…training."

"I can use a break," Lita said, raising her eyebrows a little, which just cause Chris to furrow his brows. "My knee is kind of hurting anyways. Christy, let's stop for a while."

"Ok Lita," Christy said, and with the boundless amount of energy she still had, left with a bounce in her step. Lita climbed out of the ring, taking the ring steps down to the floor (Chris did a little check next to "ring-steps").

"So you look a lot better," Chris said as he observed Lita's leg.

"Yeah, I'm actually mobile and everything, and it's great, I feel like I'm free to do what I want now. Which is just awesome!"

"I'm sure," Chris said, going over his list, and not seeing Lita give him the once over. He was looking delicious in his pressed black dress pants and white dress shirt and loosened tie. She would love to get some of that, and she just hoped that she could. She saw his wedding ring though and scowled, wanting to rip it off his finger.

Lita did something that she had to do in order to fully get Chris's attention, she took a couple of steps and then grabbed her leg, "Oh, my leg!"

Chris's head shot up and he rushed over to the fallen Lita, "Hey, what happened?"

"I don't think that it liked all the work I was putting it through," Lita said, pretending to cringe. Chris poked around her leg and she pretended to yelp in pain from his contact.

"Ok, you need to probably just lie down and let this relax, you're putting way too much pressure on it, and it's just going to kick you in the ass later," he said, "Come on, I'll help you."

Lita smiled and let him lift her up and help him backstage. He smelled good too, and she leaned her body against him, trying to push the side her breasts against his chest. She was proud of her chest, and thought that it would get Chris going if he could feel her chest pressed against him. She was way more natural looking than Stephanie was, and she was a lot prettier than Stephanie, and Chris should recognize that.

Yet Chris was just helping someone he thought to be injured. He didn't see Lita as someone who was trying to seduce him, but just as someone who needed some help. He got Lita to her locker room and pushed open the door and helped her lay down on the couch. She caught his arm as he was pulling away and she gave him a soft smile.

"You always seem to be there to help me," she said demurely. She batted her eyelashes a little, hoping to give off an innocent vibe.

"Well, what can I say, right place, right time," he answered. "Well, I've got to go, feel better."

"But…never mind," Lita said, sinking against the couch. "Forget I said anything."

"Do you need anything?" he asked her.

"No, I just wanted you to stay a while, but you probably have work to do or something," she said, shrugging her shoulders, but then heaving a sigh.

"Well, yeah, I do have work, but if you want me to stay for a few minutes…"

"Would you?" she asked sweetly. "I would love you forever and ever if you did. I've just been really lonely lately, what with everything going on in my life, and I just feel like I don't have any friends right now, and it's just…so lonely."

"That's gotta suck," he said, sitting down next to her feet. "I know what it's like though, to not have a lot of friends. You get through it though, once you realize that you're better than everyone, and they know it."

Lita laughed, loudly and trying to sound pretty. "I'll have to try and take that advice. It's just hard to find anyone who wants to hang around with me. I just don't know what's wrong with me."

"Nothing," he said, patting her foot. "Don't think about other people, they probably don't even know the real you, and I'm sure that the real you is a pretty great person."

"You're a great person," she commented.

"Well, it's hard not to be great to everyone when your life is pretty much everything you want it to be. I think I'm happier now than I've ever been."

"Oh," Lita said, shifting uncomfortably in her seat. "That's good to hear I guess. That you're happy."

"You know, I was worried about this whole taking over the company thing, but I'm really easing into the position. I really think that Stephanie, Shane, and I will do a good job with this thing. I mean, they'll obviously be the big owners, the scary ones, but I think that I'm going to fit in, I didn't think I was going to, but I'll let you in on a little secret, I like the power."

"Who doesn't?"

"I know, I just never thought I could be like Hunter in any way. Not that I'm like him!" Chris said vehemently, "But, I get why he was so power-hungry, it's fun. Well, for me it's fun, for him it was probably orgasm-inducing, but to each their own."

"That's great that you feel like you're in power."

"Yeah, and I made a match last week and everything!" he said proudly.

"I know!" she said, trying to sound enthusiastic.

"Well, I think my time is up, feel better," Chris said, getting up and being totally and completely oblivious to anything that Lita was throwing at him. When he left the room, Lita stood up and grabbed a tissue box and threw it towards the door. Chris was so damn frustrating.

Another frustrated person was Trish. She had gone another week without Christian and it was getting to be too much for her to handle. And when she was without Christian, she turned into a huge bitch, as evidenced on the shows every week. She was still mad at Christian, but she missed him, and she wanted him back. But what she really wanted was an apology.

It was later that evening, and the show had apparently already started, but Trish didn't care. She would arrive on her own time. She answered to nobody and she was pissed off tonight. She wanted Christian, and she wanted him now. Her life felt so off-balance without him, and it was because she loved him so much.

"Hey sweetie, what's up?" Stephanie asked as she saw Trish passing by her table to get to the other hallway. Trish came over and sat down in the seat Chris usually occupied.

"Is that Kurt?" she asked as she looked on Stephanie's monitor.

"Just a little surprise from me," Stephanie said slyly. "I set it up so he could be on the show tonight. What is a friend if you can't do favors for your friends?"

"Well, can you do me a favor and get Christian and I back together? I am officially hating this fight. I hate the fight, and I hate that we're mad at each other, and I want my Chrissy back."

"Oh, you poor thing," Stephanie said, wrapping her arm around her friend. "Do you want Chris to talk to him?"

"Yes," Trish said, practically begging. "Or at least can you get Chris to tell Christian to meet me somewhere?"

"Sure," she said.

"Thanks," Trish said, her voice sullen. "You're so lucky Stephanie. I'm so damn envious of you."

"Of me! Why?" Stephanie asked in confusion.

"Because you're married to Chris! I'm not jealous of the whole marriage thing, because I'm not ready to get married or anything, but I'm just jealous that when you and Chris fight, you know that it'll blow over and that he'll still be there when the dust settles. For all I know, this time apart has completely changed his mind on me, and he hates me and wants nothing to do with me."

"I doubt that's what happened."

"I might be," Trish said. "And can I just say for the record that I hate Christy Hemme. That little bitch is horrible and I wish she had never won that damn contest. I hate seeing her stupid, ugly face every damn week. Can't you or Chris fire her?"

"No, contractual obligations," Stephanie said. "But don't worry about her. You're better than she is."

"I know that, but I hate that damn sneer of hers. Look at me, I sound like a little girl. I need my Chrissy," she said, dropping her head onto the table and Stephanie winced as she heard the band that it made.

"Trish, don't do that, you're going to hurt yourself," Stephanie said, "That's not going to make this any better. Here, I'll go find Chris right now, and tell him to get Christian to come to your locker room, and then you can talk."

"Thank you," Trish mumbled, her head still against the table.

"Just don't hit your head like that again," Stephanie said, standing up. She had to find Chris and fast. She knew that Bischoff was going to be calling a meeting soon, and so she figured he might already be there. She rushed to his office and threw open the door, seeing that Benoit, Christian and Chris were already there.

"Hey baby," Chris said, standing up from the chair he had perched himself in. "Did you need something?"

"Yeah," she told him, grabbing him by the wrist and then dragging him to the corner of the room.

"Baby, if you want to make out, I think we should wait until later," Chris said charmingly and she just gave him a scowl and a look and he gave her an innocent smile. "Or we could just make out now, your choice."

"I need you talk to Christian," she said.

"If this is about having an affair with him, I'm going to have to put my foot down."

"Damn you," she joked. "If I want a piece of Captain Charisma, I should be able to get some."

"Uh uh," Chris answered, shaking his head.

"Are you guys talking about me!" Christian said, standing up and taking a few steps towards them.

"Would you mind your own damn business?" Chris shot over his shoulder. "I'm trying to have a private discussion with my wife over here, and you are not in this marriage so butt out."

"Geez, but if you were talking about me, I'll find out," Christian said, pointing menacingly at them.

"Yeah, sure, whatever," Chris shot back, then turned back to Stephanie. "So why do I have to talk to that jackass."

Stephanie lowered her voice so that Christian wouldn't hear her. "Because Trish wants to talk to him. She hates not being around him, and she misses him, but you can NOT tell him that, because then he'll think he has the upper-hand, and I don't want any of that crap to go on. They need to talk, just tell him that Trish wants to talk to him in her locker room, and she'll be in there."

"Finally," Chris said happily. "I've been sick of the both of them in this stupid fight."

"Trish is sick of it too, and that's a good thing, so just get him into her locker room, I don't care if you have to drug him to get him there, but you get him there, you here me," she said, poking him in the chest and trying to look intimidating.

Chris grabbed her finger, "Don't you go poking me!"

"I'll poke you whenever I want to," Stephanie said, poking him with her other hand for good measure.

Chris grabbed that finger too and Stephanie gave him a coy little smile and Chris pushed her gently against the wall and kissed her deeply. They didn't notice Benoit and Christian groan as they saw the two of them. Stephanie pulled her hands free of Chris and wrapped them around his neck as his hands instinctively went around her waist.

"You guys, YOU GUYS!" Christian yelled, causing Chris and Stephanie to come gasping up for air. "I think Bischoff is going to be here soon."

"I'm almost done," Chris said, then went back to kissing his wife. "Ok, so I'll get to the plan."

"Mmhmm, and pretend that you'll be shocked by Bischoff's announcement," she said, kissing him quickly. "Even though it was all your idea and we both know it."

"Yes we do," he said. "I'm brilliant."

"Don't get cocky," she said, rubbing his cheek, or what she could see of his cheek with that beard he was growing. "So how many times would I have to get you in bed and let you have your way with me to get you to shave that beard off?"

"A lot," he said. "Baby, I love you, you know that, but the facial hair is mine."

"Oh, trust me, I know, the monstrosity that was that goatee ring any bells?" Stephanie said, raising an eyebrow. "I hated that thing, with a passion even and still, you kept it. Just don't grow this out and look like a mountain man, because that I could not stand."

"Deal…and we might come to a compromise on that whole letting me have my way with you thing."

"Uh huh."

"You just wait Mrs. Jericho."

"Oh, using my married name? I must be in trouble," she said, licking her lips in front of him. He just shook his head and pushed her giggling ass out the door and went back to the guys.

"You sicken me," Christian said, devoid of emotion.

"Well, it was bound to happen."

"He's still in the honeymoon phase," Benoit said with a laugh. "It happens to the best of us."

"It happened to you Benoit?" Christian asked.

"No, but I'm always the exception to the rule," he answered.

"Christian, go see Trish in her locker room when you get a free moment," Chris said bluntly.

"Huh?" he asked, not even knowing where that had come from.

"Trish is going to be in her locker room, and she mentioned that she wanted to talk to you, so I think it would be a good idea to go see what she wants."

"She wants to talk to me," Christian said and Chris caught the unhindered hopefulness in his voice and nodded, seeing Christian's face light up for the first time in weeks.

"You sicken me," Chris said smugly, and Christian knew he was caught.

He didn't have time to think of a good comeback because Shelton Benjamin walked in and started asking what was going on and Christian focused on why they were in here. Chris knew why, but he just kept to himself, letting the others dominate the conversation. Edge walked in and Chris sent him a dirty look, for no other reason than he was Edge. Also because Chris already knew that Edge was his opponent for the evening and he was gearing himself up mentally for that. Although, all he had to do was think about the way that Edge had insulted Stephanie and that just about did it for him.

Bischoff came in and explained the match and its stipulations to the men, even though Chris already knew what that was about. Bischoff embellished the truth a little, saying that Chris had come to him for the match, but that was mainly because Chris didn't want it getting out that he was a part-time executive now, well, semi-executive, hell, he didn't know what he was, but he had something to do with how this company was run.

Christian was not looking forward to having the mystery opponent, and if he had not been thinking about Trish and what she wanted to talk about, he probably would've asked Chris if he knew, because being married to Stephanie, Chris pretty much knew everything that went on before anybody else did. But he was too distracted thinking about Trish, and this carried to his match.

Yes, he was surprised to see Kane, and yet, he also wasn't. And then another part of him was thinking that Trish was going to break up with him and he couldn't take that. Maybe that's why the match didn't last all that long, because Christian was worried about his relationship status with Trish. They hadn't spoken to each other in weeks, and maybe she had reconsidered their relationship.

When his match was over, the first thing that he did was go find Trish's locker room. On his way, he passed by Randy and Stacy, and it looked to him that Stacy was fixing his jacket for him. Christian sent the briefest of nods to Randy and Randy nodded back. Stacy looked over at Christian and then back at Randy.

"And you're really, really sure?" she asked.

"Yeah," he reiterated once again. "Look, it's not a big deal, the challenging part, worry about me when I have the match, if Undertaker approves."

"Ok, I'll trust you…I still find it surprising that you're friends with Christian."

"Well, I don't know if we are friends, cause he's kind of mad at me, but I'm taking the nod in hello as a good sign. Maybe he and Trish are back on track."

"Now there's someone I can't believe you like," Stacy said with incredulity. "Did you SEE what she did to Christy? She spray-painted her! I can't believe she would do that just because she was jealous."

Randy pulled away from Stacy, "What do you mean she was jealous?"

"Well because Christy is in Playboy and Trish isn't and she's probably jealous that she wasn't asked," Stacy explained. "I mean, come on."

"Ok Stacy, I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to disagree. I know Trish, I dated Trish, the last thing Trish is, is jealous. She is not jealous of Christy getting in Playboy because Trish has always asserted that she would not do Playboy. She just doesn't like that Christy is getting all the undeserved attention when she is the champion. Trish works her ass off to get where she is, and I'm not going to stand for anyone saying anything like the crap you just spewed."

Stacy's face looked shell-shocked from the seriousness of Randy's voice, "I'm…sorry, I didn't know."

"I'll see you later," he said, brushing past her and down the hallway, seemingly to prepare for his challenge.

Meanwhile, Trish had let Christian into her locker room, and she motioned for him to sit down. She sat down as well, muting the television where Edge and Chris were just starting to wrestle. She would usually be watching intently, but she had bigger things to think about, like the man sitting in front of her.

"Chris said you wanted to talk," Christian said nervously, and he was sweating, but that was more from his match than nervousness.

"Yeah, I did," she said. "I've been thinking this last week, and Chrissy I miss you, and I hate fighting with you, and I want this damn fight to be over!"

"Really?" Christian said. It was so sudden, out of the blue. She had been so angry, and now, just like that, she was hating the fight and not him.

"Yeah, and I'm sorry that I didn't see that you were worried about me."

"I'm sorry for not trusting you," Christian said.

"Chrissy, let's just quit with this being apart thing because I hate it, I really, really hate it. I'm going crazy without you. Actually, I've been going crazy on Christy without you, but that's well-deserved, don't you think?"

"She does look kind of skanky," Christian said. Trish hugged him, despite the sweatiness and he hugged her back. "Accept my apology?"

"Accept mine?" she asked.

"Of course."

"That's my answer too," she told him, mumbling against his neck. "Finally, I might get a good night's sleep."

Speaking of sleep, Edge had just grabbed a ladder to try and put Chris in a permanent sleep. Chris managed to miss the first attempt by Edge to get knocked out, but the second, not so much. And where it hit, didn't exactly knock Chris out, but it sure as hell knocked him down. And for the pin too, Edge smiled as he won, like he had won by actually beating his opponent fairly and squarely (like Edge could even beat Chris clean, let's be honest, not a chance).

When Edge went backstage, he was smug and cocky. He really shouldn't have been. Because Stephanie stepped out of her chair, threw her headphones down, walked squarely up to Edge, and slapped the ever living hell out of him. She slapped him so hard that spit came out of his mouth involuntarily. She slapped him so hard that there was a red handprint already forming on his face. She slapped him so hard that tears had come to his eyes. It was her patented bitch slap with the dialed turned to eleven, while any other slap on Earth could only reach a ten.

Edge straightened up, shock on his face, "I can't do to you what I'd like to do to you Edge, but you can rest assured that everything you've done, and everything you think you're going to do is not going to happen."

Edge was shocked for a few minutes, standing there, because he was thinking that Stephanie knew more than she let on. He wouldn't be surprised because Stephanie always seemed to be ahead of the game, a step ahead of everyone. How much she knew, he didn't know, but the way she had just asserted herself made him nervous.

"There's something you don't know in all of this Edge," she said, spitting out his name. "Chris is my husband now, MY husband. He is part of the McMahon family…and two weeks ago, my father made him a part of management. He owns your ass Edge, and he can do with you whatever the hell he wants. I would watch out if I were you. I would watch out really well. And if you don't….expect much worse than a slap to the cheek."

Stephanie didn't get a response, because she was walking over to her husband who was walking very gingerly backstage. She looked at him sympathetically, "So on a scale of one to ten, pain?"

"Seven," he said, standing up a little more. "Nothing a good shower won't take care of, and a little TLC from a certain woman in my life."

She laughed, "When we get to the hotel, we'll have a nice, relaxing evening, and I promise I won't do any work."

"So getting hit in the crotch is the magic ticket to getting you to not do work?"

"Yeah, so you might want to keep that in mind during your ladder match at WrestleMania," Stephanie said, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "Do you want me to help you to the locker room?"

"No, you go back to the table, I'm just going to go take a shower and watch the show."

"Sounds good to me, see you later sweetie."

"Bye baby."

Later on in the show, Christy bounded her energetic self out to the ring and started spouting off crap, like usual. Trish, in an infinitely better mood this time around, went down to the ring to confront the feisty new diva who she couldn't stand, and who a lot of the fans really couldn't stand, or so Trish hoped. Christy then had the audacity to shove her ugly, smug face in Trish's and challenge her to a match WrestleMania.

Christy claimed to be getting trained, but Trish was suspicious until Lita came down to the ring. Trish rolled her eyes; getting trained by Lita was like learning to read from a two year old, they didn't know how to do it, and neither did Lita. And even though Trish was taken down by Lita, she didn't care, because everything that Lita taught Christy could not add up to what Trish knew.

She was going to smash both their faces in…and delight in doing so.


	26. Damn, No Barbershop Window, March 14, 20...

"So Bishoff won't be able to be at the show this evening."

"Ok," Stephanie said, running her hand over her face as she met with her father, who was replacing Bischoff for the evening. She didn't know where Bischoff was, nor did she care to. All she knew was that she was going to get a brunt of the work, not that, that wasn't the norm each and every week, but she was tired this week and wasn't really in the mood to take over both jobs. Her father was here, yes, but with his limited mobility, he wouldn't be too much of a help.

"So that leaves you in charge."

"I'm always in charge Dad, but I usually have some help."

"Well, I'm going to be dealing with booking, I've got a little surprise guest this evening," Vince said, a gleam in his eye.

Stephanie looked at him oddly, "What do you mean Dad? A surprise guest? Did you get someone from SmackDown to be on the show tonight or something? Some celebrity?"

"Where's your husband?" Vince asked, looking around.

"I think that's beside the point Dad, Chris is overseeing things. I gave him the master keys to everything, and he's taking care of the ring set-up and production and everything so that I could meet here with you," Stephanie explained.

"Can you get him here? I think this should include him."

"Dad, can you just tell me what's going on right now? I mean, I'll get him, but don't keep it a surprise from me. I deserve to know so I can see whether it's a good idea for my show or not. I know that you have some ideas that are considered pretty out there, and I need to reign you in if that's the case."

"Well, I know that you scheduled Randy to appear on Chris's Highlight Reel…"

"Yes, that's correct. I felt that Randy needed an outlet in which to discuss his match with Taker. I figured that Chris's show would be the best place to do that, considering Randy can't just call out Taker since he's on SmackDown."

"Yeah, well, I managed to snag someone to go on the Highlight Reel with Chris and Randy. Someone who has faced Taker at Mania."

"Hunter isn't a special guest," Stephanie said with a laugh, "In fact, I'd say he's a pretty crummy surprise guest."

"Very funny Stephanie, but that's not who I had in mind, someone from Georgia actually, you've met him before, many times."

"Dad, I grew up in the business, if they've come through here, chances are that I met them, unless they were some insignificant jobber, in which case, I didn't have the time."

"Jake the Snake," Vince said, cutting to the chase. He had been hoping that Stephanie would get really excited about finding out who the surprise was, but she was all business right now, and wanted to only deal with business matters.

"Interesting," Stephanie said, "That should make for a very, very interesting Highlight Reel. How did you get Jake to appear on the show?"

"Well, I just called in a few favors. And actually, I had talked to Randy's father recently, and he had mentioned talking to Jake recently, and I made the correlation, and Jake was very up on the idea."

"That's fine then, I'm sure Chris will be up for that, hold on, let me get him," Stephanie grabbed the phone on the desk and dialed Chris's number, holding up a finger to excuse her from the conversation.

"Jericho, talk," Chris said as he picked his phone out of his back pocket.

"Hey Chris, it's me," Stephanie said, "How busy are you right now?"

Chris looked at the stage which was near completion. He had just been speaking to some of the ring crew and everything looked to be in order. He was just overseeing the placement of the camera at the top of the TitanTron. They had already set up the other cameras, and he was just making sure this one got into place. He had people to actually do the checking, so he was just watching really.

"I'm not that busy. I was just going to go to the production truck and make sure that they had all the themes ready. I just needed a finalized schedule for the matches and I can make sure that everything is ok."

"Well, I actually have one," Stephanie told him. "So if you could come to my office. My father and I also need to discuss your role on the show tonight."

"Ok, I'll head right on over."

"Great," Stephanie said, "Thanks."

Chris talked briefly with one of the guys taking care of the cameras and knowing that things would be fine without his observation, he went to his wife's office, and his locker room. He was dressed pretty casually, just some green loose pants, and his Jericho jersey; he hoped that this wasn't a formal meeting. He did not want to have to dress up under any circumstances.

He got to the office and walked inside to see Stephanie on the phone with someone else. He kissed her head in hello and then shook Vince's hand. Stephanie mouthed hello to him, and he took a seat across from her, and next to Vince, since Stephanie was behind her desk and there were no chairs next to her.

"Good to see you Vince," Chris said casually.

"You too Chris, taking care of my daughter?" he asked, though he knew the answer. Stephanie looked happy, and she hadn't said anything against Chris, so Vince figured there was no dissention in this marriage.

"Not really," Chris joked. "She's pretty much on her own there. So what's this all about?"

"Well, Stephanie's on the phone with Bischoff," Vince said, "But I guess I can tell you. You have a Highlight Reel with Randy tonight, so just prepare yourself for that. You'll be at the beginning of the show because Bischoff isn't here tonight and Stephanie is going to need all the help that she can get."

"Well, that's partially what I'm here for," Chris answered. "But why did you actually need to see me?"

"Because Jake Roberts is going to be your special, surprise guest, and I just wanted to let you know ahead of time. It's going to be like the past meeting the future over a common denominator type thing, since Jake faced Undertaker at WrestleMania VIII, and Randy is going to be facing him at this year's show."

"Wow, Jake Roberts, really?" Chris asked. It had been years since Jake had been on WWE television, so this was something really special. "I'd be honored to have that be my show, thanks Vince."

"Hey, I have to give the breaks to my son-in-law. And well, I think we both know who I'll be endorsing for the ladder match at WrestleMania," he said, clapping Chris on the shoulder.

"Kane I'm guessing," Chris said as Stephanie hung up her phone.

"Ok, so we have another match to add to the show," Stephanie said, "Bischoff called to tell me that Shawn Michaels called him and asked him for a tag match."

"Who with?" Chris asked.

"Against La Resistance," she answered, being purposely evasive.

"Who's his partner going to be?" Chris asked, thinking briefly that it would be him since he had no clue if he even had a match, but from the sounds of it, he didn't.

"Marty Jannetty," Stephanie answered with a scoff.

"Holy…mother…the Rockers!" Chris said, and he didn't want to mark out, but he was about to mark out like a child. Stephanie giggled as Chris looked embarrassed at his outburst. He hadn't meant to sound like a little boy, but he remembered watching the Rockers way back in the day. "Sorry."

"You're so cute," Stephanie said, wanting to lean over and kiss him, but with her father there…talk about awkward.

"Ok, so if everything is in order, I can go drop this stuff off at the production truck," Chris said, standing up. Stephanie nodded and handed him the paper. He came around the desk and gave her a light kiss. Stephanie kissed him back sweetly before he left to go deliver the matches and whose music and pyros would be needed. He wondered what he would say to Randy.

Randy was just arriving with Victoria in tow. He was still angry at Stacy for what she had said last week. For her to say that Trish was jealous was the most preposterous thing that he had ever heard in his entire life. Trish would NEVER be jealous of Christy Hemme, not when Trish was everything that Christy wasn't. Stacy may have a personal beef with Trish, but he didn't, and she had to understand that.

"Thank God I learned a long time ago that the Trish in the ring is not the Trish backstage," Victoria said after the fifth rant that Randy had given about Stacy insulting Trish.

"Yeah, see, you get it Ree," Randy said, disgusted with Stacy still, "I just can't believe she would say that to my face. Does she even realize that I dated Trish for a little bit. I mean, I was crazy about her. At the very least I would still care about the things that were said about her. I know I can't control what other people say, and I'm not trying to do that, but seriously, did Stacy really think I was going to agree?"

"And that makes rant number six," Victoria said good-naturedly. "Rands, let it go. Obviously Stacy made a mistake. It probably won't be the last one she'll ever make, but I don't think she deliberately said it to you."

"She might as well have," he said bitterly.

"Rands, calm down. If you see Stacy tonight, don't go all crazy on her ok?"

"See her tonight? I don't think so, I'm going to avoid her tonight," Randy grabbed a schedule off a table and scanned it, "Look, I just have the Highlight Reel, and you don't have a match, so I do that and get done with that, and then I leave, and I don't have to see Stacy at all. I think that works better than not going crazy."

"Fine then, we'll leave right after your Highlight Reel, and I'll even let you buy me dinner," Victoria said sweetly, lacing her arm through his. "You can be my man tonight and not Stacy's."

"I wouldn't be Stacy's 'man' tonight if you paid me. I don't even want to look at her face, or anything. I just want her to stay the hell away from me. And if she does try to come after me, you'll take care of her, right Ree?"

"And how will I do that?" she asked, pulling back to cross her arms and give her a look.

"Kick her ass of course," Randy said, and he was about to say more when Chris walked up to him. "Hey Chris, what's up?"

"You're my guest tonight on the Reel," Chris said. "I'm just going to let you come out and speak your piece."

"Are you in a hurry or something?"

"I've got work to do," Chris said, checking his watch and pulling the multitude of keys out of his pocket, holding onto them with the long, black rope thing holding them together. "One of the makeup ladies can't find the key to one of the trucks holding the hair products for some of the divas, and since I'm the key-man tonight with about seven thousand keys I have to go find one of these to fit."

"Um, Chris," Victoria said, "They all have labels on them."

"Oh, I know, these are Stephanie's keys, they're organized and labeled, I just wanted a little sympathy because I sound like a walking ice-cream truck with all these keys hitting together in my pocket. I'm guessing it didn't work…"

"No, not really," Randy answered.

"Too bad," Chris replied. "It's nice seeing you again Victoria, gotta admit you're a better conversationalist than the women that Randy usually hang out with…was that an appropriate insult towards Stacy?"

"Perfect," Randy said, giving him the thumbs up. "I'm training him to insult her."

"What can I say? Trish is my wife's best friend, and one of my best friend's girlfriend, and my friend, so I pretty much have to dislike Stacy for insulting her, it just goes with the territory."

"Hatred by association is such a beautiful thing," Victoria said.

"Ok, well, I have to run because if I don't, I'm going to have some very irate divas whose hair is something less than beautiful, later Randy, Victoria," Chris nodded before walking off.

"He's right…you're better than any of the other girls I see," Randy said, turning to Victoria.

"Randy, don't even think about what you're thinking about ok?" Victoria said. "I know that you're thinking about kissing me or whatever, but I don't think that's the right idea for us right now."

"Why not? Ree, you and I…I thought we were really good, and now suddenly you don't want me anymore?"

"Because you still have feelings for Stacy, and you know it. Randy, if you're positive than go ahead and do what you're thinking, but if you're even the least bit unsure, then let's just be what we are now. Being friends is working for us, and I think that we should just stick with that for now."

"So even if I want you more than I ever have right now, just because in the back of my brain I MIGHT have the smallest inkling of a feeling for Stacy than I shouldn't just take you and kiss the living hell out of you."

"Come on little boy," Victoria said, grabbing his hand.

"I'm not a little boy," Randy said petulantly. Victoria pulled him towards his locker room and he saw Christian and Trish. He would've said hello had they not been making out pretty heavily against the wall.

Christian pulled away from Trish who he had had pinned against the wall. She smiled up at him and rubbed her hand against the back of his neck. They had been making out pretty intensely, tuning out the world around them until they had forgotten that other people even existed. But neither one cared because they were just happy to be around each other again. Spending weeks apart had done nothing for either of them, and they were back where they belonged.

"I missed that," Trish whispered.

"What? You missed making out against walls?" Christian asked lecherously.

"Among other things," she said, running her finger down the bit of skin that was showing underneath his hideous outfit that he wore out to the ring. She hated it, but he liked it and so she liked it because he did…even though she hated it, if that made any sense whatsoever.

"What else did you miss about me?"

"Oh, I don't know," Trish said coyly. "This and that."

"I missed everything about you," he replied honestly. "I was reduced to hanging out with my brother, who is crazy, absolutely crazy. I get the feeling that he's planning something though."

"What do you mean?" Trish asked suspiciously. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"It's not that big a deal. I think he's just trying to figure out a way to get the World Title. I think that's what he's planning, not like some elaborate plan or anything. I mean, what could he do that would get him an assured title shot."

"I don't know," Trish said, but it was an answer full of unease. Edge had been seriously crazy as of late. He had become so driven for the title that he seemed to lose sight of everything else in his life. She didn't know what had become of him. One moment he was happy-go-lucky and laid-back, and then the next he was this completely different person and the transformation had been so sudden that she couldn't even place it into words.

"Don't worry about him, he won't do anything to hurt us, I wouldn't let him do that," Christian said, not realizing that wasn't what Trish was thinking about at all. "Especially after that stupid fight."

"I know," Trish answered. "I was just thinking about how different Edge is. He's…I'm worried about him, and not just him, but you said he might be planning something, and I don't like the sound of that."

"Seriously Trishy, don't worry about it."

"I won't Chrissy, but if he was planning something, who would he be targeting? And who would he be working with?"

Lita literally ran into Stephanie in the hallway and sent Stephanie's papers flying everywhere. Stephanie groaned and stooped down to pick up the papers that had strewn about everywhere, she had all of the contracts for the WrestleMania matches in there and now they were all askew because Lita had not watched where she was going. Although Stephanie probably could've done a better job too. Lita, actually feeling a little contrite, leaned down to help.

"Sorry," Lita mumbled.

"It's fine," Stephanie said, picking up the papers. "We just should've watched where we were going."

"Yeah," Lita said, and saw Stephanie's wedding ring on her left hand and then Chris's wedding ring on Stephanie's thumb. "Why are you wearing Chris's wedding ring?"

Stephanie looked down, "Oh, I didn't even realize I had it. I keep it for Chris when he's working."

"Oh," Lita said, looking down at her own bare left hand. She didn't know why it hit her in that moment, but for some reason, she was starting to feel badly about this plan that she had to break Chris and Stephanie up. From everything she could tell they seemed happy together, though that was a hard pill to swallow. She just didn't get Stephanie's intentions. "You really love Chris then?"

Stephanie gave up a chuckle as they both stood up, Stephanie gathering the papers into one pile, "What tipped you off?"

"I just find it hard to believe, you know. I mean, you guys HATED each other so passionately. You had him beaten up, you had him get put through the SmackDown stage, and then suddenly, you're married, I mean, don't you think it's weird."

"Well, it was a long, long road from that point to the point where I wanted to marry the guy," Stephanie said.

"Oh, yeah, I guess it was."

"I was wrong is all I can say about that subject," Stephanie shrugged. "I was wrong, but I'm not going to take back the fact that I hated him. How many girls get to say that they absolutely despised their husband for two years? If he hadn't come out that night when we became business partners, I guarantee that we'd still hate each other right now."

"I've gotta go train Christy," Lita said. "Bye."

"Yeah, bye," Stephanie said, trying not to laugh as she thought of Lita training Christy. Chris had told her all about the training he had seen last week, and now she was having a hard time keeping a straight face after he had called it, "the blind leading the blind through a ring of fire."

Lita sighed. She was going to have to talk to her partner. She wasn't sure if she could go through with this after all. It was one thing to break them up if she thought that Stephanie had ulterior motives, but Stephanie loved Chris, she LOVED Chris, and Chris was so obviously crazy about Stephanie. Lita had had that once upon a time, and now she didn't, and she knew how much it hurt to lose it. If they even succeeded in breaking them up, which she found doubtful now.

When the show started, Chris went out there and grabbed a ladder, sitting atop of it. He figured that while the Highlight Reel was about Randy tonight, he could start out with a little pimping for himself. Since he had no match that evening, and was working, he hadn't bothered to actually get dressed out of what he had been wearing earlier. Luckily he wasn't afraid of heights because this was the big ladder and not the small ladders and he could see as far as the eye could see…which was pretty much to the end of the arena itself (he couldn't see through walls or anything).

When he introduced Randy, he did climb down the ladder, because it would've been awkward to conduct the interview from the top of the ladder, unless Randy was willing to grab his own ladder and sit on it to speak with Chris. Then Chris began to wonder why he even had the chairs on his set because hardly anybody used them. They weren't very practical. He climbed down and discussed with Randy the match and various things, not mentioning outright that he was the first Undisputed Champion, so while Randy was the youngest champion, that paled in comparison to being the first EVER Undisputed Champion. He had had two belts after all.

Then Chris was proud to introduce his guest, Jake Roberts. Despite Jake's shaky past with addictions, it was still cool to have him on the Highlight Reel, just because he was Jake "The Snake" Roberts. Chris was almost in awe because it brought back a time when wrestling was very different, and he was practically just a fan and not a wrestler at all.

He watched as Jake spoke to Randy, and even though Jake was older, he still seemed to command respect, but Randy was not about respect. Chris had been ready to cheer if Jake got the DDT on Randy, even though Randy was his friend. But this man, he was the DDT, the DDT was him, and it would've been so awesome to see Jake actually get the move on Randy. But he didn't, and Chris lost a little respect for Randy. It was one thing to do what he had done to Mick way back when, and some of the other legends Randy had "killed," deserved it, but Chris lost a little respect for him now.

He didn't bring it up backstage because he didn't want to lose his temper. But Chris had actually walked with Jake back up the ramp and thought that he was a nice guy, at least from the brief moments he had spoken with him. He went and sat down next to Stephanie, kissing her cheek. They had fallen into a routine at the shows, and it was actually kind of nice, running things with her, knowing what was going on. Stephanie's father was around somewhere, but he was working and Stephanie was working, and now he was working too.

Chris had never really know what it would mean to be in the McMahon family. Stephanie had joked about it, saying what it would be like, and so would his friends, but now it was hitting him, full-on. He had married into his boss's family. Instead of having a boss (well, he did, Vince was his boss, Steph was his boss, and all the people who had been his bosses were still that because he was still a wrestler), he was still kind of his own boss. Not that he was going to say that he didn't feel like wrestling and then just skip out with no notice, but he could make decisions, and he was…part of the McMahons. It had just never occurred to him that he was in this position. Was it overwhelming? Yeah, it really was.

Chris had never expected to be in this family when he started with the company. Of course back then Stephanie had been seeing Test and they had gotten serious, and he had proposed. He thought that Stephanie would marry Test, and that would be the end of it. Well, he hadn't thought about it so much because he honestly didn't care what became of her back then. But then life had taken a strange turn and she had married Hunter (Chris tried not to gag), and it had set off this strange set of events that found himself here, sitting with a pair of headphones on, listening to a production team and Stephanie dictate the show while he made sure that all Raw matches had been signed off for WrestleMania.

He took his headphones off and stood up, suddenly needing some air. It wasn't that he thought things were weird, but he just…didn't know how he had started off a wrestler and ended up being an owner, and that thought, it hit him like a sack of bricks, and he had joked around, tried to help Stephanie, but it was becoming all too real that he was a guy in charge, and he was actually, seriously, and without joking, running things around here. He definitely needed some air.

He passed by a giggling Lita and Christy and he thought that he heard Lita call out to him, and he turned around briefly to where she was giving him a strange look. "Everything ok Chris?"

"Yeah, I just have a lot on my mind," he answered.

"Me too," Lita said, thinking about him and Stephanie. "And you know Christy."

"Nice to see you again Mr. Jericho."

And there it was again, Chris gave her a dumbfounded look, "Um, why did you call me Mr. Jericho?"

"Well, I was under the impression you were an owner now," Christy said.

"It's Chris, just Chris," Chris answered. "I've gotta go."

"Ok," Lita said, walking off with Christy and giving Lita some space for once.

Trish was now sitting in the seat that Chris had left, since Christian was facing Kane at the moment. She was worried for him, because Kane was…well, he was Kane and he was scary. Stephanie had taken off her headphones and was watching with her, and hoping along with her that Christian came out unscathed.

"So they're both going to be in the ladder match," Trish said. "I hope your husband loses."

"Well I hope your boyfriend loses," Stephanie laughed.

"I hope they both lose," another voice said, and Stephanie looked up at Hunter. "Nice to see you Hunter, long time no speak."

"You've been counting the days?"

"Yeah, I mark it off on my calendar, every day was a blessing. I guess I have to end that streak tonight," she said cattily.

"Is Dave here?"

"Don't know," Stephanie said, though she did know. She had talked to Dave earlier and he was here. She had to commend him for his choice of opponents for Hunter, Benoit was a perfect choice because Benoit was awesome and had already proven that he could be Hunter in any situation. But Stephanie did love toying with Hunter.

"You sure?"

"If I did know, I still wouldn't tell you, so choke on that for a bit," Stephanie said with a laugh. "Oh Hunter, it really is a shame that Dave turned on you. It must've been so hard on you. I mean, going to all that trouble and then it not coming to fruition. I had told Dave that it was you all along though, so he was in on the entire thing."

"Wait…you told Dave?" Hunter said, his lip curling up into a sneer.

"Warned, told, same thing," Stephanie said with a genuine smile. "Hunter, every game you play…it's one I already know. So try, I really hope you try to do something else. It's fun trying to thwart you."

Hunter had no response for this, because what was there to say? Calling her a bitch would only cause her to smile and nod happily, and getting angry would only make her win more. Hunter walked away with a bad taste in his mouth. What the hell else did Stephanie have her nose in? That bitch was always one step ahead of him, and he never knew why? If he had thought about it, really thought about it for a fraction of a second, he would've figured out that Stephanie was as good a watcher as anyone had ever been. She watched, and she learned, and whatever Hunter wanted to do, Stephanie could read it all over his face. And that's why Hunter would never win.

Speaking of not winning, Christian had not won his match, and instead had run backstage, grabbing onto Trish's hand as she giggled and ran with him, despite the terrified look on his face. Stephanie smiled at their happiness and wondered where her own husband was. She didn't have long to dwell on that though because she had work she needed to do.

Her husband was wandering around aimlessly, thinking, but not really thinking, or trying not to. He didn't know what to think about. He came across catering and sat down. Chris Benoit saw him and went over to say hello. Chris nodded in hello, but then went back to staring at the table.

"What the hell is wrong with you?"

"You have a way with words, you know that Benoit?" Chris said.

"So I'm not good with the public speaking, but seriously, something is up with you, I can tell, so spill."

"And you won't—"

"Who the hell am I going to tell?" Benoit said, his face like stone. Well, he did have a point, if anyone could probably keep a secret, it was going to be Benoit

"I'm your boss," Chris said.

Benoit looked confused, "What, did I make a bet with you over something and now I have to be your slave?"

"No, but I'm like your boss, and I'm everyone's boss, and I just really realized it. I mean, this isn't a joke, me working for this company isn't a joke."

"Well no, but my job isn't a joke either, so why should yours be any different from mine?"

"Because if you screw up, you can cover it up with a German suplex, if I screw up, I could bring down the show or the company, and Steph would hate me for it."

"I think Steph understands that you're learning. I mean, she's not giving you anything you can't handle right."

"Right."

"She's smart, she knows what she's doing with you, and don't you have Vince's approval."

"He was the one to suggest it in the first place."

"So there you go, you have Vince's approval, what more do you want? Obviously they have faith in you that you won't screw up. And if you're still acting like this is a big deal, talk to your wife Jericho, suck it up and talk to her."

"Thanks," Chris said, and Benoit nodded.

"Sometimes you just need a kick in the ass to get you going," Benoit replied. "And with you as one of the bosses, it makes it a little easier to go to work. You're better than Bischoff, you at least have that."

"Yeah, that's something all right, good luck against Hunter, kick his ass for me."

"For you? I'm doing it for me," Benoit scoffed and stood up, slapping Chris on the back as he passed.

Chris stood up and walked back to the gorilla, where he saw that Edge had a match against Benjamin that was in full swing right now. He stood watching it for a moment, his back to Stephanie and he saw Edge pull out the ladder, and thought it would be a nice time for a little revenge. Acting on impulse, he ran out there and hopped on the ladder, sending it right into Edge's jaw. With a satisfied smile, Chris walked back up the ramp. If he had to help Shelton to get back at Edge so be it, hearing that smack as the ladder hit Edge had been well worth it.

Stephanie was standing next to the monitors when he got backstage, a grin on her face and he went up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, feeling her lean her body into his. He nuzzled his cheek against her cheek and she smiled at the contact, letting her hands come to rest over his own.

"Where'd you go earlier? One minute you were sitting here, and the next you weren't."

"I was having a soul-searching moment because for the first time I saw that I was part of the McMahons and it was daunting."

"Oh," she said, "But you're better now."

"You're here, I'm better now," he said, kissing her neck. If Stephanie was by him the entire time he ran whatever he needed to run, well, it didn't matter what obstacles he hit, he was Chris Jericho, and he could get over them in no time.

It was with a heavy conscience that Lita left Christy later that evening. She walked a few steps and saw Snitsky in front of her. He had some threatening words to say to her, and she stood there long after he left. She stood there so long that it was no trouble for her husband to find her.

"Lita, are you ok?" he asked, and she looked at him strangely. He seemed…concerned. Kane was concerned for her…that was strange.

"Yeah."

"He won't get away with this," Kane said, his voice low and filled with fury. "I'll make sure that he won't hurt you."

"Thank…you," she said slowly as he lumbered away to do whatever he had to do to make sure Lita was safe.

She hadn't expected Kane to care. He hadn't really spoken to her in a while, and she hadn't made any initiative to speak to him. Although they were still married to one another, they hadn't had any sort of contact, and then suddenly, now, he was protecting her. And it was…nice to have someone to protect you. Kane was…not that bad, when he wanted to be, and sometimes those moments were few and far between, but it was a lot easier to take than that partner of hers treating her like crap and like she was just a pawn in his sick, twisted game.

She had to get out of this plan…Edge was going to be pissed.

* * *

A/N: Oddly enough, I had planned Edge as Lita's partner-in-crime for months, and then with recent...happenings, it was like a weird, weird coincidence. I just wanted to make note that Edge was the original guy in Lita's plan, and someone I told this to weeks ago can attest to that fact. I do NOT plan to follow any real life "ordeals" regarding Amy and Adam as that had no place in this story, and I wanted to let you know that this is NOT based on real life, and this is purely based on coincidence, kind of like Chris actually making a match a week after I wrote him into management. I don't care what Amy and Adam do in real life, and that in no way, shape, or form will affect the way they are portrayed in this story.


	27. What is Going On? March 21, 2005

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews guys, I love them all, and please keep them coming because they always make my day. :)

And I don't know what's up with Raw lately, but they are really making the chapters easy to write for me. I had Randy mad at Stacy like last week and then tonight, Randy RKO's her, and man was that perfect, so thanks to WWE for making my job so very easy. Now if only they would actually get some Jericho/Stephanie, then I'd really start to get suspicious between the weird connections between this story and the show. ;)

On another note, I'm not sure you all know this, maybe you do, but I actually wrote a prologue to Hugs and Kisses called "Flashback," which you can find under my profile, and I realize that I wrote about the Chris vs. Stephanie vs. H match in great detail, and if you go to my Jericho/Steph fanlisting (also in my profile), I actually have that match up in the video section, and that would probably make reading "Flashback" a thousand times easier because you would have visual aid. :)

Hope you enjoy the chapter, and leave a review. ;)

* * *

"What the hell do you mean, you're out!"

"You heard me Edge, I'm out, I can't stand this!" Lita yelled, but then calmed herself down. She had spent the last week mulling over her decision, and she was going to stick with it. She wanted out of this stupid plan of Edge's. Kane had been so surprising last week, like he actually cared for her, and that was something new. It set something off inside of her, and she had come to see, at least on the surface, that Stephanie and Chris really loved each other.

"We had a deal!" Edge yelled at her.

"Yeah, I know, but I don't think that the deal is going to work out for me any longer," she answered, trying to be rational.

"So you want to stay married to Kane?" Edge scoffed, like he couldn't believe that would be the case. He thought that he had had her under his thumb, and now she was defying him.

"Look, that's beside the point," she answered, "All I'm saying is that I want out. I don't want to be in this stupid scheme anymore, and I don't care what you think."

Lita turned to walk out of the room and walk away from Edge, when he pulled on her arm and made her face him. "You don't back out on a deal."

"It was going nowhere anyways," Lita told him, shrugging. "I mean, I tried, I tried so hard to get Chris to notice me, I tried to flirt, I tried to get him to remember how he was before he was with Stephanie and nothing worked"

"So try harder!" Edge said forcefully.

"How Edge? Tell me how I could possibly try harder than I am."

"Throw yourself at him."

"And he'll think that I just need help, or I'm lonely, and he'll feel sorry for me. You knew about them for a long time, you were friends with them. How can you not see how in love those two are? I don't think anything is going to break them apart, least of all me."

"You just aren't trying, look, if you get Chris away from Stephanie, then I can swoop in and get Stephanie, and with Stephanie comes the power. You told me how she made Chris part of management."

"She didn't, it was Vince," Lita answered. "He was the one."

"Who cares?" Edge said, brushing the statement off. "All that matters is Chris has the power to do stuff, he has the power to make matches, he made that match, the one I'm in at WrestleMania. If I can get Stephanie, then I get that power, and she'll make a match for me, for the World Title, and FINALLY, I'll have it."

"It's not going to work," Lita said, trying to get it into his thick skull. If she had figured it out, surely he should've figured it out by now. "Edge, think about it for a second! They love each other, they got married, I was there. It was disgustingly romantic."

"Fine, if you're out, then I'll just do it by myself."

"Go right ahead," Lita told him. "I don't care anymore. I'm not going to be your accomplice, especially with the way that you treat me. I'm not your pawn Edge, I thought we were partners, but you want everything, and you never even let me get a word in edgewise. So good riddance."

"I don't need you anyways," Edge spat out.

"Good, then maybe you'll have an easier time," Lita said. "I'd love to see how you could possibly get in Chris and Stephanie's good graces again. That should be a trip."

Lita flung open the door and stomped out into the hallway. Edge went and slammed the door shut, locking it behind him. He sat on the couch now that he was alone, and thought about what he was going to do now. After the things that he had said about Stephanie, there was no way that Chris was going to embrace him with open arms. Stephanie, while forgiving some of the time, had enough good judgment not to be friends with him again. He would have to go about this in a roundabout way.

That left his brother. Whatever had happened between them, they were still brothers, and he knew that Christian would always feel some kind of loyalty to him because of that. Even though Christian was good friends with Chris and Stephanie, he would still be compassionate towards his brother, and that's where Edge's little sliver of hope stemmed from. If he could gain Christian's friendship back, then maybe he would have a chance with Stephanie, and then he would have the World Title in no time. It was just like he had told Hunter that one time, Hunter had slept his way to the top, and Edge would do the same. He just needed Stephanie.

Stephanie yawned as she listened to Bischoff talk. She didn't mean to, and his words weren't that boring, she had just had a long weekend. With WrestleMania coming up and her father otherwise incapacitated, she was left to do a lot of the grunt work around the office and the long hours were catching up to her. She yawned again, trying to hide it behind her hand, but when she looked up she saw Bischoff glaring at her.

"Am I boring you?" he asked condescendingly.

Stephanie shook her head, "I'm just really tired, how about you just take care of the show tonight, and I'll trust your ability."

"You are actually willing to let me run things around here? Are you sure that the show won't be a complete catastrophe because of it? I mean, I wouldn't want to ruin it because I've never done it before."

"I trust you," Stephanie said simply, too tired to get into a row with Bischoff right now. "Eric, we may hate each other, but I know when I'm not good to work, and this is one of those times. I trust that you can run things, so if you'll excuse me, I'm taking the night off."

Stephanie left with a brief wave, a slacked jaw the last thing she saw of Bischoff's. She went back to her office and laid down on the couch. She had been so tired the past week, and it was not getting better. She hoped that she wasn't coming down with a bug, and if she was, she hoped that it was gone before WrestleMania, she needed to be on her toes for that show. It was the biggest show of the year, and the best, and she wanted it to be great. It would also mark a year since she and Chris had been able to be official and open about their relationship. She toyed with her wedding ring for a moment before closing her eyes.

Chris came in a few moments later and saw that Stephanie was asleep. She had told him that he could have the night off, and he was happy with that. Sometimes he liked to just be a wrestler and nothing more. He walked over to see if she was sleeping deeply, and it appeared that she was. Not wanting to disturb her, he just kissed her forehead lightly and walked back out of the room, turning some of the lights off so that it was darker.

When he stepped out of the room, he almost bumped straight into Shelton Benjamin. Chris jumped a little, not expecting him to be right there. "What the hell do you want kid?"

"Kid? Shouldn't you be the kid since you just almost jumped out of your skin?" Shelton said with a smirk.

"Shut up," Chris said good-naturedly. "What's up? And if you tell me you have a message from some production assistant, I don't want to hear it, I'm off duty."

"Nothing like that, not that I'd even know what that was pertaining to. We're tagging tonight. Looks like Edge wanted to get revenge on the both of us from last week, he's teaming with his brother against us. I thought that we should talk. We've tagged a few times, but we ain't a team or nothing, so you know, we should talk."

"Ok, so talk," Chris said, folding his arms in front of him and leaning against the wall.

"I'm not allowed in your dressing room?" Shelton asked, but it was in a joking way, so Chris just smirked back at him.

"My wife's asleep, and you have not had the pleasure of waking her up from sleep, and that's not something I'm going to go through again," Chris said with a sarcastic smile. "You're welcome to wake her up though, but you're not accustomed to her."

"I'll leave Stephanie to you," Shelton laughed. "I just figured we'd go out there, kick ass, and win."

"Well, that's quite the plan. Could you be any more broader?"

"Yeah, but I figure you might not get it if I did."

"Trying to go toe to toe with me, I like you Shelt," Chris said, patting his shoulder. "Look, I think that we can go out there and kick ass and win, so I guess…meeting over?"

"Are you cool with fighting Christian? He's your friend."

"When I step into the ring, I have no friends."

"I should've figured. Didn't you fight Stephanie?"

"I've fought Stephanie a lot, that's just normal behavior for us. But it's cool, Christian and I know that friendship and wrestling are not two things that exactly mix. We'll fight each other, we don't care."

"Good, cause I don't want you going soft on me in this match. I'm not letting Edge get the win of me. That bastard is crazy."

"You're telling me," Chris snorted. "He's obsessed, which is why I sent a ladder flying into his chin. I was hoping that it would knock some of his brain cells back into place. I don't think it worked though."

"Probably knocked all the good ones he had left out," Shelton answered.

"Good one," Chris said with a laugh. "So we have anything else to talk about?"

"Nope, just bring it out there."

"I bring it everywhere," Chris said cockily.

"Didn't need to know that," Shelton said before saying his goodbye and walking away. Chris looked to his left and saw Randy and Stacy having what appeared to be a heated conversation. Chris walked over nonchalantly, trying not to draw attention to himself, but just kind of see what was going on.

Randy had caught up to Stacy earlier in the day, and she had apologized for what she had said about Trish. Randy was still on edge about the entire thing, and was still angry with her, but he had accepted her apology. What good would it do to hold a grudge? Stacy did seem to be sorry about it, and that was something. Maybe Stacy didn't think Trish was a good person, but maybe she just failed to see what was really there.

Randy spotted Chris over Stacy's shoulder and nodded in hello, "Hey Chris, what's up?"

"Nothing man, just finding something to do, I might go find Trish, see what she's up to."

"Good deal," Randy said. "I'll see you later?"

"Yeah, you'll see me around," Chris answered, "Hey Stacy."

"Oh hi Chris," Stacy said, and if he thought long about it, it seemed like she was nervous to be around him, and he couldn't figure out why, until it hit him a moment later. This had been going around lately. He figured that people were starting to find out that he had a lot more clout around here than he let on. There had not been an official announcement to inform the company that he was now on management, but the news had probably been spreading like wildfire after he had made his own WrestleMania match.

But people were starting to act different around him. It wasn't a particular thing, but a feeling in general. They were nicer, more formal, and to be honest…it was weird. He knew it had to do with him being in power because they hadn't acted like this right after he had married Stephanie, only after he had come into a little bit of power. He didn't like the feeling that people thought he was better than them, because he most certainly wasn't. He was still the same Chris that he had always been, just…with a wife.

"How are you?" Chris asked, trying to be friendly and not at all boss-like.

"I'm good actually," Stacy said, but her words were short and staccato. "Did you need anything?"

"No," Chris said, shifting his weight from foot to foot. "I just wanted to come say hi to Randy and then you know, just find something else to do or someone else to bug."

Stacy laughed and it was fake, Chris could tell that from a mile away. Had he really become one of those bosses that had their employees laugh at every little thing that he did? When the hell did that happen? He hated that this was what he had become, or at least what people had thought he had become. Power had not corrupted him, he wasn't Hunter, using the power for his own personal gain. He hadn't even sniffed the World Title in a while.

"I hope that you find someone," she said with a smile.

"Yeah," Chris said, pursing his lips together in distaste. "See you later Randy."

"Bye Chris," Randy said as Chris walked off. He turned back to Stacy. "So I'm going to have a little pow-wow later about my match with the Undertaker. And I was thinking that you could come out with me."

"I would love to," Stacy said excitedly. "I've never actually gotten to go out there with you before."

"I know, it'll be different, coming out with a woman and not with Evolution," Randy mused.

"I think you'll get a lot better reception," she winked. Randy laughed at that, and then saw Victoria approaching, reading a book or something and not watching where she was going. Unknowingly a smiled came across Randy's face, and Stacy looked over her shoulder to see Victoria walking towards them. She turned back to Randy and tugged on his shirt sleeve.

"So what exactly are you going to talk about?" she asked.

"Huh?" Randy said, tearing his eyes away from Victoria.

"I said what are you going to be talking about?" Stacy repeated, her words firmer than they had been.

"Oh, um, just about being a Legend Killer and showing all the doubters that I mean business," he said, going back to gazing at Victoria, who was still unaware of him. He stared at her a moment longer before saying, "Ree!"

Victoria, startled, looked up to see Randy, "Hey Rands."

"You were pretty engrossed in that book," he pointed out. Stacy licked her lips in annoyance and stood back a little as the two other people continued their conversation without including her.

"Yeah, well, it's a good book," she laughed.

"I guess you have nothing better to do since you aren't doing anything tonight," Stacy said, her voice a little snobby.

"Yeah, well, we can't all have matches. Christy has a match tonight, although I think I'm better than her," Victoria said with a little self-deprecation mixed in.

"Definitely," Randy agreed, to which Victoria genuinely smiled to. Stacy was not liking this little interaction however, and sought to make Victoria look bad.

"Well, I've seen Christy training and she's actually doing really well. I wouldn't be surprised if she was wrestling circles around you in no time."

"Well, that may be," Victoria shrugged. "Maybe she's a natural, I don't think I've seen any evidence that she could really hang with me, but if that's what you think, then that's what you think."

"It IS what I think," Stacy said, giving a fake kind smile.

"Fine," Victoria said, not getting the hostility from Stacy. But she knew that it didn't make her want to stick around and get insulted, even if it wasn't overt. "I'll see you around Rands."

"Yeah, see ya Ree," Randy said as Victoria went back to her book and walked away. He turned back to Stacy and she gave him a coy look. "She really is better than most of the women wrestlers."

"She's just bitter that she doesn't have a match," Stacy said, rolling her eyes.

Randy bit his tongue, and that was the only way her could keep his anger contained. First Stacy insulted Trish, and now she was insulting Victoria, she was going too far this time. Randy cared a lot about Victoria, and he thought that was pretty obvious to everyone, but apparently not to Stacy. Maybe she just didn't get it, or maybe she was jealous. Whatever it was, it was not becoming, and Randy was almost to the end of his rope with her.

Edge was at the end of his rope as well. After searching the entire arena he could not find Christian anywhere. He had gotten his match with Christian from Bischoff, and was thankful that Stephanie had apparently taken the night off; it made it easier to get his way. Now he just had to find Christian and get on his good side. They were brothers, they shouldn't let petty differences get in their way.

"Christian!" he heard a woman giggling coming from around the corner. "At least wait until we're in the locker room!"

"Why should I?" he heard his brother's voice say.

"Naughty."

Edge rounded the corner quickly and was disgusted to find Christian and Trish practically all over each other. He knew that they had been having problems, but he hadn't known that they were back on track. It sickened him because he had thought that Christian was once again a free man and not tethered to Trish, who was best friends with Stephanie, which was a problem in his plan.

"Hey man," Edge said, causing his brother and his girlfriend to turn their heads to look at him. It didn't take a rocket scientist to see the sneer on Trish's face.

"What's up?" Christian said, physically having to hold Trish back.

"We have a tag match later," Edge said with a smile. "I thought it was cool that we get to tag again. It's just like old times."

"That's cool," Christian answered. "At least we know what we're doing. Who are we facing?"

"Jericho and Benjamin."

"Ok," Christian nodded. "Was there something that you needed? Or did you want to talk about the match?"

"Are you busy?"

Christian looked to Trish and she gave him a look that said all she needed to say. Christian was torn between his brother and his girlfriend and it was quite the dilemma. He didn't really hate Edge, he was his brother after all. But Trish was looking at him in that way and he knew that if he went with Edge then he might get a talking to from Trish, one that involved lots of curse words and profanities.

"Um, I'm busy, can we talk later?" Christian asked.

"Yeah, sure," Edge said, clearly frustrated. "Later."

"Yeah, later," Christian said as Trish was already pulling him into the locker room. She practically shut the door in Edge's face and then stared at Christian until he felt like he was going to break under her gaze. "What?"

"There's something so wrong with him," Trish said bluntly. "He's so title-hungry. You KNOW that he may be nice to you now, but as soon as you're in that ladder match he'd be willing to knock you out with a ladder to get that suitcase."

"I'd be willing to do the same," Christian pointed out, "And so would Chris to me?"

"But Edge would do it with no remorse," Trish countered. "He would do it and not care what happened to you at the end of the match. I'd venture to guess that he wouldn't even ask how you were after the match, especially not if he won. And what if you win, huh? You think that he's going to congratulate you? No, he'll probably challenge you to a match where he forces you to put the contract on the line."

"He's my brother Trish."

"Yeah, and you're the only one who can't see how much he's changed for the worse," Trish said, rolling her eyes at her boyfriend's ignorance. "He's not the same guy, and you treat him as if he is."

"To me he is," Christian said. "Look, I already went through the hating Edge phase, and I know that everyone hates him now, but he's my brother. Do you know how mad my mom would be if she found out we were fighting again!"

"I just feel this weird vibe from him," Trish said. "He's disgusting, and he's up to something, I can feel it in my bones. Be careful Chrissy, ok, please, I'm not asking you to give up Edge, but watch out for the ulterior motives, because I have a feeling he has a lot."

"Yeah, well, even if he does, I won't let him use me, ok Trishy?"

"Ok," Trish said, going over to hug her boyfriend, and then kiss him. "I love you, you know that."

"I know that, and I feel the same way. I'm really glad that we're not fighting anymore, I know that I've said that, but I feel like I can't say that enough," Christian said.

"I know, I hate fighting with you Chrissy, you're the most important person in the world to me."

"Same here. And don't worry, I won't let Edge get in between us."

"I know you wouldn't, I trust you," she mumbled as she shifted closer to him. "But now I have to go."

"What? Where?"

"Well, I looked at the schedule and little Miss Ugly is having her first real match tonight, and I need to scout the competition," Trish said proudly. "I mean, I can't go into my WrestleMania match blindly now can I?"

"Little Miss Ugly?" Christian asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Have you seen the sneer she's constantly wearing?" Trish asked. "It's like my mother always said, if you make a face, it'll stick that way. I guess Christy's face just stuck that way."

Christian chuckled. "You're ruthless and I love it."

"Yeah, and you be ruthless tonight, I mean, Chris knows you get in that ring to win," she winked. "I'll see you later, before your match with Chris.

As Trish was walking to the ring to join in on the match she wasn't even a part of, Chris was finding that he had nothing to be a part of too, and so he was sitting at a table in catering, alone, and with nothing to do at all. It was nice to have nothing to do, but it was also boring and lonely. He would go seek out Christian, but they were opponents tonight, and he would go find Benoit, but Benoit would just be Benoit and that would be a very short conversation.

The screeching of metal across the floor awoke him from his daydreams, but he found that he didn't want to be interrupted when he saw who had caused the jarring noise. Hunter had taken the liberty of pulling up a chair and was now facing Chris, a frown evident on his face. Chris felt his own face turn down into a frown and stared at the man across from him. For a few tense moments neither one spoke before Hunter leaned in a little bit.

"I heard that you were one of the guys in charge around here," Hunter said lowly.

"You heard right," Chris said, for once not afraid to assert his power. When it came to Hunter, anything Chris could rub in his face was fine with him.

"Yeah, that is a great benefit to marrying Stephanie," Hunter said with a bitter laugh. "Enjoy it while it lasts."

"If you came here to just act like an asshole, you can take your shtick elsewhere, cause I'm the last guy who wants to hear it."

"Well, I actually had a purpose to being here, and I think you'd like to hear it."

"Unless it involves you jumping off a bridge, no, I'm going to guess that I don't want to hear it," Chris sneered.

"I'm willing to make a deal with you," Hunter said, crossing his arms in front of him.

"And what the hell makes you think that I would be willing to make a deal with you? I mean, there's nothing in our repertoire that would make me hate you and vice versa, right?" Chris said sarcastically.

"I think I came up with something that's mutually beneficial," Hunter responded, and Chris hated the way he made it sound like he was doing Chris a favor. That was not how things worked around here.

"So you ARE jumping off a bridge, great, let me go buy a camera," Chris said, narrowing his eyes.

"I want to make tonight's match with Kane and Batista a lumberjack match, with the lumberjacks picked exclusively by me," Hunter said, stating the first part of the deal. So far, it did not look good to Chris.

"Yeah, that's just what I want to see, you getting your way. This deal is sounding killer. What's my end of the deal? I get to shine your belt for you? I would be so lucky," Chris said, pretending to sound excited.

"I'm not done Jericho," Hunter said, spitting out his name.

"Oh, really, I thought you were, my bad," Chris said, leaning back in his chair, hoping that nobody was watching this rather odd meeting of people who had been or were married to Stephanie. Not that that was the he saw it, but really, what other parallels could be drawn between the two of them, for they were cut from two very different cloths, Chris's a nice silk, smooth and cool, and Hunter's was probably a tacky orange and pink polka-dot make of wool, or something itchy and uncomfortable.

"If you use your power to give me that, tonight, then I would be willing to not talk to Stephanie."

Now Chris was intrigued. "Forever?"

"I won't talk to her unless she talks to me," Hunter said with a self-satisfied smirk. Chris knew he was lying. Hunter was a liar by nature, and Chris knew that the first chance he got, he would show Chris that he had no control over him.

"You're a damn liar, but go ahead, do your damn match, it has no bearings on me, and I don't really care. I know that you're going to talk to Stephanie because you can't stay away from her," Chris said, starting to get his ire up, and ready to gloat. "I guess you can't handle the fact that you lost her, and I KNOW you can't handle the fact that you lost her to me. So you go have your match, and you hold onto that belt for as long as you can because you and I, we both know that it's the only thing that's keeping you going because you lost Stephanie, and you lost her in the most stupid way possible. You lost her because you didn't pay enough attention to her, and it must kill you to realize that if you had just talked to her, treated her a little nicer that you would still be with her because for some God knows what reason, she loved you, and she hated me, and oh how the tides have turned, haven't they Trip? But that's what I get when I actually pay attention to Stephanie. If you had just realized how amazing a woman she is, then maybe, just maybe, you wouldn't have to grovel to me to get the match that you want. But I wouldn't get this groveling moment, which is really great when you think about it. You may be the champion Trip, but I really did get the prize, because it's no secret that you are still in love with Stephanie."

"No," was Hunter's lame answer.

"Yeah, you are, but if a match is going to help make you feel better, go ahead, I don't care," Chris said, smirking. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go see my WIFE."

Chris loved throwing that in his face, and he could tell that Hunter was seething with anger. In fact, Hunter was seething with anger, and walked to the ring bumping into various people along the way. He was angry at Dave, that was for sure, but if you didn't know better, and you watched closely, you could tell something else was bothering him, and that just made Chris laugh all the way back to his locker room.

Stephanie was awake by this time and watching the match. She was still tired, but sleeping during a show was not her style and she forced herself to stay awake. She didn't know what the hell Hunter was talking about, a lumberjack match, that seemed out of the blue. Leave it to Bischoff to make that match happen. Chris walked in a few minutes later, having stopped to watch Hunter for a second, and Stephanie smiled tiredly up at him. He went and sat down next to her, pulling her to him and she leaned against him, letting her head rest against his collarbone.

"You're up," he said rather obviously.

"I couldn't sleep anymore," Stephanie said then pointed at the television. "Did you watch this?"

"I knew about it, I told him he could have his match," Chris told her.

Stephanie looked dumbfounded at her husband. "You talked to Hunter?"

"He came and asked for the match, rather pathetically I might add, and because I felt sorry for the guy, I gave it to him. I also got in a few jabs at your marriage to him and how if he had treated you better that you would probably still be with him and he wouldn't have to ask ME for matches."

Stephanie laughed. "Eww, I wouldn't want to be married to him anymore, just you."

"But see, if you were still with him, then you wouldn't know any better."

"I would've loved to have seen him ask you for a match, that must have been so demeaning for him. You know how much pride he has, it must've killed him to have to go to you to get what he wanted."

"It was pretty great."

"I'm surprised he didn't go to Bischoff, although Bischoff wants Dave to win I think," Stephanie said. "That's what I gather."

A banging came on the door and Shelton's voice rang out, "Chris, man, you ready, our match is next!"

"Damn!" Chris said, jumping up. Luckily he was already in his ring gear and he was about to wave goodbye to Stephanie when she stood up. "Are you coming with?"

"Yeah, sure," she said, "I've got nothing better to do since I took the night off."

"You took the night off?"

"I'm tired."

"Are you getting sick?" he asked worriedly.

"I'm just tired," she said, linking her arm with his as they walked out of the room. "Hey Shelton."

"Hey, we gotta go man," Shelton said as they started walking quickly towards the gorilla and the ramp.

Chris turned to Stephanie again. "You sure you're ok?"

"I'm fine, I'm just tired," Stephanie told him. "It's not a big deal. Sometimes people get tired from working, it's happened over thousands of years, and it was bound to happen to me sometime. Just go out and have a great match." She leaned up and gave him a good luck kiss before he went out for his match.

The match itself was rather uneventful. Chris and Shelton were actually a good team, and had it not been a belt shot from Christian, Chris and Shelton probably had it in the bag. Christian and Edge did work well together, but that was to be expected. After the match, Edge was going to see if Christian wanted to talk or something, wherein he could start planting the seeds, but Trish whisked him away before he could do that.

Chris and Stephanie went back to their locker room and packed up so they could go back to the hotel and Stephanie could actually get some sleep in an actual bed. Hunter had not talked to them, but he would at least keep his stupid promise for one evening before breaking it sometime next week. Christian and Trish also decided to leave and go have dinner and talk and laugh and have fun.

But one person was not having fun and that was Randy. Randy was having no fun at all, and as he went out there to talk to the people, he knew this was not going to be fun. Stacy first insulted Trish, then Victoria and now she didn't believe in him. He talked about his match, but underneath it all, he was just angry, angry at a lot of people, and maybe that's why he looked at Stacy and saw red, or maybe he saw that she was not exactly the sweet girl that he thought she was. Whatever it was, he looked at Stacy and saw something he despised, and so he did what he thought he had to do.

He gave her an RKO.

He would've liked to have said that he didn't regret it, but he did. As much as he cared about Victoria, and hated the fact that Stacy had so blatantly disrespected her, he felt bad that he had just done that to Stacy. Maybe even worse by kissing her first. The kiss was ok, by no means was it explosive or magical. It just was, and it was nothing like kissing Victoria, he found. Stacy's kiss was sweet, sure, but there was nothing behind it, it was almost like Stacy wanted to just show off. Even Chris and Stephanie's kisses when they hated each other had more passion than that kiss.

He looked on as referees came out to help Stacy, and his face was filled with concern, but he didn't have time for that, and he certainly didn't have time for Stacy. He walked back up the ramp and went quickly to the women's locker room, hoping to intercept Victoria. He had come to an important conclusion and he needed to see her. When he got there, she wasn't there and he sighed, knowing that he might have to wait another week to tell her that partly RKO'ing Stacy was for the fact she didn't believe in him, but a big part was because of Victoria herself.

Later that evening, Chris climbed into bed as Stephanie was already asleep. He stared at the ceiling for a few minutes before he felt Stephanie sidling over to him and cuddling up on his side. She tended to do that, even if she was asleep, she would always find where he was and curl up against him. He took off his wedding ring and set it on the night-table next to him, the ring making a soft thunk as it settled down on the wood top. He had gotten used to the ring at least, but he had not gotten used to a lot of other things, mostly pertaining to the business…ok, all of them pertaining to the business. He didn't find it odd anymore to call Stephanie his wife, but he did find it odd to have everyone treating him differently.

Maybe it was something he had to get used to, but when you have Hunter coming up to asking for matches, you know that it's serious business. He just hoped that he wouldn't be corrupted like Hunter was, that he wouldn't have guys saying that he had slept his way to the top. He especially didn't want people thinking that he had married Stephanie for the sole purpose of getting to run the show or getting the power to make matches and control people.

"Thinking hard?" Stephanie mumbled against his bare chest.

"Yeah, it's about the only time I get to," Chris said.

"Are you saying I talk too much?" she joked.

"Well, if you're going to say it about yourself, then I guess I have no choice but to agree with you," Chris said, leaning down slightly to kiss her forehead. "Go back to sleep."

"So this doesn't concern me then, this thinking that you're doing?"

"It does, but in an indirect way, very indirect."

"What's wrong?" she asked, running circles around his stomach with her finger. "You can tell me anything, I'm your wife now."

"I know that," he said, rolling his eyes. "I'm well aware of who you are. I just…things are different now."

"Uh oh, you want out right?" she said, and had she not obviously taken a joking tone, Chris might've thought she was serious. "I'm not what you want!"

"You're exactly what I want, that's not the problem."

"Then what is?" she asked, serious this time.

"This whole business of being the boss. I don't know if you've seen it, but guys are starting to treat me differently. Like…a boss."

"Well, you are a boss," she reasoned.

"But I don't want to be treated as one. And then your ex-husband comes up to me and attempts to make a deal saying that he would stop talking to you if I gave him a match, and it was Trips…a man that I fought a Hell in the Cell with, that I won the title off of and got taken away, and it's weird, it's all very surreal."

"Why didn't you tell me earlier?" Stephanie asked. "If it's too much for you too soon, we can always just make you a wrestler."

"But you don't get it baby, I'm married to you and it's changed, everything has changed, the whole dynamic of the backstage had changed because people know that I'm married to you. It's like they say one wrong word to me and I'll have them fired, and it's nothing like what I wanted."

"Ok, now I'm really starting to think that you want out," Stephanie said, tilting her head to look at him.

"Over my dead body, literally, that's the only way I'm letting myself get away from you, I'm just…I'm getting used to it and it's still just strange to me, so don't worry about me, I'm fine, I'll live, and I'll get used to it. I'll never get used to the guys that think I married you for anything other than the fact that I worship at your heavenly altar," he joked, "But I can get used to the formalities."

"It'll all blow over," Stephanie said reassuringly. "They'll realize that you're exactly the same, and then everything will be normal, I promise."

"Oh, I love the fantasy world you live in."

"Shut up and go to sleep, I'm so tired, I think my head might just fall on your chest right now and I'll be asleep by the time it gets there."

Chris ran his fingers through Stephanie's hair and she yawned. "Maybe you are getting sick or something."

"Nah," she mumbled again as sleep was overcoming her. "Night."

"Night," Chris whispered. He stayed up thinking a little while longer, feeling Stephanie's soft breath on his bare skin. He would just have to get used to the way people treated him now because he wasn't going to give up Stephanie for anything or anyone. He was happy now, really happy, and he didn't care what people thought. No one was tearing him away from Stephanie.

No matter how hard some people were going to try.


	28. Dave Better Win Sunday, March 28, 2005

Christian kneeled in front of Trish as she sat there reading the schedule. Only Bischoff could think of something so stupid as an arm wrestling match for her to do tonight. Unless it was Christy and Lita's idea. Either way, someone she thought was stupid had planned a stupid, stupid event, and she didn't want to participate in it.

"It's one time, and it'll be over."

"Yeah, well you don't even have anything to do tonight, so you're not the one going to be humiliated," Trish pointed out.

"Well, I can be a little humiliated if you want," he offered with a smile, and she knew he was being sincere. It was things like that that she loved about him. He was willing to do stupid things for her, even so much as to look like a fool just to make her feel better.

"Yeah, and how could you be more humiliated than I am?" she asked. "I'm in an arm wrestling match for God's sakes. That's not my kind of thing, I wrestle like a real person. You know the only reason that they're doing this is because Christy can barely wrestle a real match."

"Yeah, I know that," Christian laughed. "She's terrible."

"Well, what do you expect?" Trish scoffed.

"Well, you didn't start off as a wrestler, and then you got better, so it is possible, but you're twice the woman that Christy is. I'm confident for you on Sunday Trishy."

"I know that you are, and I'm confident too…in myself that is. I'm confident hat you're going to win too, because I think that you deserve it the most. I mean, Chris and Chris, they've both been champions before, and they were big time champions, Chris was the first Undisputed Champion, and the other Chris won at the expense of Triple H, and Kane's at least been champion for a short while, and Shelton is the IC champion, and Edge deserves jack squat for all I care."

"Trishy…"

"I KNOW he's your brother, but that doesn't change the fact that he's a complete jerk, and he's going to treat you like a complete jerk. I just wish you'd see that," Trish pleaded with him.

"I do see that, and I know that he's going to treat me like crap on Sunday, but so is Chris."

"I know," Trish said with a pout. "I just really don't like Edge right now. He's so…I don't know, I'll be happy with anyone winning, just not him."

"But you'd be the happiest if I won, because I'm Captain Charisma, and can you imagine Captain Charisma as the World Champion, I think that it has a nice ring to it."

"I think that you sound stupid when you refer to yourself as Captain Charisma, but that's just me," Trish answered, but then leaned down to kiss him, "Of course, I do think that Christian, the World Champion has a nice ring to it. Do you have any idea when you'd take the match?"

"No clue," Christian said, "But I'd have a year…and that brings me to my next topic."

"You want to plan something for a year from now?" she asked confused.

"No, I just wanted to ask you something," he said seriously.

Trish just this moment noticed that he was on his knees in front of her. She gasped slightly and covered her mouth with her hand. She didn't know what he was doing, but she had a good idea what he was doing. Her eyes widened as he stared at her for a moment, and he gave her a perplexed look, as if he didn't know what he was doing.

"You ok?" he asked.

"Christian, I thought I told you that I wasn't ready to get married," Trish whispered from behind her hand.

"Huh?" Christian asked, then looked down at his position, "Oh God no. I'm not asking you to marry me!"

"Oh thank God," Trish said, letting out a breath. "I thought you were, and I thought we had that discussion that said that I didn't want to get married right now, or any time in the near future."

"I know, and I heard you, and I pretty much agree to your terms."

"My terms?" Trish asked with a laugh. "Is that what those were?"

"You laid it all out for me, and I understand where you're coming from. You don't want to get married right now. And as long as you aren't breaking up with me, then I don't really care what you think about marriage. I mean, just because our friends are getting married around us, that doesn't and shouldn't influence us."

"Rational to the end."

"I just wanted you to move in with me full-time," he explained. "Now, I'm not saying that we should give up your house in Toronto, because we go their often enough because our families are there, I'm just saying, that I think we should make the thing official."

"Because I practically already live with you," she concluded.

"Exactly," he responded. "I know you don't want marriage, but I don't think that moving in together, on a more permanent basis is something that is so bad, right?"

"Right," Trish said, hugging him, "I love you."

"Yeah, I'm pretty great," he told her.

"You are."

While these two were moving forward, Randy felt like he was taking two steps backwards. He had not seen Victoria in a week, and every time he had called her cell phone or her home phone, he had gotten her voicemail or her machine and it was frustrating to say the least. He was desperate to talk to her, but in order to do that, he would have to contact her. She was supposedly going to be here tonight, so he figured that he could just talk to her here, but he had yet to find her.

Then there was the entire Stacy situation. Word had it that Stacy wasn't here tonight because he had injured her last week with the RKO. He was probably going to be pretty unpopular with the guys around here for doing that to her, though it was certainly not the first time that she had been brutalized (her getting put through a table came to mind, as did being spanked by Big Show, as did being put in the walls by Chris Jericho, as did many other occasions). He went back and watched the video, and they had referred to Stacy as his girlfriend, which was a gross overstatement, and he wished they had at least gotten that right.

He was getting dirty looks from some of the guys backstage, and he ignored them for the most part. He was focused on two things, his match with Undertaker and speaking with Victoria. He was confident with the Undertaker situation, but unfortunately was a wreck with the Victoria situation. Then there was the fact that Chris, Stephanie, Trish, and Christian hadn't really spoken to him since last week, and he didn't know if that could be attributed to what he did to Stacy, or if it was more that they were just busy and didn't have time to talk.

He hoped it was the latter, because he didn't want to lose his friends. Then he would be truly alone, but what he had done did not garner favor with many people, and it probably hadn't garnered favor with his friends. He remembered how they had shunned Edge, but he had said crap about Stephanie, and he could understand being shunned for that, but as far as he could tell, none of them really liked Stacy.

Randy spotted Shelton Benjamin up ahead and he stopped next to him, "Shelton, have you seen Victoria?"

"Why, you going to RKO her too?" Shelton said, and Randy groaned under his breath.

"No, I was just wondering."

"Even if I did know, I wouldn't tell you, you're liable to just beat her up, and I don't talk to fools like that," Shelton said, walking away.

So this was how it was going to be from now on. He had felt remorse for what he had done to Stacy, and he had picked up the phone numerous times over the last week, wanting to explain his actions, apologize for his behavior, but he didn't think she would want to talk to him, especially since he was the one that injured her. But he did feel remorse over his actions, maybe even the tiniest bit ashamed, but he did what he had to do to assure everyone that if they doubted him, their actions would be punished.

He saw Stephanie walking up ahead by herself and he smiled. Finally there was a familiar face that he could, hopefully, count on to cheer him up, or at least talk to him. He just didn't want everyone on the roster to be pissed at him. She looked to be looking through some papers, but she was always looking through papers.

"Stephanie!" he called out, raising his hand in a wave when she looked up. "What's up?"

"I'm sorry Randy, I'm really busy, is this important?" Stephanie asked. "I scheduled the time that you asked for, so if there's anything else you need, you're better off telling me now."

"I was actually just wondering if you had time to talk, you know, shoot the breeze," he said hopefully.

"Not at the moment," she said curtly. "I'm bogged down with WrestleMania plans and schemes, and everything that goes along with coordinating the biggest show of the year, so unless this is of the utmost importance, I'm going to have to cut this short."

"Oh, I was just hoping that you had the time is all," he said, his voice dropping.

"Well, I don't, bye," Stephanie said, and Randy looked after her. She sounded pissed. Damn it, if he had known what the consequences of RKO'ing Stacy were going to be, he would've thought about it longer. Yet again, he hadn't really thought about it last time either, rather it had been an impulse. Well, hopefully he could find Victoria and she would talk to him.

Stephanie continued on her way, reading the papers as she went. The show had once again been booked by Bischoff, but instead of her going to the meeting, Chris had gone in her stead. She was still feeling tired and overworked, but Chris had really stepped up and upon checking the schedule it seemed that he and Bischoff had ironed out a pretty good show. She had to hand it to Chris, he knew how to book a show pretty damn well.

Then again, he HAD scheduled himself in the first slot of the show with a Highlight Reel, but she let that slide as it was well within his rights to put himself on the show. She was just happy that she hadn't had to plan everything and that she had a spouse that she could count on to pick up some of the slack. While Chris was practically running Raw with himself and Bischoff, it gave her time to actually focus on WrestleMania and all the preparation that went into that show.

Tomorrow morning, her and Chris were flying out to Los Angeles in order to prepare for their biggest show of the year. She needed ample time to get this pulled off without a hitch. It was great that her father was walking on his own so soon after hurting himself, but she was still responsible for a lot of the work, at least for the Raw side of things. Shane was flying down tomorrow as well as her mother to prepare for the show. There were going to be a lot of long hours these coming days, which was going to wear her out even more than she was worn out now.

She walked absently into her office and sat down at her desk, her eyes still scanning the page. She thought about her behavior towards Randy, and realized how rude she had been, but she had no time to dwell on that now. And if she did, she might have to admit that she was just a bit mad at him. He hadn't expected him to RKO Stacy like he did, not after the nice things that he was constantly saying about her, but she wasn't going to try and explain his behavior. It just wanted to make her evaluate how much she thought that she knew him, and that seemed to be diminishing every time that she saw him.

"Oh well," she muttered to herself as she sat back in her chair and closed her eyes. She was liable to doze off if she wasn't careful. Being tired all the time sucked a lot, and she had been trying to catch up on her sleep, but it wasn't doing a lot of good. She had spent a lot of nights in her office while Chris was upstairs, although he had lessened her load a little. He was still worried about her sleeping habits, but she didn't have time for that right now.

She also had to speak with Dave about Sunday. She was more than confident in Dave's ability to win over Hunter. Hunter's days were numbered, she could feel it. Dave had been getting the better of him ever since he had turned his back on Evolution and she didn't see any reason why he couldn't continue that domination into Sunday. He was going to have the momentum, and he just had to keep that up for the next six days.

There was a knock on her door, and she called out for them to come in. She was less than thrilled to see that it was Edge on the other side of her door. She gestured for him to have a seat and he closed the door behind him. She stared him down as he sat down across from her and she waited for him to speak.

"Well?" she asked after several moments of silence.

"I don't have anything planned tonight," Edge said.

"Well, I'm sorry that you don't," Stephanie said, taking a quick glance at the schedule.

"How come I don't have anything scheduled!" Edge said, now showing how irate he was over this.

"What?" she asked dumbly, surprised by his sudden outburst of emotion.

"Your husband gets the first slot in the show, that's not a damn coincidence is it?"

Stephanie rubbed at her temples. "Look, if you want to take up the schedule with someone, don't take it up with me because I'm not the one that made the schedule. I've been too busy to think of Raw tonight. If you want the men that made the schedule, you need look no further than Bischoff and Jericho."

"I should've known," Edge scoffed, "So how are you going to rig the match Sunday so that Chris can win?"

Stephanie stood up and put her palms on the desk, leaning forward a little, her eyes ablaze, "I don't know who you think you are, but I am your superior, and I will not be talked to in that manner. If you have a problem with someone's management style, either bring it to their superior, or to them, instead of being a wuss and coming to me and accusing me of things that aren't true."

"Yeah, and your superior happens to be your father, and Jericho's father-in-law."

"That does not matter. What's the matter with you Edge? Look at what you've become," Stephanie said, gesturing towards him. "You're like a caricature. This obsessed maniac and the image does not suit you."

"Well maybe if I could get my damn title shot!"

"Well look around you buddy! You're not the only one salivating for a title shot. There are tons of guys that would love an opportunity at the title, five of them you're facing on Sunday, so suck it up, stop acting like a baby, and if you want that title shot, go out there and earn it!"

"I've spent the past six years earning it, even longer if you think about it!"

"Well then I don't know what to say Edge…maybe you're just…not…good…enough," Stephanie said, pronouncing every word strongly.

"Oh, I'm good enough and I'll prove it, oh yeah, I'll prove it, and I'll make sure that I leave your husband in a bloody pulp when I do prove it. And there's not a damn thing that you can do about it."

Stephanie tucked her hair behind her ears and glared at him. "Edge, regardless of the authority that I have around here, you'd be surprised at how vindictive I can still be. If you want to start a war, you won't win, not with me as your opponent." She stepped around her desk and looked down at him with derision, her voice low and taking an entirely different quality to it, sinister and smoky, "Look what I did to Hunter, I broke him. I can break you just as easily, maybe even easier because Hunter is a stronger guy than you are. But I can take you on, any day of the week, so don't mess with me Edge. And if you do mess with me, expect to see my husband. Now if you'll excuse me, I have work that's waiting for me, so that means get the fuck out of my office right now!"

Edge glared at her a moment and she did not hesitate to glare back at him. The intense stare-down last another minute or two before Edge stood up and stormed away. So taking the angry, vengeful approach wasn't going to work with her. He thought he could intimidate Stephanie into giving him what he wanted, but she was too strong for that. He was going to have to think of another tactic with which to get what he wanted out of her. But rest assured, he would get what he wanted out of her.

Chris laughed with Benoit over some stupid WCW story that they had been relaying. He didn't know how the topic had come up exactly, but they were currently swapping stories of the old place where they both felt they weren't used to their potential. The jump had benefited the both of them really.

"And to think, Goldberg thought I wasn't worthy to job to him," Chris said with a laugh. "Just because he was so 'great' or whatever. That was such a bunch of bullshit."

"You're telling me," Benoit said. "I mean, the place had its moments, but I wasn't exactly clamoring to stay."

"Tell me about it. I'm so glad I came over when I did though, can you imagine what would've happened if I had waited until the Invasion to jump, I would've been totally lost in the mix, and I could be out of job right now."

"Unless you were in the Invasion and Stephanie fell in love with you," Benoit said, punching his shoulder.

"I don't think I would've," Chris shrugged. "She would've seemed…untouchable I think. I mean, did you see her when she was the owner of ECW, she acted like a self-righteous, spoiled brat who was better than everyone else."

"What's the difference between then and now?" Benoit joked and Chris gave him a dirty look.

"There's plenty of stuff different now then there was then," Chris answered. "She's not self-righteous anymore."

Benoit gave a short laugh, very short laugh, "I love how you're married to her, and yet you don't exactly defend her like you'd expect a husband to."

"On some level I still hate her guts, so it's cool," Chris replied. "But I never would've had the nerve to fall for her if I was on her side. She would've paraded me around as her flavor of the week, and then dumped me, and I would never be the same again."

"So instead you jumped over, fought with her for two years, and then married her."

"Pretty much, yeah," Chris said. "There might've been a period in there where we dated, but I guess that's all subjective."

"Where is your wife anyhow?"

"Working," Chris said. "With WrestleMania coming up, she has to focus on that."

"And what about you? The newest member of management."

"Nothing right now. I did plan the show though."

"And it becomes clear."

"What?"

"Nothing, I'll just see you out there, but don't expect me to be nice."

"Someone with the nickname Rabid Wolverine? I wouldn't expect you to be nice."

"Good thinking," Benoit said before walking off.

Chris had to get down to the ramp for the show anyways, and even though he wanted to go see his wife, he didn't have the time, and she probably didn't have the time either. He started off the show talking about how serious he was going to be for his match Sunday and he was serious. He anted to get back into the World Title hunt, and this would be the perfect catalyst for that. He was good enough to be there, and if Hunter won on Sunday, he would love nothing more than to take that title.

His two guests for the evening were Shelton and Benoit. He had started to get friendlier with Shelton and found out that he was a pretty cool kid. He didn't know how the conversation had desecrated into being hungry, but it had, and they were talking about being hungry, and Chris was starting to think it sounded stupid, and then he was actually starting to get hungry, and could've really gone for a granola bar or something.

Then, because his life could never just be simple, Christian and Edge came down. Now while he didn't care that Christian had come out, he did take some offense to Edge coming out. Edge was looking especially deranged tonight, and started going crazy or something that effect. Then Edge had to spout off his mouth once again, saying that he had made history, that he had been IC champion, and that he had had a broken neck, and Chris had to strain to think about when Edge had made history…and he didn't recall anything. Certainly nothing that could rival being the first EVER Undisputed Championship.

It was like he was on the same wavelength with Benoit and Shelton as they attacked Christian, Edge, and Tomko. Chris, not wanting to get his friend and being too far away from Edge went after Tomko, knocking him out of the ring. Somehow this led to a match between the six of them, three against three. Chris was just thankful that he had had the foresight to wear his wrestling tights out to the Highlight Reel instead of just regular clothes.

The match was nothing special, he worked well with his team, and felt good about his moves out there. Eventually it came down to him and Tomko, everyone else being otherwise knocked out or occupied. He took Tomko's legs and turned them over into the Walls of Jericho, and since Tomko was not of the caliber that Chris was, he tapped out and Chris won the match. He celebrated his win, and was knocked out by Christian.

Christian, well, he was angry and hit the winner, even though the winner had been his friend. Unfortunately, he might've wanted Chris's help when Kane came down to the ring and then knocked Christian out. Kane then went on to decimate everyone in the ring until he was the last one standing (which pretty much cements a non-Kane win incidentally).

Christian took his broken self and went backstage to the sympathetic Trish who was waiting for him, "Hey roomie."

Christian laughed and then winced. "Ladders suck."

"Says the man who just went out and said that he had won two ladder matches," Trish laughed.

"Well, it's been a while, I'd forgotten how much they suck. Ladders are not fun, and they cause pain."

"Well, actually, they're for climbing to get to high places, but I guess they can be for pain," Trish said, grabbing her boyfriend's hand. "Let's get you cleaned up. You're going to start talking gibberish soon if you don't get a good shower."

"Thanks for not saying that I speak gibberish all the time."

"Well, you do, but you're hurt, and I thought I'd take it easy on you for once Chrissy."

"Thanks Trishy," Christian replied as they walked back to his locker room.

Stephanie yawned and saw Chris limping backstage. She went over to her husband, like Trish had down for Chris and ran her hand up and down his arm. He smiled at her and kissed her quickly before pulling away to grab at his midsection. Stephanie rubbed his shoulder as he tried to stand upright.

"So you're going to win on Sunday right?"

"If I survive the match."

"You better, I don't want to be a widow."

"I wouldn't let you be a widow so soon," Chris said, sending her a smile. "I'm not too bad off. Kane's just got a bad attitude, but nothing that a ladder to his face won't fix on Sunday. And it's actually good because he's ugly to begin with so making him uglier isn't really going to do anything bad to him."

"The same can't be said for you so don't go around losing teeth or anything."

"Yeah, then you might mix Benoit and me up and you might sleep with him on accident and then all hell would break loose."

"Oh yeah, because you and Benoit look so much alike that I would never be able to tell the difference, and I'd just accidentally end up in bed with him, because that's believable," Stephanie said sarcastically.

"Don't mock me, it doesn't become you."

"Thanks," she said, looking down at her watch. "Oh no, I have a meeting that I need to get to, are you going to be ok?"

"No."

"Will you be ok for the next like fifteen minutes?"

"No."

"You're going to have to be you know."

"I know," he said sullenly. "See you later?"

"I'm your wife, you'll always see me later."

"And a good thing too," Chris said, kissing her deeply before she pulled away and tapped her watch.

"Love you."

"Love you too," Chris called out to her.

Stephanie walked quickly to a locker room and knocked on the door. Dave let her in happily, glad to see her face and not to see Bischoff's again. Bischoff was really starting to bug him, but it didn't matter, Stephanie was a better boss anyways. He let her in and she smiled as she maneuvered her way around him and into the room.

"You nervous?" she asked outright.

"Of course not," he responded.

"Good, so I was thinking that you and I could tell Hunter about our friendship at WrestleMania, what do you think?"

"Sounds good. Not only will I get the title off of him, he'll know that I've been consorting with you for a while now. Now how do you think he'll react?"

"Like a woman scorned," Stephanie laughed. "It'll be worth it though, just to see his face."

"Are you going to tell Chris before you tell Hunter?"

"Yeah, I'm going to tell him on Sunday, he'll be so proud of me," Stephanie giggled. "He loves a good plan, I think that's why I love him so much. He can recognize a good plan when he sees one."

"And if he wins the money in the bank match?"

"Well then you're going down Dave!" Stephanie said with a joking anger. "Honestly though, if Chris wins, who knows when he'll take the match."

"If I were him, I'd take it at SummerSlam, unless he wants to wait until WrestleMania. If we do wrestle, I'll be forced to crush him."

"You underestimate him Dave," Stephanie said. "You've never been in a match with him where there was something huge on the line. At least not a one-on-one match. But he can bring it. He beat Rock AND Austin in one night, back-to-back."

"I know," Dave smiled. "You sure do like to gush about him."

"I'm allowed," she joked, wiggling her ring finger with her wedding and engagement ring. "If it comes down to the two of you, I think I know which side I'm going to be on."

"So you're going to divorce Chris and join up with me then?"

"Damn you got me," Stephanie said, putting her hand over her heart. "I've been planning to leave Chris for you Dave. I'm completely in love with you, you big strong man, you."

"I knew it," Dave said nonchalantly.

"I guess my passes at you have been pretty obvious then?"

"Very obvious. I mean, that one time where I had to throw you off of me, and really, waiting naked in my bed, not cool Steph."

"Well how was I supposed to know that you wouldn't want me naked for you?" Stephanie asked innocently, then started cracking up. "So we're good with Sunday?"

"Yeah, we're good with Sunday," he nodded.

"Ok, I'm going to go then, Chris kind of got the crap beat out of him."

"Tell him to get used to it if he wins the ladder match."

"Cute, real cute," Stephanie said, giving him a look.

She left then, and went to find Chris. Meanwhile, Trish was now sulking along with Christian, though his was over his match and hers was over that stupid arm wrestling match. That was the most stupid thing she had ever done, and she had done some stupid, stupid things (Vince McMahon anyone?). And then to lose to that little bitch, it was humiliating yes, but when Sunday came, Trish was going to lay that bitch out. Christy was NO match for her, and she was going to prove that the only thing Christy was good for was dropping her clothes.

"I hate her," Trish said angrily. "Her and Lita both!"

"I know," Christian said, still smarting after his attack from Kane. "I so know."

"I can't wait until I get to kick her ass!"

"Totally!" Christian muttered, more to himself than Trish.

"Bitch!"

"Bastard!" Christian said about Kane.

"And Lita too!"

"And Edge acting like he was better than me!"

"Oh they will pay!" Christian and Trish said at the same time. They looked over at each other for a second and then burst into an infectious laughter, Trish falling over Christian at the stupidity that they were displaying at the moment. Christian leaned down to make out with Trish a little.

"Kane is going to pay for what he did," Trish said.

"Lita is so totally going down," Christian said.

Lita was proud of Christy and they were happily walking backstage after Christy beat Trish. Lita was just glad to see Trish suck at something, even if Trish had kicked her down. Trish would get what was coming to her, she was sure of that. She saw Chris sitting on a trunk and excused herself from Christy to go over to Chris.

"Chris," she said quietly.

Chris smiled, "Hey Lita, what's up?"

"I just wanted to wish you luck on Sunday."

"Thanks," he said.

She walked away without another word. She just wanted to wish him luck. He deserved it after what Edge wanted to do with him and Stephanie. Maybe she was wishing him luck with other things as well, with the situation with Edge perhaps, she didn't even know. But she wanted Edge to go down just as much as everyone else did.

As this was going on, Randy was getting the crap scared out of him. Messing with the Undertaker was how do you say…stupid. He was a creepy, creepy man, with a creepy and legendary past. Randy was stupid for trying to mess with that, and as the posts burned, he knew he had to get the hell out of there.

He just wished he could've talked to Victoria first.

Later that evening, Stephanie and Chris were curled up on the couch in her office, watching the show. She was laying against Chris as they watched, and she was moments from nodding off, but she wanted to see the end of the show and the face-off between Dave and Hunter. They were half-way through it and Dave was such a pro.

"Why are you smiling?" Chris asked as he looked down at his wife. Stephanie hadn't even realized that she was smiling over the smug attitude that Dave was giving Hunter. But she was smiling, grinning even.

"No reason."

"So you rooting for me on Sunday?"

"If I haven't passed out yet," she laughed.

"Well, in the event that you're conscious, I expect you to have my back."

"Oh, I will, don't worry."

"Good, because I want that title again, and I don't care who I have to go through to get it."


	29. Yay for Dave, WrestleMania, April 3, 200...

A/N: So apparently, this story won an award for Best Series from WWE Fanfic Awards. I wasn't even aware I was nominated, or by who, but I won, so thanks to whoever liked the story enough to nominate me. And just thanks, lol. :)

I'd say that was a pretty good WrestleMania. It started off a little sour (sorry, I did NOT want Edge to win), but definitely got better as the night wore on, the better part is Trish, Kurt, and Dave winning. I definitely think Kurt/HBK was the match of the night, what great story-telling.

And yay for Dave, I was a little worried when Cena won, because two title changes seemed a little dicey, but yay for Dave, I'm very happy he won, and I hope that he just continues to get bigger and bigger and not lose steam as a competitor and as a face, because the last thing I want is for H to win it any time soon (I added the any time soon part because let's not all kid ourselves and think that H will not get the title back).

Oh, and I took a few liberties at the beginning of this chapter. It starts right after the HOF ceremony, and I know that Stephanie was next to Paul/H, but it's my story, and in my story, let's pretend she was sitting with Jericho, again I KNOW she wasn't, but this is fiction, she was, go with it.

Enjoy and review:)

* * *

"Are you sure that you're up to going?"

"I'm sure," Stephanie said as they sat there watching as the Hall of Fame ceremony ended. "You act like I'm fragile."

"I'm not acting like you're fragile, I'm just wondering if you're good to go. I know you've been working overtime this week, I have too, and I just want to make sure that you're ok to go out tonight."

"I am out aren't I?"

"I'm well aware of that, but I was wondering if you were ok to go out to dinner with your family," Chris whispered to her as everyone stood applauding Hulk Hogan.

"I'm fine!" she insisted loudly, but nobody noticed over the loud applause. "I think I need a night where I don't have to work. Look, we go to the cocktail party after this, and then we enjoy a quiet dinner with my family, that's not a large load."

"But you've been so tired and working so hard, that I'm worried about you. You look like you haven't slept at all."

"You know exactly how much I've slept," Stephanie told him, then linked her arm through his as the clapping died down and people began to proceed out of the building. "Or is that not you that I'm sleeping next to each night."

"Ok, so you've been getting at least some sleep," he admitted. "But I'm just saying that we don't have to do this dinner thing."

"My family wants to get together for one night, and it's the night before the biggest show, and we've all been working so hard," Stephanie said. "I mean, planning and making sure things go as planned, and then tomorrow is going to be even harder. I think we all need this dinner."

"I know how hard we've been working, I've been working too, so I know first-hand. But if you want to go, we'll go, you know that I wouldn't go against anything you wanted."

"Yup," she nodded as she noticed that her family was no longer beside her. "So that ceremony was pretty fun."

"Yeah," Chris said, starting to pick the confetti out of her hair. "Come on, let's go to the cocktail party and mingle. That's pretty much our job at these things isn't it? Gotta keep up appearances."

"We own part of the company, of course we're expected to be at the after party. At least make a brief appearance to show that we actually care about the party," she laughed as they walked up the aisle, people milling about, but really not paying attention to them, which was a refreshing change.

"You look beautiful tonight by the way," Chris leaned in to whisper into her ear.

"In this thing?" Stephanie said, looking down. "I had nothing else to wear. I didn't have time to go shopping for anything new so it was this or a business suit, and I don't think my mom would've appreciated that, though after seeing what John Cena wore, I don't think she had any right to complain about what I wore."

"God, I try to say that my wife looks beautiful and I don't even get a thank you," Chris scoffed as they caught up with her family at the limo. There were people screaming everywhere, and Stephanie and Chris parted for a few moments to shake hands with the people outside. It felt like a Hollywood premiere or something.

They reached the limo and Chris stood outside the door until Stephanie got into the limo. He got in after her, and saw the rest of her family already inside. Vince had been backstage the entire Hall of Fame ceremony, so he was probably the first one in, and Linda was beside him. Shane was at the far end, on his cell phone talking to someone. Chris slid in to the seat next to her and nodded to Shane who nodded back to him.

After the door closed, Vince turned to his daughter and son-in-law, "So how did it look from the audience?"

"Great Dad," Stephanie said, "Everything looked perfect and organized, and it went off without a hitch, you have nothing to worry about."

"Is she just trying to appease me Chris?" Vince asked.

"No Vince, it looked good. And it was fun, which I think made the fans have fun at it, which is good because I think it'll mean the crowd tomorrow is going to be hot, and that's what we've wanted right, a hot crowd."

"Yeah, that's very important, the trucks started setting up?"

"I made sure that happened," Chris answered, "So by tomorrow, the entire set should be ready, and all that will need to go up is the ring, otherwise we're completely good to go."

"Good," Vince said, "I'm sorry I've been pretty much ineffectual in all of this."

"Dad, all we care about is that you get well," Stephanie answered. "Chris, Shane, and I have everything under control on the execution of the show, and Mom has everything taken care of from the company role."

"Stephanie's good at delegation," Chris said, wrapping his arm around his wife.

Stephanie blushed a little bit and let her head fall against Chris's shoulder. She yawned and tried to hide it, but it made an audible sound and Chris ran his fingers up her side, running from her hip to just near her breasts, and it was more comfort than him trying to get her aroused. She smiled to herself and took her arm and wrapped it tighter around her waist so she could feel more of him against her.

Linda gave a sly look to Vince, who just kept to himself. He didn't have the privilege of being around Stephanie and Chris too often so seeing them together always fascinated him. Just the fact that they could go from such vitriolic hatred to endearing love was something to behold.

"So Chris, you prepared for your match tomorrow?" Shane asked as he hung up his phone.

"No," Chris said. "It's pretty hard to prepare for a ladder match, any kind of ladder match. I really want to win it, so I'm going to do my best, and that's all I can do right?"

"Well, we can always give you a title shot if you wanted, you don't really have to go through the motions like this," Vince said.

"Chris wants to earn it, just like he's always done," Stephanie said proudly. Chris didn't rely on her to get where he wanted to go, and she had to admire that about him. He was doing what he loved because it was what he loved, and he married her because he loved her and not because of what she could do for him.

They arrived at the restaurant that had been rented out for the party. It was one of those trendy, upscale places, and Vince had had to put down quite the payment in order to secure it for a Saturday evening. The place was hopping and teeming with people, either hoping to get a glimpse inside, or inside already. The limo door was opened by one of the valets and Chris was the firs to get out, untangling Stephanie from his side.

He held out his hand for her to take as she alighted from the cab and helped her up. He was a little nervous with people checking her out because her dress was low-cut and she was bending over. He didn't want his wife to be ogled by all these guys waiting outside the restaurant, but he couldn't do anything about it. She stood up and kissed his cheek chastely as Chris went to help Linda out of the cab as well.

"You two go on ahead, have fun, and we'll meet later," Linda said.

Stephanie nodded and grabbed Chris's hand as they were ushered quickly into the restaurant. Stephanie immediately spotted Trish and Christian by the bar. She dragged Chris over to the bar and tapped Trish on the shoulder. Trish turned around and grinned, wrapping Stephanie up in a hug.

"Hey girl!" Trish said, "You look beautiful."

"So do you!" Stephanie exclaimed over the noise.

"You guys want drinks?" Christian asked as he waved over the bartender.

Chris told him what he and Stephanie wanted as she continued to talk with Trish over whatever. They got their drinks and were joined by Kurt who already had a beer in his hand. Chris nodded to him as they stood there talking with each other. Stephanie and Trish finally broke their conversation as they noticed the boy's talking a few feet away.

"So are you guys excited for tomorrow?" Trish asked as she ducked under Christian's arm. He wrapped that arm around her waist as Trish leaned against him.

"Yup, I'm winning," Kurt said immediately, "All me and no HBK."

"That's a pretty bold statement," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, take it from a guy to lost to Michaels at a WrestleMania," Chris said with a bitter chuckle. Stephanie wrapped her free arm around his waist and let her hand settle inside her suit jacket pocket.

"I'm not worried," Kurt said cockily. "I could take any Raw guy on if I was so inclined."

"Now that sounded like a challenge," Chris said, then turned to Christian, "Did that sound like a challenge to you?"

"It must definitely did," Christian said.

"Am I going to get double-teamed in the alley behind the restaurant?" Kurt asked, pretending to be nervous.

"Nah, my wife wouldn't let me do that," Chris said.

"I might, just for fun," Stephanie giggled. "God, it's a madhouse in here."

"You're telling me," Shane said as he came over to the group. "What's up guys?"

"Shane!" Trish said. "Glad to see you again. You hardly come around anymore."

"Didn't you see that chick that I was sitting next to at the awards ceremony, Marissa, you try leaving her," Shane said.

"My brother's in love," Stephanie teased, making a googly face at him. Shane rolled his eyes at Chris who just shrugged. He wasn't about to chastise his wife.

"Come on man," Shane said to Chris, "Don't you have anything to say about that?"

"My brother-in-law's in love?" Chris said as everyone laughed at him.

"It's ok Shane," Trish said. "We'd just love to see you more often. I'm sure that your girlfriend won't mind if you take a couple days off to come visit us. We miss hanging out with you."

"Well, I don't," Stephanie said, "I had too much of him growing up. I'm tired of you frankly."

"Funny baby girl," Shane said. "Too bad Marissa got an emergency family call or else I would've introduced her to you guys."

"Next time," Trish said, "And you Kurt, we never see you anymore, and it sucks, I miss you too."

"Now that I can agree with," Stephanie said, giving Kurt a pout.

"Well, maybe sometime I'll get to be on Raw, but why don't we just focus on the big show tomorrow?"

"Sounds good," Chris said, lifting his glass, "A toast then."

"To WrestleMania," Stephanie added.

"And to friendship," Trish said.

"And alcohol," Kurt and Christian said at the same time, causing them to laugh.

"Cheers," Shane said as they all clinked glasses before going to talk about the goings-on that would happen tomorrow.

The next day dawned, not bright and early, for Stephanie, but early and busy. She was out of bed at 7:30 in the morning, rolling out from underneath Chris's arm. He groaned and turned on his side, falling back asleep. She called her mother to tell her that she was up and they could meet for breakfast whenever her mother was ready. Stephanie left a note for Chris telling him that she would meet with him at the show.

Chris woke up about an hour later, his own list of things to do. He packed up his things for his match later and started running through his list of things to do. He didn't have as much as Stephanie to do, but he still had things on his list that he needed to do. He grabbed a quick breakfast and coffee alone before heading down to the arena, hours before any wrestlers would actually arrive.

The main show was starting at four that afternoon, which was earlier than usual, but this was WrestleMania, and it was going to be a long show. He walked down to the ring to inspect everything and he had never actually done this before. He had never been in the empty arena before a show before and he was almost in awe of it all. In several hours, this entire arena would be filled to the brim with people, hopefully all of them cheering him on. The stage was set, literally and he went and stood in the middle of the ring, just wanting to soak it all in.

Hours later, and everything was ready for the show. Chris had gotten into his ring gear earlier so that he wasn't rushing around. He had yet to see Stephanie, but he was sure that she was there, somewhere. He wondered if any of his friends had gotten there yet, but they had to be, almost everyone was. It was only about an hour until show-time, and his match was second on the card.

Stephanie had to find Chris. She wanted to talk to him before his match. She was trying to hide it, and had been since Chris had announced it, but now that it was upon her, she couldn't hide the fact that she was nervous, and with good reason. Ladder matches were brutal by nature, and she knew that injuries were prevalent, and she was worried for her husband.

She was putting on the bravest face that she knew how, and she was thinking that she was doing a pretty good job of it. Why did it have to be a ladder match? Why not a regular match against a mediocre wrestler? But no, he was against guys who were good, guys who wanted a title shot, three guys who had never held the title before and who were craving it like Chris had craved it before he had gotten his (official) taste of it when he won the WCW title at that No Mercy show so long ago.

She entered her office and sat down, laying her clipboard on the desk with a thud. She leaned back into her chair and blocked out all sound. She was going to support him no matter what, no matter what happened; she didn't want to plan for the worst though, so she wouldn't. She would be strong because she could be strong and she was perfectly capable of being strong.

Tonight was WrestleMania, she should enjoy it. She had always enjoyed it in the past, the magnetism of the show was incredible, and the electricity was already crisp in the air. She closed her eyes and let it roll over her. The biggest show of the year, the show that changed things, that made or break people. She laughed to herself as she sounded like a commercial for the show.

She heard a knocking on the door and she called out that it was open and anyone on the other side could come in. She was surprised when it was Stacy Keibler. Stephanie motioned towards a seat in front of her and Stacy took it timidly. Stephanie thought the blonde looked terrified to be there, and she couldn't understand why.

"Stacy, what's up?"

"I…do you know why Randy did that to me?" Stacy asked so sadly that Stephanie felt so sorry for the girl. "I've just been trying to figure it out. I know that he said some stuff about it, but I don't believe that, do you think it could be something else that I did."

Stephanie shrugged helplessly, "Stacy, I'm really sorry, but I don't know. I haven't exactly been on speaking terms with Randy since he did that to you. I mean, it's one thing to say you're a doubter or whatever, but to actually RKO you, not cool. Especially because I've been on the receiving end of someone's finishing move."

"Oh," Stacy said sullenly. "I was just hoping to shed some light on the situation."

"Again, I'm sorry," Stephanie said. "I could talk to him if you want."

"No," she said, "No, I'd rather you kept not talking to him, it might serve him right."

"Hey Steph-" Kurt started, but then seeing she was in a meeting, blushed cutely. "Oh, I didn't know you had a meeting."

"No, I was just leaving," Stacy said, standing up and turning to leave. Kurt saw that she looked a little distraught and his mouth formed a taut line.

"Stacy, are you ok?" he asked, being a great guy that he was.

"I'm fine Kurt, thank you for asking," Stacy said, "And thanks again Stephanie."

"Bye," Stephanie said, frowning as the blonde left and Kurt walked in, closing the door behind him.

"What happened with her?"

"Randy happened."

"Oh, I have noticed the lack of Randy around here as of late."

"Because I'm mad at him for what he did and by extension Chris is mad at him for what he did because he loves me and loves AND hates whatever I do. I'm not sure why Christian and Trish haven't talked to him, but that might be for the same reasons. He had no reason to RKO Stacy, even though, between you and me, I don't really care for her, but the fact remains, RKO'ing her was unnecessary and just all around assholish behavior."

"And Stephanie lays the smackdown!" Kurt said with glee.

"I'm sorry, I take that kind of seriously. Especially after being humiliated at the hands of many different men. My husband and best friend included."

"Who me!" Kurt said, pointing to himself and trying to look innocent, "I would never do anything of the sort to my best friend."

"Oh yes you would," Stephanie sing-songed. "Now what can I do for you?"

"Nothing," Kurt said, "I just wanted to visit you."

"Well, you're going to have to leave, because Chris is coming soon, hopefully, and I need to have a serious discussion with him about something," Stephanie said…well serious, because it was going to be a serious discussion.

"Oh my God, you're pregnant!" Kurt said, his eyes going wide and then those same wide eyes going down to her stomach. "You're going to tell him you're pregnant!"

"What!" Stephanie exclaimed loudly.

"Serious discussion, you two are married, you have to tell him something…the pieces fit, oh man, you and Chris as parents, that's going to be crazy!"

"Kurt, calm down…you are about three years ahead of where I'm at right now. I'm not pregnant, I KNOW I'm not pregnant. And if I suspected I were pregnant, then you would probably be seeing me having a panic attack right now."

"Oh, and here I was looking forward to being Uncle Kurt."

"Now THAT is scarier than Chris and I as parents," Stephanie joked.

"Then what do you have to tell him?"

"Yeah, what do you have to tell me?"

Stephanie and Kurt both looked up to the curious eyes of Chris. Stephanie groaned and leaned over to slap Kurt's arm. He yelped in surprise and cursed at Stephanie. Stephanie stood up and went over to Chris, but he backed away at the last second, suspicious of what he had just walked into. Stephanie looked serious and so did Kurt.

"What's going on here?" he asked bluntly.

"I was just leaving," Kurt said, slipping out quickly and closing the door behind him.

"Hey sweetie, I missed you today," Stephanie said kindly, hoping that Chris wasn't going to fly off the handle or anything. He did have a temper…but then she remembered that she hadn't done anything wrong so she should not worry so much.

"I missed you too," he gave in. "And what did you need to tell me?"

"You might want to sit down."

"Stephanie," Chris said and his voice cracked. He didn't like the tone of her voice. It scared him somewhere deep inside. He loved this woman; he had loved her for years, and he'd been married to her for almost three months. He walked over to the couch and sat down gingerly, almost not wanting to sit down, but if she said something that would break his heart, he would jump right back up again.

Stephanie could sense that he was filled with tension and she didn't mean to make it seem that way. Of course, he could be mad at her for doing plans behind his back, but she doubted that greatly. Chris had always been proud of her ability to scheme and plan, and he would probably love that she had done this…at least she hoped that he did.

Stephanie sat next to him and smiled, "Don't worry, it's nothing bad."

That let the weight on his shoulders lessen a little bit, but he was still nervous about what she had to say for the precise reason that Stephanie hadn't told him what she had to say yet. Until she actually told him what she had to say, he was going to be nervous, it was just an instinctive thing.

"Ok," he nodded.

"Well, I've been doing something behind your back," Stephanie said, then grimaced. "Oh man, that came out totally wrong."

Chris held his breath a moment before pursing his lips, "You've been doing something behind my back. I don't exactly…um…Stephanie, please don't tell me that you've been…just please don't tell me that you've been…"

Stephanie shook her head and leaned in to kiss him, not briefly, but really kiss him. Chris was almost afraid to let the kiss end and let her say whatever she had to say. He ran his hand underneath the black suit jacket that she was wearing and then under the white dress shirt she was wearing, running her hands up her back. He felt every familiar curve and the soft silkiness of her skin that he had known for so long and didn't want it to end; he never wanted it to end.

But it did because people need to breathe. He found that Stephanie had somehow come to lay on top of him as they had been making out and she was staring down at his blue eyes in rapture. She smiled at him and kissed the corner of his mouth, cringing when she only kissed hair.

"Ok, so you're going to be so proud of me," Stephanie said, starting off in a better fashion.

"I am?"

"Uh huh," she nodded. "Guess who has been conspiring with Dave against Hunter?"

"What?" Chris asked, confused by her statement.

"I've been conspiring with Dave against Hunter. I pretty much convinced him to get away from Hunter, AND I told him it was Hunter that was doing all that stuff to him trying to get him to go over to SmackDown. I've also been helping him get the better of Hunter through planning the shows, all me. I stole another one of his friends."

Chris stared blankly at her for a moment and she thought that he still might not understand. "You were partially behind all of that?"

"Yeah," she said, biting her lip in order to await his reaction. "Thoughts? Plans? Divorce papers?"

"I said it once before, but I'll say it again…you are a veritable genius," Chris said. "I thought that you were brilliant before, but baby, you are brilliant!"

Stephanie's face broke out into an all-out grin as she giggle, "I knew you'd be happy!"

"So if he wins tonight?"

"When he wins tonight," she corrected, "Either way, Dave and I have decided to reveal that we're friends and I was behind it."

"And you only told me now!"

"Because I wanted it to be a surprise," she told him. "I wanted this to be all mine, and I wanted you to be proud of me, so you are?"

"I'm so damn proud of you," Chris said, kissing her into submission.

Chris was breathless later as he had to run out for his match. He adjusted his shirt on his shoulders, getting out there right in time for his entrance. He was pumped up right now. Not only had he just gotten lucky with his wife, if getting lucky was the appropriate term since she was his wife now, but he didn't care, he had just gotten laid backstage and now he was going to get to kick ass and go for a World Title shot on the biggest stage of his sport, and it didn't get much better.

Ladder matches are peculiar things. Ladders, by definition, are used in order to climb places you cannot reach, and while that is the underlying use of them in a ladder match such as the one Chris was in, it also has another definition: weapon. Using a bulky ladder as a weapon is both terrifying on the receiving end, but also gratifying on the giving end. Ladder matches with multiple people are often confusing.

Chris had no love lost for anyone in those minutes where ladders became both his friend and his enemy. Christian was one of his best friends, but between those rungs, he was just another enemy trying to strike him down. There were bodies flying everywhere, and Chris just tried to go where he was needed. There were several times when he saw the chance to get up that ladder, and he did try. He saw briefly at the beginning Edge and Christian giving Kane a…conladderto?

He saw Shelton trying to grab for the briefcase and he climbed the ladder to get at Shelton and get him away from the briefcase. He just wanted to get him away from the briefcase, but he soon found himself on the ground again, but then so did everyone else. He crawled back over, and flung the excess ladders away as he saw that everyone was pretty much down for the count. He tried to climb but found it difficult, and then saw Christian setting up another ladder so he went and beat on him before going back to climbing.

Stephanie and Trish were sitting side by side backstage, holding each other's hand in nervousness. So far Chris and Christian looked to be ok, and they wanted it to stay that way. Each one was rooting for their significant other to win, but they were also just hoping that everyone came out of this all right, even Edge, yes, even Edge.

Chris was trying for the briefcase, but he had set the ladder up too far away from it and he was not tall enough and didn't have the arm length with which to grab it and before he could blink he saw Shelton coming at him out of nowhere and knocking him down and he rolled out of the ring lamely.

Christian was out of it too, but then Tomko was helping him try to get the briefcase and Christian, too, was trying valiantly to grab that briefcase, but Kane knocked him completely out of the ring and straight into Tomko. Chris saw Kane going for the briefcase and took all his strength to go up and get at Kane, but before he could knock Kane over, the ladder toppled over and he hit the ropes hard, and again, tumbled to the ground below.

Before he could get back in the match, Edge had won, and Chris groaned. He did not want that outcome. He looked over to Christian for a moment, and saw him wincing in pain. He saw Edge walk past him, clutching the briefcase and for the first time since he had asked Stephanie out on that balmy July night in 2002, he wanted her to get him a title shot. Maybe it was the pain and the daze talking, but he wanted to use the fact he was a McMahon to his advantage. He was part of the McMahon family, he owned part of this company, he shouldn't have to put up with this shit.

Chris drug himself backstage, actually helping Christian get backstage too as Stephanie and Trish both stood there, and they both looked shaken. Chris managed a smile to his wife before handing Christian over to Trish. Stephanie hugged him tightly and he winced, but didn't make her let go. She was clinging to him, and then she was pulling away so that she could look him over.

"You look good, you don't look bad, are you hurting?" Stephanie asked frantically.

"Just incredibly sore, I think Benoit is hurt."

"I only care about how you are right now. I can worry about the other employees later," she said, not meaning to sound callous and uncaring, but she was worried for her husband and nobody else. She wanted to make sure that he was fine before she cared about anyone else.

"I'll live. It actually wasn't the worst one I've ever been in," he laughed painfully.

"Come on, I'll help you into the shower, and then we can watch the show while I give you a massage."

"Great."

They passed Randy on their way to their locker room/office, and neither one gave him a second look. Randy looked down until he was patted on the shoulder by his father. It seemed like his father was the only one that wanted to talk to him lately. He really was starting to regret what he had done to Stacy.

"You ready son?"

"Yeah Dad," Randy said, trying to sound like he was ready to kill another legend. He would've been more pumped up if he had the enthusiasm that Stephanie and Trish usually afforded him before his matches, but they were both seemingly mad at him. He would go on to lose his match, and maybe it was the distraction, and maybe it was the Undertaker, but he lost his match nonetheless, and he could not kill one legend, and so not only did have broken friendships, but he had broken pride as well.

Someone else who was pretty broken was Christian, but he was hiding it from Trish because he was not going to let her go out there and wrestle thinking that he was backstage hurting. Trish, of course, was a lot smarter than that and knew that Christian was lying to her, but she wasn't going to quibble with him. He wanted to protect her, and so she let him.

"You look really sexy," Christian said of her outfit, which really was pretty cool, and completely Trish.

"Thanks," Trish said, "So are you saying that not only would I win a wrestling match against that bitch, but I would also win the sexiest award?"

"Totally," Christian said as he pulled Trish down to straddle his lap. He bit his lip to hide a wince, and Trish rolled her eyes slightly at his trying to act unhurt.

"Well, there's not much I can ask for. I'm not going to let that bitch get at my title, I simply won't. She doesn't deserve it right Chrissy?"

"Nope, she most certainly doesn't deserve it," Christian nodded. "She can't even wrestle."

"And any wrestling move she does is probably going to ugly, right Chrissy?"

"Right."

Trish was just trying to get ready for her match, and she didn't want to be humiliated by that rookie. Trish didn't see the problem in losing to an established wrestler like Victoria or Molly, that was something she could take with a modicum of dignity, but losing to someone who had had one match under belt and got into the company by simply shaking her ass, and whose biggest claim to fame in the company was posing for Playboy? No, she wasn't going to stand for that.

"I'm going to win."

"You are," Christian agreed.

"Yeah, I am, and even if that bitch Lita interferes, she's not getting her grubby hands on me. I wouldn't let her get the satisfaction, but she can't even do anything, because it was a match with me that put her out of action…again."

"Yup."

"Ok, I'm going, and when I leave you can stop pretending not to be hurt," she said, sticking her tongue out before kissing him and getting off his lap.

Trish skipped down the hallway and while they were waiting for their entrances she blew a kiss and a wink to Lita, which Lita sneered at. Lita and Christy went out first, being the challenger and all that. Trish's music hit and she went out there with a big smile on her face and a little bow cemented her entrance.

The match was easy for Trish. Christy got in some moves, but a chick kick did Christy in really well. The match was such a blip on the radar for Trish that it didn't even deserve a line on her repertoire of matches. Christy was not in her league and as she looked down at Lita, she was not in her league either. Trish was at the top of the mountain and Lita was one of the ants Trish could see at the very, very bottom. And that was just where she wanted Lita to stay.

Backstage, Trish shined up her belt with an errant towel as Lita helped Christy backstage. "Oops, I hope I didn't knock her out with that kick."

"Knock it off Trish," Lita said angrily.

"What, I was just expressing my concern over the poor dear. I guess you didn't teach her how to take a beating, which is such a shame because you seem to be so good at it," Trish said, cocking her head to the side and smiling.

"This isn't over Trish."

"And you know, this really makes up for that bogus arm wrestling thing from last week. I guess in the end, it really showed who was boss," Trish said, giggling.

"Shut up!" Lita said, and then charged at Trish, the latter squealing as she fell on her ass on the concrete floor. Lita was on her, slapping her and Trish was trying to dodge the blows. It was a few moments before a couple of wrestlers pulled them apart.

"What the hell is going on?" Kurt asked as he held Trish against him.

"HER!" Trish said, pointing an accusatory finger at Lita.

"If you would just SHUT your mouth once in a while, but I guess that's too hard for you because you've had so many guy's—"

"I'm going to get you, you bitch!" Trish said, trying to break free from Kurt's grasp. Lita was telling her to bring it, but she was similarly being held back by William Regal of all people.

"Come and get me!" Lita challenged and Trish screamed as she tried to get free from Kurt's grasp.

"Lita, leave her the hell alone," Kurt said, throwing Trish over his shoulder as he bent down to pick up her belt.

Kurt carried Trish all the way to her locker room and opened the door, a surprised Christian looking at the sight in front of him. Trish was over Kurt's shoulder and she was flailing about. Kurt deposited her on the couch next to Christian and her face was red in anger as her hair was all over the place. She blew some of the hair out of her face as she crossed her arms huffily.

"I have a match, I have to go, place nice Trish," Kurt said before leaving.

"What happened?" Christian asked.

"Lita attacked me!" Trish said, her eyes flashing. "It's on, she wants a fight, I'm going to give that bitch a fight, she is not going to know what hit her."

Kurt shook his head as he walked back to the gorilla. Lita was nowhere to be seen and no remnants of the fight were left over. He took some deep breaths and waited for his cue. His match was going to steal the show, he just knew it was going to. Not only that, but he was sure that he was going to win. Chris and Christian had not been successful in their matches, Trish had been in hers, so he wanted their friends to at least break even.

Kurt put his whole heart into his match against Michaels and it showed. He did everything in his power to win that match, getting up time and time again, not letting himself get pinned. He used every trick he had in his book to try and win that match, even breaking out his moonsault, and quite the moonsault it was. He tried the Angleslam off the top rope, but nothing was getting Michaels down. Kurt would normally admire this in a wrestler, but he was getting desperate, and his desperation was showing through.

Michaels went for the Sweet Chin Music, and Kurt had to dig deep to kick out of that, but he managed to, and then he got the Anklelock on Michaels, and his desperation led to desperate measures. Michaels did everything in his power to get out of it, but Kurt was tenacious, and would not let go, eventually leading to his win, and he was so happy to have that win, and he just felt this overwhelming relief.

When he got backstage he expected to be celebrating alone, maybe grabbing a bottle of wine, but when he got backstage, there were Chris, Stephanie, Trish and Christian, all clapping for him. That match had truly been a spectacle to behold, and despite losses and anger from his friends, they were there to support him, and he couldn't ask for much more.

"You were great," Stephanie said with happiness, patting him lightly on the shoulder.

"Thanks," he said, out of breath. "I'm going to get a shower, we still on for after the show?"

"Yeah, we either need to celebrate," Trish started.

"Or wallow in drink," Christian said, referring to him and Chris.

"Great, I'll go clean up," Kurt said, thankful to have such great friends.

Stephanie saw Dave out of the corner of her eye and she looked at him. He felt her eyes on him and he turned to her and winked. It wouldn't be long yet. Dave was prepared for the match of his career. This could make or break him. After weeks of defying Hunter, it was time to put up or shut up, and Hunter was not going to shut him up, not now, and not soon. He also thought the big, gold belt would look awesome on him.

It wouldn't take too long to find out. The match started off a little slowly, but Dave picked up momentum throughout the match, not seeing every time Hunter got him as a set-back, but rather as a motivation to do something worse to him. And worse he did do; when Hunter knocked Dave into the ring steps, Dave catapulted him into the ring post, and he took great pleasure in the blood that started dripping down his face. From there on out, it would seem that the advantage belonged to Dave. Hunter was dazed, and like the wounded animal that Hunter thought Dave was, Dave similarly treated Hunter like that wounded animal.

He beat Hunter's head against the other ring steps and took great pleasure in doing so, at least one of those was for his new friend Stephanie, but he couldn't say which one. Hunter was now kneeling in the ring and Dave went back to the beating, staring right at Ric when he did it, because…because he was awesome and he could really. Dave was tired, but not tired enough to want to quit this beating. Hunter's face was a crimson mask, to quote JR, and Dave just smiled at it because Hunter was a new enemy and enemies covered in blood is a sight to behold.

Dave continued his beatdown, finding various ways in which to torture Hunter and prolong his agony. Hunter managed to kick out when he pinned him, but Dave refused to be discouraged. Hunter got out of the ring and Dave followed, and Flair tried to pull at him, but Dave took care of him easily. He didn't see that Hunter was getting a chair, but he did notice the referee was down. Then Hunter did something that he probably had never done before, unless he was talking to a woman, he begged, for mercy maybe, for Dave to stop, perhaps, or maybe because he was beginning to see the writing on the wall, and the writing on this wall that he was seeing? Well, what else could it say beside, "You're getting your ass kicked by Dave Batista, and you're probably going to lose."

Dave was not stupid like Flair and Hunter thought because he caught Flair trying to hit him with the belt before Flair could even reach him. Again, he disposed of Flair quite easily. Of course, then he did get clocked, but he was Dave, and wanting to win was overriding getting his face hit by a good amount of gold. Hunter was surprised by this, but Hunter was not dealing with his usual opponent. He had only angered Dave more, and Dave always seemed like a guy that you didn't want to anger.

Even a low-blow was not going to stop him in any fashion. Hunter tried for the Pedigree, but Dave is a big man, and could just pretty much say no to a Pedigree and he did. And then Hunter did the only good thing in this match, which was almost push Dave's wrestling tights past his ass, but he wasn't even good at doing that. And then, in the flash of an eye, or the flash of a powerbomb, Dave was the champion, and it was…incredible.

This feeling was incredible in the scariest way because Dave knew he would never feel anything like this again. This electricity was magic, and this crowd, and that belt being put in his hands, knowing that he had earned this, that he had put the time in to earn this, it was just…incredible. He had started in this company as a freaking deacon to the church of D-Von Dudley, being duped, then he had been a loner who was approached by Ric Flair and then he had languished as a silent lackey to Hunter Hearst Helmsley, and every moment had been worth it because this was…incredible.

When he got backstage, Hunter was already there, bloody, broken, looking for all the world, the biggest loser on the planet, and he was, if only for a moment, the biggest loser on the planet. The thing he loved the most, the thing he had given up so much for, was in the arms of another man. Of course, that was Stephanie, no, kidding, it was the belt (and a little bit Stephanie.)

Then there Stephanie was, walking down the hallway with a purpose, her heels clicking on the hard concrete below her. Her long brown hair was flowing behind her as she walked briskly, and she looked so in power, framed by the hallway; she almost looked like a mob boss. Chris was walking next to her, changed out of his ring gear and into a business suit, and he too looked intimidating, the power couple had arrived.

Stephanie walked straight up to Dave and held out her hand. Dave shifted the belt to his left hand and shook her hand firmly. Stephanie had a really strong grip for a woman, he noted. He nodded towards Chris and she nodded, telling him silently that she had told her husband about their secret alliance. Chris shook Dave's hand too, and Hunter was staring from underneath his bloody mask.

"So Dave, I was wondering if you would want to go celebrate with me and some friends." Stephanie asked.

"I would love to," Dave said, smirking at her.

"Great," Stephanie grinned, then turned to Hunter. "You might want to clean up your face, you got a little something on it."

Hunter had lost too much blood to answer, and the shock at what he was seeing was also a factor in the whole no talking thing. Stephanie looked at the belt for a moment, admiring it, knowing what it looked like, but this was all for dramatic affect.

"I knew you could do it Dave," she said.

"Yeah, and if it weren't for you, I would never have suspected Hunter being behind me going to SmackDown," Dave said, playing along with Stephanie's game. Hunter's jaw dropped at that.

"Well, that's what friends do," Stephanie grinned.

"Yeah, you are a really good friend Stephanie, have been for a while now."

Stephanie just shrugged, "My pleasure." Dave turned to Hunter to see him staring between the two of them enthralled. Not only had Stephanie been stolen from him from that bastard Stephanie, not only had she been friends with Randy when he was in Evolution, she had been friends with DAVE too. Dave opened his mouth to speak.

"It's funny the things that happen at WrestleMania, don't you think Hunter?"


	30. Huh? April 4, 2005

A/N: Raw was not good, I did not think Raw was good at all. I mean, COME ON, Dave is the NEW champion, winner at WrestleMania, and he gets to speak for…oh wait, what, he didn't get to speak at all! That was crap, just plain crap. And there was not one thing that I really liked, so I found no inspiration for the entire show.

As a result, I hate this chapter, all around hate it. So forgive me for the crap that you are about to read, because I honestly hate it, but didn't want to just skip a chapter. I hope that you at least fine one line of the story that doesn't suck. :P

* * *

"I had a crisis of conscience last night."

Stephanie squinted her eyes as she looked over to Chris who was lacing up his boots. "What do you mean by that?"

"I mean that for the first time since…us, I've wanted to take advantage of you," Chris told her as he leaned up on the couch to look at her sitting at her desk across the room. "I wanted to use this relationship to get what I wanted."

"It's about time," Stephanie laughed. "I would've been expecting this a lot sooner."

"Stephanie, it's not funny," Chris said. "The first thing I ever told myself after I asked you out was that I would never use you like Trips did. I would never use any power that I had because of being with you just because I was with you."

"Why did you tell yourself that, honestly Chris? Was it because you didn't want the power or because you didn't want to be like Hunter?"

He thought about it for a moment, because he honestly could not think of the answer off the top of his head. True, he didn't want to get what he wanted just because he wanted to, but being like Hunter? That was a really scary thought, and when he had first started dating Stephanie, it had been a big concern for him that he be nothing like Hunter in any way.

"I don't want to be like him," Chris said.

"Well, I wouldn't worry about that," Stephanie laughed softly and raised her eyebrows in a teasing way. She turned back to her work before Chris cleared his throat again. Stephanie looked up at him and he gestured like he wasn't finished with this conversation. Stephanie, now convinced that this was a valid concern of her husband's, took off her glasses and walked over to the couch, sitting next to him and to the side so that she could face him.

"Ok, so talk to me about what's bothering you?"

"I wanted to win last night, and when I saw that Edge won…I wanted that, I wanted to make myself the winner or make myself the newest challenger to the World Title belt, and I've never actually felt like fixing it so that I could have something like that."

"Why didn't you tell me this last night?" Stephanie asked, putting her hand on Chris's arm comfortingly.

Chris sighed, "You were so happy about Dave winning that I didn't want you to look at me and feel disappointed that I lost or that I felt that way. I didn't want you to think that I was married to you for the same reasons that Hunter married you."

"I never thought that," Stephanie said, "And if you did think that and have been for a while, then you probably should've told me all of this before we got married instead of dumping it on me like this."

"You're taking this lightly, you're mocking me!"

"I'm not mocking you, I just fail to see the big problem. So you wanted a little power, you wanted to do a little something for yourself, it happens, especially when you are in a position of power. You don't think I've used it to my advantage? Do you remember when I was the Women's Champion? What do you think that was?"

"Ok, so you've done it, but you were born a part of the family."

"And you're a big part of this family now," Stephanie said, putting her hand against his cheek, "And to me you're the most important part of my family…you're my family."

"Don't get mushy on me," Chris smiled.

"I wasn't getting mushy on you," Stephanie said, leaning over to kiss him. "I'm just trying to appease you so that you leave me alone and let me get back to my work…besides, I knew that you were feeling badly about your match and everything, so I scheduled you to face Shelton tonight for the IC belt, Christian's in the match too, but I can't insert you into the World Title hunt with no viable reason than to suit my husband's needs, but I did what I could."

"You amaze me," Chris told her and she shrugged. "No really, you amaze me so much."

"I just amaze you because I so slyly favor you and people don't know it," Stephanie told him. "Why do you think I put Christian in the match? Sure, he's my friend, but I have the obligation to look out for my guy."

"And who would that guy be? Dave?"

"Yes," she sighed dramatically. "I've been having an affair with Dave, and well, we're just trying to spare you now, but we're very much in love."

Chris tackled her to couch and started tickling her, much to her chagrin as she tried to get him off of her, "Not even funny Princess, not even funny."

"Get off me!" she squealed as he kept trying to tickle her. Stephanie pushed him off of her and she sat up, trying to straighten her blouse. "People are going to think that we're having sex or something in here."

"Hey, you're my wife, it's allowed."

"Oh, and if my father were to walk by, what would you think then Mr. Big Shot?" Stephanie asked, giving him a knowing look.

"Well then I would tell him the truth, because I wouldn't want him to think that I was doing anything illicit with his daughter while at work, because then he'd fire me or something."

"He can't fire you," Stephanie pointed out. "Well he could, but then you could just hire yourself back."

"Hey, that's right," Chris said. "Weird…so where's our new champion tonight?"

"I don't know," Stephanie said. "I was planning on giving him the last part of the show to talk or what not. I just have to tell him about it, if he's here. Which I hope he is, because the shows about to start."

"When am I on?"

"Um, I don't have the schedule on hand," Stephanie told him. "But early, so lace up your boots and get away from me."

"Geez, you're nice."

"I know," Stephanie said. "Do you want me to be more romantic?"

"That WOULD be nice for a change."

"Oh, hurry back my darling, for my heart yearns for you in your absence. It is like every second is an eternity and my eyes search for you, and my heart searches as well," Stephanie said dramatically.

"You watch out, because I'll start tickling you again, and in the event that your dad finds out, I'll tell him that you are a dirty, little ho," Chris told her as Stephanie's eyes widened and her mouth opened in shock.

"You would not!"

"Hey, I've told him you were a filthy, dirty, disgusting, brutal, skanky, bottom-feeding trash bag ho before, so don't think I'd hesitate to tell it to him again," Chris said with an air of superiority that came with having the upper-hand.

"My dad would think that something was wrong in our marriage!"

"Well then it'd be your problem."

"You're horrible to me!" Stephanie pouted, crossing her arms across her chest and giving him the sad, pouty eyes.

"Oh, don't give me that," Chris said. He leaned in and kissed her gently. Stephanie let the kiss go a little bit farther as she pulled him close to her. He leaned in more so that he was partially on top of her again as they started making out in earnest. Suddenly they heard someone clearing their throat and Stephanie looked over Chris's shoulder to her father and she cringed.

"Um, hi Daddy?" Stephanie said, trying to push her husband off of her. "I wasn't slacking off on the job, I promise."

"I needed to discuss something with you," Vince said, feeling uncomfortable on having walked in on that. Stephanie closed her eyes a moment in embarrassment.

"We don't usually do this while we're working," Stephanie said, noticing that Chris had yet to even turn around and look at her father. She felt like some teenager again, getting caught with her first boyfriend, instead of a grown woman with her husband. "We're very professional."

"I trust that," Vince said. "About what we needed to discuss?"

"Of course, of course," Stephanie said, standing up quickly and trying to surreptitiously adjust her blouse, shooting her father a smile before walking over to her desk. "Whatever you want to talk about Dad, let's get to business."

"Um, I'm going to go…prepare for my match," Chris said, standing up sheepishly. "Nice to see you again Vince."

"I was sure you were going to win last night Chris," Vince told him. "I wanted you to win."

"Well who else would you have wanted to win Dad?" Stephanie asked. "I mean, Chris is your son-in-law, I'd be personally insulted if you didn't root for him to win. And he would've had it too, just not his night."

"Thanks for talking about me as if I weren't here baby," Chris said. "It's ok, I'm getting an IC shot tonight courtesy of Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, so I'm not going to be complaining over it."

"IC Title?" Vince asked. "Why not have you be the first challenger for Batista's World Title? I think that's better suited to your skills, Stephanie make it happen."

"Vince, that's very nice of you, but I'm fine with the IC shot. I just don't…I don't want people to think I'm in it for anything but Stephanie. Not only would it be wrong, it would also demean Stephanie, making people think she was too stupid to realize I was using her, so I'm going to decline."

"Ok, if that's what YOU want," Vince said to him.

Chris nodded and smiled at Stephanie. "Yeah, that's what I want. But since I do have my match early, I'm going to really have to go, I'll just finish lacing up somewhere else. I wouldn't want to encroach on your meeting."

"Ok sweetie," Stephanie said, leaning her cheek towards him. Chris laughed and leaned down to place a kiss on her cheek. She kissed him on the lips quickly. "Good luck."

"Thanks," he said. "See you Vince."

"Goodbye Chris."

Chris walked out of the room, and Vince sat down across from his daughter who was situated behind her desk. Stephanie stared at the door for a second, waiting for it to click quietly, signaling that Chris had really, officially left. It was like she didn't want him to go at all, and had to make sure that he wasn't still lingering there.

"He's a good man," Vince commented and that broke Stephanie out of her short reverie.

"What Dad?"

"Nothing," Vince chuckled, "Nothing at all."

Chris whistled as he walked, just thankful that he was out of the office. It was still so embarrassing to have Vince walk in on them kissing, even though this was definitely better than the time they had stumbled out of the janitor's closet together. He wanted to go find Christian so they could discuss the match. He wasn't going to make a deal to win or lose, but he just wanted to make sure that they knew they were going to have to face each other.

Christian was watching Trish pace back and forth in front of him. She was angry that Christy had demanded a rematch tonight, once again with Lita by his side. Hadn't she shown that bitch last night that she was not in the same league as Trish? She thought she had made the point perfectly clear, but it seemed that Christy did not have a clue, she probably learned that from Lita.

"I'm just going to kick her ass again," Trish said. "I beat her on the biggest stage of the year, at WrestleMania. I guess she just wants more punishment."

"Don't you think you're getting a little bit carried away?" Christian asked, hoping that she wouldn't get too mad at him. Trish could get really mad and bitchy if she wanted to, and Christian hated being on the receiving end.

Trish sighed and sat down next to him. "I just…Chrissy, you know how hard it is to lose a title right?"

"Are you kidding me?" Christian said, "I've lost so many titles before, and it never gets any easier."

"Yeah, that's how I feel," Trish told him quietly. She didn't want to confess why she was so angry, but Christian loved her and she loved him, and that had to mean that she could tell him anything without reproach or derision from him.

"Trish, Christy is hardly good enough to hold your wrestling boots, you WILL win, I'm confident."

"It's not just Christy," Trish told him, shifting so that she could sit in his lap. Christian just held her around the waste as he ran his fingers through her blonde hair. He didn't try to say anything, just letting her think her thoughts thoroughly before she spoke and told him what was wrong. He occasionally dropped a kiss to her forehead.

"You can tell me whatever you want to."

"It's like, if I don't have the title," she started, then paused, taking a deep breath. "Then I don't know who I am at all."

"What do you mean? You're Trish Stratus."

"Yeah, but there are so few women wrestlers in the company right now, and all the divas, they hardly have any kind of position except pose provocatively for a magazine. And then all those diva search girls are around, and if I lose this belt, if I become just another pretty face, I feel like I'm going to lose my entire identity."

"You are the most popular diva here," Christian told her, and there was no lying in his voice.

"That's not true," Trish said. "The fans hate me because I don't want to be a nobody, I want to be a somebody."

"They don't know you, and you get a bigger reaction, even if it's boos, than any other girl on this show, so people recognize you. They know the name Trish Stratus. I bet you if they showed a picture of that Maria chick, or that Candice chick, they wouldn't know who they were, but you, they show a picture of you, and they will know immediately."

"I used to be just a manager,"

"I know, and you were fine with that, but that's when you didn't know how to wrestle. You're the best at what you do, and that belt proves that."

"I just want something to distinguish me from everyone else."

"You don't have to worry about that, you are totally the best chick around here. You reek of awesomeness."

Trish laughed and kissed him, "You always say the funniest things."

"I try," he shrugged. "Now, I have a match soon apparently, so I better go. You going to be ok? You not going to lose your identity while I'm gone are you?"

"No, I'm not going to lose my identity, and in the event I do…find it for me?" she asked.

"Ok, deal."

Stephanie just rolled her eyes in annoyance over the fact that her ex-husband just HAD to go out there and talk about how he was the greatest of all-time, and how he was so perfect and never made any mistakes. Yeah, too bad she considered HIM her biggest mistake. Sometimes, when she saw him like this, she just didn't know what to think about her choice of staying with him. It was just so difficult to think that she was married to that man.

She wasn't going to say anything to him, was just going to let him walk past her in a huff, but there was something built in Stephanie that did not let her keep her mouth shut. She always had something to say, whether it was good or bad, she just had to say something. Maybe a part of it was over the fact that she really disliked Hunter.

"I don't think that it was a one-time thing. If it really were a one-time thing, wouldn't you have gotten the upper-hand with him leading up to WrestleMania?" Stephanie said, not raising her voice or anything, but simply speaking to him.

Hunter turned to her. "We both know that I'm the best in this company."

"I don't believe that for a second," Stephanie said.

"And who is? That husband of yours?"

"I didn't say that," Stephanie argued. "Don't put words in my mouth. All I'm saying is that I don't believe you when you say that. Don't take my words and twist them around. I didn't even mention Chris."

"Asshole," Hunter muttered.

"If you want to say that, go ahead, you're just a little bitter that you lost, and a lot bitter that once again, I duped you. How many times does this make? You did fall hook, line, and sinker for my pregnancy ruse."

"Well, what was I supposed to think?"

"It really would've been nice if you had paid attention to me during the end. I know that I wasn't the best wife when you were rehabbing, but you expected me to sit there and watch you do physical therapy, and I'm sorry if I found that boring."

"Well, you didn't even tell me you were going back on the road, one night I see you as the new owner of ECW, you didn't even tell me. For all I know, you were coming back to have an affair with someone. It wouldn't have been out of the realm of possibility considering you seemed to latch on to a new guy every month."

"Because I wanted them to kick Jericho's ass!" Stephanie protested. "THAT'S why I was with them, because Jericho needed to pay, that's why!"

Stephanie and Hunter hadn't noticed that Chris had walked right by them on his way to his match. He had only caught the beginning of their argument, and while he wanted to get in on it, he had a match to worry about and a title to potentially win. He had to focus on Christian and Shelton. He had underestimated Shelton last night at WrestleMania, but he wasn't going to do that again. Shelton was really good, and he needed to be treated like he was really good, or Chris would lose in no time.

Backstage, the war waged on. "You only came back because your company lost."

"Well where was I supposed to go!"

"You didn't even care about me Stephanie."

"Yes, I did. Which is why I lied."

"You wanted to get back in the company, that's all you care about."

"And all you cared about getting the title again. That's all you wanted to think about. You were so focused on that, you didn't see how unhappy I was, I was so unhappy!" Stephanie yelled at him.

"I had been gone for months and months, I wanted the title."

"Yeah, at the expense of your wife, but no matter, it's over, it's done with, and I have the upper-hand again."

"Not for long."

"I will always have it," Stephanie told him. "You think you have it, but you don't."

"We'll see Stephanie, we'll see," Hunter said with a smirk. "Tell Dave that I said hello."

"I will, trust me, I will."

Stephanie turned back to the monitor. She didn't want to think of the past, it only made her sad. She had loved that man so much, had done so many things for him, only to have it fall apart because he had gotten injured and she couldn't play the supporting wife for him. Was that really her fault though? Hunter should've known that she would be restless sitting there waiting for him to rehab his leg, but he didn't understand, and it had led them on a crash course to…where they were now. She still oftentimes wondered why he didn't care enough to fight for her. If he loved her like he said he did, why didn't he fight harder to keep her, like she had with her lie?

She didn't really get to think about it as Chris came back from his match, and she hadn't been paying attention and felt badly for that. She saw that he didn't have the Intercontinental title on his person, so she figured that he hadn't won. She stared off in space, but could feel him sit down next to her. She looked troubled to him, and he took his hand, even though he was sweating and tired and gave it a squeeze.

"What's wrong?" Chris asked quietly as he leaned in so she would hear him.

She decided to be honest with him, "I was just thinking about why Hunter didn't love me more, why he didn't fight for me like I fought for him. I mean, I lied so that he would notice me, so that we could save our marriage, and I just don't know why he didn't do the same for me. Did he not love me enough or something?"

Chris frowned; he didn't like hearing his wife talk about her ex-husband. In the grand scheme of things, her being on her second husband didn't matter, but the sting was still there for him because she was his first and only wife, and she had been married before, had loved someone before. Loved someone so much that she wanted to be with him forever, and that man wasn't Chris, and was in fact Chris's enemy, so it made it hard to be objective, but she looked so sad that he couldn't stay silent.

"I don't see how anyone would want to give you up," he said, his voice full of emotion and love.

Stephanie turned to him. "Thanks."

"It's what I'm here for. Who else are you going to talk to about loving your ex-husband? I mean, your current husband is here to help you figure that out."

"Yeah, because I'm all for the husband-hopping."

Chris and Stephanie were laughing as Randy saw them. He had heard that they went out with Dave last night and that Stephanie had been friends with Dave for a while now. He was jealous, he didn't want to verbalize it, and he wouldn't, but he was jealous. He had pretty much been phased out after he had RKO'ed Stacy, and not he was being replaced…or had been replaced. He had lost his friends…to Dave.

Dave was nothing, he was supposed to be the champion, and the one who had all of the friends. Dave was never as good as he was. It took Dave months to do what Randy had done. Randy had left Evolution first and now Dave was copying him. And he was stealing all of his friends and that pissed him off. He was going to hurt Dave like Dave had hurt him by taking his friends.

He challenged Dave to a fight later on for the World Title, because at least he could take that from Dave, at least he could take the title from him, if Dave wanted to take his friends. Nobody was talking to him anymore, it was like he had lost everybody when Stacy had hit that mat. So now he would get the title and he would at least have that to comfort him.

Dave had come searching for Stephanie and found her with Chris at the table they were usually at. Stephanie was playing with Chris's wedding ring as she toyed with it on his finger, idly watching the show. She was a little surprised to see Randy so mad. Although maybe it was well-founded, she wouldn't know because she hadn't spoken to him, and neither had Chris, and to her knowledge, neither had Christian or Trish, and Kurt or Shane would have no reason to speak to him as they were on another show, or working at headquarters, respectively.

"Why are you playing with my ring?" Chris asked.

"I'm bored," she said.

"I thought this was your life's blood though. You live to work."

"I'm just tired," Stephanie said. "You know that."

"I know."

"Did I tell you that Kurt thought I was pregnant?"

Chris coughed and sputtered out, "Huh?"

"I'm not, don't worry, but because I've been so tired, he thought I was, I just thought it was a funny little thing that he said. But I'm not, so don't worry."

"You had me worried!"

"Tonight I can just sleep, and rest, and not worry," Stephanie said, then noticed Dave. "Dave, hey! Did you see what Randy said?"

"I've been watching yeah," Dave said. "I'll take him, no worries."

"Cool," Stephanie said. "I'm sure that you'll have him no problem. Is there anything else you wanted? Time to speak or anything?"

"I'm not much on words," Dave said.

"I know, but you're the new champion."

"I had Flair present me with my belts," Chris told him. "That was fun. You should've had Hunter present you with yours, kind of like in the Masters when they have the former champion put the green jacket on the new champion."

"He might have run away with it," Dave said.

"That's actually true," Chris said. "Good point."

"Would be funny though," Stephanie added.

"So Dave, any plans while being champion?" Chris asked.

"Just kick ass…I don't care about anything else."


	31. Kane and Lita, Um, Ok, April 11, 2005

A/N: I didn't get into this business to please reviewers who dislike me, so…onward and upward, onward…--starts sobbing-- why Disgusted why! (If you watch Arrested Development, you'll get the joke, if you don't, well, it's hard to explain, lol).

And in other news, I opened up the Trish/Christian fanlisting, because, well, I like them. So if you're a fan of there's, and I know some people read for them, go sign up. The link is in my profile. I plan to put up videos and screencaps soon. :)

* * *

Trish had a strange feeling that she couldn't explain. She just thought that tonight was going to be weird. The hairs on the back of her neck were standing up and she felt like she was being watched, but every time she looked over her shoulder, there was nothing and nobody there. It made her long for Christian, because at least with him around, she could feel a little bit safer.

She didn't know what she was so scared of, but it was something. It couldn't be Christy because she wouldn't be afraid of Christy if someone paid her to be afraid of Christy. And Lita was not here, having suffered at Trish's hands for what was it now? The five thousandth time? And that was after she rounded down. But there was just a presence, not something spooky, or maybe it was spooky, she just knew that she didn't particularly care for it, and she wouldn't stand for it.

She was currently all alone in the hallway, and that damn presence was around again and she stopped and turned around, but there was nothing but people walking by, unbeknownst to her presence. She should feel insulted, but she was too concerned with feeling better and more secure than she was feeling. She took a few steps and stopped again, looking over her shoulder quickly, but still…nothing. She turned to keep walking and screamed when she came in contact with another body.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, watch where you're going," Benoit said he caught Trish by the arms, the latter almost stumbling.

"Sorry Chris," Trish said, "I was just looking for someone."

"If it's your boyfriend, I just saw. Had to tell him that I'm going to beat him senseless when we're wrestling tonight, but yeah, I just saw him."

"Oh," Trish said, and Benoit had been expecting a more witty response from the blonde. "Do you know where he is?"

"Catering," Benoit answered.

"Thanks Chris, I just…I really needed to see him."

"Is everything ok?" Benoit asked, staring at her intensely.

"Um, yeah, I just miss him, you know how it is."

"Sure," Benoit said, "Bye Trish."

"Mmhmm," she mumbled, letting him brush past her. For some reason, she didn't want to be out in the open like this any longer. She tried to remain her composure, but she ended up running towards catering at full speed.

Christian had been snacking on some chips when he saw his girlfriend rush in, panting and out of breath, almost doubled over. Christian got up, leaving his chips on the table as he went over to her and helped her to a seat next to him. She looked up at him gratefully and then dropped her head down onto the table. Christian grabbed his chips away just in time.

"What's wrong?" Christian asked with concern.

"Nothing," Trish said, and that was the only correct answer as nothing had been actively bothering her, it was just a feeling. It would probably turn out to be a stupid feeling, but sometimes you just didn't go against your feelings, no matter how stupid or far out there they seemed.

"Were you warming up for your match?" Christian asked.

"No," Trish said, still trying to catch her breath. She had run full-stop to catering, dodging people everywhere, and she was pretty sure she had hit at least one person, but had passed with just a quick apology.

"Do you have news?"

"Uh uh."

"Do you want to tell me why you were running then, and why you look like you've seen a ghost? Unless you actually saw a ghost in which case you can just keep it to yourself because I don't want to hear about anything totally creepy like that."

"I just feel weird," she told him.

"Oh my God, do not tell me that you're pregnant," Christian said, dropping a chip from his fingers, letting it roll down his shirt and onto the floor with a soft crunching sound.

"No!" Trish said, exasperated. "I meant like a weird feeling, like a feeling of foreboding you know, like something is going to happen and you aren't exactly sure what it is, but you know that it's something. I just feel like something is going to happen."

"Oh, is that it," Christian said, brushing it off. "Everyone gets those, totally cool, nothing will happen."

"But I feel like something is going to happen."

"Nothing's going to happen, you're paranoid," Christian said. "Focus on your match."

"Yeah, my match with Molly," Trish said, shifting her attention to the match that she had coming shortly at the beginning of the show. She was teaming up with Molly against Christy and Victoria. She wished that she was teaming with Victoria and fighting Molly, but the world, and Bischoff she suspected, were not that kind.

Christian looked down and didn't respond, knowing without asking what she was thinking about. They didn't talk about him cheating on her because as far as their current relationship was concerned, it was a moot point. Them not actually sleeping together was also a pretty big factor, but the fact still remained. They both stayed relatively quiet until Trish let out a small chuckle.

"God, you know, it's been forever since the thing with Molly happened and we're still walking on eggshells because of it," she laughed. "It's stupid, we shouldn't even care. I don't, do you?"

"Well, if you don't, then I don't," Christian told her. She shook her head, and then she stood up for a moment in order to sit down on his lap. He looked up at her.

"I don't care because I'm with you again. Maybe if we had stayed broken up I would harboring a horrible resentment towards you to the point that I would hate your guts, but since we're roomies and everything, I think I've got to like you."

"Yeah, although now that we're roomies and everything, does that mean if we have a fight, I'm going to get kicked out of the house?"

"Yeah, but you could always go stay at Chris and Stephanie's, I'm sure they would take you in."

"Unless Stephanie heard why we were fighting, and then took your side, and then she'd get Chris to go along with it, and then I'd be shivering under a bridge somewhere," he said, ending on a pathetic note.

"Nah, you could go over to Edge's," she answered.

"Yeah, and have you even more mad at me. I know that you don't like my brother."

"What's not to like?" Trish said sarcastically. "He only insulted me…and you for the record, and basically thinks he's hot stuff when he's not. You really should've won that Money in the Bank match, I mean, you were prime and ready for it, and Edge had to swoop in and hurt an injured man in order to win. And I know all the crap about it's a match, do what you have to do, but aren't their human standards that we have to live by?"

"Getting a little preachy aren't we Trishy?"

"I'm not getting preachy," she protested. "I'm just saying that he's a jerk and I don't like him."

"And in the event he becomes your brother-in-law?"

"Is that a marriage proposal?" Trish asked suspiciously. "Because nowhere in your proposal do I want to hear about your brother."

"Do you think that if I was proposing, I would do it in the middle of catering, in the middle of Moline, at a show?"

"Yes," she nodded with a giggle.

"Man, I'm going to have to change your mind on that, in the future, the very far future, or the near future, maybe?" Christian said, trying to pysch her out. Trish just rolled her eyes and leaned down to kiss him, not caring about that feeling that she had earlier. Just like she thought he would, he calmed her down and made her feel safe. She just loved being with Christian, and now that they were roomies, it felt more solid, this thing between them, more permanent.

"Ooh, what're you going to do? You've left it up in the air!" Trish said, pretending to fall for his attempts to get her thinking.

"I did, it's a talent of mine," Christian shrugged. "Shouldn't you be going out right about now?"

"Yeah," she paused, then looked at him pleadingly. "Will you walk me to the gorilla and wait for my match to be over?"

Christian looked at her strangely, "You really are freaked out aren't you?"

She nodded, "I know that it's stupid Chrissy, but I'm just, please."

"You don't even need to ask," Christian said, gesturing for her to get up. Trish got up and Christian threw his bag away, shooting it in on only the second try. He wrapped his arm around her waist as they walked to the gorilla. She did feel safer as she walked with him, certain that nothing would hurt her as long as Christian were there. That's why she loved him so much, he was always there when she needed him.

They saw Chris and Stephanie arguing over something with the show, their headphones off and around their necks as Chris kept pointing to something on a clipboard, to which Stephanie was shaking her head vehemently. Deciding to leave those two to their own devices, Trish turned to Christian and kissed him again, clinging to him by the neck, almost wishing she didn't have a match in a few minutes. Christian pulled her away gently when he heard her music go off and he gave her the thumbs up sign, telling her that her makeup was all right.

Molly walked out with her, and Trish tried to make idle conversation as they walked down, discussing the match. She didn't hate Molly anymore, but she didn't like her either as she had no reason to like her at all. In fact, she SHOULD hate her, but she wasn't that callous a person, not to her at least. Maybe to Christy, but she had it coming, oh yeah, she had it coming.

The match started off like any other match, sparring and trying to get a feel for your opponent. Or in Trish's case, trying not to rip Christy's hair from the roots. Trish and Molly had most of the match in their control, and Trish was confident that they would come out with the win until she was accidentally nailed by Molly, and the next thing she heard was Christy's annoying music. Trish was pissed that she had lost to that bimbo, even though the pinfall was on her. She was thinking about doing something to Christy when those oh so familiar flames shot up and Trish's eyes widened.

She wanted Christian, that was her first thought, and as she saw Kane looking straight at her, her second and more cohesive thought was to run like hell. And run like hell she did. She was tired from her match, but with a seven-foot man who was almost three times her weight, she mustered up the energy. She stumbled over the barrier, barely making it over because she was kind of short.

She ran through the halls, confident that she could at least run faster than Kane. This was the feeling that she had had earlier. Kane was the reason that she kept looking over her shoulder, and it probably had to do with Lita, because Lita was Kane's wife, and Kane was protective, or he was now. Trish finally got backstage after almost getting caught by Kane in the women's locker room, and Christian was there and she ran into his awaiting arms.

"Oh my God, are you ok?" Christian asked. "Kane didn't get to you, did he?"

"No," Trish said, "But I've got to get out of here!"

"I know," Christian said, looking around futilely. "But I have a match later, I can't drive you back cause I don't know if I'd get back in time."

"Chrissy, I need to leave."

"Christian, I'll take her," Stephanie said, having seen the conversation from where she had been sitting with Chris. "Chris can handle things while I'm away, so if you want a ride, I'm your girl."

"Thanks so much Steph," Christian said as Trish and Stephanie rushed away from the scene. It wasn't moments later that Kane showed up, looking around for Trish. He spotted Christian and walked over to him menacingly.

"Where is she?" Kane bellowed.

"Not here," Christian said, standing his ground. He wasn't going to be afraid of Kane. He could take him.

"So you're not going to tell me, not a smart move," Kane said.

"I don't care, beat me up if you have to, you're not finding Trish," Christian answered.

"Fine, I guess I'll do to you what I was going to do to her," Kane said, an eerie and calm smile overcoming his features, which were downright terrifying.

Chris quickly got up and walked over, stepping in between Christian and Kane, "What's going on here?"

"None of your business," Kane said.

"Yeah, it is my business actually," Chris said. "Christian has a match later on, and I can't have him being injured. So I suggest that you go beat up a wall or something."

"This isn't over," Kane said, pointing at Christian was he walked away.

"You didn't have to do that, I totally had that under control," Christian said, folding his arms.

"Yeah, sure you did," Chris said. "Look, don't get into a fight with him, because we kind of need you, what with the recent firings of some guys."

"Yeah, what was up with that?"

"I don't have hiring of firing powers, so hell if I know, it wasn't my decision," Chris shrugged. "I better get back to work."

Christian thought about Trish as he walked to his locker room, her intuition had been right and he had thought nothing of it. He was kicking himself now because she had been in danger because he hadn't believed her when he should have. He hoped that Stephanie had gotten her back to the hotel safely.

Stephanie was driving the shaking Trish to the hotel where they were staying. She felt badly for Trish because she didn't deserve Kane going after her. If it had been Lita herself, it would've been an entirely different story. But Trish would be fine, she was strong, and she didn't take a lot of crap.

"You ok?" Stephanie said dumbly.

"I had a feeling something like this would happen? How was I supposed to know that Kane would actually defend her?" Trish scoffed. "Haven't they been on the outs since they were married?"

"I thought so," Stephanie said, "But maybe he loves her or something. I haven't exactly seen anything that would support her actually liking him."

"Yeah, maybe he just likes taking care of his property," Trish said. "Thanks for driving me."

"It's not a problem. Chris is perfectly capable of working by himself. And I didn't really have to stay. I wouldn't want you to have to hang around there though, especially with Kane lurking about. I know what it's like to have a creepy guy after you. I had Kane's brother actually."

"Oh yeah, you know my pain then," Trish said as Stephanie pulled into the hotel.

"You going to be ok?"

"Yeah, I won't open the door for anybody. I'll make sure to look through the keyhole first, and Christian has a key."

"Ok, and trust those creepy feelings," Stephanie said, waving as Trish walked into the hotel. Stephanie made sure that she was actually in the well-lit lobby before driving away and back to the arena. She pulled into a parking spot and was walking back inside when she happened across Dave who was walking away from his locker room. "Dave!"

Dave turned around, "Oh hey Stephanie."

"Where you headed?" she asked.

"I was just going to grab a water. Gotta prepare for my little interview later."

"Oh yeah, I felt bad that last week you barely even got to talk. I mean, you're the new champion, the new figurehead for the company. You should at least get to talk as much as Hunter."

"I don't think there's enough time in the world to talk as long as Hunter."

Stephanie laughed heartily, "Ok, that was one of the funniest things I've heard in a while."

"Well, they say the truth is funnier than fiction. Where are you heading?"

"Back to work," Stephanie said. "I was driving Trish back to her hotel because of what happened earlier with Kane. She was a little freaked out, understandably, and I drove her to the hotel where she'll be safe."

"That's a nice gesture."

"Well, I'm full of nice gestures," Stephanie told him.

"I'll walk you there," he said, being the gentleman that he was.

"You don't have to do that," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "Last time I checked, I could walk."

"It's cool," he answered, and she shrugged.

"Ok, but only if we stop for your water first," Stephanie commanded. He nodded in acquiescence and she nodded in victory. They walked towards catering first, but they were stopped in mid-step by one of the divas, Candice Michelle. She stopped in front of Dave, and licked her lips.

"Hey Dave," she said sweetly, batting her eyelashes at him while trying to emphasize her chest. Stephanie looked away and rolled her eyes, content to fade away and observe this little interaction. It was funny being on the outside again, looking in to all the people who were still doing the dating game.

"Hey…um, let me guess, don't tell me," Dave said, "Candice Michelle?"

"Yeah, that's right," she said brightly, touching his arm. "I'm so glad you remembered me."

"You're welcome," Dave said politely.

"So here's the thing, I'm kind of looking to get into this whole…wrestling thing, and I was wondering if you had any pointers to give me, ways to be intimidating because you are SO good at it."

"Well, I just kind of don't talk and just let my actions speak for me."

"That's great advice, I'd love to hear more if you have it," she said, trying to get him to ask her out.

"If I think of more, I'll let you know," Dave said with a sly wink. Candice Michelle bit her lip and gazed up at him with doe eyes. She pulled a piece of paper from her top and took Dave's hand before putting the piece of paper in it.

"If you do think up some more, here's my cell phone number where you can reach me, and we can always discuss our…strategy," she finished, none too subtly.

"Good deal," Dave said, as Candice walked away. He turned to Stephanie, "I never know if that's because of the belt of because of me."

"Well, I'll tell you, the belt is something of a magnet for women. I know I'm hardly able to resist you right now. I'm thinking of just taking you right here and right now because of that big, gold belt of yours."

"No thanks. This is the third time this has happened to me tonight. I also got propositioned by Maria, and some other girl that was outside earlier. I'm flattered, but I feel like it's not genuine."

"Well, that's up to your judgment," Stephanie said. "But you are quite the stud if I do say so myself."

"Ok, so I guess I can up that proposition thing to four, although this last one intrigues me the most," Dave said, raising an eyebrow.

"This time I'm going to have to turn YOU down," Stephanie said as they continued on to catering. "I'm spoken for."

"Too bad for the rest of the world."

"You flatter me too much," Stephanie said. They got to catering and Dave grabbed a water for himself and Stephanie grabbed a water for Chris in case he wanted it before his Highlight Reel later on.

They continued on until they got closer to the gorilla, and Stephanie could see Chris being very efficient with his work. He had really picked up the business quickly, and she was actually surprised by that. She had underestimated him, but just like his wrestling, that was very wrong of her.

"End of the line," Dave told her.

"Yeah, thanks for walking me to my station," Stephanie said. "Good luck with your interview, we'll talk later."

"Yeah, tell Chris I said hi," Dave said.

Chris by this time, had looked up and saw Dave talking with Stephanie. He was glad to see Stephanie back from dropping off Trish and went back to his work once he saw her. That didn't allow him to see Hunter approaching steadily until he was right there, and Chris could barely get out a groan before being interrupted by Hunter.

"So how long have those two been friends?" Hunter asked.

"Why does it matter?"

"Did she tell you about them? Before I mean, since they've been friends for a while apparently," Hunter said, playing devil's advocate and knowing it. If he could make Chris mad, Stephanie would get mad, and with her friend Trish incapacitated she might turn to Dave, throwing him off of his game so that he could Pedigree him later on and show once and for all that Dave winning had been a fluke, and that he was going to win at Backlash.

"Nope," Chris answered proudly. "Sometimes you've just got to let the bird spread its wings and fly. She's capable of doing some things by herself."

"But with Dave…alone. I mean, I'm not one to talk--"

"Ha!" Chris coughed loudly.

"When Dave was in Evolution, he had no trouble picking up girls. He can turn on that charm, I'll give him that one, the man is charming."

"Going somewhere with this?" Chris asked dully. "Because if you're just blowing a lot of hot air like usual, it'd be really nice of you to do it somewhere else, preferably over the state line."

"I'm just saying Chris, it's already starting. I've been where you are right now. I thought everything was great, perfect, and then she started hanging around with Kurt, saying they were just friends, and they spent a lot of time alone. Next thing you know, I'm watching footage of him kissing her, and you know, it's only a matter of time. Stephanie is just that kind of woman. You know, moving from one guy to the next, never taking care about the guys that she hurts…I know how it goes."

"No you don't," Chris said, giving him a skeptical look. "You're so pathetic Trips. I mean, really, trying to get to Dave through me and Stephanie. You can't even do anything for yourself can you? Where's Ric to fawn all over you?"

"I'm just trying to warn you man, that's all."

"Well you can warn your ass right out of here," Chris said, getting irritated.

"Just think about it," Hunter said, smirking as he walked away. Chris rolled his eyes dramatically, missing Stephanie sitting down in the process. She saw Hunter walking away from the table and could only imagine the conversation they had just had.

"Dave says hi," Stephanie informed him.

"Fine," Chris said shortly. Talking with Hunter always diminished his good move. It was like that man could push every button he had, and he hated it. He was so damn smug about everything and it pissed Chris off to no end. One of these days, he was going to have Hunter what he had coming to him, and unlike the times before, he wouldn't fail.

Chris was still in a bad mood when he went out for his Highlight Reel. Why was it he didn't let anyone else get to him, but when it came to Hunter, he couldn't stop thinking about what he said. Ever since he had come into the company, it was like Hunter had it out for him. They had had some memorable feuds over the years, but they had never really ended. Every so often their tempers and hatred for each other would flair and they found themselves in crazy matches like Last Man Standing or Hell in a Cell.

Maybe that's why he took it out on Shelton. He knew that he couldn't go after the World Title right now, but he could definitely get the Intercontinental Title, even though it was a little beneath him. You'd think after winning it seven times, he might go on to bigger and better things, but Chris could wait. And he had been in a slump lately and maybe holding a title would make him feel better about it. Shelton was a good kid, but Chris wanted to win. He hadn't been doing anything in particular, had no real beefs with anyone, and this seemed like a great opportunity.

He knew that Shelton would go toe to toe with him because he had talked to Shelton on numerous occasions and the kid could keep up. Chris tried to take it all in stride, and for the most part did, even the crack about his band, which was kind of uncalled for. He made another crack at Shelton, knocking over the chair, and then kind of challenged him. He didn't expect the chair being thrown at his head, or the shove to his face.

But then again, Shelton was expecting Chris to charge and knock him down. Chris and Shelton exchanged blows, wrestling on the ground and out of the ring when some referees, no doubt sent by Stephanie, arrived and pulled them apart. Chris was irate and tried to break free, but couldn't and neither could Shelton as they were dragged backstage and told that they should remain apart. They gave each other one more scathing look before going their separate ways.

He went and sat down next to Stephanie and huffed and puffed his way into not working. Stephanie didn't care as she let him sulk like a little baby. The two didn't speak until they saw something they didn't expect to see. Kane had found someone, but it couldn't be Trish, and they saw Lita, and then they saw Lita and Kane kissing and Chris and Stephanie's jaws dropped collectively. They turned to each other, their jaws still open and gaped.

"Did I just see what I think I saw?" Stephanie asked.

"Am I in bizarro world?" Chris asked.

"I think so, is up, down, is black, white? What is going on?"

"I guess…wow, that was…unexpected."

"Yeah, I mean, I thought she hated him," Stephanie said. "She did hate him right?"

"Yeah, she did, but she had mentioned that she was missing something, I don't know," Chris said, just all-around confused.

"Well, at least this means she doesn't have a crush on you anymore."

Trish shuddered as she saw that scene from her hotel room. She now knew that she had to be worried. Having Lita coming after her was nothing, Lita she could take, but Kane? There was no way that she could take Kane on, and the one time she had tried to, she had gotten injured, badly, and Christian had been so mad at her. She wouldn't try that again…but she didn't know what she was going to do now.

In a locker room, not to far away, Lita was gazing adoringly at her husband. She had come to blows with her marriage and was embracing it. She had grown tired of Edge, and Kane…Kane wanted to protect her and pay attention to her, and she was getting none of that out of that stupid plan with Edge. Edge was a psycho and he got his World Title shot anyways, so he didn't need to fuss with Stephanie and Chris, and now realizing that her own marriage could be good, she didn't want to mess with Stephanie and Chris either.

But that didn't mean she didn't want to mess up Trish's face.


	32. To Be Continued, April 18, 2005

A/N: Sorry this is up so late and incomplete at that. I'm having a tough time writing these days because my grandmother has to have surgery and they don't know if she'll make it, and she practically raised me, so doing anything writing-related has been really difficult. I started this before I heard, and this was as far as I could get. I'm sorry that it's not a complete chapter.

Hopefully things will be better by next week, but if they aren't, please excuse the absence or lateness of the chapters. If you want to flame me or say you're fed up or you hate me, go ahead, because anything you say is not as worse as I feel right now. In fact I welcome them as a distraction.

Sorry again.

* * *

"Christian."

"Trish," he said menacingly, but not in such a way that she was actually frightened. Just in a way that told her that he meant business. She raised her eyebrow at the tone, not ever really hearing him use it on her before. It was more a thing that he did in the ring rather than with her. With her, he was nicer, gentler even, though that term made him sound more girly than she intended.

"Christian," she repeated, taking the same tone that he did.

They were eye-to-eye on the couch in their locker room, and neither one was backing down. Christian's eyes were scrunched up a little; he was obviously concentrating very hard on her. Trish's eyes were unmoving and she was much better at this staring contest, but he was holding his own. Neither Trish nor Christian was going to let the other one beat them.

"Chrissy."

"Trishy."

They weren't fighting per se, at least not in the way that they usually did. Usually they would get so mad at each other that they wouldn't speak for days or weeks and then they would realize that they were being stupid and come back to one another and promise never to repeat the scene, but they always did, and both of them were quite familiar with the pattern.

What were they fighting about exactly? Well, in simple terms, they were fighting over Kane and Lita, which sounds very silly, but was in fact very serious. The prior week, Kane had terrorized Trish, and Trish had had to flee the building because of it. They were trying to think of ways to remedy this situation, but Trish was not agreeing to Christian's ways.

"Christian," she said, changing her tone to sound more coy, "I think that my way sounds better. I mean, we need someone huge, and you know, can you think of anyone?"

"Tomko," Christian said.

"I think we've been proven wrong on him," Trish said, rolling her eyes. "He can't beat Kane, we need someone else. I would get Dave, but he's got bigger things to worry about. Who else can we get that's big enough to get Kane?"

"I don't know," Christian said, "I should just be the one that's going out there. I can protect you."

"No Christian, I don't want you to do that for me. We have managed to keep our professional lives separate for a while now, and I do not need you to be my crutch right now, like Lita so obviously needs hers," Trish scoffed. "I'll find a one time thing, a one time guy, and then you can go out there tonight and kick ass or whatever it is you want to do."

"I haven't decided. But I'll go along with your plan, on one condition though," he added.

"What's that one condition?"

"You at least let me know who the guy is," Christian said. "I don't care who it is, but just let me know."

"Of course I would let you know," Trish answered, leaning across the couch to kiss him. She pulled away with a smile. "But this could be good. I just have to at least get Lita out there. Did you hear what happened though?"

"Yeah, I did," Christian said. "How could you think I wouldn't?"

"Oh yeah," Trish giggled. "I sometimes forget that you and Edge are brothers. You two are so different Chrissy, I mean that too. He just keeps getting scummier and scummier. It's hard to believe that you could be related at all."

"But we are," Christian said, rubbing the back of his neck, "and I'm a little uncomfortable discussing the bedroom antics of my brother, especially when it involves Lita."

"God, I can't believe she pretended to still love Matt when she was doing Edge. And cheating on Kane too, I mean, really, does it get any worse. And then poor Matt, the victim in all of this. You would NEVER do that to anyone, I know you, and you wouldn't."

"I definitely would not do that," Christian said firmly, staring Trish in the eye. She leaned across the couch again for another kiss, longer and sweeter this time. "I love you, that's why."

"I know."

"Look, I know my brother, and he likes women, any woman, and that's always been his problem. He tried to date Stephanie before he found out she was with Chris, he just goes after what he wants. I don't know why he would go for Lita though, because he just goes out and picks up women, but I guess it was just easier to be with someone in the company."

"Lita's more at fault though, I mean, being married, being in love with Matt, and still attesting to that love, and then heap on top of the fact that she was with Edge," Trish said. "Like something out of a soap opera."

"Can we stop talking about it? It really makes me uncomfortable to talk about him like this. He's my brother, I should remain objective, or even better, I should be on his side in these kinds of things."

"Why? He betrayed two people," Trish shrugged, but Christian really was looking uncomfortable. "I'm sorry, we'll stop talking about it. I just wonder how things are going to work out with that, you know. She seemed pretty devoted to Kane last week."

"Edge told me she broke it off with him," Christian answered. "That's all I know, so don't ask me anything else."

"That's good enough," Trish said, "Onto happier news, let's try and think of what we're going to say to Lita."

"You mean what YOU'RE going to say to Lita," he pointed out.

"Whatever, just help me."

Lita walked down the hallway by herself, leaning on one crutch. She seemed to be getting more stares than usual. It probably had to do with what happened with Kane, and what had happened with Edge. The news had gotten out about them, and she was sorry that it happened. Thankfully nobody knew that it was all a plan to get Stephanie in Edge's arms so that he could get a World Title shot, or possibly the World Title without doing anything.

She hadn't meant to get Matt fired, if that was the case, but it couldn't have helped that while he was away, she had been with two men. But then again, one of the men she was with was her husband, and she was with her husband now and that had to count for something. The only problem was that Matt still had a lot of friends here, and they were sure to hate her now because of what she had done.

She saw Chris walking up ahead with Stephanie, the latter laughing at something as Chris wrapped his arm around her waist. She leaned her head against his shoulder and kept laughing, trying to hold it in, but Chris whispered something to her and she burst out laughing again, actually bring her hand around to slap him on the stomach even as she kept laughing, going to wipe her eyes.

Lita looked down and then up again as they passed, wondering if she should say something, she decided that she should at least say something, maybe gauge people's reactions. "Hey Chris, Stephanie."

"Lita," Stephanie said, straightening up a little bit and nodding. Chris said nothing to her as they went on their way. Lita hadn't expected Stephanie to be the one to say something. But her voice had been cold, and she knew that Chris at least respected Matt, and they had been friends once upon a time.

Chris bit his lip as they walked away from Lita. "That was hard."

"I know," Stephanie said sympathetically. "How is Matt?"

"I don't know, this is one of the times I wish that I did have hiring and firing powers," Chris said, "It would've come in handy."

"Don't let it get to you sweetie," Stephanie said. "I don't fully understand it myself. All I know is that there are a lot of hurt people, and I don't know what to do about it."

"Nothing," Chris said as Stephanie played with the loops of his belt. "What can we do?"

"I don't know," Stephanie sighed. "I'd hate to go over my father's head with this. He doesn't know what's best though."

"Nope, but he rarely does," Chris said, causing Stephanie to smile.

"Well…yeah, that's true too. But he means well most of the time…hopefully…maybe."

"So what is this thing you wanted me to do? You mentioned new talent debuting tonight, and I didn't really catch much of that because you were changing at the time," Chris said, grinning lecherously before kissing her neck chastely.

"Yeah, my dad wanted to bring up some people from OVW, and have them debut tonight. We've got," she looked down at her clipboard to read the names off the list that she had, "The Heartthrobs, a tag team, Romeo and Antonio."

"The Heartthrobs?" Chris said, trying not to laugh. "That's their name?"

"Yup."

"Wow, makes me long for the days of regular names like The Hardys, or E&C, or The Dudleys," Chris told her.

"Well now you've got the Heartthrobs, um, they just arrived apparently, and I just need you to go over the basics with them, they should be in my office, so if you could handle that for me, please, pretty pretty please?" Stephanie said, clutching her hands together, begging him to do it for her.

Chris pulled her to him abruptly and kissed her firmly, letting his tongue snake into her mouth to deepen the kiss, right there in the middle of the hallway. She let her hands run up and through his hair, clutching up as his hands snaked around her back and met on her lower back, just above the top of her skirt. He leaned her back until they were up against the wall, making out without abandon like two teenagers in the hallways of a high school.

Finally, Chris pulled away, leaving a breathless Stephanie in his wake, "On one condition."

"Mmm, just one," she said, ready for round two of this impromptu make-out session. She tried to pull him towards her again, but he resisted. She groaned and opened her eyes, staring into his crystal blue eyes that were so captivating, even in the harsh glare of the neon lights.

"Me, Benjamin, Intercontinental Title, Backlash," he said simply.

She was still in a daze from his kisses, and could barely even nod her head. Maybe she wasn't even nodding her head. Chris leaned in and left fluttery kisses along her jaw. Stephanie closed her eyes again and just focused on what he was doing against her jaw, and now he was moving lower to her neck, leaving a kiss there before moving upwards again to capture her lips in his own in a delicious kiss.

"Ok," she breathed out against his lips. "I'll get Bischoff to sign off on it, he'll agree."

"Thank you baby," Chris said sweetly, lavishing her with another heart-stopping kiss. Stephanie grabbed him and she was about to drag him to their car if she had to. He was making her all hot and bothered right here in the hallway where anyone could see them. Thank God her parents weren't here or she might have qualms about being so blatant with the public displays of affection.

"Privacy, now," Stephanie said, the wanting in her voice evident and Chris smirked knowing that even after almost three years he could still make Stephanie fall weak in the knees. They always said that a relationship sometimes went cold after marriage, but he and Stephanie were still going strong.

"Can't, work to do," he teased.

Stephanie growled out a response, "Such a tease."

"Later, I promise that we'll finish what we started, but for now, I think that we both have work to do. Busy, busy, busy," he said with laughter in his voice. "I'm not doing anything tonight right?"

"No, nothing," Stephanie said. "You said that Rich was coming tonight and you wanted to hang with him, did you WANT to do something tonight?"

"No, but…" Chris smiled mischievously like he knew something was up. "No, I think I'm cool with doing nothing tonight. It's not the end of the world or anything. I'll just chill backstage, doing nothing, catching up with Rich over business and stuff. I'm sure he'd like to know how I'm handling this whole marriage thing."

"Be sure to say that your wife is wonderful."

"I always say that, even to strangers."

"Ok, off you go then," Stephanie said, giving him a little slap on his jean-covered ass. Chris jumped a little and turned to her with his jaw agape. Stephanie shrugged, "Your fault."

Chris walked back to Stephanie's office where there were two men sitting down talking to each other. He figured that these were the new guys, Romeo and what was it? Juliet? No, that joke was too easy. Antonio he remembered. They turned to him as he entered and he nodded to them before taking a seat in Stephanie's chair.

"Hi, my wife had other errands that needed her attention, so she sent me instead, in case you didn't know, I'm Chris Jericho," Chris exposited to them, rising out of his chair slightly to shake both their hands. He tried to ignore the rather garish feather boas that they were wearing and remain professional.

"First off, you don't get your own locker room, if you move up in the ranks, then you can have one of your own, or share, or whatever. I'm sure that salaries and pay-offs have been discussed with you be someone," Chris said.

"Yeah," Antonio said, grinning towards Romeo, or maybe it was the other way around. "We're just so excited to be here!"

"Well, that's good," Chris told them, "Enthusiasm is good."

"And we have it in spades!"

"Great," Chris said, starting to think these guys were high or something. They were just really jazzed about working tonight. "You'll be facing Regal and Tajiri tonight I assume."

"You assume right," Romeo said.

"Ok, well good luck, find a locker room, and good luck tonight. Oh, some added things before I forget, you book your own flights within the United States and Canada, unless otherwise specified, international tours are done by the company, so you don't need to worry about that. Schedules are posted about an hour before the show, that's usually for matches only, unless you request speaking time, but you have to take that up with my wife, Stephanie, or Bischoff to get it cleared. I think that's all you need to know unless you have any questions," Chris said as professional as can be.

They shook their heads and Chris shook their hands again before sending them on their way. Chris sat back down in his chair and leaned back. He didn't exactly have anything else to do. Rich hadn't arrived yet, and he wasn't scheduled for anything. He wondered where Stephanie was, but figured that she was busy. There was a knock on the door and he figured that it was Rich and called out for them to come in. Instead it was Lita, on her one pathetic crutch.

"Hi."

"Hello Lita," Chris said, his professional voice on again. He didn't feel like talking to her. He was not friends with Edge, and still found the things that he had said about Stephanie hurtful, and to think that Lita, who he DID consider a friend was screwing around with him.

"So you're mad at me too?" she asked, sitting down. "I guess I deserve it."

"Maybe," Chris said, clutching his hands together and tapping his index fingers against his mouth. "Was there something that you needed to discuss with me? Something about the show maybe?"

"So this is how it's going to be? You're just going to be professional to me all the time?" she asked with disgust.

"Well, I am part owner of this company, I do have responsibilities back here, and I have to fulfill those responsibilities the best way that I know how, and unless you've got something to say I think we're through here."

"You don't understand!" Lita pleaded. She wanted to continue being friends with Chris. She was so sorely lacking in the friend department. She had Kane and that was it. Anything that had happened with Edge was over and done with once she realized that Kane cared about her in the same way that Chris cared about Stephanie. Chris was always able to see the good in people, and just this once she hoped that he would see the good in her.

"No, I don't think that I do, I really don't think that I do," Chris said. She looked down, and Chris thought that she was going to break down in tears. It made him sad though. Stephanie had told him how she had lost most of her friends at some time or another, how lonely she had felt when the Invasion failed, how she had nobody to talk to. He had seen how upset it made Stephanie to think about, and now it seemed that Lita was going through the same thing. Chris was a good guy at heart, and it pained him to see a friend so torn up.

"Why don't you explain it to me then?" Chris said to her. She looked up in hopefulness and he nodded in the affirmative.

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"You're the first person to do that."

"I know someone whose been in your position, and I didn't like it, so I'll give you the benefit of the doubt while you explain."

"Thank you," Lita said, glad that Chris was willing. Nobody else was willing, they were all ready to jump to conclusions about her. "I screwed up with Matt so badly, I don't deserve him. Let's just get that out of the way."

"Ok, I'm sure that he wouldn't have thought that, but ok."

"I didn't want to be with Kane, I didn't want to fall for him or whatever, but…he cared about me, he was here to protect me when I really needed protecting, and he beat up guys for me, not because I asked, but because he felt like it was his duty. He cared about me, and I didn't realize it until recently."

"Yeah, I can see that he does."

"Matt was gone, and it was hard because I am legally married to Kane, and I was still in love with Matt, but Kane wasn't going to just grant me a divorce. I asked, he refused, and that's why I fell in with Edge. Edge promised me that he could get me away from Kane, and he was so persuasive, and I wanted out, I wanted out so that I could be with Matt. It was never supposed to come out that I was having a fling with him. I just…I just wanted to get away from marriage."

"So Edge promised to help you out for nothing? I mean, he just wanted to help you?" Chris asked, trying to digest all of this. It made sense, in a weird way, she was making a lot of sense, and a lot of the anger had dissipated.

Lita sighed. She couldn't tell Chris the real reason or he would go ballistic on Edge, and there would be no stopping him. Chris partly owned the company; if he wanted to beat on anyone here, for no good reason, he could, and he wouldn't have to fear reproach because his wife could just hire him back (he had no hiring or firing powers, remember).

"He wanted me to do some menial stuff, not a big deal, just stuff to help him try to get a title shot."

"Oh," Chris said, knowing that was a fake answer, but not questioning her any more. "But then you got with Kane…"

"I did," she said, "I realized, while I was still with Edge that maybe I didn't want a divorce after all. That Kane could be…an ally rather than an enemy. Matt got wind of all of this, and he was understandably mad, and I don't know what to say to him or to the people, or to anyone."

"I'm sorry it happened," Chris said sympathetically. It just seemed that Lita had gotten the raw end of the deal, not as much as Matt, but still. "I'm not going to stay mad at you. But…I called Matt, and…I think I can consider him a friend again, and this is just hard, so you know, I'm sorry it happened, but, you kind of deserve it."

"I know," Lita said sadly. "I guess that I had to pay a price somewhere. Thanks for at least hearing me out."

She stood up and started to walk out of the room on her one crutch. Chris thought about saying something more reassuring, but he could not think of anything else. Lita had made her bed, and now she had to lie in it. But she at least had Kane and that was something at least. She had someone to comfort her and stay by her side…much like Hunter was to Stephanie, as loath as he was to admit that.

Speaking of the devil, or angel, Stephanie walked back into her office, flipping through something. She looked up and smiled at her husband before setting the files down on the desk. He opened up his arms to her and she giggled as she sat down in his lap.

"You're occupying my chair," Stephanie said.

"Aww, come on, don't be a bitch about it."

"Me? A bitch? Impossible."

Chris guffawed. "Yeah, as impossible as the sun rising tomorrow morning."

"I don't think I like your implications," Stephanie said, narrowing her eyes. "So I'm assuming that you talked with the new talent."

"You assume correct baby," Chris said, kissing her cheek. "And Lita came in here and explained her story."

"Oh she did, did she? And is it sordid? Those do make the best kind of stories," Stephanie said.

"Not really, I just felt bad for her, but on the other hand, she kind of deserves it you know. It's much like the way that I saw you after you lost at Survivor Series. I felt bad that two entire companies were washed out and a lot of jobs were lost, but on the other hand, you deserved it, big time."

"Oh come on, you did not feel sorry for us," Stephanie scoffed. "You were happy."

"Excuse me, if you'll remember, I actually went out there and hit Rocky," Chris pointed out. "If your team had capitalized on it, then I should've gotten a big ta-da about it. I'm talking a huge party."

"See, you were just trying to cover all your bases because you THINK that you're sly, but I was onto you Chris Jericho."

"Oh you were Stephanie McMahon-Jericho?" Chris asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh yeah. You thought that if you helped the Alliance and we won, that we would herald your contribution and you would not be out of a job. If the WWF won, then you'd still have a job, either way. But I have news for you, I would not have heralded you, and I would've laughed and laughed as you lost your job."

"Just like I laughed and laughed when you lost yours," Chris said sweetly.

"You ARE a bastard," Stephanie said, pushing against his chest. "I was heartbroken."

"Yeah, but YOU had a safety net too."

"I had no such thing!" she said defiantly.

"A husband…who was still with WWF ring any bells?"

"Sweetie, I wasn't with you back then," Stephanie said, deliberately ignoring what Chris was saying. He laughed at her since he didn't want to think about it either and leaned up to kiss her. She leaned down part of the way and they started engaging in more heated activities. Stephanie was still hot and bothered from their hallway escapades, and she was more than willing to have fun in her office since the show was starting and people would be too busy to come in and check on them.

"Should we lock the door?" Chris asked between kisses. Stephanie ignored him as she went for his neck, twisting her body so that she was straddling him, her chair dipping back a little as she leaned into Chris. Things started to get more heated when the chair kept dipping lower and Stephanie hit the top of her head against the wall and pulled back laughing.

"Ouch," she said, rubbing her head. "Well that kind of killed the mood."

"Damn it," Chris muttered, but laughed as well. "You ok?"

"Yeah, stupid chair," she said, trying to catch her breath. She leaned in to kiss Chris again when there was a knock at the door. "Who is it!"

"Um, it's Rich," came the voice on the other side.

"Hold on a sec," Chris called out as Stephanie got up off his lap. She pulled her skirt down and adjusted her top. Chris stood up as well, trying to look presentable. He kissed where Stephanie hit her head and she gave him a soft smile before giving him a gentle kiss. He walked around the desk and opened the door. "Hey man, how the hell are you?"

"I'm great," Rich said, shaking Chris's hand. "Hey Stephanie."

"Hey Rich," she answered. "I'll let you guys talk in here, I've got work to do anyways."

Chris knew that she wasn't being rude, but that she was still wanting him from earlier, and she might not be able to control herself if she was around him, but not…doing things with him. He kissed her quickly before she left the two of them and went to work.

Not everyone had the night off like Chris, and Trish was making her way down to the ring. She tried to give a confident smile, but it was also laced with trepidation. She just hoped that she could pull this off. She knew that Kane would eventually come out and that was fine, she was just hoping she could say the things she needed to say with a straight face. She had to butter up Lita and that was going to be a task in and of itself.

The crowd was behind her the entire time, and she was shocked. But when she heard what they were chanting, she understood a little bit more. She tried her best to ignore it though, because it would screw up the plan that she had so meticulously formulated with Christian.

TO BE CONTINUED…


	33. Christian is Awesome, April 25, 2005

A/N: Anyways, I know that I said the last chapter would be continued, but I don't think I'm planning to, I hate being behind, and since my chapters are so freaking long as it is, it just makes more sense to skip it because it's just so much work for me, and I have lost any inspiration I had for said chapter. Sorry.

And thank you for everyone who sent me their thoughts and prayers, they were greatly appreciated and though the situation is still up in the air, it's definitely better than it was previously, and so thank you, seriously. :)

Hope you enjoy this chapter, and expect this Monday's chapter sometime beforeMonday morning. There won't be a Backlash chapter, but it will play prominently onto this week's Raw chapter, of which I have a major rant planned. ;)

* * *

"Christian, it's taken care of." 

"Are you positive?" Christian asked, pacing nervously back and forth in his locker room. He was alone for the time being because Trish was not here. Trish was on her way to a restaurant to have dinner with Viscera. He was so mad at himself for thinking that Viscera wouldn't think to make Trish go on a date with him as part of their deal. Viscera knew that he and Trish were dating, and that still didn't have any affect on the large man.

"Yes Christian, I'm positive that I'm at the right place," Stephanie said. "You're just lucky that I was able to take the night off so I could do this for you."

"You don't know how much this means to me," Christian said with relief in his voice. "I just don't want that bastard to do anything to her."

"I'll make sure he doesn't," Stephanie answered. "And after Chris's match tonight, he's going to join me here so if Viscera does try anything while Chris is here, he'll kick his ass."

"But Viscera is 500 pounds."

"Then we'll all run away from him," Stephanie said with a laugh, hearing silence on the other end. "Not a good time to joke?"

"Ya think?" Christian said irritably. "Stephanie, this is the woman that I love we're talking about. I know you don't know what it's like to have a woman that you love--"

"I love my mom," Stephanie offered. "Again, not helping?"

"Yeah, still not helping," Christian told her.

"I really am trying."

"Yeah, but Trish could be in trouble. I love her Stephanie."

"I know Christian, I've known it for a long while," Stephanie told him. "And I'll make sure that she's safe. I'll be at the bar the entire time, and I promise not to get drunk. Then when Chris gets there, we'll sit down within eyesight of her, and it'll all be fine."

"I just want to make sure, I need her to be ok."

Stephanie smiled at his worrying. It was always nice to have someone to worry about you, and Trish was very lucky to have Christian worry about her so much. Of course, anyone in this situation would feel the same way. Viscera was a scary, scary man and a very, very big man, so it was doubly scary to be around him. Stephanie did not envy Trish in the slightest, and was shocked she would enter a deal with the man in the first place.

"And she will be," Stephanie assured him once again. "I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure that nothing goes on. If I have to make the waiter send Viscera really hot soup to burn his tongue, I will do it for you."

"You're a good friend."

"I like to think I'm a great friend," Stephanie said sweetly.

"Fine, fine, you're a great friend," Christian said, complying with her.

"Yeah, and you do me a favor and watch out for that husband of mine. I know that he feels like he's been complacent as of late, and he wishes that he played a bigger presence on the show, and I just want to make sure that he's ok."

"Don't worry about him Steph, Chris can take care of himself."

"I know he can, he did for over thirty years before we started seeing each other, but I just really feel for him. He's trying to juggle so many careers right now and I'm afraid he's either going to burn out or lose one of the things that he loves."

"I don't think he would let that happen."

"I know he would try and keep it up, but I can see it in his wrestling right now. He feels like he's stale and I think he's just going through the motions and it worries me, but don't you dare tell him I said this," Stephanie hissed.

"I won't, I promise," Christian said, knowing that if he dared to go against his promise, Stephanie would leave the restaurant immediately and not help him take care of Trish. Or she would because Trish was her friend, but you could never predict what Stephanie McMahon would do, even if you knew her well.

"Ok, good, well, I'm here, finally," Stephanie said. "I had a hell of a time finding this place, I'm not too familiar with England if you couldn't tell."

"And here I thought you were an expert," Christian deadpanned. "Ok, I've got to go, keep an eye on her please."

"I'm going to, stop worrying!" Stephanie said forcefully, and then hanging up without saying goodbye because she invariably knew that he would probably ask her to keep her eye on Trish about fifty times before he even let her hang up.

Christian stared down at his phone for a second, then slipped it back into his bag. Chris hadn't shown his face tonight and he and Christian were supposed to be sharing their locker room since he was without Trish, and Chris was without Stephanie. It was almost like guy's night out, except they were working, and he was going to constantly be thinking of Trish and what was going on with Viscera.

He really never should've agreed to this "you do something for me, I do something for you" deal that they had done with Viscera. Looking back it was his mistake and Trish was paying for it. Trish would obviously say that it was her mistake, but he should've known that Viscera would want his girlfriend, most guys on the planet wanted his girlfriend. Scary thought, thinking that at the drop of a hat, tens of thousands of guys would be all over his girlfriend in no time flat.

"I don't like that at all," Christian said to himself, running a hand over his face. He needed to get some water because his throat had suddenly become dry, and he hadn't a clue why. He exited his room, still wondering vaguely where Chris was, but didn't care enough to stop thinking about Trish and how Stephanie was faring.

He turned the corner and saw Kane up ahead with Lita, and thought nothing of it as he walked by. But as he was walking by, he heard Kane and Lita discussing something low tones. He thought he heard them say something about Trish and he turned on his heel. He walked back a few steps and stood there.

"What did you say?" Christian asked.

"We were having a private conversation," Lita said snottily, "I don't think that includes you, so if you don't mind, I'd like to get back to my husband now."

"That may be all well and good," Christian said, "But you said MY girlfriend's name, and I think that means that I have a right to know."

"No, it doesn't," Lita said. "Unless you want to challenge me on that."

"Oh, I'll totally challenge you, because this reeks of heinosity right here."

"That's not even a word," Lita snorted.

"I don't care."

"Stay away from my wife," Kane said menacingly.

"Oh shut up you freak," Christian said, and didn't even regret it moments later. He was too mad about the situation with Trish, too mad at Lita for putting Trish in this position that he didn't care what he said or whom he said it to.

"What did you say?" Kane asked, looming over Christian.

"I think you heard me," Christian said, not backing down from Kane. This was probably a good indicator that Christian's night was going to end up badly, because it pretty much started off badly at that.

"What's going on here?" Bischoff asked as he came upon the scene.

"None of your business," Christian snapped.

"I'm in charge around here, and that means you answer to me," Bischoff said. "And I'm not about to have the two of you fighting it out in the back. If you want to have a match, then you can have a match next week, but I'm not going to tolerate this."

"Fine, whatever, I don't want to be talking to these two anyways. You're the reason my girlfriend is out on a date with that monster."

"Oh, I'm crying over it," Lita said with a sneer. "Hope she has fun and Viscera isn't too rough with her."

"Bitch," Christian muttered as he walked away. He was walking huffily when he heard someone running to catch up with him. He gave a sidelong glance and saw that it was Chris, and he nodded morosely.

"Hey man, what just happened back there?"

"Nothing, just Lita and Kane being the happily married couple that they are," Christian said angrily. "I cannot stand her since she got with Kane, she's such a bitch now. AND she slept with my brother, it's just sickening to me."

Chris remembered what Lita had told him about the whole situation, but he kept his mouth shut. Lita had told him that in confidence, and he wasn't going to break that confidence, even if it was to ease his friend's mind. Lita was probably still the same, or maybe Kane had changed her, Chris found no need to figure out what was going on with her. If she was happy with Kane, then she was happy with Kane and he was going to be happy for her, he guessed.

"Yeah, but you're not Edge, so don't worry about it," was Chris's only advice, and not very good advice at that.

"Thank God, I'd much rather be with Trish than be with Lita," Christian pointed out rather truthfully.

"And I'd rather be with Stephanie than be with Trish," Chris said, trying to ease the tension, but it wasn't working. Christian just scowled at him and Chris held his hands up defensively.

"What?"

"You and your wife…"

"What about me and my wife?"

"You just don't know when to not crack a joke, I mean seriously, sometimes a joke is not warranted."

"Ok, sorry," Chris said, "I didn't know this thing with Trish was bugging you so much."

"Well it is!"

"Ok then," Chris said, not knowing how to respond to that. Christian really did seem torn up about this entire thing with Trish. Chris tried to put himself in Christian's place, thinking about Stephanie being on a date with someone else because of a stupid deal and he frowned thinking about how that might turn out.

"I just cannot stand not being there if she needs me!" Chris said, the frustration prevalent in his voice. "I almost want to give up my match with Dave just to be with her, but this is such a big opportunity and I'd be a douchebag not to take it, and then Trish would get mad at me for not taking it and then everyone would be mad, and I wouldn't know what to do."

"Dude, chill," Chris said, grabbing Christian by the shoulder and shaking him a little, "Stephanie is there, I talked to her, she's there, she's having a drink as we speak, hopefully not too much because I don't really feel like carrying her ass up to our hotel room, and as soon as I go out there and kick Grenier's ass, I'm getting the hell out of this joint and then I'l go spy on your girlfriend for you."

"Fine, but can you please just kick Grenier's ass really quickly? I mean, go out there, slap the Walls on him and then leave?"

"Ok, but only cause you're my friend."

"Thank God."

Meanwhile, Stephanie was sipping at her martini watching Trish and Viscera from across the room. Trish already seemed uncomfortable and they had just sat down. She was trying not to cringe, Stephanie could tell that from all the way across the room. She took another sip of her martini, looking down to stir it a little with the olive and when she looked up some man had sat next to her and was now blocking her view of Trish.

"Hi," the man said, thinking that Stephanie was looking at him rather than looking at her friend.

"Hi," Stephanie said distractedly, trying to shift her focus back to Trish. Christian would never forgive her if anything happened to Trish. She might not even forgive herself.

"Oh, you're American," the man said. "And how terribly rude of me not to introduce myself. I'm Andrew Kensing."

"Um, nice to meet you," Stephanie said politely, glancing at him before going back to Trish.

"May I ask what you're looking at?"

"A friend is all," Stephanie said, then noticed Andrew had turned towards her completely and seemed to want to engage in some intimate conversation with her. "Oh, are you hitting on me?"

"Well I wouldn't put it so brazenly," he chuckled.

"Yeah, well, you better keep moving, I'm married," Stephanie said simply, holding up her rings. That got him to leave and she got her great view of Trish and Viscera back. If she had known how convenient these wedding rings were at getting unwanted people away from her, she would've started using them a long time ago.

Back at the arena, Christian was now following Chris around, much to Chris's dismay. He wondered if Trish had to put up with this, but even if she did, she was probably used to it by now. Chris kept trying to dodge out of the way, lose Christian in the crowds, but the man was quite persistent. He stopped abruptly and almost flew onto his face as Christian bumped into him.

"You. Are. Annoying. Me," Chris said as he turned around to look at Christian.

"You don't think that Viscera will do something to her under the table where Stephanie can't see, do you?" Christian asked nervously. "I mean, Stephanie can't see under the table so obviously he could touch her or something."

"I don't think Trish would just sit there and take it," Chris answered.

"What if he has a knife or something, a gun," Christian said, his eyes widening as he thought of all the weapons that Viscera could threaten Trish with. "Or, like a lighter, what if he wants to burn her or something…with a cigarette! What if she comes back with cigarette burns!"

"I think Stephanie would see the smoke if that happened," Chris told him. "Stephanie has eyes like a hawk, she sees everything, another talent, but I'm pretty sure that everyone would see smoke."

"Yeah, you're right, he'd go for something discreet," Christian said, tapping his chin. "A pocket knife!"

"I don't think so."

"You never know you know!" Christian said, wagging his finger at Chris. "He could carry one, and bam, he's got a blade to my girlfriend's back or leg or something."

"I don't think he would do that," Chris said. "Look, the point of this is to get her into bed, that's his motivation."

"Why are you telling me this!" Christian yelled, covering his ears and humming to himself. Chris wanted to laugh, he really did, but the paranoia had set in for Christian, and laughing now might send him straight over the edge into a deep abyss of which he might never escape.

"Because I have a point, if you'd let me get to it!" Chris said loudly so that Christian could hear it over his humming and whining.

"Ok, fine," Christian replied slowly, taking his hands off of his ears so that he could hear what Chris had to say.

"He wants to get Trish into bed, and so he's going to be sweet-talking her, and trying to get on her good side and flirt with her. Injuring her in any way is going to just make her angry and want to leave, and not do anything with her. So he's not going to hurt her if he can help it."

"Oh," Christian said, "Well that makes a lot of sense."

"Yeah, I thought it might," Chris said. "Now, I have a match right now and I'm not sure that I want you following me to the ring. It's an entirely different story if you were you know, young, blond, sexy, voluptuous…but you're not, so we're going to have to part ways."

"Yeah, whatever," Christian said, then looked up, "You just totally described someone that wasn't Stephanie at all."

"I was describing Trish," Chris said obviously. Christian was about to say something, but Chris was already out and into the ring.

Christian went back to his locker room where Tomko was already waiting. Christian nodded to him, and he nodded back, that being the only greeting they afforded each other. Tomko was a man of few words anyways, and Christian was in no mood to talk, but he had to be because he had a match later on, and he also had to think of something to get his mind off of Trish.

"She'll be fine," Tomko said, startling Christian to the point where he actually did stop thinking about Trish.

"Huh?"

"Trish, she'll be fine."

"So everyone is trying to tell me," Christian said. "What makes YOU so sure?"

"She's tough," Tomko shrugged. "I've seen her, she's tough."

"She is tough," Christian agreed. "I guess she could take care of herself if she had to."

"She can."

"Um, thanks," Christian said.

Christian was just getting back to functioning normally when Ric Flair of all people came into his locker room. Christian didn't know what he wanted, until he started ranting and raving about Triple H. Triple H was the LAST person that Christian wanted to hear about at the moment, and so he pretty much sent Flair off rudely. Leave it to Hunter to only be thinking of himself when he knew (cause everyone knew) that he was thinking about Trish and Trish only. But he guessed that Hunter was just looking out for his true love too, the World Title belt.

Deciding that it was probably best to get his mind off of Trish, Christian thought that he might go out and address the crowds. There was nothing better than seeing thousands of people to curb you of the fear that your girlfriend was getting molested by a 500 pound man at some restaurant in a town he hardly knew. He went out there trying not to think of Trish, and it did work. There was this certain rush that he got when he was out there, he transformed into someone else, a character if you will, and he lived that character for those minutes that he was in front of the crowd.

Christian should've expected Kane, what with the incident earlier, but he really didn't expect him to come out, and as Christian high-tailed it out of there, realizing that Kane WAS a real threat, and the things that Flair had said earlier rang through his head, about Triple H, and him, and his match later on, and as he fled from Kane, the thoughts kept running through his mind.

Chris was surely gone by now, meeting up with Stephanie at the restaurant to watch over the woman he loved, so they weren't here to talk him out of it. Trish wasn't here to slap him upside the head and ask him if he had gone mad, and Edge was…well Edge was too busy carrying around a briefcase to care what he was doing, not that Edge would protest, because he probably wouldn't. It was the feeling that he was alone that drove him to Triple H's locker room.

Christian caught a scowl on Hunter's face when he closed the door, and Christian could only surmise it was either because of what he had said, the fact that he had used Chris's nickname for him, or probably the most damaging, the fact that he was friends with Chris and Stephanie, who everyone knew had a personal beef with Hunter. Either way, they were offering protection for the evening, and he was taking it because this was his last option.

"So you want my help?" Hunter said with a smirk that Christian hated.

"Well, you offered, so it's really not me ASKING for help, it's me saying, 'hey, yeah, sure, if you want to be out there and Pedigree Dave, go for it, I'm not going to stop you from being out there for the match, or being out there the entire time,' I mean, if that's what you want."

"And what do I get out of it?"

"Well…I thought you want the Pedigree," Christian said, his eyebrows creasing. "I thought that was what you wanted."

"So I just go out there with you for no other reason than the Pedigree?"

"That's what you said."

"Fine," Hunter said. "You've got yourself a deal then. I'm surprised you're taking me up on this offer."

"Ok," Christian said, standing up. "I can make my own decisions you know, I'm not at the mercy of anyone."

"Uh huh."

"Not like Ric is to you," Christian muttered under his breath as he was leaving the room, laughing to himself as he made the joke.

"Did you say something?" Hunter asked, narrowing his eyes.

"I said that the couch was nice, nice couch, great couch, need to find the manufacturer of that couch," Christian said with a wave. "See you out there Trips."

As this was going on, Chris was just arriving at the restaurant and saw Stephanie sitting at the bar, nursing a drink. He walked up to her and hopped on the stool behind her. She didn't turn around so she must not have seen him, but she looked to be studying Trish rather intensely. He watched her for a moment, she took a small sip from her drink, still staring at Trish, and then would stir her drink while staring at Trish.

"Can I buy you a drink?" he asked, leaning in behind her and lowering his voice a little.

"Married," Stephanie said shortly, holding up her left

"Doesn't mean you can't have a drink," Chris said.

"Have one," Stephanie said again shortly. "And still married."

"So am I, but I got away from the old ball and chain for the evening."

"Good for you," Stephanie said, still not looking over at him. He figured she was too busy making sure that Trish was ok to care about who she was talking to. "But I happen to love my husband."

"Well, I love my wife," Chris said. "Married her in Hawaii, on a cliff, in January."

"Huh?" Stephanie said, turning around quickly then feeling stupid, "Oh hey sweetie, didn't see you there."

"Obviously not since I was getting the major shaft from you."

"Well, I was just worrying about Trish," Stephanie said, leaning in to give him a kiss in greeting. "How was your match?"

"I won it," he said simply, not wanting to go into any details. "How many drinks have you had?"

"This is my second," she answered. "I haven't been really in the mood for a drink. Too busy with the spying. Wait…did you call me your ball and chain?"

"Ahh, so you WERE listening to what I had to say," Chris said with a smile. "Nice to know that I can still get through to you. So has your spying worked you up an appetite?"

"It has, but let's be sure to get a table where we can see what's going on," Stephanie said, "Slip the maitre d' a bill or two if you have to."

"What? Do you think I'm made of money?" Chris asked her with exasperation. "That I just carry around large bills when I have to."

"You got the money exchanged earlier didn't you?"

"Well, yeah," Chris said. "I have it with me."

"That's more than sufficient, and besides," she leaned up to whisper something in his ear. "I got my paycheck yesterday."

"Jesus Christ, THAT'S how much you get paid," Chris said, trying to keep his voice down. "How come I never knew that?"

"Because you probably had some silly notion that my father slips me money under the table like a black market deal or something. I do actually earn a paycheck Chris, I may own some of the company, but I'm still an employee," Stephanie pointed out. "And I've earned that paycheck, let me tell you, I worked my way up to where I am, so did Shane, he used to have to sweep floors and everything. At least I got my start in the dregs of the mailroom."

"I can't imagine you in the mailroom," Chris said, rubbing his chin and staring at his wife. "Nice to know what kind of cash you're bringing in though, I can afford that new car that I've been eyeing."

"Oh for the love of Mike," Stephanie said, dragging him over to the host's stand. "Excuse me, we had a reservation under Jericho, for 2."

"Ahh yes, we have you right here," the man said. "We'll seat you in a moment."

"Actually, I was wondering if we could possibly sit over there," Stephanie said, trying not to be rude. "If that's fine."

"Of course," the host said, grabbing a couple of menus and taking them to their seats. Trish and Viscera were in the corner of the room, and Stephanie and Chris had requested to sit at the adjacent corner. If Trish looked straight forward, she wouldn't be able to see Chris and Stephanie at all, only if she turned completely to her left would she be able to see them.

"Thank you," Stephanie said as they sat down and she took a menu, Chris following suit. As soon as the host was gone, they stuck their menus in front of their faces. "Do you think she saw us?"

"No," Chris said. "Wait, she doesn't know we're here?"

"No!" Stephanie hissed. "Christian didn't want her to think that he didn't trust her. Little does she know that this is for her safety and nothing else."

"Yeah, we're just being good friends," Chris said, then looked at the menu, "Ooh, they have steak and French fries, I bet that's good. Expensive places always make good fries."

"You're crazy, we're supposed to be working," Stephanie said with annoyance.

"Oh," Chris said, looking over the top of his menu. "They seem to be getting appetizers and Viscera seems to be stuffing his face."

"Disgusting," Stephanie spat out. "Ooh, they have a great wine selection."

"And yet you can have your attention wherever you want it to be," Chris said, twisting his finger in the air for dramatic affect. "I thought everything was 50/50 in this marriage, but I was obviously wrong."

"Where the hell did you get the idea that it was ever 50/50, more like 70/30."

"Well at least you admit it," Chris answered. "I'm so gullible for you."

"I think that's because I'm willing to get naked for you."

"Oh yeah, then 70/30 is something I have no problem with at all."

"Oh my cute husband, always thinking of me first," Stephanie said, pinching his cheek. "I guess we can focus on the nice meal for a little while."

"Finally, I'm starved."

Later that evening, poor Christian was still at the arena, and somehow he had been coerced into actually hanging out with Hunter. Maybe it was Hunter's way of trying to infiltrate Stephanie and Chris's world and try to find out any dirt on them that he could then later use against them, but Christian didn't know anything, it wasn't like he knew about their sex life or something. He made a disgusted face when he thought about that. That was enough thinking for now.

Hunter thought it was a great idea, and Christian was just going to go with it because he had nothing to lose. It wasn't a great idea, but it would suffice. In actuality, Christian was lucky that he had found Hunter at that particular moment, because across town his girlfriend had just flashed Viscera in order to distract him and make him not want to take her anywhere until after Backlash, at which point, she would hope (for ONE time only) that Kane won so she wouldn't have to touch Viscera again.

Across the room, but not so far away, Chris's eyes widened and Stephanie caught his gaze going over and gasped as she saw Trish on the tail end of flashing Viscera. Stephanie did not know what to make of that little gesture, but guessing from her husband's face, she gathered that Trish had not teased him with a little skin, but with a lot of skin.

"I just saw more of Trish than I ever wanted to before," Chris said.

"Chris!" Stephanie said, slapping him on the chest. "I'm sitting RIGHT HERE!"

"I know that, your point?" Chris said with an innocent smile. "She means nothing to me, I swear, nothing ever happened!"

Stephanie rolled her eyes as she drank the last of her wine. "You're lucky I have a little bit of a buzz going or I'd be mad."

"Over Trish."

"Oh, look at that, you're talking about me," Trish said, leaning over the table to where Chris and Stephanie were smiling guiltily.

"Why Trish, this is quite the surprise!" Chris said, throwing his hands up. "I had no idea you were here, if we did, we would've come over and said hello."

"Yeah, please don't think we're rude," Stephanie laughed in a fake apologetic way. "Chris and I just wanted to have a romantic dinner alone in England. I mean, doesn't that sound…fanciful."

Chris gave Stephanie a look that just said, 'what the hell was that,' and turned back to Trish. "Yeah, I wanted to do something nice for Stephanie. I mean, we're still newlyweds after all, just four months removed from our wedding. We're still in that 'crazy, only have eyes for each other phase.'"

"Oh yeah, I can't keep my eyes off of you Chris," Stephanie said. "I love you so much."

"I love you too," Chris said, making dreamy eyes at Stephanie.

"Very funny," Trish said. "So when did you guys plan this with Christian?"

"Yesterday," Stephanie said, shrugging. "He's just wondering about your safety."

"I know, but I'm ok."

"Good, that's all we wanted for you."

"Yeah, so move the hell over, all I ate was a salad and I'm starving."

"Dinner with two beautiful women, I've died and gone to heaven."

"Yeah, but I'm your wife so you always have me," Stephanie answered.

"And I'm one of your best friend's girlfriends, and your wife's best friend."

"Way to ruin the fantasy guys."

"Just focus on winning that Intercontinental Title on Sunday, it might improve your standing in this marriage," Stephanie said playfully.

"Wow, I might even make it to 60/40."

"Let's not push it."

"I have no idea what you two are talking about, I don't think I care to find out."

"Oh, just that I saw 60 percent of your chest, and Steph only saw 40," Chris joked and Trish scowled. He shrugged and drank some water, earning glares from both the women he was with.

"There goes heaven. How suddenly it all turns to hell."


	34. I'm So Bitter, May 2, 2005

A/N: God, can I just say I am so disliking wrestling right now. Jericho continually getting the shaft is getting old, and I don't even want to address Edge, who I couldn't stand to begin with, started to dislike him more, and he just really, really irks me now.

After what happened with the Shelton interview and him and Jericho conversing with each other respectfully, I had high hopes that Jericho would get maybe a slim shot at getting a title shot any time within the next millennium, but I guess that's too much to ask, I guess it's just WAY too much to have Jericho be anything credible, God forbid he win a match against Edge who ALREADY has a freaking title shot.

Bitter? Hell yeah I am.

On an unrelated note, if you like Christian and Trish, I'm putting up videos of them on my fanlisting, link in my profile if you want to check it out. :)

Oh, and updating should be back on track tonight.

* * *

"Gold Rush Tournament?" Stephanie asked with trepidation. "I like the idea of the tournament, but do we have to call it the Gold Rush tournament? It makes it sound like…I don't like, like a casino game or something."

"Well do you have a better idea?" Bischoff asked her. He thought that it was a great name since they were all going after the gold.

"I don't know, I'm not in the business of naming things," Stephanie answered, tapping her pen against the table. "But since I can't think of anything better, I guess we're just going to have to go with it."

"Good, now we have to think of eight men that we want in the tournament, and let me guess the first guy that you're going to lobby for," Bischoff said, giving her a patronizing and very condescending grin.

"Oh, why don't you enlighten me Eric?" Stephanie said cheerfully. "I would just LOVE to hear you wax poetic on just who I want in this tournament."

"We all know that the same man that shares a last name with you is the number one man that you think should be in it," Bischoff answered.

Stephanie gave him a sarcastic grin, "Look me in the eye Eric and tell me that Chris doesn't deserve to be in the tournament. I dare you to actually tell me that Chris Jericho should not be in the title hunt."

Bischoff swore under his breath, because truthfully, Chris did deserve to be in it. "But you still want him to win."

"But I'm not going to fix anything in his favor," Stephanie answered. "I have morals Eric, unlike you. Sure, every now and then I might give Chris a slight advantage, but I didn't run a company into the ground based on slight advantages."

"Way to hit below the belt Stephanie."

"Like there's anything for me to hurt down there anyways," Stephanie told him. "So we both agree that Chris should be in it, wonderful, we're already making progress. And everybody said that we would never be able to cooperate."

"How wrong they were."

Later that evening, just before the show was set to begin, Christian sat stoically in his locker room trying to take his mind off of his girlfriend. She had gotten so injured last night and all because she didn't want to do something. He was going to find it hard to focus because not only was Trish hurt, badly at that, but now he had a match against an opponent that he didn't know.

He knew this was a big opportunity for him, a chance to become the number one contender and go for the World Title. He had to jump at this chance, but it was so difficult knowing that Trish was in a hospital and that she was actually, legitimately hurt. He wanted to be there with her, but he had work to do and he couldn't just take the night off for no good reason, well no good reason to the higher-ups. He could appeal to Stephanie and Chris, but it was too late to do that.

He leaned his head back against the couch. He was bored without Trish here. He had become accustomed to her, and he missed her, and tonight was going to be especially boring because she wasn't going to be here to encourage him and cheer for him and just be there to talk to him. He didn't know how long Trish was going to be out, but it was already torture.

Then there was the entire draft thing looming over his head. He didn't know if he was going to go to SmackDown, and he may seem flippant about it now, but he was actually really scared to go over there. The only friend he would have would be Kurt, and what if Kurt got drafted to Raw, then he'd have nobody over there. That was a scary thought, being stuck somewhere where he knew nobody. It would be like the first day of high school all over again, and that was the last thing he ever wanted to relive.

"Christian, you're up," Chris said, sticking his head through the door. "Stephanie said you have like two minutes to get your ass up there or else."

"I don't think I can go tonight man," Christian said.

"What!" Chris answered. "Are you kidding me!"

"Trish!" Christian said, like that was a full and complete answer. And to him it was a complete answer. He loved Trish, and she was hurt and he didn't want to think about it anymore because he DID have a match, but he didn't know how to stop thinking about it.

"As soon as your match is finished, you can get the hell out of here. It's as simple as that man, but you have other obligations."

"And if Stephanie was so injured she was stuck in the hospital?" Christian said. "What the hell would you do then huh? Tell me that you would go to work and act as if nothing was wrong with your wife in the hospital!"

"Stephanie would make me go to work, are you kidding me with this?" Chris said. "Stephanie would order me to do her job, and what would I do? You want to know? I'd go to work and do the best damn job that I could because I know that Stephanie would care more about the show than she would about her health."

"And like hell you would even give a damn!"

"Hey! The day after her father kicked her out of this company by choking her with a damn wrench, where the hell do you think I was? I wasn't by her bedside, I was here, doing what I needed to do because that's what she wanted. And I can bet that Trish told you to be here too, didn't she?"

"She's hurt, she's not thinking straight!" Christian protested. "And Stephanie is different from Trish!"

"They're both strong and they both take everything in stride," Chris pointed out, rather correctly. "I think the only person that has a problem here is YOU!"

"Get out of my damn sight Jericho, you're talking out of your ass," Christian spat out.

"If you don't want to go out there, tell me now so we can find a replacement," Chris responded seriously, being more business-like than friend-like at the current moment. But he knew that Christian was just mad at himself. He wasn't going to let the show go to hell because his friend wouldn't admit his problem.

"Fine, I'll go out there for your damn show!" Christian said. "Wouldn't want the show to suffer!"

"Whatever," Chris muttered, "Just get out there."

Christian stalked past Chris, resisting the urge to shove past the other man. He had a match to think about and he was just going to focus all his anger at whoever his opponent was. At the moment he was kind of hoping that it would be Chris so they could settle this fight out in the ring rather than yelling at each other like a couple of young boys.

He tried to keep his composure as he waited for his opponent and was surprised and somewhat delighted to see that it was Kane. Sure, he tried to make it look like he was thinking he was going to get pummeled, but for maybe the first time ever, he thought that he could really defeat Kane. Maybe it was the fact that Kane was somewhat responsible for his girlfriend being laid up in the hospital, or maybe it was…no, it was pretty much because Kane and his wife were pretty responsible for Trish being hurt.

But Christian underestimated either his opponent or his anger because whatever he had built up inside of him did not exactly equate to a win. No, it pretty much ended up with a check in the loss column for him. He let Tomko take the fall after the match and thought that maybe it was better because now he could go see Trish. He scowled at Chris as he walked by and back to his dressing room and Chris, incensed by Christian's behavior, went after him, leaving Stephanie behind.

"Dude, what the hell is your problem?" Chris asked as he caught up with Christian.

Christian turned to him, "What the hell do you want?"

"I think I just said what I want, which is to know what the hell your problem is," Chris explained. "Or are you just too dense to realize that?"

"No, I'm not dense, I just didn't want to have to deal with you and your stupid…blonde hair!" Christian said, then frowned. "That was stupid, but the sentiment was there."

"I don't know why you're taking out this anger on me when I didn't do anything. I wasn't the one that did the splash on Trish man. Even if I had, I don't think it would've hurt her that much."

"So this is all a joke to you? My girlfriend being hurt is all a joke to you! Oh, come one, come all, come see the great Chris Jericho run off his mouth and make us all laugh, it'll be a hoot!"

"I'm not trying to make this funny. I was there last night, I was at the hospital, I saw Trish."

"Well good for you. That makes all this better."

"No, it doesn't, what would make it better was if you stopped acting like Mr. Tough Guy and admit that you're mad at yourself."

"I'm not mad at myself you asshole!" Christian said, shoving Chris. Chris stood there for a moment trying to collect himself. He took a deep breath and tried not to lose his cool. He had a temper, yes, but Christian was his friend even if he was acting like a jerk to him at the moment.

"Well that was uncalled for," Chris replied calmly…almost too calmly.

"What are you gonna do about it pretty boy?" Christian taunted him.

Chris licked his lips, "Nothing because I know that you aren't mad at me. Christian, there was nothing that you could've done to help Trish, you know this, I know this, we all know this. When she wanted to interfere in Kane's match, she got hurt, you got mad, you didn't want her to go out there, but did that stop her, no, it didn't. Do you really think you could've stopped her this time? Do you really think that she would've listened?"

"Shut up, I'm going," Christian told him.

"Don't hate me cause I'm telling the truth."

"Get off my back," Christian snapped at him, brushing past him once again and hoping that this time Chris wouldn't follow him.

Chris didn't follow him because he just didn't feel like fighting with him. Christian just wasn't able to see that he was mad because he felt vulnerable and helpless because he couldn't help Trish last night. But Chris knew that feeling, he had been there countless times with Stephanie, and he only wanted to help Christian, but Christian was content with being angry.

"What's up with him?"

"Hey Benoit," Chris said, not even having to turn around because he recognized Benoit's distinct voice.

"Christian having a temper tantrum?"

"Pretty much," Chris said, turning to his friend. "I'm not going to worry about it though."

"Word has it that you know who everyone's opponents are," Benoit said with a smirk.

"Did this word pass around because I'm married to the woman that runs the show?" Chris asked.

"That may have been how I got it, yes," Benoit relented, but that was it, nothing more, but he shouldn't have expected more than one sentence. Chris was lucky that he got more than two words out of Benoit at this point and time.

"I don't know," Chris answered.

"Really?" Benoit asked suspiciously.

"I'm not in the know about everything," Chris said indignantly. "I MAY know who I'm facing, but I don't know who everyone else is facing."

"Am I facing you?" Benoit asked.

"Hell no, I want to advance in this tournament, not get beat out in the first round thank you very much," Chris said. "Not that I rigged it or anything!"

"Uh huh," Benoit said skeptically, and notice how it was two words, he had regressed backwards during his conversation with Chris.

"I wasn't even in the room," Chris said, glancing in the direction that Christian had stormed off in. "Hey, you know about this as well as anyone since your wife was in the business. If she got hurt, what would you do?"

"What do you mean?" Benoit asked.

"Well like say Stephanie went out there and got hurt and she had to be in the hospital, and she told me to go to work the next day to come wrestle, I mean, that's what she wants, and I would want what she wants. Say Nancy came back to wrestling and she got hurt, but she told you to go out there and wrestle, would you?"

"Yeah," Benoit said. "If she was fine enough to tell me to wrestle, I would figure she's not too bad off."

"Thank you!" Chris said with triumph, throwing his hands up in the air. "That's what I was trying to tell him, but he wasn't listening to me."

"Christian never listens," Benoit said.

"Ain't that the truth," Chris said, but then sighed. "I'm still worried about him."

"Aww, do you love him Chris?" Benoit said, cracking a joke, a real joke.

"Shut up Benoit," Chris said good-naturedly.

"Fine with me, I've got a match to prep for, you should probably do the same, I want to face you Jericho."

"Oh yeah?"

"Of course, I never get tired of kicking your ass," Benoit said with a smile, tooth missing and all.

"Yeah, we'll see Benoit," Chris said as if he were actually challenging Benoit to a match at the moment. Benoit just patted him on the back (hard, Chris noticed) and walked away. Chris pursed his lips; he felt for Christian, as any good friend would, but Christian just needed to figure it out on his own.

He was walking back to be with Stephanie when he saw Shelton doing an interview with Maria (which she was not doing a good job of, yikes) and went over to him. He was still smarting from his loss the night before, but he was going to move on and go for the title shot tonight. He spoke earnestly with Shelton, without any animosity and it actually kind of turned into a nice conversation…between two people who were adversaries, but it was "nice" nonetheless.

Everything Chris said was true, and it was sad in a way, that he hadn't had a title shot in so long. Sure he had been in all those Elimination Chambers, had been one of the last three in those before, but it was different to have a one-on-one match where it was you and another guy, duking it out as if your lives depended on it. Chris had been in a lot of matches since he had held the Undisputed Championship, but they were never the same.

A small part of him regretted the fact that he had taken his rematch with Stephanie, but Triple H had really given them no choice, cornering Stephanie when she had tried to talk to him. What could he do if he wasn't there, and what could Stephanie do? It was always overshadowed by her leaving, but the match had been for his title and he did want it, and he did fight for it, just as much as he fought Stephanie in that match. She had been willing to put her career and herself on the line for him and he could never begrudge her that, but sometimes he wished that he had just had the match to himself, with her rooting him on.

He wouldn't tell her that now, it was inconsequential when he loved her and was married to her. Maybe if they hated each other passionately he would tell her off for her interference, for making the match about her and not about him, but that just wasn't the case. They were married, and the past was better left forgotten about, motives and ambitions were over with, ceased to be in the face of their new relationship.

Stephanie sat there watching as her husband had basically put his feelings on his sleeve. She always found it so sexy when Chris got really serious and down to business because that was hardly ever the man that he was. Chris was brash and had a way with words and a way of twisting your words so much that your head would be trying to catch up with his mouth, but when he got serious, you just got to see this side of him that you thought never existed. Even her, his wife, hardly saw the very serious, very driven side of Chris Jericho.

Chris was driven in ways that he didn't let anyone see. She knew that not getting the shot time and time again was affecting him, but she never knew how much it was affecting him and how it was taking its toll on him. She saw that in his eyes when he told Shelton just how long it had been since his last title shot, and it effectively broke her apart. Sometimes she just wanted so badly to rig this entire show for him, to make him the champion, to give him any match he wanted, to watch him rule over everything and everyone except she knew that Chris would lose all respect for her if she did, and she didn't want him to think that he got special treatment. Chris had earned everything he had gotten and he wasn't going to stop now.

He came back over and she just looked down and over her notes, not making eye contact with him. Chris looked over at her and saw that she was busy, but rubbed her thigh anyways. She let him continue, but continued to ignore him otherwise. She didn't even want to look at him right now.

Chris could sense that something was amiss and took his hand off of her, resting both arms on the table, then resting his head on his arms, just watching her. Stephanie still didn't look over at him, doodling nonsense onto her notes, but making it seem like she was actually doing something.

"Did Hunter come bother you?" Chris asked after minutes of silence.

"No," she said shortly.

"Um…is Bischoff trying to dispute you in something?"

"No," she answered.

"Did I do something?"

"No," Stephanie said, biting her lip.

"Oh," Chris said, not knowing what else to say. "Do you need me to do anything? Talk with anyone?"

"No."

"Ok," Chris nodded. "Is this about Trish or Christian?"

"No."

"Edge?"

"No."

"Randy?"

"No.

"Dave?"

"No."

"Kurt?"

"No."

"Shane?"

"No."

"Your mom or dad?"

"No."

"MY mom or dad?"

"No."

"I'm running out of ideas here Stephanie."

"I'm working," Stephanie told him. "Don't bother me."

"Well fine then, I was just asking what was wrong," he told her.

"Nothing!" she snapped at him.

"Well fine, geez, everyone's got a temper tonight," Chris said, standing up. "Seems like nobody wants me around. I guess I really am just a burden to everyone. Don't let me bother you."

Stephanie just let him walk off, not in the mood to get in a fight with him. She sighed to herself as she watched him walk away and stared down at her wedding ring. She didn't notice that Dave had come over, Christy still in tow and stood in front of her. He cleared his throat and she looked up.

"So you can tell me the other guys who are coming after my title right?" Dave asked sweetly.

"No Dave," Stephanie said kindly, but firmly. "Where would the fun be in that?"

"Well, I was hoping you could tell me so that I could just know and get out of here, if you know what I mean," Dave said, not so subtly gesturing to Christy who was beside him. Stephanie refrained from making any sort of comment, though one was on the tip of her tongue.

"I wish I could help, but its secret information. But don't worry, there's only two more matches left so you only have to wait a little bit longer to find out who's in it, and then you could go…have fun or whatever."

"Damn, and I was hoping that being you friend would get some benefits."

"Not in this case, Bischoff would kill me and then petition to have me fired."

"Oh God, I don't want that," Dave said. "But I'll see you later, I have…business that needs taking care of."

"I understand," Stephanie winked as Dave walked away from her with Christy.

Stephanie sat there thinking to herself, but it was intercepted quickly by her husband's match against Edge. Chris was looking good out there and she could only hope that maybe him being mad at her would fuel his desire to win. She wanted him to win, not just because she loved him, but because he needed it. Stephanie knew that Chris felt complacent even though his life outside of wrestling was full of stuff, and his backstage work at the shows was enough work to last him a while. It still didn't change the fact that he wanted to be on top of his game again.

Unfortunately Edge is a bastard who has to cheat to win, not unlike a certain ex-husband of Stephanie's. Chris was pissed now. First Christian had to get mad at him, and then Stephanie, and now Edge got away with murder, AGAIN. Chris was about to explode, he was about to go ballistic like the time that he had gone ballistic on The Rock after The Rock had accused him of not protecting him or some such nonsense. He could liken this to standing on top of the cell in his Hell in a Cell match with the barbed wire 2x4 high above his head. He wanted to take a barbed wire 2x4 and just ram it into Edge's head repeatedly.

He stormed backstage, blowing off Stephanie completely and heading straight for his locker room. The shower that he took didn't help matters any, and neither did changing or combing his hair or packing up his bag. He was just so mad and so off-put by the entire thing that probably nothing short of a miracle would make him not mad. Chris was tolerant of a lot of things, he tried to be cool, but this was too much. He was just sick and tired of all this crap that he had to deal with. He was better than Edge, he was better than Shelton last night, he was better than most of this Raw locker room (save Benoit cause let's face it, Benoit is damn good), and yet he kept getting knocked down for no reason. He could deal with losing to Shelton in a fair match, but he could not take losing to Edge because Edge was a big, fat, stupid cheater.

He left his locker room, not even bothering with Stephanie's things and went down the hallway to where Stephanie was sitting, alone, tapping a pen on the counter. She looked up when she saw him and opened her mouth to speak, but he stopped that with a flourish of his hand in front of her face.

"You don't want to tell me what the hell is wrong with you, fine," Chris said through gritted teeth. "You can just find your own damn ride back to the hotel, and then when you're there, maybe you can find another room while you're at it."

"Chr--"

"No!" Chris said, and that was it before he walked away, leaving a speechless Stephanie in his wake. She had never seen him quite like this, and she didn't even know what to do next. She would run after him, but that would only cause him to yell more. She figured that she could get a ride with Dave or someone if she needed to, or call a car service if she was desperate, but that wasn't what was weighing on her mind as she picked up her cell phone. She dialed a number and took a deep breath.

"How would I go about rigging a show?"


	35. Eh, Could Be Worse, May 9, 2005

A/N: I put this up last night, but the site was being pretty crappy, so I took it off and I'm posting it again. Yes, cheap ploy to get reviews, so leave one. ;)

* * *

Christian was feeling slightly better this week, realizing that last week he had been a humongous jerk to everyone he encountered and really, only one person had deserved that, and that was Kane. Trish had found out through someone (he wasn't sure who) that he had had a row with Chris, and she had berated him for twenty minutes at least. He felt badly after that because what Chris said had been right. Maybe not the blaming part of it, but he had been right in the part where he should've gone to work. Trish was ok enough to tell him to go to work and he should've listened to that.

She was out of the hospital thankfully, but she wasn't able to travel with him. She was at home in Florida, by herself, but she said it would give her time to figure herself out. She was not being serious, but Christian still felt bad that she would have to entertain himself, but she once again wanted him to go to work and he could do nothing but comply to her demands. Besides, there wasn't anything he could do for her except make her comfortable and her mother had flown down from Canada to ensure that for her.

So tonight he just had to focus on whatever he would be doing. Which as of this moment, was nothing. He had nothing to do, and nobody to see. Chris was not speaking to him, word had it that he had had it out with Stephanie last week too and was still extremely pissed off. Not to mention his loss against Edge, which was so bogus. That was the kind of thing that made him really not want to call Edge his brother, and if it wasn't for those pesky bloodlines, he wouldn't call him his brother.

Maybe he could talk to Chris, maybe Chris would forgive him, but Chris was capable of holding a grudge, he had done it with Stephanie for years, he still had a grudge against Triple H, and who knows who else. But he was lonely at the moment, really lonely. Unless he could start a club with Stephanie called the "Chris is Mad At Us" Club.

Stephanie was not thinking about a club, but thinking about the cold shoulder that Chris had given her all this week. Their house could've been an igloo for all intents and purposes because it was icier than the North Pole. Chris wouldn't even sleep in the same room with her, opting instead to sleep in the guest room, and one night she found him asleep on the couch in his office. She had tried to get him to talk to her, but he refused, acting more like a child than anything else.

She hadn't meant for it to go this far. She was just upset last week because it was her fault that he hadn't had a title match. She had abandoned the idea for rigging the show because how could she possibly go about doing that without Chris finding out, and then he would be even madder at her. She didn't know what even madder at her was at this point, but she had seen the depths of Chris's hatred for her, and she knew that things could get worse.

She guessed that was what she was afraid of; that Chris would suddenly start hating her again. Their lives were on such a thin line. They always said that there was a thin line between love and hate, and she never knew how much it would take for Chris to cross back over that line. Maybe he was on his way to hating her again, maybe he was already there.

That scared her more than anything else. What if she lost him? She didn't know what she would do if he left her. She might fall apart. If she just hadn't acted like a bitch towards him, but she was upset, and she could see he was upset. She should've just told him what was bothering her. He told her when he was bothered, she needed to learn the same thing. She bit her lip.

"You don't have to talk."

"Kurt, you really, really didn't have to drive five hours to be with me," Stephanie said.

"Well, I figured you might want some company."

"I'm perfectly capable of working by myself, I'm not going to fall apart or anything because my husband won't talk to me."

"Steph…"

"I WON'T fall apart because my husband won't talk to me," she said firmly. Kurt knew that tone of voice, and if you were any kind of God-fearing person, you would know to shut up when she got that voice. Stephanie was strong-willed and if she said she was going to do something, than you better watch out, because she would do it.

"Ok, do you want me to do anything related to the show? I know that Chris usually helps you out, and if you need me, I'm here because I've got nothing better to do anyways," Kurt offered nicely.

"That's nice of you Kurt," Stephanie acknowledged, "But I think that I have everything under control right now. There's actually nothing that I really need to do at the moment."

"Cool."

"Well look at this…you know Steph, when we were married, I would come across a scene like this all the time. I should've told Jericho that he would have to deal with the same exact thing," Hunter said as he walked up to them.

"Chris is my best friend," Kurt said randomly. It made sense to Kurt, but not a lot of sense to Stephanie or Hunter, so Kurt felt the need to explain himself. "I wouldn't want to hurt him, you on the other hand, I wouldn't have a problem with that, I'd probably like it!"

Hunter scowled at Kurt's jovial tone of voice. "I'm just saying, this is very reminiscent and I heard that there was trouble in paradise with you Stephanie. I hope that nothing happens to your marriage, that would be oh so devastating."

"There's nothing wrong with my marriage," Stephanie told him with venom in her voice.

"Just don't go telling him that you're pregnant, I mean, you already used that excuse on me, although Jericho does like to have my sloppy seconds, so I guess you could use the same excuse on him. And after that, who are you going to be partners with this time Stephy? Edge maybe, or is he not a big enough star for you to leech off of? I guess it would be Dave wouldn't it, you do like to go after the champions so it would only make sense to go after Dave, although he won't be holding the title for long."

"Well you're not the next one getting a shot are you?" Stephanie said smugly, thinking about the loss that Hunter had suffered at the hands of Chris Benoit last week. "Seems to me that you tapped out to Benoit…AGAIN. How does that feel Hunter?"

"Well I'm not the only one who lost in the first round, was I? Your husband got his ass beat too."

"Oh, but at least he's not the total sore loser that you are," Stephanie retorted.

"Well, if you lose as much as Jericho does, I'm sure that you get used to it after a while. I'd ask for his advice, but I'm not going to be losing much after this. Dave is not the champion, I'M the champion, everyone here knows it, the fans know it, we all know that the belt belongs around my waist."

"So says you and Flair and like nobody else," Kurt said with a laugh. "I'd bet…a gallon of milk that nobody else in this business likes you."

"Whoa Kurt, that's a sure thing," Stephanie said, then raised an eyebrow. "What do you want anyways Hunter? I gave you the time you requested to bitch like a little boy whose onwy scoop of ice cweam fell on the fwoor," she finished with a baby voice.

"Nothing, I just wanted to see you in turmoil, you better get those divorce papers written up Stephanie, cause Jericho is about to join the same club I'm in, the 'Divorce from Stephanie' Club. We'll be the charter members, but don't worry, we expect more members soon enough, probably half the roster," Hunter told her.

"Oh shut up," Stephanie said, gritting her teeth. She didn't know why she put up with him most of the time. He annoyed her and annoyed her until she reached her breaking point with him. One of these days she would look forward to punching him in the face or kicking him in the crotch, but today was not that day.

Hunter went out there to start his speech on whatever it was that he wanted to spout off about again and Stephanie just sat there seething. She was trying very hard not to let Hunter's words seep into her mind. She wasn't going to let Hunter of all people try to sort out her brain. He knew nothing of the situation…even though he had been married to her and knew her first-hand. But that was so long ago and she had changed so much in the interim that there was no way she could consider herself the same person she was five years ago.

"That guy is such a jerk," Kurt told her, putting his hand on her shoulder for support. He could feel how tense she was even now, just sitting there. If she had had a pencil in her hand it might have broken from the pressure.

"Yeah, I know," Stephanie said quietly, but her anger was evident in her voice.

"Did I hear jerk?" Dave Batista asked as he walked over, looking incredible in his light-colored suit and nice blue shirt. If Stephanie was not married and completely in love with her husband, she would be a pile of mush right now from just looking at Dave. Dave smiled, "That can only mean one thing, you were talking about Triple H?"

"How did you ever guess?" Stephanie asked. "I mean, that's a tough one to guess and you got it on the first try and everything!"

"Oh, I don't know, you just hear jerk and the first thing that pops into your mind is that walking nose."

Stephanie laughed, "Kurt, you know Dave."

"Yeah, hey man, how you doing?"

"I'm good, can't complain about anything, I just gotta say, it's good to be the champ," Dave said with a winning smile.

"I know, I've been there," Kurt said. "It is a great feeling."

"So Dave," Stephanie said with a leading smile. "You were spending an awful lot of time with Christy Hemme last week, what's going on there?"

"Nothing," Dave said. "I told you Stephanie about all the propositions I've been getting. I guess I'm a chick magnet. How could I turn her away when all she wanted was a piece of me?"

"Wow, that was really slimy," Stephanie said. "But I don't know, you seemed interested."

Dave leaned in a little bit closer to her and Kurt, and then looked both ways really quickly, scanning the area. "To tell you the truth, she was really annoying and way too upbeat for someone like me. I just couldn't stand being with her after a while."

"I figured as much," Stephanie answered. "Oh look, Hunter is irate, this is new."

"I think someone should go calm him down, and seeing as how you aren't allowed on television Stephanie, and you're contracted to SmackDown Kurt, and there's nobody else around at the moment who actually wrestles, I'm thinking it should be me."

"Not to mention you're probably the person he hates the most right now."

"More than Chris, his archenemy?"

"He wants the belt more than he wants me," Stephanie told him. "Don't let me stop you from going out there and telling him what's what."

"Don't worry, just watch and revel in it," Dave said with a wink.

Dave went out there very calmly and very coolly as he was wont to do. He wasn't really the type to get totally worked up over something. He was more the type of guy who took it in stride. Hunter was the complete opposite. Hunter was a control freak, but he had the nagging problem of thinking that everyone believed that he SHOULD be in control. Nothing could be farther from the truth though, and Dave, least of all, wanted to be controlled by Hunter. He had been down that road before and it did not suit him, and he was not content with that relationship.

Dave let Hunter come at him with everything in him. The only problem he saw was the fact that Hunter was spitting in his face. The words didn't affect him so much, because they were untrue. Hunter could spout off at the mouth any time he wanted, but the only people who believed in what Hunter said were Hunter…and Flair. A case could be made for Hunter's family, but that was still up in the air as Dave had not called them and asked their opinion. If Dave did call, he wouldn't be surprised if his mother said that he had to have his bottle at the same, precise moment day in and day out; that just seemed like the type of guy that Hunter was.

Dave called Hunter out though, because Dave was hardly afraid of Hunter. Hunter could say it over and over again and he could even believe it, but still, the only people believing in him were himself and Flair, and maybe his family, maybe. Dave wasn't going to take this crap from him, because none of it was true. If Dave were a lesser man, maybe it would bother him, but Dave was a behemoth of a man and was not intimidated, even when Hunter made the oh so frightening gesture of taking off his tie! Run for the hills, he took off his tie! The end is nigh!

Dave was more than willing, MORE than willing to have Hunter leave and he encouraged him rather than discouraged him to do just that. Why would Dave care? Why would the fans care? In fact, the fans might be better off if he did leave and gave them time to savor a world in which Triple H was merely a figment of our nightmarish imagination. To Dave's great surprise, it seemed that Hunter was going to do just that and leave, and then he…well he left and Dave tried not to be stunned that Hunter would willingly leave while he was on the air taking up people's precious time, but he was stunned, in a good way.

Stephanie actually stood up when Hunter walked by her, not deigning her with even a glance. She was shocked, not even stunned, she was beyond stunned, she was shocked that Hunter was leaving, just like that. Was he going to stay away for a long time? She didn't even know and didn't even care to ask. This was a good thing, a good thing for her in the midst of a lot of bad things at the moment.

Dave came backstage and Stephanie walked up to him and threw her arms around him in a tight hug. Dave was not used to this kind of display and kind of awkwardly pat her on the back as she pulled away with a huge grin on her face. Dave couldn't contain his own grin and her eyes were dancing and bright.

"I never knew it could be that easy!" Stephanie said with amazement. "I mean, he just left, like that! Like it was nothing! All because you have the belt! And he just left, I mean, this is…amazing!"

"Well, it's not that amazing," Dave shrugged.

"No, this is like…the first time ever…well not ever, ever, but the first time in a long time. I have to cherish this! And savor it! Wow, if I had just known how easy it was to get him away from here, I would've asked you to do that way before now."

"He's just a sore loser, and if he wants to sit on his ass and wait for the fans to come, well, I guess he can rot in his reclining chair then, I don't think they'll be calling."

"Neither do I, thank you," Stephanie said. "I can only hope this extends itself for a while. Can you imagine it? Oh my God, I could come to work without fear that I would be harassed or reminded of my disastrous marriage. Wow, that has to be something, thank you so much!"

"It was nothing," Dave said, blowing it off. "All in a day's work ma'am."

"Ok, now you're just making me feel old," Stephanie said, slapping him lightly on the chest.

She saw him out of the corner of her eye. She could sense his presence better than anyone else, but that was simply because she spent so much time with him. Dave noticed that Stephanie got silent suddenly and looked off to the side. He expected Hunter to come storming back, pretending like he hadn't said he was leaving and then leave his "mark" all over the show.

But it was just Chris. Dave had heard the rumors circulating that things were not going well between Chris and Stephanie, but he had just ignored them as he did to most gossip that he heard. Most of the time, the gossip would be just that, gossip, and there was no truth behind it. Then seeing Stephanie just moments before, happy and bubbly, he had figured it all to be a ruse. He thought that people were just jealous of Chris because he was in the McMahon family now and wanted to spread slanderous rumors in order to make themselves feel like they were in a better opinion.

But the look on Stephanie's face pretty much confirmed the rumors, at least to the point where he was starting to believe them. He hadn't before because Stephanie seemed like she was so in love with Chris, but what did he know? He didn't spend all that much time with them, and Stephanie had said they kept it a secret for a long time.

"I'm going to go wait for the Gold Rush matches," Dave said, patting Stephanie on the shoulder. "And don't thank me again Steph."

"Ok, fine," Stephanie replied with a strained smile.

Chris just walked past her, having heard Daivari's challenge, he had decided to take it. He had just been sitting in his locker room anyways, doing nothing, talking to nobody, and someone had made an open challenge. He was just pissed off enough to do it too. What else did he have to do? And now he could just take out his anger on an unsuspecting Daivari. He did catch a glimpse of Kurt and gave him a slight nod of recognition before going out there with the intent to win.

The match wasn't long, and Jericho didn't really feel like he wasn't going to win. Once he slapped on those Walls of Jericho, it was over, Daivari tapped. Chris was happy for the win, but he wasn't ecstatic; he would've been more happy if he were facing Shawn Michaels later on for a chance to go for the World Title at a later date, but he'd be happy with what he got.

He didn't expect Hassan to come after him, though he should have and suddenly he was in the Camel Clutch. He tried to escape, but then felt someone run into the ring and saw Shelton come save him. He was grateful for the younger man coming out to help him. Shelton was turning into a pretty good friend and comrade of sorts.

They went backstage and Chris shook Shelton's hand, "Thanks man, you didn't have to do that."

"Yeah, I know, but since we smoothed things over last week, and the fact I can't stand those guys, I figured, what the hell," Shelton said. "I gotta lotta respect for you."

"Yeah, same here, I meant what I said about you having a lot of talent and doing things that nobody else does."

"Thanks again for that," Shelton said. "Well, I have to go, I have a match later against Conway, I just got told that. I guess I have to go kick some more ass later."

"No doubt you'll do it too, thanks again man."

"Don't mention it," Shelton nodded his goodbye and left Chris standing there, seemingly alone.

Except he wasn't alone because he knew that she was right behind him. He turned around slightly and saw that Kurt wasn't around. He had actually gone to go get some coffee at a local coffee shop for him and Stephanie, though Chris didn't know that. Stephanie looked down when she saw that he was looking at her, hoping that she hadn't been caught looking at him. He did see her though, had felt her eyes on his back. He wanted to go over and talk to her, but he couldn't.

He had heard the rumors going around that their marriage was disintegrating and it hurt to think about that. People were already talking about him and Stephanie and any impending divorce proceedings, although he had no intentions of divorcing her. They had only been married for only about four months, and he wasn't planning on having one of those Hollywood marriages where you changed partners at random and hoped you made the right choice the moment the ceremony ended.

He was just mad because she hadn't confided in him and she had been cross with him. If she was going to act like she had to him then he really had no reason to talk to her. Chris wasn't going to put up with the same crap that other people were willing to put up with when it came to Stephanie. She may be able to be tough and stern with her employees, but he wasn't JUST her employee, he was her husband, and that meant she should tell him when she's mad and why she is mad. And that was why he didn't want to talk to her.

And it wasn't like it wasn't hard to do; it was one of the hardest things he'd ever had to do. When he and Stephanie were just dating, and they had a fight, it was easy for Stephanie to go back to Connecticut, to her house to wallow away and give him the silent treatment, but they were married now and they lived together. Sure, they still owned the house in Connecticut, but it wasn't just her house anymore, it was THEIR house and he had the key and half the property, so he could do something stupid and call the police on her or something, he didn't know. Now they lived in the same house and neither one was going to leave because what would that mean? If one of them left for one of their other houses, neither knew the implications that it would mean.

So they just stayed angry at their own house, and it was hard not speaking to her or interacting with her on any level. He would walk downstairs and there she was, drinking a cup of coffee and reading the newspaper, or he'd go upstairs and there she was, folding the laundry on the bed while laughing at some sitcom she had TIVO'ed (the only one she really laughed at was Arrested Development, greatest show on television right now). There was no escaping her save of leaving the house and hanging out with himself and Trish when she wasn't being bothered by Christian, who he ALSO wasn't speaking to. He wondered if Stephanie and him were hanging out to get away from him.

He also hadn't kissed her in a week and that was strange. That never happened, hadn't happened since the last time that they had broken up. In the time between then and this past week, they had never been away from each other for more than a week, and so they were always kissing and what not. But this was the frozen week, no physical contact of any kind. There was nothing but chilliness between them and it was strange and awkward, and just…wrong. But he didn't know how to fix it and neither did she and so he walked away without her saying another word.

Christian was not thinking about Trish at the moment, or Chris and Stephanie. He was thinking about how bored he was and what he could do to remedy that situation, and you know what he came up with? Well that was to bug Ric Flair. Christian had not had fun when he had Hunter on his side. Hunter was too controlling and Flair was too much an ass-kisser, but it was a lot of fun to get Flair's ire up and see him explode in a deluge of "Whoo's."

That was how he ended up with a match with Flair later. He didn't sweat it though because he had a little trick up his sleeve, and Flair would be in for a surprise. He was going to call Trish and tell her what he was going to do, but thought the better of it and went to go see what Stephanie was doing instead. She saw that Kurt was there and with coffee in hand he walked over and sat on the table across from them.

"What's up my peeps?" Christian asked.

"I'm not one of your peeps," Kurt said dully.

"Oh come on," Christian said, "We're friends, I'm one of your peeps."

"Gee, thanks," Kurt deadpanned. "Just what I need to get to the top, Christian as one of my peeps."

"You'll be glad for it, trust me, so Kurt, thinking about that draft?"

"Only thinking that I would have a lot more fun if I were on Raw instead of SmackDown."

"Of course you would," Christian said as he clapped Kurt's arm. "I know you want to be around me more. I can't really blame you. Maybe some of my charisma will rub off on you. We can see what happens."

"Someone's a little cocky today," Stephanie mumbled as she took a sip of her coffee.

"Who me?" Christian asked with shock, placing his hands on his chest. "Surely you don't mean ME!"

"Who else?"

"Well I'm appalled. And as a matter-of-fact, I'm allowed to be cocky. Some people just have it, and I definitely have it."

"Have what? The clap?"

"Eww," Christian said, making a face. "I'll have you know that I have what it takes to make it in this crazy business we call wrestling."

"How's Trish by the way?" Kurt asked. "I should go visit her."

"Please do," Christian said, dropping the façade of being crazy and cool. "She's with her mom at our house, and I get the sense that she's lonely, so if you ever want to spend a Monday with her, I think she would really appreciate it."

"I'll do that, milk will help her back you know," Kurt said primly.

"O…k," Christian said, giving him a look, then turning his attention onto Stephanie in order to avoid Kurt. "So Stephanie, still all quiet on the Chris Jericho front?"

"Yeah," Stephanie sighed. "Not a peep."

"He's not talking to you AND he's not a peep, well this is most heinous," Christian said, crossing his arms and shaking his head. "What has gotten into our boy?"

"No clue, but I'm only his wife," Stephanie answered.

"So there are rumors going around," Christian said nonchalantly.

"I know, though I don't know what the exact rumors are."

"From what I've heard, it's pretty much that you and Chris are on the outs and that he moved out of the house and that he's going to file divorce papers on you for irreconcilable differences because, and that's where I didn't hear anymore."

"Yeah, I was walking down the hallway and heard that being whispered around too," Kurt said. "The divorce part, not the moving out part. I think there's one or two solid ones."

"Well…he hasn't moved out," Stephanie said, furrowing her brow. "It was his house to begin with anyways, if anyone was going to move out, it would probably be me."

"It's just a rumor."

"Yeah, but every rumor has a grain of truth doesn't it?"

"Steph, I wouldn't worry about it," Kurt said.

"Yeah, it's probably all bogus," Christian said. "It's not like Chris has talked to anyone, who would he have talked to?"

"His lawyer? Maybe someone heard him talking to his lawyer about drawing up papers," Stephanie said, glancing between the two men. "If you'll excuse me, I think I need to have a word with my husband, if he's still my husband."

"Steph, even if he wanted to divorce you, you'd have to sign them for him to not be your husband anymore," Kurt said, then Stephanie shot him a death glare, "I was just trying to ease your mind!"

"Not doing a good job of that," Stephanie said, walking off. Christian and Kurt stayed silent for a moment, both of them worrying about their friends. Then Christian turned to Kurt with intent in his eye.

"So how can I get you to be a full, blown-out peep?" Christian asked as Kurt just groaned and banged his forehead against his desk. "What?"

"Next thing you know you're going to be asking for donations," Kurt answered.

"Whoa, do you think that people would actually donate money to me!" Christian asked, his eyes widening.

"How in the hell does Trish put up with you?"

"Why does everyone ask me that?" Christian said, scratching his head. "Even my mom asked me?"

"Smart woman," Kurt grumbled.

"She is," Christian said. "And Trish just loves me."

"Well, I guess she does have questionable taste in men, so I don't blame her for loving you," Kurt said.

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means the woman was with Vince McMahon for God's sakes."

"La la la, I don't hear you," Christian said, covering his ears and humming.

"Ok, I'll stop," Kurt told him.

"Good, and that was in the past, see, she got the old man thing out of the way, and she got the weird, introspective guy out of the way when she was with Jeff, so now she's with the keeper."

"Or you can consider yourself the crazy, eccentric guy."

"Do YOU want Trish? Because you can't have her, she's mine you know? Is that why you asked to visit her? Are you going to try and steal her from me! Wow, you're an awful friend Kurt Angle. I feel like this is a stab in the back from a friend. And after we were in Team ECK together, man, this is a blow."

"No, I don't want Trish, trust me, no," Kurt said.

"Hey! What's wrong with Trish? I'll have you know she's the most beautiful diva on this roster. And she's one of the only ones who can actually wrestle. She's the Women's Champion you know. Even if she can't defend it right now, she's still the champion. She's the best and nobody could compare to her. So you could do a lot, LOT worse than Trish. Guys wish and dream they could be with her."

"Ok, so Trish is a real catch."

"Wait, now do you want to be with her! I can't believe this…"

"Oh God," Kurt muttered as Christian kept talking, "This is going to go on for hours."

Stephanie marched into Chris's locker room. Yes, just Chris's locker room; he had requested his own locker room for the evening. Actually, he had the power to get his own locker room so he just made one his own, Stephanie felt bad for whoever the poor sap was that got kicked out of there's, but this was neither the time nor the place to think about that. There were more important things at hand.

"Are you filing for divorce!" Stephanie yelled at the startled Chris, who looked up at her from where he was in just his boxers and pulling up his pants.

"I'm changing!" he yelled at her.

"I've seen everything there is to see," Stephanie said, waving him off as he pulled up his pants and buttoned and zipped them. "Answer my question."

"I didn't even hear your question, I was changing," Chris snapped at her.

"I said, ARE YOU FILING FOR DIVORCE!" Stephanie said, her voice getting louder and louder with each passing syllable.

"What!" Chris asked, throwing his head back. "Where the hell did you get that idea?"

"Oh, I don't know, from every single person backstage. There are rumors going around, did you know that! Rumors saying that you moved out of our house and that our marriage is on the rocks and that you hate me, and you're filing for divorce for irreconcilable differences because you can't stand me, and then when I was walking here, someone said that you had thrown your wedding ring in the trash!"

"Stephanie!" Chris yelled, holding up his hand where his wedding ring was on his ring finger. "Does this look like it's in the trash?"

"Well no," Stephanie said, "But are you filing for divorce from me? Because if you are, if someone heard you talking to your lawyer, why don't you stop being a coward and tell me to my face that you're divorcing me! I can take it you know, I've been through one, I know all the motions. Don't just go file it and not even tell me. If you want out of this marriage, FINE, but don't you dare go about doing it behind my back."

"Oh, so if I want a divorce, right now, I would have to tell you, right now."

"Yes," Stephanie said, her voice firm, but shaking. Chris was making it sound like he was going to file for divorce, and she was starting to get scared. He hadn't said anything in the affirmative, but he hadn't said anything in the negative either.

"So I could say, Stephanie, I want a divorce, this marriage thing is not working out for me and that's all you want to hear?"

"Yes," Stephanie responded, her voice a trifle shakier.

Chris took a step closer to her. "So I would just throw away an almost three year relationship and a four month marriage. Ok, well, I guess that's a reasonable request. All you want is for me to tell you to your face that I want a divorce."

"That's all."

"It's a reasonable request," Chris repeated, rubbing his chin.

"Then just say it and get it over with," Stephanie told him, standing stoically in one spot. She could feel tears coming, but they had yet to reach her eyes. Chris was prolonging her agony and she was already mentally calculating how they would divide their assets.

"Stephanie…"

"Yes," Stephanie said, composing herself and preparing herself for the blow. She closed her eyes, not even able to look at him right now for fear that she might break down.

"Are you out of your ever loving mind?" Chris asked and Stephanie opened her eyes, which were now clouded over with confusion.

"Excuse me?"

"You think I'm divorcing you?"

"Everyone said it."

"And if everyone said that I was suddenly Trip's best friend, would you believe that too?"

"No…"

"Then why in God's name would you believe this?"

"You just said that…all that stuff about telling me."

"Because you were being irrational," Chris told her. "Not once, not one single time since we've gotten married have I thought about divorcing you, and this past week was no exception. I may be mad at you Stephanie, but I didn't stop loving you."

"You still love me?" she asked hopefully.

"Oh God, you honestly thought I didn't," Chris said with sigh. "Steph, baby, come here."

Chris opened his arms and Stephanie tentatively went over to him. She gingerly hugged him around the waist and he pulled her closer into a tight hug. When she felt how much he was putting into the hug, she returned it with a vengeance, burying herself into his shirt, inhaling his shampoo scent and closing her eyes as she just felt HIM against her.

"What are you crazy?" Chris asked. "I'll never stop loving you."

"You were mad at me," Stephanie pointed out.

"Because you wouldn't tell me what was bothering you last week."

"I was just bothered because it's my fault that you haven't had another title shot."

"It's not."

"It is, you would've gotten a real rematch with Hunter if it weren't for me," Stephanie told him.

"Steph, that was a long time ago, I just need to work harder for it, its not a big deal. I don't want you to feel like this is your burden when it isn't. I just need to work harder, that's all. Is that all that was upsetting you?"

"Pretty much."

"Baby, you're so crazy," Chris said, kissing her head. "Next time, just tell me instead of letting me get mad."

"I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too, fight over?"

"Fight over," Stephanie smiled, "I would kiss you right now, but I don't want to let go of you."

"So are we just going to stand here like this for the rest of the night?" he chuckled.

"Yeah, I hate fighting with you."

"I can't believe you actually bought all those rumors," Chris said to her.

"Well, so many people were saying them. Even Kurt and Christian."

"And you listened to those two? Oh man Stephanie, come on, Kurt and Christian can't be trusted. You know that."

"I missed you so much," Stephanie said, burying her face deeper into his shirt. "Also, congratulations on your win tonight."

"Thanks, I think Shelton is a really good kid," Chris told her. "He's going to go places. I can make sure of that."

"I was going to rig the show for you."

"Oh, now I KNOW you've gone crazy," Chris joked.

"Shut up, I was just trying to help," Stephanie laughed.

"Yeah, and I really am Trip's best friend."

"Geez, one week apart and you guys are best friends, you really are nothing without me Jericho."

"Come on Steph, let's go back to work."

"Are you going to forgive Christian?" Stephanie asked.

"Now that we'll have to see."


	36. So Much Badness, May 16, 2005

"I'm happy with Kane."

Edge scoffed, "How can you be happy with that guy? He's a freak Li. Have you seen his eyes, they're not even the same color, and he's bald, and he's gross, and he's a psychopath."

"But he helped me," Lita said, shaking her head. "He helped me and he cares about me and he's defended me, and he didn't have to, but he did it because I'm his wife and he loves me. He cares about what happens to me!"

Edge pushed Lita up against the wall a little bit, making her obviously uncomfortable. He tilted her chin to look up at him and despite her trying to move her face away from his, he kept her gaze on him. "I care about you too doll-face."

"No you don't," Lita told him. "Kane does, and I want to be with Kane. I can't believe you're suggesting that I give him up just to help you."

"I'm not suggesting it Lita," Edge told her, his voice going from playful to serious. "I want this title shot, and every other damn title shot until I become the champion, and tonight I face Kane, your husband, and in case you had forgotten, we had a plan together."

"Yeah, which I quit and am not a part of anymore, whatever plan YOU have, is YOUR plan, not mine," Lita told him, shaking her head. "I want no part in it. I want Kane to win, I want him to be the one that gets the title shot."

"Lita, Lita, Lita," Edge said tapping her chin every time she said her name. "You forget one thing."

"What?" Lita said, an uneasy feeling in her stomach.

"That plan that we had, who was it against?"

"Chris and Stephanie."

"Chris and Stephanie," Edge said, giving her that patented smile of his. "Two of the owners of the company. Stephanie runs this show, Chris is helping her, she and her father are on good terms. What do you think is going to happen if either one of them, or one of her family members finds out that you were behind this whole plan to break them up?"

"I wasn't behind any plan!" Lita exclaimed.

"Says the woman who has slept with three different men in the past year," Edge said. "And lied about at least two of them, and who knows how many more. At least I have some credibility on my side. And I can persuade Christian, my brother, to believe in me, and then he'd go to Chris and Stephanie with it, and they wouldn't believe that I was the one behind it."

"How dare you do that!"

"No, how dare YOU do that to them? I knew how in love they were, for a long time I was one of the only ones that knew. But you, you've been jealous, we've all seen it," Edge said. "We know that you've wanted to add Chris's name onto that long list of men you've bedded."

"I can't believe you're going to blackmail me," Lita hissed, narrowing her eyes at him.

"Blackmail is such an ugly word, don't you think?" Edge said, pretending to spit the bad taste out of his mouth. "I like to call it leverage."

"Call it whatever, but it's…it's…not right!"

"Is that all you can come up with. Lita, I've been here for a long time, and I haven't gotten what I wanted, and I will go through whoever I have to, to get where I want to go. Tonight it's Kane, and so you are going to be on my side. And I think that I'll keep you around this time, I think you can be an asset. Look what happened to Trish Stratus after all."

"What about Kane?"

"You turn on him tonight in our match and you join up with me, simple enough for you Li, or do you need the kiddie version?" Edge asked snidely.

"I don't want to do this," Lita said, tears clogging her voice. She had just gotten into a rhythm with Kane, and felt like she had finally found something good, something solid that she might be able to rely on for a while and now she was getting torn away from it.

"I don't CARE what YOU want," Edge said, making a face. "It's about what I want Lita. And if you don't go along with it, your life will be ruined…more than it is. I mean, Kane, have some standards woman."

"Fine, I'll do it, I have no other choice," Lita said, defeated and knowing it. "What do you want me to do?"

"Well, I'm glad you finally see my side, here's how I want it to go down," Edge said, grabbing her hand and dragging her reluctant form onto the couch. "Oh come on Li, lighten up, tonight is going to be fun."

Someone who was having about as much fun as Lita was Chris, who was starting the show with his tag match with Shelton. He liked the kid and liked their chances for this match. Hassan and Daivari were relative newcomers into the business, and so obviously Chris and Shelton had the one-up in that department, and as far as talent went, well, that edge went to Chris and Shelton too. The only thing that Hassan and Daivari had to their advantage was the fact that collectively, their pants were shinier, and that's not really an advantage.

He and Shelton made a good team, he thought as they were wrestling. Sometimes you didn't have good chemistry with your tag partners, but he thought that for the most part, he and Shelton had some good chemistry going on. They had tandem clotheslines even, now that was just chemistry…or good timing, one or the other. They also hit dual cross-body's over the top rope to the men below.

The flow of the match was working to Chris and Shelton's advantage most of the time. They were seemingly unstoppable, but then Shelton seemed to disappear from Chris's sight, and as he was going to go for the Walls of Jericho on Hassan, but Daivari showed and Chris went for the springboard dropkick, hitting him barely and before he could go back for the Walls, Hassan hit him with the STO and he was down for the count.

For Chris, it was another small blow in a body that had taken small blow and small blow until it was starting to rise into one big blow-out. He felt strange, but not in a way that said he was hurt, he just felt strange and detached from the situation as if he were having an out-of-body experience and he wasn't actually losing to people that he should've won against.

Shelton came up to talk to him, but Chris, not quite out of his mind, but not quite in the right mind ignored him and exited the ring, his face impassive and emotionless. He walked straight up the ramp, grabbing off his wristbands and throwing them down on the ground, not out of anger, but out of something deeper and he just didn't know what it was. He couldn't figure out this feeling in the pit of his stomach, but he could feel it growing, taking a life of its own, trying to grab at him, take control of him until he didn't know up from down or left from right.

He walked backstage and she was there because she was always there. She had this sympathetic look on her face, and for the first time, he just didn't want to see it. Maybe he didn't want to see her face, maybe he just didn't want to see her. The thing in his stomach, that feeling rose when he saw her, became more forceful in wanting to be away from her. He wanted to be away from her, but his chest, the pounding he felt every moment, that part wanted her.

Stephanie walked over and she grabbed his hands, rocking them back and forth. "Fluke, it was a fluke."

"Was it?" he said, not completely aware of the words coming out of his mouth.

"What do you mean sweetie?" Stephanie asked, genuinely confused. She knew that Chris was one of the best and could beat every single person on this roster. She KNEW it and she believed in him so much that even if someone told her that it wasn't true, not really, she wouldn't believe them. She had what is called faith in her husband.

"I mean, maybe I'm not good, maybe I'm mediocre, and I've been mediocre my entire life, and I've just now come to realize that my full potential is gone."

"Mediocre?" Stephanie asked with a scoff. "You? Mediocre? You were the first Undisputed Champion! I was there, I was by your side for part of your reign! I saw it firsthand!"

"Maybe THAT was the fluke," Chris suggested, and still he had no control over his words.

"No," Stephanie said, shaking her head vehemently, "No way. You were great, you won, you kept winning. Everyone thought that The Rock would win at Royal Rumble, and he didn't, you did, you won. They all had you pegged as the loser for that match, but you proved them wrong. And you held the WCW title too, you beat The Rock for that."

"Yeah, and look how I did that."

"Chris, you would've won, regardless of my help," Stephanie said. "I shouldn't have brought that chair out, but I would've distracted you and you didn't let me distract you, not too much."

"Stephanie, I don't want to get into this with you right now," Chris told her. "I just want to go shower and get changed and leave."

"I can't leave," Stephanie said pathetically, feeling rejected, like she couldn't even comfort her own husband.

"I know, but you can find a ride back, can't you?"

"So you'd just leave me here?"

"What do you want me to do Stephanie? Do you want me to just wait here like your little puppy dog until you're finished like I don't have a life that does not consist of you? I have other things that I would like to do! Do you understand that!"

Stephanie blinked a few times, her eyes darkening in anger. She raised her palm a little, almost ready to slap him, but she let it back down again, just balling it into a tight fist. "Fine, have it your way Jericho. Deal with everything yourself. I'll just stay here and find another ride back. Maybe I'll get another room too, wouldn't cost too much or anything. I'm not the reason you lost tonight Jericho."

"Maybe you are McMahon," Chris said, not even knowing why he was taking this out on Stephanie, but knowing that it felt right somehow, like she was the cause of all his problems, like his life had been better when she wasn't in it.

"Then I suggest you get your ass out of here before I call security and have you personally escorted out of the building," Stephanie said coolly. 

"Fine," Chris said with a smile. "I'm gone."

He left and Stephanie didn't even watch him leave. She just turned on her heel and went back to her table, writing furiously as she practically shoved her headphones on her head. She didn't know what was wrong with Chris lately, but whatever it was, it was getting progressively worse and she didn't like it one bit. It did not create a fun home atmosphere when there were little fights springing up all over the place.

The only bright side was the fact that Hunter was not there and he had no plans to be there. She knew that because Flair had actually had the audacity to come to her and tell her that Hunter needed to be called to come back. Stephanie had laughed openly in his face, not even attempting for a serious answer with that one. That was one of the only things going splendidly right now. She looked up at her monitors and saw that Flair was now asking Bischoff to do the same thing that he had asked her and she laughed heartily when he wouldn't. Served Hunter right for not being around. She hated that guy.

Which brought her mind right back around to Chris. She was angry at Chris for dismissing her and she hadn't even shown him that. What the hell was she thinking? She was Stephanie McMahon and she was going to sit here and take it while her husband basically told her that he didn't want to be around her? That was not the person she was, and it wasn't a person she was going to become.

She stood up and took her headphones off, leaving the work to her assistants as she went to her office/Chris's locker room. She opened the door to find him gathering his shower things and when he looked up to see her, he rolled his eyes and she just glared at him. He stood up and put his things on a nearby table, looking at her for a moment.

"What the hell do you want now?" Chris asked.

"Don't give me that tone of voice," Stephanie said. "I will not be talked to like I'm a dog who follows you around. I'm your wife and I demand respect."

"Here she comes," Chris said.

"I don't know what you mean, and I don't give a damn," Stephanie said. "But I'm not just going to sit here and take it while you ream me to make yourself feel better. Maybe you think that you have a live-in punching bag in me Jericho, but you don't."

"Well fine then, is that all?"

"No, that's not all," Stephanie told him. "I don't know what the hell is wrong with you. Last week, we made up, and that was fine. The next day we're fighting over stupid things and this has continued until today, until right now and there has to be a reason."

"There's no reason," Chris said. "I just want to leave."

"You know what? God, I thought this would happen like a week after we became business partners. I thought then that we would degrade ourselves into fighting over stupid things, but no, it only took, well, let me think, more than three years for it to happen. Lucky me for not realizing it sooner."

"So what? You want a separation then? You want to go our separate ways?" Chris asked. "I don't know, maybe we can just spend a few months apart, see how that works out for us."

"Is that what you want?"

"Right now, I just want a hot shower."

"I'm not going anywhere Jericho, do you hear me? I'm not going anywhere until I found out who stole my husband and replaced him with the world's biggest jerk."

"Then you're going to be here for a long time sweetheart."

"Ooh, I'm so scared," Stephanie said, shaking her palms like she was spooked. "Look at me shaking in my two hundred dollar shoes. I'm gonna cry because you're so scary."

"Mature Stephanie."

"Yeah, as mature as you're acting to me right now, and have been acting for the past week. Every little thing sets you off. Everything is a problem with you. Even the way you had your desk at home set up bugged you. You were up until three in the morning arranging your desk. Who does that besides people with OCD?"

"It was a mess."

"It could've waited overnight."

"It was trash night, I had to get the trash out before that morning!"

"And did you? Or did you fall asleep at your desk and then I woke up, didn't know where you were, went searching for you, found two garbage bags filled on the floor and took them out to the curb at four in the morning? Hmm…since I lived it, I'm guessing that's what happened," Stephanie said smartly. "You think I don't know what's going on? I live with you, every single day, I know what's going on with you, at least on the outside."

"There's nothing going on, on the inside either."

"Well I know there's not up there," Stephanie said, pointing to his head. "Because that seems to have gone on a long, long vacation."

"Oh, that's so funny Stephanie, ha ha ha," Chris said, clutching his stomach and pretending to laugh.

"Oh, cute Jericho, real cute," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes.

"I know I am, which pretty much makes me desirable to many, many women."

"Yeah, and I'm sure those many, many women would have a nervous breakdown if they had to deal with you for more than one week and lucky me, I've been dealing with you for almost three years. God, three years, I'm surprised my hair isn't streaked with white."

"And I'm surprised I still have hair because you stress me out so much sometimes that I want to pull my hair out," he countered, and it was very much like a sparring match between the two of them before they were married. Neither one of them was going to back down and they each had a comeback at the ready without hesitation.

"That the best you can do?" Stephanie said. "Why don't you hit me with the harder stuff? Talk about how I'm a slut or a whore, or a filthy, dirty, disgusting, brutal, skanky, bottom-feeding trash-bag ho. Isn't that what you really think of me?"

"Used to," he commented dryly. "Might have to go back to that way of thinking since you love to berate me. You sure have turned into one of those nagging wives."

"Oh get a life Jericho," Stephanie said. "Unfortunately, I have to share mine with you, so just take your damn shower, change and leave for God's sakes because the last thing that I want to see at this moment is your ugly face!"

Stephanie stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her. She turned to her right and almost ran into her father, letting out a scream because she was not expecting anyone there, least of all her father. Stephanie gasped again, putting a hand over her heart fearing that it had jumped up to her throat in the scare.

"Stephanie!" Chris yelled, flinging the door open, his heart constricting at the sound of his wife's blood-curdling scream.

"I'm sorry," Stephanie said, more to Chris than her father. "I just wasn't expecting anyone to be right outside when I walked here."

"Oh," Chris said, realizing they had just had another fight and then not moment's later, he feared for his wife's safety. Stephanie, for her part, was happy that Chris had showed her concern even after fighting tooth and nail with her. "Um, shower."

"Yeah," Stephanie said, feeling a little bit uncomfortable now. "Bye."

"Bye."

Stephanie turned to her father, a strange expression on his face. "What is it Dad?"

"Nothing, you two were just addressing each other like you had never met and I found it odd."

"Chris has been stressed lately," Stephanie said, excusing her husband's poor behavior. She realized right then that Chris hadn't even acknowledged Vince, but she reasoned that he had been concerned with her and not about who was around her.

"I understand," Vince said. "You two lead very busy lives."

"Yeah, we do," Stephanie nodded. "But wait, what are you doing here Dad?"

"A man can't come to see how his show is doing? I am the president of this company Stephanie."

"I know Dad, I just wasn't expecting it, you never told me you were coming."

"I told Bischoff, didn't he tell you?"

"No," Stephanie said, scowling, but then smiling. "But he also doesn't know that I approved another match without him. Sorry Dad, but sometimes, he needs to be put in his place."

"I know," Vince said. "So do you from time to time?"

"Dad, please, I'm the best," she said, "So if you're here, why am I here?"

"Is that your way of asking for the night off?"

"Well Daddy, it's just, with Chris being stressed and losing, I'm just worried about him, and I think that a night by ourselves would do us wonders. I understand if you don't want me leaving the job, but I'd appreciate it."

"Go ahead," Vince said, not being able to resist Stephanie any more now than he could when she was a child.

"Thanks Daddy," she said, kissing his cheek quickly. She walked off to do some finishing touches and tell her assistants what to do in her stead.

When Chris came out of the shower later, he changed into his other clothes, slipping his wedding ring on and then his watch. He was just finishing up when Shelton came in and asked, though vaguely, if he was ok. Chris gave him a roundabout answer, essentially listing off all the things in his life that was right, that was going well, like he had to convince himself that without wrestling he would be alright, that wrestling was nothing, even though it was something, a big something.

He walked out, with his suitcase in hand, and went to leave. When he got to the door, he was surprised to see Stephanie, bag in hand, waiting. He didn't know what to do, so he stopped and she gave him a small smile before throwing up her thumb at him. He looked at her confused.

"I'm hitching a ride," she explained. "I don't have a ride to my hotel and was hoping a nice stranger would take pity on me and give me a ride to where I'm staying."

"I've got room," Chris said simply, opening the door for her.

"Thanks, I wasn't looking forward to walking," Stephanie said, trying to make a joke, but Chris was not laughing. Irregardless of that fact, Chris opened her door for her and put her things in the back. While they were driving, she wanted to grab his hand, but thought the better of it, keeping to herself and contenting herself to watching the passing scenery, even if she could only make out vague shapes in the darkness.

They got back to their hotel and rode up the elevator to their suite. She had caught the tail end of his conversation with Shelton as she had stood in front of the monitors near the gorilla and wanted to talk to him about them. She had noticed his wedding ring and it made her smile, a small symbol of their love for everyone to see. Maybe it was just habit that he had put it on, but he still put it on.

She set her things down when her cell phone rang and her caller ID said it was Christian. "Hey Christian, what's up?"

"Did you know Randy was here?" he asked.

"No," Stephanie said. "I wish I could be there."

"Where are you? I thought you were here, working," Christian told her. "Wait, I'm all alone aren't I? I have nobody right? I get beat up by Dave Batista and there's nobody here. My girlfriend is at home with a herniated disk and now my best friends abandon me!"

"We took the night off, no big deal. And what's this about Dave beating you up?"

"Well, YOUR friend Dave didn't take too kindly to me teaching Flair not to discredit me again," Christian said. "I mean, it was harmless and here he comes out, like a hero in a movie or something, but that would make Flair the damsel-in-distress, which is an unsettling thought. Although he does have the whole blond hair thing working for him."

"Christian, really, get to the point."

"All I'm saying is that the man is a monster, or an animal, either or really, whichever strikes more fear I guess is the one you go with," Christian said, going off on a tangent. "Anyways, he came out there, for no good reason, really, I guess he's trying to get Flair on his side and not Trips, but what do I know? Nothing apparently, didn't even know that everyone had abandoned me."

"Nobody abandoned you," Stephanie said. "What did Randy want?"

"He can't be drafted, and that he wants to take out Dave. Then your dad came out, and he was pissed, Randy not your dad, but then your dad was like going to get mad when Randy told him that he should talk to him with respect," Christian said like he was a gossiping teenager.

"He mouthed off to my dad?" Stephanie asked incredulously. "Who does he think he is? Austin?"

"It was a sight, let me tell you. But yeah, he's here, and I wasn't sure what our whole stand on Randy was. Are we hating him or what?"

"I don't hate Randy, I think that he was being stupid with what he did to Stacy--"

"Or as I like to call her, Super Stacy," Christian interjected. "Sorry go on, whole thing with Stacy…"

"I don't know, he's different, Chris is different, Trish isn't around, you're being whiny. It's like everything has changed and I'm not keeping up with it."

"But I'm always whiny," Christian said softly, trying to break Stephanie free from her momentary reverie. "Kid, you know that I'm a constant in your life. I didn't pretend to be your boyfriend for nothing."

"Kid?" Stephanie asked curiously.

"Well, you're younger than me and that's the kind of thing you say to cheer someone up."

"Yeah, if you're on a junior varsity basketball team in high school," Stephanie said. "Christian, I'm fine. Chris is the one who isn't."

"I wish I knew how to help, but Chris is weird."

"Don't I know it," Stephanie said. "Thanks for the update. Call me if anything else interesting happens so I can curse myself out for not being there."

"Go have fun with Chris, you won't think about what you're missing."

"That's gross," Stephanie said, "Bye Christian, and thanks, for everything."

"Eh, I do what I can when I can, bye Steph," Christian said, hanging up.

Stephanie flipped her phone shut and looked around to see where Chris had ended up. She got up to peek in the bedroom and saw him lying on the bed, still in his dress clothes and his arm over his eyes like he was trying to block out the light, even though it was pretty dim in the room as it was. Stephanie knew she wanted to help him, but she just didn't know what the matter was. Maybe he was depressed or something, nah, she had never seen Chris depressed before. Either way, she went over and slipped out of her shoes, leaving them at the end of the bed.

She crawled onto the bed and lay down next to him. She didn't know what do for a moment before scooting herself closer to him and wrapping her right arm around his middle, laying her head on his chest. He didn't move for a minute or two, but then she felt his right arm lift up and his hand rubbing her lower back in circles.

"I'm in a funk," he gave up a few minutes later.

"I know," Stephanie said, because that much she did know.

"I don't know how to get out of it. I mean, I'm not in a funk life-wise, the good things outweigh the bad things by like a million, but then there's wrestling which has been my LIFE for so long now, long before I met you, not knew about you…well no, longer than I knew about you."

"How long ago did you find out about me?" Stephanie asked curiously, letting him talk about the harder stuff on his own terms.

"Well, the WWF catalogues, you were a model in them."

"Oh God, not that again," Stephanie said, covering her face with one of her hands. "I was suckered into it, I swear. You can't make me say otherwise."

"I just knew of you," Chris said, "I didn't say to myself, 'Wow, that's the girl I'm going to marry,' although that would be weird if I had."

"Yeah, it would," Stephanie agreed, rubbing his stomach a little, easing that feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"I have a lot of good things, first on the list is you, and I'm sorry for earlier."

"You're in a funk," Stephanie explained.

"I'm in a funk. I'm trying not to be."

"I know, but you're in a funk."

"What do you even see in me?" Chris said dramatically and Stephanie knew he was trying to joke around, even through his funk.

"I have no idea," she joked back, though her tone was lighter. "I ask myself that same question every day, and I've yet to come up with an answer."

"I'm not Hunter."

"I wouldn't want you to be."

"I'm not the top guy ALL the time," he pointed out.

"Don't want you to be that either."

"You don't?" he asked, and this time he wasn't joking. Stephanie McMahon deserved the best, she deserved to have the best, she was a freaking millionaire.

"Nah, you lose sight of other things. And you have so much on your plate right now Chris. Wrestling, your new radio show, your band, booking everything you book, helping to run a wrestling show. It's bound to be somewhere where you're lacking while you're excelling in other aspects. You can't hold so many balls in your hands without dropping some along the way."

"You forgot one other important thing on my plate," Chris told her.

Stephanie thought for a moment, "No I didn't, I think I got them all."

"You," Chris answered simply, kissing her forehead.

"Nah, I'm not something that you have to worry explicitly about. I can manage. You just try to get out of your funk. I'll still love you regardless, even if you are the world's biggest jerk while doing it."

"You should've just slapped me like you wanted to."

"Who said I wanted to?"

"Your hand," Chris replied. "I saw that you wanted to, you should've, I deserved it. I've been a jerk."

"You have," she agreed, with no malice whatsoever. "But like you said last week, just because we fight doesn't mean that I love you any less than I do. So even if you've been a jerk, which you have, I still love you."

"I love you too. You know, you're just about the best--"

They were interrupted by Stephanie's cell phone, and she reached into her pocket to retrieve it. "Oops, it's Christian, I have to get it."

"Ok," Chris said. "Um tell him I say hi."

"I'm sure he'll be glad to hear that," Stephanie told him, kissing him lightly before answering her cell phone again. "What is it Christian?"

"Oh my God," Christian said, "you will NOT believe what just happened, right now, without warning."

"What?"

"Lita and Edge."

"Holy…are you sure?"

"Um, judging by the major make-out session they just had ON THE RAMP, yes, I'm sure. And the fact that Edge winked at me when they were passing by like two minutes ago, then yeah, I'm sure."

"So the rumors!"

"I don't know!"

"Oh my God! Does Trish know!"

"She was the first one I called. She's grossed out, but otherwise…what if Lita becomes my new sister-in-law? Oh my God, we're going to have to have separate family gatherings. I can't have Lita and Trish in the same arena, let alone the same house. Oh God, I have to get Mom and Grandma Edna to like Trish better than Lita."

"Christian, slow down, he's not marrying her…right this second," she added lamely.

"I've got to mobilize the troops!"

"What troops?"

"I don't know, that's what they always say before the enemy. Trish is going to hate this. She's going to dump me because she's not going to risk being related to Lita."

"Christian, she's not going to dump you. I mean, Lita must have an explanation, there must be."

"Explanation for what?" Chris asked. He had been fine with listening, but now he was curious, knowing it was about Lita.

"Lita and Edge," Stephanie said shortly, going back to her call.

Chris sat back and thought about what Lita had said. Edge had manipulated her and used her, and maybe he was doing that again. Lita had seemed genuinely happy with Kane and now this. It was so out of the blue. Maybe he could see what was going on and maybe help Lita if she needed it. Stephanie hung up and went back to looking at him.

"So Lita and Edge screwed Kane, I wonder what that's about."

"Yeah, me too," Chris said distractedly.

"Sweetie, you'll get out of your funk," Stephanie told him, kissing the corner of his mouth, thinking that was what was bothering.

"Hopefully," he answered.

He just didn't know how.


	37. Eww, May 23, 2005

Stephanie sighed to herself. Despite Chris admitting that he was in a funk, things were still very tense around the Jericho household. He was busy with a tour thing for Fozzy, and she of course was busy with the company so they had spent most of their time apart or in their separate offices and Stephanie was upset by it. She didn't like this feeling that Chris set in her stomach. She knew they were very busy people, but never before had it seemed to take such a toll on their relationship.

They hadn't even come to the show together tonight. Granted, she had to be here early, but usually he would tag along, see what he could do to help her, and tonight he had said that he had business that really needed to be taken care of. He hadn't elaborated on what he needed to do, but she took it in stride like usual. She was mostly trying to avoid another fight. The fights were frequent now and that too bothered her. She didn't like fighting with Chris, it felt too much like fighting with Hunter and that had been hell.

At least Hunter hadn't shown his face for the past two weeks. That was such a breath of fresh air. She didn't need to worry and it was almost just a relief to know that she wouldn't have to deal with him. But that was still only secondary to the problems that she and Chris were having right now. That sounded so weird as she and Chris had never had problems that pertained to Chris being in a rut.

Maybe talking to Christian would help. The start of the show was closing in, but Stephanie found herself more and more distracted by her life. She wanted to figure things out and work was getting in the way of that and she could feel herself drifting away from it for now, just until she figured things out with Chris. She got up and walked to Christian's locker room, hoping to find him there.

"Yeah, I plan on finding out," Christian said in his locker room, on the phone with Trish. Tomko was sitting in another chair flipping through a magazine. "No…Trishy, no, eww, that would reek of suckitude. I promise, I'll break them up before that happens…what? No, I will not marry you. Hold on, there's someone at the door."

Christian got up and went to answer the door, finding Stephanie on the other side. He smiled and ushered her in.

"So who was at the door?" Trish asked from her and Christian's home, far, far away since it was not a good idea for her to get on a plane with her herniated disc.

"It's Steph, I'm gonna call you back later babe, that cool?"

"Like the other side of the pillow," Trish joked. "I'll be here when you call because I can't really go anywhere else, my mom says hi though."

"Cool, tell her I said hi back."

"She also said that you'll always be #1 with her, and that you don't have to compete for her love like I'm going to have to with Lita."

"I'm telling you Trish, Mom will not like her. She loves you, probably because she never thought I could get a chick as hot as you…I don't know why she thought that, but I think that's what she thinks."

"Uh huh," Trish said, "I love you."

"Do I have to say it back? I'm around the guys…well Steph and Tyson, but still…"

"Chrissy, I want to hear you say it," Trish said persuasively.

"Iloveyou," he mumbled jokingly. "You know how I feel about you."

"Never hurts to get the confirmation," Trish responded. "Bye."

"Bye, I'll see you when I get home tomorrow."

"You will."

Christian hung up the phone and turned to Stephanie who had gotten quite comfortable on the couch. Christian flopped down on it, sinking in a little bit. He turned to her and smiled and she leant on the couch facing him, smiling as well, but hers was decisively weaker. Christian gave Tomko a look and he understood that he needed a minute with Stephanie and got up to leave.

"What's up Kid?" Christian said, using the new nickname that he had adopted for Stephanie. She didn't know what compelled him to use that on her, but it was kind of nice to have someone to look up to. If Christian was really a guy that you looked up to, since he was almost like a kid himself.

"Nothing, everything, I don't know," she said, turning to lean her head on his shoulder. "Chris is…well he's in a rut, a big one, and I don't know how to help him. If he wants help that is."

"Oh," Christian said. "Where is he?"

"Hotel maybe, I think he had to make some calls for Fozzy or something, or some other event that he has, I never know."

"I'm sorry Kid," Christian said, ruffling her hair affectionately. "You can tell me all about it if you want."

"I don't know what there is to tell. We're just so busy and hardly have time to see each other, and I know that we live together, but it's not the same you know. Aren't we still supposed to be on that newlywed kick you know, where everything is new. It just feels like we're being pulled in opposite directions, and I'm here with the business and he's committed to the world."

"Does he know all of this?"

"I don't think so, but when would I ever get the chance to tell him? He's always on the phone, and I go to bed before him…can you believe that! I've never been the first one to bed, it was always Chris, but now he's going to bed later than I am and I go to bed late as it is. We hardly talk, and I know he's in a rut wrestling-wise because he told me, but he hasn't made any attempts to make that better."

"Well, maybe he…actually I don't know, I can't imagine anything other than wrestling," Christian told her, knowing that probably didn't help, but he had nothing to say.

"See, that's me too. This is my life, it's my family, it's been so much of ME that I can't imagine doing anything else, but Chris is all over the place. It's almost like he'd rather be anywhere else but here with me."

"Oh Steph," Christian said, hugging her closer. "I wish I knew what to tell you, but I don't. Maybe talking to him would help you know. You keep saying how much you know about him, but I hardly think he knows about you."

"When would he even have the time?" Stephanie lamented. "I'd probably have to make an appointment or something. I feel like he's slipping away."

Christian sighed because he hated seeing his friend in such dire straits. He hated what Chris was unknowingly doing to her. And how could Chris not notice? Stephanie's face was so sad he could barely stand to look at it, and Chris, who was supposed to be her husband and love her above anything else, hadn't taken notice at all. He didn't know what to do except hug her tighter.

"Hey, with the draft coming up, maybe Kurt will be over here and it'll be like old times," he said, trying to cheer her up. "We can all hang out together like we used to. It'll be good times."

"Yeah," Stephanie said. "I would like to have Kurt over here. SmackDown seems…well, I just don't like him over there, bad influences and what not."

"Like we would keep him grounded," Christian laughed at the prospect of that. "And then Trish can come back and we'll all be here and then we can all bash some sense into Chris's brain."

"Now that sounds like a good idea," Stephanie said. "I wish I could just sit here with you and watch the show, but I have work to do."

"Work can wait for a little bit right?" Christian asked. "I mean, you're in no rush are you?"

"No, not really," Stephanie said. "I'm very lucky that Chris saw some good in you years ago. Can you imagine if I had been stuck with Edge?"

"Oh, don't get me started with my brother," Christian said. "I heard that he's going to take Lita home this weekend! Can you believe that! He KNOWS that Trish can't fly, so you know, he's totally taking advantage of that. I'm going to have to call my mom and tell her that Edge is up to no good."

"Do you really think that she's in love with him? I really thought that she was in love with Kane. I mean, they seemed to be functioning…"

"Yeah, to hurt my girlfriend," Christian said with bitterness. "I don't know, I guess it was all a farce or something, hey look, speak of the two devils."

Lita was walking out with Edge. She felt so wrong for doing what she was about to do. Edge was going to make sure she severed all ties with Kane by declaring she never loved him. Except she had, in some weird way, and she still did. Maybe it wasn't fully love, but Lita cared about him. Kane had cared about her when no one else had. But now Edge was making her tell Kane she had never loved him.

Lita felt so dirty talking like she was, and being with Edge as she was. She knew that Kane wasn't the only one hurting, Matt was out there somewhere and she had broken his heart too. She had left a path of destruction behind her. First with Matt, who she would always care about, and then with Kane, who she had just come to find out that she cared about him in a much deeper way than she had ever anticipated, and then there was Edge, with his greediness and manipulation. Maybe this was all punishment for climbing into that ring and endangering her baby.

She said everything that Edge wanted her to say, like the puppet that she had become. Nobody would believe her though, they would all think she was a slut and a whore, and whatever derogatory term they could come up with, and she was resigned to her fate. What were the alternatives? Get away from Edge and have him tell Chris and Stephanie that she had wanted to break them up? That would surely cost her, her job, and that was just about the only good thing she had left.

She walked backstage with him, and as soon as she was backstage, her smile faded and he grabbed her hand possessively. She was resigned to walk with him, casting her eyes downward as she could feel the multitudes of disappointed eyes focused on her. Wasn't it not that long ago that they were cheering for her? Being friends with her? But that was all over now, it was all over now as she was tugged down the hallway.

She wasn't watching where she was going and someone bumped into her rather rudely. She looked up to see Shelton walking quickly in the opposite direction. He didn't even excuse himself and it was like Lita didn't even exist. Now she had lost her identity and was nothing more than Edge's trophy. She sighed and tried not to get too upset. She didn't want Edge to see exactly what he was doing to her. But then she figured he already knew and that made him feel good, and that sickened her.

Shelton was actually looking for Stephanie, and was too much in a hurry to notice Lita. If he wasn't in a hurry, he would've excused himself, but right now, he had to find Stephanie. Now he was jogging down the hallways; he had been to her office, but she wasn't there, and she wasn't in catering. He jogged down to the gorilla, but she wasn't there either. He started jogging around again before he saw her walking out of Christian's locker room with Christian in tow.

"Stephanie!"

"Hello Shelton," Stephanie said with a smile. "You ready for your match?"

"I would be if your husband were here," Shelton said, trying to catch his breath.

Stephanie looked to Christian for a moment, "Chris isn't here yet?"

"No, he's not," Shelton said. "I went to Bischoff and he said it would just have to be a handicap match since Chris isn't here yet. I went to his locker room and none of his stuff is there, and nobody's seen him, and I figured that since you're his wife and everyone knows that you're here, you'd know where he is, but I'm guessing you don't."

"He said that he would be here for the show," Stephanie said, cursing under her breath and then looking at Shelton and it almost scared him because there was a fire in her eyes, burning and glowing brightly. "I can't believe him!"

"Look, I didn't want to cause a domestic disturbance or whatever, I just need my partner."

"I'm sorry Shelton, I don't know where he is," Stephanie said. "I'm really sorry."

"It's ok, I can go out there and do my stuff," Shelton said. "I mean, it's not my first handicap match, it won't be my last."

"I can give you a last minute partner," Stephanie offered. "I'm sure that I can get someone."

"No, it's fine, thanks anyways Stephanie," Shelton said. "It's time for my match anyways. Bye."

Stephanie watched Shelton jog away again and she turned to Christian. Christian just shrugged and she shook her head. She was so angry right now. It was one thing to be in a rut and not make wrestling your most important thing, but to shirk the responsibility altogether, that was an entirely different monster. Now she was in her "boss mode," and she found it unacceptable that one of her employees had not been here when he was supposed to be here for a match.

"Steph, you ok?" Christian asked.

"Chris is going to get fined for this," Stephanie said forcefully. "I'm not going to have one of my employees completely miss his match. He'll get fined for this."

"Um Steph," Christian said slowly. "That's pretty much like fining yourself."

"Damn, you're right," Stephanie said, realizing that she and Chris had a joint account so all his money was her money. "Well, I'll just take it out of his paycheck then. That should do it."

"Better," he answered. "I can't believe he would blow off his match."

"This better be the LAST match he ever blows off," Stephanie said. "I'm not going to accept this. Who the hell does he think he is!"

"Part owner?" Christian suggested.

"Yeah, but he's still under contract as a wrestler, and he'll be punished for this," Stephanie said, walking away. Christian let her go and went back into his locker room, wondering where Tomko had gone.

Stephanie went back to her production table and pretty much stewed there for the entirety of Shelton's match. He predictably lost and that just made her angrier than she was before. Chris had let someone down, he had let Shelton down and that was inexcusable. She loved Chris, but this was business and sometimes business had to come before pleasure. When Shelton made his way backstage, Stephanie took off her headphones and walked over to him.

"Shelton, I just wanted to say how sorry I am," Stephanie said to him.

"It's not your fault," Shelton said, waving her apology off.

"It might not, but Chris is my husband and he should've been here, and I'm just really sorry that he wasn't. He's going to be punished for this behavior," Stephanie assured him.

"He is?" Shelton asked incredulously.

"Yeah, he's under contract here, and he can't just come and go as he pleases."

"But he's part owner…"

"I don't care, I'm still his boss, and I'm just really sorry, this is his wife speaking now," she clarified. "I just…I'm really sorry."

"It's ok Stephanie, thanks for the apology though," Shelton said, giving her a smile, knowing that it wasn't her fault and she shouldn't blame herself for her husband's actions. Stephanie sighed and went back to the table and put her headphones back on. It was the only way she's stop thinking about Chris and focus on something else for a couple minutes. She didn't want to think of Chris right now.

Chris rushed inside. He was going to be late for his match and he didn't want that. It was just he was on the phone for longer than he had expected to be. He was trying to go over some new dates for Fozzy shows and time had gotten away from him. Rich actually had to remind him of the time and now he was running late. He was interrupted by Todd Grisham, who told him that he had missed his match. He was surprised, but not bothered by it. He was sure that Shelton could handle himself, he was really good, an up and coming talent.

He told Todd that he would take a match later on to make up for his absence, which he thought was the best idea. He went to find his locker room and saw that Stephanie wasn't there; she must be near the gorilla. He set his stuff down and went to go find his wife and say hello. He would also apologize for his lateness, but Stephanie would probably say it was fine.

Boy, was he going to be wrong. As soon as Stephanie saw him, her lips tightened up and her eyes narrowed. Her fists clenched and unclenched and she stood up slowly, and he paused and smiled at her. Stephanie took off her headphones and literally threw them down onto the table, walked straight over to Chris, and did what she should've done the week before. She slapped him…hard.

"What the hell was that for?" Chris asked, rubbing his cheek as he looked at his wife and gulped.

"Where the hell were you!"

"I had business."

"No, you didn't Chris, you had a job…and that job was to be here. You were supposed to be here and you weren't, and you left Shelton to a match by himself."

"He was fine Stephanie," Chris said.

"He lost Chris," Stephanie told him. "And I had to apologize for your ass not being here. You have a job, I don't care what the hell you do the rest of the week, but on Monday nights, you are HERE, do you hear me, you are under contract with World Wrestling Entertainment, and that means that unless you have a family emergency or injury, you are supposed to be here. And seeing as how I'M your family, I know there was no emergency, and seeing as how I'm your WIFE, I know you weren't injured, so you shirked your obligation to be here."

"Look, I'm sorry," Chris said, reaching out to her.

"Don't touch me!" Stephanie said. "Right now, I'm not your wife. Right now I'm not Stephanie McMahon-Jericho. I'm Stephanie McMahon and I'm your boss and you will be punished for this."

"You're going to punish me?" he asked in surprise.

"Yes, I am. What you thought that I was going to let this slide?" Stephanie asked. "Chris, you are one of my employees."

"I had business!"

"Yes, you did, and your business was right here. You had a tag match tonight, one that you knew about, and you weren't here, and it is in your contract to be here when you have a match. I'm sorry Chris, but this is coming out of your paycheck and consider yourself on probation."

"Probation? What kind of probation are you going to put me on?" he asked.

"If this happens continually, I'm going to have no choice but to suspend you."

"You're going to suspend me!"

"Yes, I am!" Stephanie said seriously, very, very seriously. "And if you think I'm not being serious, try me."

"But you're my wife!" he argued. "What the hell am I going to do?"

"Yes, I am your wife, and as your wife, I'm very disappointed in you. As your boss, I'm pissed off at you, so it's pretty much a double whammy," Stephanie said. "And if you DO get suspended, your wife is not going to react very nicely."

"Fine, whatever."

"That's all you have to say?" Stephanie asked him. "Whatever?"

"What else is there to say? You, of all people, should know that I'm a busy man with lots of other things."

"Yes, I do know first-hand, but that stuff can be done on your own time, not on our company's time. People pay money to see you Chris, and they expected to see you tagging with Shelton against Daivari and Hassan, and you weren't here."

"I told Todd to tell Bischoff to put me in a match, the people won't mind."

Stephanie shook her head. "You know, I'd really like whoever stole you to give you back."

"What are you talking about?"

"Nothing," Stephanie answered, a cynical smile on her face as she crossed her arms in front of her. "It's nothing."

"It's obviously something."

Stephanie blinked back tears, "It's nothing."

She turned away from him and walked back to her table, putting her headphones back on. She knew that if she dealt with Chris any longer, she might get so mad she'd break down into angry tears or something. She just needed to focus on her work right now. Chris stared at her for a second before walking away. He would go find Christian, maybe he could explain Stephanie's erratic behavior.

When he arrived at Christian's locker room, Edge and Lita were just on their way out. He scowled at Edge and gave Lita a sympathetic look. Lita gave him a tiny smile before casting her eyes elsewhere. It was that moment that Chris knew this entire thing was not Lita's idea, and was not something Lita wanted. He would've talked to her a moment, but she was already walking away with Edge.

"You and Chris friends now?"

"We were friends before," Lita hissed.

"Yeah, and I really don't think he'd like it if he found out that you were set out to ruin his marriage."

Lita kept quiet for a moment, letting Edge drown his own head with thoughts before mumbling, "No, that was you."

Chris had replaced Edge and Lita in Christian's locker room. First he had been propositioned by Edge and Lita, and it was pretty tempting. If Edge DID win, then Edge would give him the title match and that was such a sure thing that even Christian wouldn't be able to withstand it. And if Edge didn't win, he didn't really lose anything. Even Trish would understand something like this. She knew a good opportunity when she saw one.

"What?" Christian asked as he finally noticed Chris leaning in his doorway.

"What's up with Stephanie?" Chris asked point blank.

Christian scowled a little, "I don't know, maybe you should take that up with her."

"She's angry right now, and I figure if anyone around here knows anything, it would be you."

"I really think this is something that you need to take up with your wife," Christian said, going over to his bag and rooting around for his cell phone so that he could call Trish. He remembered throwing it in there earlier.

"What is going on? I don't even get it."

Christian turned around abruptly, "Well whose fault is that Chris?"

"What is wrong with everyone tonight!"

Christian sucked at his teeth a little bit, wondering how much he should tell Chris, and possibly it should be nothing at all. That would serve Chris right for making Stephanie feel like she was feeling. One thing Christian hated was seeing his friends upset. He had been with the lowest of the lows, back when he and Edge broke up E&C, he had lost everything and knew the bottom, and he didn't want anyone to know the bottom like he had.

"Maybe you're too busy doing other things to see what you're doing to the most important thing in your life," Christian told him. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to call Trish."

"Christian--"

"Tyson," Christian said suggestively.

"I think you should leave man," Tomko said.

Chris just shook his head and left. He went back to his own locker room and got dressed for his match later because he was sure that he would have one. He was Chris Jericho and people DID come to see him, and he shouldn't let them down too much. He sat there for a moment, alone, and didn't know what to do with himself. He leaned his head back against the couch and closed his eyes. But even when he closed his eyes, they were jumbled with thoughts and plans and meetings.

His life was a cornucopia of appearances and meetings and it was exciting and burdening at the same time. He was branching out, and finding other things, but he was failing to realize that the most important thing was still here, still wrapped up in this business. The most important thing was sitting a table, flanked by assistants, barking orders and running the show. Chris was not a stupid man, but he was being blind right now. Maybe it was just a pre-mid-life crisis or something, but he was struggling to fly away and from what? That, he couldn't figure out.

He opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling, the tiles blending together into one mish-mash of blocks, interweaving in an indiscernible pattern. He got up and walked down the hallway, seeing the all too familiar faces and sounds. And it was just so monotonous, boring, every single week the same thing. It was nothing and everything, and it was the same thing he'd been doing for so long now, years and years, wrestling had been it. It had been everything. And now it…wasn't.

He got up, ready for whoever was doled out to him. He walked down to the gorilla for his match. Stephanie was there and he stared at her for a long second. She had been having a conversation with an assistant and felt someone's eyes on her. She turned to Chris, but when she saw that he was looking at her, she turned away, not acknowledging him further.

Chris would never admit it to anyone but her, but it hurt. Her flippancy really hurt, and it stung him deep inside. He wanted to go over and talk to her, but his match was that moment and he vowed to make this match quick. He was facing Sylvan Grenier, so of course it was going to be quick, and quick it was, ending with a win. He was over the match when Shelton came out and Chris went to grab a microphone. He just wanted to see his wife at this point and so he made up some crap to spew at Shelton, effectively confusing the hell out of him.

He walked backstage and over to Stephanie, where she was writing down something in a chart of some sort. He grabbed her writing hand, making her draw a line on the paper that she didn't want. She looked up at him with impatience, biting her lip. She tried to grab her hand back, but he wasn't letting her.

"We need to talk," Chris told her.

"Isn't that how all the good stories start?" Stephanie said cynically.

"Yeah, it is, where do you think I got it?"

"You could've come up with something better. Some bullshit thing about how you're going to be flying to the North Pole for a concert and leave me behind and you had to break the news gently."

"Doesn't change the fact that we need to talk."

"I'm working."

"This is important."

"Fine," Stephanie said reluctantly, getting up and telling her assistants to take over for a few minutes. "Can we talk here or is this a locker room matter?"

"Locker room," Chris said. They walked side-by-side down the hallway, Stephanie trying to keep a little distance from Chris. He opened the door for her and she walked inside, standing in the middle of the room. "I know I've been a jerk these past few weeks."

"Ha!" Stephanie said loudly, not even trying to mask her sarcasm. "You've been more than a jerk. You've been a bonafide asshole. And not just to me either, but to a lot of people, and tonight was the last straw. I don't care what you have going on, this was it."

"Steph, I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize to me," Stephanie told him. "Look, figure out whatever the hell you need to figure out, but I have things to do, and I have a show to run and a business. I can't sit here and wait for you to do whatever it is you need to do."

"Aren't wives supposed to be supportive?"

"You don't even get it," Stephanie said. "Look, you say you're in a rut, maybe it has everything to do with wrestling, maybe it doesn't, but you need to figure that out."

"What is this? Are you leaving me?"

"Do you want me to?" Stephanie asked, answering his question with one of her own.

"Why would I want you to leave?"

"Because you're too busy for a marriage, it makes sense you know."

Chris stood in his place for a moment. "You're my life."

"Huh?" Stephanie asked, confused by that statement.

"Stephanie, you're my life. I don't know how I can put it more simply than that."

Stephanie closed her eyes, "We've hardly spoken this past week because you've been so busy on the phone, planning and having conference calls and setting up appearances and everything. How can you say I'm your life if you've been ignoring me?"

Chris looked down, "I don't want to let you down."

"Chris…"

"I can't even win the goddamn Intercontinental title of some kid with half the experience that I have!" Chris said. "I'm worthless! I'm stuck in these damn matches that mean nothing and when I finally do make a match for a title shot, I lose to Edge, EDGE! I was the first freaking Undisputed Champion, and I can't even get a title match!"

"Chris, calm down," Stephanie said, going over to him and laying her hand on her arm. "You aren't letting me down. It's stupid of you to think that, don't think that!"

"Not even the IC title," Chris mumbled pathetically. "I can't even get the IC title."

"Shh," Stephanie said, hugging him tightly. "You don't need a title. Cut back on these appearances, please. You're going to wear yourself out. If you're doing this for me, don't, please. You hardly need to impress me, you're married to me, you've got me."

"With Trips--"

"I was a money-grubbing, power hogging, spoiled brat," Stephanie finished. "I wanted to rule the world. I'm not that person anymore. Stop comparing this marriage to my other marriage, for the most part, I'm happier now."

"Can I still kind of be a jerk to other people?" he asked. "It makes me look tougher, you know, better."

"Just as long as you aren't a jerk to me," Stephanie said, kissing him. "No fighting for the next month, ok?"

"I'll make that deal, but only because I love you," Chris said. Stephanie hugged him tightly, not letting go as he hugged her tightly too. They were hugging so tightly that they almost fell off-balance and onto the floor if Chris hadn't regained his balance, they probably would have.

"You're my life too," Stephanie whispered to him before they willingly fell back onto the couch.

Lita was throwing her old life away. She stared at the monitor as Kane was being interviewed and she wanted to sob, but Edge was in bathroom and he would probably just mercilessly mock her for feeling so much for someone like Kane. But she did, and it was breaking her heart. She stood there, staring at the screen as he talked about the pain.

"I'm sorry," she whispered to nobody, but hoping that it somehow reached Kane.

"Lita! Get me my boots!" Edge yelled. Lita stood there, watching Kane still. She stood there a moment longer, lingering there, knowing that Kane would never forgive her. He was not the kind of man that forgave easily, he had been through too much.

"I promise Kane, I'll get back at Edge, I'll get him back…for the both of us."

* * *

A/N: I don't know how the heck Lita became a prominent character in this story...it's...weird.


	38. Wow, Jericho, May 30, 2005

"Mr. Jericho, your wife said that you have two minutes before you have to leave."

Chris finished his signature with a flourish as he turned to the employee helping out with his autograph session. He nodded to her as he took another picture quickly, signing it and making small talk with the kid who he was signing it for, asking his name and who his favorite wrestler was. He saw that there were quite a few people still in line, but Stephanie was keeping him on a short leash tonight as part of his punishment (no, not an actual leash, that's sick!) for being so late last week.

He tried to fit in as many people as he could, but it was just not going to be possible for him to take care of all the people there. He stood up and apologized to the crowd for not being able to finish up with them before going to the back where Stephanie had been sitting and waiting for him. He had told her to just come out and sign with him, but she insisted that this was his thing and she didn't want it to lose that focus.

"Hey, you're actually on time, I'm impressed," Stephanie said sassily. She gave Chris a sly, little smirk, one of the many in her repertoire and he just shook his head at her.

"I don't even want to know the consequences if I hadn't been back here in the allotted time," Chris responded. Stephanie paper-clipped a few papers together as she stuck them in her bag, laughing a little to herself.

"It would've been a swift and hard punishment," Stephanie told him. "I'm making sure that you are on that show tonight and that you are there on time with whatever you're needed for."

"And if Bischoff didn't schedule me for anything? Then your entire plan goes straight out the window, and all is lost."

"No, because I'll just bump something else off and find something for you to do," Stephanie answered, standing up and walking over to him, patting him a little on his chest. "I'm going to make sure you see the error of your ways Mr. Jericho."

"Well Mrs. Jericho, I wouldn't want to get on your bad side, so I'm ready and raring to go," he said, extending his arms out as if to show that he was ready. Stephanie smiled at him and gathered up her things, kissing him on the cheek.

"So no fighting this week?" she asked as he grabbed her things from her, being the gentleman and not making his wife carry her things.

"I thought that the deal was no fighting for a month," Chris pointed out.

"Yeah, and I'm surprised that we've actually stuck to that," Stephanie said. "Especially with the way you've been acting the way recently."

Chris blushed slightly and ducked his head as he and Stephanie walked to their car. He realized that he had been a royal jerk to pretty much everyone, and he had been oblivious to what he had been doing to Stephanie and to his friends. He never, ever wanted to intentionally hurt Stephanie because what he had told her was true. She was his life, she was his everything, and the thought that she had been hurting because of him, that he had caused her to be in pain, that was worse than anything else.

"I'm sorry for the way I've treated you," Chris said sheepishly. "I know that doesn't really make up for what I've done, but just so you know, I am sorry for it."

"Sweetie," she started, leaning up to kiss him as they paused mid-step. "You've spent the last week apologizing, and I've heard you every time. I don't need anymore apologizing."

"I know, but I was a huge jerk, I was like Olympic-level jerk…heh, that reminds me of Kurt."

"Ok," Stephanie said, "Come on or we're both going to be late and then I will set a bad example for everyone."

"Would I get to punish you if that's the case?" Chris asked with a smile and a kiss to the temple as they continued to the car.

"No, because I'm still your boss, so you have no authority over me," Stephanie answered as Chris opened her door for her. She slipped in the car and waited for him to enter.

As Chris was entering his car, Edge was entering his dressing room where Lita was sitting on the couch. She was fiddling with the wedding ring that she had insisted on still wearing and Edge just stood there and glared at her. Lita didn't pay attention to him as she looked down at her wedding ring. She never knew when she made this little deal with Edge so long ago that it would balloon into something like this.

"What are you doing?" Edge said, going to his bag to root through his things, not even looking at Lita as he spoke to her.

"Nothing," Lita said shortly. Sure, she was forced into this "relationship" with Edge, but she didn't have to like it, and she didn't have to treat him nicely when they were off camera.

"I was just asking a question."

"And I was just answering it," she shot back.

"You don't have to act like I'm some sort of asshole Li," Edge said. "I actually saved you a lot of trouble. I don't think you and him would've lasted, too many differences."

"How would you know!" Lita asked angrily, standing up to face him, "You don't know that we wouldn't have lasted."

"Please," Edge scoffed, rolling his eyes at the thought, even though she couldn't see behind his glasses. "You and Kane? You had as much of a chance lasting with him as Britney Spears does with her husband."

"Don't assume that you know me…or Kane," Lita told him.

"I know you Li, I've known you for quite a while, and in every sense of the word," Edge said, glancing at her up and down. Lita felt dirty, like he was undressing her with his eyes and she felt almost like a prostitute standing there, letting him gape at her.

"I wouldn't even let you touch me now," Lita spat out. "Everything is for show Edge, it's all for show because you're using me. You don't care about me at all, you just want my help because you can't do it by yourself."

"I can sure as hell do it by myself," Edge countered. "But why should I when I could have someone like you to help me."

"I'm not helping you, I'm enslaved to you because you're a liar."

"Tsk, tsk, I hate that word," Edge said. "Face it Li, you're with me for the long haul."

"Only because you'll tell Chris and Stephanie a lie to get what you want. I never wanted to break them up, you were the one who convinced me to do it."

"And you would honestly kick Chris Jericho out of your bed if you had the chance?" Edge asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Leave me alone!" Lita said storming out of the room, even as she heard Edge laughing at her as she walked out.

There was only so much of him that she could take and it was starting to become clear that she was at the end of her rope. She would give anything to go see Kane right now, but he hated her and wanted nothing to do with her. Tears blurred her vision as she scuttled down the hallway at a fast pace, hoping to avoid anyone, but it was nearly impossible as the show was going to start soon and people were hustling and bustling about. She knocked someone's shoulder and turned to excuse herself.

"Watch where you're going," Stacy said snottily.

"Sorry," Lita answered and Stacy just rolled her eyes.

"YOU'RE sorry? Somehow I find that hard to believe," Stacy told her.

"What?" Lita asked, rather confused.

"After the way you treated Matt AND Kane, I'm sorry, but your word doesn't exactly mean much to anyone right now, and to think I considered you my friend," Stacy told her, disgusted with herself for being excited over Lita's pregnancy and Matt proposing to her so long ago.

"You don't know anything about that!" Lita practically yelled.

"Don't I? I hang out with Hurricane and we all know that he's friends with Matt. I've talked to him."

"You've talked to Matt?" Lita asked softly, her voice turning gentle. She missed Matt too, and there was another glaring problem. She still had feelings for Matt, and she always would, but that ship had passed, obviously.

"Yeah, I have," Stacy said smugly, lording it over Lita's head. "Well, see ya or whatever."

Lita leaned back against the wall, feeling as if the weight of the world was on her. She didn't know what to do or who to go to. She wanted Kane, she wanted Matt, she wanted anybody but the man that she was stuck with. Her friends had abandoned her and she had nothing, nobody to care about her well-being and it was almost too much. This was almost too much. She closed her eyes and covered her face, not crying, but wanting to, just wanting to let it all out.

This was the scene that would greet Stephanie and Chris as they walked inside. Stephanie had just said something funny and Chris was laughing even as he pulled her closer for a playful kiss. Stephanie teased him by pulling away at the last moment, but this only caused him to pull her harder against him until she had nowhere to go but to his lips.

"Isn't this better than fighting?" Stephanie mumbled against his lips.

"This is better than wrestling," Chris answered, causing a slight blush to creep up into her cheeks, but then she caught a flash of red out of the corner of her eye. Stephanie was perplexed before turning her head, causing Chris to kiss the side of her head as he sputtered out her hair that got caught in his mouth. "Hey what's the big id--"

"Lita?" Stephanie called out quietly.

Lita opened her eyes and moved her hands away from her face. "Oh hi Stephanie, hi Chris."

"Um, is there anything that we can do for you?" Stephanie asked, a little uncomfortable. She and Lita weren't exactly what you'd call "friends," but she looked to be really upset and that was something that Stephanie could sympathize with.

"No, I'm ok," Lita said, trying to find it within herself to smile, but not quite working up the confidence.

"You sure?" Chris asked, more concerned. He remembered what Lita had told him about Edge, and he had to wonder what exactly made her go back to him. Was this something by choice or was it by force? Judging from the way she looked at the moment, it was the latter.

"Yeah, I was just…thinking, you know, Edge has a match later, and I've got to be there, you know, moral support," she said, striking up the attitude that she was starting to become known for.

"Ok then," Stephanie said, biting her lip. "Bye then."

"Hey baby, you go on ahead, I'll catch up," Chris told Stephanie. She looked between him and Lita a couple of times and nodded mutely, leaning up to give him a parting kiss. He smiled at her as she walked away before turning to Lita. "So cut the crap."

"What?"

"All of this, I know you Lita, and you've never been like this," Chris told her. "I've never seen you be the bad guy, not once, and I don't think I'm going to start believing it now."

"I love Edge, I realized that," Lita lied.

"Yeah, and I'm suddenly best friends with Stephanie's ex-husband, tell the truth and don't play me for the fool. Edge is forcing you…"

"Stop right there Chris," Lita said. "Look, it's not any of your business what's going on. Can you do me one favor though?"

"Well, after saying it's not my business."

"It isn't," Lita interjected again. It really wasn't, Chris was just being nosy and that could cost him. "Look, please."

"Fine, what is it?"

"Can you have Kane and me on the Highlight Reel tonight?" she asked him, almost pleaded with him. Chris could see the desperation in her eyes and contemplated it.

"I don't think I have one scheduled though."

"Chris you own part of the company, I'm sure that you could some time on one measly show," Lita said. "I'll be honest with you. I miss Kane, and I'm so sorry for what it's done to him, and I just…I just want to be close to him again, I don't think that's too much to ask. Please."

"I'll see what I can do," Chris said, giving in. Never let it be said that Chris never did anything nice for anyone who wasn't named Stephanie. "I don't know why you don't just leave Edge. Unless he has something on you…he has something on you doesn't he?"

"Chris, it's better if you just leave it alone. I know that we were friends once upon a time, but that's changed, I've changed, you've changed. You're married to your worst enemy, I don't think it gets any more changed than that. Just do this one thing for me and I'll be eternally grateful."

"Ok, I'll try, I'll go talk to Steph about it, and I'll let you know."

Lita impulsively hugged Chris, whispering into his ear, "Thank you so much."

"You're welcome," he responded, returning her hug and than watching her walk away, a particular bounce in her step.

"What was that for?" Chris heard a voice say and saw that Christian had just happened upon him. "She looked pretty happy for someone who's been a total bitch the past few weeks."

"I think the reason she's acting like that is a direct result of your brother."

"So what else is new?" Christian said. "My mom called me and asked what the hell Edge thought he was doing. She didn't much like Lita, but I think that has a lot to do with the way that Edge parades her around like his own personal fluffer."

"Well that's good for Trish then isn't it?"

"Yeah, it is, that's the bright side. My mom adores Trish."

"She still can't fly."

"It hurts too much and her condition could injure her more," Christian said. "She's so bored, but this is for the best. She's just sorry that this means that women's wrestling has become something of a moot point."

"She did carry that division on her back."

"Yeah, and she says it's ridiculous, what it's become. She threatened to drive all the way here just to set these women straight. I think she mentioned something about calling Victoria, who is the only other woman who is legit in the wrestling department."

"Oh great, I can only imagine what Trish is going to cook up," Chris groaned. "She's as bad as Stephanie."

"Worse probably," Christian pointed out. "So we cool man?"

"We're cool, I wasn't myself these past couple weeks, Stephanie finally knocked some sense into me."

"It's about time you listened to her. She's usually right."

"I know, that's what makes it so frustrating. How do I argue with her when she's so beautiful and smart?"

"That's your problem," Christian said with a laugh, patting his back. "But just so you know. I know that if you hurt her that you have Vince and Shane ready in the corners waiting to kick your ass, but I'm waiting there too."

"Oh great, so the entire male population is going to kick my ass," he commented.

"Did you see Stephanie at your wedding? I mean, if you had suddenly jumped off that cliff, I would've gladly stepped in your place," Christian said, which only earned a hard glare from Chris. "Of course, you didn't and you married her."

"That's right," Chris said sternly. "MY wife."

"Possessive."

"Oh, that reminds me, I need to go talk to her about something..."

"Oh, I'll come with, I've got nothing to do, literally," Christian said. "I should just leave and go back home to Trish."

"I've been meaning to ask. Do you WANT to go to SmackDown?"

"No, why?"

"Um, judging by the way you keep talking about it, I've just gotten the idea that you wanted to be going over there for good, which seemed weird since all your friends are over here and your girlfriend, when she comes back will be over here too," Chris pointed out.

"I know, I'm using reverse psychology."

"On who?"

"Well, I don't know, I don't know how this draft is going to work exactly. But I'm thinking, maybe because they know I'm so anxious they won't want to bring me over because I'll just run rampant or something."

"I don't really see how that's going to work."

"I'm lessening my chances by making it seem that I don't care. If I act nonchalant, like I'm better than everyone, they won't want me because I've got a bad attitude and I'll be demanding, don't you get it dude, I'm getting into their heads, turning them screwy."

"I think you're screwy man," Chris said.

"You'll see Chris, it'll work, and if you get drafted over to SmackDown, you'll be wishing you used my smarts," Christian said, tapping his forehead.

"If I get put on SmackDown, that would royally suck," Chris said, shuddering. "I mean, I'd still be here."

"Why the hell would you be here?"

"Hello, my wife kind of runs the joint," Chris said, making a "duh" face to Christian. "You think I'm going to let her come to work and leave me at home, that would suck."

"Yeah, so would she go with you to SmackDown?"

"Of course…oh man, can you just imagine if she got control of that show too. She would be running both shows, she'd have so much power."

"As opposed to the power she has right now?"

"Have you met Stephanie?"

"Stephanie what?" said the woman in question and Christian and Chris realized that while they were talking they had reached their destination. Stephanie was looking up at them from where she was sitting, her legs dangling, on a fold-out table.

"Is amazing," Chris said, pulling her off the table and kissing her. "God, I missed you."

"You just saw me."

"No, just with all the fighting. I missed you, I was such a jerk."

Stephanie giggled. "I know, so what are you doing here?"

"I need to ask a favor."

"Oh, so that's why you missed me? So you could use me," Stephanie said jokingly. She touched her hand to Chris's cheek, patting it softly. "So what is it you need this time?"

"Well, a couple of things," Chris said huskily.

"I'm right here," Christian reminded them. "And I've seen this far too many times to care, but there are lots of people around who aren't used to you guys being like this."

"I need a Highlight Reel, Kane and Lita."

"Chris…" Stephanie said, her voice trailing into a question. "The show is pretty much set out as it is. We were going to put you in a match with…"

"Don't matter," Chris told her. "Just cancel that and give me the Reel. Come on Stephanie, don't make me use my power."

"What power would that be?" Stephanie asked, pursing her lips together.

"I am management around here," Chris explained. "And I do own part of this company. If I have to do this over your head, I will, don't try me."

"Oh, so you're going to play the boss now?" Stephanie inquired.

"If I have to."

"Fine, you can have the Highlight Reel, it should be interesting at the very least. I'll get production to get a graphic on it ASAP," Stephanie said. "Is that all you needed…Boss?"

"I think that will suffice Mrs. Jericho, but next time, let's not question me so much."

"Oh, of course not," Stephanie said, walking away to get started. "Go tell Lita, because I can read you like a book."

"Damn it, how DOES she do that?" Chris muttered as Christian shrugged. "I'll see you later man."

"Yeah, see you," Christian said.

Chris walked down the hallway quickly to Edge's locker room, knocking a few times. He heard some quick footsteps to the door and Lita popping her head out of the barely opened door. She smiled and slipped into the hallway.

"Did you get it?"

"Yeah, I got it," Chris said. "So just plan on it."

"Thank you, thank you, thank you," Lita said, trying to contain her excitement. "I really appreciate this Chris. Anything you want me to do, any favor you see fit, I will do. I promise, anything."

"It's ok, I just wanted to let you know."

"Thank you again, I better…" her voice trailed off as she pointed inside the locker room. Chris nodded and let her go back inside, not knowing what would await her there.

Lita went back inside and jumped a little as she stared down at her wedding ring and sat down on the couch. She knew Kane would hate her and look at her in that vindictive, eerie way of his, and possibly want to her hurt her. But she just wanted to be near him, just for a little while. Then she could really see how he was doing.

"You're not going out there."

Lita whipped her head to look at Edge, "You were eavesdropping!"

"When you're yelling out thanks, there's no need for eavesdropping, might want to drop that there tone down a few notches."

"I'm going out there," she said firmly.

"No, you're not."

"You can't stop me."

"Do you not get the whole hierarchy thing in this relationship?" Edge said sarcastically. "I'm the leader and you're the follower. That's how it goes around here Li. And you're not going out there. You'll probably just fall back into his arms, and then your life would be ruined…in more ways than one. I mean, Kane! Come on!"

"No, you HAVE to let me out there," Lita said pitifully.

"No, and while we're at it," Edge said, walking over quickly and grabbing Lita's hand, pulling off her wedding ring. "I'm sick of looking at this thing."

"You are NOT taking my wedding ring!" Lita told him, standing up and shoving him. "I don't care what you have me do, you are NOT taking this."

"Yes, I am," said Edge calmly. He flipped it a couple of times. "Oh, and don't shove me again.

So Lita did something else. She kicked him in the crotch, rather hard too, and he dropped the ring and Lita made a grab for it. She grabbed her bag and ran out of the room, down the hallway and to her rental car. She threw her bag in there and drove out of here. She had an idea and if she wanted to keep her wedding ring, this would have to work.

She jettisoned herself to the nearest grocery store, not caring about what the store was. She grabbed her wallet and walked inside, going straight for the kiddie little vending machines that dispensed toys. She spotted one that gave out fake rings, little gold bands that could bend. She grabbed a quarter and stuck it in there, twisting the knob until the toy came down the chute. She looked at it, it was wrong, this had a little stone on it, and she tossed it into the nearby trash, trying again. On her fourth try, she finally got one that looked remotely like her wedding ring and stuck in on her finger, ignoring the looks from some adults walking by.

She covered her face with her hair as she walked back to her car. She put her real wedding ring in a safe compartment in her bag and then got in the driver's seat, driving back to the arena. She got out again and walked straight to Edge's locker room. He was sitting there, arms crossed, like he was waiting for her.

"Fine! You want to take my wedding ring, fine, well take it," she said, sticking her hand out, hoping that he wouldn't notice the difference.

He didn't. "Leave it on, I've got better ideas for later," Edge shrugged. "So sit down, relax, you've got some work cut out for you."

Chris did not know that his favor would have such horrible repercussions as he prepared for his Highlight Reel which was set to begin in ten minutes. He was content to sit behind Stephanie and wrap his arms around her and watch her do her magic with the show. She was so in control that he had to admire her, and then slap himself for pushing her away like he had been doing.

"You look beautiful tonight," he whispered to her when she took her headphones off during a commercial break.

"Me?" she asked incredulously, looking down at her faded jeans and the way too big for her Y2J hockey jersey that she was wearing over a black tank top. "I look horrible."

"Nah, you look beautiful."

"If anyone is looking hot tonight, it's you," Stephanie said, which wasn't a lie because damn did Chris look good with his sports jacket over a t-shirt and nice jeans, as compared to Stephanie's old ones. Chris was rivaling Batista for looking hot, no, in fact, he had passed Batista because Chris was just looking absolutely delicious. It was all Stephanie could do not to rip his clothes off and take him right on her table.

"Nah, I'm not even dressed nicely," Chris said, trying to play down the fact that he knew he looked good.

"Sure," said Stephanie skeptically. "I'm just wondering who you're trying to impress."

"Why all the women that want me," Chris said. "Since I'm going to leave you and run off with other women."

"Oh yeah, THAT plan," Stephanie said, kissing him lightly. "You look so good that I'm thinking of what I'm going to do to you tonight."

"What's that?"

"You'll see. I went shopping yesterday and got a few items of clothing that I know you'll love," Stephanie said softly so that only Chris would hear. "I know that you'll appreciate them, and it's the only way I know how to get my husband, the workaholic to notice me."

"I'm the workaholic?" Chris asked, surprised that she would suggest such a thing when she was a workaholic of the worst kind.

"I must be rubbing off on you," Stephanie responded. "Because I know you weren't like this before we were together. You were…I don't know, lazy."

"First I'm a workaholic, now I'm lazy!"

"You WERE lazy…I mean, that's why you never won the big one right?" she asked, but smiled to let him know she was joking.

"Well, I hate to repeat lines that I've said to myself, but if any one knows about big ones Steph, it's you," he said, lightly tapping her chin with his fist.

"Last time I checked, you had no problems with anything big," she said slyly. "I think you liked them in fact."

"Oh I do, just not when you're insulting me."

She laughed and put her headphones back on, a little late, but they were on and he was happy just to lean his chin against her shoulder and watch the images on the screen before her. He occasionally dropped a kiss to her neck or her jaw, which she impatiently swatted away, much to his amusement. He noticed that she was pointing to her watch and signaling for him to go and he got up and waited, and she blew him a kiss.

He hadn't seen Lita as he left, but figured that she would be there as soon as he left. He went down to the ring, amidst the cheers and approval. He had said it to Shelton last week, the Jerichoholics loved him, and they always would. He went into the ring and gave off his little spiel, telling them about how he was almost late again, which was true. He left out the part where his wife had been nagging him the entire time so that he WOULDN'T be late.

He then told them about how he would be interviewing the very first draft pick next week. He actually hadn't planned on that, but sometimes good ideas came to him, and he relished in the fact that he could just say it and it would be done. That was the kind of power he could deal with; something that wasn't too big, but big enough to let him feel like a big shot.

He introduced Kane then, and maybe it was his natural need to play devil's advocate, but he teased Kane, which turned out not to be a good idea. He managed to get out of that one as Edge came on the screen. Chris wasn't expecting this to happen and he wasn't expecting to see Lita on-screen either. She didn't look too happy, and he just watched this all happen, wondering what was happening.

Lita knew instantly what Edge would want her to do with the ring. She was just happy that he hadn't taken it. She couldn't see Kane, couldn't see his face, but she could picture it as clear as anything. She was glad that she had taken care of her real ring and that it was sitting protected in her bag. She hated kissing Edge, he always wanted it to be deeper than she felt comfortable with. He always felt like he wanted to grope her, and she hoped it wouldn't go that far.

Chris snuck out of the ring before Kane got too angry and went backstage. It was such a difference, he noticed, his marriage and Lita's relationship. The comparison was natural. Here he was with Stephanie and then he had to go out and interview Lita and Kane, who were technically married, but didn't even have any semblance of a normal relationship. He felt the sudden urge to help Lita, but he just didn't know how.

"Hey there Mr. Jericho, you made a Highlight Reel for next week?" Stephanie asked. "I don't think you cleared that."

"Do I have to?"

"It would be nice."

"I love you."

"That was random."

"I'm just saying," he shrugged. "Look at Lita and Kane. That could've easily been us."

"I could've been a woman who slept around and you could've been a seven-foot monster?"

"No, I mean, the dissention, the separation, all of that. I'm just glad that I have something better with you and that I didn't let my stupid work get in the way of that. I would never forgive myself if I let us get to that point."

"Ok," she nodded slowly. "I see what you're saying. I guess I love you too. We just have one more thing to worry about?"

"What's that?"

"You getting drafted to SmackDown."


	39. Cena, Interesting, I Guess, June 6, 2005

A/N: If, IF Chris get drafted to SmackDown, no idea if he will or won't or what not, but IF he does, I guess I'll go back to the original Hugs and Kisses format, which is two updates a week, one for Raw and one for SmackDown. I hope he doesn't though, because I don't want to have to watch SmackDown, oh well, lol.

Enjoy. :)

* * *

"I'm excited," Stephanie said, actually showing some sort of emotion.

"So am I," Bischoff said and for once they agreed on something. "This is good Stephanie, this is really good."

"I have to commend us, for once, us working together really paid off for something." Stephanie laughed and it was…weird. This situation was weird, but they weren't even able to notice it in their excitement. Their acquisition for Raw was a monumental one and they were both excited at what the prospect of the person they got was.

"Well, great minds think alike," Bischoff said and didn't even realize he was saying that to one of his biggest adversaries. At the moment, nothing really mattered at all, except that they were very anxious for the show to start so they could introduce the newest member of Raw.

They had spent all yesterday discussing the draft and all the people they were hoping to get. But this was beyond their wildest dreams. Stephanie had actually done the honors of picking the next person and Bischoff had almost hugged her after she had picked. She had politely taken a step back of course, but she had shaken his hand amicably.

"Well, I just have to say that this is quite the coup for us. Does make me wonder what's going to happen on SmackDown, I mean, you know with the big, gaping hole this leaves them," Stephanie pondered. "Although now we have to worry about who they're going to get. It could get dicey if they get a lot of good people from our roster."

"Yeah, that's true," Bischoff said, once again agreeing with Stephanie, which was truly a miracle, "But then they could get Lillian Garcia or Maria."

Stephanie laughed heartily. "Oh that would be priceless, what a trade-off."

"Yeah, and I have to say, your husband's idea of having the first draftee on the Highlight Reel was genius. What better way to introduce our newest member, but on the best segment we have."

Stephanie got serious, "Ok, now it's just starting to get a little bit creepy."

"What?"

"All this agreeing, next thing you know we'll be thinking of the same matches and getting along permanently, and that would be…weird."

"Oh yeah, it would," Bischoff said, narrowing his eyes. "We don't speak of this to anyone. Not my wife, not your husband, nobody."

"Like I would," Stephanie scoffed. "I have a reputation to uphold Bischoff, I don't need this leaking out and making me look weak. People would have a field day with that, and I'd lose whatever authority I have over people."

"Me too, well, the show looks fine, good job on the acquisition."

"Same to you," Stephanie nodded. "Now if you'll excuse me, my husband is set to arrive and I haven't seen him since Friday, goodbye."

"Goodbye."

Stephanie walked out and had a hard time keeping the grin off her face and as she had turned to leave, she couldn't help but notice that Bischoff was starting to grin as well. Their pick had truly been monumental, and could potentially change WWE if they let it. She was so excited she wanted to just dance around like a little girl. But she was missing Chris too much for that.

Chris had been doing a couple shows this weekend around the Tampa area, and while that wasn't a big deal, she had had to be in Connecticut for the weekend because that's where they were taking their first pick, and she needed to be there. So she had gone to her home, which was dark and dusty and unused and spent the weekend alone while Chris was alone in Tampa. It was really the first extended period of time that they had been apart since they had been married and she was willing to admit that she missed him.

She walked into her office hoping to find him there, but he was nowhere to be seen and she sighed and went to sit down. She wanted to do some work, but she was literally counting down the minutes to the show. Any other person she wouldn't have been so excited. Actually, that wasn't true, if it had been Kurt, she would be jumping on the furniture right now, but this was almost as good.

She leaned back in her chair and congratulated herself. It wasn't like she had done anything big, but she had been the one to pick the thing that told them who they would be getting. It was simply luck of the draw and she must have had a horseshoe somewhere near her because she had picked so well. She closed her eyes with a smile on her face, deciding that she would take a few minutes off. Maybe she'd even take the whole night off. She deserved it too, because she worked so hard.

"And Jericho is in the house!"

Stephanie opened her eyes simply to roll them again, "About time, where've you been?"

"Told you earlier when I talked to you, had a sound-check for the concert after the show, which you are coming to I hope," he pleaded. "You promised me last week that you would come to the show since you missed the ones I had over the weekend."

"I know I promised and I never said that I wasn't going to go, I was just asking where you were because the show is starting soon and you are first up because everyone is in suspense over who the first person to be drafted is going to be."

"Oh yeah, I forgot to ask you about that last night," he said, tapping his chin with a certain gleam in his eye. "Oh wait, no, I did ask and then my wife, whom I love and adore and would never keep a secret from, tells me that I can't know because I'm not running the show. Except technically I'm management so I have every right to know."

"Somebody needs to calm down AND someone is letting power run to his head," Stephanie said sweetly.

"What are you trying to say?" Chris asked, closing the door behind him. Stephanie didn't notice that he had also turned the lock so that nobody could come in.

"I'm trying to say that just because you're management doesn't mean that you automatically get to know everything. Bischoff and I still run the show, and you are still a wrestler and still beneath me, so you don't really have any right to know."

"Oh, I'm beneath you?" Chris asked, walking over and sitting on the corner of her desk, but in such a way that he was still facing her. "I'm just your employee."

"I have to draw the line between employee and husband sometimes," she said, her voice taking on a flirty tone as she realized that Chris was just playing with her. "I'm not going to make the same mistake twice."

"I still think that I should know."

"Did you miss me this weekend?" Stephanie asked demurely. "Cause I missed you a lot. I didn't want to be away from you."

"How subtle of you to change the subject," Chris said, leaning in closer so he was whispering. "Of course I missed you…but let's get back to the subject at hand, who am I going to be interviewing for the show?"

"I can't tell you that," Stephanie said. "It's supposed to be a secret. Only Bischoff and I know who it's going to be and that's it."

"What if I get drafted to SmackDown?" he asked, now changing the subject himself. He would return to the topic of the newest draft pick in a moment. He had a little something up his sleeve for that one.

"Then you get drafted to SmackDown," Stephanie shrugged. "What do you think is going to happen? Do you think that I'm going to leave you, move out, divorce you because you're on a different show?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I thought, but now that you've cleared up that you won't, I guess now I WANT to be drafted," he said, matching his sarcastic tone with hers. "I'm simply wondering if you would be accompanying me to work in the event that I might get switched over."

"Yes, I will accompany you," Stephanie said with a smile. "I don't want to be stuck at home."

"So who did you get in the draft?" Chris said, teasing again.

Stephanie groaned. "There is no way that you're getting that information out of me. You're out of luck."

"Oh is that so?"

"It's so, face it Christopher Jericho, not going to happen," Stephanie said superiorly, batting her eyelashes almost comically. "I can't tell you because that would be wrong, if I tell you, I have to tell everyone, and that's not very fair is it?"

"Well Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, I guess that's fair then, and since you can't tell me, I guess I'll just figure something else out."

"Like what?"

Chris was off the desk so fast that Stephanie had no time to react whatsoever. Chris had scooped her up out of her chair in no time flat and she found herself too dazed to struggle against him. He dumped her on the couch and then got on top of her, straddling her as he looked down at her face. She finally broke free of her daze and looked up at him.

"Chris, what the hell are you doing?"

"Getting the information."

"You're not getting that information," she said, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I beg to differ," Chris said, taking her arms forcefully and putting them over her head. He raised one eyebrow at her before leaning down and biting her bottom lip gently before kissing her. Stephanie could hardly resist since she hadn't seen her husband in three long days. She moaned against his mouth but then pulled away quickly.

"You're not getting me to tell."

"Well if that's the case, then I'll just have to find other ways of passing the time," Chris whispered, lavishing her jaw with light kisses. "I'm sure I'll find something to do."

"Chris, anyone could walk in here," Stephanie said softly, trying hard not to run her hands through his hair and give in to him.

"I locked it earlier," he said, moving down to her neck, letting go of her hands and running them up her legs and thighs.

Stephanie tilted her head back as far as it could go to see the door, "When did you do that?"

"When I walked in. Even if I wasn't going to get you to tell, I spent three days without you, and that's much too long to be away from my hot, beautiful wife."

"So you didn't go and screw some Fozzy Floozie?"

"Not when I can have the biggest one of all," Chris said, starting to unbutton her blouse. "So you going to tell me now?"

"No," Stephanie breathed out as Chris's kisses moved lower, now he was at her collarbone and she was starting to lose her wits. "I'm not talking."

"You don't have to talk," Chris said, moving even lower and Stephanie moaned, but then covered her mouth quickly unless someone outside hear her. Chris laughed against her body and it sent shivers up her spine as she tried not to react to the slow torture he was giving her. It was becoming maddening, his kisses and his touches and she knew where this was headed; she knew exactly where this was headed. She tossed her head to the side.

"Cena!"

Chris's head lifted up and he looked at her strangely. "What the hell Stephanie? Why the hell would you say John Cena's name when we're in this position?"

Stephanie breathed out, now that he wasn't touching her. "He's the one…tonight…we drafted him."

"Wow, and I wasn't even trying to get you to confess," Chris said, "Damn, I AM good."

Speaking of good, Christian was not in a good mood. He didn't know why, but he just wasn't. He had a bad feeling about tonight, and he was missing Trish. It just wasn't fun without her around. Chris and Stephanie were off in their own world (little did he know how off they were at the moment), and he didn't really have any other friends besides Tyson. He had some acquaintances, but not really anyone he could sit and hang out with.

"Christian?" he heard a female voice say behind him.

He turned around and saw Lita sitting on a trunk. Christian really didn't have anything against her even though he knew his girlfriend had a big problem with her. He just thought she was a mixed up woman with mixed up morals and horrible decision-making. But she was his brother's girlfriend, and that had to count for something.

"Yeah?" he asked.

"Um, have you seen Edge?"

"Nope," he said, and she nodded and seemed glad to hear that. He caught her toying with a necklace with something on it and wondered what it was that she was holding onto so tightly. He decided to do a little investigating. "My brother can be an ass sometimes."

"Oh," Lita said, looking up at him curiously.

Christian nodded and came to sit next to her. "A really huge jerk. He's been like that most of our lives, he was just better at hiding it before."

"I see," Lita said, not knowing what Christian was doing.

"Tends to make people do what he wants, and leave you in the dust because for some reason he's better than everyone and we're all just supposed to go along with what he wants."

"I guess."

"You're his girlfriend," he told her, though she was sure that she knew that. "You might be more--"

"I don't think it would go that far," Lita blurted out, the first real comment she had made. "I mean, we're not really at that point yet, I don't think, or something like that."

"Oh, well, we could be family at some point. I just wouldn't want that to happen to you, when Edge always has to get his way."

"No, he's not," Lita said. "Why are you telling me this?"

"I just thought that you would like to know about my brother. I know him, I've lived with him my entire life and I know how he works and how he thinks. I'm just letting you know that if you want to know something about my brother, that you can ask me and I won't hesitate to tell you."

"I thought you hated me."

"My girlfriend hates you, and we may be joined at the hip most of the time, but amazingly, we have two brains."

"Wow, I never figured," Lita said. "But thanks for talking to me."

"It's what guys do for their brothers. Edge is still my brother and I'm obligated to love him."

"So am I," Lita said. "Thanks again Christian, bye."

Christian was confused by what she had just said. Why was she obligated to love Edge? He and Edge were family, so it was kind of an unspoken bond that they loved each other as brothers. But he thought that she would at least love him and want to be with him because of that love. She had given up her husband and a man she had been with for four years to be with Edge. There was so much in that relationship that he just didn't get. Oh well, that surely didn't lift his moods for tonight.

Stephanie giggled, her mood had just been lifted higher than she thought humanly possible for tonight. She left a kiss on Chris's neck and snuggled against him. Maybe taking the night off wouldn't be such a bad thing. She knew that Bischoff wouldn't care because he was on cloud nine right now and would probably do anything she asked of him. But she didn't want to think about that now, she just wanted to lay here with Chris.

Chris always found it funny when they slept together at work. It was like this forbidden thing that nobody knew they were doing and it was like they were sleeping their way across the country. He could feel Stephanie's warm breath against his neck and he rubbed his hand up and down her bare back. He was just about to say something when someone knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" Stephanie called out lazily.

"Cena," came the short reply.

"Oh damn," Stephanie mumbled, hopping off the couch in a hurry and looking for her clothes, "Hold on a second."

"Here," Chris said, grabbing some of her clothes while slipping on his boxers. She was rushing around as he tried to snap her bra back on and she was pulling on her pants as Chris was trying to slip her shirt back on, not worrying about himself for the moment, just about getting his wife dressed.

"You have to act like you're surprised that it's John ok?"

"Ok, I got it, let's just worry about getting you clothed," Chris said quickly.

She buttoned her last button and looked to Chris for assurance that she was presentable. He folded her hair over her ears and kissed her forehead. She nodded and slipped out the door in front of John Cena himself, his title belt securely in his possession. Stephanie straightened out her blouse and then looked at John.

"Hi John."

"Yo, what up?"

"Uh, you have a Highlight Reel in about three minutes, so why don't I walk you down there and we can discuss your position here at Raw."

Chris rushed to get dressed, realizing that the show was starting in about thirty seconds. He didn't have time to even button up his shirt all the way and he just threw it on, not caring about how he looked because tonight would be about Cena anyways and not really about him. His shirt was askew on him and he ran to the gorilla just in time for his music. He looked at Stephanie who was talking to Cena and he laughed thinking about what they had just been doing.

He walked down the ramp to his music, realizing he had a scrap of paper of Stephanie's on his arm, must've happened when he had thrown his shirt on her desk in the heat of the moment. He brushed it off hastily, trying not to laugh to himself. He was just too happy from the previous activities he had been doing; he didn't even notice that he still had his wedding ring on, but luckily Stephanie wouldn't be mad since he wasn't wrestling with it on, that's when she was bothered by it.

He went out there and talked about how tonight was a great night. He failed to mention that it was because he and his wife had just…well, the crowd didn't need to know about his sex life, unless they were really creepy people. He just mentioned his show later on, which he had just remembered, because being with Stephanie tended to cloud his mind to the real world. But tonight was also a big night, he mentioned because he was going to have his guest on tonight, a "mystery" guest, to everyone but him.

He went to introduce the newest acquisition to the Raw roster and he had to wait a few minutes. He figured Stephanie might be telling him something last minute. Finally Cena's music hit and Chris tried to act surprised. Only problem was, he acted WAY too surprised, which, to the observant eye, gave away the fact that he had known all along, but nobody was paying attention to him (except those people who don't like Cena, and there are people who don't like Cena, really, there are) so he was pretty much off the hook with that one.

He clapped and tried to act excited for this. And in a way he was, because this meant there was another belt for him to go after, and maybe this time…get. And if there were two titles, maybe Hunter could act like a baby after one and then he could go after the other, because Hunter was a baby, but thankfully one who was all but ignoring his wife, much to his relief.

Chris talked for a while and he and Cena were kind of getting along, surprisingly, because in the past, he still remembered a time when Cena had slapped Chris and yeah, that was the past. He even got a mention of his Undisputed Title in there (Chris had mastered the segue into the fact that he was the FIRST ever Undisputed Champion of the world, and it was true, for any youngins who might have just started watching wrestling, it happened, I swear, I was there!), so he was on a roll.

Christian came out though, and Chris couldn't figure out why, but as was custom, he just let whatever was going to happen, happen. Christian had actually come out here because he was bored, and because he didn't like Cena. There was just something about him that bugged him and so he came out her, not as a challenge but just to come face-to-face with the guy. Chris didn't barge in as Cena attempted to rip on him. Chris had to laugh a little bit though, because it was funny.

Christian did not find it funny as he stormed backstage. That must've been why he was so angry earlier, he had subconsciously known that someone he hated was here. He stomped back to his locker room and picked up his cell phone and dialed home.

"Hello?"

"Hey Trishy, it's me."

"Oh hey Chrissy," Trish said, trying not to laugh. "How are you?"

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing," Trish said quickly and then burst out into laughter. "I'm sorry Chrissy, but that was so funny."

"What! You were watching?"

"Of course I was watching, I miss you on Mondays," she told him sadly. "But Chrissy, you have to admit, it was a little funny."

"He made fun of the kazoos!"

"Oh, now that I didn't laugh at," Trish responded seriously. "I loved when you and Edge had the kazoos, that was classic."

"Well at least you're on my side for something."

"Just don't go getting into trouble, do you hear me?"

"Fine, and I'll learn to laugh at myself like you always tell me," he said, making his voice sound dumb.

"Good boy, I love you."

"Yeah, love you too," Christian said, hanging up and at least feeling a little bit better now that he had spoken to Trish. He walked outside and saw Lita again, but this time she seemed to have found Edge. He smiled at her, and she smiled back, looking at Edge for a moment. Christian watched them pass by.

In another part of the arena, Stephanie was chatting with Chris about the Highlight Reel as she jokingly tucked his shirt into his pants. He tried to get her hands off of him, but she was being too quick about it and he leaned in to kiss her so she would stop trying to dress him. She pulled away and laughed and noticed Cena standing there, seemingly taking the Raw experience in.

"Did you need anything John?" Stephanie asked.

"No, I just wanted to say we cool man," Cena said, sticking a hand out for Chris. "Thanks for having my back."

"It's cool," Chris said, shaking his hand.

"I got it on the up and up that you're big stuff around here," Cena said, "Cause of your lady man, so I think I need to be on your good side."

"Not really."

"Yes really," Stephanie teased, wrapping her arms around his waist. "If you need anything John don't hesitate to ask."

"I won't," he said, nodding his head as he walked off.

"Well at least I know that I'm on his good side now. Does this make me part of his Chain Gang?" Chris asked quietly.

Stephanie just laughed. "Come on dawg, let's get you to your concert on time."

Later that evening, Lita was standing there, talking out to Kane. He was so close, just a few hundred feet, but she felt tethered to Edge behind her. She lied out there, said what Edge wanted her to say and almost gagged at the thought of having to marry Edge. He wouldn't make her go that far would he? She already had one horrible marriage experience under her belt and while that had ended up pretty good, she didn't want to go through that again, and she didn't think she'd ever really, truly fall for Edge.

When they were backstage, Edge cackled to himself and walked off, leaving Lita alone. She saw Christian again and she walked over to him, feeling like she could talk to him. He was right earlier, he did know Edge pretty well. She felt more comfortable because Trish wasn't here. If Trish were here, she wouldn't be within a hundred feet of Christian.

"You again?" he asked jokingly.

"Hi again."

"Hey, what's up?"

"You know Edge."

"I do know him…is something bothering you?"

Lita didn't know what to say and so she didn't say anything at all. How could she tell anyone what was really going on? Christian knew Chris and Stephanie and that would surely cost her, her job, and she couldn't lose that too. It was bad enough losing Matt and Kane, and her work was really all that she had left that she actually cared about. Christian would tell, anyone would tell because they thought she was a slut and a liar and nobody would believe anything she had to say.

"No, you just probably don't know your brother is all, you probably don't know."

She walked away quickly and Christian just watched her, confused by her behavior. But if anyone knew about Lita's behavior, there was one person. Christian took out his ever-trusty cell phone and dialed a single number, wanting to ask a favor of something. He wasn't going to let his brother destroy anyone else, that much he knew. He had gone crazy because of Edge, and he wasn't going to let that happen to someone else.

Even later that evening, Christian went to see Chris play with his band. He knew that Stephanie was going to be there and felt bad that she was going to be all alone. He slipped into the place, glasses on, hoping nobody would notice him, but they were all pretty much focused on the music. He spotted Stephanie sitting at the bar, nursing a drink and slipped in next to her, having to stand impossibly close because of how packed it was.

"Hey Steph," Christian said. "You missed a rough night after you left."

"Oh did I?" Stephanie asked. "I don't care, I took the night off anyways."

"Good idea. It's just the ECW thing. Did you know that Bischoff is giving us bonuses to 'invade' the show? That's why I'm doing it," he explained.

"Oh, that's good," Stephanie nodded, then admitted, "I can barely hear you because Chris's band plays way too loud!"

"Oh, I said I'm getting paid to invade the ECW show!" he yelled.

"OH! That's good because Chris is in it!"

"Oh yeah!"

"Uh huh, so what's up!"

"I need your help!"

"With what!" Stephanie asked him.

"With Lita!"

"Huh?" Stephanie asked, genuinely confused as to why Christian cared.

"Look, if anyone can spy and figure out something, it's you, it's what you're good at. Maybe it would be better if Trish were here, but she's not and she hates Lita anyways, but I have a feeling that my brother is doing something to her, and I don't want Edge to get his way AGAIN, so help me, please."

"But…" Stephanie realized she had no logical reason for turning him down. Chris had been concerned for her too. Maybe there was something going on the Lita needed help with. She just hoped it wasn't Edge abusing her or something, she wouldn't be able to condone that amongst her employees. "Fine!"

"Thanks Steph, you won't regret this!"

"But what about Trish!"

"You just let me take care of Trish!"


	40. Kurt AND a Steph Mention, June 13, 2005

A/N: Oh, I'm so happy, I prayed, I hoped, I wanted it so bad, and Kurt is back on Raw! Yay! Oh I'm so happy, I can't even calm down, I'm so happy right now. Hee, and did you see that look between Hunter and Chris, ouch! As much as I don't like HHH, and I don't like the outcomes of any feuds he has with Chris, you have to admit, when those two are feuding, it's awesome. AND they mentioned Stephanie, and hee, the only two guys she was making out with were Kurt and Jericho. ;) An almost perfect show, almost…I just really hope that Chris doesn't go over to SmackDown, because that would absolutely suck. :crosses fingers:

Enjoy the chapter, it's long, but there was SO much that I needed to talk about. :)

* * *

"It was nice seeing some of the guys last night, it was definitely cool seeing Lance." 

"That's nice," Stephanie said to him, and she wasn't even doing any work, just sitting on the couch with him, so her answer perplexed him. He reached out and took her hand she gave him a soft smile.

"What's up?"

"Nothing," Stephanie said, shaking her head, but her smile gave her away. Chris could read her well, maybe she didn't exactly get that, but he could read her and he was reading anything but her smile right now.

"Come on, tell me, I'm your husband, you love me, you can tell me anything, I'm your best friend, the love of your life, your everything…feel free to stop me at any point when I've made enough of a fool of myself. We're soulmates, we're the only ones for each other."

"You can stop now," Stephanie said, giving a small laugh.

"So you're going to tell me then."

"I guess," Stephanie said. "Why didn't you invite me to the show last night?"

"Huh?"

"You didn't even invite me. I had nothing to do, I mean, I wasn't working it, since it was ECW and I owned that company, but really, I owned the bastardized version of it, but I mean, you didn't invite me."

"I'm not getting what you're saying. You know you were welcome to come, you own the company that was putting on the show. Your father was funding it, you were welcome to come."

"But that's not the point!" Stephanie said, letting go of his hand. "What I mean was…I mean, I know that I could've gone, but it was like, a high school reunion or something, and you didn't invite me, you didn't say that you wanted me to go."

"I didn't know you wanted to go!" Chris argued.

"Of course I wanted to go, I mean, these are people that you knew before you knew me, you could've at the very least introduced me," Stephanie told him, pouting.

"I think they know who you are, even if they've never met you. You're the daughter of the biggest name in the wrestling business, I think they're going to know who you are."

"That's not the point," Stephanie sighed, blowing some hair out of her face. "The point is that you should introduce me as your wife to all your friends, or former friends, or whatever they were to you."

"I thought you'd be uncomfortable, this isn't exactly the crowd you're used to."

"So you're ashamed of me then?" Stephanie said, giving him the evil eye. Chris bit his lip, sometimes his wife could be so infuriating, so hard to argue with. Sometimes he could swear she just brought stuff like this up so they could get in a pointless fight because she thought it was fun.

"Why would I be ashamed of you? What is there to be ashamed of?"

"I don't know, that I'm damaged goods since you're my second husband."

"Yeah, because divorces in wrestling are so uncommon," Chris said sarcastically. "Come on Stephanie, don't insult me. I'm not ashamed of you because you're perfect, you are perfect, is that what you want to hear?"

"No, I just wanted to be introduced and invited."

He grabbed her hand again and kissed it, "I'm sorry that I didn't bring you to the show last night and I'm sorry that I didn't introduce you to all the people that I used to work with, but that didn't stop people from ribbing me because I'm married to Vince McMahon's daughter."

"They ribbed you for that?" she asked.

"Yeah, I didn't want to say anything last night or today because I thought it might make you uncomfortable. I mean, they weren't saying nasty things, but they were just shocked is all, because they knew me when I was younger, and I mean younger Steph, like early to mid-20's and the guy that I was back then would not be caught with a woman like you, and that's all I'm saying."

"You would've been caught with a leggy blonde with tons of air in her head and boobs that went out to wherever, and not someone like me."

"Not like you now, although the boobs part still holds true, and the whole slutty dressed thing would've held true like three years ago," Chris laughed. "About three years ago, you would've pretty much been my type, too bad you were such a whore."

Stephanie's jaw dropped in indignation. "I resent that! I never, NEVER cheated on Hunter. You were the one who kissed me, and same with Kurt, so don't put it on me."

"Ok then, I stand corrected, you just better not be a whore now."

"Only on the weekends," Stephanie said.

"Shouldn't you be at a meeting with Bischoff?"

"No, because last night, I thought that I was going to be with my husband, and I wasn't, so I don't know the draft pick, and for some reason, Bischoff said I shouldn't work tonight. I don't know why, but the opportunity for a night off was too good to pass up."

"You're voluntarily not doing work? Am I dying or something?" Chris asked jokingly.

"Hey, I can stop working whenever I want to."

"Says the addict."

"Very funny, why don't you go talk to your tag team partner or something and get out of my hair."

"Trying to get rid of me already?" Chris asked, scooting closer to her. She scooted closer to him in retaliation. He closed the distance between them by kissing her softly, but she wasn't into soft right now, she wanted more than soft, she pulled him against her, and then leaned back so that he was on top of her. Her father was not here tonight so there was no chance that he was going to walk in and she didn't care about anyone else.

"I wouldn't want you to go anywhere."

"I haven't taken a shower today," Chris said and Stephanie pulled away.

"That's so unromantic."

"We're in the middle of an arena, on a couch that's not ours, with people we work with walking right outside the door and you think that's somehow romantic, you've got some really skewed views woman."

"Yeah, but you're telling me you smell," Stephanie said. "That really, really turns me off."

"Want to take a shower with me?" Chris asked lecherously, eyeing the bathroom to their right side. Stephanie giggled and then looked at him, pulling on his collar to get another kiss from him. "Someone's being a little forceful tonight."

"I'll take you up on that offer," Stephanie said, pushing him off of her and then getting up herself to walk to the adjacent bathroom. She grabbed Chris by the collar again and pulled him inside the bathroom.

As this was going on, in another locker room, not to far away, two brothers were talking. Well, Edge was talking and Christian was listening a little bit, but was actually scoping out the locker room. He hadn't actually seen Lita yet and wondered where she was at the moment. He was going to help her, because he wasn't going to let her fall under Edge's power, like he had done. He had taken a backseat to Edge for so many years, and he had ended up practically demented and crazy, even going so far as to join the Alliance. He wasn't going to let that happen again.

He felt like he had a good partner by his side. Stephanie was probably his best friend next to Chris, which was weird because Christian had never had a girl be his best friend before, but that's what Stephanie was. It had just happened when they were pretending to see each other, they had gotten close and he regarded her as a little sister of sorts, someone he could protect, although Stephanie didn't need protecting, and if she ever did, well Chris was right there, ready to pound you into the ground.

But Stephanie was good, Stephanie was manipulative and bitchy in the best possible way. And Trish, even though he loved her, was not going to help any cause that aided Lita. Christian knew that Trish hated Lita, and for good reason, but maybe Lita was being forced, maybe…just maybe. And that's where Stephanie came in, because she was great at spying and overhearing and just knowing things in general, and most importantly, she was willing to help.

Stephanie had even taken the night off to help him. Stephanie never took a night off, Stephanie was like a machine, she never quit unless you turned her off. She was a mess of papers and faxes and meetings, and yet she still had time on her hands to deal and help with others. She was such a good friend and regarded Christian so highly that she was taking the night off from him, however much it pained her.

"So that's what's going down at Vengeance," Edge said with a cocky smile as he nodded in victory.

"Huh? What dude?" Christian asked, having been off on a thought tangent.

"Dude, would you just listen once in a while?" Edge asked.

"Look dude, I have a huge match coming up later and my mind kind of has to focus on that," Christian argued.

"Whatever dude, I'm getting married to Lita next week is what I'm trying to say."

"Um, you're going to have to repeat that," Christian said, not honestly thinking that he had heard what he had most definitely heard. There was no way that was going to happen, his brother was getting married before he was, and he had been with Trish for over two years, not counting their breaks, since that was a moot point right now, and they were nowhere near marriage. Of course, that was a personal choice rather than being forced.

"We're getting married, dude aren't you happy for me?"

"Is she even divorced?" Christian asked.

"Dude, we're getting one of those quickie divorces, seriously though, what the hell do those two have that they can split, does Kane have anything but those one pair of pants, and I don't think Li will want anything that he has, I mean, it probably all reeks, and not of awesomeness."

"But dude, you haven't been together that long."

"Dude, that doesn't matter if you're in love."

"You're in love with her?" Christian asked skeptically.

"Whatever, this wedding is going to happen, in Vegas, I'd ask you to be my best man, but this isn't formal," Edge laughed, slapping him on the shoulder. "I just want it over and done with so we can get to the bedroom."

"Too much bro," Christian said. "So where is this blushing bride?"

"Around or something," Edge shrugged. "I never can keep track of her."

"I'm sure," Christian muttered under his breath. "Well, I should…like prepare or something for my match and you can like…pick out china or something."

"See ya later bro," Edge said, slapping Christian's hand. Christian walked out of the room and made a grossed out face. He could not imagine his brother being married to anyone. Edge loved women more than most guys. He was constantly seeing different women every other night and he couldn't see him changing that for Lita.

He decided his best course of action was to probably find Lita and talk to her. He turned the corner and saw Tomko up ahead. Christian whistled to him and Tomko turned around, greeting Christian with another high-five, his usual greeting with Tomko since they were kind of friends now.

"Dude, be ready for later," Christian said.

"I know, oh, Bischoff told me he wants to see you, so you better get your ass over there, don't want to make the boss mad," Tomko said, rolling his eyes, and Christian laughed. That was as much a joke as he was going to get from Tomko.

"Thanks for telling me man, I'll be sure to go see him."

Tomko nodded and Christian halted his search for Lita to go talk to Bischoff. He didn't bother knocking on Bischoff's door, since nobody ever really bothered to knock on Bichoff's door. It was funny because they all held Stephanie with such respect that they usually knocked, while nobody knocked for Bischoff. Of course, if you didn't knock on Stephanie's door, you could walk into a potentially embarrassing situation with her and Chris. So he walked into Bischoff's office and saw the man himself on the phone. Bischoff hang up though and turned to him with that not-so-charming smile of his.

"Christian, just the man I wanted to see."

"So I heard," Christian answered.

"Well, don't act so happy to see me," Bischoff chuckled, but it was more for his own benefit, since he was trying to forget last night and all. "I've got good news for you."

"I don't think any news from you is necessarily good," Christian said. "It probably reeks of suckitude."

"Oh, you are funny," Bischoff said, pointing to him. "Well, I was thinking, and since I'm in charge tonight, I've noticed this rivalry you've had going with Cena and I want to capitalize on it for Vengeance."

Now Christian was intrigued and he raised his eyebrow, his eyes lighting up like they used to, "Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

"I absolutely am," Bischoff said, like a car salesman, a very bad and cheesy car salesman. "You and Cena at Vengeance with the WWE title on line. That's right, the WWE title is going to be on the line and you are the number one contender."

"No?" Christian asked, his face brightening up considerably.

"Yes!"

"No!" Christian said again.

"Absolutely yes."

"Oh…hell yeah!" Christian said, actually jumping up and down. "This is awesome, this is bitching news, oh man, dude, thanks Bischoff."

"My pleasure."

Christian raced out of there, and ran back to his locker room, he was going to have to call Trish right this moment and tell her the news. She was going to be so happy for him, and then they could talk about how it would be for Christian to be holding the WWE title and for Trish to be holding the Women's title and how they would be just like Hunter and Stephanie when they were champions at the same time, except they would be better since Trish was better than Stephanie (even Stephanie would readily admit that), and Christian was light years better than HHH, according to him and lots of other people.

He raced right by Chris and Stephanie's locker room, but didn't bother to tell them before he told Trish. A good thing too since Chris and Stephanie had just gotten out of the shower and there was only one towel between them. Stephanie was using it now as she dried her hair and then threw on her clothes again, forgoing anything under her pants, which drove Chris nuts and which she knew drove Chris nuts. She threw the towel at Chris and it hit him in the face and she laughed at him as he pulled it off, revealing a mean smirk.

"Oops," Stephanie laughed, walking out and leaving Chris in the bathroom. She grabbed a pen from her desk and pulled her hair into a bun, twisting it around the pen so that people wouldn't notice her very wet hair and then notice Chris's very wet hair and put the two of them together. She noticed she had a message from Bischoff on her phone and she stuck out her tongue in distaste, dialing his number. "I'm supposed to be off, damn it."

"Stephanie, you got my message."

"I didn't bother to listen to it, so just let me know what it was."

"I made a match for Vengeance," Bischoff told her and she saw Chris walk out of the bathroom and over to her, giving her a kiss. Stephanie returned it even as she was listening and he pointed towards the door and she waved at him. "And it's going to be Christian versus Cena for the WWE title."

"Um…wow, ok," Stephanie said, finding nothing objectionable about it. "I'll get that signed off, just give me a little time."

"Great, thank you," Bischoff said then hung up.

"Ok," Stephanie said to the empty line and realized that she had nothing to do. She guessed she could call up the lawyers to draw up contracts for the match, but it was kind of late and she'd rather do that in the morning. The show wasn't set to start for a little bit, and so there was nothing to watch. She stood in the middle of the room and just stood there. Maybe she could go find Chris or someone else.

Instead she sat down on the couch and grabbed a magazine that Chris had left there. It was some music magazine and it didn't particularly grab her interest, but she could try and read it. She knew Chris would love it if she came to love metal like he did, but that wasn't going to happen. It was good to be different sometimes, she would tell him, thanking God that she wouldn't be forced to listen to any more of that music that she so did not like.

"Well that guitar is kind of nice," Stephanie commented to herself.

"Knock, knock," came an all too familiar voice from the door and Stephanie thought she was hearing things, but the door was creaking open, she could hear that and she stood up, turning to the door.

"Kurt?" Stephanie asked in disbelief.

"Do you know any other bald guys with Olympic gold medals, which they won with a broken freaking neck?" Kurt asked.

"What are you doing here?" Stephanie asked, blinking a few times in order to try and figure this out. She was absolutely stupefied as to why Kurt would even be here.

"You're actually looking at the newest member of Raw," Kurt said, closing the door behind him as he held out his arms, presenting himself.

Stephanie's eyes widened, not believing this, "No? No, you can't be!"

"I am."

"You are!" she said, starting to get excited.

"Yes Stephanie, I would not have come all the way out here if I didn't have to," Kurt told her. "Not even to see you, my best friend."

"You're on Raw, for real, like you're really here, you're going to be here every week?" Stephanie asked, still in disbelief. She had thought this a possibility, but the odds were against her, against them. Her best friend in the entire world, the man that had stood by her time and time again, even before her husband was standing here, telling her that he was back in her life in a larger capacity, no more phone calls and the odd visit, he was going to be here every week.

"I'm on Raw Steph, I'm here, I'm going to be here."

Stephanie screamed in glee and launched herself towards Kurt, jumping into his arm, not caring that she probably looked stupid, not caring that she was making a scene, just so incredibly and immensely happy that Kurt was here, and that he was here to stay. It wasn't just a visit, he was really here, and she was hugging him and laughing and trying to stave back tears all at the same time. Kurt wrapped his arms around her and lifted her up.

"I can't believe this, why didn't you tell me!"

"I wanted it to be a surprise, I wanted to see your reaction," Kurt told her, "And it was a great one, I'm feeling so welcome already."

"You are the most welcome draft pick we're going to have. You know what I was just saying last week?"

"What?"

"That I could only be happier if we had drafted you. I was excited and ecstatic about Cena coming over, but you coming over, that's like, it's like…oh hell, I don't know what it's like, but it's the best thing you could ever think of!"

Stephanie went back to hugging him, actually wrapping her legs around his waist as she hugged the life out of him. She had missed him so much and now he was here and she was just so happy. It was like the Three Musketeers were back again, her and Chris and Kurt, just like it was supposed to be. There lives had been intrinsically combined for years, along with Hunter's and now it was like old times.

"Ok, I'm looking stupid," Stephanie said, letting herself stand up. "You have no idea how good it is to see you here."

"Well I'm glad to be here, I missed you too, and Chris, and Christian and everyone and finally I don't have to be like the outcast over on SmackDown."

"No, no, you're here, you're here with me and Chris and we're all back together, it's awesome."

"So, do I have to watch out for you over here too?"

"Nah, I've got enough bodyguards, oh, I just don't know what to say."

"Well, keep me a secret, I wasn't actually supposed to be walking around, but I figured I could break the rules for my new boss."

"And she appreciates that, but I guess you should go for right now, because Chris will probably be back soon because he has a match tonight and he might want to come back here," Stephanie said. "And if you don't leave, who knows what I'll do with you."

"Hey there little lady, you're married now, so you can't be touching me or flirting with me."

"Me? Flirt with you? Not a chance on Earth," Stephanie giggled, hugging him again. "This is like the best present ever, and it's not even my birthday, it's like an everyday present."

"Ok, well, I'll see you later, stick around for my debut, Bischoff said he was letting me speak or something."

"Of course I will, we're going out tonight to celebrate. I don't even care if Chris isn't up for it, I'll drag him. But he'll be up for it."

"Great, see you later," Kurt said, hugging her in goodbye before sneaking out.

Stephanie squealed to herself before skipping out of the room and almost running straight into a production assistant, who was giving her a funny look. Stephanie ignored it for the most part and just kept happily walking down the hallway. She wasn't even caring who saw her, tonight was a good night, she could feel it. Of course, all nights have their bad moments as she saw Hunter up ahead of her, but she wasn't going to let him get to her.

"Hello Hunter, how are you today?" Stephanie asked happily.

"I'm feeling like crap, what's your story?" Hunter asked gruffly.

"Nothing, I'm just in a good mood, you ever been in a good mood? Of course you have, I've been there. Well, I hope that you have a great day, and a great evening."

"What the hell are you on?"

"Nothing," Stephanie said again. "Seriously, you can't bring my mood down. Life is good Hunter, soak it up."

"Maybe it's good for you, but its hell for me, I want my goddamn title back."

"Oh, well, that's too bad," Stephanie said.

"Look, if you're going to tell me some story about how life is great with Jericho, save it ok Stephanie, I think that I get it. You're happy or whatever, that's fine, I don't care, I just want my title back."

"I actually wasn't going to talk about Chris, but what is with you and your like obsession with him. This dates way back, you might want to figure that one out soon," Stephanie said with a smile.

"I can say it a million times, but it's fruitless with you," Hunter said.

"Ok," Stephanie said happily. "Be seeing you. And just because I don't want you to think of this meeting as something positive that you can use to somehow get back in my good graces and try to push Chris out of my life, despite the fact that we're married now, I still think you're scum and I still hate your guts, and that divorce was like the third best decision in my entire life, I'd say first, but those have to do with Chris, see ya Hunter."

"Steph, wait up a second," Hunter said and Stephanie stopped, not knowing why she felt compelled to hear what he had to say, but maybe she was just a glutton for punishment.

"What is it?" she asked.

"I may not have the title right now, but at least I have a shot, when was the last time your husband had a one-on-one shot? Can't even remember it can you?" he said with a sneer. "He's washed up, a nobody, nothing, face it Stephanie, you've married a loser whose taking a backseat to some punk kid like Cena."

Christian was Stephanie's fiercest competition for who was happiest that evening, a competition he had just won because now Stephanie had seeds planted in her brain, unwanted seeds. He was smiling the entire time he was with Trish on the phone, "Yeah, just like that, he said I had the shot."

"That is so great Chrissy, I wish I could be there, but we're going to celebrate when you get home, you can bet on that," Trish said. "As long as it doesn't hurt too much if you know what I mean."

"You would think I could come up with some snappy response, but I'm just too happy right now. You have to somehow make it to Vegas Trishy, I can't have that title shot without you there. We'll think of something, even if I have to drive there from Florida with you."

"Oh, that'll be something, us in a car for that long," Trish said. "We'll kill each other Chrissy."

"I don't care, if that's the only way you're going to be able to see my match in person, I will deal with your endless nagging and nitpicking about everything."

"And I'll deal with the way you talk about every stupid site we see on the way."

"Good, then it's settled," Christian said. "You'll be there to see me get the big win. I think this is it Trishy, I think I will finally be on the top of the mountain and do you know what the best part will be?"

"What?"

"I'll get it before Edge," Christian said, just thinking about how jealous Edge would be if that were the case. He would flip his lid and finally realize that maybe, just maybe, Christian was right on par with him, or better than him, not that Edge would ever, EVER admit that, but if he got that title, there'd be no denying it. And oh how Christian would flaunt it. He would even bring it home for his mother and Grandma Edna to see.

There was going to be a serious kink though because Stephanie's mind was working overtime. Hunter was right, Hunter was absolutely right about Chris's lack of title shots and she was naturally bothered by it. The way that Hunter said it, the way he mocked her and her choices, and the way that he openly mocked her husband, how he still, to this day felt superior, it bothered her, and it made her angry. She hated being angry now, felt it unnecessary when things were going well, but still, she felt angry.

The show had started and she hadn't even noticed or cared. Austin had never been on her lists of favorites, he had ripped her top off once, and she had never really gotten over that. She wasn't a diva, not feeling comfortable in her bra and panties. Even in her sluttiest clothes, she was at least covered up. She watched regardless of that, seeing what was going on with her show. She would at least want to know what was going on, even is she wasn't working.

She tried to keep her mind off of Hunter, tried to keep everything off of him, and she loathed him for making her still care, she hated him for making her completely mad. Ever since she and Chris had stopped hating each other, Hunter had replaced him as enemy #1, and that hadn't changed and it wouldn't change. It went beyond their divorce and beyond her new marriage, it was something bigger, this hatred, this never-ending feud that seemed to pop in and out like wind, sweeping in and out like seasons through time.

Chris had just found out that Bischoff had made Christian the number one contender and felt like he had been given the shaft. Christian was one of his best friends, but Chris knew that he deserved that shot as much, if not more than Christian. He was higher profile than Christian, he was a bigger name and he could get the job done. He went straight to Bischoff, telling him what he thought about this development, and saying that he was going to show him later that he deserved that shot. It didn't matter that he was friends with Christian, because what happened in the ring did not affect real life, what happened in the ring was something altogether different. Bischoff gave him the shot and a promise that maybe he would switch and that was enough.

When he was walking out, he saw Hunter, and the tension was pulsating in the room and through the television and across the nation until every single person felt this hatred coming off these two men. They stared each other down for a few seconds, neither saying a word, but there was a vibe between them, there was always a vibe between them. Their hatred was as large as the hatred between Stephanie and Hunter, these two had hated each other for longer, for years, ever since Chris came into the company, it had been a long, strange journey, feuds and backstage fights, and the passing of Stephanie.

That would always be a sore spot with them, the fact that Stephanie had loved them both at one time, that she was with one and now she was with the other. She was the x-factor in their hatred for each other, everything they hated about each other could probably be traced back to her. Hunter said Chris's name, in that way of his, like he was beneath him, and Chris said Hunter's name right back, making even the sound of his name sound like an insult, but that's because Chris hardly ever called him Hunter, usually opting for Trips, which he knew pissed him off.

Chris left then, thinking about going to see Stephanie. But when he got to his locker room, she was nowhere to be found, so Chris sat there, wondering where she was. But then he thought that maybe seeing Cena would be a good thing since they were tagging later on that evening.

Stephanie was marching straight into Bischoff's office and slammed her hands down on his desk, "Chris is getting a title shot at Vengeance."

"I already made the match, you know that."

"Chris is getting a title shot, we'll just put him in the match."

"Stephanie, this is such blatant favoritism."

"Bischoff, don't toy with me, I'm not a country girl on my first foray to the big city. I'm not going to be duped. Now let me repeat myself so you understand. You are going to put Chris in that match and you are going to like it. Go against my wishes and I will suspend you. I am your boss and what I say goes, and if I want Chris in that match, he will be in that goddamn match."

"And how much of this--"

"I don't think I need to repeat myself," Stephanie said, her voice ice cold. Her looked was cold too, and Bischoff could tell she was about as serious as she was ever going to get and nodded.

"Fine, he can be in the match."

"Good, now don't worry Bischoff, Chris is a good wrestler, it's not like I'm asking you to put someone like Viscera in the match."

"Ok Stephanie."

"Nice doing business with you and if you want to keep your job, you better not question me again," Stephanie, walking out purposefully.

She took her time walking to the gorilla, and was just in time for Chris to go out to his match. She smiled at him and walked over, giving him a light kiss for luck. He smiled at her before going out there for his match against Christian and Tomko. He waited for Cena to come out and he and Christian started it up, and like usual forget for the time being that they were friends. Right now they were enemies.

For the most part, Chris and Cena worked well together. They had never tagged together before, and it had been years since they had faced each other, but they fell into an easy rhythm. They were working well together, tagging and what not, and Cena encouraged him, so it was a good fit. Cena even won, and as soon as that bell tolled, Chris knew what he had to do.

He had to show Bischoff that he deserved that shot. So he forwent anything the fans might think of him, and he went after Cena, and he did it well enough that Cena looked like a little bitch, throwing him into the stairs and putting him in the Walls of Jericho, not even breaking the hold. He didn't care, nothing mattered, he wanted that title. He was craving it; craving it like he had before, once you have that gold, you need it again. And while he wasn't as adamant about having it as say, Hunter was, he still wanted to get that title. That was a big title, a title that could rival Hunter or anyone else, and he wanted it. The only thing he was unsure of would be Stephanie's reaction.

When he stepped backstage, he needn't worry because Stephanie had a huge smile on her face, but it wasn't like her genuine smile, this was her evil smile, downright scary, but in the nicest way, which just made it even scarier. She walked over to him and she winked subtly, and in that moment, he knew that they did rule over this show, even if you couldn't see it, even if they tried to hide it, they were in power now, and they were the power couple.

"Brilliant," Stephanie whispered.

"I want in the match," Chris told her. "So should I go demand it from Bischoff, or just make the match myself?"

"It's already taken care of," Stephanie answered. "I wasn't going to stand for you being left out in the cold, so I went to Bischoff and put you in the match already. You didn't even need to go out there, and you certainly didn't need to go after Cena, but he deserved it, taking the spotlight away from you."

"He had no chance, and no clue either," Chris told her. Stephanie laughed and looked skyward. "I think I'm going to go act like Bischoff should give it to me. I would love to see the satisfaction of his face when he tells me I have. You did go gentle on him right?"

"Oh yes, couldn't be mean, now could I? That wouldn't be in my repertoire," Stephanie laughed enthusiastically.

So Chris went and did just that and was delighted to see that Bischoff was just another cog in the system. Christian came over and got angry over it, thinking his shot was gone, which it wasn't and Christian seemed to be ok with that, but Cena was not as he attacked Chris from behind. Chris wasn't expecting it and had a hard time fighting back, but he tried valiantly.

It took a bunch of referees to get Cena off of him, but they managed to, and Chris himself had to be held back. They both struggled against their captors, and managed to once again get in a fray. They finally pulled Cena off of him as Cena continued to threaten Chris. Stephanie walked over calmly and stood in front of Cena.

"If you initiate a fight like that again, I will have to fine you," Stephanie said to him sweetly, with no edge in her voice whatsoever.

"What!" Cena yelled, "That bitch started it!"

"In the ring," Stephanie said, "certainly not in the back where you were totally and completely vulnerable, so unless you want to be seriously docked, I suggest you not pull something like that again, do I make myself clear?"

"I don't play by your rules," Cena said, waving her off.

"You will and you'll like it," Stephanie said, opening her mouth and then closing it again. "Let me let you in on a little secret John. My maiden name is McMahon, same McMahon that owns this company, so anything I say pretty much goes, especially if you are representing this company. Now do you understand?"

"Whatever, I'm outta here," Cena said, and Stephanie watched him go, sucking at her teeth a little. "I just won't tolerate insubordination."

"As you shouldn't," Chris said. "Now let's go discuss anything else that would be fun to do to people."

"You read my mind."

There was a shift in energy just then because Chris and Stephanie might've just taken a turn for the worse. Only time would tell if that was going to be the case, but they were tired of putting up with people, and for them, it was time to shed that goody-goody image, and start being who they both knew they were.

Christian wasn't upset by having Chris in the match, but it would be harder to win now, because Chris was a past champion. He still hadn't talked to Stephanie, but judging from the way she had been acting with Chris just now, talking to her right now might not be the smartest of ideas. So he figured he might have to talk to Lita alone, if he could catch her that is. She was really elusive when she wanted to be.

Of course, like clockwork, that was the exact moment that Lita decided to show up and Christian noticed a ring on her left hand and he could only surmise that it was her new engagement ring. He rolled his eyes to himself and walked over with a smile. Lita noticed him and gave him a smile in return.

"So I guess I should welcome you to the family," he joked trying to break any tension.

"Yeah, I guess," Lita answered, toying with her ring. "Thanks."

"Yeah, I mean, as long as you want this, it's great," Christian said, emphasizing certain words over other words, trying to get his point across.

"Yeah, I do, I really do, at least, no, yeah I do," she said, stumbling over her words. "So have you talked to Matt lately?"

She sounded hopeful and it made him sad that she had to resort to second-hand information because her brother was probably controlling her. "Yeah, he's good, really good."

"I heard he has a new girlfriend, that's good for him," Lita said and she sounded distinctly sad. "I think I have to go see Edge, I better go."

"Lita, wait," Christian said. "You know, a girl can say no to a proposal."

"I know," Lita answered, "I said yes because…I want to marry him."

"Ok, if you're sure, I mean, if you're not, you can tell me, I mean, we're almost family."

"I know, I would," Lita told him, but she was lying, very obviously lying. She walked away, hating any conversation with Christian because she always felt transparent when that happened, like he could see right through her, and she knew that other people could tell too, but Christian knew his brother and he had already pinpointed the problem with her, and she hated that he saw.

The sight that greeted her when she entered the locker room made her stomach clench and the bile rise up in her throat. Gene Snitsky was sitting there with Edge, and they were talking and laughing. Lita wanted to hold her stomach instinctively, remembering what should've been there, what she should've had, and what had been taken from her so mercilessly. She had never forgiven herself and she had certainly never forgiven Snitsky for what he had done to her.

"Hey, the woman of the hour," Edge said and Lita stood frozen. "Aren't you going to say hello to our guest."

"No," Lita whispered, "I'm not."

"Well how rude of you," Edge said. "Don't mind my fiancée, she's a little on the touchy side. I guess it's the nerves that are running through her from our upcoming wedding."

"What is he doing here?" Lita asked as calmly as she could muster.

"He's going to help us out tonight, and you're going to help me out too. We have a very important match against Kane at Vengeance and if we want to beat him, we're going to have to use all our weapons, so let me detail what you're going to do."

To say that Lita felt dirty was an understatement. She felt like a pawn for Edge and that's exactly what she was and that hurt. It hurt because Edge had so much control over her. He didn't hit her, and he didn't exactly verbally abuse her, but nonetheless he was cruel towards her, he was cruel and she was not used to that. Not Edge's brand of cruelness anyways, this cold, detached way he had of going about things.

She played the part well, seeming to the all the world a slut, just a warm body for any available male and that's not who she was, but nobody saw that, they just saw this part of her. This lie that Edge instigated, that he made her be a part of, and she had to accept it or lose everything, not that there was much to hold on to anyways, maybe giving up would be the easiest part, maybe giving up would be the way. Nobody knew what she was going through, nobody.

Except one person who stared, who watched Lita kiss Gene Snitsky, who accused Kane, who looked just gross with Edge. Christian understood all too well, and he had to break Lita, had to make her let him in because then he could help her. Christian was not predisposed to helping the lady in distress, but when he thought back to a balmy fall night of 2001, when he had conchairtoed his brother, he knew he had to help Lita.

Stephanie was back into her good mood as she saw Hunter going out there for his talk with the new draft member. She told Chris that she just wanted to see who it was, and they walked to the gorilla, but since Stephanie knew Kurt would be there, she didn't want to spoil it for Chris so they stayed a little ways away and she kissed him, pushing him against the wall.

Chris didn't know what possessed her nor did she care, and nor did he hear the roar of the crowd or the sound of the Olympian's theme music since he was so wrapped up in Stephanie, but there Kurt was, walking out with a smile on his face. He had seen Stephanie and now it was time to see his old foe Hunter Hearst Helmsley.

Kurt was having fun out there, having fun and knocking down Flair and Hunter. By this time, Stephanie was standing with Chris, who was looking from her to the television and then back to her and then back to the television and so forth and so forth, in shock and awe. Kurt was reaming into Hunter, and he wouldn't be Kurt if he didn't mention Stephanie at least once in there, which he did, saying that he had made out with Hunter's ex-wife.

Hunter looked like he was seething for a moment, and in fact he was. He hated to remember seeing Kurt kiss Stephanie, an unknowing Stephanie at that, and him carrying her off into the back, him and her hugging and doing that stupid little Olympic pose. He hated that time. How could he have believed that Stephanie was faithful to him when Kurt wasn't the only guy she had kissed during their marriage, she had kissed Jericho TWICE, she was a whore, and he said so, exaggerating a little bit, maybe, maybe she had made out with everyone backstage (and if this was really the case, I wonder under what circumstances she was making out with Chris, because yeah, that'd be some good info to know).

Kurt was happy to be back, even when they were all just fighting with each other. It was a new environment, a new start and he didn't want to blow it; he wanted to come in with a bang, and a shot against the champ. And he was going to do that and show Raw just what it had been missing while he was over at SmackDown. But speaking of things he had been missing, when he got backstage, there was Stephanie and Chris and Stephanie walked over and hugged him once again.

"You were so great out there, and did I hear myself mentioned?"

"How could I not mention you, it's not like your husband mentions you at all," Kurt answered, hugging her back.

"He doesn't like to exploit us, or he didn't," Stephanie said, looking over at Chris.

"You better not be making out with my wife behind my back," Chris joked and Kurt shook his head. Chris gave him a very manly hug. "Welcome back, you're a welcome edition."

"I know, I'm an Olympic hero," Kurt said.

"God, two minutes and I'm already sick of him," Chris sighed. "So what're your plans for tonight?"

"We're all going to celebrate Kurt's arrival," Stephanie explained as she linked her arms through both of there's, "With my two favorite boys. It would be my three favorite boys, but Christian didn't feel like going out."

"Who's your favorite though?" Chris asked, "Me right?"

"I guess if I MUST choose," Stephanie said, but then leaned her head on Kurt's shoulder. "For tonight, Kurt's my favorite."

"Great, now I've got competition."

"Just think of it this way Chris, she'll be off your back more."

"Hey, I didn't think of that."

"Ok, now you're my two least favorite boys."

Yeah, Raw was going be fun again.


	41. Still Happy Over Kurt, June 20, 2005

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews guys, I love them all and please keep reviewing because I love them all so much.

Um…tonight's show wasn't that good, I mean, it had it's moments, Chris, Christian, Kurt, loved all of those moments, but Lita and Edge, yeah, could've done without that. I think the chapter sucks, but eh, what can you do when you have an Edge and Lita wedding?

Enjoy…hopefully. :)

* * *

"So Lita is marrying my brother tonight, LITA is MARRYING my BROTHER!"

"Yeah, I got that," Stephanie said. "And I know, who do you think gets stuck planning this crap."

"This can't be happening. Steph, tell me this is not happening."

"It's happening," Stephanie said. "I don't mean to sound like I don't care, but there's nothing that is going to change that."

"It sickens me."

"You're not the only one."

"I still think that he's using her. I don't know, maybe to get into Kane's head, or maybe because he thinks that he can't win on his own, but he's using her, I just know it."

"Christian, I know that's what you say, but how do you know she isn't really in love with him, or at least in lust with him?"

Stephanie had not seen many signs to the contrary. Whenever Edge and Lita were together, they looked happy, disgusting, but happy. In fact, she couldn't even watch half the time because she didn't enjoy watching them shove their tongues down each other's throats. But that just added to the fact that she was starting to doubt this entire thing.

"I can just sense it, kid."

"But you don't have any concrete evidence. I mean, they seem…excited last week, and I saw Edge and he seemed excited, and he's going to get all dolled up for it and everything and I've been planning the stuff and well, there's been no complaints."

"That may be, but I know it's wrong up here," he said, tapping his forehead with his index finger. "I know how Edge thinks and how he works. He's like…like a parasite or something, feeding off of you, getting what he wants to make himself look better."

"I don't think that's exactly what a parasite is," Stephanie pointed out.

"That's beside the point, you get the idea," Christian told her. "I mean, you do get the idea don't you?"

"Yeah, I get the idea. I just don't get what you want us to do about it. What do you want to do about this situation?"

"We have to put a stop to it. I don't know how, and I don't know why…wait, I do know the why, I just don't know the how. Anyways, we just have to put a stop to this so that we can help Lita."

"This is going to piss Trish off."

"If we're quiet, she won't even know," Christian said, making the gesture of zipping his lips. "Let's just say, I don't want another one sucked into Edge's evil doings."

"Ok, well then we have to think of a how."

"Yes, we have to think of a how," Christian said. "How…how…how are we going to do this?"

"I think I have an idea," Stephanie said, but went unnoticed by Christian.

"Something good, something great, something they would never expect. Or maybe something they would expect but done in a different way then they would think," Christian grumbled to himself as he rubbed his chin. "Something totally awesome."

"Christian, I said I think I have an idea," Stephanie said, but he was too deep in thought at the moment. Stephanie sighed and shoved him, causing him to look at her.

"You're interrupting my thought process!"

"I HAVE AN IDEA," Stephanie said, loudly and slowly so that Christian would understand.

"Oh, well, what is it?"

"It goes a little something like this…"

While Stephanie and Christian were plotting, her unsuspecting husband was hanging out with the last week's newest acquisition, Kurt Angle. It was just like old times and Kurt was having a blast knowing that he was back on the show with all his friends. If he wanted to go hang out with Stephanie, he could go hang out with Stephanie, or if he wanted to argue with Christian, he could argue with Christian. Everyone was here and he was just so happy to be here too, finally.

"So got any good pointers for Batista?" Kurt asked.

"He hurts," Chris said with a laugh. "He really hurts. Of course, my wife is friends with him, so you know how it goes."

"Oh yeah, Steph is friends with him, I forgot about that," Kurt said.

"Yeah, but you know how Steph is, she doesn't care who fights with who as long as it looks good for the show. She'd just as soon have us fighting with each other."

"But we're buddies."

"Yeah, buddies who are now potential opponents," Chris said. "I'm just glad to be back in a title picture, even if it's not one-on-one."

"It's with Christian."

"Yeah, but Christian and I both know when it comes to work, there is no friends. We're friends away from the ring and it works."

"Oh so much to learn, teach me Chris, teach me," Kurt said, clasping his hands together and looking downright pathetic.

"Not today Kurt," Chris said, patting his shoulder. "I think Christian is with Stephanie actually. She kicked me out of her office and I saw Christian walking towards it so apparently they're talking about something secretly."

"Hope they're not having an affair," Kurt joked.

"Oh yeah, that would be the ultimate way to psych me out for the match on Sunday. There's no way that I'd be able to have a match if that happened. I'd probably end up crying in the middle of a ring curled up in the fetal position."

"Aww, I'd come out and help you."

"And that's why you're my best friend," Chris said with a laugh. "You know, I'm going to sound so girly right now, but I'm really glad you're back on Raw."

"You love me," Kurt said impishly.

"Would you quiet down Angle, I have a reputation around here," Chris hissed.

"This is definitely a hug moment."

"Oh God, I forgot about the hug moments," Chris cringed. "Kurt, please, for the love of Mike, this I NOT a hug moment."

"You missed me, it's definitely a hug moment," Kurt responded.

"I swear, if anyone sees this," Chris said, going in for a hug. He tried to hug Kurt quickly, but Kurt held on, patting him on the back. "You know, if I didn't have a wife, people might start to talk."

"I'm just happy to be here."

"I know," Chris said dully, "I know."

"So Randy went to SmackDown…"

"Yeah, he actually called Stephanie and told her that he was happy and that he was looking at this as kind of a fresh start. She wished him luck over there. He'll probably do well though."

"Yeah, now that I'm not there."

"Of course Kurt, because you were the only worthy guy over there."

"You're damn right I was."

"Well welcome to a whole new ballgame."

"Yeah, you guys have the diva search, how can I compete with that," Kurt said sarcastically.

"Do not get me started on that again? I hated it last time, I hate it this time, but it's all on Vince and the marketing department or something," Chris said, not exactly knowing what channels it had to go through.

"Yeah, but as part owner, can't you say something?"

Chris shrugged, "I guess, maybe, but Vince is Vince and you of all people know how Vince is."

"Yeah, you're right, there's no way we could get him to change his mind."

"Not even worth trying. I just know that Stephanie is going to hate it. She hates working with people like that. I don't blame her."

"Yeah, but she's a professional."

"She's a great professional."

Stephanie was being a professional at that very moment. After she had solidified a plan with Christian, the newest member to Raw had come into her office and she was giving Carlito a briefing on how things worked around here. He had never been on Raw before, making his debut on SmackDown, so there was a lot to learn.

"I like to think that we run a tighter ship than SmackDown," Stephanie said, not intentionally meaning to degrade the other show, but it was just the truth. "Raw is an entirely different animal I think."

"That's cool," Carlito said nodding as he leaned back in his chair.

"I run things around here, and so does Eric Bischoff, so if you want something, go to him or to me and we'll see about getting you whatever it is you wanted. Bischoff I'm sure has things that he wants to say to you, but that's all I have to say."

"Cool," Carlito said, getting up and leaving. Stephanie sat there and thought of the things that she was going to have to do for the wedding later. This was not fun though, because it wasn't her wedding and it wasn't between two people that she could actually say she cared for. But then there was the plan that she had with Christian, which would be at least a little bit fun, if Christian was coming through at the moment, which she hoped he was.

Christian was nonchalantly telling Kane that Stephanie wanted to meet with him, and she was going to be waiting in her office. Kane had no idea what this was for, and honestly, he didn't really want to see anyone tonight. He was pissed off, more so than usual, since Kane was pretty much pissed off 99 of the time as it was. But Stephanie was the boss and if she wanted him, it might have to do with business.

When Kane walked into her office, her chair was facing the other way. Slowly it turned around to reveal Stephanie sitting there, her hands resting in her lap. She looked just like a super-villain from some movie, ready to plot the demise of the superhero, but this was reversed, this time she was the superhero, or at least something comparable. She gestured for Kane to sit down, which he did reluctantly.

"I know that you don't want to see Lita and Edge get married this evening," Stephanie started off coolly. "Not that many of us do."

"Yeah," Kane grunted, which wasn't really an answer at all, or even a coherent reply, but Stephanie didn't care as she pushed forward with her speech.

"Well, I'm here to give you an opportunity to intervene in this wedding, whether it be because you feel for Lita--"

"I don't anymore," Kane interrupted harshly.

"Ok then, this will give you the opportunity for revenge," Stephanie said, and she saw a sadistic smile come over Kane's face. If Stephanie wasn't the boss, she would be afraid of that smile. A long time ago, when she was a very different girl, Kane had terrified her, and she knew the evil behind that smile.

"Go on."

"Well, having you interrupt is easy, but how effective is it when Edge and Lita know you're coming," Stephanie stopped, but he didn't respond so she kept on speaking. "Not very effective, which is why I think that you being underneath the ring will be most effective towards stopping this sham of a wedding. And I will help you get under there Kane."

"Why are you doing this?"

"Let's just say there's a third party involved and I'm simply the messenger," Stephanie answered, being purposely vague.

"Matt Hardy," Kane ventured a guest.

"No, I haven't spoken to him in quite some time," Stephanie said. "I can't reveal my sources, it could be anyone. But this person will remain anonymous, and this meeting we're having right now, it didn't happen."

"So you want no involvement."

"Now you're catching on," Stephanie said with a smile that could almost match Kane's. "I have no love lost for Edge and Lita, make no mistake about that, but this is not my battle to fight. I'm simply doing something that I feel is right. But you go right ahead and take all the credit for it. Just make sure you do something."

"Oh, I'll do something," Kane promised.

"I'm sure you will, you never do disappoint. That's all I needed to say, if anyone sees you come in here, you were simply here because you asked to leave early. Right before the wedding, we have to set up, we'll turn off the lights briefly, allowing you a few moments to get underneath the ring."

"Ok."

"That's it, thanks for your time. Me and my associate in this matter appreciate it."

"I just want revenge," Kane growled, and then left.

Stephanie was satisfied with her handiwork and grabbed her cell phone. She dialed the speed dial number for Christian and called him, telling him that it was an all-go. She kept the phone call brief so as to not arise suspicion if anyone was near Christian at the moment. What she didn't know was that Chris and Kurt were around Christian at the moment.

"So that was my wife?" Chris asked as Christian hung up the phone.

"Yeah."

"I think you were right Kurt," Chris said with an exaggerated sigh.

"What did you say Kurt?" Christian asked.

"That you and Stephanie were having an affair," Kurt said. "I gotta hand it to you Christian, I tried to get Stephanie to have an affair with me, but she never bit. I guess you have something that I don't."

"Of course I do, it's called charisma, check into it," Christian answered. "Of course Stephanie would want that over an Olympic medal."

"I won it with a broken freaking neck, don't' forget that."

"You would never let us," Christian said. "I guess you talked too much about yourself and not enough about Stephanie, that's why she wouldn't choose you."

"I love how you're talking about my wife," Chris said as he observed the other two. "But you go right ahead Christian, sleep with her. I'll just have to get my revenge by sleeping with Trish."

"Like she would want you," Christian scoffed.

"Excuse me, I'm Chris Jericho, she'd want me."

"Fine, take Trish then."

"Who's taking Trish?" Stephanie asked as she walked up to the three men. "Chris, are you taking Trish?"

"Yeah, as punishment for you having an affair with Christian," Chris explained.

Stephanie furrowed her brow, "I'm having an affair with Christian? This is news to me, it must've happened while I wasn't looking."

"Well you were just on the phone with him," Kurt pointed out.

"Yeah, to inform him about something," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes and trying to sound like she was telling the truth. "No need for anyone to jump to any conclusions over that. I mean, if I wanted to have an affair with Christian, you'd know it."

"Oh I would?" Chris asked, stalking closer to her. Stephanie ducked behind Kurt and wrapped her arms around his neck from behind and leaned her chin on his shoulder.

"Kurt protect me from my evil husband!" Stephanie yelped, trying to keep Kurt in front of her so she could have a barrier between her and Chris.

"So now you have someone to protect you, how convenient for you," Chris said.

Stephanie moved to stand next to Kurt and wrapped her arms around his waist, leaning herself against him. She smiled up at Kurt for a second before looking back to Chris. "It is convenient, especially when we're fighting."

"I was under the impression we had a no fighting clause."

"We did, we do, we haven't fought," Stephanie replied. "Oh, I have to go check on something for this wedding later, luckily Bischoff has control of the show so I can focus on this sham marriage. Gross."

Stephanie turned to go see something about the wedding and bumped right into someone who was holding a soda in their hand. When she bumped into the person, the soda predictably went flying straight onto Stephanie's blouse, soaking her through and through, and if she had been wearing something white, it would've caused all the people around her to get quite the show.

"Oh my God!" Stephanie screamed, trying to get ice out of her cleavage.

"I'm so sorry!" the person said, some woman, maybe a diva search woman or someone's girlfriend.

"It's fine," Stephanie said impatiently, not wanting to get in a fight when she was cold and wet. The woman ran off and Stephanie turned towards the other three.

"Are you ok baby?" Chris asked, coming over and kind of covering her up since she was wet and all.

"Yeah, I'm fine, but I don't have another shirt, this is the only one I brought because I wasn't expecting to have to change or anything," she said angrily. "Now I'm going to be sticky and wet all night long."

Christian and Kurt snickered and nudged each other after she said that, both of them being twelve years old mentally. Chris glared at them until they both shut their mouths, really not thinking that maybe the woman's husband would not take too kindly to having someone else think dirty thoughts about his wife.

"Shut up you guys," Chris told him.

"And we're shut," Kurt said, but trying to stifle a laugh.

"Ok, so who is going to give me their shirt?" Stephanie asked. "Because I'm not wearing this shirt the rest of the evening. And since none of you are in dire need of your shirt, that means you get the great honor of giving me one."

"I'll give you my shirt," Chris said. "We'll see you guys later."

"Bye," Christian and Kurt said in unison as Stephanie and Chris walked off towards their dressing room.

"So why did you really call Christian? Because you wouldn't have called Christian about something that wasn't important, since he's here and you can just find him and talk to him, so it must be something."

"Can we talk about this when I'm not soaking?" Stephanie asked, delaying the inevitable questioning from Chris. Chris would never believe she was actually helping Lita and not trying to bring her down.

"Ok," he said, opening the door for her and letting her inside. She stripped her shirt off as Chris took his own shirt off, handing it to Stephanie. Chris went into the adjoining bathroom and wet a paper towel for her, bringing it to her so that she could wipe off her chest, which still had soda on it.

"Thanks," Stephanie said in regards to the paper towel. She put his shirt on, and she smiled because it smelled like him. "So you were asking something?"

"About your call to Christian," Chris said. "Why you called him."

"Yeah, that," Stephanie said, "You'll never believe me if I tell you."

"Try me."

"We're helping Lita," Stephanie said, figuring that saying it was probably the best way to go about this. She was helping Lita, not because she liked Lita or felt sorry for her, but because Christian asked. And Christian had put up with her so many times before, in so many situations that she felt like she was obligated to help him.

"Ok, so what are you REALLY doing with Christian?" Chris asked, not believing that she would be helping Lita.

"Just what I said."

"Stephanie, you're not supposed to lie to me, I'm your husband."

"I know that you're my husband, I'm well aware of the fact, but it's true. Christian and I are helping her."

"Christian? You expect me to believe that Christian, boyfriend to Trish, who hates Lita is helping her. Helping her from what?"

"Oh come on Christopher Jericho. Don't act like you're so dense. You know exactly what I'm referring to. You believe as well as Christian that Edge is somehow controlling Lita. I know it because I know you, and I know you've tried to help Lita in your own way. Well I had my own way with Christian. He just doesn't want her to end up like he did, bitter and hardened."

"Wow, I had no idea."

"Of course you didn't, you were too self-involved, surprise, surprise," Stephanie said. "So now you know, and you won't be surprised when something happens tonight to derail the wedding."

"Ok then, so if you're helping Christian, what exactly is he doing?"

At the moment, Christian was watching his brother get ready. He believed in the adage that you keep friends close and enemies closer, or in this case, you keep your brothers the closest. He wanted to find out exactly what Edge had planned for this evening. Stephanie had set Kane into motion, but he needed to know what Edge was up to.

"So we're playing Matt's music, just to rub it in."

"Sounds cruel."

"Did you say cool?" Edge asked with a wide grin.

"Oh…yeah," Christian lied. "So that was Lita's idea then?"

"All hers."

Christian didn't believe that for a moment. Lita herself had asked about Matt from time to time, trying to find out how he was and everything. Why would Christian believe that Lita had anything to do with this when she was always concerned about Matt's well-being. This sounded just like more crafted lies straight from the horse's mouth (easy joke in comparison to Edge? You bet it is, but it's so easy you almost have to take it).

"Wow, you sure picked a winner," Christian said.

"I know, so how do you think that I look?" Edge asked, turning around.

Christian winced. His brother looked horrible. He understood that Edge was unique, he had always been at least unique, but honestly, he had never seen anyone look so bad on their wedding day. The last wedding he had been to was Stephanie and Chris's and that had been all class so to see his brother in what could only be described as a get-up, well, it was a shock to his brain cells.

"You look like some post-apocalyptic Confederate soldier," Christian said in distaste.

"Oh you just don't know fashion," Edge said waving him off, "I look good."

"Yeah, if by good you mean bad."

"Jealous that I'm getting married before you bro? I mean, you have been boning Trish for how long now, two and a half years and you're still not married."

"We don't want to get married right now," Christian said, defending himself against his brother.

"Yeah, ok," Edge said, "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to think for a moment."

Christian wanted to make a smart-ass remark, but refrained and left quietly. Let his brother go out there and look like a fool, what would he care? It wasn't like he and his brother were a team anymore, so Edge could go out there and do something stupid and it wouldn't reflect on Christian because they were finally separate people.

As he was walking, he came upon the shirtless Chris, who had so valiantly given up his shirt to his wife giving an interview and stopped to listen. Chris was talking about the drive that he was feeling again. He attributed it to the title match that he was going to have, that that was the reason for his passion again. In actuality, it was just the kick in the ass his wife had given him that got him back on track. When Stephanie was mad at you, you wanted to do everything in your power to get her to stop being mad at you, and returning to his focus was easy on that list.

Christian, feeling a bit edgy at the moment (no pun intended) decided to interrupt. It was all in good fun though because both men knew they were, in a cliché saying, they were bringing their A-game on Sunday because they both wanted the title. When it came to work, they were going to be all business, though everywhere else, they were the best of friends, but sometimes you had to put that aside.

While this was going on, Stephanie was making sure everything in the wedding was going according to schedule. Kane had already snuck down to the ring and everything was getting set-up. Chris, Kurt and Christian were elsewhere, but that was better because she was focused on work for the moment. Luckily Bischoff took care of everything else around here so that she could focus on this and focus she did, even including a plan into the mix.

Christian and Chris eventually wandered over to watch this debacle and a debacle it was. Lita put her best face forward and acted the part she had grown accustomed to. She wasn't looking forward to being married to Edge, but maybe, just maybe it wouldn't be so bad. She almost got tears in her eyes when they played Matt's music and she saw his face in his entrance video. She knew that Edge had slipped a production guy a large bill to get that played and she thought she could handle it, but it turned out that she couldn't.

She missed Matt more than she could say, but she had screwed that up so badly that he would never want her back. She had lost any chance at happiness with him and that was only her own fault. That was not Edge's fault, though she wished she could blame him for it, but it was just her. She played along, pretending that she was happy to hear it, but she wasn't, it held too many memories for her to really think of it as a joke.

The wedding went on and just when it was about to finish, the minister yelled out and she saw Kane and she tried to get away, knowing that he was going to be angry, although when he grabbed her ankle, for a moment, she was just glad to be near him again. Edge went after him and there was pandemonium as her and Edge escaped, him carrying her in his arms. Kane went on to destroy the set and she just watched this man that she had been with go crazy and then she was being carried backstage and she caught Christian's eye, but looked elsewhere as Edge whisked her away, no more married then they were before.

Stephanie and Christian gave a surreptitious high-five as the couple passed, knowing they had averted disaster for now. Stephanie and the rest had been shocked to hear Matt's music, but she should've known without her in charge things would go to hell. She was just glad that the plan had worked and Christian wouldn't have to worry, at least for now. She felt Chris wrap his arms around her from behind and kiss her neck.

"Hi," he whispered to her.

"What?" she asked.

"Nothing, this wedding just reminds me of our wedding five months ago."

"Already that long, it feels like it was two weeks ago."

"Nope, you've been hitched to me for five months," Chris said, kissing her neck again.

"So that reminded you of our wedding?" she inquired.

"Uh huh."

"A wedding like that reminded you of OUR wedding?" she asked incredulously this time.

"Well not the actual wedding, just the concept of wedding and marriage and everything," he answered. "Not like the actual thing. I don't remember Hunter coming up through the ground and grabbing me."

"If he had done that at our wedding, I would've gladly given you up," Chris told her.

Stephanie turned quickly in his arms, "What!"

"If Trips is willing to dig a hole underground in order to stop our wedding, that's some effort, I'd have to concede victory to that."

Stephanie giggled and leaned in for a kiss. They stood there kissing for a few moments, Christian groaning as he saw it and walking away. They were so into each other, as usual, that they missed Cena going out for his match. But Chris wasn't so preoccupied to see the finish and saw the perfect opportunity. He went out there and attacked Cena, not caring what the fans thought, not caring what anyone thought, he wanted to beat up Cena, knock him around before their match.

Eventually Christian came out to help him, but they got into a little fight since Chris wanted to be the one to beat him up. Christian conceded and let Chris beat him up. He did so and then grabbed the belt. It was a much different belt than the one he had had way back when, but it was still beautiful and he still wanted it, he wanted it so bad. And he was going to try his damnedest to get it on Sunday.

Even if it meant beating his best friend.


	42. Vengeance, June 26, 2005

"It's good to be back."

"It's good to have you back," Christian said as he wrapped his arm around Trish's neck. "And you know what the best part is?"

"What?" she inquired, looking up at him.

"That we didn't kill each other on the drive up here," he said with a laugh. She thought about just how true that was. She and Christian were not good long distance drivers, especially Christian. He had such a short attention span, so if he wasn't constantly doing something, he tended to get a little bit crazy.

"Yeah, that is a miracle, but I guess that a miracle had to happen sometime," Trish said. "I have to say though that I really missed being at the show. I'm just glad to be back here, even if it's just to support you in your match tonight."

"Yeah, it's a big opportunity for me, the first real big opportunity that I've had," Christian said and Trish could see the excitement rushing through his eyes. She was so proud of him, working his way up like he had.

"And I have complete faith in you," Trish said, leaning up to kiss his cheek. "And I'm going to be rooting for you 100. You might as well say, 'Chris who?' because he's dead to me for the match."

"Well thanks," Christian said. "It's always nice to know that you'll turn your back on your friends for me."

"When it comes to the ring, of course I will. You'd do the same for me in the event that I ever faced Stephanie again. Not that it would be much of a match."

"Don't let Stephanie hear you say that," Christian told her.

"She knows," Trish said as they walked inside the arena for the show later that evening. They had spent so long driving, almost the entire country, luckily they had scheduled enough time for them to make it there the night before so they had a good night's rest, even though Christian wanted to go downstairs and gamble the night away.

"Yeah, I know she knows, but that never stops Stephanie from thinking that she can do something," Christian pointed out. "And if you two get in a fight, it's not going to be pretty because we're all going to be on the same plane tomorrow morning, early."

"I know, at least my doctor said that short plane trips would be ok, and then work my way up depending on the pain."

"Yeah, you don't have to be cooped up at home anymore, I know how much you hated that."

"I know, and I felt like I was missing so much stuff while I was gone. I mean, I had to watch Kurt come on the show from our living room, that wasn't a fun evening."

"Yeah, but I didn't go out celebrating with them because I knew that you weren't going to be there," Christian said, making a little pouty face at her. "That's how much I love you."

"And I appreciate it very much," Trish said with a kind smile. "Now I'm going to go find some other people to talk to because I feel like I've been talking to the same people over and over, and it gets boring. What are you going to do?"

Christian actually wanted to check up on Edge and Lita and make sure they hadn't done something stupid like actually getting married. Last week's wedding had been quite the disaster, but just because that one was a disaster didn't meant that they weren't going to try again, or at least Edge was going to try again and Lita was going to follow along like the little puppy dog that she had become.

"I don't know, find Chris or something, chat up about our match if possible. He probably won't want to talk about it, but I can make him."

"Ok, so I will see you later, definitely before your match," Trish said with decisiveness.

"Definitely," he said, leaning down to give her a kiss. "Love you."

"Same here," Trish winked and bounded off happily, looking like she was finally back in her element. He knew she was happy to be here and he didn't want to take away her happiness by letting her know that he was trying to help someone that she despised with everything in her.

Christian walked away, trying to locate his brother and his brother's…whatever, but his search was turning out to be fruitless. Maybe they weren't here yet or something, or maybe they were holed up in their locker room somewhere. He wouldn't blame them because it seemed that Kane was out for blood. But Kane was somewhat justified in his anger.

Christian didn't know what it was like to be married and he didn't think he was going to be anytime soon, but he knew the very basic feelings that came with love. He didn't know for sure if Kane had loved Lita, but it still had to hurt. He and Lita were just coming into their own and Edge came storming back in. He had already ruined Lita's relationship with Matt, which Christian had thought was unflappable. Or so the rumors said at least.

But whatever it was, whatever was going on, he knew that it wasn't in Lita's favor. Christian didn't know why he was so upset over it, because it was Lita, but he knew that he just couldn't let anyone go through that again. It was not what Trish would want, but sometimes you just had to go with your gut. Maybe Stephanie could eventually talk some sense in her. Stephanie was good for things like that.

Speaking of Stephanie, she was sitting at a table, bored out of her mind. Chris and Kurt were arm wrestling in front of her, acting like the two little boys that they always acted like when they were around each other. And neither one was noticing her. Not that she needed to be noticed, but they wanted her to be the official referee for this little contest they had going. She yawned and Chris looked over at her.

"Steph, are you watching?" he asked eagerly, trying not to lose his concentration and let Kurt get the win.

"I'm watching," she said with disinterest. She looked around, hoping that someone would take her out of her misery, but there was no one around that she felt like talking to. The show was pretty cut and dry tonight so she didn't really have anything to do. She could go check on some things, but that would probably be more boring than this was, and at least right now she was around people who loved her.

"So Steph, what are you doing tonight?" Kurt asked.

"What do you mean what am I doing tonight?" Stephanie asked. "I'm running the show like I'm always doing."

"Oh, just wondering," Kurt said as Chris knocked his hand down to the table. "Damn it, Chris, I wasn't paying attention!"

"Well that's your fault, isn't it Kurt," Chris said, raising his fists above his head. "Winner and still arm wrestling champion, Chris Jericho, accompanied by his lovely wife, Stephanie."

"Yeah, you'll probably never hear that on television," Stephanie said.

"What? That I'm an arm wrestling champ?" he asked.

"No, that I'm your wife," Stephanie said. "Although the arm wrestling thing isn't that impressive either."

"Well just wait until I win the WWE Title later on," Chris replied with a smirk. "And when I do win it are you going to love me forever and ever?"

"I'll love you just the same," Stephanie said. "I've told you time and time again that you don't need a belt around your waist for me to love you. Kurt, tell him that I don't need a belt to love him."

"Chris, Stephanie said that she wants a belt for your front door in New Haven," Kurt said, sending a kid-like smile to Stephanie. She bit her lip and looked between the two of them.

"So this is what I have to look forward to from now on right," Stephanie said. "I get two of my favorite guys around me all the time, but at the same time, I get them acting like two obnoxious little boys."

"Yup," Chris said, giving Kurt a high five.

"You know, it's like you're too young to even have a wife when you're around him," Stephanie pointed out. "It's like you think I have cooties or something."

"I don't think you have cooties," Chris said, then added, "Anymore that is."

"And what is that supposed to mean?" Stephanie asked, folding her arms and giving him a look.

"Well come on, you had to get deloused after Trips right?" Chris said. "I hope you got thoroughly cleaned after that, I'd hate to think of what I might catch because of him."

"Eww, and I kissed her when they were married," Kurt said with a grimace.

"Hey me too," Chris said, also making a grimace.

"What is this? A meeting of the guys who kissed me while I was married?" Stephanie asked. "And for the record, I wanted neither of you to kiss me, Lord knows what you both had at that time. I'm lucky I didn't catch the plague from either of you."

Chris leaned over the length of the table and kissed Stephanie quite unexpectedly. Stephanie was surprised for a moment, not knowing that was coming, though she should've guessed when Chris was leaning over. They both didn't hear Kurt groan, but neither cared as Chris pulled away and sat back down, much to Kurt's relief.

"What was that for?" Stephanie asked rather dumbly.

"Well, you said this was a meeting of guys that kissed you while you were married, and since you're married now, I wanted to join the club," Chris shrugged.

"Oh, you're so witty Chris Jericho," Stephanie said sarcastically. "Do you just win over the ladies with that one?"

"As a matter of fact, I do," Chris responded with a grin. "Which reminds me, Kurt, what are you doing tonight? I was thinking about going to a few clubs, finding me a pretty woman to wake up next to tomorrow morning. I mean, this is Vegas man, if you can't find some here, you can't find some anywhere."

Stephanie stood up and took a couple of steps over to Chris's seat and sat down on his lap, Chris grunting at the unexpectedness of it. She wrapped her arms around his neck and played with the ends of his blonde hair. She batted her eyelashes at him and then leaned her cheek against his forehead.

"Sweetie, are you really going to go out there and find some woman to sleep with?" she asked pathetically.

"Of course not," Chris said, rubbing her back. "Unless she's you."

"Good answer," Stephanie said. "You both are so calm tonight, aren't you a little bit nervous about your matches?"

"Not really," Kurt said. "I beat Michaels once, I can sure as hell do it again. And I think it'll be even easier this time because the guy hasn't exactly been in the ring for a while has he?"

"I wouldn't get too cocky if I were you," Stephanie said. "That'll just lead to your downfall."

"Stephanie, I'm shocked that you don't have faith in me," Kurt said, putting his hand over his heart. "Here I sit, thinking that we're best friends, that we mean a lot to each other, and then you go and stab me in the back by calling me cocky. Well…this is like a slap in the face!"

"I have faith in you, I just don't want you to set yourself up for a fall. And what about you Mr. Big Shot, how are you going to do in your Triple Threat Match."

"I'll win it. I'm due," was all that Chris said.

"I hope so," Stephanie said, her voice becoming lower as she leaned in for another kiss. Chris pulled her tighter against him. He didn't want to say anything, but the real reason that he was so calm was because Stephanie was there. When Stephanie was around, he didn't have time to think about matches and what not. Stephanie occupied his mind, she demanded his attention and he was always ready and willing to give her that attention.

"And again, I'm subjected to this," Kurt muttered to himself.

"Aren't you used to it by now?" another voice said as Kurt looked over and saw Christian.

"Hey man, I guess I'm not as used to it as you are," Kurt answered.

"Yeah, and it's said that I'm so used to it that it doesn't even faze me. They're worse than teenagers."

"We are not," Stephanie mumbled against Chris's lips, looking at the other men out of the corner of her eye.

"Yes, they are," Kurt whispered to Christian, causing him to laugh. Chris pulled away and glared at them for interrupting his make-out session with his wife.

"You wanna fight right now Kurt. I beat you in arm wrestling, I can beat you in a fight too," Chris challenged, but it was obviously a joke as the four of them knew.

"Oh yeah, I'll need a little warm-up for my match later this evening, so let's go," Kurt said, pretending to go to stand up and get ready for a fight.

"Come on you guys, give peace a chance," Christian said, holding up a peace sign with his hand. "Why can't we be friends?"

"Not a chance," Chris said. "That man kissed my wife!"

"She wasn't your wife then idiot," Kurt said, pretending to sound angry."

"Yeah, so?" Chris questioned.

"Well…you're not Hunter," Kurt said, and then they all just burst into spontaneous laughter and this was what they had all missed, especially Kurt. It was this hanging out, this just having fun that he had missed. While he was on SmackDown and they were all on Raw, he had nothing to focus on except his work, and he had gotten too serious, and too driven. But now, he could feel it was going to be different, work was going to be fun again.

"And let's thank God for that," Chris said. "I don't want to have a nose that size."

"And I don't want Hunter for a husband…again," she added, scrunching up her nose thinking about what it would be like to be married to Hunter again. She kissed Chris's cheek, thankful that he wasn't Hunter and she didn't have to deal with him again…at least not in the private sense. "Well, the show's about to start, I better get going. Christian, tell Trish to come say hi to me at my table."

"Ok Kid," Christian said as Stephanie bent down to give Chris a parting kiss.

"Why do you call her Kid?" Chris asked.

"It's personal, it's between me and her," Christian answered smugly.

"Fine, I'm going to go find Trish and come up with a nickname for her," Chris said, getting up and actually walking away. 

"Yeah, good luck with that!" Christian called out as he went back to speaking with Kurt.

Trish was actually with Victoria as they were discussing Victoria's match later on. Like Victoria, Trish had no love lost for Christy Hemme. She wanted to see Victoria win and show Christy what a real woman wrestler could do. She hated that Vince was doing another diva search, and that more bimbos would be joining her company but she didn't know what she could do about it. Stephanie couldn't even do anything about it and she part owned the company. Stephanie had said she had spoken to her father about it, but he refused to listen and so her and her talents were pushed farther and farther away in order for new T&A to move in.

"Yeah Victoria, you just have to bash her brains around in that head of hers, if she has brains," Trish said derisively. "I mean, that's still up for debate right."

"Yeah it is," Victoria said with a laugh. "And teaming with Lita, you'd think if she really wanted help, she would actually go to a woman who knows how to wrestle and not one who just knows how to screw up."

"Why are we not best friends?" Trish joked. "That is exactly what I think."

"I guess you're sick and tired of all the pretty, little things running around here thinking that they run the place."

"I'm definitely sick of it. And Christy thinks she's all that because she won that stupid diva search. Yeah, how hard is it to prance around like she did. Wow, took a lot of talent to do that," Trish said sarcastically. "Do you know how hard I had to work to get where I am? I mean, I had to work and I didn't get lucky with some contest. I logged long hours to become the champion that I am."

"I know, so did I," Victoria said. "And it makes me sick that these women think they're in for the time of their life. I hope they get a rude awakening."

"Oh, they will, we can make sure of that, starting tonight with Christy Hemme."

"Oh, it's on," Victoria said seriously. "It was a brilliant idea you had the other week when you had me attack her, it felt so good."

"I know how it feels," Trish replied. "And what you did last week, that was pretty awesome, though the little bitch deserved it."

"She sure did," Victoria agreed. "We have to show these girls what we're made of, and show them they shouldn't mess with us."

"Exactly," Trish said.

"So on another note, have you heard from Randy?" Victoria asked. She hadn't heard from him in a long time and she was a little bit worried about her. She knew that he had been injured and that was also rough, but then he had been drafted to SmackDown and that had to be a double whammy.

"Actually, no," Trish told Victoria. "We haven't really talked in a while. I think it had to do with him becoming kind of a jerk."

"Yeah, he was, wasn't he?" Victoria said with a sad smile as she recalled that. "I was just wondering because I haven't talked to him and I was just wondering how he was doing with the switch and everything."

"Well I know that Stephanie spoke to him and he said he was glad for the fresh start."

"Oh, that's good, that's really, really good," Victoria lied. She figured that he wanted to get away from her. Maybe that was the fresh start he needed. Her and Randy had never really gotten themselves to click and she guessed that it was better that it had ended before it had even begun. "Well, I'll take what you said into consideration and I'll definitely get at that little bimbo."

"Great," Trish said with a vindictive smile. Sometimes it was good to just be playing behind the scenes. She turned around was face-to-face with public enemy #1 in her book, Lita. Trish licked her teeth and stood there, staring daggers into Lita. "Lita."

"Trish," Lita responded, already feeling the fight brewing.

"I'd say hello, but I usually reserve that for people I actually give a damn about."

"Oh, am I not on that list Trish? Because I'd be so very devastated," Lita said snidely. For some reason, the only time she really felt normal was when she was sparring with Trish. Maybe it was because it took her focus off of Edge and that whole situation, or maybe because this was just natural to her in an unnatural world that she was living in now.

"You should be," Trish said. "And I'm so disappointed I was left off the wedding guest list. I would've loved to have been there. You and Edge, what a match made in hell."

"Oh ha, ha, ha," Lita said, grabbing her stomach and laughing. "Why would that bother you Trish, because I got the right brother, the one who isn't afraid to commit and settle down? I guess Christian just doesn't want you as much as he says he does."

She knew these were potshots, but she had to take her anger out on someone. She was just so angry all the time, with this entire situation and her separation first from Matt, and then from Kane, and now she had to deal with Trish. At least she could control what she said to Trish; she hardly controlled the rest of her life, not with Edge in it.

"You don't even know anything about Christian and me. And as for the right brother, at least my boyfriend isn't a bug-eyed, greasy, big horse-toothed jackass."

Lita almost laughed at that, it was a pretty accurate description of Edge. But she held it in because she wasn't about to agree with Trish. She wasn't going to give Trish the satisfaction of knowing that she won. She would rather sleep with Edge a million times than agree with something that Trish said. Trish was not a good person and Christian had shown her recently that he was a good person and she felt sorry for him.

"At least mine isn't some wannabe rapper who is delusional about his in-ring skills," Lita countered.

"That's it? That's all you've got. I guess that means you're conceding that Christian is better-looking and an all-around better guy. Don't worry Lita, we'll make sure to invite you to OUR wedding, I wouldn't want you to miss it."

Christian had been walking down the hallway, ready to get his tights on for his match, just so he would be ready later on. He saw Trish and Lita looking like they were having an argument. He sighed and walked over to them, hearing their heated barbs at each other. He had to hand it to Trish though, she was really schooling Lita on the ways of the insult.

"What's going on here you two?" Christian asked as he approached them.

"Not anything you need to worry about Chrissy," Trish said. "I was just conversing with Lita about how bad it is that I wasn't even invited to their wedding."

"You're married?" Christian croaked out. He was too late, he had arrived too late to stop it. This was the most god-awful thing that he had ever heard. He was related to Lita. This was not happening, this was not happening.

"No," Lita said quickly, a little too quickly.

"Oh," Christian said, his inside ranting ceasing pretty quickly. "Ok then."

"I was referring to their botched wedding attempt last week, though I did enjoy Kane coming out from underneath the ring. What power he had. Too bad you're on his hit list now Lita," Trish said sweetly, but it was the false sense of sweetness.

"Oh yeah, lucky me," Lita said dully. "If you'll excuse me, I think Edge needs me."

"Oh yes, go be his personal toy," Trish said, giving her a short wave. "I love making her seem so stupid."

"Maybe you should ease up," Christian said quietly, preparing himself for the backlash. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1…

"What!" Trish asked, throwing her head back. "Why in God's name would I ease up on her?"

"Oh, I don't know, the fact that you guys hardly even see each other and it seems pointless to knock her like that when there's nothing going to come of it."

"Oh, it's just fun," Trish said, waving him off. "What harm does it do?"

"Well, how do you know that she's happy with my brother?" Christian asked. "I mean, she could be miserable and not even know it, or we might not know it…or see it…or we might, I don't know."

"It's only what she deserves," Trish answered glibly. "She let everything fall to ruins. She didn't need to sleep with Kane, she had Matt, and even if it was to protect Matt, or whatever silly excuse she came up with, Matt wouldn't have wanted that. And then, she has this baby inside her, something to be treasured, regardless of who the father is, and what happens, she loses it and then goes on to say months and months later that she was glad that she lost it, I mean, women everyday are devastated by miscarriages and abortions and Lita is out here sucking face with your brother and acting like it was all in good fun, I'm sorry, but if that's not someone who deserves at least a little mocking, I don't know who is."

"But did you stop to think…" Christian trailed off when he saw the fire in Trish's eyes.

"No, I didn't stop to think because I don't need to. I know Lita, and I know how big a slut she is, and she's just proving that now. I'm sorry that it's with your brother, but seriously Christian, take the blinders off and see Lita for what she really is."

"But you don't know if that's really her," Christian protested.

"And you presume to know what it is."

"Maybe, I don't know."

"Chrissy, I love you, but you don't know Lita. Think about it, if she was actually not feeling this way, and she was being coerced somehow, she's still in on it, it's still her decision."

"But there may be something over her head, something that she can't have get out."

"Oh please, there's nothing about that woman that hasn't gotten out…or around if the case may be," Trish said, laughing at her own joke. "Don't forget Chrissy, don't forget what she's done to other people lives. Look at Matt."

Trish was right in a way, but that didn't diminish Christian's drive for finding out what was really going on. He especially needed to know what was keeping her tethered to Edge, what he was holding over her head. It had to be something big if she was willing to marry him over it. Thankfully there hadn't been a follow-up wedding.

"Come on Chrissy, let's get you ready for your match," Trish said, grabbing his hand as he simply followed her, immersed in her thoughts.

The show was going swimmingly along and Chris and Stephanie were watching Kurt's match in progress. It was almost as good as their WrestleMania match, which had stolen the show and had been off-the-charts good. This match was shaping up to be just as good and both men brought their all to the table in this fight. They weren't going to leave it on the line and you could tell.

Chris and Stephanie were watching enamored. They both knew a great match when they saw one and they were riveted to their seats, their eyes glued to the screen in rapture. They were both silently rooting for Kurt to win, just like he had at WrestleMania. Kurt had it in him too, this drive to win. He just needed to hang out, just for a while longer, he needed to win, to uphold his guarantee.

He didn't end up winning, but that didn't mean the match wasn't great. Kurt knew the match had been great, but it still stung, this loss. He knew that Michaels was going to be hard to get the win over, but he had thought that he had the edge. Maybe it just wasn't his night, maybe he hadn't tried hard enough. He walked backstage sullenly and was greeted by Stephanie.

"You were amazing out there Kurt, really, you were."

"Thanks, I'm just going to go shower and get back to the hotel, I'll see you guys tomorrow when we leave," Kurt said and Stephanie let him go, knowing he would work out this loss by himself. Besides, Chris's match was coming up next and she needed to be ready to watch that one too.

Trish joined her not too long after the match started and they knew they were cheering on different people, but it was alright. The match was going well, maybe not as good as Kurt's was, but this match was doing pretty well and Trish hoped against hopes that Christian would win. He had never been the WWE Champion and Chris and Cena obviously had been so it only seemed fair that Christian get a chance to hold the belt.

Unfortunately, tonight was not any of their nights as Christian saw himself in an FU, and then saw himself being pinned for the 1-2-3. It was painful to have to go through the loss, and Chris was in no good mood either. Neither was Stephanie or Trish for that matter. They didn't want to see Cena retain. Even if their significant others had lost, and the other's significant other had won, they would've been happy, but Cena winning was not fun at all.

"What a jackass," Trish said of Cena. "I really can't stand him. And it's not just because he constantly insults my boyfriend, he's just annoying, trying to be cool when he's not."

"Uh huh," Stephanie nodded, not answering.

Christian hobbled backstage and Trish helped him as they left, waving to Stephanie. She waited for Chris to come backstage and he looked a little worse for the wear. She walked over to him and hugged him. She had really thought that he had it won, and he would've too if Christian hadn't interrupted the Walls of Jericho.

"Well, at least I wasn't pinned," Chris said, trying to make the most of it.

"Yup, you weren't pinned, so technically, you didn't lose," Stephanie said, trying to make him feel better. She didn't need another episode like they had the other week where Chris was in a funk and was yelling that he couldn't even win the IC Title. "You alright?"

"Yeah, I just need a shower or something, you keep working."

She did just that as he walked off. This last match intrigued her, but she knew that Chris wouldn't want to watch. Chris had been in a Hell in the Cell before, against Hunter even and the scars from that match were still held with him, and he didn't need to see one right now. But Stephanie wanted to see, wanted to watch her ex-husband get decimated. It would be such beautiful retribution. Hunter underestimated Dave…big time. But that's who Hunter was…underestimating people left and right.

Trish was getting a water for Christian when she saw Christian talking to Lita. She strained to hear what was being said and it sounded like he was asking her how she was, and how things with Edge were going. And he wasn't even saying it in a sarcastic or condescending tone! Trish stood there, shocked, not knowing what was going on. But she would find out.

Oh yes, she would find out.


	43. The Reel is Better, June 27, 2005

A/N: Heads up, there will be a chapter on Thursday, just so you all know.

Also, I'm going to Raw/SmackDown next Monday, so don't expect the chapter up that evening. It'll be up on Tuesday night, not Monday night.

* * *

"So apparently, she's mad at me."

"But why man?" Chris asked as he and Christian walked down the hallway at the show.

"I have no idea. She wouldn't even sleep in the same room with me last night," Christian explained. "All of a sudden, she's just pissed off at me for no reason, I have no clue what I did wrong."

"Well, I don't know either," Chris said. "If Stephanie knew, she would tell me, and she hasn't told me anything, so I don't think she knows if anything is out of the ordinary."

"Yeah, nobody seems to know, but she wouldn't come to the show with me tonight, I think she got a ride from Victoria, I don't even know, she's my girlfriend and I don't even know what she's doing."

"Well, I don't think that should be a basis for anything," Chris said, "I hardly ever know where Stephanie is."

"You know what I mean," Christian said. "I don't even know where she slept last night, for all I know, she spent her night in some guy's bed. Maybe she thinks I did something and she's trying to get revenge."

"I don't think that's Trish's style," Chris told him. "I mean, this is Trish we're talking about. She's not the type of girl who does that."

"Yeah, I guess you're right, I just wish I knew what is up with her. I mean, I would at least like to know what she's mad at me about."

"Women, man. They will just twist and twist until you have no idea what the hell they're doing. Stephanie does the same thing, sometimes I'll leave something around the house, and she gets mad about it and then she won't tell me what it is she's mad about so I can fix it."

"I don't think I left anything around that would make her angry though," Christian said.

"Well, give it time, maybe it'll blow over, you just never know with these women."

"So why do you think that Bischoff wants to meet with us?" Christian asked, changing the subject. If he thought about Trish any more, he might get more upset than he was. He didn't do anything, he knew that he didn't do anything.

"I guess it's about our match tonight," Chris shrugged. "Sorry about last night by the way. I was just on edge."

"You were on edge? You weren't the one who got pinned," Christian said. "Either one of us should've won that match over Cena. It was a fluke."

"Damn straight it was a fluke," Chris smirked. "We've got more talent in our pinkies than he has in his entire body. I bet Bischoff wants to tell us that Cena couldn't find anybody and that it's going to be a handicap match."

"That would rock," Christian said, going for a high five with Chris as they reached Bischoff's door. Chris just opened the door, not bothering to knock. It was times like this where he could use an excuse like saying he was the boss to not do the little things like knock.

"Chris, yes, I was expecting you," Bischoff said as he looked up.

"What about me?" Christian asked.

"Oh, I didn't want to see you," Bischoff said.

"Oh, I thought you did. I guess I'll leave," Christian said, feeling a little put out.

"Stick around man, is this going to take long Bischoff?" Chris asked.

"Not at all," Bischoff said, grabbing some files. "It seems your wife has disappeared off the face of the planet seeing as how she didn't show up for our meeting earlier--"

"She had things to take care of," Chris explained, interrupting Bischoff. "She had a conference call with headquarters. She was busy."

"Ok then, I didn't need her life story," Bischoff said sarcastically. "I just need you to give these to her, they're important for tonight, and I think that she should take a look at them."

"You're actually collaborating with Stephanie, I'm impressed Bischoff," Christian said.

"Look, just give her the files, we have a ton of stuff to do tonight too, so it would've helped if she were here."

"I told you, she had a conference call."

"Just make sure she gets in touch with me."

"Ok Bischoff, geez," Chris said. "I'll play you're little messenger boy. Don't worry, I won't even ask for a tip for running your errand."

"She's your wife, I figured you'd see her at some point tonight," Bischoff said. "Although how you can stand to be around that woman for any extended period of time, I'll never figure out."

"And I'll never figure out why Vince hired you," Chris muttered, ushering him and Christian out of the office and closing the door. "I wonder what the files say."

"You aren't going to look at them are you?"

"Of course I am. I'm technically management around here, so that means I can do whatever the hell I want. It's not like I can get fired or anything."

"Yeah, that's gotta feel good," Christian said, grabbing one of the files. "Ok, let's see what's behind door number one." Chris looked over Christian's shoulder to read the file. It was a list of the draft picks for tonight.

"RVD and Big Show. Ok, I guess I can get behind that," Chris said. "But man, I was hoping never to see Big Show again."

"I know what you mean dude," Christian said. "RVD is cool."

"Yeah, when he's not hanging off of my wife's arm."

"Dude, that was like four years ago."

"Still…I had to fight him," Chris said rather lamely before opening the other file. "And what's behind door number two?"

They opened it up only to see a list of the finalists for the Diva Search. They both sighed and looked at each other. They're significant others both hated the Diva Search and they were sure that this would be one of the only things they'd hear about for the coming weeks. Not that they liked it either. These bimbos were sure to take up room that could be used for something called…wrestling.

Speaking of the Diva Search, Stephanie was sitting in the empty stands, watching the girls practice for their segment later that evening. It shouldn't have been too hard to say their names and do whatever it was Bischoff had them doing, and she couldn't be more bored out of her mind. It was times like this she wished she was truly Daddy's Little Girl again so she could call him up and say that this was the worst idea since the XFL. Instead, she blew out her breath and leaned her head on Kurt's shoulder.

"Are you as bored as I am?" she asked.

"Worse, because at least they're not all staring at you," Kurt said, rolling his eyes. "If I wanted a girl like that, I'd go trolling outside the arena for some ringrat."

"What do you think they are? They're glorified ringrats," Stephanie said. "Although you could do a lot worse I guess…or maybe not, I don't know."

"I don't think so. So why are you out here?"

"Well, my father told me that I'm in charge of this thing while he's not there, and to make sure that the girls know what they're doing tonight. All I have to say is thank God for assistants who are there to simply do your bidding."

"Yeah, so you just have to watch," Kurt said. "And drag me along."

"Yup, aren't you so glad that you're back on Raw," Stephanie joked, squeezing his arm.

"I just wonder why your husband can't be the one sitting with you suffering," Kurt replied to her.

"Because I don't need him looking at women. I mean, I'm not insecure or anything, I just don't want to condone that kind of behavior," she said quickly. Not that she actually believed that Chris would be interested in any of these women. There was no chance of that happening.

"He loves you," Kurt said.

"I know that," Stephanie said. "I just don't need to know that while pretty girls are prancing around with their breasts hanging out of their tops and their skirts only reaching the bottom of their ass."

"No class I tell you," Kurt said. "I've got to go though, I wanted to talk to Bischoff about something regarding the show."

"What regarding the show?" Stephanie asked. "I mean, if you're going to ask someone, you might as well ask me."

"Yeah, but you said that Bischoff planned the show because you weren't there."

"I know, but I can still pass off on something."

"I'll take my chances with him," Kurt said. "I'd just feel more comfortable this time."

"You are such a suck-up Kurt Angle," Stephanie teased, kissing him on the cheek. "Go talk about your matter with him. I'll talk to you later."

"If you haven't been arrested yet for strangling any of these diva search contestants," Kurt said. "You know, I didn't realize how lucky I was over on SmackDown, I never had to deal with this."

"Yeah, you are lucky," Stephanie said waving. She bit her lip and spoke up, "So girls, do you get the basic idea of what we want you to do?"

She got assorted answers from the girls and she tried to smile, "Ok then, let's run through it one more time and then you guys are free to go until your segment later on this evening. Be sure to pick up a schedule so that you know when you're supposed to be ready."

Stephanie sat back again and watched them run through the entire thing. They were at least prepared for this, and she wondered if it would go off without a hitch later on. The girls finished and left the ring, heading up the ramp. As they were walking up the ramp, Chris was walking down the ramp, having run into Kurt, who told him where Stephanie was.

"Oh wow, you're Chris Jericho," one of them said.

"That would be me," Chris said, seeing Stephanie writing over this girl's shoulder and really just wanting to see her.

"I'm a huge fan," she said. "My name is Summer, like the season."

"Nice name," Chris said.

"Thanks," she said, genuinely happy.

"And thanks for being a huge fan," Chris returned the thanks.

"Yeah, you are amazing, and you are so much better looking in person and I never thought that was even possible. Because you are gorgeous on television," she said, obviously flirting with him.

"Yeah, I get that all the time," Chris said distractedly, watching Stephanie chew on the top of her pen, looking frustrated.

"So will I see you around here some time?" Summer asked.

"Yeah, you definitely will," Chris said. "I own part of the company."

Summer looked at him strangely. "I thought the McMahons owned the company."

"They do," Chris said, then put his hands on Summer's shoulders and slowly turned her around to look at Stephanie. "See her?"

"Yeah, that's Stephanie McMahon," Summer said. "She runs the show, and she was showing us what we have to do later on."

"Her name is Stephanie McMahon-Jericho."

Summer scurried away quickly and Chris laughed. What an effective way of getting women to leave him alone. He walked down the ramp and over to Stephanie, who had by now spotted him and grinned. He held out the files in his hand to her and her eyes lit up as she grabbed them and perused them.

"Ooh, RVD and Big Show. Didn't RVD get traded last year?"

"I don't remember," Chris said.

"I don't either, but I think that he did," Stephanie said. "Oh well, I hope that he can make an impact here."

Chris rolled his eyes, unbeknownst to Stephanie. "So do you have any idea why Trish is mad at Christian?"

"Trish is mad at Christian? This is news to me," Stephanie said, leaning forwards so she was closer to Chris. "What happened?"

"See, I just asked if you had any idea because I don't have any idea."

"Did you ask Christian?"

"No, he doesn't know either," Chris said. "I was hoping that you did since you know, you and Trish are so close and you're both chicks and stuff."

"We're both chicks and stuff?" Stephanie asked, tilting her head to look at her husband. "And just what is that supposed to me…especially the 'and stuff' part?"

"Nothing, just you know…the emotions," he whispered.

"We've been together almost three years and you still don't get anything about women. You're sad Chris Jericho, very, very sad and I pity the woman that marries you…oops that would be me…damn it."

"I know you, that's who I know…I don't know other women and how they work, but you Stephanie McMahon-Jericho are anything but other women. You are something entirely of yourself. I think it's why I barged into your room and demanded a hug."

"Either that or you were horny and needed a body."

"And what a great body you turned out to be," Chris said lecherously, reaching out to finger the collar of her shirt.

"Watch it, I DO have limits you know," Stephanie said, pushing his hand away, to which he only grinned at.

"What a tease," Chris joked. "You didn't put out that first night either. Here I thought I was going out with the biggest ho on the planet and she doesn't even put out on the first date. That was totally a disappointment."

"I guess I was just cautious. I didn't want to sleep with just anybody," Stephanie said.

"But you put out for everyone else, half the locker room, the sound guys, camera crew, production guys, vendors…"

"That's only what I had you believe," Stephanie said, leaning over to kiss him. "So let me guess, you want me to find out why Trish is mad at Christian."

"Is that what I was trying to do?" he asked. "I thought I was just arguing with you."

"Uh uh, no arguing," Stephanie said, kissing him to make her point made. "We aren't supposed to fight."

"Says who? Our marriage counselor."

"I think you go to a marriage counselor with your other wife," Stephanie said. "As for right now, I'll go find Trish and find out what's going on, and then I will tell you, my darling husband and then my darling husband will tell Christian and then Christian and Trish will fight, because they fight almost as much as we do, and then we'll probably have to house one of them this week, just like usual."

"I'll make up the guest room tomorrow," Chris said with a laugh.

Stephanie parted with Chris and went off in search of Trish. Chris also left since people were starting to be let into the arena. He would just go find Kurt or Christian again. Stephanie found Trish talking with Victoria and she tapped her on the shoulder. Trish turned around and smiled.

"Hey!" Trish said happily, hugging her. "Vic, I'm gonna go with Steph, I'll talk to you later."

"Yeah, see ya, bye Steph."

"Bye," Stephanie said, then waited for her to leave. "So why are you mad at Christian?"

"Oh, so he got to you."

"No, Chris told me and I was wondering what was going on. I mean, you must have a good reason."

"You wouldn't believe the reason even if I told you," Trish said, starting to get pissed again. "It's easily the most unforgivable thing he's ever done….besides the Molly thing, but that's over and this is bad."

"Ok, you're starting to scare me now," Stephanie said, wondering what Christian could possibly have done that was worse or on par with the thing with Molly. She didn't recall anything happening.

"He's talking with Lita, friendly talking," Trish hissed, glancing around as if someone would come over and listen in.

"Is that all?" Stephanie asked.

"What do you mean! He was talking to my sworn enemy, behind my back, for who knows how long this has been going on. I mean, what if you saw Chris talking to…someone you hate…"

Stephanie knew how long this had been going on and she had even been in on it so she didn't know what to say. She knew that Trish would get like this, but Christian said that he would deal with it. She wondered if this was his way of dealing with it, because it wasn't that good. In fact, it was bad getting to worse.

"Well, I don't know," Stephanie said. "I mean…maybe he has a good explanation. Lita is dating Edge and Edge is his brother, so you know, it could've had something to do with Edge."

"Then why wouldn't he tell me he was going to talk to her, huh?" Trish asked. "I mean, come on, at least lie to me or something, but he didn't say anything, which just makes this more suspicious than it was before.

"Ok," Stephanie said. "Well, I have to get to the show, but maybe you should talk to Christian about this, if you're really upset. He doesn't even know why you're angry and I think he deserves to know at least that much."

"I guess," Trish said. "And then he can tell me what's going on."

"See, good things will happen."

"Yeah, we'll see," Trish said testily.

Stephanie was glad for the escape that the show brought her. She didn't have to worry about personal problems and Hunter wasn't even here tonight so it was doubly wonderful since she wouldn't have to look at his ugly face. She only hoped that he would be drafted over to SmackDown so she could really rid him from her life.

She was still on a great high from having Kurt on the show again. It was something she was going to have to get used to, seeing him out there, talking and just being here. She saw a fire in him that she hadn't seen in a while and she figured that he was just so grateful to be around. He was also having fun, she could tell that with Flair out there and when he made the match, she knew instantly that Flair had no chance.

The evening was not too eventful, even with the two draft picks. The Big Show was a big acquisition, literally, and RVD was going to be good when he came back, if he kept up his passion for wrestling. Just as she was listening to RVD talk, Chris plopped down next to her an annoyed look on his face.

"What the hell is this!" Chris said, gesturing towards the monitor Stephanie had been watching.

"Sweetie, I told you earlier who the draft picks were, I thought you knew," Stephanie said.

"I know the draft pick, what the hell is this show doing on?"

"Raw? Sweetie…"

"No, Carlito's Savannah or Havana, or Susanna, whatever the hell it's called, I don't care, why is this show on, he made fun of the Highlight Reel, only the PREMIERE show on this show."

"I don't know, you know I didn't plan the show."

"Well, I don't like this, I don't like it one bit," Chris said, grinding his teeth a little bit. "The Highlight Reel is the best show, and everyone knows it."

"Sweetie, they do know it, you heard the boos they gave him when he mentioned he was better than you, don't worry," Stephanie said, pressing her hand to his cheek, trying to calm him down.

"Yeah, I heard them," Chris said, "Doesn't really help."

Chris waited until Carlito walked backstage before walking straight up to him and getting all up in his grill. Carlito didn't look too affected, but Chris was pissed. He was the one who had the show on Raw and he would take his show back if he had to. He owned part of this company and he could do whatever he wanted. Whoa, where did that thought come from?

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Chris said.

"What?" Carlito asked. "I was just giving the people what they wanted."

"Yeah, well then you should've taken your ugly ass and your cheap set and gotten the hell out of that ring."

"That's not cool," Carlito told him.

"I don't care what's cool. I have the Highlight Reel, and it's tons better than whatever little show you have. Do you know who I am? I'm Chris Jericho!"

"I know, you're Chris Jericho."

"Yeah, so next time, you are not getting your little show on Raw, learn your place," Chris said, storming off and walking back to Stephanie.

"Well that was definitely not cool," Carlito said to himself as he walked away. Stephanie looked over at Chris and smirked, trying to hide her laugh. If she laughed and he asked what she was laughing at, she would have to tell him and then he'd get mad at her and there was enough animosity tonight without her adding to it.

"Oh my God, did I just sound like Hunter?" Chris asked, glancing over at Stephanie.

"Yeah," she said, bursting into laughter. Leave it to him to know what she wanted to laugh about before she even said anything.

"What?"

"I'm sorry, it was just…well, you were acting like Hunter, and…oh God, it was just funny, seeing you getting all mad and stuff, and I'm sorry."

"I don't want to be like him!" Chris said, hitting his head against the table in front of him. He banged it over and over again and Stephanie had to physically stop him from banging all his brain cells away. She rubbed his back.

"Sweetie, it's ok, you weren't too much like him."

"Oh God, I've got to get away from here," Chris said, standing up and kissing Stephanie. "I'm going to go find Christian and talk about our match later."

"Ok, you go do that, and you can't be just like Hunter, you have a normal-sized nose."

"Gee thanks," he said sarcastically.

"Me and our future kids appreciate that."

"Yeah, and those future kids better not be anywhere around right now."

"What, do you think that I keep them in my pocket or something?" Stephanie asked, rather ridiculously.

"I just mean that you better not be with child at this precise moment."

"And if I was?" Stephanie asked, folding her arms in front of her and leaning back in her chair, regarding Chris rather sternly.

"I would probably faint, and then I would hit my head on the ground and get a concussion and you'd have to take me to the hospital and then I would faint again when you told me."

"Go talk about your match," Stephanie replied, rolling her eyes.

Chris did just that, well, he did that after talking with Christian for a little while. Stephanie had forgotten to tell him why Trish was mad at Christian, so Christian still had no idea, but he couldn't dwell on that when he had a match later that evening. It would do him no good to be distracted. Christian was speculating along with Chris and Tomko on who their partner could be and as a joke, Tomko suggested someone associated with Hollywood.

"You don't think it's Rocky, do you?" Christian asked as they were walking.

"Nah, Rock and I are on pretty good terms," Chris said. "I don't think it would be him. It has to be someone else."

"But who?"

"Honestly, no idea," Chris said. "If Steph knew, she would've told me, but I don't think that Cena likes her, but that might be an extension of not liking me."

"Oh, well then, I guess we'll see," Christian said.

It turned out to be Hulk Hogan, and Chris groaned, not Grandpa again. When was this man going to learn that his place was not in the ring but it was in whatever lame-ass reality show he was going to have that didn't even look good to begin with. It was definitely a must-miss show for him, and maybe for a lot of people.

And how else could the match end, but with Chris's team losing. And just like last night, it wasn't even him getting pinned, no he was in the outside of the ring, fighting with Cena. God forbid Hulk Hogan not win, or Michaels, that would be totally and completely sacrilege, Chris thought with disgust. Sometimes you really had to know when to quit and sometimes people went past what they were capable of. Not Michaels so much, but Hogan, oh yes, definitely.

Chris walked backstage and over to Stephanie who was yawning and stretching her arms over her head. The show was over and she was just finishing up some things that she needed to do. She had finished everything else and all the other details could be finished by other people. She hugged Chris and kissed him, leaning her head against his collarbone for a second. He wrapped his arm around her waist and kissed her forehead.

"Come on, let's get back to the hotel and get some rest," Chris said softly, Stephanie once again having the amazing ability to make him forget about any and every loss he suffered.

Unfortunately for Christian, he had nobody to greet him, but he wanted to find Trish and maybe talk. He didn't know if she was still around, but when he walked into his locker room, there she was, looking testy and he stood there as she stood up and walked over to him. She may not be tall, but she sure was intimidating.

"So you and Lita huh?"

"What?"

"I saw you last night, talking to her!" Trish said, poking him with her finger after every word. "What the hell is that about?"

"Look, Trish, it's nothing like what you think, what I'm doing is helping her."

"HELPING HER! You're helping that bitch when she contributed to the injury that has me sitting at home week after week?" Trish asked, her eyes bulging out almost comically. "I can't believe this. You should just tell me you slept with her, that would be better than knowing you're being NICE to her."

"Trishy--"

"Don't call me that," Trish warned.

"Ok, Trish, look, my brother is an ass, and I think he's using her."

"Who cares? She deserves it, she's a horrible person! Look at her with Edge, as if Matt or Kane never mattered!"

"I care! Trish, my brother is vindictive and I can't let her go through that, don't you understand?"

"NO, I don't understand, I don't understand a thing about this. I hate her, you know I hate her and you're helping her. Who cares what your brother does, he's a jerk too."

"I care Trish! I hated turning on Edge, but he was stifling me, controlling me so he would look better, using me to better his position, do you know what it feels like to be used like that!"

"Excuse me! I was in a relationship with Vince McMahon, and he used me and used me and used me some more until one day I'm barking like a goddamn dog! You bet I know what it's like to be used."

"Then you should be sympathetic!"

"I'm not being sympathetic to her! She's a bitch Christian, she injured me, and she's sent her goons after me, are you forgetting that!"

"I haven't forgotten anything she's done!" Christian yelled. "I just don't want her to have to go through anything like I went through."

"She's a whore, a slut, she's only getting what she deserves."

"No! She doesn't deserve it."

"Fine, then go off with her, see if I care, why don't you just drop off the face of the Earth Christian," Trish screamed. "Why don't you just leave me alone and never speak to me again. I'll just move back to Canada and far, far away from you."

"No, you're not going anywhere!" Christian said, grasping her shoulder. "You are not going anywhere!"

"What's going to stop me huh? What are you going to do to stop me, you can't do anything, go off with your precious Lita and help her, help the little damsel-in-distress, I'll be at my home in Toronto."

"No! You are not leaving me!"

"Try and stop me!" Trish yelled, twisting herself out of his grip.

"Marry me!"


	44. Well Look At This, June 30, 2005

A/N: Well, it's been a while since I've done one of these. Anyways, yeah, Christian is on SmackDown, sigh, so I thought that I'd have to at least do a chapter about it. Whether or not this becomes a regular thing again, I have yet to decide, I guess it depends on Christian's role on SD, or whether or not I can actually think of stuff to write. Anyways, enjoy this short little interlude to the regular story. :)

* * *

"So I got the call this morning."

"You got what call this morning?" Chris asked as he talked with Christian on the phone.

"The call to go to SmackDown," Christian said with a sigh. "They called me this morning and I'm the newest trade over to the other show, which means that I'm going to be leaving all of you behind and I'm going to be on the sucky show, alone. I'm the new Kurt."

"Ouch man," Chris said, hating that one of his best friends was going to be on the other show now, and only days after they had gotten to be tag partners again. "Did you tell Stephanie about this?"

"I don't know if she knows," Christian said. "I know that Bischoff knows, but that's because Bischoff made the pick, is Stephanie there?"

"Yeah, she's here, but she's downstairs in her office," Chris said. "I'm really sorry man, I never thought it would be you. Not after all your talk about switching shows and tempting fate and all of that."

"I guess I just jinxed myself," Christian said. "I guess it's for the best though…I mean, you know…with Trish and everything."

"Christian, by all accounts, she didn't turn you down," Chris pointed out.

"Yeah, but she didn't exactly say yes either, did she?" Christian countered. "It wasn't like she said, 'Yeah, I'd love to marry you Christian, I would absolutely love it,' and then fall into my arms."

"Christian, man, you yelled it at her, like you demanded her to marry you or something. At least that's what I gathered from the way that you acted it out for me. I mean, that's not a proposal, that's trying to end a fight."

"I don't know why I said it, I just, I kind of said it."

"Yeah, so you said."

Christian thought back to what had happened on Monday night after he had blurted out those words, those totally binding words. It wasn't exactly the end of a fairy tale, ending with those famous words, "And they lived happily ever after." No, it was nothing like that at all…

"_Marry me!"_

_Trish put her hand over her heart and blinked a few times, wondering if she was still alive. The pounding that she was doing, and the fact that she could blink alerted her to the fact that she was probably still alive. She wasn't sure there for a second though, because she thought she just heard Christian ask her…no, rather he demanded that they get married._

"_What the hell was that!" Trish yelled at him._

_Christian didn't exactly look coherent, but pushed forth, "I said for you to marry me."_

"_That was your way of not getting me to leave? To do whatever and marry you? I'm not even sure you were asking me or demanding me…I never thought I wouldn't even know what a proposal from you would be like."_

"_I said it, I meant it."_

"_No Christian, you couldn't have meant it. I mean, we both said that we weren't ready to be married right now."_

"_I know, but maybe we are, we've been together for so long, and…"_

"_That's still no reason to get married. I mean, look at like Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell or Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon, I mean, neither one of those couples are married and they've been together for a really long time. I don't want to get a demand, and neither one of us is ready for something like this."_

"_Trish! This is what I want!" Christian said. "I want this."_

"_Christian, no, I mean, I…you…I mean…I can't…you were talking with Lita!"_

"_Trish, are we going to go back to that right now!" Christian argued._

"_Yes! Because that's what this is about, this is not about marriage or us, this is about you and what you are doing with HER!"_

"_I'm helping her!"_

"_And I can't stand it, I'm sorry, but she's been nothing but horrible to me, HORRIBLE to me, and I don't care what happens to her, I don't, and then to see you conspiring with her or something, do you know how much of a stab in the back that is. I can't even stand to look at you right now."_

"_I want to marry you goddamit!"_

"_I have to get out of here, I just…I have to go," Trish said before rushing out of the room without a second glance. She didn't even look back, not a wistful glance, nothing, it was almost like he didn't exist to her any longer…_

"But did you mean it?" Chris asked.

"I think I did."

"Yeah, well, you might have wanted to go at it a little bit better, you know, make it a little bit more memorable."

"This coming from the guy whose wife threw the engagement ring box at him and asked him to explain," Christian said testily.

"It wasn't like that and you know it. It was the right moment for Stephanie and I, but this might not be the right moment for you and Trish. IF you wanted to propose, if you want to marry her, and I'm guessing you do, then you have to go about it in a way that she's going to enjoy. And I'm not saying go out and get a sky-writer or anything, just do it how she wants it done. For me, Stephanie wanted it done on the fly with no preparation or anything."

"I'm not even sure if we're together right now," Christian lamented. "I mean, I think we are, I know where she is, not that it makes me feel better that she's over at one of her ex-boyfriend's houses, but at least she called to tell me where she is."

"Where is she? Jeff's?"

Christian almost growled in anger, "No, she's at Randy's. I don't trust Jeff any farther than I can throw him."

"Even though he and Trish were together years ago," Chris pointed out. "And her and Randy are more recent."

"But I know Randy, he's our friend, and I know that he's taking care of her. She won't let me take care of her, and she won't marry me, but at least someone out there is able to take care of her while I'm not around."

"Christian, man, don't get yourself down ok, I've been where you have been, I have, more than once, and I know how much is sucks, but you just have to work through it, and you and Trish will, I know you guys, you guys are almost as inseparable as me and the missus."

"But you and Stephanie are married! There's a huge difference, you and Stephanie are bound together for life, you're together and you have rings and a license and everything to show for it, Trish can break up with me, she can break up with me and never see me again and do you know why she'd never see me again? She'd never see me again because I got drafted to stinking SmackDown, and so I might not ever see her again!"

"Ok, calm down!" Chris said. "Where the hell are you anyways? I thought you were at home."

"No, I told you that I got the call this morning," Christian said. "I had to hop on the first flight to Anaheim, right back where I was, and let me tell you, it's hard seeing the exact same room where your girlfriend ran out on you, damn hard, but I'm here, and at least, AT LEAST I get a shot at the new SmackDown title, because if I wasn't, then I'd be even more pissed off than I am right now."

"Ok, just because you're on SmackDown now, nothing says that you can't come to Raw and hang out."

"Dude, I'm on SmackDown now, that's who drafted me, that's who I work for, how the hell am I going to be allowed on the other show."

"I grant you permission to come to the show," Chris said. "There now you're allowed to come to Raw whenever you want, hell come every week if you want to, I don't care, but don't say that you don't have permission and let that be a lame reason for avoiding Trish."

"I forgot you could do that," Christian said, for a moment sounding like his normal self. "And it's Trish who is avoiding me, not the other way around, so you better grant her permission to go to SmackDown whenever she wants."

"Ok, she has permission," Chris said. "Now are you talking to me because you have nobody to talk to there or what?"

"That's exactly why I'm talking to you," Christian said, looking around. "I know people here, but it's been a long time, and I'm supposed to remain incognito until they announce me on the show, which starts soon."

"Wait, what time is it?"

"It's 4:30," Christian said, glancing at the clock in his locker room. He actually got some nice digs since he was one of the draft picks and they wanted to keep him happy and in the room until the big announcement.

"Wow, it's 7:30 already, I didn't even realize that it was late," Chris said. "Do you realize how long you've kept me on the phone?"

"Not that long," Christian protested. "Besides, I'm having a major life crisis and you owe me!"

"What do I owe YOU for?" Chris asked.

"Ok, so YOU don't owe me, but Stephanie owes me, so you can take it on her behalf since she's your wife and you're supposed to share everything. So you get to hear about my crisis."

"Why don't I get Stephanie and she can hear about your crisis," Chris suggested. It wasn't that he minded hearing about Christian's problems, he was his friend after all, but he had just realized that he had been talking to Christian for the past two hours, and that was an awfully long time, and he could hear his stomach growling.

"Because she's a woman and Trish is a woman and she won't side with me, and then I'll feel worse."

"I don't exactly side with you Christian," Chris responded. "I mean, I think you went about this in totally the wrong way. Not to mention your whole thing with Lita, you KNEW that would set her off. And Stephanie didn't even tell me about it. I swear to God, I think that woman has like fifty little side projects that she never tells me about, it's like she loves to run off and--"

"And it's my time to whine," Christian said, "Not yours."

"Look, I'm going to go downstairs for a second, and I'm going to tell my wife what's going on, and then I'm going to see if she'll call Trish and tell her to call you, and then maybe things will go back to normal and you can actually talk this out like normal human beings. Look, I know what it's like to have a screwed-up relationship, and it's not fun, so let me see if I can fix this."

"Thanks," Christian said gratefully. He himself wouldn't have been able to think something up on his own. He wasn't in the right frame of mind to be thinking about how to get Trish back in the house. He was only thinking about how much he missed her and how lonely it was without her and how lonely it was going to be on SmackDown without everyone.

Chris pressed the hold button on his phone and put it down as he walked out of his office and down the stairs. He hung a hard left and walked over to Stephanie's office, where she was sitting on the phone like she was. She saw him walk in and raised her eyebrows, mouthing a greeting to him. He winked and sat down on the couch against the wall, letting her finish her phone call.

"Hey, I hate to cut this short, but Chris just walked in here and looks like he wants to talk," Stephanie said. "Ok, bye Dave, thanks for letting me know, good luck to you too, bye."

"And my psychic powers tell me that was…Batista!" Chris said, putting his index fingers to his temples as Stephanie hung up the phone. Stephanie just waited for him to finish, taking a sip of the iced tea on her desk.

"How astute of you," Stephanie said. "Dave is going to SmackDown, I guess it could've been worse, they could've had both titles, but this absolutely sucks. I don't even like John Cena."

"Ditto, but that's not the only bad news," Chris said, and Stephanie looked at him. She wanted to know what this other bad news could possibly be. Nothing could be worse than losing Dave.

"Oh God, what is it?" Stephanie said, already dreading the words.

"We lost Christian," Chris said and Stephanie looked at him wide-eyed. "He got the call this morning."

"No!" Stephanie said. "And just when the gang was all together! This is the worst thing. We get back Kurt and lose Christian. Is the world right-side up anymore, does anything make sense."

"I told him he can still come around whenever he wants to, management orders."

"Oh, well ok then," Stephanie said, perking up. "Still, this is terrible. Ok, so I have to plan for that on Monday, thanks for telling me sweetie."

"No problem, but that's not all…you know by now what happened with Christian and Trish."

"Yes, I know. And I thought YOUR proposal was the most unromantic ever," Stephanie giggled. "At least you didn't yell at me."

"Hey, I did what I could with what I had, you can't fault me for that," he told her.

"Ok, I'll give you that," she responded. "So what about the two of them? I know she's with Randy, she called me to tell me about it."

"Ok, so you know, and you have to call her. I just spent the last two hours talking to Christian about nonsense, and I didn't know that half the time I was talking to him while he was in Anaheim. He's talking and talking about nonsense things, and then busts out with, 'I got the call this morning,' and I don't know, nothing makes sense right now, make it make sense baby."

"I can try," Stephanie said. "But I don't know if I can help."

"Thanks baby," Chris said, coming around her desk and giving her a light kiss. She smiled into and only wished she could do this for a little while, but before she could, Chris pulled away. "I have Christian on hold upstairs and he might not be too happy being kept waiting this long."

"Ok, dinner in like ten minutes?"

"Yeah, we'll go out, I don't feel like cooking."

"Ok sweetie," Stephanie said, giving him another kiss.

Chris went back upstairs and grabbed the phone, pushing the hold button. "Hey, I'm back, she's calling Trish right now."

"Thanks," Christian said, "I'll let you go now, I have to watch the show and see who I'm going to be fighting from now on."

"See ya man, we'll get together over the weekend, you can come over to dinner at our house, I'll cook something up."

Christian and Chris said their goodbyes. What neither of them knew was the fact that Trish was actually at SmackDown tonight. Randy had come to take care of some contract business that he had had with Theodore Long, and Trish had asked to come along since she had been staying with Randy for the past few days. Randy liked the company and invited her along.

"You know, once you get past the whole jerk thing you have going, you're not such a bad guy," Trish said as they walked down the hallway and to Long's office."

"It was business, what can I say?" Randy said. "I guess my absence has healed everything since nobody seems to be mad at me anymore."

"I guess it does," Trish said. "Or we all have bigger problems to deal with and don't really care about you."

"Yeah, that's probably it, I know that's what you've been going through."

"Don't worry about me, I just needed time to think, I think that Christian gets that. I hope he gets that," Trish said, frowning. "I mean, I just didn't know what do when he said all those thing. It's not everyday that you get screamed at to get married."

"Yeah, I've never been in that position before, so I'm drawing a total blank," Randy said. "But I'm sure you'll work it out."

"I hope so, because I love Christian, I just don't want to marry Christian, not now, not under these circumstances. I guess I'll have to tell him that next Monday, if I decide to go to the show. I probably will though, now that I can fly and everything."

"Good, you should talk to him about it."

Randy and Trish reached Long's office and Randy went inside, leaving Trish to her own devices. She was just here this Monday so she knew her way around though the faces were drastically different than on Monday. She felt out of place, not having been here in so, so long. She walked around a bit, smiling at different people, but really not talking to anyone. Then she saw Chris Benoit and walked over to say hello.

"Hey Chris, how are you?"

"Trish, hi," Chris said, coming over to talk to her. "I'm ok."

"That's good."

"What are you doing here?"

"Oh, I just tagged along with Randy, since he was drafted too, just thought I'd get a glimpse of the other show."

"Cool. Is Christian with you?"

"Oh…no," Trish said. "Just me."

"For a second I thought you were the newest draft pick."

"No, I don't think I am, nobody called me to tell me so it would've been pretty weird for them to tell me right now. Although a change of pace might be good for me," Trish said. After last Monday, anything would be a good change of pace for her. She wasn't exactly in the mood to go to Raw anymore, with Christian there and all.

"Too bad, I'm still getting used to it."

"Yeah, I bet, but you were on SmackDown before, and you have friends here, so you should adjust."

"Yeah, and I don't have to deal with Chris and Christian anymore," Benoit laughed. "Those two are crazy."

"I know," Trish laughed, allowing herself to laugh. "Well, I'll let you get ready, I heard there's a big match later."

"Bye Trish."

"Yeah, bye Chris," Trish said as she heard vibrating in her pocket. She pulled out her phone and answered it, "Hello?"

"Hey Trish, it's Steph, where are you?"

"I'm at SmackDown," Trish said. "I came with Randy."

"Oh, so you're there…"

"Yeah, is that a problem? Do I have it in my contract not to appear on the show?"

"No, it's just…Christian is there?"

"What do you mean? He followed me? Is he following me!" Trish asked. "Oh God, it's one thing to have him yell a proposal at me, but to FOLLOW me, how low can you get!"

"Trish, he got drafted to SmackDown," Stephanie cut in.

"What?" Trish asked, now in shock. "He…did?"

"Yeah, he's over there now."

"I've got to go Steph, I'll talk to you later."

Trish didn't even wait for her to say goodbye. Somewhere in this building, Christian was sitting or standing, but he was here, and he had been drafted. Suddenly thoughts were running through her mind of never seeing him again, never being on the same show, never having the opportunity to walk out there with him. She knocked on every single door she could find, and she knew she probably looked the fool, but she wanted to find Christian.

It was the last door on the left at the end of one of the hallways that she finally found him. Christian opened the door, expecting it to be Teddy Long, but it was Trish, and he stood there, not moving while she shifted her feet from side to side, wondering if he was going to let her in.

"What are you doing here?" Christian asked.

"I was with Randy."

"Oh, and now you're here," Christian said. "Look Trish."

"I heard you got drafted, and here you are."

"Yeah, so if you never want to see me again, then it's going to be real easy because we're on separate shows."

"That's not what I want," Trish said softly. "I don't want to be…I don't want to never see you again."

"Well, that's reassuring," Christian said. "I know what I said on Monday shocked you, I know it did, but Trish, I don't think that I was lying in wanting to marry you, I don't think that it was just something to get you to shut up and not leave me."

"Ok," Trish nodded slowly. "I get that, and you know, I didn't want you to go about it like that."

"That's what Chris said."

"Yeah, but…"

"Trish, I want to marry you, at least, I think I do…if I give you a few days to think about it, will you get back to me on it?"

"Um…yeah, I'll get back to you on it," Trish said.

Christian went out that night and fought, having a lot on his mind. Maybe that was why he lost that match, maybe it all boiled down to Trish. Whatever it was, though he was able to concentrate on the match, he knew that his heart wasn't it. His heart was not in winning that match.

No, he figured that his heart was somewhere backstage thinking about things…


	45. I'd Watch Jericho All Day, July 4, 2005

A/N: Thanks for your patience in waiting, I was exhausted last night after the show. It was a pretty good time (best part? Why seeing Jericho live of course, and looking delicious), although I did find that I pretty much root for all the people that everyone else hates, and then I get drowned out when everyone is cheering for other people. Oh well, I'll go down loving Kurt and Jericho over Hogan and Cena.

Enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

"Ooh, it's hot outside, feel the windows."

"I'm not feeling the windows Stephanie," Kurt said from the front seat. He looked in the backseat to where Stephanie was sitting. "I know it's hot, we passed by a big sign that said the temperature."

"I'm just saying," Stephanie said. "And while we're on the subject of…stuff, why am I stuck in the backseat while you and Chris are in the front seat."

"Because I am driving," Chris answered, "And Kurt is my navigator, and you are just sitting back there."

"I think that I could be your navigator if you would let me," Stephanie said petulantly, folding her arms and leaning back against the seat. "I should get to sit in the front seat."

"Stephanie, Kurt is bigger than you are, and he needs more room, you are smaller and you can fit in the backseat," Chris told her.

"Fine," she said, "Are we almost there?"

"Yeah, we're like ten minutes away," Kurt said as he looked at his directions and then up at a passing road sign. "So do you guys know if Christian or Trish is going to be at the show tonight?"

"I don't think so," Stephanie said, "On both counts. Trish told me that she's back in Canada for a while, you know to think. And Christian didn't want to come if Trish wasn't going to be here."

"He said that he just didn't feel right about it," Chris added. "I guess I feel his point, maybe, I don't really know. I mean, if I were on SmackDown, I would want to be at Raw regardless."

"Yeah, but I'm always at Raw," Stephanie said, "Trish isn't here tonight, and I'm sorry, but we dealt with a moping Christian for the entire weekend and I just need one break."

"You would think that he would come to help Lita or something," Kurt said, as Chris pulled into the arena. "Just to make sure she was ok. I know he had that whole plan with Stephanie about her."

"It wasn't so much a plan as it was just trying to help her. After what Kane did to her last week even I'm a little bit worried about her. But don't you even dare tell her I said that. But I just don't like the whole threatening thing. Kane is one scary guy," Stephanie said.

"I can't believe you admitted to being concerned about Lita," Chris said. "This is definitely a first."

"Oh be quiet," Stephanie said from her backseat. "I probably wouldn't be so concerned if I was in the front seat. But nope, I got the shaft and had to sit back here like a little kid."

"You ARE the youngest one in the car," Chris said.

"Yeah, because you two are old, old, old," Stephanie said, sticking her tongue out. "I'm with two old men."

"You might want to watch your words Stephanie," Kurt said, trying to be menacing. "We're two very big wrestlers, and we might not take too kindly to being called old."

"And what are you going to do old man? Hit me with your cane or throw your dentures at me?" Stephanie challenged.

"Them's fighting words little missy," Chris said jokingly.

Stephanie loved this. She loved that Kurt and Chris were both with her. They truly were like the Three Musketeers. She had been archiving some various tapes that Chris had laying around and seen some old stuff and she was surprised at just how often Chris and Kurt had partnered up, it was quite a few times by her own count. But they were all such good friends that this was just like old times and she felt so happy to be here…even if she was stuck in the backseat.

"Oh yeah, like you'd fight your wife," Stephanie said to him. "You wouldn't dare fight me, and I'm not scared of the two of you. When it comes down to it, you know that I can kick your ass."

"I'd like to see that happen," Kurt said as Chris parked the car. The three of them got out of the car and started walking towards the arena, Stephanie shoving both of them around as they laughed.

"Well, I'm going to go check the schedule with Bischoff really quick," Stephanie said, "He did the schedule tonight, but I just want to make sure he didn't do anything stupid with it. I don't see how he could've screwed it up, but whatever, it's a holiday, we always expect nobody to be watching on a holiday."

"Nice way of thinking Steph," Kurt said.

"I know," Stephanie responded, then kissed Chris. "See you later boys."

She walked off ahead and Chris stared at her a moment before Kurt nudged him and rolled his eyes. It wasn't his fault that his wife was wearing a nice pair of jeans that made him almost drool. Sometimes he just stared at her and wondered how the hell he had ended up with someone like Stephanie. She was obviously different from any other women he had dated because none of them had been in the wrestling business and none of them had fathers that could buy whatever they wanted.

"She's gorgeous, what can I say?" Chris finally said.

"Yeah, I know she's gorgeous."

"Don't stare at my wife!"

"I wasn't staring at your wife!" Kurt argued. "Although I used to stare. And that kiss we shared, man, that was some good stuff."

"Look, you can't say that! You're my best friend and she's my wife, that's creepy. And it just plain grosses me out," Chris said, hitting Kurt in the shoulder.

Kurt rubbed his shoulder. "God, you get mean when you're threatened."

"Like I'd really be scared that you would steal my wife away," Chris scoffed. "She loves me and not you, you were never more than a friend to her."

"Yeah, that's true, but damn, she is such a good kisser."

"Are you looking for a fight?"

"Yeah, that's what I'm looking for," Kurt said seriously. "I want to fight you Jericho, I hate your guts and I hope you die."

"Now say that like you mean it," Chris said with a laugh. "So we get more Hogan tonight, yawn, yawn. It's like the guy doesn't know what to quit. Of course, Vince is letting him plug his show on Carlito's Cabana. Isn't that the stupidest name in the world."

"Yeah, I mean, Cabana, Highlight Reel, how can the two compare."

"That's exactly what I'm saying," Chris said, shrugging. "And he gets Hogan, ooh, woop-de-doo, we've beaten up on Hogan…remember that man? That was awesome, and we were posing in the ring with him, good times."

"Oh yeah," Kurt nodded, "That was awesome and didn't we kick Hunter's ass too?"

"Hell yeah we did, we ruled…and we suddenly sound like Edge and Christian back in the day," Chris said, starting to freak himself out.

"Remember when we cut Edge's hair!" Kurt said happily. "That was one of the funniest moments ever. He wasn't even expecting it and we brought out those scissors and snip snip, poor Edge lost a chunk of his greasy hair."

"Wow, that's pretty catty for you Kurt," Chris said. "Edge deserves it though, for what he said about Stephanie, and what he did to Christian, and now Lita, all of it, he deserves all of it, and to think I called him a friend."

"Well let's get back to the ancient Hogan. I've seen clips of his show and it's not even about him, it's about his daughter, Brooke. I guess the people over at vh1 know where the real money is."

"Yeah, Hogan needs to just stay away, I mean, I hope that someday I know when to quit."

"Even though you'll probably still be around," Kurt added.

"Behind the scenes, not parading around with feather boas like I'm some drag queen."

Kurt shook his head as they actually entered the arena. It had been sweltering hot outside, not as bad as some places they had been, but it was a hundred degrees and that was hot enough for some people. Luckily Chris had dressed pretty sensibly in a tank top, though the jeans had not been the best idea, but he was going to be indoors for most of the evening. Besides, Stephanie had told him looked hot and if his wife liked it, he liked it.

"I'm going to go put my stuff in my locker room," Kurt said, "I'll catch up with you later."

"Yeah, or you'd have to walk back to the hotel," Chris said. He spotted Lita up ahead and decided he would play Christian's role for tonight and make sure that she was alright. She had had a tough night last week, with Kane's threats and he wondered why Edge would make her come when she was in danger. If Stephanie was in danger, Chris would at least ask her to stay home for her own safety. Stephanie would then scoff at him and ignore him, but the sentiment would be there.

Lita spotted him a few seconds later and smiled, "Hey Chris."

"Hey Lita, I was just wondering how you were…and why the hell you were all alone."

"I don't know, maybe I want Kane to snatch me away," Lita said cryptically. "But thanks for asking. I guess I should be afraid, and I am, after last week, but then…well, I won't get into it here."

"Ok," Chris said, even though he could take a wild guess at what it was. "I know that Christian was kind of looking out for you."

"He doesn't have a reason to, I'm very happy with Edge," Lita lied. She just wanted to be left alone. She could deal with Edge, she could deal with all the crap that he dealt her, she would just need the time to deal with it. Nobody was giving her any time. "He's definitely better looking than Kane."

"Yeah, I think anything in nature is better looking than Kane," Chris joked. "I was just wondering how you were doing though, with everything."

"I'm good, I'm fine, and I'm just…I'm hanging out," Lita said, "But thanks for asking."

"Ok then," Chris said, finding he had nothing else to say. "Well, have a really great evening then, I guess."

"I will, don't worry," Lita said, waving at him.

Chris just stood there perplexed before walking away. If she said she was fine, then she was at least doing ok, or she would look more miserable than she was looking at the moment. But he didn't dwell on it as he went to find out what he was doing that evening, which meant he got to go see his favorite person in the world.

Stephanie had approved of everything pertaining to the show even though she still thought this Diva Search thing was a joke and was pointless. But that was her father's doing and she had no say in it whatsoever. She didn't hate Christy and she was pretty good at what she did, not great, but ok, and the odds of them getting at least someone ok a second time around was probably as likely as getting struck by lightning. She wondered what Chris was doing right now. Maybe still talking to Kurt or something.

Kurt was actually in his dressing room, putting on his wrestling tights just in case he had a match. He liked to be prepared if the occasion arose. And if it didn't arise, maybe he would just have to challenge Hogan to a match. He just plain didn't like Hogan, and thought he was way past his prime. Kurt was in his prime and one of the best wrestlers in the company and he shouldn't have to take a backseat to Hulk Hogan.

Stephanie was actually about to go see Hogan and tell him what they had planned for him for Carlito's Cabana. Her father and Hogan were on good terms again so if Hogan wanted some place to show his new show, her father was sure to agree. Hogan still brought in people to see him, and he was still popular and whatever was good for the show was good for her. She could still remember being a little girl and seeing all the hoopla that went around Hogan, she had been amazed at him then. That little girl was still amazed, but she was wrapped in a twenty-something's body.

"Mr. Hogan," Stephanie said as she walked into his personal room.

"Stephanie, how many times do I have to tell you to call me Hulk?" he said to her.

Stephanie blushed. She had always called him Mr. Hogan when she was talking to him and it was just a habit that she had never gotten rid of. "Sorry, you know that I can't help but call you that."

"You've been calling me that for over 20 years," he said, "I think it's time we were on a first-name basis, don't you think?"

"Nah, what's the fun in that?" Stephanie joked. "Well, the Cabana is the first thing we have up tonight, so be ready once the show starts. I'm not too familiar with Carlito's interviews, he's new here and everything. I have that clip that was sent to us from the show and I was hoping that you could incorporate it since that's the primary reason that you're here and I think that's pretty much it, you know what to do when you get out there and the fans will love you."

"Thanks Stephanie, and you sound so business-like, it amazes me sometimes that I knew you when you were just a kid."

"Yeah, well, times change," Stephanie told him.

"I don't think I've been around here in the past several months, I never got to congratulate you on your wedding."

"Oh, don't bother," Stephanie said. "I mean, I appreciate it, but yeah, it's not a big deal."

"Ok," he laughed. "Well thanks for letting me be on your show. Your dad tells me that you're the one in charge."

"I think that's what he lets me think," Stephanie said. "Although I get the feeling that he's still lurking behind the scenes. Well, good luck with later Mr. Hogan, and I'm sure everything is going to be great."

Stephanie left then, always feeling like little kid when she was around him. Maybe because he brought out the little kid in her, she could never tell. Now she would have to go and feel like a woman again, which meant seeing one man and one man alone, and that was her husband. All he had planned for tonight was a Highlight Reel which meant he didn't have to change, which meant she could just stare at him for a while. Chris had the incredible ability to look good in whatever he wore, and tonight he was looking awesome.

"So you're my new boss," another voice piped in, a loud, booming voice.

Stephanie turned and saw Big Show standing there. She remembered a time when he had frightened her. There was one time he had her pinned against a wall and he had actually smelled her and then she had had to fight him and he had lifted her with one hand. She didn't remember who saved her that night, but it was probably Kurt. She did remember how Chris wanted to kill him for touching her like he had.

"Big Show," Stephanie said politely, trying to smooth things over if they needed smoothing. "Welcome to Raw, I'm sure you'll be able to make an impact."

"Yeah, I think I will," Big Show said and she knew that he was supposedly nice again, but she still felt uncomfortable around him, his size doing nothing to assure her that he had any good intentions whatsoever.

"Well, that's good, we can always use impact players on Raw, lots of talent around here," she said, making idle chit-chat with him and hoping that anyone she knew would come along so that she could end this awkward conversation. Luckily, the person she loved the most did happen upon her.

"Hey, I've been looking for you baby," Chris said as he went and wrapped his arm around Stephanie's waist and kissed her cheek. "What am I doing tonight?"

"Highlight Reel with John Cena."

"Again?" Chris asked with a groan. "Talk about your boring. I have nothing I want to say to that guy, nothing at all. So you know what that means right?"

"No, I have no idea what that means actually," Stephanie answered him.

"It means I get to talk about my favorite subject in the entire universe, the most wonderful thing in the world. Someone that I love and adore and treasure above anybody else, someone that I see everyday and think to myself, wow, you are one lucky man Jericho."

"What? You can't go out there and talk about me," Stephanie said.

"Huh? I wasn't talking about you, I was talking about myself," Chris said, then noticed that Big Show was there, which was weird because Big Show was a huge man, and he didn't exactly fade into any background, unless the background was like a submarine or something like that. But once again, Stephanie blinded him to anything else. "Oh, hey man, welcome to the show."

"Thanks," Big Show said, "I better go."

"See ya," Chris said. "What was that about?"

"Don't ask," Stephanie said, groaning. "Just awkward and stunted conversation…now what's this about you loving yourself more than me? I thought you were supposed to love me above anyone else, I AM your wife."

"Well, I always learned that you have to love yourself before you could love others, and baby, I'm just loving myself so that I can continue to love you," he said, kissing her nose. Stephanie rolled her eyes at his lame answer, but let it slide since she wanted to go prepare for the show.

"Fine, love yourself and go out there and talk about yourself and your accomplishments, it's not like I haven't heard about every single one of them already."

"Hey remember when I won my first major title?"

"Yeah, I was there, I helped you win it," Stephanie said. "Even though that was not my intention as I wanted Rocky to win it because I was cheering for him and then he had the audacity to pull me in the ring by my hair."

"No, not that time, the time when it got taken away from me."

"Oh, that time, well it was a fast count," Stephanie said walking away teasingly. She glanced back at him, "You deserved to have it taken away."

"Are you kidding me? Who the hell are you?"

"Stephanie McMahon," she answered. "And you know that was a fast count and yet you took that belt, and it was stricken from the record anyways so it never happened, poof it's gone."

"Except we all know the truth, I won that title. It's your fault it got taken away."

Stephanie looked taken aback. "MY fault? Why whatever do you mean? It couldn't have been my fault, I did nothing to get it taken away from you. That was all Earl, he was the one who reversed the decision. I had nothing to do with it."

"Oh come here you," Chris said, chasing after her and picking her up, throwing her over his shoulder. "I'll show you how much involvement you had."

"Put me down! I have to go work," Stephanie giggled as her hair flew all over the place as Chris walked down the hallway. She didn't know why she thought of Hunter in that moment, maybe because Hunter had been part of the reason the decision had been reversed, maybe it just popped into her brain, but she realized that Hunter wasn't here tonight, and again she would get an uninterrupted night of freedom from her ex.

She didn't realize that Chris had walked her all the way down to her table until he sat her down in her chair. She looked up gratefully and he sat down next to her, propping his feet up on the table. He only had the Highlight Reel tonight so he had nothing to do. He could just sit here and help Stephanie whenever the moment arose.

That was exactly what happened when the show started up. Carlito's Cabana was first and Stephanie and Chris watched and were a little skeeved that Hogan would let his sixteen year old daughter go out with a twenty-two year old. It wasn't so much the age difference, although it was kind of significant, as much as it was the guy was freely talking about his sex life with the father of the girl he wanted to date. Obviously the kid didn't know boundaries. Then Carlito took it a step too far and said he wanted to nail Brooke, which set off Hogan.

Kurt had been backstage and had just been waiting for a moment to pop in there. He despised Hogan, and this would be the perfect opportunity to get underneath his skin. He had just showed a big weakness. He was an overprotective father and Kurt could definitely use that. He went out there, being ignored by Chris and Stephanie, who were busy and didn't notice him until he was already out there and talking.

He wanted to sting Hogan and he did, once again bringing up his daughter. Kurt and Carlito were getting the best of Hogan when that ass Michaels came out to help the fallen icon. Kurt was content to leave it at that, knowing that he had at least gotten under Hogan's skin and gotten a few good shots in on him. He just hated Hogan so damn much that he could never resist beating up on him.

"Just like old times," Chris said when Kurt walked backstage. "I'm insulted that I wasn't invited to the party."

"Oh, you were welcome to come…and let me predict the future while I'm at it," Kurt said, pretending to think real hard. "Michaels is going to go whining to Bischoff to get a match for later tonight so he can THINK he's going to beat me and then I'll show him who is really the man around here."

"I think you're right," Stephanie responded.

"I'm going to hang out with you guys for a while," Kurt said, sitting down. "So how are things going so far?"

"Ok, and please tell me that you wouldn't really want to tap Brooke Hogan," Stephanie said as she glanced at Kurt.

"No way, there are lines Stephanie. I just love getting under Grandpa's skin. He's so easy to rile up. And talking about his daughter was better than talking about how stupid it is to walk around with feather boas."

"I would tap his daughter," Chris said, as Stephanie glared at him. "I'm kidding, geez, when Kurt makes a joke, everyone is like, ha, Kurt was kidding, I make one joke and it's like, crucify him!"

"I think either scenario is disgusting," Stephanie said.

"If I were like twenty, then yeah, maybe, but I'm almost thirty-five, and I'm married, I need someone mature."

"And yet you married Stephanie," Kurt joked, giving Chris a high five.

"You know, if I weren't working right now, I'd kick your ass and then let Hogan kick your ass," Stephanie said. "I'm definitely more mature than the two of you. You two are like children when you're together and I feel like your baby-sitter."

"We're buddies," Chris said in a high-pitched voice. "You're my best friend Kurt."

"You're MY best friend Chris," Kurt said in return. Stephanie just groaned and put her headphones back on.

Later on that evening, Chris went out for his Highlight Reel, having talked over with Stephanie what he had in mind for the show. She had approved of course and he was happy to be talking about himself. He loved talking about himself and proceeded to do so even as Cena came out. The thing that really bugged him about Cena was that he seemed to not respect him, and Chris demanded respect from everyone. He hated not being respected.

Then Cena started to go too far as he started denouncing Chris and everything that he accomplished. Chris stood there and took it and took in every word that he said. He listened as Cena said that Chris could take all of his accomplishments and that they meant nothing without the belt. Chris had to admit that he did want that belt, he wanted to be champion again, no matter how hard he tried not to think about it, and no matter how many promises he made to Stephanie to not be in a funk again.

He listened as Cena called him cheap and an asshole though Chris didn't really understand the cheap part since what Cena was saying didn't logistically make sense. A person could be cheap yes, as in they were cheap and didn't like to spend money, but in the context that Cena was saying it, it was like he was trying to think of an antonym for real and that was cheap. In fact, cheap is not the antonym for real, cheap could be an antonym for eccentric maybe, but certainly not

Now if maybe Cena was saying that what Chris was doing was CHEAPENING (see how it changes meaning) his image and the people's perception of him, that would've made more sense, but just so say cheap, it didn't really make sense in the context in which Cena was insulting him, but sometimes Cena didn't seem to make sense, although now all the people in the audience were cheering for Cena and booing him (not ALL people were though, it's just the people who like Chris and don't like Cena were few and far between and not sitting close enough actually be heard…and were surrounded by Cena fans, which is very frustrating).

Chris took it though, he took the fans booing him and he took Cena insulting him and he took everything that he said because what would it matter anyways. So he liked to talk about himself, that was who he was, and it wasn't like John Cena was the most modest man in the world. He had had a specially made title belt made, in what could only be described as an act of vainness and if you delved deeper into it, maybe an act of superiority, being too good for the other belt, the "designated" title belt. Maybe if Chris had thought of these things, he would've said it, but he didn't, instead he was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

He didn't know why he expected it, but he expected Cena to bring up Stephanie and that would've been the last straw. Chris could take insults, he had gone his entire career taking criticisms and insults. If he didn't have a good match, people were jumping on his back telling him that he sucked, if he said something about someone, they would ask why he would say such a thing. But if they said one word against his wife, then he would pummel them and make them regret the day.

So Chris stopped him before he could go too far and mention the one thing in this world that Chris did not brag about and did not crow about. He slapped him and then the fight broke out. Chris hit him, and then Cena hit him and then Chris decided it just wasn't worth it anymore. A bunch of referees came down and escorted him out of the ring, even as he wanted to go back for some more, but he didn't, he let himself be taken backstage by this time he was fuming. He was just pissed off. It was this feeling that prevented him from seeing the person behind him. Oh, but Cena would sure see her when he walked backstage.

Before Cena could even think, Stephanie was charging at him like a bull going after a red cape. She was about to tackle Cena to the ground when two strong arms grabbed her from behind. She struggled blindly, trying to get at the bastard. Her face felt like it was on fire she was so angry.

"You bastard!" Stephanie yelled. "There aren't enough bad words in the universe for me to say to you, who the hell do you think you are!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold up," Cena said. "I wasn't talking to you out there."

"Yeah, but you were talking about my husband you jackass, what do you think that's going to do to me, make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside?" Stephanie retorted, then turned to Kurt who was holding her back. "I'm not going to charge him Kurt, I promise."

Kurt reluctantly let go of her and he honestly thought that she was going to bolt at Cena and tackle him and honestly kick his ass. Stephanie was pissed, and when Stephanie was pissed, her eyes went ablaze with a certain fire. There was certainly a fire in her eyes at the moment. She always looked different when she was mad, and for some reason, it struck Kurt that she was just beautiful when she was angry and so in control.

"So you called my husband cheap, you called his accomplishments cheap?" Stephanie said, taking a few menacing steps towards Cena. Even Cena had to gulp a little bit at her face. She did have power around here and her name was the marquee of the company.

"Yeah, I did," Cena said, gaining his bearings back. "I don't care if he wants to toot his own horn. I go out there for those fans, and that's real and the way they love me is real. Your husband just does it because he feels obligated. It ain't used to be that way."

"Do you know how hard my husband has worked?" Stephanie said. Chris was just watching her talk, almost like an out-of-body experience. "They told him that he was too small. In WCW, he never even got a whiff of the World Title hunt. He was denied this and denied that, and you know what, he had to claw his way to the top. He had to live in crappy hotel rooms and small apartments to get where he is, to be as successful as he is, and you have the balls to go out there and say that he's cheap, that his image is somehow tarnished because he likes to talk about himself. Well, I can see how you don't like to talk about yourself since you can't even see yourself. That IS how it goes, right Cena? You can't see me, that's your motto or something right, that's how you 'keep it real,' or however you want to say it, even though all I see is a cheap poseur trying to dress and be like the big boys. You go out and you wrestle for the next fifteen years, and then you come and talk to my husband about what it means to be cheap. You're just lucky that I'm in a good mood tonight or else I would be a lot bitchier than I'm being right now."

"Well of course he's at the top, he married you, didn't he? I guess that would be the easiest way to the top, and the easiest way to get where he's been right?" Cena said and that was probably the last place that he should've gone.

Stephanie sucked at her teeth a little. "Kurt, you're going to want to hold me back again."

Kurt quickly went over and wrapped his arms around Stephanie's waist. "You know, you never figure you're going to be in a moment like this."

"You're being really calm Stephanie," Kurt said.

"I know, it's amazing huh when all I want to do right now is take a pair of tweezers and pull out every single inch of body hair that Cena has one by one just to torture him. But no, I'm above that," Stephanie said. "I'm above all of that."

"You are."

"I'll say this once John Cena and you better remember it or else. You can insult me, go ahead, people have been doing it for a long time. I've been called everything in the book, a whore, a slut, a bitch, everything. I've been called a filthy, dirty, disgusting, brutal, bottom-feeding trash bag tramposaurus rex. But you cannot and will not insult my marriage and my husband's or my motives for getting married. There is NO way that you know any of the circumstances, and you better get the hell out of here before you find out why I asked Kurt to go back to holding me."

"Yo, you all whack," Cena said before leaving.

Chris was quiet the rest of the night and it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out. He didn't even say anything as Kurt complained about his loss the entire way back to the hotel, although he and Stephanie did have a debate as to why Michaels had given Hogan the Sweet Chin Music. Kurt did laugh about it and wish he was there to see it. They parted ways and Stephanie led Chris up to their suite. He walked in and wordlessly got ready for bed and climbed in. Stephanie followed suit and got into bed with him, snuggling up against his side. They didn't speak and Stephanie just listened to his heartbeat.

"Is what he said true?" Chris asked finally.

"Is what true?" she replied.

"Am I cheap, am I a sell-out?" Chris asked.

"God no," Stephanie said, lifting her head to look him in the eyes. "Chris, look at me. You've done so much, and you should be SO proud of yourself, and I mean that. Remember how you were always saying when you were a kid that you either wanted to be a wrestler or a rock star, sweetie, you get to do both, you get to do anything you want because you have so many doors open for you, and you should be proud of what you accomplished."

"But I mean…I do want the belt…am I really nothing without it?"

"You're not Hunter, if that's what you mean," Stephanie said. "Cena has no basis for calling you nothing without the belt. That's Hunter territory, I like to think you've done pretty well for yourself since you lost the belt. You've released albums and been on television, and you've wrestled great, you got married, all of these things are something you should be happy about…and you did it all without the belt. Hunter goes crazy over the belt, you're nothing like him."

"Maybe I subconsciously married you to get power and get the belt, maybe that's how desperate I am," Chris suggested.

"I hardly think you would've put up with me for almost three years if you really didn't like me," Stephanie said. "I'm not the easiest person to deal with."

"That's true," Chris said. "I just can't help but think of what he said. That I was cheap, that I was a sell-out, an asshole, that I was nothing. I mean, it hurt to hear those things."

"Because they're lies, all of them…lies. Chris, I love you so much, and I can't imagine my life without you. I know you, I know you like the back of my hand, and you are nothing like what he says. No man that only thinks of himself and only wants success and money and fame and a belt and ignores other people would spend tons of money on jewelry for his wife. No man who is selfish and egotistical would switch shows for a woman he had been dating for a week. No man would come up with a stupid plan that involved kissing his best friend's girlfriend just to get his own girlfriend her job back, without having a lot of heart. No man would help people he used to be friends with, or tolerate Christian coming over every single night, or Kurt's Olympic stories, or my inane bitching, or my father's and brother's threats if you hurt me, without being some kind of spectacular human being. No man who swallowed a world of insults and let a lonely girl be his business partner just to get back at her scummy ex-husband only thinks of himself."

"Actually with that last one, I kind of just wanted to use you to keep my belt," Chris said.

"What I'm saying Chris Jericho is…you are much more than what Cena says of you. He wants to say you're cheap, I think he was cheap for taking pot shots at you by only knowing the person that you project yourself as out there. I never expected you to come out and want to be my business partner Jericho, because I only knew the outside you, the one you projected. Once I got to know the man you were, I found someone…incredible."

"How do you do that Stephanie?" Chris asked.

"Do what? Talk a lot? It's in the McMahon blood I think," she said with a smile, kissing him gently.

"No, not that."

"What then?"

"How do you always know the right thing to say? How do you just…how can you figure out what I need to hear before I know that I need to hear it?"

"Some people would call that love," Stephanie said, kissing him again as she ran her hand down his face. "Some people would say that you just know a person so well that you can think for them and know them."

"What do you think?"

"Oh, what do I think?"

"Yeah, what do you think?"

"Oh, I'm just taking wild guesses and luckily they've been right so far," she joked. "Honestly though…I know what to say because I know what is the truth. Ask any of our friends Chris, ask any of them, and they will all tell you the same thing. They may not include the love part, but generally, I think it'll all be the same."

"I'm a lucky man, I mean, I have this hot wife and she's smart too, and business savvy."

"Ooh, now this is a subject I like to talk about," she said excitedly, "Me!"

"Yeah, my wife is gorgeous, and she was gorgeous tonight."

"Oops, you better stop Chris, you're starting to sound cheap again by crowing about what a great wife you have, and the last thing I want is to be doused with a big, ole' helping of cheap sauce."

Their laughter echoed throughout the room that evening.


	46. Finally, He Gets a Shot, July 11, 2005

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews guys, I would love it if you kept reviewing and kept telling me what you think of the chapters, so review, review, review.

And I'm a happy girl tonight because finally, FINALLY Chris might be getting a main-event feud that might not involve H. Wouldn't that be something? Chris actually getting a decent shot at the title. And since SummerSlam is still like 2 months away, maybe an actual decent, long-term feud. If we can have all that, I'll be one happy Jerichoholic. Do I think Chris will win? Oh Lord, I can hope.

As for the entire Matt thing, yeah, I was actually shocked, something that hasn't happened all that often in wrestling lately. In actuality, I feel uncomfortable by the whole Matt-Amy-Adam saga because I feel like it's not any of my business, even though it's been put out there. I guess I'm going to include it in the story, but if it comes off badly, it's because I really don't want to write about it. I didn't mind doing the Edge-Lita-Kane thing, because that by-and-large was fake, but this is real and I dislike Edge and Lita as it is, so this just makes them less favorable to me, but oh well, what can you do right?

Enjoy. And I promise, Christian and Trish will be back!

* * *

"So promise me that you're not going to do anything crazy tonight."

Stephanie glanced at Chris before going back to her work. "I'm not going to do anything crazy."

"Stephanie, I know that you're still angry after last week, I'm angry too, but I've had time to think about it and you have too, except your thinking is more like just getting more angry, and I don't want to see you angry, it hinders my enjoyment of the evening."

"I'm not going to get angry," Stephanie said. "I'm so NOT angry that I didn't schedule anything for you tonight. You're not even on the show."

"You didn't schedule anything for me, nothing at all?" Chris asked with dismay. "Not even a match against a vastly inferior opponent?"

"Nope, nothing," Stephanie said.

"Then why the hell am I here?" he asked with a little smirk to let her know that he was joking. Even if he didn't have anything to do that evening, Stephanie was here, and he wasn't going to let her go to work without him, not that she wasn't capable of being by herself, he would just miss her too much.

"Oh you know, because you're forced to be here," Stephanie said. "I think it's in your contract somewhere. Speaking of which, I think it's coming up on the chopping block soon, I'll have to talk about getting you a raise. I don't know what the bosses will say to that though."

"Yeah, they pretty much are tightasses," Chris told her, pulling up a chair to sit next to her at her desk. "Do you think they would even consider it, considering that I've never been seriously injured and never missed more than one show at any given time? I mean, I am a commodity."

"I think that you could have some pull with the president and the CEO," Stephanie said seriously. "I have it on the d-l that they like you. Take that for what it's worth."

"That's good, I have been trying to work my way into their good graces," Chris said. "I've been in this company almost six years, I think that I've worked my way up to the top."

"If by the top you meaning owning part of the company," Stephanie said.

"That's what I was working for actually. Too bad I can't legally marry Shane, he probably would've been easier to get with than you were," he said. "You weren't so willing to give it up to me, much to my dismay."

"I think I gave it up fairly easily," Stephanie said flirtily, leaning over to kiss him gently.

"You didn't put out on the first date."

"I did on the second," Stephanie winked as she went back to her work. "Besides, there's a lot of stuff going on tonight as it is, and we could use you behind the desk tonight."

"WE? Or is that more specifically YOU?"

"Ok, I need you behind the desk tonight," Stephanie said. "Not for work, but for my own personal pleasure."

"What kind of man do you take me for Stephanie McMahon-Jericho? Do you think I'm the kind of man who will just sleep with my boss to get what I want? Is that what you see me as? I'm just a toy for you."

"That's exactly how I thought of you," she answered.

"Don't tell my wife though, she would hate it if she knew that I was sleeping with my very beautiful, very gorgeous, very sexy boss."

"Well, I can keep a secret if you can," Stephanie said. "Besides, I don't think that she would mind at all. In fact, I honestly think that she would think that this was all her husband's ruse just to make sure that his crazy wife didn't go out there and do something to a man who just insults my husband over and over and over."

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say that you and my wife are the exact same person."

"Nah, I heard your wife is hotter than I am," Stephanie said. "And your wife promises that she won't do anything crazy tonight. I even gave John Cena time to talk. Bischoff didn't want him to, but me, the rational one in my and Bischoff's relationship, said that not allowing the WWE champion to even talk was ridiculous. He hates Cena too, which I could've worked to my advantage if my husband would allow me to let me use advantages for him."

"If I want one, you'll know," he told her. "But that would just give Cena more ammo. He already thinks I'm using you, which is just not true."

"Sweetie, I know that it's not true. If you were using me…there are just lots of reasons that he doesn't know. Let's stop talking about Cena, it's starting to upset me," Stephanie said, obviously in distress.

She wasn't going to forget what he had said about her husband. How someone could be so grossly wrong and yet so revered by the audience just puzzled her. Every word that Cena had said about Chris was wrong, just plain wrong. She had known Chris for the past six years, and had been with him for the past three. She knew Chris, she knew his heart and she knew his mind, and she remembered that the first time they had ever really interacted, when he had mistaken her for a ho, he had sincerely apologized, and the things he said about her were only in retaliation. Cena had no idea what he was talking about, none, and she refused to even acknowledge the other man. If she could, she would strip the title off of him right this second.

"So what do you want to talk about?"

"Trish and Christian," Stephanie said. "Trish told me that she doesn't really want to talk to Christian right now, that they're not broken up, but she doesn't know what to say. Christian is moping around because he doesn't know what's going on. I wish she'd just say no and get it over with."

"Steph, please don't get into their business," Chris said. "I know that we think that she should just say no to him and continue dating him, but we can't butt into it. It's definitely not our place this time."

"I just feel bad for Christian," Stephanie said. "He's a wreck. What would you have done if I said no?"

"I would've been a wreck," Chris said. "But that was our business and not anyone else's."

"Ok, ok, geez, I get your point," Stephanie said. "Go find Kurt and be little boys and let me get back to my work."

"Always with the work," Chris muttered. "I'm starting to think that there is no actual work and you're just saying that to get rid of me."

"Now you're starting to get it," Stephanie said. "Come sit with me during the show and you can help me."

"Ok, I'm going to go find Kurt though," Chris said, kissing Stephanie hard. Stephanie let her hand rest against the nape of his neck as she slipped a little bit of tongue in his mouth to deepen the kiss. Chris pulled away reluctantly and planted another soft kiss on his lips.

Chris waved as he left and went to go find Kurt. He was going to have to ask him about his Kurt Angle Invitational. He suspected that he had gone to Stephanie with that one. He came across Kurt sitting on a trunk in the hallway looking at his gold medal from the Olympics. Chris was almost tempted to walk away, not in the mood to hear another one of Kurt's Olympic stories. The thing was that Kurt only had so many Olympic stories, and then when he was done, he'd go about repeating them.

"Hey Chris!" Kurt said and Chris slowly walked over. "Look what I have here."

"A gold medal," Chris nodded. "I could see it from down the hallway."

"Yup, a gold medal, a gold medal that I won with a broken neck. I remember when I was in the Olympic village, right before my match--"

"SO, you're going to do the Invitational thing right?" Chris said, cutting into the beginning of his rant. "I remember catching that on SmackDown."

"Yeah, for this baby," Kurt said, holding up the medal.

"Let me see that thing, you never let me see it," Chris said.

He took the medal from Kurt's grasp and looked at it. He would never know what it was like to win one of these, that was a certainty. It really was quite nice, with the little design etched in the gold. Hell, he wouldn't have minded if he could ever get a bronze or silver. He was feeling a little kicky tonight and put it on.

"Hey, look at me, I'm Kurt Angle, I'm an Olympic gold medalist," Chris said cheekily.

"Who said you could try it on?"

"I'm your best friend, I have privileges."

"That doesn't sound right man," Kurt said distastefully. "Be careful with that thing, it's pretty damn valuable, it's like my kid."

"How about I just let you have Stephanie for the evening and you stop worrying about your medal. I think it's an even trade."

"I'm going to tell Stephanie that you would trade her for a gold medal," Kurt said with a keen whine, like a little child. "She's not going to be happy with you."

"She'd understand, it's a gold medal after all," Chris said, holding it up. "I'm Kurt Angle, whoo! I won with a broken freaking neck, whoo! I can beat you all, whoo!"

"Ok, I get it, I say whoo a lot, you don't have to rub my face in it," Kurt pouted. "Now I'm going to get Stephanie to beat you up and put you in a handicap match."

"She'd do it too, she did it when I mistook her for a ho, she hates me, I know it," Chris lamented. "So what if I were to enter this Kurt Angle Invitational?"

"You're not a hometown hero," Kurt deadpanned.

"I was born in New York, I think that would technically qualify me as a hometown hero. And all I have to do is last three minutes in the ring with you. I've lasted way longer than three minutes."

"Friends don't fight friends."

"Yes they do," Chris said. "Come on, let me try to win your medal. I really think that I could do it. I would treat it right, maybe frame it or something. I think Stephanie would like something like this in the house."

"Ok, time to give me back my medal," Kurt said, holding his hand out. Chris stuck his tongue out and took the medal off giving it back to Kurt. Kurt put it back in its box and then into his suit pocket. "Good, now you can forget you ever even thought about entering the Invitational."

"Fine," Chris said. "Now if we're in Connecticut, can Stephanie enter it?"

"No!" Kurt said, obviously annoyed. "Nobody in your family is allowed to enter. Not Vince, or Linda, or Shane. None of them. Or your mom and dad."

"Well fine then, you're mean Angle, really, really mean."

"Hey speaking of mean," Kurt said, lowering his voice, "Look who got a haircut."

Chris looked over to where Kurt was looking and saw Lita and Edge walking and talking down the corridor. Edge had indeed gotten a haircut, not much, but it was definitely noticeable. Chris rolled his eyes, it was almost starting to look like his haircut.

"What is with him trying to look like me?"

"We all want to look like you Chris Jericho, it's all of our aspirations," Kurt said seriously and Chris just looked at him for a second before shoving him rudely. "Hey, what was that for!"

"For being a douchebag," Chris told him.

"Oh shut up," Kurt said. "He has the same exact hair as you do, if he was going to cut it, it was bound to look like yours."

"Excuse me, my hair is not a greasy rat's nest, it's perfect, shiny, full of body and volume, and every strand in place," Chris said, running a hand through his hair. "I'll have you know that I take care of his hair like you take care of that gold medal."

"Mine's going to last longer."

"Bite your tongue!"

"And mine is cooler."

"Mine has gotten me tons of chicks," Chris said. "The ladies loved running their hands through this hair. I can't tell you how many of those women…well, I don't think I need to go on if you know what I mean…"

"If by that you mean that I'm on the brink of disgust and would rather not hear about your conquests."

"Oh come on, it's all I have left. You can go out there and nail any chick that you want, and I can't. I have to live through you Kurt, you're my only hope, my ONLY hope."

"I wouldn't tell you about any of the women that I sleep with, I'm not that type of guy."

"Ok, fine, I'll just go back to my wife then."

"Come on, let's get you something to eat so that you can shut your mouth."

"You need to shut yours."

"No, yours."

"Yours!"

"Yours!"

The two of them continued fighting as they made their way to catering to get something to eat. Stephanie went to her table near the gorilla for the start of the show. It figured to be a good night. HBK was going to be on the Cabana, and then a rematch for the IC Title which figured to be a good match. She had no idea the kind of things that were going to pan out for the show. No idea.

Chris came to her desk with Kurt right before the show started. He greeted her with a kiss and then Chris sat down on one side of her while Kurt sat down on the other. She didn't want to feel like they were on guard in case she snapped against Cena again, but she thought that maybe that was what they were doing. She wasn't going to go ballistic again. She had said everything she needed to say to him last week, and she was done with it now.

She reached out with her left hand and grasped her husband's hand that had been resting on the table as he leaned over to talk to Kurt. He looked at her for a second and the sweetest smile came over his face. She just smiled back, but that smile he gave was full of love and adoration. No, Chris wasn't cheap at all. He was something else entirely. He went out there and he talked about things that he had accomplished sure, but not once had he ever gone out there and bragged about how he had bagged a McMahon, he never gloated about his new status, he knew what to keep private and what not to keep private.

She didn't listen in on Kurt and Chris's conversation, the two of them talking right behind her back so that she could concentrate on the show. She kept her hands interlaced with Chris's the entire time, as she watched Carlito talking about the show and how he was going to have HBK on the show tonight, another marquee name while the Highlight Reel didn't have as much hoopla surrounding it. She hadn't noticed that Chris had been watching as well and was dismayed at what he heard. She didn't noticed until he softly pulled his hand away from hers and whispered for her to tell the production truck to hit his music.

It was the perfect moment for Chris to come out, just as Carlito was expositing that Michaels would be coming out to speak. But nope, it was Chris and he had a bone to pick with this cocky jackass. Chris had the best show on Raw, the Highlight Reel was the premiere show and had been around long before there was ever a Cabana. And Chris was going to make sure this cocky kid knew that. He was the #1 guy on Raw with a show. And granted there were only two of them, he was still the best at what he did. Besides, Chris had had Michaels on his show before.

The crowd was actually cheering him, so either they hadn't seen Cena call him cheap last week or they didn't really care about it. He hoped it was the latter because honestly, what Cena said was above and beyond what someone should say to someone they didn't know. Had Chris given him the best first impression? No, of course not, but still, that was no reason to say things that were untrue of the other person. It was uncalled for…and yes Chris was being a hypocrite, but everyone is a hypocrite once in a while.

He discussed last week with Cena briefly, not wanting to delve into that right now. What right now was about, it was about the Highlight Reel and the Cabana…sure it wasn't the most compelling of arguments, there was nothing on the line, but it meant something to the two of them. Chris basically told him that he was taking over this show and taking over this interview and went on to introduce Michaels, except Carlito interrupted him. Chris was getting a little annoyed, even though he was the one to interrupt in the first place.

That's when Carlito brought out the big guns. He called Chris boring, and outdated, and told him that he sucks. And then he called Chris old. He had the actual nerve to call Chris old when there were other men still wrestling who were older than him. Hell, even Hunter was older than him and he still acted like he was queen bee around here. And then, in an insult he didn't know how to interpret properly, given Carlito's own build, Carlito called Chris fat, which is such a gross exaggeration that Chris didn't even know what to make of it.

So Chris just went back and brought up how Carlito isn't exactly the most ripped of all the wrestlers, which he isn't, and then told all those people how he was cool. Although he might just have negated that cool with his whole Chris Canadian Cool statement, which probably wasn't the most cool thing he had ever done, but it seemed rather appropriate for the moment. Then he just ripped into Carlito, and tried to introduce Michaels again.

And then there was Piper and Chris was shocked. You'd think with a wife who ran the show he'd know about these things, but nope, complete shock. He didn't know what to say or what to do and he stood there, shocked. That was pretty much it, he was shocked. And then his interview got taken away from him, and he was still shocked.

The first thing Stephanie told him when he got backstage, "I was NOT planning that. I swear to God."

"Ok," Chris said. "So he just showed up?"

"I have no clue, I'll talk to Bischoff later, I'm not going to worry about it," Stephanie said. "I was just as surprised, luckily we had his music in the production truck, I have to commend them on having all the music ready."

"Yeah, that Carlito kid bugs the hell out of me," Chris said.

"His hair bugs me," Kurt said rather randomly. "I can't put my finger on why, but it bugs me."

"Thanks for the input Kurt," Chris said dully. "It's not been my couple of weeks has it? At least at work, I get up, I get knocked down, I get back up again, I get knocked down. It's like everyone is trying to find a fault with me and hang on for dear life. I mean, love handles!"

"You do have them," Stephanie shrugged, then off of Chris's glare. "What! I live with you, I've seen you naked, I know you've got love handles. At least little ones."

"Ok, I didn't need to hear the naked part," Kurt said, covering his ears, "Tell me when this little discussion is over."

"Oh come on Kurt, you're not mature enough to hear about it," Stephanie said.

"I just don't need to think about Chris naked, that's the LAST thing in the world I want or need to think about. I know that you two have…done it, but I don't need the details thank you very much."

"Good, cause we weren't offering them," Stephanie said, then turned back to Chris, "I like them, I think they're cute, they make you cute."

"Stephanie," Chris whined. "Love handles are not cute! They're because I wear skin tight spandex out to the ring, you can't even tell when I'm wearing normal clothes. Have you seen the pants I wear to the ring? They're skin-tight."

"I know, I've worn your pants before," Stephanie said.

"Can't hear you!" Kurt said, still covering his ears.

"I didn't say they weren't cute," Stephanie continued, "You barely have any, and they are cute, I like them. I like you just the way you are."

"Well thanks, I wouldn't want my wife to hate me just the way I am," Chris said sarcastically.

"I love you," Stephanie said with a slight pout. "And I don't care if you are old."

"I am NOT old," Chris said. "I'm only 34, and I'll only be 35 in November. That's not old, it's not!"

"Of course not sweetie," Stephanie said. "You're still gorgeous and I still love you. And our three year anniversary is next week."

"Gee, that was subtle. Oh, Kurt, we're ok, no more sex talk."

"Thank God," Kurt said, uncovering his ears.

"Chris and I will have been together for three years next week," Stephanie told Kurt. "Isn't that something?"

"It's a miracle!" Kurt said.

"It kind of is," Stephanie said.

They spent the next little while just talking as Stephanie worked. Stephanie was listening to Chris and Kurt talk when Bischoff walked over. She sighed, not wanting to have to deal with him twice in one night. She had already talked to him earlier and she couldn't fathom why he would want to talk to her again.

"Stephanie, a word," Bischoff said.

"I believe that was three," Stephanie said snarkily.

"I just need a second with you," Bischoff said. "Alone."

"Fine, Chris take over for me will you?" Stephanie asked.

"Sure thing baby," Chris said, grabbing her headphones and slipping them on, going immediately to work since he knew exactly what to do. Stephanie and Bischoff took a few paces away from the table and Stephanie stood there, looking testy with one leg supporting her weight and the other tapping in front of her while her arms were crossed.

"So what is it?"

"Don't look at me like I'm going to hurt you or something," Bischoff said. "I've got good news."

"What? You're quitting? Fired? Moving to SmackDown? Retiring?" Stephanie said, pretending to sound excited.

"Don't count on that, but it involves what happened with your husband last week," Bischoff said. "Word has it that you went crazy on Cena."

"I had words with him, what are you going to report me to my father for subordination? Get him to fire me? If I tell him what happened, he would be on my side and on Chris's side. He doesn't care, my dad has never cared."

"No, I hate Cena, I can't stand the guy. He thinks he's running the show and I can't stand that. I'm the boss around here."

"Yes, one of them," Stephanie said. "So you hate Cena…and…"

"And I need to teach him that I make the matches around here, that I'm the one in charge."

"Along with me," Stephanie added.

"Sure," Bischoff said. "What I'm saying is, I have the perfect way to show him that WE mean business that we are not going to take him running his mouth off anymore…and it is going to make you very, very happy."

"I'm listening," Stephanie said, now intrigued by what Bischoff had to say. She was just hoping he wouldn't do something stupid.

"Your husband going for the WWE title at SummerSlam against John Cena, what do you think?" Bischoff asked, even though he could tell already by the way that Stephanie's face had turned icy cold in manipulation.

"For once Bischoff, I like the way you think," Stephanie said. "I definitely think that's a match we can sign off for. It's one I'd especially like to see."

"This working together thing just might work out yet," Bischoff said as he shook Stephanie's hand. "I'll let you tell your husband, or let him be surprised, your choice."

"Nice working with you…Eric."

"You too….Stephanie."

Stephanie walked back over to her table with a grin on her face. This was great. Her husband was going to get a real title shot on the second biggest show of the year, SummerSlam. It hadn't even been her doing either, it had been Bischoff. It was odd that Bischoff was on her side for once, but for once she was glad of it. It only seemed fair that Chris got the shot, and as she sat down and watched him working for a second, she knew that he had earned it.

Chris had not gotten a real title shot in so long, not a real one-on-one match against the champion. She knew that it had been bugging him, even though he kept pretty mum about it. Chris tried not to let it show that things affected him. Every once in a while, he got his serious face, but he didn't try to let that face out all that often. But Chris had earned what he was going to get shortly. He had earned his place in that main event and she was so proud that he had stood by and watched others get the chance while he didn't and didn't even seem to get all that angry, sometimes he did, understandably, but other times, most of the time, he didn't.

He didn't even need that stinking Money in the Bank briefcase, he didn't need the assurance, because it was going to come true, it was going to come to fruition. Chris stared at her and wondered what she was thinking about. Even Kurt noticed how she wasn't talking all that much. Neither one wanted to bother her though, in case it was work-related.

"Chris?"

"Yeah baby?" he asked as he took his headphones off for a moment.

"Get ready because you have to go out there in a second," she told him with a great smile, a smile that lit up the drab gray of the walls backstage.

"I thought you said that I had nothing to do tonight, why the sudden change?" he asked.

"Just be ready," Stephanie said. "I have a feeling something is going to happen soon."

It did as Cena went out there and started talking about him again, changing his name to Y2Cheap, which paled in comparison to all the nicknames that Chris had come up with for people over the years. Come on, who remembers Vance McMahon? Classic. Chris now understood why Stephanie had told him to go out there. He waited until Stephanie told him to go out there and stood on the ramp, ready to go down to the ring. He was a little bit confused as to why Bischoff was telling him to stand on the ramp and not do anything. He figured that Bischoff wouldn't care if he got hurt as long as he got a few shots in on Cena, who he obviously disliked. Then he was told to wait, and he didn't know what for.

Then Bischoff sprung the news on him, just like that. He was going to get a shot at SummerSlam, a real shot. Chris tried to contain his happiness and managed to only make it into a fist pump. He thanked Bischoff profusely, although he imagined that someone backstage had a lot to do with it too. He would thank her in his own, special way, a way that she would appreciate greatly. He went on to Cena and told him just what he thought about him and his predictions for SummerSlam. Now was the time, this was his chance, and he couldn't get backstage soon enough.

Stephanie was shifting from foot to foot in anticipation of Chris coming backstage. Sometimes she never got to play the wife card because the boss card got in the way. It was a strange business/personal relationship that Chris and Stephanie had and they knew that the line had to be drawn a lot of the time, but right now, right now she was Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, just one of the wrestler's wives.

She saw him and she squealed, clapping her hands together, barely able to contain her excitement. Chris dropped his jacket and Stephanie ran to him and he picked her up easily, spinning her around. It was probably the happiest he had been at work in some time. He set her down gently and cupped her face in his hands, staring her in a special way. He loved this woman so much he could barely think when he was around her.

"I had nothing to do with it," Stephanie said. "Honestly, it was all Bischoff."

"Wow," Chris said. "Can you believe it?"

Stephanie placed her hands over his hands that were still on his face. "I'm so proud of you, you have no idea how proud I am of you."

"Thank you," he said simply, leaning in to kiss her. He put a lot of emotion behind that kiss. He was just so excited for this opportunity. The kiss lasted for a long moment until they both needed to come up for air. "I love you so much."

"I know, only because of what I can do for you."

"That too," Chris said.

"Yo, so your old lady got you the match then huh?" Cena said, as he had come backstage after giving the FU to Bischoff.

Stephanie turned to him, licking her lips, still tasting Chris on them. "And if I did?"

"I wouldn't be surprised," Cena shrugged. "You're just Mrs. Y2Cheap to me."

"Wow, I never realized you were so clever," Stephanie said, as she felt Chris wrap his arms around her from behind, leaning his chin on her shoulder. She patted his hand as he kissed her cheek. "Y2Cheap, it's got a nice ring to it you know. Mr. and Mrs. Y2Cheap. Why didn't I think of that? I guess I'm not clever like you are John."

"You think you're something, but you are just as cheap and fake as Jericho over there is. You ain't never had to earn nothing, you would never know nothing about being real. At least Jericho knows what real was once, before he done sold out."

Stephanie scoffed. "Say it, call me spoiled, it's not anything I've never heard of before. I told you last week that you shouldn't mess with me. This week you just learned what that meant. My husband WILL be facing you at SummerSlam, and you know, the last time I underestimated him, he became the WCW champion, and when the world doubted him, he beat Austin and Rocky in one night to become the first Undisputed Champion. I know Austin and Rocky, and you John Cena, are no Austin or Rocky. Now if you'll excuse me, I have REAL work to do."

Stephanie broke free from Chris and went back to work, leaving Chris there with Cena. "She's an amazing lady. I let her handle her own fights for the most part because she knows what she's doing. But I'm fiercely protective of the things I love, and she is the one thing I love most in this world. I don't care if I never see the WWE or World title belt again because I have Stephanie. Don't ever question that because that is real, and that is not cheap. You can call me cheap Cena, I don't care, but don't you ever, EVER question my love for my wife."

Chris walked over and picked up his jacket and went to sit next to Stephanie. There were lines that had to be drawn somewhere, and that line ended with Stephanie. They watched the rest of the show go by with pretty innocuous results. That is, until Edge and Lita were walking to the ring and out of nowhere, what appeared to be Matt Hardy stormed at the couple.

"Oh no," Stephanie said, grabbing her walkie-talkie. "I need security to the parking garage right now, I said I need security to the parking garage RIGHT NOW. We've got an unauthorized person in the parking garage and we need someone to get there right now."

Chris and Kurt just watched as Stephanie took her headphones off and grabbed her walkie-talkie and wandered off. They didn't know what to make of it. Matt had been fired some time ago, for what he had said and now he was here, and they didn't know how he had gotten here at all. Maybe someone he knew had let him in.

"That was crazy," Kurt said. "Did you know he was here?"

"No clue. Stephanie obviously didn't," Chris said. "I bet she went to order more security."

"Crazy," Kurt said again. "He's probably pissed. I would be too, if what happened between them happened to me."

"I'd go ask how Lita is, but you know, she's with Edge right now."

"Just crazy man."

Stephanie was indeed ordering more security. She had no idea what he was doing here. She never in her wildest dreams expected Matt Hardy to just show up like this out of the blue. But she couldn't have a security breach. She didn't know what Matt Hardy wanted, but if the safety of her employees was at stake she had to take every precaution. She had never hated Matt, but this was a necessary evil.

She watched the match pacing the floor, hoping that security would hold up. They didn't as Matt ran at the ring and went after Edge. She called for more security and eventually they got everything under control and arrested Matt. She hated to see it as they dragged him backstage and she went over to the officers and told them to stop for a moment.

"Matt, what are you doing here?" she asked.

"Get out of my face, you're a McMahon," Matt spat at her. "You're one of them, you can kiss my ass!"

"She's not a McMahon," Chris said, stepping up. "She's a Jericho now. What the hell is your problem man? She was just asking a question?"

"If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem Chris," Matt said. "You're one of them now. You're one of them and I am going to destroy Lita and Edge, the both of them, and this whole damn company."

"Take him away," Stephanie said firmly, watching as Matt was dragged away. "I don't know what that was."

"God, I can't even get a break tonight," Chris said. "Insults and insults and insults."

"Was Matt here!" Lita said frantically as she rushed backstage, running up to Stephanie and Chris.

"Yeah, he just got taken away."

Lita was pained. "Oh."

"Lita, is there something going on?" Chris asked.

"I don't know…I just don't know."


	47. Three Long Years, July 18, 2005

A/N: First off, thank you all for the reviews, they mean a lot to me, all of the ones I've gotten over the years.

Tonight marked the three year anniversary of this little story. Yes, three years, because I'm crazy. Three years ago, I wrote like a 600 word story about why Stephanie wouldn't hug Jericho, and somehow, this was the result, and thanks to all the readers who have stuck with it, you are the reason I've kept writing it. So thanks to you all. :)

And I was so happy to see some Kurt and Jericho interaction tonight. It's been a really long time, and I've always loved the interaction of those two, second only to Jericho and Stephanie.

Enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

"You can come to the meeting if you want," Stephanie said as she gathered up her papers. "I mean, you are now in the title match for SummerSlam, I think that gives you the right to at least join the scheduling meeting."

"And Cena? Does he get to join the meeting too?" Chris asked with a smirk on his face. He knew what Stephanie was going to say, but he wanted to see her try and weasel her way out of this one.

"No," she said, rather bluntly. "I don't like him and neither does Bischoff, and since we both are in agreement, we don't invite him."

"Bischoff doesn't like me either," Chris said. "The only reason he gave me this shot is because he doesn't like Cena."

"Yeah, that might be it," Stephanie said. Then added, "And you have to remember that I had nothing to do with this. It was all Bischoff's idea. The only thing I did was agree to do it. This wasn't me using my power to your advantage."

"I know baby," Chris said, kissing her forehead as he pulled her closer by the waist. "And I appreciate the fact that you didn't use advantages for me. I would hate to think of what Cena would think if you really did get me this match."

"Forget him," Stephanie said. "I hate that we have to work tonight."

"Why?" Chris asked teasingly.

"Shut up," Stephanie said. "If you're going to come to the meeting, then you better come with me because I'm having the meeting right now. We can think of things that we want to do. And it'll be all you, so it won't be me showing favoritism, it'll be all you thinking up your own ideas."

"I love how you get around silly things like that with completely screwball solutions," Chris told her, pulling her even closer. "How about we just let Bischoff take care of the whole show and we skip outta here and you let me take you out to dinner?"

"As much as I would adore that," Stephanie said, giving him a small peck on the lips, "We both have work to do and we both can't just skip out on our jobs."

"Come on, just this once, we've both been so good, I never take a night off and you only do if you're forced to, so come on, we'll just cut out of here," Chris whined. Stephanie looked at him and he was looking so pathetic that she almost did want to ditch, like she was ditching class in high school. She could imagine her and Chris having a Ferris Bueller type evening, with Bischoff chasing after them.

"I know, and someday, we will take that time off, but…"

"We'll never get time off Steph, it's inevitable, we're both going to keep working and keep saying that we're going to take time off, and it's never going to happen," Chris said, almost sulking. "That's just how we are."

"Sweetie, I'm sorry, I know that you would love it, and I'm really sorry that we can't do it, but things are under my control."

"They don't have to be."

"I want them to be," she clarified for him. She kissed him. "I love you, you're the best thing in my life, but work has to be there for me to be truly happy, you know that. You know how depressed I get when I'm not working."

"Yeah, I do," he agreed, "And I never want to see you like that again. I will do everything in my power for the rest of my life to make sure I never have to see you unhappy."

"I haven't been unhappy since January," Stephanie told him. "Now can we get to the meeting before Bischoff decides he hates you again?"

"Ok, ok," Chris said, letting Stephanie take him by the hand and drag him out into the hallway. He smiled after her, sometimes he couldn't fathom how he had ended up married to Stephanie, like really married to her. It had never been a dream of his, it had never been an aspiration, or a goal, but somehow, he had ended up here, and he wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.

They walked to Bischoff's office and for once, Chris was welcomed instead of harangued. He figured that Bischoff's hatred towards Cena was the major contributing factor and he would be right. At least they all had something in common now, something they could all use. Chris just wanted to get at Cena in any way that he could, maybe soften him up for their match in five weeks.

"I'm thinking lumberjack match," Chris said, seeing how this idea floated with Bischoff and Stephanie.

"I'm liking that, I'm really liking that," Bischoff said. "I think that we really have something here."

"Good," Stephanie said. "It's done, Cena versus someone…"

"Snitsky," Bischoff interjected.

"Ok, Snitsky," Stephanie said, writing it down deftly.

"And Chris can choose the lumberjacks," Bischoff added.

"Great," Chris said, "I'm liking this already. I'll make sure to pick people who hate Cena and wouldn't care seeing him go down."

"Excellent," Bischoff said in a decidedly evil tone. "Just make sure they understand how important this is. Cena is a subordinate employee and he should not have laid his hands on me last week. He'll pay."

"Ok, he'll pay," Chris said. "Not because I like you Eric, but because if he's willing to go after you, he's willing to go after Stephanie and that's where I draw the line."

Stephanie smiled over at Chris, even though he was unaware of her doing so. She thought back to another time, a time when Chris would be the one going after her, calling her names and everything. She patted his arm and he glanced over at her with a smile. She knew that she should be concentrating on the meeting, but tonight was a special night for her and Chris.

"I'm fine with that," Bischoff said. "As long as he loses at SummerSlam, I want him to lose at SummerSlam, and I don't care how it happens as long as it happens."

"It'll happen, I'll do everything in my power to make sure that it happens, but if you'll excuse me, I think I'm going to get started on getting the people for the match later on," Chris said. "I don't think the two of you need me anymore, right?"

"No, we don't," Stephanie said. Chris gave her a short kiss, knowing that she was working and then walked out, thinking of who to get for the match later on. He was turning the corner and saw they were filming something for the Diva Search. He watched for a moment, wondering what was going on. He tapped one of the girls on the shoulder.

"Hey, what's going on?" he asked.

"We're filming something for later," she told him. "I'm Ashley by the way."

"Nice to meet you," he said, "Chris Jericho."

"Yeah, I know, I don't think there's anyone here who doesn't know," she said with a laugh. Chris had to give her that one and laughed too. "To be honest I'm a little surprised you're even talking to me, I mean, we were kind of trying to stay out of everyone's way, because well, how we're trying to get into the company."

"Well, I'm part owner so just look at this as me checking up on the product," Chris told her jokingly. "I guess I haven't been the friendliest person to you guys."

"It's ok, you probably have work to do," she said. "I mean, we're doing this, and you have a title shot. I just have to say that I'm a pretty big fan of the product in general. I've always thought that I'd fit in."

"Well, we'll see what happens," Chris said. "I have to go, but thanks for informing me on what's going on, hey, um…I'm wondering, did Bischoff think this segment up?"

"No, I don't think so, I overheard something about Mr. McMahon."

"Oh," Chris nodded, thinking that this had to do with Vince because Stephanie had not mentioned anything about the Diva Search this evening, or what was going on. Unless she had gotten the call earlier and just hadn't told him about it. But he was leaning more towards Vince having sole decision over what was going on.

"Is that a problem?" she asked with a little bit of worry.

"No, I just didn't hear my wife mention any of this, but I should've known that Vince would go over her head, he's been doing this forever," he said, more to himself than to Ashley.

"Oh, ok," she answered, confused.

"Well, that's my father-in-law for you," Chris said, "Thanks for letting me on that, I think my wife would love to know this was going on. Um, you know Stephanie right?"

"McMahon, yeah, who doesn't!" she said.

"Yeah, if you could do me a really big favor, and I hate asking you this because I don't even know you, but I'm really busy. If you don't want to."

"Of course," she said eagerly, knowing that making friends in this business was one of the best ways to get involved and she was ready and willing to do what it took to make it into the company.

"Can you find her and tell her what the contestants are doing tonight, just to let her know."

"Oh, sure," she said, nodding. "I'll tell her as soon as I'm done."

"Great, thanks, and it was nice meeting you Ashley," Chris said graciously.

"No, it was mine."

"Hey man, what's up?" he heard Kurt say over his shoulder and then a moment later felt Kurt slap his shoulder, and then look over at Ashley. "And you are?"

"Ashley," she said with an easy smile. Kurt was a lot hotter in person, she observed.

"I'm Kurt Angle," he said, extending a hand to her. She shook it firmly and he was impressed by her.

"What's up Kurt?"

"Excuse us," Kurt said, leading Chris a few steps away. "Well, I was just wondering if you had heard from Trish, I tried calling her over the weekend and she wasn't answering."

"Oh, she was at her mom's," Chris said. "She was really upset by what happened on SmackDown last week. So now she thinks that Christian hates her and is trying to move on, and she's a mess."

"Yeah, I wanted to see how she was after Christian was practically hitting on Candice, but she wasn't answering and I was worried, at least I know that she's somewhat ok. I talked to Christian and he said that it was innocent, but he had to have known how that would make Trish feel."

"Yeah, he does, but the stupid ass won't admit it, and he won't admit that asking her was a mistake in the first place. So basically, he's a stupid ass all around," Chris sighed. "I don't want to deal with him, but he's been over to our house so much I can't avoid him."

"Tell him to go to Edge's," Kurt laughed. "That should straighten him out."

"Oh God, don't get me started on that," Chris replied. "Stephanie ordered extra security in case Matt shows up again. And then with Lita last week, I hate to think what she's thinking. I might go check up on her actually."

"That's probably a good idea," Kurt said. "So what's on tap for you tonight? All I know is that I'm doing my Kurt Angle Invitational, Stephanie cleared it for me earlier. I just need to look at the schedule to confirm what time I go on."

"Actually, I was wanting to meet with you," Chris said, clapping him on the shoulder, "How would you like to be a lumberjack tonight?"

"I think that's ok," he joked, if you get the joke that is. "So I'm guessing it's not you in the match."

"Cena and Snitsky," Chris explained. "And I get to hand-pick the lumberjacks. I figure that's a good way to one-up Cena for our match at SummerSlam. The more beat up he is, the more likely it is that I become the champion."

"Why don't you just challenge him to a Battle of the Bands or something," Kurt said, obviously kidding, but it set a thought in motion for Chris. A Battle of the Bands didn't sound like such a bad idea. Cena had his act of buffoonery and Chris had his band, and they were very used to playing in front of large crowds.

"I think you may have something there Kurt," Chris said, starting to smile as he thought about it more and more.

"Oh God, what have I done?" Kurt asked, shaking his head. "I'm going to create a monster, I know that I am."

"No, you had a great idea!" Chris said encouragingly. "I'd be so inclined to call you a genius, but I save that term for my wife."

"Yup, I've done it now," Kurt mumbled to himself. "That's the last time I suggest anything to you."

"It's not like you suggested a bikini contest," Chris said with disdain. "It's a perfectly logical solution to my little problem with Cena. I'd like to see him call me cheap now. I'm not cheap!"

"Would you like me to go tell him how much you spent on Stephanie's ring? If that doesn't convince him how not cheap you are then I don't know what will."

"He'll just say that I'm trying to flaunt myself out to everyone," Chris said, rolling his eyes. "I don't know where he got this notion that I'm cheap. I mean, I'm not cheap, I've accomplished a lot. It's not like you don't brag about the gold medal you won at the Olympics, but I don't see him getting on your case."

"Cause I'd make him tap," Kurt said with confidence.

"Whatever Kurt, whatever," Chris said, knowing that he was going to have to hear yet another Olympic medal story. At least he had braced himself this time.

Kurt's story took longer than he ever anticipated. By the time he finished telling it, Chris had nodded about five million times. The show was actually starting by the time Kurt finished and Chris had probably seen every single person who worked for the company walk by while Kurt relayed his story.

"Yeah, I got it, it wasn't great food," Chris said, "Kurt, the freaking show just started and you're still talking, do you have any idea how long you've been talking?"

"Oops, I guess time got away from me," Kurt said, chuckling. "But it was just so much fun."

"Yeah, I got that, but I've got to go get more guys for the match later," Chris informed him. "You can actually help me by getting some guys."

"Ok, I can do that, I do have a match a little bit later, but I can definitely find some guys," Kurt said. "It's what best friends are for."

"Yes, which is why I need my best friend to stop talking about his gold medal and let me go and work."

"Geez, sorry, you try to tell a nice story and all you get is grief," Kurt grumbled to himself as he walked off.

Chris was finally on his own again and was walking around, seeing if there were any potential men for his match later on. He happened upon Lita, who was shockingly enough, on her own. After what happened last week, she had to be shaken up, and if he knew Edge, or at least the recent incarnation of Edge, then he knew that he was being of no help to her. He walked up and sat down next to her.

"Hey," he said softly.

"Hey Chris," she said and her tone was also soft and even a little bit sad.

"How are you?"

"I've been better," she admitted. "The last person I expected to see last week was Matt. I mean, he actually came and crashed the show just to get back at me, that's how much he hates me."

"I don't think he hates you Lita," Chris said. "I just think he's hurt and he doesn't know how to express it."

"He hates me," Lita said again. "He should, he should hate me."

"Lita…"

"No, it's fine, I mean…it's just good to see him again you know. I missed him," she said and it was the most honest thing Chris had ever heard her say. "I get to see him and that's something. I betrayed him and he should hate me."

"Look Lita, if you ever want to…get away from what you have right now, just let someone know. You don't have to put up with Edge's crap."

Lita scoffed. If only that could be true. She wanted more than anything to be washed away from all her sins. She wished it was years ago and she and Matt were happy and in love. But those days were long gone and instead it was like she was stuck in purgatory. This was what it was; it was purgatory, her suffering. She deserved to suffer.

"I'll see you later Chris," Lita said, standing up. She didn't need a hero, and she didn't need Chris or anyone else. She just had to deal with this herself. At least this way she got to see Matt. At least she got to see the man who had loved her and who she still loved…

Chris sighed. Why did he get himself into these messes? It was his damn hero complex, targeting a damsel-in-distress and helping her in whatever way possible. Hell, the hero complex was the reason why he had a gold ring on his finger at the moment and a person who shared his last name somewhere around. That brought his mind back to his wife, and he wondered what she was up to as he went around looking for lumberjacks.

Stephanie was doing…what else! Working. She was distracted though because she really just wanted to be around Chris right now. She smiled as she thought about him, and what they had been through. It almost distracted her from her job, but not by that much. Maybe she would let Bischoff handle the evening and she would hang back. Tonight was special…or at least it was special until Cena came sauntering up to her.

"Yes?"

"A lumberjack match," Cena said with a chortle.

"That's right."

"You know, somehow, I thought I might expect better from you, but I guess that was just me wishin' right?"

"All this after you call me unreal last week?" Stephanie asked. "Makes a whole world of sense there John."

"You ever think that Chris ain't with you because he loves you?" Cena asked.

"What kind of question is that?"

"Seems to me that Triple H was with you for what you could do for him, how do you know that Chris ain't the same way?"

"Because they're two different people," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, so you say, but seems to me they ain't that different. Asses, the both of them. You ain't sitting pretty there either, lying about being pregnant."

"You know nothing about that," Stephanie told him.

"I know you lied to get what you wanted," Cena responded. "And Jericho was just willing to use you to keep his belt, I would think he's just doing the same thing here."

"Shut up," she replied, getting mad now. She knew he was doing this deliberately, but it was still getting on his nerves.

"I'd love it if he was using you. How do you know he ain't off somewhere cheating on you?"

"Because I know Chris."

"Yeah, and I saw him checking out some of those Diva Search girls earlier," Cena laughed. "Looked to be pretty into them. Don't blame him though, some of those chicks are…well, I'll spare you the details, but they's easy on the eyes."

Stephanie knew that Chris had been at least talking to the girls in the Diva Search. One of them had come to her to relay a message from Chris. So he was around them, sure, but checking them out? That wasn't Chris's style. Chris wouldn't go and ogle some girls, not while she was around. He just wouldn't do that…right?

"Got some wheels turning didn't I?" Cena said smugly, like he knew that he was winning at something. He was playing a dangerous game here.

"No," she said. "I trust my husband."

"That's good, not too sure if he trusts you though. If you act anything like the whore that you were when you were with your ex. Man, I saw some of the crap that you did, firing Mick Foley, hurting your father, slapping your mother…old habits die hard don't they? How long until you get tired of Chris and then lie to him, huh Stephanie? You going to cheat on him like you probably did to Triple H? You still going to be a filthy, dirty, disgusting, brutal, trash-bag ho?"

Stephanie couldn't take anymore and took her headphones off and walked off without saying a word and she could hear Cena's laughter ringing in her ears. She shouldn't let him get to her and maybe she was just being emotional right now, but what he said, it conjured up bad memories. It brought her back to lonely nights waiting for Hunter, birthdays that nobody remembered, a gaping hole in her heart that never seemed to get filled.

She had been a wretched person, she knew that, but she thought that she had atoned for those sins, that she had moved on. People didn't really hate her now, and they didn't bring up her past indiscretions. But they still happened, and she had still been that horrible person. But she had crawled her way back up, from nothing, from her father hating her. She hadn't realized she had tears rolling from her eyes.

"No, Kurt, stop, leave me alone!" Chris said, running to get away from Kurt after his match with Matt Martel or Striker or whatever his name was. "I don't want to hear it!"

"But the medal, see how it--"

"No, I don't want to see!" Chris yelled. "I thought I told you to go find guys."

"I did," Kurt said. "Come on!"

"No," Chris said, trying to get away again, but once again, Kurt was catching up to him. Wasn't he the slightest bit tired after his match?

"Can you believe that guy thought he'd get my medal?" Kurt said. "With that chokehold? I mean, come on, I knew that I was going to win, I'm not giving this baby up!"

"Ten bucks that he shows up next week," Chris said, pulling out his wallet and grabbing a ten dollar bill.

"What, you don't have any of the hundreds of thousands of dollars that you carry around with you Mr. Moneybags?"

"I think you think that because I'm in the McMahon family that I'm loaded, I currently have like thirty dollars in my wallet. If you want the loaded member of this family, go see my wife," Chris said. "Come on, ten bucks?"

"Fine, I'll take that bet, I'd show you my money, but there isn't exactly anywhere to put it when I'm in my wrestling gear…hey, how did YOU get out of a match tonight?"

"July 18th," Chris said simply, and smirked at Kurt, who didn't immediately understand.

"Oh, I got it now."

"Yeah, so the wife didn't put me in a match, probably cause she doesn't want me to be tired…if you know what I mean."

"I do, and I hate that I do."

"Hey, I should go talk to Bischoff about the Battle of the Bands thing!" Chris said, sounding excited.

"No," Kurt groaned. "I thought you had gotten over that stupid idea."

"It's not stupid, you're awesome for thinking it up!" Chris said. "I'll of course say that it was my idea, because I can't have people thinking I'm stupid, that is if you don't mind me taking credit for your idea."

"No, go ahead, take it, I'd be glad to let you have it," Kurt said eagerly.

Chris and Kurt walked slowly towards Bischoff's office. Kurt waited outside for Chris as he walked inside. He saw Chavo, or Kerwin there and he was polite to him, but inside thought he was a weirdo for changing his name and image; there was nothing wrong with him in the first place. But who was Chris to judge really? It wasn't like he cared.

He talked to Bischoff about later that evening, and then about the idea that Chris had stolen from Kurt. Bischoff thought it was a great idea, and he had to hand it to Kurt, he did have a good idea. And next week, Chris could prove that not only was he a better wrestler than Cena, but a better musical talent too. It was all coming together.

He met up with Kurt outside again and they walked towards his dressing room to hang out. What greeted them was a surprise to both men. Stephanie was sitting on the couch, her hands covering her face. When they walked in, Stephanie tried to hastily wipe away the tears from her face, but it was too late. Chris rushed to her side while Kurt closed the door.

"Steph, what's wrong? Is everything alright?" Chris asked frantically.

"Yeah, I just…I'm fine," Stephanie said, trying to sound bright, but failing.

"No, it's not, you're not fine, tell me what happened," Chris said, taking her into his arms. His strong arms that she loved. Chris turned to Kurt, "Kurt, can we have a minute?"

"Sure, I'll just go…um…round up the guys we asked and you can…give them a motivational speech or something."

"Great…you're full of good ideas tonight," Chris said, thinking that was actually a good idea, but then remembered he had his crying wife in his arms. "Thanks."

Kurt left then and Chris just sat there, stroking Stephanie's hair, calming her down. She cuddled herself closer into his chest as he whispered words of nonsense into her ear. He didn't know why she was acting like this. Nothing had upset her today or this weekend, or over the past week. Maybe she had had a fight with her father over the Diva Search or something. Maybe he shouldn't have had her told what was going on.

"Is this about the show?"

"No," Stephanie answered.

"Then what's it about?"

"Nothing."

"Baby, you can tell me."

"It's just John Cena…I mean, he was talking about how I used to be, and I just remembered slapping my mother and I was just so horrible back then and I just was thinking about that," she told him. "I mean, I wasn't a slut, like you thought, but I was not innocent, if anything, I was worse than Hunter."

"There's no way you were worse than Trips. YOU never kidnapped someone and then married them under false pretenses."

"I lied about a pregnancy," she pointed out.

"But you weren't breaking any laws," Chris counter-pointed.

"I guess."

"So Cena was spouting this off to you?"

"Yeah."

"That guy is so dead," Chris said through gritted teeth. "I told him that it was one thing to go after me, but he went after you, and man, I'm going to kick his ass!"

"Chris, please don't."

"Stephanie, I can't take this anymore. He cannot treat you like this, I won't stand for it."

Chris didn't stand for it. When he gave his motivational speech to the guys who were going to be outside the ring that evening, he was filled with vigor and energy, firing up the guys for the match later on. He knew that they could get the job done and he was counting on them to get the job done for him…and for Stephanie.

He stood next to Kurt later on that evening, waiting for Cena and Snitsky to come out. Snitsky came out and Chris gave him a few words of encouragement before going back down to stand next to Kurt. He stood there for a moment before stepping closer to Kurt so that he could hear him over the music.

"So what was up with Stephanie?" Kurt asked.

"Cena was up with Stephanie, that ass was telling her stuff about how she was a whore and a bad person and how I was using her," Chris said, his anger mounting.

"He what!" Kurt asked, now incensed. "Oh that son of a bitch, I'm going to kick his sorry ass."

"Yeah, that's exactly what he's going to get for insulting my wife like that," Chris said and before he knew it the match started.

Chris was like a man possessed, and he had never been this way before, not even with Hunter. With Hunter, it was like, well, he was hurt over Stephanie, and he said things because he was jealous. But with Cena, he didn't even know Stephanie and he was just making guesses according to what he thought he knew and Chris was through with tolerating it.

Every time he hit Cena it was for Stephanie. Every time he threw Cena into the steps, it was for Stephanie. Kurt got in some good shots too, maybe more than anyone else, because he was mad too, not as mad as Chris was, but he was definitely mad, he thought, as he drove his knee into Cena. Chris was over the edge though, his face red as he yelled at everyone, taking off his shirt at one point, just getting angry.

He was mad that some of the other guys had come down to the ring, Shelton and Big Show and the like, and he tried to hide. This didn't involve them and yet, here they were. If they only knew what a bastard Cena was being towards him and Stephanie, if they only knew, but they didn't know, and Stephanie would not want him to tell. But he knew it and he was pissed as hell. He grabbed a chair, ready to take Cena out, but unfortunately, Cena got to him first and he got thrown out of the ring.

He didn't calm down after the match and he didn't calm down backstage or on the ride to the hotel. He wasn't calm as they walked upstairs, and they walked inside and Stephanie walked over to the table, sitting down with a box in front of her. Chris looked at it, wondering what was inside. He sat down across from her.

"What's that Stephanie?" Chris asked.

"Well, they say that on your first year anniversary, you're supposed to eat the top of your wedding cake, well, it's our three year anniversary of us, and I thought that we could celebrate with a little dessert, it's not cake, but it's almost as good."

Stephanie took the box and opened it revealing a pie inside. Chris eyed it. "Looks good, and I could go for something sweet right now."

"Get us some forks?" Stephanie asked. Chris was going to grab some plastic forks that they had snagged from catering earlier that evening. When he turned around, Stephanie was standing up and he smiled at her. "Hey Chris."

"Yeah baby?"

"You want revenge on Cena right?"

"After what he said to you, hell yeah!" Chris said, starting to get mad again. He had tried to calm down because it was his and Stephanie's anniversary and he didn't want to be mad on their anniversary.

"Yeah, I mean, when someone does something to you and you don't get to do it back, it kind of makes you mad?"

"Yeah, it does," Chris said. He started walking over as Stephanie took the pie out of the box.

"Yeah, well there's one person I've wanted to get revenge on for a long time," Stephanie said.

"Ok, who is it, I'll be sure to think of something to get at them."

"Well Chris, we can't have our wedding cake, but you can still have…the pie."

And with that, Stephanie threw the pie in Chris's face, landing it squarely on his face. She giggled as Chris's mouth opened wide, agape at what she had done. Stephanie laughed and pointed at him as he rubbed the pie cream off of his face in disbelief. He looked at her for a long second.

"I can't believe you did that!"

"Well, I never did get revenge," she said, her tone flirty.

"Come here," Chris said, pulling her against him. She squealed as she fell against him, licking some of the pie off of his jaw. "So Mrs. Jericho, are we finally even, or does this just mean I can dump a bucket of water on you?"

"We're even," she answered. She went in for a kiss, not caring that she had pie filling all over her face now. "Happy anniversary Chris."

"Happy anniversary Stephy."


	48. I Wanna See Fozzy Play, July 25, 2005

A/N: Gah, has it really been 3 years since the last Jericho/Stephanie on-screen interaction? Seems it has, and that's really, really sad. Man, I wish Stephanie would come back on Raw...

* * *

"One step forward, five hundred steps back."

"That doesn't even make sense Trish," Stephanie said as she grabbed the blonde's hand. "Come on, it's not like Christian is even here."

"What if he is though?" Trish asked. "What if he's here and he's lurking around? What if your husband brought him here, thinking that it would be safe from me, and then here I am? What if I see him and I get angry with him?"

"What if you stopped asking questions?" Stephanie teased. "Trish, he's not here, I swear to God, he's not here. I think he's still smarting from his loss last night to Booker T. He's not going to be here tonight. And I know for a fact that he's not with Chris because I talked to Chris, and I flew here with Chris, and there was no discussion of Christian whatsoever."

"Ok, well, I guess as long as you're sure."

"I'm sure!" Stephanie insisted. She pulled Trish inside the building where she had been standing for the past few minutes.

The show was starting soon, but Trish's plane had just gotten in and Stephanie had gone to pick her up. This was Trish's first time backstage at Raw after her whole saga with Christian. They had not spoken in the interim, and she wasn't planning to talk to him. Seemed he was moving on just fine, seeing him hit on Candice Michelle had done nothing for her mood, and if Christian wanted to go about hitting on other women, well she would just cut him out of her life.

"I don't want to see Christian," Trish blurted out.

Stephanie looked at her and gave her a sarcastic look, "You don't say, I NEVER would've guessed that on my own."

"Steph, you just don't get how hard it was to see him hit on her. He declares that he wants to marry me and then he turns around and hits on this woman who looks nothing like me, as if to taunt me or something."

"Trish, forget about it, he was probably hurting."

"Don't try to cover for him," Trish said firmly. "He made his bed and now he has to lie in it. I mean, there's nothing stopping him from doing that. I'm certainly not high on his list right now."

"I'm not defending him, but he DID propose to you," Stephanie pointed out to her. While it may not have been the most romantic proposal, it was nonetheless a proposal, and Christian had to have loved her enough to propose.

"Stephanie, what if you were arguing with Chris, and he had suddenly yelled out, 'Marry me'? I mean, would you suddenly fall into his arms and declare your love for him?"

"We're already married so it doesn't apply to us," Stephanie said, avoiding the question altogether with a smirk as they arrived at her office and Chris's locker room. Stephanie opened the door and saw Chris and Kurt in what looked to be a heated discussion. "Hey boys, look who I brought."

Kurt and Chris looked over and both smiled standing up. Chris went over and gave Trish a hug, letting Kurt follow him. Kurt hadn't seen Trish in a while so he picked her up as he hugged her as Trish giggled and hugged him back, begging him to put her down. He did reluctantly and she smiled up at him like a child.

"I've missed you guys," Trish said, letting Kurt wrap his arms around her.

"We've missed you too," Chris said. "It's nice to have you back, how are you holding up?"

"I think I'm going to be ok, physically and emotionally," Trish replied. "At least the physically part, I can't say much for the emotionally part, but hopefully that part heals too."

"That's why you're with us tonight," Kurt told her. "We're here to make sure that you don't think about any blonde Canadian men."

"Well, you can think about me," Chris said, as he went and wrapped his arms around his wife. "And how is my lovely wife? Was the drive to the airport ok?"

"It was fine, no traffic," Stephanie said, kissing his cheek. "How are you though? Is your voice ready for its performance tonight?"

"I think so," Chris said, a twinge of bitterness in his voice for some reason. Stephanie turned her head to look at his profile and saw that his jaw was set, which usually meant that he was upset about something. She didn't press the issue at the moment because Kurt and Trish were here, but she would definitely bring it up later. She made a mental note of it.

"Good, good," Stephanie said. "But you know, you shouldn't put too much stock in this entire thing. I mean, people have different tastes and what not. Not to mention this has no bearing on your wrestling skills."

"I know," Chris answered, granting her a kiss to the temple. "But I'm not going to think about it for the moment, for this very moment. I just want to focus on you."

"Focus on me? Why would I need to be focused on?" Stephanie asked, flirting with him. Kurt and Trish looked at each other as they knew what would be coming soon. Chris and Stephanie would make googly eyes at each other and then they would probably start making out or worse.

They snuck out of the room before anything could get more heated between Chris and Stephanie as it was usually wont to happen and Kurt kept a protective arm around Trish as they walked out of the room. She smiled gratefully up at him. She was glad that Chris and Stephanie were so happy, but it reminded her too much of her and Christian.

"So how are you really doing?" Kurt asked and Trish didn't know what it was about Kurt that made someone want to spill their guts to him, but he just had that sincere look on his face. He always had that sincere look on his face.

"I'm doing ok," Trish answered. "I mean, obviously I could be better, but I'm not out of a job, so it could be worse."

"I think Christian is stupid, giving up someone like you," Kurt said. "If I had someone as beautiful as you in my life, I don't think that I'd let you go at all, or hit on anyone else. Especially not someone like Candice Michelle. She's got nothing on you."

"You really think so Kurt?"

"I absolutely think so."

"You're a good friend, I'm glad that when I come back from this injury that you'll be here," Trish said genuinely glad. "I know that Stephanie is ecstatic to have you here, and I know that you and Chris are the best of friends, but I do value our friendship, I always have."

"That's really nice of you to say Trish. I value our friendship too, and you know, I always tell Stephanie that she can always come to me when she needs someone to talk to, but the offer goes for you too."

Trish nodded and felt like she needn't say anymore. She was just glad that she didn't have to be alone. When she was alone, she thought of Christian and when she thought of Christian she got sad. She hated where this had ended up, but it was his fault, not hers. He was the one who blurted out those stupid, stupid words that she didn't want to hear.

"I just hate to think that he's hitting on other girls," Trish finally broke the silence of the moment. "I mean, it's like I meant nothing to him."

"You know, they always say that you should fight fire with fire," Kurt said.

"What do you mean? Like I should find some guy and hit on him?" Trish asked.

"I don't know, do what you want to do, but you don't have to take this sitting down is all I'm saying," Kurt said.

"I think I like your idea," Trish told him. "I think I like it a lot."

"I'm full of good ideas. So walk me to the gorilla, I have a match tonight."

"Against? Oh wait, it's your Kurt Angle Invitational right?" Trish asked.

"You would be correct," Kurt said. "Let's see what poor sap is trying to go against me tonight. Whoever it is they're going to get their sorry ass kicked."

"I wish it was Christian," Trish said ruefully. "Maybe the next time we're in Toronto."

"Ok, next time we're in Toronto I'll make sure that Christian is in the Invitational just so I can kick his ass for you," Kurt told her as they arrived at the gorilla.

He was set for his match and he went out there with his challenge. He was surprised and shocked to hear Christy Hemme's music blast over the loudspeaker. Kurt's first thought, a rather silly and erroneous one, was that she had a crush on him and wanted to see him wrestle, or better yet, wrestle with him. Yes, Kurt Angle was just as naïve as he always was, but isn't that what makes him such a good man? Or maybe that's just what some people think…

Anyways, it turned out that Christy was not out there for him, and Kurt was slightly disappointed, because Christy was looking pretty good this evening and he wouldn't have minded if she did want him. But no, it was Eugene, yes that Eugene and Kurt thought this was going to be easy as pie. He would go out there, beat Eugene and keep his streak alive. Although he did give Eugene some credit, he did deserve a little respect.

What Kurt was not expecting was to lose. No, he was not expecting that at all. He was Kurt Angle for God's sakes. Did anyone know what that meant? He was an Olympic champion, a REAL, bonafide Olympic champion and he had just lost to that…simpleton! He couldn't even fathom how he had lost. He was Kurt Angle, he had made more than half this roster tap. He had beaten the legend Shawn Michaels, he had beaten The Rock, he had beaten Steve, beer-swilling, truster of no-one, swearing, Austin, and he had lost to EUGENE! It hardly seemed fair, it wasn't fair, it wasn't right and Kurt was mad as hell.

He went backstage and to the shock of Trish, who was standing right there, and Chris and Stephanie who were sitting at Stephanie table, Kurt picked up a folding chair and threw it across the floor, not bothering to watch it slide across the floor before knocking a thankfully empty table over. He was on a rampage now and he would've have been able to stop if he wanted to. He couldn't stop he was too mad, he was too upset, he just wanted to hurt someone, something, anything. He was about to knock over a monitor when someone's hand got in the way.

He turned to Chris and grit his teeth, "Let go of me Chris."

"No," Chris said. "Look man, it's not worth it."

"It IS worth it!" Kurt insisted.

"No man, it's not," Chris said. "What is this going to solve?"

"It'll make me feel better."

"Yeah, but then what? Look, just calm down and you'll get that medal back, trust me. You're Kurt Angle. Say it with me now…I'm Kurt Angle."

"I'm Kurt Angle," Kurt said, gaining a little confidence back now that he was starting to sober up. The adrenaline was starting to coast back down and he was starting to come to his senses more. Chris nodded along with his words.

"Yeah, and you're one of the best in the business."

"Yeah, I AM one of the best in the business," Kurt agreed. "I'm definitely one of the best on Raw. That was a fluke, that was a goddamn fluke and I WILL win it back."

"Of course you will," Chris assured him. "Now let's get away from the expensive equipment that is coming from my family's pocket and go calm down somewhere, shall we?"

"Where?" Kurt asked dumbly as Chris started to lead him away.

"I'll have some production person get us a couple of beers. I don't have any matches tonight, so I don't have to worry about knocking a couple back. We'll just hang out and drink a few beers."

"Ok, that sounds good," Kurt said, nodding his head as Chris led him away. He glanced back at Stephanie and smiled. She smiled back, knowing that Chris would take care of him right now. And maybe it would help whatever was bothering him too.

Stephanie turned to Trish, who was still standing there. "Boys."

"Yeah, can't live with them, and yet you want to so desperately," Trish said, coming to sit down next to Stephanie. "So Kurt had an interesting idea earlier."

"This should be good."

"He said that I should make Christian jealous," Trish told Stephanie. "Like I should pull on him what he pulled on me. You know, go hit on someone or something."

"And is that something that you want to do?" Stephanie asked.

"I think it is, it would serve Christian right if he knew that I was hitting on other men. You know, I could probably do it somewhere near Edge, and then Edge would be sure to tell Christian."

"Or if you want to go for the extreme, then you should just go after Edge," Stephanie joked.

"Come on Steph, I'm not that desperate, I'll just leave that to Lita," Trish said with a little snark in her voice. It always made her feel better when she was making fun of Lita. At least she knew that throughout the hardship in her life, she could always take comfort in the misfortune of Lita.

"Speaking of Edge though, he's probably going to get killed tonight in that stretcher match. And then with the whole Matt debacle. That boy is good though, I just think that security is lax with him because he did used to work here."

"Yeah, so maybe I should go after Matt," Trish joked.

"I think he has enough problems of his own. Why don't you go after Cena?"

"Cena?"

"Well, he is the champ…for now, until my husband shows him who's boss. And Christian just recently had a little bit of a rivalry going on with him so it might be effective."

"That's true, I just never pictured myself with someone like John."

"Well it's not like you're going to actually be getting with him," Stephanie said to her. "It'll just be a ploy to make Christian as jealous as possible and show him how stupid it was for him to even be going after other girls when he has you."

"Yeah…do you really think he'll hate it?"

"This is Christian we're talking about, of course he's going to hate it."

"Ok, I'll do it," Trish replied with a world of resolve in her voice. "I'm going to go hit on Cena. I just have to find him now…do you know where he is?"

"I wish he were at the bottom of a tall cliff," Stephanie said with malice. "But that's because I think he's an asshole who should mind his own damn business and not drag my husband's name through the mud."

"So…you don't know where he is?"

"I've been here all night Trish, I have no clue unless he's right in front of me."

"Ok, well I'll find him."

Trish got up and decided that she would go look for Cena. The sooner she got this over with, the sooner Christian would find out and the sooner he would be in agony. That's what he deserved for all of this, agony. He was the one that twisted her stomach in knots and didn't let go, it was all his fault. Why did he have to say such foolish things to her, why, why, why?

She saw Cena walking near Bischoff's office and she smiled as she walked over. Cena looked at her, a little leery, but she expected that. It was no secret that she was friends with Chris and Stephanie, and judging by the past few shows, Cena and Chris weren't the best of friends at the moment. But she had no concern about Chris or Stephanie right now, they were happy and in love, and they didn't need her to think about them, this was about her and Christian.

"Hi John."

"Trish Stratus."

"Yup," she said. "I don't believe we've been formally introduced."

"I think we have," he said, but shook her hand anyways. "If you have a little message from your friends…"

"No, no message, I wanted to talk to you actually," Trish told him. "I'm impressed by you, despite what Chris says, I have to say that you are very, very impressive, in the ring, out of the ring. The crowd loves you."

"They do…"

"I just admired it was all, and I couldn't help but be a little bit…attracted to you," Trish said, having to practically gag out those word. Damn Christian and his weird hold on her, she just needed to stop thinking about him.

"Ok, I know this is a set-up, you and Chris and that little bitch of his are setting me up."

"I'm not setting you," Trish insisted, but then her voice turned cold, "but if you insult my best friend any longer, I won't be responsible for the kick you get to your head."

"Geez, fine, whatever, but she's still a…" Cena caught the look in her eye and cut himself off. Trish was a woman of her word and she would kick Cena without any hesitation if he insulted her best friend again. "Ok, but how do I know this ain't a set-up? I mean, Jericho and I…we're going at it pretty hard."

"Eww, that sounds wrong," Trish said in disgust. "And you don't know this isn't a set-up, but my word is good for it, and I just wanted to talk to you because I…admire you."

"Aren't you with Christian?"

"WAS with Christian…apparently," she muttered the last part. "But he's obviously looking into other women, so I should look into other men."

"I don't trust you, so I'm out," Cena said.

Trish sighed in frustration as Cena walked off. Well that was a bust, but she should've figured it would be. Cena wasn't going to trust her as long as she was friends with his new mortal enemies. And truthfully she couldn't stand the fact that he thought Chris and Stephanie were bad people. Chris and Stephanie helped her find Christian in the first place, and they helped her through tough times, and they were good people, misunderstood, sure, but they were good people.

Those two good people were back to sitting at Stephanie's table. Chris had left Kurt to sulk by himself, per Kurt's request, and had come back to his wife. Chris was sitting on a simple folding chair while Stephanie was perched precariously in his lap, leaning forward her forearms on the table in front of her, her headphones on and a pencil in her thumb and forefinger, flinging back and forth. Chris had his arms wrapped around her waist.

Trish happened upon this scene, plopping herself down next to them, since Stephanie was working, Chris glanced over at Trish, laying his head against Stephanie's back. Trish had a look of dismay on her face before giving a sad smile to Chris. He took one of his hands off of Stephanie's waist and patted Trish's leg companionably.

"What's up?"

"I just got rejected."

"For what a movie part?" Chris joked.

"No, by a guy."

"Um…aren't you with a guy?"

"Kurt thinks I should make Christian jealous and Stephanie suggested I hit on Cena."

"She did!" Chris exclaimed taking his head off of Stephanie's back. He reached forward and swiftly took Stephanie's headphones off. Stephanie looked irritated as she shifted her body to the side to look at him.

"What are you doing? I'm working!"

"You told Trish to hit on Cena?" he asked in disbelief, annoyed disbelief.

"Yeah, so?" Stephanie said. "It's not like there are gaggles of single men around here for her to choose from. Would you rather I had suggested Kane or something?"

"Cena!"

"I know you hate him, I hate him too, but the choice was obvious," Stephanie said. "Now can I get back to work?"

"I don't even know you," Chris said in disgust, as Stephanie gave him a dirty look and put her headphones back on. Chris gave her a small swat on the thigh and she returned the favor by flipping him off.

"I didn't meant to start a fight," Trish said remorsefully.

"No, don't worry about it, this is nothing," Chris said. "I'll get over it. It's just…with all these people, all I've been hearing all day is how Cena is going to win this Battle of the Bands, and how much I suck, and how I'm going to lose and Cena this and Cena that, and it's just, I hate it, I hate him and I want the title back."

"I'm sorry," Trish told him, sympathetic to his plight. She knew what it was like to have someone be a thorn in your side. She thought of Lita at this moment, if ever there was a thorn in her side, it was Lita all the way.

"I'm trying not to think about it, which is why I'm with this woman right here," Chris said, leaning his head on Stephanie's back again.

"God, I wish I had what you two have," Trish said with a deep sigh. "I mean, I want someone who…just being there is a comfort, you know?"

"Hell yeah I do. If I didn't have Stephanie, I would be going crazy right now, I'd be punching things, and everything. Having Stephanie around calms me down. When she's not around, I'm like off the walls, she grounds me. And I'm really glad she can't hear me right now."

Trish laughed and was going to respond to what he said when Maria wandered over. Chris rolled his eyes at Trish, unbeknownst to Maria, who was standing there for a minute, as if trying to think of what she wanted to say. Stephanie glanced up at her and thinking that she wanted to talk to her, she took off her headphones.

"May I help you?" Stephanie asked politely.

"Oh yeah, I wanted to talk to Chris Jericho, is he available?" Maria asked.

"He's right here," Stephanie said, narrowing her eyes at Maria. "Chris, you have someone who wants to talk to you."

"What is it Maria?"

"Hi!" she said brightly. "I was wondering if you wanted to do an interview with me like…now."

"Um…ok," Chris said, lifting Stephanie off of his as she leaned forward so he could get up. He kissed her briefly before following Maria and waiting for her to introduce him.

Without Stephanie around, he was not so calm anymore and Maria was such a ditz. Now normally he would at least try to be nice, but there was no room for being nice with this airhead. Maria was quite possibly the worst interviewer in the world and he would rather talk to a stick than talk to her. They would probably have the same IQ anyways. But what he said rang true, it was like the fans had already decided.

He stormed off after his "interview" with Maria. He paced in front of Stephanie for a minute or two before she glanced and Trish and sighed. She slowly took off her headphones and looked at Chris. He stopped and looked at her for a second, while she raised her eyebrows.

"I cannot stand him!" Chris said angrily.

"Ok," Stephanie nodded.

"I hate him so much. I'm so much better, WE'RE so much better, Fozzy is the best. Fozzy can play circles around him!" Chris said, tapping his foot. "I can't stop thinking about that, I can't stop thinking about Cena and how these people are already so against me and my band."

"I'm pregnant," Stephanie said.

Chris's jaw dropped and he stared at Stephanie for a long moment, not even noticing that Cena had walked by him, glanced at him, glared at him, and then walked out to go perform. No, Chris had not noticed any of that, even though it took more than a minute to happen. He stood there, like a statue, like a slab of stone.

"WHAT!"

Stephanie shrugged, "Got your mind off of Cena didn't it?"

"What, wait, huh? You're not pregnant?"

"No," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes, "I just didn't know how else to get you to shut up and realize that you were talking nonsense to yourself."

"So you're not having a baby?"

"No, I'm not," Stephanie said. "I thought we discussed the fact that I would tell you if I even suspected I was."

"Do you suspect it?"

"Nope," Stephanie said. "I couldn't ask you to marry me, we're already married. Look, if you don't want to do your band thing, don't, leave Cena in the dark, you can do whatever the hell you want around here, you own the joint."

"Hey, you're right," Chris said. "I DO own part of this company. I CAN do whatever I want to do!"

"That's right," Stephanie nodded. "Whatever you want to do…"

Chris did whatever he wanted to do by calling off the Battle of the Bands. He didn't want to deal with this ungrateful crowd or the ungrateful masses watching at home, well they weren't all ungrateful, because there were many people who were waiting very anxiously to see Fozzy perform on Raw and would have much rather watched that than Cena, but that's another topic for another day.

But he was calling the shots around here, he was the one with all the power. Not that he had used Stephanie for the power, but…well, it didn't hurt to have it. He would never use Stephanie for the power, but it was nice to have it there. It was nice to look at the name of the owners of the company and realize they were his family. A nice comforting thought that was.

"How about Carlito?" Stephanie asked Trish after seeing Carlito speaking with Bischoff. Chris had gone off to find Bischoff since Bischoff had sent a message through Stephanie to give to Chris, she figured it was about this whole referee thing.

"What about Carlito?" Trish asked.

"He's kind of cute," Stephanie shrugged.

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah, I mean, in spite of the hair, he's really good-looking."

"Well, I guess if I don't look at the hair, then yeah, he is kind of good-looking, and he seems kind of nice, as long as you're cool, which I am," Trish added for good measure. "Do you think that he would want to go out with me?"

"Hell yeah," Stephanie said emphatically. "What man wouldn't, besides mine of course."

"Of course," Trish conceded. "Ok, I'll see what I can do with Carlito."

"Cool," Stephanie said, not even realizing that she was making a joke. Trish laughed and Stephanie didn't get it, but Trish left before she could explain it to her.

Trish once again sought the area near Bischoff's office and found that Carlito was just hanging out, eating an apple. At least he would keep the doctor away (lame, old joke, you bet your ass it is!). Trish giggled to herself as she walked up to the man and he looked over at her, chewing silently before swallowing.

"Hi," Trish said, "I'm Trish Stratus."

"Call me Carlito."

"Nice to meet you," Trish said.

"You too."

"I couldn't help but see that you're getting a big match tonight, that's really great, I'll be rooting for you."

"Cool."

"Yeah, cool, so are you doing anything after the show?" Trish asked and she sounded so dumb, but it had been a while since she had done this. She had had Christian and they were dating and they didn't need to sound so…dumb.

"No, I'm not. Are you asking me out?" Carlito had a way of being blunt.

"Might be," Trish had a way of avoiding the question.

"If you are, that's cool, I'll go out with you."

"Ok, can I meet you at your locker room at 11:20?"

"Yeah, meet with me then, that's cool."

"Cool, definitely cool." Trish didn't know what else to say so she just kind of walked away. That was awkward, but kind of…nice. Carlito seemed like a decent enough guy. He was single, and he was one of the better-looking guys on the roster. At least she hadn't ended up with like Viscera or something. Now THAT would've looked desperate.

"Do my ears deceive me or did you just ask out Carlito?" Chris said as he had just exited Bischoff's office in time to hear the tail end of that short conversation.

"You did," Trish said cheekily, giving him a little pose. "I'm showing Christian that he's not the only one who can go around and talk to other people."

"And Carlito…interesting choice."

"Steph suggested it."

"Jesus Christ, I swear, my wife does not know when to quit," Chris said, throwing his eyes heavenward. "I'm sorry she's doing this."

"Kurt suggested it in the first place, Steph was just helping with the guy aspect."

"I have horrible friends and a horrible wife," Chris lamented, though Trish knew that he was kidding. She wrapped her arm around his waist.

"Nah, so you're the referee tonight huh?"

"It would seem so," Chris told her. "I'll be fair."

"Yeah, right, we both know you're going to be very unfair."

Trish was right, Chris was unfair, although he didn't show his cards until the very last moment. No, he had tried to appear the nice guy, but when the time came, he showed his hand and then beat Cena down like he had been wanting to since last week. Last week he had relied on others to do the job and they had failed so he took it upon himself to mess Cena up before their match.

He beat him up and he went to look at that WWE title. It was beautiful, though a little bit on the messed up side by Cena. He had never held the other WWE title, the one that had been instated after the brands had split. He had held the old one. He wanted it again, he could picture his name on the little plaque, letting it rest over his shoulder. He was like a man possessed for sure. He was going to stop at nothing to get that title, nothing would get in his way…nothing.

He was self-satisfied when he walked backstage and Stephanie was just finishing up her duties as she pulled her headphones off for the last time this week. Chris was dragging his referee's shirt behind him and Stephanie walked over to him. She took the shirt and held it against her a little bit.

"So Mr. Referee, do you think that you'd be up for calling another tough and rough game?" Stephanie said coyly, batting her eyelashes at Chris.

"What kind of game?"

"Well, I don't know, but I think that I'm about to commit a penalty, and I need to be punished accordingly."

Chris eagerly slipped on his referee's shirt. "Well, I'm a tough judge and I call by the rules, so you aren't going to get anything past me."

"Good, I wouldn't want to speed up the game, I like it nice…and slow," Stephanie teased before running away, Chris in hot pursuit.

Trish smiled at their obvious love before turning to Carlito, who was toweling off, he came over to Trish and raised his eyebrows. She wasn't expecting a gesture, but he held out his arm to her. She took it graciously as they walked down the corridor. She didn't know why, but this felt like a good kind of different.

Maybe Christian was soon to hit the road of her past.


	49. Whew, That Was Close, August 1, 2005

A/N: Got no excuse for why this is late, I just got tired last night and fell asleep early.

And for a little self-pimping, I opened the Stephanie McMahon Fanlisting, so if you're a fan of hers, then you should go to my profile and check it out and sign up, because Stephanie is awesome. :)

* * *

"Stephanie!"

"What?"

"Can you come out here please!" Chris called for her as he sat at the table in their hotel room. "I'm not exactly getting this here."

"Can you hold on a second, I'm trying to floss my teeth and unless you want me to get gingivitis and then get dentures, which is gross, than you'll be sorry."

"God, you're so slow," he said, getting up and going into the bedroom part of their hotel room. He flopped down on the bed and turned his head to look at Stephanie as she stood in the bathroom. Her face was practically nose-to-nose with the mirror as she flossed. She finished up and threw away the dental floss before looking over to see Chris.

"What are you staring at?"

"My wife," Chris said plainly. "Is that a crime now?"

"Don't stare, it's not polite."

"You're my wife," he protested. "That means I can stare at you any time that I want to, and you can't have any other people staring at you. But I'm definitely allowed to stare at you."

"I don't remember reading that part of the marriage guidebook," Stephanie said sarcastically.

She walked into the room and hopped onto the bed, crawling so that she was side-by-side with Chris. He reached down and grabbed her hand in his own and just held it there for a moment. He turned his head again to look at her, a broad smile on his face. She smiled back and settled herself onto the bed. Before she knew it, Chris had turned on his side and was now hovering over her.

"Hi," he said impishly.

"Hello," she responded. "So what was it you needed?"

"I was reading my contract."

Stephanie groaned. "Chris, I don't want to talk business right now."

"That's a first," he teased, and she glared up at him. "What?"

"God, I don't want to relive that whole…thing last week. I had like ten people call me up in the span of one hour asking if you were getting a divorce from me. I swear, people have bets going on as to when we're going to break up."

"Well, I hope that someone took the obvious never bet, because that's what I'm going for right there. I guess people thought that because I hadn't yet signed that meant that I wasn't coming back and then I was going to leave you and then you'd become a cat woman with five hundred cats."

"I don't even like cats," Stephanie said with a frown. "But you're not leaving me right?"

"They would have to drag me away," he reassured her. She smiled and leaned up to give him a kiss. He lowered himself so that she wouldn't have to strain her neck to get to him. She felt him settle his body comfortably over hers and she thought briefly that she would never tire of this. She would never get tired of him.

"So what about your contract?" she asked as he pulled away, but kept his face close to hers so that it was the only thing she could focus on.

"Well, I was reading over it and I noticed that I have a huge bonus, one that's usually reserved for the title holder, and I was just wondering what that was all about. I don't recall asking for a raise."

"Oh, that's because you're part owner now, and partially management. So you're getting paid for that too."

"Wait, so I'm actually on the payroll as a wrestler AND as management?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, that's my understanding of it. Obviously I didn't draw up the contract as we leave that to legal department, but I did revise it with them, and negotiated on your behalf. Didn't I tell you what you were getting, I thought I told you," she said.

"No, you didn't tell me, and if you did, I must've been distracted, probably by your body," Chris said, giving her the once over, even though she was completely covered up.

"Well that's ok, I'm your wife, we divide our assets up equally and I know a fair deal when I see one."

"And your own personal interests didn't get involved in any way?" he asked, mock suspiciously.

"No, of course not, although I could get you whatever you wanted," she told him.

Chris leaned down to kiss her softly, "Seventy million?"

"If you want."

"250 million?"

Stephanie mumbled against his lips, "Sure."

"500 million?"

"If that's what you really, really want," she said, running her fingers through his soft hair. It was falling around his face and she moved her hands to cup his cheeks. She frowned and pulled away from him. "You're not shaving again."

"You pay more attention to my facial hair than you do about anything else about me. I could not shower for two weeks, but as long as my face was shaved you wouldn't care."

"That's right," Stephanie said with a nod.

"Your other husband, the one that preceded me had facial hair."

"And you don't think I didn't try to make him get rid of it?" Stephanie scoffed. "But you trying telling that man to do anything. He never does anything he doesn't want to do. That's Hunter for you. But he's not even around right now, a little leave of absence for him because he's a big, fat baby and can't take the fact that he's not in the title picture AND that he lost in his precious Hell in a Cell."

"I still should've won that Hell in the Cell match," Chris said bitterly, rolling over and laying on his back. "I had that match won."

"Ok, why don't we stop reminiscing about my ex-husband and look over that contract so you can sign it and I won't have to worry that you're going to suddenly leave me."

Chris rolled back over so that he was looking down at her sparkling gray-blue eyes. Her eyes were amazing sometimes, how they just seemed to change at random, sometimes being so blue that you felt like you were looking into twin oceans, and then other times they seemed almost gray, like clouds in the night sky. It was a surprise every time he looked into her eyes, something special just for him.

"You do know that if I ever do leave, for whatever reason that I'm not leaving you right? You know that I would never leave you voluntarily, I'm serious about that, there is no way that I'm going to leave you unless it's against my will," he said, his tone flat.

"Don't make promises you don't know if you can keep," Stephanie responded, knowing that the future was always up in the air, something they reached for and only got a little bit at a time. Time could not sped up, nor slowed down (well, it can, but this isn't a science lesson), not on Earth it couldn't anyways, they could only work at their relationship and hope for the best.

"Well, I will try my hardest to keep this one. I did not pledge my love to you in front of our friends and family just to have to go through some messy divorce where you'll try to steal all my money from me and leave me penniless."

"Oh come on, I'd let you have a dollar or something," Stephanie grinned, joking around again. She pulled him down to her again as he once again settled himself against her, getting comfortable on their hotel room bed, knowing that they didn't have to be anywhere for a while.

Of course, like all good things, they were interrupted. If they had been at home, they would've had all the time in the world to do whatever they wanted, but they were at work and things never seemed to go smoothly at work. But this was a weird company and therefore they had to be ready for anything. Chris pulled away reluctantly and Stephanie shrugged, scooting herself out from underneath him.

"Steph, come on, let's ignore it."

"I can't ignore it, it could be Kurt."

"Then he'd understand what I'm trying to do."

"We weren't even doing anything," Stephanie said, knowing that things had been stopped before they had gone too far. "Besides, we have to leave soon anyways so we wouldn't have been able to do anything."

Stephanie bounded her way to the door, glancing back at Chris as he flopped against the bed again, staring up at the ceiling, obviously frustrated that they had been interrupted. She rolled her eyes to herself, like they never saw each other at all, they spent everyday together. She opened the door and squealed, clapping her hands like a little girl.

"Dad, what are you doing here! I mean, I know that you have an announcement to make tonight, but I wasn't expecting you here so early," Stephanie said, throwing her arms around her father happily.

"Hi Princess, is it a crime for me to want to see my only daughter?" Vince said, returning her hug.

"Of course not, I was just expecting you later, at the show, but you know you're always welcome," Stephanie said, leading him into the room. "Are you here for business too?"

"How did you know?"

"Well, coming to see me usually has something to do with business," Stephanie said as she saw Chris walking out of the bedroom as he heard Vince's voice. "Sweetie, my dad came to see me."

"I can see that Steph," Chris chuckled, going over to shake Vince's hand. "Hey Vince, so what's the announcement?"

"Yeah Dad, what's this big, huge announcement you have to make?" Stephanie asked, batting her eyelashes innocently, hoping that it would still work with her father. She was an adult now, but she was still a Daddy's Girl.

"Well, seeing as how you ARE family," Vince said, still unable to resist his daughter, she was still his little girl, no matter how old she got. "I've signed Matt Hardy back."

"Oh," Stephanie said. "Well, that's a good idea Dad."

Stephanie bit her tongue because she had thought it was a pretty stupid idea to fire him in the first place. Yes, Matt had not handled the situation in the best way, but she could only imagine how she would handle a betrayal like that and she hadn't even been with Chris as long as Matt had been with Lita. She might do the same thing in that situation.

"Yes, I thought so," Vince said, already getting into a congratulatory mood, except this was for himself. "And I needed you to come with me and give him the briefing with the show. I trust you since I do leave you in charge."

"Ok Daddy," Stephanie said. "Do you want to leave now?"

"No, I thought I could get a cup of coffee with my daughter though and catch up on what she's been doing," Vince said with a smile.

Stephanie looked at him strangely and then at Chris, "Dad are you ok?"

"Why?"

"Well, you've never wanted to just go grab a cup of coffee with me. In fact I don't think we've ever 'grabbed a cup of coffee' and talked with each other. Which leads me to think that something is up. Is Mom ok?"

"Everyone is ok, I'm just proud of myself is all."

"Oh," Stephanie said, still looking at him strangely. "Well can you change back, I don't like this side of you."

"Did you hear that Chris, I try to be nice one time and I'm immediately told to change."

"Well, you're kind of creeping me out too Vince," Chris said. "But I haven't known you as long as Stephanie."

"Well fine then, do you want to go talk business with me? I've got my eye on some new prospects," Vince told her.

"Now that's more like it," Stephanie said, "let me just go get my things and I have to call Bischoff and tell him that I'm working on your big announcement and he'll have to take care of the show later. I'll be right back."

Stephanie disappeared into the bedroom to grab her cell phone off the nightstand and call Bischoff. Chris stood there with Vince, nodding his head a little bit. He wasn't on bad terms with his father-in-law, but he just didn't have much to say to him right now. So he just shifted his weight back and forth as Vince also stood there.

"So you're going for the WWE title," Vince said. "I was glad to see that, you're finally using your position."

"Actually it was Bischoff's idea, Stephanie and I had nothing to do with it."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah," Chris shrugged. "Although I would like to have the title."

"I'd like you to have it too," Vince told him. "Keep it in the family. I wasn't very happy to hear what John Cena was saying about you. If I'm forced to choose between the two of you, I think I'm going to have to choose you, or face my family's wrath."

"You're just lucky you weren't there when he started telling off Stephanie," Chris said angrily, not forgetting the way that Cena made his wife feel. If he had to use that for his sole motivation then he was going to do that. Stephanie was the biggest motivation for this match. He wanted the belt sure, but he wanted Cena to know that he would not let what Cena said slide. Chris looked at Vince and saw his face starting to turn red in anger, just like it usually did.

"What did he say?"

"Just crap about Stephanie questioning our marriage and a lot of shit like that," Chris said. "Don't worry about it Vince, Steph is over it. She's amazing like that."

"I know," Stephanie said as she walked out with her things. "I'm the most amazing person in the world."

"Next to me," Chris said. "I guess I'll see you later?"

"You aren't going to come?" Stephanie pouted.

"Nah, I don't feel like hearing about business, I've got bigger things to worry about," Chris said. "I'll go to the show and worry about what I have to do, and you worry about what you have to do, we'll meet up later."

"Ok, love you," Stephanie said, kissing him briefly, nothing provocative as her father was standing right there. Chris returned her short kiss.

"Love you too, see you later."

Stephanie left with her father and Chris went to gather his things together. He would have to go and talk to Bischoff about getting some time to speak on the show. Cena was always opening his mouth and spouting off nonsense that it was his turn to say what he wanted to say. He was sure Bischoff would let him have time because Bischoff was on a kick where he hated Cena and that worked out just fine for Chris.

Kurt was still sulking about his gold medal so he would probably go to work on his own so he was all alone on the drive to the arena. Kurt was taking his loss very hard, but intended with all his might to get his gold medal back tonight. He didn't care if he wasn't from this area, he wanted his title back. Chris understood why because Kurt never shut up about his medal.

He got to the arena, and it was still fairly early so there wasn't a lot of people around. He just hung out for a while, going to talk to Bischoff, who indeed granted him time for the show. He was ready and waiting to just go out there and rip Cena a new one. That smug bastard deserved it and he was going to lose tonight to Carlito and then Chris would go into SummerSlam the obvious favorite and he would win the title again and it would be another glorious reign for him.

He could see it now. He would have the title draped over one arm and then Stephanie draped over the other, if Stephanie would drape that is. There would be birds chirping and babies laughing, just like when he had been the Undisputed Champion. That was a glorious time as well. He didn't realize that he had zoned out thinking about it and the show was now closer than ever. He went and took off his wedding ring and stuck it in his bag when his door flew open.

"Ok, where the hell is this Carlito guy!"

Chris turned around quickly, "Christian, what the hell are you doing here?"

"I'm asking you where the hell this Carlito guy is, where is he Chris!"

"Christian, how did you get here?" Chris asked, very confused.

"By plane, how else do you think? I want to know where this Carlito guy is and I want to know where he is now. I'm going to kick his ass!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Chris said, holding his hands up and putting them on Christian's shoulders trying to calm the other man down. "What is going on first of all? Why do you need to find him so badly?"

"Oh, like you didn't know!" Christian snapped. "Seems that everyone knew except for me. Edge knew before I did, EDGE for God's sakes. I had to hear it from my brother. My brother who is screwing a girl who was married to Kane! That's who I heard it from!"

"Heard what from?"

"MY GIRLFRIEND IS DATING OTHER MEN!" Christian shouted as Chris winced at the volume of his voice. Seems that Christian had found out about Stephanie, Trish, and Kurt's little plan to make Christian jealous. And it seemed to have worked in tenfold if the irate man standing in front of his was any indication. Seems that it had worked a little too well.

"How do you know she's dating him?"

"Edge saw them walk off together, WALK OFF TOGETHER! And then get in a car, together."

"Ok, that doesn't seem to me like it could be a full-fledged date," Chris said rationally. Telling Christian what had really happened seemed to be the worst possible idea in the world right now. He had to act calm so that Christian would hopefully calm the hell down.

"How would YOU know? I don't see your wife running off with any men in CARS. When that happens, then you come to me and we'll see how you feel, ok?" Christian said sarcastically. "Now where the hell is Carlito?"

"Ok, why don't we sit down and not immediately start going after people?" Chris said, knowing that Carlito had a big match later on, not to mention Christian didn't know the full story on what was going on.

"Are you saying that I'm lying?"

"No, I'm saying that let's think this through rationally. Look, if I went after every guy that slighted Stephanie, I'd have a very long list, so why don't we make sure that you're going about this the right way and for the right reasons."

"He's dating my girlfriend!" Christian protested even as Chris led him to sit down on the couch.

"Now, I don't think that's it," Chris said knowingly. "Not to mention I'm fairly sure that Trish doesn't even know the status of your relationship at the moment. I mean, are you guys broken up or what?"

"No, I don't think so…I hope not…I'm not sure actually, we haven't actually talked in a while."

"And there's your first big problem," Chris said, tapping his chin. "How are you going to get mad if she doesn't even know if she's single or not. Maybe she thought that you had broken up and she was just seeing what was out there."

"I would hope that it would take her longer to get over me!" Christian said angrily.

"Ok, but you guys aren't exactly talking and you kind of proposed to her in the worst way possible, in the middle of a fight. Now do you WANT to marry Trish? I think that's the first thing that you need to figure out."

"No, I don't want to marry her," Christian said softly. "I mean, not right now. In the future, yeah, I want to, but not right now, I mean, I love her and everything, but it's not right and I didn't do it in the right way. I mean, you said that the moment you proposed to Stephanie was perfect, and I know that the moment I proposed to Trish was not perfect."

"Ok good, now does she know this? Because she probably feels the same way."

"Yeah, maybe."

"And Christian, the other week you WERE flirting with Candice Michelle and that couldn't have made her feel all that good."

"I wasn't flirting…per se," Christian said sheepishly.

There was a knock on the door as one of the production people told Chris that he was up in a few minutes and was needed at the gorilla. "Ok, can you stay back here and manage not to go and beat up Carlito?"

"I guess," Christian said sullenly, leaning back on the couch.

"Good, I'll be right back."

Chris went out to the gorilla and waited for the show to start. He had to push what Christian said out of his mind as he went to discuss the situation with Cena. He heard the crowd booing for him and they were so fickle. One minute they were loving him and the next second they were hating his guts. If they would just choose one way or another, it would make his life easier. At least he knew he had true fans out there, ones who stuck by him through thick and thin.

He went on to discuss his plan with Bischoff, which wasn't so much a plan as it was a series of events that loosely resembled a plan, but wasn't really a plan. Bischoff just hated Cena, and so did Chris and it created a common enemy with the two of them. Chris certainly did not respect Bischoff any more than he had before, especially with the constant arguing Bischoff did with Chris's wife.

Chris wouldn't have known that Cena was making his way out of there if he hadn't heard the roar of the crowd. But suddenly there was Cena, trying to beat him up and Chris just went after him as the two fought. There were other bodies there soon, but Chris took no notice of them as he just kept his focus on Cena. They were pulled away from each other, but he could still feel Cena's glare on him. He wanted to do something, anything, he wanted to punch someone, he wanted to tear someone apart, but he couldn't.

His shirt was ripped, he knew that much and not much else. He grabbed his eye, feeling it sting already. He hoped that he didn't get a black eye, but he didn't think it was that bad. He backed up the ramp as he heard Bischoff yelling at Cena. He ripped his shirt off in anger as Bischoff made his announcement, making him the guest referee again this week. Chris was glad for the opportunity to get at Cena again, with the zebra stripes to seemingly protect him. He wouldn't get thrown out at least.

He went backstage, as angry as ever. Normally Stephanie would be there, with one of her smiles that made him seem to forget everything else in the universe, but unfortunately, she was with her father so she wasn't there and he remained angry. He almost punched the wall, but decided against that; he was going to need that hand later when he was refereeing the match with Carlito and Cena. And he was going to make damn sure that Carlito walked away with the title.

"Can you believe this!" Kurt said, walking over to Chris.

"I know!" Chris said angrily. "Can you believe Cena running out there and attacking me while I'm trying to speak!"

"That's not what I'm talking about," Kurt said indignantly. "I'm talking about this Eugene Invitational. Can you believe this crap?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You HAD to have heard about this," Kurt said, gesturing wildly. "Since I had my title STOLEN from me, Eugene, that idiot, has started up his own tournament, like it will be better than mine, like he's better than me, which isn't true, I'm Kurt Angle dammit, I'm an Olympic gold medalist, I'm a former World Champion. I should get my medal back, I earned it fair and square!"

"Then go out and get it, what do you want me to do about it?" Chris asked. "In case you haven't noticed, I've got problems of my own, namely John Cena."

"Oh yeah…that, well at least he didn't take something precious of yours…like…like, I don't know, Stephanie or something! I mean, then you'd be really steamed," Kurt said angrily.

"Well yeah, I would be, especially because he doesn't like her," Chris said, but then off of Kurt's perturbed look, "but of course, I know what you're saying. So go out and get your damn medal back, it's not like Eugene didn't lie last week, you should just lie this week. He'll fall for it, he isn't exactly a Mensa candidate. He's a few lemons short of a barrel if you know what I mean."

"Yeah, I'm going to go out there and I'm going to get my damn medal back," Kurt said resolutely. "He can't just take away what's mine!"

"Yeah, there you go, now go get that medal," Chris said, slapping Kurt on the back, before going back to his own problems. Not only was he pissed off bout the entire thing with Cena, but to top that off he was having to play problem-solver for all his kooky friends. Not long after he told Kurt to go win his medal back if it meant that much to him, he remembered that Christian was sulking in his locker room and he would have to diffuse that situation as well.

He walked back there and opened his door to find Christian sitting on the couch, his arms folded over his chest and looking just all around pissed. He was staring straight forward with his jaw clenched so tightly that his teeth were probably about to crumble underneath the pressure. It was reason like this why he didn't want Stephanie to get involved in other people's business. And now with Kurt here encouraging her, she was probably going to try and think of more lame schemes that would backfire and leave someone hurt, like Christian was hurt right now.

"It's about damn time you got back," Christian said, not even dignifying him with a glance. "We have a major situation here and you're out there fighting with John Cena."

"I do kind of have a big match coming up a few weeks," Chris pointed out, not that he expected Christian to care.

"Yeah, well I kind of have a life I'm trying to fix," Christian said drolly. "I think mine comes before yours actually. I think that you're just going to have to take a step back."

"Dude, this was NOT my fault, this was all you, not me, so don't go around blaming me for anything when you know full well that you got yourself into this. I shouldn't even have to help you, you should work this out on your own. But nope, I'm such a good friend that I'm sitting here, about to listen to you spout off again when I should be thinking about refereeing the match later on that has implications for my title shot."

"Well excuse me, you know, your wife is a lot nicer about these things."

"Yeah, well my wife is not here right now, so you're going to have to deal with me, or go find Kurt, your choice."

"Kurt's pissed too, he came here while you were out there and we were discussing it. He has his own problems, I don't want to bother him."

Chris slapped his forehead at the sheer stupidity. "So Kurt's problems are bigger than my problems?"

"Well yeah. You know how much the gold medal means to him. Have you heard the stories?"

"Of course, I've heard them all twice, but I have a shot at the top of the mountain again and you know how much that means to ME!"

"Yeah, but even if you don't win the title, you're still Stephanie's husband and you're still part owner of the company, I have to figure that that means that you are still going to come away from this with the top prize, you know, being part owner and all of that."

"Fine Christian, what can I do to help you?"

"Is she dating this Carlito guy?"

"I don't think she is, I haven't talked to her."

"Damn it," Christian said, slamming his fist down on the couch next to him. "I need to know if she's dating this guy. The thing with Candice Michelle was nothing, absolutely nothing. I was still reeling from the Trish thing and I lost my head, and now it's costing me everything."

"Well you should've thought of that. What if I went into the ring with one of the Diva Search chicks and started flirting with her, Stephanie would probably murder me. You can't go around hitting on all these chicks and not expect something to happen with Trish."

"Look, talk to Trish, that's the only thing I can think of," Chris said. "Now I really have to go find Carlito and talk to him about the match later."

"Wait, you're going to see this Carlito guy?" Christian asked.

"Yeah, I am, and no, you can't come with me if you're going to beat him up."

"I won't, I just wanted to ask him some things, I won't even try to hit him or anything."

"Ok, fine, but you promise?"

"I swear!"

Chris took that as his word and they walked out of the room, heading for Bischoff's locker room, where Carlito probably was, since Bischoff was the one who had orchestrated this entire thing. Chris made Christian wait outside before walking in there. He didn't need the confrontation to happen right off the bat, rather he'd soften the blow somehow, he didn't know how.

Chris didn't even like Carlito, but he tried to butter him up so that he would go out there and perform at his best. Bischoff walked in and yelled at them and Chris really wanted to tell him to shut up, but this WAS about Cena and so he would just agree, anything to get his hands on Cena. See, there was that anger again, he had such unbridled anger when he was without Stephanie. Lord knows how he even remained grounded when she wasn't in his life.

Stephanie was in the limo, her father having just gotten out of it to go and make his huge announcement. She had discussed some of the things with Matt, but noted that things were not that different around here, since he hadn't been gone so long. Since then, they had dropped into an uncomfortable silence, one Stephanie was desperate to get rid of.

"She misses you, you know," Stephanie blurted out, not knowing where that even came from.

"What?" Matt asked.

"Lita, Amy, whatever, she misses you," Stephanie said. "I know what she did was horrible, and I'm not condoning it, but…she misses you."

"How the hell would you know?" Matt snapped.

"Because I have eyes!" Stephanie snapped back. "Look, she's with Edge now, but Christian and I have a feeling she's not really with him if you know what I mean. We think that he's forcing her to be with him."

"Stephanie, you don't get it. She slept with him, behind my back, I loved her, I loved her so much and she slept with him."

"But what about if someone is sorry for it? Does that count for anything?"

"No, because she's flaunting it in front of my face now. You've never been cheated on have you Stephanie?"

"No, I can't say that I have, not fully anyways, although with Trish and my husband…"

"But you've never actually been cheated on. If Chris cheated on you, you'd be devastated too Stephanie, so don't tell me about what's wrong and what's right. I know how I feel and I know that Lita is nothing but a stinking whore."

"Fine," Stephanie said as someone tapped on the window. "But I'm telling you Matt, sometimes you have to swallow the anger and try to do the right thing."

Matt just stormed out of the limo and Stephanie leaned back in her seat, waiting a few minutes before getting out. She didn't know why she felt compelled to defend Lita in that situation, but she had been helping Christian with that entire thing and felt sympathy towards Lita. She had done some heinous things, yes, but to deserve all this, well, Stephanie wasn't so sure that she did deserve any of it.

Stephanie walked into the arena, wandering around, not knowing what to do with herself. She found her husband's locker room and ran her hand across his name on the door. Could she really blame Matt for hurting so much when she knew that if she were in the same situation, she might hurt just as much? She knew if she were betrayed, she would feel just as bad as he did right now. Maybe Lita was just a whore, maybe they were all wrong and Matt was right…he did know her the best after all.

"Hey."

Stephanie turned around and smiled, "Hey sweetie."

"What are you doing staring at my door?"

"I was just thinking about things," Stephanie said, looking down in his hand. "Got your referee shirt?"

"Yup, just have to put it on and I'm set. And change my pants, want to look professional and all of that," Chris said, opening the door and letting Stephanie duck underneath his arm. "So how did the thing with Matt go?"

"From a business perspective, it was fine, from a personal perspective, Lita better watch out because he's looking for blood."

"Well, he does have at least a little justification."

"Yeah," Stephanie said, turning to him. "I told him that Lita missed him, but he didn't want to believe that."

"That's his fault then. Stephanie, just leave things alone. You've already done enough with Trish and Christian, don't get involved in this too."

"I won't…I guess…I guess I just want everyone to be as happy as I am," Stephanie said, stepping in front of Chris as she took the top of his jeans and started undoing the button. Chris looked down at her curiously.

"And what are you doing?"

"Well, you said you had to change, I'm just bored and helping. Since you won't let me help with Christian or Matt or anything," she flirted, starting to pull down his zipper.

Speaking of Christian, he was waiting for Carlito to exit Bischoff's office. He didn't have to wait long as Carlito walked out and Christian tried to keep his cool and not punch Carlito or shove an entire apple down his throat until he choked. No, he would only do that if he found out that the man was dating his girlfriend.

"So you're Carlito."

"That's right," Carlito said. "What do you want?"

"I want to know what you're doing with Trish Stratus," Christian said plainly.

"Trish Stratus, I'm not doing nothing with Trish Stratus," Carlito told him. "Unless she wants to do something again. She's a cool girl, I like people who are cool."

Christian took a deep breath. "Yeah, we'll see just how far you get with Trish…we'll see. And if I find out that you touched her, well…you won't be able to see for a week."

Carlito gave him a look as Christian walked away. He muttered to himself, "That's not cool."

But Carlito did not have time to analyze Christian's cryptic or not so cryptic threat, because he had a match coming up soon. Chris didn't have time to fool around with his wife either, as he was the guest referee. He was not going to be so merciful this time either. He was nice for most of the match last week, but tonight, tonight he had no remorse, and even though Stephanie was around, he was still feeling that anger welling up inside of his, almost reaching a fever pitch.

He managed to keep it in check for the most part during the match. During the match, he took the opportunities to knock Cena when he was down, and did try to fast count, which didn't work, unfortunately. It wasn't until the end of the match that Chris seemed to snap and in quite the unique fashion too. Chris was never one to be calm. Sure, he could be calm when he wanted, but sometimes, sometimes he would just go apeshit crazy on people. He recalled a time when he had been bloodied up during a match and Rocky had come to check on him and they had gotten in a fight.

These thoughts were running through his mind when he hit Cena with the video camera. He didn't even feel bad wasting the camera because technically he DID own that camera. He didn't feel bad when he was putting Cena in the Walls of Jericho either. No, it felt good. It felt so good that he ripped his shirt in half. For a day that started with him having to be a problem-solver for all his friends, it had turned out that he knew the solution to his own problem all along, and damn did it feel good.

It also felt good to have that title in his hands.

In three weeks, he hoped that he would once again be holding that title, but this time, in ultimate victory.


	50. How Predicatable, SummerSlam, 2005

A/N: In case some of you didn't go to my profile, the reason I didn't update this for 2 weeks was because I fell and sprained my wrist, which turned out to be worse than I originally thought, and I couldn't type so I obviously couldn't update, but I'm better now, save for some lingering cuts and bruises.

Anyways, here's a SummerSlam chapter (which I didn't get a chance to watch, so forgive any errors), and updating should be back to normal. I'm a little bit rusty, so if it sucks, I apologize in advance. Enjoy. :)

* * *

"Hey, what's up?"

Stephanie looked up into the blue eyes of Kurt Angle. Kurt had such beautiful eyes, although she should've expected that, because she knew his eyes well. She loved them almost as much as she loved Chris's. But Chris's eyes were just so beautiful, and so clear blue. She thought about something for a moment before returning her gaze to Kurt.

"Nothing," Stephanie said, although she was writing something down so she wasn't exactly being truthful. But she was just making a list of thing she wanted to do this week. One of the most important things topped the list.

"Doesn't look like nothing," Kurt said, sitting atop her desk. "You look tired."

"Gee, thanks," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "I have been tired, but I've just been working hard. With SummerSlam being tonight, I have to be on my toes, it is our second biggest show of the year. Not to mention my husband is in one of the main events."

"That's true, while I'm going to kick Eugene's ass."

"I'm sure you'll figure out a way to win that," Stephanie said plainly.

"Maybe," Kurt said. "Where's Chris?"

Stephanie got a small smile on her face. Kurt couldn't decipher the smile on her face, but it was decidedly happy. He couldn't explain it, but she looked so happy, in a way that he hadn't ever seen her before. He smiled back at her and he couldn't even explain why he was smiling back at her.

"I think he's with Bischoff. It's weird, now that they both hate Cena, they're getting along and it's just strange."

"I bet," Kurt said, still not able to pinpoint why Stephanie looked different this evening, so he just decided to ask her. "You look different tonight."

"I do," Stephanie said, squinting her eyes in thought. "How so?"

"I don't know, you just look different," Kurt said, "You look really happy."

"I guess I am," Stephanie said. "There's really nothing to be so unhappy about. I mean, Chris is getting a title shot, which I absolutely think he can win, and you're here, and Hunter isn't, and work is going well."

"I'm glad you're happy."

Stephanie gave him a sly smile, "You have no idea Kurt. I'm just bursting with happiness."

"If you weren't married and genuinely happy, I'd be inclined to think you were in a drug-induced haze right now."

Stephanie picked up a paper clip sitting on her desk and threw it at Kurt. He ducked out of the way and gave her a look of disbelief. Stephanie stuck her tongue out at him playfully before going back to her writing. She didn't expect the paper clip that hit the side of her head, but she turned to see the smirking face of Kurt Angle.

"Kurt! How could you do that!" Stephanie yelled.

"Same reason you could do it to me," Kurt countered before going over and sitting on the arm of Stephanie's chair. He wrapped his arm around her and tousled her hair a little bit. "You work too hard."

"I know," Stephanie told him.

"Wow, I think that's the first time you've really admitted it."

"Well, you know, at some point I'm going to have to own up to the fact that I'm a workaholic. I mean, you know how I was when I was without a job. It was like my world ceased to be, which isn't how I want to live my life, you know."

"Yeah, I know," Kurt said, holding her a little tighter. "What brought about this change of heart?"

"Age," Stephanie guessed with a laugh. "I guess as I get older I realize that there are other things in life that I'm going to have to worry about. Thank God I have Chris, who understands how important work is to me. He hated seeing me without a job."

"Yeah, which is why he came up with an elaborate scheme to get you right back here."

"I know…I love him," Stephanie said with a hint of giddiness in her voice as she gazed up at Kurt. "I'm lucky, you know, I could've completed ignored this thing between Chris and I. I could've just gone on and on thinking that I was supposed to be alone."

"Even if you weren't with Chris, I hardly think that you would be alone," Kurt told her. "I guess you haven't looked into a mirror lately, but you're not some ugly girl Steph."

"You compliment me too much Kurt," Stephanie smiled. "I guess I realize now that work isn't everything. I mean, don't get me wrong, it's a lot, but it's not everything."

"You're so different from when I first met you."

Stephanie laughed, "I was a complete bitch when you met me Kurt, of course I'm different."

"Yeah, I guess so."

"I'm also very happy that you're here," Stephanie said. "I don't think I tell you that enough."

"I think you tell me quite often though."

"I'm just happy that I get to be around you again. You're my best friend you know."

"I thought Chris was your best friend. They always say that married people are best friends. At least that's what I've heard."

"Nah, you're my best friend Kurt," Stephanie told him. "You've always been there for me. Always; I could always count on you for everything."

"It's what I do," Kurt told her. "So I heard that Trish is coming back soon."

"Yup, she is, and maybe she will finally deal with this Christian situation," Stephanie sighed. "I just don't understand those two. They're on the outs more than they're on the ins. They're worse than me and Chris, and I didn't even think that was possible."

"Yeah, but see, you and Chris have the distinct advantage of being married now so anything that happened before is kind of a moot point because you two got married."

"So it nullifies the two times we broke up and the hating each other?"

"Well, it nullifies the broken up thing…I think when you guys have kids, then it'll get rid of that whole hating each other thing."

Stephanie gave a soft laugh. "Get out of my office Kurt."

"You're kicking me out!" he asked in shock, his eyes widening.

"Well, unless you like talking to an empty room, then you'll get out. It's a big night, it's SummerSlam, everything has to be absolutely perfect, and if its not, who do you think is going to get the blame?"

"Shawn Michaels and Hulk Hogan?" Kurt joked.

Stephanie giggled. "Oh you mean the prima donna and the diva, as Chris likes to call them. He's a little bit bitter that he's being overshadowed by this match. Not that it should discount anything he's going to do tonight. My man is going to win."

"You say that with such assuredness I'm inclined to believe you."

"You should. Chris is due you know."

"And if he doesn't win."

"Shame on you Kurt," Stephanie said wagging her finger at him. "Have you no faith in my husband?"

"I do, of course I do. I'm just thinking realistically here."

"And if you don't beat Eugene?" Stephanie asked with a knowing look on her face.

"Don't even joke about that Stephanie," Kurt said, stalking towards her. Stephanie put a finger to her mouth and tried to look like an innocent little girl, but Kurt was not going to fall for that. She screamed as he started charging towards her and she just ducked out of the door in front of him, glancing over her shoulder as Kurt jogged after her. She laughed and eluded him some more when a figure emerged in the distance of the long hallway.

"Christian!" Stephanie yelled, startling some of the workers milling around.

Stephanie broke out into a run and headed straight for Christian's arms. Luckily Christian was able to spot her quite easily and opened his arms just in time. Stephanie launched herself at him and he hugged her tightly lifting her feet off the ground before setting her down. She had a huge grin on her face as she gripped his arms.

"What's up Kid?" Christian asked.

"Not much, just hanging out with Kurt," Stephanie answered. "It's weird now seeing you at a show. Why is that weird?"

"Because I'm on SmackDown now," he told her, adding a sarcastic, "What, you didn't know?"

"No, it must've slipped my mind," Stephanie said, linking her arm through his. "Kurt threw a paper clip at me, and it could've hit me in the eye."

"Want me to beat him up?" Christian whispered to her.

"Would you?"

"Of course I would," he told her as they caught up to Kurt. "Kurt, I'm going to have to beat you up for Stephanie's honor."

"Stephanie, you're too persuasive for your own good."

"I'm my father's daughter," she shrugged.

"How've you been man?" Kurt asked, shaking Christian's hand. On the outside he may have looked like he was just shooting the breeze with a friend, but in fact he wasn't doing that, well, not completely. He was asking because of the Trish situation. He knew that Christian was hurt, although he was doing a good job of not showing it.

"I've been better," Christian answered honestly. "I wish I had a match tonight to get my mind off of everything, but I wasn't so lucky. I'm sure if I had been on Raw, someone could've finagled me a match."

"I would've," Stephanie affirmed with a nod. "I definitely would've."

"Unfortunately, I'm not, but I wanted to be here tonight, at least to hang out. I can stick with you, can't I Steph? I mean, you're not going out there are you?"

Stephanie smiled at him, shyly almost and shook her head. "No, I'm not going out there. I can't…I mean, you know why…whatever, I can't go out there because I don't actually have an on-screen contract, I'm a liability if I go out there for any reason."

"Well that wasn't a short answer," Christian said, making a face. "Anyways, I'm just going to hang around, if you need help, I will try my best to screw it up and make you look like a genius for cleaning up my messes."

"It's what she's best at," Kurt said, pinching Stephanie cheek, as Stephanie shoved his hand away.

"Just because I'm the youngest here doesn't mean that I should get treated the worst," Stephanie said indignantly.

"Oh, the princess is sad," Kurt teased even more. Stephanie stomped away from him and crossed her arms.

"I've got work to do, it's a big night, so you can go shove it Kurt Angle," Stephanie said, scrunching her face in distaste at him. She turned to Christian and kissed him on the cheek. "Come find me later so you don't have to be lonely."

"I think I've been replaced," Kurt said, trying to sound hurt.

Stephanie just rolled her eyes and left the boys alone. She wouldn't admit it to anyone, lest she lose their support, but the big PPV's were actually easier to run than a regular show. The matches were set and there was hardly any backstage interaction because of the time limit that they were working under. But she wouldn't let anyone know how easy it was since she could totally avoid people if she told them she was busy.

Right now she was meandering down the hallway, thinking to herself. It struck her in that moment how much she did love this business and how someday, she hoped to pass it onto her own children. She wondered if any children that she would love the business like she and Shane loved the business that they had been born into. She decided that it would be weird if her kids didn't like wrestling because Chris and her were in the wrestling business.

She yawned, suddenly feeling tired. That wasn't good, to be caught yawning during the second biggest show of the year, especially when her husband had a main event role in the show. And it was about damn time that he was getting such an opportunity. Hunter had been such a glory hog that nobody else seemed to be able to grab the spotlight. But now that he had seemingly disappeared, her husband was free to step right in there.

"Stephanie, are we all set for tonight, the show's beginning," she heard Bischoff say behind her.

"Yeah, everything is set," she told him. "I'll go get started."

"Good, you know that this is a big show. We have Hogan and Michaels from Raw, that's the marquee, we want it to be the best it can be. Because then people will tune in tomorrow and…"

"And everything will be great, I get it."

"Look, your father is here tonight, and I don't want him to get on my case," Bischoff said testily.

"Ok Eric, I get it, you want everything to go well so that you can claim all credit for it. I get what you want to do, so don't worry, everything will be great, and then you can tell my father that it was all your doing. Go for it."

Bischoff narrowed his eyes, "And then what would you do? Tattle on me?"

"Yes, because I'm six," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes.

"And tell your husband that he better win tonight," Bischoff said, poking a finger in her face.

"Get your finger out of my face Bischoff," Stephanie said vehemently. "And if Chris doesn't win, what are you going to do to him?"

"Just make sure that he wins Stephanie."

"Ok Mr. Bischoff, sir, just don't hurt me," Stephanie said, holding her hands up in mock defense. "I'll go deliver the message right now your highness."

"You've got a bad attitude tonight."

"You have one every night," Stephanie said, brushing past Bischoff on her way to her table as she set out to oversee the show.

She sat down at her desk, but there was really nothing to do since this was a SmackDown match and she wasn't technically in charge of that. So she sat back in her chair and watched Benoit and Orlando Jordan go at it for the U.S. Title. Edge and Matt were the next match on the card, and she expected that to be nothing but a grudge match. That was just an f-upped situation right there and she didn't even want to try and mediate that match because she knew that all Matt was out for was revenge, and since she didn't like Edge, she was content to let that one unfold at will.

Christian unfortunately had been caught by his brother, who was now detailing how badly he was going to kick Matt's ass. Christian ignored him as he looked towards Lita, who was sitting quietly in the corner, seeming to contemplate something. She looked reserved and he could only imagine what was running through her mind right now.

Lita was tired of the charade that she was putting up, but what could she do, realistically? There was nothing and she was prepared to see Edge kick Matt's ass in a few minutes. He was grabbing her hand now and she gave a rueful smile to Christian. Christian picked up on it, but he didn't want to do anything right now. It was indirectly because of Lita that there was so much turmoil in his life at the moment.

Trish popped into his brain again and he felt a pang in his chest. That happened often and sometimes he wondered if maybe his heart was simply breaking in two. He and Trish had not talked in over a month, and they hadn't seen each other either. He had heard from Stephanie and Chris that she was in Toronto and that was doing ok, which stung him. She had been at Raw a few weeks ago, by Stephanie's account and she had seemed happy.

And she had gone out with Carlito, but nothing seemed to be panning out from that. He was thankful for that. He hadn't really been paying attention to any other women, he tried, maybe thinking that he could move on or better yet make Trish jealous, but nothing seemed to be working. He knew at some point that he was going to have to get over his cowardice and talk to her. He was being childish, he knew, but he was confused and hurt and didn't know how to proceed. He thought he'd go see Stephanie, maybe she had some advice for him.

Stephanie was watching the match between Matt and Edge, silently rooting for Matt to kick Edge's teeth in. She cackled silently to herself at the thought. Sometimes she was so vindictive it scared her. She felt two arms wrap around her neck and she smiled at the screen before turning her head to see Chris squatting down next to her. She kissed him lightly, a soft smile turning up on her lips.

"Hey you," Stephanie cooed.

"I've been wanting to see you," Chris said.

"Why?"

"Oh, no reason, I just love you, nothing special," Chris said cheekily. Stephanie shook her head slightly, glancing back to see if the match was over. It seemed to be, and then she saw Matt getting helped into the back. She broke away from Chris for a second to go speak to an official and see what was going on.

Chris sat down in her chair while she was gone and saw Christian walking over and plopping himself down next to him. Chris expected him to say something, maybe a good luck for his match later tonight, which he was hoping to win and regain the belt that had so long eluded him. Christian didn't say anything and just folded his arms in front of his chest. Chris mimicked him and looked over at him.

"Hey," Chris said.

"I need to talk to Stephanie," Christian said plainly.

"Well, she's over there," Chris told him, gesturing at Stephanie with his elbow.

"I can see her."

"Ok then," Chris said, going back to being silent.

Stephanie shook her head at the brutality of that match, and she had a feeling that it wasn't going to be the last one. She had a feeling that Matt wouldn't stop until he had exacted his revenge on Edge. But in the end it was better that it happened in the ring rather than outside it and then have one of them end up in jail. She had never seen anyone as hurt as Matt was over this. He was just carrying this world of hurt and heaven help her, she didn't understand.

She expelled a long breath as she sat on Chris's lap, feeling him rest his hands on her hips. She smiled despite herself. She wanted to focus, even though the next match wasn't a Raw one. If she focused on work, then her mind wouldn't wander to…other things. Although she really wanted to think about…other things.

"Steph, can I talk to you?" Christian asked.

Stephanie looked to him, "Yeah, what about?"

"Trish, I need to know what to do."

"NOW you ask for help," Stephanie told him. "Christian talk to her, tell her you're not ready to get married and confess how you're feeling instead of making her feel like crap. That's what you should do, bing, bang, boom, you're done."

"Thanks, that's what I needed to hear," he said, getting up.

"Are you going to fly to Canada right now?" Chris asked.

"No, I'm just going to…I don't know, think," Christian said, wandering off.

"So…" Chris said to nobody in particular.

"So I've been thinking," Stephanie said, turning her body towards Chris, knowing she didn't have to watch the Eddie and Rey match.

"What a novel concept," Chris said, "What is this 'thinking' that you speak of?"

"Shut up," she said good-naturedly. "I was thinking that maybe, if you wanted that is, maybe we can take a vacation some time. Or maybe some time off or something."

Chris did not react the way that she thought he would. "Stephanie, are you ok?"

"What?" she asked, furrowing her brow.

"Is something wrong? Are you sick?" Chris asked, looking her over as if he could suddenly tell if there had been any change in her.

"Chris, I'm not sick."

"Then why would you want a vacation, why would you want to take time off from work? You have been tired lately? Did you go to the doctor while we were at home and not tell me? Is something wrong? Do you have a disease or something?" Chris asked, the questions the coming fast and furious from his mouth.

Stephanie grabbed one of his hands and rubbed it in between hers. "Chris, sweetie, I'm fine, I didn't go to the doctor and not tell you, that's absurd. And I've been tired from work, that's nothing unusual."

"Do you swear that you're not sick?" Chris asked, still obviously worried about his wife.

"Yes," Stephanie assured him again. "I'm not sick at all. I just thought…well, we never get time off and you've been hinting at it, and if you want, and I'm not saying tomorrow or anything, but maybe some time in the near future we can take a little time off. Do you realize that we have not had a real vacation, and I'm talking time off from work, not like Christmas or holidays, since we started dating? I cannot recall one vacation. We didn't even get a honeymoon after our wedding and well, don't you think that we deserve something?"

"You hate taking time off of work," Chris said suspiciously. "Has someone been harassing you? Have you not been getting along with your father? Why don't you tell me these things!"

Stephanie bit the inside of her cheek, trying to keep her temper in check. "Chris, nothing is wrong! I swear to God, I was just thinking that a vacation would not be a bad idea! We work so hard around here and we never get anything. You've never even been injured so you've really had no time off ever. Wouldn't it be nice to just get away for a while?"

"But you hate getting away," he said. "You hate anything that doesn't have to do with work."

Stephanie pretended to wring his neck in frustration. "Christopher Jericho, get it through your thick skull that even I get tired sometimes!"

"Well, I guess if it's what you want," Chris said slowly.

"I'm not saying we have to, I'm just saying…think about it, ok, I think time off would give us time to be you know…a real married couple."

"So we've been pretending for the past seven months?"

"Yes, we've just been pretending and now it's time for the real test, an actual married life where we reside in a house all of the time and sleep in one bed all the time, and not a different bed every night."

"Excuse me, Chris?" Stephanie and Chris looked up at Todd Grisham.

"What do you want?" Chris snapped, hating to be interrupted when he was with Stephanie.

"I just wanted to know if you would do an interview with me."

"Can't you see I'm busy," Chris said, irritated at the other man. "I'm with my wife at the moment."

"Just go do the interview, I've got to work anyways," Stephanie told him. "We can talk about this later."

"You sure?"

"Positive, but um…before you go, can I tell you a secret?"

"Hey, what's this about secrets? You're not supposed to keep secrets from me at all. I'm insulted that you would even have a secret!"

Stephanie put her hand over his mouth, "Shut up, or you'll have to wait to hear it."

"Mmphhh," Chris mumbled from behind her hand.

Stephanie grinned, bright and cheery. She leaned up to Chris's ear, cupping her two hands around it so that nobody else would be able to hear what she was going to say even though only Todd Grisham was around at the moment. She whispered something into his ear and his eyes turned intrigued, and almost disbelieving. He pulled away from Stephanie and she gave him a silly look and a laugh.

"Oh really?" he asked nonchalantly, almost joking with her.

"You calling me a liar?" Stephanie asked.

"Yes, I think I am."

"You just mull on that for a while Mr. Jericho," Stephanie said slyly, folding her arms across her chest and taking a very haughty position as Chris gave her a surreptitious once over. He settled back up at her eyes and clutched his stomach for a second.

"I think I'm going to have to Mrs. Jericho," Chris said, giving her a spontaneous hug that she wasn't expecting. "I love you."

"I know that you do, now go get interviewed."

Chris walked over, suddenly in a better mood. Todd basically asked him what he was thinking at the moment, but truthfully he wasn't much thinking about his match at the moment. He was thinking about Stephanie, but forced himself to focus on the task at hand. He went on to say how he was going to win, because he honestly believed that he was going to. There was no reason why he shouldn't, after all, he had beaten The Rock and Steve Austin in one night, and that was an amazing feat. (Ever notice how Kurt always refers to his broken freaking neck at the Olympics and Jericho always refers to his wins over The Rock and Austin in one night? No? Well, now you can.)

He was going to take Cena's title and bring prestige back to the WWE. He was going to be the banner head and be much, much better at it than Cena was. He was better than Cena in every way imaginable. Hell, he did own part of the company, and so it was only fitting that he should be the one with the title. If he were a more…well if he was like Hunter, he would've had the title stripped from Cena and put on him. It only seemed fair.

After the interview he went back over to Stephanie, who was watching Kurt's match very intensely. He was content to just watch her watch Kurt. She had the cutest look on her face as she watched. She was so concentrated on the match, her lips pursed a little. His eyes slid down her body, settling on one specific place and he smiled, knowing that it was all his. She was all his. Whatever happened, she would always be all his.

"Yay!" Stephanie cheered, raising her arms over her head. "He won!"

"Huh?"

"Kurt won," Stephanie said, getting up and rushing at Kurt when he came backstage, despite his sweatiness. They did a little boogie dance together as Stephanie spotted the newest diva checking out Kurt appreciatively. Stephanie leant into him and whispered discreetly. "New diva is checking you out."

Kurt stole a glimpse at the blonde and didn't know whether she was checking him out or in disgust of him. She was pretty and Stephanie nudged him none too gently. He had a feeling that the Stephanie of old was going to come out, the schemer in her was going to be let loose. He groaned inwardly, wishing that Stephanie had not seen that. Well, maybe if Chris won tonight then she would be able to focus on that, and not on him for once.

Unfortunately for the world, Chris did not win his very hard fought match. Kurt, Stephanie and Christian all thought that he was going to pull it out. They had no reason not to believe it because Chris is just amazing. Once again, he was denied, and he was used to that by now. Because God forbid he ever get another turn at being the champion. And what was worse was the fact that there were cheers for him, he could hear those cheers for him, letting him know that there were people out there who wanted him to win.

He thought he deserved it, he really did. He had put his heart and his soul out there tonight, and he was denied…again. He hated Cena, oh how he hated Cena with a passion. Was Cena not the same guy who debuted as a little punk in his matching short shorts and boots, looking for all the world a fool? Yes, Chris remembered him as such. And Chris had not forgotten when Cena had slapped him when he was a damn rookie. No, he hadn't forgotten that, and he still hated that s.o.b.

But there were other things to think of, yes there were. There were other aspects of his life that he could focus on. Or he could go after the title again…he could do whatever the hell he wanted. He was part owner of this company and he had a feeling that pretty soon, Vince would want to do whatever he wanted. Chris was starting to feel power surging through his veins and it scared him how much he liked it. He was craving it, and it scared him.

Stephanie looked sad, despite the smile. She was hanging off the arm of her father, who also looked slightly disappointed. She broke away from her father and went over to hug her husband. He pulled her tightly against him, so tightly that his hands were resting on the sides of her torso rather than on her back. He gave her a slight rub and then pulled away where she caught his lips for a brief moment.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be."

"But if I hadn't…you know…with…I probably distracted you."

He shook his head, "No, there was no distraction. Sure, it had the potential to distract me, but I just got caught up with the referee and it was my mistake."

"You were great out there, they wanted you to win, they all wanted you, I know they did," Stephanie said with hope in her voice. "They wanted to cheer for you sweetie, they really did. I know that I…and…everyone here wanted you to win."

"I wanted to win too, but hopefully they'll be other chances."

"I know there will be…and not even because I can get you a title shot at whim."

"Hey Vince," Chris said, over Stephanie's shoulder.

"Sorry about your loss."

"It's ok, as long as it made you money right?"

"Well, there's that," Vince chuckled. "I just wanted to say hello, but I don't want to bother you two."

"Daddy, we'll have lunch tomorrow ok?" Stephanie said.

"Of course, and Chris, I'd like to see you there too," Vince said. Chris nodded, not even letting go of Stephanie in this entire time. When Vince was gone, Chris leaned his forehead against Stephanie's and he couldn't stop the smile forming on his lips, despite the devastation of his very close loss.

"Why are you smiling?" Stephanie said, even as she fought her own smile.

"Oh nothing, just something a little birdie told me," he answered.

"I never should've told you."

"Yes you should've," Chris said, kissing her nose.

"Why don't we cut out of here early, and I'll let you pamper me in the hotel room," Stephanie said suggestively, raising an eyebrow enticingly.

"What has gotten into you? Skipping on work…wanting to go on vacations…"

"I think you know exactly what's gotten into me."

"Come on, let's go before Bischoff finds me and bitches me out."

"You can deal with that tomorrow."


	51. Sad, Sad, Sad, August 22, 2005

A/N: Well…yeah….I have nothing really to say about…anything…or I might get really, really upset…and nobody wants that.

So I'll just say, enjoy, and please, please, please review because I have no idea what I'm doing anymore, and I'm pretty much just going to wing it from here until Jericho or Stephanie deign us with their presence again. So PLEASE review, I'm like begging you, because now this story is going to be…pretty much all me. Man, I miss him already. --sigh--

* * *

"Are you sure that you want to do this?"

Stephanie nodded and looked at him. "I think it's the right thing to do for us. I mean, you think it's the right thing to do for us too right?"

"I think under the circumstances it's the right thing to do, yes," Chris told her. "I mean, if it's what you want to do that is."

"I think it is," Stephanie said, unsure of herself. "Do you think it is?"

"I think it is."

"So if we both think it's a good idea, why does it feel so…weird?" she asked him, searching his eyes to see if they held any kind of answer.

"Because we're not used to it?" he ventured to guess. "We're not used to time off, to being…normal people."

"Yeah…"

"Steph, you'll still have a job, you can work out of the house, you know your father told you that one time that you could always do that, with your behind-the-scenes job."

"That's true," she said. "It's just the adrenaline that I'm going to miss, but this is good too. We get to travel, and not every week, but we can go somewhere, like Paris, would you take me to Paris Chris?"

"I'd take you anywhere that you want to go," Chris told her, kissing her cheek. "You just name it and we'll go there."

"So this will be good, it'll be good for us, this being a normal couple thing. I mean, yeah, it'll be good," she said, still trying to assure herself it was the right thing to do. Sure, she had been the one to come up with the idea in the first, but she didn't think that it would be so hard to follow through. But she had her reasons…oh boy, did she have her reasons.

"It WILL be good."

"Chris, do you realize, that we've never had a normal life?" Stephanie said rather suddenly. "I mean, seriously, our entire lives, we've never had a normal life."

"What are you talking about?"

"Your father played hockey while you were growing up, so you had a father who was known publicly, and so did I, and then with wrestling, we've been all over the map, we've led these weird, strange, vagabond lives. Oh my God, what if we don't know how to live a normal life! Wait, you have your music, you'll still be doing something weird, I'm going to be living a normal life!"

"Steph, no you won't, you'll travel with me…when you can, that is," he told her, staring down at her. "And yeah, for the most part, we'll be…normal, whatever that is. I hardly think we're going to become a picture for Suburbia."

"Tell me again we're doing the right thing," Stephanie pleaded with him. Her eyes were worried, and he wanted nothing more that to just kiss her eyelids and make it disappear, but how could he?

"We're doing the right thing for all of us," Chris said and Stephanie gave him a wistful smile. She hugged him tightly, assured again that they were making the right decision. They were going to walk away from awhile, just a while, just to see, and explore other things.

"I love wrestling," Stephanie whispered as she pulled away.

"I love it too baby, but…"

"I know," Stephanie said. "I have to try this for a while. I never said that I wouldn't try anything. I'm willing to try this…life for a while. And if I hate it, I can go back and I can argue with Bischoff, and I can control everybody, and I can…do what I do best."

"Yes, you can…for the most part anyways."

"Yeah," she nodded quickly. "Eventually, I was going to have to stop traveling, I mean, with…kids and stuff like that, I would've…in the future of course, you know, desk job."

"Uh huh," he said. "So are you ready to go have breakfast with your father?"

"Yeah, and he'll probably get angry at our decision, and then fire me."

"He's not going to fire you."

"He could, he's done it before," Stephanie pointed out. "I mean, he's like that you know. He gets these mood swings, except they're more like phases. Maybe he's in a mean phase today and he's going to fire me, or fire you!"

"He's not firing anybody, Stephanie, we need some time off, it's a reasonable request, look at that jackass ex-husband of yours."

"That's true, and Daddy let him have time off," Stephanie said, reasoning in her own head. "Ok, time to meet our maker."

"YOUR maker, certainly not mine," Chris said, shuddering at the thought of having Vince as an actual father. It was bad enough that he had him as a father-in-law. Luckily he had been dealing with Vince for quite some time before he got with Stephanie, or he would've been in for the shock of his life meeting Stephanie's parents.

Stephanie stood up and helped Chris off the couch. He wrapped his arm around her waist, resting it lightly on her stomach as she grabbed her purse. They went down to the parking garage and into their rental car to drive to the place they had said they were going to meet Vince. Stephanie watched the scenery pass by, and it was definitely different from the usual. This was actually very historical.

"Are you sure?" she spoke breathlessly.

"Stephanie, I'm sure!" Chris said, laughing even as he was yelling at her. "If you really don't want to, we won't."

"No, I'm…just…working it out in my mind. We won't come home to spoiled milk anymore, I mean, that's strange, very…strange."

"Ok, so our food is going to be fresh, is there anything else you're worrying about?"

"No, I'm good for now."

"Good, cause we're here."

Chris had a difficult time finding a parking place, and just opted for a parking garage even though he didn't want to. Stephanie practically took the wheel from him and drove him into a parking garage, to which he just grit his teeth and took. He wasn't going to upset Stephanie right now. Not with everything they were having to go through at the moment.

"Finally," Stephanie muttered as she let herself out of the car.

Chris jumped out and walked behind her, letting her walk ahead of him. She walked to the restaurant and instantly spotted her father. He expected her to head on over to him, but she waited for Chris and when he caught up with her, she clutched at his hand, seemingly trying to break it if her grip said anything to him. They walked over to Vince and he stood up to say hello to them as they sat down.

"So how are you two?" Vince asked.

"Dad, there's something that Chris and I would like to discuss with you," Stephanie said, sounding for all the world a consummate professional.

"Sounds serious?"

"It is," Stephanie said. "Would you like to speak Chris, or should I handle it?"

"Go ahead," he said, squeezing her hand.

"Stephanie, what's going on? Is everything ok?"

"Everything's fine Dad, it's just…well, Chris and I…are exercising our right to take a leave of absence," Stephanie said slowly, pronouncing every word in an almost staccato fashion.

"Huh?"

"You heard me Dad, Chris and I…we, WE decided that we'd like to take some time off. We're not sure yet how much, but we want to take some time off to be with each other, and maybe travel and…other things."

"How is your marriage going?" Vince asked suspiciously.

"Daddy, there's nothing wrong in our marriage," Stephanie explained. "We just want some time to ourselves. I mean, we got married and two days later, we're working. We've never taken time off Dad, and we just want a little bit of time to ourselves. That's all. I mean, we won't completely disappear. I'll still look over the accounts and everything. Just like how Shane is working at the offices, I can work from home. Daddy, even you've taken leaves."

"I'm not happy about this," Vince said, looking between the two of them. "I…I'm just not happy about this."

"But you'll allow it."

"How can I stop you? You both have ownership in this company, yes, you're both under contract, but as part majority owners you can technically do whatever you want. So even if I could stop you, you can just say you won't do it."

"Daddy, I'm sorry, I just…" Stephanie looked to Chris for help.

"We feel like we need a break."

"Yeah, a break," Stephanie told her father.

"For how long?"

"We don't know, but definitely for a while," Stephanie nodded, seeing Chris nod too, and rubbing the back of her hand with his thumb.

"Well, ok then."

"Daddy, we've mulled this over all night long, we both stayed up until like three talking about it. I mean, this wasn't an easy thing for either of us. I mean, I love my work, and Chris loves to wrestle, but you can't fault us for wanting to take some time off. Daddy, you know that Chris has not been injured one serious time in six years, and you know that I have not been out of this company unless I was forced to leave, and Chris is going to be thirty-five—"

"Hey, shut up," Chris said, making a face.

Stephanie groaned, "And I'm going to be…an age. And we deserve this."

"I do agree that you deserve this," Vince said. "Well, I've heard what you have to say, and I have no choice but to support your decision, no matter how wrong I think it is."

"Just had to sneak that in there, huh Daddy?"

"I thought I'd try one last time."

"Not going to work."

"Ok then, well at least let me treat you to breakfast."

The breakfast was enjoyable for the most part, and after that Stephanie and Chris piled into their car and started the drive towards Virginia and the show tonight. Vince had told Chris to talk to Bischoff about thinking up a convincing way to get Chris off of television. They didn't think him telling everyone he needed some time off would really get at the fans. Stephanie and Chris tried to think of things to do to get him off of television as they drove.

"You can pretend to get hurt," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, but I would love to just have my streak of not being injured stay there you know."

"Yeah," Stephanie said, and then grimaced. Chris looked over at her, sensing that something wasn't right with her.

"Everything ok?"

"No, I think I'm getting sick."

"Steph, do you want me to stop? Or you know, do something else? What do you need?"

"Nothing, I just need to stare straight forward and not think so hard. I'll be fine, I'm just feeling nauseous. Your driving is horrible."

"I'm sorry, geez," Chris said, returning his hands to the wheel. "Nothing I ever do is right."

"That's right sweetie, I'm the one who is always right," Stephanie said, then winced again.

"Are you sure you don't want to stop?"

"I'm sure Chris, I'm totally fine. I'm just a little nauseous. It's not exactly a short trip from D.C. to here, so I was bound to get car sick."

"I told you not to have the extra hash browns, that's what's probably making you sick right now."

"It wasn't the extra hash browns," Stephanie said. "I was hungry, you knew that."

"Fine, fine, we won't talk for the rest of the trip so that you can settle your stomach. I think I have a leftover Sprite in the backseat if you want something to settle your stomach."

"No, I think I'm fine with my water, now shut up."

Chris actually kept his promise and didn't talk to her for the rest of the trip. He just turned a CD on and sung along, Stephanie trying not to get sick from his singing. For someone with a music career, he could sometimes sound so bad. She rested her head against the window and the next thing she knew, she had fallen asleep. She didn't even notice Chris reach out his hand and caress her hair.

She could feel someone shaking her shoulder and she groggily turned towards her left. Chris was sitting there and she blinked, trying to get the fog out of her brain. "What?"

"We're here," Chris told her. "And I don't think you were planning to sleep in the car all night were you. Might get uncomfortable and there's no blanket, unless you want to recline the seat all the way done. I don't know if that's your cup of tea, but you know, whatever floats your boat."

"Shove it," Stephanie said.

"Mood swings," Chris nodded. "I remember these."

Stephanie just alighted from the car and grabbed her briefcase, leaving Chris in her dust. She was still tired from the car trip and she stretched her arms a little, cracking her neck from the stiff position it had been in. This let Chris catch up with her and he grabbed her briefcase from her and held her hand with his free one. She had a feeling that he didn't want to break contact with her at any point, like she would flitter from his side if he didn't hold onto her.

"Ok, so Bischoff first then," Stephanie said as they walked around, looking for their own locker room. They found it and Chris threw his things inside before they went to go find Bischoff's office. "He's going to be simultaneously pissed and happy at the same time."

"Yeah, I'd be pissed too if I couldn't see your beautiful face every week."

"Cheesy," Stephanie said, giggling. "Kurt's going to be devastated you know."

"Shit, I forgot about Kurt," Chris said. "We're going to have to visit a lot. He's going to be so sad. But Trish is coming back soon, so he'll have her."

"That's true. Damn it, can Kurt come live with us so he's around?" Stephanie said, jutting out her bottom lip to pout at him.

"If you want," Chris said, giving in to her. "But you're going to have to clean up after him, not me…I don't want a pet."

They stood in front of Bischoff's door for a second before Stephanie pushed it open. Bischoff was happy to see Chris, as usual, and indifferent to seeing Stephanie. He gave her a nod, but nothing else. Stephanie sighed; she definitely wasn't going to miss dealing with Bischoff. Although it had been fun to best him when she was the General Manager, but working together was just not as fun.

"So, what's on tap for tonight?" Bischoff said, beginning the meeting.

"Well Eric, first of all, I have some news that will make you extremely happy. This is the third to last time that you will have to work with me," she told him, "at least for a while."

"What? Are you firing me?"

"Chris and I are leaving. I gave my father my two weeks notice. So in two weeks, I'm off the clock."

Bischoff laughed and looked between them. "Ok, very funny Stephanie, but my dreams never come true, so when are you going to pull out the hidden camera and tell me this is all a joke?"

"No joke Eric," Stephanie said. "We're outta here in two weeks. We want to try living a normal life, whatever that means. So it's all on you. Unless I want to come back, which I have full permission to do at any given moment."

"Same with me," Chris said.

"Ok, Stephanie I don't care about, but Chris, come on, we need you around here," Bischoff said, turning to the man.

"Yeah, and I kind of want to be with my wife, so I'm leaving."

"Come on, this is Stephanie we're talking about right now. Stephanie McMahon."

"Yes, my wife, the woman to whom I am married. What makes you think that I would want her to go and me to stay? I mean, does that even make sense to you? Doesn't to me, so I will also be taking a leave."

"I don't accept this."

"I'm part owner, you don't have to accept it. We cleared it with Vince, its fine," Chris explained.

"I can't believe this," Bischoff said angrily. "Damn it Stephanie, just when I thought that you were going to be leaving and my life would finally be free and clear you have to take your husband down with you."

"I'm sorry," Chris said. "But do you not see me here? I love my wife, and WE want some time off…it's not solely her decision."

"Oh, but I bet it was her idea. Her way of screwing me over!"

"Eric, I'm not screwing you over. You have a competent roster, I should know, I run this damn show. Look, yeah, Chris is a big loss, I agree, but you have other people. And Hunter, God help me, well, he'll be back soon and you can cater to his every whim and make him out to be some Greek god, which is scary, but that's what you can do, so…do that. You'll be fine. Seriously, it's not forever."

"And if it turns into forever? Hmm…what then?"

"We'll just…own you then," Chris said with a smile. "Now look, Vince wants me to go out with a bang, or something that is…unique…or something, and I don't know what we can do."

"I'll fire you," Bischoff said, too quickly. He saw Stephanie and Chris staring at him strangely, obviously keen to the fact that it had slipped off his tongue way too quickly. "If I can't fire Stephanie for real, then I think firing her husband, even if it's fake is the next best thing."

"Oh Eric, how I'm going to miss you the most," Stephanie said sarcastically, "So before I want to shoot you, let's think of something."

Stephanie was dreading having to tell Kurt that she was leaving. He had only joined Raw such a short while ago, and he had been so happy, and she had been so excited. She was starting to rethink this entire thing, and all because of Kurt Angle. But it wasn't like it was going to be the last time she ever saw him. There were going to be plenty of times, in the future, in the near future. She wasn't leaving for two weeks, so she would see him next Monday. And her and Chris would visit, they loved being here.

Stephanie knocked on Kurt's door, knowing that he was ecstatic over his win last night at SummerSlam. He answered the door and he had his gold medal on around his neck and she laughed quietly at that. He pulled her into the room and hugged her, the happiness emanating off of him in droves. She hugged him back, feeling the medal press into her body. This was going to be so hard.

"Kurt, we need to talk."

"About what?"

"Me, and you…and Chris," Stephanie said, leading Kurt over to the couch. She had told Chris that she would take care of telling Kurt. She knew that she wouldn't get into a fight with Kurt, but Chris might.

"Um…Steph…I'm not into that."

Stephanie looked confused for a moment before it dawned on her. "Oh, eww, Kurt, gross, eww, I can't believe you thought…eww."

"Well then don't start off a conversation with having to talk about me and you guys…so really, what's up?"

"Chris and I are taking a leave of absence from the company, Chris starting tonight and I'm starting two weeks from now, and we don't know when we'll be back."

"Stephanie, is everything ok?"

"Why does everyone keep asking that?" Stephanie asked, exasperated by the constant questioning. "I'm fine!"

"But you would NEVER, EVER just walk away, Stephanie, are you sick!" Kurt stood up, pacing the floor, back and forth, looking crazily around the room. "I mean, if you're sick, you can tell me you know, I'm your best friend! I'm your best friend Stephanie! Do you need a kidney, a lung, anything, I'll give you anything that I can give you. Oh God, is Chris sick? Is he the one sick? He's leaving because he's sick right? I mean, there's no other explanation for this!"

"Kurt, I'm pregnant!" Stephanie blurted out, then covered her mouth with her hand, her eyes wide.

Kurt looked at her, "What?"

"Damn it, I told Chris that I wouldn't tell anyone, and he wasn't going to tell anyone, and we wanted it to be our secret for a little while, a couple months, that's all," Stephanie rambled. "I mean, I swore that I wouldn't tell anyone, and now I've told you, and it's all shot to hell."

"Steph, you're…really?"

Stephanie clucked her tongue. "Yup, it's true. At least I'm pretty positive it's true. I just have to have a doctor confirm it, and then…we proceed from there."

"You're serious?"

"Kurt, keep this secret ok, and I guess I can tell Chris I told you, but you cannot tell anyone. Nobody knows, I only told Chris last night, after HE thought I was sick and dying, and that was the reason that I wanted to leave. But it's not…I just…need some sense of normalcy with all of this. And traveling all the time while my feet and ankles are swelling and back is aching and I'm throwing up at random, that's not fun for me," Stephanie said. "I mean, I just…I want to…be…able to just, relax, do you get what I'm saying?"

"You're having a baby."

"Well, hopefully, yeah, that was the outcome we were hoping for."

"But you and Chris…you guys didn't want them so soon, you wanted to wait a couple of years…"

Stephanie sighed. "Sometimes the strangest things creep up on you. This was…about the most unexpected thing that could've happened to the both of us. We didn't want this to happen, I'll tell you that, but it did, and I'm not going to undo it for anything in the world. Yes, it would've been ideal if this had happened, two, three, five years from now…but it's happening now, and…we can't stop it from happening. We wouldn't want to."

"Wow…I don't know what to say, but…why the big secret?"

"If my father got wind of this…that he was getting his very first grandchild, the heir to the McMahon throne, the future of this business…he'd probably go announce it to the world…and well…what if something happens, God forbid. Chris and I just want to wait it out, make sure that everything goes according to plan and then when the time is right, well, we won't be able to hide it."

"You know I'm happy for you right, even if this does take you away from me."

"I know you're happy for me," Stephanie said. "I just…can't keep my damn mouth shut around you Kurt."

"So why is Chris leaving?"

"He wants to be there with me," Stephanie said with a sweet smile. "He said he'd never forgive himself if he missed anything. And once I knock this sucker out…well, I don't know…we'll figure something out."

Kurt walked over to her and tentatively hugged her. Stephanie hugged him back, glad that she was able to reveal her secret to her best friend. She knew that Kurt would keep her secret. She knew that this kid would have some of the best influences in the world. It would have an Olympic gold medalist for an uncle for God's sakes, and billionaires for a grandfather and grandmother, and an ex-hockey player for another grandfather.

"Kurt, I'm not going to break," she told him, hugging him tighter. "You know, you haven't said that Chris and I will make great parents."

"I would tell you that if I believed that."

"Hey!" Stephanie said, mouth agape as she pulled away. "We'll be…interesting."

"That's for sure. So I really can't tell Trish or Christian?"

"No," Stephanie said. "Everyone will find out eventually. I dread the reactions from our parents. Chris's mom is going to go ballistic. She has been haranguing him for grandchildren forever, before he even started dating me, and my parents, well, they just want someone to carry on the family business."

"Well, you know, it'll get some good wrestling genes."

"Hopefully," Stephanie said. "If I weren't pregnant though…there's no chance either one of us would be leaving, but its right…this is right."

"I agree, it's a good reason. It's a very good reason and I can't begrudge you for wanting to make it. I'm going to miss you so much Stephanie."

"I'll visit, don't worry, I still own ten percent of the company, so I can come back whenever, and I will, until I get so big and so cranky that Chris will want to shove me out the door and then lock it and make me fly to Connecticut to get away from him. But when that happens, you can just come visit me, and see how ugly I'm going to get."

"You? Ugly? Not possible," Kurt told her. "Congratulations Steph, really. You know…"

"Oh God, you're going to get mushy on me."

"You were the prettiest girl I had ever seen," Kurt told her and Stephanie waited for the barrage to hit her. "I really did want to steal you from Hunter. But you would not budge, so I settled for being your friend and I never looked back. And…you have changed from pretty to beautiful, and that's what you are now."

"Go write for Hallmark Kurt," Stephanie said, punching him in the arm. "Now I have a show to run…for one of the last times ever…and I'm going to savor that."

"You know that you're not going to be able to stay away right?"

"Oh I know, I give it two months before I come back, against Chris's wishes, but yeah, that's the time frame I'm giving myself."

"And what about Chris?"

"He wants to do other things, and that's fine, but my heart is here. I'll see you later Kurt, we'll have a late dinner."

"Not pickles and ice cream or anything right?"

"No, that's gross…I'm in the mood for butterscotch and tuna actually."

She left with a laugh and the image of Kurt's green face in her mind. She wasn't actually craving that stuff, but she was a little thirsty and went to get a water. She wondered if Christian was here tonight, she had forgotten to ask Kurt if he had seen him. She'd ask Chris if he knew, but he was probably still with Bischoff ironing out everything they were going to do tonight. He was actually going to throw a match. Chris Jericho was going to throw a match to Cena, just to be with her.

She walked into catering and grabbed a water bottle from a large bin containing them and soda and other beverages. She sat down at a table, wiping off the excess water from her hands onto her pants. She sipped at her water and just took in the surroundings. She was going to miss it, wrestling was such an adventure and such a different life than anyone was meant to lead. It took a certain person to want to live this life day in and day out. She had been that person since she was five years old.

Now she was on a new adventure, and this one…she had no training for. She had modeled WWF clothing before she hit puberty. She had gone to college with the intent to go into the company, no matter how much her parents said she didn't have to. She had been on-screen for the better part of her twenties, and she had been married and divorced, and it had all unfolded in a wrestling ring. But this…this was not something she knew.

Stephanie McMahon prided herself on being the best; she excelled when she knew she was the one in control. For all of Bischoff's hard edged words and demands, they both knew she called the shots. Her father had tried to rein her in when he had fought her in that "I Quit" match; he had tried to stifle this burning desire to be the best, but it hadn't worked, because here she was…in charge. She didn't know what it was going to be like to have to be at the whim of someone else. Stephanie McMahon did not cater to anyone's whims, not even her husband's most of the time.

She didn't even notice that Chris had come looking for her. She looked sad or something, Chris couldn't quite put his finger on it. He sat next to her and rubbed her lower back. She turned to him, a look of recognition on her face, like she hadn't expected to see him. But she had thought he was still with Bischoff.

"Show started and you were nowhere to be found," he told her. "I would think you'd want to be there…you know, before we leave."

"I do," she said, standing up quickly, forgoing her water bottle as she quickly walked to the table where the show was running and her headphones were sitting there, unused, untouched, waiting for her. She slipped them on and slipped into a world that felt right.

Chris knew that this was going to be hard for her, no matter what she said to the contrary. She was giving up the thing she loved the second most in the world. It was for a great cause, but you trying taking something away that you love and then not being the least bit upset over it. It's hard to do and this was hard to do. Chris just sat next to her, rubbing her leg softly, letting her know that he was there. He remembered he had to talk to Bischoff and walked away, letting Stephanie work as Chris Masters and HBK had a confrontation.

The talk with Bischoff was all part of the plan and Stephanie knew that as she watched, wondering if it was the right thing to do for Chris to leave. When he came back, she took off her headphones, leaving her assistants to work as she turned to her husband.

"You don't have to go through with this you know. I mean…don't you think our presence should still be felt, even when I'm gone. You don't have to go too. We can just…have you here and me at home, and then you don't have to leave on my account."

"I'm not just leaving on your account," Chris said quietly, leaning towards her for this very private conversation.

"I know, but I don't have to leave…I can stay, at least for several more months, you know, and then after…everything, I can come back, so really, I'd only have to be gone for…three months tops, not like nine months, no, ten months, do you think that it's ok to for a newborn to travel at like a month old?"

"How should I know?" Chris said. "But Steph, I thought we wanted to do this right?"

"What IS right after all?" Stephanie said, pushing past the second thoughts and third thoughts and heading straight for fourth thoughts. "I mean, why does right have to be a certain way? Right can be…it can be OUR way…you know, I mean, like traveling and working and everything…"

"Stephanie, how much stress do you get at this job? And Hunter isn't even around…unless this is a cheap ploy like Hunter's was."

"Oh don't even joke, you know that was to get away from him."

"Steph, I'm saying, you're stressed here, and you don't get enough sleep, and you don't eat at regular times, we eat dinner at eleven at night, on Mondays, and some of the other days of the week, we work long hours, and weird hours, and how good is that going to be for…everyone?"

"You're right, you're right, you're right, you're right," Stephanie said in one breath. "I'm being silly. I mean, our schedule does not afford this…thing…and it wouldn't be prudent of me to continue with my job…even though I could."

"I know you could, but you're looking out for someone else's best interest."

"I'm not used to that."

"Lord, I know," Chris said, kissing her softly. "Steph, it'll all work out. I'm sorry."

"What for?"

"Doing this to you. I know this isn't how our life was supposed to go right now. You were supposed to be ruling with an iron fist, and I was supposed to be kicking ass in front of people."

"You didn't do anything to me that we haven't done a million times before, this time you were just lucky."

"You're happy about this?"

Stephanie looked down, embarrassed, her cheeks turning a cute shade of pink. She avoided Chris's eyes as she answered. "I'd be lying if I said I haven't thought about this since I was seven years old."

"Hey, I've been thinking about this since I was twenty-seven years old, when my mom started really putting the pressure on me to find a wife. But on a brighter note, I'm happy too. I mean, really, what's not to be happy about. Another wrestler, this is a good business decision."

"Wrestler?"

He leaned in closer, "It's going to be a boy."

"What? How do you know?" Stephanie said sarcastically.

"Because I do. I'm saying it right now, and I'll be saying it right until he comes to meet us. It's a boy. It's a him, and I'm going to be saying it's a him to everyone, once we tell them. And I'll talk to him and say him, cause it's a him."

"And if it's a her?"

"We'll name her Him, and then problem solved," Chris said cheekily, Stephanie just shaking her head at the antics of her husband. "But I know it's a boy, I have a feeling. He'll be just like his old man."

"Obnoxious, cocky, stubborn, egotistical…oh yeah, I'm looking forward to that."

"Yeah, well it's better than you."

"I beg to differ…oh, but uh, speaking of…telling everyone…I kind of spilled the beans to Kurt," Stephanie said, giving a laugh, like it was supposed to make Chris laugh. Instead, he just slapped his forehead.

"Stephanie," he whined. "We promised to keep this to ourselves."

"I know, but he REALLY thought I was sick. I had to tell him, he's Kurt, he's our best friend. If anyone should know, it's Kurt, he's going to be the godfather after all."

"Ok, but nobody else, alright?"

"Hey, I'm not Christian, I CAN keep a secret."

"You didn't with this one," he pointed out rather obviously.

"Ok, but now my mouth is really shut, I swear," she said, holding up her left hand. "I swear that he's the only one and you should've seen him, he was shocked, but happy for us."

"Well good then," Chris said. "I mean, God forbid I want to see Kurt's reaction."

"Oh go on and get dressed for later, I have work," Stephanie said, pushing him out of his seat.

Chris stumbled to his feet and went to his locker room. Luckily he didn't start undoing his pants as he opened the door because Kurt was in there, sitting on the couch watching the television. He was still in his ring attire, but he wasn't sweating and he did have jogging pants on over his wrestling outfit. Chris was surprised to see him since his match had ended like ten minutes ago.

"So I heard," Kurt said, "Nice work buddy."

"Shut up Angle," Chris said good-naturedly. "She's my wife, I'm allowed."

"This is insane, you know that right?"

He scoffed, "Are you kidding me? After Stephanie told me, I was like…I didn't know how to act. But I'm getting used to it…slowly."

"You are going to have to love someone more than yourself."

"Oh God, that's not possible," Chris said to him. "This is just life you know."

"Yeah, congratulation, I believe this calls for a celebratory hug," Kurt said, opening his arms. Chris knew this was coming and went over and hugged Kurt briefly.

"Get a girlfriend Kurt, seriously, go hug a girl, and not me, my wife and son will get jealous."

"Son?"

"Yes, and I refuse to believe otherwise, so don't even get me started."

"So you don't want a daughter?"

"It's not that I don't WANT one, I'm just not having one," Chris told him. "It's a gut feeling Kurt. I just KNOW it's going to be a boy."

"You're jinxing yourself now, it's going to be a girl, just because you're so adamant that it's going to be a boy."

"Yeah, my son and I are going to beat you up when he gets here. Never too early to start training."

"Great, I look forward to it," Kurt said, shaking Chris's hand. "So are you going to be one of those expectant dad's who reads all the books and stuff?"

"I don't know," Chris laughed. "You're getting way ahead of me here Kurt."

"Says the man who claims to know the sex of your child who is…how old…"

"Two weeks."

"And you know this for sure?"

"No, but that's what we think until we go to the doctor on…Wednesday I think Stephanie said. It's two to four weeks. Steph took that like…I don't know, some pregnancy test. I'm not up on those, you know."

Kurt started laughing and Chris looked confused. "You know what I just remembered?"

"What?"

"The time when you were business partners with Stephanie and you said that Hunter wasn't man enough to get Stephanie pregnant, and now look at her."

Chris chuckled, "Oh man, I remember that, it was our first official night of being business partners, and you came out there and challenged me and you tried to steal Stephanie away from me, but she didn't want to go with you…and then you screwed up my ankle and Stephanie was worried about me, and I remember we went backstage and she actually checked my ankle for me and I think that was really the first time I had ever seen compassion from her."

"And now…this."

"Yeah…this," Chris said, really feeling the capacity of the situation. This was huge, this was bigger than huge, it was monumental. "Strange how life turns out."

"Before you and Steph leave…you have to do one thing," Kurt said. "And this is absolutely imperative."

"What?"

"You have to gloat…and I'm talking about Trips, you HAVE to gloat, and I have to be there. I have to see that."

"Holy mother of…you're right. Oh my God…but no, wait, I can't…I can gloat when we tell everyone, but not now…oh, but I can definitely get him to come next week and then I can punch him or kick his ass, legit style, for being a jackass to my wife. Awesome idea Kurt," Chris said, slapping him a high-five. "Now get the hell out of here so I can change."

"Fine, fine."

"Oh hey, Kurt, before I go…do me one favor, while I'm gone."

"What is it?"

"Kick Cena's ass and take his title for me."

Stephanie wished Chris luck before his match, knowing that it would be his last for a while. She knew with that would come the complaining. When Hunter had been out of the ring with his injury, the first thing he noticed above the pain in his leg was the fact he was sore…just from wrestling. When you wrestled every week, you didn't have time to let your muscles get sore, and she knew she was going to get Chris complaining about the soreness.

She watched the match, proud that he had gone out there, despite knowing that he was going to lose, and still…still he put on a show for all those people. He put on a show that they would remember. A wise person once said, "Today was a day, just like any other day, and I was there." For Chris Jericho, this was a day, just like any other day, he was there. And he showed to the world, he proved to everyone that he was just…there…like any other day. He didn't always have to stand out (not much anyways). He didn't always have to be a main-eventer. He didn't always have to hold a title. But you knew, you knew he was there.

He was always there. When Hunter was gone with his leg injury, Chris was still there. When Kurt had hurt his neck, Chris was still there. When Edge had hurt his neck, Chris was still there. When anyone was injured…who was still there? Who was still carrying that company on his back, never getting tired of it, never getting seriously injured. Shawn Michaels said that he was in those backroad, small-time venues, but that wasn't always true. No, it wasn't, Shawn had left for a good long while, and in his stead, and for the past six years, who was always there? Chris Jericho.

And so this wasn't so much an ending. No, because Chris had never been gone before, and people didn't know what to expect and they didn't know how to react, with disgust or praise, or thanks that he had given so much entertainment while others had been MIA. People were in and out at random. You never know who will go out tomorrow and get injured. But for once…Chris was the one that was going out. It may not have been on top, it certainly wasn't the bottom, but in his own way. It was a way to let the fans know that…you know what? He WAS there for six years, and he DID entertain for six years when others weren't there, when bigger names weren't there, you could always count on Chris Jericho.

So it was different now, and it was going to be strange. He knew that, he knew in the deepest recesses of his mind that watching Raw was not going to be the same. That watching WWE was not going to be the same. Because if you were sitting on your couch on August 9, 1999 when a brash young wrestler came out and interrupted one of the biggest names in the history of wrestling, you were privy to something special…to someone special. Someone who would week in and week out work for everyone's entertainment.

Coming here, to WWE, then WWF, he hadn't expected to meet the woman he was going to marry. He also hadn't expected to hate her stinking guts with every fiber of his being. But he did. He hated her, and teased, and humiliated her, and she was standing backstage, carrying something that was a reason for this match he was in. And to be honest, a little, tiny part of him still hated that trashbag ho. It all started with him mistaking her for one of the Godfather's hos…and it had led him straight here.

And then it was over…for now, and he was stepping away from the ring…for now. He thought with glee at how he was going to blow the roof off the joint when he came back. The fans would LOVE him then. But enough thinking about that…he had a little bit of acting to do. He had to pretend that he was shocked by this revelation. He tried not to laugh at his own interpretation of a desperate man as he started begging Bischoff.

Chris got so into it, it was scary. If Bischoff hadn't known better, he would actually think that Chris was begging for his job. But that would be silly because even if Bischoff did fire him, Chris could just say that he was rehired and his will would be done since he ranked higher in the company that Bischoff did. Chris was SO into what he was saying that actually mentioned his wife, which startled Stephanie in that he had never brought up his wife before, and then…then he spilled the beans, although the beans being spilled were a little older than the actual beans that she was holding.

Kurt did exactly what Chris told him to do. As soon as Chris was being "dragged" out of the arena, Kurt went down and beat on Cena. He was not going to take Chris's words lightly. He was going to take that belt from Cena, and restore Chris's honor. And be the champion too, since that was cool. He was an Olympic gold medalist and he DID win it with a broken freaking neck.

Stephanie did not look happy when Chris walked backstage, but he figured that she was just in a rush to get the show over with. "Hey, how did it look?"

"Oh, it was fine, until you let our little secret out."

"What?"

"You told! The world!" she said, gesturing wildly. "Did you not hear what you were saying?"

"Wait…what, I don't remember, I was in the groove," Chris said, "What did I—oh crap…I can't believe I said what I did."

"Yeah, and Jericho, since when do you have a two year old?"

"I said two WEEK old Stephanie," Chris told her.

"Uh…no, you said YEAR."

"I said WEEK, I think I remember what I said," Chris argued.

"You just didn't remember what you said, and now you do?"

"Yeah, I said WEEK."

"Hey Kurt," Stephanie called over Chris's shoulder as he walked back triumphantly. "Did Chris say week or year?"

"He said year," Kurt told them.

"SEE," Stephanie said. "You said year."

"Well I meant week, excuse me, for getting my weeks, months and years mixed up. But the fact remains, it's still two, I got the two right."

"Oh, whoop de doo," Stephanie said, "As far as I'm concerned, you told a lot more people than I told. And furthermore--"

Stephanie's cell phone went off in her pocket.

"Oh would you look at that, my phone's ringing. I wonder who that's going to be, hmm…" She looked at the display. "Look, it's my mom…and I wonder what she's going to say. Perhaps how my husband so gregariously announced to the WORLD that I'm probably pregnant. I told Kurt, I think I win."

"I'm sorry, I was in the groove, I didn't know what I was saying, I was just trying to sound believable."

Stephanie made a mean face and answered the phone, "Hello Mom…hold on Mom." She turned to Chris, "Are we going to lie, or are we going to tell? I mean, more than you already did that is."

"Lie."

"How?"

Chris pulled at his hair, "Damn it, Stephanie, you need to like…not tell me things…not when I have the potential to be in the groove."

"Hi Mom," Stephanie said, laughing. "Oh, that…yeah, Chris is a big, fat liar. Yeah, see, I'm sure Daddy told you we're taking some time off, and Chris, being the big, fat loser that he is, and liar, well, he got a little carried away out there, there's nothing going on…he's just spouting off because he's stupid and inconsiderate and a liar…Yes Mom, I'm sorry that we lied…he lied…Jericho was the one who lied…yes, I will give him your love Mom, love you too."

"Real smooth there Stephanie," Chris said, noticing how she had slipped up and said they were lying.

"I wouldn't have had to lie if you weren't a big, fat stupidhead. Let's go back to the locker room, I'm really tired and I really need to sleep, I'm exhausted."

Chris walked to her and let out a breath, knowing that she was mad at him. He hadn't meant to blurt anything out, he was just…getting into character, going out with a bang, and yeah, the bang had been how he banged his wife and you know…baby stuff. He opened the door to their locker room just as Stephanie's phone went off again. She looked down at it and shoved it at Chris.

"It's for you," she said as he saw that it was his parent's number on the display. He closed his eyes. This was going to be a tough one. He took the phone from Stephanie and prayed for strength before answering.

"Hi Mom," he said cheerily.

"Are you fired?"

"No Mom, Stephanie and I are taking a leave of absence for a while and we wanted me to go out with a specific reason, not just leaving."

"Because Stephanie's pregnant right?"

"No Mom, that wasn't…I was lying," he said dully, staring into the scary, scary eyes of Stephanie's ice cold stare.

"Lying? Why would lie about that when you know I watch?"

"I'm sorry Mom, I didn't know what was happening and what I was saying, and I was lying, and I'm a liar. I might have to go to therapy." Physical therapy if Stephanie acted out any of those fantasies she was picturing at the moment.

"Well don't do that again!" she yelled. "I swear, I was jumping for joy."

Chris gave Stephanie a pleading look, and she just rolled her eyes. He answered sheepishly, "Sorry Mom."

"Ok, well, tell Stephanie I said hello and I love you."

"Me too Mom," he said, hanging up. "Look Steph, I'm sorry. If you want to divorce me, you can. I know we said we'd keep it a secret and you did for the most part since Kurt is like family…and I told…everyone…but we can remedy that…for a little while."

"I can't be mad at you…I'm having your kid,' she said, pouting. "Was sweet of you to mention us though."

"See, silver lining."

"Even though you keep saying son and you don't…even…know."

"It's a son, I'm having a son."

"That's going to annoy me really quickly."

"Deal with it McMahon, cause you're going to have deal with me, and only me for the next…however long."

"Heaven help me."


	52. It's Not the Same, August 29, 2005

"Well, I think this is a good room."

"It's fine," Chris said.

"Could you maybe be a little more involved," Stephanie said as she looked around the room.

"Stephanie, I told you, it's a good room. I don't know what else I can say about it," he shrugged.

"Well, you could say something more," she said.

"Fine, why do you think it's a good room?" Chris asked.

"Well, it's fairly close to ours and it's bright and has a lot of windows, and it's big, so you know, I think it's a good room," she said, looking at his bored face. "It's not like I'm saying that we should use your office!"

"I know, I'm sorry, but I got that you thought this was a good room, but I don't know what else to do Stephanie. Do you want me to start moving furniture out right now?"

"No," she said sullenly. "I just wanted you to be a little nicer is all."

"I was being nice!"

"It's like you could care less!" she argued. "And if you care less, fine, that's just fine, I can do this all on my own!"

Chris rolled his eyes. He would LOVE to blame this on his wife's pregnancy, he would absolutely love to, but this was just Stephanie's normal behavior. At least he was used to it and he would be used to it when it intensified. Stephanie flounced herself on the bed and stared up at the ceiling, placing both her hands on her stomach.

"You're not going to do anything on your own," Chris said. "I left my job for you! Besides other side projects you're the only thing I have! So you're stuck with me."

"I'm having a baby," Stephanie said, seemingly to herself. "Me! Stephanie McMahon, this is so strange. I mean, this wasn't supposed to happen for years. We had a plan Chris, we had a plan!"

"I know," Chris said, going over to lie on the bed next to her. He laid down on his side, propping his head up with his hand as he stared down at her. "I know that we had a plan. We were supposed to focus on our careers, we were supposed to be running the company, and not having to think about what room in our house would be the best for a baby."

"Yeah, I was supposed to be running everything. I was supposed to be kicking Bischoff's ass in arguing, and then yelling at Hunter for being an ass…I wasn't supposed to be looking for prenatal vitamins."

"Life works in mysterious ways," Chris said. "Sometimes you can't plan these things out Steph. I mean…we did NOT plan this."

"And that's the problem. We have to deal with this in a way that people who plan this don't. I mean, I have to get used to the idea, I'm not right now, I'm not used to it and I'm scared Chris, I'm really scared."

"There's nothing to be scared of," Chris said to her, kissing her cheek. "We'll figure it all out. Look who we are, the Billion Dollar Princess and the Ayatollah of Rock and Rolla."

"That's true, I am the Billion Dollar Princess," she said, cheering up a little bit.

"Yeah, so no more worries, and this room is going to be awesome. We'll fill it with wrestling stuff, you know, get him off on the right foot."

"If you say so," Stephanie said. She had finally given in and had started to refer to their unborn child as a boy, since it seemed to make Chris happy. She wouldn't be adverse to a little boy either. She would like to raise a wrestler, someone to follow in the family business, not that a girl couldn't, but a little Chris Jericho would be adorable.

"Ok, so what do you say we get to the show so you can go to work?"

"Ooh, sounds great," Stephanie said, her mood instantly lifting. She loved thinking about work and going to work. She loved to work and Chris could see that in her eyes. Where he was content to take some time off, he could sense that Stephanie was still anxious about work.

"You're going to let me help you right?"

"If you want," Stephanie said, not caring either way. "It's not like I'm going to be doing anything really strenuous Chris. I'm not going to be lifting really big boxes or anything like that."

"Still, the doctor said that you could get tired really easily and so I'll be there to help you out. It's the least I can do for you know, the whole carrying my child thing."

"Yeah, the least you could do you've already done by getting me pregnant," Stephanie said, getting off the bed and fixing her hair. "Let's go, I don't want to be late."

"We're not going to be late, we've driven past the arena a million times, we know the way there and how long it takes."

"Still," Stephanie said. "There could be traffic and I really don't want to be late. If I'm late, Bischoff is going to take control like he always does and leave me out in the cold and I hate that. He doesn't run the place, at least not right now."

"Ok, I'm going," Chris said, following her downstairs.

They did run into traffic on the way to the arena, but it wasn't bad enough for Stephanie to want to get mad at Chris. They got to the arena and thought about how weird it was. Chris wasn't going to be on the show, there was no chance he was going to be on it. In the past, there was at least the chance that he would be on the show if he wanted, but now, now he was nothing and it was just such a jarring thought.

He walked in behind Stephanie, who was walking quickly to her weekly meeting with Stephanie. Everyone knew that he wasn't fired, because being fired would be preposterous with the amount of clout he had around here. He was part of the McMahon family; that pretty much meant that he couldn't be fired. Actually, no, that DID mean he couldn't be fired.

But the hustle and the bustle of the show wasn't for him. None of it was in preparation of anything he was going to do. There was no Highlight Reel, and there was no match, no promo, no interview. It was as if he had died, and the show had gone on and he was simply a spirit, watching, but not being able to touch or experience or be a part of any of that. He was an island unto himself, and nobody could come with him.

"Chris!"

Chris saw Christian, and he should have been surprised, but he wasn't. The show was in Tampa anyways, so Christian had to drive about as far as he himself had had to drive, since Christian lived so close to him. He caught up with the man and smiled seeing his friend, who had been banished to SmackDown.

"Hey Christian, what's up?"

"Do you know if Trish is going to be here?"

"No, she's not," Chris said. "But she is ready to make her return, why, you waiting on her?"

"Yeah, when she comes back, we're finally going to have that talk."

"And are you going to really propose to her this time? Or are you going to shout it again?"

"No," Christian said, making a face. "I'm going to rescind my proposal and hopefully forget that it ever happened. It never should've happened in the first place."

"Well, I'm glad you finally chose a position on the subject. And I think that Trish really, really misses you, so that's going to work in your favor."

"So how's your kid?" Christian asked suddenly.

Chris coughed a little bit, wondering how the hell Christian had figured it out. If he found out that Kurt told, well he was going to have a little chat with the Olympic medalist about keeping his mouth shut, even though Chris hadn't exactly been all too great at the keeping his mouth shut thing. But he had covered that up, or at least he thought he had, even if Stephanie didn't think he had done a very good job.

"What?"

"You know, what you told everyone last week, what a fake you were," Christian said. "For a minute, I actually thought that Stephanie and you were going to have a kid! I mean, you two, having a kid, good stuff right there."

"Yeah," Chris laughed nervously, forgetting that he had lied to Christian too.

"Did Trish think you guys were pregnant too?"

"Yeah, she did."

"See, we still think alike, we're just meant to be," Christian said dreamily. "I really think things are going to work out. And I still can't believe that you are gone from the show. I never thought I'd see this day!"

"Things change," Chris said, shrugging. "Stephanie and I, we just want to try something different is all. We want to try this whole, normal thing."

"Yeah right, so I'm expecting the funeral in about three months when the two of you inevitably kill each other because you can't stand each other. I'll be sure to say some nice words about the two of you at the funeral though," Christian said.

"I've been with Stephanie for three years, I don't think anything is going to derail us now."

"But seriously man, leaving the show, this is such a huge decision, one I'm surprised that you made."

"I know, I'm surprised too, but Stephanie thinks it'll be good for us, this time off. I've never even had time off. The last substantial amount of time that I've had off was when I made the transition from WCW to here, and that was over six years ago."

"Fine, so you deserve it, but we're going to miss you around here."

"I'll be around, and this isn't forever, I assure you, I assure everyone, it's just until," he wanted to say it was only until Stephanie had the baby, but that was a secret only known by three people. "Until I feel like coming back."

"Well, it's not like I can stop you now," Christian said. "Come on, let's go watch the show like the stupid people that we are, not even being on Raw."

"I know, we're nothing here," Chris said, patting Christian's shoulder. "At least Stephanie still has her job right now."

"Yeah, lucky, well, I still have my job, but it's over on SmackDown, just not here. I wasn't pretend fired. But dude, you know when you come back the fans are going to love you. I'm calling it now, you are going to get more cheers from the crowd than Trips did when he came back from his quad injury."

"Well, that was a given," Chris said. He was much better than Hunter in every way. Like Kurt had told him last week, he was man enough to get Stephanie pregnant, unlike Hunter. But then Stephanie had said that he wasn't "overwhelming" in bed, although that was definitely something that Chris did not want to think about. HE was the one with Stephanie now, not Hunter, and he was going to have a baby with Stephanie…that was if she wasn't lying to him.

"Yeah, true, true, I'm going to go find Edge and see what he's up to, I do have to keep tabs on him since he decided that informing our parents of his life is not high on his list of priorities. Our mom is mad at him for what he's doing, and what he did. It feels so good to be the favorite, I never knew how satisfying it could be."

"Good luck with that," Chris said, looking around after Christian had left. He didn't have anything to do. He hated it, he decided immediately. Chris was never one to be stagnant; he liked to keep moving, to be busy, with whatever it was that he was doing.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't the fired one."

Chris turned around abruptly, "Trips."

"What the hell are you doing here?" Chris asked.

"Your wife asked me to come tonight, something about salary or some junk like that," Hunter spat. "I didn't want to be here, but I'm a busy man and I don't have time to cater to the whims of your wife."

"Oh, she asked you here?" Chris said. He had mentioned to Stephanie how Kurt had told him to gloat to Hunter, and she had laughed at the time, but he couldn't believe that she had actually brought Hunter here. Now, he couldn't really gloat, but he could do and say some things that he had been wanting to say for some time.

But what purpose would that serve? Chris could be the bigger man, Chris could be the better man. He already knew that he was better than Hunter in a lot of ways, but he could prove it now. He could prove it to Hunter and to everyone, well, to Hunter at least. He would just walk away from this, and be a bigger man.

"Good luck to you Trips," Chris said.

"What?" Hunter asked, obviously confused.

"I'm just saying good luck to you," Chris said. "I mean, with me not around anymore, I hope that you succeed in whatever you want to do."

"Who the hell are you?"

"Look, I'm not going to begrudge you anymore, we don't work together right now. So do whatever you want with what I've said, I said it, it's out there, that's all you needed to know."

"Whatever," Hunter said, getting himself away from the situation quickly. Chris, though, was proud of himself. He didn't have to go out there and do that, but he felt it necessary. He was getting what Hunter had thought he was going to get from Stephanie, and it felt good to have that over his head.

He found Stephanie's office and found her inside, lying down on the couch, her hand over her eyes. Chris rushed to her side, sitting on the couch in the small space next to her. She felt him sit down and took her hand away from her face, opening her eyes to look at him. He ran his hand down her face, as if he could see what was going on.

"What's wrong?"

"Nausea," Stephanie said. "Someone had a tuna sandwich and oh my God, it smelled so bad it made me sick."

"Well, at least now we know not to have tuna around," Chris said, "Is that all that's bothering you?"

"No," Stephanie said, "It's not, but don't worry about the other thing."

"If it has to do with the baby, then I'm going to worry about it," Chris said. "If it has something to do with you, then I'm going to worry about it. If it has something to do with Bischoff, I'm not going to worry about it so much."

Stephanie sighed deeply. "I don't want to leave."

"What?"

"I don't want to leave work," Stephanie said. "I don't want to take a leave of absence, I don't want to be away from my desk, I don't want to go."

"But…but Stephanie, this was your idea. This entire thing was your idea," he reasoned.

"I know it was!" Stephanie exclaimed, "But I'm not ready to leave, I'm not ready to give up my job, I hate this!"

Chris paused, mulling over his words, "Are you saying that you don't want to have this baby?"

He didn't want to hear her say that she didn't want this baby, because it would feel like a rejection of him. He was the one to make her pregnant, and if she didn't want this baby, what did that say about him? In fact, what did it say about their marriage if she wasn't even open to the idea of kids? They had both said they wanted them, albeit somewhere down the line, but down the line was right now and they had to face that.

Stephanie looked away for a moment and Chris thought the worst. "I do…I just don't like what I'm sacrificing."

"Oh," Chris said. That didn't make any sense to him at all. It was like saying she wanted to and she didn't want to; she was being indecisive.

"Look Chris, I want this, I really do, and I think that it'll be a great thing. I mean, something we get to love and all that mushy stuff, you know. I mean, we can have another wrestler on our hands, and we both think that, we don't have the aspirations to have our son be the president, but we want him to be a wrestler, we're in tune with each other. But you know that work…I love it so much."

"I know," Chris said, taking her hand in his. "And if it means that much to you, well, you can stay on at work for a few months, until you don't want to travel anymore."

"You mean it?" Stephanie asked, her eyes hopeful. "You wouldn't hate me because I wanted to stay?"

"Stephanie, we're having a baby, and even if we weren't I'd want you to be happy. If this makes you happy, then it's what I want."

"But…I asked you to get away from work," she said, not believing he was being agreeable, and then it hit her. "Are you just trying to make me happy so that I won't get mad and won't hurt the baby?"

"No," he shook his head. "I know how much this means to you. Here, how about after next week, we take like two or three weeks off and just vacation or something then you can come back, and then when you want to take your maternity leave, you can."

"Chris, you're the best," Stephanie said, throwing herself into his arms and hugging him tightly. "I love you so much."

"I love you too," Chris answered, kissing her. "I just want you to be happy, and if you're happy, then odds are the baby is happy, and then I'll be happy, so you know, I'm benefiting myself too. And you know, I can focus on other things as well."

"Yeah…Chris, I'm sorry that I'm doing this, but I…just, I think I'll be so happy and healthy…oh, who am I kidding? Chris, I don't know what to do."

"Steph, we don't have to figure everything out right now. We'll play it as we go, and then we'll do what we need to do."

"I want to do what's best for him."

"So do I, but not at the expense of what's best for YOU," Chris said. He reached out and rubbed her stomach. "And besides, he's half McMahon, he'll understand your need to be working all the time."

Stephanie laughed and it felt good. "You're right. Maybe I don't know what's best right now, but we do have some time to figure it out."

"Yeah, and since we were really good about the entire lying thing after I blurted out our secret, we don't have anyone breathing down our necks asking our every move. We're going to do this at our pace, on our own time."

"I don't want anyone there when I'm giving birth," Stephanie said suddenly. "I mean, I don't want anyone at the hospital."

"Ok, well, I think that's a little too far ahead in time for us to worry about right now, although thanks for the heads up since I can start thinking of things to tell my mother when she insists that she be in the hospital for the birth of her grandson."

"I love you, you always know how to cheer me up."

"AND I know how to tear you down with insults, I'm the best at what I do."

"But you wouldn't do that."

"No way, you are having my baby, I'll only insult you when I really feel the need."

"I need to get to work," Stephanie said. "You want to join me?"

"Nah, I think I'm just going to hang around here, watch the show, pretend that I actually have something to do rather than just sit here looking like a stupid idiot."

"You're not an idiot," Stephanie said, patting his leg. "Not a big one anyways."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence."

"Come with me," she begged. "I want you near me."

"Why?"

"Because I'm feeling guilty for making you leave and if you stay here, then I'm going to picture you looking all pathetic and it'll probably make me sad, and you don't want me to be sad do you?" Stephanie asked, pouting, her bottom lip jutting out.

"If you insist Mrs. Jericho."

"I do insist," she said, taking a hold of his hand. He let her pull him up and he held her hand as they walked down to the gorilla, and she found her desk. He sat down next to her and watched her, and then watched the show that was unfolding before him. He saw them start with a video package of his "dismissal" the week before. Well that was like a sting to the gut for him.

He merely sighed and thought about all the good things to come. So he wasn't wrestling right now, so he wasn't on the show, it wasn't like he was really fired. If he had really been fired, he would've been upset and despondent. But he never had to worry about that and gave a little chuckle.

He'd be lying if he said that he didn't want to be out there, especially after Carlito said that it was cool that there was no more Highlight Reel. That thought saddened him…until he thought about the new Jeritron 5000 hanging in his bedroom at home. Vince had said that he could keep that if he wanted to. At least he was getting something out of this departure.

It was strange to watch the show. It was strange being backstage and not going out to the roar of the crowd. It was strange to be a spectator. This must've been how Stephanie had felt when she was fired, or when she was forced to quit. It must've felt something like this, a strange hollow feeling, like you were supposed to do something, but you were rooted in one spot, unable to move. He wanted to go out there, especially when Cena was out there, just to say that he had not gotten the better of him, that he had not gotten him fired, just to be out there.

He never realized how much he loved the adrenaline rush as he walked down the ramp. He couldn't fathom feeling this for much longer, and his legs ached from not running out there. He felt out of place. When he had moved away from his family when he was just starting out as a wrestler, his father had said something to him, something that was sitting in his mind right now. He had said, "This is the first day of the rest of your life." That was how Chris felt right now. It was the first day of the rest of his life.

Things were drastically different now. It was almost like he wasn't Chris Jericho at all, but some weird newly evolved form of Chris Jericho. The Chris Jericho that he knew was a wrestler, but the Chris Jericho he was now, well, he wasn't much of anything at the moment, except for a supportive husband to his lovely wife. And he was soon to add another title to his ever-growing list. That was going to be the one that he was going to have a hard time getting used to.

"Yo Jericho, a word," Cena said as he got back from his verbal sparring with Kurt.

"What?" Chris asked, getting up and walking over to the WWE Champion. He really didn't want to talk to Cena.

"You let me win last week didn't you?"

"Yeah, so?"

"I don't like that," Cena said. "If I wanted to beat you, I could've done it. I still think I could."

"Well, there's nothing to be done now," Chris said.

"When you come back, I expect a rematch," Cena said. "And I want you to bring it."

Chris had to smile at that. "Consider it done."

"Good, now don't let yourself go, because I want to beat you fair and square," Cena said, laughing to himself as he walked off. Chris saw Kurt rolling his eyes before walking over.

"Can I say I don't like him," Kurt said. "I will be sure to kick his ass. I mean, I'm an--"

"Olympic gold medalist, I get it Kurt," Chris said affably.

"So how are you three doing?" he asked slyly, loving the fact that he was in the know with this one.

"We're all fine," Chris said, then looked over at Stephanie, "At least I hope we are."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kurt asked, looking in the direction that Chris was looking.

"Nothing Kurt."

"You sure? Is something up with Stephanie?"

"Keep a secret?"

"You know it."

"I just worry that she doesn't want this," Chris said. "But don't say anything to her alright?"

"Are you sure about that?" Kurt asked. "I mean, why wouldn't she want this?"

"Because it would interfere with her work," Chris said. "I don't know, she's just having all these second thoughts, and I don't know, she could be a little more excited. She's excited, but not as much as you'd think, I don't know anymore. She doesn't want to take time off now."

"But that's just Stephanie."

"Maybe," he said, "But maybe she doesn't want to have kids with me…or at all."

"I think it's too late for that."

"I hope you're right Kurt, I really hope you're right."


	53. Two For One, September 5, 2005

A/N: Two chapters for the price of one. :)

"I think we should end the show with Shawn and Masters."

"And I think we should start the show with it," Bischoff said.

"But then the fans don't have anything to look forward to, not that Masters is anything to look forward to," Stephanie said, making a face. "I don't get why you favor him so much, he seems like a little creep."

"Who is undefeated," Bischoff pointed out.

"Oh big deal. I'm sorry, but I don't like him…but end the show with him, that's what I'm saying."

"Anything else the Princess wants?" Bischoff said snottily.

"For you to be thrown out on your ass," Stephanie said sweetly. "But I don't see that happening any time soon."

"Thank God you're gone after this week," Bischoff told her with a delighted sneer.

"I wouldn't be so quick about that," Stephanie said smugly, crossing her arms and looking at him haughtily. "Chris and I are taking a short break, but I've decided that in all likelihood, I should be back in a few weeks to a month."

"What! This is not fair!" Bischoff said angrily, slamming his fist down onto the table. "You were supposed to be gone."

"Well I like to work, so I'm working and you can't do anything about it!" Stephanie said.

"I need some coffee," Bischoff said angrily, knowing that he needed some way to calm down. He walked out of the room and Stephanie sat there, fiddling with the papers in front of her. She knew that Bischoff would be back and they would finish up their meeting. He did this often, having to leave the room after they fought. Stephanie gently brushed her hand against her stomach, sighing.

She was going to eventually have to leave, she knew that, but Bischoff didn't. She was eventually going to have to take time off and it was going to be hard. The only upside was that she wasn't being kicked out of the company. She was doing this all on her own. Well, not exactly all on her own, since the thing inside of her was really dictating what was going on.

"Back," Bischoff said, a cup of steaming coffee in his hand. She could only imagine what he was thinking about doing to her with that cup of coffee. He walked past her and she got a whiff of the coffee and instantly, her stomach turned at the smell. This had become commonplace to her over the past couple of weeks; she would smell something and it would just make her want to vomit.

"Oh God," she muttered, clutching her stomach.

"What the hell's the matter with you?" Bischoff snapped.

"I…uh, just got over the stomach flu," Stephanie said hastily. "I have to go."

She gathered up her papers quickly and grabbed them, holding them under her arm. She raced out of the room, almost stumbling along the way. She ran to her office, throwing her things down and making a mad dash for the bathroom, leaving a rather confused Chris in her wake. She threw open the door to the bathroom and just made it to the toilet before throwing up.

Chris stood up and quickly closed the door to her office, locking it so nobody could come in. He walked into the bathroom, and sat on the floor next to Stephanie, rubbing her lower back comfortingly. He ran his hand up to her neck and pulled her hair back so that it wouldn't get in her face. She had little beads of sweat on her forehead, but they could deal with that later. She stopped gagging and pulled away from the toilet.

"Well, we can add coffee to that list of things that make me want to shove my stomach out of my mouth," Stephanie said, standing up shakily, leaning onto Chris to gain her balance.

"Ok, coffee out," he said good-naturedly as she went into the other room to grab the mouthwash that she had started bringing with her. He grabbed a paper towel and wet it, handing it to her when she walked in.

"Thanks," Stephanie said. "Look at what my life has been reduced to, throwing up in a public toilet and carrying around mouthwash for when I vomit."

"I always knew you'd keep me on my toes," Chris told her as she swished the mouthwash around in her mouth.

She spit into the sink and stuck her tongue out. "It's so weird, normally I would love to smell coffee, because it's delicious, but now I'm suddenly finding it the grossest thing ever. When will this baby learn all the things that I like?"

"It'll take a little while I'm sure," he said, leading her over to the couch. "Why don't you sit down and take it easy for a few minutes."

"Yeah, I guess I can take a few minutes," Stephanie said. "But only a few minutes, I do have quite a bit of work to do."

Chris didn't say anything as he watched her lean her head back against the couch. They hadn't really talked about the baby for the past week. He hadn't brought it up because he didn't know Stephanie's real feelings on it, and she hadn't brought it up for reasons unknown to him. It seemed that she would just rather forget about this life-changing thing and keep working until she couldn't work anymore.

"Hey Steph, when's your next doctor's appointment?"

"Two weeks," Stephanie answered dully. "When I'm eight weeks. Then they get a better idea of what is going on in there."

"Ok, I just wanted to make sure that I didn't plan anything for it so that I could go with you…if you want me there you know, or something," he stumbled through his words.

"Of course I do," Stephanie told him. "You're in this too."

"Yeah…yeah."

Stephanie turned to him, "Sweetie, you've had something on your mind for the past week, I can tell, what's up?"

"Nothing," he said quickly. "I'm fine."

"Um, I think I would know if you weren't fine," Stephanie told him. "You haven't been fine so you might as well tell me what's going on so I can try and help you through whatever is going through that mind of yours."

"It's nothing Steph, I swear," Chris said.

"Liar," she accused, shaking her head. "Would you just tell me already so that I don't have to beat it out of you."

"You don't want this baby do you?" he said quietly, Stephanie tilting her head and squinting at him.

"Excuse me?"

"You don't want the baby," Chris said insistently. "You don't have to say it, I can sense it off of you. You don't want it, you just want to work, and be here, and you don't want a baby. Or maybe it's that you don't want MY baby right Steph? I mean, when you were with Hunter you were so happy to be having his baby when you weren't even pregnant, and now you are, and you hate it, you don't want my kid."

"Chris--"

"I'm not in the mood Stephanie," Chris said, standing up and moving out of the way of Stephanie's arm reaching for him. He just needed to be alone right now with his thoughts. He unlocked and opened the door, walking out and leaving Stephanie behind.

He walked down the hallway to a pretty remote part of the arena, somewhere where Stephanie would never be able to locate him. He didn't want to see her right now, especially after the things that he had accused her of. Had he gone over the line? Perhaps, but he had been feeling these things for a week, and hadn't known how to tell her.

He knew they had never seriously discussed children, they had mentioned them, talked light-heartedly about them, but never had they ever really discussed it. Yet here they were, with one on the way, and they had no idea what they were doing. Chris wasn't claiming to know everything about babies or whether or not he'd be a good parent, but he knew that he wanted this baby. He knew that he couldn't imagine not having it now.

Stephanie was sitting there dumbfounded at what Chris had said. She didn't know what to do, didn't know where he had gone. So she just sat there, feeling so stupid and so confused about everything. Not just about what Chris had said, but about her work and her life, and everything here on out. Things were so normal just weeks ago, she had been blissfully unaware of anything, and then things had to go all topsy-turvy on her.

There was a knock on the door and although she didn't want to answer it right now, she figured that a distraction would be a good thing. She opened the door and squealed as she saw Trish on the other side. Trish ran in place for a moment, super-excited and Stephanie just clapped her hands in happiness as Trish stepped into the room.

"Trish! I didn't know you were going to be here!" Stephanie exclaimed.

"Yeah, I thought it would be a surprise, since I'm coming back soon, I figured, get used to being back on the road."

"I'm so glad to see you," Stephanie said, honestly glad to see this familiar face.

"So what's the scoop on you leaving? I had heard mixed things, and none of them from your mouth," Trish said.

"Well that's because I have no idea what I'm doing right now," she told her friend. "I'm up in the air about staying and about going. I'm going to take a couple of weeks off to see what I want to do."

"Sounds like a good plan to me," Trish said. "Although I really hope that you decide to stay, I would hate to come to work without you here, it wouldn't be the same."

"Aww, thanks," Stephanie said, touched by her words. "I probably will, at least for a little while."

"You're going to stay for a little while?"

"Yeah, I mean, with Chris doing all those other things, I'll probably just want to go with him you know," she said, not revealing the real reason that she was going to have to leave in a few months.

"Where is Chris by the way?" Trish asked.

"I don't know," Stephanie said, and though it was the truth, she tried to make it sound like she hadn't seen him in a while, which was definitely not the truth. "He's around here somewhere."

"I wanna see him too, I haven't really seen you guys in a while," Trish said sadly. "And now you guys are going to be leaving too. At least I have Kurt here to keep me company or I might go crazy."

"What about another guy who cares about you a lot?" Stephanie asked, knowing that Trish would know of whom she was speaking.

"What about him?" Trish asked angrily. "The guy who hasn't talked to me in ages? It's like he doesn't even care so why should I? If he doesn't have the decency to check up on me, I shouldn't care what the hell he does."

"He does care about you Trish, you know that," Stephanie said, stating the rather obvious. "He's been around the past couple of weeks simply because he wants to be here when you come back. I wouldn't be surprised if he was here tonight, probably waiting for you."

"Great," Trish said. "Now I can spend the entire night avoiding him."

"Shouldn't you at least let him talk to you, it'll probably make you feel better," Stephanie said.

"No, it wouldn't, the jackass had forever to call me, or visit me, and he never did so I don't think I have the obligation to talk to him. He's just an ass is what he is. I mean, he had weeks and he did nothing."

"Don't let things get so bad between the two of you," Stephanie said. "Because then everything will seem like an impossibility. It's exactly what happened between me and Hunter when he was away on injury. I hardly ever visited him and he became bitter because of that. Don't be that bitter person, Hunter broke my heart and I broke his, and I don't want to see that happen to two of my best friends."

"You know, you've had too many life experiences for someone so young. And I'm a year older than you," Trish said, shaking her head.

"What can I say? When you're in the McMahon family, the strangest things happen to you."

"I haven't even been married once and you're on your second one."

"Ok Trish, I get the point," Stephanie laughed. "But I am turning twenty-nine in three weeks, so I'm not that young."

"Still, you know what I mean, at least you don't have kids yet, or I'd really feel like I'm going nowhere in my life," Trish laughed.

Stephanie let out a fake laugh at that. If Trish only knew that she was pregnant and she was going to be having a baby in April. She wished she could tell Trish, but her and Chris had really wanted this to be a secret. Things could happen in early pregnancy, and although she prayed that none of those things happened, there was always the chance, and she didn't want to get anyone's hopes up before they were absolutely certain that everything was fine.

"You HAVE Christian," Stephanie said. "God knows that two of you are worse than Chris and me, but you do have him Trish, if you would just let him talk to you."

"I can't," Trish said. "I'm afraid of what he's going to say."

"Well, Chris told me that Christian said that he is going to take back the proposal, and hopes that you two can just forget about it."

"He does want to forget it?" Trish asked.

"Yeah, he realized that it was a horrible proposal and that he shouldn't have proposed like that or at all, considering neither of you are ready to be married."

"Well that's a relief," Trish said, putting her hand over her heart. "I was afraid that was the best he was going to do and I don't think that I could've dealt with that."

"Yeah, so if he's here, go find him."

"Thanks Steph, you've really taken a load off of my mind," Trish said, hugging her friend. "If you ever need a favor, don't hesitate to ask me, because I will help you any way that I can."

"Well, if you and Christian are ok by the end of the night, it would be awesome of the two of you to come out to dinner with Chris, Kurt and I."

"Ok, I think I can do that," Trish said, smiling. "Hopefully things will turn out, I'll see you later Steph."

"Of course," Stephanie said, getting up as well as Trish. "I have to get to work anyways. Even if I'm not going to be around for the next couple of weeks."

"So sad," Trish pouted. "But you and Chris will have fun and you'll come back refreshed."

"Definitely," she said as they walked out into the hallway. Trish ended up walking Stephanie down to the gorilla before going off in search of Christian, if he was here tonight, that is. She sat down and wondered briefly where Chris was, if he was even still at the arena. She blew out a breath before checking the finalized schedule and seeing that Kurt had the first match on the schedule. That was good for her since they could leave earlier than usual and make it a not-so-late dinner.

"Hey Steph," Kurt said, jogging into the area.

"Hey you."

"How are you feeling?" he asked, eyeing her mid-section.

"Fine, a little on the," she lowered her voice, "queasy side."

"That sucks, are you sure you're up for dinner then, what with the," Kurt lowered his voice now, "nausea."

"Yeah, I'll be fine," Stephanie said. "You haven't seen Chris by chance, have you?"

"No, I haven't seen him anywhere," Kurt said, "But I've got to go out there, talk to you later?"

"Uh huh."

Stephanie watched as Kurt walked out into the arena and she could already hear the crowd starting their signature Kurt chant. She wondered what Kurt really thought of those chants. He probably liked them on some level. She tried to focus on her work, but there were other things pressing on her mind, most specifically Chris. What he said had been ringing in her ears so loudly that she almost couldn't hear anyone over his voice reverberating.

She had to admit, she wasn't the doting pregnant woman, who reveled and marveled in this baby growing inside her. Sure, she was shocked and surprised and even a little mystified, but she wasn't grabbing her stomach all the time, trying to feel what was in there. She hadn't checked herself in the mirror to see any changes or thought of baby names. But that's not who Stephanie was as a person.

Stephanie had been about Stephanie for so long that she had a hard time adjusting to anything else. She had had a hard time adjusting to that when she was married to Hunter, and ultimately, that had been her downfall, trying to get attention from Hunter had only made him hate her. With Chris, she had learned, being with him for so long, that she had to care about someone else as well, and she was still in that learning process.

Stephanie didn't think this pregnancy was going to change her. She didn't think she was going to become one of those woman that was all about her child and didn't think about anything else. She wasn't going to be one who buys cloth diapers and pampers her child and can't put them down. She just wasn't that type of person, not at all. She loved files and documents and working and ordering people around, and this was just so different that she knew she wasn't cut out for it. But that didn't mean Chris was right.

If she and Chris had planned this, things would be different, there would be that anticipation, and the joy that they had created something. But this wasn't in their plan, not now, and she had to adjust to that too. She was being selfish though, thinking only about herself and the changes it would bring to her life. Chris's life was changing a lot too, and he was probably as overwhelmed as she was and she had been inconsiderate to that fact.

She got up and went to find Chris. She knew that she had work to do, but her husband was sitting somewhere, hurt and probably thinking the worst. Her family had to come before work, it had to. She didn't even know where to look for him. Sometimes she hated working a different arena every week, it never created any kind of consistency, and she would often get lost in the corridors, simply because she would always think that it was another arena.

She wandered around a bit, finding dead ends, emergency exits and storage areas, but no Chris. She would think he was easy to find, but he was anything but easy to find. She was starting to get tired now too, especially because she tended to get tired a lot easier now that she was pregnant. She sat down on a trunk for a moment to compose herself and try to think of any place that she hadn't been.

"Looking for someone?"

Stephanie looked up and saw Chris. It was like he knew where she was. "Yeah, I think we need to talk."

"I shouldn't have run away like that," Chris said, sitting next to her. "I just feel…I just had to come to terms with some things."

"Like?"

"Steph…if you really don't want this baby…well…then you don't have to have it, it's your choice," Chris said slowly, trying to swallow the lump in his throat. But if Stephanie really didn't want this baby, then he would have to respect that.

"What are you saying?" she asked, not looking at him as she stared at the floor.

"We can…take care of things…if that's what you want, I mean, this is your decision."

"Chris," Stephanie sighed, taking his hand. "It's not MY decision. It's our decision…and even if it were my decision only, there's no way I'd even consider what you think I'm considering."

"Oh."

She looked at him. His head was down, much like hers had been and he was staring at the floor. She studied his profile. She knew it well, each line and curve was something that she had committed to memory. "Sweetie, what you said earlier, it wasn't true, not at all."

He turned to her. "So you do want this baby?"

"I do," she said with a smile. "But I'm not going to be a different person just because I'm pregnant. I'm not going to be somebody I'm not. I'm not the type of person who is going to be all motherly all the time. My parents didn't raise me to be that way, and so I'm not, and I don't think I can be. But do not mistake that for not wanting to have this baby."

"So I've been stupid in thinking what I was thinking?" he asked sheepishly.

"Pretty much, yeah," Stephanie told him, kissing his cheek softly, letting her lips linger on his skin for a little bit. "I love you."

"I love you too."

"We'll decide the entire coming back to work thing later ok? But we'll definitely take a couple of weeks off," Stephanie said.

"Ok, good…how are you feeling?"

"Well, nobody's eaten around me lately so my stomach seems to have settled."

"Good…so…"

"Come on, you can sit with me while I work."


	54. Trish is Back, September 12, 2005

"Does it seem quieter to you?"

"Definitely."

"Yeah, I think so too," Kurt said, pouting a little bit. "I miss Stephanie."

"So do I…and Chris, I miss him too," Trish said.

"Yeah, I do too," Kurt said. "It's boring here without them."

"Yeah, I still think it's weird that they would want to take time off so abruptly," Trish said. "I mean, if they were any other people, then yeah, I might understand, you know, but I just don't understand this."

"Well, Chris has never actually had time off, so I guess they took advantage of their position in the company and took some time off."

"That's true."

Kurt knew the real reason that Stephanie and Chris had decided to take time off, but he had sworn on his life that he wouldn't tell their secret. But Trish would be so excited to know, he knew that straight off the bat. In fact, most people would probably be happy, and then there would be some people who would probably be really mad.

"They'll be back, Stephanie assured me that she would be back in a couple of weeks, I don't think that she could stay away any longer."

"Again, true," Trish said with a laugh. "I've never seen someone so dedicated to their work."

"Well, that's Stephanie for you. God, I miss her."

"Well, it's not that long Kurt, we'll survive, as long as we've got each other right?" Trish said with a laugh, turning to Kurt. "We'll just have to stick together."

"Yeah, you and me, me and you," Kurt joked. "So does that mean you want me to be your protector while we're here? I do charge for those services."

"Nah, I'm good, but I am definitely cleared to return, now I just have to find an appropriate spot to jump back in since I don't think Bischoff is going to put me in a match. He seems to prefer having the woman on this brand running around like chickens with their heads cut off."

"So you're going to restore order throughout the land then?"

"You better believe I'm going to be restoring order throughout the land. I'm still the Women's Champion Kurt, or have you forgotten?"

"Well, you've been gone for such a long time, I wasn't sure, I didn't even recall the last time you defended your title."

"You're such a jerk Kurt, sometimes you really deserve those 'You Suck' chants," Trish said, giving him a little shrug. "I hope you lose your match against Cena."

"Really? You hope I lose?"

She scrunched up her face, "Nah, I want to see you win, then the belt would be around someone worthwhile. After what John did to me, not to mention Stephanie and Chris, AND Christian…well, he's not exactly on my list of favorite people."

"A pretty unpopular opinion around here."

"Don't I know it, but you know, I've never really wanted to go with the grain."

"I think being with Vince proved that one," Kurt told her.

"You're really working your way down on my list of favorite people Kurt," Trish said. "Hey, do you know if Christian is going to show up tonight. He wasn't here last week, and Stephanie had said that he had been around looking for me, and now that I'm finally here he's not here, it's like our life is just a comedy of wrong timing."

"You and Christian do fight a lot, and then like almost break up and then sort of get together."

"I know, and it's not healthy," Trish sighed. "But I love him. God help me, I love Christian. He's different from any other guy I've been with."

"And those would be?" Kurt asked with a smug smile.

"Well, Vince was nothing, that was just me being a bitch or something, maybe I was high when that happened. Jeff was…Jeff was sweet, but nothing ever happened because our lives kept drifting us apart. I mean, I really, really liked Jeff and all that, he was good for me, sensitive and always willing to listen."

"You also kissed Rocky," Kurt pointed out.

"That was just lust," Trish said, a smile creeping up on her face as she thought back to that kiss. She hated to admit it now, but Rock had been a really good kisser, and she had not regretted that moment once since it happened. She had just moved on to Christian.

"But Christian is?"

"He's…Christian. You can't really explain Christian can you? I mean, you've known him longer than I have, and he's…unique."

"I think anyone that can wear a fat Elvis costume is unique, yes," Kurt nodded.

"Wanna come with me to find him?" Trish said, taking hold of Kurt's hand.

"And if he's not here, how are you going to know? We might end up wandering around for hours and then I'm going to miss my match, and it would be all your fault."

"I'm going to take that chance," Trish said, lifting herself off the couch they had been sitting on and pulling Kurt up by the hand. Of course, Kurt would not have gotten up if he didn't want to stand up so Trish was really just giving him a boost.

"You know, if I were unattached Kurt, I would definitely have my eye on you," Trish winked.

"Don't tease me Trish, or else whenever you and Christian settle down, I'm going to have to kidnap you and then use you for my own personal reasons."

"Ooh, sounds kinky," Trish joked.

They continued to hold hands as they left Kurt's locker room. It wasn't that they were trying to be romantic or anything of that sort, they just hadn't really realized they were still holding hands. Trish really hoped that Christian was here tonight because she needed him to be here. It just didn't feel right not to have him here. It didn't feel right not to be with him.

She knew that she and Christian had a really confusing relationship. It wasn't like Chris and Stephanie's relationship, but she also didn't want it to be. Chris and Stephanie complimented each other so well, and they were like two peas in a pod. But her and Christian had always been different and would always be different, and that's what made them so good together.

She still wanted to be good with him. When she pictured everything in her life, her day-to-day activities, they were always somehow compounded with pictures of Christian. Just going grocery shopping was more fun with Christian who would want every obscure thing on the planet because he was always willing to try something at least once. It was the reason they had a jar of turtle meat in his cupboard.

"Kurt?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you think that Christian still wants me?"

"Yeah," Kurt said immediately. "It's not like he's going to do better."

"Thanks," Trish said as the reassurance.

"Oh man, you're Trish Stratus."

Trish turned around and saw the newest WWE Diva, Ashley. Trish had never met her before, not formally, and she didn't remember if she had met her informally either. She hadn't been around for the conclusion of the Diva Search or the subsequent introduction of Ashley to the system, so she didn't know much about the diva at all.

"That would be me," Trish said.

"It's nice to meet you," Ashley said, sticking her hand out. Trish shook it as she caught Kurt looking intently at Ashley while they were talking. She would have to inquire about that later.

"Nice to meet you too, Ashley right?"

"Yeah, sorry, I had just heard some things about you, and I didn't want to approach you because well, I'm new and you're the champion."

"I've seen that the other divas have been giving you a rough time."

"Don't worry about it."

"You know, I have a feeling that they think they're better than everyone, but they don't have my belt, what say you and I talk later and we'll figure something out."

"Yeah?"

"Sure, I've got nothing better to do," Trish lied. Ashley seemed cool, she hadn't done anything too outrageous, so Trish thought she would throw her a bone; it was the least that she could do.

"Great, thanks," Ashley said enthusiastically, then turned to Kurt, "I'm sorry I interrupted you two, I just don't know what came over me, sometimes I don't think before I do things."

"It's fine, we were just walking," Kurt said, excusing her. Trish bit on her bottom lip a little, staving off a comment that she wanted to make, but one that would have to wait until the other blonde left.

"And don't think I forgot about you," Ashley said. "Big fan, big fan of yours."

"Now you're just saying that," Kurt kidded with her.

Ashley laughed and looked down, "Nah, you're an Olympic hero, how can anyone not like someone who's an Olympic hero, who won a gold medal with a broken neck."

"Yeah, I did."

"I might have to hear that story sometime," Ashley said, looking directly at Kurt. "Anyways, I'll let you get back to your…walking. Trish, do you need to know where the locker room is?"

"Nah, I'm sure that I'll find it."

"Ok, great, thanks again," she said, waving as she walked away.

"Kurt and Ashley sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G," Trish teased when Ashley was out of earshot. "First comes LOVE, then comes MARRIAGE, then comes the baby in the baby carriage."

"Shut up Trish," Kurt said good-naturedly. "You're crazy."

"No, YOU'RE crazy…crazy about Ashley that is," Trish said, pursing her lips and making kissing noises. "Oh Ashley, you're so cool, oh Kurt, let me here more about your gold medals."

"She's too young for me."

Trish just looped her arm through Kurt's and gave it a soft tug. "Lame, lame, LAME excuse Kurt. I mean, how old is she? Like twenty-four? And you're how old? Thirty-five?"

"Thirty-six," he clarified.

"Oh really? Well then maybe she is too young," Trish said seriously, nodding her head as she did the math. "Oh come on Angle, it's not that much older, nowadays, twelve years is like the norm."

"How much older than you is Christian?"

"We're not the norm, we're weird," Trish answered, knowing she dodged a bullet there since Christian was only two years older than she was. "But look at Chris and Stephanie, he's like six years older than she is."

"Yeah, that's half the difference between me and Ashley, she's like a kid."

"Oh come on, now you're just finding excuses not to ask her out."

"You hang around Stephanie too much, you do know that right? I mean, I thought she was bad with the whole meddling thing, but you…you've been around her too long, you're starting to meddle."

Trish cocked her head to the side, taking on a superior look. "I choose to believe that it is merely intervening on the behalf of a friend. Kurt, what happens when Stephanie and Chris come back, they're going to always be together, because they're always together. And if Christian takes me back, then he and I will always be together, and Kurt, where will that leave you? As the fifth wheel, and I don't want to see that happen to you."

"I wouldn't be the fifth wheel," Kurt said. "Have you met Christian, or Chris, or Stephanie? They all hang out with me if you were aware, but you might not know that since you've been out of wrestling for seven years."

"Oh, that was a good one," Trish said, rolling her eyes, "Really got me there Kurt. I just want what's best for you. What was the last date you went on?"

"Three weeks ago, some girl, didn't like her."

"Yeah, so go after Ashley, it can't hurt, really, it can't."

"Maybe," Kurt relented, knowing this conversation would just go around in circles until he finally just gave in. He was such a sucker for Trish and Stephanie. And if he was a such a sucker for the two of them, he didn't know how Christian or Chris lived with them.

"Good," Trish said. "Now let's find my man so that I can get everything out of the way."

"He's right there," Kurt said, pointing up ahead where he had just spotted Christian. He figured it was God giving him a little reprieve of Trish and her meddling ways.

Trish gulped, knowing that the moment was finally upon her; the moment where she was going to have to confront Christian. It wasn't going to be easy, nothing that was worthwhile ever really is. It felt like so long since she had seen him, even though she had been watching SmackDown diligently, but this was the first time she had seen him in person in quite some time.

"You going to be ok if I leave you?" Kurt asked.

"Yeah, I think so," Trish answered quietly.

Christian was staring at her, probably the same way that she was staring at him. She felt Kurt extract her arm from his and walk towards Christian. It was almost an out-of-body experience of sorts, like she was watching the scene rather than living the scene. Kurt walked past Christian and gave him a pat on the shoulder and whispered something into his ear, but Trish was too far away to hear, and didn't have the ability to read lips.

When Kurt was gone, it seemed like everything faded away. There were dozens of people walking past them, scooting around them so they could get where they needed to go, someone even bumped Trish in the shoulder, but she didn't even budge that much. She then saw Christian suddenly in front of her and if she had a breath to spare, she probably would have gasped.

"Hi," he said, his tone belying the nervousness in finally seeing her. She looked good, beautiful even. But then he always thought that about her.

"Hi."

"I've been waiting for you."

"I was here last week," she told him. "I went looking for you, but you weren't here."

"I was starting to give up hope. But I thought I'd come this week. Well, no that's not right…Stephanie told me to come this week."

"Remind me to slip her that hundred I owe her then," Trish said with a small smile, and Christian laughed, knowing that she was joking with him, which was a good sign. It meant that she was ready to joke with him.

"We should probably talk."

"That would probably help."

"Kurt's locker room, he said I could use it?"

"Lead the way."

Trish did let him lead the way, following close behind him and slightly to the side. She didn't want to say that she felt eyes on her as she walked with Christian, but she definitely felt them. People had probably heard the story of the ill-timed proposal, and they were probably whispering. You didn't travel with people for a majority of the year and not know most everything about their lives. He opened the door for her and she ducked under his arm and into the room.

"I was stupid," Christian said as the door slammed behind him, and she wasn't expecting him to delve into it so quickly. "I was stupid, and I was wrong."

"About what?" Trish said, needing some clarification.

"The proposal, mostly, and the way I've treated you after it."

"I haven't exactly treated you all that great either," Trish admitted. Christian closed the distance between them, sitting himself down on the couch. "We were both wrong on that front."

"I shouldn't have proposed to you, not that way AND not at all. We aren't ready to get married, I knew that then, but I just was so angry and everything, and then for some reason I was hurt that you didn't immediately say yes, but you know, it was a horrible proposal."

"It really was," Trish laughed. "I mean, it's not like I wanted roses and champagne, but I didn't want to be yelled at either."

"And we're not ready to get married."

"No, we're really not."

Christian ran his hand down her cheek. "I do still love you though, and the house has really missed you."

"My clothes have missed the closet," she said, knowing that he was saying he missed her without saying that he missed her. She only hoped he got what she was saying too.

"Come back?"

"I thought you'd never ask," Trish said, launching herself at him as she hugged him tightly. "We still have a lot of things that we need to discuss you know. We're not out of the woods yet."

"I understand. I just needed you back here with me. I haven't been me without you, and SmackDown has really sucked without me being able to show you off to everyone there. I mean, it has really been hard without you to show off. If those guys saw that I was really with you, then they'd be showing me a little more respect."

"And you've been disrespected Chrissy," Trish said. "So kiss me now before my lip gloss wears off and my lips get all chapped."

Christian kissed her, bending her over backwards a little. Trish smiled into the kiss and gave a little sigh of pleasure. The good times with Christian had always outweighed the bad times. The good times made her forget everything except that this man was the man for her. She knew it, she could feel it, and even though there was no more proposal, she knew that someday it would come, and that someday it would be the right moment.

"I love you."

"I love you too," Trish whispered against his lips. "I'm surprised that everyone let us work this out on our own you know. I mean, nobody really did any prying, not Chris, or Stephanie, not Kurt, not our parents, not my sister, and we both know Edge would never do anything to help us, but it was weird."

"Yeah, I guess they figured that this really was our thing that we had to deal with."

"Come on," Trish said, "I want to show off my boyfriend to everyone. Plus I promised the new diva Ashley that I would meet with her, but I'm not letting you out of my sight for one moment, so you're going to have to come with me."

"Ahh, my boyfriendly duties are back," Christian said with a grin, not at all caring that Trish wanted to drag him away. He would gladly be dragged anywhere that she wanted to go.

"Oh, and while we're walking, let me tell you all about Kurt and what he's been thinking lately."

While Trish was discussing Kurt, Kurt had gone back to his now unoccupied locker room and was mentally preparing himself for his match, trying to mentally picture what he was going to do to Cena later that evening. He had promised Chris that he would dismantle Cena and he was going to stick to that promise, but he also wanted this for himself. Hell, who wouldn't want the WWE Title if they could get their hands on it. He grinned to himself when he heard his phone ring from the pocket of his pants. He grabbed them and fished around for his phone.

"Tell me that the show is going to hell without me and they're begging for my return," came the frantic voice on the other end.

"Stephanie."

"Who the hell else would it be calling you on a Monday night?" Stephanie said sarcastically. "So come on, tell me how much I'm needed."

"Stephanie, everything is going to hell over here. I think some guys have tried to build a teleporter so that they can get you here immediately."

"Aww, Kurt, you always do know how to make a girl feel special," Stephanie said sweetly.

"So where are you?"

"Right now, I'm in beautiful southern California," Stephanie said. "You want to know what Chris told me earlier?"

"No, but you're going to tell me anyways."

"He thinks that we should buy a house down here," Stephanie said with a guffaw. "Can you believe it? Chris wants to buy a house. He said that once the baby comes, and if we travel with him, then maybe we'll want a home-base on the West Coast too. Next thing you know, we're going to have a house in every state. He's going overboard Kurt, and I may be forced to kill him."

"Well, at least let him see his son, or he'll just come back as a vengeful spirit."

"True, good point," Stephanie said. "But the house we rented out here really is beautiful, and it's actually ours for a year, stupid Chris and his stupid ideas. I don't think that once everyone finds out I'm pregnant they're going to want me in California. Can you just imagine what my mom would think if I'm eight months pregnant and in California? Or Chris's mom for that matter? I'm guessing that this is going to be Chris's hide out spot from me when I really get into the whole mood swings thing."

"Well then enjoy it while it lasts," Kurt told her. "You should be relaxing, what are you doing right now?"

"Chris is cooking outside," Stephanie told him. "He wanted to do this whole domesticated thing, so that's what we're doing. And he told me to rest, because Lord knows I've been straining myself with all of this lounging around and sunbathing, I mean, it's hard work Kurt."

"Sounds like it Steph. So next week is the big doctor's appointment huh?"

"Yeah, exciting," Stephanie told him, and Kurt could hear that she was excited, though she was trying to hide just how much. "Chris is anxious about it though."

"Why?"

"I think it's just because it's a baby, you know. It'll be our first ultrasound and everything, and he's anxious to see this kid. Of course, it's probably going to be the size of a peanut or something ridiculously small and then they'll point it out on the screen and we'll pretend to see it, but it won't actually be it, but whatever, it's still kinda cool."

"How are you doing on the whole though?"

"Well, there's still the morning sickness, although it strikes more around lunchtime, and there are still some smells that just get me nauseous, but I've been dealing with them. Chris is great, as usual."

"But you will be back to work in two weeks right?"

"Yeah, I will."

"Well, you'll be able to see Trish and Christian when you do."

"What!" Stephanie exclaimed, actually causing Kurt to have to take the phone away from his ear. "Are you serious?"

"Well, they were going to talk, and judging from the way that they looked at one another, I'm going to guess that they're pretty much back together at this point and time, and to think, you weren't here to see it."

"This is precisely the reason that I want to be at work!" Stephanie said, obviously frustrated with her current situation.

"Steph, who are you talking to?" Kurt heard Chris say in the background.

"Oh, my slave driver is here," Stephanie joked. "Chris, I'm talking to Kurt, do you mind?"

"Dinner is ready, and I'd rather not eat alone thanks."

"Mother of your child here, don't you think you should treat me with a little more respect."

"You're going to use that excuse for the next nine months aren't you?"

"You better believe it," Stephanie told Chris. "I'll let you go Kurt, and tell Trish and Christian that I said hi."

"Ok, I miss you Steph."

"I miss you too Kurt, bye."

"Bye."

Meanwhile, Trish was just finishing up her discussion with Ashley about the show tonight. Ashley informed Trish of how the other divas had been treating her backstage. Now Trish was not always the nicest of divas, and she hadn't exactly been kind to the last diva winner, Christy, but again, she liked Ashley, she seemed way different from that chipper Christy.

"Ok, I'll help you."

"Thank you SO much," Ashley said. "I know that once they see you, they're going to be running scared. I'm going to go now, I think they've got something planned, but just be ready ok?"

"Yeah, don't worry."

Ashley rushed out of the room and started almost skipping down the hallway. She was definitely going to get the upper-hand on those other divas who were sure to want to beat on her tonight as some sort of whacked out initiation. At least now Ashley felt like she had someone on her side. And not just someone, but the Women's Champion.

Trish did go out to help Ashley and the crowd was loving it and Trish was loving it. She missed the crowds, and judging from their reaction, they were missing her too, and it was such a warm feeling. First her and Christian were back on the right track, and now she was returning to the job she loved. The only thing that could be better was if she and Christian were really back in their relationship and really didn't have anything they needed to talk about.

But that could come later and she set herself to the task of kicking the other women's asses. The crowd was loving her, as they should, and it only took her a few brief moments to dispatch of the divas in the ring. She was back and she was going to dominate them once again, because there was none in the bunch that could match her talent. Even Victoria was not in her league and she was really the only legitimate wrestler in the bunch.

She felt good tonight, everything felt good tonight, and she was riding a high as she and Ashley cheered themselves on as they went backstage. Christian was standing around waiting for her, looking proud, and she had to smile at having someone to walk back to. Kurt was on the other side of him talking. Trish just sent him a look that said everything. Kurt gave her a strict look, but Trish was ignoring it.

With Stephanie gone, she might just have to play matchmaker.


	55. I Miss Chris, September 19 to 26, 2005

A/N: Two weeks worth of chapters right here…enjoy.

Oh, and can anyone confirm or deny if Ashley has a daughter…I read it on Wikipedia, but I don't know how accurate that is, and I was wondering for story purposes…thanks if someone answers. :)

* * *

"First appointment."

"Yup," Stephanie said as she flipped through the baby magazine while they sat in the waiting room of her doctor's. She wasn't actually reading the articles, but was trying to pass the time as she waited, hoping nobody would recognize either her or Chris.

"Kind of interesting," Chris said, nodding his head. "She's not going to like…make us watch a birthing video or anything is she?"

"Yes Chris, that's exactly what she's going to do. She's going to make us watch a video, forget about checking me or our baby, she wants us to give a review for the local newspaper."

Chris just looked over at her, his face a mask of stone. "I didn't ask for your input thank you very much. I don't exactly know what happens at these things, I've never had a child before so you'll have to excuse me if I'm not up on my doctor's appointments."

"And lucky for you that you don't have any experience in the baby department, or I wouldn't be here in the first place."

"Nice to know that there are stipulations to your love for me," Chris said, leaning over to kiss her cheek.

"I don't think we'd see a birthing video until the whole Lamaze class, that is if I decide to do it that way."

"How else would you do it?"

"I don't know, they have all these techniques and different ways…giving birth in a tub or something…I don't know, I skimmed a site and there were all these things, and I'm not even showing yet, so I'm not going to worry about that right now."

"Ok, then I won't worry about it," Chris said, taking her hand. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm hungry, but other than that, I'm fine. Also, I know that I'm going to have to pee soon, not because I'm pregnant, but because they made me drink all this water for the ultrasound. I know they want to do the whole confirming I'm pregnant thing, and then they have to do some procedures on me, and then we can see this rug-rat inside of me."

"And work?"

"I can live without it tonight. My dad is going to be there, and if he was there, there's the possibility that I'd blab the news and then he would tell my mom, who would probably call all her friends, and then we'd HAVE to tell your parents, and then everyone would want to see us, and God I don't want that."

Chris laughed, and he was going to respond, but before he got the chance, the nurse came into the room and called Stephanie's name. Stephanie's eyes widened as she looked over to Chris and they stood up. The nurse led them to one of the rooms, and Chris took a seat on one of the chairs while the nurse tended to Stephanie, taking her vital signs and giving her some paper clothes to put on. Then she left, leaving Chris and Stephanie alone again.

Stephanie started to undress, handing her clothes to Chris so that he could fold them and hold them in his lap. She got dressed in the very uncomfortable garb and sat herself down on the examination table. She sighed and rested her hands on her stomach, looking over at Chris before staring at different charts and things at the wall.

"You don't have to stay with me right now, you know?" Stephanie said. "You can just come back in when they bring the ultrasound machine in. Before that, it's going to be all technical stuff."

"I'm fine," Chris said, eyeing a magazine rack. "I'll just read something while you get checked. I'm a big boy Stephanie, I can occupy myself."

"I'm just saying!" Stephanie said. "I hope that everything is ok."

"Have you felt out of the ordinary?"

"Well other than the entire being pregnant thing, no, I haven't felt out of the ordinary," Stephanie said with a roll of her eyes. Sometimes Chris was the worst person to deal with, but then she also realized that she wasn't exactly Miss Mary Sunshine at all hours of the day. The doctor walked in then and smiled at Stephanie, asking her how she was feeling. "I'm feeling ok, I guess, I don't think I'd know at this point how I was supposed to feel."

"That's common, it's your first pregnancy, nobody really knows what's going to happen," the doctor, a woman in her mid-40's, Dr. Sheldon, said. She looked over at Chris with a warm smile, "And this must be your husband."

"That would be him," Stephanie said. "Or else just a random guy I invited in for my appointment."

"I'm Chris, nice to meet you," Chris said, shaking her hand.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Dr. Emma Sheldon, and I'll be your wife's doctor throughout her pregnancy. As I understand it from the last time that I saw you Stephanie, you're about eight weeks along."

"Correct," Stephanie said.

"Well, let's get you checked out, and then we can get the ultrasound in here and hopefully get you your first baby picture."

"Sounds great," Stephanie said, lying back on the table.

Chris quickly grabbed a magazine as this part of the examination was going on. He didn't need to be a part of it, just listening in for any pertinent information. It was still weird to his mind to think that he and Stephanie were going to have a baby, but that had to be normal, right? He had been working on band stuff for the past week, setting up shows and appearances here and there, and that had been normal, but he wasn't sure that he knew what normal was now.

He and Stephanie had so many things that they had to plan that he was glad that he had taken a step back from the business right now. First there was the whole business of telling everyone that they were going to be parents. He knew that his parents, specifically his mother, would be over the moon by the news. Vince and Linda would be happy as well. Then there was the business of setting up a nursery for the baby. The only thing they had ready for that was the room that they were going to put the child in. They had to move everything out of that room, and then make it into a baby's room, which would take time and labor.

Then he and Stephanie had to prepare for the baby itself, maybe learn how to actually take care of one. And they only had seven months to do all of this in. Of course, they had had seven months to plan for their wedding, and they had managed to do that, but a baby is not a wedding. A baby is forever, although a marriage is forever too, hopefully, and now Chris was confusing himself.

"Chris!" Stephanie hissed.

Chris shook himself out of his reverie and looked to Stephanie. "Huh?"

"Dr. Sheldon is ready for the ultrasound in case you actually wanted to see your baby, but if you're too busy being in your daydream, then we won't interrupt you," Stephanie answered.

"Oh, sorry," Chris said sheepishly as he stood up, setting Stephanie's clothes down on the chair as he walked over next to where Stephanie was laying, her stomach exposed. Stephanie just gave him a look and he made a face at her. "I said sorry."

"Ok Steph, this is going to be a little bit cold," the doctor said as she squirted a little gel on Stephanie's stomach.

She took a wand and put it on Stephanie's stomach, moving it around a bit. The picture on the screen was really fuzzy, and neither Chris nor Stephanie could even tell what was going on. It just looked like black and white fuzz with no coherency whatsoever. The doctor squinted her eyes as she moved the wand around, finally stopping at one particular spot.

"Now, you're probably wondering what this all is, well, a lot of nothing really, not anything you'd want to see, but right here," Dr. Sheldon said, pointing to a tiny splotch on the screen, "that is your baby."

"Like I thought, ridiculously small," Stephanie laughed. "But that is pretty cool."

"Yeah, really cool," Chris added.

"I'm guessing you're going to want a video of this?" the doctor asked.

"Yeah, we could probably use it when we tell everyone or else they're liable to think we're lying."

"So I'm guessing this wasn't exactly a planned thing then?"

"No, Chris and I, we both work…a lot. So this was a complete surprise, but well, surprises can be good," Stephanie laughed.

The doctor wiped off her stomach. "Yes, they can. Now, is there anything you'd like to ask me, anything that you're concerned about?"

"I can't think of anything at the moment, but I'm sure that I'll think of something really soon and I'll have to call or something."

"And don't hesitate to call, that's what we're here for. We want to make sure that nothing goes wrong, and that you have a healthy baby. I actually have a list of really great baby books you can read if you'd like to learn more," Dr. Sheldon said as she slid back in her seat, grabbing a piece of paper from a stack of papers. "These should be a real help to you both."

"Thank you so much," Stephanie said, looking briefly at the paper.

"Ok, well, I think that we're pretty much done here, I'll just print out a picture," she said, pressing a couple buttons on the machine, and then taking a tape out of the machine as well. "And these are for you. Now make sure you continue to take your prenatal vitamins, that's important, and if your morning sickness gets very bad, call us, we'll want to know that, also if you have any spotting or unusual behavior, let us know."

"I will, thanks."

"Ok, good, it was nice to meet you Chris, and Stephanie, you can schedule your next appointment with us, which should be in about a month, but if you need anything, please call us, because we want to hear from you."

"Ok doctor, I promise, I will," Stephanie said before Dr. Sheldon left. "Well that was an experience."

"How did she even know that splotchy thing was our kid?" Chris asked, taking the picture from Stephanie's hand and staring down at it. "It doesn't even look that distinguishable."

"But she's a doctor, she's probably delivered hundreds and hundreds of babies, I'm sure she can find one on a screen," Stephanie said, getting up and putting on her clothes. "We just have to trust that thing is our baby. We have a splotch for a baby!"

"Woo-hoo!" Chris said, as they both started laughing at the vague picture. "If I were to show this to my parents, they'd think I was crazy or something. It really looks like there's nothing there."

"If there's nothing there, then this is a colossal waste of time, and I should be flying to Texas right now so I can go work at Raw."

"But there is something there, a splotch," Chris said knowingly.

They walked out of the room and went back to the waiting area, Stephanie going up to the receptionist to make her next appointment. Chris shifted his weight from foot to foot, sucking on his teeth a little. Stephanie looped her arm through his and he smiled down at her as they walked out of the doctor's office and to their car. She leaned her head on his shoulder briefly before raising her head and looking up at him.

"So that was a little cool right?"

"Yeah, it was," he said, and he was a little bit excited. "I mean, it wasn't much, but it was something you know, you could…well, you could sort of tell where the baby was, and it's a baby."

"Well, it's not much of a baby right now, but yeah, it'll be a baby. You're happy right?"

"Yeah, I'm happy," Chris said, leaning down to kiss her, as if to reassure her. There was a lot of reassuring going on in their relationship as of late, but it was all ending up pretty good. "I mean, I'm still a little in shock over this entire thing, I haven't had time to prepare, but I'm happy."

"Good, good," Stephanie said. "I can't wait to call Kurt and tell him all about it. Since he's the only one I can tell at the moment."

"Yeah, but we wanted to wait until you were at least three months pregnant before we tell everyone, it's just another month, and then everything will fall into place, and for my mother, everything will be in order and she'll never bother us again, and according to her, my life will finally be complete."

Stephanie did end up calling Kurt, later that evening. She tried to make it seem subtle that she would call during the show, but she really just wanted to know what was going on there tonight. She knew her father was going to be there, so she wasn't as worried as she usually was, since her father kept Bischoff on a short leash. Still, she wouldn't mind knowing what was going on.

"So we saw the baby, and it's tiny right now, but you can see it this weekend when you come over," Stephanie told Kurt.

"That's so cool," Kurt said genuinely. "I just can't believe you actually saw it, that makes it more real somehow. I mean, my best friends are going to be parents. That's amazing and scary."

"Kurt, are you trying to make me lose it here?"

"No, I'm just in awe of the wonder of making a child," Kurt said, trying to sound all sophisticated.

"Well, it's kind of cool, but I'm only saying that now, as my waistline still remains the same, and I can see my feet. Who knows what I'll be feeling when my body is stretched to its absolute limits, then we'll see how fun it is."

"But you are coming next week right? Because we all miss you."

"Who do you mean by we all…like everyone, or just our friends."

"Well, anyone who doesn't like Bischoff I'd guess, since the people who hate him usually get shortchanged by him, and they need you to be the side of good and balance out his evil powers. Of course, I'm on Bischoff's good side, but that's simply because I want that damn belt and I'll do anything in my power to get it."

"You know, the more things change, the more they stay the same. Even as I'm pregnant, you are still after that belt as much as the day you came into his company. You know Kurt, if we were both a little less driven by our goals, I think we would've ended up married."

"Don't tell that to Chris," Kurt said.

"Oh, he would've ended up with someone I'm sure, he's charming. And then YOU would be having a baby."

"Scary, but we didn't end up together, even though I wanted you, but you rejected me and stayed with that jackass of an ex-husband."

"But thankfully I didn't, because then I would be in a totally different place right now, and sorry Kurt, but I love Chris very much."

"Too bad for me."

"Oh yeah, tragic…however, enough about me, more onto you, I know I already congratulated you on your win last night, no matter how you got it, even though it was by disqualification, a win is a win, is a win right?"

"Sure, I didn't get the belt though, but thanks."

"No problem, BUT, in my haste, I forgot to mention that I had dinner with Trish on Friday night, girls night thing…ok, Chris and Christian wanted to go to some guy thing and Trish and I were stuck together, BUT she informed me of…things."

Kurt groaned inwardly. "What things?"

"Robbing the cradle, eh Kurt?" Stephanie asked.

"Shut up Stephanie," Kurt said good-naturedly. "You don't know anything."

"I know that there's a new diva you've got your eye on. I know that she's a Diva Search winner, I know she's blonde, and I know her name is Ashley, so what do you have to say about that?"

"That you and Trish are smoking something very powerful for you to come up with such lies," Kurt answered.

"I'm not smoking anything Kurt, I'm pregnant, I haven't even had caffeine in weeks, so my mind is completely clear and it's saying that you have a crush on Ashley, who is…how old Kurt?"

"She's young Stephanie."

"Yeah, she is young. I'm the youngest one amongst our friends, and I'll be twenty-nine in five days, so what does that say?"

"That you're old?"

"Hey! That's not funny Angle," Stephanie scoffed. "I'm not old, Chris is going to be thirty-five in November, and you are going to be thirty-seven in December, so don't tell me about being old."

"Yeah, but Ashley is really young, there's nothing going to happen there."

"Chicken," Stephanie said. "Kurt, if I can have a baby that I did not plan and thought I didn't want to be pregnant at this point in my life, then you can date a younger woman, it's not a big deal."

"Stephanie, let me work out my personal life, please?"

"Fine, I'll let it slide for now, but that's only because I'm not there, if I were there, I would tell you exactly what I think of this entire thing, and let me tell you Kurt, I think you are a chicken. And that's that."

"I'm going now Stephanie," Kurt said.

"Fine, go Kurt, but you are a chicken, big, fat chicken."

"I don't have to take this kind of abuse," he pointed out.

"No, but you will because you love me."

"I know I do, and that's my mistake. I'll be down there on Saturday for your birthday, and then I'm staying until Monday when we all fly to the next show right?"

"That's right, and either Chris and I will pick you up from the airport. You can just use my car if you need to get around this weekend, or maybe Chris will let you use his, either way, you can get around if you need to."

"Ok, great, I'll see you then, but I'll talk to you sooner, bye Steph, tell Chris I said hi, and congratulations on the dot."

"Thanks, bye Kurt."

Kurt hung up the phone and thought about what Stephanie and Trish had been saying. Sure, Ashley was really pretty, but she was way too young for him. It would just be weird. Maybe he just wasn't cut out for this relationship stuff. He had yet to find a girl that he could actually stick with. They were always disappearing, or just not the right person for him.

He had his career to focus on after all. He wanted the belt from Cena, and if he kept getting on Bischoff's good side, then he was sure to have that belt around his waist in no time. In fact, Bischoff had said he had a plan for this very situation and Kurt was anxious to see what that plan was. Maybe he'd go find out what it was right now and save himself the suspense. And maybe it would get his mind off this whole Ashley thing.

He didn't have time to though, because one of Bischoff's assistants was telling him he needed to get to the gorilla immediately. Kurt didn't know what it was about, but when he saw Bischoff with the title over his shoulder, he had a strong feeling he knew what this was going to deal with. Why he had the belt over his shoulder, Kurt could only come to one conclusion. Bischoff had stripped the title off of Cena, it was the only explanation for what was going on.

He went out there when it was appropriate and figured that Bischoff was going to make him champion, so he was happy. Well, he was as happy as someone who was being given the title could be. Kurt would've preferred to get the title by earning it, but he was not stupid enough to not take it. Anybody would be stupid not to take the title, even if it was handed to him on a silver platter.

But then Vince came out and Kurt knew this was not going to end well. Nothing really did end well where Vince was involved. Now don't get him wrong, Kurt liked Vince and they were friends, but still, Vince was Vince and you had to respect that, even if you hated him. Still, he wasn't Kurt's McMahon of preference, but he was still Vince. Kurt just knew this was going to end badly.

He watched and listen to the Chairman talk to Bischoff, not really addressing him, but more interested in what Bischoff was going to do. Kurt interjected where he thought appropriate, but even he knew that he was just delaying the inevitable. Nobody could really convince Vince of something once he was already convinced. Kurt honestly thought that Vince WAS going to give him a title shot, simply based on the fact that they were on good terms. But then he was a little shocked to hear that Bischoff would be getting the shot, which would be a no contest for Cena.

Kurt walked backstage, slightly annoyed that he wouldn't be getting a shot. He saw Trish jumping around a little, obviously loosening up for her match, which was next. She stretched her arms over her head and saw Kurt. She smiled and waved him over. He walked over and she gave him a light hug before going back to her stretching.

"Too bad," she said, gesturing towards the television. "About the title thing."

"I'll get over it in a few days," Kurt shrugged, obviously sullen, and lacking that happiness he had been showing when he thought he was getting the title. "I mean, it's not the end of the world right?"

"No, it's not," Trish said, then looked to Ashley. "You know Ashley."

"Yeah, hey Ashley," Kurt said briefly, showing no emotion in his voice so as not to arouse Trish's suspicion.

"Hi Kurt, I have a feeling we'll be running into each other a lot since we're both friends with Trish," Ashley said.

"Yeah, I just can't get enough of Trish."

"You're lucky Christian's not here tonight to hear you say that, he might get jealous and beat you up because he's protective of me right now, since we're still working things out," Trish said haughtily.

"I think I can take him."

"I have to go Kurt, wait for us?" Trish asked, batting her eyelashes at Kurt in such a way that he was not able to refuse as he nodded.

Trish knew exactly what she was doing with Kurt. She had purposely acted nonchalant, pretending like she was ok with everything. But that was just part of her plan. When he least expected it, Trish was going to strike and it was going to be good. But for the moment, she had a match to win. And she knew it was going to be easy. She was by far the best women's wrestler on any of the rosters, and Torrie was just no competition for her. None at all.

Of course, after the match was another story as she and Ashley were ganged up on by the other girls. There was an advantage to having the numbers, and this time proved it. Trish, still tired from her match couldn't fend all the girls off and it ended with her getting a Widow's Peak from Victoria. As a result, she was hobbling backstage.

"So since Christian isn't here, I guess it's my job to protect you," Kurt said to Trish as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder to steady her.

"Yeah, I guess," she said. "I can't believe I let myself get set up for that, I'm better than that."

"I know you are. Um…Ashley are you ok?" Kurt asked the other blonde woman.

"Yeah…thanks for asking," Ashley smiled at him. Kurt smiled back, but that's all it was, just a smile, a nice, friendly smile that meant nothing to nobody. Of course, that didn't stop Trish from smirking to herself, making very sure that Kurt didn't see her.

"Come on, you guys can hang out in my dressing room instead of going back to yours, who knows, there could be an ambush or something," Kurt said, leading the way.

"Thanks Kurt, you're a good friend," Trish said. "So you're coming to Tampa this weekend right, for Stephanie's birthday dinner."

"Yeah, I'm flying down on Saturday, I'll be there until we all fly for Raw next week."

"Have you talked to Steph, I haven't talked to her since yesterday when she called to ask how the show had gone."

"Yeah, I talked to her before the show started, she's good, Chris is good. I think they had a really good time in California."

"Yeah, I know, can you believe they rented out that house for an entire year! I heard that it was right on the beach and totally gorgeous. We definitely have to go there sometime, maybe for Christmas."

"Christmas…" Kurt's voice trailed off as he through about how far along Stephanie would be in December. She would be about five months pregnant by his own account. She would probably be able to fly.

"Yeah, Christmas, you know, holiday at the end of December…ring any bells?"

"Yes, it rings bells, I'm just thinking about something."

"Ooh, a secret," Trish said, then saw Kurt glare at her. "I'm kidding. Come on knight and shining armor, come protect us from the evil wicked witches."

**SATURDAY**

Stephanie yawned and walked down the stairs. She had been so exhausted the night before, and she hoped that Chris would be the one to pick up Kurt this afternoon from the airport since she wasn't feeling up to doing anything today except lounge around. Luckily she hadn't woken up with the uneasy feeling of an upset stomach and hadn't had any morning sickness.

"Morning," she mumbled as she entered the kitchen, "Kurt!"

"Hey beautiful," Kurt said, standing up from the kitchen table.

Stephanie ran to him and hugged him, letting him lift her up gently. "I thought you weren't going to be here until this afternoon."

"Yeah, I switched last night and thought it would be a nice birthday surprise," Kurt told her, kissing her cheek. "Your husband picked me up."

Stephanie looked over Kurt's shoulder and to the side where Chris was standing, stirring something in a pan. He turned to her and shrugged. She let go of Kurt and walked over to Chris, leaning up to kiss him good morning. She looked down to see what he was cooking and saw he was making her an omelet, which added to the large spread she just now saw on the table.

"Is this all for me?" Stephanie asked, sitting down and grabbing a croissant.

"Well, for all of us," Chris said. "Unless you're really THAT hungry."

"If I was that hungry, would you care?"

"No, you're eating for my baby too, so I would sit here and watch you eat like a good husband," Chris told her as she transported the omelet from the pan to a plate, placing it in front of Stephanie. "There you go."

"You didn't have to do this," she gushed as she grabbed the pepper and put some on her omelet.

"It's your birthday," Chris told her, "And since you're the big 2-9 today, I figured I'd treat you a little bit more special. Next year though, I'm going to break out the over-the-hill jokes, so think of this as the good birthday."

"Shut up, you're over thirty, so that means you must be over-the-hill," Stephanie said, sticking her tongue out at his back. He grabbed his own plate and sat down with her and Kurt. "Thank you though sweetie, this is really sweet of you."

"Don't get used to it," Chris said. "This is strictly birthday breakfast, this is not you're having my baby breakfast, so don't expect this everyday."

"What's the fun in that?" she pouted as she started eating. "Oh God, I'm so glad I married someone who could cook. When I was with Hunter, he could not cook so we'd always end up going out and it's just nice to…"

Stephanie stopped talking as she looked at Chris. "Sorry, I didn't mean to bring up Hunter…"

"It's fine, I just hate hearing about that bastard," Chris said. "It's been so pleasant with him gone, but now he's coming back, and I can't help but be worried."

"Why?" Stephanie asked.

"Why do you think?"

"I don't know," Stephanie asked, genuinely confused as to what he was saying.

"Kurt, you wanna explain this one to my clueless wife?" Chris asked.

"Nah, you got it covered, I'm just going to sit here and eat," he said, grabbing a piece of toast off one of the plates.

"Stephanie, you're pregnant, Hunter isn't exactly Mr. Sensitivity. I mean, he HAS grabbed you with the intention to hurt you. What if he does something to you? What if he shoves you or something? I mean, I don't want anything to happen to you, obviously, but you can defend yourself. Our baby can't."

"And you don't think I would protect our baby with my life?" Stephanie scoffed. "Have you seen a cup of coffee in my hand since I found out about the baby? I LOVE coffee, it was the way that I woke up, but do you see me drinking it? No, because I love our baby, and I would never let Hunter of all people harm it. And don't worry about Hunter, I can handle him. Besides, it's just one more month until we tell everyone, and he'd be so stupid to go after me if I were pregnant. My father would fire him on the spot if he did anything."

"And until then?"

"I'll handle it Chris, don't worry about it," she said, continuing to eat. "I will, I swear."

"Ok," Chris said as the three of them ate their meal, chatting about safe topics like Raw and the house that Chris and Stephanie had rented. They talked until most of the food was gone, Stephanie eating more than her share of food.

"So Kurt, you want to see the baby?" Stephanie asked, clapping her hands together in an almost calculating fashion.

"Yeah, I'd love to," Kurt said.

Stephanie hopped out of her chair and raced out of the room and Chris and Kurt could hear her jogging up the stairs. She seemed a lot more excited than she had been, but that was probably because she had gotten used to the idea now. Kurt had no doubt that Stephanie would be a great mother, regardless of how Stephanie herself viewed it.

"She seems more excited," Kurt told Chris.

Chris gave a small smile and Kurt could only imagine what he was thinking. "Yeah, she is…we both are. It's going to be good Kurt. We're getting a son, I mean, it's going to be great."

"Still on the son kick?"

"You better believe I am."

Stephanie came back in with a piece of paper in her hand. She sat down at the table again and put the paper on the table, sliding it over to Kurt. Kurt took it and looked at it. He wished it were a little more descriptive as he couldn't tell what was going on in any part of the ultrasound picture. It just looked like a lot of black and white mush.

"I'm sorry, but is this your way of telling me you're not pregnant?" Kurt joked.

"Don't worry, we could hardly spot it either," Chris said. He leaned over and pointed to a dot on the picture, one that Kurt had to squint to see. "That's our baby."

"That really is a dot, you were right Steph," Kurt said. "So that's the new addition eh?"

"Uh huh," Stephanie said. "He's not much to look at right now, but he will be. He'll be really handsome and all that good stuff."

"Well, he's the most handsome dot I've ever seen in my life," Kurt said. "This is pretty cool though."

"That's what we said."

"That dot is going to be an actual baby, so weird." Kurt leaned towards Stephanie's stomach a little bit. "Hey mini-Jericho, you might be safer in there, your parents aren't exactly the most sane people on the planet."

"Trying to turn him against us so soon Kurt," Chris said, shaking his head. "And here I thought you were our best friend. There goes your status as godfather."

"Damn it," Kurt cursed.

"I'm going to get dressed and go shopping a little with the money my parents gave me for my birthday," Stephanie said, standing up. "And get something to wear tonight."

"Don't tell me you've already grown out of your clothes," Kurt said.

"No, I just want something new…while I can still get non-maternity clothes."

"You should see how much her parents gave her," Chris said. "It's enough to buy a new car."

"It is not," Stephanie argued. "It's just a little something."

Stephanie spent the day shopping for a new outfit, but she couldn't help but go into a baby store, looking through all the little clothes. She saw some really cute outfits and though she knew she would never be the kind of mother to put her child in ridiculous little outfits like sailor suits or train conductor overalls, some of the stuff was definitely of her liking, but they were usually simple shirts and pants. She had to resist the urge to buy the clothes at the moment. Her baby couldn't even wear clothes for another seven months, she could wait a while to buy stuff.

When she returned home, she saw Kurt and Chris lounging on the couch watching some movie on television. She walked over and sunk down next to Chris on the couch. He turned to give her a kiss in greeting and she ran her hand down his face, smiling into the kiss a little bit. She felt him run his hands through his hair before they both pulled away. Stephanie leaned herself into Chris, finding a comfortable spot to snuggle up to.

She yawned and closed her eyes as she felt Chris's chin come to rest on her forehead. "You still up for going out tonight?"

"Yeah, I'm up for it," Stephanie mumbled, "I just need to rest right now though. I did a lot of walking."

"Ok, do you want to go upstairs?"

"Uh uh, I just want to be here with you," Stephanie said, her voice getting slower.

Chris could hear her breathing even out, and not wanting to disturb her since she got tired a lot easier lately. He went back to watching the movie, content to just have her lie against him. Her body was warm against his and was almost like a blanket, and her occasional sleepy sighs made him and Kurt laugh.

"Do you think you should wake her up so she can get ready?" Kurt asked quietly as he saw the time.

"I hate to wake her up though, but she really wants to go out tonight, plus it's her birthday."

"Yeah, she'd probably get mad."

"Yeah," Chris said, gently shaking his wife. "Hey baby, time to get up so that you can get ready."

"Hmm?" she mumbled, her eyes still closed.

"Well, we have to leave in about an hour and I know you'd probably want to get ready and look your best, so you might want to wake up and get ready."

"Ok," she said, sitting up, her eyes still closed. "I don't know what came over me, I was just so tired I couldn't keep my eyes open. I was probably drooling on you."

"Nothing new," Chris said. "And you're tired because your body is working overtime trying to compensate for that thing growing inside of you."

"Oh yeah," Stephanie sighed as she stretched. "Ok, go call Trish and Christian and make sure they're getting ready while I hop in the shower."

"I'm going to get ready too," Kurt said, "And by get ready, I mean I'm going to lay down until about ten minutes before we leave and then I'll get ready."

An hour and a half later they were at the restaurant, Bern's Steak House, enjoyed their surroundings at they were seated. Stephanie and Trish were laughing over something as Kurt, Christian, and Chris were discussing wrestling. Stephanie held Chris's hand in her own as she smiled and kissed him.

"This is lovely sweetie, thank you for bringing me."

"You're worth it."

The waiter walked over and asked everyone what they wanted to drink. Everyone ordered wine, but when it came to Stephanie, she ordered an iced tea, which struck weird with Trish and Christian because usually Stephanie had no problem with alcohol, and she would at least enjoy a glass of wine.

"No drink Steph?" Trish asked curiously.

Stephanie shrugged. "I had some wine before we left at home, and I just don't feel like getting tipsy or drunk on my birthday."

She knew she was lying right to their faces, but it was better than the alternative. She and Chris still just wanted their privacy. She just hoped that they bought that explanation that she had already been drinking. But maybe she should've just said she wasn't in the mood for it so when they did find out they didn't think she was drinking while pregnant.

"Yeah, that wouldn't be so fun…so let's give you your gifts!" Trish said excitedly, reaching for her purse and pulling out an envelope. "This is yours."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, taking the envelope and ripping it open. It was a gift certificate to a beauty spa, with a brochure showing the different things that she could have done. "Wow, thanks."

"Yeah, Christian and I went there and it's awesome," Trish said. "They do everything! They have like specialized days and stuff, if you're stressed, you get a certain kind of treatment."

"This will be great when I'm feeling crappy cause of the," Stephanie laughed and realized she had almost said that it would be great when she was feeling crappy because of her pregnancy, but she quickly corrected herself, "stress from work. When Bischoff pisses me off, I can just have a spa day."

"Yup, I thought you'd love it."

"Thanks so much, this is really cool," Stephanie said, smiling over at her friends. Kurt grabbed a box and handed it to her. "Thank you Kurt."

"You haven't opened it yet."

"Still, it was nice of you to think of me."

"And if I hadn't, you would've probably disowned me as your best friend."

"Only for a few months," Stephanie said as she opened it up. "Kurt, you got me a purse…wow, you got me a really cute purse."

"Trish helped me pick it out."

"He picked a good one, I made sure Steph," Trish added.

"Thanks Kurt, it's pink, and it's plaid, it's adorable, I love it, thank you so much," Stephanie said, smiling at him before turning to her husband. "Can I expect a gift from you?"

"Yeah, you can, Chris said, pulling out a small box and handing it to Stephanie. She didn't know what could possibly come in a box that small and it wasn't a jewelry box, she could tell that straightaway. She opened it up and saw a set of keys that she didn't recognize, but she knew they weren't car keys. "You got me keys?"

"It's the keys to the house in California, I bought it."

"You bought that house?" Stephanie asked, her mouth wide open.

"Yeah, we loved it so much, I talked the owners into selling it to me, and they agreed to my offer. The final plans aren't in yet, but they will be in a few weeks and then it's ours."

"Excuse us," Stephanie said, grabbing Chris's jacket sleeve and pulling him up. "We need to talk."

Stephanie pulled him into the lobby and stopped. "What is it Steph?"

"You bought a house without telling me!" Stephanie said. "Chris! You shouldn't do something that big without telling me."

"But last week you said you wouldn't mind owning a place down there and you loved it so much, I just thought…"

"I did love it, but this is huge, Chris, are you aware that we have two houses already! We have our home in Tampa and then our home in Connecticut and now you bought a house in California."

"We can afford them all," Chris said.

"That's not the problem, I KNOW we can afford them all, they're all paid off, the point is you should tell me about these things."

"Steph, the other two houses we bought individually. I bought the house in Tampa before I even came to WWE, and you've had the house in Connecticut since you were married to Hunter. This house could be ours, and with the baby, and we don't know how or if we're going to travel with him and I figured if we have some other place that we can call home, we could be set, you know."

Stephanie exhaled. "Fine, that's logical, but next time Chris…"

"Yeah?"

"Discuss it with me first or you'll never see your son."

MONDAY

"Oh, I missed you!" Stephanie said, going into her office and setting down her things. She sat down, "I missed you chair…oh, and desk, I missed you too, but don't worry, I'm back."

"You're crazy baby," Chris said. "And I have nothing to do. Nothing at all, nothing, nothing, nothing. I have no job here, I haven't got a match, or a Highlight Reel, or a promo. And do you know why my dear wife?"

"Why my loving husband?"

"Because I took a leave of absence for you!" Chris said.

"Oh that…do you want to come back?" Stephanie asked as se took out some papers. "Because if you want to come back, you're welcome to, just say the word."

"No, I can stick with my leave of absence, I have band stuff and other commitments that I need to take care of…that baby for instance. I'm going to start cleaning out the guest room at home so that we can start on the nursery."

"Not so loud Chris, my dad is coming tonight and if he gets wind of this, with his big announcement or whatever he wants to discuss from tonight…well, it'll be like opening a can of worms that we don't want opened."

"I know, and I've been quiet, for the most part…it's just one more month anyways."

"Yeah, and then…everyone can know," Stephanie said, unconsciously putting a hand on her stomach. "I hope people don't want to touch my stomach all the time, that would get old fast."

"Yeah, plus the fact you can be a bitch, I wouldn't want to get on your bad side," Chris said. "Am I allowed to touch your stomach?"

"You can touch whatever part of me you want to touch," Stephanie winked at him suggestively. "Later…cause you know I'm not going to do anything with my father in the building."

"I know, I know…and the doctor said it was…"

"I love how you ask that despite the fact that we've done what you're thinking of like twice in the past week, so yeah, I'm thinking its ok to do whatever you want to do to me," Stephanie said, shaking her head ever so slightly at her husband's apparent stupidity.

"So what do you want me to do tonight?" Chris asked.

"Would you take my meeting with Bischoff, I'm afraid if I go in there, I'm just going to get angry and then we're going to fight and then I'm going to be tired because of that, and I don't want to get tired tonight because it's my first night back, and you don't want me to get upset and then the baby will be upset, and then--"

"I get it, I'll take the meeting," Chris told her. "I'll see you later then."

"Yeah, you can help me at the table during the show. I'm definitely going to need your help next week, what with the show moving back to the USA network, and unfortunately my stupid ex-husband is coming back."

"I'm still mad about that entire situation Steph, so you might not want to bring it up to me right now."

"We'll discuss it when you get back from your meeting," Stephanie said, standing up.

"Promise?"

"I promise Chris." Stephanie took his hand and put it on her stomach and he rubbed his thumb across it for a moment. "Chris, I promise that we will discuss the Hunter situation when you get back. I swear."

"Ok," he said, leaning in to kiss her. "But remember, you promised."

Chris left her then and as he was walking down the hallway he passed Trish and Christian who were making out against the wall. Christian had Trish pushed up against the wall with one of his hands above her head as she had her head tilted up. When Chris walked by, he gave Christian a light shove in the shoulder. Christian pulled away and gave Chris the middle finger before looking back at Trish, whose face was a little bit flushed.

"Are you going to kick ass out there tonight?" Christian asked lightly.

"Would you want me to?"

"I wouldn't expect anything less. You just have to show all those bimbos who's the real woman in charge around here. Think they can wrestle, YOU can wrestle, you can wrestle circles around these women."

"I know I can, but it's nice to hear it from someone else," Trish giggled. "I'm so glad that you're back."

"Where did I go?" Christian joked.

"You know what I mean, I missed you so much," Trish said. "I was completely lost without you. I'm sure now that you're the only guy for me."

"Is this your way of proposing?"

"Oh no, let's not go down that road again. So not ready to take that step and neither are you Mister," Trish told him, poking him in the chest with her finger. "And you WILL be the one doing the proposing, but we both have to want it…not like last time where NEITHER of us wanted it, in a strange twist of irony."

"Ok, when both of us are ready to take the plunge, we will."

Trish kissed him softly, letting her lips linger against his, "Good, that's all I ask."

"Ok."

"I'm going to go talk to Stephanie, can you occupy yourself?"

"I think so, I'll just go find Kurt and hang out with him, maybe head on down to catering and pick up something to eat."

Kurt was actually going to find Stephanie as well, but he was farther away then Christian and Trish had been. He turned a corner and almost ran into Candice Michelle; she glared at him as the cell phone dropped out of her hand. Kurt apologized before leaving again. Candice just kept glaring. She must've figured out that he was friends with Trish and disliked him for it.

Then he saw her up ahead. She was just sitting there, on a trunk, doing nothing but popping her gum and staring at the wall in front of her. She had a magazine next to her that she had presumably been reading. Kurt felt his mouth go dry, but didn't know how to explain it. She was an attractive girl, but he had to remind himself of that fact, she was just a girl, a child almost, compared to him. He wasn't old enough to be her father or anything, but it was a pretty significant age difference.

"Kurt, hi," she said jovially as she saw him approach.

"Hey, how are you?"

"I'm ok, not too sure about what's going to happen tonight, I mean, I may be put in a handicap match for all I know."

"Well, you're actually in luck, cause my best friend in the world, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho is back tonight, and she's usually the counterbalance to Bischoff, so if he were to suggest a handicap match, she would totally be against it. She's smart like that."

"I think I've met her briefly, she seemed nice and you and Trish have nothing but nice things to say about her. I guess I'm just a tad bit intimidated by her, I mean, she's Stephanie McMahon after all."

Kurt laughed, but then looked sheepish, "I'm sorry, it's just I don't think I could ever be intimidated by Stephanie, I've known her too long and know her too well. But she's a nice person, once you get to know her."

"I'll take your word for that Kurt. You know, for the most part, everyone has been really nice to me while I've been here. I'm kind of surprised because I didn't exactly earn my stripes I guess."

"Well, I guess you just shouldn't be so quick to judge, it goes both ways."

"You're absolutely right," she said. "I'm just glad I've been accepted into the fold, except by Torrie and her gang, or whatever they want to call themselves."

"Don't worry about them," Kurt told her. "They are very low on the totem pole around here. They aren't the ones you should worry about. Torrie is just pissed because she's not the hot stuff around here and she knows her days are numbered."

She tried to suppress a laugh. "Thanks for reassuring me, you're a good guy."

Kurt had to suppress a smile of his own. "Thanks, I don't get to hear that too often, what with the fans hating me and everything."

"Fools, all of them."

"Kurt, is that you?"

"Speak of the devil."

"What was that Kurt?" Stephanie asked as she walked over. "I was just on my way to go make sure the show was running efficiently and to go see my dad, and then I happen upon you."

"Yes, you happen upon me," Kurt said, sending Stephanie a look. Stephanie knew that look, it was Kurt's "don't butt in," look and she just smiled to herself, knowing that she could rile him up so easily if she wanted to.

"Yeah, so I just wanted to say hello, I've got work to do, Ashley, nice to see you," Stephanie said, nodding in her direction before sending a direct look at Kurt, "Don't hesitate to come visit me at the table."

There was a flash of dark hair around the corner, but it went unnoticed by any one of the three people standing there. But they shouldn't have noticed, at least not right now, because something was going to go down in a few seconds that not even the dark-haired woman would realize. Torrie walked up to Candice and gave her a look.

"You won't believe who just called me," Torrie said to Candice, and Candice could already tell the annoyance was starting to creep up in her voice.

"Who?"

"Triple H," Torrie told her. "And he wanted to get your phone number…what's that about?"

"I have no idea," Candice shrugged. "I've never even really spoken to him."

"Well, if he does call you, I want you to tell me, ok, because you are one of my crew, and we don't have secrets, ok?"

"I know, I would never do that," Candice told her. Torrie stuck her lollipop back in her mouth, and huffed and puffed her way out of there. Candice really didn't have any idea why Triple H would want to call her. She had never even really spoken to the man. He was handsome though, and very powerful and available. Attaching herself to him wouldn't be such a bad idea though, she could have some of that power and then she wouldn't have to be a lackey for Torrie. Her cell phone went off right then and she answered it, clearing her throat a little before deepening her voice into almost a growl. "Candice speaking…"

"Hi, this is Hunter Hearst Helmsley."

"Oh hello," Candice said, keeping her voice almost seductive. "What can I do for you?"

"A lot actually. Are you alone?"

"At the moment, yes," Candice answered.

"Good…how would you like to make some quick cash?"

"Cash?" she asked, dumbfounded, her voice losing its edge.

"Yeah, I've seen you playing the bad girl the past couple weeks and its intrigued me, and I think that you can help me in something that I'm planning."

"Planning?"

"Yeah, are you stupid or something, listen ok?"

"I'm sorry," she said timidly, just the stern tone of his voice was enough to send shivers up her spine.

"It's fine, now just listen to what I have to say. I'm coming back next week and I want to be dominant, and you've been good at being a naughty, little girl, and I've seen you flirt with the guys backstage, and Candice, you're shameless."

Candice giggled. "You like?"

"I might," Hunter threw out there, "but I'm not the one who's going to need that right now. Do you remember when I was with Stephanie McMahon?"

"Yeah, I remember when you were with her."

"Good, now I'm going to need her back if I want to really be the best there is. Do you understand the kind of power that she holds?"

"She's married to Chris Jericho, they seem happy," Candice said.

Hunter actually growled. "I don't care about that pansy-ass bastard…but you're going to."

"What?"

"I want you to seduce Chris Jericho, you don't have to sleep with him or anything, just make sure that Stephanie sees it and that she gets to thinking that her husband is a damn liar and cheater."

"O…k, and what's in it for me again?"

"Whatever you want doll, you just have to name it and I'll make it happen," Hunter said, lowering his voice, making Candice think it was the sexiest thing she had ever heard (at this point it would've made sense for Candice to be hard of hearing).

"I'll do it," Candice said. "But I'm going to have to get back to you on what I want, but I would be willing to make a personal meeting next week."

"You got it…just do your job right."

"I'll make sure of it."

Chris sat down next to Stephanie, oblivious to any of the goings-on around the arena. That blind eye to the rest of the world might be his undoing in the long run, but it wasn't for now. He smiled over at her and laid his head down as the show was starting. She smiled as she saw her father walk by and he smiled over at her before she turned to Chris.

"So, I promised we'd talk," she whispered. "So what's on your mind sweetie?"

"I'm just really worried about this situation with Hunter. We've never really resolved anything with him. He could still harbor feelings for you, and we both know he hates me. If he finds out there's a child in the equation."

Stephanie laid her hand on his cheek. "Sweetie, one of the benefits of being here but not working is that you can be around me as much as you want. Yes, you'll annoy me, yes, I'll probably want to strangle you, but if it means that much to you, you can watch me every second we're here."

"I just want you both to be safe," he sighed in frustration.

"And we will be…I don't know what's going to happen with Hunter, but we'll both protect our son. Isn't that what parents are supposed to do?"

"I haven't read any books, so I have no idea."

"Neither do I…but the Hunter thing, don't let it weigh on your mind, I'm not letting it weigh on mine."

Chris was more than adequately reassured that Stephanie would be alright. With that in mind, Stephanie took her headphones and put them back on, listening to the back and forth in the production truck, calling for different angles as she listened simultaneously to her father and then seeing Kurt go out there to talk to her father.

Kurt knew that he could at the very least get Vince to agree that he was right for the job of having the #1 Contender spot. And Vince did agree that he deserved it, because Vince did like him after all. It was times like this that he was glad he was somewhat on Vince's good side. He'd get getting a match and he would win that title fair and square.

And Kurt honestly believed that until HBK came out and had to disrupt yet again. Kurt disliked HBK greatly, simply because of the fact that he acted the same way that Kurt acted and yet he was being exalted and praised by the fans. How could they not see every little sarcastic grin and look from Shawn that indicated how much of a jerk he was, just as much, if not more than Kurt. Nobody but Kurt seemed to notice this, and it irked Kurt to no end.

The two of them got into an argument, like many times before. This time it ended differently though. This time it ended with Vince putting them into a match that could be for a shot at the title. Vince said it would go a long way towards getting the title, and Kurt was prepared to fight, if he had to go through Shawn to get what he ultimately wanted. He was Kurt Angle, he would win and he knew it, he was going to be the champion, he could feel it in his bones.

Vince walked backstage and over to his daughter and son-in-law. "Two weeks Stephanie?"

"You knew I couldn't stay away Dad," Stephanie said with a smile. "You raised me to never want to be away from work."

"Unfortunately for me, the guy who actually stuck with his leave of absence," Chris interjected.

"You can always come back Chris, any time you want, you know that," Vince told him.

"I know, Stephanie said the same thing. I guess I could since I do own part of the company."

"Exactly and you never take up on that."

"Oh yeah Dad, Chris bought me a house for my birthday on Saturday," Stephanie informed her father.

"A house?" Vince asked, impressed as he gave Chris an impressed look.

"Yeah, in California, the house we were vacationing in. I said off-handedly that I loved the house and Chris bought it! I don't know if he thinks I'm made of money or something, but he bought me a house."

"So you're just not willing to take advantage at work, I see, keep the work and the private separate, I never have been able to master that."

"We know Dad."

"Stephanie, I need your help with some filing and some of the last minute details for next weeks big show, would you mind playing my assistant tonight?" Vince asked.

"Um, no, I guess I wouldn't…mind," Stephanie said, getting up. "Chris, cover for me?"

"Sure baby," Chris said, squeezing her hand. "Don't work too hard, I want her back in one piece Vince, and that's an order."

"I'll try."

Vince and Stephanie walked off, Stephanie with a notepad in hand as her father rattled off a laundry list of things that needed to be carried out for next week. Stephanie busily wrote them down as Chris watched her go. He put the headphones on and preceded to do Stephanie's job, though he could never be as good as she was, because she was Stephanie. He was directing someone to do something when Candice sidled up in the chair next to him.

Chris saw a flash of dark hair out of the corner of his eye and thought it was Stephanie, smiling as he turned. But it was just Candice and so he went back to his work, thinking that she was just waiting for a match or something, or for someone; he didn't know nor did he care what her motives were. But she just kept sitting there and it was starting to irritate Chris and as a commercial came up, he took off his headphones and turned to her.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

"Nope," she said, smiling sweetly. "I just liked to watch you work. I've never seen you work here before and it was interesting."

"Well, I'm glad I could offer you this brief peek into my corporate life," Chris said, ducking his head to roll his eyes at her.

"You look like you're doing a good job."

"Thanks, but not half as good as Stephanie."

"How do you know you're not better? You could be better."

He guffawed, "Better than Stephanie, I don't think so, she's the best at what she does."

Candice kept her composure. It was going to be hard, but she wanted something from Hunter, and if she was going to get what she wanted, she was going to have to get to Chris. She would just have to figure out his weakness. He HAD to have a weakness, every man did, and she would just have to exploit it.

"I bet, but you're not so bad yourself, kind of sucks that she made you leave isn't it?"

"Not really, I have lots of other things," Chris said, getting annoyed by this conversation. Candice had beat up on his friend Trish and he was not in the mood to become buddy-buddy with her.

"But still, it must be different not to be able to go out there."

"Not really, I'm fine with it," Chris told her. "I have some work I need to do, so if you'll excuse me."

"Of course," Candice said graciously, but inside she was fuming. She hated not being able to get her way, and she wanted to get her way. She walked around the corner and stomped her foot on the ground in anger. Maybe she'd have to get some help from Torrie and Victoria. Hadn't Victoria dated Randy, who was friends with Chris and Stephanie? Maybe she would have some insight into what could break those two up. It was good to have friends.

Stephanie was busy writing things down for her dad, as he was pacing back and forth in his office for the evening. Stephanie was following behind him, reading off things that he was saying to her and then writing down more things. He was so excited for next week, she could tell. She didn't know the exact statistics and stipulations to moving back to their old network, but her father seemed to think it was a big deal, so it must've been, but she didn't want to ask.

As she was writing, she started to get a little bit nauseous from the walking back and forth. She groaned inwardly thinking that this was the worst possible moment for her morning sickness to strike. She stopped pacing and just sat on her father's desk, trying to compose herself. Vince noticed that he didn't hear her footsteps behind him and looked at her. She was looking a little pale.

"Stephanie, are you ok?" Vince asked, concerned at seeing his daughter looking kind of sick.

"I'm fine Daddy, I just ate something that didn't agree with me," Stephanie lied.

"Why don't you go rest for a while, we can reconvene after I go see Bischoff about something."

"Ok Daddy," Stephanie said, "I'm going to go to my office, if you need me, that's where I'll be."

Stephanie walked out and went to her office to lie down. It wasn't that she was tired, she just needed to get her stomach settled. She grabbed a couple of saltine crackers from her purse and munched on them, which she hoped would help her stomach. She laid down and covered her eyes, hoping for the nausea to pass so she could get back to work.

Meanwhile, Vince was passing Chris and decided to stop for a moment to tell him that Stephanie wasn't feeling well. "Chris?"

"Yeah Vince?" Chris asked as he took off his headphones. "Where's Steph?"

"She wasn't feeling well, something with her stomach, she went to go lie down. I just thought you should know. If she feels like she needs to leave early, let her know that it's ok by me. I don't want her to work while she's sick."

"Thanks Vince," Chris said slowly, and as soon as Vince was gone, Chris was out of his seat and ran, full speed back to Stephanie's offense, bursting open the door, causing Stephanie to bolt up from where she was lying down. "Vince said something was wrong with your stomach, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," Stephanie said, "I got nauseous and had to cover it up so my dad wouldn't suspect anything. That's my dad for you, not being clear."

"You're not lying to me right?"

"No, I'm not lying to you."

"You'd tell me if you felt something going wrong right?"

"Right."

"Ok…I guess I can go back to work."

"I guess you can," Stephanie said. "I just wanted to lay down."

"Ok, I'll just go finish up…and Steph?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you…both."


	56. OMG Steph! October 3, 2005

A/N: Ok, so who else was totally excited to see Stephanie tonight, even for just several minutes? I know I was! I was jumping up and down in happiness because of the awesomeness that was Stephanie. How is it that in like six minutes Stephanie managed to be so much cooler and confident and intimidating than any of the other divas have in like the past year? I wish she would just come back already, we need her.

And finally some good stuff for my story! Yay! Enjoy!

* * *

"Big show tonight, big, big show tonight."

Stephanie was busying herself going over the matches and segments that they had planned for that evening. Her entire family was here, so there was definitely less strain on her, but she wanted to make sure that everything went perfectly tonight. It was a big show for Raw, a big, huge show that was a homecoming and a big change, and she just hoped the fans enjoyed it. She had been in collaboration with her father and Bischoff for the past week, working day in and day out. Chris had been in Australia doing some shows and she had been in Connecticut in meetings all week long.

Chris was expected to be here soon, but she didn't think she'd even have time to see him if he did get here. She was going to be so busy tonight that she couldn't even think of where to start. She knew that she had help, but Stephanie was never really sure if the job was being done correctly. The only way that she could really be sure that anything was done the way it was supposed to was to do it herself.

"Hey baby girl."

Stephanie looked up and smiled briefly before putting her head back down. "Hey Shane, what's up?"

"Just watching you work," he said, coming over to sit down. "You know if you want my help I'm here tonight."

"I know, I can see you sitting there plain as day," Stephanie said, writing something down that she wanted to ask Bischoff about. "But I don't need your help."

"Well, it's out there, if you want it. So, I haven't really gotten to speak with you in a while," Shane said, leaning back in the chair, folding his arms behind his head. "I mean, we were both working in Titan this week and we saw nothing of each other, how did that happen?"

"We work in different parts of the building," she said. "And it's a pretty big building. Besides, we have two very different jobs that don't really let us interact with each other."

"Yeah, but how could you not tell me about you leaving, I had to hear about it from Dad, and you know that's never good…when Dad has the one up on me in the information department."

"Yeah, but it lasted two weeks, I was gone for two weeks, whoop-dee-do," Stephanie deadpanned. "I couldn't keep my promise."

"Why'd you want to leave in the first place?" Shane questioned.

Stephanie didn't answer for a moment, so engrossed was she in her work, or at least, that's what she wanted to project. She couldn't tell her brother right now her original reasons for wanting time off. It was a moot point anyways; she hadn't taken as much time off as she had planned, at least not yet. She looked down at her stomach briefly, where her pants had gotten a little tighter over the past couple of weeks. Luckily she had some bigger sized clothes around that she could put on. She wasn't really showing yet, but her stomach was getting a little bit rounder, and if she was wearing tighter clothing, you'd be able to tell she was getting a little pudgy around the middle. But her slightly too big for her jacket covered all that up quite effectively.

"I just needed a break, or so I thought," Stephanie said, looking her brother dead in the eye. You weren't a McMahon if you couldn't lie your way out of any situation.

"But you came back?"

"I came back," Stephanie shrugged. "Nothing more to it than that. I thought that I wanted to try to be a normal person, with a normal job and a normal home life, and a normal husband, but that's not going to happen, it might never happen. Or if it does happen, Chris and I are going to be old."

"How old?"

"Very old," she laughed. "Either way, I just couldn't stay away from work."

"Yeah, I know what you mean, Mom and Dad really screwed us didn't they? They made us the way that we are."

"Like you don't love what you do."

"I do, I'm just saying, what if we had both been born to different families?"

"I don't know," Stephanie said. "I guess it would just be different. We'd be different. I might be completely the opposite of the way I am now, I might be a loafer or a slacker. I might be barefoot and pregnant with three kids and a husband who cares nothing for me."

"Well, you've already done the husband who cares nothing for you, so you can check that off your list, now the loafer thing will never happen, and I can't imagine you barefoot and pregnant, pregnant sure, but barefoot, no way."

"Get out of my office Shane, there's got to be somewhere else that you can go to bug people, and leave me to my work."

"Excuse me Stephanie, I am part owner of this company, so if I want to do something, I can do it at my leisure. Are you sure you don't need any help? You work too much, we all know that you work too much."

"I know that I work too much, but that doesn't change anything." She also wanted to get in as much work as possible before she had to go on maternity leave. Granted, that wasn't going to be for another five or so months, but Stephanie did love to be on top of things.

"Ok, ok, I'll go find something else to do, since you're so insistent upon getting me out of here, but mark my words, I'll be back. Oh, which brings me to the thing I came to tell you in the first place."

"You mean you actually had a reason for coming here and you make me sit here and listen to you talk and talk and talk."

"Yes, because you're my little sister and I love to torture you."

"What is it?"

"Mom and Dad wanted to invite you and Chris for a late dinner tonight at their suite at the hotel, kind of like a job well done type of thing. They ordered it special from some restaurant and Mom wanted me to come tell you that you should come."

"Yeah, I don't see why we couldn't. Chris isn't here yet, but what is he going to have to do after the show, spend time with me is about it so I think we can swing having dinner with you guys."

"Good, see you later baby girl," Shane said, getting up and circumventing her desk to kiss her cheek. "Don't work yourself into the ground now."

"I won't."

Shane walked out of the room and down the hallway. He turned a corner and saw Kurt speaking with a blonde girl. His interest piqued, he walked over and saw that the blonde was the new diva, Ashley. His interest even more piqued, he wondered internally why Kurt was talking to her as he had not seen much interaction, actually no interaction between the two of them.

"Kurt, you do know you have a match in about thirty minutes," Shane said, walking up with a pat to Kurt's shoulder.

"Hey Shane, my man, I do know I have a match, which I will win and kick HBK's ass in the process."

"As long as you put on a show for us, we don't care what you do," Shane said, turning to Ashley. "I don't believe we've met, I'm Shane McMahon."

"You really don't need to introduce yourself," Ashley said, shaking Shane's extended hand. "You'd have to be stupid not to know who you are."

"Well you've proven yourself not stupid," Shane said, still shaking her hand. "I think the people made a great choice."

Kurt stood there, his mouth gaping a little bit. Was Shane trying to put the moves on Ashley? No, that couldn't be, surely the gossip had to have gotten to Shane. Not that there was a lot of gossip to be said, but…well, Trish and Stephanie were spreading lies that he had a crush on Ashley. That wasn't true, but he figured Shane would've heard about it. Not that he hated Ashley, but he wasn't liking her like THAT. Shane could go after whoever he wanted.

"Thank you," Ashley answered. "It's always nice to be wanted."

"You are most wanted," Shane said. "You have a match later tonight right?"

"Yeah, bra and panties," Ashley said, with a smirk and a little eyebrow raise.

"Would you allow me to escort you to your dressing room, you wouldn't want to mix and match any bras or panties out there," Shane said, and it wasn't smooth, but Ashley still giggled.

"Sure, I'd allow you to escort me," she told him. "Kurt, I'll talk to you later?"

"Um…yeah," Kurt said, waving his arms forward as if to usher them away. "We'll definitely talk later."

"Bye Kurt," Shane said.

"Bye."

Shane offered his arm to Ashley and she took it graciously. Kurt watched them walk away, but they were soon engulfed in the crowds of people walking up and down the hallway. He couldn't understand what happened just now, but it didn't feel so good. It wasn't that Ashley was his girlfriend, hell, she was hardly his friend, but still, that had to be kind of rude right? He needed to talk to someone impartial, which excluded both Trish and Stephanie, and Christian was a blabbermouth so he would tell Trish in about three seconds, where was Chris? He decided to go look for him.

Trish opened up her robe to model another bra and panty set for Christian. He looked appreciatively at the outfit, or lack thereof and beckoned her over to him. She slipped off her robe and walked slowly to Christian, straddling his lap, her breasts eye level. He stared at them for a long moment before Trish tipped his chin up and gave him a long, languid kiss.

"So once again we're on the same show," she whispered.

"You're actually thinking about the show," Christian said, looking down again.

"You're not?" Trish joked. "Chrissy, do you think that this is the right outfit for me to go out in?"

"I think you look hot."

"But you've said that about every single outfit that I've chosen, you're no help Chrissy. No help at all."

"How can I be of any help when you look like that?" Christian asked, being sensible about it. Trish didn't really see the big deal, but Christian obviously did. He leaned up to kiss her some more, rubbing his hand up and down her back rhythmically, letting it come to rest on top of her bra.

"Not right now," Trish murmured. "Maybe later."

Suddenly the door was shoved open and Trish squealed as Randy walked into the room, arms outstretched. "Randy Orton has arrived."

"Randy!" Trish yelled, pushing Christian to a standing position and ducking behind him. "What are you doing!"

"I just wanted to come say hi, obviously I was interrupting something."

"No, she was just showing me what she was wearing underneath her clothes for her bra and panties match, I don't know why she's being so modest, she could be stripped down later for all the world to see."

"But it's different now," Trish said, catching on to the tone of Christian's voice. "And like I'm not going to win anyways, those chicks have nothing on me."

"True, true," Randy said, grabbing Trish's robe off the ground and handing it to her. "Here you go, I wouldn't want you to lose your modesty."

"Thank you." Trish slipped the robe on and tied it tightly before emerging from behind her boyfriend. She went over to Randy and gave him a big hug, hanging onto his neck for a moment. "It's good to see you Randy."

"You saw me last week when you came with Christian to SmackDown."

"I know, but it's something that polite people say."

"Thanks for the heads up. I was going to go see Stephanie and Chris, but I heard that she is swamped with work and I don't want to disturb her, so I thought I'd see what you guys were up to."

"Not much," Trish said. "We've both got matches tonight incidentally. Chrissy here is going to kick ass too, and we're both going home tonight winners."

"Fun, do you know where Kurt is by any chance?"

"Nope, haven't seen him," Trish told him. "But I wouldn't be surprised if he was with Ashley."

"The new girl?"

"Yeah, you should go find him and tease him about it, he'll hate me even more than he does right now."

"And who would hate you?" Randy asked, gesturing towards her body. "Nobody can resist that."

"I know, but just do it, it'll make him so mad. He hates to admit it, but he has the hugest crush on her, but he doesn't want to get it together and ask her out because he thinks he's too old for her."

"How old is Kurt?"

"Thirty-six, but seriously, age is only how you feel, and if you feel younger, then you look younger, and he's just being a big baby about it, right Chrissy?"

"Right."

"How much does she have to pay you to agree with her?" Randy asked.

"She's my girl, I kind of have to."

"Oh, to be in love," Randy responded drolly. "It can be such a bitch."

Speaking of bitches, Candice had been summoned to Hunter's dressing room. She thought about going in just her bra and panties, but that would be coming on too strong, so she had actually gotten dressed. She checked herself in a lonely mirror hanging on the wall and walked brightly to Hunter's dressing room, knocking softly on it. Hunter showed up a moment later, grunted and left the door open before walking inside. Candice walked in after him and closed the door.

"You wanted to see me?"

"Yeah, because I am asking you to do a job and it seems that you're so incompetent you couldn't do it!" Hunter said angrily.

"I'm trying, I'm going to try to tonight, but Chris isn't here yet, I heard that he had been away and wasn't coming until later. But I'll definitely try when he gets here."

"Good, because I want him out of the picture. That ass has been getting everything that I'M entitled to and I'm sick of it, I'm sick of him, and everything he stands for and I want my damn wife back."

"Ok, shh, it'll be ok," Candice told him, coming up behind him and running her hands over his broad shoulders. "I'll make sure that they're broken up, but if I can ask, why is it SO important to you, you seem to be doing ok without her."

"You don't get it, Stephanie is mine, I wanted her and took her once, I can do it again. Once she sees what a cheating jackass she married, there's no way that she won't come running back into my arms. I'll be there to pick up the pieces and be the man that she wanted me to be all along, and everything will be perfect."

"Ok, but what do I get," Candice said, running her hands down his chest, pulling on his lapels a little bit. "Because I should be getting whatever I want out of this deal."

"You'll get everything you want, what Stephanie doesn't know won't hurt her, besides, she'll be too beside herself over her next failed marriage she wouldn't even notice anything was…out of the ordinary," he said gruffly as he pulled on her arm and spread little kisses along her forearm to her elbow.

"You have such a nice mouth," Candice whispered huskily. "Can't I just get one little kiss?"

Hunter turned in his chair and brought Candice down a little bit. She smiled lasciviously, licking her lips a little, wetting them in anticipation of his lips on hers. He smirked, knowing that she wanted everything about him. What an ego boost that was (like HHH needs an ego-boost). Just as their lips were about to meet, Hunter pulled his head back, leaving Candice hanging.

"Get me what I want, and you'll get what you want."

Candice looked injured by his rejection, but tried to hide it. She nodded silently as he turned back to what he was doing. He took no more notice of her and she figured that was his way of dismissing her. She backed out of the room slowly, feeling her heart pounding in her chest. She couldn't believe the feelings that man was able to elicit from her. She HAD to have him, and she was going to get Chris Jericho no matter what, just so she could really feel his lips on hers.

Chris Jericho's wife was sitting down, watching the show. It had started about twenty minutes ago, and the Ironman match was just starting between Kurt and Shawn. She had noticed that Kurt was really quiet and had only nodded his head in her direction. He must've been pretty focused on his match. Usually he would at least say hello, but she wasn't going to decipher his hellos. She was still waiting on Chris, and she glanced at her watch. Her cell phone rang just then and she picked it up, seeing it was Chris she answered it eagerly.

"Sweetie, where are you?"

"I'm on my way baby, but I got kind of delayed at the airport, they lost part of my luggage and we're trying to locate it, they think that it just got mixed up with another flight's luggage, so I'm going to be there in a little while."

"Ok, I just missed you and couldn't wait to see you and wanted you here for the big night, to watch with me."

"I'll be there, I promise."

"Ok, I'll see you then."

"Yeah, I love you."

"Love you too."

She hung up the phone and was about to watch Kurt when she saw her father out of the corner of her eye, and her mother as well. She stood up and walked over to them, hugging her father and then her mother, giving them warm smiles.

"Stephanie, I just wanted to tell you something pertaining to the show," Vince said.

"What's that Dad?"

"Well, for one, I'll be taking over and helping you."

"Ok, I understand," she said, figuring this would happen so she had had an extra set of headphones set up at her station. "There's more I assume."

"Since it's a special night, and since we're back on the USA network, tonight, you can be seen on television."

Stephanie laughed. "Thanks Dad, but I don't think I'd fit in anywhere."

"Well that may be, but the offer is on the table."

"Maybe if Chris were on the show, I'd go on and insult him or something, but I don't think I fit in out there anymore, as sad as that is to say."

"You're a McMahon, you'd always fit in," Linda told her. "Because before you were a Jericho, you were a McMahon and don't you forget that."

"I wouldn't Mom, Chris doesn't even let me forget it. He reminds me of it everyday in fact."

Stephanie turned and saw Shane hanging around Ashley, looking quite cozy and she gasped. She turned to her mother and father and excused herself as Vince escorted Linda over to Stephanie's station where she took care of the show. She stomped over to Shane and pulled him, rather rudely, by the arm a few feet away from where Ashley was.

"Are you hitting on her?"

"Well I was trying before my little sister came up and pulled me away like a crazed animal," Shane said sarcastically.

"You can't do that!" Stephanie said emphatically.

"Stephanie, you're my sister, I love you, but I'm not taking love advice from you. You haven't had the best love record."

"Shane, I'm married, I have a husband, we've been married for almost nine months, we've been together for over three years, I THINK that I'm doing a little better in the love department than you."

"I concede victory then," he said, raising his arms in defeat.

"That's Kurt's girl," Stephanie hissed into Shane's ear.

"What?"

"Kurt has a crush on her!" Stephanie said, trying not to be loud, but Stephanie was kind of naturally loud, but luckily for her, Ashley couldn't hear them over the roar of the crowd in the arena and the hustle and bustle going on backstage.

"He what?"

"Shane, do I have to spell it out for you?" Stephanie impatiently told him.

"Well, she seemed to like me, so I don't know what to do."

"Oh," Stephanie said. "Well…I just wanted to tell you, he does, he'll say he doesn't, but he does, so…I don't know."

"Look, I'm sorry, but I like her."

"But you're never around anyways."

"That doesn't mean I can't start coming around."

"Fine, I concede victory," she said, mocking him by copying his earlier statement. "Do what you want."

"Thank you, where's your husband anyways, he usually keeps you from spouting off your mouth at every little thing."

"Oh shove it," Stephanie rolled her eyes. "He's running late, but he'll be here."

"If you say so, now if you'll excuse me, I was speaking to someone."

"Fine, fine," Stephanie said, walking back over to her parents and sitting down next to them. She leaned her chin in her hand and watched the Ironman match. There wasn't much to do during one of these things, except tell them to cut to commercial every now and then. The match would last the allotted time and no longer, and that was easy to schedule. She missed Chris a lot, more than she thought she would.

"How are you sweetie?" she heard her mother ask.

"I'm fine Mom, why do you ask?"

"Well, with you wanting to leave, it worried me a little. Things are going ok with you and Chris right? He didn't stay with you at all this week, I noticed," she said gently.

"Everything is fine with me and Chris Mom, I promise. I'm not going to screw up this relationship Mom." Stephanie couldn't screw it up with Chris, they had a baby on the way. Even if they didn't last, they were going to have a baby to tie them together for the rest of their lives and that was the most important thing.

"You promise? Because sweetie, if things aren't right with you two, I don't want you to hold that inside like you did with Hunter. I truly believe that if you had just discussed your problems with Hunter and addressed them, you would've been better off."

"Mom, I promise you that Chris and I are just as good as ever. The reason that he went away this weekend and I stayed was because of this show. I didn't go because I had to think about this show, and that had to take precedent over his stuff. I love Chris very much, and nothing is going to change that. He's it for me, he's the only one that I want for the rest of my life. I know that."

"Ok, I just wanted to make sure. I don't want you to have to go through another messy divorce, but I know that you love Chris."

Stephanie watched her mother go back to watching the show and she started watching as well, as the time wound down on the match between the two of them. But that wasn't on her mind at the moment. She wondered what her mother would say if she just came out and told her that she was pregnant. She was going to have the heir to the McMahon throne in about seven months. She wanted to just lean her head on her mom's shoulders and tell her that she was going to have a baby and she was little bit scared.

She did lean her head on Linda's shoulder. "Mommy?"

"What is it sweetie?"

"What do you see in my future?"

Linda patted her daughter's head. "I don't know sweetie, what do you see in your future?"

"I'm not sure either," she laughed. "I thought you might know since you're the mom. Aren't moms supposed to know everything?"

"That's a common misconception, but you'll find out the tricks of the trade if you ever become a mother."

Stephanie smiled a tiny smile. "Do you think I'd make a good mom?"

"I think you would make a wonderful mother sweetie. You have a goodness inside of you. You don't let it show too much, but it's there and I think having a baby would only amplify that. I'm sure if we asked Chris, he would know the goodness I'm talking about."

"Thank you Mom," Stephanie said, her voice so innocent at the moment. She needed her mother's reassurance on this. It was starting to feel more real, more like a pregnancy. Sure, she had had the morning sickness, she had the ultrasound picture tucked away in her day-planner, but it wasn't until she noticed her stomach getting rounder that it felt really real.

She saw her father get up to go God knows where, but she stayed with her mother. She didn't feel like going anywhere at the moment. She just wanted to sit there and mull a little bit longer. She was so zoned out she didn't notice her father going out there to address the crowd until he was talking. She paid a little more attention to that. Then Austin went out there and she knew this wasn't going to end well. She saw Shane wander over to watch with her and her mother. Mostly they were just watching their father look like a fool, but that was nothing new.

And it was nothing new that Vince got a stunner. Stephanie couldn't believe that he would try that on this night. Her father was going to be so pissed. Shane was actually a little pissed as she saw him go out there to confront Austin. He didn't get far as he was stunnered as soon as he hit the ring. Stephanie, without thinking, got up and went out there. It was one thing to give a stunner to her father, but to her brother? That just wasn't right and she was rightly pissed off. This was her family after all.

She walked down purposefully to that ring, to the cheers of the people. As she climbed into the ring, she closed her eyes briefly, just for a second to take it all in. It was a feeling she had missed. She never really admitted it, or thought about it because it was painful sometimes, but she missed this more than she ever wanted to admit. The cheers, the boos, the reaction from the crowd, all of it was just so missed.

She let herself feel it, she let the sound roll over her for that one moment, for that second, she just let it surround her. She stepped into that ring, but this time it was different. Not in the sense that her father and brother were on the mat and she was standing across from Austin. She could've been standing across from someone as familiar as Chris and still felt different. She had stepped in the ring a thousand times, but this was special, she felt like it was new, like it was the first time.

She was rudely taken back to the present as she yelled at Austin for his actions. She predicted he wouldn't care and he didn't care. She grabbed his arm and told him who she was, minus her added last name, but she never said that name in these kind of situations anyways. But she was dominant again, she was the dominant female, not any other women on the show. And she really was. Stephanie could put more intimidation and more fear into everyone in those few mere moments than any diva could in a year…but that's why she was Stephanie McMahon and nobody else was.

She garnered that attention, and she didn't even know how much. Christian and Trish had been walking to catering when they heard the distinctive tone of Stephanie's voice. There was no way that you could mistake Stephanie's voice for anyone else's. They walked over to a monitor and saw her standing there, in the ring, and they were shocked. Trish gave a little cough and looked at Christian. They were soon joined by Kurt, who happened upon the two of them, staring, open-mouthed in wonder. He saw Stephanie and his eyes widened.

Chris had just arrived and walked over, thinking that Stephanie would be sitting at her station, watching and looking over tonight's huge show that she had worked so hard for. He saw his three friends standing around, looking shocked and he turned to look why and his stomach dropped about two stories. Stephanie was in the ring, Stephanie was in the ring with Austin and he had no idea why. All he knew was that Stephanie was in the ring with Stone Cold Steve Austin.

"What is she doing out there?" he breathed.

Kurt heard him though, and answered succinctly. "Shane and Vince got Stunnered and Stephanie went out there to confront Austin."

Now Chris felt his stomach drop about two stories more. He stood there, unable to move as he watched his wife, the love of his life, stand up to Austin. She slapped him, and he remembered how he had said, to a camera, that she had slapped him harder than anyone had slapped him ever. But Austin didn't like to be slapped, and Chris felt his heart drop to somewhere in the vicinity of the core of the Earth when Austin kicked his wife's stomach.

Stephanie had looked at Austin, and she should've known, but she didn't. She didn't realize it until Austin had kneed her in the stomach and for a second, her eyes widened and she tried to pull away, but it was too late, much too late. She got stunned and but good, falling to the mat helplessly in a heap of perfume and business suit.

Chris felt his legs give way underneath him, and he nearly collapsed to the floor. If Kurt had not been next to him, Chris would have fallen to the ground, in as much a heap as his wife was at the moment. Christian and Trish glanced over and saw Chris white as a sheet and Kurt holding him up by the arm. They figured that he was concerned about Stephanie's well-being.

Kurt led Chris over slowly to Stephanie's station, sitting him down in one of the chair. Chris was trembling so badly that Kurt could see it with his naked eye. Kurt put his arm around Chris's hunched over form, knowing just why Chris was so worried. Kurt couldn't think of anything to say, nothing seemed adequate in this situation. He was sure that Stephanie was fine, at least he hoped she was fine…and the baby…he prayed to whatever higher being there was that Stephanie and Chris's baby was fine.

Chris couldn't even feel anything, he was so numb that feeling anything was out of the question. He couldn't feel the trembling that he was doing, he couldn't feel the shaking, there was just an endless pit of nothing welling up inside of his stomach. He couldn't feel Kurt's presence as he watched that scene over and over again in his mind. He saw that kick in the stomach as if it was in slow motion, over and over again, and because of that, he couldn't stop this incessant shaking.

It did stop though, when he saw Austin walking backstage, self-satisfied with what he had done to the McMahon family. When Chris saw him, all he saw was red. It went beyond hatred, it went to a deep, dark, scary place inside of Chris's soul. Once upon a time, people had thought he was somewhat psychotic, holding Chyna captive and threatening to hurt her. That was nothing compared to the rage.

Before Kurt could stop him, Chris was charging at Austin like a bull charging at a red flag. There was such an unbridled hatred in Chris at the moment that even if Kurt could've caught him, there was no way he would've been able to contain him. Chris speared Austin to the ground and started to pummel him harder than he had ever hit anyone before. Chris had been in fights in his day, but never like this, never had he wanted to kill someone so much with his bare hands.

Kurt, Christian, and Trish stood shocked for a moment before Kurt and Christian came to their senses and went after Chris. Chris was punching the defenseless Austin, who had been too stunned by the attack to fight back against his attacker. Christian and Kurt grabbed a hold of Chris's arms and pulled him away, having to use all of their brute strength. Chris was panting he was so angry.

"You stay the hell away from wife you son of a bitch!" Chris yelled. "Don't you ever touch her again or I will kill you!"

"Your wife is a piece of trash you sumbitch, she got what she deserved."

Chris roared, and you could easily see where he got the name Lionheart as he tried to break free from Christian and Kurt. They had to brace themselves because Chris very nearly got away from them to attack Austin once again. Chris spit in Austin's face, not caring the consequences. This man could've hurt his child and Chris felt for the first time what it was like to be a parent, to care for someone more than you cared for yourself, to give up your life for someone. Chris felt the fight drain out of him as Stephanie was escorted backstage by a couple of trainers. Chris rushed over to her, forgetting about Austin or anyone else other than Stephanie.

He pushed the trainers out of the way before wrapping his arms around his wife, as if trying to feel that she was alright. He took her over and sat her down in a folding chair, crouching down in front of her, looking at her, studying her, as if he could tell something was wrong just by looking at her.

"Steph, baby, are you ok?" Chris asked frantically.

"I think so, yeah," Stephanie said softly.

"Are you sure that everything is ok?"

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure."

"What the hell were you thinking Stephanie!" Chris said loudly.

Stephanie looked down. "Chris, please, can we not talk about this here."

"Then where Stephanie? Huh, where!"

Stephanie shook her head, "My office, let's go."

Chris had to help her make her way slowly to her office. She let him help her inside and sit down on the couch. He studied her again, her face, everything about her. He helped her take her jacket off and he looked at her stomach, like it was see-thru and he could see what was going on with his child in there.

"Stephanie, I can't believe you did that, why would you do that!"

"I'm sorry Chris, I didn't think it would come to that."

"You didn't think he would give you a stunner?" he asked.

"No."

"How could you be so naïve? Stephanie, how could you be so stupid as to believe that he wouldn't do that to you! He would do that to his own mother if it suited his fancy. Stephanie, you went out there, knowing that he could do something."

"I wasn't thinking, I'm sorry Chris," Stephanie pleaded. "I truly am."

"Stephanie, this goes beyond being sorry, do you know what you risked by going out there!"

"Chris, please don't yell at me," Stephanie told him.

Chris got up and started pacing back and forth. "What even compelled you to go out there in the first place, you're not allowed on television."

"My dad said I could go out there if I wanted to, I didn't plan to, I really didn't plan it, but when Austin gave a stunner to Shane for no reason, I snapped, I wasn't thinking…"

"You're damn right you weren't thinking, you could've gotten hurt, really, really hurt…you still could be hurt, you know! You could've hurt our baby!"

Stephanie's eyes welled with tears, "I know, Chris, I'm sorry, but I really didn't think that he would do that to me. I thought he would just yell at me or something, I didn't think he would do that to me, I swear!"

"God, I just don't understand how you didn't think he would do that!"

A couple of tears leaked from Stephanie's eyes as she covered her face. "I'm so sorry."

"This isn't just about you anymore Stephanie!"

"I know!" she yelled, tears clogging her voice. "I don't know what else to say, I'm sorry! I am!"

"We're going to the hospital," Chris said firmly. "Get your stuff."

"What?" Stephanie asked. "The hospital? What for?"

"Stephanie, you just got kicked in the stomach, you're pregnant, we're going to the hospital," Chris told her.

"But I feel ok," Stephanie said. "I have work."

"I don't give a shit about work right now," Chris said seriously. "We're going right now whether you like it or not. Stephanie, I'm not going to take my chances with either of you right now…"

"Ok, ok, you're right," Stephanie said, getting her things. He was right, she had been kicked and it would be the responsible thing to get checked out at the hospital to make sure that everything was ok with her. She hoped it was because if it wasn't, she would never forgive herself, never ever forgive herself for not protecting their child.

Trish and Christian were a little perplexed as to Chris's anger, but Kurt wasn't and he remained sullen as he sat there. He was worried about Stephanie and about her baby. He didn't want to think about that right now though, because he was so worried he was liable to start trembling like Chris had. Instead he had to focus his thoughts on something else and not on Stephanie.

The rest of the evening passed without Stephanie and without Chris, but it was still an eventful evening. Like Trish had known all along, she kicked butt in her bra and panties match, she didn't even get stripped of anything, so all of her modeling for Christian had been for nothing. Christian's match wasn't even a match as they got blacked out by Bischoff. And Kurt, well Kurt found his distraction in Bischoff's match.

Stephanie laid her head down in Chris's lap in their hotel room. Dinner with her family had been uneventful and not very fun, but she had still eaten her share of food. Luckily she had always had a big appetite so it didn't seem out of the ordinary. The doctors at the hospital had cleared her after everything seemed normal. They just told her to take it easy for a couple days and tell her regular doctor if there was anything that didn't feel right. So here she was, her head in her husband's lap as he gently ran his fingers through her hair.

"You full?" he asked quietly.

"Doubly full," she answered. "I think I ate enough for four people."

"It's good, you've got to keep your energy and strength up."

"Yeah…Chris, I am sorry for earlier, I was stupid, and I put our child in danger and I'm sorry for that."

"I'm sorry I blew up at you. I know sometimes that it's easy to forget that you have a baby inside of you, at least right now, and the lure of the ring is a hard one to not give in to."

"Yeah, but still, I really should've thought more before I went out there and I didn't."

"You were beautiful though," he said, twisting a piece of her hair around his finger, then letting go of it to stroke her cheek. "It was like old times, except you looked more dignified, but the camera missed you."

"It did not."

"Yes it did, I think that you were more beautiful out there than all of the divas combined. They talk about how gorgeous and flashy and sexy the divas are, but you are something else Stephanie McMahon-Jericho."

"You're only saying that because you love me."

"No, I'm saying that because it is what it is. If you had seen yourself out there, you would've known what I meant."

"Thank you for not hating me…for what I did out there."

"We all make mistakes, the doctor said that you looked fine, and barring anything catastrophic, I think we're all going to be alright, we just have to take it real easy the next couple of days. That means no working."

"Ok, I understand and I'm willing to do that…for you and the baby."

She closed her eyes, feeling an entirely different kind of feeling run over her. It wasn't like the feeling she had felt in the ring earlier, that adrenaline rush of being in front of everyone. This was a peaceful feeling. One she would never get tired of living. She reached up and ran her hand across Chris's leg, rubbing it gently. He smiled down at her and she turned her head to look up at him.

"Steph?"

"Yeah."

"I love you, you know."

"Yeah, I know."

"And tonight…"

"Yeah?"

"You looked good out there."


	57. Hee, Steph is Back, October 10, 2005

A/N: Why couldn't Stephanie have come back like 2 months ago when Jericho was still on the show? It's not fair that he leaves and we get Stephanie back. What's next, Stephanie leaves and then Jericho comes back? Sigh, and I was SO hoping that when Steph came back that Jericho would be here and he could do the Highlight Reel and have her as a guest. -sigh-

* * *

Stephanie hung up the call on her cell phone and sat on the bed of her suite that she shared with her husband. Her father had been the one who had just been on the phone. He had offered her an interesting proposition, and she was contemplating whether or not she should take this proposition. If it had been four months ago, she would've jumped at the opportunity, she would've skipped her way to work today, she would've been ecstatic beyond words.

He had told her she could come back to television.

She looked down, not necessarily at her stomach, but it was definitely there, her stomach that is. She wasn't quite showing yet, and she probably wouldn't for a while. She had visited the doctor's last week after last week's Raw, making sure that she was going to be ok. Dr. Sheldon didn't seem to see anything wrong with her, but told her to take it easy for the rest of the week and this week, she could return to her normal duties.

She had spent last week mostly in bed, letting Chris take care of her and their baby. She hadn't been in pain, she hadn't felt much of anything in the ways of pain since last week, and looking over the tape, she hadn't been kicked too hard, which was a relief. But now her father was offering to let her back on television. He was offering it all to her, everything she had dreamed of just a few short months ago. It wouldn't be the same of course, Chris wouldn't be out there with her, but it was something, it was definitely something.

But then she thought of the risks, and there were risks. Things that happened last week could happen again. She would do everything she could to prevent it from happening, but it could happen. Life was never a certainty. You couldn't say thing were going to happen, because you just never knew. She would protect her child with her life if she had to, but what would Chris think of this?

"Who was that?" Chris asked as he walked out of the bathroom in just a towel.

"Dad."

"Mine or yours?"

"Mine," Stephanie answered. "Um…he asked me something."

Chris rolled his eyes. "Is there any time where you're not having to make decisions around the business? I know he's grooming you to take over, but this is ridiculous. I'm tempted to just tell him about your condition so he will quit it with this."

"He wants me back on television Chris."

"Excuse me?" Chris didn't think he heard correctly.

"He wants me back. He feels the McMahon presence is under represented and he wants me on television. Chris…I've been waiting for this."

Chris sat down next to her. "You do know what this means right? You do know the chance you're going to take?"

"You mean you're not going to say no?" Stephanie asked, shocked by the revelation. She expected the first words out of Chris's mouth to be, "no," but he hadn't said no yet. Not that he couldn't say it, but he hadn't said it and she was surprised that he was actually discussing this rationally with her.

"No, I'm not going to say no. This is your decision Stephanie. Yes, half of that kid is mine, but it's still inside of you, and if you want to be back on television, it's entirely up to you. I'm your husband Steph, I'm not your slave driver."

Stephanie bit her lip. "Chris?"

"What?"

"I want to be back on television SO badly," she told him, and he could see it in her eyes. She hadn't been on television in years, and he knew from being with her for those years how much it meant to her to be on television. He had seen the low points, and he knew that his would make her happy.

"Then baby, I say go for it."

"You mean it?" she asked hopefully, her hand twitching from excitement.

"Just promise me that you'll be careful."

"I swear!" she said.

Then she flung herself into his arms, hugging him so tight that he couldn't breathe. He fell against the bed and took her down with him as she laid her body completely on top of his. She kissed him all over his face, not satisfied with kissing any particular spot. She was kissing him and he couldn't even get at her lips from the frenzied pace of her kissing. He had to pull her off of him in order to see her face.

"I love you so much!" Stephanie said, trying to get at his lips.

Chris laughed, "I love you too."

She hopped up off of him and shifted herself from foot to foot, wanting to jump up and down, but not knowing how that would feel in her stomach since she was still getting morning sickness. She had the most luminescent smile on her face and Chris had only seen that smile once before, and that was on their wedding day. She was so beautiful in that moment that he knew that he would never have been able to refuse her wishes.

"Chris, do you know what this means!"

"What does it mean baby?" he asked, indulging her.

"I'm back, I'm back, I'm back!" she yelled. "Daddy is having his lawyers draw up the papers as we speak, and then I'll sign them, and I can do whatever the hell I want to do. I'm not stuck behind a damn clipboard anymore, I control Bischoff, CONTROL EVERYONE."

"And now you're starting to scare me."

"Well I don't control you, so you don't have to worry," Stephanie said, grabbing both of Chris's hands and pulling him up, only now noticing that he was still in a towel.

"I do love how you choose to come back after I leave, how convenient for you."

"Oh you know I wouldn't have been able to resist being across the ring from you without jumping you and having my way with you in front of thousands of people."

"Well, that's another mystery cleared up. You know, if I had had my way, when you get those papers to sign, there would've been an engagement ring on the pen and I would've proposed to you."

Stephanie laughed. "Yeah, but you proposed to me over a year ago and we've been married for months and months and months, and aren't you glad that we didn't wait. I mean, we could've broken up by now for all you know."

"That's great. Now, I'm only here in a towel so is there any way I can."

"Get dressed? Yeah, that would be great because I want to get to the arena right now. I want to sign those papers as soon as possible so I think that you should be wearing pants when that happens."

"And what are you going to wear?" he asked, looking at her in her pajama pants and a Y2J shirt that was about five sizes too large for her.

"I'm going to look hot," Stephanie said. "I'm going to show everyone out there that I'm the best, and they all wish that they could either be me or get with me."

"So you want to just show off then?"

"You better believe it," she said, her eyes gleaming.

This was a Stephanie that Chris hadn't seen in years and he didn't know how this news could light such a fire under her, but it had. And he, for one, was so happy to see it. He was so happy to see her just jubilant. Stephanie loved her backstage job, and she loved to be in charge, but there was something missing. There had been something missing since October of 2003, and Chris knew she had just gotten it back. Whatever it was that had been missing from her had been returned and it was as if the order of the universe had been restored. It was no secret that he loved when Stephanie got fiery, and he saw it; he saw the fire that he been returned to his wife.

She skipped off to the closet where she pulled out a garment bag. She sifted through it, going from suit to suit, things she would wear if she were just going to be backstage. But she wasn't. Chris just watched her as her eyes lit up and she pulled something black out of the garment bag. She widened her eyes in delight at Chris and walked towards the bathroom, pulling his towel off him as she walked by him, leaving him naked in the middle of the bedroom.

"You are such a bitch sometimes," Chris said as he walked over to grab some boxers.

"Don't mess with me tonight Jericho!" Stephanie called from the bathroom.

"Don't steal my towels and leave me naked Jericho!" Chris yelled back at the door.

"Don't call me Jericho, YOU'RE Jericho!"

"You're a Jericho too."

"But you're Jericho, that's your name."

"It's your name too."

"No, it's your name because that's what I called you when I hated you. So you can't call me Jericho, because I called you Jericho first."

"So? You're still a Jericho."

Stephanie stepped out of the bathroom, "You make my life difficult."

"Well, I tr…" Chris's voice faded out as he turned to look at Stephanie who was just finishing up with combing out her hair. She looked at Chris for a second, but he could barely see past the vision that was his wife. It didn't matter if her name was McMahon, Jericho, or whatever, she was looking so beautiful. She was in a low-cut black dress that fit her perfectly. It was pretty much unnoticeable to the naked eye, but Chris could see the slightest bulge of her stomach, and it only made her more beautiful.

She did a little twirl. "Can't go out there looking like a freak."

"You look gorgeous, really."

"I know, you don't have to tell me twice, now are you going like that," Stephanie said, gesturing towards his boxers, "or are you going to get dressed?"

"I'm going, I'm going," he told her, grabbing some clothes and putting them on quickly as Stephanie stood, tapping her feet. When he was finally done, she grabbed her briefcase, which was promptly grabbed back by Chris and they left for the arena.

Pretty soon, Stephanie was sitting at a desk, her father next to her while Chris was on the other side. Her father's lawyers were standing across from the desk and she was looking down at her contract. She was handed a pen and with a quick look to Chris, she signed it with a flourish.

"Welcome back to the active roster Stephanie," Vince said, shaking her hand.

"Thank you Dad, you won't regret this decision."

"Of course I won't, you're my daughter. The world should be lucky to see you!"

Stephanie batted her eyelashes. "Try telling them that. They all wanted to see me get stunned last week."

Chris swallowed hard, still trying to get that image out of his mind. He figured that it was going to be a while before that actually left his brain. He didn't want to think about Austin right now, because if he let himself think about it for any significant amount of time, he was bound to get so angry that he would hunt Austin down and kill him with his bare hands for daring to put his hands on his wife, and for potentially harming his child.

"Well they're going to find out that a McMahon does not take things lying down," Vince said firmly.

"That's so true Daddy," Stephanie said, slipping into familiar shoes as Daddy's Little Girl. "And we have to show all those people out there that we're the McMahon family, and you don't go against us or else you'll see yourself fired and out on your ass."

"Exactly, and someone is going to be in the employment line by the end of the night."

"Good Daddy, someone needs to pay for Austin daring to lay his hands on me," Stephanie said, standing up and looking at the lawyers. "Was there something else that you needed or are you standing there because you're glued to the floor?"

The lawyers scurried out of the room, leaving Stephanie, Chris, and Vince alone. Stephanie just laughed as the last of the lawyers closed the door behind them, almost in fear of her. And now that she was officially back, they really should fear her. She was Stephanie McMahon, dammit, and whatever the hell she wanted, she was going to get. She was back, and she could feel the adrenaline surging through her veins.

"God, it's hard to get good help around here," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "So Dad, what do you we have planned tonight?"

"Well, right now, I have to go and pick up your mother from the airport. Your brother should be arriving shortly, so for now, you're in charge, but I know that you can handle yourself."

"Only the most important thing you taught me."

"Don't go having too much fun now that you have free reign over everything."

Stephanie just gave him a smirk before he left. Stephanie stood her arms folded for a moment, as if thinking about what she wanted to do with all of this power she was now wielding. Chris just looked at her standing there. She was thinking very hard as her eyes squinted almost deviously.

"I almost don't recognize you," Chris said, breaking the silence.

Stephanie turned to him. "What do you mean?"

"You just look different, like this is all you've wanted."

"Well, professionally yes, it is, but not personally, personally I'm still the same."

"Good, I wouldn't want to lose you because you're suddenly back to the way you were before."

She walked over to him and kissed him slowly. "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine."

"Ok, I'm trusting you on that one."

"That's all you need then."

While Stephanie was kissing her husband, her brother was wandering around the arena, trying to find Ashley's locker room. He didn't know if she had her own locker room or if she shared with someone, maybe Trish. If anyone knew, it would be Stephanie and so he found her office and walked inside, seeing his little sister making out with her husband behind her desk. He groaned and Stephanie pulled away.

"What do you want?" Stephanie asked.

"Can you tell me where Ashley's locker room is?" Shane asked. "Then you can get back to sucking all of the spit out of Chris's mouth. I really don't need to see you and your husband make out."

"Then don't walk in unannounced," Stephanie responded snottily. "And he's my husband, if I'm allowed to make out with anyone, it's him."

"That's true," Chris said, wrapping his arm around Stephanie's waist. "Ashley's sharing with Trish, and Trish's locker room is two halls over and like halfway down."

"Thanks Chris, it's nice to have a brother sometimes, then I don't have to deal with my baby sister, the big baby," Shane said, knowing that he was just going to get under Stephanie's skin.

"Shut up Shane, I'll have you know that I'm not a baby anymore, I'm twenty-nine years old, and I'm not a baby!"

"You're still a baby to me, oh wah wah, I'm Stephanie the baby."

"You know, normally I'd stop something like this," Chris said, "but this is just really funny."

"You're supposed to defend ME!" Stephanie told him indignantly. "I'm your wife! You should defend your wife."

"Baby throwing a hissy fit?" Shane said, knowing that Stephanie's buttons had all been pushed.

She took a couple of deep breaths and almost sounded like she was growling at him. Shane backed out of the room quickly, right as Stephanie went to charge him, only stopped by Chris grabbing her arm. He was laughing at her and she gave him a punch to his stomach for his troubles. Shane walked out and went to locate Ashley and Trish's locker room. The new girl intrigued him and he wanted to get to know her better.

Unfortunately for Shane, Ashley was with Kurt at the moment. He had offered to give her a ride to the arena. The reason this happened was because Ashley usually went to the arena with Trish and Christian, but Trish had conveniently said that she had to leave early, passing Ashley off to her good friend Kurt. Kurt knew a set-up when he smelled one, but he didn't argue and went along with this cockamamie plan.

"So Kurt, thanks so much for the ride," Ashley said as they walked into the arena together. "I had no idea that you could be so funny."

"Yeah, people seem to think I'm really serious, but most of the time, I'm not."

"I guess anyone willing to spray people with milk isn't going to be serious all the time."

"So you've seen the milk incident then?"

"Who hasn't!" she exclaimed. "You can't have watched wrestling and not known about that. It was classic, just seeing everyone in the ring get doused, it was so funny. It looked just so gross, I'm glad I wasn't in that ring when you did that."

"I don't think I would've had the heart to do that to you."

Ashley punched him lightly in the arm. "You're too nice Kurt Angle, I thought you were supposed to be the asshole that everyone sees you as."

"People don't know a lot of things about me."

"Interesting," she said softly. "So then you're a mystery?"

"Might be, want to try and solve me?"

She giggled at him and hit him lightly again. "I'll have to definitely consider it."

"Well how about I give you my number and you ever have a question that needs an answer right away while you're trying to solve the mystery that is me, you can call me whenever you want to."

"So you're also very sly, so mysterious," she said as she pulled out a notepad from her purse along with a pen. She scribbled down a number on it and pressed it into Kurt's open palm. "If there's ever a mystery you need solved about me, give me a call."

She walked away from him then, glancing back to give him a little wink before heading off in the direction of where she would find her locker room for the evening. Kurt looked down at the piece of paper with her number on it. He chuckled to himself, yup, he still had it. He was Kurt Angle, and he was an Olympic gold medalist who had just gotten the number to a gorgeous, if much younger, woman. Tonight was going to be special.

Trish looked over at Shane in trepidation, "So you're waiting for Ashley?"

"Is that a crime Trish?"

"No, now is this business-oriented or personal-oriented?" she asked.

"What has that got to do with anything?"

"You better just answer her," Christian said. "It's much easier to just give in to her demands rather than try to fight them. I've been in your position, and you have to just do what she says."

"It's a personal thing Trish, I happen to think that Ashley is something special, is that what you want to hear?"

"But--"

"I know about the whole Kurt thing, my baby sister told me all about it, but I don't see them even dating. Ashley told me last week that Kurt was a friend, and that usually means she's available, am I right in assuming that is the situation?"

Trish let out a breath of exasperation. "I don't know how Chris married into your family, I just don't. When you McMahons want to be the most infuriating people on the planet, you can be. I don't know how you do it."

"Talent," Shane smirked. "So I guess you've got no argument then."

"I'd ask you to leave if you weren't my friend Shane."

"I'm lucky then."

Ashley walked in and said hello to everyone before dumping her bag onto a table. She then sat herself down on the couch right next to Shane, looking over at him with a smile. Shane liked her, she had so much…he couldn't put a word on it, but it was something that made her unique. He was attracted to it, whatever it was that made her so special.

"Shane, nice seeing you again," Ashley said.

"Not half as good as seeing you."

"Are all the McMahons so charming?" she asked.

"Well, if you really want charming, wait until you get hit on by my sister, she's a silver-tongued devil."

Ashley guffawed, then covered her mouth. "I think I prefer getting charmed by you."

"Lucky me."

Trish rolled her eyes as she got up and grabbed Christian's hand, "We'll be in catering if you need us. Ashley, I'll see you later, I might need you in my match."

"Cool, see ya Trish, bye Christian."

"Bye," Christian said.

Trish pulled Christian out of the room and down the hallway. She looked at the label on every sign of every door until she found Stephanie's and knocked on it loudly. Stephanie and Chris had been inside, talking about what Stephanie was going to do later when the door opened and Trish's head popped in. She did not look happy as she and Christian entered.

"Your brother is screwing everything up!"

"Um?" Stephanie said.

"What she means," Christian said, "is that Shane is trying to go after Ashley and it's messing up all the hard work that Trish is going through to get Kurt with Ashley. So she's mad at your brother."

"Oh, I see," Stephanie said. "Well, I'm sorry Trish, but Shane can't be controlled. Lord, I wish I could control him so he wouldn't be a jackass sometimes, but he's Shane, he's my older brother and he knows all my childhood secrets, and that's a lot of power."

"But you have to help me."

"Maybe this time, we shouldn't interfere," Stephanie said, making the other three people in the room gasp. "I'm sorry, but making me choose between my brother and my best friend, that's not even a fair fight. That would be like asking me to choose between my family and Chris, I wouldn't be able to, although, let's face it, I'd choose Chris."

"Fine, you're right, I can't choose between friends," Trish sighed. "As long as whoever is together is happy…why do you look so good tonight Steph? Are you and Chris going out to dinner or something?"

"Nope, just wait," Stephanie said, checking her watch. "Actually, you don't have to wait, if you'll follow me, you'll see why I am dressed like this tonight."

Stephanie took Chris's hand as she walked out to the gorilla, Trish and Christian following. She leaned up to give Chris a little kiss and then winked at him before her music hit and Trish and Christian looked shocked at what was going on. Chris just stood there with a small little, conniving, conspiratorial smile on his face, watching as Stephanie walked out into the arena.

Stephanie heard the crowd, and she loved it and loved that she was back. Everything was falling into place. Sure, she might have to take some leave of absence, but that wouldn't be for several more months at least. Right now, she could savor her time in front of the camera. She climbed into the ring carefully, not wanting to give anyone out there a peek at her goodies. That was reserved for Chris. She looked around at the crowd, knowing that this was her domain again. She was finally back where she belonged, in the ring, ruling and being in charge, and not just behind the scenes.

She gave a dry look to the entire arena. Yes, they hated her, and she was going to lavish in it. The fans had never liked her. Even when she was good, they would call her "slut," or "whore," as if the names didn't hurt her. They didn't anymore, but they used to. They used to stick in her gut, but mostly because Chris was saying them to her, and for some reason, it burned her badly when he would insult her.

She talked about last week and how Austin had stunned her entire family and how that was just wrong. Not according to the crowd, but she was in charge now. It was like a different Stephanie was out there, the dominant female was back. All the other divas could just cower in fear because Stephanie McMahon herself was back, and she was ready for any action that came her way. She brought up the fact that the fans had loved to see her stunned the most, and that didn't hurt, no, it only fueled the fire.

And she brought up the fact that everyone was jealous of her, and it was true. They were all jealous of her, men and women alike. Women wanted to be her, and she didn't blame them, she knew how good she looked, and Chris always reinforced that. And what woman wouldn't want to be married to Chris Jericho, but no, he was all hers. The men wanted her and she knew it. She could see them salivating right now, wanting to take her and ravish her and screw her brains out, but no, that was reserved for one man only.

She was in charge now and it felt so good to just tell everyone that she could do whatever the hell she wanted. She was a McMahon first and foremost and even though she had added a Jericho to her last name, that didn't change who she was or what she had grown up to be. She was about to keep talking when she saw one of the production guys signaling that they had to go to commercial. Normally Stephanie would oblige, but not tonight. Tonight was HER night, tonight was her chance to be back where she belonged and nobody was going to take that from her.

These people wanted her to be the bitch, well she could be the bitch whenever the hell she wanted to. They wanted to hate her for no reason, well she was going to give them a damn reason for hating her. She climbed out of the ring, again carefully, and went to the production guy, chatting for a moment and then slapping him. It wasn't that great a slap, but she was out of practice. So she decided to get a little more practice on Lillian as she slapped her too. She was Stephanie McMahon and she was doing what she wanted, and nobody could stop her.

She walked herself back up the ramp, chin held high, and with a confidence that no other diva could ever hope to possess. She stopped at the top, seeing the announcer's table and a devious idea sprung forth into her brain. She was going to assert just who she was and just what her purpose here was going to be.

Chris was standing, jaw dropped as he saw the announcers help Stephanie up onto that table. She announced that the bitch was back and then gave a look around the arena, knowing that the owned the joint. How one woman could command such attention with three words, he wanted to find out, but she was looking so sexy right now, he wouldn't have been surprised to find a puddle of drool beneath him.

"That's mine," he said, to a passing guy, "She's all mine."

Stephanie came backstage, a stride in her step that was nothing short of purposeful. She was still commanding that everyone look at her and all her friends were in shock. Kurt had joined the three people watching and had almost wanted to steal Stephanie from Chris. Even Christian was having bad thoughts about his friend's wife. Trish was just in awe of Stephanie.

"You like that?" Stephanie asked Chris, running her hand down his cheek slowly.

"If I were not already married to you, I would've gone out there, taken you off that table, taken you back here and ripped your clothes off," Chris told her candidly.

Bischoff came over angrily. "What the hell was that Stephanie?"

"I'm in charge now Bischoff, and don't you forget it," Stephanie said. "I'm reinstated on television so that means I have free rein and you Bischoff are beneath me, so don't try to lord your goddamn position over me anymore, because I'm Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, and I will do what I want whenever the hell I want, and if YOU want something, you clear it through me, you hear?"

Stephanie bobbed her head a little to intimidate him. She grabbed Chris's stunned hand and dragged him back to their locker room. Maybe those hormones she had going with the baby were kicking in, but she just felt different. As soon as they were in Stephanie's office, Chris pushed her against the door and ravished her with his mouth. She wrapped her legs around his waist as he held her against the door.

"You were so damn sexy out there baby, if I had known that you were going to look that sexy, I never would've stopped pushing for you to be on television."

"So you like me when I'm being a bitch then?"

"God yes," he said, licking along her collarbone.

"Well get used to it baby."

Meanwhile, Trish was sitting there, pretty shocked with Stephanie's return. But it was a good kind of shock. She was glad to have her friend back on television. But now she had a match that she had to think about. She had to defend her title tonight and Victoria was pretty much the best women's wrestler besides her around here, so it was going to be tough. This wasn't Torrie she was going against, this was someone who actually could hold her own in the ring in a non-bikini type of match.

Back to Stephanie, who was adjusting her dress over her hips. "I guess that sex drive they talk about that comes with pregnancy is true."

"I do not care," Chris said with a smile. "I will embrace that part of the pregnancy with open arms."

"Thought you might…now I need some water since I'm supposed to drink at least eight glasses a day, and I haven't had enough today and I don't want to get all dehydrated. And then I'm going to try and eat a little something because I do need to eat, although I have been having trouble eating some stuff, but you know about that, so I'm going to catering."

"Want me to come?"

"No, you stay here or go do something else, I'll be fine and I don't need you hovering over me while I eat making sure that I eat enough."

"I get it."

"Good," she said, leaning down to give him one last kiss before she left. She walked out of the room, and down to catering. She just arrived at the entrance when she saw Hunter block her path into the room. She instinctively placed her hand on her abdomen, but then put it at her side. "Move."

"So you're back on television huh?"

"Yeah, so what's it to you?"

"I just found it interesting."

"Yeah, and I saw what you did last week to Flair in your return to television, kudos."

"Thanks, I thought it was masterful."

"Oh yeah, beating up on an older guy, congrats on that," Stephanie said sarcastically, "Now get the hell out of my way before I make you get out of my way."

"Big words coming from such a fragile lady, I wouldn't want anything to happen to you," he said, reaching his hand out, but she slapped it away.

"If you so much as lay a finger on me, I will have you out on your ass so fast that you won't know what hit you. You seem to forget who I am Hunter, but I don't want you to forget that I'm Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, and I can fire you at will, do NOT tempt me, because my trigger finger is itching to fire someone and I would LOVE for it to be you."

Hunter stepped out of her way. "There you go madam."

"Get the hell out of my sight asshole."

"Oh don't worry Steph, I wouldn't dream of doing anything to hurt you."

Stephanie once again got to assert herself as a McMahon later in the show. Her father had called out J.R., Jerry Lawler and Coach for not doing anything to help them last week. She loved when her family got along and when they could be so manipulative and in charge of everybody and everyone. Her father had called out her brother, and she could only wonder where he was at the moment that he couldn't be here.

Shane was leaning over Ashley in the hallway. "So you're going to let me take you to dinner next week right?"

"If you want to, then I have to agree, you are the boss," Ashley said coyly.

"Yeah, but I don't want you to do anything you wouldn't want to do."

"I want to go out to dinner with you, so I have to accept your offer, as long as that is the offer on the table."

"It is."

"Then I accept."

Stephanie was just now coming off of wondering where her brother was when her mother was speaking to J.R. and to her father and herself. But she was a little distracted and clasped her hands in front of her, almost resting them on her stomach, but remembering how that would look. Then her mother dropped the bombshell that J.R. was fired and she laughed and laughed, only wishing that Chris could be out here to see her and her family. He was part of her family after all, even if he wasn't as…well, McMahon as the rest of them. Chris could be devious when he needed to be. But it felt good to be standing there, a family again.

Yes, Stephanie was back…and couldn't be happier.


	58. Steph's the Best, October 17, 2005

A/N: Thanks to everyone who reviews, I'm grateful for your support. :)

* * *

"I am just so honored to be able to wrestle with you tonight!"

Trish put on a strained smile. "Well, we do need a third person."

"And it's me," Mickie gushed. "I just…I've been waiting for this for so long, and to be able to wrestle on the same team as you, it's like, it's a dream come true!"

"Good, I'm…glad," Trish said at a loss for words. Where was anyone that she could talk to? She looked around surreptitiously, but didn't see anyone. How could she not see anyone that she was comfortable enough to talk to? How big was this company, there had to be someone to save her from this misery; Ashley, Stephanie, Christian, Kurt, anyone?

"I mean, I didn't think I'd get thrown into the mix this quickly. Although I guess that's natural right, not with you, because you started out as a manager, and a great one, you were a great manager, and you managed so many people. Hey, you were with Chris Jericho, what was THAT like? Where is he now? I haven't heard anything about him. Did he really get fired?"

Trish made a face like she was in pain. "I was never with Chris Jericho, that was fake, he's married to my best friend, and he took some time off to do stuff with his band and to spend time with his wife. He didn't really get fired because he owns part of the company."

"I should've known, I'm stupid, I'm just really stupid," Mickie said, laughing at herself. "See, at least I know now before I like see him and then like hit on him, that would be embarrassing."

"And detrimental to your health," she muttered, thinking about Stephanie.

"What?" Mickie asked, not hearing what Trish said.

"Nothing, I was just wondering where my boyfriend was."

"It's so cool that you're with Christian, you two make such a cute couple. I mean, when you were at WrestleMania together, it was awesome so awesome."

"Thanks," Trish said, "Um, I'm a little bit hungry, so I'm just going to go over there, and you know, get some food."

"Oh, cool, I'll come with."

Trish sighed and put on another fake smile. This girl had not stopped bothering her since she had arrived here earlier. Christian had gone off to find and discuss something with Chris and she had yet to even see Kurt, Ashley, or Stephanie, and so she was stuck with this Mickie James girl. God, even her name bugged Trish. Why didn't she just go all the way and call herself Mickey Mouse. Trish was putting some food onto her plate while Mickie was yakking away beside her.

Trish walked back to the table and tried to busy herself with eating, but that didn't stop Mickie from going on and on about their match later on. Had Trish ever talked this much when she was new? No, because Trish didn't have anyone to look up to when she had arrived. Not anyone worthwhile anyways. But now she had to deal with this, and it was getting very annoying.

"And we're totally going to kick their asses, they won't know what hit them, I've been training so hard so that I could be just like you Trish. You are such an inspiration."

"I'm glad that I inspired you," Trish said dully, still gazing around every so often to see if any of her friends would show up. Just when she thought the situation would be hopeless, she saw Kurt walk inside the catering room. She got up half-way out of her seat and waved her arm madly. "Kurt, Kurt, over here!"

Kurt looked over in her direction and nodded, walking over to her and nodding to the girl sitting across from her. He recognized her as the girl who had shown up last week, but he didn't know her name or anything. Trish hugged Kurt and he sat down next to her. She smiled gratefully over at him, and grabbed his hand under the table, giving it a thankful squeeze before letting go.

"Kurt, I'm so glad to see you," Trish said, and he could see in her eyes that she was grateful to see him.

"Hey Trish, what's up?" he asked kindly.

"This is Mickie James, Mickie, this is Kurt Angle."

"Hey, you're pretty awesome," Mickie said, shaking his outstretched hand. "Just not as awesome as Trish I'm afraid. Because she's doubly awesome."

Kurt sat back in his chair a little, starting to get a feeling as to why Trish had been so insistent that he come over here. He didn't know how long Trish had spent with the new girl, but looking at Trish's face, it had been a while. She silently ate as he face Mickie and gave her a grin.

"That's our Trish, she's really awesome," Kurt said jovially. "Oh Trish, did I forget to mention that Christian wanted to see you about something, I think it was important and very, VERY private."

"Oh, Chrissy wanted to talk to me! I've got to see him if it's important!" Trish said, looking to Mickie. "Hey Mickie, I'll catch up to you later, is that ok?"

"Sure, if you've got to see Christian, don't let me stop you," she nodded eagerly.

"Thanks, see ya," Trish said, grabbing Kurt's hand. He pulled back a little when they stood up. "Aren't you going to come with me?"

"Hold on," he said. "I just came in here to get Stephanie a water and she might be pissed at me if I don't get it to her."

"Ok, I'll wait a second."

Kurt jogged over to the drink section and grabbed a water bottle for Stephanie. He shook the excess water off the bottle he had grabbed from the big cooler and walked back over to Trish. She smiled as they walked out and as soon as they were around the corner she let out a huge, deep sigh of relief, giving Kurt a smile that said all the thanks she had in her mouth.

"Thank you so much Kurt, I couldn't take any more of her. Annoying!"

"I figured as much," he laughed. "Thought I'd help you escape."

"Thanks again, I'm taking it that Christian doesn't have anything important to tell me."

"Nope, not unless I know something that is true and I didn't know it was true. I better get this water bottle to Stephanie though, so I'll see you later. I'll probably come by to talk or something."

"The something being seeing Ashley," Trish teased, then turned sober for a moment. "Kurt, there's something I should tell you about Ashley."

"Oh great, what, she's really a guy or something? She married?"

"No, nothing like that," Trish said. "But Shane likes her."

"Shane Helms?" Kurt asked, confused.

"No, Shane as in Stephanie's brother. He asked her out last week, for tonight, and well…Kurt you try to hide the fact that you like her, I know it, Steph knows it, our significant others know it, and we…didn't want you to be hurt. I mean, I know you're not dating her, but it's not all bad to like someone. And we're in a really tight spot because Shane's our friend too, we just…I needed to tell you."

"Thanks Trish," Kurt responded honestly. "I know that was hard for you to say, but I appreciate the fact that you said it."

"None of us want to see you hurt Kurt, we care about you," she told him softly, leaning up to give him a soft kiss to his cheek. "If you were to do something about it though, now might be the right time."

Kurt gave her a small laugh. "You never do quit do you?"

"Nah," she shrugged, wandering off. "But don't wait too long Kurt."

Kurt shook his head and walked back to Stephanie's office. He opened the door and saw her sitting there. He laughed as he thought about the fact that she had actually called him on his cell phone to ask him to get water. She looked up at him and grinned. She had a glow about her, and Kurt did not want to get into clichés here, but it could've been the pregnancy. Either that or she was just so happy to be back on television. It was probably 50/50.

"Kurt, hi," Stephanie said, getting up out of her seat. "Thank you for granting the request of a pregnant woman."

"If you weren't pregnant, I would not have gotten you water," he said, handing it to her. "You are pregnant right, you're not faking me out right? This isn't just a ploy to have me be one of your servants."

"Oh yeah, I'm a big faker, just so you can get me water," she joked, taking a long swig of the water bottle. "That hits the spot. I'm supposed to drink like ten glasses of water. It's crazy. I have a water bottle with me all the time, and then I have to pee all the time."

"Have you been reading up on anything?"

"Yeah, a little bit, I don't have the time to actually sit down and read every book ever made on the subject, that's what I have a doctor for, to ask about it. I'm a busy woman, I don't have all the time in the world. I have my next appointment in two weeks, when I'm officially in my second trimester."

"That's awesome," he said, feeling excited for her. "Will things be easier or something then?"

"Well, the chances of me having a miscarriage go down a lot, which will make Chris and I feel a whole lot better. We were worried because of the other week, but everything seems to be going fine."

"Good, I was worried too."

"I know," she said. "Which is why I'm going to speak to my father soon. I'm sure you've heard that Austin is going to be here tonight, so Chris wants me to talk to my dad about something, so I'm just waiting on that before I get down to work."

Kurt saw Stephanie place her hand on her abdomen almost absently as she drank some more of her water. He hadn't noticed if she was doing that a lot, but he saw it now and he just found it sweet. His best friend was going to have a baby with his other best friend. They were so lucky. Then he thought of Stephanie's brother and he frowned slightly.

"Why are you giving me that look Kurt, did I spill water on my shirt? You know, I have to say, it's a good thing that I got these implants because I've already dealt with the whole big breasts thing that comes with pregnancy."

"Your brother."

"What about my brother?" Stephanie asked dumbly.

"He asked out Ashley."

"Oh…that," Stephanie said, leaning against her desk. "I don't know exactly what to say about that. But…I'm sorry?"

"No, nothing to be sorry about," Kurt told her, looking down. "I mean, what can you do about it? You're his sister, I think you're the last person he'd listen to, I know I never listened to my sister."

"True," she responded. "But still, I know that you like Ashley. I'm torn here. I want to see my brother happy, I really do. And he was with this girl, Marissa, I think, for a really long time, I don't know what happened there. What I'm saying is that I want him to be happy. I'm happy with Chris and my parents are happy, and then there's Shane and he has nobody. But then you're my best friend, and I want you to be happy, and I want you to have someone because I have Chris and Trish has Christian, and I hate that you feel like you have to be the fifth wheel, and life is confusing, and I'm about to start crying because of my damn hormones."

Kurt walked up to her and wrapped her up in a big, bear hug. "Don't cry Steph, it's not the end of the world."

"I know, but I'm so damn emotional, I can't help it," she said, sniffling. "Stupid pregnancy hormones."

He laughed and placed his hand on her stomach lightly. "Hey you in there, stop making your Mommy crazy."

"I think you're the first person to actually talk to him," Stephanie said. "I mean, you know, directly. Chris and I aren't the 'talking to the stomach' type."

"So you're wearing that shirt because you're pregnant?" Kurt asked, looking over her shirt.

She ran her hand along the bottom of her shirt self-consciously. Her regular clothes had started to become just a tiny bit tighter around her abdomen, and so she had chosen a rather loose-fitting top tonight so that people wouldn't notice her pudginess. She wasn't showing yet, her stomach was protruding very little, but not enough that she couldn't hide it effectively, she was just getting rounder.

"Do I look horrible?" she asked nervously.

"No, you look hot, and you've definitely got a glow. I noticed it when I came in here."

Stephanie smiled. "Great…so you are coming down to southern California with us tomorrow right?"

"I wouldn't miss seeing this house that Chris bought you for the world."

"To be fair, he bought it for me AND the baby, so it's not just for me, there was someone else in the equation."

"Still…have you thought of any names for the baby yet, while we're on the subject?"

Stephanie shrugged slightly. "I've been thinking a little bit, but nothing is final. I still have another six months or so to think of it. I'm not due until April 28."

"Officially?"

"Yup, that's the official date, I know what name my kid is not going to have though."

"What?"

"Vince," she laughed. "I'm not naming it after my father, no matter how much he's going to want me to, and we both know he's going to lobby hard for it."

Kurt shook his head. "Yeah, he is. Speaking of your father, when are you going to tell everyone else that you're pregnant? I mean, you can't hide it forever. Unless you completely leave, and then come back with this baby in tow. But I don't really see you doing that."

"Two weeks, when I'm in my second trimester, then we're going to tell everyone. We just wanted to be sure that something wouldn't happen with the baby before we told everyone. If there was going to be devastation, we wanted it to be ours and not everyone we knew. Except you of course."

"I'm glad you get to tell."

She knew that he was saying she was glad that she was ok and that she still had the baby after the entire thing with Austin. "Me too...I better go find my dad before it's too late. The show started five minutes ago."

"Ok, I'll see you later Steph, take care of yourself out there."

"I always manage to."

Stephanie and Kurt both left the room at the same time, but took separate directions. As Stephanie approached the gorilla, she could hear her father's distinct voice echoing throughout the backstage. He must've already gone out there. She went to her station and waited patiently for him to return. There was a pressing issue that she needed to discuss with him. One that couldn't wait until tomorrow; it couldn't even wait until later tonight.

She finally saw her father come backstage and she was going to talk to him, except he was intercepted by Kurt first. She frowned a little, but she again waited patiently for her father to finish up. Even though Kurt knew that she had to talk to her father, it was probably something that had to be taken care of right now. It did have to do with Taboo Tuesday so she let it slide. Her father finally finished up and she stood up to see him.

"Daddy, can we talk?" Stephanie asked earnestly, wanting him to know that she was serious.

"Princess, I have to talk to Bischoff right now, can it wait?"

"Well, actually--"

"Good, I'll come find you after I talk to Bischoff," Vince interrupted without hearing her finish. She felt like a teenager again, always wanting her father to pay attention her accomplishments and never getting the recognition that she needed. She nodded and he patted her shoulder before wandering off.

She felt familiar arms wrap around her waist. She leaned against Chris as he rested his chin on her shoulder. He rested one of his hands on her stomach and rubbed it gently and she had to smile at that. She put her hand over his as they both kept it protectively over their child. He swayed them back and forth for a few moments.

"How are you guys?"

"We're fine," Stephanie said lowly.

"Did you get a chance to talk to your dad?"

"No, he's too busy for me right now," she said wistfully. "It's ok, I'll be sure to talk to him before anything should happen…which I won't let happen. I promise Chris, Austin won't touch me, I promise."

"I believe you," he whispered. "What about that ex of yours?"

"He has bigger problems to worry about than me. He's all alone again, and while he doesn't mind that, he doesn't like it. Hunter has always liked to surround himself with a group, me, DX, Evolution, Flair, that's just how he is. I don't think he'll bother me."

"Good, so I can rest easy for the rest of the night?"

"Rest easy? What is it you do again?" Stephanie asked, turning in his arms.

"I take care of my pregnant wife," Chris said with an impish grin. "In between doing things with my band, but the most important thing is you."

"Stephanie."

Stephanie turned to see her father and smiled that he had actually come back for her. "Oh hello Dad. Didn't see you there."

"You wanted to talk to me," he said, "Hello Chris, coming back to us anytime soon?"

"Nah, I'm still on vacation and loving it."

"Daddy, I was thinking that since Austin is here and he's friends with J.R., that we should give him the opportunity to get J.R. his job back."

"Stephanie, are you crazy?"

"No Daddy, if he loses, then Austin is fired, plain and simple, if and when Austin loses, we're rid of both of them. The firing was Chris's idea."

"He stunned my wife, I'm not going to miss him," Chris said, his jaw set tightly as he thought about the other victim of that Stunner.

"Well, I can get behind something like that, who would he face?"

"I don't know, whoever," Stephanie said, shrugging the question off and getting to the more important part. "But, I was thinking that if Austin were touch any of the McMahons, me or Mom, or Shane, or even you, then he would lose that opportunity for the match."

"That sounds even better, he can't take his aggression out on us even if he wanted to."

"That's exactly it Dad, and I think it would work perfectly. I mean, you KNOW he wants to get his hands on us, and he'll be so out of his game by the time Taboo Tuesday comes, that he'll lose and be gone."

Vince held his hands out towards Stephanie. "Did I raise the perfect daughter or what?"

"I'm going to have to agree with that one," Chris said as Stephanie blushed slightly.

"Thank you Dad, you can think of who you'd like Austin to face if you'd want, since you should have input wherever you can," she said, knowing she was sucking up to her father, but if this was the way she could protect her baby, well, it wasn't too bad.

"How about Coach?" Vince said with a laugh. "That would be a riot. Maybe make it No Holds Barred."

"Sounds great Dad, I'll put it into action as soon as possible."

"She's perfect I tell you, perfect," Vince said to himself as he walked away from the couple. Stephanie turned to Chris and gave him a big hug, smiling into his shoulder.

"There, now we can be sure that he's safe," Stephanie said against his shirt. "Austin can't touch me so everything will be great. I'll be safe."

Chris nodded. "That's all I want, I just want you to be safe."

"And I will be," she told him, kissing him deeply. "Have I told you how much I love you lately?"

"Never hurts to hear."

"How did I get so lucky?" Stephanie asked dreamily. "How in the hell did I get you for a husband? How did that ever come about? What the hell did I do to deserve someone like you in my life?"

"Well, after sleeping with half the locker room, you were bound to find the right guy at some point, I'm just the lucky guy."

She slugged him in the stomach. "I have half a mind to go find Trish or Christian and just ask them to take me back to the hotel."

Christian was actually looking for Trish at the moment and he couldn't find her. He turned a corner and saw that new girl that was a fan of Trish's. Maybe she knew where Trish was and could tell him so he could find his girlfriend. He walked over to her and she gasped and put her hand over her mouth, removing it a second later.

"You're Christian, oh my God, I'm your girlfriend's biggest fan!"

"Cool," Christian said. "Do you know where she is by any chance?"

"No, I haven't seen her since earlier, you must've lost her huh?" Mickie giggled.

"Yeah…I lost her," Christian said slowly. "So you have no idea where she is?"

"Nope, not at all, but I would totally be into finding her with you. We could look around together. I do have a match with her later on and we should probably discuss it right, do you think that's a good idea?"

"Can't hurt," he told her, regretting coming over to speak to her. Why couldn't he have found Ashley instead.

"I thought the same thing!" Mickie said, looping her arm with Christian's. "So tell me, how did you and Trish get together? Why did you decide to go after Chris?"

"We didn't, that was fake, I asked Trish out, and she said yes, and the rest is history," he said, wanting to let go of her arm, but she had it pretty tightly in her grip.

"So cool," Mickie nodded slowly. "Did you think she was like the prettiest girl you had ever seen?"

"Yeah, actually I did."

"Yeah, she's gorgeous. I wish I could be that pretty," she sighed.

"You're not alone."

"Oh, I know, I know."

Christian mercifully saw Trish talking with Ashley up ahead and he sped up his walking as he got closer to his girlfriend. Trish looked over as she felt Christian's presence and almost groaned outwardly at seeing Mickie with him. She turned to Ashley and rolled her eyes, causing Ashley to laugh.

"Hey guys!" Mickie said brightly. "I thought we'd come talk about the match!"

"Oh…ok," Ashley said. "We'll go out there and kick ass."

Mickie laughed heartily. "How funny!"

"Um…sure," Ashley said. "Oh hey, you know…I really need to talk to Shane about our date tonight…so I should find him."

Ashley walked away quickly, avoiding Mickie. She hoped she hadn't sounded that…enthusiastic when she was first starting out. How embarrassing to just blurt out stupid things like that. She didn't even know if Shane was here right now, or if he was coming later, but she found the idea of talking to Mickie an unbearable one. She had been a fan of Trish's too, but she hadn't been a super-annoying fan either.

"Ashley?"

Ashley turned around saw Kurt and she smiled, bounding over to him happily. "Hey Kurt, what's up?"

"Nothing, just saw you alone, thought I'd say hi."

"Yeah, I had to get away from that Mickie girl."

"Oh, yeah, I talked to her earlier, she's…something else."

"You can say that again."

"She's something else," Kurt joked and Ashley giggled. Sure, it was corny, but just the way he had said was really cute. "So, I was wondering if you were doing anything tomorrow?"

"Nope, I don't think so," she thought briefly. "Nope, all clear."

"Well, how about the next couple of days after that?"

She pursed her lips, "What are you trying to say? You're not going to kidnap me and hold me hostage are you?"

"No, nothing like that. It's just, well, you know Chris and Stephanie right?"

"Yeah, they're friends with Trish so I've hung out with them a little bit. They're really cool, I like them a lot, you don't really expect your bosses to be so cool."

"Yeah, well, anyways, Chris bought Stephanie a house in southern California for her birthday."

"Wow, I wish I had a guy who would buy me houses for my birthday," Ashley said. "But he can afford it, so yeah…I'm sorry, go on."

"It's ok, even she was shocked by it, but he's totally head over heels for her. Well, some of us, Chris, Stephanie, me, Christian and Trish, are going to the house tomorrow and staying for a few days or the rest of the week, whatever we feel like, and I was wondering if you wanted to come with. You don't have to or anything, but things are more fun with six than five, and if you were there I'd at least have someone to talk to if the other guys wanted to go make out or something. And you've gotten to be pretty good friends with Trish and stuff, so you wouldn't be totally uncomfortable."

"Wow, that's really nice of you to offer, but is this ok with Chris and Stephanie, it IS their house."

"They wouldn't care, you're friends with Trish, so they wouldn't care. Apparently their new house has like seven bedrooms so you wouldn't have to share or anything like that."

"Well, you've sold me, I'll go, if it's ok with everyone."

"It will be, I promise," Kurt said with a smile. "I'm glad you're going. We're meeting in the hotel lobby tomorrow at ten, so just come down there and we'll all head down south. Vince is letting Stephanie use the private jet so you don't have to buy a ticket or anything."

"We get to go in Vince's private jet?" Ashley asked in amazement.

"Yeah, he lets Stephanie use it whenever she wants, it's more of a family jet than anything else. We got the flight cleared and everything, so you can just come."

"Cool, I better go, I have a match soon, and I think that Mickie is probably done talking…hopefully. Thanks for the invite Kurt, I really appreciate it."

Before she left, she planted a small kiss on his cheek and he stood there, smiling after her. He was glad she was going to come with them, and it had been totally impulsive of him to ask her. Maybe the whole Shane thing had set something off in his head, but he just felt the need to one up him. Now, he liked Shane, they were friends, but yes, he liked Ashley and if Shane wanted a competition, it would have to be like King of the Ring in 2001 all over again.

Now he just had to go ask Stephanie and Chris if it was alright to bring Ashley. He knew that asking without permission might be a little hasty, but he couldn't see a reason for them to care that she was coming. They had plenty of room for her, and it wasn't like she'd be an intrusion. That would be what he led off with; they wouldn't be able to refuse him then.

Trish went out for her match with Mickie and Ashley. She knew it would be an easy victory. She could beat those three up by herself. Torrie and Candice weren't kidding anyone with their in-ring "skills," and she was the best female wrestler there was. She could trust Ashley to do her part, but she didn't know about this Mickie girl. That would be the wild card.

That would also be the loss as Mickie got the cheap loss by Victoria. Trish couldn't believe it. After this girl had talked for hours today, she went out and lost it for them. Trish was just in shock that this could happen and almost missed Mickie trying to compensate for her loss by imitating Trish. Trish was simply disgusted by this behavior. As if it wasn't bad enough having to deal with this girl.

She walked backstage, Mickie tagging along behind her. "Trish, I'm so sorry for losing, but did you see what I did."

"Yeah, I saw…I saw you lose," Trish said sardonically.

"But I did your move, for you, because I was sorry."

"Look, Mickie," she said disdainfully. "I know you're sorry, and it's fine, but I have to go get ready to leave, so maybe we should just part ways right now, if that's fine with you."

"Oh…ok," Mickie said. "Sure, bye."

Trish walked away and had she turned around…she might've noticed the sinister frown on Mickie's face.

Stephanie saw the opportunity to talk to Austin present itself as he drove into the arena like the rebel that he was. She couldn't stand him sometimes. For years he had just tormented her. She remembered when he had squirted mustard all over her shirt. And also when he had ripped her shirt off, revealing her bra to everyone. She had been mortified at the time. Now here he was again, wanting to hate her and bitch about her.

She went out there, walking down to the ring to talk to him. She knew that he would talk shit about her, but she was prepared. Of course, being called a transvestite wasn't in her book of compliments, and she tried to get him to shut up and let her talk, but he said her breath smelled. Yeah, well at least it didn't reek of alcohol like Austin's did twenty-three hours out of the day.

She told Austin that he couldn't touch her if he wanted to get J.R. his job back, and she hoped he stuck by that. She'd hate to see what Chris would do if Austin touched her again. The first time he had given Austin a black eye, and that was being nice. Seems he was taking her seriously as she went on to talk about how it was Austin's fault that J.R. was gone, and it was. If Austin hadn't done that, then J.R. could've stayed, but he didn't and now J.R. was gone. She was indignant when he said that he would spank her. Nobody was allowed to spank her, not even Chris.

But she pushed through that part of his speech and went on to discuss the real reason for this little encounter. She gave Austin the match, and he accepted it like she knew he would. She was afraid he would offer her a beer and then not let her leave until she drank one, but he didn't so she walked back up the ramp, and feigning innocence brought up the stipulation of his firing. She loved to make an impact like that. And if she could get rid of Austin as well, she'd call it a good day at the end of the day. Now if only she could think of a legit way to get Hunter fired.

Oh well, that was another thought for another day.


	59. Raw, October 24, 2005

A/N: I was going to have a double chapter on Monday, but then I found out about Christian leaving the company so any plans that I wanted to have were obviously derailed, so this is from October 24, and only that date since I still have to think about the Christian situation. The next chapter, from last Monday should be up either tomorrow night late, or early Saturday morning, one of the two. I've had to stop and think about how I'm going to work this out.

On the other side, I'm so sad that Christian is leaving as he has been a favorite of mine for a really long time. E&C is in my top 5 favorite things ever about WWF/E. Nothing could top E&C and Christian was a big part of that, and his leaving reeks of suckitude, but if he's unhappy, I guess its better that he left. So to Christian, I raise my soda and say, 'Thanks for the great, funny memories, you'll always reek of awesomeness."

* * *

"Thanks for letting me hide out in here. I don't think she'd have the nerve to come into your office. You've been scaring people around here lately."

Stephanie gave a full-bodied laugh. "I guess I have. Maybe it's just the excitement over being on television again. It's got me all worked up. Although, people SHOULD be afraid of me, I'm Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, I should be fear and revered."

Now it was Trish's turn to laugh. "Well, I don't care what it is, as long as it keeps Mickie away from me. I've never seen anyone just so…hyper. I thought Christy was hyper, Mickie is like five Christys put together, and that's scary."

"Luckily I haven't had to deal with her, so I wouldn't really know," Stephanie answered, then feeling the sudden pang of hunger hit her stomach. She grabbed her purse sitting next to her and took the candy bar she had kept in there and opened it, taking a bite and chewing quickly. "Sorry, I'm hungry."

"Oh, you don't have to stay in here with me," Trish said, "So long as I can stay in here and stay away from that girl."

"No, it's fine, I can wait," Stephanie said, knowing that she was getting hungry a lot more than usual, but she had a very good explanation for that. "I had this candy bar in there already, so I'm fine. Just wanted a snack."

"That's cool," Trish said, not knowing why Stephanie was so quick to cover up the fact that she was having a candy bar. "You don't have to explain to me that you're hungry…I just thought you might want an actual meal."

"No, I've…just been hungry lately," Stephanie laughed uneasily. She knew that she and Chris had planned on telling everyone soon, and it was getting a little harder to try and cover up her pregnancy. Not so much the physical appearance, since she had yet to really show, and it could be another month before she really started showing, but her habits were changing. Thankfully the awful nausea was starting to ebb as she finished her first trimester at the end of the week.

With that would come another doctor's appointment, where she and Chris would once again get to see the baby, and then they would tell everyone. She wondered what their reactions would be. They'd probably be shocked beyond their wits, either that or they wouldn't believe them, so Stephanie would have to break out the ultrasound picture (although that could easily be forged she had discovered about three years ago), or the video that they were going to receive next week.

"Steph, you're spacing out on me," Trish said, snapping a finger in front of Stephanie's face. "You ok over there?"

"What? Huh?" Stephanie said, shaking the proverbial cobwebs out of her head. "Sorry, I was just thinking about what I had to do next week."

"What do you have planned?" Trish asked. "Are you guys going to be staying in California this week, what with the weather in Florida? Christian and I are heading to Canada this week, we thought it as good a time as any to visit family."

"Yeah, I think Chris and I are actually going to be in Connecticut this week, but next week, I think we're going to be in Florida for a couple of days, we have some business that we have to take care of."

"Good business, bad business?"

"Good business," she smiled, "definitely."

"You seem happy, what could possibly be good business…wait, never-mind, I know exactly what you mean, everything is good business to you."

"I guess you can say that," Stephanie said. "So you don't have a match tonight?"

"Geez Steph, you come back on television for three weeks and you have no clue what's going on behind the scenes," Trish said, her tone kidding.

"Yeah, I can't do both," Stephanie said. It was partly true because Chris wouldn't want her to overexert herself, not that she couldn't do both, but she was trying to let go slowly so that when she actually did have to take maternity leave it wouldn't be such a shock to her system. It might seem funny that not doing work would affect someone so much, but that's just who Stephanie was. "Actually, I'm letting Bischoff take care of that, I still have a hand in production, but with my father here so much, well, you know how he is, you did have an affair with him."

Trish stuck her tongue out in disgust. "I don't know what I was on when I did that. But I had to have been on something."

Stephanie giggled. "Well, as long as you recognize your mistakes. So getting back to what we were talking about…no match?"

"No, but Mickie has a match against Victoria. And since Victoria is my fiercest competition, I'll have to play nice and actually support the hyper one."

"Well, here's something I do know, Bischoff is pissed that Christian is here with you tonight."

"Oh, he needs to get over it," Trish scoffed. "I'm not going to bend to his rules, whatever assy rules those might be. He's such an ass sometimes, I ought to go find him and put him in his place."

"It's cool, I gave Christian special clearance as long as he isn't shown on television."

"Wow, it really IS good to be the boss."

Speaking of Christian, he was hanging out with Chris and Kurt in the commissary, discussing mundane things. Only Kurt was going to be in action tonight since Chris was currently not on the active roster and Christian was on SmackDown. They were giving Kurt a hard time because he had to work and neither one of them had to do anything.

"What is it that you do Chris?" Kurt asked. "As far as I've seen, you don't do anything around here?"

"Why would I want to do anything when I have a rich wife? I'm living the easy life."

"Don't let her hear you say that," Kurt said.

"Like Steph doesn't like to work," Christian added. "I think if she had to choose between work and Chris she'd have to take a few minutes to answer that."

"And she'd choose me right?" Chris asked.

"That's a toss-up," Christian joked. "Steph loves her work."

"Yeah, but it doesn't control her…that much," Chris added quickly. He knew that Stephanie was all about her work, but that wasn't who she was. Stephanie was quite capable of working and living a life. "Besides, I've been doing band stuff, I've been playing shows, went overseas…I'm doing stuff."

"Yeah, but you're not putting your body out there like we are," Christian said. "How does it feel to get time off?"

"Like you guys don't know," Chris scoffed. "You guys have both been out on injuries, I should be asking you how you deal with being off since I'm finding it kind of boring. Not that Stephanie is boring, because she's not, but it's not the same you know?"

"Yeah, it's kind of like you want to get out there, but you can't…but Chris, there's nothing that says you can't come back," Christian told him.

"Actually, I have a month-long tour in the works," Chris informed them. "It could take me overseas again, but for a longer period of time. Should be good though, I'm adored overseas."

"Cocky," Kurt coughed.

"Kurt, why would you call yourself cocky like that?" Chris told him, and Kurt had no response for that because he was the same way, maybe he was even worse than Chris. He was going to respond when he saw Ashley walk into the room. He was about to wave her over when he saw that Shane was walking in beside her and they were laughing over something. Chris interrupted his thoughts with a, "See, you don't have any comeback to that."

"What?" Kurt asked.

"I just said you don't have a comeback," Chris said, "What's the matter with you?"

"I know what it is," Christian gloated, then nudged Chris on the shoulder and nodding his head to the entryway. Chris saw Shane and Ashley walking to a table, still talking.

Chris and Stephanie had been understandably surprised that Kurt had invited Ashley to their California home last week. It wasn't that they didn't want her there, but it seemed so forward a thing for Kurt to do. He said it was under the guise of friendship, but that was such bull and both Stephanie and Chris, as well as Trish and Christian knew that it was just a big pile of bullshit. Kurt had a mad crush on Ashley and it would just suit him better to come out and say it instead of hiding behind friendship.

"Oh, I see now," Chris said knowingly.

"Dude, why don't you just ask her out?" Chris asked.

"We're just friends," Kurt argued.

"Yeah, and Stephanie and I are just roommates," Chris said, rolling his eyes. "You should just admit how you feel and stop hiding."

"Yeah, and how long did it take you to finally go after Stephanie after you started liking her?" Kurt asked derisively.

"No need to get defensive man," Christian said. "We can't help it if we want to see you happy, that's just what friends do."

"Well maybe you should stop," Kurt said testily, getting out of his chair and walking straight out of the room, leaving a frustrated Chris and Christian sitting at the table.

"He's so in denial," Christian told Chris.

"I know," Chris said as he saw Shane and Ashley walking over slowly to their table. "You know, I'm caught between a rock and a hard place with this one. I mean, my best friend or my brother-in-law, they happen to be going after the same woman, and I can't side with either of them."

"Shh, here they come," Christian said.

Shane walked over and smiled, pulling a chair out for Ashley as she gazed at him with a smile and sat down. Shane took the seat next to her, which was the seat next to Chris. Chris nodded his head towards Shane and then gave Christian a glance. Chris and Christian didn't say anything, but simply sat there with pleasant smiles on their faces.

"So what's up bro?" Shane asked.

Chris shrugged. "Nothing, I came with the wife to work. Since I'm the lazy bum in the family and she's the breadwinner."

"Working my sister into the ground, so nice of you," Shane joked.

"I wanted to tell you both that it was really nice of you to let me stay with you last week," Ashley piped in. "I don't think I've had that much fun in a long time. It's nice to feel like you belong somewhere. I thought it might be hard transitioning from you know, not being here. I just wanted to thank you again."

"It's not a problem," Chris said. "The more the merrier, it's a big house. It should be filled with people. I know that Steph likes to have people over."

"Where is my sister?" Shane asked.

"Right here," Stephanie said as she suddenly appeared behind Shane with a plate full of food in her hand. She placed her plate on the table and grabbed a chair from an empty table, pulling it over. She turned to her brother. "Move Shane."

"Geez, bossy, do I need to give you the torture?"

Stephanie gave a groan. "I'm not five anymore Shane. That doesn't scare me. Besides, if you torture me, I'll get my husband, who's stronger than you are to beat you up. So please move Shaners."

Shane moved his chair and Stephanie gave him a sarcastic smile as she pulled the chair up and sat down, Chris pushing the plate in front of her. Trish sat herself down in Christian's lap, letting him wrap his arm around her waist to steady her on his lap. Stephanie dug into her food, not caring that nobody else was eating. Chris just reached out and rubbed her back lightly. He wanted to see her eat since she was eating for their baby as well.

"Did you leave some food for the rest of us baby girl?" Shane asked as he saw the tons of food loaded on Stephanie's plate. She sent him a glare over her fork.

"Lay off my wife man," Chris said good-naturedly. "If she wants to eat, then she can eat."

"Stephanie, I was just thanking Chris for letting me come last week."

Stephanie wiped her mouth on a napkin. "Oh, it was no trouble. And it was more fun with you there anyways. I hope that you had fun with all of us. We're kind of strange, I guess is the word for it."

"No, you guys were great. I wish I could thank Kurt for inviting me, do you know where he is?"

"He probably went back to his locker room," Christian said. "I bet you'd find him there."

"I'd like to do that now before I forget," Ashley said, turning to Shane. "Do you want to walk me there?"

Before Chris or anyone else could say something like they needed Shane to stay for some odd reason, Shane was nodding and getting up from the table, pulling Ashley's chair out for her. She gave a friendly wave towards the table and Shane put his hand on the small of her back as they walked out of the room. Trish sighed and was going to say something to Stephanie, but Stephanie seemed pretty engrossed in her food.

"Geez Chris, do you starve Stephanie when we're not around?" Trish joked.

"I didn't eat lunch," Stephanie mumbled as she took another bite. "Sorry I'm acting like a pig."

"Nah, it's not a big deal."

Stephanie smiled then remembered that she hadn't taken her prenatal vitamin yet, and if she didn't take it with her meal it was going to make her feel so sick later. She had learned that the hard way about a month ago when she had just taken it with a glass of water and had spent the rest of the day in bed because she was so dizzy and nauseous that she couldn't even move. She grabbed her purse which she had set on the floor next to her and took out the baggie with her vitamin in it. She took it out and took it quickly.

"Are you on medication Steph?" Trish asked.

"Huh?"

"What's in the baggie?" Trish asked.

"Vitamins," Stephanie answered. "It just helps when I'm working so much you know, it's supposed to help you not get sick."

"Oh, wow, I think I need some of that," Trish told her. "I hate getting sick, does it work?"

"Well, I only just started taking it, so…I don't know," she stammered. "Um, Chris, I needed your opinion on something for the show, could you come with me to check it over?"

"Sure babe," Chris said, taking her hand as he stood up. "We'll see you guys later."

"Yeah, see you later," Christian said. He looked at Trish and she shrugged. "Do you get the feeling that Stephanie didn't want to be around us?"

"Yeah, have you noticed she's been acting weird?" Trish asked.

Christian pondered that for a moment, thinking back to Stephanie. "She HAS been acting a little bit weird come to think of it. Nothing like strange, just not her usual self."

"I've noticed that too. Maybe it has to do with her being back on television. She's probably just excited that she's back on television. I mean, if I had been gone for two years, I would be ecstatic to be back just like she is."

"Me too, I could barely take five months," Christian said. "We're reading too much into this."

"You're right, we are."

"Trish?"

"Yeah Chrissy?"

"I love you."

"I know you do Chrissy," Trish said with a smile. "What has that got to do with anything?"

"I just need you to know."

Trish looked at him with curious eyes. She laid her hand across his cheek. "Is something bothering you Chrissy?"

He paused, not enough for her to notice, but there was a definite pause before he answered. "No, there's nothing wrong, I just…I wanted you to know that I love you. I think I always will."

"Well, I'll always love you too Chrissy. Nothing's going to tear us apart," Trish said happily. "To be incredibly cliché, you complete me."

"Don't say things like that," Christian said. "Horribly cheesy."

She laughed and kissed him briefly. He didn't seem as into it as she would've hoped, but she didn't read too much into it. She just smiled and watched him. He looked off and she just wanted to see his face. She'd never get tired of seeing his face. She knew that she was as secure as she was ever going to be in this relationship. She felt safe with Christian, now and forever.

Meanwhile, Stephanie was in her office with Chris sitting down on the couch while she was at her desk. She was pretending to look over her files, but she really wasn't thinking about work at the moment. She looked to Chris and opened her mouth to say something, but then closed it, looking like a fish. Then she opened it again, determined to speak.

"Where's Kurt?"

"Around, he's kind of pissed off with the entire situation with Shane and Ashley."

"I don't know why he doesn't do something about it," Stephanie said, then shrugged. "I don't care, I'm not going to worry about it. I have bigger things to worry about, I can't be worried about my best friend or brother right now. There are plenty of women in the world, they should both be able to find someone that makes them happy."

"True," Chris nodded. "I kind of like this new approach Stephanie, she's different than what I'm used to."

"What are you used to?"

"Someone who has to meddle in everyone's business because she thinks that's her job, when it isn't her job."

"Actually, I have a little something up my sleeve for tonight," Stephanie said with a mischievous grin. "But you can't know because it's a secret, and only I and a few others know about it."

"So there are other people that know about it, but you won't tell your husband, the father of your child?" Chris asked for clarification.

"Yup, that's right," she nodded emphatically. "And don't give me the father of your child routine, that's a bunch of bull and you know it."

"I'm sorry, so me saying that I'm your child's father is bull…is that implying that I'm not your child's father? And if I'm not, I would really like to know who is so I can go kill them right now."

Stephanie grinned like a Cheshire cat, not giving up any of her deepest secrets, "Nah, you're the father, what I meant by that is that is such a weak argument, as if that is the basis for which I should do things for you."

"Yet, you're allowed to use it on me?"

"Yes, because I'm the one carrying your child, so see, has a little more weight to that, when I have to go through everything and you stand around and watch and be the spectator."

"Baby, I hardly think you would ever, EVER let me be a spectator for this," Chris told her. "And speaking of weight, someone's been gaining it around here."

"Yeah, I've noticed you're a little bit thicker around the waist. If you're thinking about coming back, you're going to have to get back to in-ring shape. I don't think we're going to want you if you're not."

"God, sometimes you're just so sexy," Chris said, practically growling.

"Hey, have you noticed that Christian has been acting odd lately?" Stephanie asked out of the blue.

"No. Why? Has he been acting strangely?"

"Well, yeah and no."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"It just means that he's been acting strangely, but he hasn't. Like he's been spacey."

"Christian? Spacey? Oh my God, alert the presses! Have you met Christian before? Have you interacted with Christian before, he's not exactly the most grounded individual there is."

"Shut up Christopher," Stephanie snapped. "I'm not allowed to be concerned for a friend. Geez, you keep this up, and you won't see your child."

"Wow, you're harsh."

"You're not the one going through all these weird changes and feelings and just overall discomfort, and for what? For what I say? A kid that is going to end up hating us when it's older, because it's going to hate us, every kid hates their parents at some point, we're breeding hatred!"

Chris walked over to her and started playing with the long strands of her hair. "Whoa, slow down there cowgirl. Let's quit talking about the baby before you go ballistic or something. When it comes out, I don't think it's going to hate us, maybe the doctor, but not us. I think he'll like us."

"I hope so, finally, someone that'll understand me," Stephanie giggled. "I bet he realizes that Christian's been acting a little bit strange. Just kind of like…not all here, you know? Maybe you should talk to him!"

"No."

"And what else do you even do around here?"

"I take care of my pregnant wife," he argued.

"Oh, well, EXCUSE ME!" Stephanie said in an exaggerated tone. "I was under the impression you were a tag-along who didn't do any actual work around here. God forbid I ask you to do something that would benefit our friends. You're just so selfish. I hope our son does not get that from you."

"It's ok, he'll just get your sarcasm, lovely as that is," Chris said, rolling his eyes. "If you want me to talk to Christian, I'll talk to Christian."

"I knew there was a reason I agreed to have your baby," Stephanie smiled, standing up slightly to give Chris a kiss. "I do love you."

"I figured as much."

"One more thing."

"If you're going to have me go jump off a bridge or something, I'm going to have to decline."

"No, nothing like that, I don't know what the hell you want for your birthday, which is coming up in a little bit, weeks, but still, that's a little bit, so what do you want? Just tell me what you want because it'll be easier on me."

"Nothing."

"Chris!" Stephanie whined. "It's your birthday, you have to want something!"

"I'm going to be 35, trust me, there's nothing I want."

"Oh, so since you're going to be old, you don't want anything."

"That's right."

"Chris, you're not even that old, you don't even have kids yet."

"Yeah, but I will in April, so that kind of negates that argument. Look, I have everything I've ever wanted or needed."

"That can't possibly be true," Stephanie told him.

"Well, I was going to ask for a kid for my birthday, but you already took care of that, so yeah, nothing that I want, thanks for the early gift."

"You're impossible, you know that."

"I know, but seriously Steph, don't worry about my birthday. We'll just go out to a special dinner, just the two of us and you can pay or something. Nothing fancy, just somewhere close to home, not too dressy. That's what I want, no party, no nothing."

"But Chris, it's a big birthday, it's your 35th birthday, that's pretty big."

"No, it's not Steph, and when you turn 30 next year, which you will baby, trust me. You're not going to want anything either, so let's just leave it where it is."

"Ok, ok, I get it."

"Good, thank you," he said, kissing her. "Now go get yourself into trouble like I know you're going to. Because that's what you do best, get yourself into trouble. Just be careful out there, ok?"

"I'm always careful."

Stephanie was pretty careful when she went out later that evening. But she knew ahead of time that Austin wasn't going to be there. She had just had a replica of his truck on stand-by though, because Stephanie was prepared like that. She staged a little joke involving Coach, which he did an adequate job of selling as real. She knew that she was going to look great when she came out of that truck, because everyone was going to be expecting Austin.

She stood up on the seats and stuck her head out of the sun-roof, grinning at the crowd. She grabbed the beer she had had with her (non-alcoholic of course) and took a sip. Stephanie had never had non-alcoholic beer and it tasted awful, and she wanted to spit it out as soon as she had tasted it. She got out of the vehicle and made her way down to the ring, looking definitely cute in Austin's hat. Definitely looked better on her than on Austin's bald head.

She had a little discussion with Coach about Austin, and she wasn't expecting Mick Foley to come out, but she wasn't worried. The worst that Mick could do was put Mr. Socko in her mouth, and that wouldn't harm anything relating to her baby, so she felt fine standing up to him until Carlito came and then she had a little bit more fun kicking Mick where it hurt the most. She loved being in front of the crowd like this. It was just so good to be back.

She never wanted to leave.


	60. Happy Halloween, October 31, 2005

A/N: I'll be addressing the issue of Christian leaving in the next chapter.

PennStGuy, I'm not sure I got what you were trying to say in your review. It couldn't have been some sort of subliminal message could it? -wink wink-

* * *

"Trish, can I ask you something?"

Trish turned to Ashley, "Yeah, sure, what is it?"

"Shane McMahon? What's he like?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, is he nice? Like genuinely nice, or like fake nice?"

"Shane is definitely genuinely nice," Trish answered. "Sometimes he comes off as a snob, but he's really not, it's just he was kind of born to be great, and he's trying really hard to make his father proud of him."

"Yeah, I got that vibe off of him, definitely."

"Don't tell anyone I told you this, but I've always gotten the feeling that Vince has always been more proud of everything that Stephanie has done, and Shane has just been trying to make Vince as proud of him as he is of Stephanie. But Stephanie is like Vince in so many ways except that she's a helluva lot nicer than Vince is most of the time, except if you get on her bad side, and she'll do something bad to you. But like Vince has Linda, Stephanie has Chris to balance her out, but then you get him pissed and you're pretty much done for," she ended with a laugh.

"They've always been really great to me," Ashley said encouragingly.

"Oh, if you're one of their friends, they will not hesitate to do anything for you, seriously, they're not selfish, but if you're not their friend, they can be pretty wary of you. But since we're cool," Trish said, gesturing between them, "then you're cool with them."

"Good…but Shane, he's…not like…his father with…women right?"

Trish thought for a second. "You might want to bring that up with Stephanie…she'd know better than I would about Shane's dating antics."

"Ok, thanks, I'll bring it up later. I just wonder because he's asked me out a couple of times, and we've gone out a couple of times, and well, I just wanted to know a little bit more about him, stuff he wouldn't want to tell me. You know, messy break-ups, weird habits."

"Well, Shane's pretty strait-laced, so I wouldn't be too worried about finding skeletons in his closet."

"Good…good," Ashley said. "So what are you dressing up as for this Halloween contest?"

"Wonder Woman," Trish giggled. "I figured it was somewhat appropriate. You?"

"Dark Angel, I spoke to Maria, she's going to be the good kind of angel, so we're going to offset each other."

"Have you talked to Mickie?" Trish asked with an eye-roll. Mickie was quickly becoming the thorn in her side. Sure, it was nice to have an admirer, but when your admirer was weird and hyper, it was not fun at all. She was lucky that she hadn't seen her at all this evening. Hopefully the only time that she actually had to see Mickie was when they were out in the ring together.

"No, but she'd probably blow me off so she could come talk to you, her idol," Ashley said with a scoff of sarcasm. "I don't know what her problem is."

"Neither do I…and I don't want her to become one of those freaky like, stalker people," Trish laughed. "I have enough problems to deal with." Christian walked in then, and didn't give a second glance to the two girls talking on the couch. Trish watched him with a smile. "Hi Chrissy."

"Hi," he said shortly, not saying anything else, but going about his business of looking for something in his duffel bag.

"Um," Ashley said, feeling suddenly uncomfortable. "I think I'm going to go find Stephanie and talk to her about Shane…"

"Ok," Trish said. "I'll see you later."

"Yeah, have fun dressing up."

"Oh, it'll be a blast," Trish said sarcastically. She wasn't crazy about the idea of dressing up. She felt like she was a real wrestler and as such, she should be above all of these little dress-up games that Bischoff insisted on having. She stood up and walked over to Christian. "Chrissy, is everything ok?"

"Yeah, fine," he told her, again his tone was short. She frowned a little bit and hugged him around the waist.

"I missed you," she told him softly, nuzzling her cheek against his shirt.

Christian smiled down at her for a moment and took a deep sigh, Trish's head moving with his chest. She rubbed his back lightly, touching him in all the parts of him that were sore. He hugged her closer to him for a moment, just standing there with her in his arms. She leaned her chin and looked up at him, her eyes glowing brightly, the brown having golden speckles in them.

"I have to go."

"Where are you going?" she asked curiously. He hadn't said that he would be going anywhere.

"Teddy Long and some of the other SmackDown guys are here tonight, so I'm going to go hang out with them because there's something planned. They already think I spend too much time on this show and not enough time with SmackDown people, so I'm going to go hang out with them, is that ok with you?"

"Sure," Trish shrugged. "I don't get it, but if that's what you feel that you have to do, then go for it."

"Good."

"Oh, that reminds me, I have a photo shoot thing this weekend, I'm not sure what it's for yet, but I have to go."

"Ok," Christian said, then paused, putting a smile on his face. "I think I'll go visit my mom in Toronto if you're going to be away."

"Great, and then we can meet next week at the show, or at the airport or something," Trish said, leaning up to give him a little kiss. "I'll see you later?"

"Yeah, you'll see me later," he said, and if she had listened just a little bit closer, than she would've realized that his voice sounded a little wistful. But she was too happy at the moment to notice that anything was amiss with her boyfriend.

Christian leaned down and wrapped Trish tightly in his arms. He kissed her strongly, almost forcing the kiss on her, except Christian would never have to force a kiss on her. She got lost in the moment and wrapped herself around the man that she loved. She loved the way he smelled, the cologne that he wore surrounded him and she ran her hands lightly up the back of his neck and through his short hair. He pulled away breathlessly and she had her eyes closed, savoring the taste of his lips.

"Later Trishy."

"Mmm, yeah Chrissy," Trish mumbled, still recovering from his intense kiss.

Christian pulled away from her and grabbed his things to go hang out with the other guys. Nobody knew they were here, not really anyways, since it was supposed to be a secret. They were congregated in a limo outside the arena. He was inside because he was always here with Trish. He kept his head down as he walked, trying not to draw attention to himself. It didn't work.

"Christian!"

He looked up and saw Stephanie, alone, and walking towards him happily. She was really dressed down today, not looking her usual glamorous self. She was in a pair of jeans and one of her new t-shirts. She was also wearing a wide grin on his face, and he found it infectious as he found his own lips turning up in a smile. He couldn't help it, he liked Stephanie too much.

"Hey there."

"Where's Trish?" Stephanie said, looking over his shoulder like she was going to be hiding behind him.

"Her locker room, I had someplace to be."

"Ok," Stephanie said with a laugh. "I was actually going to look for you guys because I wanted to talk to you about Chris's birthday next Wednesday."

"Oh yeah, it's Chris's birthday," Christian mumbled. "What about it?"

"Well, Chris is turning 35, as you might know, and he doesn't really want anything, so I'm not going to do something elaborate like buy him a house or anything, I just wanted to have a nice little gathering at our house, the one in Florida. I'm going to order something good and it'll be fun and Chris won't feel like it's necessarily something big, and well…Chris and I, we might have a surprise or two of our own."

Stephanie had been thinking about when she was going to tell her family and friends about the baby, and she felt that next week, when all of their loved ones were there would be the best time to tell everyone. That way they would only have to say it once and not have to tell a ton of people at different times. She had rescheduled her doctor's appointment for next Tuesday so that her ultrasound picture would be as up-to-date as possible.

"Who's going to be there?" he asked.

"Chris, me, you, Trish, Kurt, Shane, my parents, his parents, and that's about it I think. I was going to invite Randy, but he said that he's been really busy with stuff, and so he can't make it. Can you and Trish come?"

"Why don't you ask Trish?"

"Ok," Stephanie nodded. "I was on my way there anyways, so I'll see you later then?"

"Sure."

Stephanie smiled as Christian walked past, but she was confused by his answer. Who answered "sure," when asked if they would see you later? Usually Christian would say something like, "of course you will," not just a curt, "sure." She didn't think any more of it as she went to find Trish. Trish was probably the one she should've asked anyways, since Christian was pretty much whipped as it was. She kind of also wondered where her husband was. She hadn't seen him all evening.

"So what's it feel like to get old?" Chris asked Kurt.

"Excuse me?" Kurt asked, obviously offended.

"Well, you've turned 35, I haven't, so tell me, is everything suddenly going to change? Am I going to start losing my hair to the point where I'm going to have to shave it bald?"

"I think everything is going to change on April 28th," Kurt told him.

Chris nodded slowly. "You're probably right. Never has a date seemed so daunting. I guess it's like a countdown to D-Day."

"Or B-day if you want to get a little more technical."

"Yup. I'm so glad I took time off, I need time to adjust to this. You have no idea what it's been like. I mean, it's just…it's weird, you know. I mean, it's Steph and I, we're not exactly, what you'd call, typical people. I mean, we're self-centered, to the highest degree."

"You'll be fine. Trust me, I know, I know you'll be fine."

"I sure hope so."

Kurt looked up and saw Ashley in the doorway and his breath caught. She was dressed in part of her Halloween costume already even though the show wasn't starting for another twenty minutes. She was dressed in really skimpy clothing, garters and hooks everywhere, and it looked like something you would wear to seduce someone and not something you'd wear to just walk around. But Ashley didn't seem to be having a problem with it as she slipped a robe over her shoulders.

"Chris, hi, I've been looking for you, sort of," Ashley said as she sat down. "I hope you don't mind me sitting."

"Nah," Chris said, totally unaffected by what Ashley was wearing. Not that he didn't find her attractive, but ever since he started dating Stephanie, other women just couldn't hold a candle to her. Sure, Stephanie didn't have the perfect body, and she didn't have the glamorous, movie-star looks, but ask Chris who he thought the most beautiful woman in the world was, and he would answer Stephanie without a moment's hesitation.

"I was actually looking for Stephanie, and I figure if anyone should know where she is, it would be you."

"She's around, that's the best I can do. I haven't seen her for a while."

"Oh, damn," Ashley said. "I just needed to talk to her about her brother."

"What about Shane?" Kurt asked quickly, finding his voice after he lost it looking at her.

"Well, we've been out a couple of times, and I just wanted another person's opinion on his personality. I mean, I don't want to be around a guy who is a womanizer or something. But I'm suspecting that Shane isn't a womanizer."

"No, he's not," Chris said. "Not really…maybe you should talk to Steph, she's known him for 29 years."

"Yeah, that's why I was looking for her. And then they cornered me about putting my costume on, luckily I talked them down from the wings, which I can put on later. I feel a little ridiculous, but whatever. Thanks anyways Chris, I'll see you later."

"Bye Ashley," Chris told her, taking a sip of his water as he glanced at Kurt, who was watching Ashley walk away. "You can put your tongue back in your mouth now Kurt."

"What are you talking about?"

"You were undressing her with your eyes, and from the looks of her, you didn't have far to go to get down to the skin of things."

"Shut up," Kurt said, shoving Chris. "I was just looking at her. Nothing more, nothing less."

"Oh yeah, and I never, EVER looked at Stephanie when we weren't married and she was wearing see-thru tops."

"I don't know what you and Stephanie do. All I know is that you two are going to finally, FINALLY have something to worry about besides me next April."

"Thanks a lot for bringing up the nerves again. We may get to find out what it is next week," Chris said, and it was hard for him to keep the excitement out of his voice.

"So you do want to know?" Kurt said, glad for the distraction from Ashley.

"Hell yeah. See, I know it's going to be a boy, I just know it is…but if it isn't, well, it'll give me time to get used to the idea of a girl."

"You really want a son huh?"

"Yeah, I do, sue me," Chris said. "But we don't know if we'll be able to tell, a lot of things have to be perfect, like his positioning and stuff for us to tell."

"That's great. I'm sure Stephanie is excited too."

"Yeah, she is."

Stephanie was excited about that, but she was also excited for Chris's birthday get-together as she explained it to Trish. She wanted to do something special for Chris for this birthday, because by this time next year, they'd have a baby to worry about and their birthdays might not carry the same weight as they used to, not with a baby around them all the time. She gulped a little at that.

"Stephanie, you ok?" Trish asked, noticing that her friend had trailed off and that she looked kind of nervous about whatever she was thinking about.

"Yeah, sorry."

"You looked nervous, don't tell me Hunter did something to you."

"No, Hunter has been too preoccupied with Flair to care about what I do…I was just…thinking about Chris's birthday and everything I wanted to do for him, and it's you know, so close and so much planning and I've been tired lately," she finished. She was tired because sleeping had become a little uncomfortable for her lately, but that was to be expected. Usually wrapping herself completely around Chris did the trick of helping her fall asleep. Lucky for her, she had a sweet husband who didn't mind his wife all over him all the time.

"Steph, is everything ok with you?" Trish asked carefully. Stephanie could be defensive when she wanted to be. "You just seem so…spaced-out lately. And I've never seen you like this. You're so on top of everything…all the time. I just want to make sure that you're ok."

Stephanie really thought about just telling Trish the truth, but it was just a little over a week before Trish would know. "I'm fine."

"You and Chris? You're good?"

"Chris and I are fine."

"Ok, good."

"Speaking being fine, is everything ok with Christian?" Stephanie asked. She had just noticed some odd behavior from him.

"Yeah, why do you ask that?" Trish asked, starting to get a little defensive.

"I don't know, he's just seemed…not like Christian lately, and I've been worried about him. Like, I talked to him earlier and he just seemed, I don't know, not interested."

"He's been busy, having to work SmackDown and maybe Taboo Tuesday, so you know, he's been stressed, but other than that, nothing wrong with my man."

"Ok, good," Stephanie said. "I just wanted to make sure. And I really want you guys to come to Chris's thing."

"We'll be there. Steph, we live like ten minutes away from you guys. We'd have to be pretty busy not to be able to drive ten minutes away. We'll definitely be there."

"Good, because Chris and I wanted to tell everyone something and we want you there."

"If he bought you another house, I'm going to freak out," Trish told her. "You guys have three homes in three different states. It's crazy. I'm going to take one of those houses and I'm going to live in it or something."

"It's not another house…or is it?" Stephanie teased, then laughed. "No, it's not another house, we just wanted to tell you guys something."

"Is it important?"

"Depends on how you want to look at it."

"Oh…are you leaving again? Steph, don't leave, we need you here!" Trish whined, grabbing Stephanie's hands. "I mean, I like Ashley and everything, and well, Mickie I'd rather get rid of, but, you, you're my best friend and you can't leave."

"But--"

"No. You can't leave. You simply can't leave. So don't end that sentence."

"Ok, but what if I do leave?"

"Then I'll cry and cry and cry," Trish joked. "I'll just say this, it's not fun without you and Chris here. I mean, it's fun, but not as fun. You guys are like family. We're on the road so much that it's like, us against the world type of thing. And I know that technically you're my boss, but you're like a sister to me."

"That was a very nice appeal to me," Stephanie laughed.

"Oh come on, I thought it was pretty good."

"No it was."

The door burst open and Kurt walked inside and sat himself down on the low table in front of Trish and Stephanie. Stephanie looked at him and he looked a little out of breath. "Kurt, what's up?"

"Steph, Ashley was looking for you."

"Yeah, Trish told me, I'll find her sometime. Something about Shane."

"She wants to know everything about him."

"Ok, well, I can tell him about how Shane would always leave dirty clothes in the bathroom, which made my Mom so pissed off because she hated creating extra work for the cleaning ladies, and God, he made that bathroom stink."

"I don't think that's the kind of information that she wants," Trish laughed. "So spill right now…Shane, is he popular with the ladies?"

"I guess so," Stephanie said. "I don't really like delving into my brother's love life. Even though he tried so hard to pry into mine when I was with Andrew. But that relationship was going nowhere from the start. I should've just listened to him."

"Well, I think Ashley likes him," Trish said, forgetting that Kurt was sitting right there. "I would like Shane too if he were my type. I mean, he's rich and sophisticated…"

Stephanie snorted. "Yeah, to other people, but Shane is so…Shane. I'm sorry, he's my brother, I can't get over the thought that he would even have any girl that liked him. He probably thinks the same of me, and it probably kills him that I've been married twice and he's been married zero times."

"Guys, focus," Kurt told them. He looked at the clock on the wall. "Damn it, I have a match, but…never-mind."

"Bye Kurt," they said in unison. When he left, Stephanie looked to Trish. "He so likes Ashley, it's pathetic."

"I know," Trish said. "I've got to go though. They've got my costume ready, and I need to put it on. I'll talk to you later."

"Yeah, you will, bye."

Stephanie followed Trish in leaving a few minutes after Trish left. She was still worried about what was going on with Christian. He had just been acting strangely lately, and she wanted to know why. She had been getting a vibe off of him, and it worried her because one, Christian was her friend, and two, Trish was her friend and if this was something that could affect their relationship, Stephanie wanted to know what it is.

"Penny for your thoughts?" her husband asked as he spotted her leaning up against a wall thinking.

She gazed at him. "My thoughts are worth millions of dollars, not pennies."

"Oh, excuse me then," he said, lowering his voice. "Thinking about the baby?"

"No, Christian."

"Oh, so just a different kind of baby."

"I'm worried about him."

"Don't. You should only worry about yourself and the kid in there," Chris said, resting his palm lightly against her abdomen. "Next week we'll get to see him, and then we'll tell everyone."

"I'm having a little party for you on your birthday, it'll be just the friends and my parents and yours, and we're going to tell them then. I have it all planned out, you just have to show up. That's it, show up, and don't say no to me because I'm not taking no for an answer."

"Ok," he complied, not wanting to upset her. "And that's good that we'll get to tell everyone."

"I thought so too," she responded. "Hopefully it'll ease my mind of all this Christian stuff.

"Yeah, hopefully."

Trish couldn't get the Christian stuff out of her mind. It stuck with her as she saw him on-screen with the SmackDown guys, and then later on when she was getting ready for her little contest. What if Stephanie was right and she just hadn't noticed that Christian had been acting strangely? Of course, there could be a number of reasons for him to be acting strangely. He had a lot of work to do, and he was stressed. Maybe going to Toronto this weekend would be good for him. It would get his mind off of things and clear it up a little bit.

She was so preoccupied, she hadn't noticed Mickie's costume until she was out in the ring. If Trish was ever going to be disgusted about something, it was going to be this. There was being a fan, and then there was being a psycho. It was one thing if you were a fan, and you dressed up like her for Halloween, but Mickie was a grown woman who had access to many different kinds of outfits, but instead came dressed as…Trish. It was disturbing and very unflattering.

Then Mickie had to go and embarrass her, acting like she needed help getting the fans to cheer for her. She was Trish Stratus, the fans were dying to cheer for her. By the time that she had chick-kicked Victoria, she was downright pissed at Mickie's behavior. It was so over-the-top that she couldn't stand to be around the new girl. She had tried to be accommodating, but it was getting to her breaking point.

"Trish, you were SO cool out there," Mickie said as they wandered backstage.

"Look, leave me alone," Trish snapped. "I'm not in the mood to deal with anyone right now, least of all you. What the hell were you doing, coming out as me? Who does that?"

"I just admire you."

"No, this," Trish said, frenetically gesturing to Mickie's costume, "is NOT admiration. This is cause for calling the police and getting a restraining order. Don't try to be ME, try to be you, geez, didn't anyone ever tell you to be yourself."

"But you're just so awesome."

"Thank you, but I don't need the constant reminding. I get it Mickie, I do! Now, I just need to find my boyfriend and be left alone. Please."

"Ok, sorry."

Trish stormed away, looking for Christian. She just needed Christian right now. She just needed to see him and hug him, and know that everything was all right, and that she would see him tomorrow and the day after that and so forth and so on. She found him in her locker room, sitting there, contemplating something. Trish ripped her wig off, and the stocking cap her hair was in, letting her blonde locks free as she threw herself into Christian's lap.

"Chrissy, she was horrible. She dressed up like ME!"

"I saw," Christian said, his lips grazing her forehead. "Want me to take care of her for you?"

"No, just stay with me," she told him, burying her head into his neck. "Chrissy, you're ok right?"

"What?"

"You're ok?" she asked, her voice muffled as it danced across the skin on his neck.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he said, running his fingers through her hair. He would have to remember this moment, more so than any others, he would have to remember this moment. Here he was with Trish Stratus, of all the women in the world, one of the most beautiful women was with him. She loved him for some inexplicable reason. He had never quite figured that out yet. He whispered against her hair, "I love you Trishy."

"I love you too Chrissy," Trish said, hugging him tighter.

She couldn't have noticed the worry in his eyes if she tried.

But it was there.


	61. Happy Birthday Chris, Nov 7 to 9, 2005

A/N: This chapter took me a long, long time to write, so I hope that you enjoy it, and please review because this literally took me hours and hours. It covers last night through to today. I didn't want to have to write some of this, but I didn't see any other way.

If Christian goes to TNA, I'm not sure yet if he'll appear in this story as being in TNA, haven't decided that yet. If you want to sway me one way or the other, I'm all ears, so go for it.

* * *

"I don't feel like being on the show tonight."

"Then don't be on it," Chris said, running his finger up and down Stephanie's arm. "Nobody said that you had to be on the show."

"But I'm supposed to be back," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean you have to plaster your face all over the place."

"That's true," Stephanie said. "But my dad wants me to be everywhere. He wants everything saturated with McMahons. I don't know, I want to go out there, but I see no reason to."

"Then don't go, why are you making this harder than it has to be?" Chris laughed. "So what are we doing for my birthday on Wednesday? Do I get anything that I want?"

"You know you do," Stephanie said enticingly. "It's your birthday, you get anything that you want. That's the rule isn't it?"

"I can't wait," he said, rubbing his hands together mischievously. "So who's coming to my birthday dinner? My parents, yours, Christian, Trish, Kurt, and Shane, and the baby, and that's about it. I think the baby is going to eat the most actually."

"And he should," Chris said. "And then tomorrow we have the doctor's…"

"Yes," Stephanie nodded, "Bright and early, so don't forget it."

"How could I forget it, I sleep next to you every night, I'm sure that I would figure out you were gone if you were suddenly not next to me you know."

"That reminds me, we need to stop off somewhere where they sell pillows, because I need one of those body pillows because they say that those are better to sleep with, so remind me to do that tomorrow."

"Ok, it's noted."

"Have you seen Kurt or any of them recently?"

"How could I have seen them, I've been with you all night," Chris told her. "Unless you think I have psychic powers or something, but I assure you that I don't."

"I just wanted to make sure that they were all coming, is that so much to ask?"

"No, but I haven't seen them because I've been with you. And if you don't want to be here and you don't want to be on television, what are we doing here?"

"In case I was needed," she said sarcastically, and then heard a knock on her door. "Come in."

"Stephanie?" her father's voice said and it sounded gentle, which was not something she was ever used to hearing from her father.

Stephanie stood up, "What is it Dad?"

"I needed to talk to you," Vince said as he walked inside the room. "Hello Chris."

"Hey Vince, what's up?" Chris asked as he stood up and walked over to Stephanie, standing next to her as she leaned up against him.

"Well, I needed to talk with Stephanie."

"So am I not allowed to be here or is this strictly business?" Chris asked. "Because if you need me to leave, then I will, I don't care, I'll just go find Kurt and bug him or something."

"It's not a family matter," Vince said.

"Well then I can't stay?" Chris asked, confused. "I mean, if it was a family matter, then I'd stay, because I'm family, but if it's not, I guess I should go because it's a business matter, and I don't really have anything to do with that."

"Dad, don't mind him, what did you need to say?" Stephanie asked.

Vince's cell phone went off in his pocket and he held a finger up as he answered it, "Hello?"

Stephanie looked at Chris as her father was speaking and he winked at her. She made a face at him and he leaned over and gave her a small kiss. She put her hand lightly on his cheek, rubbing the little bit of stubble that was covering it, scrunching up her face as she pulled away and he knew immediately that she had wanted him to shave.

"I'm sorry you two, I have to go meet with Bischoff about something, but we definitely need to talk, there's something I think that you both should know," Vince told them seriously. Chris and Stephanie just looked at each other and then at Vince nodding. Vince hurried out of the room, leaving Chris and Stephanie alone again.

"I wonder what that's about," Stephanie said.

"I don't know. Knowing your father though, it's not even something to worry about," Chris said. "He blows everything out of proportion."

"True," Stephanie said, then put her hand on her rumbling stomach. "I'm hungry, accompany me to catering."

"Whatever you want," Chris said, wrapping his arm tighter around her waist and leading her out of the room.

He held the door open for her as she walked out and she grabbed his hand, holding it as they walked down the hallway. They turned a corner and saw Trish walking at the other end. From afar, she looked fine, just walking down the hallway. Upon closer inspection though, she looked…distracted, if that was the correct word for it. Her eyes seemed to be glazed over and she was looking around confusedly, like she didn't know where she was. Stephanie walked up to her with a smile.

"Hey Trish, what's up?" Stephanie asked.

"He's gone," she whispered.

Stephanie had to strain to hear her, and could still barely make out her words, "What Trish?"

"He's gone," she whispered again. "He's gone."

"Who's gone?" Stephanie asked, trying to figure out what was going on.

"Christian, he's gone," she said, looking up at Stephanie with raw eyes, filled deep with perplexity and incredulity. "He's gone."

"Christian died!" Stephanie screamed, taking "gone" to mean that he had died. "What! How did this happen!"

"No, he's not…dead, he's just…he's gone," Trish said, saying it as if she was still trying to believe it. "He left, he's gone, he left, nothing, nothing left."

It was hard to understand her disjointed sentences and Chris put his hand on her shoulder. "Ok, let's slow down and talk this out, ok Trish, come on."

Trish stood there, as if not understanding him. Chris wrapped his arm around her shoulder and led the bewildered blonde down the hallway, back to Stephanie's office. Trish didn't say anything or even look anywhere but forward, and the look on her face was so strange that there were no real words to explain how it looked. She was dazed beyond belief, clinging to something in her hand that Chris and Stephanie had yet to see. Chris opened the door once again and Trish walked inside.

"Come on, sit down," Chris said, helping Trish to the couch, where she sat down, still not saying anything. Chris kneeled in front of her as Stephanie sat next to her. "Now Trish, where did Christian go?"

"I don't know," she said, looking straight at Chris. "I don't know!"

"Ok, what happened?"

"I came home," she said simply. "I had been on the photo shoot, remember?"

"Yeah," Stephanie nodded. "You were away and Christian said he was going to go visit his mother. Did you call his mom, he's probably there, you're probably worried over nothing."

"I came home and everything was gone. His clothes, his luggage, some pictures, they were all gone."

"What?" Chris asked, feeling the stun that Trish was feeling starting to creep into his body, starting at the tips of his toes and undulating upwards. "What do you mean it was gone? I mean, he had taken some clothes to his mother's right?"

"No," Trish said softly. "They were all gone. All of it. There was nothing."

Stephanie blinked and then closed her eyes for a second. "Nothing?"

"Nothing," Trish repeated. "I don't even…I didn't know what was…what was going on. I just…I stood there and I looked at his empty closet and it was…gone, all of it. He was gone. There was no trace of him anywhere."

"This is a joke right," Stephanie said, standing up and pacing. "This HAS to be a joke. Christian would never pull something like this!"

In typical fashion, Stephanie was the one to get angry. Sure, Chris got angry and when he did, he would be ANGRY, but Stephanie, she had the temper. She was the one who could be ignited by the slightest thing. And she was angry now. She ran her hands through her hair, trying to keep herself calm, for sanity's sake, but she wasn't calm. Her hands were almost shaking from anger.

"He's gone," Trish said brokenly. "He left me, and I don't know why."

"I can't believe this, this is not real!" Stephanie said, pacing back and forth. "I don't understand. Well, we'll just figure this out, we'll go to SmackDown this week and we'll find out what's going on. That's what we'll do."

"He's gone," Trish kept saying over and over again. Chris looked between the two women, Trish, looking forlorn and disoriented and Stephanie, looking pissed off beyond belief, her face turning a nice shade of red.

"Ok, ok, let's stop and pause and discuss this," Chris said, trying to be the rational one. "There has to be some explanation, and Stephanie, would you please calm down, if not for your sake, for someone else's sake?"

Stephanie realized that getting angry would just make her more upset and then the baby would be upset and it would set off a whole chain reaction. "You're right, I'm sorry, I'm just confused here."

"I don't even know how I got here," Trish said. "I don't think I have any bags besides my purse. I don't remember getting on the plane or coming here or getting to the arena. I don't even know how I got here."

"Trish, it's ok, you're here now, and we're here for you. Do you have any idea where Christian might be?" Chris asked.

"He left me this," Trish said, thrusting her hand out where a folded up note was being clutched tightly by her.

Chris had to pry the note from her forcibly. He unfolded it and looked down at it, expecting a note explaining where he had gone and when he would be back and something to that effect. It was nothing like that. He read it three times, just to read it, not because it was complicated or anything of that nature. All it said was:

_I had to leave. I'm sorry. I will always love you, be happy Trishy._

_Chrissy_

"This is it! What a bastard!" Chris said, finally losing his temper. "I can't believe he would leave you with THIS! I'm going to find him Trish. Oh, come SmackDown, he's going to get his ass kicked!"

"I have a match," Trish said dazedly. "I have a match with Mickie, I have to get ready for it, did I bring my bag?"

"Trish, it's ok, I'll talk to Bischoff and tell him you're not going to be wrestling tonight. I have authority around here, it's the least I can do. You won't have to worry about anything, I'll take care of it," Stephanie told Trish, sitting down next to her.

"No, I have to work, I have to do something," Trish said. "I can't just sit here, I can't sit here and think, because when I think, all I think about is why he left, and I don't know why he left."

"Ok, ok," Chris said. "If you think that you're up for wrestling, then you can go out and do that. Don't think about Christian ok? Just think about wrestling and all of that."

"I can do that," Trish nodded, and she was starting to look like her familiar self. "I'm a professional. I'm a professional and I can go out there and do that, I can wrestle. I can wrestle and not think about Christian."

"Do you want us to walk you back to your locker room?" Stephanie asked. "Because we'll go with you, no problem."

"No, I think I can do this by myself. I'm strong, right?" Trish asked.

"Definitely," Chris nodded. "But if you need anything, ANYTHING, come get us ok?"

"Yeah, ok," Trish said, silently taking the note back from Chris and standing up. She sent a shaky and fake smile to the both of them before leaving quietly, closing the door slowly behind her. Chris and Stephanie both took deep breaths at the same time without even realizing it.

Stephanie stood there, not moving as she watched one of her best friends alone, and walking sadly out of the room. Her hands dropped to her sides and just like Trish had found the fight drained out of her, Stephanie found the fight had been drained out of her quite effectively as well. Tears welled up in her eyes as she saw the lost look in Trish's eyes and her heart broke for her friend. It didn't help that her hormones were off-kilter with the pregnancy.

"How could he?" Stephanie asked faintly. "Where did he go? Why would he take all of his things?"

"Steph," Chris said, his voice raw and pained. It was one thing to see Trish, a girl he cared about, be so distraught, but couple that with his wife looking so sad, and he could barely handle this himself.

"Was he in trouble? Did you know?" Stephanie asked, turning to him. "Why?"

"I don't know Steph, and if I did know, I would've totally kicked his ass for even thinking about leaving Trish."

"God, wait…Edge…"

"What about him?"

"He's Christian's brother, maybe he knows where Christian is."

"That's a good idea."

"I'll go look for him," Stephanie said, brightening up a bit.

"You're not going alone," Chris said, walking over to her. "I'll come with you, just in case you need some muscle to rough him up."

"Wait, maybe we should think this out first, have a strategy," Stephanie reasoned.

"Ok, lay it on me beautiful."

Trish had been informed as she got dressed that she needed to go out to the ring immediately. She went out there in the influx of superstars, glad that she was short enough to sort of blend in with the bigger superstars. She saw Ashley out there and went to stand on the edge of the ring with her. Ashley smiled at her, but Trish couldn't muster up a smile of her own. It felt like the muscles in her face weren't even working, like she had gotten some bad Botox or something. Ashley looked like she was going to say something, but Mickie found them and started talking about something. Trish didn't have enough energy to listen to her.

She watched as Bischoff came out and started talking. She tuned him out for the most part, not caring about what he was saying. She stood there, feeling everything going on around her, but she felt like she was standing still in a world that was constantly revolving. The lights, the sounds, everything was a blur to her as she tried to move, tried to do something, but was paralyzed by something she couldn't understand.

She was snapped back into reality when Mickie started talking and Trish looked at her, wondering what she was going on about. When she found out Mickie was praising her AGAIN, she groaned to herself and looked at Ashley. Of all nights, tonight was THE night that Trish didn't want to be bothered. Why couldn't Mickie understand that? Maybe if her Chrissy were here, then she'd have gladly basked in the glow of her win, MAYBE, but he wasn't and she felt empty and didn't want everyone staring at her, not now, not when she was feeling so utterly alone.

She walked backstage and though she could hear Mickie babbling to her, she ignored her and went back to her locker room again. There it was sitting, the note, the blasted note that Christian had left on her pillow. As she looked at it, she wished beyond wishes that she could go back in time and say yes to Christian's proposal. Even if it had been in the worse of circumstances, at least he would be here with her now. She read the note again, even though it was so short she had memorized it after two readings. She read it again and again and again until the words started flowing together in a blur of blue ink.

She wanted to crumple it up, wanted to throw it against the wall, douse it in gasoline and burn it until it was a pile of ashes and soot, until the damning words floated up into the air with the smoke from the fire. But it was Christian's, it had his handwriting on it, and she never thought she'd be the kind of girl to savor something like this, but she just couldn't part with it. She sat there, thinking, and sitting, and doing nothing in particular.

Stephanie and Chris, on the other hand, had come up with a good plan in order to corner Edge. Even if Edge didn't know Christian's whereabouts, maybe they could get their mother's number and call her. Stephanie was ready to be the mouth of the situation while Chris was going to be the brawn of the situation, a set-up that suited them just fine.

They walked out into the hallway, Stephanie a set ahead of Chris as he walked with his arms folded, playing the part of the tough guy. Stephanie glanced back at him as they approached one of the production assistants. Stephanie tapped the guy on the shoulder and he turned to see his boss standing there and she didn't look happy.

"Ms. McMahon, did you need something?"

"I need to know where Edge's locker room is," Stephanie informed him.

"He got kicked out," the guy said.

"Kicked out, by whom?"

"Mr. Bischoff. He already left."

"Damn it," Stephanie muttered. "Thanks."

Stephanie turned to Chris and frowned. "So that's a dead end for the evening. We'll ask next Monday."

"Ok," Chris nodded. "I feel helpless."

Stephanie walked closer to him until she was pressed up against him. She brought her hands up to his face and cupped his cheeks. She smiled a little, just showing off her teeth before leaning in to kiss him. She let her hands leave his face and creep their way around his neck, pulling him closer, if that was possible. Chris let his arms wrap around her waist and rest on the space just above the top of her pants.

"I love you," she whispered when she pulled away from him, opening her eyes to look into his clear blue ones, ones she hoped that her child would be fortunate enough to have.

"I love you too," he whispered back, giving her a tiny smile and a small kiss to the corner of her mouth.

"You're wonderful."

"Come on, let's finally get you and the kid something to eat," he told her, pulling away to walk down the hallway.

Trish went to the women's locker room to get Mickie. At least one of the perks of being the Women's Champion was that she didn't have to share. She was not looking forward to seeing Mickie, but at this point, she would take any distraction from Christian. Hopefully she would find out on Thursday what was going on. If anything, Christian was going to be on SmackDown and he would HAVE to be there, so she could confront him about his leaving.

She didn't know what was going to become of her. The house was in Christian's name, but he had paid it off long ago. She didn't know what to think, what to believe. She just went to the women's locker room, seeing Mickie's eyes light up. Trish just listened as Mickie talked about asinine things, things she didn't care about, and wouldn't even have cared about it if she was feeling better. The incessant buzzing in her ear that was Mickie finally got to her and she had to tell the girl to shut up. But Mickie wouldn't even let her get a word in edgewise before wandering off like a hyperactive child. Trish just took a deep breath and tried to focus on the match. She paused for a moment, trying to compose herself as she felt herself slipping a little bit.

She didn't know how she made it through that match. She had just put her head down and powered through. She didn't care if she won or lost or if it ended in a draw. It ended in a loss, coincidentally, but through no fault of her own. She was perturbed with Mickie and this didn't help. But now that the match was over, she had nothing to think about except Christian. She needed something else to fill her mind so she went back to Stephanie's office, knocking on the door. Kurt answered.

"Hey you," Kurt said and she immediately knew that Chris and Stephanie had told. The tone of his voice gave him away.

"Hi Kurt."

"How are you?"

"I'm as good as can be expected," she mumbled, going inside. "I just need to be around people right now."

"Ok," Kurt said, placing his arm around her shoulders. "We're here for you."

"Thank you," she said, giving him a small smile. "I just don't know what to do with myself. I'm confused and lost about this whole thing. I didn't see it coming, I never saw any sign, maybe I should've. Maybe that was my problem. I didn't see the signs."

"None of us did, so maybe there wasn't any," Kurt said.

Another knock came to the door and Stephanie went to answer it. "Oh, hey Dad, we're kind of busy right now, can you come back later?"

"I'm leaving soon Stephanie, I just needed to speak with you about something," he said, then saw everyone else in the room. "Oh, you're all here. Well, maybe that's for the best."

"What are you talking about Dad?" Stephanie asked.

"Trish didn't tell you."

"Didn't tell them what?" Trish asked.

"About Christian quitting."

Stephanie shook her head and blinked. "Quit."

"He gave me his notice last Saturday. I thought he would've told you Trish," Vince said. "He didn't want a new contract and he quit."

Stephanie pushed her father out into the hallway, closing the door behind her. "Daddy, Trish didn't know. Christian took off, he took all his things out of their house and he left and she doesn't know where he is right now."

"I didn't know, I just assumed…"

"I know Daddy, but we'll take care of this, and Chris and I will see you and Mom Wednesday for Chris's birthday. Remember, you promised to come."

"I know Princess, I had to reschedule a ton of meetings, but you want us there, so we'll be there."

"Thank you Daddy, and thank you for telling us this news."

Inside, it was a different story, as Stephanie would soon learn. Trish had stood there, hearing that Christian had quit over and over again. She had tried to remain strong in all of this. She had put on her game face valiantly for the sake of the show. She had fought and wrestled and lost and this was too much. She took a deep breath and let out a strangled sob as her face scrunched up in pain.

Chris and Kurt were by her side in no time whatsoever, helping her stand because she felt her feet give way below her, like the ground was swallowing her up. Kurt hugged her to him, and she didn't even hug him back, being limp in his arms. Chris was trying to talk to her as Stephanie looked on in horror at the display and mentally coming up with ways to kill Christian in a slow and painful manner.

"We're getting out of here," Stephanie said finally. "Get Trish, we're leaving, we're going home, she's staying with us."

It was such a quick decision that Chris didn't even have time to ask her anything. He just went with it because he couldn't think right now. Stephanie was on top of things, going immediately into business mode, finding a puzzle and solving it in no time. Chris helped Trish stand as Kurt helped her as well.

"Kurt, can you go grab her bag from her locker room?"

"Yeah, sure," Kurt said quickly, rushing out of the room.

"Chris, can you help her to the car?"

"Of course, come on Trish, let's go."

"I don't think I can move," Trish confessed.

"Yes you can," Chris prompted her. He started leading her out of the room before turning briefly to Stephanie, "Baby, what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to call the airport and book us on the soonest flight," Stephanie said, taking out her cell phone. "We're going home."

**THE NEXT DAY**

"It only sucks that they couldn't figure out if it was a boy or a girl," Chris said. "I was really hoping to know."

"I know," Stephanie said, patting his arm. "But it's not like we can get him to move in the right direction to see. Some people can't even find out until they're like seven months pregnant. We just have to patient."

"Yeah, but if it's a girl, then I'm going to have to get my mind wrapped around that."

"So you don't want a girl?" Stephanie asked as they got into their car.

"If we're going to be honest, no, I don't really want a girl. I want a little boy. If we do have a girl, I'm not going to throw a hissy fit or anything, I'll love her more than anything, I just really want a son."

"Because you want to do all those Dad things with him, you want to teach him to play hockey, and to wrestle and to like all of the other guy stuff that you like, when you can just as easily teach that to a girl."

"Yeah, you can, but just thinking about it, I want a little boy, and you'd love a little boy Steph. Everyone would love a little boy."

"I'd love it either way," Stephanie said, then looking down at her stomach. "Did you hear that baby, I'd love you either way, so you don't have to hide what gender you are."

"Ok, let's go back inside, maybe he moved," Chris joked.

Stephanie just rested her hand on her stomach as they were driving to go out to lunch. She had just finished with her doctor's appointment and everything was going according to schedule. They had seen the baby, and heard its heartbeat for the first time, which was pretty spectacular. It was so fast and so feathery sounding, it almost seemed like nothing, but it was definitely something. Dr. Sheldon had said it was a strong heartbeat and given them a video of the ultrasound, which was probably the only way she was going to get anyone to believe her and Chris tomorrow when they let out their secret.

Then something else came into Stephanie's mind, or rather someone else. She sighed deeply as she thought about Trish. She had kept her mind off of Trish at the appointment because this was a happy thing, her pregnancy was a happy thing, and she didn't want that sadness to take over her mind. She had managed to forget for a while, but there it was again.

"Thinking about Trish?" Chris asked gently. He had been thinking about her too incidentally.

"How'd you know?"

"You did you're sad, little sigh."

"I was just thinking about her and tomorrow. I didn't want your birthday to be sad, and now I fear it is."

"Well, turning 35 is sad in and of itself," he joked, trying to lighten the dapper mood of the car.

"I just don't understand any of this. I mean, he quits and he takes off," Stephanie said, squinting her eyes and shaking her head as she tried to wrap her head around his leaving. "He didn't even tell anyone. I mean, he just left. How did we not see this coming?"

"Baby, Trish didn't even see this coming and she was living with him."

"I'm worried about her, and him, and I'm just worried," she said, her voice shaking slightly. "I mean, what's going to happen now?"

Chris grabbed her hand and squeezed it. Stephanie didn't show compassion outwardly to many people, but she was compassionate, and Chris was fortunate in that he got to see it. He brought it up to his mouth and kissed it softly. It was moments like these that Stephanie relished in. She didn't have to be flashy, or bitchy, or any of the negative connotations that followed her around.

"We'll make sure that she's going to be ok," Chris said. "We'll make sure of it. And we'll take care of the baby, and everything will work itself out."

"I'm trusting you Chris Jericho."

"Good, that's what you're supposed to do since I'm your husband and you're my wife," he said, pulling into the restaurant. "Now come on, I'm sure the kid is hungry and we really don't want to keep him waiting."

They had a leisurely lunch where they mostly kept the discussion to the baby and not on any of the problems suffered by any of their friends. They were supposed to be enjoying this time; it was a special time that they should be focusing on their baby, but instead they were focusing on everything but their baby. They knew that would change, but with everything going on, Stephanie barely had time to think about all the things she was supposed to eat and take and what not.

They drove home and as they got closer and closer to the house, they got more and more depressed. They knew that Trish was in there, and they knew that she was going to be a mess. She had put on the show on Monday, but by that night when they got home, she was a bloodshot, teary mess, and they didn't blame her one bit. She was going to be staying with them indefinitely, until she had the willpower to figure out what she was going to do now. She hadn't even been back to her house, and Chris had gone to get her things for her.

Going inside was like being sucked in a vortex of sadness. Stephanie sighed and nodded to Chris, silently telling him that she would go see how Trish was doing. She grabbed the bag of food that they had brought Trish since she had said she'd rather not meet them up for lunch, even though they had gone to one of her favorite places. She walked upstairs and to the guest bedroom where Trish was staying. Luckily there was more than one since Chris's parents were flying in this evening, and they were going to stay here. Stephanie knocked quietly on the door in case Trish was sleeping.

"Trish, it's Steph," she called out just loud enough for Trish to hear through the door.

"Come in."

Stephanie opened the door and walked inside. The television was on, but on low, and Trish was laying on her side facing away from it. The bed was covered in used tissues from her crying, and Trish herself was unkempt, her hair in a loose ponytail with errant strands of hair falling around her face. Her nose was red from the constant rubbing she was doing from her crying, and her eyes were bloodshot and she had bags underneath them, dark circles that marred her beautiful face. She was in a pair of gray sweatpants and an oversized sweatshirt, much too big for her small frame that Stephanie had to wonder if it was Christian's at some point.

Stephanie set the bag of food on the dresser next to the door and grabbed the garbage can, taking the used tissues and sweeping them into the garbage so that Trish wasn't laying among them. She put the garbage can back down, making a mental note to take it with her to empty. She sat on the now clean bed, sitting cross-legged facing Trish. She patted Trish's leg for a second and then just looked at her.

"How are you feeling?"

"Horrible," Trish said plainly.

"I know," Stephanie told her. "I miss him too you know."

"I know," Trish said, her eyes tearing up. "He didn't just leave me, he left all of you, and I'm so selfish, thinking just about myself, God, that's probably why he left!"

"Trish, no," Stephanie said firmly. "That's NOT why he left. If he left because of you, then he's the biggest idiot this side of Hunter, ok. I don't know why he left, but I do know that it's not because of you. And you're not being selfish, you love Christian, you have every right to be upset as you are, and we are going to be here for you. You know that you are welcome to stay as long as you need to stay."

"You're too good to me," Trish said, getting choked up again.

"You're one of our best friends," Stephanie said. "Sweetie, we're going to be here for you as long as you need us."

"Thanks. I'm sorry I'm ruining Chris's birthday. I'll be good tomorrow, I'll dress up and--"

"No, you won't…unless you really want to. Trish, you're going through something that nobody even understands. We're here for YOU, you're not here for us. If you don't even feel like coming down tomorrow, you don't have to."

"I'm sorry I'm such a pain."

"I was married to Hunter, I know how to deal with a pain, and you're not it…so have you eaten anything today?"

"I had a piece of toast this morning."

"Well, that's not enough, we went out to lunch. Rinaldi's, you love it there. We brought you the chicken salad, the one you like, it's on the dresser, there's silverware in there if you want to eat up here, your call, just please…eat ok? I don't need to worry anymore about you."

"I'll eat it, don't worry," Trish said, sitting up slowly. "So how was that business thing you had take care of?"

"It was good, it went well," Stephanie said. "I have to go downstairs for a while to finalize the menu for Chris's dinner tomorrow, but come down if you feel like it. Chris's parents are coming in tonight, so we're going to go out to dinner, if you're up to it, we'd love you to come."

"I'll think about it," Trish said as Stephanie grabbed the food and held it out for Trish to grab, which she did, gratefully. "Thanks."

"No problem."

Stephanie closed the door behind her as she left Trish by herself. At least Trish hadn't gone seriously down the path of self-hate, thinking that she was the cause of Christian's disappearance. Stephanie honestly didn't believe that Trish had anything to do with this. But then again, she didn't know what had brought this about at all. One week, Christian was here and fine, and the next, nothing, gone. She walked downstairs and into the kitchen where Chris was having a glass of water.

"How is she?" Chris asked, setting his glass down.

"She's putting on the brave front for us, but she's hurting," Stephanie informed him. "She's tough though, she'll be fine…in a year or two. Chris?"

"Yeah?"

"You wouldn't leave like that would you? I mean, you would at least tell me to my face that you were leaving right?"

"In the event that I ever have to leave, which would HAVE to be by force, then yeah, I'd tell you to your face."

"That's all I needed to hear," she said, hugging him. He hugged her back. "So I invited Trish out to dinner with us and your parents when we pick them up. Now whether or not she's going to show, that's up in the air right now."

"Well, whatever she decides, it's up to her. When's Kurt getting here?"

"Tomorrow. And so are my parents and Shane. They're all staying at a hotel. I told Kurt originally that he could stay here, like usual, but with Trish here, well, he had to get a hotel. Trish has to take priority right now."

"Yeah, she does. I wouldn't be surprised if Kurt crashed here anyways, you know, to be around."

"Yeah," Stephanie said. "I'm going to go take a nap, I'm kind of tired, you have everything covered?"

"Yeah, I'll wake you up in plenty of time to get ready. And I'll see if Trish wants to go too."

"What are you going to do when I'm sleeping?"

"I've got band stuff I need to take care of, you know that I have to go away next month."

Stephanie frowned. "I still don't like it, stupid band, taking you away from me. You know Chris, I'm going to tell our son all about how you abandoned him when I was pregnant with him. And he's going to hate you SO much…I just hope you're prepared for the backlash."

"Are you sure it's not his Mommy that will be the nuisance?"

"And just for that, I'm going to tell him that you winning the Undisputed Championship was a fluke!"

Chris's jaw dropped, "How. Dare. You! A fluke!"

"Uh huh, total fluke," Stephanie gloated, sticking her tongue out.

"I beat The Rock AND Stone Cold in one night lady! ONE NIGHT! BACK TO BACK!"

"Oh yeah, sure, you were great," she said, "Come on baby, let me go tell you how Daddy won the WWF Title by cheating with a fast count and how Mommy had to revoke it because it was the right thing to do."

"Oh that's it," Chris said, lifting Stephanie off of her feet as she squealed. He glared down at her, pretending to be mad as he took her upstairs and into their bedroom, kicking the door closed with his foot before setting her down gently on their bed. "Now Mrs. Jericho, I think that you owe me an apology, and you should tell our son the truth."

"I thought I was."

Chris kissed her, running his hand over her stomach. "I beat Rocky and Austin in one night, and I got both those belts, and if I recall correctly, that made me desirable to the one woman who said I could never have her."

Stephanie scoffed. "Yeah, because I wanted to get back at my ex-husband, the scum."

"Yeah, you wanted some Vitamin C and you know it."

"I don't think so," she said, shaking her head. "I could've gone without you thank you very much. You aren't that special Chris Jericho. Hey kid, you want to know a secret. If Uncle Kurt had won Daddy's belts, I would've gone off with him."

Chris's eyes widened. "You liar!"

Stephanie laughed and batted her eyelashes. "No, absolutely the truth."

Chris held Stephanie's sides and started tickling her mercilessly. Stephanie started laughing, gradually getting louder and louder until she was practically guffawing as she tried to get away from Chris's hands. She squirmed from side to side, laughing as she kicked him away from her. She managed to get up on all fours to try and crawl away from him, but he just kept tickling her.

"Come on Steph, say that I'm the best."

"No!" Stephanie cried valiantly, tears coming to her eyes from laughing too much. "Never!"

"Ok, then I'm going to have to keep tickling you."

"Oww, Chris, oww," Stephanie said, grabbing her stomach.

Chris stopped immediately, "Steph, what's wrong? Is everything ok? Are you in pain?"

Stephanie grabbed a pillow from the top of their bed and hit him square in the face before getting off the bed quickly. "I'll never give in to you and your lies!"

"You…are…such…a bitch," Chris said. "You used your pregnancy against me!"

Stephanie shrugged. "You're leaving me for like 3 weeks, it's the least you deserve."

Chris just laid down, "Come here beautiful."

Stephanie looked at him suspiciously. "I don't trust you any farther than I can throw you."

"I'm not going to do anything, I promise," he said, looking at her. She crossed her arms in front of her in disbelief. "I swear!"

She tentatively went over to the bed and got on it. She crawled over to where Chris was and laid down next to him. Chris scooted over a little bit so that he was practically on top of her. He wrapped his arms around her and let her lean back against him. They were in such a position that Chris could lean his chin on Stephanie's shoulder so that his breath blew right next to her cheek. They just rested against each other for a couple of hours, not needing to speak as they both thought about things.

"I think we should tell Trish that I'm pregnant right now," Stephanie said quietly.

"Why?" Chris asked.

"Well, she's been through so much, and tomorrow we're going to lay our good news on her along with everybody, and I just want her to know ahead of time so she's not sitting there thinking about what's she's lost. I just would rather tell her right now. So you know, I think it would be the right thing to do."

"If that's what you want to do," he told her, clutching her closer to him. "It's your call."

"I'd feel more comfortable. This way she doesn't have to pretend to be all happy tomorrow. She can just sit there and not feel like she's doing something wrong."

"If I get my hands on Christian, I swear," Chris hissed. "I mean, he had to know that Trish would end up like this, he HAD to know. She loves him so much and God, to just leave. I should hunt him down and just kick his ass."

"Yeah, IF you could find him," Stephanie said bitterly. "Come on, let's go tell Trish before we have to leave."

Stephanie extracted herself from Chris's arms and got off the bed, fingering the sonogram picture tucked into the frame of her and Chris's wedding picture on the nightstand. She grabbed Chris's hand as he got off the bed as well. He kissed her lightly on the cheek as they went to the guest bedroom, Chris knocking on Trish's door.

"Yeah?" Trish called out.

"Trish, can we come in?"

"Sure."

Chris opened the door for Stephanie, letting her go inside before her. The bed was once again littered with tissues as Stephanie went again to pick them up and put them in the trash, reminding herself again that she needed to empty that. At least Trish had eaten her lunch. Stephanie sat on the edge of the bed facing Trish and Chris sat behind her, wrapping his arm around her.

"So how come I get both of you?" Trish asked with a hollow laugh and a sniffle.

"Well, we wanted to tell you something."

"Oh."

"We were going to tell everyone tomorrow, but we wanted to tell you now."

"Oh God, you know where Christian is don't you?" Trish said, a wretched sob escaping from her throat. "He's not ok is he? He's hurt or something? Oh no, he's sick, right, right!"

"No, Trish, we don't know where Christian is. If we did know, well, for one, Chris would be kicking his ass, and we definitely would've told you immediately because we hate seeing you this upset. No, this has to do with that announcement I mentioned last week, the one for Chris's birthday."

"Oh yeah, I remember now," Trish nodded. "I can wait until tomorrow, its fine with me, I swear."

"Yeah, but we want to tell you right now. It's important to us that you know now."

"Ok, go ahead, I'm listening."

"Well," Stephanie took a deep breath. "Chris and I are going to have a baby."

Trish's jaw dropped a little. "What?"

"We're going to have a baby. I'm due next April. Um, that's the reason that I originally left, and why Chris left too. I'm fifteen weeks pregnant, almost sixteen weeks."

"Wait, that means you're like, four months pregnant?" Trish asked, confused.

"Yeah."

"Why didn't you say anything? I mean, you've kept this for that long."

"Well, we wanted to wait until I was in my second trimester because the risk for miscarriage is greatly reduced, and in case something did happen, we wanted to deal with that ourselves without getting anyone we loved involved. But everything is going really well, he's healthy and he's got a strong heartbeat."

"He? You're having a little boy?"

"Well, we don't know just yet, you know that business we had to take care of this morning," Stephanie said, to which Trish nodded to, "Well, that was actually a doctor's appointment, but the baby wasn't in the right position to see what their gender is, but Chris is so insistent on it being a boy that we just call it him."

"We wanted to tell you now because we didn't want you to feel overwhelmed tomorrow since we know you've got a lot of things on your mind."

"Wait, so when Chris was fake fired, and he said he had a wife and son…that was real?" Trish asked.

Stephanie nodded. "Yeah, that was real, the big jerk got us in a whole lot of trouble, but it was real. Kurt's the only other person that knows, but we're going to tell our families tomorrow, so we just wanted to let you know ahead of time."

"Oh you guys, I'm so sorry. I've been such a bitch. Here I am, bringing you completely down while you should be so happy."

"Trish, don't worry about it," Chris said. "You have your reasons, and we understand them completely, and you haven't ruined anything, and you're not going to, because you'll get through this."

"Yeah," Stephanie added. "We just didn't want you to have to act happy for us when we know that you're not happy because of the Christian situation."

"You guys, I am SO happy for you, you have no idea," Trish said, getting off the bed and going to the other side to hug Stephanie and Chris. "You guys are going to have a terrific kid, and you'll be great parents."

"Thanks," Stephanie laughed.

"You have no idea how awesome it's going to be to have a little kid around. This is pretty cool. Do you have any pictures or anything?"

"Actually yeah, hold on," Chris said, getting off the bed. "I'll be right back."

He left the room, and Trish squealed in happiness. It was the first signs of happiness she had shown since she found out that Christian was gone. She grabbed Stephanie's hand and gave her a once over. "You're not showing yet."

"They said with your first it could be up to six months before you show and then suddenly you're a balloon, but actually, you just think I'm not showing." Stephanie stood up and pulled up her t-shirt to expose her stomach which was showing a very slight bulge. "I'm showing a little, but it's really easy to cover up."

"Wow, oh my God," Trish said, putting her hand over her mouth in awe. "But I thought you guys didn't want any kids for a while. Didn't you have a plan that you weren't going to have kids until after you were married a few years? You guys haven't even been married for a year."

"It was a shock to the both of us," Stephanie told her. "But I wouldn't trade it back for the world. I lied once about having a baby, and now I actually am and it's pretty cool. And now you know why I've been eating so much."

"Oh no, and I teased you about it, I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it, I was eating a lot to the naked eye."

"Ok Trish, here," Chris said, coming into the room with a videotape in hand. He walked to the television and put the tape in the VCR, pressing play. He walked back and winked at Stephanie as he took a seat. A moment later the video came to life, showing a mass of black and white. He pointed to some things on the screen, "That's his body, there's his head, hands, legs, pretty much that's him."

"Are those little hands?" Trish asked as she watched in wonderment. She turned to the two of them and saw they both had wide grins on their faces. "Thank you for sharing this with me, it's actually made me feel better."

"We just wanted you to know."

"I love you guys, you're the best friends a girl could have," Trish said, gathering them for a group hug.

"Well, yeah, we know," Stephanie joked. "Well, we have to get ready for dinner with Chris's parents. Did you want to come?"

"No thanks, you go ahead. Maybe I'll just go pick something up and eat here."

"Ok, if you're sure…"

"I'm sure, you guys go, have fun, eat lots of food, don't worry about me," Trish reassured her.

"Ok," Stephanie said, giving her another hug, "Feel better."

"Congratulations you guys, seriously, this is great news."

Stephanie and Chris left Trish alone as they went to get ready for dinner. It didn't take long for them to change into something casual to go to the airport. Stephanie felt a little more encouraged about Trish and her situation. She was going to be ok, Stephanie knew this. She could move on, albeit slowly, but she could definitely move on. Trish was a smart, beautiful woman and any man would be crazy not to want her. Damn that Christian for hurting her friend.

Chris parked their car in the short-term parking as they went into the airport to wait for Chris's parents. Stephanie spotted them first as she waved at them. Loretta came up and hugged Stephanie tightly. "You look so beautiful Stephanie!"

"Thanks Loretta."

"Doesn't she look beautiful Ted?" Loretta asked as she wrapped her arm around Stephanie's shoulder. Stephanie blushed a little bit.

"Stephanie, you're looking well," Ted said to her.

"I am," Stephanie smiled.

"And here's my birthday boy," Loretta said, hugging Chris. "My baby is going to be thirty-five!"

"Mom!" Chris whined. "I'm too old to be coddled."

"Then who am I going to coddle Christopher, I don't see any kids running around here that I can spoil. You haven't even been married a year, I think I can certainly coddle you."

Chris smiled. "Geez Mom, going to lobby hard for those grandkids aren't you?"

"You're thirty-five Chris, I'm just saying that most of my friends, who have children younger than you are, mind you, they have at least two grandchildren. I'd like one, is that too much to ask? But I won't mention it anymore. Because I love you both, and if you don't want babies right now, then that's your business."

"Wow, talk about a turn around," Chris muttered, wrapping his arm around Stephanie as they walked out of the airport. She glanced up at him with a sly, little smile on her face, knowing that they had a secret that they were going to reveal tomorrow.

**WEDNESDAY**

"Happy Birthday," Stephanie mumbled against Chris's bare chest.

"Hmm?"

"Happy Birthday," she mumbled again, kissing his chest. "I can't say how glad I am that the morning sickness is gone."

"Yeah, but it's not the same waking up without hearing you puking your guts out."

"Not funny," she said.

"And here I thought I was being a crack-up."

"I love you," she told him. "And I'm glad on this day, thirty-five years ago, that you were born. Because if you weren't born, there's a good chance I'd be waking up to Hunter and I'd be having his baby, and well, that's just not where I want my life right now."

"Let's stay in bed all day. If we don't get out of bed we don't have to deal with my parents, or yours, or Christian being an ass and leaving. We can just think about us."

"Yeah, but I'm going to need to eat if you want me to have a healthy baby and not an unhealthy baby."

"Damn, forgot about that."

"Forgot about our kid, disappointing Christopher," Stephanie admonished him while yawning. "Did you hear that baby, Daddy is already forgetting about you."

"Because Mommy tries to make everything about herself," Chris said.

"Oh yeah right, Mr. Egotistical," Stephanie guffawed. "Or should I just call you old man from now on?"

"You know, one of these days Stephanie, I'm going to get you, and it'll be so satisfying," Chris said, kissing her lightly.

"Yeah right, I'd like to see that happen."

"Oh, just you wait."

"Come on Birthday Boy, cook your wife and child some breakfast."

"It's my birthday, how come I have to cook?"

"Fine, then don't, I'll just have cereal, which is probably not good for the baby, and…"

"Oh come on, I'll make you breakfast."

The day was a pretty lazy one. Stephanie and Chris spent most of their time entertaining his parents and making sure that Trish was doing ok. She was trying to be upbeat and had even smiled while wishing Chris a happy birthday. She had even come downstairs to chat with his parents, making herself look presentable for Chris's birthday.

That afternoon, everyone showed up and the mood was a lot lighter than it had been in the house for a couple of days. Kurt, Chris and Stephanie were kind of doting over Trish, who hated it because she knew today was about Chris and Stephanie, and the baby that they were having. She tried to defect the attention away from herself, but they wouldn't allow her to focus on themselves. It was just the sign of how good friends they were.

"Thanks for coming you guys," Stephanie said as everyone was chatting in the living room. She sat down in one of the armchairs and Chris sat on the arm of said chair, leaning against the top of it. Stephanie had the videotape at her side. "I know you're all here for Chris's birthday, and I'm happy you could come, but Chris and I also wanted to do something nice for you guys, well, not do something nice, but show you something that would probably make you happy, depending on some things I guess."

"What is it Steph?" Shane said. "You're talking and nothing's coming out of your mouth."

Kurt spoke up, "Let her speak Shane."

"Thank you Kurt," Stephanie said with a smile. "Well, as you know, Chris and I took some time off recently. Well, Chris took a lot of time off, and I took a little time off because I like my work. But that's not the point, the point is, that we had a reason for leaving."

"Stephanie, are you leaving again?" Vince said. "We just got you back on television and you're leaving! Stephanie, why didn't you decide this earlier!"

"Daddy, please, let me finish," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "I will get to my point in a second. Anyways, Chris and I had a reason."

"We had a good reason," Chris said. "There was some stuff in our lives that we needed to work out."

"Yes, some stuff between the two of us that just needed to be sorted," Stephanie said with a smile. "Chris and I have decided to get a divorce."

"WHAT!" was the collective scream at Chris and Stephanie.

"Oh good, you are paying attention," Stephanie giggled.

"Divorced?" Loretta asked, her eyes glazed over. "But…but, you two."

"I'm kidding, kidding," Stephanie said. "I was joking, it was just a joke. Chris and I aren't getting divorced, I swear to God. I love him, he's the best, it's nothing like that, I was joking!"

"She's joking everyone," Chris said, patting her head. "Why don't you show them?"

Stephanie got up and went over to the big screen, sticking the tape into the VCR situated on a shelf below where the television was. She stuck the tape in and didn't immediately press play as she turned on the television and then turned to the people sitting around in utter confusion. "What's on this tape might help you understand what Chris and I needed to figure out."

"How is a tape going to help?" Shane asked.

"Would you shut up Shane and just watch before I come over there and hit you over the head?"

"Fine, geez, touchy-touchy."

"You guys, this really will explain everything, and I think you're going to like it," Chris said as he gestured for Stephanie to push the play button.

"Ok, enjoy your feature presentation," Stephanie said as she pushed the button.

The screen came to life as Stephanie watched the video turn on. She stood away from the television so that everyone could see clearly. She folded her arms over her abdomen as she saw her baby once again. She only wished this video came with the sound of his heartbeat, but it didn't so the visual would have to do. She loved the part where he stuck his little hand out and you could see his tiny, tiny fingers, like he was waving at them. She looked over at Chris and he smiled at that part too; it was also his favorite part.

The tape ended soon afterwards and Stephanie turned off the VCR and the television, walking back over to stand with Chris. She looked out at the faces of her family and friends; Kurt and Trish already had glowing smiles on their faces. The rest were blank. "Well, what did you think?"

"I'm a little confused," Shane admitted. "What is that supposed to prove?"

Loretta spoke next, "Um…that looked…like an ultrasound or something. Are you two planning on having kids?"

"No," Stephanie said, "that WAS our kid. Chris and I are having a baby, next April actually. April 28 is my due date. I'm just about four months pregnant, sixteen weeks. Surprise!"

Their parents were silent, as if not believing what they were hearing. Linda opened her mouth to speak, but then shut it, then opened it again. "You mean to tell me, for the past four months, you have been pregnant?"

"Yes Mom," Stephanie said. "And I know what you're thinking, why didn't I tell you? Well, it's like this…"

Chris took over, "In the first trimester, there's always the risk of miscarriage, and say we told you guys, and then Vince starts crowing about how he's going to have a grandchild who's going to rule the business. Then what if Stephanie had had a miscarriage or something had happened to the baby, suddenly everyone would know and Stephanie and I have always been very private about our relationship. So we wanted to make sure that everything was going to be ok."

"And since I'm in my second trimester now, the chances of something going wrong are much, much less. We went to my doctor's yesterday and she said that everything was looking great and that he has a really strong heartbeat. We don't know if it's a girl or boy yet, but we'll hopefully know at my next appointment in four weeks. We could've found out yesterday, but he wasn't in the right position to see. Chris wants a boy though, so we call it a he."

"You're not joking are you?" Linda asked.

"No Mom, I'm really not lying. And I know my whole pregnancy track record is not the best because I lied to Hunter about being pregnant. And I know that you can forge sonogram pictures and you could probably forget ultrasound videos. But if you still don't believe me, and it's fine if you don't, like I said, I have history as a liar, so well, Chris, bring out the big guns."

Chris walked over to a drawer and took something out of it, something they had bought yesterday after they had gone out to lunch. He set it down on the table. "It's a thing, to listen to the baby's heartbeat. Now if you don't believe us, you can put this thing on and you can listen to the baby's heartbeat, and if you really want to hear it, well, you can do that too."

"Stephanie, you're having a baby," Vince said.

"Yeah Daddy, I am," Stephanie said. "And don't expect me to cry or anything, I already told Chris I'm not your typical pregnant lady. I do not get weepy."

"I'm going to be a grandma," Loretta whispered to herself, in total disbelief.

"So now you all know, and please don't like spread this around or harp about it, I mean, you can, go ahead, but you know, we do want privacy, and I know my stomach is going to get so big you can't ignore me, but still."

"So when we did the Chris firing, he was telling the truth?" Linda asked. "When I called, you lied and said that he was lying."

"Yes," Stephanie said guiltily. "And we lied to you too Loretta, and we were very sorry for that, but you have to understand why we did it."

"It's ok," Loretta said. "I forgive you. It's nice to know that my celebrating wasn't for nothing, but it's ok."

"Yes, on my side too," Linda said. "Hold on, Austin kicked you in the stomach when he stunned you!"

"You were pregnant when he stunned you!" Vince roared. "Oh that man is going to have another accident once I get my hands on him!"

"Daddy, stop, I'm fine, the baby's fine. I got checked out that evening to make sure that I was ok, and I was, Chris took good care of me, and the baby is fine. He's fine, he's the right size and he looks cute, you saw the video. He's good, everything is good."

"Ok," Vince said with trepidation as he calmed down slightly.

"Ok, now that our announcement is over, go ahead, go about your talking and I'm going to go check to make sure the food will arrive on time."

Stephanie snuck out of the room and into the kitchen to call the restaurant that was delivering the food. They didn't normally do this kind of thing, but Stephanie had spent quite a bit of money to make sure that they would accommodate her. Being rich certainly had its perks sometimes. She picked up the phone but heard footsteps behind her.

"Hey Mom," Stephanie said, leaning back against the counter. "What's up?"

"You're having a baby," Linda said, her voice sounding teary. "My little girl is having a baby."

"Mom, I'm twenty-nine, I'm hardly a little girl anymore."

"But you're MY baby girl," Linda said, walking over. "It's just a hard concept to believe. I mean, I remember when you were just a little girl, and now you're married and having a baby, and I can't believe that you used to be the little girl who would follow your father around everywhere asking what he was doing."

"Well, if it's any consolation, we didn't plan the baby," Stephanie laughed. "He just kind of decided to come on his own. Don't you want a little grandbaby?"

"You better believe I do," Linda said, hugging her daughter. "I'm very happy for the both of you. You and Chris, I never expected it, and yet, it seems so perfect."

"Well, you know how it is, it's always the one you hate the most that you end up loving the most."

"Just one thing."

"What?"

"Don't let your father talk you into naming the baby Vince if it's a boy."

Stephanie laughed. "Chris and I already vetoed that idea if it comes up."

"Good, because I know that you're father is going to try and lobby for it…so how can I help you out in here?"

Meanwhile, Chris was getting assaulted by his mother, who was hugging him harder than he had ever been hugged in his life. He grimaced as he tried to take a breath, but his mother was still hugging him. He awkwardly patted her on the back as he tried to gently pull her away from him.

"Ok Mom, you can let go now," he said in a strangled breath.

"Never!" his mother said. "I can't believe you're going to be a Daddy."

"Mom, do you have to put it like that?" Chris asked as he made a face. "Can't you just say I'm having a kid or something?"

"I don't care what it's called, the fact is you're having a baby, you're having a little baby!"

"Dad, can you take care of her?" Chris asked as Loretta still clung to him.

"Let me have my moment!" Loretta complained. Chris just hugged her again.

"It's ok Mom, she's not even showing yet, you've still got time to have your moment, and then when the kid comes, I'm sure you'll be frothing at the mouth for pictures and videos and everything."

"Have you thought of names?" she asked as she finally pulled away.

"No, and you have no say in it, we do."

"Ok, but thank you so much for making me a grandma, I'm going to go find Stephanie and tell her thank you for carrying your child, I was starting to fear nobody would do that!"

Chris laughed as Vince came up and stuck out his hand. "I don't know why my daughter loves you so much--"

"That's a good thing Vince, because then you might want me too, and that'd just be awkward," Chris said.

"What I mean is, congratulations. And also thank you, because we need a new generation of McMahons around here."

"Even if their last name is Jericho?"

"We can work around that," Vince kidded. "But seriously, congratulations."

"Thank you Vince."

"Just don't break either of their hearts."

"Wasn't planning on it."

Chris turned to his dad as Vince was called away by Linda. "So I guess we got the present this year."

"Well Dad, we figured it was as good a time as any to tell you. So I know that mom is thrilled about this, and you'll probably be hearing about nothing but the baby for the next few months."

"Try the rest of my life," Ted said good-naturedly, like he always was. "But it'll be good to get some new blood around here. And we can teach this baby the right way to grow up, with a hockey stick in hand."

"I wouldn't have it any other way Dad."

Trish was the only one not around the others as she went into Stephanie's office, which was downstairs, rather than Chris's office, which was upstairs. She sat down on the small couch against the wall, glad that her friends were happy and celebrating, but she just wasn't in the festive mood. She didn't notice Kurt enter the room until she felt the couch move.

"How are you holding up with all of this?"

"They told me last night so that I wouldn't feel bombarded with the good news," Trish said. "I'm happy for them, they deserve this."

"And you deserve better than what you've got right now."

"So says you."

"And Chris and Stephanie. We're all here for you Trish. If you need me to move down here, I'll move down here."

She patted his knee, "I could never ask you to move for me."

"I just want you to be ok."

"I won't be, not for a long time, but someday, maybe, I'll be ok."

"Have you decided what you're going to do?"

"No, not yet," she said. "I mean, obviously I can't go back to the house, it's not even my house, not really. I guess I'll move out, and move in here for a while, but I can't stay here forever. Stephanie and Chris don't need to take care of two people. I don't want to leave the area, so I'm going to probably buy a house or an apartment here, and that's as far as I've thought."

"Are you going to search for Christian?"

"Christian doesn't want to be found," Trish said. "And he left me, and I don't know how I can face him after that. I mean, we've been through so much together, ups and downs and everything. When we were together, and things were good, I couldn't imagine anyone else for me, you know, I couldn't imagine a life without Christian because he was it for me."

"It could still happen."

"But how many times can I let this happen? I can't keep my self-respect if I let him walk all over me…"

"Yeah, I get that," Kurt said, rubbing her back comfortingly.

"Is there something wrong with me Kurt?"

"Nothing."

"Well, it can't be nothing, but I mean…it's nothing."

"It'll be ok Trish, I promise you, we're all here for you."

"I don't know how it's going to be ok…I just don't know…"


	62. Poor Trish, November 21, 2005

A/N: In case you were wondering why there was no chapter last week, and didn't read my profile, I just didn't feel right about writing something that was a tribute show to Eddie, I felt that would've been in poor taste since that show was to celebrate the loss of one of the greats.

Anyways, here's the story, back on track, and I hope you enjoy and review. –hint hint- (that means review). Thanks for the reviews of the last chapter, glad you liked it. :)

**I just wanted to add this since someone mentioned it in a review. I probably won't mention Eddie's death all that in depth, although I do allude to it in the beginning. My feelings on this are such that there are subjects in writing I don't feel like I should touch and this is one of them. I think its one thing to say your own feelings on someone's death, but it's an entirely different thing to project what you think someone else is feeling if you're not them. It's like my thoughts on rape, which I don't write, I've never been raped, and so there's no way I could write about since it's such an intimate personal thing, which I feel Eddie's death is/was. Eddie left behind a lot of friends, and a lot of memories for people, and I feel like I should leave that subject as it is, in real life where feelings are real. I like to think I left this open-ended, in that you, the reader, can project what you think the character is feeling at this time, and that it's open for interpretation from all of you. If you would like me to write about it, please let me know, and I will seriously consider it. Thanks to John for alerting me of the fact that I wasn't exactly clear with my intentions. I know that everyone will miss Eddie, but I just don't feel comfortable writing about it in such a personal way. Thanks for reading this.

* * *

**

"You ok?"

"Yeah."

"Ok," Stephanie said simply. She didn't feel the need for more words than that. This was probably a time that words would do no good anyways.

Stephanie kept massaging Chris's shoulders. He was tense; she could feel it as she tried to get his muscles to relax at least a little bit. He had been tense since last week, when the bomb dropped on the entire company. People were hit hard, they were hit often, and they were hit in a way they didn't expect. She didn't like to think about it even now, pushing it out of her brain as best as she could given the circumstances. Chris was carrying enough sadness for the both of them.

She ran her hands over his shoulder and down his arms, doing this a couple of times before going down his arms to reach for his hands. She laced her fingers through his and rubbed her thumb over his coarse hands. He didn't respond and she brought all their hands together in his lap, leaning over so that her head was right over his shoulder. She didn't say anything for a few minutes, just standing there behind his chair. She didn't know how to stop this pain, so she just let him have it. Eventually all wounds would heal.

"I love you," she whispered into his ear.

"I love you too," he responded, pulling her arms towards him. "Right now, I think you're the only good thing in my life."

"The only good thing?"

"Well, you know, everything that is inside you is included in that."

"I got ya," Stephanie said lightly. "I'm glad I could be that for you."

"If I didn't have you, Steph," Chris said, his voice wavering ever so slightly. "I don't think I'd be able to deal with my life right now. Things have just spiraled out of control around here."

Stephanie kissed his cheek and let go of his hands, coming around in front of him to sit on his lap. She ran her hands through his hair, pulling it away from his face and tucking it behind his ears. He looked at her in earnest, and she gave him a soft smile, just the corners of her mouth turning up. Chris just stared at her, taking deep, sighing breaths.

"Things will get better," she told him softly.

"You don't know that," he answered immediately.

"I do though," she answered right back.

"How?" he asked skeptically.

"Because once you've hit the lowest you can go, you have to go up. Here's a little anecdote from me. My husband wanted nothing to do with me--"

"When have I ever wanted nothing to do with you?" Chris asked, alarmed.

"My other husband," Stephanie corrected. "He wanted nothing to do with me, I was getting a divorce, I was out of a job, my father didn't even want me to come back, I was estranged from pretty much everyone, and I had nobody, for months, I had nothing to show for anything. I sat around doing nothing because I had lost everything. That was my lowest point in twenty-something years of life. But things got better and that all happened at one time too. I got my job back, and then I got you. Things will be better Chris, I promise you that."

"I don't see how it could get worse," Chris said. "I mean, if I lost you or the kid, then yeah, it'd get a lot worse, but it's pretty bad now."

"Just focus on the good things then," Stephanie told him, kissing the corner of his mouth. "Focus on your upcoming tour, and focus on the baby, or whatever makes you happy."

Chris looked down at her stomach. "You make me happy."

"I thought you might say that," Stephanie said with a smile. "When you're on tour, take your anger out on stage, I bet you it'll be the best therapy you can hope for."

"I'll miss you," Chris said, kissing her softly while she smiled into the kiss. "And I'll miss the kid."

"We'll forgive you for leaving us," Stephanie said. "This is good for you. You have time off from here, so you should go pursue your other interests. And it'll get you away from the craziness."

"But I'm leaving you," he said sweetly and Stephanie gave a little giggle.

"I'll be fine," Stephanie said. "I have Trish and Kurt to take care of me. Well, I have Kurt to take care of me, and then in turn, I'll have to take care of Trish. Either way, it's not like you're leaving me all alone, I'll have people around. And Kurt already said that he would go with me to my next doctor's appointment, he'll just you know, wait in the waiting area."

"Good," Chris nodded. "I just worry that I won't be here in case you need me."

"I'll get by," Stephanie said, pretending to sigh deeply like it would be the hardest thing in the world for her to do.

"I know, you're tough."

"You got that right buddy," Stephanie said. She poked him in the chin a little. "Feeling better?"

"When don't you make me feel better?" he asked her.

"So much flattery," Stephanie blushed. "I just want you to be ok. I know that things around us are all falling to hell, but that doesn't mean that within this relationship things are falling apart."

"I didn't think that…what? Do I have to worry about our relationship too?" Chris asked, obviously just exasperated by everything going on right now.

"No, you don't have to worry about this relationship," she told him. "We're good. And I'm ok with you leaving. I don't want to keep you tethered here when you don't need to be. And before you tell me that I'm pregnant and you feel badly for leaving me, if I weren't pregnant, you wouldn't even feel bad for leaving me."

"Are you kidding me? Of course I'd feel bad for leaving you," Chris said. "Or I'd just have you come with me."

"Well, I'm needed here rather than everywhere you're going, and I'll be fine, you worry about me too much."

"I'm sorry if I worry about my pregnant wife, next time, I won't worry about you at all," he told her, narrowing his eyes. She smiled giddily and slapped him lightly on the shoulder. He rested his hand on her stomach, which was getting progressively larger. "I don't want to miss anything."

"You won't miss anything. Ok…so you might miss out on finding out if it's a girl or a boy, actually, you know, I could probably just call you from the doctor's office so it'll be like you're there when and if she tells us if it's a girl or a boy."

"I want a boy," Chris said pleadingly. "Kid, please be a boy."

"And if it is a boy, what are we going to name him, we don't even have a name for him," Stephanie pointed out. "We can't keep calling him nothing, we need a name for him. Something Something Jericho."

"I like that name, unique," Chris joked.

Stephanie punched his shoulder. "I want him to have a good name, a name that a McMahon can be proud of."

"I've always been partial to the name Chris," Chris said with a grin.

"No," Stephanie nixed that idea right off the bat. Think about it while you're traipsing around the world. Speaking of traipsing around the world, I'm trusting you on this trip."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Chris asked.

"It means don't cheat on me," Stephanie told him menacingly. "And if you DO cheat on me, I will find out Chris Jericho."

"Stephanie, I think that it's cute, but do you honestly think I'm going to cheat on you? I mean, seriously, do you think that I'm going to go on this tour, and somewhere along the way cheat on my pregnant wife. That would send me to hell for sure."

"I didn't say I believed you would cheat on me, but I'm telling you right now that if you did, well, you would never see me, this child, or this company ever again," then she kissed him quickly. "Just a little warning from your doting wife."

"Warning duly noted, but I wouldn't cheat on you, pregnant or otherwise." He rubbed her stomach a little. The talks for this tour had been in place for months, and that was before he had found out about the baby. Nothing had been finalized until afterwards, but Chris was not a solo act and his bandmates really wanted to go on this tour.

"I know, but I'm just giving you the warning. What about the name Bryan?"

"No, I don't like it."

"Ok, just making a suggestion," Stephanie said. "Where's Trish by the way?"

"I think she's with Kurt."

Trish was indeed with Kurt. She wasn't really up to working this week. She was still upset about the entire Christian thing. She had heard that he was going to TNA, the other wrestling company, but she had yet to work up the courage to actually see him on this show. Maybe it was the fear of seeing him, maybe she just didn't want to accept that he suddenly had a new life. All she knew was there was a world of hurt in her chest and it hadn't dissipated in the interim between Christian leaving and now.

"So did you and Steph have fun shopping yesterday?" Kurt asked as they walked down the hallway.

"Yeah, got my mind off of everything," Trish answered. "We went to this baby store and saw all these really cute clothes, but since they don't know what the baby is yet, she was hesitant to buy anything."

"Why is it that I imagine their kid just wearing Jericho shirts all the time?"

"Because it's Chris's kid," Trish said amusedly. "What did you guys do while Stephanie and I were out?"

"Nothing, we drank beer and watched television. We're not exactly exciting like you and Steph are."

"So you didn't talk about us while we were gone?"

"Never," Kurt said. Trish gave him a look that told him that she knew he was lying. "Ok, so we talked about you, but you know why we were talking about you."

"Because you're worried about me," she said, hearing the same thing over and over again all last week. "It seems everyone seems to know what's best for me except for me. I'm pathetic and sad. My boyfriend leaves me and I'm living at my friend's house and mooching off of them, I'm mooching off my friends, who are too kind to tell me to get out of their house."

"Stephanie and Chris don't care, you know that."

"Kurt, I'm trying to be pathetic and wallow in self-pity here, at least let me have that," Trish said, but it was with a smile on her face so he didn't take her all too seriously.

"And if you're a moocher, I'm a moocher too since I've been living at Chris and Stephanie's too. I'm lucky I don't have a cat or something or it would've died by now."

"Yeah, but you're only mooching because I'm mooching, because I'm pathetic."

"Well, with Chris leaving for his tour, we have to take care of Stephanie, so we won't be mooching, we'll be earning our keep."

"I guess that's a good way to look at it," Trish said.

"Trish!"

"Damn it," Trish muttered. "Please tell me Mickie is not behind me."

"She's not behind you yet, she's still down the hall," Kurt told Trish. Trish took a heaving breath. She hated dealing with Mickie. If annoying were ever personified, Mickie would be that personification of annoying. She was beyond annoying, and Trish didn't even know what that was. But whatever it was, Mickie was that. Even her name sent scary chills down Trish's spine.

"I do not want to deal with her right now," Trish hissed to Kurt. "She doesn't know how annoying she is."

"Trish, hey," Mickie said excitedly. "Guess…what?"

"What Mickie?" Trish said, turning towards the other female.

"I have a match tonight, and I would be honored, HONORED, if you would be in my corner. I noticed that you didn't have a match on the schedule, and I just cannot let a Raw go by where you are not featured prominently. So you HAVE to accompany me."

"Um, actually Mickie, the reason that I didn't have a match tonight was because I'm going through some personal issues and didn't really want to be in the spotlight."

"Trish, you say that now, but the people, they need their weekly does of Stratusfaction. You just HAVE to come with me, I'm not going to leave you alone until you do."

Trish's eyes widened. If there was something worse than accompanying Mickie to her match, it was Mickie saying that she wouldn't leave her alone if she didn't go out with her to her match. She did not need this girl following her around trying to suck up to her in some silly game of admiration. She had bigger problems to worry about. Her boyfriend had dumped her in a note while taking off in the dead of night (she didn't know if it was the dead of night, but it was such a cool phrase she wanted to associate it with this), and Mickie expected her to deal with her crap day in and day out.

"Fine Mickie, fine, I'll go out with you for your match, but please, until then, a little space," Trish said, gesturing to the space between her and Mickie at the moment. "I just don't want to deal with anyone right now, except for Kurt, because he knows the situation, right Kurt?"

"Right," Kurt said, nodding seriously.

"Ok, that's cool, but you are in my corner later," Mickie said, pointing a finger at Trish as she walked away backwards. "We're going to rock Trish, I know it!"

"Uh huh," Trish said, throwing her a thumbs up and then turning back to Kurt, deadpanning, "Shoot me now."

"How about after the show, I take you to one of those famous British pubs and we get stinking drunk," Kurt said, wrapping his arm loosely around Trish's shoulders.

"Kurt, I need more friends like you," Trish said, wrapping her arm around his waist as they were walking. "Should we invite Steph and Chris?"

"Stephanie can't drink and Chris wouldn't want to go out without her, so we'll keep it between the two of us. And hey, if we get so drunk we can't think straight, we can always call them to come pick us up."

"Oh, they'll love that. Can you imagine the lecture?"

Kurt laughed. "Stephanie would just shake her head and give us dirty looks for waking her up."

"I think I will be ok after all," Trish decided. "I mean, I can move on."

"That's the spirit."

"One day at a time."

Chris had gone off somewhere to talk to someone about something, and Stephanie had gone to get some water from catering. She was increasingly thirsty lately, unsurprisingly, but on the whole, she wasn't feeling too badly. She was still kind of hiding her pregnancy, as she was wearing a rather large business jacket right now. She didn't want to just come out here with a pregnant stomach and have everyone stare at her.

She was taking a sip of water when she walked into her office and saw Shane behind the desk, doing the work that she had just been working on before taking a break to get her water. She stood there incredulously as Shane went over plans for Survivor Series that she had been looking over. She walked over to the desk and snatched it up, causing Shane to look up at her.

"What do you think you're doing!" she exclaimed.

"I'm working, what does it look like I'm doing, baby girl?"

"It looks like you're doing MY work," Stephanie said, looking over the papers. "Why are you doing my work Shane? Why are you even here? You weren't going on the trip, Dad said you weren't."

"Yeah, well, last minute decision by Dad, he wanted me here, so I flew in this morning."

"Are you sure this isn't some weird attempt at getting Ashley?" Stephanie asked. "Because I know that you have the hots for her."

"No Stephanie, this is not because I wanted to be around Ashley," Shane said. "Dad asked me to come."

"Why are you doing my work!" Stephanie said slowly but loudly. "You shouldn't be doing my work Shane, you're going to screw everything up."

"I'm screwing nothing up," Shane said.

"You are, and you better get out of my office before I get angry," Stephanie said.

"Fine, I wasn't supposed to say anything, but you're impossible. Dad said that I have to take over in your absence, so I'm here."

"My what?" Stephanie asked. "My ABSENCE, when am I absent? I'm here, I have work, I just went to get some water and I come back and my brother has usurped my power. I don't think so, I'm calling Daddy, and I'm telling him what you are doing, and he is going to be mad at you."

"He sent me," Shane argued, standing up. "And what absence? Hello!"

"What? I've been here every week practically, except for when Chris and I went on vacation for like ONE week."

"Um, what about this," Shane said, pointing towards her stomach. "You're obviously going to go on maternity leave, right Steph? I mean, you're not going to have the baby in the arena right. Unless you plan to work right on through the labor, and knowing you, you'd do it."

Stephanie growled at him, scrunching up her face in anger. "If you weren't my brother, I would be slapping you right now."

"Well lucky for me I am your brother. Stephanie, you're pregnant, you're going to take time off I assume. I know it's probably not going to be significant time because you love it here, but you're going to have to take a little time off, and Dad wants me here, taking over for you. He didn't want to hire from the outside."

Stephanie sighed and sat down in the chair across from her desk. "I didn't really think about all the time I'd have to take off."

"You really didn't think this pregnancy thing through did you?" Shane said with a laugh.

"This wasn't a planned pregnancy Shane," Stephanie said. "It's not like I said to Chris, 'Hey, let's have a baby today,' and then we were trying and calculating doing all that stuff that people who plan babies do. It's not like he isn't my husband, it's not like these things don't happen. He just happened. I was happy before, I was happy to just have my work and have Chris. My life was great, it was perfect, it couldn't have been better, except for the entire being on television thing, I would've liked that. But what am I supposed to do Shane, say that I don't want my baby, say that I want an abortion and I want to get rid of something that Chris and I made or whatever you want to call it?"

Shane went and locked the door, coming back after to lean on the desk, facing his sister and crossing his arms. Stephanie watched him, confused as to why he locked the door. "Ok Steph, no interruptions, we're going to have a brother/sister talk right now, and you know you can be honest with me."

"I know, you're my brother, you protected me when I was little, I know."

"Ok, then we can talk candidly about everything that's going on."

"What's going on Shane?" Stephanie asked. "What do we have to talk about? You taking over? I'll deal with it, I guess."

"No…do you really want this baby, and don't give me the form letter version, the 'what you're supposed to say' version, I want to hear Stephanie's version."

"Why do you ask me things like that?" Stephanie said, narrowing her eyes.

"Because I know you, and I know that kids have never really been seriously on the horizon for you. You've said you wanted them for years, but Steph, we both know that you haven't. When we were little, you despised babies, you hated it whenever Mom brought home a friend who had a baby, you did not like kids, same goes for when you were a teenager, while all the other girls were baby-sitting, you refused because you hated children."

"Ok, first of all, hello, I was little, I was jealous of any baby that came into the house, and from what Mom tells me, you weren't happy to see me when you were seven years old Shane, so shut up about that. And I was a spoiled, little, princessy brat when I was a teenager, I didn't want to deal with kids when Daddy had plenty of money to spread around to me. And it wasn't like you had a job while this was going on. So don't get on your high horse yet buddy."

"Fine, but you said your life was perfect before you found out you were pregnant, what about now? And I won't tell Chris, or anyone what you tell me, we're brother and sister, you know I've always kept your secrets, like you've kept mine."

"That's not true, I told Chris about the time you drove to Mexico when you said that you were going to spend the weekend building houses for the underprivileged."

"Seriously?" Shane asked.

"No," she scoffed. "That was like 15 years ago, who cares?"

"The baby Steph."

"Fine, you want the absolute truth…here it is. My life was perfect, everything was going my way. Then one day, I wake up and I realize, shit, I might be pregnant. That's it, I woke up and I realized, I could be pregnant. And you may ask yourself, well, how long after you found out you might be pregnant did you tell Chris? Because you think that I hid it from him, but I didn't Shane. I told him the day after I thought I was. I wasn't even sure, but I told him."

"Ok."

"Then I find out I am, and what am I supposed to think? That my life was perfect and now its not, and this baby is a direct result of that? Or maybe I wanted to get rid of it, but knowing Chris, he never would've let me?"

"Is that what you think?"

"Jesus Christ, no!" Stephanie guffawed. She put her hands protectively over her stomach. "I love my kid Shane. I love him. So what, I didn't want a baby right now, so what, he came an inopportune moment, and as a result, I'm going to have to walk away from work…I don't care, I love my kid."

Shane kneeled down in front of her and hugged her tightly. "Good, because if you didn't, I would've had to strap you to a chair and lectured you."

Stephanie hugged him back, "You're a whack job Shane."

"Takes one to know one, so come on, show me the ropes sis."

Shane and Stephanie walked down to where they would both be working, a tour de force if there ever was one. Stephanie saw Trish standing by the monitors and walked over to see what she was watching. Turned out it was Kurt, and she looked at her watch and realized that she was late because of all the talking she had done with Shane and the water getting, and all the hullabaloo that went along with that.

"Hey Trish, watching Kurt?"

"Yeah, he's such an amazing wrestler."

"Yeah, he is," Stephanie said, her tone weird. "So where've you been?"

"Just hanging out with Kurt. We wanted to get out of your and Chris's hair, I know I've been such a burden on you guys with the recent happenings."

"You haven't been a burden," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "You're a friend, and when a friend needs help, you help them, common knowledge. You were the maid of honor at my wedding, the least I can do is invite you into my home."

"I know that I'm not a burden, but I feel like one sometimes. It's like when your life goes to shambles, that's what's happened to me. I don't know up from down."

"It gets better, I promise."

"I know it will, I have confidence in that now. I wonder if he left because of me though, it's picking at my brain."

"It's his loss," Stephanie said. "He's stupid for leaving you. But don't think about that. Why don't you go out or something."

"I am, with Kurt, after Mickie's match," Trish said, rolling her eyes. "Kurt and I are going to go out to a pub and just have some drinks."

"Mickie's match, what do you have to do with Mickie's match?" Stephanie asked.

"The Annoying One wants me to accompany her, so I am, just to get her off my back. If I didn't, she'd probably want to tag along with Kurt and I, and I plan to get very, very drunk."

"So I should stay up tonight then because I'll be expecting your call to come pick you up," Stephanie said knowingly, knowing her friends much too well.

"No, of course not, you're pregnant, I can't have a pregnant lady waiting up when you need your sleep. We'll just have Chris come and get us."

"Ok, but be careful alright, I don't need anything else happening to anyone else," she said, giving Trish a spontaneous hug. Trish laughed and hugged her back.

She hoped that drinking would at least get her mind off of Christian for the evening. Was that a rotten way to get over her problems? Of course it was, but at this point, she didn't care. She just wanted one night of respite. That wasn't too much to ask in the long run. Getting drunk was never the answer, but for one night, it wouldn't hurt to just fall into asleep of no dreams where she didn't picture Christian.

As much as she loved Chris and Stephanie, she was glad that Kurt was around. Kurt kept everything in perspective for her. He kept telling her that everything would be alright, and she didn't know why, but coming from Kurt, it just seemed like it would be true. Now she knew why Stephanie always kept Kurt around. He was a good guy to have around, and he was great friend. She was just starting to learn how great a friend he was.

Even with a huge match coming up against John Cena, he still found time for her. She didn't know how he did it sometimes. He was also there for Stephanie, and all of this while he wanted to date Ashley. His friends came before his personal life, and that was just one of the things that made him so spectacular. Maybe in turn, she could do something spectacular for him as a thank you. She smirked to herself as she thought of the perfect thing.

She bounded off in search of the person that she needed to talk to. She knew Kurt was going to love her for this, but it was really the least she could do. Kurt had practically moved to Florida for her, and for Stephanie, but part of that was for her. He hadn't needed to do that and yet he had. Yes, this was definitely the least she could do. She went to the women's locker room and walked inside.

"Have any of you seen Ashley?" Trish said aloud.

"Yeah, she's around," Maria said. "I forget where."

"Gee, thanks," Trish said sarcastically as she left the room and turned the corner, bumping right into Ashley. "Oh hey Ash, I was just looking for you."

"Hey Trish, what's up?"

"Well, next week, if you're free, I know that Kurt would really like to take you out to dinner, if you want that is."

"Really?" Ashley asked, surprised that he would want to go out with her. "Kurt Angle?"

"Yeah, Kurt Angle."

"I think I would really like that," Ashley said. "But why didn't he ask me himself?"

"Oh, well, he's been so busy with his match against John Cena that he hasn't really had the time to think about anything else, so I thought I'd help him out. He'll get back to you with the details."

"Ok, that sounds good, he's cute," Ashley said. "I've always thought that."

"Great, he'll be glad to know you want to go out."

"Oh, but don't tell him about the cute part ok?" Ashley said.

Trish laughed. "I won't."

Trish walked off, satisfied with herself. Wait until Stephanie heard about this one. She was going to flip her lid when she found out what she had just done. She felt good about herself for the first time in over a week. She felt like she had accomplished something if Kurt found happiness, well, she definitely would've accomplished something. She plopped down next to Stephanie and grabbed her hands.

"Guess what I just did!" Trish said excitedly.

"What!" Stephanie asked anxiously, sensing that whatever Trish had to say was big.

"I just got Kurt a date with Ashley!" Trish told her.

"Oh my God!" Stephanie said, her mouth agape. "I can't believe it. That's awesome, Kurt is going to be so happy!"

"I know!" Trish said. "I had to though, after everything he does for us."

"Yeah, isn't he the best."

"Yeah, he is the best, and I feel good, I feel good about myself. And I'm glad Shane has the headphones on and is talking to the announcers at the moment so he can't hear what I did."

"Who cares, Shane can handle himself, but I'm happy for Kurt, yay!" Stephanie squealed in glee.

"Yeah, things are looking up."

Things went from looking up for Trish, to looking very, very down. The match with Mickie hadn't been so bad to watch, that is until she was grabbed from behind. She tried to struggle against her captors, but they were overpowering her and she couldn't escape. She was struggling mightily though, not knowing what was going on. If Christian were here, he would've helped her; he would've tracked these guys down and kicked their asses for kidnapping her. But Christian wasn't here and she was all too aware of it now.

She wondered if he was watching, she thought as she was being bound and gagged. She didn't know where she was, but it was dark and there were two men tying her up. She got scared, not knowing what these men wanted with her. They could hurt her, would Christian care? Would he even want to know what happened? She held back tears at the thought. Just when she was feeling good about herself, this happened.

And then Melina, that witch, came over and revealed what was really going on. A Women's Title Match? All of this was for a title match. Trish was pissed off because she had been scared, and she had had her night ruined again. Would her life ever be normal? After Melina left, she was still there and she didn't cry. She was just so damn tired. Tired of everything and everyone.

Chris found her first, a frantic Stephanie right behind him. He bent over and helped her free herself. She stood up and didn't say a word, hugging him silently. She hugged Stephanie too, careful not to hit her stomach too hard. But then she walked out, not looking back, leaving them very confused. She found Kurt, who looked worried. She grabbed his hand, and then took them to their locker rooms and grabbed their things.

Without a word, they went out and started drinking. Trish drank more than Kurt, but hardly said a word all evening. Finally, he put his hand on tops of hers and gave it a squeeze. She turned to him with sad eyes.

"I got you a date with Ashley next week," she told him.

"You what?" he asked, stunned.

"As a thank you…for being there for me," she said, her words slurring together slightly.

"Wow," Kurt said, "I'm going to need some time to process that."

Trish chugged down the rest of her drink. "I wanna go back to the hotel now."

"I'll call Chris," Kurt said, leaving Trish on the stool.

Chris came and got them and took them back to the hotel, discussing something Stephanie-related with Kurt. Trish only heard parts of the conversation, not really paying attention, just laying her head against the window and watching the passing lights in a blur like the fog taking over her mind.

"She felt it?" Kurt asked.

"Yeah, she felt our baby move, right before she fell asleep, she said it was like a weird feeling, kind of like hunger pains, but kind of like a light tapping on her stomach, but she actually felt our baby move."

"That's awesome," Kurt said. "Wow, you guys are really have a baby."

"I know, crazy," Chris said, and he was obviously trying to contain his utter excitement for Trish's sake.

But Trish didn't need that to happen. She had a wonderful buzz going. Ok, so it was more than a buzz. When they got back to the hotel, Chris had to help her up to her room, but he left her there alone, saying that she would feel like hell in the morning and leaving her with two Advil on her nightstand. She laid in bed for a while before picking up her cell phone and dialing an almost forgotten number.

"Hello?" the voice drawled.

"Hey Jeff."

"Trish, is that you?"

"It is," Trish said. "I just wanted to say hi."

"This is unexpected."

"I know, but I was just wondering something," Trish told him, trying to hold her liquor down.

"What?"

"You work with Christian now, right?"

"Yeah, I do."

"How is he?"

"Um, he's ok," Jeff said. "Trish, what's up?"

"He left me," Trish said. "And I don't, I don't, I just, I don't know why."

"Oh," Jeff said. "I'm really sorry."

"It's ok, you didn't know, you couldn't have known and here I am, calling my ex and talking about my other ex, but you're the only one who I know there, and I miss him, and I need him, and I just want my Christian."

Jeff didn't speak for a moment. "Do you want me to talk to him?"

"No, no, no, no," she repeated. "I just wanted to know if he was ok. He's ok right? He has all his limbs and everything right?"

"As far as I can tell, yeah."

"Good, good, that's good, I hope he's good. He left everything. He took off, and now I'm living with Chris and Stephanie. And I don't know where he is. Oh, Chris and Stephanie are married now."

"I know, Matt was at the wedding."

"Oh yeah, I'm stupid," Trish said, laughing drunkenly.

"Hey Trish?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think maybe you'd want to come see me, I can take you to a show with me and you can see Christian. If you want. You sound like you want to see him. We could disguise you if it would create a problem with the higher-ups over there, but you sound like you want to see him," Jeff told her.

Trish's mind went blank.


	63. Hee, The Shane O Shuffle, Nov 28, 2005

"So you basically know what to do around here Shane, I don't think that you need any direction from me."

"I know, but I thought I'd indulge you," Shane told his little sister.

"Just don't get too comfy in my seat alright, because I'll be back a lot sooner than you think I'll be back," Stephanie told him, pointing a finger right in his face.

"I know, but I'll do such a good job that Dad will fire you and he'll hire me," Shane said smugly. "And then you'll be out on your ass."

"Dad would not fire me and hire you," Stephanie said. "He likes you better back at Titan because you are just a desk job man, you aren't cut out for the hustle and bustle around here."

Shane narrowed his eyes at her at Stephanie just batted her eyelashes. She was pretending to show him the ropes around here for when he took over for her, but Shane knew everything so they were just goofing off with one another. They knew they were both just teasing and there was no actual malice between them. If she was close to anyone in this world, it was her brother. When you grow up with a mother and father who are working most of the time, you can't help but become closer to your sibling.

"And you are?" Shane teased.

"Please, I'm so in charge around here and nobody would even question me. If I weren't pregnant, I wouldn't even let you sniff around my job. But I am, so I'm going to have to take time off, not that I'm happy about it."

"Trust me, I know you're not happy about it, but what can you do? Oh, that's right, nothing. So you're going to have to suck it up and take it like a man, Steph."

"Or a woman, because that's what I am," Stephanie said, resting her hand on her protruding stomach. "And then when I have this baby, he'll rule over you too. We'll all have more power than you do Shane."

"You wish Princess," Shane said, shaking his head. "I have a good mind to take you out of that chair and take it over for myself. You know, Dad is here tonight, and he's going to want to see me doing everything that you're doing."

"Why?"

"Because he's Dad, and he's going to want to take some of the pressure off of you because of the b-a-b-y," he explained.

Stephanie rolled her eyes, "I'm not a child, and I'm not this fragile, little, porcelain doll that you think I am, I'm a grown woman, a grown, married woman, a grown, married, pregnant woman."

"Yeah, and I think it's the pregnant part that has Dad so concerned," Shane told her.

She groaned. "Why do the both of you have to be so overprotective of me? Even Chris isn't this overprotective. He told me that if I wanted to be on television that it was my decision. He just asked me to be careful, he didn't skulk around in the shadows spying on me."

"Maybe he doesn't love you," Shane said with an evil smirk.

"Oh ha ha!" Stephanie said sarcastically. "Chris knows that I can take care of myself and he lets me take care of myself. You and Dad don't, what's that all about?"

"We've been looking out for you, your whole life. Why would we stop now?" Shane asked.

"It's infuriating."

"It is what it is baby girl," Shane said. "Dad just wants to keep you and the baby safe."

"I think I'm capable of keeping him safe by myself," Stephanie said, rather petulantly. She hated that people were treating her with kid's gloves now that they knew she was pregnant. She wasn't bed-ridden or anything, she could walk around just fine, although she was trying to get used to the bump growing from her abdomen.

"Yeah, we know the whole spiel, but just let Dad think he's protecting you, it'll make him happy, and in turn, you'll be happy."

"Fine, fine," Stephanie said, giving in.

"So how is the baby?"

"Fine, as far as I can tell," Stephanie said, keeping her hand on her stomach and smiling softly as she thought about her baby. "I felt him move last week. Like actually move around in there. It was…strange."

"Wow, my baby sister is having a baby, it's just too weird."

"I know," Stephanie said, scrunching up her nose. "So tell me, I heard you talking on the phone with Dad earlier, what were you discussing?"

"That's nothing of your concern," Shane told her.

"So not only are you taking over my job, you're also keeping secrets from me?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, see, when you're the baby of the family, sometimes news just doesn't get to you." Shane got up and walked past her, patting her on the head as he passed and Stephanie swung her head to glare at him for doing that.

"Don't do that to me again Shane," Stephanie said, an edge to her voice.

"Bye Stephanie," Shane said, waving at her mockingly.

He walked out into the hallway, laughing at the knowledge that he could still get his little sister all riled up. She still had the same easy to push buttons as she did when they were kids. A few words and her temper was flaring. He shook his head and walked down the hallway. His intent was to find Ashley and maybe have a nice conversation…or more, if he was lucky. They had been out a couple of times and although it was anything but serious, he found the new diva to be fascinating.

"Hey Shane."

Shane turned around and was met with The Big Show barreling down on him. "Hey Show, what can I do for you?"

"I was wondering if I could get some time to talk, I'd ask your sister, but I can't find her."

"The show's pretty much locked up, what did you want time for?" Shane asked.

"I want to call that asshole Triple H out, I cannot believe what he did last night, and that man needs to be kicked off that pedestal he lives on."

Shane smirked. "God, I'd love to be able to give you some time Show, just to see that bastard get a little comeuppance. Unfortunately we don't have that kind of time. But, I'll let you in on something. Hunter got some time to talk tonight, Bischoff approved it I think, so keep your eyes and ears open and I'm sure you'll know what to do."

"Thanks Shane, you're the best," Show said, slapping Shane on the shoulder before walking away, slinging his belt over his shoulder. Shane grabbed his shoulder and coughed a little from the unexpected pain that little move had given him.

He turned around, still grabbing his shoulder when he saw Ashley and Trish. He quickly dropped the look of pain on his face and went over to the two ladies. He winked at Trish and she rolled her eyes playfully at him as he gave a nonchalant smile to Ashley. Trish pursed her lips and watched Shane. After all the work she was doing with Kurt and Ashley, Shane was screwing everything up. If she didn't like him so much, she'd hate him.

"Hey ladies, what are you two up to?"

"We have a match later," Trish said. "We were talking about it."

"Oh yes, the 3 on 3 match, I'm sure you guys will win," Shane said. "In fact, I'll say it right now, you guys are going to win."

"Gee, thanks Shane," Trish said sarcastically. "As if I couldn't have predicted that myself."

"Well, I'm just calling it like I see it, and I…like your chances," he said, staring at Ashley. She smiled rather demurely at him. Shane could be so charming sometimes that it was hard to even speak in his presence.

"That's so nice to say Shane."

"So how are you?" Shane said, abandoning looking at Ashley for a moment to look at Trish. He was concerned over Christian's flee into the night, and how Trish was doing. He knew that she was living with Chris and Stephanie right now.

"It's sweet of you to ask," Trish said genuinely. "I'm doing better, every week it gets a little bit better. I won't be over anything for a long, long time, but it gets easier to cope with on a day-to-day basis."

Ashley wrapped her arm around her friend and gave her a companionable squeeze. "You know we're all here for you."

"Yeah, I think that makes it easier. It doesn't get me the answers I need, but it does make it easier."

Despite being stinking drunk when she had called Jeff, she remembered what he said. Maybe because it had sobered her up right quick. He was offering her Christian, a chance to talk to Christian, to find out the answers to her multiple questions. She had been mulling this since last Monday, and she had yet to tell anyone about it. She hadn't breathed a word to Chris, Stephanie, or Kurt, and they were all living in the same house.

"Hey Shane, where's your sister?" Trish asked, figuring Stephanie might be the most objective person, or at least the only one who was as angry at Christian as she was.

"My office, why?" Shane asked.

"I'm going to talk to her, it's kind of important and I just really need to see her."

"If it's about the show, you can always ask me," Shane told her.

"No, nothing like that, just something having to do with the house, since we're all living there," Trish lied. "I'll see you two later."

Trish walked quickly to Shane's office, or Stephanie's office, depending on which McMahon you asked. She walked in without knocking and saw Stephanie writing something down, like she usually was. Trish came over and Stephanie held up a list that had a bunch of names on it and Trish laughed.

"Thought I'd get a head start," Stephanie said. "Gives me something to do while Chris is MIA all over the world."

"Yeah, so I needed to talk to you."

"About?"

"Christian."

Stephanie let out a breath. "What about Christian?"

"Well, ok, you know how last week Kurt and I went out drinking?"

"Yeah, Chris told me that you were pretty out of it," Stephanie said. "What about…oh no, don't tell me you like had sex with Kurt and now you're thinking about how that betrayed Christian!"

"No, no, no, there was no sex between me and Kurt," Trish said. "What happened was I called Jeff."

"You called…Jeff, as in Hardy?" Stephanie asked, confused. "I wasn't aware that you guys even still talked."

"That's the thing, we don't. But I told him about Christian and me, and asked if he had seen Christian and how he looked and stuff, and Jeff offered me something. He offered to take me to a TNA taping to see Christian…and I've been thinking about it ever since."

"Wow, that's really nice of him," Stephanie told her. "Now I know why you've been distracted."

"Yeah, so I've been thinking and I don't know what to do," Trish said, rubbing her temples. She didn't know if she could face Christian. She didn't know if she could face the answers that he was going to tell her. What if he already had another girlfriend? That would completely break her and wasn't she broken already? She was slowly starting to become her normal self. She was burying the hurt. It would always be there, she knew, though she didn't share that fact with anyone.

Christian was the one. She knew that now more than ever. But then she had known that months ago, years ago. Christian was the one for her. She could date anyone from here on out, but Christian would always the one that got away. Every time she had been with him, he made her feel…light or something. She laughed more, and they could be silly together, and Christian was silly. Trish was decidedly more serious, and she was more focused. But Christian wasn't serious most of the time, and she laughed when she was with him. She didn't think she had laughed since he had left, at least not the full-bodied laugh that she always got with Christian.

"Well, I can't tell you what to do Trish," Stephanie told her quite correctly.

"But what would you do?" Trish asked. "Say Chris left you without a word, and you had the opportunity to confront him about it, would you take that?"

"Wow, that's a difficult question," Stephanie said, tapping her chin. "I suppose I would. I guess there's a part of me that would want to know why, but on the other hand, if he left without a word, that usually means something bad, and then I don't think I'd want to know."

"So it's a damned if you do, damned if you don't situation?"

"I think so."

"Well, I've got time right, it's not like Christian is going anywhere if he signed with them."

"I'm sorry I wasn't much of a help."

"You were, and it's not even your problem, it's mine. I don't know, I kind of don't want to know why he left me."

"I'm still really sorry Trish, you know I'd never wish this on you."

"Of course I know that," Trish said, waving her off. "I'm just going to go and talk to Ashley more about the match later. Then I'll probably have to talk to Mickie, lucky me."

"Maybe she won't be as crazy tonight."

"Oh man, that would be great, but I'm not going to be holding my breath."

Trish left and Stephanie was by herself again. She missed Chris, who had left for his tour last Saturday. He wouldn't be returning until just before Christmas. He was pretty much booked everywhere that she wasn't, a short tour in the U.S., then Canada, Europe, and she remembered him mentioning something about Japan and Australia. She was going to have to go through the next month alone, no husband to be around her. And she was already missing him and it had only been two days! Two days and she was miserable.

She picked up her phone and speed-dialed Chris, knowing that he wasn't doing the show right now since he had a show tomorrow night and tonight was his night off. She hoped he wasn't asleep or anything, because she really wanted to talk to him, but she knew that he would be keeping weird hours for the next month and wasn't sure when the appropriate time to call was.

"This is Chris's house of sex, I'm with a woman right now, so make it quick."

"Very funny Chris," Stephanie said drolly.

Chris gasped. "Stephanie! What I meant was I'm sitting here on my bed, alone!"

Stephanie giggled. "I miss you."

"No you don't, you're at work right now, you can't be missing me."

"I can miss you, and I do," Stephanie pouted. "Shane's taking over my job because he and Dad are worried about me and the baby, when they don't understand that I'm not going to break. So I'm pretty much sitting here doing nothing because I have nothing to do because Shane is completely taking over."

"So you call me, I'm glad that I just get a call because you're bored."

"You know it's more than that," Stephanie told him. "Hold on, let me turn on the television since the show just started." She grabbed the remote and put the television on, turning the volume low so that she could still hear her husband.

"Again, I'm taking a backseat to the show, so tell me beautiful, do I get to see your gorgeous mug on my television tonight?"

"You're watching?"

"You're damn straight I am, if only to see my lovely wife."

"No, again, Dad and Shane are trying to protect me from all the big, bad wrestlers," Stephanie said in a high-pitched, baby voice. "They don't trust that I can take care of myself. This is precisely why I didn't want to tell anyone that I was pregnant. I knew my dad would take it too far."

"I'll only be gone a month baby, and then when I come back, I'll set them straight."

"Please do. Of course by that time I'll be huge and then they'll be even more protective and I'll feel even more angry over it. If only there was like some way to hide a pregnancy in order to keep nosy family members away."

Chris laughed. "It can't be that bad baby."

"It can, and it is," Stephanie said. "At least Kurt and Trish are living at the house now, or else I'm afraid my dad would make Shane move in so he can keep an eye on me, make sure I don't trip over a shoe or something."

"I don't want you tripping over shoes!" Chris joked.

"So what are you doing?"

"I told you what I was doing baby, I'm watching the show, I guess I could go out if you're not going to be on, but as owner of this company, I've got to keep tabs on the product," he said sternly, deepening his voice. "How's the baby?"

"Fine," she said. "I think he's getting a little angry at all the attention too."

"Still moving in there?"

"Still moving," Stephanie confirmed. "But I think he tapped out some Morse Code on me last night, I roughly interpreted it as, 'I don't miss Daddy,' but don't quote me on that."

"Nice, he already hates me, wait til he meets your dad, who right now is on the television screen. How come it's always the McMahon I don't want who comes out? I want it to be you."

"If it were me, that would be very awkward since I'm on the phone with you right now, I don't think fans would be all that intrigued."

"What are you wearing right now?" Chris asked teasingly.

Stephanie, however, didn't catch on to what he was doing and looked down. "Um…a black knee-length dress and a blue jacket over that."

"And underwear?"

"What?" Stephanie asked in disgust.

"Oh come on," Chris said, "A month without you, give me a little something work with here Steph."

"Eww," Stephanie said. "I have a right mind to hang up on you right now."

"You're no fun."

"I give you permission to go find a girl right now and screw her."

"Really?" Chris asked. "Cause I'll go do it."

"Go ahead, I give you permission."

"Ok, I'll see you later then, bye," Chris said, pretending to hang up and then laughing. "So I'm guessing a black lace bra and matching panties."

"You're sick," Stephanie giggled. "Right, but sick."

"I know you too well. By the way, you caught me right out of the shower and I'm only in a towel, now how does that make you feel?" Chris asked lecherously.

Unfortunately he asked that right when Shane came out and Stephanie grabbed her remote to turn up the volume to hear what was going on, forgetting about what Chris was saying. She saw that Shane and her father were ganging up on Bischoff and implying that Bischoff would be fired and Shane would take over. Her jaw dropped as she heard this. It dropped straight to the ground as she couldn't believe her father would give Shane that position.

"I can't believe this!" Stephanie said after a few minutes outraged.

"You can't believe that I'm in a towel?" Chris asked.

Stephanie shook her head and remembered that Chris was on the phone. "No sweetie, I have to go though, can I call you later?"

"Of course you can, you don't have to ask that Steph."

"Ok, I love you, and I miss you."

"I love you too, bye baby."

Stephanie hung up and stood up. She was going to confront her father and her brother right now. This was the last straw. It was one thing for her brother to take over for her, but now her father was thinking about firing Bischoff and hiring Shane in his place. If anyone deserved that job, it was her, and her father should realize that. And if he didn't, well, she was going to have a tantrum. She gathered up her papers because if her father thought Shane was in charge, she was going to do the best damn job she could tonight.

She took off her jacket, feeling heated from the anger permeating off of her. She left HER office, not Shane's office and walked down the hallway. Stephanie was still getting used to her stomach being larger and she had suddenly turned clumsy, not accustomed to her added weight in front. This worked to her disadvantage when she tripped and her papers flew everywhere as she landed on her hands and knees. She looked around quickly, hoping her father and brother weren't around or else they'd be sure to be on their knees, picking up everything and escorting her to a chair like she was on the verge of collapse.

They weren't around and she picked up the papers quickly, not wanting to draw attention to herself. She stood up slowly, almost tipping over. It wasn't that she had gained a lot of weight, it was just the weight she had gained were all concentrated towards her middle, which threw her off. She stood up too quickly and got a little bit dizzy, which the book she read said was normal because her blood pressure was a little low.

She went to walk to the gorilla when she was faced with a large chest. She knew that chest and looked up into her ex-husband's face. He was smirking at her and she rolled her eyes. He was dressed nicely at least, but she didn't want to deal with him. He was sure to be cocky after his win last night, and if dealing with Hunter was bad, dealing with Hunter was worse after he had gotten a big win.

"What is it Hunter?" she asked. It had been so blissful when he had been focused solely on Ric Flair.

"Is it a crime to want to see one of the most beautiful women in the world?" Hunter asked charmingly.

"Haven't you figured it out yet Hunter, flattery will get you nowhere."

"I don't want to get anywhere. I've missed you Steph. I've been busy with Flair, and I haven't even taken notice of you. And for that I'm really sorry."

"Don't be, it was the most blissful time I could've ever had," Stephanie told him. "In fact, how about we keep that streak going? It'll be like a game. Let's see how long we can go without talking to each other!"

"Come on Steph, can't we at least be friends?"

"No," Stephanie said immediately, not even thinking about it. "The last thing I want is to be your friend."

"You don't mean that."

"Yes, I'm positive that I do. Just leave me alone Hunter, we have nothing left to say to one another that hasn't already been said. And I have enough to deal with without you hovering over my shoulder all the time. I've only got a few more months here before I have to leave and I'd like them to be as easy as possible."

"A few more months? What? Is Daddy firing you again?" he asked derisively.

It was then that she realized Hunter didn't know she was pregnant. He must not have looked down at her stomach, where you could sort of tell that she was going to have a baby, since she had had to start wearing maternity clothes. She was surprised, usually Hunter was on top of these things, ready to mock her or tease her, or say something totally condescending to her.

"No, I'm taking a leave of absence," Stephanie said.

"Don't tell me that you and pretty boy Jericho are leaving again?"

"He'll probably be here," Stephanie said. "But I won't be."

"Tragic, why?"

"Take a look down Hunter," Stephanie said sarcastically.

Hunter looked down, not knowing what he was going to see except Stephanie's enormous…but he wasn't expecting what he saw. Stephanie appeared to be…but she couldn't be. Could she? He looked up at her, his eyes wide and she giggled and rested her hand on her stomach, almost insulting him without words as she raised an eyebrow.

"You're…"

"The word you're searching for would be…pregnant," Stephanie said, sounded overly excited. "And yes, this is real. I'd show you the ultrasound picture, but we both know that's not exactly proof, is it?"

"You're pregnant?"

"Speechless Hunter, wow, I never thought I'd see the day," Stephanie told him. "Yes, pregnant, 18 weeks actually. I'm due at the end of April."

"I cannot believe this," Hunter said incredulously.

"Look Hunter, I'm not here trying to rub this in your face. Whatever happened in the past, it happened in the past. I'm sorry that it did, and if I could've thought of another way to get away from you, I probably would take it, but it is what it is. I'm having a baby, and I'm not ashamed of that fact."

"Get the hell away from my sister," came a third voice into the conversation. Stephanie looked over her shoulder to see her father and her brother stalking towards Stephanie and Hunter. Stephanie looked confused as Shane pushed passed her and got into Hunter's face. "Stay the hell away from her."

"Shane, he wasn't doing anything," Stephanie said before she could think of what to say, and she was a little surprised that she was defending Hunter. But she had caught that brief look in his eye when he found she was pregnant. It was a look of hurt, obviously stemming from when she had told the bold-face lie to the world that she was pregnant with Hunter's baby. Now she was pregnant with another's man baby, and even if Hunter's heart was made of coal, that had to sting a little.

"Don't defend him Stephanie," Shane said. "I don't want you even coming near my sister. And if you touch her, so help me God Hunter, I will kick your ass."

Stephanie pushed past Shane and got in between him and Hunter. She looked at her father and Shane and gave a huffing breath. "Look you two. I'm sick and tired of this. I was talking with Hunter, was he being a jerk, yeah, he kind of was, but he wasn't touching me or threatening me, and I can certainly hold my own against him! I don't need you two to be looking over my shoulder all the time!"

"But Stephanie, the baby," Shane said, gesturing towards her stomach.

"He's fine!" Stephanie said, putting a hand on her stomach again, almost defensively. "The only thing this is doing is making him upset in there. Can you just give me a little room sometimes? I know that you want the best for me and the baby, but this isn't helping."

"I don't think so," Shane said, holding up his hands.

Stephanie sighed and turned to Hunter. "I'm sorry, but we're through here."

Hunter left without a word. That could be attributed to the fact that things had just gotten way more complicated, and Hunter felt something twinge inside of him, something he hadn't felt in a long time. He was actually hurt by Stephanie's revelation. He never believed that she loved Chris as much as she loved him once upon a time, but she was having his kid. She was willing to go through with having a baby with Chris. Numerous times during their marriage, Hunter had brought up kids and Stephanie had brushed him off. Yeah, there were a couple of times where she had seemed committed to starting a family, even going so far as to contact her doctor to see how that would go, but she'd always lose interest before anything had actually been going.

Then when she had told him she was pregnant, he could still remember how his heart was racing so fast he thought it would pop right out of his chest. He had actually put his hand over his heart to make sure it had still been inside his body. He was thrilled, he had never been more thrilled in his life for something. The thought of being a father had been the most amazing thing he ever thought he would face. He remembered looking at that picture (which he thought was real) of a baby that he thought was his.

How did Stephanie keep managing to make him feel things he didn't want to feel? How could she still have a hold that even he didn't know about over her? He glanced back at her and for the first time in years he felt human. He had always felt above people, invincible even, but she always made him feel human because she was like the one person capable of breaking him. She just didn't know it. She had her hand on her stomach as she was talking animatedly to her brother.

That should've been his baby. He should've been the one with a kid right now, not Jericho. He had always suspected that Jericho and her were screwing each other when they were married, but he could never prove it. By their accounts it wasn't true, but maybe Hunter was just the first one to see what was really going on between the two of them. He should've just forgiven her for what she did. Maybe then she'd be carrying his child and he wouldn't be completely alone without a friend in the world.

He stood there for ten minutes, yet it seemed like moments, until he felt an arm touching his and he saw that Stephanie was back. "I just wanted to clear up what happened just now."

"Look, it's nothing, you're pregnant. I got that loud and clear."

"I'm not trying to be friends with you here Hunter, but my brother shouldn't have done that, and I'm sorry that he did."

"Whatever, like I care," he said, putting on his cocky face.

"Good, I'm glad you don't care about me. We shared a past, that's it. I think we've both come to terms with that now and I think we've both moved on."

_That's _what Hunter was feeling in his gut. This just proved that she had moved on fully and completely. "Yeah."

"Good," Stephanie left then, without a goodbye and walked over to her brother and father again. Hunter walked away, trying not to think about what he had thrown away. Stephanie walked up to her father and brother and this time, she had her business face on. "So now that we get that you won't be interfering in my life, let's get to the fact of how you screwed me over earlier."

"How did we screw you over?" Shane asked.

"Overlooking me for the job of General Manager," Stephanie said, looking to her father. "How could you Dad? You betrayed me!"

"Stephanie, come on now, I can't hire you only to let you leave in a few months, this is a long-term thing."

"But Dad, if you fire Bischoff, I'M next in line for the GM job, and you know it, pregnancy or not. I already told Shane that I wouldn't be taking too much time off. A month's worth of shows is still only four shows. So I wouldn't miss more than like eight shows after the baby is born."

"Stephanie, you know that's not good business. If you weren't pregnant, then you would absolutely be in the line for the job, but this is something that you can't control."

"But Dad--"

"Stephanie, I've made my decision. If I decide to fire Bischoff, your brother is in line for the job."

"That's not fair!" Stephanie said angrily. "I can't believe you would leapfrog over me. I'm not fragile!"

"But you are going to have a baby," Vince said. "We can't ignore that fact and we can't ignore the fact that you ARE going to leave at some point. And I don't want you doing paperwork from your hospital room. Stephanie, be sensible."

"I can't even look at you two right now! Stay away from me!" Stephanie said, storming off. She knew she was acting like a child at that moment, but it hurt to be overlooked for the job that should've been hers. If she hadn't been pregnant, she would be next in line for the job and she would be out there showing Bischoff who was boss and it wasn't fair.

She went into her office, locking the door behind her. If Shane or Vince even tried to come in here, she was going to snap them in two. She sat down in her desk chair and leaned back against it. She was upset because she really wanted that job. She would love to control everything around here again. It just wasn't fair that all these opportunities were coming up and she was going to miss out on all of them. She rubbed her stomach which had become kind of a comfort to her. It reminded her of why she was giving up everything.

There came a knock on the door and she angrily yelled out, "Go away!"

"Um, Ms. McMahon, there's something we need you to look over."

"I'm busy!" she yelled.

"This is urgent ma'am."

"My brother is running the show, go find him, I'm busy at the moment!"

"Your brother said to come to you."

"Oh, so NOW he wants to give me work. Oh, this is your consolation prize Stephanie," Stephanie grumbled to herself as she got up and walked to the door. "You can't be the General Manager, but you can still answer the door and do some work because you're just too much of a little girl to do actual work."

She opened the door and turned around immediately, walking slowly back to her desk. "So what do you need? Get it over with quickly because I'm not in the mood to deal with anyone right now."

"Well, we got an urgent message from your husband," said the deep, male voice behind her. "He said that he should be called immediately."

"Oh my God," Stephanie said, turning around to look for her cell phone when she screamed.

There was Chris, a grin on his face as he looked at his wife's surprised face. "I think the message was that he couldn't stand being away from his wife."

"Chris!" Stephanie rushed over, hugging him tightly. "What are you doing here!"

"Well, you knew I had the day off, and I was in New York, and it's not that long a plane trip, I can always fly back tomorrow, and nobody's going to miss me there. I flew in this afternoon. When you called me, I was actually scamming my way into your hotel room so that I wouldn't have to drag my stuff around."

"You're here!" she said, her otherwise miserable night turning a million times better.

"I missed you, what can I say?" Chris said, hugging her back. "I couldn't stay away from you and the kid if I could help it."

"You've only been gone two days. You're going to be gone way longer once you leave tomorrow."

"I know, but then you'll really have to tell me what kind of underwear you're wearing."

Stephanie laughed, tears in her eyes. "My night was going so horribly until you came. I'm so happy that you're here."

"Horribly? Ok, who's ass am I going to have to kick around here. You can't make my pregnant wife feel crappy and get away with it." Chris touched her stomach. "Did you hear that kid, I'm going to kick ass for Mommy."

"It's my dad and Shane," she sighed. "First, they treat me like I'm stupid, which I'm not, stupid and pregnant are not synonymous, thank you very much. They're too protective of me, making me feel like I can't do my job adequately. Then I think you saw my brother getting considered for the GM position, OVER ME!"

Chris hugged Stephanie tighter. "I'm sorry that happened. It sucks that you can't be the General Manager, you'd do a helluva lot better than your brother."

"Thank you," she sniffled into his shirt. "I just hate being passed over because I'm pregnant, it's just not fair."

"I know," he said, running his fingers through her hair. "I know how much you wanted to have that job. I remember how good you were at it. Shane can't hold a candle to you."

"I love you so much," Stephanie whispered against his shirt.

"I love you too," he told her, kissing her head.

"I can't believe you came here."

Trish walked in on this scene and she looked between the two of them. "Chris? What are you doing here?"

Chris turned to Trish, Stephanie hiding her face against him. "I had the night off and I'm finding it increasingly difficult to be away from Stephanie."

"That's so sweet. I just happened upon this, I have to go for my match."

Trish walked out of there rather quickly. She made her mind focus on the match. Mickie didn't seem so bad tonight, but there was just something about her that set Trish on edge. She was taking this admiration too far, in Trish's opinion, and it was only a matter of time before it blew up in her face. Mickie didn't seem dangerous, but you could never really tell something by its surface.

She especially didn't care for Mickie's little celebration at the end of their match. It was one thing to admire, but to admire like that, without recognition, it sent off little alarms in Trish's head. The only problem was she didn't know how to solve this Mickie problem. But there were a ton of problems in her life that she wasn't able to figure out.

"Trish, I'm SO sorry that I went off like that after the match, you're the champion and you're just so awesome, I got carried away," Mickie told her.

"It's fine," Trish said kindly. On the list of Trish's life, Mickie was down at the bottom. "You were just happy."

Her mind went back to Christian. He was still the biggest problem in her life and would be for quite some time. She went to her locker room and closed the door. She hated to admit it, but seeing Chris here had set her off. Chris had been gone for two days and he couldn't even stand to be away from Stephanie and had flown all the way here to be with her. Christian had been gone for three weeks and he hadn't called or anything. What did she do that was so wrong? How did she screw up so badly that Christian didn't even tell her why she left?

The tears were streaming down her face by now, and she thought that she was all cried out from the past few weeks, but she just kept being reminded that her boyfriend had skipped town on her without so much as an explanation. She must've been a horrible girlfriend. She must have done something. She wasn't what he wanted. She was sobbing now, not hiding her tears as they slid down her face and onto the floor with a silent splash. She was a failure, she had failed with Christian and she didn't even know why.

"Why are you crying?" A soft voice. But it wasn't his voice. It wasn't the voice she was desperate to hear.

She sniffled and looked up at a face that she had seen earlier. "Shane…"

"You shouldn't cry alone."

"Why is that?"

"Makes you look pathetic."

"Why are you here?"

"Well, my sister has kicked me out of my office because she hates me right now, and her husband threatened to kick my ass if I made her any more upset because she's having his baby. Then I decided to go see what Ashley was up to, only to find out she was kind of upset that a date with Kurt tonight was being rescheduled, and while that stung a little bit, it's nothing like the hurt you're going through."

"Oh," Trish said. "I'll be fine."

"I'm glad that you're staying with Chris and Steph."

"Me too."

"He's an idiot."

"Chris?"

"Christian. He's an idiot for leaving you. You're one of the hottest women I've ever seen in my life."

She laughed through her tears. "That's nice of you to say."

Shane wiped away her tears with his thumb. "And I never say anything I don't mean."

Trish looked up at him and he smiled at her. Shane had a nice smile, it was like he was hiding something. Shane was really good-looking too, and smart, and kind. But he was also shrewd, and like Stephanie had a very business-minded way of thinking. Everything was business, or most everything was business. She found herself gravitating towards him, slowly, like they were in a movie and everything shot had gone in slow motion. She licked her lips expectantly, feeling his breath on hers before Shane pulled away suddenly.

"Um, yeah, I have to go watch the last match with my dad, in case Bischoff does something, I've gotta go," he said, getting up and leaving quickly.

The door slammed shut and she watched him go.


	64. Eww, Just Eww, December 5, 2005

A/N: Just wanted to extend my condolences to Chris Irvine and his family on the passing of his mother.

* * *

Something strange was in the air tonight. Stephanie could feel it and she rubbed her hands together. No, it wasn't to gain warmth in the rather chilly arena. No, it was something else. She could feel the end of Bischoff, and she couldn't be happier. On a balmy, July night over three years go, she had thought of a plan to bring Bischoff down. She had enlisted the help of a man she was now married to, but back then, she had just started dating him. She had wanted to bring an end to Bischoff…and tonight, tonight it was going to pay off. 

She rested her hand on her stomach, sucking on her teeth a little. She knew it was going to be over for Bischoff tonight, she knew it as sure as she knew that she had a baby inside of her. Her father might not have told her that he was going to get rid of Bischoff, but it was as good as done as far as she saw. The man had no redeeming qualities whatsoever, and finally that would be worthy of punishment.

"What are you smiling about?" Kurt asked from the doorway.

"Nothing," Stephanie said slyly. "Except for the fact that Bischoff is going to get his ass fired tonight and finally, I'll be free of that scum."

"Oh, you're still on that. Is that why we had that celebratory feast Saturday night?" Kurt asked as he walked over and sat down with her.

"No, that was just because I was starving," Stephanie said, then patted her stomach. "But I can't help it, I have a kid inside of me who needs to eat too. You have to be in tune with my needs Kurt since you're going to be like my surrogate husband for the next month that Chris is gone."

"So do I get all of those benefits?"

"No," Stephanie laughed. "So how are you Kurt, I don't think we've discussed you lately. You're so content to discuss me and the baby, or Trish and her problems, but we never talk about Kurt. So, what's going on with Kurt?"

"So suddenly Bischoff is gone and you're my therapist?"

"I thought a change of career was necessary since my father and brother won't allow me to be General Manager around here," she answered, tapping her chin with her index fingers. "Here's how I see it. You're getting nowhere with Ashley and so to focus on something other than the botched attempts at wooing her, you're focusing on the females in your life that you have no chance with."

"I like to think I have a chance with you," Kurt said.

"See…avoiding the subject at hand, classic sign," Stephanie said with a smirk.

"And how would you know Stephanie, been seeing the couch doctor or something?" Kurt shot back.

"No, though it could be argued that I need one," Stephanie shot right back. "But really, this Ashley thing has got to be bugging you at least a little bit. Kurt, I'm your best friend, you CAN confide in me."

"It's not bothering me," Kurt told her, but she rolled her eyes. "It bothers me a little. I know that Trish and Christian are broken up, but she had him for a long time, and I haven't had someone for long. I mean, yeah, here and there, there's a girl, but nothing I'd consider a real relationship."

"You'll find someone Kurt, I don't see how you could repel women to the point of not finding someone."

"Yeah, but you're Stephanie, you're my best friend, you know me, girls don't know me, and if they do, they know the bastard that I am for the cameras."

"That's not who you are," she argued.

"I know that, but they don't know that. I have to play to the level of my competition, and if that means I have to be an asshole about it, that's who I'm willing to be."

"I know," Stephanie said. "It's the same reason I'm a bitch, but you know what, who cares. This isn't about the fans, this is about you. I know you like Ashley, and Shane liking Ashley means nothing. Shane will just move on when he wants to. Shane is Shane."

"I am, am I?" Shane asked as he walked inside with a videotape that he set none too gently on the desk. "So what makes you think that Stephanie?"

"The fact that it's pretty much the written word," Stephanie said drolly. "And don't give me any lip about it, I know you."

"Whatever, hey Kurt," Shane said, nodding to the man.

Kurt nodded back. It wasn't that there was tension between the two, but…there was tension between the two. It wasn't an overt tension or even one that either man acknowledged, but they both found the same girl attractive and that was bound to be awkward. Stephanie sat back and watched the two of them eyeing each other warily. She was so glad she was married and didn't have to deal with the whole dating thing anymore. It was so much simpler being married.

"So, is this what my son has to look forward to in the event he and a friend are competing over the same girl?" Stephanie asked, breaking the silent stare-down the two were just engaging in.

"I don't know what you're talking about?" Shane said, waving her off.

"Yeah, you're whacked Steph," Kurt said, giving her a look.

"Oh my God," Stephanie said in her exasperated voice. "You two are seriously impossible. The both of you. You both like Ashley ok? Face it, and I don't know if any of you are going to end up with her, but this is just ridiculous. Seriously, it's ridiculous."

"It's nothing," Kurt said, shooting her daggers. Ashley's a pretty face, nothing more."

"Fine, I tried, but fine," Stephanie said, groaning as she put her hand on her stomach. "Don't listen to these two baby, you'll never want to come out of there if you do. They're idiots."

"Hey!" Shane said disgustedly. "Speak for yourself. Speaking of speaking for ourselves, Dad has a little idea for tonight."

"Why doesn't this sound good at all?"

"Because it's not, but it's Dad, and when Dad has an idea, Dad sure does have an idea," Shane said, pushing the tape towards her. "He's showing this later, because he's having a trial."

"A trial?" Stephanie asked, raising an eyebrow. "Like a trial run of something?"

"No, like a trial, like we're in some law TV show, and Dad is going to be the judge, jury, and executioner."

"Oh no," Stephanie said under her breath. "What is Dad smoking?"

"I don't know, but I want some of it," Shane said, laughing at his own joke. "You're the first witness. You just pretty much have to talk about what you hate about Bischoff. And this is your primary guide."

"What is this Shane?" Stephanie asked, taking the videotape from him. She gazed at it, but it had no discerning marks on it whatsoever.

"Just watch it Steph, I don't want to have to think about it," Shane said, grimacing at the thought of having to watch his sister be manhandled by Bischoff. There were just some lines that should never crossed between a brother and sister. And talking of kissing and sex-related stuff was one of them. He still couldn't think about what had happened to make Stephanie pregnant. He shuddered inwardly, and a little outwardly too.

Stephanie looked confused as gazed down at the tape. "This doesn't have Chris on it does it?"

"No, but just watch it, I have to go talk to Dad, he's going to want to see you."

Stephanie nodded and watched as Shane left. She couldn't think of anything that would be taped that she would use against Bischoff. She lifted herself out of her seat and walked over to the TV in her office, Kurt trailing along after her. She stuck the tape in the VCR and turned on the television. She pressed play and watched as the static turned into a picture and she froze.

She did NOT want to relive this moment. The moment that Bischoff had kissed her. It still remained as one of the most disgusting things she had ever had to go through. Number one was still that stinkface by Rikishi. She remembered his nasty lips on hers, and how incensed Chris had been after he had found out about it. She pressed the stop button furiously and turned around, her cheeks glowing, and it wasn't from the pregnancy.

"He's SO getting fired tonight," Stephanie said through gritted teeth. "Oh, if I wasn't sure of it earlier, I'm damn sure of it now."

"Yikes," Kurt muttered. "I'm going to get going Steph, I get a little scared of you when you're like this."

"All the better for me to write down ALL the points I want to make against Bischoff. I don't care if this is a stupid, fake trial, if I get to say everything I've ever wanted to say about Bischoff, now is going to be the time."

"Yeah, definitely getting out of here," Kurt said, scurrying out of the room.

Stephanie went over to her desk and grabbed a blank pad of paper. She wanted to tell Bischoff off so badly and it seemed that she was finally going to get that opportunity. It couldn't have come soon enough. She had been wanting to say some of these things for so long and she was going to see him fired if it was the last thing she did. She tapped her pen a little on desk before writing furiously.

"Baby, Mommy is going to make this man pay," Stephanie said to her stomach. "He won't even know what hit him. Take it from me baby, sometimes you've got to be ruthless. Just make sure that you're ruthless to the right people. Daddy would tell you the same thing."

She wrote another thing down as she kept talking to her unborn child. "Did you know that Daddy and I were going to bring him down? Yeah, we were. I hope you get the killer instincts that Daddy and I have, that has to be a dominant gene right? Hmm…you know, maybe I should call Daddy and ask him what he wants me to say about Bischoff. Do you think that's a good idea baby?"

Chris was in England tonight though, and it was a lot later there. She glanced down at her watch. It would be one o'clock there, but Chris had a show that evening, so she wasn't even sure if he would be done, or on or what not. But he had to get in on the action if he could. She knew that Chris had just as many grievances against Bischoff as she did. But it was late, and he didn't usually stay at shows that late, did he?

"Well baby, Mommy thinks Daddy might be doing his show. What time did he say he was going on tonight? Do you remember what he said?" she asked, knowing she'd get no answer. You're probably bored in there huh?" She patted her stomach. "Sorry, I just really want to talk to Daddy. He's awesome, maybe we SHOULD call him."

She figured it wasn't a big deal just to see if he answered. She dialed his number and a few moments later could hear a din of noise. "Hello!"

"Chris," Stephanie said.

"I can't hear you whoever this is!" Chris yelled again and Stephanie had to take the phone away from her ear for a moment. "Who is this!"

"Chris!" she yelled. "It's Stephanie!"

"Who!"

"Stephanie!"

"I'm really sorry, but I can't hear you, who is this!" Chris yelled again.

"IT'S STEPHANIE, YOUR WIFE!" she screamed into the phone.

"Yeah, I heard you the first time, I just wanted to see how far I could get you to go," Chris laughed as she heard the noise fade in the background. "Sorry about the noise, this club is just rocking tonight. I'm leaving soon though because I want to catch the show."

"Oh, if you need me to go, I'll go," Stephanie said quickly.

"No, I always have time for you, what's up baby?"

"Nothing, I just wanted to know your reasons for hating Bischoff."

"You called me all the way in England for that?" Chris asked.

"Well, he could be getting fired tonight and I get the chance to tell him off, once and for all, in front of my father and everything, so I need to hear what YOU want me to say on your behalf."

"Wow, that's a lot," Chris said. "Well, for one, the whole grabbing you thing that I haven't forgotten. The numerous match-ups he put me in because he didn't like me. There was the whole treating you like crap thing. When he kissed you, that bugged the hell out of me. Oh, and not recognizing the talent I had, which led me to WWE in the first place, and led me into the arms of my wife, which is a sometimes good thing, sometimes bad thing."

"I'm not writing that one down," Stephanie told him. "But the others are good."

"Ok, so I kind of have to get out of here," Chris said slowly. He really didn't want to stop talking to Stephanie, but he had to leave soon. She was probably busy anyways.

"Oh, ok," Stephanie said. She missed him. It had been six days since the last time she had seen him, and it would be a long time before she saw him again. "I mean, you have to do what you have to do right?"

"Yeah…"

"You're going to watch tonight right?"

"Yeah, it comes on here in an hour, but I don't have anywhere to be tomorrow morning, so I'll definitely watch."

"Good, I want you to watch, and think of me," Stephanie told him. "Or just not watch and still think of me. I hope there aren't any hot girls that you're just dying to sleep with there."

"Nah, how's my kid by the way."

"He's fine," Stephanie said. "Well, I'll let you go, I love you."

"Love you," Chris said, "Let me talk to the kid for a second."

"Ok," Stephanie laughed. Stephanie took her phone and placed it on her stomach. She could hear Chris saying something over the phone but couldn't quite make it out. She smiled as she took the phone away from her stomach and put it back up to her ear. "Bye sweetie."

"Bye baby…and the other baby," Chris said before hanging up.

Stephanie went back to her list that she was devising, making sure that she underlined the kiss that Bischoff had forced upon her. That was the main point that she wanted to make. She also remembered when he made the innuendo about her breasts, saying something about peaches. She didn't welcome that comment either. Oh, and stealing talent from her, although she had done the same, but she was on her father's good side so he would listen to anything that she had to say.

She saw something out of the corner of her eye and a red rose was laid on top of her desk. She figured it was Shane or Kurt, or even her father doing some stupid gesture, but was surprised to see Hunter towering over her. She put her pen down slowly, biting her lip a little as she sat there, rigid, her hand coming to lay flat on top of the desk.

"What's this?" Stephanie asked, looking at the flower.

"We need to talk," Hunter said.

Stephanie scoffed. "Leave me alone Hunter, we have nothing to say to each other. I thought I made that clear. And your little plans aren't going to work anymore."

"This isn't a little plan," Hunter said sincerely and she sighed. "Just hear me out first Stephanie, please."

"Fine." She leaned back in her chair and regarded him. He looked the same, didn't look humble or with any iota of humility. Nope, still the same cocky bastard that he always was. She folded her arms awkwardly over her stomach, trying to find a comfortable position.

"I think we need to talk about things because nothing was ever resolved with us. And I just need to talk to you, clear things up. I'm not asking you for anything, and I'm not tricking you, I just need to talk to you."

She closed her eyes, "Please Hunter, not now, don't try and do this."

"Stephanie, you lied to me!" Hunter told her angrily, but then trying to calm himself down. "We never talked about it."

"What is there to talk about?" Stephanie asked. "It was years ago, I've moved on, pretty effectively I might add, I don't think there IS anything to discuss."

"You're wrong."

"I'M wrong, I don't think so."

"You wanted away from me so badly didn't you?"

"Yeah, I did," she said morosely. "I loved you Hunter, I did, I would've walked to the ends of the Earth for you. Why do you think I got so angry when I saw you with Trish? Why do you think I stayed with you even after Kurt wanted me? I mean, let's face it, Kurt is five hundred times the man you are, but I stayed with you. I LOVED you so much that it threatened to consume me."

"So what changed!"

"You did, I did, the situation did," Stephanie said, gesturing around her. "Everything changed. It changed the night that you hurt your quad, and I think we both know it."

"You were by my side those first few weeks."

"I was worried about you, I didn't want you hurt," Stephanie told him. "But, I don't know, you were rehabbing and I was so bored. I'm just not cut out to be a housewife. I never was cut out to be one. And I just got bored, and when Shane came to me with the option of purchasing ECW, it was just too tempting, and I took it, and I know it hurt you on some level, but I needed or I was going to do something rash."

"And then you were back and you forgot about me."

"I hardly forgot about you Hunter. I called you everyday, but half the time you were rehabbing."

"Because I wanted to be back at work, you KNOW that feeling Steph."

"Yeah, I do, but I still called you every single, goddamn day!" she cried out. "And you didn't call me back. You didn't even remember my birthday. I turned twenty-five with nobody. You were only concerned about yourself."

"Fine, I concede that I was," Hunter told her. "I could've been a better husband, but when I came back, you were using me, admit it."

"By the time you came back, it was already over. Yeah, I used you, but I saw no point in staying with you. It's like…we drifted apart I guess is the nice term for it. But I tried to resist. I did Hunter, I tried to save what we had. And you gave nothing in return. And that broke my heart. Do you know how it feels to get called some of the nastiest words in the book and you have a practical stranger defending you? Chris called me a slut on a regular basis, and who defended me? You? You didn't even see if it hurt me, and it DID hurt me, everything he said, it hurt me, but I had to rely on people like RVD and Rhyno to help me. How sad is that?"

"I'm sorry," Hunter said. "I know now that I was stupid and I shouldn't have been. But it wasn't all me Stephanie. You said you wanted kids with me, but that never happened."

"No, it didn't," Stephanie said. "Maybe because we weren't supposed to have any."

"You didn't want any with me, face it."

"That's not true," she said, defending herself. "The first year we were married, half of it was adjusting to being married to a man I hadn't dated. I didn't want to bring children into that situation. And maybe if you hadn't gotten hurt, things would really different right now. Maybe we'd be married still or something, but I don't know. I can't say for sure that we would be."

"We probably would."

"I don't know," she shrugged. "But it's in the past, isn't it?"

"I guess."

"So was there anything else you needed?" Stephanie asked uncomfortably. She didn't like discussing the past when she had so much future ahead of her.

"When you told me you were pregnant, I had had never been happier in my life," he said earnestly, and Stephanie saw actual emotions in his face. He was actually upset, and she was a little taken aback to see it. It was so much easier to see Hunter as a monster rather than a human being with feelings.

"Then that's on my head. I realize I shouldn't have done that, but I was desperate, and desperation makes you do stupid things."

"I wanted us to have a baby so badly, I wanted to be a father so badly," he looked down so she wouldn't see his face. "Chris is a lucky guy."

This set Stephanie off for some reason. That reason was, no matter how much Hunter apologized or acted sincere, there was NO way he would praise Chris. Stephanie knew better than anyone how much Hunter hated Chris. He wouldn't say that Chris was a lucky guy and mean it. He just wouldn't. Now she was suspicious, but she would find out what was up with him.

"He knows," she said sweetly.

"I mean, he got the girl and the kid that I wanted. Stephanie, I'm really just sorry about everything, and I was hoping…and you can absolutely say no, but I was hoping that we could, maybe, if you wanted, be friends?" Hunter asked hopefully.

"Friends?" Stephanie asked in shock. "You want to be friends?"

"Or at least try," Hunter said. "No strings, no plans, no nothing. I just…you're pregnant, and I would never want to hurt you when you were pregnant. I may be a bastard, but I would never do that. So even a truce, because you're pregnant and I respect that."

Man, he talked a good game, Stephanie had to admit. Well, this was intriguing, but he was up to something, she could feel it in her bones. She could feel the baby tapping against her stomach. It seemed even he was suspicious, but he was half Chris. This was an intriguing prospect though and with Chris traveling, she had nothing to do.

"I would like that," Stephanie said. "It would be nice to have to not look over my shoulder and worry about you. Especially with the baby."

"Great," Hunter smiled. "I'm glad we got that cleared up."

"Me too," Stephanie said, standing slowly. "I have to go find my father, would you like to walk me to his office."

"I'd like that a lot," he said, offering his arm.

"I'll decline this time," Stephanie said politely. "I don't want to rush this friendship thing."

"Ok," he laughed.

Stephanie walked next to him. He looked happy, but he was such a fake. She just KNEW he was up to something. She would have to be on guard now. Chris wasn't around to protect her, but Hunter seriously wouldn't try to do something to a pregnant woman, would he? There was low, and then there was LOW. And Hunter wouldn't stoop so low as to hurt her baby. Something clenched in Stephanie's stomach and she paused and put her hand on her stomach carefully. Hunter stopped next to her and looked at her.

"Is everything ok Stephanie?"

"Yeah, he's just moving around a lot in there," she told him. She kept walking. "I'll see you later Hunter."

"Ok, bye," he told her.

Stephanie walked into her father's office, and saw her father sitting there, tapping his fingers. "Where have you been? We have to go?"

"Go where?" Stephanie asked.

"To the site for the trial, let's go, I just got through announcing it, so let's go, you're a star witness."

"Dad, don't you think you're taking this a little too far?" Stephanie asked as she laced her arm through her father's. "I mean, really, this is kind of dumb."

"Don't question your father."

"Fine," Stephanie sighed. "But I do need to discuss something with you and its important."

"Is it about the baby?"

"No," Stephanie said. They reached their limo and he helped her get inside since she was a little more bulky now and she had a harder time getting into places because she misjudged her stomach all the time. Vince went in after her and she stared down at her hands before speaking. "Hunter is up to something. And I don't know what Dad."

"He is, is he?"

"Yeah, he said he wanted to be my friend, and he also said that Chris was a lucky guy."

"Well he is, you're the most beautiful girl in the world."

"Daddy, that's not about this," Stephanie said. "Hunter would NEVER praise Chris, you know that. And Hunter wanting to be my friend, doesn't that just smack you in the face of insincerity?"

"It could be suspicious, yes."

"He's planning something, and I want to know what, and I need your help. Nothing big, nothing crazy. I just need you to not hate Hunter for a while, and please, PLEASE pass this news on to Shane. Until I know what's going on with Hunter, I want to make sure that he really thinks I'm his friend."

"I did raise you right," Vince said proudly. "Just make sure that you don't hurt my grandson."

"Don't worry Daddy, I'll protect him, I just want to know what Hunter has up his sleeve."

With Stephanie telling her father what was going on, she felt better and she actually smiled as they pulled up to a building. Vince got out first and helped Stephanie out of the car. She let him escort her into the building where she was greeted by the sight of Mick. She smiled cordially at him. They hadn't had the best relationship over the years, but she was a different person now.

"Oh Dad, before you go do the trial thing, can you make sure that the camera crew only gets me from the chest up, maybe the upper waist area, I just don't want to look all fat and stuff."

Vince laughed. "Only you Stephanie, I'll tell them that."

"Thanks," she said, giving him a kiss on the cheek.

"Stephanie, it's nice to see you again," Mick said, walking over to her.

"You too Mick," she smiled. "I hope that you'll do a good job in ousting Bischoff tonight."

"It'll be easy," Mick said, "I even brought a lunchbox because it'll be so easy."

"Ooh, got anything good in there?" Stephanie asked. "Sometimes the baby gets hungry, and I can't control it."

"You're in luck, I have two Moon Pies tonight? Do you want one?"

"I'd love one," Stephanie said as they waited for Vince to get this room set up. Mick handed her one and put the other one away for safe keeping. She took a big bite out of it. "Thanks, cravings I guess."

"I didn't even know you were pregnant."

"Eh, I don't go dancing in the streets announcing it."

"You've gotten funnier since the last time we talked Stephanie. Chris has been rubbing off on you."

"I guess," she mumbled around her snack. She devoured it and tried to keep in a burp. "Sorry about that."

"Do you know how many kids I have Stephanie, trust me, I've heard it all," Mick said kindly.

"Yeah, I guess you have."

Mick was called into the "courtroom," and Stephanie was left standing there by herself. She burped again and blushed, hoping nobody had heard her. She'd been getting a little indigestion lately, another perk of being pregnant. The other perk was she was now sore and had to sit down, easing herself down into a chair. She had no idea what it was going to be like going into her ninth month with a stomach that reached out to another zip code.

She was called in shortly thereafter and kind of pulled her jacket in towards her to kind of distract away from her protruding stomach. She sat down in a conveniently low chair on the witness stand that hid her stomach completely. Mick brought up what Shane had told her about earlier and she said what she was thinking at the time, and how he had violated her and how she hated him. Her father let her speak her mind, ignoring anything Bischoff had to say.

"Anything else you'd like to add to the case Stephanie?" Mick asked.

"Just that I hate Eric Bischoff's guts," Stephanie said. "If you'll allow me to speak, your honor…"

"Go right ahead."

"When I had just become the General Manager of SmackDown, I went to a Raw, and I met Eric in the parking lot and he grabbed me by the arm, hard, and he threatened. Eric Bischoff threatened me. I have a witness to that as well, my husband, who came and saved me. Not only that, but Bischoff has treated me poorly, overruling my decisions while we were co-running Raw. And on behalf of my husband, who can't be here tonight, I'd like to say that Chris is a talented wrestler, and he did not get treated fairly in WCW, which was under Bischoff's watch. Chris should have been a main-event wrestler, but instead was never even given the opportunity to challenge for the title. So he subsequently came here and was found out to be a great talent. That falls on your head Bischoff. And that's all I have to say."

"No further questions," Mick said, pretty happily.

Vince looked to Bischoff. "You grabbed Stephanie!"

"It was a long time ago, it was nothing!"

"Princess, you may go now."

"Thank you," Stephanie said, stepping off the stand and walking out of the room. Now she was bored though. Well, she DID have that limo at her disposal, and she should eat a little bit more. She snuck out of there and out to the limo, instructing it to go to the store so she could pick up some food. When she did that, she ate in the car, making sure to get all the right nutrients. It was hard being pregnant sometimes, there was so much that you had to think about and worry about. She had to have so much of one vitamin, but not too much of something like caffeine. So many things to remember, it was tiring and that wasn't even about the actual person she was carrying inside of her. That was an entirely different complication in and of itself.

"I wonder what Hunter is up to," Stephanie said, talking to her child again. Hey, he was there, and he had to listen so she might as well talk to him. It was a little bit comforting to know that someone would be there with her when she wanted to talk. "He's not a good man baby. I'm glad that he's not your father. I'm so glad."

She actually dozed off in the limo and only woke up when she felt the chilly breeze blowing in from the open door. "Stephanie, have you been sitting here the entire time?"

She looked up at her father. "Oh yeah, sorry Dad."

"Come on, let's go back to the arena where I'm going to fire Bischoff. I knew I was going to fire him before this whole trial, but hearing that he grabbed you and threatened you just put it over the top."

Stephanie smiled sleepily. It was all coming together. It had taken a few years and lots of hours, and grousing, but it was really here. She would get rid of the poison that was affecting her show. Now if only she could come up with a rock solid solution to her Hunter problem, she might be home free for the rest of her life. She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes as they reached the arena and Vince helped her out of the car. She remembered to stand facing straight forward so that the camera couldn't catch her tummy. She was vain, sue her.

Then there was Hunter, and Vince glanced at Stephanie before speaking to him, in a friendly manner. Stephanie was proud of her father for squelching his hatred for the man so that his daughter could find out what was up. Vince even went so far as to joke with them, leaving them alone. He was even sneakier than she was. She was so her father's daughter. She looked up and caught Hunter smiling at her, so she smiled back at him for a few, awkward moments.

Finally she spoke, "Yeah, it's going to take a little while getting used to this whole friend thing."

"Don't worry, I plan to be around," he said with a kind smile.

Too kind…and then her phone rang. "Excuse me Hunter, I have to take this. We'll talk later, maybe even go out for breakfast tomorrow. Your number still the same?"

"Yeah, and I really like the breakfast idea," he told her. "Goodnight Steph."

"Night."

Stephanie walked a few steps away, making sure Hunter was out of the vicinity. She knew who this was going to be. She answered and said quickly. "It's not what you think!"

"Ok, so seeing my wife gazing all nicely at her scum ex is not what I think?"

"No, it's really not, let me explain."

"What is there to explain? Why is there something to explain! There shouldn't be anything to explain!"

"I know, but you have to listen to me!"

"I cannot believe what I saw! I'm gone for less than a week and you're already latching on to someone else."

"Chris, how could you say something like that," Stephanie hissed. "Look, Hunter came to me earlier, being all friendly and wanting to talk, so I heard him out. He said you were a lucky guy."

"What?"

"That tipped me off, he's up to something, he'd never compliment you. He hates you."

"Ok, and this makes him and you smiling at each other even better knowing that he hates me and probably wants to steal you from me, and wants to take my kid. I swear to God Stephanie, if you divorce me and get with him, the kid is mine."

"Chris, you're overreacting," Stephanie said. "Jesus Christ, I'm trying to explain. Look, what he said tipped me off, he has a plan or something. He said he wanted to be my friend."

"Oh, that's rich. The moment, the second I'm gone, that bastard is all over you, thinking that he can just reclaim you or something. What does he think those rings on your finger are for? Decoration?"

"Chris, please calm down."

"I'm not going to calm down Stephanie. My wife is being pursued by her ex-husband, and I'm not even on the same continent! He's getting all up over you because I'm not there! And you're smiling at him!"

"Chris," she said, her tone even and cold. "I am doing it for a reason. He has something he's going to do, and I need to be on the inside to find out. So I'm playing along, but if you think for one second that I WANT him, you're delusional and maybe you shouldn't be around our son if you're going to act like a lunatic."

She could hear him take a few deep breaths. "I hope you know what you're doing."

"Don't I always?" she asked him. "Chris, you have to trust me, you trust me right?"

"With my life, and my child's life."

"Exactly, so I have to do what I have to do, and if that means cozying up to Hunter, I'm going to do it."

"Fine," he said dejectedly. "Just be careful…for our kid's sake."

"I will be."


	65. No Real Title, December 12, 2005

A/N: I have finals this week, so this chapter was just kind of written in a relative hurry. Sorry if it sucks. :P

* * *

"So I've officially decided not to go see Christian, at all." 

"That's…good?" Kurt asked as he sat with Trish in his dressing room. "Or is that something other than good? Bad, maybe?"

"No, no, it's good…at least I think it's good. It is good right?" Trish asked worriedly. She had been mulling for the past few weeks over what to do, and she felt like she had come to the only decision that she could come to. Pining over Christian wasn't the way that she wanted to live her life. It wasn't the way that someone SHOULD live their lives. If Christian didn't want her, that was Christian's decision, and his alone. If he didn't want to talk to her, that was his problem.

"If it's what you want, then it's good," Kurt told her, patting her shoulder. "And you know you've got a great support system here."

"I know that. I just wish the fans could see how you are around your friends. I think it would change a few minds."

"Are you kidding me? They love to hate me, so I embrace it. Let them fawn all over Cena, they all know who is better."

"Much better," she said, leaning over to give him a hug. "I know that I say this all the time, but you have no idea what you have meant to me since Christian left. It's really nice to just have a friend who supports you and cares about you."

Kurt hugged her back, squeezing the breath out of her. "And I'm always going to be here. Aren't you the girl who got me a date with Ashley?"

"One you haven't even gone on yet," Trish joked as she pulled away from him. "What's up with that?"

"Our schedules are just really conflicting," Kurt shrugged. "We're both either coming or going and we are never doing the same thing at the same time. Maybe, eventually, we'll get it right and I'll get to take her out, but she isn't the only thing in my life."

"Yeah, you have two girls that need you," Trish said.

"That's right."

Trish sighed. "I miss Christian though, I never thought I could miss someone this much, especially someone who dumped me with a note."

"That's natural to miss him. I'd think you far worse off if you didn't miss him. Then you would've had to question your entire relationship. And you know what, I'm pretty sure that he misses you too."

"Yeah right," she scoffed. "I've read things, things saying that he's happier where he is now."

"He could be covering up."

"I suppose," she said thoughtfully. "But then what if he isn't? Then it makes me seem all the more desperate and Trish Stratus does not get desperate. I mean, any more desperate then I am now. I mean, living with my friends and having no love life to speak of, being afraid to even go near my old house. That's a little desperate."

"You'll move out of the house and you'll move on, but geez, give it time Trish," Kurt said. "And I think everyone knows you're strong."

"Yeah, so tell me, how would I go about getting rid of Mickie once and for all, the girl has no tact whatsoever. Last week, she…God, I don't even want to talk about her last week bugging me. She just…she bugs me. I've never seen someone so clingy in my life."

"Maybe you just need to tell her that she's crowding you," Kurt said. "I mean, don't outright say the truth, but don't lie to her either."

"Yeah, that would be the best way. I'm so afraid though that I'm going to like see her apartment or something and find the walls covered in pictures of me. And then she's going to kidnap me and steal my identity and seduce…well, if I had a boyfriend she'd seduce him and then sleep with him, and then have his baby and then they'd find me in a hole or something, shivering with a gag in my mouth and my legs and hands tied and she'll be put into a mental institution, and you know…dire consequences."

"What the hell were you and Stephanie watching last night?" Kurt asked, blinking his eyes rapidly.

"I don't know," Trish laughed. "Stephanie was just flipping through the channels and it was an old movie and we were bored. I don't know why you didn't join us."

"Because it was one o'clock in the morning and I was tired."

"Still…Steph couldn't sleep because of the baby. She said he's been moving around like he's got furniture in there and doesn't know where to put it."

"That's a…weird analogy," Kurt said, chuckling to himself. "He's probably just plotting how he's going to take over WWE from his grandfather and who he's going to fire first. It is sharing a body with Stephanie after all."

"They could be plotting together," Trish added with a giggle. "Ok, now all I'm picturing is a little boy in a suit with a briefcase walking next to Stephanie."

Kurt tried to hold in his laughter, but the image was too funny. "I can seriously picture Stephanie buying him a suit, with a tie and vest and the whole nine yards, oh, and a little baby Rolex."

"And a little cell phone!" They both were laughing so hard they had tears coming to their eyes. It wasn't that they were laughing at Stephanie, because they both loved Stephanie, but they could just picture her kid being exactly like her, and that in and of itself was funny. Trish was gasping for breath as Kurt held his stomach and wiped at his eyes.

"We're so bad," Trish told him.

"Ahh, Steph can take a joke, it's all good," Kurt responded. "At least she can now, before though, not so much with the joking."

As if something were controlling their world, they heard Stephanie's laughter outside the door. Kurt raised an eyebrow, recognizing Stephanie's laugh immediately. But then again, Stephanie had a pretty distinctive laugh as it were. And a distinctive voice, but that wasn't entirely her fault since she had had some trouble with her sinuses lately because of the baby. She seemed to have a constant runny nose.

"Oh God, I remember that horrible trip," Stephanie laughed as she shoved Hunter's arm. "You made fun of me for getting sick but we had been circling for two hours!"

"Oh come on, it was funny watching you turn green," Hunter said. "And how you kept telling me that you were fine, and you'd just get progressively worse and worse and worse."

"So not funny," Stephanie told him as she took a sip from her smoothie. "Thanks for coming with me to get food and my smoothie. They say that it's a good way to get vitamins for the baby."

"It wasn't a problem, I wasn't doing anything."

"Still, it was nice of you," she said, smiling over her drink at him, before taking a big sip and then speaking as she was swallowing. "Stupid cravings. At least I don't have any weird cravings like pickles and ice cream."

"Gross."

Stephanie laughed again. She hated to admit it, but this whole thing with Hunter wasn't going too badly. He seemed to be genuine in everything that he was doing, and he hadn't really been mean to her tonight, or said anything mean about Chris. That's what really got to her. He wasn't saying anything nasty about Chris. She was still skeptical on him being genuine about their friendship, but he certainly didn't seem disingenuous with his intentions.

She'd had a hard time talking to Chris this past week. He was in a grumpy mood for a myriad of reasons. The first was that her next doctor's appointment was next week and he wouldn't get to be there for it. He was flying home on December 23, and her appointment was next Tuesday. It was a pretty big appointment because she was most likely going to find out the sex of the baby. Chris would probably have his fingers and toes crossed the entire day hoping for a boy. She knew how important it was for him to have a boy. It wasn't that he didn't want a daughter, but he had confessed that he always wanted a son, someone to carry on in his legacy. She thought it was sweet.

The second reason why he was grumpy was a direct cause of Hunter and the incident last week. She didn't blame him, she would be weary too if Chris suddenly became friends with any of his ex-girlfriends. Chris was a jealous guy by nature, and she understood that. He also understood that Stephanie was a suspicious person by nature and she had to smell this rat out if there was one. Her father had taught her to always be suspicious of people's actions.

So Chris was grumpy and every conversation with him would turn into her having to talk him down from the ledge, so to speak. It would probably be different if he were here though. Of course, if he were here, there would probably be no way she'd even be next to Hunter. But Chris wasn't here, and Stephanie was a smart woman, she always had been, and she could handle herself now.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw a door open and she turned and saw Kurt and Trish come from their locker room. They knew all about Stephanie and Hunter and while Kurt almost flipped a bigger lid than Chris did, he knew that she could certainly handle herself. Trish just smirked and crossed her arms in front of her, gazing at her friend.

"Hey Steph," Kurt said, trying not to send a glare in Hunter's direction. It was very, very difficult.

"Hey," Stephanie said brightly.

"We heard you laughing from inside," Trish explained, throwing a thumb towards the locker room. "You were pretty loud."

"Sorry, Hunter and I were just thinking about this horrible flight we had where I got sick from circling the airport for hours," Stephanie said. "The big jerk over here thought it was funny seeing me turn green."

"That's nice," Kurt said drolly. "Where've you been, your father came looking for you about a half hour ago wanting to talk to you about something?"

"Really?"

"Yeah. Sounded important."

"Oh, I was with Hunter getting food," she said, holding up a bag. "Tacos, I so wanted tacos. And a smoothie, gotta give my baby nutrients right. And lots of tacos. But if my dad wants to talk to me, I better go talk to him."

"Want me to walk you to his office?" Hunter offered.

"I'll take you there Steph," Kurt interjected, finally breaking and sending a glare Hunter's way. He had seen WAY too much between Stephanie and Chris to let Hunter ruin their marriage. Kurt was not going to sit back and watch another of Stephanie's marriages fall down the drain.

"Thanks Kurt," Stephanie said, taking him up on his offer. "I'll see you later Hunter."

"Yeah, you will," he told her with a soft smile.

"Thanks again for coming with me to get food."

"It was my pleasure," he said before turning and walking away.

Kurt didn't say anything as Stephanie led the way to her father's office. He didn't know what to say. Stephanie looked glad to be around Hunter and it troubled him. He didn't want Chris and Stephanie's marriage to fall apart. They were his two best friends and the most stable relationship he had ever been around. It was like he could always count on them. He wanted to be able to count on them; he didn't want to go back to the way things were.

"Are you going to wait for me?" Stephanie asked as they reached her father's office.

"Yeah, I'll wait for you."

"Ok."

She walked inside, her takeout bag still in one hand as she saw her father on the phone. He raised his eyebrows in acknowledgement of her and she smiled at him, setting her food down on his desk as she took a seat in front of his desk. She took small sips from her smoothie as she watched her father discussing something business related. It took her a few seconds to figure out he was talking to her brother, which pretty much meant he wasn't here tonight.

Finally Vince hung up and Stephanie took one more quick sip of her drink, "How's Shane doing?"

"Fine, doing overseas work for us on some of the upcoming tours as you know."

"Yes Dad, I got the memo," Stephanie said kindly.

Vince saw her food. "Am I interrupting something?"

"Not really, I was just hungry and went and got some food and a drink since I'm eating for two now, you know."

"I'm well aware."

"I figured, since you've been treating me with kid gloves," Stephanie said, somewhat bitterly. Being overlooked still tasted bitter in her mouth and she wanted to get rid of the horrid taste.

"You're pregnant Stephanie, and you're my little girl, how did you expect me to treat you?"

"Like a normal human being. I know that I'm pregnant Dad, but my mental capacity has not diminished since I've been pregnant. Am I a little clumsy because I'm not used to the extra weight, yeah, but I haven't suddenly gone dumb."

"I know that."

"Well, at least you know that then," she mumbled.

"I've been thinking…"

This could not end well, Stephanie thought to herself. "What about Dad?"

"I have been a little unfair to you because you're pregnant. The only thing I can say is that you're my little girl and I'll always see you as my little girl. To have you married and pregnant just slaps me in the face."

"You knew I was going to grow up Daddy," Stephanie told him.

"I know you were, but that doesn't mean I had to accept that," he told her. "But you are absolutely right when you said it was unfair that I overlooked you for the General Manager position. I've since decided to open it up to different people and not automatically assume Shane as the new GM. And you are definitely in the running."

"Really?" Stephanie asked, hope coursing through her voice as she stared at her father like a wide-eyed five year old being told that she could have every Barbie she ever wanted.

"Yes really. I will look at other candidates and I know you hate to hear this, but your pregnancy DOES factor into my decision, but it is unfair of me to say no to you simply because you're my daughter and you're pregnant."

Stephanie jumped up out of her chair and seized her father in a hug. "Thank you Daddy, thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"You're welcome Princess," Vince said, returning the hug.

Stephanie's eyes were so bright and vibrant in that moment. "I have to call Chris! I have to call him and tell him! Oh God, I have to do that now! Thank you again Daddy!"

Stephanie enthusiastically grabbed her drink and food and rushed out of the room like it was on fire. She walked straight past Kurt, forgetting he was even there. She wanted to share her good news with her husband and she wanted to do that right now. Kurt had to jog to catch up with her and grabbed her by the arm.

"Hey, where's the fire?"

"Daddy said that I'm back in consideration for the new GM position, SO I wanted to call Chris and tell him all about it because he's going to be so happy for me and I can't wait to tell him!"

Kurt was happy that she was happy and he smiled and let go of her arm. She grinned sweetly and rushed off, leaving Kurt in her dust. Kurt was glad that her first instinct on getting good news was to go tell Chris. If she had said that she was going to go tell Hunter, he might've had to kidnap her and bring her to wherever Chris was this evening.

"What's up with Steph?"

Kurt turned and frowned. "It's none of your business."

"I was just asking," Hunter said. "She seemed happy."

"She IS happy," Kurt said and he meant it in a much deeper way than it may have seemed on the surface. "You know, I know that you and Stephanie are 'friends," he used his fingers to make air quotes here, "but you are not getting near her, do you hear me?"

"Look, Stephanie and I had a lot of shit we needed to work through and I think we're finally working through it."

"Yeah, but she's married, respect that," Kurt said menacingly.

"You know, I'm starting to once again see why the fans chant you suck all the time," Hunter shot at him.

"I don't care what you think about me, but if you think that you're getting in between my two best friends, you've got another thing coming to you."

"I wasn't. I just wanted to be friends with Stephanie. I hardly think that's a crime."

"I don't know what the hell you're trying to pull, but you better believe that whatever it is, it's not going to come to fruition. I've got my eye on you Hunter. Stephanie might be oblivious, but I'm sure not. She's pregnant with my best friend's child, and if you think I'm going to let you screw that up, you're severely mistaken."

"Think whatever the hell you want," Hunter said angrily. "But I'm not asking you to accept any of this. You just stay away from her when I'm talking to her, and I'll stay away from her when you're talking to her."

"Then I better make sure I'm always talking to her," Kurt said with an attitude. "Plus, I live with her, and so does Trish, and you know Trish Hunter, you know what she's capable of. So don't mess with us."

"Whatever Kurt, get over yourself," Hunter said, pushing past him.

"I'll get over myself when you do," Kurt called out to his retreating form.

Stephanie tapped her fingers on the coffee table in front of her. She was calling Chris right this second and she knew that it was late in France, where he was, but she had to speak to him. He had to share in her good news. At that very moment nobody else but Chris would do.

"Baby, baby," Stephanie sung to herself, and to her kid, since he was there too, and the song was kind of about him. "I love my baby."

Chris's groggy voice interrupted his thoughts, "Who is this?"

"Sweetie, it's me!" Stephanie said excitedly.

"Baby?"

"Uh huh."

"What's up?"

"Did I wake you up sweetie?"

"It's three in the morning Steph, of course you woke me up," Chris said, sitting up in bed. "Is everything ok with the baby?"

"Yeah, the baby is fine," Stephanie told him. "That's not the reason why I called, although I think that he says hi. He gets so worked up in there, moving around like he's dancing or something. That'd be funny."

"I wish I was there to see it," Chris sighed. "Every day that I'm away from you…it sucks Steph."

"It'll be ok Chris, I promise," she said softly, trying not to tear up at the sadness in her husband's voice. Her emotions had been running hot and cold lately. Some days she could cry at the drop of a hat, and some days she was like a warden in a prison. "You'll be here next week."

"Yeah, I guess," Chris said. "So why'd you call if it wasn't about the baby."

"Dad said that he IS considering me for the GM position!" she told him, her voice squeaking in excitement.

"Yeah?" Chris asked and Stephanie could hear his voice getting a little excited as well.

"Uh huh," Stephanie said. "I'm so happy about it. I know that I may not get it, but just to have him consider me is better than him saying my pregnancy is the sole reason he wouldn't consider me."

"I'm happy for you baby," Chris told her and she could tell that he meant it. "Anything that makes you happy I'm going to support."

"You're the first one I told, well, I told Kurt first, but that was because he was right outside the door when I left to call you, but I ran straight to the phone to tell you because I'm excited!"

Chris grinned. He always loved to hear Stephanie so happy. His happiness was tied with Stephanie's, so when she was happy, he couldn't help but be happy as well. He just wished that he could be there with her to celebrate this good news. Instead, he was in a hotel room in Paris alone.

"Chris, did you hear me?" Stephanie asked as the line had been silent for a while now.

"I heard you baby," Chris said, getting back into the conversation. "I'm just really happy for you and if I were there, I'd probably be making out with you right now."

Stephanie giggled. "I know, but if it's any consolation, matching purple."

Chris laughed as he realized she was talking about her underwear. "The one with the roses?"

"Uh huh," she told him playfully.

"I love you, you know that."

"So I've been told," she shrugged. "I'm not doing anything on the show tonight so you're not missing anything. I don't even know what time or channel Raw airs over there, if it airs."

"I'm sure it does," Chris told her. "It's nice hearing from you though."

"We talked this morning."

"This morning was this morning."

"How was the show tonight?"

"Pretty good. Great turn-out, my voice was a little hoarse afterwards though, but it seems to be ok now. The crowd was pumped up though. Couldn't stop thinking about you during the entire thing."

"Sweetie, you need to stop being distracted by me," Stephanie told him.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure that'll happen," he said sarcastically. "Maybe the day I die, and even then, I'll have all of eternity to be distracted by you."

"If you stop thinking about me and how you're missing everything over here, then time will go faster and you'll be home sooner. If you stop thinking about something, it's more than likely to happen."

"I can't just stop thinking about you, you're my wife, you're carrying my child, you're a pretty big deal."

"You're impossible."

"You're unreasonable."

"I love you."

"I love you too."

"Go to sleep sweetie."

"Night baby."

Stephanie hung up the phone and sighed happily as she clutched the phone to her chest. She laughed as she saw her forgotten bag of food sitting on the table in front of her. Her tacos were probably cold now, but that didn't lessen her desire for them. She opened the bag and grabbed the first one, laughing over how this was her celebratory dinner.

Kurt was angry, he was angry at Hunter specifically, which seemed to be a pretty common sentiment around here. He went out with an attitude at the beginning of the show. He didn't even care if Vince was out there. Kurt knew that Vince respected him, and he would even go so far as to say that Vince was a friend, but that wasn't about what was going on right now.

Kurt had his eye on Hunter, and maybe that caused his eye to wander a little during his qualifying match with Flair. He eventually won it though, because come on, he was Kurt Angle and Ric Flair didn't stand a chance. After the match, Kurt, in an understandably pissed off mood, decided to take it out on the fans and the world, and that's what he did.

Was he wrong in what he said? Maybe, but it was how he was feeling at the moment. As much as he wanted to desecrate the Boston memorabilia, he really wanted to beat up Hunter, and then maybe John Cena as an added bonus. He didn't know why Cena got on his nerves so much…oh wait, yes he did, Cena seemed like the ultimate phony, and at the very least, Kurt was not a phony.

Backstage, Trish had made her way to Stephanie's office, right in the middle of Stephanie's dinner, but she always had a sympathetic ear for her friends. "So I've been practicing what I'm going to say to Mickie later, and it's time to cut her loose."

"Mmhmm," Stephanie mumbled around her food as she watched the television in front of her.

"I think this is good, the girl needs to make it on her own."

"Yeah," Stephanie nodded.

"You're not even listening to me are you?" Trish asked.

"I was so listening," Stephanie told her. "You were talking about how Mickie is annoying. And I get that. I've had to deal with annoying people. You just have to tell her the truth. Like a band-aid, just rip it right off."

"Ok, that's a little deeper than I wanted to be, but I get what you're saying," Trish said. "I should go talk to her now, don't you think?"

"If you want," Stephanie said. "Or when you feel the time is right."

"Like they say, no better time than the present."

"Good luck."

"I'll need it," Trish said, pursing her lips a little bit.

She walked out of Stephanie's office and hung a left, intending to go straight to Mickie's office and tell her that this had to end, this little obsession that she had. Mickie was like an annoying little sister, and Trish knew about little sisters, she had two sisters of her own to deal with. She didn't need Mickie too. She heard fast footsteps behind her and she looked to see a pissed off Shelton Benjamin behind her. She moved out of the way, hearing him muttering something about attitude. He walked a few steps ahead of her then stopped. He turned around and smiled.

"Hey Trish, I heard that you're single again, that true?"

Trish was a little shocked he would be so forward. She apparently hadn't seen his little conversation with Shawn earlier. Trish kind of shrugged and looked off, willing the tears to stay out of her eyes. "Um, yeah, why?"

"You and me, dinner next week, how about it?"

Trish was not expecting that. She had been moping over Christian for so long that she had forgotten what dating even was. Her mind had been so preoccupied with Christian, she hadn't really thought that much about getting back into dating. But what did she have to lose after all? Maybe it would serve Christian right to just start dating again and forget him. And if he ever came crawling back to her, she could just stick her tongue and mock him for being an idiot. Why shouldn't she just take up this offer?

"Yeah, um, sure," Trish said, nodding.

"Great," Shelton said, "I'll see you later then." He walked away and she could hear him mumbling again about attitude or something. Trish was so stunned at her approval of the date that she walked straight back to Stephanie's office and opened the door to see a sick-looking Stephanie. "Steph, what's wrong?"

"Why do I have to watch women throw themselves at my father?" Stephanie asked in disgust. "The last thing I need to see is a girl half his age throwing themselves at him."

"Who was it this time?"

"Candice."

"Oh, gag me with a spoon," Trish said, making a face.

"So did you talk to Mickie?"

"No, but I just got asked out by Shelton Benjamin!" Trish said quickly, sitting down as she observed Stephanie's shocked face.

"Seriously?" Trish nodded in the affirmative. "Wow, and did you say yes?"

"I did," she said, covering her face. "Oh, I don't know. I mean, I have to move on sometime right, and Shelton is really nice when he wants to be and has that really great smile and he seems like a pretty good guy. I mean, I can't sit here and think about what could've been with Christian my whole life right?"

"Right."

"So I'm going to go out on a date, oh God, I've got a date," Trish said, from behind her hands. "I don't know what to do."

"That's why you've got me," Stephanie said, patting Trish's back. "I'll help you anyway I can."

"Thanks Steph, you're the best. I guess I should go talk to Mickie huh?"

"That would be best."

Trish had to work up her courage again and when she finally did, she went to talk to Mickie. Of course, Mickie had to break out a sob story about her grandfather. Then she had to mention how she was sleeping with Vince. Trish would rather forget that little fact and she knew that if Stephanie was watching, she was turning sick again. She couldn't get a word in edgewise with Mickie and so she was stuck for another week with the annoying little sister. But she could deal with Mickie later.

Right now, she had to wrap her mind around the fact she had a date.


	66. Merry Xmas, December 19, 2005

A/N: Hope that everyone had a happy holidays with whatever you celebrate. This would be last week's chapter, which took me a week to finish, as you can tell by the length of it. I kept adding a little bit each day, and so it goes day by day of last week, so it's a little different from usual. The next chapter should be up sometime before Thursday. :)

Reviews are welcome, appreciated and would be considered a nice little, belated Christmas present. ;)

* * *

**Monday**

Trish didn't think this was going to be the way she spent her 30th birthday. Not that she even wanted to celebrate her 30th. Thirty seemed to round, too high, too…over the hill or something. She knew she was being silly, but there comes a moment in every person's life where you just feel so incredibly old. She KNEW she still looked good, but she just felt old. And that's a hard feeling to escape.

Nobody really knew it was her birthday, and she didn't call attention to it to those who didn't know. Kurt and Stephanie had not attended the tour overseas because Stephanie was pregnant and Kurt was there to take care of her in Florida. Chris would kill them if they left Stephanie alone and something happened. But she felt it was like her duty to come overseas, and she was glad to be here.

She saw all these soldiers, transplanted from many different places, living here away from their families. She wasn't selfish enough to think of her own predicament with Christian, about how they were separated, but being here helped her not think about Christian, not think about her birthday, not think about how lonely she got sometimes. She was sure that the men and women over here got lonely too, and on a much grander scale because they were without their families at all, fighting a war that seemed to have no finish.

She was glad to be around such brave people, she would never have been brave enough to do what they were doing, to put your life on the line like they were. It helped her not think about her own life, but just try to make these people entertained in what had to be a slightly odd existence.

Happy Birthday to her.

**Tuesday **

"Thanks for coming with me Kurt."

"My pleasure."

"You really didn't have to. I could've just driven myself."

"Yeah, I know, but I know Chris would want me here with you so you weren't alone."

"He would," she nodded, flipping through her magazine disinterestedly. "Everyone in these magazines are too cutesy for my tastes. I don't want my kid to be all cutesy all the time, you know. I mean, way to make him look like a dork right? Oh man, I spend way too much time around wrestlers."

Kurt laughed. "I get what you're saying. So this is a big day huh?"

"HOPEFULLY a big day," she emphasized, her mouth twitching into a small smile. "I mean, you can't tell if the baby is in the wrong direction, but hopefully he's shifted so that we can tell what he is today."

"I'm sure Chris will be excited to know."

"Mmhmm," she said as her name was called. She stood up and looked back to Kurt. "Are you ok waiting out here? I'd invite you in, but you might see things that you're just not prepared to see."

"I think I'm going to stick around here," Kurt said. "I can live without being in there."

Stephanie shook her head thinking about having Kurt in the room with her. She followed the nurse waiting with her file into an empty examination room. She sat down on the table as the nurse took her vital statistics and handed her the paper gown that she was so fond of (note the sarcasm). She put the garb on and waited for her doctor to show up. She couldn't stop the smile from her face as she thought about getting to finally know if her baby was a boy or a girl.

"Stephanie, hello," Dr. Sheldon said brightly as she stepped into the room. "No Chris today?"

"No," Stephanie said, pouting a little. "He's actually in a band and they're on tour in Europe right now, and he won't be home until Friday."

"Oh wow, a tour?" she asked as she slid her chair near Stephanie.

"Yeah, he kind of dabbles in everything. He's really upset that he's missing this appointment though. But the tour was pretty much booked ages ago so there wasn't a whole lot he could do about it."

"That's too bad, but I'm sure you'll catch him up on everything, why don't you lie back and make sure that everything is going well with the baby before we bring the ultrasound machine in here."

Stephanie laid back and stared at the ceiling as the doctor went about checking on her. She wished that Chris was here to see what the baby was, but there would be plenty of time for him to find out later. She rested her hands on her stomach for a brief moment, wondering what Chris was doing at the moment.

"So have you felt a lot of movement?"

Stephanie looked at the doctor. "Yeah, it moves around a lot in there lately, I guess they're trying to get comfortable."

"Well, the baby is still relatively small, so they have a lot of room to move around, it might get a little more painful as the baby starts to get bigger because they'll be less room. Nearer to your due date it'll probably be at the worst, most women complain about their child kicking them in the ribs."

"Lovely," Stephanie said, not looking forward to that.

"But by that time, it's almost over so I think people are a little bit more receptive towards it knowing that it's coming to an end."

"Yeah, I get what you mean."

"Ok, well, everything looks normal in your area, so I'm going to get the ultrasound machine and we'll check to make sure that everything is ok with the little one in there," Dr. Sheldon said as she gestured to Stephanie's stomach. "Just relax and we'll be right back."

Stephanie nodded and waited for the doctor to come back. She was starting to become anxious and she could feel her hand shaking every so slightly in anticipation. She had been waiting an entire month for this. She couldn't imagine how Chris was feeling right now. He was half way across the world and she was here, waiting to find out what her baby was. She hoped it was a boy. Chris would be disappointed if it was a girl, not that he would love a little girl any less, he would just always kind of hope for a boy.

She heard a banging that preceded the entrance of the machine into the room as the doctor and one of the technicians walked into the room. Dr. Sheldon introduce the technician to Stephanie and returned the greeting. She took a deep breath and hoped this was over soon, because she really just wanted to get the information.

"Ok, here we go again," Dr. Sheldon joked as she poured some gel onto Stephanie's stomach.

Stephanie trained her eyes on the screen as the wand was moved around her stomach. She smiled involuntarily at seeing her baby. She wasn't the type to gush (God was that an understatement of the century), but it was just so incredibly cool to see her baby right there. She was having a baby, and every time she thought about it, it still surprised her in some way.

"Everything is looking good," Dr. Sheldon mumbled lowly. "Heartbeat is strong, and they're moving around quite a bit, probably wondering what that thing poking into the area is. And you told me last time that you wanted to know what the sex is right?"

"Yeah, definitely," Stephanie said, nodding eagerly.

"Well, you're in luck, because I can tell you right now…"

A short time later, Stephanie was walking out into the waiting room, spotting Kurt still sitting in the same spot waiting for her. His head was leaned against the wall and he was staring up at the ceiling. Stephanie walked over and stood in front of him. Kurt was so zoned out that it startled the hell out of him when Stephanie leaned over so she was right above his face. She had never seen someone jump so high. She laughed as Kurt tilted his head up.

"Oh hey," Kurt said, trying to shake the cobwebs out of his mind so to speak.

"Hey, I'm ready to go," Stephanie said. "Are you ok?"

"Yeah, yeah, are YOU ok?" he asked as he stood up, glancing at her face and then at her stomach. "All of you."

"Yes, me and the baby are fine," Stephanie said. "We both got the clean bill of health from the doctor. She said everything was going smoothly and that the baby's heartbeat is strong and the baby really likes to move around, but I could've told her that."

"And did you get the big news?" Kurt asked anxiously.

"I got the big news," Stephanie confirmed.

"So? Come on, don't leave me in the dark!"

"Sorry Kurt, nobody knows before Chris knows. Since he's the father, he gets the special privilege of being the first one to be told. And I'm telling him when he gets home on Friday."

"I have to wait until Friday!" Kurt whined as they made their way to the car. "I can't believe you're making us wait that long!"

"Well, this is something you should tell your spouse in person, and that's just the breaks," she shrugged carelessly. "And no hints Kurt, I know you too well."

"Damn it," Kurt said. "But I'm leaving on Saturday to go visit family and so is Trish, so we only get one day to celebrate with you guys over it."

"Yeah, but you both live with us, when you come back, you can celebrate all you want, and we can finally start on the baby's nursery. You and Chris can paint the room and then we can go shopping for furniture and stuff."

"What color is the room going to be?" Kurt asked.

"See, I know you're trying to see if we go the traditional, pink for girl, blue for boy, but Chris and I already decided on blue whether it was a girl or a boy, so you're out of luck schmuck."

"You're such a bitch sometimes, you know."

"Yes, and that's how my friends and family love me."

"Yeah, even that bastard Hunter," Kurt muttered.

Stephanie rolled his eyes. "Kurt, get off it, if Hunter is sincere, it's a pleasant surprise, if he's not, then I'll take him down when I feel like it. It's a win-win situation. If Hunter is sincere and wants to be friends, then…I'd like to try because I was happy with him at one point."

"And what about Chris?"

"I love Chris, that's the difference. I don't love Hunter, I love Chris with everything in me. I mean, I'm having his baby for God's sakes, if that doesn't mean I love him, then the world is a screwier place than I thought. I love Chris and that's all, I hope he loves me enough to trust that I would NEVER hurt him on purpose or ever cheat on him. I've never cheated on anyone, not Chris, not Hunter. If I were to cheat on Hunter, I would, I had plenty of chances."

"Yeah, but you didn't want me."

"Nope," she said as she got into the car. Kurt went to his side and got in as well, starting the car up as Stephanie put her seatbelt on.

"I just don't want to see Chris get hurt is all," Kurt said. "Chris is my best friend and the last thing I want is to see him hurt."

"I know all that Kurt, and it won't happen, I made a promise to Chris when I married him, and I intend to stick by that promise."

"Good, I don't need another heartbroken friend."

"Ok, so I was thinking of something wicked…"

"Oh no…"

Stephanie pushed his arm lightly, not enough for him to veer off the road. "What if we just didn't answer the phones when Chris called, and then he'd be so surprised when I tell him on Friday."

"Why would you do that?"

"Because I know if I talk to him, I'm going to spill the beans," Stephanie said. "I just want to blurt out what I'm having. I just don't want to tell him over the phone. Or you know, even better, you answer the phone and just tell him I'm always busy."

"Ok, that I can do," Kurt agreed, "but only because I know you want to wait until he's here in person to tell him what you're having."

"Thank you," she responded, patting his hand companionably. "Now can we please go get something to eat, we're starving."

Upon arriving back home, they saw Trish's car and realized she had arrived home. Kurt and Stephanie smiled at each other. They hadn't been able to be with Trish on her birthday, but that didn't mean they didn't want to celebrate it. They were surprising Trish with a night on the town, a nice dinner at a nice restaurant and then a movie, nothing spectacular, but Trish liked doing just regular stuff.

They walked inside and Stephanie yelled out, "Trish!"

"Hey guys!" she said as she showed up at the top of the stairs.

"Get down here birthday girl!" Kurt told her and she laughed and shook her head, coming down the steps quickly to be intercepted into a hug by Kurt, as he lifted her up off the bottom step and set her down on the ground. "How does it feel to be thirty now?"

"You'll have to teach me how to be in my thirties Kurt," Trish teased as she stepped towards Stephanie to get another hug.

"Happy birthday!" Stephanie said excitedly. "I'm so sorry we couldn't be there with you on your actual birthday."

"It's fine," Trish said, shrugging off her statement. "I'm here now, and I know you've got something planned.

"Just dinner and a movie," Stephanie said, "But we do have presents for you, do you want them now or later?"

"Later, at dinner," Trish said. "I'm a big girl, I can wait."

"Oh, that reminds me, you got a package yesterday," Stephanie said. "I figure it's a birthday present for you, but I didn't open it, cause you know, it wasn't mine and all of that."

Stephanie went into the hall closet and took out a medium-sized package. She handed it over to Trish and Trish looked down at it. Maybe her parents had sent her something; they knew that she was living with Chris and Stephanie for the time being. It was nice that they had sent her a present, usually they would just include it in her Christmas presents. She went into the kitchen and set it down on the counter.

"Well…aren't you going to open it," Stephanie said eagerly, eyeing the package.

"I can open it later, it's probably from my parents," Trish said. "But I'll be sure to tell you what it is so you aren't jumping around like an idiot. So come on, how was the appointment."

"Don't bother Trish," Kurt interrupted. "She's not going to tell you because she's telling Chris first and she's waiting for him to get home to do it. So we're not going to get the answer to the 64,000 dollar question."

"Oh come on, not even a hint!" Trish said, pleading with Stephanie and pouting a little. "Just a hint."

"It's a baby," Stephanie said smartly. Trish and Kurt both groaned at her "joke."

"She's mean," Trish said to Kurt.

"You're telling me," Kurt scoffed. "I went with her to the appointment and she won't even tell me. I sat there among pregnant women and she didn't even give me the slightest hint."

Stephanie patted Kurt on the cheek. "When we get married Kurt, then I'll tell you the sex of our baby."

"Now you're just being a tease," Kurt chastised her.

"We should uninvite her to dinner," Trish told Kurt.

"Yeah, but I'm paying, so then you'd be all out of luck…again," Stephanie said.

"So mean," Kurt joked to Trish and Stephanie stuck her tongue out at the both of them.

After dinner and the movie that evening, they arrived back home and Stephanie said she was going to bed because her back was aching from all the sitting straight up she had to do. Kurt and Trish wished her goodnight as she ascended the stairs. Kurt and Trish went into the kitchen to have a cup of coffee, Kurt getting the coffee ready in the machine as Trish set up the cups in front of her.

"It's weird how we're all living together," Trish said to Kurt as he came to sit next to her. "I feel like we're a little family or something."

"I'd be honored to be considered your family," Kurt told her.

She looked at him with sweet eyes, "That's really sweet to say Kurt. I'd love to consider all you guys my family. I'm around you guys a lot more than my own family and you guys have really been there for me."

Kurt hugged her tightly, then kissed her cheek. "And we're always going to be there for you. Don't you ever forget that."

"I don't think you'd let me," she said, then saw the package still on the counter. "I think I'm going to head to bed and just watch TV. That ok with you?"

"Yeah, I might head on up to bed soon too, not much action going around here tonight," Kurt winked at her. Trish shook her head and went to get her package, lifting up a little showing Kurt that she was going to go open it up.

She carried it upstairs and into the guest bedroom that had become her own over the past few weeks. She set the package on the end of the bed as she went about getting ready for bed. The good thing about Chris and Stephanie's house was that every guest bedroom had its own bathroom so she didn't need to share. She pulled her hair back into a ponytail as she slipped into her pajamas and walked into said bathroom. She washed her face and brushed her teeth, turning off the light before padding quietly into the bedroom.

She sat on the bed, cross-legged, reaching over to the nightstand and grabbing the remote to the TV, turning it on, but then muting the sound. She looked at the package again and smiled; she loved getting presents. Stephanie and Kurt had given her gifts at dinner and she was capping off the night with another present. She grabbed her purse and took out her keys, cutting the tape on the package with them before opening the top of it. There were two boxes and she grabbed them both out, seeing blank white cards sitting on top of both.

She lifted the first one and saw, "Happy Birthday," typed across it and she set the other gift down as she ripped the paper off it. She opened the box and saw a chain, a necklace, but it was just the chain, there was no pendant or anything. She picked it up. It wasn't a delicate chain, but it wasn't ornate or anything either. It was nice. She would have to thank her parents for this. It was simple enough of a necklace to wear with anything.

She picked up the next package and lifted the note. This one said, "Merry Christmas." She stared at it for a moment, wondering if she was supposed to open it now. She decided to wait and put it on her nightstand. She put the necklace chain back in its box and put that next to the unopened gift. She got under the covers of her bed and settled in for a good night's sleep.

**Wednesday**

Stephanie and Kurt went out to lunch that day. They had asked Trish along, but she had some business to take care of dealing with Christian's house. When they drove back home, they saw a foreign car in the driveway. Stephanie looked to Kurt and then the car, asking him silently if he knew who it belonged to. Kurt shook his head, telling her that he didn't. They pulled up in the driveway alongside it and Stephanie got out of the car, eyeing this other car in her driveway. It looked like a rental car, but who would need a rental car. Trish had her own car, and her and Chris had three cars, one of which Kurt was using and she was using one and Chris had one, so who would need a rental?

She unlocked the door and walked inside, Kurt in tow as she looked around, "Trish, you here!"

"Yeah," Trish said, coming in from the living room area. "We have a visitor."

"We do?" Stephanie asked, "Who?"

"Hey baby girl," Shane said as he appeared behind Trish.

"Shane!" Stephanie said happily, walking over to her brother and embracing him as best she could with her stomach that was growing larger every day. "What are you doing here?"

"I really needed to talk to you," Shane told her seriously. Stephanie got a sour feeling in the pit of her stomach…either that or it was the baby moving, but either way, not a good feeling.

"About?" Stephanie questioned.

"Things," Shane said. "Can we talk, alone, no offense to you guys," Shane said, looking towards Kurt and Trish.

"We'll go in my office," Stephanie said, gesturing towards her office. Shane nodded and followed her as she walked to her office on the side of the house, the one that Chris had had built for her, just for her. She missed him, but that wasn't the time to be thinking about Chris. She sat down on the couch, thinking this was more a brother-sister chat than a business discussion.

She and Shane had always been pretty close, banding together because their parents worked so much. They didn't resent their parents, not much, for not being there for them, they were just closer as a result of that. They knew most of each other's secrets. This looked like Shane was going to tell her some more secrets.

"So what is it Shane?" Stephanie asked slowly.

"My life is in chaos."

She laughed shortly, scrunching up her face. "What, didn't I just see you like two weeks ago? How is your life in chaos over two weeks?"

"Because it is, and you think you've lived a screwed up life."

"Shane, you're not making any sense to me here, why don't you tell me the whole story and then we'll figure out why your life is in chaos as you put it. Nothing is ever as bad as it seems, didn't anyone ever tell you that."

"Mom and Dad are going to kill me," Shane said, shaking his head. "They are seriously going to kill me."

"Why!" Stephanie asked, not getting anything he was saying.

"You know Marissa right?"

"Know Marissa? Shane, you've been dating that girl on and off for the past, what has it been now Shane, nine years?" Stephanie said, remembering how he had brought Marissa to the Hall of Fame ceremony last March. They had been in one of their on periods, but this had been going on since Stephanie was twenty years old. She had always liked Marissa, but her brother never seemed to commit to her. Stephanie had a suspicious feeling that he wouldn't commit to her now because she had a two year old son that wasn't Shane's, and Shane wasn't big on the whole raising another man's kid idea.

"Ok, so you know Marissa then. Well, she called last week…"

"Oh great, you two are back together again…oh, I see the problem now, you went out with Ashley a few times, and now you think that you and Ashley are exclusive, but you have Marissa AGAIN, and now you're life is complicated," Stephanie said knowingly.

"No, in fact that isn't it at all."

"Oh."

"Marissa called me and she asked me to meet with her and so I did, and…she's pregnant again."

"Wow, again? And she has her little boy too…oh no…Shane, are you having a baby with Marissa?" Stephanie asked.

Shane took a deep breath. "Yeah, we broke up at the end of May this time, and she's due a couple months before you are apparently, and the timeline is there and Marissa's not a cheater. It's mine."

Stephanie gasped and put her hand over her mouth. "Oh God Shane."

"I know, I know, I'm stupid," Shane said. "I can't believe I let this happen."

"But Shane, you're going to be a dad, that's…good, that's something you need," Stephanie said, patting his arm. "It won't be so bad, you and Chris can be dads together and our kids can be friends and everything and cousins and it won't be so bad."

"That's not the only thing," Shane said, his eyes raw and unbridled.

"There's more?" Stephanie said, taking her arm back and resting it on her stomach.

"You know her son."

"Yeah, I know…oh shit, Shane don't even tell me…"

"She knew I wasn't ready to commit to her and she didn't want to pressure me to be a father, so she lied to me and told me it was a guy she had been dating after me and that he had been a little bit premature, but that wasn't the case and since she's apparently having my second child, she felt compelled to tell me about the first."

"Well, that's not so bad," Stephanie rationalized, "You are the closest thing that kid has had to a father since he was born, since you've been with Marissa at least seven times since he was born. You're always telling me that he's cute, and stuff…so you know…he's yours so you can like him even more now."

"I understand why she didn't tell me, I really do, I'm just in shock right now."

"I know," Stephanie said, this time, reaching out to hug him, "So what are you going to do? About everything? I mean, you're definitely going to be a part of those kid's lives right, you aren't going to be a deadbeat dad right?"

"No, I could never do that," Shane said. "I couldn't be that type of person."

"Good," Stephanie nodded. "Then you're already a leg up. And D is really a cute kid, every time I've seen him, he gets cuter and cuter. He really looks like Marissa though, I hardly see the resemblance between you…maybe because I wasn't looking."

"There's one more thing…"

Stephanie pulled away and her mouth was agape. "Shane, if you shock me one more time, I'm liable to go into early labor here and you do not want that. Go ahead…"

Shane winced as he thought about how to tell his sister this, and she was the easy one to tell! It was his parents that were going to be so difficult. "We got married."

Stephanie blinked her eyes rapidly, her mouth sitting open and her hand over her heart. She couldn't stop blinking, she stared at her brother, her brow slowly coming together in a weird furrowing stare. She didn't speak and he didn't move and she could hear the pounding of her heart in her ears, growing ever louder and louder. The only thing that brought her out of it was the particularly hard bump against her abdomen from the baby.

"YOU WHAT!" she said, her voice raising high in an impossibly short amount of time.

"I just…we just…we went to the Justice of the Peace and we got married. I couldn't let her have two of my kids without marrying her. I do love her Stephanie, you know that."

"Yeah, I know that you've loved her, but you've also broken up with her tons of times in the last freaking nine years Shane. And it's always over stupid stuff. God, I remember when you brought her home for the first time, I believe it was in like 1997 or something and then you guys fought because she didn't want to wear a scarf outdoors. You married her!"

"I didn't know what to do!"

"You don't marry someone because you can't think of anything better to do!"

"You married Hunter!"

"Against my will!"

"But you stayed married to him, and that was your choice."

"Yeah, and am I married to him now?" Stephanie asked glibly, gesturing towards her house. "Is this his baby inside me? No, because our relationship was built on lies and deception, and you married Marissa simply because she's having your children!"

"I do love her."

Stephanie opened her mouth to speak and no words came out. "I can't…I'm sorry, I just don't know how I'm supposed to react to this. I feel like crying or something. Are you sure D is yours?"

"Yeah, as far as I know."

"Did you get a test at least?"

"It's pending," he informed her.

"And you couldn't wait until you got the results?"

"It was spur of the moment, it was what I felt I should do. I'm sorry that I didn't get married in Hawaii or had the perfect wedding."

"Shane, that's NOT what this is about," Stephanie said seriously. "This is about the fact that you rushed into this."

"You've only known Chris for six years, I've known Marissa for almost ten years."

"Yeah, but we spent seven months planning our wedding, which gave us time to think about it, you didn't think about it for more than a day probably."

"But we might work."

"I hope you do," Stephanie told him honestly, "because there are kids now, YOUR kids Shane."

"I know, Mom and Dad are going to kill me."

"Yeah, they are," Stephanie agreed. "Not so much because you have kids, but because you didn't invite them to your wedding. Mom is going to be crushed."

"I know," Shane said. "Which is why you need to be there when Ris and I tell them."

"What?"

"You're coming to Christmas in Connecticut right?"

"Yeah, we are, and Chris's parents are too since Chris is an only child there won't be that many of us there. You want to tell them at Christmas?"

"Christmas cheer and all that. I mean, they're thrilled about this baby, they should be thrilled about the other two right?"

Stephanie just laughed, because she didn't know how else to handle this. Her brother suddenly had two kids and was married. He had gotten the entire package in one moment. She thought he was stupid, but he had been with Marissa for a while and it wasn't like he had met some woman, gotten drunk and then married her. Marissa had been in his life for a while, albeit on and off, and then on again, and then off again, but still…

"So you'll be there, because we both know you're Mom and Dad's favorite…plus they adore the fact you're married to Chris, so he should be there too. He could be the voice of reason."

"The voice of reason," Stephanie scoffed. "Have you met my husband?"

"Sorry, I'm just…confused."

"I know," she said, giving him another hug. "You have certainly dropped a bombshell on me today."

"I know, I didn't mean to, but I didn't know who else to turn to baby girl. I just…"

"I know." She was still hugging him and he hugged her back, glad there was someone in his life that would understand what he was going through. "And everything will work itself out, it usually does if you let it."

"Yeah, you're right."

"So when are you going back to your…wife and son," Stephanie said, then shivered. "Boy, that sounded really weird.

"This was just a short visit, since I needed to talk to you," Shane explained. "I'm heading back tonight. I'm kind of on my honeymoon I guess."

"Yeah, I do think I need to lie down," Stephanie said, placing her hand on her forehead. "This is just beyond weird. Yesterday, you made sense to me Shane, but now, you've done something I never thought you would do. You've been super spontaneous. You're supposed to be the reliable one, not me. You're the one who is supposed to date a woman, get engaged and have a perfect wedding, and then have kids, you're the one who was supposed to go by the book, not me."

"So you're saying you should've gotten pregnant, had a baby and then gotten married and not me?"

"Yeah!" Stephanie said, but then hugged Shane again. "I love you Shane, you know that and if you're happy, truly happy, then I'm so happy for you."

"Thanks, you were definitely the easiest one to tell."

"Come on, the least I can do is have you over until you have to leave," Stephanie said, standing up.

"Hey Steph?" Shane asked.

"Hmm?" she said, looking down at him.

"How do I deal with a pregnant woman?" he asked rather pathetically.

Stephanie laughed and placed her hand on her ever-growing stomach. "Come on Shane, I'll explain it all to you."

**Thursday**

Thursday was a very boring day and nothing happened. It would probably have been a waste of words to describe Thursday.

**Friday**

Chris pulled up to the house quickly; he was literally jumping around in his seat on the drive home. He had been away from Stephanie for way too long, a month was just too long to spend away from her and he couldn't wait to see her. He had caught an earlier flight just so that he could be with her sooner, even if it was only a few minutes sooner it was still sooner than he would've had he gone on his original flight.

He parked hastily in the driveway, narrowly missing Trish's car as his tires screeched to a halt. He didn't care about his bags as he alighted from the car and slammed the car door hard behind him. He raced to the door and found that it was unlocked, probably because everyone was home, but there was only one person he wanted to see. He slammed the door behind him, causing a minor commotion in the other room.

"Steph!" he yelled, looking around.

"She's in the shower!" he heard Trish's voice yell from somewhere in the house.

"Thanks!" Chris yelled back.

"No problem!"

Chris raced up the stairs and to the door at the end of the hallway. He flung open the door, hearing the shower going in the bathroom. He smiled to himself as he was closer to her than he had been in a month. He walked nonchalantly into their spacious bathroom. She was still in the shower, and he could see everything since the shower was surrounded by clear glass. He stood there a moment, just taking in her body, the water slipping down her back and the round shape of her stomach that was pregnant with their child. He went over to the oblivious Stephanie and tapped on the door. Stephanie turned suddenly, screaming sharply before her eyes widened.

"Chris?" she almost whispered and he barely heard it over the din of the shower. "Chris!"

Chris couldn't take it any longer and he opened the shower door and stepped inside, hugging her to him, lifting her up off her feet. She hugged him back tightly, wrapping her arms firmly around his neck, burying her face into his quickly dampening hair, inhaling his scent. Chris could feel his shirt and pants getting wet and he didn't care one single bit because all he cared about was the woman in his arms.

"You're getting soaked," she laughed as she pulled away enough to be able to look into his face.

"I don't care, I missed you so much, a month away from you is impossible, I just can't do it."

"But you did so you're a lot stronger than you think," Stephanie said, kissing him. He kissed her back fiercely, his tongue seeking out hers. Too much time had gone by that he hadn't been able to kiss his wife and he was trying to make up for lost time. He grabbed her wet hair and pulled her closer ravishing her mouth as the steam formed a cocoon around them. He could feel her stomach pressing into him and he forced himself to break away from her mouth. She bit on his lips a little bit, then kissed around his mouth, going to his jaw line and feathering him with kisses.

"I missed you too," she whispered. "We both did, it just wasn't the same without you and I don't like waking up alone."

"Neither do I," he told her, then laughed, "I'm soaking wet."

She pulled away from him completely and stared down at his clothes which were indeed soaked through and through. She laughed and started to unbutton his shirt as he watched her, entranced by her body. He put his hands over hers and she looked up at him inquisitively, wondering why he wanted to stay in his wet clothes and not get a little more comfortable.

"You're going to ruin your shirt," she told him.

"You're beautiful," he returned and her cheeks flushed a little as she smiled. He just shook his head slightly and gave her the once over. "You're just so incredibly beautiful and I can see you on television and I can look at pictures of you, but it is definitely not the same as seeing you, especially like this."

"In the shower?" she joked.

"Any way I can get you," he informed her, kissing her breathless again. He brought his hands down to rest on her stomach. "We've kind of neglected someone else here."

"Oops," she giggled. "I'm sure the baby doesn't mind, but the baby probably missed you too."

"So…"

"Yes?" she asked innocently, batting her eyelashes at him.

"You know."

"I do know," Stephanie told him seriously. "I've known since Tuesday, but this is something you should get to hear in person and not over the phone."

He took a deep breath, "So what are we having?"

"If I were to tell you that we were having a little girl, how would you take that?" Stephanie asked him critically.

"Oh, so we're having a girl?" he asked, feeling a little down, but then he smiled. "Well, as long as it's healthy right? That's what they say, and as long as…she…is healthy, then I'm happy."

"It's not a girl," Stephanie told him, giving him a sly look.

"What?" he asked, dumbfounded now.

"We're not having a little girl."

"Wait…so it's…a boy?" he said, his voice getting a little higher with each passing word. "We're having a son?"

"Uh huh," Stephanie nodded and the brightest smile came over Chris's face. She nodded again just to confirm what she had said. "No lying, no nothing, we're having a little boy."

"We're having a son," Chris said slowly, taking a couple deep breaths before picking up Stephanie again and spinning her around right there in the shower. "We're having a son!"

"Ok, and he might be getting sick right now because of the spinning," Stephanie said as Chris laughed and put her down. He kissed her, hard, and she went to unbutton his shirt. This time he didn't stop her.

Downstairs, Kurt and Trish were eating on the couch as they watched television. They kept looking in the doorway waiting for either Stephanie or Chris to show their face. They were just as anxious to hear what the baby was going to be as Chris had been. Trish took another spoonful of her yogurt and looked at Kurt.

"I mean, I know what they're doing, but you'd think that they'd have a little consideration and come down to tell us what it is."

"They will," Kurt told her, trying to be the patient one. "He did just get home though. So we'll just have to wait a little longer."

"Yeah, I know, I'm trying to be patient," Trish said, going back to her yogurt. "It's just really hard to wait and Stephanie has kept us totally in the dark. If it were Christian, he would've lasted two hours, tops."

Kurt smiled at what she had said. She hadn't been able to mention Christian without getting wistful or sad, but she had just joked about him and she didn't sound all that upset when she mentioned him. Maybe she was just faking it, but it was a step in the right direction and he was glad that she was starting to get over Christian; if she succeeded then she would be all the more stronger for it.

"Hey guys," Chris said as he walked into the living room where Kurt and Trish were perched. "Sorry I didn't come in and say hi when I got home, but well, you know."

"Mmhmm," Trish said, licking her spoon. "Have a nice shower?"

"Yeah," Chris and Stephanie said in unison and then laughed. Then Stephanie spoke up, clearing her throat. "Ok, you guys have been waiting so patiently for the past few days and I know that you want to know what Chris and I are having…"

"Hell yeah we do," Kurt said and Trish leaned in closer.

"You can't keep us in suspense anymore," Trish said, biting her lip.

"Well, I'm sure he's happy that so many people want to know what he is."

"He?" Kurt said. "That means it's a boy."

"I told you it would be," Chris spoke up. "What did I say to you the night Steph told you?"

"You told me it was going to be a boy," Kurt said dully. "Well, I guess that this one time you were right."

"A little boy!" Trish gushed, jumping up from the couch, setting her yogurt down on the table and jogging over to Stephanie to give her a hug. "Congratulations, he's going to be so cute, I know it."

"He's my son, what did you expect?" said Chris haughtily.

"We're going to have to teach him to wrestle you know," Kurt said, coming over to shake Chris's hand and give him a pat on the back.

"Yeah, but more so me, since I'm the better wrestler."

"You wish."

"No, you wish!"

"Uh uh, you wish!"

"Yeah right I wish, YOU wish!"

Stephanie leaned over to Trish. "Yeah, now I'm rethinking this whole son thing."

Trish just laughed as she watched the two men bicker.

**Saturday**

"I don't want to do it," Shane said as he stood outside his parent's door.

"You're going to have to," Stephanie told him. "Marissa, D, and Chris are sitting at our house waiting for you to do this. You can't say you're going to do it and then not do it. How do you think Marissa is going to take that?"

"Not well," Shane said dejectedly. "God, why did I do this?"

"I don't know."

"Not helping."

"Well sorry," Stephanie said sarcastically. "Look, the sooner you take care of this the better. That way, when everyone is over tonight, you won't feel like a total doofus and Mom and Dad will be prepared at least. They're going to be shocked, and possibly mad, but it's better than blindsiding them and forcing them to act a certain way."

"You're right. When did you get to be so smart baby girl?"

"I think it's the baby," Stephanie said. "He's transmitting his brain power to me while he's in there."

"Thanks little guy," Shane said to her stomach and Stephanie rolled her eyes as she rang the doorbell. "Hey, why did you do that! I wasn't prepared!"

"Now or never," Stephanie said, grinning. "Oh, he told me that too."

Linda answered the door a moment later and smiled widely as she saw her two children at the door. She ushered them inside and Shane helped Stephanie take off her coat before taking his own off. Stephanie adjusted her shirt over her stomach since it had ridden up a little as Shane stood there awkwardly.

"Where's Chris?" Linda asked, looking around as if he had spontaneously gone invisible.

"Um, he's coming later," Stephanie said. "Actually, Shane had something to discuss with you and Dad."

"Yeah, I thought we could have a kind of family meeting or something. It's kind of important."

Linda looked between her two children. Shane appeared to have sweat forming on his forehead while Stephanie just had her hand on her stomach and looked kind of out of place. Something was going on with Shane and she knew it, and it must've been big, because he had brought Stephanie along for support or something. She nodded her head slowly.

"Ok, well Shane, your father is in the study, lead the way," Linda told him. Shane paused for a moment before walking towards the study, tugging on his collar a little bit. Linda linked arms with her daughter as they walked a few paces behind him. "What's going on Stephanie?"

"Mom, I think Shane should be the one to tell you," Stephanie said seriously. Her brother had to be the one to share this news.

"Ok," Linda nodded. "So how are you?"

"I'm fine."

"And the baby?"

"He's fine," Stephanie told her mother, giving her a soft smile.

"He?" Linda asked hopefully.

"Yeah Mom, it's a boy."

Linda couldn't keep the smile off her face as she and Stephanie walked into the study. Vince was in there and Shane had taken a seat in the chair across from his father's desk. Stephanie went around the desk to give her father a hug and he gave a sly, little look down to her protruding stomach. Stephanie rolled her eyes as she went to sit down.

"Well, what is this about?" Vince said as Linda came to sit on the arm of Vince's chair. "This looks very serious."

"It is serious," Stephanie said, taking the reins from her brother for a moment.

"Stephanie, is something wrong with the baby?" Vince asked, frightened now. He knew that Stephanie had had an appointment coming up to check on the baby and that there had been an ultrasound. He didn't want anything to be wrong with his grandchild and it terrified him because he loved his daughter.

"No Daddy," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "He's fine, everything is good with him, strong heartbeat, no problems with the ultrasound at all. This is Shane's news, not mine."

"He?" Vince said, repeating the tone that Linda had used a short while ago. "It's a he?"

"Yes Daddy, it's a boy," Stephanie said, "but really, it's not about him right now, this is about Shane and Shane had something to discuss with you, so if he'd like to take the floor…"

Shane stared at his sister for a moment. Sometimes he wondered how she could be so business-like and strong at times like this. Maybe it was because it wasn't her news to tell, but she was so in charge and he admired her for it. Maybe he could ask her to spill the news. Their mom and dad would probably take it better if it came from her mouth and not his.

"Shane?" his mother implored. He looked to Stephanie again and she was looking at him, trying to tell him to go ahead and say it.

"Mom, Dad," he started. "You remember Marissa right?"

"Remember her? Of course we remember her," Vince told him. "You've only dated her what, thirty-seven times now?"

Stephanie held in a giggle as Shane continued. "Ok, so you know her. Well, she's pregnant right now, and the baby is mine."

"Excuse me?" Vince asked, his voice getting deeper.

"She's pregnant, um, due in February, around February, and it's mine. I'm the only guy she's been with in that time, and it's definitely mine."

"Shane," Linda said, her tone disappointed. "How could you let this happen?"

"I'm sorry Mom, it wasn't planned."

"Well obviously," Vince scoffed. "Did you think about the consequences? Did you think about what this would do for your life?"

"No, I didn't Dad, I should've, she should've told me. She didn't because she thought I wouldn't want a child, that I wouldn't be able to commit to a child. But I am, I'm ready for that kind of commitment and responsibility. I've been responsible for some time now, and I know I can handle this responsibility too. If Stephanie can handle it, so can I."

"Hey!" Stephanie said, her mouth opening a little then closing, then opening again. "I'm more responsible than you are."

"Yeah right."

"Don't throw me under the bus because it makes you look better Shane," Stephanie said testily, sitting back in her chair and placing both her hands on her stomach. "Why don't you keep on talking Shane…"

"There's more?" Linda asked coldly.

"Um, yeah, you see, um, Marissa's first child, Declan, you know him too."

"Yes, we know him quite well," Vince said.

"He's mine too," Shane said. "Marissa didn't tell me because I had told her before D was born that I didn't want kids at that time, and she figured she would just say it was someone else's, but it's not. The test came back yesterday, he's definitely mine. So you have a…grandson."

"I don't know what to say," Linda said to him.

"I do! What were you thinking!" Vince roared. "You have two children Shane McMahon! I thought we raised you better than this. And Marissa should have told you about all of this."

"She was scared Dad, scared that I would run away and she'd never…Dad, it's not her fault, it's mine for letting her believe that I wouldn't be interested in my own children. But I have kids now, and it is what it is, and I hope that you don't take your anger out on me on them."

"We wouldn't do that Shane," Linda said. "We're just upset that we didn't know about this beforehand. We would've welcomed Declan and Marissa gladly, but…this is just a surprise, give your father and me time to get used to it."

"That's not it…"

"What!" Vince said, groaning loudly. "Don't even tell me you got another woman pregnant Shane! So help me God, if you tell me you have other children out there…"

"No, no, no other children Dad…I just…well, I just, I tried…the right thing, I just, I tried…to do the right thing in the situation. I mean, Marissa is the mother of my children, and I wanted to do right by her and by D and the new baby on the way…Dad, Mom, Marissa and I got married on Tuesday."

"No…" Linda whispered, tears coming to her eyes immediately.

"Mom, I'm sorry."

"How could you?" she asked and her voice was soft, but it was so loud in its hurt. "How could you get married and not tell us?"

"It was so spur of the moment Mom, we just went and did it, we went to the Justice of the Peace and got married, it wasn't exactly planned."

"I can't believe you didn't invite me, I can't believe you would leave me out of something like this," Linda said and she dashed out of the room, but Shane could see the tears in her eyes.

"I'm going after her," Stephanie said, getting up and following her mother out of the room. That left Shane with Vince and Vince was looking at him stonily. Shane looked down, feeling like a kid again, about to be scolded by his father.

"What did you expect us to do Shane?" Vince asked. "When you told us this news, what did you expect us to do?"

"Kill me," Shane answered honestly.

"Well, it might be a little less than that. You spring this on us and you expect us to just welcome it with open arms. It's Christmas Eve for God's sakes Shane. You cornered your mother and me on Christmas Eve. So where's Marissa? I expect her to be close by so you could spring her on us and force us to be nice because you didn't give us any other choice."

Shane gulped, "She's with Chris at his and Stephanie's house."

"I figured as much," Vince said. "We could've dealt with the children Shane. You know we could've dealt with that. Your mother and I were excited to become grandparents when Stephanie told us she was pregnant. We would've been excited over these two as well, but then you say you've married Marissa. Do you know how devastated your mother was when Stephanie married Hunter? And Stephanie hardly had a choice! You had a choice to tell us, you could've invited us. Would we have necessarily liked the circumstances under which you got married, no, but we would've been a little more acceptant of it. But you blow into town with a wife and a child, and another on the way, and how do you think that makes us feel Shane? I know that as a family we've had our bumpy roads, but to not include us in something like this. Stephanie included me and your mother in her wedding, and your mother loved it, and I was so proud to walk her down the aisle, but you took that away from us. You took it away from us and your mother is hurt. You know how much you've always meant to her and you took something from her today. She had such high hopes for you Shane. And this isn't about Marissa, you know we've liked her, so don't think that we don't. You've just disappointed us Shane, you've disappointed us."

"I'm sorry Dad, I know I was wrong. I'm sorry I didn't invite you."

"We didn't even need to have a big wedding. Stephanie's wedding was far less extravagant than your mother and I hoped for, but it was what she and Chris wanted. We would've just wanted to have been there."

"Again, I'm sorry, I know you would've wanted to be there. Should I not invite Marissa tonight?"

"I need to think," Vince said, sitting in his chair and not speaking anymore. Shane sat there for a moment before Vince waved him off. Shane got up slowly and exited the room, slowly closing the door behind him. Yes, this was his biggest screw-up ever and he wondered if he'd ever be forgiven. His father had taken a long time to forgive him for the Invasion thing, and that had nothing to do with the actual family, that was business.

Stephanie was standing outside her parent's bedroom. She was hesitant to go inside because she didn't want to see her mother crying. It was a weird experience to see your mother cry out of sadness. It was like, you weren't supposed to be the one comforting her. You were supposed to be the one comforted. Stephanie just felt uncomfortable with the situation so she stood there a few more moments before opening the door slowly.

"Mom?" Stephanie asked quietly. "Can I come in?"

"Yes."

Stephanie came in fully and closed the door behind her. She saw her mother sitting on the edge of her bed, her hands over her face. Her heart broke for her mother. Stephanie went over and sat down next to Linda, not saying anything for a little while, just letting the silence settle over them. It was neither comfortable nor uncomfortable. Stephanie looked down at her hands, studying them intently, thinking about how they were getting a little bit long.

"Were you invited?" Linda asked, turning her head towards her daughter.

"No," Stephanie answered. "I wasn't invited, I was just as surprised as you were."

"So nobody was invited."

"Nobody."

"First you and Hunter, and now this," Linda said, her voice on the verge of a sob.

"Yeah, but even I wasn't aware of the one with Hunter. But Shane had his thinking straight at least, sort of," Stephanie said, confusing herself a little bit. "I mean, he had a good idea. He's been in love with Marissa for a while and he finally married her. It wasn't under the best circumstances, but you have to be happy that both your kids are married and both of them have kids or kids on the way. Just think, instead of one grandchild, you're getting three."

"That is a nice idea," Linda said, perking up a little bit.

"Yeah, see, nice idea. And you get this cute little boy, D is cute, and whatever Marissa is having another baby it seems and you get another grandkid, and then I'm due at the end of April, so there's another grandkid. You're going to be a full-fledged Grandma, and you know, I can't speak for Shane's kids…whoa that's weird to say…but I know that my as-yet-to-be-named baby will love you."

"Yeah, that's true."

"See, not so bad, and you know what, just because Shane and Marissa are married now, that doesn't mean that we can't have a wedding. They probably haven't even filed their marriage license yet, who knows. Maybe we could give them a wedding, you know, so they don't feel like they got nothing, it'll be good."

"That is a good idea," Linda said, her tears subsiding a little bit. "But I just can't believe he didn't invite me, his own mother!"

Stephanie hugged her mom, "I know Mom, it sucks, but we have to move on."

Linda wiped her eyes with the handkerchief she had been holding. "You're right, and we can't just shun Marissa and the kids. They're family now."

"Yeah," Stephanie said, giving her mother an extra squeeze. "I'll let Shane come talk to you, it'll make you feel better."

Linda nodded as Stephanie left the room, finding Shane pacing around outside. He stopped when he saw Stephanie. She crossed her arms over her abdomen and looked at him. He looked apologetic and he smiled sheepishly at her. "I'm sorry for what I said downstairs."

"Don't worry about it, I talked to Mom, she's pretty ok with it now, I suggested you guys have another wedding, one that we can all participate in. I would suggest you take it because people are upset over this Shane. I'll go talk Dad down from whatever mood he's in."

Shane rushed her and hugged her, being mindful of her stomach. "Thank you so much baby girl, I don't know how I could've done this without you."

"You would've, but it would've been a lot tougher I think," she said, making herself out to be the hero. "Go talk to Mom."

Stephanie went downstairs and into her father's office. He was still sitting there, stone-faced and she sat down across from him. "Daddy, it'll be ok."

"Stephanie, don't say things you don't know about."

"But I do," she told him. "Dad, don't be like how you usually are. Don't be the businessman. Just be the dad and try to realize what Shane is going through. I know that's a tall order for you, but for once, just be a little accepting."

Stephanie got up and walked over, giving her father a kiss on the cheek. She walked out of the room and into the hallway. She had done all she could do. It was up to Shane now to do the rest. She walked into the kitchen and grabbed the phone, sitting down at the kitchen table before dialing home. She tapped her fingers as she waited for someone to answer.

"How did it go!"

"Hey Marissa, how did you know it was me?"

"I didn't, but I thought I'd ask anyways of whoever answered."

"Well, they were understandably upset, but I think they'll come around, it might be better if you were here. I know that doesn't sound like a good idea, but if you were here, if they saw D, I think that they would be a little more accepting of the situation."

"What do you mean by a little more?"

"Well, it has to be more than it is now."

"Ok, I'll ask Chris to drive us all over. Your in-laws arrived by the way."

"I'll see you in a little bit Marissa."

_**Toronto**_

Trish had just gotten in, and she was on her way to her parent's house. She was looking forward to seeing her sisters, and her parents, but she hoped they would respect her wishes not to discuss Christian. They knew the situation in broad terms, but she really wasn't ready to discuss the details. Wait, what was she thinking? Even she didn't know the details.

She pulled into her parent's driveway and grabbed her purse, where the box they had sent her was still sitting. She wanted to thank them for the necklace, which she was wearing. She could only imagine what was in the other box. She got out her house key and unlocked the door, being assailed by wonderful smells. She sniffed in deeply, having missed the home cooking her parents afforded her.

"Mom! Dad!" Trish called out.

Trish's mother walked out and grinned. "Trish, it's great to see you sweetie!"

"Hey Mom!" Trish said, hugging her mother affectionately. "Thank you for sending me my birthday gift."

"Sweetie, we didn't send your gift, you know we give it to you for Christmas."

"But I got a package and the return address said Toronto."

"Maybe it's from one of your sisters."

"No, I got their presents," Trish said. "But who else lives…"

It came to Trish suddenly and she gasped. Her mother looked on, worried by her daughter's reaction. "Trish, sweetie, what's wrong?"

"Nothing Mom, I'm just going to head upstairs and take a little nap, the flight was tiring."

"Ok," her mother said, giving in. Something was obviously wrong with Trish, but she didn't want to push it. Her daughter had been through too much recently.

Trish went upstairs quickly, going into her own room and flopping down on the bed. If the present wasn't from anyone in her family, and it was from Toronto, that left one person. One person who could've sent her this gift. She ripped open the top of her purse and grabbed the gift she had been hiding inside, waiting diligently for it to be Christmas so she could open it. But she couldn't wait any longer, not if it was from…him.

She tore of the gift wrap without caring where it landed and looked down at a box identical to the one the necklace chain had come in. She opened it slowly, wondering silently what it could possibly be. She looked down and saw a very simple pendant. It was silver, no jewels or anything on it, it was flat like a disc and it was in a crescent shape. It looked like a crescent moon in fact. Suddenly the necklace chain made sense.

She reached back and took the chain off of her neck and then picked up the pendant. She strung the pendant on the necklace and put it back on. She stood up and went to go look in the mirror. It was beautiful and simple and everything that she loved about jewelry. She wasn't a big jewelry wearer in her private life, but Christian had always known just what to get her. She smiled as tears formed in her eyes. He hadn't forgotten about her.

She should've been mad at him, she should've thrown both gifts away, but when your heart is so entrenched with another human being, it's hard to let go. She was just happy that he hadn't forgotten. Yes, he had left her, yes, he had broken her heart, but there was something left, something left for her and for them, even if it was just this necklace. Even if it was just the thoughts that ruminated in their minds. And that little bit that was left, it was something she was going to cling to like she was clinging to the necklace she was wearing right now.

_**Connecticut**_

"Do you need help Marissa?" Chris asked as they were getting out of the car at Stephanie's parent's house.

"Yeah, could you get D out of his car-seat?" Marissa asked.

"Here, I'll get him," Ted said, as he was already in the backseat with the child.

"Thank you Ted," Marissa said politely as she climbed out of the vehicle. She was nervous about going into that home as Shane's wife. She walked over to the other side of the car and pulled Chris aside. He was the only other person who could understand what she was going through. Well, Hunter could, but he probably wasn't the best person to ask. "Chris, can we talk a second?"

"Yeah, sure," Chris said, then looked over her shoulder at his mom and dad. "Mom, Dad, I'm going to talk to Marissa for a second, if you want to go inside, you can."

"Ok," his mother said, taking Declan's little hand in her own as she led him to the door, talking with him along the way.

"So what is it?" Chris asked.

"I feel like I'm being thrown to the wolves."

"Don't worry about it, with Steph and me there, plus my parents, Vince and Linda aren't going to pull anything."

"Yeah, but still, I just married into their family and not under ideal circumstances, they must hate me. They probably think I cajoled Shane into doing this, that I'm out for money or something, and I'm not."

"I know," Chris told her. "From everything that Stephanie has told me about you, and the several times I've met you over the years, you seem like a really good person. You may not have approached this in the best way, but that doesn't mean that you've suddenly turned into a bad person. They'll see that."

"You think so? What did they think of you when they found out about you and Stephanie?"

"They didn't really care, they were surprised, but they didn't really care all that much."

"But see, you didn't run off and marry her."

"Yeah, but we kept our relationship hidden from Vince for almost two years."

"Yeah, so maybe it will be ok," Marissa said. "Maybe…right?"

"Yeah, come on, if you need any help adjusting to being one of the McMahon family, just come to me, and I'll help you out, I've been in the mix for almost a year."

"Thanks Chris, I can really see why Stephanie would marry you."

"Thanks Marissa, but I'm married and so are you, and you're pregnant with Shane's kid and Stephanie's pregnant with mine, so I really don't think it's going to work out with us."

She laughed as he led her up the walkway to the house. Shane was in the doorway, holding Declan in his arms and looking very much the dad. Marissa smiled softly at the scene. They were waiting for the two of them, she could tell and Chris sent her a supportive glance as he walked next to her. Shane smiled at her and she ducked her head a little. She had always been a goodie two shoes and doing something so spontaneous as to marry Shane was something both exhilarating and scary.

"Hey," Shane said as they walked up to the door. He gave Marissa a brief kiss as she approached. "You ok?"

"Yeah, I'll be ok, Chris had some good words of wisdom."

"As I always do," Chris said cockily. "So where is my wife?"

"Inside, your parents already went in there. You can go ahead if you want, we'll wait a few minutes."

"Suit yourself," Chris said as he squeezed past Shane into the house. He walked into the living room where he saw his mother doting over Stephanie and talking animatedly to her at the same time. "There you are."

"Looking for us?" Stephanie asked. "Your mom was just wondering what exactly I'm having. Should I break the good news?"

"If you want."

"If you want!" Loretta exclaimed. "Uh uh mister. You better tell me now before I start to get angry."

"It's a boy Mom," Chris said. "You're getting a grandson."

"Good, good. Makes it a little easier to shop now since we know it's a boy."

"Well, there's a 99 chance it's a boy," Stephanie informed. "There's always a chance that the technician didn't read the ultrasound correctly, but I'm pretty sure that it's a boy. So go boy crazy or something."

"Steph, where are your parents?" Chris asked, looking around.

"Oh, um," Stephanie paused. "They're around."

"Oh," Chris nodded, understanding that they weren't quite up to seeing everybody right now. "I told Mom and Dad what was going on."

"Oh," Stephanie said, "I thought you were being a little too nice."

"Never," Ted joked. "So is everything going to be ok tonight?"

"It should, I think so," Stephanie said, then getting up from her chair and walking over to Chris, giving him a kiss in greeting. "Mmm, missed you."

"You weren't gone that long."

"Yeah, but you just got home yesterday, I'm still missing you from the month you were gone," Stephanie pouted, wrapping her arms around his neck and leaning up to kiss him gently. She heard Loretta and Ted saying, "aww," in the background and she giggled and pulled away. She was about to say something when she saw her parents entering from the winding staircase. "Hey Mom, hey Dad."

"Hello everyone," Linda said, walking over to give Loretta and Ted hugs. "It's nice to see you again. So I'm assuming you heard about our newest little grandson."

"Yes, we did," Loretta said, smiling widely. "Are you as excited as I am?"

"More," Linda joked. Vince came over and shook their hands, being a little more formal, but that was Vince's style.

Everyone turned rigid when Shane walked into the room with Marissa and Declan in tow, the latter in his father's arms. They created quite the picture right then. It was almost like a face-off, everyone against Shane and Marissa. They all just stared for a moment before Stephanie went over and hugged the other pregnant woman.

"Hey Ris, I hope my husband didn't drive like the crazy man he can be," Stephanie joked, trying to make the woman feel welcome.

"No, he was fine," Marissa said softly.

Everyone stood around for a few moments, neither side speaking, just staring at each other. To say that it was awkward would be a vast understatement. It went beyond awkward, to some place that neither side knew. Stephanie looked up at Chris and he looked down at her, but neither had anything to say. Stephanie rolled her eyes at the situation. Chris just answered her with a shrug. Finally he stepped forward.

"Ok, this is absolutely ridiculous," Chris said. "Look, things happened, that's life. Shane got married, it's not that big a deal in the long run. Stephanie and I almost got married in Vegas one time because she felt like it. Granted, we didn't, but we came very close, would you have shunned us if we had done that? I get that you're disappointed, but this is Christmas people, let's just forget about it for tonight. I for one, will be. Marissa, welcome to the family."

Stephanie smiled widely at her husband. "Chris is right."

"Yeah, I know," Chris said, letting Stephanie hug him around the waist.

"You're right," Linda said, smiling at her daughter. She went over to Marissa and gave her a hug. "You know we've always liked you Marissa, and I'm happy that Shane found someone as good a person as you."

"Thank you Linda," Marissa said, returning the hug eagerly.

Then Linda turned to the little boy in Shane's arms. "Hi there, do you remember me?"

"Uh uh," Declan shook his little head.

"I'm your grandma Linda," she said kindly. "Do you mind if I hold you?"

"Ok," he shrugged, and Linda took the child from Shane's arms.

After that, things got a lot more mellow and everyone was actually able to enjoy themselves. Chris and Stephanie had to field a lot of questions regarding the baby and how it was a boy and what they were going to do with a nursery. They also inquired the same questions of Marissa, since she was also due, a couple months before Stephanie. The night ended up being very fun for all parties involved.

_**Pittsburgh**_

"Kurt, your damn cell phone is ringing!"

Kurt looked up at his saw one of his brothers holding up his cell phone. Kurt nodded and his brother threw his cell phone straight at his head. Kurt grabbed it easily though and looked down at the display. It was a private number and he shrugged. It was probably Stephanie or Chris to wish him a Merry Christmas, except he had talked to them today.

"Hello?"

"Merry Christmas Kurt, it's Ashley."

"Hey," Kurt said, his voice trying to cover his surprise. "What's up?"

"I just wanted to wish you a merry Christmas," she said jovially. "I feel like I haven't talked to you in forever, it kind of sucks, don't you think?"

"Yeah, actually I do think it sucks."

"I'm totally regretting that I haven't gotten to go on that date with you, so I thought a little phone call would jog your memory on the fact that we haven't taken that rain check yet."

"I know, we really should take that rain check," he said, trying not to sound giddy. He was Kurt Angle, damn it, he didn't get giddy.

"Good, I'm glad that you think we should too, I think that'll be my New Year's resolution, to go on a date with you," Ashley flirted. "Will it be yours too?"

"If you want it to be."

"I want it to be," she said. "Well, Merry Christmas Kurt."

"Merry Christmas Ashley, I hope you get everything that you want."

"I think I already am, or at least I will soon," she told him, "Bye-bye Kurt."

It was Christmas Eve and all over North America, people were celebrating with their families, getting together and having fun, taking pictures, opening presents. There was laughter in many homes, sorrow in a few, joy in others. People hugged their family members a little bit tighter, said their words with a little more love.

In Connecticut, Stephanie and Chris were laughing over the fact that the baby was getting presents already. Some stuffed animals from Shane and Marissa, a car-seat from Chris's parents and a stroller from Vince and Linda. Stephanie was nestled in Chris's arms as he discussed upcoming matches with his father and her father. His hand was unconsciously rubbing her stomach and she could feel the baby moving around in there. She moved her hand to one part of her stomach and she felt Chris freeze.

She looked up at him and his eyes were wide as he felt a tiny nudge on his hand. It was practically imperceptible, not feeling much like anything, but the way she was smiling. It was the first time he had been able to feel the baby moving. It wasn't much, but it was something and Stephanie delighted in the wide grin that Chris gave her as he kept his hand on her stomach.

Across the room, Shane was sitting on the floor with his son, playing with the toys that Stephanie and Chris had given him. Above him, Marissa was sitting in an armchair, talking with Chris's mother about something that Shane wasn't paying attention to. Marissa was playing with his hair. Shane looked up at her and smiled, and she gave him a tiny smile back, thinking that this family thing was going to be great.

A few states over, Kurt was horsing around with his brothers, but his mind was preoccupied with thoughts of Ashley. Now that Shane was married with children, he saw an opening, and it seemed as if Ashley was willing to go out with him. He wondered what she was up to right now. He was excited about the prospect of finally not feeling like the third wheel in Stephanie and Chris's relationship and he couldn't wait for Raw so that he could see Ashley again.

Going up north, Trish was looking out the window as the night was turning darker and darker, the moon coming out to play with the stars. She sat in her room, hearing pots banging downstairs. She would head down soon, but she just wanted to sit here now, thinking, as she fiddled with the pendant on her necklace and thought about the man that was out there who had given it to her. Maybe he had bought it before he left her, maybe he had bought it right before he sent it, but the fact remained that he had sent it to her.

She would call him if he hadn't changed his cell phone number. She didn't tear up at that anymore. It was a comfort to her though, that for a moment, even if it was one, single, solitary moment, he thought about her, he remembered her. She didn't watch him in TNA, didn't think about him over there. He could've been flirting with all of the girls over there and she'd never know, but they had that moment, where he thought of her.

Not too far away a man sat. His older brother had been a pain in the ass and he needed to get away from him. He was gloating all over again about his new show, "The Cutting Edge," it was called, and he thought that was a stupid and cliché name for a show, any show. So here he sat, looking out the window, thinking about someone that he had been thinking about everyday for the past few months, hell, a girl he had thought about for the past few years. She couldn't escape his mind and she probably never would. As he sat there, something glinted in his hands, something that seemed incomplete somehow.

A silver pendant, a crescent shape missing from it.


	67. New Year, New Problems, January 2, 2006

A/N: Happy New Year! Hope everyone had a safe New Year celebration, and hope that 2006 goes well for all you readers.

I know I said there'd be a chapter last week, but I lied and I skipped it, and so this is up-to-date. The holidays have just been so busy, couldn't find a lot of time to write.

Anyways, enjoy the first chapter of the new year. And start the year off with a review. ;)

* * *

Chris was going over some tape that was going to be shown tonight to promote the Elimination Chamber for New Year's Revolution. If there was one consistently good thing about WWE, it was their video department. They were always making great promotional videos and if anything, they made you want to see something. This video however, didn't make him any more anxious to be in that Elimination Chamber match.

He felt two arms wrap around him from behind and he looked down to see two delicate hands snaking around his waist. He patted them companionably and felt her rest her head against his back. She snuggled into the soft cotton of his t-shirt, wondering how his shirt could be so soft. They used the same laundry detergent after all, and her clothes never got this soft.

"Tired?"

"When am I not tired?" she asked wearily. Pregnancy was starting to take its slow toll on her. She was getting tired a little more frequently now, and she was beginning to see why it would be necessary for her brother to take over for her. Speaking of her brother, he was somewhere here tonight with his new wife, and she would have to see for herself how Shane was dealing with this new family.

She and Chris had skipped Raw last week, Vince telling her and Chris that they could use a vacation. For once, Stephanie decided to take him up on his offer. She and Chris had flown to their home in California and spent the week out there. The weather wasn't great, but it was nice to get away and just spend the New Year by themselves. Not that they hated having Trish and Kurt living with them, but it was nice to get away.

"You're pregnant, you're allowed."

"I guess you're right, I just feel like my stamina is slowly being sucked out of my body and given to some young girl of twenty who has many years ahead of her to not be pregnant and have a child."

"Then I'm going to go find that twenty year old girl and seduce her because if she's got your stamina, then she must be great in bed."

Chris grunted as Stephanie knocked her fist into his stomach and he wheezed for a moment. Stephanie scowled against his back and then leaned up to look over his shoulder, which wasn't too difficult since Chris wasn't that much taller than she was. She saw the promotional video for the Elimination Chamber and she cringed as she saw the carnage that chamber had afforded its entrants.

"I'm glad that you're not in that match."

"You and me both."

"I always got so scared for you when you were in those matches. And with good reason, you got thrown through a damn chamber and you could've gotten seriously injured."

"I could've," he relented.

"Glad to know you care," Stephanie said sarcastically then groaned a little bit. "My back hurts."

"Your doctor said that's going to happen, as long as it doesn't become really bad. Is it really bad?"

"No, I think it's just aching because of all this excess weight," Stephanie told him. "I think I'm going to go lie down for a little while in my office. If you need me, that's where I'll be."

"Ok," Chris said, turning in her embrace and kissing her. "You know, I'm pretty much done here, why don't I just walk you back to your office."

"You sure? I don't want to feel like a nuisance."

"You've been a nuisance to me for years, why should now be any different?" Chris told her and she slugged him in the arm. "Hey, be careful, you want your kid to have a father don't you?"

"At this rate I'm starting to think that I can do this alone," she said as he grabbed her hand.

"Really? So that means I can run away with the girl I met in Paris a couple of weeks ago? Cool, I think I still have her number in my bag."

Stephanie sent him a death glare. "You better NOT have any girl's phone number in your bags."

"And if I do?"

"Then you better get acquainted with the sidewalk, cause that's where your ass is going to be if I ever catch you cheating on me."

"And what if I find a guy's number in something of yours, do I get to kick you out?" he asked impishly.

"You would kick out your pregnant wife?" she asked, trying her best to look innocent. "You would kick out your unborn child?"

"I'd keep you until he came along and then I'd kick you out and take my son."

Stephanie's jaw dropped. "You hate me that much?"

"Yeah, what can I say? I've hid it well these past few years."

"This year is not getting off to a good start," Stephanie giggled, leaning her head on his shoulder. "We haven't thought of a name yet."

"Well, I'm sure it'll come to us, but we can call him Baby Boy Jericho until then."

"I like the name Chase," she told him, checking his face, gauging what his reaction to the name would be.

"Too posh," Chris said, making a face. "I want our son to have a cool name, one he can be proud of. Not one he wants to run from. Besides, isn't Chase pretty common right now? I'm not up on my naming thing. I've never had to name anything except pets and I usually named them after rock stars."

"No, we're not doing that!" Stephanie said, shaking her head adamantly. She turned and saw Hunter walking over and she smiled to herself. Chris glanced over at what she had just looked out and groaned quietly.

"Great, I get to see first hand the budding relationship of Stephanie McMahon-Jericho and Hunter Hearst Helmsley," Chris said, giving her the mother of all eye-rolls.

"Chris, be nice."

"Uh uh sweetheart. YOU can be nice all you want, but I refuse to be anything," Chris told her.

"Hi Hunter," Stephanie said politely as Hunter walked over, as usual, in a nice suit and sunglasses on indoors, like he was too good for everyone. Chris didn't say anything, just gripped Stephanie's hand a little tighter.

"Hey Steph, Chris," Hunter said, nodding towards the man.

"Hey," Chris said noncommittally, wanting to be anywhere but here. He could not stand Hunter, and he never would be able to stand the man. He knew Stephanie thought he was up to something, but a big part of him thought that Stephanie really did want to be friends with the man, and be able to put the past behind her. Chris wasn't naïve as to his wife's wishes. Chris had never been married before so he didn't know how it would feel to interact with his ex-wife on a weekly basis. He believed that Stephanie just wanted to be able to put the past behind her.

He trusted her with Hunter though, because he trusted Stephanie. He didn't trust Hunter any more than he could throw the Big Show, and Chris could not throw the Big Show, so that showed the trust that Chris had for Hunter. Hunter was always conniving, manipulating and that would never change. Even when he was being "good," he was still up to his tricky ways. But he trusted in Stephanie and he had built a solid relationship on that trust.

"You weren't here last week," Hunter said to her.

"Oh, Chris and I went away for the week, just to get away."

"Sounds like fun."

"Hey baby," Chris said, and Stephanie turned her head towards him.

"Yes sweetie?"

"I'm going to go see what Trish is up to," Chris told her. "I'll catch you later."

"You sure?" she asked, pulling him a little closer.

"No, it's cool, I should go see how she is anyways, last time I checked up with her, she was going freaking nuts or something and somebody has to be the one to calm her down."

"And you're just the man to do the job?"

"I might as well try. And I'll try not to bring up that kiss, besides, I liked it better when you and Trish made out in the dark room."

Stephanie blushed furiously. "Chris!"

"You're never going to live that one down baby," Chris said, leaning over to kiss her, then he leant down near her stomach. "See you later kid."

Chris walked away and Stephanie turned to Hunter, who had a very confused look on his face. "Trish and I never made out, we were spying on someone and we were in a room, and when Chris and Christian caught us, Trish blurted out that we were making out and nobody will just let it go and it was like a year ago."

Hunter laughed, amused. "Sounds funny…so Chris still hates me huh?"

"Do you blame him?"

"Not really," Hunter shrugged. "You guys fought about it then? Cause he was out of here pretty fast."

"No, he doesn't care."

"He doesn't?" Hunter asked, shocked. "He doesn't care that you're friends with your ex-husband?"

"No," Stephanie said nonchalantly. "Chris lets me choose who to be friends with. He doesn't get to control what I say or do, or whom I speak to. If he did, I doubt I'd be with him right now."

"Wow, that's really big of him."

"Chris is like that," she said dreamily.

Chris had found Trish jogging up and down the stairs in one of the back areas of the arena. He stood there for a few minutes and she didn't seem to notice him so he went and sat on the steps that she wasn't jogging up and down. She seemed pretty intent on what she was doing and he was curious as to what she was thinking about.

"Trish!" he yelled and startled, she tripped over a stepped and threw her hands in front of her. Chris flew up from where he had been sitting and went to her side where she was panting heavily. "Trish, are you ok?"

"Yeah, yeah, fine," she said in between breaths. She sat down on the step. "I'm fine, really."

"How long have you been doing this?"

"Not too long," Trish answered, but judging from the way she was sweating, he would have to say that it was a little longer than not too long. "What are you doing here?"

"Stephanie's with her new boy-toy," Chris said, annoyed. "Thought I'd come see how you were doing. Haven't gotten to talk to you much since Steph and I went away, hope you kept the house in working order."

"Yeah, it's still there. Kurt and I didn't burn it down."

"Good. So why are you running like a madwoman? Mickie?"

"Is one of my problems yes," Trish nodded. "She's seriously starting to frighten me. I mean, not in the sense that she's dangerous. But she's definitely got this creepy vibe about her. I can't quite put my finger on it…not to mention she freaking kissed me last week. I'm sorry, but I don't swing that way."

Chris laughed, "I thought it was creepy of her to do that too. I wonder what…"

"What? What do you wonder?" Trish asked.

"Nothing," Chris said, shaking his head.

"No, tell me."

"Nothing."

"Tell me," she urged.

"Trish, it's nothing."

She shoved a fist in his face. "Tell me now or I'm going to punch you."

"Geez, all the women in my life want to punch me tonight," Chris responded. "I was just wondering if Christian was watching and what his reaction would be."

"You've talked to Christian?" Trish asked desperately, her voice hitching and her hands immediately flying to the necklace that he had given her.

"No, I haven't heard from him since he left," Chris said, disappointing Trish. "Sorry."

"Unfortunately, there's only one person in this entire company that has probably seen Christian within the past couple weeks, and he's been nothing but an ass for a really, really long time."

"I'm really sorry," he said, not knowing if anything would help the blonde.

"It's fine," she said. "I've got a date with Shelton coming up, I'm moving on, I'm doing ok. I mean, it won't be the same, but I can move on, nobody said I couldn't move on. I'm not going to end up some old, pathetic spinster or anything."

Chris rubbed her back gently. She looked down and she just sighed. She missed Christian, and she was so scared to admit that without him, she just felt sort of empty. It wasn't a feeling that she couldn't get over, she definitely could, she just wondered if she would ever get that feeling again, with anyone. She was starting to doubt it as each second ticked by, but she had to hold on to something.

"And then there's this Mickie thing, and she's weird Chris. She's just, she's weird, and she's always hanging around me, even when I don't want her to, and I don't know what to do about it, she never leaves me alone! I want her to leave me alone."

Chris took Trish's face in his hand and rubbed his thumb over her cheek. "Trish, look at me."

"What?" she asked pitifully.

"I don't know," he laughed. "But I felt like you were going crazy and you just need to stop."

Trish laughed. "I know."

She placed her hand on top of his, which was still on her face and she leaned forward to kiss him on the cheek. "Cheating on my sister Chris, this is so not going to bode well for you."

Chris turned to Shane. "You caught me, now can you go away again so I can screw around some more."

"Hey there pretty girl," Shane said and Trish hopped up from her seat and threw her arms around Shane.

"Hey there married man," Trish teased back. "Where's the missus?"

"I think she and Stephanie are lamenting over the fact that they're pregnant and various parts of their body are aching."

"So it wouldn't be a good idea to go see them then? Seeing as how I'm not pregnant and I wouldn't want them to kill me because I don't have to go through that stuff," Trish said.

"That would probably be best, now care to explain why you were putting the designs on my sister's husband?" Shane joked.

Chris stood up and came over and Trish wrapped her arms around his waist. "Oh you know, can't resist, and with Stephanie pregnant, Chris is going to have to find some…carnal pleasure elsewhere."

"Yeah, and since Trish sleeps just down the hall, it'll be a piece of cake sneaking into her room at night. We've thought it all out."

"Sounds like you have."

"Excuse me," another voice interrupted their joking. The threesome turned to see an African-American woman standing there.

"Yes?" Trish asked kindly.

"Hello, I was wondering if you could tell me where I can find Shelton Benjamin?" she asked politely.

"Oh, um," Chris thought, remembering what the list had said earlier. "I think his locker room is number 113, if you go down his hallway, and turn right, you should be able to find it, it has his name on it if you're confused."

"Thank you, you've been a great help," she said as she continued past them.

"Mother?" Trish asked.

"Yeah, probably," Shane said.

"That reminds me, I should go talk to Shelton before the night is over about our date. I wonder when he wants to go on it. Actually, I wonder where he lives…"

"You're cheating on me Trish?" Chris kidded.

"Yeah, see, you're married and your wife is my best friend and that's just not cool."

Speaking of his wife, Stephanie was sitting with her legs propped up on the coffee table in front of her. Marissa was in a similar position. The two McMahon women were in varying degrees of uncomfortable because of their pregnancies. Stephanie placed her hand on her stomach, where for once, the baby seemed to not be moving around in there.

"So how much do you ache?" Marissa asked.

"Not so bad, but I'm just tired. Work is the last thing on my mind right now. I think that's why my dad is here for the foreseeable future, and I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm glad that he's here."

Marissa patted her arm. "So truthfully, how much does Chris help around the house?"

"Actually, Chris has always been pretty helpful around the house, I think it's because he lived alone for twelve years before I moved in, so he's been pretty self-sufficient for a long time, and I can't cook for anything, so Chris does most of the cooking."

"Can I come live with you?" Marissa asked, and she was only partly joking.

"You could, but we have no more room at the inn. We're booked solid. And I guess that's your way of saying that my brother does nothing."

"He tries…and fails," Marissa laughed. "I mean, I've been with Shane before, but we've never lived together and I guess it's just a learning process. The one positive is that he's great with D, and that's the best I could've hoped for."

"I always knew Shane would make a good father. I have the same hopes for Chris."

"From everything I know about him, I don't think he could be a bad one."

"Here's hoping," Stephanie said, crossing her fingers. "So I guess married life has been treating you pretty well."

"As well as I could hope for, we've only been married two weeks tomorrow, and my parents were just as upset as your parents were, thinking we were too old to be so irresponsible, but you know what, it was my decision and Shane's and not theirs and if they don't accept that, fine, they'll accept it when they won't be able to see their grandchildren."

"So you're keeping this one a surprise then?"

"Yeah, last time, I knew I was having a boy and I just want this to be a surprise. It makes the birth a little more bearable."

"Oh, don't remind me," Stephanie cringed. "That's the part I'm not anticipating."

Vince walked into the room and saw his daughter and new daughter-in-law lounging on the couch. Stephanie got up with a slight wince from the pain in her back. "Did you need something Dad? Or are you too busy being a jerk to everyone again?"

"And just what is that supposed to mean young lady?"

"Just that you always have to be a jerk to everyone," Stephanie said. "I mean, why pick a vendetta on Shawn Michaels now? It seems stupid to me Dad."

"Stephanie, I don't ask for your opinion on what I do on MY show."

"Fine Dad, just saying. I mean, I've held many a vendetta in my life, and it's just not the way to go sometimes, but it is your show, and not even Mom can control anything that you do."

"I'm not asking for you to approve of what I do Stephanie."

"Fine Dad, I don't care, I'll be gone for months anyways."

"Yes you will."

"Well don't act so happy about it," Stephanie said. "I don't know about you sometimes Daddy, you just seem to hold on too tight, and then you act like an…ass!"

"Don't speak to me that way young lady."

Stephanie frowned and walked out of the room. She had nothing against Shawn Michaels and she hated that her father had decided everything was going to be about him from now on. Deep down, it scared her because her father was so temperamental; she didn't want to get fired again. She knew he would do it too, if he wanted to. It hadn't stopped him from choking her with a wrench, or firing her, or making her beg on her knees, or rejecting her Christmas present. She was walking too fast and she suddenly got very tired and having to sit down, she found the nearest chair and collapsed in it.

A hallway over, Kurt was leaning against the wall, talking to Ashley. "So try not to get too bloody tonight."

"Is that your way of saying that you don't want me to win?" Kurt asked playfully.

"Well, I saw you earlier mouthing off to Vince. It's not cool what you're saying about the troops, you know that right?"

"Yeah, I have a conscience, believe it or not. But its better if the fans hate me, motivates me more so I mouth off any way I see fit. Just happened to fit."

"Yeah, but it might change my opinion of you," she said, tugging at the collar of his t-shirt. "You wouldn't want that right?"

"No, but I might if we don't get that rain-check," he told her.

"Just name the day and I'm there…did I mention that Shane had to like dump me because he got married? It was…surreal, I've never had a guy that I've gone out with, however casual, tell me that he got married. I had heard the rumors, but well, crazy huh?"

"I knew actually, but yeah, the circumstances were strange."

"I heard he's got two kids with this woman. True? False?"

"True," Kurt confirmed. "A two year old son and another on the way."

"Wow, so was I like a rebound or something? Not that I slept with him or anything," she added quickly.

"No, apparently, they've been on and off for the past nine years."

"Wow, I cannot imagine doing that for that long," she said. "Anyways, it was surreal, but now I have time to devote my time to…other people."

"What other people? I may have to go break their legs."

"That's not very nice."

"I'm not paid to be nice," Kurt said, leaning in closer. Ashley licked her lips a little as she stared into his blue, blue eyes.

"What are you paid to do?" she asked coyly.

"Well, I'm not paid to do this," Kurt said, leaning ever closer to her. His lips were softly brushing against hers when they heard a woman screaming, almost in surround sound, like it was all around them. Ashley pulled away from Kurt and looked around.

"Who is that?" she inquired.

"I don't know," Kurt said, looking around as well. "It sounded like it was coming from the arena."

"Oh no," Ashley said, "I better go check this out. Will you wait for me here?"

"I'll be around, yeah," Kurt said and watched her run off to go see what was going on out in the ring. He cursed a little to himself; it would figure that right when he was about to kiss Ashley, she had to run off to possibly save someone. If he had pockets right now, he would've shoved his hands in them and walked off dejectedly, but he didn't, so he just walked off dejectedly on his own.

He turned the corner and saw Stephanie sitting on a folding chair, eyes closed, one hand on her lower back and the other on her stomach. Kurt went over to her and knelt down, starting to rub her back because that looked to be where the trouble was if the wincing Stephanie was doing every so often was any indication.

"Hey Kurt," Stephanie said without opening her eyes.

"How'd you know it was me?" Kurt asked, knowing that she hadn't seen him.

"Because I know your cologne," Stephanie said. "You live at my house, I've gotten used to it, so I knew it was you, and your hands feel wonderful."

"In pain?"

"Just a dull ache, nothing to be concerned about. I called my doctor and she said that unless it got really bad, aches and pains are normal. It's just all kind of hitting me right now, what with work. The added stress of being here does not agree with my body."

"Yeah, and the fact that stuff is going on in the ring does not agree with my body either."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Sit up a little bit and turn the other way so you're sideways on the chair," Kurt instructed her. Stephanie did as she was told and Kurt sat on the ground behind her back and started massaging her aching muscles in earnest. "What that means is that I was about to kiss Ashley and then we heard whoever was screaming out in the ring and she went to go save whoever it was, or kick ass, one or the other."

"You…were…WHAT!"

"About to kiss her," Kurt explained. "Yeah, yeah, I know, about time right, but these things take time Steph. Not all of us sleep with someone two days after their first date."

"Oh, was that a dig towards me?" Stephanie said sardonically. "Were you insulting my sense of propriety?"

"It was a dig towards you, yes."

"I'm not easy, if that's what you think Kurt Angle," she scolded him genially. "Chris and I had practically been ripping each other's clothes off with our eyes since we were business partners."

"Before."

"Before what?"

"When you two hated each other, sometimes I thought you'd just go ahead and do it in the ring, maybe up against a ring post."

"Hmm…up against a ring post eh?"

"Eh? Have you been picking up Canadian from Chris…and I'm not even going to get into why you are even contemplating doing Chris against a ring post. Should a pregnant woman be, I don't know, like that word, what's that word, you know, the one where a woman is all like, motherly while she's pregnant, come on, you know the word…"

"I don't know the word," she shook her head.

"You KNOW the word," he insisted, "It starts with an N or something, nesting! That's it, nesting, why do I know that word?"

"Oh, nesting, yeah, I know what that is."

"You're not a nester."

"No, I'm not," Stephanie agreed. "But who's to say that I won't be all motherly when the baby comes. Maybe I'll be all doting and heralding the miracle and you know, all of that stuff."

"Not you, not my Stephanie."

"I'm going to kill her!" They heard Trish yell from down the hallway.

"I'm going to take one guess," Kurt whispered to Stephanie. "Mickie--"

"James," Stephanie finished.

"She's going to yell at us."

"Yeah, she's going to scare the baby," Stephanie laughed.

A few moments later, Trish stormed to where they were and seeing a familiar face, two actually, she stalked over to them, plopping herself down on the table in front of Stephanie's chair, dangling her legs over the side.

"I'm going to kill her," Trish said.

She couldn't believe the nerve of Mickie. To come up to her in the shower and steal her towel because that was the only way to get her attention? That was bull and Trish knew it. The girl was annoying to the nth degree, and if these were mind games, they were working. It went beyond mind games, it was to the point where Trish was about to go insane from this girl.

First with that awkward kiss last week. Trish didn't like being forced to kiss anyone, let alone another woman. It was disgusting, and with her mind already occupied with thoughts of Christian, the last thing she needed was Mickie James doing anything with her. And then her comment tonight, why would you look at someone like that and make a blatant comment? Mickie had no decency whatsoever, no tact at all, and she was annoying to boot. She had no redeeming qualities whatsoever. Trish had never had a stalker before, but she so sympathized with anyone who had.

"Mickie?" Kurt queried.

"Yeah, she took my towel in the shower and then she like, held it open for me, like, I'm going to step into the towel and let her dry me off or something. And then she told me I had nice boobs! Who does that! She's beyond annoying now, she's entered the realm of like obsessed. I shudder to think of what her house looks like, because if there are pictures of me all over the place, I'm getting a restraining order."

"She walked in on you in the shower?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah! I couldn't believe it either. I mean, come on, give me just one iota of privacy. Is that too much to ask? I live in a house with three other people, and all of you guys know, hey, when the showers running, maybe she wants some privacy."

"Well, we do have our own bathrooms," Kurt pointed out. "And I'm trying to get with Ashley, and well, seeing you naked would probably hurt those chances."

"I'm so glad my life is a joke to you Kurt," Trish said sarcastically. "I'm so glad you're getting a real kick out of this."

"Just beat her up on Sunday Trish, it's what I plan to do to Cena and the rest of the idiots in the Elimination Chamber. Once you beat her up good, she'll get the message."

"Kurt, do you realize how dangerous the Elimination Chamber is?"

"Yeah, Chris and I discussed it."

"Oh, well ok then," Stephanie said, humbled. "I don't care what you do, just don't stop massaging me."

"Yes your highness," Kurt deadpanned. "Will you allow me to leave when my match is up?"

"Maybe."

Trish saw Gregory Helms approaching them and he came over to stand next to her. She looked at him for a moment and then held her hands out. "What do you want?"

He looked her over. "Heard you were available, and I wanted to come see the goods for myself."

"If that was a line, it sucked," Trish said.

"Just keep me in mind beautiful," he said, running his hand down her jaw. "I don't mean to be forward, but I think that you can use someone like me, think about it."

"Hey man, leave the girl alone," Kurt said.

"If she wants me to."

"I do."

"Then til later beautiful," he said, walking away, but not before winking at her from above his sunglasses. If Trish squinted, he sort of looked like Christian, although they had different hair colors and voices, but the way they dressed and the short hair. She sighed, it really was never going to be the same.

"Do I have a sign on my back that says, 'Now open for business,' or something, because suddenly everyone and their mother is coming on to me."

"Poor Trish, she's so desirable," Stephanie said.

"Hey, I wish I were married so I wouldn't have to worry about all this junk with dating. Do you know how complicated it is?"

"She's right," Kurt said. "Very complicated."

"Yeah, and disturbing."

Kurt crawled over to where Trish was sitting and knelt in front of her. "Trish Stratus, will you marry me?"

"Oh Kurt," Trish said, placing a hand over her heart. "This is so unexpected! I never would've guessed that you would propose to me, and so sweet too. I must say yes!"

Kurt stood up and grabbed Trish and spun her around. "Mrs. Trish Angle, I like it."

"Oh me too," she said, staying in his arms. "Stephanie, will you be my maid of honor?"

"Sure, but on one stipulation, I don't want to hear anything from either of your bedroom, I will be scarred for life if I hear a headboard banging against the wall."

"Ok, we'll keep it down, just for you."

Trish laughed. "I'm going to go see Shelton about our date, as long as I'm open for business, I might as well keep the customers happy."

Trish hugged Kurt one more time and walked off, intending to find Shelton, knowing that he had a match earlier, but it should've been finished by now. Seeing Hunter on the television all but confirmed that notion. She searched for Shelton's locker room, but had a difficult time finding it. She finally came across it and knocked lightly on the door. He answered a moment later.

"Hey Trish," he smiled.

"Hey Shelton, I just wanted to discuss this date you wanted to take me on."

"Oh yeah, sorry I haven't gotten back to you on that."

"It's not a problem," Trish said. "We've been busy, so do you want to talk about it now?"

"Yeah, sure," Shelton said and then Trish saw the woman from earlier.

"Oh, you're the polite young woman from earlier," she said. "I'm sorry I didn't catch your name, but I'm pretty sure you're Trish Stratus, right?"

"Yeah, that's me," Trish said, sticking her hand out, shaking her hand. "And you must be Shelton's mother."

"Indeed I am, and what can we do for you?"

"Mom," Shelton said, embarrassed that his mother was right there.

"Oh, I was just discussing a date that I was supposed to go on with your son."

"Date?" she asked. "Oh no, I don't think so child."

"What?" Shelton said. "Ma…"

"You need to practice so you don't get your ass whooped anymore. There'll be no time for dates, I'm sorry Trish, but Shelton is going to have to cancel on you."

"Oh," Trish said, frowning slightly. "Well, if he has to prepare…"

"Yes, he does, don't you Shelton?"

"Ma, come on, it's not a big deal."

"Uh uh boy, don't you sass me," she told him. "I'm not going to watch you lose anymore, you are much better than you've been lately."

"That's true," Trish said. "You're really great Shelton, some of the moves you do are amazing, and the counters you have, you're really great. Maybe focusing on your wrestling isn't such a bad idea right now. It'll only help you in the long run."

"I'm really sorry about this Trish."

"No, don't be," she said, resting her hand on his arm. "We'll just reschedule at some point in the future."

"That's a promise I'm going to keep."

"I'll hold you to that," she said as she said her goodbyes and walked away. She sighed, another one bites the dust. At this rate, she was going to end up with Gregory Helms, and if she squinted just the right way, she could pretend he was Christian.

Chris sat with Shane who was directing the announcers on what to say and what not. But Chris was bored. His job was done for the night, and he had nothing to do. He didn't envy the wrestlers going into the Elimination Chamber, but he sort of missed wrestling. He was still working out since he wanted to stay in shape and sometimes he would do some light aerobics with Stephanie so she wouldn't be lonely while she was working to stay in shape with the baby. So if he wanted, he could still wrestle just as well as when he left.

He didn't notice Hunter coming over to him until he was right in front of the table. Chris looked up and said blandly. "May I help you?"

"I wanted to talk to you."

Chris glanced at Shane, who was too engrossed in the match in front of him to notice the situation. "So talk."

"Alone."

"Gonna beat me up?"

"No."

Chris stood up, stuffing his hands into his jean pockets and walked a few feet away. "So out with it, what do you want?"

"Stephanie told me that you let her be friends with me."

"I didn't LET her be friends with you," Chris said, like it was the most preposterous thing he'd ever heard. "She wanted to be friends with you, and Stephanie can think by herself."

"Fine, my word choice was poor."

"So what is this about anyways, I don't have all night to talk to you."

"Look, I know you don't like that I'm friends with Stephanie."

"I don't really care," Chris said. "I trust my wife. I don't trust you at all, and in fact I hate your guts, but I trust my wife."

"I don't want Stephanie to have to waver between the two of us."

Chris laughed heartily. "Waver? Are you delusional Trips? She's MY wife, we're not both vying for her attention. She sleeps next to me at night, if she wants to spend ten, fifteen, twenty minutes with you, hell a couple of hours with you, I'm not going to suddenly curl up in a ball and suck my thumb."

"I know that, but we're friends now and I don't want it to be awkward between us."

"Trips, it's always going to be awkward between us. Think about it for a second, genius, we've feuded a million times, and we've both been married to the same woman, how is that not going to be awkward?"

"Ok, but I wanted to propose a truce with you, for however long Stephanie and I are friends."

"A truce? With the guy who stabbed another guy with a pen and broke his hand? With the guy who had me beaten with a sledgehammer so badly I had to go to the hospital? Yeah, that'll happen," he said, an eye-roll punctuating his point.

"For your kid then? Stephanie doesn't need the added stress."

"Oh, don't you bring my son into this," Chris said angrily. "This has nothing to do with my kid Trips. This has everything to do with the fact that I don't trust you around my wife. I know that she wouldn't do anything to me, but you, you I don't trust."

"I'm not out for anything. And yeah, I took a lot of anger out on Big Show, but you're married to Stephanie, and she's pregnant and I don't know how low you think I am Jericho--"

"Lower than low," he answered. "Just to clear that up for you."

"Fine, but I would never do anything to her while she was pregnant. I'm not that low."

"You better not be that low," Chris warned. "Because if you do anything, and I mean ANYTHING to harm my son, I will hunt you down, and I will do something so bad to you, I can't even say it right now, because it would cause you to faint. My kid is the most important thing in the world to me, and I will not let you even think about hurting him."

"I wouldn't, and that's a promise."

"I'm just giving you a friendly warning Trips, don't cross me when it comes to my son."

"Then truce it is?" Hunter said, sticking out his hand.

Chris grabbed his hand and shook it, "But only because I love my wife." Before Hunter knew what was happening, Chris pulled him close and whispered harshly. "But if you screw me over Trips, then you'll pay."

And thus started the world's most tenuous truce.


	68. I Must Be Psychic, January 9, 2006

"Would I be way too cliché to say that I feel fat?"

"Yes."

"You didn't have to answer so quickly," Stephanie complained. "I feel bloated."

"Thanks for sharing," Kurt said, making a face. "Why aren't you complaining to your husband or something? I'm sure he'll be sympathetic to your plight."

"Because you're here and he's not, but I do feel fat, look at this," Stephanie pouted, pulling her shirt tight against her stomach. "Look at how big I'm getting. Yeah, the doctor says that it's normal and I should be gaining like a pound a week, but I'm getting huge!"

"You're just going to get bigger, you're only what…"

"Twenty-four weeks," she answered. "I've got sixteen weeks left, can you believe that? Sixteen weeks and then I'm going to have a son. A little boy. He doesn't even have a name."

"Still no go on the name?"

"Nope, Chris hates all the names I come up with, and he's not exactly Mr. Helpful. Sixteen weeks to prepare for being a mother. That's crazy Kurt. This whole thing is crazy. What was I thinking, believing I could have a baby, I can't have a baby!"

"Why are you freaking out now?"

"Because I can," she answered, batting her eyelashes. "I'm just nervous is all. I mean, you and Chris painted the new nursery last week, and we got a stroller and a car-seat for the baby at Christmas and we're getting a crib this week, and it's like, this is really happening."

"Didn't the stomach provide you with some sense of reality?"

"No," she said sardonically. "I'm just saying that in sixteen weeks, I'm going to be someone's mother, and that's not…that's a scary thing. I just don't know if I'm ready for that kind of thing. I don't know if I'm ready to be someone's mother, anyone's mother. I've never even thought about it before."

"Does Chris know how you feel, because it seems like this would be something you'd want to discuss with him. Just a thought."

"I don't know, maybe he knows, I've mentioned it. He's so happy though, and I don't want to curb his happiness with doubts about my own maternal ability. I've never been maternal for anything in my life, I don't know how I'm going to start now."

"Yeah, but I bet you're going to love your kid," Kurt told her.

"I already love my kid, that's not the problem," Stephanie said, rubbing her stomach gently. "The problem is whether I'll be good for the kid or not. I love my parents, they weren't the greatest growing up, I don't exactly have a good model to follow. What if I end up like they do?"

"You're not your parents Steph."

"I know I'm not my parents, but I could end up like them. I'm already told I'm too much like my father. So I'm already starting off on the wrong foot."

"Stephanie, you're your own person, and if anything, I think you're going to be a great mom to your son. I don't see how you couldn't be."

"You just say that because you love me," Stephanie said. "I bet you if I asked someone who hates me, they'd think that I'd be like a witch or something to my kid, locking him up, whipping him, making him do menial labor."

"Then don't ask someone who hates you." Stephanie rolled her eyes at that. "Stephanie, have a little more confidence in yourself and your abilities."

"This isn't work Kurt. If this were work, there's no doubt I'd know that I'm the best, and I could do anything. This is way more serious. This little boy will be mine to raise for the next eighteen years, how in the hell can I raise someone for eighteen years? I've barely raised myself in the past eighteen years. I married an asshole and then acted like a bitch for more than two years, how in the hell can I raise someone when I'm screwed up?"

"You're not screwed up, not anymore. You have Chris and he's stable, and he's always been stable, and he's always going to be stable. You can count on him."

"Yeah," she sighed. "I can count on him."

"You'll be a great mother, I know you will be. You're a different person now. You've really matured in the time I've known you. You're not a little girl anymore, you're an adult now and you actually act like one."

"You think I've matured?" she asked hopefully.

"Yeah, I definitely think you've matured," Kurt nodded. "I've known you since you were twenty-three, and you are definitely not the same girl you were when you were twenty-three."

"I don't want to screw him up," Stephanie said, her voice pitiful. She bit her lip and looked at Kurt with sad eyes. "I really don't want to screw him up. I want my son's life to be a good one, not filled with manipulation and plans and anger or hatred. That's why I really accepted Hunter's friendship. I just don't want my little boy to have to grow up looking over his shoulder. I don't know if Hunter has designs on me, but if he's being sincere, I'm going to be his friend because I want my little boy to be able to look around not knowing that his mother has enemies."

"You're not going to screw him up Stephanie. Little boys love their mommies. He's going to love you. He'll love you even more if you name him Kurt."

"Yeah right," Stephanie laughed. "Think again buddy, my son's name is not going to be Kurt."

"You feeling better now?"

"A little thanks," Stephanie said.

"Ok, well, I'm going to go, I have other girls to talk to, who have to make sure that I survived the scary Elimination Chamber."

"Oh, someone's going to go make-out in a broom closet with a certain diva named Ashley," Stephanie teased good-naturedly.

Kurt flipped her off. "I haven't even gotten the chance to kiss her, which is why I'm leaving you in the dust right now, because I want to go see if I'm ever going to have a chance to get her in the broom closet."

"Don't get caught."

Kurt walked over and kissed her on the cheek. "See you later Steph."

"You will," she confirmed and watched him as he left. She sat back in her comfy leather desk chair. It really was comfortable, and thank goodness for that because she was starting to ache all over, and her feet were slowly disappearing from her sight. She knew pregnancy was never going to be a walk in the park, but she hadn't realized that some parts of her body could ache so much, or in some cases, ache at all. It would only get worse too as her son got bigger and found less room in her abdomen. She had read about how your body parts actually move, and that was a really gross thought.

She also thought about how her son would only start kicking her harder and harder, and that wasn't all that pleasant a thought either. He was already moving around a lot in there, but she knew that he was only going to get stronger and stronger. She rubbed her stomach thoughtfully, he was quiet right now, no moving around in there. She was thankful for that because sometimes he would be rather rude and give her a rather hard shove from the inside.

She rubbed her eyes and groaned. Her eyes had been dry for the past week or so, another fun gift of her pregnancy. She had had to stop wearing contacts the past week because her eyes were becoming irritated. She removed her glasses and grabbed her eye-drops from her bag, tilting her head back and squirting a couple drops into each eye.

"Wow, sexy," Chris said as he walked inside. "This is totally turning me on."

Stephanie blinked a few times to get the eye-drops all over her eye. She looked at her husband who was blurry at the moment. She grabbed her glasses and looked at him. "This is all your fault, you know."

"Your eyes being dry is my fault?" he asked, sitting down across from her.

"Yes, because you got me pregnant."

"Oh," Chris nodded. "Yeah, that was my fault. I just took you and had sex with you until I knew you were going to be pregnant. It was all part of my evil, dastardly plan to make you have my child! And you little fool, it worked!"

"I hurt, and I feel bloated, and my eyes are dry, and my stomach is huge," she lamented.

"Stephy, baby, come here," Chris said, opening up his arms and his lap to her. She got out of her seat and walked over to him, letting herself sit down in his lap. "How are you?"

"Well, I guess I'm ok, with the baby--"

"No, this isn't about him right now. How are YOU?"

"Scared," she admitted. "Every week, I'm just scared."

"Why are you scared?" he asked, brushing some of her hair out of her face and kissing her softly. "What is there to be scared of?"

"Being responsible for someone else, that's a huge responsibility Chris."

"It is," he said. "But you're not going to be doing it alone you know."

"I know," she said. "I'm just scared I'll screw up his life. And that's the last thing in the world I want to do Chris, really. I've never been more serious about anything; I want our son to be happy every single day of his life."

"We'll make sure that happens. Didn't I shake Hunter's hand last week? Even though the last thing that bastard deserves is to have us as friends. But I'm willing to do anything to ensure that our son has a happy childhood."

She smiled. "You're amazing."

"And you're beautiful, pregnant or not."

"I'd question you, but you're not a liar…and thank you for shaking Hunter's hand, I know I've told you like a million times over the past week, but it means a lot to me. I know you didn't want to do it, but, I really just want the past behind me."

"I know, I want you to be able to do that too. Not that you're having problems moving on or anything, but I can understand wanting to just move on from that part of your life. That horrible, ugly part of your life."

She laughed. "I love you."

"I'd be lying if I said I didn't love you back."

And you're not a liar," she repeated. "I'm still scared."

"Hey, we all get scared sometimes. Granted, I've never seen you really afraid of anything, but then again, you've never faced anything like this before, neither have I. Maybe I'm scared too."

"Nah, you don't get scared."

"Hell yeah I do, but only when it concerns you," he winked. "So are you up for working tonight or what?"

"I'm not," Stephanie shrugged, "I'm not going to be the one responsible for this Edge/Lita thing that's going on tonight. But I bet you can guess who is going to be taking care of it."

"Um…hold on…your dad?"

"Ding, ding, ding," Stephanie said, sighing. "Normally, I would be livid with my father barging in here, but I'm sorry, sex in the ring, however kinky that is, and…intriguing, I don't want any part of that. Let them think I'm incompetent."

"I know you're not incompetent," he whispered in her ear, kissing her in the space below it gently. "You could run circles around your brother and dad if you wanted to. They're just watching out for you baby, that's why they intervene."

"I know," she said, turning to face him, touching her forehead to his. "But that's what I have you for."

"And I take that job very seriously," he told her, placing his hand on her stomach. "You don't look fat by the way. I don't think you ever could look anything less than beautiful."

"It's the clothes, I probably shouldn't spend so much on maternity clothes, since after I have this one, it'll probably be a while before we have another, and by then, they might be out of style."

"Another one?"

"A little girl," she confessed. He grinned impishly at her. "Shut up. I'd like a little girl too. I mean, if it's in the cards for us."

"I wouldn't mind that," he said, then paused. "Wait, did you say sex in the ring would be intriguing!"

She laughed. "Took you a while to catch on there."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, you think that sex in the ring would be a good idea?" he asked seriously. "I mean, if we were to have sex, the ring would be one of the places you would like to do it in?"

"It would be a strong possibility."

"Wow," Chris whispered, his eyes going blank. "If I had known that…"

"If you had known that what…"

"Well, I would've done it a long time ago…just not in front of millions of people. Surprisingly enough, I do have some sense of propriety. But once the kid is born, we're going to have to discuss this a little more extensively."

Stephanie leaned down to kiss him softly, "Oh don't worry, we will."

Kurt was on his way to find Ashley and see what she was up to. He was pretty happy to have someone to check up on during the shows that didn't include anyone he was currently living with. Having Ashley, sort of, was a refreshing change in his life. And his backstage life was very different from his onstage one. He was not the asshole he portrayed, but playing a part so the fans would hate him. It was a strange way to be, but he liked it that way.

"Kurt!"

He turned around and saw Ashley bounding towards him. She threw her arms around him as she approached, hugging him tightly. "It's great to see you again."

"You too Ash," he said, hugging her back. "I was just looking for you."

"What for?" she said sweetly, pulling away from him. "For what reason would you want to see me?"

"Oh, I don't know, just to look at you I guess," he flirted.

"Why did you want to look at me?"

"Have you seen yourself? What guy wouldn't want to look at you," he winked. "I don't know one straight guy who wouldn't want to look at you."

"You flatter me too much," she said, kissing his cheek. "But I can't be all over you tonight, I've got a match for the women's championship, and I want to be in tip-top shape."

"I can help you get in tip-top shape," Kurt said lecherously. Ashley gave a mock gasp and placed her hand over her heart like she was going to faint or something.

"Why Kurt, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were trying to get me to bed," Ashley said, adopting a thick southern accent, "and a true lady never just goes to bed with a man who hasn't even taken her out to dinner."

"Who said you were a lady?" he joked.

"Well that was a blow," she said, wrapping her arms around her neck. "But seriously, what's going on between us? There IS something going on between us right? I'm not silly in telling my friends that I might be seeing Kurt Angle, am I?"

"It's only silly if it weren't true," he answered. "And I promise that you'll get that date."

"And I promise you that if you get that date, you'll get," she leaned up to whisper something in his ear and his eyes widened. "That's what you'll get."

"Whoa," Kurt mumbled, then looked at her hungrily. "What did I do to deserve that?"

"Don't think I haven't noticed how long you've wanted me Kurt," Ashley told him. "My father always told me I was way too observant for my own good. And I think that's true. I'm way too observant."

"Well look girls, it's our good friend Ashley," Torrie said snidely as she walked up with Candice and Victoria. The three of them were now circling around the couple. "Whatcha doin Ashley?"

"None of your damn business," Ashley answered. "So you should just leave us the hell alone. We weren't bugging you, don't bug us."

"That's just rude," Victoria said. "You don't want to be rude."

"Yeah, very rude," Torrie said. "Hi Kurt, how are you?"

"I'd be a lot better if you left."

"Come on Kurt," Torrie said, running her finger along his back. "You know that you can't want her when you can have…us. And that means all three of us."

"No thanks," Kurt answered blandly, not even sparing her a glance.

"Oh come on Kurt, you'd turn us down?" Victoria said. "I don't want to imply anything, but turning down us, not good for your…reputation."

"I don't give a damn about that," Kurt said. "All three of you are worthless. You don't do anything, you don't intimidate anybody, you're a joke. I wouldn't touch any of you if you paid me. Come on Ashley, let's finish our discussion someplace else. I think the cheap perfume wafting around her is starting to make me dizzy."

Ashley glared at the other women as she took Kurt's hand and walked away. Torrie, Victoria, and Candice watched as the two of them walked away. Candice shook her head and guffawed. "Did we just get turned down?"

"I think we did," Victoria said.

"Oh, it won't last, trust me," Torrie told the other two. "It won't last at all."

Kurt and Ashley didn't look back, but they did look at each other and start laughing. The situation was just so preposterous they had to laugh. The two weren't in a committed relationship or anything, but Kurt wasn't just going to go off with them. Ashley bumped him with her shoulder and when he looked at her, she smiled at him.

"That was masterful Kurt," Ashley said. "You saved me, the damsel-in-distress."

"I hardly think you were a damsel-in-distress."

"Don't ruin the illusion," Ashley said and then saw Edge and Lita making out against a wall. She rolled her eyes. "Can you believe what they're trying to pull tonight?"

"Actually, I used to be friends with Edge, and yeah, I can believe it, sad as that is. The man has no scruples whatsoever."

Trish was sitting there, contemplating. She had won her match last night, and she had had nobody to celebrate it with. It was so sad she wanted to cry, but she didn't want to wallow any longer. When Gregory Helms started looking good to you, then you knew that you were desperate. She had been happy with her win last night; she had held the title for so long, she should be proud of herself, and she was. But it was no fun when you celebrated with yourself.

Stephanie and Chris usually hung out in their hotel room, Stephanie too tired and achy to want to go out after shows. She didn't blame them, Stephanie was pregnant and she needed the rest for her baby. Kurt was so busy with Ashley lately, and she was so happy that Kurt was finally getting someone in his life, so she didn't want to be a third wheel there either. If Christian were here, she would be celebrating with him. He would make her laugh and tell her that he was her lackey now and was her servant.

She missed him, terribly, and that aching in her heart hadn't subsided, she had just gotten better and better at hiding it. She didn't want her friends to worry about her. She knew they did anyways, but she put her best face forward, reassuring them that she was fine, and she would make it out of this in her own time. She believed that, but the aching in her heart was so strong sometimes. How do you just let go of the person you loved?

She wished she could contact Christian. She probably could if she really tried, but she didn't really know how to start that process. It should've been easy, she should be able to go up to Edge and ask him where his brother was, but nothing was ever easy. Edge was a jerk now, and he would never tell her where Christian was. But wasn't it worth a try? Didn't she have to try for love's sake?

She got up, her resolve strengthening by the second. She was Trish Stratus, and she wasn't going to back down from this. No way, no how. It was just Edge after all. If he had a shred of decency, he would tell her where Christian was. That was the problem though, she wasn't even sure if Edge had an ounce of decency left in his body. Although he was probably in a good mood after last night. She had heard about tonight, who hadn't, but maybe the fact that he was having sex in front of everyone would catch him off his guard when she asked.

She found Edge and Lita making-out against the wall and she gingerly approached them. She coughed a little, trying to get their attention, but they weren't paying attention. She coughed louder, clearing her throat this time and finally, Edge pulled away from Lita and looked at Trish disinterestedly.

"What do you want?"

"Can I talk to you?" she asked. "Without Lita here?"

"Whatever you have to say to him, you can sure as hell say to me," Lita told her.

"Please Edge," Trish said seriously, staring him in the eyes. He looked at her for a few moments, as if reading them and what they were saying. "Please."

"Leet, get outta here," Edge said finally. Lita looked aghast, but she complied, sending a look to Trish before she left. "Ok, so I have an inkling on what this is going to be about."

"You've seen him huh?"

"I've seen him," Edge confirmed.

"Is he good? Is he ok? Healthy?" she asked, the questions spilling out of her mouth faster than she could catch them.

"Looked it, didn't really get into it that much, but he looked fine."

"He didn't seem…sad?" she asked pathetically, looking up with such a sorrowful hope in her eyes.

"Yeah, I guess he did, didn't really ask," Edge shrugged, feeling uncomfortable feelings stirring in his stomach. Once upon a time, he had been friends with Trish, he had joked with her and liked being around her. He was the one who had changed, she hadn't, and some of those feelings were coming back to him. But he had had to turn into a bastard in order to get where he was today.

"Is he still in Florida?"

"Yeah, he's still in Florida."

"Oh, um, if you speak to him, can you tell him I'm not living at the house right now, and I don't really plan to go back, so if he wants to sell it, he's free to do that."

"I can tell him that," Edge said.

"Thank you, really, you don't know how much this means to me."

"Hey, um, Trish," Edge said, running a hand through his hair, a nervous habit he had never gotten over.

"Yeah?"

"If you want me to keep tabs on him, let you know how he's doing, maybe not specifics, but just in general, um, I wouldn't mind doing that for you, if you know, that's what you want."

"Really?" she asked, trying to see if he was telling the truth. It was too good to be true. "What's the catch?"

"No catch, seriously, look, my brother shouldn't have left you, he loved…loves you, he loves you alright, and my brother is an idiot for leaving that behind. I don't exactly love Lita, but I like being around her and I know how much it would suck if she suddenly left. So you know, I'm sympathetic or whatever to your situation."

"Thank you Edge, you've…you don't know how good it would be to just hear that he's ok. That's all I'm worried about, I just worry about how he is. I don't watch him in TNA, but I worry about his safety and his well-being. I just want him to be happy. Even if it that means he's not with me anymore."

"You're welcome," he said, not really knowing what to say after her impassioned speech. "Um, while we're on this…nice thing, can you…tell Steph and Chris congratulations on the baby, which I'm assuming she is having since her stomach is rather large."

"Yeah, she's pregnant, a little boy."

"Wow, that's awesome for them, really, I know I said some things…but I'm glad they're happy. They are happy right?"

"Trust me, I sleep two doors down from them, they're very happy," Trish joked.

"Ok, well, um, back to being an ass."

"Thanks Edge," Trish said, sending him a smile before walking away. When she was out of sight, Edge picked up his cell phone and dialed Lita. "Leet, I want to get some stuff for tonight, get in the limo, I'll be right there."

He hung up and then dialed a different number walking as he was waiting for it to be picked up. "Hello?"

"Hey, I just talked to your ex."

"No you didn't."

"Hell yeah I did. Look, she misses you, and you're an ass for leaving her, you know that right."

"Shut up Edge, I don't need your crap right now."

"Well I don't need YOUR crap right now. Maybe if you were a man instead of a wuss you would call the poor girl. Which by the way, she's not living at the house anymore, she's living with Chris and Stephanie."

"I know that," Christian said.

"And how the hell do you know that?"

"Look, I know, it doesn't matter HOW I know, I just know," he said, his voice exasperated. "I sent her a package the other week. I'm selling the house anyways, I can't live there, she'd know, she'd find me."

"And is that such a bad thing little bro? Dude, she loves you, she came to me tonight and was asking how you were, and do you know why?"

"What?"

"She didn't even ask me where you were, didn't ask for an address or a phone number. She freaking accepted that you were gone dude, and she wasn't going to pry into your business. She just wanted to know if you were ok. That's it, and she took that information and nothing else. You're a bigger bastard than I am man, and I'm planning on having sex in the ring tonight."

"Don't remind me," Christian groaned. "I'm definitely skipping that segment."

"She's got a match with Ashley."

"I know, I saw the graphic."

"You screwed up man, but that doesn't mean that you can't have her back. You made a mistake, tell her that, you made a mistake in leaving."

"You'd never understand man."

"No, I wouldn't, but you keep avoiding hearing about her, and hearing about Chris and Stephanie and Kurt and everyone, you avoid it like the plague. Did you know that--"

"Shut up ok, I don't want to hear it," Christian said, hanging up the phone abruptly.

"Ass," grumbled Edge as he slipped his phone in his pocket. He didn't care, he was getting laid later.

Hunter came across Stephanie looking through the schedule for the remainder of Raw. She didn't appear to be working hard, or even working, but simply skimming through the schedule. She made a face as she read something and he took this opportunity to walk over to her.

"See something you don't like?" he asked.

"Stupid Edge/Lita segment, who approves this crap!" Stephanie said angrily. "Oh that's right, my freaking father. He's going to be the death of me. Seriously, my father gives me more grief than anyone, well, there's you, but I don't really count you."

"Gee, thanks."

"No problem. But seriously, you've given me a lot of grief and a lot of sleepless nights. But this, this is crap," she said, pointing to the schedule. "If I wanted to see a porno, I'd rent a porno, and I really don't want to see a porno. Great, now all my son is hearing is the word porno and he's going to be corrupted."

Hunter laughed. "I doubt he'll remember."

"I guess. Hopefully he has his father's laid-back nature and not my uptight nature."

"I don't think there's much wrong with the way you operate. You're determined, focused, powerful."

"That's all well and good, but none of those things are going to help me when I'm raising my son."

"I'm sure you'll do great."

"So everyone is telling me, but they're not the ones feeling something moving around inside of them are they? Although Chris did feel him kick about two weeks ago, which is so rare, since he won't be kicking like a soccer player for another few weeks or so, but still, Chris felt it and it was awesome."

"That's great," Hunter said, trying to sound positive.

"I know," she said excitedly. She looked down at the clipboard. "Ugh, I know that talking to my dad about this would be futile, but damn, I really want to talk to him about this. Aren't their boundaries? Seriously, aren't their rules we have to play by? It's not like I videotape me and Chris together and then broadcast it for the world. Gross. Well, see you later Hunter."

Stephanie walked off, anger in her step, and for once it wasn't for him. She seemed so happy, so jovial, even while lamenting her pregnancy woes. It was difficult seeing her so happy with someone else that wasn't him. It still cut him inside a little bit. He couldn't explain it, but it was still there. The cut was still there.

Trish's cut was still there, and it was deep, so deep that it would take a long time to heal. She felt better though. She felt better knowing that she would at least get to know how Christian was. She was surprised by Edge's offer, but maybe a little bit of the good guy still lingered in him. She was so happy to know that she would at least know if Christian was ok. That's all she needed to know to feel secure. She could live with knowing that he was ok, live with knowing that he was healthy and happy.

Even if she never found out the reason why he left.


	69. Kurt's the Champ, January 16, 2006

A/N: Thanks for the reviews everyone. :) This is last week's chapter, this Monday's chapter will be up early Wednesday morning.

* * *

"I am the champion of the world!"

Ashley giggled as Kurt lifted his title over his head. He brought it back down and Ashley went up to him and grabbed it from him, looking down on it; it was a lot heavier than she thought it would be. It was also very nice and she grinned up at Kurt and then looked back down at the title.

"It looks good on you," she commented. "It's very nice."

"So does this impress you," Kurt said, deepening his voice a little bit.

"Why would it impress me?" Ashley said. "You're not the first one to ever win this title, and you won't be the last."

"Are you saying that I'm going to lose my title!" Kurt exclaimed incredulously. "I'm insulted Ash."

"Don't be insulted," she told him. "Because you know it's true. But you'll be my favorite title holder."

"Good," Kurt said, throwing the title on the couch and taking Ashley in his arms. "So are you proud of me?"

"I don't know, should I be proud of you?" she asked coyly. "I don't know the proper etiquette for being around a World Champion. I don't know if I should be proud of just stand in awe of you."

"You could do both," Kurt told her. "I wouldn't mind both."

"Nah, it has to be one or the other," Ashley said. "So did you have a good weekend, or did you spend the whole time missing me?"

"Why would I miss you, you aren't my girlfriend," Kurt teased.

"Is that something you're going to remedy soon, because I do think that it would be cool to be able to say that I was the girlfriend of the World Champion…if I'm not being too forward that is."

"I say give it some time."

Ashley kissed his cheek. "I'll give it some time, but don't take too much time ok? I'm not getting any younger over here, and I'm sure there's tons of guys who want to get in my pants."

"You have such a pretty mouth," Kurt told her and she grinned as he pressed his lips to hers. She wrapped her arms around his neck and stood on her toes a little to press against him further. She lost her balance a little and fell against Kurt as she giggled and pulled away.

"Oops, sorry," she said. "I don't know what came over me just now."

"My mouth," he winked as he went in for another kiss.

When they pulled apart this time, both panting a little bit, Ashley gazed up at him before speaking, "So you never did tell me if you had a good weekend or not? Did you have a good weekend?"

"It was fine, Sunday was Stephanie and Chris's one year anniversary, so we had a little party for them on Saturday and then Sunday Trish and I flew here to Raleigh and let Stephanie and Chris have the day together."

"Oh, I didn't know they had been married for a year, remind me to congratulate them."

"You know you don't have to get on their good side," Kurt told her.

"I know, I just want to be nice…and you can't forget that they are part owners of the company, no matter how nice they are," Ashley said. She knew that sometimes people were fired for no reason at all, and if she could get a little job security from being nice to Chris and Stephanie, she wasn't going to hesitate to take it.

"They're my best friends," Kurt told her, "I know them better than anyone and they aren't the type of people who want people to get on their good side. Well, Stephanie used to be that way, but that was when she was with her ex-husband. She's changed…a lot."

"Oh," Ashley nodded. "Well, that's good I guess. I better go find Trish though, and talk about the match later on that we have with Mickie."

"Be careful around her," Kurt warned, and he wasn't taking this lightly either. "There's something strange about her and Trish was talking about her and I didn't like what happened last week."

"And you think I did!" she scoffed. "I know there's something not right with Mickie James. That girl like attacked me the other day. It was heinous. I couldn't believe she was doing that. I mean, I consider Trish my friend and I'm not some psycho bitch stalker."

"I know," he said, kissing her lightly. "I guess I can let you go."

"You're not my boyfriend Kurt Angle, you can't just get me to stay," Ashley explained. "Maybe if you were my boyfriends, you'd have a chance, but as it is…yeah, I'm not going to listen to a word you say."

"I'm glad for that," Kurt said. "Walk you to the door."

"Yeah, because those three steps are really difficult and would be just downright scary without a male protector around," she said sarcastically and with a flip of her hair. Kurt placed his hand at the small of her back as he walked her too the door. She smiled up at him as he reached for the doorknob. He opened the door for her and was met face-to-face with Stephanie, who had her hand poised to knock.

"Oh hey, I was just about to…" Stephanie said, trailing off as she nodded towards her hand. "I didn't want to interrupt anything."

"You weren't," Kurt said. "Ashley was just leaving to find Trish so they could discuss their match later."

"Fun," Stephanie said.

"Well, if we didn't have Mickie on our team, it would be," Ashley shrugged. "Oh, by the way, congratulations on your anniversary, Kurt was telling me about it."

"Oh thanks Ashley," Stephanie said cordially, smiling towards the blonde.

"Ok Kurt, I'll see you later," Ashley said, leaning up to kiss him on the cheek.

"We'll definitely talk later," he added.

Stephanie stepped out of the way of Ashley, letting her pass. Ashley walked away and Stephanie stared after her a second before training her eyes on Kurt, who was watching Ashley a little more intently than Stephanie had been. Kurt finally turned his eyes to his best friend, only to have to look at her knowing face. He scowled a moment before retreating into his locker room. Stephanie followed him inside, closing the door behind her.

"You are so in love," Stephanie said, smirking a little bit. "You are so in love with her."

"Shut up," Kurt said good-naturedly. "I'm not in love with her."

"Yet," Stephanie informed him. "I saw the eyes you were making at her Kurt. I think it's great that you have someone."

"She's not my girlfriend or anything."

"Yet," Stephanie repeated. "Don't' tell me you're still hung up on the age difference, because it's really not that big a deal."

"I'm not hung up on it. But it is a pretty big age difference."

"You only think that it is," Stephanie said. "Age isn't anything, I mean, yeah, if you were like, my father's age and you were going after her, then yes, I would think that it was a little creepy, but as it is, not that creepy."

"I don't need your help Steph," Kurt said. "You're a good friend and I value your opinion, but you're not exactly out there anymore."

"Out where?" she asked, confused.

"Out in the dating world, you don't have to worry about impressing someone, or being on your best behavior. You have a husband, and you can just let yourself go if you wanted to. You have nobody to impress."

"Gee, aren't you a ray of sunshine today," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "You think its easy being me? I have to eat tons of grains and wheat and fiber so I don't get constipation because of the baby. Or how about the stretch marks, or the aching breasts, or the back pain, do you think that's fun for me Kurt?"

"I've opened a door here that I regret," Kurt said slowly. "I'm sorry."

"It's ok. I tend to get over-emotional lately," she said, rubbing her stomach. "Being pregnant is starting to take its toll on me I guess. He's starting to kick stronger now and move around and I'm getting bigger by the day and that means that he's getting closer to being born and we don't have a name and we don't have a crib and we're falling behind."

Stephanie sat down on the couch, running her hands over her face. Kurt sat down next to her and rubbed her back. "Is everything ok with you?"

"Yeah," she said. "Everything is just coming so quickly and I'm a little scared."

Kurt was going to respond, but there was a knock at the door before he could answer. "Who is it?"

"Um, Mr. Angle, your match is coming up soon if you'd like to get down to the ring," a production assistant said as they stuck their head into the room.

"Oh, damn, I forgot about that, I'll see you later Steph."

"Bye Kurt."

Stephanie decided that now was as good a time as any to go see her father and discuss his recent behavior. He had started acting strangely again, and she was a little bit scared that he would revert back to his old ways, those old ways being the same as when she was so unceremoniously kicked out of the company. She wanted to avoid that outcome as much as possible.

Although Vince had simply been targeting Shawn Michaels, she knew from experience that he could turn on you just as quickly as you could blink. She was afraid he was going to go down that path again. She wanted her baby to be born into an environment where he didn't have to be afraid of his grandfather. She and Chris had both made promises to each other that they were willing to do anything to ensure that their baby came into a happy situation. They did not want their child to have to go through anything they had gone through. So she had to talk to her father.

She knocked timidly on his door. It flew open a moment later and her father had an anxious look on his face, like he was expecting someone. It surprised her so much though that she almost fell backwards from the force that he had opened the door. When he saw her, his face softened a little bit, losing the anxiousness and she knew he must not have been waiting for her.

"Hi Daddy, I was hoping we could talk," she told him, smiling so that she looked non-threatening.

"Come in Princess," Vince said, opening his door to her.

"Were you waiting for someone?"

"No," he said quickly, much too quickly, but Stephanie didn't press the issue, instead she just sat down and looked at her father as he sat down. "So what did you need? Is there something with the show that you needed to discuss?"

"Not really Daddy, since you've taken over a lot of my responsibilities," she said, trying not to sound bitter about it. Not that she was SO bitter, but she was a trifle bitter. "Actually, I just wanted to talk to you about your…well, the way you've been acting."

"The way that I've been acting, what about it?" Vince asked, confused, as he thought about his recent behavior. He didn't think that anything was out of the ordinary.

"Well, you know, how you've decided to do what you feel like, and you're beef with Shawn. I don't know, just seemed kind of…well, like how you used to be…not that you know, targeting someone you don't like is a bad thing, but well, you know, I guess…I don't know what I'm saying Daddy, but I'm worried about you."

"Princess, there's nothing to be worried about," he assured her. "I'm well-suited to run this company, you should know that by now. Besides, if you want the job done right, you do it yourself."

"I know that Daddy, I'm just…worried about the way things are going, and how people are responding to you."

"I don't care about that."

"Fine Dad, I'm going to level with you. I'm scared that you're going to turn into that man that kicked me out of the company, that beat me, and choked me with a wrench. I don't want you to be that man again Dad."

"Stephanie…"

"No Dad, I'm not going to listen to your excuses and I'm not going to hear that you HAVE to be this way."

"I'm only doing what I think is best."

"Dad, I'm giving you a choice right now. If you turn into that man, if you turn into that man that harasses people and beats up his own daughter and fires his son and cheats on his wife, then I cannot allow you to be around my son," Stephanie said, stone-faced and deadly serious.

"What?" Vince asked, incensed.

"I'm not budging Dad, my son is the most important thing in the world to me, and I'm not going to allow him to brought into a situation where he's around a bad influence. I do not want my son to look at his grandfather and see someone horrible."

"So you wouldn't let me see him is what you're saying," Vince said, clasping his hands together and tapping his chin with his index fingers. "You would deny me my grandchild."

"There aren't a lot of things that I have over you Dad," Stephanie said. "You're my boss and my father, a deadly combination. But this," she told him, patting her stomach. "He's mine, he's my responsibility and not yours, and if you think that I will endanger my son, then you're wrong. And yes, if it came to it, I would deny you my son because I will do what's best for him, and if that means not seeing you then so be it."

"I'm your father Stephanie."

"I understand that loud and clear Dad, and I didn't want to have this conversation, but I know you as well Dad, I know that you get in these moods and I've been on the receiving end so many times. I've been fired by you and I've been kicked out by you and Dad, that's not what I want for my baby."

"You've been very fair telling me this now."

"I thought so too," she informed him. "Dad, the last thing I would want to do is not let you see your grandson, but that's the way it is. Chris and I both agree on this point and this baby is our child and we just want him to have a happy, loving, caring family."

"There is a line between business and personal life."

"Yes, there is," said Stephanie. "And I hope you know which is which. That's all I had to say to you, I'll leave you alone now."

Stephanie stood up and walked out of the room and almost went directly into someone's body. She shook herself off and saw that she had almost run into Lita. Lita looked at her with derision and Stephanie couldn't figure out why she was looked at in the way she was being looked at.

"Sorry."

"Watch where the hell you're going next time," Lita spat out.

"Whoa, what the hell is your problem?" Stephanie answered.

"Look, you can tell your friend Trish to stay the hell away from Edge ok? I don't want her anywhere near him," Lita warned.

"I hardly think that there's anything going on there, I don't know why Trish would want someone like Edge," Stephanie countered. "Besides, Lord knows what he has after he's slept with you."

"Same could be said of Chris, who knows if he's even that baby's father."

Stephanie's face turned evil. "Oh, that's rich coming from someone who didn't even know who the father to their baby was. That was a real super situation you were in there."

"Well maybe I should've just asked you what I should do since you're the resident slut around here," Lita said.

Edge had turned the corner and saw Stephanie and Lita arguing. He didn't like the looks of it as Lita seemed to be going off on Stephanie right now. Stephanie, for her part, just folded her arms over her stomach and tapped her foot impatiently, waiting for Lita to shut up. She had more important things to do than be bitched out by Lita.

"Well I guess you took up my resident slut moniker, didn't you?" Stephanie said.

"If I did it's only because nobody wanted to get with a cow like you."

"I'm. Pregnant," Stephanie told her, rolling her eyes. "I'm not exactly going to have the best figure. But you'd know about that right?"

"Hey, hey," Edge said, walking up to the two of them. "Li, how about you go into our locker room and get comfortable and I'll show you what being a Rated R Superstar is all about."

"Ok," Lita said, giving him a coy look which made Stephanie want to puke. Lita leaned up to give Edge a long, passionate kiss and Stephanie had to look away from the putridity of the entire thing. Lita kissed his chin one time before turning to Stephanie. "Remember what I said about your little friend."

Lita stomped away as Edge and Stephanie stood awkwardly across from each other. Stephanie looked down a moment, feeling uncomfortable. Edge looked at her bowed head and then at her stomach. He opened his mouth to say something, but fearing he'd sound stupid, he instead shut his mouth again.

"Trish told me what you're doing for her," Stephanie told him, looking up into his face. "It…surprised me, if that's the nice way to put it."

Edge shrugged it off casually. "It was nothing."

"She also told me what you told her to tell me and Chris. It was downright decent of you."

"Again…nothing. I mean, there was a time that you and I, and me and Chris…that we were friends and…you guys are having a baby."

"A little boy," she responded.

"I'm just…you deserve to be happy, and I was such a jerk to you both."

"You were, but still, what you're doing for Trish…you don't know what it means to her Edge, seriously. She's been so worried about Christian, and you're giving her something really nice."

"I'm glad that it helps…I'm…not the guy I project myself to be."

"I know," she said softly. "And no matter how you act now, I know that you're still you somewhere in there." She pointed to his heart. "I may just be mushy cause of the whole pregnancy thing."

He laughed and she had missed that laugh so much she wanted to hug him. But she refrained herself because he still wasn't the same Edge he had been. But she saw glimpses of the old Edge, and she missed that guy. She patted him on the arm instead. Edge smiled back at her and she felt like she was in older days.

"Stephanie!"

Stephanie turned her head and saw Hunter walking over. She smiled. "Hey Hunter, what's up?"

"Nothing, just wanted to tell you that you look great tonight."

She batted her eyelashes a little bit, "Why thank you? It's nice to be told I look good, especially with how bloated I feel most of the time."

"You hardly look bloated."

"You flatter me too much," Stephanie told him. "Oh, um, Edge, well, thanks for everything…"

"Yeah," Edge said, giving a strange look to the two of them before walking off.

"What was that about?" Hunter asked.

"Nothing," she told him. "Don't worry about it. So how are you?"

"I'm good, and you are?"

"Good," she nodded, standing there without anything to say. "Well, this is just peachy. We don't even have anything to talk about."

"Very sad."

"Eh, we just don't flow in the same circles anymore. So have you seen Chris anywhere?"

"He's still avoiding me I think."

"I don't blame him, I just really wanted to speak with him."

"What about?" he inquired.

"Oh, I just was talking with my dad and--" Stephanie spotted Chris over Hunter's shoulder and she grinned all out before pushing past Hunter and rushing towards Chris's arms. Chris had just turned and was intercepted by his wife. Hunter watched them uncomfortably. "I've been wondering where you were."

"I was around," he informed her. He saw Hunter behind her and nodded. "Trips."

"Jericho."

Stephanie rolled her eyes. "So I was talking to my Dad and I told him my concerns…our concerns and I gave him an ultimatum that if he continues to act the way he's been acting then we're going to have to take his grandson away from him."

"Wow, and how did he take that?"

"He took it, I don't know, he's probably going to be mad about it, but I don't care, I'm not letting little yet-to-be-named Jericho be manipulated by my father," she told him, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Proud of me?"

"When aren't I proud of you?" he asked, leaning down to give her a small kiss. "I love you."

"Love you too."

Ashley was walking down the hall with Trish and Mickie. Mickie was walking ahead of them and Trish and Ashley would intermittently steal glances at each other. Ashley grabbed Trish's arm, looping it through hers and she leaned in closer to Trish, obviously wanting to whisper something to her.

"She's so creepy."

"I know," Trish hissed. "Did you see her slap my ass?"

"Yeah, I'm sorry, but she's so weird, how did we get stuck with her?"

"Unlucky I guess," Trish said. "So what's going on with you and Kurt?"

"I don't know," Ashley answered honestly. "We're kind of in between being more than friends and boyfriend and girlfriend. I really like him though, I've never met anyone like him, he's amazing."

"I'm sure he'd love to hear that."

"So does he snore or anything, have any annoying habits, I mean, you live with him right?" she asked.

"He's really good about cleaning up after himself," Trish told her. "And he's always there to help you, that's one of his best qualities."

"He does seem like that kind of guy. God, I hope it works with him. He's gorgeous, those eyes, my God…" Ashley was gushing now, but she couldn't help it. It was the start of a relationship and she was supposed to be acting a little bit stupid. That's what you did.

"What's everyone talking about?" Mickie asked brightly as they reached the gorilla.

"Nothing," Trish said quickly. "Personal stuff."

"Like what?"

"Um, like my boyfriend," Ashley spoke up. "He lives with Trish and I was asking about him."

"Really?" Mickie said. "What a lucky guy to be able to have the privilege of living with Trish Stratus!"

"Um…sure," Trish said. "How about we just focus on the match at hand?"

Mickie started clapping. "Great idea Trish, you're just so full of great ideas! That's why you are so the leader of this group. You're just so amazing."

"Yeah, the leader, and as the leader, we should probably just stand here quietly," Trish said, glancing at Ashley, who was stifling a giggle. Mickie just made a gesture like she was zipping her mouth closed. Trish tried to act interested, but truth be told, she was just so irritated by everything that Mickie did.

It wasn't too long before Trish was pulling Mickie off of Ashley. Mickie, the deranged psycho that she was, had decided to attack the innocent Ashley. Trish didn't know what the hell was going on. All she knew was that she was getting sick and tired of Mickie James. She was so disgusted after the match that she couldn't even look at Mickie. Ashley was holding her back.

"What the hell is wrong with you!" Trish finally yelled. "What the hell were you doing!"

"I'm so sorry, I really am, I don't know what came over me, it was like, I couldn't control myself," Mickie apologized profusely.

"Did you see yourself out there?" Trish asked. "Did you see how stupid you made us look with the in-fighting? I don't want to look bad and you're making me look bad Mickie, do you get what I'm saying?"

"I'm SO sorry Trish, I swear, I didn't mean to do it."

"God, whatever Mickie, just leave me the hell alone for the rest of the evening," Trish said, stomping off, wanting nothing more than to strike Mickie James from her memory. She wished she had Christian right now to vent to. He would understand and make her laugh. But all she had was Edge telling her if he was ok. And that would just have to do.

Stephanie sat in Chris's lap as they watched the show. She had her headphones on and she was speaking to Jerry Lawler at the moment, discussing the upcoming match. Chris was behind her, massaging her aching back. With the added weight, she had been experiencing pain for the past couple of weeks and he was trying to alleviate that. She took off her headphones and moaned softly.

"That feels heavenly sweetie," she cooed as she closed her eyes.

"Well, what am I good for if not helping you out."

"Oh, don't ever stop," she told him, opening her eyes to watch the television in front of her. "Mmm, you have the most amazing hands."

She settled herself against his lap a little firmer and Chris had to keep himself from getting aroused at all the contact. "Hey baby, um, could you stop?"

"Hmm?" she asked, turning her body a little bit to look at him, "What's the matter?"

"If you don't stop moving around in my lap, I'm going to have to take you to a dark closet somewhere, throw you up against the wall and do something very…"

"Oh," Stephanie said knowingly. She winked at him. "Wait until tonight, and then we'll have a little bit of fun." She turned back towards the television and saw her father on the screen, then she had the distinct displeasure of watching her father take his pants off and she turned in Chris's lap quickly. "Oh God."

"What?" Chris asked, looking over Stephanie's shoulder. "What the hell!"

"My father is taking his pants off," Stephanie said, holding a hand up to her face so that she couldn't even see any part of the screen in front of her. "My father is taking his pants off in anticipation of Candice? Oh my God, he's disgusting. He's officially disgusting."

Chris leaned his head against Stephanie's shoulder. "He's such a perv."

"I know," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "I'm grossed out right now. And this man is my father, and my child's grandfather. I don't know Chris, I just don't know. I'm not sure I want my baby around him Chris."

"I'm not sure I want YOU around him," Chris joked. "Let alone my son."

"If he keeps this up…I don't think we have a choice…"

Ashley was sitting awkwardly in a steel chair, unmoving and stiff. Mickie had really hit her and one of those blows had tweaked something in her back or her side. It hurt to move so she was just sitting here, not moving for fear that she would pull something and then be out of action. If she went out of action, she was afraid she'd lose her job and that was the last thing she wanted.

"You look hurt."

Ashley looked up. "I'm fine Kurt."

He knelt down in front of her, "You don't look fine. Did that bitch hurt you?"

"Yeah," she said. "I don't know why she keeps attacking me. She's crazy."

"Yeah…so I heard a rumor going around that you told Mickie that I was your boyfriend," Kurt said, trying to fight a smile.

"Oh well…I mentioned how you were living with Trish, and I may have called you my boyfriend," Ashley admitted, a little embarrassed by her faux pas. "I mean, I know we're not…exactly, but well, it wasn't that far out there right, it's not out of the realm of possibility right?"

Kurt kissed her, and she would've been a lot more into the kiss if she could move, but since she was stiff, she kind of had to just use her lips to show him how much she wanted to kiss him back. He knelt up higher and placed his hand gently on the back of her neck, brushing away her soft hair.

"Do you want it to be true?" he whispered as he pulled away.

"God yes," she answered before she could think about it.

"Well then, I guess I have to get used to calling you my girlfriend."


	70. All Caught Up, January 23, 2006

"Can't we just leave now?"

"No, I'm the champion, we can't just leave," Edge told Lita.

She threw her leg over his and straddled his lap, tugging at her shirt a tiny bit. She licked her lips and looked deeply into his eyes. "Come on, I'm so hot for you right now, I want to go back to the hotel and just let you do whatever you want to me all night long."

"Don't you ever get tired?" he growled lowly as he stuck his tongue out to lick her lips seductively.

"Of you? I don't think so," she told him, her own voice getting low and gravelly as she became more turned on by the second. "I don't think I'd ever get tired of anything that you have to offer me."

He raised an eyebrow. "And I do have a lot to offer you."

"Yeah, but without the emotion," Lita said quickly, like she was saving a part of herself from him. They didn't let the other get too attached because it was just easier that way. If there were no emotions involved, they could both pretend like they hadn't turned into something they had both used to despise.

If Lita looked at herself in the mirror, she wouldn't find the same person she had been a couple of years ago. No, she'd find someone completely different and she wouldn't like what she saw. She was a cheater and a baby killer and she had strayed so far away from everything she had believed herself to be. Once upon a time, she was a good person, with a good, loving boyfriend, but she had ruined that, and now she was…this shell of her former self, pretending to be something she knew she wasn't because it was the only way to survive.

Edge was no better. He had alienated everyone that had ever meant anything to him. He had balked at his friends, turned his back on them. Sure, he was the WWE Champion and that felt great, but it didn't feel nearly as good as he knew it would if he were still friends with everyone. He could sometimes imagine the party they'd have, him, Kurt, Trish, Chris, Stephanie, his brother…but instead he had nobody but Lita, and it was only his choice. The party would've been awesome, him and Kurt celebrating the fact that they were dual champions, Chris and Stephanie celebrating the fact they were having a little boy, and Christian and Trish would be there to celebrate the fact that Trish had been the Women's Champion for over a year.

"No emotion," Edge echoed somewhat wistfully. He looked up into Lita's eyes and he saw the same thing that was mirrored in his own. This wasn't who they were, nothing like them at all.

"Its better this way Edge," Lita told him, rubbing his cheek with her warm hand.

"What's better?" he asked.

"You know what," she answered, and he did, but he wanted to hear her say it, wanted to know that she was in the same boat as she was. The sex was great with Lita, he wasn't going to deny that, but when he looked down at her while they were having sex, she always had her eyes screwed shut, like she was picturing someone else…someone like Matt. It didn't bother him, not really. Edge had never had a serious relationship, so he didn't know what it was like to feel that overpowering love, but he could imagine it, and it made him feel bad to think of what Lita wanted and couldn't have.

They were just two empty shells who were trying to fill each other, but their efforts were both futile.

"Edge, you still with me?" Lita asked softly, almost desperately. If Edge walked away from her too, she'd really be alone, truly alone.

"I'm still with you."

She kissed him desperately, clinging to his shirt with closed fists. Edge returned the kiss hungrily, more out of necessity than passion. Lita pressed herself against him, trying to get more of him, any more of him. Edge wrapped his arms around her waist and ran his hands up and down her back rhythmically like he was giving her a massage. He opened his eyes while kissing her and saw Trish walking in with Kurt out of the corner of her eye. He pulled away breathlessly to stare at her.

"Edge?" Lita said, looking in the direction that he was looking at. She scowled and grabbed his chin none too gently and made him focus on her.

"What?"

"Why are you so interested in her?" Lita demanded to know. "Are you screwing around with her?"

Edge shook his head. "Li, I've told you before, I'm not screwing with anyone but you."

"Then why are you suddenly so interested in Trish Stratus? I mean, are you into blondes now? Do you want her? Cause if that's the case…"

"No, look, my brother was a jack-off in what he did to her, and I'm just looking out for him, for her."

"So you're friends with her again?" Lita asked, pulling away from him a tiny bit and folding her arms across her chest. "So you're getting back into their good graces, that's why you sent me away from Stephanie last week right? Because you're friend with them again?"

"I'm hardly friends with them again," Edge said, and his voice hinted at a touch of sadness. He looked over at Trish who was pretending to grab the belt from around Kurt's waist. Kurt was slapping at her hands as she laughed. "They wouldn't want me back."

"Neither would…" Lita didn't finish her sentence. They were two empty shells. She looked at Kurt and Trish as well, and wished so badly that they could all just go back in time. She wanted to feel like a normal person again. What she wouldn't give to feel like a normal person again.

Trish stuck her tongue out at Kurt when he actually managed to slap one of her hands. Kurt rolled his eyes at her childishness and she slapped him on the arm. Kurt stood there a moment before picking her up easily and throwing her over his shoulder. Trish squealed and tried to squirm out of his arms, but her trying proved to be fruitless.

"I'm not putting you down until you apologize for slapping me," Kurt told her, trying to sound serious.

"No!" Trish laughed, still trying to squirm out of his grasp. "Let me down before I get dizzy and then throw up on you."

"Not gonna happen if I don't get an apology."

"Well then I think you're going to have to get used to me on your shoulder then, because I'm never going to apologize to you," Trish told him definitively.

"Well fine then, I can stand it."

"Oh hey Ashley," Trish said.

Kurt put down Trish quickly and turned around only to find that Ashley was nowhere in sight. Trish took a few steps backwards and started laughing at Kurt, pointing a finger at him. Having figured out that he had been tricked, Kurt started advancing towards Trish, arms outstretched, but she ducked under his arms and ran out of the room, Kurt in quick pursuit.

"Get back here Stratus!" Kurt yelled as he chased her.

"No!"

"When we get home tomorrow, I'm going to steal your clothes!" Kurt yelled at her.

Trish stopped and turned around, pouting. "You'd really do that to me?"

"Come here Stratus," Kurt said affectionately. Trish threw herself into a hug with him. "You know I love living with you. I'm always secretly hoping for the day where you forget that you just did a load of laundry that contained all your underwear and you're just out of the shower and you have to walk around in a towel."

"Is this really the way a guy should be talking when he has a girlfriend now?" Trish asked. "Especially when I'm friends with your girlfriend and can totally dish on what you just said to me?"

"I didn't think of that," Kurt said, sighing. "Ok, well, I guess I have to break up with her then and just start dating you. I think that we need to start competing with Chris and Stephanie. I definitely think we can be louder than they are."

Trish cracked up. "I wonder how embarrassed they'd be if they knew that we can hear them half the time they're going at it."

"You know, I've been friends with the both of them for…God, like more than five years, and I think it's safe to say that I know more about them now than I ever wanted to know. There are just some things that you never need to hear."

"Yeah, I don't need to know how great Chris is in bed," Trish laughed. "Though judging from Stephanie's commentary, I might have to start having an affair with him because apparently he's amazing."

Kurt wrapped his arm around Trish calmly, laughing. "I love when we can laugh at them."

"You know what I'm wondering though?"

"What are you wondering?"

"Why the hell are you here?" Trish asked suddenly. "How did I not think to ask that? I mean, I live with you, I've seen you all week, I rode on a plane with you here, and I've been hanging out with you, and yet, I have no clue why you're here. You're not even on Raw anymore."

"Well," Kurt said slowly. "It really came down to two things, the first of which is that I'd miss you too much Trish. Spending even one day without you would be torture, and I could not possibly have that."

Trish wrapped her arms around his neck. "Kurt Angle, are you coming on to me?"

"Only if you want me to."

"Second, I kind of have a girlfriend here."

"So now I'm your girlfriend?" Trish asked, trying to act surprised.

"I think that would be my position," a new voice spoke up. "What's going on here? Have I walked in on some illicit affair?"

"Yup, caught," Trish said, pretending to sound guilty. "With my hand in the cookie jar."

"So this is what goes on in Florida while I'm not around huh?"

"Yeah, did I fail to mention that I actually share a room with Trish," Kurt pointed out playfully.

"Well, I guess we can share him Trish," Ashley said, walking over. "In fact, maybe we can all share…"

"Oh, what a grand idea," Trish said, looking to Kurt.

"Ok, now we need to stop because the visuals I'm getting are too much to handle," Kurt said, taking a step back and holding his hands up in front of him. "Don't toy with a guy when it comes to two beautiful girls."

Ashley laughed and went to hug her boyfriend. She wrapped her arms around his waist and leaned up to give him a kiss. Trish watched on giddily. She was so happy for the two of them. If she couldn't be happy, she wanted every single one of her friends to be happy. She heard a giggling from her left and saw Stephanie walking hand-in-hand with Chris and she turned excited eyes to Trish, letting go of Chris to come over and link arms with Trish.

"Oh man, aren't they adorable!" Stephanie said, practically squealing.

"I know," Trish gushed. "I'm just so happy."

"I can hear you guys," Kurt said, pulling away from his girlfriend. Ashley wiped her mouth a little and giggled, turning towards the two women, a little embarrassed by the very open display of affection.

"Hey," Ashley said shyly as she felt Kurt wrap his arm around her waist.

"You two are cute," Stephanie said knowingly. Chris walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her growing middle. He was having trouble getting his arms all the way around his wife nowadays. "Chris, aren't they cute?"

"Very cute," Chris said in a high-pitched tone. "Oh Kurt, we must discuss this over facials."

Stephanie elbowed him in the stomach, "Such a jerk."

"Hey! You don't see me elbowing you in the stomach," Chris protested.

"Yeah, because the baby will elbow you back," Stephanie laughed.

"So have you guys thought of any names?" Ashley asked.

Stephanie and Chris looked at each other for a moment before Chris spoke up. "We've got a few that we're mulling over. It's hard having to name something. I'm sure it'll come to us."

"Chris just nixes every single name I give him," Stephanie retorted.

"Cause they're stupid," Chris said.

"I still think Kurt is a great name."

"No," Chris said. "Not an option."

"I still say that if it weren't for me, you wouldn't be together," Kurt said haughtily.

"Shut up Kurt," Chris said good-naturedly.

"Steph, shouldn't you be working or something?" Trish asked.

Stephanie tensed and Chris rubbed her stomach comfortingly. She shook her head deftly. "No, I flew all this way only to be told by my father that I wasn't needed tonight and he'd be taking over for me."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Trish said. "Are you guys ok?"

"No," Stephanie admitted. "Chris and I were actually just about to go talk to my dad, but we might just wait. I can't have my baby…I won't allow it."

"We're going to head out guys," Chris said. "Steph's hungry and they don't really have anything she wants here, so we'll see you guys later, or tomorrow, well, we'll definitely see you tomorrow when we fly home."

"Bye," they other three said as they watched Chris and Stephanie walk away. Ashley looked at the other two. "I feel like I'm out of the loop, what's going on?"

Kurt shook his head. "You haven't known Vince McMahon for a long time Ash, when the man sets his mind to something, he pretty much doesn't budge on it, and it usually comes at the expense of his family. He's treated Stephanie pretty shitty at points in her life, and he can be a real asshole. Stephanie and Chris don't want him around their kid if he decides to act like he used to."

"Oh," Ashley said, humbled. "That really stinks for them."

"Yeah, it does," Kurt said, his jaw setting. "And they really don't deserve it."

"I'm going to head on out too," Trish said, hoping she could find Edge and maybe inquire about Christian. Being around these couples was getting to her a little bit and she wanted to see if Christian was alright. "Ash, I'll see you later for our match?"

"Of course, I wouldn't leave you hanging," Ashley said, giving her a high-five.

"Just don't get too caught up making out with your boyfriend," she giggled as she walked away.

Chris and Stephanie were sitting in the car as they drove around looking for a restaurant. Stephanie was gazing out the window, watching the passing lights with keen interest. Her hand was resting idly on her stomach, occasionally feeling the baby move inside of her. She felt Chris snake his hand over and lace it through her own.

"I don't know why he gets like this," Stephanie said. "I've dealt with him for twenty-nine years, and I still don't know why he's like this. Why does he have to be such a jackass sometimes?"

"I don't know baby," Chris told her, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles. "I wish I could make it all better for you."

"I know you do. I just wish…I just wish I was normal sometimes. I wish that I had a 9-to-5 job, and I went home every night and we didn't travel and my father was just…I don't know, normal, I just I wish I was normal. Whatever that is…"

Chris sighed. He hated seeing Stephanie like this. She was his wife and he never wanted anything bad to touch her, but they couldn't live in a bubble, especially in the business that they were in. "I don't know what to do about this baby, I wish I did, I wish I could make it all disappear for you."

"I don't want to deny my son his grandfather, but when I weigh the options, I cannot allow my son to be around my dad if he's going to want to cheat on my mother AGAIN, or mess around with people's lives."

"I completely agree, and I will support everything you say. I will tell your father myself if I have to."

She closed her eyes. "Why does he hate us so much?"

Chris glanced over at her quickly. "What do you mean?"

"Why is he never satisfied with what he has?" Stephanie asked, looking over at Chris with glassy eyes. "Why does he never have enough?"

"I'm not getting you here baby."

"It's like we've never been enough for him, and it is so frustrating. My father has a wife who loves him, a son with a really great wife and two grandchildren, and then a daughter--"

"Who is smart and amazing," Chris interjected.

"With a wonderful husband and a grandson on the way, and yet, that's not enough for him. He's never satisfied, he's always looking for some quick fix to make him feel better or bigger or something, and we've never been enough."

Chris pulled the car over as soon as it was safe to do so. He turned off the engine and unbuckled his seatbelt, turning to face his wife. Stephanie was trying valiantly not to let her tears fall, but she just didn't understand why she could never be enough for her father. Since she was a little girl, she'd been trying to impress him, trying to do everything to make him proud of her, and just when she thought she had reached that pinnacle, he was out there looking for something better, more entertaining to be proud of. Chris grabbed her hand and brought it up to his lips, kissing the palm of her hand, then kissing the space where her wedding and engagement rings would usually preside, but where her fingers had gotten too fat for her rings, which were hanging around her neck on a chain.

"You will always be enough for me."

She turned towards him and gave him a teary laugh. "I'm sorry, I'm so overemotional lately and my hormones are so out of whack, I'm overreacting to everything and I'm crying at the drop of a hat."

Chris gave her a laugh, a much needed laugh. "Hey, you don't have to apologize for anything that comes along with you being pregnant. You're carrying my son, that's a big deal and you can feel however the hell you want to feel because you've got a person inside of you."

She sniffled. "I'm enough huh?"

"If you weren't enough, I'd have become a polygamist and gotten another wife to satisfy me," Chris joked. Stephanie laughed and gave him a big smile, her mood changing quicker than she could handle.

"I love you," she told him, her voice full of the emotion she was communicating. "You're incredible. No man would ever allow his wife to be friends with her ex-husband and not be incredible."

He shrugged her compliment off. "I just want you to be happy."

"You…" She couldn't even finish her sentence.

He leaned over and kissed her softly, letting his tongue sneak into her mouth playfully. "I love you too."

Trish had not been able to locate Edge before her match, and now it was too late as she stood on the apron and watched Ashley fighting. She cheered on her partner, and didn't feel a sick feeling in her stomach because Ashley was far more stable than Mickie James. Trish had just wanted to roll her eyes when she had been speaking to Mickie earlier. Could you say drama queen? And then Mickie had mentioned how she had done so much for Trish.

Trish had to question that seriously. Mickie hadn't been around long enough to do so much for Trish. Hell, Lita had done more for Trish than Mickie had done. Jeff Hardy had done more for her than Mickie had done. Hell, Kevin Nash had done more for her than Mickie James. Where the hell did Mickie James come off saying that she had done so much for Trish? Trish had won her title a year ago, and Mickie had certainly not been there. Mickie had done nothing of import for her ever.

Trish was suddenly tagged in and she had to get her mind on the match, or lose the whole thing entirely. She went toe-to-toe with Victoria, hitting a hurricanrana on her, and then went for a leg drop before trying to cover Victoria, but only got the two count. She went and tagged in Ashley again. She focused more on the match this time and eventually she and Ashley won and they celebrated with each other briefly before the psycho herself, Mickie James appeared and attacked Ashley once again, and once again Trish had to get the girl off of Ashley.

Trish was pissed. It was just getting to be too much. When she was backstage, she went on a tear, ignoring Mickie completely and making sure that Ashley was safely in Kurt's arms before she stalked off in search of Edge. She needed something good right now, she needed a break in the confusion and anger and that would only come from knowing that Christian was alright. She found Edge finally, sitting with Lita on a trunk. Well, she was sitting, he was standing between her legs.

"Edge," Trish called out, walking over quickly. "Can we talk?"

"Hey Trish," Edge said politely. "Li, a minute."

Lita didn't want Edge talking with Trish, but she didn't want to upset Edge so she slowly got off the trunk. "Ok, I'll…think of someone to partner with you as a backup."

"Good idea," he told her, giving her a quick kiss before she scampered off. "Hey Trish."

"I know that I'm being silly and I shouldn't ask you so much, and I'm probably bugging you with this--"

"Its fine," Edge told her nicely. "He's good…"

"Good," Trish smiled. "Does he ever…mention me?"

"Yeah, sometimes," Edge said truthfully. "But he really doesn't like to talk about you guys. He doesn't even know Stephanie's pregnant. Every time I try to bring any of you guys up, he changes the subject or hangs up. If he decides to ever see you again, I'm afraid he's going to be in for a big surprise, I mean, Kurt with Ashley, Stephanie and Chris with a baby, crazy."

"Times have changed," Trish said. "I just wish he were here to see it. But you know, I guess he needed a change."

"He's a jackass Trish," Edge said plainly. "You're too good for him."

"Yeah, I've been told that, but it still doesn't feel like it."

"Well, everyone knows it."

She looked down. "Maybe someday I'll figure it all out. For right now…I just have wrestling and my friends. You seem like you're doing ok though too, with Lita and the championship."

"Yeah, I guess."

"You sound as convincing as I do when I say I'm over Christian."

"Which is to say not very right?"

"Right."

"Well, I guess we all have our things we have to overcome."

"Yeah, we do…hey Edge?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't be a stranger ok? As long as you keep up this attitude, don't be a stranger."

"For real?" he asked.

"For real," she answered, smiling at him and walking away. With her back to him, she didn't see the wide grin on his face.

Speaking of attitude, Stephanie was seeing her father's new attitude and she was not liking it one bit. Her father wanted to revert back to sex, drugs, and rock 'n roll? She was not going to stand for that. She was not going to let that man influence her son, no way, no how. She and Chris couldn't decide on anything to eat so they had stopped by a deli and just grabbed some sandwiches and come back to the arena to watch the show and eat. What they didn't want to see was her father talking to Shawn Michaels and how he wanted his life to be now.

"No, no, no," Stephanie said, pointing at her father on the screen as it faded to black. "No, no, no!"

"Steph, calm down," Chris said, standing up and placing his hands on her shoulders. "You need to calm down."

Stephanie grabbed a stapler from her desk and threw it against the wall, causing a loud bang. The baby jumped in Stephanie's stomach from the sudden noise and Stephanie gasped and put her hand on her stomach. She was just surprised by the sudden movement, realizing that she had disturbed him. Chris, however, didn't know what was going on and his eyes turned panicked.

"Stephanie, what's wrong, why are you grabbing your stomach like that?" he asked worriedly, running his hands over her abdomen, trying to feel if something was wrong.

She looked at him distractedly. "I'm fine, the baby was just startled by the loud bang and I wasn't expecting him to move when I did that."

"Oh, good," Chris said, taking a sigh of relief. "But you still have to calm down."

"No, what I need to do is I need to talk to my father, right this second. This cannot wait."

"Steph, maybe we should think about this, it's a big decision."

"After that, and then last week with the thing with Candice, no, no, no!" Stephanie said, shaking her head profusely, her hair shaking around her face. "No Chris, uh-uh."

Stephanie pushed past him, walking out of the room and walking with purpose towards her father's office. Chris trailed after her, watching her walk with an air of confidence. They reached her father's office and she knocked on the door, not wanting to just walk in, in case he was doing anything like he did last week. That was something she wanted to forget desperately.

"This better be good," Vince said as he flung the door open. "Stephanie, hello."

"Say goodbye to your grandson Dad, because you're out," Stephanie said, throwing her thumb over her shoulder to demonstrate. "Did you get that? OUT!"

"What is this about Stephanie?"

"You are not going to be around our son," she said, gesturing with a finger between her and Chris. "I don't know what you think you're doing around here, saying that we all need to have all-night parties and whatever you were suggesting to Shawn, but no, if that's how you want to live your life, fine! But don't expect me, Chris or our baby to be a part of it. And if Shane hears about this, you know what, Shane is probably watching thinking the same exact thing and he's not going to let D or his new baby around you either. You keep blowing it Dad and I don't know what it's going to take to get you to see that you have something great right here!"

Stephanie stomped away, knowing if she stayed her hormones were going to get the best of her and she'd started crying again. Chris watched her walk off and frowned. He hated, HATED seeing his wife in this condition. He hated when Stephanie was hurting because it made him hurt as well. That was his wife and he wanted her to be happy all the time, no matter how impossible that notion seemed. He turned to Chris and gave him a derisive look.

"She's a Daddy's girl, and she hates what you've become," Chris told Vince. "I don't know why you have to make her feel like she's insignificant Vince, when all she's ever done is try to make you proud, to please you. Same with Shane, he's always trying to please you and you never seem to get it. It's sad. Stephanie works harder than anyone here, you know it, I certainly know it. She's pregnant, she's giving birth to our son in fourteen weeks, and she's still here, she's still busting her ass when she should probably be at home, taking it easy, preparing for our child, but that's how much this company means to her. And you turn around and you make her feel like she can't do anything to make you forget about stupid things like partying.

You're not twenty Vince, neither am I, and I wouldn't want to go out partying all night. I have Stephanie and I love her and I cannot imagine for one second choosing to go party without her rather than be with her. I would rather go grocery shopping with Stephanie than go partying and 'pill-popping,' like you mentioned. Why can't you feel the same way? Do you know what you have Vince? I mean, seriously, do you? Linda's awesome, she's great, and Shane is smart and Stephanie, God, where do I even begin with her? And you can't seem to see these people love you, for whatever reason, I sure as hell can't tell right now. But they do, they're your family, and you seem to always want to blow them off. And then I have to watch my wife question why her father sees fit to act like a perverted ass, and if it was something she did, and that makes me angry. That makes me so pissed off that my wife is hurting because of something you did."

"Chris…"

"No, you stay the hell away from wife, and stay the hell away from my kid too."


	71. Am I Liking Edge? January 30, 2006

"Don't talk to me Shane!"

"Steph, come on, don't be like this."

"Leave me alone Shane," Stephanie insisted. "I don't want you near me right now."

"Steph, please, come on," Shane pleaded as he trailed after his sister.

She stopped and turned abruptly, almost having Shane knock into her stomach. He stopped just short of her and looked down into her angry eyes. He knew that she was angry with him. The fact that she hadn't been talking to him since yesterday pretty much corroborated that theory. It started when he had eliminated Shawn Michaels from the Royal Rumble.

"Shane Brandon McMahon, you better step away from me now," Stephanie said through gritted teeth.

"Stephanie Marie McMahon-Jericho, I'm not going anywhere until you talk to me," Shane countered, staring his sister down. The two of them did this for a few moments, neither one backing down from the impromptu staring contest. Shane sighed. "Come on baby girl."

"Don't you even dare 'baby girl' me," Stephanie snapped. "You hurt me last night Shane, I told you the situation, the pressure I was under and I even told Dad that you would be on my side and then you go and do that? I just don't get it, I guess I just don't get you. I thought we were in this together. I thought it was us against the world Shane. It was always us against the world, and now you've turned your back on me."

"Steph, it's not like that and you know it," Shane told her. "It is us against the world. Who was the one who protected you all those years? Who was the one that made sure any guy you went out with treated you properly?"

"Then how come you can't see me eye-to-eye on this one!"

"Stephanie, it's more complicated than that," he told her gently. "There is a line between business and your personal life."

"And what does Marissa think about this?" Stephanie asked, crossing her arms. "What are her feelings on Vince partying all the time and having a devil-may-care attitude?"

"She doesn't like it," Shane said plainly. "She's on your side…and so am I baby girl, you have to know that."

"I don't know that Shane," Stephanie said, shrugging like it was hopeless. "I don't even know why you did that last night. I feel like you've betrayed me. I thought we could fight Dad on this one. I thought we could make him see the light, but now I see that you're right there with him."

"I'm not Steph, I assure you of that."

She shook her head vehemently. "No Shane, I think you're finally getting what you want. You've always thought that I was Dad's favorite, that he liked me more, and now that you see that I'm on the outs with him, that I'm not budging in my opinion because it concerns my child, you're getting in his good graces, where you've always wanted to be."

"Now Stephanie, that's not fair," Shane said angrily. "You can't believe that I'm doing this to spite you and get in Dad's good graces."

"Then prove me wrong Shane," Stephanie said, stomping away. "And leave me alone!"

Kurt and Ashley walked up behind Shane. "What'd you do?"

Shane turned to them. "Nothing, she's just…she's just being Stephanie, I'll see you guys later."

Shane walked off and Kurt shrugged in Ashley's direction. She gave him a half-hearted smile. She was not in a good mood tonight. It wasn't so much that she had lost that was bothering her, it was just this whole Mickie situation. She didn't exactly enjoy being beat up because she was friends with Trish. Kurt kissed her softly, trying to draw her out of her funk. She returned it just as softly, letting their mouths melt together sweetly.

"You look fantastic tonight if I can tell you," Kurt whispered as he pulled away. "Not exactly enjoying how much skin you're showing everyone else, but for me, it's a good view."

She snorted in amusement. "You know how they like us to dress around here, I'm just going by what I see. Besides, I wasn't too into how I looked tonight."

"If Mickie were a guy, I'd have beat her up by now," Kurt told her and Ashley laughed. "Oops, look what I got out of you, that was definitely a laugh. I definitely got a laugh from you. I think that's the first one I've seen since yesterday."

"You didn't make me laugh," she protested, but knew that she had. She loved just teasing around with Kurt. He could always make her smile and laugh, and she liked that the most about him. When she was with other guys, they were usually so enamored by her good looks that they failed to see anything else but what they could get out of her body, but they rarely looked past that to anything else she might need and desire.

Kurt was different, so different, and it was a welcome change. When she had entered the diva search, she had done so on a whim, thinking that maybe it would be fun to enter something that she had been fond of for years. She certainly knew everyone when she had come here, not personally, but she had watched for years and she felt like she knew personalities. Maybe that was why she felt so happy when she was with Kurt, because she knew him before he even knew her.

She had seen his debut, had seen all his feuds and all his funny moments, and she knew, the minute that Trish had introduced them that he was just a goofy, fun, but loveable guy. She couldn't help the innocent attraction that came with meeting him. She'd be a fool not to realize that Kurt was a nice guy, even under the tough exterior he had built for himself.

"I think I did," Kurt told her, poking her in the stomach.

"Fine, maybe you did, but it was only because I haven't laughed in an entire day and I was due for one," Ashley conceded.

"I feel so bad for Trish, she really doesn't like Mickie."

"I know, and neither do I after all the stuff she's done to me," Ashley said, rolling her eyes. "Trish should just tell her off already, it's getting real frustrating trying to be her friend when Mickie is lurking around all the time. I hope I never get a super fan like Mickie."

"Trish just hates to hurt her feelings. I guess because Mickie hasn't exactly done anything to her, well, not anything bad, like Lita has done in the past. She just doesn't want to crush her."

"Oh I'll crush her," Ashley said, scoffing. "After all the beatings…I'll gladly crush her."

"Come on Ash, even you have to admit, Mickie's not right in the head and you don't want to seriously get on the bad side of someone like that."

"Oh, like you sometimes when you get ultra serious and you have vein in your neck that pops out whenever you're mad," Ashley said, going back to a safe place in teasing with Kurt.

"That's exactly it," Kurt said, rolling his eyes. "Come on, let's find someplace to make out."

"Is that all that's on your mind?"

"No, but I'd rather do just about anything else than talk about Mickie James, and the best option is to just make out with you somewhere, do you agree?"

"As long as it's comfortable I'm game," Ashley smiled, letting Kurt pull her away to some unnamed destination.

Trish was standing outside of Edge's door. Edge was leaning on the wall in front of her and they had been talking for the last few minutes about Christian. Edge had talked to him over the weekend, but Christian was still being a stubborn bastard and Edge couldn't figure it out and neither could Trish. Of course, Trish didn't even know his motives for leaving her so she wasn't exactly on the up-and-up when it came to Christian.

"So, by the way, sorry about last night," Trish told Edge. "I know that must suck for you. I was kind of rooting for you."

"Hard to admit that huh?" Edge asked with a quiet laugh.

"Nah, you were the lesser of two evils for me," Trish said. "I don't really like Cena. He's never really done anything for me, whereas you, well, you're doing me a pretty big favor. It's the least I can do to root for you in a match."

"Thanks," he said, looking down. "You know, if you want me to tell Christian that--"

"Hey, don't worry about the situation with Christian. The situation is what it is, and while it still hurts," she had to pause and look down at this. She studied her shoes for a long moment, trying to hold back the tears that always came to her eyes when she thought of what could've been with Christian. "I have to learn to move on."

"Trish, are you okay?" Edge asked, concerned as he caught the glassiness of her eyes.

"I'm sorry, it's just so stupid," Trish said, shaking her head.

"Hey, hey," Edge said, taking her in his arms instinctively. "It'll be okay."

Trish wrapped her arms around Edge's waist, accepting his comfort because she really needed some comfort right now and she didn't care who she got it from. Edge gently pulled her into his locker room and over to the couch, letting her sit down next to him. He hadn't been in a position like this for a long time. He hadn't had anyone who needed comfort. He didn't comfort Lita because she was made up of too much stone to need any comforting. He awkwardly smoothed down Trish's hair and reached over to get her a tissue. She accepted it gratefully and she gave him a teary smile.

"I'm so sorry."

"Don't be, my brother's a jerk Trish."

"It's just…hard," she explained. "Chris and Stephanie are like…they have this baby on the way and barring the thing with her dad, they're so happy and excited and in thirteen weeks they get to be parents, and then Kurt is in a new relationship with Ashley and I'm so happy they're together because Kurt deserves someone for putting up with all of us for so long, and then Shane got married on a whim to a woman he's loved for like ten years, and then here I am, and I'm so lost that I don't even know where I'm going at all. I'm living at Stephanie and Chris's house for God's sake."

"You know that's only temporary."

"But I see them all so happy, and I just…I'm not jealous, no, I am jealous," she said, laughing pathetically. "I'm so freaking jealous of all of them. I mean, don't I deserve that? What did I do to make Christian hate me so much? What did I do!"

She broke down into sobs and Edge pulled her into his body, trying to assuage her tears with his presence, but he didn't think he was doing a very good job. He rubbed her shoulder as he felt her tears dampening his shirt. He didn't know what to do. If this were a year and a half ago, he would definitely know what to do, but now, now he didn't have a clue what to do.

"God, I'm making a mess of myself," Trish said softly. "And I'm totally taking up your time and you just lost the title and I'm being insensitive to you…"

"No you haven't," he reassured her. "Did you want to stay in here?"

"Where's Lita?"

"She's around," Edge said, not really knowing or caring. The perks of his relationship with Lita is that neither one really cared where the other went. He didn't worry about her any more than she worried about him, and that wasn't much to begin with.

"I don't want to run into her, if she sees me like this, she'll have so much ammo."

"Ok," he said. "Trish?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you for coming to me," Edge said. "You make me feel…normal."

"You didn't feel normal?" she asked, confused.

"No, I haven't felt normal for a really long time actually," Edge told her. "I know, it sounds just as stupid as you think you sound, but…you've kind of helped me see that I can be the guy I used to be. That's been a big help."

"Hey, I have an idea," Trish said, brightening up a little bit.

"What's that?"

"Well, after I freshen up and don't look like a raccoon, why don't you walk me over to Stephanie's office?"

"Why?" he asked.

"Because I have a feeling you'll say yes and walk me there, and I have to talk to Stephanie about going shopping this weekend. I'm gonna help her and Chris pick out a crib for the baby."

"Well, after you freshen up, I'll walk you there then," he said, and his smile was grateful, like she was giving pieces of him back to him. She patted his leg and stood up, grabbing the tissue box off the coffee table and taking it into the bathroom with her, closing the door softly behind her. Edge grabbed his cell phone from his pocket and dialed his brother's number.

"Hello?"

"You're an idiot."

"Edge?"

"Who else would it baby brother?" Edge asked, getting up and walking over to the door where it would be less likely for Trish to hear him.

"Why am I an idiot?"

"Because you left Trish, and don't even think about hanging up on me you jackass because you're going to hear this. Do you know that Trish is in my bathroom right now--"

"Trish is in your bathroom!" Christian exclaimed, incensed. "What is she doing in your bathroom? I swear to God Edge, if you so much as touched her…"

"What? You're going to actually admit that you love her and come here?"

"I love her more than you could ever imagine," Christian told Edge.

"Then why aren't you here?" Edge said. "Why was she just crying on me? Why was she admitting she was lost and jealous of everyone else who has someone?"

"She was crying?" Christian asked, his voice dropping its anger and instead taking a note of sadness.

"Yeah, she was crying…over you."

"I don't want to hear this," Christian said slowly.

"Whatever, I have to go, I'm walking her to Stephanie's office. But let the record show that I thought you were being a total prick about this," Edge said, hanging up just as Trish walked out the door. He quickly slipped his phone into his pocket and turned to her. "All better?"

She extended her arms and gave him a twirl. "Never better."

He extended his arm in an overtly gentlemanly fashion and she graciously took it. "See, I can still be a gentleman when I want to be."

"I'm starting to see that again."

Edge and Trish left his locker room and walked down to Stephanie's office. He opened the door for her and she giggled at his chivalry. Inside, Chris was sitting in Stephanie's desk chair and Stephanie was perched in his lap and they were having an intensely private conversation, their heads huddled together and both looked deep in thought. They hadn't even noticed Trish and Edge walk in.

"Hey you guys," Trish said.

Stephanie was the first to break away. "Oh hey Trish…and Edge…"

"Yeah, I better go."

"No, stay," Trish said, closing the door behind him. Little did either one of them know that Lita had seen the two of them walk in there and she was thinking the worst. She was envisioning everything crumbling around her. She was losing Edge, he'd go back to his friends in a second if they wanted him back. She walked away dejectedly. "It would be okay if he stayed right?"

"Sure," Stephanie said with a smile, but it was definitely forced. "What're you doing here?"

"I just wanted to make sure we were going to look for a crib this weekend because I wanted to go home and see my sister tomorrow. Her little girl is in this little school pageant thing and I wanted to go see it, but we're definitely on for Saturday and baby shopping."

"Yeah," Stephanie said, rubbing her stomach a little. "I think he's sleeping right now. He'll wake up right when I go to bed and then he'll be kicking me all night long."

Edge stood awkwardly by the door, not sure of what to do, but feeling out of place. There was a time when he wouldn't have this problem, where he'd just sit down and make himself comfortable and be one of them, but he had said a lot of hurtful things about Stephanie and Chris, and TO Stephanie and Chris and he wasn't sure they'd ever forgive him for that.

"Poor Mommy," Chris said sympathetically.

"Do you guys have a name?" Edge asked quietly.

"Nope," Stephanie answered. "Got any suggestions?"

Edge laughed. "My name is Edge, do you really think I have any suggestions?"

Stephanie laughed. "You know Edge, you don't have to stand by the door looking like you'd rather be anywhere else, if you want to sit down, you're welcome to. I just hate seeing you look like a wallflower."

"Oh…ok," Edge said, walking over tentatively and taking a seat next to where Trish had sat down in front of Stephanie's desk. "So…um, shouldn't you be working since the show is on?"

"I'm relegated to paper work," Stephanie said, gesturing to the stack of papers in front of her. "Now that golden boy Shane is here, I've officially been moved to a desk job and am no longer needed to actually run the show. Wouldn't want to risk hurting the baby, at least that's what I'm told."

"Oh, so you're not happy about it."

"Nope," Stephanie said. "It's all just a punishment for telling my dad last week that he's not allowed to be around my son. This is the only way he can hurt me."

"Oh, because of the way he's acting right?"

"Yeah," Chris said. "And he better stay away from Stephanie."

"Sweetie, he will, I told my mom what happened and she told my dad that he would be staying away from me until I was ready to accept him back in my life, and whatever my dad does, he always does listen to my mom," Stephanie shrugged. "Now if she could knock some sense into the Boy Wonder, I'd be happy."

"Yeah, I saw what Shane did."

"Oh, Trish, that reminds me, Mickie has a celebration planned for you later, so keep a heads up for the freak," Stephanie said, rubbing her stomach. "I'm hungry, Trish, you wanna come get some food with me, and we can talk about how you need to tell Mickie to leave you alone."

"Um…" she looked to Edge. "I don't know."

"Come on," Stephanie said, tugging her arm and lifting her out of her seat. "I'm a pregnant woman, you have to appease us because we're so uncomfortable and aching and you have to be nice to us."

"I don't remember hearing that."

"Well my legs are cramping up and I need to walk it off, so come on," Stephanie said, pulling Trish out the door.

"Geez, pregnant women are pushy," Trish said, giving one last glance back to Edge before leaving with Stephanie.

Chris and Edge sized each other up for a few moments, neither one speaking or making any attempt to speak. Chris nodded his head to himself, and Edge looked anywhere but at Chris. To say it was awkward would be an understatement. It was like there was an elephant in the room.

"So I never got to tell you congratulations on the baby," Edge said. "So um, congratulations on the baby."

"Yeah, thanks," Chris said. "Sorry about your title, it really does suck to lose it."

"Yeah, you've gone through it, got any advice?"

"Nope," Chris told him. "It hurts and it doesn't stop hurting until you find something else to focus on, luckily for me I got Stephanie who keeps my mind pretty preoccupied."

"Yeah, I imagine, and um…life outside of wrestling? How do you like it?"

"It's pretty good," Chris said. "Doing some band stuff, some TV stuff, nothing that really takes me away from Steph, I don't really want to be away from her and the baby."

"Yeah, I can imagine that," Edge nodded. "Yeah, I can imagine that."

"I haven't forgotten what you said about her," Chris said. "I mean, when you say stuff about my wife…well, she wasn't my wife then, but you know what I mean."

"Yeah, look, about that…I think I was just…I wanted to win and I thought that I needed to strike out on my own, become an asshole to get what I wanted, and it took a while, but it worked."

"Can't blame you for that, I did the same thing and came away with the WCW title and then the Undisputed Championship, I just wish you hadn't targeted Stephanie for your verbal attack."

"I don't think those things about her, you know, I don't think she's brought you down. I think she's pretty cool actually, and I know that you love her and that you two are great together."

"So…what now?"

"I don't know, I don't know if I have to ask for forgiveness or something."

"Nah," Chris said. "It's in the past and Stephanie and I are happy."

"So…friends?" Edge asked nervously, extending a hand. "Or at least try to be?"

"Yeah, sure," Chris said, reaching over to shake Edge's hand. "Stephanie took Trish out of here for us to talk to you know?"

"I know," he laughed. "Still the same conniving Stephanie."

"Yup," Chris said.

"So if I can ask, what the hell is going on with Hunter and Stephanie? I saw them talking last week and seeming pretty cozy with each other and I know I haven't been out of the loop that long, but you're going to have to explain that one to me."

Chris rolled his eyes. "That is solely for the benefit of our son. Stephanie and I agreed that we'd do everything we had to do to make sure our son's life was a good one and that includes Stephanie and Trips getting over the past. And that's the story of that weird friendship."

"And let me guess, you believe that Trips has some weird design on Steph?"

"Are you kidding me? Hell yeah," Chris guffawed. "And I wouldn't be surprised if he has some sort of design to steal my kid from me. He probably thinks that it should be his kid because Stephanie lied about a pregnancy."

"I can believe that, just watch out for him."

"I will be, trust me."

"Is it safe to come in?" Stephanie's voice floated through the door.

"Yeah, you can help me hide the body," Chris yelled out. Stephanie walked inside, Trish behind her and then behind them were Kurt and Ashley. Chris rolled his eyes at the congregation. "Edge and I kissed and made up, and I must say, Edge has the softest lips ever."

"And I wasn't here to see it!" Stephanie pouted. "I bet it was hot."

"I think it was about as hot as you and Trish making out," Chris winked and Stephanie and Trish both glared at him. "What? I still can't get that image out of my mind."

Stephanie groaned and sat on him again. "So the gang's mostly all here."

"Hey Edge," Kurt nodded. "How've you been?"

"Pretty good up until last night," Edge said, looking around feeling so accepted right now. He felt like a great weight had been lifted off his shoulders and if he were a more emotional man, he might have felt tears come to his eyes at having all his friends back. Things were a little different, but they were still there, still funny and laughing and crazy and he was just so happy he thought his heart would burst.

"Hey, I lost too, don't feel bad," Ashley joked, standing in front of Kurt as he wrapped his arms around her bare middle and rested his cheek on her shoulder. "And I lost to Mickie James."

"Ouch," Edge joked.

"My only consolation is that Kurt won," Ashley said, glancing at her boyfriend.

"She's a good one," Kurt said and Ashley blushed.

Chris rubbed Stephanie's stomach, which was getting larger by the day. "So you can totally feel his kicks in there, it's pretty awesome."

"He's not kicking right now sweetie," Stephanie said, looking down at her stomach. "He's sleeping right now I think. I'm surprised he wasn't jumping around in there when I was yelling at my brother for being such a jerk."

"He's a sound sleeper."

"I know, my little S—baby…"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Trish said, looking at Stephanie. "Do you guys have a name!"

Stephanie cursed under her breath. "Damn it…Yeah, we have a name. I just couldn't stand having my baby not have a name so Chris came up with the perfect name yesterday. We wanted it to be a surprise though."

"It starts with an S though, I heard an S," Trish said excitedly.

"You'll never guess," Chris said, sticking his tongue out. "Never."

"Sean?"

Chris snorted out a laugh. "Yeah right, I wouldn't name my kid Sean if you paid me to name him that."

"Too much like HBK," Stephanie said. "You won't guess it, I assure you. We'll let you know sometime before he's born."

"From the looks of you, shouldn't be too long should it?" Edge said.

"Hey, you just got forgiven, don't go blow it," Stephanie joked. "Don't ever let a pregnant woman think she's fat because I already feel like one big bloated ball of pregnancy. You have no idea what is aching right now. Muscles I didn't even know existed are aching right now. And all because I've got a little boy growing inside of me. Just thirteen weeks left though. Can you believe that, in thirteen weeks, Chris and I are going to be parents."

"Shocking," Kurt said drolly.

"I've got to go," Trish said, looking at the clock. "I think I'm going to finally tell Mickie to get off my back."

"Oh, I'm SO there," Ashley said, grabbing Kurt's hand and leaving with Trish. "I want that bitch to get hers."

"I better go too," Edge said. "I've got my rematch. See you guys later…and thanks."

Chris and Stephanie waved and were once again alone. Stephanie turned to Chris. "When did we become total loafers?"

"Well, for me it was when my wife decided that she wanted to have a normal pregnancy and a normal life and then a week later decided that wasn't exactly what she wanted only realizing this after her husband pretty much quit his job and went on sabbatical."

She pouted. "I really did think it was a good idea at the time, I mean, I thought we could be normal, but we're not normal are we?"

"Nope, and he won't be either," Chris said, looking down at her stomach. "He's going to be incredible."

"I hope so," she told him. "I really hope so."

Trish stood out in the ring feeling uncomfortable with all the attention. Normally she would absorb it and bask in it, but this was too much. Balloons and confetti surrounded her and she was just out of place. She didn't want this, she didn't want this at all, and Mickie declaring that she loved Mickie was just weird and kind of creepy. But everything about Mickie was creepy. Trish tried to look interested and tried to figure out the best way to let Mickie down gently, but nothing was coming to her and Mickie was so pathetically excited.

Trish was still contemplating how to go about this when Ashley stormed down to the ring. Ashley was sick and tired of Mickie. She had done nothing to incur Mickie's wrath except be Trish's normal friend and not her psycho one. She took the microphone from Trish and laid it all out there, calling on the audience to reinforce her belief that Mickie was a psycho. Mickie did not take this well, but Trish didn't know how to agree without seeming like a bitch.

But it seemed Mickie was gone and that was great for Trish, a weight lifted. Ashley was glad too, she did not want to be beat up again. But then she was, like two seconds later when Mickie attacked her for what seemed like the fiftieth time. Ashley got the upper-hand on her and was going to beat her as badly as she had been beaten when she felt Trish pull her off of Mickie. Ashley threw Trish off of her and went to get more of Mickie but was met with a kick to face that knocked her down. Trish looked so confused about what was happening. She didn't know how to get rid of this Mickie problem.

If only she knew how big a problem Mickie was.

By the time the evening had ended, Edge was having problems of his own. He had been set up for the F.U. and then suddenly he'd been hit by the belt, by…Lita. He was confused after his match, sitting against the barricade, just utterly confused by what had happened. He looked to Lita, who stood there looking like she didn't know what she had done. It had to be a mistake, he couldn't believe she would've hit him on purpose. She had to have been aiming for Cena.

Right?


	72. Jack? February 6, 2006

A/N: Thanks for the reviews guys. Please keep them coming, they make my day. :)

* * *

"I need you to get me Shawn Michaels."

"Huh?"

"Just what I said Chris, I'm swamped with the paperwork, and if you could just go get him and tell him to meet me in here, it would be a great help. Would you do that for me?"

"Why do you need to see him?"

"You don't need to know," Stephanie said with a small smile. "Can you just get him for me?"

"I think I do need to know."

"No you don't," Stephanie said with a real smile this time.

"Yes I do," he answered.

"No. You don't," she said, more decisively this time.

"Yes. I do."

"Christopher Keith Jericho, don't argue with me," Stephanie said. "I am twenty-eight weeks pregnant, in my third, and LAST trimester and I can't see my feet, and I'm pretty sure that I'm wearing mismatched socks right now. The baby is keeping me up at night kicking his little heart out against not only my bladder but I'm pretty sure he's starting to get the ribs too, and you want to argue with me!"

Chris bit his lip. "See, I love you, and I adore everything about you, even the whole pregnancy thing, and I know that you're in discomfort right now, but you can't pin everything that you're going through on me to make me feel guilty and then give in."

"And why not?"

"I think it's because this is what you do when you're not pregnant. Are your legs working? Cause if you want to go talk to Shawn then you can just stand yourself up and walk there to see him."

"You're an ass," Stephanie said, folding her arms over her stomach.

"Swearing around the kid, lovely Stephanie," Chris said.

"Yeah, because he's really going to know what the word means," Stephanie said sarcastically. "Chris, you know you're going to cave and do it for me because you love me, regardless of the fact that I'm carrying your child."

"I do love you, but you're still not an invalid and if you won't tell me what's going on, then I'm going to just have to leave and then go find Trish or Kurt, or Edge, or any other person who strikes my fancy and you'll be here…alone."

"I'm not alone, I'm never alone," Stephanie said, enunciating her words. "I have a little something, it's called a baby, you know, our son, little boy. Don't know if you realized that."

"You're such a bitch sometimes, I swear to God."

"But you love this bitch," she teased and winked at him. "And I'm totally wearing mismatched socks aren't I?"

"Yeah," Chris nodded. "One's brown and the other is navy blue."

"I figured as much," she said, sighing, then running her hand over her face. "It gets a little bit harder every day."

"When are you going to stop traveling?" he asked her, just curious to see if she had a time frame. Chris hadn't pushed the issue in the past several months, but it had to come up some time because there was going to be a time where Stephanie would be too uncomfortable to travel.

"Who knows," Stephanie said. "You know Dr. Sheldon said since I'm having a fairly easy pregnancy I could probably travel well into my ninth month. The fact of the matter is am I going to want to travel in my ninth month?"

"I don't know, it's up to you," he said. "I mean, yeah, I'm your husband, that's my child, but I don't know what you're feeling."

"At the moment, a little achy, a lot pissed off at my father for giving me a stack of pretty meaningless paperwork that will inevitably keep me occupied for the entire show so that I can't do anything that would detrimental to his partying and/or pill-popping. Maybe I should just get out now."

"Whatever you want to do, I'll support you."

"I know," she said, reaching across her desk to grab his hand which he had been leaning on her desk. "It just makes me appreciate you more."

"And I really do like to be appreciated," Chris said cockily.

She rolled her eyes. "If I didn't love you, I'd have thrown you out of here by now because you have the innate talent to bug the hell out of me. And I should be doing this paperwork."

"Screw your dad, you should not do it just to spite him," Chris said.

"Oh yeah, and then let him fire me for not doing my job in an adequate fashion. I know that my dad is hurt by what we did," she said, looking away a moment, then looking back at Chris, a raw kind of anger in her eyes. "But I can't allow him to be around my son when he's got all of this crap going on. How would I go about explaining to our son all the things his grandfather does? I can't, I don't want to do that. I just don't understand why he can't be a normal person EVER."

"As Lord Acton once said, 'Absolute power corrupts absolutely.'"

Stephanie leaned back a little and furrowed her brow as she stared at Chris, "Excuse me?"

"It's a quote."

"Chris, have you been holding out this immense knowledge on me? And here I thought the only in-depth conversation you could have would be about what bass guitar is the best and how metal has changed in the last fifteen years."

Chris gave her a look of disgust. "You really think I'm an uncouth boor don't you?"

"Wow, the language, sexy," Stephanie giggled.

"I'm educated too you know," Chris told her. "Just because I prefer to discuss music doesn't mean I can't work my way around a literature or history argument."

"I know you're educated, but it gets lost in the cockiness."

"Takes one to know one."

"You're crazy," Stephanie said, then patted her stomach. "Daddy is crazy baby. You'll figure that out pretty quickly."

"Not as crazy as Mommy," Chris called out to her stomach, "but I guess being inside her, you already knew that."

"Well, as for the whole traveling thing. If I leave now, that means Dad wins. He'll think it's because I'm afraid of him or something, and I'm not afraid of him. You know, honestly, sometimes I don't know how my mother stays with him. I just…she's an amazing person to put up with all of that crap. I mean, if you pulled any of that on me, cheating, wanting to be an ass, choking your own child, I'd leave you and never look back."

"Well there go my plans to choke the baby with a wrench," Chris shrugged with a sigh. "And I was planning it down to the last detail too."

"I'm going to travel until my ninth month," Stephanie told him. "Maybe starting around the middle of my eighth month I'll start coming every other week or something. But no traveling in my ninth month, I'll save us both the grief."

"My eardrums thank you," Chris said with a smile. "Now let me help you with this junk so that you finish up earlier."

"You really don't have to."

"Would I be a candidate for Husband of the Year if I didn't?"

"Whoa, who nominated you for that one?" Stephanie said sarcastically. "It must've been one of your other wives, because it sure as hell wasn't me."

Chris stood up and started stalking around the desk. Stephanie thought she was in for some punishment, but Chris just pulled up a steel chair and sat down next to her, kissing her cheek and then dropping a kiss to her t-shirt covered stomach. Stephanie just shook her head at him before the door burst open and Trish bounded inside a wide grin on her face.

"I have a date!" Trish said eagerly.

Stephanie's eyes widened. "A what?"

"A date," Trish repeated.

"What?" Stephanie asked again.

"Date," Trish repeated, slower this time. "You know, d-a-t-e. It's where I go out with a guy. You might not be familiar with it since you're married and everything, but it's what unmarried people do when they're trying to find the right guy for them."

"Yeah, I haven't been out of the loop for that long," Stephanie said sarcastically.

Chris looked at her. "What do you mean you haven't been out of the loop? When was the last time you went on a date?"

"Last week, some guy named Fred, don't worry about it," Stephanie joked. She then turned back to Trish. "Trish, what's this about you and a date?"

"This guy, I don't know, I think he works for your dad, and I know that should automatically put him on your shit list, but hear me out. He like just asked me out, like randomly right. So I was like, um, I don't know, but you know what?"

"What?" Chris indulged her.

"I'm not with Christian anymore and it would serve him right to find out that I had a date. And who cares if this guy is lame, which he probably will be, because come on, he's not Christian, but still, if Christian hears that I'm with another guy, think of the jealousy."

"He would be jealous," Stephanie nodded.

"Exactly! And Edge would tell him, because Edge tells him about me," Trish said, "And I know you may be thinking that I'm stupid for wanting to get back at Christian, but you know what? I don't care, he deserves it, right?"

"He was an ass in leaving," Stephanie complied.

"Yeah, he was, and he broke my heart," Trish said with a sigh. "And maybe this Jack guy won't turn out to be a complete loser and maybe I'll have a good time, and I can go out with him a couple of times, and it'd be fun…I mean, I'm not ready to seriously date anyone right now, but you know, maybe…"

"Definitely maybe," Stephanie nodded. "I think it's a good thing for you to be going out, regardless of who it is. I think its good Trish."

"Me too," she said, her voice softer. "I have to change, I'm a referee tonight as you might know."

"Mickie's waiting right outside the door isn't she?" Stephanie asked, but knowing the answer already.

"Yeah," Trish said. "I told her that you were not allowed in here because you were really strict, so if you see her, act like you're really strict."

"I'll just act like I would around my father," Stephanie laughed.

"I don't want to leave," Trish admitted. "You don't know how creepy she is. She's always saying she loves me and stuff and it's just creepy. I mean, I've gotten fan mail that's pretty weird, but I don't have fan mail that follows me around all the time. I need some respite."

"Well, if you ever need me to like order her away from her, just let me know," Stephanie said with a smile.

Trish nodded her thanks and turned around to leave. As soon as she was out the door, Mickie was next to her, following her like a little puppy dog. Trish looked over at her and stopped momentarily. Mickie, predictably, stopped as well and looked anxiously at Trish like she was going to hang on her every word. Actually, Mickie usually WAS hanging on Trish's every word.

"Can you give me a little space Mickie?" Trish asked as nicely as she could.

"But I thought we could go to catering and have dinner together or something," Mickie shrugged. "Or you know, you could help me stretch for my match or something."

"Actually, I needed to get dressed for the match later on," Trish told her.

"Oh, that's cool," Mickie said. "Lead the way."

"Um, don't you think that I should change on my own?"

"I won't look, I know you have a problem with that. I don't know why, you have a really great body, you have nothing to be ashamed of."

"I'm not ashamed, I just don't like when people watch me dress," Trish explained. "I mean, do you like when people watch you change?"

"If it were you, I wouldn't think it was a big deal, you're my best friend," Mickie told her excitedly. "And after what you did last week, I know that you think of me as the same thing. We're like best friends forever or something."

"Actually," Trish said slowly. "Stephanie McMahon is my best friend. I mean, you're nice and everything Mickie, but I haven't known you for that long. I've known Stephanie for years, and she's my best friend."

"Oh yeah, of course," Mickie said, giving her a look. "I knew that. I mean, you're right, you have known her for years. Why shouldn't she be your best friend?"

"Exactly," Trish said. "So a little privacy would be great right now."

"Sure, but later, like after the show, I thought we could go clubbing or something. I know we'd have tons of fun!"

"Well, actually…"

"I'll see you later buddy," Mickie said, punching Trish in the shoulder a little bit. Trish watched her walk away. She didn't know how to get rid of that girl; she was the most annoying thing she'd ever had to deal with, and Trish had been in some weird situations. This took the cake though.

"She bugging you still?"

Trish turned to see Ashley. "Yeah, how could you tell?"

"You have this look on your face that just says you're annoyed."

"God, am I that transparent?"

"When it comes to Mickie, you could be freaking see-thru and she still wouldn't get the point," Ashley said. "Which is why I'm going to kick the truth into her tonight."

"Good."

"So, I hate to ask this, because it's not really ethical or anything, I mean…although ethics in this company isn't exactly a premium, but whatever. I just wanted to know if you'd make me win. I think that's a way to get through to her."

"How do you figure that?" Trish asked.

"Think about it," Ashley said. "If you count the 1-2-3 for me, then Mickie is bound to believe that you two aren't the BFF that she thinks you guys are. She needs the truth kicked into her psychotic mind."

"Yeah, I guess I could do that," Trish nodded. "I just want her out of my hair. She wants to go clubbing tonight and when I tried to tell her that I have a date, she interrupts me and I can't get a word in edgewise."

"You have a date?" Ashley asked, surprised.

Trish smiled. "It's nothing, don't worry about it."

"Sure, I won't worry at all."

Edge and Chris were walking down the hallway talking. Stephanie had figured she would get more work done if Chris wasn't hanging around her all the time. Since Kurt had gone to visit his mother this week, it was slim pickings for people to hang out with. Edge was it, and he wouldn't even get to talk to him for a while since they were walking to the gorilla as they were speaking.

"So what's up with Lita?" Chris asked tentatively.

"She was just helping me," Edge said, trying to justify her behavior of last week. Truth was, he didn't know the exact truth of the situation, but he just couldn't believe that Lita would hit him intentionally.

"No, I meant with the two of you, out of the ring. Are you two dating? Or just sleeping together?"

"Who knows," Edge said, not feeling like evaluating his relationship with Lita at the moment. "We're just…hanging out."

"Does she know you're friends with us again?" he asked.

"Nope," Edge said. "We're not exactly honest in this relationship I guess is the easiest way to say it. We don't keep tabs on each other. She's free to do what she wants, and I'm free to do what I want. It's a mutually beneficial type of relationship."

"You do know she's your girlfriend though," Chris said knowingly. "I mean, you can say that you're not involved and you're just 'hanging out,' but she's still you're girlfriend and she still deserves to know who you're friends with."

"Sure," Edge shrugged. "I don't know. You don't get the two of us Chris. I mean…I have to be this way if I want to be on top, you of all people should know that. When you went after the WCW title in 2001, you turned into an asshole and went after Rocky."

"True, but just be careful, eventually you find out its not the best way to live. Belts can only get you so far in life. Look at Hunter for a good example of that."

"Still can't believe he's friends with Stephanie," Edge said, shaking his head. "Ok, well, I've got to go out there and explain last week since everyone seems to think that Lita hates me."

"How do you know she doesn't if you don't have an honest relationship?" Chris asked and Edge seemed flustered for a moment before cooling off.

"You're just trying to get me to admit something that I'm not admitting," Edge told him. "See you later, tell Stephanie I'll come by and see her."

Edge walked the rest of the way to the gorilla and saw Lita waiting for him there. She was sitting on a folding table, her legs dangling over the edge and her hands flat on either side of her. She was staring off into space and her hair was falling down one side of her face. He cleared his throat and she threw her hair back to look at him.

"Hey, where've you been?" she asked, though she knew where he had been. She had seen him talking with Chris, talking happily with Chris. Edge was getting his friends back, maybe he had gotten them back and she was still all alone. Nobody had forgiven her for anything. Nobody knew the truth about her and Edge, that he had blackmailed her into this relationship when she had been quite content with Kane. It wouldn't have worked out with Kane anyways, but she didn't want to be with Edge if he was just going to use her and then not take the blame for alienating her from everyone.

"Around," Edge shrugged, not giving up any information, as was customary in their relationship. She was a good lay and nothing more.

"Oh," she nodded. "We have to go out there soon. Maria is supposed to interview us."

"Great, we get the ditz," Edge said, rolling his eyes as he reached out his hands and lent her a hand to stand up. She took it gratefully. She was surprised he was even talking to her anymore, now that he had his friends back. What use did he have of her anymore? Maybe he did care about her, and she couldn't believe the hope that went along with that thought.

When Edge wrapped his arm around her waist, she felt a sense of normalcy, or at least the normalcy that she had grown accustomed to in this half-life she was leading. It was like she wasn't even leading a full life and neither was he. She had grown accustomed to the boos she received, the declarative statements of her being a whore and a slut, but deep down inside, it still cut her deep.

Edge took control in the ring, like he usually did. He was good at that, good at talking, he had been for years. She remembered her time with the Hardy Boyz, a great time in her life, and how they had feuded rather extensively with Edge and Christian. Even then Edge had been one of the funniest guys in the whole company. She wondered if he was still funny or if he had lost that like she had lost everything that ever mattered to her.

It usually happened while Edge was talking. Her mind would flit over to Matt and she'd think about him briefly. She never let him linger long. She couldn't let herself linger on him for too long. She had screwed up the one relationship in her life that had been great. Better than great actually; that relationship had been the highlight of her life. If only she had seen how good Matt was for her, maybe she'd be with him instead of feeling empty.

She knew how to play her part now, she knew it like the back of her hand and she played it. Edge appreciated that about her. Even when she was feeling like crap, she still put on her bravest face. She went out there and went after Maria like a pro. They both did in fact, until Cena, the perennial good guy showed up and saved her. Edge and Lita went backstage and Edge started to walk away, but Lita caught up.

"Can we hang out?" she asked, trying not to sound desperate.

"Um, sure," Edge said. He had planned to go see Stephanie, but Lita looked so pitiful, he slung his arm around her shoulders and started walking with her. Lita leaned into him a little bit, glad that he hadn't ditched her.

Stephanie grabbed her walkie-talkie from the table and brought it up to her mouth. "This is Stephanie McMahon, can I get a production assistant in my office please."

"Will do ma'am," came the voice on the other end.

"Thank you," Stephanie responded and put the walkie-talkie down.

She tapped her finger on her desk as she did another useless bit of paperwork for her father. She was glad that Shane wasn't here tonight or else she might fly off the handle like she had last week. She was still mad at Shane over his betrayal in joining with their father. She didn't care the reasons, she was doing what was best of her son. There was a knock on the door and she told them to come in. A production assistant came in and looked at her.

"You requested me Mrs. McMahon-Jericho?" the guy said.

"Yeah, thanks for coming Greg," Stephanie said, knowing his name. "I needed you to get me Shawn Michaels, can you deliver the message that I need to see him ASAP in my office."

"No problem ma'am."

Stephanie went back to her paperwork as she waited for Shawn to show up, if he did show up that is. The whole world knew that he was having problems with her father, and she was now having problems with her father. That was precisely the reason she needed to see Shawn. Before she could think another thought, the man in question entered the room and Stephanie smiled, leaning back in her chair and folding her hands over her pregnant stomach.

"Shawn, just the man I wanted to see," Stephanie said, looking at him with what could only be construed as a shrewd.

"What is it McMahon?" Shawn said irritated with being called to see a McMahon; he didn't want to see any McMahon right now."

"Jericho," Stephanie added. "And I know that I'm one of the last people that you want to right now, but it's imperative that I speak with you about recent…events."

"What? How your jerk of a father is treating me?"

"As a matter of fact, yes," Stephanie said, leaning forward. "It seems we both have the same problem, and that problem is Vince McMahon."

Shawn narrowed his eyes. "Daddy's little girl is having problems? Why the hell should I believe you of all people? You aren't exactly Miss Innocent."

"No, I'm not," Stephanie conceded. "But that has nothing to do with the here and now. As you can probably tell, I'm pregnant."

"Whoa, could've fooled me," Shawn said in that sarcastic tone of his, you know the one.

"I didn't need the sarcasm," she said sharply. "Anyways, I cannot allow my son to have an influence like my father in his life. I have since banned my father from seeing my child in any capacity unless he shapes up."

"You really did that?" Shawn asked, suddenly becoming impressed by her.

"Yes, Chris and I were firm on that. Now, you've been having problems with him too, and I think that they stem from the same place. I don't like how my father is being, and this man he's being is antagonizing you into being someone you're not."

"Yeah, that's the gist."

"And you love your children like I love my son," Stephanie said. "Which is why I want you to know that I'm on your side. I will not let my father gain control, I will not let him get his way with this, and I'm trying to be firm with him. I wanted to let you know that I was doing everything in my power to make sure that you are not ousted from this company. Consider this a silent business partnership."

"Isn't it business partnerships that get you into trouble?" Shawn joked.

"Only to guys named Chris Jericho," she answered. "As it is though, I will be working around my father. He gives me a stack of paperwork each Monday to try and keep me from the show. But I don't think my father actually looks at what he's giving me. I have access to a lot of things, and I am more than willing to use them to my advantage if the opportunity arose. What I want from you is your consent in the event that I work things in your favor."

"And this isn't a set-up?"

"No," Stephanie told him with a firm voice. "I can't say trust me if you don't Shawn, but I assure you, I am doing what I think is best for my son. He is the most important thing in my life right now and I will do anything and everything to ensure his safety. If that includes putting my father in his place, then that's what I'll do."

"You've really grown up you know," Shawn told her. "I've known you since you were like twelve years old, and you've changed."

"As we are all bound to do."

"Well, if you're not setting me up, then I say go for whatever you have to do."

"Good," Stephanie said, sticking her hand out. "Nice doing business with you Shawn."

"Always a pleasure Stephanie," he said, kissing her hand. Stephanie scoffed to herself as he walked out of the room. Leave it to Shawn to try and be chivalrous. She sat down again and stared down at her stomach. "Well baby, looks like I've got that thing covered. Just remember that when you're scheming, always do it in such a way that you know you're going to win the fight. I just cannot let Grandpa get to us. You're so lucky baby, you get a great daddy. I wish I had a daddy as cool as yours is going to be."

She rubbed her stomach as she thought of how hard it was going to be to keep her father away from her son.

Trish and Ashley went through with their plan and from the look on Mickie's face, it might finally be registering in her mind that Trish did not like her at all. Trish went backstage by herself, wanting to get ready for her date. That word was still weird in her mind. She had a date. She had a date with a guy named Jack. She took a deep breath and tried to push Christian out of her mind. She barely registered Mickie's voice behind her.

Mickie was trying to apologize to her…again and Trish was trying to ignore her. She turned to her finally and then Jack showed up. Trish pretended to be more involved in him, but she did find his reaction to Mickie funny. Jack worked for the company so he obviously knew the talent. Trish went off with him and she giggled and tilted her head towards his.

"Thanks for that, I thought she would never leave me alone," Trish said.

"I've seen what she's done," he said. "It was the least I can do."

She smiled. "Why don't you let me slip into something a little more date-worthy and then we can go?"

"I'd like that, I guess I'll wait for you…"

"Um, meet me at the door to the parking garage?" Trish asked.

"Yeah, ok, how long should I wait?"

"Ten minutes, fifteen tops," she told him, touching his arm as she walked away. She walked to her locker room, letting herself inside and getting dressed quickly. She looked at herself in the mirror to make sure that she looked presentable. Luckily she only had to referee tonight so she didn't have to shower and she didn't smell. She looked to her neck and saw the necklace that Christian had sent her. She watched as her bottom lip quivered and tears came to her eyes.

She was ashamed to see them. She was fighting everything inside of her body. Everything in her heart and in her soul was saying she was stupid for going out with some guy she didn't know. Her heart was somewhere else entirely, probably in Florida, maybe watching the show. She took a gasping breath as she realized that Christian might've seen what had just happened. Had she just ripped his heart in two? As much as he deserved it for leaving her, her body ached at the fact that she felt like she was cheating on him.

"He was the one," Trish whispered to herself. "He was the one…"

"Look, I don't have time for this," Edge said into his phone. "I've got a match later and I kind of need to focus on that. I know that you have matches in TNA and don't you have to prepare for those."

"Did you see that guy!"

"No, I didn't see that guy, again, I was stretching for my match."

"He was ugly, what's she doing with an ugly guy! Trish is the most beautiful woman in the world and she should be with a hot guy, not some loser. And what the hell kind of name is Jack anyways? Stupid name, stupid name for a stupid guy."

"How about you just confess what you did that was so bad that you had to leave her?" Edge said, getting annoyed.

Christian instantly clammed up. "I just…I can't think about it right now. I just…I don't want to see her with some ugly guy named Jack."

"You want to see her with a handsome guy named Christian."

Christian sighed. "She seemed fine…"

Edge laughed pathetically. "If you knew what I knew, you wouldn't be saying that."

"I've gotta go."

"Keep denying the truth man and you will lose her forever. At some point she's going to not take you back, no matter how much she loves you."

"You don't--"

"No excuses man. Look, I've got a match to focus on, I've gotta go. I'll see you man."

Trish had collected herself enough to go meet Jack at their designated meeting place. Just as she reached the door, she saw Chris and Stephanie leaving as well. She turned to wait up for them and saw how they were both looking at her stomach and placed his hand on her stomach, so obviously the baby was awake and kicking.

"Hey Trish," Stephanie said. "How's it going?"

"Good," she said as she fell into step with them. They reached the door and met up with Jack. "Oh, before you think I'm rude. Jack, this is Chris and Stephanie Jericho and they're my best friends in the world. You guys, this is my date for the evening, Jack."

"Yeah, we've met before," Stephanie said, "At Titan I think."

"Yeah, yeah," he said. "Nice to re-meet you then, and nice to meet you Chris."

"Yeah, nice to meet you too," Chris said politely. "Well, we'll let you two go, Stephanie and I are going back to our hotel room so Stephanie can put her feet up."

"The plight of the pregnant woman I'm afraid," Stephanie shrugged helplessly. She patted Trish's arm as they walked past and out the door.

Trish smiled at Jack when he offered to take her bag for her. She let him do that as she followed him out to his car. She didn't know if tonight would go well, but it was a step in the right direction. Maybe she'd find something with this Jack guy, maybe she wouldn't. The important thing was that she could do this. She could go out with another guy.

If Trish had been holding her own bag, maybe she would've felt her phone vibrating. Maybe she would've picked it up. Maybe she would've heard a familiar voice on the other end. But Trish was not holding her bag and did not feel her phone vibrating, and she didn't pick it up and she didn't hear that familiar voice. Instead, she would look at her phone later and see a simple "1 missed call," and she would check it only to find, "Private number," and not knowing who that could be, she would ignore it.

Christian sighed and hung up the phone.


	73. Mickie Be Crazy, February 13, 2006

A/N: Obviously this is up tonight since I live in the U.S. and only saw the show tonight, but since it did take place on Monday, that's when the story takes place, February 13th. Thanks for the great reviews everyone, I really appreciate it, and I'm trying to work Christian back into the story, I swear, I'm just trying to see how something plays out. Be patient, he WILL be back in a larger capacity. :)

* * *

"Tomorrow is Valentine's Day." 

"I know," Kurt said, looking up at Ashley. She was straddling his lap right now as they had gotten away for a stolen moment before the show. An empty locker room had become their best friend. "Do you want anything?"

"Well, were you planning on something?" she asked.

"Actually, yeah," Kurt said. "You're not doing anything right?"

"Nope, I'm not doing anything, I saved the day in case you were…planning something. I do have a little something planned though," she said flirtily, giving him a sly little grin that promised a lot more than she was letting on.

"What do YOU have planned?" he asked curiously. "I don't want it to conflict with my plans."

"Unless you have plans for the entire night, I don't think they're going to conflict," she told him, her voice getting a little lower and a lot more seductive. Kurt raised an eyebrow as he took in the blonde. "Hey, you're already half as smart as my ex-boyfriends because some of them wouldn't even get what I was implying there."

"You really did go out with some idiots didn't you?"

"I really did," Ashley nodded. "I think that you're good for me because you're older and way more mature, I need an older guy."

"Ok, now you're not exactly making me feel good here Ash."

"Oops," she said, covering her mouth with her hand and shrugging coyly. "I didn't mean it like that Kurt. I don't care about any age differences. I don't think that anyone should care unless you were like thirty years older than me. You're not, right…"

"I'm going to shove you on your ass," Kurt told her, but then instead, pulled her closer with his arms and leaned up to kiss her. "I'm sure that I'll like your present."

"Oh Kurt, you are going to LOVE my present," Ashley whispered huskily against his mouth. "Totally and completely love it."

Meanwhile, Stephanie was sitting at her desk, and she was awaiting the arrival of her father's lawyers. They were here to go over the contract with Stephanie before it was presented to Shawn Michaels later. Her father had no idea that she wanted to screw him over so he had allowed her to meet with them beforehand. If she was going to even attempt to curb her father's new attitude, she was going to have to start at the ground floor.

In another part of the arena, Edge was sitting around with Lita, concocting some sort of plan for later on. Lita stared at him a little bit as he was talking. She had nothing really to say to him and just listened to him outline the things that he wanted to happen later. Right this second he was discussing Mick Foley and his influence on their match later on.

"So I was thinking that we go talk to him and make sure that he calls the match fairly. I know that we're not exactly friends anymore, but we should make sure that he's going to be fair tonight."

"Uh huh," Lita mumbled, then she stared at him with her eyes narrowed.

"What? Do I have something on my face?"

"Why are you still with me?" she asked him softly.

"What?" he asked, confused as to where this was coming from. They didn't discuss these kinds of things. They weren't in a real relationship, it was sex and companionship and not much else.

"I mean, you wanted to get Stephanie away from Chris, that's what this was originally about, remember!" she said, her voice raising a little bit and Edge was glad they were in his locker room and not somewhere public. "You ripped me away from Kane to use me!"

"Lita, this is neither the time nor the place to have this discussion."

"I should go to Stephanie and Chris right this second and tell them what you were going to do to them," she told him. "I should tell them the truth."

"You can't do that!" Edge said quickly and angrily. Lita turned to him with a harsh look on her face.

"And why shouldn't I?" she inquired sarcastically. "Because you're friends with them again. Is that it? Why the hell are you still using me!"

"Lita, calm the hell down," Edge said, grabbing her by the shoulders. "How did you find out I was friends with them again?"

"You aren't subtle Edge, I've seen you talking to them at shows for the past two weeks," she informed him. "You were so out to get them, don't you remember? You wanted Stephanie for yourself and you were going to break them up and I was supposed to seduce Chris away from her and make her believe that he cheated on her. Don't you remember?"

"I remember okay?" he said with a deep breath. "I was wrong, that entire thing was wrong. I shouldn't have done that because Chris and Stephanie are good people."

"Not like us huh?" Lita said, disgust in her voice. Self-realization is a really crappy thing sometimes because it exposed who you were to your harshest critic…yourself. "We aren't good people anymore, are we Edge?"

"No, we're not good people anymore," he conceded.

"I was falling for Kane," she admitted with a wry laugh. "How pathetic is that? I don't know why I did that…and then there's…Matt. And what I did to Matt, and it disgusts the hell out of me what I did to him. I'm disgusted with myself. I didn't used to be this way."

"Neither did I Li," Edge confessed, looking away, finding the wall more interesting than ever before. "But we've both changed."

"So why have you stuck around? You have your friends back," she pointed out.

"I don't know, ok Lita, I really don't know," Edge told her. "I can't explain it. I don't want to explain it right now. It is what it is, we are who we are."

"Do you ever wish that you could go back, that you could be that person that you know you're capable of being?" she asked him in earnest. She honestly wanted to know his answer.

"Yeah, every single day I wake up, I wish it," Edge told her. "Every goddamn day."

"Me too," she professed quietly.

"I've gotta go," Edge told her quickly. "I'll be back in a little bit. Be ready so we can go see Mick alright?"

"Yeah, alright," she said, wanting to be by herself as well. She and Edge didn't usually talk about their feelings, and it was awkward for the both of them. She watched him as he practically flew out the door and she rubbed her hands against her legs, feeling very alone at the moment.

Edge looked both ways, not knowing where to go, but he was getting confused. After what Chris had asked last week, the whole thing about what Lita and him were, and then this, he was just confused about that relationship. She wasn't his girlfriend, and yet they were sleeping together. He wasn't the type of guy who had girlfriends, that just wasn't him and it never had been.

"Edge, wait up!" he heard behind him and he turned to see Trish jogging to catch up with him. "Hey, what's going on?"

"Nothing," he said rather quickly.

"Oh," Trish said with a laugh. "So you busy?"

"No, did you want to talk about Christian?"

"Christian, Shmistain," she giggled. "I have another date tonight with Jack. We kinda, sorta hit it off last week and since he's been doing a bit of traveling for Vince, he's here tonight and we might get together for Valentine's Day tomorrow and Christian can kiss my ass."

"Wow, that's quite the turnabout."

"Well all is fair in love and war. And if Christian wants to leave me, then fine, let him leave me, it's his loss, because, I mean, look at me," she said, gesturing towards herself.

"I can't look at you like that Trish, you're my brother's ex-girlfriend, even I have to draw the line somewhere."

"But still, tell me you wouldn't hit this," she said, winking at him playfully.

"Well, yeah, I'd hit that, but still, I'm not gonna," he told her.

"Well neither is Christian, I think I'm finally starting to get over him," Trish said, and she felt a certain amount of confidence in her voice. She had had a good time with Jack last week. Did it compare to any of her time with Christian? Well, no, but she didn't know Jack that well. Things had been fun though and their conversation had been stellar throughout the evening and she found herself at ease.

It just proved to her that she could move on. Maybe it would take a while, but she would still be able to move on at some point and time and she just had to take it slowly. Going out twice with Jack was a good place to start. He wasn't as attractive as Christian, but Jack was a lot smarter than Christian was, not to say that Christian wasn't smart, but Jack just had a certain intelligence about him.

"That's great," Edge told her honestly. "Hey, quick question, how do you know when someone is your girlfriend?"

"She's your girlfriend Edge," Trish said, patting him on the arm. "Face it, everyone knows you two are boyfriend and girlfriend."

"Really?"

"Yup," she said.

That was something Edge was going to have to mull over. Speaking of mulling over, Stephanie had the lawyers who had drawn up the retirement papers for Shawn Michaels. She was looking it over and she then looked at the lawyers themselves. She wondered if this was going to work, but she was Stephanie McMahon, anything and everything would work for her.

"If he wanted to get out of this retirement, were he to sign the papers, would he be able to?" Stephanie asked them.

"No, they're tight," one of them told her.

"Yeah, then we're going to have a problem," she said, sliding the papers across the desk to them.

"Excuse me?" the other said. "Your father said that he wanted a fool-proof contract."

"My father is not in his right mind right now," Stephanie informed them politely. "Therefore, what I say overrules anything he says. I want my father to believe that this is fool-proof, that Shawn Michaels has no way out, but I want it to have loopholes."

"You want us to deliberately give him a way out of this contract should he choose to sign it?"

"Yes, I do, and I want this between us, no telling my father."

"He could have us fired."

"My mother is the CEO and if need be, my father can be ousted from his position by the board of trustees if deemed incompetent. In the event that you come under attack, the ball will have already started rolling towards the upheaval of his position, you need not worry."

"Are you sure he won't notice?"

"My father trusts me," she told them. "So he would trust what I had to say, so I suggest you draw up new papers quickly."

"Ok Mrs. McMahon-Jericho," one said, taking the paper.

"Good, when you're done with that, just go directly to my father. I won't need to see what the contracts say, I trust you to make the contract."

They left and she sat back in her chair. If her father found out what she was doing behind his back, he would probably fire her all over again. But she wouldn't allow that to happen. She also wouldn't allow her father to get his way this time. She was going to give as good as she got, and if her father wanted to act the way he was acting, she had to protect not only her son, but she had to protect her father from himself.

She didn't know what was wrong with him. She just let him be this way because she didn't know how to stop him. If she told him that his behavior was bothering her, he wouldn't care. Vince never cared. He pretended that he cared, or he cared just the bare minimum, just enough to make it seem like he cared a lot, but he never truly did because he never saw what he was doing to his family.

"Rich, what the hell!" Chris yelled when he walked into Stephanie's office. "I told you to cancel that! No, I can't talk right now…look, I will call you tomorrow, fine, bye!"

Chris hung up his cell phone angrily and turned his eyes towards a curious Stephanie. "What was that all about Chris?"

"I'm going to kill Rich," Chris said, sitting down heavily in the chair across from her desk.

"Why? What did he do?"

"He forgot to cancel the damn shows we were supposed to do starting this Friday in Australia and New Zealand."

"Excuse me?" Stephanie asked in dismay. "Another tour? Chris, you promised that the one you did in December was the last one before Sawyer was born."

"I know baby, but Rich forgot to cancel it and so we're obligated to do these shows," Chris told her, running his hands over his face. "It really is the last thing I want to do. I told him to cancel, I told him you were pregnant and I didn't want to be away from you. He told me he forgot but that the other guys want to do it. Yeah, I'm so damn sure they'd want to do it if they had pregnant wives at home."

"You're leaving me again?" Stephanie asked, tears pricking her eyes. "But you promised…"

"Stephy, baby, I'm so sorry," Chris said, getting up and going to kneel by her chair. "I know that I promised you and I'm so sorry that my bandmates are idiots. It's only for a couple of weeks."

Her bottom lip quivered. "But…I don't want to be without you."

"I know you don't, I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault," she said. "I think I need some fresh air, is that okay?"

"Sure, whatever you want," he told her, helping her out of her chair. "Do you want me to go with you?"

"No, I'll be fine," she said, walking out of the room. She leaned against the wall for a moment before opening them again and walking down one way. She didn't know where she was going, but she had to think. She didn't want Chris to go away again; she wanted him to stay with her. Didn't his band understand that she was pregnant and every passing week brought a little more fear to her heart at being a parent? After a little walking, her feet started to ache so she found a folding chair and sat down morosely on it, covering her face with her hands and hoping that nobody noticed her.

Chris sat in Stephanie's chair and sighed. He didn't want to go on this tour, but he had to, they had an obligation and he couldn't just back out now. Or could he? He knew that he was the lead singer of Fozzy, but his wife was almost thirty weeks pregnant and she needed him more. He thought once he got away from wrestling his life would be less complicated, but it seemed that wasn't true at all.

Edge, on the other hand, was finding himself surrounded by Lita. They went to go see Mick Foley and when he saw Lita flirting with him, something inside of him was starting to snap, he could feel it. He didn't like seeing this. He didn't like it at all and he snapped at Mick that nobody had read his book. He didn't like this feeling at all and when he and Lita left Mick's locker room, he pulled her aside.

"Why did you have to go and change everything?" he hissed at her.

"What are you talking about Edge?"

"Why did you have to ask me why I was still with you?"

"I was wondering, that's all," she said, pulling her arm from his grasp. "I just want to know why."

"You messed everything up, this was just about the sex and what you could do for me in the ring."

"Isn't that still what it is?" she asked him.

"No, I…I care about you okay!" Edge told her and Lita was taken aback by his confession. She searched his eyes, wondering if it was true. She didn't dare let herself hope that Edge felt anything other than lust with her.

"You…do?"

"Yeah, I do, okay, I care about you, I care a lot about you, that's why you're still with me. So if you want to go confess what I wanted to do to Chris and Steph, go right ahead, that doesn't change the fact that I care about you!"

Lita threw herself at Edge and hugged him tightly. "I care about you too."

"Yeah?"

She nodded against his shoulder and he could do nothing but hug her back. Trish was near the gorilla, catching up with Kurt and Ashley who were waiting for Ashley's cue to go out into the arena. She had a match with Torrie coming up and Kurt gave her a kiss for luck before she went out there. Trish smiled at their interaction.

"So when are the wedding bells?" Trish teased.

"Shut up Trish," Kurt said, grabbing her and putting her in a headlock. "I know where you live and I've seen where you sleep."

"That's because you sleep two doors down from me," Trish said, elbowing him in the stomach with a grunt as she broke free from Kurt's grasp. "Shouldn't you be watching to make sure that your girlfriend is okay?"

"She's tough, kind of like you and Stephanie…why is it I surround myself with really tough girls?"

"Because you're a big fan of S&M?" Trish asked and Kurt folded his arms at her. "What? Hit a nerve?"

"Shut up," Kurt told her, shaking his head. "I don't know what you do in your spare time, but I'm definitely not into that."

Trish laughed as she wrapped her arms around his waist. "You know I adore you Kurt Angle."

"I'm well aware Trish Stratus. So where's this Jack guy of yours that I haven't met?"

"He's coming in a while, be patient, I'll introduce you."

Stephanie looked up momentarily from her pouting and saw Trish's date walking around. She would've said something, but he looked like he was walking pretty fast. She put her head back down and felt a presence hover over her and then sit down next to her. She glanced over and saw Hunter.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

"When you see a pregnant woman sitting alone with her face all covered, you kind of want to know what's up."

"Nothing's up," she answered shortly, then shook her head. "Sorry, mood swings."

"You sure they're mood swings and not you acting like the Stephanie I know you can be."

"Ok, a little bit of both," she gave in. "I'm just a little bit upset right now."

"What's got you upset? Aren't you supposed to not be upset?"

"I'm just upset about something with Chris."

Hunter's ears perked up at this, "Really?"

"Yes really. See, his band was supposed to cancel this upcoming tour they're doing in Australia and then Chris found out that Rich, that's a guy in his band, one of Chris's friends, had not cancelled the tour and Chris is going to be gone for two weeks, and I'm just upset because after his last tour he promised me that he wouldn't leave me again while I was pregnant, and now he has like no choice," she explained.

"If you were still my wife, I wouldn't leave you while you were pregnant."

"Ok," she said, looking down and sticking out her tongue at the thought. Gross, she thought to herself. "That's very nice to say."

"If Chris is smart, he wouldn't leave you," Hunter told her. "I don't think that it's a good idea leaving your seven month pregnant wife alone."

"I'm not alone, Kurt and Trish live with us," Stephanie said. "It's not like I'm all alone, they live there with us so it's like a big sleepover, I just don't want Chris to go away."

Hunter wrapped his arm around her cautiously. "It'll all work out. I mean, maybe he just doesn't have his priorities straight or something. Maybe he just needs to come to his senses. I would NEVER want to leave you."

Stephanie rolled her eyes. Someone else was rolling their eyes too as Chris heard the entire conversation from around the corner. He couldn't believe the gall of Hunter to tell him that he didn't have his priorities straight. This was the man who put Stephanie, the most wonderful and spectacular woman he had ever met in his life, behind a title belt. Chris had never put Stephanie behind anything in his life, except for maybe his son, but that was understandable.

Yet here Hunter was, being a complete hypocrite about this entire thing. This was the man whose wife had lied about a pregnancy to get away from him. Stephanie had never lied to him about being pregnant unless she was spectacular with special effects and her entire pregnancy was done with smoke and mirrors. This was what he was afraid of with this whole truce with Hunter. The fact still remained, Hunter was an asshole who only looked after himself and what he wanted. But if this man was trying to steal his wife and child, he had another thing coming to him.

He turned away and headed back to Stephanie's office, tiring of Hunter's lame attempts at stealing his family. Stephanie looked up at Hunter. "I think I'm going to go find Chris, I'll talk to you later Hunter."

"Ok," he told her. "And if you ever need to talk, you know where I am."

"Oh yeah," she said, forcing a smile on her face. She walked away from him and made a face full of grossness at him. She walked slowly back to her office. She walked in and saw Chris was sitting at her desk and watching the show on the closed-circuit television. "Hey."

"Hey," he said, wondering if he looked like he had been in here a while and hadn't just gotten there a couple minutes before her.

"Sorry I like ran out of here," she told him. "If you have to go on tour, then you have to go on tour."

"I'm not going," he told her.

"What?"

"I made a promise to you, and I don't go back on my promises to you," Chris said. "When Rich's wife was pregnant, he didn't go on all these tours and I've gone on one and I'm not doing another, I want to be with you and I want to be with Sawyer, and that's where I'm going to be."

"Are you sure? Because I can really last a couple of weeks Chris, I've done it before."

Chris patted his lap and she came over slowly and sat down gently on his lap so as not to crush him since she had gained close to 27 pounds during her pregnancy. Chris didn't care though and wrapped his arms around her. She snuggled against him as best she could since she had a huge stomach to deal with. A little more than ten weeks and she'd have her son with her.

"So where do I put my hand?" Chris asked.

Stephanie took his hand and put it on a particular spot on her stomach where the baby had been kicking for the past fifteen minutes. Chris laughed as he felt the nudge against his hand. It was a lot stronger now. Stephanie leaned her head on the side of Chris's head and watched the television in front of her. Chris just kept his hand on her stomach, feeling the baby kick against his hand.

She watched in rapt fascination as her father called out Shawn to sign the retirement papers. She listened to him and his words, and she heard him telling Shawn to sign the papers, ordering him to sign the papers. Shawn didn't want to and Vince started talking about why he was out to get Shawn so bad. He talked about how his life was a nightmare and how he didn't have the "inner peace" that Shawn had. She heard Vince talking about hating his life and everything in it.

She didn't know when the tears started falling down, but she tasted them on her lips, falling silently down her cheeks. Chris must've noticed because she felt his calloused thumb running over her cheek. "Stephy, baby, what's the matter?"

"I don't know," she answered honestly as she stared at the images on the screen in front of her. "What he said?"

"Who? Your dad?"

"Yeah," she said softly. "His life is a nightmare, he said he hated his life, that it was not a good life. He might as well have said that his family means nothing to him. I'm his family!"

Chris didn't want to tell her to calm down so he just held her. Then he reached up and took her face in his hands and brought her down for a kiss. Her lips tasted salty and wet from her tears and some of them caught on his face as he realized she was still crying. When was Vince going to learn that his words hurt people? If this had been four years ago, he wouldn't have cared what Vince said about anything, but now, now Stephanie was his world, the reason he got up in the morning, his raison d'être.

"Shh, shh," he shushed her, just kissing her into silence, doing the only thing he knew how to do, which was to be there for her.

"I just wanted him to be proud of me, that's all," she whispered brokenly. "I've tried so hard."

"I know," he told her, leaning his forehead against hers. "I know."

"I don't want to be like him Chris," she told him. "I don't want to be a bad parent to Sawyer. I don't want to end up like my dad."

"You aren't going to," he reassured her. "Stephy, you are going to be an incredible mom, I can already tell. You're going to approach it like it was business, but other than that, you are going to be awesome, I can sense it."

"I'm going to screw him up, I know it."

"No, you don't know it. Stephanie, he may be your father, but your mother is an incredible woman too, and you could just as easily end up like her."

"But everyone says I'm my father's daughter."

"Well I say damn the man," Chris told her. "You're going to be a great mother, I'd even put money down on it if you wanted."

"So you're really not leaving me?"

"Nope, I'm really not leaving you."

Trish walked happily down the hallway as she went to her locker room. She didn't have anything planned tonight, but she thought that she might want to get more dressed up for her date with Jack later. She was still just so surprised that she had hit it off with him. She walked into her locker room and saw Mickie crying and a security officer with her.

Trish couldn't believe what Mickie had told her, but the security officer had corroborated her story. Trish just hugged Mickie tightly, feeling horrible that she had had to go through something like that. She had thought Jack was a good guy, but he was a horrible person for doing this to someone, even if it was Mickie. Even Mickie James didn't deserve to be attacked.

Mickie just smiled over Trish's shoulder. Things had gone exactly the way she wanted it. She wanted Trish all to herself. They were supposed to be best friends, they were supposed to team up. She knew that Trish was weary of her, she wasn't stupid. She just had to make Trish see that they could be the best of friends, that they had so much in common. This Jack guy would've ruined all of that. Just like people in her past had ruined all of that, but that was no worry anymore. She had taken care of that situation, and that was over and done with. Trish was going to be all hers soon.

All hers.

If Chris and Stephanie hadn't been so engrossed in their conversation about parenthood, and if Kurt and Ashley hadn't been furiously making out, and if Edge hadn't been warming up for his match, maybe they would've seen what Mickie had done and told Trish, but they had all been busy. Unfortunately for Trish, her problems were bigger than she had ever realized. They were going to become bigger soon, there was an aura in the air that just suggested it.

Stephanie rubbed her eyes as she composed herself. "God, I swore I wouldn't get weepy while I was pregnant."

"If my dad was acting the way yours is, I'd be weepy too," Chris relented. Stephanie giggled and hugged him tightly.

"I love you so much."

"Oh, look Kurt, someone's celebrating Valentine's Day early," Ashley gushed as they walked into Stephanie's office and saw Chris and Stephanie in a loving embrace. "What are you guys doing for V-Day? I mean, you have to be doing something special since you're expecting a baby right?"

"Actually, we don't celebrate it," Chris explained.

"What?" Ashley said. "You don't celebrate Valentine's Day?"

"No, I hate it," Stephanie told her. "Stupid ass holiday."

"Oh wow," Ashley said, "That's surprising."

"Nah, not really, I just don't like it," Stephanie said, then heard her phone ringing. "I bet that's Shane."

"Why would Shane call?" Kurt asked.

"He's been calling me everyday trying to apologize. I bet he's thinking about what Dad said. I'll let the little bastard stew for a while. Serves him right. Then I'll let Rissa bitch him out for acting like a jerk."

But it wasn't Shane. Someone had been watching Raw, and although he had been so pissed off he couldn't speak at seeing Jack, seeing what Trish was being put through was killing him. But seems people never picked up their phones anymore. He thought for sure that Stephanie would answer the phone, she was always doing business. He wanted to warn Trish, or at least tell her that Mickie had lied and Jack hadn't attacked her. He wanted to tell her to watch out for Mickie, that she was plotting something. Jack had barely even touched Mickie and she was screaming bloody murder.

Mickie was dangerous, Christian could feel it.


	74. Poor Ashley, February 20, 2006

"This is the match list for tonight Stephanie."

"Thank you Father," Stephanie said coldly, not even looking up at her father.

"Stephanie…"

"Yes Father?" she said with a sickeningly sweet voice, one that conveyed all the anger she was feeling at the moment. Every moment with her father was terse and icy. She was showing him that she wasn't joking around with this.

Stephanie was a serious person most of the time, although she had a sense of humor and was nice, but when it came to business, she was a very serious person. She was serious about one other thing now though, and that was her son. She would do anything and everything to protect the little boy inside of her. She wasn't one for mushiness or one to coo over the "miracle of life" that she was experiencing, but Stephanie did know business, she did know commitment and she did know how to see things through and she was using those tactics for her son.

She would never think that business would come in handy when dealing with her pregnancy and her unborn child, but it really was. Stephanie had conviction, and she believed that her father was doing nothing but hurting her and her family right now. Sure, Shane sided with him, but Stephanie had come to see, bit by agonizing bit that maybe Shane was just trying to salvage something that she was starting to let go of.

Her father had not been a typical father to her, never had been and he never would be. He was never the type of father who came to your school plays or put your "A" papers on the refrigerator. He was the type of father who breezed in, told you that you were wonderful and then breezed out in a blur of business suit and briefcases. Stephanie had grown up thinking that she would never make her father proud, and it was a sad thought thinking back to that.

Surprisingly, there was a time that Stephanie hadn't wanted to even be near the wrestling business. When she was younger, she had wanted to be a teacher, to teach people and help people. Most little girls do that though, they see themselves doing something that they never end up doing. You want to be a nurse and then you find out you have an aversion to blood, or in Stephanie's case you find out that you have very little patience and know that teaching would be a very bad calling.

N, she had entered the business destined for her and she was thankful for it. It afforded her many opportunities and above all else, it gave her Chris. She would always be thankful for that, but all she had ever wanted out of this, all she had ever set a goal for was to impress her father. When she got an "A" on something, he would smile, pat her head and tell her she had done a good job, but it wasn't the praise she wanted. At times, she believed she had her father's pride, but then he would go and do something just to prove that he didn't, and it would break her heart a little more until she was slowly breaking away from everything her father had meant to her.

The things he had said last week had thrown her heart to her stomach. She had not forgotten them, but she also hadn't cried again because crying never got you anywhere. Chris worried about her, he always did, and while she loved him for it, she didn't want him to worry. Chris had enough on his plate. He had been so diligently helping with the nursery and going to her Lamaze classes with her and doing everything she wanted because she was sometimes to tired or too clumsy to do it herself. He was the perfect man, the perfect husband and she was so happy that she had him or she would be at a total loss.

Her father had practically come out and said that he didn't love his family. At least that's what it felt like to her. It felt like he could care less about them, and that made her really upset. Her father had meant so much to her for so many years that to hear that she hadn't meant as much to him, that he was jealous of some other man because of the life he had, there was no good way to take that, none.

"Fine, be this way," he told her.

"Ok then, is this the only thing that you needed."

"Actually no, there's one match that I wanted to make that isn't on there," Vince said, turning his voice hard and business-like.

"What would that be?" she asked, pen raised to jot it down.

"I'm putting four members of the Spirit Squad up against Shawn Michaels," he said decisively.

"Is that wise?" Stephanie asked. "I mean, why would you want a match like that?"

"Because I want it, and what I say around here goes."

Stephanie remained expressionless as she regarded her father. "Ok, you ARE the boss right? You do get to decide everything that goes on around here, forget any suggestion by any other person, as long as it's whatever you want then nothing else matters."

"Don't take that tone with me young lady," Vince warned.

"Or what Dad? You're going to fire me? Or maybe you're going to try and hit me, is that what you want to do Dad? Maybe choke me out again? Which one?"

"Stephanie, this is not the place to discuss this."

"We're alone Dad, there's nobody else in here," she said, gesturing around. "When is it a good time to talk about things, huh? How about when I'm in labor, would that be a good time?"

"Now you're just being irate!"

"I'm not being irate!" Stephanie yelled. "I'm being perfectly reasonable here! I just don't appreciate the things you said last week. I don't appreciate it at all."

"Please, I was only talking about Shawn Michaels," Vince scoffed.

"Oh, is that what you think, huh Dad? Well that's just great, I love how you just know that everything you talked about was Shawn," Stephanie said. "Why don't you just leave me alone to do my work Dad, because I really don't want to look at you."

"Don't you talk to me that way!" Vince yelled.

Stephanie looked down, angry tears in her eyes this time. She wanted to just hit her father right now and she had never wanted to do that before. But she was so sick and tired of the head games he played with her entire family. She was just so sick of the way he turned on them at the drop of a hat.

Stephanie kept her head down and she looked at her stomach. Of course, what else was she going to look at since her stomach was her dominating feature now? She had to remember why she was acting this way, who she was doing this for. She was just so tired of it all, so tired of her father and his constant moods.

"I'm not talking to you at all Dad," Stephanie said, getting up slowly. "I'll do whatever you need me to do here, but that's it, otherwise, nothing. It doesn't really matter anyways, I'm starting my maternity leave in about a month and a half anyways, so you won't have to deal with me, or with anything I bring along."

"I don't want it to be this way," Vince told her.

"What way Dad? You mean the way that you act towards me, towards Mom. You know, I never thought you were a horrible father," she told him honestly. "But then I see Chris, and I see how excited he is for our son, and how happy he is and…did you know that he gave up being on tour for us, for the baby and me? Yeah, he had this tour all set up and his band wanted to go and everything and he told them no, and do you know why? He said no because he promised me that he would be here for me, and he doesn't break his promises. He is going to be an amazing father and I'm actually jealous of my son because his father is amazing and I have…you," Stephanie finished. "Whatever Dad, I don't care anymore."

She walked around her desk and out the door. She had had enough of her father for one evening. It wasn't good for her to be so stressed and so very pregnant. She had to take care of herself for Sawyer's sake. Her father was just going to be that sore subject that she didn't ever want to talk about. Stephanie looked down at her hand, which still held the schedule that her father had given her, with the added Shawn Michaels match. Stephanie had a devious idea, a very, very devious idea. She just didn't know how to figure out how to pull this devious idea off. She wanted to even the odds for Shawn later.

"Any reason you're standing there looking confused?" Kurt's voice broke through her thoughts. Stephanie looked up and saw Kurt with Ashley riding piggyback on him. Stephanie laughed shortly and then looked at Kurt.

"Actually, I have a plan for something and I was wondering how I would go about doing it."

"What plan?" Kurt asked suspiciously. Stephanie responded with a sly smile and a shrug. Kurt tilted his head. "Stephanie…what are you planning?"

"Kurt, trust me, it'll be good, and it'll make my Daddy very, very angry," Stephanie said devilishly. Kurt knew that look and he just started laughing heartily. Ashley and Stephanie both gave him odd looks.

"Kurt, what's with the look?" Ashley asked.

"It's just, Steph, you're how many weeks pregnant right now?"

"Thirty weeks," she answered. "About seven and a half months, why?"

"You're STILL scheming, I don't know Steph, are you ever going to calm down, you're just…I don't know, you really don't let anything stop you, do you?"

"No," she answered firmly. "You know how I like to win."

"Yeah, I do. You should've seen this one Ash, she was crazy in her younger years. If she wanted something, she'd do anything to get it. I mean, I remember after I turned on her at Survivor Series a few years ago, I thought she'd murder me."

"Oh, I was going to, but I didn't want to deprive this world of you Kurt," Stephanie said, reaching out to pinch his cheeks. She always did get a little playful when she was scheming to do something. "It would be such a loss."

"And I'd be out a boyfriend, that'd be tragic," Ashley said, kissing Kurt's neck. "Not to mention I wouldn't get the really cool chance to tell everyone that I'm dating the World Champion, which is pretty cool. You should see my friends Kurt, they're totally jealous."

"Are they?" Kurt asked.

"Well…no, but they would be if they met you," she joked.

"You two are insanely cute, you do know that right?" Stephanie said. "I mean, insanely cute in the sense that I'm getting a cavity as we speak."

"Oh great," Ashley said. "I never wanted to be one of those cute couples Kurt. I wanted to be the hard edge couple who fight and throw things at each other and then rip each other's clothes off in the heat of the moment."

"I just learned a little too much about your love life right there," Stephanie laughed.

"We're not insanely sweet," Kurt responded. "Sweet, maybe, but insanely sweet, no, I don't think so. Besides, we're not the ones with the bun in the oven."

"Ugh, can I just say how much that term bugs me?" Stephanie said. "I hate when people say that, or when people come up to me and like want to touch my stomach, that is freaking annoying! My stomach is my own thing, and the only one allowed to touch it besides me is Chris. But people see pregnant belly and it's like a magnet or something."

"Well if that's your biggest complaint this far into your pregnancy, then I'd say you're pretty lucky," Kurt told her.

"Oh, I have my complaints, but I can't voice those complaints, I'm Stephanie McMahon, I have to project an image around here, and that image is not that pregnancy is kicking my ass."

"I'm sorry that you're feeling that way," Ashley said.

"Its fine, the pay-off is worth it I think."

"Sawyer, don't upset your mom in there," Kurt said sternly to her stomach. "I think he'll listen to his Uncle Kurt."

"I think he is listening," Stephanie told him, grabbing one of his hands and putting it squarely in the middle of her stomach. "He heard you and he's probably really pissed that you're trying to tell him what to do. He's a McMahon and a Jericho, we don't take orders very well."

"Man, he's a kicker," Kurt said, taking his hand away from her stomach. "How often does he do that?"

"He's an active little boy," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "I blame Chris for it though. Cause Chris is the wrestler, and I feel like this kid is trying to do a ton of dropkicks in there."

"Better to start training early," Kurt said.

"I hate to break this up, but I have a battle royal for the Women's title shot, and I really should go do that," Ashley said. "You can stay here Kurt."

"No, you go," Stephanie insisted. "I have to go make a few calls about later. Plans are only as good as the length you go to get them done. I'll see you guys later, good luck Ashley, I hope you win."

"Thanks Stephanie," Ashley said kindly.

Kurt took her over to the gorilla and set her down gently. She came around his body to face him and she wrapped her arms around his neck and just smiled at him. Yeah, maybe they were just insanely sweet, but she really liked being with Kurt so she didn't much care how they were projected onto other people. Kurt placed his hands on her hips, pulling her a little closer and she hugged herself to him, just standing there.

"Do you think all the boys are jealous of you," Ashley said jokingly.

"Yes, you are the hottest diva this side of Trish."

"So you think Trish is hot?" Ashley asked, raising an eyebrow in inquiry.

"Yes, I do, but you are just as hot, and well, I've seen more of you, so I might just say that you're hotter," he winked.

"So because you've seen me naked, that gives me the edge?"

"Yup."

"Well then I just have to make sure that you never, ever, ever see Trish naked. So when you guys are at home, no hanky-panky while I'm not there, or else Kurt Angle, I'm going to get you," she said, poking him in the chest playfully.

"Shouldn't your ass be getting warmed up or something?"

"There's something else I need to warm up," she said, leaning up on her tiptoes to get her mouth closer to hers. She pressed herself against him as their kiss turned a little bit deeper. Unfortunately she had to cut it short as her match was about to start.

She bounded out there as she usually did and she was ready to kick ass. She knew that she was better than at least four of the other women in this match. The only ones she had to worry about were Mickie and Victoria. Victoria was actually a good wrestler and Mickie, well Mickie was a crazy bitch who had it out for her so of course she was going to watch out for her.

Trish went out there to scout the competition. She wanted to know whose ass she was going to kick to keep her title. She knew she was better than all of the other divas, she had only proven it time and time again. There was no competition for her and it was kind of sad, although a few of them were starting to get better and might one day challenge her, maybe in three or seven years.

Ashley grabbed onto the ropes as she was thrown over them. She didn't know how she managed to stay on the apron, but she was determined to win this. She elbowed someone in the shoulder, she didn't even remember right now she was so hopped up on adrenaline at the moment. She got back in the ring and back into the match. Just like she expected though, Mickie went after her. The girl just knew how to hold a grudge she guessed. They went back and forth for a while and were so engrossed that they were caught off guard by Candice Michelle and Ashley fell to the floor. As she fell, she heard something and then felt a numbing kind of pain in her leg. She gasped and tried to get up, but she couldn't and the pain was getting worse. The referee came up to her and asked if she was alright. She asked him to help her backstage, and she leaned on him.

Trish, who was still standing on the ramp saw Ashley briefly out of the corner of her eye, but figured that she was just sore from being thrown out of the ring. She looked at Candice for a moment, but then Edge and Lita came out before Trish could even think about going down there to confront Candice. Edge sent her a glance and a small smile and she left.

When she was backstage, the first thing she saw was Ashley sitting in a folding chair, Kurt squatting next to her as a trainer was looking at her left leg. She was starting to cry and Kurt was smoothing her hair down and out of her face, kissing her temple occasionally. She wouldn't have been crying if the trainer hadn't been pressing all around her leg and causing spurts of pain to shoot up her leg.

"So what the hell is it?" Kurt asked testily, wanting to know what was wrong with his girlfriend.

"It might be broken, might just be a really bad sprain, won't really know until we get some x-rays on her. She should go to the hospital to get checked out, I'll get the ambulance to get the stretcher."

"Don't bother," Kurt said, carefully lifting her into his arms. "I'll take her."

Ashley buried her head into Kurt's neck and by now she was sobbing silently. The pain was getting worse and couldn't move her toes. Kurt held her tenderly as he walked down to where the ambulance was waiting. He was whispering soothing words into her hair and kissing her forehead.

"It'll be alright Ash, don't worry," he said softly. "You'll be fine. I've broken a neck, I know these things."

"Will you come with me to the hospital?" she asked, and she sounded like a broken child at that moment.

"Of course I'll go with you, I wouldn't be anywhere else."

Ashley smiled through the pain as Kurt helped the paramedics get Ashley into the ambulance. He hopped in and grabbed her hand, smiling down at her and kissing her forehead again. She laced her fingers through his as the doors slammed shut and the ambulance sped off towards the hospital.

"Well, that's gotta be rough, huh?" Trish said as she saw Chris wander over to her.

"What does?"

"Ashley got hurt," Trish told Chris.

"Oh, I didn't see," Chris said and he was looking around.

"Something on your mind Jericho?" Trish asked, folding her arms in front of her.

"Have you seen Stephanie?" Chris asked. "I haven't seen her since we got here and I'm starting to get worried. I went to her office and found all of her paperwork sitting there undone. I just don't know where she could've gone off to."

"Haven't seen her," Trish shrugged. "But then I've been watching that diva battle royale, so I'm not sure I would've noticed if I had seen her."

"Hmm," Chris said, tapping his chin. "Well, I guess I can wait to see her. I just don't want her wandering around because she gets tired more easily now and her back has been aching as well as her legs and I just want her to rest for once."

"Yeah, good luck with that one," Trish said. "You'd have an easier time converting coal into diamonds than getting Stephanie to slow down."

"Yeah, I know," Chris said, then saw Edge and Lita walking backstage. They were holding hands and anybody could tell that they looked happy together. It was perhaps the first time that they actually looked comfortable with each other. "Hey man."

"Oh hey," Edge said, bringing Lita over. Lita and Trish avoided any kind of contact, almost looking like they didn't even want to breathe the same air. Lita stepped a little bit closer to Edge, feeling very out of place. But Edge had told her that he cared about her, and so she didn't feel awkward when he was near her. "I'm totally going to get Mick next week."

"We'll see," Chris said. "You never know."

"Oh I will, I'm not going to stop until I get my title back. I need my title back," he said firmly.

"You've got the sickness," Chris nodded. "I know it well, you become the belt or something. Hey Lita."

"Hey Chris," Lita said nicely. She didn't want to blow things for Edge. She knew how much this meant to him. She knew that he needed his friends, and if somehow she could become friends with them too, it probably wouldn't hurt. But Trish was their friend and Trish hated her.

"So how did your week go?"

For the first time since they had even began their clandestine relationship, Lita and Edge smiled the most genuine smiles. Edge leaned down and kissed her briefly. "Our week went really well actually. It was…great….really…great."

"Yeah…great," Lita added happily, clutching Edge's hand a little harder.

"Which actually brings me to a point that I needed to make," Edge started, looking directly at Chris. "I needed to talk with you and Stephanie, right now preferably, I feel like I need to clear some things up and confess some other things."

Lita wrapped her arm around his waist and gave him a reassuring pat. She had convinced him to tell Chris and Stephanie the plan that he had involving them breaking up. Edge would never feel good about himself if they didn't know what he had wanted at one point and time. There was also another thing he wanted to bring up, but Lita had no idea about that one.

"Yeah, sure, that is if I could actually find my wife, she seems to be hiding from me right now."

Stephanie wasn't hiding. She was sitting in a stairwell at the moment, rooting through her phone numbers. She had actually gotten a hold of the person that she had needed to speak to and the wheels were in motion. She figured that she was done with this plan and sat back against the steps. She was self-satisfied with herself for what she had done, or what she was going to do rather. She had just talked to security and added another name to the list of people cleared to come into the building. She loved a good scheme.

"Whoa, wasn't expecting anyone here."

Stephanie turned her head and saw Rob Van Dam standing over her. He had a little bit of a sweat going so she figured that he had been jogging on the stairs to get ready for his match later on. She smiled up at him. They had had a good friendship going during the Invasion, even though she had pretty much used him to get revenge on Chris Jericho.

"Hey Rob."

"Stephanie McMahon," he said in that laid-back tone of his. "I don't think pregnant women should be sitting in a stairwell."

"I'm cool."

"Cool then," he said, giving her a thumbs up. "You hidin' from someone in here?"

"Nah, I just had to make some private phone calls."

"Well that's…weird," Rob said, then paused and sat down next to her. "Couldn't you have done that in your office?"

"I could've, but then anybody could've heard me and that wouldn't have been good."

"You sure haven't changed," Rob laughed. "I remember you being pretty sneaky back in the day. Heh, you were like a mastermind or something."

"Mastermind, I think I like that," Stephanie said. "I am a mastermind."

"You can be whatever you want to be," Rob said nonchalantly, like he was a motivational speaker or something. "Hey, you aren't like in labor or anything are you? Cause then you really shouldn't be in a stairwell."

"No, I'm not in labor," she laughed. "Though why I would choose to be in a stairwell while in labor would be a weird choice."

"Hey," he shrugged. "To each his own. But I've got to go warm up for my match later, Big Show is…big. And Triple H just has a big nose."

Stephanie laughed at that. Rob had a way of just understating things to the point where they became hilarious. "Good luck Rob."

"Hey, I don't need luck, I'm," and then she knew what was coming as he started to point to himself, "R-V-D."

He started jogging down the steps and she could hear his footsteps fade away and then a door open as he must've entered the hallway. She sat there for a little while, by herself. It was rare that she got a true moment by herself, not that she didn't enjoy the people around her, but with the hectic pace of her life right now, working, having Kurt and Trish live with them, and the impending baby, she hardly got a true moment where she could just sit. She leaned her arms back against the step behind her and relished in the quiet of the stairwell.

"Hey baby," Stephanie said down to her stomach. She had been reading about how her son could open his eyes now and how he could follow light and all of that good stuff. It was weird to think that there was an almost functioning human inside of her body right now. She only had ten or so weeks to adjust to the idea of being a mother. If she got to those ten weeks, thirty-seven weeks was considered full-term and he could come sooner than April 28th. Every day she was closer to meeting her son and it was starting to become so real and so very scary.

"Sawyer, don't hate me, okay. I don't know how I'm going to do with you, but just please…don't hate me. I don't think I could take it. I mean, you'll understand when, or IF, you meet your grandpa, what I mean about not hating me. I just want you to like me…okay…so if you can hear and I know you can, just please don't hate me."

"I don't think anyone could hate you."

She closed her eyes and relished in the voice. She loved that voice above any voice in the world. She loved falling asleep to it and she loved waking up to it. "How could you possibly have found me?"

"I ran into Rob, he said you were here," Chris said, taking a seat on the step a couple steps down from her so that he had to turn and look up. "I was starting to get worried about you. Thought you might have somehow ended up in Trip's locker room and you were doing each other."

"How would that even work?" Stephanie asked. "I'm not exactly easy to get to."

He shrugged. "So Ashley apparently broke her leg."

"She did! When did this happen!"

"At the end of the diva battle royale…hey, just how long have you been sitting here anyways?" he wondered because apparently she hadn't even seen the show.

"A while," Stephanie answered. "I had a few calls to make."

"To whom?"

"To none of your business."

"You really are no fair. I give up going on tour for you and I don't even get to know how you were calling on the phone. How is that fair? Our marriage is supposed to be 50/50, not 90/10."

"I was making a few phone calls to bring in a little help for Shawn Michaels later, if you MUST know."

"Why would he need help?"

"My dad is putting him in a very unfair match so it's Stephanie the mastermind to the rescue," she said in a self-congratulatory sort of way. "It's not a big deal, but it will drive my dad ballistic and really, isn't that what it's all about?"

"Whatever you want to do baby, you know that you have my full support."

"I think that's what I love the most about you," Stephanie said, reaching down to take his hand and bring it up to her lap as she fiddled with his wedding ring.

"What is that?"

"That you never tell me I can't do something. You never make me feel like there isn't something I can't do. Like if I wanted to conquer the world, I don't think that you would stop me. I think you'd probably tell me to go for it."

"I would. I wouldn't mind being the ruler of the world's husband. That'd be pretty prestigious."

"Yeah, but I do think that's what I love the most about you."

"Oh, and here I thought it was for my dashing good looks."

"That too."

"Oh hey, I found you guys," Edge said, jogging up to where the couple was sitting.

"Now how did YOU find us?" Stephanie asked.

"Ran into Trish who got the info from Rob."

"Geez, no privacy around here," Chris said. "Edge needs to talk to us."

"About?"

"Ok," Edge said, sitting down. "This is really hard for me to say and I don't know how you're going to take it. You may hate me, you may want to put a hit out on me, I only ask that you give me a ten-minute head-start."

"Edge, what is this all about?"

"When Lita and I first started seeing each other, after the Kane debacle…the reason we started seeing each other was because I was using her…to get to you Chris."

"Get me to what?" he scoffed.

"She was going to seduce you away from Stephanie, and then I was going to hopefully swoop in and steal Stephanie and then use her to get to the title belt," Edge finished seriously, waiting for the blow. He half-expected Chris to hit him in the face.

Instead all he heard was the spontaneous burst of laughter. Chris and Stephanie laughed and laughed and Edge opened his eyes to see Chris and Stephanie looking at each other and cracking up. Chris had his hand curled into a fist, yes, but it was covering his mouth to keep from bursting into hysterics. Stephanie was clutching her large stomach and her eyes were watering.

"You actually thought that I'd choose Lita over Stephanie?" Chris said, finally calming down.

"And you thought I would even think about getting with you?" Stephanie asked, then burst into laughter again. "That's the funniest thing I've ever heard!"

"Well…okay then," Edge said, thoroughly embarrassed now. "I just didn't want it hanging over my head for the rest of my life. I felt bad for it."

"Well obviously you didn't do a very good job," Chris said. "Since I'm still with Stephanie and everything. You kind of failed that mission."

"Well, I mean, you guys are so into each other."

"Well, we ARE married, I know that means nothing, but it tends to mean that we love each other and probably wouldn't let other people come in and 'steal' us," Stephanie said. "Poor misguided Edge, thinking that you could break us up."

"Yeah, like I'd let you touch my wife," Chris said. "Don't worry about it, it was a stupid idea, you didn't succeed, it's in the past."

"Ok, well then, the other thing I have to say…"

"Oh God, did you suggest to Trips that he and Stephanie became friends or something heinous like that?"

"No, actually, it's this," Edge said, reaching into his pocket and handing Stephanie a slip of paper. "I'm tired…well, no, that's not it. I just…well, I think that one of you deserves to have this. I don't know what you want to do with it, if you want to throw it away fine, but…I think you should have it."

"Whose phone number is this?" Stephanie asked. "Yours?"

"It's Christian's," Edge said. "His new one. I haven't talked to him in a few days, but he says that Mickie has been lying to Trish. I didn't want to give it to Trish because she's starting to get over him, and so I figured you guys were the next best thing, well, Kurt was the next best thing, but he had to take Ashley to the hospital, so I'm giving it to you. He doesn't know anything about you guys or the baby or anything, he refuses to even hear anything about you guys. He does know that Trish is living with you, how he found out, I don't know. But he said that Mickie was lying last week, and when I watched the tape of the show, he was right. Mickie lied to Trish. Christian is still looking out for her."

Stephanie looked down at the sheet of paper. "Christian…"

"Yeah."

"Do you know why he left?" Chris asked seriously.

"No, he won't tell me," Edge said. "I don't know, but I have a feeling something big went down. I don't know what though. But I know that Christian still loves her. You should've heard what he had to say about that Jack guy."

"Thank you," Stephanie said softly. "Thank you so much Edge."

"You don't have to call him right now or anything, but I just thought you should have this. I'll leave you guys alone now."

Edge got up and left quickly, glad that they had laughed at him and not hated him. Lita was waiting by the door anxiously and when Edge finally came through the door she inspected him for anything amiss, like a black eye or a swollen lip. He didn't look unusual and he leaned down to kiss her.

"They laughed, they thought it was funny."

"I'm happy for you," she said, hugging him.

"I also gave them Christian's phone number."

Stephanie looked down at the number, as if memorizing it. Chris had scooted up a few steps so he could look down at it as well. There were a lot of thoughts running through his mind right now. First and foremost all the ways he'd like torture Christian for all the things he had put Trish through. But the time for questions would come later.

"What should we do with it?" Stephanie asked.

"Well, come up with a plan would be good."

"Yeah, like if we call him and he finds out that it's us, he'll hang up, I mean, he hasn't even tried to contact us in months, why would he even want to hear from us."

"Exactly, and I don't know if I'm entirely ready to talk to him. I mean, after what he did to Trish…and then if we call him, we HAVE to tell Trish, and how is she going to take that?"

"I don't know," Stephanie said. "It's a big decision to make."

"Yeah, it is. It comes down to one thing though."

"What's that?"

"Do we want to know what really happened?"

"I called Marty Jannetty to help Shawn later," Stephanie said out of the blue. "That's why I'm sitting here. I know it'll piss my dad off if he shows up so I gave him clearance and a call since I knew he was in the area."

"That was random."

"I just thought I'd tell you what I was really doing. I want to piss my dad off, I want him to know that he can't control everything and everyone. I'm doing it silently so he doesn't know that his daughter can be his worst enemy."

"Is this your way of saying you don't know what to do about Christian?"

"If I find out why he left, I'll have to tell Trish."

"I know. And what else?"

"And I'm afraid of what might happen if we find out."


	75. How Low Can You Go? February 27, 2006

"Stupid son of a…"

Stephanie was crashing all around her hotel room, throwing clothes around aimlessly. She was angry. She had been angry for an entire week and it looked like it wasn't going to be stopping any time soon. She grabbed a pair of Chris's pants and flung it at the wall haphazardly, not caring where they ended up. It wasn't like she could bend over and pick it up anyways. Bending over had become more and more difficult as each week passed and so she had just given it up altogether.

"I hate that…damn it…stupid…" she kept mumbling to herself, going over to her paperwork and idly rifling through it, as if looking for something, but whatever it was she was looking for wasn't found and she just dropped the papers all over the table.

"Steph, I'm back with what you…" Chris's voice petered out as he looked around their suite. There were clothes everywhere, and he meant everywhere. One of Stephanie's shirts was hanging over the lamp next to the couch and he was pretty sure he spotted a bra behind the television. "What the hell happened in here?"

"I was doing a little redecorating, what does it look like I'm doing?" Stephanie snapped.

"Um…I don't know, that's why I asked. It looks like our suitcases exploded…did our suitcases explode?"

"No, they didn't explode," Stephanie said snottily. "Did you get my frozen yogurt?"

"Yup, with the gummi bears like you asked," Chris said, thrusting it forward like it was a peace offering. He hoped it subdued his very irate wife because she looked like she was on a rampage, and he knew what it was like to be caught in the crossfire of that, and that was the last place he wanted to be.

"Thanks," she said curtly as she walked over and grabbed it from him, then took the spon he was also holding in his hand and dug in to her sweet treat. She sighed happily as the first bite hit her tongue. She had such a craving for some frozen yogurt. "This hits the spot, thank you."

"So um…if it doesn't get me killed, may I ask what you are doing?"

"I'm pissed, I'm so damn pissed off," Stephanie said, sitting down heavily in the nearest chair. "You know what happened while you were out?"

"Well, considering I was…out, no I don't know what happened. So why don't you enlighten me, and tell me what has my wife so upset?"

"My father told me that I am not needed tonight. I flew all the way up here from Tampa, and I know that it's not that far, but you'd think he'd tell his pregnant daughter not to come if she wasn't going to be needed at all," Stephanie said angrily. "I'm freaking 31 weeks pregnant and he doesn't have the decency to even tell me that I don't have to come tonight!"

Chris watched Stephanie, knowing that she had to get this out. She was constantly stressed out about her father and it was slowly breaking him. Chris hated seeing her like this. Sure, there was a time, a long time ago that he would've laughed to see her so bedraggled, but that was not now. Now, he just wanted his wife to be happy, and he wanted his son to be happy. Stephanie's pregnancy was supposed to be a good time, a nice time, a special time that they weren't going to have again. He pinched the bridge of his nose.

"I mean, he could've just given me paperwork to do and I would've been fine, but to call me and tell me that I'm not even needed, I mean, he knew I was here, and now he's turning me away. Why doesn't he just fire me and get it over with, I know that's what he would love to do," she said, her lip quivering.

"Steph, it'll be okay, I promise you that. You're going to stop traveling soon anyways, so maybe this is good, look at the silver lining."

"There is no silver lining here Chris," Stephanie said plainly, setting her frozen yogurt down on the table and pushing herself out of her chair. She walked into the bedroom and lay down on the bed, looking up at the ceiling. Chris followed her and leaned in the doorway as he looked at his wife lying on the bed. "He just decided what he wanted wasn't anything that had to do with me. He'd much rather go around humiliating people and acting like he doesn't have a care in the world. That's it."

"Stephy, I want to help you and I don't know how," Chris said, running his hands through his hair. "I just wish that I knew how to help you with this, you know that I want to help you right?"

"I know sweetie," she responded. "I don't know how you can help me."

"I want to though, I…you're having my baby and you should be happy, you shouldn't be upset and you shouldn't be throwing clothes around the room. You should be…I don't know, sitting in a rocking chair rubbing your stomach or something."

She looked over at him. "I don't think I'd be doing that even if my father cared about me."

"I think your father is going through a very late mid-life crisis. I mean, suddenly he has three grandchildren and maybe he can't deal with that," Chris tried to reason. "I mean, that is a big shift."

"Yeah, if it was that, don't you think he would be a little more sympathetic to my cause?" Stephanie asked. "He knows I'm pregnant, everyone knows I'm freaking pregnant, and everyone has been so nice to me, but my father, one of the ones who should care a little bit more than the rest, well he doesn't seem to give a rat's ass about it."

Chris was about to answer when he saw Stephanie starting to sob. It hurt his heart, seeing her like this. It really physically hurt him. He walked over slowly, climbing onto the bed and laying next to her. He leaned over so her was hovering over her slightly and brushed her hair back and around her ear. He did this a few times, just caressing her face slowly, over and over again. She looked up at him, her eyes clear from her tears, making them a bluer shade of grey.

"Tell me what I can do," he said quietly. "I don't want to see you like this."

"I don't know what TO do," she told him, and she bit her lip a little before more tears started to escape from her eyes. "I knew what to do when he was having an affair with Trish, and I knew what to do when he was seeing Sable, and I knew what to do during the Invasion, but here, now, carrying Sawyer, I don't know what to do."

Chris leaned down to kiss her, a soft kiss that just told her how much he loved her, and how much he would always love her. He didn't want things to be like this, not like this at all. His hand trailed down to her stomach and he rubbed it comfortingly. He felt the occasional kick from Sawyer whenever his hand moved over a specific spot and he eventually kept his hand there to feel his son kicking.

"How long has he been going?"

"Ever since I went on my tirade, I think he's trying to tell me to calm the hell down," Stephanie laughed through her tears. "He's probably all mad because I'm getting all mad and it's making him uncomfortable."

"Sawyer, Mommy's sorry, but you'll get used to it," Chris told her stomach. Stephanie let out a particularly loud sob and Chris went up and looked down at her worriedly. "Steph, what's wrong?"

"I'm so jealous of him!" Stephanie said loudly.

"Of who?"

"Of Sawyer, I'm so damn pathetic, I'm jealous of a nothing year old, he's not even born and I'm jealous of him," Stephanie said, covering her face and turning on her side away from Chris.

"You're jealous of him…because…"

"You're going to be a great dad, and Sawyer is going to get such a great dad, and I get…a horrible father, and I'm jealous of my own son," Stephanie said brokenly, hating that she was jealous of her unborn child. Chris scooted closer to her and wrapped his arm around her from behind, spooning her body and tangling their legs together. He leaned his head next to hers and pressed his cheek against the side of her head.

"Shh, you have me baby, shh."

He clasped Stephanie's hand in his and laced their fingers together. He rubbed her knuckles with his thumb for a few moments and then brought their hands down to her stomach and just kept them there. Chris would whisper soothing words into Stephanie's ear and he heard her breaths even out and her grip on his hand loosened and he realized she was asleep. He gently pulled away from her and got off the bed.

He had things he needed to take care of.

Edge watched as Lita walked out in her shirt. Now that he had come to see that he did care about Lita, he found some of her attire a bit racier than he would like. He looked at the shirt she was wearing right now and it left little to the imagination. He contemplated telling her, but they still hadn't exactly defined their relationship.

"That's what you're wearing?"

"Yeah," Lita said. "You picked this out Edge."

"Oh yeah…what was I thinking?"

"You liked it."

"Your whole chest is practically popping out."

"You never had a problem with that before."

"Ok, fine, go out there, I want you to look beautiful."

"Well thank you," Lita said. "So…um…you think Mick showed?"

"I hope so. I want to tell him just what I think of him," Edge said with…well an edge to his voice. "I mean, I have to act like a jerk to get that match, I have to act like the biggest asshole on the planet to get that match."

"You'll get it and you'll show him that you should've won that match. And you'll get your title shot again. And you'll be the champion again."

"Do you really think so?" Edge asked. "I only had it for like a couple of weeks. I mean, that's like nothing."

"Kane only had it for one day," she shrugged. "You'll get another chance."

She came over and straddled his lap and he was kind of glad she was wearing the blouse she was wearing right now. But she was his…girlfriend and he was allowed to look at everything she had to offer. But others weren't. When did he start to become overprotective? It was strange, this caring thing. Was this how Christian felt about Trish, or how Chris felt about Stephanie? Was he really starting to care about Lita? And what about love? Would he start to love her? What if he already did love her? Wouldn't he know though, if he did? Yeah, he would probably know if he loved her.

He let her kiss him, and he fell into it, erasing his minds of all the things that he had just been thinking. He and Lita were having fun and they would leave it at that. When the time came for them to really evaluate their relationship, well, he'd deal with it then, but right now, he was all for living in the moment and not for any other time.

Mickie James was living for the moment too. She was so happy that Ashley had injured herself. She had finally gotten that bitch out of her way and now she was free to be Trish's best friend. She knew that Trish was friends with Stephanie McMahon, but Stephanie McMahon was pregnant and there was no way that they could hang out or anything like that. So that left Mickie and there was no way that Trish could avoid her anymore.

She hadn't planned on Ashley getting hurt, but the timing for it had been so incredibly perfect. Mickie hated that blonde bitch, trying to steal Trish away from her. She was Trish's #1 fan, and she had to go to great lengths to prove it. She would continue to prove it and there would be no way for Trish to avoid her. She had made damn sure of that. Right now she was waiting for Trish to show up for the show. She was sitting by the door, anxiously awaiting her arrival.

She saw Trish walking through the door, and Mickie jumped out of the chair she had been sitting in and ran over to Trish's side. Trish was taken aback by Mickie's sudden appearance and she jumped slightly. Mickie just greeted this with a large and kind of frightening smile.

"Oh, hey Mickie."

"Did you hear about Ashley?" Mickie said immediately.

"Um yeah, I live with her boyfriend, I heard first-hand," Trish said.

"Yeah, so she's out of here for a couple months huh?" Mickie said.

"Yeah, that's what Kurt told me when I talked to him. It sucks," Trish said, continuing to walk to her locker room."

"Yeah, it does," Mickie said quite insincerely.

"I talked to her though, she seems to be doing okay."

"You talked to her?" Mickie asked. Mickie didn't even have Trish's phone number and Ashley had her phone number?

"Yeah," Trish answered, not thinking anything of it. She found her locker room. "If you'll excuse me Mickie, I've got some things to do."

"Oh of course," Mickie said, watching as Trish walked into her locker room. As soon as the door shut, Mickie scowled. She did NOT like the idea of Ashley having her phone number and her not having it. She was Trish's biggest fan, her biggest supporter and she should be the one to have Trish's phone number.

Shane felt uneasy being there and Stephanie not being there. He knew that his father had called Stephanie and told her not to come. That was mainly because Vince was having his "Kiss My Ass Club," thing tonight and Vince knew how much Stephanie was hating him right now and he didn't need her bugging him the entire night. Shane was feeling a little bad for that now.

Stephanie had flown all the way here and she was more than seven months pregnant. Shane hated to admit this, but Stephanie was actually a little bit right. He had never been his father's favorite, that had been Stephanie from the moment that she was born. She was Daddy's Little Girl and nobody ever let him forget it. After the whole thing with him marrying Marissa, he had just wanted his father not to hate him again, and when Stephanie had told Vince that he would have no contact with his grandson, Shane, being the opportunistic person that he was, had jumped on the chance to become his father's favorite.

Was it wrong of him to turn on his own sister? Yeah, it was, and he felt guilty for it. Even Marissa had told him that what he was doing was messed up, but Shane just wanted to bridge that gap with his father. He had NEVER been his father's favorite and just this once, he wanted to know what it was like. He wanted to know what it felt like to make his father proud. Little did he know that his father wasn't as proud of him as he was using him to make himself feel better.

Shane desperately wanted to call Stephanie, but she had been all but ignoring him as of late. He didn't blame her, but he missed his sister. Hadn't it been not that long ago that she had said it was them against the world? That's how it had been growing up, them against the world, and he would protect her from everything. Maybe her being away tonight would protect her.

"Are you prepared for tonight Shane?"

"Yeah Dad, whatever you need me to do," Shane told his father. Yeah, he was selling out, and he was sending his sister down the river without a paddle so to speak, but Shane had to look out for himself once in a while.

That was until the door burst open and Chris walked purposefully up to Vince and shoved the man…hard. Shane stood up immediately and Chris turned to him. "This isn't about you Shane, I suggest you leave."

"Chris, what the hell is going on?" Shane asked.

"You want to know what the hell is going on? I've got my pregnant wife crying in a hotel room is what's wrong," Chris said angrily. "I've got a selfish, egotistical father-in-law who makes my wife cry! That's what's wrong Shane, so I suggest you get the hell out of here."

"Chris, stop," Shane said.

"Or what? You gonna fire me?" Chris challenged, then scoffed. "You guys can't fire me. I took a leave of absence, I'm not on an active contract, oh and did I mention that I do technically own part of this company, I'm on even keel with the both of you, so you're going to hear me out."

"Stephanie agreed to not be here tonight," Vince said, straightening his collar.

Chris shook his head. "What is it with you Vince? Huh? Is there something wrong with you? I just don't get it."

"I think you should leave Chris, you're not being rational," Vince told him sternly.

"And having some guy kiss your ass is just all kinds of logical," Chris guffawed. "Wow, where have I been?"

"Chris, what I do in my ring is none of your business."

"Oh, but it IS my business now Vince," Chris said. "You see, five, six years ago, I could've cared less what you did, or who kissed your ass. But I care now. I married your daughter, and I knew what I was getting into. I knew the kind of family I was marrying into, and I thought I could deal with it…but I can't deal with this. My wife is giving birth in nine weeks. I will have a son in nine weeks. That's pretty amazing huh?"

"What has that got to do with this?"

"Stephanie should be happy and resting and not stressed out and you are stressing her out, and I'm sick and tired of it. I'm sick and tired of you and your head games. You don't want Stephanie to work the production so you give her piles of meaningless paperwork, you don't want her to be here tonight so you send her home. Have you ever even thought of your daughter's feelings?"

"I think about her feelings all the time," Vince protested. "I protected her!"

"When Vince? When have you ever protected Stephanie? When she was younger, you wanted her to seal the deal with people, using her as a pawn. You let her stay married to Hunter, you cheated on Linda in front of her, and you didn't care, you didn't notice anything. I don't know what it's gonna take to get it through your thick skull that Stephanie deserves better."

"Don't tell me how to treat my children."

"When one of your children is the woman I love, you better believe I'm going to get involved. And you Shane? I can't believe you would do this to your own sister."

"Now wait a minute Chris," Shane said, trying to come to his own defense.

"The both of you should be ashamed of yourselves," Chris said, shaking his head. "You're both adults, you both should know better. Especially you Shane, I expected better from you and so did Steph."

"Look, you don't know--"

"I don't…well I do know that my wife was sobbing earlier. I do know that she was throwing things around our suite. I know that she's cried herself to sleep on more than one occasion this week thinking about what you've done to her. I know that she blames herself for a lot of things she shouldn't be blaming herself for. That's all, that's all I know, not much huh? Oh wait, no, it's a hell of a lot when I think about it. And you know how that makes me feel, it makes me so damn mad I don't know what to do with myself."

"Well then calm the hell down," Vince told him.

Chris grabbed Vince by the collar and glared at him. "Don't you even tell me what to do right now Vince, so help me God I am ready to pound you into the ground. If you don't get your head out of your ass and realize what you're doing to Stephanie, you will lose her and you will lose her forever."

"Get your hands off of me," Vince said through gritted teeth.

"Or what? You don't have anything on me Vince and you know it," Chris said, shoving him away. "Consider that your warning. I will not have my wife crying her eyes out because of YOU. I will not let you hurt her anymore, I'm sick and tired of it."

Chris stormed out of the room, fearing that if he stayed in there any longer he would totally blow up and punch Vince. He was probably the only one who could get away with punching Vince right now. There wasn't anything Vince could do anyways. He wasn't contractually obligated to be someone here, and he was Vince's son-in-law. He walked down the hallway when he felt a hand on his arm. He turned and saw a concerned-looking Shane behind him.

"What the hell do you want?" Chris asked.

"She was crying?" Shane asked him.

Chris nodded. "Yeah, she was, what's it to you?"

Shane looked down remorsefully. "I didn't want her to cry. I really didn't want to upset her."

"And you taking your father's side wasn't going to hurt her. She was counting on you Shane and you let her down. Look, I'm not that mad at you, but your father can kiss my ass for all I care. I don't want him around Stephanie."

"He's her father."

"Some father he's been. You don't have to be around her, and I don't like seeing my wife upset. How would you feel if Marissa were in the same situation?"

"I get it," he said. "I didn't want it to be like this. I just…you don't understand Chris."

"Obviously not," Chris said. "Look, if you care anything about your sister, keep your father as far away from her as possible. I'm not just worried about her, but I'm worried about Sawyer too. If Stephanie gets too stressed, something could happen to our son, and that's the last thing I want."

"I don't want anything to happen to my nephew either."

"Good, then please, just help us out with this."

"I will," Shane said. "Um…make sure she's not watching later okay?"

"Why?"

"Just make sure."

"Sure."

Mickie was going to show Trish just how much she cared about her and how much she idolized her. Mickie thought Trish was the salt of the earth, the best thing to ever walk this hallowed ground. If Mickie could petition Trish for the Hall of Fame right now, she would absolutely start one and be the first signature. She just admired Trish so much and Trish's accomplishments were so great and numerous she wanted the world to share in her opinion.

Trish was uneasy with all the attention that Mickie was always giving her. At least while Ashley was here she didn't have to spend so much time with Mickie, but Ashley was going to be gone for a few months, maybe more, hopefully less. She and Ashley could both fend off Mickie, but she couldn't do it alone.

After her match, which she naturally won, she saw Mickie bowing down before her. Trish didn't know how she managed to do it, but she made even that look somehow vulgar. Trish kept telling her to stop, but Mickie was having none of that, just bowing over and over and over again. Trish was growing impatient and then Mickie threw her arms around her, burying her face into her pants. Trish pushed her away, disgusted. She didn't know if Mickie wanted her in that way, but Trish certainly did not want her in that way. She backed up the ramp, watching to make sure that Mickie didn't come after her. If Mickie came after her, she was going to run up the ramp and to her dressing room and lock the door and not come out until the show was over.

She saw Edge backstage and gestured towards the monitor. "Did you see that?"

"Yeah, she's…odd."

Trish shuddered. "I cannot stand her. Oh…hi Lita."

Lita stepped away from Edge, showing herself. "Trish."

"I'll be going now."

"Hey, you guys…are you ever going to get over whatever went down between you?" Edge asked.

"There's nothing to get over," Trish said calmly, eerie in her tone. "Nothing…I'll see you guys later…oh, Edge, if you could…um, tell Christian congratulations on the title. I'm really proud of him."

"I'm not exactly speaking to him right now," Edge told her.

"Did you have a fight?"

"Yeah…about you."

"Me?" Trish asked, surprised. "What about me?"

"He's a stupid jerk Trish," Edge said. "And this is coming from a real jerk. I just can't stand what he's doing to you, what he did to you. I guess it took me realizing what I had with Lita to see that you really, really don't deserve to be treated like this."

"Don't feel sorry for me Edge."

"I don't, I'm just pissed at my brother."

"He had his reasons…he had to have had his reasons," she said, as much as it pained her to say it. "I don't know what they are, but he had them. I'm just…I'm glad he's striving over there, even though I miss him."

"Trish, do you want his number?" Edge asked outright.

"No," she said immediately. "He chose to leave…I can't drag him back."

"But maybe you can just talk to him."

"Talking would be equally as hard knowing that I can't have him," Trish said and she looked down. "Hey Lita…word of advice?"

"What?"

"Keep onto this one," Trish said, patting Edge's chest. "Hold on tight."

Edge watched her walk away and he saw what a number his brother did on Trish. Even if he hated Lita and was just messing around with her for the sex, he would never leave her with a note and an empty house. Christian and Trish had been seeing each other for three years and he had just left her like that. He wondered what the hell had happened.

Mickie came backstage, immediately looking for Trish.

Chris headed back to the hotel and found that Stephanie was still asleep on the bed. He went over and kissed her forehead, wondering if she had woken up while he was one. He looked at the clock and saw that it was nearing eleven, and decided to just let her sleep. He took her shoes off and then proceeded to undress her and put her in her pajamas. She moaned and opened her eyes.

"Chris, what are you doing?" she asked sleepily.

"Just undressing you and putting your pajamas on."

"I can take care of that," she said, "Did you go somewhere? I felt you get off the bed."

"I had some things I needed to take care of is all," Chris said. "Nothing major."

"Oh…is the show still on?"

"Steph, I don't think we want to watch," he said, remembering Shane's warning.

"Why not?" she asked, grabbing the remote control. "I just want to see what's going on, that's not a crime."

"Come on," he said. "How about I give you a massage before you go to bed? That'll help your back."

"Chris, why won't you let me watch the show," she said, turning on the television. She flipped through the channels and finally found USA. She focused her eyes on the television and promptly screamed. "What the hell!"

She averted her eyes and Chris grabbed the remote and turned off the television. "Yeah, that was disturbing."

"I thought he would do that earlier in the show," she said, making gagging noises. "My father is a jerk. I cannot stand him."

"I took care of it baby."

"Took care of it?" she asked curiously.

"Yeah, don't worry any more about it. It's taken care of."

"How did you take care of…the business you had, the reason you left…Chris what did you do?"

"I just warned your father that he needed to stay away from you and I didn't like how he was stressing you out…Steph, it's like this. I'm worried about you and I'm worried about Sawyer. I don't want anything to happen to the either of you. I love you both more than myself, and that's a lot."

"It is, you really do love yourself."

"Yeah, I mean, when you look like me and you have as much all-around talent as I do, and you're charming like me…"

"Okay, we're getting off track here," Stephanie said.

"Oh yeah, well, I want to make the next nine weeks good for you because I don't want our son coming out angry at the world."

Stephanie laughed softly. "I agree, thank you for sticking up for me."

"Thank you for carrying my son."

"It's my pleasure," she told him as she leaned over to kiss him.

Trish was just getting back to her hotel room when her phone rang. She dropped her things and went to her bag, grabbing her phone and looking at the display. It said "Private Number," and she groaned until she realized that it could just be Kurt calling from Ashley's house, where'd he'd been staying with her for the time being.

"Kurt, is that you?"

"Um…no."

Trish would recognize that voice anywhere. "Christian…"

"Hey Trish."

She fought the urge to hang up. "What are you doing calling me?"

"I just…um…Edge called me."

"He said he wasn't going to."

"He did, he sent your congratulations along."

"Oh."

"Thanks. I never would've gotten as far as I did without you. You kept pushing me and believing in me. Trish, you're the reason that I'm who I am."

"Why are you telling me these things?" Trish said, tears in her eyes. "Why are you calling me now?"

"I just…I couldn't do this title thing without acknowledging the woman who was the driving force behind it."

"Christian, stop it," Trish said, her voice flat. "You left me. You left me like I was some whore. You might as well have just left money on the counter for me to complete the transaction. What makes you think that I believe any word you say right now?"

"Trish…it was for the best."

"Don't you tell me what was for the best," Trish said, her voice sharp. "You left with nothing. Nothing! I can't believe you did that to me! After I loved you."

"Loved?" he asked.

"Don't try to make me analyze my word choice. Look, you left, and that's it, that's all she wrote, I didn't ask you to call."

"I know, I just needed you to know."

"Well fine, I know then."

"Trish…"

"You blew it Chrissy, you blew it."

She hung up before he could answer.


	76. Well Hello Steph, March 6, 2006

A/N: Well, what a nice surprise seeing Stephanie on Raw tonight. Despite the ugly sweater, she looked lovely as usual. I know she's pregnant in the story, but she's less pregnant in real life, so suspend your disbelief a little and pretend she was more pregnant. I also really focused this chapter on Jericho and Stephanie, more specifically Stephanie, so if you were looking for more Trish/Christian/Edge/Lita/Kurt/Ashley stuff, sorry.

And as always, enjoy, and leave a review. ;)

* * *

"Chris, can you help me?"

Chris stuck his head out of the bathroom, "What do you need help with baby?"

"I can't zip up my dress," Stephanie informed him, turning around so he could see the zipper that was still completely down, revealing her smooth back. Chris was amazed that even though she was entering her eighth month, and due in eight weeks, she was still just so incredibly sexy and beautiful. And it wasn't even the whole pregnancy glow that people said came along with pregnancy, she was still just Stephanie, beautiful and elegant in her own, unique way.

Chris walked out of the bathroom, only in a pair of short spandex shorts that he wore underneath his gym shorts when he was working out. He had just been about to hop in the shower. He walked up behind Stephanie and ran one hand up her bare back. She turned to face him slightly, giving in a look that was filled with question. He winked at her and pushed her hair aside to lay a soft kiss to the back of her neck.

"Chris, come on, zip me up," she insisted, trying to sound impatient, but not really protesting the contact. Who would ever not want to be kissed by Chris Jericho?

"You're gorgeous, you know that?"

"I do know that," Stephanie said confidently. "But I do kind of need to be zipped up so that I can…you know, be dressed."

"Do you have to get dressed? I much prefer you in nothing at all."

She rubbed a hand self-consciously over her swollen middle. "Please, with my stomach the way it is now, even I don't want to see myself naked, much too depressing when I see how much of my figure I've lost, not that I was all skinny and everything before, but now I've got a stomach that needs its own plane ticket."

"You really think I would ever pass up the opportunity to see you naked, pregnant or not?" Chris asked incredulously. He slyly pushed down the straps of Stephanie dress, running his hands over her shoulders.

"You're just horny all the time," Stephanie teased, pushing her straps back on.

"Only for you," Chris informed her, like she didn't already know. He zipped up her dress then, and she turned in his arms, giving him a proper kiss as a thank you. She ran her hands over his bare chest and brought her hands down to the top of his shorts, playing with them a little bit.

"Sweetie?"

"Yeah," he said, trying not to concentrate on her hands that were fiddling with the waistband of his shorts. Just Stephanie's touch could drive him crazy.

"I'm afraid I'm not maternal enough," she said in such a way that it wasn't a real concern, but just something that she had observed.

"When did you come to that conclusion?"

"At Lamaze," she answered. "I don't know, it's like…the lady is always talking about the bundle of love and how the baby is a symbol of our love and how he'll be a living tribute to our commitment or some such crap like that, and I never think that. I know that Sawyer is going to be loved, and I know that we love each other, cause I love you, but then I'm not proclaiming that Sawyer is our love personified. I mean, I love him and all, but I'm just not…maternal."

"Are you kidding me? I hate that too. I hate when people try to make something into something it's not."

"Like when people say making love, I hate that," Stephanie said, making a face, "I mean, its sex, that's what it is, calling it making love doesn't make it any different. Like making love, it's not a recipe, it's an act, and it bugs me."

"I'm so glad I married you," Chris said, taking her face in his hands. "We totally think alike."

"Yeah, but I don't want to screw up Sawyer like my father screwed up me and Shane."

"I don't think you're screwed up," he told her. "I would've never married someone who was screwed up, so you can't be screwed up."

"I'm a little screwed up," she insisted.

"Then I'm screwed up too," he told her, "and so is Sawyer, we'll all just be screwed up together."

She kept playing with the top of his shorts, totally unaware that she was even doing so. Chris didn't want her to stop though. He was just amazed that he never got tired of her touch. It had never been this way with any of the women that he had been with before Stephanie. Chris wasn't a womanizer by any means, but he did like to flirt and generally be in women's company, but nobody had ever compared to the way that Stephanie made him feel. She made him feel so different, so incredible.

"So we're all screwed up together."

"Definitely."

Chris leaned down to kiss her and she slipped her hand into his shorts, and Chris moaned against her mouth. Stephanie smirked against her lips, knowing exactly what she was doing now. But before anything could escalate any further, there was a knock on the door. Stephanie growled, angry that they had been interrupted. She went to the door, Chris right behind her, still in his short, little shorts (looking sexy as always though), and she opened it. She scoffed and let out a breath.

"What the hell are you two doing here?" Stephanie asked.

"Look, we want to talk to you," Shane said.

"And if I don't want to talk to you?" Stephanie asked.

Vince pushed his way into the room, and Shane followed, locking the door behind him. Stephanie and Chris both folded their arms, feeling like they were about to be ambushed. Their instincts were good though as Vince paced a few steps and then looked at the two of them.

"I want to know what the hell happened to my little girl," he said.

"What are you talking about Dad?" Stephanie asked, glancing to Chris, who didn't get it anymore than Stephanie did.

"I'm talking about the Stephanie you used to be, the bitch, the schemer, the person who wanted all the power in the world and would stop at nothing to get it," Vince explained. "Where is that Stephanie?"

"How do you know I'm not?" Stephanie countered. "How do you know that I don't have something for you?"

"You do," Vince said. "You've been helping Shawn."

Stephanie kept tight-lipped, but wondered how her father had figured it out. Sure, she had helped Shawn, but she thought that it had been a secret. Now she didn't know who she could trust around here. It was probably that assistant she had asked to retrieve Shawn. Unfortunately for her, her father did have complete control and people were in such awe of him they didn't hesitate to give up information.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," she lied. "Chris can agree with me."

"Yeah," Chris interjected. "She's not doing anything."

"Normally, I'd believe you Princess because you're an amazing liar, just like myself, but not this time. We know you had something to do with Marty last week, and with the contract signing."

Stephanie's mouth turned up into a smirk. "So you've caught me. What are you going to do Dad? Are you going to fire me? Are you going to flog me? Maybe banish me from Greenwich? Or how about a plot to break Chris and me apart? That would probably be what you've been planning."

"That's not it at all…I just want my little girl on my side," Vince said. "It's been fun with Shane and all, but Princess, you know that you are the most like me."

"And what makes you think that I want any part of this?" she asked, reverting into business mode. "What makes you think that Chris and I want anything to do with you?"

"Well, family for one. And Chris, I know that you fit right into our family if what you did to me last week is any indication. I always knew you'd be a good match for Stephanie. You are just as conniving as anyone in my family and willing to stand up to anyone. I had to admire the way you stood up to me last week."

"I'd do anything for Steph and Sawyer," Chris said sharply.

"Yes, you would," Vince conceded. "I want you back Princess. I want the real Stephanie back. The real Stephanie wouldn't turn against her family."

"I don't like your behavior Dad," Stephanie told him. "I don't like the way you've been acting."

"Princess, it's all for show. Shawn Michaels has been a collective thorn in our sides with all his talk of God and family. Family is here," he said, gesturing around. "This is family. The way he talks of family, you'd think that he should be in a fairy tale, but this is family and family sticks together."

"I don't believe you," Stephanie said shaking her head. "What do you want?"

"Who said we wanted anything?" Shane asked.

"Because you don't come up here and apologize if you don't want something," Stephanie said. "You forget that another part of family is knowing exactly who you're dealing with."

"We have a plan for Shawn," Shane said. "And you would be an integral part of that plan."

"And what makes you think that I want anything to do with this plan? What if I agree with Shawn? What if family is supposed to be like a fairy tale?"

"Don't tell me you actually believe that dreck," Shane told her. "My sister, the one who threw slop on Trish, the one who slapped her own mother, no, that's not you at all."

Stephanie raised an eyebrow. "Maybe I don't agree with it. Maybe I do think it's a bunch of crap on a stick, but why should that change my mind?"

"Because it's who you are," Shane told her. "You can't change who you are Stephanie, no matter what comes along. You want to be that bitch, you want everyone to hate you because you're Stephanie McMahon-Jericho and you can do whatever the hell you want to anyone you want. Come back Steph, we need you."

"She's pregnant," Chris interrupted.

"We know that," Shane said, "but she's still Steph, and you're still Chris Jericho. You may not be wrestling for us right now, but you're an owner, don't you just want to be that guy? You two are just as much in power as Dad and me. You know that. Take advantage of it man."

"I don't want to take advantage of Stephanie."

"You aren't," Vince assured him. "The both of you, equal power. Doesn't that sound nice? You've always wanted power Stephanie. What changed?"

Stephanie placed her hand on her stomach. She hadn't changed; she had never changed, she had just adapted. Stephanie was still conniving. Chris was still Chris, and she was still Stephanie. They were still the same people they had been. She was still the same girl who had slapped her mother, and Chris was still the man who would do anything and everything to be the champion. He was still the guy that had tied Chyna up and threatened to break her hand. They hadn't changed.

"Nothing's changed," Stephanie answered softly. "Nothing has changed at all."

"Steph?" Chris asked.

"No, they're right. Chris, look at us. We were just talking about how I didn't feel maternal, how I didn't think of Sawyer as a flowery, poetic thing. I mean, I love him and everything, but we were just talking about how we're not like that. I love to be the bitch, I love it when people bow before me, I love to have the control, that's why I was so pissed last week when I couldn't work, that's why I'm still here even though I'm due in eight weeks. And you, you've shown how you like the power, look at the Money in the Bank match, that was your idea, and we're using it again. This is who we are Chris."

"Stephanie, a word," Chris said, pulling her into the bedroom and shutting the door behind him. "Okay, what's up?"

"I just don't know why I'm running from who I am," Stephanie said. "My dad and Shane are right, I'm Stephanie, and I haven't changed."

"Sure you have."

"Would I have gotten so angry last week if I weren't the same? Would I have befriended Hunter because I thought he was suspicious if I were somehow different? This is who I am Chris, I'm Stephanie McMahon, I'm always going to be Stephanie McMahon. You love me that way."

"I do love you that way," Chris said, sighing. "I do love the way you always have to be in power, and I love the way that you scheme and plan and make things go your way. Okay, I love that about you. I love that you want to conquer the world."

"And I love the way you will stop at nothing to protect me," Stephanie said, coming closer and running her hands up and down his chest. "I loved that you would do anything to keep your title. I love that about you Chris. That's who we are. Sawyer isn't going to change us because we are who we are."

Chris watched her hands rubbing his skin. She was right. They weren't different. "Just because we're having a baby doesn't mean we're different."

"Exactly," Stephanie nodded. "And I don't want Sawyer to not have his family. I want Sawyer to be happy. Having his family is gonna make him happy."

"I agree," he told her, leaning down to kiss her. She returned the kiss eagerly.

"Besides," she mumbled as she pulled away. "How would we ever overthrow my dad if we weren't on the same side?"

Chris gave a short laugh. "I like the way you think McMahon."

She slapped his ass, "Put some pants on Jericho, we've got a little work to do."

Chris rolled his eyes, but he wasn't annoyed with Stephanie. He grabbed the nearest pair of pants he could find and slipped them on. When Stephanie was satisfied with his appearance, they walked out together, a united front of sorts and Stephanie grinned from ear to ear. Vince and Shane took this as a good sign.

"Okay Dad, what do you want me to do?"

"We'll discuss this later, at the show."

"I don't think so Dad," Stephanie said, and she was suddenly back to where she belonged. She wasn't a simpering fool, she wasn't a girl who cried at the drop of a hat. Her pregnancy had made her emotions out of whack, but she was a McMahon dammit, and she was bigger than mere emotions.

"What'd you mean you don't think so?"

"And have Shawn find out that we're working together?" Stephanie scoffed. "No, you tell me now and then at the show, we have to keep up the charade that I'm mad at you, how else are we going to convince him to listen to me?"

"She's good, this is my daughter," Vince said proudly. "You do know I'm proud of you Stephanie, right?"

Stephanie smiled and blushed, "Thank you Daddy, I really needed to hear that."

"Okay, so here's what's going to happen…"

Stephanie walked down the hallways with papers in her hand, focusing at the task at hand. She had to play the part tonight, and luckily she was good at playing parts. Stephanie was a much better actress than anyone ever gave her credit for, but that was just the way she liked it. That way, people could never tell if she was acting or not and that was to her great advantage.

"Hey Steph, wait up!"

Stephanie turned to see Trish running up to her. She stopped and waited for Trish to catch up to her. "Hey Trish, what's up?"

"Oh, I just wanted to let you know that I was finally going to tell Mickie what I think of her tonight. It's time because that girl is annoying the crap out of me now. And I think the incident with Christian last week gave me enough confidence to do this."

"I can see where the Christian thing would come in handy, yeah," Stephanie said, nodding. "I mean, it must've taken some courage to hang up on him."

"It did," Trish sighed. "I never thought it would come to this though, you know. I mean, when you find someone that you love, you expect to just love them and have it all work out, and that's not what happened and it really stinks, but I just can't be the doormat."

"Of course not," Stephanie agreed. "You can't let him get away with this kind of behavior. If Chris skipped out on me and then called me back at random, I'd hang up on him so fast that the phone would break."

"Yeah, and if I can do that to Christian, I can certainly tell Mickie to cool it. Fortunately, I don't have a match tonight so I don't have to worry about her coming down and helping me or anything."

"Good thing."

"So what are you doing tonight? Your dad give you your job back or something?" Trish asked.

"Or something," Stephanie responded. "I'm just…taking care of things around here. You know, I'm really going to miss it when I have to leave. I don't know what I'm going to do with myself for a whole month."

"You'll find something to do, you still have a long way to go with Sawyer's nursery, that should keep you busy. But you've still got a month left until you're leaving, that's a lot of time to get used to the idea of being away."

"Yeah, you're right," Stephanie said. "I don't know, I'll just miss the hustle and bustle around here. I'm a little afraid that I'll resent Sawyer for taking me away from all of this."

"Impossible," Trish assured her. "You'll be great and you'll deal, and I expect you to travel with him soon after he's born."

"Probably," Stephanie said, "Well, I've got a lot of work to do so I think that I should get to do that."

"Yeah, and I've got to practice what I say to Mickie when I tell her that she needs to stay away from me."

"Good luck."

"You too."

Stephanie walked the opposite way from Trish and went to her usual post at the gorilla. She saw the show was just starting and they were showing clips from last week. It didn't matter that she had reconciled with her father and brother, she still thought that entire display was disgusting and she had been sure to tell her father that she didn't condone it one bit. It was still disgusting.

"Hey lovely."

Stephanie turned. "I don't think you should be complimenting me Hunter."

"Why not?" he asked.

"Because flattery will get you nowhere," she teased.

"Oh, is that how it goes?" he asked. "I was just thinking that you looked good, is that such a crime?"

"No, it's not a crime, but it's probably an unnecessary compliment. What do you want?" she asked bluntly.

"The pleasure of your company. I'm a little bit busy," Stephanie told him. "I have a lot of work to do."

"You weren't here last week," he commented.

"My father didn't need me," she said, trying to sound bitter. "I guess he just decided that screwing over Shawn Michaels was more important that me or my baby. I guess that's just how he feels."

"I'm really sorry Stephanie."

"Don't worry about it, as long as I have Chris, I'll be fine," she said, smiling sweetly at him. Sure, she had been gullible enough to think that he was her real friend, but now she had to step up her suspicion of him. She had not believed him once upon a time and she should go back to that because in the long run, Hunter was a very untrustworthy person.

"Good," he said, furrowing his brow (more than it already furrows).

Stephanie winced and held her stomach. "Ouch."

"Everything okay?" Hunter asked.

Stephanie took a deep breath and sat down on the edge of a folding table. "I don't know, I just, oww, there it was again."

"Stephanie, is everything okay?" Hunter asked, placing his hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah, I just…I don't know, felt weird there for a second," she said, straightening up. "I'll be fine, I just need to sit down and get to work."

"Are you sure? You didn't look good there for a second."

"No, no, I'm fine," she assured him. "Go ahead and think about your match later. I've got a lot of things that I need to worry about."

"Don't overexert yourself okay?"

"Yeah, I won't," she said, sitting down and going over the papers that she had brought with her. Hunter watched her for a moment before walking away, as if reassuring himself that she was really fine. When he was out of the area, she smirked to herself and looked down at her stomach. "Sorry baby, I know that you're too young to know what happens around here, but thank you for being a participant in Mommy's little plan. Don't worry, you'll get used to it."

Stephanie did her work diligently, getting it all out of the way. She didn't watch her father's segment because she didn't want to see anything more of his ass on television. Just that image grossed her out. Besides, she had to act uninterested in all of this. She had to be the perfect person that she was.

She finally got the cue from Shane that she had to go see Shawn soon. She grabbed something from her desk and shoved it into her shirt. It was time for the world to see the real Stephanie McMahon. She made her way down to Shawn's dressing room, trying to look as pathetic as she could, like she could actually be sympathized with. She rubbed her stomach a little, wondering if Sawyer would ever be as manipulative as she and Chris were. She hoped that he got both his parents killer instincts when it came to this kind of thing.

She walked into Shawn's locker room and played the role perfectly. She knew that Shawn trusted her from their previous interactions dealing with his contract/retirement signing, and with Marty last week. She even apologized on behalf of her father and brother for what they had done, which she had pretty much done weeks earlier, as well as play up the fact that she was having a baby and that had changed her (really, didn't I write something like that weeks ago). And Shawn ate it all up. A little trust went a long way.

Then came the piece de resistance when she grabbed her stomach and pretended there was something wrong with Sawyer. Shawn, being the standup guy that he was, quickly rushed to her side, making sure that she was okay. She said she was fine, but then threw in an extra little owwie in there for good measure, requesting that Shawn get her a water. When he was out of the room, she grabbed the pill from her blouse and put it in his water, getting the powdery substance everywhere in the process.

She quickly cleaned up after herself, making sure the remnants of the rather potent sleeping pill were gone before he came back. He was in there moments later and she accepted the water graciously, acting like that was all she needed. She smiled and left, and hoped that he took a nice, big swig of his water. She was walking down the hallway when she felt a hand on her arm and saw Shawn there again.

"I just wanted to make sure that you were really okay," he said, still concerned. "I don't want anything wrong with your son."

"Nothing's wrong with my son," Stephanie said firmly.

"You don't usually get pain during your pregnancy, not where the baby is concerned," Shawn said. "I know, when my wife was pregnant."

"I appreciate your concern, Shawn," Stephanie said, slightly derisive, "but I think that me and my baby are going to be just fine."

"Stephanie, please listen to me, I'm just concerned about you."

"Don't you think that you should be more concerned with your match coming up next?" Stephanie asked. "I mean, you don't want to lose do you?"

"Your brother isn't exactly a great wrestler."

"Don't underestimate a McMahon," Stephanie told him with a wry smile. "That's the first rule that you have to learn when you're dealing with a McMahon. Never expect them to do the same thing twice."

"What do you mean?" Shawn asked, narrowing his eyes.

"I'm just saying that my father and brother shouldn't be trusted, they're McMahons, and we're a weird bunch," she told him. "But don't you worry about me and my baby, we're both doing fine. I mean, that's what my doctor is always telling me. Do you really think I'd be traveling this late in my pregnancy if I weren't okay?"

"Yeah, I guess you've got a point," Shawn said, then placed his hand on his head. "Man, I'm not feeling well."

"What?"

"I don't know, I just suddenly got kind of dizzy," Shawn told her. "I don't know what that's about."

"Maybe you're the one who should get checked out."

"Nah, I'm cool," Shawn said, shaking his head like he was trying to shake something off.

"If you say so," she said in a sing-song voice. "Good luck Shawn, I have a feeling you're going to need plenty of it."

"Yeah, okay," he said, starting to feel totally out of it.

Stephanie just laughed to herself as he walked away. Two arms crept around her stomach and she leaned back against the warm, muscular body of her husband. He kissed her neck reverently and rubbed her stomach comfortingly. She tilted her head a little so she could look at his profile.

"I was just a very bad girl," she said in a soft voice.

"How bad?" he asked her.

"Well, if you consider drugging a man so that he passes out in the ring bad, then I've been very, very, very bad," she said in a sexy voice that drove Chris nuts.

"That IS very bad," Chris told her.

"Oh yes, I know, and pretending that Sawyer was in trouble, very, very naughty of me."

"Sawyer would be very disappointed," Chris told her. "If he were someone else's kid, but if he loves you half as much as I do when you have a plan in motion, then he's totally cool with it."

"He did feel like he was kicking when I was doing it, maybe because he heard my voice or maybe because he wanted to be a part of the plan too. It would be very Jericho of him to want to be in on it."

"You're sexy you know."

"Please, I look like a cow."

"A very sexy cow," Chris teased.

"Okay, that was your opening to tell me that I don't look like a cow."

"You don't look like a cow," he told her.

"Well thank you husband of mine. It feels good though, tell me again why I thought I could be all nice and stuff?"

"Because of Sawyer."

"Oh yeah, but I can't change who I am for him," she told Chris. "I can't change who I am. I'm a businesswoman, and I'm a bitch, and I do what it takes to get to the top."

"And I wouldn't want you any other way."

"Good, because I don't want to be any other way."

"I love you the way you are, and you never need to put on an act for me," he told her.

"That's sweet of you to say," she said, turning in his arms. She tried to get as close as she could to him, but with her stomach they were still a good half a foot away from each other. "Chris, are we doing the right thing by Sawyer?"

"Yeah," he told her almost immediately. "We want Sawyer to have the benefit of a family, right?"

"Right."

"And we want him to have an uncle and a grandfather, especially the uncle because I don't have any brothers or sisters. And if we cut off Shane, then we cut off Marissa, and we cut off D, and the new baby, and the kid is going to need to have cousins to play with, don't you agree?"

"You're so logical. I'm so glad I married a logical man."

"Well this logical man thinks that we should go see what's going on with your family and how Shawn is handling his water."

Stephanie giggled as they walked hand-in-hand down to the gorilla where the match was going on. Shawn was getting rather sluggish and it delighted Stephanie to know that the plan had worked. There was no way that Shane could lose now. Stephanie had done what she had to do. In the end it was the right thing to do; family is the most important thing in the world, and she wanted her son to have a family, a real family.

Shawn eventually did lose and Shane won and she was happy with the result. Shane and Vince came backstage and Shane hugged his little sister, whispering his thanks in her ear. He knew that he had asked a lot of his sister in the recent past, especially pertaining to his spontaneous marriage to Marissa. It had always been them against the world and it felt good to have his closest ally back.

"You did good baby girl," he told her affectionately, pulling away to give her a wink.

"I always do my best," she shrugged. "Besides, I didn't really have any love lost for Shawn. He WAS Hunter's best friend after all and Lord knows that I don't have any love lost for that man."

"But I did ask you to pretend that you were in pain," Shane told her.

"Sawyer understands," she said, patting her stomach. "He won't hold any grudges when he comes out."

"It's good to have you back baby girl."

"Good to be back Shane."

See, you could try and change her, but in the end, Stephanie would always be the same.


	77. Um, Gross, March 13, 2006

A/N: So, a couple of weeks ago, I got an earache. Went to the doctor to have it checked out, he said I had fluid in my ear, and gave me antibiotics. Last Monday, I had an allergic reaction to the antibiotics, felt crappy and couldn't write the chapter. The earache didn't go away, had to go to a specialist on Wednesday who told me that I either have allergies or TMJ, so nothing serious, but I was way too preoccupied to write.

So, this week, you get three days of updating. How fun! Tonight, you get last week's Raw, and this is definitely the weakest of the three, I think. Tomorrow, you'll get a chapter for Saturday Night's Main Event. I think that's going to be the best one because Mickie FINALLY turned on Trish, and I've been wanting to write about that for a while, and I think that it'll be a great chapter for what I have planned.

And then Wednesday night, if everything works out, you should get the chapter for tonight. I was totally afraid I was going to get something H and Stephanie related that I'd have to explain, but it didn't happen, so that's a big relief on my part. Everything else is totally explainable. So stay tuned until Wednesday for new updates. :)

Enjoy…and review!

* * *

Stephanie was well aware of the looks that she was getting. It seemed that she had been seen last week slipping something into Shawn's water. You couldn't avoid looks like these when you had done something dastardly. So people knew that she had done something to him. It wasn't the end of the world. Sure, they probably thought that she was going to hell because she had used her son to get back at someone, but her son would understand.

She was glad that she had her father and brother back though. If people couldn't understand that she needed her family then they didn't deserve to know her at all. If you didn't have family, you didn't have anything, and her son deserved to know his grandfather and uncle and she would do what she had to do to ensure that. But it was still odd to be getting all these slightly dirty looks from people. Of course, she was the boss so if they actually said anything to her then she could just easily fire them, and she would not hesitate to do just that if it came down to it.

Trish jogged up to Stephanie, who wasn't very difficult to catch these days. "So even I can see the dirty looks you're getting."

Stephanie shrugged and chuckled. "People are too sensitive. I don't think they care so much that I drugged Shawn so much as they think I'm a horrible person for using my son like that."

Trish rolled her eyes. "What do they know? I mean, some women get pregnant to keep their men, to me that's a hell of a lot more despicable than saying, 'Ouch, my stomach hurts.' I mean, I'm not condoning your father's vendetta against Shawn, but you did what you had to do."

"Yeah. I don't care what people think of me, I never have," Stephanie answered. "There's only a few people's opinions I care about, and they like me, so I don't think I'm doing too badly."

Trish laughed. "It is good to know that there are people who like you out there."

"Thinking about Christian?" Stephanie inquired.

"Nah," Trish said. "You know, every day that goes by, it gets a little bit easier to deal with that. I mean, yeah, he surprised me by calling, but I surprised myself by hanging up on him like I did. I shouldn't have to take his crap."

"Yeah, you can't just let him get away with leaving us all like that. I mean, it's nice to know that he's okay and everything, but he left and he shouldn't get rewarded for that."

"Yes," Trish nodded. "That's exactly how I feel."

"So you have a match early in the show against Victoria."

"You know, she used to be so cool," Trish said with a shake of her head. "Back when she was with Randy at least. But ever since she became friends with Candice Michelle, she's been back to her psycho-crazy self."

"Not to mention the skank that is Candice Michelle right?"

"Oh, don't get me started. You know, I've been offered Playboy, but I turned it down," Trish said. "I don't feel like I need to do that to get the attention. Totally not interested."

"Good for you," Stephanie said sincerely.

"Would YOU pose for Playboy?" Trish asked her.

Stephanie laughed heartily. "For one, no, I don't think I would do it. I mean, I just don't see myself being in Playboy, I think my father and brother would have heart attacks if I ever did that. Not to mention I wouldn't even want to broach the subject with Chris."

"Oh I know what he'd say," Trish giggled. "He'd say that he wouldn't want anyone looking at your goods but him."

"Yeah, he still has trouble thinking about the fact that Hunter has seen me naked. I'd hate to think of what he would think if anyone in the world could see me naked. You know, when we were business partners, he went out of his way to make sure that my clothes stayed on after the unfortunate incident at my vow renewal? I mean, there was that one…instance where he wasn't there to catch my breast from falling out, but all the other times."

"Really?" Trish said. "That's so sweet! And now you're having his baby."

"Yeah, funny how those kinds of things work out," she said, looking down at her stomach. "I'm still nervous about how this is all going to turn out."

"Don't be," Trish said. "Kurt and I will be there to help you guys out as much as we can. Kurt is moving down for good, and we're going to buy that house that's right around the corner from you, and we'll baby-sit whenever you want and it'll be great."

"I'll miss you guys when you move," Stephanie pouted.

"I can't believe that you're not sick of us yet," Trish joked. "I'd be sick of the constant houseguests."

"I need you guys to keep me sane. Especially now…I mean, three more weeks and I'm not going to be traveling anymore, you guys will have to be my eyes and ears here. You'll be my spies."

"Well, I'll be your spy, I suspect that Kurt is going to be staying with you."

"Well, Chris will be too, he's going to be taking over some of my backstage duties while I'm away," Stephanie explained.

"I thought you didn't want him to travel."

"Yeah, I didn't want him to travel to Australia or New Zealand with his band, but traveling with the company is fine. I want someone I can trust doing my job and who can I trust more than my own husband?"

"Good point. You know, I think I better get ready for my match, the show's starting in how long?"

Stephanie looked at her watch. "Thirty minutes, you have the first match. My dad is doing something at the top of the show. I didn't ask what because…well because I don't really want to know."

"I'll see you later," Trish said, waving as she walked off. Stephanie stopped a moment and thought about what she had to do next. She had some time before the show, she might want to get in a quick snack before Sawyer started kicking her in the ribs to get her attention. She turned around and started walking towards catering, still aware of the eyes that were on her.

She stopped again and held her stomach. She had been having false contractions on and off for a few days. Her feet were aching and she really needed to sit down. She kept walking, focusing on what she had to do this evening. She was leaving in three weeks, and she'd probably be gone for a couple of months, maybe even three months, so she wanted to make the best of the time that she had left.

She got to catering and grabbed a plate, putting some chicken on it and then some salad. So it wasn't so much a snack as it was a light meal. Strangely enough, she hadn't really gotten any of those weird cravings that always seemed to be mentioned in accordance with pregnancy. She had eaten more food, that was for sure, but nothing out of the ordinary, no sardines and ice cream or pumpkin with spinach. She dug into her salad and looked around.

"Eating alone? That's so sad."

Stephanie looked up. "Hey Edge, what's up with you?"

"Well, since you're on the dark side now, I figured it'd be cool to be seen in public together. After what you pulled last week, I think you need to be the Rated NC-17 superstar," Edge winked as he sat down.

"Oh, you know me, never without a good scheme."

"I know, and it makes you sexy, trust me."

"Are you trying to hit on me?" Stephanie said coyly.

"I've always had a thing for pregnant chicks."

"You're disgusting," she told him, cutting up her chicken. "So where's your girlfriend?"

"Where's your husband?"

"I asked you first."

"Well I asked you last," Edge countered.

"So you don't know where Lita is then?"

"Nah, I know, she's checking something out with production…hey! You tricked me into saying what you wanted to hear, that reeks of suckitude Steph."

"Well, I reek of awesomeness so what do you expect?" Stephanie said, eating happily. "And Chris is somewhere around here doing something, but I'm not entirely sure what."

"So was Chris in on the little stunt you pulled last week?"

"Of course," Stephanie answered. "I wouldn't not include him in something like that. I love him too much for that."

"She loves you," Edge said to someone over Stephanie's shoulder. She turned her head and saw her husband trying to sneak up on her.

"Dude, why couldn't you keep your damn mouth shut," Chris said, flopping himself down onto the chair next to Stephanie.

"Do you really think it's wise to scare a pregnant woman?" Edge asked. "Especially one as pregnant as your wife is?"

"He's got a good point," Stephanie said, leaning over to kiss Chris in greeting. "Hey sweetie."

"Hey baby," Chris said, then leant down. "Hey kid."

"Okay, this is too sickening," Edge said, making gagging noises. "I hope that once Sawyer comes along that you aren't this mushy. Wait, what am I thinking? Stephanie, you drugged a guy last week, there's no way you'd be mushy. Oh thank God, the balance of the world is restored now."

"Oh ha ha," Stephanie deadpanned. "You're SO hilarious Edge."

"I know, it's another talent of the rated R superstar."

"You know, I've had a lot of nicknames over the years," Chris said. "But none as stupid as that one."

"Hey! I thought that one up myself, it's a great nickname."

"Sure," Chris said, then looked over at Stephanie, who was looking rather pale. "Steph, what's wrong?"

Stephanie clutched her stomach. "Nothing. I'm just having contractions…the false kind."

"Wait, should she go see a doctor?" Edge asked frantically. "I mean, contractions mean babies right? Or what?"

"No, not these, they're too infrequent to be actual contractions," Stephanie answered. "They're Braxton-Hicks contractions. It's just like, my body practicing for the real thing. They're just really, really uncomfortable and kind of painful."

"You want to go lie down?" Chris asked.

"No, they pass, you know they do," Stephanie said, rubbing her stomach gently. "Sawyer's just preparing himself to come out. He's probably packing up his things, making the change-of-address cards, you know, the usual."

"So seven weeks huh?" Edge said, waving his arms around like it was an ominous fortune.

"Seven weeks," Chris responded, placing his hand on Stephanie's abdomen. "And then I add 'Dad' to the long list of names that I have. Like King of the World, Highlight of the Night, Paragon of Virtue--"

"Y2Jackass," Stephanie supplied and then smiled at the glare she received. She gave him another kiss. "Oh, you know that I love you."

"She does," Edge said. "I can see it when she looks at you."

"Just like I can see how much you love Lita," Chris threw back. "At least Stephanie and I are married and so we're bound to act mushy and married and all that good stuff. What's your excuse?"

"I'm getting out of here, I'm tired of the company," Edge told them. "Besides, I've got business to take care of. I have a big match at WrestleMania, unlike someone I know."

"Subtle, real subtle, but me being able to take time off is just one of the perks of being married to the boss's daughter," Chris responded. He was rewarded with a slight glare. "Not that that was the point or anything. I would never want to do anything just to get on Stephanie's good side."

"Sure you wouldn't," Edge said. "Which is why you get time off in the first place while the rest of us slave away like mere mortals, but not Chris Jericho, what's your net worth now man?"

"None of your damn business," Chris shot back.

"Come on, not even a hint?"

"Over a million, less than 200 million," Chris told him.

"Damn, you are one lucky bastard," Edge whistled lowly. "If I had that kind of cash, well…actually, yeah, I do know exactly what I'd do with it, but I don't think either one of you would be interested."

"We wouldn't," Stephanie cut in. "Trust me, I've got a ton of more interesting things to think about than what you would do with a lot of money."

"Suit yourself, bye kiddies," Edge said with a wave as he wandered off to look for his girlfriend.

Chris and Stephanie were left alone and he was content to watch her eat, his eyes occasionally drifting to her midsection where their son was presiding. She kept glancing at him, and rolling her eyes when she realized that he was still looking at her. Finally, she set her fork down and wiped her mouth with her napkin and turned to look at him.

"Don't you have anything better to do than stare at me like I'm an exhibit at a museum?" Stephanie asked impatiently.

"I'm sorry, you're just…breathtaking."

"Gag me with a spoon," she said while making gagging noises. "Don't go all soft on me Jericho."

"I'm not going soft on you," Chris said, then leaned in to whisper, "I don't think I could ever be soft around you."

"Chris," Stephanie said, pretending to be flustered. "Don't you think that you should be preparing for the show? If you're going to be taking over my job in a few weeks than you should be doing everything right now to prepare for taking over my position."

"I can think of a few positions I'd like you to be in," he grinned lecherously.

She grimaced. "God Chris, most guys would let up on their wives while they were this pregnant, but you never let up."

"I can't help it if I find you sexy, pregnant or not, shouldn't you take that as a compliment?" Chris asked innocently.

"Actually, no, I find that kind of creepy," she said.

"I don't hear you complaining when we have sex," Chris pointed out.

"Have you seen you?" she laughed. "I'd be a psycho to turn you down. But then again, I am married to you, so I get you forever, so I think that really means that you should actually go and try to get some work done so that your very pregnant wife, who has so kindly carried YOUR child for the past eight or so months, can rest more easily when she is forced to stay at home, diligently carrying your child."

"You sure do lay it on thick," he said, standing up, but still hovering over her. "You really know how to make a guy feel guilty for getting his wife pregnant. It wasn't like I met you, we had sex, and I knocked you up, we ARE married."

"Yes, which is really why you shouldn't upset a pregnant woman by not doing any work and just lollygagging around," Stephanie said, rubbing her stomach. "I mean, look at me, my feet ache, my breasts ache, my skin is being stretched beyond its limit, and I'm getting ready to push a person out of my body."

"Okay, okay, geez, I'm going," he said, exasperated. Stephanie grinned and grabbed his t-shirt, pulling him down, connecting their mouths in a passionate kiss. Chris pulled away, panting softly, "If I didn't love you though…I swear I'd have murdered you by now."

"But if you didn't love me, then you wouldn't have knocked me up, and then I wouldn't have to leave, and therefore you wouldn't have to do my work, so you wouldn't even have to deal with me at all."

"If only I could experience such bliss," he joked. She shoved him away with the hand that was still clinging to his shirt.

"You're such a jerk, I swear," she said, but she was laughing as she said it so he knew that she knew that he was joking around with her. "Now get to work Jericho, and that's an order from your boss."

"Do I get a bonus tonight?" he asked.

"Sure, if you do a good job."

"Then I'm on the job," Chris said, walking off. Stephanie shook her head and laughed. She hoped that Sawyer was more like Chris than like her. It wasn't that Stephanie didn't recognize that she was a shrewd person with a lot of good qualities. It was just that Chris had so many more good qualities and all in all, Chris was a much better person than she was. Even when Chris was being an asshole, he usually had reasons for being that way. Chris loved to perform for the fans and he loved to be around people, and he was just an inherently good person, which was more than she could say for herself.

"I actually get you alone, I didn't think I'd get so lucky," came a raspy voice from above her. Stephanie looked up and saw Shawn Michaels standing over her table. She looked back down to her plate and continued eating, effectively ignoring him. Unfortunately, this wasn't good enough for Shawn and he pulled a chair away from the table and turned it around and sat down, leaning his arms on the back of the chair. "Oh, am I not good enough to talk to anymore?"

"What do you want me to say Shawn?" Stephanie asked.

"I can't believe I thought I could trust a McMahon," he laughed. "What the hell was I thinking?"

"Yeah, what the hell WERE you thinking?" Stephanie asked, setting her fork down again. "Look, my intentions were good in the beginning, but things change, you know that."

"So you just decided that you wanted to screw me over?"

"I decided that my son deserves to have a family," Stephanie snapped testily. "I decided that family should come first, and no matter what my father and brother do, they are my family, and you stand by your family through thick and thin."

"You're all a bunch of jackasses if you ask me," Shawn sneered. "I thought you were above that Stephanie."

"Well I guess I'm not," she said with a smirk. "It was fun really, and you were so easy to fool, 'Oh Shawn, my baby, my poor baby, I don't know what's going on,' man, someone should try selling you volcano insurance or something because you are g-u-l-l-i-b-l-e."

"You're a bad influence and your son is going to be one screwed up little boy, you know that right? I mean, look at you, you were using your unborn son to drug a man, what kind of woman does that? What kind of twisted, sick woman would do that? You'll be lucky if your son doesn't turn out as screwed up as the rest of your family."

Stephanie's eyes narrowed and her upper lip curled into a sneer. "You think you're SO great Shawn, don't you? You think that you're just the epitome of propriety because you have a little bit of God in your life, don't you? You're a joke. You think that putting a bunch of crosses on your outfits makes you suddenly the perfect example of a good life. How I choose to raise my son is my own damn business. And if you say one more word about my son, then I will go get my husband and he will kick your ass, and he hasn't had anyone to hit in a while, and I'm sure that he'd love to have one excuse to hit someone."

"Your entire family is a bunch of assholes," Shawn said, shoving himself away from the chair and standing up. "You all deserve each other."

"What's going on here?" Stephanie looked behind her and saw Hunter standing there.

"Nothing is going on Hunter," Stephanie said.

"And then you're friends with your ex-husband, totally screwed up," Shawn said.

"If standing up didn't take me a couple minutes, I'd get up right now."

"Leave her the hell alone man, she's pregnant," Hunter told Shawn, sounding intimidating in the process.

"I don't care what she is, she's a bitch who drugged me so I would lose a match, to me that's kind of a big deal."

Hunter stepped up to Shawn. "I said leave her alone, she's pregnant. So she drugged you, so what? Let it go, it happened, there are worse things in the world than you getting drugged. So get the hell out of here."

"I can't believe you're defending HER."

"I can't believe that you're talking this way to a pregnant woman."

"She's a McMahon, who gives a--"

"Leave," Hunter said, breathing out of his nose as he grit his teeth. Shawn shook his head, looked between the two of them and left. Hunter turned to Stephanie and sat down across from her. "I hope he wasn't too mean."

"I could've handled that," Stephanie told him. "I didn't need you to swoop in and be all knight-in-shining-armor for me."

"I know that you had it handled, but I didn't want to let you handle it."

She shook his head. "I guess I should say thanks since technically you did get him to leave."

"Why did you drug him?" Hunter asked curiously. "Not that I disapprove or anything, I was just wondering because you seemed on a very anti-Vince kick for a while there."

"He's family," she shrugged. "No matter what happens in your life, you're always going to have your family, and Sawyer deserves to have his family even if we are all a bunch of screwed-up, twisted people with a definite lack of morals. It's who we are and we can't change that. Same thing when I married you, I eventually went back with my family because they're my family."

"Makes sense, and what did Chris think of your little stunt?" Hunter inquired.

"He thought it was funny," Stephanie shrugged. "Chris loves when I scheme…he thinks it's one of my better qualities."

"You are fun when you scheme."

"I guess you would know first-hand," Stephanie said, feeling suddenly awkward around him. Things were still kind of weird between them, but it was always bound to be a little bit weird with him. "So I guess we're both hated again huh? And here I was, looking like I would be on everyone's good sides."

"It's better when you don't have to live up to anyone's expectations."

"True, I'm just not used to the dirty looks. I think people are more bothered that I pretended I was in pain rather than me drugging Shawn."

"I guess he's not as popular as he thinks," Hunter laughed, and Stephanie joined in. "So aren't you working tonight?"

"Yeah," Stephanie said, "I just wanted to get a bite to eat. Chris should have most of the stuff covered though, he's taking over for me when I actually go on maternity leave in a few weeks."

"Wow, that's really…nice of him," Hunter forced out.

"Yeah, well…I wanted someone I could trust taking over for me, and a husband should fit that description."

"Yeah…husband…good…"

Stephanie had had enough of this awkward and terrible silence and pushed her plate away and then slowly lifted herself out of her chair. Hunter went to help her, but she waved him off, perfectly capable of standing up on her own. He insisted on walking her down to the gorilla though, and she walked beside him, getting twice the dirty looks as they walked, but she couldn't decide if those were all for her, or if some were for Hunter too. They came upon the gorilla and Stephanie paused.

"Well, thanks for walking me Hunter, it was nice to not have to endure everyone's hatred by myself."

"I'm used to it," he joked with her. "I'll see you later Steph."

"Later…"

Stephanie walked over to where Chris was sitting and saw what he was watching. Her father and Shane were standing in the middle of the ring, talking about what had happened last week. She laughed to herself and sat down to watch, grabbing the spare pair of headphones on the table. Her hand brushed Chris's and she reveled in the familiar tingle that sent up her skin. Chris looked over at her briefly, smiling that smile that was reserved just for her. She kissed his cheek quickly as she focused on the words coming from the announcers in the booth and the speech her father was going through.

She laughed when they explained the doctor that was out there. She was always up for a little public humiliation for someone she disliked. And after what Shawn had said to her earlier, she was glad that he was going to get humiliated. He deserved it after the hurtful things that he had said to her. She grabbed a spare piece of paper and a pen and scrawled a note on it, pushing it towards Chris.

Chris looked at the note and read it quickly: _Shawn confronted me after you left._

Chris wrote back to her and slipped the paper back to her.

_What did he say?_

_He said that Sawyer was going to be screwed up and that I was a horrible person for pretending that he was in distress._

_Is that all?_

_He said some other things, but nothing important._

_Want me to kick his ass, cause I'll kick his ass._

_No ass-kicking necessary._

_Swear?_

_Yup._

Stephanie was just pushing the note over to Chris when she heard yelling from her headphones, she looked up and saw her brother and father all wet, but she couldn't remember any liquid…and then it dawned on her, and she covered her mouth with her hand, and whether or not it was to keep herself from throwing up, she didn't know. She was just beyond disgusted and her face scrunched up as she thought about what had happened. They made the mistake of showing what had happened and she then almost threw up. Chris was sitting there struggling to talk through the headphones because he looked like he was going to crack up. She guessed that boys took pee humor a lot easier than girls, but she had no proof or anything.

She saw her father and brother storming backstage, yelling at each other and rushing off to what she presumed was a bathroom. She didn't even register on their radar and that was seriously a first, but if she had had pee thrown on her, then she would be the exact same way. She had had gunk poured on her before, but gunk and pee were two entirely different entities. She looked to Chris, who was cracking up now, his head down, but she could see his body shaking from laughter. She took her headphones and slapped him on the shoulder.

"Chris, it's not funny!" she admonished him.

"Are you kidding me? Yes it is, it's just so completely ridiculous," Chris answered, and she could actually see tears in his eyes from laughing so hard.

"That is your family!" she reminded him. "That's not funny."

"Stephanie, I mean, come on!" he argued. "Didn't you think it was just the tiniest bit funny? I mean, where else on Earth are you going to see someone throw piss on someone else?"

"Ugh, it's gross," she responded, crinkling her nose. "I can't even be in the bathroom with you if you're using the toilet, what makes you think that I want to see some other guy's urine? That's disgusting."

"Okay, I thought it was hilarious," he said, then saw they were back from commercial break and he had to go back to work. Stephanie slipped him a note telling him that she was going to check on Vince and Shane and Chris gave a chuckling nod. She scowled as she walked away and down to her father's office. She saw a bunch of security guards milling around, and she had to push her way through the crowd to the bathroom where the both of them were washing their faces.

Stephanie now knew where Chris would find this funny and she gave a soft giggle before turning serious. "Hey guys."

"Stephanie, is that you?" Shane asked, his eyes closed as he was scrubbing his skin vigorously.

"No, it's the Tooth Fairy, who the hell did you think it was?"

"Shut up," Shane said, rinsing his face off. "Can you go grab my bag, I have a change of clothes in there, thank God."

"Sure," Stephanie said, pushing her way through the security guards again to grab her brother's spare change of clothes. She gathered them together and went back into the bathroom, handing them to him quickly. "Well, I sure wasn't expecting that to happen."

"That guy is a bastard and he's going to pay tonight, Dad just put him in a Texas Tornado Cage match," Shane said, peeling off his pee-stained shirt (there's a sentence nobody ever wants to write) and throwing it in an empty corner, probably never to be touched by him again. "This is disgusting."

"Shower?" Stephanie asked.

"I don't think it's warranted, I washed my face five times," Shane said. "I think I'm made of soap now."

"It was gross," she said, shuddering. "I'm sorry that happened to you. I feel like this is partially my fault, since I'm the one that drugged him."

"It's not like you handed him the cup," Shane pointed out. "That was just so gross. Walk with me."

"Where?" Stephanie asked.

"Does it matter?"

"Kind of yeah, My feet are sore and my ankles are swollen so walking even short distances is no longer the wacky and fun adventure it used to be."

"Oh, then we'll just go to the next room, its private."

"Lead the way."

They went into the next room and Shane closed the door as Stephanie found the nearest seat and sunk into it. She stared up expectantly at her brother who was busy buttoning up his shirt and making sure that he matched the right buttons with the right hole.

"So I don't approve of what Dad is doing, not really."

"Shocker."

"I know," he said drolly. "Baby Girl, us against the world right?"

"Well, I'd say me and Chris and you and Marissa against the world, but yeah, us against the world, why?"

"I don't know, I just…ever get the feeling like Dad is…I don't know, that we should…put a stop to him at some point."

"Are you kidding me? I've been thinking that since he choked me with a wrench. Don't get me wrong, I love Daddy."

"I love Dad too, but still…"

"Yeah…"

"I don't want to get pee on me."

"Neither do I," Stephanie said. "Sounds bad."

"It is, but I don't know, Dad is signing me up for all these matches without even asking me, and it's starting to bug me a little bit. I mean, I know that I would do it if he asked, but that's the thing, he doesn't ask, and I'm starting to feel like a pawn."

"I know how you feel, that's how I felt when you came to my hotel room last week. I feel like a pawn sometimes, but if that's what it takes to make Dad proud of me, I'm going to do it."

"I know, I find it so funny that you're still here and you said that you were going to be gone for a long time when you first approached Dad. That idea flew out the window, didn't it?"

She expelled a breath sharply. "I know, but that drive that he has, that we have, it was just too powerful, so what are you trying to say here Shane? You want to do something to Dad?"

"Not now," Shane told her. "But soon, soon, I think it's time we stepped up again."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I think that I'm getting tired of this, but we have to lay low for a while, no talking about this for a while."

"My lips are sealed."


	78. Sat Night Main Event, March 18, 2006

A/N: Part two of the update-a-thon. This takes place…at Saturday Night's Main Event. It mainly focuses on Trish and what happened to her that night with Mickie. I had been hoping that Mickie would turn soon because it plays a big part in my story. So read on and review of course! See you tomorrow:)

* * *

"I don't want to team with Mickie tonight!"

"You need to get over it, you think I like teaming up with Randy and Rey tonight?" Kurt asked Trish as they sat on the couch in Stephanie's office. It was empty for the moment save for the two of them.

"You're friends with Randy though," Trish pointed out.

"Yeah, but we're enemies until WrestleMania," Kurt said. "And probably after that for a while too, depending on the outcome, but the point is, I have to team with people I don't like, so you have to do the same. Suck it up."

"I don't want to suck it up, she's creepy!" Trish whined. "Have Randy or Rey tried to kiss you?"

"No, and if they did, I think Ashley would be pretty mad," Kurt explained. "I don't think my girlfriend is going to like it if I leave her for another guy."

"I don't know, she may be into that," Trish kidded. She saw Kurt staring at her intently and she laughed and hit his arm. "Kurt, if I don't have my sense of humor right now, what do I have?"

"A stalker."

She rolled her eyes and shoved his shoulder. "You're not helping. At least tonight is hopefully the last night that I'll ever have to deal with her. Hopefully she'll finally listen to me and just leave me alone. I don't think I could take anymore of her."

"Well, you don't have to, you were pretty clear with her if you ask me, I don't think that you could've been any clearer than telling her to leave you alone."

"But I don't know if that actually got into her brain," Trish said. "I don't know if anything that I say registers with her. It's like she's on her own wavelength where I love her and want to be with her or something. I don't know if she loves me or if she's in love with me, but both prospects are rather scary."

"Well, you are single."

"Don't make me slug you again," Trish warned.

"Come on, I'm going to be living with you, you're going to have to deal with me," Kurt said, trying to put on an innocent face.

"I'm SO looking forward to that," Trish said sarcastically, then got serious. "In all seriousness though, I know that I'll like living with you when we move out of Stephanie and Chris's place. And you're dating a friend of mine, so even if she's over, it'll be cool. It's not like you're dating Candice Michelle or anything, then I might have a problem."

"Um, no thanks," Kurt said, making a face. "I don't think that I'd want any part of that. She bothers me, it could be due to the fact that she aided in breaking my girlfriend's leg."

"Oh yeah, poor Ash."

"She's doing okay though, better than expected. I miss her though, but I can't miss work like some guys around here can when their wives have a medical thing going on."

"You just sounded jealous of Chris," Trish laughed. "He's still here though, and he did go on tour for an entire month, and did you know that he's going to be taking over for Stephanie when she stops traveling in two weeks?"

"He's taking over for her? I didn't hear that. Why didn't I hear that? I live with them, I should hear things like that."

"Yeah, Stephanie wants someone she can trust working for her and so Chris is going to be taking over the job, so it isn't like he's totally not doing anything. Plus, he did all of that stuff for Sawyer's nursery."

"I helped with that," Kurt said indignantly.

"But he did a lot of it. I can't believe that little boy is coming in six weeks. We're going to get to have a little baby around, it's going to be so awesome."

"I'm the godfather," Kurt said haughtily. "Chris already told me so."

"Well I'm the godmother, duh," Trish said. "Stephanie told me on behalf of Chris, since Chris is the religious one and Stephanie just kind of goes along with it. I get to be Auntie Trish, it's going to be so cool. I mean, my sisters have kids and everything, but I see them so infrequently, I'll probably be closer to Sawyer than my own family, hell, I'm closer to you guys than I am to my own sisters."

"It's just the nature of the wrestling business," Kurt shrugged. "So should I leave you now so that you can go get ready for your match with Mickie later, I figure that a few screaming sessions will be involved."

"Maybe if I close my eyes, then the evening will pass and somehow it'll go one without me."

"What are the real odds of that happening?"

"Slim to none," she chuckled. "But it could happen, maybe if I like find a four-leaf clover really quick, I can wish Mickie away."

"Why don't you just wish yourself a restraining order?" Kurt asked.

"I wish," Trish said. "But that would include Mickie probably getting fired, and I don't want to be responsible for ruining someone else's career, I didn't even want to ruin Lita's career and we both know my feelings on her."

"True, you're much too good for your own…good," Kurt finished lamely. "Okay, that sounded a lot better and much more coherent in my head."

"Age must be getting to you," she said, patting his knee companionably. "But shouldn't you be going since you have the first match of the night, you lucky boy."

"Well, easier to get it over with," Kurt said. "Not that I have anywhere to go actually. Ashley's not around, Stephanie and Chris are staying for the whole thing…wait, isn't there a pretty blonde girl that I know that gets out early?"

"Not so early, I think we've got like the third to last match, so I have a ways to go. But after my match, I'd be glad to get out of here with you, maybe we could go out to dinner. WE hardly get to do anything just the two of us and it'll give us a good chance to you know, plan out the house we're getting."

"Good idea," he told her, kissing her cheek. "Good luck with your match okay, and if you want some excuse to get away from Mickie, you know where to find me."

"Thanks," Trish said with a smile. She was glad that Kurt was around. She hated to think it, but she was also kind of glad that Ashley wasn't around. When Ashley and Kurt, and Chris and Stephanie were paired off, it made her feel like the fifth wheel and the odd woman out. It wasn't that she wanted to see her friends not together, it was just that she wished she had someone too.

There had been that Jack guy, but he had turned out not to be what she expected. Since then it seemed that the well had gone dry. She couldn't understand it either, she wasn't that old, thirty wasn't that old, and she fancied herself a good-looking woman. And yet, it was like she was off-limits to most guys that she met. She hated feeling like guys didn't want to come up and talk to her because of who she was.

Things had just been so much easier with Christian. But everything had been so much easier with Christian. Laughing had rolled off her tongue with Christian, and having sex was just easier with Christian because he was Christian. Things were just easier with Christian and maybe that was the reason why she was alone. Maybe guys could sense this. Maybe she was off-putting because she knew that her perfect person was out there.

She never knew that she could miss a person this much and still function. It was like the other half of your soul was ripped away and never returned. She knew that her soul was out there, she knew that somewhere it was walking around and doing thing, mundane things even, but she wasn't there to see it. It was a strange feeling knowing that the man you loved was out there and you had no clue what they were doing. It was like this emptiness that didn't go away, that you just carried with you, and sometimes, for brief moments, for minutes, hours even, you forgot that emptiness, you were able to push it out of your mind. Then you'd look into a mirror, and you'd see that face reflecting back at you, and you'd suddenly be reminded of the fact that the person you loved, they weren't there.

Sometimes, Trish would lie in bed at night and she'd stare up at the ceiling. She could probably tell you every curve and nuance that the ceiling fan in her room had. But she'd just think and look up, and wonder what Christian had done that day. She still hadn't worked up the courage to watch him on television regularly. She'd catch him occasionally, but she never set out to see him. She didn't think that she could bear to sit down with the intent to watch someone who had probably forgotten about her.

When she was staring up at the ceiling, she'd think about where he was, she'd picture him going about his daily business. It comforted her somewhat to know that he was out there though. That was the only silver lining on this horrible cloud that had settled over her life. She knew that he was out there, and that maybe someday, their paths would converge again and they would find each other. She knew she was being cliché and she was dreaming a little girl's dream, but that's all that she had left at the moment.

Her real life wasn't a stinking pile of crap or anything, but she didn't feel normal. She hadn't felt normal since she walked into her former home and found most everything belonging to Christian missing. She hadn't felt herself since she had found that damning note from the man she loved. She could never comprehend why women in those period pieces threw themselves off cliffs or drowned themselves. She never understood why Ophelia had drowned herself in Hamlet, why Ophelia had gone mad. She now knew why. She knew the exact feeling of wanting to feel your body dashed upon the stony rocks of some tall cliff, but she continued to breathe, she continued to wake up because at some point, things would have to get better.

"No, no, no, no," Stephanie's voice screeched from just beyond the door. Trish composed herself as she knew that she would be walking in very soon. She hated looking forlorn around her friends because she didn't want to suck them into her realm of pity. She was putting on a brave front and she knew she was succeeding and that was the most important thing right now.

"Well then how the hell do you want it Stephanie!"

"Chris, I've told you time and time again that you have to remain organized!"

"I have my own system Princess," Chris said in that tone that meant he was annoyed. He didn't call Stephanie "Princess," unless he was completely annoyed with her. The door opened then, and even in the throes of an argument, Chris still held the door for Stephanie.

"Yeah, but my system is better," she said, not noticing Trish sitting there witnessing their fight.

"Yes, but you aren't going to be here, and if you want this job to get done, and get done well, then you'll let me flesh out my own system. I know what I'm doing Stephanie, and your father told me that I'm in charge of running the show tonight as a trial for when I run the show while you're gone."

"Yes, but my father also asked me to keep an eye on you, and I kept an eye on you, and I don't like your system so change it!" she demanded.

"No!" he responded.

"Are you daring to question me? I've only been running this show for the past couple of years almost. I think that what I'm doing is great, I think that I know how things should be run."

"Just because your system works doesn't mean that my system won't work," Chris said rationally. "Stephanie, I'm in charge, you aren't. Deal with it."

"I don't want to be gone!" she blurted out and then groaned as she saw Chris's face drop. "Chris, you know I don't want to leave."

"I know you don't, and I understand that, but you not trusting me to do the best job I can is kind of a kick in the gut don't you think?" Chris told her.

"I'm sorry," she said contritely, looking down. "I'm just getting used to the fact that I'm going to be gone, and it's slow going right now. But I promise, while I'm gone, and you're here, I know that you're going to do a terrific job, maybe even a great job."

"Maybe I'll be better than you."

"Don't push it," she snapped, poking a finger into his chest. She looked over his shoulder and saw Trish still sitting there. "Oh Trish, I didn't even see you there, have you been here long?"

"I was already in here while you were arguing."

"Oh, oops," Stephanie giggled. "Sorry you had to see that. I'm just going to chalk that up to pregnancy mood swings."

"What are you going to say when you have Sawyer and you still have those kind of 'mood swings'?" Chris asked.

"Oh shut up," she told him. "So what's up Trish?"

"Hiding out from Mickie of course. I don't want to see her before I have to. I'm trying to avoid her. Because maybe if I completely avoid her, she'll leave me alone and know that I mean business this time. Plus, I don't think she's taking too kindly to me telling her to leave me alone."

"You did what had to be done. Of course, there is the chance they won't listen to you," Stephanie said. "I can't remember how many times I told this guy to leave me the hell alone and stop teasing me and he never did."

"But that's because I loved you…hey, doesn't Mickie love you too Trish."

"You're horrible," Trish said. "Thanks for laughing at my misery."

"It can't be that bad."

"It is," Trish said, rolling her eyes in a dramatic fashion. "Okay, I'll leave you two lovebirds alone to argue and bicker about the show. I'll just find other, less insulting ways to pass the time until my match…I should go say hi to Randy."

"We did, he's in his locker room," Stephanie informed her. Trish nodded in thanks and left the two of them to their playful bickering. She wandered down the hallway towards the side where the guy's locker rooms were, hoping to not run into Mickie anywhere. Having no physical or verbal contact before their match would be ideal.

"Trish!"

Trish turned and saw Hunter leaning against the wall, and she had to look around to make sure that he was actually talking to her even though she was the only Trish in the company, or at least the only one she was aware of. Still, she pointed at herself, as if asking silently if Hunter was indeed talking to her. When he nodded, she looked around cautiously before approaching him with apprehension.

"Yeah?" she asked, confused as to why he would just call her out like that. She was aware that he and Stephanie had a current "friendship" thing going on (you didn't live with someone and not come to know a lot of their secrets), but she, Chris, and Kurt kept contact with Hunter to a minimum, and by minimum that meant no contact whatsoever. So she was a little suspicious of him.

"I wanted to ask you something."

"Me?" she asked incredulously.

"Yeah, and I need to make it quick because I've got my match in like ten minutes."

"Okay, go ahead."

"So Stephanie is having a boy named Sawyer, right?"

"That's what she's been spreading around, why?"

"Okay, I wanted to get her and her baby a little gift for when he arrives. I was wondering if you were having a shower or anything like that."

"Um, yeah, I am actually, once Stephanie goes on maternity leave, I was planning on having a small party at our house, um…you want to come?"

"No, nothing like that I was just wondering if you could maybe keep inventory on what she gets so that I don't duplicate a present for her. I just wanted to get her something nice for her baby, you know, I thought it would be a nice thing to do."

"Why would you want to do that?" Trish asked, surprised at Hunter's seemingly sweet gesture.

"Because she's my friend now, and I know that she thinks I'm not being sincere, but I am, I really am."

"You know, if you were really sincere about being her friend, you might want to include Chris's name when you address her and her life. You keep saying her and her baby, it's kind of his baby too."

"I know," Hunter said, and he sounded a lot more bitter than he had intended to sound.

"Yeah, well, you know, the best present you could give Stephanie is probably acceptance over the fact that she got married again. I mean, yeah, you hate Chris, but she is married now Hunter, and she does love him, and she is having his baby, their baby."

"I'm well aware, but last time I checked, he wasn't pregnant, now was he?" Now Hunter was starting to get defensive, and Trish had to wonder why he would try so hard to get on Stephanie's good side while alienating the very large fact that she was married.

"No, he's not, but he is her husband, and she does love him, and you're only hurting yourself if you think that you still have a chance. She moved on you know."

"I know Trish."

"Maybe you should too."

"Just like you are after Christian kicked your ass to the curb," Hunter shot back.

Trish resisted the urge to punch him. But oh how she just wanted to clench her fist and rear her hand back and deck him one in the mouth. It would do him good probably. If anyone needed a good wake-up call it was Hunter. What with his stupid "King of Kings" self-appointed nickname, and his alienation of every person he knew, he needed a punch in the face. But Trish didn't do it this time. It would just have to wait, but she wanted to do that so bad. He had crossed the line this time, and he had crossed it in flamboyant fashion.

"Oh, that was a zing," she answered sarcastically.

"You just can't keep a man because you're a slut."

"Oh, that one really hurt," Trish said. "You have no idea what happened between Christian and I. I just gave you some friendly advice over Stephanie. I don't know if you're trying to worm your way back into your heart, but let me tell you this. If you think that you can just ease Chris out of the picture, you're sadly mistaken. And if you think that Christian kicked my ass to the curb, you're wrong about that too."

Trish stormed off, not knowing why she hadn't just walked away. Talking to Hunter could never result in anything good. She had learned that lesson almost six years ago when she got caught bent over in front of him when Stephanie walked into the room. She had been humiliated then, and she knew that Hunter was nothing but trouble after that. She should've just left well enough alone.

But Trish was never good at leaving well enough alone as she would soon see with her match with Mickie. She had just wanted to get out there and do the match, Mickie be damned. She was absolutely positive that she would not be partnering with Mickie James if Ashley hadn't been injured. But unfortunately, Ashley was sidelined and Torrie had been concussed last Monday at Raw, and so she was stuck with Mickie James for a partner. Was it wrong that she would've much rather just had this be a handicap match. Trish was by far the best female wrestler this company had, and Candice was so obviously one of the worst female wrestlers this company had. Candice would most likely be a non-factor, and Trish had proven time and again that she could kick Victoria's ass.

But no, she was stuck with Mickie James, who was probably wildly cheering her on. Trish didn't know because Trish didn't look, and didn't want to look. She wanted to avoid eye contact with Mickie because avoiding eye contact with someone you dislike is a good thing. Mickie held the ropes for her and wanted to just kick her. Why not just throw Mickie on the other side too and then Trish could include kicking her ass too. But she didn't have time to think about that as her match began.

Trish knew it wouldn't be a long match. Victoria and Candice were not the most formidable team. As good as Victoria was, Candice was equally bad. Candice was definitely the weakest in the ring and it showed. There was one moment where Victoria and Candice had Trish locked up and looked like they were going for the suplex, but she reversed it into a double DDT, yeah, these girls were no match for her. Trish was proud of her wrestling skills. She had definitely worked her way up from eye candy and had busted her ass in the process. She had earned the spot that she garnered.

The match couldn't have last more than five minutes. Trish easily got the Stratusfaction on Victoria and wrapped her up for the win. The win was easy and Trish had barely even broken a sweat. She was pleased with the results and just wanted to get out of here and as far away from Mickie as possible. But Mickie wasn't having any of that as she grabbed a microphone and proceeded to say goodbye to Trish.

Trish took this in stride. She hadn't expected anything less. She knew that Mickie would try to make this a spectacle. Trish played along in the hopes that if she just went along with this now, she wouldn't have to deal with Mickie later. It was like eating the gross vegetable because you knew that dessert was coming. For Trish, the dessert would be ridding her life of Mickie once and for all.

Trish wasn't paying too much attention and then suddenly and quite unexpectedly saw Mickie leaning in for a kiss. At the last moment, Trish turned her cheek because she was not going to get kissed by Mickie again. She did not want to have to say that she had gotten more kisses from Mickie James in the last few months than she had from Christian, the man she loved. That would be utterly depressing and such a self-pitying kind of moment. Trish was upset now, but just wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible.

Easier said than done when she got a kick to the face. Trish should've anticipated this, but she hadn't, and she was laid out on the mat. Then suddenly she was getting the Stratusfaction and she didn't know what was going on anymore, but she could hear the deranged voice of Mickie above her. All she wanted at this moment was Christian and she wondered if he was gazing upon her humiliation.

Mickie went backstage, completely gleeful at the strange turn of events that had happened. She was angry that Trish had broken her heart, but it was okay because she was going to get the last laugh. Tonight wasn't even the beginning. She was going to make Trish love her. Trish was going to love her if it was the last thing she did. She knew what was best for Trish; she was going to be Trish's best friend, not Stephanie, not Ashley, her, Mickie James; she was going to be Trish's very best friend.

She hated Trish for breaking her heart, but she still admired her and wanted to be like her. She knew deep down it was just business, but she was making business awful personal. She gazed in the mirror of her locker room and ran her fingers through her long hair, wondering what she would look like with completely blonde hair, just like Trish's.

"She broke my heart," Mickie muttered. "But she'll be mine. She's going to be mine. She can't stop it, she's going to be mine."

Her cell phone rang and she skipped over to answer it. "Hello, this is Mickie James, Trish Stratus' #1 fan."

"You promised that you wouldn't hurt her!"

"Who is this?" she joked.

"Don't play games with me Mickie!"

"I'm not playing games," she said sweetly.

"You promised me that you wouldn't hurt Trish, you gave me your word that you wouldn't hurt her!"

"Promises are made to be broken," she chirped happily. "Trish broke my heart, and she had to pay, but she'll be mine."

"She won't be yours, you hurt her!"

"I didn't hurt her, she's fine," Mickie laughed, shrugging it off. "This isn't even the first time she's been hurt, is it Christian?"

"You weren't supposed to hit her you bitch. You promised me that you wouldn't hurt her, and you hurt her!" Christian said angrily. "You told me that you would leave her the hell alone."

"I did? Must've slipped my mind. But it doesn't matter, Trish is going to love me, I'll make sure of that, and then she'll forget all about you Christian. She'll forget about Chris and Stephanie, and she'll forget about Kurt and that stupid whore Ashley, and she'll forget about everyone except for me. You were just the first Christian."

"Look, you know that I didn't want to leave Trish--"

"HA!" Mickie said. "You think that I don't know that. But you did, and for a good reason too."

"You promised me you wouldn't hurt her, you went back on that promise, I'm not obligated to listen to you anymore."

"You stay away from her!" Mickie snarled. "She's mine! She is NOT yours anymore, just go away Christian, don't call me, and if I hear that you've called Trish, I swear to God Christian."

"What are you doing to do Mickie?"

"You don't even want to know…I'm serious, you stay away from her, she's mine now. She's going to love me now, not you. You're out of the picture now Christian and soon everyone else is going to be out of the picture, and Trish is going to focus on me because I'm not going to leave her. She just needs some tough love."

"You're a damn psycho, you know that."

"I'm not crazy," Mickie said, pulling at her hair. "You can't say that, you can't say that I'm crazy."

"Need I remind you exactly what you did?"

"I didn't do anything you didn't deserve," Mickie told him. "Trish is way too good for you. Trish is way too good for anyone, but I can love her, I'm her #1 fan, I know everything about her. I know everything, and I'm going to get her to love me too. Because she should be my #1 fan."

"Don't you dare hurt her again," Christian said. "You better keep up your end of the deal, because if you hurt her again, if I see you hurt her."

"What are you going to do Christian? She's not going to listen to you…she hates you," Mickie laughed. "She hates you and she's going to love me."

"I'll call her, how about that?"

"She wouldn't listen to you, you broke her heart, just like everyone else is going to do to her, except me, I'm going to be right by her side. She doesn't love me yet, but she will…oh yeah, she will."

"You're a sick, twisted bitch."

"Bye Christian."


	79. Dodging a Bullet, March 20, 2006

A/N: Whew, all caught up. I think I like this chapter, so let me know what you think. :)

* * *

"I wanted to get you something for the baby."

Stephanie snorted. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me," Hunter told her, then repeated. "I want to get something for you and the baby. Or at least something for the baby since I don't know what you'd want."

"And you were married to me for two years, that's sad," Stephanie joked, but the realized how grossly inappropriate that type of statement was. And then came the awkwardness that their conversations usually held. "Sorry."

"Not a problem," Hunter lied, shrugging his shoulders. "I just think that it would be a nice gesture to you and to your baby."

"Well it's very nice of you to want to do that, but you really don't have to get us anything," Stephanie said. "Or him anything, either one of us, I think that we're pretty much covered. I mean, if you want to get like an outfit or a hat or something, then yeah, go for it, but I'm not like standing here asking you to get me something."

"I know," Hunter told her. "But I wanted to do something nice for you, just to show you that I'm not a bad guy."

"I didn't think you were…completely a bad guy," she said, adding the last part quickly. "Hunter, really, we don't need anything."

"I'm still going to get you something, whether you like it or not," Hunter said.

"Fine," she gave in. "If you want to get us something, fine, but don't make it anything too big okay. We have all the big stuff taken care of, strollers and car-seats, and cribs, and carriers, the whole nine yards, this kid is going to want for nothing."

"He is going to be born into a powerful family."

"Yeah, I know, but I'm going to try not to put expectations on him right when he comes out of my body. I'll at least wait a week or so before I start to think of where he might fit into the company. With Shane's two kids, and my kid, we're going to have to dole out the power accordingly."

"If he wants to be in the wrestling business that is."

Stephanie put her hand over her heart and gasped in a shocked manner. "Are you suggesting that any child of mine would want to do anything but belong into the wrestling business?"

"He might not want to join."

"He'll want to join, I'm a part of management, Chris is a wrestler, we're both owners of a wrestling company, how could he not want to be a part of it?"

"Well, some people don't automatically do what their parents do," Hunter pointed out.

Stephanie frowned and crossed her arms over her large middle. She gave him a strange look, a half-grimace, half squint. "I don't think that he would be like that. I mean, when I was younger all I wanted to do was be a part of the company, I knew it was my destiny, and I know that it's going to be Sawyer's destiny too. I'm not saying he has to be a wrestler or anything, although with Chris's genes, I don't know how he couldn't be, but he could work behind the scenes too."

"Well, it could happen."

"It WILL happen," she said firmly. "Sawyer is my son, and no son of mine is going to go through life being anywhere but in this business."

"You know, most mothers would want to see their kids become doctors or lawyers, but you want him to be a wrestler, kind of strange."

"Not strange, realistic," she answered. She tapped her chin a little. "I wonder where Chris is?"

"Does it matter?" Hunter asked, his voice changing, but Stephanie was too enthralled in thinking about where her husband was at the moment. He hated hearing about Chris, but Stephanie was always bringing him up.

"Yeah, he's running the show now, and I wanted to keep an eye on him, make sure that everything isn't too overwhelming, it's very easy to become overwhelmed by what I do. I mean, I'm used to it, but Chris isn't."

"He's running the show?" Hunter asked, and he inwardly groaned. As if it wasn't bad enough the man had stolen his wife right out from under him, now he was going to be running the show that he was on. For Hunter, it couldn't get much worse than that. It was like Chris had the life that he was supposed to have, but he had to go and tear his damn quad muscle which had driven him and Stephanie apart.

"Yup, all by himself, he's going to be the temporary backstage coordinator while I'm away on maternity leave starting in two weeks. That's when I'm going to officially stop traveling. I'm probably not supposed to be traveling now, but my doctor keeps telling me that I'm fine and that I can travel, so I don't see the problem, but I'm taking my ninth month off, because I can't very well have this baby in the middle of the ring."

"As much as you want to right?"

"Well, not want to, but I thought about just having it at my desk while I got some paperwork done, but apparently that's not a good idea or something."

Vince McMahon walked upon this scene. Stephanie was sitting on a trunk while Hunter was leaning next to her and they seemed engrossed in conversation. Stephanie had told him that she was trying this new friends thing with him, but he hated every moment of it. Hunter had been the one to corrupt his daughter and the one to break her heart. He was glad that she had found Chris because he didn't treat her like crap the way Hunter had. Vince sneered and walked up to the duo.

"Stephanie, hello," Vince said, and his voice definitely lacked its usual edge when he addressed his little girl.

"Hi Daddy, what's up?"

"You're not on the clock?"

"You know I'm not," Stephanie said. "Chris took over for me on Saturday, and he's officially in charge and I'm officially off the clock."

"Oh yes, it had slipped my mind," Vince said, deliberately ignoring Hunter completely. He just didn't trust him. He had played along with Stephanie at first, but as time wore on, and this friendship thing stuck, Vince was more wary of Hunter. He didn't deny that Hunter had skills in the ring and speaking, in that respect he was one of the best, but he didn't trust him, and he certainly didn't trust him around his daughter. Hunter had never given him any reason to.

"Well don't forget," Stephanie scolded him jokingly. "Did you need something though? If you need something done I can do it no problem."

"No, I think that I'll go find Chris since he is your replacement."

"Temporary replacement," Stephanie interjected. "Don't forget that ever-important temporary, because this isn't forever. As soon as Sawyer is cleared to travel after he's born, you know I'll be back, right Daddy?"

"I know Princess, but you should take it easy."

"Like you always say Daddy, I'll take it easy when I'm dead," Stephanie told him proudly. "But if you're going to go see Chris, I'll go with you, I want to see him too."

"Anything pressing?"

"Nope. Just want to see him and make sure that he's doing a good job. I want to make sure that I'm leaving the show in good hands."

Vince chuckled to himself. "I still find it so funny that you told me that you were going to be taking an extended leave of absence, which I'm assuming would've been something like ten or so months, and yet you never left."

"I think that just speaks to my dedication, don't you think so Daddy?"

"Of course," he told her with a smile. "Now let's go find that husband of yours."

"Okay, bye Hunter," Stephanie said warmly as she linked her arm through the arm her father offered. "And don't worry about that gift, I really don't need anything."

"But you're getting something," he told her as he watched her walk off with her father, who had not said one word to her.

When Hunter was out of earshot, Stephanie turned to her father and gave him a disappointed headshake. "I know that politeness and cordiality aren't high on your list of things to do Dad, but you were really rude to Hunter back there."

"I don't see the need to speak to him when I have nothing to say to him regarding any business."

"Because I was talking to him and you completely ignored him, it was just rude Dad, you could've at least acknowledged the fact that he was there. You didn't even have to say hello or anything, but you could've recognized that he was there."

"And why should I? The man is obviously scum."

"Yeah, but he brings you in money."

"But he broke your heart!"

"Daddy, I'm over that," Stephanie said, rubbing her stomach. "Look at me, does it look like I'm lamenting over my failed marriage?"

"No."

"Because I'm not. Look Daddy, I'd take it as a personal favor if you just ease up on Hunter a little. It's not that hard, if I can manage to do it, you certainly should be able to do it. You should treat him better now, he's not your son-in-law anymore, and you never wanted him to be your son-in-law anyways."

"What does Chris think about all of this?"

"Why do people constantly ask me that? My brain is not connected to Chris's," Stephanie told him. "I can think for myself, and Chris understands that I am capable of making my own decisions and living with the consequences."

"Fine, I'll try to be nicer, but only because you're pregnant."

"Great, I'm glad it's good for something," she said sarcastically as they came upon Chris sitting at the table near the gorilla barking out orders through his headset as he tried to coordinate some papers. "He looks a little flustered doesn't he?"

"He'll get used to it," Vince said, walking over and laying some more papers in front of Chris. Chris looked up and took his headset off, wondering what Vince needed. "This is just the revised schedule that I need you to get to production. I also trust that you got all the party supplies for Shane and my celebration over his victory on Saturday night."

"Everything is set for your victory party," Chris said. "I even contacted the Spirit Squad and asked them to perform at the ceremony. I also took the liberty of adding confetti into the mix with the balloons, thought that it would be a little more dramatic and everything. I also managed to contact an actual band to come play, really let you guys celebrate that win."

"You did all that?" Stephanie asked incredulously.

"Well yeah, you guys are family, I thought it appropriate, I also blocked out some space at the end of the show for a match to be determined later," Chris explained.

"You left a wide-open spot on the show!" Stephanie said, snatching up the schedule. "Chris, this has to be pat, you can leave certain spots open, but the last spot in the show, we usually reserve that for big matches, you can't leave something like that open!"

"Don't worry about it baby, I figured that your dad would want to stick Shawn in something to further humiliate him before WrestleMania so I left it open to whatever you want to do, completely your call Vince since you are the president."

"I'm impressed," Vince told him. "I didn't expect you to be so on top of things, I think this is great, you're doing a wonderful job. I can't rave enough."

"Yeah, great," Stephanie said, leafing through some of the papers. "Great job."

"And leaving me a spot to screw over Michaels, I knew there was a reason I was very for you marrying my daughter. I knew you had a good head on your shoulders. I have to pat myself on the back for acquiring you."

"Daddy, I'm kind of the one that married him," Stephanie pointed out.

"Oh, well that was good too, but I got him over from WCW."

"But I married him."

"Still…"

"Okay you two, stop fighting over me," Chris joked. "I know that I'm the Highlight of the Night and the King of the World, but there's certainly enough of me to go around. Now, the show is starting shortly so you might want to find Shane, and tell him to get his ass out here so that he doesn't miss his chance to go out there."

"I'll go find him, you stay here Stephanie, I don't want you overexerting yourself," Vince said, leaving the two of them. Stephanie sat down next to Chris and he leaned over to peck her on the cheek. She smiled and watched him as he went over the finalized schedule and called a backstage worker over to deliver the sheet to production so they would know whose music to cue and what not.

"So you're doing well," Stephanie said slowly as Chris had a lull in his responsibilities.

"So says your father," Chris responded.

"Yeah, I mean, I can't believe you coordinated so many different things…and leaving the space for my dad really gets on his good side, not that you weren't over there anyways, what with being my husband, but he was impressed by the move and I think he was also flattered."

"Just doing my job ma'am, the old boss is kind of high-maintenance, but I take a different approach."

"Yeah…"

Chris looked over at her and saw her fiddling with the corner of a piece of paper. She kept folding it back and forth. He would have asked if she was alright, but the show was starting and Vince and Shane had yet to show up. Chris got up and wandered toward the main hallway, seeing if they were coming. According to his clock, they only had about three seconds to get back from wherever they were and then get out there to start the show.

Luckily they showed up a few moments later and Chris practically ushered them up the stairs and out onto the ramp. Stephanie grabbed the spare set of headphones and slipped them on, wanting to hear what was going on on-screen. This victory by Shane was practically her doing, or at least she had a part in it. She had been the one to drug him after all, and that was probably the catalyst for everything else. She should give herself a little pat on the back for that one.

Then she heard words her father had never said before and she thought she was cry on the spot. Her father had said that his greatest creations were her and Shane. He had never, ever told her anything like that, and he had never told Shane anything like that. She knew now that she had done the right thing by joining his side. Even if her father was totally screwed up and horrible, he was still her father and underneath all of that, he still loved her. And even when he screwed up, she still looked up to him.

Then she was shocked that her father would put Shawn in a match with Hunter. Hadn't it been not twenty minutes ago that he was calling him scum. If this was her father's way of trying to be nice, she wasn't sure it had its intended purpose, but she wasn't going to question it. She just wanted her father to ease up on Hunter. She and Hunter had talked things through and they had reached a happy plateau, so she just wanted everyone else to understand.

Shane was shocked that his father had put Shawn in a match with Hunter. He knew that Stephanie and Hunter were friends now, which he found incredibly weird, but he also knew that his father did not approve of said friendship. Neither did he for that matter. If he divorced Marissa in an ugly fashion (not that he would because he loved his wife), but if they had a messy divorce where she basically humiliated him, he didn't think he could be friends with her like nothing had happened. But Stephanie was a strange creature to be sure. She had married a guy she didn't know, and then she had married another guy whom she used to despise. His sister was weird.

Once again, his father put him in a match that he didn't sign up for. Shane didn't say anything, but it was getting irritating. He didn't want his father to just assume that he would be in any and every match under the sun. He didn't want to just have to face random guys every night. Shane could wrestle competently, but he wasn't a great wrestler or anything, but that didn't stop Vince from thinking that he was the cream of the crop. This is what bothered him about his father. He didn't want to just automatically be put into every match under the son. But what could he do about it? His father had complimented him and he didn't want to disappoint Vince.

They went backstage and back to their locker room, where Hunter joined them. Shane didn't like seeing this stupid ass who broke his sister's heart. Stephanie may be able to forgive easily, but he wasn't. He was Stephanie's big brother and he should've been able to see what would happen with Hunter, but he hadn't, and his sister had been humiliated on national television. It was the reason he was so vehement in warning Chris to never break Stephanie's heart.

Then Vince had said they were all one, big happy family and Shane wanted to just slug Hunter in the face, but restrained, instead being pulled into a weird group hug by his father. He managed not to come off as a complete asshole even though he didn't want anything to do with Hunter now or ever. As soon as Vince let go, Shane was out of the room and walking down the hallway, way far away from Hunter or his father. He wanted to go call Marissa and make sure that everything was going fine on her end.

Chris slid off his headphones as another match came on and he had a few minutes where he didn't really need to do anything pressing. He pursed his lips and looked at his wife. "Did your father just say they were all one, big happy family?"

"I think that my dad is overcompensating," Stephanie answered. "I told him to take it easy on Hunter, but I didn't tell him to take it THAT easy on him. We aren't really family anymore after all."

"Maybe you should go talk to him or I'm going to start worrying that I'm being phased out." She looked sharply over at him, but he was smirking and she realized that he was just joking and didn't think he was actually being phased out.

"You going to be okay here by yourself with nobody around you to help you if you need help?" she asked.

"I think that I'm going to be fine," Chris said. "I've got everything under control. Now is the time for you to stop worrying about work and start worrying about the baby that we're having in oh…six weeks or so."

"Okay, love you," Stephanie said, giving him a small kiss on the mouth. "I'll be back though."

"You always do, no matter how many times I try to ditch you. You're very spry for a pregnant woman."

Stephanie giggled and went to her father's office. She made no stops, really just wanting to talk to her father about what he was doing. She appreciated the fact that her father was being cordial to Hunter, but there had to be a line somewhere, right? She was almost to her father's office when she saw an unexpected surprise.

"Kurt!" she said happily, detouring away from her father's office and over to where he saw Kurt and Ashley walking slowly down the corridor. "I wasn't expecting you here tonight."

"I wasn't going to be here tonight," Kurt said, giving her a hug, or at least trying to give her a hug since it was hard to reach around her. "But Ash had to come tonight."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, I'm signing a contract extension," Ashley said.

"Oh, I had no idea," Stephanie said. "Are you meeting with Chris?"

"And your father," Ashley answered. "And his lawyers. It was the only time that everyone could be here so we just decided to fly out here. Nice to be back again though, and I have the walking cast, which is easier, I'm not stuck in a wheelchair or anything."

"I know what it's like to have your mobility impaired," Stephanie responded sympathetically, looking pointedly down at her stomach.

"Hey, why don't you two just hang out, I can take care of the contract signing myself," Ashley said. "I know that I've been totally monopolizing Kurt's time these past couple weeks…"

"Oh please, don't worry about that, sometimes I need time away from him," Stephanie said slyly.

"Nice to know my best friend loves me," Kurt said, then turned to Ashley. "But I'll go with you, I have no problem with that."

"Kurt, I'm a big girl, no matter how much younger than you I am," she kidded. "So go on, I'll be fine, I'm not going to fall flat on my face because you're not walking next to me. I got used to the cast, you definitely made sure of that."

"Is that as naughty as it sounds?" Stephanie asked.

"No, Kurt just made me take walks and stuff with it," Ashley said, grabbing Kurt's arm and leaning her head on it. "He's so protective of me."

Kurt blushed a little. "Shut up."

Ashley laughed. "Okay you two, I will see you after I sign these contracts and then you'll never be able to get rid of me."

"I hope not," Kurt said softly in her ear before giving her a parting kiss. Too bad Kurt didn't know that Mickie was lurking around and as soon as Ashley turned the corner, she would be kidnapped by Mickie and later used as a pawn in her twisted games. But Kurt didn't know any of that as he turned to Stephanie. "So how's my favorite brunette?"

"Your favorite brunette is very, very pregnant," Stephanie answered. "And a little bit upset…"

"Uh oh, what happened? Is this something to do with Sawyer because I'm telling you Steph, you're going to be a great mother."

"No, it's about work," Stephanie answered with a shrug, like she was trying to appear nonchalant, but Kurt knew better. "You should see Chris."

"Oh no, is he screwing up the entire show?"

"No, that's the thing, he's great, he's got everything covered and he's even doing extra things! And my dad was raving about him, I mean, he was saying that he was so happy that Chris was running the show and how he was so happy that he had acquired Chris from WCW, and…he's doing a better job than me."

"Steph, it's only his first night on the job--"

"Yeah, and he's doing better than I do on the job," Stephanie interrupted. "What if he does such a great job while I'm away that my father offers him the job full-time? I mean, Chris isn't doing anything, well he is doing that play in July, but other than that, nothing on his slate, so I mean, why shouldn't he be offered the job full-time if I have a baby to care about?"

"Steph…think logically here for a moment. If Chris were offered the job, full-time, knowing that it was your job, do you really think that he would hurt you by taking it?"

"If he felt like I should be home taking care of Sawyer, maybe."

"Then you obviously don't know your husband," Kurt told her. "Chris would never hurt you like that. He, of all people, knows how much you love your job."

"He does, doesn't he?"

Kurt nodded and she looked down. She was such a paranoid freak about her job sometimes. But for so long it was the one constant that Stephanie had. During her marriage with Hunter, there had been so many ups and downs, but she had the power. After Hunter had her kicked out, her father had given her a job at headquarters, and through the tumultuous moments of her relationship with Chris before they were married, she always had her work. She was very protective of that aspect of her life.

"Have you seen Trish around?" Kurt asked. "Because I need to talk to her about signing the forms for the house. We can't move in for like four months though so I hope that you aren't totally sick of us yet."

"Nah, not sick of you," Stephanie said. "She should be in her locker room though, if you want to go find her."

"I do," Kurt said. "If you see Ashley can you tell her where I am?"

"Sure, of course," she told him, and then wandered back aimlessly to where Chris was supposed to be. She had completely forgotten about talking to her father at this point and wanted to go see her husband. Unless he was already doing the contract thing, but maybe he wouldn't be doing that since her father had that covered. Chris was in fact still at his station and she stood there a moment and watched him.

He looked great tonight. He had actually dressed in a suit, a black and white diagonally striped tie against a black shirt and a black suit. He looked amazing, not that that was a surprise since Chris always looked amazing. He made her feel frumpy right now though, and she didn't even look that bad. She was wearing a pair of jeans and one of Chris's sweatshirts since none of her own sweatshirts fit anymore. Chris looked up, feeling someone's eyes on him and he saw Stephanie and smiled, beckoning her over. She walked over and smiled, sitting down next to him. Chris pulled her into his lap and rubbed her leg.

"Hey there," he said, leaning his chin on her shoulder. "Did you talk with your dad?"

"Oh, that's what I wanted to do," she said, slapping her forehead. "I ran into Kurt and Ashley and got distracted."

"How is the old boy?"

"Good, always knows how to calm me down."

"You weren't calm."

"I was scared you were going to steal my job," she said, turning to him.

"Excuse me?"

"You're doing so well," she told him.

"Thank you, that means a lot coming from you."

"So well I thought that maybe you were better than me and I'd lose my job to you."

Chris guffawed. "Better than you? Baby, nobody is better than you at doing this. I may be good, but you are spectacular. I've been doing this for two nights, but you, you've been doing this for years, and you're amazing at it."

"So you're not going to steal my job?"

"Oh, I'm totally going to steal your job, but you are still amazing," he said and she pouted. He smiled and leaned in to a kiss with her. She smiled against his lips and pressed her hand to his face. "I love you."

"I love you too," she told him. "We're having a baby in six weeks."

"Is that why you've gained all this weight? And here I thought you were just letting yourself go," Chris winked.

"You guys!" a voice yelled and rushed over. Stephanie and Chris turned their heads to see Kurt rushing towards them. "Have you seen Ashley, I can't find her anywhere!"

"Did you check with my father, she's probably still there."

"No, I ran into him in the hall and he asked where she was and I haven't seen her since I was with you, I thought she might've gotten caught up here, but I can't find her anywhere."

"I don't know Kurt, I haven't seen her," Stephanie said, looking around. "I'd help you look, but I don't think I'd be much help. I can barely walk from here to our car without getting winded."

"Here, I'll go help you look and Stephanie can take over," Chris said, looking at Stephanie who grinned and nodded eagerly. "Okay, that's settled, here baby, take the headphones."

Kurt and Chris went off to search for Ashley, but little did they know that Ashley was now bound and gagged in Mickie's locker room. She was struggling to get free, but Mickie was just sitting there in front of her with a dopey smile on her face watching her struggle like it was the most amusing thing in the world.

"I can't believe my luck," Mickie finally said. "First Christian, now you."

"Cwisin?" Ashley mumbled from behind her gag.

"Yeah, oops, did I reveal too much right there?" Mickie said. "Oh well, who cares. By the time I'm finished, all of you will be gone. And Trish will like me the best. Now if you'll just wait here…oh wait, what am I thinking? You can't go anywhere."

Kurt and Chris were still searching, looking down every hallway, knocking on every door, but when they came to Mickie's door, nobody answered and they didn't hear anything on the other side. That was because Mickie was having Ashley transported somewhere, or she was doing the transporting by herself since nobody was going to help the crazy girl. Kurt was getting out of breath and starting to panic.

"Kurt, you need to calm down," Chris said.

"Calm down, how the hell can I calm down!" Kurt snapped. "Ashley is nowhere to be found, my girlfriend is missing. How could she just disappear, she was here, she was going to see your father-in-law, she wasn't even gone for that long. She can't run, oh God, she can't run, anyone could've taken her because she can't run with the cast on her leg. Anybody here could've taken her!"

"We don't know that!" Chris said, grabbing Kurt by the shoulders. "We don't know that someone took her. Maybe she went to go grab a bite to eat with someone and just didn't bother to tell you. Ashley does have friends you know."

"But she'd tell me, or invite me or something."

"You said she wanted to give you time with Stephanie, maybe she didn't want to impose if you were with Stephanie."

"You don't honestly believe that do you?" Kurt questioned.

"No, not really, but if you don't stay calm, we'll never find her," Chris pointed out.

"Like you wouldn't be freaking out if your girlfriend was suddenly missing."

"I don't have a girlfriend, I have a wife, and she's about the size of a state right now so I don't think I'm going to lose her," Chris said in an ill-attempt at making a joke.

"Come on jackass, let's go see if can find my girlfriend."

Stephanie groaned as she felt Sawyer apparently waking up and stretching. He was bumping into her body parts and he had just seemingly got her in the ribs. She placed her hand on her stomach and hoped that he calmed down. She felt him kick against her hand and she smiled despite herself.

"Sawyer, please be gentle with Mommy's insides, you're bumping into everything," Stephanie said, looking down at her stomach. "I know that it's getting crowded in there, but I can feel everything you do."

"I need time," a voice came from beside her.

She gasped and saw Mickie. She hadn't even heard her come up, but she was suddenly next to her with that creepy smile on her face. "Excuse me."

"I have something for Trish because I'm sorry that I hurt her on Saturday, I don't know what came over me. I just want to make things right with her."

"Um, I don't think there's any time I can spare."

"Oh, I think you will, Trish is your best friend."

"Yeah, she's one of my best friends."

"She'd want you to do this," Mickie said, tilting her head. "I don't usually ask for favors, but this is for Trish."

"Fine," Stephanie conceded, just wanting Mickie to go away. She really creeped her out. Mickie spontaneously hugged her and Stephanie stood frozen.

"Thanks!" Mickie said bounding off happily.

What Mickie had was actually Ashley, which Trish would soon find out. Trish was out there at the time and she knew that if she didn't get Ashley to safety, Kurt would freak out and possibly kill Mickie. But every time that Trish tried to get near Ashley, Mickie would tell her to get away. Trish, being the resourceful person she was, lied in wait until she could grab Mickie and then get to Ashley. But she wasn't quick enough because Mickie caught her and gave her a spinning DDT, and then everything went dark.

The scene was horrifying, Trish was laid out on the mat, Ashley had fallen over and was still tied up, and Mickie was bounding away happily. She was smart though because she avoided heading directly backstage where Kurt was waiting, fuming and being held back by Chris. Eventually the trainers came backstage, helping the fallen Trish and the now untied Ashley. Kurt walked over to Ashley, helping her and she smiled gratefully at him. He kissed her cheek and then gave her a proper kiss. Chris went over to Trish and helped her, brushing her hair away from her face.

"Hey beautiful, you okay?" Chris asked. She grabbed her head and nodded. "You probably have a headache huh?"

"Room spinning," Trish answered. Chris lifted her off her feet and carried her in his arms. "What?"

"I'm going to take you to my office, that's weird huh? My office. You should be safe in there," Chris told her. "I can have Stephanie sit with you, or actually, you know what, I can sit with you, Stephanie looks pretty happy working the show, and if Mickie were to come after you, I'm not sure Stephanie can protect you. Under normal circumstances, I think she could kick whole lot of ass, but pregnant? Not so much."

Trish laughed softly. "Thank you. I wish Christian were here."

Chris smiled sympathetically at her. "I wish he were too Trish."

Trish gave a teary laugh and let Chris carry her to his office. He laid her down on the couch and she could still feel the room spinning a little bit. Chris grabbed her hand and held it between both of his. But those weren't the hands that she wanted to be holding her own. She looked down at the floor, a tear slipping down her cheek.

"I'm pathetic."

"You're not pathetic," Chris said, looking to the television that someone had left on. He gestured towards the screen where Hunter was currently entering the ring. "Now that's pathetic."

Trish laughed. "You really hate that he's friends with Steph huh?"

"Not much I can do about it," Chris said. "Stephanie is Stephanie and you try telling her that she can't do something. Besides, I'm not the type that want to inhibit her. She's a remarkable person and I trust her."

Trish smiled. "She's lucky. You'd never leave her without a moment's notice."

"Maybe Christian didn't want to leave."

"Then he wouldn't have," Trish said.

"I'm sorry for the whole Christian situation."

"I'm sorry for the Hunter situation."

Hunter was indeed feeling like he was back to being a part of the family. Being out here, teaming with Shane like he had done way back when, being accompanied by Vince, it was like the old days of the McMahon-Helmsley Era, and then the faction. It was like he was still married to Stephanie and still had all the power in the world and none of that power belonged to Jericho. God, he hated Jericho for taking away everything that was supposed to be his. He took that anger out on Shawn Michaels since Cena was sent away before the match.

Jericho had his wife and Jericho had his kid. Not to mention he was now in charge of the show. He would probably try to screw him over every chance he got. What he didn't know was that Chris was actually a really fair man and would only try to do what was best for the show. But after the match, when Hunter was walking up the ramp with Vince and Shane, he could believe that he could have Stephanie and things would be back to how they were before.

He was knocked back into reality when he went backstage and saw Stephanie leaning against the wall with Chris hovering over her. They were making out and every now and again a giggle would escape from Stephanie's mouth. Chris's hand was running over her stomach and she kept pushing it off and laughing. They looked so happy that it was sickening. He was literally sick to his stomach.

Someone else that was sick to his stomach was Christian as he sat there thinking about what he had seen happen to Trish. He looked at his phone for what seemed like the fiftieth time since Trish had gotten beat up. He reached his hand towards it, then drew it back, then he reached for it again, then he drew it back, and finally he grabbed the phone and dialed her cell phone number. He got the machine (she was still in Chris's office) and he cleared his throat a little.

"Trishy, it's Christian, um, I don't know if you'll even want to talk to me right now, but if you could um…I need to talk to you. Really bad. I just need to talk to you, please call me back, I know you have my number…please."


	80. How Hilariously Bad, March 27, 2006

A/N: This isn't how I originally planned for this chapter to go, but the AC Adapter on my laptop crapped out so I couldn't access what I had already written so I had to kind of alter the way that I wanted to go. I hope you enjoy it nonetheless.

There WILL be a WrestleMania chapter on Sunday night/Monday morning so look out for that. Hopefully it'll have some nice twists like my WrestleMania chapters usually do. ;)

So hope you like the chapter and leave a review, please. :)

* * *

"So I threw Christian's number away and I kind of need it."

Edge raised an eyebrow. "You need my brother's number?"

"I need your brother's number," Trish confirmed.

"Chris and Stephanie have it, you could've asked them."

"I know, but…they'd ask questions, and I don't have answers at the moment. All I know right now is that I need Christian's number. I need it."

"You're going to call him," he said, a statement more than a question.

"I need to call him," Trish corrected. "He called me last week and he sounded urgent. I don't know what this is going to be about, but I figure if he's urgent than the news he has to tell me is urgent and I need to know for my own piece of mind."

"I get that. Are you sure you want to call him though? Once you call him, there's no going back."

"I'm sure, I've thought it over all week long and I'm definitely sure that I need to talk to him. And once he explains the reason why he called, I might even have the courage to ask him why he left, and you know, that would really put my mind at ease…if I knew why he left."

"Hold on," Edge said, grabbing a piece of paper from his bag, a receipt from somewhere. He turned it over and then had to search for a pen. He found one buried deep inside of his bag and grabbed the piece of paper. He scribbled the number down and handed it over to Trish, who looked down at it with a wistful smile.

"Thanks," Trish said. "You don't know what this means to me."

"It's nothing," Edge said. "Do me a favor though, tell my brother he's an idiot. I mean, he knows cause I tell him often enough, but I think that he needs to be reminded that he's a huge idiot. I know that if I were sleeping with you, I'd have to be dead to get rid of you."

Trish made a face. "I don't know if I'm flattered or creeped out."

"Are you kidding me? You have a genuine stalker and you're asking if THIS is creepy?" Edge asked. "Come on Trish, I may not be the nicest guy in the world, but I've certainly got to be better than Mickie."

Trish shuddered involuntarily. "Ooh, just that name sends chills down my spine. I didn't even know she kissed me until Stephanie told me, and then I was even more grossed out. Of course, then I worry that she knows where I'm living and then I worry about Chris and Stephanie and Sawyer, and ugh, she's putting a weird vex in my life."

"Stalkers probably do that."

"I don't know why I had to get one," Trish said. "Stephanie actually looked over her contract to see if there were any loopholes that could get her fired, but it's airtight, nothing to be done. Then I thought about getting a restraining order for outside of work. I don't know if you can get one that is just outside of work, but I don't want to put Chris and Stephanie in the line of fire with this."

"You're being really smart about this, I think," Edge said. "There's not a whole lot that you can do except get her arrested of course."

"I really don't want it to come to that," Trish admitted. "I know that I'm trying to be brave and everything and that could ultimately be my downfall, but I just don't want to get the police involved. Nothing good could come from that."

"Well, call my brother, and maybe, just maybe you'll both come to your senses and get back together. I'll be honest here Trish…I've never seen my brother happier than when he was with you."

"Don't get all sappy on me Edge," Trish told him. "Everything that happened, happened. It is what it is, and that's it. I'm not looking to make up with Christian when I call him. I just want to know what he wants."

"Okay, but seriously, I don't know why he left you, but I do know that my brother would have a good reason…at least I hope he does. Now would be the worst time for him to let me down."

"Yeah."

"Let me walk you back to your locker room. I don't feel safe letting you walk out there by yourself when Mickie could be lurking around every corner. I talked to Kurt over the weekend and he was pissed about what happened with Ashley and I'll be damned if I let that happen to you."

"That's very sweet of you Edge, but I got a sneak peek at the schedule when I had lunch with Stephanie earlier and Mick has the mic at the top of the show which is starting in like ten minutes, and I know that you're going to want to interrupt so I don't want to keep you from that."

"I don't care about that, I don't want you to get kidnapped."

"With all the people milling about? I don't think that's going to happen."

"Fine," Edge relented. "I should go find Lita anyways, I have Mick to worry about too after what he did with Lita last week. Man, people with names starting with Mick are not good people."

"Mick's always been nice to me…well…after I stopped being such a slut," Trish said. "See you Edge, and thanks again." She waved the phone number as she walked out of the room and went to go find Torrie and see if she wanted to discuss their match later. She couldn't recall any time where she had teamed with Torrie, so she wanted to make sure that they would mesh well.

Meanwhile, Stephanie was looking over Chris's shoulder as he tried to work. "Are you sure that you have everything set for WrestleMania? I could help you if you need it."

"I've got everything under control," Chris told her. "I swear, I've got everything."

"Are you sure? When are you meeting with the SmackDown coordinator?" Stephanie asked.

"You KNOW when I'm meeting with him," Chris said. "You're the one who wrote it on the calendar at home!"

"I know that I know, but I want to make sure that YOU know," Stephanie said. "So come on, when are you meeting with him?"

"Wednesday," Chris answered. "Which is why we're going to be staying in Connecticut this week until we go to Chicago. And then Monday morning, YOU are flying home to Florida while I stay in Chicago."

"I could probably stay for Raw next week since I won't be going anywhere, since Raw is still in Chicago."

"Okay, but then, I swear Stephanie, that's it."

"Don't tell me what to do," she sneered.

"Then don't tell ME what to do."

She glared at him. "You set me up for that didn't you?"

He shrugged. "Think what you want."

"And you know that when I'm gone, you can call me at any time if you have any problem with anything. Anything that you have trouble on, you can ask me and I'll help you."

"Wait, you mean to tell me that while you're gone, I can call you at any time I want to?" Chris asked with mock incredulity.

"Yeah, any time, if you need ANYTHING, you just have to call and ask me, since I'm the most familiar with everything."

"Now what would your husband think about me calling all the time…oh wait, I'M your husband," Chris said like it was a total shock. "I guess that means I can call you any time I want for no reason whatsoever."

"You're making fun of me," she pouted, crossing her arms over her stomach. Chris smiled over at her and leaned in to give her a soft kiss, teasingly licking her lips as he pulled away.

"Of course I'm making fun of you. You worry too much. I will do this job to the best of my ability and I don't want you to be sitting at home with the phone in your lap waiting for it to ring because I have a problem. If I do call it's only going to be because I miss my gorgeous wife and soon-to-be-born son."

"But even if you do need help, seriously, call me."

"Can I divorce you?" Chris joked.

"Nope, stuck with me," Stephanie said, opening her mouth wide. "Stuck, stuck, stuck."

"Damn it…how likely are the odds that I can steal Sawyer away in the middle of the night and move far, far away?"

"Slim to none now that you've told me what you're doing," Stephanie said with a sweet smile. "But you love me because of my work ethic right?"

"Sure I do."

"You know, I can't believe it was four years ago that we were business partners," Stephanie mused.

"Was it that long ago? Seems just like yesterday you were being an annoying bitch who made me do all of your chores because you're such a spoiled brat that you couldn't even buy your own hand lotion."

"I resent most of that sentence."

"Only cause you know it's true."

"Did you really think of me that way? I mean, I know that I wasn't the easiest person to get along with--"

Chris started laughing heartily. "Are you kidding me, you were definitely not the easiest person to deal with. And yet…"

"Yet what?"

"I couldn't help falling for you anyways," he said, running his hand down her cheek. "There's just something about you Stephanie McMahon-Jericho that I can't escape, no matter how hard I try."

"It's because you're so in love with me," Stephanie said. "In fact, I think that you love me so much that you want to call me in case anything were to go wrong on the show."

"God, you are relentless," he said, running his hands through his hair. "I swear Stephanie, you are going to drive me crazy until you come back. I probably shouldn't have taken this position."

"No, no!" Stephanie insisted. "You're the only one I trust around here Chris. It has to be you running the show. Could you imagine if I let my father run it? He'd do something totally crazy…he's already doing crazy things. Making a match with him and Cena, ugh, my father's vanity seriously needs to be taken down a few levels."

Chris guffawed. "Yeah, good luck with that."

"I know, he's such--" Stephanie stopped talking abruptly as she grabbed her stomach and winced in pain. Chris looked at her for a moment and wondered what was wrong as she breathed through her mouth.

"Steph, everything okay?"

"Yeah, I think Sawyer was just kicking my kidneys or something," Stephanie said, wincing a little. "He's getting so big and he's starting to just kick all my organs around. I wouldn't be surprised if my stomach is on the other side of my body."

"Are you sure that you're okay?" Chris asked, concern in his voice. She really looked like she was in pain and it worried him. He knew that Stephanie was okay to travel, her doctor told her that she was still okay to travel, but he knew that Stephanie was putting unnecessary stress on her body by being here every week.

Stephanie nodded mutely, but this didn't assuage Chris's fears. He knew that Stephanie was due in only five weeks, and that if something were to happen, like her going into labor right now, that Sawyer would be pretty much okay. He had kept tabs on this entire pregnancy thing. He knew that Sawyer's lungs and everything were pretty much all developed and he was just gaining weight in there, but he still wanted his kid to stay in there until it was actually time for him to come out. He didn't want to have to rush Stephanie to the hospital because he knew that he would go into freak-out mode to the nth degree.

"Stephanie, you're really not assuring me here," Chris said as he observed his wife. "If there's something wrong, please tell me."

"I'm fine Chris," she told him, looking over at him. "He's just rearranging my organs and he's kicking everywhere like a madman, like he's got a soccer ball in there. Come here, give me your hand."

Chris handed over his hand to her and she grabbed his wrist, bringing it to her stomach. She put it low on her stomach, near her pelvis and he felt a nudging against her hand. Then suddenly he felt a pretty hard kick that actually knocked his hand back a little bit with its strength. Chris looked up at Stephanie and she nodded, wincing again.

"He's been doing that all day?" he asked.

"Yeah, he's been doing that, except I think that's his arm, so imagine his legs, which are probably strong right now from all the work-outs he's doing in there, doing that to me all day long."

"I can't imagine what that must feel like, but I suddenly want to apologize for getting you pregnant."

"Don't worry, it wasn't you," she joked.

"Oh well okay then, I'm making sure this show goes straight to hell," Chris told her with wide eyes of craziness.

"What! No! You can't do that! I'm trusting you!"

"Get the hell out of here," Chris told her. "I've got work to do."

"Nope, I want to soak it all in before I'm being forced to leave so you're stuck with me for a shadow this evening, and will you look at that, show's starting right…now."

"Actually, I have some papers regarding WrestleMania in my office, would you want to go get those for me while I take over the show?" Chris asked as he slipped the headphones onto his neck. "But if you're too sore to do it, I can get it later."

"Nope, I'm on it," Stephanie said, trying to push herself out of her seat. "Little help sweetie?"

Chris put his hand on the small of her back and helped her push herself out of the folding chair. She smiled gratefully at him before walking down to his office, which unfortunately was at the other end of the hallway. She opened the door and saw the papers sitting there like he said they would be. She walked over and grabbed them, looking them over for a moment when Sawyer kicked her again.

"What is it that you want baby?" Stephanie said down to her stomach. "I'm just standing here and I wasn't doing anything and it's like you're mugging me from the inside. Now I'm going to just go walk these back to Daddy and then we'll sit and you can rest for once."

She walked out of the room and was waddling (because that was pretty much the only way she could walk nowadays, as embarrassing as that was) down the hallway when someone came up next to her. She looked over and saw Hunter now walking beside her. She was suddenly reminded that she wanted to talk to her father about his new behavior towards Hunter and how he was going a tad overboard. But she smiled politely.

"What's up?" she asked.

"Just saw you, wanted to talk to you."

"I'm just getting these papers to Chris."

"He made you walk, in your condition?"

Stephanie stopped suddenly and turned to him. "What did you say?"

"What?"

"In my condition? Like I'm suddenly incompetent and I can't even go get papers for myself without needing help because I'm pregnant? I'm not suddenly stupid and don't know what paper is because I have a kid inside of me."

"I wasn't implying that," Hunter said, shaking his head. "I was just wondering why he couldn't do it."

"Because he's working," she responded. "And he asked me to get this for him, and I wanted to get it for him."

"Oh, I wasn't implying anything."

"You were," Stephanie said plainly. "I know you too well and I know you were implying something. I don't know what it is Hunter, I don't know why you seem to ignore the fact that I'm married and yet seem somehow okay with the fact I'm pregnant. You don't think I don't see what you're doing."

"What am I doing?"

"If I have to explain then I don't know," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "I'm trying to be your friend Hunter, but it's very difficult."

"Steph, I'm sorry. I mean, last week was like, it was an eye-opener. Your father called me family again, and it was just like old times and we were in power again…"

"But it's not old times," Stephanie reminded him gently. "I'm not married to you anymore Hunter, and I'm not having your baby. I'm married to Chris Jericho, and I'm having his baby. That's how things are."

"I just got caught up," he said pathetically.

"That's okay, it happens, but you have to then realize what the truth is. You do realize what the truth is right?"

"Yeah," he said, scoffing. "Of course I know the truth."

"Good, do you date anyone?" she asked him quite suddenly. "I mean, you don't have to have a serious girlfriend, but I don't think I've ever asked if you're dating anyone. So are you?"

"Here and there, the scene in Greenwich isn't exactly hopping."

"Oh," Stephanie said. "I wouldn't know, I live in Tampa and it can be pretty fun down there. Greenwich is boring compared to Tampa. I love living down there."

"You still have the house in Greenwich though, don't you?"

"Yeah, and Chris and I have a house in California too," Stephanie explained. "He bought it for me for my birthday last year."

"Wow, a house."

"Yeah, he's crazy," Stephanie laughed. "So no girlfriend?"

"No girlfriend, I mean, I've dated around, but no serious girlfriend."

"Playing the field, nothing wrong with that."

"Stephanie, can I ask you something?"

"Sure," she shrugged.

"How did you and Chris get together?" he asked, and maybe he was punishing himself by asking the question, but he had never heard the actual story about it. A part of him still believed that they had had an affair while he was rehabbing. He had seen all the shows, had seen them together, at each other's throats, and a part of him believed that to be just a cover-up. He had seen Chris kiss her at SummerSlam, and had seen Stephanie wearing that see-thru top for him, and Chris licking his lips like he knew that he could have her.

"Oh," Stephanie said, not expecting that question. "Well…wow…it was the night I came back as General Manager and…Chris came to see me and he went into hug me and I refused his hug and he came back later that night demanding to know why I wouldn't hug him, and I confessed that I had developed feelings for him while we were business partners and he asked me out on a date and then it ballooned from there."

"The night you came back as General Manager…in 2002?"

"Yeah, July 18, 2002," Stephanie responded. "That's our anniversary. So uh…there you go…I better get these papers back to him. I'll see you around."

"Yeah…around."

Stephanie walked back to Chris and handed him the papers, receiving a smile as a reward. "What took you so long?"

"Ran into Hunter."

Chris rolled his eyes. "Should've known."

"What should you have known?" she inquired.

"He's always around you, and after what your dad said last week, I wouldn't be surprised if he's got some secret plot to completely get me out of the picture. The jealous bastard would love nothing more than to get his hands on you."

"Well no worries because I'll be gone anyways," Stephanie said. "He can't possibly get me if I'm not even around. And I won't be around for months."

"Yeah, I know," Chris said with a sigh. "Oh well, back to work."

Hunter would love to phase out Chris. Sure, he wanted to be Stephanie's friend, but if in the process he somehow got Chris out of the picture, he wouldn't knock away the chance. He still loved Stephanie, he could admit that to himself. He hadn't been lying when he told her that he had dated around since their divorce. He wasn't a monk, he hadn't been celibate by any means, but it always came back to Stephanie somehow. It was hard to forget about your ex-wife when she was always around.

Maybe that was the entire problem. Maybe he wanted Stephanie because he had never really gotten rid of her. She was still in the company of course, but he wasn't about to leave the company just because she was here. But he couldn't stop thinking about her because he saw her all the damn time, walking around, working, being lovey-dovey with Chris, which made him want to puke. So obviously if the opportunity arose in which he could oust Chris from the picture, he was certainly going to take it.

Maybe that opportunity would come during his match with Michaels. He and Shawn had been fighting for a few minutes when he looked up and saw Vince on the ramp. Vince had been pretty testy with him last week before the show, but then during the show, they had been all buddy-buddy like old times. He wanted to impress Vince so he put his all into the match. He wasn't going out there with the intention of putting on a good show for the fans. He just wanted to show Vince what he was missing with his current son-in-law. Chris wasn't even doing anything, taking this bogus leave-of-absence, which just proved how he wasn't a main-eventer and would never be as good as him.

When Vince came to his aid, Hunter was secretly excited because he knew that Vince was totally on his side and he was happy to see it. They were a team again, like father and son again, like the good old days when they had teamed up. It was like Vince was his father-in-law, and Hunter had all the power in the world, and then he could go backstage and have Stephanie on his arm. To his mind, things hadn't changed, they didn't need to change, he could have it all back.

When they went backstage after the match, Vince announced that Hunter would be in his corner later for his match against Cena, and any conscious observer could see the wheels turning in Hunter's head. He was really back on the inside; he was back on Vince's good side. For a while there, Vince had hated Hunter for the things he had done to Stephanie, but now he was on Vince's team, his personal right-hand man almost. He patted Vince on the back as they walked away from Grisham.

"So you want me in your corner eh Vince?" Hunter said.

"Yeah, sure, you'd be a good addition," he said as he walked over to his daughter and son-in-law. Hunter trailed after him.

"Chris, make sure that you get Hunter and that bastard HBK's music cued up for the match later on," Vince said to Chris.

"Already on it Vinnie Mac," Chris told him. "I figured you would be doing that so I planned ahead."

"Princess, you better watch out. If Chris does a good job, I might hand over your job to him."

"Don't joke Daddy," Stephanie said angrily, folding her arms over her stomach. "You know I don't want that to happen."

"It won't," Chris assured her. "Vince, may I make a suggestion."

"You're family, of course you can…within reason of course."

"I just had an idea for your match, and I think that it could work in your favor," Chris said. "Now, I'm just throwing this out there, if it's stupid, then I guess I'm not going to be joining the creative team any time soon."

"Spit it out sweetie," Stephanie interjected.

"Handcuffs," Chris said simply.

Stephanie giggled as she thought about handcuffs and Chris glared over at her, telling her silently to shut up. She and Chris both had fond memories of handcuffs and she had to laugh at the images that it conjured up. Actually it was making her a little hot at the moment. While most people would probably cut down on the sex while they were so pregnant, she and Chris still had a very active sex life; they just had to be a little more creative because Stephanie was so big now, but that didn't lessen either of their desires for the other. Stephanie stared at Chris intently, not because she wanted to know his plan but because she wanted to rip his t-shirt off his body and then lick her way down to the top his pants.

Hunter was watching Stephanie during this interlude and noticed that she was getting a little flush and wondered if she as just hot or something. She was staring at Chris, and Hunter scowled a little bit (not that he wasn't usually scowling anyways, maybe his mother had never told him not to make a face or it would stick that way). He could plainly see the adoration in Stephanie's eyes as she gazed at Chris and he remembered when those looks were directed towards him.

"Well, I was thinking…you want Shawn to be a sitting duck, am I correct?"

"Yes."

"Well, you handcuff Hunter and Shawn to the ropes during the match, give the referee the key, but keep one for yourself for Hunter's handcuffs, then you do your little thing with Cena, whatever that is, I don't need details. Then you get the upper-hand somehow, you go and unlock Hunter, but don't unlock Shawn. Then what do you have, an HBK with nowhere to go."

Vince digested this for a moment and then grinned sadistically. "You're a genius. You're a genius Chris! That is perfect! That's so perfect I'm upset that I wasn't the one to think of it! I swear, I need to give myself a bonus for hiring you from WCW."

"Daddy, again…I married him," Stephanie said, tearing her gaze away from Chris.

"Yes, that was all well and good Princess, but you never would've met him if I hadn't hired him."

"Yes I would've," Stephanie argued. "He would've come over in the Invasion and then he would've been on my side, and so I would've met him."

"Not sooner though," Vince threw back.

"Vince, my wife is pregnant, give in to her please, I don't need the added stress," Chris laughed as Stephanie swatted him in the arm.

"Shut up jerk," Stephanie said good-naturedly.

"Fine, Princess, you did a wonderful job picking a husband," Vince said, and all three of them were oblivious to Hunter standing right there. "But that begs one question, where am I going to get two sets of handcuffs?"

"I took the liberty of alerting the security on-site tonight and they assured me that they could have two sets of handcuffs within the next fifteen minutes."

"Stephanie, you hold onto this one, do you hear me?" Vince said sternly.

"God Chris, way to show me up," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "I don't want you to really steal my job."

"Did I mention that the handcuffs were partially Stephanie's idea?" Chris said and Stephanie looked at him, wondering why he would say that. They hadn't been her idea at all. In fact, his mentioning them had been the first that she had even thought of it.

"Really? Stephanie, so modest."

"Daddy, it wasn't--"

"She just wanted to help me do the best job that I can do," Chris interrupted. "But you better go get ready for that match Vince, don't want to keep the people waiting."

"You're absolutely right Chris…keep up the good work, I think you'll make a fine temp for Stephanie."

"I know it," Chris said as he and Stephanie watched Vince walk off with the forgotten Hunter in tow. Stephanie looked to Chris with confusion and he turned to her. "What is it?"

"Why did you just lie?"

"I didn't lie," Chris said. "I mean…if you weren't a kinky little thing and liked handcuffs, I never would've had the idea in the first place, so partially your idea…see."

"You did that so my dad would praise me."

"So what if I did?"

"You know that I just want to please my dad."

"I know what that's like," Chris said. "When you have a dad who's completely busy all the time, all you want to do is impress them and get them to notice you. I lived it baby, if you don't remember."

"Yeah, I guess you did with Ted traveling all the time when you little."

"Exactly. So if I can share a little piece of the praise with you, why not?"

She closed her eyes. "I love you."

"I love you guys too," he said impishly. Then he started laughing. "Oh wait until you see this video package we did for Hunter for WrestleMania."

"Why? What about it?"

"It's hilarious, just when I think that guy can't get more full of himself, he goes and gets more full of himself. How did you live with him for two years?"

"He gets very determined."

"I can tell, I can't believe you married that guy."

"Hey, I didn't willfully marry him," Stephanie reminded him. "He married me and I just decided to stay with him."

"After you see this video package, I'm going to question your sanity…"

Trish had been sitting with her cell phone in her lap for the past…well, she didn't know how long it was. She had the television on and she knew that a lot of the show had passed. She had been staring down at her phone. She had picked it up a total of fifteen times, but each time she had put it back in her lap. The farthest that she had gotten was the second number of Christian's phone number. She was just about to pick it up again when she saw Mickie on her television screen. She set the phone down next to her and then stood up to see what Mickie was doing.

She saw the room, the pictures of her pasted everywhere, seemingly every picture she had ever professionally taken in her life. And there was Mickie, kneeling in the middle of it like a deranged madman, holding pictures of her, having what looked like a séance or something, or a prayer service. Trish stood there in disbelief, seeing the depths of Mickie's madness. Then she said that she was going to be Trish's destruction and something queasy settled into her stomach as a tingly feeling undulated down her spine. This went beyond bad feelings, this was something else, and she continued to just stare until a hand reached out and touched her and she jumped, only to see Torrie behind her.

Trish followed Torrie out of the room to their match, but she resolved herself to calling Christian after the match. Maybe that was why she put a little more zing into her match, because she was anticipating what she needed to do. Or maybe she just wanted to get the hell out of there before Mickie suddenly showed up and beat her again and then tried to kiss her or something worse. Oh God, she didn't want to think about that. Trish was definitely the aggressor in the match, but when you're paired with Torrie, it's hard not to be the dominant member.

She rushed backstage and straight to her locker room. She hadn't spoken to anyone except Edge and Torrie tonight, and those were both out of necessity. She grabbed her cell phone from where she had left it on the couch and took a deep breath, gathering her courage, before dialing Christian's number, her thumb flying across the keypad. She waited impatiently for him to answer.

"Trish?" he asked when she heard his voice and realized he must've seen her name on the display.

"Hi Christian."

"You called…I didn't think you would."

"You sounded like you really needed to talk to me," she answered. "Did you really need to talk to me?"

"I really need to talk to you."

"It's really important?"

"Yeah, it's…it's pretty big. I'm sorry that I…"

"Christian, we'll talk about those things, but right now, we need to figure out how this is going to go?"

"Yeah…um…where's the show next week?"

"It's WrestleMania next Sunday…I'll be in Chicago."

"I can get to Chicago."

"Then we'll see each other?"

"Yeah…"

"You don't look different do you?"

"Nah," he said. "Do you?"

"Nope. So we'll meet?"

"I'll call you…we'll figure out a place."

"Sounds like a plan…Christian…um…do you have a good reason?"

"For what?"

"For leaving." She sounded sad, and she knew that she was pathetic for asking. But she was speaking with Christian and she needed to know, just a little bit, just a tiny piece of the bigger puzzle.

"Yeah, yeah I do."

"Good. Then until Sunday."

"Until Sunday."


	81. Too Funny, WrestleMania, April 2, 2006

A/N: So I wasn't originally going to do anything with the Hall of Fame Ceremony, but I decided to do a little something. I didn't get WrestleMania this year because I'm a poor college student who doesn't want to pay an insane amount of money to watch something that doesn't have Chris Jericho on it. I did see pictures of it, and I'd like to thank HHH for the incredibly good laugh that came at his expense. I really needed to laugh and oh how I laughed and laughed and laughed and laughed.

So this is a long chapter, so enjoy it, and I have a lot of good ideas for Raw tomorrow so I'm excited about that. Please review as I love reviews.

Oh, and if you want Trish and Christian to get back together, let me know in your review, I've got ideas for them, and I have plans, but I'd like a little input as to what you think.

Enjoy. :)

P.S. I think this is the longest chapter I've ever written.

* * *

**Hall of Fame Ceremony**

"You look nice for someone that's not going to be on camera."

"Your point being?" Chris asked as Stephanie adjusted his tie.

"I'm just saying you didn't have to put on a suit just to work backstage with my dad," Stephanie answer as she smoothed his tie against his dress shirt. "I mean, you're not even going to be doing anything on-screen."

"And is your dad going to be wearing a suit?"

"Yes," she said, drawing out the word to let him know that it was a stupid question to begin with. "But you're not my dad."

"But I work for him. Besides, it's not a big deal. What IS a big deal is how gorgeous you look. Have I told you how gorgeous you look tonight?"

"Yes, you have," she answered. "But it never hurts to hear. You don't think that I made the wrong choice with this dress. I mean, maternity dresses are so incredibly difficult to find. Well, nice dressy ones. You know what I hate though, that they all have the empire waist thing going on with the billowy fabric in the front. I cannot wait to get back into real clothes."

"Well after next Friday, he could be coming at any time, you heard what Dr. Sheldon said, 37 weeks is full-term and from then on out, it could happen at any moment."

"Can you imagine what would happen if I went into labor like next Saturday or something. By this time next week, we could possibly have a baby in our arms. Wouldn't that be absolutely crazy?" Stephanie asked, her eyes wide at the prospect.

"It would be," Chris nodded. "Especially because it would throw everything off."

"I wonder how long it is until he can come on the road with us," Stephanie pondered aloud. "I don't recall reading that in any of the books."

"They don't recommend you travel with a baby for long distances for the first couple of months or so. Babies need like a secure place I read," Chris told her. "But we don't have to worry about that because Sawyer's traveling days are done come tomorrow."

"I know, I know," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "And then you're on your own. Are you going to miss me?"

"More than life itself," Chris said, kissing the tip of her nose. "So are YOU going to be okay sitting in the audience without me by your side? I was by your side last year so you're not going to be used to it."

"You act as if my world stops turning when you leave," Stephanie answered sardonically. "I'll be right next to my mom, who I'm sure will be thrilled to see me since she's totally wondering how I'm doing. You'd think she'd glean onto the fact that I'm fine judging by the fact that I'm still traveling."

"Don't begrudge the people who care about you," Chris chastised gently. She shrugged. "You ready to go? Did you go to bathroom?"

"God, way to make me feel like a three year old," Stephanie replied derisively, making her voice a couple pitches higher and continuing with, "Yes mister, I can go to the potty all by myself. I'm a big girl."

"Remind me again who it was that insisted we stop at two, count them, TWO, gas stations on the way to the hotel because someone had to go pee. Who exactly was that again?"

"Fine, fine, I get your point, but let's not forget that my bladder is being pressed on constantly by a human being!" she argued. "Let's see you walk around with a child inside of you. I think you'll feel a little differently."

"Touchy touchy," Chris responded. "Come on, your parents are probably already waiting down in the lobby for us and I don't want to keep them waiting. Not a good impression if we show up late. Not to mention there are things that I want to do to you right now that would take some time."

"I can't believe I'm in my ninth month and you still haven't given up on sex. Some men don't get any from like the fifth month on."

"You weren't complaining last night," he said as he handed her, her clutch. He walked to open the door for her. "If you really didn't want it, you'd tell me because Lord knows that you don't shut your mouth."

"Or my legs," Stephanie said crassly as they waited in the elevator. "Because my husband has to have me."

"You're just too beautiful for me not to watch to touch," he said, lightly tapping her on the ass. "You're getting me all hot and bothered."

"Well too bad," she said, waiting for the doors to open. They did and she stepped off the elevator. "Oh look, my parents, the people who raised me, who don't want to hear about how their son-in-law doesn't let up on their daughter."

Chris wrapped his arms around Stephanie's neck as they walked, pressing small kisses to her neck every now and again. "I only do it because I love you so much. Better that I want you than stray and try to find some fun elsewhere."

"You wouldn't do that to me," she whispered happily. "You'd never do that to me."

"You're damn right I'd never do that to you," he said as they finally reached Vince and Linda. Shane couldn't attend because of the very pregnant Marissa, so it was just the four of them. "Hey guys, hope we didn't keep you waiting."

"Not at all," Linda said, giving Stephanie the once-over. "You look lovely tonight Stephanie."

"Thanks Mom," she answered, running a self-conscious hand over her stomach. "I don't feel so lovely, but thank you."

"It's getting harder huh?" she said knowingly, having been where Stephanie was twice before.

Stephanie nodded and sighed. "It's just getting a little bit harder every day. And then I know it'll be over and at the same time beginning and I'm a little overwhelmed."

"We both are," Chris interjected. "But we're managing. It's just we're both in a strange position."

"Very true."

"Can we get this show on the road?" Vince asked, somewhat impatiently. Stephanie looked to Chris and smiled knowingly. It wasn't that her father was just being rude, but he was just a perfectionist like she was and there was work to be done.

"Of course Vince," Linda told him, placing a placating hand on his arm. "We're not even going to be late or anything. The limo is waiting just outside."

"Then let's go," Vince said, extending his hand out to let his family walk ahead of him. Chris let go of Stephanie and walked behind her. She looked over her shoulder and saw him checking out her butt in her dress and she gave him a dirty look that pretty much said, "Not around my parents!" Chris laughed and gave her a playful smirk, licking his lips a little. Stephanie turned around and shook her head at her husband's antics.

They walked out to the limo and Stephanie smiled. Her parents had gotten an SUV limo, which would be vastly easier to get into than a regular limo would be. Vince turned to Stephanie, "We figured you'd have an easier time getting into this."

"Thank you Daddy, I would," Stephanie said as Chris extended his hand to her so she could lift herself into the vehicle. He climbed in after her and settled himself next to her. Stephanie took his left hand in hers and kept in her lap as Vince and Linda got in as well. "So Daddy, are you sure that Chris has to work and can't be with me?"

"I'm working and that's final Steph," Chris told her.

"If Shane were here, I'd say fine, but Shane's not here and well, I'm going to need Chris's help," Vince answered.

"Oh fine," Stephanie said. "I guess it's not important that I want to sit next to my husband. I guess I'll just have be alone. All alone. And I'm with child."

"You're so dramatic," Chris laughed as he leaned over and gave her a kiss to the cheek.

"So how's the nursery coming along?" Linda asked. She rarely traveled so she didn't see a lot of Chris and Stephanie and it was nice to just see them and talk to them in person.

"Almost completely done, thanks to Chris," Stephanie responded adoringly. She looked up at Chris and kissed him a little bit. "He did such a good job, him and Kurt actually, but more so Chris. It's perfect. You'll see it when I have Sawyer."

"Good, I'm glad that everything is coming together. Are you excited?"

"And a little scared," Stephanie admitted. "I mean, it's hard to prepare for something that you weren't prepared to do in the first place. If Chris and I had planned to have a baby, you know, gone through the necessary steps to conceive, we probably would be a lot more prepared for it because we would've been anticipating it. But yeah, we're both excited. It'll just be a new challenge for us to tackle."

"And we're good at that," Chris added.

"Have you thought of a middle name yet?"

"We have one actually," Chris said, "But we're keeping that to ourselves for now. We want something around here to be a surprise."

"Where did you get the name Sawyer?" Vince asked. "It's such a unique name."

"It's my mom's maiden name actually," Chris said. "I just kind of mentioned it and we both really liked it. It's different."

"Yet not so different that our kid looks like a freak or something," Stephanie joked. She looked out the window. "Oh, we're here. Do I really have to say goodbye now?"

"No, come backstage with us and then you can walk to your seat," Chris told her.

"Too much walking," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "My feet are hurting and I don't want to have to walk more than absolutely necessary."

"I told you to skip tonight," Chris said. "If you're not feeling well--"

"I'm feeling fine," she argued. "I just don't feel like walking a whole lot. You don't have to coddle me, I swear to God Chris."

"I'm not coddling you, if I were coddling you, I'd carry you to your seat in the theater, but as it is, I'm not doing that, so I'm not coddling you," he shot back.

"But you would LOVE to carry me around so that I don't get hurt, according to you walking will get me hurt."

"Okay you two, break it up, Chris and I have a lot of work to do," Vince said, looking towards Chris. "You ready to go."

"Yeah, I'll see you afterwards?" Chris asked Stephanie. She smiled and turned to him, giving him a nice parting kiss. "I'll take that as a yes."

"Yes, I'll see you later," she told him softly. "Love you."

"Love you too."

Chris followed Vince out of the limo, but then stopped to help Stephanie get out as well, which she was grateful for. He gave her one last, unexpected kiss, teasing her a little by sneaking his tongue into her mouth. She pushed him away gently, not wanting to stop, but knowing they should. He gave her a peck on the lips and then was off with Vince to get backstage. She waited for her mother to catch up and they walked inside the already packed theater.

"So where are we sitting Mom?" Stephanie asked as they walked towards the front.

"I have our tickets right here," Linda said, checking the seats that they had.

"Well, lead the way," Stephanie told her, following her down to the very front row of the place. She looked around, seeing Trish and waving at her, but Trish seemed awfully distracted. Stephanie recalled how Trish had seemed anxious the entire week, but she just chalked that up to being worried about Mickie James. Trish was actually biting her nails right now and seemed to be staring off into space.

"Here we are," Linda said as they got to their assigned seats.

"Oh you've got to be kidding me," Stephanie muttered to herself as she saw who they had sit her next to. Of all the seats in the joint, she got stuck next to her ex-husband. She put on a smile, because he really wasn't that bad (he was), and sat down. She just didn't want him jumping to any conclusions like he had been lately. She turned to him and said, "Hello Hunter."

"Wow, I got the luckiest seat in the house," he said charmingly (or what he perceived to be charmingly).

"Oh yeah, me too," she said with faux excitement.

"Where's your husband?" Hunter asked, looking around noticing there were no seats between her and Linda. Stephanie made note that Hunter had referred to Chris, not by name, but just as her husband.

"He's working."

"Working? Doing what?" Hunter asked. "I thought he wasn't going on tour anymore, I thought he promised you that he'd be here for you."

"He IS here for me," Stephanie said, then looked up on stage where Chris was counting the number of chairs that were going to be on the stage for the ceremony. She pointed to his back, "He's right there."

"Oh, what's he doing?"

"He's helping my dad tonight because Shane couldn't help him," Stephanie explained. "So he's going to be backstage for the duration of the ceremony and so is my dad, so it's just me and my mom while our husbands work and make sure that everything goes off well."

"Oh," Hunter said, rightly smacked down. "That's nice of him to want to help your dad."

"Well, since he's taking over in my stead, it made the most sense," Stephanie shrugged carelessly. "He's doing a good job."

"And he won't steal your job."

"Was that a question or a statement?" Stephanie accused.

"What?"

"Well, if it's a question, I don't think Chris would steal my job, what good could come from him stealing my job. It's not like Chris doesn't have a job or anything. Chris has plenty of jobs. Did you know that he's going to be in a play?"

"No," Hunter said and he actually sounded meek.

"Yup, he is, because he's great," Stephanie said. "He's doing this to me as a favor, because I love him. Do you think that he wants to work here, no, he would probably rather be at home with me and Sawyer when I go on maternity leave, but he understands how important my work is for me, so he's taking over."

"Okay, I got it, he's a superhero," Hunter said sarcastically. "Sorry I ever called him into question."

"It's not that you called him into question, it's just I sometimes don't appreciate the way you speak of him. You wanted to be my friend Hunter, and doesn't that include discussing my husband."

"Yeah, yeah, you're right," Hunter relented.

"Thank you," Stephanie said, turning her attention back to the stage where Chris was just making sure that the microphone was turned on. The stage was mostly dark so none of the fans in attendance could really make out who was on stage, not knowing that Chris was there. But Stephanie would know him anywhere, any day, any time. He looked over at her and she smiled and blew him a kiss, which he pretended to catch. He looked to who was next to her and Stephanie gave a little eye-roll, conveying what she felt.

Chris walked backstage and frowned. He didn't want Stephanie next to Hunter for the duration of this thing. He walked over to Vince who was checking some things off for one of the backstage workers. He waited patiently for Vince to finish what he was doing before he gave him his report.

"Everything's clear," Chris said as Vince set the worker away. "It's looking good and I think that all of the inductees and their inductors are here."

"Thank you for doing this," Vince said. "I know that you're a go-between with Bret and everything."

"Not a problem Vince, you're family," Chris answered.

"Sometimes I forget," Vince chuckled.

"Speaking of family…I don't think that Stephanie has had the opportunity to speak with you about this, and we're not like, mad, just so you know, but when Stephanie told you to take it easy on Hunter, I think she meant you know, not hating him. She thinks…we think that you're going a little overboard with it."

"Have I?" Vince asked, tapping his chin.

"Yeah, and it's cool if you want to be friends with him, it's just…strange is all…you know, after the way he treated Stephanie."

"Well, she did say that was in the past, and that she's not hurting anymore."

"She's not, but you know…"

"It doesn't matter, the only reason I'm having him around is because we both know he can kick ass. Why not use him if I can?" Vince reasoned.

"Well, when you put it like that," Chris shrugged. "Whatever, I don't care, it's not like I'm worried he's going to steal my wife or something."

Stephanie could hear Hunter chattering on and on about his match tomorrow as the ceremony started up. She thought this would quiet him down, but it didn't. He was yammering about Cena, and how Cena sucked and he was much better, and calling himself the King of Kings again. Stephanie zoned out for a while, thinking that you can't really give yourself a nickname like King of Kings and come off as genuine. Then she thought to how Chris called himself the King of the World, and wouldn't that be the same. But then Stephanie was sleeping with Chris and knew that he was at least the King of the Bedroom, so it didn't seem as bad.

She tried to pay attention to what was going on, but about half-way through the ceremony, she started having a contraction. They always happened at the weirdest times. She changed positions to get a little more comfortable in the small seat and her face scrunched up as she only got more uncomfortable. She was so ready to have this baby.

"Are you okay?" Hunter asked her quietly.

"Fine," she snapped in a whisper, still trying to adjust herself.

"You look…um…not happy," he said slowly.

"I'm fine," she told him, "just go back to watching the thing."

She finally found a good position, and settled herself down, wishing Chris were right here next to her. It wasn't fair that she had to have Hunter instead of Chris. She didn't want to look like it was the old times. She didn't want to go back into the past. She had moved on damn it, she had moved on and Hunter had no bearing on her life. She was in such a daze thinking that the kick from Sawyer to her stomach startled her and she gave a little gasp, looking around to make sure that nobody had noticed.

But nobody did because the ceremony had just ended and she had successfully went on auto-pilot through the entire thing. People were milling about and she was just sitting there like an idiot. She grabbed the arms of the chair and lifted herself out of it, seeing her mother speaking to Ric, who had been next to her. Hunter had wandered off, thankfully and she was standing there alone, looking pathetic.

"Hey there pretty lady," a voice said from behind her. She turned and grinned.

"There's my fella," she said sweetly.

"What are you doing standing here all alone?"

"I kind of zoned out during the thing. Sawyer was kicking and I had another contraction, which made me so uncomfortable. I'm ready to go home sweetie."

"Me too, I want to get to bed early because I have to be up early for the show," Chris told her. "So you want to go baby?"

"We can't, we came with my parents."

"Don't worry about it, I told your dad that you'd probably want to skip on the after-party and called a private car to pick us up."

"You're so good to me Mr. Jericho," she said with a bad Southern accent.

"Well Mrs. Jericho, somebody has to be."

The two said their goodbyes and started walking out of the arena. They both had big days tomorrow, well, Chris had a big day tomorrow, Stephanie was just going to be a tag-along, unless Chris needed help of course. Neither noticed that Hunter was staring at them as they left, hand in hand. He still didn't know what Stephanie saw in Chris Jericho, it was something he needed to know and couldn't figure out. It would continue to bother him until he found out why she preferred that jackass over him.

**WrestleMania**

Stephanie opened her eyes, looking around the dark bedroom. She was laying on her side with a pillow underneath her stomach and Chris was pressed up against her. His left arm was flung over her stomach. She felt Sawyer give her a wake-up kick, something he had loved to do for the past couple of months and she yawned and stretched her arms over her head.

She flung Chris's arm off of her stomach and slipped from out of his grasp. Chris was a pretty heavy sleeper when he wanted to be and today was no exception. He just fell against the pillow she had been sleeping with and cuddled up to that instead. The cool air in the hotel room made her shiver since she wasn't wearing any clothes at the current moment. She couldn't pick up anything off the ground so she went to her suitcase and grabbed some underwear, her gross maternity support thing and some clothes heading towards the bathroom for a shower.

Chris remained asleep during the duration of her shower and when she walked out of the bathroom, wringing her hair out with a towel, she saw that he was still asleep, laying diagonally on the bed, clutching the pillow in his arms. She laughed a little. The comforter from the bed had found its way to the floor and a single sheet separated Chris's naked body from her view. Damn that sheet, she thought to herself as she took in the lovely curves of his back. She went over to the bed and crawled onto it, leaning down and lavishing his back with feathery kisses.

"Wake up sweetie," she whispered near his ear before, kissing the space right below it. "You've got to get up."

"What time is it?" he mumbled into the pillow.

"7:30," she answered, kissing down his shoulder. "Don't tell me I wore you out last night?"

"You always do," Chris said with a smile, his eyes still closed. "How long have you been up?"

"About thirty minutes," she told him. "Sawyer is like a clock in there, every morning, seven o'clock. He's very punctual, I like that in a person."

"Do I really have to get up?"

She kissed the top of his spine. "Yup, you really have to get up. You've got a lot of work to do today with the show. I can guarantee you that my father is going to be freaking out about the show and exactly how he wants it. He's going to be in extra mean mode, so you don't want to get on his bad side."

"Like I've never been there before," Chris answered. "Besides, what's he going to do? He can't fire me…and I'm married to his daughter."

"Oh, you are? I thought you weren't married, you lied to me, you've been lying to me!" Stephanie joked as she rubbed his back. "Come on sweetie, you really need to get up."

"You want me again?" he asked, a smarmy tone to his voice. "Well, if you want me to get up, I can get up."

"Not like that," she told him.

Finally, Chris turned over so he was on his back. His eyes were still closed though and Stephanie let her hands wander to his chest as she knelt next to him. She ran her hands over his upper chest and his hands intercepted hers and clasped them tightly. He finally opened his eyes and was rewarded with Stephanie smiling down at him, her damp hair falling around her clean, no make-up, face.

"Good morning," he said impishly.

"Good morning to you," she responded. "You going to give me my hands back?"

"Nope, so what is on tap for the day? Do we have anything important?"

"Chris," she whined. "Don't play with me. You know that we have to get going. My father is probably already at the arena, and he's probably waiting for you. You can't let him down."

"Why is it so important that I don't let him down?" Chris asked, wondering what Stephanie was being so adamant about this. Did she know something that he didn't?

"No reason, I just want you to succeed is all," Stephanie said.

"And the other reasons that you're not telling me about?" he said, trying to draw it out of her.

"So I want to get there and help, sue me," she said, sticking her tongue out. "I'm still capable of at least sitting in a desk and working! Right! I mean, I can at least do that."

"So predictable," Chris shook his head, then thought for a moment. "Wait, so you want to be my employee…"

"When you put it like that it sounds so stupid," Stephanie said. "I'm not your employee, I'll be like your special consultant or something."

"So my employee."

"If you want to make it sound like something it's not," she said sarcastically. "Fine, think of me as your employee, whatever floats your boat. Not like I care. I mean, I wouldn't be your employee but--"

"You need to shut up," Chris told her. "So if you're my employee, which you are, does that mean I can order you to do anything…including physical things."

"Oh shove it up your ass," Stephanie said, getting off the bed. "Get your naked butt out of bed and get dressed. I'm ordering room service so what do you want to eat?"

"Bossy lady," Chris muttered. "Get me waffles and a coffee. I'll be in the shower because if I don't start getting ready I think you'll sit on me, and that could crush my poor bones."

Stephanie's nostrils flared as Chris scurried out of bed and into the bathroom. She glared at the closed door. "Yeah you better run Jericho! Because if I could get to you, I'd slap your face so hard your head would do a 360!"

"Lucky for me you're slow!" Chris yelled from behind the door, laughing as he said this.

When they were properly nourished and dressed in Chris's case, they headed out of the hotel room. They drove down to the arena, which seemed to already be buzzing with activity. Chris looked over at Stephanie while she wasn't paying attention and her face said it all. Even if Stephanie had been two days away from giving birth, she would've been here. She looked so excited, almost like a little kid on Christmas, that kind of excited. He could also see the wheels turning in her head and he could only imagine she was thinking of ways to take the power away from him and run the show herself.

Her fingers were tingling with excitement and she tried to stop moving them around so much, but she couldn't help it. It was the biggest show of the year and she didn't get to have any part in it. She wondered if she could somehow usurp the power from Chris. But how would she do that, she thought intensely. She felt Chris tap on her leg and she turned to him, putting her most innocent face on.

"You want to go inside or sit in the car all day?" he asked impishly.

"Toss up, but I think I'll go inside."

He got out of the car and went to the other side, opening Stephanie's door for her and lending her his hand. She took it and let him help her out. They walked inside and to Chris's office, which Stephanie was totally jealous of. She wished that she had her own office again, but she had to remind herself why she didn't. That pretty much involved her looking down and being reminded in a big way that included not being able to see her feet. They walked in and Chris set his things down on the desk while Stephanie plopped herself down on the couch.

"I need to go make sure some stuff is taken care of."

"Go ahead, you don't need to stay on my account," Stephanie told him with a wave of the hand. "I'm going to be perfectly fine."

"You're due in twenty-six days, do you get how big that is?" Chris asked her.

"I'm in the home stretch," she said triumphantly, raising her arms above her head. "I'm almost done, I've only got twenty-six more days and then I'm home free…well not home free, but I won't feel like I'm carrying a bowling ball in my stomach anymore."

"I'm surprised they let you fly," Chris said randomly. "But I guess with the doctor's note they were okay with it."

"Yeah, my doctor says it's fine, so it's fine, and I told her that this was the last time I was going to be flying and that I was spending the rest of this last month at home. I'm going to miss being around here though," Stephanie said with a sigh. "I'm going to miss working and the adrenaline and everything."

"Yeah, but your father is letting you do some accounting while you're away, so you won't actually be out of work. You'll just be doing some other things for a while."

"True. You have a point."

"Only you, Stephanie, would go on maternity leave only to work from home. You aren't actually taking a maternity leave. You're just working out of the house for right now. I wouldn't be surprised if you bring work to the delivery room."

"Well…I figure that if it takes a long time, in between the bad parts I could fit in a little bit of work," Stephanie shrugged.

"Wait, you actually ARE bringing work to the delivery room?"

"It calms me down!" she protested. "The instructor said that bringing something that calms you down is the best way to have an easy delivery."

"I think she meant like music and pictures and stuff," Chris told her.

"Well, don't they say that to each his own?" Stephanie asked. "If work calms me down, shouldn't I be allowed to do it as long as it doesn't interfere with the actual, you know, delivery part?"

"If my son comes out of you with a briefcase in hand…I'm going to divorce you," Chris said with a smile.

"Nah, that's what he gets on his first birthday," Stephanie said coyly. "I'm confident you'll do an excellent job while I'm away. I have complete faith in you."

"So who did you get to spy on me?" Chris inquired smartly.

"What! Nobody!" Stephanie said. "How dare you insinuate that I would have someone spy on you? I'm your wife, I trust you."

"If you say so, but I'm going to work with two eyes open," he kidded, leaning across to kiss her. "I'm sorry that you're not going to be here with me. Do you know how hard it's going to be being without you? I hate being without you. It's like…my other half is missing."

"That's sweet," she responded. "I love you too, but we both knew this was coming, and even though it's going to be hard for the both of us, it's something that we have to do. It's just…it's life."

He shrugged. "We didn't want kids until later."

"I know. But you can't stop nature from taking its course. I guess that we were just very fertile. You don't regret it do you? Now that we're so close, now that it's only a few weeks away."

"I would never regret having kids with you, although had you asked me that before, when I hated your slutty guts, well, yeah, I would've regretted it big time."

"Like I would've let you touch me," Stephanie scoffed. "You wouldn't even have gotten near me, and you never would've ever seen me naked, I can tell you that for sure."

"And now look," Chris chirped brightly. "I have seen you naked so many times that I could probably provide you with a detailed sketch."

"And when the novelty wears off, you're going to leave me right?"

"I can't keep my hands off of you, you know that," he winked. "Okay, you've kept me from my work long enough, so if you'll excuse me, I've got work to do. You can do whatever you want to do with your time."

"It sucks not to be needed," Stephanie sighed and put her chin in her hand.

Chris kissed her goodbye. "Saywer needs you, I need you. Two things right there. See you later baby."

"Love you."

"You know I love you too."

Chris walked out of the office and looked around. He thought for a moment about all the work that he had still to do. It was so much and he was overwhelmed for just a moment. He just had to get his wife pregnant last August so that she'd be entering her ninth month at the time of WrestleMania. But Stephanie was counting on him and the entire Raw roster was counting on him, so he would have to go to work.

First he went to check on the sets, just to make sure that the progress was going well. That was the easiest of his tasks. The sheer coordination involved with running this show and making sure that they didn't go over the time limit, but gave each match enough time was going to be where champions were made. Chris leaned against the wall for a minute to catch his thoughts and it occurred to him for the first time that he wasn't going to be on the actual show.

This was the first time since he had joined the company back in late 1999 that he wasn't going to be in a WrestleMania match of any kind. It was upsetting a little because a part of him missed wrestling so much. He still worked out regularly to maintain his physique, but he was definitely rusty, although he was still better than probably half the roster. He sometimes missed the adrenaline and the sheer rush of the crowd when you walked out from behind that curtain. It was nice, really nice to have people cheer you on, and he missed that part the most.

"Hey Chris."

Chris looked to his right and saw Benoit standing there. "Hey Benoit, you're here early."

"Not that early, Vince told everyone that he wanted them here by noon, so it's ten right now, not too bad or anything, how are you doing?"

"Hectic."

"So what's easier, performing or working backstage?"

"Performing, definitely," Chris said. "This working thing is strange."

"Leave it to you to get suckered into this when you didn't even start the company as a backstage employee," Benoit joked, or at least Chris thought he was joking.

"What better do I have to do?"

"Why don't you just come back?" Benoit asked. "It's not like you aren't here every week as it is. Are you so scared of losing that you're chicken to come back."

"Very funny Benoit, do you want to lose another tooth?" Chris asked snidely.

"You get bitchy when you actually have a real desk job."

"Since when did you sprout a sense of humor?"

"Since you sprouted a suit and tie," Benoit shot back.

"Good to see you again Benoit," Chris said, shaking the other man's hand. "But maybe you should go focus on beating JBL's ass because I've still got a ton of work to do."

"Just avoiding the subject…oh and, if I don't see you before it happens, congratulations on Sawyer," Benoit said with that famous smile of his. "You're in for some fun times."

"I don't know if you're joking or being sarcastic or sincere, but thanks," Chris smiled.

"Pass those on to Stephanie too…God, you having a kid with Stephanie, it's never not funny," Benoit said.

"Yeah laugh it up Benoit," Chris said as he watched the other man walk away. He turned to his clipboard of tasks that he needed to do and realized that he should really locate Vince so they could talk over a few of the things. At least the SmackDown coordinator had a bunch of things covered and was doing the SmackDown portion of the show, which cut down on some of the things Chris had to do.

He let out a breath and turned right, walking and writing at the same time, which was no easy feat. He collided with someone and sent the person flying onto their butt. Chris looked down and saw Trish on the ground and he quickly grabbed her hand and helped her up.

"I'm so sorry Trish, I didn't see you, I was working."

"It's ok," she said, starting to walk past him.

"Trish, I apologized, I'm sorry, why are you mad?" Chris asked, confusing her distractedness for anger.

"What? Huh?" Trish said, turning to look at him. "Oh hi Chris."

"Trish, what's up with you?" Chris asked.

"Nothing, nothing's up," Trish answered.

"Are you worried about Mickie?"

"What? Mickie? No, no," Trish said, glancing around.

"Is something going on?"

"Nothing," she shrugged.

"O…kay," Chris told her. "Um, Steph and I were going to a late dinner after the show, probably with Kurt and Ashley, did you want to come? I promise it won't be like couple vs. couple thing, so you wouldn't have to feel left out."

"No, actually, I'm sort of meeting someone after the show."

"A date?" Chris said, his interest piqued. "This is the first I'm hearing of a date. So who is he?"

"It's not a date…not really," Trish frowned. "I just have to meet with someone."

"Fine, be purposefully vague. That's fine," Chris told her nonchalantly. "I've got a lot of work to do, but if you get a free moment, go hang out with Steph, I don't want her bored out of her mind for the entire day."

"Of course," Trish mumbled, going back into her own world.

She was meeting Christian after the show. That's what had her so distracted. She had set up the meeting last week, e-mailing him rather than speaking to him. She had e-mailed him again yesterday, telling him the perfect place to meet. They were going to meet at a little café by the hotel. She was more nervous for this meeting with Christian than she was with anything having to do with wrestling.

She was seeing Christian for the first time in months and if just hearing his voice could send shivers down her spine she couldn't imagine what seeing him would do. She tried to remain focused and stay angry at him, but she was having a really hard time doing so. She had been on auto-pilot the last week, just thinking about Christian and what was going to happen. Half the time she was in her own little world and didn't even know anyone else existed.

This could prove to be fatal later in her match against Mickie for the Women's Title, but she would deal with that when it came to that. And if she lost tonight, she didn't know if she would even care. The big main event for her was coming after the show. She knew that meeting with Christian was the only thing that mattered. Work didn't matter, her life mattered, and Christian was a huge part of her life, whether she wanted to admit it or not.

She had so many things that she wanted to ask him, so many things that she needed to ask him. She contemplated writing them down so she would remember them all, but then her hand was shaking so much she probably wouldn't be able to read her own handwriting. She felt like she was in this strange dream and the only way she could come out of it was after she met with Christian. Everything else faded into a giant blur, like she was a hummingbird, flittering around without stopping. Her heart was definitely flittering around.

She didn't know how she ended up in the parking lot, but when she looked around, all she saw were the cars parked there. She laughed at little at herself, if she wasn't careful, she'd end up in Toronto without even realizing it. That's how much Christian was occupying her brain at the moment. There was nothing that could break her out of it. Nothing at all.

But maybe she could talk to someone impartial. That seemed like a good idea and her auto-pilot system found just the right person as she found herself knocking on a door. She glanced at her watch and saw that it was about thirty minutes before everyone was expected to arrive, so hopefully he was there. The door opened and she smiled.

"Hi."

"Hey Trish, what're you doing here?" Randy asked.

"I needed to talk to someone, someone who isn't involved in the situation…do you think we could talk?"

"Of course, you know you can always talk to me," Randy said. "I may be a jerk to everyone else, but for you, I always have time."

"It's Christian," she said, cutting to the chase. "I'm meeting him later."

"Oh wow," Randy said. "I had heard about him just leaving."

"Yeah," Trish said, looking down. "He said that he had something really important to talk to me about and I'm scared. I'm terrified…I'm out of my mind with worry. Seriously, I have no clue. I'm completely distracted, and you know what, I know I'm going to lose tonight."

"You don't know that," Randy told her.

Trish started pacing back and forth. "No, I do know that. I'm too distracted. I'm gonna lose…and I could care less. He's…I can't…think. I feel like I can't breathe. I'm at a loss Randy."

"I wish I could tell you what to do Trish," he told her. "But we both know that I can't. You just have to go and find out what the hell happened. I mean, if I were sleeping with you, I wouldn't give you up, we both know that."

She smiled shyly. "We do. And I shouldn't be scared right? I mean, I shouldn't be scared to see him. I should be furious with him for everything he's done to me. I should want to kick him in the balls for hurting me."

"That's the spirit. Do you maybe want to do that to Rey and Kurt so that I can win tonight?"

"Can't, I'm moving in with Kurt, I don't think he'd take to kindly to me kicking him in the crotch."

"It was worth a shot," he shrugged. "And don't worry about your match later, you'll do fine."

"No, I won't, but thanks anyways Randy."

"Chris, I need to talk to you," Shane said as he barged into Chris's office and saw the back of the leather chair.

Stephanie slowly turned around and looked at her brother. "Shane, what the hell are you doing here?"

"Just flew in," he said. "Wait, what are YOU doing here?"

"What do you mean 'what am I doing here?' I'm always here," Stephanie answered.

"Aren't you in your ninth month?"

"Yeah, what are you getting at?"

"I thought you couldn't travel in your ninth month."

"I got a doctor's note," she told him.

"But shouldn't you be resting."

"I AM resting," Stephanie said. "Do you see me doing anything?"

"Dad said that Chris had taken over for you, so what are you doing sitting at the desk?" Shane asked, still confused.

"I'm not working right now Shane," Stephanie explained. "I'm just sitting at Chris's desk. He's busy making sure the show is going to be great. So what did you want to talk to him about?"

"If you're not working then it's none of your business."

"I'm sort of working," she reasoned.

"Can you just point me in the direction of your husband so I can talk to him?"

"What's so important that you can't wait to talk to him?"

"Why's it so important that you know?"

"You're family."

"This is business."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "He's around, I don't know the exact location."

"Well then I'll find him, see you later baby girl."

"This isn't over Shane!" she called out. "I'll find out what you're up to!"

Shane went in search of Chris. Vince wanted him to interfere later in the match if things weren't working out for him. He needed Chris's help to make sure that could happen. He wasn't worried. Chris understood him, and Chris was family, and if you wouldn't do favors for family, who would you do favors for?

He found Chris hovering over some production assistant with a clipboard. Chris had a walkie-talkie clipped to his belt and he was seemingly approving something or another. Chris took out a pen, clicked it open and wrote something down, nodding and explaining to the woman. She nodded and scurried off. Chris turned his head, feeling someone watching him and saw Shane. He raised his eyebrows and casually sauntered over.

"Hey bro, I thought you weren't going to be here," Chris said, shaking Shane's hand.

"I'm just here for today and then I'm taking the jet back home, so Marissa won't be alone for too long."

"And just your luck, she goes into labor," Chris chuckled.

"Don't jinx it," Shane said. "I missed D's birth, I don't want to miss this kid's birth. And you're going to jinx yourself as well, now Stephanie is going to go into labor on a Monday while you're working."

"Okay, so no jinxing, what's up?"

"I need your help for later."

"What kind of help?"

"Just hear me out."

By the time the show began, Chris was a nervous mess. He didn't want to screw this up. Funny how he was probably more nervous doing this show than he was about having a son in a few short weeks. He had been barking orders through the walkie-talkie for what seemed like hours and the show hadn't even begun yet. He hadn't even seen Kurt around and that was unusual because Kurt was always hanging around him. Chris let out his breath slowly, putting his head in his hands, trying to distract himself from all the noise going on around him and trying to calm himself down when he heard the distinct scratching of metal across concrete.

He felt Stephanie start to rub his back. "Hey there, overwhelmed yet?"

"Yes," Chris said, his voice muffled by his hands. "I don't think it's a good idea for my third show to be a WrestleMania."

Stephanie grabbed a pair of headphones. "Do we have Michelle ready to do the opening?"

"Yes ma'am," came the reply.

"Good, we have five minutes before the opening, if somebody could get her that'd be great. I'm also going to need someone to alert Kane, Big Show, Carlito, and Masters that they're match is first up and we expect them at the gorilla immediately."

"Will do, and did you need the order of their entrances?"

"Do we already have that on the schedule?"

"I think it's on the schedule, yeah."

"Then I don't think we're going to need them, but thanks for the heads-up, make sure that production is on everything and that the music is on cue. I'm checking the schedule and it seems we've got a few special entrances, I want those to be seamless."

"Already on it."

"Great, that's all for now, thanks."

"You're welcome ma'am."

Stephanie took off the headphones, slipping them down to hang around her neck. She looked over at Chris who was staring at her intently. "What? Do I have chocolate on my face since I was eating a Nestle Crunch Bar a little while ago?"

"What are you doing?"

"Helping," she said with a smile. "When someone you love needs help, you help them, no questions asked. I may be pregnant, I may be due in twenty-six days, but I can still talk. I don't want you to be overwhelmed, that was never my intention in asking you to take over for me. If I can help you in any way, then I'm going to do just that because I love you…and I'm really bored."

He laughed at her. "Thanks."

"You don't have to thank me, I just really want this whole…marriage thing to work out."

With Chris and Stephanie both on the job, things were sure to go well on the Raw side of things. Well, that would be true if Trish had any interest whatsoever in being there right now. As time drew closer and closer to meeting Christian, she became less and less interested in her match with Mickie. She had resigned herself to losing because she knew that she was going to lose. Was she psychic? No, she just knew that her heart wasn't in it tonight. If her heart was in it, if she put her faith and work into the match, she'd win hands down, but it wasn't and she didn't care one bit about the outcome. Belts meant nothing in the long run.

"Ms. Stratus," someone said, accompanied by a knock. "Your match is in ten minutes and you're needed at the gorilla."

"Okay," she said, just loud enough so she could be heard. She was dressed, though when she had gotten dressed, she didn't remember.

She walked out there and waited at the gorilla, oblivious to Mickie's intense stare on her. Stephanie got off of her chair with Chris's help and went over to Trish, shaking her lightly on the arm.

"Trish, are you okay? You look weird."

"I'm fine," she answered, putting on her best smile. "Just focused."

"Good luck okay," Stephanie said, hugging her friend. Trish gave her a weak hug back. Both girls didn't notice that Mickie had narrowed her eyes and was staring almost maniacally at the two of them. Her music started up before she could do any more staring. Then Trish's music started and she went out there, knowing that this would be the last time she held her belt.

The match was weird to say the least. The crowd seemed to be behind Mickie, but Trish barely noticed. Maybe they could see through her. Maybe they could see that she was distracted and thought that she just simply didn't care about her belt. At this moment, she really didn't give a shit as to why they weren't cheering for her. She was transparent apparently, and she could care less. She did try, at least a little, to hold onto her belt, but in the end, she just let it go. She let it go because there were more important things in the world than a belt. Mickie would be sure to bring this up tomorrow at Raw, but by tomorrow, maybe she'd be better, maybe she'd care.

She walked backstage, not stopping to talk to anyone, even when Chris called out to her. She didn't have a reason to be here, so she wasn't going to be here. She had to prepare. What she was going to do exactly to prepare, she didn't know. Was she going to dress up, look beautiful and make sure that Christian knew exactly what he had left behind, or was she just going to go there, not dressed up and be herself. She was wavering between the two extremes.

But she did know that she had to get out of here. She couldn't be around anyone right now. She needed time and space to think. She needed to breathe and she didn't feel like she could breathe. Her whole life seemed to be hinged on tonight, and it was a little bit. She was finally gaining a reason. She was gaining a reason for the way she had been living for the past several months. She didn't have a home, she was bumming off of her friends, and she had just lost her title. Would things be different if Christian hadn't have left? She knew the answer was a definitive yes, and that's why she had to find out the truth tonight.

Stephanie had simply wandered into her father's dressing room to inform him that his match was on after the Casket match and found him to be a little hysterical. Shane and Linda were there too her father was trying to get himself pumped up for his match and suggested that they…pray. Stephanie found this a little strange and the whole kneeling thing was weird, but this was her family. She tried not to roll her eyes as her father was talking and she could only imagine what Chris thought of this.

Religion had never been a big thing between her and Chris, certainly not a problem when it came to their relationship. She knew that he had dated women who were as ardent as he was about his religion and sometimes she wondered why he hadn't married someone who shared in his beliefs. Shane helped her stand up and she went back to see Chris knowing that he was definitely going to have some words for her. She hoped he wasn't mad. Chris was a religious man, though she didn't really understand that part of him. He usually kept it to himself and she was fine with that.

She sat down tentatively next to him and he just looked at her for a moment before turning back to the television. It was a SmackDown match right now so he didn't have his headphones on. She leaned her head against his shoulder, closing her eyes. She felt him rub her stomach gently and she figured that he didn't care about what he had just seen.

"So you got nothing on what just happened?"

"Nope…except it was nice to see you on your knees again. It was like old times."

"You're mad."

"I'm not mad."

"You seem a little mad."

"I'm not mad," he told her. "I was just joking."

"It was my father's idea," she tried to absolve herself. "He's weird."

"Yes, your entire family is creepy," Chris told her.

"You're my family too."

"Lucky me then."

"You ARE mad."

"I'm NOT mad," he emphasized.

"Sometimes I don't get your religion sweetie. I mean, I get religion and everything, and I get that you like to pray before you have a match and you like to pray before you have a concert, but that's not who I am."

"Steph, I'm not mad," Chris told her, turning her face to look at him. "I swear, I'm not mad. Why would I be mad?"

"I made a mockery out of your beliefs?" she said meekly.

"No you didn't. Yeah, I'm religious, but I'm not an idiot," Chris said. "Let's forget about it okay? Can we do that?"

"We can do that," she said. "If you're really not mad at me."

"I'm really not mad at you."

"Okay, but only if you promise."

"I'm not mad at you!"

"Are you just saying that because I'm pregnant?"

"What has that got to do with anything?"

"I don't know. I thought it might."

"You confuse me Stephanie McMahon."

"Ooh, I am good," she smiled, giving him a kiss. "You're doing really well by the way, I can't imagine anyone but me doing a better job."

Chris didn't know how to answer that and they just sat there until it was time for Vince's match. Linda came over to sit with Stephanie and Chris and watch the match with them. Stephanie cuddled up to her mother, glad that she was here. She didn't get to see her mom that often and their relationship had seemed to get a lot closer since she had gotten pregnant. They liked to talk a lot on the phone, not necessarily even about Sawyer, but just about other things, work things even and Stephanie liked it. She had never been close to her mother, but she felt like they were on the right track.

The match started and Stephanie knew that her father was going to be outmatched. She just wondered if he could gain the advantage by using the weapons available to him. But of all the things that Stephanie didn't want to see, her father's ass was one of them. But wait, no, her brother being shoved into her father's ass was the absolute last thing on Earth that she wanted to see and she looked down in absolute disgust. That was quite possibly the worst thing she had ever seen in her life.

But wait!

This wasn't the only thing that Stephanie would consider the absolute most extreme thing in her life. Oh no, because Stephanie…and Chris for that matter, were in for a big, huge surprise. Stephanie was still trying to block the offending images out of her mind and Chris was working hard with the finale coming up and then Chris looked up and got the funniest sight he had ever seen in his life.

Chris had to look down immediately or he was going to die from laughter. Stephanie, who had her head back and was staring up at the ceiling thinking about chili dogs, heard Chris snicker and wondered what that was about. She brought her face forward and her eyes widened and she covered her gaping mouth with her hand and thanked the Lord almighty that she had the wherewithal to divorce Hunter when she did.

He was in the most ridiculous outfit she had ever seen. Stephanie had never been fond of his old leather jacket/denim vest combo, but this, what he was wearing now, oh, no, she needed extensive pictures of this. THIS was just…what the hell was he thinking! Stephanie couldn't stop staring at him. It was like a train wreck, no, no, no, it was like fifteen train wrecks piled on top of each other, set on fire with cars continuously ramming into the trains.

Stephanie burst into laughter and not wanting Hunter to know it, she started coughing loudly, trying to cover up her coughing. Chris was heaving silently next to her, his head now between his legs because he was trying so hard to keep his composure. Stephanie kept coughing/laughing and tried to remain focused. She looked over at Hunter and he was walking over here and she bit her lip, trying to remain calm. She could feel the pressure on her lip and she stared at Hunter and blinked several times.

"Ready to see me win tonight Stephanie?" he said, and she couldn't believe he was standing there, looking like a…what was that! A medieval prince or something? Stephanie stared at him a moment, afraid to open her mouth lest a complete breakdown follow. She looked around, and finally, awkwardly gave him a thumbs up. "Everything alright with you?"

"Couldn't be better," she said quickly, closing her mouth before the laughter escaped. She was now staring off to the side so she couldn't look directly at him.

"So what do you think?" he asked, extending her arms, and she heard Chris snorting into his arms as he was still doubled over next to her.

"Quite the look," she said, her voice a mere squeak as she bit her lip again, trying not to look at him.

"I wanted to look like the true King of Kings," he explained

"Great," he squeaked again. She again gave him the thumbs up, not knowing how to talk to him without laughing.

"What's wrong with him?" Hunter asked, throwing a thumb at Chris, who was still hunched over.

Stephanie thought quickly. "Stomach flu."

"Oh," Hunter said. "Well, I've got a title to win."

"Sure do," she said, nodding her head and blowing air into her cheeks. It was all she could do to keep herself from just dying of laughter.

Hunter heard his music cue up and then he was gone. As soon as he was out of sight, Stephanie let out the biggest laugh of her life, it sounded like a cross between a scream and a screech. Chris finally sat up and his face was literally red from holding in his laughter as he started cracking up. Stephanie's mouth was wide open as she just laughed and laughed, tears coming to her eyes.

"What the hell was that!" Chris screamed.

"I don't know," she said, her cheeks getting rosy as she shook her head. "I thought I was in a dream or something!"

"Okay, okay, okay," Chris said, taking deep breaths, but then busting out with a laugh. "No, okay, okay…Stephanie…baby, you know I love you, you know that I love you more than life itself…but seriously, I'm questioning your sanity. You were married to THAT!"

"Wait," she said, her throat making weird gurgling sounds as she held her laughter down. "I did not marry THAT. I don't know what THAT was. THAT was something else entirely."

"Whatever it was, it was the funniest thing I've ever seen. Oh God, if I were still on-screen, I would definitely, definitely have to make fun of that."

"I need to meet the person who told him that looked good and slap some fashion sense into them," Stephanie said, laughing still. She wiped at her eyes. "Oh God, I can't stop picturing it. The crown Chris, did you see the crown?"

"Was that fur!" Chris guffawed.

"No, no, it was all about the crown," she said, waving her hand around. "No, no, we're mature adults. We don't question other people's decisions. We're about to become parents, we should show a little maturity, and focus, and we shouldn't teach our son to laugh at people and make fun of people…that's not how we should…did you see the necklace!"

"NO!" Chris said, throwing his head back and cracking up again. He slapped his hand on the table in front of him as he and Stephanie were just struck with a horrible case of the giggles. They just couldn't stop laughing. But could you? Really, could you? (No.)

"Oh," Stephanie said, holding her laughter for a second. "I'm going to need a tape of this. Oh, we have to go home and watch this again."

Trish stirred her drink in anxiousness. Here she was in Chicago, Illinois for WrestleMania, and she was waiting for Christian to show up. Nobody knew that he had even called except for Edge, but she had secretly called him to arrange a meeting with him. She had e-mailed him to make the arrangements, but no actual words had passed between them. So she was sitting in the little café near the hotel, stirring her iced tea in nervousness from seeing Christian for the first time since November.

She fingered her necklace aimlessly, thinking about Christian. Her breaths were coming out in short little pants and she was pretty sure that she was shaking. She was so scared about seeing him again. She hadn't even wanted to meet with him, but she had caved because she still couldn't resist him. She also needed answers if she was ever going to move on. She needed to know why he had left so she would have the piece of mind to maybe find another man that she could love.

Her cell phone rang and she answered it nervously. "Hello?"

"Trish, it's Christian."

"You're not coming," she said, more of a statement than a question. She should've known that he wouldn't show up, she should've known that he would find some excuse.

"No, that's not it, I just…I don't think we should be seen in a public place. Um…do you think you could come where I'm staying?"

"Oh," Trish said. "Would it be okay if we met at my hotel room? I'm just not in the mood to you know, go anywhere else."

"Oh yeah, I understand, where are you staying?" Christian asked, and his voice sounded nervous too.

"Um, usual place we stay at here," Trish answered. "You know where that is right?"

"I do."

"Room 657."

"Okay, I'll be there in say…ten minutes?"

"Yeah, okay," Trish said quickly.

"Great, um…thanks for meeting with me."

"No problem," Trish said awkwardly. "Bye."

"Bye."

Trish hung up her phone and quickly flagged down her waitress, paying quickly and gathering her purse so that she could get back to her hotel. It was a little weird that Christian didn't want to be seen in public with her, but she decided not to question it right now. There were too many other questions that needed answering before she got to something so insignificant as to why he wouldn't want to meet her in public.

She made the quick walk back to her hotel and went back to her room. She didn't know what to do with herself while she waited, so she ended up pacing a little bit. When that got tiresome after a few moments she went to the mirror and checked her makeup and her hair. She didn't want to look like she was missing Christian. She wanted to look like she was just perfectly fine with the situation. Finally there was a knock on the door and she felt like she was hyperventilating.

She was shaking as she went to the door and she opened it nervously, and then there he was. He looked the same, that was something. He looked good, definitely good. He was staring at her, and she was staring at him and this went on for a few minutes, neither one making any further move. Trish shook herself out of it and she opened the door for him. He walked inside and she stood there like an idiot. He turned to her and looked like he was going to hug her and she kind of moved her arms towards him, but it was so jerky and awkward that they ended up shaking hands.

"Hi," Trish said, her voice barely above a whisper.

Christian blinked a few times. "You…hi."

She gave a nervous chuckle. "Do you want to sit down?"

"Yeah, yeah, I do," he said, going to sit on the chair in the corner of the room. "You…you look beautiful…as usual."

"Thanks," Trish said. "And you, good, you look good, healthy…"

"Yeah, I'm healthy," Christian said, noticing that she wasn't sitting in the other chair in the room, but still stood by the door.

"Good, good, and um….oh God, congratulations on the title," Trish told him. "You deserve it, World Champion…I always knew that you had it in you. I mean, you knew that, but you know, yeah, congrats."

"Thanks, I was…really happy about it."

"I would've been too…" her voice trailed off.

"Sorry about your title."

"I was distracted."

"Yeah…I guess that's kind of my fault."

"Yeah, I guess, or something," she responded, then said, "This is silly, we're just being silly."

"You can say that, yeah," Christian answered. "So you're probably wondering a lot of different things."

"Yeah," Trish said, coming over and sitting on the edge of the bed. "There are a lot of things that are unresolved with us. And it would be best to get them out in the open."

"Um, are you seeing anyone right now?" Christian asked, his voice hitching. "I saw that Jack guy you were with…after I saw what Mickie did to him, I stopped watching, only started again at Saturday Night's Main Event, then saw last week and now I'm here."

"Did you watch WrestleMania?"

"No, didn't see it, um…I called Edge to see how his match went and he told me you lost…"

"I'm not seeing anyone right now," Trish answered abruptly. "You?"

"No, no, no," he answered quickly, emphasizing his point three times.

"Can I go first, because I just want to get this out?"

"Sure."

"You hurt me," Trish started and she bit her lip as she stared down at her hands. "I never thought I'd know first-hand what it would be like to have your heart ripped from your chest and stomped on. Then one day I walk into our house and you're gone and that feeling swept over me. And I went into autopilot. I don't even know how I made it to the show that night. If it wasn't for Chris, Stephanie, and Kurt, I probably would've walked head-first into oncoming traffic I was in such a daze. You hurt me Christian. You hurt me so much more than any physical pain.

You were the one. I can say that now because we're not together, but you were the one for me. You were the man that I wanted to marry, you were the man that I eventually wanted to have kids with, and you were the man that I wanted to see for the rest of my life. And I ache because I know you left me, and it hurts, and I'm hurt, and no, I don't cry myself to sleep every night, and no, I don't eat ice cream to wallow in my self-pity. But I go everyday not knowing what I did to drive the man I love away. And I sit there and I see other people in love, and I just don't know what I did to make you not love me anymore."

"I still love you," Christian said softly.

"No, you don't," Trish said. "No, you don't! You don't leave someone the way you did and love them. You don't pack up your goddamn things and leave a damn note breaking up with someone and still love them!"

"I did what I had to do to protect you!" Christian yelled.

"Protect me from what?" Trish asked, confused.

"From Mickie okay, from Mickie," Christian said, running a hand through his short hair.

"Mickie James?" Trish said with incredulity. "What has she—you slept with her didn't you? You slept with her, you cheated on me with Mickie James! How could you, you bastard!"

Trish launched herself at Christian, but he caught her right before she could throw her first punch. "No, I didn't sleep with Mickie! I wouldn't sleep with that psycho."

"Then what does she have to do with anything."

"She threatened me," Christian said.

Trish pulled away and stood there. "She…what!"

"Well, not me, she threatened you," Christian said. "If you'll sit down, I'll tell you the entire story."

"Please do."

"This is what happened…."

_Christian sat watching Trish and smiling. She was so amazing in the ring and she was his girlfriend. He was just so exceptionally proud of her. He knew that her birthday was coming up next month and he wanted to make it a memorable one but didn't know what to get her. She wasn't all that materialistic and she would probably rather go out and do something as opposed to getting some elaborate gift._

"_Christian, can I talk to you?" Mickie James said as she walked up to him._

"_Um, sure," Christian said, turning to the new diva._

"_In private," Mickie said sweetly. "Come on."_

_Christian followed her, wondering if this was going to have to do with Trish. This woman was just really weird with his obsession with Trish. Not that Trish wasn't obsession-worthy. If he were a guy and he got to see Trish all the time, then he might be obsessed with her too. It was just easier to hear Mickie's words than ignore her and hope that she'd get the picture. He walked into her locker room and looked at her._

_She turned to him and her smile faded. "I think you need to leave."_

"_Excuse me, you just invited me in here."_

"_No, you need to leave Trish because she is going to be mine."_

"_Okay, yeah, so what do you really want to discuss."_

"_I'm not messing around here," Mickie said. "I'm Trish's biggest fan and she should be around me all the time. She's going to be MY best friend and if she's going to be MY best friend, I can't have a guy hanging off of her all the time, so I think that you should dump Trish."_

"_Are you crazy?" Christian asked. _

"_I'M NOT CRAZY!" Mickie screamed, then calmed down with a smile. "I'm making a helpful suggestion because once Trish and I become the best of friends, she's going to dump you anyways. I think that it would save us all a lot of time if you would just leave."_

"_I'm not going to leave Trish," he scoffed. "I don't know what you're on, but you and Trish…not going to be best friends. She likes Ashley more than she likes you."_

"_What!" Mickie said, blinking rapidly. "No, she likes me."_

"_Look, you're not getting me away from Trish, so forget it," Christian said. "Go back to la-la land or whatever planet you're from."_

_Christian turned to leave when Mickie said something that made his blood run cold. "Your mom looks just like you and Edge."_

_Christian turned around, "What did you say?"_

"_I said you look like your mom, so does your brother. She's pretty, and she has a really nice house, is that where you grew up?" Mickie asked in a calm voice yet it held a more sinister nature than anything Christian had ever heard._

"_How the hell do you know what my mom's house looks like?" Christian asked, knowing that he kept his personal life pretty much a secret._

"_And your Grandma Edna. Has she always lived in that big, two-story house? It's very colonial-looking. And those lawn gnomes, how funny are they? I especially like the one that looks like it's bending over, very clever."_

_Christian shook his head. "What the hell!"_

"_I gave you the choice Christian. I told you to leave Trish, I TOLD you to leave her. But then you wouldn't listen, but I think that if I went and saw your mother and your grandma that they could make you listen."_

_Christian stepped up into Mickie's face. "Don't you even dare go near them!"_

"_How are you going to stop me?" Mickie asked. "You can't unless you leave and make sure that they're okay…alive and everything."_

"_What the hell do you want?" Christian asked._

"_I want you gone. You are between me and Trish and I can't have that. If you don't step out of the way, well…I hear the real estate market is good in Toronto. But I hope that your family has some good insurance policies."_

"_You wouldn't dare," Christian told her._

"_Try me," Mickie said. "Try me and see what happens."  
_

"_And if I leave, you don't hurt my mother or my grandma."_

_  
"Or Trish."  
_

"_I swear to God Mickie, if you hurt Trish."_

"_Shut up," Mickie said calmly. "I'm in charge here. And if you don't think I am, does the address 8932 Hazel Street mean anything to you?"_

"_Fine, FINE you psycho--"_

"_I. AM. NOT. CRAZY!" Mickie screamed in his face. "I just want Trish to be my most best friend in the world, I want her to love me. And with you out of the picture, there won't be many more obstacles to go through."_

"_If you hurt anyone I care about…I will find you Mickie."_

"_Toodles," Mickie said, ignoring him and walking around him to leave._

"She threatened Grandma Edna?"

"After I left, I spent the first week with my mother and grandma because I was so worried that she would try something. I didn't want to break up with you Trishy, I just, I had to protect them. I don't know how dangerous Mickie is, but when she described my grandma's house, I knew I had to do it."

"Grandma Edna, she threatened Grandma Edna?" Trish repeated. "I'm going to kill her, I'm going to wrap my hands around her throat and squeeze."

"After she attacked you, she broke her end of the deal, but I thought, maybe it's a fluke or something and then last week, I knew I had to tell you because I can't stand to see you get hurt, and she promised she wouldn't hurt you."

"You left to protect your mom and your grandma…and me?" Trish said.

"Yeah," Christian said. "Pretty stupid huh?"

"Stupid?"

"I'm lucky I got in TNA…I mean, a part of me was thinking about leaving WWE, although not a big part because all my friends are there, but I had to protect the people I love. And TNA has been good for me, I needed the change of scenery. It's the only good thing to come out of this entire thing. But all of that, none of it makes up for the fact that I left you. I wanted to tell you Trishy, but I couldn't, I couldn't risk it, not with my mom and Grandma Edna involved, they mean the world to me, they raised me."

"You kept a secret," Trish laughed.

"Huh?"

"You, the blabbermouth. The one who couldn't keep a secret. The ONE time you shouldn't have kept a secret and you did, amazingly," Trish laughed hysterically.

"I couldn't tell anyone and risk them getting hurt too."

"Chrissy," Trish said and Christian's heart leapt at the word. "You would do anything to protect me?"

"You know I would," Christian said.

"This is a lot to take in."

"I know and I'm sorry."

"I think I need time to digest this," Trish told him. "I mean, here I'm thinking that you left me, that you just didn't want to be with me, and then I find out you only left to protect me and to protect your family. But I'm still hurt. Chrissy, I wish you had just told me."

"I couldn't risk that Trishy," Christian told her. "I couldn't risk my mother and my grandma getting hurt. I figured, maybe you'd find someone, maybe you could be happy. I just wanted you to be happy."

"And you're stupid for thinking that I could be happy with anyone but you," she told him earnestly. "You have to be honest in a relationship and you weren't honest with me."

A knock came at the door and Trish looked stricken for a moment. Christian went and stood behind the wall instinctively, not wanting anyone to see him. Trish went to the door and saw Chris and Kurt behind it. Trish smiled at them as best she could, but she wanted to get them away from here right now.

"What are you guys doing here?"

"Snacks run," Chris informed her, holding up some plastic bags with goodies inside. "Ashley and Stephanie are up at our suite hanging out. We're ordering a movie and all hanging out to watch it together and we wanted you to come."

"We hate the fact that you lost and you're alone," Kurt added. "So come up and watch the movie with us. We'll just be pigging out anyways. I'm making myself feel better from my loss."

"Oh, you know what?" Chris said. "If we could get a hold of Trips in that outfit of his tonight, I think it would make you feel a whole lot better."

"Okay, now I've GOT to see this outfit!" Kurt said, having not seen it since he was in the shower while Hunter had made his entrance. "But come on Trish, we want you to hang with us…we have lots of snacks."

"Yeah, look, this bag is just Stephanie's," Chris said, holding up one of the most loaded bags. "The rest is for us since Stephanie's kind of a pig, and if you tell her that, she's going to slap me so don't tell her that."

"And Chris and Stephanie have a freaking plasma screen in their suite."

"Hey, I can't help it if Stephanie likes to get suites. Actually, Vince and Linda paid for this one so might as well take advantage."

"I think they've got a whole floor. The set-up is sweet. Come over, it'll be no fun thinking you're down here alone."

"Oh wait, you were meeting with someone," Chris remembered. "Did you meet with him?"

"Um…yeah," Trish said a little too quickly.

"Oh man, he's here isn't he?" Chris asked. "In your hotel room…Trish, are you getting some?"

"Chris!" Trish gasped. "That is none of your business."

"Hmm…hair doesn't look disheveled…"

"Clothes are in order," Kurt added.

"Yeah, maybe you're not getting any," Chris said. "But come on, if you have a guy in your room, we want to meet him."

"You guys, come on, your significant others are waiting for you," Trish pleaded.

"Trish, we're your friends, we want to look out for you, we just want to make sure this guy is on the up and up. After the whole thing with Christian, we just want you to be safe," Kurt told her. "I mean, we're going to be roomies in four months. A girl and guy who are living together should not have secrets."

"Okay, I'll tell you what, if you leave now, I'll be up there in like twenty minutes and I'll partake in your fun and games," she reasoned.

"Okay," Chris said, trying to look over her shoulder. "Trish?"

"What?"

"If you were in trouble or anything, you'd tell us right?"

"Of course I would," she said honestly. "Now go!"

"Fine, fine, what is it with the women in our lives," Chris said to Kurt as they walked off. Trish closed the door behind her and leaned against it.

"You're moving in with Kurt?" Christian asked.

"Yeah, we bought a house around the corner from Chris and Stephanie," Trish said. "Kurt finally decided that he wanted to live down there and it makes the most sense. We don't want to encroach on Stephanie and Chris anymore, you know, especially because of everything going on."

"What's going on?" Christian asked and Trish realized that Christian didn't know that Stephanie was pregnant. Trish found that odd, but it wasn't her news to tell so she wasn't going to tell him.

"Oh you know, we're just ready to not all live together."

"So are you and Kurt?"

Trish laughed. "No, that's hilarious, I guess you weren't listening all that closely, Kurt's dating Ashley right now. They're really sweet together. But no, I told you earlier that I wasn't seeing anyone."

"Yeah, but you could've been lying because Kurt was a friend of mine."

"You know they'd all still be friends of yours if you had just told us what was going on."

"I'm glad you had them during…well after I left."

"So am I," Trish said. "It was really nice seeing you again Christian , but I just can't fall back into your arms. I can't just say that the past several months didn't happen. Regardless of the honorable reasons that you had for leaving me, it doesn't erase the fact that you left me and that hurt so badly."

"I understand, I just needed you to know why I left and that Mickie is crazy, but you knew that. I'll just be going now."

"Can I have a hug first?" Trish asked pathetically. "Just for old times sake?"

"Always," Christian said, coming over and taking her into his arms.

She closed her eyes and wrapped her arms tightly around hers. It felt so good, so incredibly good and safe and just…right. Oh God how this felt right. She didn't want to let go, she never wanted to let go. His arms were just what she needed. She didn't need to be comforted about the belt, she just needed Christian, she needed his scent on her nose and his fingers on her body. She just needed to feel him. Just like this…always like this.

When she pulled away, his lips went blindly towards hers. And instead of pushing away like she knew that she should have done, just to prove her point and stand fir, she kissed him back. She couldn't do it. She couldn't push this man away. She needed his touch. She needed this like she needed nothing else at the moment. Breathing seemed secondary to his warm lips covering hers and his strong hands running through her blonde hair. She didn't want to break the kiss, the hold, this moment. She wanted to live forever with him, wrapped up in him. She was invincible, she was nothing, she was a person who had been missing and was just now being found.

He guided her towards the bed and she didn't protest. She couldn't protest at this point. She just couldn't. Her body was responding too quickly, her brain not processing anything but how good Christian felt as he was hovering over her. She loved the way his hands felt gliding up her rib cage and she didn't care about anything else, just him, always him.

She would face the consequences in the morning.


	82. It's Never Not Funny, April 3, 2006

A/N: I don't watch TNA, but as I understand it, they've been doing vignettes with Christian's real-life wife. Anyways, obviously in this story, he's not married, I guess you can say TNA exists in the HaK universe, but that I don't necessarily follow what's going on.

And I reached 600 reviews so thank you to each and every person who leaves me a review. It means so much to me that you take a moment to write your thoughts. So thank you, and enjoy this chapter. :)

* * *

Trish stared up at the ceiling. She didn't want to look to her left, she couldn't look to her left. She had made a huge mistake last night. Instead of standing tall and not allowing Christian to once again barge in on her life, she had let him into her bed. Now he was sleeping beside her and she was actually not used to having someone else in her bed. She fiddled with her fingernails for a second, her eyes focused on the ceiling. 

She heard him sigh, but she still refused to look over at him. Why did she always let him in? Why couldn't she just let go of him? She used to laugh about Chris and Stephanie and their on-and-off period, but she had the most dysfunctional on-again, off-again relationship that she could think of. Her friends were married now and happier than ever, never doubting their relationship. She longed for that kind of security. Nothing was ever secure anymore.

She could feel the heat coming off his body and it was creating an inferno around her. She wanted to escape, but he had his hand draped across her body at the moment and he would surely wake up if she moved. So she laid there, staring up at the ceiling and fidgeting with the top of the sheet covering her body.

"Morning," she heard him say finally and she didn't know when he had woken up.

"Morning," she responded shortly. He snuggled up to her and she tensed. He felt it and looked up at her, noticing how nervous she looked.

"What's wrong?"

"What do you mean what's wrong?" she asked sharply. "We slept together!"

"It's not something we haven't done a million times before."

"Yeah, but we were together those million times before," Trish said. "We're not together right now."

"We're not with other people though."

"That's not the point Christian. The point is that I needed time and this is not time, this is not time at all," she said, sitting up and then realizing she was wearing no shirt, she pulled the sheets over her chest.

"I don't see the problem here," Christian said. "Trish, I love you."

"I know you do," Trish sighed. "I know you do and I think that it's so sweet of you to protect me the way that you did, but things have changed around here Christian. Things have changed a lot. You haven't been watching the show right?"

"Not really."

"Have you looked online, read anything?"

"You know I don't really do a lot on the computer."

"Things have changed," Trish told him emphatically. "You wouldn't believe some of the things that have changed around here while you were gone. I'VE changed while you were gone. You don't go through the worst heartbreak of your life and not come out a changed woman."

"What are you saying here?"

"I'm saying that as nice as last night was…it shouldn't have happened, I shouldn't have let it happen."

"Trish, I did what I did to protect you. I didn't want to leave you, I wanted to stay with you, you know that."

"I know that, but I didn't know it at this time yesterday, or the day before, or any of those days since you left. Do you know what kind of affect that thing has on me? I couldn't even stay in our house, I had to move out and then live with Chris and Stephanie. And now I'm moving in with Kurt, we have a house, we've bought it. We can't move into it for another four months, but we have it."

"That's okay, I think that's good."

"But you don't get it! I've moved on, or at least I was starting to--"

"Are you saying you're over me?" Christian asked, frowning at the prospect because he was not over Trish at all.

"No, I'm not," she replied honestly. "I might not ever be completely over you, but I was learning. I was moving on, I was doing a lot of things for myself. Like I said, things have changed around here Christian, nobody is the same. Certainly not me."

"So you're saying that there's no chance for us?"

"I don't know that," Trish answered, "I just know that I had a hard time and falling into bed with you is not going to solve any of our problems, and we have problems Christian. We can't seem to stay together, no matter how hard we try. We never seem to just work."

"But we keep coming back to each other, we keep…we need each other," he said, his voice low and serious.

"That may be, but this was too soon, this was all too soon," she whispered. There was a banging on her door and she looked at it. "I should get that."

She got out of bed, slipping some clothes on quickly, not liking the fact that she was exposed to Christian. She was glad for the respite of whoever was at the door. She didn't want to look at Christian's face right now. He looked sad and she knew what she was saying was difficult to hear, but she was desperate to get her opinions out there. She needed him to understand that despite his best intentions, she was still hurting. She opened the door to an irate Chris.

"Where the hell have you been?" Chris asked angrily.

"What are you talking about?" Trish asked, furrowing her brow. "I've been here all night."

"Then why didn't you answer your phone, why didn't you answer the door when Kurt and I were pounding on it!" Chris demanded.

"You called? You came over? Why?"

"You said you coming up in twenty minutes. You never showed up. So we were all calling you and you weren't answering your phone. Kurt and I came down here and we were knocking for like twenty minutes and you didn't answer. The idiots downstairs wouldn't give us a key to check on you. Do you know how worried we've been!"

"I'm sorry, I guess I just got distracted," she said, honestly not remembering anyone calling or knocking. She had been too into Christian she supposed.

"We didn't know this mystery person you were meeting with and we didn't know if they were hurting you or something. Or maybe Mickie had finally gotten to you," Chris said, hand over heart. "We were worried sick and do you know how bad that is for Stephanie?"

"Yes, I'm well aware," Trish told him. "Look, I'm sorry, but I'm safe, I'm fine. I can go meet you guys for breakfast if you haven't eaten yet."

"We just woke up, and do you know how we fell asleep? With our cell phones in our hands."

"I'm sorry," Trish said, going to hug Chris. "Thank you for worrying about me."

"Don't do it again," Chris told her.

"I won't. I'll see you downstairs in like fifteen minutes."

"Okay, sounds good, I'll go let Stephanie know and then I'll call Kurt."

"Okay, thanks again for worrying."

"My pleasure," he joked before walking away.

Trish closed the door and went about getting her things together, ignoring Christian altogether. He was still sitting in bed, watching her flit around the room, consciously ignoring his very presence. He didn't regret last night, and he didn't regret leaving her to protect her. He just wished that things could go back to the way they were, but they HAD changed and he didn't know if they'd ever change back.

"I don't want it to be over," Christian said, looking down at the sheets.

Trish finally stopped and looked at him. "Want what to be over?"

"Us," he shrugged, trying not to sound desperate. "But we are, aren't we? We're over."

Trish bit her lip. "I don't know."

"I never wanted it to end up this way, you know?"

"I understand that," Trish said. "And I don't know what's going to happen with us Chrissy." She sat down on the bed, facing him. "I've never been able to resist you. You're the first guy that ever…you know, I thought I had something with Jeff Hardy, I really did, but then there was you and God, how there was you."

"There can still be a me," he told her. "There can still be an us."

"I don't even know where you live," she laughed.

"I rent a penthouse apartment in Tampa," Christian told her.

"So close and yet I had no idea. Well, you know where I live," Trish said. "That's a start."

"So…if we work at it…"

"Yeah, we can work at it," Trish said. "I'm crazy though. I'm crazy because I keep letting you into my life. You've always been in my heart."

"If you really are unsure Trishy, don't take me back. I would rather you be happy than take me back and potentially be upset."

"We can't keep doing this though Chrissy," Trish said, placing her hand on his cheek. "We can't keep breaking up and making up…as fun as that is. I can't take the break-ups anymore, and this last one nearly broke me. Ask Stephanie and Chris how I looked after you left. Did you know that Stephanie was actually cleaning up my tissues for me I was so distraught. That's how bad it got, I couldn't even get my tissues into a garbage can."

"Trishy, I never wanted any of this to happen, I swear to God."

"I know, I know," she said. "If we were to try again though, I need to know that you'd be there. Forever, because I cannot go forever without you Chrissy. I just can't."

"I can't either. We'll take this slow though. No moving in together, no marriage talk. We'll take it slow. Very, very slow," he said, hoping that she would want him back, praying that she would take him back. He felt so very empty without her.

"We can't go out in public though, if Mickie found out…I don't want anything to happen to your mom or Grandma Edna, you know I love her."

"So we'd be Chris and Stephanie then, vintage style," he said with a small laugh.

"Oh God, Chris and Steph, if I'm not down there soon, they might start to freak out again!" Trish said, quickly pulling her hair into a ponytail. "The last thing I need is them coming up here again."

"Are you going to tell them about me?"

"I don't know," she said. "I mean, I guess I can. Are we back together?"

"Are we?" he questioned her question.

"Sort of," she said, a little confused. "I mean, not totally, but not broken up. I mean, we ARE broken up, but like in between broken up and together."

"Like friends with benefits?"

"No, nothing like that. Just…trying it out," she said. "We're trying it out. Chris and Kurt will want to kill you, you know. Stephanie would probably try to kill you, but she can't with Sa--"

Trish almost spilled the beans again, but she caught herself before she brought up Sawyer. Sawyer was not her news to tell Christian, so she wasn't going to tell him about Chris and Stephanie's baby. She thought it was odd not to know about it though, considering how Christian had been such a good friend of theirs. Of course, if he even got one glimpse of Stephanie, he would most definitely know that something was up.

"She can't what?" Christian said, showing Trish he hadn't been as oblivious as she had thought.

"What? I don't know what you're talking about."

"But I just thought."

"Nothing," Trish said quickly. "I've got to run. You can show yourself out then?"

"Yeah, I guess…or we can invite them all up here for breakfast, if you were going to tell them about me anyways…I don't really feel like being this dirty little secret from our friends."

"My friends, they have to forgive you to be your friends again."

"Right," he said sullenly and she looked instantly vexed.

"I'm sorry, that was rude of me," Trish said, kneeling on the bed. "I shouldn't have said that."

"It's the truth. I mean, maybe if they knew why I left."

"They'd definitely forgive you."

"But you said they've changed…maybe they wouldn't be so forgiving."

"Stephanie is friends with Hunter again and he and Chris have a truce going," Trish blurted out in a vain attempt to make Christian feel better about losing most of his friends. Christian's eyes widened in shock.

"Stephanie is friends with Triple H!"

"Yeah," she said. "So see…very forgiving. When I meant things had changed, I meant like…things have changed."

"Like what?"

"Like stuff," she said noncommittally, trying to sound casual. "I've got to go Chrissy, I can't keep them waiting."

"Yeah, okay…are you sure you don't want to bring them up here?"

"I'm…hesitant."

"Please. I'd feel better if they at least knew why you weren't answering your phone and stuff last night."

"Okay," she said, giving in, like usual. She just always seemed to give in when it came to Christian. "Hand me my cell phone."

He handed to her and she said thank you and smiled uneasily at him. She wasn't sure if this was such a good idea. She didn't know anyone's feelings on Christian and she didn't want her friends to think she was crazy for being around him. But they didn't have to know they had slept together. She could just say they had talked things out and were trying to be friends again. That worked. She waited for Ashley to answer her phone since Ashley's was the first name on her cell phone.

"Hey Trish, what's up?" Ashley said.

"Hey Ash, are you with Kurt and them?"

"Yeah, I can't get enough of Kurt, he's always around me," Ashley said flirtily, not for her benefit, but obviously Kurt was close by. "And Kurt says that if you ever worry him again he's going to put you in the ankle-lock."

"I did not say that!" Kurt yelled into the phone.

"Okay, I added the part about the ankle-lock, but I've got Kurt wrapped around my finger," Ashley joked. "And you had me worried too so I think the ankle-lock is only fair, right Kurt?"

"Sure," she heard Kurt say and Trish laughed.

"Well I won't worry you all again. But listen…I was hoping that you guys could just come up to my room and we could all have breakfast here."

"Why?" Ashley asked, which wasn't a stupid question at all.

"Because I just need to talk to everyone."

"Hold on, let me discuss this," Ashley said and then she heard muffled voices as she had obviously covered up the receiver or something. It was a few moments later that Ashley came back on the phone. "Chris said we could all just go up to their suite. They have a dining room up there and they get all this special treatment. Is that cool?"

"Yeah, that's fine, I'll be up there in a few," Trish said.

"Okay, we'll see you then, bye Trish."

"Bye Ash." Trish ended the call and turned to Christian. "We're going up to Chris and Stephanie's suite for breakfast, they have a dining room."

"Okay, let me just get presentable," Christian said, getting out of bed. Trish smiled at him and sat on the bed, staring off into space. What was she doing? She didn't even know anymore. She was nothing more than a very confused woman. She didn't really want to be with Christian, but she couldn't be without him either. A few minutes passed of her sitting there, contemplating the past twenty-four hours of her very weird life, when Christian came back out and stared at her. "I'm ready."

"Good," she said, standing up.

"Trish, are you sure about this? If you aren't, I'm okay with leaving, I swear."

"I need you," she said plainly. She needn't say anything more as he took her hand in his. "We have to be careful. Mickie might be lurking about."

"That's right," he said, dropping her hand. "Do you just want to meet up at the suite?"

"No, you don't know which it is," Trish said. "And I think Mickie is like three floors down or something and if she does see us, well…I don't know, we'll think of something though."

"You sure?"

"Positive. Everyone deserves to know that truth about what happened. They deserve to have their own opinions about you. If I know the truth, they should too because it wouldn't be fair for me to keep a secret like this when I know the truth."

"You sound so logical."

"I try," she shrugged as they alighted from the hotel room and hurriedly made their way to the elevator, sighing in relief when the doors shut. They stood shoulder to shoulder in the elevator as the elevator went up and up and up to the second to the top floor where all the large suites were. They walked up to the door of the suite and Trish kind of pushed Christian out of the way before knocking.

"It's about time," Chris said as he pulled open the door.

"Well sorry," she said sarcastically. "Is everyone here?"

"Yeah, they're sitting at the table. Poor Ash and Stephanie with the limited mobility."

"Yeah, well…I have an announcement, a surprise of sorts."

"Hmm?" Chris grunted, raising an eyebrow. "What kind of surprise?"

"This kind," Trish said, grabbing Christian's hand and pulling him to her side.

"Holy shit, you've GOT to be kidding me!" Chris exclaimed, then hissed. "What the hell are you doing here? You have a lot of goddamn nerve showing up like this."

"Chris, please, please," Trish said, cocking her head to the side. "I know this is a shock."

"How long has this been going on Trish?" Chris asked. "You've been lying to us?"

"No, this happened last night," Trish explained. "I was just as much in the dark as you were until last night. Okay, so don't go blaming me or accusing me."

"Sorry," Chris said directly to Trish. Then he turned to Christian. "That however, was not directed to you. You have a lot of explaining to do if you think I'm going to forgive you. I don't even want to let you in my room."

"Chris…come on," Trish said seriously.

Chris folded his arms and looked stoic. "Why should I? He hurt you!"

"I know that," Trish said.

"You were so upset Trish, have you forgotten?"

"No, I haven't forgotten," Trish said. "But there are things that need to be known before you become the judge, jury, and executioner for Christian."

"Fine," Chris shrugged, trying to remain nonchalant. "But only for you Trish."

"Thank you," Trish said sincerely.

Chris walked into the suite, not looking back one time, allowing Christian and Trish to enter at their own accord. Trish sent Christian a sorry look and she shrugged, knowing this was going to be difficult. She pressed her hand to his arm, stopping him. She turned to him and gave him a sympathetic smile.

"It'll be okay, they changed, they've all changed, remember that," Trish said, trying to prepare him. "You just have to get through to them."

"Yeah, I know."

Chris walked into the dining room, a testy look on his face. Stephanie who was seated and looking through the room service menu, trying to figure out how much she could eat, looked up at him and cocked her head to the side. He was looking strange, and angry, but he was obviously trying to cover it up. Kurt and Ashley were making goo-goo eyes at each other as Ashley sat on his lap so it was just Stephanie who noticed Chris's demeanor.

"Sweetie, what's up?" she asked softly, sensing her husband's mood and adjusting her voice accordingly.

"You'll see," he responded, plunking himself down in his chair.

"What do you mean I'll see?" she inquired, setting the menu down and scooting closer to the table so she could look into Chris's eyes. "Sweetie, is something wrong with Trish?"

"Depends on how you want to define 'wrong.'"

"I don't understand."

"You will," he said cryptically, again. She didn't know what to make of this mood, so she just stared at Chris. She was so involved in that particular activity that she didn't see Trish walk into the room, and she definitely didn't see Christian walk in behind her. Stephanie looked up for a second, only noticing Trish in her rush.

"Hey Trish, hey Christian," she said absently, but then did a double take, her eyes widening, "Christian!"

"Hey Steph," Christian said.

"Christian?" Kurt said, tearing his eyes away from Ashley for the moment. "Christian, what the hell are you doing here! I'm gonna kick your ass!"

"Guys, please, calm down, please, please," Trish pleaded. "Hear him out."

Ashley scurried off of Kurt's lap as he stood up and stalked over to Christian, getting right in his face. "Do you know what you did! Do you know how you made us all feel! You broke her heart you stupid bastard!"

"Kurt!" Trish yelled, putting herself between Kurt and Christian. "He had a good reason."

"Oh no…Trish, don't tell me that you believe anything this jerk has to say?"

"Look, things have happened," Trish started. "Can we all just sit down and talk peacefully? Please, for me you guys, if you're really my friends, you won't act like this and least give him a chance. You all know Christian…"

"We thought we did," Chris muttered to himself.

"You still do," Christian said softly.

Everyone looked down or away and he felt so insignificant in that moment. His friends hated him; he probably deserved it though. He hadn't seen Trish after he left so he didn't know what she was like. They did, and they had every reason to hate him right now. He didn't blame them one bit for their reactions, but it still hurt. It had hurt to leave them all.

"I'd like to know why you left," Ashley said with a small smile. "I mean, you obviously want to tell everyone something and I think that you should get that chance…Kurt, you agree right?"

"No," Kurt said immediately.

"Kurt," Ashley said, kissing his cheek. "You wouldn't deny me the chance to explain something to you, so I think it would be completely wrong of you to do that to someone else. We're all adults here right? Why does the youngest one have to be the one with the most perspective?"

"Because you are too nice," Kurt told her.

"Well, I want to hear the story," she said firmly, giving Kurt a look. "I want to hear what's going on."

"Thanks Ash," Trish said, looking pointedly at the other three.

"What are you expecting from us?" Chris asked.

"I expect you to treat him like a human being," Trish said. "Who didn't make nearly as bad a mistake as you're thinking right now."

"What happened Christian?" Stephanie asked with doe eyes. "Tell us what happened. And you better pray it's good because if it isn't, my husband and my best friend are going to kick your ass so bad…"

"Mickie threatened my mom and my grandma," Christian said, interrupting their thoughts. "She said that if I didn't stay away from Trish, she would hurt my mom and grandma. She had their addresses, she could describe their houses, what they looked like, and I had no choice but to leave the woman I loved because I needed to protect the women who raised me. That's what happened."

"Mickie?" Kurt said, scoffing. "She kidnaps my girlfriend and then she threatens my friend. I can't believe this woman."

"She's a psycho," Stephanie mumbled to herself.

"So now you know," Trish said. "And Christian and I are not totally back together, but there's a chance we will be…and I don't care what you guys think."

"I'm sorry," Chris mumbled lowly.

"What was that?" Christian asked, knowing that he was toying with Chris now.

"I'm sorry," Chris said, raising his voice. "We didn't know."

"I don't blame you," Christian said. "I did a bad thing in leaving Trish. And I shouldn't have done it. I apologized to her for leaving, and I'm sorry for leaving you guys too. I hope that we can be friends again…if that's in the cards for us."

"Well we can start with breakfast," Stephanie said with a smile.

"That is a start," Trish said, sitting down and grabbing Christian's hand to sit down with them. "So how was everyone's night last night?"

"Crappy," Stephanie said quickly. "Until I saw what Hunter was wearing because…oh, I think I fell asleep laughing about it. Then I think I dreamt about it, and then laughed some more. You should've seen Chris last night when he saw it though, so funny."

"Hey! I was trying to be nice and not laugh in his face," Chris said.

"Only because you said that it might make him want to take it off and you didn't want to deprive the world of that outfit," Stephanie giggled.

"Damn it, I really need to see this outfit!" Kurt said. "I want to go home right now and watch it. That's it, I need to see it."

"It was pretty funny," Ashley said. "I only think that you could've pulled something like that off Kurt. Because you are a king of kings to me."

"Oh gag me," Trish laughed. "You guys are sickeningly sweet."

Christian just looked around the table and let out a deep sigh. TNA was lonely, he thought to himself. Sure, he had friends there and people to talk to, but he didn't have this. He had been lonely these past several months, lonely and empty. It was just Trish he had missed, but he missed his closeness with Stephanie, and his arguing with Kurt and Chris. He had missed them all.

"Okay, so who's going to call for room service?" Stephanie asked. "I'm hungry."

"Geez, I'll get the phone," Chris said, going over to the table with the phone on it and bringing it over to the dining table. Everyone know what they want?"

"Not yet," Trish said, looking over the menu. "So why'd you want the breakfast?"

"Well, for me, it's a 'We're Losers So Let's Pig Out' breakfast," Kurt said, trying to sound sad. Truth was, he was sad that he had lost the title. He definitely should've won, but well…looking at Rey and then Eddie's widow, he knew there were more important things in life than a belt.

"Aww Kurty, it's okay, you don't need any belt," Ashley told him.

"And for me, it's a 'Last Day on the Job' breakfast," Stephanie said with an exaggerated pout. "Even though I'm not on the clock, Chris is, but I'm still, you know, special consultant."

"That's Stephanie's way of saying that she's my employee," Chris said with a smile. Stephanie glared at him. "Oh come on baby, you know you're my employee."

"I am not!" she said petulantly.

"Why is it your last day on the job?" Christian asked. He then noticed that everyone was looking around and smirking to themselves. Stephanie looked at Christian for a long moment in confusion.

"Have you been watching Raw?" Stephanie asked.

"Don't tell me you and your dad are on the outs again?" Christian said. "Do I have to pretend to be your boyfriend again?"

"So you haven't been watching Raw," Stephanie said, sucking in her breath. "Oh wow, this is weird."

"What's going on?" Christian asked, looking around. "I feel like I'm not in on the joke."

"You're not," Chris said, laughing as he looked at Stephanie. "I can't believe you don't know why Steph's leaving."

"I haven't been watching," Christian shrugged. "So you're not on the outs with your dad?"

"No, not so much," she said. "Oh, did I tell you sweetie, Shane's still here. I think that he said that Marissa isn't going to be in labor yet or they're inducing her or something. So you have to make time for Dad and Shane tonight…just letting you know before I forget."

"I'll be on it."

"Marissa? Is Shane having a baby?" Christian asked.

"With his wife, yeah," Stephanie nodded.

"Shane got married?" Christian asked incredulously. "I can't believe he got married…when?"

"Um…God, December 21st I think it was. Nobody went, they got married at the Justice of the Peace," Stephanie explained. "See, Marissa, you've met her a couple of times, she actually had Shane's son a couple years ago, and she's pregnant again, due very soon, and she told him and Shane, thinking he had to do the right thing, got married to her. On a complete whim, so nobody was there from either family."

"Wow…Shane's married…wow," Christian said. "I'm pretty shocked."

"So was I," Stephanie laughed. "I think I almost had a heart attack when he told me."

"That's shocking, so he has two kids?"

"Yup, it's been good for him though," Stephanie said. "I think he's probably still sleeping, I know I'd be sleeping for the next five months if my head got shoved into my dad's ass, disgusting. Ugh, thank God I turned away."

"So that still doesn't explain why you're leaving Steph, and Chris is taking over for you? Chris, you're management."

"For the next couple months," Chris said. "Unless I steal Steph's job."

"You are not going to steal my job," Stephanie said decisively. "I'll see you burn in hell before I let you steal my job."

"Steph, when are you planning on coming back on the road?" Ashley asked.

"As soon as my doctor says its okay," Stephanie answered. "Probably a month, maybe two afterwards. Maybe sooner, but I'm not holding my breath."

"Stephanie, are you…sick?" Christian asked, his voice catching in his throat. He couldn't think of any other reason for Stephanie to just leave and only be gone for a few months. How could everyone be so upbeat if Stephanie was sick?

"No," Stephanie said with a shake of the head. She smiled coyly and looked down at her stomach, which was obscured by the table.

"Will someone please tell me what's going on!" Christian asked impatiently, just like Christian of old.

Stephanie pushed herself away from the table, gripping the tabletop as she looked to Chris. "Little help sweetie?"

"No problem," Chris said, placing his hand on the small of her back and helping her lift up. She turned to the side, showing off her stomach to Christian, who gasped softly. Stephanie raised her eyebrows and then proceeded to sit back down slowly.

"You're…what the hell was that!" Christian asked, blinking several times slowly.

"That would be our son," Chris said.

"I'm sorry, but you're…huge…"

"I'm due in twenty-five days," Stephanie explained. "But thanks for making me feel like a cow."

"You're…due in twenty-five days, how is that even possible? You weren't pregnant when I left, I don't understand."

"I WAS pregnant when you left, and so you know, here we are," Stephanie said. "I'm going on maternity leave. Not by choice mind you, but by necessity. And Chris is the only person I trust to take my job while I'm pregnant with Sawyer, which is what we're naming our son."

"Wow…Trish was right when she said things have changed, things have really changed."

"Now can we please get the pregnant woman some food before she starts eating her arm?" Stephanie asked with a laugh. "Sawyer is getting angry in there."

The breakfast went pretty well, considering everything that had happened. They were still a little leery about Christian, but they accepted it for Trish's sake. Trish was their friend and they wanted to support her. But they did have a show to do and that's where they were. But they weren't exactly working at the moment. Chris was sitting on the couch with Stephanie laying on it, her feet in his lap. He was giving her a foot massage since her feet were aching.

"So what is the verdict on Christian?" Stephanie asked. "You haven't said much."

"What's there to say?" Chris said. "I mean, he had a good reason for leaving."

"But that doesn't discount the fact that he left. I know that we were all hurt about it."

"Yeah, we were, and now he's just…he's back. And is Trish even with him? I mean, how are we supposed to know? He's just back and everything is crazy and I don't know what's going on."

"Do you want me to go get Hunter to wear his outfit from last night?" Stephanie asked sweetly.

Chris started laughing. "Okay, that will never not be funny."

"I know, what a great pick-me-up," Stephanie said as Chris's walkie-talkie buzzed to life.

"Mr. Jericho."

"Yeah," Chris said, grabbing the walkie-talkie from its spot next to him on the couch. "What's going on?"

"You wanted to be notified when Mr. McMahon arrived and he just got here."

"Okay, great, thanks a lot," Chris said.

"You're welcome sir."

"And don't call me sir, it's Chris."

"Sorry," said the voice on the other end, and then nothing. "Okay, let's go see your dad, and try not to be disgusted, and then we can go to my station and we'll take care of the show together, how does that sound…boss."

Stephanie teared up unwillingly. "Chris, don't make me emotional tonight!"

"So when am I allowed to make you emotional? I didn't make you cry at our wedding, I'm not going to make you cry when Sawyer is born, what does a guy have to do to make his wife melt into a puddle on the floor?"

"Just put my shoes on and help me up," she told him. Chris grabbed her shoes and slipped them back onto her feet, swinging her legs onto the ground. Chris stood up and grasped her hand, helping her off the lumpy couch. "Thank you sweetie."

"It's what I live for."

They walked slowly down the corridor, which wasn't too bad an idea since Vince was walking just as slow. He was flanked on either side by Linda and Shane and he looked a bit wobbly on his feet. His eyes were definitely off and Stephanie stood there so they could walk to her. She wasn't going to be the one to go the extra mile.

"What's wrong with him?" Stephanie asked.

"Heavy sedation."

"Stephanie, is that you?" Vince asked, squinting his eyes.

"Yes Daddy."

"Why aren't you in school right now?"

"School Daddy? I don't understand. I don't have school."

"What nine year old doesn't have school?" Vince asked, looking at Linda. "Linda, why isn't Stephanie at school?"

"Daddy, I'm twenty-nine years old," Stephanie explained slowly. "I'm having a baby…"

"You're having a baby?" Vince said. "Linda, did we know she was having a baby?"

"We knew Vince," Linda assured him, knowing that he was completely out of it. "She's having the baby very soon."

"We knew about it? When did she tell us?"

"A while ago Vince. She's nine months pregnant."

"Six months pregnant!" Vince said immediately.

"Yeah Dad, I'm six months pregnant," she told him, then whispered to everyone else. "This could go on a while, let him believe what he wants. What exactly did they put him on?"

"A ton of junk," Shane said. "I think I need to get my hands on some of it. Sounds like it would make me forget a lot of horrible, horrible things."

Stephanie grimaced and shuddered. "Don't say anything else, please don't say anything else."

"I wasn't going to," Shane said. "So Chris, did you get us some time?"

"Of course, right in the middle of the show, peak time," Chris said, handing his brother-in-law a schedule. "Stephanie and I have to get to work though. Big night ahead of us, good luck you guys."

"Luck for what?" Vince asked. "I want Jello."

Stephanie turned away and laughed to herself. She was getting too much of a kick seeing her father act like a weirdo. She stopped for a moment as she felt a little bit gassy. Chris stopped with her and looked at her questioningly. She pointed to her stomach and groaned.

"I don't feel well, my feet hurt and I feel gassy."

"Oh that makes me hot," Chris kidded around with her, poking her playfully in the stomach. "Can I take you against the wall right now?"

"Don't make fun," she pouted. Then she squealed as Chris swept her up into his arms, holding her tightly. "What in the hell are you doing?"

"You said you don't feel well and we have work to do, so I guess I have no choice but to carry you where you need to go," Chris grinned at her, his teeth shining under the fluorescent lights. How she loved this man; he made the simplest things seem so romantic. That's why she never cried at the big things, because it was the little things that really made the difference. He made her feel beautiful and special and loved.

"You're sweet."

"Actually, if I don't get to work, my boss is going to bitch me out, and she's tough," Chris said as they walked down the hallway, ignoring the stares of the other people. Some of them thought she had gone into labor, but the fact that she was giggling pretty much told them that she wasn't in labor or anything. He dropped her off in her chair and then sat down. "Okay, that was my workout for today, my back is going to be killing me tonight."

"Chris…sweetie, love of my life, you like sex right? You like sex with me?"

"I love sex with you," he growled, his voice deep.

"Then you'll shut the hell up about the weight gain, got it?"

"Yeah, got it," Chris said quickly, grabbing his headphones. "But let it be known that I can't have sex with you after you have Sawyer, so I'm trying to get it all in now so that I'm not tempted to find someone else."

"Sweetie, you love your life don't you?"

Chris just laughed and handed her, her headphones. "Come on lady, you've got to have a hell of a send-off."

When WrestleMania began last night, Chris honestly didn't know who he disliked more, Cena or Hunter. He hated them both to be honest. But tonight, he had a pretty clear idea. After seeing Hunter in that ridiculous outfit, claiming himself to be a King or something, Chris knew that his hatred was abound. With Stephanie gone next week, he had no reason to even be nice to Hunter anymore, and as a result he wouldn't be.

As he watched Cena and Hunter duke it out verbally in the ring, he couldn't help but think that he was vastly better than either one of them. They both bugged him. He was actually glad to see Edge go out there and confront those jackasses. He was finding it increasingly difficult to watch the show from the sidelines and not be a part of it. It wasn't like he was injured or anything. He had honestly believed that he would be with Stephanie for the duration of her pregnancy, and he was, he just thought she would quit working too. But he had a lot of opportunities on his plate not to mention a baby on the way.

He hadn't quite let his mind wrap around the fact that he was going to be a father soon, hell, he could be a father by next week, he didn't know when Stephanie was going to give birth. All he knew was that he was going to have a lot of responsibility, much more responsibility than he was used to at the moment. He didn't really notice when the segment ended, but Stephanie did and she was on top of it. He was content to let her work tonight since he knew that she was going to miss it. Hunter wandered over to the table and smiled handsomely over at Stephanie.

"Did you need something?" Stephanie asked as they cut to a commercial.

"What did YOU think of my outfit last night?" Hunter asked. Both Edge and Cena had made fun of it and he had been receiving weird looks all day. But the only opinion that mattered to him was Stephanie's.

"Huh?" Stephanie said, pretending not to hear him, even though she had definitely heard him.

"I asked what you thought of my outfit last night. I thought it conveyed me being the king, you know. But what did you think?"

"Oh uh…oww," she said, grabbing her abdomen. "Oww, oh, oww, this doesn't feel good. Oh, not good at all. Ouch, I'm in pain."

"Steph," Chris exclaimed, alarmed by Stephanie's voice cutting through his headphones. "What's wrong?"

"Need to lie down," she told him, pretending to gasp for air. "Need to lie down now."

"Oh God, Steph, is something wrong?" Chris asked as he tried to feel around Stephanie's stomach. Stephanie winked at him and looked to Hunter surreptitiously. "Oh, yeah, we've got to get you to the locker room!"

"Yeah, carry me Chris, carry me," she said dramatically as she tried to hold in her laughter. Chris picked her up easily and rushed her out of the area. As soon as Hunter was out of earshot, she started laughing, "You can put me down now."

"What was THAT about?"

"He asked me what I thought of his look last night," Stephanie explained. "I couldn't tell him how ridiculous he looked. Man, being pregnant can sure be convenient sometimes. Oh, that was too much."

"But now what are you going to do? You can't exactly go right back out there since you were faking being sick."

She shrugged. "I'll go visit with my mom. I trust you to do a good job and I might as well get used to not being here. I mean, what else can I do right? I'll be fine, go work, do a good job for me. I'll be fine."

He gave her a kiss, a long, slow, deep kiss. "I love you."

"I love you too," she told him. "Now go! Before you miss any more of the show. Luckily my dad is totally sedated or he might get mad."

"Lucky me, bye baby."

Trish had a smile on her face. She didn't want to explain it to anyone, and she probably wouldn't have to, but she had a smile on her face. She wasn't really back together with Christian, not officially or anything, but he was back in her life and at this point, that was the best she could hope for. She was glad to finally have the answers to the questions that had plagued her for months and months.

"So tell me," Kurt said as he walked in step with her. "Are you still going to be moving in with me?"

"Yeah, definitely," Trish said. "Christian and I aren't really back together. We're just…talking, working things out."

"It's only a matter of time before you do really get back together."

"I'm moving in with you Kurt, you won't be able to escape me," she said, linking her arm through his. "So Ash is dealing with the trainer all night, physical therapy on the road, who knew?"

"Yeah, it's easier, and she likes being around here. Can't blame the girl for wanting to follow her boyfriend around."

"I hate when you get cocky Kurt," Trish said. "So how are you feeling about this whole Christian thing?"

"I don't know, so don't ask," he said good-naturedly. "I'm still processing. It's a big thing."

"It is a big thing," she nodded. "But I feel good about it. I know why he left and I know it had nothing to do with me. You know, I could probably go out there, find a guy and do whatever I want with him, and know that there's nothing totally wrong with me that would drive a guy away."

"And you were telling me that I was getting cocky, from one former champion to another, tone it down," Kurt joked.

"Sue me, I think this I my first good mood since…God, it's been so long I can't even remember. I'm just happy he's back, in whatever capacity he's back. Can I tell you a secret?"

"Of course."

"We slept together," she whispered. "Don't tell Stephanie because I'll tell her on my own terms, figure it'll give her a nice distraction from not working."

"Okay, so you slept with him and you're not back together?" Now Kurt was confused. Relationships were so weird to figure out sometimes. "How does that work out?"

"We're just…taking it slow."

"Sex is slow?"

"No, that was a mistake, but now we're taking it slow, but it was good. I mean, you know, you and Ashley are sleeping together."

Kurt cleared his throat and coughed. "Yeah…yeah…hey, I need to go talk to Chris."

"You do?"

"Yeah…I do," Kurt said. "Want to walk with me?"

"Sure, I've got nothing to do until my match later. I get to see that freak Mickie. I hope to God that I get my hands on her because I am going to stiff her one so bad she's going to wish she had never heard my name before."

"Damn, can I sleep with you?" Kurt asked. "You're so sexy when you're mad."

"No, you can't. I'm kind of reserved," she told him with a smile as they caught up to Chris. "Yo Jericho, where's your wife?"

"With her mom, go see her, she's bored."

"Will do," she saluted, turning on her heel to walk away.

"I need to talk to you about something," Kurt said nervously, rubbing the back of his neck.

Chris sucked at his teeth a little bit. "Go ahead, I'm not busy or anything."

"Oh, well if you're busy…"

"I'm not busy," Chris said. "I was joking. It's a commercial break right now, I've got a moment or two. But why come to me and not go to Stephanie? Usually you go to her for any advice, and you come to me when you want to bug someone."

"Because it's something that I don't think Stephanie is going to get."

"Guy stuff," Chris nodded knowingly. "So what's going on?"

"I haven't slept with Ashley yet," Kurt said bluntly.

"Interesting, interesting…any reason why? Or it just hasn't come up yet?"

"Hasn't come up yet. I mean, we haven't been seeing each other that long and then she broke her leg, so we were both focused on her surgery and it just hasn't come up, but I'm thinking it's going to come up soon…and well…guy thing."

"Yeah, I think Stephanie would be all romantic about this type of subject, you need a manly man to help you out," Chris joked.

"So…you're married, you've obviously dated…what's the longest you've dated a girl and not had sex with her?"

"Um, probably like five or six months," Chris thought back. "But I was on the road so much, kind of hard to keep a relationship going."

"You and Stephanie?"

"Four days."

"Wait, it was actually four days, you mean when you guys always joke that Stephanie put out really easily, Stephanie actually put out really easily?" Kurt asked incredulously. Stephanie had never seemed like the kind of person who put out just like that.

"No, she wasn't easy. She had a two month rule."

"And yet for you…"

"Four days," Chris said. "But it wasn't like we had just met. We had known each other for years, and had been friends for months. Things between us just got escalated quickly. You've seen Stephanie haven't you? I mean, would you turn that down if after four days she was wanting you?"

"Hell no."

"Exactly. I just did what any normal guy would do," Chris shrugged.

"_Then Kurt and I, we planted the hair we cut off around Edge's stuff and I swear to God, he thought he was losing his hair."_

_Stephanie laughed. "Oh man, that had to be classic. I've missed Kurt so much while I was away. Although, he did visit me a lot while I was gone."_

"_He never mentioned it," Chris said thoughtfully. "You'd think he'd mention something like that."_

"_He probably didn't know what kind of terms we left on," she explained. "In that case I'm not surprised he said nothing about it. He didn't know if you and I were friends or nothing, or enemies again."_

"_Yeah, I guess that's true," Chris said. "I think he'd be very surprised to see that we're actually on our second date in four days."_

"_It is a little bit of a surprise," Stephanie said. "I don't know, maybe its not, maybe he's been waiting for this forever."_

"_Maybe, I guess the whole enemy turned lovers thing, I don't know where people come up with this kind of stuff. I bet if people knew we had a couple of dates they'd be pretty surprised, but then not so surprised. They'd probably be planning our wedding or something, not realizing that we've only been out a couple of times."_

"_Uh huh."_

"_Yeah, I mean, you can't tell if you're going to get married after two dates. Except in your case, you just got drugged and then got married," he laughed._

_Stephanie sent him a look. "Watch it Jericho, this could end up being our second and our LAST date."_

"_I would hate for that to happen," Chris said as they stopped in front of Stephanie's hotel room door. "I really had fun tonight with you, I'm not surprised though, since we've been partners and for the most part that was fun."_

"_It was fun, different, but fun. I think everything just feels different with you because it almost feels forbidden you know," she said, wondering if he did know. "I mean, like, we were enemies, we hated each other, and yet here we are, right after our second date and I don't know, it's kind of like we're not supposed to be here."_

"_Yeah, I get what you're saying. And I'd really like to take you out again. I don't think you would turn me down."_

"_A little bold aren't we?"_

"_Only when I know the answers to the questions," he winked._

"_So you think you've got me all figured out after two dates, huh Jericho?"_

"_Nah, I've had you figured out for years," Chris told her, his voice getting husky as he leaned in closer to her. "What do you think I was doing when you and I were enemies, I was studying you for just this moment."_

"_You're quite the smooth talker," Stephanie said, watching him with baited breath. "Are you going to kiss me now?"_

"_Demanding."_

"_I'm a girl who knows what I want," she told him, taking the initiative and grabbing the back of his neck, pulling him closer to her. She pressed her lips hard against his mouth and he responded eagerly. It was still strange to kiss Stephanie and not have her push him away in disgust. It was an entirely different experience kissing her when she wanted to be kissed. He pushed her against the door and she pulled away._

"_Do you want to come in?" she asked breathlessly._

"_Yeah?"_

"_Yeah," she said, kissing him again. "Come on."_

"_You think I'm going to turn you down?" he asked incredulously. "You obviously don't know me."_

_She smiled seductively and grabbed her key card out of her purse, slipping it into the door and then opening it, her back still to the door as she gazed at Chris. He walked in after her, shutting the door behind him, hearing the click of the lock and immediately pouncing on Stephanie. She was almost unprepared by his passion, but she caught herself in time before she fell over. He led them blindly into the bedroom, and Stephanie was moving backwards until her legs hit the edge of the bed and she fell onto it. Chris came down after her, hovering over her before leaning down to kiss her._

_Suddenly, she started laughing and Chris pulled away, looking at her confusedly. She covered her mouth a moment. "I'm sorry, this is just weird. I mean, we're going to…I'm going to…with you."_

"_Oh," Chris said, pulling away from her. "Um, if you want me to go, I can." He jerked his thumb towards the door as if to signify that he could leave if she wanted him to leave. He didn't want to leave or anything, but he wasn't going to force himself on her._

"_Oh, no, that's not what I meant," she said, pulling him down so he was hovering over her again. "I just meant that I never thought I'd be in this position with you. And I've never put out on the second date, I've never put out on the third or fourth date either, I usually wait like two months before I sleep with a guy."_

"_Two months? So you want to wait two months then?" he asked. _

_She thought for a moment and then looked up at him. "I'm not the slut you thought I was Chris."_

"_I know that," he told her, running his hand down her cheek. "You're not."_

_She gazed at him for a moment. "Two months, two dates, it's all relative right?"_

"_Um, sure," he said._

"_I guess there's a first time for everything," she said as she pulled him down to her again._

_He pulled away for a moment. "Are you sure? I mean, we've only been seeing each other for four days. Before that we hadn't seen each other in months, maybe this is rushing things."_

"_Do you think we're rushing things?" she asked, gazing up at him. _

_He thought for a moment, looking down at Stephanie with a blank stare on his face. Hadn't this been the woman that he despised with his entire soul? Wasn't she the one that he had wanted to take and break in half? Why had things changed so suddenly, who was he to think that he could actually date Stephanie McMahon and not start to hate her along the way somewhere? Did he actually want to sleep with someone he had hated?_

_But then he looked down at her, and she was so pretty. And during their entire business relationship, she had been so…just incredibly pretty. It wasn't that she wasn't beautiful or breathtaking, but she didn't need those verbose, over-blown words; no, she was just so pretty. He recalled how sometimes he'd stare at her eyes when they argued and he couldn't imagine now seeing anyone else's eyes._

"_No…"_

"_Good, because I'm breaking a lot of my own rules for you," she teased playfully as she brought him closer and lavished him with a slow, deep kiss. "I may have to lose a lot of self-respect for you."_

"_Like you had a lot to begin with," Chris teased back._

"_Yeah, you're right, I must have lost a lot beforehand to be even thinking about sleeping with you," Stephanie countered._

_Chris liked this. He liked that they could tease each other even while making out on a hotel bed. He enjoyed that he could banter with her and argue with her. Stephanie liked it too. She and Chris had been at odds for so long that she relished the new direction their lives had taken. They had always been on a collision course towards the other, except she always thought it would culminate in them getting into an all out fistfight._

_He just laughed and went to kiss her again, moving slowly down her neck. If anything, he was going to take his time with Stephanie McMahon. This was like…this was huge. He had had his share of women, not too many, but more than a couple, but none of those women had been Stephanie freaking McMahon. He didn't know if he'd ever get this opportunity again so he was sure as hell going to savor every single moment._

"Besides, we had a meaningful relationship thereafter. We're married, we're having a baby. I don't think the fact that we had sex four days after our first date is a big deal."

"So like, I'm guessing you didn't exactly set the mood or anything."

"Nope, we just kind of let it happen. It's better if you just let it happen and don't like expect it to happen, and never plan it. Then it ends up being like this huge event."

"So…between you and me, and I won't tell anyone. Stephanie…really, how is she in bed?"

"Dude, that's my wife!" Chris said with anger. Kurt couldn't tell if he was joking or what, but he pressed on. Hell, he had always been a little curious as to how Stephanie was in bed. It was just a thing, nothing huge, just a kind of curiosity.

"So?"

"She's your best friend."

"So I can't even get a hint."

"She's good…very, very good."

"I figured as much. Lucky bastard."

"Ashley's not too shabby."

"Yeah, I know," Kurt said, then looked over Chris's shoulder. He rubbed his eyes a little bit, then looked over Chris's shoulder again. "I know that I had a good match last night, but I didn't think I got a concussion, but I see Vince McMahon eating an ice cream cone and that can't be right."

"Oh damn it," Chris said, turning to his monitor, seeing that Shawn was out there. "How the hell did Shawn get out there? I didn't clear for him to talk, damn it, that ass just took the spot in the show."

"Wait, so I AM seeing Vince McMahon eating an ice cream cone?" Kurt asked in shock.

"Yeah, you are, he's kind of out of it," Chris said, then barked into his headphones. "Who let Shawn out there? I didn't give him the time."

"He went out on his own Chris," his assistant said. "I guess he just figured he would get time."

"Well this wasn't planned, tell the production truck director to take over for a few minutes while I straighten this out," Chris said, taking off his headphones and walking over to Shane, who was holding Vince steady. "Shawn's out there, but go ahead and interrupt. He's just trying to get back at us for turning on him."

"Yeah," Shane said, looking at his dad. "Dad, do you want to go out there?"

"Go out where?" Vince asked, then saw Chris. "Jericho! I thought you were fired, didn't you get fired?"

"No Vince."

"You have pretty hair."

Chris gave him a strange look. "Thanks Vince, but I'm taken."

"You're taken? To who?" Vince asked.

Chris looked to Shane who threw his hands up in exasperation. "Your daughter. I'm married to your daughter."

"No you're not," Vince said, making a pfft sound with his mouth. "She's married to Triple H. He's…got a big nose."

"Yeah, yeah, okay Vince, yeah, um, do you want go out there with him like this?"

"It's starting to wear off," Shane said. "Watch him for a second, I'm gonna go out first. And uh…take the ice cream away if you can."

"Yeah, sure."

Shane went out there to confront Shawn and Vince swayed back and forth backstage, whistling to himself. When Vince's music hit, Chris led him up the stairs and grabbed the ice cream from him at the last minute. Maybe it was the music that woke him up, or the crowds, but he seemed a little less…deranged when he went out to speak to Shawn Michaels. Chris stood by the monitor and watched and Vince spoke, obviously still out of it. First he called Stephanie innocent and Lord knew that was a lie and then he said she was six months pregnant, just like Stephanie had told him earlier to get him off her back. He wouldn't be surprised if Vince still thought that Stephanie was nine years old.

Shane was not liking watching his father make a fool out of himself. He was even worse when he had meds in him than when he was acting like himself. How was it possible to be so embarrassed in such a short amount of time? Between the awkward praying, the event during the match he wished to forget (that everyone wished to forget), and now this, he was on the verge of declaring his father clinically insane and taking over the company with Stephanie.

Just when he thought it couldn't get worse, his father had to go and say something disgusting about where Shane had come from. Sometimes Shane wondered what it would be like to have a father who didn't continuously make lewd comments like having balls the size of grapefruits or making a kiss my ass club. Maybe it was awesome, but Shane would never know. He just knew that he would never subject his kids to the same thing he had gone through.

Then Vince made a match with…God. Chris was backstage and shook his head, rolling his eyes. Sometimes, he didn't know what to make of Vince. Sometimes he just wanted to tell Vince off, but then…and he had to sigh at this, Vince gave him the greatest gift he had ever received. That gift was sitting somewhere, probably grossed out and gagging, but she was still a gift to him. He would forever be thankful to Vince for giving him Stephanie, but sometimes he made it so hard.

"Chris, we needed you to decide on something," one of his employees said, coming up to him.

"What would that be?"

"Well, we have that new music for Triple H, and we have his old music and we didn't know which one to use for his match. He made no requests so it gets left up to you."

"Just do his old music," Chris said. "If he didn't request it, we won't do it."

"Okay, thanks. How are you liking the job so far?" she asked.

"It's interesting," he said. "I don't know how I'm really going to do until I really do it alone, you know?"

"Well, you have a lot of people working under you, so I wouldn't be too worried. It's overwhelming at first, just like any job."

"Yeah, you're…Natalie right? Works in production mainly?"

"Yeah, that's me," she answered with a smile. "And everyone knows who you are, no mystery there."

Stephanie rounded the corner and saw Chris talking with one of the production assistants, laughing about something. She was smiling up at him in a way that Stephanie wasn't too comfortable with. She placed her right hand on her stomach as she watched the two of them speaking to each other. Stephanie wasn't really a jealous person, but watching this petite little, blonde woman talking to her husband was unsettling. It hit her then…Chris was going to be all alone on the road.

It wasn't that she didn't trust him, but she was still worried nonetheless. Chris and her still slept together, but after she had the baby, she wouldn't be able to have sex for probably six weeks, maybe more. It wasn't even that she and Chris had a purely physical relationship and that their entire relationship hinged on sex, but Chris did like it, and she wouldn't be able to have it. Could he really restrain himself for six weeks? What if he couldn't? What if he still loved her, but couldn't control his urges and slept with someone else? Her father had slept around on her mother, it could certainly happen if she couldn't even have sex.

"Mmm, you are so pretty," Chris said as he wrapped his arms around Stephanie, which broke her from her reverie. "You are the sole reason that I can't hate your dad."

She laughed softly. "I am?"

"Absolutely. I mean, the guy is despicable, he's hurt you, he's hurt your mom, Shane, everyone, but you know what, he's your dad, he had you, and if he didn't have you, I wouldn't have you, and I would not have the great life that I do right now."

"Great life?"

"Yeah, I need to be a Disney movie or something." Stephanie smiled to herself. Who was she kidding? Chris loved her and he would never do anything to hurt her. They would be perfect, she just knew they would.

Later that evening, Trish was lying on top of her hotel room bed, her head on Christian's stomach. She was smiling; she just couldn't stop smiling. Her right hand was above her head and Christian was holding onto it, playing mindlessly with her fingers. She heard him sigh happily and she turned her head a little to look at him.

"Did you see Mickie tonight? She's so creepy. I'm surprised that she didn't try to seduce you."

"No, I think she just wants you for herself."

"Yeah, like that would happen, gross," Trish said. "I can't believe what she did. I just cannot comprehend what has to go through someone's mind to turn into creepy, stalker-person."

"I don't know, I really wish I had just told you what was going on," Christian said remorsefully. He looked down. "I just didn't want to risk it."

"Your heart was in the right place," Trish responded.

"I can't believe Stephanie and Chris are having a baby," Christian said, still in disbelief. "How did that happen?"

"Well, when a man loves a woman and they want to get intimate," she joked. "It was an accident, plain and simple. But they want him."

"It's crazy the things that have changed. So let's see if I have it all…Shane is married with a son and a baby on the way?"

"Yeah."

"Chris and Stephanie are having a son named Sawyer, who's due at the end of the month, and Chris is taking over Stephanie's job?"

"Uh huh."

"Kurt is dating Ashley?"

"Yeah."

"You guys are all friends with Edge again?"

"That's right."

"Man, what did you guys do while I was gone, I wasn't even gone that long and all of that happened?"

"Hey, it's not our faults that you missed out."

"A baby, Stephanie is having a baby."

"You really are shocked about that."

"I just didn't expect it."

"He's cute, I've seen all the ultrasounds and sonogram pictures. He's cute. He kicks really hard too."

"I missed so much."

"Yeah, but you're back now."

"Yeah, because I can't stay away from you Trishy."

"I know the feeling Chrissy, but you're back."

"I'm back."


	83. Congrats to Shane, April 10, 2006

Chris blew the air out of his mouth slowly as he sat at the large oak wood desk in his office. He looked around, just taking in his office. His boring, boring office with the boring desk, and the boring chair, and the boring papers that needed to be filled out, and the boring fichus in the corner, and the boring walls and the boring door. This office was completely boring, so very, very boring.

Okay, so Chris missed his wife.

Things just seemed more boring without Stephanie around. It was amazing how she could totally just light up a room. How many people could walk into a room and completely command your attention? Stephanie was totally unique in that respect. She was just so commanding and defiant in everything that she did. She demanded your attention, and he loved that about her. In fact, he loved everything about her.

There was not one thing he didn't love about Stephanie. Even her singing voice, which sounded like a bunch of cats dying, he had to love that she at least tried to sing, if badly. But then that was a little hypocritical of him because he had made fun of her singing voice in the past. It was funny to him that he should like things about her that he used to hate. It was funny that she was his wife now and even funnier that she was having his child.

"Man, you look bored."

Chris looked up and saw Edge standing before him. "What's up man?"

"I was looking to get a little bit of time tonight," Edge explained. Lita was next to him, as usual, and as usual, she wasn't saying much of anything, just clinging to his side. "I mean, it's for a good cause, I want to call out Cena and Triple H, and I know neither one of them is on your good side."

"True," Chris said. "I guess it would be cool if you had the top of the show. I can just switch things around a little bit. I usually leave some open space in case of something going down that I didn't plan for."

"Wow, really, you can just do that?" Edge asked.

"Yeah, I can just do that."

"You don't have to like…clear it or anything?"

"Well, I can clear it with myself," Chris said, then frowned. "Hey Chris, can I ask you something? 'Sure Chris, what is it?' Well, I was just wondering if it would be okay to schedule Edge some face time at the beginning of the show, what do you think? 'I say go for it—'"

"Okay, I get it, you don't have to act all sarcastic on me, that's my job," Edge said. "So I'm thinking that you have a lot more important things to do?"

"Yeah, I'm so busy right now," Chris said sarcastically, gesturing around to the nothing that was going on around him. "Does it look like I'm busy?"

"No…"

"Yeah, cause I'm not busy. I mean, yeah, I should get the schedule updated, and I will do that," Chris said, "Is this all you needed?"

"Yeah, I think so."

"Well okay then, I better get back to the enormous amounts of work that I have to do, the piles and piles of work. The just enormous amounts!"

"What's your problem?" Edge asked.

"I miss my wife," Chris said, slamming his forehead down on the table. "I saw her this morning, but I miss my wife. I'm pathetic."

"You are," Edge laughed and Chris brought his head up, glaring at the other man. "What? You just said you saw her this morning and you're flying back home, what, tomorrow?"

"Yeah…"

"That's like a day. You can't be without her for a day? Jericho, there's whipped and then there's WHIPPED…don't be the latter," Edge told him. "I bet you that Stephanie isn't missing you."

"She's pregnant with our child," Chris said. "I hate being away from them."

"It's a day!" Edge said.

"Stephanie could go into labor at any moment you know? She could go into labor right this second," he said. "We could be parents and I could miss that, do you know how horrible that is."

"If Steph goes into labor, I hardly think that you won't make it there on time. I mean, don't you have Vince's private jet on call or something?"

"Yeah, I have the special baby ring," Chris said, pointing towards his cell phone. Stephanie knows to only call me from her office phone if she goes into labor. I'm officially on baby watch. Oh my God, I'm on baby watch!"

"Obviously you need to calm down," Edge said. "The chances of her going into labor tonight are very slim, and plus, wouldn't Vince be pissed if you were to screw up the show that he's on? Do you really want to get on his bad side?"

"What's he going to do? Fire me?" Chris said, rolling his eyes. "I'd like to see him try and do that."

"Like to see me do what Chris?" came a voice from the open doorway. Chris cursed under his breath and gave a pointed look to Edge, who shrugged his sorry for not closing the door behind him.

"Fire me Vince, I'd like to see you try and fire me," Chris told his father-in-law. It wasn't like Chris had anything to be afraid of when it came to Vince. Chris had fought too many battles to be scared of Vince McMahon. It also helped that he was married to Vince's daughter of course, but that helped in a lot of different areas.

"You think that just because you're my son-in-law I wouldn't fire you?" Vince said, nodding his head slowly as if he were thinking. "Well, I COULD fire you if I so desired, but I don't think that my family would approve of that, and considering the fact they'd side with you over me, I'm going to have to say that no, I wouldn't fire you."

"Told you," Chris said, turning to Edge. "So is that really all you needed or are you going to keep bothering me?"

"I was going to keep bothering you, but it looks like the big boss has something to say to you," Edge said. "See ya Chris, tell Steph I said hey, and nice seeing you Vince."

"So Vince, what can I do ya for?" Chris asked as he sat in his desk, leaning back a little bit as he regarded his wife's father.

"I have this for you," Vince said, handing him a videotape.

"Vince, a present, for me? This is so sudden," Chris gushed. "I can't believe you would go through all that trouble."

"You're such a smartass, you know that right?"

"Your daughter loves that about me," Chris answered with an air of superiority.

"Speaking of my daughter, how is she?" Vince asked.

"She's huge, but beautiful," Chris said, thinking about the things that he and Stephanie were still doing. He just thought she was incredibly beautiful and it didn't matter if she was pregnant, not pregnant, she was just beautiful anyways. He made sure to tell her though, because he knew that some women were very sensitive about their appearance. Not his Stephanie though, she was such a champion.

"Good, and Sawyer?"

"Kicking up a storm in there. Stephanie is so ready to have him," Chris chuckled. "So long as it doesn't happen while I'm gone, I think I'd like to meet him too."

"And you'll be sure to call us as soon as she goes in labor right? Because I have my pilot on stand-by and I've informed him to be on call when we need him."

"Yeah, we'll call."

"What about Ted and Loretta, are they going to be there too?"

"Yeah, if Sawyer doesn't come before his due, my parents are flying down and they'll probably stay at a hotel since Kurt and Trish are kind of occupying the other rooms."

"Sounds like a plan," Vince said, "Well, I just needed to--"

Chris's cell phone rang and he looked at it, seeing his home phone number on it. "Sorry Vince, its Steph…or Kurt, I kind of need to take this."

"Of course."

"Hello?" Chris asked into his phone.

"What're you doing?"

"Nice greeting baby," Chris said, rolling his eyes at Stephanie not even saying hello to him.

"Well sorry," Stephanie said. "Hello dear husband of mine, well?"

"What do you want?"

"I just wanted to know what you're doing."

"I'm chatting with someone."

"You're WHAT?" Stephanie exclaimed. "You're on the job, you can't just chatting with someone. Once the show starts, then yeah, chat it up, but you're on the job right now Chris, how could you do this!"

"It's your dad."

"Oh," Stephanie said, instantly quieting down. "Well why didn't you say so?"

"Because you interrupted me."

"Well, okay then, what did he want?"

"Vince, Stephanie wants to know what you want."

"I needed you to take this to production and air it tonight, slate it for some time around ten, I want it right in the middle of the show. Oh, and I needed to inform you of a main even that I wanted to have tonight."

"I already made a main event Vince," Chris said. "It's going to be Edge versus Cena."

"Yeah, that's a good idea, but I want to add Hunter into that. Make it…hell, I'm feeling a little bit kicky tonight," Chris winced at that word because with Vince, you never knew what it meant. "Make it Cena and Hunter versus Edge in a handicap match. I'll call Hunter myself and inform him."

"Sweetie, tell my dad that Hunter is NOT my husband anymore and to stop acting like he is," Stephanie said across the line.

"Vince, Stephanie said that Hunter isn't her husband anymore and to stop acting like he is."

"I'm just doing what you told me!" Vince protested.

"He's taking it too far."

"Too far, she says, that's how you're taking it."

"Oh don't be silly Princess."

"Are you talking to me or her?" Chris asked, brow furrowed.

"Obviously her," Vince answered. "Look, just get this to production and make the match happen, it's not that difficult adding one person to a match."

"Then your will be done," Chris said, shooing Vince out of the office. "Vinnie, come on, my wife is on the phone, give me a second here."

"Okay, I'm leaving though. Shane is flying back home in a couple of hours and I want to see my new grandchild, so I'm flying back tonight. Are you going to be okay here by yourself?"

"I'll be fine Vince, I swear, the show will be great," Chris told him. "Tell Shane and Marissa congratulations again. Stephanie and I called them over the weekend, but it never hurts to say it."

"You'll be right there soon."

"I know," Chris said, pointing to the phone.

"Oh, sorry, yes, of course, well, do a good job tonight…or I will fire you."

Trish giggled as she held Christian's hand in their locker room. She had managed to sneak him in undetected, and now he was actually here with her. They hadn't seen each other in the past week, he had TNA commitments and she had other things as well. Plus, they were taking things very slow, and that meant that they shouldn't have to see each other every single day. They did talk a lot though, about things, about them, about life in general. Trish felt like she was in the giddy, beginning phase of a relationship again, except she had a familiarity with Christian.

"I'm really glad that you're here," Trish said softly as she turned to look up at Christian. "I know it's not completely the same, but I like that you're here, I like that I can talk to you face-to-face."

"I like it too," Christian told her. "You have no idea how much I like it."

"Chrissy, I…you just have no idea how you being here makes me feel. I just…I feel like…I can do anything. Maybe I should go challenge Cena for the WWE Title," she giggled. "I honestly feel like I could win it, then we can both be champions of the world."

"That sounds like a wonderful idea," he told her.

"You know what else sounds wonderful and is probably a lot more feasible?" she told him.

"What would that be?"

"Revenge on that bitch Mickie James," Trish said. "Just to give her a little bit of her own medicine, you know? She deserves it. She threatened your mother and Grandma Edna, and then she kidnapped Ashley and all of this crap with looking like me…I don't know what to do though."

"Easy, you dress up like her," Christian said.

"What?" Trish asked.

"Dress like her," Christian said. "She wants to turn into you, you turn into her and do the same thing that she's been doing to you. Tit for tat."

"Chrissy, you're a genius," Trish said, lunging at him and giving him a deep kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck as she straddled him lewdly on the couch. She pulled away blushing, her cheeks a deep red. "I'm sorry, I don't know if that's okay with our current arrangement."

"I'm not gonna argue," Christian told her. "So…I've been avoiding it for a week, but I just have to ask…they hate me don't they?"

"They don't hate you," she said, rubbing his chin with her thumb a little bit. "They're…apprehensive, but they don't know that it wasn't your idea to instigate our break-up. They're just wary because you were gone for so long and they saw me at my lowest point, but they'll come around."

"I still can't believe she's pregnant!"

"You are STILL on that," Trish laughed. "Why is it so unbelievable that Stephanie would have a baby?"

"She didn't want kids for a while."

"You think that she was going to get pregnant and then have an abortion?" Trish asked incredulously. "I didn't find out until she was sixteen weeks along, because they didn't want to include anyone in case she miscarried, but I'd imagine she was a little freaked when she found out."

"It's just weird how much things have changed around here. I guess that's why I'm so shocked about Stephanie and Chris, because the whole thing is just so unexpected. I missed so much…"

"Oh Chrissy, you didn't miss that much," Trish said. "You'll get used to the way things are now…now let's stop talking about this. Let's talk about how I'm going to look like Mickie. I don't have a thing to wear."

"I think I may know how to remedy that…"

There was a knock on the door and Trish looked at Christian with wide eyes. She stumbled to get off of him, almost toppling over onto the coffee table in front of her before Christian caught her in his arms. She looked at him thankfully and pushed him towards the bathroom. He went inside, closing it until only a crack was visible. He was going to peek through that crack. Trish went to the door and opened it to see Hunter on the other side with a gift wrapped box in his hand. She looked to the box suspiciously. It was in blue gift wrap with little ducks on them, and a big blue bow on top of it.

"Hello," Trish said curtly. "What are you doing here?"

"You live with Stephanie."

"I do. What's that got to do with anything?" she asked, though she pretty much knew what that was about.

"I got something for her…for her son, and I was wondering if you could possibly give to her."

"No, I don't think so," Trish told him bluntly. "I'm not your messenger Hunter. Either you give it to her directly, or you give it to Chris. I'm not this child's mother or father, so don't give to me. If you got something for Sawyer, then you should give it to his parents."

"Yeah, like that's going to happen. Chris would never accept something from me."

"You never know if you don't try," she snapped at him. "I don't know who you think that I am Hunter. Do you honestly think that I'm the same girl that wanted to get Stephanie jealous by having you teach me holds? I'm not that person. Give it to Chris or nothing else."

"Fine," Hunter said, turning around. "Whatever."

Trish closed the door. "You know, half the time I don't know what goes on in his head. Is he genuinely trying to be Stephanie's friend or is he secretly trying to get her away from Chris? I just can't figure him out."

"What makes you think he's being disingenuous?" Christian asked as he emerged from the bathroom.

"He never, ever mentions Chris," Trish answered. "It's like he doesn't exist to Hunter. Part of me thinks that Hunter honestly believes that he and Stephanie are still married and that's pregnant with their child. But Hunter hates discussing Chris and when he refers to Sawyer, he always says Stephanie's baby, like Sawyer isn't going to be Chris's baby."

"I see," Christian said. "Well, maybe he's just in denial about the whole thing. I mean, I was kind of in denial when I left you. I couldn't stop thinking about you, I couldn't escape you…"

"I guess denial is just the easiest way to cope," Trish shrugged. "So how to get Mickie's clothes…"

Chris was at his station as the show was beginning. Edge was already on his way out there and things were running smoothly so far. He knew that Stephanie was probably on the edge of her seat back home, commenting on every little thing. He smiled at the thought. You could take her out of the workplace, but she was always going to be here in spirit. He saw Cena go out there, but he didn't really care about that. Hunter came out too, and he expected him to head on out to the ring and was about to tell the crew to hit Hunter's music when Hunter came over with a package. He dropped it in front of Chris.

"Give this to Stephanie for me," Hunter demanded.

"What is it?"

"It's something for the baby," Hunter said shortly.

"You got something for my son?" Chris asked. "What did you get?"

"It's for Stephanie, can you just give to her."

"Why can't I know what it is?" Chris asked. "It's my son too."

"Just give to her, please," Hunter said, and Chris could tell that saying that word was killing Hunter slowly, and Chris reveled in it. He loved to see Hunter squirm. "Look, I have to get out there, so if you could just give it to her, I mean, that'd be great."

"Fine," Chris told him. "I'll give it to her."

"Thank you," Hunter said. "It's a blanket, by the way. I saw it, thought it was cute and I got it, end of story."

"If I find a Triple H blanket in here…"

"Cute Jericho, real cute," Hunter said, and Chris knew he was rolling his eyes behind those sunglasses of his.

"Just saying…" Chris said. "Thanks, on Stephanie's behalf of course, since it is HER baby, not mine at all."

Hunter was about to reply with some smart-ass remark when Chris told the production to cue up his music. Hunter sent Chris a slightly dirty look, like he wasn't ready to go out there or something and Chris just shrugged carelessly. Chris laughed to himself as Hunter went out there. Now he knew why Stephanie had so much fun here. He could get used to getting his little digs in at Hunter.

"Wow, I can't believe he actually did come to you," Trish said as she spied the box on top of the table as she went up to Chris.

"What are you talking about Trish?" Chris asked as he slipped off his headphones after having just slipped them on.

"Well, Hunter came to me with that gift first and asked me to give it to Stephanie. I told him to give it to you because I wasn't his personal messenger. I just didn't think he'd actually come to you, all things considering."

"It's a blanket supposedly," Chris said, looking at the offending item. "I'll open it later when I can call Steph and tell her."

"Okay, so that aside, I need to ask you a favor, a big favor," Trish said, raising her eyebrow.

"If this has anything to do with a certain someone, I don't know how I feel about getting involved there."

"It doesn't," Trish said, coming over and sitting next to Chris. She leaned her cheek on her hand and looked at him. "You love me right?"

Chris nodded. "Yeah, I love you."

"Okay, so if I were to ask you to add something to the show, would you hate me for it? Would you absolutely hate me?"

"Depends on what it is, I could probably fit in something if it's short. I don't know about something in the ring though, that's going to be harder. I can't do a match though. That's out of the question."

"Not a match," she told him. "Okay, I need you to get Mickie interviewed."

"Why?" Chris asked immediately.

"Because it has to do with a little plan that a certain guy of mine thought up and it's brilliant. Don't you think I deserve revenge…I mean, if somehow Hunter threatened Stephanie and got her to leave you with no explanation and you found out, don't tell me you wouldn't want revenge."

"Revenge?" Chris asked. "Uh uh, I would kill him." Chris saw Hunter walking away after his in-ring confrontation. Luckily for Hunter, Chris didn't have his headphones on and couldn't hear that Hunter had called Vince "old man," of course, it could've been meant in the context that Vince was old, but when someone refers to someone as "the old man," it comes off like a father. If Chris had heard that, he'd be inclined to use a little of the thinking he was using now in regards to Hunter.

"Good, you see my point," Trish said. "I need you to get her interviewed because I need to get into her locker room, well, Christian needs to get in there, and grab some of her things because I need to do something tonight. Set something in motion."

"You got it beautiful," Chris told her, grabbing his walkie-talkie. "Jamie?"

"Yeah Chris."

"I need you to go down to production for me and let them know that as soon as this match with Conway and RVD ends we're going to need Maria to interview Mickie James, have someone alert the two of them that they have an interview."

"About what Chris? You know that Maria needs directions, lots and lots of directions."

Chris looked to Trish, who shrugged. Chris thought a second. "Just have her ask how it feels to be the champion."

"Okay, will do Chris, is that all you needed?"

"For now, thanks for taking care of that Jamie."

"Not a problem."

"Okay, so that's taken care of," Chris told Trish, who threw herself into his arms. But unlike with Christian, this was strictly a hug. "Thanks so much Chris. You won't regret this. In fact, I think you're going to get a big kick out of it."

"I look forward to whatever you're going to do."

"Okay, I need to go," Trish said, hopping out of the chair and bounding out of the area. She grabbed her cell phone from her pocket and dialed Christian's number, having memorized it over the past week. She waited to hear it being picked up and then she said. "Okay, it's a go."

Christian, who was pretty decked out in disguise (okay, so it was just sunglasses and a baseball cap) was waiting around the corner from Mickie's locker room. He saw a production assistant inform her that she was going to be interviewed in a couple minutes and she needed to get to the interview area ASAP. She nodded brightly and Christian scowled at the woman who had almost made him lose the woman of his dreams. She grabbed her title belt and then was gone.

Now was Christian's time to act. He quickly went to the locker room, pushing the door open and peeking his head inside to make sure that there wasn't anyone in there. Assured that the space was empty, he went inside and looked around. Mickie's luggage was in the corner, and he went over to it, unzipping the top and rooting through tons of Trish-like clothes to the very bottom. There he found clothes that Mickie used to wear, before she decided to become Trish Stratus. He grabbed as many things as he could find and then turned around to go. He took one last look around, making sure nothing was out of place before leaving. He rounded the corner and took out his cell phone, dialing Trish.

"It's done," he said when she picked up.

Trish nodded, "Good."

She went back to watching Mickie from the shadows. She was doing her interview, trying to look as much like she did as possible. She snapped at Maria, and Trish could clearly see her doing the same thing to Christian, claiming that she wasn't crazy. If Mickie wasn't crazy, then Trish wasn't the former Women's Champion. It sickened her to see the kind of things that Mickie was pulling. But maybe Mickie would have a change of heart when Trish saw what she was going to do to her. It would only be the same thing that Mickie had done to her recently.

Trish watched the interview end and she sneered in Mickie's direction, even though she couldn't see it. She walked over to the hair stylist's table and looked for Janice, the hair stylist. She waited a moment before Janet came over. "Hey Trish, did you need your hair done?"

"No, I was wondering if you had any wigs, I know that you do keep some around, you know, for skits and things."

"Yeah, we have any color under the sun. Why, are you looking for some new look or something?"

"Nah, I just needed to get a brown one for something," Trish said.

"Brown, but your hair is so beautiful," Janet told her.

"Thanks, but this is important."

"Okay, well here's what we have," she said, opening a trunk filled with wigs. Trish looked through a little bit and picked out the one she thought looked like Mickie's old hair. "This is just what I need, thanks."

"No problem, just return it when you're done."

"Of course, thanks Janet."

Trish went back to her own locker room, and saw Christian waiting for her. She giggled and grabbed a hair tie to pull her hair up. She slipped the wig on her head and it was like she was transported back a number of years. She had been a brunette once upon a time and it was weird to see her look like that again. Christian laughed as he saw her in the wig, and she scrunched up her nose.

"So I got you some stuff, I hope it fits," Christian said, gesturing towards the clothes on the couch.

"I'll put those on later," she informed him. "How do you like me as a brunette?"

There weren't many things in life that Shane found abhorrent. But earlier that day, the way his dad had been acting was pretty abhorrent. Shane was not religious by any means, but at least he knew how to act in a church. Sometimes he was surprised at the lengths that Stephanie would go to get Vince to notice her, but he was no better really. He wanted Vince's attentions too. He wanted to get on his father's good side, and even as disgusted as he was of his father's behavior, he went along with it because he just wanted his father to notice him and appreciate him.

Chris watched the video with as much of a neutral position as he could muster. He was a religious man and to see Vince acting so crass and unintelligent sat in his craw a tiny bit. Although if he were going to admit anything, it was that his little impression of Hunter was funny. Maybe Vince DID understand that Hunter was not Stephanie's significant other anymore. Shane was rightly appalled at his father's behavior, and Chris knew that this was killing Shane slowly inside.

Stephanie knew too as she sat there and watched her brother and father. Sometimes she didn't know what ran through her father's head. She wanted to declare him crazy, but there was such a thin line between crazy and genius and she never knew what side of the line he fell on. She hoped that Chris wasn't getting offended by this. How could he not be though? She could tell that Shane was not having fun and she didn't blame him. How far had she gone to make her father proud?

Stephanie felt compelled to call Chris and apologize…again. She picked up the phone when she felt Sawyer kick her and she winced. "Sawyer, should I call Daddy? Or should I just wait for him to come home tomorrow?"

She decided to call him anyways, check up on him. The show was going remarkably well and she was proud that her husband was behind that. But then maybe he was busy…no, she wouldn't call him right now. She had to show a little bit of restraint. She trusted him, she repeated to herself. She knew he'd do a good job. He was doing a great job even. Yes, a great job…

Meanwhile, Trish was putting on Mickie's clothes and the transformation was almost complete. She looked ridiculous, but in a good way. Christian laughed at the way she looked and she didn't a few of Mickie's little moves to see if she looked okay. She tried to look as fake as possible, since that seemed to be Mickie's trademark.

"Oh my God, you're Christian, you're Trish's boyfriend, let's see if I can drive you away," Trish said, bouncing around. "I'm not crazy, I'm just…enthusiastic!"

"Okay, stop, you're scaring me," Christian said, hugging Trish to him. "Okay, now I'm getting weird, creepy vibes."

"Hey Trish, I needed to talk to…" Chris's voice trailed off as he walked into the room. "Have I walked into another dimension?"

"No," Trish told him. "You're just looking at the reason why I needed Mickie to have an interview. I'm going to treat Mickie just the way she's been treating me. Isn't that what the Bible says?"

"Ugh, don't talk to me about religion right now," Chris said, thinking about what Vince had been doing earlier.

"Okay, that's a weird response," Trish said. "So what did you need to say?"

"Well, I was going to let you know that Mickie's match is coming up if you want to go out there….which I'm guessing is the case."

"It is, thank you so much," Trish said, bouncing around and smiling all wide like Mickie did. Trish bounced out of the room, leaving Chris and Christian alone for the first time since…God, last November.

"Hi," Chris said, looking down at the ground.

"Hey."

"So World Champion, that's good, really good."

"So…management…and a father, crazy."

"Yeah, sort of, I've had time to get used to it," Chris said, looking anywhere but at Christian.

"You know, WE didn't break up," Christian joked.

Chris actually laughed. "Okay, yeah, we're acting a little like a broken-up couple. Look man, I just don't know how to talk to you right now. Everything that happened is still really deep in there. I mean, Trish loves you, it's easier for her."

"You don't love me Chris," Christian pouted.

Chris scoffed. "You know what I mean. You didn't have to see her."

"How was she?"

"Devastated," Chris said bluntly, laying it out there. Christian needed to understand why Chris was still upset with him. "I still remember having to tell her to eat, like she forgot to eat. Like it had become such little concern to her. She cried all the time, never let up. She barely left her room. She couldn't go back and get her clothes, Kurt and I had to do that. I hated it, plain and simple. And then Stephanie was pregnant and she was upset at seeing Trish, which caused her a lot of undue stress and it was just not a fun thing."

"I understand, I just want to try and be friends again."

"We'll always be friends," Chris said, holding his hand out for Christian to shake. "I just need to forgive you."

"I get it," Christian said, shaking his hand.

Trish played the part of Mickie James to a tee. She was perfect in her role, and she was freaking Mickie the hell out, which was just her intention. She even kissed her for good measure and wondered if Christian thought that was gross or funny. It was both. But she had to do what had to be done. Mickie had tried to take everything away from Trish and she wasn't going to sit back and take that. No, she definitely wasn't going to take that.

This was only the beginning though. Trish had so much more planned for Mickie James, and by the time that Trish was done with her, Mickie James was going to wish that she had never even met Trish Stratus. It was time to pay the piper (not Rowdy Roddy).

"Sweetie, I'm sorry for my dad," Stephanie said over the phone after the show was over. She was laying in her bed and Chris was laying in his hotel room bed. "Again."

"Steph, he's your dad, not you, I don't really care. I actually thought the Hunter thing was funny."

"That was funny," Stephanie agreed.

"So um…speaking of the man, Hunter gave YOU a gift for YOUR son," Chris told her, hoping she would get what he was saying.

"Oh, he still refuses to acknowledge that you're the father of my baby?"

"It would seem so," Chris said. "He said it was a blanket. I better not see his face on it."

"We don't want Sawyer to have nightmares," Stephanie joked. "Open it."

"But it's for you, not for me."

"Oh come on, you think I care if I got a present from him? Hey, if it's really ugly, we'll wrap it up and give it to Shane and Marissa," Stephanie said with a giggle. "Which also reminds me, we really need to go see them."

"Not until after you have Sawyer," Chris said sternly.

Stephanie grunted. "Yes master, anything else master?"

"I'm just thinking about your safety you bitch."

"I just wanna see Shane-O's baby," Stephanie said. "I can't believe Shane has a baby, weird, times, they are a-changing. So come on, open the present!"

"I don't know if I should. Maybe it's a set-up, maybe he implanted explosives in it because he knew that I was going to open it and you'll just hear a big blast and I'll be gone and he can take you for himself."

"Do you hear ticking?"

"No."

"Then it's not explosives," she told him. "Open it!"

"Okay, so bossy," Chris muttered.

"I heard that, and you can't argue with me for the next two months," Stephanie informed him, "because one, I am so pregnant it's not even funny, two, I'm not at work, and three, because you still want sex with me Jericho."

"Okay Princess," he responded derisively. "I'm opening it."

He tore open the paper and lifted the top of the box off. It was indeed a blanket, and no, it didn't have Hunter's likeness on it (thank God, his face would be so scarring to a baby…and anyone else). It was actually kind of cute, which set off a weird dilemma in Chris's head. Could he really use something Hunter of all people gave them? He didn't know.

"What is it?" Stephanie asked anxiously. "Tell me. Is it ugly?"

"Honestly, no," Chris said, taking it out of the box and looking at it. "It has teddy bears and gumdrops on it."

Stephanie gasped. "Repeat that."

"Teddy bears and gumdrops."

"Oh my God," he heard her whisper.

"Steph, what's wrong?"

"I can't believe he remembered…"

Chris was confused. "Remembered what?"

"When I was fake pregnant," Stephanie explained. "He was talking about all the things we needed to buy, and we were discussing themes and all of that. I was bored out of my mind. I knew there was no baby, I just wanted to get out of the conversation so I said that the ideal theme would be teddy bears and gumdrops, but I said it all sarcastically, but he was too excited by the prospect of a baby to even care. And now he got this blanket…teddy bears and gumdrops…"

Chris dropped the blanket onto the bed. "What the hell is he trying to pull!"

"I don't know," Stephanie said. "I honestly don't know."

"That guy has some nerve…"

"Chris, just let it go," Stephanie told him. "It's not a big deal, I just said it in sarcasm."

"No Steph, I don't know, this seems over the line."

"Maybe it is, maybe it isn't, but we'll figure it out…together…the three of us."


	84. Vince Hates on H, April 17, 2006

"_I'm so sorry Stephanie."_

"_What? What are you sorry about?" Stephanie asked, looking around confused. "Where's Sawyer?"_

"_Stephanie, we did everything we could. We just couldn't save him, we're very sorry. I'm so very sorry."_

"_No! No, where's my baby? Where's Sawyer? Where is he? I want to see him!"_

"_Stephanie, he passed away, we couldn't save him, we tried, but we couldn't."_

"_NO!"_

Stephanie woke up with a start, she looked around, her hair pasted to her forehead from sweating profusely. Chris's t-shirt that she had been wearing was clinging to her body. She was in a semi-upright position since she had a lot of trouble getting comfortable nowadays. Chris was asleep next to her, laying on his stomach, his arms underneath his head. He looked so peaceful lying there.

She sighed deeply as she thought about her horrible nightmare that she had just woken up from. She knew that her pregnancy book said that in the last few weeks dreams could become extra vivid, and this one was. Tears unwillingly welled up in her eyes as she thought back to what she had been dreaming about. Sawyer had been gone, he hadn't survived and she sobbed quietly into her hands at the horrible images that played in her mind.

Chris's groggy voice pierced her thoughts, "Steph?"

"Yeah?" she asked, trying to cover up the fact that she had been crying.

Chris reached over and turned on the lamp on the night table. He turned to Stephanie and saw that her cheeks were flushed from crying and there were still little trails of tears cascading down her face. He sat up and looked at her critically. He reached his hand up to her face and intercepted one of her tears, wiping it free from her face.

"What's wrong? Why are you crying?" he asked softly.

"I just, I had a horrible nightmare," she told him, quietly sniffling as she thought back to her dream. "It was horrible Chris!"

"Tell me about it," Chris prompted, pulling her closer to him. She snuggled into his side.

"He was gone and there was nothing I could do about it," Stephanie said, breaking into tears again. "He was gone, our baby was gone!"

"Gone how?" he asked, trying to understand.

"He was…gone…"

He understood what she was trying to say immediately. "Oh baby, come here, you're okay. Everything is going to be okay, I promise."

She sat up and she stared down at her stomach. "I can't feel him Chris, I can't feel him moving or anything, why isn't he moving? He's usually moving."

"Steph, baby, calm down okay, you could make yourself go into labor," Chris told her. "We're on baby watch remember? You could burst at any moment, so why don't we just lie down and you can lay on me if it makes you more comfortable, but let's try to go to sleep."

"No, Chris, he hasn't moved since I woke up. Usually if I wake up, he'll move around. Why isn't he moving around?" she asked frantically. "Why isn't he kicking!"

"He may be asleep baby," Chris answered rationally. "He has to sleep too you know."

"But he usually wakes up," she responded. "Why isn't he up? I've been up, he usually gets up with me, why isn't he moving around? Chris, I'm scared. I'm scared for my baby!"

"Shh," Chris said, kissing her temple and holding her close to him. "Baby, nothing is wrong, was Sawyer kicking yesterday?"

"Yeah…"

"Then he's probably tired and he's probably asleep."

"But what if that dream was a premonition? What if it's going to happen? What if he dies Chris? I don't want to lose him, he's my baby!"

"I don't want to lose him either, but we're not going to," Chris told her. "Stephanie, you really need to just calm down before you make yourself go into labor. We want the kid to stay in as long as he needs to be in there right? We don't want to push him out before he's ready, right?"

"But he's not moving," she said, starting to cry again. "Why won't he just move?"

Chris lifted her t-shirt over her stomach and started rubbing it gently. She was sobbing into his shirt, soaking it through. She clung to him tightly as Chris kept rubbing her stomach, hoping to calm her down. He didn't know what she had seen in this dream, but it really had her shaken up and he just wanted to help her. He felt her move her head so her mouth was resting against his neck, blowing warm air against his skin.

"You're okay," he repeated over and over as he kept rubbing her stomach. "Sawyer's okay too, he's perfectly fine."

"But what if the dream was the future, what if I give birth and then he's taken away from me?" she asked Chris, her voice muffled against his neck. "What if it comes true? It was so real Chris, it was so real that I could feel the pain."

"But it wasn't real," Chris told her. "It wasn't real and Sawyer is fine. You saw your doctor just the other day and she said that everything looks great. You're paranoid for nothing."

"Then why isn't he moving!"

"I don't know Steph," Chris answered honestly. "Maybe he's tired…ever think of that?"

"Something's wrong Chris, I can feel it. I can feel that there's something wrong. That's why he's not moving. He's not moving because there's something wrong. He's hurt or something Chris. We need to go to the hospital."

"Stephanie, you had a dream."

"But he's not moving!" she protested.

"Okay, I'll stay up with you and if he still hasn't moved in about an hour, then I'll take you straight to the hospital, is that a deal?"

"But he could be hurt NOW!" she argued. "Chris, now, please, Chris something is wrong with my baby, he's not moving, I don't feel him moving!"

"Lie down," he ordered her. She looked at him. He prompted her with his eyes and she laid back against the large mound of pillows she had been sleeping with as of late. Chris lifted her shirt more so that her entire stomach was exposed to him. He laid his hand on it and just rubbed it, putting his head near her stomach. "Hey kid, you're kind of scaring Mommy, so if you could just move around a little bit in there, it would be a big help towards me calming her down."

"Maybe if you sing, he seems to like when you do that," she said hopefully. Chris wasn't in the mood to sing, but he'd do anything for his wife.

"What song?"

"Our wedding song," she told him.

"Okay," he said, clearing his throat and then starting to sing, "I don't like you, but I love you, seems that I'm always thinking of you, though you treat me badly, I love you madly, you've really got a hold on me. Anything?"

"Nothing," Stephanie sniffled. "He's really not moving Chris, can we just go now? Please?"

"I'm going to go get you a glass of water," Chris said. "I'll be right back. Sit tight."

Chris left the room and Stephanie stared down at her stomach. "Please Sawyer, move or something, please…"

Chris came back with the water a few minutes later and he handed the glass to Stephanie. She took a couple small sips before setting it down on the night table. Her crying had calmed down at the very least, but she still looked unnerved. He sat back down next to her and looked at for a few moments. She was biting her lip and staring down at her stomach in intense concentration.

"Nothing?" he asked.

"Nothing," she said, her lip quivering.

"Dr. Sheldon said that he had pretty much descended right?" Chris asked as he scooted down the bed. "That he's pretty much in the position he's going to be born for right?"

"Yeah." Chris put his hand on her lower abdomen, near the top of her underwear. "What are you doing Chris? We're wasting valuable time now!"

Chris gently pushed her stomach around the lower half of her stomach, nothing with a lot of pressure or anything, but just enough that she would feel it. A few seconds later, a large thump was made against the top of Stephanie's stomach as Sawyer decided to finally make his presence known. Stephanie started crying, happily this time, as she placed her hand on her stomach where Sawyer was vigorously kicking.

"See, someone was just a little bit sleepy," Chris told her.

"I'm sorry, you must think I'm so stupid," she told him as she kept her hand right where Sawyer was kicking. He was kicking her rather hard too, but she didn't care at the moment, she was just happy to feel him.

"Of course not, you had a valid concern," Chris told her, kissing her stomach chastely before scooting back up the bed. "Now he's going to keep you up all night because you woke him up."

"That dream, it just scared me."

"I'm sure it did, but see, he's kicking, he's still as active as ever, he was just asleep. So how about we try to get back to sleep because I have an early flight tomorrow."

"I'm sorry Chris, I woke you up for no reason and I made you stay up for no reason."

"Anything having to do with our son is relevant enough for me to be awake, okay?" he said, taking her chin in between his thumb and forefinger. "I don't care if I have to stay up all night and work on no sleep during Raw, if it pertains to you or Sawyer, it's important to me."

She smiled softly. "I'm still sorry that I made you stay up with me."

"Come on, get comfortable and let's get some sleep or you won't be able to go with Kurt to drive Trish and I to the airport tomorrow. And then I'll just miss you so much that I won't go and then who's going to take over? Your dad…do you really want your dad to take over?"

Stephanie smiled and settled back against her mountain of pillows. "You're too good to me Chris."

"You're damn right I am," he said, turning off the light and lying back down, "Much too good."

Her laugh was the last thing he heard before he fell asleep.

The following evening, Chris was asleep at his desk. His little pow-wow with Stephanie last night had messed up his sleep pattern and with Stephanie up at practically dawn having to use the bathroom. He had fallen asleep on the plane and Trish had informed him of the embarrassing fact that he had been drooling and now he was asleep at his desk not thirty minutes before the show had started. Luckily he had gotten the schedule and everything done before he had just stopped a moment "to rest his eyes."

The door barged open and Vince McMahon sauntered inside. He was in a particularly jovial mood tonight, but that might have to do with the stills he had just given to the production truck. He wanted to inform Chris that he would have the top of the show and whatever had been there prior to that was just going to have to get bumped. He frowned when he saw Chris asleep on the job.

"Jericho!" he boomed.

Chris jumped and opened his eyes, startled by the loud noise. He sat up and looked around, disoriented. "What the hell?"

"Why the hell are you sleeping on the job Jericho? This isn't what I'm paying you for," Vince told him.

"Vince?" Chris said, still a little groggy from just having woken up.

"Why are you asleep?" Vince asked. "This is unacceptable, the show is starting in…" Vince checked his watch. "It's starting in twenty-two minutes and you're in here asleep at your desk. Do you think this is the kind of thing I expect from the people who work for me? You're not a wrestler anymore Jericho, you're part of management."

"Vinnie, come on, do you think I'd be voluntarily be asleep on the job," Chris said, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes with the palm of his hand.

"Well then why were you asleep?"

"I didn't get a lot of sleep last night," Chris answered succinctly.

"You didn't get a lot of sleep last night?" Vince said slowly. "That's your excuse? That you didn't get a lot of sleep last night? You know, if you weren't my son-in-law, I think that I'd have to fire you for such negligence. This is not a herky-jerky, do whatever kind of program we run here Chris."

"Vince, Stephanie had a nightmare last night, she woke up and she got scared for Sawyer, I had to sit up with her until she calmed down, good enough reason?" Chris said testily.

"Sawyer's okay though?" Vince said, his voice softening as he thought about his grandson.

"He's fine," Chris said. "I just didn't get a lot of sleep last night because I was taking care of Stephanie. I think that's a good reason, don't you Vinnie?"

"I concede," Vince said, holding his hands up in defeat.

"Okay, now I'm just going to need that on videotape, audio tape, CD, DVD, and any other form of sustainable media. Stephanie is never going to believe this."

Vince just glared at him. "I don't know how my daughter puts up with you."

"But wouldn't you rather deal with me than Trips, Vinnie?" Chris asked. "Ask yourself that question?"

"He was always a suck-up," Vince said distastefully. "I think he wanted to be married to me more than he wanted to be married to Stephanie."

"Seriously, where is a video or something?" Chris said looking around. "I mean, really. Next thing you're going to tell me that you cry at Bambi or something."

"Okay, I'm telling you now, I've got the top of the show, I need the space. What did you have planned?"

"Shane called me earlier and told me to save the space for you," Chris said, "so its yours, do with it what you want."

"See, this is why I like family running the show," Vince said proudly. "I really should congratulate myself for hiring you. I mean, that was a very good signing on my part. You've paid in dividends. Hell, I CAN congratulate myself for signing you. Oh Vince, you sly devil you."

Chris grimaced a little bit. "Well, it was kind of my decision to opt out of re-signing my contract with WCW Vinnie, it wasn't all your decision."

"Oh, don't be silly," Vince laughed. "If it weren't for me, would you even have a wife right now? Or a son? I don't think so, you should be thanking me, praising me really?"

"How do you know that I wouldn't have met Stephanie otherwise?"

"Ha, yeah, that's rich," Vince chuckled. "Anyways, we've both got work to do. I've got to make sure that Shawn gets nothing but grief tonight, I'm such a genius for making his partner God, can you believe that Chris?"

"Actually Vince, I don't know about that whole thing," Chris said uneasily, running his hand across the back of his neck. "I mean, I'm kind of a religious guy."

"You are?" Vince asked incredulously. "Well that's news to me. Does Stephanie know?"

"Yes, Stephanie knows."

"Wow, well, bully for you," Vince joked. "Anyways, we've both got lots of work to do, so get to it Chris."

"Sure Vinnie," Chris said, giving him a fake smile as Vince walked out of the office in the way that only Vince could, which looked like he had just gotten off a horse that he had been riding for about two weeks. Sometimes Chris was amazed that that man was his father-in-law. Some days it didn't even seem real that he was related to that man. And now they had a blood relation in Sawyer. He was never going to get rid of Vince McMahon from his life. Whoa, that was a scary thought as he picked up his cell phone and dialed home before gathering up his papers and starting to walk towards his station.

"Hello?"

"So I think I'm going to divorce you."

"Is that so?"

"I just had an interesting and yet somehow surreal conversation with your father, and I don't think I can live with that man in my family," Chris joked.

"Oh, he's not that bad."

"Steph…"

"Okay, so he IS that bad," she giggled. "So what are you doing right now? Working hard?"

"I was, earlier, but then I fell asleep at my desk."

"Oh sweetie, I'm so sorry, it's all my fault," Stephanie said sadly. "I shouldn't have been so irrational last night. I was stupid. I really was because Sawyer has been kicking and moving around all day like a little madman in there. You shouldn't be all tired."

"It's cool…so your dad is just…I don't know, going overboard."

"What! My dad going overboard with something! You don't say! This has never happened before in the whole time I've been alive!" Stephanie said sardonically and Chris could just see her rolling her eyes in his head.

"I don't know, it's just…I mean, he's being a little offensive with this whole…God thing. I know the man and I'm a little bit…well, weirded out by the entire thing."

"You know what you do sweetie?" Stephanie said, and she had her scheming voice on.

"What are you thinking you devious woman?"

"Mess with my dad, but do it in such a way that he doesn't know you're messing with him."

"I'm not understanding you."

"You're smart Chris, you've got brain cells that work, you did marry me after all. What you need to do is you need to use those brain cells and figure out a way to freak my dad out. Teach him a lesson. I love my father, but he needs to be brought down a few hundred or so pegs."

"I wouldn't know what to do."

"You'll figure something out."

"I don't know," Chris said as he sat down near the gorilla. "I just want to get tonight done with so I can come home. I miss you and I miss Sawyer. And you know, don't go into labor while I'm gone okay because I don't want Kurt to be the guy next to you when you have our kid."

"But Kurt is so supportive."

"I don't want him looking where he's not supposed to be looking," Chris joked.

"The show's starting in ten minutes, I'll let you go sweetie, and remember, you can think of something. I'll be watching."

"Love you baby."

"We love you too."

Chris hung up the phone and saw Vince making his way over to the stairs, pacing back and forth, probably thinking of what he was going to say. Chris rolled his eyes and looked down at his schedule and slipped his headphones on. Talking to Vince once an evening was more than enough time having to deal with that man. Luckily he could pretty much say anything to Vince and not have to worry about retribution since Vince was family, strange as that may be.

In another part of the arena, Trish was smashed against the wall as Christian was kissing the life out of her. She didn't know what it was, but she was having a harder time not giving in to him. She shouldn't be making out wildly with him right now, but she was, and she shouldn't have invited him here tonight, but here he was. Chris didn't even know he was here, that's how secretive it had been. Maybe she was just embarrassed about how easily she let Christian back into her life.

"So what are you doing tonight?" Christian asked as Trish had not let him in on her plans.

"I…" she paused to take a deep breath as he hit a particularly sensitive part of her neck. "I called Jack…you know, the guy I went out with…"

"What?" Christian asked, pulling back. "Oh, I mean…okay. We're not exclusive or anything. I didn't know you had a date tonight…sorry about the whole…"

"No, no," she said, pulling him down for another kiss. She mumbled against his lips, not breaking contact with him, "I just need his help, I need to get back at Mickie. So I called him and explained that I knew what happened."

"Oh, so you're not going out with him."

"I can't," she admitted sheepishly. "Or you know, I just don't think…"

"Yeah, I get what you're saying. No need to explain further."

"Yeah, exactly, no need to explain," Christian said. "But if you were to see other guys…I mean, we're not exclusive, hell, we're not even boyfriend and girlfriend right now. If you wanted to go out--"

"Or if YOU wanted to go out," Trish said quickly, making it seem like she was eager. "You know, you can."

"So can you," he said awkwardly. "I mean, you know…if you find another guy that you like."

"Or you, I mean, there are women in TNA, they'd be…closer or something. I don't really know the schedule over there…don't really watch or anything. I mean, I see you and all of that." Now this was just getting painful. "You know, I should probably, I don't know, go find Jack and explain what needs to be done tonight."

"Yeah, good idea, be prepared."

"Yeah, and then I need to make sure that Chris got everything ready…we kind of thought this thing through when we were flying here earlier. Since he's in charge and everything."

"Speaking of him…how's Stephanie?"

"She's doing okay, she got a little scared last night because she had a nightmare, but other than that, I think that she's doing well, and Sawyer is a little kicker. She's due in like a week and a half you know?"

"Yeah, well, I'll let you…" He pointed towards the door.

She nodded and fled the room, leaning back against the door. It was still awkward with Christian, the conversation tended to be forced and boring. They were boring, but she knew why. She was having trouble letting Christian back into her heart. It was easy to let him kiss her and touch her, but letting him back into her soul was going to be the difficult part. She wasn't emotionally healed from his departure.

Chris wasn't emotionally healed from Vince's little diatribe, and a little part (read: big part) of him was glad to see him given a little sweet chin music by Shawn Michaels. Sometimes Vince deserved everything that he got. He knew Vince would be backstage soon and since Chris didn't want to deal with him, he grabbed his headphones and started barking out meaningless orders to the cronies that worked under him as he pretended to be writing something. He saw Vince leave out of the corner of his eye.

Vince, incidentally, ran into Hunter backstage. Vince had been treating Hunter nicely these past couple of weeks under Stephanie's insistence, but Stephanie wasn't here tonight and just last week, Hunter had called Vince an old man, which he didn't take too kindly too. Since Stephanie was gone and wouldn't be around, Vince was free to despise the man who had broken his daughter's heart. So as a retaliation and to show that he wasn't a feeble, old man, he put Hunter into a handicap match for later that evening and reminded himself to tell Chris to make that happen.

Hunter was livid. He didn't want to be in a handicap match that evening. He hadn't even been planning to wrestle at all. The schedule said that it was going to be Cena vs. Edge, not Cena and Edge vs. him. That was just unfair (sure, it had happened to the other guys, but this was the supposed King of Kings), and he had to do something about it. He stormed off to talk to Chris and try to curb him from making this match happen. He had been nice to him last week after all. He stalked over to where Chris was seated and pounded his hands on the table in front of Chris.

Chris looked up and gave an annoyed look to his arch nemesis. "What do you want?"

"I don't want to be in that match later."

"Too bad, already changed," Chris shrugged carelessly.

"Well change it back, you can do that."

"Now why would I do that?" Chris asked, then reached below him since he had been waiting for this moment for a week. He dropped the unwrapped gift in front of Hunter. "Here, Stephanie and I don't want this."

"What?" Hunter asked, looking bewildered as he stared down at the gift he had given Stephanie last week.

"We. Do. Not. Want. It," Chris said slowly, enunciating every word.

"Why not? I thought Stephanie would like it."

"Look, I don't know who the hell you think you are with this shit," Chris started, gesturing towards the box. "But I'm on to you. You say that you're Stephanie's friend, that you just want to be friend, but that's a load of crap and we both know it."

"I just wanted to give her something for the baby. Something she'd like."

"Ha! You have some sort of distorted illusion that you can win her back, as if I don't exist to you, but let me tell you right now, I exist. Oh boy do I exist," Chris retorted. "And I suggest that you leave whatever fantasy you have about you and Stephanie behind…because trust me, with me in the picture, it's not going to happen."

Hunter gritted his teeth. "You think that just because you're in the McMahon family now that you're all high and mighty, that you're better than me, but you're not Jericho. You're nothing, just like you've always been and just like you're always going to be."

"It KILLS you that Stephanie's having my baby," Chris laughed. "It's killing you inside isn't it? So you have to act like her friend because you're so pathetic and you can't let go. That's it isn't it Trips? You can't let go. Well guess what, she's married to me, not you, and hate to break it to ya, actually no, I'm happy to break it to you that Stephanie and I, we're in it for the long haul."

"That's what I thought too," Hunter countered.

"Yeah, but thing is, I didn't drug her and marry her," Chris shot back with a smirk.

"I thought the gift would be nice."

"Well we didn't," Chris said. "And if you try to steal my wife and son from me, you will see a side of me that you have NEVER seen in the ring Trips. If you think that you can be brutal then you cross me when it comes to my wife and son and we'll see who can be brutal. It'll make you wish that you were in a Hell in the Cell Iron Man Street Fight, trust me."

Chris watched as Hunter grabbed the gift and walked away in a huff. Well that certainly felt good, Chris thought to himself. He could get used to laying the smackdown on Hunter. Before he could think anything else, Vince was before him…again. Chris cursed the fact that he had been so happy with insulting Hunter that he hadn't appeared to look super-busy when Vince came up to him.

"Chris, what's the next match?"

"Well, it's Big Show--"

"It's cancelled, instead we're having Umaga vs. HBK," Vince said sadistically. "Cancel the other match."

"Um, yeah, okay," Chris said then noticed that Vince wasn't leaving. "Vince, is there something else I can do for you?"

"Oh no Chris, nothing at all," Vince said with a smile that Chris recognized from dealing with Stephanie. Vince was up to something and Chris could only imagine what that was. "Actually, keep on the look out for chairs."

What it was, was Vince going out during Shawn Michaels match. Chris watched intently as Vince interfered where he could and suddenly a brilliant idea popped in his head. Vince had been so adamant about a sign that Chris thought it was time for Vince's sign to pop out of nowhere. He grabbed his walkie-talkie and pushed the button to buzz it into life.

"Hey, Jamie, get me one of the pyro guys."

"Sure boss."

A few moments later, "This is Jake, what is it Chris?"

"Okay, so we still have some pyro left on the ring ropes right…the ones from Kane's entrance and did you set up for…I don't know whose entrance it is, the one with the sparks, do you still have those?"

"Yep boss, we usually have some extras in case Kane's doesn't go off initially."

"Great, and the fire that you sometimes use for Kane, how about that?"

"Yeah, we've got it in place, what is this about?"

"Okay, I'm going to need you to do something for me and you are not to inform Mr. McMahon about it, okay, it would be detrimental to your career if you told him what was going on, understood?"

"Sure Chris, but what is it?"

"Whenever Vince gets close to any of the ring posts, I want you to give it a little pyro."

"Why?"

"To scare him," Chris said, smiling deviously. "And when he's walking back, strike up the fire too. I want him scared out of his wits."

"Okay…I'm not sure he's going to like that."

"Don't worry, I won't rat you out and if you rat me out, there's nothing that Vince can do. Now he's probably going to do this soon so get on that."

"Will do Chris."

Chris turned off his walkie-talkie and intently kept watching the match between Umaga and Shawn Michaels. It wasn't that he wanted Shawn to win because that didn't even matter. He just wanted Vince to be put in his place a little bit. Vince didn't believe in signs and fate and what not, but whose to say that it didn't exist? Chris was just doing his part to ensure that Vince didn't take things for granted as he usually did.

And he got a good chuckle out of Vince freaking out when the pyros started freaking out. Vince looked more than a little freaked out, not knowing what was going on and Stephanie was right, this was a lot of fun. Chris didn't hate Vince, he couldn't hate Vince since he was Stephanie's father, but seeing him freak out, it was something different and new and he liked it. Oh, he liked it a lot. He wondered what Stephanie's reaction to it was.

Trish was too busy talking with Jack to have seen what happened to Vince. She had convinced him to help her with this plan for Mickie James. Actually, Jack had been all too happy to agree to help after what had happened last time. Trish had been sure to apologize for what had happened last time they were planned to go out. She had had no idea that Mickie had scared him off, but she knew that she had to apologize to him for it.

Chris helped her with getting Jack to the ring undetected and he had even had the big gift box in place for her to use. Chris really did think of everything. She snuck Jack down to the ring before heading backstage and getting caught up with Maria. She told everyone that she had a surprise for Mickie James in the ring and that she couldn't wait to reveal what it was. She bounded off after the interview and winked at Chris before going out there to reveal her little surprise.

Jack was a champ at acting like he was actually scared of Trish. He should be afraid of Mickie, as everyone should be. Trish played the part of Mickie so well that the line was actually blurring between Trish and Mickie. Mickie came out, dressed like Trish and it still just pissed her off to see Mickie trying to be like her. Looking at Mickie just brought back all the pain that she had gone through regarding Christian. This woman had taken everything from her and she was the reason for the way she felt right now. She was the reason that she could barely feel anything when she was with Christian.

When she gave the spinebuster to Mickie, she wasn't easy with her. No, she wanted Mickie to feel just a little bit of the pain that Trish had been feeling since Christian left, that she was still feeling now. This hurt was built in her chest and she couldn't get rid of it. She went backstage and she sat next to Chris, taking her wig off as he stared at her with a strange look on his face.

"You acted like her pretty well," he said shortly.

"Thanks," she told him, running a hand through her natural hair to try and fix it. "It felt good getting my hands on her. You know, after everything…"

"How is everything?"

"I don't know," she replied honestly. "Some days…it feels like…like everything is normal again. And then other days, it's like…I couldn't be farther from anything familiar."

"I'm sorry you feel that way."

"So am I," she said, then looked to the screen. "You've got work to do, I shouldn't bother you. You probably want to get out of here and back to the hotel so you can call Stephanie."

"That is the plan, but you know that I'll always be here if you need to talk."

"I know that you will be," Trish answered as she saw Jack being helped backstage. "Excuse me, I need to go see him."

"Bye."

"Bye," Trish said as she stood up and walked over to Jack. "Thank you for what you did out there."

"Well, besides getting kicked in the head, it was no problem whatsoever," he joked, rubbing his head.

"Yeah, about that," Trish said. "I mean, I'm just sorry about it. And I still am really sorry that I didn't even hear your side of the story in the whole incident with Mickie. I should've known something was up when she said that you attacked her. I mean, by then I knew she was weird, I shouldn't be so trusting."

"Hey, it's cool…um, since you know, you figured everything out, how about we give us another shot. Nothing serious, a drink, tonight, after you put on your regular clothes."

"Oh, another date," she said slowly.

Her mind wandered to Christian and she saw him in her mind. It was just so difficult to ascertain what their relationship was exactly. She couldn't figure it out and she didn't want to take the time to. She loved making out with Christian and she loved that he was around, but did she actually love Christian, now, right now, not residual love from the past? She honestly couldn't say. She frowned a little, her lips turning down as Jack looked at her spacing out.

"Trish, you okay?" he said, snapping her out of it.

"Um., yeah, drinks…I would…like to have a drink…"

"Yeah, great, okay," Jack nodded. "I'll pick you up at your locker room after the show is over."

"Yeah, you will."

He walked away and she stood there, trying to think of what she was going to tell Christian. But why should she tell him anything? They weren't dating, they weren't boyfriend and girlfriend, they weren't engaged or married. They were just Trish and Christian, a couple of people who used to love each other, or still loved each other, but they were two people who couldn't figure out how to work with the other. They were like soulmates that didn't fit together perfectly. They were the tragic love story.

They were the two people who you knew belonged together and yet they never seemed to figure out how to be together. Things always were good with Christian for a little while and Trish could picture the rest of her life with him. But then something would happen, it always did, and maybe it always would. They were the tragic story of love. Maybe they didn't get the happy ending that Chris and Stephanie had. Maybe there was no happy ending for them.

Maybe they just weren't meant to be. But then why did they keep going back? Why did they keep finding each other when the odds seemed so impossible? It was like a kamikaze mission with the two of them, they kept doing it, diving in headfirst before thinking about the consequences. She made her way to her locker room and saw him sitting there, happy with the way that things had turned out.

"You are so good at playing her," he said, taking her in his arms, but then noticed her look. "What's wrong?"

"I just have to get ready for my…date," Trish said hesitantly.

"With?"

"Jack…he asked, I accepted because well…earlier, you said…"

"Oh, yeah, I did say, and I meant it, really…"

"Did you?" she asked, slightly disappointed. "Chrissy, what are we?"

"I don't know," he shrugged "I want to be with you Trish, and I'm just…I'm willing to play by YOUR rules in this."

"I don't know the rules though," she answered brokenly. "I don't know the rules."

"Go out with Jack Trish…I'm going to go okay, I'll call you later. I'm going to head out."

She did nothing to stop him.


	85. Waiting For the Big One, April 24, 2006

A/N: I was a little underwhelmed by the show tonight so I didn't really know what to write for tonight. Ah well, I did the best that I could. Haven't decided on whether or not to do a Backlash chapter yet because I'll be spending most of the week working on next week's chapter, which I promise will be very, very good. hint hint

Anyways, hope you enjoy this and review!

* * *

"Okay, you have to promise not to have the baby today or tomorrow." 

"Chris, I can't promise you that," Stephanie complained. "If he wants to come out now, he's going to come out now and there's nothing that I can do about that."

"Yes there is, you can tell him that his father is not there and that he has to stay inside of you until at least tomorrow afternoon. If the kid is going to listen to anyone, it's going to be you baby."

"What makes you think that?"

"Well, you kind of control him right now, and we both know that you're going to control him when he comes out of you too, I mean, you control me don't you?"

"Only because you're a pushover."

"Whoa, that was a little uncalled for, don't you think?" Chris asked.

"Okay, I'm sorry sweetie," Stephanie said. "I miss you, you know that right?"

"I miss you too, and I hate that there's an entire ocean between the two of us. I don't like that I'm stuck over here with your brother and your father. Your brother's okay, but your father, man, I want to be anywhere but with him. And you know what sucks?"

"What?"

"Our seats are all together," Chris groaned. "So I have a nice long, very long flight with your father right next to me, talking my ear off. If I have to hear the man go off about God one more time, I think I'm going to scream. I'm surprised he didn't want to share a room with me."

Stephanie laughed, "I'm sorry sweetie, I feel like this is my fault."

"It IS your fault, you had to be so damn beautiful and sexy that I couldn't resist you."

"Well I'm sorry I was both of those things."

"You really should be, why couldn't I have married a woman who had a normal father, you know, one who liked to share a beer over a hockey game or something, someone like that. Someone who is just a really nice, normal guy."

"Well, you're always free to leave if that's what you want," Stephanie told him. "I mean, you'd never see me or Sawyer, but yeah, go right ahead if you really, REALLY want a normal father-in-law."

"Nah, you're totally worth it," Chris told her. "I can put up with that man if I can have you."

"Good answer, especially because I'm very pregnant and due in…oh, four days."

"Crap, are you serious?" Chris said. "Four days?"

"The 28th is this Friday sweetie," Stephanie said. "I can seriously pop at any second. I could go into labor at any moment Chris."

"Four days…" His voice trailed off as he thought about that. Stephanie was due in four days. Four days was nothing, it wasn't even a week. "Where did the time go?"

"I don't know sweetie," Stephanie said. "I'm nervous, are you nervous?"

"Yeah, I'm a little nervous," Chris admitted. "It's kind of scary when you think about it."

Stephanie looked down at her stomach. "Yeah, I know. Sweetie, come home, just skip the show and come home."

"Baby, you know I can't," he said, "I would if I could, but don't you want the show to go well?"

"No, I want you to come home. Chris, I'm so pregnant it's not fun anymore. I want you to come home so that I can have this baby. I don't even want to wait for Friday. I want to have him now. I'm uncomfortable and I can't sleep, and I miss you."

"Don't be a whiner, Steph," Chris told her. "I mean, you know I want to be there but I can't be. It was YOUR idea for me to take this job in the first place. So YOU are the one who wanted me here."

"Well I'm sorry if I wanted someone I trusted to be doing my job while I was gone," she said snottily. "I'm also sorry that I couldn't do my job in the first place. Sorry I had to get pregnant and ruin everything by whining about it."

"Oh give me a break," Chris said. "Why would you apologize for being pregnant?"

"Because if I wasn't, then I wouldn't be a whiner according to you," Stephanie shot at him. "That's what you said to me."

"Because you want me to be in two places at once. I can't be running the show and at home with you at the same time. If you wanted me to stay at home, you should've asked me to stay at home with you this morning, or yesterday. I would've stayed with you in a heartbeat."

"But now I'm just whining."

Chris groaned loudly. "Stephanie, you're being annoying now!"

"Well fine, I won't be annoying to you then!" She yelled at him, and then she hung up the phone. Chris sighed and pulled it away from his ear, looking down at his cell phone for a moment. He wasn't going to call her back right now, that would just lead to another fight. Instead, he went back to his desk and looked over some of the things for tonight. He had to get ready for Backlash which was this Sunday. He grabbed the contracts that had been signed for the matches and looked over them, making sure that everyone had signed them so he could go ahead and schedule the show for Sunday. If he got it done soon then he wouldn't have to spend much time working for the rest of the week and instead could be with Stephanie while they prepared for Sawyer's birth.

"Hey Chris," Shane said as he walked into the office. "Dad was wondering if you had the contracts all signed so he could give them to the lawyers to look over."

"I'm looking over them now," he said, holding up the large pile. "Take a seat, I won't be that long."

Shane took a seat across from Chris's desk. "So my dad was kind of hogging you on the plane…"

"Is that what he was doing? I thought he was just trying to talk me to death. He almost succeeded too. I was this close to just keeling over."

"Sorry about that," Shane told him. "Wait, why am I apologizing, you're the one who willingly married his daughter, I guess you brought this on yourself."

"Speaking of your sister, she's mad at me."

"No surprises there…how is she though?"

"She's good. She's nervous about the whole birth thing. We both are. I'm not putting much stock into her mood swings right now, I know she's just really uncomfortable. How's Marissa?"

"She's doing well. She wishes that you and Steph could visit, but she understands why you can't. She's going to send pictures to Stephanie though, so she should get those soon."

"She'll like that, it'll give her something to do sort of," Chris said. "So how are you adjusting to the new baby? And please be gentle in how you describe it since I'm going to have a kid probably within the next week."

"It's…tiring, but good," Shane said. "You'll handle it. If anyone could handle something like a new baby, it's Steph. I talked to her yesterday, I don't know if she told you."

"She didn't tell me that."

"Well, she told me you were kind of offended by our dad, and I just wanted to apologize again, I mean, you know he wouldn't deliberately try to offend you, not with you being married to Stephanie and all."

"Let's not kid ourselves, he doesn't care who he offends," Chris responded. "So are you calling your kid Kenyon or what?"

"That was Ris's idea, I call him J, for his middle name," Shane said. "I think that's what we're going to call him."

"Better," Chris said. "Whatever your dad does, I don't really care. Why should I care? Unless it directly involves my wife or my son, I'm not really going to care. So does he keep you up all night?"

"Pretty much yeah," Shane laughed. "This is going to be really weird having kids so close in age. I mean, they're going to be growing up together and everything, and since I wasn't really around with D, we're both like new fathers."

"Heaven help us," Chris said as he finished with the papers. "I think I've got them all squared away. Everyone is signed and so the lawyers should find everything in order."

"Chris?" Trish asked, sticking her head in the door and seeing Shane as well. "Oh hey Shane."

"Hey pretty girl," Shane said, standing up an offering his seat to Trish.

"Oh, don't bother," she said, letting him sit down.

"What's this about Trish?" Chris asked.

"Um…I guess I need some advice," she told him.

"Oh come to Uncle Chris and tell him all your problems," Chris joked, opening up his arms. Trish laughed and actually did go and sit on his lap. Chris wrapped an arm loosely around her back as she looked between him and Shane. "So what's this about?"

"Christian. I don't know what to do about him."

"Wait, why would you need to do anything about Christian, he's gone."

"Man, you don't know?" Chris asked.

"Know what?"

"Christian's back in my life," Trish explained. "You can't tell anyone though because he left because of something that happened with Mickie, but well, he is back in my life."

"God, am I that out of the loop?"

"A baby will do that," Trish said. "But back to the matter at hand. Christian. Big problems with Christian. Which side of the fence are you on with Christian?"

"I don't know Trish," Chris answered honestly. "I'm undecided on the issue."

"Oh…okay, can we talk later, I know the show's starting soon."

"Always," he told her. "Just come find me at my station during a match and we'll talk."

"Thanks…it was good seeing you Shane."

"Hey, why don't I walk you back to your locker room," Shane said, grabbing the papers that Chris handed to him.

"Okay, sounds good, you can tell me all about your cute little baby," Trish said as she linked arms with Shane. They walked out of the room, leaving Chris alone as Trish leaned her head against Shane's. "Shane, life is complicated."

"You're telling me, I have to listen to my father go on and on about God. Balance that with a new baby in the house, and I'm completely overwhelmed." Trish kissed his cheek. "What was that for?"

"For being screwed up like me," Trish joked. "It's nice to know that not everyone lives fairy tale lives. It's kind of hard remembering that when you live with Chris and Stephanie who seem to perpetually live on cloud nine."

"That's just what they project," Shane said. "They have their share of fights too. So tell me more about what happened with you-know-who."

"Mickie threatened him," Trish said. "That's the Cliff Notes version. She threatened his family, he left me. End of story. The hard part is accepting him back in my life after that. I mean, this is unprecedented so I have nothing to work off of."

"You'll figure it out," he said as they reached her locker room. "You know where I am in case you need to talk though."

"I do," she said, leaning up to kiss his cheek again. "Don't make yourself such a stranger Shane, you know I love your crazy butt."

"Wait until you see me later," he winked and her jaw dropped a little. "What? What's that look for?"

"Shane, what are you planning to do?" Trish asked. "You have a wife and two little boys at home, you can't be crazy Shane O anymore."

"Who says?"

"You have a family, you can't be going out hurting yourself."

"I won't, you worry too much for someone so pretty," Shane flirted. Trish batted her eyelashes comically.

"You shouldn't flirt with me Shane, you're a married man now. Besides, don't you have to get those papers to your dad?"

"I'd much rather stick around with you than go see my dad," Shane lamented. "Sometimes he's so freaking demented."

"I know, I dated the man," Trish said with a violent shudder. "Now go!"

Chris decided it was time to call Stephanie and see if she had calmed down. He gathered up his papers and started walking towards his station, trying to balance the papers under his arm while using his cell phone with his other hand. He dialed the house and waited for her to pick up. Only nobody picked up and the he heard the machine pick up.

"Hey, you've reached Stephanie, Chris, Kurt, Trish, and in a couple of weeks, Sawyer, so leave any of us a message and we'll probably get back to you. Thanks, bye."

"Hey Stephanie, I know that you're there, so come on and answer the phone. Come on Stephanie…you're not fooling anyone," Chris listened, but she didn't pick up. "Stephanie, this is a stupid fight, will you just pick up."

She didn't answer and he sighed, "Stephanie, baby, please pick up the phone so that I can talk to you…okay, if you want to be a petulant child, go right ahead. Maybe I just won't come home tomorrow, or the day after that, or the day after that. Maybe I'll find myself someone else, maybe I'll do that, someone who isn't pregnant!"

Chris knew as soon as those words were out of his mouth that he was in big, big trouble. Stephanie wasn't that concerned with how she looked, but it couldn't have been good to say he wanted to be with someone who wasn't pregnant, especially when it was his child that she was pregnant with. He clicked off the phone quickly, knowing that he needed to keep his big mouth shut right now or she really would kick his ass.

Chris's mouth was big enough, however, for Hunter to overhear the entire conversation. He smirked to himself as he emerged from the shadows in which he was lurking. He watched as Chris stuffed his cell phone back in its holder and walked to where he'd be sitting for the rest of the show. He had a little bit of information now and he knew what he was going to do with it. He couldn't do it just yet because it would be too suspicious for him to call Stephanie right after Chris hung up the phone. Stephanie wasn't stupid, she would figure out that he had been eavesdropping. He saw Edge walking up ahead with Lita, heading towards the gorilla and decided to go see what that was about.

Chris kept trying to call Stephanie, but she still wasn't answering and she probably wasn't going to answer after he had said what he had said. He sighed loudly and put his cell phone on the table in front of him and tried to focus on the show at hand. It looked like Hunter had just insulted Lita, which was nothing new. He leaned his chin in his hand and watched idly, making a comment every now and again, but his heart wasn't into it. He didn't like fighting with Stephanie and he knew that he had gone over the line with her. She was having his baby at any moment and here he was, being a jerk to her. He glanced up a short while later to see Hunter walking by with a smirk on his face. Chris looked at him suspiciously, but the other man wasn't doing anything so he just went back to work.

Stephanie was sitting at home, listening to the last of Chris's messages. She frowned as she listened to his voice. She was a little angry at what he had said on the first one. It wasn't her fault that she and Kurt had gone out to grab food for dinner and she wasn't actually home when Chris was here. But he didn't have to say that maybe he'd go find someone who wasn't pregnant. She already had seeds of doubt in her mind she didn't need her husband being the one to fuel those thoughts.

"What's wrong?" Kurt asked as he walked into the kitchen where Stephanie was leaning against a stool.

"Nothing, just Chris being a jerk and then apologizing for being a jerk. I'll call him soon," she said, letting herself down slowly as she waddled to the other room. The phone rang just as she was in the living room and she groaned and waddled back into the kitchen to grab the phone. "Stephanie McMahon."

"Hey Stephanie."

"Who is this?" she asked, not immediately recognizing the voice.

"It's Hunter, your ex-husband, remember?" he laughed.

"Hunter? What are you doing calling me?"

"I just wanted to see how you were, you're due this week right?" he asked, sweet-talking her as he put on his most charming voice.

"Yeah, I am," she said slowly. "I'm due Friday actually."

"I just wanted to see how you were, how your baby was. I bet you're really excited."

"Um…yeah, I am," she answered, greatly confused as to the unexpected call from her ex-husband. It wasn't like they were on bad terms, but this whole spontaneous calling thing was weird.

"You sound kind of upset, is everything okay?" he asked, implementing what he had overheard earlier.

"I do?" she asked, not even realizing that she sounded upset. Was she upset? She wasn't even aware that she had sounded in any particular way except confused.

"Yeah, is everything alright with you, is Sawyer okay?"

"Yeah, he's fine," she said, glancing down at her stomach.

"And Chris, how's he?" Hunter choked out for the benefit of Stephanie.

"I wouldn't know, I'm kind of mad at him right now," Stephanie said lightly. "We had an argument earlier."

"Oh, that's too bad," he said, trying to sound as sincere as possible. "Not a bad one I hope."

She shrugged. "He said he was going to go find someone not pregnant to get with. He never knows when to shut his big mouth up."

"He said that to you!" Hunter said in disgust, scoffing. "How could he say something like that to you? You're carrying his child and he's saying that he's going to find another woman. That's really low…although it does explain the…never-mind."

"I'm sorry, what were you going to say?" Stephanie asked him.

"Oh, it's nothing, I just…well, I saw a blonde walking into Chris's office earlier," Hunter said, neglecting to tell her that it was Trish he had seen walk in.

"Really?" she asked. "If you'll excuse me Hunter, I think that I need to call my husband."

"Sure, yeah, sorry I kind of let the cat out of the bag so to speak."

"I know," she said, rolling her eyes. She hung up without saying goodbye and dialed Chris's cell phone number.

Chris was watching the six-man tag match when his cell phone vibrated. He took off his headphones and picked up his cell phone, grinning in relief at seeing "Home" on the display. "Stephanie, is that you baby?"

"Hey," Stephanie said. "So I just got an interesting phone call from Hunter saying that a blonde was seen walking into your office earlier."

"Trish?"

"I figured it would be her. He's doing it again Chris, he's trying to worm his way in again and now it's just bugging me. He called you know, here, the house, he called our house. Oh, which reminds me, I was out getting food with Kurt, so I didn't get your message, but finding another woman, not cool Chris, not cool at all."

"I'm sorry baby, I don't know what came over me, the show is going well but I better go, I think I want to find Hunter and have another talk with him about boundaries. I'm sick of him trying to make you his wife again."

"And I'm sick of him trying to make me his wife," Stephanie said. "I don't know sweetie, nothing gets through to him. I'm pregnant, if that doesn't get through to him, then I don't know what's going to get through to him. We'll just have to try to ignore him."

"Easier said than done," Chris muttered. "Stephanie, don't leave me for him okay? Whatever happens, just don't leave me for him."

She laughed. "I'd rather do anything than have that happen. So how's the show going, I can't wait to watch it later. What's going on right now?"

"Well, there's going to be a handicap match, Spirit Squad against the guys in the Triple Threat match, and your dad just go interviewed and said that he fired the pyro guy that messed up last week, but then I re-hired him behind your dad's back so it's all good."

"Chris!" a production guy came running over. "There's been an incident with Big Show and Kane!"

"Crap, baby, I have to go, something's happened, I've got to check it out."

"Okay, love you."

"Uh huh, bye."

Chris rushed out of the area and backstage where Big Show was sitting against the wall getting checked over by some EMT's. Kane was still being held back by some of the security guards. Chris surveyed the damage and wondered who to go to first. He decided that he needed to get Kane out of here so he went over to him.

"What the hell happened?"

"He shouldn't have mentioned May 19th," Kane repeated over and over, his voice a low rumble from deep within his chest.

"What? What's that got to do with anything?" Chris asked, but Kane just kept repeating himself over and over again. "Get him out of here, I want him out of the arena. He's suspended for the rest of the evening, get him out of here."

"He shouldn't have mentioned May 19th!" Kane yelled as he was dragged away. Chris just shook his head and went over to where they were treating Big Show. Chris saw blood and shuddered a little bit.

"What's going on?" he asked one of the backstage trainers.

"Looks like an eye injury. We won't know the extent until we get him to the emergency room. We're going to take him now in the ambulance to get checked out."

"Okay, I want to be informed of his condition as soon as you know what's going on," Chris told him.

"Yeah boss."

Chris watched as they helped the Big Show stand up and walk over to the ambulance that was ready and waiting for him. Chris couldn't believe some of the things he had to deal with. Then came another thing he had to deal with as he heard Vince's voice behind him. "Chris, we need to talk now!"

"What is it Vince?" Chris asked, turning around.

"You re-hired the pyro guy? When were you going to inform me of this?"

"He didn't do anything wrong Vince, you didn't get hurt, don't be a jerk about it," Chris said, starting to walk away so he could get back to the show.

"A jerk? What the hell do you mean by that Jericho?"

"I mean, that you're being a jerk," Chris said, turning towards his father-in-law. "What more is there Vince?"

"Don't talk to me like that."

"I'm not talking to you anyway Vince," Chris countered. "I'm just a little sick and tired of the act you're trying to pull. I mean, do you think that you're endearing yourself to people with all of this God crap you're trying to pull? Do you think it's funny? Well I don't think it's funny."

"Well you're not in charge."

"I AM in charge of this show."

"I could fire you."

"You could, go right ahead," Chris said, opening his arms out as if to challenge Vince. "Go ahead and fire me Vince, see if I care. I'll just go back to Stephanie, which is really where I want to be right now. You think this, all of this is the most important thing to me, it's not, trust me."

"Well then you should just go."

"Maybe I will!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, what's going on here?" Shane said as he approached the two men.

"I'm leaving," Chris said, starting to walk away, but Shane grabbed his arm. "Don't try to stop me Shane."

"Chris, come on man, who's going to run the show?"

"I don't care," Chris answered. "What do I care who runs the show when my wife is sitting at home pregnant? I've got bigger problems than what goes on here. I'm not even supposed to be here. I took a freaking leave of absence! This is just a favor for my wife, I'm not obligated to you Vince. The only reason I feel obligated is because I married your daughter."

"Chris, why don't we just calm down."

"No, I'm not going to calm down. You have no idea the stress I'm under right now," Chris said. "I'm working here, trying to do a good job despite everyone trying to pull me in every direction. I've got Hunter breathing down my neck, trying to steal my wife from right out under my nose, and then you want to berate me for hiring someone back who didn't do anything wrong. You want to know something Vince, here's something, it was me who ordered the head of pyro to mess with you last week. I thought it'd be funny, there! Now, I'm getting the hell out of here before I do something I regret."

Vince was steaming as Chris stormed off. Shane chased after Chris and started walking beside him. "You were the one behind the pyros?"

"Yeah."

"That was pretty funny," Shane chuckled. "Look, don't leave, we need you around here. You're just as good as Stephanie, maybe even a little better, just don't let her know I said that. But seriously, come on, you can't just leave. Where are you going to go?"

"I'm going to try to catch a late flight back to Florida."

"The chances of that happening are slim," Shane told him.

"Not if I leave right now, I know there are always a few red-eyes back to the States and I'll be on one, and I'll get as close to Tampa as I can and then I'll do whatever I have to do to get back to Stephanie."

"I know you miss her, I miss Rissa and the boys, but just running away isn't the solution."

"I'm not running away," Chris told him. "I'm just sick of everyone and everything here. I miss my wife and I want to be with her and I don't care what anyone says. I want to be with my wife, she's the only face I want to see right now."

"What can I say to make you stay?"

"Nothing…look, I'll be back, but I want to be with Stephanie. I'm sick of dealing with the show, everything can run itself, you and your dad can look after it. I just want to get home to my wife."

"And there's no stopping you?"

"Nope, I'll see you later Shane, I'm going home."

"Chris wait!" a feminine voice yelled as he turned and saw Trish running over. She was already dressed like Mickie so it was a little creepy, but Chris stopped and waited nonetheless. "Chris, where are you going?"

"I'm going home Trish, I need to be with Stephanie right now," Chris told her.

"Oh my God, did she go into labor!" Trish squealed, clapping her hands together.

"No, I just…I can't deal with anyone here."

"But we were supposed to talk about Christian…"

"I'm really sorry Trish, we can talk when you get back home, but I really need to get out of here and away from Vince right now."

"If you really have to."

"If I want my sanity, I have to."

"Oh, okay," Trish said as she joined Shane's side. "What's wrong with him?"

"He mentioned something about Hunter trying to steal Stephanie…maybe that's it."

"Come on crazy," Trish said, linking her arm through his. "Looks like it's just you and me tonight."

"I swear, I'm not going to do anything crazy."

Shane was partially correct, he didn't do anything more crazy than normal. Of course, considering some of the crazy things that Shane had done over the years, what he had done was pretty tame. Jumping from the turnbuckle to the announcer's table was nothing compared to jumping off a really high scaffold. But that was just Shane's nature. He didn't even care that he had a wife and kids at home, he was Shane and he was crazy.

Trish watched backstage and winced. Not only because of what Shane did, but because they wouldn't quit with the "omnipotent semen" line and that was just disgusting. She hoped that Stephanie hadn't seen that because if it scarred her, then it would definitely scar someone actually related to Vince. Shane was helped backstage by Vince and he went over to Trish with a wry smile on his face. She folded her arms and shook her head in disapproval. He rolled his eyes at her playfully.

"I told you not to be crazy," Trish told him.

"I'm fine, and I'm going to call Rissa and tell her that I'm fine because I know she's going to be worried when she's watching later."

"Good boy, so um…you want to treat me to dinner after the show?" Trish asked. "I was thinking you could help me with the situation since you're the only one around."

"It'd be my pleasure to take you out, but you have to take off the wig before we leave, deal?" Shane said, referring to the brown wig she was wearing right now. "And it wouldn't hurt if you changed too."

"I'm just living up to my character," she teased. "If Mickie James wants to be Mickie James, so do I."

Chris opened the door to his house. He had managed to get a flight to Orlando and had just decided to rent a car and drive the two hours it took from Orlando to Tampa. He closed the door quietly behind him and quickly went to turn the alarm off. It was four in the morning at the moment. He had gotten in around two and then the two hour drive. He was pretty exhausted and just wanted to climb in bed with Stephanie. He set his bag down, intending to get it in the morning before going upstairs and to the master bedroom.

Stephanie was laying propped up against the pillows, snoring softly. He threw off his shirt and pants and climbed into bed next to her, rubbing her leg. She stirred a little bit and then jumped, looking over at the dark figure next to her. She gasped a little bit, not knowing who was in her bed and not recognizing the dark shape.

"Shh, it's me," Chris whispered, running his hand over her stomach."

"Chris, how did you get home?"

"I left the show."

"You WHAT!" she exclaimed.

"I couldn't take it anymore Steph. I just want to be with you until Sawyer is born and this is where I'm going to be. I'll go back after you have him."

"But Chris…"

"No buts Stephanie, I'm here until you have the baby and that's that."


	86. The Big One, May 1, 2006

A/N: Okay, so I was like holding my breath through the entire show praying that Stephanie wouldn't show up, and she didn't. Of course, the trade off was seeing Vince act like a pervert, for the five…bajillionth time.

Anyways, I've literally been working on this chapter for months, and I lied a couple chapters ago, THIS chapter is the longest chapter I've ever written. Please don't think I'm a superhero who sat down and wrote this all today. I added bits and pieces for a really long time. Anyways…I think you'll like this chapter, I like this chapter, which is rare for me. I don't think it's too sappy, it is sappy, I mean, come on, but I don't think it's like overly sappy, hopefully. I try to mix sappy and humor because I'm not like fluffy mcfluffernutter.

So enjoy it, I hope you do, really, I hope you all enjoy it, and I hope you all review it. Just throw me a little bone, seriously, you could just say, "Great chapter," and I'll be cool. I just want validation people! LOL Anyways, even if you don't leave a review (which would make me cry), I hope you enjoy the chapter. And don't expect every chapter to be this long. ;)

Let the fireworks begin!

* * *

"So tell me, what was up with Dad last night, he was like…no, what am I saying, he was acting exactly like Dad last night." 

"Stephanie, don't even get me started. Dad is really, really starting to wear thin on me."

"It's only going to be worse tonight and you know it," Stephanie told him over the phone. "He's going to gloat about the win, he's going to do something stupid and he's going to embarrass us and Mom a little bit more. It's the same routine."

"And yet we put up with him."

Stephanie sighed, "He's our dad…so…um…the show? How's it looking for tonight?"

"I'm sorry, are you authorized personnel?" Shane joked. "I don't think that you have the authorization to know what's going on with the show before it happens."

"Shane Brandon McMahon, I am three days overdue, my kid woke me up at 6:30 this morning and he doesn't seem like he wants to come out. I'm tired and I'm bloated, and I haven't seen my feet in months, the one thing that I have going for me is the show, so tell me how it's going to go tonight."

"Geez, pushy," Shane said. "Once it's over though, the birth thing, you get this really cute baby out of it. I should know, J is cute, he's very, very loud, and kind of colicky, but he's cute."

"Don't talk to me about babies," Stephanie said. "Mine doesn't want to come out, he knows I'm going to be the crappiest mother in the universe so he's just going to hunker down in there for a while."

"You won't be a bad mother," Shane groaned. "So stop acting like you're going to be."

"Fine big brother."

"Shut up baby girl or I won't tell you anything that's happening on the show tonight."

"You never have liked me, have you Shane?"

"No, you took away my spotlight."

"So in the general sense, how do you like running the show?"

"Okay, I'm going to tell you something and you have to promise that you won't get mad, I swear Stephanie, don't get mad because I don't want to be the one responsible for you going into labor."

"What are you talking about Shane? Oh no, the show is going to hell isn't it? You have a walk-out, an uprising, a mutiny!"

"I'm not there."

Stephanie gasped. "Tell me that you didn't just say that you weren't there…Shane, PLEASE tell me that you didn't say that you weren't there…"

"Steph, D has an ear infection and I needed to go home, it wasn't my decision, I'm sorry."

"Oh…D really had an ear infection?"

"Yeah, I'm sorry…"

"Dad's in charge isn't he?"

"I think so."

"Great, now I feel like driving to the show. It's not like Sawyer is coming any time soon. I swear, he's probably putting up a 'Home, Sweet, Home' sign up against my uterus right now. Why leave the nice, fancy digs, for the crap world that we live in."

"You're so optimistic for a new mother," Shane said, pretending to sound choked up. "You give me hope for the next generation with that attitude."

"Oh shove it up your ass Shane, you don't have a person inside of you and your wife was fortunate enough to already give birth. So you just need to shut your mouth and make sure that tonight goes well or I will hunt you down and…I don't know, punch you in the stomach or something."

"Oww, you're a mean woman baby girl."

"Sad that I'm still the baby girl in the family since we seem so inclined to have boys."

"Are you kidding? Dad probably LOVES that fact," Shane said, and Stephanie could just see him rolling his eyes. "You know he wants wrestlers and then people to take over the company, but more so wrestlers. He's ecstatic I'm sure."

"Okay, I need to get off the phone with you and call Dad."

"It's going to be futile."

"I know that, but you know what, I have to do it, bye Shane."

"Bye baby girl, if you go into labor between now and when I talk to you, good luck okay."

"Thanks, love you." He returned the sentiment and she ended the call. She dialed her father's number and anticipated a very annoying conversation.

"Hello?"

"Daddy, it's me."

"Are you in labor?" Vince asked hastily, not even bothering with a greeting.

"No, I'm not, he's still in there. Daddy, Shane told me that you're running the show tonight, is that true Daddy?"

"No, I'm letting the Spirit Squad run it, I'm taking the night off."

Stephanie grabbed her stomach and took a deep breath. "Daddy…are you trying to make me go into labor right now?"

"Stephanie, I've got it under control, I am still the president of World Wrestling Entertainment. I think I know what I'm doing."

"Daddy, the Spirit Squad is full of rookies who have no clue what they're doing. Daddy, you cannot do this!"

"Stephanie, you are not here, you are at home, if you were here, maybe it would be different."

"Daddy, don't make me angry."

"Don't make me angry Stephanie."

"I can't believe you'd put them in charge, Daddy, they're going to ruin the show."

"I'll be here to make sure that things go smoothly. Don't you trust your old man?"

"No," she muttered under her breath. "Fine Daddy, I'm not going to argue with you because I'm not feeling well anyways. I guess I'll see you later."

"You will Princess, and don't worry!"

She was going to worry. She didn't care what her father said, she was going to worry. It was bad enough that she had to leave Chris in charge, but the Spirit Squad. The freaking Spirit Squad. She slammed her cell phone down on the nightstand next to her and then threw her remote down. If only she had had Sawyer already. If only…

"Chris!"

Chris ran upstairs where Stephanie was supposed to be lounging on their bed, watching the Jeritron 5000. She looked absolutely miserable, and yet she still had that pregnancy glow about her. Her stomach was out to there and she was resting both her hands on top of it. He came over and climbed over her legs to her side.

"What do you want now?"

"I want this out of me!" she whined, pointing at her stomach. "I want it out, out, out."

"Well, I can't like take it out Steph," Chris told her.

"Well, can't you like order him out?" Stephanie told him. "You're his father, you can do it. Just tell him that he's almost four days late and we're kind of waiting on him. He's late, and McMahons are not late. This must be you, because if he were at all like me, he would be here already!"

"Okay, baby, you need to calm down."

"I want to go back to work!" Stephanie said, flipping through the channels, "They're all there working without me, and I want to be there!"

"Steph, you know that you can't."

"Well if this baby would get the hell out of my body, then YES, I could, or if he wasn't around at all, then I'd be there, and I'd be running the show instead of stuck in a bed because my son does NOT want to come out. I know that it must be very comfy in there, but honestly, get out!"

"Whoa, okay, calm down, what happened? I was up here an hour ago and you were fine, why the sudden change?"

"I just talked to my father," she said, gesturing towards the offending cell phone on her nightstand. "He said that he's putting the Spirit Squad in charge tonight. Yeah, you heard that right, the Spirit Squad. My dad is crazy, and he doesn't have to worry about a human being inside of him. And I want work."

Chris stroked her hair and leaned closer to her so that her forehead was touching his. "It's one night. Baby, I know that you want to go back to work, I know that you do, but think of when we get to see Sawyer for the first time."

"He'll probably be ugly and bloody and wrinkly," Stephanie said with distaste.

Chris laughed, "Yeah, he probably will be, but he'll be ours won't he?"

"Yeah…"

"And you want him right?"

"Not anymore, I'm mad at him for staying in there three days longer than he was supposed to. Did you hear that Sawyer, Mommy is MAD at you," Stephanie said, then whispered to Chris, "Maybe if he thinks I'm mad at him, he'll come out."

Chris just kissed her. "Do you want me to get anything or massage anything?"

"No, you're too good to me as it is," Stephanie told him. "You've put up with me for nine long, long months."

"They haven't been that long," Chris said, caressing her cheek. "There isn't anyone I would have rather spent them with. Even when you were being a big, huge bitch. I just pretended that you were that bitch I used to hate."

Stephanie gave a short laugh. "I was acting like that wasn't I?"

"Yeah, you were, do you know how many times I wanted to blurt out my filthy, dirty line? Now is that the only thing bothering you, or is there something else that you need?"

"No, I've had indigestion all day though. It just started out as a little something, but now it's getting worse. I don't know what I did to make Sawyer so upset. I haven't eaten anything that he particularly doesn't care for. He's probably just settling himself down in there for the long haul."

"Smart kid," Chris said, rubbing her stomach. "Do you want me to massage your back?"

"You don't have to, you were probably busy," Stephanie said. Chris shook his head and helped her sit up. He scooted himself behind her and started massaging her lower back. She moaned and threw her head back from the nice feeling that he was eliciting from her. "Mmm, thanks sweetie."

"All in a day's work," Chris told her. "So are you up for an afternoon snack, or is your stomach not feeling okay enough to eat?"

"I have to pee," Stephanie said, "help me up."

"Okay then," Chris said, getting off the bed and standing up to help Stephanie. She swung her legs over the side of the bed and grabbed Chris's right arm and held his hand with her left hand. She pushed herself to her feet and let Chris help her to the bathroom since everything felt swollen to her. "Need help?"

"No, I can pee by myself," she said sarcastically as she walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. Chris sat down on the bed and flipped to another station that he wanted to watch. Stephanie walked out a second later and looked decidedly pale.

"Baby, what's wrong?"

"I've been in labor!"

Chris made a funny face. "Um…what?"

"That's why I've felt like such shit today. That's what my stomach things have been, but I haven't been paying attention to how often they were coming because it was so far apart I just figured that my stomach wasn't being settled."

"But how did you come to the conclusion that you're in labor? Did your water break?"

"No, I just had a contraction and it hurt, like a real contraction, not like the ones I used to get," Stephanie told him, which sent Chris into hysterics. "Plus, I had some leaking…"

"What! Oh my God! We have to go to the hospital, we have to go now! I'll grab your shit, and you start walking towards the car!"

"Chris, Chris," Stephanie said slowly, walking towards him and putting her hand on his arm. "It's normal, remember, it's normal. And this is going to take a while, so why don't we just relax and you can not freak out, and we can take this slowly, because we're going to be here for a while."

"Okay," Chris said, taking a deep breath. "We're calm. I'm calm, nothing is going wrong. My wife is just in labor, my son is just being born, but I'm calm, nothing to worry about."

"Yes, nothing to worry about. The doctor said that we should call her when they're about five minutes apart, so sweetie, can you please time how far apart these are, I don't think that they're very close so I'm just going to head downstairs, maybe walk around a little bit, or take a nap or something."

"You're being very calm about this," Chris observed.

"Well, the sooner he comes, the sooner I can go back to work."

"Well, if that's the way that you want to think about it, then go for it. If you want to make this as easy as possible then I say go for it."

"Okay, well, help me downstairs?" Stephanie asked. Chris turned off the television and hopped off the bed in order to wrap his arm around Stephanie's waist and help her walk downstairs. He was managing to keep his cool for her sake, but inside his stomach was doing somersaults as he thought about the fact that he was about to become a father. That was huge, he wasn't just going to be Chris Jericho anymore, he was going to be Dad, and that was a scary thought.

"What do you want to do now?"

"I'm going to go in the backyard and just lounge out on the patio for a while," Stephanie said, slowly walking her way outside, then stopped and held her stomach. "Okay, time me."

Chris looked at his watch, "Okay, tell me when it's over, and then I can time between the next ones."

"Okay," Stephanie nodded as she kept making her way outside. "And it's over. Can you get me a glass of water please?"

"Yeah, of course," Chris said, "Don't forget to tell me when you have another one."

"Yeah, I know," Stephanie said, sliding up the door to the backyard. "Water, Chris, please."

"I'm on it," he said, jogging into the kitchen as Stephanie went outside and laid herself down on a lounger. The weather was perfect, not too hot, and certainly not too cold, not in April in Tampa of all places. She settled herself in her place, glad she had grabbed her sunglasses on the way out. She put them on and waited a few minutes for Chris to come out with her water. She took a couple of deep breaths and tried not to get jittery, but she WAS in labor, so wasn't it normal to be a tiny bit jittery. She wondered what was taking Chris so long.

Chris was taking so long because he was trying not to hyperventilate. He was so nervous he thought he was going to shake right out of his body. His hands were on the counter in front of him and his head was down. He didn't want Stephanie to know he was nervous because she would either make fun of him or demand him to not be nervous. She needed him, so he got her water and walked to bring it to her, but then remembered he needed to call their parents. He set the water down and grabbed the phone, quickly dialing his parent's number.

"Hello?" Loretta answered.

"Hey Mom, Stephanie's in labor, so fly on down okay."

"How long has she been in labor?" Loretta asked excitedly.

"Not that long, the contractions aren't that close together, it's been almost fifteen minutes since her last one, so it should be a while yet. I just wanted to give you enough time to get down here."

"Oh, I'm already packed and ready, we just need to get to the airport," Loretta said. "We'll see you soon!"

Chris heard his mother hang up before he could say anything else and he laughed and started to dial Vince's cell phone. He tapped his fingers on the counter before hearing, "This is Vince McMahon."

"Hey Vince, it's Chris, Stephanie's in labor, so fire up the jet and get down here."

"She's in labor…damn it, on a Monday!" Vince said unhappily. "I'm at the show already. Linda will be flying the in the jet, I'll be by as soon as possible okay. Try to keep him in there before I get there."

"Um…okay, but it'll probably be a while before it happens so you've got time."

"I'll call Linda, you just stay with my daughter."

"Will do Vince, bye."

"Bye, and good luck." Chris finally grabbed Stephanie's water and walked to bring it to her.

"Okay, another one!" Stephanie yelled as she clutched her stomach a little. Chris came out looking at his watch as she settled down. "And?"

"They're about fifteen minutes apart," Chris told her. "Not bad."

"Nope, now we just…wait," Stephanie said, and they sat in silence for a few moments. "We're having a baby…"

"Yeah, we are…"

"I'm having a baby with YOU…"

"You are…"

She looked around, "Chris?"

"Yeah baby?"

"Thank you."

"For what?" he asked, turning to look at her.

She shrugged a little bit. "Putting up with me I guess. I mean, I've put you through a lot of crap during this entire pregnancy, and I don't think I ever really thanked you for it. I mean, you gave up your job for me, and then didn't even question me when I decided I didn't want to leave. And you didn't bat an eyelash when I came back to television. And you cancelled a tour for me, and you put up with my demands and my mood swings, and you didn't question me when I wanted to rejoin my father. Not to mention the fact that you stood up to my father in the first place, which not many people do. Plus taking over for me at work, which I know that you're not accustomed to, but you do it anyways because you love me. Finally, because you kept telling me that I was beautiful, even when I felt bloated or when my ankles were swollen, or when I had gas or constipation, you always told me that I looked beautiful. I just wanted to thank you for all of that. You went above and beyond the call of duty with me."

"Please, being with you was the easy part," Chris told her with a laugh. "You're the one who has the baby inside of you, everything I did was a thank you to you."

"Okay, let's cut it out with the sap now, it's making me want to hurl."

They sat there in the sunlight waiting for Stephanie to be ready to go to the hospital. The time finally came and they calmly walked out to the car where Chris helped her inside before going inside and grabbing the things that she was going to need at the hospital. He made a quick call to the doctor who was already on her way there and they were off.

"You know," Stephanie said between contractions. "I don't think I'd ever want to give birth in our house."

"What made you think of that?"

"Oh, I was just thinking about home births, and I don't know, I would feel kind of gross and lazy if I gave birth to Sawyer in our bed. I know that some people say it's better or something, but no, I don't think I'd like that."

"You're so random," Chris laughed as he grabbed her hand.

The hours slipped by once Stephanie arrived at the hospital. The contractions started to come faster and faster. In between them though, Stephanie would go over documents that Chris had brought, and they would talk about the show next week, which had already been decided that Chris would attend and work at. Their lives couldn't just stop because of Sawyer, and Stephanie desperately wanted a hand in his work. Soon though, Stephanie's contractions were coming too fast to do any work and he felt his cell phone vibrating in his pocket.

He looked around for any personnel because he wasn't supposed to be on the phone, but they weren't around at the moment and he answered. "Hello."

"Chris, it's Linda, I'm down in the waiting area with your parents. Can we come up?"

Chris bit his lip, then turned away from Stephanie, "I'll be right down Linda."

"Okay." Chris turned to Stephanie, who was too engrossed in looking at her stomach to notice he was even on the phone. "I'll be right back, okay baby," Chris said as Stephanie nodded wordlessly, still recovering from her last painful contraction. She was almost completely dilated, but it was still a slow process. Chris knew the last thing that Stephanie needed right now was their parents sitting out there waiting for them.

Stephanie had expressed throughout her pregnancy that she did not want her parents or any of their friends at the hospital while she was giving birth. She just felt that she would feel very uncomfortable with all of those people around while she had her legs in stirrups, trying to push something big out of something pretty small.

Chris walked out of her birthing room and went downstairs into the waiting room where his mother said that they were waiting. He walked inside the room and his mother jumped from her seat, barely restraining a squeal as she hugged him tightly. She was probably more excited than Chris and Stephanie combined. Chris hugged her back tightly.

"How is she?" Loretta asked as she pulled away.

"She's doing great," Chris informed them. "The doctor says that everything is running smoothly, we're waiting for her to get fully dilated and then they said that it should go a lot quicker, and then you know, baby time."

"Exciting," Linda said.

"Yeah…except for one thing," Chris said, wondering how to breach this topic. He had put it off for nine months and now it was coming to kick him in the ass.

"What? Is everything okay?" Ted asked.

"Yeah, everything's fine, it's just…Stephanie doesn't want any of you here," Chris said gently. "Not that she doesn't love you all, cause she does, she just feels uncomfortable with all of you here and I want her to be as comfortable as possible."

"You're kidding right?" Linda asked. "She doesn't want any of us here?"

"I know, but she's having our kid, and it's my baby and I just want everything to go smoothly for Steph. And Steph doesn't want you guys here. There's plenty of things you can do. You can go back to our house and go check out the nursery and tell us that everything is wrong, or you know what's even better, you can go make like meals for like two weeks so we don't have to worry about it."

"She really doesn't want us here?" Linda asked, seeming to be the most offended of the three of them.

"Linda, I'm really sorry, but she really doesn't and it's about making her feel like she can do this and that means you can't be here," he said, digging into his pocket. "Here, these are the keys to the house, you guys know how to get there, please, just don't let her know you're here, it'll upset her, and she's currently going through pain."

"Ok," Ted said, being the rational one. "There's nothing we could do here anyways."

"Thanks Dad, I swear, as soon as Sawyer is born and everything is good, you guys can come and dote and do whatever you want."

Chris hugged them all goodbye before running back upstairs to be with Stephanie. She smiled wearily at him and he kissed her forehead. She was in a lot of pain and all she wanted to do was push, but she wasn't ready to do that yet. He swiped at her sweaty forehead and just sat there with her, not talking, just letting her know that he was there for her. He held her hand and rubbed the back of it softly.

"Talk to me," Stephanie said as another contraction subsided, "It might detract from the fact that I feel like pushing and can't."

"What do you want me to talk about?"

"Anything, just talk and make me laugh or something," Stephanie said.

"I remember the first time that we ever interacted," Chris said, holding her hand a little tighter. "You made me the co-IC champion and it pissed me off to no end. I was more than pissed off, I was ready to fight you. I disliked Chyna and I wanted nothing more than to kick your ass. I didn't, but that didn't stop me from insulting the hell out of you. But I still thought you were pretty, in a two cent whore kind of way."

"Gee thanks," Stephanie said as another contraction hit her and she closed her eyes in desperation, trying to block out the pain somehow.

Chris leaned his forehead against the side of her head and kissed her temple gently. "You're doing so well baby. Just picture me on the top of the Cell with my barbed wire 2x4 about to hit Hunter upside the head."

Stephanie choked out a laugh. "Don't make me laugh when I'm in labor."

"So I can make you frown?"

"Can you put on Raw for me, I want to watch some of it."

"Sure," Chris said, grabbing the remote and turning the television. One of the perks of being rich was the fact that they had their own personal suite with all the comforts of home. Stephanie had a special menu at her disposal after she gave birth, and satellite television. Chris flipped through the channels until he got to Raw.

"Okay, Umaga vs. someone I don't know. That's not too bad. That's nothing that I can't fix or anything. This is fine," Stephanie said, watching the television.

"Yeah, see, nothing to worry about." They watched the match together and after it they saw Vince with Candice in his lap and he was fondling her breast. Stephanie's jaw dropped as Chris fought the urge to turn it off immediately.

"Oh, this is rich, this is just SO rich," Stephanie said, pausing as a contraction came over her. She gritted her teeth and looked nothing more than angry as she waited for it to pass. Chris kept watching the television, not knowing what to do at this moment. Fight or flight, fight or flight…Stephanie took a deep breath and looked at the television again, "I can't believe him…you did call him right?"

"I called him directly to tell him you were in labor."

She laughed sarcastically, "That's just great, I'm in labor, my father KNOWS I'm in labor, and yet…there he is, making out with a woman younger than me. I'd hate to know what he'd be like if he didn't supposedly care about me. And there's my ex-husband. Oh, this doesn't get much better does it?"

"Steph, let's just turn it off."

"No, why should we? Two of my favorite people. I just love to watch my dad make out with other women that aren't my mom when he knows I'm in labor. I mean, he knows I'm in labor. He knows that I'm sitting here, pushing a person out of my body and yet he's there making out with someone," she said angrily, tears coming to her eyes, except these weren't tears of pain. These were tears of a much different kind.

Chris turned off the television and put the remote down, sitting next to her and taking her into his arms. "It'll be okay baby, shh, just forget about your father, he doesn't deserve you."

"Do I mean so little to him that he doesn't even think about me?" she asked pitifully. "Is that how little I mean to him?"

"Baby, don't try to rationalize your father's behavior. You'll never be able to figure him out."

"I just…I mean, I'm in labor!"

"I know," he said, kissing her temple and running his hand over her hair comfortingly. She had been sweating for a while so her hair was matted to her forehead and he pushed it away, kissing her along her jaw and then leaning in for a real kiss. "Just think about Sawyer okay, don't think about your father."

She nodded in agreement and sat back, trying to forget about how her father could still manage to hurt her even on what was supposed to be one of the happiest days of her life. Here she was, giving birth, giving Vince his third grandchild and he was off with Candice Michelle, who wasn't even pretty. Why couldn't her father just keep it in his pants every now and then? Dr. Sheldon came in and checked her out.

"Okay Stephanie, I know you've been waiting for this, and now it's time to push. Chris do you want to get behind her and help her?" Dr. Sheldon asked.

"Whatever you say Doc," Chris said, climbing into the bed behind her as Stephanie started to scoot down towards the edge of the bed so she was almost in a squatting position. Chris braced his hands on Stephanie's shoulders as she grunted uncomfortably. Chris leaned his chin on her shoulder. "Hey baby, everything is going to be alright, you're so close."

"This sucks," she told him. "Just keep talking to me, tell me anything…"

Chris looked up for a moment before going back to resting his chin on Stephanie's shoulder. "I don't remember the first time we met, but I remember the night that you were going to marry Test. You looked like a big marshmallow or something, like the Princess that you touted yourself to be. I thought you looked really beautiful, so different from when you were with Hunter. I mean, you just looked so innocently beautiful and I remember thinking, not even for that long, but for at least one second that Test was a lucky guy. Of course, I didn't know that you were a huge, raging bitch at the time, but for that moment, you were very wow."

"Okay Stephanie, this is how we're going to do this. We're going to push with every contraction, and we're only going to push as long as you can. According to your birthing method you're the one in charge, I'll tell you when you're going to have a contraction and you're the one who pushes when you need to, okay."

"Yeah, got it," Stephanie said with a strained smile.

"Okay, the first one you get to push with is coming up, so be ready."

Stephanie felt it, groaned and leaned forward, Chris helping her as best he could. He suddenly regretted being in here because everything was so…bloody and gross. Chris knew he was being a big baby, but there was just so much going on and he didn't know what his place was as Stephanie suddenly came back to rest against him.

"You're so awesome Steph," Chris said plainly. "You know, I don't why, but I always pictured you being very in control of situations like this."

She smiled a rather painful smile. "This is not pleasant."

Chris laughed softly. "But you're Stephanie McMahon, you can do anything."

"Damn straight," she told him. "I just never thought I'd be pushing a person out of my…"

Chris snickered. "When you told Hunter you were pregnant, the fake one, not this one, I…I don't know, I feared for the future of society thinking about the two of you spawning."

"Okay, another contraction Stephanie."

Stephanie nodded, gulped and pushed again when she was ready, Chris supporting her from behind. She let out a keening whine as she pushed, leaning forward and bearing down, working with herself to push this baby out of her body. The contraction ended and she leaned back again as Chris wiped her sweaty brow with a washcloth.

"Why did you come up to me?"

"Why did I come up to you when, baby?" he asked.

"After that handicap match, you and Kurt, Hunter, I came out, you cornered me, why?"

"I don't really know," Chris said. "Maybe to intimidate you, maybe to scare you, I'm not sure anymore. Probably because you were bugging the hell out of me and I wanted you out of my life for good."

"I was far from out of your life," she told him with a dry laugh, "I'm in your life forever now, forever and ever."

"I wouldn't want it any other way," he answered her.

"Okay Stephanie, another big one's coming and I think that he'll be starting to crown after this push." Stephanie bore down again, gritting her teeth and silently thinking that she was so grateful she had kicked her parents and Chris's parents out of the hospital. She was feeling really uncomfortable and just…well, to put it plainly, she felt weird. It was weird having something coming out of her. But Chris was right, she was Stephanie McMahon and she could do anything she wanted to.

The next contraction came quickly and she pushed down again, as much as she could, gathering strength as she thought about how she was a McMahon and if a McMahon set out do something, by God, they did it. She wasn't going to let this stop her. If she was going to show her mettle, now was the time.

"Your baby is starting to crown," the doctor said. "Chris would you like to see?"

Chris paused, "Um, sure."

He stood up from his spot behind Stephanie and went to look down at his child being born. It was certainly not a site that he was soon to forget. He hated to think this, but it was really, really disgusting. He knew it was supposed to be miraculous, but it was really, really gross, even though he could see the top of his kid's head.

Chris bit his lip and took his spot behind Stephanie, who was pushing again. He sat there for a moment, knowing that he did NOT want to see his baby being born from that angle anymore. He was perfectly content with watching the view from Stephanie's head. And yes, there was no view from Stephanie's head, not a very good one at least, and that suited him just fine.

"I hate to say this," Chris whispered in Stephanie's ear, "but that was gross."

Stephanie laughed, "Chris, stop! You're making me laugh."

"I'm sorry, but it was," Chris said, making a grossed out face. "It almost traumatized me to the point where our sex life could seriously be in trouble. And I'd hate for that to happen."

"Shut up Chris," Stephanie said. "I'm giving birth here!"

"Well, I know you're not going to go anywhere."

"Yeah I am," Stephanie told him, grunting from the pain as she took a moment to push again, the doctor telling her that she was a few big pushes away from being done. "I'm going to work after this, I called and made a reservation for a nine AM flight to Connecticut so I can work at Titan for the rest of the week and then go to Raw next Monday."

"Funny," Chris said.

"Okay Stephanie, just a couple more big pushes and you're going to have him out of you," the doctor informed her.

"Hey, at this rate, maybe you can make the eight o'clock fight," Chris joked. Stephanie gave him a strained smile. "You're doing really well by the way. I don't think that I can do what you're doing."

"Stephanie, you are doing so well, I don't think I've seen any other first-time mother do this as quickly as you are."

"She's a McMahon," Chris said proudly.

Stephanie just nodded and bit her lip, feeling too much pain to say anything at the moment. She was trying so hard that tears came to her eyes and Chris hated to see them. He couldn't imagine what she was going through, he only had outward pain that he had ever had to deal with, and though that had been bad, this had to be about five hundred times worse. He didn't say anything and just kissed her neck, letting her know that he was there with her.

She gave one last big push like her doctor instructed her and she felt an enormous weight just lifted from her suddenly in a gush of breath. She leaned back a moment, silence filling the room before she heard the high-pitched keening cry of a baby. She glanced to Chris whose jaw was to the floor in shock or amazement or something, and if Stephanie had enough strength to laugh, she would've right then. They put him on Stephanie's stomach and she gaped at him. She hated to say it, but she would rather they take him off because he was all bloody and gross.

"Chris, would you like to do the honors?" Dr. Sheldon asked, holding a pair of scissors.

Chris sat, stunned, for a moment before looking at Stephanie and the baby, making a little face that she laughed silently at. He got up, taking the scissors from the doctor. She showed him where to make the cut and he actually looked away while he did it, going quickly back over to Stephanie's side when he was through.

"Yeah, now I know why I could never be a doctor," Chris told her. "I just can't take all the gore."

"Chris, do you want to go with the nurses while they clean up the baby?" Dr. Sheldon asked as they led Sawyer to another part of the room.

Chris looked at Stephanie and she croaked out, "Go."

"Okay," Chris said, giving Stephanie a short kiss before following the nurses to go see his son. He glanced back at Stephanie every so often to make sure that she was doing okay with the afterbirth thing.

It was a short time later that Stephanie was transported back to her regular hospital room and she was just waiting for the arrival of her husband and son. That word buzzed in her brain. It was such a new thought that she'd have to take a little while to get used to it. She was just thinking about this when a nurse wheeled in a little carrier with something wrapped in blue inside of it. Chris followed behind, arching his eyebrows playfully.

"Hey there," Chris said, going over to his wife and giving her a kiss. "Miss me?"

"Not you exactly," Stephanie joked. "So, that's him huh?"

"Yeah, I figured you wouldn't want him in his bloody stage."

"I wouldn't have, thank you," Stephanie giggled. The nurse came over with a smile and put the baby into her arms. He was so tiny and felt as light as a feather in her arms. His eyes were closed but when he was put in Stephanie's arms, his eyes opened slowly, like he had just woken up. But as hard as Stephanie had worked today, it probably didn't compare to the actually being born part. "He definitely has your eyes."

"You think?" Chris asked, looking down at the little boy. "Hey there kid, give me my eyes back."

"Have you called our parents yet?" Stephanie asked, not taking her eyes off of Sawyer for one second.

"Not yet."

"You want to go do that?" Stephanie asked. "I think they'd want to see him before visiting hours are over."

"You sure?"

"Well, while you're gone, I can go over breast-feeding with you," the nurse interjected.

"See, I'll be busy, go ahead," Stephanie said, waving her hand towards the door.

"Okay, I'll be back then."

Chris walked out of the room, giving one last glance at the two of them as Stephanie listened to what the nurse had to say, nodding. He took the elevator down to the lobby and out the front doors since you couldn't use your cell phone in the hospital. He didn't question their decisions since they had just helped give birth to his son. He wondered which parent to call, but considering the fact that his parents refused to have a cell phone, Linda was the obvious choice.

"Hello?"

"Hey Linda, it's Chris."

"Is everything okay? How's Stephanie?" Linda asked, and he heard a certain fear in Linda's voice. He took pause, never hearing Linda sound so fearful before. He didn't realize he wasn't answering, "Chris, is she okay?"

Chris laughed to himself, softly, "Yeah, she's fine."

"Good, and the baby?"

"He's good too, they're both great, and if you guys want to come visit them, they'll be up for visitors."

"Really?"

"Yeah, so come over and you can see them for a little while."

"We'll be right over Chris," Linda said. "See you soon."

Stephanie watched as Sawyer sucked greedily at the bottle in his mouth. He was famished it seemed, but he had never eaten before like this so of course he was famished. The nurse said it would take a little bit before she could start breastfeeding him, so it was all bottles for now. Sawyer stared up at her as he drank the formula, making little sucking noises.

Stephanie gaped at him all bundled up in his blanket with a little hat on his head. This pink, little thing was hers. It belonged to her. She was going to bring it home with her and he was going to live there. It was like getting a new roommate, except this roommate was actually something she made. That was a weird concept too, she MADE this thing. It was nothing, and then it was something and now it was this…baby sitting in her arms looking all baby-like.

"You look shocked, I hope this was the outcome that you were expecting," Chris said as he walked back into the room from calling Vince. "I mean, we weren't going to have like a plant or something."

"He's ours," Stephanie said, making a face. "And it feels weird."

"Yeah, he is ours, I think we got a good price on him too, you know, the new models are pretty expensive, but we got a good deal on this one," Chris said. "We got him for a late model price."

Stephanie just rolled her eyes. "He's ugly."

"He must get that from your side," Chris said, but then looked down at his son as she took the bottle away from his mouth. "He's not ugly, he just hasn't gotten used to the outside world. I mean, if I was inside of someone beautiful like you for nine months and then was savagely torn away from you, I'd be pretty ugly too."

"Where are our parents?" she asked.

"On their way, you'll probably hear my mom coming from a mile away, so that should give you time to prepare for her arrival," he told her. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay, it hurts, and I feel really dirty and a little gross, but I mean, I just had a baby, I shouldn't feel like I just got done with a nice, relaxing shower. And I guess the outcome was worth it. I have a son…oh my God, Chris, we have a son!"

"Wait, what?" Chris joked. "This is horrible news!"

"You suck." She ran her finger down the bridge of Sawyer's nose. "I don't know how people say that a kid looks like one parent or the other when they're born. Neither of us looks like he looks."

"Well neither of us is eight pounds either," Chris said. "Let me hold him."

"Okay," Stephanie said, handing him over carefully to an obviously giddy Chris.

"Hey there kid," Chris said. "I'm Chris, I'm your dad. Did you know that I beat The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin in one night to become the FIRST ever Undisputed Champion? Yeah, I united the two belts, me, the first one to do so. I mean, it's a pretty big accomplishment and nobody thought that I could do it. Nobody had faith in me."

"You're boring him to death," Stephanie said.

"Well what are YOU going to tell him about? Your first husband?"

"Yes, the first thing I want him to know about is Hunter, that's the perfect way to abuse him hours after I've had him," Stephanie told him. "He's perfect, you know."

"Like father, like son," Chris said, shrugging his shoulders.

"No, I mean, he's untouched by the world, he doesn't know anything bad, he doesn't know hunger or poverty, or violence. He's perfect, he's the most innocent thing that exists at this moment."

"Enjoy it while it lasts kid," Chris said to his son. "He's quiet."

"He just ate is why he's quiet," Stephanie said. "He's digesting, and that probably feels weird because he's never even digested anything before. Can you believe that? He's never eaten before until a little while ago."

"Your mommy is a little bit crazy right now," Chris stage whispered. "She seems to be way in awe of you, to the point where she's creeping me out and I might have to slowly walk out of here to save you from her."

"I'm just…it's weird," Stephanie said, defending herself. "Don't you think it's weird?"

"What?"

"Having a baby now," Stephanie told him. "I mean, we have a baby now. WE have a child, US, Chris and Stephanie, Stephanie and Chris. I feel weird."

"You did just give birth."

"Not that kind of weird, just…weird, weird, like the universe has shifted weird. I think it's kind of like the first night we were really business partners, and we were all getting along and I thought that was very weird because you were still the same jackass you had always been, but now I liked that you were a jackass."

"Yeah, I guess that's an apt comparison," Chris said as he sat down next to Stephanie on the bed. "Is it wrong that I don't want to put him down though?"

"No, he's a baby, who wants to put a baby down…unless he's spitting up, or you know, has a dirty diaper, or is crying, or something like that, but other than that, no way."

The nurse walked in at that moment and both Chris and Stephanie looked up at her. "Mrs. Jericho, you have some visitors waiting outside, so I just wanted to come make sure that you were up for having visitors."

"Yeah, send them in," Stephanie said. "If I don't say its okay, they're liable to break down the door."

"Okay," the nurse laughed, "I'll send them right in."

"Okay kid, you're going to meet most of your grandparents in a few minutes, so let me tell you quickly about them. There's Grandma Linda and Grandpa Vince, those are Mommy's parents, although I don't think Grandpa Vince is going to be here because he's kind of a jerk, but you should know about him ahead of time anyways. Grandpa Vince may seem scary, but you're family, so he'll treat you slightly better than he treats other people, but that doesn't mean he'll hesitate to fire you, or disown you, that's just how Mommy's family is. Now my mom and dad are Grandma Loretta and Grandpa Ted, now your grandma is going to be a little on the crazy side, but that's only because she's been wanting me to have a kid for years and years and years, so really Sawyer, you're doing me a HUGE favor by being here, now I know you may be thinking that I'm going to owe you, but I think the entire, raising you, and stuff like that will be a good compensation."

"Yeah, I'd hate to think you owe our kid money," Stephanie said.

"Hey kid, did I mention we're rich, I don't want to brag, but it seems something that you should tell someone. So that's our financial situation, but if you want money, ask Grandpa Vince, he's loaded, he's got tons of money, so don't come to Mommy and me, go to him, but get on his good side first."

"Knock, knock."

Chris and Stephanie turned to see Linda at the door with his parents behind her. Stephanie sat up a little bit, wincing at the weird feeling. That had not been easy and she felt like she had exploded. Chris adjusted Sawyer in his arms as Stephanie waved them inside the room. They walked in gently, as if they were going to disturb Sawyer.

"He's not sleeping," Stephanie said, "So you can come inside if you want."

"Are you sure?"

"Am I sure he's not asleep?" Stephanie asked sarcastically, then looked down at her son. "Oh look, his eyes are open, he's awake."

They all walked over and Chris kind of held up the baby so they could all see. Linda came up on Stephanie's right side and took her hand, patting it companionably, but Stephanie could tell she was more preoccupied with Sawyer at the moment, and understandably so, she had put up with Stephanie for twenty-nine years, but Sawyer was brand new.

"What's his full name?" Loretta asked.

"Sawyer McMahon Jericho," Stephanie said. "We thought it only fitting that he have McMahon in there somewhere and what better place than a middle name?"

"So his middle name is McMahon?" Linda asked.

"Yeah, he IS a McMahon after all," Stephanie said haughtily.

"I love it," Ted said, glancing at Stephanie. "Strong, strong name."

"How are you feeling?" Linda asked gently to Stephanie as everyone was looking at the baby.

"Like I've been through three Hell in a Cell matches," Stephanie answered. "And I feel really, really dirty, but I haven't taken a bath or anything yet, I wanted to wait until you guys came to visit. So I probably look gross too."

"You just had a baby, you're allowed to look gross," Loretta inputted.

"Look at that handsome face," Linda said as she looked at Sawyer in Loretta's arms. "That's some strong McMahon blood in him."

"Getting a little cocky there, aren't we Linda?" Chris joked.

"Well, this is the heir to the throne."

"Don't put so many expectations on him," Chris kidded, "He's not even two hours old."

Loretta couldn't stop staring at him. "Oh my God, look at him. He's the cutest thing I've seen since Chris was a baby."

"But who's cuter Mom, you know it was me," Chris said, popping his collar. His mother didn't say anything and he gasped. "Come on Mom, you know it was me! Right! Right!"

"Aww, Sawyer's cuter," Stephanie teased. "But of course he is, he's my son too, and Lord knows I'm gorgeous."

"Can't dispute that," Chris said, winking at Stephanie. "But I still contend that I was cuter. Linda, you want to hold him?"

"Of course!" Linda said, walking to the other side and taking the baby from Loretta. "He's adorable. I can't believe I got two grandchildren within the span of a month. I'm going to be so busy."

"They'll keep you on your toes Mom."

"Hello there Sawyer, you are quite the handsome little boy if I do say so myself. Here Ted, you're the only one who hasn't gotten to hold him."

"No, you all go ahead," Ted said, "I've got plenty of time to hold him in the future."

"Come on Dad, you need to bond with your grandson," Chris urged. "You know you want to."

Ted laughed and let Linda pass him off. "Hello there, you do know you're going to play hockey like your old man and your old man's old man right?" Sawyer snuffled a little bit and closed his eyes. "I guess I just put him to sleep."

"Where's Daddy?" Stephanie asked quietly, and Linda looked into her daughter's eyes and knew that she had seen the show.

"What part did you see?"

"When Hunter came to talk to him," Stephanie said with a sad smile. "He's not here is he?"

"He couldn't make it, no," Linda said gently, running her hand over her daughter's head. "Sweetie, I'm sorry you had to see that, but you know how your father gets."

"How do you put up with him Mom, I'm at the end of my rope, seriously," Stephanie told her mother. "This is quite possibly the biggest day of my life and he's not here to share it with me. Do you know how many of my big moments he's missed?"

"Don't fret about it sweetie," Linda said. "You have a new baby now, focus on that. Your father will come around, he always does."

"Excuse me, but visiting hours are almost over," a nurse said as she walked into the room. "We generally like to keep visits short if it's not the spouse."

"Of course," Linda said, walking over to Stephanie and kissing her head. "Goodbye sweetie, congratulations."

"Thanks Mom, thanks Loretta, Ted for coming," Stephanie said as she took Sawyer back in her arms. Everyone said their goodbyes and left the little Jericho family in the room. Chris sat next to Stephanie on the bed and looked down at the two of them. "So when are you going to be leaving me?"

"Never."

"I meant tonight."

"Oh TONIGHT, whole different story. I'll probably stay until they take him away from you and put him in the nursery. Then I'll go and be here bright and early in the morning to pick up the family."

She rolled her eyes. "You going to be okay at home by yourself?"

"I'll manage," Chris said. "I won't like sleeping without you next to me, but I'll manage. I'm going to call the grandparents and see if they want to come over to our house and grab a bite to eat since it's late. Then I'll just head home."

"While I'm stuck here, thanks a lot."

"Hey, you need your rest, you look sleepy."

"I am sleepy," she confirmed. "I'm tired and weak and gross. But it was worth it, just like you said it would be."

"I'm always right," he said, leaning down to kiss her forehead. "Always right. Are you sure that you're going to be okay here though, I mean, with everything that happened with your dad…"

"I'll be fine Chris," Stephanie said with a smile. "Trust me…go now so you can catch up to our parents. I swear, I'll be fine, we'll be fine."

"I don't want to leave, that's weird isn't it?" Chris said, looking down at his son.

"No, it's sweet, but you really should head out."

"Okay, I love you so much, and thanks for giving birth to my son," Chris said impishly as he leaned over to give her a kiss. "And how you managed to do all that while still looking sexy, I'll never figure out."

"Gross," Stephanie laughed.

Chris leaned down to kiss Sawyer's forehead, "Okay kid, Daddy has to go for tonight, but I'll be back tomorrow to take you home, so don't forget me while I'm gone. Hell, who could forget me though? Anyways, thanks for being cute and not ugly, big help."

Chris gave Stephanie one more parting kiss before he left the room with one last glance. Stephanie settled into the bed and just looked down at her son. She ran her finger down his small jaw and he seemed to try and push her hand out of the way. She laughed and moved her hand away. She took the blanket off of him and studied his tiny feet.

"Cute feet," Stephanie said, "I wish I had feet like these, Mommy's got big feet."

"Mrs. Jericho, did you want us to take him for the night?" the nurse asked as she peeked her head in the door.

"I don't want him to go for the night, but you're going to take him from me eventually right?"

"I'm sorry, hospital policy, we just don't want you to feel uncomfortable. Last night of real sleep," she said lightly.

"I guess you can take him if you must," Stephanie sighed. The kind nurse came over and took the baby from her and she watched him go. As soon as he was gone it was like the fatigue took over her body in waves. She laid down, trying to get comfortable and fell into a deep sleep.

It was hours later when a dark figure entered the room and looked at the sleeping occupant. The man sat in the chair next to Stephanie's bed and watched her sleep. He didn't want to wake her up for fear that she wouldn't want to see him. He wouldn't blame her if she didn't want to see him. He knew it was late and he shouldn't come so late, but he needed to be here.

Stephanie stirred and turned her head, feeling some kind of presence in the room. She opened her eyes and squinted in the dark. She could just make out the man's face in the light coming from the hallway. She frowned and sighed. "What are you doing here?"

"Can't a man come see his daughter after she's had a baby?" Vince asked.

"Leave Dad," Stephanie said coldly, turning her head away. "Just leave."

"Stephanie, I would've been here sooner but--"

"But what Dad?" Stephanie asked harshly. "You were too busy feeling up Candice? Is that it? I mean, come on Dad, Candice, that's just wrong. At least go for someone whose voice isn't like nails on a chalkboard or whose face doesn't look smashed in by a frying pan."

"Stephanie, I didn't mean for you to see that."

"Oh, well that's awfully nice of you," Stephanie laughed sarcastically. "You knew I was in labor Dad, you knew I was in labor, and yet, there you were, sitting there, fondling Candice. Did you even stop and think, 'Hey, my daughter's having her first child and she's scared and might want her to know her father cares so I'm going to be there for her?'"

"I did think."

"No, you never do," she said, not raising her voice in the quiet of the hospital. "You never do think Dad and that's the problem. All I wanted was for this day to go smoothly. I wanted you here with Mom, and God, what are you doing to Mom?"

"Stephanie, I'm sorry okay. I'm sorry that I did what I did. I'm sorry I made you feel the way you felt."

"Sorry doesn't cut it this time Dad. I was having a BABY. You pretty much chose Candice Michelle over me and Sawyer. I could handle you choosing her over me, I've been there before, many times, Trish, Sable, I've been there before, but Sawyer, he's a baby, he's MY baby, and he didn't deserve this. Get out of here Vince, get out."

"Stephanie, please, don't do this," Vince pleaded.

"You chose a woman over your grandson," Stephanie said, eyes tearing up. "You chose Candice over Sawyer. I don't know how I'm ever, EVER going to forgive you for that. Get out of here before I call security to escort you out of here."

"Stephanie…"

"GET OUT!"

Vince complied with her, not wanting to cause a scene. He backed out of the room and felt like the Earth had dropped down under his feet. Stephanie was his little girl, she had always looked up to him. But he was stupid today. He should've known better, how did he not know better? She was right, she was so right. Stephanie sat in her room, willing the tears not to fall from her eyes. She grabbed the phone next to her and dialed home.

"Hello?" Chris answered groggily. "Whoever this is, do you know it's four o'clock in the morning?"

"Chris, it's me."

"Stephanie!" Chris asked, alarmed, sitting up in bed. "What's wrong? Is it Sawyer? Did they find something wrong with him? Please don't tell me that dream you had came true."

"Sweetie, can you please just come?" Stephanie asked sadly.

"Stephanie, you need to tell me what's wrong first?" Chris told her, his heart pounding a mile a minute. He had just left them a few hours ago and everything had been fine. They had told him his son was fine, but that was a few hours ago, maybe something had gone wrong. "Is Sawyer okay?"

"He's fine."

Chris breathed again, his chest loosening after having tightened in fear. "Then what is it baby?"

"My dad was here, he came here and it was horrible, I need you."

"I'm on my way," Chris said before she could even finish her next thought. He was true to his word as he arrived a short time later, walking into the room. He climbed into the bed with Stephanie and held her as she clung to him, but no tears fell. She wasn't going to cry because her father wasn't worth it and it was Sawyer's birthday, and she wasn't going to ruin that. She fell asleep in Chris's arms, where she felt safe.

**THE NEXT MORNING **

"Oh man, I never thought I'd be so happy to be home in my life, and I travel every week," Stephanie said as she saw their house out the front of the window as Chris pulled into the driveway. "I will be so happy to never have to be in a hospital again."

"You poor thing," Chris said, patting her leg as he parked the car. "Well, we're all home. Should we commemorate this moment with something?"

"No, I don't think so," Stephanie said as she got out of the car and went around to the backseat to get Sawyer out of the car. "Get our bags please."

"Yeah, cause I'm just the courier around here," Chris said, grabbing the bags.

"Well, I find it appropriate that the woman who gave birth to the child should be the one to ceremoniously bring him into the house. And then ceremoniously put him in his nursery and then ceremoniously take an actual bath, and then ceremoniously go into our bed and sleep for a few hours while my loving husband takes care of things around the house."

"You were never known for your subtlety, you know that. I think that's one of your weakest features," Chris pointed out.

Neither one of them was going to ruin this day by dwelling over her father's visit last night. Her father was going to bear no weight on her mind. Today was the day she got to bring her son home for the first time. It was the day that they officially became a family of three instead of two and she wasn't going to let her horny-ass father get in the way of that.

Stephanie rolled her eyes and un-strapped Sawyer from his car-seat. He was still so tiny in her arms that she felt like she could break him in two if she wasn't careful. He was just so little and fragile and had so much to learn. Geez, when had she turned into some blathering idiot? She needed to keep her perspective on this. Chris walked over to them and looked down at his son.

"He looks like an enchilada or something all wrapped up in that blanket," Chris joked.

Stephanie looked at him. "You're so weird."

"I just tell it like it is," Chris shrugged, jogging up to the front door and opening it up. The house was quiet since Trish and Kurt weren't coming in until tomorrow. They had planned it that way so Stephanie would have a little time to settle in before being bombarded with people. "It's too quiet, I'm not used to this."

"You'll get to meet everyone tomorrow Sawyer, then you really get to experience what it's like living in the fun house."

Stephanie walked upstairs towards the nursery that was waiting for Sawyer. Since she was going to try and get some sleep, she put Sawyer in his own nursery, even though they had a bassinet set up in their room for him during the night. She laid him softly on his back, careful not to jostle him awake since he had just fallen asleep. She touched his hand for a second, this tiny, tiny, little hand.

"Okay, while he's sleeping, I'm going to take a bath and take a nap, do you think that you can handle everything around here?" Stephanie asked, turning to her husband.

"Yeah, I think I can handle it. What if he wakes up?"

"Then just bring him to me I guess, because he'd probably be hungry," Stephanie said. "I haven't had time to actually get formula or anything, and since I'm the one feeding him, I think that you should just bring him to me."

"Okay, do you want me to help with your bath or anything?" Chris asked nicely. She had just given birth to his child after all, the least he could do was offer to do some things for her.

"Nah, I can handle it," Stephanie said with a smile. She leaned up and kissed Chris. "I love you."

"That's good, I was afraid you'd hate me for getting you pregnant and then the entire labor thing, I was thinking you might hate me for a few weeks because you had to go through such excruciating pain because of me."

"Oh yeah, I do hate you, but I've become good at hiding it," Stephanie said with a cute smile. "When you've hated someone for years, it's easy to hide it."

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?"

"That I'm going to go take a bath," Stephanie said as she turned on the baby monitor and grabbed the other tossing it to Chris. "I'll see you in a while."

"Okay, I have some band stuff to do anyways, so I'll be in my office."

"Okay," Stephanie said as they both walked out of the room. They both took a glance backwards, and Stephanie giggled. "He's really here huh?"

"Yeah," Chris said, giving her a lopsided grin. "Yeah…"

"Okay, I don't want to wake him up," Stephanie laughed softly. She leaned over to give Chris a peck on the lips. "I'll see you in a while."

"Yup," he said, giving one more glance back into his son's room and then closing the door a little bit to give him some peace and quiet. Chris watched Stephanie walk into their bedroom, closing the door softly behind her. He leaned against the door a moment, thinking about how they were a family now. How he had a family now. It was a strange thought to say the least.

He finally pushed himself off of the wall and went into his office, hearing the bathtub turn on just as he walked through the doorway. He sat down at his desk, intending to get some work done, but it was hard with his son just down the hallway sleeping. His son was really, finally, and truly here and Chris wanted nothing more than to just spend all his time with him, but he was sleeping and he needed his sleep. He suddenly thought about how he'd have to get some pictures of Sawyer so he could put some on his desk.

He forced himself to actually get some work done, getting involved in what he was doing, he kind of tuned everything else out. He didn't hear when the bathtub was turned off or anything. His typing was the only sound that he could hear now, and it was probably the quietest it had been in months, what with Kurt and Trish living there now, although they were both moving out soon. He wondered how Trish and Kurt were going to survive as roommates since they were going to be sharing a house a couple of blocks away, definitely walking distance, which was nice. It would be good to have friends close by.

He was so engrossed in his work that it took him a second to realize that his son was crying and he was hearing it through the baby monitor. He shook himself out of his haze and stood up, wanting to get Sawyer before Stephanie heard them. She had worked so hard giving birth and he wanted to just give her a little time to rest. He walked quickly to his son's nursery and walked over to the crib, looking down. The baby was crying, his face scrunched up but dry because babies didn't cry actual tears right after they were born. Chris bent down and gently picked up his son, holding him snugly in his arms, supporting his head.

He rocked him back and forth a little bit, looking down at him. "Hey kid, what's up?"

Sawyer looked up at him curiously, still crying. Chris checked to see if he needed a diaper change, but he didn't, and he had eaten just before they had come home, so he probably wasn't hungry. Maybe he was just cranky. He walked out of the nursery with him and walked downstairs away from where Stephanie might be sleeping. She needed her rest after what she had been through.

"So I guess now's as good a time as any to show you around the joint," Chris told his son whose crying had died down. "You probably won't remember any of this, but it never hurts to start getting acquainted with the place. Well, right now, we're at the bottom of the stairs, nothing much to see here, um, that's the front door over there, you probably won't be using that by yourself for a while so no biggie."

Chris walked through the foyer and down a short hallway, "Okay, that's the laundry room, you probably won't be using that place either for a while, although I'm sure you'll be contributing a lot of the laundry. The door on your right, that would be right here, that goes to the garage, it's very boring in there. And here's a room you'll become acquainted with…"

Chris pushed open the door at the end of the hallway and entered Stephanie's office. "This is Mommy's office, where she does all of her work." He pointed to the title belt with his free hand. "That's Mommy's Women's title belt, she didn't exactly win it on her own or anything, but she was the champion. I'm sure you'll be in here a lot so you better get used to it. I had this room built for Mommy about a year and a half ago, way before you. Okay, so that's this hallway."

Chris walked out of the room, closing it gently behind him and then walked down the hallway and hung a right, walking down another short hallway and down a couple of steps to the family room. "Okay, this is the family room, this is where we all usually hang out, notice the awesome entertainment center that set me and Mommy back quite a bit of money. But I'm sure you'll enjoy it too, kids like videos and stuff like that." Chris walked over to the fireplace and the mantle, holding Sawyer up a little bit. "These are our pictures, don't be surprised to find many of you finding their way up here. Most of these are of me and Mommy, cause we're vain like that."

Chris looked down and saw that Sawyer had fallen asleep. He walked carefully over to the couch and sat down, still cradling his son in his arms. He just studied the little face, reposed in sleep. He had the cutest chubby cheeks and a sampling of soft, blond hair on his head. Chris took one of his tiny hands and looked at it, the nail of his pinky finger was practically just a dot. This was his son and Chris was just in awe of the entire thing, that he now had a child. He was someone's father now; he had to be responsible for someone else. He was barely able to be responsible for himself. He had gotten used to Stephanie pretty quickly because Stephanie was as self-sufficient as they came. But Sawyer was going to need him for so many things.

"I can't stop thinking about him."

Chris looked up at and saw Stephanie in the doorway. Her damp hair fell over her shoulders and her face was free of makeup. Her eyes looked tired, but they were also shining with a light he had never quite seen in them before. She had changed into a pair of her pajama pants and one of his t-shirts. Instead of the t-shirt being taut like it had in the recent past it hung down over her now rather flat stomach. He smiled at her before glancing down at Sawyer.

"You're supposed to be sleeping," Chris told her.

"I know, but every time I closed my eyes, I saw him, and then I just couldn't stop thinking about him."

"But you need your sleep."

"I know, but come on, he's too cute," Stephanie said walking over and sitting down gingerly. "Ugh, I don't know if I'll feel normal again."

"You will."

"I know, I just wish I knew when that day would come," Stephanie said. "As for right now, I'm a little uncomfortable. Nothing I can't work through of course, but yeah, I suddenly have a deeper respect for my mother."

Chris laughed, "So do I, because seriously Steph, you did not see what was going on down there, it was frightening."

Stephanie giggled and covered her mouth so that she wouldn't wake up Sawyer. "Well if it looked anything like it felt, then I can imagine that it looked gross. It was worth it though, I can live with a little bit of pain for a while if I can look at that cute face."

"Why, thank you," Chris said, running his hand over his face. "I do try to keep my appearances up, I'm glad you noticed."

"Yeah, I wasn't talking about you, but I did notice that you shaved for me this morning," Stephanie said, running her hand down his cheek. "You know I love when you shave."

"I know," Chris smiled impishly. "Do you want to hold him?"

"He looks pretty comfortable in your arms," Stephanie said, scooting closer to Chris and laying her head on his shoulder, yawning, her mouth opening wide. "You can hold him."

"You look so tired baby, why don't you at least try to sleep?"

"Bring him up?" she asked, gazing up at him. "We can all take a nap."

"If that'll help you sleep."

"It will," Stephanie nodded eagerly.

She got off the couch and Chris followed, being careful not to jostle his son and wake him up. He followed Stephanie upstairs and down the hallway to their bedroom. Stephanie climbed on the bed and laid herself out on top of the covers. Chris carefully set Sawyer down on his back in the middle of the bed before walking into his closet to change into something a little bit more comfortable. He came back out in pajama pants and a t-shirt.

He walked over to bed and picked Sawyer up carefully and set him closer to the head of the bed, right next to Stephanie's head. He climbed onto the bed gingerly, being mindful of the sleeping baby. He turned on his side and watched his son sleep for a few moments. His hands were clenched in tiny little fists, and his head nodded off to one side.

"Look at him," Stephanie whispered, "look at those fingers."

Chris took one his hands and opened it up; he held it against his own, the tiny hand being dwarfed by his father's. "I wonder what everyone is going to think of him."

"They'll love him," Stephanie said. "How could you not? He's so little and cute and he has your eyes, they're going to be so blue, I can tell already. Just like yours. He'll be a little Chris Jericho, and then he'll end up being a wrestler and he'll show you up and he'll be a 50-time WWE champion. Actually, no, he'll be a one time champion and then he'll hold the title for twenty years."

"Geez, those are a little lofty for the boy aren't they?"

"He can fulfill them, he's a McMahon AND a Jericho, super genes I tell you, super genes."

"Okay, well I'll tell him what you have planned for him, I don't know if he's going to like them all, but he's your son, he'll probably want to rule the world."

"Yeah, and have your ego," she whispered, sticking her tongue out at him.

"I love you, you know."

"Well what a novel concept," she said sarcastically. "I never would've guessed."

"Shut up," he said good-naturedly.

"I should hope you love me," she told him. "Or else I just went through seven hours of labor for absolutely nothing. Seven hours Chris."

"Yeah, but it could've been a lot more, you know Dr. Sheldon said you had a fairly easy first labor, especially since Sawyer was your first. You were a champ in there."

"Like you said, I'm a McMahon, I was going to push him the hell out of me if my life depended on it."

"And you did a great job."

"He's pretty handsome isn't he?" Stephanie said. "I mean, he's a baby, we have a baby, I never thought I'd have a baby, let alone with you. If someone had told me five years ago that I would have a son with Chris Jericho, I would have slit their throat for making that comment."

"It's good to know that you would've rather killed someone than have a child with me," Chris answered.

"Oh come on, you know the idea of us was preposterous back then. I hated your stinking guts. I would've rather done anything in the world than kiss you. I mean, obviously you were the one who wanted me because you were the one to kiss me twice and the one to come out and talk to me when I broke up with Hunter. Obviously you were the one who was pining for me and not the other way around."

"Hey lady, I was NOT pining for you. I thought you were a two-cent whore. In fact, I really should be questioning who Sawyer's father is, because knowing you, it could be anybody in the backstage area."

"Oh yeah, because I've always been such a slut," she said, rolling her eyes. "I was and am completely faithful. It was the other guys who wanted to get with me, right Chris, you were the one who kissed me first."

"You kissed me back if I recall."

"I was holding on for dear life," she countered, winking. "I didn't give you enough credit though. I guess I couldn't see the good guy you were under that assholish façade you put for me. Since you hated me and all."

"I did hate you," he said affectionately, "but I wouldn't have traded that back for anything. I mean, think about it, what if I hadn't teased you and harassed you?"

"Well, I wouldn't have gotten a pie in the face, and I wouldn't have had my breast implants pointed out for the world…" She looked at Chris and smiled softly, "And I wouldn't have a great husband, an adorable son, and a life so perfect that it makes me want to vomit."

Chris chuckled. "I just wore you down so much that you had to be with me."

"Is that what that was? You wearing me down?"

"Yeah, I just kept chipping away at your hatred for me until you finally couldn't resist me."

"Yeah, you did wear me down now that I think about it," Stephanie laughed quietly. "You wore me down so much that I wanted to rip your clothes off."

"Hey, such language around the kid," Chris said.

"Oh, he doesn't know what we're talking about anyways," Stephanie said. "He doesn't know that I want to ride his Daddy like a cowgirl at the rodeo."

"Stephanie, what are you doing to me?" Chris asked. "You know that we can't have sex for the next six weeks at least and you're trying to get me aroused."

"I can't help it," she pouted. "It's because we didn't stop having sex while I was pregnant. Now I'm expected to go cold turkey when my husband is the hottest guy on the planet. It's almost unfair. If I didn't have Sawyer to show for it, I might go crazy."

Chris reached over and tucked her hair behind her ear. "Well, think of how good it'll be when can have sex again."

She smiled and giggled softly before training her eyes to the sleeping baby. "I can't believe he's really here." She stared in awe at him as she laid her head down right next to his tiny body. She reached her hand up, holding his hand in her own before putting it down on the bed again, leaving her index finger in the palm of her son's hand. She just wanted to feel him, to know that he was there while she slept. Chris watched as she closed her eyes, fatigue taking over her tired limbs. Her breathing evened out and she fell into a peaceful sleep.

Chris was enraptured by the sight in front of him. In all of his thirty-five years, he never thought he'd be here. Sure, he had thought of the future, had thought about "the whole package." But he didn't realistically think that he'd get it all. He was content with just wrestling, he was happy to just have a successful career. Marriage and family could come after that or not at all. Before all of this, he would've been glad to have lived a bachelor's life, flitting from woman to woman and never settling down. That was the life he had been living until he was thirty-one, and he was perfectly happy with what he had.

But looking down at his wife and his son, his _son, _it was just…how could he have thought this wasn't what he wanted? He was on top of the world at the moment. He was in heaven, cloud nine, whatever other cliché he could think of to describe perfect, it ran through his mind. He wasn't the kind of guy who fell into the sappiness of situations like this, but it was surreal just to be here with a baby. His baby with Stephanie. It was mind-boggling sometimes to think of the fact that he had a baby with Stephanie.

At some point and time, Chris fell asleep too. They all lay there, the perfect little family. Of course, the silence was broken by the wailing of a new baby. Stephanie was startled out of her slumber and sat up, looking at the clock. She had been asleep for about three hours and she stared around confusedly before remembering that she actually had a baby. She looked down at Sawyer, who was screaming his presence. Stephanie yawned and picked him up gently. She held him in her arms a second.

"Hmm, I think someone could use a diaper change and some food," Stephanie whispered to the baby. She brought him out of the room so that he wouldn't wake up Chris and brought him to his nursery. "So is this what I have to look forward to for the next few months? Let's hope you aren't a cranky baby. Me and Daddy don't really want a cranky baby and we might want to trade you in if you're cranky."

Sawyer calmed down and Stephanie had to laugh a little at that. Maybe he took to threats well. She changed her very first diaper on her son and even though it was a very mundane and kind of gross task, it was still a first. After she fastened the diaper on him and snapped his one-sie back in place, she sat down in the rocking chair in the room and pulled up her shirt so that she could feed him.

"So I'm your Mom," Stephanie said as he started to eat. "I mean, you probably knew that, but I just wanted to let you know again, just in case you forgot. I'm twenty-nine, and you might think that's old, but I didn't even want kids until later on in my life. See, I'm very work-driven, I run Raw, which Daddy and I talked to you about when you were inside of me. Grandpa Vince owns WWE, which is a wrestling company and I run Raw, well, I will once you can travel, let's hope that's soon, okay baby, anyways, Daddy's running Raw right now, much to my dismay because I don't want Daddy to screw up, not that I think that he will, but well, I trust myself more.

Like I was saying, I didn't want kids until later. But then you kind of sprung yourself on me. Not that, that was a bad thing Sawyer, because I like you, you seem like a good kid. But see, Daddy and I, we were going to focus on our careers, and a baby would not help that process. So you see why we wouldn't want kids. But don't get us wrong, we love you and we want you here very much, so don't get all insecure or anything. You should probably know that I hated Daddy for a couple years. You're bound to hear about it, so I might as well let you know now that we did hate each other and I did want to watch your Daddy bleed and get hurt. I know, I know, but it wasn't my fault really. I was married before baby, and you're definitely going to find out about that, unfortunately. In fact, you're probably going to meet the man I was married to. He's a jerk, a really big jerk, and you're going to question Mommy's good judgment when you meet him, but I was young when I married him, and I remedied the situation, by telling him I was pregnant, ironically.

So your Daddy and I didn't really like each other when we first met, but that's because he thought that I was a hooker. Can you believe that baby? Daddy thought that I looked like a hooker. Well, of course, he had to pay. I couldn't just let something like that go, you know? So I did what I had to do, I put him in a handicap match. It wasn't even a hard match, but he decided to hate me after that. Now he DID apologize, but it didn't seem sincere to me, and he thought I was a hooker! Mommy didn't like that. Anyways, this went on for a couple of years, even though Daddy kissed me TWICE, and then pretended like it was nothing, but why would he kiss me in the first place right? Yeah, that's what I think too. But then something miraculous happened; he wanted to be my business partner.

That's when I fell for Daddy, baby. He's a good man your Daddy. We're really lucky to have him. Especially you, because he's going to be a great Daddy. My Daddy is kind of a jerk. You'll find that out too, oh you'll definitely find that out. That's why you getting someone like your Daddy makes me totally jealous. I don't know why I fell for Daddy…I guess he was just such a good man I couldn't help myself."

Sawyer pulled away from her and she pulled her shirt down and cradled him in her arms, watching him as he squinted up at her. She smiled down at him and brought him up to her shoulder get all the air bubbles out of his tummy. When he seemed satisfied, she went back to cradling him in her arms. He fell asleep again and she set him in his crib to sleep so he wouldn't be disturbed by her. She kissed her fingertips and touched it to his soft cheek before leaving the room.

The rest of the day and evening was much of the same, Chris and Stephanie being completely enchanted by the new baby, and Sawyer demanding to be fed and changed. It was a weird routine, but they just had to get used to it before it felt comfortable. The night wasn't difficult the first time, but they didn't know how it would feel as a regular occurrence. Stephanie and Chris were night owls by nature, but Sawyer could cry at any moment. They did survive the first night and the next morning, they were up early and in the living room, Stephanie holding Sawyer while Chris made her breakfast.

Stephanie heard the front door open and then Trish's voice cut through the house, "Hello!"

"In here!" Stephanie yelled back, hoping that it didn't bother Sawyer, but he didn't seem bothered as he grasped at Stephanie's finger. Trish walked through the house, Kurt taking the liberty of bringing their bags upstairs before he went and saw the baby, since Trish couldn't carry her bags with her shoulder injury. Trish walked into the living room and she grinned widely as she regarded Stephanie.

"Holy crap, is that him?" Trish asked as she practically bounced into the living room. She was rocking back on her heels now, a squeal just waiting to be purged from her lips.

"No Trish, this is just a baby I picked up on the side of the road," Stephanie said as she held Sawyer snugly in her arms. "Of course this is him!"

"Oh my God, oh my God," Trish said, finally letting that squeal out as she had been holding in.

"Trish, you can come closer," Stephanie laughed as Trish seemed almost rooted to the spot in the doorway.

"I know, I just, no, I know," Trish said as she started walking over tentatively. She looked down at the baby as she got closer and then let herself sink into the couch next to Stephanie, tucking her leg underneath her as she observed the little boy. "Oh God Steph, he's beautiful."

"I know," Stephanie said, gritting her teeth so she wouldn't start squealing too. It was nice to share Sawyer with Chris, but Chris wasn't a woman, a girl, he couldn't understand some of the more squeal type moments. Stephanie just grinned and stared. Trish did the same, enraptured by the tiny little baby in front of her.

"No Steph, he's absolutely beautiful," Trish said in awe. "He's…perfect. Wow."

"You want to hold him?"

"I don't know, what with the…" She gestured towards her arm, which was in a sling.

"How is that by the way?"

"It hurt so much when they popped it back into place," Trish said and Stephanie winced. "Oh God, look at me complaining about a little dislocated shoulder injury when you're like two days removed from giving birth."

"An injury is an injury Trish," Stephanie laughed. "We don't have to compare pain. You can hold him in your good arm."

"I don't know Steph, I don't want to drop your baby," Trish replied uneasily.

"Don't you want to…" Stephanie said, trying to sound enticing. Trish finally broke, and grinned.

"Yes!" Trish said excitedly. Stephanie handed him over carefully, Trish taking him into her arm with the utmost care and reverence for the moment. She looked down, seeing two bright, blue eyes staring back at her.

"He has Chris's eyes."

"I know, he's so lucky," Stephanie responded.

"Hey there Sawyer, I'm Auntie Trish. I've seen all your pictures and movies, and I'm so happy to finally be able to meet you," she told him. "You are so lucky, you know that. You have two of the coolest parents in the world. And if they ever get too crazy for you, I'll always be here, and let's face it, they're going to get a little crazy."

"I should be offended," Stephanie said, "but I'm so happy that I really can't be all too offended."

"So…how was it?" Trish asked squeamishly. "Did it hurt like really, really bad?"

"Well, not as bad as I thought it was going to be actually," Stephanie told her. "I think that's because of all the techniques I learned in my birthing class, but let me tell you, it was unpleasant. I mean, feeling someone coming out of…there, it was just…Chris almost fainted though!"

"No! Mr. Tough Guy Chris Jericho almost fainted?" Trish asked excitedly. "That, I would've loved to have seen."

"Well, Sawyer was crowning right, and my doctor asked if Chris wanted to see, and being Chris and being the supportive, wanting to be there for me kind of husband, said that he would, so he went and looked and his face. Oh, I'll never forget his face. It was hilarious. He looked as though he were going to keel over right then."

Trish laughed. "Oh, that must've been a trip. But everything went well right? There were no complications?"

"Nope, not a one," Stephanie. "I didn't even tear, which my doctor says will help speed up the healing process."

"Hey, is it okay to come inside?" Kurt asked as he walked into the room with Chris trailing behind him. "Hey Steph."

"Hi Kurt," Stephanie said, standing up and walking over to him for a hug.

"Wow, I can get my arms around you again," Kurt said, hugging her tightly, but being mindful of the fact that she was probably still sore. He had a lot of siblings, who had a lot of kids, he knew exactly what to do in this kind of situation. "So let me meet this kid of yours already. I need to see the spawn of Jericho and Stephanie, this should be a trip."

Stephanie pulled away and looked at him concerned though. "How are you though? I heard about what happened and you're hurt, are you going to be staying with Ashley since she's hurt too?"

"I'm going to be staying here for now," Kurt said, patting his taped up rib gently. "But this isn't about me, tell me about this baby of yours."

"He's right there," Stephanie said, pointing to where Trish was sitting, cooing at the baby. "Go over and see him if you want."

"You think I'm going to pass up a chance to see your kid, especially since I live here and it would be pretty hard to just ignore him?" Kurt walked over and sat down next to Trish. Trish looked up at him and asked him wordlessly if he wanted to hold the baby. Kurt nodded eagerly and Trish handed him off gently. "Hey there Sawyer, Kurt here, I'm your mom and dad's best friend, and they wouldn't even have been together if it weren't for me, just letting you know so that when you choose a favorite person, a…hero of sorts, that you realize that you wouldn't be here if it weren't for me."

"Starting the campaigning a little early, aren't we Angle?" Chris asked. "Not to mention, if the kid is going to be looking up to anyone, it's going to be me."

"Yeah right, YOU? Everyone knows that I'm a better wrestler out of the two of us."

"He's my son," Chris argued.

"He should learn from the better guy," Kurt countered.

"Okay, please stop arguing over who is going to teach him how to wrestle," Stephanie said as Sawyer started whimpering. She took him from Kurt's arms and cradled him against her body. "You can both teach him, that way, he'll be better than the both of you."

"Well I don't know if I want that," Kurt said with a laugh.

"So how did the show go without me?" Stephanie asked, then looking at Chris, "and Chris too of course. I mean, how I know that the Spirit Squad was in charge, how did that go?"

"Oh my God Steph, you should've heard Joey go off on everyone. He gave a speech for the ages, you would've been agreeing left and right. He ripped into your dad, it was pretty awesome. And Mickie had a match and I screwed it up for her. And Hunter and Shawn, they were like looking at each other and I was like thinking they should just kiss and get it over with. It was a disaster, it needed you."

"You're too sweet," Stephanie said, knowing that Trish was trying to make her feel better and wanted. "Hey, have you talked to my brother recently? I haven't gotten to speak to him since I had Sawyer. I don't even know if he knows I went into labor."

"Yeah, I talked to him. I told him that you went into labor and everything," Trish shrugged. "He sends his love by the way. He would've come, but you know, he has little J, and he can't exactly make the trip."

"It's strange thinking that my brother has a new baby too," Stephanie said, gazing down at Sawyer, who was now fast asleep. "He likes sleeping, and eating, and the making a messy diaper."

"That's generally what babies do Steph," Kurt said. "So as a gift from me and Trish, we're going to cook dinner tonight while you two just sit back and relax. Kind of as a present, or because you know, we live here and we feel bad."

"Thanks," Stephanie said. "I'm not about to turn down a meal I had nothing to do with and don't have to pay for. I'm going to bring him upstairs and put him in his crib. I'll be back down."

"Need help?" Chris asked.

"I got it," Stephanie said, bringing her little boy upstairs and into his room. She set him down in his crib before he woke up from all the moving around. He breathed quietly, his small chest rising and falling rhythmically. Two days old and he was already charming her to the point of distraction. She rubbed his tummy gently and then grabbed the baby monitor before leaving the room and leaving her son to sweet dreams. She went into her bedroom and flopped down on the bed, wincing a little bit. She placed her hands on her stomach, something that had become a habit and it was strange to think there was no more baby in there.

She stood up and took off her shirt and pants, going into the walk-in closet in just her bra and panties and stood in front of the full-length mirror. She examined herself from all sides, trying to decide if she would ever look the same again. She pressed both her hands to her stomach, which was still chubby from the baby, and would be for a while. Her breasts looked absolutely huge, and she was glad that she would still be able to breastfeed despite the implants. But her breasts were quite large now.

"Damn, you are sexy," Chris said as he leaned in the doorway watching his wife.

She jumped a little. "I didn't see you there."

"How could you with all the hotness radiating off of you," Chris said, walking closer. He wrapped his arms around Stephanie, something he hadn't been able to do recently and held her close. Her skin was warm against his arms and he leaned his chin on her shoulder. "What are you doing?"

"Just checking out what's left of me," Stephanie informed him.

"You look so freaking sexy right now," Chris told her. "I don't know how the doctors expect me to keep my hands off of you for six weeks when I want to do you two days after you gave birth."

"I don't look good," she said, trying to turn herself away from the mirror. "I've got some stretch marks, and my stomach is all flabby and so are my legs. Plus I'm sore down there, and just generally, I look ugly."

Chris scoffed loudly. "On what planet? You're gorgeous."

"You're just saying that because I'm your wife and I just gave birth to your son so you feel obligated to think that."

"No, I'm really not," he said, turning them so they were facing the mirror again. Chris looked into her eyes through the reflective surface. "Look at you Steph, I mean, really, look at yourself. You're so beautiful that sometimes it boggles my mind how someone so beautiful could come from someone like Vince McMahon."

She smiled and ducked her head. "You're a jerk."

"And you could gain a thousand pounds and I would still think you were beautiful because I love you…but please, don't gain a thousand pounds okay, I don't want to buy a forklift."

"So you still love me even now?"

"Even now? Are you kidding me? I think I love you more because I saw what was going on down there while you were giving birth. Any woman who is willing to go through that for ME, well, they're a keeper."

"I love you," she told him, turning her head to kiss his jaw.

"I love you too," Chris said seriously, dropping the comedy routine. Then he kissed her cheek. "Plus, I think your boobs look hot. I can't help but love me some…"

"Chris!" Stephanie laughed as Chris's hands snaked up her ribcage. He was about to turn her around and kiss her deeply when they heard a crying from the baby monitor. Chris shrugged and pulled away from her, intending to go check on his son.

A new phase of their lives had begun.


	87. The Start of the Rest, May 8, 2006

A/N: Thanks for all the great reviews last week, I loved each and every one of them. I'm glad you like where the story is going and if you want to make suggestions, feel free to do that. In the meantime, enjoy this chapter and please review. :)

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"Hey, thanks for being up so you could see me off."

"He's just happy to see his daddy leaving so that he can have me all to himself, isn't that right baby boy?" Stephanie said from the sink where she was washing some bottles. Sawyer was on the kitchen table in his carrier, squinting up at Chris who was hovering over him.

"What?" Chris asked indignantly. "You think that you're going to get her all to yourself. Well listen up kid, she's mine too, so you're just going to have to share." Sawyer just brought his right hand up to his mouth and started chewing on it. "Eww, you're going to get spit all over your hands, you're disgusting."

"My baby isn't disgusting."

"He is, I saw what you put in that diaper last night," Chris said, shaking his head. "You think you're fooling everyone with this cutesy act, but I'm on to you Sawyer Jericho. I know that behind that cute façade is an evil genius."

Sawyer kept chewing on his hand and kicking his legs jerkily. Chris grabbed one of his feet and wiggled it around. "What are you doing to him? Are you abusing my baby?"

"No, he's kicking his socks right off his body," Chris said, adjusting the sock on his son's foot. "Don't kick off your socks, your feet are going to get cold."

"I don't think he cares," Stephanie said as she looked over at him. "You don't care, do you baby?"

"Are you sure that you're going to be okay taking care of him while I'm gone?" Chris asked, not taking his eyes off of his son. The past week had been a trip for both Stephanie and Chris. Just getting used to having a baby was something crazy in and of itself. Sawyer was a good baby, for the most part. He didn't really do much so they couldn't really form much of an opinion. But being with him was just crazy fun too. For such a small baby, he already had a distinct personality.

"Yeah, we'll be fine," Stephanie told him, but she sounded a little sad.

Chris poked Sawyer gently in the tummy before walking over to Stephanie and grabbing her chin and turning her face towards him. "What's wrong?"

"I'm just a little sad, nothing big," Stephanie told him. "I mean, you get to go to Raw, and I don't, and it's just…it's nothing Chris, I just miss work is all."

"I know you do," he said, leaning forward to kissing her cheek, letting his lips linger against her skin, warming her up. She turned her head slightly capture his lips, making it a real kiss and she snuck her tongue into his mouth before he pulled away. His eyes were dark and she knew that he wanted her. "I'm going to miss you."

"It'll only be one night, we'll manage," Stephanie said. "Won't we Sawyer?"

Chris turned back and walked to his son again. "Okay kid, I'm leaving you in charge, you're going to be the man of the house while I'm gone, got it? You're going to have to protect Mommy." Chris paused a moment, looking critically at his son. "Yeah, I know, Mommy's really scary and she can take care of herself, but we have to let ourselves think we're protecting Mommy."

"Aww, you guys can protect me," Stephanie said, wrapping her arms around Chris's waist from behind and leaning her head against his back. She inhaled deeply, taking in the slight scent of his cologne and the kiwi smell of his shampoo. "You already do."

Chris snorted comically, "Yeah right, if anyone can take care of themselves in this relationship, it's you. Me, I'm the one that needs you more. I mean, how would I ever get all the bullies off my back if it weren't for you?"

Stephanie laughed and he felt the reverberations on his back. "So…are you going to be great tonight?"

"Nah, I was thinking about being mediocre tonight. If that's okay with you."

"Chris," she warned. "Your daddy is a jerk Sawyer, he never wants to make Mommy happy about work."

"Lies! She's spouting lies at you," Chris said as Trish walked groggily into the kitchen, went straight for the coffee and poured herself a large cup in one of their to-go mugs. "Trish, you look like you're the one with the kid who's been up all night."

Trish rolled her eyes and grunted, taking a sip of coffee and then sighing in pleasure. "I couldn't sleep last night, kept rolling over onto my side and then waking up in agony. Then I have to get up super early to go to California for the show, I'm just exhausted."

"Join the club," Stephanie said sympathetically. "I hope Sawyer hasn't been keeping you up."

"No, our rooms are pretty far apart," Trish said, "besides, I'd never blame that adorable little guy. He's too cute to be mad at."

"I asked him to protect the house while I was gone, he's going to be the man of the house."

"And what am I, chopped liver?" Kurt asked as he walked into the kitchen. "Nice to know you don't even trust me to protect the house, Chris. I'm a man!"

"Who needed Chris's help getting up the stairs yesterday," Trish teased and Kurt gave her a dirty look and a middle finger. "Oh, how mature of you Kurt. But we all know that you're trying to hide how much pain you're in."

"Yeah, I agree," Chris said. "Why are you even up? Aren't you supposed to be resting?"

"Geez, you're a dad for a week and you're already being authoritative," Kurt told him. "I can still walk around, and I'm not going to expect Stephanie to be at my beckon call. She does have a baby to take care of."

"Oh Kurt, I'd never call you a baby to your face," Stephanie joked and Kurt crumpled up a piece of nearby paper to throw at her, but she ducked behind Chris before it could hit her and it sailed into a forgotten corner of the kitchen. "That's not nice, I'm a new mother, you're supposed to treat me with reverence because of the life that I created and bore forth from my body."

Everyone looked strangely at Stephanie and then she burst into laughter. She pulled away from Chris and grabbed his arm to turn him around. She kissed him again, Chris, pulling her closer. Kurt and Trish groaned at the display and Chris gave them a middle finger as he continued to kiss his wife. He pulled away reluctantly, resting his forehead against hers and looking deeply into her gray-blue eyes. "If Trish and I don't leave soon, we're going to miss our flight."

"So miss it and stay with me."

Chris's eyes widened. "You'd never forgive yourself, look at the disaster that last week was."

"You're right," she said, giving him a peck on the lips. "I love you."

"Love you too," he returned as he pulled away. "You ready Trish?"

"Yeah," she said, snapping the lid shut on her coffee. "Let's go."

"Okay, we'll be back tomorrow," Chris said. "If you guys need anything, call us, and Kurt, for the love of God, take it easy before you really hurt yourself."

"Fine," Kurt said, going over and grabbing some bread to make himself some toast. Chris gave Stephanie one last kiss before turning to his son.

"Sorry I have to go kid, but Daddy has responsibilities. Don't worry, as soon as your doctor says it's cool, you and Mommy will be back on the road. Be a good kid tonight and tomorrow for Mommy or else I'm going to have to force you to watch a million bad matches."

"And Daddy is serious," Stephanie said, lifting the baby out of his carrier and holding him to her. Chris gave his son a kiss on the forehead and then kissed Stephanie's cheek and he and Trish were out the door to catch their flight to California.

Later that evening, Chris sat at his desk, going over some of the logistics for the show. How much time would this take, and who was going to be put in a match with this guy, all very mundane tasks that needed to be done. It would all come together in the end anyways. He heard the door opening and he looked up and saw Edge and Lita coming in. He smiled and put his work down.

"Hey guys, what can I do for you?" Chris asked with a smile.

"Nothing, we just came to congratulate you on the new baby," Edge said. "I would've been by to see him, but I was at Lita's place all week, not in Florida."

"Come see him sometime this week, I'm sure Stephanie would like the company, the only people she sees are me, Kurt, Trish, and Sawyer. She'd probably be grateful for the company."

"We'll have to do that, right Li?" Edge said, tugging on the redhead's hand.

"Yeah…um, really, congratulations Chris, to you and Stephanie." Lita didn't know why she always felt so uncomfortable around people she used to know. Perhaps she still hadn't grown into the person she was now. Chris didn't try to push her though.

"Thanks. Anything else?"

"Well, we've got a bit of a surprise tonight, so I hope that you have us on the schedule," Edge said, grinning mischievously.

"Yeah, I do, middle of the show, you've got that big match with Mick."

"Yeah, we do, well, wish us luck, and we'll see you sometime this week."

"Okay. I guess it's back to planning the show."

Speaking of planning the show, Hunter was seeking out Vince's office. It was either go to Vince or go to Chris to get time to speak on the show, and he figured that he'd have an easier time with Vince. Chris didn't exactly regard him very highly. He knocked loudly on Vince's door, but only heard a grunt from the other side. Hunter didn't know what that was, and he might not want to find out, but he wanted to get time to speak so he opened the door. Vince was sitting at his desk, a bottle of scotch on the table and an empty glass next to it.

"Vince, I want to get time at the start of the show."

"Take it up with Jericho," Vince mumbled.

"What the hell's wrong with you?"

"It's none of your damn business!" Vince snarled at him.

Hunter scoffed. "Whatever, I don't really care what's going on with you, I just want to get my damn time at the top of the show."

"And I said that you should take it up with Jericho!"

"I don't want to talk to him," Hunter argued. "He and I aren't exactly on the best terms."

"And we are?" Vince asked. "You act like a subordinate, and you expect me to just let you have your way. You're not my son-in-law anymore Hunter, I have no obligation to even listen to you. Chris is in charge of this show, if you want to talk to him, then you take it up with him."

"Look, I know that you probably hate me because your little buddy Kenny didn't win last week, but you're the president of this company, you should be the one in charge."

"Chris is in charge. Stephanie," and here, Vince's voice cracked slightly, "Stephanie put him in charge in her absence, so he's in charge during her absence, if you have a problem with that, you don't have to be here."

"Whatever," Hunter said, storming out of the room. He was a 10-time champion for god's sake, he shouldn't have to deal with this. He should get whatever time he wanted, whenever he wanted. He was the King of Kings, the Cerebral Assassin, The Game, and many other nicknames that he had yet to come up with for himself. He shouldn't have to ask for anything, he should demand it. Of course, that would be for nothing as he went and sought out Chris's office.

When he reached the door, he dreaded going in. It was a definite shot in his pride that he would have to ask Chris of all people for something. He didn't like it when he had to do it before, and he sure as hell didn't like it now. How the hell had Chris gotten to be in charge anyways? When he was married to Stephanie, he never really got a whiff of this part of the business. Sure, they had acted like they were the owners, but he didn't get to actually run the show and everything that went along with it. He reluctantly pounded on the door.

"Come in!" Chris's voice yelled out. Hunter was hesitant, but eventually swallowed whatever pride he had and walked into the room. Chris looked up briefly and groaned to himself. "Hunter, to what do I owe the visit?"

"I need to talk to you about tonight's show," he said, trying to sound as neutral as possible. If he kept himself in check, Chris might give him what he wanted, and what he wanted was the WWE Title, plain and simple.

"What about it?"

"I want time at the top of the show."

"Sure, I couldn't think of anything to put there anyways," Chris shrugged. He was in too good a mood to really care what Hunter wanted. Hunter wasn't even registering on his radar tonight. He had a son waiting for him at home, and that was all he cared about. He smiled as he thought about Sawyer. After Hunter left, maybe he would call up Stephanie and see how she was doing. He felt kind of bad that he had to leave her alone with a baby, although she had Kurt there too, which had to be easier.

"Wait, you're letting me just…have my way?" Hunter said, suddenly suspicious.

"Yeah, so go ahead, you've got your time," Chris said, trying to shoo him out of the room.

"Why are you doing this so easily?" Hunter asked, wondering about Chris's motives. "Did you set something up for me already? Another handicap match?"

"I didn't put you in the first one, that was Vince," Chris reminded him. "I don't have any weird designs for you if that's what you think. I'm not you Hunter, I'm not going to do something dirty and underhanded behind your back, so don't worry your pretty, little head off."

The door burst open and Shane walked into the room. "Okay, so I want to hear all about my nephew." Shane saw Hunter and quieted down. "Oh, hey Hunter."

"Oh, Stephanie had the baby?" Hunter asked, chomping on his gum a little bit harder.

"Yeah, she did, early Tuesday morning, like really early Tuesday morning," Chris answered. "Just after midnight actually."

"Oh, congratulations," Hunter said, still chomping on that gum. Shane could feel the unbelievable tension in the room, but said nothing about it. It was between these two men and that was that. It wasn't going to disappear tonight, maybe it would never disappear.

"Thanks," Chris said shortly.

"And thanks for the time tonight," Hunter told him. He made his hasty exit and tried not to think about it. A part of him, a big part of him still believed that Stephanie's baby should be his baby. They had had a life together, they had been married, and that baby should've been his. Maybe Hunter had been stupid in the way that he had treated Stephanie, but that didn't mean he hadn't loved her and wanted a family with her. It still hurt, somewhere deep inside him, where his heart still beat, where his feelings still resided. He may be a bastard, but he still had feelings.

"So that was awkward," Shane said as he sat down across from Chris. "So, I came tonight because I want to hear all about my nephew and Marissa wants to hear about him too. She'd come see Steph, but well, you're in the same boat now. So…come on…pictures, anything?"

"Stephanie sent me prepared," Chris said, handing Shane an entire pack of pictures. "Doubles from the ones we took this week so keep them. You've sent us enough pictures of J, you should have enough of my kid too."

Shane opened up the packet and took some pictures out. "There aren't any in here of like, my sister's…well, you know what, because I don't really want to see those…ever."

"You honestly think I was standing in the delivery room taking pictures of my wife's private area?" Chris asked. "I couldn't even look when my kid was being born, it was disgusting."

"Oh thank God I'm not the only one who really thought it was gross," Shane said as he flipped through the pictures. "Wow, my sister with a baby. I never thought I'd see the day. And she didn't like cling to your leg when you left for the show today?"

"No, I think she wanted to though, she just didn't want to be embarrassed in front of Trish and Kurt."

"Oh, is Trish here tonight?" Shane asked.

"Yeah, she's here, we kind of split up earlier, but she's around here somewhere."

Trish was actually sitting in Maria's locker room. She was going to be accompanying Maria in her match against Mickie James. Maria was not going to win that match, but Trish could at least be there to give support and maybe get a hand on Mickie James. She watched as Maria left to go talk to someone about her match and when she was doing the Kiss Cam that night. Trish pulled out her cell phone and dialed Christian's number.

She hadn't talked to him in about a week and she felt bad. He had called her after her injury and she had been grateful to hear him sympathize with her, but it was still very awkward talking to him. She had no idea where they stood and she didn't really want to find out. It was just easier to be nothing with Christian, but then she couldn't stay away from him. It was a really bad relationship to be in, but she still hoped to attain the impossible, a real life with Christian. Mickie was still on her back, but she wasn't trying to be like her anymore, so maybe…just maybe if Christian and her got back together, they could actually be together.

"Trish?"

"Hey Christian, checked your display I guess."

"Yeah, what's up?" Christian asked, happy to hear his voice.

"I was kind of bored, I'm at the show and I don't really have anything to do."

"Isn't Chris there?"

"Yeah, he is, but he has a lot of work to do and I didn't want to disturb him or anything. So what are you up to? Anything fun, anything exciting?"

"Um, not really, where are you?"

"I'm in Maria's locker room," Trish said, looking around the room. "Why do you ask?"

"Oh, just getting an idea of where you are if you were all alone, are you? Or is Maria there?"

"No, she's somewhere, I'm just being her valet for the evening. She has a match against Mickie and any chance I get to get my hands on that bitch, I'm going to take, injury or not."

"How is the shoulder?"

"Better, still hurts and it's still in a sling, but I'm doing okay. It's a little demoralizing though when you need help to get into your pants. I had to ask Maria to help me, I mean, how sad is that?"

"Well, it's better than you asking a guy to do it," Christian said slyly.

"I guess," she answered. "I'm sorry I haven't called in the past week, Chris and Stephanie had the baby and it's been just a whirlwind this past week. I've been injured, Kurt's been injured, Stephanie's still getting over childbirth and then we have this new little roommate and things were really hectic around the house."

"Hey, don't worry about it," Christian reassured her, "this is all very casual. You're free to call when you want to, and I guess I am too right?"

"Yeah, of course, you can call me, don't be a stranger."

"And if you wanted to visit me, I don't think I'd have a problem with that either, would you have a problem with me visiting you some time?"

"I don't think I'd have a problem with that," Trish answered shyly.

"Good…so Stephanie and Chris had the baby, maybe I'll have to come and see him…"

"I'd…They'd like that," she quickly corrected herself.

"Good, I'm glad that they'd like it," he said, but the tone of his voice suggested that he was talking more about her than he was about Chris and Stephanie. "I'll definitely think about doing that."

"I'd be really happy if you did Christian, really happy if you did."

Shane had just left Chris's locker room, pictures in tow and with a promise to help him out during the show which was beginning in mere minutes. Shane had said he would cover the top of the show so that Chris could call Stephanie, which he was about to do. It was only six o'clock on the West Coast, so it would be nine at home, and he figured Stephanie would still be awake right now, hell, she might be awake all night for all he knew. He dialed home and waited for her to answer.

"Who the hell is this?" came her frenzied voice.

"Baby, is everything okay?"

"No, I just got Sawyer to go down for the night, until he wakes up in a few hours and the phone ringing could've woken him up, and if you had, I think I would change all the locks on the house and not let you in."

"Ouch, how long had he been crying?"

"You don't even want to know," Stephanie said, sounding frazzled. "I think he misses you. Don't quote me on that, but I think he knows your presence. I mean, you are his Daddy after all. But I definitely think he knows that something isn't right."

"I'm sorry I'm not there," Chris told her.

"No, where you are is where you're supposed to be," she insisted. "I'm doing fine, he just knows that this isn't routine so he got cranky, but he should be okay for the next few hours. Can we keep this short though, I want to get in a few hours sleep."

"Yeah, I just wanted to say hi, and I was kind of hoping the kid would be awake so that I could speak with him, but I'm cool if he's asleep. I miss you."

"That's good," Stephanie said, obviously trying to make this go faster. "I'm taping the show so I can watch it when Sawyer is up. I'll let you know what I think after I watch it. I'm sure you'll do fine…um, is my dad there?"

"Yeah, he's here, I only saw him when I got here though, I haven't really talked to him."

"Oh, well…that's good…or something," Stephanie said, yawning.

Chris sighed a little. "I'll let you go baby, you sound tired and I want you to get some rest. Whenever Sawyer wakes up, tell him that Daddy says hi and that he misses him."

"I will, do you have a message for his Mommy?"

"Just tell her that I love her and I miss her too, and I can't wait to see her."

"She loves you too."

"Night baby."

"Bye sweetie, have a nice show."

The show was going okay so far. Shane was watching on the monitor and Hunter was going off about how he should have the title. It was a rather fair request, since nobody else was really going after it with a vengeance. Cena came out and Shane prepared to have a match right then and there, which would probably be a really good thing for the ratings and for the fans. They'd like to see a title match tonight in addition to that hardcore match with Edge and Foley, that would be a perfectly loaded show.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw his father walking towards where he was. He looked over at his father and he seemed to be wobbling a little bit. Shane narrowed his eyes, but said nothing. If he did go up to his father, he'd get an earful so he just watched as Vince walked out into the arena and laid down the law. Shane couldn't say that he was unhappy to see him give Hunter the night off, but he did think the match could've been great.

Hunter stalked backstage just as Chris was coming to sit with Shane. Hunter sent Chris a glare that Chris couldn't explain the reason for. Hunter just kept glaring at him and Chris turned over his shoulder to look at Hunter with a confuse expression on his face. He knew that he and Hunter would never be friends or anything resembling friends, but that look was uncalled for.

"What the hell was that about?" Chris asked, jerking his finger in the direction that Hunter had just left.

"Well, my dad just basically told him that he's not going to be on the show, giving him the night off. Plus, I think he's really jealous about the baby."

"Man, when that man wants to hold onto something, he really hangs on tight, doesn't he?" Chris said, sitting down next to Shane as Vince wandered backstage. He looked over at his son and son-in-law briefly, but then turned and walked away quickly. "And what's wrong with HIM?"

"I think he's drunk, or he's been drinking," Shane said. "He was walking like he was drunk. I hope that he hasn't been boozing it up with Candice."

"I hope not either, that would make Stephanie upset…again."

"Oh yeah, I heard about that," Shane said. "I'm really sorry that happened, Stephanie didn't deserve that."

"She didn't, but what can you do?" Chris said. "Come on, let's just get this show underway."

The show was boring, Chris found. Everything had changed since he had Sawyer. It was too soon for him to be away from his son. He missed him terribly and was distracted the entire show because of that. Luckily he had Shane there for back-up or the show might have gone right down the crapper. He knew it was important to Stephanie that he be here, but the only place that he wanted to be was back in Florida in his home.

"Oh hey Shane, where are you staying tonight?" Chris asked.

"Hotel, why?"

"You have to come stay at our house out here, I can't have you sleeping in a hotel. It's only like a thirty-minute drive from here. Trish is staying there tonight too, and we're flying back home tomorrow morning. I insist that you stay over."

"Okay, if that's what you want."

"Yeah, it's cool, you're my brother."

"Yeah, I am, aren't I?" Shane said. "I always did want a brother, Stephanie is very--"

"That's my wife you're talking about," Chris warned.

"She's the best girl ever," Shane joked as he saw Trish wander over. "Hey there pretty girl, what're you doing here?"

"Maria's match is up next, gotta go support her."

"Even with one arm, I think you could take Mickie," Shane told her.

Trish blushed a little and waved her good hand at him. "No way, I'm not so good that I can win with one hand tied behind my back, figuratively speaking. I'm just going to go to be there for Maria, since, you know…"

"Yeah…have I mentioned that you look really beautiful tonight?" Shane said to her. She shook her head. "You do look really beautiful tonight. Did you do something to your hair, it looks different."

"I just had it layered differently and got this thickening gel," she told him. "So you like it?"

"Yeah, you're looking great tonight."

Chris was too busy to watch the interaction and he signaled to Trish that Maria was already heading up the stairs. She jogged to catch up and walked out behind Maria. Maria blew a kiss to the crowd and she did the same playfully, but once she was done there, near the ring, it was all business. She didn't have time to think about anything but the match. She knew that Maria was severely overmatched and when Maria lost, she wasn't surprised.

She was, however, surprised at her own prowess, getting into the ring to confront Mickie. Maybe Trish was running on adrenaline, or maybe she was just being plain stupid, but she went after Mickie like she had two good arms. She punched her repeatedly, but with one arm in bad shape, it wasn't long before Mickie got the best of her. She ripped off her sling and Trish fell forward in agony. If she had thought it was bad to accidentally sleep on the bad shoulder, getting kicked in the bad shoulder was a million times worse.

She was suddenly gasping for air as Mickie started choking her with her own slight. Trish didn't know what was going on, her breathing becoming erratic and her hands trying desperately and futilely to grab at the fabric worrying itself across her neck. Then suddenly, she wasn't being choked anymore and she fell forward. She could see a woman being held by security and she had to wonder what that was about. She was thankful that the woman had shown up, but she had never seen her before in her life.

It didn't matter as she grabbed her sling off the ring floor and went backstage. Shane was there to greet her and he spoke first. "Do you want me to help you put your sling back on?"

"Yeah, thanks," Trish said softly.

Shane took the sling from her and helped her gingerly run her arm through it until it was resting in the hammock part. Shane gently brought the straps around and Trish was keenly aware that his hands were grazing across her breasts. She knew that it had to be on purpose, but it still felt unnervingly good. When Shane strapped the strap into place, she looked up at him and found his face to be mere inches away from hers. She sent him a small smile and a quiet word of thanks.

This didn't go unnoticed by Chris and he found their interaction a little strange. He felt like he was bursting in on something illicit. It wasn't a good feeling to see something that you didn't think you'd see and then try to rationalize away the reasons for why you never saw it in the first place. Chris watched them intently as Shane pulled away from her gently.

"Thanks Shane," Trish breathed out slowly.

"My pleasure pretty girl."

Even later that evening, Chris was working on some last-minute paperwork. Chris looked up as the door opened again. It seemed that people were coming to congratulate him left and right, and while he appreciated their well wishes, he wasn't getting much work done. But this time was different. Chris looked up and saw Vince; he involuntarily scowled at seeing the other man and for once, Vince looked contrite. Chris set his pen down again and leaned back in his chair.

"What can I do for you Vince?" Chris asked coldly.

"I wanted to talk to you," Vince answered.

Chris licked the back of his lip and looked down a moment. "You're not one of my favorite people right now Vince, and I don't think it's in your best interest to be speaking to me. In fact, you're the LAST person that I want to see right now, maybe ever."

"Chris, I didn't come here to argue with you, I just want to speak to you, just speak."

"Have a seat," Chris said. "I'm willing to speak. If I were my wife, I'd order you out of here, but I at least have a little perspective."

Vince sat down and sighed. "I made a mistake."

Chris scoffed and gave him a look that said it all, but he still voiced what he was thinking, "Yeah, I'd say you screwed up."

"I don't really have an explanation for my actions, but I know they were wrong, and I've never been more sorry for anything in my life," Vince said and he sounded the most sincere he had ever sounded, which surprised Chris.

Chris sighed and thought about his son. "Vince, you really hurt Stephanie this time. I don't know if it's going to get better either. She's hurt, and she's upset, and…she didn't deserve that. Neither did Sawyer. He's an innocent kid Vince, and he didn't deserve to have his big debut marred by you."

"I'm…I have nothing."

"I'm not mad at you Vince, I'm mad at the way that you made my wife feel. We all make mistakes, but you make them so much more hurtful than they have to be. You have to understand where Stephanie is coming from. She was giving birth, she was nervous, she wasn't in control of anything, and she's there, having our son, your grandson and all she wanted was to know that you cared, and what happens, she turns on the television and sees you making out with a woman two years younger than she is, she sees you feeling up someone. I mean, you're her dad, I think the only person she'd be more pissed at seeing making out with someone else is me. She loves you Vince, she does, but you make it so hard for her to love you."

"I know," Vince said. "This past week, all I've been thinking about is Stephanie and Sawyer."

"So have I," Chris joked, trying to lessen the tension even a little bit.

"I really did screw this one up didn't I?"

"Yeah, you did, and I don't think anything I say to her is going to make it up to her."

"I figured," Vince said. "I get carried away."

"Yeah, that's the understatement of the century," Chris muttered. "Look Vince, give her time. She always comes back because you're her father and you'll always be her father. She loves you, she just needs to know that you love her back, that's it."

"I do love her," Vince answered regretfully. "I do."

"She doesn't feel like you do," Chris shrugged. "But this is your battle to fight Vince, not mine. You're going to have to find a way to fix this on your own."

Vince nodded, then spoke quietly. "How is he?"

Chris smiled involuntarily when he thought about his son. It was still weird to realize that his son was actually here when just a little over a week ago he was still inside of Stephanie. Everything about his son fascinated him. He was just so fun to watch and interact with. "He's…perfect."

"I'm glad to hear that," Vince said, smiling wistfully. Chris stood up and gathered his papers together. He took something that had been paper-clipped to one of his folders and put it down on the desk, sliding it across to Vince.

"Keep it, I've got plenty."

Chris walked out of the room, the door almost inaudibly clicking behind him, and then it was quiet. Vince slowly reached out and grabbed the item that Chris had put on his desk. He lifted it up and looked at the picture. Stephanie was holding up Sawyer to the camera and leaning over, planting a big kiss to the baby's cheek. The little boy's face was scrunched up like a newborn's usually is, but the light of the flash caught the incredible blue of his eyes. Vince stared down at the picture for a long time, taking in the absolute elation in his daughter's eyes.

He had to fix this…he didn't know how, but he was going to fix this.


	88. The End Was Funny, May 15, 2006

"Well this is demoralizing."

Chris held in his laugh. "It's a necessary evil though, isn't it?"

Stephanie stared down at the breast pump. "This is the most…who the hell ever thought this up. I mean, I want to meet the person who thought that it'd be cool to milk a person like they were a cow. I mean, just seems like a very weird…I don't know, invention."

Stephanie pulled the contraption away from her chest and handed it to Chris as she set about buttoning up her blouse. Chris took it into the kitchen and put it into bottles, laughing to himself at what his life had become. Had he just watched his wife…nah, he didn't even want to think about it. He screwed the tops onto the bottles and put them into the cooler sitting on the counter, zipping it up. They had to make sure they had enough for the entire trip because Stephanie wasn't too keen on breastfeeding in public.

Chris heard a crying and he winced. "The monster is up."

"I hear him," Stephanie called back. I'll get him, can you just get the luggage together?"

"Done and done," Chris called back, lifting the cooler and bringing it into the foyer with the rest of their things. It would take at least two trips to bring all their stuff and they were only going to be gone for a few days. He started bringing things to the car. He went back inside for the last of the things and saw Stephanie coming down, diaper bag over one shoulder and Sawyer in her arms. "Hey, there's my kid."

"Say hi to Daddy baby boy," Stephanie said, walking down the steps and over to Chris. Chris made a funny face at Sawyer, who was watching him intently. "We get to go with Daddy today, aren't you excited? Mommy's excited."

"Mommy's a little crazy too," Chris said, grabbing the last of the stuff. "Can you lock up if we're ready…are we ready?"

"Yeah, we're ready, I think that we've got everything we need. Sawyer, is there anything you needed before we left?" Sawyer said nothing of course and Stephanie watched as Chris brought the last of their things to their car and she turned around to lock up the house. She knew Kurt would probably be coming home that evening so she didn't bother to put the alarm on.

The plane trip was a bit of a bear. Sawyer had cried when they were taking off and then when they were landing, simply because his ears were probably popping and bothering him greatly. Other than that, he seemed okay, just like the doctor had said. Chris and Stephanie had taken every single precaution to make sure that Sawyer would be okay. They knew it was risky and probably not a smart idea, but Stephanie was going crazy without Chris at home and Sawyer absolutely knew when Chris was gone and he would let Stephanie know it.

Vince had no idea that Stephanie and Sawyer were going to be there that evening. He had kept the picture Chris had given him on his person for the entire past week. He found himself staring at it a lot, wondering how he was going to fix what he had broken. Shane walked into his office and saw his dad looking at something and went over his shoulder to look at what he was looking at. He saw the picture and patted his father on the shoulder. This startled Vince, since he hadn't even been paying attention.

"Oh, I didn't see you there," Vince said, clearing his throat as he put the picture down and slid it away from him.

"Nice picture huh?" Shane said nonchalantly. "They gave me and Rissa doubles."

"Yeah, it's a good picture," Vince said noncommittally. "Chris gave it to me."

"That's nice of him," Shane nodded, going over and sitting in front of his father's desk. "I know what you did Pops, I think we all do."

"Do you know how to help me fix it?" Vince asked, and Shane knew that he was desperate now. He didn't come to Shane for advice.

"No, but I do know how much you hurt her Pops, and it was a lot. She told me not to get involved though, that this was her battle and she didn't want me fighting it for her. But I'll let you know now that if she did let me fight this battle, I wouldn't be talking to you right now."

"And I'd completely understand," Vince said.

"FYI though Dad, Stephanie and Sawyer are going to be here tonight," Shane informed him. Shane had only shown up tonight because he wanted to see his nephew, not because he felt he had any responsibility to be here. He just wanted to see Stephanie's baby.

"What? But he's only two weeks old," Vince said.

"Stephanie got it cleared by the doctors. Her doctor said she was okay to fly, especially since the delivery went well, and Sawyer's pediatrician said that he could fly, it would be difficult maybe, but that he was a healthy little boy. I think it's only for this week, at least until Sawyer is a month old or so, then she's probably coming back."

"So she's going to be here tonight…I have to show her that I'm on her side."

"How are you going to do that Dad?"

"Well I have to correct past wrongs first and foremost," Vince said, trying to formulate a plan in his head. "I have to rectify the things that I did wrong in the past. The first among those is Triple H."

"What about him Dad?"

"I've been far too lenient with that man," Vince said. "I've accepted him and for what, he broke my daughter's heart and he broke her spirit for a long time."

"It wasn't that long Dad, you forget that she started dating Chris like five months after she broke up with Hunter."

"Oh yeah, well, he still broke her heart, yeah, I think it's time that you and I both start acting like he's the man who slighted Stephanie."

"Me?" Shane asked incredulously. He wasn't took keen on being dragged into his father's asinine plans. Sometimes his dad seemed to view him as a complete extension of himself and disregard the fact that Shane had his own thoughts and opinions.

"You LIKE him?"

"No, I don't, but I don't particularly hate him."

"Well we do now, okay?"

"Whatever Dad, I'm going to go."

Stephanie settled into Chris's office, looking around and taking a deep breath. "Yeah, it doesn't seem different at all. It's good to be back, even if it's only for a night, but yeah, this is awesome."

"Steph, baby, you've been gone like five weeks, that's barely a month," Chris pointed out.

"But it's different because I don't have a baby inside of me, and I haven't been here for five weeks, that's a long time."

"Not that long."

"It has been long."

"Whoa, I thought mood swings would be over," Chris said impishly and she glared at him. She looked at Sawyer, who was sitting in his carrier on the coffee table in front of her. She made kissing noises at him, pursing her lips and scrunching her nose. He held her gaze, watching her enraptured as he started sucking on his hand again.

"Baby, you are going to LOVE it here," Stephanie said excitedly while she had Sawyer's attention. "You're just going to love it."

"Little early on the recruiting don't you think?" Chris asked as he went to his desk and started going over some of the things for tonight. He was lucky that they had a bunch of matches already set up. There wasn't much for him to actually do since the show had been pretty much planned out. "Hey baby, I've got to go check with some stuff, you want to come with, or you want to stay here?"

"I'll stay here for now. Sawyer looks a little sleepy and if he sleeps now, he might be awake for the show and then we can sit out at your station with you."

"Okay," he said, walking over to her and giving her a parting kiss. He grabbed Sawyer's hand, the one that wasn't in his mouth, and gave it a little shake as if to say goodbye to him. He walked out of the room and left Stephanie by herself with the baby. She was only alone with Sawyer for a few moments before the door creaked open and Shane walked in.

"Oh wow, there he is," Shane said as he looked down into the carrier holding his nephew. "Wow, he's adorable. He looks nothing like J did at two weeks, not that my son was ugly, but damn, that's an adorable baby."

"I know," Stephanie said glibly as her brother sat down next to her. "How is the family?"

"Hectic," Shane sighed. "Sometimes I feel like I'm floundering."

"Me too, don't worry," Stephanie said with a sigh. "It is hard. Sawyer is a great baby, but sometimes, sometimes I want to leave him on the doorstep of an orphanage. It's hard, I knew it would be, I just…sometimes I really do wish that I had planned him because I have a feeling that it would be way different."

"How so?"

"I don't know," she laughed. "I guess I would just…you know, have anticipated this more. I love my baby, it's just hard."

"It's supposed to be hard Stephanie, everyone says so. I remember when Marissa had D, she was going crazy. She didn't know what she was doing or where she was going. Of course, I helped, not even knowing the kid was mine, but she was frazzled."

"I'm frazzled too, so is Chris. We're both frazzled. Sometimes it's like…I don't even like my baby. I love him to death, but I don't like him sometimes," she said, laughing like it was the saddest thing in the world, and to her it was. She sometimes didn't like her own child.

"Here, why don't you let me take care of him for a little while and you go get something to eat, go visit your husband and do some stuff that doesn't include Sawyer."

"I can't ask you to do that," she told him. "Besides, he doesn't really know you. He gets really cranky sometimes, I'd hate for you to--"

"Steph, I've got an infant at home, I think that I know what I'm doing. Come on, it'll give me time to get to know my nephew. I'm not going to steal your baby or anything, we're family," Shane joked.

"Are you sure?" she asked, looking down at her son, who was busy sucking on his pacifier. "I mean, you're sure?"

"See, now you don't want to give him up. You may not like him sometimes, but you love him to death."

"Well, of course I love him, he's my baby," she said, grabbing his foot and wiggling it around. "Mommy adores you baby."

"Come on, it'll give me some time to get to know my nephew," Shane said, reaching towards the carrier. "May I?"

"Sure, he's not too fussy around other people," Stephanie said as she watched her brother take Sawyer out of his carrier and hold him in his arms. "Isn't he the cutest thing you've ever seen in your life though?"

"Well, my kids are pretty cute too you know," Shane joked. "So…are you going to talk to Dad tonight?"

"No," she said immediately. "I have nothing left to say to Dad. What happened, happened, and he…and I…we just can't coexist anymore. What he did…to me…to Sawyer, it just…it hurts, and it's going to hurt, and I don't know for how long it'll hurt, but right now, it's just raw."

"He's trying to make it up to you," Shane let her know. She laughed and didn't know what to make of this information.

"You honestly believe he's just gonna change, like that?" she asked, snapping her fingers. "You think he honestly is just going to be…super Dad or something Shane? I don't believe a word he says anymore. I just don't. I have lost all faith in him. I love him because he's my dad, but that's it. I can't take it anymore."

"He might be sincere this time baby girl."

"Yeah, we'll see," Stephanie said, but she was disillusioned. "We'll see…"

"Get outta here, let the McMahon men bond together," Shane said.

"You sure?"

"Yeah, I am, look, it's like your one night back, and we both know you're dying to do something work-related," Shane said knowingly and Stephanie blushed because she had been caught. "Chris is obviously working, and all I'm doing for Dad tonight is being the special guest referee in that match between Shawn and Kenny, so I don't have anything to do."

"Okay," she said excitedly, glad that she would be working for at least a few minutes. "If he gets hungry, bottles are in the cooler on Chris's desk. Pacifiers, diapers, all that are in the diaper bag. Thanks so much Shane."

"You're welcome baby girl," Shane said, as Stephanie gave him a small hug, careful not to crush her son between them. She gave Sawyer a kiss on the cheek before she practically flew out of the room.

She took a deep breath, as if inhaling the scent backstage. It was the arena and the people bustling around and she had missed it in her short interim. She put a hand o her stomach, which was considerably flatter than it had been the last time she had been here. She was mobile and feeling good and she didn't have a person kicking her insides. She suppressed her squeal and set off in search of adventure.

Trish wasn't off in search of adventure, but she was thinking about what an adventure last week had been. She didn't know if there was something between her and Shane, but last week had been a little weird. He was married after all, and she was…well, there was something with Christian, she just didn't know what it was yet. She had to evaluate her life, she had to realize what it was she wanted and she had to make a grab for it. But what did she want, who did she want? Did she want Shane, could she possibly ever want Shane? She knew Shane was here tonight and she thought maybe she should clear the air with him.

Trish got up, her resolve strengthening. She didn't know what had happened last week, but there was a definite vibe there and she had to confront that. She walked out into the hallway and found the nearest production person, asking if they had seen Shane McMahon anywhere. Nobody had apparently, he was elusive like a snake or something. She was a little frustrated as her cell phone rang. She sank against a wall as she answered the phone to Christian, a smile coming onto her face unknowingly.

"Hey Chrissy," she said.

"Trish," he said, and she could tell that he had a smile on his face. "I missed you."

"I missed you too," she said softly. "Chrissy, I've been thinking. Something weird happened last week."

"What happened?" he asked.

"There was this moment, with Shane. I don't know, it was like…it was like he wanted to kiss me or something, and I don't know. I would've welcomed it maybe despite the fact that he's married, and it was weird. I've been thinking about it this entire week and it's been…strange. I've just been thinking, me and Shane, me and SHANE."

"Wow, that's…wow."

"I don't want Shane," Trish said sadly. "Chrissy, I want you."

"You do?" he asked, his voice hopeful.

"Maybe we can't work through things, maybe we can, but I'm tired of pushing you away when I know that I can have you. What happened wasn't your fault and I need to come to grips with that, but it wasn't your fault."

"I know, I was there."

"It was Mickie freaking James," Trish said. "And I'm sick and tired of her and her stupid antics. It goes beyond the title now, it's us now. She broke me when she threatened you, and I don't want to be afraid of that anymore. Chrissy, I want to try to work it out with you."

"I'm…so happy to hear you say that. That's…okay, this is WAY better than retaining my belt this weekend," he said happily. "I wish you weren't in Texas."

"I wish you weren't in Florida," she told him giddily. "But when I get home tomorrow, I wanna see you."

"I want to see you too," he told her eagerly.

"I've got to talk to Shane though, make sure the air is clear between us," Trish said.

"Okay, should I let you go do that?"

"Not just yet," she said. "I just want to hear your voice a little longer."

Trish smiled to herself as she saw Stephanie walk by purposefully. She would've stopped to say hello but Stephanie looked like she was on her way somewhere, and Trish wanted to continue talking to Christian. Stephanie was going to go see Chris and what he was up to. She turned the corner and saw Hunter up ahead. To get to Chris, she'd have to pass him, and she really didn't feel like talking to him, but she had been spotted.

"Stephanie," Hunter said politely as he walked over. She gave him her best smile, but she didn't want to deal with him right now.

"Hi Hunter."

"Your dad is pissing me off," he started.

"You and me both," Stephanie sighed as she looked down. If talking to Hunter was the last thing she wanted to do, then talking about her dad with Hunter was below that. "We're…not on good terms right now."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah, but that's nothing for you to worry about."

"It's really good to see you," he told her, and he sounded like he was telling the truth. "Really, really good."

"It's good to be back, at least for one week," she said.

"You didn't bring…your son," he choked out, still hating the fact that she had a child that wasn't his too. But he would push that down for now, push it deep into his gut where it could stew by itself.

"Yeah, we did," she said, not being so subtle with that "we." "He's with my brother, Shane felt bad that I had to take care of him, so…he's over there."

"I'd like to meet him."

"I'm sure you will," Stephanie said. "But if you'll excuse me, I just wanted to go see if I could help with production any."

"I understand…and…congratulations again."

"Thank you," she answered and that time she was being completely sincere. Pretty much everyone had been congratulating her and if the smile on her face got any bigger, it would crack her entire face into little pieces. He unexpectedly hugged her and she was surprised and unresponsive. She patted him awkwardly on the back before making her quick escape.

She finally found Chris sitting at his station since the show was beginning in about ten minutes. She walked up behind him and started rubbing his shoulders. He threw his head back and looked at her. Then he looked around, looking for Sawyer, but didn't see him around and Chris turned his chair around quickly, the steel scraping against the cold, concrete floor.

"Stephanie, where's Sawyer!" Chris asked angrily.

"Relax, he's with Shane," Stephanie said, sitting herself down in Chris's lap. "Shane said he'd watch him for a little bit so that I could help with you. Do you need help?"

"No, not until the show starts, but don't scare me like that."

"You honestly thought I'd leave my two-week-old son by himself in a strange locker room where anybody could walk in and take him?" Stephanie asked incredulously. "Should I take that as an insult to my parenting?"

"No, I just…I didn't see him and it scared me is all," he said, wrapping his arm around her waist. "So last week everyone was congratulating me, did you get the same treatment?"

"Yeah, I'm so popular," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "It's funny. When I was pregnant, but on my dad's side, everyone hated me, but once you have a baby, it's like, I'm so happy for you and everything, sickening."

"Only you would think congratulations are sickening," he said, rubbing her back. "It's nice to have you in my lap again without your stomach in the way."

"It's nice to be here."

"Hey guys," Shane said, walking over with Sawyer in his carrier in one hand and the diaper bag in the other. "Dad asked me to take care of some things, so I have to return this to you, if you don't mind."

"Nope," Stephanie said, taking Sawyer from her brother. Chris grabbed the diaper bag and put it on the table in front of him. Stephanie took out the sling that she wore when Sawyer wanted to cuddle up to her and put it on, letting Sawyer settle inside as he wanted to be close to her body. She smiled down at him, adjusting his hat.

"Thanks for watching him Shane," Chris said.

"Not a problem, he's got a pretty strong grip," Shane said. "I thought he was going to squeeze my finger right off."

"That's my son for you," Chris said.

"Okay, I'll talk to you guys later," Shane said with a wave and walked off, almost bumping into Trish. Shane backed away a little bit as he looked at the startled Trish. "Hey there pretty girl."

"Shane, I was actually coming to see you."

"You were, well, I'm kind of in a hurry, my dad wanted me to take care of something for him and I have to meet with him to see what it's about. Did you need to talk or something?"

"Yeah, actually I did," Trish answered. "Whenever you get a free moment, come see me, I just…I just need to talk to you."

"I'll do that," Shane said, furrowing his brow a little bit, wondering what could be up with her. She walked off and he watched her, still a little confused as to what she wanted. He didn't dwell on it as he went to see his father.

"I feel a little stupid," Stephanie said as she adjusted the sling so Sawyer's head was resting on her chest. He liked to hear her heartbeat and it helped him fall asleep, which he was doing at the moment. "This thing is so ugly."

Chris laughed. "I'll wear it if you feel stupid."

"It's cool, you're the one working anyways. I'm just the visitor, the observer, the…person not working," she said sullenly.

"Sawyer's asleep, he's probably be fed by Shane, so come on, throw a pair of headphones on and help me out," he winked. She couldn't resist as she checked on Sawyer one last time to make sure he was comfortable against her body before grabbing some headphones and slipping them on, falling back into work easily.

Vince had just changed the match that Hunter was in, starting his plan to rectify his wrongs with Stephanie, and now he was walking around, surveying his work. He found himself staring at his daughter and son-in-law, both sitting and working, laughing at something, probably Hunter during his match. Stephanie was occasionally looking down to check on the baby. Vince couldn't get a good look at Sawyer from this angle, and he had yet to even see his grandson in person.

Stephanie felt someone watching her and she looked around, then spotted her father staring at her. Instantly, she pulled the sling closer to her, as if shielding Sawyer from her father. She didn't want her baby to be corrupted by Vince McMahon. Everything he touched turned into something ugly. Even she was ugly sometimes, and she recognized that. She was just lucky that Chris saw past that ugliness and still fell in love with her.

Vince sighed and walked over to her, and Stephanie didn't take her eyes off of him. Chris saw Vince right as he was approaching and he stood up in front of Stephanie's chair and just shook his head. Vince opened his mouth as if to speak and Chris just pleaded with him wordlessly. Stephanie wasn't ready for the confrontation. Vince turned and walked dejectedly away from them. Chris sat back down and observed Stephanie studying Sawyer intently.

"He's still asleep Steph," Chris said, trying to get her to look away from Sawyer.

"I know," she said, staring down at her son's chubby cheeks. She took one of his hands and just rubbed the back of it, looking at the little nails as she ran her fingers over the tiny knuckles. Everything about Sawyer was soft and new and she didn't want her father to ruin it like he ruined everything. Sawyer opened his eyes, probably feeling Stephanie's fingers on his hand and he yawned as he looked at her. She smiled down at him, filled with a kind of serenity. "I just want to look at him."

"Let me have him," Chris said as he saw that Sawyer was awake. He took Sawyer out of his sling and held him in the crook of his arm so that he could look around at all the hustle and bustle.

If losing the title wasn't bad enough, now Hunter had to stare at the new, loving family that consisted of Sawyer, Chris, and Stephanie. He hadn't seen the new baby yet, but seeing him in Chris's arms was worse than he could imagine. It didn't take a rocket scientist to see that Sawyer had Chris's eyes. They were already really blue, and it just made him all the more aware that Chris was Sawyer's father and they were really a family now. It had been so much easier to ignore Stephanie and Chris when it was just the two of them, but with a baby in tow, there was no ignoring that, no matter how hard he tried.

Trish couldn't ignore Shane anymore, but she had actually requested some time during the show. Chris was nice enough to accommodate her rather spontaneous whim and she was heading out to the ring. She laid it all out on the table for Mickie and let her know in no uncertain terms that this was personal now. Now that she was going to try to work it out with Christian, she wasn't going to hide. She didn't want to hide. Chris and Stephanie had hid for so long and it hurt their relationship. She wasn't going to take a step backwards.

Luckily for Trish, Mickie's psychotic ways extended farther back in history than she had anticipated. She had come across Beth backstage and found out she wasn't just a mere fan who interrupted last week, but was actually a wrestler and she had her own grievances with Mickie. She wasn't the only one whose life Mickie had tried to throw in disarray. The only difference this time was that Trish wasn't going to stand for it.

When she went backstage, she was renewed with a new vigor and she was determined to find and talk to Shane. She couldn't put this off anymore. Whatever happened last week needed to be talked about and put into the past. That's the only way it could happen. She went off in search for him and saw him coming out of…Hunter's locker room. She looked surprised as she approached him.

"What were you doing in there?"

"It's part of my dad's plan to get Stephanie to forgive him. He's going to treat Hunter like scum from now on."

"Weird…I guess if that's the way he thinks it'll work…well…we need to talk," she said firmly.

"About?"

"Last week, you putting my sling on…there was some definite…vibes I was getting, and you were probably getting."

"Oh," Shane said, "I didn't mean to give you the wrong impression."

"Neither did I," Trish said. "I mean, it was…something, but there's nothing that can come of that…right?"

"Right, I have Rissa, and I love her and I love my sons."

"And I love Christian," Trish said. "We both love other people, and I just think that we were…caught up in the moment so to speak. I think that we were both feeling a little lost at the moment since we weren't around those people we love."

"Yeah," Shane said. "I love you Trish, as a friend. I'm married."

"I know," Trish said. "I've…I just wanted to clear the air and make sure that we both knew that there nothing there last week. It was a one-time thing, not a big deal and we were both stupid. I just wanted to clear that up."

"I get you," Shane said. "And I completely agree. And I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable."

"Don't worry about it, I just wanted to make sure it meant as little to you as it did to me," she said, hugging him. "You're the best Shane."

"You too pretty girl."

A bit later that evening, Stephanie was gazing at Chris and Sawyer as she pondered a second before speaking. "Do you think that my dad sincerely wants to make up with me? Do you really think that he's contrite?"

"I don't know," Chris said as he watched Mick Foley out in the ring. This was a pretty easy segment to watch since it was just Mick in the ring and there wasn't any action. He looked down at Sawyer who was gripping his hand tightly.

"I don't know either," she said, tapping her chin.

"What's going on in Mommy's head?" Chris asked his son. "I think she's thinking of something devious." Sawyer snuffled against Chris and looked up at him, Chris looked down at him and made a funny face. "Mommy is going to do something evil."

"I am," Stephanie said, grinning at Sawyer and kissing his forehead. "Mommy needs to see if Grandpa is being an ass like usual, or a nice guy like…never."

"Be careful," Chris warned. Stephanie gave him a look that said it all and went in search of someone that she knew would help her find out the truth. That helper was looking like a cowgirl this evening, which only caused Stephanie to roll her eyes.

"Candice, a word with you."

Candice turned around and looked a little wary of Stephanie, but came over anyways. "Ms. McMahon."

"It's Stephanie actually, and I needed you to do me a favor," Stephanie said. "A big favor and one that you cannot tell my father or I will have you fired."

"Okay," Candice said, scared now because Stephanie had that face on. She had that face that everyone knew meant business. She was just like her father; she could instill the fear into someone.

"You've been pretty cozy with my father these past few weeks, right?"

"Yeah, but he pretty much said that he doesn't think this should happen," Candice said. "I don't know, whatever."

"Well, I want you to see if you could…persuade him to change his mind."

"That's…weird," Candice said.

"Look," Stephanie said, taking a step closer to the raven-haired diva. "My father was making out with you while I was giving birth to my son. If my father is being sincere in wanting to gain my forgiveness, he'll be able to resist you. If he isn't, if he's weak, then he'll give in. Simple as that Candice. Just don't tell him about this, and do me this favor, and I won't fire you for sexual harassment by trying to hit on my father."

"You couldn't do that," Candice said.

"Watch me," Stephanie said with an eerie smile. "Now, do you think you'd be willing to do that?"

"Okay, okay." Candice didn't want to lose her job, and she was a little lonely without Vince. He did make her feel special and she always felt so in control around him. Stephanie just nodded and thanked her and was then on her way.

Stephanie knew it was wrong to sic this woman after her father, but she just didn't believe him when he spoke. She had been burned too many times, and she didn't want to fly too close to the sun this time. If she had to have someone try to seduce her father to see his intentions, then she'd do just that. She didn't trust her father because he would constantly say one thing and do another. She could be like that too, but at least she recognized that trait in herself.

She went back to her husband and son and watched the television in front of her. Just as she had suspected, her father had been all over Candice. She shook her head and looked at Chris and he just closed his eyes and let his shoulders sag. She smiled a little to herself. She looked at Sawyer and then to the image of her father on the screen, who by this time was speaking with Hunter.

"I shouldn't have expected anything different," Stephanie said, and it was like she had accepted that her father was a jackass. "I really shouldn't have."

"Steph, you're never going to get past this if you don't talk to him."

"No, me not speaking to him is the least he deserves. He doesn't even deserve to be in the same building as me," she told him angrily. "I mean, I knew he'd give in, he ALWAYS gives in. With Sable, he gave in and he kicked me to the curb. With Trish, he gave in, and I was estranged from him for a while."

"Sometimes though, you give what you get baby. You turned your back on your father when you married Hunter, and you turned your back on your father when you bought ECW."

"This is totally different Chris, and you know it. This involves my son. My father said he would be there for me, he said that he would support me, and then when he knows I'm in labor, he's making out with some woman, that stings a little deeper than me buying a company."

"I'm not trying to say everything is equal. All I'm saying is that there are things that go both ways and you need to recognize that."

"Don't try to rationalize it," Stephanie said. "Don't try to figure out my father. If I haven't done it in twenty-nine years, if my brother hasn't done it in thirty-six years and my mother hasn't been able to do it in more than forty years of being together with my father, then nobody is going to do it. How she could stand to be with my father for forty years is beyond me. Beyond me, totally."

"I don't know how I've put up with you for almost four years," Chris said. "I think I might pull my hair out over that one."

"How very sweet of you to say that to the woman who just two short weeks ago gave birth to your son, your first child," Stephanie said coyly.

"You're going to hold this over my head for the rest of my life aren't you?"

"Yeah, and in the event we have more children, well…you'll get it even more so," she said with a great, big smile.

So engrossed in conversation were they that they didn't notice the main event had started and Shane was already out there. He figured the job would be easy tonight. He'd just have to avoid Shawn and then make sure that Kenny won. It wasn't too difficult, definitely something that he could handle. And handle it he did, minus the little chase with Shawn. He had been holding Shawn, waiting for Hunter to hit him with the sledgehammer, confident that he would do it. Maybe Shane was out of it that moment, but he wasn't expecting anything to happen to him.

And then his world went black.

Vince rushed out there to check on his son. Shane was pretty much the only one who actually talked to him and listened to him. He was worried for his son, and he cursed out Hunter, who was trying to say that it was an accident. But Vince was too hysterical to believe that at the moment. He grabbed his son, cradling him against his body (which some people laughed at, it was just…over the top), holding onto him and getting upset, but not just about his son, about Stephanie, about how he couldn't resist a beautiful woman, about his grandson, about everything.

Stephanie walked up to Hunter and slapped him. "How could you hit my brother!"

"It was an accident."

"An accident my ass!" Stephanie yelled at him. "You think I don't know you Hunter, you think I don't know that look. You had no remorse, you wanted to do that!"

"Well your dad and brother are jackasses," he yelled at her. "They think they're doing me favors, they're not doing me any favors and they know it. They want to screw me over, plain and simple."

"You hit my brother!" she just yelled as they wheeled Shane backstage. "How could you!"

"Well that's supposed to be my baby!" Hunter yelled at her and then had the wherewithal to look shocked at his outburst. Stephanie was definitely shocked by what he had said.

"Excuse me?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, excuse me," Chris said as he walked over with Sawyer in tow, cradling him against his body.

"You lied to me, you made me believe you were pregnant, that should've been my kid," Hunter yelled.

"What the hell is going on here?" Vince asked as he walked backstage.

"None of your business!" Stephanie yelled at him.

"I think it is."

"Well it isn't," she told him, turning back to Hunter. "Sawyer is not supposed to be your baby. I was never pregnant so it doesn't matter anymore, that was over four years ago, deal with it, get over it."

"No, why should I when you're just a liar and a bitch?"

"Oh, that's rich coming from the guy who hit my brother!"

"And am I just not in the picture at all," Chris said to Hunter. "I'm just nothing in this whole scenario."

"Oh no, you're just the man that stole my wife!" Hunter snapped at him.

"Hey! I did not steal her from you," Chris told him in the same snappy tone that Hunter used with him. "We did NOT date while we were business partners. We barely even hugged. I didn't go out with Stephanie until well after the divorce was finalized."

"Yeah, so there," Stephanie said, sticking her tongue out.

"Well, you just couldn't wait to jump on the Chris train once I dumped you."

"I wanted to get revenge and he had the title, what did you want me to do?"

"This is neither the time nor the place," Vince said. "Shane is being taken to the hospital."

"Fine Dad, whatever, we'll be there," Stephanie said. "I'll be there, Chris, you have to take Sawyer back to the hotel."

"Okay baby," Chris said, sending a glare to Hunter. "And Sawyer is my son too and don't you forget it Hunter."

"You never let me!" Hunter yelled at him, which caused Sawyer to cry. Chris took his son away from the situation, wondering how everything had spiraled out of control so quickly. What was supposed to be a nice night for Stephanie had turned into something of a nightmare.

Everything in their lives seemed to result in chaos.


	89. Just Bring it Back Already, May 22, 2006

A/N: This chapter is more Jericho/Steph centric, while next week's chapter I'm going to try to make more Trish/Christian centric.

Thanks for all the great reviews, I love them all, and they make me smile, so PLEASE keep them coming. :)

* * *

Vince's plan was not a sound one. Vince was deluded in his thinking. He didn't know how to think rationally. Perhaps it was the fact that both his kids were in a bad way. The situation with Stephanie was still at a standstill and the situation with Shane was bad, though it could've been worse. Shane was at home with his wife and kids, suffering from a mild concussion. Vince didn't know what to do with either of his children, but at least the situation with Shane had the potential to get better. 

The only thing that Vince could think of to get Stephanie back into his life was to completely annihilate Hunter. Stephanie had never gotten sufficient revenge on her ex-husband and in the McMahon family, revenge was a dish served best cold and whenever one of them was hurt in any way. Stephanie had never gotten to have that revenge. At least that's what Vince believed. Stephanie could care less about revenge now. She had gotten her revenge and that had simply been being happy with Chris and having Sawyer.

Vince had seen the scene play out last week. He had seen the utter jealousy in Hunter's face when he saw Chris and Stephanie. He had also heard his outburst about Sawyer. He knew that Hunter was still a thorn in their side, so he was going to make sure that Hunter got the point that Stephanie was not going to be his any time soon. This was the way that Vince thought, and he was going to go by what he believed, even if it was wrong. He was going to demand an apology from Hunter.

Chris rolled his eyes as he saw Vince demanding apologies left and right. Like that was just going to solve everyone's problems. It wouldn't solve any problem to just have Hunter apologize. Hunter apologizing was about as sincere as…well something that wasn't that sincere. He couldn't think of anything at the moment. So he just focused on his work and the things that needed to be done as he saw that the ring crew had done a good job setting up the ring for Mick, who was heading out there now.

It wasn't a few minutes later that a shadow was cast over his station. He looked up and rolled his eyes. There was a man he never thought he'd see again and it probably wouldn't have been too soon either. Paul Heyman had that damn smirk on his face, that same one when he was planning something.

"I never thought I'd see the day," he said in that smug voice of his. What Paul had to be smug about was a mystery to him.

"See what Paul?" Chris asked drolly.

"You behind a desk. I guess this is what marrying a McMahon will do to you," Paul told him. "And to think, you used to be part of ECW, living out of your car, and now look at you, multi-millionaire and working right under your daddy-in-law. You're just as big a sell-out as Mick Foley out there."

Chris sucked at his teeth a little bit. "It's funny you know, WWE is sponsoring this little ECW get-together you're having and well, would you look at that," he said, raising up his left hand to show off his wedding ring. "I'm part owner of WWE. Paul, I don't give a crap what you think about me and what I do here, you are nothing to me."

"And I thought you were something special."

"Do you even know the circumstances under which I'm here?" Chris asked. "Do you know why I have the desk job?"

"Because Daddy asked you to?" Paul asked, raising the pitch of his voice to sound like a little kid. "You didn't want to hurt him."

"No, not at all. My wife gave birth to my son three weeks ago," Chris said with a sarcastic smile. "And I'm filling in for her until she can get back."

That wiped the smug smile off of Heyman's face and Chris chuckled lightly. "Well…congratulations."

"Thanks," Chris answered, then pointed towards the screen. "I'm guessing this business that you had to attend to doesn't include me, so you might want to go talk to the people you really came here for."

Paul left then and Chris was surprised that he had been able to mask the shock he felt when he was confronted with Heyman. Vince had made no mention of Heyman being anywhere on the schedule, but he had to have known that he would be here. This is the kind of thing that he wanted to avoid. If he was going to run this show, he kind of needed to know what was going on during the show. He got up, figuring things would be okay for a little while and went to Vince's office, where he was sitting with a blonde woman, Beth Phoenix, as Chris recalled from Trish's talking about her.

"I'm sorry," Chris said upon entering, "I didn't know you were in a meeting." At least Chris hoped that it was a meeting and not something that would make Stephanie more upset than she was right now.

"No, actually it's a good thing that you're here," Vince said. He knew that he had to get on Chris's good side as well, even though Chris had said this wasn't his fight. Vince wasn't completely oblivious. He knew that whatever hurt Stephanie, in turn hurt Chris. "We just signed our newest diva to the Raw roster, I'd like to introduce you to Beth Phoenix."

"Nice to meet you," Chris said, shaking the blonde's hand. "I'm actually really good friends with Trish Stratus, so I've heard about you."

"Cool," Beth said.

"We were just discussing her new contract and everything. I'm sure that if you need anything, Chris would be willing to accommodate you."

"Of course, that's my job, if you need anything, just look for me."

"That's another thing I wanted to discuss with you Chris, if you had a moment that is."

"Yeah, I've got a moment, actually I wanted to talk to you."

"Beth, did you need anything else or do you think that you're going to be okay on your own?" Vince asked her.

"I'll be fine, Trish said she'd show me the ropes," Beth said, standing up and shaking Vince's hand and then shaking Chris's hand. Chris stood there a moment before Vince gestured to the seat in front of him. If he was going to start mending fences, he would have to start with the person who was least mad at him.

"You needed to talk to me about something?"

"Vince, if you're going to plan stuff for the show can you at least let me know what you're doing?" Chris asked. "I'm sitting at my desk and all of a sudden, Paul Heyman is in front of me, I don't have his music cued up immediately, I don't have an entrance video for him. I mean, the production truck is incredibly quick on its feet with this stuff, but if there's even going to be a chance that he's going to be there, let me know so I'm not blindsided by his presence."

"That's my fault," Vince said. "I should've told you. And I know that you're doing a great job around here, and I know that you have to stay late sometimes and I've been thinking that you need a personal assistant."

"I don't think so Vince," Chris said, shaking his head. "I think I've got everything handled."

"But you have a baby at home now. At Titan, Shane has his own personal assistant and until Stephanie comes back, if she comes back--"

"Stephanie's coming back," Chris said with conviction. "She's coming back probably within the next couple of weeks, depending on what the doctors tell her and how ready Sawyer is to travel on the road, but she WILL come back Vince."

"Well, until then, I think it would be in your best interest to take on this personal assistant. Instead of staying late to do paperwork and other grunt work, you'll be free to leave and go home to Stephanie and Sawyer." Vince hoped he accepted. This was his version of the olive branch, letting Chris know that he was with him and Stephanie one hundred percent.

"Fine," Chris said, knowing that the idea of being able to leave early and get home to Stephanie was an appealing one. "So who's this assistant?"

"Her name is Britt, and she's probably at your station already," Vince informed him. "I hired her especially for you, she's got a business degree and her resume is very nice and I think that she'll be just what you need."

Chris blew out his breath. "Okay, thanks, I guess."

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some backstage visitors to meet and you have a show to run," Vince said, not discounting the fact there was a show going on and Vince gave him a look that said he should get back to work. Chris stood up and straightened his suit jacket and left without saying goodbye.

He walked out of the room and saw Candice walking down the hallway and past him, obviously towards Vince's office. Chris couldn't believe that Vince was still seeing Candice, or doing whatever he was doing with Candice. What he didn't know was that Vince was doing it because he felt he was losing control, and when a person lost control, they lost any semblance of anything they held dear. Vince was a distraught man, but he would never let that weakness show.

Vince had been horribly worried about Shane last week, if the cradling was any indication (either that or Vince just wanted to give every wrestling fan in the world a good laugh), and he was still worried about his son. The situation with Stephanie was more baffling, and though Vince didn't show it, he was very upset. Candice took that away from him, and he was weak right now. He was always weak to the wiles of women, but more so when he felt like both his children were slipping away from him. When had they grown up? When had his little boy and girl grown up and gotten married and had kids respectively? Things were changing too fast for Vince.

Chris found himself back at his station and saw a woman sitting there patiently, looking a little nervous. She looked to be in her mid-20's and she was pretty enough, if Chris cared about that stuff anymore. She had jet black hair that was pulled back by a couple of clips and she was dressed professionally in a business pantsuit. Chris walked over and gave her a smile. She stood up and stuck her hand out.

"I'm Britt," she said eagerly, allowing him to shake her hand.

"Chris Jericho," he said with a smile. "I guess I'm your boss."

"Yeah," she said with a smile. "I'm really looking forward to working with you. Mr. McMahon said that this wasn't going to be like a personal secretary job, so I'm kind of wondering what exactly it's going to entail."

"Can I be honest with you?" Chris asked. Britt nodded and looked to him to continue speaking. "I've never had a personal assistant before in my life, so I'm not exactly up on the particulars of what you're going to do. I guess you're going to help me run the show and I always have a little paperwork at the end to do, logging stuff, and then you know, I guess we can go from there."

"Sounds great," Britt said, taking a seat next to Chris as he did the same. "So you do all this equipment and stuff."

"I just kind of make sure that the announcers are saying the right stuff, I communicate with the referees when a match is running long or when a promo is going too long. Um…I also plan out the shows for the most part."

"Are you going to want me to do that?"

"You don't have to, that I can handle and it takes a little while to get the hang of it, but I do have some paperwork that I needed to go over and maybe you could do that for me. Part of the reason that Vince hired you was so I didn't have to do the paperwork."

"Is there any reason why you can't do it?" she asked.

Chris pulled out his wallet and took out a picture of Stephanie and Sawyer, he handed it to her. "Those are my reasons."

"Oh, this is your wife and baby?" she asked, taking the picture from him.

"Yeah, that's Stephanie McMahon, and that's my son Sawyer, he's three weeks old."

"Oh, no wonder you need some help, I'd hate to be away from my family too," she said, giving him back the picture. "They're really beautiful."

"Thanks," Chris smiled, putting the picture back into his wallet. "Vince is my father-in-law, so I think this is part of his trying to butter me up."

"Oh, I had no idea, I don't really follow wrestling, is that really bad?" Britt asked with a nervous laugh.

"We don't go advertising the fact, but yeah, I'm the boss's son-in-law, Stephanie is his daughter, and I'm actually co-owner of the company, but please, don't think of me like that, I'd rather we just think of us as like friends or something, it's just weird to think that I have an assistant. I used to be a wrestler."

"Well I knew that much," she joked.

"Okay, well I didn't know."

"I'll get to this paperwork though," she said, eyeing the files in front of him. "And what do you want with these?"

"Oh, those are just plans for the next Pay-Per-View next month and just some preliminary reports about the location, the specs for the arena, and the set design. I just needed them to be filed away in separate places so that I could coordinate them later."

"Done and done," Britt said as she started to get to work.

Chris watched her for a moment, thinking that this wasn't so bad. It probably would be a good thing to have an extra set of hands to help him with what he needed to do. And if it got him home to Stephanie any sooner, then he was going to be all for it. Vince walked through the area and Chris glanced at the schedule to see that it was time for Hunter's apology. A few seconds after Vince walked by, Hunter came into the area and stood around, staring at Chris.

Chris looked up and frowned. "What the hell are you looking at?"

"Nothing," Hunter shrugged, but he had a sour look on his face.

"What? Is this seat supposed to be yours too? This jacket? Oh wait, no, the microphone right? That's supposed to be yours," Chris said sarcastically. "I mean, my son is supposed to be yours so I guess my entire life should be yours. Well, you can have, here you go, I'll just transfer everything to you."

"It wasn't about that asshole," Hunter said, stalking over.

"Then what is it about?" Chris asked. "Get over this damn jealousy you have over me man. It's doing nothing for you. And it bothers me that you somehow think my son should be yours."

"She loved me first," Hunter said, and he sounded a little broken.

Chris frowned and looked to the television screen where Vince was trying to call out Hunter, but Hunter nor he had heard Vince. "You better go out there, Vince is calling you out."

"Whatever," Hunter said, stalking off.

Chris turned to Britt after watching Hunter walk up the stairs to the ramp. "Sorry about that, there's a lot of bad blood between the two of us. He was my wife's first husband and they had a really ugly divorce and he's not completely over her."

"Oh," Britt said. "That did sound a little brutal."

"We've had it out for each other for years."

"Sounds like it."

Chris let her get back to the work she had been doing, knowing that she didn't need to hear his entire life story. To say that he was surprised that Hunter apologized was an understatement, he was surprised. Chris had expected Hunter to pedigree Vince, not actually apologize. But Chris knew that it hadn't been for real. Hunter wasn't being for real, that much he knew. There was no way the man who last week had claimed that Chris and Stephanie's son should be his and Stephanie's would suddenly become so subservient and willing. No, there was something up Hunter's sleeve. It was only a matter of whether or not Chris cared, and he actually didn't care.

When Hunter came backstage, Hunter sent him a dirty look. Chris knew that look and it made him all the more suspicious of Hunter's actions. He had heard the rumors, the ones pertaining to DX, and he didn't know what to make of them. Maybe it would re-form, maybe it wouldn't, but he wouldn't be surprised. Hunter hated to be alone it seemed. He was always surrounding himself with people, Sable, then Shawn and Chyna, the original DX, then the other reincarnation of DX, then his marriage to Stephanie, then Flair, then Evolution, then just Flair again, and now what? Now he was going to align himself with Michaels. Maybe it spoke more to Hunter's true character that he didn't like to be alone. Maybe Hunter was just very insecure about things.

Vince came over to Chris and smiled at the work that Britt was doing next to him. He smiled at his son-in-law, obviously trying to be charming, but this was Vince, it just came off as creepy. "What do you need now Vince?"

"I just wanted to ask you to tell Stephanie that I did that for her, she won't talk to me, but I want her to know that I'm doing this for her. After the things that Hunter said last week, I just want her to know."

Chris knew that Stephanie wouldn't care, that she didn't care, but he didn't have the heart to tell the older man this. "Okay, I'll tell her that."

"Thank you Chris, I really appreciate it," Vince said gratefully.

Chris looked down once Vince was gone and sighed. He didn't like being the go-between between his wife and her father. He didn't see the good in the situation at all, but he wasn't going to forgive Vince just like that. Sawyer was his son too and what he had did to Sawyer still stuck in his craw a little bit.

"You need to talk?" Britt asked from next to him.

"You don't want to hear about my crazy life," Chris said with a chuckle.

"Well, I don't know, if we're going to be working together, I'd hate to think that we couldn't talk at the very least," she told him.

"Vince isn't exactly the most…wonderful man in the world or the best father in the world. He hurt my wife a lot."

"What happened, if you don't mind me asking," she said quickly.

"He just…it's a number of things over the years," Chris shrugged. "Don't worry about it."

"Okay."

Chris heard his theme song go off and knew it was his cell phone, which, yes, he used his own theme song for. He picked it up and looked at the display, seeing that it was his wife. He answered it eagerly, the widest grin on his face. He hadn't gotten to talk to her all day, probably because she was busy with Sawyer and he missed her voice. Silly yes, but somehow romantic, also yes.

"Hey baby."

"Hi," Stephanie said then he heard her yawn.

"Tired?"

"Yeah, I was just about to hit the sack and wanted to call and say goodnight and that I'm going to miss you tonight, I'll be so lonely in bed."

"So put Sawyer next to you, then you won't be lonely," Chris told her.

"He likes his crib better," Stephanie responded. "I haven't gotten to watch the show, how's it going so far?"

"Well, your dad is trying to make amends in the weirdest way, but torturing Hunter in front of everyone. Your father was seen with Candice…again. And Hunter gave probably the most insincere apology in the world."

"Wow, sounds like fun."

"What have you been doing?" Chris asked.

"Well, Sawyer is in love with his new mobile, he can't stop staring at it, and we looked at some picture books before he went to bed, and right before he went to bed, he had a nice, long meal so he's in bed with a full tummy."

"Sounds like he's having fun."

"Chris, I hate to bother you, but I'm done with your filing and was wondering if there was anything else you needed me to do, anyone to call for the show next month," Britt interrupted.

"Oh, well, I don't think I have anyone to call at the moment, so it looks like you could be free to go," Chris told her. "Unless you want to stay here and be bored with me, or want to watch the show."

"You don't think I'll be bored because I can't follow what's going on."

"It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure wrestling out," Chris said with a laugh and Britt returned that laugh as she took an extra pair of headphones and decided to take Chris's advice and watch the show. Chris turned back to the phone. "What were you saying baby?"

"Who was that?"

"Oh, that's Britt, she's my new personal assistant."

"I didn't know you were getting a personal assistant."

"I didn't know either until your father sprung it on me. But she's a really big help so far, in the like hour and a half she's been working for me. It should help me get my work done faster."

"My dad never hired me a personal assistant," Stephanie said with a frown, having heard Chris and this lady talking and laughing to each other just a few minutes earlier. "Is she pretty?"

"What's that got to do with anything?"

"Well, if my father hired her, she's not going to be a 50-year-old woman, we both know that, so I'm going to assume that she's pretty."

"Then why ask if you already know?"

"I was just wondering, but I'm guessing that she's pretty," Stephanie said, trying to hide the bitterness in her voice, but she couldn't hide much from Chris anymore. They had been together too long for him to not know what she was feeling at any given moment. But he didn't want to breach the topic because he knew that Stephanie would go on the defensive and it would end in an argument.

"She's a professional Steph, she's just doing her job and she's good at it so far. It's nice to have someone around to help out when I need it."

"Well, I'm glad that my dad was thinking of your best interest then," Stephanie said, but she was lying through her teeth. "If this takes some of the strain off of you, then I guess that's a good thing. Since you don't want to come home being a cranky ass."

"Stephanie…"

"What? I'm not saying anything," Stephanie said. "I just think that it's strange that I'm gone and my father hires you some young personal assistant and he never hires me a personal assistant. Is this just another case of him not thinking I can do a good job or something?"

"Maybe he thought that you could handle it all by yourself and so hiring someone to help you would be an insult to the greatness that you display every single day that you work here."

"Or maybe he just likes you better and I'm still the gum on the bottom of his shoe."

This wasn't about her father at all, but Chris was not going to go into the jealousy territory. "Stephanie, why don't you try and get some sleep, if you just put Sawyer down then you're going to get a few good hours sleep and that'll do you a world of good."

"Yeah, sure," she answered. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Yeah, I'll be home tomorrow."

"Bye Chris."

"Bye baby, I love you."

He didn't hear anything for a moment, and then Stephanie answered, "I love you too sweetie."

He hung up the phone and tapped Britt on the shoulder. She slipped her headphones off and looked at him inquisitively. "I was wondering if you could do me a favor."

"Sure, whatever you need."

"I need to get me the next flight out of Tampa, hopefully tonight, can you do that or is that overstepping my boundaries into personal favors. I'm not sure if you're supposed to help with personal matters."

"Yeah, I can do that," she interjected. She grabbed her cell phone and started dialing. "I'll get you on the next flight."

By the end of the show, Chris honestly thought that DX was going to re-form. He was anticipating it and had actually called up the production truck to get the music ready in the event that it happened. It didn't, but it was now only a matter of time. When Hunter came back, Chris went up to him, Hunter thought about walking away, but he wanted to hear what Chris had to say.

"I may not like you, but I've gotta give you props for not backing down from Vince. As someone who is going through a hard time with the man, I have to respect what you did out there."

"Thanks," Hunter said shortly, looking at Chris, who wasn't budging. "Is that all?"

"No, it's not all. There's a lot of bad blood between us and some point in the future, we're going to have to work all this crap out. I don't know when and I don't know how, but you and me Hunter, we're going to have to settle this once and for all."

"I'll be looking forward to it," Hunter said through clenched teeth as he walked away. Chris knew the two were going to explode soon. It was years in the making and now too much had passed between them and if they wanted to come out of this intact, they were going to have to do this, they were going to have to lay it all out on the table. Maybe after he formed DX he'd be in a better mood.

Yes, maybe after DX.

Stephanie was sleeping when he got home, but he wasn't surprised. They had to sleep whenever they could get a moment to sleep. Not to mention it was the middle of the night. Although Sawyer had a penchant for waking up in the middle of the night. But then again, maybe Stephanie had just put him down and collapsed on the bed. He felt bad that he was even away from her for one day a week. He knew it was difficult with the new baby and to leave Stephanie alone was kind of cruel, but she was the one constantly forcing him out of the door on Monday mornings or Sunday evenings.

He just took her in for a moment, in the quiet of night, a quiet that had seemed to run away from their lives these past three weeks. Not that Sawyer was terrible or noisy all of the time, but just like his father and mother, sometimes he didn't know when to shut up. Chris chuckled to himself silently as he thought about what a babbling baby they got. When Sawyer was up, he was always babbling away to himself, making weird noises and Stephanie would roll her eyes, but Chris never said that it was probably because he and Stephanie were big talkers that Sawyer was a big talker too.

He unbuttoned his shirt and undid his jeans, leaving him in his boxers, which was far more comfortable sleepwear. He climbed slowly onto the bed, not wanting to wake up Stephanie just yet. He slid in next to her and kissed her cheek chastely to try and get her to wake up. She had a frown on her face in her sleep and Chris narrowed his eyes at that. He didn't like thinking that she was unhappy in her slumber. He was going to kiss her again to wake her up, but then he heard the few sound of mewling from his son over the baby monitor. Before he could take Stephanie in his arms, he was out of bed, grabbing and turning off the baby monitor, and heading to his son's room.

He entered Sawyer's room and went to pick the child up before he started crying in earnest. He cradled Sawyer in his arms and smiled down the little boy. How was it that Chris missed this little guy so much after only being away for a little over a day? He was completely attached to this little boy now and couldn't imagine a second without him. Chris took him downstairs, getting him a bottle and feeding him as he watched the television, oblivious to the conflict in his wife's mind upstairs.

"_Hello Chris," Stephanie said as she stood in the doorway. "Did you have fun with Dad, Sawyer?"_

"_Yeah, it was fun," Sawyer told his mom. "Hockey is cool."_

"_Glad to hear that," Chris smiled, ruffling his son's dirty blond hair. Sawyer ran into the house to go put the poster his dad had bought him up in his room. He'd probably need Stephanie's help, but he just wanted to look at it again._

"_I'm glad that it sounds like he had a good time," Stephanie said hesitantly. She and Chris had never gotten over the awkwardness after the divorce. Sometimes it made her long for the days when they hated each other because at least then she knew how to act around him. Now it was just strange._

"_Yeah, we both did," Chris said with a smile, feeling that same awkwardness. It was just really weird to think that he had loved this woman and now they had only civil and safe conversations. "Well, I better get going, Bianca's at home waiting for me."_

"_Oh yeah," Stephanie said. "She's like…due really soon isn't she?"_

"_Yeah, she is," Chris laughed quietly. "She's pretty miserable, twins and all that."_

"_Yeah, I probably would be too," Stephanie told him. "But yeah, I'll let you get back home to her, don't want to keep the…wife waiting…"_

"_Yeah, wouldn't be too good," Chris said. "Tell Sawyer that I'll call him tonight to say goodnight and then I'll see him on Tuesday after school."_

"_I'll do that, and…Chris?"_

"_Yeah?" he asked, turning to her._

_Stephanie looked down and then shook her head. "Nothing, but um…if Bianca happens to give birth within the next few days, congratulations, I'm really happy that you're happy…you are happy right?"_

_Chris looked at her wistfully, thinking a moment about how it used to be between them, how much he had loved that woman, how she was the only one in his life that he could ever imagine himself with. He hated that it had come to this. Sometimes he wasn't happy, and sometimes he knew, deep down that Stephanie was his soulmate, but things had changed and they were two different people._

"_Yeah, I'm happy."_

Stephanie woke up thinking that she heard Sawyer, or at least that she should be hearing Sawyer. Or maybe it was just that dream, or rather, nightmare. Yes, that was a nightmare. After hearing Chris laughing with that woman over the phone earlier, her receptors had been up all night, and she had been nervous. She had seen this one too many times growing up. Her father was a womanizer. What else could she say about him except that? That's what he was, and when you grow up with that, sometimes you tend to see the traits in others, even when it wasn't there.

Chris and she still couldn't sleep together, not for another three weeks, maybe less, maybe more. The thought that he was getting his jollies elsewhere was terrifying to her. She didn't want to even think that Chris would go to some other woman, but was it so out of the realm of possibility? That woman's heinous laugh was embedded in her brain and she shook with anger over it. It didn't help that Chris was spending the night in Las Vegas. Of all the places, Las Vegas, where it was the norm to get drunk and party. She hated thinking he was there and she was here, alone, thinking about what he was doing over there.

She got out of bed and went to go check on Sawyer. She might as well see if he was awake since she was up. He hadn't cried and that was a little weird. Sure, he didn't have an exact routine yet, but it was pretty easy to conjecture when he would wake up and when he would sleep. She walked down the hallway, feeling a little lonely since Kurt was spending the week with Ashley, and she was all alone with just her and Sawyer until tomorrow, if Chris decided to come home, if he wasn't out having an affair.

Stephanie hated the vulnerability that came along with these thoughts. She knew she was a strong person and she knew that she could overcome a lot of obstacles, but deep down inside, she was scared because she wasn't great at this love business. She didn't want to turn out like her father and she knew that it was a distinct possibility. She went into her son's room and went up to the crib, smiling until she looked down and saw the emptiness staring back at her. She went and turned on the light, making sure that she wasn't just seeing things. When she saw again that there was no baby, she went into panic mode.

She searched the entire room, like Sawyer could've suddenly learned how to climb or something and when she couldn't find him, she almost lost it. She ran into her bedroom, hair flying behind her as she searched in there too, thinking that maybe in her hazy state she had brought him with her in there and somehow forgotten that he was there. But he wasn't there either, she was hyperventilating almost, thinking if maybe she had set him down somewhere, the bassinet, no, he wasn't there, and she was almost positive that she hadn't been downstairs with him.

She grabbed the phone to call Chris and tell him that Sawyer might've been kidnapped, when she heard soft voices coming from downstairs. It didn't sound like anyone she knew and she got scared. She looked around, trying to find something to use as a weapon and saw Chris's hockey stick propped up in the corner of the room. She went and grabbed the hockey stick and choked up on it so she could hold it. She crept downstairs, trying not to make a sound. If there were people down there and they had her son, she was going to bludgeon them to death.

She slowly tiptoed down the stairs, but then saw that it was the television and she narrowed her eyes. The television? Had she left the television on? But that wasn't what she needed to be thinking of right now, her son was gone. She peeked around the corner and saw Chris watching the television with Sawyer resting neatly in his arms, the little boy's head laying comfortably on his father's shoulder.

"Chris?" Stephanie asked in disbelief, a part of her still believing that he was having some illicit affair with that woman from earlier.

"Hey," he whispered, then pointed to his son. "He asleep?"

"No, he's awake," Stephanie answered, walking closer to them, not realizing that she still had the hockey stick in her hand.

"Um, were you going to go out and play?" Chris asked jokingly as he nodded towards her improvised weapon.

"Oh, I thought you were a burglar," Stephanie said, propping the hockey stick up against the wall. "I couldn't find Sawyer and I didn't think you were home and I got scared and I was going to kill whoever was breaking into my house."

"Luckily I wasn't standing with my back to you, I might've gotten hit the hard way," he said, a little louder this time since Sawyer wasn't asleep.

"What are you doing here?" she asked. "You said you were staying in Vegas overnight. I don't understand."

"Well, it's three-fold really," he told her. "One, I missed my wife and son, two, I didn't think it was fair that you had to take care of him alone, and three, I knew you were upset that you heard me and Britt earlier and you were probably feeling a little jealous and maybe a little nervous."

She squeezed her eyes shut, hating that he could read her like a book. "Those are all good reasons."

"I thought so," he said, patting the spot next to him. Stephanie came over and sat next to him, leaning her head on his free shoulder. He wrapped his free arm around her and pulled her as close as he could get. "Steph, I adore you."

"I know."

"I'm not like your dad, I'm not going to crumble at the first temptation thrown my way, or any non-temptation thrown my way. Or really any woman thrown my way," he explained to her.

"Yeah, I know."

"Baby, I would never cheat on you," Chris told her seriously. "I would never, ever, EVER, hurt you and Sawyer like that. I love you both way too much to do that to you. I don't know what it'll take for you to believe that, but please believe that."

"I believe," she told him. "I don't know, I just…I heard you talking with this woman and laughing and it just…I mean, I'm stupid for thinking that you were going to have an affair, but I just…it's happened in my life. I mean, you saw the way I got when I thought that Trish was seducing Hunter."

"Yeah, if I recall, you threw a lamp."

"Yeah, and I didn't even have his kid," Stephanie joked. "Which reminds me, never, and I do mean never take my son out of his crib without telling me first okay? Because I just about threw myself out the window thinking he had been kidnapped."

"Sorry, I was just about to wake you up, but he started crying and I didn't want you to have to wake up, I guess that plan backfired."

"I love you Chris," Stephanie said, then heard Sawyer give a little cry. "And I love you too baby boy."

"If I didn't say it back, would you think I was having an affair?" Chris joked.

Stephanie's only response was a slug to the arm.


	90. Huh, Kurt in ECW? May 29, 2006

"God, would you turn that down!" Stephanie yelled over the music that Chris was blasting on the stereo in their room. "I can't even hear myself."

"I'm trying to listen to this Stephanie," Chris said as he listened to the Iron Maiden song while he packed his suitcase to take on his trip to Washington state that evening.

"Chris, come on, I can't hear myself think and you're going to hurt Sawyer's ears," she explained as she wanted to rush to the stereo and just turn this racket off. She had gotten used to the metal he loved, but it was annoying her now because she wanted to speak with him.

"Oh come on Stephanie, you know the saying, you've got to rock out with your coc--"

"Don't even finish that sentence!" Stephanie yelled, finally turning the music down. "I've heard that phrase enough for one lifetime, thanks."

"I'm just saying," Chris said, kissing her cheek, but Stephanie had already turned frigid as she watched him continue to pack.

"You know, I still don't understand why my dad would hire you a personal assistant. He's never hired anyone's personal assistant before. I mean, I haven't even had a personal assistant since I was the General Manager of SmackDown, but you get one out of the blue."

"I think this is his way of trying to make amends, or at least one of the ways," Chris said as he put another shirt into his suitcase. "He told me that it's so I can spend more time with you and Sawyer."

"But you were spending time with us as it is," Stephanie said, following him as he gathered some of the other items he needed on his trip. "You fly back on all the earliest possible flights, last week, you surprised me by coming home."

"And I might not have been able to if it hadn't been for Britt," Chris said, turning to her while raising an eyebrow, "So see, it did help because I got to come home to you guys."

"But I'm just saying, the timing is weird, how come he didn't get you one while I was sitting here, still pregnant, huh, how do you explain that? You'd think my father would want that for me, don't you. If he wants you to get home to me sooner than why didn't he start this the moment I couldn't travel any longer?"

"Maybe because you didn't hate his guts then so he didn't need to worry about it," Chris said, flinging a sock in her face. She picked it up, rolled it into a ball and threw it back at him angrily. "Stephanie, your dad doesn't think unless he wants something and what he wants is your forgiveness."

"By giving you a gorgeous personal assistant!" she yelled, which caused Sawyer to start crying from the bassinet in the corner. "Look what you made me do, you made me upset him."

"Actually, I think he's upset because his mobile stopped spinning," Chris said, going over to his son and turning the knob to turn on the carousel-type music that had Sawyer so fascinated. He smiled at his son, "Hey there little guy, don't mind Mommy, she's always like this."

"No, I'm only like this when my father gives my husband gorgeous personal assistants!"

"Steph, I wouldn't say she's gorgeous."

"So you've looked," she said, poking him in the chest with a finger. "If you can say something like that, that means you've looked at her."

"Baby, it's hard to tell someone to do something without looking at them, don't you think that makes for awkward conversation?"

"Okay, hypothetically speaking, you're not married, you don't have a kid, you're a bachelor, no ties, no strings, no wedding rings, could you see yourself dating this woman? Or not even dating, sleeping with this woman?" Stephanie asked.

Chris stared at her for a moment. Her hormones were still so out of whack right now. Everything he had read about post-pregnancy mentioned the hormones were still adjusting. Although he was glad he was dealing with this and not post-partum depression, it was still annoying. He started laughing hysterically though, because the brunt of Stephanie's question. She just stared at him, frowning.

"I'm not answering that because that's the most ridiculous question in the world."

"It's an honest question!" she protested vehemently.

"Stephanie, if I weren't married to you then any woman in the world could be my next girlfriend," Chris told her. "How the hell would I know who would be my girlfriend? The fact of the matter is that I'm not on the market."

"I don't know why my father is doing this," she grumbled, going over to check on Sawyer, who stared at her intently. She held his gaze and grabbed one of his hands, squeezing it softly. "Baby boy, Grandpa is an ass."

"He's not an ass Steph," Chris said, rolling his eyes as he went into the bathroom to grab his toiletries.

"Chris, do you not know what he did to me?" Stephanie called after him as she continued to play with Sawyer's foot. "You were there, you saw."

"Yeah, I did see," Chris said from the bathroom. "But honestly, I think you're both being ridiculous."

"What?"

"You heard me," Chris told her, coming out with his arms laden with hair care products. "I think you're both being stupid about this entire thing. Both of you, and that includes you."

"Whoa, you're supposed to be on my side," Stephanie said.

"I'm not fighting your fight Stephanie, you told me that, I told you that."

"But ultimately, you're supposed to be on my side. I'm your wife."

"Yeah, and honestly, I think you're being a bit of a bitch in all of this," he told her, putting his things in his bag and starting to zip it up. Stephanie let go of Sawyer's foot and took a few menacing steps towards Chris.

"You think I'm what?"

"I think you're being a bitch," Chris said plainly. "Stephanie, we both know how your father works. We both know he's an asshole, and we both can't stand him sometimes, but I think that you're…I don't know how to explain it, but it's like your being vindictive just for the hell of it."

"For the hell of it!" she said loudly. "My father was making out with Candice Michelle while I was in labor!"

"I know, I saw it too Stephanie, but do you remember what happened a few months before you had Sawyer?"

"What are you talking about?"

"We were mad at your dad together, and then suddenly he comes and tells you to be yourself and you're buddy-buddy again, you love your father again. I was willing then to stand by your side. I confronted your father, I told him to stay the hell away from you, and in one moment, you're back to being Daddy's Little Girl. You said you wanted Sawyer to have a family, to be happy and not know anger, and here you are, being angry, denying our son his grandpa."

"He betrayed me first!" Stephanie argued.

"But that makes you a liar then. It's only good to give Sawyer a family when you're not hurt or something?"

"I'm doing this for Sawyer! I'm protecting him!"

"Stephanie, you and I both know that no matter what happens, Vince will be in our lives. He's your father, and he's our boss, there's no escaping him, there just isn't. He will ALWAYS be in our lives."

"NO! No, he won't," she insisted. "This is it, I'm not going to take it anymore, he's out of my life."

"So you're going to deny Sawyer his family then? After you were so adamant about giving him his family?"

"Fine, so what Chris? I'm a hypocrite, is that what you want me to say? I'm a liar and I'm stupid and to boot I'm a bad mother, is that it?"

"I never said that," he told her.

"You might as well have, I'm a bad mother, I'm going to screw him up," she said, gesturing vaguely in Sawyer's direction. "We both knew it when we found out I was pregnant. If anyone was going to screw this child up, it was going to be me, right, right?"

"Stephanie, why must you misread everything I say?" Chris asked with a sigh.

"Then what the hell are you trying to say?"

"I'm trying to say that you're being stupid and childish is what I'm trying to say. I don't know what else to say about it, but you're just being childish."

"Childish? Oh, so you're just the mature one here, and I'm the screw-up."

"You want to misconstrue me!" he told her. "You want to misunderstand everything I say because you don't want to face the fact that you know that I'm right. You know that this thing with your father is stupid."

"It's not stupid, you don't understand my family. You don't understand us, you haven't been in our family for a long time, you don't get it. My father betrayed me and for that, he has to suffer the consequences."

"Yeah, so our lives are just all about revenge."

"I never said that!"

"You're just angry that your father gave me a personal assistant and you think that she's some vixen whose sole purpose is to seduce me away from my family. It's like you don't trust me or something. Like you think that I'm going to cheat on you or something and that hurts Stephanie, you know what, I'm getting out of here before this escalates into something more."

"So now you're just leaving?" Stephanie asked.

"Yes, Kurt and I have a plane to catch," Chris told her. "And unless you want me to miss my plane and then be even more angry, you'll let me go."

"Fine, just leave, just go, and do whatever."

"Okay, I will, and you can sit here and act childish some more."

"And you can go have sex with Britt for all I care!" Stephanie yelled.

"Okay, maybe I'll take you up on that," Chris said with a smile as he zipped up the last part of his suitcase with a flourish. He glared at her a moment before turning to go back to the bassinet where his one month old son was laying down. He smiled softly as his kid. "I'll see you in a couple of days Sawyer, take care of Mommy, even though she's being a huge bitch right now."

"I'm not being a bitch."

"You know, Britt is looking really good right now."

"Good to know, why don't you step the hell away from MY son and leave then?" Stephanie said.

"Don't get coy with me," Chris said as he grabbed his bag. "He's my son too, and don't you forget it."

"Yeah, mmhmm," Stephanie said snidely as Chris kissed his son goodbye and grabbed his suitcase, completely ignoring Stephanie and walking out the door. She just stood there and didn't even look at him as he left and walked down the stairs.

The next day saw Chris had not spoken to Stephanie, at least not directly. He had called to talk to Sawyer, since he hated being away from his son, but not a sincere word had passed between the two of them. Poor Kurt had to hear about it all night since he was sharing a room with Chris for the next couple of nights. Kurt had to hear it the entire way to the arena and then when they were walking into the arena.

"I just don't get her, I mean, I called her this morning and she almost hung up on me before I could talk to the kid. I mean, he's my son too, you know, she can't just keep him from me. And it's not like I'm some deadbeat who isn't around because he doesn't love his kid. She's the one who pushed me to do this job in the first place. I was perfectly happy to be just doing my own thing, my radio show, Fozzy, everything else, and you know, she doesn't get that everything I do is for her."

"She'll get it eventually," Kurt said. "But you know Stephanie better than anyone and next in line is me, so you know, I know her."

"Good, you're so lucky you have Ashley, she can't be half as much trouble."

"Ash is awesome," Kurt said, almost dreamily.

"You're so in love with her," Chris teased. "Speaking of in love, is that who I think it is?"

Leaning up against a wall was Trish and Christian, both engaged in what looked to be a serious conversation, but the smiles on their faces suggested otherwise. Both were wearing huge grins and Christian was idly running his finger across her shoulder as he spoke. Kurt and Chris stood there, jaws dropped. They had known that Christian and Trish had mended fences for the most part, but neither had mentioned they were going to actually come to a show together.

"Um, hey," Chris said as they approached. "The two of you…"

"Oh hey," Trish said happily as she wrapped her arms around Christian's waist. "Isn't this great? I got Christian to fly all the way across the country for me, and be with me."

"I wasn't aware…what about Mickie's threats?" Kurt asked.

"Oh, forget those," Trish spat out, like it was nasty, "Mickie has her own problems with Beth, and she's not going to come near me anymore, and if she does, well, I'm not letting Christian go this time. I've lost too much time as it is."

"I love you," Christian said affectionately, kissing the top of her head.

"I love you too Chrissy," Trish said, snuggling up against his side.

"I can't bear this," Chris said. "I've got to go anyways, I've got to go talk to Britt about tonight's workload and stuff."

"I've got a meeting with Vince," Kurt shrugged. "That's why I'm here tonight."

"Bye you two," Trish said happily, oblivious that Chris was in a fight with Stephanie. In fact, she was pretty oblivious to a lot of things that didn't involve Christian. She sighed happily again. "Chrissy, I'm so happy you're here."

"It's a little weird though, you know, what with not actually being a part of the company anymore, but if that means being with you here, I don't really care what it feels like," he told her, giving her a grin.

"We'll work through that Chrissy, and you know, I can visit you when you film for TNA right, I mean, you're the champion, you should be allowed to bring your girlfriend to the show, shouldn't you?"

"You know you're always welcome to come," Christian said. "Have you and Kurt talked about the house yet, and how I'm probably going to be living there too?"

"No, actually I haven't, after his meeting with Vince I'll discuss it with him," Trish said. "We're still a couple of months away from moving, but he'll definitely know before then. I'm sure Ash is going to be there all the time too, so it won't be weird for him. And you won't actually be living there, like officially, just be over all the time, since we're trying to take this slow."

"Yeah," she answered, giving him a languid kiss. "We're doing this right this time, because I don't want to be without you anymore. I just…I can't…does that make any sense? It's like, I don't feel like myself when I'm not with you Chrissy."

"I feel the same way about you Trishy," Christian said. "And I'm still so sorry about what happened between us and with Mickie. I never wanted it to happen and when I think that maybe we could've been engaged or something now, I just, I hate to think about it."

"We wouldn't have been engaged," she told him. "Chrissy, you and I both know we're not ready for that step yet, and maybe won't be for a while, so we just have to be patient and do this our own way, not any other way, just our own way."

"Can our own way include getting food?" Christian asked.

"Lead the way."

Chris got to his station and saw Britt sitting there. Last week, Chris had told her to dress more casual since he himself was usually in just a pair of jeans, a t-shirt and a blazer. He didn't want his assistant to look better than he did. She was dressed more accordingly, a nice blouse and some jeans and he smiled as he walked over.

"So you did take my advice," he kidded.

"Yeah, you're right, it's much more comfortable," she said. "So what's on tap for tonight?"

"Well, I just got a call from Vince and we have some new talent so I'm going to need you to give them some papers to get acquainted and I have a list of things that you need to tell them since you're new to this whole thing, kind of like a checklist. Then I have to go into a meeting with Vince, so you'll need to hold my calls for that, I think it has something to do with the new General Manager. Besides that, just a lot of sitting around, hopefully."

"Sounds great, so how was your week?" she asked.

"Fine," Chris answered. "But I haven't talked to my wife since yesterday, she's mad at me, I'm mad at her, and you don't really need to hear my life story."

"It's okay, I don't really mind at all."

"No, I mean, it's stupid, she's just…sometimes she frustrates me so much you know? I love her to death, but she makes me so angry. I should be used to it by now, we both have tempers and we both know how to push each other's buttons," he said as he sat down. Britt went ahead and sat down next to him.

"Well, that's understandable, if you know how to get on each other's nerves, if you fight, you're going to go straight for that tactic."

"I think you're probably right, I just…I hate fighting with her. This is the first fight we've had since our son has been born, and I know that having a child wasn't going to stop our fighting altogether, but it feels weird now to be fighting. It's like everything that we do is going to affect our son and I don't want to affect him negatively."

"He's how old now?"

"A month."

"I don't think he'll be traumatized over it," Britt told him. "He's still little enough to not understand what's going on. But I'm sure you'll work things out with your wife if you really love her, which you seem to do."

"I do, she's incredible."

"How did you two meet?"

"When I came into the company," he explained.

"Oh yeah, because she's the boss's daughter, stupid Britt, stupid," she said, chastising herself.

Chris laughed. "It's okay, you don't really know her, so you know, it's easy to forget that fact."

"So you fell in love with your boss's daughter? Was that weird?"

"Yeah, especially because we used to despise each other, I mean, out and out hated, but then…something changed and I fell for her and…I love her so much that sometimes it hurts. She's like…she's the most beautiful woman I've ever known and the fact that she married ME and had my son, it's like, it's very…wow, you know," he gushed. "I mean, I don't think I even deserve someone like her and yet, she's mine."

"Oh, you'll definitely work out your problems if you love her that much," Britt said as she checked her watch. "Oh, you have that meeting with Vince coming up."

"Oh man, thanks," Chris said, standing up. "I have those papers for you to give to the new talent, but we'll deal with that when I get back. Um, just hold my calls on my cell phone."

Britt nodded and Chris walked quickly to his father-in-law's office. He wasn't looking forward to seeing the man who had indirectly caused his fight with his wife. He just wished that Vince had been able to keep it in his pants that night so that Stephanie would've never known her father was a jackass. Why couldn't he ever lead a normal life? Maybe he just wasn't destined to. Kurt was just coming out of Vince's office when Chris got there.

"What did he want with you?" Chris asked.

"I'm going to ECW," Kurt said, a little shell-shocked from the news. "Heyman drafted me and I'm going to be on ECW."

"Wow, that's…I wasn't expecting that," Chris said, slapping him on the shoulder. "How do you feel about that?"

"I don't know," Kurt said. "I think I need to call Ashley and discuss it with her."

"Yeah, you do that, but you know, if you do go to ECW, it's a whole different monster Kurt. A whole different monster."

Kurt just nodded absently, still a little shocked that he was going to a whole other brand that he had never dealt with before. Chris watched him a moment before going into the locker room. He saw that Coach was sitting there and wondered what the hell that was about. Vince gestured for him to sit down. Chris took a seat, looking over at Coach, who was dressed to the nines.

"So what did you want to speak with me about Vince?" Chris asked.

"Well, first, how's Stephanie and Sawyer?" Vince asked thoughtfully, looking eager for the answer.

"They're both fine," Chris answered with a smile. He couldn't help but smile whenever he thought of Sawyer, it was like instinct. "Okay, back to business."

"Well, I know I was supposed to hire a new General Manager, but I just can't find anyone that I think is right, and since you're doing a good enough job, even a great job at running the show and the fact that Stephanie will be back soon and the both of you will do a fine job, I decided to put it off for now."

"That's fine, I've got things handled," Chris shrugged. "Okay, so I can't help myself, what the hell is he doing here," he said, jerking his thumb towards Coach.

"Jonathan is my new executive assistant," Vince announced. "I just want to inform you of his new position. Granted, it doesn't affect you that much since I don't expect you to go through him to get to me, but I just needed you to know. Jonathan, you may go now, but Chris is also one of your bosses, so remember that."

"Will do Boss," Coach said before leaving.

"I hired him as my assistant to not have any…distractions," Vince said, "I really want to show Stephanie that I'm committed to this, committed to gaining her forgiveness. I also scheduled Hunter against Kenny tonight, and I'm planning on making the match harder and next week, I'm going to induct Hunter in my Kiss My Ass Club."

"Vince…um, don't you think that's going a little overboard?" Chris asked. "I know you think that this is going to be good for Stephanie, but did you ever think that maybe she just…maybe you should just talk to her?"

"She wouldn't even see me."

"I don't know about that Vince. Maybe you should just try. She might appreciate the effort."

"I am giving effort, I hired Coach as my assistant so I wouldn't fall for any women, and I'm getting back at Hunter for her because I know that she hates that man. These are the things that I'm doing, I'm getting her revenge."

"Vince, maybe she just wants a father who loves her and who she knows loves her," Chris said. "I don't know how I got involved in this family, but sometimes I swear, I need to be locked up or something."

"What are you saying?"

"That you're all crazy and somehow I've been sucked into this craziness. And now I'm here forever because I'm married to Stephanie and we have a child. Stephanie doesn't need revenge, she needs a father Vince. God!"

As Chris was arguing with Vince, Stephanie was thinking about what was going on. She hated fighting with Chris. And now she was affecting Sawyer as well. She looked at her son, who was sitting in his carrier on her desk in her office. She smiled at him as he lay sleeping. She didn't want to drive Chris away for Sawyer's sake, not that she thought she was driving him away. Oh God, what if she was driving him away?

She grabbed her phone and dialed Chris's cell phone. A few moments later a woman answered. "Hi, this is Chris Jericho's phone, Britt speaking."

"Oh, hi, um…I wanted to speak with Chris…"

"He's in a meeting with Vince right now, but if you want me to take a message, is this urgent?"

"No, it's just…no, it's not urgent."

"Okay then, do you still want to leave a message?"

"No," Stephanie said. "I don't think that I do…um, yeah, actually, I do, um this is Stephanie, his wife."

"Oh my God, this is Stephanie," Britt said excitedly. "I've heard about you."

"Oh, you have?"

"Yeah, absolutely, so did you want me to tell him you called?"

"Um, just tell him that Sawyer is asleep and we probably are going to hit the sack early and to not call us tonight because we probably won't answer. That's all."

"Okay, I'll be sure to let him know and it was really nice to talk to you."

"Yeah, okay, thanks, bye," Stephanie said quickly. She stared at Sawyer for a moment. "What have I done baby?"

Trish and Christian had just finished up their meal and were walking down the hallway. Trish bumped her hip against Christian's leg and he pulled her closer, letting his arm fall around her waist. He never thought that he'd be here again, with Trish. When Mickie had issued her threats and he had left, he figured that Trish would eventually get over him and find some other guy. Any other guy would be nuts not to want Trish and so he thought for sure some guy would come along and sweep her off her feet.

It said something about his luck that she hadn't. There relationship wasn't smooth and perhaps it never had been, but one thing was for sure. He loved her and he needed to be with her. It was easy to want to be with someone but Christian needed to be with Trish. It was like he was just sub-par when he was without her, like he wasn't great. And he knew that wasn't true since he had captured the TNA title without her, but it just hadn't been as good. He felt Trish tense up against his side and he looked down at her.

"What's wrong Trishy?"

"Mickie," Trish said to a shocked looking woman in front of them. Christian turned her sights to the woman he despised.

"What are you doing here?" Mickie asked, narrowing her eyes at Christian.

"I'm here with my girlfriend."

"I thought I got rid of you," Mickie sneered.

"Look," Trish said. "You don't want part of my life, and I sure as hell don't want a part of yours, so you can just get your ass out of here and not interrupt me and my boyfriend."

"Your boyfriend?" Mickie said, getting a dangerous glint in her eye.

"Yeah Mickie, you tried to break us up once, but you said you're over trying to be like me, so it shouldn't bother you that I'm here with my boyfriend, and Christian is my boyfriend, was my boyfriend and is going to be my boyfriend in the future, so you just better leave us the hell alone if you want to make it past me without getting your ass kicked."

"Fine, I don't even care!" Mickie said, shaking her head wildly. "I don't care at all, not at all."

Mickie stormed past the two of them and Trish giggled. "Oh my God that felt good. That bitch had that coming for a long time."

"You just made me so hot," Christian said, looking at her lustily. Trish went in front of him and started pulling him with her good arm towards her dressing room.

Chris had been wandering around, thinking about the arguments he had had over the last couple of days. He was just at the end of his rope with both Vince and Stephanie. He loved Stephanie and he hated fighting with her, but this was ridiculous. He didn't want to be the go-between anymore. Vince just needed to suck it up and talk to his daughter and Stephanie just needed to forgive him already.

"Yo, Jericho!"

Chris looked ahead and rolled his eyes, "What is it Hunter?"

"Why the hell does Vince have it out for me?"

"Look, Stephanie is mad at Vince, and you're in the line of fire man," Chris told him bluntly. "That's just how it is. Sorry."

"So this is over Stephanie?"

"Yeah, and there's nothing I can do to stop it, so don't even ask."

"What did I do to Stephanie?" Hunter asked and Chris gave him a look. "Okay, I know what I've done to her, but I haven't really done anything to her lately, except for yell at her, but I yelled at you too."

"It's for everything you've ever done to her," Chris explained. "Vince is getting retribution for it. So you're probably in this for the long haul. But let me suggest something to you, because I was talking to Vince, you might want to keep a spare sledgehammer around."

"What?"

"Trust me on this one, I'd go out now, before the show starts and make sure you have one out there for later, just trust me."

"Why are you helping me Jericho?" Hunter asked.

"Because I love my wife," Chris answered with a shrug.

"What's that got to do with anything?"

"Look, Vince is going about this the wrong way. Stephanie is hurt by his actions, and if you can somehow one up Vince, then he'll have no choice but to actually talk to Stephanie and that's all that really needs to happen. If I have to use you to get that to happen, then that's what's going to happen."

"So we're on the same side?"

"No, I'm not on anyone's side but my own. I just want Stephanie to be happy and she's not happy right now and I'm not happy right now."

"But you have a son."

"Well, he makes me happy," Chris said, trying to hide his smile. He wasn't completely cruel when it came to Hunter, he didn't want to gloat in front of the man. He had a little more decorum than that. "I'd also uh…well, I'd start thinking of plans for next week."

"Huh?"

"Again, trust me," Chris said before walking away and back to his own station for the start of the show. Vince was getting the top of the show so he didn't really have to worry all that much about what was going on out there. He saw Britt and sat down next to her. "Hey, any calls?"

"Just your wife, she told me to tell you that Sawyer was sleeping so you shouldn't call because they'll both be asleep."

"Oh," Chris said, disappointed that he wasn't going to be able to talk to Stephanie tonight. He wanted to talk to her and explain to her what had happened. But right now, work was more important.

Nothing Vince said surprised him, but he wondered what Stephanie's reaction to Coach being named Vince's executive assistant would be. She'd surely find fault in it, saying that Vince had hired a man for him, and a sexy, young woman for Chris and that was somehow just another slight to her. He couldn't convince her otherwise once her mind was set on something. But maybe if she was asleep that meant she hadn't seen what was going on.

"Chris, those papers for the new talent, did you want me to do that?"

"Actually, I'll do it," Chris said, grabbing the things he needed. "Can you just stay here and make sure that things run smoothly."

"Of course."

Things didn't run so smoothly as a weird fake Kane came out to confront the real Kane. Chris had caught it on the monitors after the fact and found it weird that even though Britt said she hadn't told the production truck about his arrival that they knew already. Had Vince planned this, or someone else? This weird fake Kane was strange and Chris knew that he had let something big slip past him.

The rest of the show played out just like Chris knew it would. Hunter used the information that Chris had given him to his advantage. He had managed to get someone to sneak out a sledgehammer to the ring. He didn't know what he was going to need it for, but getting definite confirmation that Vince had it out for him was enough to know that he was going to need it.

He didn't know what to make about working with Chris right now, but he didn't have time to think about that. Chris had promised a confrontation to come at a later date and he knew at this confrontation that all the cards would be laid out on the table. He didn't want to think about it right now though because he knew, no matter what was going to happen, Chris was going to win. Chris already had everything he wanted so he was automatically the winner.

Maybe it was time for Hunter to find someone of his own.

What he didn't expect though was that he was going to be part of Vince's Kiss My Ass Club. It suddenly dawned on him as to why Chris suggested that he get plans ready. There was no way in hell his lips were going to touch Vince's ass (although H has probably been kissing Vince's ass for years), and he wasn't going to get his head shoved in Vince's ass either. That was totally out of the question. He was actually grateful to Chris for alerting him of the fact this was going to happen and after the show, Hunter sought out his tentative ally.

"So you knew?"

"I knew."

"What are we going to do about it?" Hunter asked.

"We?"

"Look, you said that you wanted Vince to fail at his revenge stunt, so you've got to help me."

"Fine, we'll talk, but not now, right now, I just want to go back to the hotel and sleep so that I can get back to Stephanie and Sawyer tomorrow. But we'll talk, I've got your number."

"Fine, but I'm not kissing his ass."

"You won't, unless…nah," Chris said, walking away and chuckling.

Chris walked into the house the next day, lugging his suitcase behind him. Trish had gone back to Christian's place and Kurt had flown straight to where Ashley lived so he was all alone. He dropped his keys on the table next to the door and looked around, as if trying to locate his wife. He heard soft voices coming from the area of the living room so he headed through there and saw the sliding door open and Stephanie and Sawyer sitting together on the patio. Stepanie was playing "This Little Piggy" with Sawyer's toes, much to his delight. Stephanie saw him through the glass and looked away briefly. She stood up and brought Sawyer inside, setting him down in his little seat. She walked up to him and hugged him tightly.

"Hey sweetie," she said apologetically, saying so much in those two words. He hugged her tightly. "I missed you."

"So I took your advice and slept with Britt," he said jokingly. She pulled away and looked at him, kissing him deeply. He just held her tighter and laughed into her kiss. She laughed too and pulled away, giving him a little slap on the face because he had remembered what she had said the day before when he left. She ran her hand down his cheek and rubbing her thumb over his chin.

"So you slept with her huh?"

"Oh yeah, all night long, she's a firecracker," Chris said with a nod.

"Then I have some really bad news," she said, pretending to be upset.

"I don't know if I could take anything right now."

"Well, since you cheated on me…"

"Oh no…" Stephanie winked and gave him another kiss.

"Saywer's not yours."

"Very funny McMahon, very funny."


	91. Fun Show, June 5, 2006

A/N: I loved tonight's show, and I think I'm in love with this chapter, so let me know what you think in a nice, pretty review. :)

Oh, and if you read my other stories, I actually updated "And You Thought It Was Over," so if you like that story, go check it out, I'm trying to get over writer's block for it.

* * *

Hunter looked down at the piece of paper with the directions on it again. He couldn't believe he was actually doing this, but the alternative, kissing Vince McMahon's ass, was far worse than going to where he was going at the moment. He hung a right at the correct street and went down until he found the right address. He looked at the house a moment, it was big and very nice-looking, but nowhere near as opulent or complex as his own home was. It was rather plain in comparison and for some reason, he couldn't picture Stephanie living in a house like this. He parked the car across the street and got out slowly. 

He didn't want to be here, but he didn't have a choice. Vince was going to make him kiss his ass and Hunter would be damned if he was going to kiss Vince's ass (again, more than he already has). He had talked to Chris over the phone and for whatever reason, Chris was going to help him. He didn't really question it because Hunter didn't really want to think about it. He still couldn't believe he had willingly said that he would come to Chris's house, but Chris would not budge and come to his house; he wanted to spend every moment of his downtime with his son, and Hunter could hardly blame him for that.

He walked slowly up the walkway, glancing backwards at the cars in the driveway. He didn't know what to expect on the other side of this door and it definitely had him a little worried. But he was Hunter Hearst Helmsley and he shouldn't be worried about anything. But this was a whole different thing altogether. He was going to see his ex-wife's new life up close and personal. He rang the doorbell and stood there awkwardly, waiting for someone to come answer the door.

It was her. Stephanie flung the door open and then her jaw dropped to the ground. "Oh…my God. What are you doing here?"

"I was supposed to meet with Chris," he said, taking her in. He had never seen her dressed like she was. When he had been married to Stephanie, she had always been so meticulous with her appearance. She was always dressed nicely and like she was going to go out on the town. Right now though, her hair was pulled out of her face and she was in a pair of loose fitting yoga pants and a tank top, her bra straps showing.

"Oh, yeah, I thought you were like meeting at a restaurant or something," she said. "I guess I got those signals crossed."

"He's here though right?" Hunter said, not looking forward to sitting there with Stephanie alone.

"Yeah, he's here, he's just upstairs with Sawyer," Stephanie said. "Come on in, it would be stupid if I made you stand out here the whole time."

The moment Hunter stepped into that house, it was like he was a different person. He didn't know how to explain that adequately, but it was just like he was totally different. He knew that he was intruding on a life, a life that he thought he would have and it was like looking at what he could've had and had thrown away. Why had he been such a jackass to Stephanie after he had gotten hurt? Why had he pushed her away and let her believe that he didn't love her? Why had he chastised her and yelled at her when he had gotten back in the ring? Now he was being forced to watch what could've been.

Stephanie led him through a hallway into a living room. "Make yourself comfortable, I'm sorry it's a mess, I know how much you hate messes." She still remembered that he was a neat freak and that was something. "It's hard to maintain a nice house when you have a baby, although it wasn't all that neat before, and we've got two other people living here. Why am I rationalizing this?" she asked nervously. "I'm just going to go get Chris and then you two can sit down and talk about whatever it is you need to talk about."

"He didn't tell you?"

"I didn't want to know," Stephanie answered as Hunter sat down on one of the couches. "Did you want anything to drink? We've got pretty much everything, even baby formula if you're into that kind of stuff."

Hunter had to chuckle at that, "Water?"

"Well yeah, we have water," Stephanie said, "Hold on, I'll be right back." Hunter just looked down in his lap while she was gone, sitting there like a statue. He didn't want to move, he didn't even want to be there. Stephanie came in moments later, handing him a water bottle.

"Thanks," he said gratefully, hoping the water would somehow ease his suddenly dry throat.

"I'll go get Chris," Stephanie said.

This time, Hunter looked up and looked around the room. He was assaulted by pictures. There were tons of pictures everywhere and most of them were of Jericho and Stephanie. His eyes scanned the variety of pictures, and then settled on a couple that were next to each other. On the left was a picture of them at some random place, but Stephanie was in front of Chris and he had his arms wrapped around her and his chin on her shoulder and they were both smiling giddily over something. The picture next to it was a wedding picture, a typical one where the bride and groom looked so incredibly happy that it was sickening. Tucked into that picture was a picture of their baby and Hunter sighed.

Chris came into the room, Stephanie trailing behind him with Sawyer in her arms now. The little boy had his head leaning against Stephanie's shoulder while sucking away happily on a pacifier. Chris walked up to Hunter as the other man stood up, and they shook hands. Stephanie looked down at Sawyer and gave him a look.

"Thanks for coming, we can go upstairs to my office so nosy people stay out of our business."

"What?" Stephanie said indignantly. "I don't even care what you're doing, so you MUST be talking about Sawyer."

"Yeah, I think my one month old son is nosy," Chris said, both of them forgetting that Hunter was even there. "That makes a whole lot of sense Steph."

"Hey, I never asked Sawyer what his intentions were, you don't know," Stephanie said, shifting the baby in her arms. "He could be the mastermind in all of this. I'd check for bugs in your office if I were you."

"Oh okay," he said, then turned to Hunter. "Here, follow me."

"If you need anything, I'll be in my office," Stephanie said. "I'll have Sawyer with me too. He can watch while I go over some of the financial numbers."

"Okay," Chris said and he was going to lean in and kiss her, but he didn't want to shove it in Hunter's face. "We'll be upstairs."

Chris started walking down the hallway again, Stephanie just a little bit in front of him. He couldn't stop staring at their baby. He was so damn adorable that Hunter couldn't take his eyes off of him. When he thought Stephanie was pregnant he had pictured what their child would look like, and he always pictured a little boy. A handsome thing, with Stephanie's hair and nose, and his eyes and he sighed at the image. Stephanie's actual son, the one that hadn't been a lie, had soft, blond hair and blue eyes and Stephanie's chin.

Stephanie turned left down a smaller hallway and he watched her a moment, heading towards another door which he presumed was her office. He turned right though and followed Chris up the stairs. There were more pictures and he was seriously starting to think that Chris and Stephanie just really liked to torture him, like they had put these all up before he had gotten there. The pictures on the stairs were different though, they were of friends and other family. He followed Chris down the hall to his office.

"Sorry for the mess," he said, repeating what Stephanie had said. "But I'm not the neatest person in the world, take a seat though."

Hunter took a seat and Chris took his seat behind his desk, sitting back up again and pulling a bottle out from underneath him. Chris rolled his eyes and tossed it into the bassinet that was sitting in the middle of the room. Hunter looked around a little, the room was filled with wrestling memorabilia from throughout Chris's career, and then, for the love of God, would the torture never stop, there was an entire wall filled with pictures of Stephanie and him from their feuds in WWE. He didn't stare long, but something caught his eye in the middle of the wall, a mounted key. He didn't want to ask.

"So?" Chris said staring at the man.

"Yeah, so…" Hunter said, turning his attention to Chris.

"This is really…awkward," Chris started out, trying to make a joke. "But I think this can be mutually beneficial."

"I think so too," Hunter said. "Look, I know why I'm doing this, but maybe you want to explain to me a little bit more about why YOU'RE doing this. I get that it's for Stephanie, but why for Stephanie?"

"Are you sure you want hear this?" Chris asked. "I know we haven't discussed everything that has gone down between the three of us these past six years. Are you sure?"

"Jericho, look around man, I'm not blind," Hunter said. "I see it all, I see the pictures, I see her clothes, and I see your son. I get it, I get it all, and I don't need you to spare my feeling right now. Trust me, we'll get it all out there at some point and it'll probably end up with us in a fist fight, but right now, the thing that I'm most worried about is the fact that my face will be in Vince's ass, and that means you have to talk about your wife."

Chris recognized that Hunter was pushing down everything he really felt and in that moment, he respected the man, so he began, "While Stephanie was in labor, she wanted to turn on Raw, and she saw Vince making out with Candice. Vince knew that Stephanie was in labor, I had called him myself, and Stephanie was hurt because Vince would rather be with Candice than with his daughter and grandson. Then later that night, he shows up like nothing happened, and she's being stubborn now, because what Vince did was bad, but come on, Sawyer doesn't need to grow up in a hostile environment. Vince wants Stephanie's forgiveness and he thinks you're the key, and you're not. Getting revenge on you, showing you malice is not going to solve anything, it's not going to change the fact, but maybe if Vince talks to her, if she talks to him, it'll ease whatever is going on between them. You know how the McMahons are though, they will never do anything on their own unless you force them to do it."

"I know that well," Hunter said, seeing for the first time just how much Chris did love Stephanie. It made him a little sad, but that wasn't the task at hand. "So now that I understand you're side, I think it's time we get down to what's going to happen tonight."

"Chris," Stephanie said, going into the room. "I'm sorry to bother you, but I forgot that I had to pick up something for Kurt and Trish's house. I promised them that I would and since they're both already in Pittsburgh, and we aren't, and I'm not going to, I have to go get it or else, you know, I don't know, I just have to, and I don't want to take Sawyer, so I was hoping that you could watch him, I shouldn't be more than like twenty minutes."

"Yeah, you can put him in his bassinet," Chris said. Stephanie smiled at him and then put him in his bassinet, which caused him to freak out and start crying. "Crap, he doesn't want to be put down, can you hold him?"

"Yeah, that's what I want to do, I want to hold my son while in a business meeting," Chris said, but held his arms out. Stephanie placed Sawyer in his arms and gave him his pacifier, which Sawyer accepted gladly. He was content in Chris's arms, maybe even more so than he had been in Stephanie's arms. He hadn't wanted to leave his daddy's arms, but then his mommy had come into the room and taken him from his daddy and he had been a little upset, so he was happy to be back in his daddy's arms.

"Thanks sweetie, I'll be back, love you baby boy," Stephanie said, kissing Sawyer's head and absently kissing Chris's cheek out of habit before exiting the room.

"Your son is really beautiful," Hunter told him, and he meant it too.

"Thanks," Chris said. "He knows it."

Hunter laughed. "Okay, so let's get down to business, what have we got planned?"

"Well, I called in a few favors…"

It was later that evening and Chris was at the show, sitting behind his desk and diligently waiting for the show to begin. Tonight was a big night. It wasn't the first time that he had executed a plan without Stephanie, the entire debacle with Trish in the waning parts of 2003, and the early parts of 2004, and that had definitely been without Stephanie. Tonight would be without Stephanie, and it was an intricate plan that he wanted to see to a perfect conclusion.

Britt walked into the office and smiled at Chris. She had been informed of the plan earlier in the day and she was just now coming in to solidify everything and make sure that Vince was going to be coming in to meet with him. It was an integral part of the plan that he meet with Vince now to get everything squared away for later since every puzzle piece had to fit in perfectly. Britt sat down across from him.

"Mr. McMahon said that he would be in here in a few minutes, he had a few thing to square away and then he'd be right here," she explained and then handed Chris a piece of paper. "Here is the finalized schedule for tonight, I've gone over it and the times are perfect and accurate."

"Great," Chris said. "Now Shane has informed me that he knows exactly what Vince is planning to do, and that Vince will be letting me know, did you get a chance to speak with him?"

"I did, Mr. McMahon actually had an important phone call from Mrs. McMahon."

"Great, Shane told her," Chris said. "So Shane knows, okay, so that's one person down," Chris said. "And you're going to be my go-between with Hunter, right?"

"Absolutely, I'm happy to help," Britt told him. "Whatever you need me to get to Mr. Helmsley, I'm glad to do."

"Okay, well, I've got some documents that I need to take care of and need you to administer so if you could do that, I'd really appreciate it. You don't need to be here for my meeting with Vince," Chris said, handing her some papers. "The names are on there, you know who everyone is?"

She scanned through the papers and nodded. "Yeah, I've got it handled."

"Great, and thank you for doing this Britt, I think it goes a little bit above and beyond your regular duties."

"Nah, I think it's well within them, all I'm doing it delivering papers right?" she said with a smirk.

He nodded. "That's all."

Britt left the room and Chris went over the schedule. There should be plenty of time for everything to go down and with things falling into place all around him he didn't think that anything was going to go wrong. Vince walked in a short time later, not bothering with knocking, which he never did anyways, and why would he just start now.

"Vince, nice to see you," Chris said, gesturing for him to take a seat. "So I see you're going through with this plan tonight."

"Maybe I am, maybe I'm not," Vince said, but then he laughed uproariously. "Of course I am, but that's not going to stop me from lulling Hunter into a false sense of security. That's exactly the same thin that he did with Stephanie, lulled her into one way of thinking and then dumped her when she became inconvenient."

Chris decided to try one last time. "You know Vince, Stephanie's married…to me. She isn't really that hung up about the past."

"You haven't know Stephanie for as long as I have," Vince said, "I've known her for twenty-nine years, and if I know anything, it's my kids."

Chris could've said something rather cutting about that, considering how often his children were complaining about him, but he managed to refrain for his plan's sake. "Well…Vince, I hate to say this, but Stephanie and I are married, she's my wife, I know her, and I know that she doesn't really care."

"Of course she does," he responded, pretty much blowing Chris off. "Look, what I'm going to do tonight is give Hunter a chance to get out of the match."

"Wait, I thought you were going to get revenge."

"Listen Chris, I'm not going to let him win. I'm going to get the Spirit Squad to run out there and interfere on Hunter's behalf so that Big Show wins the match by default. Therefore, he's still kissing ass tonight."

"So that's why you have the time right?"

"Right."

"And that's all?" Chris asked, knowing there was more since Shane had told him as much. He wanted to know just how much Vince was willing to share with him.

"That's all, I mean, if he loses, he's going to kiss ass, even if I have to get every Raw superstar to hold him down, that's just how it's going to be," Vince said with a smile. Chris smiled back, although his was largely fake, but knowing Vince like he did, his was probably fake too.

"Well that's good to know," Chris said. "Thanks for letting me know, I'll be sure to have Stephanie tune in so she can see you get that ultimate revenge on Hunter for her."

"Great," Vince said, standing up. "And let me tell you that you've been doing a wonderful job here on Raw and I'm glad that you came aboard."

"Me too," Chris said as Vince left, and Chris's face went from a smile to a frown. He picked up his cell phone and dialed Shane's number.

"Shane McMahon, talk to me."

"Hey Shane, it's me."

"Hey bro, what's up?"

"Your dad failed to mention that he's drugging Hunter tonight."

"That's just like my dad, doesn't even tell the person for whom the plan is for," Shane said, and Chris knew he was probably shaking his head. "Well, look, I'm going to talk to him at the beginning of the show, you know, try and show my camaraderie with him, at least that's what Dad thinks I'm doing, I'll let him know what's really going on. Is everything else set?"

"Well, I've got Britt on top of things, and if everything goes well and everyone knows their parts in the plan, then it should go off without a hitch."

"Good," Shane nodded. "You know, I'm glad you came to me with this, I want to help. I think that Stephanie and my dad are being stupid too, especially my dad, wait, isn't that always the case. Anyways, I don't want anyone else to end up with his ass in their face, it was bad enough when it was me. I'll talk to Hunter after out little pow-wow, sound good?"

"Yeah, sounds great, thanks again for helping."

"Hey, I love Stephanie as much as the next guy. I'll talk to you later."

"Yeah, later," Chris said as he hung up the phone and sat back in his desk. He grabbed the schedule again, looking over it one more time. Everything that was going to happen had to happen around him so he looked innocent in the whole thing. The entire design of the plan was to make Hunter look like he had done this all himself.

Chris got up and walked to his station to get the show started. He had to pretend like he was actually going to be working, but he was going to be doing far more than that. Yes, Chris was the mastermind tonight, and Vince McMahon was only going to be along for the ride.

Shane walked into Hunter's locker room, seeing him in there. He talked with the man, going over the basics, telling him the sob story. Most of what he had said was true, Vince did embarrass him a lot of the time. His father might have thought that he was just trying to butter up H and lull him into a false sense of security, but Shane was speaking the truth. Even thought it was the truth, Vince would never believe him. Vince only believed what he wanted to believe and that was all you could ever hope for.

There were some parts that weren't true though. Shane was okay with Hunter now, but he hadn't been in the past. Shane was very overprotective of his sister and Hunter knew that Shane was disappointed in the dissolution of his marriage to Stephanie. But if they were going to ever be cool with each other, tonight was going to be that night. Things were afoot and they both were in on the joke.

Shane told Hunter to reason with Vince, but both he and Hunter knew that Hunter going to reason with Vince was just part of the plan. Vince had told Shane to convince Hunter to come talk to him using any method necessary, but Hunter already knew he was going to talk to Vince and talking to Shane was just a formality. As soon as Shane left the room, Hunter turned around and saw a note on the bench. He looked around to see if there were any cameras around when he was assured there wasn't, he picked up the note.

_Go see my dad in about thirty minutes, he should be in there. Be angry…he's going to offer you a match to get out of it. It'll be against the Big Show, make sure you knock him to the outside, Spirit Squad is going to interfere, let them, my dad sent them. You're going to lose the match, everything else falls into place after that, but whatever you do, lose the match._

_Shane McMahon_

Hunter had been kept largely in the dark with what was going to happen tonight. Chris had outlined a basic plan, one that said that he would not be meeting Vince's ass up close, and let Hunter know who was in on it and who wasn't in on it. The less Hunter knew, the better, but he would find out throughout the evening just what was going to happen, and apparently, he was going to be meeting with Vince in a half an hour.

Shane walked to Chris's station and sat himself down next to his brother-in-law. Chris nodded to him, watching as the contract signing commenced. He had an uneasy feeling when it came to Heyman, the man was a bear to deal with and he always seemed to have a damn trick up his sleeve and with the Pay-Per-View coming up this weekend, he knew that Heyman was planning something, something big. He had to ignore Shane to watch what was happening and before he knew it, ECW was invading Raw and Chris was calling for all the Raw guys to get out there and help John.

When that was over and done with, he took his headphones off as they went into commercial. He turned to Shane, "Did you talk to him?"

"He knows what he's going to do? Is everything else set?"

"Yeah, I just need to know where your father is keeping the drugs that he's giving to you later."

"That's the unfortunate part, I'm not entirely sure, but I think it's in his briefcase in his office, I have the numbers to unlock it, but I can't do it because Dad's been hounding me about this plan with Hunter all day."

"I've got it covered, don't worry," Chris said, "I just need you to give Trish the numbers to the combination on his briefcase and we'll check in there. If it's not in there, I need you to let me know where it is as soon as possible. When that happens, I'll have the switch made."

"And you'll let me know?" Shane asked.

"Definitely, I don't want this to get really messy, and you know what's going to happen later on?"

"Yeah, I know what's going to happen, did you get a sledgehammer near the ring just in case?"

"Yeah, I did, in case anything goes wrong, he has that as a back-up. But nothing is going to go wrong if I can help it."

"Good, I better get back to Dad before he starts getting suspicious. I have my phone with me, so let me know."

"I will, don't worry," Chris said as Shane left and he saw Britt walking back. "Hey Britt, did you get everything done?"

"Everything's done Chris, and I think that everyone is clear on what's going to happen."

"Good, we want to make sure that Vince had no idea and he thinks that his plan is going to be the only plan that is going down tonight."

"This is so exciting," she told him, sounding a little giddy. "At all my other jobs, we never did anything this exciting."

"Well welcome to Raw, where anything and everything can and will happen," Chris said with a laugh as he went back to watching the monitor. "Any minute now, Hunter is going to be walking in to see Vince, and hopefully act angry."

That is in fact what happened. Of course, it was easy to act angry when Vince was talking about how he had gotten his ass…well, Vince had shared way too much information and Hunter didn't want to hear it. He didn't want to hear about how Vince had gotten a haircut, or how Vince had gotten his shoes polished. He especially didn't want to hear the stipulations of the match that he had. Shane had told him that he had to lose the match, and he knew that already, but he didn't know that Vince was sending in the Spirit Squad to do the dirty work. He had planned on bringing out his trusty sledgehammer and then "accidentally" getting caught with him hitting Big Show and getting disqualified. This way was much better.

Hunter didn't like intentionally throwing the match, but with everything that was planned for later, he knew it was a necessary evil. Not only was he not going to kiss Vince's ass, he was going to humiliate Vince McMahon. And a little part of it was because this was for Stephanie, and even when confronted with Stephanie's new life, he still wanted to give her a little something. Call it stubbornness, but he needed to do this so he had a little part in helping her.

Hunter was literally running for his next match as Vince decided it was right after their little talk. Luckily, Chris had planned everything to a tee and Hunter had been well-informed of a match so he just tore his pants off and threw his hat to the side, letting Chris catch it and set it to the side for him before he went out for his match. He knew what he had to do and got in the ring. It was actually a lot easier than he thought it would be to let it look like Big Show was actually dominating him. He managed to get in a few shots though, just to keep it interesting before he hit Big Show over the ropes. He stood back as the Spirit Squad ran down to the ring and interfered, just like Shane had said.

When he went backstage, he got his clothes back from Chris and he knew that he had to go straight back to Vince and act angry again. He knew that he had to play the part perfectly, or else Vince would be suspicious. It didn't' take much for Vince to be suspicious of something, so it was better of Hunter to overact in this situation. He didn't know what was going to happen next, but he went back to his locker room to wait for it.

Chris walked up to Kurt's locker room and knocked on the door, knowing that he had a promo coming up. Kurt answered the door, Ashley hanging on his arm and Chris raised an eyebrow. Kurt rolled his eyes at Chris and invited him in the locker room. Ashley sat down with Kurt and Chris sat on a different chair.

"Sorry to hear you're leaving us Ash," Chris told the blonde.

"Well, I requested the transfer before I knew that Kurt was going to get drafted by ECW, so now I feel like an idiot," Ashley said, sending a fake glare in Kurt's direction.

"Hey, I didn't even know, don't look at me like that," Kurt said playfully.

"So Chris, how's Sawyer and Stephanie?" Ashley asked, since she hadn't been down to Florida in a while.

"They're good, both of them, Sawyer is loud, but good, he's starting to babble a lot now, so it's kind of cool, he's doing new stuff," Chris gushed, knowing that when he got on the subject of his son, he was going to start gushing about everything and anything regarding the little boy.

"That's so cute, I want to come visit him, maybe this week, if Kurt thinks that's cool, he wanted me here tonight to meet his Mom, isn't that sweet?" Ashley said, kissing Kurt on the cheek. Kurt blushed a little bit.

"I remember when I took Steph home to meet my parents," Chris said with a smile. "My mom hated her guts…but I'm not saying that's how it's going to go for you Ashley," he added as he saw the stricken look on Ashley's face. "She only hated her because of the things that Stephanie had done to me, not because her as a person, but since you've done nothing to Kurt, and since Jackie is probably just happy that Kurt is talking to girls, I'm sure she'll love you."

"Shut up," Kurt said.

"Actually, Jackie is really nice, you'll love her," Chris said. "Okay, anyways, I've got other people that I need to meet, but good luck tonight."

"Thanks, I'm in my hometown so hopefully the crowd is a little more receptive."

"Hopefully," Chris said as he waved to the both of them and then walked a few doors down to Edge's locker room, knocking on the door.

"Well if it isn't he Ayatollah of Rock and Rollah," Edge said, letting Chris inside. "What can I do for you my man?"

"Not much, just came to remind you guys that you have a promo coming up soon."

"Yes, yes we do, and I am fully prepared for it," Edge said, popping his collar, "So how's the wife and the kid?"

"Good, good," Chris said for the second time in as short as fifteen minutes.

"Do you have pictures Chris?" Lita asked. Chris pulled out his wallet immediately, causing Edge and Lita to laugh as he handed Lita a picture of his son. "He's so cute Chris. You're very lucky."

"Thanks," Chris said as Edge peered over at the picture too.

"He's got the McMahon chin, heaven help us all," Edge said.

"Well, he is half McMahon," Chris pointed out, "and yes, heaven help us all because of that. Anyways, where's Mick?"

Edge jerked his thumb towards the bathroom, "I don't even want to know what he's doing in there, but that's where he is."

"I'm practicing!" Mick yelled, sticking his head out the door. "Oh hey Chris, I don't think I got to congratulate you on your son."

"Thanks Mick, so you guys are ready right?" Chris asked. The three of them nodded and Chris grinned. "Okay, I just want to make sure that everything is ready and that you guys are ready and set to go."

"Definitely," Edge said. "We'll see you in a while."

"Great," Chris said as he walked out the door. He walked a few more doors down to his last stop and knocked on the door. Trish answered the door and gave Chris a hug before letting him in. "Hey you."

"Hey there, long time no see," Trish joked since she had just seen Chris earlier this morning. "So what are you doing here?"

"Well, I just came to check up on you, where's your boy?" Chris asked.

"Right here," Christian said, his head popping up from behind the couch. "Trish lost the back of her earring and I'm trying to find it for her."

"Great," Chris said, "You know you're never going to find it right?"

"Shut up," Christian said, ducking behind the couch again.

Trish turned to Chris. "So, is everything set?"

"Everything is set, is everything set with you two?" Chris asked.

"Shane hasn't been by to give us the combination yet, or are you the one giving me the combination?"

"Shane's going to give it to you," Chris told her. "Or he's going to give it to Christian. I didn't think of it before, but wherever Vince is, Coach is going to be there. If Coach catches you guys going into Vince's personal briefcase, he's going to go squeal to the boss and everything will go straight to hell."

"I'll distract him, don't you worry," Trish said. "Did you hear that Chrissy, I'm going to distract Coach while you look in Vince's briefcase for whatever he's going to drug Hunter with."

"Okay," Christian said from behind the couch. "Got it?"

"What? My earring or what you have to do later?" Trish asked.

"What I have to do later," he answered.

"Okay, I've got to get out of here and get back in time for Kurt's promo, thanks for doing this you guys, I owe you."

Trish lowered her voice. "You took me in, you owe me nothing Chris, nothing."

"Thanks again though," Chris said, giving her another hug.

Chris went back to his station in time to see Kurt go out there to cut his promo. He smiled over at Britt and she smiled back, knowing that things were going well. Chris watched as Kurt started talking and then subsequently Lita and Mick started talking. Then Edge came out to join in on the fun. Things were escalating and the four players in the ring were playing just as well as a good football team (like the Colts, not the Steelers).

Meanwhile, as this was happening, Shane was visiting Trish's locker room. He knocked on the door, shifting from foot to foot as he looked around, expecting someone to jump out at him or something. Nobody did as Trish opened the door and greeted him warmly. They were friends after all and nobody would be suspicious if they were to be seen together, but still, that weird feeling hung in the air, like people would know they were up to something.

"Hey there pretty girl," Shane said, in his usual greeting.

"Hey there Shane," Trish said.

"Hey man, what's up?" Christian said to him, "Haven't seen you in forever, and let me be the last to congratulate you on your marriage and your new baby."

Shane laughed and shook Christian's hand. "Thanks, so down to what we're all here for, this is the combination to my dad's briefcase, I think that the vial of drugs is in there. That's where it was when Stephanie drugged Shawn, so I'm thinking it's there again. So you go in, you get out, try not to do anything to draw attention to yourselves."

Shane handed Trish the piece of paper and his hand linger a little longer than it should've against hers. She looked up at him a moment and their eyes locked and they shared a look, a look of what, neither could decipher, but it was a look as the heat passed between their hands. It was gone a moment later as Christian wrapped his arm around Trish's waist and she pulled back like she had been burned.

"Thanks Shane," she said, still a little dazed.

"No, thank you," Shane said, before leaving quickly. Trish turned to Christian and smiled. He leaned down to kiss her, and she sighed happily against his lips.

"We've got to go do this."

"Let's jet then."

Chris was watching Kurt as he beat up Edge and Mick in the ring, locking the ankle-lock on Edge, who was struggling, but acting a little over-the-top about the whole thing, but he appreciated his friend's efforts. Then suddenly, out of nowhere, Randy Orton appeared from the crowd and RKO'ed Kurt for no apparent reason whatsoever. Randy had just shown up out of the blue and Chris grabbed his cell phone and called Vince.

"Vince, did you know that Randy was back on Raw!" Chris said frantically.

"What the hell!" Vince said angrily. "Is his suspension even over? I thought it was next week, what the hell is he doing here?"

"I have no idea Vince, I think you need to come down here and handle this, this is more your type of thing, dealing with the contracts and people appearing on shows, I just run the show, not this kind of stuff."

"I'll be down there immediately," Vince told him.

Chris smirked to himself as he saw Randy come backstage, Todd Grisham on his heels. Randy said a few curt words and Chris went over to the taller, younger man. He placed a hand on Randy's shoulder and Randy turned to him angrily, his eyes flashing. Chris stared him down, not backing down from the other man's glare. They stood there for a few moments.

"What the hell were you doing here? You are contractually obligated to SmackDown!" Chris yelled at him.

"Well I wanted to get my hands on Kurt Angle and he's here, and I'm here, so deal with it," Randy answered back harshly.

"Hey buddy, I run the show around here and you're going to just randomly show up, you better have a damn good reason for doing it, and I don't think that was a damn good reason," Chris said to him.

"Chris, what's going on here?" Vince said, coming into the area.

"Well, why don't we let Randy explain…"

Christian and Trish had seen Vince leave a few moments ago and they knew that was their cue. Trish went first, knocking on the door to see if anyone was there. Hopefully Coach wasn't there, but even if he wasn't, she'd still have to find him. That wasn't an option though because Coach answered the door a moment later.

"Coach, I really, really need your help," Trish said, putting on her best pout. "You see, I'm accompanying Beth to the ring later, and I don't know what I should wear to the ring, I want something sexy, but not too sexy, do you think you could help me?"

"You bet!" Coach said enthusiastically and Trish giggled and started walking towards her locker room, Coach following like a little puppy dog behind her. She winked at Christian as she passed him hiding behind a crate and Christian waited until they were out of sight before going into Vince's office.

He spotted the briefcase sitting on top of the desk and went over to it quickly, getting the crumpled up piece of paper from his pocket and opening it, studying the numbers as he moved the numbers on the briefcase accordingly. It popped open as he set the last number and he looked at the contents. There were lots of papers and he rooted through them and every pocket, but there was no vial of anything. He cursed under his breath and closed the briefcase, knowing he was running out of time. He looked around the desk, but there was nothing. He had to get out of there.

He rushed out of the room, hoping nobody saw him, and grabbed his cell phone, dialing Shane's number. "Shane McMahon, talk to me."

"It wasn't in the briefcase," Christian hissed as he slipped into the men's bathroom, looking underneath the stalls to see if anyone was in there before locking the door.

"It wasn't?" Shane asked. "Are you sure?"

"I'm positive. I looked in every pocket, rooted through the papers, nothing."

"Damn," Shane muttered. "Okay, I'm going to ask my dad about it, he's with Chris right now reaming out Randy, then I'll tell Chris and he'll let me know what to do, and then I'll call you, got it?"

"Got it," Christian said, hanging up the phone and going to Trish's locker room to save her from Coach.

On the other side of the arena, Vince was still talking, "And that's why you have to inform someone of your presence, damn it Randy, get your act together!"

"Sorry Vince," Randy said.

Shane came up to Vince and tapped him on the shoulder. "Hey Dad, can we talk about something happening…later…"

"What? Oh, of course, yes," Vince said, turning back to Randy and Chris, who was still standing there. "Chris, I trust you to take care of this situation for me."

"I will Vince, don't worry."

"Good, good," Vince said as he walked away with Shane.

Chris turned to Randy and then looked around for anyone incriminating, but there was only people who could care less about what was going on. Chris smiled at Randy, "Thanks for being able to be here on short notice."

"Don't worry about it, I'm always willing to help you and Stephanie, you know that," Randy said lowly. "And besides, you got me what I wanted, a match, so I owe you big for that one, this was nothing compared to that."

"But you gave us the perfect diversionary tactic to get Vince out of his office," Chris told Randy. "So really, thank you."

"Again, don't mention it," Randy said. "Stephanie really helped me a lot, and she's totally cool in my book, and if it's for her, you know I'm going to be there."

While Chris was thanking Randy, Shane was getting answers from Vince. "I'm going to need that vial of drugs soon Dad, do you think that maybe you could give it to me now so I don't forget it. Is it on you or in your briefcase or something?"

"It's right here," he answered, patting his coat pocket. A moment later, he pulled it out and handed it to Shane. Shane gave him a smile and then stopped in his tracks. Vince turned to his son, "What?"

"I just remembered, I needed to ask Chris something, you know what, I'll just call him, if you can excuse me for a moment Dad, stay right here, I just need to you know, just a moment," Shane said, holding a finger up and going a few steps away from his father before dialing Chris's cell phone.

"This is Chris Jericho's phone, Britt speaking."

"Oh hey Britt, um, it's Shane, can I speak to Chris?"

"Yeah, hold on."

Chris came on a moment later, "What's up man?"

"You know that thing we discussed earlier, you know, that baby blanket that you wanted," Shane said, knowing that Vince was listening in on the conversation. "The one that you thought was cute."

"Oh, the drugs, yeah, did Christian find them?"

"No, no, nothing like that," Shane said with a laugh. "Actually, I have them, and so if you wanted to switch it or something, I'd be up for that."

"Oh, okay, you have them, okay," Chris said, tapping his chin. "Okay, I'm going to call Christian and tell him that you have them, he'll be walking down the hallway in a few minutes, Trish or Christian will have the other one in their hands, switch off quickly, got it, and don't mistake one for the other or we're screwed?"

"Yeah, okay, I'll bring it over, yeah," Shane said, then hung up and went back over to his dad. "Chris and Stephanie saw this old baby blanket of D's and they wanted to see if they could have it because it matches the theme of Sawyer's bedroom."

Vince smiled a little sadly. "What's the theme of Sawyer's bedroom?"

"Honestly, I'm not entirely sure, I kind of block Steph out," Shane said, trying to cover up, he didn't even know if Sawyer's room had a theme. "But you know, lots of new McMahon blood around here." Shane knew how to appeal to his father's ego.

"Damn straight, strong McMahon blood running through all my grandson's veins. And to have all grandsons, that says something you know, the McMahon name is going to live forever at this rate," Vince said proudly.

"Well, and the Jericho name, since Sawyer is Chris's son."

"Yes, but he's half Stephanie's too," Vince said, then frowned at the mention of his daughter's name.

Shane saw Trish walking up ahead and she was eyeing him. She held up her right hand a little to signal that she had it in her hand. Shane made note of this and gave a slight nod, imperceptible to Vince, who was still crowing over the fact he had three grandsons now. Trish walked by him quickly, not making eye contact, but she stuck her hand out and he grabbed the vial, stuffing it in his pocket and ignoring the chill that Trish's touch sent up his spine. He now had the goods.

Shane made it all the way back to Vince's office, where they ruminated about the time that Shawn joined the Kiss My Ass Club. Shane could care less, but he had to keep up pretenses. When Vince started talking about asscials again, Shane knew it was time to go pay Hunter a visit. He got there and saw the "irate" Hunter waiting and the two of them proceeded to play a little game of switcheroo.

The only thing that Shane was putting in Hunter's water was mashed up Advil, nothing that would harm him at all, not that Hunter was even drinking it. The two of them drank their water, eyeing each other, and while the normal eye saw mischief in their eyes, only the trained eyes saw the mutual understanding in them. As Shane put his water down and the camera left the room, he turned to Hunter.

"So what the hell did you put in your water?" Hunter asked.

"It's just Advil," Shane explained. "No big deal, but you do know you have to go out there and act like you've been drugged right?"

"Yeah, I talked to Chris, we've got it all covered, and then you're going to act like you've fainted, and then I'm going to get revenge on your dad."

"Exactly," Shane said. "I hope you appreciate everything that everyone has done for you tonight."

"Actually…I do," Hunter said. "You know, I hate to say it, and don't tell him, but Chris Jericho isn't that bad a guy once you get to know him. He's actually kind of conniving and I like that in a person."

"So you might leave him and my sister alone then?" Shane asked.

Hunter gritted his teeth. "I'm not going to comment on that."

"Come on man, you have to admit that Steph at least looks a little happy, and for God's sakes you went to their house, and I've been to their house, if people think that the two of them have egos now, if they saw how many pictures of themselves Chris and Steph have, then they'd have to think their egos are even bigger."

"So they have a lot of pictures, whatever," Hunter mumbled.

"Look, I'm saying this as a friend," Shane said and Hunter looked at him. "Okay, as a former friend…Steph's happy with Chris, like really, truly, makes you sick, happy, and…I don't want anything to ruin that for her. At the very least, you know she deserves man."

"I know," Hunter said, so softly that Shane strained to hear him.

"I'll see you out there," Shane said and then left the other man alone to his thoughts.

When Hunter was acting woozy in the ring, he was fooling everyone. Chris even thought for a moment that Shane had forgotten to switch the vials, but then remembered that if that had happened, Shane was the one who got the drugs. He had to hand it to Hunter's acting skills that he could be so believable as a drugged man. Then Shane did a great job at faking too, and Chris was really proud that everything was coming together as Hunter stood up and then Pedigreed Vince. The plan had worked, everything had worked and once again, Vince came out looking like a fool.

Maybe now he'd go talk to his daughter.

Later that evening, Chris was holding up a glass of champagne. "I just want to thank all of you for helping me and Hunter tonight, you all were great at what you did."

Kurt, Lita, Christian, Edge, Trish, Mick, Britt, Shane, Randy, Ashley, and Hunter all held up their glasses and clinked them together, happy that everything had worked out and that Vince had gotten what was coming to him, and Hunter was glad he didn't have to meet Vince's ass (not that he hasn't, brownnoser that he is).

"I'd say this was a job well done."


	92. Not As Good as Last Week, June 12, 2006

A/N: Last week's show was so good and this week's show was like so…boring or something. It just wasn't as interesting, so this chapter is totally like boring. Sorry, but leave a review anyways lol. :)

* * *

Chris was sitting at his desk, corresponding with Shane about the show tonight. Shane was letting him know what had happened last night at the Pay-Per-View. He didn't attend since he wanted to spend at least some time at home with Stephanie and Sawyer. But he had to go tonight and he had the worst job possible. Vince had delegated the task of figuring out the mess last night with the title match to him. He couldn't believe that Vince would put that kind of pressure on him when he wasn't even at the show last night, but it seemed that Vince was more concerned with what happened with Hunter, which was another thing that Chris had to worry about at the show tonight.

He felt Stephanie's hands run down his chest from behind and he couldn't' believe that he hadn't even heard her come in or apparently walk in the room, or even feel her presence behind her. That was how much he had been into what he was doing. He had the television on, screening the match, and time was dwindling down because his flight was in three hours and he had to at least call Vince or Heyman to let them know about the title match before then. He had scheduled himself to arrive a little bit late so he wouldn't be there for the beginning of the show, but the reason for that was because Stephanie and Sawyer had had their six-week appointments that morning and he had wanted to make sure the both of them were going to be okay.

"I didn't even know you were back," Chris said, as he lifted one of Stephanie's hands and kissed it softly.

"You were really engrossed in your work," she answered. "I'm shocked that you didn't even notice me a little."

"Where's the monster?" Chris asked.

"He's in his room, the doctor took it out of him and he's never even been to the pediatrician before and so he was totally wide-eyed, he's exhausted."

"And how is he? Doctor say that he was good?"

"Yeah, she said that he was healthy as can be and he was perfect. She also said that it shouldn't be a major problem to start traveling with him in a couple of weeks," Stephanie told him. "So I think that we can definitely slate in my return for a couple of weeks from now, definitely."

"That's good," Chris said, studying the match in front of him and not really paying attention to Stephanie at all.

"Chris, did you hear what I said?" she asked.

"Yeah, I heard you," Chris said nonchalantly, waving a hand in front of her face as if to brush her off. She frowned and studied his face, which was deep in thought. She only noticed now that it seemed like Sawyer had Chris's nose.

"Sawyer has your nose I think," Stephanie mentioned.

"That's nice," he told her.

"You are so not even listening to me," Stephanie said, sighing as she sat down on the couch adjacent to Chris's desk. "You're just watching that stupid match."

"Excuse me if that's my job Stephanie," Chris told her. "Need I remind you who it was that wanted me to take that job in the first place, who needed me to take over for her so that she could have someone she trusted here?"

"You never let me forget it," Stephanie told him, exasperated by this conversation already. "I know that I want you there, but not at the sacrifice of talking to me."

"Steph, I was talking to you," Chris told her, glancing over at her where she was sitting. She had her legs crossed and she was leaning against the side of the couch.

"Yeah, but you don't get it. I'm stuck here all day, everyday with a baby and not much else. Trish is usually over with Christian and Kurt is so busy with ECW and that starting up that he's not around much, and if he is, it's usually just to go pack so that he can go see Ashley. I know that you're here most of the week, but you're working and doing stuff for the show, constantly on the phone, and then you're too tired at night to even talk to me, and so I'm stuck with a six-week old baby who can't say anything back to me but garble babble."

"You said yourself that you can come back in a couple of weeks, so you'll be around everyone then," he pointed out.

"But I'm bored now!" Stephanie asserted. "I know that sounds horrible, but it's true, I just need an adult conversation now and then or at least for my husband to listen to me because it feels like you aren't even listening to me and do you know how frustrating it is when your last link to the adult world is starting to freeze you out."

"I'm not freezing you out!"

"I think you talk to Britt more than you talk to me," she said.

"Oh give me a break," Chris said, "I do not talk to her more than I talk to you. I talk to her at shows and maybe a couple of times a week in order to get stuff ready, but I talk to you everyday, I live with you and I sleep with you and all of that good stuff."

"The doctor said I'm free to have sex again," Stephanie commented idly. "If I said that we should do it right now, here on this couch, what would you say to me?"

"I'd say no because I really have to get this done. Your father is so concerned with what happens with Hunter that he's really starting to shirk his responsibilities elsewhere and it's kind of pissing me off."

"So you don't want to have sex with me is what you're saying?"

Chris rolled his eyes, "Stephanie, if I were to just take you now, would that make you happy?"

"Yes, yes it would," she said sarcastically.

Chris stood up and grabbed the remote to the television, putting it on pause before stalking over to where Stephanie was sitting. She looked up at him as he walked over to her, a look of determination on his face. Stephanie's eyes widened as he picked her up effortlessly and took her out of the room and led her down to the bedroom, kicking the door open and dumping her on the bed. Trish and Kurt wouldn't be around and they needed to be able to hear Sawyer so he didn't bother closing the door.

"Is this what you want?" Chris asked, smirking at her.

"Only if you want to," she told him, staring up at him. "I'm not forcing you to do anything, I know that you have work to do, I don't…"

"So you say one thing and then you say another thing, it's one or the other Steph," Chris said. "Because I've still got a lot of work to do."

"I don't want you to sleep with me just to get it over with," Stephanie told him, pouting as she folded her arms. "I want you to want me because you can't stand it anymore, not because I've become an obligation to you."

"Steph," he said, running his hands through his hair. "I'm just really stressed right now. I've got the show, I've got your dad, I've got Sawyer and you, and those things aren't in order, but I've just got a lot on my plate right now."

Stephanie kneeled up on the bed and went up to Chris, running her hands up and down his t-shirt covered chest. She smiled at him kindly. "Then get to work and do what you have to do."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm sure," she said, leaning forward to give him a kiss. "I'm sorry that I'm acting the way that I am, I'm just…I'm a little on edge and I miss work and I shouldn't take it out on you."

"Hey, don't apologize, you don't think I don't know everything that you do around here, I know Stephanie and I appreciate every second of it. You take care of me and our son, and Sawyer adores you."

"He does not," Stephanie blushed.

"Are you kidding me? The kid is so in love with you, he hates to even be away from you, you're a wonderful mother and you're an amazing woman and when you come back to Raw, you are going to kick so much ass it's not even going to be funny."

She giggled and hugged him, "Okay, go take care of what you have to do."

Later that evening, Chris arrived at the arena. He had already informed Heyman and Vince that he felt that Rob's victory should stand. Regardless of the outside influence and the extenuating circumstances that surrounded the match, Rob had won and gotten the three-count so it was only fair that he get the title. And Chris made that decision objectively, even though a part of him was still pissed off at Cena for what had happened during the summer of last year. Yeah, so Chris was still petty sometimes, it wasn't like fatherhood changed you completely.

Chris hadn't been in his office more than five minutes when Cena came bursting in, looking irate. Chris knew this was probably coming and looked up at the man, "What can I do for you Cena?"

"How you gonna do me like this man?" Cena said, slamming his hands down on the desk.

"Like what?" Chris said. "Look, you had that match and it was under ECW rules, just like Heyman said, and there's nothing that we can do about that. The decision has been made, and I'm sorry, but it's final."

"Is this because you still mad about what I said about you bein' cheap?" Cena asked, his brow furrowing.

"Actually, no, it's not, not completely. You lost the title Cena, it happens to everyone, hell, I lost it too, so don't go acting like I'm not sympathetic to your cause, but the decision stands."

"This ain't right and you know it!" Cena protested.

"It's not about what's right and what's wrong, it's about what is, and the what is of the situation is that Rob Van Dam is the new WWE champion and if you want the title, well, you're going to have to become the number one contender."

"So that's how it's going to have to go down huh?" Cena said, shaking his head. "This is how it's gonna be, you were in ECW so you think you know what goes down, you want to side with them, I see it all clearly now."

"I want to side with them?" Chris scoffed. "Are you kidding me? I was in ECW, yeah, and I had a good time, but my job is not to side with anyone, my job is to run this show. Vince asked me to make this decision and I pored over it and I watched the match and I came to the conclusion that I had to, you are not the winner."

"This ain't over," Cena said, "You and me, this is so not over."

"Whatever John," Chris said, as he looked up to see Cena storming out just as Hunter was walking in.

Hunter jerked a finger in his direction, "What's his problem?"

"What do you think, the title."

"Oh yeah, big shiny thing, I've forgotten what it looks like."

"Oh give me a break," Chris said dramatically. "I didn't even sniff the title for years after I had it, so don't go telling me what it looks like, it's like a one night stand now when I held either of the titles."

Hunter wanted to say that he got the better prize in Stephanie, but he didn't want to break this tenuous alliance the two of them had going. Hunter was loath to admit it, but he was actually sort of, kind of, liking Chris. At the very least, Chris had his respect after what he had done for him the past week and how he had warned him the week before that. It might all be for Stephanie, but that didn't mean that Hunter had to be completely oblivious to Chris's good nature.

And it was nice to have some semblance of friends again. Hunter was usually so guarded, even when he was surrounded by people. He was a loner who liked to be in groups. He didn't have many friends, sometimes he had nobody, and to think that maybe, just maybe he had a friend in his worst enemy, it comforted him a little bit. Chris was the bigger man, he knew that because Chris had extended his friendship to Hunter and had put away anything he had done to him in the past to help him, enlisting a plethora of friends to help; he had truly been shocked at the assembly of people who had helped last week, from Randy to Shane, to Trish, to Kurt, they were all there and willing to be on his side just because Chris asked. Now it was Hunter's time to return the favor

"So you know what's on tap for me tonight then?" Hunter said, taking a seat across from Chris.

"Yup, you against the Spirit Squad. I'll give Vince this, he sure is persistent."

"Yeah, I know, I was related to the guy," Hunter said before he could shut his damn mouth. Chris noticed the slip-up but didn't say anything.

"Yeah, I'm in that boat now, the McMahons really are a strange group of people. It's like…I can't explain them, I don't know how I got involved in that crazy bunch of people," Chris said, not realizing that he too had slipped up. Both men shared and awkward glance before Chris cleared his throat and changed the subject, "Anyways, Vince is making that match a gauntlet match so I don't know how you feel about that…"

"Actually, since you were calling in favors left and right last week, I thought I could call in a favor this week, I just kind of need your help with it."

"Oh yeah, sure, what is it?" Chris asked.

"I called Shawn and we…patched things up."

"You sound like you're an old married couple," Chris joked.

"Very funny Jericho."

"I try Trips, so you called Shawn and he's…oh…I get it now, you're going to reform D-X and then you're going to kick my ass and send me to the hospital on a stretcher…oh wait, you've already done that."

"As tempting as that sounds," Hunter chuckled, letting Chris know that he was joking. "We've got bigger fish to fry. I know why Vince has this vendetta against me, but it's starting to piss me off. I can't focus on the title if Vince is on my ass about every little thing."

"I get that, so you and Shawn are going to go up against Vince then, and you know that Vince is going to pull Shane by his side."

"I have no love lost for him."

"I'm just saying," Chris said. "He's my brother-in-law, and so you know, I have to be impartial."

"You're not impartial towards Vince."

"Believe it or not, I don't hate Vince," Chris said. "I can't hate the man that gave me Stephanie, and I know that you hate hearing that, but it's true."

"You know, you don't have to walk on eggshells around me," Hunter said. "You saved my ass last week and you didn't have to given our past. Look, I don't know how much Stephanie told you about what happened between us."

"Pretty much everything save for the stuff I didn't want to hear about if you know what I mean," Chris said, shuddering in disgust.

"Yeah, so you know what happened, and I know pretty much what happened with you guys, sort of, but whatever. What I'm saying is, I know you love Stephanie, hell, I don't blame you for loving her, I loved her too, so you don't have to tiptoe around the subject, she's your wife."

"I'm sorry, I just don't know how to act around my wife's ex-husband," Chris shrugged. "I don't know the proper etiquette for this moment. Look, I know what you did to Stephanie, and I'm willing to look past it because she's happy now. She wasn't happy then Trips, when we first got together, she was still upset over your break-up and you really did a number on her, but it's over, and barring our in-ring shit, you and I have no real beef, let's leave it at that, let this truce we have going stand until we come to blows with everything."

"Okay," Hunter nodded. "I don't know if I thanked you last week Jericho."

"Don't," he insisted, cutting him off. "You helped me just as I helped you and that's it, end of story.

"Before we totally leave the subject of Stephanie, can you answer me this one question?" Hunter asked.

"Sure."

"Who sent the tape to Linda?"

Chris knew immediately what he was referring to and he looked Hunter straight in the eye when he said, "It was Stephanie."

Hunter nodded. "I figured as much. I figured that she would have this secret so guarded that not even the best code-crackers would be able to decipher it so if she wanted people to find out, she would've had to have done it herself."

Chris bit his lip. "She wanted out."

"I was a jackass to her, I don't blame her," Hunter said, shaking his head. "I wish I could say I was happy because she's happy but I'm not."

"So about Shawn, what do you need my help with?" Chris asked, feeling the tension in the room rising and the conversation going into directions that it had no business going into.

"I need you to help him sneak into the arena. If the security at the door sees him, they're going to tell Vince straight forward that he's here and we want to keep this a secret. If the Spirit Squad starts to get the upper-hand with me, then Shawn is going to come out, but nobody can know he's here."

Chris snatched up his cell phone and dialed a familiar number. "Hey Britt, yeah, it's me."

"What do you need Chris?"

"I need you to find me an empty locker room, preferably on the side of the arena where there aren't a lot of people."

"Okay, and should I report this to…"

"No reporting, just find me one and tell me where it is. I'm also going to need a security clearance pass and if there's some way that you can possibly seduce a security guard while I sneak someone in."

Britt laughed. "Sorry Chris, I'm going to have to stop the job description at seduction."

"Damn, there go MY plans to seduce you," Chris joked.

"Oh, well, if it's you, it's a whole different story," Britt joked. "But I'll get right on what you needed."

"Cool, and make sure that everything is mum," Chris emphasized.

"You do a lot of things in secret don't you?" Britt asked.

"I kept my relationship with Stephanie hidden for a year and a half, trust me, I do a ton of things in secret."

"Wow, okay, well, I'll let you know when those things are done."

"Thanks Britt."

"Just doing my job," she replied before hanging up.

Chris looked to Hunter, "So everything is set in motion, I just have to figure out a way to get the security guy distracted, but that's no big deal, I just have to tell him we have a situation or something. Do you know when Shawn is going to get here?"

"He's at the hotel right now, so he can come over at any time."

"The sooner the better, or at least…oh, oh, this is good," Chris said, tapping his chin as he thought for a moment.

"What? What's good?" Hunter inquired.

"There are some ECW guys here tonight, I can tell the security guard to check to make sure they have passes, that way we can sneak Shawn into the building without anyone noticing. Yeah, I'm liking that idea."

"That actually sounds really good, thanks Chris."

"It's weird hearing you call me Chris," Chris told him. "I think I might actually prefer Jericho where you're concerned."

Hunter laughed. "I better get ready though, since Vince wants me on at the middle of the show, I'll give Shawn a call, tell him to get down here, and then I'll give you a ring to let him know when he's here."

"Great," Chris said as he watched Hunter leave. It was still strange to him to be on the same side as that man, the man who had hurt his wife so greatly, but it was time to put the past where it belonged. There was always the habit of clinging to the past and never letting go, and he didn't want to be that guy. He wanted to be the guy that moved forward, that didn't let things like that get to him. He had a family now, a real family and any personal vendettas had to be put behind him. Everything he did, he did for Stephanie and Sawyer and nobody else.

Stephanie was at home, on the phone with Trish as she watched the show. "So he wouldn't do it with me."

"Steph, he is under a lot of pressure, I mean, think about what you do at work right, and then multiply it for Chris who has no business management background at all, I mean, that's hard, not to mention he's working for your father."

"You're right, I just…I mean, we had sex two days before Sawyer was born, two days before he was born for God's sakes and now it's been six weeks and he doesn't want to touch me."

"Steph, I find it hard to believe that Chris doesn't want to touch you," Trish told her. "The man is in love with you."

"I know, but you'd think at the first opportunity he has to sleep with me, he'd take it. I was willing and ready and he was talking about work. I mean, am I so hideous now that he doesn't want to be with me."

"I hardly think that you're hideous," Trish told her.

"But I'm never going to look like you, let's face it, I'm like a gargoyle compared to you and the other divas on the show, all of whom are around Chris when he's not around me. I'm here and he's there and they're there."

"And you're off your rocker," Trish said. "Stop being so insecure Steph, you're beautiful. Chris knows that."

"But that was before I had the baby. I mean…the divas he's around, they're all you know, not mothers and stuff like that, they're just…all sexy around him and stuff. It's easy to cheat, my father did it all the time."

"Steph, Chris is not your father," Trish reminded her. "Trust me, I've been with your father and Chris is nothing like your father."

"That sounds really wrong," Stephanie said in distaste. "I trust Chris, I do…I hope I do. I don't know, it's just the way I grew up, I was weary of my father then, and I'm weary of Chris now. But what about this Britt girl, what do you think about her, honestly?"

"She's nice," Trish answered. "She's doing a really good job for Chris and he likes her, but not in the way that you think."

"I know I shouldn't be worried, but have you seen Chris? I'm surprised he doesn't have women falling at his feet every second of every day, I mean, he's hot, I have a gorgeous, sweet husband, how the hell did that happen? Oh man, I don't deserve him, that's why he won't have sex with me."

"Oh get over it Steph, this isn't you."

"It wasn't until he practically turned me down, and then my mind starts overanalyzing like it does, and I'm like, well maybe he's having sex elsewhere or maybe I'm tainted for him now or something to that affect."

"Neither, Steph, I didn't want to have to tell you this, but when he's not working on the show, he's bragging about you at every turn. Britt was telling me how she feels like she knows you because all Chris does is talk about how much he loves you and how much he loves Sawyer and how beautiful you are and how lucky he is, and she's seen pictures of you."

"Pictures?"

"Chris carries around pictures to show everyone who'll listen, I think everyone an their mother has seen Sawyer and you at some point since he's been born," Trish laughed.

"Then why won't he sleep with me."

"Give it time Steph…"

Chris got the call from Hunter and alighted from his dressing room. He walked to the backstage area and looked around for the security guy. He was standing at the entrance like a good security guy, and Chris knew he'd be easy to manipulate. He sauntered over and the guy stood a little straighter as he saw the boss approaching.

"Hey…Tom," Chris said, looking at his pass. "I was wondering if you had checked any of those ECW guys backstage for their passes?"

"I don't think so sir."

"Chris, call me Chris," he clarified, hating when people acted like he was superior to them. He was still just one of the guys. "But I'd prefer it if you went and checked, it's cool if you leave your post for a few minutes. I'm just worried that something is going to erupt backstage."

"Yeah, sure of course," Tom said, walking away. Chris watched him go and then stepped out into the night, already seeing a dark form walking his way. He gestured for Shawn to come over and quietly they went the back way to the empty room that Britt had found and secured. The two of them walked into the room and Chris shut the door and turned on the lights.

"Okay, so you and Hunter know what to do when to do it so my job is done," Chris said shortly. "I should probably get back to work."

"Why the hell are YOU of all people helping Hunter of all people?" Shawn asked suspiciously.

"Before you go into red alert mode, this isn't a set-up."

"You'll excuse me if I find that hard to believe," Shawn said glibly. "It seems the McMahons have a propensity to screw me over."

"In case you hadn't noticed, my name is not McMahon," Chris countered.

"But you're married to one, the same one that drugged me so that I could end up kissing her father's ass. She used her pregnancy, your unborn child to manipulate me, that's low. And since you're married to her, not sensing that you're any different."

"Look, you knew what you were getting into when you sided with any of the McMahons, Stephanie is no exception. I love her to death, but she will do whatever she has to do to come out on top, so you just have to deal with it. I'm not here to screw you over like you said, ask Hunter. I helped him last week and the week before, so before you go accusing me of something, get your facts straight."

"Well I'm sorry if I don't trust you and your family."

"Whatever Shawn, I don't give a damn what you care about or not care about or trust. The fact is Stephanie is my wife and I love her and if you want to keep talking trash about her, then we'll throw down right now, but don't insult her and expect me to just take it."

Chris walked out, tired of dealing with that man. He had once admired Shawn, but those days were over. He went back to his station to watch Hunter's match and see just what was going to happen. He had been expecting this for a while, and it didn't really disappoint. Shawn had sent him a small glare before he went out there, holding onto one of the Spirit Squad member's hair as he threw him out onto the ramp. The crowd was going wild at seeing Shawn there and went even wilder when Shawn went down to help Hunter.

The raucous went up a few notches when they did the infamous crotch-chop all but signifying that D-X was back in business. Then for old times sake, or something like that, Hunter pulled his trunks down to moon Vince McMahon (and blind half the population). Chris had to look away at that because well…he didn't want to see that, and who could blame him? It was Hunter's ass after all.

Vince stormed backstage and over to Chris, "Did you see that Chris!"

"I saw Vince," Chris said, trying to sound sympathetic and not like he knew this was going to happen all along.

"I can't believe this! I can't believe Shawn showed up, how did he even get past security!" Vince roared. "This is unacceptable. Hunter was about to get his ass kicked and that damn Michaels had to show up! I cannot believe this!"

"You know Vince, maybe it's time that you…stopped this madness with Stephanie and getting even on her behalf and actually went to talk to her," Chris suggested.

"Ha! This just makes me want to get Hunter even more. That bastard thinks he can go into the past and bring back D-X, what's next, he steals Stephanie away and marries her again!"

"Vince, I'M married to her," Chris said. "He can't steal what is already married."

"Regardless, he's not going to get away with this," Vince said. "Neither he nor Michaels is going to get away with this if it's the last thing I do. I'm going to make sure their lives are living hell before this is over. Try to pull one over on me, I don't think so."

"Vince, why don't you just talk to Stephanie, really, I think she'd listen."

"No, this is better, this is the right way to do it, with my actions. I'm going to put that damn D-X into a match at Vengeance, 5 on 2, against the Spirit Squad. That'll show them. The odds won't be in their favor and they'll lose."

"I think you're being--"

"I don't care Chris, do whatever you have to do to get that match signed off," Vince told him, waving him off as he sauntered away, self-satisfied with his decision. Chris ran his hands through his hair. Why was it so hard to get him to talk to Stephanie? Why was it so hard to get Stephanie to talk to Vince? Why had he married into the McMahon family in the first place? Why did he get himself stuck with them forever by having a child with Stephanie?

All of these were questions he didn't have answers to, but Stephanie hardly had any answers for her questions either. She was still disappointed that Chris hadn't wanted to touch her before he left for Pennsylvania and even though she was glad to see Candice lose, Raw had done nothing to lift her spirits and so she lay in bed that night, alone, and wishing that she knew why she had suddenly become so undesirable to Chris.

Maybe he was busy though, that couldn't have been a lie because she saw all the work they did. It was just hard for her to accept because they had slept together so far into her pregnancy, literally until days before she had given birth. Then six weeks of nothing and when she was so ready for him, when she had waited so damn long for him, he had work to do. It was reasonable, sort of. She fell asleep soon though, the exhaustion of taking care of Sawyer too much to keep her mind on her husband.

The next morning, Stephanie woke up to Sawyer's crying and went into the nursery to get him and bring him into her bedroom to feed him. She sat there watching as he had his breakfast and she yawned as she played with his hand, watching him eagerly feast. She sighed and looked down at his small features. She caught a little bit of Chris here and there and it made her smile. She was glad Sawyer was going to look like his father.

"Morning baby," Stephanie said as Sawyer pulled away from her body. She adjust her tank top and lightly brought him up to her shoulder to get the air bubbles out. "How are you doing this morning?"

She was met with a burp and she giggled as she shifted Sawyer so he was cradled in her arms. She kissed his forehead, adjusted him again and went downstairs so that she could eat her own breakfast. She set Sawyer down in his carrier which was on top of the kitchen table so he could watch her go about her business, washing bottles and dishes before getting her breakfast. She was so engrossed in what she was doing, she didn't notice Chris had come home and Sawyer was babbling happily at seeing his daddy. Chris scrunched his nose up at Sawyer and leaned down to kiss the kid's head and hold his hand for a second.

"Do you mind if I steal your mommy for a minute?" Chris said, silently taking Sawyer out of his carrier and quickly bringing him upstairs to his crib. "I know Mommy fed you because she's getting her breakfast right now, so if you could just chill in here for a little bit, Daddy has missed Mommy in more ways than one."

Chris went back downstairs and to the kitchen where Stephanie was trying valiantly to get to the bottom of the bottle. Suddenly, she was off her feet and she dropped what was in her hand as she felt herself lifted into Chris's arms. Stephanie gasped as she looked over at him. She wrapped her arms around his neck to steady herself and he turned off the water.

"Chris, when did you get home?"

"A little while ago," he said, kissing her deeply. "Miss me?"

"Yeah, I did, but can you put me down, I've got bottles to wash and then I have to eat breakfast and get Sawyer changed for the day."

"I've got something else in mind," he said as he started walking upstairs.

"Where's Sawyer?"

"His crib, he understood my intent."

"Intent? Chris, what are you talking about?" Stephanie asked. Chris went upstairs and into their bedroom, putting Stephanie on the bed, but unlike the day before, he crawled up so he was hovering over her. "Chris?" Chris just leaned down and kissed her deeply, something she had been craving and needing. He pulled away and she opened her mouth to speak, but he covered her mouth with his fingers and spoke softly.

"Shut up Stephanie."


	93. No, I'm Not Ready, June 19, 2006

A/N: Okay, so who totally had a panic attack last night? --raises hand-- Holy crap, last night scared the living bejeesus out of me! When Shane said Steph's in labor I think my stomach fell to my feet. When they kept mentioning it, I think my stomach dropped into the dirt. When the final segment rolled around and I was scared out of my mind that something was going to happen Steph related, I think my stomach fell to the core of the Earth, so yeah, I'm without a stomach right now.

But that final segment, seriously, I was like shaking because I was so scared that I'd have to do major, MAJOR damage control. As it is, the powers that be took pity on me and didn't have it happen, as if the other parts weren't difficult enough to explain. Oh well, here's the chapter, I do love the challenge of writing something that is so hard to write, so I hope you enjoy. Oh, and the other characters, the ones I've been totally neglecting will be back en force, so don't worry.

Oh, and for a shameless plug, I have a new story called Perfect Mess, which I have posted, so if you like my stories or you don't like my stories and yet you're some kind of masochist who likes to read them, go check that out. Shameless plug for another fic over. ;)

So leave a review, it's so easy, you just push that button on the bottom and you type, and even if it says, "Great chapter," a review is a review is a review and I'm shameless enough to take it, so leave one. :)

* * *

Stephanie walked into the bedroom where Chris was getting a nap before he was leaving for the show. They had made the trip from Tampa to Connecticut a few days ago because it was closer to where the shows were being held and Chris wouldn't have to travel a long distance. He was in the middle of his mid-morning nap, but she had just had an interesting conversation with Britt, who had called Chris's cell phone to inform him that her father had plans for tonight. 

She crawled onto the bed softly, careful not to wake Chris up, not just yet. She smiled as she was hovering over him, before leaning down to press a kiss to his firm stomach, working her way up ever so slowly to his face. But she only reached mid-chest before Chris's eyes opened and stared down at her over the bump that his son made on his chest, the little boy sleeping soundly for once.

"Hey," Chris said sleepily. "Why are you kissing my stomach?"

"Someone has been scheming and not letting his wife in on it," Stephanie said slyly as she straddled Chris's hips to talk to him. He didn't move because he didn't want to wake up Sawyer.

"What?"

"I was just talking to Britt, who has a stupid voice by the way," Stephanie joked. "Anyways, she didn't know that I didn't know that you were totally behind that entire Shane getting drugged instead of Hunter thing. But let me tell you, it was eye-opening."

"You didn't want to know," Chris told her.

"Yeah, but that was pretty freaking cool," Stephanie said. "Now, I want to do a little scheming of my own…"

"Oh crap," Chris said, rubbing his hand on her bare thigh. "Stephanie, what the hell are you thinking?"

"Well, since my dad is so angry at them, for some crazy reason involving me, I think it's time that Daddy gets a little shock of his own," Stephanie said, her face devious, which just made Chris want to take her right then, but he didn't, settling for rubbing her thigh. "I want my dad to completely lose control of the show and I want to let Hunter do whatever the hell he wants to do."

"Baby, that's a tall order, how the hell are you going to get all of this done on short notice, how the hell are you even going to get your father to leave the show? It's his big night, he gets to demolish Hunter and Shawn in one fell swoop."

"Well Chris, sweetie, I think that it's time that I had a little accident," Stephanie said sweetly, rolling over so she was on her side next to him. Sawyer felt the movement and opened his blue eyes, looking at his mommy and smiling, which he had just started to do a couple days ago, much to Chris and Stephanie's delight. It was nice having a baby who actually did something as Sawyer was starting to do.

"An accident?"

"Yes, an accident," she repeated. "If my father, who claims to love me with everything in him, loves me as much as that, then he'll come to my aid. You know what though…"

"What?"

"Remember when my father was all drugged up after you know, Shane got shoved up his ass, which is so gross," Stephanie laughed, reaching out to caress Sawyer's head, grasping Chris's hand. Chris nodded and let her continue, "Well, my dad said that I was six months pregnant, even though I was nine months pregnant at the time, so people don't know I'm not pregnant still."

"Well, some do…cause you're not big anymore," Chris pointed out.

"But sweetie, I haven't really been out in public, therefore people don't know, they believe what they hear on the show because why wouldn't they?" Stephanie said, her eyes glowing. "Besides, Sawyer only come out of the house when absolutely necessary, at least, he did before he got clearance to travel on a regular basis, but that's beside the point, what I'm saying is, we make my dad think that he's setting up Hunter and Shawn, but really, we're setting up Daddy."

"I don't know how you do it," Chris told her, seeing Sawyer lifted his head from his chest. "Neither can he, look at him, amazed, we are simply amazed by you. The Jericho men are completely enamored with Stephanie McMahon. We're in love with you."

Stephanie gave a coy look and then deigned the both of them with a kiss, although the one she gave Chris was a little more involved than the one she gave Sawyer. "Well, I'm in love with both of you too. So, you think I can hop a plane to Rochester or not?"

"You want to come with?"

"Wait, yeah, I shouldn't, should I? Because if I'm…wait, wait, I've got it, perfect, yeah, I want to come with you," Stephanie nodded eagerly. "I've got to call Hunter though, his number is on your cell phone right?"

"Yeah, it's on there…are you going to strike up an affair with him?" Chris joked.

"No, I'm going to tell him what's up, and then, then I'm going to call Shane and tell him what's up. You might have had the best plan a couple weeks ago Chris, but you haven't seen anything yet!" Stephanie jumped off the bed and was out of the room in a blur, her brown hair flying behind her as she disappeared around the corner.

Chris shook his head and looked down at his son, who had lifted his head to look up at him. Chris shrugged a little. "Yeah, I don't know what we're going to do with her either. You kind of just have to go along with Mommy instead of trying to figure her out completely, it's the easiest way." Sawyer smiled his gummy smile at him and Chris smiled back. It was something else to see his child smile at him. Sawyer cooed a little too, making babbling sounds. "Yeah, I know she's pretty, you don't have to tell me that. So I guess you're going to be coming to Rochester. You know who we have to visit while we're here? Uncle Shane. You can meet your cousins, Declan and Kenyon…but we call them D and J, we just do, don't ask me why. Well, since you're up, let's get you fed, changed and ready to go on your little trip."

Stephanie was waiting for Hunter to answer the phone downstairs, "This is Triple H of D-X speaking."

"Cut the crap," Stephanie said with a laugh. "I've got a proposition for you."

"Stephanie?"

"You can't recognize my voice? We were married for two years and you can't recognize my voice?"

"Well, I'm sorry, we've also been divorced for four years, I'm not up on the sound of your voice or your voice patterns Stephanie. What is it that you need?"

"Well, like I said, proposition for you."

"You know, I'm starting to respect your husband, and I don't think you soliciting me for sex is the right way to go about respecting him."

"Please, I've seen what you have and, frankly, I'm better off," she said sarcastically.

"I'll have YOU know that I'm hung like a--"

"Getting to the point," she groaned. He was acting childish again, but what could she expect when he was back together with Shawn. The two always did act like little boys. "I want to give you free reign tonight."

"Free reign?"

"Yes, I'm talking doing anything and everything that you want to do without fear of consequence," Stephanie said slyly.

"How the hell are you going to do that?"

"I'm going to get Daddy out of the arena," Stephanie said.

Hunter guffawed. "After what we did last week, I don't think that's going to happen."

"It can and it will, just trust me. Look, Chris and I are coming to the show tonight and you just need to trust me Hunter."

"Stephanie, the last time I trusted you, you told me that you were pregnant with my child, and let's all evaluate what happened with that one…and your husband told me that you were the one that sent your mom the tape, so I know the true depth of how much you wanted out."

"Oh," Stephanie said. "Well, the last time I trusted you, you said that we would be on top again and then you berated me because the fans wanted you to be some kind of god or something, and you left me behind like trash."

"Okay, okay, look, this is getting nowhere Stephanie. Chris and I have a truce going on, we know we have crap to work out and we'll get to it, and I think the same can be said of us. I know we have crap to settle and we'll get to it, but let's put it aside for right now."

"Deal, then we'll talk more when I get there, but you won't be disappointed."

"I hardly ever was when you were planning something. I'll see you tonight Stephanie."

"Yeah, you will, and don't tell anyone about this except Shawn and you better make him sworn to secrecy."

"Fine, bye."

"Bye," Stephanie said shortly, glad that was over. Things always regressed whenever she was around Hunter. She dialed Shane's number next, knowing she'd get a better reception on the other side.

"I almost didn't recognize the number," Shane chuckled as he answered the phone. "I didn't know you guys were in Connecticut."

"We are, which reminds me, come over, I'd love to finally see J."

"Yeah, we'll make it happen," then Shane laughed, "listen to us, we're actually going on about our families…hell, we actually have families…wow, we have families…"

"Well that went from funny to downright sad," Stephanie told him with a slight scoff. "You make it sound like that's a bad thing. It's a good thing, family is a good thing, well, our families, not exactly Dad."

"You like your family right?"

"What's not to like? Hot husband, cute son, although the cute son cries a lot and makes a mess a lot, but he's still cute," Stephanie said. "Uh oh, what's wrong Shane?"

"Nothing, nothing's wrong…I just feel like sometimes I'm in over my head, that I rushed this entire thing with Marissa, and you know, I kind of did. I married her so fast, we didn't even really get to talk about it."

"That's only your own fault Shane. But I really don't blame you, if I hadn't gone through my nasty divorce with Hunter, I might've just jumped into a marriage with Chris instead of taking our sweet time…but you'll be okay, I swear."

"I hope so…so I'm getting that this isn't just a social call, so what's up?"

"Well, Shane…Daddy is…"

"Annoying as hell?" Shane interjected.

"You see my point," she said giddily. "Anyways, I think it would be a fabulous idea if D-X got…I don't know, got to do anything they wanted to do."

"Are you crazy?"

"Yes," Stephanie laughed. "Actually, I just think that Daddy needs to know that he's not so in control. I'd love to see his face get duped, time and time again. I know you were part of Chris's little scheme the other week, so you can definitely be a part of my little scheme, it doesn't even involve you falling flat on your face in the ring."

Shane sighed, "Us against the world baby girl."

"You're the best big brother ever," Stephanie said gleefully. "Well, this is what I want you to do for me…"

Later that evening, Chris snuck Stephanie and Sawyer to one of the abandoned rooms on the unused side of the arena where Vince was sure not to go. Stephanie smiled at him as he rolled his eyes. She had laid out the plan for him on the plane, and he had to agree that it was a good and fun plan. Those were definitely the best kind. He was just worried she'd get caught here because Sawyer wasn't exactly the quietest baby on the planet.

"You know, I always thought my return would be a little more conspicuous," Stephanie joked.

"This isn't your official return baby," Chris said, kissing her lightly. "Your official return will have a lot more…uh, celebrating."

Stephanie wrapped her arms around his neck, "I love you."

"You only love me when you're scheming."

"Then I must be scheming all the time," she smirked. "If everything is going to plan, my brother should be talking to my father right…about…now."

Okay, so it wasn't exactly right that second, but several minutes afterwards, Shane did walk into Vince's office. Vince was once again admiring the Muscle and Fitness magazine cover and Shane once again rolled his eyes. If he rolled his eyes at his father anymore, they were bound to roll right out of his head one of these days. But he said nothing as he tapped his father on the shoulder. Vince looked at him with a grin on his face.

"Shane, my boy, what brings you here?"

"Well Dad, I was thinking," Shane started. "I think that we could really put a stamp on D-X tonight without them even knowing we were coming."

"Really?" Vince asked, intrigued by what his son was saying. Leave it to the McMahons to think of great things. "What is this thing you have in mind?"

"Well…if you'll remember correctly, you said that Stephanie was six months pregnant in April, even though she wasn't, you were on drugs, whatever, but people don't know she gave birth, at least not widespread right, since you told them six months and since Stephanie has been out of the spotlight since WrestleMania, people don't know."

"I don't get where you're going with this so get there fast Shane."

"We fake that Stephanie is in labor, and then we leave, BUT, and here's the big but, we don't really leave, we stick around in secret until this little D-X reunion and then we unleash hell," Shane said, folding his arms and raising his eyebrow to see what his father thought.

"You ARE my son," Vince said jovially. "I LOVE that idea, it's great."

"And how about we let D-X think that they're the ones who fooled us."

"What?"

"Yeah, think that they fooled us. We can get Chris to do it, he's family, he's your son-in-law, he's my brother-in-law and he has no love lost for Hunter since Hunter and him hate each other and Hunter was Stephanie's first husband," Shane lied, knowing that things were getting better between the three people he had just mentioned.

"Brilliant!" Vince bellowed. "I love it, get Chris on that right now."

"Will do Pops, will do," Shane said with a false smile as he walked out of Vince's room and down the hall. He walked to where he saw Chris going over a schedule with Britt. Chris looked up and saw Shane and nodded towards him. Shane walked over. "Hey bro, where's you know who?"

"Around," Chris said. "Did you convince your dad?"

"Yeah, it's a total go, does the enemy know?"

"I think Stephanie is informing him right now."

This time, it was right that second that Hunter was sitting down in Stephanie's wayward locker room. He was on the couch while she sat in an adjacent chair. Sawyer was in his carrier, staring up at the toys dangling above him, his pacifier hanging slightly out of his mouth as he gazed up in wonder at the brightly lit toys.

"So you have to tell Shawn that you guys are going to be the ones that said they did it, because he thinks it's going to lull you into a false sense of security, and then he's going to pounce."

"Okay," Hunter nodded. "Um…one question though, how are you actually going to get your father to leave?"

"Saying I was in an accident," she said nonchalantly.

"Steph, I know you're mad at your dad and stuff, rightly so after what Chris told me he did to you while you were in labor," Hunter said, and Stephanie was a little surprised that he actually referred to Chris by name, "but do you really think it's right to tell him you were in an accident? I mean, you're still his daughter and he still loves you."

"Serves the bastard right," Stephanie said dangerously.

"He really hurt you, didn't he?"

Stephanie looked at her baby, who was trying to swat at the toys above him. Her eyes softened in a way that Hunter had never seen before. She studied his small face, blue eyes like his father, a chin that was completely McMahon, judging from the tiny, almost invisible chin dimple, and his very own features unique to his own person, and she looked at Hunter again.

"Yes," Stephanie said softly. "But more than that…he treated my son, my little boy like nothing. He couldn't even muster up enough…respect for me and my baby to not make out with Candice Michelle on national television. Do you know how humiliating that is Hunter? Do you know how it feels to be in the most excruciating pain of your life, turn on the television and see your father feeling up a girl younger than you when he knows that you're sitting there, scared and in pain? Do you know?"

"No, I'm sorry Steph," Hunter said, and it was the most compassionate sentence he had said in a long time.

"It's not your fault," Stephanie said as she smiled wistfully at her baby. "I love my son. I love him more than I thought it was ever possible to love someone that wasn't me. I'm selfish, I've always been selfish and spoiled and a really ugly person, but with Sawyer, I feel like…I feel like I'm not that Stephanie."

"You're not--"

"Don't tell me I'm not selfish," she chuckled emotionlessly. "I treated you horribly, I've treated people horribly, but with Sawyer, if you get in my path, if you do anything that could make my baby hurt, then you're going down, and that's it, and if I have to lie, if I have to lose all my scruples, I will do that without hesitation for him."

"I don't think I got to tell you…he's gorgeous," Hunter said.

Stephanie smiled this time, a real one, a genuine one. It was perhaps the most beautiful smile Hunter had ever seen her smile. He was taken aback for a moment at her beauty. She was peaceful in that moment, and he knew that it wasn't going to last forever, it probably wouldn't last a minute, but he saw her differently. Saw that he had to accept this life without her because he didn't want to take that smile away. She got up and he watched her; she went over to Sawyer and picked him up, letting him rest against her.

"Did you hear that baby boy? Someone thinks you're gorgeous," Stephanie said to the little boy, who babbled softly and snuggled against his mother. "Say thanks."

"I'm going to head out," Hunter said, reaching out and touching Sawyer's soft hand for a moment. "I know you have your own reasons for doing this, but I think you're gonna laugh tonight, and I hope you do."

"I hope I do too," she told him. "You know, this whole ignoring the past thing, not so bad."

He nodded. "It isn't. I know we're going to have to…"

She knew what he meant and she nodded too, "I know…there's a lot."

"There is, but…we'll get to that later, we'll just focus on tonight."

"Okay Hunter, thank you…for understanding, for saying my baby is gorgeous."

"Truth," he shrugged, slipping out of the room.

Stephanie faced it a moment and then looked down at Sawyer. "You know, that was your almost-daddy. I know, it's a little scary, he's a little scary, but he was your almost-daddy. We're lucky we did get Daddy though. I won't bore you with the details of my first marriage, but suffice to say it left a lot of people shell-shocked."

Vince was starting the show. Chris was backstage, getting ready to leave, but he had to make sure that Vince at least saw him. Easier said than done as Vince encountered mishap after mishap on his way to the ring. From cocks (not that kind), to strippers (now you can think of that kind), to penis enlargers (which no one wants to think of), it was like a…well, it was strange and made Vince fume at the revival of D-X. D-X had been a thorn in his side and had ultimately, and let's not forget this, led to his daughter marrying that scum bucket.

Vince glanced by quickly and saw Chris sitting there, but made no acknowledgement because he was angry. He was angry on the way to the ring, he was angry in the ring, and he was angry…well, suffice to say he was angry. He talked about shoving his shoe up Hunter's ass, and then kicking Shawn with the same shoe, which must've made it like a really super shoe. Shane, "all of a sudden," came down to the ring sans music and rushed in, telling Vince that Stephanie was in labor. Vince acted like he was surprised, even though he wasn't, although he would be later when he found out this was a ruse…

Chris had previously informed everyone that this would be playing out this way, that Vince had wanted to do this to get the night off and that it was all just a game since he was Stephanie's baby's father and knew when she had actually given birth. Everyone went along with it, probably because they wanted Vince gone for the evening. Seems that Vince annoyed a lot more people than Chris had originally thought.

Shane and Vince went to the limo waiting for them when Coach came up to them. Coach had been informed personally of the plan and went along with it since he was currently the one with his lips attached to Vince's ass. Vince thought he'd get a good line in there about Stephanie having bad timing and being pissed since he was supposed to want revenge on D-X and wasn't getting it. He got into the limo with Shane when the phone rang.

"Hello?" Shane said, listening on the other line to someone. "What!...Oh my God…of course, yes, yes, we'll be there, I swear, oh my God, I'm sorry, I don't…I just…okay, bye!"

"What was that all about Shane?"

"Stephanie, she's been in an accident, there was an accident. She was in Greenwich and something happened, her car, overturned, I don't…"

"Where's Chris, we have to get Chris."

"It was the doctor or something, he said they already informed her husband and he was on his way."

"Damn it, call Coach and tell him he's really in charge, we have to get home!" Vince said frantically and Shane just did as he was told.

Meanwhile, Stephanie was actually breast-feeding Sawyer in her dressing room, laughing to herself as she watched the channel. Of course hearing her father call her a bitch had been a little on the shocking side, but she knew he was probably trying to sound like he was mad since he thought this was all a set-up, well not anymore. She looked down to Sawyer, who was just finishing up and he pulled away from her and she adjusted her top.

"Mommy is SO good Sawyer," Stephanie said. "So very, very good."

Chris walked to Hunter's locker room and was greeted with Shawn, who was still apprehensive about being around him. "Jericho."

"Michaels," Chris returned in the same tone of voice. "Is Trips around?"

"What's up Chris?" Hunter asked as he walked over behind Shawn.

"Everything obviously went down fine," Chris said, "I got a text from Shane saying they were on their way to the airport, he's sending me another one right before they take off, so we know when to let the cat out of the bag so to speak. I think they're taking the private jet, then Shane is going to call me and I'm going to feign ignorance. Anyways, I forgot to mention earlier that the…slime you wanted was set-up and the…dwarves you wanted are here too…I don't think I want to know."

"Thanks," Hunter told him. "Just watch the show, it'll all become clear."

"Oh, and the girls you ordered, which is weird to say, um, the girls you commandeered, I guess, anyways, they're here too. I don't know what the hell you guys have planned, but seriously, I'm a little scared."

"You can take the night off if you want man, Coach is here to be in charge," Hunter said, trying to sound scared.

"Yeah, I'd trust Coach with…hell, I wouldn't trust him with anything."

"Seriously though, you can go, we've got things under control, we're going to take full responsibility for everything, not the accident thing…not on-screen though, but off-screen, this is confusing now," Hunter said with a laugh. "Anyways, I don't want you to have to keep Stephanie and Sawyer here."

"What? Concern for my wife and son, does D-X have magical powers?"

"Get the hell out of here," Hunter said good-naturedly.

"Geez, what the hell?" Crhis said. "Now I'm getting ordered around by you, this is just too strange. What the hell DO you guys have planned?"

"D-X of old baby, we're going to wreak havoc and raise hell," Hunter said with a smirk. "Shawn and I are back in business and we're not stopping for nobody."

"Well…good luck."

Shawn and Hunter did wreak havoc just like old times, spray paint everywhere and a Spirit Squad doused in slime. Hunter thought about it as they were shoving Coach into a wall. He kind of liked where his life was right now. It was sure as hell better than where he had been a few months ago. Hunter would never admit it, but he liked to have people around him. He didn't like to be alone and it was so hard for him to admit that even to himself.

But now, at least he had friends. He had Shawn by his side again, his best friend in the entire world, and in a strange twist of fate, he had Stephanie back in his life too. Granted, it wasn't in the capacity that he craved, but at this point, after seeing her so happy with her new life, he would take what he could get. Maybe Hunter was finally growing up, or maybe he was finally moving on, but things were making sense in his life again. He didn't know if he would ever truly get over Stephanie, but he could sure as hell try.

Hunter could admit that at some points, he wasn't even over Chyna, so how could he be over Stephanie. He had loved both women and both of them were gone, although Stephanie was still around. He could still remember the first time that he had seen Stephanie and Chris together. It was the night of the draft lottery, not the first one, and he had seen Stephanie making out with someone and his blood had boiled. And when he had confronted her, there was Chris Jericho. Hunter had never said as much, but he had seriously thought they were having an affair when he was rehabbing. He had caught the shows, seen the looks, but apparently nothing happened. But when it did, he was a nobody in her life.

Life had dealt him a new card now and he was going to take it and run with it. D-X was back and as he was spray-painting Coach's ass, he came to see he was having fun again, he was smiling and laughing again and that was good. He was entertaining again and that felt great. It was going to feel even better later in the ring. He wanted to hear some cheers for a change and know they were really cheering for him and not cheering because they didn't like the guy that he was facing. He was going to get that tonight.

He did get those cheers, and when he was out there like old times, it was…it was just fun. He and Shawn were acting like goofballs, just like the old days. Then they copped up to lying about Stephanie. He wondered if Vince knew yet that Stephanie hadn't even been in an accident like she said she was going to do. Anyways, he was having fun and living it up like he should. When the cheerleaders came out, he was even feeling a little kicky about that and thought about asking one of them out. He might as well, he hadn't actually had a girlfriend in years, although he had screwed a lot of chicks, but those were all one-night stands. He hadn't had a girlfriend since…well since Stephanie.

Stephanie was laying with her head in Chris's lap. They had arrived home just fifteen minutes ago and immediately turned on Raw. So there she lay, still laughing about the dwarves that had come out dressed as the Spirit Squad. She didn't know why it was so funny, but it was. The Spirit Squad was annoying, and they were her father's lackeys, so that probably had a lot to do with it. And she remembered when they had gotten slimed earlier (the wonders of TiVo had allowed her to rewind and see it). That had probably been one of the funniest things she'd seen in a long while (Hunter's WrestleMania outfit being the first, yes, he will never live that down), and she needed a laugh right now. Chris's cell phone vibrated and she could feel it against her cheek almost. She reached up to his pocket and pulled it out, handing it to him.

Chris shifted Sawyer in his arms and grabbed the cell phone from Stephanie, wincing when Sawyer's cries were right in his ear. "Jericho speaking."

"Chris, where's Stephanie?"

"Oh, is your dad right there?" Chris joked.

"Yeah, what? The accident. What do you mean what accident?" Shane said, trying to sound confused.

"It went off without a hitch by the way, Hunter and Shawn are living it up. Oh, here comes the Spirit Squad and they are getting their asses whooped."

"You mean they tricked us!" Shane said, sounding angry. "Thanks Chris, we'll get them back."

"What's going on Shane?" Vince asked. "Where's Stephanie, where's Chris?"

"There was no accident, D-X probably found out about our plan for them and they tricked us. She's fine, she's with Chris, nobody is hurt, everyone's fine," Shane said, trying to sound bitter.

"Damn them!" Vince said, knocking his fist against the armrest. "I'm going to get those two if it's the last thing I do!"

Little did Vince know that Stephanie was the one sending him on a wild goose chase for no reason whatsoever. She turned and looked up at Chris, who was still trying to soothe their son, who was still whimpering a little bit after crying for the past ten minutes without reprieve. She furrowed her brow a little bit, now that she had time to think since the show had just finished.

"I'm not sure if I heard this, maybe I didn't, maybe I'm just envisioning that I heard this, but did…did Hunter say that whatever guy knocked me up was hung really well?" Stephanie asked.

"Did he? I can't exactly hear with this monster screaming in my ear," Chris said, but then kissed his son on the head as Sawyer turned to press his face against Chris's neck, the drool collecting and making the top of his t-shirt moist.

"Why would Hunter say that unless…he knows…how would he know?"

"Steph, what are you implying?"

"Maybe it wasn't Britt that I needed to be jealous of, maybe it was Hunter all along. Do I have to worry about my husband and my ex-husband hooking up, because if that's going to be awkward for anyone, it's me," Stephanie joked.

"Oh shut up," Chris said, smacking her lightly on the arm. "If I weren't holding our son right now…you'd be in deep trouble."

"Thanks Sawyer," Stephanie said, patting her son's diaper-covered bottom. "So my dad is going to be so pissed. Do you think I should tell him it was me?"

"No, let him think its Hunter for a while, when he's at his wits end, that's when you tell him it was you, he'll be so upset. And even though I still think you should just bite the bullet and talk to him, you know how I feel about you being happy."

"Yes, when I'm happy, you're happy," she told him.

"Exactly," Chris said. "And if you want to look sexy while scheming, I say go for it."

"Do you think Hunter is sexy while he's scheming?"

"You're such a bitch, I hate you," Chris said. He felt Sawyer's breath even out against his neck and stood up, letting Stephanie dump herself on the couch. She saw him walk towards the stairs and up to Sawyer's nursery (yes, the kid had three different nurseries in three different houses, although it was a little bare bones in the Connecticut and California houses). Stephanie just laughed and watched the little segment over again, wanting to see if Hunter had indeed made that comment, which he had and she laughed again. She laughed until Chris showed up in the doorway with his arms folded, creating an imposing picture.

"Did Sawyer go down."

"Yeah, the kid went down and you know you're in trouble Ms. McMahon."

"McMahon-Jericho," she corrected.

"Get your ass over here," Chris said, starting to chase her. Just then, Stephanie's cell phone started to ring and she groaned as Chris went to pick it up off the table it was on. "Yeah?"

"So how'd you like the ending?" Hunter asked.

"Um, besides you mentioning certain parts of my anatomy, fine," Chris said.

"Sorry, got caught up in the moment."

"Better have," Chris said, "Did you want to talk to Steph?"

"No, that's okay, I just wanted to say thanks, it was fun tonight. You guys aren't half bad."

"Thanks, I think," Chris said.

"You helped us out, we owe you now."

"Well, good then," Chris told him.

"I've got to go, I asked one of the cheerleaders out on a date, later man."

"Later…" Chris hung up the phone. "Wow, that was weird."

"What?" Stephanie asked.

"Trips is going out on a date." Stephanie's eyes widened slightly as she looked at Chris like he had grown two heads.

"A date?"

"Yeah, with one of those cheerleaders. I can't believe he's going out on a date. Wait, what are we doing? We don't even know if he's been on dates before? He could've had girlfriends for all we know."

"No, he would've flaunted it to me," Stephanie said. "No girlfriends. But wow, a date. I mean, this is…he told you…this whole friendship thing we all have going is weird. It's never going to last."

"Oh, hell no will it last. Trips and I agree that it's going to come down to an all-out fistfight at some point and time, we're putting it off."

"This is just…weird."

"Wait, hold the phone…does this bother you?" Chris asked, narrowing his eyes. He didn't know how he'd feel if this bothered his wife. He was married to her now, why would she care who her ex-husband dated unless…"Steph, do you still have feelings for Hunter?"

"That's silly," she said. "I don't know what to feel exactly. It's just…I don't know, when you're married to someone you never picture them with someone else. Like, if I were to divorce you, I can't picture you with someone else. Maybe I am a little…maybe I do feel a little something…"

"Really? I'm not sure how I feel about that," Chris said.

"Don't be mad Chris."

"I'm not mad, I'm just…surprised. I didn't think you would…feel anything. I'm going to go to bed."

"Chris, please don't be mad," Stephanie said, reaching for his arm.

"I'm not," he said, but it sounded like he was. Stephanie watched him go. Her thoughts went back to Hunter and this new information. Could it be true? Could it really be happening? Was Hunter finally getting over her?

And how exactly did that make her feel?


	94. Brace Yourselves, June 26, 2006

A/N: Sorry for the delay, I fell asleep writing this last night and well, sleep came first I guess lol. Anyways, this chapter is kind of setting up things that I want to do in the future, so think of it in that way rather than like an outstanding chapter.

Enjoy and leave a shiny, pretty review, I love those. :)

* * *

Stephanie knew that Chris was trying not to act like he was mad around her, but she had known him and been with him too long to know that this was the case. He was mad at her after what she had said, and she didn't know why she had said it. She hadn't been lying. She did feel something after she found out that Hunter had a date with someone. It wasn't jealousy and it wasn't anger, and it certainly wasn't love, but it was something. Chris could never possibly understand because he had never been married.

To her, it was just strange that Hunter had gone on a date because she, at one point and time, had been his entire world. When you've loved someone and then you see them move on, it's like…it's just like you're watching a movie you were supposed to be in, and you weren't anymore. Stephanie was very content in her life, she loved her husband and she loved her son, and she loved most things around her, father notwithstanding. She just had to adjust, that's all, she just had to adjust.

"Stephanie?" came Chris's cold tone from the sitting area of their hotel room.

"Yeah?" she asked, trying to sound chipper, but doing as good a job as Chris was trying to act like he wasn't angry with her.

"Can you get Sawyer's blanket, I want to put him down on the couch and I think he'd like it better."

"Yeah," she said, sighing a little. She didn't like fighting with Chris, she never had. If she admitted it to herself, she was scared. She was constantly scared, at least in the back of her mind. She didn't want to fail another marriage, and it was always in the back of her mind that she could fail again.

She went into the suitcase where she had kept some of Sawyer's clothes and necessities and came back out to give it to Chris. She handed it to him and looked straight at him, but he didn't look at her. She kneeled next to him on the couch where he laid down the blanket for Sawyer, and then watched as Chris laid the blanket down on the couch with one hand before setting Sawyer down on his back. The little boy kicked his legs around and Stephanie leaned her hands on Chris's shoulder as they both looked at the happy little guy, a smile on his face.

"At least one of us is happy," Stephanie observed.

"Stephanie," Chris warned, not wanting to get into it now when they had to leave for the show in about twenty minutes.

"Chris, won't you at least talk to me?"

"Stephanie, let's not get into right now okay?" Chris asked, exasperated by her many attempts at trying to get him to talk. He was sick and tired of her trying to force him to talk to her. "We didn't get to go to Vengeance last night and we've got a lot of work to do tonight, so let's just get our stuff and go to the arena."

"I just think that we should talk."

"Right now, we have nothing to talk about. Your father wants us in a meeting in half an hour to discuss what we're going to do now that we're both there."

"You're not going to like stop working and go on tour or something, are you?" she asked, worried that he was going to leave now that he wasn't tethered to the show.

"No, I'm not," he said, looking at her for the first time and repeating, "I'm not going anywhere Stephanie."

"Good," she said softly, before he trained his eyes back on Sawyer.

She got up, knowing that he wasn't in the mood to speak any further and went to go pack Sawyer's diaper bag. She didn't know what was going on in that head of his, but Lord did she wish she knew? He couldn't possibly be jealous, could he? What would Chris even have to be jealous about? He had her. He had everything from her, he had her love, her body, hell, he had her son and everything. No, it had to be something else. She unconsciously packed Sawyer's diapers and a few bottles and some extra clothes into his bag as Chris showed up in the doorway with the little boy in question.

"We're ready, you ready?" he asked.

She broke from her thoughts to look at him, "Yeah, I'm ready."

"Good, cause we are too," Chris said, smiling down at his son, whose head fell lightly against his shoulder. Chris reached up to wipe some of the drool off of his son's face. "Sawyer's anxious to get down to work. He's coming back too."

Stephanie smiled, she liked that Chris was still bantering with her even though she knew he was mad at her. "What do you think my dad is going to have him do?"

"Oh, I don't know, he started you off in the mail room didn't he, and wasn't Shane a janitor. Maybe he'll be a janitor."

"I hope not," Stephanie said as she shouldered Sawyer's bag and grabbed her own bag. Chris put Sawyer in his carrier and then took Sawyer's bag from Stephanie, still being the gentleman despite everything. She smiled at him gratefully as they made their way down to their rental car where Chris strapped Sawyer into the backseat and Stephanie got into the front seat.

The car ride was mostly quiet, Sawyer's quiet babblings giving way to soft breathing as the car ride lulled him into a soft sleep. Stephanie occupied her time with thinking about seeing and meeting with her father. She didn't really want to meet with him, but it was the only thing she could do since she and Chris both now had the same job title. Her father was still on the top of her list, and would hold that position for a long time to come if she had anything to say about it.

"We're here," Chris said shortly, noticing that Stephanie was a little off tonight. He knew why, but he didn't want to do this here and now. "I've got the baby."

Chris took off with Sawyer in a flash, getting him out of the car in record time. She was slower. She sat there a moment and then got out of the car slowly, pulling on Chris's sweatshirt as she got out. There was some rain in the area and she didn't want to get wet. She held her briefcase in front of her as she walked, hoping to just get inside and see her father and get that over with so she could go to work, back where she belonged, back at her rightful place.

That's when she heard the first shout, "So Stephanie, still pregnant!"

She turned her head over her shoulder and saw a bunch of fans waiting at the entrance. She gave a little wave and kept walking when she heard another scream, this of a decidedly more vindictive nature, "So is this the devil spawn?"

She narrowed her eyes and stopped a moment, not believing someone would yell that out at her. She had been used to being called a slut and a whore on national television, and she had received those same comments from people she had met in real life, but those had never really stung like this before. She could certainly deal with that, and she had. She had skimmed sites and message boards and she knew that she wasn't received well, she knew that people clumped her in with her father, called her horrible names and believed them, but now they were talking about her child.

"I bet she doesn't even KNOW who the father is," she heard someone else say to some of the other people there, and she couldn't stand to hear anymore as she walked quickly in the arena. Luckily she had had her back to them the whole time so they couldn't see that she was actually pregnant. She had barely been out of the house the past eight weeks since Sawyer's birth, so it wouldn't be hard for people to not even know that she wasn't pregnant and in fact had a two month old son. She and Chris had skipped the birth announcement and hadn't sent out those cutesy little, "It's a Boy!" cards to their friends and family. It had been a very low-key affair.

She walked inside the building and saw Chris and Sawyer waiting for her. He looked at her strangely, noticing the almost haunted look on her face. "Stephanie, what's wrong?"

"Nothing, can we just go meet with my dad?"

"Sawyer?" Chris said, lifting the carrier their son was sitting in. Stephanie looked down at him, his peaceful little face, enamored with the sights going on around him that he'd never seen before, his eyes wide as he followed his Mommy with his blue, clear eyes. Chris had those same clear eyes, that were so blue you didn't even know if they really existed in nature. His hair was downy soft and an almost white blond, like Chris's had been as a baby. He was the most beautiful thing she had ever laid eyes on.

"I talked to Trish earlier, she said she'd watch him," Stephanie said quietly, not wanting to give him up to anyone right now. Her urges were telling her to take her baby and run, protect him from stupid people who believed that she was always going to be that slutty girl, the slutty girl she never actually was.

"Why don't you go find our office and I'll go give the monster to Trish and Christian, okay?"

"Sure," she nodded absently as Chris wandered off.

Chris walked down the hallway, nodding to people along the way and hearing everyone give a big "aww" to the baby that he was carrying around. He found Trish's locker room and knocked with his free hand. The door flew open and Trish was in front of him, hugging him with two arms, which she was doing with practically everyone she had seen (and liked) since she got here.

"Hey Trish," Chris said good-naturedly.

"Don't mind her, she's showing off the fact that she can use two arms now."

"Shut up Chrissy," Trish kidded as she looked down at Sawyer. "Oh hey there little guy." Chris placed Sawyer down on the coffee table in the room and Trish immediately went to pick him up. "Aww, Auntie Trish hasn't seen you in two whole weeks because your mommy and daddy insisted on taking you to Connecticut and not near Auntie Trish. He's grown so much in two weeks Chris."

"I know, he's nearly a man," Chris joked. He reached out and let Sawyer grab his hand. "Okay kid, Mommy and I have a meeting, but we'll come back to get you as soon as we can okay, be good for Auntie Trish and Uncle Christian, but if you feel like giving Uncle Christian a hard time, I have no problem with that."

As Chris was going over the particulars of caring for Sawyer, Hunter was flagging down Stephanie from down the hall. She turned around quickly to make sure nobody was around and went up to him. He greeted her with a smile and she returned it, albeit uneasily as she still had a lot of things on her mind.

"Hey Steph, I was wondering if you could do me a huge favor, you're not going to like it, but it would really help," Hunter said quickly.

"Well, I have a meeting with my dad in like five minutes, can we talk in a bit?"

"Um…yeah, I guess, it just relates to something Shawn and I want to do, but we didn't get time until the middle of the show so I guess we've got time to discuss, but later promise?"

"Promise," she said, wondering what that was about.

Trish cooed down at Sawyer, who was nestled into her arms. He looked up at her, squinted up at her was more like it. Trish wasn't sure if he recognized her face since he saw it a lot or if he was just wondering what he was doing here. She smiled over at Christian, who was looking over at her with a smile while simultaneously flipping through a magazine.

"Every time I hold him I want one," Trish told Christian.

His eyes widened, "Excuse me?"

"I don't mean that we should go out and get pregnant right this second, especially not right this second since I've got a match first thing tonight, but eventually you know, I want one of these," Trish said wistfully. "He's so cute and perfect, and I know that he cries a lot and wakes up in the middle of the night and gets his clothes dirty every other minute and has a ton of dirty diapers, but Stephanie and Chris love him so much, I want one."

"You'll have one I'm sure."

"Is that an offer?" she asked.

"It wasn't an offer necessarily, but it's definitely something that we should think about for the future," he said with a smile.

"Do you really think we have a future?" she asked hopefully. It had seemed impossible just a short time ago that she would have a future with Christian, that he would even be here at Raw since he had left.

"I'm not going to say yes, because then the expectations are too much for us, but I do think that there's a ton of potential for it," he said, leaning over to kiss her. He looked down at Sawyer. "Sorry about that Sawyer, but you'll understand when you're older, trust me."

"He's going to be a charmer, this one," Trish said, letting Sawyer grab her finger. "He's already pretty darn charming, look at those eyes, have you ever seen eyes like that?"

"Um, yeah, on Chris," Christian joked. "Since that's where he got them from."

"Hey Sawyer, are you going to watch me kick Mickie James's ass tonight? See, she made Auntie Trish very angry and I want to rip her to shreds for it," Trish said, venom in her voice. "Tell Mommy to let you stay up so that you can watch me win the title of that bitch."

"Do you really think that you should be using that kind of language around such a young kid?"

"I don't think that he's going to know what I'm talking about," Trish responded. "He's a baby, how is he going to know what a bitch is. Although if you are like a super-baby or something Sawyer, then you'll find out what a bitch is tonight when you see Mickie. But don't worry, Auntie Trish is totally going to take care of that."

"Where are you when I need you in TNA?" Christian asked. "I swear, if I had you by my side, there would've been no stopping me from losing my title."

"I'm sorry you lost your title Chrissy," Trish said softly, leaning over to brush her lips over his. "I hate to say it though, you can't keep the title forever. Eventually someone is going to come along that's better than you, or in your case, you're going to get robbed from someone who really isn't better than you."

"You think I was better?'

"Chrissy, I know you were better. You were the best, you ARE the best," she said, giving him another kiss as she tried to make out with her boyfriend while still holding Sawyer. "And it doesn't take some stupid belt to tell me that."

Christian closed his eyes and pulled away, "God, you're beautiful."

She gave him a soft smile and then looked back down at Sawyer. "If only you weren't here Sawyer, but we'll forgive you this time."

Vince sat behind his desk and observed his daughter for a long moment. She was looking away from him, not even in his general direction. But he was looking at her. It was the real first good look at her he had gotten since she had had Sawyer and that had been almost two months ago. He had seen her of course, but hadn't been able to study her. He was loath to admit it, but he missed his daughter and he just wanted to be able to talk to her again.

"Well," Vince started, clearing his throat. "Now that you're back Stephanie, it seems a little excessive to have you both running the show, but as I understand it Chris, you would like to continue working."

"I've got nothing better to do on Mondays, no, and I would like to be around my wife and child," Chris answered like it was the most obvious thing in the world to him, which it was in fact.

"Well, I'm sure you can give a hand to Stephanie when she needs one, but I'm going to put you in charge of the Diva Search as a temporary solution. As you know, we've narrowed down the field to the top eight, and we're going to start bringing them to the shows and I'd like you to take care of that aspect of the show."

"Lovely," Stephanie muttered.

"What was that Stephanie?" Vince asked, and Chris looked over to his wife with a smirk. She straightened in her chair and cleared her throat a little, Chris snickering at her uncomfortable look.

"Nothing Dad," Stephanie told him. "Nothing at all."

"Okay," Vince said, giving her one last glance before turning to Chris. "I think that you can more than handle the responsibility, as I understand it, you two are staying in Connecticut for now?"

"Yeah, we are," Chris responded. "It's closer to the shows we're doing right now and so Sawyer doesn't have to take such long flights, so yeah, we're in Connecticut."

Vince winced as the grandson he had yet to see in person was mentioned, but covered it up quickly, "Good, I'll have the girls come over and you can have a meeting with them and brief them on what's going to happen."

"Okay," Chris shrugged, looking over at Stephanie was rolling her eyes so much they threatened to just keep rolling. He surreptitiously reached out and grabbed her hand. Even though they weren't on the greatest terms at the moment and he was still up in the air about her little confession last week, he knew this bothered her, as it probably would bother a lot of women who had to see their husbands around a bunch of young woman noted for their looks rather than their intelligence.

"Good, and Britt is at both of your disposals, and I think that's pretty much all you need to know at this time," Vince said. "You're both dismissed."

"Thank you," Chris said as Stephanie mumbled the same thing and walked out the door. Chris went ahead of Stephanie, leaving her behind as she watched his back. He looked back towards her. "Are you coming?"

"Don't snap at me," she said to him.

"I wasn't snapping at you," Chris told her. "I just want to know if you were coming so that I could stop and wait for you, geez. I was going to introduce you to Britt, or is that not something that should happen? She is your assistant now too."

"Goodie," Stephanie said with a sarcastic hand-clap.

Chris stalked over to Stephanie, "Are you going to act like this all night long because if you are, I'm going to go now and not come back until we have to leave."

"Then maybe I'll just find my own ride back to the hotel and then find my own room and then stay there so you don't have to look at my face for the rest of the night since you don't even want to talk to me, let alone see me right?"

Chris clenched his fists in front of his face. "You, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho….I don't know…God you piss me off sometimes."

She smirked, "Likewise, you can introduce me to Britt," and here she stuck out her tongue in disgust, "when I go get MY baby."

"Don't say it like that," Chris told her. "He's my son too, Stephanie, and don't act like he's just yours and you have sole possession of him. I get up at night too, I change diapers too and I love him just as much as you do."

"I know," she said sheepishly.

Stephanie turned the other way to go get Sawyer from Stephanie. She shouldn't have brought up Sawyer like that. She was still reeling from the things that she had heard earlier. Fans could be so cruel sometimes, believing things that didn't even need to be believed. She just wanted to protect her son, like any good parent would do. She wanted desperately to be a good parent to Sawyer and to succeed at parenthood like she succeeded in business. She knocked on Trish's door and Christian answered.

"Hey, your son's crying," Christian told her. "And he's really loud."

"That's my baby for you," Stephanie said, walking into the room and seeing Trish trying to comfort the little boy. "Oh hey baby boy, what're you doing to Auntie Trish?"

"Making me all nervous," Trish said, handing him over. "I hate to cut this short, but I've got to get ready for my match, which is like in ten minutes, you going to be at the station?"

"Not for the first match, I've got some things I need to discuss with some people so I have a production assistant doing it. I need to speak with Hunter and with Chris."

"Oh, okay, sounds serious," Trish said.

"Yeah, and I better get to that," she said. "Thanks for watching him."

"You know I love to do it."

Trish got dressed quickly and went out for her match when the show started. She could hardly mask her excitement and as she walked out there to hear the cheers of the crowd, she was even more excited to be there. It was just what she wanted. She had been miserable out of the ring and the only saving grace had been Christian's unique brand of humor to keep her laughing despite her injury.

She was determined to beat Mickie into the ground, but it was not to be on this night. No, on this night she would suffer a loss because her arm was still vulnerable. Of course Mickie would go after her arm and as it was being wrenched behind her back, she knew that she was going to lose this match. She had just gotten back from injury and she was still smarting from it and it was going to be a weak point with her until it completely and totally healed. And so she lost the match.

As if that wasn't bad enough, she was greeted by two of Raw's newest recruits in Melina and Johnny Nitro. She didn't care for Melina. Melina was an attention-grabbing bitch who had to resort to self-grabbing stunts in order to get attention. Trish demanded attention and that was the biggest difference between them. Trish had earned every ounce of respect that she got and she had worked her ass off to get where she was and it wasn't an easy ascent to the top. If this woman thought she was just going to relinquish that power, then she had another thing coming to her.

But then again, so did Trish as Nitro grabbed her and held her hands behind her back. She briefly thought Christian would come out to save her, but then remembered that Christian wasn't on the WWE roster any longer. Chris wasn't on the show either, and she was starting to get a little worried that nobody would help her. Then she saw the hair and she was shocked as Carlito of all people saved her. She would've expected Triple H before she expected Carlito. She was grateful to him, and when she went backstage, she told him so. He went off on a rant and although she couldn't understand a word he said, she got the gist.

Looking at his shirt, she leaned up and whispered in his ear her own personal preference. She had no problem communicating this to him since it wasn't like she was planning on going out and doing it to him right then. He looked intrigued as she thanked him again and wandered off. It wasn't a few minutes later when Shane came up to her, a speed in his step.

"Hey Trish, I was looking for you," he told her.

"You were?"

"Yeah, I wanted to see if you were okay."

"Shouldn't you worry more about your own match?" Trish asked.

"I can worry about that in a little bit, my dad is already planning on having the Spirit Squad out there so I'm not going to be so worried about it," Shane shrugged. "But that bitch Mickie James, and Melina and Nitro, they were out there too, and I was worried."

"That's so sweet of you Shane," Trish said, giving him a hug.

"Well, I gotta watch out for my friends, right pretty girl?" Shane told her, hugging her back. "So you're really okay?"

"I'm really okay," she said, pulling away and staring at him for a moment. "Sometimes I marvel at how different you and Stephanie are from your father. You're such a good man Shane, much more than anyone gives you credit for."

Shane gave her a small smile, "Thanks Trish, I don't think people really see me like that right now, but it's nice to be looked at like that from time to time."

"Well, I'll always see you like that," Trish said, giving him another hug. "I better go though. Christian and I want to cut out of here early and maybe go out to a club or something to celebrate my first night back to wrestling."

"Cool," Shane said, a little sad. He wasn't the partying type by any means, but sometimes he wished that he didn't have a family so he could make such quick and impulsive decisions, but responsibility had always been thrust upon him, none more so than his instant family.

Speaking of families, Stephanie was sitting with Chris in their office. She needed to speak with him about what had happened to her earlier. She had been thinking about it almost nonstop, what those people had said. Not just about her, but about Sawyer. That hurt more. She didn't want her son to have to go through the same things that she did. She wanted him to have the best childhood imaginable.

"Chris, can we talk candidly?" Stephanie asked, watching over her baby as he slept.

"What?" Chris asked, and it wasn't meant to be harsh, but he was certain that it had come out that way. His eyes softened when he saw Stephanie's hurt expression and he looked at her again, hoping he didn't come across as mean this time. "What is it?"

"I'm a little unnerved about what happened earlier," she told him, "with people just hounding us. I don't…I…I hate it."

"You didn't hate it before."

"I didn't have Sawyer before," Stephanie sighed. "I just don't want my baby to grow up in the spotlight like I did, it screwed me up."

"So you what? Want to hire a nanny and let them raise our kid? You want to send him off to boarding school?" Chris asked, and this time he meant to be harsh.

"No, I don't want anyone taking care of my baby but me, but I don't want his face plastered all over those fan sites with captions and all that crap that goes along with it. I don't want him to grow up in the same vein that I did. I'm screwed up Chris, you know that so don't even try to sugarcoat it and tell me that I'm not, I am."

"Stephanie, we're all screwed up. So you didn't have the typical childhood, so what, we pave our own way with our baby."

"What about his picture? I mean, my dad is probably expecting me to show up with a baby at some point and I'm not doing that to my baby," Stephanie said. "I don't want him to grow up in the spotlight, I want everything for him, and to have him have a good, normal childhood, one that neither one of us had is important to me."

Chris sighed, "I understand where you're coming from, but I don't know how to fix it."

"I know you're mad at me, but…I've been thinking about it all night long and I don't know, maybe if we just give them what they want…they'll leave him alone."

"Give who what they want?"

"The people, I mean, when you and Trish were 'together,' you weren't really, you were faking it, right? I mean, you WERE faking it right?" Stephanie said, giving him a look. Chris chuckled and shook his head at his wife.

"Stephanie, you know what happened during that time period, I was trying to come up with a way to propose you," Chris said sarcastically and opened his mouth.

"Don't even finish your thought Chris, because I can feel a cutting sentence coming on and I don't want to hear it," Stephanie warned. "Anyways, you pretended, you had everyone fooled, you had people thinking that you and Trish were going to get married…hell, you had me thinking you were going to get married."

"Okay, I get it, we were acting in order to throw people off the scent, namely your father."

"What if I kind of did that on a grander scale?" Stephanie asked, biting her lip. "People still think I'm pregnant right?"

"Yeah, I mean, on the screen they do."

"And sometimes we do…act on the show right? I mean, Shane acts like he hates Hunter when he doesn't right?"

"Right," Chris said, not knowing where she was taking this.

"It's a stupid idea, I know, but I'm at a loss for what to do. I cannot and will not have my baby out there for people to ridicule. You know they will, people hate me, like with a passion and I don't want my baby to be a part of that."

"I can understand that."

"Thank you," she said earnestly. "I'm just thinking that we make people still think I'm pregnant, it'll at least give us a little time in order to figure out if we want people to see Sawyer. I don't want him thrust into the spotlight like I was. I was modeling clothes before puberty, and I don't want that for Sawyer. It's embarrassing."

"So you want people think you're still pregnant so nobody will want to see Sawyer."

"Yes," she said.

"How do you know people would buy that?"

"Earlier…people were yelling stuff at me in the parking lot," she admitted sheepishly, her cheeks turning a little rosy.

"What were they saying?" Chris asked, his full attention on Stephanie now.

"Um…asking if my baby was the devil spawn and implying that I didn't even know who the father was."

"They said…what!" Chris said, standing up from his seat. "Did you get a good look at these people because I will find them and I will throw them the hell out of here."

"Sweetie, no," Stephanie said. "I just don't want Sawyer to be taunted just because I'm his mother. That's not fair to him to suffer because I'm a horrible person."

Chris rubbed the bridge of his nose. "You're not a horrible person Steph."

"Tell that to the fans who hate my guts," she said sadly. "Anyways, that's what I'm thinking."

"Go for it," Chris said as Britt walked into the room. "Oh hey Britt."

"Hey Chris," Britt said, then looked over and saw Stephanie. She smiled brightly at Stephanie. "You must be Stephanie, it is such a pleasure to meet you!"

Chris gave Stephanie a look of warning not to be mean to their new assistant. Stephanie gave an overly polite smile and stuck her hand out to shake the other woman's. "Nice to meet you Britt."

"No, it's nice to meet you, I feel like I know you though, Chris talks about you and Sawyer all the time. I think I know you're entire life story with the amount that he talks about you."

Stephanie looked at Chris with a smirk, "Is that so?"

"Britt, quit while I still have my dignity," Chris said. "I need your help with some Diva Search stuff, Steph, you good?"

"Yeah, I have to go see Hunter anyways, watch Sawyer?"

"Sure."

Stephanie found herself in D-X's locker room a short time later and it brought a bit of nostalgia. Shawn had let her in, albeit with a look of disgust on her face, but she could hardly blame him. She had drugged the man after all. Hunter came in a few moments later and his eyes lit up as he saw her and sat down across from her.

"Hey, great, you're here, first of all, we have got a truck full of manure out back and we need your help to rig it so it falls on your dad," Hunter said excitedly.

"Truck of manure?" Stephanie asked slowly.

"Yeah, trust us, it'll be hilarious," Hunter said, neglecting to mention that if it happened to hit Shane they were okay with that. "Come on, your dad is always full of crap, why not just dump it on him?"

"Yeah, okay, I can have people…um rig something really quick above the ramp. Nobody will really have to know or anything, or I could just have people above the Titantron, whatever, I'll figure it out."

"Okay, you've got something on your mind, I know that look from you Steph."

Trying to divert attention away from herself, she asked, "How was your date with one of those cheerleaders?"

"Oh, Chris told you?"

"Yeah, so have fun?"

"Actually, yeah, I did. It was nothing serious, but it's actually kind of nice to be out there again. It's been a while since I've really been out there, but if you were able to move on, I should be able to too, right?"

"Yeah, how did you feel when you found out I was with Chris?" she asked, wondering if he had experienced the same thing she had.

"Well, for one, it pissed the hell out of me because I was still not over you. Then I was shocked you would actually go out with Chris Jericho, then I was angry and wanted to break you up because you had been my wife and it was just weird."

A-ha, there it was, "So you think it was weird to see me dating someone else?"

"Yeah, I mean, we were married and everything."

"Thank you!" Stephanie said. "I thought it was weird seeing YOU out on a date with someone and I thought I was going crazy. It's just a weird thought you know, just like, we were married once upon a time."

"Yeah, but I get that you're with Chris now, I really do and the man has my respect," Hunter said, not even really feeling anything when he said that. If he had said that months ago even, he would've been pissed off at the mere mention that Chris and Stephanie were together.

"Which segues nicely into what I need to ask of you," she said. "Tit for tat and all that. I need you to keep mentioning that I'm pregnant."

"It was a joke last week though."

"It's not anymore, I don't want the general public to even know that Sawyer exists."

"Um, why?"

"Because…people are already saying hurtful things about my baby and they don't even think it's born yet. If they found out there was a Sawyer, then…I don't know, someone said I had the devil spawn earlier. It was probably directed towards me though, but it was still harsh. I didn't like it, and Sawyer doesn't need to grow up with people hating him just by being associated with me, so I'm asking you to go along with this ruse, to make it seem like I'm still pregnant."

"But you don't look it."

"I can get around that by wearing really baggy sweatshirts and stuff f I have to. Chris and I didn't do anything big when Sawyer was born. No birth announcements, no nothing So really, it's only people around here that know, and I want to keep it that way."

"So you just want me to mention it, make fun of you then?"

"I don't care what you say, just make sure that you get in the fact that I'm still pregnant. It'll give me a little time until I get a real plan formulate in my mind."

"I can do that, you act like you're asking me all these hard favors, but they're really not. I'm happy to help you with this, to help with Sawyer."

"Thank you so much Hunter. I'll get right on that…truck of manure."

Stephanie had to admit that she found Hunter and Shawn's whole skit hilarious. It was like a little pick-me-up that she needed. He did mention her fake pregnancy, so she was grateful for him keeping up his end of the bargain. Of course, she wondered if Hunter was going the extra mile and trying to throw people off the scent of who the real father was, since he kept mentioning packages and what not, which made her a little uncomfortable.

But no more uncomfortable Shane was when he got a load of shit dumped on him. Stephanie cringed and promised herself to not go anywhere near her brother for at least the rest of the night, maybe the rest of the week. Shane sat there with a haunted expression on his face. It was like he was contemplating whether or not this life was worth living anymore. First it was getting shoved into his father's ass, then it was getting drugged by Hunter, and now there was crap. What had he done to deserve this crap (no pun intended)? He didn't know, but it was really starting got wear thin.

He went to clean up and shower and when he got out, feeling much better. He grabbed his phone and saw he had a voicemail. He pressed the button, wondering who it could've been.

"_Hey Shane, it's Trish, just wanted to know if YOU were okay after what we just caught on the show. Totally gross, but don't worry, you'll forget about it soon. Call me."_

Shane smiled at her voice and was happy that she was concerned about him. He would call her and Christian back later to let them know that he was okay and apart from being totally humiliated and doused in gross stuff, he was going to be fine. Sure, he probably wouldn't live this down, but maybe he could just forget about it for the rest of the evening.

The evening was a little less tumultuous for Chris and Stephanie. He had fallen into bed almost as soon as they had gotten to the room. She joined him a short time later, but laid beside him without touching him. She didn't know whether he was still mad or not and she didn't want to press her luck.

"Can we talk now?"

"No, I'm not ready, just Steph, please."

"What?"

"Just give me time."


	95. I Think I'm Traumatized, July 3, 2006

"I just got off the phone with your mom."

Chris looked up at Stephanie. "You did?"

"Yeah, and she relayed an interesting tidbit to me," Stephanie said, coming over and sitting across from Chris on the couch. "And do you want to know what this tidbit is?"

"Well, you're probably going to tell me anyways, so you might as well tell me now before you make me beg it out of you."

"Well, she said she listens to your radio show," Stephanie told him. "All of it…every second…which means…"

"Damn it," Chris said, blushing. "I told my mom not to listen to it, that I can get pretty raunchy on it, I told her not to."

"She told me that she hadn't heard from you in a while and just wanted to hear what you were up to," Stephanie said. "Which speaks more to the fact that you should call your parents more than you do rather than clean up your show."

"I didn't think that my mom would be listening, oh damn it, I said I had a hard-on during yesterday's show, but I was joking."

"But your mom doesn't want to hear that," Stephanie laughed. "Hell, I don't want to hear that."

"You don't?" he asked, raising an eyebrow in her direction. "But you usually like to hear about that particular situation."

"Usually," she said coyly, "but not when tons of people also hear. That's reserved for me and me alone."

"You know it is," he smiled. "So…I have to get with the divas, lucky me, and tape their vignettes to stick into tonight's show. I'm just so happy that your dad put me in charge of this entire thing, it's the best job in the world."

"I love that you're sarcastic about that," Stephanie said, crawling across the couch to climb into Chris's lap. The past week they had mutually decided that being cold towards one another didn't work for them. They still had things to discuss, issues to iron out, but they loved each other and they loved their son and that was what mattered. An entire week of iciness had been enough for them. They understood that every couple had their fights, but it wasn't a good idea to let one go for so long.

"Well, if your dad didn't decide to put me in charge of it, I wouldn't have to deal with it. I hate it. Ashley has been the exception to the rule, but I just can't deal with these women," Chris sighed, resting his head against Stephanie's chest.

She ran her fingers through his hair. "You want to switch with me, I'll take care of that and you can take care of the show?"

"No, you like the show," he said, his voice muffled against her chest. "Besides, I'll have the easier job tonight and you can focus on the show and I can take care of Sawyer so that you can actually talk to adults and not a two-month old baby."

"And I appreciate that," Stephanie told him. "And then tomorrow, you have to help Kurt pack."

"Don't remind me," Chris groaned. "The last thing I want to do, besides coordinate this Diva Search, is help Kurt move his stuff."

"But that means he and Trish are moving out soon and we get the entire house to ourselves again and that means one thing…"

"What one thing?"

"We can be as loud as we want to again," she smirked. He smirked too and ran his hand up and down her back. "I'm sure that entices you doesn't it?"

"It doesn't hurt," he answered. "And Christian will be there to help move Kurt's stuff so it won't be so long a day."

"Aren't they going out tonight? Do you want to go out with them? I can watch Sawyer, it wouldn't be a problem, he's usually out by then anyways. He can just sit with me."

"I'm not going to saddle you with him. I don't need a guy's night out, you, on the other hand, need a night where you don't have to worry about our son."

"I'm always going to worry about our son," Stephanie told him. "But if you're sure that you don't want to go out with them, I mean, you hardly go out either, you're with me most of the time and I know I get tiresome."

"You're a little tiresome, yes," Chris told her with a smile. "But you're my girl. You're allowed to tire me."

"I'm your girl, I like that," she smiled. "Are you sure you're not ready to talk about what happened? Because I'm ready to talk about it Chris, I really am, and I know that you think that I need time to think about it too, but I'm really ready to talk about it."

"Steph, we've got such a good vibe going right now, let's not ruin it. I know that you were more weirded out than anything else, but I'm still not quite ready to discuss in-depth your marriage with Trips. I've heard enough about it, but when you start talking about how you loved him and needed him, it really, it just isn't something the second husband wants to know about, not just yet."

Stephanie nodded, but then contradicted her nod with what she said next, "But Chris, we've been together for four years two weeks from tomorrow--"

"Four years?" Chris said, shaking his head. "We've been together for almost four years?"

"Yeah," she said. "I was only with Hunter for two, what I feel for you trumps what I feel for him. We have a son together, it's just--"

Chris pressed his index finger to Stephanie's lips, "Steph, really, let's not get into it, not right now okay. I need to prepare for that kind of discussion. You say that I can't understand what you're feeling because I've never been married, but you can't understand what I'm feeling because I've never been married. I don't have an ex-wife, I have ex-girlfriends, yeah, but they came in and out of my life, they never were always there, lurking around. It's just different okay, and as much as I respect where you're coming from, you need to respect where I'm coming from."

"But we're not supposed to keep secrets from each other," she protested, "not big ones anyways, a good plan here and there, sure, keep it a secret, but the big things, the things that can affect our relationship, you're supposed to share them with me. That's what went so wrong in my relationship with Hunter, we never shared, we were two individuals in a marriage."

"Stephanie, baby, this won't affect our relationship, okay, trust me on this one. Just because we need time doesn't mean that I'm suddenly thinking about ending our marriage, that's the farthest thing from my mind."

"Well, okay," she said with a slight sigh. She really did still want to talk to Chris, but she wasn't going to force him, and then have him be mad at her again. She got off his lap and looked to the door. "We better get going."

"Okay."

In another part of the hotel, Trish was seeing Christian off, "Okay, have fun with Kurt and don't do anything stupid."

"You act like my mother sending me off to school," Christian joked, playing with the hem of Trish's t-shirt. "I'm an adult, I think that I can handle myself, plus my name is written into my underwear, so if I forget my name, it's right there."

Trish giggled and stepped a little closer to Christian, "Can I check and make sure it's written there?"

"Right here in the lobby, the lobby of the hotel," Christian said, looking around. "You're bold Trishy, but you're not that bold."

"I'm not talking about pulling your pants off Chrissy," she teased. "I just wanted a sneak peek."

"I'm not a piece of meat," he said, leaning closer and closer to her until their lips were barely touching. "I'm not just a plaything for you to use whenever you feel the need to play."

"I thought you were," Trish said, her lips brushing against his ever so slightly. She leaned up a little on her tiptoes to get to Christian's lips. It had always been like that, he had to lean down a little, and she had to lean up, but they always met in the middle. She tugged on his sports-coat as they pulled away from each other.

"Hey Trish, is that you?" came another voice. Trish looked around Christian and saw Carlito with his bag slung over his shoulder.

"Hey Carlito, what's up?" Trish asked as she ducked underneath Christian's arm.

"Nothing, just going to the show, you going to the show?" Carlito asked, looking at her.

"Christian is giving me a ride before he meets up with Kurt Angle," Trish explained to him. "I guess I'll see you there."

"It's stupid of him to drop you off," Carlito told her in that distinct voice of his. "I'll drive you, I'm going anyway, if you want to come, it's cool."

"Actually, that would be really nice," Trish said, glancing up at Christian, "that way you don't have to go to the trouble of driving me, if that's cool with you Christian."

"Yeah, is it cool man?" Carlito added.

Christian looked at Trish, "Sure, it's fine, I don't care."

"Cool," Trish said, picking up her bag that had previously been on the floor. She leaned up to kiss Christian quickly before going to Carlito's side. "I'll see you in a little bit Chrissy, have fun, don't do anything stupid or crazy…wait, you're with Kurt, there's no chance of that happening, love ya."

"Love you too," Christian said as he watched his girlfriend walk away with Carlito. He sneered a little bit, but refused to let his jealousy manifest itself. He wasn't going to ruin this relationship with Trish. He had been given a third chance with her, and he didn't know how many more he would get so he wasn't going to get so he wasn't going to spoil this one.

Trish laughed as Carlito threw her things into the backseat of the car. "So are you planning something tonight?" he asked.

"Not really, just gonna see where I fit, you know?" Trish said, sliding into his rental car.

"Cool, cool."

"I can' thank you enough for what you did last week," Trish said, glancing over at him. "It's nice to know that you have someone on your side. You're actually really nice when you aren't being well…I don't know, with the apple and the spitting in people's faces and stuff."

"I just do that to get people mad. It's funny to see their faces, you know."

"Yeah, it is kind of fun to see people get mad."

"Like Vince and Shane last week. That was so gross, but their faces, so funny," Carlito chuckled.

"Well, Shane's my friend, so that wasn't cool, but I'm all for Vince getting humiliated," Trish said, giving a little giggle. She looked out the window and thought about poor Shane's face when he got the crap dumped on him. He didn't deserve that, but if you were by Vince's side, you were bound to get burned sometimes.

She wondered about him sometimes, worried was more like it. She got the impression that he didn't really like his life. Shane traveled alone a lot of the time, and he had two kids at home and a wife. She didn't know if that was an indication something was wrong, but when she compared the situation to the one with Chris, who would hardly travel without Stephanie and Sawyer, and who was no traveling with Stephanie and Sawyer, it just put a stark contrast on the two.

Shane's entire marriage had been a surprise to everyone, not just his friends, but to his family as well. One day he was Shane, the bachelor, the next day he was Shane, married with two children. If it had been shocking to his friends and family to get used to, then it had to have been an even more shock for Shane. And it wasn't that his family wasn't great, Shane had invited everyone over for dinner last week when they were in New York, but it was just such a whirlwind thing to happen. Marissa was super-sweet and the boys were adorable, but it was still just so strange.

So strange that she didn't think Shane was handling it very well. He was her friend and she worried about him like she'd worry about any other of her friends. She tried to get her mind off of it though. This was going to be a very busy week for her. She had the show tonight, then she was helping pack up Kurt's things tomorrow and they were officially moving into their house later this week. She finally wouldn't feel like she was mooching off of Chris and Stephanie.

Chris and Stephanie arrived at the arena shortly after Trish and Carlito arrived. Chris pulled up to the door so Stephanie wouldn't have to deal with any hecklers like last week before he went and pulled into a parking space, seeing Hunter and Shawn hanging around their car, sitting and shooting the breeze. Chris walked over and nodded to them.

"Why aren't you guys inside?"

"Banned remember?" Hunter said, nodding towards the building. "Don't tell me you forgot, and you're supposed to run the show, shame on you Jericho."

"I'm not running the show anymore Trips, that's all Steph, I'm in charge of the Diva Search."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Shawn said. "You are in charge of those lovely, lovely ladies."

"Shut up Shawn, you're married, Chris, you're in charge of those lovely, lovely ladies," Hunter said, smirking at Chris. "How'd you get such a plush job? Wait, because you're Vinnie's son-in-law, damn it, it's times like these I wish I was still married to Stephanie."

Chris grimaced. "Not what her husband wants to hear man."

"Oh sorry," Hunter chuckled. "But you've got to get us the in with these ladies man. Or not us, but me, I mean, Shawny-boy here has got a woman and you've got Stephanie so you're not going to be looking, if they need a good-will ambASSador, then they need look no further."

"Wow, that was...hell, you could take care of the Diva Search if you wanted to, I could care less," Chris said. "I hate dealing with it, the women are usually either ditzes or women willing to sleep their way to the top, Ashley being the exception, you could take them all for all I care."

"Don't tempt me," Hunter said. "I don't know why I didn't get back into the dating scene a lot sooner. No offense Chris, but there are so many women out there who won't screw me over like Stephanie did, and who are a lot hotter than she is."

"I wouldn't go so far as to say that," Chris said, "I think Steph is you know, hottest woman ever, kinda why I married her."

"I'm going to have to agree with Hunter."

"You're just saying that because she drugged you," Chris told him, rolling his eyes. "Which is a lot better than dumping shit on people, let me tell you. Anyways, what are you guys going to do, sit here all night? Vince is not going to let you into the arena."

"Don't worry about it Chris, we're going to try to sneak in, and if that fails, well, we've got things to do, people to see, women to sleep with," Hunter said. "Is Vince here, do you know?"

"He's not getting in until later," Chris informed him, "so if you're going to try to get in, your best bet is when he's not here. Good luck though."

"We don't need luck, we're D-X," Shawn said.

Chris shrugged and went into the building, knowing that D-X had something up their sleeves, but he didn't really care. He went to his office, dumping off his stuff before he went to go meet with the Diva Search contestants. He found them by the backstage filming area, the screen set-up and everything. He just had to prep them on what they had to say and then pretty much introduce himself to them. They gathered around as he appeared.

"Hey, I'm Chris Jericho, and I'm in charge of the Diva Search this year, so everything that happens under the flagship of the show is my responsibility. Tonight it's like a meet and greet type thing but you won't actually be doing it live. We're going to tape some short segments, we've got some questions for you that my lovely assistant Britt has with her. Go over them, if you have any questions, ask me or her, and that's about all tonight."

Chris went and sat on a seat where he could see each girl's interview. After handing all the papers out, Britt sat down next to him. "So this Diva Search thing, it works, it's popular?"

"I guess, I don't do ratings," Chris said. "I fail to see the logic behind it, but Vince is the boss and I'm just his employee."

"But aren't you part owner?" Britt asked.

"Yeah, but one thing you need to know about Vince is that he's the ultimate boss, he decides everything," Chris said. "You kind of just have to go with the flow. Some of them aren't so bad I guess, Ashley Massaro, you met her, she's Kurt Angle's girlfriend, she was actually last year's winner and she's pretty damn cool, so you know, not completely awful."

"Obviously these girls aren't wrestlers."

"No, they're not, and I fail to find any of them really…I don't know attractive, see, I guess I go for the more brainy, power-driven types, like you'd be my type," Chris said, glancing over at her. "You're not flashy and you're smart and you're not just a pretty face."

"So I'm an ugly face?" she joked.

He laughed, "No, you're like my wife. Stephanie is the most power-hungry woman I've ever met in my entire life. She sees something she wants and she gets it, but she doesn't rely on her good looks to get it. I like that in a woman, I don't want just the pretty face."

"In a way though, these women have done the same thing."

"But they're relying on the pretty to get them where they want. You may not know this about Stephanie, but she had to work her way up, she wasn't handed everything she has on a silver platter. She's amazing."

"I know, you remind me all the time," she reminded him.

"Sorry, I tend to get on tangents about her."

"It's fine, from what I've seen from her, she's really nice."

"Don't get on her bad side though, seriously, or else you're going to be very, very afraid. You'd think the baby would get her to calm down a little bit, but no, she's just as mean as she wants to be. I think I love her more for that."

"Mr. Jericho?"

Chris looked up at one of the contestants. "It's Chris."

"Sorry Chris, I'm Amy, I was wondering what we were going to be doing next week, just to get a head-start."

"I don't know yet, I think about what to do during the week, but I'll get back to you Amy," he said kindly as she wandered back over there.

"She needs to prepare because all the air in her head prevents her from coming up with things on the spot," Britt whispered to him. Chris laughed. He was so rubbing off on her, and he kind of liked it.

By the time the show actually started, Sawyer was with Chris and Stephanie was working on the show, just like usual. It was nice to not have to worry about Sawyer and what he was doing and just go about her work. She had been afraid that she was going to resent her son from keeping her from her work, but she was happy to see that she wasn't resenting him. She knew that Sawyer was going to take a big chunk of her time, but she also knew that she could schedule herself around that. She was Stephanie McMahon, she was better than that.

"Hey, look who came to visit?" Chris said, with Sawyer in his arms. Stephanie took one look at her son and knew he had been crying. His cheeks were rosy red and his eyes were a little puffy and very clear, like he had just been crying. He had a pacifier in his mouth that he was sucking on intently and his head was looking around.

"Hey there baby boy," Stephanie said, giving a little wave. "Having fun with Daddy?"

"Well, not really, he woke up and was crying, but then he got his binky and he was good to go," Chris said. "We were just headed to catering so that Daddy can eat, right kid? Then we're going to walk around, talk to people, he wants to mingle with the employees."

"Oh, mingling, how fun," she said as she glanced back towards the television. It was the Lita vs. Torrie match on right now. Stephanie knew that was going to be over quickly, Torrie was no match for Lita. She was correct as the match ended and she saw her father being irate backstage. She couldn't really blame him for being angry, but she was still angry at him so last week had given her a little bit of a giggle. It wasn't a few minutes later when she was interrupted.

"Stephanie!" her father's voice bellowed. Stephanie rolled her eyes at Chris and waited for her father to come over.

"What is it Dad?" Stephanie asked dully as she saw her father.

"I needed--" Vince cut himself off as he saw Chris with Sawyer in his arms. This was the first time Vince had really gotten to have a good look at Sawyer. The little boy was cradled against Chris, his head resting against his father's neck, right under his chin. Sawyer had been watching his mommy, but when the loud voice had shouted, his eyes had widened a little bit, wondering what that could be. Vince was speechless as he saw his grandson. He was a beautiful baby, a mixture of Stephanie and Chris, and he couldn't tear his eyes away.

Stephanie stood up and stood in front of Chris, shielding her baby from her father, "What do you want Dad?"

"I just…I don't remember," he said as he stared through Stephanie. Chris hoped that this was going to lead to a talk between the two of them. He could only hope they would resolve their petty fight.

"Then leave me to my work, Chris, you said you were going to go to catering," Stephanie prompted. She had on her business tone and Chris knew she meant business and quickly left. "Don't you ever even look at my son."

"Stephanie," Vince said, and his voice was almost pleading.

"You didn't care then, and I'm not letting you care now," Stephanie told him testily. "You didn't want to be there for us, fine, but you aren't allowed to be there for us now. I don't know how to get through to you Dad, you blew it big time. This wasn't just one of your stupid distractions like Trish was or Sable was, this was a huge mistake that you made on the day my son was born. Live it, accept it, that's all there is to it."

With that she went back to her station, ignoring her father's mere presence. She had made her point and she didn't want to deal with him for the rest of the night. She just wanted to do her work, which made her happy, and ignore her father. Maybe she'd let D-X into the building and let them do whatever they want like she had before. Her father deserved it and she'd be all too happy to do it.

She didn't think she could ever forgive her father. Whenever she tried to think about forgiving him, the anger just built inside of her and built inside of her until she couldn't stand it any longer. This went beyond any hurt she had ever felt. They say a parent feels protective of their kids, like they can develop super powers if their child was in danger, and she felt that around her father. She just didn't see how she could possibly forgive him. Not now, not ever.

"Stephanie?"

"Oh hey Edge."

"We kind of needed you to sign off on our match tonight, could you do that since I want to kick Rob's ass and take my title back?" Edge said. "And where the hell is that kid of yours, I really want to see him, I didn't get to last week and I want to meet the spawn of you guys. For some reason, I picture him as mean."

"Shut up," she said good-naturedly as she took off her headphones, "let me get some papers gathered up to sign." She grabbed her walkie-talkie. "Britt, this is Steph, do you read?"

"Hey Steph, what's up?" Britt asked.

"Can you find me Cena and Rob Van Dam to sign off on tonight's match?"

"Sure, I'll get on that right away."

"Thanks," Stephanie said. "So come on, let's go get you a title match."

This would be Stephanie's biggest mistake of the night. If she had been at her station, the events to follow might not have happened. But since we aren't there yet, Chris was walking towards catering when he saw a couple of girls walking and discussing something in hushed tones. Becoming a little suspicious he walked outside to where there was a party going on, hosted by none other than Hunter and Shawn.

"Oh you've got to be kidding me," Chris muttered to himself. He walked over to the tent and saw Hunter and Shawn grilling hot dogs and hamburgers on a grill. "What the hell is this?"

"Welcome to the D-X July 4th Barbeque!" Shawn said, already half in the bag obviously. "Grab a beer and have a good time!"

"I think I'll pass, what is all this Trips?"

"Nothing, just having some fun since we're not allowed in the building?"

"What the hell are you planning?"

"Nothing, we swear!" Shawn said, holding his hands up.

"I don't know what to do with you guys."

"Come on, hang out for a few," Hunter said. "You need to live a little Chris. You're married but you're not dead."

Chris sighed. "I'll stay for a few minutes, Vince will kill me if he finds me out here."

"Then you'll go happy."

Chris wandered into the tent, towards the back. There were girls everywhere, and once upon a time, Chris would be enamored by them. Sure, he recognized that they were all very attractive, but for some reason, they never compared to Stephanie. But apparently, Chris was appealing to every single female there because he had brought along the one accessory that could be considered the ultimate girl magnet.

"Oh my God, is that your son?" one girl squealed, coming over and looking at Sawyer.

"Yeah, he's my son."

"Oh, how old is he?"

"He's nine weeks old, so two months."

"How cute, hey Cheryl, there's a baby here!"

"A baby! Really!" a couple of girls screamed and then suddenly he was in a mob as they all wanted to see his son. Sawyer was looking around like he was going to be mugged or something. Chris couldn't believe the amount of women that Hunter and Shawn had rounded up. They sure worked fast. He let the women dote over his son (he wasn't going to not show off Sawyer, he was a proud father after all).

He stayed there until Sawyer got tired from all the attention and tired in general and started crying. He excused himself and left the party, but not before seeing Hunter talking closely with a petite woman. He sucked at his teeth a little, knowing that was precisely the reason he didn't want to talk to Stephanie. He didn't know how he felt about Stephanie having any kind of feeling towards Hunter. Stephanie would never understand what it was like to know that your wife had been another man's wife at some point. It was just strange to him to think that she had been with another man and had stayed married to that man, and he didn't want to think about it anymore. He walked back inside, going to find Stephanie so she could feed Sawyer before they put him down for the night.

Stephanie was not having a good night at all. First her fight with her father and now she was witnessing her ex-husband act all weird as he spoke with Candice, who was looking like she was hitting on him. There was that weird feeling again, except it was compounded with anger for Candice, the bitch that Vince had chosen over her and Sawyer. She didn't quite get Hunter's behavior until her eyes widened. She wasn't going to lie, she had spent many nights where she had seen Hunter exactly like this and her eyes widened and she realized what was potentially happening. And then the girl came up from under the table and her jaw slacked and her stomach turned.

Stephanie felt completely nauseous. It was one thing to think of her ex-husband out on a date, but this…this was disgusting and inappropriate. Sure, she had been on her…no, this was not the time to think about that crap. This was disgusting and the thought of her ex-husband getting fellatio out in the open seriously turned her stomach. Just as Chris walked in, Stephanie ran into the bathroom and threw up.

Chris, concerned, quickly put Sawyer into his bouncy seat and went into the bathroom, kneeling besides Stephanie, "Baby, what's wrong?"

"Sick, oh God," she groaned, leaning back and wiping her hand crudely across her mouth.

"Uh-oh, if you tell me that you think you're pregnant again, I'm going to go into shock and there isn't enough voltage in the world that'll shock me back to life," Chris told her. "Please tell me this isn't morning sickness."

"No, not that," she said. "I just saw…" she leaned up to Chris's ear and whispered something to him.

Chris's eyes widened, "Are you serious?"

"Yes!" she exclaimed, standing up and proceeding to rinse her mouth out. "Oh God, that was…it was disgusting Chris, totally and completely disgusting. It's one thing to think of him dating, but that, oh it makes me sick. It MADE me sick."

"I think I might be sick."

"I'm just going to feed Sawyer."

If Stephanie hadn't been traumatized (like the rest of the world) at Hunter's actions, she might've been at her station and the show might not have gotten to D-X. But between the contract signing on the match and the subsequent incident with Hunter, the show was the last thing on her mind. Stephanie was usually on the ball, but this was too much. Because of this, D-X would get the last laugh with Vince for that evening. Yes, they would.

Stephanie just picked up her son and proceeded to get ready to breastfeed him. Chris walked out of the bathroom and told Stephanie he was going to get her some water from catering, which she was grateful for. Throwing up burned her throat. She sat there, feeding Sawyer, oblivious to the antics of D-X.

"Hey Steph, I just got back with Christian and—oh Jesus!"

Kurt turned away quickly as he saw Stephanie breastfeeding Sawyer. Stephanie looked up at him and laughed as he was now staring intently at the wall. She thought it was cute that he was so embarrassed by a perfectly natural display. But that would teach him to knock on doors before he just barged into a room.

"Kurt, it's not a big deal, you can turn around," she told him.

"But you're…breastfeeding," he hissed to the wall, making no attempt to look at her. "I can't look at you while you're exposed like that."

"Kurt, my boobs have popped out on national television, you probably saw it then, it's not a big deal if you see one of them now, don't be a baby."

"I'm not being a baby!" he protested. "But you're my best friend's wife, I can't just sit down next to you while your boob is hanging out!"

She laughed. "Kurt, you're such a baby, it's not a big deal, it's just a breast."

"It's your breast," he pointed out. He just continued to stare at the wall.

"I'm not even close to being done Kurt, so are you going to stare at the wall the entire time I'm doing this?"

"Yes, yes, I am," he responded. The door opened then and Chris walked in, looking between the two of them in confusion as he set Stephanie's water bottle on the table in front of her.

He gestured towards Kurt, "What's up with him?"

"He's squeamish because I'm breastfeeding," Stephanie giggled. "He won't even look at me."

"It's just a breast Kurt," Chris told him, repeating what Stephanie had said.

"You're telling me that you don't care that if I turn around, I will be able to see your wife's breast?" Kurt asked incredulously.

"Well, if she were giving you a striptease, I might be worried, but she's feeding our son, it's not a big deal."

"It IS a big deal, she's like…exposed."

"Dude, you've seen a breast before right?" Chris asked, "Or are you still Kirk Angel, the abstinence cop?"

"I've seen a breast, thank you very much," he said sarcastically, "just not one with a baby attached to it. You know, eating."

"It's just breast milk," Chris shrugged, "I've tried it."

Kurt groaned. "Eww, I did NOT need to know that! Ugh, that's disgusting! Why would you tell me that?"

"Trish has tried it," Stephanie said.

"What?" Kurt said, turning around abruptly in shock, but then seeing Stephanie still breastfeeding, he turned back around. "How in the hell has Trish tried…that?"

"Well, when she baby-sits, I usually have breast milk in bottles in my fridge and she has to warm them up and test them to make sure that they're warm so she squirts some on her arm to test it and then she just licks it off her arm," Stephanie answered. "She doesn't seem to care."

"That's horrible," Kurt told her. "Are you almost done?"

"He's hungry," Stephanie said, looking down at Sawyer.

Chris came over and looked down at his son as he was eating. "Uncle Kurt is being a baby just like you."

"I am not!" Kurt exclaimed petulantly.

Sawyer pulled away from Stephanie and she handed him to Chris to burp as she adjusted her top. "I'm decent again Kurt."

"Finally," Kurt said, turning around and seeing Sawyer in Chris's arms as Chris rubbed his back slowly. "See now this I can live with."

"Come on, it's a breast, not a big deal."

"IS a big deal."

"Fine, fine, note to self, Kurt doesn't like breasts," Stephanie joked. "So what are you doing in here?"

"Oh, I was just wondering…wait, I forgot. See, your breasts made me forget!"

"They do have magical powers," Chris said, winking at Stephanie.

"Damn it, I'm leaving!" Kurt said, storming out of the room, leaving a laughing Chris and Stephanie behind.

Christian was looking for Trish everywhere, but he had yet to find her. He didn't know where to look. He had looked everywhere and it was like she had dropped off the face of the Earth. He was about to search her locker room again when he saw her coming out of Carlito's dressing room.

"Yeah, so that was cool," Carlito said. "Definitely do that."

"Thanks Carlito, you're really a nice guy when you get to know someone."

"I'm cool, what can I say?" Carlito said popping his shirt a little bit. "If you need anything else Trish Stratus, you let me know."

"I will Carlito, don't worry," she said, happy to have made a new friend. She turned down the hallway and spotted Christian. "Chrissy, what are you doing here?"

"Came to see you, couldn't resist," he said. "Uh, what were you doing in Carlito's dressing room?"

"Nothing, I was just telling him that I might do something if Melina tries to pull some crap. You know, just a little revenge for what happened last week. I can't take that sitting down. I'm back and I'm the best and Melina is just going to have to learn that the hard way."

"So you and Carlito, friends now?"

"Chrissy, I can't help it if the boys like to help me. I mean, this isn't the first time and I'm sure it won't be the last," she said. "I don't care what you do over in TNA, so why do you care what I do over here?"

"I don't, I was just wondering," he lied.

"Chrissy, we can't spend every moment together, you'd smother me," Trish told him. "I need space too. I learned that when we were apart. I need some alone time. That's why I'm not moving in with you and I'm moving in with Kurt."

"Yeah, I guess," he told her, kissing her lightly. "I just worry."

"About?"

"Well, that we'll screw up again, that I'll screw up again."

"Chrissy, please, don't worry, the best is yet to come."


	96. That Was Lame, July 10, 2006

"I'm going to kiss your foot, yes I'm going to kiss your foot."

"Eww, you're going to kiss his foot?" Chris asked. Stephanie stuck her tongue out at him and held Sawyer's bare foot in her hand, wiggling it around, which he loved. She didn't know why, but he loved it when you played with his feet; it always put a toothless smile on his face.

"It's a clean foot," Stephanie argued. "Mommy makes sure that you have clean feet, don't I baby, uh huh, Mommy makes sure that you're clean."

"Good, cause I don't want a smelly baby," Chris said, scrunching up his nose.

"No, my baby doesn't smell," Stephanie answered, kissing Sawyer's foot. "Oops, Mommy got lipstick on your foot you cutie."

Chris leaned over and looked at his son with a pout, "You're taking away all my kisses kid. Mommy used to give me all the kisses and now you get them."

"Aww, are you jealous?" Stephanie asked, looking at Chris. He gave her a pathetic nod and she leaned over and gave him a kiss. "Hmm…nope, not as good."

"I can't even live up to my son's foot," Chris replied, shaking his head. "That's when you know you've lost it. I've lost everything now…I can't even be as good a kiss as my son's foot."

"But it's a cute foot," Stephanie argued in a baby voice as she grabbed a baby wipe and wiped the lipstick off of Sawyer's foot, causing him to smile again. "Oh look at that handsome smile, just like Daddy's, do you have a smile just like Daddy's?"

"Well, he does take after his old man," Chris said, lifting Sawyer out of his carrier after Stephanie had finished getting the lipstick off. "Hey there kid. You ready to hang out with me while Mommy works?"

Sawyer gurgled in response. Stephanie wiggled his foot around a little more as Sawyer stuck his tongue out. "Hey, what's with that kind of response?"

"He's just making you jealous because he gets to hang out with me and you don't. He knows that you're probably so jealous of me and this is his way of sticking it to you. Hey kid, I think you're going to be great at this insulting Mommy stuff, I was an expert back in my day," Chris said to his son.

"I'm well aware. When you get older baby boy, Mommy is going to have you kick Daddy's ass for some of the things that he did to me, like shoving a pie in my face or pointing out my breasts to the world."

"Like the world couldn't tell with the size of those things," Chris said, gesturing towards her chest.

"Sawyer, Daddy's being mean to me," Stephanie pouted. Sawyer kicked his tiny legs around, hitting Chris in the stomach, not hard, but enough so Chris could feel it and Stephanie could see it. Stephanie grinned and looked up at Chris, "Thank you for kicking Daddy Sawyer, he's mean."

"You're mean," Chris said. "Did you know that Mommy ordered someone to hit me through a stage, a STAGE, kid. It hurt so bad."

"Oh, you deserved it," Stephanie smirked. "Daddy's a jerk sometimes baby boy. Okay, so what are you doing tonight?"

"Sawyer's going to enjoy a wonderful meal and then he's going to hang out with Dad, and then go to sleep, very busy night."

"I meant what is Daddy doing tonight, not that I don't wonder what you're doing baby boy," Stephanie said, giving Sawyer a kiss on the forehead.

"Oh, Daddy's going to have a boring night. He's going to make sure the new prospective divas can think for five minutes and get their asses into gear so they can go out there tonight and introduce themselves. They've also got a photo shoot. After that, I'm going to go out back and shoot myself."

"Don't do that, we'd miss you," Stephanie said, pinching his cheek.

"I think you've got me confused with Sawyer on this one," he said, pulling away from her hand.

"No, if I pinched Sawyer's cheeks, he'd get pissed off at me, that's the McMahon temper for you," Stephanie said with a grin.

"Oh damn," Chris said. "Don't even tell me he's getting your temper. I cannot deal with two of you. I have trouble dealing with one of you. I don't need two of you, really, really don't need it."

"Oh yeah, well--" Stephanie's cell phone rang and she groaned as she picked it up off the clip on her belt. She looked at the display. "Oh, it's Mommy's ex-husband. Wonder what he wants."

"If it's anything in the vicinity of sleeping with you, I'm not cool with that," Chris told her.

She flipped up her phone, "Stephanie McMahon-Jericho."

"Hey Steph, I just wanted to tell you that Shawn and I are going to be late tonight, I know that there was some sort of invitation on our behalf, but I don't think we're going to be on time, fashionably late is the name of the game."

Stephanie rolled her eyes, "My dad didn't invite you Hunter, he just wants you to show up for some odd reason that he won't tell me because I'm not exactly speaking to him. But arrive whenever, nobody is expecting you to have a match anyways, want to save it for Saturday night, so come in whenever."

"Someone sounds a little testy tonight, everything good with you?" Hunter asked, genuinely concerned.

"No, I'm fine, you interrupted me talking to my son, but that's okay, I see him all the time anyways. But thanks again for letting me know that you were going to be late. If you don't show up at all, I'll understand, I'm sure my father has something for you in mind and it might be better if you stayed away."

"And not let everyone see our mugs on television, why we'd be letting down millions and millions of people, we'd never do that to our fans, never," Hunter joked.

"Okay, do whatever, I don't really care," she laughed.

"Bye Steph, say hi to the men in your life," Hunter told her before hanging up. She hung up her phone and clipped it back to her belt. "Hunter and Shawn are going to be late. I guess they just wanted to tell me."

"Well, there goes all the fun," Chris said. "I have to admit they are fun, a little annoying and very strange, but fun."

"You only say that because you went to their little barbeque last week and you probably had girls fawning all over you, and you may be married to me Chris, but you can't honestly have me believe that you don't sometimes check out other women. I know for a fact that you do."

"Oh, I check out other women, and then I make notes on how they're not as good as you," Chris said cheekily. Stephanie scrunched up her nose and leaned in to kiss him. Her hand snaked around his waist and she pulled him closer to her by the waist. He stumbled a little towards her, still holding onto their son with one hand. "I've got to go meet the girls," he mumbled against his lips.

"I'm just giving you something to remember me by," Stephanie told him. She pulled away and gave Sawyer another kiss. "I'll see you boys later, don't do anything crazy now."

"We never do!" Chris protested as Stephanie nodded like she knew that was a lie. She grabbed some papers off of her desk and left her boys with a smile. Chris looked down at Sawyer and shrugged. "So we've got a meeting to get to. How about we get you back in your carrier and then we go to our meeting and then after that we have a little time to mess around and then we've got more work. Sound like a plan to you?" Sawyer gurgled and smiled up at his Daddy. "Oh, and of course feed you and change you whenever you need it. Can you give me a time frame for when you'll be potty-trained, just a ballpark figure?"

Sawyer just babbled and Chris stuck his tongue out at his son. Sawyer stuck his thumb in his mouth and sucked on it. Chris put him back in his carrier and picked it up, walking down to where the photo-shoot was set up. Sawyer saw the bright colors and his eyes widened. Chris laughed and set his carrier down on a table nearby.

"Hey Chris."

Chris turned and smiled, "Oh hey Britt, did you get all those schedules out?"

"Yup, everyone is covered," Britt told him, then went over to Sawyer. "Oh hey there. Oh Chris, this is the first time I've really got to look at him when I haven't been rushing around doing things. He's so adorable. Oh, look at those eyes, they look more like yours everyday."

"Oh, so you've been noticing my eyes then," he winked at her.

"Oh yeah, because I have to look at you all the time, you kind of notice how blue they are."

"How blue are they?"

Britt gave him a look. "They're very blue, is that what you want to hear? They're like ocean blue or something, I don't know, do you want me to stare into them right now?"

"Yeah, that'd be nice," Chris joked as he came to stand next to her.

"He really is cute, he's not too thin, sometimes you see these thin babies and I don't know, they look strange or something, almost alien, but your baby is just adorable."

"Well, what can I say? Good genes," Chris said, giving his son a little high five. "Do you want to hold him?"

"Can I?" Britt asked eagerly. Chris nodded and she went and lifted him carefully out of his carrier. She sighed happily as she held him in her arms. "Oh, he even has that fresh baby smell, like powder and he just smells new."

"Yeah, like a car," Chris kidded as Sawyer looked up at this strange woman holding him. He didn't seem to mind as he scrunched up his nose a little like Stephanie did sometimes. "He likes you. I think you remind him of Stephanie."

"Yeah?"

"Well, he knows a smart one when he sees one, takes after me in terms of being able to judge character," Chris said proudly. "I always have been good at that."

"So then what do you make of these new divas now that you've spent more time with them?" she asked.

Chris thought about it. He didn't like the diva searches and more often times than not, it resulted in people like Candice or Maria, not that Maria was a bad person per se, but she wasn't exactly the brightest lemon in the barrel, and Candice was just…well Candice was Candice and he scowled at the image that brought to his mind. But then you got the diamond in the rough, the Ashleys, and he hoped that there were more Ashleys than there were Candices, but his impression so far was not that good.

"I think that they're…interesting, I guess is the best word to describe it," Chris said, but with a continuous cringe on his face.

"You look oh so enthused," Britt told him. "This is how many?"

"This is the third, I didn't like the first, didn't like the second, and don't like this one either, but it's Vince, and Vince is…well, he's not exactly…how do I put this? He's a sucker for a pretty face," Chris explained.

"And this guy is your father-in-law?"

"Aren't I lucky?" Chris said, pretending to sound excited. "Not to say that he hired you for this reason, but you're pretty Britt, and it probably had some influence on why he hired you to be my assistant."

"You think I'm pretty?" she asked, ducking her head down a little bit. She wasn't blind, she knew Chris was a very good-looking man, and he had so many things going for him. He was smart and talented and genuinely nice.

"Yeah, you're pretty," Chris told her. "But you're also a really good person, so Vince made a good choice when he hired you, I'll have to commend him on that choice."

Britt smiled at him, "Thanks, that really means a lot."

"Oh, here comes the girls," Chris said as he saw the diva search girls coming over to the area, a photographer on their heels. Sawyer started crying and Britt's eyes widened. Chris took Sawyer from Britt and the little boy rested his head comfortably against Chris's soft t-shirt as he continued to cry. "Oh come on kid, Daddy knows that they're frighteningly boring, but that's no reason to cry."

Sawyer continued to cry and Britt frowned. "Is there anything I can do Chris?"

"Nah, he's a baby, this is what he does," Chris said with a little laugh. He grabbed a pacifier from his pocket and gave it to Sawyer, who spit it out the first time in order to keep wailing. Chris bounced him around a little bit, patting his bottom before trying to give him the pacifier again. This time Sawyer took it and Chris smiled in relief. He held Sawyer close as the girls all sat there. He turned to them. "Sorry about that. Tonight's really simple, we're going to take some individual shots of you all, then some group shots of you all. Later in the show, around the midway point of the show, we're going to have all of you out on the stage with The Miz and you each get twenty seconds to say whatever you want. That's about it, got it."

The girls nodded and Chris was relieved. He let the photographer take over before putting Sawyer back into his carrier. "Is there anything else you needed Chris, cause I'm going to go see if Stephanie needs anything."

"I'm good here, thanks Britt, you know, I think you keep me sane with all of this," Chris told her honestly. "If I didn't have you as an assistant and I had to deal with all of this alone, I'd probably have…I don't know, jumped off a bridge."

Just doing my job Chris, just doing my job," she said as she headed off with a smile.

Trish had just arrived, Christian wasn't with her tonight. He was actually unpacking her things for her in Florida with Kurt this week. She appreciated that he was doing that for her and she was also glad to get a little time away from him. She loved Christian and she was happy that she was back with him, but he was kind of smothering her. He was around her all the time and she was getting a little tired by it. She wanted to be with Christian, just not every moment of everyday.

So caught up in her thoughts was she that she didn't even notice when she ran right into Carlito. Okay, so she didn't run exactly into him, but she ran into him in the sense that they met up right in the middle of the hallway. She smiled up at her most recent savior. He was a funny guy, she wasn't all that attracted to him, but he was definitely funny and fun to be around.

"Trish, how are you?" he asked in that accent of his, it was a weird accent, but she didn't want to interpret that now when he was right in front of her.

"I'm good Carlito, and yourself?"

"Cool, I'm cool," he said in his usual fashion.

"Gonna come to my rescue tonight if I need it," she joked, nudging him in the ribs.

"Of course, you're too pretty not to help," he joked back.

"Good, it's nice to have someone have your back, if you have a match tonight against anyone, I've got your back."

"Nope, no match, but that's good to know, that Melina is a bitch," Carlito said bluntly.

Trish laughed and nodded vigorously, "I'm going to definitely agree with you on that one, she's horrible, and she's not even that pretty either. I don't know what her beef is with me, just because I'm the best female wrestler ever." He laughed, knowing that she was joking and Trish was about to speak again when she saw Shane on his cell phone walking into the building. "Oh I'm sorry to cut this short, but there's someone I need to talk to, but I'm sure we'll talk later."

Trish left then and walked up to Shane, who was still on the phone, "No Ris, D's stuffed animal should be in the dryer. Yeah, I washed it, if it isn't there, it's somewhere in the laundry room. Yeah, in the laundry room. Okay, I'll talk to you later, bye."

"Hey Shane," Trish said, giving him a hug. "How are you?"

"Hectic," Shane said, putting his phone back into his pocket.

"Oh, I know what you mean, what with the big move. I think Chris and Steph were so glad to get me and Kurt the hell out of their house. So why's life hectic," she asked, hoping that his life wasn't going badly. She worried about him.

"It's just with work and balancing the family aspect, it's still not really coming together for me I guess," Shane admitted. "I mean, it's been such a whirlwind with me and Rissa and I just…sometimes I'm overwhelmed, I mean, I've got this full-blown family now. Wife, two kids under the age of five, and it's…just…wow."

"It can be pretty wow," she said, looping her arm through his. "But you're handling it the best you could I think."

"Maybe I shouldn't have married Marissa so soon," Shane confessed. "But I didn't know what else to do. I couldn't just let her have two of my children without doing something. I've been with her on and off for the past…since Stephanie was still in high school, that's how long, I mean, that's a long time."

"Yeah, but it was on and off, so it wasn't the whole time."

"No, it wasn't, I love her, it's just, I don't know, I'm a McMahon though, I'm strong and determined and a McMahon is not weak," Shane said resolutely.

"Wow, it's moments like these that just reminds me that you and Stephanie are totally family," Trish said. "Stephanie would've said the exact same thing."

"Stephanie's more McMahon than I am," Shane told Trish. "She's the determined one and the one who can take charge of any situation."

"You can too," Trish told him.

"Yeah, I can, but Stephanie is definitely like my dad, she's so hard-nosed and she knows what she wants and will stop at nothing to get it. I mean, look at me right now. Look at how I just go along with everything that my father says, I'm his lackey, I'm completely my father's lackey. And then look at Stephanie, our Dad defied her in a bad way and she won't even let him see her son. That takes so much guts. I don't think I'd have those guts. But Stephanie, man, she's like…she's such a McMahon."

"It's not a competition," she reminded him. "And what Vince did to Stephanie was shameful, but that's her business, not yours."

"Yeah, but she's just…she's my little sister and she's stronger than I am. Not physically, but mentally."

"Shane, you're doing great, everyone loves you, and you love your family, and everything is going to work out for the best," she reassured him. She gave him a light hug. "If you ever need to talk though, you know where to find me right?"

"Of course," Shane said, giving her a light hug back. He saw his sister walking down the hallway purposefully, Britt at her side jotting stuff down on a notepad. "Speak of the she-devil."

Trish turned and saw Stephanie. "She is very determined isn't she?"

"You know, when we were little, if she didn't get something she wanted, she would find some way to get it no matter what. Most people think she's a princess and that she got everything handed to her, but she didn't. She's content to let people think that about her, but you know, I remember this one time when she was like five and she wanted this Barbie, but my parents had just bought her a bunch of stuff and so they told her no. My sister went with my mom to work one day and she told jokes to my parent's employees for a small donation and she bought that Barbie herself."

"Wow, I never would've guessed she didn't get what she wanted immediately."

"Nope, but she still got the stuff she wanted. One time, she wanted to meet one of my dad's wrestlers, and she was still like seven or something. I still don't know how she did it, but she got a hold of my dad's datebook, looked up the number, called the wrestler and invited him to the house so she could meet him. And he did! I couldn't believe it. I have guts in the ring, but out of it, it's all Stephanie."

"Hey guys," Stephanie said as she stopped in front of her brother and her friend. "What are you doing standing around, we've got a show to do, and Trish, you're up early, so you might want to get in your ring gear and Shane you have a match at the end of the show, Dad said it's against someone to be determined, handicap match, and he's setting something up for D-X, I don't know what, but I'm sure he'll tell you. So get to it!"

"Where's your baby?" Shane asked.

"Oh, since Chris is only dealing with the new diva contestants, he's taking care of Sawyer. It gives them time together," she shrugged. "Oh Britt, remind me to remind you to get Chris the thing my dad wanted for SmackDown, with the diva boot camp thing, because we're going to have to get the supplies for that and that's Chris's thing."

"Done and done," Britt said.

"Great, now back to the thing for Saturday night," Stephanie said, nodding to Shane and Trish. "You guys better get going, oh, Shane, before I forget, Dad wanted to talk to you, so you might want to go see him. I don't know what about, and I don't care because he is a jackass anyways. Bye."

"See what I mean?" Shane whispered to Trish as Stephanie rushed off, still talking a mile a minute to Britt as she walked to her station, her voice fading as she got farther and farther away.

"Yeah, but that's just Stephanie," Trish said. "She's a different person, you don't have to be exactly like your sister."

"She's so happy though, minus the thing with my dad," Shane said, starting to walk towards his father's office. "She has a baby and a husband and she's so happy and I don't seem as happy as she is and it bothers me that I might not be as happy."

"Don't compare!" Trish insisted. "Stop comparing lives. So you and Stephanie both have families now, it's not a big deal. They are two completely separate situations. That'd be like me trying to compare my relationship to Kurt's relationship with Ashley since we're both dating each other. Every relationship is different. Besides, Chris is taking time to process Stephanie's feelings for Hunter."

"Stephanie has feelings for Hunter?" Shane's eyes widened. This was a new piece of information for him to digest. How had he missed this?

"Not really, not like romantic feelings, but Hunter is starting to get out into the dating scene more, he really had been just sleeping around since his divorce with Stephanie, but now he's in the process of trying to find an actual relationship and going out on actual dates and not one night stands, but to Stephanie, it's weird. It's because she's his ex-wife and he used to be her husband and she's just weirded out by the idea that someone she used to love is going out on dates."

"Oh," Shane said. "But you're sure she doesn't have feelings for him, like feeling feelings, like you know, like she wants him."

"No, definitely not, definitely, definitely not," Trish said, shaking her head. "She's married. She loves Chris. She married Chris and marriage is a bond now. She would never let feelings develop, especially not for her ex-scum."

"Oh yeah, feelings, I'm stupid."

"Yeah, you are," Trish laughed as they reached Vince's door. "I'll let you go now, see you later Shane."

"Bye Trish," he told her as he walked into his father's office.

"Shane, just the person that I wanted to see," Vince told his son. "I've got a stellar plan for tonight to get back at D-X."

"What is it Dad?"

"Well, you see, I'm going to rig this big net and I'm going to have it drop on D-X and then when they're trapped, we get the Spirit Squad to beat them up, brilliant isn't it!" Vince said, proud of his plan.

"That's…oh…" Shane thought the plan was a little lame. How were they even going to get D-X to come out there and stand in the exact right spot? It just sounded weird and not even like worth the pay-off, they could just lure them down to the ring and beat them up. "Sounds a little lame Dad."

"Lame! Never, it's not lame, it's a wonderful idea and we're going to get the last laugh. Now as for someone to face later on, we want someone who's not that great in the ring and who we can take advantage of."

"Eugene," Shane said, the name popping into his mind immediately.

"Perfect! That's perfect Shane. I knew there was a reason I kept you around."

"But Dad, how the hell are we going to lure D-X out there. If they even show up tonight. I mean, you said you invited them, but there's also the possibility that they won't show up."

"Oh, they'll show up alright. If they don't show up to the show at all, they can be fired, it's in their contracts. They may be D-X, but they are still my employees and I can do whatever I want with them. I'll do as I please because I'm Vincent Kennedy McMahon damn it, and I'm not going to be humiliated any longer. And secondly, they aren't going to not take a challenge, it's in their competitive nature. We'll have them in the palms of our hands."

"Whatever you say Pops," Shane said. Once again, he felt like a lackey. Stephanie would never tolerate this. Sure, she loved the scheming, but she'd want a prominent part in it, she wouldn't just go along with it for the sake of going along with it. She was so strong-willed and sometimes, just sometimes he wished that she would share a little bit of that with him. Especially now. He loved his father, but he wasn't sure that he liked his father. That was a difficult pill to swallow.

Christian had been watching the show at Trish and Kurt's house in Florida as he saw Carlito come in to save Trish again. He didn't know what to feel about that, but he wished that he was there. He didn't really wish to be back in WWE anymore, but sometimes he wished he could be there for his girlfriend instead of random guys. He didn't want Trish to suddenly find herself attracted to these other guys. It had happened with Jeff early on in their relationship and he didn't want to lose her again.

"Hey, you know, she was talking about how Carlito is really nice," Ashley said as she walked into the room with an iced tea in hand. "Said he was totally different, a new leaf or something."

"Really?" Christian asked curiously of the blonde. "Did she say anything else?"

"Not that I can remember," Ashley said as Kurt walked in. "Kurt, do you think those other diva search girls are prettier than me?"

"No," he said immediately, "and from what Chris tells me, I don't think that they're as intelligent as you are either. You were a one-in-a-lifetime thing Ash."

"Oh Kurt, you tease," Ashley said, climbing into his lap. "Are you going to dump me and get with the next winner of this? Is that going to be your pattern, dating all the Diva Search winners?"

"When did I date Christy Hemme?"

"Well, I'd be the first," Ashley said.

"And only," Kurt told her, giving her a light kiss. "I don't want to trade you in, I've already got you just how I like you and it would be stupid to get another model now when I'm so used to you."

"Aww, my man talks sweet," Ashley said.

Christian was lost in his own thoughts. Trish was talking about Carlito with her friends now. Did she talk about him? He didn't know, but he wasn't sure he liked the fact she was talking about other guys. He loved Trish and he wanted to be with her for the rest of his life, but he was always going to have these doubts. She could do better than him, he knew that, but yet, she kept coming back to him, and he was so grateful for that. He didn't know why he deserved that, but he was going to seize it every chance he got.

Speaking of seizing, Chris was not seizing the day at that moment, there was no carpe diem in his life. He was sitting watching a stupid photo-shoot with his son sitting next to him, dozing off. He had just finished giving Sawyer his evening bottle, and he was starting to nod off from the effects of the milk. Chris wanted to doze off too, but he stayed awake since that's what he was getting paid for.

"Oh Chris, you're still here," Britt said, playing go-between with Stephanie and Chris. "I have something for you that Stephanie told me to give you. Let me just check it over."

Britt bent over a nearby table and Chris got up to see what she was writing. He walked up close behind her and looked over her shoulder as she continued to write and he tried to sneak a peek at what she was doing. She straightened up as she was finished and looked at her handiwork. Satisfied with it, she turned and gasped when she saw that Chris had been hovering over her the entire time.

She turned to her side where Chris was looking and saw that he was only a few inches away from his face. He turned to her and they almost bumped noses they were so close. His face was so close she could feel his breath on her face. He gave her a winning smile and she took pause for a moment before he looked back down to the sheet of paper.

"So what is it?"

"It's a list of things that you need to get before Friday's SmackDown. Vince wants a boot camp type thing, I don't know, and these are the supplies you need to call in for regarding that. Stephanie said that you would know what to do with it," Britt said quickly. "I better get back to her."

"Thanks Britt," Chris said as she walked off and Chris was glad that he had something else to focus on other than the divas themselves. He walked back over and sat down next to Sawyer, who was fast asleep now, his head nodded off to one side and his arms limply hanging down. His small chest was rising and falling steadily and Chris grabbed a blanket from Sawyer's diaper bag and put it over his son's small frame, tucking it in on the sides. He leaned down to place a feathery kiss on Sawyer's forehead before whispering, "I don't know how you manage to fall asleep with all this commotion, but I envy you."

Chris would especially envy Sawyer when he was walking down the hall to watch the girls actual live segment. He wished he could sleep right through that. He spotted Stephanie and Britt speaking and he made his way over. Britt gave him a small smile as he sat down next to Stephanie, placing Sawyer on the table in front of them. Stephanie reached out to adjust the blanket, rubbing the top of Sawyer's right hand softly, not really wanting to wake him up, which would cause him to cry.

"So how are the divas, ready?" Stephanie whispered, even though the general area was loud.

"Ditzy or boring, take your pick," Chris sighed. "Still want to trade?"

"Nope," she said with a smirk. "You told me that you didn't want to switch since this would give you time with Sawyer, so you're getting the time with Sawyer."

"But he's asleep!" Chris pointed out, actually pointing towards the sleeping baby. "He's no fun when he's asleep."

"But WE have more fun when he's asleep," Stephanie said, raising one eyebrow.

"True, but this is so dumb and they're dumb, and…" Then Chris shut his mouth as the diva contestants showed up and he didn't want to badmouth them to their faces, no, he'd save that for when he was alone with his wife, like, say later in bed or something. Britt, who had been talking with the divas for a moment came and sat next to Chris. "Hey, look at me, surrounded by all these pretty girls."

"That's nice of you to say," Britt said.

"Chris is trying to get on our good sides Britt so that he can get out of running the Diva Search," Stephanie said, leaning forward so she could see Britt past her husband. "He's trying to sweet-talk us."

"No, I'm not!" he pouted. "I'm being genuine in my compliments. Just because I ALSO want to get out of this has nothing to do with it, although if someone were to volunteer."

"See, what did I tell you?" Stephanie said.

"Shut up, you can't read me like a book anymore, it's time to close the book," Chris told her. "I don't want you reading me as a book anymore. It's been four years, I'm tired of it."

"You guys have been together for four years?" Britt asked.

"Next week," Stephanie said giddily. "It's my longest relationship ever."

"Ever!" Chris said excitedly. "Oh, and mine too."

"That's so cool," Britt said.

"Oh, here they go," Chris said as he watched the monitor.

The contestants were…how to put this delicately…bad. They were just out and out bad. Some were better than others, for sure, but overall, it was just bad. If any of them where really connecting with the fans, it didn't show. Chris fell forward and let his head smack against the table. Stephanie reached out and rubbed his back comfortingly.

"Sweetie, are you okay?"

"Remind me again why I married you?" Chris mumbled, his voice muffled by the table.

"Because you love me, and you have a breast implant fetish," Stephanie answered. Chris made a sound like that was true. "And because I found my own engagement ring and then threw it at your head."

"Oh yeah," Chris said, turning his head to look at her. "But if I hadn't married you, I'd probably just be a wrestler, or not even here and then I wouldn't have to deal with these airheads and weirdos. So yeah, that's not a good thing."

"You have a son because of me."

"Damn it, I can't top that!" Chris said. "Um, you have…an expensive ring because of me."

"Lame," she told him, leaning down to press a kiss to his lips.

Shane looked on enviously at his little sister and her husband. They seemed so happy, if the look in his sister's eyes were any indication. She just looked happy, and she had her husband there and her son there, and he wondered if Marissa would be willing to travel with him. Kenyon was older than Sawyer was, and Declan was definitely old enough. Maybe he could convince Marissa to travel and then they could all be together.

But then sometimes he was glad to get the time away from his family. He knew that was bad, but sometimes it was just so overwhelming that he thought that kind of thing. He wondered how Chris managed it. Chris was a new father, Chris was a relatively new husband, he had only been married to Stephanie for a year and a half, so he probably had the same views. Yet whenever he saw Chris, Chris never looked the way that Shane himself felt. It was so frustrating.

But he didn't have any more time to think about it as his match was up next. He stretched his arms a little bit, feeling the caked on paint cracking against his skin as it moved. He knew he looked like some demented Kermit the Frog, but he didn't care. He went out there for his match with his father against the helpless Eugene, who put up a good fight, but was no match for the seven men ganging up on him. Just as Shane was about to launch himself onto the announcer's table, oh, no, I'm sorry, what was it? The Rated R table or something, well, yeah, Shane was going to be airborne when D-X's music hit.

Needless to say, Shane was right and the plan was lame. The net didn't even work and probably wouldn't even have worked had Hunter and Shawn been directly underneath it. To top that off, his father got pinned by Eugene, which he was grateful he wasn't around to prevent or else Vince would've yelled at him for not preventing it. He knew that the net was stupid, but he would get his revenge on Saturday, that was for sure.

"A net, my father thought he was going to use a net?" Stephanie groaned and put her head in her hands. "Luckily Sawyer was asleep and didn't see that stupid attempt for revenge."

"Sawyer would've thought of something better," Chris chuckled.

"He would've," Stephanie said as Hunter and Shawn headed backstage.

"Your dad is the worst," Hunter said, still laughing. "A net, how dumb, like we were going to fall for that crap."

"Not my idea," Stephanie said. "But get out of here before my dad gets back and has the Spirit Squad try to attack you, I don't want you waking up Sawyer."

"Later guys."

Stephanie turned to Chris and laughed again, thinking about her father's dumb plan. She leaned over to kiss Chris again and he kissed her back. She didn't know why, but she just felt compelled to kiss him. He kissed her back, pulling her into his lap, knowing that everyone was pretty much leaving or getting ready to leave, he didn't feel embarrassed making out with his wife at the moment. Sawyer was asleep so he didn't have to worry about that.

Shane walked backstage and saw the unwanted visage of his sister making out grossly with her husband. They were all over each other and he averted his eyes as he walked past them. He didn't need to see that…ever. But it was also sad. He didn't remember the last time that he and Marissa had made out like that, and they were still like newlyweds. She didn't even want to have sex yet, not that he wanted to ask his sister if she had had sex, that was disgusting. But he just wished that he could have what his sister had, the life.

He wished he were completely happy.


	97. Four Years Later, July 17, 2006

A/N: Four years, 331 chapters, collectively over 2000 reviews. Four years ago, I wrote a story. Four years later, I'm still writing a story, the same one. What started out as a one-parter, a simple story to explain why Stephanie wouldn't hug Chris (remember, that one time, when she came back as General Manager, yeah, it WAS a long time ago, I know), has turned into this monster. I continue to write it because I love this damn story and I feel like I still have so much more to tell, so as long as I can keep on telling it and you guys keep on reading it, I'll be here.

I want to thank all my reviewers, not just now, but over the years, and those who read this story faithfully. You guys all rock, and I hope I continue to meet and/or exceed your expectations. Every review is freaking awesome, so you all just totally rock my socks.

So enjoy this anniversary chapter, and I hope you leave a review, thanks again. :)

* * *

"Hey Steph, I was just wondering if we could have the top of the show." 

Stephanie looked up at her ex-husband. "What was that Hunter?"

"Can Shawn and I have the top of the show, we'd really appreciate it."

"Yeah, I can do that," Stephanie said with a smile.

"You look happy tonight," he observed. "How about throwing a match in there against your dad and your brother?"

"Sure, whatever you want," Stephanie told him happily.

"Okay, now I know that something is up with you. So come on, spill, what has Stephanie McMahon-Jericho in such a happy-go-lucky mood? Wait, I've got it, you just gained more power than you know what to do with."

"No, I'm just happy, is that not allowed, is the fact that I'm married to someone else and have another life such a problem that I have to only say I was happy with you?" Stephanie asked, giving him a look.

"Well, it sure as hell would boost my ego, but I don't know if your husband would really like it," Hunter said. "Speaking of, I have got to get him to introduce me to some of those contestants, because if there was ever going to be an easy lay for--"

Stephanie raised a hand to stop his words, "If ever there was a time for you not to finish a sentence, now would be that time. The last thing I want to hear about is you and other women, especially those other woman."

"It's only because they're probably all easy," Hunter told her. "But back to what I was saying, why are you so happy? There has to be a reason, usually you're very…well, happy, but in a different, more calculating way."

"Observing me now are we?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"When you've been married to a woman, you don't tend to forget their quirks."

"It's Chris and my four year anniversary tomorrow, so I'm happy about that, it's the longest I've been with any guy and I think it's a real accomplishment that I've been able, that we've been able to sustain such a long-term relationship."

"Wow, four years," Hunter said, obviously impressed. "You know, I never thought about the future with us."

"What?"

"I mean, I'll be honest, with you, I lived day-to-day because I don't know, I never really saw the future for us. I think the first time I did see that future was when you said you were pregnant, but before that, I never really thought about it."

"But why?"

"Because I was just…we were just…our marriage was just something that you couldn't really explain. I loved you, don't get me wrong, I did, but come on, I think it was pretty obvious that we weren't your conventional couple."

"True," Stephanie nodded. "But I'm happy now, and I hope you are too."

"I am, I'm getting there at least," Hunter told her. "Congratulations to you though."

"I never thought you'd ever say that without a big chunk of sarcasm in your voice," she replied. "I always pictured you putting Chris through something."

"Oh, it'll happen, I still have to discuss things with him, get it out in the open, but the time will come for that, as it is now, I know that we don't have a chance, and if we ever even did, I think it would be really…strange."

"It would, I'll pencil in a match for you at the end of the show, my dad and brother won't like it though, and ultimately, my dad has final say."

"Yeah, but maybe he'll stop being such a freaking coward and actually own up and take us on," Hunter said with a laugh.

"Yeah, but you forget this is my dad," Stephanie answered. "He's…well, he's my dad."

"And your dad isn't exactly the most…well, self-conscious man is he? I can't believe I dealt with him for two whole years."

"And I've been dealing with him for almost thirty…oh my God, am I really almost thirty?" Stephanie said, putting her hand over her heart. "It can't be."

"Except it is," Hunter said, patting her on the shoulder. "And you're married with a kid, face it Steph, your twenties are almost over, you're going to have major responsibilities from now on."

"Don't remind me," she pouted.

"Speaking of, you are aware that your son has drooled a big wet spot onto your shirt right?" Hunter said, gesturing towards her blue shirt which was now sporting a dark spot on it from Sawyer's drool as the little boy had been sleeping against her.

"Par for the course," she said, "Can you hold him for a second?"

"Really?" Hunter asked.

"Yeah, I need to wipe this drool off my shirt."

Hunter was reluctant to take the baby from Stephanie's arms. He had never held Sawyer before. In fact, he had rarely been around babies before. He didn't think that he would be able to hold this baby and not think of the one he was supposed to have had with her. It was still a point of contention with them, he knew it, but she was entrusting him with her son, and he was kind of honored.

"Okay," Hunter said slowly as he took the baby from Stephanie's arms. She pulled a tissue from her pocket and proceeded to wipe at the spot on her shirt. Hunter looked down at her son and his heart stirred a little bit. He couldn't believe he was holding a baby that belonged to Stephanie and didn't belong to him. When Stephanie was through, Hunter quickly gave the baby back to her. "I'm going to get going since I'm going to be at the top of the show. You know, gotta get ready and all that."

"And if I'm not down with that, I better suck it right?"

Hunter chuckled and left then, glad to be gone from the situation. He liked Sawyer, he was cute, but it didn't stop the ideas in his head. As he was walking down the hallway, he saw Trish and Christian and nodded to the two of them. Trish was holding Christian's hand tightly in her own. She was going to go see Torrie before their match later on that had been announced earlier as going to happen. Christian had insisted he tag along.

They turned down one of the hallways and saw Carlito hanging out, reading a magazine. Trish's eyes lit up as she saw him, and Christian noticed. He felt a pit of jealousy opening up in his stomach. He didn't know what it would take for Trish to leave him, and so he was concerned about it. He could lose Trish at the drop of a hat, and he didn't know if he could recover from another break-up with her. He didn't want the on-again, off-again relationship with Trish, he wanted the whole damn package.

"Carlito!" Trish said, dragging Christian behind her and then eventually letting go of his hand altogether. Christian dragged after her.

"Hey Trish, you look good," Carlito told her. "What are you doing tonight?"

"Got a tag match."

"Going to win right?" he joked.

"Definitely," she giggled. "You've got a match too I hear."

"#1 contender match," Carlito said with a smirk. "For the IC title."

"You know, I was the TNA World Champion," Christian interjected.

"We know Chrissy," Trish said, looking at him strangely, "well, I've got to meet with my tag partner so I'm going to go, but I'll talk to you later I'm sure Carlito, come find me after my match or something."

"Cool," Carlito said, giving a friendly wave.

"Well that was rude of you," Trish said when they were alone again. "You were completely an ass right there, interjecting your own little horn-tooting, this was a big deal for him."

"Well, I'm sorry if I didn't want to watch my girlfriend flirt with another guy right in front of me," Christian snapped.

"Flirt? You call that flirting? Really?" she asked. "I was just talking to him, that was nothing. He's helped me out, you've seen that. What am I supposed to do? Should I just ignore him every time I see him?"

"No," Christian said sheepishly.

"I'm going to go talk to Torrie, don't bother coming with."

The night was just getting started though as the show opened with Hunter and Shawn on the microphone. It was easy for Hunter to be out there and be the funny guy. After all the time that he had spent being the most intense human being on the face of the Earth, it was nice for him to not only get back down to his roots, but to also show that he still had a sense of humor buried under that intensity and propensity for stupid clothing. It was just so simple to be this guy and he liked it.

Shane went out there with his father when he was prompted to. He had seen his sister sitting there at her station and admired the way she looked the other way when her father had glanced at her. He was proud that she was able to so completely shut herself and her family off from their father simply because she was mad at what he had done. That took a certain amount of gumption that he was seriously lacking at the moment. No, he was a coward, he thought as he went out with his father to speak to the latest incarnation of D-X.

When his father had automatically altered and set up a match for him for later, Shane had been confused and a little peeved. His father was always just assuming that he would go along with things. But had Shane ever really done anything to make his father think that he wouldn't? No, he hadn't, not like Stephanie and that's why he was standing there, accepting his fate like a little boy accepting his punishment. He did retaliate a little bit though by making sure his father would be out there, just a little something from him to Vince.

When Shane walked backstage, it was like everything, the weight of the world had descended upon his shoulders. He wasn't happy, not in the slightest, and his life was anything but happy. He was his father's lackey and a bad husband, and probably a bad father, no matter how much his kids loved him, and he loved his kids. His only recourse was to possibly find Chris and talk to him. Maybe his brother-in-law would provide a much needed insight into how he could be so happy and Shane could be so miserable.

Trish, meanwhile, had finished talking to Torrie, pretty much telling the other blonde that she would handle most of the match since she was more trained than her counterpart. But now she was kind of dreading going back to Christian. She knew that she loved Christian, that was a given, but the time apart had done something to her. It had made her get used to being alone, and now she was used to it and Christian was starting to hover around her. She appreciated that he wanted to be around her, but she was suffocating under his stern gaze.

So she ended up wandering around aimlessly, just thinking, just wondering if it would ever be normal with Christian. Would she have to leave this world completely if she was ever going to get a chance at what she really wanted? Trish was like most people, who had that ideal picture in her head, the one that included the perfect scenario of house and family. She wanted a family, and as far as she knew, she wanted one with Christian, but it was so hard to muddle her way through when there were so many outside factors. Maybe she would have to leave in order to get her dream.

But then dreams were meant to be just that, dreams. Dreams were not usually attained in a manner in which you thought of them. They bent and twisted until they were what you really wanted and what accommodated to you. Like Chris and Stephanie, they had it all, and yet neither had compromised what they really wanted to be together. They were married, they had a child, and yet Stephanie was here every week, taking care of her duties and what not, and Chris was off doing his thing on television and on radio, and yet he was here every Monday, making sure that his wife was taken care of in her own way and he ran the show as well.

Maybe she had to bend her own expectations in order to keep Christian.

Chris had been going over some of his lines for his play, checking and double-checking that he had all his lines down. He also took a few moments to go over his cues, just to make sure that he knew what to say. He hadn't been in a production in a long time, but it was one of those things that once you knew how to do it, you never forgot. Plus he had all the experience in the world from the wrestling business. He had oftentimes written his own promos so this was a cinch.

"Hey Chris, I got the results in from the diva thing, if you want to give these to The Miz was it?" Britt said as she walked in with papers in her hand.

"Oh, cool," he said, setting his script down on the table as he stood and walked over to her, grabbing the papers. "Did you take a peek?"

"No."

"Are you sure?" he teased, leaning in close to her.

"I didn't take a peek Chris, that'd be unprofessional of me," she told him.

"It's a Diva Search reality thing, it's hardly anything worth being professional about," Chris said as he flipped through the papers. "Oh, Amy is eliminated, I think she's one of the blonde ones, big whoop. Okay, I'm going to go find The Miz, and you can probably find something to do or go eat or something."

"Okay Chris."

Chris found his way to where The Miz was at and gave him the papers, giving him some brief instructions on how to present the information. After what had happened last week with his…well, his less than stellar on-screen performance, Chris wanted to make sure the young man extra prepared today to go out there and not make a fool out of himself. On his way back, he decided to pay a little visit to his wife and see what she was up to.

What she was up to was the same thing she was always up to, working. Chris had thought, for a brief while at least, that Stephanie would calm down after having Sawyer, and maybe take a small step back from her professional duties. He should've known better, oh should he have known better. Stephanie was a self-admitted workaholic and you just couldn't break her that easily.

"Hey, how's my family," he said in greeting.

"Fine," Stephanie said, handing Sawyer over to Chris. "Can you take him for a while though, I think that he's getting a little cranky and he might want to go down soon, either that or he wants to be fed. We have some bottles in the mini-fridge in our office."

"So you're just dumping our son on me is what you're doing," Chris teased.

"Yup, that's exactly what I'm doing," she said as she watched the Carlito and Shelton match. "I just want to focus on this. I'll relieve you when I take my break, sound like a deal."

"So you also want me to leave?"

"Well, I'm going to be boring, all I'm doing right now is occasionally telling JR or Jerry what they have to say during the match, not a whole lot of fun."

"I was hoping to at least spend a few minutes with you…considering tomorrow is a big day for us."

"But it's not tomorrow," she pointed out.

"It's tomorrow somewhere in the world," he said cheekily, "and this year is different anyways. This is the first year we're celebrating our anniversary with a child in tow. That just goes to show how monumental this one is. Not only have we stuck with each other for four years, yes, four years, but now we have a child to show for it."

"I see him, he is a child," she said, "but Chris, I'm busy, can we just have fun later tonight at the hotel when it can really just be the two of us."

"Fine, fine," Chris said. "But I'm holding you to that Mrs. Jericho."

"That's why I keep you around," she said, then going back to her work.

Chris sighed and stood with Sawyer in his arms, intending to go back to his office. He might as well see if Stephanie was correct and Sawyer was hungry. He looked down at his little boy, and he didn't look all that hungry, in fact he looked bored. Then Sawyer yawned and Chris knew that he was really bored. He would probably be asleep within the next hour or so, and then he'd be out for a while. He wasn't sleeping through the night or anything, but it was getting easier to pick up on his patterns. Then again, last night Sawyer had decided to cry his eyes out, so what did he know?

"Hey bro," Shane said as he spotted Chris in the hallway. Chris stopped and looked to his brother-in-law. Shane and Chris had really bonded over the time that he had been married to Stephanie and was glad that Shane would consider him like a real brother. Chris was an only child so he had never had a sibling-like relationship.

"What's up?" Chris asked, giving Shane a manly-like hug.

"Nothing, I was just hoping that we could talk, you know, like brother to brother kind of thing," Shane said, a little uncomfortable as he adjusted the cuffs on his suit jacket.

"Yeah, sure, what's this about?"

"Just, well, can we go into your office or something?" Shane asked, not wanting to discuss this out in the hallway where anyone could hear. Chris nodded and gestured towards the other end of the hallway.

"We can go to my office, Steph's not in there right now," Chris told Shane. "We'll be able to talk in there. Is this serious?" he wanted to know.

"Yeah, sort of, but not really," Shane said. Chris shifted Sawyer in his arms as they walked down the hallway. Shane was following a little bit behind Chris. Sawyer looked at his uncle over his father's shoulder. Shane gave the small boy a smile, he reminded Shane of Kenyon, who was only a month or so older than his nephew. Chris opened the door for Shane, who walked in and Chris put Sawyer in his carrier before sitting down across from Shane.

"So okay, what's up?" Chris asked, lending Sawyer his hand to play with.

"Your life, my life, they're kind of similar right?" Shane started.

Chris furrowed his brow, "Um…I don't know, are they?"

"Well, I mean, you're a new father too, and you're still relatively new to this marriage thing, we both work here…"

"Okay, when you put it like that, we're twins," Chris joked. "But yeah, I can see the similarities."

"How do you handle it all?" Shane asked him.

"Handle what? Stephanie? Because she's not easy to handle if that's what you think? She's messy and she can be disorganized at home. I cannot tell you how many times she leaves her clothes on the ground and--"

"No, not that, I just I feel like I'm failing at this father and husband thing, I feel like I'm not doing anything right at all. I feel like a failure."

"I'm sure you're not a failure," Chris told him. "You're still getting used to it, it's not something that's going to happen overnight. Plus, you and Marissa eloped with each other, you didn't have time to prepare so that's bound to cause a little bit of an adjustment period. Stephanie and I were engaged for seven months before we got married."

"I think I should've waited to marry Rissa," Shane admitted. "I don't think that I should've rushed into it like I did, I think that was a huge mistake. But she was pregnant with my child, so I didn't know what to do."

"Just because someone is pregnant with your child doesn't mean you HAVE to marry them," Chris pointed out. "But to you that was the right thing to do and you can't fault yourself. You did what you thought you had to do. Maybe you should've waited, but you have to deal with the consequences. You can't just leave her."

"I don't want to leave her, I just feel like I'm drowning, and then I see you and my sister, and you look so happy and I feel so unhappy that it's unsettling. I'm jealous of my little sister."

"We have different lives," Chris said. "They don't have to exactly be the same. I am happy with your sister, but she also has the potential to piss the hell out of me. She can be annoying and pretentious and she likes to get her way a lot. That's just how she is, and I deal with that. I wasn't married before, so I don't know how it's supposed to be, but to me, it's a give and take type thing, sometimes I give more than she does, sometimes she gives more than I do, it's about balance."

"I guess I take too much."

"Maybe, there's no right way to be married Shane, look at your parents, your dad has screwed up in about every way imaginable and your mom is still with him. You just have to like, do your own thing, nothing is right or wrong."

"But you're happy right?"

"I am happy," Chris said, smiling a little bit. "I love your sister Shane. She's the other half of me. She's such a bitch, but damn do I love her. And even when she gets so annoying I want to put her in the Walls, I think about everything she's given me. I mean, she loves me back and that's a crazy thing in the first place, she actually loves me, and then of course, she gave me a son. She had my son and that's just so wow."

Shane nodded, "I'm glad to hear you love my sister, she deserves it."

"When you think of D and J, you love them right? I mean, you don't have to like them, some of the time, I really don't like Sawyer. Like the other night, he cried, and I'm not even kidding, he cried for half an hour without stopping. We tried everything, we tried rocking him, we tried feeding him, we changed him, we let him sleep in our bed, and nothing."

"How'd you get him to stop crying?"

"Stephanie had to put him in the car and drive around the block, and you've seen our street, it's like a one-way street on the edge of water so it's not that easy to drive around. It's okay to not like your kid sometimes, but you love your kids right?"

"I love them, yeah, but like you said, sometimes I don't like them," Shane said. "It's just so strange to me, D wasn't my kid for two years, and then suddenly, he's my son and then J came so fast, and now I have these kids, and they're noisy and they're dirty and they get into everything."

"I know," Chris said, glancing at Sawyer who was chewing on Chris's hand. "This one goes through so much laundry in one week, and diapers too, and bottles, we're like a factory, always doing laundry and washing stuff, it's insane."

"So you do get it," Shane said with relief.

"Shane, man, come on, you're not the only new parent, or parent with a baby that isn't overwhelmed by the change. At least you have a two year old that you were mostly familiar with, this is completely brand new to me and Stephanie. And Marissa knows what it's like, you just have to lean on her, use her as a crutch or something."

"But you always seem so happy, and sometimes, I just don't feel…happy…"

"Well, I don't know how to respond to that because I am happy," Chris told him. "I'm sorry that you're not, but I really am, I love your sister and I love my son, and I'm doing so many things now that I'm happy, I can't help it."

"Thanks anyways," Shane said. "I just wish I knew what I could do to make myself happier, you know, I just…I wish I had waited to marry her."

"Talk to her, that's the only thing I can suggest, ignoring it isn't going to make it better, which sounds so hypocritical of me since I should probably talk to your sister about the situation with Trips."

"Oh, the feelings thing?" Shane asked.

"Yeah, the feelings thing," Chris sighed. "I know that she's not…you know, still in love with him or anything, at least I hope she's not…but still, it's just strange to think that your wife has any feelings left for her ex-husband. I mean, husband is a big word."

"It's just Stephanie, she gets confused a lot," Shane joked.

"Hey, remember that's my wife that you're talking about, so you better watch what you say about her," Chris joked back. "Seriously though Shane, you shouldn't keep these things to yourself."

"Thanks bro, you know, it's kind of cool to have a brother," he told Chris. "I never got that when I was growing up because of Stephanie, and well, Stephanie is…well she's Stephanie, and she's very determined in what she does, very, very determined, she wasn't exactly the best advice-giver, especially because she's six years younger."

"That's what I love about her though, what do you love about Marissa?"

"I don't know, she's…she's really sweet, and kind, she's very girl-next-door, you know, the kind that you want to bring home to your mother because you know that they will instantly love them. That's the kind of girl she is and always has been."

"So you love her because she's sweet and kind?"

"Well...among other things I suppose," he shrugged, as if he couldn't come up with a better answer.

"Well, that's…something."

"Why do you love Stephanie?" Shane countered.

"Do you really want to hear me gush about your sister?" Chris asked with a short laugh.

"Well, you say that what I said was something, implying that it's nothing, so I want to hear why you love my sister."

"I don't know, it's hard to explain," Chris started. "I love her because she gave me a son, for one. But I love her determination, and I love how she never takes anything sitting down, like she'll make things her own, or she'll do whatever she wants if she thinks its right. She's funny and smart, and wicked at the same time, making for a killer combo, and she's so damn gorgeous that sometimes it hurts to look at her, and then I wake up and find her next to me and it's like, how the hell did I even get so lucky. It's a combination of things, everything about her. With other girls I dated, they were nice and all, usually really pretty, but very vapid, and Stephanie is anything but that. She's incredible, she makes me feel like…a man, I guess, if that makes any sense and I don't think it does, but she's such a…God, she's…she's something else," Chris stated as he ended his passionate speech.

"Wow, I can't believe you were talking about my sister like that," Shane said, a little stunned. "I never thought any of that of her."

"She's your sister, that'd be gross," Chris said. "Seriously though, she's the most spectacular person I've ever been around and I know how lucky I am to have found her and kept her for this long."

"Yeah, you really are lucky bro, really are lucky…"

Christian was waiting backstage right when Trish was through with her match. She had expected him there though, so it came as no surprise. He had probably seen her running into Carlito after his match. He was by her side almost instantly and she had to bite her tongue from snapping at him. It wasn't that she didn't want him there, but it was getting to be a little much for her. She needed her space and she needed it soon.

The night wore on and everything was seemingly coming together.

Stephanie looked over her notes, and then looked up at the monitor. She needed to take her break. Sawyer had decided that last night was the night in which he turned his parent's hair gray and she was tired tonight, the lack of sleep catching up to her rapidly. The people on her screen started swimming through her tired eyes and she got up to go take a short break. She had left Chris with Sawyer in their office, so she thought seeing her baby would help her get her energy back. Sawyer was an energetic, little fellow and when you were around him, you couldn't help but be the same way.

She opened her office door and saw Sawyer sitting in his carrier on the coffee table, playfully batting at the toys hanging over his head. Stephanie grinned as she looked at him and then looked around the room, thinking she would see Chris sitting around, but he was nowhere to be found. She furrowed her brow at this thought, where could Chris be and why was Sawyer by himself in here? She stepped further into the room when she heard a strange noise, and it wasn't coming from Sawyer. She stood there silently for a moment, trying to listen and he heard it again, trying to place the sound.

It was a moan, she deduced after a moment. She was hearing a moan coming from the bathroom in her husband's office. She heard another moan, this one of the female persuasion, definitely, and Stephanie's eyes narrowed. Why was there moaning coming from this room and where was her husband? Stephanie's eyes narrowed even further at that. She didn't want to think what she was thinking, but the thoughts were coming too fast and too furious for her to stop them.

Chris wouldn't cheat on her, that was a silly thought her heart was telling him, Chris wouldn't do anything to hurt her. Her brain was telling him otherwise as she heard a kind of shuffling from the bathroom as she drew closer, mostly out of instinct rather than need. Another moan and her brain was working overtime and her heart was tearing itself inside out at the thought of her husband cheating on her. How could Chris do that to her? Why would Chris do that to her? Chris had always promised that he would never hurt her, had asserted that he would never cheat on her. Her eyes welled up with tears, the evidence piling up against Chris. She had left him with Sawyer, and Sawyer was right there.

Then she realized her son, her little boy had been in here all alone, sitting there. What if he had needed something, what if someone had come in here and taken him? Her nostrils flared as she thought this, and she was becoming more angry than sad at the moment. How dare Chris be so irresponsible as to leave their son alone? Not only was he cheating on her, now he was ignoring their son. She stalked up to the bathroom door and flung it open, gasping as her eyes widened to almost impossible proportions.

She found Shane and Trish making out.

Shane and Trish took notice of Stephanie standing in the doorway and pulled apart quickly and guiltily. They put some space in between them as Trish looked down at the ground and Shane adjusted his slightly askew shirt. Stephanie coughed a little, her jaw dropping open slowly, as if words were ready to pour out, but they were getting stuck somewhere along the way. Her brain had seemingly frozen and she was only able to observe.

Shane cleared his throat a little bit, "This wasn't what it looked like Steph…"

Stephanie guffawed loudly, "I can't believe you, I can't believe THIS! What the…this is, I don't even know what to say. I don't even know what to say!"

"Steph, it's…"

"Shut up," Stephanie snapped. "You two should be ashamed of yourselves! The both of you, I can't believe that you would even…in the arena, in my office, in my husband's office, you think this is the appropriate place for your little…thing, whatever this is."

"No, I mean, no, it's not baby girl."

"Don't even call me that," Stephanie warned him. "Trish, you have a boyfriend who loves you and would do anything for you, and Shane, Shane Brandon McMahon, you have a wife and TWO kids at home, waiting for you to get there, and you two are here making out!"

"This was the only time, I swear," Shane told her, being the official spokesperson it seemed as Trish continued to look down at the floor.

"Oh, and that suddenly makes it the best and most logical thing in the world!" Stephanie yelled. "So I should just go out and find the first guy willing to make out with me and just because it's the first time means that Chris won't be incredibly upset!"

"Steph, come on."

"No, no, I'm not coming on," Stephanie said, her face contorted into a grimace. "Do you have any idea what this is going to do to people, if I hadn't found you, would you have had sex in here? Huh? Is that where this was leading?"

"No, it wasn't like that."

"Oh yeah right, because you would've stopped this," Stephanie told him. "I expected better of the both of you, but the sight of you two disgust me right now."

"It wasn't, we didn't plan to do this."

"Obviously not, and if this…thing wasn't bad enough, look in the other room and tell me what you see?" Stephanie said, her anger rising to dangerous levels.

"What? I don't…"

"Oh, you don't know, you don't know huh? You left my son alone! You left my two month old son ALONE!" Stephanie yelled, stalking closer to Shane, who was pressing himself against the wall. Stephanie's breath was coming out in short spurts, her anger palpable, almost its own entity, a separate being. "YOU LEFT MY SON ALONE!"

"Steph, I'm sorry, we just…he was just, he wasn't doing anything…and…"

"Oh, because he wasn't doing anything means that he can just be alone huh? And if someone, some deranged person had come in here and taken my little boy, what would have done then Shane? Give me one of yours?"

"I wasn't thinking, I'm sorry."

"And I thought Dad making out with Candice while I was giving labor was bad, man, I should've known. The McMahon men can't seem to keep it in their pants," Stephanie said with a derisive laugh. "Apparently you're more like Dad than you think Shane. Hey, maybe he'll love you better now since you seem to be following in his footsteps."

"Steph, that's not fair," Shane protested.

"Don't you even try and justify this Shane," Stephanie said, poking her finger into his chest. "You left my son alone where anyone could come in and take him. What if that had happened with your son? What if I had been watching either of your sons or both and just left them to fend for themselves. I don't care if you were in the bathroom, you weren't watching my son, which I'm guessing Chris asked you to do."

"He did, and I was, I just, things got carried away," he tried to explain himself.

"Yeah, carried away all right, carried away right up Trish's shirt huh?" Stephanie said, gesticulating towards Trish. "Cause that seems to be where your hand was, wasn't it?"

"Steph, stop this, we're sorry."

"I can't even look at you right now."

"Please don't tell anyone about this," Shane pleaded. "It was a mistake, it was all a mistake, it wasn't supposed to happen."

"You think I care, I should go out to the ring right now and announce it to the world, and you're damn lucky that I don't. Get out of my sight Shane."

"Trish, did you?"

"Trish and I need to talk," Stephanie said. Trish looked at Shane and nodded. Stephanie looked back to make sure that Sawyer was okay before turning to Trish. "I can't believe this Trish."

"I'm sorry," she said softly. "I didn't come in here with the intention of kissing your brother."

"So tell me what the hell happened then."

_Shane sat watching Sawyer, the little boy chewing on his own hand as he kicked his feet up into the air. Shane smiled because Sawyer reminded him of his son Kenyon. Kenyon was only a few weeks older than Sawyer was, and you could tell they were related, they both had the chin dimple, the signature McMahon trait. Shane missed his sons, more than he could say, and what Chris had said was true, he may not like his kids all the time, but he loved them every second._

_The door pushed open and Trish walked inside and she looked around, "Oh hey Shane, I was hoping that Stephanie would be in here, I kind of wanted to talk to her."_

"_Something business-related?" he asked._

"_No, but well...since you're here, would you mind hearing about my life, and what's so completely wrong with it?"_

"_As long as you hear about mine?" Shane said._

_Trish sat down and delved right in, "I feel like Christian is smothering me."_

"_He's just happy to have you back," Shane reasoned._

"_Still though, it's getting to the point where I just want to be away from him."_

"_Well, every couple wants their space," Shane told her. "I mean, even people who spend most of their time together need time apart at some point."_

"_True, I just, I don't know, I love Christian, I just…I don't know, I feel like there's…he's just always around me and I don't know if this was like before, or if it's something new now, I just don't know anymore. Like, tonight for instance. I was just hanging with Carlito and he comes up to me, and he's all like, all over me, and he knows he can trust me, and he's trusted me before, yet, it's like he's thinking that I'm going to run off with Carlito or something."_

"_Maybe he's scared you'll see something in someone else and leave him."_

"_But I love Christian, I do," she insisted. "What we have, it's…you know what, I don't think I'm in the mood to discuss this anymore, so what's going on with you?"_

"_Same thing as always, thinking about things with Marissa."_

"_Shane."_

"_Save it pretty girl, nothing is going to change in a week's time. It's such a tricky situation. I have kids, there are kids involved and both of those kids are young, too young to understand any of this, and it's just…I hate this all."_

"_You hate your kids?"_

"_No, I love my kids, I love them more than words can say, I just feel like I'm not all there, you know. If I hadn't married Rissa, maybe I would be a better father, I can't believe I was so spontaneous, I'm not spontaneous in my life, in the ring, sure, but in my real life, I've never been spontaneous, it's just not me, and then I go and do this and I don't even think of the consequences, like some teenager, and I'm not a teenager."_

"_You're not," Trish confirmed, as if he didn't know. "But it's okay to be scared, to question things, you married her so quickly, nobody even knew, it was bound to catch up to you sooner or later."_

"_I know, but why now, everything should be falling into place with me, everything should be coming together, and I feel inadequate for the first time in my life."_

_Trish reached out and rubbed his back, "You're not inadequate."_

"_I'm my father's lackey, look at what I've been reduced to. You wouldn't see Stephanie doing that."_

"_Of course she has, you just think your sister is Super Woman or something, I think it's sweet that you think so highly of her."_

"_She married Hunter against my father's wishes, she turned on Dad so many times, and Mom, and everything."_

"_So did you if I recall with the Invasion, and your purchase of WCW."_

"_One time, wow," Shane said sarcastically. "I can't get it together in my business life and I can't get it together in my personal life either, I'm a wreck."_

"_Stop that Shane, you are NOT a wreck," Trish asserted. "This isn't like you Shane."_

"_I'm not happy," Shane said. "I don't think I'm happy with Marissa."_

_Shane, in a rare display of actual emotion, got up from his seat and went into the bathroom. He was still a McMahon after all, and he didn't really want anyone to see his emotions. He had been fighting a losing battle though, in regards to his life. He had tried to keep up this pretty picture he had inside his head, but it wasn't working anymore. He couldn't pretend that marrying Marissa out of the blue was the right decision. It wasn't the right decision, but he had no clue how to even fix it._

_Trish got up and walked into the bathroom, she closed the door and hugged Shane to her. She knew he wouldn't want anyone to walk in and see him like this. She took him into her arms and hugged him tightly, letting him know wordlessly that she was there for him. Even when he thought that he was alone, she was determined to let him know that he wasn't alone and he wasn't going to be alone in this. _

_  
"Shh, it's okay, you're okay," she whispered nonsensical words to him. It was strange to see the usually stoic Shane McMahon in this vulnerable position. But maybe it had to happen. Maybe at some point, every strong person has to show the chink in their armor. She knew that Stephanie, for all her strength, had a vulnerable side that she really only let Chris see. Even Hunter, who fancied himself the toughest guy in the world had been felled for a long time by Stephanie. Why should Shane be any different?_

_As Trish pulled away, she was surprised when she felt Shane's warm lips descend upon her own. They were slightly wet and so warm and inviting. Trish stood still for a moment, but maybe it was the expertise with which he was kissing her, or her own situation with Christian, but something made her kiss him back. They had been flirting for a while now, a strange back-and-forth, and this was the culmination. She wrapped her arms around his neck, leaning against his body to gain leverage. Shane's hands were running up her back, and he was grabbing her blonde hair. She didn't care though._

_They were so caught up in each other, in the moment. They were ignoring their hurt, and the feelings that were threatening to eat them inside. All that was here was all that they needed. Trish forgot about Christian and Shane forgot about Marissa and everything else that seemed screwed up in his life. Shane let his hands wander under her shirt, and Trish was pulling his shirt from his dress pants. They were pressed against each other, lips locked in a seal, tongues tangling, breaths hurried, and then…_

"I'm so disappointed in you Trish," Stephanie said and her voice was hurt. "For kissing my married brother and for leaving…you know, I can't even look at you right now."

"Stephanie, please, please don't tell Christian, it'll crush him, please," Trish pleaded.

"I don't know what I'm going to do right now," Stephanie told her honestly. "I don't know what to do or what to say. You cannot imagine the hurt I'm feeling because you left my little boy out here by himself. I can't even…I don't even know, I've got to get out of here."

"Steph, I'm so sorry."

"Don't Trish, and there are other people you need to apologize more too anyways," Stephanie said, taking Sawyer out of his carrier and bringing him with her. She cradled Sawyer against her chest before leaving Trish alone. Trish broke down and cried as soon as Stephanie was gone.

Stephanie, on the other hand, was walking down the hallway, fuming. She couldn't believe what she had just seen. It was all just too surreal for her to wrap her mind around. Trish was making out with her brother, her BROTHER. It was like she was slowly working her way through the McMahon family. Stephanie went back to her station, holding Sawyer against her with her left hand while writing with her right. She saw a shadow come over her and saw Chris.

She felt a little guilty for thinking what she had thought earlier. Chris hadn't been the one in that bathroom. She smiled at him and he grinned at her, plopping himself down in the chair next to her. He took Sawyer from her so she could write without having to balance him as well. She set her pen down and turned to her husband.

"Sweetie, I'm not feeling well, I think I'm going to just go back to the hotel and rest," Stephanie said. She didn't think she could look at either Shane or Trish right now, and she didn't want to run the risk of running into them or Christian, especially Christian, because she might not be able to handle herself.

"Are you getting a cold?"

"Maybe, or I'm just tired or something," Stephanie answered. "Do you think that you could run the rest of the show tonight for me?"

"You got it," Chris told her. "Does this count as my four year anniversary present?"

"I don't really care," Stephanie said, not in the mood to joke around right now.

"If you're not feeling well, maybe I should keep the kid with me, so you don't have to worry about him," Chris said, noticing that Stephanie wasn't in the mood to joke around. He hoped she felt better by tomorrow because he was taking her out to a special day for their anniversary, complete with a tour around the Riverwalk and lunch and a bunch of other fun things for her before they had to fly to Toronto that evening so Chris could make the final dress rehearsals for his play that weekend.

"No, I can care for him," Stephanie said, not wanting to leave Sawyer right this moment. "I'll be fine to take care of him, I just don't want to be here."

"Hey, is everything okay? You're not like…upset or anything, because you look a little upset."

"Just tired," she lied, then leaned over to kiss him. "We'll see you when you get back."

"Yeah, sure," he said as she took Sawyer back from him and wandered off. Something was bugging her, he hadn't been with her four years just to stop being able to read her now. He'd ask her later, after the show.

Stephanie went back to her office to pack up her things and Sawyer's things. She wasn't in the mood to dawdle so she worked quickly and efficiently. Packing up her things was quite easy, but Sawyer had a lot of things, and things that couldn't be forgotten either. Before she knew it though, the door flung open and Hunter and Shawn entered, laughing as they held something in their hand.

"Steph, great, I was hoping you'd be here," Hunter said as Shawn hung back, probably still upset that she had drugged him so long ago.

"Hunter, I'm really not in the mood."

"It's nothing big, just a little something to get at your dad and brother, but we need your help, please help us," Hunter pleaded. "We're willing to get down on our knees, and if you want that, well, we're kinky enough to do it, but please help us."

"I was just leaving actually, I'm not feeling well."

"It won't take two minutes, and we'll watch Sawyer," Hunter told her. "Shawn has kids, he knows how to take care of them, we'll take good care of your son."

"So people tell me," Stephanie muttered. "I don't think so guys, you're on your own."

"It humiliates your dad," Hunter said enticingly.

"And Shane?"

"Him too, but you don't have a beef with him."

"Don't assume," Stephanie said. "What do you want me to do?"

"We just want you to stick these on their backs," Hunter said, handing over the sheets of paper he had when they had come into the room. She looked down on them and one said, "I Love Cocks," with a picture of bird on it and the other said, "Me Too."

"Isn't this a little childish, even for you?" Stephanie said, looking up at them.

"Come on, it's a funny visual and if they don't even realize they're there…it's hilarious."

"Hilarious!" Shawn echoed, exaggerating by slapping his knee.

"So you just want me to stick these on their backs?"

"That's it, they trust you, they'd never even have to know," Hunter persuaded.

"Fine, but watch my son, okay, please, whatever you do, please just watch my son with both sets of eyes."

"Yes ma'am," Shawn said as he saluted.

Stephanie rolled her eyes as she walked down the hall, the papers in her hand, tape already on them. She just had to find her dad and brother. It wouldn't be a big thing, but at this point, she would love to humiliate both the McMahon men. She knew her family wasn't perfect, but it seemed they had more imperfections than any other family she had ever seen. She sometimes wondered what she had done to get such a dysfunctional family.

She saw her father first and thought of a way to talk to him. She walked up to him, hands nonchalantly hidden from him as she patted him on the back to get his attention, effectively getting the first sign on his back. Vince turned to her in anger, until he saw it was her and her eyes softened considerably. It wasn't like Stephanie to initiate conversation with him, not since their falling out.

"Stephanie?" he asked, and his voice was definitely soft.

"Dad, I'm leaving early, Chris is taking over for me."

"Everything is fine with Sawyer I hope," he said anxiously.

"He's fine, I don't feel well, I'm just informing you that I'm leaving early, but my job is taken over by Chris and he can obviously manage," she replied, not saying what she really wanted to say when he had mentioned Sawyer.

"Okay, that's fine, feel better Princess."

"Sure," she answered shortly as she quickly switched the paper to her other hand and walked down the hallway, not drawing attention to herself. She saw her brother sitting on a trunk, head in his hands and looking properly remorseful. It was really the least he could do. She walked up to him and placed her hand on his back Shane looked up quickly and his eyes widened at her presence.

"Steph?"

"I'm not forgiving you or condoning what you did, but I'm not going to tell Christian or Marissa, this is not my news to tell, whether or not you choose to is your business, but don't you ever, and I mean EVER," she said, sounding like her husband at the moment, "leave my son again."

"I'm so--"

"Save it Shane," Stephanie said shortly, stomping away, a smirk on her face as she had just gotten her brother and her father. It was childish and a little stupid, but damn was it fun. She walked back to her office happily, throwing open the door.

The sight in front of her made her laugh. Hunter and Shawn were sitting in front of Sawyer, and trying to entice him with different toys, talking in baby-talk at him as Sawyer eyed them somewhat wearily. She laughed for the first time since she had found her brother and one of her best friends making out in the bathroom and Hunter and Shawn looked up, looking like they had been caught with their hands in the cookie jar.

"Well, well, well, underneath that gruff exterior, there's a big, old softie," Stephanie said to them. "How sweet, were you having fun with my baby?"

"Um, yeah," Hunter grunted, "He's a nice kid, good, you know, very well-behaved."

Stephanie laughed, "Your deed has been done, good luck in your match, Shawn, please beat up my brother, and Hunter, I hope you have your sledgehammer ready because I have a feeling that the Spirit Squad is going to be paying a visit, goodnight guys."

Stephanie grabbed her bag and then shouldered Sawyer's diaper bag before going to pick up his carrier. Hunter noticed her holding all this stuff and asked, "Steph, do you need help getting to your car?"

"No, but thank you Hunter, just focus on your match okay?" she told him. He nodded and then, like a puff of smoke, she was gone.

Trish had found her way back to Christian, and she found that she couldn't even look him in the eye. She ended up mumbling that her match had taken it out of her, even though it clearly hadn't, but she wasn't ready to deal with the ramifications of what had happened earlier. She had never meant to kiss Shane. She had never meant to hurt Christian. She really did want that life with Christian, but now there was this dark cloud hanging over her head. This dark cloud would follow her, she knew, she only hoped that she could carry it without arising the suspicion in Christian. She didn't want him to be hurt, she didn't want to be the one to hurt him.

Even though he had been the last one to hurt her.

Later that evening, Chris entered his hotel room, wondering if Stephanie was asleep yet or not. He dropped his things gently by the door and walked into the bedroom of their hotel room. Sawyer's crib was off to the side by the bathroom and Stephanie was lying in bed, facing the wall. The lights were off so he assumed everyone was asleep. He walked to Sawyer's crib and checked on him through the sliver of light coming through the curtains from the streetlight outside. Sawyer was sleeping peacefully and Chris pressed a kiss to his finger and laid it gently on his son's cheek, causing the little boy to snuffle and open and close his fist slowly.

He got ready for bed quickly and climbed in behind Stephanie. She stirred and woke up, "Hey there, how are you?"

"Okay," she whispered into the stillness of the room.

"So do you want to tell me what's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," she insisted.

"Stephanie, I haven't been with you for the past four years and not picked up anything from you," Chris told her. "So come on, tell me what's wrong before I have to kiss it out of you or something."

"Nothing's wrong," she said, a little more firmly this time.

"Obviously something happened, something with Hunter?"

"Why is that you assume it has to do with him?"

"So it is something!" he told her, sitting up in bed.

"I don't want to talk about it so leave it alone."

"Does it have to do with Hunter, it does, doesn't it? I mean, you just can't get over the fact that he's moving on. You want everyone to love you huh?" he asked angrily.

"That's not it at all!" she said, her voice raising, and then hoping it wouldn't wake the baby. "I wanted to talk about the Hunter thing, but you didn't, and now you're accusing me of all this. I wanted to discuss it, but you had to think."

"Well excuse me for wanting time to figure out what my wife's EX-husband dating makes her feel. I'm so sorry that the situation was inconvenient for you. I'm so sorry that thoughts and doubts were running through YOUR mind, excuse me!"

"Oh get off of it, you know I don't even feel anything for him."

"How should I know? I mean, it's not like you didn't love him."

"Oh you make me sick, now you're just putting words into my mouth."

"I'm getting something to drink, don't follow me!"

"Wouldn't dream of it," she said sarcastically as he pulled his pants on and then a shirt. He stormed out of the room and went downstairs to the bar in the hotel. He loved that these places always had a bar, but San Antonio was a pretty popular place, what with being host to tourist sites and of course the 3-time NBA champion San Antonio Spurs (who rock). He sat down and ordered his first drink.

He was so angry at the situation that he didn't know how much he had had to drink, but before long it seemed that the room was turning in front of him. Chris was pretty good at holding his liquor, so he must've had a lot. He sat there though, thinking about the Hunter and Stephanie thing. He would never admit it, not outright, but a part him still figured that Stephanie might go back to Hunter if the opportunity arose. Their marriage had not ended well, and they probably never really resolved anything after it was over, going through their lawyers. It would've been different if Hunter had been an ex-boyfriend, but husband was a scary word, they had loved each other enough to stay married for two years, it was just such a strange thought. He didn't let himself think of himself as Stephanie's second husband, but he was, and he hated thinking he was second to anything.

"Chris, is that you?"

Chris looked over to his left slowly. "Hey Britt, what's up?"

"You look terrible," she said, sitting down next to him at the bar. "What's going on?"

"What are YOU doing at the bar?"

"Actually, I didn't come to the bar, I was walking past it to get to my room and I saw you sitting here. What are you doing?"

"Steph and I had a fight," he hiccupped. "I didn't have anywhere else to go so I came here, and I think I've had a few too many."

"I would say so," she said, laying a hand on his arm to stop him from taking another swig of his beer. "Come on, let's go upstairs."

"Upstairs huh? What's upstairs?"

"Rooms, beds, sleepy time," she told him, helping him gain his balance as he got off the stool.

"I don't remember my room number," he mumbled.

"Let's just go upstairs, okay Chris, I'll make sure that everything is better for you, okay? Do you trust me?"

"Oh yeah, you're such a good assistant, best one ever, and that's the truth," he slurred as they stumbled through the lobby.

"It's okay, I'll take care of you," Britt told him as the elevator opened and she led him inside.

Chris woke up and the room was still dark. His head was pounding and his mouth felt dry and he kind of recalled all the alcohol that he had consumed the night before. He lay there trying to remember what happened when his eyes widened as he remembered seeing Britt there, and remembered her saying that she was going to take him upstairs. He was keenly aware that he was only in his boxer shorts and that was not a good sign, that was not a good sign at all. He had to get out of here right now.

He started to move when he felt a warm body pressing into his own from behind, and from the feel of it, it was a womanly body. Chris wanted to cry. Stephanie was going to divorce him, that much was sure. She would find out about this because she always found out about everything. She was too smart and too wily not to figure out that he had slept with another woman. And then she would divorce him and he would be left alone, and he would hate that because he loved Stephanie so much.

Then there was Sawyer. Stephanie would probably keep Sawyer away from him, saying that he was a bad influence on the young boy. He'd try to get joint custody, but Stephanie would win that, and she'd get sole custody of their son and he'd be relegated to monthly visits and the occasional weekend with his son. He'd miss every big milestone in his son's life, and Stephanie would revel in the fact that she had taken his son away from him. She'd taunt him with it, and then she'd find someone new and he'd have to watch her be happy and his heart tore at the thought.

And it was their four year anniversary. If his relationship with his wife, with Stephanie ended on the day it began, how damn ironic would that be? It would probably be the worst kind of thing to happen. It would make this day the best and worst of his life. He had been with Stephanie for the past four years, and now, now he had gone and ruined it, ruined it all because he couldn't take the thought of Stephanie even having any sort of feelings for Hunter. But he would take that all back now if he could just be in bed with his wife. He blinked back tears. This was supposed to be their day, the further foundation to their relationship, another year of love and trust, and he had gone and broken that. And for what? For nothing.

He started to get out of bed, but the woman behind him, who he assumed to be Britt, grabbed him by the boxers and tried to pull him back into bed. He resisted though, muttering to himself a few simple words.

"I've got to go, I've gotta go."


	98. When You Get Lemons, July 24, 2006

A/N: Congrats extended to Stephanie and that other guy on the new addition. I love the name Aurora, I love it so much I actually had one of Stephanie and Chris's kids named that in my stories "I've Been Loving You Too Long" and "Moments," unless that's where she got the name…heh.

And who else is absolutely LOVING the Carlito/Trish interaction, oh man, I'm so digging this. I think that they might be like, working their way up to #2 on my favorite couples list (who's #1 you ask, whoa, are you in the wrong place). But last night was so hot, and damn Carlito was looking good.

Anyways, when life throws me a curveball, I'm forced to just try and knock it out of the park. Hope I did that, enjoy, leave a review. :)

* * *

"I brought you a Coke." 

"Thanks," Chris said, looking up at his wife. She sat down two seats over from him, as she took a sip of her soda.

"Stupid delays, they say it's only going to be a ten minute delay and then it ends up being a fifteen minute delay, then it just goes on more and more until you're about to rip your hair out."

"Says the drama queen," Chris joked. "Isn't that right Sawyer, Mommy's a big drama queen."

"Don't listen to him," she said to her son as he sat in his car-seat that they had brought along for the journey to Cincinnati. Or at least what they hoped would be their journey to Cincinnati. Their flight had been delayed for an indeterminate amount of time, no more than half an hour they had said, but they were approaching the twenty-minute mark and there was still no plane to speak of.

"He can listen to me, I'm his father."

"And I'm his mother, the woman that carried him for forty weeks and three days, I'd like to see you carry something for that long."

"I've been carrying your dead weight around for the past four years, forty weeks and three days is nothing," he said cheekily.

She glared at him, but it had a decidedly light tone to it and her eyes sparkled as she reached over Sawyer and hit Chris's arm playfully. Sawyer saw his mommy's arm over him and reached for it. Chris looked down and pointed down at Sawyer. Stephanie looked down at her baby and saw him reaching his hands for you. She gave him her hand to play with and he happily took it, fascinated by the shiny ring on his mommy's finger.

"See, he was getting you away from me because he doesn't want anyone to hurt his old man," Chris told her and she rolled her eyes at him. Then she looked over at the other side of the gate area where her father and brother were sitting and talking. She had not spoken to either one since last week, despite her brother's attempts to. He probably just wanted her to cover up for them. She scowled at the thought. "You know, you're much more beautiful with a smile."

"Oh shut up," Stephanie told him.

"Baby, what's wrong?" Chris asked her.

"Nothing," she said, her face softening as she looked down at her baby, who was still playing with her fingers, chewing on the tip of her thumb. "It's nothing. I'm just anxious to get to Cincy and get to work tonight."

"Hey you two, still delayed?" Hunter asked as he sat down across from them, a plate of super nachos in front of him.

"No, we're on the plane right now," Stephanie said sarcastically. "Didn't you know?"

"And I was going to offer you a nacho, not anymore bitch," Hunter joked with her. Chris shook his head at the two. He had yet to tell Stephanie about what had happened to make him so upset last week, but he would tell her soon. He needed to get it out there at some point.

"Oh, I'm so sad," Stephanie said, taking a sip of her soda. "It's still delayed, no word yet, so we're just sitting here and waiting."

"Hey Sawyer, how do you like the jet-setting life so far?" Hunter asked the little boy, who stopped chewing on Stephanie's hand long enough to identify the speaker of the voice.

"I don't think he likes Connecticut as much as Florida," Chris said, looking down at his son. They had been spending their downtime in Connecticut for the past few weeks since most of the shows were in the Mid-west and Northeast. Stephanie and Chris didn't want Sawyer to have to be disturbed through longer flights.

"He's a trooper though," Stephanie said. "He usually sleeps anyways."

"Lucky kid, I'm usually stuck next to some ass who wants to talk the entire flight about stupid things."

"Well, I'm not sitting next to you on this flight," Chris replied. "I don't want to invite the comparison."

The crackling of the loud speaker interrupted the threesome's talking. "All flights to Cincinnati have been cancelled due to power outages in the Cincinnati area. We are sorry for the inconvenience."

A loud groan came upon the people in the waiting area, as some made a mad dash to the ticket counter to try and get refunds or any kind of compensation. Stephanie shook her head in disbelief. If this was a Cincinnati problem, there was no way they could get there by some other airline. She gently pulled her hand away from Sawyer and looked to Chris. He was chewing on his gum rather noisily, and she knew that he was silently pissed. It was always a bear trying to get everything ready to leave and now they were stuck here.

"Great, just great," she heard him mumble, just as Sawyer started to cry from Stephanie pulling her hand away from him. Chris un-strapped Sawyer from his seat and picked him up. "We're going to go look at the planes."

He took the crying baby away, trying to calm him down as she saw her father and brother make their way over to them, Marissa trailing behind the two of them. Stephanie had forgotten she was even here and had a hard time looking in her direction. Shane's betrayal had stung her, but she knew that it would be that much worse when Marissa found out, if she found out. Stephanie still didn't know if she was going to tell her. It wasn't her news to tell though, not at all. She had just walked in on it.

She hadn't spoken to Trish about it either. She was disappointed by the two of them, and more importantly, she was angry at the two of them. She still hadn't gotten over the fact that they had left her little boy alone. She bit her lip just thinking about that again. If anything had happened to Sawyer, she would've been devastated. Yes, Stephanie had wanted to wait a few years before having children, but she loved her son to death and if something had happened to him, that would be the end of her.

That was just the part she couldn't get over. They were two responsible adults and Chris had trusted Sawyer with Shane and he had broken that trust. Shane rubbed the back of his neck as he approached his sister. A bevy of emotions were playing across his face, and he wished she would let him apologize for not watching Sawyer. He felt the worst about that particular act because he loved his sister and it had been the two of them for so long.

He had invited Marissa along this week out of sheer guilt. He had barely been able to touch her the past week and any kisses she gave him, he felt the guilt rise up like bile in his throat. If she came tonight, maybe they could have a few moments alone, some time together where they didn't have to think about Declan and Kenyon. The two boys were staying with Marissa's parents and Shane was glad to get some time with Marissa to just spend with Marissa.

"So, I'm going to try to get us to Cincinnati," Vince told him, "so I want you to sit tight and not leave."

"Fine," Stephanie said.

"What if I wander off Vince, will you send a search party for me?" Hunter asked innocently.

"I wasn't talking to you," Vince told him.

"I'm hurt Vince, we were family," Hunter pouted. "I'm sorry it all had to go bad between the two of us. I wish that we could have salvaged our relationship. I miss our long, late-night talks, our walks on the beach."

Stephanie snickered. "Hunter, stop, I'm going to spit my Coke out my nose."

Vince was not amused. "Just stick around."

"Fine, I'll go tell Chris," Stephanie told her father. "Hunter, can you watch our stuff for us?"

"Sure Steph, no problem," Hunter said nicely.

"She's married," Vince said, turning to him. "Don't forget that."

"What? Married, what's this married you speak of?" Hunter asked. 'Do you mean that there's another guy in the picture? Is she cheating on me Vince, you can tell me, I can take it, I'm a man!"

Vince just turned and stalked away, Shane and Marissa following behind, like the lackey that Shane was. Stephanie walked over to where Chris was standing with Sawyer. She smiled a little when she saw them. Chris had Sawyer up near his shoulder, the latter with his head leaning against his father's. Chris was pointing to the airplanes and talking to his son in hushed tones. She had to walk closer to hear what they were saying.

"Yeah, see the big planes," Chris told the fascinated Sawyer, but whether he was fascinated by what he was seeing or by his father's voice had to be determined. "They go zoom and make loud noises, and they have propellers. You go on them a lot huh?"

"Yeah, it's probably not that good for a baby," Stephanie said as she approached him, taking Sawyer from Chris. "You look good with him, like a real dad."

"Yeah?" he told her. She gazed up at him, almost enraptured by his handsome face. He licked his lips a little bit as he stared down at her lips, those warm, inviting lips, a touch of colored lip gloss on them. Stephanie raised her eyebrow as he came closer.

"Gonna kiss me now Mr. Jericho," she whispered.

"Thinking about it Mrs. Jericho," he replied as he stared down her lips like he were an animal and they were his prey.

"Well what are you waiting for?"

Chris leaned ever closer to her, taking baby steps until he was right over her. He leaned down more, tilting his head until his lips were practically against hers. He grazed his lips gently across hers, not even a kiss, teasing her. She whined a little bit, wanting more, needing more. He was just about to lavish her with a real kiss when Sawyer burst into tears again. Stephanie winced as Chris pulled away.

"Yeah, I think that's baby for 'Mommy, Daddy, get a room,'" Stephanie said with remorse that she hadn't felt the kiss that she wanted as she rubbed Sawyer's back. "He's jealous we aren't paying attention to him."

"Kid, sometimes Daddy needs some attention too," Chris informed Sawyer. "Just because you love Mommy and you can't even stand to be away from her doesn't mean that I'm not the same way."

"You were last week," she pointed out astutely. Chris froze as he thought about last week. Last week had not been the high point of his marriage or relationship with Stephanie. Their fourth anniversary of being together had not started off as he had hoped. No, it had started off quite badly…for him at least. Maybe for Stephanie too, but he hadn't been up in the room with her.

"Steph," he said quickly, "let's not go back to next week."

"Why not? Chris, it happened, we both know that."

"I know," he said, running his hands through his hair. "But I'm not proud of what happened."

"Then how are we supposed to work through it if we don't?"

"Well then tell me what the hell your problem was!" Chris hissed quietly, causing Sawyer to cry even harder. Stephanie gave him a dirty look and tried to calm down their son. Chris ran a hand through his hair and gently rubbed the back of Sawyer's head, as he sniffled and laid his head more snugly against Stephanie's shoulder, his tears trailing down his little face. Chris wiped them away and thought back to last week.

"_I've got to go, I've gotta go."_

_He got out of bed without hearing her response and started grabbing his clothes off the ground, not bothering to even get dressed in the room, he'd wait until he was in the bathroom to do that. He started walking around the bed, just wanting to get out of here. How could he do this? How could he have been so stupid as to cheat on his wife? He never thought he'd be that guy, the one who had an affair. He had promised Stephanie that he would never deliberately hurt her, had told her point blank that he would never cheat on her and what he had done, he had done just that, and he had broken her heart, even if she didn't know it yet, it was only a matter of time._

_He was almost to the bathroom when his foot hit something solid and he cursed, not knowing what it was since the room was pitch black. A moment later, a baby started crying and he did a double take as his voice whispered, "Sawyer?"_

_The light turned on and Stephanie looked at him from the bed, "Chris, why aren't you answering me? What are you doing?"_

"_Stephanie?" Chris said, turning to the bed to see his wife sitting there, her hair disheveled and one of her tank top straps falling down over her shoulder._

"_Great, you woke him up," Stephanie groaned as she went up to the crib and picked up Sawyer. She bounced him around a little as Chris stared at her, his mouth open wide. "What? Do I have something on my face or something?"_

"_It's you," he said hoarsely._

"_Yes, your wife…" Stephanie said with a little laugh as she regarded him strangely. "Did you have a weird dream or something, you just like shot out of bed muttering that you had to get out of here and you started grabbing your clothes, what the hell were you dreaming about?"_

"_I don't know," he said, still a little confused as he dropped his clothes on the ground. "Can I have Sawyer?"_

"_Be my guest," she said, handing off the little boy to Chris. Chris cradled him against his chest, running his strong hand up and down his son's small back, just holding him and so grateful. "Feeling better after earlier?"_

"_I'm sorry Steph, I shouldn't have stormed out of here," he told her. _

"_Forget it," Stephanie said with a kind smile. "We both just got angry like we are wont to do and we were stupid. Of course, I didn't go off and get drunk or anything, but we can't all be winners like you."_

"_I'm a little unsure as to how I got here," Chris said slowly, still running his hand over Sawyer's back._

"_Britt brought you up here," Stephanie explained. "She found you in the bar drowning your sorrows and she took pity on you so she brought you up here where I took over your care. And let me tell you, you are so much more stubborn when you're drunk. Getting your clothes off was hell, you would not cooperate, you were worse than Sawyer."_

_Chris let out a deep breath out of relief and kissed Stephanie quite unexpectedly. She gently placed her right hand on his neck, pulling him a little closer, but being mindful of Sawyer, who was still between them. Chris just kept kissing her, never wanting to stop, but the need for air overrode his need to kiss his wife senseless._

"_What was that for?" she asked breathlessly. "Not that I'm complaining."_

"_I just…I love you so much."_

"_I love you too," she replied softly, glancing down at their son. "He fell back to sleep, what do you say we take his lead?"_

"_Yeah, I'd like that."_

_Chris set Sawyer back down in his crib carefully, kissing his forehead lightly so as not to wake him. He climbed back into bed as Stephanie turned off the light. He laid on his back and moments later felt Stephanie cuddling up to his side. He welcomed her this time, glad that he hadn't made a stupid mistake. He was also really glad that Britt was an outstanding assistant. He was going to have to ask Vince to give her a raise for going above and way beyond the call of duty._

"Chris, can we go talk, for real?" Stephanie asked. "I know you want time, and I know you have to think, but I'm tired of that. Now we're going with my plan, we're going to talk. There's no way I'm going to be able to work if I don't know what's going on with us. It's all well and good without the fighting, but if we don't talk, we're just going to let it build."

"Fine, you're right, as usual," he muttered. She rolled her eyes slowly

"I think you should go first," Stephanie said, walking a little closer to the window for more privacy. "You have a lot on your mind Chris, I know you do, you had your play and everything, and that's fine, and you were good and everything, and I didn't press the issue because I didn't want you to get distracted, but now we're not distracted, all that's here is you, me, and Sawyer, but he's our son, part of us, so whatever, he doesn't even count as a distraction. Everyone else is too wrapped up in their own stuff."

Chris looked at Sawyer, taking in Stephanie's words. Sawyer was a part of him and Stephanie. He was still so happy that he hadn't been with Britt because he would've lost his son. He could barely take the thought of losing Stephanie, the thought of losing Sawyer was unbearable, completely unbearable. Sawyer was the best parts of him and Stephanie, and a little of the bad parts he was sure, he would probably have Stephanie's temper and his cockiness, but hey, you can't be a person and not have some flaws.

He loved that little kid though. He knew when Stephanie had told him she was pregnant that it was going to be an adventure, and it really was, but he never realized that it was going to be the best adventure of his life. He had thought that being a wrestler would be an adventure, and it was, and that marrying Stephanie would be an adventure, and that certainly was, but his son was an adventure he wanted to keep living. Sawyer was probably his favorite person in the world right now, and that was even more than himself, and Chris really did like himself.

"Deep inside of me…there's this…person…"

"Oh my God, you're a cannibal!" Stephanie laughed, then caught herself. "I'm sorry, serious here, I'm serious."

"Gee, thanks," he said sarcastically. "As I was saying…inside of me, there's this little voice nagging at me. What its saying is that I run the risk of losing you to…to Trips. I feel sometimes that I could lose you to him."

"Chris, what?" Stephanie asked, confused as she grabbed his knee. "I don't understand why you'd think that."

He shrugged. "I just…he was your husband Steph!"

"_You're _my husband," she said. "Hunter used to be yes, but you're my husband now, not him."

"You just left things so unresolved with him. One minute, you're the power couple, the next you're faking a pregnancy. Then you're broken up, and you pretty much only spoke through your lawyers, you didn't resolve anything."

"There was nothing to resolve," she told him. "It was over, it was deader than a doorbell. There was nothing else by the end Chris, nothing. No feelings, nothing."

"There were on his part, and I mean, what if you two get close again and you realize that you never really stopped loving him? I mean, I can't take you leaving me for him. I couldn't stand thinking you were with him, that he was…touching you," he choked out.

Stephanie closed her eyes. "Chris, nothing is going to change the fact that I was married to him. But we both had previous relationships. I'm not worried that any of your ex-girlfriends are going to come back and steal you from me."

"But you were _married _to Trips, that's a whole lot different, you pledged yourself to each other."

"Oh yeah, I really did, I was so coherent during my entire wedding," Stephanie said sardonically. "Chris, I didn't marry Hunter for love, I married _you _for love. There's a huge difference. With you, I wanted it, I planned it, it was perfect. Chris, I never would've married you if I didn't want to be with you. I mean, I had one marriage that was the epitome of not my decision."

"I know it's stupid, more than half of me thinks it, but there's that little part, that part that's scared and it hates being scared, but there it is, and that's all I can think sometimes."

Stephanie looked at him for a moment and shook her head. "Look at us Chris, look at me, I love you. Only you. You're my husband, not Hunter, not anymore. We've been together for four years, that's twice the time I was with Hunter. You're my longest relationship ever, my _last _relationship. And look right here," she told him, looking down to Sawyer. "This is our son. Not my son with Hunter, this little boy is ours, and I love him, and I would not want to have him with anyone else. I cannot imagine him having anything but his daddy's eyes."

Chris hung his head down. "I know, I know, I just, I get it."

"Please get it," Stephanie said, leaning forward to give him a sweet kiss. "Chris, I love you, you're it for me."

"Me too," he mumbled, kissing her again. "Now your turn."

Stephanie sighed and handed Sawyer over to Chris who took him and let him rest against him. Stephanie sighed heavily and her shoulders drooped as if she were carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders. She had been hiding something, but he had been so busy with his play he hadn't been able to properly confront her. She closed her eyes and covered her face, biting back a scream as she pulled her hands away from her face and sat on the couch next to him. She looked at him a second.

"I caught Shane and Trish making out in the bathroom of our office last week," she said bluntly.

Chris laughed, "Oh come on, don't make me laugh Steph, really, if this is your way of softening…the…blow…you're not joking are you?"

"No…but that's not the worst part."

"What, there's worse than that?" he asked incredulously. She nodded again. "Okay, so what is it? You didn't like join in or something right?"

"This was when you asked Shane to watch Sawyer, they were in the bathroom and they left Sawyer by himself in the office area, door closed, anyone could've walked in and taken him Chris. They left Sawyer all alone."

Chris grit his teeth and started breathing out through his nose, his nostrils flaring. It was one thing for them to be making out, but he had entrusted his son into Shane's care, and Shane had been careless. Chris licked his lips a little, trying to distract from the anger pitting itself in his stomach. Stephanie watched him carefully, seeing anger surging in his eyes.

"Chris?" she asked warily.

"That bastard," Chris said through gritted teeth. "I asked him to take care of Sawyer, he said he would, and he left my son alone!"

"Yes, and he was making out with Trish!"

Chris blinked, then handed Sawyer to Stephanie quickly. Stephanie looked at him in confusion. "Chris, what are you doing?"

"I'm going to have a little visit with my brother-in-law."

"Chris, are you sure that's a good idea?"

"Oh yeah," Chris nodded vigorously. "We have taken care of Declan and never, not one time, have we left him alone. Maybe when he was asleep, but he was in the next room and we'd check on him all the time, but Shane can't even watch my son for fifteen minutes! Oh it's on Steph, I don't care if he is family."

"Okay," Stephanie said. She was just as angry as Chris was, so she kind of wanted to see what would happen. "But I don't think the airport is the right place to do it."

"Well, he's going to get it then whenever we get home or get to Cincy, he's just going to get it for leaving my son alone," Chris said angrily. "And then making out with Trish, Shane was making out with Trish."

"What?" a new voice said.

Chris looked up and over Stephanie's shoulder at Marissa, who was standing there with wide eyes. He groaned silently and Stephanie's eyes widened as she knew who was behind her and what she had just heard. Stephanie took a deep breath and slowly turned around to face her sister-in-law. Stephanie leaned back against Chris, almost afraid that Marissa would blow up, but she was calm, too calm.

"Rissa…"

"No, no, no," Rissa said, shaking her head. "What? What did you just say?"

"Ris, I'm sorry," Stephanie said, her eyebrows crinkling together in both frustration and pity. "I didn't…I'm sorry Ris."

Shane walked up to them, not even noticing their expressions and informed them. "So we're stuck here, we can't go to show and Dad is freaking out because we were supposed to get D-X tonight. Although one-half of D-X is sitting over there eating nachos, but the other half is now free to wreak havoc all over the show, so Dad is trying to get a hold of Coach and he doesn't know how to explain our absences."

"Tell him I'm in labor," Stephanie said off-handedly, only half-listening to Shane anyways. Her eyes were trained on Marissa, who was still standing there, seeming oblivious to Shane's presence. Shane didn't even seem to see her and that spoke volumes about their marriage.

"What?"

Stephanie turned to her brother. "Shane, everyone thinks I'm pregnant anyways, they believed when they thought I was in labor before, they'll believe it now, just have people corroborate on it, tell Coach to just tell people, God, tell Hunter to tell Shawn, he'll spread the word, people will believe, hell, tell them Hunter's with me or something, at this point, I don't care okay. Do whatever you want!"

"Steph, baby, calm down," Chris said, running his hand over her hair.

Her breath was coming out in short pants. "We have to go…we have to go…we have to go to Mom and Dad's."

"Why?"

"Because Shane, there's a lot of stuff that needs to go down right now, so you go tell our father the new plan okay. The Stephanie McMahon plan because apparently I'm the only one in this damn family besides Mom that is thinking clearly at this point in time. You and Dad are so completely--"

"Steph, baby, seriously, it's okay," Chris said, taking her in his arms. She wanted to cry angry tears, but she kept them in check since she didn't want her dirty laundry aired out for all of La Guardia to see. "Just go tell Vince and Hunter that's the plan. Then we need to talk…all of us, not Hunter, but the rest of us. This family is dysfunctional, and I'm sick of it. So go do what your sister says."

"Okay…" Shane was confused, still ignoring his wife's presence. Stephanie handed Sawyer off for what seemed like the fiftieth time in the past couple hours and went up to her sister-in-law, hugging her tightly.

"Rissa, are you okay?" Stephanie whispered to the shorter woman.

"Yeah, I'm okay," Marissa said, obviously shell-shocked. "You were right, we should talk, all of us. Do you think that you guys can give me a ride to your parent's house? I'm…not much…I don't want to ride with your brother right now."

"Of course, of course you can," Stephanie said soothingly. "It'll all work out okay, it'll all be okay."

"Thanks Steph," Marissa said, blinking slowly as if her world were tumbling down.

"Hey baby, I'm um…going to drum up a baby-sitter for the kid," Chris told his wife. "I don't think he should have to hear a patented McMahon blowout."

Stephanie nodded silently, hugging Marissa tighter. Chris looked at Marissa a moment and was again so grateful that Britt had taken him up to his room before he had made a mistake like Shane's because he would've died if he had put a look like that on Stephanie's face. He loved his wife so much, and if he had hurt her like Marissa was hurting now, he would've just keeled over. He plunked himself down next to Hunter.

"So…things around here are crazy," Chris said.

"Yeah, I just heard from Shane that Steph has gone into labor, she's looking quite remarkable for someone having a baby," Hunter said, glancing over at Stephanie. Chris laughed. "I called Shawn already, he knows what's up and he's going with it. I'm sure he'll think up some weird explanation. I guess this is the one time I actually kind of have to work with those guys."

"It's not so bad, you learn, right? They were your family for a while."

"They were, but I got outta there, now you're stuck with them," Hunter chuckled. He looked at Sawyer, who seemed to be studying him. "Hey there, tough guy."

"There's some shit we work out with Steph's family and I was wondering, and you don't have to, if you could maybe, baby-sit Sawyer," Chris said hesitantly. He knew that he was asking a lot of Hunter, and that it might make the other man uncomfortable, but he was at a loss. If they had been in Florida, Christian or Kurt would be there to baby-sit (he officially wasn't speaking to Trish as of hearing that she had left Sawyer alone), but in Connecticut, he knew nobody.

"You want me to take care of your son?" Hunter asked with incredulity in his voice. That was a big responsibility and Hunter was loath to admit that he was kind of honored that Chris would actually ask him.

"Yeah, if you don't mind, if you're busy or you wanted to go do something…"

"No, I'd be happy to," Hunter said, a genuine smile gracing his face. "I'm actually kind of surprised you would trust me with your son."

"Hell, nowadays, you can't really trust anyone, but just keep an eye on him okay? Like, whatever you do, keep an eye on him. He doesn't really do a lot, he likes his toys, they're in his diaper bag. Diapers are in there too, extra clothes. Um, that's his car-seat, you can just strap that in the backseat of your car. There's um…bottles in his bag, a few of them. Heat them for about thirty seconds and test them on your arm. I don't think this will last too long, but there's formula in the bag too, directions on the container. He'll probably be awake for a while, but he might nap. Otherwise, he's just good to go."

Chris handed Sawyer over to Hunter and Hunter took him into his arms gently. He was still so small, and Hunter almost felt like he could break him just by touching him. He looked down to the little boy. This was so weird to just be holding him, to look at him. He had hoped once upon a time for a little boy, and though this little guy wasn't his, it was nice to be included in his life, however small.

"I think I got all that," Hunter said, standing up. He put Sawyer in his car-seat and shouldered both his bag and Sawyer's diaper bag. "If you need me, you have my number, I'll take good care of him."

"Thanks man, this is above and beyond," Chris said, kissing his son goodbye. "You really didn't have to do this."

"You know what? I think I did," Hunter told him. "Good luck with the mad house."

Chris watched as Hunter walked off with his son. He knew that he could trust Hunter, he didn't know how he could trust Hunter, but he knew that he could trust Hunter. He turned back to where Marissa and Stephanie were still hugging. He went over to the two women and put his hands on their backs and gently went to guide them. Shane walked over quickly and Marissa composed herself.

"Hey Ris, are we going, since Steph seems to need to go to Mom and Dad's house."

"I don't NEED to," Stephanie said. "But we're going."

"I'm going with Chris and Steph," Marissa told him.

"What? Why?"

"I'm going with them," she said, her voice raising a little bit more.

"Okay…"

Shane watched as his wife walked away from him, and wondered what was going to happen.

* * *

Trish took a deep breath, "Christian, I made out with Shane…no Trish, you can't sound nonchalant. Chrissy, baby, I'm sorry, I made out with Shane, it didn't go further than that. No, that sounds stupid and patronizing. Christian, I have some…no, Christian, Chrissy, please forgive me…damn it Stratus, get a grip!" 

Trish was trying to think of ways that she could tell Christian that she had cheated on him. She knew that no matter what she said, Christian was going to be extremely hurt. She had spent the last week away from him, saying that she needed to unpack and get everything in its place in her new home so they should take a breather. In actuality, she was just so ashamed of what she had done, what she had done with a MARRIED man, who was her friend and her best friend's brother. She was just so ashamed and she didn't know what had come over her.

Then there was this thing with Carlito. Obviously Carlito didn't think her relationship with Christian was very serious. She hated to admit it, but she had had a wandering eye lately as it is. Hence, her kissing Shane last week. Maybe she was subconsciously trying to get out of her relationship with Christian. Hell, she didn't even know anymore. She was being hit at from all sides and she was just trying to go along for the ride.

"Hey, they had chicken fingers in catering, awesome!" Christian said as he came into the room, waving a chicken finger in his hand. "With honey mustard dipping sauce!"

"Great," Trish said as she looked at his happy face. She didn't know why she did these things. She had never cheated on anyone before, and now, now she had hurt so many people by one stupid act. Sure, Shane was good-looking and a genuinely good man, but he was married, and she was attached. It had been wrong, so very, very wrong…yet good too, she had to admit that to herself. Very good.

"Yeah, it's awesome, I love when there's good catering. So when do you think Chris and Steph are getting here? I wanted to talk to Chris."

"Oh, I don't know," Trish said, feeling like she was bursting at the seams. "Christian?"

"Yeah Trishy?"

"I made out with Shane," she said. She just put it out there. She didn't know how else to do it. This was the best way. No beating around the bush, no nothing, just the God honest truth.

Christian laughed. "Nice one Trishy, I love when you joke around. That'd be something. Shane's married with two kids, and we're together."

"Christian, I made out with Shane last week and Stephanie caught us."

"Okay Steph caught you, and she didn't burst with anger and tell me, that's not Stephanie and all that. She'd definitely tell."

"We had left Sawyer alone, she's so mad about that, she didn't talk to me for the rest of the week. That's just what happened. I'm sorry Chrissy, but I felt like you were smothering me, and I just can't take it. The time we were apart…it hardened me or something. It made me realize that I was okay alone without YOU. But then you came back and it was like, I suddenly didn't know how to behave around you. I don't know, I guess I haven't forgiven you for leaving me yet."

"You made out with Shane?" Christian said, believing it now. She nodded slowly. "Shane McMahon?"

"Yes, I did."

Christian's face scrunched up into a weird grimace. He was trying to wrap his mind around this. He couldn't believe this. He had been so worried about Carlito and he should've been worried about…Shane? This was just the weirdest thing that ever could've happened. Shane and Trish had always been friends and now they were making out! Christian closed his eyes.

"Are you with him?"

"With Shane? No, Chrissy, no. It was a mistake. It was…an error. My mind was…elsewhere. It was…I don't know where."

"And then you fly me all the way to Cincy to tell me!"

"No, I didn't fly you here to tell you. That's not what this about. Chrissy, I just…you needed to know."

"I've got to think about this Trish, I'm going to fly back to Florida, I'll trade in my ticket and go home. You need to think too okay. I can't be mad at you because I've done the same thing to you. I just think we need to think. I'm sorry if you thought that I was smothering you Trish, I never meant to do it. I just…the time I spent away from you was some of the…it was hard for me too Trish. I know it was hard for you, but every day that I didn't spend with you, every time I saw you on television, when I saw you with that Jack guy, it killed me too Trish. When you took me back, I never thought that would happen so I ran with it, I clung to you so tightly that…I guess it was smothering you, but I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry Chrissy, we just…we don't know what we want. We've been up and down so much that now when we're up, we're anticipating the down. I hate that. I want forever with you Chrissy, but I'm not sure we'll ever get there."

"So…we think."

"I guess we think…"

"I'll see you later Trish, I'll call you tomorrow, or the day after…"

When Christian left, he leaned against the wall. Pretending like he wasn't hurt had been the hardest thing that he had ever had to do. He bit his lip and leaned his head back. Edge and Lita were walking down the hallway and Edge thought he saw his brother up ahead of him. He peered over the top of his sunglasses and saw that it was Christian.

"Wait here babe," Edge whispered to Lita, who nodded (since that's pretty much what she's been relegated to). Edge walked up to his brother and patted him on the shoulder. "What's up younger bro?"

"Nothing," Christian said.

"Dude, you're my brother, I grew up with you, stop lying and tell me what's really up with you," Edge told him sternly.

"Don't you have a match to get ready for or a girl to bone or something?" Christian asked.

"Man, you know that I care about you," Edge said quietly. "Don't let that go around, but that's the truth of the situation. So tell me, tell your big brother."

"Look, it has to do with Trish, and I might…look, it's nothing, I'll see you later," Christian told his brother.

Christian walked off as his brother watched.

* * *

Linda stared at her family sitting in the living room. She had been surprised to see them all come here, and at first, she had thought that it would be a nice evening, but looking around, it was anything but happy faces that she saw. She sat in an armchair, Vince across from her in another chair. Chris and Stephanie were squished onto a loveseat, Stephanie half in Chris's lap, and Shane and Marissa were sitting on opposite ends of the couch. 

"So, why did you bring us here Stephanie?" Shane said.

"Because you're a cheating bastard!" Marissa yelled, finally letting her emotions out. "You apparently made out with Trish Stratus!"

"What!" Shane yelled, standing up and glaring at Stephanie, "YOU TOLD HER!"

"No, I told my husband, Marissa overheard!" Stephanie yelled at her brother.

"So it's true, so it's not just this stupid little rumor Stephanie heard huh? You made out with Trish! She's your friend! How could you do that! You're my husband, MY husband! We have two sons!"

"Well maybe it was a mistake!" Shane said out of anger and Marissa collapsed on the couch crying.

"How could you say that to her!" Stephanie said, standing up. "You made a commitment to her! You don't see me going around making out with people!"

"What about these feelings that you had when Hunter said he was going to start dating people? Huh?"

"Who told you about that?" Stephanie asked in horror.

"You still have feelings for Hunter?" Vince asked, incensed. "That man is a disease! He has no redeemable qualities, he dumped shit on me for God's sake. This is horrible!"

"I don't have feelings for Hunter!" Stephanie shouted to everyone, looking at Chris. "I explained it to Chris, he understands. I only felt that it was weird. It IS weird, none of you would know, none of you. It's nothing okay! And I would never make out with him, not now, not ever again, not unless I had to for some odd reason! But you're horrible for saying that to Rissa."

"I'm sorry Rissa, it's not what I mean, it's just that I don't know what I want."

"You want to kiss Trish," she said bitterly, turning away from Shane.

"While we're on the subject of Triple H, what is with the two of you and him?" Vince asked.

"None of your damn business Dad," Stephanie snapped at him. "What me and my husband do, or who we're friends with is none of your concern."

"How could you kiss her!" Marissa blurted out. "How could you do that to me!"

"I'm not happy Marissa, I'm just not, I feel like I'm a failure okay. I feel like a bad husband and a bad father and I didn't know how to deal with that," Shane confessed, then pointed at Chris. "And this guy was no help whatsoever."

"Don't go pointing fingers at me!" Chris yelled at him. "I never said, 'Hey, go make out with our friend,' did I?"

"No, but you had to gushing about your wife," Shane said. "Making me look like a complete idiot. Oh, I love my wife, she's wonderful, she's beautiful, she's everything I ever wanted. Like I need to hear that when I have a crisis."

"Correct me if I'm wrong _Shane_, but it was you who asked me how I felt about my wife. I just told you the goddamn truth, excuse me for having you interpret that as an invitation to grope someone else."

"You gushed about me?" Stephanie said, grinning at Chris and nuzzling her nose against his.

"Oh _give it up_, you two," Shane gagged. "Nobody wants to hear about your damn perfect lives."

"Perfect lives, oh please, you have no idea about our lives, they're not perfect," Stephanie countered.

"Well then shut up altogether."

"Shane, don't tell your sister to shut up," Linda warned.

"At least they're happy," Marissa mumbled loudly. "At least he loves her and he doesn't make out with his friends. And to think, I completely trusted you at these shows. Shane McMahon, upstanding citizen, that's a bold-faced lie."

"Look Rissa, I'm sorry it came out this way, but it's true, I just felt like a nothing. I mean, come on, I'm my dad's lackey--"

"You're my what?" Vince asked.

"Lackey Dad, it means you have Shane doing all your crap for you because he's a freaking suck-up," Stephanie said with a head bob of sassiness.

"Oh, okay, Daddy's little girl," Shane said sarcastically.

"Hello, um, have you seen me be Daddy's little girl lately?" Stephanie shot back. "No, because my daddy was making out with some floozy while I was giving labor, right Daddy? That's what you were doing, right?"

"Stephanie, I don't want to get into this."

"Oh, of course not, let's not do that. Let's not face the fact that you don't care about me or my son."

"I care a helluva lot!" Vince shouted at her.

"Lies Daddy, lies," Stephanie taunted. "You weren't there for me when I needed you, you were NEVER there when I needed you to be there!"

"I was always there, I was building something for you. I wanted to be with you and Sawyer, I did!"

"No, because you would've been there. You would've…" Stephanie said, trying to remain calm. "You were there when Marissa gave birth to Kenyon, but you weren't there for me! Damn you Dad, I needed you to be there!"

"Look everyone, once again Stephanie has made it ALL about her," Shane said derisively.

"Shut up Shane," Stephanie said to him.

"Yeah, shut up," Marissa said. "She isn't what this is about. You've said all your crap about being a bad father and husband, but don't you think that the whole kissing thing makes you a bad husband. How could you cheat on me like that?"

"Because she was there!" he yelled, "She was there and she was gorgeous and I wanted to kiss her! Is that what you want to hear? I've wanted to kiss her for a long time, she's so pretty damn it. But then I found out about Kenyon, and then Declan and I married you, and I kept it in check for a long time but everyone has a breaking point Marissa. I reached mine, as if it wasn't bad enough with my home life, I had my father sticking me in matches without asking."

"I did no such thing," Vince protested.

"Like hell you did Dad, just last week, you put me into a match with Shawn Michaels that I didn't even know about until you told me, the least you can do is tell me these things."

"You're my son, you should want to do those things."

"No, you should ask _because _I'm your son!"

"Well fine then."

"That's why Marissa, because my life sucks right now, okay, it sucks and I'm floundering, and then my sister--"

"Don't bring me into this Shane," Stephanie warned, her bitch face on. "This is not about me."

"Fine, it's not, but things haven't been good, we should've waited, we shouldn't have been impulsive."

"You think you're the only one that thinks that!" Marissa screamed, standing up and walking to the window, looking out. It was far too nice a sunset for such a crappy evening. "You think that you're the only one who feels overwhelmed, well you're not, I've been overwhelmed too, but I haven't run off with some guy. I stood my ground! I stayed and I worked through it because I love you, and you don't even love me the same way do you?"

"Rissa."

"Shut up Shane, my turn to talk! You don't get it, this is EXACTLY why I never told you that I was pregnant with Declan. You tried to do the right thing, like always Shane, but sometimes it's not the right thing. I knew you were too immature."

"Fine, whatever, I'm immature, I'm done here, DONE!" Shane yelled.

"With our marriage?"

"I don't know," he sulked.

"You're not my lackey," Vince muttered.

"Yes he is, the both of you are pathetic," Stephanie guffawed. "And for the record, it was me who stuck those papers on your backs last week."

"WHAT!" Vince exclaimed, his face starting to turn that fetching shade of red. Stephanie laughed and threw her head back.

"You both deserve it. Especially you Shane for leaving Sawyer by himself."

"You left Sawyer by himself?" Linda asked.

"He was just in the next room," Shane said sheepishly.

"Yeah, alone," Stephanie said. "With nobody watching him. Anyone could've taken him, and then what would've happened."

"Oh Shane…" Linda said with disappointment.

Marissa started laughing, "Oh, that's rich. Not only do you make out with someone, you neglect your sister's baby. This bodes SO well for D and J."

"It wasn't like that."

"Oh yeah, Sawyer wasn't all alone," Stephanie said. "He wasn't all by himself. A piece of paper on your back stating that you like cocks is the least of your worries."

"He was fine Stephanie."

Chris had heard enough at this and set Stephanie down beside him. He almost lunged across the table and grabbed Shane by the collar. He practically lifted Shane off the ground. "Don't you tell me my son was fine when you left him alone Shane! Don't you go around thinking that it was okay to leave him in a room by himself! So help me God Shane, if anything had happened to my son, you would not be here alive right now to get caught out by your wife. I have a good mind to punch the hell out of you for treating my son like that, and then dismissing it like it was nothing."

"Let go of him, he's not worth it sweetie," Stephanie said gently, putting her arm on Chris's arm trying to calm down the irate man. "It won't solve anything."

"Just one punch Steph, just one," Chris pleaded.

"No sweetie, I'd love nothing more than for that to happen, but you can't."

"Fine," Chris said, letting Shane down gently.

Shane sighed and went to adjust his collar, his heart pounding thinking that Chris was going to punch him. He would've deserved it too, with what he had done. He turned to his sister, and was met with her hand rearing back and slapping him across the face so hard that a red mark was immediately seen on his cheek. Stephanie snarled as Chris's eyes widened and he leaned back a little to look at his wife. The other people in the room held their breath.

"Don't you ever, EVER do what you did again or you'll get worse," Stephanie growled. "I'm so sick and tired of you lamenting your own life, nobody's life is a picnic Shane, get over yourself."

"I'll get over myself when you get over yourself."

"Very funny," she said, Chris leading her back over to their seat.

"Okay, obviously we all have issues here," Linda said, trying to remain calm in the face of her family falling apart. "There's a lot going on here. I think that maybe we should air these grievances out before this gets out of control."

"More out of control than this?" Vince asked with disbelief. "I find that hard to believe."

"We'll each just take some time apart, think about what we need to say and we'll work through this. We're a family, all of us, and we have to get through this, there are children involved," Linda said, once again being the voice of reason amid the chaos. But that's who Linda was. She didn't like seeing her family at odds. It always broke her heart. "Now, the show is starting very shortly, Vince, you probably have some business to take care of, Shane, Marissa, you obviously need to think, and Chris and Stephanie, you probably need to cool down too, and then we can rationally talk about our problems."

"Chris and I will be in my room," Stephanie said immediately, grabbing Chris's hand and pulling him upstairs and away from the volatile situation. They padded their way down to Stephanie's old room. Chris always got a kick out of being in here. It was so pink and frilly and so girly. It was like he was a teenage guy again sneaking into some virginal girl's room to make out with her while her parents were blissfully unaware. She flopped down on the bed and he turned on the television, putting it on USA and then muting it until the show started.

"So what do you think they're going to say about you?"

"That I'm in labor," she said as she turned on her stomach. "That I'm pushing something out of my body right now. Let them think it, serves them right. They hate me anyways, why should they be privy to my private life."

"They shouldn't," Chris said, laying down on the bed next to her. "So…what happens next?"

"I don't know, we yell some more, act like idiots, normal evening at the McMahon house."

"No, I mean on the show, people think you're having a baby, and we want to protect Sawyer."

"Yeah, protecting Sawyer is priority number one, maybe we should've told that to my darling brother," she said with a hint of venom in her voice. "Honestly, I don't want anyone to know about Sawyer, not just yet, not until he's old enough to…I don't know, not until I'M old enough to take the snide comments."

"You know, everyone is going to be all like nice to you, the fans that is, because they think you have this baby and you can't be all bad."

"No, I don't think so, they may for a while, but the moment, the second that I do something that they don't like, it's back to me being a dirty slut with a baby with no father, even though my baby has a father, a damn good one."

"So what are we going to do then? Pretend you have this baby that you don't have, that'd be funny actually, just make up a baby, completely the opposite of Sawyer."

"Yeah, a girl," Stephanie laughed. "Since Sawyer's a boy, oh God, would that terrify him when he's older, saying he was a girl."

"But this isn't Sawyer, this is some other weird baby that lives in our minds. A girl apparently, and I bet she's got a beautiful name."

"Oh but of course," Stephanie said, looking around the room, her eyes falling on an old cassette of her favorite Disney movie, _Sleeping Beauty_, and she laughed to herself, "named Aurora."

"Where'd you get Aurora from?" Chris asked as he scooted next to her so he was spooning her, his lips softly brushing against her ear as he rested his arm down her side.

"_Sleeping Beauty_. Princess Aurora, come on Chris, keep up."

"I'm sorry, I only have a son, and he's going to like hockey," Chris said. "Aurora, pretty name, and a middle name, she'll need a middle name."

"Rose," she said, spotting her dried up prom corsage on her shelf.

"Aurora Rose, yeah, that's nice, nothing like Sawyer McMahon," Chris said. "That's funny, you know, maybe now would be a good time to check up on said Sawyer McMahon Jericho. I mean, he is with Trips, who knows, he may be the new member of D-X, and then I'll just…well, I'll have to join too." She laughed and reached back until she was in Chris's back pocket. "Hey, hey there Gropey, I know you like the goods, but in your old bed, I'd feel like a dirty old man having sex with you in here with your…New Kids on the Block posters…"

"Newsflash, we've had sex in here," Stephanie said as she grabbed his cell phone. She flipped through his numbers until she got to Hunter's, letting the phone dial as she listened for it to pick up.

"Hello?"

"Hey Hunter, it's Stephanie and Chris, and we're just hoping that our baby is okay and you know, still kicking around, because he is right?" she asked, putting the phone on speaker.

"Yeah, he's here, he didn't like leaving you though, cried for a while, but he's better now, we're watching all the times that I kicked Chris's ass in some match, it's fun and educational."

"Jackass," Chris said over the phone.

"Actually, he's a really good baby, he's not that fussy."

"Good, we just wanted to check up on him," Stephanie said, glancing up. "Oh, the show's starting. Guess what Hunter?"

"What?"

"I had a baby girl named Aurora Rose," Stephanie told him. "She's beautiful."

"Wow, she sounds beautiful," he joked back. "How does Sawyer feel about being replaced?"

"You can keep him," Stephanie said. "We got the newer model so I don't need him anymore."

Hunter chuckled. "Oh, apparently I'm at the hospital, and I know who the father is. Do I know who the father is Stephanie?"

"Do you Hunter? I mean, you are the King of Kings, you really should know what's going on around here. Can you imagine if you were lurking around a hospital, that'd be creepy, I'd call security on you."

"I'd just want to see this Aurora Rose, she'd be so gorgeous."

"I'm satisfied with my little boy though," Stephanie said. "But it's still funny. I think Chris and I are going to keep this charade up. I just…" She sighed and closed her eyes for a second. "I don't want them saying the shit I heard them saying about my baby."

"What did they say Steph?"

"That he was devil spawn and other stupid stuff," she said lowly.

"That's horrible, no wonder you want to protect him. Well, as long as you want me to go along with this Aurora thing, you've definitely got me, okay, the both of you."

"Thanks," Stephanie said. "Well, I better go, thanks for everything, we'll be by to pick up Sawyer later."

"Take your time, I've beaten Chris a lot."

"Not cool man, not cool." They hung up the phone and Chris kissed her temple. "So when did we start liking Trips?"

"I don't know, I guess when hell froze over."

"We trust him with our son."

"We do," she laughed. "Oh God, we trust him with our son."

They went silent, just thinking about that and laughing silently to themselves. Stephanie went through the numbers saved on Chris's phone, the seemingly endless lists of numbers of people, some of whom she didn't think she knew. Chris just watched her going through his numbers, wondering if she was getting jealous or anything if she saw any woman's number she didn't know. He watched her face, but she just seemed curious.

"Who's Gus?" Stephanie asked.

"You don't know, wow, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho isn't on top of her game, this is definitely a first. Motherhood has changed you and I'm afraid to say it is for the worst."

"Who is Gus you jackass," she said playfully.

"One of the new backstage guys, just hired a couple days ago. Your dad called me to tell me, I guess he knew that calling you would be a fruitless endeavor."

"So um…do you think this guy knows that I'm not pregnant?" Stephanie said, her eyes gleaming in a way that Chris knew all too well.

"Stephanie McMahon…what are you thinking?"

"Why is it I'm sometimes Stephanie McMahon and sometimes Stephanie McMahon-Jericho with you?"

"Because sometimes I don't want my name associated with your name," he teased, brushing a kiss over her lips. "So that's when you're Stephanie McMahon. If I know you, and I do, I've been with you for more than four years--"

"A week more, big deal," she interjected.

"Yeah, but four years is a long time, that's an entire president's term, but as I was saying before you rudely interrupted me, if I know you, and I do, you are planning on haranguing this poor backstage guy into thinking you are pregnant."

"So? I am, aren't I?"

"Baby, don't even joke. Because if you're pregnant again, I'm going to freak out and maybe jump out this window."

"Well, I was pregnant, and come on, it'll be fun," she said enticingly.

"No, fun is when I get to see you naked, that's fun, this…not so fun I'm gonna have to say," he told her.

"I'll make it worth your while…"

"Again, naked fun." She dialed the number and waited for the poor victim to answer the phone. "You're evil, you know that right?"

"Oh come on, you knew that before you married me."

"Hello."

"Hello, is this Gus?" Stephanie asked.

"Yes, who's this?"

"It's Stephanie McMahon, you know, the woman in labor, oh, oww, it hurts, pain, pain," Stephanie said, feigning pain. Chris snickered behind her and she put her fingers over her lips to shush her.

"Um, Ms. McMahon, aren't you supposed to be in labor?"

"Oh, I am Gus, I am, hold on, gotta push." Stephanie pulled away from the phone for a few seconds and held in her laughter as Chris rolled his eyes at her and spanked her ass a little. She returned to the phone. "Hey Gus, me again. I just wanted to make sure that the show was going well without me there."

"Oh, um, yes, um…I had heard you were a workaholic."

"Yeah, I am, work in the delivery room."

"That's true," Chris whispered to her and she swatted at his arm to keep him quiet. "Oww!"

"Hold on again Gus," Stephanie said, pulling the phone away from her ear and then studying her nails. She needed a good manicure. Stephanie was about to turn to Chris when he kissed her passionately. She almost got lost in it and did for a few seconds before pulling away. "Hey Gus, just had the baby, it's a girl, Aurora Rose, she's like, eight pound seven ounces or something, yeah, you should have them announce it or something."

"Um, Ms. McMahon, don't you think you should be resting?" said the traumatized young man.

"Oh, I should huh? That's a good idea, why didn't I think of that? You really WERE a good hire Gus. I'm glad we have someone like you on the crew. Well, thanks Gus."

"Okay Ms. McMahon, um…congratulations?"

"Oh for what? Oh yeah, the baby yeah, the baby, now make sure you go tell people Gus."

"Oh of course, yeah, yeah…" he answered, his voice trailing off as Stephanie said goodbye and hung up, laughing uproariously.

"You're going to hell, you know that right?"

* * *

Trish had been wandering around backstage when she ran into Carlito. He was a welcome distraction to her current woes. Their words were light and breezy at first, asking how the other was doing and commenting about their matches. Speaking with Carlito was easy she found. He had a very easy nature about him and she felt comfortable when she was around him. She liked that feeling. She even liked it when he was leaning in to whisper in her ear. She couldn't speak Spanish, but whatever he was saying sounded sexy as hell to her anyways. She told him that she didn't speak it, and he seemed cool with that, like he had anticipated it or something. He asked her to hang out after his match and she couldn't help but want to do it so badly. When he was whispering in her ear those words that made no sense to her, something had stirred inside of her. He was so close to her, so close his breath was warm against her cheek. She didn't mean to feel like this, but it was so difficult not to. 

When he was walking away, she couldn't help but stare after him. She couldn't help but stare AT him. He was so different from her type, the opposite of Christian it seemed, but that was a good thing, maybe. Maybe it was good that he was different. She wanted to hang out with Carlito, and see, see if maybe Christian wasn't the one she was meant to be with forever, but just the one she was meant to be with for right now. That thought broke her heart though.

She walked to the gorilla to watch Carlito's match. She wanted to wait for him. She liked the prospect of hanging out with him later. A part of her just didn't want to be alone right now, but another part of her was giddy at the chance to go out with Carlito. She was finding more and more things to like about him as each week passed. She hoped that things went well tonight. She heard some commotion behind her and she saw a man rushing to the gorilla where Todd Grisham was standing.

"No, you have to tell them, I got direct orders from Stephanie on the baby."

"But that makes no sense," Todd says.

"Direct orders, that's what she wanted me to say."

"But earlier was just fake, right?" Todd said, confused at what this man was saying.

"I don't know, but she said it and I don't want to be fired."

"Well, okay then."

Trish wondered what that was about and watched as Todd went out to the ramp and announced that Stephanie had given birth to a little…girl? Trish narrowed her eyes and cocked her head, completely befuddled by what was going on. She stood there in surprise for a moment, but then remembered earlier they were playing that up for some reason. She hadn't heard why none of the McMahons were here and she was starting to get a little worried. She thought about who to call and they were all out of the question except one person.

Shane was in the dining room, sitting with a glass of brandy in front of him. His cell phone rang in his pocket and he answered it without looking at the display. "Shane McMahon."

"Hey Shane it's Trish."

"Trish," he whispered, looking around for his wife, like she was lurking. "What are you doing calling me?"

"I just wanted to know what's wrong? Announcing Stephanie had a baby girl named like Astoria or something, I don't know, it was just weird. Oh God, is Sawyer okay?" she asked.

"Oh, we got stuck in Connecticut, no incoming flights to Cincy, so we were stuck, Stephanie came up with that in passing, but what are you talking about a baby girl?"

"Todd just announced it to the crowd, it was weird," Trish said.

"Okay, that IS weird, I think it's time to get back to this family meeting…Trish?"

"Yeah?"

"Rissa found out."

"Oh," was her only response. "I told Christian."

"Oh," he repeated. "And?"

"We're thinking, you?"

"We're fighting. Thanks for letting me know what's going on at the show though?"

"I was just as confused as you were."

"Bye Trish."

"Bye Shane."

Shane looked at the glass in front of him and stood up, going into the foyer. "I'm ready for round two!"

Everyone heard his shouting and they reconvened in the living room. They looked tired, drawn out, especially Chris and Stephanie, who looked a little unkempt too. Stephanie licked her lips a little and gazed at Chris, who looked flushed. She patted his leg and then squeezed in next to him on the couch. Linda took her seat and looked around.

"First off, Stephanie, you have a daughter?" Shane said.

First she turned to Chris, "I can't believe Gus fell for that." Then she turned to her brother, "Yeah Shane, I decided to have another baby, another baby that Dad wouldn't be there for. It was a joke Shane. I'm protecting my son."

"Why does he need protecting?" Vince asked.

"Because he has you for a grandfather," Stephanie said in a sickeningly sweet voice, letting Vince know she was hating him right now.

"And you as a mother," Shane said derisively.

"What was that Shane?" Stephanie asked coldly.

"Gonna slap me again little girl?"

"Don't call me that Shane O' Mac, you douche," Stephanie said, sticking her tongue out at him. "You don't have to go around with people thinking your child is going to be the spawn of the devil, or thinking that your child is going to be fatherless because its mother is a slut, so just shut your damn mouth before I shut it for you!"

"I'm SO scared," Shane told her, waving her hands around and acting scared.

"Oh yeah, and like you're scary. You were so frightening when you got that crap dumped on you, or when your face met Dad's ass, you were downright scary!" Stephanie said and Chris had to laugh at that.

"Oh, I'm sorry you couldn't be a kiss-up," Shane said. "Since that's all you seem to be good at."

"At least I don't go around cheating on my husband!" Stephanie said and that rightfully shut her brother up. She had never cheated willingly on any of her husbands.

"Who wants to start?" Linda said sarcastically as the noise died down.

"I've got nothing left to say," Marissa said. "I need to reassess everything."

"Fine, me too," Shane said, folding his arms and not looking at her.

"Oh, don't you go playing the high and might card now," Marissa hissed at him. "That's my role. You're the one who cheated."

"Fine, whatever."

"Okay, that's going to get resolved later I hope," Linda said, moving on quickly, "Stephanie what about you and your father? That's been stewing for a long time."

"I don't really have much to say," Stephanie shrugged. "I've said my piece. I think my father is a dirty, old scumbag who wasn't there for me on the biggest day of my life, BIGGEST day of my life, bigger than my wedding, bigger than my college graduation."

"Well maybe if I had known about your relationship with Chris for the first, oh, I don't know, year and a half that it happened, I might've been."

"You're trying to throw THAT in my face!" Stephanie said sardonically. "Please Dad, don't insult me. This isn't even on par with that. I was giving birth! You were making out with Candice! You're just as bad a Shane."

"Hey!"

"It's true," Marissa said, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, so how can I forgive that? Tell me, anyone, anyone? Tell me how I can possibly forgive my father for that?" Nobody said a word. "Yeah, that's what I thought, that's exactly what I thought! None of you know how it feels, none of you!"

Chris rubbed up and down her back, letting her know that he was there. Vince cleared his throat, "May I explain myself?"

"Whatever, I don't care."

"Do you want to hear it?"

"I just want to make things right with you. I need to make things right with you."

"Too late," she said loudly. "You permanently ruined everything when you chose Candice over me and your grandson. You blew it Dad, you blew it in monumental proportions. Do you know how you made me feel? Where were you when Rissa had J, hmm? If I recall correctly, you were waiting patiently at the hospital, and just because I didn't want any of you at the hospital doesn't mean that I didn't want you anywhere in the city. You were so willing and happy to see J after he was born and where were you when Sawyer was born, huh Dad? You completely ditched us and that says a lot more about you than anything else."

"Stephanie, I'm so sorry," Vince said contritely. "You have no idea."

"I don't care anymore Dad, you're my father in name only."

Vince got up and went to sit on the coffee table in front of his daughter, looking for all the world the father she had never had, someone who actually cared. "I made a terrible mistake that night. I know that I get carried away sometimes--"

"Mmhmm," Stephanie said condescendingly.

"Well, yes, I know you know. I got carried away that night. My explanation might sound ridiculous, but it is what it is. Stephanie, you're my only daughter. You've been the light of my life since you were born, my little Princess. You used to follow me around, asking me what I was doing, declaring that you were going to be just like me when you grew up. In a strange twist of fate, you did end up like me, except you have your mother's heart, you and Shane both do, and I'm grateful for that. You were a Daddy's Girl from the very beginning and I knew that you were going to be something great. You ARE something great."

"Well duh," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "Where are you going with this Dad?"

"You grew up Stephanie," Vince continued. "You grew up and you turned into this spectacular young woman. You've been self-sufficient for ages and you've plowed your way through many obstacles. And look at yourself, you have something really great here, and I'm so proud of you. You have no idea how proud I am of you. I brag about you to all my associates because you're an incredible person. When you went into labor, it hit me. You weren't my little girl anymore, you weren't my little Princess. You didn't follow me around asking what I was doing all the time. You were having a little baby of your own…and I thought about my little girl in pain and it scared me. I have tried for so long to never have you go through any kind of pain. It's why I fought Hunter for you even though you turned on me. It's why I eventually joined up with you, so you could have your family, it's why I wanted to break Hunter after he dumped you. It's why I hired you back after Hunter got you kicked out, I wanted you to be back. And I know that I've caused you a lot of pain too, and again, I get carried away, you know I've never been good at resisting temptation. But when I thought about you being in pain, when I thought about how I was losing my little girl, I snapped, I didn't want to think about it, and I gave in to Candice, like I always do. But that didn't mean that I didn't love you. I was so scared for you. But you're Stephanie McMahon and I don't know why I was worrying, because look at you. You're married, you've got a top notch husband who is willing to threaten anyone who dares hurt his wife, you've got a home, you do a wonderful job working for me, whether or not you're at the show, and you've got this little boy who I'm sure is going to love having you for a mother. You don't need me anymore Stephanie, and I just didn't want to believe I was losing my little girl forever."

Stephanie looked down. "That's all well and good Dad, but it's going to take time, you hurt me so bad, you hurt my son. Chris, I want to go."

"We're going," Chris said, knowing that probably half of what Vince said was true, and half was lies.

When they were out the door, they stood there, shell-shocked by the evening's activities and the words spoken. They hadn't gotten everything they needed to say out, but things were out there. Time would only tell what would happen between the family. Time would also hopefully heal all wounds…or just make them deep, gaping holes that festered. That was probably where they were headed.

"So how much B.S. was your dad spewing back there?"

"The man's a great liar," Stephanie said. "That's all. Protecting me all these years? That's such crap."

"So what do you say we go pick up our daughter and our son and go back home?"

"Oh yeah, that'll be fun."

"So…people are going to be expecting something to happen now…"

When Chris looked at Stephanie, he saw that gleam again, and he knew he was in for another adventure.


	99. Warring Factions, July 31, 2006

Stephanie was wrapped completely around Chris, her leg thrown across both of his. It looked like she had just collapsed on him, which was partly true. They got so little sleep nowadays that they pretty much did just collapse into bed at night. The silence was broken by Sawyer's wailing and Stephanie groaned as she heard it over the baby monitor.

"Chris, your turn," she mumbled lowly, but Chris didn't hear her as he kept sleeping. She pushed her hand against him, "Chris, wake up, the baby…"

"Huh?" he asked sleepily.

"Sawyer, he's awake, your turn," Stephanie told him. She rolled off of him and Chris groaned, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He scooted over to the side of the bed and got up, stretching his arms over his head as he glanced at Stephanie, who had taken all the covers and made a tight cocoon around her body.

He padded his way to the door and opened it quietly, walking to his son's nursery and opening the door, walking over to the crib and looking down. "Hey kid, what's up? Decided that you couldn't let me and Mommy sleep for one night huh?"

He leaned down and picked up the still crying infant. Chris cradled him in his arms, but it didn't seem to help any. He felt his son's diaper and deciding he didn't need a change, he took the baby downstairs so that he wouldn't wake up Stephanie. He went into the kitchen to get Sawyer a bottle, moving him to one arm as he cradled him back and forth, hoping the soothing rhythm would quiet the baby. He got the bottle ready and brought him into the living room, sitting down on the couch with him.

He gave Sawyer the bottle and he drank about a quarter of it before deciding that he wasn't really hungry after all, he just wanted to cry. Chris winced and kept trying to rock him, but the little boy was having none of that is his face contorted into screeching. Chris brought him up to his shoulder and rubbed his back, pacing the floor trying to calm him down. Still, Sawyer was having none of it.

"Okay, you're being a little pissy now," Chris told him. "Let's go upstairs and we can lay down in my bed with Mommy and see if you can't calm down okay?"

Chris walked back upstairs and down the hallway to his bedroom. He walked inside and closed the door behind him so. He walked to the bed and sat down on the edge, turning on the lamp at his bedside. This woke Stephanie up and she groaned, then heard Sawyer's wailing right in her ear.

"What's wrong?" she asked hoarsely from sleep.

"He won't stop, I checked his diaper, I tried to feed him, he just wants to cry so I brought him in here," Chris said, still cradling the little boy in his arms. Sawyer was still crying, but they were getting weaker since he had been crying for so long.

"My poor little boy," Stephanie said, sitting up. "Sawyer, sweetie, what's wrong?"

Suddenly, Sawyer stopped crying. Chris looked at him, shocked that he had just stopped so abruptly. It also gave him a moment to collect his ear drums which had understandably been compromised with the infant screaming in his ear. "Ok, whoa, that was quick."

"He just got tired of crying, now you can put him back to bed," Stephanie said, leaning over to give Sawyer a kiss on the cheek. "Night baby-baby."

Chris stood up and brought Sawyer out of the room and back into his nursery, where he promptly started wailing again. Chris groaned and looked at his son. "Kid, work with me here, you were fine just a minute…ago."

Chris furrowed his brow and thought a moment. Sawyer had cried the entire time except when he was in their bedroom and Stephanie was awake. He decided to see something. He brought the baby back into the bedroom, where Stephanie shot straight out of bed, not expecting to hear Sawyer crying again.

"What's wrong?" she asked, her voice a little more worried.

"Keep talking," Chris said as he brought Sawyer to the bed.

"What do you mean keep talking?" Stephanie asked.

"Just keep talking, talk about anything, what about the contracts you were looking over today?"

"The contracts looked for the most part, fine. I mean, some of them have to be reworked of course, and I really hate some of the people, but you know, it happens, sometimes you have to work with people that you don't particularly care for," Stephanie said, and once again, Sawyer stopped crying and actually appeared to be happy and cooing. "But then again, I am the boss and I should be able to fire someone that I don't think is doing a good job."

"Steph, look," Chris said, gesturing down to their baby.

"What?" Stephanie asked, looking down at Sawyer, who had calmed down again. "Oh, he stopped crying, good."

"Don't you get it Steph?" Chris said.

"Get what?"

"He likes your voice."

"Huh?"

"He stopped crying both times I brought him in here and when you started talking," Chris said. "He likes your voice. I bet you that if I took him back into his nursery while he was awake, he'd start crying, but when he's in here, he hears you and he calms down."

"Because of me?"

"You are his mommy," Chris pointed out.

"Yeah, but MY voice," she said. "Nobody has ever liked my voice."

"I like your voice," Chris protested.

Stephanie crossed her arms and gave him a look. "Since when?"

"So I don't like it when it's all screechy, and yeah, I didn't like your voice when I hated you, and you can't sing for shit, but all in all, I like it. And Sawyer obviously loves it. Look at him, he's asleep, and probably from you talking."

"Wow, that's so--" The phone started ringing on the bedside and Chris and Stephanie both looked at each other with wide eyes. They hoped that it wouldn't wake up Sawyer. The last thing they needed was to wake up the baby. He had already been up for so long crying and they didn't want him to wake up again.

Stephanie answered the phone, "Who is this?"

"May I please speak to a Mrs. McMahon-Jericho?"

"This is she, who is this?" she asked again.

"Mrs. McMahon-Jericho, we had an incident at Titan earlier and we've tried contacting a Vince McMahon, and a Shane McMahon and haven't be able to reach them and apparently you are the next in command."

"An incident?" she asked, her eyes widening, "What kind of incident?"

"There was a large-scale act of vandalism on the building, it's a large spray-painted logo of some kind on the side. Security was distracted and somehow these people managed to infiltrate the building."

"I'll be right down," Stephanie sighed as she said her farewell and turned off the phone, looking to a confused Chris. "Apparently something happened down at Titan and they can't contact the rest of my family. I have to go down there and see what's going on. Take care of the baby?"

"Yeah, of course," Chris said, watching as Stephanie grabbed one of his sweatshirts and pulled it over her head and then slipped her feet into some flip-flops. She came over and gave him a kiss in goodbye, and he whispered, "Drive safely."

She nodded and was out of the house a few minutes later and driving to the office. She didn't know exactly what she was going to find there, but when she got there and saw the big spotlights on the building, her jaw dropped. She pulled into her parking space and got out slowly, still gaping at the building. She walked slowly up to where the police officers were gathered and stood there.

"Excuse me, you are?" one officer said, coming up to her.

"I'm Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, I was called here," she said, tearing her eyes off the building.

"We're looking into this ma'am. Don't worry."

"Okay…" she answered blankly, blinking in disbelief at the damage that had been done. Her father was going to flip his lid when he got here. Oh, she wanted to have a front row seat to that.

"What is going on here!" a voice shouted and she giggled in glee as she turned to her left and saw her father walking towards the building, Shane trailing behind him. She laughed to herself as she thought of Shane being their father's lackey at all times of the day.

In actuality, Shane had been at the elder McMahon's house and had been for the past week. After finding out about his indiscretion last week, Marissa had kicked Shane out of their house, declaring she needed time to think and she couldn't even look at Shane's face right now. Shane, who could've paid for a hotel, but didn't, was now staying with his parents because he sure as hell wasn't welcome in Stephanie's home. She laughed again as her father started yelling irately at the officer about who had done this.

Shane noticed that his sister was there and he stalked over to her, "Did you have anything to do with this?"

"What?" she asked in disbelief.

"Tell me, did you have anything to do with this!" Shane asked, gesturing to the building. "Since you seem to be so buddy-buddy with D-X now, I figured that maybe you would've helped them out with this too. So did you hold the paint buckets?" Shane sneered.

Stephanie folded her arms in front of her and scowled at her brother, "How dare you ask me if I had anything to do with this? Do you think I like being here in the middle of the night because the cops called me? I was in bed with my husband, sleeping, that's where I would love to be right now, but no, I have to be standing here, of course I didn't have anything to do with this! And you don't even know if this was D-X in the first place, what makes you even think they were involved!"

"Are you kidding me! It says D-X right on the building, you're telling me that they don't have anything to do with this!"

"You don't know, and if they did, I didn't have anything to do with it!"

"Well I was just wondering since it seems you and your ex-husband are in cahoots, it's only a matter of time before Chris kicks you out for doing something stupid."

"That doesn't even make sense," she told him. "Hunter and I are friends now, Chris and Hunter are friends now. Just because I choose to spend my time with them over my stupid, idiotic brother who _abandons_ my son doesn't matter, and shouldn't matter to you."

"Oh, so family doesn't matter now?"

"My family is back at home sleeping. My husband and my son are my family, Mom is my family, you and Dad can go take a flying leap for all I care!" Stephanie shouted. "You're the one who's being a jackass in all of this. I didn't go around making out with Trish!"

"It was a mistake, but thanks to you my wife found out."

"Oh, like she wouldn't have anyways."

"Go back to D-X baby girl," Shane said snidely. Stephanie's nostrils were flaring as she regarded her brother. Luckily the cops were there or she might be carted away after she pummeled her brother. She was about two seconds from physically assaulting him.

"I'm NOT in D-X!" she yelled at him. "But you know what, fine, I'm taking sides. I'm on D-X's side right now. I'll see you at Raw later big brother, and we'll see what's what. You want to play with me, you want to see what it's like to really play the game, you're on!"

Stephanie stomped back to her car, leaving this mess to her stupid family. She drove back home in an angry haze. She was careful though, she didn't want to get into an accident and make Chris worry about her any more than he probably was at the moment. When she got back home, she went upstairs and into the bedroom where Chris had the television on low. Sawyer was lying on the bed beside him on his back, his legs and arms flailed in all directions as Chris stroked the palm of his son's hand gently to let the baby know in sleep that Daddy was there.

Stephanie crawled onto the bed gently, trying not to jostle Sawyer and wake him up. Chris turned off the television, leaving them in relative darkness as he scooted down so he was facing Stephanie, a dim beam of light coming from the streetlight outside. She sighed and he reached out to stroke her hip as she settled into the pillows.

"What was going on?"

"Nothing, but just so you know, we're officially on D-X's side," she told him, a yawn punctuating the end of her sentence.

"Oh, okay," he said, a little confused, but he wasn't going to press the issue right now.

He was sure he'd find out later at Raw anyways.

Stephanie burst into D-X's locker room the next evening. Hunter and Shawn looked up from what they were doing and saw Stephanie in front of them, an incredulous look on her face. Hunter and Shawn looked at each other and started laughing. Stephanie rolled her eyes and sat herself down on their couch.

"So tell me, how did you do it?" Stephanie asked.

"Do what?" Shawn asked her.

"The building, the graffiti, how did you do it?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Hunter told her.

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, I really don't know what you're talking about it."

"Wow."

"You thought it was us?"

"Well, at first I was a little bit shocked, but then my brother had to come over and yell at me and accuse me of having a part in it so I kind of yelled back, and I guess I'm officially on your side of the war. Well, me and Chris…and Sawyer too."

"How is that little guy?" Hunter asked. "Still safe, nobody saying bad things about him?"

"Snuck him in earlier, nobody even noticed, snuck myself in too," Stephanie said. "Nobody needs to know that I'm here if I can help it, I did just have a baby a week ago. Oh, and I fully expect my father and brother to talk about that tonight, since it was such a big part of last week."

"Congratulations by the way," Shawn said with a laugh. "I mean, she must be gorgeous."

"Oh, most definitely," Stephanie joked. "Talk about _her _all you want. Just don't talk about my little boy. As long as Sawyer remains out of the spotlight. The one thing I admire about my brother is that he's never brought his sons into the limelight and I want the same for my son. Any fictional children I don't give a shit about."

"It's good to hear you say that," Hunter said, his eyes shining. "Because we actually have a little something planned, a little something to humiliate them."

"Great, I endorse it," Stephanie said. "Whatever you want to do to them, I don't really care. They deserve it. They want a war, I want to give them a war. They want to mess with me, fine, I'll mess back, well, you'll mess back, but I run the show and I'm under contract, iron-clad, I had my lawyer go over it, so I can't be fired, so they have no choice but to deal with me. And deal with me they will."

There was one other person that Stephanie had frozen out, but she need not get revenge on this person. She was already miserable and confused. Trish sat in catering, alone, as she had arrived, and was thinking about her past week. Christian and her just couldn't seem to make it work, and she was beginning to believe that it might not ever work out between the two of them. Every time she thought she had it, she would come to see that she never really had it to begin with. Then there was the unresolved thing with Shane, and this other budding thing with Carlito. She really liked Carlito and she had fun with him, but what it was, she didn't know. He was a nice escape from her life.

It didn't help that she barely had any friends to talk to. Kurt was there all the time, but he was a guy and didn't really understand, and when Ashley was around, she was all over Kurt. She couldn't go to Chris and Stephanie because they rightfully hated her after she had been a part of leaving Sawyer by himself. And for what? A quick fix and a broken friendship. She was a horrible person, that's how she felt right now. She was only grateful she had Carlito to make her laugh.

Chris walked into catering with Sawyer in tow. He wanted to grab a water before he had to go watch the diva search contestants do their little interviews on who should be fired. He would need the water to splash on his face when he got sleepy after watching those boring contestants. He spotted Trish sitting by herself and he sighed. She looked so unhappy and like the world was just crushing her under its immense weight. He hated what she did, but she looked like she needed a friend and Chris was never one to hold grudges on the people he cared about. He went and plunked himself down next to her.

Trish heard the scraping of metal against the floor and looked up, expecting to see Carlito and surprised to see Chris, "If you're here to yell at me or tell me what I did was wrong, please don't, I've taken enough punishment."

"Nope, I'm here as an ear to listen to you," he told her with a kind smile.

"Don't pity me Chris," she told him.

"I didn't say I pitied you," Chris told her, then looked down at his son. "Kid, did I say I pitied Auntie Trish?" Sawyer looked up at him with that blank expression on his face. "See, I didn't."

"Well then what do you want me to say?"

"What's bothering you?" Chris asked, sitting Sawyer on top of the table and leaning forward so that Sawyer could lean back against him. "It seems we're all so full of drama nowadays."

"It's just, I'm sad about Christian, you know. Is this it for us? Is there never any way to get back what we had? I hate this with him, I hate fighting with him and being away from him, but it's getting to the point where I'm starting to believe he's not the one."

"Trish, maybe he's _not _the one," Chris said gently. "Just because you were with him for a long time, just because you still have these feelings for him, that doesn't mean that he's that one person you're meant to be with for the rest of your life. And if he isn't, it's good that you're learning that now before you two get really serious and get engaged or married. It's a lot easier finding out now than when you have two kids or something."

"But I love Christian."

"Sometimes love is just the stepping stone for something better. I mean, love is like the foundation or something, but there's other stuff that you have to put to make it work. Like trust, I don't think you guys have a lot of trust there," Chris told her.

"That's true."

"But maybe he just isn't that guy that you're supposed to be with. It's as simple as that. Maybe that guy for you is Carlito, you don't know."

"Lito's cool," Trish said, a smile sneaking onto her face. "He makes me forget, you know, and for that I'm so grateful. I like being with him. He's fun and he's different, he almost reminds me of when I was with Jeff. It was new, you know, he does things I don't do. I like that about him."

"See, you're already realizing things," Chris said, patting her hand. "Trish, go with your gut, go with what you think is right for you."

"It's hard though."

"I know it's hard. You think it was easy for me to come to grips with the fact that I loved a woman who I used to hate so much? But I did, I faced it and I've never looked back. It's the looking back that casts doubts."

"Hey, what's going on?" Carlito's voice could be heard next to them. Trish smiled as she saw him and gestured to the seat next to her. "Hey man, nice kid."

"Thanks," Chris said as he looked to Sawyer, who was looking at Carlito in absolute terror. His lip started to quiver slightly and Chris knew what was coming next. He quickly kissed Sawyer's cheek and blew, giving him a raspberry, which caused the little boy to smile widely instead.

"Aww, hey cutie," Trish said, tickling his chin.

"He's real cute," Carlito said, then wrapped an arm around Trish. "So Trish, are you doing anything after the show?"

"No, I don't have any plans," she said, turning to him. "Why? Are you going to take me out?"

"I was thinking about it, yeah," he told her, wiggling his eyebrows at her. She took in his face. He was definitely outside the box of what her type would normally be. She wasn't used to guys like him, but she found herself liking him more and more as the weeks went by. She liked hanging around him.

She nodded and Chris observed how her mood had changed, "I'd really like that Lito, we'll go out after our matches. How does that sound?"

"Sounds cool, I'll find you," he told her, leaning in to press a soft kiss onto her cheek that she almost swooned at before he left. She hadn't had that feeling in a long time. Christian always gave her that warm, fuzzy feeling in the pit of her stomach, but she hadn't had that new relationship flutter for years. Then she gasped a little inwardly as she realized she had just referred to what she and Carlito had as a relationship.

"You know Trish, it's somehow not fair that you have three guys who want you," Chris said to her.

She blushed. "Shane doesn't want me. What happened with Shane was two frustrated people getting their emotions out. I love Shane, as a friend, and he has a wife and two kids, and I know they're going through a bad spot right now, but I'm not putting that in jeopardy any more than I already have."

"True, he did seem contrite about that at least," Chris said bitterly, still remembering that Shane had said that Sawyer had been fine and nothing had happened to him, even though that wasn't the issue at hand. "But you like Carlito, I can tell."

"Shut up Chris."

"I will actually, the kid and I have got business that we need to take care of," Chris said, standing up. "Don't worry though, you'll figure it all out someday, I promise. It took me thirty-two years to find Stephanie."

"Thanks Chris, for you know, not hating me, I really am sorry that I wasn't watching Sawyer. I hope that someday you can trust me with him again."

"Well, you're better than some people around here…"

Those some people were psyching themselves up in another room a couple hallways over from where Chris was. Shane was thinking about what had happened with his sister earlier and what was going to happen on the show tonight. They had to get back at D-X, they just had to. Last week they had been stuck in Connecticut, but not this week, this week they were there and ready for a fight, and it seemed like D-X was too.

"You know, we have to go out there and show them that it didn't faze us, that we aren't fazed. They think we're going to go out there incensed about what happened with the building, we just have to go out there and show them that we're not bothered by it."

"That's great Dad," Shane said. "Act like it didn't even happen. Hey, we can even pretend to be happy about Stephanie's fake baby. That'd shove it in her face. Make her have to explain that. She probably thought, hey, isolated incident, but no, we'll shove it right in her face," Shane said, a McMahon gleam in her eye.

"Now you're talking sensibly Shane," Vince said proudly. "If Stephanie wants to side with those delinquents, then we'll give her what she wants. We'll humiliate her!"

"Well, let's not humiliate her Dad," Shane said. "She is still family, and Chris could and would very easily come after us and we both know that he could beat us up. I don't think that we should necessarily get so riled up. But we just have to make it seem like we're happy, that's what we have to do."

"Good, good, we'll definitely do that."

In another part of the arena, Chris saw Britt walking up ahead and saw the perfect opportunity to talk to her. "Britt, wait up!"

Britt looked over her shoulder and saw Chris rushing up to her. She smiled and waited for him, her hands dropping to her side. He stopped in front of her, almost sliding across the slippery concrete floor. She laughed as he stopped in front of her and he couldn't help but laugh too.

"What's up Chris?" she asked politely.

"I just wanted to thank you…for the other night, you know, a couple weeks ago," Chris said, lowering his voice because he didn't want anyone to overhear.

"Chris, it was nothing."

"Well it wasn't _nothing_," he said suggestively, and then laughed nervously. "I mean, I was probably making a total fool out of myself, and I mean, when we went upstairs, and I think I may have been not like a gentleman."

Britt laughed softly and touched his arm, "Chris, it's okay, you're my boss, and I'd kind of like to consider you a friend now…"

"Please do," he insisted. "After the other night, I think that you can definitely consider me a friend."

She nodded, "Well okay then, good, and as for acting in certain ways, since you don't remember, I won't tell you how you acted."

"Great, so I'm going to be left wondering?" he asked playfully.

"Yeah, I wouldn't want to get you in trouble with your boss or anything."

"I'm my own boss," Chris said. "I can't even be fired, hell, I was never even really hired now that I come to think of it. I kind of just took over for Stephanie and decided to stick around so I don't become a permanent loafer. I don't want to have Stephanie be my sugar-mama, or something, that sounded dumb."

"Don't worry Chris, everything in the interlude of that night is tucked away in here," she said, pointing to her brain. "Is there anything else that you needed?"

"No, I just wanted to thank you again, for finding me, picking me up, helping me upstairs and in general, just taking care of me. It was above and beyond what any assistant should do for--"

"We're friends now," Britt whispered quietly, shushing him effectively.

"Friends, yeah," he said back softly. She smiled at him one last time and then turned on her heel to walk down the hallway towards whatever it was that she had to do. Chris turned around and gasped as he saw Stephanie standing not a foot away from him.

"Some secret meeting?" she asked as she took Sawyer in her arms.

"Yeah, right here in the middle of the hallway," he said lightly, putting his hand to his heart and making sure that it was still beating after Stephanie had scared him.

"Well it looked pretty intense there," she said. "You sure it wasn't anything that you would be hiding from me?"

"Now why would I hide something from you? Am I Shane?"

She laughed. "I'm going to go watch the beginning of the show, I'm sure that Hunter and Shawn have something cooking for my family. I just can't wait to see what it is. I'm sure it'll be hilarious and hopefully humiliating. I can't wait."

"So you want to take Sawyer with you to watch and bask in the humiliation?" he asked.

"He should get used to meddling," Stephanie said, giving her baby a big kiss on the cheek as he kicked his legs happily in her arms. "Oh look at my little baby, he's so happy to be manipulative. Yeah, he's definitely our son. Only our son would be so happy to be scheming. Right my little boy, right?" Stephanie nuzzled her nose against Sawyer's cheek, who looked totally content to hear his Mommy's voice.

"Okay, while you're doing that, I've got Diva Search stuff to do, vignettes and crap like that, so you two have fun, don't go completely nuts if things work out in your favor and keep the gloating to a minimum," Chris said, leaning in to kiss Stephanie. She kissed him back, and he could feel the giddiness transferring from her to him.

Stephanie and Sawyer soon found themselves watching attentively (well, in Stephanie's case it was attentive) as her father and Shane went out there to speak about her and the fake baby she had had. Oh, they put up a good front, acting like they were on top of the world. Oh, she'd love to crush them. A moment later, Hunter was sitting on the table in front of them and Stephanie looked up to see him smirking at her.

"So hey."

"What are you planning?"

"You've always been so impatient," Hunter told her. "Just wait and see, it's just something funny. We had them all pegged before this." He reached out his hand to grab and shake one of Sawyer's, "Hey there tough guy, did we have fun last week or what?"

"I think he liked it," Stephanie said. "Minus the part where you showed his daddy losing. He didn't like that so much, did you baby?"

"Aww, I think he did like it," Hunter said then Shawn came over to signal it was time to go. "Wish us luck."

They didn't need luck as they went out there and proceeded to one-up the McMahons. Shane hated that it had come to this. Not so much the humiliating, but that his little sister hated him. It had been a long time since and Stephanie had had such a big fight. He thought of himself as her protector, at least before other men came into her life. And he had yelled at her and berated her.

After that was over and D-X had seemingly won again, he would find out that the worst was yet to come. When he went backstage, he saw Stephanie handing over Sawyer for Hunter to hold, who looked like he was happy to be holding the baby, and it almost looked natural in a sense. Not natural in the sense that they looked like a family, but like Sawyer was familiar with Sawyer's presence. Vince had frozen too as he watched the display in front of him. It had to be harder for Vince though, since Vince had never had the privilege of holding Sawyer.

"What's that tough guy? You want your very own D-X shirt?" Hunter asked as he held Sawyer for Stephanie so that she could write something down to send to the production truck.

"He doesn't need a D-X shirt, he already has enough pointless shirts, Chris has bought him Beatles shirts, Wings shirts, Iron Maiden shirts, Kiss shirts, the kid is a walking advertisement for Chris's favorite bands," Stephanie said with a hint of annoyance.

"Hey, I'd dress up my kid in what I liked too, it's not like he has any say," Hunter told her. "Hey tough guy, why don't you and I let your Mommy work, and maybe we can go hang out like we did last week, that way your Mommy has time to focus on her work because she's a workaholic huh?"

"Hunter, you don't have to do that," Stephanie said. "Chris and I have a pretty good system where we each take care of him."

"Are you sure, I mean, I'm totally willing, I think we had fun last week, he's a really good kid Steph," Hunter told her.

She smiled and nodded, "He really is, except when he's crying, and pooping, and spitting up, and all of that good stuff. But if you really, really want to take care of him, I guess you could for a little while."

"Awesome, I'll go get his stuff from your locker room, does he need to be fed?" Hunter asked.

"No, he doesn't," she answered, then kissed Sawyer on the forehead. "Have fun with Hunter, okay baby? Don't go finding chicks or anything though."

"We won't," Hunter said as they walked off.

This only incensed Shane and Vince more and they angrily walked off. Vince was seeing red when he saw his daughter letting her ex-husband take care of her son before her own father. He had tried to act genuinely happy when he was pretending out there, hoping that maybe, just maybe Stephanie had seen it and would know that's how he had genuinely felt when Sawyer was born, and how ecstatic it would be if he could be in that little boy's life right now.

He wanted nothing more than to hold his grandson in his arms and show him off proudly. He had done so with both Declan and Kenyon, but not with Sawyer. And it would be special with Sawyer because as much as Vince loved Shane, Stephanie was his little girl, his Princess. Her son looked like her, no matter the similarities to Chris, Vince could see so much Stephanie in his grandson. He had that McMahon chin, and he looked strong and vibrant. He was a nice blend of Chris and Stephanie, and he looked like such a happy baby, and Vince would give anything to just hold him once.

And yet, Hunter Hearst Helmsley of all people got to hold his grandson before him, got to walk off with him? This was unacceptable and he threw open the door to his dressing room and threw the nearest thing he could find against the wall, which happened to be a water bottle. "How dare that man infiltrate our lives!"

"Did you see him with Sawyer?" Shane asked in disgust.

"Did I see! Of course I saw! He gets to hold my grandson and I've never even gotten to hold him, this just is unacceptable! I will not stand for this, I want that man taken away, I don't care how, he should be in jail for what he's doing, for stealing my family, I want him gone from our lives!" Vince said, stomping around. He hated Hunter more in that moment than he ever had before. It was one thing to manipulate his business, but to get right in the middle of his family, he wanted Hunter gone.

His opportunity would come later when Estrada came to give them some cigars, stating that they were a thank you and a congratulations, but let's face it, it was more a thank you than anything else. Vince came up with an idea and asked if Estrada had more boxes of cigars. Shane had no idea what his father was planning, but did anyone really know what went on in the mind of Vince McMahon (I don't think we want to know, it's probably scary), so he just went along with it. When Estrada came back with the boxes, Shane looked at them curiously.

"What are these for Pops?"

"Cubans are illegal Shane, or aren't you aware of that?" Vince said.

The wheels started turning for Shane. "They _are_ illegal, and if someone were to get caught with them, they would surely get handed over to the authorities, and whoever had these would get sent to jail."

"Yes, that is a funny thing, the law," Vince said. "But we wouldn't want to take the wrap for this obvious contraband. No, I wouldn't want to go to jail."

"Oh no way Pops, no way," Shane said, then smirked. "So when do I get to plant this stuff?"

"Soon Shane, soon."

That moment came when Hunter went to go return Sawyer to Stephanie. Shane had been watching Hunter's door from a distance, knowing Shawn was out back calling his wife, which stung Shane's heart a little bit. He missed his wife, he realized. They say absence makes the heart grow fonder and he was living that motto right this moment. He missed his sons too, but Marissa had at least been kind enough to let Shane see them when he wanted to. But that wasn't the issue, the issue was Hunter walking right by him with Sawyer in his arms, completely ignoring Shane as he focused on the baby in his arms.

"Let's go find your Mommy or Daddy huh, you want to go see them tough guy?" Hunter said to the little boy, who looked like he had been crying.

Shane practically growled in anger as Hunter left and he snuck into their locker room to dump the cigars in Hunter's bag. He made quick work of it and then left quickly, turning to his right and bumping right into Trish, who looked like she was leaving. He stopped, planted to his spot as he saw her. She looked stricken as well and he swallowed hard.

"Hi Shane," Trish said quietly.

"Trish," he said lowly.

"About the other week," she started. "It probably shouldn't have--"

"I agree," Shane said, casting his eyes down. "A moment of insanity."

"We're still friends though right? Despite the insanity?" she asked.

"Yeah, of course we are," he told her, wanting to hug her, but not wanting to risk it. "It was a spur-of-the-moment, lapse in judgment."

"Yeah, it was, it really was," she said, her eyes welling with tears as she thought about Christian. "Anyways, I've got to go, Carlito is waiting for me, and I'm going out with him, and you have stuff to do I'm sure."

"Yeah, stuff," he said, forgetting about the cigars, about Hunter, about his sister, all of it. He only felt the awkwardness of his situation with Trish. She patted his arm gently and then she was gone, and in her wake, he left a desolate Shane. It was time for him to put on his mask again, the one that said he was okay.

But he'd definitely be better later as Hunter was found with the cigars in his bad after Shane's little anonymous tip. Hunter sneered at them as they walked by and was taken away by the police, stating that if they wanted to play, they'd play, which sounded so much like Stephanie from earlier. They had won this round for sure, Shane knew that, but he knew that D-X would have something up their sleeve.

Later that evening, Stephanie and Chris walked into a nearby jail, posting whatever fine that Hunter needed to put up. They waited for him as they sat there, a sleeping Sawyer cradled against Stephanie's chest, his steady breathing tickling Stephanie's skin. Hunter walked out, looking pissed and saw his friends sitting there.

"Hunter, I'm so sorry it took so long, my dad was keeping us afterwards so he could mess with you sitting here," Stephanie told him.

"Don't worry about it, I just want to go home to my bed," he told them. "Thanks for bailing me out."

"We're all in this now," Chris informed him. Stephanie nodded.

"They want to start a war, they've got a war." Hunter licked his lips a little.

"So we've got to plan our next move."


	100. I Love Trish and Carlito, August 7, 2006

"Auntie Teph, Auntie Teph!"

Stephanie looked behind her and saw a little boy of two and a half running towards her as fast as his short legs could carry him. Stephanie grinned wildly and knelt down to the ground as the little boy caught up to her and threw his arms around her neck as she felt his hands sticky with jam against her neck. She hugged the little boy and smiled.

"Hey there cutie pie," Stephanie said, pulling away to look at her nephew. "Don't you look handsome tonight, did you dress yourself?"

"Uh huh," he nodded eagerly as he looked down at his t-shirt and jeans.

"Wow, I'm impressed, where are your Mommy and Daddy?" Stephanie asked him as she stared into his doe eyes.

"Mama home," Declan told her. "Daddy there."

Stephanie looked up and saw her brother making his way over tentatively to her. She wanted to send him a glare, but Declan would surely pick up on the tension between his aunt and his father, so she didn't do anything. She smiled down at Declan, just making sure that he knew that she was glad to see him, and she was. He was a really sweet kid, all Marissa's doing, and he was always so happy to see her.

"Where's Kenyon?" Stephanie asked as she looked briefly at her brother.

"Rissa let me take Declan for the week, and she's taking care of Kenyon, you know, at our house," Shane said, shoving his hands in his pockets. Stephanie nodded and looked to Declan again.

"So cutie pie, what have you and your daddy been doing?"

"Playing!" Declan said exuberantly.

"Wow, I'd love to play with you, but I have to go to work, you want to come with me?" she said enticingly, trying to make her work sound excited. Declan nodded eagerly and looked to his father, as if to ask for permission, or maybe to silently invite him to come along.

"Yeah, he can go with you if he wants," Shane said. "D, you want to go sit with Auntie Steph for a while?"

"Yeah," he said, looking at his Auntie Steph. He was happy to be around her because he knew that if he was around his aunt, then his uncle was sure to come around, and Declan thought that Chris was awesome to be around. Chris was funny to the little boy.

"Well okay then, let's go," Stephanie said, standing up and holding onto Declan's hand. She looked at her brother briefly, and said coldly, "Don't worry, I watch kids that are under my care."

With that, she flounced off, leaving an embarrassed Shane in her wake. She walked down to the gorilla where her station was set up and helped Declan get into one of the chairs next to her as she sat down. She gave him some magazines to look through, which fascinated him with all the different wrestlers. She pointed out who everyone was to his delighted eyes, laughing as he seemed so excited.

As Stephanie was with Declan, taking care of a child, Chris was kind of doing the same exact thing. He was looking after The Miz's promo this evening when he had to announce which diva was going to get sent home. It wasn't even that difficult a job, but The Miz had been screwing up pretty much every week. It was kind of sad to Chris that he could go out and wing stuff in the ring on the microphone and this kid couldn't even remember a few lines. It was more frustrating than everything else.

"Are you sure that you have it?"

"Yeah, I'm cool."

"Are you positive? You've had some trouble."

"I'm okay."

Chris truly felt like he was dealing with a petulant child. He sighed and shrugged, letting The Miz go about his own business. If he didn't want his help, then he could just go out there and falter. It wouldn't be the first time and it wouldn't be the last. Hopefully The Miz didn't stuff it up since they would be in the ring tonight. He rolled his eyes and grabbed his son's carrier and went off to find his wife. She would calm down the rising rage in his body. Who was this rookie to not want his help? He was Chris fucking Jericho after all, and he was the first-ever Undisputed Champion. That deserved at least a little recognition.

He found Stephanie explaining to Declan (who he was surprised to see) how the headphones and the walkie-talkies worked. She let him speak into one of the walkie-talkies and Chris immediately heard the little boy's voice on the walkie-talkie clipped to his belt. Ducking out of sight so the little boy could have some fun, Chris used his free hand to unclip the walkie-talkie, bringing it up to his mouth.

"Say 'Hi, Uncle Chris,'" Chris heard Stephanie's voice softly over the device.

"Hi Unca Chris!" Declan said into the walkie-talkie, his voice bright and exuberant.

"Hey, who's this?" Chris said, playing along.

"Declan!" he answered.

"D, what are you doing on the walkie-talkie?" Chris asked good-naturedly. "Did you need something?"

"No," he giggled. "Auntie Teph funny."

"Yeah, Auntie Steph is funny," Chris said. "Where are you guys?"

"Auntie Teph, where we?" Declan asked.

"Tell him we're at the gorilla," Stephanie whispered to him.

"Gorilla," Declan said matter-of-factly into the walkie-talkie as Stephanie pushed the button for him to talk. He grinned boldly up at his aunt and she smiled and ruffled his dark hair a little bit.

"Oh, okay, I'll be there a second," Chris said, then turned the corner where he came into plain view of the twosome. Stephanie looked surprised to see him so close, but Declan's eyes widened as he thought his beloved uncle had used magic to get here so quickly. Chris gave an easy smile to the young boy and set Sawyer's carrier down in front of Stephanie, who cooed and ran her finger down Sawyer's cheek.

Declan hopped off the chair he had been sitting in and ran towards Chris at full speed. "Unca Chris!"

"D, my man, what's up," Chris said, scooping up the little boy easily and setting him atop his shoulder. "You been working out D, you seem heavier."

"Airplane!" Declan begged.

"Okay, whatever you say," Chris said, lifting Declan above his head and zooming him around the immediate area like an airplane going up and down and in circles. Declan laughed wildly, enjoying his time with his uncle. Chris wasn't like Shane when it came to this kind of thing, but that's just how they had grown up. Chris's family was laid-back, while Shane's was…well, we all know how Shane's family was. That's why Stephanie was simply watching and not participating.

That's why Declan liked to be around Chris. To him Chris wasn't an adult, he was just a really big kid who liked to have fun and play. Chris even colored with him, and he made funny pictures where he colored animals every color that they weren't supposed to be. Declan really liked that about Chris, and that's why he was having a blast right now. He never wanted to go down.

Shane had heard his son's screams from down the hallway and was walking quickly to the source of the sounds. He pictured horrible scenarios. Maybe Stephanie had decided to take out her revenge on him not watching Sawyer by doing something with Declan, like making him scrub the floors or pick up equipment. Yeah, he wasn't being rational, but he was hearing his son screaming so he didn't have to be rational in that moment. He just had to get to his son.

He stopped short of going to the actual area though as he saw Chris running around, Declan in his arms. Declan had both his arms extended like an airplane and his cheeks were rosy from his laughter. He was laughing and screaming in delight, Shane realized and as he stood there, watching his son have fun, it hit him. He wasn't a bad father, but he couldn't be _that_ kind of father. He wasn't like Chris, not really; Chris was laid-back and easy-going and Shane, while he could relax and ease up, wasn't the type of man who would just act crazy with his son, and it hurt him. Vince had never been like that to him so he had never felt cause to be like that to Declan or with Kenyon.

"Down, down," Declan said, out of breath now from all the laughing.

"Tower, we're coming down for landing," Chris said, taking Declan over and sitting him down in the seat he had been previously occupying. He tried to catch his breath as he calmed down and looked to the baby sitting in front of him.

"Hi baby!" Declan said.

"You know your cousin Sawyer," Stephanie said, scooting his chair closer so he could see his cousin. Declan stood up on his chair and leaned over on the table in front of him, getting closer to the carrier. He started making funny faces at the baby, who smiled in return, making Stephanie smile as a result. "He remembers you D."

"I have baby," Declan said proudly.

"Yeah?"

"Kenny!" Declan grinned.

"Yeah, Kenny," Stephanie said. "He's little like Sawyer huh?"

"Uh huh," Declan nodded seriously. He looked back to his cousin that looked like his brother and he smiled, then caught something out of the corner of his eye.

Shane decided to make his presence known. He had spent a few minutes trying to think of what he could possibly do to make his son think he was as awesome as Chris, but he had been drawing blanks. He finally figured out something he could do, something he and Vince could do and he knew it was stupid and he was probably going to embarrass the hell out of himself, but he wanted to make his son as comfortable as Chris could make him. He wanted to make his son laugh like that.

"Daddy" Declan said happily, standing up on his chair again and reaching his arms out towards his father.

"Hey there D," Shane said, taking his son into his arms. He turned to his sister and brother-in-law and said sheepishly, "Uh, thanks for watching him, I appreciate it."

Stephanie opened her mouth to say something, something cutting probably, but Chris cut him off at the pass, "You're welcome, any time you need someone to watch him, you know where to find us."

"Yeah…yeah," Shane said, walking away briskly with Declan, who was waving at his aunt and uncle over his father's shoulder.

"Why didn't you let me say anything?" Stephanie snapped.

"Because knowing that we're taking the high road is so much better," Chris said. "We don't have to stoop to his level, remember what we talked about with Trips and Shawn Steph, remember?"

"Yes, I remember," Stephanie said, thinking about the breakfast she had shared with the other two men this morning. She was feeling a little overwhelmed by all the men in her life right now. She laughed a little at that.

Speaking of being overwhelmed by men, Trish was in a similar, well, no she wasn't in a similar position, but she did have a lot of men in her life at the moment. But there was only one in her immediate area right now and it was Carlito. Just the sound of his name, it rolled off her tongue in a delicious way. She loved saying it and she loved that she could call him Lito. She just liked being around him. She turned and smiled.

"…So then I was like, that's not cool, and he thought that he could lay his hand on me, so I threw his arm off and told him off," Carlito said, continuing his story.

"You and your brother sound like me and my sisters," Trish laughed as she clung to his arm tighter. "We get along, but then we don't get along at the same time."

"Exactly, see you know what I mean," Carlito said good-naturedly. "So, are you going to give me my arm back soon or what?"

"No, I think I'm going to keep it," she told him, gazing up at him adoringly. "Now does it come right off or am I going to have to go get a saw."

"No, it comes right off," he joked, giving her that smirk of his. The one that she didn't think she ever wanted to stop seeing. How was it that he had invaded her so quickly? She didn't know, but she wasn't complaining. For some reason, she felt really right with Carlito, really in place if that made any sense at all.

"Oh good, maybe I'll take it with me to my women's match which is the first match on the card. And I'm going to get my title back, and then eventually, you'll get your IC title back, and we can be double champions," she said flirtily. She looked up and him and he was just laughing easily.

"You think it's going to be that easy?"

"Yeah, I do," she joked. "Oh come on Lito, do you think I'm going to win tonight? Tell me the truth, don't lie or I'll cut off apples from your diet."

"And how are you going to do that?" he asked.

"I'll follow you around," she told him, raising her eyebrows. "And I'll make sure you don't eat a single apple, not one, not even a small one. Not even applesauce."

"You'd follow me around huh?"

"I would."

"Okay, well that doesn't sound so bad then, I think you won't win."

"You're such a jerk," she said, lightly slapping him on the arm as he laughed. "Okay, I have to go, but we're meeting up later right? Not to sound needy, but you did ask me out earlier right?"

"I did, I'll see you later," Carlito said, kissing her cheek.

"Bye Lito," she told him, waving at him as she walked away.

She sighed to herself, but this wasn't a sad sigh she had become accustomed to over the past month or so. This was decidedly more happy and light. She felt light. She felt like she could go out there and beat anyone. She liked that feeling and she liked it even better that Carlito was the one who was giving it to her. She was so wrapped up in thoughts of Carlito she hardly saw Shane walking down the hallway dressed up as Elvis. She really didn't even notice him until she walked past and froze. She blinked a couple times and then shook her head, like she hadn't really seen what she had seen. But when she turned her head, she definitely saw an Elvis jumpsuit.

"Shane?" she asked.

Shane turned around and his cheeks were already red, "Hey Trish."

"Um…wow, I've been spending a lot of time with Carlito, but is it just me or are you dressed as Elvis?" she asked.

"I'm dressed as Elvis," Shane admitted, although really, could he not admit it, he was in an Elvis costume with the hair and the glasses and everything.

"This may seem like a silly question, but why?"

"You'll think I'm stupid," he said.

"Stupider than _this_?" she asked, gesturing towards his get-up.

"Okay," he sighed. "Declan is here tonight and he was hanging around with Stephanie and Chris, and well, he was having a blast, he loved being with Chris. He was so happy and he's never been that happy around me and it bugged me, so I wanted to make him laugh too. This was the only costume they had here, and I don't know how else to make him laugh. My dad is in one of these too."

"So you're trying to make your son laugh?" Trish said, tilting her head to the side.

"Yeah, I just…I want to be a good dad, I don't want my kid to want to spend time with other people because he likes them better than me," Shane said sadly. "I screwed up with Marissa, I don't want to screw up with my kids too."

Now it was Trish's turn to be sheepish. "You know, this is a lot more than most dads will do."

"I hope so."

"Good luck," Trish told him.

Shane just nodded as he walked back to his father's office. Vince was watching Declan right now and Shane had to go put on the show so to speak. He wanted to make his son happy and laugh, and at this point Shane didn't realize that he just had to be himself. Chris was himself with everyone and that was what made him unique. Shane was dressed up as Elvis in order to try and entertain his son. And he wasn't even sure if Elvis would make his son laugh considering the scope of the boy's knowledge of pop culture extended to Sesame Street, The Wiggles, and Charlie and Lola.

When Shane walked back into the room, Declan was sipping at some juice as Vince tried to make him laugh by dancing around the room in a silly manner. Declan smiled around his juice cup at his grandfather. He leaned back against the couch and looked at his father, who was curling his lip and was about to start dancing. Coach came into the office and stopped cold.

"Um…"

"Don't worry about it," Vince said gruffly, trying to remain professional. Or as professional as he could in an Elvis costume.

"You have to cut a promo, you wanted time at the very beginning of the show, don't you remember, you requested it earlier," Coach said frantically.

"What!" Vince said, then slapped his forehead. "Damn it, I forgot, I have to change."

"There's no time!" Coach said, you're on in a minute.

That minute came way too fast, but it was spent collaborating about how they wouldn't look completely stupid if they turned this into an Elvis-centric promo. Which they managed to do in rather hilarious fashion. Shane felt humiliated, but as he saw Declan still sitting on the couch getting an absolute kick out of his father, he felt better. Declan was actually laying on his side on the couch and giggling, and Shane knew he was also getting tired. As soon as the cameras were off of him and his father, Shane did the Elvis whirling arm movement as he knelt next to Declan.

"Hey there little buddy, how are you doing?" Shane said, trying to sound like Elvis.

"Daddy," Declan said, his voice filled with laughter as he covered his face. Shane was so happy in that moment, so happy that he had made his son happy. He wasn't a complete failure and nothing in that moment could've made him happier.

Stephanie turned off the television and turned to the three men and one baby in front of her. Shawn was snickering into his hand, Hunter was just outright laughing and Chris was looking at Sawyer with a big, goofy grin on his face. Stephanie didn't quite know what to make of seeing her father and brother like that. She'd definitely need some time.

"Okay, so we have to do something tonight, come on!" Hunter said.

Stephanie sat down on Chris's lap, the only available seat in the room as she took Sawyer from Chris's arms. "No, you guys, we talked about this, we have to wait it out. We can't show all our cards too soon. That's why you're wearing such huge targets right now, because you struck too soon so my dad had to bring out the big guns, the cops. So we wait, that way when we strike, it's big."

"I don't know Steph, I mean, don't you think we should do something?" Hunter asked.

"No, you go out and beat Umaga, that's your job. Look, the worst they can do is have you arrested, and they're not going to press charges or anything, they're not that stupid, they want you hear so they can humiliate you."

"I'd listen to her you guys," Chris said. "She knows what she's talking about. Trips, have you forgotten that this woman is the queen of conniving?"

"No, I haven't, I just don't like looking stupid in front of people, I'm Triple H for God's sakes, I'm the best, I'm a former 10-time champion."

"So when are we getting the girls in here to worship at your feet?" Chris asked with an eye-roll.

"That's later tonight, I didn't want to set the wrong impression for the kid," Hunter said. "Although, maybe one of these ladies knows a cute baby girl."

"Don't put bad impressions in my son's mind," Stephanie told him.

"Stephanie, your kid is wearing a Slayer shirt," Hunter pointed out, which was true. Tonight Sawyer was sporting a Slayer shirt and a pair of baby jeans, his feet in cute, little socks.

"Yeah, that was _my _idea," Stephanie scoffed. "If you want to bring up my son's wardrobe, take it up with his father."

"Okay, Chris, Slayer shirt?"

"Dude, they're a great band, and did you know that their lead--"

"Don't wake the beast," Stephanie said quickly, cutting off her husband. "If you get him started on metal music right now, you're not going to get him to stop for hours, _hours_, and we don't have hours to spare."

"Fine," Hunter said. "So I still don't see why we can't even do a little something."

"Okay, let me lay it out there for you this way," Stephanie said, but she didn't look so professional being perched in her husband's lap with his hand resting on her upper thigh. "My father and brother have egos…"

"The whole McMahon family has egos," Shawn interjected.

Stephanie sent him a glare, "I don't need the personal commentary Shawn."

"Well then drug me again."

"Get off of that, geez," Stephanie said. "Even Sawyer's over that and he was in on the plan. Anyways, before Shawn decided to start whining, I was saying how my dad and Shane have egos and because of those egos, if you give them this, if you don't retaliate and let them run amok all over you and think, _think_, they have the upper-hand, they're going to let their defenses down. They're going to think they're the best and you're going to be sitting here, plotting their demise."

"You actually think this is the way to go?" Hunter asked.

"I do."

"How do you know that they won't figure out that's what we're doing because we have you on our side?"

"Because, they wouldn't let themselves think that. In order to build themselves up, they will think solely of themselves, so we do nothing," Stephanie said.

"Okay, nothing," Hunter said. "But you better be right Jericho."

"I'm always right," Stephanie said. "Just wait."

Trish was waiting for a savior at the moment. She had come out here with the intention of becoming the Women's champion once again. What she hadn't anticipated was Edge and Lita coming down to run their mouths off, or more accurately for Edge to run his mouth off and for Lita to simply stand by idly and look…well, stand there really. She couldn't help it if she was on the cover of the magazine. They had asked, she had accepted, end of story.

But somehow, Edge took that to be a slight against him. She rolled her eyes, but then was suddenly found to be cornered and outnumbered as well. She knew though, she knew that Carlito would be out here. She just had a gut feeling that he wouldn't stand by and watch her get decimated by these two idiots. She had a faith in him that she hadn't had in Christian in a long time. She knew that Carlito was going to be around to save her.

And he was around. He did come save her. She fell for him a little bit more for it. She was so relieved to see that crazy hair of his. He was like her godsend. Lita tossed her straight into Carlito's arms and in that moment, she felt…well she felt right. She could see him turning down to make sure she was okay, but before she could get a word in, he was pushing her slightly of the way as he turned and received a spear from Edge. Edge had gotten a lot more petulant since he had regained the title. She wasn't sure if she liked it or not, but right now she was hating it. But she was still so happy to see Carlito come to her aid.

That gratefulness transferred itself backstage as they helped each other along. Trish stopped them for a moment and looked up into her hero's eyes. "Thank you Lito, for coming out there."

"I did what I had to do," he said, wheezing a little bit from the spear.

"Are you okay?" she asked, running her hand absently across his abdomen. The movement against his stomach was distracting him and he couldn't even answer, just nodding slightly. She took this to mean that he was hurt and she let concern creep up into her eyes. In those moments, she didn't think about Christian and it was a welcome change. For the first time in a long time, it was like…she was finally free from his spell. She was just…Trish…no Christian attached to that.

"I'm cool," he said softly. It was then that she let her angers and inhibitions out as she went on a tirade. Carlito was surprised, but slightly amused too and just followed her.

"I don't think Shawn likes me on his side," Stephanie said as she walked with Chris and Hunter down the hallway. Chris had his arm wrapped around Stephanie's waist as Hunter held Sawyer.

"He'll get over it," Hunter said. "He got over me doing all that shit to him."

"True, and you were a lot more cruel than I was."

"I think he's mad about it because you used your pregnancy," he explained.

"It wasn't like she was doing something completely horrible, like pretending she was having a miscarriage or that she was going into premature labor or something," Chris pointed out. "Besides, Sawyer knew and he approved."

"Is that so tough guy?" Hunter asked. "You approve of your parents being scheming meddlers?"

Sawyer cooed happily as he trained his eyes on his mommy, and she looked adoringly at her baby, "See, he's totally cool with me manipulating other people. It comes with the territory. He likes that he can be a conniving member of our family. It's what makes him a Jericho."

"Yeah, a Jericho," Hunter said, then shook his head, "Seriously Chris, Slayer?"

"He got milk all over his other shirt, it was this or nothing," Chris said in exasperation. "Besides, they're a really good band, there's nothing wrong with them and there's nothing wrong with my son wanting to wear their t-shirt."

"Wanting to wear?" Stephanie asked with an eyebrow raised in curiosity.

"He pointed to it himself, didn't you kid?" Chris asked. Sawyer just smiled as his lip started to quiver and his hand went to his mouth. "Uh oh, the monster is about to be awakened…"

"Who's my boy? Who's my boy?" Stephanie said in a baby voice as she looked quickly to her son. "Who is Mommy's little angel? Who is Mommy's one true love?"

"Well, I thought it was me," Hunter joked.

"Yeah, I thought so too," Chris shrugged.

"Yeah, they're wrong, aren't they my love?" Stephanie said to Sawyer, "Are you Mommy's one true love baby boy? Yes, you are my one true love."

At the sound of his mommy's voice, Sawyer perked up immediately to the point where you couldn't even get the smile off his face. It was so much easier now that they knew what he loved to hear, which was incidentally Stephanie's voice. Well that and the coffee grinder, for some reason he loved to hear coffee being grinded. He was a little bit of a weird one that Sawyer Jericho.

As those three were laughing over the baby and Stephanie's baby voice, Shane was baiting Shawn. Shawn didn't like Stephanie's idea of not doing anything tonight. He didn't like to be idle, he liked to be doing something. He wanted to get back at Shane for what he had done to him last week. He wanted to just barge into their dressing room and beat the living hell out of the elder McMahon. The McMahons had never been anything but trouble for him, from Vince down to Stephanie, hell, especially Vince and Stephanie.

He had known Stephanie for a long, long time, and she had always been this way. Heaven help him though, when she was around nineteen years old, he had liked her, found her attractive even. He had been thirty at the time, and he had even asked her out. He remembered what she did though, he would always remember what she did. She had scoffed in his face and told him flat out no. It wasn't so much that he was heartbroken over her rejection, it had been more the fact that she had rejected him at all. No girl up to that point had ever rejected him. He could be bedding women left and right and they wouldn't even turn him down. But Stephanie was something else, always had been and she always would be.

So that's why he didn't want to follow her instructions, which was why he attacked Shane, which was why the cops came. Hunter had just left Chris and Stephanie and was now seeing Shawn being taken away by the cops. He tried to fight on his behalf, but it was no use, he was going to get taken away for striking an officer. Hunter cursed under his breath. Stephanie had known, and Shawn should've known better.

Hunter wasn't the only one angry. While that was going on, Trish was _still_ on her tirade and Carlito was _still_ following her. She was yelling now about how much she hated Lita and how she was going to whoop her later. Trish was just so angry, and maybe it was angry at everything, but she just knew that she was angry. Her life had been spiraling lately. With the situation with Christian and her making out with Shane, and falling out with Stephanie, it had all been too much. It had made her world spin and now Lita was here trying to upend it all. No, she wouldn't stand for that, but Carlito was the only one here.

She finally let her anger come to a head and in that moment of utter chaos, she grabbed for Carlito and kissed the hell out of him with a passion neither one was prepared for. This was what a kiss should be (not like that Chris/Trish one…what I'm still bitter, sue me!). Carlito was shocked to feel her soft lips on his, but it was not an unwelcome. That was definitely a way that he would love to prepare for matches.

Their match did not go as well as that kiss did. Try as he might, Carlito was unable to protect Trish for that one split second that she got speared. He fought with Edge on the outside, but that allowed Lita to get the pin unfortunately. But Carlito didn't care about that, he only care about Trish in the ring, who was laid out. He sat next to her and checked on her, trying to make sure that she was going to be okay. He felt such a deep affinity for her that he had never felt with any woman before and even though she was hurt, he couldn't help the feelings that were stirring in him, the lust at looking down at her.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"I think so," she whispered.

Carlito helped her get out of the ring and then lifted her in his arms. He walked her backstage and she watched him through hazy eyes. She cuddled herself against him and he had to restrain himself while he felt her warm breath tickling his neck. She was rubbing his shoulder gently with her thumb and it was distracting him to the point where he might drop her. He felt her long, blonde hair brushing against him and she was undoing him slowly.

"Lito?" she whispered.

"Hmm?" he grunted.

"I want to go to the hotel," she told him.

"Okay, we'll go right now."

"With you Lito, I want to go with you," she told him, starting to kiss his neck softly. He stopped and gazed down at her. Her eyes were suddenly clearer and he was getting the intentions from her. His eyes widened as she gave him a sly smile. He started to walk faster.

Later that evening, Stephanie was thinking, "What's going on with those two?" Stephanie asked as she thought back to Carlito and Trish.

"Who?"

"Trish and Carlito."

"She likes him," Chris commented as he played with Sawyer's foot as the boy started to doze off. He felt a little sorry for his son because how often do you have to travel in order to get used to falling asleep with this kind of noise. He had to hand it to the kid, it was a talent.

"You know who I like?" Stephanie asked.

"Who?" Chris asked impishly. Stephanie turned to get in his lap as she leaned down to capture her husband's lips. "Oh, is this a hint?" he asked as she pulled away.

"Uh huh," she nodded. "Can you guess?"

"It is little 'ole me?" Chris asked, adopting a Southern twang. She just kissed him into submission again, letting her tongue work its way into his hot mouth. Chris ran his hand up and down Stephanie's back.

It was still a wonder that he never got tired of this woman. With his ex-girlfriends, he would eventually tire of their insipid ways and throw them to the curb, but with Stephanie, he knew he would never get enough of her and the way she tasted was so sweet. He loved her, and the fact that she could match him in every way. He opened his eye briefly to check on his son before going back to making out with his wife.

He made out with Stephanie right through the main event, not even paying attention to anything but the faint taste of strawberries he got whenever her dipped his tongue into Stephanie's warm mouth. She was intoxicating and he couldn't get enough of the drug that he called his wife. She was just…he was just enamored by her. Now more than ever, and it was like the fire was rising inside of him. He thought briefly to what he was going to do for her birthday next month.

"Mmm, sweetie," she sighed against his lips.

"Yeah baby?" he mumbled, his eyes still closed.

"You should've come back tonight," she told him.

"Why?" he asked, still keeping his eyes closed.

"Because Wednesday would've been seven years. Seven years since you came into my life, although you weren't really in my life at the time, but seven years since you debuted," she told him. "You should've come back."

"We'll celebrate that a different way," he said, blindly catching her lips again.

"God you two," a voice rasped. "Can you give it a rest for two seconds? You were doing the same thing when I came out for my match. You'd think you'd watch to make sure that I didn't get killed, oh wait, I did!"

"Oops," Stephanie said, rubbing her mouth. "Sorry."

"Yeah, I'm sure," Hunter said. "Can we just go bail out Shawn?"

"Aww, do we have to, can't we leave him there?" Stephanie pouted. Chris chuckled.

"No baby, we can't leave him there."

"Too bad…I was kind of looking forward to the thought of someone making him their…special friend."


	101. Waiting for Karma, August 14, 2006

A/N: A little retroactive pimping. If you want to read a new story, co-written by yours truly, go to my profile and find the link. :)

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Chris groaned as he pulled his shirt off. Feeding Sawyer had been an adventure tonight. An adventure that had ended up with him getting formula all over his shirt, his nice, button-down shirt. He tossed the shirt onto the back of the couch and leaned over his bag to grab another shirt. Before he could look in earnest, he felt two soft hands run up over his back, making his muscles tense momentarily.

"Sorry, I'm married," he mumbled as those same hands curled around his bare stomach.

"Too bad, and here I was, ready to just jump you," her voice said softly and seductively. He felt her lips on his skin then, kissing up his back to his shoulder, her soft lips pressing against his firm skin. "What're you doing?"

"The monster got formula on me, and so I'm changing my shirt," he said, glancing over his shoulder.

"I think you should start singing everything you say," she said, teasing in her voice as she let go of his stomach and massaged his bare shoulders.

"Sing everything I say?" he asked.

"Yeah, you need all the practice you can get," Stephanie teased obviously now. "I don't want my man losing the competition. I want you to rise to the top of the mountain, duh."

"Shut up bitch," Chris tossed at her as she laughed and pulled away, going over and sitting on their couch next to Sawyer, who was propped up against some pillows. "I don't want to hear it from you, do you hear me?"

"I didn't say anything bad," Stephanie said, leaning back against the cushions and turning her head to look down at her son. "Baby boy, did Mommy say anything bad to Daddy?" Sawyer blew some spit out of his mouth and Stephanie made a disgusted noise before wiping his mouth with the bib he was wearing. "See, nothing."

"You can just shut your trap is what I'm saying," Chris told her, but it was with a smile as he watched his son and his wife interact. He grabbed a stray t-shirt and slipped it on.

"Oh, I was so enjoying the show," Stephanie said, acting disappointed that he had put a shirt on.

"Well show's over," Chris told her. "Don't you have somewhere to be, something to do that doesn't include teasing me?"

"Well you could've told your wife that you were planning on being on a reality show, isn't that something you usually discuss with your significant other?"

"Yes, when your significant other is a kind, gentle, caring, and supportive wife, who only wants her husband to be happy and well-adjusted. Not when you marry a McMahon who is stubborn, vindictive, mean, manipulating, and not afraid to laugh right in your face."

"I _never_ laughed in your face!" she cried indignantly. "Sawyer, Daddy is spreading lies about me. Next thing you know, he's going to be denying that he's your father. Chris, do you think that Sawyer is you son?"

"No, I don't think Sawyer is my son actually," Chris answered, pretending to act morose. "I know that you slept with an ex-boyfriend right around the time you conceived him. I've been keeping the fact that I knew this whole time. When I look at Sawyer, I don't see me in him anywhere."

Stephanie looked down and then looked up at him, tears in her gray-blue eyes. "Chris, I'm sorry, I wanted to tell you sooner, you're not Sawyer's father. I had a one-night stand when we were fighting one night and I got with an old boyfriend and Sawyer's not yours."

"I'm devastated," Chris said, hand over heart, "I think I'm going to just fall over in a heap of tears. But that's okay, I'll get over it, Sawyer's not that cute anyways."

Stephanie gasped, "Sawyer, Daddy just insulted you, you know what this means right Chris? He's going to challenge you for a match later and unless you're a big coward, you better accept…and what's this Sawyer? You said you want it to be a cage match, wow, brutal…"

Chris knelt down next to the couch on the side where Sawyer was sitting. "Cage match huh? Well fine then, but I'm warning you Sawyer Jericho, I've got skills that you don't even have, like walking, and talking."

"I think he's got you beat on the pacifier sucking though," Stephanie said, running her hand over Sawyer's head as he smiled at her and tried to make a grab for her hand, which she gave him willingly. "Sweetie, what would you do if I really told you that Sawyer wasn't yours? I mean, you see it on talk shows and the guy is always surprisingly calm, which makes it seem like they knew."

"I'd kill whichever guy you slept with," he said cheerfully. "He'd be a dead man, and you'd better watch your back too if that happened."

"Ouch," Stephanie laughed. "But back on topic, you didn't tell me that you are going to be leaving me again, and leaving me with our son, it's heinous Chris, just heinous. It's like you don't even care about us."

"I care about the two of you more than I care about anyone," he said, leaning forward to give Sawyer a kiss on the head as Stephanie pouted, causing him to lean forward even more and capture his wife's lips into a sweet kiss. "You should know this by now."

"How much do you love us?" she asked coyly, batting her eyelashes at him.

"I love you very much."

"That's it? No ends of the Earth? No until eternity? Wow, that's a real rip off."

"I love you too much to say mushy things to you, that's how much I love you."

"Oh, you're so sweet," she said, running a hand down his face. "But honestly Chris, you're abandoning us. You're leaving your wife and son stranded, alone, without anyone to protect us…"

Chris guffawed. "Baby, first of all, everyone is scared of you. You could take on guys twice your size, in fact, you should be my bodyguard if it comes down to it. Second of all, the show tapes on Tuesdays, so if anything, I'll be fine to come to the shows, and you'll be fine to come to the tapings. It's in California, at least that's what I'm told, so we'll just be living in California."

"Did you hear that baby boy? You get to live in house #3. Have I explained house #3, Daddy bought it for my birthday when you were still in Mommy's tummy because Daddy thought Mommy wanted a house. Daddy's an idiot."

"You annoy the hell out of me, you know that," Chris said with a groan. "You really do."

"So divorce me and get away from me," she told him.

"If only it were that simple, but heaven help me Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, you're under my skin and in my heart, and you're not going anywhere any time soon," he told her before they heard a big bang outside the door and they looked at each other, and Sawyer started to cry from the loud noise.

Stephanie picked up her son and cradled him against her chest, talking to him in muttered tones, nonsensical words to calm him down. Chris got up, feeling his knee crack after kneeling on the hard concrete floor. He went to go investigate what had made that sound. Opening the door, he saw Carlito and Trish up against the wall, giggling next to a knocked over trunk.

"Um, hello," Chris said.

Trish laughed, "Oh, hey Chris, what's up?"

"Nothing except people making loud noises that scare my son," Chris answered.

Carlito looked at Trish, both of them with guilty looks on their faces. Carlito spoke up first, "Sorry about that, we got…carried away."

"It wasn't my fault!" Trish exclaimed. "Lito wasn't watching where he was going."

"Oh yeah, blame me," he said.

Stephanie stood up as she heard voices and with Sawyer in her arms made her way to the door, coming to stand next to her husband. Trish sobered up a bit seeing Stephanie and Sawyer. "Hey Stephanie," she said tentatively.

"Hey Trish," Stephanie said, thawing a little, which encouraged Trish.

"Lito, I'll catch up with you in a little bit okay, I wanted to talk to Steph for a minute," Trish said, leaning up to kiss Carlito, who kissed her back hungrily. When they pulled away, they shared a long look that only went unnoticed by Sawyer (he's a baby, he doesn't know any better). Chris and Stephanie looked at each other, holding in their remarks. Trish walked into the room dreamily and sank herself down on the couch.

"Okay Trish, what's up?" Stephanie asked.

"So you're talking to me now?" Trish said good-naturedly.

"Look, I've come to realize that you weren't really the one at fault, I mean, you were, you should've known better, but my brother was the one who was asked to watch Sawyer, and I shouldn't direct my anger at him at you. It was wrong of me."

"And I hope you know that I'm sorry for what I did," Trish said sincerely. "I will never do that again, I shouldn't have done it in the first place, but I'm sorry that I did it this time. I want you to be able to trust me with Sawyer again at some point."

"I get that, so…spill, what the hell is going on with you and Carlito?"

"I'm in love," Trish said with a happy sigh. Chris and Stephanie's eyes widened at her revelation.

"In love?" Chris asked. "You're…in love?"

"Yeah, I am, I don't know, I mean, I know I'm in love, but I don't know how it happened so fast. It was like, one second, we're friends or something and the next second, we're kissing and it was incredible you guys. It was like, oh, I don't know, however it feels when you're in love completely with someone."

"You're in love with him? You guys haven't even been going out…are you guys even dating?"

"Yeah, we're dating," Trish said. "We're going out, we're…whatever, but he's just so funny and sweet, and you guys, he's amazing, totally and completely amazing. I never thought I could feel something like this. It's like when I'm around him, I feel better, I _am_ better. You know?"

"But Trish, what about Christian?" Stephanie asked. "I mean, just a few weeks ago and you were back on track with Christian, or so it seemed, what happened to change your mind? Why would you change your mind? You and Christian, you told us that Christian could be the one."

"I know that I said that," she sighed. "But you guys, well…Chris told me something that rang true. Christian might not be the one. It just happened, I mean, he was smothering me, and I couldn't take it an made out with your brother, and then I knew that I needed space from Christian, real space this time, and then Carlito happened, and here I am, and you guys, for the first time in a long time, I feel free, I feel happy."

Stephanie sighed. "Have you talked to Christian at all?"

"I'm putting it off," Trish said. "I don't want to hurt him, and I know that it might hurt him, it _will_ hurt him, but I love Carlito, and I know that it's been so quick, but sometimes love happens quickly right. They wouldn't have coined the termed 'love at first sight' if it didn't actually exist. It wasn't love at first sight by any means, but spending time with him, getting to know him, it made me feel something, and when we kissed, you guys, I felt so good. I finally feel like I'm in the right place."

"Are you sure though?" Stephanie asked, handing Sawyer over to Chris and sitting next to Trish. "I mean, really, are you sure because if you break it off with Christian, for good, you might never get that back."

"I really think…I think that I'm okay with that," Trish answered honestly. "I know that it happened really quickly and I know that you guys don't understand because we haven't really spoken to each other, but Carlito makes me happy you guys, he makes me happy and when I'm with him, when he's touching me, it's…perfection, do you guys know what I'm saying."

"Well, I know the feeling of perfection," Stephanie said, sending a smile up to her husband, which he returned, "but I just want you to not regret what you're saying somewhere down the line."

"I'm not, really, I'm not," Trish said. "I should go find Lito."

"Okay," Stephanie said as Trish bounded out of the room in search of her new boyfriend. Stephanie turned up to Chris and gave a hollow laugh. "What do you make of that?"

"If she's happy, she's happy," Chris said. "We can't decide who or what makes her happy baby."

"You know what would make me happy?" Stephanie asked with a smirk.

"What?"

"If you engaged me and Sawyer in a song right now," Stephanie said, and Chris's face quickly darkened and she laughed, "What?"

"I swear to God, you are not allowed to be in the audience, I'm telling you right now, you're not even allowed to be in the theater with me. I'm going to put you on the ban list, I'm going to tell them that you're a stalker who claims that your kid is my son and I'm not going to let you into the building."

Stephanie scoffed in disbelief, "Did you hear that, Sawyer? Daddy is starting to deny you already, I knew that it would come to this, I knew it! You're going to have me banned because I want my husband to be well prepared for his big debut? I'm hurt Chris, hurt that you would shun me from your big moment."

"You're damn right I'm shunning you," he said, leaning down to grace her mouth with a kiss. He was about to pull away when she kissed him again, firmer this time and with a taste of tongue on the end of it. "If you're trying to butter me up, it's not working."

"I wasn't, I just wanted some of your hot, sweet mouth."

"Now I _know_ that was you trying to butter me up," he mumbled against her lips. "You're still not coming."

"You know, it's bad enough the way I found out about your reality show debut," she pouted, folding her arms across her chest.

"Stephanie…"

"I mean, here I was, sitting on the couch, watching television, watching an innocuous little dance show, and here comes a commercial for a show, and as I'm sitting there, with my husband and child no less, what should happen across the screen? A photo of my husband, circa 2000 mind you, back when he was a stupid jerk who likened me to roadkill, as if kissing me was that bad since you were totally holding me and you completely wanted to kiss me…"

"You're going off on a tangent, and I kissed you simply because I didn't want you to interfere in my match."

"How would it interfere?"

"It didn't work," he admitted.

"Anyways, as I was saying," she continued. "I see a picture of my husband, with facial hair, yuck, and I turn to you with your sheepish little grin on your face, and if you hadn't had Sawyer in your arms at the time, I swear, you would've been in the pool. You didn't even tell me!"

"I know!"

"Why didn't you tell me!" she demanded to know.

"Because baby, you're…how do I put this without you punching me in the face," he thought out loud. Then he held Sawyer up in front of his face. "Baby, you're really mean and you like to make fun of people."

Stephanie gasped. "Well fine, if that's the way that you think, I won't watch you on this show and I won't even come to the tapings, and I'll just be in the background, it's fine. I've got my own interests to take care of."

"Stephy, baby, don't be mad," Chris sighed.

"I'm not mad," Stephanie said. Then she looked at him, "I'm _not _mad. Anyways, Kurt is supposed to be here tonight to discuss what he plans to do about his injury with my father…so…Kurt is here tonight. Now if you'll just give me my son, we'll be off."

"I'll keep him, I've just got to talk to the contestants, The Miz, which is a stupid nickname by the way, and then I'm good to take care of him."

"I'd like my son please," Stephanie said, holding her arms out.

"Stephanie…"

"Chris," she said mockingly. "Just give me Sawyer, I want my baby."

"He's my baby too."

"Yeah, I'm well aware, but I'm his Mommy," Stephanie said, taking Sawyer forcefully from Chris's arms. She went towards the door, and was about to grab some papers off a chair when Chris grabbed her arm and spun her around. She opened her mouth when Chris forced his own mouth over hers. She was stunned for a minute before giving in, wrapping her free arm around his neck as he tried to maneuver his arms around her waist without crushing Sawyer between them. The passion surrounding them was palpable and Sawyer looked up at them curiously, but they were lost, somewhere far away, finding that thing Trish had mentioned earlier…perfection.

"Don't be mad," Chris said as he pulled away from Stephanie's mouth, but kept their foreheads touching.

Stephanie tried to catch her breath. "And I said I wasn't."

She turned away from him, face flushed as she picked up the papers that she had been going for originally. She left the room, trying to regain her breath and steady her heart. Kissing Chris was like nothing else, but she had work to do, the show was starting soon. She cursed and walked back into the office and Chris looked at her curiously. She had forgotten to get Sawyer's seat and diaper bag. She strapped Sawyer in, grabbed his things and was off again.

She went down to the gorilla and set up her things at her station before sitting down. It wasn't long before the hustle and bustle of the backstage started to grow in volume with people trickling in. Sawyer was growing increasingly used to hearing lots of noise around him, and luckily for Stephanie and Chris, Sawyer's sleep patterns were starting to even out, and he was getting adjusted to sleeping during the commotion of the shows. She just hoped that meant he wouldn't always have to have noise to get him to fall asleep. No matter at this exact second since he was very much awake and very much moving around happily in his chair.

"What are you doing, you crazy kid?" Stephanie said, poking him in the stomach, which was rewarded with a smile. "Are you having fun wiggling around?"

"Hey you two."

Stephanie looked up and saw Hunter. "Oh hey, where's the boring half of your dynamic duo?"

"Come on Steph…"

"Sorry, sorry," Stephanie said as Hunter leaned comfortably against the table. "So you've got a segment with my dad coming up in the middle of the show, no doubt to intimidate you guys. I don't expect to see you lay your hands on them right?"

"Right, we can wait until Sunday," Hunter said. "Then I'm going to pummel them, and beat them into a bloody pulp for all the crap they've put us through."

"Good, I'm glad, do it, and make me proud," she said, patting her leg.

"How's the tough guy?"

"He's fine, look at him, could he be anything but fine?" Stephanie asked as she looked to Sawyer.

"Hey there tough guy, no metal shirt tonight, did Mommy dress you this time?"

"Yes she did," Stephanie said as Hunter leaned over Sawyer and grabbed his hand, shaking it around.

Kurt walked into the area, having run into Chris earlier, he told him where to find Stephanie. What he saw wasn't an image he was prepared to see. He knew that Stephanie and Chris were siding with Hunter and Shawn, but they looked like…well like really good friends right now. They were talking amicably and Hunter was shaking Sawyer's hand. Kurt had spent a lot of his free time up with Ashley at her house so he hadn't been able to be around as much, and then with getting ECW off the ground and his injury.

"Kurt!" Stephanie exclaimed waving him over. He hesitated a moment before going over to Stephanie and Hunter. Stephanie popped up from her seat and hugged him tightly. "Hey there stranger, you too good for your best friend now?"

"Never," he told her, easing into her hug. "I've missed you."

"Me too," she told him. "You never come and see me anymore."

"Oh, that's tragic," Hunter said. "The princess doesn't get any visitors at all."

"Shut up Hunter," Stephanie said with a laugh. "So sit Kurt, commiserate, talk, do whatever."

"I don't know, I haven't talked to your dad yet about my injury."

"You got injured?" Hunter asked.

"Yeah…" Kurt said cautiously.

"Tough break," Hunter said seriously. "It's never fun to get injured. I mean, just not being able to do what you love, brutal. But you wouldn't know about that Stephanie, since you're not a wrestler."

"I've given birth," Stephanie said. "So don't tell me about what hurts and what doesn't."

"I bet you use that on Chris a lot don't you?" Hunter said.

"No," she said, though you could tell she was lying. Sawyer started to get a little fussy and she went to get him, but Hunter waved her off.

"Come here tough guy," Hunter said, and Kurt was starting to turn green with envy. Hunter even had a nickname for Sawyer? And he was holding him? Kurt didn't like this at all. He still didn't trust Hunter or his intentions so he didn't want to see this in front of him.

"Hey Hunter, can you do me a favor and bring Sawyer to Chris? He'd be better off watching him than me," Stephanie said.

"I could do that for you Stephanie," Kurt interrupted quickly. "I'm not even doing anything and Hunter probably has to talk to Shawn."

"No I don't," Hunter said.

"But still, I can handle it."

"Do you even know where Chris is?" Hunter asked.

"I'll find him, it's not that difficult to find someone," Kurt argued. "So I'll just take care of it."

"She asked me," Hunter said.

"That doesn't matter, you're part of the show, I'm not."

"Don't you have a pulled groin, wouldn't that make it hurt to carry anything right now?" Hunter asked, glancing down at Kurt.

"I'd be fine."

"No, you're hurt, Hunter's right," Stephanie said. "I don't want you to have to carry all the stuff. Hunter can handle it, thanks Hunter."

"Not a problem Steph," Hunter said as he strapped Sawyer into his seat and carried him off in search of Chris. Stephanie turned to Kurt and raised an eyebrow in question. He couldn't look her in the eye, instead letting them wander around the room.

"Care to share why you and Hunter whipped out your things and waved them around?" Stephanie asked.

"Why is he holding Sawyer and calling him tough guy?" Kurt asked.

"Because he likes to hold him and because tough guy is a funny, little nickname, it doesn't mean anything, Chris calls Sawyer kid, and we both call him the monster, what's the big deal?"

"The big deal is you're like best friends with him now," Kurt said, "I mean, if you want to be best friends with him, fine, whatever, I'm not going to let it stop you."

"Kurt, are you jealous?" Stephanie said, her voice raising as if she were talking to Sawyer.

"No," he guffawed. "Why would I be jealous?"

"You're jealous aren't you?"

"I'm not jealous," he said indignantly. "I'm just observant, and I observed that you were very into Hunter right now, and not into me, and if you want to replace me, then fine, replace me, but don't just not tell me what's going on."

"I'm not replacing you Kurt, that's absurd, Hunter is a friend now, yes, and he spends more time with us than you do _right now_. But Kurt, you are my best friend, you're the one person who has been there for me through thick and thin before Chris and during Hunter, that's a long time Kurt, you're my best friend."

"I know I spend a lot of time with Ashley lately, but--"

"Kurt, don't apologize for spending time with your girlfriend," Stephanie said, shaking her head. She looked to the screen. "Oh, I've got to get to work, we'll talk later though, and we'll spend tomorrow together or something."

Kurt felt a little bit better, but he'd feel even better if Hunter were out of the picture.

On the flip side, Trish would've felt a lot better if Christian were totally out of the picture. She couldn't ignore his existence like she was doing right now, but she wanted to just hang off on it for a little while longer. She was starting to see that maybe, just maybe Chris had been right and Christian wasn't the one. She didn't want to look into the what-if's, but she often though about what would've happened if Mickie had never threatened Christian. Would things have been different? Probably. But she didn't dwell on that as Carlito's lips found hers again.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked.

"Nothing but you," she told him, giving him a smile.

"You know I have a match later, so we can't be doing this all night," he told her. She pouted and leaned forward to kiss him again, chaste this time as she gazed into his dark eyes.

"I know, but then tonight, later, when we're at the hotel, we can continue whatever we start here right?" she said, settling herself more firmly against him as she straddled his lap in his dressing room.

"Oh yeah, most definitely," he told her.

"Good then," she said. "And am I coming with you to ringside?"

"If you want."

"I want to be near you," she said, kissing him again. She sighed happily, "Has it ever been like this before for you Lito? Like just so whirlwind?"

"No, not really," he answered. "But I think I like it."

"I like it too," she confessed. "You know, being with Christian was like a roller coaster, up and down, up and down, and I was starting to get nauseous. I think I need something new. I think I need you Lito."

He grinned. "And not a rebound?"

"No," she insisted, "what I feel for you is hardly anything that should be considered a rebound. It's way deeper than that."

"Cool," he said with a smirk, before he went back to kissing her. Trish was genuinely and completely happy for the first time in a long time. Carlito was the first guy since the beginning of her relationship with Christian that made her feel so utterly wanted and perfect. Being with Carlito made her feel like she was the only woman in the world to him. She liked that feeling. She needed that feeling.

"My friends think I'm crazy," she giggled. "I think I'm just in love."

"I love you too," he told her. "I don't think I've ever loved someone like you. You're perfect."

"_We're_ perfect," she responded. And they felt perfect. "You want to go get something to eat before we starve."

"I had an apple," he joked, and she frowned and pouted. "Oh come on."

They walked out of the dressing room just in time to see Hunter walking past them with Sawyer. Hunter had just found out where the divas were situated that evening and knocked on the door lightly. The Miz answered and immediately let him in, seeing as how it was Triple H (since you know, he's so "intimidating"). Hunter came in and Chris nodded to him.

"So she decided to hand him off to me anyways," Chris said, letting Hunter put Sawyer down next to Chris. As soon as he was done with that, he plopped himself down in between Layla and J.T., grinning at both as he laid his arms across the back of the couch.

"So ladies, what's going on?"

"I was just explaining that the three finalists will be on a separate show to decide the winner this Wednesday in New York."

"New York huh?" Hunter commented curiously. "I'm going to have to come up and see this little show, I'd love to know which one of you lovely ladies is going to be the newest diva to our fine program." Chris looked at him in disbelief.

"_Anyways_, the three finalists will come back here after your match tonight--"

"You've got a match tonight?" Hunter interrupted.

"Yeah, it's a water fight against Candice Michelle, Torrie, and Victoria," Layla explained. "It'll be fun."

"It does sound fun, and do any of you lovely ladies need a personal towel boy, I'd love to be of service," he said lecherously.

"Trips, how about I turn the hose on you," Chris interjected. "As I was saying, the three finalists will come back here after the match to get their plane tickets and your itineraries. And don't lose them because I'm not making my assistant get you extra copies. And it'll outline the times and things, and you'll be getting a call from me tomorrow as a reminder, so please don't forget. Okay, Hunter, turn your charm back on."

"Great, so about being a towel boy for any of you," Hunter said.

"Taken," J.T. told him, but winked as she got up.

"Hey," Jen said. "I really am a big fan of yours."

"Oh really, I'd like to be a big fan of yours," Hunter told her as she laughed a little. Chris groaned and Hunter looked over at him and glared a little before turning back to Jen.

Chris wrote something down and then picked up Sawyer's seat and put it on the table next to him. He took his son out of the seat and held him with one arm as he went over the final itineraries to make sure the times were correct and all of that. He could hear Hunter flirting away behind him and he had to laugh to himself at that. At least now for sure he knew that he was over Stephanie and he wouldn't have to worry about the other man. The divas then left for some picture taking and Hunter came to stand with Chris.

"Damn that Jen is hot, I'm totally going to ask her out for later," Hunter commented.

"That's nice."

"Oh, don't be jealous man, because you're tied down with a wife and kid," Hunter joked.

"I kind of like them," Chris shrugged. "But to each his own."

"You know, I really need to get myself some single friends," Hunter told him. "I mean, you have Stephanie and Sawyer, and Shawn has Rebecca and his kids, and then there's me, the divorced guy, and it's not like I can remarry my ex-wife, since you know, you're married to her. I need new friends."

"You need to settle down is what you need, you're what now? Forty-six?"

"Shut up Jericho."

"You can't help that your friends are married man, you just have to go find that perfect person, and if you think it's still Stephanie, I'm going to have to argue that point."

"I don't, trust me, when I'm with her for long periods of time I remember why I divorced her."

"She's not that bad."

"Yeah, she is, you just don't know it because you're married to her, but trust me, she is that bad, maybe worse."

"Okay, whatever, can we just go discuss SummerSlam before said wife has a hissy fit, she wants to make sure there's no repeat of the last two weeks."

"There won't be, neither one of us has a match."

"Regardless, just go get your buddy and we'll meet up with Stephanie so that I won't have to hear for the rest of the night that we couldn't' get it together. You know how it is with her, if she doesn't get her way, she'll let you know it."

"Yeah, and now she's all yours," Hunter said before he left, chuckling to himself.

Chris rolled his eyes, and looked to Sawyer. "So how are ya kid?" Sawyer cooed and looked up at Chris with curious eyes. Chris stared back into the eyes that were so much like his own. If you put up a picture of Chris from when he was a baby and then put it next to one of Sawyer, the resemblance was uncanny. "Yeah, you're tired of all this talking, I am too, but at least you didn't have to deal with those contestants, I swear to God kid, they drive on Daddy's last nerve, but thankfully it's all over Wednesday and then in a couple of weeks, Daddy gets to go on a new adventure."

Chris laughed as he talked to his kid before wrapping up what he was doing. He stuck his files into Sawyer's diaper bag and then put his son back into his carrier. Poor kid was constantly getting transported around as he soon found himself back where he started from, with his mommy, but he was starting to get sleepy and felt his eyes becoming heavier and heavier as the sound faded into the background.

Shawn came over with Hunter, who practically had to drag him. "We've got our segment soon," Hunter said. "So we're just going to talk out there, nothing more. We wouldn't want to ruin the big match."

"Of course not," Shawn said. "That'd make little Stephy angry if we were to lay our hands on them before the big, money-making match."

"What the hell is your problem Michaels?" Stephanie said. "I freaking apologized to you for drugging you, what more do you want from me?"

"I've just never liked you Stephanie, not now, not before, not even when you were younger."

"Why not? I never did anything to you when I was younger," Stephanie protested. "You just hate that I'm trying to tell you what to do, but I know my father and brother better than anyone and you should listen to me when I speak of them."

"I just don't like any McMahons, particularly you or your father, you've always been a thorn in my side."

"I barely interacted…oh wait…oh man, is this because I turned you down when I was like eighteen?" Stephanie asked with a laugh. Shawn turned away. "Seriously, no, that can't be it. That's so dumb. It had to be the drugging right? I mean, you hate me because I dared to slip a mickey in your drink. Oh, poor Shawn got woozy, what a baby. Get the hell over it."

"You used your son, that's despicable."

She rolled her eyes. "I knew he was fine."

"Yeah, well maybe you should've thought about how it affects your kid sometime down the road when he sees his mother using him for kicks and giggles," Shawn said. Hunter and Chris watched in fascination as this entire scene unfolded.

"I didn't use him for kicks and giggles, I didn't exploit him in anyway."

"Bull!" Shawn yelled. "You're a bad mother for what you did."

Stephanie's eyes saw nothing but red in that moment and before they could even stop her, she was lunging herself at Shawn. Chris and Hunter were too slow to react and she was practically on top of Shawn, trying to punch him in the face. Before she could get a good shot though, she was pulled by the waist from Chris.

"How dare you!" she screamed. "How dare you call me that you asshole! You should rot in hell! Christian my ass with your stupid insults, bastard!"

"Steph, calm down," Chris said calmly. "You aren't a bad mother, shh…Sawyer adores you, and you love him, and you're the best mommy in the world."

"He said I was a bad mother," she said softly, tears forming in her eyes. Her worst fear was being seen as a bad mother to her son.

"God, what a crazy bitch," Shawn muttered.

"You stepped over the line Shawn," Hunter told him. "That was uncalled for."

"Oh come on now man, whose side are you on?"

"I've seen her with Sawyer man, she loves him and she's a great mother, you shouldn't have said that," Hunter said seriously. "You really shouldn't have."

"I'm sorry Stephanie," Shawn told her and she nodded, but didn't seem to hear his words. "Come on Hunt, let's just go out there and do this."

"Okay…you two going to be okay?" Hunter asked.

"Yeah, we'll be fine," Chris said, hugging Stephanie to him. "You're not a bad mother Steph, you're not."

"He said…" she sniffled against his neck.

"No, do _not_ listen to him, he doesn't even know what he's talking about. You are the best mommy in the world. Well, from my perspective. Sawyer loves you so much, more than anyone else. He loves your voice, and his face always lights up when he sees you, and he has a special smile reserved just for you. You're the love of his life…you're the love of my life. Don't listen to Shawn because he holds a grudge a little too long, and what's this about him hitting on you?"

"When I was like eighteen or nineteen, I remember he asked me out and I told him no and he was like, shocked because he got turned down, it was no big deal. At some point since I turned legal, pretty much every guy backstage has hit on me, most of them just wanted the power that came with me."

"So I'm what? Just one in a long line of guys?"

"Yeah, pretty much, I just liked you better."

"Nice to know."

"Hey, you saved me from a lifetime of getting hit on, so thank you," she said, kissing him in such a way that thanked him for much more than that. "Will you sing me a song now?"

"I swear to God," he muttered, turning her around so her back was against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her tight against his body, almost melding them together as one as her arms sat atop his. He cleared his throat as he started to sway with her, right there in the middle of the backstage area, resting his chin against her shoulder. He gave in anyways though as he started to sing their song, "I don't like you, but I love you…"

Later that evening, Trish was pulling at Carlito's arm as they made their way up the ramp. Cena had just interrupted Carlito's match with Edge, ending it in a disqualification. She wanted Carlito all to herself and the sooner they were backstage the better. As soon as they were through that curtain though, Trish was all over him. He broke away from her long enough to get to their dressing room before she launched herself into his arms. He picked her up on her feet as she wrapped her legs around his waist. She grunted against his mouth as he pushed her up against the door, going after her neck with wet kisses.

It was later that evening when Carlito was asleep that she realized this was where she wanted to be and not with Christian. She slunk out of bed and grabbed her cell phone from where it was charging. She knew it was late, but she needed to get this out now before she became too chicken to tell him. She dialed Christian's number and waited for his groggy voice.

"Hello?"

"Christian, we need to talk…"


	102. SummerSlam and Raw, August 20&21, 2006

A/N: Hey, this chapter covers a bit from SummerSlam last night, and then Raw tonight, in case you're confused.

And for a little self-pimping, if you like my stories, and I'm hoping you do if you're reading this. I'd like to direct you to a story I'm co-writing with the awesome jetderk1462 (she of stories like "The Face of Love" and "The Games We Play"), called "Playing with Fire," which you can find the link to in my profile. If you want to read a really great story, may I highly recommend that one. :)

Enjoy this chapter, and as always leave a review, they make my day. :)

-----------------------------

"At least we were able to drive tonight."

"True," Stephanie said as she glanced back at Sawyer, who was asleep in the backseat. She sighed and thanks God for that since he had been crying for the first twenty minutes of their car trip. But once he got used to the rocking of the vehicle, he had been out like a light, which his parents were grateful for. "He's being a cranky-pants tonight anyways. I can tell already he's going to be difficult."

"Just like you're difficult for me," Chris said, glancing over at him as he entered Boston. Stephanie tilted her head and sneered at him. He chuckled as he looked back at the road.

"You're just so funny Jericho," she said, folding her arms over her chest and looking out the window at the rather familiar scenery. "Tonight's a big night, I hopefully get to see my father and brother taken down a few thousand pegs. That's enough to make me in a good mood, and you know what happens when I'm in a good mood…when I get what I want…"

"What happens?" he asked, though he knew the answer.

Stephanie reached over and rubbed his leg, her hand starting at his knee and slowly going upwards. Chris kept his eyes on the road, though it was becoming increasingly difficult to do so. She was touching him places that she knew would get him started. Her soft hand on his jeans were not unwelcome, but she certainly could've found a better time to do this.

"Stephanie, I'm driving here," he croaked out.

"I know what you're doing," she said coyly, but she didn't move her hand. "I know that you're driving."

"I have our son in the backseat, I highly doubt that you want to get into an accident and put his life in danger. So I suggest, and this is very reluctant a request, I request that you take your hand off of me so that I can get us to the arena in one piece."

"Fine," she said, but leaned over to give him a kiss on the cheek. "And thank you for toning down on the heavy metal for the car trip."

"I knew that it would wake up Sawyer, that's the only reason why I did that," he told her. "Otherwise, I would've been blasting that all over Massachusetts. You're just lucky that we have a baby."

"And once again, Sawyer pulls through in a clutch," Stephanie said. "I'm going to have to thank that kid again for having the wherewithal to be conceived. And to think, there was a chance it wouldn't happen since generally we were really careful not to get pregnant."

"He couldn't help but want to come into the world," Chris said. "I like having him around though."

Stephanie smiled at that confession. It wasn't an overt "I love my child" kind of thing, but it wasn't a passing comment either. It was sweet and as she observed the smile on Chris's face, she knew that he was completely genuine. She nodded and looked towards the backseat again, where Sawyer's sweet face was reposed in sleep, his cheeks a little rosy, and his wispy blond hair off to one side.

"I like having him around too," she responded. They shared a look, each one knowing what the other meant and then they laughed to each other. "How the hell did we end up with a kid?"

"I have no idea, we seriously were careful. Man, I can't help my potency," Chris shrugged as he navigated through the streets. "So tell me again, what am I going to be doing tonight?"

"Nothing," she said. "You're officially off the clock I guess you can say. You took over for me and you did a really good job, then you did an equally good job with the diva search, and now you are free to focus on your fledgling reality show career. You're going to sing your heart out for the world."

Chris shook his head. "Seriously, not even in the audience. I don't want them to cut to you and then you're there laughing your head off, tears rolling down your eyes. And then, when all the other families and wives and husbands have signs supporting their loved ones, you'll just have some sarcastic, mean sign that says I should lose or something."

"You really think I want you to lose?"

"Yeah, so I can come back to work and be your lackey, because you love to see me as your lackey, your own little slave. But that's what you have Britt for. You're not going to boss me around lady."

"I do not want you to lose," she told him honestly. "I want you to win and I want you to take it all, and I mean take it all. And so help me God Chris, if you're the first one eliminated, don't even bother coming home, I don't want to be married to a loser, and Sawyer does not want a loser for a father."

"So if I get kicked off, I'll be kicked out of your life."

"Yeah, pretty much," she said with a sweet giggle, then pointed, "turn here, turn…"

"I heard you," he said, exasperated as he turned. They saw the arena looming in the distance. "I want to do well on this. Seeing you there might not make me do well, you distract me. I'd look at you and you'd do something like smile and I'd laugh and then I'd lose."

"I wouldn't move a muscle, I can be a statue if I want to be."

"I said no," he told her as they pulled into the arena and showed their pass at the gate to get in. "Look, Steph, you know that I love you more than I love anyone in this world save for the monster, but really, just…"

"Fine, I understand," she told him. "Okay, I don't really understand, but whatever you want to do is up to you. I'm just going to be along for the ride. It's your career Chris, I make a point not to interfere in that part of your life. You want to do your radio show and talk about hot chicks and parts of your anatomy, fine with me. You want to do this reality show thing, fine with me, you want to tour with Fozzy, fine with me. The only thing that's not fine with me is if you cheat on me, and you don't do that, so I don't care what else you do."

"I love you for that, you know," he told her honestly. "You're not the nagging type of wife who wants to be involved in every decision and every aspect of my life. You let me make my own decisions."

She shrugged, "Freedom is an important trait and so is trust. I trust you…end of story. Pull in there."

He pulled into the spot that she pointed out. It was close to the entrance and blocked from anywhere the fans could see. She was still weary of the reaction to Sawyer from the masses. She had been perusing…okay, no, Chris had been perusing websites over the weekend and stumbled across places that called her child (the fake one) things like the demon spawn, and the bringer of evil, and she was thankful they thought that of some unknown, invisible child and not of her precious little boy. She loved Sawyer with all her heart and never thought anyone could have that kind of hold over her, but he did, and if that was directed towards her son, she would've lost it.

She picked up said son from his car-seat, careful not to wake him up in his transfer from car-seat to carrier. She managed to do it without waking him up and she took up his carrier while Chris gathered their things. They walked down the hallway and to their office, where they were greeted by D-X, who were waiting for them. Stephanie avoided looking at Shawn, and he did the same thing. She set Sawyer's seat down on the desk and adjust the blanket she had over him, waiting for Chris to set up the collapsible playpen so she could put Sawyer in there to sleep more comfortably.

"So what're you guys doing here?" she asked, but directed the question more towards Hunter than Shawn. What Shawn had said to her had stung, and it had stung badly.

She wasn't the greatest mother, she knew this for a fact. She wasn't even a conventional mother. The moment, the second that Sawyer's pediatrician had said he was fine to travel, she had been making plans in her head. She took her baby on the road with her everywhere, around the country. He slept in portable playpens and cribs from the hotel (that she would make sure were the best kind). So no, she knew she wasn't the best mother, but she thought she did a decent job.

She loved her baby, she loved him more than she loved anything in the world, even power. That's the best she could give him, her love, and she intended to give him that for the rest of her life. But Shawn had made her feel like all her decisions were the wrong ones. It wasn't so much the fact he said it, but that it was said at all. Stephanie had questioned her abilities as a mother all throughout her pregnancy. She was a McMahon, they were screwed up, oh how they were screwed up. She didn't want to screw up her baby, and now she feared she might, well, she did until Chris reassured her that she was the best mommy in the world, and while she didn't believe that, she did believe that she was doing okay with it all.

"We're just getting ready for the big match," Hunter said. "And we've got some tricks up our sleeves, well, one trick, but that's a trick."

"A trick?"

"We're gong to recruit Kane to our side."

"Kane?" she asked, raising an eyebrow and looking to Chris, who was putting Sawyer into the portable playpen.

"How are you guys doing that?" Chris asked as he turned to them, checking back to look at Sawyer for one moment.

"We're going to use psychology," Hunter said, tapping his forehead. "You see, we're not the only ones who can use our brains. I think Vince and Shane have forgotten we're not exactly stupid idiots."

"No, you're not," Stephanie said.

"Do you know if they're going to be sending anyone out there?" Hunter asked. He knew it was a shot in the dark, but if she did know, it would help them out a lot. He hated going into a match blind. Hunter was one of those guys that wanted to know everything that was going on around him. That's just the kind of guy he was, alert like a cat.

"Well, I know the Spirit Squad is going to be out there, that's a given," Stephanie said. "I can do some snooping around though, find out who else is going to show up. Leave it to me."

"Cool, good, at least we'll know what we're up against," Hunter said with a nod. "I'm not going to fool myself into thinking that there's just going to be those guys. He can probably get every single guy out there if he wants, and I wouldn't put it past him."

"Neither would I," Stephanie said with a sigh. "But I know that you guys can win. I mean, my father and brother aren't exactly the most trained guys in the world. They aren't ripped or something, well, my dad is, I guess, whatever. Just kick their asses for me."

"Your wish is my command," Hunter said impishly. "Let's go Shawn."

"Hey Trips, did you ever ask Jen out?" Chris asked as Hunter and Shawn made their way to the door.

"Actually, yeah, we're going out tomorrow. She's going to hang around, you know, see if she can get a contract," Hunter said. "Thanks for asking, makes me feel like I actually do have single friends, see you suckers later."

Hunter left and Stephanie turned to Chris, wrapping her arms around his waist. He snuck his arm around her waist and pulled her ever closer. She leaned her chin on his shoulder and sighed. "What was that all about? He's asking Jen out?"

"Yeah, he is, he was also bummed over the fact that he has no single friends."

"You can't help it if you managed to snag one of the hottest women ever," she told him with a smile. He leaned down to press a kiss to her lips, nothing fancy or raunchy, a chaste kiss.

"Yeah, I did get one of the hottest women ever, but you come in a close second," he joked and she smacked him on the arm.

"Don't play," she pouted and he pulled her closer and kissed her again as she wrapped her arms around him tighter, pulling it so they were touching, body to body. She pulled away slightly, but so her lips were still connected with his. "It was five years ago."

"What was five years ago?" he asked.

"When you kissed me silly," Stephanie told him. "SummerSlam, remember, I was interfering and you just decided that you couldn't stand being away from me. You needed to taste my mouth. You couldn't resist me. Quite sad really."

"But five years later, who are you married to, and have been married to for the past year and a half?" Chris asked.

"Oh, I don't know," she told him, kissing him again.

Kissing seemed to be a prevalent theme that night. No, Hunter and Shawn weren't making out somewhere, although…nah. Carlito and Trish were kissing, but a lot tamer than they had been last week. It was like, even in their short time together, they had fallen into a routine and a comfortable one at that.

"So I don't have a match, and you just have the dark match, which means that we can be out of here pretty early," she said suggestively. He smiled at that and she couldn't help but want to smile back. Pretty much everything he did made her want to smile. "Oh, you like that idea then?"

"I think it's cool," he said, his voice becoming lower and huskier. She leaned forward to kiss him again and he ran his hand up her back, tugging on her hair lightly.

"Very cool," she whispered. "Hey Lito…"

"Yeah?" he asked, his eyes staring into hers.

"You want to go get food?" she asked, grinning as his face changed. "What? You think I was going to ask you to take me right here?"

"I was hoping that was the case."

"Nope, I'm hungry," she said, putting her hand on her stomach, "see, growling."

Carlito placed his hand over hers, "Oh yeah, I can feel it rumbling," he said sarcastically and she giggled, getting off his lap and standing in front of him, grabbing his right hand and forcefully pulling him up from his seat. "Geez, you're one pushy lady."

"Don't worry, you'll get used to it," she told him as he wrapped his arm around her waist. "It take a little getting used to, to be around me that is. But you're learning, in fact, you're my star student."

"You're a weird one Trish Stratus," Carlito said affectionately. Trish beamed up at him, and she knew in that instant that this was right. Carlito felt right with her and she wanted more of this. Some people would say that she was rushing things, that things were going too fast, but sometimes love was just that fast. She could feel herself falling deeper and deeper in love with this man.

Of course, Christian was still in the back of her mind. She had chickened out last week when she had called Christian. She had just arranged to pick up something from him, but then said she didn't need it. She knew that Christian wasn't stupid and could probably read the writing on the wall, but she wanted to delay it as much as possible. Trish wasn't the kind of person who liked to break someone's heart, and she knew that she was going to do that to Christian.

She kept repeating that mantra that Chris had told her a few weeks ago. Maybe Christian wasn't the one. Maybe Christian wasn't the one…It was a bitter pill to swallow, even now, even when she was so incredibly happy with Carlito. She had loved Christian for so long, so very long and she almost didn't know how to stop loving him altogether. She couldn't say it was all good times with Christian, it hadn't been, but she recognized the fact that for the majority of their time together, she was happy to be with him.

She just couldn't be with him anymore. Too much had transpired, too much had passed between them. It was just the way it had to be for now, maybe forever. She didn't want to leave anything to chance because if she never did get with Christian again, she wanted him to know that he had to go on. That he had to go out there and find happiness. She had done just that, and she didn't regret starting to see Carlito. Not for a moment.

She looked at the man to her left. He was just so different from her, but then she had always been attracted to men who were different than her. How else would she explain Jeff Hardy? She leaned into Carlito's side as she saw Hunter and Shawn walking up ahead. She nodded to Hunter, who nodded back. She knew he was friends with Chris and Stephanie now, but they didn't exactly have a relationship with each other. She didn't really want to be friends with Hunter anyways, he just always came across as shady to her.

"What's with that jackass?" Carlito asked.

"He's just friends with Chris and Stephanie and we have that in common, it was a courtesy thing."

"Oh, makes sense," Carlito said. "So when am I going to get to formally meet your friends."

"Oh shut up," Trish laughed. "You know who my friend are already, you don't need to be introduced to them. Now _your _friends on the other hand, I've never met any of them."

"You want to go back to my home town then, because it's a long trip," he said, "You'd have to come all the way back to Puerto Rico."

"Then to Puerto Rico I'd go," she told him, sticking her tongue out. "You willing to go all the way to Toronto?"

"Wow, we're really far away," Carlito said.

"Well, our families are," she said, "We're not that far apart. I live in Tampa after all."

"True, true," he nodded as he saw Chris and Stephanie arguing up ahead of them. "Hey look, it's your friends, do they really argue all the time?"

"Yeah, they do," she said, "come on, I'll 'introduce' you."

He shook his head as he went over to them with Trish in tow. Chris and Stephanie were now silently ignoring each other. Stephanie held Sawyer close to her chest and Trish dragged Carlito over to them. Chris and Stephanie managed to look at one another and then at Trish and Carlito, who were joined at the hands.

"And what are you two fighting about now?" Trish asked with a grin.

"Mr. Jericho doesn't think I should be allowed to listen to my music on the way back home tonight after the show. He wants to listen to his metal music even though we listened to metal music all the way to Boston."

"Sawyer was asleep, I had to have it on low, I could barely hear it, so I think that we should listen to my music on the way back."

"No, we have a deal," she said. "That deal is you get to listen to your music one way, and I get to listen to my music the other way. That's the deal, and that's final, there's no room for discussion Jericho. You lose."

Chris grumbled and cursed under his breath, "If we didn't have Sawyer, I could've blasted my music, this is all your fault," he pointed at Sawyer. "If you weren't tired, we could've listened to my music."

"Great, blame the baby," Stephanie said, sticking her tongue out. "I want to thank him, because he was asleep, I didn't have to listen to your crappy music."

"My music is crappy now?"

Trish turned to Carlito, "I think we should leave them alone, don't you?"

"Yeah, I can think of better ways to spend my time," Carlito said, looking at Chris and Stephanie, who were this close to making faces at one another.

In the end it didn't matter because Hunter and Shawn won their match against Shane and Vince. Stephanie was completely ecstatic and nothing was going to ruin her good mood at seeing her father and brother get what was coming to them. But she knew that she wasn't satisfied with this. No, Stephanie wasn't the type of person who would be satisfied over winning one battle. No, Stephanie would want to win the war, and she wasn't quite sure that the war was over quite yet.

But that didn't curb her enthusiasm right this moment. Chris was sitting on the folding table she had been using as her station, holding Sawyer in his arms, watching his wife bounce on the balls of her feet in excitement. Hunter and Shawn made their way to the back, and they were definitely battered and bruised but victorious. Hunter smiled at her as they made their way over to Stephanie, who immediately threw her arms around Hunter.

"You won! You won!"

It was then that something peculiar happened inside of Hunter. It was like, almost like time stopped, but it didn't stop of course. But it was like those moments where you know that your life is changed forever and you're never going to get back what changed. That was this kind of moment and as he patted Stephanie on the back as she hugged him he realized.

He felt nothing for this woman anymore.

He didn't feel anything. Well, he felt friendly feelings towards her, like she was one of the guys, but as for romantic feelings, any type of lingering feelings from their marriage, he felt none of that. They were lost on him, and everything seemed a little bit clearer as he pulled away from Stephanie and gave her a friendly smile. He was…there was nothing there, and he knew the same had happened to her somewhere along the line.

But it was almost like, the air was easier to breathe and everything was a little bit brighter. Chris and his talk might not be so filled with hatred now and that was a comforting thought. He had, for better or worse, gotten used to having Chris and Stephanie for friends, and he wasn't exactly anxious to lose that any time soon. He went over and nodded to Chris as Stephanie did something unexpected.

In her delight, she ended up hugging Shawn, who in his victory ended up hugging her back. She realized what she had done a moment later and pulled away sheepishly, clearing her throat. Chris nudged Hunter in the ribs and they both chuckled quietly. Stephanie stepped away from Shawn and mumbled an apology.

"So what next?" she asked, trying to ignore the fact she had hugged an enemy.

"We won, that's what's next," Hunter said.

"Oh no, this isn't over," she told them, "not by a long shot."

**MONDAY **

_"Stephanie, your mother and I would like to see you this morning at our house. This is not voluntary, it's mandatory." _

"Well, he didn't mention you, so I guess you can get out of it," Stephanie said as she listened to the message once again. She looked over to Chris, who was shaking a rattle in front of four-month-old Sawyer's face, who was watching it with rapt attention.

"Yeah, because I'm not a McMahon," he said with a grin. "Am I kid? What's that, I'm not, thank God."

"He's half McMahon," Stephanie protested.

"And you're full McMahon, so get to stepping," Chris laughed as he motioned to the door. "Your daddy is waiting."

"I don't know what he wants with me," she contemplated.

"Public flogging maybe?" Chris snickered. She glared at him and he shut up immediately because he didn't want to be the one getting publicly flogged. "I'd go talk to him though, because if you don't, who knows what's going to happen, you might not be allowed into the building tonight."

She gasped, "You don't think he'd do that would you?"

"He's _your _father, you know how he is. He doesn't hesitate to do whatever he wants, and after the loss they suffered last night, your dad is going to be reeling," Chris said, raising his voice on the last word. "Sawyer and I are going to stay far, far away from the explosion."

"Fine, I'm going," she said, snatching up her purse. "If you never see me again, know that I love you both."

"That's the way to be optimistic," Chris said cheerily, giving her a fist pump for inspiration. She kissed her boys goodbye and go into her car. It was times like this though that she hated having a home close to her parents. It had seemed okay at the time she bought this place, but she was certainly paying for it now. That's why she loved living in Tampa, it was completely away from her parents and they couldn't call her to come over at a moment's notice.

She wasn't nervous for what her dad was going to tell her, but she knew that it was going to get on her nerves. As she pulled into the driveway, she noticed Shane's car was there and she groaned out loud. So not only would she be dealing with her father, she was going to be dealing with her brother as well. They both weren't going to be in good moods either, not after the humiliation they had suffered the night before.

She adjusted the sleeves on her top before ringing the doorbell to her childhood home. Her mother opened the door and she greeted her warmly. Her mother was truly the only sane person around here, and that included Stephanie and she knew it. Her mother was the one who stayed out of things and just loved them all unconditionally, despite feuds and arguments.

"Your father and brother are in the study, and Stephanie, please, listen to what they have to say."

"I'm tired of doing that Mom," Stephanie told her honestly.

Linda sighed, but then nodded, as if she knew what Stephanie was going to say before she was going to say it. But that could've just been her motherly intuition. Stephanie was wondering when that would kick in with herself. "Okay, if that's the way you feel, I can't change your mind, and I can't change your father of Shane's mind, so I guess I'm stuck. Onto better topics, how is my adorable little baby boy?"

"He's great Mom," Stephanie said, grinning as the topic went to one of her favorite subjects, her baby. "Come over and see him tonight at the show. Or, you know what, if you want to look after him tonight, you can do that."

"You'd let me take care of him?" Linda asked excitedly.

"Yeah, you can come over to our house and watch him if you wanted," Stephanie told her. "He has all his stuff over there. It'd give Chris and I a much-needed break from taking care of him. I don't think we've gotten more than an hour off in the past four months."

"I'd love to," Linda said happily.

"I only ask that you do not let him near Dad, and I'm serious Mom, I don't want my son anywhere near him, and if you can't comply with that, I'm sorry, but I can't allow you to see him," Stephanie told her mother, letting her know through her tone that she was dead serious about what she was saying. She was not going to have her father manipulate her mother into seeing and holding his grandson.

"I understand," Linda said. Despite her disappointment that Vince had yet to even hold his grandson, let alone see him up close, Linda didn't want to lose the contact she herself had with the little boy. He was something else alright, all of her grandchildren were something else.

"Okay then, stop by over there in the next couple of hours, just tell Chris I sent you if I'm still here."

"I think I'll head over now, more time to spend with him," Linda said, giving Stephanie a hug before leaving. She was glad that Sawyer had at least one good grandparent from her side of the family. She headed towards the study and saw Vince and Shane sitting in a couple of armchairs discussing something. She cleared her throat and they both turned to gaze at her.

"So what did you want?" Stephanie asked.

"We wanted to talk to you," Vince told her, pointing towards a seat across from them. Stephanie walked hesitantly into the room, but fought her nerves and sat down across from the two of them, making herself comfortable.

"Okay, what's this about then?"

"You've had your fun Stephanie and now it's time to come back home."

"Um, what are you suggesting?" she asked, not understanding where her father was coming from. "Are you saying that my marriage is now over and I have to move back home, because I'm thinking that's not going to happen."

"Very funny," Shane muttered. "No Stephanie, it's time to end the charade you have going on with D-X. We know that this is your weird way of rebelling against us, but come on, time to quit it, you're not helping anybody."

"What? You think I'm just being rebellious like I'm fifteen or something?" she scoffed. "You called me here to discuss that with me?"

"Yes, Stephanie, we get what you were doing, but it's time to stop now, we're all a little tired of it. We're your family, and you don't turn your back against your family," Vince told her. "So just tell D-X that you're not a part and come back to your family. It's where you belong."

"I can't believe the both of you, you honestly don't see what's got me so angry with you, do you?" she asked. "You both have blinders on."

"Stephanie, it's been four months since you've given birth to Sawyer, don't you think you've punished Dad enough?" Shane asked.

Stephanie's jaw dropped slowly. "Wow Shane," she said sarcastically. "When did you get brainwashed? Are you the same guy who bought out WCW right out from under Dad's nose? Are you the one who invaded the WWF? Because from where I'm sitting, that guy is totally dead."

"That was a long time ago."

"Not that long ago," she countered. "And this isn't about punishing Dad, this is about my son and my family. My son deserved better, and don't try to convince me otherwise. As for you Shane, you left my son alone, so get off your high horse. You both sicken me."

"Stephanie, we're not asking you to come back, you're my daughter. You're a McMahon, you belong with us, and this little game you want to be playing, it's dumb and stupid and you're not going to win."

"First of all," Stephanie said, holding up her left hand. "This is my wedding ring. I'm not a freaking McMahon, I'm a Jericho, and if you think a Jericho is going to sit back and take this kind of treatment, you're dead wrong. And you think I'm not going to win, you think _I'm _not going to win."

"Over us? I'm the President of this company," Vince said, puffing his chest out in pride.

"But people like me better," Stephanie said snidely as she stood up and walked straight out of the room and straight out of the house. She pulled out her cell phone when she was halfway down the driveway and dialed home.

"McMahon-Jericho residence, the Jericho half speaking."

" Jericho, it's me."

"Baby, what's up, you still alive, still have all your fingers?" he asked.

"Is my mom there?"

"Yeah, she's here, you want to talk to her, she's kind of cooing over Sawyer right now so it might be hard to break her away," Chris said, glancing over at his mother-in-law, who was holding a chew toy out for Sawyer, who tried to grab at it.

"No, I want you to get ready, we're leaving as soon as I get there, I'm calling Hunter, who will call Shawn. My father and brother need to get it ten-fold, they're a couple of assholes, and I'm tired of playing nice. I want to break them down."

"Steph, baby, what happened?" Chris asked, lowering his voice so Linda wouldn't hear.

Stephanie got into her car and took a deep breath. "They thought that I was just doing this to be rebellious against them and they demanded that I stop playing this little game and that I've punished them enough. They said that four months of being mad at my father is long enough and that I should let them see Sawyer and all of that, and God, Chris…they don't even get why I'm mad, they don't get _me_."

Chris sighed. "I'm getting ready now."

"Thank you sweetie, I love you."

"I love you too beautiful," he told her softly, letting her know that he meant that with all his heart. She appreciated that as they said their goodbyes and she called Hunter next. He picked up shortly.

"Hello?"

"Hunter, it's Steph."

"Hey Steph, what's up?"

"Remember how I said it wasn't over last night; that this thing with my father and brother wasn't over, that they deserved worse?"

"Yeah…"

"Call Shawn, it's on now."

Stephanie hung up after that and went back home to collect Chris and say goodbye to her baby. He probably wouldn't do too well around the carnage she was hoping to see tonight. She drove to Hunter's house and Chris was kind of nervous to go there. He had never been to Hunter's house before, and he was probably going to think it strange.

"So…um…you lived at this place?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, when I was married to Hunter, why?" Stephanie asked blankly, then looked over at Chris. "Oh…sweetie if this makes you uncomfortable being there, I can tell Hunter to meet us somewhere neutral, like a restaurant or something."

"No, I think I'll be okay, it's just going to be weird seeing your old life, but I'm over it. I mean, how bad can it be?"

Well, the house was sprawling. It sat on a large expanse of land and was sitting right in the middle of it. It was huge and ostentatious, just like he'd expect of something from Hunter. Stephanie pulled up to it and parked the car. She looked at Chris and laughed at the expression on his face. It was like a mixture of disbelief and awe.

"I know what you're thinking," she said in a sing-song voice.

"You do?" he asked in wonderment.

"You're wondering how I ever survived here right?"

"No, actually I'm wondering if this is what you like and if you want to move into something more like this. I'm suddenly feeling very inferior as your second husband if this is the lifestyle you were accustomed to with your first."

She rolled her eyes playfully. "I love our house…well, houses, since we have more than one. I didn't like it here. It's really creepy at night with no neighbors and all those windows, it's like the setting of a horror movie, come on, you'll see what I mean."

Chris did see what she meant when Hunter invited them inside the house. There were windows everywhere, and they looked in all directions, kind of like a lighthouse. It was incredibly almost impossibly neat too, but he had always taken Hunter for a neat guy (come on, look at the meticulous facial hair). He wondered how Stephanie even survived this because she was a really messy person.

"He made me have my own room where I could be messy, he never came in there," she whispered as if she knew what he was thinking. He kissed her temple in thanks for answering her question.

"I'm going to go grab some beers then we can talk, you know where the living room is, Steph," Hunter said.

"Oh, Hunter, water for me, I'm still breastfeeding," Stephanie told him and Hunter nodded.

Stephanie led Chris through the house, familiar with it all. The living room was all in white and black and Chris was starting to see where Stephanie and Hunter might've first started having problems. This house was immaculate and sparse and hardly looked lived in whatsoever, and from the time he'd known Stephanie, that wasn't who she was at all. Shawn was in there already, reclining in one of the chairs and watching a baseball game on television.

"Hey Shawn," Chris said, Stephanie ignoring him as per usual.

"Hey man," Shawn said, also ignoring Stephanie. It was just better that way.

"I'm surprised I didn't have to take my shoes off when I came into the house," Chris whispered to Stephanie as they took one of the leather couches, conveniently done in black. Hunter came in a moment later and handed out drinks.

"Where's the kid?" Hunter asked.

"My mom is taking care of his tonight," Stephanie explained. "Okay, down to business. Vince and Shane have been disrespecting me for so long. They don't even know why I'm mad at them, and if they think I'm a child playing a game, then I'm going to give them a game. You boys like to do graffiti work don't you?"

"Well…"

"I mean, you did Titan, although they cleaned that up," Stephanie said. "I wish you had done that in permanent paint or something, that would've been great."

"What Stephanie is trying to say is that she wants you to brand your name on things," Chris explained.

"Not just anything, stuff that will hurt my dad the most," Stephanie told them. "I'm your key, literally, to anything you want to do. I have full access to everything and anything owned by my father since I'm a blood relative and everyone knows me. Nobody would dare cross the boss's daughter."

"Okay, so you want us to mess up some of your father's property again. I guess we can do Titan again, make it bigger and harder to get off the building," Hunter said.

"We can probably get his limo too, hey, remember that one time we actually tied the car up to that truck and it pulled the front of that car right off?" Shawn said to Hunter, who laughed heartily. "Oh man, we've got to do that again, maybe we can hook up the limo to something and pull the axel off."

"That'd be great," Hunter said. "If you don't mind us doing that Steph."

"I don't care, do whatever you want to make them feel pain," Stephanie said, her face darkening and kind of frightening the three men looking at her. Chris reached out to rub her lower back.

"Okay, then we'll do both of those. What else does your dad love above anything else?" Hunter asked.

Stephanie and Chris looked at each other and then at the other two men. Hunter smirked and got what they were saying and three of them said in unison, "His plane."

"But how the hell are we going to get access to that, doesn't he keep that in a private hangar?" Shawn asked.

Stephanie scoffed and pulled out a ring of keys, flipping through them until she got to one particular key, she held it up, "This is the key for the hangar, I can call them and tell them to allow clearance for the two of you. It's not even a problem. I have the key for Titan too, so you're free to get in there."

"Your dad is going to know it's you," Hunter pointed out.

"I hope he does," she said, taking the two keys she had just mentioned off the ring of keys and setting them down on the table. "The rest is up to you, but I want you to make sure that you leave your mark wherever you go. They think that they're going to get me, they think that I'm on your side just because I'm a kid, well, I want you guys to show them. Now if you'll excuse us, Chris and I have a show to run."

It was later that evening, right before the show was about to start and Stephanie was already anxious. She couldn't even take her meeting with Jeff Hardy because she was just a bundle of nerves, hoping that everything was going to work out. It had been a long enough time that she was seen as the baby of the family. She was almost thirty years old, she had a husband for going on two years, and she had a son. If that didn't make her an adult, only a pension fund would do it.

Chris walked into Stephanie's office, taking her meeting for her since she was on edge right now. He just let her be on edge though, not trying to comfort her. This thing with her family was her own thing and he would just be the one to support her through it. He was tired of getting involved in the McMahon family situations, even though technically he was a member of the McMahon family, but he didn't need to be constantly reminded of that fact.

Jeff was sitting there and he stood up when Chris walked into the room. Chris walked over and gave him a friendly handshake, "How're you doing man?"

"I'm doing really well," Jeff drawled. "I'm kind of glad to be back."

"Kind of?"

"Well, you know, a job's a job, what the hell are you doing here?"

"I work here," Chris said with a chuckle. "Actually, I'm taking the meeting for Stephanie. She's a little uptight tonight, there's some stuff she's waiting to see, so I volunteered to welcome you back to the company. It's not that different, there are different guys and stuff, but overall, not that different."

"You've got a desk job? I thought you were doing a radio show or something," Jeff asked, surprised.

"Among other things," he nodded. "I've got a lot on my plate right now, but I still come to the shows with Stephanie, and I help her out, or do other stuff. Most recently I was in charge of the diva search, lucky me," he said drolly. "Then before that I was running the show."

"You were?"

"Yeah, in Stephanie's absence though."

"Why was Stephanie absent?"

"Oh wow, you have been out of the loop," Chris said, his eyes widening a little bit. He pulled out his wallet and pulled out a picture of Sawyer. "That's why."

"Wow, this is your kid, congratulations man," Jeff said, remembering the days when he had been friends with Chris. It was strange now, everything was disjointed. Lita was a whore who was sleeping with Edge, Matt was off somewhere doing his own thing. Trish was doing God knew what (Jeff didn't really watch the show), and Chris was married to Stephanie with a kid. It may have seemed the same, but it was totally different.

"Thanks," Chris said proudly. "I'm sure you'll meet him, he travels with us. But he's with Linda tonight."

"How old is he?"

"Four months," Chris answered, taking the picture back from Jeff, slipping it back into his wallet. "Anyways, the schedule is the same as it always was, and the show is run pretty tightly, Stephanie just likes to have order like that. We do have random drug testing, so keep yourself clean man okay? It's just in your better interest to do it. People love you, and we don't want you to fall out with the company again."

"I get it," Jeff nodded. "So what am I doing tonight?"

"Insert yourself wherever you want, no set plan. You're not the type of guy who really wants a schedule, so go out there, do your thing, just let Stephanie know before you go out there so she can cue up your music."

"Cool man," Jeff said, shaking hands with Chris again before leaving the room. He was walking down the hallway when he heard a shriek from behind him.

"JEFF!" Trish yelled excitedly, running all out towards the newly reinstated Hardy brother. She threw herself into his arms, making him stumble back a little bit. She wrapped her legs around his waist and hugged tightly. "You are such a sight for sore eyes."

"Nice to know you missed me," Jeff said with a laugh. She set herself down on the ground and pulled away.

"It has been way too long Mr. Hardy," Trish said, poking him in the chest. "Way, way too long. I can't believe you have even wanted to talk to me. I've missed you, you know?"

"Yeah?" he asked, a glint in his eye.

"Yeah, I have," Trish told him. "So how are you? What have you been doing?"

"Nothing much, wrestling some indie shows, did the whole TNA thing, then spent a lot of time with myself, and I think that's totally what I needed. What about you?"

"Same old, same old, wrestling, six time Women's champion, photo shoots, the jet-setting lifestyle of a WWE diva," she joked. "But I've been really good, and I'm so glad to see you back. It's such a refreshing change from the married-ness of Chris and Stephanie. There's only so much of them you can take. But you're back and it's cool."

"Things kind of haven't changed around here, it's nice to know that some things don't change."

"Are you saying in the past three years I haven't changed at all?" she asked incredulously. "Not even a little bit?"

"Okay, a little bit, you're prettier now."

"You're too sweet," she giggled. "But I really am glad to see you back. You've been missed around here and the fans are going to go crazy for you, I can see it already."

"I sure hope so, it's just kind of strange to be back here after all that time. There are tons of new guys I don't even know their names or anything, I have to get reacquainted."

"Oh, it's easy, you get used to it," Trish said, shrugging it off. "If you really, really want, I can show you around and introduce you to the people that you don't know. I'm bored anyways, and I have time before my match."

"Hey, did you just hear Edge's music?" Jeff asked.

"Yeah, why?"

"I think I want to pay him a visit first," Jeff said, "then we can get to introducing me around."

"Okay…"

So Jeff didn't really want to pay a _friendly _visit to Edge, but Trish did laugh when Edge asked if Jeff hadn't died three years ago. She couldn't help herself. Edge was an arrogant asshole, but he was still funny. How cool would it have been to have given E&C one last run? Okay, now her mind was on Christian again. She remedied that quickly when Jeff came back.

"Okay, that was fun," he said happily, and she was glad to see him happy. She knew his leaving WWE hadn't been on the best terms, and she had been sort of dating him at the time, but that was a long, long time ago and she was certainly going to let bygones be bygones. "I can't believe that I'm back here, really."

"Well believe it," she told him, taking hold her hand.

"You know, I've thought about you from time to time," he told her, and he tried to ignore her hand in his. He had always inexplicably been drawn to Trish Stratus. They had tried to make their relationship work twice and it always seemed like fate intervened and drove them apart. The first time, she had gotten injured and the second time, he had been fired. But maybe third time was a charm.

"That's really sweet of you," she told him earnestly. "I've thought about you too. But come on, let's get you to know some of these people before I have to go for my match."

They walked down the hall amicably for a little while, looking around to people that Jeff actually did know, who all said hello to him, and welcomed him back to the company. Suddenly Trish was pulling him a little bit harder and he just followed her along.

"There's someone that you haven't met," Trish said, spotting her boyfriend tossing an apple up in the air.

"Cool," Jeff said simply.

"Lito," Trish called out before dropping Jeff's hand.

Carlito turned and saw Trish with Jeff Hardy approaching. He opened up his arms to her and she hugged him tightly, resting her head against his chest before wrapping her arms around his waist and letting herself settle against him. Jeff was a little surprised at first, but like he was wont to do, he took it all in stride.

"Jeff, this is my boyfriend, Carlito, Carlito, this is an old friend, Jeff Hardy," Trish said, introducing the two, and Jeff was now even more surprised, finding out this was Trish's boyfriend was kind of a blow to his system.

"Nice to meet you," Carlito said, sticking his hand out and Jeff shook it slowly.

"You too," Jeff said, and he was about to say something else when a production person came up and told him there was a new match tonight and that he was one of the participants. He turned to the two people who were joined at the hip, "I guess that means I should go get ready, it was…uh, nice talking to you Trish, and nice meeting you Carlito."

He walked away and Carlito turned to Trish, "You dated that?"

"For a very short while," she said, mock-defensively.

"So should I be happy or what that you're hanging around with hi?" Carlito asked. She rolled her eyes and planted a kiss on his cheek as they walked slowly around. They happened across Randy giving an interview and he didn't sound too happy. "What's wrong with him?"

"He's bitter because he lost last night. Just like everything else in his life, but he expected to win this easily, and when he didn't, he got all mad."

"How are you so smart?" Carlito asked.

"I dated Randy for a short time too."

"Damn girl," Carlito joked, but then frowned. "I've got to go over there. I can't stand to hear him talk like this."

"I should go get ready for my match anyways, meet up with you later?" she asked.

"Of course, we always meet up. I don't have a match either, so I'll be around here somewhere." He leaned down to kiss her and she responded hungrily. She would've kept kissing him too, if the need for oxygen hadn't brought her back to the real world. "I love you."

"Mmm," she mumbled against his lips, "Love you too."

Carlito wandered off towards Randy and Stephanie stepped up to Trish moments later, "So you two seem happy."

"We are happy," Trish said, turning to her friend. "He makes me happy, that's for sure. I don't know what it is about him, or if it's just him to begin with. I just know that I've never felt like this."

"I'm happy for you…what about Jeff though? I mean, you dated him."

"Oh, that's a bunch of nothing, that was forever ago. I mean, I still like the guy, he's still nice and has a really good heart, but I had my chance with Jeff and neither time did it work out. It'd be stupid of me to think there was going to be something again."

"And you really don't think that you're rushing things with Carlito."

"I know that's what you think Stephanie, and that's fine with me that you think that, but it's not true. I love him, and I feel it, and you know, I don't know what you feel for Chris, but I don't question it, please don't question this."

"Okay," Stephanie gave in. "I just don't want you to get hurt again Trish. I hate seeing you get hurt."

"Well, this time, I'm not going to get hurt," she told her friend, "This time is going to be different."

Stephanie wished that she could believe her friend, but she was speeding through this relationship with Carlito and she worried about her. Stephanie could still recall when Trish was a broken woman after Christian left, and she didn't want to see Trish fall like that again. But then again, she hardly knew Carlito, so it was hard to pass judgment on him. He seemed like an okay guy, someone who was fun. Trish mumbled a goodbye and wandered off while Stephanie stood there. She bit her lip a little before she could hear Hunter's voice booming and she rushed to the nearest monitor to watch what was going on.

Hunter must've called the production truck because she hadn't planned any of this. She watched in elation as Hunter talked and talked, and then cut to a shot of the plane her father loved so much. They were inside of it, and she wanted to cheer out loud, but instead kept it in check for now. She'd wait for later to get really happy, but this was just the tip of the iceberg and when she saw the spray-paint on the side of the airplane, she was both shocked and impressed. She also knew she needed to lay low because her dad and brother would know she was behind this.

The night continued to trudge on for Vince and Shane. The private jet was only the first offering. They also showed up at the world headquarters. They had already tagged Titan one time, but this would make two as Hunter and Shane stood atop the building and showed off their newest escapade, and this time, the D-X on the side of the building was way bigger. And then for the coup de grace, Hunter and Shawn had rigged up Vince and Shane's limo to get the axle pulled off while they were inside. This truly set Vince off, and if he hadn't admitted that D-X was breaking him down just a short while earlier, he would've admitted it now. Vince was almost sobbing against the limo when Chris and Stephanie walked up.

"Car trouble?" Chris asked with a snicker as Stephanie elbowed him in the ribs.

"You…" Vince said, turning to the two of them. "You were behind this!"

"Me? But I'm just a child," Stephanie said, feigning an innocent look. "How could it possibly be me?"

"You ungrateful little bitch!" Vince yelled at her. Stephanie took a step back, not quite expecting that, but knowing he was angry.

"Hey!" Chris said, stepping forward even as Stephanie was stepping back. "Don't you dare call her that."

"Why not?" Shane yelled. "Look at everything that happened tonight, and don't act like you don't know Stephanie, there's no way that Hunter and Shawn could've gotten into that airplane hangar without a key and permission."

"Yeah, it was me and I'm not afraid to say it. You want to call me a bitch, go right ahead, but this was the least your deserved for how you treated me earlier. You want to marginalize and still think of me as the little baby in the family, fine! Do it, this will just be the start then!"

"You're such a child!" Shane mocked.

"Oh yeah, that's rich coming from you Shane. How does it feel to be Daddy's Little Lackey, always by his side like the good, little puppy-dog you are?"

"Shut up!" Shane snapped.

"Why? The truth hurt?" Stephanie teased meanly. "I'm an adult Shane, don't forget that small little fact, and I've been twisting people around for a very long time, so don't think that you can sit there and make me look stupid and get away with it. I'm far from stupid, as I think you found out this evening."

"This is probably why Dad was making out--"

"Don't you dare even finish that sentence Shane," Chris growled. "Don't you even dare finish that sentence if you want to walk out of here with all your teeth. I will not have you disrespecting my son."

Shane bit his lip at this because he knew that Chris would and could easily kick his ass. "Whatever, your wife needs to learn her place around here."

"No, sorry Shane, I don't listen to orders," Stephanie said snidely. "And if you think that this is over, it's not, it'll just keep on coming. Wave after wave, after wave."

"Oh, we'll get you back Stephanie," Shane said, Vince just shell-shocked beside him. "We'll get you back for this."

"What? I'm just being a rebellious teenager, you don't think that I'm just doing this for any other reason right? I'm just being rebellious is all."

"Watch your back Stephanie, I'd watch it if I were you," Shane said menacingly. Chris wasn't sure he liked the tone, but seeing the fire in Stephanie's eyes, he knew that she could take care of herself. She stepped up to Shane, looking her brother straight in the eye.

"No Shane, if I were you, I'd watch _your _back."


	103. Darn Their Cuteness, August 28, 2006

A/N: Man, I'm so on board with this Trish/Carlito thing and it really stinks that it's not going to last long. They're just so majorly cute and very just, fun to watch. Man, as if I didn't have enough to be bitter about.

Anyways, thanks for all the great reviews, I appreciate each and every one, so if you'd be so kind as to leave one, that'd make me very happy. Come on, go out on a limb, just tell me what you think. I know that a lot more people read and then don't review, don't be one of those people, be one of the cool reviewing people.

And while you're doing the whole reading thing, a little self-pimpage, I started a new story called, _Beginning in an Ending_, which I would love if you went over and read and reviewed…go, right now…no, Hugs and Kisses can wait…no, really, it can, this is long anyways, pace yourself, go read that other story, yeah, just like that. Hee.

Anyways, hope you enjoy. :)

**Oh, and an important note: I will be using the actual outcome of Chris's reality show in the story, but I'm taking liberties with what they actually show on the show. If they show like, his personal life, which I'm sure they will, that will not be used. I'm using my creative license to pick what I want to use. The only show I follow to a letter is Raw, anything else is subjective. So I'll probably use the results, and the actual singing and not much else. Just in case you were wondering.**

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Stephanie struggled to get the door to the arena open and she cursed the fact that at this very moment, there was nobody around her. Of course that would be the case. It always happened that way. Whenever she needed help there was nobody around to help her. Of course, most of the time, Chris was here with her, but not tonight. He was in California doing publicity stuff for his new show and she was here, in Atlantic City, New Jersey, 2800 miles away.

She set Sawyer's carrier down on the ground before she swung open the door and tried to hold it with her foot so she could get herself and her son inside. She groaned in frustration at trying to coordinate everything. A moment later a hand appeared, picking up Sawyer's carrier and she looked up to see Hunter there with a smirk on his face. She frowned a moment.

"Thanks," she mumbled.

"You looked like you could use some help," Hunter laughed. "What are you doing?"

"Trying to get me and my son into the arena," she told him, exasperated.

"Where's Chris?" Hunter asked as he held the door open and allowed her to enter.

"He's in California doing publicity stuff. His show starts tomorrow and he needed to be there, rehearsals and stuff like that. So he's a long ways from home and I'm here with Sawyer."

"Do you really think that you should be here by yourself?" he asked, just worried about her in general.

"Why should I be scared?" she asked.

"Well, I talked to Chris last week and he told me what happened after the show ended last week, the fight that you had with Vince and Shane. I don't know, from the way he described it, it sounded pretty bad."

She sighed and thought about last week, "It was bad, but it's nothing that I'm not used to with dealing with my family. You know, I'm starting to believe that we'll never just be a normal family. I just think that we're going to be dysfunctional for the rest of our lives. We're a weird bunch, you're lucky you got out when you did."

"Trust me, I know."

"You're not supposed to sound happy about that," she joked.

"How should I sound? Upset? Because I'm not too upset that I don't get to see your father and brother at all my family functions. I think my parents are little relieved too, they didn't really like your dad all that much," he stage whispered.

"Who does?" she said sarcastically as they walked down the hallway. "By the way, thanks for helping me. You know I don't like accepting help when I can help it, but I don't think that dropping Sawyer would be a move that would make anyone happy."

"No, it really wouldn't," he told her as they came upon her office. "So, should I leave you here?"

"If you want, I don't really have anything to do for the moment. Chris is probably off doing stuff so he's not going to call. He's got a pretty full schedule this week with his show debuting tomorrow and everything."

"And you're going to be there right?"

Stephanie sighed and set her things down on her desk as Hunter put Sawyer's carrier on her desk as well. "No, I'm not. Chris doesn't want me to be there, so I'm going to respect his wishes and not be there."

"He doesn't want you there?"

"Nope," she shrugged. "He thinks that I'll just make fun of him because it's a reality show. So he said he'd rather not have me there. I guess it's fine, whatever you know, he doesn't want me there, I'll get over it."

"It doesn't sound like you're over it."

"No, no, it's fine," she told him, waving off his concerned voice. She looked at him and saw that same tone of concern, but in the form of a look in his eyes. "Hunter, no, don't you even dare start to feel sorry for me, I swear to God, don't feel sorry for me."

"I'm not feeling sorry for you," he argued. "I just don't get why a guy wouldn't want his wife's support at a competition."

"Because, he knows me, you know me, I'm quick to judge and I can be really mean. He thinks I'll be mean. Plus, he doesn't want me to have to fly with Sawyer across the country by myself because I'd have to deal with the baby and Sawyer on a cross-country flight just doesn't seem like a good idea."

"Well that reason is more believable," he told her. "Still though, if you ever want to go out there, I'll baby-sit for you."

She raised an eyebrow, "You think that you could take care of a four-month old by yourself?"

"Stephanie, you know that I have a niece and a nephew, and you know I've taken care of them before by myself. So yeah, I think I can handle one kid."

"He's a baby."

"I'm well-aware."

"Maybe I'll take you up on that offer, but it'd be hard, I've never spent a night away from my baby. I don't think I could, I'd miss him so much, I'd probably start like calling every five minutes."

"It's just a suggestion, don't freak out on me," Hunter laughed and she rolled her eyes. "But if you want to go see Chris, take me up on the offer, I'd take good care of him, you can trust me."

"There's words I never thought I'd believe," she said, amused.

"I've turned over a new leaf, I'm over you Stephanie."

"Well it's about damn time," she told him, elbowing him playfully in the gut. "I thought the day would never come. But then again, it's me, and I know that I'm very tough to get over. I mean, look at me, so beautiful, so smart and elegant."

"And arrogant."

"That's the pot calling the kettle black," Stephanie said.

A moment later, Shane barged into her office and looked between the two of them in disgust. Stephanie looked at her brother and folded her arms in front of her, almost in a defensive pose. Hunter kind of stepped in front of her, also in a defensive pose and Shane took note of this with a bemused expression.

"What do you want Shane?" Hunter asked.

"What's going on in here with you two?" Shane asked, a smirk coming over his features.

"What do you think is going on here?" Stephanie asked curiously. "I'd love to hear your take on it."

"You and your ex-husband in an empty office, I don't want to make any silly guesses that would get back to your husband, where is he by the way?" Shane asked.

"He's in California, why do you want to know?" Stephanie answered.

"Oh, so he's 3,000 miles away, and you're here with him, interesting, very interesting," Shane said, tapping his chin and Stephanie was starting to get angry. If her brother was insinuating something, she'd insinuate his ass right to the curb.

"I'm sorry Shane, but I don't go around making out with whoever to get my kicks because my marriage sucks," Stephanie countered back and Hunter snickered at her statement, amused at how the both of them could dish it with each other. That was a McMahon for you.

Shane practically snarled at that. Things were still not good between him and Marissa. They barely talked anymore, except about their children. He wanted to work things out, but Marissa would not afford him the luxury of doing so. They needed to talk, but she was so disgusted by his behavior as of late that she wouldn't allow the talk to happen. So that was his life, and he only got to see his sons occasionally and it was really taking its toll on him, which just made him latch on tighter to his father.

"Whatever, that's not what this is about anyways?" Shane said, not letting his sister know that she was getting to him.

"So then what's it about? And don't tell me that you think there's something going on here because there isn't."

"I'm just informing you that I'm in charge tonight. Dad is back at the hotel and so I'm in charge because Dad deserves the night off after what you guys did to him," Shane said, unaware that he was giving the two of them valuable information.

"Oh, so he's not here tonight?" Stephanie asked, just for confirmation.

"No, no he's not, so you're going to have to deal with me, and Stephanie, I'm the boss tonight so whatever I want done, you're going to have to do for me, understood?" Shane said snottily. Stephanie rolled her eyes slowly and cleared her throat.

"I have a very specific job here Shane, and I have a baby to take care of so I doubt that you're going to go make me scrub floors," Stephanie said, and she knew that she was challenging him. She also knew that he wasn't going to give in, that he would do the right thing because of Sawyer, and probably only because of Sawyer.

"Fine, just let it be known that if I want a match, it's going to happen. All I want you to do is sit behind your table and do what you do. I will take care of the schedule of matches and anything and everything else. So sit back and relax sis."

"Whatever Shane, you might be in charge, but it's for one night," she told him. "One measly, little night."

"One more night than you," he said, then turned to Hunter. "And I wouldn't get too cozy if I were you, I've got big plans for you tonight. So you just wait around Hunter, and loosen up, I think you're going to need it for later. Bye you guys, don't do anything in front of the kid."

Stephanie started towards her brother but Hunter held her by the arm, "Not even worth it Steph, not even worth it."

Stephanie bit her lip and took a step back, letting her brother leave with a laugh. She hated how her brother was turning out just like her father. It was like he felt this was the only way that Vince would ever see him. Didn't he get that their father would never see them the way that they wanted to be seen. It had been a difficult truth for Stephanie to accept, but she knew that while her father was proud of her, he would never be proud of her in the way that she needed. She looked down so that she could collect her thoughts as Hunter looked at her.

"Don't let what he says get to you, we both know there's nothing going on here," he told her.

"I know," she told him. "I just don't want rumors to start. I mean, that's how things get so out of control. And my life has been out of control one too many times. Did you know that Chris and I almost eloped once?"

"You did?" Hunter asked, knowing that her sharing something like this was big for her so he let her talk it out.

"Yeah, we did, I wanted to. I was so unhappy with my father, with everything, I wanted to take control of my life. It was right around the time I had the match with him that forced me off of SmackDown. I told Chris I just wanted to get married that second, and we went to a Vegas chapel and we were so close to getting married. We bought the rings and the license and everything."

"What stopped you?" he asked curiously.

"It wasn't right," she told him, looking up at him this time. "It wasn't how things were supposed to go. It would've been so wrong to get married because I was unhappy with the direction my life was going in. But Chris would've married me because he just wants me to be happy."

"Wow, I had no idea."

"It didn't happen, it was no big deal, but my father has just upset me so many times," she explained.

"Look, I should go talk to Shawn since your brother is probably going to torture us later one. Maybe string us up in the ring and whip us or something. Are you going to be okay here by yourself, I worry about your safety without you having Chris here and all of your dad's cronies running around trying to stink up the joint."

"It's fine, I'm actually expecting Kurt to stop by, we have some…things to discuss…"

"Oh about his…leaving?" Hunter said delicately.

"Yeah, I haven't gotten to speak with him, he met with my dad and then he went home to spend time with his family and then with Ashley and so he's been running all over the place putting out fires," Stephanie explained, and her mood had dampened quickly.

"I'm really sorry Steph, I know he's your best friend."

"I know," she nodded, "he's been my best friend since we were together for God's sakes. I've known he's been in pain, I just didn't know he was in so much pain. He's good at hiding from everyone."

"Yeah," he said, patting Stephanie's shoulder, then looking her straight in the eye, "I'm here if you need me okay, as a friend, nothing more."

"I know," she said to him as Sawyer started to cry. "Well, I think that's _my_ cue to get to work."

"Bye Steph," Hunter said good-naturedly as she went to attend to her son.

In another part of the arena, Trish and Carlito were sitting in their dressing room. Trish had her head in Carlito's lap as they sat in comfortable silence. She had his left hand sandwiched in between hers and his right hand was playing with her blonde hair. She closed her eyes as his hands massaged her scalp gently and sent tiny shivers through her entire body, from her head to the tips of her toes. It was a delightful feeling.

"What are you thinking?" Carlito asked.

"About how good you make me feel," Trish sighed dreamily. "Your hands feel so good."

"You know where else they feel good?" he asked.

"Yes," she said, smiling, though her eyes were still closed, "but I'm not in the mood for that, I just want to sit here with you. Just for a little while longer."

"Well, I don't have anything to do tonight, and I don't think you do either, so we can probably cut out of here early."

"Mmm, no talking about plans, we'll figure something out later, we have the next four days to do things."

"I really liked your idea of staying over here as a little vacation, Carlito can always use a vacation with his favorite girl," he told her as his hands brushed her hair back again. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Yeah, go ahead."

"Have you talked to Christian?"

At this, Trish opened her eyes and stared up at her boyfriend, "What do you know about that?"

"Well, when we were having dinner with Stephanie on Saturday, you wanted to put Sawyer to bed and me and Stephanie had to talk about something and we're not exactly two people with a lot in common you know. She asked about Christian, and I was wondering, did you talk to him?"

"No, I haven't," she answered honestly. "But…I told him that things were not what I wanted them to be with him. We're not…I don't think we're right each other, him and me. I'm happy with you Lito. You've made me happier than I've been in a long time."

"Okay," he nodded. "I can get that. I can live with that."

"Good, thank you," she said, closing her eyes again as she brought his left hand up to her lips and kissed it softly. "I love you."

"I love you too," he told her quietly.

"And you're not a rebound if you think that," she added, letting him know flat out that he was more than that to her.

"Good," he nodded, falling back into the silence.

She sighed again, this time a little more disappointedly than before. She had made a major decision over the weekend that she needed to tell Carlito about, that she needed to tell everyone about, but she didn't know how to broach the subject. Carlito and Stephanie were probably going to be the hardest people to tell and she was dreading it. She had made the decision to retire, to refocus her life and she knew that it was the right decision for her, but she knew that it was going to be hard for the people around her to accept.

"Lito?"

"Shh, quiet," Carlito said and she could hear the smile in his voice as he tried to comply to her earlier requests. She dropped what she had to say, just so she could stay in the silence of this moment with him. Where things were right. She didn't know that things could ever be so right again. After the turmoil with Christian, the mistake with Shane, she was finally in a place where she could be happy.

"Lito, I love you, you have no idea," she told him again.

He didn't answer, but she could feel the happiness coming off of him. As her eyes remained tightly shut, she could picture many more moments like these. Despite her wanting to leave, she didn't want to lose Carlito, and she wasn't going to let herself lose Carlito. Not now, and maybe not ever. She could picture the future with him, and it was in that moment she realized that she wanted a future with him.

She wanted everything with him.

Stephanie tapped her hand impatiently against her desk, waiting anxiously for Kurt to get here. She wanted to talk to him, to see him, to make sure he was still the Kurt that she knew and loved. She didn't know why she thought that he might be different now that he was no longer with the company, but for some reason, she kept thinking that he would be. He would be some strange person she had never met before and that scared her a little bit.

"Where could Uncle Kurt be?" Stephanie asked as she looked at Sawyer, who was shaking a rattle in front of his face contentedly. "Sawyer, come on, Mommy is in crisis right now and all you can do is play? You should be more serious."

As if heeding his mother's word, Sawyer dropped his rattle and stared intently at her. Stephanie couldn't help but laugh at this because it was just like he knew what she was saying. She made a few baby noises at him and tickled his chin causing him to smile his gummy, toothless smile. She returned his smile with one of her own.

"What would Mommy do without you huh?" Stephanie asked him, not expecting an answer or anything. "She'd be awfully lonely huh?" she nodded with a pout. Sawyer reached his arms to her and she lifted him out of his seat and then above her head. "Hey there little guy, you're Mommy's little boy, yes you are."

She cradled Sawyer to her chest and heard a little baby sigh from him as he snuggled against her. She'd never get over the fact that this little boy loved her probably more than anyone else in the world. He adored _her_, and she had never really had that. Chris loved her yes, but he hadn't always. But Sawyer didn't know anything but loving her and she kissed the top of his head to let him know that she loved him more than anything too.

"Hey you two."

Stephanie looked up and saw Kurt peeking his head in the doorway and she smiled wistfully as she put Sawyer back into his carrier, which angered the little boy until Stephanie handed his rattle back and gave him a pacifier, which satisfied him greatly. Stephanie marched over to Kurt and gave him a big hug.

"Oh, I'm sorry, is this hurting you?" she asked, pulling away, but before she could get out of the circle of his arms, he pulled her back into a hug.

"I'm not going to break Steph," he said, giving her a great, big bear hug.

"I wasn't sure if you were in a lot of pain or anything, and I don't want to make it worse for you," she said, burying her head into his shoulder. "I don't want to hurt you."

"You're not."

"You don't work for me anymore," Stephanie said lamentably, realizing for the first time that this was truly the end; that Kurt was just another person she knew and not someone on the roster.

"No, I'm not."

"Are you sure? Am I dreaming? Is this real?" she asked with a laugh, but it was definitely sad and with a hint of tears in it.

"Let's talk okay," Kurt said, leading her over to the couch. She grabbed Sawyer's carrier and brought it over to set on the coffee table so she could keep an eye on her son as Kurt sat down. Stephanie looked at him and patted his knee as she wrapped her arm around his waist and snuggled into his side.

"I'm still in shock."

"So am I if we're honest," he told her. "Steph, you know it's no something I wanted to do. It was something I had to do, for me."

"But do you really have to leave?"

"Well, I don't really _have _to leave, but I need some time away, you know that I've been hiding how hurt I am," Kurt told her.

"Yeah, I know," Stephanie sighed as she leaned her head on Kurt's shoulder. "I feel like I'm losing my best friend."

"You're not losing me Steph," Kurt said gently, "you know that I'm always going to be here for you, and that I'm going to be right around the corner most of the time…well, not around the corner literally, but like a five minute drive from here, that's not too much right?"

"No, I guess not," she told him. "But you're also going to be in Pittsburgh a lot, and then with Ashley a lot and we're going to drift farther and farther away from each other until we're relegated to Christmas cards and a call on our birthdays," she bemoaned.

"Do you really think that I'd let it get that far?" he inquired. "Stephanie, you know that I love you, but man, I've been beaten down this past year, and with these nagging injuries and my back, and my neck, I'm going to need some real time off to heal, I'm not saying I won't be back. You _know _that I'll be back, I can't stay away. I've worked through so many injuries though and it's really starting to catch up to me."

"Yeah, but still, I'm going to miss you…there, you know, not…not that you can't come and visit, you'll come and visit right?"

"Steph, seriously, I live five minutes away, and of course I'll visit, do you really think that I'm going to let Hunter of all people take you away from me? I'm not going to let that happen."

"He's not that bad," Stephanie said as she turned her head a little to gaze up at Kurt.

While Stephanie was devastated by the news, she understood. Kurt had been battling through some serious stuff lately, things dealing with his health and Stephanie knew that Kurt being healthy was the most important thing in the world. She didn't want her best friend to take a particularly bad bump and end up in the hospital, or a wheelchair.

Still, it was hard to let him go, hard to know that he wouldn't be on the other show, or wouldn't show up randomly to wrestle, or not be seen at Pay-Per-Views. Stephanie had gotten so used to Kurt being in the company, to be there as her companion that she didn't know what she was going to do with herself. Well, she guessed she'd always have Hunter, but that thought didn't do much to reconcile the sadness she had over Kurt leaving. But he needed a long break to heal up. That didn't stop her from sighing though.

"Come on Steph," Kurt said softly, running his fingers through her hair. "Don't be upset over this. I told you, I'm not looking at this like a forever-type deal. It's a for now type thing. You know how much I've been hurting. You've seen it up close."

"I know," she told him, and she understood, "I completely know where you're at, but this doesn't make it any easier."

"Five minutes Steph, five minutes."

She laughed and hugged him closer to her. "Okay, okay I get it."

"Whoa, interrupting?"

"Shut up Shawn," Stephanie said angrily. Stephanie leaned up to Kurt's ear and cupped her hand around it as she whispered. "I can't stand that jackass."

"Steph, your brother just announced we have a match against mystery opponents? Do you know who they are, I mean, usually you're given a schedule," Hunter said, ignoring the fact that Kurt was there, which didn't go unnoticed by Kurt. He didn't trust Hunter at all, and he just knew that Hunter had some kind of trick up his sleeve. He was probably going to take Stephanie away while Chris was gone.

"Sorry," Stephanie said, pulling away from Kurt and straightening up. "He's determined to keep me in the dark. I better get to my station though or Shane is going to go overboard with this power trip and fire me or something, or send me away."

"Not necessary," Shane said, walking into the room unannounced. "Stephanie, I've already decided that your services are not needed tonight. You weren't on time to your station, and frankly, I don't think that we really need you to work tonight."

"What! I was talking with Kurt, you knew that."

"Hello Kurt," Shane said politely over Stephanie's shoulder, then turned back to his sister. "So you won't be needed, thanks for stopping by. And think of this as a good thing, now you can spend more time with your son."

"You're despicable Shane," Stephanie said angrily, Kurt holding her back now. "You just get off on all this power, you think you control everything!"

"Newsflash sis, I do control everything," Shane said, stepping up to her. "Unlike you, I don't associate with riff-raff."

"You're just so mad because I caught you making out with Trish and then accidentally told Marissa. But Shane, it's not my fault you were making out with Trish in the first place. That was all you! So stop holding this damn grudge!"

"If you don't leave the premises, I'll have security escort you out," Shane said through gritted teeth.

"I don't even know who you are anymore," Stephanie said, the anger draining out of her as she looked imploringly at her brother. Shane looked at his sister and saw something in her eyes, a sort of pleading with him to be the brother that she knew he could be. He stared at her for a moment. All she wanted was the old him back.

But he couldn't go back. Not when he could have the power. That's what the McMahons wanted, it was what they strived for. If his personal life was going to be in shambles than his professional life was going to be on top of the world. If it meant he was going to have to sell out his sister, then so be it. It was what a McMahon would do. Family meant nothing as long as you had the power.

"Make sure you leave soon," he said, giving in just the tiniest bit.

Shane left and Stephanie crossed her arms and closed her eyes. "I just…I don't know how my father got to him. I don't know why they want to torture me. My father just doesn't get that he hurt me."

"Hey, hey," Kurt said, hugging her to him. "It's going to be okay. Why don't we just sit and watch the show for a little while, huh?"

"Fine," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, watch the show, you can watch us kick ass later," Hunter said, trying to cheer her up too.

"I'm not going to cry or anything," she said, sitting down on the couch, flanked by Kurt and Hunter. She looked between the both of them and thought it was very strange to be here with both of them together. "I'm fine, you know, I'll be just fine."

"Yeah, we know, besides, I think Shawn and I did something that's going to cheer you up immensely," Hunter told her with a smile and she looked over at him curiously, wondering what he had done.

"What did you do?"

"Well, your brother never should've told us that your father was in his suite tonight. That information could get into the wrong hands and who knows what could happen. You really just never know what could happen."

Stephanie was confused for a little while until she saw her brother on-screen talking to her father. She looked to Hunter who just pointed back at the television. She watched as her father relaxed in his hotel room, or tried to relax rather. Her eyes widened as she heard a rooster crowing and she started laughing when Vince uncovered the roosters that Hunter and Shawn had delivered to his room.

Her laughter would be short-lived however.

Carlito had been quiet for a while now. He had gotten some message on his phone and though Trish didn't know what it was, she knew that whatever it was had caused him to be a little quieter than usual. He also didn't want to hold her hand as they walked around backstage and that was a red flag too. She shoved her hands in her pockets and made mention that they were in Atlantic City and maybe a romantic walk on the boardwalk would be nice.

But Carlito pretty much shot down that suggestion as he mentioned that they should go gambling. She didn't really feel like doing that, but she was willing to compromise with him. If she went gambling with him, he'd take a walk with her. He asked to talk privately with her and took her a little ways away, and she resisted the urge to wrap herself around him, instead folding her arms as he said that he had something to ask her. She could barely contain her smile as he spoke.

But what he said surprised her. He asked when she was going to tell him and she was confused until he revealed that Lita of all people had told everyone that she was going to retire next month. She couldn't believe that Lita would let it out like that. No wait, she could believe that because Lita was a no-good bitch who stuck her nose where it didn't belong. She tried to explain to Carlito that she was going to tell him, she had even tried to tell him earlier, but he wanted to be quiet. She could see the hurt in his eyes and she thought for a brief moment that she was going to lose him, and she didn't want that at all.

But he surprised her by telling her that he would support her decision, and if it was goodbye, he was going to send her off properly, and then he kissed her. She kissed him back because it felt so good, but she wanted to tell him that this wasn't going to be goodbye. Not by a long-shot, even if she left, she was not going to lose Carlito. She never got that chance though as Randy Orton came out of nowhere and rammed them into the large doors behind them.

Trish was noticeably disoriented and couldn't believe Randy would pull something like that on her. But he had been acting like a jerk lately, so she shouldn't have been surprised. She fell to the ground, clutching the back of her head as Carlito was thrown into the door behind them and fell to the ground in a heap. She checked her mouth for blood as she felt the pain shooting through the back of her head. She looked over to Carlito and she wanted to move, but groaned at the pain.

Carlito, though, moved as he crawled over to Trish's side. "Trish, are you okay?"

"My head," she said, rubbing the back of it and wincing. "I really hit it hard."

"That bastard," Carlito muttered before pulling himself up and kneeling next to her. "You're going to be okay, we'll go get checked out."

"But what about you, are you okay?" she asked, running her hand down his face.

"I'm fine, don't worry about me," he told her and she nodded as he slowly got to his feet. Trish started to stand up, but was wobbly on her feet. Carlito did the next best thing and lifted her into his arms as they headed for the trainer. He looked down at her briefly. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"I was going to," she told him softly, closing her eyes as they got to the trainer's. They checked her out and told her she was going to be fine save for the nasty bump she was going to get on the back of her head. They told her to rest for a little while so that she didn't get dizzy and really hurt herself and Carlito pulled up a chair to sit in front of the table she was sitting on.

"I'm sorry you got hurt because of me," he told her, putting his hands on her knees.

"I'm not hurt, I'm just going to have a bump, and probably a headache, which is coming on right now," she said, not daring to touch the back of her head. "And it's not your fault, Randy was the one who shoved you into me."

"True," Carlito said, nodding his head.

"But about what you said," she told him. "Yeah, I'm retiring, or seriously considering it at least, but this…you and me, us. That's not over, not by a long-shot."

"Yeah?" he asked, starting to smile again.

"I'm not giving you up," Trish told him, leaning forward to kiss him. He leaned into the kiss too, not noticing the door barging open with Stephanie coming through in a huff.

"Are you kidding me?" Stephanie said, looking at her friend as she broke away from her boyfriend, "You're leaving too!"

"Steph…"

"First Kurt, now this?" Stephanie said. "You're leaving Trish? I can't…why didn't you tell me?"

"I knew you'd react badly," Trish said hesitantly, hoping that Stephanie's voice didn't get screechy. That's when you knew you were in trouble. Because when that happened, you knew she was mad.

"You could've told me. Everyone's leaving me. Kurt's leaving me, you're leaving me. Chris left me. Everyone is leaving me!" Stephanie pouted, folding her arms across her chest.

"Yeah, but Kurt and I live--"

"Five minutes away, I got that enough from him thanks," she responded sardonically.

"And you're married to Chris, it's not like he's going away forever, he's in California doing a show. You act as if the two of you are separated," Trish told her.

"We _are _separated."

"No, as in legal separation on your way to divorce. That kind of separation."

"Oh, well fine then," Stephanie relented. "But I'm still not happy about this. I'm upset, I'm losing two of my best friends, you're leaving me with Hunter, and he's not a bad guy, but come on, he's my ex-husband."

"I'm sorry?" Trish answered sheepishly and Stephanie came over to hug her. "Steph, it'll be okay, I'm going to be here all the time because my boyfriend is going to be here. So see, it won't be so bad. The in-ring stuff is just taking its toll on me and I'm not that young anymore, so I don't want to push myself. But I'm going to be here, don't worry about that."

"You better hold on to her," Stephanie told Carlito, "because I don't want her not to be here."

Carlito chuckled. He and Stephanie had gotten to know each other over the weekend that he had spent with Trish. Stephanie's husband was in California and had been since last Thursday so she had been lonely and Trish and Carlito had come over a lot to see her and play with her kid and Carlito was surprised to find that Stephanie was really down-to-earth. Well, okay, she wasn't completely down-to-earth, but she was definitely not what he expected, and her house had been nothing like he expected, but that might be due to Chris.

Anyways, he liked Stephanie, she was a lot nicer than she projected herself to be at work and he could see why Trish liked to hang around her. Trish had explained her whole history with Stephanie and how they had gotten to be friends, and it was a pretty fascinating story to say the least. But he could get behind being friends with Trish's friends. If it made her happy, he was willing to do it. He loved her and he had never felt this kind of love before and it was…something he wanted to hold on to. He had been scared when she had confirmed her retirement, but her reassurance eased the tension and he felt comfortable around her again.

And he was going to get revenge for his girlfriend.

"Don't worry, I'm keeping her," Carlito said, glancing at Trish and giving her a smiled that made her melt.

Stephanie didn't know when exactly her opinion had changed, but seeing Trish with Carlito, she knew that they really cared about each other. She had been skeptical at first with the sheer velocity at which their relationship had advanced, but looking at them now, and how they had been over the weekend had pretty much cemented her belief that Carlito had the best of intentions and that Trish was head over heels for him.

"Okay, well, I guess I can leave you two alone. Shane kicked me out of the building and Sawyer's hungry and tired, killer combo, feel better okay Trish, and we're so going to talk later."

"We will," Trish said absent-mindedly as Carlito had already drawn her into his gaze.

Stephanie sighed and knew that when she got back to her hotel that she had to call the man of her dreams. It wasn't too much later that she was doing just that. She was lying on the bed, Sawyer next to her as she held his bottle of breast-milk as he kicked up his legs and drank thirstily. She waited for Chris to pick up the house phone.

"Hello," came his hurried voice.

"Sweetie, am I disturbing you?" Stephanie asked.

"Steph, hey," Chris said brightly. "I just walked in through the door actually, I was out getting some food so I could keep my strength up."

"Oh, Sawyer's eating too," Stephanie said as she looked at Sawyer, who was looking at her as he sucked greedily still.

"Yeah?" Chris said as he pictured his son. "Where are you? The show?"

"No, Shane is in charge and kicked me out," Stephanie said bitterly. "So we're up in our hotel room."

"Hotel room? Isn't Atlantic City like a two-and-a-half hour drive from the house?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, but I'm not in the mood to drive back tonight with Sawyer. I'd rather drive during the daytime, it just seems more safe or something and since I'm pretty much alone, well, not totally alone, but Kurt is downstairs gambling, maybe he'll lose all his money and come back to the company, who knows, but I just don't want to drive by myself when I'm tired."

"Smart," Chris told her. "I miss you."

"I miss you too," she confessed. "Chris, this is so hard. I'm in New Jersey and you're in California, it feels like you're half a world away, and you might as well be. I don't think I can do this."

"Steph," he sighed. "We both have our commitments and I know it's tough, but we're us, we can make it through."

"I feel like everything is falling apart," Stephanie divulged. "You're probably waiting for nine to watch Raw, but Chris, Trish is retiring."

"She's…what!" Chris asked in shock.

"Yeah, I just found out, we all did, somehow Lita found out and she let it out of the bag, and Trish is leaving, Kurt left, you're not here, Chris, nobody is going to be here, and I'm going to be so lonely," Stephanie told him.

"Baby, you always have me, you know that," Chris told her, his voice lowering and full of emotion.

"It feels like you're never going to come back, Sawyer misses you too. He knows you Chris. He knows your face and your voice, and I swear to God he looks around sometimes like he wants to know where you are and you're not there."

"Steph, please, baby, I know this is hard, and I know it's going to be rough. Maybe I should just throw the competition tomorrow and ensure that I get kicked off first. Do you want me to do that, because I will if it'll make you feel better. If you really want me to come back home, just say the word and I'll throw the competition."

"You'd do that for me?" she asked incredulously, knowing that Chris was excited for this because next to wrestling, singing was his other passion, and to be able to share it with millions was something he craved.

"Without hesitation," he told her immediately. "Stephy, if you want me to come home, I have no problem doing that. Just say the word."

"No, I don't want you to do that, I want you to do your best and win," she told him. "Do you want to talk to Sawyer?"

"Absolutely," Chris said.

"Okay, hang on," Stephanie said as she put the phone next to Sawyer's ear as she gently pulled away the bottle so Chris could hear him. Sawyer babbled a little bit as the bottle was taken away from him. He tried to grab it, making noises as he did so.

"Hey there kid!" Chris said as he heard his son on the line. Stephanie watched as Sawyer's eyes widened and a smile graced his face.

"He's smiling," Stephanie said loudly so Chris could hear.

"You smiling for Daddy, kid?" Chris asked. "You have no idea how much Daddy misses you. I wish you were here kid, but it's a really long flight and Daddy wouldn't want you to have to go through that since you're just a little kid. But let me tell you, I miss you so much."

Sawyer continued to coo and Stephanie gave him his bottle back as she brought the phone up to her ear again. "He misses you Chris. I can tell."

"I miss him too, give him double kisses for me okay."

"Okay."

"And you get double kisses too."

"Same here."

"And you know what?"

"What?" she asked.

Chris cleared his throat and started to sing, "Working my way back to you babe, with a burning love inside, I've been working my way back to you babe…"

Stephanie laughed, "Are you going to sing that tomorrow?"

"No, that was my own person serenade to you," he said softly. "I love you baby. So much."

"I love you too," she answered. "Much more."

"Night baby, tell Sawyer I said goodnight."

"I will, bye sweetie," Stephanie said, hanging up the phone and feeling much better about herself and her life and all of her friends.

That is, until she watched her father and brother decimate Hunter and Shawn. Her jaw dropped slowly as she watched the carnage unfold in front of her eyes on her television screen. It was almost a surreal kind of thing. Like it wasn't really happening because it was on television, but she knew that it was happening. She could see it happening.

She waited until it was over, and then stared at the clock, watching the minutes tick by until she thought it would be appropriate to call. Her fingers were itching to dial as she watched the numbers change on the clock beside her bed. Sawyer was starting to fall asleep though and she had to stop watching the clock as she picked up her baby, who was crying a little and rubbing his eyes in sleepiness.

She whispered sweet, nonsensical words in his ear as he started to fall asleep on her shoulder. She laid him down on the bed where he'd be sleeping that evening since she didn't want to bother with a crib. She rubbed his stomach in a soothing motion, which sent him off to sleep with a little whimper as she picked up her phone and dialed Hunter's number. A good chunk of time had passed between the end of the show and this moment. She tried not to tap her fingers on the headboard lest she wake up her son, but she was anxious.

"Hello?"

"Hunter, how are you?"

"In the hospital getting stitched up," Hunter said, and he sounded sleepy. "They're using this glue stuff, not actual stitches, I'm like paper."

"Oh," she said, knowing he was out of it. "Do you remember what my dad said to you guys?"

"Your dad said something? I don't remember that," Hunter said, sounding confused.

"Oh Hunter," Stephanie said sympathetically.

"What? What's going on? Who is this again?"

"Hunter, it's Stephanie, my dad put you in a Hell in a Cell match."

"Oh…how fun," Hunter said, "I've got to go now, bye."

Stephanie knew he was completely out of it, but she wasn't. She knew what a Hell in a Cell could do. She had seen Hunter in it, she had seen Chris in it, and she knew that it was brutal. But she just didn't know who it was going to be more brutal for.

DX or her family?


	104. We Should've Voted, September 4, 2006

A/N: Well it seems that author's note about Chris's show was unneeded as the stupid idiots didn't even give us a chance to vote. Just adding that to the bitterness pile. ;)

Sorry this wasn't up last night, the site was being weird so I took it down.

Enjoy the chapter, it's a little different from normal, and as always a small donation in the form of a review is always appreciated.

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Through the fate of scheduling and different time zones, Chris and Stephanie had not really spoken in the past week. Chris was busy doing the whole media circuit thing, and she was busy with the show. The only time they got to say a few words to each other was when he called to talk to Sawyer. She didn't blame him for just wanting to talk to Sawyer though, she would only want to talk to Sawyer if the positions were reversed. It didn't matter in the end though as he was coming back today, and she couldn't wait to see him.

She was also a little bit angry at the way that things had gone down last week. She didn't like the fact that Chris had been eliminated and in the fashion that he had been eliminated. Now Stephanie was not the type of woman who went into a competition half-assed, and she loved to come out the victor, so for her to see her husband go down like that, it pissed her off to no end, and when she was pissed off, Sawyer got pissed off. Sawyer seemed to be in as much as bad mood as she was and she wondered if feelings could be transferred from her to him.

"Where is your daddy?" Stephanie asked Sawyer as he sat on the couch. "He probably should've been here by now and I need the support."

"From who?"

Stephanie was startled for a moment before she looked to the doorway and saw Chris standing there, in a pair of dark jeans and a t-shirt with a blazer over it. She grinned so hard that her cheeks hurt as she rushed to Chris and hugged him tightly. She hadn't seen him in over a week and hadn't spoken to him properly in a week. She had been dying without him and now he was here in her arms and she was happy again. It was funny how something so simple could make her so incredibly happy, but all it did was speak to the love that she felt for her husband.

"Oh, it's so good to see you," Stephanie said against his neck as she buried herself into it and smelled the lovely smell of his cologne. "Oh, I missed you so much."

"I missed you too baby," he said, hugging her back ferociously, like she was an old teddy bear that he had clung to as a child. "You have no idea."

"I have some idea," she told him playfully, letting him know in no uncertain terms that later that evening, they were going to be doing something very physical. If Chris hadn't been able to work out that week, he was going to get one hell of a workout later that evening.

Chris saw Sawyer over Stephanie shoulder, sitting there looking up at his parents. He didn't see a lot of recognition in Sawyer's eyes, but he was a little kid and he wasn't exactly going to be aware of everything. Chris smiled at him nonetheless, missing him just as much as Stephanie. "Hey there kid, did you miss me?"

At his daddy's voice, Sawyer actually lit up, his face breaking out into a smile that was reminiscent of his mother's. This only caused Chris to grin wider. Yes, he had made the right decision. He knew it right that second that he had made the right decision in what he had done. He could live without a lot of things, but these two things were two things that he couldn't bear to live without. With that, he pulled away from hugging Stephanie and gave her a kiss, teasing her by nipping her bottom lip a little as he pulled away. She sighed contentedly against his mouth before he felt her tense.

He pulled away and studied her, "Hey, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," she told him, but she was slightly frowning and he knew that something was up. He didn't want to get worried or anything. If she had something to tell her, then he'd listen. He just didn't like the way she tensed at his kiss. There was only one other time he felt a woman tense up like that when he was kissing them and she had been cheating on him.

"No, tell me now," he said firmly, wanting to know.

"I'm just so goddamn pissed at that show," Stephanie said, stepping away from him and the anger starting to come off of her in waves. "I mean, you were not even as bad as some of those other people, I mean, sure that guy from Queer Eye was really good, but you were not the worst, not even by a long-shot and you were the eye candy. I wouldn't want to spend weeks looking at Cheech Marin!"

Chris had to chuckle at Stephanie, glad that was what she was angry about and not something else. "Stephanie…"

"No, I'm serious, you weren't that bad, and then for them to kick you off without voting! I was going to vote for you, Sawyer and I were going to vote for you," Stephanie told him. "I thought you said we would get to vote, and then we didn't get to vote, and that's such B.S., how can they get away with that! I'm so angry over it."

"Stephanie, really--"

"If I had been there, you better believe you would still be on, even if I had to pay them off, I would do it for you," she told him. "I mean, you know, if you have to cheat to get to the top, then you do that, it's so simple, it's all so simple."

"It's not that simple, there are rules."

"Oh whatever," she scoffed. "Rules are meant to be broken, and with the right amount of zeros on a check, you can get people to bend on a whim. How much is Cowell worth? Like what, I read it was like, I don't know, 100 million dollars, please, my family is worth 900 more million and you're in my family. I could own his ass, I should buy him out and put you in that show."

"Stephanie, listen to yourself," Chris said, but when he saw her eyes blazing, he knew she was serious. It was kind of sweet actually, to have someone who loved you that much…and who had the means to go through with their threats.

"What? I am worth more than him," she said, and she never really bragged about the money, so she was dead serious. "I mean, what kind of crap was that last week? Seriously, I thought I could vote for you, and you know that I never vote for those silly competitions, but I would've voted for you!"

"Well, I should hope so, you're my wife, it'd kind of suck if you were voting for Lucy," Chris told her.

"Not time for jokes Chris," Stephanie snapped. "I mean, it's like it was a conspiracy against you or something. Their ratings are going to drop too. They underestimate how much people love you. Don't they get who you are! They probably didn't and then they found out that you're Chris Jericho and you have a devoted fan-base, a bevy of Jerichoholics, and they would've voted en masse for you…there's no way you get voted off by phone votes, no way. Those judges were blind, _blind_, I mean, seriously, they need their ears cleaned of the wax, cleaned, like now, they should go to the hospital or get hearing aids. You sing Wanderlust! You can't kick off someone who sings that. This is just so bogus. They were probably scared that you would coast through to the finals, they probably realized that you had enough fans to do so. Cause like, come on, who's going to vote for Lea Thompson when they have you, who is talent _and_ gorgeous--"

"You think I'm gorgeous?" he asked impishly.

"Besides the point," she said, waving him off. "I hope the ratings drop so much that they want to beg you to come back. You know, we should just sue them. We should sue them because people didn't get to vote for you. That's grounds for suing someone right, we could have a lawsuit. I could get my father's lawyers on this and they're some of the best. We could sue them for lying and saying that you would be judged by phone-in votes. That's a case right there. By this time next week, we could be owning Fox, and if that happens, you know what I'm going to do, I'm going to put Arrested Development back on the air, that's what I'm going to do and cancel this crap show! Oh yeah, I'm going to own that damn company and--"

"Steph, I threw the competition," Chris interrupted, knowing that she was about two seconds from actually calling her father's lawyers.

Stephanie turned to him, eyes wide and mouth agape, "You _what_?"

"I threw it," he explained to her. "I went out there and for the first song, I tanked it and they were nice enough not to say that I sounded like complete shit, but I did, and the second time, well, I tried harder, but not that hard, just hard enough to rock it out, but not enough to stay, I threw it."

Stephanie shook her head, like she didn't understand his point, "You threw the competition?"

"Yeah, I threw it, I threw it so hard it was like a touchdown pass from Peyton Manning," Chris told her. "I threw it Stephanie."

"You did not," she said, like she was challenging him to say that he, in fact, did throw the competition.

Chris should've lied, but being Chris Jericho, he didn't back down from a challenge, "I threw the competition. I wasn't happy being there, in California without you, and I knew there wasn't a whole lot I could do since I was contractually obligated, so I threw it to get kicked off."

Stephanie shoved him and he landed against the door with a smack, "How could you do something like that? That is not the kind of man I married! The kind of man I married would not throw a competition of any kind, even a lame reality show one. What's next Jericho? Are you going to half-ass your way through your radio show?"

"Stephanie, don't make it out to be a huge deal when its not."

"It _is_ a huge deal," she pointed out. "Chris, I wanted you to win, I wanted you to be the last one standing, I wanted to have the bragging rights to you, I mean, yes, you have tons of accolades as it is, but I wanted this one too! And to hear that you threw a competition, I mean, come on, this is us we're talking about, we don't do that, we don't back down from something. Did I back down when Hunter challenged me to that Triple Threat Match? No, because that's not who we are."

"Look Stephanie, I missed you and Sawyer--"

"Not the point," she told him, "not the point at all. You don't throw something, least of all for me, or for Sawyer, he doesn't want that either, he's our son, our son wouldn't want you to do that."

"Opportunities like this come and go Steph, they do. Shows and plays and whatever, they come and go. When I first took this show on, I didn't know it was going to take me away from the two most important things in my world, but it did and I couldn't handle that. Call me a baby if you really want to, but it is what it is. I don't like being without you. I don't like sleeping in a big bed without you or watching a movie without your incessant questioning. I don't want to watch Evil Dead and have you bored out of your mind even though I love it. Steph, throwing a competition is nothing, I don't care. I care about being here with you and Sawyer and that's it."

Stephanie gave him an impassioned look and then stepped towards him and he smiled, thinking he got through to her. But this was Stephanie McMahon and he should've known better, oh how he should've known better. She reared her hand back and slapped him across the face. Chris grabbed at his cheek and looked at her as she glared at him.

"You idiot! You _never_, and I mean that, throw a competition, if you do this again, I will kick your ass," she told him, but she had the faintest smile on his face.

Chris smiled at her and grabbed her by the hips as she squealed a little bit. He pulled her in closer, so he could kiss her again, smiling against her lips as he stuck his tongue out to lick at them a little bit. He could feel her resistance giving way. "You know what McMahon?"

"What?" she asked breathlessly.

"I'd do it again in a heartbeat." With that, he took her in his arms and kissed the life out of her, wrapping his arms firmly around her as she barely had time to get her arms around him before her knees went weak. Sawyer started to cry from the lack of attention and Chris pulled away before going over there and picking up his son. "Hey there kid, did you miss me?"

"Yeah, he did, even though he's lost a little respect for you now," Stephanie told him, trying to regain her breath.

"He understands, he wouldn't want to leave someone as beautiful as you either," Chris told her over his shoulder as he lifted Sawyer into the air and cooed up at him. "I missed you little guy, yes, Daddy missed you."

Stephanie rolled her eyes as she went back to her desk and muttered, "Can't believe he threw the damn competition…"

"What was that?" Chris asked as he held Sawyer close to him, letting the little boy snuggle up to him. Seemed that Sawyer had missed him after all. That was another nice feeling. He had a little kid to look up to him and miss him all the time.

"Nothing Jack Action," she grumbled under her breath.

"What did you just call me?" Chris asked as he looked at her.

"I didn't say anything, you're hearing things," she told him, giving him a smirk. She knew that above all things, above any and every name, Lionheart, Y2J, the Sexy Beast, Vitamin C, the Ayatollah of Rock and Rolla, there was one name that Chris hated, the he had told her in confidence that he despised being called.

"I don't think I heard wrong."

"I didn't say anything," Stephanie told him, licking her lips a little.

"You better not call me what I think you called me," Chris said, stalking closer to her so that she was pressed against the wall. Sawyer smiled at this for some reason, probably thinking that his parents were absolutely crazy and silly. "What did you call me Stephanie?"

"Nothing Jack."

"Stephanie…"

"What's wrong Jack Action, can't take the heat?" Stephanie said. "I don't think Jack Action would throw a competition. Baby boy, would Jack Action do that?" Sawyer babbled something and Stephanie gave Chris a look.

Chris leaned in so his lips were agonizingly close to her. If she leaned in a fraction of an inch, they'd be kissing. "Sometimes I don't know why I love you."

"Same here," she replied.

"You're such a bitch sometimes, I told you that in confidence," he mumbled.

"Oh, its okay, Jack Action'll be on the case, he's a super--"

Chris cut her off by pressing his lips to hers. Despite the fact that Stephanie could be a total bitch and sometimes he genuinely didn't know what he saw in her, he loved her to death, and he would do anything and everything to be with her and Sawyer.

Somewhere else in the arena, someone was walking in that hadn't been there in a while. He breathed the air like it was somehow different from the air outside the arena. It wasn't the smell that was familiar though, but the sights and sounds around him. That was something that would surely be ingrained in his brain for years to come. When you spend so much time here, you kind of get lonely for this particular hustle and bustle.

"So, how's it feel bro?"

"It hasn't been that long," Christian pointed out to Edge. "I mean, you know…it hasn't."

"Yeah, but still, it has been a while. You can't tell me you aren't feeling a little bit like you're coming home," Edge told him as Lita hung off his arm like the accessory that she was.

"Yeah, I guess it does feel a little like coming home, but it's good to be here, at least for tonight. Thanks for inviting me, I needed a mini-vacation. It's nice to just get away and go sight-seeing and do tourist stuff when you know you don't have to work or anything."

"Speak for yourself," Edge said, "unlike you, I _do_ have to work tonight, so don't go bragging that you don't have to work."

"I'm not bragging," Christian said. "So are we going to split up now or what?"

"Come hang out with us for a while until the show starts, then you can do your own thing or whatever. I'm sure you'll want to go see Chris and Stephanie and check out the youngster," Edge said, avoiding the obvious.

"True, I haven't seen them in a while, they've been staying up in Connecticut since the shows were all up there and Chris has been in California, but he's back right?"

"He's supposed to be coming back tonight," Edge said. "So yeah, just wait until we're out doing our business and then you can go catch up. I hardly ever get to see ya, bro."

"You act like that's a bad thing," Christian said, patting his shoulder as Edge sent him a mock glare. It was nice to see his brother though, kind of got his mind off of other things…and other people that he had been kind of obsessing over. Okay, obsessing was a bad word, thinking about was more subdued and probably more accurate.

Christian, Edge, and Lita turned the corner and it was just at the right moment as Trish and Carlito had just entered the hallway from going to look at the schedule. They had given Trish time to make a farewell address and she had to remind herself to thank Stephanie for giving her the opportunity to do so. She knew that it was a rare privilege to be able to go out there and address the fans with what she saw fit to say. Maybe it was because of her status, or who her friends were, but she didn't care because she wanted the fans to know how much they meant to her and how their support got her to where she was at right now.

"What're you thinking?" Carlito asked as he pressed his forehead to the side of her head.

"Just about what I'm going to say out there," she told him, staring forward. "You know when I address the fans and give them a farewell, because I don't know if I'm going to really get the chance to do it later."

"Yeah, I get that," he said, kissing her temple. "Are you nervous?"

"Of course I'm a little nervous, that's natural," Trish said. "I've been wrestling for the past six years you know, and it's just hard to give it up, even though I know that for now it is the right thing to do for myself, it's still going to be hard."

"Yeah, I get that," Carlito told her. "You'll be fine out there, do you want me to come out there with you? You know, I can be pretty good moral support."

"I know that you can," she told him, bumping her hip against his. "But I think this should be my moment you know, not that I can't have you there or something, not that you're not welcome, you're totally welcome, you know, I don't want you to not be included."

"Hey, hey, hey," he said, pressing his finger to her lips. She looked up at him with those doe eyes of hers and his look softened completely. He had yet to figure out just how he had gotten in this woman's good graces, let alone how he had gotten her love. He just counted his blessings and went with it. "Its okay, I'm fine with that, look, you've worked hard, and I haven't been around too long, so you should go out there alone, this is your moment."

"Thank you for saying what I'm thinking," she told him, hugging him tightly, "I love you."

"I love you too," he told her, hugging her back. Yes, he was a very lucky man and he didn't quite know how he got to be so lucky. Tons of guys had been trying to get Trish's attention for years, and yet he was the lucky guy. It didn't make a whole lot of sense to him. Sure, he knew he was a good-looking guy, but he never pictured himself the kind of guy who could get someone like Trish Stratus. "You're going to rock out there."

"Aww, now you're just saying that because you're my boyfriend and you love me," Trish teased.

"Yeah, you got me," he told her back, and she giggled and wrapped her arm around her waist. "What, now you're going to hold onto me too, what does a guy gotta do around here to not get the cutest girls to throw themselves at him."

"Um…act like Randy is acting?"

"I don't know what you saw in that guy."

"He was different back then," Trish explained. "A lot of things were different back then, I was stupid and naïve and didn't know that there was someone like you out there. You weren't even in the company yet, so how would I have known you."

"True, true, I guess he was different back then, but now he's just a jerk."

"He is a jerk, but let's forget about him for a moment, you're going to beat him on Sunday though."

"That doesn't seem like forgetting about him for the moment," Carlito pointed out playfully and she gave him a quick whack in the chest. "Hey, what was that for? That wasn't cool at all."

"I can talk about what I want, when I want, got it," she told him, but she was obviously joking as she poked him in the stomach.

"Hey, don't poke me," Carlito said, grabbing her finger. "You are not allowed to poke me."

"Am I allowed to kiss you or is that against the rules too?" she asked, tilting her head back as if expecting a kiss. He sighed a little bit and looked at her, as if it was going to be a chore. She batted her eyelashes at him as she stood there, looking for all the world a fool as Carlito smirked down at her.

"Get a room."

Trish looked over her shoulder and saw that Hunter and Shawn were trying to pass. She turned and leaned back against Carlito, who instinctively wrapped his arms tightly around her and leaned his head on hers. She smiled up at him and Hunter and Shawn both wanted to puke, Hunter more than Shawn, since Shawn knew how love was good in the beginning, so good you figured there'd never be any downside.

"Sorry Hunter, but we don't feel like it," Trish told him.

"Well then can you not block the hallway and hold up traffic, some people would like to be able to pass and not stand around like sitting ducks where people can get us."

"Speaking of, how are you guys?"

"You actually care?" Hunter asked her.

"No, but Stephanie and Chris care, and they're my best friends. They seem to think you're not such a bad guy anymore, and while I'm of the opinion that you'll never fully be a good guy, I'm willing to give you the benefit of the doubt for them."

"How big of you," Shawn joked. She rolled her eyes.

"I'm just being a human being," Trish replied. "So I'm assuming you guys are okay?"

"We survived," Hunter shrugged. "Could've been worse, but what you'll see happen to Shane and Vince in that Hell in a Cell, that's what we're going to think of as worse, they don't stand a chance."

"Good," Trish said. "I don't have a lot of beefs with Shane, but Vince…he hurt my best friend and he should pay for that. Stephanie has been there for me through everything, so I should be there for her when she needs it."

"Just for the record, I'm not out to be the bad guy with her."

"Good, because if you did, well, you'd be in for an ass-kicking you'd never forget," Trish said, "And that'd just be from me."

Carlito chuckled and pointed at her, "Is she cool or what?"

"I'm or what," she said as she turned to pull Carlito towards their locker room. She was happy right now, but she didn't know how long that happiness was going to last. There was a storm brewing, and not just with Lita, which she expected, but there was a storm brewing with someone else as well.

Christian had been keeping minor tabs on Raw, nothing major, just a very broad interest in it, if you could call it that. He basically knew what was going on with his brother and not much else. Chris and Stephanie weren't on the show, and Trish…well, it was hard to think about Trish after she had confessed that she had made out with Shane. That confession had just stung, it had stung him and numbed him. He didn't know what to do after that, but he had to get away from Trish.

He was afraid that the window of opportunity had closed for them and that was a scary thought. He had never loved a woman like he had loved Trish, and to lose her now, after the ride they had been on, it was just…it wasn't fair was what it was. He had put in years with Trish, and to have it go nowhere, towards nothing, it was almost like he had wasted that time. He got the feeling that Edge wasn't telling him something about Trish, but he couldn't figure out what that could be.

Was she with Shane? Now _that _would be weird because Shane was married, although maybe he was getting divorced and he had left his wife for Trish. That would be both scary and a horrible way to lose her. He didn't want to lose her to Shane because there'd be no way that he could ever get her back. Shane had everything and there was just no way that he could compete with someone who had everything.

Trish didn't have everything at the moment, but she had a lot, and as she was walking, alone, since Carlito had gone to actually sign the contracts for his match, as she came across Jeff, who was, weirdly enough, painting the wall. And no, he wasn't making a mural or anything, he was just…painting the wall the same color as…the wall. She wandered over and stood next to him.

"Oh, hey Trish," Jeff said.

"Hey Jeff, what are you doing?"

"Painting."

"Why are you painting?"

"No reason, felt like it, I'm going to make fun of Nitro and Melina."

"By painting the wall?" Trish asked, widening her eyes a little bit.

"Yeah, yeah I am."

"That's…weird," Trish said with a kind laugh.

Christian turned the corner in search of Chris and Stephanie and saw Jeff and Trish talking with each other and Trish was laughing at something he was saying. Jeff! That had to be what Edge was hiding. Jeff and Trish were together…again. God, this was what, the third time. He scowled as he remembered early on in his relationship with Trish, when that asshole Jeff had stolen her from him. Now he had swooped back in and had taken her again.

He stalked off, more pissed than ever. It was one thing to be Shane, but Jeff of all people. He hated that snot-nosed freak. He had been a thorn in his side way back in the day and he was one right now. His breath was coming out in heavy puffs of air as he tried to compose himself. Jeff freaking Hardy, he couldn't stand him. They had never been the best of friends, what with the numerous TLC matches in which they had clashed, and then with Trish, and now, in 2006, it was all happening all over again. Oh, he was going to get answers, he was going to get all the answers.

"Trish, you have your farewell thing after the Hardy/Nitro match," someone came up and told her.

"Thanks," Trish said. "I'll see you later Jeff. I need to think of what I'm going to say."

"Sure…and good luck Trish."

"Thanks," she said, patting his arm as she walked off.

She knew that she wanted to say thank you to everyone who had gotten her where she was right now. She had so many people to thank that it seemed a little overwhelming now. She had questioned this idea over and over again, and she still felt it was the right one to make, at least for now. She needed to clear her head and figure out life from here on out. It was kind of like what Chris was doing, except she knew that when Chris was ready, he was going to come back. Right now he was just enjoying fatherhood too much.

She let her mind wander to what it would be like to have a baby of her own. She and Carlito would have really cute children, she thought to herself. And then Sawyer could have a playmate to play with. Right now Carlito lived in Miami, and she in Tampa, but she was trying to get him to come up to Tampa for good. She didn't want to spend any time away from him. She saw a future with Carlito and she liked what she saw. She would definitely have to thank him.

She would also have to mention her accomplishments and how they meant so much to her, and her opponents and competitors for being fierce competition. Maybe she wouldn't thank Lita though, that bitch could rot in hell for all she cared. She scowled as she thought of the stupid (dyed) redhead who had spilled the beans before she could tell everyone, and she was especially pissed that Carlito had found out before she could tell him. She didn't want him to find out that way.

She supposed that she should thank Christian too. It would only be fair if she thanked him since he had had such an influence over her. Maybe not so much her career, but over her life, he did and he deserved the recognition for that. Things maybe have taken a downturn in the past year, but before that, things had been great with Christian. She never denied that things had been good with him, and she some part of her wished that things could still be good, but she had to move on. She couldn't keep repeating the same cycle over and over again.

She knew some people questioned her validity when she said that she loved Carlito, but it was true. She wasn't completely over Christian, she knew this and Carlito knew this as well. But if she was ever going to get over Christian, she had to take this step. She had fallen into a bad pattern when it pertained to Christian and had lost a lot of self-dignity. She had been a doormat to him, letting him walk all over her, dictating when they got to have a relationship and when they didn't. He had lied to her and cheated on her and left her high and dry. And while she knew that it wasn't completely his fault, that she shared part of the blame, she knew that she couldn't keep living that way.

If she let him walk all over her, if she let him in, he might just walk back out, and she couldn't do that again and again. She had let him come in and out at his will and she had never questioned it. Didn't she deserve better? Didn't she deserve something solid and someone who would always be there for her? She did deserve that and she deserved to try to find that with Carlito. That's why she didn't care if people thought she was over Christian or not, because regardless if she was or not, she didn't deserve what he put her through and she knew that more than she knew a lot of things.

Christian sat there, tapping his fingers against the table that he was sitting at. He was contemplating how he was going to confront Jeff. He'd be damned if he lost Trish to Jeff Hardy. If he had to lose her, it was not going to be to that bastard. He thought of the different ways he wanted to torture that weird freak. He would definitely get him for taking his girlfriend for the second time. Or maybe he'd just disappear again, like last time, that freaking coward.

By the time that Jeff's match was over, Christian was steaming mad. His hands were itching to punch Jeff Hardy right in the face. He'd bide his time though, wait until Jeff was nearly at his locker room. He didn't want to cause a scene and get himself kicked out of here. No, he just wanted to rough up Jeff a little and then be on his merry way. He was leaning casually against the wall, watching Jeff's door.

Finally, the Hardy boy walked to the door and was about to go inside when Christian walked over quickly. Jeff was just about to open his mouth to say something when Christian grabbed him by the shirt and shoved him up against the wall. Jeff tried to get him off, but it was to no avail as Christian was too strong for him at this moment.

"What the hell?" Jeff squeaked out.

"How long have you been seeing her?"

"Seeing who man?" Jeff said as she tried to push Christian off, but he still wasn't budging.

"Don't play dumb with me you asshole," Christian responded through gritted teeth. "You know exactly who I'm talking about. Were you just waiting in the wings, waiting to get your hands on her again? As soon as I'm out of the picture, you had to come back and take her, didn't you?"

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Trish you jackass, you're seeing Trish, I saw you earlier!"

"Whoa, okay, hands off now," Jeff told him. "I'm not seeing Trish. Dude, yeah, when I came back, I sought her out, but she has a boyfriend, now let me go."

Christian dropped him. "Not you?"

"No," Jeff said, fixing his shirt, "It's not me."

"It's Shane isn't it?"

"No," Jeff drawled, "She's dating Carlito."

Christian leaned back, "But they're just friends, they were always just friends, they hung out occasionally, but it was never anything serious. She isn't dating Carlito, you must be mistaken. You're probably mistaken about this."

"Man, she introduced him as her boyfriend, to my face, I was there, they're seeing each other."

"She introduced him as her boyfriend?" Christian asked, looking down.

"Yeah, she said that he was her boyfriend, that's it, I'm not dating her."

"Oh, sorry," he mumbled as he walked away dejectedly.

That wasn't the only fight that was breaking out, although that one had been tame. As Trish had gone out for her farewell address, that redheaded bitch had come up to her and Trish could not stand her and let it be known. She let it be known when she slammed Lita to the ground and proceeded to slam her head into the concrete. She felt someone pull her from behind and wasn't surprised to find her boyfriend behind her, trying to pull her off of Lita.

"Come on Trish, come here," he said, pulling her towards him. "It's not worth it."

She was about to agree when she felt Carlito falling on her and then get pulled away. She went after Lita again since she wasn't being held back and then looked over her shoulder to see Randy beating on Carlito. Trying to help her boyfriend, she almost climbed on Randy's back, but couldn't get a good enough grip as Carlito turned the tables on Randy and slammed him up against the metal door. Security broke them apart a moment later and Carlito stumbled to Trish's side.

"Are you okay?" he asked, trying to regain his breath.

"Yeah," she answered, clutching her side a little. "You?"

"Yeah, I'm good," he told her, wincing a little. "What are you doing? You shouldn't go after Lita, save it for when you get her in the ring for the Women's title, you don't want to get hurt."

"She doesn't scare me," Trish said. "I'm just sick and tired of her running her mouth all the time. I just couldn't take it anymore, she deserved worse, much worse."

"You know she's going to ask for a match for us."

"Bring it I say, and I'll beat down that trick again," she said angrily, glaring over at Lita as she walked away in a huff. Carlito laughed and pulled her back against him. "You should just let me go after her."

He shook his head, "Trish, wait for later, we'll get her in the ring and then you can kick her ass, and I can get my hands on that stupid Randy."

"Okay, but I'm only agreeing because it's you," she told him. "But I still hate that trick."

"Oh come on, we'll go get ready in our own special way," he said.

Christian did not see that exchange, but he was starting to fit all the pieces together anyways. He should've known it would be Carlito. She and Carlito had been hanging out a lot and he had even driven her to the arena. She seemed to genuinely like him and he should've seen this coming. He didn't like the idea that she could've been cheating on him, but he had no evidence to corroborate this story. But he should've figured Carlito into the picture somewhere.

"Christian, is that you?"

Christian turned, "Hey Stephanie."

"Hey, what's up?"

"Nothing," he said shortly. "Have you seen Trish?"

"Um, she just got into a fight with Lita, and she might be headed back to her locker room actually. You could find her there, that's most likely where she is. I'd stay and talk, but I'm taking the night off to be with Chris. Have a good one."

"Thanks," Christian said and he didn't even get a fair warning that she was with Carlito. He called out after Stephanie, "Steph, wait up. Is she sharing with anyone tonight? Locker room I mean?"

"Just Carlito, but they share anyways," Stephanie shrugged. Christian was a little surprised by the aloofness at which she stated that, like he wouldn't care.

"Oh, Carlito huh?"

"Yeah, they are dating…oh," Stephanie said, just realizing her faux pas. "You…knew that though right?"

"Not so much until like fifteen minutes ago."

"Oh…awkward," Stephanie said uncomfortably. "I thought you knew. Everyone pretty much knew, I'm just…well, I'm sorry, but…I'm sorry."

"Whatever," Christian said, "Have a nice night."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, scurrying away.

Christian was just so surprised that she had so readily admitted that she was dating Carlito. There didn't seem to be anything in her voice, and he wondered if they were comfortable with this pairing now. Maybe Carlito had incorporated himself into their lives and he was suddenly going to be replaced because there was no more need for him. Maybe there wasn't any more need for him, and that made him a little bit sadder as he sought out Trish's locker room. He really needed to speak with her. Like really, really needed to speak with her.

He found her locker room rather easily and pounded on the door. "Yeah, yeah, I'm coming."

Trish opened the door and gasped a little, Christian being the last person that she had expected it to be. She didn't even know that he was going to be here tonight. If she had known…well, she didn't know was the thing. She opened her door to him and he walked inside. She gazed at him for a moment, a bit of a smile on her face as she let him in.

"I didn't know you were going to be here."

"Yeah, well I didn't know that I was going to find you here with your _boyfriend_," Christian shot at her.

Trish sighed, "You didn't know?"

"No, I can't say that I did."

"I'm dating Carlito, we've been dating for weeks now, nothing happened while we were still together. That's the truth. But after you left, after the Shane thing, he was there for me and it really works for me Christian."

"So you just come out and say it?"

"Look, can we talk later? Like tonight, after the show, the hotel bar, you know, me, you, a couple drinks, I can explain."

"I'm not meeting at a bar, you can come to my hotel room and we can talk."

"That's fine too," she said, "What room are you in?"

"Room 983."

"Okay, we'll talk then."

Christian left, knowing that if he didn't leave, he'd truly embarrass himself. Trish watched him go, and to say she wasn't distracted by his presence would be a lie. She was distracted because she knew that later on, it would probably be the final nail in the coffin that was her relationship with Christian. She wasn't looking forward to it, but it needed to be done. He needed to know that he could go on with his life.

When Carlito came back, angry after another altercation with Randy, she was a little bit distracted as he spoke to her, but she still remained attentive as he expressed his anger. She held in a laugh as he wondered what was up with Randy's pose. It was the little things like that, that she loved about him. Yes, she loved him and as they got ready for their upcoming match, she knew that she was doing the right thing by Christian in letting him go. It was going to be the right thing to let him move on with his life because she was pretty effectively moving on with hers.

Her match didn't quite go as she expected it. Sure, she got her hits on Lita when she wanted to, but all in all, getting an RKO was not on her list of things she wanted to happen. Carlito had saved her from the spear, but he had been held back when she got the RKO. He tried desperately to get to her, but he couldn't get there when Edge grabbed onto his ring shorts. As soon as the bell rung, he raced to Trish's side and pushed her hair out of her face.

"Sweets, are you okay?" Carlito asked softly.

"Hurts," she whimpered and he kept brushing her hair back in a soothing motion, oblivious to the commotion being caused by Randy, Lita and Edge. Cena was too busy caring about that, but Carlito only care about one thing and that was Trish's well being.

"Where do you hurt?" he asked.

"My head, headache," she told him and he leaned down to kiss her forehead. "Lito, I want to go to bed."

"Okay sweets, come on," Carlito said, lifting her up and helping her to the edge of the ring where he picked her up and carried her backstage. She clung to him tightly as they went to the locker room. She was able to stand after that, but Carlito insisted on carrying her things for her. She sighed and put her hand on her head. "We're going straight to bed when we get to the hotel."

"Actually Lito, there's something I have to do and it's been something I should've done a long time ago," she told him.

"What's that sweets?" he asked.

"Christian's here."

"Oh," Carlito nodded. "You need to talk to him?"

"You got it in a nutshell," she told him, walking over to Carlito and wrapping her arms around his waist. "That's okay with you right?"

"You can do whatever you feel you need to do," Carlito told her, kissing her forehead.

"You're the best, you know that right?"

"Well, I am Carlito."

She giggled and walked with him out to their rental. When they got back to the hotel, he told her he was going to put their things in their room and hang out there, order them some room service while it was still open and what she wanted. She told him and then went up to Christian's room. She knocked on the door and he answered moments later. She walked inside and sat down at the table.

"So?" Christian said.

"So…" Trish responded. "Look Christian, I'm going to lay it all out there for you. I do still love you, and I won't get over that for a while. But we're in a destructive relationship and I don't think either one of us is happy."

"Don't presume that I wasn't happy," he told her. "I was happy with you Trish."

"Okay, then I wasn't happy with you," she said. "Christian, you have a penchant for leaving. I don't know whether it's just bad luck or fate, but it keeps happening. Then I let you back in like it's nothing. But it's not nothing. It's very much something, and I feel like I'm a doormat for you. That you walk all over me."

"I never thought of you as a pushover. I can't believe you think that I walk all over you," Christian protested.

"You did, you didn't know it, but you did. It was me though, I kept letting you back in. Christian, we broke up like five times, _five_ times! That's too many, and every time, I let you back in only to be disappointed again when you left. I can't do that anymore."

"But Trish, we were good together, we've always been good together."

"We were, I'm not going to deny that, but I can't do it anymore Christian. That's it, I'm off the table, I can't do it. I couldn't take you leaving again, and I can't put myself at risk like that. This last time, I'll admit, you being around me felt like you were smothering me. I wasn't happy, and it's my fault for letting it get so bad. When you left because of Mickie, I was just healing when you came back into my life. I'm not sorry you did because it made me realize that maybe we aren't meant to be."

"You think we're not meant to be?" Christian asked, and it was like a dagger to the heart when she said that. Chris and Stephanie had gone through so much and had ended up happy together, and he thought that the same thing could happen for him and Trish.

"I don't know, I just…I don't know, but right now, it doesn't feel right. I don't feel right. You will always hold a special place in my heart, but I can't do this anymore. I'm sorry."

"Trish, but…we've been through so much, we can work through it."

"I'm tired Chrissy, I'm just tired. I need to explore other options. And you should too. I really want you to be happy. I'm happy."

"You are?" he asked, and he didn't know if that felt worse. It certainly didn't feel good, but could that maybe have been the worst thing she could've said? It certainly felt like his heart was being torn from his chest and then she was shoving it through a grinder.

"Yeah, Carlito is," and here she smiled in giddiness. "I…love him Chrissy. I love him and I love being with him and I'm so incredibly happy with him. I know that hurts, I know it does, but I have to tell you the truth so that we can…so that we can move on."

"It wasn't supposed to be like this Trishy," he whispered painfully.

She took his hand across the table, "I know it wasn't Chrissy, but I can't help what happened. I'm going to go, I'm sorry."

She got up and kissed him on the cheek. She didn't have anything else to say, so she left him there. She walked to the elevator and went down a couple floors to her own floor. She got out and mechanically went to her room, knocking on the door. Carlito showed up a moment later and seeing her face, immediately pulled her into his arms. She took solace in him and he led her to the bed. He laid down and she cuddled up to him, clutching his side snugly. He kissed the top of her head and ran his hand up and down her back.

"I broke his heart," she mumbled over and over again. "I broke it…"

"Shh, it'll be okay," Carlito told her, "You did the right thing."

"I know, but I didn't want to hurt him Lito, I didn't want to hurt him," she told him, holding him tighter. Carlito just let her cry it out. He knew that they had been very serious and if he could take her hurt from her, he would take it gladly.

"It'll be alright, I promise."

She didn't know how, but she knew that somehow…

Carlito would keep that promise.


	105. Trish, Don't Leave, September 11, 2006

A/N: There may or may not be an Unforgiven chapter, so keep your eye out on Monday morning for an update.

Enjoy the chapter, leave a review. :)

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Chris sniffled as he rubbed his nose. While not a grand gesture of sorts, it was what he was doing at that exact moment. We can't all be on all the time, and Chris was not on tonight. He had a cold actually and he was not feeling good. What this meant was Stephanie was not allowing him near Sawyer, which sucked, but he understood since he didn't want to get his young son ill. But she had also kicked him out of her office so he was wandering around.

"Chris!"

Chris heard someone hissing his name and he looked around, wondering where it came from. He didn't see anyone and shrugged and kept walking. Maybe he was so sick that he was starting to hear voices of have hallucinations. That would be really weird and this was just a cold and he didn't have a fever.

"Chris!"

Chris stopped again and looked behind him to see Christian peeking around the corner at him. Chris was a little surprised to see him there, but backtracked and met up with his friend. "Hey man, what're you doing here?"

"I came with Edge."

"Why are you traveling with him now?" Chris asked. "Is this like your new thing?"

"No, I just…look, is there somewhere we can talk?" Christian asked. "Your office, maybe?"

"Stephanie and Sawyer are in there and I'm not allowed to be around him," Chris explained.

"Are you and Stephanie having a fight?"

"No, I'm sick and therefore I'm not allowed near the baby," Chris said, sniffling as if to show off the fact that he really did have a cold. "So that's a no-go."

"Can't you kick her out?" Christian asked, and Chris recognized the desperation in his voice. Chris stood still for a minute. It looked like Christian really did need to talk and since Christian was his friend, he knew that he should do this. He sighed and took his cell phone out of his pocket and Christian patted Chris companionably on the shoulder.

"Steph?" Chris said as he called his wife.

"What is it?" Stephanie asked abruptly.

"Nice greeting," he muttered. "I was wondering if you were still in your office."

"Yeah, why?" she asked. "Did you need something? I can have Britt bring it to you if you need something, but you are not to come in here with your germs. It's bad enough that you drove with us."

"Yeah, and you made me sit on the other side of the limo," Chris answered, rolling his eyes. "Look, can you like get out of the office for like half an hour? It's important."

"Why, so you can have your illicit affair?" she asked. "You can't come in here with your sickness. I don't want you getting Sawyer sick."

"At some point he's going to get sick you know," Chris informed her. "You can't keep him in a bubble like he's John Travolta."

"Shut the hell up."

"Stealing my lines now baby," he teased.

"He's four months old, Chris, I don't want him to get sick at four months old, when he's older, okay, but not now."

"Look, Christian is in crisis over here, please," Chris said, changing his voice to sound serious.

"Coming from the guy that throws a competition," she muttered. "I don't know why I should even allow you into my home."

"You're never going to let that go, are you?"

"No, because that's not something that we do," she told him.

"Plus, _your _home? Since when is it your home and not our home?" he asked her.

"Since you decided that you were a pussy and couldn't even last a week without me or Sawyer," Stephanie explained. "I mean, suck it up, Chris, I don't think your parents raised you to be such a coward, did they?"

"You are a bitch," Chris told her, "and the only pussy around here is--"

"Finish that sentence and you won't ever get any of what you're thinking of right now," Stephanie warned him, and he growled into the phone. "Oh, what's that Chris, you want me right now? Wow, no control whatsoever."

"Get out of that room, or I'll come in."

"And get your son sick? That's dastardly, that's worthy of an evil plan," she told him. "We'll be out in five minutes."

"Thank you baby," he said sweetly.

"Whatever."

Chris hung up the phone and turned to Christian, "Okay, we're good to go."

"Did you have to practically have phone sex with your wife in front of me?" Christian asked miserably. The last thing he wanted to see was happy people. It was bad enough with Edge and Lita always being all over each other, but Chris and Stephanie were married, so it was even worse. He had really thought he and Trish could be like this. He had believed it so much.

There were a lot of parallels between him and Trish and Chris and Stephanie. Chris and Stephanie had broken up twice before they decided to get engaged and they had a lot of little spats. But the difference was that they always seemed to recover from them. Then those fights would make them stronger. They were strong by now, and nothing seemed to phase them, not feuds with her family, not Hunter, nothing seemed to get in there way. He had thought that he and Trish could be the same way, that every time they were apart and got back together, they'd be stronger than the last time.

But she had found someone else in their time apart. Could he really begrudge her that? No, because it was only his own fault. If he had done things differently, maybe things would be different now. Maybe she wouldn't be with…Carlito. That thought didn't settle right in his mind. It just didn't compute with him. It sounded wrong, very, very wrong.

"Yo man, you coming," Chris said, and Christian saw that he was up ahead of him a few paces and he walked quickly to catch up.

By the time they got back to Stephanie's office, Stephanie and Sawyer were nowhere to be found and Chris led Christian into the office, where Christian took a seat. He stared at his hands for a long moment and Chris just sat there and stared at him, not really sure what he should say to the other man. So he waited for Christian to speak first. He had a very good idea what this was about, but he wasn't going to push the subject.

"She's with Carlito."

Chris nodded, although Christian wasn't looking at him. "Yeah, she is with him."

"How long has she been with him?" Christian asked, knowing that he needed all the information that he could get about this.

"I don't really know, one week they were friends and the next week they were together. I think it was a couple weeks after she kissed Shane," Chris said. "I think that he makes her happy."

"She told me as much," Christian said morosely. "Last week, she pretty much told me that she didn't want me and that she's moved on. She's with Carlito. I mean, I thought…I knew they were friends, but I never saw them together."

"Nobody did," Chris said. "I know that Stephanie and I were pretty stunned by the news. Not so much that she had someone, but that she was with Carlito. They are really opposites of one another when you look at it."

"Have you…did you…have you been around the both of them?"

"Christian, why do you want to know?" Chris asked. "I mean, is this your way of torturing yourself?"

"I just need to know so that I can wrap my mind around this and I don't know, either figure out a way to get her back, or figure out a way to move on with my life…I haven't quite figured out which path to take yet. I'm a fucking Robert Frost poem with the two roads diverging in a yellow wood."

"Still though…"

"If you and Stephanie got divorced, if she told you that she was seeing someone else now, wouldn't you want to know? I mean, if she divorced you tomorrow and then the next day said, 'Chris, I'm seeing…Hunter now,' wouldn't you want to know?"

"Hell no," Chris said. "I wouldn't want to know what she was doing with Hunter, I'd rather listen to the crappiest music ever than be subjected to that."

"Why? Why wouldn't you want to know?"

"Because I love Stephanie and knowing that she was with someone else, it would just break me, and I don't know why you want to hear about Trish and Carlito when you know it's probably going to break you," Chris told him.

"It's not, I'm already broken, man, there's nothing left to break so I might as well hear what I have to hear."

"Fine, I have been around them, we hung out last week. And Stephanie hung out with them while I was in California, so we've been around the two of them and we've been out with the two of them," Chris told him, albeit reluctantly. He tried to gauge Christian's reaction, but he was expressionless.

"And?"

"And what?"

"What were they like together?"

Chris sighed; he really didn't want to be the one that told him this. He would rather have Stephanie here. She'd be firm, but gentle in telling him, and Chris just knew that he was going to come off as insensitive and like a jerk. But what else could he do? He couldn't lie to Christian and give him false hope. That wasn't fair to him. If he was going to go after Trish, he needed to be informed and not lied to like he needed to be handled with kid's gloves.

"She's really happy, they seem really happy together," Chris told him slowly. "She tells us all the time how happy she is."

"Is she leaving because of him?"

"No, not at all," Chris shook his head. "Why would she do that when he works here? She's just burnt out, like I was, although my reasons for leaving were completely different and having to do with Sawyer. But I really do think that she's happy right now, Christian. I know that it hurts to hear, it would hurt me to hear it about Stephanie if we ever broke up but--"

"It is what it is," Christian finished his sentence, and although that wasn't what Chris was going to say, it was a pretty effective statement.

"Yeah," Chris said simply, patting him on the shoulder before standing up. "I don't know what you want to do man, but it's totally up to you, don't do anything stupid that will hurt her. She's been through so much."

Chris started for the door, intending to give Christian a few minutes alone, but Christian called out for him, "Chris, can I ask you one more thing?"

"Sure."

"When I was gone, what was she like, seriously? Like she told me what she felt and everything, but I have a feeling she held back so she wouldn't make me feel bad, but I was just wondering…I mean, when I left, what happened, what did she do? How was she?"

"You don't want to know."

"No, really, I do…I think I have to actually, if that makes sense. I'm trying to wrap my mind around the fact that its really over, and I think I need to know what happened with her, what exactly happened to her while I was gone."

"Look, she was hurting, I mean, really hurting. When we saw her that Monday, she was just wandering around with the note you left her in her hand. She broke down that night when we took her back to our house. Stephanie, Kurt, and I stayed with her all night long as she cried. She didn't want to eat or sleep or do anything, but Stephanie made her do it. She stayed in her room for days and we'd bring her food and things. It wasn't until Stephanie told her that she was pregnant that we saw any kind of life in her eyes. It took her a long time to get over you, a really long time, and that's why we were so pissed off when we saw you. She was so bad off and she scared us so much that we…it was bad."

"Thanks," Christian mumbled as he stared down at the ground.

With this, Chris did leave, knowing that Christian needed to think things over for himself. He sighed and thought about the fractured relationship between Christian and Trish. It was strange to see a relationship that he had thought would be as strong as his own fall apart like it had. But that was just the nature of life and relationships, sometimes things didn't work out. He couldn't even look into the future to see if his own relationship with Stephanie would last, but you just had to go on blind faith that it would.

That was a scary thought, losing Stephanie and not being with her. That was a strange thought in and of itself. Once upon a time, he would've laughed in your face and thought pigs were flying if someone had told him he'd be married to Stephanie McMahon and on top of that, have a child with her. Now he couldn't imagine his life without her, and he didn't want to end up like Christian and Trish or Stephanie and her first marriage to Hunter. He wanted it to last with her, he wanted forever with her. But things were always so up in the air and he bit his lip thinking about that. He didn't want to lose her, ever.

He decided the only way he'd get the reassurance he needed was to go see Stephanie. Now where she was, he had no idea. She was probably hiding in a bunker somewhere deep within Madison Square Garden. A safe place with no germs to infect Sawyer. Well, Sawyer would just have to suck it up because he wanted to see his wife. He _needed _to see Stephanie and be reassured that everything was going to be okay and that he wouldn't lose her.

"Hey Junior," he called out to one of the production assistants, who turned and looked at him.

"Yes, Chris, what can I do for you?" the guy asked.

"Have you seen Stephanie?"

"Oh, Mrs. McMahon-Jericho is in the production truck going over videos for tonight's show," the guy told him.

"Thanks."

Chris meandered his way outside, and over to the production truck. He went up the few steps to the door and knocked on it. Stephanie stuck her head out a moment later and looked at him questioningly. He smiled at her and went to take a step forward before she put her hand up in front of him to stop him from walking inside.

"I don't think so," Stephanie told him.

"Stephanie, come on," Chris said, wanting to go inside the truck and talk to her.

"Sawyer's in there," she said, nodding her head towards the inside of the truck. "I don't want you around him."

"He's been around sick people before."

"Yeah, but he likes you and he likes to be held by you and if he sees you, he's going to want to be around you and I don't want to deal with a sick baby," she said wearily.

"Stephanie, you can't do this every time I'm sick or you're sick," Chris told her. "We can't be those really overprotective parents. Besides, I'm probably out of the contagious stage and everything, please, pretty please…"

"Why can't you just understand!" she snapped angrily. Chris felt hurt by her yelling at him for no reason and he sucked at his teeth a little, refusing to show her how hurt he was. Stephanie rubbed her temples a little bit and looked at Chris, running her fingers through his hair. "I'm sorry, sweetie, that wasn't me right there. I'm just so stressed out about this Sunday. I've been trying to hold it in, but it seems like it's all just going to come pouring out soon."

"What's wrong?" he asked, grabbing her hand from his hair and holding it in his own. Stephanie looked back at the truck for a moment, obviously checking on Sawyer and let go of Chris's hand for a moment to go grab Sawyer's carrier. She came back out and took Chris's hand with her free one and led him over to an area where docking area for the trucks. She sat down on the ledge of an empty one, putting Sawyer on her right as Chris sat on her left, his hand still firmly in hers. "Steph, what's wrong? You weren't worried about Unforgiven yesterday, you were saying how you wanted to watch Hunter and Shawn pulverize Shane and Vince, and you don't really use the word 'pulverize' unless you mean it."

"I was thinking just a few minutes ago. I was helping the video people with clips from the previous Hells in a Cell, and well…I came across the one you had with Hunter at Judgment Day in 2002, remember?"

"Remember? How could I forget that? Not only was it one of my most brutal matches ever, it was a match I absolutely should've won and didn't, it still pisses me off a little to this day," he said, a touch of bitterness in his voice (and a lot of his fan's voices too, Hunter owed him the job!).

"Yeah, well, that's beside the point because as I was watching it, I remembered what I was thinking when it happened, when I was watching it from my house," Stephanie explained, keeping her eyes trained on their clasped hands. "And I remember thinking that I didn't want either of you to lose."

"Yeah?"

"Well, we had just come off our business partnership a couple months prior and I had been attracted to you during it," she said, "which you knew. And then I mean, the opponent was my ex-husband, who I still loved a little bit. I was worried about the both of you actually, I mean, I didn't want anyone to win because that meant one of you would lose and I didn't want to see it and I still hate thinking about you losing that match…and then it got me thinking to this week and Unforgiven and Hunter against my father and my brother. I'm finally at a place with Hunter where we can be friends, and I consider him a friend, but…"

Chris gave her a moment to speak, but she didn't and so he brought her hand up to his mouth and kissed the back of it softly, "They're still your brother and father?"

"Exactly."

"It's okay to worry about them," he whispered. "They're your family."

"They hurt me."

Chris scooted closer to Stephanie and wrapped his arm around her, pulling her closer to him as they sat there in the garage at Madison Square Garden on an early September evening. Chris kissed her temple and she sighed against him, not caring anymore that he had a cold. Chris understood her, and for Chris, this was all the reassurance he needed. He knew that Stephanie needed him, and he needed her just as much.

"I know they did, baby, but they're still your family and you're allowed to worry about them. Being in a Hell in a Cell match is a really weird experience. It's like, just the magnitude of the match itself is enough to make you do and say things in there you wouldn't normally. The name alone carries a lot of weight. I have no doubts that everyone is going to come out worse for the wear, but it'll be okay."

"I don't want anyone to win that match, I just want everyone to come to their senses," Stephanie said. "I just want everything to be fine."

"It will be, eventually," he told her. "Now come on, let's forget about this stuff and discuss more important things, like me and you, and someone's birthday who's coming up in, oh, I don't know, less than two weeks."

"I don't want to do anything," she mumbled. "I just want to be with you and Sawyer."

"Whatever you want."

Trish was getting whatever she wanted tonight since tonight was going to be her last match on Raw. Everything had a touch of nostalgia with her that night. She recalled way back when she had been the valet for T&A, when she was just eye candy working her way through this company to where she was right now, at the very top of her game. It had been a ride, these last several years. It had its ups and downs, but she wouldn't trade it back for anything. And here, on the night of her last match, she was going to enjoy it.

She was walking down the hallway right now, Carlito behind her with his hands rubbing her shoulders as she walked. She thanked God she had him because she never would've been able to face this past week without him. With her impending departure from the business and her emotional confrontation with Christian, she needed Carlito now more than ever before. And he had been there for her when she needed him. He had been there to support her and listen to her lament about her failed relationship with Christian and she loved him all the more for it.

"So, how are you feeling?" she heard him say behind her.

"Good, I'm feeling good, it's going to be tough going out there for my match though, but for right now, I'm good. Do you want me to accompany you for your match?" she asked.

"No, I'm cool," he told her, pulling her closer to him. "Do you want me to accompany you for yours?"

She laughed and looked up at him, "No, I think I can handle myself out there. So it's going to be us separated tonight then huh?"

"Well, on-screen, but if you think that I'm going to leave you for one second backstage, then you've got another thing coming to you," he told her, leaning his chin on top of her head. It was like they were a perfect fit, and she liked that.

Trish was about to answer when she saw Marissa with Declan and Kenyon. She froze and stared straight at Marissa. She never expected to ever see her face-to-face, not after what happened with Shane a couple months ago. It seemed a lifetime ago that she had been making out with Shane. But she had never spoken with Marissa about it. Carlito felt her freeze and turned his head to look down at her.

"Trish, what's the matter?" he asked her.

Marissa came closer until she was looking right at Trish. "Trish."

"Hello Marissa," Trish said slowly, feeling the color drain from her face as she expected a confrontation.

"How are you?" Marissa asked, and though she seemed friendly, her tone was a little cold.

"I've been good actually," Trish said, then turned to Carlito, "Um, this is my boyfriend, Carlito, you probably know who he is, since you know…um, Lito, this is Marissa McMahon, Shane's…wife."

"Oh, nice to meet you," Carlito said, and would've shaken her hand if one hand wasn't carrying Kenyon and the other wasn't holding onto Declan's hand.

"You too," Marissa said. "Maybe we can…catch up later, Trish."

"Yes, of course, maybe later," Trish said uneasily.

"You wouldn't happen to know where Chris and Stephanie are, I was going to meet them tonight and we were going to go out to dinner with the kids," Marissa said, and she was directing her words more towards Carlito than Trish at the moment, but she must've figured if anyone knew where Chris and Stephanie would be, it was going to be Trish.

"They're around, I'm not sure," Trish said.

"Okay, well, thanks," Marissa said before brushing past Trish altogether and leaving her there with Carlito. Carlito felt her loosen up a little and held her tighter.

"So…you haven't talked to her since the incident with Shane, I'm guessing," Carlito whispered in her ear. She shook her head mutely. "Well, if you don't want to talk to her, then you don't have to talk to her, there aren't any laws that say you have to."

"I know, but eventually I should," she whispered back. "I mean, I did make out with her husband, not my finest moment, not my worst moment either sadly enough. I think that would have to go with my relationship with Vince."

Carlito shuddered. "Let's not discuss that again."

She pulled his arms tighter around him as they kind of waddled together down the hallway, "Okay, if that's the way that you want it, that's the way that you're going to get it."

"Well, well, well, if it isn't my big brother."

Carlito looked over his shoulder and saw his brother Eddie with his father. "What the hell?"

"That's the way you greet your brother and your dad, shame on you Carlito, shame on you," his brother said in an antagonizing voice.

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

"We came to see you, duh," Eddie said. Trish turned around and looked at Carlito's family. She hadn't met any of them yet, and this was definitely not the best time, she wasn't even looking that great or anything and she was going to meet his father. She was feeling a little bit intimidated, but Carlito just wrapped his arm around her slim waist and rubbed her side gently.

"Well a call would've been nice," Carlito ribbed his brother.

"Why call when you can just show up?" Eddie asked, "So who's the girl?"

Carlito rolled his eyes. "Dad, Eddie, this is Trish Stratus, my girlfriend."

"Oh, the girl who you've been kissing lately," Eddie said knowingly. "You know, I'm younger and more talented than Carly, if you ever want to dump him and get with someone better."

"Shut up," Carlito said, shoving his little brother in the shoulder. "Trish, this is my dad Carlos Colón, and my little brother, Eddie, the jerk."

"It's nice to meet you both," Trish said, shaking their hands. "Lito's told me a lot about you Mr. Colón."

"I hope all good," he said.

"Just about how amazing you are as a wrestler and all that, and only speaks glowingly of you," she told him.

"And what, you don't even talk about me, Carly, I'm insulted," Eddie said. "He's so inconsiderate, isn't he? I definitely make a better impression than he does."

"I'd find that hard to believe," she said, gazing up at Carlito adoringly. "You know, I think I'm going to go mentally prepare for my match, but I'll see you after your match, which you're going to win." She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek before turning to his family. "It was really nice meeting you both, I'll let you catch up with Lito."

When Trish had left, Eddie turned to his brother, and said in a high-pitched voice, "I'll let you catch up with Lito." Eddie chuckled and shook his head. "How in the hell, and I mean how in the hell did you get someone like her?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Carlito asked.

"Have you looked in a mirror? She is _so _out of your league it's hilarious. There's no way she's not using you."

"For what? It's not like she needs my help with anything, and I don't like the way you implied that she's using me. She isn't, she's really cool."

"So why is she with you? Decided to slum it?"

"I hate you," Carlito said, shoving him again. "Pop, why do you bring him along with you, he's annoying."

"Because someone needs to keep you in check, and man, you have just got to let me in on the secret to getting someone like her."

Speaking of secrets, it was a complete secret that Marissa was even there tonight. At least to Shane it was. Since Shane and Marissa had a penthouse in New York, Marissa and the boys had been staying there so Shane could go home and not stay with his parents. She and Shane hadn't really spoken since the incident and she still didn't know what to make of her life and her impetuous marriage. But she wasn't going to pass up seeing Stephanie and Chris since she hardly had a conversation that didn't involve speaking with someone under the age of four.

"Rissa?"

Marissa turned and groaned. Declan saw Shane and went running for him as Shane leaned down to scoop up his son in his arms. "Hi Daddy."

"Hey there D," Shane said, kissing his cheek. "Rissa, what are you doing here? Are you here to see me?"

Marissa could recognize the hopefulness in Shane's voice, but that didn't deter her, "I'm here to see Chris and Stephanie, we have a dinner date with each other. But you wouldn't know that since they've decided what I've decided and that would be you're not worth the time talking to."

"Rissa…please, I'm not asking you to forgive me or anything, but a little bit of respect wouldn't hurt."

"Why, you didn't respect me?" she countered. "I'm hardly in the mood to deal with you right now, Shane. I just came here to go out with Chris and Stephanie before the show started and that's what I intend to do. Talking to you is not part of the equation. I'll come by and get D before we leave."

Shane watched her walk away and knew they were far from being okay, if they were ever going to be okay again. It only lived up to that old adage, "You don't know what you've got 'til it's gone." And he didn't know that what he had with Marissa was good, not great, but pretty darn good, until she left. He looked down to Declan who was resting his head on Shane's shoulder and decided to forget about Marissa for the moment and focus on his son.

"Hey D."

Christian was practicing what he was going to say to Trish. He just couldn't let her go without some sort of fight. He wouldn't be himself if he didn't go down swinging. He had let a lot of time go down between him and Trish, and he couldn't just lose her in a whimper and a soft goodbye. He had to try for one last time, one last gasp. He didn't want a future that didn't involve Trish, he just couldn't picture it.

Yet, when he saw her walking down the hallway, talking to herself and psyching herself for her match that night, he found himself staring at her and nothing more. He should've gone up to her, he should've stepped up to her and told her in no uncertain terms that she was his. But he didn't. He watched her and he just couldn't. Maybe it was cowardice, or maybe it was the nerves overwhelming him, but he just couldn't bring himself to go up to her. Not right now anyways, not before he came up with a plan to sweep her off her feet.

As he stood there watching her (not in a creepy, stalking her kind of way. He happened to be in the dining area and she happened to be walking by the doors every so often, which led him to believe she was pacing.), he saw Carlito rush to her and grab her in his arms, lifting her off her feet to kiss him. Christian was burning with jealousy as he saw this. Carlito wasn't supposed to be kissing his woman. He shouldn't have his hands all over her and he used every ounce of restraint not to rush over there too and beat the snot out of Carlito.

He was far enough away where he didn't see them swapping spit, but he heard the mumbled "I love you," exchanged between the two and it made him sick. How could Trish have fallen in love with this guy so quickly? Hadn't she even thought of him in the slightest.? How could she have moved on and left him behind?

He would find out his answers soon enough.

When Stephanie and Chris came back from dinner with Marissa, they ran into Hunter just arriving at the show. Stephanie and Chris went up to him and Stephanie knew she'd have to tell him her feelings on the match. She was torn between them and she couldn't just not let him know that she wouldn't be rooting for him on Sunday. He might expect her to help them out, and she couldn't do that.

"Hey Hunter," Stephanie said as they were walking and talking. "I'm not going to help you guys out in any way on Sunday, I mean if you need people to be sent out or anything. I can't."

"Not that we were asking you to, but why?" Hunter asked.

"Probably because she's going back to her family…again," Shawn interjected and both Chris and Hunter sent him a look that told him if he didn't shut his mouth, they would take him out back and beat him up.

"I just…Shawn's partially right actually, I don't want to see my family seriously hurt. I know it sounds silly since I haven't had a problem with it before, but I'm really torn about it this week. I'd explain it to you, but it's really difficult to go into. I just don't feel like anyone can really win this match. The winning isn't important as getting out of there with all of your limbs still attached."

"I tried to tell her that everyone's going to be okay, but she's not so convinced," Chris said. "Maybe you guys can tell her that, you've both been in the match before."

"Yeah, and Undertaker kicked my ass," Shawn said.

"I kicked ass when I was in mine, for the most part," Hunter smirked. "Isn't that right, Chris?"

"Shut up," Chris muttered. "I had that match won."

"Sure you did, buddy," Hunter chuckled. "Stephanie, it'll be cool, we'll just completely decimate them and be done with it."

"I can't root for you guys," she said. "They're my family and despite everything, they're always going to be my family. You can't ignore that. I mean, what they did hurt me, and hurt Sawyer, but in the end, they're still family and I don't want them hurt so bad that they have to be in the hospital."

"Now Sawyer," Chris said as he held his son in his arms. "He's a whole different story, he wants you to throw them from the top of the cage. I tried to tell him that was really brutal, but he wouldn't listen. He's a vicious little kid."

"Stop," Stephanie, pouting at his teasing as she rubbed Sawyer's cheek. "I'm just telling you now though, so you don't expect something from me. I just wanted you to know, face-to-face what was going on."

"I get it, and I understand, surprisingly."

Also a bit of a surprise was the fact that Shane overheard this entire conversation. He had planned on cutting Chris and Stephanie off at the pass to badger them about what Marissa had said at dinner. He knew they would probably tell him to go to hell, but he just had to know. He hadn't been expecting to hear that his sister still cared enough about him not to want to see him hurt on Sunday.

If that wasn't the straw that broke the camel's back, he didn't know what was going to be. After his brief and cold confrontation with Marissa earlier, which was a dagger to the heart, and then hearing that despite everything he had said to her and done to her, Stephanie still cared enough about him to not want to see him beat up, it was a little too much for Shane. He had an introspective moment as he thought about what he was doing to his little sister and it wasn't pretty. He didn't know how to change, knowing that he was under his father's thumb right now, and he had to accept that. But he could be a little more reverent when it came to his sister.

He went to his father, who was gloating still over how he was going to kick Triple H's ass tonight and Shane went to sit next to him. "Hey Pops."

"What?" Vince asked.

"Do we hate Stephanie?" he asked, wanting to know his father's opinion on the matter.

Vince sighed, losing a lot of his façade, "No, we don't hate Stephanie."

"Yeah, I didn't think so. I don't hate her, Dad, and I know that she's unhappy with me," he told his father. "I hate that."

"I haven't even gotten to hold my grandson," Vince said with a hallow laugh. "He's four months old and I've never gotten to hold him. We screwed up with her, Shane. I know that we did, but for the life of me, I don't know how to fix it. I wish that I could, but I don't know how."

"She'll come around," Shane said weakly. "I heard her saying that she cared about what happened to us on Sunday, that's a start, right?"

"She said that?"

"Yeah, I heard her say that she was torn about Sunday and just wanted everyone to come out safe. Maybe there's hope for the both of us. She's…we really did hurt her, Dad."

"I know, maybe she'll forgive us and I can finally see my grandson."

"Yeah, but we have to show her some respect if we're going to do that, and go along with her story about Aurora. She doesn't want Sawyer to be exposed to anybody, so we have to go along with that. And we have to keep Chris out of it. Stephanie and him are intensely private, and maybe if we show her that we can keep her secret, that we're protecting Sawyer just like she is, then she'll come around. I miss my sister, Pops."

"And I miss my Princess. That's what we'll do then. We'll have to start showing her some respect again."

They did show her a modicum of respect later when Vince was speaking about how he was going to make everyone proud. He kept Sawyer's identity a secret so that he wouldn't be corrupted by the thoughts of everyone, and even managed to mention Stephanie without sounding bitter. He knew she'd have mixed feelings about the match after hearing what Shane said, but Stephanie had no idea that Shane even heard that and was a little confused when watching it.

"How did he know that?" Stephanie asked as she turned to Chris, who was bottle-feeding the increasingly sleepy Sawyer. "How could he have known that I was torn about it, that I'd have mixed feelings?"

"I don't know," Chris said. "Because you don't look happy to see them lose?"

"I don't want them to know I care. That'll just make me look weak."

"You know, sometimes that's okay."

Trish knew she was going to look weak and teary after her match. She got ready with a heavy heart. She was going out for her final crescendo in front of the Raw crowd and the meaning of this night was slowly undulating through her veins. She almost didn't want to get ready for the sheer fact that it meant things would be over soon. Trish had never done well with goodbyes, the fact that she hadn't left Christian all those times spoke to that, but tonight was totally different, and it was a goodbye she didn't want to make.

She almost turned tail and ran, just ran far away and told herself that it was never going to be over; that she'd be as old as Moolah and still coming around. But she knew that wasn't to be. She knew that the goodbye was coming and as the days ticked down to that one final day in which she'd really leave, it became harder to get through the day. She never expected it to be like this, that letting go would almost be unbearable. It was as if she was drowning and holding on for dear life to a preserver, but she was being pulled under and away, and was tossed through the waves that separated this from her real life. She almost didn't want a real life.

Her match was a blur of moves and running and hitting. She didn't savor each moment as she knew she would on Sunday, but she just let it roll over her as she took in the cheer of the crowd and the adrenaline of the moment. On Sunday, she would savor. On Sunday she would live every single moment as if it were her last, but not tonight. Tonight wasn't for saying goodbye so she didn't. And as she shook Mickie's hand after the match, a truly odd gesture considering their past, she started to get a little choked up.

She thanked the fans, because without them, she was nobody. And as they cheered her on, she left the ring. As she went backstage, a whole myriad of wrestlers and personnel were waiting for her, and they started clapping as she walked back there, and in that moment, everything had a touch of special to it. Her smile glittered as brightly as her eyes did in that moment. She looked around, amazed and subdued all at the same time.

Chris and Stephanie were clapping for her, well, Stephanie was clapping as Chris helped Sawyer to clap and she smiled at the little boy who had no clue what was going on. She loved that little kid. She loved her friends too. Emerging from the crowd came the loudest clapping of all from Carlito and he stood there proudly.

"Thank you guys, you don't have to do this, I'm getting embarrassed," she said as she let a blush roll over her cheeks. She couldn't imagine the emotional wreck she was going to be this Sunday. She would probably be a ball of tears, but not right this second. Carlito came forward and pulled her into a hug and she inhaled the scent of his cologne which he had put on after his shower. He hugged her tightly, knowing this was what she needed at the moment.

She looked over his shoulder and saw Christian leaning against the wall watching this exchange. She stared at him for a long second, his short blond hair, his guarded eyes and lanky limbs. She took him in as he took her in. He caught her brown eyes and held her gaze, a slow, wistful smile spreading across his face. He remembered many of her years here, and she acknowledge that with her own small smile.

It seemed that this was the week for saying goodbyes.


	106. Dropping Like Flies, September 18, 2006

A/N: I'm going to Indianapolis this weekend to see a football game, and then next Monday I begin school, so I'm not entirely sure they'll be a chapter on Monday, it depends on how tired I am from the plane trip and school. So if there isn't a chapter on Tuesday morning, there will be one Wednesday morning.

So enjoy this chapter, and reviews are always awesome, thanks. :)

* * *

Sawyer McMahon Jericho had never seen his father wrestle. He hadn't been around when he was in his glory days, and he hadn't seen the best of his parent's feuds. He hadn't heard the names that his father called his mother once upon a time, and he hadn't seen his father throw a pie in his mother's face, or his mother orchestrate him being gored through an entire set. He hadn't been around for his mother's first marriage, or his father's ideas of a conspiracy in WCW. He hadn't had the pleasure of their company when they were business partners, and hadn't laughed when they were put into a Triple Threat Match against the man who called him "tough guy."

But Sawyer McMahon Jericho, though he probably wouldn't remember it, and seemed barely coherent during it, had seen Trish Stratus's last match. He had seen as the crowd cheered their heads off for the hometown girl, had seen her get teary and hold the belt over her head as the crowds cheered her off into the sunset. He had seen the standing ovations and the teary eyes and he had seen his mother break down at the sight of it. Yes, he had seen that all, and someday, he would be privileged enough to say that he was there when history happened. He was there when Trish Stratus had gone out on top of the world.

He couldn't say the same for his father, and that was a good thing. He was the reason that his father had left, and he was the reason that his father was now sitting behind a desk, looking at his mother adoringly, and not getting ready for some six-man tag match or something of that nature. He would only get to see his father's glorious return, and that would suit him just fine when he was old enough to have a real thought process of his very own that didn't include being hungry or making a dirty diaper.

Sawyer had also never had the pleasure, or mostly displeasure, of meeting his grandfather. That was something that his mother had decided, and if he were to see his grandfather now, he wouldn't know the man from any other stranger that he encountered in his day-to-day life with his crazy parents. But last night, last night things had almost changed. Last night, his mother had almost given in.

Stephanie leaned back in her chair as she stared at Sawyer for a second. When she was going over things for tonight, knowing both her father and her brother were going to be absent that evening. She knew that her father had put Coach in charge (mainly because he hated her right now), but she was going to make sure that Coach didn't screw up the show as he might because he had little experience in this area.

But every time she tried to do something productive, the words would swim on the page and her mind would wander to last night. Last night had been an emotional one for the younger of Vince's children, just like it had been a brutal one for the older of Vince's children. First she had had to watch one of her best friends say goodbye, then she had had to watch her father and brother get practically killed in a scary match. She kept seeing her brother's eyes, the empty, lost look at the end of the match, and she wanted to check on the both of them, but knew they would blame her for it all.

Chris sighed as he watched his wife close her eyes, willing the tears that kept forming to keep at bay in her eyes. He reached forward to brush her hair back away from her face. She let his touch calm her down, glad in knowing that there was at least one member of her family that didn't hate her, and she guessed it was the most important member, or at least the second most important member, behind Sawyer.

"Stop thinking about it," he whispered to her, and it sounded more like a plea than an order, but she still didn't take too kindly to it.

"Stop Chris," she said, not referring to his touching her, but on the insistence that she get over last night. "You've never had to endure your family going through something like that."

"Well, I had to endure you going into an 'I Quit' match with your father and watch you get choked out. I don't know about you, but that made my gut twist like your gut twisted last night."

"But there was so much blood," she said in agony. "I've never seen my brother look like that, not ever. His face, Chris, it was all in his face. I just…it was scary, you know, I've never…he's never…it's not like he's never done anything crazy, Shane built his life in the ring around crazy, but that was just so…I don't know."

"Hey, hey, we both know that Vince and Shane are tough as nails, come on, we both know that. You have to look past that, and it'll be okay. Hunter and Shawn did what they had to do in order to stay safe themselves and not get beaten by their opponents. If I went against your father and brother, wouldn't you want that for me?"

"But I'm not married you Hunter any longer," she said. "I mean, yeah, we're friends, and I finally feel like we're at a place where we don't have to discuss the past and where I don't have to look over my shoulder wondering what his next move is going to be. But…he's still the man that dumped me, and he's still the guy that hurt me so bad I thought I'd die. Yet, I'm supposed to root for him against my family."

"They hurt you, Stephanie."

"But emotional and physical pain are two different things," she pointed out.

"No, it's not, it's not at all," Chris told her. He furrowed his brow and looked at her. "Can I tell you something candidly and not have you bite my head off for the subject matter?"

"What are you going to tell me? That would wanted to be the one to hit my brother and dad last night?"

"No, that's not it, and besides, there are plenty of times that I've wanted to hit your brother and your dad when they weren't inside a steel cage," he told her, trying to make her smile. She didn't smile, in fact, her face stayed stony.

"So go ahead with whatever you want to tell me."

"Okay, so it was like, 1996, I had just debuted in WCW, and things were going really well for me, for a time, you know. I mean, I felt good, and though I was getting physically beaten up through wrestling and stuff…well, about two months into it, my girlfriend of about a year and a half, Lauren, she dumped me, and told me that I'd never amount to anything and that she hated me, and all because I was now traveling a lot more than she would've liked, and man, up to that point, I'd never felt so emotionally beaten down, and I've been in the Dungeon, but I knew that was for my own good, but when Lauren broke up with me, it was like, I couldn't even get out of bed the next day. Emotional pain hurts."

"Lauren?" Stephanie asked, raising an eyebrow. Chris shook his head and reached out to shake Sawyer's leg.

"Yes, Lauren, I've told you about Lauren, briefly…"

"Briefly as in, she was one of my exes, but she was apparently a very serious relationship?"

"Well, she was, but it was more that she told me I'd never amount to anything…hey, maybe I should call her up, and then go out to dinner with her, and then be like, 'Oh yeah, did I mention that I'm married to the hottest chick on the planet, and I have an adorable five-month old son, and I'm filthy rich,' yeah, that would actually be pretty cool."

"Did you just suggest to me that you want to go on a date with your ex-girlfriend?" Stephanie asked.

"My ex-girlfriend from ten years ago," Chris guffawed. "Come on, do you really think that would be cheating if you knew about it and it was just to gloat? You can come with, I can show you off."

"Thanks, but no thanks…"

"Got your mind off your family," he smirked and she dropped her jaw and turned to him, slapping him on the arm. "Hey, what was that for?"

"It was for being so damn sneaky," Stephanie said as they heard a laugh from somewhere else in the room. They both looked to Sawyer, who was laughing, seemingly at them.

"See, he thinks it was hilarious," Chris said, picking Sawyer up out of his carrier and holding him over his head. "Well hello there, Mr. Laughy-pants, what are you going to do tonight? What? No, you can't seriously be thinking about laughing at footage of Grandpa Vince and Uncle Shane. But that's just so mean."

Sawyer kept laughing at his funny daddy. Chris made funny faces at the baby as Stephanie looked on. She was always the more serious of the two, but sometimes she would break out into this smile that made Sawyer smile from the sheer glow of it. He loved his mommy and reached out his arms because he wanted her, even though he couldn't tell her that. He looked at her when Chris wouldn't give him up, and his lip started to quiver and his eyes started to swell with tears.

"Oh no, here come the waterworks, the mama's boy wants his mommy," Chris mocked playfully and handed Sawyer over to Stephanie.

"God, you're mean," Stephanie said as she held Sawyer to her and felt the little boy cuddle into her. She kissed his head, causing him to smile. "Did you know that you're five-months old tomorrow you silly, little boy? Are you going to make Mommy feel better about what happened last night? Yes, you are, aren't you?"

There came a light knocking on the door and Chris called out, "Come in!"

Hunter stuck his head in the door and looked warily at the couple, "Am I still allowed in here?"

"Yeah, you're still allowed in," Stephanie said, trying to muster up a smile. "I'm not mad at you, I mean, I knew what was going to happen going into it, I'm just sorry about the repercussions."

"Stephanie, you know that we did what we had to do, right? I don't want to lose your guy's friendship over this. I really don't want to do that."

"No, you didn't. I understand that under the circumstances of the match, you had to do what you had to do. And my father and brother knew that…but you know, they're not going to be more angry with you than they are with me. They probably hate me right now."

"They hurt you first," Hunter said.

"I've been trying to get her to realize that," Chris added. "But she doesn't see it that way."

"They're my family, it's hard to just turn the other cheek and think they're going to be okay with this. I mean, in a way, I started this entire thing, so it's my fault that they got so beat up last night. It's my fault that they had to go to the hospital, and my brother looked so bad, it was horrible."

"I'm so sorry, Steph," Hunter told her.

"No, don't be sorry, you had to win that match for yourselves, and that's fine. I just…they hate me and it's all my fault."

"Stephanie, stop," Chris said, startling both her and Hunter with the firm tone of his voice. "This _isn't_ your fault, okay? Your father was the one who was making out with Candice Michelle while you were in labor with Sawyer. That's what started this. What were you supposed to do, just let that slide? You know, we've let him slide for far too long."

"Chris--"

"Just think about that for a second," Chris said as he got up, "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go get some fresh air."

Chris left the room and Hunter turned to Stephanie, "He's right you know. If it hadn't been for your father doing that to you, it wouldn't have happened. He was the one that started all of this, not you. It's Vince's fault, much like everything around here."

Stephanie shrugged and looked down at Sawyer. "It gets hard to stay mad at him sometimes. I mean, it was easier when he was mad at me and I was on the receiving end of his hatred. It's harder to be the one who's holding all this hatred for him. I don't hate my father, but I hate what he did to me. But when I saw him last night, when I saw Shane, it was just like, for a moment, I was a little girl again and I didn't want to see them hurt. It was like I was looking past all of their past wrongs and just seeing them as my family."

"They _are_ your family," Hunter pointed out. "But that doesn't meant that you aren't right. You've always been headstrong, Stephanie. You've always been stubborn, for as long as I've known you. If you weren't so stubborn, we'd probably still be married because you'd be a pushover. That makes you who you are. Don't think that last night was your fault."

"Thanks, Hunter," Stephanie said.

Chris took a deep breath as he stepped outside. It was a cool night, but he appreciated the fresh air. He wasn't mad at Stephanie or anything, but his life was getting a little too weird for his tastes. He was starting to miss wrestling a little bit. Very little, okay, more than a little bit. He missed the adrenaline flow of it. Sure, he had some of that when he performed with Fozzy, which was going to do this month, but it was a different kind of adrenaline. He missed the way the fans cheered or booed at him, the way he'd climb the ring-steps and pose for their pictures. He missed just going out there and being the best performer he could be.

He looked to his right and saw Trish in a little enclave. He was surprised to see her and walked over slowly. He saw that she had her belt on her lap and he smiled slightly, thinking back to last night and her amazing win. She had truly gone out on top, unlike him who went out on the bottom, but he hadn't officially retired. He jumped up to where she was sitting and she acknowledged his presence by glancing at him.

"You know, the first time I won this, I was amazed at how far I'd come, but now, looking at this for the final time, I think that I'm more amazed now," she said quietly.

"Yeah, it's quite the accomplishment, you did a good job," he said, looking down at the belt. "Having second thoughts."

"More like fifteenth thoughts," she responded, running her hand over the belt. "For so long, this has been my goal…not just the belt, but going out there and being the best performer I could be. When I walked out of that ring last night, it was like a little piece of me died."

"You can always come back, this doesn't have to be forever, once you really heal up, who knows, you could always come back and kick ass some more, I plan to…someday, when the moment is right. There's no place for me right now," Chris told her. "The door is always open, you know that, Stephanie would never let it close. She's still hoping that Kurt will use it one day, when he gets some actual rest."

"I don't know, maybe I can come back, a big part of me doesn't want to leave, but all of it is taking its toll, Chris."

"Look who you're talking to," Chris said. "The first few months after I stopped wrestling, I was so sore. I hid it from Steph because she'd get all concerned and everything about me, and you know, you are sore, but you get over it and then you feel better."

"You never really want it to end, do you? I mean, that's why Ric's still around, that's why Hogan comes around all the time, you never want it to end."

"I've always thought that wrestling was kind of an addiction," Chris said. "You can't ever really let it go. You choose this lifestyle and it really becomes your life. It's so consuming of you that you never really want to let it go because it's almost like you're letting yourself go in a way. Nobody wants to lose a part of themselves."

"I get that," Trish said. "It makes sense. I do feel like if I give this title back, if I say that it's really over and I walk away that I'm losing what I've been about for the past six years. This gets under your skin and you never really leave."

"Or you're like me and you really can't ever leave because you married into the owner's family," Chris joked, hoping to make her feel better. "I really am never getting out, it just shows how addicted I am. I'm so addicted to the company, I married the owner's daughter."

Trish gave a soft laugh, "But you love her, so it all cancels each other out."

"Yeah, I do love her," Chris paused, then said, "I'm still trying to figure that one out. I never thought I was going to end up with her, but you know, you can't predict the future."

"No, you can't," she answered.

"Where's Carlito?"

"Stewing over last night. He's got that hot-tempered thing going for him, he's so angry that Randy won last night. Rightfully so though. I wanted him to win," she told Chris. "Then we could've both been winners."

"Did you guys have fun last night though?"

"Oh definitely," she said, perking up. "He made reservations at this restaurant, really romantic and took me out for a farewell dinner and it was beautiful, he was really sweet."

"I saw him waiting backstage for you."

She looked up at Chris with a genuine smile that almost blew him away at how pretty it made her, "He said he wanted to be the first one to tell me that I had a helluva career."

"You love him, huh?" Chris asked idly. He hadn't been around the week that Stephanie had really gotten to know Carlito and see them as a couple, but she kept telling him that it was real, and Chris had seen that they really did care, but he wondered a little if Trish was just rebounding from Christian and the Shane debacle.

"I know a lot of people question the validity of my feelings for Carlito because of the timing," she answered. "But Chris, if I didn't feel the way I do about him, I would never tell him I loved him. Those are words I don't take lightly, not anymore, and I would never string him along for that, he's far too good a man for me to do that."

"Just making sure," Chris said. "I want what's best for you, Trish. We all do. What with you out of wrestling now, we just want you to be happy, and I wasn't sure about Carlito, I mean, you guys are…"

"Total opposites?" she finished with a question.

"In a way."

"That's what makes us great."

"And Christian?"

Trish looked off into the chilly night. Chris noticed as she narrowed her eyes a little bit. "Nobody understands what happened with Christian. Nobody _gets_ it."

"We get it," Chris supplied. "We do, we just worry about you. We saw what losing him did to you."

"Yeah, and I got over that. Christian will get over me, he will, it'll just take time. He'll find some girl that'll make him happy and he'll get over me. I can't go back to him now, Chris. I just couldn't put myself through that again. Yeah, some people say that love is pain, but at some point, you have to take your dignity first. And I didn't have my dignity."

"I was just hoping I'd be his best man at your wedding."

"Oh man, Christian and I never would've made it to the altar," she said wistfully. "Nice thought though."

"So what are you going to do with the belt?"

"I'm meeting with Vince as soon as he gets better about it. I figure that I'm going to have to give it back, I don't want to, but that's what's best," she said, running her hand over it again. "I'm really going to miss it, Chris."

Chris patted her leg. "I know, but think of this as just something new that you get to conquer. When you came into the company, which was right around the time that I was just getting into my groove, by the way, you were nothing but eye candy, like a Maria, but more like a Candice when she came in…but besides that, you've worked your ass off, enjoy this," he patted the belt, "and then enjoy your life. It's a pretty strange ride after you step out of that ring, but I'm having a pretty good time."

"You also have a wife and son, and you knew about that son when you left."

"You have a boyfriend," Chris said as he hopped off the ledge they were sitting on. He held out a hand for her and she took it and hopped down herself. "Let me at least walk you back to him."

"Thanks for being a good friend, Chris, you're always so rational."

"Have you seen who my wife is?" Chris kidded. "One of us has to be the rational one, and it's sure as hell not going to be her, so I have to pick up the slack."

"Well, either way, thanks, I mean, this situation with Christian and Carlito, it's not easy to navigate and I know that people question my feelings, and what happened, but I feel like I'm doing the right thing and I only hope that people will learn that over time."

Edge looked over at his brother, who was sitting on the couch in his locker room. "You know, you can come any time that you want, but why don't you just admit why you keep coming here."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Christian mumbled.

"Oh like hell you don't know what I'm talking about," Edge scolded him. "I'm your brother, man, maybe, _maybe_ you can pull a fast one over Chris or Kurt, but there's no way you're pulling one over me. Let's not act stupid, okay Christian?"

"You're just bitter you lost last night," Christian snapped.

"You're damn right I'm angry about last night," Edge snapped back. "Not only did I lose my gold, but Li lost hers too. And although you know, it was fitting for Trish, Lita is my girlfriend, so I'm partial towards her. Don't act like your problem is the only problem out there, Christian. Because let me assure you, it's not the only problem."

"I'm just here because I'm bored back in Florida."

"So you're saying that you'd rather be in Montreal?" he asked.

"Yeah, I mean, I got to visit Mom and Grandma Edna last night," Christian told him. "It was good."

"And this has nothing to do with a certain blonde we both know that you're still hung up on?" Edge asked knowingly.

"Shut up," he told his brother. "You don't know anything about it."

"Like hell I don't," Edge said. "Please don't think I'm stupid, because I'm not, man. You still love her and you can't get over her. It kills you that she's with Carlito. I can read you like a book, you're my brother for God's sakes."

"How could she just forget about us?" Christian asked desperately. "I mean, I thought we meant something. You saw us, you saw everything we had. We lived together, we were going to get married someday, sure, we weren't engaged, but it was a discussion! It wasn't just a fling!"

"Well, what do you want me to do about it?" Edge asked. "I can't fight your battles Christian, I'm not that brother who looks after you. If you want her, you're going to have to do that yourself."

"Just like you got Lita," he muttered.

Edge frowned, "That wasn't cool, man, that wasn't cool at all."

"Sorry," he mumbled. "I just don't know what to do, everyone says she's happy with Carlito. How can she be happy with him? I mean, did you see that picture that's up on Did you see it? It's sickening."

"I didn't see it."

"She's got her arm on his shoulder and he's got his around her waist," he said, the image burned in his brain. It should've been him to be the first one to see her after her last match. They should've been riding off into the sunset together. "And he was looking at her like…I don't know, and she was looking like she was going to kiss him and it was so sickeningly sweet. It made me want to puke."

"So why look at it?"

"What does she see in him!" Christian asked. "Seriously, what?"

"He's a nice guy," Edge said.

"_I'm _a nice guy!" Christian protested.

"You left her like a bunch of times," Edge pointed out.

"You are no help!" Christian said, slumping down into his chair, "no help at all."

Trish walked into Stephanie's office. She was sitting on the couch looking over something while Sawyer was leaning on the couch next to her, holding onto his bottle as he drank away, Stephanie glancing at him every so often to see if he was having trouble holding his bottle on his own, a newly acquired skill which helped out Stephanie and Chris a lot. Sawyer being able to drink on his own was definitely a development they appreciated.

"Trish, what can I do for you?"

"Are you running the show tonight?"

"No," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "Coach came in here to specifically tell me that he was in charge tonight, but I'm going to oversee things. I know that my father is doing this to spite me. He's so angry with me that he left me a voicemail saying that I was not in charge. So this is like my punishment. I really think that he's trying to push me out of here. I'm not letting that happen though."

"Go you," Trish cheered as she came to sit on the other side of Sawyer. She leaned down to kiss his head and he smiled around his bottle, but didn't bother to stop eating. "I figured I should give you this belt back, before I become so attached that I steal it."

"Trish, you can give it to me later. Keep it for a while, I want you to," Stephanie said.

Trish shook her head, "I just don't want it anymore, it's too hard."

"Are you sure?" Stephanie asked. "I mean, you know, you don't really have to leave if you don't want to. You can defend your title, that is if you want."

"Wow, I'm not even gone a day and already you're campaigning to bring me back, that has to be a record," Trish joked.

"Nah, I tried to get Chris back about two hours after he left. But he'll come back when he's ready, like I hope you know you can do. The door is always open," she said, taking the belt from Trish's hands, although it was reluctant on both ends.

"I know, that's the good thing about an amicable retirement, there's always room to come back. I'm guessing that door is welcome for both Chris and Kurt to use when or if the time is right?"

"I about ready to shove Chris through the door," Stephanie laughed. "He gets a little annoying when he has nothing to do. I should get him on some sort of project just so that he has something to do. Then I can get Sawyer involved in something too, maybe he can join the ring crew, then I'll have tons of time to get work done."

"Aww, you don't want to be on the work crew, do you Sawyer?" Trish asked, rubbing her finger against Sawyer's cheek. "You know, now that I'm retired, I have time for one of these."

"Are you kidding me?" Stephanie gaped at her friend. "Are you thinking about having a baby with Carlito?"

"What's so wrong about thinking?" Trish asked. "Did you ever think about children when you were with Chris just dating? I mean, you had to have at least thought about it, right?"

"Yeah, I thought about it, I guess," Stephanie conceded. "But you know, having a kid is a big thing, Trish, a really, really big thing. I know that I make it look all easy and stuff, but it's not," Stephanie told her in a self-deprecating way.

"I know it's a big thing, but you know, I can't help but think about it," Trish said. "I've got this great, big expanse of time in front of me, years and years of time and it just seems reasonable that I should have a kid before I can't have one anymore. I mean…I see you and Chris with Sawyer, and…I'm a little jealous, I'll admit."

"You're only a year older than me," Stephanie pointed out. "There's still plenty of time, but don't rush into it, it's not something you get used to immediately if you're not ready for it. And do you really think Carlito is ready for it?"

Trish laughed, "No, Lito's not ready for it, I know that. I don't know, I just…I guess I want something bigger and better than all of this and there's not much that can top it, but Sawyer is just, he stirs something inside of me. You don't know what it feels like to have a best friend with a baby. It makes you want one even though you know that you aren't ready for it."

"If I wasn't so attached to this little guy, I'd let you have him for a couple days and see how much work he is. I kind of wish that someone had done that for me, not that I would've had second thoughts about having my little boy, but it would've at least better prepared me for it. But I'm attached to him and going any time without him is not a pleasant thought."

"Hey there, Sawyer," Trish said, kissing his head again. "You're so cute."

"You can't compensate a belt for a child, Trish," Stephanie said gently. "I know you're having second thoughts, but you decided this was right for you."

"I know I did," Trish said, holding onto Sawyer's sock-covered foot. "I just never thought it would be this hard, you know? I never thought I could miss it this much after one day. What hope is there for me to last a week or a month or years, how can I possibly last years?"

"You'll manage, Chris had been gone for over a year, and he manages. He'll come back when the time is right, and you'll find what is right for you, and if it's kids in the future, then it's kids in the future. But don't rush into anything that you're not prepared for, trust me. I had to adapt and change so much when I was pregnant with Sawyer and then after he was born, it was more adjusting and I'm just now feeling like I'm getting into some kind of groove with him in my life."

"Yeah, I'll think about that," she said, standing up and taking one last glance at her title. "Take good care of that okay?"

"Always."

Trish walked out, leaving the belt behind. She just couldn't hold onto it forever, though she wanted to squeeze it tight and never let anyone have it ever. She walked down the hallway when she felt a rush of air behind her and then a body pressing into hers. She smiled against her will and took in the distinct smell of apples, which was oddly endearing.

"Hey there sore loser," Trish told him.

"Where've you been?" he asked playfully. "I shouldn't have to be searching for my girlfriend once she's retired."

"I'm not seventy."

"You live in Florida though."

"So do you," she teased.

"Oh yeah, damn," Carlito said, kissing her cheek. "Hey, where's your belt? Did you leave it somewhere?"

"I gave it back to Stephanie," Trish said, and she glanced at Carlito, who looked confused. "I just didn't want to hold onto it anymore, you know, as much as winning was incredibly awesome in every way and it was like a dream or something, keeping it just seemed to prolong, you know, the leaving part."

"I get it," he told her. He kissed her cheek again and rested his chin against her shoulder. "So are you feeling okay otherwise?"

"Just…different," she told him.

"Anything you want, you just ask, okay? Anything."

"Even if I wanted another guy?" she teased as they kept walking towards the gorilla.

"Well, I might not want that to happen," he told her. "But I'm not going to tell you what to do, that just sets up bad stuff. So, I'll just go with the flow. But if you're feeling bad tonight, just tell me."

"I would, you know I would," she told him as they finally reached their destination. "You know, it's weird knowing that I can't really go out there. It's almost like I'm not welcome anymore, like I'm standing still and everything is still going on full speed around me."

"You're weird," Carlito told her affectionately. "Think of all the free time you have. I have to go and wrestle ever week and you got nothing to do. You should be so happy about that."

"But what the hell am I going to do with myself?"

"I don't know, take up gardening. I've got some space at my house that could use some landscaping and you'd be a lot cheaper than getting a gardener."

"Not funny," she said, elbowing him in the stomach. She looked up at the screen and saw Randy in the ring. "Hey, isn't that the guy who beat you last night?"

Carlito's features darkened and he stopped talking. She was about to ask if he was okay when Carlito grabbed a microphone and started walking out, the crew people scrambling to get someone to play his music. Trish stood there as she watched her boyfriend talk to her ex-boyfriend. Randy's colors sure had changed since they had been seeing each other though. She was glad when Carlito punched him, but not so glad when he was outnumbered.

When the match became and Intercontinental match, she had been thrilled. This was the chance that Carlito had been looking for and she stood there giddily, hoping against hopes that he would walk away with the title. Then she could say her boyfriend was the Intercontinental champion and she was the Women's champion, at least for a little while. She cringed every time he got him and cheered inwardly whenever he got a good move on someone.

"Hey Trish," came a soft voice next to her. Christian had been observing her as she watched Carlito and she looked so intent and into his every move that it almost broke his resolve.

But he couldn't let his resolve be broken. He knew that he wanted Trish. He knew that he belonged with Trish, and even if it only caused more heartbreak on his end, he had to try. Someone once said that there was nothing too big to attempt. This was nothing too big, and so he had to attempt it. Sure, a part of him felt badly because it seemed she had feelings, genuine ones, for Carlito, and vice versa, but he just couldn't let her go like that.

Christian needed Trish, and he needed her in the worst way. He had loved her for so long and been with her so many times that he couldn't just give up. He had to keep trying because when he pictured the future, the only face he saw beside his was Trish's. How sad would it be to have to give up that image, to replace her with some faceless woman that he couldn't imagine loving as much as he loved Trish?

From her blonde hair, to her brown eyes, everything about her was something that Christian had memorized. From her smile in the morning to the after-sex smile, he knew the innermost secrets of her brain. He knew her likes, her dislikes, her quirks. He had them hidden away in his brain, locked for all eternity. There was a space in his heart reserved just for her and to let her go would be losing that part and he wasn't ready to give up yet.

Trish tore her eyes away from the match, angry that someone had interrupted her until she saw who it was, "Oh, hey Christian."

"I wasn't expecting to see you here tonight."

"Ditto," she said uncomfortably. "I came with Lito."

"Oh with…Carlito," Christian said, hating how she already had a nickname for her. It wasn't the same as hearing "Chrissy" fall from her lips.

"Yeah, we travel together since we don't usually get to see each other on the weekends," Trish explained. She glanced back to the match and saw Carlito stop a pin and she pumped her fist a little, mumbling under her breath, "That's it Lito."

"So, he looks good out there," Christian said, just trying to make small talk. If he could be her friend first, maybe he could ease his way into her heart again.

"Yeah, he was so angry after last night and his loss," Trish said quickly, wishing that Christian would go away. This was just creating an awkward situation for her. She didn't want to have to straddle the fence between her ex-boyfriend and her boyfriend. Christian was in the past and he needed to stay there.

"I would be too, losing to Randy like that."

"Well, Lito will get over it, especially if he gets the IC title tonight. I'd love for that to happen."

"I never really got to say that you had a great match last night," Christian told her. "You really looked spectacular out there."

"Thanks," she told him. "You know, I have a lot of things to thank you for concerning my career. Thank you for supporting me first of all, and thank you for always encouraging me to do better. And thanks for the moves you showed me and never made me look foolish for learning. And thank you for always being there when I needed you and taking care of me. You helped me make it through a lot of my time around here and for that, you deserve so much credit."

"I was just being a good boyfriend," he told her, staring at her in the eyes.

"During the good times, you were."

"Thanks," he told her in return, but saw her eyes were back on the match. She was just in time to catch Carlito trying to stop the pin again, and failing and the match being over. She cursed under her breath and then cursed aloud as the competitors trickled backstage. She went up to Carlito as he showed up, practically forgetting about Christian as she wrapped her arms around the sweaty Carlito, who hugged her back. That sent a ping of sadness to Christian's stomach where it dropped and settled. She used to do that for him.

He watched as she pulled away from Carlito and kissed him, despite just having a match. He pulled her by the waist towards him and made the kiss a little deeper. She sighed against his lips and pulled away to look him in the eyes. She smiled and kissed him again, another torturous move to Christian. But he steeled himself. He was going to try. He had fallen off the horse, but now it was time to get up and try again. This time, he would get her, hopefully, and this time, hopefully…

He would keep her.


	107. Who'd Have Thunk It? September 25, 2006

A/N: So…I was extremely lazy, and then I got sick, so this was last week's chapter, and tomorrow I'll post tonight's chapter.

Anyways, I didn't like last week's show, so I'm focusing all of this on Stephanie's birthday/Kurt's departure. That's what it's focused on and that's pretty much all you need to know. I have my own personal feelings on the subject, which I'm sure you can pick up on during this chapter. I can sum it up in one thought though, I'm worried for Kurt's health. Period, that's what I'm worried about. I don't care where he is or who he's fighting, I just worry for his health.

Sorry for the delay, but I hope you enjoy nonetheless. :)

* * *

Stephanie wanted her 30th birthday to be uneventful. No huge party, no hub-bub, no nothing. She wanted the day to pass peacefully and quietly because she wasn't too keen on turning thirty. It wasn't that she believed in the over-the-hill jokes and what not, but it was certainly a turning point. She was not in her twenties any longer. She was in her thirties now, and it was…well, it was different. Or at least it would be different when she woke up.

Chris was at her side, staring down at her sleeping form. She had said she didn't want anything special for her birthday, no party, no nothing. She just wanted to spend it like it was any other day. Unlike Stephanie, who liked to do extravagant things even when he didn't want them, he listened to her and had planned a rather peaceful day that would revolve around their family and nobody else. It was their day and Stephanie's day, that's what he had decided.

He watched her sleep for a moment, not in a creepy way, just watching her sleep for the hell of it. This was his fifth birthday with her, and although he didn't think much would compare with the first one they shared, when he had made up for her lack of a birthday the year before, but this was their first with Sawyer. It was the first birthday either one of them would have with their son, and that in and of itself made it special. They were a real family this time, if real family means you have to have a child, which it doesn't, but he felt complete somehow.

He snuck out of bed and went into Sawyer's nursery, where the little guy was still sleeping peacefully, but if Sawyer's internal alarm clock was any good, the little boy should be waking up any second. But Chris was patient enough to wait. He had told Stephanie the night before that she was allowed to sleep in to her heart's content and that everything up until she woke up would be taken care of, Sawyer included. So Chris just leaned his hands on the side of the crib and watched his son sleep.

The house was quiet at the moment, and it was a different kind of sound from usual. Usually he'd hear Stephanie, the pitch of her voice different every second, going from screechy when she was on the phone with one of her employees, to soft and gentle when she was dealing with Sawyer. Then Sawyer's voice would ring out as he laughed. Man, if anyone could love anyone more than Chris loved Sawyer, he was sure that they'd explode from it.

Sawyer snuffled a little and turned a little on his side as he opened his eyes to the morning light. Chris smiled down at his son as he stretched his arms. "It's about time you woke up, you crazy kid."

Sawyer looked up at him and gave him his first smile of the day. Chris laughed and picked up the young boy, kissing him on the cheek as he nestled him in his arms. They went downstairs where Chris put Sawyer in his high chair with a bottle while Chris went about making Stephanie breakfast in bed. He intermittently checked on Sawyer, who was just watching his daddy go about his business, making the works for his mommy.

"Do you know what today is, kid?" Chris asked his son, but knew that he wasn't going to get an answer. "Well, let me tell you…it's Mommy's birthday, and it's a big one today, so you're lucky you showed up when you did…although you might make Mommy feel a little bit older since you know, kids means that you're definitely an adult, not that you're a bad thing…but yeah, it's Mommy's birthday and she doesn't want us to do anything, but we made her birthday present last week, didn't we?"

Sawyer smiled around his bottle and Chris smiled as he started making Stephanie's breakfast in earnest. Chris went about his work, hoping that Stephanie wouldn't wake up and come downstairs and ruin her surprise. Knowing Stephanie though, they would meet on the stairs. He just then realized that he didn't know how he was going to get his son and this breakfast upstairs. He figured that he should bring Sawyer up there first, and then the breakfast since he didn't exactly think leaving his son downstairs was a good idea.

He finished up making everything and plated it before putting it on the tray that they had. When he was through with that, he picked up Sawyer and brought him up to his room, leaving him there for a second while he jogged downstairs to grab Stephanie's breakfast. He brought it into their bedroom and set it down on their nightstand before jogging back to Sawyer's room and collecting him from his crib, and _then_ Chris felt that he had a wet diaper, so he changed Sawyer in record time before rushing back to Stephanie's side. He took a deep breath and looked at Sawyer, who laughed at the exasperated look on his daddy's face.

"I'm glad you find that so funny," Chris whispered as he looked at Stephanie. "Okay, time to wake Mommy up, okay?" Sawyer didn't answer, but he smiled and Chris figured that was enough.

Chris leaned over to Stephanie, who was sleeping on her side. He kissed her on the cheek. "Hey Birthday Girl…"

"Mmm," Stephanie mumbled.

"Birthday Girl, time to get up," Chris said sweetly. Stephanie rolled on her back, her eyes still closed. Chris set Sawyer down on her stomach, but the little boy laid down on Stephanie's chest instead, happily cuddling up to his mommy as she reached out to rub his back.

"What are you doing?" she asked without opening her eyes.

"Well, your guys wanted to start this day off right for you," Chris said. "Of course, he gets a cuddle and I don't get anything."

Stephanie laughed as she opened her eyes. "He got to me first, sorry."

Chris laid down next to Stephanie, resting his chin on Stephanie. "Hey."

"Hey."

"Happy Birthday," Chris told her, smiling impishly. "I hope so far it's up to your liking."

"Well, in the two seconds that I've been up, so far so good," she said, "What is that heavenly smell?"

"Well, Stephanie, since it is your birthday, we decided you deserved breakfast-in-bed. Since you wanted nothing done on your birthday, we had to do the little thing," Chris explained. Chris sat up and grabbed the tray from the nightstand, setting it up on the bed. Stephanie sat up, holding Sawyer to her as she looked down to all the food Chris made.

"Are you going to share with me?"

"No, it's all yours," he told her.

"It's too much, share," she said, grabbing a strawberry and feeding it to Chris before kissing him. "Thank you for this…and for not making a big deal out of my 30th birthday."

"Oh, so the mega-huge party that I'm throwing for you later, that wasn't what you wanted? I thought that you would want all your friends and family here. Man, does this mean that you _didn't _want Vince to show up?"

"Not funny," she said as she took a couple of grapes and popped them into her mouth. "I would just like this day to go smoothly and without incident. And I don't really want a party, and if you throw me a party, I think that I'm going to punch you."

"Wow, someone's getting a little bit testy in their old age," Chris joked and earned a glare from Stephanie. "What, I'm in my thirties too, I'm going to be thirty-six in a couple months, it's okay to get older."

"For you maybe, but I don't think I'm going to age gracefully, and I'll lose all my attractiveness."

"You're married, you can already lose all your attractiveness, you'll still have me," Chris told her. "Not that I think you aren't still as beautiful as that first time I kissed you…wait, you looked like a slut that night, with that rat's nest hairstyle of yours, of course you look better now."

"You're such a jackass," she said as she started to dig into her breakfast, "Did you feed Sawyer?"

"He's satiated, yes," Chris said as he picked off her plate. "He wanted to help me make breakfast, but you know how it is, he doesn't have good cooking skills, I guess he takes after Mommy."

"So today is like 'Insult Stephanie' Day?"

"Well…yeah," he told her. "But do you want your presents now, or do you want them later…or, we could have one present now, or one present later…your choice, it's your day."

"Did Sawyer get me a present?"

"Of course he did, what, you think he's a cheapskate? Did you hear that, kid, Mommy thinks you're a cheapskate. I don't know about you, but I don't think Mommy knows that you can buy her whatever you want."

"I was just asking, I wasn't aware he could go out and buy me something."

"He can't, but he can make you something," Chris said, making a funny face at Sawyer. "Hold on."

Before Stephanie could say anything else, Chris was out of the room, and she could hear him rumbling down the stairs. She looked to Sawyer, giving him a little bit of egg to see if he wanted any. He ate a little bit of it, making a face as he tried it for the first time. They were trying to get him more familiar with solid foods, occasionally giving him something soft to try. Given his face most of the time, he had no idea how to take these new foods.

"So you made me something, huh?" Stephanie asked, kissing his forehead. Sawyer tilted his head back to look at her, staring up in wonder. "It's Mommy's birthday today, she's glad you're here to celebrate it with me. Last year, you were in my tummy, you were like the size of a grape, so it's nice to actually have you here and not be the size of a fruit, now the size of a little turkey, maybe."

"Ta-da!" Chris said as he walked into the room with a present wrapped in the funny pages from the newspaper. He came over and traded the baby for the gift as Stephanie pushed the remains of her breakfast away, Chris grabbing a piece of toast before she did.

She ripped off the paper, smiling the entire time, and looked at her gift, "Aww, thank you baby boy!" Stephanie looked at the round disc that had her son's handprints and footprints embedded in it with the word's "Mama's Boy" written on the top and the date written on the bottom. "Oh, this is adorable, this is going to go in my office right under my Women's Title belt."

"Did you hear that, kid? Mommy's going to put you in a very coveted spot, I don't think that I have anything on her wall."

"You don't, but you're not that special," she told him with a smile. He rolled his eyes and she looked down to her gift again. She smiled at it. It was things like this that she had learned to love, things like this that would mean more to her when she was older. "Thank you, Sawyer, this was very thoughtful. I love it."

She leaned over to give Sawyer a kiss on the cheek and Chris smiled at the exchange. "You'll get my present later, I thought that you'd like his as the opening act and mine would be the main event since you know, it's me and everything. I'm just way too good to be the opening act."

"I like the opening act," Stephanie said, setting her gift down and holding Sawyer over her head. "I love you baby boy, thank you for my present."

Sawyer laughed and gurgled at her and she was happy to be sharing her birthday with just these two people. As much as she loved her friends, Trish, Kurt, Christian, and the rest, she wanted today to just be with her husband and her little boy. She couldn't envision a better birthday than that. Thirty years worth of birthdays, and this was probably the one she was going to remember.

She didn't know how true that was going to be.

Later that day, she, Chris, and Sawyer were in the pool. Chris had Sawyer in his arms as he swung him around in the water. Sawyer splashed his hands on top of the water happily as Stephanie swam around him and kept popping out right in front of him, scaring him and delighting him in the same instance. Chris laughed at the look on his face, it was like amazed one moment and then he would start laughing.

"I can't believe this is how you wanted to spend your thirtieth birthday," Chris said, shaking his head.

"You didn't want to do anything for your thirty-fifth," she told him. "So I didn't want to do anything for my thirtieth."

"I could've thrown you a huge party," Chris reasoned. "It could've been in a nice hotel, or a restaurant, you could've had a pile of presents from everyone. You could've bought a new dress…not that I'm protesting the bikini you're wearing right now or anything."

"I still haven't completely lost the baby weight," she said self-consciously as she looked down. "I'm not looking that great."

"I think you look great, and whatever, so you have baby weight, it's not the end of the world, you're married, you can let yourself go now…not too much though, okay, because I still want to tell people that I have a hot wife, and well, you kind of need to be hot to do that, but I think you're hot right now," he said to her and Sawyer laughed. "See, he thinks it's funny the way I'm floundering like a drowning man."

"You're too nice," she said as she started to float on her back and stare up at the clouds that were passing by slowly. "I don't feel thirty."

"Well, I don't feel thirty-five, but that doesn't mean anything."

"Should I feel like I'm old?" Stephanie asked. "I'm not in my twenties anymore, I'm truly and officially in my thirties, I'm an adult, a wife, a mother, a powerful person in the wrestling business. Should I feel like I'm old?"

"No, because you're _not _old."

"So you say? But I bet you that tomorrow I'm going to find my first wrinkle."

"First?" Chris scoffed.

"You're an asshole!"

"Yeah, but you love me anyways."

"Sometimes I question my sanity. I mean--" The phone rang and Stephanie figured it was somebody with another birthday wish. Her mother had already called that morning and Trish and Carlito had called a little while ago too, signing her happy birthday. Christian had called her cell phone to wish her a happy birthday and she figured this was going to be along those lines too. "Should I get that?"

"If you want," he said. "You're the Birthday Girl."

She rolled her eyes and got out of the pool. She grabbed a towel and caught Chris staring at her bending over. She dropped her towel and turned towards him briefly and pulled down her bikini top, flashing him with a wink before pulling it back up and grabbing her towel again. She left Chris with his jaw dropped standing in the middle of the pool. She walked inside and snatched up the ringing phone.

"Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, the thirty-year-old here," she said with a laugh.

"Stephanie?"

She recognized the voice immediately, "Shane…"

"Hey baby girl," Shane said quietly. "Happy Birthday."

"Thanks," she said softly. "Thank you…"

"I'm not only calling for your birthday though," Shane told her. "Are you sitting down, baby girl?"

"No, why?" she asked.

"Stephy, I think you better sit down," Shane told her.

"Shane, is this about Mom and Dad?" Stephanie asked worriedly, wondering if something had happened to her parents. If something had happened, she needed to know.

"No, it's not about Mom and Dad, but it's not going…you're not going to like it, and I just want you to be sitting down, okay? Please, I know that you hate me, but please, just do this one thing for me."

"Okay," she said, hopping onto the bar stool next to her. "I'm sitting down, now what is it?"

"I just found out that Kurt signed with TNA," Shane said. "That was their big announcement, he signed with them, he's joining them soon."

Stephanie dropped the phone in shock. It wasn't so much that he had signed with TNA, Christian had signed with TNA and it didn't bother her. Okay, so it bothered her a little that Kurt had signed with a rival, a minor rival, but a rival nonetheless. But what really hurt was the fact that Kurt had lied to her. He had said he was going to be taking time off to heal, and she had been supportive of him, and he had lied to her. She felt betrayed right that moment. And if she could hear anything or feel anything other than the numbness that was creeping up her leg right now, she would hear her brother screaming for her.

The sliding door slid open and Chris walked inside, holding Sawyer who was wrapped snugly in a large, white, fluffy towel. Chris looked at Stephanie, who was staring off into space with tears in her eyes. Chris looked alarmed before he heard sounds coming from her feet. He saw the phone at her feet and went to pick it up, maneuvering himself so he wouldn't drop Sawyer.

"Hello?"

"Chris?"

"Yeah, who is this?"

"It's Shane."

"Did you say something to upset Stephanie?" Chris accused. That was the easiest explanation to Stephanie's current state. She looked beyond upset right now and he didn't think that she had even registered that he was in the room with her right now. "Because I swear if you did…"

"Kurt signed with TNA, Chris. Today, it happened today."

"He…what? I didn't hear about this. I talked to him like two days ago and he never mentioned anything," Chris said, confused by this information. "Are you sure that you got your facts straight? I mean, maybe you're mistaken or something."

"No, I'm not, I'm really not, I got absolute confirmation by it when I called his agent. He signed with them, or is signing with them. They're announcing it today, man, it's just…I don't know, I told Stephanie and then she wasn't answering."

"I have to take care of her right now," Chris said. "We'll talk later."

"Okay, I'm sorry to have to tell her this on her birthday, I didn't want to make the day bad for her, I just…I think she needed to know and finding out through the gossip mill tomorrow probably wouldn't have been a good way to find out, and I'm not sure Kurt would've told her himself if you guys didn't already know about it, apparently it was in the works for a couple of weeks now."

"It's okay Shane, you were looking out for her," he said dumbly. "Bye."

Chris hung up the phone and went to set Sawyer down in his high chair, giving him a few toys to occupy himself with as he went over to Stephanie. He snapped his fingers in front of her face, and she looked startled to see him right in front of her. She looked up at him, her eyes blank and emotionless. He stepped forward to hug her, but she didn't hug him back. He kissed her temple and just held her, but she was still unresponsive.

"You okay, baby?"

"He lied to me."

"What?"

"He lied to me," she repeated, her voice getting a little louder with each word. "He told me that he was going to heal up, he told me he was going to take this time to really get some rest, he told me that he needed time off to rest!"

"I know."

"He lied, he lied and told me that he was going to use this time to get healthy, and I believed him. Why would he lie to me?"

"I don't know, baby, I don't know…to protect you maybe," he said, taking a shot in the dark, as long as her trembling would stop. She was shaking in his arms and he didn't know if it was from anger, sadness, being cold, he didn't know. But he just held her and tried to get her to stop this shaking.

"Protect me? Protect me from what? Signing with another company? I'm a big girl, I'm not going to stop being friends with someone just because they don't work for me. You don't work for me and I still love you!"

"I kind of work for you," Chris said, and now was not the moment he needed to say that. "Sorry, that was…well, I don't know, maybe he just…"

"There's no 'maybe he just' here, Chris. There's none of that. He lied to me," she said, pushing Chris away from her body. She didn't want to be touched right now, she wanted answers. She got off the stool and started wandering her way out of the room.

"Stephanie, where are you going?" Chris asked after her.

"I'm…I'm going to see Kurt," she said, going upstairs and leaving Chris behind in her wake. Chris went to scoop up Sawyer and followed Stephanie upstairs where she was taking off her bikini and changing into some real clothes. And while Chris would normally admire her body, he was more worried about her than anything else.

"Do you think this is such a good idea, Steph?" Chris wondered as she grabbed the clothes nearest to her. "I mean, with the state you're in."

"I'm fine," she said calmly, and that's what unnerved Chris. She was so angry she was calm and for Stephanie to actually be calm and angry, that was probably the scariest state you could see her in. When Stephanie usually got angry, she would yell and scream and threaten to rip your head off. But when she got so angry that she was calm, you knew that things were not going to go well.

"You're not fine, why don't you give yourself some time to cool off before you go talk to him…I'm just worried that you're going to say something you regret. This is Kurt we're talking about Stephanie. This guy has been your best friend for almost six years, and he's been my best friend for almost that long. We can't just run around and make accusations of him. He's our best friend, he was the best man at our wedding."

"He lied!" Stephanie shouted, scaring Sawyer into crying, but she was too angry now to stop herself. Her breath was coming out in pants as she clenched her fists and started throwing clothes around. He lied to her and she couldn't believe her best friend would lie to her face.

"Okay, I know that," Chris said, trying to simultaneously calm down his wife and his son. But Sawyer was taking all his attention and as Stephanie pulled some clothes on, he couldn't stop her as he brushed by her. Sawyer was crying in his ear as he rubbed his back as Stephanie went out the door. "Steph, come on, wait!" he tried to scream while she didn't heed his cries.

Chris sighed and sat down heavily on the bed.

How Stephanie got to Kurt's house, she would never figure out. It was one of those times where you know the way to where you're going so well you blank out how you actually got there because it is so ingrained in your mind, you don't need to think about it. Before she could really think, she was at his door, ringing his doorbell, hoping that he was there, praying that was there. And if he wasn't, she would sit on the step in front of his house until he came home, even if it took days.

But it didn't take days, just a few minutes. Kurt opened the door with a wide grin, "Hey, if it isn't my favorite birthday girl, how's it going? Don't tell me you came all the way here for your present?"

She was disgusted with him right now. He was lying to her face right this very second. How could he lie to her face when the word was probably spreading that he was signing with another company? He was standing right there and trying to act jovial, and she wanted to slap him. No, she didn't just want to slap him, she wanted to pummel him and slam his head in the door about a dozen times.

"How can you act like that right in front of me?" Stephanie asked through gritted teeth.

"What?" Kurt asked.

"You…you disgust me," Stephanie told him, her face turning a peculiar shade of red.

"I…what?" Kurt said.

"You absolutely disgust me!" Stephanie said, her voice turning to a yell as she stared Kurt down. "I don't even know you."

"Know me? I don't understand, of course you know me, Steph, we're best friends, remember?" Kurt told her, "Come on, come inside and tell me what the hell is bothering you."

Kurt let her inside and the house was quiet, so obviously Trish wasn't here, not that he expected her to be really, she figured that she was in Miami with Carlito this weekend. She stood in the middle of his living room, and she just stared at picture hanging on the wall of her, Chris, Kurt, Trish, Carlito, and Sawyer from a couple weeks ago. It was a farce, it was all a farce.

"So what's wrong, Steph?"

"YOU!" she shouted, turning towards him, just a raging ball of anger right now. "You're what's wrong with me!"

"I am!"

"Why are you lying?" Stephanie pleaded. "Why are you lying to my face right now? I know Kurt, I know about it all, did you really think that you could keep it from me!"

"What?"

"Signing with TNA!"

Kurt froze and had the decency to pale. Stephanie searched his face to see if he even had any remorse for lying to her, not just now, but before. She searched for anything to say that this was all a stupid rumor and he wasn't going to do this. But there was none and that made her both angry and upset as a choked sob escaped her mouth as she sunk into the couch. Kurt stood there, not knowing what to do in this particular moment.

"Steph…"

"Shut up! Why? Why? How can you do this?"

"I just think that they have better opportunities for me there and--"

"Not that Kurt!" she yelled, looking up at him. "You said you were going to rest. You haven't rested, this is _not_ rested! Kurt, don't you see, don't you see that you need this chance to rest, why would you sign with another company when you _need _rest!"

"Stephanie, you don't understand, I have so much to offer, and I'm going to TNA to prove that, to look at new challenges, it'll be okay, we're still best friends, it doesn't matter where we work," he told her, kneeling in front of her, grabbing her hands. "You're my girl."

"No, you wouldn't do this to any girl of yours," she said, rubbing her forehead as her face winced like she was in pain. "You just don't, you don't lie. I don't lie to you, Kurt, I don't lie to you."

"This is going to be good for me, can you see that?"

"This is _not_ going to be good for you! Kurt, you're hurt, you're so hurt," she told him, starting to cry now. "You needed the rest, you needed to take time off, you told me yourself, were you thinking about joining TNA when you told me why you were leaving? Did you just lie this entire time?"

"No, I was going to rest, but I'm fine," he shrugged it off, and that made Stephanie even more angry. For the longest time, she had ignored it, but she couldn't ignore it right now. She had lied to herself for a long time, but it was time to step up. She cared about Kurt far too much to just let this go.

She shook her head and looked down. "You're a damn liar, Kurt Angle."

"What?"

"You think I don't see it," she said, gathering her bearings. "You think we don't all see it, Kurt. You're hurting…you're hurting right now, aren't you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about, I'm fine," he told you.

"You're lying right now," Stephanie said. "You're lying to me right now!"

"I'm not lying!"

"Stop it, Kurt! What? You think I'm stupid that I don't see what's right in front of my face? I held it in for so long, I held it in, and I didn't tell anyone, well, Chris, but that's beside the point, I've seen it and I've ignored it because I thought you knew what you were doing, but I can't ignore it anymore!"

"What are you talking about?" Kurt asked her. "You're not making any sense right now. I'm sorry if you think that this is to spite you, but I really am doing okay, and I'm ready to wrestle. I thought I needed time off, but I didn't…"

"Bullshit," she said angrily, standing up and going into the kitchen.

"Where are you going?"

Stephanie went straight to one of the cabinets and pulled it open, going into the back of it to pull out a couple bottles of painkillers. Kurt stood there motionless as Stephanie turned to him with the bottles in her hands. "Trish and I found these when we were looking for some small plates for Sawyer. Look at the label, Kurt Angle…painkillers, if you're so healthy, why are you hiding these?"

"Give those back, Stephanie," Kurt told her.

"Why? So you can pop some more in your mouth and claim to be okay," she said, opening the bottle and dumping some in her hands. "_This_ is why you feel okay, because you can't even feel anything! How many do you take a day, huh Kurt? Are there more in your room, your car, your bathroom? How many are there!" Stephanie took the pills in her hands and threw them at him. "This is why you needed time off, you needed to stop using these damn pills, you don't think I haven't seen what these do to wrestlers. You're dependent on them, Kurt, don't tell me otherwise."

"You don't even know, Stephanie," Kurt said, bending over to pick up the pills that she threw at him. "You haven't wrestled!"

"No, I haven't, but I've been around wrestlers all my life, and I know what happens after you stop. All it takes is one bad bump, Kurt! One bad bump and you could be paralyzed or worse, and how are you going to feel if that happens, huh! HUH! You are killing yourself and you won't even taken one goddamn day off, you need these!" She took the pills again and threw them all at him. "You need these to get through the day! This is not a life, Kurt, this is not how you want to handle things, you said you were going to take time off!"

"I need to wrestle, damn it," he said, standing up and looking at her. "You don't understand, I need to be the best, I'm Kurt Angle, I won an Olympic gold, I'm the best, I'm the best that there is out there, and I need to prove that."

"At what? At the expense of your health? So you become so dependent on painkillers that you end up hurting yourself. This is a matter of your life, Kurt, why can't you see that? Everything that happens regarding wrestler's health eventually goes through me. I'm part owner, I have the responsibility to look out for my wrestlers, I have that responsibility. I know what's going on with you, I know what's going on with everyone's bodies, I get the medical reports from doctors, I see what's going on. I know that you have neck problems and back problems and leg problems, but…I've been blinded because you've been my best friend for the past six years almost. I tried to ignore it and I did for a long time, but Kurt, you cannot keep doing this to yourself, you're only going to hurt yourself."

"I can take care of myself, Stephanie, I never asked for your opinion," he said angrily as he slammed the pill bottle he had picked up on the counter next to him. "I don't need you preaching to me. You know, it's probably a good thing that I got out of WWE while I did. I was being held back, I wasn't being used to my full potential."

"Oh, that's a load of crap and you know it," Stephanie told him. "I don't even…you just…if you don't admit that what you're doing is dangerous, I can't help you. If you want to take all these pills, go right ahead. You obviously don't seem to care that others care about your well-being. I hope you don't hurt yourself, Kurt, I really hope you don't."

"Don't worry about me."

"Tell me how to stop and then I wont," Stephanie told him plainly before she walked straight out of his kitchen, out of his house, and to her car. She made the short trip back home, thinking about how she had lost her best friend. She couldn't believe how her birthday had turned out. She was so worried for Kurt. She had known about the painkillers for a while, but she had chosen to keep it to herself because that was Kurt's own person business. But when he was putting life and limb at risk, she had to step up.

She didn't cry on the way home, and she didn't cry as she walked up her walkway, but the second she was through the door, it was like the magnitude of everything had come crashing down on her. She had lost her best friend because she was worried about him. The stupidity of it all was just so overwhelming and she slid down the door as she ran her hands through her hair. Her lip trembled as she sat there, the tears finally coming, fast and furious down her face. She was shaking again, thinking out the worst case scenarios that could happen to Kurt. It all boiled down to one thought.

All it would take was one bad bump.

She knew that sometimes in someone's career, that bad bump came and they couldn't do what they loved anymore, but even more than that, they put their lives at risk, and that's what Kurt was doing. She knew he loved what he did, but to forgo his own health to pursue this, it just didn't make sense to her, but in the last couple of hours, nothing made sense to her anymore. She covered her face with her hands and sobbed to herself.

She felt Chris hug her from the side, and she let herself be comforted by him. He kissed her head over and over and he was mumbling something against her head, but she couldn't make out what. Chris was equally angry about Kurt putting himself on the line like this, but Kurt had told Stephanie straight out that his reason for leaving was because he was going to heal up, and then he turned around and lied to her. He just held her until she was all cried out.

"Feel better?" he asked.

"Worse," she admitted.

"Why don't we just go upstairs and spend the rest of the day in bed, and then we can order in some pizza or something equally fattening and just pig out? It's your birthday and despite what happened here, I think that we can still celebrate it."

"Whatever," she said. "I'm just…I'm so worried about him…that's all, I don't care who he wrestles for, I mean, he's my…he was my best friend, and if he was happy, I was happy because that's what best friends do, but he's putting himself at risk and I'm so scared for him."

"I know you are, that makes you just about the best friend he could ever have," Chris told her. "But he's a grown man, and he thinks that he knows what's best for him. Maybe we can help him see that he needs to take time off and heal up."

"It's his neck and his back, Chris, they're hurting him, I know it, and he can't live from day-to-day on painkillers alone, he just can't."

"Shh," Chris said, kissing her head again. "Come on, there's a bed upstairs with your name on it, and we can get the kid in there and we can watch some movies and just spend the rest of the day together, we can think about this Kurt thing later, and we will, but as for now, it's your birthday, and I want to make it special."

"Okay," she said, not feeling like doing anything anyways. The fight was drained out of her and she just needed to lie down for a good couple of days, maybe a week, maybe she'd take tomorrow off so she wouldn't have to deal with anything. They had a competent staff, they could handle it for one night. She heard the phone ring again, but she didn't get up, knowing that Chris would answer it.

"Stephanie, the phone for you," Chris yelled from the kitchen.

She got up slowly and went to grab the phone from Chris, "Hello?"

"Hey Stephy, it's Shane again, how are you doing?"

"I'm just worried," she sighed. "I'm worried for his health, I know that's the reason he said that he was leaving, and…whatever, I don't want to think about it right now. Thank you for calling me, Shane. I'm glad to know that we can at least have a civil conversation once in a while."

"Yeah, oh, you know, maybe we can--" The doorbell rang and Stephanie looked up.

"Hold on Shane, there's someone at the door." Stephanie walked up to the door and opened it, expecting to find Kurt on the other side, ready for round two, but instead, she saw her brother. Her arm dropped to her side as she stared open-mouthed at him. "What…what…"

"I know you probably lost a best friend, but I was hoping you could gain a brother…"

Stephanie started crying again as she reached forward to hug her brother. She sobbed into his shoulder as he held her tightly. This was his little sister, and Shane knew that he shouldn't be anywhere else for her birthday, especially not with the bombshell dropped on all of them. He knew it was going to hurt her the most because she worried the most about Kurt. Through all the good times and bad times in Stephanie's life since around 2000, Kurt had been there, and now, when she was trying to be there for him, he turned his back on her.

"I missed you," she said, her voice muffled in his shoulder.

"I'm so sorry, Steph, I'm so sorry for not watching Sawyer, I love that kid, you know I do. I'm so sorry," he kept repeating.

"I know, I know you are," she said, clinging to him. "I'm sorry too."

"No, don't be," he said, pulling away from her. "I just want my little sister back."

"Hey Shane," Chris said, coming up behind him.

"Hey Chris, I just…I came to see my sister on her thirtieth birthday," he said.

"Why don't you come inside?" Chris asked. Stephanie nodded eagerly. "I think we have a lot of catching up to do."

Stephanie put up a brave front for her brother and husband, but inside, she was still torn up. It was never a question of where Kurt had gone, but why. She cared about him, and she knew that he was seriously banged up. He constantly went for the quick fix. Unlike guys like Benoit, Edge, or even Hunter, who took time off to properly heal from their injuries, Kurt didn't take too much time off before he'd get in the ring, and wrestle with injuries. He had tried experimental procedures, he had gone out there hurt, and when he had said he needed the rest, she believed him, because she had been there through it all for him.

But now he had jumped back into the fray, and without the proper rest that he needed, and it scared her. It scared her so much that she was going to take days to process it. She worried about her best friend and what he was doing to his body. Sure, he could still go, but she had to wonder if his matches would suffer from the pain he was constantly feeling. She had to wonder how far he could push himself before he went over the edge and went that one step too far. She was sure that the company could use him, and she wasn't going to begrudge them for trying to sign him. Unlike her father, Stephanie knew that competition wasn't necessarily a bad thing. What was a bad thing was the mental and physical state of Kurt, and she wasn't sure that anyone knew how to foster that at this point.

Maybe Stephanie had made a mistake of letting it get this far without her saying something. Kurt had always been her goofy, funny best friend who was there to be a shoulder to cry on. Maybe she should've been his shoulder to cry on. Maybe she should've pushed and prodded more to get him to confess everything so she could help him. But then again, some people didn't like to be pushed. It was all a moot point now anyways. You couldn't play "coulda, shoulda, woulda" with someone's life, and she couldn't change what had happened. But maybe if she had tried harder. But then, maybe that would've pushed him over the edge into the abyss that he wouldn't get out of. Perhaps, though, he'd be great and he'd be fine and he'd get off the painkillers and be the Kurt she knew he could be again. Yet one thought lingered in her mind until she could think no longer…

All it took was one bad bump…


	108. How Not Surprising, October 9, 2006

A/N: Just skipping last week's chapter, this is up-to-date.

* * *

"Are you sure that you wanted to come back?"

"What are you talking about?" Stephanie asked as she pushed Sawyer's stroller into the arena. Chris followed after her, carrying their things. He watched as she pushed the stroller forcefully down the hallway as he fell into step behind her. She had been in this funk for the past two weeks and he knew that it was going to take a while for her to get out of it. But he wasn't going to push her.

"I'm just saying that we could've taken more time off if you wanted, we didn't have to rush back. I mean, Coach…kind of has things under control, to an extent, sort of," Chris said, knowing that he really had no argument where Coach was concerned. He was mediocre at best.

"I took two weeks off!" Stephanie said, stopping in the hallway and turning towards her husband. "Do you know how insanely long that is?"

"It was two shows," Chris pointed out.

"Two shows where everything could've gone to hell," she muttered to herself. "We're already here, what do you want to do? You want to fly all the way back to Tampa, is that what you want to do?"

"No, that's not what I want to do, Stephanie," Chris said with a sigh. "At some point though, I would like my wife back, if that's at all okay with you."

Stephanie frowned as she folded her arms over her chest. "What do you mean by that?"

"I don't mean anything by that," Chris said, tiredly. He was getting just a little tired by Stephanie's attitude. The thing about Stephanie that really got to him was that sometimes she was selfish and only seemed to think of herself when it pertained to a situation that affected different people around her.

"Sure you did," she said, still standing there and staring at him. "You definitely meant something by that."

"I'm not in the mood to fight in the hallway, Stephanie," Chris said, pushing past her to start pushing Sawyer to Stephanie's office. Stephanie stood there for a moment, seemingly frozen to her spot before she got her bearings back and followed after Chris.

"No, you meant something by that back there," she said, struggling to keep up with her husband. "Chris, what did you mean by that?"

"Stephanie, I don't want to talk about it right now, okay? Is that okay with you that for once, I don't want to talk about things in front of people, is that okay? Can we please just keep our personal business personal for one night?"

Stephanie was stunned by what he was saying and she fell out of step with him again. She knew that she had probably been a less-than-ideal wife the past couple of weeks, but she thought that Chris understood. Chris always understood her moods, and though sometimes he would object to her feelings, he would understand. But now he was basically snapping at her and telling her that she needed to shape up or ship out, or some other appropriate cliché. Chris had just reached her office and pushed the door open to get Sawyer inside before leaving Stephanie out in the hallway.

"Thanks for leaving the door open for me," Stephanie muttered to herself as she pushed her way inside. Chris was already setting up the portable playpen in the corner so that Sawyer could have his freedom and not be stuck in his stroller.

"What?" Chris asked as he snapped the legs into place.

"I said thanks for leaving the door open for me," she snitted.

"I wasn't aware that your arms didn't work," Chris said snidely back at her, his eyes narrowing as she gave him a look. Chris rolled his eyes as he went back to his task at hand. He wasn't going to let Stephanie get to him, he wasn't going to let Stephanie get to him.

"Chris, can't we talk?" she asked nicely.

"I thought you had work to do," he told her, and he wasn't trying to be mean, that's just what he thought she was here for.

"I do have work to do, I've been gone for two weeks, there's things that I need to catch up on, but obviously something is wrong between us and I have a feeling that whatever it is, it's something that has to do with your feelings towards me and I'd be happy if you told me what that was and didn't beat around the bush with it."

"I'm not beating around the bush with anything," Chris said as he knelt next to Sawyer's stroller, kissing the little boy on the forehead as he un-strapped him from his stroller. Sawyer reached his arms towards Chris and Chris lifted him up, letting him rest against him as he lowered him into his playpen with the bevy of toys they had brought. "Stephanie, I don't want to do this here, you're happy to be back, and that's it, that's fine with me."

Stephanie walked over to Chris and grabbed both of his hands as she held them in front of her, gently squeezing them. "Chris, talk to me, I can't stand to think that I've ruined another relationship in my life. I'm starting to think I'm a jinx and that everyone would just be way better off without me."

"Don't think that," Chris said, rolling his eyes as he let go of Stephanie's hands to pull her closer to him. She took the bait and wrapped her arms around his waist, happy to rest her cheek against his shoulder as she held him. Sometimes she wished she was shorter or that Chris were taller so she could rest her head against his chest, but since they were on a few inches apart in height, she had to settle for his shoulder. "You're not a jinx."

"Everyone seems to be leaving."

"I'm not going anywhere," Chris pointed out. "Sawyer's not going anywhere, and you came with me to California for the celebrity finale, so you weren't left behind then. I'm not going to go anywhere where you won't be, I learned my lesson."

"I suppose you did," she whispered. "Still…"

"I know baby, I know," he said, reaching up to run his hand over her brown hair. He repeated the move a few times before planting a kiss to the crown of her head. "I'm sorry that I was acting like a jerk before."

"I deserved it," Stephanie said. "I was acting terribly towards you."

"I just wish that you wouldn't think of yourself in this. Kurt was my best friend too, and you know I'm just as worried about him as you are."

"I just…I want him to see what he's doing with himself, and there's just no way that he's going to come out of everything unscathed. I can feel it Chris, here," she said, patting her gut. "Haven't you ever had that feeling, where you know something is going to happen or has happened because it's sticking in your gut?"

"Of course, that's why they call things gut feelings, Steph," Chris told her.

"I just have this really bad feeling that Kurt is going to get hurt, or worse, and that scares me," she said, her eyes watering. "And I'm sorry that I didn't think about how this affects you as well. I should think about these things. He _was_ your best friend too, and the best man at our wedding, I should realize that and not just make a fool out of myself and think that this is all about me."

"I appreciate that you know what I'm feeling," Chris said, kissing her forehead this time. "I wish I could tell you how to feel with regards to the Kurt situation, I really wish I did, baby. But you just have to trust Kurt, trust that he'll eventually see the light."

"That's the thing though, I just don't think that he will," Stephanie said with a sigh as she pulled away and went to go check on Sawyer, who had a rattle in his hand that he was shaking incessantly as he watched the colorful beads inside the glass globe shake around with his movement. "I don't think he realizes how he's damaging himself. If you got injured, like really injured, you'd take time off right?"

"Yeah, I would," Chris said without hesitation, "I mean, I kind of like being healthy."

"See!" she said emphatically, waving her arms around as if he was going to see some invisible point she was trying to make. "You took time off to heal up!"

"I haven't really been injured baby…"

"But I mean, you know, the general wear and tear, and now a year later, you're feeling rejuvenated, you know, fresh legs and fresher head. You could go out there and kick ass, right?"

"Well, actually, I took the time off because you were pregnant and you wanted a normal pregnancy and then I discovered that there was life besides wrestling since you came back to wrestling and kind of forget about the whole normal pregnancy thing and traveled until like two weeks before Sawyer was born and--"

"Okay, okay, I get it," Stephanie said under her breath. "What I'm saying is that you've taken this time off to get better, you know, not ache so much…and I know that you ached a lot when you first took your extended leave of absence."

"Well, sleeping next to me, I figured you'd notice that I'd wake up as stiff as a zombie," he pointed out.

"You don't take things for granted, and I'm afraid that Kurt…I'm just afraid," she confessed, feeling embarrassed as those ever-present tears started to well in her eyes. It kept happening that way. Whenever she thought about Kurt, her eyes would start to tear up. She missed her best friend dearly, but she couldn't sit back and watch as he potentially ruined his future. She wanted to help him, desperately, but she was at a loss for what to do. Kurt Angle was not the kind of guy that you were just able to make do something he didn't feel he needed to do.

The past two weeks, she had just moped around, not to the point where she couldn't function, but it was moping just the same. Each day became a lesson in monotony, she'd get up, take care of Sawyer, and get a little work done. Then Chris would hold her at night and tell her that everything was going to work out okay and she would believe him every night because he loved her and he would never lie to her. Then she'd wake up in the morning and do the exact same thing.

Coming back tonight was breaking the mold. She was tired of sulking after a man that didn't care about her enough to tell her ahead of time what he was planning. She couldn't say for sure whether or not she would've been hurt that he was signing with the enemy, but she sure would've tried to get him to take some real time off. A month or two was not what he needed, it wasn't what would be good for him in the long run, and she knew this and couldn't understand why Kurt, who was the owner of the body, couldn't' see this. His drive to be the best, to be everything and have ever spotlight on him, it consumed him to the point where even Stephanie couldn't get in.

Chris saw his wife breaking apart slowly and went to kneel on the ground next to her, next to their son's playpen. She turned away from him, focusing her eyes solely on her baby as Chris wrapped his arms around her. Stephanie was strong, but she had always had Kurt to fall back on. Kurt was the foundation for her, her rock of sorts. Not more so than Chris or anything, but Kurt had been there since forever. He had been there when she had hit her lowest points, and he had stuck around, and now…now because he didn't get what he wanted, he took his ball and went home.

"Even Hunter took a ton of time off and he's more serious about wrestling than Kurt is," Stephanie whispered.

"Be patient, good things happen in the end," Chris told her, but he wasn't sure that he believed that himself.

"He was going to be Sawyer's godfather," Stephanie said quietly. "He was so excited to be Sawyer's godfather, he's his Uncle Kurt, and now he's gone. Who am I going to lean when things are falling apart?"

"I like to think that I'm a good substitute," Chris joked.

"Yeah, but you're…it's different, because what if we fight, who do I go to?"

"Trish?"

"No…she's a girl, I don't know, I need a man."

"Um…Christian?"

"Actually…yeah, he might work," Stephanie nodded. "I just wish I knew what really happened with Kurt, but the only person who really knows what happened is…well, Kurt knows…but the other person is…it's my dad."

"Yeah, it is your dad, but are you actually ready to see your dad?"

"I don't know, it's like a no-win situation for me," Stephanie said as she sat back on her haunches. "I'm still angry at him for what he did, but somehow, it seems less severe than what Kurt did to me. What Kurt did, it felt like it was stabbing me right in the heart. He lied to my face, at least my father came out and said what he had done and made no apologies for it. I wasn't asking for much from Kurt, just the truth. Honestly, I'm just concerned about his health."

"I think that's what your dad is worried about too if hearing that interview he did was any indication," Chris said.

"Yeah, that surprised me," Stephanie said. "I just…I want to know if my dad released him or if he was fired, maybe he's holding a grudge towards my family. He was so harsh with me Chris, it was like, it was like he wasn't even Kurt. He wasn't even himself he was like a pod person or something."

"Maybe you should go talk to your dad then," Chris suggested. "But that's up to you, I'm not going to rush you and tell you to talk to your dad if you don't want to. It's entirely up to you, entirely."

"I don't know," she said, squirming. "It all boils down to who hurt me most…"

"Talk to him, Steph," Chris finally just told her. He was tired of the fighting, anyways, and maybe this could be the first step in the bridge between Stephanie and her father. If any bridge needed to be rebuilt, it was probably that one.

"I don't know, tonight's a big night," she lamented. "My father probably has his hands really full tonight, with all the guys from ECW and SmackDown here, he's probably wanting everything to go off without a hitch…" She was obviously trying to talk herself out of it, like if she said enough words, she wouldn't have to actually go talk to her father and it would just blissfully become another stupid idea.

She had made up with Shane on her birthday though. Shane had been the one to break the news to her and he had been there for her. In the end, she shouldn't have expected any less. When it all came crumbling down, her brother had been there to protect her, just like he had been when she was little. He didn't want anything to break his little sister's heart then, and he didn't want anything breaking his sister's heart now.

He had apologized about a million times for his actions on that day that seemed ages ago, when things were somehow simpler, when things made at least some modicum of sense. She had accepted his apology, a million times over, because he had been sincere. The entire fight with Kurt had at least taught her that she needed to forgive, because she wanted more than anything for Kurt to talk to her, she wanted to forgive him and wanted him to forgive her.

"You know that your dad would drop everything to talk to you."

"Are we talking about the same Vince McMahon here?" Stephanie asked, raising her eyebrow.

"We are," Chris confirmed. "Steph, he's not going to turn you away, and if you want to find out what happened, you're going to have to speak to him. It's just the breaks, baby."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," she said. She stood up and then leaned over to pick up Sawyer, lifting him above her head as she cooed up at him. Sawyer babbled back at his mommy, happy to be in her arms and not in that playpen. It wasn't that he didn't like to play with his toys, but he loved to be held even more than that, and if he loved to be held by anyone it was his mommy. Her voice was so soothing to the almost six-month old.

"You're taking him?"

"If I'm going to talk to my father, and try to fix that relationship with him, and I mean really try…then there's someone that he's going to have to meet," Stephanie said, bringing Sawyer down to her chest, where he cuddled in, looking at his daddy from where he was.

"Hey kid, you want to meet your grandpa?" Chris asked in a baby voice. "Yes, you get to meet Grandpa Vince, good luck, you're going to need it. I hope that you come back unscathed."

"Wish me luck?" Stephanie said nervously. Chris leaned over and kissed her, and not just a chaste little kiss either, really kissed her, like she was going off to fight some fight or something. She shifted Sawyer in her arm as she wrapped her free one around Chris's neck. "Okay, I think that was enough luck."

Chris licked his lips, "Gotta make sure you want to come back to me." Chris opened the door for Stephanie and saw Benoit on the other side. "Benoit, my man, perfect timing."

"Chris, hello Stephanie."

"Hi Chris, I was just leaving," Stephanie said, leaving the room.

Benoit turned to Chris, "I hope it wasn't something I said."

Chris chuckled. "No, she's going to talk to her father."

"Oh wow, finally, huh?"

"Yeah, she's stubborn, so what can I do for you?"

"Tell me why you're not going to be on tonight's show," Benoit inquired. Chris's brow furrowed as he took in his friend. "Wondering what I'm talking about, eh?"

"A little yeah."

"You've been gone for over a year, don't you think that the great experiment is over. I think you should come back."

"And you came here to tell me that now?" Chris asked. "Why? You want me to fight you or something, in case you haven't heard, I don't hold any belt. I can't just come back on a whim."

"Yes, you can, you're the damn owner of this place."

"Benoit, man…"

"Tell me you don't miss it."

"Okay, so I'm getting the itch again…slowly."

"So you are coming back?"

"Not tonight or next week, but soon…maybe, if I feel like it."

"Good, because I'm looking forward to kicking your ass."

"I knew you had a motive."

Stephanie walked down the hallway, shifting the squirming Sawyer every so often. She turned the corner and almost bumped right into Christian, who looked uncomfortable walking down the hallway with Lita. Ever since Edge had won the title that second time and Lita had been the Women's Champion at the same time, she had become insufferable, and it seemed to only get worse after she had lost it.

"Hey Christian," Stephanie said, giving him a smile. "Lita."

"Hey," Lita said shortly. "I'm going to go to catering, I'll see you or whatever."

Lita walked off and Stephanie turned towards Christian. "What was that all about?"

"She's mad at me because I think I called her some names, I don't remember now," Christian said, reaching his hand out so that Sawyer could play with it. "Do you know if…Trish is around or anything?" Yeah, Christian was through being subtle; he hadn't had a real moment with Trish in a couple of weeks, and he was tired of the stupid small talk they constantly seemed to make now. So if he had to be direct, then so be it, he'd just have to take it.

"Well, I'm not sure that she's even around tonight, as far as I could tell when I glanced over what was scheduled for tonight, Carlito didn't have a match. I can't imagine that he wouldn't be here, but if my dad felt like he wasn't needed because of the presence of the other shows, I can imagine he wouldn't be here and she probably wouldn't come if he weren't here."

"Oh," Christian said dejectedly. Stephanie wanted to talk to her father, but she could tell that Christian needed to talk too. She was torn though.

"You could always call her."

"I can't call her, she'd…never-mind."

"Christian, are you trying to win Trish back?" Stephanie asked suspiciously. Christian immediately looked guilty, rubbing the back of his neck and Stephanie nodded her head a little as she regarded him. "You _do _know she's happy, right?"

"It's been mentioned," he said, avoiding the subject.

"Christian…"

"Steph, don't, okay, I know what you're going to say. I know what everyone thinks and I know that she says she's happy, but I have to try. I have to try because I love her. I mean, if Chris and you weren't together, you would try, right? You would do everything in your power to make sure that you at least had one more shot at the future, wouldn't you?"

"I don't know."

"You did when you thought he was with Trish," he pointed out. "You tried to find out what happened."

"I never abandoned Chris though," Stephanie said gently, not wanting him to blow up at her. It was just the truth though, she had never left. Christian had left Trish, and in Stephanie's mind, that meant he had to suffer the consequences.

"I can't accept her with Carlito, I just can't," Christian said. "If she's really happy, I'll find out."

"And get your heart broken in the process?"

"It can't be any worse than I feel right now when I'm not with her."

"Did you try to move on? Have you tried, given a real effort to move on? I only say this because she does have Carlito, and she really loves him. I've seen it first-hand. I mean, isn't there some saying that if you love something, you have to let it go."

"Whoever thought up a bullshit saying like that deserves to be alone," Christian spat out. "I can't just sit back and watch this happen if I can do something. You would do the same thing, Stephanie, and you know it. Nothing you say at this point is going to discourage me."

"Then there's nothing I can really say, is there?"

"No, but…you know, thanks," Christian said.

"If you need someone to talk to…"

"I know, come talk to you," he said, still managing to give her a smile. "For what it's worth, I'm really sorry about what happened with Kurt."

"How did you…did Chris tell you?"

"Actually, no, I talked to Kurt first. He was going on about how you invaded his personal space and how you had a fight, and there might have been some things that you don't want to hear. He's just really angry right now, I don't know what's up with him."

"I do, but I'd rather not," she said quietly. "Suffice it to say, we're not friends right now…or anymore, take your pick, slightly pessimistic, or just downright pessimistic."

"Well, then I talked to Chris and he explained what happened, and it makes sense when I saw Kurt. He hasn't been right for a while. He seemed okay when I saw him though…if that means anything to you."

"I don't know what it means anymore, I'm just so wound up about it. I'm trying not to think about it because I've got a job to think about and a family to take care of. I can't just shut down because someone won't be my friend, even though he's been there for me for the past six years. I have a son to think about, and I have to be there for him, no matter how much I want to wallow."

"Yeah, I know, I can keep tabs on him for you," Christian told her, giving her a smile. She returned the smile and nodded eagerly.

"I would really like that," Stephanie said, hugging him quickly. "Thank you Christian. I just really worry about him, and if I can at least have someone there who cares about him looking out for him, it'd make me feel a lot better."

"Then I'll do that."

"Thanks Christian, I actually have to go talk to my dad, but thank you so much. You're a great friend."

"I do what I can," Christian said, then paused. "Wait, you're going to see your father?"

"Well, the theme of the night is Raw Family Reunion isn't it? I just have to go with the theme of the show, and this is the only way that I know how."

"Wow, the hatchet gets buried," Christian said, his eyes flashing. "Good luck."

"Thanks," she said before walking away. She looked down to Sawyer. "Everyone knows this is big, baby boy. You probably think this is monumental, but you finally get to meet someone that loves you a whole lot. He made a mistake, but I think it's time to forgive. She reached her father's door and knocked loudly enough for him to hear.

"Come in!" came her father's voice. She opened the door and heard him speak again, "I'm very busy so make this quick, if it's about the show…"

"Dad, can we talk?" Stephanie said, standing halfway through the door. Vince looked up sharply at his daughter and grandson standing there. It was the first time it seemed that she had actually wanted to see him voluntarily, and with Sawyer no less.

"Of course, come in, come in," he said, standing up quickly and moving to go towards the door. Stephanie shook her head and let herself and Sawyer in, going over to sit in a chair across from her father. "You needed to talk, about what?"

Stephanie sighed, "I needed to talk with you about Kurt."

"Oh, Kurt," Vince said, knowing that this had probably hurt his daughter's feelings. "Did you know about Kurt before he left? Because if you did, I won't hold it against you or begrudge you, I know that the two of you are best friends."

"_Were_ best friends," she informed him. "I had no idea that he had signed, and I went to see him and we had a big fight and we're not speaking right now, maybe forever. I just needed to talk to you because from everything I've read and heard, you seemed concerned for him, like this was not a mutual decision to leave."

Vince took off his glasses and rubbed his temples. "It wasn't, not really."

"Dad, what happened? I need to know, for my own piece of mind and so that I can try to get Kurt to see the light."

"That's going to be a difficult task, Stephanie," Vince told her. "Kurt is very stubborn."

"I know this, but I just need to think that I can somehow help him. I'm worried, Dad, I'm worried for the same reasons that you are, and I just need to know what exactly happened. Kurt said it was a mutual thing, he told me it was time off. I know now that he lied to me, but I just need to know if it was mutual."

"In a way, but not really. I offered rehab to him, get him off the painkillers, get him healthy and functioning. He's been on a lot of painkillers--"

"I know," she interjected, and Vince looked a little surprised.

"Does Chris ever take…"

"No, Chris has never needed them because he hasn't sustained a long-term injury and with the year off, his body has healed pretty well from the general aching. But that's neither here nor there, I know Kurt was on a lot of stuff."

"Well, it's getting worse and I couldn't have him risking his life like he was. I had to do something, so I released him because he refused to get help. I'm worried about his personal health more than anything right now. I'm sorry to lose him to the competition, but in his current mental and physical state, I just couldn't see us continuing our business relationship. He's in bad shape, Stephanie."

"I know," she said, looking off to the right. "Thank you for being concerned about him, Dad. It means a lot to me personally. I'm worried about his health too, and what could happen to him. But I just can't…he won't listen to me. If he won't listen, he won't listen."

"Sometimes, when someone is on a destructive path, they just won't listen to anyone. That's how it usually goes."

"I know," she said, trying to be brave, but it was starting to make her chest feel like it was going to cave in. "Thank you for being candid with me."

"You wouldn't have accepted anything less," Vince said, trying to prolong the conversation so that he could continue to look at his grandson, the grandson that he hadn't even held in his arms or gotten to talk to. The little boy was nearly six months old and Vince still had yet to have any contact with him. He just wanted to keep her in here a little longer so he could have them here and pretend like he was part of their family.

"Dad?"

"Yes?"

"I miss you," Stephanie told him honestly. "I don't like fighting with you, I never have. I've always just wanted to make you proud of me, and I feel like I somehow disappointed you and that's why you did what you did."

"Oh, Stephanie, no, you could never disappoint me, now Coach on the other hand, he's not doing such a hot job around here, is he?"

"No Dad, he's not. He's competent at best. He just doesn't have what it takes to really run a show," Stephanie said. "I guess he's fine for the on-air role, takes the spotlight off of us, but he can't be the full-time guy."

"You're right," Vince said. "If only you could…"

"Not yet, I'm not ready yet," Stephanie said. "I've still got my little boy who needs my full attention. But maybe…"

"You know I'm proud of you, don't you Stephanie? I know I don't say it nearly enough, what with the two successful children that I have, but I am proud of you, for what you do with the show and for taking a baby on the road and doing everything that you do."

"Thank you Dad, I really needed to hear that," Stephanie said, then looked down at Sawyer. "Um…would you like to hold Sawyer?"

Vince's eyes widened. "Are you sure?"

Stephanie nodded, "I'm sure."

"I would love to," Vince said enthusiastically. Stephanie stood up and went over to her father, handing over the baby, who looked a little perplexed by the man in front of him. Vince took him carefully, like he would break him, which was a little funny since Sawyer wasn't exactly a newborn anymore and didn't really need to be handled like he was fragile china. Just holding him tightly would've sufficed.

"Babababababa," Sawyer said, looking up at his mommy, who made sure to stay near him.

"Yeah, that's Grandpa Vince," Stephanie said to the little boy, who glanced at Vince before looking up at his mommy again. She made a funny face at him and the little boy laughed at her antics since he thought his mommy was the prettiest, smartest, funniest, nicest people in the world. Yes, that Sawyer Jericho was really shaping up into a little Mama's boy.

Vince was just in awe of the little thing in his arms. He had missed the first six months of this boy's life, so it was a little awkward to just jump in when he was laughing and babbling to himself, but it was the best thing he could've hoped for tonight. For a few brief moments, the show didn't matter, nothing mattered except that he had his family, that his family was right here and they wanted him. Sawyer looked like a strong, handsome boy, looking like Chris with a little bit of Stephanie mixed in around the mouth and nose, and that striking McMahon dimple that was starting just a tiny bit on his chin.

"He's laughing," Vince commented dumbly.

"Yeah, he laughs, he smiles, he babbles to himself, he's a regular Mensa member, this one is," Stephanie said, grabbing Sawyer's hand and shaking it a little, making the little boy laugh a little bit more, making a big, old funny face while he was at it. Vince couldn't stop staring at him.

"He's so handsome."

"So everyone says," Stephanie said. "I agree though, I mean, when you've got genes like he has, you're bound to come up with a lot of good qualities. Would you like him to stay with you for a while, if you're not busy?"

"I'll make the time," Vince said, forgetting about the show. He finally had his grandson in his arms.

"I'll never fully forgive you for what you did, Dad, to me _and_ Sawyer, but I can't hold a grudge forever, and through losing Kurt, I've seen that it's important to keep the lines of communication open."

"I can definitely accept that."

Someone that wasn't accepting anything was Carlito, who was frowning as he had his arm around Trish's waist. "Not be on the show tonight, what kind of crap is that?"

"I don't know," Trish said. "I can't believe they would leave you off the show. I mean, do they not know who you are?"

"Obviously not," Carlito grumbled. "I'm Carlito. It's just not cool to leave me off."

"Yeah, I should go talk to Stephanie about this, she's back tonight. This has to be Coach's doing, he's all Mr. Nice Guy to all the idiots around here, but to the people with actual talent, it's like he has a blind eye to you."

"Yeah, that's exactly it," Carlito said, looking down affectionately at Trish. "See, you definitely get what I'm saying."

"I do," she said, looking up at him. "I just don't understand how you can't be fit into the show. It's just not right, you're a huge presence on Raw. They could kick some of the ECW guys off or something, they're not even Raw guys."

"Yeah!" Carlito said, even more incensed. "I should go talk to Coach about this!"

"Yeah!" Trish agreed heartily, feeling Carlito's anger and accepting it herself. "I'll come with you."

"You don't have to do that, I can fight my own battles," he told her. "But I'm glad you'd be willing."

"Well, if you think that you can handle it," she teased and he gave her a mock dirty look. "What? I'm just wondering, that's all, don't get mad at me."

"Never," he said, leaning down to kiss her. "It's just not cool to not include Carlito."

"You tell him that," Trish said, getting madder by the second. When Carlito was gone, it was like Christian was there two seconds later and she almost jumped when he appeared in front of her. "God Christian, you scared me."

"Sorry, I just saw you and had to come over."

"Oh," she said, looking up at him. "I think that you spend more time here at Raw than you do in your own company."

He laughed, "I can't help it. I guess I'm just drawn to Raw for some reason. I mean, this was my home fro a really long time and TNA has a much lighter schedule so it's not like I'm traveling back and forth or anything, so I have a lot of free time to come over here and hang out…"

"You don't have to ramble," Trish giggled. "But what's making you so nervous that you have to ramble? Because I know that when you're nervous you really start to ramble about everything and nothing and that definitely just fell into this category."

"Truthfully…you," Christian said, his eyes boring into hers.

Trish sighed. "Christian, you can't keep doing this. I can't have you here every week trying to get back something you're not going to get back."

"But why not?" he asked, his eyes still boring into her own, searching for something that he knew had to be there. He was searching for the feelings that she used to have for him, that she hopefully still had for him. They had to be in there somewhere.

"Because it's not going to work out between us, it's never going to work out."

"You don't know that."

"But I do," she told him. "Christian, whenever I get back together with you, I feel like you're taking away a little bit of my dignity, and my pride. I don't want to lose those things when I'm around you. I don't like feeling like a doormat for you. I can't go back to that, I won't."

"But it could be different this time, it _would_ be different this time."

"Except it wouldn't be different. It wouldn't be different because we fall into a pattern, and I'm not happy living my life like that anymore."

"I swear, it would be different."

"I can't take that chance," Trish responded. "I just can't, Christian."

"Why?" he asked, almost petulantly.

"Christian, I'm not going to be your doormat, I can't let you walk all over me again. You broke me, and you don't even really acknowledge that you broke me. I was a broken person and I'm finally healing, and I'm happy, and don't try to ruin it for me."

"We belong together."

"No, we don't," she asserted. "Please, just leave me alone."

"This isn't over, Trish, I'm going to get you back. I will, you love me, I know you do, you'll realize that," Christian said and Trish felt so sorry for him. He was believing something that wasn't going to come true. He was believing something that couldn't come true, not anymore. She sighed and looked at his retreating figure as he stalked down the hallway, probably to think of some plan to get her back. She bit her lips as she thought of the answer to his question, as she thought as to why she couldn't get back with him, why she couldn't take him back. She whispered into the silent air surrounding her, the reason why she couldn't be with Christian, the reason why she was moving on.

"Why Chrissy? Because Carlito and I are engaged."


	109. Sorry So Late, October 16, 2006

A/N: If you haven't read my profile, you would've missed the message that said that school has been bogging me down big time. I'm taking a math class and math is like my...well, it's like the...uh...Chris/Trish of my studies, the thing I dread the most and don't particularly want to spend any time looking at. And yet, I need to pass this class like I need Chris Jericho to come back, which is to say, desperately, so all my efforts have been going into that, and well, something must suffer, and it's this story, and well, my time spent sleeping. Every time I go to write this on Mondays, I ended up falling asleep, so pardon my extreme lateness with this.

This, by the way, is not for last night, but last week, last night's show will be updated late Wednesday evening, I swear that it will, swear, I will personally see to it that I have people threatening me every hour to make sure I finish.

So again, I hope you enjoy, and I hope that you don't like, punish me by not reviewing. Reviewing helps, it does:)

* * *

Stephanie usually wasn't one to let her problems go. She'd hold on so tight that it threatened to consume her. She would ruminate over past mistakes until she couldn't think, and she would hold onto something for so long that it became irrelevant in the interim. She was not someone who let something go. She would log it in her brain, because that's who she was. She didn't forget things and she never did want to forget things. You can't really change who you are thirty years into your life.

Chris had lightened her up a bit in their four years together. He was so much more laid-back than she was, she was bound to pick up some of his habits. She knew she'd never be "laid-back," but she was learning to be a little bit less uptight about things. She loved that Chris wasn't exactly like her so she could actually learn things from him, and grow with him. Now she was just being cheesy and she had to blame Sawyer for that one.

But what Stephanie _was_ going to do was to forget about the problems with Kurt. Yeah, she knew that was easier said than done, but she had to make the effort. She had to try to do this or else get sucked up into another grudge that she didn't really want to have. She missed Kurt, she wasn't going to lie. She missed being able to call him, or have him come over and go with her on a walk with Sawyer whenever Chris had to tape his radio show. She was going to miss the little things with Kurt and she wondered if he was going to miss the little things with her too. She hoped he did, she hoped he would never forget.

"So I think it's time to start training Sawyer," Chris said as he came in with said baby in his arms.

"Training him for what?"

"Wrestling of course, he gave me this mean face when I was trying to give him some baby food, and let me tell you, he could really intimidate some people on this roster, hell, he was intimidating me."

"How about we get his daddy back on the show before we get him on the show," Stephanie said, taking the baby from Chris's arms. "Hey there baby boy, you don't want to wrestle do you…no, you don't, you just want to stay a baby forever and stay with Mommy, right? Yes, you want to stay with me forever and ever."

"Mama's boy," Chris coughed and Stephanie glared at him as she brought Sawyer to cuddle with. "I can't help it if I enjoy his company more than I enjoy yours."

"Ouch," Chris said, patting his heart. "You sure do know how to hit me where it hurts, don't you?"

"I try," Stephanie said sweetly.

"Hey baby, can we talk?"

"What about?" she asked as she returned to her desk, flipping on the television to see if they had hooked up the closed-circuit station yet. She glanced back up at Chris expectantly.

"I just…I'm still a little bit worried about you. I know that you said you weren't going to dwell on this Kurt thing, and I respect that, it's just…that's not you, and I'm worried that you're you know, internalizing all of the anger that you have towards him, and I don't want to see it blow up in _my_ face one day. I really don't want you to get mad at me for no reason."

"I'm not internalizing anything," she responded, kissing Sawyer on the top of the head. "I just need to let it go. I mean, we both know that it's really difficult to get through to Kurt, and I just…I need to not worry about that right now. I need to just…I just need to not worry."

"He was our best friend, Stephanie, I just can't fathom the fact that you can let go that easily. I can't let go that easily."

"I can't either, but I've got to try," Stephanie said, giving him a brave smile. "I'm trying to change, can't you take that for what its worth?"

"I am," he said, going over and giving her a kiss. "I just don't want you to be secretly upset and not tell me about it. If you do feel like you need to talk to someone, you know I'm always going to be here for you."

"I know," she told him, giving him another kiss. "What about you though? I mean, look at me, being the insensitive jerk when you're hurting too. I'm sorry that you're going through the same thing and I'm practically ignoring you. I'm being a bad wife."

"You're not," he told her, but she shook her head in argument. "Okay, so you are being a little bit insensitive, I wasn't going to say anything, but yeah, you are, a little bit, very tiny."

"I know that this has upset you too…"

"Of course it has, Kurt was my best friend too, but if he's going to go down this path, what can we really do to stop him? I've taken painkillers before, but always with a prescription, never without one and I tried to use them as sparingly as I could because I know what they can do to you and I didn't want to be addicted. Hearing about Kurt…and then hearing about how he treated you, well, he isn't high up on my list right now."

"Mine either," she said glumly. "Maybe when you do that TNA music video thing, you can talk to him or something, depending on who is going to show up on your video."

"That's true, that's possible…and thank you for not freaking out about that by the way."

"Well, if you want to be a traitor, that's well within your rights," she said, looking down to tickle Sawyer's tummy a little bit and make him laugh so he wouldn't know that the attention wasn't completely on him.

"So I'm a traitor now?"

"For going with the enemy, yes," she told him.

"So me wanting to provide for my family is considered a traitorous move?" he asked her.

"Um…when you go with the competition, yes, and who said we needed providing for? I'm pretty well-off you know, and you don't need to worry about bringing money into the home."

"Did it occur to you that I don't like to feel useless? I know that you are very capable of taking care of us, but I'm sorry, Steph, I'm used to providing for myself and for my family, but if you want me to back out of this deal…"

"No, I don't care either way, you know that," she sighed. "I just wish you hadn't done it in this particular way."

"An opportunity is an opportunity," he said, taking Sawyer from her arms. "We're going to go watch them set up the ring and stuff, we'll see you later."

Trish was trying not to act as giddy as she felt. She felt extremely giddy though, she and Carlito had gone ring shopping over the weekend and had seen several different rings that they really liked. They hadn't committed to one just yet since nobody actually knew that they were engaged. And nobody was going to know until she told Christian what was going on. He was going to be the first one to know.

She owed him that much.

She owed him the explanation before anyone else found out. She owed it to him to tell him before he found out from someone else and became hurt. She just owed it to him to tell him the truth about everything that had to do with Carlito and herself. She knew, and understood, that Christian was not over everything that had happened between them and neither was she. She was making great strides to be completely over him, but she wasn't…not totally.

For a long time she had believed Christian to be her soulmate, whatever that really meant, but she had believed she would be with Christian forever. Yet, it seemed as if the powers that be didn't want that to happen and maybe that's just how it had to be. Maybe them not being together was just how it all had to be. This was all just the great plan for her and she had to accept it this way.

She was going to marry Carlito and that was it; that was how it was going to happen and whether or not Christian accepted that didn't really matter because Christian was not in this relationship. She squeezed Carlito's hand in her own and he looked at her, giving her a sweet smile and a kiss to the temple as they walked down the hallway. She looked forward to many walks down this hallway. The fact that marriage had been a mutual decision also reassured her.

"_Mmm," Trish groaned as she woke up, stretching her body like a cat after a nap. She blinked her eyes a little bit as the sun filtered into the room through the thin slit between the curtains. Another day, another hotel room. She was about to roll over when she felt Carlito come up behind her and kiss her shoulder. "Morning," she said hoarsely._

"_Good morning to you," he told her, kissing her shoulder again. "Sleep well?"_

"_I usually do," she said, turning around in his arms to look at him. "And you?"_

"_With you next to me, I'm cool," he winked at her and she giggled as she rolled her eyes playfully. Carlito rolled on his back and Trish snuggled up to his side, resting her head on the soft cotton of his t-shirt. _

"_That's good," she said. "I could definitely get used to this for a long time." She caught what she said afterwards and thought that it might be a little forward, but Trish just felt Carlito play with the strap to the tank top she was wearing._

"_Yeah, me too," he told her quietly into the still air of their hotel room._

"_Really?" she asked, wondering just what that meant. She didn't want to be too forward, but she and Carlito had this kind of a whirlwind romance thing going on and she had to admit that it was exhilarating. She wasn't playing the smart girl right now, and for once, that actually felt good. It felt good to not constantly be thinking ahead or planning ahead. Letting the moment happen in the moment was definitely a new feeling and with this great expanse of time in front of her, she could get used to this._

"_Why not?" he said. "I like being with you, you like being with me, we're together, I see us together for a while. We may even get married someday--"_

_Trish lifted her head to look at him, "Marriage? You think about that?"_

"_Sometimes, it's natural, right, I love you," Carlito shrugged. "And you know, I do love you, Trish."_

"_I love you too, Lito, and sometimes I think about marriage, so it's okay," Trish said. "I could see myself marrying you."_

"_Cool, cool," Carlito said. "It's not like we're going to get married tomorrow."_

"_No, it's…you know, we could get married any time we wanted to," Trish said. "What would be stopping us? I love you, and you love me, we love each other, who's to say that we can't get married?"_

"_Are you crazy, Stratus?" Carlito said, sitting up. "You think we can actually get married?"_

"_Why can't we?" she asked, "Neither one of us is attached, we're together, we could get married, not tomorrow or anything, but soon, we could get married, we _should_ get married!"_

"_You know, you're right, we actually can get married if we wanted to. I want to marry you," Carlito told her._

"_I want to marry you too," she said, clapping her hands excitedly._

"Hey Trish!"

Trish looked behind her and saw Chris and Sawyer and her grin got a little bit wider. Everything seemed different now that she was engaged. She wondered if this was how Chris and Stephanie felt after they had gotten engaged and if it was, she should've been doing this a lot sooner; it felt great. She stopped and waited for them to catch up, the silly grin still on her face.

"What's up, Chris?"

"Sawyer and I were going to enjoy going out to the arena and watching everything get set up for the show later…can you tell I have absolutely nothing to do," he joked.

"I thought that you _did_ have something to do, I thought you were going to do some music video thing, at least that's what Stephanie told me when I spoke with her," Trish said.

"Well, I can't do that right now," he said, shifting Sawyer in his arms. "It's Chris and Sawyer time, which is when we get away from Mommy, don't we kid? Yeah, because she treats you like a big baby, huh?"

"Hate to break it to you, Chris, but Sawyer _is_ a baby," Trish laughed. "But I don't think you'll hold that against him, right?"

"Nope…hey, I should bring him with me when I do that music video," Chris said, his eyes lighting up, "I love to show him off, I mean, look at him, spitting image of his father. He's totally my son."

"He does look a little bit like Stephanie," Trish said, reaching out to grab Sawyer's hand and give it a little shake. "He's so cute…I want one…"

"No you don't," Chris told her. "You want a little monster that keeps you up at all hours of the night and needs your attention for the next eighteen years, that's what you want? Sawyer wasn't planned so it isn't like we had any choice, but it's hard, Trish, and you and Carlito, I mean, you haven't even been seeing each other for that long."

"Long enough," she said, insulted because she knew the truth of the situation. She could have a kid if she wanted one. "Besides, you love Sawyer."

"Yeah, I do love Sawyer, he's my best friend, but still, he's not exactly easy."

"He's sleeping through the night now though."

"Thank God," Chris said with relief. "I just don't want you to be saddled with something that you weren't expecting, it's not a fun feeling. I love my son, Trish, but he's a lot of work, a _lot _of work."

"I know that a kid is a lot of work, Chris, but you know, I'm not getting any younger, and I do want to have children and in my life, right now, things are really good, I don't understand why you feel the need to curb my want for this."

"I'm not," he sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm just completely on edge with everything. There's this entire thing with Kurt weighing on my mind, and I have to think about not only how this affects me, but how it affects Stephanie, and the company because damn it, I'm an owner. Then I'm doing this thing with TNA, which Stephanie says I'm a traitor for, but I know she's joking, but I have that, and then I'm doing things with the Groundlings, and I have to call back Rich about some songs and maybe an upcoming album…"

"You don't have to explain to me," Trish said, shaking her head. "I'm sorry too, for snapping at you, and it's not like I'm pregnant right now or anything, so don't worry about my well-being, we're both fine."

"Good," Chris said. "Okay, well, Sawyer's getting restless and he loves to watch them test out the Titantron, weird kid, we'll talk later I'm sure."

"We will," she said, knowing that she was going to have to share her good news soon. She was going to have to share with everyone, but first, first she was going to have to share it with Christian. "You don't know if Christian is here tonight or anything, do you?"

"I can't say that I do actually," Chris said. "I'm sure he's going to show up, he usually does with Edge, but why do you need to see him? I mean…"

"I just need to talk to him is all," Trish shrugged, "No big deal, really. He's just been kind of…talking with me, and…I'm sorry, I just don't want to get into it."

"Fine, cool, I don't really care," Chris joked. "I'm not nosy like a certain Jericho."

"Chris!" Chris turned around and saw Vince swaggering towards him. Chris groaned.

"What, why the groaning? I thought that Stephanie was starting to get along with her father now," Trish said upon hearing him groan.

"It's not that, it's just…for the past week, everyday it's something with Vince. He wants to talk to Sawyer, he wants to see Sawyer, it's getting a little ridiculous now. I'm glad that Stephanie and Vince have made up or are on their way to making up, and that Vince can see Sawyer, but man, the guy is totally being ridiculous."

Trish laughed, "I'm getting out of here, I'll see you around."

"Yeah, you get to escape," he lamented as Vince walked over to him. "What's up Vince?"

"Well, first of all, I brought something for Sawyer, hello there, you," Vince said, shaking his grandson's hand. He handed over a bag to Chris. "Don't open it now, you can open it later, but it's for him and I hope that you like it."

"He'll love it, I'm sure," Chris told Vince. "If that's all you needed, we were going to go watch what's left of the ring being assembled…"

"No, that's not it, I was told you were working on something for TNA."

"Don't worry about it Vince, it's nothing of your concern," Chris said, waving it off. He didn't want to get into his business dealings with his father-in-law. Hell, he wouldn't even get into business dealings with Vince if he were just his boss, or someone he knew, or his closest friend. This was Vince. Nothing good ever came from Vince.

"But it kind of is."

"Not really."

"It kind of is."

"No, it's not," Chris insisted. "It's Stephanie's business, because she's my wife, but it's not really your business because we're not married."

"I'm your father-in-law though."

"But again, we're not married," Chris said.

"But we are family," Vince pointed out.

"By marriage, not by blood."

"Well, Sawyer is my blood and he's your blood, so technically, yes, we kind of are related by blood."

"Thanks a lot kid," Chris muttered to the little boy. "Look Vince, whatever you're thinking, I'm not biting. Yes, we are family, yes, I really had no choice in that because heaven help me, I love your daughter and don't plan to stop loving her any time soon, but I don't work for you anymore, if anything, we're partners since I do own part of the company."

Vince looked at him for a little bit, "You know, I just have to commend Stephanie for marrying you, this is what you do, you don't reveal your secrets, as much as I hate that."

"Wow, so telling you nothing works, I'll have to keep that in mind," Chris said. "Now, if you'll excuse us, they are probably done setting up everything and now Sawyer and I have nothing to do but wander around aimlessly until we decide that we're going to go bug Stephanie again."

"Sorry."

"Oh, and Vince…just because you and Stephanie are all gung-ho now, or are on your way to becoming so, she's not going to stop being friends with Hunter, that's just not going to happen. She can care less what happens to Shawn, but she and Hunter are actually at a place right now where they're over each other, and as her husband, who saw first-hand how her and her first husband's marriage and divorce played out and has been secretly worried for the past four years, I'm thrilled by this development, so don't freak out like you usually do Vince."

"I'm just happy to have her and Sawyer in my life," Vince told him honestly.

"Good," Chris said, holding up the gift, "Thanks for this, whatever it is."

"You're welcome," Vince said. "Now I've got a show to run."

Chris watched as Vince walked off and sighed in relief, turning to Sawyer and saying, "You know ,if it weren't for your mom, I would be completely off-the-hook, and I partially blame you, so come on, let's find something manly to do."

Trish wrung her hands together as Carlito watched her from the couch that he was sitting on. He finally got tired of her nervousness and pulled her down so she was straddling his lap. She bit her lip and looked at him nervously, rocking a little bit from sheer nerves. Carlito brushed some of her hair back and around her ear and looked at her.

"What's on your mind?" he asked.

"What I have to do," Trish told him. "I mean, I have to tell Christian first, it's the right thing to do, you know, I mean, if you have any ex-girlfriends still holding a torch for you, then I think that you should get that out of the way too."

"I think I'm cool," he told her, leaning forward to kiss her softly. "But you can do it, I know you can, and I know you have to."

"Yeah, I know," Trish said. "I don't want to though, that counts for something though right, not wanting to go even though you know that you have to."

"Yeah, that does count for something," he nodded, "but I'm not sure that whatever that counts for is a good thing, but that's just a hunch."

"Oh," she said, pursing her lips. "I _want_ to marry you though, Lito, I just have to get over this one obstacle. You don't understand my relationship with Christian, it was long and heartbreaking and only recently did I even discover that he was a jerk to me for a lot of it, but then he wasn't a jerk for another huge part of it."

"Yeah, I wasn't here, which is why I don't really know what you're going through, but you know that I'm here for you."

"Likewise," she said, getting off his lap. "I might as well go do it right now before I lose my nerve, and then I'll find it harder and harder to tell him and then he's going to be even more hurt. I just need to do this."

"Are you trying to psych yourself up?" he laughed.

"Yeah, it's not working though," she laughed back, but then she resolved herself. In life, sometimes you did things that you didn't ultimately want to do and this was one of those things. But you did them and in the end, it made you a stronger, better person. She just had to believe that she was doing the right thing.

Hunter was going to try to do the right thing. When he had heard Kurt had left the company, honestly, he couldn't care less. Why should he give a damn about Kurt Angle when all he got from him was suspicion towards his intentions towards Stephanie? Not to mention Kurt was always a threat in the ring, and if Hunter could eliminate some of those threats, all the better for him. But the new and improved Hunter, the one that didn't always think of himself and his wants knew that Stephanie had been best friends with Kurt and he had heard very briefly that they had had some kind of falling out.

Hunter had been understandably angry and jealous of Kurt for his friendship with Stephanie while they were married. At one point, he honestly thought that Stephanie might run off with him, but she had always asserted that they were just friends and nothing more. He had been forced to believe that, and seeing them up close, and interacting with them both and individually, he knew that their friendship had transcended relationships and hardships, and now she had no one. So really, for the first time in his life, he was going to do right by Stephanie.

She was sitting at her station, barking orders to someone over her headphones and he laughed at how routine she was. It was funny because she didn't look like someone who did the same thing week in and week out, she looked like she was always bustling and doing something that out of the ordinary, but when you got down to the nitty-gritty of it, Stephanie did the same thing week in and week out. Stephanie was probably harassing some employee about something and doing what she did best, be bossy. He walked over and sat next to her and she raised her eyebrows in greeting before going back to her conversation.

"No, no, no, you're just supposed to tell them when they're going to be on…no, I don't really give a shit who they think they are…no, they're not contractually obligated, but we're putting a lot of stuff into them coming and we're being extremely nice about it, so the least they can do is not waffle around…fine, if it gets worse, I'll go see them."

"What was that all about?" Hunter asked as Stephanie put her headphones down for a moment.

"Oh, celebrities, we've got some guys here tonight, and I've decided that I hate celebrities."

"You know, your husband is kind of a celebrity."

"Well then I hate him."

"So are you…"

"Well then I hate me," she joked and smiled at him. "So what can I do for you, and if it's how you only want a certain type of water to pour on your head, you better keep on walking because I really, really don't want to hear it."

"Oh, well, I guess I'll go then," Hunter said, pretending to get up, but then sitting down again. "I wanted to talk to you about Kurt."

Stephanie groaned, "I really just wish that people would leave me alone about that. I'm _fine_," she told him emphatically. "Everyone thinks that I'm just going to fall apart or something, but I'm telling you that it's not going to happen. I'm not some weak, little girl."

"I know you're not, but you and Kurt have been through a lot," he said carefully, not wanting to incite her anger, which was like a fire explosion.

"Yeah, we have, and he decided that he wanted something else, and I can handle that," she said, but she was starting to doodle on her sheet of paper, which showed that she was distracted and didn't really want to talk about it.

"But he is your best friend."

"_Was_ my best friend," she corrected. "Whatever friendship that Kurt and I had is just…it's gone the way of the dinosaur is what happened. Look, people lose touch with friends all the time, I don't hang around anyone that I hung around with in grade school, it's the same thing here. I can certainly go the rest of my life without Kurt Angle."

"You can?" he asked skeptically.

"Yes, yes, I can," she asserted. "So please, don't play the pity party with me, because I'm not going to join in."

"I just wanted to offer to be a kind of replacement for him, I know that I'm not what you want, but you know, if you need someone to talk to."

"I appreciate that, Hunter, but I'm really not at a loss for anything, I swear," she told him. But then she gave him a pat on the shoulder. "I really do appreciate that you would do that for me, though. It means a lot."

"I just wanted you to know that, you know, in case shit happens, you can count on me. I know I'm not Kurt, thank God for that," he chuckled, "but you know, I like to think we've struck up a nice rapport here."

"We have," she nodded. "Thank you though, really, but I'm okay, I'm going to be okay. Kurt and I…I was fine before I met him, and I'll be fine after he's gone, I promise."

"Okay," Hunter said, leaning forward to hug her. She hugged him back and then watched as he left. She was really appreciative that he would go to such lengths for her, but she knew that she couldn't take him up on that offer. She was still a little raw from Kurt, and it would take a little while to heal that part of her heart, if it ever healed. Maybe someday she'd let someone in like she let in Kurt, but she highly doubted it.

Kurt was something else in her life. He was just…he was always there, and you don't get many people who are there for your lowest of lows. She loved Chris with all her heart and loved their life, but he wasn't there the nights she cried because her husband didn't call, or the nights she had been so horrendous in her actions towards her parents that she wanted to just curl up in a ball. But Kurt was; Kurt was always there to be with her and tell her that things would work out, then having such a low was good, it made you stronger and happier when the good times came. That's what Kurt had done for her.

But the Kurt she knew was not the Kurt that existed now, and she didn't know who it was that existed in Kurt's body. She understood that people changed, she had changed dramatically in the last four years. She had gained a sense of her self, and she had matured beyond comprehension. She had also become a good wife, and a wonderful mother, and that had changed her as well. But Kurt's transformation had not been from a caterpillar to a beautiful butterfly, no, he had turned into a bitter, condescending man, and it had happened so quickly. Or maybe it hadn't happened quickly and had been brewing for a long time and she had either been oblivious to it or had ignored it, both of which were possible when it came to Kurt.

She was brought out of her reverie when Chris sat down next to her, sitting Sawyer atop the table with a baseball cap that she didn't recall buying him. She looked at it and started laughing, looking at Chris who rolled his eyes and sucked at his teeth a little.

"What is _that_?" she wondered as she pointed to the baseball cap that said, "Grandpa is my Favorite Wrestler."

"Your dad got it for him," Chris said as he watched Sawyer desperately trying to pull the hat off of his head. "Only your dad, only your dad would get him something like this, I mean, seriously, if Sawyer has a favorite wrestler, it's me."

"My dad is his favorite wrestler, oh my," Stephanie said as she leaned forward, "Sawyer, you don't think Grandpa's the best, huh?" Sawyer babbled and kept trying to get the hat off his head, only succeeding in pulling it down over his eyes. "Oh no, where did my baby boy go?"

Sawyer babbled as Chris lifted the hat so he could see, as Stephanie opened her mouth wide and acted surprised, "There he is!" Sawyer giggled and went to pull his hat over his face again, liking the game he was playing with his mommy.

"Your dad is going overboard," Chris told her.

"What tipped you off to that? The dog he wanted to buy for Sawyer or the car he wants to buy him for his sixteenth birthday which is still fifteen and a half years away?"

"Okay, so he's been really, really going overboard," Chris said, then spotted Vince coming over. "Oh great, here he comes again."

"Chris, just humor him," Stephanie pleaded and Chris shrugged as Vince approached.

"Oh, he's wearing the hat, I had that specially made for him," Vince said, smiling proudly. "I think he looks great in that. Anyways, I wanted to talk to you about something important."

"Is it something for the show, Dad?" Stephanie asked.

"No, no, no," Vince told him, shaking his head, "I wanted to talk to you about a pony for Sawyer. I was thinking to myself, what does every young boy need, and I thought, he should have a horse, but I didn't want to get him a horse since he's so young, so I thought a pony. And I'd pay for stable fees and his care and what not."

"Dad…stop, Sawyer doesn't need a pony, and those are kind of for girls more aren't they? He's not even a year old, he's not even close to being a year old, he can't have a pony. You don't have to be so extravagant about it, you know. He's fine with what he has."

"Yeah Vince, Sawyer doesn't really need anything."

"But he should get whatever he wants, how about a hockey rink, you like hockey Chris, your father was a hockey player, so you like hockey. I can buy it up near Connecticut so when you come to visit, you can teach him and--"

"Dad, really, don't you think--"

"Stephanie, let the man finish his sentence," Chris said, interrupting his wife. He never had his very own hockey rink.

"Chris," Stephanie warned quietly.

Chris sighed, "No, Vince, we don't need a hockey rink, even though that'd be really cool."

"Chris," Stephanie said again, and Chris huffed and puffed and pouted in his seat. She turned to her father. "Dad, please, Sawyer is very well taken care of, and he doesn't need anything, he's just happy to see you, probably, if he really knew who you were."

"Okay," Vince said reluctantly. "Fine then."

"Thank you Daddy," Stephanie said sweetly, which made Vince forget his disappointment. When he left, Stephanie took the hat off of Sawyer's head and looked at Chris, "Yeah, he's officially crazy."

Trish found Christian rather easily and she had to wonder if he was here specifically for her and not here for Edge at all. She figured that he had notions on getting her back. She wasn't blind to the fact that Christian still wanted her. She knew that was probably on his agenda, but he had to realize that it just wasn't going to come to fruition. He was sitting on a trunk, reading a magazine, looking a little bored and she sat down next to him.

"You know, it kind of seems like you still work here," Trish laughed.

"I just come to hang out with friends, you know, I mean, there's guys in TNA that I know and stuff, but it's not…it's not home, you know," he told her, and the way he was staring into her eyes spoke more than his words. He was talking directly about her.

"Yeah, but it can't be too easy on your wallet since you have to fly out here every week and do nothing, isn't that wasted money?" she wondered.

"I don't think so," he told her, and again, he was talking about more than just the people around him. "Besides, I like traveling around, it's fun, you get to see new places and everything."

"Yeah, right," Trish said.

"The same could be said for you though," Christian pointed out. "You don't need to be here every week, you're the one who retired right? I mean, you could stay home and watch television and live a normal life, but you're here."

"I'm slowly trying to wean myself away from the business," she joked. "But honestly, I just come to that I can be with Carlito, you know, like how Chris comes to be with Stephanie. It's just easier because of our schedules to be here and be around the people that we…want to be around."

"The people that you _love_," he corrected for her and Trish gave a little nod. "I know that you've said you love him, I know you told me that."

"You don't believe it?" Trish asked.

"I don't know," he responded earnestly, looking over at her, and giving her the once over. "When you've spent so much time being loved by someone and then you find out there's supposedly someone else, you kind of just don't want to believe it, so I guess I kind of don't want to believe that you do."

"Okay," she nodded. "I do though, but you can believe what you want."

"I just…Trish, I know things about you that he could never know in a million years," he told her.

"Yes, that's true, but he knows things about me that you don't, Christian."

"Like what?" he challenged.

"I'm not going to get into this with you, Chrissy, I just needed to talk to you. I really needed to tell you something and speak with you, but I don't want you to fly off the handle like you're about to do right now."

"See!" he exclaimed, "You know me, Trishy! You know me and you understand me, and I think that you're the only one who will ever know me. We belong together, I can feel it and it bothers me that you can't feel it. I know I was a jackass to you, I know I was a jerk, but I can work on it, we can work on it if you'll just let us have another chance. You've only been seeing Carlito for a little while, but we were rock solid for a long time."

She nodded, biting the inside of her cheek. "Christian, you will never, _never_ know what those months without you did to me. You will never know how I felt or how I reacted to you being gone, and when that happened, and when I started to heal, it was without you. So don't tell me about rock solid and whatever, I know how I felt and I know how I feel now."

Christian looked defeated and he turned his head away from her. "Whatever."

"Christian," Trish started, taking a deep breath and laying her hand on his shoulder. "I'm telling you this first because you deserve to know first. You were an important part of my life for years, and I didn't want you to find out from anyone but me."

"What the hell are you going on about now?" he said bitterly.

"Carlito and I have decided that we're going to get married," she said quietly, her voice a mere wisp in the electrified air of the show.

Christian did nothing for a moment, then he got up and walked away, not another word spoken from his lips. Trish watched his back as he walked away, wanting to go after him, but knowing that wouldn't solve anything, and it definitely wouldn't make him feel better. She just had to live with what was going on now. She had to live with what she had told him because she wasn't changing her mind. Christian's walk was slow and deliberate, his legs feeling heavy and his feet feeling like bowling balls that he was dragging along the ground. Trish watched him go, disappearing around a corner. She was lucky though.

Lucky that she didn't see him with the tears in his eyes.


	110. Back on Track, October 30, 2006

For Christian, the past two weeks had felt like a hundred years. Every single day had seemed to age him another ten years, and it was odd that life worked out that way. They say that you have a mental age and what not, and mentally, he felt like he was one foot in the grave. He felt older than he had ever felt. Attribute it to lack of sleep or lack of food, but something had definitely transformed in his body.

Oh sure, he could continue to look normal to the outside world, he could continue to function and pretend, but inside, inside was a whole different and sad story. Inside, he was dying, slowly, his insides twisting and twisting into a hurricane that would explode and surely make him collapse under the strain. It was peculiar this feeling of nothingness. Maybe his insides would simply give way to the black hole that had inexplicably taken residence in his very core. He had spent the past two weeks in a daze, and he hadn't even felt like he was doing anything except barely living.

He hadn't come to Raw last week, he barely even wanted to be in the same state as Trish and Carlito. When she had uttered those words, something inside him broke. Maybe it was his heart, maybe it was his soul, he didn't know anymore, and it wasn't like it mattered. Nothing seemed to matter anymore, and it wasn't like he was just going to stop living, and he knew that maybe, eventually, he would be able to get over this and be stronger even. That time hadn't come yet though, and the pain was still a stinging wound.

He had such high hopes for him and Trish, once upon a time. He had thought they could have it all, everything that every person could dream of. They had money and fame, neither of which really, really mattered in the long run, but he thought that they could have the marriage and the kids. He thought that he could have perfection with Trish. Maybe it was a pipe dream, or something he shouldn't have anticipated because in the long-run, things could change, but he had had faith. He had always kept the faith.

Now she was going to get to do that with someone else. He had been with her for so long, over three years, and sure, they had their ups and downs, but they had so many more ups than downs. He never really wanted it to end, and now it was. Now she was going to marry somebody else, somebody that wasn't him. What made Carlito so special? What made him so great to be around? He was ten times better than Carlito and it wasn't fair that this guy, this…Carlito had his woman.

He walked into the arena. He knew that he was just being a masochist, but he hadn't come this night to talk to her, beg and plead for her to take him back. No, that's not why he was here. He just wanted to see her and make sure that she was happy. He wanted to see for himself. Since she had started dating Carlito, he hadn't watched them together, he had watched her for sure, but not the two of them together. He had been so preoccupied with trying to get her back that he hadn't focused on whether or not she was really happy.

That's why he was here.

"Why are you constantly here, Christian?" Lita asked as she watched Christian sitting on the couch. "I mean, Trish is dating Carlito, isn't she? Why the hell do you constantly come to the shows? Shouldn't you get over her?"

"Shouldn't you shut your damn mouth and mind your own goddamned business?" Christian snapped at her. "I don't have to give a rat's ass about what you think about me being here."

"Fine, fine," Lita said, studying her nails. "If you want to be so uncooperative and treat me like dirt, go right ahead. I just think that you can find better things to do than come 'see your brother' every week. Don't you have a life, or did Trish run away with that too?"

"Shut your mouth, you bitch," Christian said again, standing up to face her. "This isn't about Trish, and if you don't shut your mouth about her, I'm going to shut it for you."

"Oh, _that_ proves that it wasn't about Trish at all," Lita said sarcastically. "Who the hell are you trying to fool around here, Christian? She's never going to look in your direction again, I hear that she and Carlito are pretty hot and heavy. Now why would you want to torture yourself like this…oh wait, I've got it, you've got a thing for Carlito and you're hoping to make a threesome."

"You're such a bitch," Christian told her coldly as he turned on his heel and walked out of the room, needing a bit of fresh air. It was always strange with Edge and Lita, one second, they were okay, the next second, they were on their high horses acting like they were the be-all and end-all of the universe. He hated when they were like this, but thankfully Edge was better to deal with than Lita.

He walked down the hallway with his head down, ignoring some of the friendlier greetings towards him. He wasn't in the mood to be friendly, in fact, the thought of smiling right now seemed foreign to him and he was hesitant to even see if those muscles of his face still worked.

"Christian!"

Christian turned around and saw Chris walking over to him, Chris clapped his hand on his friend's back and smiled, "Dude, I've been calling out your name for like the past few minutes, what's up with you?"

"I'm just…it's nothing," Christian said, shaking his head.

"Yeah, that's not nothing, did someone kick your puppy, Christian?" Chris asked with a laugh. "Come on, you come around here every week, and you don't even have to be here, now me on the other hand, I have to be here, but I have nothing to do, so you might as well confide in me."

"I have nothing to confide with you in, why don't you just come to TNA and hang?" Christian asked, actually joking around with his friend. Chris had that kind of personality where you just couldn't be too serious around him. It felt good to know that he still had friends out there who wouldn't betray him and wouldn't leave him, unless he acted like a jerk again of course.

"Yeah, so I can what? Kick Kurt's teeth in?" Chris said, a hint of bitterness in his voice.

"Wow, so you really are torn up about this, I honestly thought you were just mad for Stephanie's sake, because they were best friends."

"It bugs me too. Stephanie's decided that she's going to get over it and she doesn't want to talk about it anymore. I respect that, but I don't think that it's going to work for her. I know that she'll get over it in her own time though, so I'm not pushing. As for me though, yeah, I'm bitter as hell. Kurt was the best man at my wedding, he stood next to me when I married my wife, and then to have him just stab us in the back like that, it does hurt. He was going to be Sawyer's godfather, which…now that I mentioned that, since I'm currently down a best friend, I was wondering if you would want to be his godfather. If you're up for it."

"You're getting him baptized?"

"Yeah, I'm Christian…why does everyone seem to forget that?" Chris muttered.

"I don't know, because you don't seem to be all that into practicing what you preach," Christian told him, making a lame joke in the process. Chris laughed at that and Christian cracked a little bit of a smile. "I'd be honored to be Sawyer's godfather, I think it would be cool."

"Great," Chris nodded. "So now that you know about all of my problems, you can tell me yours."

"How's Sawyer?" Christian asked, knowing that if there was one subject that Chris loved to talk about more than himself, it was going to be about Sawyer.

"He's good, he's a baby, you know, not really that much to do. He was actually kind of rolling around the other day though, which was cool, it was like he was trying to move around, so maybe he can actually be mobile. We have this Halloween party we have to go to with Stephanie's parents, and Vince and Linda asked if we could bring Sawyer and kind of have him dress up for Halloween, so we're going to you know, put him in a costume and everything."

"What's he going as?" Christian asked.

"He's going as a baby who doesn't want to wear a silly costume for Halloween when he's not going trick-or-treating," Chris explained. "Stephanie and I think it's kind of silly when parents put their babies in pumpkin costumes for no reason except to go 'aww' at them. Sawyer's cute enough on his own, he doesn't need a stinking costume to make him cuter. And then…hey, wait a second, you brought up my kid to deflect away from you, didn't you?"

"A guy's got to do what a guy's got to do."

"That's low, man, bringing up my one weakness," Chris said, shaking his head. "So whatever it is, it must be really, really bad."

"It's not really, really bad," Christian said. "I mean, you might think it's great for all I know, I don't know."

"Okay, now you're just trying to get me off the scent, so come on, spill, I'm your friend," Chris said, spreading his arms, and saying, "It's just me, Chris Jericho, the Ayatollah of Rock and Rollah, the Highlight of the Night, King of the World."

"Okay, you really need to stop that," Christian told him. "Look, man, I just… I need to figure out my life and that's never an easy task."

"No, it's not," Chris agreed, "I didn't find what I really wanted out of wrestling until four years ago."

"Exactly, and I'm still trying to figure out who I am outside of wrestling, and it's hard, and with Trish getting engaged to Carlito, it's hard to think about what might--"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Chris interrupted. "Did you just say that Trish was engaged to Carlito?"

"Yeah, I thought…you knew," Christian said slowly, and by looking at Chris, he realized that no, Chris had not known. He figured that Trish would've said something by now, would've shouted it from the mountaintops because she was _so _happy. Or something like that.

"No, I had no idea, when did this happen?" Chris asked incredulously. He couldn't believe that Trish would be going through something so monumental and not tell him, or Stephanie. Because if Stephanie knew about this there was no way that she could keep that secret from him. There just wasn't any way possible.

"She told me a couple weeks ago, she said I was the first to know because I should be the first to know, I just figured she would tell everyone else right after that, but I'm guessing she hasn't told you guys yet…"

"No, she hasn't, wow, this is really news," Chris said. "Wow…I can't believe that she's getting married, that's so…" Chris realized that Christian was right there. "How are you doing, man? I mean…with everything?"

"Not well," Christian answered, looking heavenward for a moment. "I don't know man, I don't think you've ever been through anything like this. I don't think that you can even begin to know where I'm at right now. I can't even describe it, it can't even be described. It hurts and it's crazy."

"I don't know how you feel," Chris acknowledged, and he wasn't going to even pretend to know what Christian was going through. He could make a guess and picture how it would feel if he saw Stephanie engaged to another guy, but that was just a visual. Stephanie was his wife, and the only thing comparable was if she had an affair, which, considering he spent most of his time with her, wasn't really an option. "But I'm sorry that this happened."

"Yeah, thanks," Christian mumbled. "I think I'm going to go take a walk, okay, but you know…thanks for listening."

"Okay," Chris said, watching as Christian wandered off, back hunched over and head down. He bit his lip a little bit as he turned and headed towards Carlito's locker room, where he figured he'd be most likely to find Trish.

He was flabbergasted by the news that Trish and Carlito were engaged and apparently had been so for a while now. He had just gone out to dinner with them this last Friday and they had said nothing in the way of marriage or anything like that. Although Trish _had_ mentioned the fact that she wanted a baby…oh God, what if Trish was pregnant? That could be why they were getting married. She could already be pregnant right now, but wait, no, she had a few drinks when they went out to dinner and a rather strong ones too, so that probably wasn't it.

So she had just upped and gotten herself engaged. She and Carlito had been dating for what, three months? Less? More? He didn't even know, it had all happened so quickly. He worried that things were going too fast for them. He wasn't the type of guy that butted into other people's relationships, he was usually the one telling Stephanie to mind her own business, but this was just something that he had to see for himself. Engaged was a huge thing, at least it was for him. Marriage wasn't something that he took lightly and while he didn't doubt that Carlito and Trish loved each other, he did think it was a tad too fast for an engagement.

He knocked on Carlito's door when he got there. He knocked again when no one answered and this time, the door swung open and Carlito showed up in front of him, his boots unlaced as he let Chris in the room. He didn't see Trish anywhere and stood there as Carlito sat down to lace up his boots.

"What can I do for you, Chris?" Carlito asked, not looking up at him.

"Is Trish around?"

"No, she's not around, she's at home this week, because I'm moving in, remember?"

"Oh yeah," Chris said, reminding himself of what Carlito and Trish had told him on Friday.

Trish wanted Carlito to be closer to her so she had asked him to move in with her. Kurt, wanting to let the two of them have their privacy, had decided to move out and move back to Pittsburgh. Chris figured it also had to do with the proximity that Kurt lived from him and Stephanie that made him uncomfortable. It was sad that the Three Musketeers had to be split up, but everyone had brought it on themselves. He wasn't placing the blame squarely on Kurt's shoulders.

"Did you want to talk to her, because you can call her, she's not doing anything," Carlito explained.

"Yeah, I wanted to, but I guess I can talk to you, if that's not a problem."

"Nope, no problem."

"Well, I heard from Christian…that you and Trish…were engaged," Chris said slowly, trying not to seem accusatory of the man who was quickly becoming a friend.

Carlito's head shot up and he looked at Chris with wide eyes, not believing that Christian had let the cat out of the bag before he and Trish were ready to announce it to everyone. They wanted to tell their families next, and then tell their friends, but now it was out there. "He told you!"

"He thought I knew, so it is true, then?" Chris tried to confirm.

"Yeah, it's true," Carlito said, going back to his lacing. "Why?"

"I'm just wondering if this was the right choice, I mean, you know, she was just getting off a long relationship and you two haven't been dating for that long, I'm just worried that when you asked her--"

"Look, I didn't ask her," Carlito said. Chris's eyebrows furrowed as he leaned back to look at Carlito. "She didn't ask me either, it was a mutual decision. We both decided that we wanted to get married and so that's what we're doing, we're going to get married."

"It was both of you?"

"Yes, both of us," Carlito told him again. "You think I would make her marry me if she didn't want to?"

"I don't know, I'm just making sure that your intentions were honorable. Trish is one of my good friends," Chris explained. "I want what's best for her, and…"

"And you think that's Christian?" Carlito accused.

"No, no, that's not what I'm saying," Chris was quick to say. "Look, I'm glad that Trish is happy, and if it's with you, all the better. I don't care if she's with you or with Christian, or with Big Show, I just care that she's happy."

"Okay, sorry," Carlito said. "About Christian…"

"What about him?"

"What can you tell me about their relationship?" Carlito asked, and Chris could actually see nerves in Carlito's eyes, which surprised him. Carlito reminded him a bit of himself and a bit of The Rock when he thought about it. He was cocky and arrogant, and went out there and walked the walk after talking the talk. But one thing that he and Rocky didn't really do was true emotions to those that we weren't closest to.

"Are you…worried?"

"No," Carlito scoffed, shaking his head, but Chris knew. He nodded and licked the back of his teeth as he thought for a moment.

"What do you want to know?"

"I don't know, I just…I don't know…"

"They got together in like, December 2002," Chris started. "They went for a while, and there was a thing with Jeff, but they got back together, then he cheated on her and they broke up, and then got back together, and that happened a few times, and then he left abruptly and left her heartbroken, and I think that's when she pulled away from him. They loved each other a lot, and we all thought that they were going to get married, and then it just didn't work out. But I don't think that her feelings for you are disingenuous. I think that she loves you and she cares about you, and that she does want to marry you. Trish is a good person."

"But she loved Christian a lot?"

"Yeah, she did, I'm not going to lie, but I think that she was starting to move on when he came back and they simply drifted apart."

Carlito nodded, "Thanks."

"Don't mention it, and you know, I can keep the secret from everyone except Stephanie, because she's my wife and I don't really keep secrets from her. I mean, I do, but not the big ones."

"It's cool, you can tell her," Carlito answered. "Thanks again for clearing that up. I knew they were together, and she explained their history, but I just needed to know."

"I understand," Chris said. "Stephanie had a husband before me that she loved, it's the same kind of thing."

"Yeah, cool, cool," Carlito said, thinking about how good Chris and Stephanie were together. If they could get it together after her divorce with Hunter, than surely he and Trish could get it together. He just had to make sure that Christian was happy too, and didn't want to put designs on his fiancée.

That was a thought. If Christian was tied up in some romance, or had someone, that might not make Trish feel so guilty. He knew that Trish had been saddened by what she had to say to Christian. She knew that it was a necessary evil, but she still hadn't wanted to do it, to break Christian's heart. She had her own heavy heart afterwards, and it hurt Carlito to see her hurting. He understood her history with Christian. While it made him nervous sometimes, he just couldn't begrudge her for feeling for him. People were hard to get out of your system when they've been there for so long.

Yet, if Christian were able to move on, then Trish wouldn't have to feel guilty. He loved his fiancée and he wanted her to be completely happy in ever facet of her life. If seeing Christian happy would in turn make her happy, then Carlito was willing to do whatever it took. It wasn't that he was being devious in any way, because he wasn't trying to break them up, but he knew that Trish would like to see Christian have someone like she did, and that kind of set the wheels in motion in his brain.

Chris was practically hurrying down the hallway. He wasn't normally such a gossip, he left that up to other people, but this was juicy news and he couldn't wait to tell Stephanie about it. She was going to be so shocked to hear it. Then she might actually call Trish and they would gab about it all night, and then he'd have to hear about it. He slowed down and thought about that. He didn't want to be up all night hearing about wedding things. He had done that once in his life with Stephanie, and another time, including Trish and everything, that wasn't so fun.

But still, this was juicy and Stephanie should know…unless, again, he should wait for Trish to tell her. Yeah, that seemed like something Trish would want to tell her. Then again, maybe if he kind of persuaded Trish to tell Stephanie, then he wouldn't have to tell her, but then he could tell her he knew, but he'd have to do that quickly so that Stephanie wouldn't think that he was keeping it from her on purpose. So he would have to call Trish now; that seemed like the plan. He went to grab for his cell phone in his back pocket, but found that it wasn't there.

Stephanie heard Chris's cell phone beep again and she got frustrated and grabbed it, looking at it again. She looked up and rolled her eyes, "Britt, remind me to throw this at Chris's head the second that he walks in the door."

"Will do," Britt laughed. "How come he's getting so many messages?"

"They're all from the same person," Stephanie explained, holding her finger up as she listened to his newest voicemail. "They're trying to persuade him to come to the enemy. It's getting kind of relentless."

"Don't they know that he's part owner?"

"I don't know, actually, you'd think they would," Stephanie said. "Oh well, whatever he wants to do, right?"

"I guess," Britt said, "Is there anything else you needed me to do?"

"Not right now, you can go get dinner or something," Stephanie said. "Thanks for taking those notes to the production truck, I don't think they knew that Bischoff was going to be here tonight, so I wanted them to be prepared for that."

"Yeah, well, it's my job to take stuff places, but I'll be back in a while to check up, and I've got my headset."

"Great, thanks," she said, just as Chris walked into the door, "Oh, it's you."

"Wow, that's a greeting," Chris said, smiling at Britt as he came to sit on Stephanie's desk, facing her. "So, where's my son?"

"With his grandparents, my mom came tonight, I didn't even know, but she came tonight and she's with him and yeah, doting," Stephanie said. "I think I heard my father telling my mom that he was going to buy Sawyer a racehorse to race, or something, I don't know."

Chris laughed and leaned down to kiss her, "Hey."

"Hey," she said. "Wherever you been?"

"Around," he shrugged. "Hey, do you want to call Trish and see how she's doing?"

Wow, that was not subtle he realized as soon as it left his mouth and Stephanie picked up on it immediately. "Why should we see how she's doing, we saw her on Friday, and she was fine, I don't think much has changed in the three days between now and then."

"Oh, well, yeah, okay," Chris said, "I just wanted know how the whole moving thing—Carlito and Trish are getting married!"

"What!" Stephanie said, standing up and standing right in front of him. "What did you just say?"

"I couldn't hold it in any longer, I just couldn't," Chris said. "Christian told me because Trish told him first so she wouldn't break his heart, but they've been engaged for at least the past two weeks, who knows how long before that and Christian thought I knew, but I didn't know, did you know?"

"No!" she exclaimed. "I had no idea, I can't believe this, I really can't believe this. I wonder if they're waiting for the right time…oh my God, Trish is getting married, can you believe this, Trish is getting married!"

"I know! Okay, wow, that was a rush," he laughed, gathering her up in his arms. "I'm just surprised she hadn't told us. I think that Carlito is kind of good for her though. I don't know, I see them working out."

"Well, I don't know either," she told him, wrapping her arms around his waist as she gazed at him, "I do know that it's your birthday in a little over a week, and I have no idea what to get you."

"I don't want anything," he told her. "I have everything I need, nothing more. That's it."

"Can I get a certain someone from a certain company to stop bothering the hell out of you and then bothering the hell out of me?" she asked coyly as she looked into his clear eyes. He smiled and they seemed to twinkle as he took in his woman.

"It's bugging you?"

"Very much so, I mean, do they know who you're married to?"

"We aren't exactly very public, are we?" Chris said. "I don't think that many people know about us. We don't go shouting to the world that we're married, we keep it very much on the quiet, because like our privacy."

"Off-screen," she said, pressing her soft lips against his moist ones, seeking out his tongue to make the kiss deeper. They made out for a few moments before she pulled away. "I can't believe that Trish is getting married. Do you think she'll take his last name?"

"What _is_ his last name?" Chris asked.

Stephanie laughed and kissed his cheek, "It's Colón."

"So she's be Trish Colón? Interesting, I could see her taking his name, you took my name after all," Chris said. "Sort of."

"I did, it's just, Stephanie Jericho, doesn't sound good, it sounds like we're speaking of the both of us, and it just doesn't sound good at all," she told him sweetly. "I do love you though, so that should make up for it."

"Oh, okay, sure," he said. "I think this really hurt Christian though. I think that he's definitely going to have a hard time dealing with this. He was so gung ho about trying to win her back, and now he finds out that he pretty much has zero chapter, that's going to be something that's going to take some time."

"Yeah, it is," Stephanie agreed. "But the show is starting in five minutes, and I've got work to do, and wow, I think I need to process this information. I hope she tells us soon so that I can go crazy with her and we can start planning. It's been almost two years since I've gotten to plan a wedding, which means I'll be divorcing you at the two-year mark, and then I'll go looking for my third husband."

"Make sure he likes my kid, okay?" Chris winked, nuzzling his nose against her cheek.

"Oh, I will," she said, pulling away and kissing his cheek before she left him there to stew and think about what was going on with his friends.

His mind wandered back to Christian and he wondered if he was really okay with everything. He grabbed his cell phone, seeing another missed call and ignoring it at the present moment, he flipped open his phone and scrolled down his list of names to get to Trish's home phone number. He pushed the dial button and waited.

"Hello?"

It was Kurt's voice and that threw her for a loop. He cleared his throat a little and spoke, quietly. "Uh yeah, can I speak to, uh, Trish."

"Oh…um, yeah," came Kurt's awkward voice as Chris heard shuffling over the phone.

A few seconds later, Trish was on, "Hey Chris, sorry about that, I didn't expect you to call, and I know that you and Kurt, and I mean, me and Kurt too, he's just…"

"It's okay," Chris said. "I just wanted to talk to you. Uh…I was talking with Christian today and he seemed a little bit upset and I was wondering if you knew about that."

"Other than causing it, no," Trish said, her tone sounding tired. "I can't really deal with that right now, Chris. I mean, I just don't know how to handle this kind of situation. I love Carlito, and I want to be with him, and with Christian, he's just, I don't know, always there, and it's hard to move on when he's in your face. I may have let him down too hard the other week."

"By telling him you're engaged?"

"Oh great, he told?" Trish said, unease in her voice as she closed her eyes. She knew that she was going to tell her friends eventually, but she didn't want them to find out this way. They needed to be prepared for this because it was going to come as a shock to him. She hadn't gotten engaged to Christian in the three years they were together, and yet in a few months with her new boyfriend, she was off getting hitched.

"He thought we knew, I just wanted to make sure that you were happy," Chris explained. "Stephanie and I, we worry about you, you know, it's just a thing that friends do for each other, no biggie."

"I'm good Chris, but…can you keep an eye on Christian, I don't think he's going to be so good."

"Yeah, I'll keep an eye out for him, and you know, you did let him down gently, it was really noble of you to actually go to him first, I have to commend you for that."

"Okay, now you're just being assy," she laughed. "I've got a lot of packing to do, but thanks for calling."

"I wanted to, and Trish?"

"Yeah?"

"Congratulations."

A genuine smile graced her face as she heard those words. Chris was the first person to congratulate her and Carlito on their engagement and it gave her a sense of warmth that no matter what she chose, her friends would be there for her. It was a comfort to know that you could fall back on your friends if everything else went wrong.

"Thanks Chris, bye."

"Bye."

Trish hung up the phone and noticed that Kurt was standing kind of close to her. She turned to him and shrugged, "Oh, uh, you know, he just wanted to talk to me, nothing about you, so don't worry. They don't talk about you behind your back or anything."

"Does…uh, does Stephanie talk about me, ever?" Kurt asked, and he kind of looked like a lost puppy in that moment. Trish knew the circumstances under which Kurt and Stephanie had fought and while she was also mad at Kurt, she was also forced to interact with him, and she might as well talk to him if he asked.

"Do you want the honest answer, or the answer that I know you want to hear?"

"The honest one," Kurt decided quickly.

"She decided to forget about it and move on," Trish said bluntly, which he deserved. After everything that had gone down, Kurt didn't deserve to get the soft, cushiony blow. He deserved the cold, hard facts. "You, more than anyone, know that Stephanie is all about being tough, and she decided that she wasn't going to worry about you anymore. So she's moving on."

"Oh, what would the one I wanted to hear go like?"

"It would've gone something like, 'She misses you terribly and I don't think she's ever going to recover from it.'"

"That does sound better."

"I thought so," she said. "You know, if you just talked to her."

"No, she doesn't understand me, I just wanted to know how she was, I'm not completely heartless you know."

"I know, it's just you're starting to lose it rapidly," she said, before she wandered off to go watch Carlito's match which was slated for earlier in the show. The show was just starting when she got there.

Chris ended up at Stephanie's station and as he got closer, he saw a moving orange blob sitting atop the table. He narrowed his eyes as he got closer and saw that his son, his utterly, impossibly cool son was decked out as a pumpkin, complete with a stem hat and orange socks. Chris walked over and stood next to the table as he stared down at his little boy.

"Why is my son dressed up as a part of the squash family?"

Stephanie looked testily up at her husband. "My parents thought that this is what he should wear to the Halloween party tomorrow. They thought it would be adorable if Sawyer showed up as a little pumpkin."

"You're kidding me, right?" Chris asked. "They want our son to look like this?"

"Yes, they want him to look like this because apparently it's so darn cute," she said, making her voice all high and annoying, almost screechy, but not quite there yet. "I just kept it on him so that you could see the diabolical plan of my parents to make my son look like something that people make pie out of."

"This is horrible," Chris said, picking up Sawyer. "You don't like this, do you kid?" Chris asked, shaking his head and making a frowning face, which Sawyer sweetly reached out and touched, trying to grab his father's jutted-out bottom lip. "No pumpkins for you."

"I told my parents he was coming as a baby, that's a costume right. He can come as a newborn and sleep the whole time and not really do anything. I think that's the costume he should wear, not The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown," she said, rolling her eyes.

Chris set Sawyer down on the ground and looked at him. "Yeah, I can't see this particular pumpkin growing out of anything. He just looks like an orange blob. Hey maybe he'll take over Tokyo."

"No, I don't think—oh my God," Stephanie said, looking down to Sawyer, who was not in the spot they had just left him, but was actually scooting his bottom along the floor, moving himself around. "Chris, look at our baby."

Chris looked and saw Sawyer actually being mobile, "Oh wow, he's like, doing that thing where they just kind of move around on the ground, I read about that somewhere, he's like, two seconds away from crawling. Oh man, our son can almost crawl!"

"You can almost crawl, baby!" Stephanie said, picking up her little pumpkin of a son. 'You know what this means, right?"

"That he wants to run away already because he has two insane parents? He's rebelling against us at six months?"

"No, that he really wants to go to the locker room and change out of this pumpkin outfit because not only is orange not his color, all this padding makes him look fat."

Chris laughed and took Sawyer from Stephanie. "Come on, you orange blob, let's get you dressed into normal clothes so you aren't the laughingstock among all the other babies. Then we'll see how fast you can really scoot that butt across the ground…hey, do you think you could wipe the hardwood floors at home…"

Stephanie laughed and went back to watching the monitor, not even noticing that not moments before, the television had caught something that she might be interested in as Trish's best friend.

Carlito had just been minding his own business, winding down after his match, when Torrie had come up to him. Now, he didn't know if Torrie was oblivious, desperate, or just plain stupid, but for some reason, he thought that because Trish wasn't here tonight, that meant they were automatically not together. It was preposterous that Trish would want to stay home for a night. But no, apparently Torrie saw storm clouds ahead because his fiancée wasn't there with him that week. Not only that, but she seemed, if he wasn't mistaken, to be hitting on her.

The wheels started turning in Carlito's head. Torrie was being sympathetic to him because he thought that he had lost Trish. That meant she would be sympathetic to anyone who was going through a hard time. That included Christian, who was really the one hurting over this Trish thing. If he could somehow get these two together somewhere, then maybe Christian and Torrie would hit it off and he would be happy. Torrie was a nice girl, she was willing to be his shoulder to cry on, and if she was willing that, then she would definitely do it for Christian.

He smirked as he agreed to meet her, which wouldn't be true anyways. He wouldn't meet with her, but he would set-up Christian to meet with her. That way, they could just kind of be together and see what develops. That was a really solid plan and he pat himself on the back for it because it was so very good.

Until his cell phone rang when he got back to his locker room that is and he answered it hastily, seeing Trish's name pop up on the screen. "Hello?"

"Dumping me for another blonde?" she teased.

"No, I figure I can still get some use out of you," Carlito joked. "I actually had a brilliant idea when Torrie was hitting on me."

"Which would be?" Trish prompted.

"I'm going to set-up Christian with someone," Carlito said proudly. "I figured, Torrie was offering, she wouldn't mind if Christian showed up or anything. He's not doing too well, and Torrie could cheer him up."

"Oh Lito," Trish sighed, "That's not going to work. Christian is never going to go for that. He just won't. You're better off dropping this."

"But…I just want him to be happy so that you'll be happy," Carlito explained to her. "I know that you don't like to see him all alone so I thought that maybe he would need a little boost. It's a good idea, Trish."

"I don't doubt that Lito, I'm just saying that Christian is not going to see this as a favor. I think he might see it as something else."

"Like?" Carlito asked. "I'm doing a good deed here, I'm trying to make him happy. That's what you want, so that's I want."

"But he's going to see it as rubbing it in his face," Trish told him. "If he thinks you're doing this, then it'll just make him dislike you more, and that's not good. I don't want bitterness with him."

"I know."

"Please, just leave it alone, Lito, just leave it alone."

"Fine," he said reluctantly.

"Thank you Lito, I love you."

"I love you too," he said, and meant it even though he grumbled. When he put the phone back on the table, his mind was still back to that plan. If he could just get them together, it would at least be something. It didn't even have to be great or like an epic romance. It just had to show Christian that dating was okay. Trish had done it, he could do it too. He wanted Trish to be happy and this seemed to be the only way. So maybe if he secretly screened girls for Christian, then he could help Christian get happy. And in turn, make Trish happy that she didn't have to worry about Christian, and that's all that Carlito wanted right now, that's all that he needed to happen right now. If he had to physically drag Christian on a date, he would do it. But that's just who he was. He loved Trish, and he would do anything for her. Loving her meant helping him. And if that was the case…

So be it.


	111. Snapshots, November 6, 2006

A/N: Once again, just a reminder, I know that they show Christian's wife on TNA, or at least that's the impression I'm under, so yeah, she doesn't exist in this story obviously, so stretch your imagination. ;)

Enjoy and leave a review. :)

* * *

"These are for you."

Trish looked at the bouquet of yellow tulips that had just appeared in front of her face. She grinned at the sight of them and took them from the person standing behind her. She turned around and came face to face with a rather impish looking Carlito. She looked down at the flowers and gently fingered the petal of the flower.

"What is this?" she asked sweetly.

"It means that I'm hopelessly in love with you, I looked it up," he told her with a careless shrug. "I figured they could also be an 'I'm sorry' since you didn't really get to tell your friends that we were getting married."

"It's not your fault they found out, it's nobody's fault," she said. "They were going to find out anyways, I'm glad they found out, saved Stephanie mauling me with congratulations. Besides, I should be getting you flowers since you lost last night and I'm very upset about that."

"I'd rather get you flowers," Carlito assured her.

"So tell me again what exactly you did with Torrie last week, I need to be reassured," Trish said with a soft pout.

"Oh, you don't want to know," he told her with a wink. "I was a very, very bad guy."

"Oh, I find that hard to believe," Trish responded. She wrapped her arms around his neck as she leaned up on her tiptoes to press a short kiss to his lips, her bouquet hanging in her hand. "I don't think you could ever be really bad."

"Oh yes, I could, but only the kind of bad that you'd like," he flirted. She nodded and leaned up to kiss him gently. He got lost in the kiss and held her tighter against him, almost lifting her up completely to compensate for their height difference.

"You were planning something," she mumbled against his lips as she pulled away to look into his dark eyes. He looked away and she prompted his face to look back at her. "Lito, I know what you were doing last week, and I know that you were trying to set up Torrie with Christian and I'm going to say it outright, it's a horrible idea."

"I was just trying to help," he said helplessly.

She gave him a sweet smile, running her thumb over his lips, brushing away the chapstick that she had gotten on them. She pursed her lips a little. She was happy that he was so willing to help someone he didn't need to help. He shouldn't even care about Christian, but he knew that she still cared about him, and he, by extension, was caring about him too. Even if it was a slightly stupid plan, his heart was still in the right place.

"I love what you're trying to do, the thought behind it," she said, then she sighed and turned away. "I just…I don't think that there's anything that you'll be able to do that will help at this point. I don't think you really get what Christian meant to me, Lito, and that's fine, I'm not asking you to understand what happened between us, but I know Christian and I know how he works, and he won't appreciate this."

"I could understand if you told me," he offered. "You know, it doesn't bother me if you talk about him."

"That's sweet, that's what makes you such a great guy, and how I missed that before, I wouldn't know, but you know what, I think that one of these days, I'm going to take you up on that. It all started with a misunderstanding."

"Okay, you have to explain how it was a misunderstanding, just a tease," he told her.

She laughed, "I thought that maybe Chris was the one hitting on me, but yeah, he was with Stephanie at the time, it was silly of me to think he was interested, and that's all there is to it, it was a very, very long time ago."

"Yeah, I know," he told her. "But yeah, one day, we'll definitely get that all out in the open."

* * *

"So what is this? You're going to follow me around now so that I don't self-destruct?" Christian asked. "Because let me remind you, Jericho, this is my turf now, this isn't your turf. I'm the one who's on the offensive with this one."

"Okay, I don't know what that means, first of all, but I never thought you were going to self-destruct, so don't put words in my mouth," Chris said. "This place is going to play my music video so it's not out of the realm of possibility that I would actually want to visit the place. Is that okay with you, since this is your home turf?"

"I was just saying," Christian answered snottily. "I just thought that you were here to watch me and make sure I didn't fall into a fetal position."

Chris scoffed. "You're one of my best friends, dude, but do you seriously think I'm going to be your savior? No, I'm not going to play that role. If I was here for you, I'd be a lot angrier because I could be with my wife and son right now, and not with…you."

"So you're just here to…what? Scope out the joint?"

"That, and I'm going to try to get you a girlfriend or something, you know, just so you don't self-destruct."

That was part of the reason that Chris was here tonight, at the tapings for the enemy; he did want to be here for his friend. It was almost a little bit of a personal flavor. Through the grapevine (okay, it was through his wife), Chris had learned that Trish was a little concerned about Christian. Stephanie had prodded and poked him to just make sure that his friend was okay, and like the pushover that he was when it came to Stephanie, here he was, in enemy territory making sure that Christian was okay.

The other reasons were twofold. The first reason was to gently say that he was flattered by all the attention he was getting from this particular company, but that it was coming on a little too strong and the chances that he would join were going to be slim. He wouldn't rule it out since Chris never ruled anything out, but it was a little hard to think about considering the family that he had married into, and the wife that he adored with everything in him.

The other reason, yes, had to do with Stephanie…again. He couldn't help it if half the things he did were for the love of his woman. Before Stephanie had come into his life, even as a slutty ho, he livened it up and brought in a light to his world that hadn't been there before. Sure, in the beginning, it was a pretty slutty light (a red light perhaps, heh), but now, she had given him things that he never could've anticipated.

The second reason had to do with Kurt. Chris hated the way that he had left things with Kurt, if he had ever really left anything with Kurt. He hadn't spoken to him since before the news broke, since before he had turned his back on his friends and his company. He hadn't spoken to him after the big-blowout with Stephanie. Chris didn't intend to yell at Kurt or curse him out, or anything of that nature. He just wanted to talk, man to man, with his best friend, or the man he used to consider his best friend.

"Come on man, keep up," Christian said from ahead. "I'm not going to wait on your ass all night long."

"Sorry," Chris told him, rolling his eyes. "Please don't tell me this is how I act when you're at Raw."

"You're worse, you act like you own the joint or something," Christian joked.

"Oh very funny, very, very funny."

"Hey, it's the truth. I don't think many guys know that you're married to who you're married to."

"How do people not know?"

"I think it might be the fact that you hid your relationship for, oh, I don't know, almost two years, and then there's the little fact that you and Stephanie are extremely protective of your image outside of the arena. You and Stephanie keep things like Fort Knox when you're not in the arena. I don't think anyone except the people you work with and your friends and family have even seen Sawyer."

"So? Stephanie…she heard people talking shit about the fake kid that she has, and we don't want to hear that kind of crap about the real baby we have," Chris said, still angry that she had even heard that kind of stuff. He didn't like people insulting his wife; it steamed him up enough when he read people talking crap about her on their little sites and what not. People just didn't get Stephanie, and while he didn't blame them for that (she was a complicated woman), he hated that they failed to see past the person she projected. However, he had been one of those people once upon a time, so he could hardly talk.

"Makes sense, I'm just saying, don't be surprised if you get hit on," Christian teased.

"Oh shove it," Chris said, and then he actually shoved Christian over. Christian shoved him back. He held up his left hand. "They'll see the ring."

"Yeah, not unless you hold it up in front of your face, and you're not John Cena."

"Well then I'll politely decline these supposed droves of women who are going to come after me. Besides, you're an eligible bachelor, I'm sure that you have plenty of women going after you, I'll just deflect any from me to you."

"I can't see anyone, there's Tri—nothing…"

Chris stopped as they reached Christian's locker room and opened the door for his friend, who ducked inside embarrassedly. Chris walked in behind him and shut the door, looking at his friend who had decided to busy himself with putting his things in a little locker. Chris knew it was a cover-up, because come on, even a blind person could see it was a cover-up for what he had just said, his Freudian slip. He leaned back against the door, arms folded and regarded his friend and former tag-team partner.

"You still want her, huh?"

"Did you really think I was going to stop?"

"Why are you torturing yourself, man?"

"Because maybe this is what I need to do," Christian snapped, then looked up at Chris apologetically. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't get mad at you, _you _didn't do anything. But seriously, I've got to ask you a serious question, Carlito and Trish getting married, please tell me this is crazy. Please don't make me the only one who thinks this is completely nuts."

Chris shrugged, "It's a little fast, it shocked me and Steph, but seriously…she seems happy, and I'm happy for her if this is what she wants."

"But she dated him for like two seconds before getting engaged!" Christian said, throwing his wrist tape at the wall, watching as it landed on the floor with a thunk. "How could she do that! I proposed to her too!"

"Correction, you yelled at her to marry you," Chris said, wincing as he saw Christian's reaction to that. "Okay, not the best time to bring that up, noted."

"I still proposed, and how the hell did he propose? Huh? Did he buy her flowers, or maybe he made the moon rise for her or something since Carlito is _so_ great, and _so _sweet, and so puke-worthy."

"Okay, hold up there Valley girl, Carlito _has _been good to her," Chris pointed out.

"Oh God, please don't tell me you're on his side."

"I'm on nobody's side," Chris said. "I'm on Trish's side, whichever side is going to make her happy, I'm going to be on that side. Christian, man, yeah, this engagement was really sudden, but she's happy."

"Is she? Maybe she's not, did you think of that?" Christian asked desperately. "We were together for years, Chris, _years_, and she's together with this guy for months, and then she's engaged. I mean, seriously, did I mean absolutely nothing to her?"

Chris hated hearing this because he could hear the slight break in Christian's voice. It was subtle, but it was still there, and Christian was obviously not doing as well as he let on. Chris went over and pat his friend on the back lightly. "I don't think you were ever nothing, man, you were definitely something."

"I would've married her too," Christian confessed, running his hands over his face as if to wash away some sort of haze he had been in. "If she wanted to, I would've married her any time, any place. All she would've had to do was say the word."

"She is happy though."

"God, do you think that makes me feel any better?" Christian wondered. "You know, you hear all this bullshit about just wanting the other person to be happy, well that's a bunch of crap. I don't just want her to be happy, I want her to be happy _with me_! That's how I want her to be happy!"

"So you don't care that she's happy now?"

"Look at it this way, Chris. Stephanie has decided that her four year relationship with you is not worth it, she decides to drop you like a bad habit. History doesn't matter, the fact you have a son doesn't matter, none of that matters. Then some guy swoops in, I don't know, he's different from you, quiet, subdued, maybe he even has a desk job, wears a tie, and then two months later, she's marrying this guy, now you tell me how you'd feel?"

"Okay, point taken," Chris said. "I wouldn't want her to be happy, fine, I get it, but you know what Christian, if you want her, then go the hell out there and get her, but you're going to be in for a fight, he loves her."

"Well I love her too," Christian said. "And I've loved her for a lot longer."

* * *

"Mommy's bored."

Stephanie looked at Sawyer who was sitting across the couch from him. He was sitting there, holding his bottle and watching her. She was taking down notes from the show last night, seeing what seemed to work and what didn't as Sawyer watched her intently, fascinated by his mommy in every possible way. She made a funny face at him and he smiled around his bottle.

"What's so funny?" she asked as he started to grin even wider, his bottle starting to fall out of his mouth a little bit. "Are you laughing at Mommy? Do you think Mommy is funny?"

Sawyer went back to sucking away happily on his bottle as Stephanie went back to watching the show in front of her. She was missing her husband tonight since he was in Orlando and she was here, very far away in Ohio. He was going to be able to sleep at home tonight while she and Sawyer were stuck in the hotel. But Chris had things he needed to do and she had been the one to poke him in that direction so she had to sleep in the bed she had made.

"Hey baby boy, what do you think Mommy should get Daddy for his birthday, you know, it's coming up in a few days, and Mommy's at a loss," Stephanie said, knowing that Sawyer would offer her no real constructive advice. "Well, you think about that and get back to me, okay? We'll make sure that Daddy has a very good day even though he says that just being with us is good enough. Daddy's so corny, huh baby boy?"

Sawyer laughed at this, dropping his bottle from his mouth, letting the milk seep out the side of his mouth and fall down his chin. Stephanie groaned and reached down to wipe his mouth with the bib he was wearing. She dreaded having to feed him some cereal later because his favorite activity was seeing how much food he could get on his face and how little food he could actually get in his mouth.

The door burst open and she saw an old enemy in front of her and she glared, "What the hell do you want, Bischoff?"

"Well Stephanie, it's _so_ nice to see you," Bischoff said, pretending to be happy to see her. She had managed to avoid him all of last night, and that was definitely a feat since he made his mug seem like it was all over the place in the few times he'd been back. "You know, since I've been coming to the show, I haven't gotten to catch up with you."

"And I'm extremely happy about that, so let's keep that streak going and you can get the hell out of my office."

"Oh Stephanie, I thought we were friends, this isn't being very friendly, you haven't even introduced me to this young man right here," Bischoff said, gesturing towards her son, who was looking up at him curiously. Stephanie rolled her eyes at the insincerity of Bischoff's voice. It was grating on her last nerve.

"That's just another in the long line of McMahons who can't stand your guts," Stephanie said dryly. "So seriously, what the hell are you doing here, Bischoff? I'm busy with work and I don't need your face interrupting me."

"Are you saying I distract you? Stephanie, you're married," Bischoff said smoothly and Stephanie made gagging noises at that.

"Say what you have to say, and then get out," Stephanie told him.

"Your father appointed me General Manager for the night, so you're my employee."

"Leave it to my dad to think of the worst things ever," said Stephanie sarcastically and with a glib smile. "Sometimes, I swear the man is going senile."

"I'm sure he'd love to hear that."

"Look, so you're the GM for one night, big deal, I don't care, do what you have to do, and just let me know ahead of time."

"Yeah, see, that's the thing, I don't really have to go through you," Bischoff said. "In fact, it might be the best idea to just…oh, I don't know, let you go for the evening. Wouldn't it be nice of me to let you have the night with your son? Damn Eric, when you are on, you are _on_."

"I'm not going anywhere, Bischoff. You think that just because you're back for one night, you get automatic reign, uh uh, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho is here to stay, and things may go through you tonight, but let's not forget who runs things around here," she told him, picking up her son. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got better things to do than look at someone who _used_ to have power."

* * *

Trish grabbed an empty cup to get herself a coffee, letting the liquid pour into the cup, steaming hot. She had been up late last night with Carlito and she was starting to feel herself winding down and a cup of coffee was just what she needed. She grabbed a milk and two sugars, putting it in her coffee as she began to stir it idly, wondering if Stephanie was around. She had said she was going to bring some more wedding magazines for her to look at.

As she was contemplating this, Torrie came over to get her own cup of coffee and was surprised to see Trish there. "Trish, I wasn't…expecting to see you."

"Oh, well, here I am," Trish said, taking a sip of her coffee. "The company makes the best coffee so I thought I'd drop by."

Torrie gave up an obligatory and forced laugh. "I just didn't think you were going to be traveling anymore."

"And why not? I came to see my boyfriend, Carlito," Trish said, referring to Carlito as her boyfriend since she and Carlito didn't want the word to get out right now. There friends knowing was one thing, but the entire world knowing was an entirely different thing they wanted to avoid for now.

"Oh, boyfriend?" Torrie asked. "I didn't know you two were still dating."

"Well, you know, just having fun."

"Having…fun, interesting…well, see you, Trish."

Torrie's face dropped the nice act the minute she turned away from Trish. She had no idea that the two of them were still dating. Carlito had just taken her out for dinner the other week. She had enjoyed spending time with him, she had fun with him and wanted to do it again. He and Trish weren't exclusive, Trish had just said they were just having fun. Well, she knew that Carlito could have a lot more fun with her, and she was now determined to make him feel the same exact way.

Trish rolled her eyes as she sat down at a table to sip at her coffee and just watch the people go by. She was completely unaware that Torrie was seeking out Carlito at this very moment to turn on her charms for him. If Carlito could fall for one blonde, he was sure to succumb to another. Of course, Carlito on his end, was just being friendly with her, and then trying to get on her good side for when he was inevitably going to hand her over to Christian. Okay, that sounded wrong, he wasn't going to hand her over, but nudge her into his direction.

* * *

Christian sat on the bench in his locker room, mentally preparing for his match later against Rhyno, but it was impossible. Trish was on the brain. But then again, when wasn't Trish on his brain. She was always there, and he was finding it harder and harder to concentrate. He knew once he was in the ring, she would be pushed back, relegated to the back of his brain, but right this moment, there she was. He couldn't escape her and he wasn't sure that he ever wanted to escape her. When you meet that one person that you're supposed to be with, you have to try. He had to try, it just wasn't an option for him anymore to not go after what he wanted.

And he had always wanted Trish.

Chris was off somewhere, probably telling the management team that he was married to Vince McMahon's daughter and thusly wouldn't really fit into the scheme for their show so he was left on his own. It was just him and his damning thoughts. It was frustrating being so far away from Trish while he could be doing something proactive, something productive in his journey to get her back. He couldn't give up now, he had to stay strong and push for it even stronger. He needed to be at Raw the next week, he had to be. He needed to see Trish, but he had to be subtle about this.

He couldn't just jump right in; he had to be in just the right frame of mind to do this. He could scare her off otherwise, and he didn't need or want that to happen. No, he just had to play it cool, wait for the right moment, and get the love of his life back. That's what he had to do. There was no other choice. He couldn't live without her, and if he had to run down the aisle at her wedding, he was prepared to do so.

He wasn't letting her go without a fight.

* * *

Chris leaned back against the wall and reached for his cell phone. The backstage of this show had a different vibe than what he was used to. It was kind of a new vibe, not in the sense that he had never felt it before, but in the sense that it seemed fresh in a new way, like it was just getting to that fever pitch point, but hadn't reached it quite yet. It was nice, but not altogether what he felt he needed. He pressed the familiar button to call a familiar person and waited, waving at a few people he knew as they passed by.

"Beh eg twi govo," came the voice who picked up the phone.

"Hey, what are you doing answering Mommy's phone?" Chris asked, hearing a voice he knew too well.

"He's being a little monster is all," Stephanie said as she took the phone from her baby and held it like a normal phone. "What's up sweetie?"

"Just wanted to call you."

"Is this considered spying? Are you spying for me now, going to give me the dirt?"

"You're prettier than every woman I've seen here," he told her impishly.

"You're sweet, and of course I am," she said. "You married me, didn't you?"

"True, true, so Sawyer is being a monster, what else is new?"

"Nothing, other than Bischoff is running the show and you know how much he hates me, so he's relegated me to getting his coffee. I swear, the man has it out for me. He wants to slowly break me down, Chris, he's going to make me have a nervous breakdown."

"No you're not, you're Stephanie freaking McMahon-Jericho, you don't let people like Bischoff make you quake in your heels, you're the one who makes other people quake, that's just how it is."

"True," she nodded. "Sawyer keeps trying to grab the phone, here, talk to him."

Chris waited for the shuffling to end and for him to hear the babbling of his son. He smiled thinking about that little blond-haired, blue-eyed monster that he loved. "Hey there kid, what's going on? Are you taking care of Mommy while I'm gone like I told you to? What? Are you kidding me, Mommy almost beat up Bischoff, and I wasn't there? Yeah, you are lucky. I miss you though, but I'll see you tomorrow."

Chris heard more shuffling and then Stephanie groaning in annoyance. "I just another page from Bischoff, I'm to fetch his dinner…if you read about a murder in Columbus tomorrow morning, call my lawyers okay, I'm going to use my one phone call on something else."

"Will do, baby, will do." Chris hung up and saw Rhyno sitting there and decided to go over and say hello. "Hey Rhyno, man, how goes it?"

"Chris, hey, nice to see you," Rhyno said, standing up and shaking his hand. "I haven't seen you in a long time, what are you doing here?"

"I'm here with Christian, who I know you have a match against, but hey, I don't have bad blood with you, unless you want to put me through another screen or something."

"Oh please, you with your being too good for wrestling now," Rhyno laughed. "I've heard about your music and acting gigs, plays, Groundlings, totally too good for us riff-raff now. I mean, come on, what do you need with us wrestlers?"

"Well, my wife is kind of you know, in the business, so I stick around."

"How is Stephanie, by the way? Man, we had some good times together," Rhyno laughed, thinking back to when Stephanie had been in his corner.

Chris raised an eyebrow. "Why did you just make that sound like you had slept with her?"

"I didn't, trust me," he told him. "I just wanted to know how she was, she was one of the few people I met there that I could say I liked."

"She's good, well, not right now so much, Bischoff is in charge over there tonight and that makes Stephanie very angry."

"Yeah, I bet, oh, yeah, I heard you had a little boy, congratulations on that."

"Thanks," Chris grinned. "He's pretty much my best friend, awesome, awesome kid. Sawyer's his name."

"Nice name, so are you thinking about signing over here?"

"Well, as flattering as the about 7000 calls I've gotten regarding that, I don't think this is the right time for me to return to wrestling, and when that time does come, I'm not sure that this place is where I want to be. I'm not ruling it out or anything, gotta keep everyone on their toes, but right now, it's not going to happen."

"I understand, it would be weird, your wife is Stephanie McMahon."

"Yeah, that's what I'm saying, but not too many people know that, or so I'm told so I don't know, I guess I'm going to have to clear up some things with some people. It's cool around here though, you know, I could come visit more often or something."

"Are you sure you aren't a spy for your wife?"

"See, she doesn't care, she's cool like that, it's my father-in-law that I'd worry about, he's the one who's slightly off his rocker. He asked, believe me, but I'm not giving in to Vince, I'm not married to the man."

Rhyno laughed, "Well, it's been great catching up with you, but I've got to get ready for this damn match I have, but good luck with everything, especially Stephanie, she's a bit much."

"Lord I know," Chris laughed as he watched Rhyno wander off, muttering to himself to get himself psyched up for his match. Chris chuckled to himself as he thought about the feuds that he had with Rhyno back in the day. It was funny now to think about why he had been feuding with Rhyno in the first place. Like many things in the first half of Chris's WWF/E career, it all led back to one thing, or one person rather, Stephanie. Most of the things he did in those first few years had to do directly with her, or for her, and he knew that she was going to be the driving factor for him for the rest of their lives.

That was when he saw Kurt.

* * *

Trish caught up with Carlito before his match, wrapping her arms around him and ducking under his arm. "Hey there."

"Hey," she responded. "I just wanted to wish you luck, you are going to be so awesome out there, I can feel it."

"You always seem to believe in me," he told her, making an observation that was rather obvious.

"Well, that's what you do with someone you love, silly, or do I have to outline that for you again?" she asked playfully.

"No, no, I think I've got it, I'll just put it up here," he told her, pointing to his head. "I've got it stored away, don't worry. You teach me so much, Trish Stratus."

"As do you, Carlito Colón," she said, trying to sound all serious, but failing completely as she grabbed his head with both her hands and brought his face down so that she could kiss him. He pulled her closer by the hips, but she didn't release his face from her hands as she continued to kiss him. She moaned softly against his mouth, getting into the kiss before he had to pull away.

"I have a match," he whispered, leaning his forehead against hers.

"I know, that was for luck later," she explained to him. "It had to be extra long because your match isn't up yet and you need that luck to last, buddy. I don't want a repeat of last night. You really should've won though. I mean, you with that belt around your waist, talk about sexy."

"I do what I can," he told her. "Hey, wait, does this mean I'm not sexy when I don't have the belt?"

"Well, it depends," she winked as she pulled away from him completely, leaving a little space in between them now. If she was close to him for any longer, she was bound to jump him right now and then drag him back to their locker room.

"Not cool, not cool at all," he told her with a smirk. She just shrugged and hugged him again. She just loved when she was around Carlito. He made her feel happy in ways she hadn't felt for a really long time. And every day it got better; every day that she was with him seemed to be so much better than the last. It was like that song: she loved him more today than yesterday, but not as much as tomorrow. She liked that every day brought a new adventure for them, a new surprise. She liked it, she liked it so much.

* * *

He wasn't sure if he spotted Kurt first or if Kurt spotted him first. IN the end, it was inconsequential as they both stood there. It was high noon at the O.K. Corral, or at least that's what it seemed like. Chris half-expected the cliché western music to start playing and the obligatory tumbleweed to roll by. But he wasn't a cowboy and he didn't have a six-shooter. He was just standing there looking at his former friend. His former _best_ friend if he wanted to be exact.

Chris may not have known who saw whom first, but he was the first one to go over to where Kurt was. He stood there for a moment, staring down his best friend and the tension was thick. Chris nodded a little bit, giving him the once-over, and Kurt did the same. Chris didn't know whether to stick his hand out to shake or what. He was totally unsure and that was strange because this man had been the best man at his wedding, had been there the day after he brought home his son from the hospital, had been the first one to even know about his son, and had been the first one to know about him and Stephanie so long ago.

"Hi," Chris said, and for all the world he felt like he was talking to an ex-girlfriend or something.

"Hey," Kurt nodded. "Long time, no see."

"Not that long."

"How is…everyone?"

"Everyone is fine," Chris answered succinctly. "How about we go catch up?"

"Yeah, cool, that's fine, my match isn't until the main event," Kurt informed him and Chris followed him to his locker room. Once inside, Chris sat down.

"So how've you been?" Chris asked, and asked in such a way that Kurt felt offended.

"And what is that supposed to mean? Are you here to check up on me?" Kurt said, something inside of him snapping.

"Look man, that's not what I came here to discuss, if you want to pollute your body, go right ahead. Been there, done that, and I'm never going back to that. Sorry, but I kind of like being around."

"Oh, so now I'm just automatically the bad guy here because of that?"

"No, I'm not painting you out to be the bad guy, I just want to know where the hell my best friend went? You see, I knew this guy who was funny and cool, and he seems to have been replaced by this pod person, so you know, when you return, let me know."

"Oh yeah, you're not painting me out as the bad guy, yeah, sure, that's it," Kurt scoffed. "You are painting me out to be the bad guy."

"By worrying about you! Oh, sorry, Kurt, I'm _so_ sorry that I was worried about your health, I'm so sorry that I would want you to be able to freaking walk when you're older, oh, I'm sorry I want you to have some goddamn feeling in your left arm, that's all! But I'm _so_ sorry for that."

"Oh get off your high horse, Jericho, I'm fine!"

"You're not fine!" Chris argued.

"You're just as bad as your goddamn wife," Kurt snapped at him, which in turn, snapped something inside of Chris.

"What did you say?"

"That maybe she needs to mind her own business," Kurt said, but didn't know what he was saying. He was just so angry, so in the moment that he got carried away. He would never normally say these things about Stephanie, but his frustration had gotten the better of him.

"Don't you ever, and I mean _ever_ talk about my wife that way again or I swear to God, I will make you eat dirt!" Chris told him. "I'm sorry that I wanted to come here and clear the air with you, maybe find some common ground. I'm sorry that I was actually worried about your sorry ass. And to think, you were my best man, and my kid freaking loved you. You're not the man I used to know Kurt, and that's sad. I would never wish injury on you, ever, and I hope that you stay okay man, seriously, I hope you stay okay. But I hope that your attitude and your ego takes a goddamn beat-down, and you know what we feel like. Stephanie was worried about you, nothing more. She didn't care where you ended up, not really, she just wanted to see you healthy, and so did I, and so did Trish, and Christian, hell, I'm sure Sawyer wanted to see you healthy too. But if you refuse…you know what, it's not even worth it."

"Whatever," Kurt muttered, turning away from Chris.

"Yeah, whatever, exactly," Chris said to him. He opened his mouth to speak, but couldn't find the words to say. He went towards the door and then found his voice again. He grabbed the doorknob, looked back at his friend and wondered what had happened to jade him so much. Maybe it was nothing, maybe it was everything, he didn't know. Maybe nobody had seen this change coming and that's why it was so abrupt. Or maybe it had happened overnight and they had just been unable to stop it. Chris only knew one thing right now, and that was the thing he had to say. Before leaving, he threw out a simple sentence that put forth everything he was thinking, what they were all thinking.

"We just want Kurt back."


	112. Birthdays and Schemes, November 13, 2006

**THURSDAY**

Birthdays when you're older seem to take on less significance. Sure, they're still great and people still acknowledge you, but when you're a kid, a birthday is something exciting, a day that needs to be revolved around. When Sawyer had his first birthday next May, Chris was going to make sure that he had one of the best birthdays ever for a birthday he'd probably never remember. But today, Chris's birthday, just wasn't as important as that day.

That's probably why Stephanie wasn't waking him up.

Usually she would do something like kissing his chest or his mouth, or whispering something in his ear and as he lay there with his eyes closed and a simple smile on his face, he figured that she would be there any second…any second now and she would be waking him up, thanking God that thirty-six years ago, on this very day, he was born. Yes, he could always count on Stephanie to do something to start off his day right.

Except he lay there and nothing happened.

He opened his eyes and looked up at the ceiling, frowning. Stephanie usually did something to wake him up. He was getting a little upset that she had forgotten or something. He turned to his side, and instead of finding Stephanie, he found that her space on the bed was occupied, but it wasn't occupied by Stephanie. He smiled and lay there, knowing that this was a different way to wake up, but it was waking up with Stephanie all the same. Well, at least a part of Stephanie.

For Sawyer was lying on his side, asleep, with a Manitoba Moose t-shirt and a diaper on. Chris laughed and then saw that Sawyer was also wearing a bib that said, "Happy Birthday Daddy!" on it. Chris shook his head and scooted down on the bed until he was face-to-face with his sleeping son. He reached out to grab his little boy's hand, causing him to wake up.

"Hey there, kid, where's your mommy?" Chris asked softly as Sawyer yawned and looked up at him with those baby blues, "You don't know where she went, she just dropped you off here and thought she could leave you with me?"

"No, of course not, I just figured you wouldn't mind waking up to one cute mug to replace my cute mug," Stephanie said, holding a steaming cup of coffee in her hands as Chris sat up in bed, stretching his arms over his head. She handed over the cup of coffee, and he took it gratefully.

"Thanks," he said, taking that first wonderful sip as Stephanie picked up Sawyer from where he was laying and held him to her.

"You're welcome," she responded, then said, "Happy Birthday. I've been trying to teach Sawyer how to say Happy Birthday, but the best I could do was getting him to say beh, which will just have to suffice for now."

"Thanks," he told her, leaning forward and kissing her good morning. She kissed him back briefly before he pulled away and kissed Sawyer's cheek. "Thanks to you too. I love the shirt by the way."

"I thought you might, hometown pride, right sweetie?"

"You're getting it," he told her with a smile, glad that he was going to get to spend the day with only the two of them. That's how he wanted to spend every birthday from now on, with the both of them.

"So I'm packed, and I packed for my guys, so get dressed or we'll miss our flight."

"Our what?"

"You don't think that Sawyer's wearing this shirt for no reason. We're going to the Moose game tomorrow," Stephanie told him. "I paid for everything. We've got the plane tickets, the hockey tickets, and so get dressed and we're going back to Winnipeg."

"Steph, you didn't have to do this…"

"Don't say crap like that," she teased. "It's not a big deal, it's not like I got you a fancy hotel or anything, we're going to be staying at your parent's house. They're coming to the hockey game too, we haven't seen them since Sawyer was like, two months old so I'm sure they're anxious to see him, and if you play your cards right, I might even miss the show Monday for you."

"To stay at my home?"

"For you, anything," she told him, kissing him again as he smiled against her mouth. She mumbled against his lips, "Now go get dressed so we don't miss our flight, I'm going to get the baby ready."

Chris sat there as Stephanie rushed out of the room and down to Sawyer's nursery. He had to smile to himself over what she was doing. Chris knew that Stephanie hated hockey, and yet she was willing to pay for his entire family to go, including herself, and that was quite the sacrifice. She never needed to be extravagant when it came to him, but it still made something inside his stomach stir that this woman who he had loved for the past four years could still surprise him.

He got out of bed though, knowing that if she walked back in here and he wasn't ready she would start to get angry with him, and that was the last thing that he needed on his birthday. He wanted a good day, just a calm couple of days before Raw and the storm that was sure to follow. He hadn't yet told Stephanie about his confrontation with Kurt. He wasn't sure he wanted Stephanie to know the things that Kurt had uttered about her, because even though it wasn't that bad, this was her former best friend saying them, someone she had trusted through her darkest days.

"Chris! Come on!" Stephanie said from the doorway, and though she was impatient, she said it with a smile because it was his birthday and she was excited to see her plan come to fruition. She wanted to make his birthday special for him, and if she had to be super-nice to him today, then she was willing to do that.

"I'm going, I'm going," he told her with a laugh as he went into their closet to find some comfortable airplane clothes. Stephanie came to the doorway, like she wanted to make sure that he was getting dressed, "Stephanie, I'm not Sawyer, I think I'm capable of getting dressed by myself."

"I know, I just want you to get dressed so we can go."

"I was going to go naked on the plane, damn," Chris said and Stephanie grabbed a sock from the pile and threw it at his head. "Hey, you can't throw things at me on my birthday!"

"Well, I'm trying to make this a good birthday for you, and you're running late," she pouted.

Chris pulled on a pair of jeans and hopped his way over to Stephanie, making Sawyer laughed as he kissed his wife, "No pouting in my birthday, baby, or else I'll leave you behind and enjoy everything that you set up for me without you."

"You are mean, you know that," Stephanie told him, grabbing another sock to throw at him. He walked over to her and grabbed her wrist, kissing her before she could throw anything at him. He pulled away and leaned down to kiss Sawyer's head.

"Thank you for this though," he told her, his voice sincere and his smile reaching his eyes. "You really didn't have to do any of this. Really."

"I know," she shrugged. "I know that over the years that we've been together, our birthdays have become less and less…surprising, I guess is the way it can be described, and maybe ten years from now, we'll only get each other cards and gift certificates to like, Red Lobster or something, but you know, it's nice to do something nice for the person you love."

"Thanks Hallmark card," Chris told her, and she hit him in the arm. "Seriously, the abuse on my birthday is not cool."

"Well, stop insulting your wife on her birthday," Stephanie told him. "I didn't know what else to do for you. I mean, I really did just go all out on your first birthday with us together. Nothing can ever top that."

"Well…no, that as a really good birthday," he said, thinking back to that birthday. "I got your heart on that one. Nothing is quite as good as getting your heart."

Stephanie blushed and Chris loved to see it as he kissed her increasingly red cheeks. She shied away from him and turned to go grabbed Sawyer's diaper bag so they could go. Chris grabbed a t-shirt, pulling it on as he tucked his loose hair over his shoulders and took one last look around the bedroom to make sure that everything was okay before leaving, no loose wires or anything. Satisfied, he walked out of the room and followed his wife down the stairs.

He wondered briefly, while they were on the plane, if this was kind of her way of getting over Kurt. He knew it was kind of silly to think that, because it _was_ his birthday, but a part of him thought it nonetheless. She was throwing herself headfirst into the notion that it wouldn't take that long to get over her friendship with Kurt. While he knew, first-hand, that Stephanie's life was pretty damn fulfilling, one of the things you couldn't just readily replace was a best friend. Those were pretty hard to come by a lot of the time, especially one that would stick with you even when you turned into a horrible jerk. Stephanie had been willing to stand by Kurt through everything and he had thrown that back in her face, and then he had thrown Chris's gesture in his face.

He looked over to Stephanie, who was sleeping on the plane, probably because she had woken up at the crack of dawn to pack everything for the three of them. He reached out to brush a piece of hair away from her face. He had promised himself once upon a time, when he thought he could always be her knight-in-shining-armor, that he would protect her and make sure that she was never sad. He knew that it was an unrealistic promise, something that he could never realistically realize because the world isn't the kind of place that will always be gumdrops and lollipops, but still, he had wanted to try.

Before he met Stephanie, in the years when he had hated her, he had failed to see what was really going on. Call it ignorance, call it arrogance on his part that he could read this woman like a book, but regardless, he hadn't seen anything about who she really was. She wasn't the same woman now that she was then. She had matured into this…wonderful person, who was still with flaws, but who had so tightly captured his heart and he never wanted to see her get upset or be down about something.

Part of his felt like he had failed her. But maybe it was Kurt that had failed her in the end, and he was just along for the ride. How could he have prevented this? There had to have been some way he could've prevented the way her voice shook and her eyes watered when she had told him the fight that she and Kurt had that had effectively ruined their friendship. He couldn't think of a way now, and he had promised himself, so vehemently, that he hated that he could do anything about this. He had tried last Monday, tried to find some common ground with Kurt, only to find that his best friend had gone MIA on him.

He looked down at Sawyer, who was happily playing with a picture book, as he slapped it in his hands. He felt his daddy's eyes on him, and leaned back to look up at him. Chris smiled down at him and rubbed his head, causing the little boy to smile up at him. Chris made a funny face, making him laugh as he picked him up and held him close to him. He felt Sawyer lean his cheek against his and he grinned.

"I think Mommy's the most beautiful girl in the world, what's your take on this?" Chris asked the little guy. Sawyer slapped his hand on Chris's mouth, causing him to laugh. "Oh, you agree then, cool, I think we lucked out, don't you?"

Before Sawyer could react to that, the pilot was announcing their descent and he started to put Sawyer's things away before shaking Stephanie lightly. She snorted as she woke up, and Chris held in his chuckle at hearing that. She stretched her arms and hit Chris right in the jaw. She covered her open mouth with her hand and gave him a guilty look.

"Gee, thanks, I'm loving this birthday," Chris told her. She rubbed his jaw where she had hit him. He shook his head at her, and she smiled genuinely back at him. He had to smile back at that because if only for one weekend, their problems and their friends problems would be on the backburner.

They were down in baggage claim getting their things when Chris was the first to hear the squeal. He turned around and saw his mother rushing over like he was on fire and she had to put him out. Of course, he knew that she wasn't the one that she wanted to see, but he could live with that. For the rest of her life, he'd never be the first person she'd want to see again. She came over with outstretched arms and went straight towards…him, surprisingly.

"There's my little birthday boy," Loretta said, pinching Chris's cheeks.

"Mom, you're embarrassing me," Chris blushed, glancing over at the laughing Stephanie, who ceased her laughter when she saw him looking at her. He gave her a dirty look as his mother gave him a hug.

"I'm sorry, but you're thirty-six now, when the heck did that happen?" she asked. "I remember when you were just a little boy, always reading your books, even in the pool, he'd be reading. I just miss that little boy who would always want to hang around me."

"Mom, come on," Chris said, hugging her back, and holding her to him. "It's cool, I'm still your baby, right?"

"Oh, always, you were my only child, of course you're always going to be my baby," Loretta said. "Well, my son at least, because I have a new baby who I've only gotten to see pictures of for the past four months."

"Well, I know who this weekend is going to be about," Chris teased. "Go ahead, Mom, I know that I'm old news."

"Well, not old news, it's just I've already read that news," she said, going over to Stephanie, who was holding Sawyer in her arms. "Oh my God, he looks so much like Chris did when he was that age. You would think they were twins if I compared pictures."

"Thanks Loretta," Stephanie joked. "Nice to know that he doesn't look at all like my son."

"Well, he definitely has your chin," she said, "May I hold him?"

"Of course you can, he's your grandson," Stephanie said, handing Sawyer over to his grandma, even though he was a little unsure about going into someone else's arms. He looked over to Stephanie, his lip quivering a little bit, but she made a funny, pouty face and he laughed at it, loving that his mommy was so funny.

"Oh, he's laughing!" Loretta said, holding him in her arms. "Hello there sweetie, it's grandma. You're so heavy. You've grown since the last time I saw you, you were just a little baby. You're so handsome."

"Are you ready to go?" Ted asked as he wandered over. "Who is that?" he said pointing to his grandson. "That looks way too big to be my grandson."

"He's so handsome, isn't he Ted? Doesn't he look like Chris?"

"You know, he really does. It's hard to tell from the pictures, but he really looks like Chris when he was a baby. Now are we ready to go?"

"We're ready to go," Stephanie said, grabbing her suitcase from the conveyor belt and following her husband and his family out of the airport and to the car.

It was later that evening, and they had just come back from dinner when Chris spotted something in the back of his house. They weren't going to the hockey game until tomorrow, but Stephanie had still given him a card this evening, with a heartfelt message inside of it. But as they were pulling into the house, he saw what appeared to be floodlights, or something very bright emanating from his backyard.

"What the hell is that? Is someone having a party or something…oh shit, no, Steph, are _we_ having a party?" Chris asked.

"No," Stephanie told him. "I didn't plan a party. Loretta, would you mind putting Sawyer to bed?"

"Of course not, I'd love to put my little grandbaby to bed, you can help me, Ted," Loretta said.

They got out of the car and Stephanie grabbed Chris's hand and started to lead him to the fence on the side of the house. Chris looked at her, confused, and wondering just what she had come up with. He didn't want anything extravagant, he had already told her that. If she had done something extravagant, he was going to kick her cute butt for going all out when he had asked her not to.

"Stephanie, where are we going?"

"We're going skating," she told him slyly.

"Skating? Huh, where are we going skating? There's nowhere to go skating unless we go to the public skating rink."

"Oh, you'd be surprised," she told him as she opened the gate in the fence and pulled him back there.

"Steph…oh wow."

In his parent's backyard, Stephanie had hired some people to construct a temporary ice skating rink. He looked at it in awe, and saw two pairs of skates sitting by the rink. It wasn't huge, but it was enough to get some decent skating going on. His parents had a rather large backyard, and he wondered when she had time to even set this up. This could not have been a spur-of-the-moment type of thing.

"You like?"

"This is pretty awesome."

"It's just a little thing," Stephanie said. "Just while we're here, I thought it might be cool. Tomorrow, when Sawyer's up, we could let him like, sit on it or something."

Chris laughed. "Yeah, I guess he could…sit on it."

"So come on, let's go skating," she told him, pulling him over to the skates, scooping hers up and handing Chris his. His were hockey skates and they were brand new. He looked over at her, but she wasn't looking at him as she stuck her right foot in her right skate. He had been saying that he needed new hockey skates because his old ones were getting a little ratty, and without saying anything, she had gotten him new skates.

"Thanks," he whispered.

"For what?" she asked, but knew full well what he was thanking her for. He shook his head and went to put on his skates as Stephanie deftly laced up her skates and stepped onto the ice. Chris watched her for a second as she twirled with ease.

"How are you so good at that?"

"We've never been skating before?" she wondered, thinking back to their time together.

"I've been skating, with you, never. You know how to skate?"

"I took lessons when I was a little girl," she said, spinning around. "I got pretty good at it. My parents thought that I should do all the little girl things, you know, ice skating, dance, gymnastics, I did it all baby."

"Nice," he said, getting up and getting on the rink. "This is so awesome. Remind me again why we can't have our own ice skating rink?"

"Because we live in Florida," she reminded him as she skated away from him, balancing on one leg. "We can't have a rink in Florida."

"Okay, now you're just showing off," he said, skating over to her quickly and then stopping on a dime. "Did you tell my parents about this?"

"No, Chris, I just set this up without their permission. Of course I asked," she said, skating in circles around him. "I just wanted to do something nice, you know, fun. It seems like we hardly get to have fun anymore. Remember when we first started dating and we would do stupid things like jump on the bed, or go bowling? We never do that anymore."

"We also have a six-month old baby, and jobs that require us to travel," he told her. "We have things that we have to do and we don't have time for that stuff anymore."

"Sad, don't you think?" she asked him. "I just thought we could go back to that. I kind of miss that Stephanie and Chris. The only thing we had to worry about was people finding out about our relationship."

"So you're saying that you would want to go back to hiding our relationship? I think that's going to be difficult, what with the kid that we share…"

"Not that," she giggled. "Things were just…they were different. And not to say that now isn't as good, it's equally as good. I just kind of thought we could capture some of that."

"Well, we also used to have tons of sex."

"We _still_ have tons of sex," Stephanie said. "Um, we've been making up for those six weeks I couldn't have sex, and I think we've more than made up for that."

Chris smirked, "Oh yeah, that is good."

"This is fun though, right?" she asked as she grabbed his hands. "You're having a good birthday weekend?"

"I'm having a good birthday weekend," he concurred. He pulled her towards her. "But I only needed you here to make it a good birthday."

"Wow, you are so cheesy, Mr. Jericho," she said, leaning in towards him.

Chris let his lips, touch hers, but barely, "Because you bring out the cheese in me, Mrs. Jericho."

"I do? Well, I'm going to have correct that," she told him, leaning in that extra half an inch and kissing him sweetly, their breaths floating around their heads in a cloud of white dust from the cold air. "I love you."

"I love you too, maybe more," he told her.

"I'd dispute that," she told him, kissing him again. As they were kissing, they started to feel something cold on their faces. Chris pulled away and looked up and saw that it was starting to snow, the small white flakes floating down from the dark sky (and it was snowing in Winnipeg, look it up if you don't believe me!). Chris scoffed a little bit, looking down at his wife.

"Now please don't tell me you planned _this_," said Chris, holding his hand out to catch a few snowflakes in his hand.

"Well, I told you I have connections," she joked, but just pulled him closer by his belt loops. "See, the powers that be decided to help me out with this one. Didn't take much persuading…just my soul."

"You had one of those?"

She slapped his chest as the snow continued to fall around them. "So next year, I'm getting you a gift certificate to like, Red Lobster."

"I'm looking forward to it."

**MONDAY**

"And here I thought that I had gotten rid of you last week."

"Well Lita, you just weren't that fortunate."

"Oh, too bad," Lita said as she filed her nails in her dressing room, waiting for Edge to get back from his little strategy session with Randy for later that evening. She was bored and tired of Christian hanging around. She knew why he was here, everyone knew why he was here, and she found it to be profoundly pathetic.

He just couldn't accept the fact that Trish was in a relationship with another man. It was so sad, the entire thing, and not sad in the way that she was going to be sympathetic towards him, it was sad in the way that it made her bored to tears. She didn't need to see the love life of someone she couldn't stand and her boyfriend's brother. She had been through her own experience with Matt, and she had forgotten about him, left him in the dust. Trish had done the same thing, and there shouldn't be any pining away. It was just the wrong route to take.

"Look, I'm not even getting in your way."

"Don't you need a pass to get into the show?"

"Yeah, so what?"

"Well, don't you use your brother to get that pass? What if I wanted to have one of my friends come to the show, but they can't because your sorry ass has to come every damn week."

"Come on now, Lita, let's not lie," Christian shot back. "You don't have any friends."

Lita gave a sarcastic laugh, "Oh, you slay me, Christian. But seriously, why don't you stop being a mooch off your brother because you want to see your woman…oh wait, that's right, she's not _your_ woman anymore."

"It doesn't even matter, I'm friends with Chris and Stephanie and they'd give me a pass. They're just not here tonight because they're in Canada with Chris's family for his birthday."

"And yet, _you_, you has nothing to do with the show, you decide that you're going to come to England of all places, just for the hell of it?" Lita inquired. "Give it up, Christian, everyone knows why you're really here."

"You have no fucking idea why I'm here," Christian spat at her. How his brother put up with this red-headed bitch, Christian would never know. She didn't have a nice bone in her body, and she was starting to get on his nerves.

Ever since last week and his discussion with Chris, he had contemplated whether or not he should go after Trish. He had agonized over it, but when it came down to it, he felt that he was right. He had loved Trish for longer, he had gone through fire for that woman, and he wasn't going to give her up without a fight. He would fight tooth and nail to get her back and they were just going to have to deal with it. Chris had told him that if he wanted her, then he was going to have to go out and get her.

But like hell Lita needed to know that. Right now, nobody needed to know that lest it get back to Trish herself. He didn't want her to know because she would pity him and then tell him that he needed to move on. He wasn't ready to move on. You can't just love something for so long and then quit it cold turkey. There was no way that he could just quit Trish Stratus. She was like a Siren in that way. Once you fell under her spell, there was no escaping her. And Christian had been under her spell for much too long.

"Oh please," Lita said, rolling her eyes. "We all know why you're here. You're here because of Trish Stratus. I don't see why you can't just go after her while you're at home. She's with Carlito, Christian, maybe nobody else is willing to tell you the cold, hard truth, but she's not going to go with you. She's in love with Carlito, and you're just a speck in the story of her life. A _speck_. Maybe your so-called friends are trying to spare you the embarrassment or something, but I'm not your friend, she's moved on, why don't you get off your ass and find yourself a new woman?"

"Why don't you just mind your own business?"

"Because thinking about your life is so much more interesting," she said sarcastically. "Maybe because I'm sick of you moping around here. She's just a chick! She's one chick and she's not even that special. I'm the Women's Champion, _I'm_ special."

"Oh please, you have to cheat all the time."

"I'll have you know, I'm the best," Lita said icily.

"I'm outta here."

"You'll never get her again, Christian, remember that…"

Christian tried to block out her voice as he went into the hallway. He leaned against the wall, trying to ignore Lita's words that were piercing his brain. He didn't want to think about what could happen. Yes, he could lose Trish forever, but he didn't want to think about that. If he thought about the slim chance he had, he would chicken out. He had to think about what could happen if he got her back. If he got her back…no, he should say _when_ he got her back. When he got her back, he was going to propose and he was going to do it the right way. He was going to make it memorable because she deserved it.

He pushed himself off of the wall behind him and went right, knowing that catering was this way. He didn't have to look far to find Trish. He sighed as he saw her with Carlito, looking over something in a magazine or newspaper or something. Carlito was laughing and Trish was leaning into him and Christian wanted to puke his guts out. It was all so sickeningly sweet that he thought he was getting a toothache over it. He wanted to get closer to hear what they were saying, but he was afraid that he would be caught out by them.

"I'm really mad that they insist on bringing you over here and then you do nothing," Trish said. "I blame Coach for this. With him running things around here, he's really dropping the ball on this. You should be in a match."

"Eh, I get why they didn't," Carlito said.

"I don't get why you're not more angry with this," she told him, almost imploring him to get angry or something, have any reaction at all.

He shrugged, "I guess I'm just a guy that goes with the flow. I don't really get angry about these kinds of things."

"I thought that Latin people were supposed to be fiery."

"Are you trying to stereotype me?" he wondered. She shook her head and kissed his cheek. "I'll only get fiery if someone insults you, then I'll get really mad and show you that Latin temper. But until then, if I'm not on the show, I'm not on the show."

"See this is why I didn't want Stephanie to stay away from the show, I could go to her and complain."

"And pull strings, you mean."

"Well, I don't work here anymore, I can pull any amount of strings that I want to pull. If I want to pull strings to get my fiancé a match, then that's why I'm going to do. It's good to have friends in high places for that purpose."

"So by marrying you, that means I can ask favors of Chris and Stephanie?"

"No," she answered. "I'm just saying that I think you should've had a match on the show tonight. I mean, what are we even doing here if you don't have a match, you have to stick around in case someone challenges you or something."

"That's an idea."

"I just think it's pointless. We could go hop a plane to Paris or something, and have a romantic mini-vacation or something. Or we could get married!"

"What!" Carlito asked, his eyes wide and disbelieving. He couldn't believe that she had just proposed they go elope. It was so spontaneous. "You want to go to Paris right now and get married, elope in Paris?"

"Why not?" Trish asked, shrugging her shoulders and raising her palms up to gesture that they had no real reason not to do this. "I mean, there's nothing stopping us. We could go right now, just be impulsive. It doesn't even need to be by plane, we could take the train. There's a thing that goes under the English Channel right, we'll take that. It'd be so easy."

"Trish, I don't think you know what you're saying."

"You're saying you don't want to marry me right now?" she wondered, and felt a little hurt that he wouldn't go marry her right now when she was so ready to be married.

"I would love to marry you now, but I think if we did go get married that it would hurt a lot of people's feelings. I know that my parents would be upset, and so would yours probably, and Stephanie would kill us, and my sister would kill us, and that's a lot of people after us and I don't want to spend my honeymoon running from them."

Trish laughed, and knew that Carlito had a very good point. When she was with Carlito though, she felt spontaneous, something she hadn't really felt when she was with Christian. Her and Christian had been very settled in their relationship and it seemed to lack a sort of zing, especially in the waning days of that relationship. She mentally berated herself right then, realizing that she was once again comparing this relationship to the one she had with Christian.

It was so easy though. She and Christian had been in such a long relationship that it was going to weight heavily on her mind and that was just the long and skinny of it. She knew with time that feeling would ebb, but right now, it was easy to compare and contrast this relationship with that one. They were very different though, and she knew that every relationship was going to be different. She just didn't really know how she was going to fully give up the knowledge of the relationship she had with Christian. She would try though.

"You're right. We would hurt a lot of people."

"Yeah, and I don't want to do that to anyone we love," he told her. "But if we didn't know anyone, then I would absolutely jump on a plane to Paris and marry you."

Trish leaned up to kiss him. "I'm glad you said that."

"Well, I'm that kind of guy," he told her.

"I'm going to go see if I can talk to Jeff about his match later, maybe if I talk to him, he can convince Coach to put you in the match."

"Trish!"

"I'm kidding, kidding, I just want to wish him luck," Trish said, placing her hands on Carlito's cheeks before kissing him soundly on the mouth. "I'll see you in a bit."

Trish walked down the hallway towards Christian, and he quickly ducked into an adjoining hallway and hoped that Trish didn't turn down it. He pressed himself against the wall, trying to remain invisible and sure enough, it worked as Trish passed by him and didn't even notice his presence. Yeah, he was being a chicken, but he just couldn't go up to her and tell her that he wasn't going to lose her and he was going to win her back.

Trish walked into catering, sitting down at a table and pulling out her cell phone from her pocket, dialing Stephanie's number quickly. "Stephanie McMahon-Jericho."

"Steph, you will _not_ believe what I almost just did."

"What?" Stephanie asked.

"I told Carlito that we should get married in Paris, like right now."

"_What_! You better not have gotten married right now, Trish Stratus," Stephanie warned. "Because if you did, I'm going to be so mad at you for not even calling to invite us to your wedding. Oh God, it's Shane all over again."

"No, we didn't get married, Lito knocked some sense into me and told me that everyone would be disappointed if they didn't get to come see us get married, but I was so ready for it, I don't know, when I'm with Carlito, it's just so good, you know. I just love being around him so much. The feeling is incredible."

"I'm happy for you, Trish, you know that, but seriously, don't get married when I'm not there to see it. I want to see you get married and be happy and all of that," Stephanie told her friend. "I'll have to think Carlito when you guys get home, and when we get home, for making you see the light."

"Yeah, he's like that. So how's everything there?"

"Its fine, Chris's parents are in love with Sawyer. He's barely left Chris's mom's arms the entire weekend. I don't think she wants to give him back. She thinks he's so handsome, which he is."

"I know, I miss my little guy," Trish said.

"Oh, you should've seen him at the hockey game, Trish, he was so adorable. He was trying to emulate Chris when he was clapping, and he couldn't quite get it, but he just watched Chris for like five minutes trying to clap like him. Then with the actual hockey, he was fascinated by it, completely fascinated. Chris said this means he's going to be a great hockey player, but whatever. It was sweet though."

"Aww, stop it, Steph, you make me want to have a baby right now," Trish laughed into the phone. "I wish I had been there to see it, I would've loved to have seen him be all sweet and cute in his little t-shirt and everything, and clapping!"

"Yeah, he was just so excited. He's really starting to pick things up now. He's so smart."

"Okay, seriously, my uterus is starting to ache," Trish joked. "Any longer and I'm going to demand Carlito get me pregnant."

Lita raised an eyebrow as she stirred her coffee and stood a few feet behind Trish. She had overheard what Trish had said and thought she could use that in order to get Christian to stop coming to the shows and bugging the shit out of her. She threw away the stirrer that she was using and took a sip of her coffee, smiling over the rim as she turned around to find Christian. This was the kind of juicy goodness that couldn't wait.

It wasn't difficult to find him since he wasn't a part of the show anymore. He was sitting on a crate, looking like he was thinking. She cleared her throat and gave him a devious smile when he looked up at her. "What? Not going after your lady love?"

"Mind your own business, bitch," Christian muttered.

"But I'm here to help," Lita said in a sickly sweet voice tinged with evil.

"Yeah, I'm so sure."

"Well, we both know that you want to get Trish back, am I right?" Christian didn't say anything and Lita nodded before going to sip at her coffee again. "That's what I thought. I just thought you should know that it's a lost cause."

"You don't know anything."

"Of course I do," Lita told him. "I hear things, I see things. You can't tell me that you haven't heard the rumblings around here. People are saying that Carlito and Trish are going to get married."

That stuck in Christian's craw a little bit because he knew that particular rumor to be true. If that was one of the rumors going around, and it was in fact true, maybe what Lita knew was true as well. He wouldn't put much stock into it or anything, but maybe she did know something that he didn't know. Could his heart take anymore heartbreak? He didn't think it could and yet it kept withstanding blow after blow.

"Rumors usually aren't true."

"They're sometimes true," Lita pointed out, then sighed a little. "Actually, I probably shouldn't tell you. It would only crush your poor, little heart, and I wouldn't want to do that to you."

"Sure you would," he told her. Lita had no feelings whatsoever, just wallowing away in her own little cocoon of hatred.

"Okay, I would. I was just in catering and Trish was telling Stephanie, over the phone, that she was going to have a baby and that was so excited to be having a baby with Carlito."

"You lie," he said immediately, knowing that couldn't be true. That had to be a lie.

"If they're getting married, why do you think that they would get married? I mean, a baby would pretty much make someone think marriage was going to be an option. She was talking about how she loved Sawyer, and how she wanted one of her own and how lucky she was to be having one. And then on and on about how much she loves Carlito. It was all very sweet and nice."

"There's no way."

"And why not?" Lita asked. "She's not working for the company any more, she's got this whole expanse of time in front of her. A kid sounds like just the right kind of distraction to be able to get over leaving the company. Maybe she and Carlito had this planned the entire time. That would be really sweet for them to have so much going for them."

"Shut up!" Christian screamed at her, getting off the crate and storming down the hallway. He didn't want to hear what Lita was saying. It was a lie, it had to be a lie. If Trish was pregnant, then she would tell him. She had told him about the engagements so she would surely tell him about something like this so that his heart wouldn't break into a thousand pieces. He turned the corner quickly and bumped into Trish herself.

"Oh, Christian, sorry, I didn't mean to run into you," she said.

"Yeah, sorry," he told her, looking her over as if to see what was going on with her body. "Where's Carlito?"

"Getting hit on by Torrie, I'm sure. I don't know what it is about her that rubs me the wrong way, but it's something."

Christian would've tried to have heard what she was saying, but it was difficult as he tried to look at her, discerning her looks from what he remembered. Did she seem fuller around the stomach? Maybe Lita was right, maybe that's why they were getting married. That would throw a serious kin in his plans. But maybe…maybe he could prove that Carlito wasn't such a good guy anyways. Trish seemed convinced that Carlito was a good guy. If she wasn't pregnant, maybe he had a chance to show that Carlito could be a bad guy. He hadn't seen Carlito exactly turn down Torrie's advances lately. There was a plan forming in his mind now. It needed time to stew though, time to solidify itself. He smiled and looked down and Trish.

He would have to talk to Torrie next week. This week he needed find out something else.

"So, uh, I heard you were talking to Stephanie, what was that about?" Christian tried to act nonchalant as he asked the question.

"She was just talking about Sawyer and all the adorable things he did on Chris's birthday," Trish said. "It's just really sweet hearing about him. I love to hear about him, I love him, he's a great little baby with such a cute smile. Maybe someday I can have that."

"Someday?" Lita was such a fucking liar.

"Yeah, someday," she answered. "Not any time soon I don't think."

Christian smiled at that. That was all he needed to hear.

He was definitely going to talk to Torrie next week.


	113. Confusion Leads To? November 22, 2006

A/N: Just wanted to thank everyone who reviews the story, it really means a lot that you take the time to write me a short message. And if you don't write a review, can you start? I'd love to get feedback. :)

And if you're in the U.S. and you celebrate it, happy early Thanksgiving. :)

* * *

Stephanie was sitting at her desk, making funny faces at Sawyer who was sitting on the desk in front of her. She knew that she should actually focus on the papers that her son was currently sitting on, his butt keeping them warm for her. He giggled as he reached his hands out to her and tried to grab at her, his little hands forming into tiny fists. Stephanie pursed her lips and leaned in close enough for him to grab her nose. 

"So this is what I pay you to do?" Vince said as he walked into the office.

"Hi Dad," Stephanie said, looking up at her father. "I'm just trying to keep him occupied until Chris gets here to take him off my hands, did you need something?"

"I was just wondering if all the teams for Survivor Series were here tonight," Vince said as he came over and patted Sawyer on the back. "Where's his hat?"

"What hat?" Stephanie wondered.

"The one I bought for him," Vince said.

"Oh," Stephanie said, giving him a fake smile. "It's at home, Dad, we didn't want to over-pack, you know. We have a lot of things that we need to pack for us and for Sawyer, it just slipped our minds."

"Oh, so the question…"

"They're all going to be here, Dad, I don't think that they're all _here_ yet though, but they all should be here. Did you have something in mind regarding them or something?" Stephanie asked as Sawyer grabbed her left hand and started to stare at her wedding and engagement ring. "Don't tell me you're planning something, Dad."

"I just wanted to know if they were here, no worries," he said, patting Sawyer on the back again. "Now…get back to work."

"Okay…was that a veiled insult or something?" Stephanie asked.

"Actually, I was just hoping that I could steal your son for a while, start to show him the ropes around here, you know, get him started early."

"Dad, even if you told him things in the simplest of terms, I don't think he's really going to retain all that much," Stephanie said. "He's in a cranky mood right now because he's hungry and I'm waiting on Chris to get here with his dinner since he didn't like anything we tried to give him. I don't think giving him to someone else is going to make him happy."

Vince shrugged, "Okay, but bring him by later, I want to see him before he goes to bed."

"Okay," Stephanie nodded as her father nodded his goodbyes to the two of them and left the room. Stephanie made a funny face at Sawyer, who didn't see it because he was still too busy looking at her rings. "Wow, let me thank you for being cranky so that I didn't have to hand you over, _and_ didn't have to talk to my father. I owe you one, baby boy." She noticed that he was fascinated by the sparkling of her diamond. "You like that, huh? Someday you'll be buying one of those for some lucky girl, I can see it now. Daddy bought that for me and then didn't give it to me for months and months and I don't know what he was waiting for."

"Maybe he knew how you were and thought better of it," came a new voice into the conversation.

"Speaking from experience?" she asked jokingly.

Hunter outstretched his arms and looked at her, "Well, what can I say, if anyone knows you, it's me. And I still hold the record for being married to you, so I think it's safe to say I know you better."

"Well, I don't know," she countered, shaking her head as he sat down across from her. "Chris and I were together for a while before we got married, compare that to how long we were together before we got married, which was what, zero seconds if I recall correctly."

"Oh come on, I've still got to have some hold over you, and being married to you for longer has got to be it," he told her.

"Our two-year anniversary is in January, so you better be shivering in your boots, Hunter, because we're coming up fast and furiously to that record, and I can't wait to pass it with my current husband."

"Ouch," he said, pretending to grab his chest. "That hurts the heart, Stephanie, that really, really hurts the heart."

"Get over it," she told him. "Besides, from what I hear, you're not having too much trouble with the ladies…oh God, this is weird, isn't it? What ex-wife talks to her ex-husband about the girls that he's dating, that's just…that doesn't' sound good."

"I guess exes that have finally reached a place where they can honestly talk about all this," Hunter said. "We talk about you and Chris."

"But Chris and I are married, there's no way that you avoid that."

"True, so when exactly are you getting your husband's ass back on the show?" Hunter questioned.

"Okay, I know that we're all kosher and everything, but don't even for one second expect me to believe that you want Chris back. Because the second he comes back, you're going to hate him because he's more popular than you are." Hunter opened his mouth to say something, probably in protest before Stephanie cut him off at the pass, "No, don't even try to refute that, Hunter. You forget that I know you well enough to know who you don't like in the ring and who you do. It's okay if you don't like Chris the wrestler as long as you can come to terms with Chris the person."

"It's not that I despise him…"

"But you're close, I get it, and not to worry, your spot isn't in danger, you still get to think you're top dog around here," Stephanie reassured him, then sighed and looked at Sawyer in front of her. "He says he's not ready…I don't know, the more time passes, the more I think he's never going to _be _ready again, and that kind of scares me."

"Scares you?"

"Sure, what, I'm not allowed to be afraid?" Stephanie asked. "Wow, I'm getting flashbacks of our marriage now."

"Very funny, I was just--"

"Yo, Hunter, we've got a meeting planned," Shawn said, sticking his head in the room. He looked at Stephanie briefly. "Stephanie."

"Shawn."

"Wow, I'm feeling the love," Hunter said sarcastically. He stood up and leaned over the desk, "Bye tough guy, hopefully I'll see you later." Sawyer looked up at Hunter and smiled at him before going back to grab his teething ring that Stephanie had just handed to him. He started chewing on it happily as Hunter looked at Stephanie. "I'm going to find you later and make you explain."

"Then I'll be sure to hide for the rest of the evening, ciao Hunter."

"It's not over, McMahon."

Christian couldn't believe what he was doing. Had he become so desperate over time, or was this just a spontaneous thing? He was a desperate man, and desperate men did desperate things. Over the past week, he had composed himself, talked himself out of hurting Trish, and then had talked himself back into it, and then had resolved himself to his plan. That's where he was now, resolving himself to his plan. He had to do this, he had to get Carlito away from Trish if he was ever going to have a chance with her.

The thing that Christian failed to see, or didn't want to see was the fact that Trish was happy. Maybe the thought just hurt him too much and he couldn't think straight when it came to her. Christian loved her, and to him, he just couldn't see her being happy with someone that wasn't him. So he went day in and day out thinking that he was the only man who could ever make her truly happy. It was a definite error on his part for thinking that. He should've seen, or at least have tried to see that she was happy with where her life was right then.

But then, those aren't the actions of a desperate man.

Those aren't the things that someone who needs something like they need a drug, and Trish was Christian's drug. He couldn't believe that she could just whisk herself away and get with some guy she barely knew. He didn't understand how she could jump from him, a guy she was supposed to love to a guy she didn't know, and then fall in love with him so quickly. He had to believe that Carlito was a rebound, or her penance for making out with Shane, it had to be something that…no, he just couldn't understand it.

"Any reason you're standing outside of my dressing room?"

Christian turned around to see Torrie with her dog, Chloe, in her arms. Christian tried to put on his most charming smile, but it probably came off a little pompous. "Hi, I was wondering if we could talk."

"What do _we_ have to talk about?" she inquired.

"I just needed to talk to you, is that okay? I can come back later if that's okay with you," Christian told her, knowing that he had to get on her good side. Torrie seemed to be a goody-two-shoes, so she wouldn't hesitate to go tell Trish what was going on, and that was the last thing he needed.

"I'm free now," she said, pushing past him to open the door. She walked inside as he stood there. She turned to him and raised an eyebrow, "You can come in."

"Oh, yeah, yeah, thanks," he nodded, walking in and closing the door softly behind him. He cleared his throat as she put her dog on the couch, where she promptly fell asleep. Christian looked at the dog and then up at Torrie who had his arms folded in front of her.

"So what is it?"

"Look, I know I'm going to sound crazy here, I know that, so just bear with me, okay, just bear with me and wait until I'm through."

"Now you're starting to scare me a little," she told him, narrowing her eyes at him.

"Okay, that wasn't my intention," he replied, wringing his hands together a little nervously. But nerves were something normal when it seemed like your entire future was on the line so he would deal with that. He wiped off his sweaty palms on his jeans and looked up at her. "I love Trish."

Torrie was even more confused now than she had been a moment before. "Okay, that's all well and good, but what does that have to do with me?"

"She's with Carlito," Christian said with a humorless laugh. "She's with him, and she's serious about him, and I love her. We were together for years, and I love her, and I can't stop, Torrie, I just can't, and it is killing me to see her with the likes of him."

"So you want her back and you want my help, that's what you're implying here?"

Christian nodded. "Look, I'd understand if you didn't want to help me. But I've noticed that you've seemed to take a liking to Carlito, and if everything works out, if you like him, then you know, it's a win-win situation for the both of us. If you think this is a stupid idea or you think that I'm a bastard for even suggesting it, that's fine too, just please, please don't tell Trish."

"Normally I would be very against this kind of thing," she said sternly as she looked down on him, like she had the right to be haughty in this situation.

"Okay the, well, thanks for your time, I'm sorry to have wasted it."

Christian turned to walk away when she spoke again, "I said _normall_y, I would be against this, but in this particular case, I don't think I'm so against it. I really like Carlito, he's a good guy, and he's nice, and it's so rare to find such a nice guy nowadays, and really, what the hell is she doing with him anyways, she's retired."

"Yeah, I know," Christian said. "So…so you'll help me?"

"What can I do for you?"

"I want you to wrestle Carlito away from Trish," Christian said. "I need him away from her. If I can have them have one huge fight, just one, I know that I can get her back on my side. I know that we can talk this thing out and move forward together. I know it."

"Okay then, that's what I'll do," Torrie nodded.

"You don't want anything in return, I'm willing to pay you if you want, or you know, give you money to take him out."

"Won't be necessary," she told him, holding her hand up as if to stop him from giving her money right that second. "The thought that I would get him all to myself is reason enough to do this. If it gets you back together with your girlfriend, then good for you."

"Thank you, Torrie, you really don't know what this means to me."

"Yeah, whatever, I was going to steal him away from her anyways, might as well let you in on a cut of the pie," she shrugged, picking up Chloe again. "So are we done here so I can change, or did you want to look at that too?"

"No, thanks again though, really," Christian said, giving her a kind of thankful bow. He turned to walk out of the dressing room and saw Chris walking right this way. He stopped in front of Christian, looking curiously at the door that he had just come out of and then back at Christian.

"Booty call?" Chris asked with a smirk.

"What!" Christian asked, jaw dropped.

"Oh come on, I can't have my fun, I'm a married man now, I need to live vicariously through my unmarried friends," Chris told him, but then turned serious, "but really, what were you doing in Torrie's locker room?"

"What do you have in the bag?" Christian asked, trying to divert attention away from what he had been doing in Torrie's locker room. He knew that Chris would be against any plan that would make Trish upset. He figured that his protectiveness over the blonde came from when he had done his magic disappearing act last year. But Chris and Stephanie would both defend Trish to the death so he didn't want his friend to know his dirty intentions.

"It's food for the kid, he didn't like what we brought him," Chris answered succinctly.

"Don't you think that you should get that to him so he can eat?" Christian rushed out.

"He can wait a few minutes," Chris answered coolly.

"But he's your kid, you really shouldn't make your own kid have to wait to eat. I mean, wouldn't you consider that kind of bad parenting," Christian said, trying to take Chris's mind completely off of what he was doing there.

"Did you just call me a bad parent?"

"No, of course not, I'm just saying that it isn't really a good thing if you're going to keep your kid waiting to eat. I mean, he's a growing boy, and he probably needs nourishment, shouldn't you attend to that?"

"Stephanie and I make our sixth-month-old son travel all the time, he's probably flown more miles than people my age, he gets to sleep at arenas and meet new people all the time, I think that Stephanie and I have screwed him up enough at this point that he'll be in therapy, five, six years, I think he can wait three minutes to get his food, so what the hell were you doing in Torrie Wilson's locker room."

Christian broke down and frowned at him, "Look, you told me that if I wanted to be with Trish, then I would do what I had to do. I'm doing what I have to do."

"By…doing something with…oh shit, Christian…"

"What?" Christian said defensively. "Don't tell me you wouldn't do the same for Stephanie."

"No, don't even try to bring that up right now, man, don't even try to push that kind of crap on me. You keep bringing up the things I would do for Stephanie. You know what I did for Stephanie, man? I stuck around for her, that's what I did. And you can say all that, 'If you were in my situation' stuff, but I'd never be in your situation because I didn't leave. And now you're thinking about breaking her heart--"

"You were the one who told me to go get her!" Christian hissed angrily.

Chris's eyes darkened. "I didn't tell her to make her run back into your arms by lying to her, by manipulating her, or making her heart break. I didn't tell you to do that. But fine, if that's the way that you want to go about things, fine. If you want to act like everything is fine, that breaking her heart is just the ultimate plan, fine."

"Well that's what I'm going to do then," Christian said. "I don't need anyone to have my back with this one, I'm perfectly fine going it alone with Torrie. I don't need your help, Chris, thanks for pushing me to get her back, but I don't need your help."

"Trish is my friend, man, I'm going to look out for her, I'm going to make sure that she's happy."

"Why, Chris, do I have _you _as competition now too?" Christian said, knowing for a fact that he had gone too far.

Chris just chuckled, "Yeah, that's exactly it, Christian , you caught me, I want to be the one nailing Trish Stratus. Never-mind the fact that I'm married and have a child, I'm just in all of this to nail Trish. Look, she's my friend, she's Stephanie's friend, and we look out for our friends, don't hurt her."

"Then tell me what to do, Chris," Christian insisted, shrugging his shoulders as he felt the familiar prickle of tears forming behind his eyes. He knew the sting of those tears would be next and they would threaten to fall at any moment, threaten to fall because that's what a desperate man does. "Please, tell me how to fix all of this."

"I don't know," Chris said sympathetically. "All I know is the way to someone's heart is not to break it and then hope that you can be the one to pick up the pieces. That's all I know."

"Yeah, well, if that's all you know, the only way I know is what I'm going to do. I'm at my wits end, dude, and if I can't get it together, if I don't find a way with Trish, I'm afraid I'll never find my way again."

"But you don't have to put her heart through the ringer to do it," Chris told him quietly. "Look, I've really got to get to Sawyer now, but think about what I said, okay, please. I hate to sound cliché right now, but if you love Trish, really love her, you wouldn't think about breaking her heart."

Chris walked away, leaving Christian to his thoughts. Chris wondered why it always happened that when he and Stephanie were happy, it seemed like all their friend's lives were falling apart. There was Christian and Trish with their problems, well, mostly Christian. Then there was Kurt with his multitude of problems. Chris had heard he had sprained his ankle, and that bothered him. Shane and Marissa were still not talking and Shane seemed to be waiting for divorce papers any day now, and it always seemed like life was like this, when one thing was up, two more things had to be down.

He also knew that Stephanie was getting a little impatient with him regarding the show. She wanted him on television and part of him knew it was because they needed him, and the other part knew it was because she wanted to see him back in action. It was that man she had fallen in love with, not the one who sat on his ass in between television appearances, radio shows, plays, improve, concerts. She was proud of him sure, but he figured that she was mad he was straying too much from his roots.

Stephanie was the business; she had said that on numerous occasions and he knew that to be true. If he didn't come back to the business maybe she thought that he didn't care about the business like she did, but he did care about it. He cared about it enough to be here every week, even if it wasn't on-screen. He wasn't conditioned enough to go back to wrestling right now. He would need to almost retrain if he was going to do that. He pushed open the door to Stephanie's office and saw her sitting at her desk with Sawyer on top of it.

"Finally, he's cranky," Stephanie said to Chris as she turned Sawyer to show him that the little boy had been crying. "I just got him to stop by getting his picture book."

"We've got a nerd on our hands, damn," Chris said, handing over the baby food to Stephanie. "This one is a weird one, he doesn't even like his food heated up. What person doesn't like their food heated up?"

"I like cold food, maybe he takes that after me," Stephanie said, setting the baby food on the desk while she pulled Sawyer's high chair closer. Chris picked him up and set him in his highchair before leaning against the desk, watching Stephanie unscrew the caps on his baby food. "So really, what took you so long? You said you'd only be like half an hour."

"I ran into Christian in the hallway, got a little caught up," Chris said nonchalantly. Stephanie took out Sawyer's baby spoon and spooned some strained carrots onto it before feeding them to the baby, who let the orange mush dribble down his mouth, which made Stephanie roll her eyes.

"Can't you keep any of this in your mouth, Sawyer?" Stephanie asked, then turned her attention back to Chris as she got more food for her son. "What did you get caught up doing?"

"He's thinking of doing something stupid," Chris explained.

"Stupid how?"

"Stupid as in trying to break up Carlito and Trish, but doing it in a way that breaks Trish's heart, by using Torrie to seduce Carlito," Chris told her. "I don't know what to do about him."

"Let them live their lives. You know, I'm kind of getting sick and tired of everyone else's problems," Stephanie said and this caused Chris to widen his eyes and lean back a little to look at his wife. She turned to him while Sawyer was mashing up the food in his mouth. "Oh, don't give me that look."

"I'm just…you're changing, Ms. McMahon."

She rolled her eyes and wiped Sawyer's face with his bib before feeding him again, causing the little boy to fling his hand at the spoon and making mashed up carrots fly against the wall, and Stephanie groaned. "I have a baby now, I can't be running around trying to solve everyone's problems. I have a son who needs me, if grown people can't take care of their own damn selves, I'm not going to be the one to intervene."

Chris sighed, realizing what this was really about, and he mentally slapped himself for not realizing it sooner. He went to next to her chair, crouching down and leaning his hands on the arms of it. She kept on feeding Sawyer, who was happily alternating between eating his food and throwing it against something. He pushed her hair out of her face and she glanced at him, silently telling him not to bring it up.

"He'll be okay."

"Oh, and you know this for a fact?" she scoffed.

"No, I don't know it for a _fact_, but I'm saying that he's going to be okay because I believe it. Maybe we just have to believe that he knows what he's doing, baby."

"Fine, whatever, can you finish feeding Sawyer, I need to check on the show, I was having Britt doing some of the final stuff, and I need to meet up with her."

"Yeah, I'll take care of him," Chris said, taking the spoon and the baby food from Stephanie. She leaned down to give him a kiss, slipping him the tongue for a moment before pulling away and trailing kisses up to his ear.

"Come visit me if you have the chance," she whispered to him, kissing his earlobe before going and giving Sawyer a big, smacking kiss on the cheek, which made him giggle like a madman since he loved kisses from his mommy. "Bye baby, be good for Daddy."

Stephanie walked out of the room and Chris got up and plopped himself down in the seat previously occupied by Stephanie. He went back to feeding Sawyer, and smiled at the little boy who looked so much like him. It was like staring into his own eyes when he looked into Sawyer's eyes. Sometimes he felt like Sawyer was the only one who understood him around here. But maybe Sawyer was the only one who could understand. He hoped Sawyer never grew up and had to deal with people, it probably would've been easier if Chris was just a hermit.

"Okay, so if anyone ever asks us if we're a couple again, I'm going to scream," Trish laughed as she and Carlito walked in the door after having just arrived from their joint autograph session.

"But it's true, we are together," Carlito pointed out.

"Yes, but I don't need to be bombarded with questions about it," she told him. "It was getting to the point where I should've just had sex with you right there to prove to everyone that yes, we are a couple."

"An engaged couple," he said, leaning in to whisper in her ear. "But we're still keeping that to ourselves."

"Until the time is right," she added with a dreamy smile. "But until then, people should mind their own business. Of course, I was equally asked if I had thought about maybe coming back, or that I should come back."

"I have no problem with that," he told her with a gentle smile and she tugged on his hand to pull him closer so that she could pull him into a kiss.

"Nah, I'm not there yet," she said. "I need time off so I could be the most beautiful girl at our wedding."

"You were already going to be," he told her.

"Well aren't you charming tonight?" she said coyly. "What do you have on tap? Anything?"

"I don't know, I'm playing it by ear, I think," he said to her.

"Carlito, hey!" Carlito and Trish both turned ahead to see Torrie walking over to them. "I just wanted to say hi, and what's up?"

"Oh hey," Carlito said, "Everything's cool, thanks for asking."

"Oh, great, great," Torrie nodded. "And Trish, I didn't realize that you were going to be here tonight, that's cool that you can come see Carlito whenever you want, it must be so fabulous to get to do your own thing, I envy you."

"It's kind of boring, actually," Trish joked. "But you get used to it, I guess. I need something else to do, it's weird being retired at thirty."

Torrie laughed, "Yeah, I guess it is, well, I guess I'll see you two later, have fun tonight."

"Bye," the two said in unison, watching as Torrie walked past them. Trish scowled at her back as she turned to Carlito, "She totally wants in your pants."

Carlito looked taken aback, "Excuse me."

"Are you kidding? She was practically undressing you with her eyes, it was unnerving, and she was practically asking why I showed up every week, like I'm not allowed, like suddenly this is her little clubhouse and I'm not in the club."

"Wow, you got all that from what she said?"

"Of course, didn't you hear it?" Trish asked.

"No," he responded, shaking his head quickly. "I thought she was being polite actually, but wow, she was actually being mean, I didn't pick up on that at all, that's not cool."

"Of course it's not, because she wants to sleep with you. Oh man…"

"Trish, I don't think she wants to sleep with me."

"Yes she does, and you know, she thinks I feel threatened by her. I got that vibe too, oh wow, I can't believe she thinks that I'm threatened by her. I could snap her like a twig if I wanted to. I guess you put a few moves into her and she thinks she's better than me."

"I really don't think that's what she was implying."

"Oh, Lito, honey, of course she was," Trish told him slowly. "Oh, I'll show her. Yeah, I'll show her who should feel threatened around here."

"You're not going to break her kneecaps or anything, right?" Carlito inquired, and only a little bit nervously. She started to walk away, a certain gleam in her eye. Carlito called after her, "Trish, right!"

Stephanie sat near the gorilla, talking to JR over the headphones, telling him what was now coming up and to announce the new match that had been made just now by her father involving the teams for Survivor Series that Sunday. She wrote it down on her piece of paper, wanting to remind the production truck to get the appropriate music ready when Hunter came around to bug her again.

"So we didn't finish our discussion from earlier," he told her, tilting his head, almost like he was ready to be the good friend who listened.

"Um…I'm pretty sure we did," Stephanie told him.

"But you were about to say something about--"

"Hunter, I appreciate the concern, but really, there's nothing going on, I'm fine. Chris and I are fine, and don't think you have to play nice or anything. We're fine. I swear to you. He's just off feeding and taking care of Sawyer."

"Fine, I'll drop it," Hunter conceded. "So did you see me out there though, I was hilarious right? I mean, you laughed when you were watching me, didn't you?"

"Not really," she told him honestly. "But then, I wasn't really paying attention."

"You weren't paying attention! Stephanie!" Hunter whined and Stephanie laughed at the tone of his voice. He sounded so much like a little kid it was hilarious to her. "Okay, you can stop laughing now, you bitch."

"Sorry, I'm sure you were a crack-up out there."

"Stephanie, what are you doing talking to _him_?" Vince asked as he walked over to her.

"He's my friend, Dad," Stephanie explained, even though she had told her father that she was friends with Hunter. He still looked displeased. "You know, someone you talk to and generally like."

"You can't possibly like this ingrate," Vince said, pointing an accusing finger at Hunter.

"Hey, I'm a damn good ingrate," Hunter said smugly, causing Vince to frown deeply. "Oh come on, Vinnie, you can't still be mad at me. It's not cool that you're trying to hold a grudge over me. What did I ever really do to you?"

"You're…Stephanie, I just wanted to let you know about something regarding Survivor Series, when you're done talking to this…man, come find me."

"Dad, I'm not going to stop being friends with him, take it or leave it," Stephanie told her father. Vince scowled for a minute before stalking off angrily with that walk of his, the walk that made him look like he had just gotten off a horse.

"Your dad totally hates me," Hunter chuckled.

"I don't blame him," Stephanie told him. "You were kind of a big jerk to him, but I'm not going to let him dictate my life like he did up until I married you. I like to think I've grown beyond having to have my daddy clean up all my messes."

"Well, yeah, I would hope that too…but what do you do now, just have Chris to clean them up?"

"You slay me," she deadpanned. "And don't think we're going to get back on the Chris subject, I have to tell you, you're not going to make it very far. And if you're like, waiting in the wings for this marriage to fall apart so you can swoop in and be my savior and try to marry me again, it's not going to happen, just letting you know."

"No big deal, I'm just trying to be a friend, it's what we do, you know, but you know, if you do ever," he rubbed the back of his neck in nervousness. He was putting himself out there for her, "You know, if you ever want to talk, find me."

"Thanks again," she said as he nodded and walked away, only lending to having Trish and Carlito come over to her. "Hey guys, what's up?"

"Nothing," Trish said, "where's the little guy?"

"He's with his father, doing stuff, eating, sleeping, the normal six-month-old basics," Stephanie explained. "What brings you over here?"

"Wanted to say…hey, is that Torrie out there," Trish said, looking at the monitor where Torrie was currently getting hit on, it seemed, by Chris Masters. They watched for a moment, hearing that she was pretty much getting harassed and a smirk came over Trish's face. "Go out there, Lito, save the damsel-in-distress."

"Huh?" Stephanie and Carlito said at the same time.

"She thinks I'm threatened by her!" Trish told Stephanie incredulously. "In case you've been oblivious the past few weeks, she wants in Carlito's pants. So she comes up to him, all flirty-like, like she's going to steal him from right under my nose. But I'm not going to feel threatened by her, I have Lito, right Lito, I have you, right?" Trish asked.

"Of course you do," he assured her.

"So you know what, go out there, help her, let her hug you or whatever, I don't care, I want her to see that I don't care."

"Are you sure? Is this a trap, one of those things where you tell me to do something, but you don't really _want_ me to do whatever you said? Because if that's the case, then I'm not going out there," he said, not wanting to piss Trish off because she was small, but she was fierce and she could kick him really hard, and he didn't want that at all.

"No, it's not a trap, I swear, go," she said, prodding him by pushing him towards the stairs. She watched as he walked up them, getting handed a microphone by someone. Trish walked back over to Stephanie and looked like the cat who ate the canary. "How's that for maturity?"

"What are you talking about?" Stephanie asked. "How was that mature?"

"I'm showing Torrie that she doesn't scare me. Carlito being nice to her at first was a ploy because he had some cockamamie theory about Christian, but now she just wants him, and I'm not going to let that happen, not in a million years, so I'm showing her that she can throw whatever she wants at me, it isn't going to affect me."

"Well isn't that big of you?" Stephanie said. "And you do realize that she's hugging him right now, don't you?"

"Hugging him," Trish said, turning around. "I'm fine with that, perfectly fine."

She continued to watch as Carlito got hit by Chris Masters, and Torrie was just standing there like she wanted to run away. Trish scoffed, if that were her out there, she probably would've jumped on Master's back and wrestled him away from her fiancé. She couldn't believe Torrie let that stand and only checked up on him after. It was a few more minutes before Torrie led Carlito backstage, and Trish put on her act.

"Oh, Lito, are you okay?" Well, that was truthful because she wanted to know if he was okay.

"Yeah, fine, little bastard jumped me," Carlito said irritably.

"My poor baby," she said, rubbing his head. "Tell me where it hurts and I'll be sure to make it better, I promise."

"Are you sure?" Torrie asked. "I'm already helping him so I might as well help him back to his locker room. It's the least that I can do, after all, he was the one who saved _me_ from Masters. He even took the Master Lock for me. I mean, that was so brave of you, Carlito."

"Don't mention it," he mumbled.

"Oh, but it was so nice of you to come out there, at least let me walk you back, it's the least that I can do."

Carlito knew he was caught between a rock and a hard place, or really, caught between a Trish and a Torrie. He turned to Trish, who was giving him a little look, and then to Torrie, who was looking at him sympathetically. He cleared his throat and glanced over at Stephanie, who was just watching this entire thing with a silly grin on her face, like she was watching a soap opera unfold. But that's what this felt like alright, a long, wishy-washy soap opera.

"Well, if you want to thank anyone, I'd thank Trish, since she told me to go out there to help you," Carlito said, figuring that was the road that he needed to take. Trish watched in satisfaction as Torrie's face fell a little bit.

"Oh…thanks, Trish," Torrie grumbled under her breath.

"Well, Carlito and I were standing here talking to Stephanie, and we saw you out there, and I _insisted_ that he go out there to help you, I thought it only fair. I mean, you've been so good and nice to us, I thought that Carlito helping you would be the right thing to do."

"Yeah," Carlito told her. "I didn't want you to get hurt or nothing."

"See, he didn't want you to get hurt, that's my Lito for you," Trish said adoringly as she sneakily pulled him away from Torrie's grasp. Carlito kind of felt like a rope right then, in the middle of an odd tug-of-war. "But seeing as how you're okay, I'm going to go make sure that Carlito is okay."

"Of course," Torrie said, walking away slowly, like she was shell-shocked. Trish scoffed as she was out of earshot and turned to Carlito, "Now are you really okay?"

"Yeah, it was no biggie," he shrugged. "You were right."

"I told you!" Trish said, "Thinks that she can just take my fiancé, yeah right, she's got another thing coming to her if she thinks that she can have _my _man. I'm not going to let her take you, Lito."

"I feel so special."

"Well, that was masterful," Stephanie said as she came up with Chris in tow. Trish didn't even know that Chris had come over, but after Stephanie had filled him in on what was happening, he had wanted to watch too. Sawyer though, well, he was asleep on his father's shoulder, a large spot of drool forming on Chris's t-shirt as Sawyer's arms hung limply at his sides.

"Well thank you," Trish said, taking a little bow. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I want to really make sure that my man is okay."

"That sounded dirty," Carlito said.

"It was meant to," she giggled as she pulled him down the hallway. Stephanie and Chris watched after them, and Stephanie felt Chris wrap his arm around her shoulder and pull her into his body. She hugged him around the waist and settled her chin against his chest so that she could gaze up at him. "This was Christian's doing, huh?"

"Yeah, it was."

"It's going to crash and burn, isn't it?" Chris closed his eyes for a moment, not believing the lengths to which Christian would go.

"Yeah…it is."


	114. Startling Truths, November 27, 2006

"Well, tonight is going to be a good night."

"You know this for a fact?" Carlito asked.

"Of course," Trish told him, "It's going to be a great night, do you think I'm stupid for going on a reality show?"

"Okay, where did that come from?" Carlito asked as they sat in catering together. Their chairs were right next to each other and she was leaning with her back on his shoulder as his arm was wrapped around her and their hands intertwined.

"I'm just asking. I mean, Chris did one, and I can see his logic now, it's kind of boring to have nothing to do. Wrestling becomes such a huge part of your life that when it's over, you just don't know what to do with yourself," she explained. "I mean, you'll find out someday. I just don't know, it feels like there's just an eternity."

"There's not an eternity, and I think you'll be great, you'll be my little cop," he told her, kissing her on the crown of her head. "And you know, feel free to bring the uniform home every night if you want. I don't have any problems with that."

She giggled and tilted her head back to look at him as he raised an eyebrow suggestively. "Yeah, I bet that you wouldn't have a problem with that. I just think it'll be fun, or at least educational."

"Educational? Have you seen a reality show, I just don't want you getting hurt, they better only take you out for routine stops or something, what's the crime rate in Muncie?"

Trish looked up at him adoringly, "You're worried about me."

"What do you mean I'm worried about you, of course I'm worried about you. I plan on marrying you, you think that I want somebody to hurt you, I don't think so," Carlito told her, staring down at her fiercely. "I don't want anything to happen to you. So long as you stay okay, you can do whatever you want."

"I imagine it'd be a lot easier than wrestling."

He scoffed, "I don't know, they seem to train pretty hard."

"Yeah, but as celebrities, they _usually_ take it easy on you," she pointed out. "I don't know, we'll see what happens. Hopefully I'll be successful."

"I think you'll catch a lot of guys, I mean, what guy doesn't want to be put in handcuffs by Trish Stratus?" Carlito asked lecherously.

Trish shook her head and kissed his hand, nipping at it a little bit, "That's not cool, Lito, that's not cool at all."

"What! I'm not saying anything you don't already know. And if you want to arrest me and put me in custody, well, then you're just going to have to do what you have to do," he told her, and she leaned her head back against his shoulder again.

"You know I love you, right?" Trish said softly.

"Yeah, why, are you taking it back?" he joked.

"No," she said, lowering her voice to joke around with him. "I just wanted you to know that. I love that you support me in everything that I do, it's the sweetest thing about you."

"Well, that's what I strive for," he told her. "But I love you too…just so you know."

"So are you doing anything tonight?"

"Probably," Carlito said. "I so should've been in a match last night, what kind of bullshit was it that I don't get a match?"

"I'm telling you, Lito, if you want me to put in a word with Stephanie, I will absolutely put in a word for you. It'll take two seconds. I mean, I have friends in high places, and they like you, so you should take advantage of that."

"You never did."

"I never needed to," Trish told him, and she was only half-joking. Trish had earned her spot by being the best at what she did. She never needed Chris or Stephanie's help to get where she needed to be. But then, if she had, she might've used it. They were her friends, and friends helped each other out. "But I'm telling you, say the word, I'll make it happen. They like you so it wouldn't be any trouble."

"They like me?" he asked. "I really just thought they were being polite because I'm with you, I know that they're friends with Christian."

"Yeah, they are, but that doesn't mean they get to automatically hate you. And they don't, they really don't. Chris and Stephanie have both told me that you're a good guy and that they're happy that I'm happy. You don't just say that…wait, let me correct that, _they_ don't just say that. Chris and Stephanie are two of the most blunt people ever, if they honestly thought that you were a bad guy, or the wrong guy for me, they wouldn't hesitate to tell me, in fact, they might take a certain amount of delight in it."

Carlito chuckled. "I don't know. They could just like me because I'm with you."

"Well I think that's how they started to get to know you, but I think that they really like you. They've never spoken badly about you. Look, they know the situation with Christian was tricky, it still is, but they also know that I'm happy."

"That makes _me_ happy to hear."

"I know, but I am happy with you, Lito, it's not just a passing fancy. I'm happier now than I've been in a long time. When Christian left me, I know it was against his will, but it broke me, and I don't think that I've been this happy since then, and that was a long time ago."

"I'm happy with you too," he said to her, holding her a little tighter against him. "In fact, I don't know how the hell I even got you in the first place."

"It'll just remain a mystery," she told him, trying to sound cloy and mysterious at the same time, but she was failing miserably. "You want me to pat you down later, check for any…big guns?"

"Well, that was subtle," Carlito told her.

"Hey, when I want to jump your bones, I want to jump your bones," she told him.

Right outside catering, there were a couple of people standing around. Except they weren't just random people, oh no, because the story doesn't revolve around random people. Christian and Torrie were standing there, Torrie was smacking on her gum as she leaned against the wall. Christian kept darting his head to look in catering and spy on Carlito and Trish, who looked to be having a grand 'ole time together, sitting there and laughing with each other and looking very much the couple. The two were like inseparable, and that bothered him in more ways than one.

First, there was the obvious reason, that was his woman in there, and some other guy was trying to hone in on her. The second was also fairly obvious, he wanted this plan to work, and it was less effective if they were together. And they seemed to be together all the time now. He used to be like that with her, and now Carlito was like that with her, and it bothered him more than he would admit.

"Would you quit that?" he hissed as he turned to Torrie.

She smacked her gum again, "Quit what?"

"The gum, it's loud, it's annoying, and I don't really want to get caught."

"I don't know why we're spying in the first place," Torrie told him. She didn't know. She had just been in her locker room and Christian had rushed inside and whisked her away like she was some doll or something and he could just drag her around at his whim.

"Because I want to get them alone so that you can work whatever magic you have on Carlito while I talk to Trish," Christian told her. "Or are you not in on this plan anymore?"

"I'm in," Torrie argued, "I just don't see the point in following them. I mean, in case you haven't noticed, there has been a definite vibe between me and Carlito lately. I think he likes me," she finished haughtily.

"Yeah, I'm going to have to disagree given the fact that he's with Trish right this very second and they're looking awfully cozy with each other. So unless he has this secret relationship with you, that I'm guessing he doesn't, you've got nothing."

"Oh, I've got something," she told him. "You're wrong about Carlito anyways, did you see him save me last week? He didn't have to do that, you know, he could've just left me out there, but he didn't, he obviously cares about me."

Torrie was obviously oblivious to what had actually happened, but nobody had been around to correct her. Trish and Carlito certainly weren't going to let her in on the joke. They had no reason to since Torrie was the one that so obviously wanted Carlito. So she was just in the dark about everything, and now she was standing here, still in the dark, and with her new partner-in-crime. Christian just looked at her for a second, wondering if he was really relying on Torrie Wilson to get to Trish.

"Yeah, I'm sure he cares about you _so_ much that he's really thinking that Trish is you," Christian said sarcastically.

Torrie scowled at him, "Last time I checked, you weren't inside his head. And it's entirely possible. I mean, Trish is a blonde, I'm a blonde, he could just be thinking that I'm her You don't know what she's thinking."

Christian knew that he probably wasn't thinking about her, "Can you just try a little harder, please? If you try harder, the sooner he'll fall for you and the sooner that Trish is in my arms. It benefits everyone. If you want Carlito, then work for it."

"You want me to go in there right this second and plop myself down on his lap or something?" she asked. "I don't think that's going to work."

"Well tell him that something is going on and you need his help or something, is that so difficult, can you remember that?" Christian asked, knowing that he might be pushing her too far, but at this point, he didn't really care. Torrie, so far, was not helping him at all, and if she couldn't help him, then she was no sue to him."

"What are you two doing?" a new voice said. Christian and Torrie turned to see Stephanie standing there, Sawyer in one of her arms and a bunch of files in the other. She was standing there, staring at them as they stood right outside of catering.

"Oh, hey Steph," Christian said, and he had the decency to look sheepish. Stephanie leaned a little to her left to look inside catering and saw Trish and Carlito still sitting there, talking and laughing. She sucked at her teeth a little bit as she nodded her head.

"Interesting, were you doing a little sightseeing in the arena or something?" Stephanie wondered sarcastically. Christian shuffled on his feet a little bit.

"I'm just here for my brother, since you know, Lita retired and everything. I think that he misses her, since she's not here tonight, I think she has a gig or something. Then I was like, you know, I'll come with you, see how you're doing on your own. He hasn't really been on his own for a while."

"He has Randy," she pointed out.

"Well, we both know that Randy can't really be trusted, right?" Christian said, shrugging his shoulders.

"You don't even like Lita, you wouldn't try to 'comfort' him," Stephanie said, trying to wheedle the truth out of Christian. She was certainly breaking him down with her stare right now. It seemed like even Sawyer was looking at him derisively and he was chewing on a toy at the current moment. When a six-month-old looks at you like you're doing something wrong, it just makes you feel even guiltier.

"I'm not doing anything!" Christian protested.

"Except spying on your ex-girlfriend," Stephanie said knowingly. She turned to Sawyer, "Isn't that what Christian is doing, baby boy?" Sawyer looked over at him, and Christian could've sworn that Sawyer gave a little nod of his head.

"What does he know about it, he's only been around for six months!" Christian said childishly.

"Okay, Christian, can I have a word with you?" Stephanie asked, glancing over at Torrie, "Alone."

"Look, I didn't even want to be here anyways, so I have no problem going," Torrie said, wandering off without another word. Christian glared at her back as she walked away. Stupid, useless blonde, that's what she was. How could he put so much faith in someone like that? Stephanie waited for him to stop hitting Torrie with imaginary lasers before she looked at him.

"I have my hands full right now, but if I didn't, I would drag you away from that door and wonder what the hell you're doing."

"Well, now I know that you aren't afraid to swear around your son," Christian told her, looking at Sawyer and offering his hand to the young boy. "Hey there, little guy, what's happening?"

"He thinks you're a douche," Stephanie said matter-of-factly. Christian looked shocked that she would use that kind of language around her baby, but if Stephanie and Chris had proved anything in their tenure as parents, it was that they weren't going to be conventional.

"What?"

"Chris told me what you were doing. He couldn't keep something like that to himself. I'm not going to interfere in this, because I'm over that kind of shit, but seriously, what the hell are you doing?"

"I don't feel like I have to answer any of your questions, Steph. Look, it's like I told Chris, I need to do this, I need to get her back. You don't understand."

"I _hate_ when people tell me that," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "I hate when people tell me I don't understand something. Hell, I hate when I tell people they don't understand something. I don't think that you can honestly say that. You don't know my life, and don't act like you've forgotten how desperately I wanted to keep Hunter. I faked a pregnancy to try and keep him, I know that in the end, I wanted out, but I did try that one last thing. But it broke his heart and made him resent me until just this year. Four years, Christian, it took us four years to get here. If you break her heart, you may think that you're going to swoop in and save her, that she's going to just fall into something familiar, but she loves Carlito."

"She loved me first!" Christian argued.

"But does she love you _now_?" Stephanie asked.

"Why are you and Chris so against this? You guys are supposed to be my friends, you're supposed to support me with whatever I do, and you're not doing that. This isn't being a good friend, Stephanie," he countered.

"And how are you loving Trish by hurting her?" Stephanie asked. Christian didn't have an immediate comeback for that and he stayed silent. "I love you Christian, I love Trish too, and Carlito is a really good guy. I'm going to go with her on this one. She may still love you, and if she does, that's fine, but Christian, open your eyes."

"To what? See that the past four years mean nothing now? Is that what I'm supposed to open my eyes too? I can't do that, Stephanie, I just can't…Trish was mine first, she was with me, she loved me, we loved each other. I can't believe that this is it, that this is how our lives are going to play out, I don't accept that. You wouldn't' accept it either if you were going after Chris. You wouldn't."

"I might not, but I'd find a better way to go about this. What _you_ don't understand is the position that you're putting Chris and I in. We're trying to be good friends to the both of you, and you're making it very difficult."

"Then support me!"

"I can't!" Stephanie said. "You have no idea how much I worried about Trish when you left. You will never see how she was, you will never have to see those days, or the look in her eyes when she saw that you were gone. She clung to that note you gave her, she clung to it so hard that Chris had to pry it from her fingers. You don't get that we've seen Trish at her lowest, and to see her so happy now is good for all of us."

"I love her, Stephanie, I _love_ her," he told her, and against his will, tears started to well up in his eyes. He didn't know if they were tears of loss and sadness, or tears of anger that he didn't have Trish with him right now. "I am desperate. Do you really think I'd go to _Torrie_ Wilson for help if I had this all in the bag?"

Stephanie closed her eyes, "Just be careful, Christian. You never know who you're going to hurt. I'm going to keep saying that breaking Trish's heart to get it back is the wrong way to go about this, but do what you want to do. I've decided that totally interfering gets you nothing but heartache."

"He asks about you sometimes," Christian told her softly, placing his hand on her shoulder. Stephanie looked at Sawyer, then at the ground.

"That doesn't mean too much nowadays, does it?" Stephanie sniffled. "It doesn't matter anymore, what happened is in the past. I'm not too fond of looking too far back."

"I really do think he misses you."

"That does nothing for me except break my heart," Stephanie said, looking up at Christian. "I told him everything, every last thing about me. He was the one solid thing I had in this world, before Chris, before any of that. When I was alone, crying my eyes out, he was there, always there. I don't care what he thinks of me now, that bridge is burned. Look, I've got to go." Stephanie rushed off, but Christian could see at least one tear fall from her eye.

He turned back to look at the open door to catering. He knew that the relationship between Stephanie and Kurt was completely different as that had never gone past friendship, but in principle, it seemed to be on par. Stephanie and Kurt were tight, tight to the point where Christian wouldn't have been surprised if Kurt had been standing next to Stephanie at her wedding, instead of standing next to Chris. He had been there for Stephanie and had supported her, and then he had left without warning, had turned on her so quickly, and had left her heartbroken.

Had it been the same for Trish? Stephanie was trying to be brave, but occasionally, that front disappeared and showed the vulnerable girl underneath who had truly lost her best friend. Had Trish felt the same way? He stared at that entryway for a long time, like the wall would crumble and he'd find her alone on the other side. But that wasn't to be, not really. So he stood there and stared for a while, wondering if he was just hurting Trish more by being here, if he was going to hurt her so badly that she never recovered if he tore her away from Carlito.

"I think you should go for it."

Christian turned to his side and frowned when he saw Jeff standing there. "What do you want, Jeff?"

"Nothing," Jeff shrugged, "but I think that you want Trish."

Christian hated that he was that obvious. "Shut up, I do not."

"Don't you?" Jeff drawled. Jeff was a pretty intuitive guy by nature, so he was definitely picking up on the vibes that Christian was putting out there. But Christian didn't want to be reminded of what he was doing, not after having the pity party just a few seconds ago.

"No," Christian said unconvincingly, folding his arms in front of him. He tried to act nonchalant when he said his next sentence. "Go for what?"

"Trish, go after her, I know you want to."

"Why would you even want me to do that? Aren't you the guy who tried to take her from me a while back, huh?"

"Yeah, I was, because I know what it's like to be with Trish, and it's pretty damn amazing. I should've never let her go, and I had a few chances with her. I don't regret it or anything because life's too short to regret stuff and we're only going to be here for a while so I don't regret much, but she was something else."

"Don't talk about her like that," Christian said angrily. He didn't even want to hear about Jeff's relationship with Trish. He didn't even want to think that Trish _had_ other relationships. It was just too much for him to bear. He thought of her as pure for some reason, though he knew that wasn't the case, not by a long-shot, but when you love someone, you forgive their faults, overlook their pasts and just love them for who they are that moment, and the next and so forth and so on.

"I'm just saying, if you can get her back, then I think you should go for it. What do you have to lose? You don't have Trish right now as it is, so why not go for it?"

"Look, thanks, but I don't need the advice," Christian said testily.

"Okay," Jeff shrugged, "I was just trying to help."

"Yeah, well, I don't need your help. I don't even like you. And I never really have, just for the record."

"Yeah, attack me, nice of you," Jeff said before walking off. Christian stared after him, wondering if he would actually take a Hardy Boy's advice. If he honestly listened to a Hardy boy, the world might implode on itself.

Stephanie stormed into her office, slamming her folders down on the desk and putting Sawyer down on his play-mat before sitting down huffily at her desk, gathering up her scattered papers and folders that had gone askew with her slamming them down. She wiped angrily at her eyes, cursing herself for actually shedding tears for her former best friend. She got out a compact to see if her makeup was running.

"So you leave the door open as a part of your new open-door policy?" Chris asked from the couch where he had been reading a guitar magazine, hoping to find a good bass to buy that he could easily travel with and play while they were at the shows.

"Sorry, I forgot," she mumbled.

Chris set the magazine down and went over to her desk and leaned on it, smoothing her hair down and then moving his hand down her face as he cupped her chin and brought it up to look at him, "You've been crying."

"I have not," she told him, but he had seen her walk in there wiping at her eyes.

"I saw you wiping the tears from your eyes," he informed her. "I don't know if you know this, but I was the person that was sitting right there when you stormed in here like Tropical Storm Stephanie."

"I wasn't crying, I just…I shed a _few_ tears, that's all."

"You okay?" he asked simply, not trying to conjecture as to what was the cause of her tears. If she didn't want to say, fine, if she did, even better, but he had learned not to push her. "Is it something I did?"

"I don't cry over things _you_ do, I usually just hit you in the head or call you Jericho when I'm mad at you," she told him. "It wasn't something you did, I've been working all evening, how would you even know what I was doing, and how could you hurt me without knowing what you'd done."

"Okay, point taken, it wasn't me. Who was it then, or what was it? Did you stub a toe or something?"

"No," she told him. "It's not a big deal. Christian just mentioned that Kurt asked about me sometimes, and I really didn't want to hear it. I don't want to hear it now, and I don't think I'm ever going to want to hear it."

"Oh," Chris nodded, "I see. So how is the show looking tonight?"

Stephanie was grateful that he was changing the subject to something that she wanted to talk about. "Its fine, I think we've got a good show going tonight, some good matches. It would probably be better if there was a certain guy on the show, a certain blond guy with blue eyes like the sky, but you know, beggars can't be choosy."

"Well, that was subtle," Chris said. "Why don't you just demand that I come back?"

"Now would I be so cruel as to do that?" she asked. "You can decide when you come back, see how I'm allowing you that concession."

Chris pulled Stephanie out of her seat and he settled himself on her desk as he pulled her between his legs. He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her a little closer to him. "Well thank you, Mrs. Jericho for not deciding anything for me."

"You will come back though, right?" she asked, her eyes searching his. "You're going to come back home, right?"

"I will, when the time is right, I'm actually waiting until you get so desperate that your dad gives me the private jet. And just when he hands over the keys, I'll tell him I don't need it. I just want to get under his skin enough where he thinks he has to hand it over, but doesn't. I'm his son-in-law after all, I do get to go in the jet when I need to."

"And that's a promise right, because I'm going to hold you to that."

"Hold me to it," he said to her, "definitely. Look, I'll even seal the deal with you."

"What, are we going to spit in our hands and shake?" she teased.

"Well, I like the spit part," he said as he leaned forward and captured her lips with his, pulling her ever closer as she closed her eyes and welcomed his warm mouth over hers. She tasted of strawberries and her perfume was intoxicating. He loved the aura she carried around her. It was something else entirely and he just loved it when he was surrounded by it. She pulled apart and smiled lazily, her eyes still closed as she sighed in content. "Well, I guess this reinforces the fact that I'm the world's best kisser."

"Top ten at least," she said, opening her eyes. She glanced over his shoulder to check on Sawyer and her eyes widened. "Uh…Chris, when I came in here, I put Sawyer down on his play blanket right?"

"Yeah, you did, why?" Chris asked.

"He's not there," Stephanie said, as Chris flipped around quickly. He looked down at the play-mat and saw that it was empty, but all of Sawyer's toys were on it. He practically pushed Stephanie off of him and stood there blankly.

"You left the door open."

"You don't think someone could've come in here and taken him when we were kissing, do you?" Stephanie said, her eyes searching frantically for her little boy. Her voice was panicked and shaky. "How could someone come in here?"

"I don't know," Chris said, standing up and going towards the door. He looked out both ways, but didn't see anything unusual. "I told you the door was open!"

"Well I didn't think it needed to be closed, _you _were the one that kissed me and caused me to lose my concentration on him!" she shouted back, then ran her hands through her hair. "Okay, don't panic, don't panic, Stephanie. You are good in a crisis, you know what you're doing."

"I have to go look for him," Chris said. "I'll be right…back…"

Stephanie noticed a different timbre in Chris's voice and she looked at him, her breath coming out quickly as she tried to stop her shaking hands and grab for her cell phone to call the police, or security, she should call security. "What is it, Chris, what's wrong?"

"Look," Chris said, pointing to behind the couch.

Stephanie took a few steps to her left and looked behind the couch. In between the bathroom and the furniture was her little boy, crawling on his own, looking as happy as a lark. Stephanie and Chris stood there frozen, looking at Sawyer as he happily went about his moving around on his hands and knees, getting his hands and knees dirty in the process. Stephanie looked up at Chris, who looked up at her, and then looked back down at Sawyer, who didn't bother to look at them because he was crawling and probably imagining escape routes to get away from his crazy parents.

"He's crawling," Stephanie whispered.

"Our son is crawling," Chris whispered back.

"By himself," Stephanie said. "And the first thing he does is try to scare the living hell out of us. What is wrong with you, Sawyer!"

Stephanie went over and picked him up, which alarmed him, but Stephanie held him firmly. "Don't you ever, _ever_, do that to Mommy and Daddy again, do you hear me? We were freaked out, anybody could've taken you."

"The first thing he does is try to get away from us," Chris chuckled. "Are we really that bad, kid? Man, when even your kid wants away from you, that's going to be a sign. Wow…thanks a lot."

"Our son crawled, Chris," Stephanie said in awe as she looked down at her little boy. "Our little boy crawled!"

Chris looked equally amazed. "That's…I'm kind of speechless, but I'm not. Our kid is mobile…oh man, now I've got to baby-proof the house. He's going to be all over the place. He's going to want to go all over the arena too. What if he's going to want to crawl out to the ring, how are we going to stop him?"

"Well, you can start training him," she said as she leaned over to kiss Chris. He returned her kiss, letting their excitement be simultaneously contained, but their giddiness was washing off of them in waves. Stephanie pulled away, mumbling against his lips, "He can crawl, Chris."

"I know, this is amazing, you're amazing, kid," Chris said, kissing his son's head as Stephanie did the same and then put him on the ground to let him crawl around some more. Sawyer, who found this whole crawling thing thrilling, not to mention rewarding because his parents seemed super-happy for some reason, decided to crawl some more; it was fun. He went back over to his play-mat where he laid down on the little pillow and started playing with some of his toys.

Stephanie squealed and started jumping up and down, startling Chris. "Okay, I've got to tell Trish!"

"Okay, whoa, take it down a few octaves," Chris said, but he was excited too, and he wanted to go brag to everyone that his son could crawl and crawl well.

"I'm going to go tell her and then get to actual work, and then you can have Sawyer crawl to see me, if he's up for it of course, if he's not, you can just carry him, but you know, I don't know, he crawled!" Stephanie said, jumping up and down a little. "Oh God, I'm one of _those_ moms!"

"What moms?"

"The ones that go overboard with every little accomplishment. I didn't want to make a big deal out of everything. God, I don't want to be one of those moms."

"You know what, you're not, trust me, but our son just crawled for the first time, we _have_ to be excited," Chris told her.

"Okay, I am, okay, I've got to tell Trish!" she said, running out, but then running back in a few seconds later and pecking Chris on the lips. "I love you, thank you _so_ much for him!"

"Um…you're welcome, thanks for carrying him," Chris laughed, suddenly getting a little weirded out by this super-happy Stephanie. He didn't think he'd ever seen her quite so excited. Happy, yes, excited, not really like this. It was a new one for him.

"It was my pleasure!" she told him.

"I love you too by the way," Chris told her as she was already halfway down the hallway and barreling towards Trish's locker room. Stephanie didn't even know how she was running in the heels she was wearing, but she was practically skipping down the hallways towards Trish's locker room. She knocked erratically on the door, as Trish opened it a second later, looking concerned at the harried-looking Stephanie.

"Steph, what's wrong?"

"Sawyer just crawled!"

"What!" Trish asked, hand covering her mouth.

"He just crawled, for the first time, Chris and I were kissing and we looked and he was gone and he was behind the couch because he was crawling around by himself! We didn't even encourage him or force him do that whole, 'Crawl for Daddy' thing. He just decided he was going to do it."

"Oh my God, I've got to see this!" Trish said, turning to Carlito. "Lito, Sawyer just crawled, I've got to see him!"

"Okay, cool, congratulations, Steph."

"Thanks," she said, grabbing Trish's hand as she dragged her out of the room. She looked at her watch. "Oh, damn it, I've got to get to work, but go see Chris, it'll be good, you can see him. It's adorable."

"Oh, I am," Trish said, as Stephanie went the other way, a big grin on her face. She began to notice, however, that there were a lot of girls that she hadn't seen before walking backstage, giggling to one another. She looked around and wondered what was up because she hadn't cleared all of these girls to be back here. She turned the corner and saw them all going into one room.

She stopped one of the girls and politely asked, "Excuse me, can I ask who you got your passes from?"

"Oh, Triple H," she said brightly. "Sorry, I've got to go."

"Okay, yeah," Stephanie said, letting her go as she followed this congregation of women to an empty locker room, which was blaring music and she opened the door to find Hunter greeting all of them individually.

She walked over to him and he glossed over her with a, "Hey, how are you, thanks for coming, I'll show you a good time."

"Oh, will you, because you've owed me a good time for like, five years now," Stephanie said, not amused. Hunter stopped and looked over at her, his eyes widening before evening out with a smile.

"Stephanie, hey, I wasn't expecting you, sorry, that wasn't meant for you."

"No love for your ex-wife, too bad," she said. "And before we go any further, seriously, what is this?"

"I'm throwing a party for some of the guys. Not Shawn though, because you know, he's kind of a prude now that he's married. Sad, really. I tried to talk him into coming, but nope, didn't want to do it."

"Who gave you clearance to do all this?" she wondered. She might have that person fired.

"Chris. He said it was okay as long as we didn't cause a scene. I'm not causing a scene, it's a big room, you won't even know this is going on, I promise."

"My husband did this?" Stephanie asked.

"He said it was cool."

"Okay, yeah, thanks," Stephanie said. "Have fun with your party, don't come off as too desperate."

"Hey, I resent that."

"I'm sure you do."

Torrie had seen Trish leave Carlito's locker room and decided if any time was the right time to see him, now would be it. She fluffed up her hair and licked her lips before opening the door and silkily slipping inside to where Carlito was watching the show on the closed-circuit television. He looked over and was surprised to see her there.

"Torrie."

"Hey Carlito," she said flirtily. "I hope that I'm not bothering you, if I am, feel free to tell me and I'll just get out of here…"

"No, what's up?"

"Well, I was trying to lace up my boots, but I was having a lot of trouble, I don't know why, usually they're so easy, but tonight, I'm just having major problems. I was hoping that you could help me since you're so good at it."

"Oh yeah, sure," he told her carelessly as she came over. She put her foot up on the couch, kind of leaning in close to him. She bent over and had her cleavage practically in her face as she spoke. "See, it keeps getting caught…right…here. I don't know what I'm doing wrong."

"It's cool," he muttered as he went about lacing up her boots. He hadn't so much glanced up at her and she was practically making her boobs fly out of her top. "There you go."

"You're so wonderful," she said, smoothly sitting down next to him to give him a hug. "Thank you _so_ much."

"It wasn't a big deal, it was a boot."

"Yeah, but I was having such trouble, it's nice to know there are people around here who are always willing to help, like last week. I mean, you really didn't have to come out there for me, and you did, you have no idea how much I appreciate that. I was so scared that Chris was going to do something to me, and then you showed up and saved me. It made me see you in an entirely different light, you're so noble."

"Noble?" he asked, furrowing his eyebrows. "That's weird."

"No, it's not, you're great, so thank you for last week, again."

"Eh, it was nothing," he said, standing up. "Besides, it was Trish who urged me to go out there. She just doesn't like to see people in trouble. I love her for that."

He walked out of the locker room and left Torrie alone. Torrie yelled through clenched teeth as her fisted hands slammed against the couch. "Damn it!" she yelled to no one in particular. She was so sure that she had him, and then nothing. He had barely even glanced in her direction. Whatever spell that Trish had him under was strong and Torrie hated that. It was bad enough everyone thought Trish was the best of the best, now she had to take one of the last decent guys left. No, Torrie would see to it that Trish was left behind and she got what she wanted.

And she wanted Carlito.

Christian was sitting next to Stephanie. He had been trying to apologize to her for the past few minutes, but she had been too busy taking care of personnel things, signing off on matches, on equipment, everything. Or maybe she was just ignoring him. But what he had said earlier was true. He got to see Kurt a lot more than she did, and sometimes, if there was an awkward silence, where Christian knew what Kurt was thinking, Kurt would open his mouth and before he could ask, Christian would say that she was fine. He didn't tell her that the same look of sadness he saw in Stephanie's eyes, he saw in Kurt's too. At least Stephanie had Chris and Sawyer to make her happy.

"Don't sit next to me all night," Stephanie told him.

"Just until you accept my apology," Christian said.

"You didn't do anything wrong," Stephanie insisted. "You told me something, and while I didn't necessarily want to hear it, it's not something you apologize for."

"But you didn't want to hear it, and I told you anyways."

"If this is your way of trying to get me to go along with this silly plan that you--"

"It's not. Really, I understand your stance, and Chris's stance on this. I just don't want you to think I was deliberately out to hurt you, because I wasn't. I just…I see things."

"It's fine," Stephanie said. She looked to her left and saw Sawyer crawling towards her. "Okay, if that's the not cutest thing you've ever seen…"

Christian looked over. "Wow, he's crawling, when did that happen?"

"Like tonight," Stephanie told him, going over and picking up Sawyer as Chris watched on proudly. "Has he been going all this time?"

"No, he got a little tired of it, but then he wanted to go back to the crawling, and who am I to deny him happiness?" Chris said sappily, kissing his son's head. "He's just a regular crawler, I swear, he takes to things so naturally. If we gave him a sippy cup today, I bet you he'd know how to use it by tomorrow."

"Cocky," Stephanie told him.

"With every right to be, my son is mobile," Chris said, grinning proudly.

"You let Hunter have a bunch of girls here," she told him in no uncertain terms.

"Yeah, so what? Got a problem with that?"

"No."

"Hey Steph, come over here and look at this," Christian said. Stephanie came over to the monitor and watched what Christian was watching, which just happened to be a flashback to this time almost seven years ago when her first wedding was being interrupted by Hunter. Chris came over and looked on as well, grimacing as he watched it and looking like he had just eaten some bad oysters.

"Well, I could've lived without seeing _that_ again, I wasn't too thrilled with it the first time," Chris said.

"_You_?" Stephanie asked, throwing a look at him over her shoulder as she adjusted Sawyer in her arms. "You've got to be kidding me, right? Why should that bother you? You barely even knew me back then, we had interacted maybe twice, and you were embroiled in some feud with X-Pac or something. Why would that bother you?"

"It didn't bother me _then_," he said, trying to state that that was obvious. "I mean now, thinking about that. When it actually happened, I thought you looked way too much like a Princess."

"You were looking very innocent, now look at you," Christian added.

"And what's that supposed to mean, Christian? Does that mean I'm fat because I had a baby six months ago and I'll never get my figure back? Or does it mean that I'm a bitch now? Or maybe I dress like a slut?"

Chris was over Stephanie's shoulder telling Christian silently to get out of this situation as quickly as he could. Chris was gesticulating all over the place and when Stephanie turn to him he stopped abruptly and reached out to rub Sawyer's head. Christian gave a sheepish look and went the easy route, "I think you look way more beautiful."

"Suck-up," Stephanie muttered.

"Stephanie, it's our four-year anniversary!" Hunter said, walking towards her with open arms.

"Oh God, see, this is what happens when I don't have final say in every aspect of the show. I mean, seriously, this was the _only_ note-worthy thing in all of wrestling history? Me getting married to a scummy bastard who kidnapped me was so wonderful?"

"We had some good times, Steph, some good, good times," Hunter reminded her.

"Dude, are you undressing my wife with your eyes?" Chris asked as Hunter gave Stephanie the once-over, "because you forfeited those rights when you divorced her. You aren't allowed to think of her like that anymore."

"I wasn't, I mean, come on…I totally was."

"Hunter!" Stephanie groaned. "You're so gross. You've got like twenty girls stuck in a room and you're out here picturing me naked, you're a sick, sick man."

"And a man who's going to get a black eye and a bloody nose if you don't quit," Chris told him. "And I don't think a bloody nose would suit you, we might all drown."

"Okay, so when I think of Stephanie in any of the ways I did while we were married, that makes you very, very defensive, that's good to know," Hunter joked as he looked at Chris. "I just saw it on the television and felt compelled to comment on it. I mean, that was us, you know, that was the beginning of all of this."

"You want me to thank you, right?"

"It'd be nice," he sing-songed.

"You're such a jerk," Stephanie laughed. "Why the hell would I thank you for that?"

"There is the whole, if I hadn't married you, and then was a complete jackass to you and ignored you so you'd divorce me angle, you would probably, and I'm just guessing, since the girl you were back then was all about pleasing your parents and having a good, upstanding life, that you would still be married to Test, and you'd probably have like three kids by now."

"Okay, I just figured out what is worse than being married to you," Stephanie shuddered. "Oh God, I cannot imagine being married to him."

"So see, you have me to thank for that, I did do something good in our marriage, besides the sex, of course."

"Dude!" Chris yelled, groaning loudly and covering his ears. "Seriously, there has to be rules between first husband and second husband. Like first husband never brings _that_ up in the presence of second husband!"

Stephanie took one of Chris's hands off his ear, "Don't worry, it was never that good to begin with."

"Now you're just being mean," Hunter told her.

While those three were bantering back and forth, Christian saw Trish sitting on a trunk reading a book a little ways down the hall. He immediately left the Abbott and Costello act that happening between Chris, Stephanie, and Hunter, and went to sit next to Trish. She looked over at him as he sat down and smiled. They sat in silence for several minutes as Trish went back to her book. Christian was happy to just watch her and be close to her. He could breathe in her scent and she looked so calm and peaceful.

"So…how are you?" he said, and then cringed at how lame that sounded.

"I'm fine, you?"

"I'm good, just…doing really well," he told her.

"That's good."

"Trish, are you happy, really happy?"

"Why do you ask?"

"I need to know," he told her simply. She might not know the actual reasons, but she did need to know that he needed to know. It wouldn't return his sanity, but it could put things a little into perspective. What Stephanie had said earlier was ringing in his brain right this moment, and he had to know.

"I'm happy, Christian."

"Oh."

"I don't know what else to tell you."

"No, that's it…that's all I needed to know."


	115. He Did Make History, December 4, 2006

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, please keep them coming, I do love each and every one of them, they help me write the story. As for the Carlito/Trish/Christian thing, any and all input is welcomed and yes, I'm begging people to tell me what to do because what I want to do might not be what other people want me to do, and I'm very conflicted right now about who to write about and yada yada yada, who do you want more?

Plus, it was nice seeing Chris in the wrestling history thing, it was just nice seeing his face, even if it was from years and years ago. It was also nice seeing him win again. Wasn't it such an awesome feeling when he won the Undisputed Championship? That was my first ever show and he was just so great. sigh Don't we all miss him?

Anyways, enjoy. :)

* * *

Chris moaned as he closed his eyes and leaned backwards. He was feeling stressed right now and Stephanie's hands felt like heaven on his sore shoulders. She always knew just what he liked. She kept kneading his shoulders, helping relieve the tension that had settled in his body. He took a deep breath and leaned his head all the way back, looking up at Stephanie. She looked down at him and smiled, leaning over to kiss him, her nose bumping his chin.

"Hey there," she said. "How are you feeling now?"

"Better, much better," Chris told her. "You always know just what to do to me?"

"Well that sounded slightly dirty," she told him.

He winked up at her, "It was supposed to, just getting you warmed up for what I want to do to you later."

"What _do_ you want to do to me later?" she inquired, raising her left eyebrow to support her question.

"Let's just say it involves you, me, and no clothes," he explained to her, reaching up to grab her forearms and bring her down so she had her arms snaked around his neck, holding tightly as he turned slightly to kiss her cheek. "I love you."

"I know," she told him seriously, "I love you too, next month is our two-year anniversary, can you believe that?"

"No," he told her. "You know, it's weird to think about everything we have now and how we really never would've wanted it like six years ago. But it all seems pretty right. You're the only person I can imagine being with."

"Probably because I'm the only one who can handle you," she said, kissing his cheek this time. "I know that many, many women would probably love it if you were to show up on their doorstep and I know these said women would have their panties around their ankles in two seconds flat if you were to show up on their doorstep, but little do they know that you are one of the most difficult men to live with, which is bad because the only other man I've ever lived with would be Hunter."

"I'm not digging the comparison," Chris told her. "If you were to compare me to Test, maybe I could deal with that, but not with Hunter. Not that he's a bad guy…now, but still, I've got to have standards."

"Well, you both love or loved me, that's a pretty high standard right there."

"Yeah, a high standard for hookers," Chris chuckled and felt Stephanie's grip tightening around his neck as he wheezed out, "A high-paid hooker…" She tightened her grip a little bit more, "Okay, okay, can't breathe, love you so much it hurts, literally hurts."

She laughed and pulled away. "Don't be a jerk, and its escort, not hooker."

"See, _this_ is why I love you," he said, standing up and going around the chair to gather her up in his arms. She bumped herself against him and hugged him to her, relishing in the scent of his cologne.

"Because I refer to myself as a hooker?" she wondered.

"Yeah, I always wanted to pay for sex."

The door opened just then and Hunter walked in unannounced, which seemed to be his calling card lately. "Oh eww, what are you guys doing?"

"Ever heard of knocking, jackass," Chris told him as Stephanie opened her eyes. "For all you know, we could've been having sex in here, really kinky stuff too."

"Okay, okay, I get it, this is in retaliation of last week when I mentioned the sex between me and Stephanie when we were married, touché," Hunter nodded as he folded his arms.

"Maybe, or maybe we could've been about to have sex and you just interrupted and now I'm not going to get any because of you," Chris told him. "Ever think of that?"

"With him here?" Hunter asked, jerking his thumb over to Sawyer, who was sitting on his play blanket, simultaneously chewing on a teething ring and batting at a toy hanging over him. "Because that's not creepy at all."

"Fine, what is it?"

"I wanted a match later on tonight, me and Shawn against those idiots Randy and Edge."

"I'm not sure I want to put you guys in a match together, I have a feeling we'd be mopping up the blood for days and I just don't think we have the man power with which to do that," Stephanie said to him, shrugging her shoulders.

"Oh come on, Stephanie, we're friends, we're supposed to help each other out. If I can't use favors from you, what the hell kind of pull do I have around here?" Hunter asked, then looked at Chris. "Hey man, you want to help me out?"

"Maybe you're new here, but you do realize what it's like if you cross Stephanie right, detrimental to your health. Finding yourself with cement boots at the bottom of the ocean."

"He's right," Stephanie added.

"Wow, you two are no fun, hey Sawyer, you're part McMahon, you've got some of this company to yourself, right? You're kind of in charge around here, you want to give me the match that your parent's won't?" Sawyer just looked up at him, teething ring still in his mouth and drool coming down his chin. "Okay, I guess that's a no, geez, the entire Jericho family is a bunch of spoilsports."

"Look, here's what I'll do, to make sure you don't kill each other, have another set of partners, and the same with the other guys. If you make it an 8-man tag, I'll give you the match, but those are the conditions, take them or leave them," Stephanie said, slipping into business mode so expertly.

"You've got yourself a deal, McMahon," Hunter said, turning on a dime and then walking out of the room with a, "See ya later, tough guy."

Stephanie rolled her eyes and went over to pick up Sawyer, who dropped his toys and leaned his head on Stephanie's shoulder. She turned to say something to Chris, but caught Christian walking by out of the corner of her eye. She saw him turn the corner and then she closed the door to turn to Chris.

"You know, I do kind of wonder why Christian keeps coming around. I would think that with his little plan in action, it would be very obvious who was behind it if he hung around all the time."

"I hate what he's doing to Trish, but you can't fault a guy for wanting to see the woman he loves. And despite all this crap that he's doing, these schemes that won't work, or if they do will be very bad, he loves Trish…a lot. He wouldn't be doing this stuff if he didn't love her, and you have to realize how noble that is."

Stephanie sat down on the couch and grabbed a bottle out of Sawyer's diaper bag before handing it to him. He took it eagerly as she rubbed his back. "It's noble, in a way, but in the end, shouldn't we just be happy for Trish, shouldn't _he_ just be happy for Trish?"

"No," Chris said, scrunching up his face a little bit, "I don't think he should. I think if he loves her like he claims to love her, he can't be happy for her because he's not happy, and I think that his happiness is tied with hers…and when did I get so deep?"

"Care to offer anyone else some life lessons?" she wondered. "That can be your official title around here now, you can just go around telling people deep, mind-bending things that make them think so hard they can't even wrestle."

"Okay, you're the first on my list," Chris said. "Kurt will come around."

"That was neither deep nor mind-bending," she told him.

"No, it was only the truth."

Meanwhile, Christian had actually snuck off to Torrie's dressing room. He walked inside without knocking as she was pulling down her very ugly, very revealing shirt. He lounged on her couch and took her in. "You look like a whore."

"Oh, who asked you?" Torrie said to him. "Besides, you're the one who wants me to seduce Carlito away from your precious Trish Stratus. If you want the job done right, then you're going to have deal with what I'm going to do."

"And if I still think you look like a whore?"

"It won't matter when I have Carlito wrapped around my little finger and you have Trish on your arm. That _is_ what you want, isn't it? I thought the entire point of this was so that you could get back with Trish. If that's not why you're doing this, I'd love to know your reasons," she said sarcastically as she tossed her blonde hair over her shoulder.

Christian thought back to the previous week and his brief encounter with Trish. He wasn't a completely heartless bastard though, and what Trish had said had pulled at his heartstrings a little, but the past week had soothed all wounds. He had thought long and hard about what he was doing, what it would do to Trish, and time and time again, he thought that it was the right thing to do. Was he being a little bit selfish? Yes, he was, but he had to think about what he was going to get in the end, and what he was going to get in the end was Trish, and that made it all worth it.

He couldn't be bothered with the minute details of what he was doing. He wasn't even considering Carlito's feelings in all of this. To him, Carlito was a placeholder, someone to be with Trish while she figured out that he was the one she wanted, not that weird-haired, apple-spitting freak. He wasn't even her type at all, so there was no way it was going to last. If he helped move that relationship along, well, in the end, it would just help her heart heal.

"Zoning out on me again?" Torrie asked. "What do you plan to do with Trish once I break them up?"

"I'm going to ask her to marry me," Christian told her. "She's the one I want to be with for the rest of my life, simply put."

Torrie actually got a little serious after that, "You're going…to marry her?"

"Well, I'm going to ask. I love her," Christian said, then looked up at the woman. "What, you think I would go to all this trouble for a woman I just tolerated? No way, I love her, Torrie, you have no idea how much."

"I have some idea," she replied, "because you're going through with this entire thing, and it's not exactly a friendly plan. You are planning on breaking her. Not that I even care what happens to that little wench, but whatever, your choice."

"Yeah, it is."

"Her choice too," Torrie said idly and Christian looked at her sharply.

"What do you mean by that?"

"I'm just saying that even when I get her and Carlito to call it quits, there's no saying that she's immediately going to come running to you. She could move on to some other guy, I hear Jeff's available."

Christian stood up and stood over her, not towering over her, but he was definitely looking menacing. "Why the hell would you say that? Look, there's no other guys in her life. We were together for years, she loves me, she's just lost her way. Don't you ever dare try and tell me that she's going to fall for freaking Jeff Hardy. I don't need your little commentary on _my_ love life."

"Except that I'm the one trying to salvage it, what am I getting from you, Christian?" Torrie challenged. "Because from where I'm sitting, I'm doing all the freaking work and you're sitting on your ass waiting for your little princess of an ex-girlfriend to come running into your arms."

"It's a complicated situation," he snapped angrily, glaring at her. "You wouldn't even understand."

"Does it go back to the fact that you pretty much abandoned her?" Torrie asked snidely and noting the stricken look on Christian's face, she laughed cruelly. "What, you think nobody knew about that? _Everybody_ knew about that. It was news around here. Trish getting her ass dumped, and in such a harsh way, oh yeah, news travels fast, let me tell you."

"You don't even know what happened," Christian said. "I didn't leave her because I wanted to, I was forced to, to protect my family. I did what I had to do, and it wasn't my fault."

"But you still left her, and you never, not once expected her to move on. I like Carlito and I want him, so don't mistake me helping you as me thinking that I want to help you or see Trish happy. I'd just as soon see her miserable than see her happy. I just want Carlito, but you know, maybe Trish does deserve someone other than you. Maybe she was happy before you stepped back in her life."

"You take that back," Christian told her, his voice low and starting to become a little dangerous as he stared the blonde woman in the eyes. He hadn't expected this much a challenge out of Torrie, but she was sure as hell a spitfire. He grudgingly admired that deep down in his soul, but on the surface, where he wanted Trish, this was unacceptable.

"No, I'm not taking that back, and you can't make me, so go take a hike or something," Torrie said, turning her back to him. Christian grabbed her arm and spun her around, and she looked at him indignantly. "Okay, now you're just annoying me."

"I said take it back," Christian told her menacingly.

"Or what? You going to hit me?" she asked.

"No, I'd never hit a woman," Christian told her. "Not unless we were in the ring. Look, the only reason that I left Trish was because Mickie threatened my mom and my grandma, that's it. I didn't want to do, I wish I hadn't done it now, but that's the story."

"Boo-hoo," Torrie said, though inside, she did feel a little sympathy towards him. "Then don't worry your little head off, I've got something cooking for tonight that should start Carlito on the road to being enlightened."

"Your bed doesn't lead to enlightenment," Christian muttered as he left the room quickly. He walked, or rather stomped, down the hallway before bumping into someone along the way. He looked down and saw Mickie James on the ground beneath him. He scoffed to himself and though he hated to do it, he lent her a hand at getting up. "Watch where you're going next time."

"Thanks," Mickie said, normally this time, like she didn't even want to give him the time of day.

"You ruined my life, you know," Christian laughed humorlessly. He shook his head as she turned to look at him. "You ruined everything that I had, here, with Trish, everything. You forced me to get a new life, and look at me now. Look at me, Mickie. I'm nothing, you made me give it all up."

"You didn't have to," she said nonchalantly, looking at him with some sort of weird innocent look.

"That's all you have to say, you threaten the two people in the world who have loved me my entire life, and then you make me break up with the love of my life, and that's all you can say? That I didn't have to do it? You knew where my family lived, you had kidnapped people before, and I'm supposed to do nothing."

"I probably wouldn't have done anything, I liked Trish so much, I probably wouldn't have hurt you," Mickie explained.

"God, you are a cold-hearted bitch," Christian told her. "But thank, thanks for ruining everything. I was cut off from everyone I cared about."

"Well, that's too bad," Mickie said as she skipped off and Christian saw that Mickie hadn't changed, she had just become better at hiding it. He turned and saw Trish standing there and he gasped a little bit. She looked over his shoulder at Mickie's retreating form and then looked sympathetically at Christian.

"Oh, hey Trish." She smiled at him. "Um…how much of that did you hear?"

"Just the tail end. I agree that she's still a bitch," Trish told him kindly. "Do you really think she ruined your life?"

He looked at the ground but found himself compelled to stare into her chocolate brown eyes again. "She certainly didn't help."

Trish took a few steps forward and looked at Christian. "She didn't ruin anything, Christian. Nothing that wouldn't have been ruined anyways. It's just…sometimes we realize that things we thought were right, aren't so right anymore. I think that's what happened with us."

"I don't know what happened with us," he whispered to her, stepping one step closer to her. The cacophony of the halls and the bustling people seemed to die down. The harsh rush of the crowd in the building, the loud music blaring, the pyrotechnics going off seemed to fade for Christian. All he saw was Trish Stratus, the woman he loved standing in front of him, the woman he might always love.

"We grew apart, I realized that I was subconsciously trying to get away from you because I wasn't happy. I felt like you were smothering me to make up for lost time."

"You never should've taken that psychology course your sophomore year of college," he told her as she laughed quietly at the memory. "You're reading too much into this. I don't think we grew apart at all."

"I think we did, and then by the time I realized it, I think we were over. I think the thing with Shane was just the eye-opener. It's not your fault, Christian, I think it's just circumstance. I don't think that Mickie's ultimatum helped any, but it wasn't all her fault, it was our fault too."

"I know, but I like to think that if I hadn't left, we'd still be together."

"I don't know," she said, stepping a little closer and then reaching her hand up to place it on his shoulder companionably. "I don't think that your life is ruined, Chrissy. You might think it is, but maybe it's just getting to the good stuff."

"_You_ were the good stuff," Christian said, his voice cracking a little bit. "You were the only good stuff in my life for a long time."

"Bullshit," she winked. "Chrissy, you just have to understand that we never would've worked, not in the long run. If you look at our relationship, the ups, the downs, the multiple break-ups, you have to see that we weren't ready for each other at the same time."

"But we were _so_ good together," he told her emphatically, leaning down so that they were eye-to-eye. He needed her to see the desperation. If it meant laying his entire soul on the line, he was going to do that for her. If it meant crying, breaking down and begging her, he would do it in a second if it meant he was going to get to talk to her, touch her, maybe kiss her. "Don't you remember, Trishy, don't you remember it all?"

"Of course I do," she said, but then she smiled brightly. "But I love Carlito now, you understand, right?"

"No, I don't," he told her, pulling away, knowing that now was not the time. He'd bide his time, yes, and now was definitely not the time to spring it on her. He needed to prepare, and she needed to be ready.

"Well, that's okay, I'm not asking you to understand, and I'm not asking for permission. But I do love him, Christian, you have no idea how much."

"Enough to marry him, apparently," he said, and it came out harsher than he had intended. He looked at her hurt face, but couldn't bring it in himself to actually apologize to her. Not when it came to something dealing with Carlito or her upcoming marriage, whenever that was. Unless this wasn't like a real engagement, and that thought intrigued him. What if it was just one of those things where they said they were engaged, but they ended up being engaged for years and years? That could work in his favor because then it wouldn't even be really real. He cleared his throat and prepared to ask a very tough question. "When are you getting married?"

She looked at him strangely, wondering if he was plotting something in that head of his. She cocked her head to the side and stared at him, "Well, we haven't decided yet."

"Oh okay, I've got to…go, but I'll see you around."

"Around," she echoed, as she saw Christian snicker as she turned around. It came to her then that he didn't think she was going to get married to Carlito. She scoffed at the audacity of Christian calling into question her engagement. So what if she didn't have a date, or a ring, she had a guy, who loved her and wanted to marry her. She couldn't believe that Christian would actually snicker at her like that. She turned around and went back to where she came from, Carlito's locker room.

"Hey, where's that water you wanted to get?" Carlito asked.

"When are we getting married?" she demanded to know.

"Whoa, where did _that_ come from?" he wondered. "I thought that you were just going to get some water, I didn't think you were going to come back with a wedding planner."

"I just want to know, I want to set a date, I want to know when I'm going to marry you," she told him. "Lito, I don't think that the people we've told have taken this engagement seriously. I hate it, I don't want people thinking that we're something not exclusive. I want to marry you, I _love_ you. I do. I want to marry you."

"New Year's Eve," Carlito told her. She stared at him wide-eyed. "What, you wanted a date, that's cool, I came up with one."

"You want to get married on _this_ New Year's Eve?" Trish asked, her eyes dancing as she looked at him.

"If you wanted to get married right now in the bathroom, I'd say yes. I love you, and I'm going to marry you, I don't care if it's right here, right now, or two years from now in Antarctica or something. I want you to be happy, and what makes me happy is you being happy."

Trish squealed and launched herself at Carlito, effectively knocking him back onto the couch as she peppered his face with kisses, never quite reaching his mouth as she hugged him tightly. He reached up and grabbed her face in his hands and directed her lips towards his, kissing her deeply as she smiled widely against his mouth, allowing his tongue access to her mouth. She deepened the kiss a little, making out with him right there on the couch. He let his hands wander from her face to her hair, running his fingers through the silky softness of it. She moaned against his mouth, and he counted his blessings once again. Trish was so soft against him and she smelled so good and he gradually started turning her over so that he was on top of her. Just as he was about to settle in on top of her, she pulled away.

"New Year's Eve, really?"

"Yeah, what better way to bring in the new year than be married to you," he said impishly and she grinned and leaned in for another kiss.

"I love you so much, do you know that?"

"I love you too, it's just hard not to love you."

"Oh, you're so cute," she kissed him, "and sweet," she kissed him again, "and loveable," she kissed him one last time. "I can't believe we're going to do it. We should keep it small. Just our friends and family, don't you think."

"Yeah, I have a lot of friends in my dad's promotion that I'd like to invite."

"Yeah, I've got friends from college, and then Stephanie will obviously be my maid of honor, and I'm guessing that your brother will be your best man," Trish said. Carlito nodded. "We can do it in Puerto Rico, on a beach or something, are the beaches nice there, last time we were there, we didn't do much of anything."

"Yeah, there are beaches, really nice ones too, you want to get married on the beach?"

"I don't know, Stephanie and Chris got married kind of on a beach, it was a hill, overlooking a beach, do you think that it would be copying them?"

"How about we rent a yacht," Carlito said.

"Seriously?" Trish asked, her eyes lighting up at the possibility. "Overlooking the water, at night, and maybe there could be fireworks or something, oh my God, that would be so beautiful."

"The only problem is where are we going to get a yacht?" he wondered.

"Are you kidding me? Do you know who my friends are? If anyone could find me a nice yacht to use, it's going to be Stephanie, she's great with that kind of stuff. And we could even have the reception on a boat, that would be so romantic, out on the sea, just like we're alone in the world, I love it, Lito, I love it," she told him sincerely. She kissed him again. "Can I go tell Stephanie the news or are you going to keep me pinned here the entire time?"

"I'm going to keep you pinned here," he said. "Are you kidding me, I've got you underneath me at the moment, you think I'm going to let you go."

She nodded, "You've got a match coming up kind of soon. You can so kick Viscera's ass though. In minutes, mere minutes…you want to walk me to Stephanie's office? That way we can think of more outrageous things to add to our wedding."

"Like I want to let you go walk alone," he said lecherously. She put her hands on his chest and pushed up, as he got off her willingly. He held out his hand and she took it and let him help her up. She was about to walk out the door when Carlito pulled her back and fixed her disheveled hair, pushing it behind her ears. He looked at her tenderly and leaned forward to press his lips to hers again, more meaning behind this kiss than the ones they had just shared.

When she pulled away, she took his right hand and put it on her shoulder as she started to pull him out of the room, walking down towards Stephanie's office, Carlito walking closely behind her, leaning his chin on her shoulder. They were about to pass a hallway when Trish and Carlito heard his name being mentioned. They peeked around the corner and saw Viscera talking with Torrie, and Viscera ask if they had a thing. When Torrie answered in the positive, Carlito made a move to go over there and set the record straight, but Trish pulled him away from turning the corner and put her finger on her lips to tell him to be quiet.

She leaned up to his ear and whispered, "What does she think she's doing?"

"I have no clue," Carlito said, whispering back. "I'm not with her, Trish, I swear to you."

"I know, there's no way," Trish told him. "We spend a lot of our time together, well we did before I was going to do this show I'm doing, but still, I believe you. I think she's just trying to stir up trouble, but you know what, two can play at that game."

"Oh great, are you going to use me like a piece of meat again?" he joked. She nodded slowly and he held in his laugh. "What do you want me to do?"

"I want to see where this is going," she said. "She must have a reason for doing this. You just have to be my patsy, see, I'm learning so much from the cop thing. You'll be my undercover agent."

"As long as I get to go under the covers with you later," he winked and she gave him a disgusted look. "Gross?"

"Very," she answered, then pushed him over and mouthed "good luck" to him.

Carlito went over there, and Torrie was absolutely delighted to see him. Carlito, on the other hand, not so delighted to see her, but he masked that with the excitement that he was going to marry Trish in approximately twenty-six days. That made it a whole lot easier to care about Torrie when he was really thinking about Trish. He never figured he'd get married now, to anyone, if you had asked him like six months ago, but this felt right. Everything with Trish felt so right. It felt good to be in control of his life like that, to feel like he was doing something productive.

He went through the motions with Torrie, and unfortunately, she wanted to hang around him. He saw Trish walk past and she gave him a sly smile and a wink and he sent her a mock glare that she was putting him in this position. She blew him a kiss that Torrie didn't see, and he pretended to throw it away so she playfully sent him another that he took this time, winking at her. She nodded her head in the direction of Stephanie's office and he nodded as Torrie was pulling him off somewhere. Trish went the other way to Stephanie's office and knocked on the door, Chris opening it moments later, Sawyer in his arms.

"Oh, hey, Trish," Chris said, turning to Sawyer, "Aren't you going to say hi to Trish?" Sawyer eyed her, but didn't say anything except for a soft coo. Chris kissed his chubby, little cheek and Sawyer smiled at that. "So what brings you here?"

"Where's Stephanie?"

"Where else would she be?" Chris asked, waving his free hand around. "She's at her station running the show while I hold down the fort. I was actually looking through some files for some potential new hires, I don't know why Vince insists on giving me things have to do with models or divas. I think it's all a test."

"Of what, how faithful you'd stay to Stephanie?"

"Yeah," he said, shrugging. "I mean, would you really put it past Vince to test me by putting me in awkward situations? I think this is right up his alley. I don't know if he wants me to fail because he hates me, or wants my marriage to Stephanie to succeed because he likes me."

"A little bit of both," she said. "Oh well, I was looking for Stephanie, so I'm going to go find her, and then…"

"I'll walk with you," he said, going to the desk and grabbing a very large file folder.

"Wow, you weren't joking when you said you had paperwork to do," Trish said. "Those are all files on people who want to audition?"

"Yeah, Vince said he wanted models or something, God knows for what, but this is what I get handed, aren't I the luckiest guy ever?" he asked sarcastically as he shouldered Sawyer's diaper bag, something they never went without. Trish took it from the grateful Chris as they went down the hall to the gorilla. "I've long since stopped trying to understand Vince, he's just going to remain a mystery."

"As he should," Trish said. "He's kind of complex."

"I know, I'm related to the guy," Chris said as they quickly reached Stephanie. Chris handed over the baby to the busy Stephanie, who promptly sat his diaper-covered bottom on the table in front of him, and giving him one of his toys to occupy himself as she poked him in the tummy, causing him to laugh his high-pitched baby giggle. Chris was about to sit next to Stephanie when Trish stole the seat right out from under him. She gave him an apologetic look, but made no attempt to move. Chris rolled his eyes and bitterly went to get another chair and set it up alongside Trish.

"So okay, what are you doing for the New Year's?" Trish asked.

Stephanie leaned back a little to look at Chris, who had gone back to his files. She took off her headphones for a moment and turned to Trish, "I'm not entirely sure, but hold on, sweetie, keep your eyes on the screen."

"Why?" Chris asked, not looking up.

"Just look, I know that last week you were upset with the flashback, so I took the liberty of making sure I had some input this week," Stephanie told him, her smile growing ever wider as Chris looked up to see himself flash across the screen. A slightly younger self at that, who had no worries about Stephanie or Sawyer, who was still that fun-loving bastard of a bachelor, that was him alright. Stephanie watched as a small smile played over Chris's lips.

She had intended it to be a nice gesture following last week and him having to see her interrupted wedding with Hunter. Yet, while she was watching it and mulling over whether or not she should use it, she felt like it could remind Chris of what he had here, and what he could easily have again. Chris had won it that night; he united two belts and created history. She remembered watching it at home, and she had been angry that it hadn't been Kurt, but she reluctantly gave Chris his props for doing something that nobody thought he would do (except those of us carrying Jericho signs at the show, which, clears throat and points to self). Maybe if he saw how much he had, he'd want it again.

She watched Chris's reaction as he seemed a little bit wistful, and he turned to her and he smiled. "Thank you," he told her and she gave him an innocent look, like he should've expected as much because she loved him. Trish watched between the two of them, and while normally it would make her puke, she had such huge news of her own, and hoped that after she was married, she could have this kind of silent communication that Stephanie and Chris had. If she had a marriage like theirs, she'd be very happy.

"Okay, that was great, sweet," Trish said. "What are you doing for New Year's?"

"Maybe go up and see Chris's parents, or my parents, we have Sawyer so going out to party is pretty much out of the question, so maybe stay home, ring in the new year with our baby, it'll be Sawyer's first new year, it'll be special."

"Cancel all of that," Trish said, making a sweeping motion with her arm like it was nothing important. "Because I've got someplace for you to be."

"I don't really want to party," Stephanie said. "With Sawyer, it's just tiring, and I don't like thinking I'd have to leave him with someone, I don't want a baby-sitter, who knows where they've been."

"No, he can be there too."

Shaking her head, Stephanie replied, "At a party, I don't know, he's so young."

"It's not going to be just a party…Carlito and I…"

"He's right there," Stephanie said, pointing behind her to where Carlito was looking bored by whatever Torrie was chattering on about. She waved to him and he shyly waved back. She shook her head as she saw the questioning look in his eyes, but before their silent conversation could go any further, his music hit and Torrie was following like a puppy-dog. Carlito plastered a fake smile on his face and went out there.

"Carlito and I are getting married on New Year's Eve," Trish blurted out.

Chris, who hadn't really been listening in on the conversation, leaned forward, "Excuse me, can you repeat yourself?"

"Earlier, we set a date, New Year's Eve."

"New Year's Eve _2007_?" Stephanie inquired.

"No, this New Year's Eve," Trish told them. "We want it to be in Puerto Rico because that's where Lito is from, and we're thinking of having it on a yacht and it'll be great, what do you guys think?"

"Wow," Stephanie said, blinking slowly in shock. "I didn't expect to hear this tonight, but you really want this to happen?"

"I do, really, really, really do," she said, adding the extra emphasis. "It feels good, it feels like something I want to do. I want to take that plunge, and I think Carlito and I are great together, I love him so much, you have no idea."

"Well, if that's what you really, really, really want, I guess we're booked for New Year's Eve, Chris?" Stephanie said, seeing if he was going to consent. He shot her a look of consternation and she just prodded him along.

"If that's what you want, Trish, it's what we want too," Chris said. Stephanie leaned forward to hug Trish, just as Trish spied on Carlito's match and Torrie kissing Carlito.

"Oh my God, that bitch," said the angered Trish. Stephanie pulled away and looked over her shoulder. "I cannot believe her."

Chris and Stephanie could though, they could believe it every second. Yet, it wasn't their place to say anything so they kept their mouths shut. Whether or not this would hurt their friend, they didn't know, but either way, someone was going to get hurt. Trish scoffed and looked at the screen incredulously.

"That woman really has no class," Trish said in disbelief. "I swear, I'm going to find out what she's up to."

Torrie walked backstage, satisfied with herself. She had taken control of the situation and shown Christian that she wasn't just extra baggage. She was going to show him that she knew what she was doing and she wasn't just going to listen to Christian rag on her every single day he didn't get Trish back. Kissing Carlito had just been the first step. Her top "accidentally" falling was all part of it as Carlito held her to him so she wouldn't be embarrassed.

"Would you mind walking me back to my locker room, Carlito, I'm afraid I'd get exposed," she said, feigning innocence. Carlito looked between her and Trish, who was talking giddily with Stephanie. He couldn't feel the smile coming over his face, but it was so instinctive when he was around Trish. His eyes lit up considerably and his heart started to pound, something so common around the woman he loved. He was ignoring Torrie now as she pulled on the hem of his t-shirt. "Lito?"

"I've got to go, but you get that fixed," Carlito said, brushing her off. She stood there indignantly for a second before wandering off, finding Christian waiting for her with a t-shirt. She looked at him gratefully as she grabbed it.

"That was great out there," he told her excitedly. "I mean, how can Trish see that and not get mad."

"She didn't seem to care when I just saw her."

"Really?" Christian asked, brow furrowed. "Hey, maybe that means she doesn't really care what he thinks, she's not overly sensitive, she's ready to just let him go."

"Well, he was definitely kissing me, so you know, my plan is working and you can have that blonde back, and I'll have the best guy on Raw, it all works out, just watch me continue to work my charms on him, he'll fall for me any second now."

"Just like your top?"

"Oh, well, if Carlito wants to touch the twins, then he's more than welcome to it."

"As long as Trish finds out and dumps him, I'm cool with that. This is going great, they are _so_ totally going to break up soon, this totally reeks of awesomeness," Christian said, slamming his fists together in victory. He was going to have Trish back soon, he knew it. There was no way she was going to stand for Torrie and Carlito, there was just no way. She was going to come back to him, he just had to be patient.

Little did he know he only had twenty-six days left.


	116. Oh, Give Me a Break, December 11, 2006

"She can carry a gun now."

"Like right this second?" Stephanie joked as she talked with Carlito as they sat in the production truck. Carlito was inquiring Stephanie on what would be the best present to get Trish for her birthday which was that following Monday. He had a solid idea for what he wanted to do, but he wanted Stephanie's opinion because he had known Trish for longer and had better taste than he did.

"No, not right this second, I don't think security would let her in here with a gun," Carlito told her. "But she can, so if worse comes to worse…she'll probably…"

"Shoot Torrie," Stephanie finished for him, glancing over at him as Carlito laughed and nodded his head.

"Yeah, actually, I think I heard her talking in her sleep about that. Kind of worries me, in that, my fiancée can kill me in my sleep and nobody would know."

"And that's why you make sure that you don't cross her," Stephanie told him. "But I don't think you would because I know that you love her."

"I still can't believe it sometimes," Carlito told her as she watched the screen in front of her with some of the things needed to bind together tonight's show. He found it easier to talk to her when she wasn't completely focusing in on him. "I feel like I don't deserve her, you know, she's just the best female wrestler, probably of all-time, and she's so beautiful."

"That's sweet," Stephanie told him honestly. "I think she likes to feel that way."

"Yeah, so I've heard…I mean, bits and pieces, she hasn't told me everything about her and Christian, not that I really need to know or anything," he rambled, his upper lip curling a little bit as he tried to appear nonchalant. Stephanie turned her chair towards him a little and rested her cheek against her hand.

"I don't really ask Chris about his ex-girlfriends," Stephanie told him, shrugging a little. "I figure that what's in the past is in the past, but he never had a girlfriend as serious as Christian was to Trish so I understand why you would be anxious to know."

"Thanks," Carlito said, a little embarrassed. "I'm marrying her at the end of this month, and sometimes I just think that I'm not really what she wants, you know, like she's settling because she can't get it to work with Christian."

"That's completely valid," Stephanie told him. "You think I thought I was good enough for Chris? No way, I mean, with my past, with our past together, it just didn't seem like we'd be a good match, but Trish does love you."

"And I love her too, I just don't want her loving me because I'm here, I want her to love me because she loves me, and sometimes, I don't know, I'm probably crazy, right?"

"You're not crazy," she assured him. "Seriously, it's normal to think that you're not worthy. You guys are getting married in like, three weeks, if that doesn't scare you, I don't know what will. I was nervous too, everyone should be nervous, if you're not nervous, then you have no feelings."

"Good."

"So how much do you want to know about her and Christian?" she asked and he widened his eyes a little. "Oh come on, Carlito, I know that you wanted my opinion on the present for her, but I knew there had to be more, and it's okay if you want to ask something."

"I've heard stuff before, I have, and I don't want her to feel like I'm spying on her."

"I can respect that," Stephanie said. "And you're a much bigger person than me, if I knew Chris had some epic romance with someone, I'd want to know everything about it. I'd be banging down doors, interrogating his parents, the whole nine yards."

"So no epic romances in Chris's past then?"

"No, I'm the only epic romance he gets," Stephanie said with a smile. "He wasn't my first husband, but I'm his first wife, and even though he knows that I had given myself wholly to someone else, I want him to know that he's it for me now, and that Hunter was nothing in the long run. If you love Trish, and she loves you, then nobody in the past matters, right? That's the adult way of looking at it."

"And, I'm going to have to ask since we don't know each other too well, what's the Stephanie McMahon way of looking at it?"

"Oh, that's easy, Christian and Trish were very on-again, off-again. They broke up the first time because Jeff came back and she decided to explore her options with him. Christian was a lot more patient back then though, far less patient than he is now."

Carlito laughed. "So you'd just spill all the dirt."

"Until you've had your fill, if you wanted," Stephanie told him.

Carlito thought about it, knowing everything about Trish's past with Christian would make it easier on him. He would be able to ease his mind of the thoughts that she was just biding her time with him until Christian came back to swoop her off her feet. It would be easy, they had history, they had everything at one point, and who the hell was he? He was just the guy that was her new boyfriend, her new everything, who was learning stuff about her still, who hadn't quite mastered the way she liked her coffee.

Yet, he had to trust her. He had to trust her intentions and take her word at face value if he ever wanted this thing with her to work. He needed her to know that he was in this, he was completely in this and he needed her and he hoped that she needed him too. That's how this had to work, and Lord help him, he wanted things to work with Trish. Christian could be overcome, someday, and he would wait, and he would love her all the while. He glanced at Stephanie, who was awaiting his answer and he knew his decision.

"I'm okay, I just know if she wanted to tell me something important that she would tell me. I trust her, and when she's ready, she's ready. I love her, and I want her to be happy with me, and trust me and know that she can count on me."

Stephanie looked at Carlito and nodded her head, impressed with his decision. Most guys would want to know the dirt, or at least the guys that she knew. She took a deep breath and said, "You know, I think you're definitely one of the good ones, I don't see you on the business end of one of Trish's guns any time soon."

"Thank God, and thanks for the help with the present," he told her. "I'm going to head out, I've got a match tonight and since it's with King, I kind of need to talk to him before the show because there won't be time during it."

"I understand, good luck getting that," Stephanie said, pointing at a brochure he had in his hands. "And Carlito, for what its worth, I really do think that Trish is completely devoted to you, really."

"Thanks, Stephanie," Carlito nodded before leaving the production truck. Stephanie stared after him and shook her head. She honestly liked Carlito and thought he was a good guy. There weren't too many of those around here nowadays. But there had always been your run-of-the-mill bad guys who wanted the bad reputation and the loose chicks. She just didn't think that was Carlito, and knowing what Christian was doing and she knew by not doing anything, she was actually condoning what Christian was doing and that thought sickened her. It sickened her to the point where she stood up and told the director of the truck that she needed to take off and finish some paperwork.

Knowing that Christian was in Orlando right now, she knew that it was going to be difficult to talk to him, he was probably busy wrestling or getting ready for wrestling, so she would have to sit on this feeling right now. She clenched her free hand and walked down the hallway, her hair flying behind her and the scent of her perfume, Escada's "Into the Blue," wafting behind her. She felt someone's presence behind her, and then two strong arms pulling her towards them and slowing her down.

"You look, shall I say…troubled," Chris told her.

"Maybe that's because I'm pissed," Stephanie said flatly.

"At me?" Chris asked, wincing already because she was in the prime spot to slug him in the stomach. He almost wanted to move away from her just so he wouldn't get hit, which felt like it was coming just about…

"No, not at you," she told him.

Chris breathed a sigh of a relief and was glad he wasn't going to get an elbow to the stomach. But then his mind cleared and he remembered that she was pissed off, "What's wrong, baby?"

"I hate Christian, that's all," Stephanie said. "I hate his stupid plan, I hate what he's doing to Trish and to Carlito, and I hate it all, and I'm sitting here like a spectator, I'm not doing anything and I'm Trish's maid of honor. I'm her maid of honor and I'm not acting like it."

"You do know that it's not a salaried job," Chris told her and..._then_ he got the elbow to the gut as he grunted. "Ouch, damn woman."

"I don't want her wedding ruined by the actions of one man," Stephanie said. "I don't care if that man is our friend, it's our obligation to do something. I thought that I could just live without interfering because interfering with Kurt cost me my best friend, but I can't just sit idly back and watch as one man tries to destroy someone's relationship that's going really, really well."

"Now this is the Stephanie that I fell in love with," Chris said, kissing the side of her neck, "the scheming and conniving one."

"I'm not being scheming or conniving," Stephanie responded. "I'm just thinking about Trish's well being, and she loves him, Chris. She loves him a lot, and I know that he loves her, and it's just not cool what he's doing, and by not doing anything, we're supporting what he's doing."

"We're not supporting it, baby," Chris argued. "We have no part of it."

"But we know about it, that makes us culpable for it. It's just as bad."

"How?"

"What if Christian succeeds, two people get their heart broken and Trish gets with Christian under false circumstances. How is that a good thing? It's not, that's what it is. Remember when Randy was a good guy, he warned us, helped us out when Hunter was bugging me, and we stuck together, if we…"

"I'm not going to tell Trish," Chris told her upfront. "Sorry, Steph, but Christian is my best friend, and I'm not going to rat him out like that."

"I don't…I wanted to talk to Christian, I want to talk to him and tell him what he's doing. I don't know, maybe he just doesn't see how much Trish loves Carlito, but she does, and I know that he's with her for all the right reasons, I know this as sure as day."

"Christian argues that he's loved her longer."

"Yeah, but so what? The length of time you love someone is irrelevant. It should be a matter of whether or not you love that person, the whens of it don't matter. Chris, you waited a month before you told me you loved me, a month, would it have made a difference if you had told me after three days? No, because you still loved me, do you still love me right this second?"

"Stupid question."

"Yeah, so what does it matter how long Trish loved Christian, does she love him now is the question, and I'm not so sure, and I can't sit back and watch as he tries to destroy the first thing that has made her truly happy in a really long time," Stephanie said to him passionately as she turned around to face him. "I want my best friend to be happy, I want her to be happy and have a life that she wants."

"I understand baby, I do," Chris said, stepping forward and taking her face into his hands and he kissed her lightly on the forehead and then moved down to kiss her lips softly, offering her the support she needed. "I understand what you feel you have to do, and I agree with you, we're just in a sticky situation."

"I know," she said. She closed her eyes and sniffled a little. "Do you think if I had stepped in earlier with Kurt--"

"Baby, don't, don't torture yourself over this," Chris said, pulling her into the nearest empty room. He closed the door behind him and took his wife into his arms, holding her tightly. "Don't you even dare try to blame any of that Kurt shit on yourself. I will watch him go down in flames before I let you blame yourself."

"I didn't step in when I knew something was wrong."

"You can't let this eat you up inside, baby," Chris said tenderly as he ran his hands over her cheeks again and again. "I won't let you let this eat you up inside. Look, Kurt is a whole different story, he changed, and he changed for the worse, and Christian, he's just misguided, totally different story, Steph. Don't think for one second you could've been the hero."

"You're right, as usual, go ahead, rub it in my face," she said, rolling her eyes.

"I'll save the rubbing for later," Chris winked as he tilted Stephanie's chin up and kissed her. "I love you, you know, and if anyone were to interfere with the two of us, well, they'd be a dead man."

"I love you too," she said. "I've got to go work though. My dad has not been too happy with Coach lately, power going to his head or something, so he is making me go talk to him and you know, knock him down a few pegs by telling him exactly what he is to do tonight."

"I love my women in power," he growled, groping at his wife as she tried to pull away from his arms.

"Okay, stop pawing me," she said. "Go get my son before he's brainwashed by my ex-husband and I think that you have work to do."

"What work?" Chris asked. "I just got fired from my radio gig, you, my lovely and beautiful wife, are officially the breadwinner of the family, the head honcho."

Stephanie raised her arms in victory. "I just had to wrest it away from you, but finally, finally I'm your sugar mama, well, it's about damn time I did the money-making around here and you get to sit on your lazy ass."

"Yes, yes," he bowed. "I hand you the crown."

"There's a crown? Wow, I'm so impressed by this job already," she said, kissing along his jaw. "You do have work to do though, those people my dad wants hired aren't going to hire themselves or it would create a very awkward situation."

"Well, I don't know, you'll have to help me out with this one. Do I want to stay here and fool around with my wife, who I could easily get access to because she's wearing a short skirt, which, you know, gets me worked up, or I could look at a bunch of women in bikinis modeling trying to get a job here by looking as skanky as possible, which to choose, which to choose," Chris said to himself, holding both his hands out and pretending to weight the options.

"Well, your hands would make good company because I really, really do have to get to work, and the short skirt wasn't for your benefit," she kidded.

"And who was it for?"

"Oh, you know me, giving out the milk for free," Stephanie said as she opened the door.

"I'm going to say, baby, that's disgusting given the fact that you're still breastfeeding," Chris said as he held the door open for her and let her walk out before walking out in front of her. "Have fun doing your job."

"Have fun doing yours, bring my baby around when you have a chance, I'm getting the separation anxiety right now," she told him, holding up her hand and shaking it around. "See, withdrawal, it's horrible."

Chris gave her one last peck on the mouth and then headed off in the opposite direction towards Hunter's locker room to retrieve his son. He thought deeply about what Stephanie was saying about Christian. She was right, and he knew it. He knew that what Christian was doing was wrong. He knew that it would only blow up in his face, but since it didn't really, truly involve him, he was willing to let Christian do what he had to do. The man had made a compelling argument. He knocked on Hunter's door and waited until the man in question opened it with Sawyer in his arms.

"Hey, you're late."

"Sorry, got caught up," Chris said, taking Sawyer from Hunter's arms. "Was he okay for you?"

"I'm intimidating," Hunter shrugged. "But I think he missed his folks, didn't you, tough guy?"

Sawyer looked over at him and smiled and Hunter smiled back. Chris, however, looked a little troubled. "Hey, man, can I ask you something, and this might be deeper than either one of us wants to get at this point, but I'm in the need of some advice and I think you might be the guy that helps me."

"What can I do you for? I'm guessing it's not to beat someone up unless you've really let yourself go in the past year and a half," Hunter said.

"You loved Steph, right?"

"Like, what, yesterday?" Hunter asked him.

Chris licked his lips a little, "When you were together, when you were married to her, the whole nine yards. You loved her, right?"

"If I said I didn't, would you beat me up or something, as far as I'm concerned, you know everything that went down in my marriage with Stephanie, she's probably told you everything about me, you probably know me a lot better than some people."

"I wouldn't go that far," Chris said, "but the point is, when you were married, did you love her?"

"Yeah, I loved her," Hunter answered. "But I don't love her anymore. Did someone tell you that I was going to try to steal her from you, because I'm not, man, I wouldn't do that. I consider you a friend now and I wouldn't do that to you."

"No, it's not that, it's…okay, it's something to do with Christian and Trish, and I'm leaving it at that because it's not your business, and it's not really mine either, but I'm trying to protect Trish. So you loved Steph, we just established that, and it took you a long time to get over that, I know that for a fact. How'd you stop? Why'd you stop?"

"Why'd I finally give up on her you mean?" Hunter asked.

"Yeah, what changed your mind? You had all these plans, all these schemes to try to break us up so you could have her back in your life, you tried everything, you were pretty damn desperate--"

"Okay, okay, I get it, I was a loser, you don't have to rub it in."

"But its fun," Chris told him, scoffing. "Do you know how many wins I have over you? By my count, it's like….none that count, so marrying your ex-wife is all that I've got, give that at least, Trips."

"I stopped because she was pregnant. I know when I first found out, I _still_ tried to get her to leave you, but I saw, I have eyes, ears, the whole thing. After her telling me she loved you, you telling me you loved her, everyone thinking you were the golden couple brought down from on high, you start to realize that…your chance passed. Because I loved her, it took me a long time to accept that, but I accepted it, and I moved from it and that's the story of that."

"So nobody knocked sense into you?"

"No."

"Do you think it would've helped?" Chris asked.

"Might've," Hunter shrugged. "I don't really know. Did you have someone like that in your life, or do you not know the feeling?"

"If I ever lost Stephanie, I'd know the feeling."

"Word of warning…she's so hard to get over because there's no one in the world like her."

Chris was going to ask another question, to get more information, but Sawyer decided that now was the time he was going to need a diaper change. Chris pointed towards the diaper and Hunter laughed and nodded over towards the diaper bag near the door. Chris said his thanks and walked out with Sawyer in tow back to Stephanie's office where a large pile of paperwork was awaiting him. It was funny the scenarios he had for Vince in his mind to punish him for making him look at pictures of women who wanted to flaunt their stuff on television every week for all the world to see. Even after being with Stephanie for more than four years and being married to her for almost two years, plus having a son with her, Chris still believed that Vince didn't trust him at all with his little girl, it was the only explanation.

He changed Sawyer quickly and set up his highchair as he proceeded to feed his son. He looked at Sawyer for a moment, wishing that he could talk and tell him what to do. "Hey kid, you would be such a big help if you would call Uncle Christian and tell him that he's being a huge asshole towards Auntie Trish. I figure with the baby voice that you have, it'll be a walk in the park." Sawyer responded by spitting up his pureed peas.

When Sawyer was done with his dinner and happily drinking from his bottle, Chris turned to the files in front of him, systematically weeding out the girls that seemed to be halfway decent from the ones who would clearly only cause trouble around here. The last thing Chris wanted to deal with was trouble, because knowing his family, they would send him out onto the battlefield. Chris kept glancing at his cell phone, knowing that Christian was just one phone call away, one simple phone call. Finally, he had to do it, he couldn't sit back and watch the lives of two people he cared about, and yes, he had come to care about Carlito, be hurt.

"Christian," came his out of breath greeting.

"Hey man, it's Chris."

"Oh hey, sorry I'm out of breath, just got done filming one of my segments, heard my phone and rand over, so what's up?" Christian asked.

"You need drop this thing with Trish."

"What?"

"Dude, it's wrong and you know it, and you need to drop it and you need to tell her."

"No way," Christian scoffed over the line. "Look, the plan is finally working and Torrie is finally proving herself in all of this, there's no way that I'm just going to let it slide. Not a chance, man."

"Christian, either you tell her, or I'm going to tell her," Chris said firmly and Christian knew he meant business.

"Why are you doing this, Chris?"

"Because you're going to hurt her, and she loves Carlito. Dude, she loves him, and she wants to be with him, and she's marrying on December 31st."

There was silence over the line for a few minutes and then Christian's soft voice. "Of next year, correct? New Year's Eve of 2007, right?"

"No, this one," Chris said. "She and Carlito set a date, a time, a place, they know what they want and they're planning it right now. And if you don't tell her what you're planning to do, you're going to ruin what should be the happiest day of her life."

Christian's eyes burned with tears and he could feel the burning in his nostrils, "No, she's not marrying him, Torrie is going to get him away from her, and it'll all be okay."

"She loves him, Christian, and you know it, she _loves_ him."

"So what? I have loved her for--"

"Do you know how long it took Hunter to get over Stephanie? A long time, a really long time, well into my marriage with Stephanie, and Hunter believed that entire time that Stephanie should be with him, and how did that pan out? Do you believe that Stephanie is still in love with Hunter?"

"Totally different situation."

"No!" Chris exclaimed, startling Sawyer into dropping his bottle and start to whimper, the tears in his eyes instantly. "Shit," he muttered as he grabbed Sawyer's bottle and handed it back to him, rubbing his hand a little to calm him down. "It's not different, she's moved on, she loves him, and I'm not going to see you hurt her. So you know what the choices are, Christian, you tell her, or I do."

"I'm not telling her, Torrie is working on it and Trish loves me, I know it. I see it in her eyes every time I talk to her, I see it, don't you get that, man. I don't believe in that bullshit loving something and letting it go malarkey that people spew at me to try and make me feel better. I don't believe that. I believe that you have to fight for what you want, and I'm fighting."

"Dirty, you're fighting dirty and you could break her heart, you don't even see it. You don't even see that you're hurting her and she doesn't even know it! She's planning her wedding, man."

"And if Stephanie broke up with you and wanted to marry some other guy, what are your feelings on that, huh Chris? Tell me that."

"I don't know, but you know what I think I would do, I would see, I would open my eyes and I would look at her, without the blinders on, without the bias, and if she were happy, I like to think that I would be happy for her. Because I want Stephanie to be happy and I do my damnedest every day to make sure that happens."

"Well I don't think Trish is happy."

"Well I don't think you see her."

"You don't think that I want her to be happy?"

"No, I just think that you think that the only way she's going to be happy is if she's with you, and that might not be the case. Somewhere down the line, it might not be the case for me and Stephanie, I don't know. But I want her to be happy."

"Yeah, right," Christian said with disbelief.

"When she was pregnant, right at the start, I thought that Stephanie didn't want the baby. I thought it was too much for her, and that she just wanted to focus on her work, which was our plan all along. That _was_ our plan. We were going to work our asses off and then do the whole kid thing, we didn't think we'd be dragging our seven-month-old son across the country. I told Stephanie that if she wanted…we could…take care of the pregnancy."

"What? You said she could have an abortion?" Christian asked, befuddled by this confession.

"Yeah, I did, I was scared I would lose her, and if it made her happy to get rid of it, if she was truly going to be happy doing all the work in the world and running the joint, then, I was willing to sacrifice my happiness for hers, and if you don't believe me on this, ask Kurt, I told him what happened while it was happening, and since we're not his favorite people right now, he'd have no reason to lie."

"But you love Sawyer."

"I love my kid with all my heart," Chris concurred. "But at the time, I loved my wife and I wanted her to be happy and secure and in control of what she wanted. Thankfully, I was being stupid because she definitely wanted my kid, but for a while there, I was willing to do it, to let her go through with it." He looked at Sawyer who was arranging some of his toys on the table of his highchair. Chris reached out and rubbed his head of wispy, blond hair, making the little boy look up at him for a second.

"I've got to go," Christian said, hanging up before Chris could say anything.

Christian sat down, leaning his head back and staring up at the ceiling. He never would've thought Chris would let Stephanie go through an abortion, not in a million years, but that was the capacity of his love for his wife. He didn't feel the first tear, or the second, but by the third, he knew that he was crying. He took a shaky breath and tried to compose himself, but couldn't. He leaned forward, arms on his thighs as he ran his hand over his face, collecting the fallen tears like souvenirs. He looked at his phone, the number glaring at him in bright phone light. He dialed it and knew what he had to do.

He was not the first man to give up the woman he loved, and he wouldn't be last, but in that moment, he felt very alone even though he knew that people cared about him, he knew he had millions of fans. He had friends, Chris, Stephanie, Shane, Lance, Tyson, he had family, Grandma Edna, his mom, Edge, he had so many things going for him, so many people watching him and caring about what he did.

Somehow, though, it didn't add up to one person, but nobody said love should be easy. He wanted to regret leaving her and breaking up with her, cheating on her, but regrets only reminded you of the bad things, so he didn't regret a moment. It was rare when you got something so profound that you never wanted to let it go.

"Christian?"

Her voice broke him from his reverie, and broke him from himself, "Hey Trishy."

"What's up?"

"I've been conspiring with Torrie to break you and Carlito up. I was going to swoop in once she took Carlito away, and I'd be your savior and we'd be together and we'd live happily ever after, and that's that."

"Oh Chrissy," Trish said sadly. "You and Torrie?"

"She was working alone at first, and she doesn't know I'm calling you, you'll probably want to take care of her yourself."

"Oh yeah," Trish said conspiratorially. "Chrissy, you shouldn't have done that. You know that."

"You're getting married on the 31st, I had to tell you."

"Let me guess…Chris?"

"He told me some stuff, I knew that I had to tell you. It wasn't fair to you to try and steal everything away from you. I would never want to do that, Trish, I hope that you know that. I never wanted you to hurt, and I know that you would've gotten hurt and I'm sorry. I just…I needed you, and I missed you, and I just…" His voice trailed off, tears clogging it as he sniffled.

"Chrissy, don't rush yourself, talk to me, it's just Trish," she said comfortingly.

Christian didn't talk for a few minutes, but Trish could hear him breathing so she waited for him to speak. She felt her own eyes starting to burn, but she held them at bay, knowing how difficult this was for Christian. He was a sensitive guy, yes, but he never sounded so broken. She hated the situation between them, and she wanted to give him a hug right now.

"I love you," Christian finally said. "I love you so much that I was willing to break you, and I was willing to leave you to protect my family and you, and I love you so much that some nights I roll over, thinking you're going to be there, and then when you're not, it hurts, a little part of me closes off. I wish that I had fancy words or poetry or something to show you just how much you've meant to me, but I don't. I just have myself and the way that I feel, and words cannot possibly describe that."

"Oh," she said, her voice sounding small as she sniffled herself.

"You deserve to be happy," he said resolutely, steeling himself for the long process of getting over her. "And if you're happy, then you're happy and I have to live with that."

"I wish I could make this easier on you."

"I wish that too, but right now, nothing short of you showing up in my doorway in lingerie is going to help me out."

"For what its worth, Chrissy, you'll always have part of my heart."

"Bye Trishy."

"Goodbye Chrissy."

"Be happy," he told her softly.

"I will."

She hung up the phone and didn't realize that Carlito was standing just outside the door listening to her half of the conversation. He looked down and took a deep breath before walking into the room. Trish looked up and saw him walk in and gave him a big smile before getting up to throw her arms around him. He held her tightly, even though they had just seen each other a little while ago, he had been off in the showers that his locker room didn't have, washing off after his match.

"So, I got my wedding dress fitting in between this whole reality thing, which I'm really starting to regret," Trish told him, laughing, but it sounded a little subdued. "And…I've got news…"

"News?" he wondered.

"Yeah, news," she told him. "Christian just called me, and among other things, he told me that he was working with Torrie to break us up. He said that I could deal with Torrie however I wanted, and I want her to get what she wants."

"She wants…me," he said, and a part of him was worried that Trish was going to break up with him. "You're going to give her me?"

"Yeah, I'm going to let her think she's playing me for a fiddle, and then when she least suspects, and we'll see how long this goes, when she least suspects it, I'm going to step forward and raise my left hand and show off my wedding ring," Trish said coyly and Carlito had to smile. "What do you think of that, Lito?"

"You're devious," he told her, gathering her up in his arms.

"Well, when you're friends with the McMahon children, you pick up a few things. I can't stand her, and to think that she roped Christian in to something, it sickens me. Lito, I want you to know I still care about Christian. I always will, and I hope it isn't a point of contention with us."

"No, it's not, I just have to deal with it in my own way," he said, "which is to not talk about it."

She laughed. "So come on, what are we waiting for, we've got make Torrie think she's got you!"

Carlito just laughed and let her drag him along. She pulled him into the hallway where she stood behind him and physically pushed him in the direction of the gorilla since Torrie's match was coming up soon. If that bitch wanted to dig her claws into her man, she would let the claws scratch the surface before she dropped the bomb. She was going to be wearing Carlito's ring come December 31st, and she didn't care if Torrie knew it or not.

"What do you make of that?" Chris asked as he hovered over Stephanie who was leaning with her back against the wall, Sawyer in her arms.

"I would say there's something going down," Stephanie observed. "You know, I've been thinking. I'm going to call Christian and try to reason with him."

"Done…and…done," Chris told her, looking at her impishly. She tilted her head a little bit in confusion. "I called him after I fed Sawyer his dinner. I took what _you_ said to heart, and with a little story, I was able to convince him."

"Story?" she wondered curiously.

"Yeah, I…uh, told him about when I thought you didn't want Sawyer and told you that you could get rid of him if you wanted," Chris told her.

"Oh, powerful, but thank you for talking to him," she said, kissing him lightly before pressing a kiss to Sawyer's cheek. "And like I could ever get rid of this little guy right here, because he's my little boy who I love so much."

"Yeah, I would've missed out on this."

"You love the both of us and you're not afraid to admit it," Stephanie told him.

"EVERYONE, LISTEN UP, I LOVE STEPHANIE AND SAWYER JERICHO!" Chris shouted and Stephanie slapped him on the chest as he leaned over to kiss her.

Torrie was missing out on nothing as she stood there with Chloe, worried about her match with Victoria, who was crazy. Trish pushed Carlito over to her and Carlito tried to act all supportive of her, but in fact, was not so supportive. Her yammering and talking like a Valley girl was getting on his nerves and he had been talking to her for like, two minutes at the most. Her voice was grating and when you offered him the choice between Trish Stratus and Torrie Wilson, he would take Trish again and again, 100 times out of 100. Trish was around the corner watching as Carlito kissed her and she cackled quietly to herself. The bitch was going to get it. Torrie walked off from her match and Trish walked over, arms folded.

"So, truth, better kisser, me or her?"

"Her, definitely," he joked, wiping his mouth of with his hand. "I think I need mouthwash."

Trish leaned back against him as he wrapped his arms around her from behind, "Yeah, that might be helpful, she's so gullible. I wonder what she's going to think when Christian drops out of her plan."

"She'll probably still go after me, she's playing the innocent card. She thinks that she can just jump me and everything's going to be okay or something like that. I don't know," he said, starting to rant. Trish pulled his face down and kissed him soundly to shut him up. "Okay, you win, you proved yourself the best kisser."

"Good," she said, seeing Torrie in the Masterlock right that moment, Chris Masters obviously walking by them as they were kissing. "Hey, might want to go save your new girlfriend. She's in twouble," Trish said in a baby voice.

"Hey, be nice about the girl I have on the side," he said, gently punching her in the chin before going out to save Torrie.

Trish watched as he went out there, but found her mind wandering towards Christian. He sounded so sad on the phone, like he had truly given up and that made her sad. The past years hadn't been for nothing, they had meant something. She was sorry that she had moved on and he hadn't, but he had to face the facts that they weren't going to be together anymore. Still, the way his voice cracked and the shaky breaths he took to steady himself made her stomach fall and she was worried for him. She would always worry about him and care about him. She couldn't help it, even if she had fallen in love with someone else, even if she was moving on. She couldn't explain it, but she would always hold a piece of her heart for him, and she didn't know why. She guessed it just boiled down to one thing. She was Trish Stratus.

And he was her Christian.


	117. That's a Lot to Write, December 18, 2006

A/N: For obvious reasons, there will be no chapter next Monday. However, there will be a chapter either later this week, or late next week that covers Christmas, since you know, I like to write about that, usually my Christmas chapters are insanely long, but yeah, look out for that, and other updates, I guess, depending on the time I have.

And then let me wish everyone a great holiday with whatever you celebrate. And thanks for being great readers, and hopefully you'll leave a review, which would be cool, so you know, leave one. ;)

Enjoy. :)

* * *

"I'm out."

Torrie looked up, boringly, at Christian, who was making it a habit of barging into her locker room without knocking. It was starting to get on her nerves and she made the mental note that she should start locking her door from now on to prevent something like this from happening again. She rolled her eyes instinctively at him and she didn't even know what he was doing here.

"Out of what? Charm? Manners?" she asked sarcastically.

"No, the plan, I'm out on the plan," Christian told her. "The plan with Trish and Carlito and all of that, I'm done, I'm out."

"Well, what? Do you want me to give you a cookie or something?" Torrie wondered, tilting her head to look sympathetic, but she was hardly sympathetic. "I don't care if you're in the plan or not, I was doing all the work anyways. So if you want to be out, be out, I don't care."

"Fine, I just thought it would be decent to tell you."

"Just because you suddenly found morals means nothing to me, you mean nothing to me, and I'll see what I want until I get what I want," she said, flipping her hair over her shoulder. "Carlito is totally ignorant to what I'm doing anyways. He thinks I'm this great girl, and I'm going to let him think it until he forgets the name Trish Stratus."

"Try," Christian told her, "but it's a lot harder than you would think. I'm just not going to do that to her anymore, not going to do something to the person I love."

Torrie started clapping slowly and stood up off the couch. "Look, I'm giving you a standing ovation for that performance. Christian as the consummate good guy, never using anyone to get what he wants. Wow, Christian, wow, I'm just going to have applaud your effort on this, Oscar-worthy, really?"

"You know, I think if people knew how much of a bitch you really were…" He didn't finish his sentence, trailing his words off.

"They'd what?" Torrie asked. "Enlighten me, Christian, tell me what they'd do. As long as I've got a body like this, and the ability to act like I'm only T&A around here, I think I'm going to do just fine."

"Whatever, I just thought that you might actually have feelings, you know, be a human, but I guess I was overreaching with that one."

"I guess you were, now are you through here or am I going to have to have security escort you out of my dressing room."

"No need," Christian said, pushing the door open again and walking out of it, and leaving Torrie behind. He never should've gotten involved in a plan with her. He would count that among his stupid mistakes, and those stupid mistakes were starting to really pile up. He only wanted to come here to tell Torrie that he was not involved in the plan any longer and that she could go on as she wished but that he was through with hurting Trish. He figured he'd go tell Chris that he had done the right thing and make that man's ego larger than it already was.

He went to Stephanie's station, figuring that since the show had started, that's where she'd be. And she was there, in fact, with a playpen next to her table, which Christian found hilarious for some reason. Stephanie didn't stop for anything, and he found that admirable. Sawyer was crawling around the playpen, pushing a ball around and trying to grab it as it just went out of his reach. Stephanie tried giving him a teething ring, but he kept swatting his hand at it.

"Hey Steph, what's up?"

"Other than a fussy baby with gross diapers, nothing much," she said sardonically, "He's teething, it's bothering him a little, his first tooth is coming in, and he's a little on the cranky side because of it."

"Poor guy," Christian said, crouching down next to the playpen and grabbing one of Sawyer's toys and trying to give it to him. "Hey there, Sawyer, heard you have a tooth coming in and that's no fun, but how about you lay off your mom for a while?"

"If that happens, I wouldn't believe he was my son," Stephanie laughed. "What can I do for you, Christian?"

"I was wondering where Chris was," Christian said. "I wanted to thank him for what he did for me last week. He was right, I was being selfish when it came to Trish, and I think that I've come to some truths over the past week."

"Really? Truths?"

He nodded and mustered up his best smile. "Yeah, some truths, I was acting really badly when it came to Trish. I just refused to see that she was happy, but she's getting married, and I need to respect that, and respect her relationship," he shrugged and sat down next to her. "It's not fair of me to try and ruin everything for her, I'm the reason she needs someone like Carlito."

"That's really mature of you, I don't think I'd be so mature."

"That's not what Chris says," Christian told her. "He said that if you guys broke up and you were happy with someone else, he'd be happy for you."

"Chris said that, my Chris?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I'm going to have to have a talk with him about that," Stephanie laughed. "I don't think that I like the idea of my husband thinking that at some point in the future we won't be together and I'll be with someone else."

"So what would you do in the situation, how would you not be mature?"

"I'd still secretly think that I was the only one for him," Stephanie confessed. "If you're looking for Chris, he's in my office. My dad hired him as a scout for now, he's doing some of the talent scouting, traveling a little bit, I think he likes it. He's going down to OVW this week to check out the talent. It gives him something wrestling-related and he likes to feel needed."

"So your dad just hired him like that?"

"Well, he usually hires the ex-wrestlers and since Chris is my husband, why shouldn't he?"

"Well, thanks for letting me know where he is, I'm going to go thank him for what he did. I just needed to get the truth slapped into my face and then I was fine," Christian said. He walked over to the playpen and rubbed Sawyer's head, "Be good for your mommy."

"He never is, just like his father."

"You want me to take him with me?"

"Oh man, would you? I haven't even gotten to go over the footage we have with Stallone and it's set to go on-air pretty soon, but Sawyer has been fussy and he keeps wanting to sit on my lap and would you?" she pleaded.

"Sure, no problem," Christian said, picking up the little boy. Stephanie gathered his things into his diaper bag and handed it to Christian.

"Thank you so much for this," she told him. "You're a lifesaver."

"It's the new Christian. New and improved."

"Wow, impressive," she told him, kissing Sawyer's cheek. "Bye baby boy, Mommy loves you, and tell Daddy to come visit me with an update on his work, okay, do you have that all?" Sawyer babbled his answer to her and she kissed him again, watching as Christian walked off with him.

It wasn't a few moments later when she felt someone sidling up to her and she saw the opponent that Cena was going to face on the New Year's. "So you know, I've met your dad, but I can't say I've had the pleasure of meeting the youngest McMahon."

"Oh, that was smooth," Stephanie said as she went back to her work.

"Come on, that was good," Kevin said. "At least I thought it was good, and you know, you seem to be the one running things around here, that's what everyone tells me at least. It's always like, 'Go see Stephanie,' or 'Stephanie's the one in charge.'"

"Oh wow, and it only took someone saying I was in charge for you to deduce that I was in charge, your brain must be amazing," Stephanie told him, dropping her jaw in an exaggerated fashion.

"How did you get to be in charge?" he asked charmingly, ignoring the way she had reacted to his last statement.

"Lots of hard work, you know, work, something where you apply and then you go in, and you know what, I'd hate to ruin the surprise," she said, quoting one of her favorite shows. "I got to be in charge because I'm good at what I do, nothing more, nothing less."

"You want to show me how you work things around here?" Kevin asked, looking towards the extra set of headphones that she always had lying around. "Do you put these on?"

"Don't touch those," Stephanie said testily. "That's for authorized personnel only, and last time I checked my list of employees, you were not authorized personnel. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a lot of work to do, and I can't sit here and listen to you try not to sound sleazy, not working by the way."

Stephanie gathered up her papers and stormed off, wondering how oblivious that guy had to be not to see the playpen sitting next to Stephanie, and the huge rock on her left hand. Not many people could resist looking at the engagement ring she had worn every day since May of 2004. She walked to the production truck, still needing to watch that footage of Stallone for later. And if it got her away from Kevin, that was all the better for her.

Christian opened the door to Chris's office and saw Chris talking with his secretary about calls that he had to make, and asking her to check on his reservations for his scouting trip that week. He looked up and saw Christian with Sawyer in his arms and Chris stood up and grabbed the diaper bag from Christian, and then took the little boy into his arms, where he immediately grabbed the ends of his father's hair and chewed on them, getting drool all over Chris, who didn't seem to mind, even if Christian thought it was a little disgusting.

"Britt, you know Christian."

"Yeah, hey Christian," she said.

"Hey," he said back, giving her a polite smile before turning back to Chris. "I was with Stephanie and she wanted me to give that back to you," he gestured towards Sawyer. "She's really busy, so there you go, and you do know that he's chewing on your hair right?"

"Yeah, I know," Chris said. "He's teething, he's chewing and biting everything. I'm just glad it's not my finger, he's been biting and with that tooth coming in, teeth actually, I think that I saw another one coming in, but the one that is definitely coming in, it's sharp as hell and he's going to cut me one of these days, so if he's fascinated by my hair, great, it doesn't hurt when he chews on that."

"Okay, weird family," Christian muttered, causing Britt to laugh a little.

"Hey, who's side are you on, Britt?" Chris asked jokingly. She shrugged and went back to her notes. "I wasn't really expecting to see you here tonight, if we're being honest, man?"

"I didn't expect to be here, actually, what with the whole Trish thing, but I wanted to tell Torrie that I was out of the little game that she was playing. I told her that I didn't feel like hurting Trish anymore. I also wanted to thank you. We've both been so busy that we haven't gotten to really hang out this past week, what with me and TNA, and then you having to help plan all of this stuff, I just wanted to thank you for what you said to me last week."

"It was nothing," Chris said, wincing as Sawyer pulled at his hair a little harder than normal, actually tugging it down.

"No, it wasn't," Christian said. "Don't discount it…I'm not. I needed to hear it. I needed to hear that I was not helping Trish, and I needed to hear it straightforward, no mincing of words. I don't want her to be hurt, ever, and I know I've contributed to a lot of her hurt, and hurting her again, and her finding out, I'd lose any chance. If she's happy now, I'm going to take it like a man."

"I'm proud of you."

"Don't go around being my dad or anything," Christian said, rolling his eyes. He looked down and nodded his head. "It's fine though, you move on, right? You move on and you do what makes you happy. I mean, Stephanie moved from Hunter to you, and Lita moved from Matt to my brother, although I can't stand her. I just have to take this in stride."

"Spoken like a true man," Chris joked as Sawyer pulled on Chris's hair again. "God, kid, what are you trying to tell me?"

"He wants it to be Christmas," Britt said knowingly. "He wants to know what you got him?"

Chris looked at his son. "The question should be what didn't we get him, I think that we went a little overboard, but since it is his first Christmas ever, I think we're just a little bit justified, right?" He was met with two blank stares. "Oh come on, okay, I hate being the only one with a kid around here. I'm the only one who gets it."

"Sorry dude, nobody's carried my child yet," Christian said.

"Chris, I'm going to go do this stuff for you, and then I'm going to grab dinner, is that cool with you?"

"Yeah, its fine, thanks Britt," Chris nodded, before turning back to Christian. "You don't know that nobody has carried your child, maybe you have a kid out there, and you can find them, and we could be like, buddy dads or something."

"You're weird, I'm getting out of here, Sawyer, your dad is crazy and so's your mom, if you need a place to crash, just give me a call," Christian winked as he left Chris's office and bumped right into Carlito and Trish.

Mentally, he was unprepared for this. He didn't want to confront them, not tonight, and maybe never. They were getting married in all of two weeks, and the thought of that made his heart just hurt. It wasn't a breaking feeling, and it wasn't like it was being put through the ringer, it was just this hurt. A dull pain that intensified whenever she was around. He wasn't sure if it would ever really go away, and he would have to live with this dull ache for the rest of his life, and it would flair up whenever she was around. He instinctively put his hand over his heart, as if it could erase the ache, erase the pain and the memory of her from his entire body, but it wasn't working.

Physically though, he was trying so desperately to appear nonchalant. He was probably failing, but it was a valiant effort, worthy of an award really. Trish stood frozen, and the three of them stood their like statues in a museum, people walking past, gawking for a moment before moving on to more pressing displays. And so the three of them stood, awkwardly, motionlessly until one of them was going to have to break the silence. Christian didn't want it to be him, he didn't want to be the one that broke it because the words slipping from his mouth at this moment would drip with pain and remorse.

"Hey Christian," Trish said, trying to sound bright, but coming off as pitying. She didn't want to pity him, but she couldn't help it. The desperation of his plan with Torrie had exposed his underbelly, the feeling that he couldn't escape her, and she pitied him.

He knew it too, could hear it in her voice, and that cut through the bone. He didn't want anyone's pity, and he thought he was doing a fairly good job thus far of looking like he could get over Trish Stratus, but the second he could hear the pity, he could see that everyone pitied him in their own way. Even his brother, who had come over to have a beer and watch the hockey game had only been pitying his little brother and not wanting to see him be all alone. God, did everyone think he was just this pathetic loser who couldn't get _the_ girl in his life, let alone any girl in the world?

"Hey guys," Christian said, his mask effectively working now. "What's up?"

"Nothing, just walking around, doing nothing until Carlito's match," Trish answered, giving Carlito's hand a reassuring squeeze. Carlito, for his part, resisted the urge to pull Trish closer as a sign of possessiveness. He didn't need to do that, after all, Trish was going to marry him in two weeks.

"Uh, Carlito, if you don't mind, can I talk to Trish alone, I won't be more than a few minutes, I just wanted to…" Christian didn't want to overstep his boundaries right now, knowing that he was treading on a very thin line. He just needed a few minutes to talk to Trish.

"Sure, that's cool," Carlito said slowly, and Christian couldn't tell if he meant that or not. But that didn't matter because he had answered in the affirmative, and that was all Christian needed. "I'm just going to go grab a water or some coffee or something, come find me later, okay Trish?"

"Sure Lito," she said, leaning up to kiss his cheek, keeping it chaste so as not to rub it in Christian's face. It had taken a lot of courage for him to admit what he had done. The least she could do for him was hear him out.

Carlito walked away, glancing back at the two, and he couldn't help the jealousy that flared up in him. He knew that their history had been epic or something, spanning a lot of time, and a lot of fights and what not. He couldn't help that it worried him a little, knowing that while Christian was out of the picture on the surface, he might never be out of Trish's heart. It was hard to compete with a mirage, something he wasn't sure that he wanted to do. He just hoped that Trish loved him enough and she would love him for the rest of their lives, because that's what he wanted with Trish, a life.

Christian would probably always been in the back of her brain though, and he could live with that, he could live with the fact that things between them had been intense because they weren't together now. She had chosen him, sort of, since Christian hadn't officially been in the picture. But she was with him, and Carlito had to trust in that, trust in her because if he couldn't trust her, then he really couldn't trust anyone else.

"Hey," Christian said shyly.

"Hey," she said back, equally as shy. "Um…so…"

"I just wanted to wish you a happy birthday," he told her softly, his voice low and throaty. "I hope that so far, you're having a really good one."

"It's been pretty good," Trish said. "Carlito is taking me out for dinner later, and I know Chris and Stephanie are getting me something. My parents sent over a pizza from my favorite pizza place back home, so I had that, they're also going to pay for my wedding dress, which is something they wanted to do."

"Sounds great, I just wanted to…uh, give you my gift right now, when we have a moment," he said, pulling something out of the back of his jeans. She looked at the flat box and he handed it over to her. "I didn't want to get you something huge and you know, show anyone up, I just wanted to get you something because before everything happened between us, before we got back together, I liked to think that we were friends, and I hope that can continue."

"Thank you, you really didn't have to," Trish said, fingering the light purple paper and the gold ribbon on the present she had just been handed. "I would've been fine with just the birthday greeting."

"Maybe, but I wouldn't have been, so go ahead, open it, please," Christian said.

She tore open the paper, tossing it into a nearby trash can before looking down at the box which so obviously contained jewelry. This set up red flags in her mind and she looked up at him. "Christian, no, I can't accept this, this is way too much."

"Please, take it, think of it as a birthday present, a Christmas present and a…" He gulped here. "A wedding present, please, I saw this and I wanted you to have it."

"Okay," she said uneasily, lifting up the box and not expecting what she saw at all.

It wasn't huge by any means, but it wasn't small. It was a dragonfly, not a real one of course, but one made out of what looked to be silver with an emerald as the head and on the tip of the tail. It was shining in the light, and very simple, but quite elegant, the silver just making an outline of the dragonfly. She pulled it out, thinking it was a pin, but it wasn't, it seemed to be attached to a clip.

"It's for your hair, it's a hairclip, an antique actually," Christian told her. "I know you've never mentioned that you like antiques, but I saw it and I liked it, and it happened to be an antique so I bought it for you…I thought that you could wear it at your wedding, if you're not wearing a veil or anything."

"I'm not," she whispered. "It's going to be on a yacht, the veil seemed inappropriate somehow."

"Great," he said. "So you can wear it then, if you want of course, I don't want you to feel obligated, it's nice enough where I think you could get away with wearing it whenever. It wasn't too big and it wasn't too small so--"

Christian was stunned into silence when Trish leaned up and hugged him tightly. He held his breath for some reason, maybe thinking that if he were to breathe, she would realize who she was hugging and then the trance would be broken. Christian tapped her on the shoulder, not giving in an inch. If he wanted to stay sane then he would have to not hug her, not touch her, nothing.

"Thank you," she said. "Not just for this, because it's beautiful, but because you've been so accepting to this. I know that it's been a lot to ask, I know that with our past, making you see me and Carlito has been hard on you, but this…this shows me that we can move on. Thank you for _that_, Christian."

"I just want you to be happy," he said, and he reached his hand to cup her cheek, but brought it back down when he realized what he was doing. "I need you to be happy, because whenever you're happy, I'm happy."

"Thank you, just…thank you," she told him, kissing his cheek, making his skin burn where her lips touched him. She gave him a meaningful look and then a soft, "Bye Chrissy."

His heart melted then, and he knew that he might never get it back. Trish walked off, staring at her gift. It had been so thoughtful of him. She was so enraptured by it that she hadn't realized that she had bumped right into Chris, but not her friend Chris, but Chris Masters, who at this point and time, hated her fiancé. Trish went to move around him, but Masters moved in her way. She went to go the other way, but he blocked her again.

"Move," she told him in no uncertain terms.

"And why the hell should I?" he asked.

"Because you're in my way," she said, her tone making it out to be obvious.

"So, you were in my way first."

"It's a big hallway," Trish said. "So let me go before I kick you in the balls and make you keel over. You think that just because I'm gone, I'm suddenly not as good a wrestler as I was, I could chick kick you right now if you want a demonstration."

"What's this?" Masters asked as he grabbed her gift from her hands. She tried to make a grab for it, but he was much too quick for her. "Ooh, pretty, what's the little princess doing with something so pretty?"

"Give that back," Trish said, trying to grab at it again, but Masters was taller than her and she couldn't quite get it out of his reach. "I'm not going to play your little game, Chris, so just give it back to me now."

"I don't think I will, I'm sure something like this would go for a good amount of money."

"Don't you dare," she warned him, hands on hips now. "I swear to God, give that back to me _now_!"

"Not going to happen."

"Give it back to her," Carlito said, showing up as if from nowhere. "Don't give me even more reason to kick your ass tonight."

Masters tossed the gift back to Trish, knowing when he was outnumbered. "Just you wait, Carlito, until we get in the ring, and then we'll see who comes out on top, just you wait and see."

Masters walked off and Trish muttered, "Bastard," under her breath. She turned to Carlito and offered him up a smile. "How is it that you know all the time when I'm in trouble?"

"Because I create all these situations that put you into trouble just so I can come save you," he told her impishly. She laughed and hugged him. As she pulled away, he looked at the gift in her hand. "What's that?"

"Oh, it's a birthday gift from Christian," she told him. She let him look at it. "He said it was a Christmas and a wedding gift too. It's for my hair, he said I should wear it at the wedding, and I think I might."

"You're going to wear something from your ex-boyfriend," Carlito said, his mouth puckering together. "Don't you think that's like, weird or something?"

"I think it's him actually accepting us, and you know what, I think I'll take it for what it is," she responded. "I'm not going to read into it, because he gave me a gift to wear to my wedding, to you, not to him. I think that's saying a lot, trust me, I know Christian."

"That's the thing, you do know Christian, and…you know what, cool, it is a nice piece of jewelry, and it'll look beautiful on you, just like everything else you're going to be wearing when we get married."

"What were you going to say?" she asked curiously, leaning her head a little as she gazed at him, wondering what he was thinking right now.

"Nothing, I just don't know everything that went down between you and Christian, and I won't lie, it's frustrating sometimes. I just wish that I had been there, that I had seen everything. I don't hate that you were with him, I just wish I knew how to compete with him."

"There's no competition," she told him, shaking her head vehemently. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him lightly on the mouth. "Lito, there's no competition here. I'm _with_ you, I'm _marrying_ you, and that's what matters here, not that I had a past with Christian, that's not it at all. I'm going to be with you forever, so please, just…don't worry about it."

"Okay, I won't then, if you say there's nothing to worry about, I won't bother. I've got my match though, so I'll talk to you later?"

"Yeah, good luck, do you want me to walk you out there."

"No, no, I'm good," he said, giving her another kiss. "That was for luck."

"Like you need it," she joked as she watched him walk off for his match. She knew that he would have it in the bag. He was a great wrestler and he could take someone like Chris Masters in his sleep. She went off in search of her friends, specifically Stephanie so she could show off the beautiful gift from Christian.

Stephanie was just finishing up with the footage, knowing the Battle Royal was over by now. As she stepped out of the production trailer, she groaned. Standing there, leaning on the side next to the door, was Kevin, again. She walked down the steps quickly, ignoring his presence the best that he could. She couldn't tell if he really saw her, or like a lot of guys, just saw the dollar signs that seemed to accompany her wherever she went.

"I've been watching you work, and I have to say, you can work it…hard," he told her lecherously.

She turned to him and scoffed. "You know, I could come up with about a million insults right now, seriously, but you're not even worth it. You're not worth the breath it would take to say the insult, so if you please, would you leave me alone and only deal with business relating to the show through my father. I don't exactly welcome your attention."

"Why not?" he pouted. "I'm not seeing anyone right now, obviously, if you've been following any of the stories. Kind of gets lonely nowadays."

"So go buy yourself a hooker to keep you warm at night," she said. "Or have you blown all your money? Because if you need a loaner, I'll help you out this one time since it'll get you off my back."

"If you want to be on your back, that's cool," he told her, trying to talk her up. But this was Stephanie McMahon, and she had been around the block before and knew that this was someone who saw money and not anything other than that. Well, that and a good piece of tail. If he wasn't actually working on her show, she would've called security by now. God, where was security when you needed it.

"Look, I don't know if you are blind or something, but let me spell this out for you," Stephanie said, holding up her left hand. "Oh my God, would you--"

"Hey, why don't we grab something to eat after this show, or we could blow this joint right now, they don't need me, they probably don't need you," he said, completely ignoring the ring in his face. Stephanie looked at it, wondering if it had suddenly gone invisible. She looked at him and then back at her ring, stupefied that he would so blatantly ignore it. Did he need glasses, usually guys like this were attracted to shiny objects.

"No, for the last time, no," Stephanie said.

"Excuse me, can I ask what you're doing?" a new voice interrupted. Stephanie looked over Kevin's shoulder at her husband. "Because what it looks like, and I'm not entirely sure, but what it looks like, is that you're hitting on my wife, but that can't be right, because she's married."

"Whoa, you're married?" Kevin said, and Stephanie blinked several times and looked down at her ring and then up at Chris. "Sweetie, am I wearing my ring?"

"Looks like it. So if you'll take your greasy ass and get it away from wife, everything will be just fine," Chris said, acting calm, but he had the fire in his eyes. He didn't take too kindly to people hitting on his wife when she had been so obviously telling this guy to leave her alone. "But if you refuse to do that, easy enough, I could just pound you into a pulp which would leave you as easy pickings for Cena."

"Yeah, okay, I get it, I get it," he said, wandering off, but over Chris's shoulder, he gave Stephanie the "call me" sign. Stephanie rolled her eyes and then smiled at her husband, who was looking at her like he wanted to laugh.

"Oh shut up," she said, proactively. "I don't have time for this."

"You sure do attract the winners, baby," he said, chuckling a little. He turned to Sawyer in his arms, "Your mom is swatting them away left and right. Oh, but if you really want to get with him, that's okay with me, Steph, hey kid, how would you like four brothers and sisters."

"You're a jerk, a huge jerk, and I hate you," Stephanie said, pushing him away from her.

"Hey, is that any way to treat the man you love."

"Tolerate," she told him. "The man I tolerate. And only because you gave me my son, otherwise, you're useless to me."

"Hey, that's not nice," he said, kissing her. "I love you so much and you only tolerate me."

"Okay, quit with the kissy face you two," Trish said.

"Oh Trish, hey, okay, hold on," Stephanie said as she flipped through her folder and produced a white envelope. When Chris saw it, his eyes lit up and he got giddy, bouncing on the balls of his feet. Stephanie handed the envelope to Sawyer, who immediately started chewing on the corner of it, getting drool on it. "Sawyer, baby, no, give that to Auntie Trish."

Sawyer didn't hand it over so Chris took it and handed it to Trish. "Here you go, this is from the three of us, it's a birthday gift, and we hope you like it," he told her, and she could see that they were anxious for her to open it. She tore open the envelope and saw a piece of paper and she read it.

"You guys got me a honeymoon!" Trish said, gasping as she saw a picture of Greece pasted on the piece of paper that said, "Congratulations, you've just been awarded a fabulous trip to Greece, courtesy of your best friends who want you to be happy on your honeymoon." Trish gasped, "No, you guys, you can't do this, I can't accept this."

"Please, accept it, we want this for you, if you're happy, we want to help," Stephanie said. "It was my idea."

"Greece was my idea, since you're Greek!" Chris interjected happily. "I hope you like it!"

"I love it, oh my God, you two are crazy, you know that, I swear, this is way more than I expected, I would've been happy with a twenty-dollar gift card."

"You've spent so much time and effort planning your wedding you forgot about your honeymoon," Stephanie said. "So this is my way of helping you plan it all out. You can't miss your honeymoon, it's just not right. There's no tickets or anything because you can go at any time, just let us know. I know this great place in Greece, my friend Anna swears by it, so you just say the word and it's booked."

"Wow, you…thank you," she hugged them both tightly and then kissed Sawyer. "Thank you too, little guy."

Stephanie got a page and put her headphones on. "What?...The trainer should be there, okay, I'm going…who is it?...Oh, okay, damn, thanks."

"What's going on?" Trish asked.

"Uh…I hate to break this to you," Stephanie said. "Carlito ran into a camera and he's busted open, looks like stitches, we can't find the trainer."

"Lito!" Trish said, running off in the direction of the trainer, hoping to get there and find the trainer had been found and was making sure her fiancé was okay. When she got there, Torrie was standing next to him and rubbing his shoulder. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, Carlito was hurt defending me against Chris Masters, so I wanted to be near him to thank him. I expected you to be right here, but I guess you were too busy or something."

"Oh please," Trish said. "Well, I'm here now, so you're not needed, buh-bye Torrie."

"I'll leave when Carlito tells me to leave."

"Leave," Carlito said without hesitation. Torrie looked at him. "I'm fine, Torrie, you can go. Trish is here."

"Well…fine," she said huffily, flouncing out of there. Trish went up to Carlito and checked on his head, which was still bleeding. She tried to examine it and he winced as she got too close to it.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Lito," she told him. Just then, the trainer walked in and saw the shape that Carlito was in and told him that he would have him stitched up in no time. Trish held his hand tightly as the trainer got his stuff. "So Chris and Stephanie gave me a honeymoon to Greece for my birthday."

"Okay, they are like the best friends ever," Carlito laughed. "I'm assuming I get to go too."

"But of course," she said as Carlito shut his mouth and gritted through the pain as his stitches were getting sewn in. Trish kissed his hand and leaned herself against his for moral support. When the doctor was done, he handed Carlito a towel to wipe the blood off his face. Trish took it from him and went to the sink and put water on it as she went back over to clean the blood off his face. "Do you need to stay?"

"No, but actually, I wanted to give you _my_ present, although by the looks of it, I'm going to get upstaged or something, a trip to Greece, how does a guy compete with that?"

"I'll love whatever you give me," she told him sweetly as she wiped the last of the blood off his face. "Come on, let's get you dressed."

They walked back to his locker room and he went inside as Trish gathered his shower things for him, pushing him towards the bathroom. He paused and turned to her. "Wait, wait, I want to give you your gift right now, please."

"It can wait, Lito."

"It can't, I want you to have it now."

"Okay," she agreed, just wanting to appease him. He went over to his bag and pulled out a plain white, square box. She looked at it as he held it in front of her face with both hands. She took it, already loving the other two gifts she had gotten today. She opened the top of it and took out the tissue paper. He pulled something up and she smiled at it.

He had gotten her an ornament of clear crystal, and he was holding it up by the ribbon that would hang it on a tree. It was engraved too, with "Carlito and Trish, Christmas 2006. She smiled up at him and kissed the corner of his mouth. "Thank you, Lito, this is beautiful, it'll commemorate this Christmas for ever, I love that."

She went to look at it again when she saw something sitting inside the ornament and her eyes widened as she gazed at it. Inside the ornament was an engagement ring, a beautiful engagement ring. From what she could see, it was white gold with an aquamarine in the middle with some marquise-cut diamonds on either side to make it look like a flower. She looked at Carlito, who was looking at her anxiously.

"You had mentioned that you really loved sky blue, and you wished when you were younger that you had blue eyes instead of just plain brown ones, and when I went looking for a ring, this jumped out at me. I know that engagement rings are usually diamonds, but I thought you'd like this better."

He took the ring out of the ornament and slipped it on her finger. She looked at it, unable to take her eyes off of it, the beauty of it almost overwhelming. It felt good on her finger, like it belonged there. She blinked away the tears and instead just hugged him tightly before kissing him passionately, pressing her whole body into his. She loved this man, and she loved the thoughtfulness of his gift.

"I didn't want you to get married with no engagement ring."

"It's beautiful, Lito, stunning even, thank you so much, I love you so much."

"I love you too..."

"God, I want to show this thing off," she laughed even as tears were leaking from her eyes. Carlito leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead, looking at her with nothing short of adoration.

"Happy Birthday, Trish."


	118. Merry Christmas, December 25, 2006

A/N: Sorry this is up so late. Hope that everyone had a happy holidays and a wonderful start to the new year. This is the Christmas chapter, as you can probably tell by the length. I should be updating for last night at some point on Wednesday or Thursday, muse permitting.

So start the new year off right and leave me a review. :)

* * *

"Wow, I don't think our house has ever looked so festive." 

Stephanie looked up from the table where she was looking over some of the writing for the show. She hadn't made the trip to visit the troops for obvious reasons. With a baby in the house, it just wasn't practical to leave her son on his first Christmas ever. But that didn't mean she couldn't work, and work she was doing. Well, that was in between her decorating the house like a madwoman.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Stephanie asked as she looked intently at her husband.

"Why do you think that everything is a dig at you?" he asked as he kissed the top of her head before sitting down next to her. "I think it's cute how you've gotten all domesticated. You're like the typical mom, the next thing I know, you're going to be baking cookies and wearing mom clothes."

"Mom clothes?"

"You know, like, conservative stuff."

"Wait, so now you're making cracks about the way I dress? You're saying that I dress like a slut, aren't you? And here I thought I _was_ being conservative."

"What can I say, Steph? You're a slutty house…decorator," he finished lamely, laughing at himself. "I like that you've settled down. Don't get me wrong, I love the Stephanie that's a ball-breaking bitch, she makes me totally hot, but I like this Stephanie too. The only Stephanie I didn't like was the one married to Hunter, and I think we've remedied that."

"Which reminds me, he called yesterday and said that he can come down to our party tonight. His parents went on vacation, and his sister is going to her husband's family for Christmas, so they're not meeting until the 26th, so he's going to be all alone."

"Wow, how big a man am I to invite my wife's ex-husband to our Christmas party?" Chris said, reaching over to pat himself on the back. "Chris Jericho, you are some kind of man, repeat after me, Steph, Chris Jericho, you are some kind of man."

Stephanie scoffed. "Please, I'm not saying that."

"Why not?"

"I don't like lying," she winked over her glasses.

"You're hurting me, Stephanie. After everything I've done for you. Dating you, keeping us a secret, proposing to you, trying to get your job back, marrying you, giving you a son, and this is how you treat me, wow, this one really stings," he joked as he leaned his chin on his hand on top of the table.

Stephanie leaned forward and gave him a peck on the lips. "You know how much I love you."

"Well…yeah, I guess if it comes down to it. Sometimes I feel like second best though," he pouted.

"That's because you are," Stephanie told him with a smile. "My heart belongs to another guy. And I gotta say, he's a lot cuter than you are."

"I'll concede that. Do you have everything that you need from the store? I'm going to make a quick run and get some baby cereal for Sawyer, he ate all of it this morning and he likes to snack on it, and better that than my fingers. The kid is starting to be a biter."

"Well, you're a bit of a biter too."

"Totally different scenarios," he told her. He stood up and grabbed his wallet and cell phone. "Do you need anything for the party tonight, you better tell me now because these places are going to be closed tonight, since it's Christmas Eve, and we're having like 500 people over here."

"It's not even 500, Chris, it's like 20, it's us, your parents, my parents, Shane, Marissa and the kids, Hunter, Christian, his mom and grandma might stop by, I'm not sure, they might be spending tonight with Edge and Lita, I'm not sure what Christian said over the phone, then Trish since Carlito is on the tour, and Trish's parents since they're here for the wedding next week, and so are her sisters, and their significant others, and kids, and then…um…I'm not sure if Hunter's bringing someone, or Christian, he's probably not bringing someone, so that's like twenty people, that's nothing."

"Oh yeah, that's a lot of people who are going to be in our house, not remind me again, who is actually staying _in_ our house?"

"That would be your parents and my parents, and Shane."

"And Marissa, Declan and Kenyon?"

"Are staying at a hotel, because tomorrow morning, they are flying back to Connecticut to be with Marissa's parents on Christmas, so my parents get them for Christmas Eve, and they get them for Christmas."

"See, this is what I like about my parents getting along pretty well with your parents, we can all just meet up together."

"That and you have no brothers or sisters, so your parents like, don't care about anything except where you are, since you're their, you know, golden boy," she told him, and he scowled at her. "Oh come on, that was good."

"Fine, twenty people, do we have enough food for twenty people?"

"I have snacks for them, that I bought, like chips and dip, and then I'm having a catered meal, so, I'm thinking that I'm going have leftovers, because I ordered food for fifty people."

"You were expecting fifty people in our house?" Chris asked, jaw slacked a little bit. "Are you kidding me? You wanted fifty people milling around our house, poking into our stuff?"

"No, because we have wrestlers coming, and I'm sorry sweetie, but you don't eat like birds, you eat like pigs, so I compensated, and if there are any party crashers, then I have extra food, so it's a good plan, and it's not like we can't afford it."

"Why did you volunteer for this again?"

"Because I'm nice," she said with a bright smile, "so don't argue with me. I could probably use some more chips, and maybe some other snacks, as you see fit. Plus Sawyer's cereal of course, it'll keep him calm with all the hustle and bustle."

"Yeah, that's the plan," he said, leaning over to kiss her head. "I'll be back then, and my parents should actually be here pretty soon."

"Mine too," Stephanie said. "Let the fireworks begin!"

Chris gave her a look and then walked out of the kitchen, hoping that the party tonight was a success. He wandered into the foyer, and looked up and saw the mistletoe hanging from the top of the entryway. He got a little smirk on his face, and was about to call Stephanie over so he could have an excuse to push her against the wall and kiss the life out of her, but when he heard Sawyer waking up from his nap, he knew that getting his son's cereal was more important.

Stephanie heard Sawyer yelling at her from upstairs and sighed. She still had stuff to do, and she wished that he could've slept a little longer, but babies were like that. She got up and went upstairs to get Sawyer, who was sitting up in his crib, crying his baby blues out. Stephanie pouted and picked him up and lifted him over her head. She took him over to his changing table to get a new diaper on him.

"There's my happy little boy," Stephanie said, even though Sawyer was still crying. She kissed his cheeks repeatedly until he started pushing her away with his little hands. "Grandma and Grandpa are going to be here soon, both sets of them, you lucky, little thing, and they're going to have lots of presents for you since it's your first Christmas, you and Kenyon's, you get to see your cousins today, aren't you just excited, baby boy?"

Sawyer just sniffled and whimpered sadly, looking at Stephanie. She knew that he had been uncomfortable for the past few weeks with his teething. His two bottom front teeth were coming in, and he had been uncomfortable with them, not knowing what the heck these things were, and constantly putting his fingers in his mouth to feel around for them. Stephanie let him have her finger, wincing when he chewed on it with that sharp tooth of his.

"Baby, spare Mommy's hands, please, I have to write with these things. Daddy's coming home soon with some of your cereal so you can snack on that for a while, even though that stuff is disgusting."

Yes, a lot of the things that Stephanie had to do as a mother grossed her out a lot of the time, or confounded her. Sometimes when she took Sawyer to the park to get some fresh air and play around, she would see overprotective mothers who wouldn't let their kids touch anything, or would put their kids in a plastic bubble if they could, and she just never got that vibe. It wasn't like she wanted to hurl Sawyer off the slide or push him off the baby swings or something, but she just didn't see the point of being totally overprotective. She didn't revere Sawyer and put him on a pedestal, he was her kid, and she loved him to pieces, but she just didn't get the whole, worshipping the ground they walked on thing, thinking your baby was the be all and end all of your life.

She held Sawyer against her hip as she went downstairs, going back to the kitchen table and holding him in her left arm as she wrote with her right. Sawyer started to get squirmy so she put him in his highchair with a couple of toys to occupy him. Ten minutes couldn't have passed when there was a doorbell ringing to interrupt her thoughts. She groaned, knowing she was never going to get her work done before the party. She gave Sawyer a look like she wanted to kick someone's ass and picked him up to go to the door, which angered him and he gave her a frown.

"Yeah, I want to frown too, get over it, Sawyer," Stephanie said as she went to the front door and opened it.

"I miss my fiancée, I'm pathetic!" Trish wailed as she stepped in the doorway.

"Trish, you're like five hours early," Stephanie told her, looking at Trish, who was already in her outfit for the party, or so it seemed. She was wearing a red skirt with a slit up the side to her thigh, and a darker red bustier-looking top. Her hair wasn't done, nor was her makeup, but the outfit suggested that this is what she was going to wear that later tonight.

"I know, I was like, sitting there and…"

"In that? That's what you wear around the house?" Stephanie joked, looking down at her pajama pants and t-shirt. "You're making me feel really bad now."

"No, I was bored, I live a very boring life, I've come to realize. I mean, you, you have work, and you have Chris, and Sawyer--"

"Yeah, work," she sighed, glancing back towards the kitchen. "You have a life, you're getting married in a week!"

"Oh God, I'm getting married in a week! I know, it's crazy, this is crazy, right? I mean, it's all happening so fast, and I'm like, the adrenaline is rushing through me so quickly, I have no idea how I'm going to survive this week until I'm married to Carlito and it's just going to be crazy, and I was sitting at home, and you know, my parents and my sisters are all out enjoying the sights and stuff, and I'm antsy, and I miss Lito, and…can I hang out here?"

Stephanie could see that her friend was in obvious distress over…something, and knew that this had to come before work today, even though she really wanted to finish it before tomorrow so she could just enjoy her Christmas and Trish's wedding week. She wanted to do all the fun stuff with Trish that Trish had done with her before her wedding.

"Yeah, you can totally hang out here, but you know, if you want to go home too, that's fine," Stephanie said. "Not that I'm sending you home or anything."

"Do you want me to leave, are you working?" Trish asked.

"Yes, but you're more important, work be…damned," she choked out, making a funny face at Sawyer as she said that. Sawyer looked at her curiously before smiling an almost toothless smile, then grabbed the ends of her hair and sticking it in his mouth. "Great, I get to have drool hair for my party tonight."

"Better than my rat's nest," Trish said, pointing to the topknot in her hair right now. "I don't know why I got dressed this early. Do you need any help with setting up, decorating, anything?"

"No, I think I'm good."

Chris walked in through the open front door with a bag in his hand. "Well, well, well, now this is something I've been waiting for a long time to see. Finally I get to see what exactly happened in that dark room in the arena between you two."

"What are you talking about?" Stephanie asked as she looked over Trish's shoulder.

"Well, look up, baby," Chris said, gesturing upwards towards where Stephanie was standing. She and Trish looked up and saw that they were standing under the mistletoe. Stephanie looked back at Chris who had a smarmy look on his face. "Let me just get the video camera to document this, I'm sure it'll sell on some show."

"You're an ass," Stephanie told him. "You think I'm going to kiss Trish?"

"You're under the mistletoe, Steph, this is tradition, if I were standing under there with Christian, I would kiss him, that's the rules."

"You're not only an ass, you're a pervert too, what do you think is going to happen here, Chris?" Stephanie asked. "I'm going to kiss Trish, get so horny that I invite her upstairs where we can have a threesome with her?"

"We could make a lot of money off of that," Chris nodded. "And I would have no problem with that."

"You're so gross," Trish laughed, though Stephanie remained looking unamused.

"Just a peck then," Chris said, smiling lasciviously. "You two are standing under the mistletoe, this is tradition, you need to kiss. When two people are standing under the mistletoe, they kiss."

"Well," Stephanie said, looking over at Trish, "you are looking great today, Trish, I mean, this outfit makes you look amazing." Stephanie winked at Trish and Trish gleaned on to what she was doing.

"You know, I love when you wear your hair partly up like that, hair swept across from your face," Trish said, "It makes your eyes really stand out."

"Yeah, and you have such beautiful lips," Stephanie said, leaning in closer. "You know, we are under the mistletoe, and I really think that we should have to kiss, I mean, it is tradition."

"Definitely tradition," Trish said, leaning up a little. Chris's eyes widened as he stood there, almost dropping the bags in his hand. He couldn't believe they were actually going to do it, he had meant it as a joke, but if they were going to kiss, all the more power to them, and he was silently cheering that he would get to witness it.

"Kiss Sawyer," Stephanie whispered almost inaudibly to Trish and she licked her lips seductively and nodded. "I am so ready to kiss someone right now."

Trish and Stephanie both leaned over and kissed Sawyer on the cheek and then turned to face Chris, whose face had reddened a little bit. Stephanie smiled at him and shrugged as Sawyer giggled from all the attention that he was getting, Trish gave the little boy another kiss for prosperity.

"Okay, that only served the purpose of making me totally jealous of my son," Chris said, thrusting the bags forward. "Here, cereal for the kid. And I guess I'll have to wait for that kiss later."

"Like an eternity," Stephanie said, grabbing one of the bags from him.

"Trish, what are you doing here anyways?" Chris asked as he closed the door behind him, and followed the women into the kitchen where he started to put away the groceries.

"I was freaking out," she said as she started to help put things away, knowing where everything went from her time living there at the beginning of last year. "I don't know, I just miss Lito, and I'm anxious for the wedding."

"How are the wedding plans going?" Chris wondered, making chit-chat as he noticed Stephanie going to sit down and look at her work again. He looked at her and had a conversation with her silently, telling her in no words that he would keep Trish distracted, and she looked at him gratefully.

"They're going," Trish said. "Everything is pretty much set. We wanted to have a catered thing, right, but Carlito's mother said she'd take care of it, so she's taking care of it."

"Is she Puerto Rican too?" Chris asked.

"She's Canadian," Trish laughed. "Carlito's actually a Canadian citizen, so he represents."

"Oh hell yeah," Chris said, giving a high five. "You know, Sawyer's a Canadian citizen."

"He is?" Trish asked.

"Yeah, since I'm a Canadian citizen, Sawyer's a Canadian citizen," Chris said. "He represents us well too."

"And I'm feeling left out," Stephanie grumbled, looking up.

"Sorry baby, you're a nothing," Chris told her, putting the last of the things away and starting to prepare Sawyer's cereal. Trish was starting to migrate to the table, and Stephanie looked stricken for a moment before Chris intercepted with a, "Hey Trish, do you want to feed the kid?"

"Can I?" Trish said, clapping her hands together. "I love helping with Sawyer."

"Sure, let me just get his food ready. He really likes this rice cereal stuff for babies. It's his favorite food by far, I think it looks like glue, but he seems to really love it," Chris said, mixing up the cereal for his son. "Whatever keeps him happy though, keeps me happy so he doesn't cry and make me deaf, right, kid?" Sawyer looked over at him before going back to his toys. Chris handed the bowl over to Trish and she went happily over to feed Sawyer, engaging in a baby-talk session with him. Stephanie blew a kiss to Chris, which he caught and put in his pocket.

Stephanie got back to her work while Chris went to go check on the decorations and the food for later. He was just passing the front door when the doorbell rang. He reversed his steps and opened the door to see Vince and Linda on the other side, and he smiled at them and invited them into the house, seeing Shane trailing with some of their bags.

"Hey, welcome to the casa," Chris said, letting them come inside. "Yo, Shane, you can put the stuff upstairs."

"Where's Stephanie?" Linda asked.

"Kitchen, but could you guys not bug her, she's trying to get all her work done before we have to go to Puerto Rico, and she doesn't really want to be bothered. She's with Trish and Sawyer."

"Okay, great, I want to go see him."

Shane walked in, laden with bags, and Chris went quickly to help him. "Hey, why are you taking them all in one trip?"

"Just thought I could do it," Shane said.

"You know, I did want to talk to you, I hope you're not going to be uncomfortable that Marissa is here, we just didn't think not inviting her would be cool, you know, because she is technically family," Chris told him as they took the things up to the guest bedrooms.

"No, it's fine, it's good that you did, seriously," Shane nodded. "I needed to talk to her anyways."

"Seriously? You're going to talk to her, after all this time?" Chris asked. Shane and Marissa's relationship had been strained at best since his run-in with Trish. He had wanted to talk to Marissa about what happened, about them, but she hadn't been receptive, claiming that she needed more time. Shane didn't know how much time it was going to take her, but judging from the fact that he spent their first anniversary alone, he figured that it wasn't going to go well at all.

"I think so," he said with a sigh. "If we can't resolve anything, then what's the point? I don't want to live with a wife that I never see."

Chris looked at him critically. "I know what you mean. I guess you just do what you have to do, am I right? I think it's good that you're going to talk to her, this whole situation can't be good for D and K, I mean, they have to realize there's tension there."

"Yeah, that's exactly what I don't want. I don't want my sons growing up thinking that their parents hate each other. I feel like D can sense it already, he just knows, I think."

"I hope things work out for you, bro, you know that. You're like my…brother now or something," Chris chuckled. "I know that Stephanie wants you to be happy too, she talks about it sometimes, you know how she is."

"Nosy, wants to butt in all the time, yeah, I know my sister. I appreciate her concern though. You know, Marissa and my anniversary was three days ago, and I didn't even talk to her, and it was our first anniversary, how sad is that?" Shane said, sitting down on the bed heavily, like the wait of the world was on his shoulders. "First anniversary and I didn't even know where she was. How did you spend your first anniversary?"

"Oh, well, you know, this isn't about me…" Chris said uncomfortably, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand. "I don't really, you don't really…"

"No, really, how did you and Steph spend your first anniversary?"

"Um…well, she was pregnant, so not really that much, we went to the beach and I made her dinner, and we spent a lot of it…in…bed," he hesitated.

"Sorry I asked," Shane said. "But I bet it was a hell of a lot better than spending it alone. What are you guys doing for your anniversary next month?"

"Well, it's on a Monday, so we'll be…working, like usual," Chris told him. "I don't know, with Sawyer, doing stuff by ourselves isn't a top priority. So it's pretty much whatever he wants to do."

"I could live with that," Shane said. "I miss her."

"Well, you have a chance to rectify that, tonight," Chris said, slapping him on the shoulder. "Good luck with that too."

Chris left Shane to ponder by himself and closed the door partially to give him some privacy. It had to be hard not to be around the woman that you loved, if Shane loved Marissa, but he figured he had to if he wanted to repair what the two of them had. He quickly went down the stairs as he saw Stephanie walking down the hallway to her office. He jogged to catch up to her, wrapping his arms around her waist and lifting her off the ground as she pulled her legs into a tuck. He carried her into the office kicking the door behind him.

"So while the party is going on, is this where we're going to come to have our quickie?"

"You're having a quickie with someone during the party? Christian, is it Christian?"

"Ha ha," he told her, turning her around and kissing her. "Why are you escaping to your office? Don't tell me you ran out of the holiday spirit already?"

"I did, I'm on empty, I have nothing left," she said, sitting down at her desk. Chris pulled her up out of her seat and sat down, then pulled her into his lap. "This is not going to lessen my workload."

"Let me help," he told her, nuzzling her neck with his nose. He pressed a few kisses to her throat and then looked at her with puppy-dog eyes. "Come on, let me help, I'm a good helper."

"Yes, you are, but I'd rather just do this myself, if that's all the same to you," she told him. "I just want to make sure this gets done so when we're in Puerto Rico, we can just relax. Maybe we should just stay there until our anniversary."

"Yes, I'm sure your father will love us just taking three weeks off, not doing our appointed jobs, making our son think we're lazy, great plan."

"I think it is," she said, kissing him, wrapping her arms around his neck as he held her closer. "Or we can just leave him with my parents or something, and then have all the time to ourselves."

"Nah," Chris shook his head. "Ever since Sawyer has learned to sleep through the night, he's been a lot cooler."

"And is learning to use a sippy cup, don't forget the sippy cup."

"You're cute when you say sippy cup," Chris told her impishly. She rolled her eyes and he laughed, "Oh come on, what, you're too cool to say sippy cup? You're just so awesome that it's beneath you."

"I never thought I _would_ be saying sippy cup," she shrugged. "I don't know, don't worry about me, Sawyer's enjoying his gross cereal, I swear, I don't know why he likes that stuff."

"Because it's all gloopy and fun to eat, I don't know, stuff looks like glue to me, I was going to spackle with it," he said. "Are your parents doting over him?"

"Of course they are, and he loves it, mostly, sometimes he doesn't like attention, those are the times when I wonder if he's our kid. My parents are getting it in now because D and K are coming in and they're going to be up to their ears in grandkids. They'll love it."

"Yeah, my parents, well, my mom, she's going to be all over our kid too, we may not have to watch him at all tonight," she said suggestively. "We could sneak upstairs into one of the empty bedrooms…"

"Or _our_ empty room," he suggested.

"That too," she laughed as she leaned in closer to tease her lips against his, lightly brushing them against his lips before pulling away teasingly. She leaned in again, licking his bottom lip a little before sucking it into her mouth before capturing both his lips into a fiery kiss. Chris moaned against her mouth and ran his right hand up her shirt, toying with the clasp of her bra while his left hand migrated to her hair, letting the silky tresses weave their way through his fingers. Stephanie rubbed herself against his pants, shifting herself to straddle him, leaning the chair back a little bit to gain leverage over Chris.

"Oh, wasn't expecting this."

Chris pulled away from Stephanie and looked over her shoulder, turning beet red in the process. "Mom, I…didn't hear you come in."

"Obviously not," Loretta said with a laugh. "I thought this was an office, so I figured you were working, Stephanie, not all over my son."

Stephanie buried her head into Chris's neck as she laughed before turning to her mother-in-law, "Hello Loretta, sorry you had to walk in on this display, did my parents let you in?"

"Actually Trish let us in, she said she was going back home so that she could properly prepare for the party and let her family know where exactly it was that you lived," she told them. "I just wanted to come say hello since I hardly get to see you two, and my grandson."

"Where is Sawyer?" Stephanie asked as Chris leaned his forehead against her shoulder. He was thirty-six years old, and still getting caught making out by his mother was enough to send him to the brink of mortification. She grabbed Chris's hand and rubbed his knuckles.

"Chris' father is holding him," Loretta said. "And now I'll excuse myself and let you get back to 'work.'" Loretta walked back out and closed the door behind her.

"I always feel fifteen whenever she sees that. There's just something so wrong about having your mother catch you making out with someone."

"I'm your wife," Stephanie reminded him. "You're totally allowed to kiss me, all the time, everyday, every second of everyday. It might get a little bit messy, and we're have a hard time breathing, but if we could somehow coordinate it, we could probably kiss all day long."

"Don't tempt me to take such actions," he said, pinching her butt. "Still though, I'm going to go out there, and you know, show my mom I'm not some horny teenager, because that's what I feel like right now."

"Oh, yeah, leave, I don't sleep with teenagers, that's just gross, I'm not some cradle-robber." She stood up and allowed him to get up off the seat. He stood up and gave her a kiss and then poked his finger at the work on her desk. She sat down and pulled it closer to her as Chris closed the door softly behind him so as not to disturb his wife. He made his way into the living room where he could hear voices, and luckily for him, glanced at the mirror in the front hallway and saw some of Stephanie's lip gloss all over his mouth. He wiped it away vigorously before walking into the room.

"Hey, Merry Christmas everyone," Chris said jollily.

"Hey honey, done in there?" Loretta said, coming over and hugging him.

"Oh my God, this is a first, Chris Jericho is blushing," Shane teased good-naturedly.

"Shut up," Chris said nastily, kissing his mother's cheek. "Was your flight okay, Mom?"

"It was fine," she said, going over and taking Sawyer from Ted, "I can't believe how big he is. He's just getting so big and I hardly get to see him."

"Well, you live far away, and you like Canada, so moving down here would be dumb."

"I wasn't thinking that," she told him. "He's getting his first tooth, isn't he? He keeps chewing on things."

"Hey kid, want to show Grandma your teeth?" Chris asked, pulling Sawyer's bottom lip down. "He's getting two, so he's doubly uncomfortable."

"His first teeth, I just can't believe I have a grandson," Loretta said. "I really don't need any Christmas presents as long as he's here."

"Awesome, so now I can keep that toaster oven, great," Chris said, pumping his fist in mock celebration."

"Hello everyone!" Marissa peeked her head in from the doorway. "Anyone want to help with two little boys?"

"I'll help," Shane said, standing up, making Marissa flinch a little bit, which didn't go unnoticed by Shane, but he swallowed the feeling of anger that she always seemed to have around him. She nodded and they walked into the foyer where Declan and Kenyon were in a double stroller.

"Daddy!" Declan yelled happily.

"Hey there, D, what's going on?" Declan shrugged and helped him out of his stroller as Marissa went to get the baby. "I'm glad you were able to come, Rissa."

"Well, your parents and Chris and Stephanie invited me, and I thought they might want to see the kids."

"Rissa, I was hoping that we could talk to each other tonight, while we're here. My parents are sure to want to hang around the boys all night, so I thought we could have some free time."

"And what, Shane? Resolve our issues or something, I think at this point they're not resolvable."

"But why?" Shane hissed so the people in the other room couldn't hear. "Trish and I didn't do anything other than kiss, and I really regret it. She's getting married next Sunday to someone, she's not exactly in my back pocket, I swear."

"It's not about her," Marissa sighed. "It's about the fact that you were unhappy, that you regretted marrying me. I know that it was spur-of-the-moment, but it still hurt, Shane, and I'm hurt, and look, our entire family is in the other room, and I don't want to hash it out here."

"Later then, please?"

"Maybe," she said, carrying Kenyon into the other room. "Hey, look who's here!"

"Oh, there's one of my strong grandsons," Vince said, going over and taking Kenyon from Marissa. "The McMahon genes are just so strong, we have three young men who are going to rule the company."

"They're going to be trouble," Chris piped in, "or at least Sawyer is going to be, I don't know about your boys, Rissa."

"Oh, trust me, the way they act, they're going to be troublemakers too, I figure that goes along with being a McMahon, right?"

"I wouldn't know, thank God," Chris joked. "Take that up with Vince."

The family caught up with one another before the party started, Stephanie finally coming out of her office to say hello to everyone before going upstairs to change into a party outfit, a black halter top and a gray skirt that went to her knees. The temperature outside was a balmy seventy-nine degrees despite the light rain falling outside. She walked back downstairs where Chris was setting up some things on a table he had pulled out of the garage.

"Wow," Chris said as he saw her and she gave a little twirl for him. "Thanks for making me look bad."

"It's what I live for," she said, blinking innocently. "I just wanted to look good as the hostess of this little thing, it's what I do best, show off."

"But of course," he said, dumping some chips into a bowl. "You look awesome though, really, I think you just look beautiful."

"Merry Christmas to you too," she said, hearing the doorbell. "Okay, so guests are arriving, hopefully this is one helluva party."

* * *

"Christian, is that you?" 

"Oh, hey Alice, yeah, I'm best friends with Chris," Christian said as Alice, Trish's mother, came over to him with a cup of eggnog. "I didn't know you were going to be here."

"Well, with Trish's…well, we thought it might be nice for a change," she said, avoiding talking about the wedding, realizing that she was talking with Trish's ex-boyfriend. Alice and John, Trish's father, had always liked Christian, and thought he had been perfect for Trish. Of course, Trish had never told of all the bad things that happened between Christian and Trish, but Christian had always been respectful towards them.

"It's okay Alice, I know about the wedding, and I'm okay with it, finally," he said with a little scoff.

"I wasn't sure if you had heard about it or not," Alice said, blushing slightly. "I didn't want to embarrass you or make you feel uncomfortable. We're here for the wedding next week."

"I'm okay, thank you for being worried about me though," he said. "I hope you and John have been doing well though, and Christie and Melissa, and their families."

"Yes, we've all been great, thank you for asking, do you have any Christmas plans."

"Yeah, my mom and grandma are in town."

"Oh, how is Edna?" Alice asked. "I haven't seen her in a couple of months, I heard from your mother that she had gone on a cruise of some sort, I would love to get together with them for tea while we're here."

"They'd really like that, I'll let them know."

"Great," she said warmly as she saw Trish over Christian's shoulder, leaning against the wall and drinking what looked like a martini. "If you'll excuse me, my daughter looks a little lost."

"Yeah, it was nice talking to you."

"You too," she said, as she walked over to Trish, who smiled when she walked over. "Hey sweetie, you look lonely."

"Carlito's not here and I miss him," she shrugged. "I guess I'm so used to him being around that when he's not, I feel a little lonely, are you having fun?"

"I am, everyone has been really nice, I can tell why you like living down here. I met Shane's son Declan, what a little cutie he is," Alice said. "I was just talking to Christian."

"Oh, yeah, how did that go?"

"Strange," she laughed. "I'm worried about you, honey."

"Worried about me?" Trish asked, confused. "Mom, I'm okay, Carlito isn't here, but that doesn't mean that I can't have fun…I'm having fun, it's all going really well. Everything is coming together."

Alice grabbed Trish by the elbow and brought her into the hallway where there was nobody. Trish looked at her mother and wondered why she wanted to talk to her privately. "Honey, I just want you to make sure that you know what you're doing."

"What do you mean?"

"With getting married, I want to make sure that you know exactly what you're getting yourself into with this. I know that you think you're doing the right thing, and I like Carlito, I really do, it's jus this whole thing is going so fast and I want to make sure that your intentions are good and you aren't running away from something else."

"Mom, I love Carlito, I _love_ him," Trish emphasized. "Is this because you talked to Christian, did something happen with Christian? Did he say something?"

"No, of course not, he was just as sweet as always, I just wanted to know about _you_ and your motivation. I want you to be married, and happy, and have children if that's what you want, I just want to make sure that you are completely happy. Honey, I don't want anything bad to happen to you."

"And do you think that something bad is going to happen if I marry Carlito?" Trish asked, pulling away from her mother a little. "Do you not like him, is that it?"

"No, no, that's not it at all, don't get defensive, honey, I just wanted to make sure that you absolutely loved Carlito and that you didn't harbor some feelings for…Christian."

"So this is about Christian?" Trish asked, folding her arms. "Mom, Christian and I are friends, we're fine with that, I'm fine with that, he's fine with that. I know that's not what he wants us to be, but I'm happy, I'm really happy with the choices that I've made. Things were going nowhere with Christian, we'd go back and forth, and nothing ever moved forward, and I need to move forward."

"Okay, if that's what you think that you need, and it's what you want, I'm going to support you, I just want to make sure that you will be happy. You're my daughter, Trish, my oldest, and you've been so ambitious for so long, making your own luck, I just want to be your mom for a little while, is that too much?"

"No," she said with a sigh. "I'm sorry for snapping at you, Mom."

The two of them hugged, and Trish thought about what her mother was trying to say to her. Sure, she did still have feelings for Christian, but she had to move past those, because if you hung onto something forever, then you would be stuck in a state of arrested development (hey, that's the name of the show!). She didn't want to be stuck like that forever, and the only thing she knew she had to do was move on, and moving on she was. She was moving on with Carlito and that's how it had to be. She downed the rest of her martini in one gulp as she watched her mother walk away, before she went over to the stairs and sat down on the steps, leaning back and listening to everyone talking.

"Oh hey, Trish, not having fun at the party?"

Trish looked up and saw Shane standing above her, Kenyon in his arms. Trish smiled at him and shrugged. "It's not that, I'm just missing my fiancé."

"Oh, rough," Shane said, coming down a few steps and sitting next to her. "I had to change K's diaper, that was a fun experience."

"Hey there Kenyon," Trish said, shaking the little boy's hand. He smiled at her widely with his dark eyes like Marissa's and gurgled his response. "Are you having fun at the party?"

"Well, he's having a blast, as for me, not so much a blast as having to look at Marissa and not really get to talk to her."

"Why can't you talk to her?"

"Because she doesn't want to talk to me," Shane explained. "We haven't really talked since that huge blow-out we had at my parent's house when our flight was cancelled. It's been awkward between us and the only contact we really have is through the boys. Otherwise, she's been giving the cold shoulder to me."

"I feel partly responsible for this," Trish moped. "If we hadn't…you know, none of this would've happened."

"No, it's not your fault at all. It's my fault if anything. I'm the one who said that I wasn't happy, and I should've told her and talked to her so that she would know and we could work it out, but I was stupid and I didn't, and now I'm in the perpetual doghouse."

"You'll work things out if you want to work them out. You have two little boys, I don't think even Marissa would want to jeopardize Kenyon and Declan like that. You'd want to have a civil relationship for them."

"You'd think, but we barely talk at all, it's always only about who's going to take care of them when and where, and I want it to be so much more than that, I miss her, and I do love her, I've loved her for a really long time."

"You should probably tell all this to her."

"Believe me, I've tried, she doesn't want to hear it," Shane said, kissing Kenyon's head. "She's the mother of my kids, ya know what I mean? I love her and I want to be with her, but I think I screwed it up beyond recognition."

"Maybe you should just keep trying to reach out to her, it couldn't hurt, right?" she suggested.

"Yeah, you could be right," he said. "Thanks for the advice, Trish, I hope things work out for you. I think your wedding is going to be beautiful."

"If you and Marissa make up before next Sunday, you should bring her to the wedding. I know there's going to be extra food, and it'll be romantic, if you want to invite her, you have my permission, that is if she doesn't totally hate my guts."

"Thanks," he said, standing up. "I'll see you later."

Shane went down the remaining steps and into the living room where he saw Marissa sitting across the room with his sister on the couch. Declan was in her lap, cuddling up to her and hugging her around the waist as Stephanie held Sawyer against her. Chris came over and scooped Sawyer out of Stephanie's arms, kissing her head in the process as he wandered off somewhere with Sawyer. Stephanie rolled her eyes at Marissa, who looked down a little, like she didn't want to see wedded bliss. He took a deep breath and started to cross the room to get to her.

Stephanie noticed Shane's presence first and stood up, walking over to him and snatching Kenyon from his arms, "I'll take that, thanks."

"Hey," he protested.

"I'm having separation anxiety from my baby, so I'm going to take yours," she told him, then went over to Marissa, "Hey D, do you want to go find Uncle Chris?"

"Okay!" Declan exclaimed, climbing off of Marissa's lap as he took his Aunt Stephanie's hand and wandered off. Stephanie widened her eyes when she passed Shane, silently wishing him luck for what she knew he was about to do. Shane walked to the couch and sat down next to his estranged wife. She turned her body physically away from him, and he grimaced at the gesture.

"Hey Rissa."

"I'm going to go get some food." She stood up to go and Shane grabbed her hand, lacing his fingers with hers. She froze and stood there.

"Rissa, please, talk to me, seriously, it's like Christmas, isn't this the least we can do."

She turned to face him, saying through gritted teeth. "I told you that I didn't want to do this here. Your family and friends are here, and their families, I'm not going to do this with you here, okay, seriously Shane, I'm not going to embarrass myself."

"This is a big house, we can go up to Chris's office or something, or you know what, we can go to the room I'm staying in, nobody would even go in there since I'm using it, please," he pleaded, begged almost, his eyes showing earnestly how much he wanted to talk to her. She hadn't ever been able to fully say no to Shane, it was probably why she kept going back to him all that time. "_Please_, Rissa."

She sighed deeply, her eyes mournful and sad. She nodded at him, not speaking a word. Shane gave her a hopeful smile and stood up, not taking his hand from hers. He led them upstairs to the guest bedroom that he was staying in. When she walked in, he closed the door behind them to give them some privacy. She gingerly sat down on the bed and looked at her hands, finding them more fascinating than Shane.

"I'm sorry," Shane said. "I feel like I should preface with that. This entire thing, these past several months, I'm just sorry. I'm sorry that I didn't reach out to you sooner, and I'm sorry that I spent all these months stewing and not trying to fix this."

"Maybe it's not fixable," Marissa said, raising her shoulders like it was an impossible task. "Look Shane, I'm willing to take some of the blame here, we rushed into this entire thing because I was pregnant, and that is so cliché, and we shouldn't have. We should've talked about it and not rushed to the courthouse without any of our family or friends there. I was there too."

"Yeah, I should've told you that I wasn't happy though. And it wasn't because of you or the boys, let me get that out of the way. It was me, and my inability to see what I had. I went from this single guy, to this married guy with two kids, and it went so fast that I didn't adjust well at all. I think that if we had progressed normally, I would've been better off, but I behaved so poorly towards you and towards the boys that I'm ashamed of myself."

"Okay," she said. "But you shouldn't beat yourself up over it, it _was_ a huge adjustment and I should've been there to help you."

"I should've reached out," he told her. "I just want to either work this out or move on, because I was talking to Trish and--"

"You were talking to Trish?" Marissa interjected. "And what did she have to say?"

"Look, Rissa, you're going to have to come to terms with the fact that she's my friend, and she'll remain my friend. I like Trish…as a friend, what happened that night was a mistake, a huge one, Stephanie has finally, finally forgiven me for it, so I don't want to go back there. But she's going to stay my friend."

"Fine," she said. "I know that it was a mistake, I just…I don't know, I picture it, and it gets to me sometimes."

Shane knelt in front of her. "She told me that we need to have a civil relationship for the boys, and I completely agree. If we can't work through this, then I want to stay your friend because we have two of the most adorable boys in the world, and I don't want to screw them up like my parents screwed me and Stephanie up."

"I agree with the civil thing, but I don't think you're screwed up," she said shyly. "I don't know if I want to make this work though, you really hurt me because I felt like you were rejecting me. Not with the whole Trish thing, but just in general, like, I kept thinking that maybe the reason we were so on-and-off was because every time we broke up, it was because you got tired of me, and I figured this was the exact same thing."

"I can give you time," he said, "We can try, right? We can try because I do love you, Rissa, I've loved you for a really long time, and I always come back to you, that has to count for something, right? Somewhere deep down inside of you, that has to count for something."

"Yeah, that counts for something," she told him softly.

"I got you something…for Christmas, and since you're going back to Connecticut tomorrow, I thought I could give this to you now, if that's okay."

"I didn't get you anything," she said, stricken, her eyes widening.

"It's okay, I don't need anything, I just…I was hoping that this conversation would go really well and then maybe you'd want something," he told her as he went to his suitcase and retrieved a flat present. She took it from him and smiled. "It's nothing major, so don't think it's anything major, okay? I just…I didn't know…how to say a lot of…I'm not great with the whole romantic thing, I know that."

Marissa just opened it to find a CD, obviously one made by Shane, and she opened it to see what songs were on the CD. She read the first and only song on it, and she looked up at Shane, her face scrunched up a little, and tears were starting to form in her eyes. She looked back down at the CD and then back up at him, giving a sobbing laugh as she stood up and hugged him tightly.

"Thank you," she whispered. "I can't…"

"I thought that maybe you had worn this out since the last time I gave it to you."

"For the Longest Time by Billy Joel, our song, my God, I remember when you put it on a tape for me, a tape, my God," she said, looking down at it. "This is really…sweet, thank you, Shane."

"Well, I try," he told her. "How about we go on a date on Thursday?"

"You want to go on a date?"

"Yeah, start anew, from the beginning, with all the good stuff that we skipped, we could even bring the boys if you want. We could go have a snow-fight or something, well, Declan, not Kenyon, he's too young for that kind of stuff."

"I'd like that," she nodded.

"You want to go back down to the party?"

"Hold on," she said, pulling Shane over to the stereo that Stephanie and Chris had in all the guest bedrooms, along with a TV. She put the CD in the CD tray and pushed it on play, falling onto the bed as the song came on. She patted the bed next to her and Shane laid down next to her as they stared at the ceiling, listening to their song. Marissa reached for Shane's hand, and laced their fingers together.

Downstairs, Chris had just handed off Sawyer to his dad before heading off to grab some food before his stomach started to growl. Stephanie was setting up some plates in the dining room, where people were eating and chatting. He walked up behind her and hugged her from behind, kissing her bare shoulder. She turned slightly to smile at him before going back to the plates. Chris grabbed the top one and started to load his plate up with food.

"Chris, can't you wait until everyone else has eaten?" Stephanie asked. "They're our guests."

"I'm hungry," he told her, pouting and she relented, letting him get his food. He kissed her cheek and fed her a crab puff before grabbing some utensils and sitting down to get his grub on. Stephanie came and sat next to him when she was through, leaning her head on his shoulder as she watched him eat, picking things off his plate every once in a while, making Chris give her a look of anger every time she took something that he liked. She giggled and fed him a couple pieces of chicken, laughing when he would lick the sauce off her fingers, and hoping that nobody was watching them and thinking they were absolutely disgusting.

"I've got to go put some more drinks out, talk to you later?"

"Sneak around with you later is more like it," Chris said, kissing her as she licked some of the sauce off of his lips.

"Mmm, you taste yummy," she whispered huskily, causing a small rise in him, as she sauntered away, obviously putting a little hip action into her walk, making Chris stare at her ass as she walked away. Chris glanced to his left and saw one of Trish's sister's husbands staring at Stephanie as she walked away and he frowned at that, almost getting up to say something to him before Trish's dad sat down and started talking to him.

Chris was talking with Trish's dad about hockey when he saw Hunter step out of the room and turn left towards Stephanie's office. He listened to John talk about the Toronto Maple Leafs for a few more minutes, seeing if Hunter would reappear before he excused himself from the conversation and wandered off in the direction that Hunter had walked off to. He found the door to Stephanie's office open and he walked in, seeing Hunter looking at the pictures on the wall.

"Too much party for you?" Chris asked.

Hunter looked a little startled. "Oh, sorry, I didn't know if I was allowed in here or not, but the door was open a little bit…so this is Stephanie's office I'm assuming."

"Yeah, this is her office," Chris said, opening his arms a little. "I think she spends more time in here than anywhere else in the house, actually, I think we all spend more time here than we do anywhere else in the house. She likes her work."

"She does," he nodded. "It's just a little weird seeing all of this stuff…she's…really happy, huh?"

"I like to think so. I can't read her mind, but I think she is."

"That makes me happy, I know that…it's funny to see someone's life after you've left it, you know," he shrugged, not really thinking he made a lot of sense. "I only want her to be happy, and I want her to be happy."

"She wants you to be happy too, I'm sure, not that I've asked her, but I think I can speak on her behalf."

"How the hell did you fall in love with her?" Hunter asked. "You really did hate her, didn't you? That wasn't an act, was it?"

"No, I just…didn't know Stephanie," Chris said, looking at the pictures of her on the wall, laughing, smiling. "I misinterpreted her I think. I thought she was a bitch and a slut, and just generally a really bad person. She's still a bitch, though."

Hunter laughed and nodded, "I think that's definitely one part of her that isn't going to change. She's a cool chick though. Keeps you on your toes, I like that best about her."

"She does at that," Chris said, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his pants.

"I always feel the need to apologize when I'm around the both of you, it's strange. You guys have been so nice to me, in general, and I've been a jackass."

"Well, once a jackass, and all that…look, what happened, happened, we've both been married to the same woman, I think that's more strange than anything you've done. We've both been married to Stephanie, and that's just strange, kind of makes her slutty."

"But she married us, so she can do the whole commitment thing."

"Oh no, dude, she was totally skanking around when she was with you," Chris said. "She did the entire backstage crew, and the wrestlers, and you know, I wouldn't be surprised if she was open for business every night."

"And now?"

"I'm all man, she doesn't need any other guys."

"Oh right, dig on me, right?"

"Come on, man, it's so easy, as the second husband, I have leverage, she chose me."

"You two didn't even start dating until after my divorce was final," Hunter said good-naturedly. "Unless you did have an affair like I had been suspecting all along."

"Please, I wouldn't have touched her with a ten-foot pole, she looked like such a whore before I got my hands on her. All slutty outfits and screechy voices. And she was such a pain in my ass, always putting me in matches that were unfair. I went through a freaking screen because of her."

"You hit her with a pie."

"That it not a proportionate response," Chris shook his head. "So just because she's been married twice, that doesn't make her slutty, I've been telling all my non-wrestling friends that I reformed a former slut, this could really hurt my rep."

"Does Stephanie know you talk about her like this?"

"God no, don't tell her," Chris joked. "She'll make me sleep in the yard, and we don't have a dog, so I can't sleep in the doghouse because we don't have one, and Sawyer can't work doors yet, so he wouldn't be able to let me in, and her family definitely wouldn't let me in, my parents might…or I can come crash with you, right?"

"No," Hunter said, as he turned towards the door and his eyes caught on one picture of Stephanie. He paused for a moment, thinking this was quite possibly the most beautiful picture he had ever seen of her. It was fairly close-up, and there was a sunset in the distance. Her hair was wavy, free-flowing against her back, the light running through it like sparklers. She had her back to the camera, but she was looking over her left shoulder, the sun illuminating her face gently. "Wow, I've never seen this one before."

"Day before our wedding," Chris said. "We were up where the wedding was going to take place, and I snapped it, and yeah, she's really kind of beautiful, isn't she?"

"So weird that we were both married to her, so…so weird," Hunter chuckled as they walked out of the office.

Trish was in the kitchen, or the staging area, as Stephanie was calling it. Nobody was in there at the moment, since Stephanie had put a lot of the junk they had lying around in here, and the extra food was in here, and she just didn't want anyone in there. But Trish needed another quiet moment from the party, and so she had come in here, and she was looking out the back window to Stephanie and Chris's backyard. The pool lights were on, making the water seem to glow and it was peaceful.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't know that there was anyone here," Christian said as he walked into the kitchen and over to the fridge. "I just needed ice."

"Oh, go ahead," she said, smiling at him. "Having fun?"

"Actually…yeah, I am, everyone is having fun, talking, I think Stephanie did a really good job."

"And Chris?"

"Probably just went along for the ride," Christian joked as he came over to stand next to her. "Are you missing Carlito?"

"Yeah," she said softly. "I wish he were here, but he's not, and I just miss him."

"Well, you don't have to mope about it," Christian said, nudging her shoulder with his drink.

"Are you drunk?"

"No way, like I want to embarrass myself here," Christian said. "There are way too many kids around, and I'm not kid-friendly when drunk."

"Oh yes, I know," Trish said, looking over at him as he leaned on the counter next to her.

"He'll be back soon enough," Christian said. "And then you get to do all those fun things that people do before a wedding, like the bachelorette party, and the rehearsal dinner, and then the whole getting married thing, so exciting."

"Don't forget the worrying that everything is going to go off without a hitch thing," Trish added. "That's the point I'm at right now, like, what if I forget my shoes? Or what if they forget to put the food on the boat and I'm left with fifty starving guests? Or what if someone falls overboard?"

"I hope that nobody falls overboard!" Christian said, alarmed. "That would really, really suck, and I really hope that you don't fall overboard…or get seasick."

"Oh man, I didn't even think of that. What if I'm seasick and I don't know it?"

"You've never been on a boat?"

"I have."

"And did you get sick?" She shook his head. "Then you're fine, you probably won't puke. It'll be great, Trish, it will, you just have to stop worrying. As long as you are happy, and Carlito is happy, then it'll be a great wedding."

"Thanks," she said, and meant it. She needed to feel calm right now. Christian caught a glimpse of her hair and smiled secretly to himself.

"You're wearing the hairclip I gave you."

Unbeknownst to them, Carlito (having had filmed the Raw for the troops prior to actual Christmas day) had been given leave from visiting overseas because of his upcoming wedding, and was just arriving at the party, and being told that some had seen Trish heading for the kitchen. He walked there and saw Trish with Christian, and stayed around the corner. He knew eavesdropping was wrong, but it seemed like they were having a conversation and he didn't want to interrupt.

"Yeah," Trish said, touching it gently. "I love it, I find myself wearing it all the time. It's perfect, you know, keeps my hair out of my face and looks beautiful. It's utilitarian and an eye-catcher."

"I was so worried that you would hate it," he told her honestly. "I was scared to give it to you, so I'm so glad you like it."

"Love it," she corrected. "I'm definitely wearing it at the wedding. I think it'll go perfectly with my whole ensemble, and it has blue in it, so it can be my something blue. It's like you thought of everything."

"I want your wedding to be great," Christian told her, and she didn't miss the wistfulness in his voice. Her look softened, and Christian could see the sympathy starting to sweep its way into her eyes. "No, Trish, don't, okay, I got it."

"Christian…"

"I'm not going to lie and say that I never saw us in this position. I'm not."

"I did too, so much you wouldn't believe…you know how I pictured it?"

"How?" he asked, knowing he was going to regret this later when the images truly played through his mind and he would be plagued by them for all his days. He knew now for sure that Trish was "the one that got away." She was going to be his eternal "what-if," the thing he had most wanted, that he had lost in the harshest way.

"It would be a couple years from now, at least, to get everything settled between us. Stephanie would be my maid of honor, and my sisters would be the bridesmaids, and Edge would be your best man, and Chris and Kurt would be the ushers, because we didn't hate Kurt yet, and Sawyer would be our ring bearer, and one of my nieces would be the flower girl, and it would be in Toronto, and in a church, I don't know why a church, but the stained glass intrigues me. And our reception would be at the best hotel in town, and we'd go to someplace exotic for our honeymoon, like Thailand."

"That sounds nice."

"It would've been," she told him.

"Are you ever…sorry that it isn't going to happen?" Christian asked softly, afraid of her answer. She had his heart in her hand right now.

"Truthfully, of course I am," she told him. "But…I think we both know, deep down, that this is right, that this is how it has to be."

"Yeah, yeah…"

Carlito decided to make his presence known, "Hey, is there anyone cool in here?"

Trish's eyes widened and her jaw dropped. "Lito!" she screamed, rushing over and throwing herself into his arms. Carlito smiled and hugged her tightly, not wanting to ever let go. He loved Trish so much, and felt so good when he was around her. She lit up the entire room, and when he looked at her, he wanted to pinch himself. She pulled back and kissed him fiercely, not even knowing that Christian had snuck out of the room, uncomfortable by the whole display.

"What are you doing here?" Trish asked.

"They let me leave early because of the wedding," he told her. "So I took advantage of that, got on the first flight out of there, and like eighteen hours later, here I am."

"I'm so glad you're here, come on, let's go say hello to everyone, my family is here," she said excitedly, pulling him towards the living room where everyone was gathered.

Speaking of being pulled places, Stephanie was currently pulling Chris up the stairs and into his office. She closed and locked the door behind her before turning and being captured in a kiss by Chris. His hands snaked up her ribcage as they blindly made their way over to the couch and plunked themselves down on it unceremoniously. Stephanie landed on Chris and he raised her skirt, running his hands up the back of her thighs as he moaned into her mouth at the gyrations she was doing against the front of his pants. But what they were doing probably didn't require an elaborate telling of words.

It was hours later, and most of the guests had left, leaving Chris, Stephanie, Sawyer, Loretta, Ted, Vince, Linda, Shane, Marissa, Declan, and Kenyon all alone in the messy living room. The tree was glowing in the corner, and the presents were being handed out. Since Marissa, Declan, and Kenyon were leaving the next day, it seemed appropriate that they open their presents, and then some of the others got to open theirs. Sawyer, who had fallen asleep an hour ago (and was sleeping nestled in Loretta's arms), along with his cousin (who was asleep in Linda's arms), had just gotten a huge play table that matched the one Kenyon had received (their parents had done the opening in their stead) and Stephanie and Marissa were discussing the merits of it as Declan sleepily opened a Little Einstein video.

"Okay, Chris, Stephanie, do you want to exchange gifts?" Vince asked, a Santa hat perched precariously over his usual pompadour. Stephanie had convinced him to wear it for the evening.

Chris turned to Stephanie and flustered, said, "You can…uh…go first, Stephanie."

An equally flustered Stephanie turned to Chris and replied. "No, you first, you know, I don't want to…ruin it if we…you know…got the same thing or something…"

"Oh, well, yeah…I uh…left it…upstairs…okay, I'm sorry," he said, cutting the act. "I didn't get you anything, I forgot. I was so excited for Sawyer's first Christmas and buying him all these presents, I kind of…forgot to get you one, don't hit me!"

"Are you serious? I don't have a gift for _you_," Stephanie exclaimed, relieved beyond reason. "I just wanted Sawyer to have a good Christmas, and the party, and I just forgot, I'm sorry, I promise I'll get you something outstanding for our anniversary next month."

"Deal," Chris said, leaning forward and kissing her, before moving his mouth slightly to the left to whisper to her, "Besides, you gave me a son who I get to enjoy the first Christmas with, that's a pretty great present…that and a new bass."

Stephanie laughed and pulled away, rolling her eyes as she glanced back at Chris and mouthed an "I love you" to him as Declan opened another toy. Chris pulled her closer to him, and she leaned against him, enjoying that she had her family back and that they were all there with her.

Trish and Carlito were taking a short walk to walk off their food. Well, that's what Carlito had told Trish, but that wasn't why he needed to talk to her. He had to talk to her about something more serious. He had to tell her that he had been eavesdropping her conversation with Christian. It was only the right thing to do. The thinking had gotten to him, and thinking on such long plane trips was dangerous, very dangerous and he was really regretting it right now, because the thinking had decimated him.

"Let's stop here," he told her as they stopped in front of her house.

"Okay," she said to him. "What did you want to talk about? You mentioned something about talking…are you nervous for the wedding?"

"Trish, I love you."

"I love you too," she added.

"Let me finish, okay?" She nodded her acquiescence. "Thanks. I love you so much, and I guess that really made me blind to the way things are around here. But tonight it was pretty much spelled out for me, and I see the writing on the wall now, and I can't believe I didn't see it before, but it's my own fault."

"See what?" she asked, not caring if he was finished or not.

"Trish, I can't marry you," he said, his voice a pained whisper. Trish blinked a couple of times, not comprehending what Carlito was telling her. This just didn't make sense. This didn't make sense to her at all, and she just stood there, blinking, no words, no sounds, no movements, she had been reduced to blinking.

"You…uh…you mean you want to postpone, right? We can postpone it," Trish nodded. "We can wait until summer, a summer wedding would be nice, I like that and--"

"No, Trish, I meant…I can't marry you…ever," he told her softly, grabbing and squeezing her hands.

"Did…did I do something wrong?" she asked, her face a mask of confusion and pain. "If I did something wrong, I'll fix it, I swear!"

"No, you didn't do anything wrong, I promise, in fact, I just…I love you so much and I want you to be happy, and Trish, I realized tonight, well, no, I've been realizing, you still love Christian."

"No! No, I don't!" Trish shouted, not caring who heard. "We broke up, I'm with you, I'm happy with _you_! I want to marry _you_! Don't you get that, Lito, don't you get that I'm with you for all the right reasons!"

"I don't think you are," he told her. "I heard you with him tonight, in the kitchen, and I saw you with him last week, and then I just…you may not even know it, or remember it, but you're in love with him, and I can't stand in the way of that. I love you so much, and I don't want to let you go, believe me, I want to hold onto you forever and I want to marry you and be with you, but how fair is it for us to be in a marriage when you can't fully commit to me."

"I'm committed," she told him seriously.

"Trish, I'm sorry, but I can't, I want you to be happy, and I think…I think you're in love with Christian, I think you're still in love with him. I want you to be with the man that you really love, and I am doing this for you, not because you did anything wrong, because you didn't, but you can't let this chance pass you up. I got you for a short time, and it was the best months of my life, but I can't be selfish and pretend like there's nothing there."

Trish was crying now, "But…Lito, there isn't anything there. It's just us! I love you, please don't do this."

Carlito was starting to tear up as well. "I wish I didn't have to do this, but after tonight, I can't do it anymore, I can't keep you when you aren't really mine. Don't worry about anything for the wedding, I called it off, I'll take care of it. You just take care of what you need to take care of."

"Please Lito, don't do this, please don't do this," she begged, hugging herself to him as he let a tear escape. "Please…"

"Trish…you have a perfect wedding in your head, I heard…and I wasn't the one standing at the altar with you…"

Trish's lip quivered as Carlito pulled away gently. He cupped her cheeks in his cool hands and kissed her forehead gently, before kissing her cheeks and then kissing her mouth one last time. "I love you," he mumbled, over and over again, as he kissed her. He wanted to stay in this moment forever because he knew nothing would ever be this good again and when he let go, he was letting go for good. But finally, air was his number one need and he pulled away, keeping his lips achingly close to hers. He took a few steps back and then grabbed his car keys out of his pocket and got into his car and drove away to destination unknown, leaving a sobbing Trish in her driveway, and she only realized then that it was after midnight.

Merry Christmas indeed.


	119. It All Falls Apart, January 1, 2007

"Have you heard from Trish?"

Stephanie looked up from her desk and saw Christian leaning in the doorway. She stood up and walked to the door, poking her head out and looking both ways, seeing nobody around. She ushered him into the room and he sat down across from her desk as Stephanie sat down and wrung her hands a little, the stress really getting to her.

"She refuses to show her face. She has locked herself into her house and she refuses to see anyone," Stephanie said, covering her mouth with her hand as she let out a breath. "She only allows us to drop off food for her, and that's it…so at least she's not starving."

"I was hoping she'd be here tonight," Christian said quietly.

"Did you really?" Stephanie asked, a hint of sarcasm in her voice. "Seriously, she got dumped on Christmas and yesterday was supposed to be her wedding day, did you really expect her to show her face where the man she was supposed to marry works? Come on, Christian."

"I was just hoping that she'd be here…if she wanted…to talk or something because you know, I heard…of course you know I heard, Chris was the one that told me…"

"Yeah, Chris was the one that told me too since he answered the phone when Trish's mom called to say the wedding was off," Stephanie said quietly. "It was very unexpected."

"It really was, I thought that he really wanted to marry her, I just…wanted to know what happened. If I were going to marry Trish, God, heaven and hell would have to come get me because there's no other way that I would let her go."

Stephanie nodded a little knowingly. "I'm not sure that's exactly what she wants to hear right now. She's…well, from what her mother told me, before Trish kicked them out of the house, she's not doing well at all, but she got dumped, I know how it feels to get dumped at your wedding."

"Oh yeah, with the whole Hunter and the baby thing," Christian mumbled. "I really…I'm really worried about her though. I don't want her doing anything stupid."

"She's not going to," Stephanie assured him. "This is Trish, she bounces back from things like this, she'll bounce back, she just needs time and understanding."

"Do you have any idea why he did it? I mean, definitive reasons why? I just can't imagine what plausible reason he had for doing this. I just…"

"Christian, don't push her, okay, I swear to God, I will kick you in the crotch if you try and pull anything, _anything_, with her before she is ready, because you've got that sound in your voice, and I know that sound," Stephanie warned him vehemently. "Do not even think about being the knight in shining armor right now."

Christian looked at her, wide-eyed, and a little insulted. "Steph, what kind of guy do you think I am, really? I wouldn't do that to her. I love her, there, I said it, you know it, you knew it all along, I love her, and I don't want her to be hurting."

"I don't either, and I know that you love her, I just don't want you pushing that love on her."

"Do you…do you think that she would see me?" Christian asked honestly. He wondered if he went back up to Tampa there was any chance she would see him. He just wanted to make sure that she was doing okay. The only problem with that was that if Trish wasn't even seeing her family, what were the chances that she would see him, her ex-boyfriend?

"I don't know," Stephanie told him. "She doesn't even want to see her family," which reminded Christian of what he had just thought. "I don't know if she'll want to see you. I think that…I think that you had a big part in Carlito's reason for calling it off."

"But why is that? I stepped out of the picture," he pointed out. "I stopped that stupid plan, and I told her that I was happy for her."

"Yeah, but you didn't mean that."

"Yeah, okay, I didn't mean that," he laughed, but with no real emotion behind it. "Of course I wanted her to be happy with me, but if she was happy with him, I was willing to go along with that. I stepped back, Stephanie, you can't push any blame on me."

"Oh man, don't you get it, Christian, she still loves you, we all see it," she told him, rolling her eyes. Christian had suspected that might be a reason, but he really didn't want to acknowledge that, because that would only get his hopes up. He never wanted to get his hopes up where Trish was concerned. She had made it abundantly clear that there was nothing going on with them, they were through and he had accepted that the best he could.

"You're lying."

"I don't think she knows though," Stephanie said. "But I think she does, deep down. I don't think she's ever stopped."

"Stop it, Steph, please, okay, you don't understand what that does to me," Christian said. He stood up and paced a little bit. "You couldn't even begin to understand what that makes me think and hope and I can't take it. I can't take it because I can't think about what could've been. I blew it with Trish, and you sitting there telling me she still loves me, that's _killing_ me, Stephanie. You'll never get it because you _have_ everything that you want. You have your husband and your son and you have this great life, and I'm happy for you, I am, but I have nothing, so please, spare me the diatribe about how Trish is in love with me."

"Fine," she said, holding her palms out at him in surrender. "I'm sorry I even brought it up. I just thought you might want to hear what I think on the situation."

"But you don't have all the facts."

"I don't think that I need them in this situation," she told him. "But I've got a whole night of work ahead of me, so I should probably go do that."

"Stephanie, I didn't mean to snap at you."

"No, you're really right," Stephanie said. "I know that it's hard for you, and I don't want to add to that. I just know that Trish is hurting, and I don't know the reasons why one hundred percent, but I can guess."

"Yeah, but that just gets my hopes up, and me and Trish? Never going to happen," he shrugged, glancing off sadly. "You don't always get what you want…"

"No, you don't," she said. "And that's why life is such a bitch."

He laughed and that and stood, walking over and leaning down to hug her, telling her that she was a really great friend. She hugged him back, patting him on the back. She knew exactly where he would go once he walked out that door, and she could hardly blame him. Christian was the kind of guy who had very little tact, and she knew that he was going to walk right out of this arena, and right onto a plane back to Tampa. She banked on him going back since it was only a one hour flight from here to there.

Maybe Christian was crazy…maybe he was just in love…either way, she didn't know if he was actually doing the right thing. But then, sometimes in these kinds of situations, you had to what you had to do, so he couldn't blame him for that. The entire situation made no sense to her. She didn't understand Carlito's motives…but that might've been because she didn't exactly know Carlito's motives. She didn't feel it was her place to even ask.

"Hey Christian, wait," Stephanie called to him just as he was about to step out. He turned to face her, and she pulled something from her purse. It was a whole ring of keys, and she fumbled through them until coming to the one she wanted, pulling it off the chain. "She'll kill me, but whatever."

She put the key down on her desk and slid it towards him. Christian looked at her, puzzled, wondering what she was doing. She nodded towards it, pushing it a little further towards the edge. He stood there, finally realizing what she was doing, and she shrugged, knowing there wasn't a lot of words that could be said. Christian walked slowly towards it and took it, mouthing "thank you" to Stephanie. She nodded and gave him an encouraging smile.

Chris blew out a breath as his head hit the desk with a thud. He heard a giggling and opened his eyes to see Sawyer laying on his stomach, giggling at Chris. Chris closed his eyes again, but the giggling didn't stop so he opened his eyes again and stuck his tongue out. Sawyer grinned widely, and Chris closed his eyes again. He could hear Sawyer moving and squinted his eyes open a little to see him scooting towards Chris. Chris watched him, even though Sawyer thought that Chris's eyes were still closed. He felt Sawyer's hand slap on his cheek, like he was trying to wake him up as he could hear Sawyer's soft babbling. Chris then opened his eyes wide and grabbed Sawyer and started tickling him, making him grin and laugh loudly.

"What do you think you're doing?" Chris asked him playfully. "Are you watching me die of boredom?" Sawyer showed off his teeth for Chris and Chris nodded. "So you just wanted to show off the teeth, huh?"

Chris sat Sawyer down on his lap as he went back to narrowing down the files on these "models" that Vince wanted to hire. He also needed to watch some tapes for some new prospects, and then meet with Vince over the new diva who had been hired for OVW, Stu Hart's granddaughter, who he was familiar with because of his time in the Dungeon. He had advised Vince that this was a good hire and Vince wanted to discuss it with him. He didn't look forward to that, but when did he ever want to see Vince voluntarily. He had taken him a long time just to accept the fact that Vince was his father-in-law.

"Chris?"

Chris looked up and saw Britt in the doorway. "Hey Britt, what's up?"

"Are you busy?"

"Well, I'm just trying to narrow down these résumés," Chris said, "Vince gave me some 'constructive' comments on who he thinks should be hired and who shouldn't, so I'm going over that. I can't stand him sometimes."

"He's your father-in-law," she stated the obvious.

"I know, that's what makes it so sad. But other than that, I'm not really busy, so what did you need?"

"Someone wanted to schedule a meeting with you tonight," she informed him.

Chris looked at her strangely. "Any and all meetings from wrestlers should go through Stephanie, I'm not the one even in charge of the show. You should probably take this up with her."

"He didn't want to meet with her," Britt told him. "He wanted to meet with you, and apparently, this isn't about the show, so…"

"Um…who wants a meeting?" he wondered.

"Carlito," Britt told him and Chris scratched his eyebrow and sighed loudly. "Yeah, I heard about what happened, it's kind of all that people are talking about tonight. Maybe he needs some advice."

"I really want to just punch him, you know, for hurting my friend, but then, he's really become a friend to me too, and I know he has his reasons…"

"Yeah, things like that are tough, I once had this friend, she actually called off the wedding when she was on the altar, it was crazy, something out of a movie. The only thing missing was a guy who she actually loved coming out of the woodwork. Instead, she just needed to be alone for a while…of course, she broke up with the guy."

"Well, I'm glad he didn't do it during the wedding, it was going to be on a boat, so talk about awkward when you can't get off the boat. But, I guess I can squeeze him in, tell him that I can see him right now, it might make my night more interesting than this," Chris said, holding up some random girl's headshot, "Like…Dawn here, she's been in numerous men's magazines, lovely, and a beauty pageant winner, and she likes to watch people…get tattoos, well, that's a weird hobby. And I get to look at about two hundred of these."

"The funny thing with you, Chris, is that most guys would love doing your job," Britt said. "They'd love looking at half-naked shots of women, but you, you're sensitive like that."

Chris started laughing. "Oh, trust me, the pictures are nice to look at, and I appreciate that, but then I turn it over and you see what these girls are really about, and that's when it starts to bug me, but the looking, no, I wouldn't consider that the downfall."

"So looks still matter, but so does personality."

"Now you've got it," Chris said, "I would just love to find one member of MENSA in this pile, I don't think that's too much to ask, right?"

"Oh, no, not at all," she told him, "I'm going to go get Carlito, did you want Sawyer with you or did you want me to take him to Stephanie?"

"Stephanie's really busy so he'll just stay with me," Chris said, poking Sawyer in the arm. "Aren't you, kid?"

"Okay, I'll go get Carlito then."

"Thanks."

Chris mentally thought about what he could possibly say to the man. The first thing that came to mind was a hearty, "What the fuck were you thinking, man, are you out of your ever-loving mind! This is Trish Stratus we're talking about! If I weren't married and in love with my wife, I'd totally hit that!" but that hardly seemed appropriate for the conversation that was sure to come. He didn't want to scare off Carlito, if he could be confided in, then maybe they could fix this, maybe there was a chance that he could fix this, or that he and Stephanie could fix this, or him, Stephanie and Sawyer, might as well get him in on his first plan while he was still young.

"We don't want Auntie Trish to be sad, right, kid?" Chris whispered as the door opened and Carlito shuffled his way into the room, looking downtrodden and just really tired. Not tired in the sense that he hadn't slept, but like something, some invisible force, was weighing him down and causing his feet to sink right into the earth, making him slug his way through it like wet cement.

"Thanks for seeing me," Carlito said, sitting down. "I figured you would be the easier one to talk to. Stephanie's kind of a bitch sometimes."

"Yeah, she is," Chris agreed. "So Britt told me this wasn't about the show, so it's obviously about Trish, so what did you need to say?"

"I just wanted to know how she was doing," he explained.

"You and me both," Chris replied. "She hasn't really let anyone see her since…well, since it happened. She threw her family out, and she will only let us drop off food for her, I don't know if she's been out, or if she's taken a shower or what, but I'd imagine she has done that at least."

"I didn't want to hurt her," Carlito said, then repeated it, firmer this time, "I did _not_ want to hurt her, Chris, but I didn't see any other choice."

"You couldn't have thought that she…or you would come out of this unscathed, right? I mean, come on, you dump her on _Christmas_, a week before your wedding, and you expect her to come out smelling like roses when it's all over."

"No, that's not what I expected, but I couldn't go through with it, I couldn't marry her when she didn't want to marry me."

"And how did you know she didn't want to marry you?" Chris inquired. "Did she tell you straight out that she didn't want to marry you? Did she say it to your face? Did you hear her say it behind her back?"

"I saw her with Christian at your Christmas party," he blurted out.

"Were they…making out?" Chris asked, wondering if there had been something that went down at his party. Because if there was, then that was major, it might actually be partly his fault that this wedding didn't go through. But if Christian and Trish were making out, that was through no fault of his own, because he hadn't exactly been the one who pushed their lips together.

"No, no," Carlito answered, shaking his head violently. "They were talking, about their perfect wedding, how Trish saw her wedding with him, and about the hair clip that he gave her that she's barely taken off since he gave it to her. I saw the signs, and I'm not a dumb guy."

"Look, they have a history, you knew that going into it, man, but they're over, she's made that clear to him, and he accepted it. He gave her that hair clip to wear to her wedding as a sign that he was okay with her moving on, that he wanted her to be happy. That's what it was about. At least that's what Stephanie told me."

"You didn't hear them, Chris," Carlito argued. "You didn't hear them, and you don't see them the way that I do. You see them act like they're okay with how everything went down because you saw when they were together, so you think you can, like, see when they aren't in love. But I see it. I see it because I love her, and I know when she loves someone else, I just know, I know that she loves him still."

Chris didn't have an argument ready for that. "She wanted to marry you though," was the best he could come up with.

"That may be so, but she wants to marry him too, she just don't know it yet."

"I think she did though," Chris countered. "She wouldn't have agreed to it if she didn't want it. Did you even take that into account? I mean, she's not a doormat, you can't walk all over her and force her to do whatever you want, that's not how she works. She chose to be with you."

"Yeah, she may have chosen, but how long until she realizes, huh? How long until she sees that I'm not the guy that she wants to be with? And when that happens, where does that leave me? Where does that leave me when I'm in love with her, and married to her, and God forbid have had children with her? I can't do it," Carlito said, and he had that bitter look on his face, the one where his mouth became all pursed up and his look hard.

Chris sighed. "You may have a point, but that's not trusting her. She made her choice, and it was you, she loves you, man."

"I love her too."

"So you can work this out, you can make her happy again. She wants to be happy with you," Chris told him. "Don't turn your back on something really great because of things you think you know. If I had done that, if I had turned my back on Stephanie because I once thought she was a slut and bitch to end all bitches, but…I looked past that, and I'm better for it. You should give Trish the benefit of the doubt."

"I'll try," he said. "Right now, I just need some time apart from her, to think things through."

"Yeah, I get that," Chris said.

"Thanks for talking to me, I would've gone to one of my other friends, you know, closer or something…but you know Trish, so it helped, thanks…"

"She's my friend, and I want her happy," Chris nodded as Carlito silently nodded back, no more words passing between the two men. Chris had been where Carlito was, not exactly because he had never called off his wedding to Stephanie, when she said January 15th, that was it, but in the whole trust thing, he remembered a long time ago, when he thought she was cheating on him, that she loved someone else, he hadn't trusted her, and he had lost her for a time. He never wanted to do that again, and maybe if Carlito learned his lesson, he would never leave Trish again either.

Hunter walked into the room after Carlito had left and glanced back to where the other man had been. "I couldn't resist, I saw him walking out of here, and I had to know if the rumors were true."

"What? Now you're a gossiping old lady."

"Dude, my life is pathetic, I hang out with Shawn and his wife and kids, or you and your wife and kid, this is the best thing I've got right now."

Chris chuckled. "You have no idea how much that warms my heart. I love seeing you suffer while I have everything. Man, Trips, _this_ is the life."

"Shut your face," Hunter said, rolling his eyes, "At least I can go out and nail any woman that I want to, no consequences. Sleep with them and then never see them again, that's something that you, my friend, can't do."

"Are you kidding? Of course I can, I just have to be sneaky about it."

"Yeah, and then when you would inevitably get caught by Stephanie, because nobody ever gets anything by Stephanie, she'll cut your…well, you won't be procreating is what I'm saying."

"Very true, she is freakishly observant. I've wondered if she really does have eyes in the back of her head," Chris said, tapping his chin as Sawyer started to whine a little bit.

"Obviously he's tired of you and wants to let me hold him," Hunter said. "What's that tough guy? Your dad is a huge jerk-off, yeah, that's so true."

Chris thrust Sawyer in Hunter's direction, letting the other man hold him for a while, since Sawyer probably _was_ sick of him. "I don't appreciate you trying to corrupt my son, thanks, the only people doing any corrupting around here are going to be me and Stephanie. We want our son to be screwed-up and dysfunctional."

"Spoken like a member of the McMahon family," Hunter joked. "So really, Carlito and Trish, that whole thing didn't happen?"

"Nope, didn't happen," Chris said. "I'm not going to go into details, but it has to do with Christian, not that anything happened with him and Trish, but…history, you know."

"Oh yeah, they dated for a really long time, didn't they?"

"Yeah, years," Chris said, gathering up the files in front of him so as not to think about it so much. He had become friends with Carlito while he was dating Trish, enough to call him a friend without her presence in his life. But he considered Christian and Trish some of his best and closest friends, so it created a situation where he felt like they were all pulling him towards them, and he didn't know whose side to take. Not that he wanted to take a side, that was the last thing he wanted. He didn't want in their business because that would just mean that he would have to have an allegiance, and it was going to make someone unhappy.

"What do you have there?" Hunter asked, sensing that Chris wanted to change the subject, and he could respect that. Sawyer grabbed his hand and bit down on his finger. "Oww, Jesus Christ, man, does your kid have fangs?"

"I'm half werewolf," Chris said blandly. "He's teething, I've got bite marks on my hand too. You learn to deal. As for these, I'm looking for models to hire, as per Vince, the dark overlord."

Hunter leaned forward to grab at one of the files. "Wow, this chick is hot!"

"Yes, she is," Chris said appreciatively.

"Man, hire this one," Hunter nodded to him. "Seriously, I want to get a little piece of that."

"I'm not even close to done with this. I have gone through so many headshots and résumés that they all have blended together, and I can no longer distinguish if anyone looks good."

"Let me help…"

"No, no way. Dude, you've got to get yourself a girlfriend."

"I do have my eye on someone."

"Who?" Chris said, wanting _this_ kind of gossip.

"It's nothing, don't worry about it…" Hunter said shiftily. This only piqued Chris's interest even more and he leaned forward a little to lean his elbows on his desk. He smirked and waited. "I'm not going to tell you," Hunter told him.

"Sure you are, come on, it's someone that works here, right? Come on, man, I won't tell, seriously, I won't tell anyone except Stephanie because she's my wife, and I don't really keep a lot of stuff from her that doesn't involve a secret plan that I deliberately keep from her…so spill…"

"No, it's none of your business."

"Come on," Chris whined. "Why can't I know…unless…dude, it better not be Stephanie, I swear…if you even want to go after my wife, I'm going to have to kick your ass right--"

"It's Victoria," Hunter rolled his eyes slowly. "I'm not going after Stephanie, please, that ship has sailed and is halfway around the world, and I don't want it to ever come back."

"Victoria…wow, you really do like women who have to be obsessively in control, don't you? Chyna, Stephanie, Victoria, you definitely have a type."

"You're married to Stephanie now, so you're in the same boat, I just…I prefer to date women in the business, don't you?"

"Stephanie was the first woman I ever dated who was in the business," Chris admitted, and Hunter was a little surprised.

"Really? You didn't hook up with anyone while you were in WCW?"

"No, I had girlfriends who didn't work for the company, who usually lived near me. Stephanie was the first woman I ever dated who was in the company, then when we broke up briefly, I dated Molly, but other than that, Stephanie's been it."

"Well, I like Victoria, I think she's really driven, very goal-oriented…"

"Crazy psycho bitch is what you mean, right?"

"Well at least I'm not married to a crazy, mean bitch."

"Hey! Sawyer, bite him," Chris ordered, but Sawyer was just watching the two of them talk. "Go after Victoria if you want though, I don't think she's going to get many other offers so you might as well go for it."

"I just might do that."

The door opened then and Stephanie walked in, looking over something as she walked past Hunter and then to Chris's desk where she leaned over, writing something, completely oblivious to Hunter's presence. She was also giving Hunter quite the eyeful from her rather low-cut blouse. Hunter couldn't help but stare, and Chris gave him a dirty look, to which he shrugged and looked a little sheepish.

"Hey baby, how about not giving the farm away for free?" Chris told her, and Stephanie looked up and saw a grinning Hunter, and then looked down at her shirt and blushing, she pulled the top together and stood up.

"Why didn't you tell me he was here?" Stephanie hissed.

"Well, you were pretty engrossed," he told her, pulling her down into his lap. "So what did you need?"

"To get away from people who were hitting on me," she said, her tone annoyed, and Chris knew who she was talking about. He didn't want to have another talk with that guy, but it seemed like it was going to be inevitable. He was really starting to bug Chris. She turned to Hunter and Sawyer. "He bit you, didn't he?"

"With his fangs, yes."

"Fresh meat," Stephanie said, eyes blazing.

"Hey Trips, can you leave, I need a word with my woman."

"Yeah, sure, I should go find that certain someone," Hunter said, bringing Sawyer to them. "I believe this belongs to you."

"No, never seen it before," Stephanie said, even as she took Sawyer from his arms. Sawyer happily babbled as he saw his mommy and got to hear her. Her voice made his face just absolutely light up, and it still gave Stephanie a giddy kind of headiness that surged through her. It was weird to have someone love you so unconditionally that just hearing your voice made them happy. With Chris, there had been a time when he hated her, but Sawyer knew nothing else but to love her.

"So, Carlito wanted to talk to me," Chris informed his wife.

"And?" Stephanie asked anxiously. "What, spill, Chris, spill!"

"It's what you thought, had to do with Christian and that whole situation," Chris told her. He looked at her, pursing his lips together and she smiled triumphantly. "Oh, don't even give me that look, I think that everyone knows just why it happened. It didn't take a doctorate to know it."

"I still won," she told him, kissing his cheek. "I talked to Christian, he's going to see Trish, like…now."

"Are you serious?" Chris asked. "He's going to go see her? She's never going to let him in though, if she doesn't want to see us, do you really think she's going to see the guy who her fiancé said was the reason he wasn't marrying her?"

"I gave him the key," Stephanie explained.

Chris slapped his forehead and looked at her. "Stephanie, what are you doing?"

"Nothing!" she insisted, staring at the top of Sawyer's head. "I'm not doing anything. He was going to go see her anyways, I knew he was. So I helped. I'm not trying to sway anyone in any direction or anything. If she talks to him and it's good, fine, if he talks to her and convinces her to go talk to Carlito, fine."

"But what do you want? Which scenario?"

"It doesn't matter to me," she told him. "It's her choice, she's my friend, whoever she chooses, and if she chooses neither, fine too. I don't care, it's not like I'm going to be dating one of them, I have you…and my other boyfriend, I've got my hands full as it is."

"Funny," he told her. "Very, very funny."

Carlito was sitting on a trunk in one of the hallways. He could feel people's eyes on him, staring, pointing, whispering to themselves. They were gossiping about him, saying things that were half-truths or untrue altogether, but it didn't matter when the story was good. He didn't want to hear it though. He wanted to sit here, alone, and just wait until his match started. Then he would leave and go back to his empty hotel room and sleep, where it was merciful and not filled with Trish. He hadn't remembered a dream since before he had dumped Trish and that was a blessing.

He felt someone sit next to him, and then saw the manicured fingernails on his arm. He glanced over at Torrie and then back down to his hands. "Hey Carlito."

He gently pulled his arm away from her, and mumbled, "Hey."

"I was hoping that I would see you, I heard about what happened, and I'm really sorry, really, really sorry. I really thought that you and Trish were going to be good together, and I'm really sorry that it didn't work out," she said, her voice dripping with sympathy and insincerity. Torrie believed that this was all her doing; that she had somehow had something to do with this. She was the one who had absolutely gotten Carlito out of Trish's grasp and she was self-congratulating herself like crazy.

"Yeah, me too," he said, quite oblivious to what she was doing. He was in a bad emotional state at the moment and didn't have time to be analyzing what Torrie was doing.

"I was hoping that I could make you feel better, you know, cheer you up," she said, reaching out to rub his shoulder, hoping that she could bring him comfort.

"I'm fine," he told her. "I don't need anyone right now."

"Carlito, I want to help, really I do," Torrie told him, sounding like she was pleading. "I really wanted to be there for you, please let me be there for you. I promise I'll help you feel better."

"I'm really fine," he told her, but still didn't' look at her. "I just have my match tonight and that's it, okay? I'll be cool."

"But you could always use a friend, what happened between you two?"

"We just didn't work out, okay? Why do people even care, it was between me and Trish, not anyone else and me and Trish. I just don't get why people care so much, why they have to gossip about things they don't understand."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you," she said, acting like he had hurt her. "I just wanted to be able to help because you seemed like you needed a shoulder or something. But if you really want me to leave."

"Sorry, Torrie, I'm just on edge today, okay?" he told her. She nodded and reached her arms around him to give him a short hug. He was confused, "What are you doing?"

"I'm giving you a hug, it looked like you could use one…and how about I come out with you during your match?"

"No, really, I'm fine," he said, and he thought that maybe if he kept repeating it, she would believe it and leave him alone where he could wallow in peace. Someone around here had to know what it was like to break up with someone you loved because you knew they loved someone else. Someone had to know his pain. He didn't care about talking or knowing that person, he just wanted to not be the only one in the building who had this world of hurt bottled up in their chest ready to explode. He didn't want to be alone in that sense, but in the physical sense, he wanted to be left alone.

"No, I insist, I can help boost your spirits, I promise I'll help," she said, and she sounded flirty, but again, he was so bad off he didn't even notice.

"It's just a match," he told her. "It's just a stupid, silly match to fill the time. That's what it is!"

"Carlito, really, you need someone right now. I won't interfere or anything, I just don't think that you should be alone. I'll let you think about it, okay, but please take me up on it. I just think that you should have someone cheering you on after what happened."

"Whatever," he told her, hoping that would send her away. It didn't, and he realized she was looking for a positive answer. "Okay, I'll think about it, is that fine?"

"Good," she told him happily, patting his knee as she pushed herself off the trunk and then walked down the hallway, self-satisfied with what had transpired. She was going to chase the feeling of this though. Her plan was working perfectly, she knew that she could break those two up, it had only been a matter of time.

Christian was pacing backstage, his reaction to the news such the opposite. It wasn't that he felt guilty, or responsible, he was just worried about Trish. The key that Stephanie had given him was burning a hole in his pocket, begging to be used, begging to be put into the lock and open the door to her house. But could he use it? Would he use it? What would be the point, would it help her in any way? Could _he _help her in any way?

He hated that he didn't know the answers to that. He hated that this is what it had come to with him and Trish. He loved her with all his heart, saw a future with her, saw a marriage with her and kids with her, but he had lost her, and he had accepted that, and now, suddenly, that obstacle wasn't there anymore, and there were few roadblocks in his way. But there were still roadblocks, and he wouldn't and couldn't take advantage of a distraught and heartbroken Trish.

He finally decided that he should talk to Chris about it. Chris generally had good advice for him. They were best friends, and best friends looked out for you. Hands in pockets, head down, he headed in the direction of Chris's office. He wasn't watching where he was going though, and bumped into someone. The last someone that he wanted to face, and the same could be said for the person he had run into.

When Christian saw Carlito, it was kind of like something inside of his snapped, not in the violent way that some might think, but he just didn't understand the man that was standing in front of him. This man had literally everything Christian had ever dreamed of for his personal life, and in one fell swoop, he had let it go foolishly. Christian couldn't understand why either, because Trish was just so precious to him, she was the person in this world who understood him, saw through all his faults, and still came out loving him in the end. To think that someone would pass on that kind of love and support when she was so willing to give it just astounded him, and snapped at him like licks of flame from some fire.

"How could you do that to her?" Christian asked in a voice he didn't recognize as his own. It was raspy and so alike his voice, the affected "surfer" type voice he sometimes used. But these were strange times.

"Look…I don't have to talk to you," Carlito said.

"No, you don't, but I just can't understand why you would dump Trish. She's the best woman in the entire world. She's amazing, and you just…you dumped her and you…how could you do that? Do you know how much some people would give to be in your position?"

"Like you?" Carlito asked, and it sounded more like an accusation than anything else.

"Yeah, exactly like me, because I had Trish and I lost her, and I regret it…every moment I regret it, and to think that you had it, and you gave it up, it makes…it just doesn't…I don't know. I don't know why you would. She's the best…she's amazing in so many ways and to have her love, seriously…"

"I love her, but, look, it's not your business."

"No, it's not, but she's hurting, and I hate when she's hurting, I hate it, and I want to fix it, and you didn't need to hurt her, you didn't need to," Christian said, and he sounded confused, which was what he was. He would give anything to have Trish back in his life, anything, and Carlito threw it away, all away for nothing."

"I just couldn't…you don't know what it's like to see someone you love and know that….that you might not be what she wants…but you wouldn't know that, would you, because she _always_ looks at you like she wants you."

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me!" Christian exclaimed, starting to draw a crowd over, a crowd of nosy busybodies. "If this is about me, you couldn't be more wrong. Trish made it clear that she was in love with you, and I accepted that."

"But I don't think she did!" he yelled back, not even seeing the crowd around the two of them. "I wasn't going to sit around and marry someone that didn't want to marry me."

"She did!"

"She's been wearing the hairclip you gave her practically every second since you gave it to her, do you know that that feels!"

"It was a gift, for your wedding, I told her to be happy, and she was happy, and then you ruined it, you ruined her! She chose _you_! Can't you get that through your head! She chose you, not me, God, I wish she had chosen me, you don't even know how much, but she didn't. She chose you, and I was forced to accept that, why can't you?"

"Because I thought…think she was still in love with you!"

"That's the lamest reason I've ever heard. You're a jackass for letting her go! A serious jackass!"

"You try seeing her with another guy while you love her."

"Are you blind? I love her, I love Trish so much that I…I have done everything in my power to try and get her back, and when I was forced away from her, I did everything I could to get over her, and nothing worked. Do you think it was easy for _me _to see her with you? God, don't be dense, man, it killed me, it kills me right now thinking that she's torn up about you, that she's sitting at home crying about _you_! But I learned to swallow my pain because I wanted what was best for her. I admit, I haven't been the best boyfriend to her, I've done things to hurt her, she's done things to hurt me, but when it counted, I wanted her to be happy and I stepped out of the picture, for her!" At this point, Christian's voice started to crack, like he was holding back tears that threatened to fall carelessly from his eyes. "And she was happy with you…and I was jealous as hell. And you threw that away because you felt threatened by me? Please man, she made her choice…she made her choice…"

Chris and Stephanie had just turned the corner to see a big crowd forming and then they heard the heated words of Christian. Chris was a little disgusted that these people wanted to watch all this be hatched out and he handed Sawyer to Stephanie before going over and breaking his way through the crowd to see the end of Christian's impassioned speech as people were snickering and whispering.

He stepped forward and looked around. "Excuse me, did I miss the ending of the show? Because surely you can't all be finished for the night, am I right? Unless you are involved in this situation, I suggest you get back to work right now." Chris saw some people not really moving, wanting to see the conclusion of this argument. "I didn't want to have to do this, but I'm part owner of this company, so if you value your jobs, I suggest that you leave…_now_." That lit a fire under everyone, knowing that Chris never flaunted the kind of power that he really had around there. Some people didn't even know what kind of power he even held. The people scattered quickly, leaving Chris with Christian and Carlito (talk about alliteration). Stephanie came over with a crawling Sawyer just in front of her, the little boy moving to sit on his diapered covered bottom as he looked up at the adults curiously. Stephanie reached her hands down and helped pull him up so he was standing, sort of.

"You two couldn't do this somewhere else?" Chris asked.

"I'm done anyways, I don't have anything else left to say," Christian said, brushing past them all and leaving the area altogether. Carlito left as well, not saying a word to anyone, just stomping off and Chris turned to Stephanie and she widened her eyes, wondering just what had set that whole thing into motion.

"Well that was strange," Stephanie said as she lifted Sawyer off the ground a little as Chris just shrugged. "And on your part, kind of hot, you know, getting all into power and everything…I liked it Jericho, I liked it a lot."

"I didn't want to have to do that, but come on…"

"You should do that more often, you in power is never a bad thing," she told him, turning her and Sawyer so they were facing the other way as she bounced his feet off the ground a little bit as they walked slowly.

Chris had actually felt good using his power like that…and he didn't know what that meant.

Carlito went to Torrie's dressing room and knocked on the door. Christian had made him angry, and for some reason, he wanted to get back at him, and for what, he didn't know. Maybe for loving Trish, maybe because he felt like Christian was selfish in taking all of Trish's love and not saving any for himself, maybe it was just a combination of the two. Torrie opened the door and Carlito couldn't even muster up a smile.

"You can come out there with me. I'm going to show the world I'm unaffected…"

Christian had a different reaction, leaving the arena altogether and going straight to the airport. He managed to get on the last flight to Tampa for the night, and was thankful that they were only in Miami so the flight was just an hour, you take off, you stay in the air for a little while, and then you're down on the ground, landing and getting off the aircraft. Then you find yourself driving towards the house of the woman you love, who is miserable right now. That key that was burning a hole in Christian's pocket was now burning a hole in his hand as he turned the lock and opened the door, almost wishing that it would creak so his presence would be known.

The downstairs was dark, and Christian had to wonder if she was already asleep. It was only midnight though, and Trish was a night-owl, but she had had a rough couple of days. She obviously wasn't downstairs, so he decided to ascend the stairs and see if she was up there. He could hear the buzz of a television from her room and he went down the hallways, almost feeling like this was some sort of demented haunted house and he was going to find the ghost on the other side of this door. The fear of seeing her was enough to make his hands shake a little as he pushed open the door. She screamed as he opened it, the movement startling her from her obsessive staring at the television.

"Christian! My God!" she yelled, standing on the bed. "You scared the hell out of me! What are you doing here!"

"I wanted to see you, I'm sorry," he apologized. "I didn't meant to startle you…"

"What do you think opening my door when no one else is here is supposed to do," she said as she sat down. "Get out of my house!"

"No," he said simply. "I'm not leaving. I wanted to check up on you, make sure you were okay. You won't let anyone see you, and I just wanted to make sure that you were going to be okay. I heard what happened, I talked…to him."

"Leave, Christian, leave, this is all your fault!" she said, her voice hurt. Christian was hurt now too. She blamed him. She blamed him for Carlito leaving, and that caused a shooting pain from his heart to his stomach.

"You think this is my fault?" he asked sadly.

"He dumped me because he thought I still loved you," she told him, and it was only then he noticed that her voice was scratchy, probably from the tears that she had shed since last week. "He thought that I wanted you, that I wanted to marry you, and right now…that's the last thing I'd ever want to do."

Her words were hurting and he was already beginning to think this was a bad idea. "I didn't do anything to you, Trish…"

"You left me! You left me and you hurt me, and when I was just ready to get over you, you come charging back into my life!" she yelled. "You come back and confuse me, and you expect me to just love you forever and ever, and then when I find someone new, I find something really, _really_ good, you have to be there, always there. I didn't want you, I wanted Carlito, and he didn't believe me because you kept coming around, you kept pushing your way into my life when I had told you it was over!"

"I'm sorry!" he shouted, her words just hurting him now. They were pain personified and his eyes were turning glassy from the tears they were bringing to him. "Stop it, just please…I'm sorry I couldn't stay away…I'm sorry that I couldn't stay away…"

"You should be," she said coldly. "I tried to move on with my life, and I found someone so incredible who never hurt me, never cheated on me, never left me alone with a note, never shouted a proposal at me…he never did those things, and I found him, and then you had to come back around, you had to interfere…"

"This isn't all my fault, Trish, you can believe it is, but it really isn't," he said, needing to defend himself now. "I did my best, okay, I told you that I was letting you go. And I did, I tried to be a good friend, I'm trying to be a good friend now, but all you want is someone to blame. You want to pin this on someone, pin it on Carlito. He saw something, and maybe it's there, maybe it isn't, but it was his choice, not mine. I would never have done that, he did…"

"So what? I should just jump into your arms?" Trish asked sarcastically. "You come here and I'm just supposed to say, 'Oh Chrissy, you're here, I needed you, I love you,' well trust me, that's not going to happen."

"And I don't want it to, God, Trish, I just wanted to see if you were okay. I thought you might be hurting. I know you were after I left, and I hated that I couldn't be there for you then, so I tried to be here for you now."

"Well I don't need you," Trish told him. "I don't need anyone. I just need to be by myself, but nobody seems to get that. Nobody seems to get that I need time to think this over. I was supposed to be on my honeymoon right now, and I'm not, I'm here…alone again. So I just need to be alone…do you get that?"

"I get that," he said. He stepped closer to her. "But I'm not going to accept it."

"Don't Christian, I swear to God, don't," she warned him. Christian didn't care though. He hugged her, and she broke in an instant, crying into his chest, that warm chest that was so familiar. He ran his hand over her hair, smoothing it down as she sobbed and clung to him, her hands in fists against him as she raged against the pain boiling inside of her. She started to sink to the floor and Christian just sunk with her, holding her firmly against him as she cried.

"I hate you, Christian, I hate you," she sobbed, her voice petering out into quiet sobbing. Christian closed his eyes, hoping she didn't mean the words. He hadn't meant to love her when he didn't have her. But he just didn't know how to stop. And now she might hate him, and he…had to accept that.

"I know, Trishy, I know…"


	120. See Who Paid a Visit, January 8, 2007

"Don't you think that I'm screwed, completely screwed?"

"I would like _to_ screw you," Chris said, "If that's what you meant. Is that what you meant?"

Stephanie didn't laugh, her mouth in a tight, straight line. Chris gave her an impish grin, shrugging his shoulders a little, like he was just such a funny guy that you had to forgive him for his silly comments. But tonight, Stephanie wasn't having any of it. She was stressed on this night. Stressed to the capacity of being stressed, that was her tonight. She rubbed her temples slowly, trying to dissipate the headache starting to form.

"Why don't you relax, baby?" Chris asked her from the couch where he was lounging. He probably should've been at work, but he could get to that later and Stephanie obviously needed him now.

"Because I can't relax! I have work to do!" she snapped in frustration. She didn't even look up at him apologetically. "Everything is screwed up with Hunter getting hurt, and then Edge and Randy looking worse for the wear from last night, and then my father with his _stupid_ ideas, I swear, I just…sometimes…I love my father, but he has the dumbest ideas!"

Chris tried to hold in his laugh at that. Yes, Vince was eccentric and it always made him want to laugh. Then Chris remembered that this man was a part of his family, and his wife's father and that usually sobered him up a little…or a lot. He knew that Stephanie wasn't mad at him, he was just the only one who she could take her frustrations out on. She certainly couldn't yell at Hunter for getting injured when he really had nothing to do with it, and she couldn't yell at her father because he was her boss, and things were always so tentative with them. Chris never knew when the next time they would hate each other would be, it was like a tightrope walk, never cross over the line too much or you're going to crash to the ground.

"Steph, you're taking things too seriously right now. Anything that comes your way, you can overcome that. You're going to stress yourself so much you'll start to make yourself sick."

"Chris, don't tell me what to do."

"I'm not telling you what to do," he told her. "I'm telling you what you should do, if you were so inclined, I don't tell you what to do, that's pointless because you don't listen to me."

"Why aren't you in your office?" she asked him. "You have a lot of work to do. I mean, you're still going over those résumés and there's that whole business about The Great Khali coming over here, isn't that in your area of business?"

"I'm not in my office because I'd rather be here with you, is that a crime, because if it is, put the handcuffs on me and take me to jail," he told her. She frowned and he looked at her, "Come on, Stephanie, you're like this every week. Every week you're stressed out, every week you're freaking out about something. You should just calm down. You're great at what you do, everyone has complete faith in you, ride that feeling."

"I'm stressed because if I'm not stressed, I'll be lackadaisical, and I'm not going to just sit around do nothing like some people around her, not naming names, but it's you."

"I do my job," Chris said. "And I get paid a good amount of money to do my job. Besides, I have to go down to OVW on Wednesday to check out some scouts, so excuse me if I don't want to do anything tonight because I have to go on a business trip."

"Those two things are not connected, tonight is tonight, Wednesday is Wednesday."

"Yeah, but I don't feel like it anyways," he shrugged. "Come over here."

"What? No," she told him as she sat back in her seat. "I'm perfectly fine where I'm sitting. Oh, which reminds me, you get the enviable job of doing a short orientation for the impersonators that my dad hired for tonight."

"No…"

"Oh yes, I'm very busy running the show and my father just doesn't want to bother, so it falls to third in command."

"No, Stephanie, come on…no, you can't make me do stuff like that," Chris groaned.

"Sorry Chris, you mess with the best, you're going to get burned," she told him, smirking. He shook his head, realizing that this had originally been one of Stephanie's duties, but she had shirked it and passed it on to Chris, knowing that she could. That was the good thing about having someone directly below her. The other good thing was that Chris was so easy to persuade because she loved him.

"I don't want to, Stephanie, it was your responsibility, so you take it on."

Stephanie stood up and looked at him with the most innocent eyes that she could muster. She walked over to him slowly, unbuttoning the top, then the next to the top button on her light blue, three-quarter length sleeve, blouse. She bit her lip a little and walked closer to him, and he tried to resist, oh how he tried to resist, but as more and more of her dark blue, satin bra came into his line of vision, he knew that he was fighting a losing battle. He knew that he was going to give in to her and he was going to do her grunt work because she had a body that he just couldn't resist.

"You are going to do this for me, aren't you, Chris?" Stephanie said, her voice lilting and softer than it usually was, which also meant that it was less screechy than it usually was. Chris shook his head.

"Stephanie, I have my own work to do, I think that you should handle the stuff that is supposed to be under your jurisdiction anyways," he said, trying to stick by his convictions, but she was just making it so hard.

"So do I, and with my dad breathing down my neck, and Hunter now injured, I mean, it screws up so many plans that we had with one of our biggest names out," she sighed, deeply as she ran her hands through her hair, looking off, "Sometimes I just get…I don't know what I'm doing. It's like, I'm thrown these new obstacles, and…if you were back on-screen, maybe I wouldn't…no, I know I wouldn't be so worried, but I am. I feel like sometimes I'm floundering, doing a completely bad job, letting people walk all over me…"

Chris sat up a little bit and pulled her around the waist and into her lap. She sat there looking at him, and went to button up her shirt. She stared at him, wondering just what he was doing and he gave her a smile, and it wasn't his usual, cocky smile, or the mischievous smile he sometimes used. This was a smile that she knew was reserved for her and her alone. It was softer, more gentle than his usual smiles, and she always felt like she was under some sort of scrutiny when he used it. He tucked her bangs behind her ear so he could see her eyes more clearly.

"You don't have to get all bent out of shape, you know."

"It's the only way that I can get through to you."

"Well…okay then, don't worry about it, I'll take care of that whole impersonator thing, and not because you freaked out on me, because I know that was mostly for my benefit, not because you actually feel that way, but because I love you, and because I love you, and it's one week away from our anniversary, I'll do it for you."

"Can you believe we've almost been married for two years?" Stephanie asked in awe. "When Hunter and I passed our two-year anniversary, our marriage was pretty much already in the dumps. He was still rehabbing, and I was…well, I had just gotten kicked out of the company…"

"Oh yeah," he chuckled. "That was priceless, you sobbing…oh, and then the next night when you were begging your dad not to let you go and he had security drag you away. Oh man, that was some funny stuff."

"That's not nice to say," she pouted. "I was distraught, I thought my life was over."

"And was it?"

"No, not so much," she told him, pursing her lips. "I just didn't think I'd get married again after that happened, you know, it makes you think that you're not marrying material. Once you've failed at something like that, it's hard to come back from it."

"I'll have to take your word on that. And not marrying material? Come on, you expected to what? Be single for the rest of your life? Become a cat woman? With your looks and brain, please woman, some guy would've snatched you up…hey, I'm some guy!" Chris said, pointing to himself. "And I snatched you up, and damn proud of it too."

"Two years, and this one we can actually really celebrate without me having mood swings, and having to go pee every five minutes because there's a human being stepping on my bladder. We can do whatever we want, go out for a drink, dancing, and I won't be too tired to do them, and my ankles won't be swollen, and my breasts won't be tender, and my back won't ache, we can really have a good anniversary."

"So you're saying that last year, Sawyer was just a burden?"

"Yes, he was a complete burden, being all inside me, moving around, getting comfortable, he cramped my style."

"If he weren't asleep right now, he would give you the dirtiest look," Chris said, glancing over at the portable playpen where Sawyer was laying sprawled out on his back, his head nodded off to the side where a steady line of drool was falling, hovering precariously over his blanket. "He doesn't take too kindly to being insulted."

"Well I didn't take too kindly to him jabbing me in the liver, but I dealt with it. He'll learn to deal with the insults…later on in life, not now, I don't want him insulted by other people now…he's just a baby, the people would eat him alive like vultures."

"I don't think people would be mean to a baby."

"You underestimate people," she said. "But that's true of everything."

"And I just felt like the conversation has shifted to something else," Chris said. "So unless my brilliance at deducing when you want to talk about something is faltering, there's something that you want to discuss."

"I don't know, I have a lot of things on my mind."

"Name one," he prompted.

"Should we go visit Hunter tomorrow?"

"Why would we do that?" he wondered.

Stephanie didn't know if she should breach this subject. She knew that she and Hunter were friends now, and Chris and Hunter were friends now, but they still hadn't really, truly dealt with the past. Seemingly though, the past was being kept there and they weren't going to rehash anything that happened because it was a moot point now, but still, she wondered if there were lines that she just didn't see. Lines that they shouldn't cross; she was afraid this was one of those lines.

If she showed concern for Hunter, would Chris misinterpret that for some kind of hidden, deep, dark secret of hers that was coming to light now that he was injured? Then there was the entire déjà vu-ness of the situation. This was almost exactly like what had happened last time, and the last time that it had happened, she and Hunter were married, and Chris had been in the match that Hunter had gotten injured in. It brought back a time when they had all maintained different positions, Stephanie the loving and doting wife to Hunter, the strong, powerful wrestler, to Chris's cocky and hated rival. She didn't want to bring up anything that could disrupt this balance they had going.

"Because he's hurt, and he's our friend…do you think we're good enough friends now that we would go see him in the hospital?"

"I don't know, do you think we're good enough friends with him to go see him?" he asked, and she felt like there was accusation in his voice. She turned and frowned at that. She didn't want him to be thinking things that didn't exist.

"I don't know, I thought…well, I mean, he's going into surgery tomorrow, that's what my dad said when talked to Dr. Andrews, and you know, I was…uh, there for the last time he had the surgery, and it was really nerve-wracking, and he was really nervous…and he's going to be alone, so I thought it might be nice…before his surgery if he knew that people cared."

"That _we_ cared, you mean."

"We're people," she said to him. "I just recall what happened last time, and I thought we could be there for him, _we_, plural, as in you and me, and the monster that's asleep over there, us, we."

"Why do you look all weird?" he asked, noticing that she was wringing his hands. Now Stephanie was really worried he was getting the wrong idea, but she didn't realize that he was only getting the wrong idea because she was worried that he would get the wrong idea. She had to abort this situation right now.

"Oh man, I've totally lost track of the time, and you need to get to that meeting, and I need to get on the show, and my dad wanted to have time in the middle of the show, and if I don't clear some room for him by cutting the time on some matches, he's going to have my head."

"Okay…" he said, his eyebrows meeting in the middle of his forehead as he regarded her and the way she was being totally antsy. "Do you want me to take Sawyer?"

"He's sleeping and I'll be in here for a little while, anyways, so I've got him. If he's still out when I need to leave, I'll just have Britt watch him," Stephanie responded.

"Sounds good, just tell me when you have Britt watch him, give me a ring or something, so I don't see you by yourself and freak out on you, get all angry and accusing," he said, giving her what he hoped was a nice smile. She could see that he was trying to be normal so she sent him a smile back before he left the room.

"Stupid, Stephanie, stupid," she berated herself as she sat down. She didn't want Chris to start thinking things that didn't exist. Now that he was gone, she was worried she had sent the entirely wrong message to him. She didn't love Hunter, she was merely concerned as a friend, but what if Chris believed that this incident was bringing her back to the last time this had happened, and the feelings that had come along when she had watched her husband's knee being sliced up? "So stupid…"

Someone else was feeling stupid…and angry, and right in the same arena too. Carlito was feeling stupid because he had left Trish. He hadn't known how much she had integrated herself into his life until she was gone. Every moment he wanted to turn to talk to her, tell her something or make her laugh, and every time he did turn, unconsciously thinking she might be there, he would find that she wasn't, and it would tear him up even more. His stupidity was tempered with the knowledge that he had felt he was doing the right thing. He couldn't stand the thought that no matter what he did, he might not ever be number one in Trish's life. It would be a sad existence for him if he went on believing that being number two would be okay.

Trish loving him had always been a situation that he had found too good to be true. And it was, now that he had lost her. When he was with her, his world lit up into a bevy of colors, every color ever would pop up before his eyes, in vibrancy unmatched. Now that she was gone, he saw what she had really brought to his life. She was too good for him, way too good for him.

He also knew she was way too good for Christian.

Over the past week, he had wavered between wishing that he had seen Christian and Trish while they were together and happy, and wishing that he had never known they were together in the first place. The former was winning currently. He wished that he could've seen them in love, really in love, so he could've carried that feeling with him and had known to steer away from Trish Stratus. He wished he could've seen it so he could burn the image in his brain and know, for sure, that she would never be his.

But he hadn't been that lucky, so he had made himself believe that whatever happened with Christian was just a relationship gone sour. He could let himself believe that because it happened often enough in the business. You think you're falling in love with someone and it's so easy because you work with them, and they know this business, they know the challenges, the amount of time spent away from home, and they understand everything, and you think that equates to them understanding you. Then you see couples that do work, like Chris and Stephanie, and you think that hey, if it can work for them, if they can really have _it_, then it can work for you too. But it doesn't because in this business, love is fickle, and the feelings are really only because that person is going through the same thing that you are.

After seeing Trish and Christian though, he saw that Chris and Stephanie version, the one where there are real feelings, not just a lot of bed-hopping and pretending that you know that person outside of the way that the business defines them. Chris and Stephanie weren't the norm, they were the exception to the rule. He never should've thought that he could defy the rules simply because he loved Trish. Loving wasn't enough, not in this day and age, love was just a step, a minor step because even if you love someone, it might never work out, and that's just how it goes.

He had to keep telling himself that, make it his mantra, "That's just how it goes…that's just how it goes." If he believed that, and believed that what he had with Trish was nothing more than a whirlwind romance that never should've been, maybe this would be easier. Maybe waking up to an empty bed, or thinking you hear her laughter when it's really not even close to being her, maybe that would be easier on his heart. He hadn't spoken to her, or seen her since the break-up. He didn't think he could look at her and not collapse before her and beg her for her forgiveness, then whisk her away to Vegas or somewhere that they could get married, not as properly as they could've, but what did it matter if she was his wife? He wanted desperately for her to be his wife, but the knowledge was killing him, knowing if anything, Trish's last name should be Cage, and not Colón.

Being here tonight was the only way that he could be distracted. He was distracted last night too, but not in the good way and that had cost him his match, but he hadn't cared, not at all. Torrie had hung around him all night, that had been a bit bothersome, but she was just trying to be a friend, and he couldn't begrudge her for that. He needed friends, and he didn't think he had many anymore. Trish was a very popular backstage, and people loved her, and to be the guy that denied her a wedding, well, it didn't make him the most loved guy there. He also had become friends with Chris and Stephanie while with Trish, and now that he had broken her heart, he questioned whether he could even still call them friends.

"Well, well, well, there's the loser now," Chris Masters said as he walked up to Carlito. "Are you ready to lose again tonight?"

"I ain't losing," Carlito said, but he wasn't into his words, they were hollow, like how he felt.

"Of course you are, you're what…0 for two already in the last week? First you lose Trish, then you lose to me, you really, _really_ can't catch a break, can you?"

"That's none of your business."

"No, it isn't, but I am curious as to what happened there?" Masters said, sucking at his teeth a little as Carlito tried not to let the anger rise in him. It was one thing for someone to be talking about Trish, but _this_ guy, he didn't even want him saying Trish's name because it sounded so dirty from his lips. "One minute you're going to get married, the next minute you're not, it's just crazy, you know, and people are going to wonder why you would turn that down. She not getting it done for you?"

"Shut up, that's none of your business," Carlito muttered.

"Well, she seems to have put you on a bit of a losing streak, hasn't she? Did she dump you? I wouldn't blame her, she can do better, I should give her a call, she can be with a Masterpiece, and not some piece of trash like you, with hair that just screams makeover."

"That doesn't even make sense," Carlito said. "So leave me alone."

"Oh, where would the fun be in that," Masters told him. "There's just so much to talk about, and your wedding is one of them, I'm kind of insulted I wasn't invited, or did my invitation get lost in the mail. I really should give Trish a call though, do you have her number?

"Shut up!" Carlito said, rearing his hand back and ready to punch him, but a hand gripped his wrist before he could.

"Carlito, no, don't!" said the female in question, and glanced over to Torrie, who was looking at him worriedly. "It isn't worth it, trust me, it isn't worth it. Wait until you get in the ring."

He couldn't help it, he thought about what Trish's reaction to the situation would be. She would've probably punched Masters before Carlito even had a chance, maybe even a chick kick to his big nose. But Torrie was different, way more feminine, not wanting to see anyone injured, wanting everything to be flowers and birds chirping. He hated her in that moment, because he really, really wanted to deck Masters in the face, and not have to wait for his match later.

"Carlito, man," Chris said, walking up to them, "This is the second time in a week I've seen you in some sort of fight, this isn't cool." Chris turned to Masters, who was standing there, trying to look innocent. "Get out of here, Masters, don't go around antagonizing people for the hell of it, one of these days someone isn't going to have a girl to stop them from hitting you."

Masters wandered off and Carlito finally put his fist down, shaking himself from Torrie's grasp. "I'm sorry, Chris."

"It doesn't matter to me, I just don't want to lose another guy to a suspension or injury or my wife will freak out, and I don't need that," he told him. "Why are you letting people get to you anyways?"

"I don't know, I'm on edge," he said, "Still, sorry about that, I don't mean to cause trouble."

"Well at least you didn't have a crowd this…oh, hold on, if you'll excuse me for a moment," Chris said, seeing Coach up ahead. He walked up to him and slung his arm around his shoulder companionably. "Coach, my man, I've got a job for you."

"Oh…I answer to…Vince, you know that, right?" Coach said.

"Yes, and last time I checked…Vince was my father-in-law, my wife's father, and my son's grandfather, now I'm not entirely sure what that makes us in the grand scheme of things, but we're related through my son by blood, you know, since he's half McMahon, scary genes, but I think…not sure though, I think that means I'm your boss."

"Well, yeah, of course, what did you need?" Coach said, realizing that Chris could easily go to Vince and say he wasn't doing his job properly. Hell, Chris could probably fire him if he really wanted to.

"Great, thanks, I had a meeting with the impersonators for tonight, just to show them the ropes, what they need to do, the script and stuff for that, so I was hoping you could take that," Chris said, slapping a couple scripts against Coach's chest. "You'll need these, thanks for this, I'm going to owe you one."

"Okay, I'll get right on this," Coach said, like the brown-noser that he was. He scurried off and Chris walked back over to Carlito and Torrie, who were standing there, watching him.

"Sorry about that, I really didn't want to take that stupid meeting, and I'm just glad that I have people to do that for me." Torrie had never found a man sexier than when he was in power, and Chris in power right there had turned her on. She wondered if it really would be hard to seduce him away from Stephanie. She licked her lips and stepped closer to him, just a little bit. Chris looked at her strangely and then at Carlito. "As I was saying, at least you didn't have a crowd this time."

"I didn't mean for that to happen last time, I didn't even think Christian would be here."

"He's always here, although he might not be here tonight actually," Chris said. "Just be careful, okay, I don't have to have to keep breaking fights up with you. I know you're going through a hard time, I sympathize."

"Thanks, Chris," Carlito said.

"No problem, see you later, bye Torrie."

"Bye Chris," she said, somewhat dreamily. The wheels were turning in her head, but they weren't being very productive because she knew that Chris was completely loyal to Stephanie. So she turned back to Carlito and smiled. "I'm glad you didn't hit him."

"Yeah, sure."

"How are you doing?"

"Well, now, I'm pissed," Carlito told her. "I wanted to punch him."

"What good would that have done though?" she asked. "It wouldn't have done any good. You would've just gotten him riled up for the match, and I want you to win."

"Yeah, thanks."

"Carlito, are you okay?"

"What kind of stupid question is that?" he snapped. "Of course I'm not okay. I've got everyone on my back because I dumped Trish, of course I'm not okay. You think that I'm going to be okay when I should be married right now? When I should have my wife next to me? No, I'm not fucking okay!"

"I'm sorry," she said, actually feeling timid. She hadn't expected the outburst from him, either because she was too dense, or she figured he wasn't that broken up about it since he had initiated the entire thing in the first place.

He didn't answer her though, just walking away without another word. He didn't get how she could be so stupid. Of course he wasn't okay. He missed Trish, he missed her so much that it felt like he hadn't seen her in years rather than a couple weeks. But they might as well have been years, or decades of just time because she felt like she was a million miles away.

That would be untrue however, since she wasn't a million miles away. She was still just in Tampa, and she was still in her house, though she had taken to going outside, walking around, going to the store, heading over to Stephanie and Chris's house to see Sawyer, who was just about the only person she felt like she could really talk to right now, and that was simply because he didn't talk back. She wondered how many secrets Sawyer had heard from various people that he couldn't tell because he didn't have the words to speak them out loud. There had to be many, and he was probably the most well-informed person out there.

After breaking down in Christian's arms, she had composed her life. It was by no means normal, but she was starting to get back on track. She hadn't seen Christian since last week, and she was glad for that. She had tried to hold onto her anger for as long as she could, but it was difficult when the truth stared her in the face. Christian had been a friend to her, the only thing that she had allowed him to be, and he had accepted that role. She couldn't hate a person who was trying to hard to be her friend while still knowing most everything about her. But some of the anger still lingered. Why did he always have to show up and ruin everything good in her life? Christian seemed to snatch away everything.

She couldn't go back to him now, it would just be…she didn't know what she was feeling. She needed to be alone to evaluate why her life was so incredibly screwed up. Surely she had been through enough. She thought it would be smooth sailing with Carlito, simply because he had never hurt her, had never caused her any kind of pain. She shouldn't have been naïve enough to think that would last. Nothing ever lasted. That's why she needed to be alone right now, so she could figure out if it was worth it, if love was worth it. Right now, it seemed that everyone she loved would let her down. And if that was the case for the rest of her life, why bother?

In the end, it would only be herself anyways, so why should she even try.

She turned on the television, preparing herself for the torture. She didn't _want_ to see Carlito, but some part of her was unconsciously turning on the television. She wanted to see Raw, she wanted to see Carlito, just to see if he was any worse off than she was. She wondered if she'd be able to tell if he was. She didn't expect him to have red-rimmed eyes, or that "just cried" look about it, but she was expecting…hoping for something, anything to give any indication that he had felt something for her, then, when they were together, and now when they were apart.

She watched until his match. He looked angry when he was walking down the ramp and she wondered why. It was probably because he had lost his match last night. His match tonight was pretty good, she thought, a back-and-forth affair. It wasn't until Torrie came running out that her eyes remained riveted to the screen. Torrie was a leech, plain and simple, and she knew that she wanted nothing more than to get her claws into Trish's man…or former man.

Then there she was, interfering like she had any right to. Then she was climbing into the ring and hugging Carlito. It looked to be initiated solely by her as he seemed distracted by Masters. She could see Torrie starting everything between them as Carlito didn't seem to want any part of it, and that sustained her a little bit. She worried that maybe there really was something there, and Carlito had dumped her to prevent her from getting humiliated. If that was the case, she really would just give up on love, but as Carlito was being pulled up the ramp by Torrie, Trish had to believe otherwise, or she would fall asleep with tears on her cheeks like she had for so many nights over the past two weeks.

"Let me go," Carlito said as soon as they were backstage, and if Trish could sense it, he hoped she did, hoped that if she saw that, she would know…it wouldn't help anything, but he hoped she would know.

Chris walked back into Stephanie's office, "So I booked us a flight for tomorrow to Birmingham, it's early, but his surgery is at noon, that's what the trainer told me when I asked."

Stephanie looked up from what she was doing. "You booked a flight for us?"

"You're right, Hunter is our friend, and if your friend is in the hospital, you go visit your friend, and if your friend is having surgery, he's going to need some support. I just thought it was weird since we've only been getting along with him for the past several months…maybe more than that, I'm not keeping track, but he's our friend, and I like to think that we've gotten over everything."

"I thought you might think I still had feelings for him because I wanted to go see him."

Chris snorted in disbelief, "Are you kidding? That didn't even cross my mind. I just thought you were a concerned friend."

"I am, I want to know how he's doing, how he's going to be doing…"

She would find out the next day as they took their flight from Kansas City to Birmingham, making one stop along the way. Their flight had left at six in the morning, the earliest possible flight, and had taken about 3 hours including the stop, and they arrived a couple of hours before his surgery. Stephanie went ahead to go make sure it was okay to have babies in the facility, which wasn't a hospital, but a privately run medical facility for these types of injuries, specializing in sports injuries. Chris was busy taking Sawyer out of his car-seat.

Stephanie walked up to the desk in the front and smiled at the receptionist. "Hello, I was wondering if I could see Hunter Helmsley?"

"Let me check," she said, typing something into her computer. "Yeah, it's fine to go see him, he can still see visitors before his surgery."

"Thank you, I was also wondering if it would be okay to bring a baby in here. My husband and I couldn't find anyone to stay with him, and I didn't know if he could come in here or what not."

"Oh, it's fine," she told her. "This isn't like a regular hospital, the people here aren't sick in the sense that they have illnesses, it's mostly physical injuries, so he should be okay."

"Thank you so much," Stephanie said, "And Hunter would be in…"

"He's in Room 1003, do you know where that is?"

"Yeah, I do, I've been here before for him unfortunately, thanks for you help."

"Not a problem."

Stephanie walked forward, turning a corner and seeing someone just about to cross the corner. Someone she didn't think she'd see again and had dreaded seeing for a really long time. She put a strained, and uncomfortable smile on her face. "Pat, hello."

"Stephanie…" Hunter's mother said. "I'm surprised to see you here."

"Have you been here long?"

"We flew in yesterday to be with Hunter before his surgery, Hunter's father, is here too."

"And Lynn?" Stephanie asked, referring to Hunter's sister.

"Not here, but she's flying down tomorrow," Pat said. "I really am shocked to see you here after…well…the divorce," she ended with a hissing whisper, like it was something to be so ashamed of.

"I was worried for him. I know what he went through last time, and I felt like I should be here for him."

"Are you two dating again?" Pat asked, her eyes widening a little in anticipation of a positive answer, but before getting that answer, she just pushed on, "I can't believe this, the two of you again. You know, he was very happy with you, probably the happiest I've seen him. I can't believe that you're back together, oh, I'm so happy. I always knew that the two of you were right for each other. I knew that you faked your pregnancy to keep him, not to hurt him, I'm so glad he was able to forgive you for what you had done!"

"Oh…uh," Stephanie stuttered, at a loss for words. She had figured that Hunter would at some point have told Pat that she had gotten married again, to a different man. But then again, Hunter didn't exactly disclose everything to his parent's, or else they might think he was a jackass too. "Pat…"

"And now you're here for him! Are you two going to get married again? Oh, you are, aren't you, and then you can have a family and everything, oh, I'm just…I've got to tell Paul," she said, looking around, "Where is that husband of mine?"

"Pat, please…don't…"

"Nonsense, don't try to apologize," she said, not even knowing what Stephanie was going to say.

Behind her, Chris had just stepped into the hallway leading to where Stephanie was. Sawyer was standing in front of him, Chris holding onto his tiny hands. Sawyer's new favorite thing was to have someone holding his hands and standing him up and then bouncing him off his feet as they walked. He couldn't stand up by himself yet, when you let go of his hands, he went down like a sack of potatoes, but he loved when someone would help him stand. He probably liked it better than crawling even, maybe it was because it made him taller or something.

"Bouncy, bouncy," Chris narrated as they went down the hallway. "You know, kid, I've never seen anyone so fascinated by electric doors. Please don't be like an engineer or something, you have to be a wrestler. Hey, look who's up there," he said, spotting Stephanie talking with someone, maybe a nurse or something. "You want to go see Mommy?"

Sawyer babbled happily, tipping his head back to look at Chris, who stuck his tongue out at him, making Sawyer scrunch his face up, his blue eyes staring into his father's identical ones. Chris let go of one of Sawyer's hands to poke him in his tiny chin dimple, which only angered the little boy. Chris laughed and retook Sawyer's hand as they bounced down the hallway.

"Hey Steph, someone wants their Mommy," Chris said as they got closer.

"Mommy…" Pat said, looking over Stephanie's shoulder. "You're…a mother?"

"Um, yeah," Stephanie said softly as Chris scooped up Sawyer and held him against him. Sawyer grabbed the collar of Chris's shirt, sticking the material in his mouth and making a dark spot on the fabric. "Hey there, baby boy."

When Sawyer heard Stephanie's voice directed at him, his eyes lit up and he started to cry and squirm in Chris's arms. Stephanie took him from Chris and Sawyer happily stopped his crying and squirming, settling himself against Stephanie, grabbing her necklace and trying to put it in his mouth before Stephanie pulled it away from him. Pat trailed her eyes from Sawyer to Chris and then back from Chris to Sawyer, the resemblance obvious, it was all in the eyes, they were the same exact color.

"Hey, I'm Chris Jericho," Chris said, sticking his hand out to the woman in front of him. "Are you one of Hunter's nurses or something?"

"I'm his mother," she said coldly.

"Oh, okay, then you probably know who I am…I don't know if that's a good thing," Chris chuckled, awkwardly putting his hand down when she didn't shake it. "But I don't want to be rude, unlike my wife here who didn't introduce us."

"Your…wife?"

"Yeah, I'm married to Stephanie, wow, Hunter never told you? This is awkward," Chris said embarrassedly.

"And this is your son?" Pat asked, looking accusingly at Stephanie.

"Yes, this is…my son, Sawyer Jericho, say hello baby," Stephanie instructed him. He looked over at the other woman, but she seemed boring so he went back to focusing on Stephanie's button, which was far more fascinating to him. Pat nodded her head, she should've known that they weren't back together, but here was her son's ex-wife, prancing around with her new husband and her baby, a baby she should've had with her son. This conniving, little bitch had toyed with her son's heart, and now he was in a hospital bed getting ready for surgery while she was standing here happily, with a husband and a child. It hardly seemed fair.

"You know, I think that Hunter is tired, so you might not want to go in there."

"It'll only be a few minutes, we just wanted to see what was up, how he was doing."

"That's all very nice, but I'm not sure that your…baby will be allowed in there, there's machines and things that he could grab and screw up," Pat said, wanting to save her son the pain of having to see his ex-wife's new life, even though Hunter had no problem with it whatsoever.

"They said it was okay at the front desk," Stephanie said. "Besides, he isn't really a puller, he's a biter, and I don't think he's going to be biting any machines, just a thought."

"Well, Shawn did come to visit earlier, and I think that took its toll on him."

"Just a few minutes," Stephanie said, grabbing Chris's hand with her free one. "See you later."

They wandered further down the hallway and closer to Hunter's room, Chris turned to Stephanie, "What was her problem?"

"She thought Hunter and I were dating again because I came to check up on him, and then of course, there's Sawyer, who she probably thinks I'm deliberately bringing in here to gloat about, like I'm going to dangle him in front of her face and mock her because he's not her grandson."

"I can't believe he didn't tell his parents you got remarried."

"Well, I don't know," she said as they came upon his room. Chris opened the door for her and she and Sawyer slipped inside. Hunter was reading a magazine and looked up in surprise, shocked to see them there.

"You guys, what are you doing here?" Hunter asked.

"Came to see you, what else are we doing here?" Chris asked as the door closed behind him.

"You _had_ to go and get yourself hurt, you big jerk," Stephanie said, punching him lightly in the arm, her tone joking. "Do you know how much I had to cover from last night? Did you _see_ last night? If I had you there, you could've talked for like half an hour, and my dad would not have had that stupid, stupid segment. I haven't even talked to him since last night I thought it was so horrible."

"And I could've remedied that?" he asked.

"Well, you or some blond guy," she said slyly.

"Hey!" Chris said. "And can I just say, I had nothing to do with this, so when you come back from this, do not even think about targeting me in any way."

"You'd have to get your ass back on television before that could happen," Hunter joked, which was nice to see given the circumstances. "But then, you might be too pansy to face me if you did come back."

"I hold the power, man," Chris told him. "Seriously though, how are you?"

"Definitely been better," Hunter said, looking at Sawyer. "Hey there tough guy, thanks for coming to visit me, I could use a happy face."

"Yeah, he doesn't know what's going on with you, he'll be the only one to treat you like you deserve to be treated," Stephanie told him. "You want to hold him?"

"Sure," Hunter said, taking Sawyer from her. "So the doctor's told me that I'm going to be out for at least four months, which is good, I don't think that's too long at all, I could be back in plenty of time for SummerSlam."

"Don't rush yourself, man, just look at what that did for people," Chris told him.

Stephanie sat on the bed across from him, "Chris is right, and you deserve a break. You've worked your ass off, and you should take it easy, if only for this short while."

"I guess, I don't know how to wind down anymore. Ever since the other quad tear, I've been going at it pretty much full throttle. I just don't know how I'm going to do it this time."

"Well at least I won't be around to bug you," Stephanie kidded. "Oh, and also, you don't have to worry about any marriages crumbling because you're rehabbing, so see, this it totally better than last time. Oh, other than the fact your mother hates my guts."

"Why?"

"Because you didn't tell her I got remarried and had a child. I think she thinks that I'm here just to rub it all in your face."

"Sorry about that," he told her. "I just didn't know how to bring it up. She liked you when we were together, and then when you kind of went all psycho bitch on me, she changed her mind. She's never really changed it back, and I hardly think that you having a baby now is going to help since you lied to me and all."

"That's too bad," Chris said. "I think she hates me too, since I'm the one married to Stephanie, but if you want me to step out of the picture…"

"No!" Stephanie said. "So are you nervous for surgery?"

"Of course, I don't want them screwing anything up, but I trust them, they did a bang-up job with the other leg, how hard could it be for this one. I'm just lucky that it wasn't the same leg. I don't know what happened, it just snapped, I knew immediately."

"And like a big dummy, you kept on wrestling," Stephanie pointed out.

"I had to, the match wasn't over, I wasn't going to botch the ending for this."

"And every second you stayed out there, you sacrificed like a week because it's going to take you longer."

"You know," Hunter said, turning to Chris, "This is exactly what she said last time, that if I had just been injured and that was it, I wouldn't have to take so much time off, but because I was stupid, I kept wrestling. Then there was a lot of swear words in regards to you."

"Well you put him in the Walls of Jericho on the announcer's table while he was injured, you deserved some swear words."

"Not this time, because that," he said, pointing to Hunter's leg, "totally had nothing to do with it, absolutely nothing to do with it."

"You'll be fine," Stephanie said, patting his leg. "You'll come back as good as new."

"You could totally gimmick yourself as the bionic man now," Chris told him. "With all the wires you've got going in your legs, seriously, bionic man, I think it could work for you. It would breathe fresh blood into your persona."

"Thanks for the suggestion," Hunter said sarcastically. "I hate that this happened. But I really want to thank you guys for coming, you really didn't have to. I mean…we…we're friends, but I guess…wow, when did we become friends?"

"When hell froze over I think," Chris said, seeing something moving out of the corner of his eye. He looked towards the door where there was a little window, and saw a flash of jet black. Intrigued, he watched it as Stephanie and Hunter spoke a little more about the surgery and how it was going to go this time, if it was the same as the last time. Sawyer was just enraptured by the hospital bracelet that Hunter was wearing, fiddling around with it.

"This kid likes the weirdest things," Hunter said as he looked down at Sawyer.

"He's a baby, they like weird thing, like wrapping paper," Stephanie said, reaching out to grab Sawyer's foot. "That's a hospital bracelet, baby boy, you had to wear one of those when you were just born."

Sawyer looked up at her, but then back down at it. Chris finally recognized whatever kept appearing in the window, and then saw Victoria actually peek into the room, seeing if they were still there. His eyes widened and a little grin came over his face as he turned to Stephanie and Hunter, who were still talking.

"Uh, Stephanie, I think we should go," Chris said.

"Why?" she asked.

"I just think we should."

"But why?" she asked again.

"Stephanie, let's just go."

"You guys don't have to," Hunter interrupted. "I'd like you to stay."

"Oh, trust me, you wouldn't," Chris said, making a small gesture towards the door, where Hunter saw Victoria's hair. He looked at Chris, who was looking back at him, smirking. Hunter laughed a little, but Stephanie was just confused at what they were doing.

"Yeah, maybe you should go," Hunter said.

"Okay…" Stephanie said, looking between them. "What's going on?"

"Nothing," Chris said. Then he made his voice booming. "We're going now!"

"You don't have to shout," Stephanie said, taking Sawyer from Hunter's arms. "Feel better, okay, Hunter, and we'll come visit later, we couldn't get a flight out today, we had to wait until tomorrow, so we'll come see you after to make sure it all went well."

"Thanks you guys, I'm really glad you came," he said sincerely.

"You're our friend, it's what we do," Stephanie said as Chris was already pulling her out of the room. He looked around and didn't see Victoria, but knew she was around. Stephanie pulled from Chris's grasp angrily and turned to him. "Why did you do that? We were just talking, did that bug you?"

"It's not that," Chris said, then looked over his shoulder and saw Victoria sneaking into Hunter's room, "It's that."

Stephanie looked over her shoulder and saw Victoria slip into his room. "Victoria, but what is she doing here?"

"Well Steph, when a man likes a woman…"


	121. Happy Anniversary, January 15, 2007

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, please keep them coming, I do love them so.

I fell asleep last night, so this is going up tonight. Leave a review, please. And warning, fluff ahead. :)

* * *

Stephanie was using Sawyer's midday nap as a time for her to nap as well. She would usually do this on Mondays so that she would be refreshed for the show later that evening. Today was no exception. Looking after an eight-month-old is no easy task, especially by herself, as she had been for the last couple of days with Chris out of town on business. That still felt weird to think, that Chris was actually taking business trips like he was some executive or something.

In actuality, he had been in California performing again with the troupe he performed with usually. Stephanie would've gone with him, but with the cross-country flight followed by a cross-country flight to Louisiana for Raw tonight, she didn't think that would be great for Sawyer. It was one thing to take one long trip, but two in the span of a couple days was a little too hard for the little boy who was lying on the hotel bed next to her. They were waiting for Chris's arrival, anxiously in Stephanie's case, or she would've been, had she been awake.

Today was something special to her and Chris. Today was two years to the day that they had gotten married, and it was a big milestone for her. While she had been married to Hunter for two years, those two years were nothing compared to this marriage. Her marriage to Hunter had started to disintegrate long before they hit the two-year mark, but her current marriage was far from that. She and Chris were happy, she was happy with where her life was, and she was just happy that she got the second chance to have fun with someone that she felt like she could be with forever.

Chris swiped his keycard into the door, waiting for the light to turn green before pushing it open. He pulled his bag in further, letting it sit next to the wall before looking around. Stephanie had told him that they would be waiting her for him, but he didn't see them in the common room. He walked into the bedroom and saw them lying together on the bed. He went and knelt next to Stephanie's side and poked her on the back. She didn't respond so he poked her again and this time she stirred and rolled over onto her back.

"Chris?" she asked through bleary eyes.

"Hey, what's shaking?" he asked her, tucking some of her hair out of her face. She frowned a little bit and then rubbed her eyes, narrowing them as she blinked a couple of times. He grinned sneakily at her and her eyes widened and she closed her eyes a second before opening them again, Chris watching as they widened.

"What did you do to yourself!" she said loudly, causing Sawyer to open his eyes and look around at what was making all the noise.

"What do you think?"

"I hate it."

"Steph…"

"I absolutely hate it," Stephanie said, sitting up and leaning against the headboard. "I'm sorry, Chris, I don't know what you were thinking, but I hate it."

"You can't _hate_ it, that's too strong a word," he told her reasonably.

"Um…yes, I can hate it, you're not you, this isn't you, I don't know who you are anymore, you…you're just not the man that I married, no, I don't like this," she told him, shaking her head. "You just don't look like Chris, I don't like it, I really don't like it."

"Stephanie."

"Why didn't you talk to me about this?" she demanded to know. "This is a partnership, a marriage is between two people. When making huge decisions like this, you usually consult the person with whom you are in the marriage, that's how it goes. You didn't consult me about this, you just go out and you do it, what were you thinking!"

"I wasn't aware that I had to tell you and discuss a haircut with you," he said, running his hands through his newly shorn hair.

"Of course you do, I loved your hair, and now you keep getting it shorter and shorter, and pretty soon, you're going to be Austin."

"Now you take that back," Chris said, pointing at her, trying to make a joke, but she looked legitimately upset about this, which puzzled him. "Stephanie, this is to signify a new era in my life, I thought that I should try something new because a lot of things are changing around here."

"I fell in love with a guy with long hair, long, sexy hair that I couldn't get enough of," she told him, starting to sound angry. "Now you look like every other guy in the world, congratulations Chris, you conformed."

"Oh, come on, Stephanie." She was going overboard now, this wasn't that big a deal and she was making it out to be a huge deal.

"No, don't 'come on, Stephanie,' me, I hate it, and I have the right to hate it," she said, getting off the bed and picking up Sawyer before walking out to the other room. "Don't follow me."

"Stephanie, you're being ridiculous, it grows out!"

"Whatever," she told him, "Sawyer and I, we're going for a walk."

"Stephanie, it's our anniversary," Chris said. "You're just going to blow me off on our two-year anniversary?"

"Sawyer needs air," she told him shortly. She disappeared from his sight and he sighed at her stubbornness. Sometimes he just didn't get his wife. She would be so cool about things like plotting to get revenge on someone and then she was freaking out over a haircut. Granted, it was really short, and he hadn't told her…did that really make him a jerk?

Stephanie came back in a few minutes later with Sawyer still in her arms. He was wearing some blue jean overalls and a light blue t-shirt. Stephanie was pulling a sock on his foot as she side-stepped Chris to look for Sawyer's other sock. She found it on the bed and put it on his foot before she walked over to the door where the stroller was sitting. She set Sawyer down in the seat and strapped him in snugly. He tried to reach for her, but couldn't quite reach and he frowned. Chris decided this was stupid and she was being foolish. He walked up and grabbed her around the waist.

He kissed her neck and whispered. "I'm a father now, that's a serious thing, and I'm a businessman. I think that I should look the part. I'm doing this because I don't want someone to think that I'm not serious about what I do, what the company wants me to be projected as. I don't want to embarrass _you_."

"How would you possibly embarrass me?" she asked quietly her resolve crumbling. Chris was rubbing that spot just above her belly button that always sent shivers down her spine. She was ruing the day that she had told him how much that turned her on. He knew all her secrets, damn, she knew, as a McMahon, she should keep some things hidden so he could never get the upper-hand, but his hand felt so cool on her stomach, and yet it was warming her up.

"Because I'm not cut out for this whole scouting thing. Hiring people, firing people, orienting people to the company, thinking so-and-so is great, taking meetings with potential sponsors or hires, this isn't what I was taught to do. I was taught to hit and jump and run, and not this, and I don't want to let you down, so I want to look like I belong."

"You belonged before," she told him, turning in her arms. "You were…you, and now you're not you, and if this is for me, you're wrong, you could never embarrass me, or my family."

"Of course I could, just let me do this one thing for you. I just want to feel like I can be a part of your world."

"What are you, the Little Mermaid?" she asked as he held her tighter. "And my _world_? My world is you and Sawyer, that's it, I have no other world, well, the business, but that's hardly something that's normal, right? As for your hair, I still don't like it. You're becoming like Shane, all business suits and clean-cut looks, it's very disconcerting. So I will hate this haircut, and the way you look with this haircut."

"Okay, I respect that…I love you?" he said, wondering if she would answer back.

"Yeah, I love you too, from the scalp down anyways. But you know, you're in the position you're in because my family trusts you and your opinions. We didn't ever give Hunter this kind of power because we knew it would go to his head, but we trust you. We know you'll do a good job representing us and this company…and this is why you talk to me, okay?"

"Man, you have me on a short leash."

"Yes, I do, and that's how I like it. Now come on, Sawyer wants to go on a walk…there's a arboretum downstairs, it's supposed to be really nice, and I think Sawyer would like to see it and get some fresh air."

"How about we go later," Chris told her. "Like, I don't know, tonight, or something, after dinner."

"You still haven't told me where you're taking me," she said, looking at him suspiciously. "I don't want to go someplace where I'm overdressed because I bought a new dress for our anniversary, and I don't want to look out of place."

"Trust me, you're not going to look out of place," Chris told her. "Now, can I see my son?"

"He's not going to recognize you," Stephanie said snidely and Chris gave her a dirty look. "What, I'm just saying, with this new haircut, which I think stinks, by the way, he's not going to know you as his daddy."

"And you know this for a fact?"

"I do," she said, watching as Chris kneeled in front of Sawyer's stroller. Sawyer, who had been playing with a block that Stephanie had handed him looked up at his father and did give a small look of consternation. He instinctively reached out to the pull on his father's hair, but there was no hair there to grab. "See, what did I tell you?"

"Geez, kid, even you're against me?" Chris asked, then glanced back at Stephanie, "What did I expect though, you're such a Mama's boy that you were bound to side with her."

"You know, it's really nice when you have someone just built to be on your side," Stephanie said with a smile. "You know from now on it's going to be two-to-one, you're in for it, Jericho, you're never going to get your way because he's going to always be on my side."

"Great," Chris said. "Well, if that's the case, maybe I should state my own case and try to get on your good side. I think part one of the anniversary festivities is at hand."

"Part one?" she wondered giddily. Chris put his finger to his lips, trying to look like a completely innocent person before going over to his suitcase and pulling something out. It was a flat square shape wrapped in simple white wrapping. Stephanie took it eagerly from him and tore open the paper to see a blank CD.

"What's this?"

"I wrote a bunch of songs for you, and these are the recordings, I mean, the songs are kind of about you too…you're my muse," he told her quietly. Stephanie looked up at him in awe and he nodded and then shrugged sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. "When you've been spending time doing a lot of other things, you kind of realize that nobody is your friend except for the people that really love you, and I figured that you were on the top of that list, so whenever I wan to write, I kind of think of you, or you know, sex…with you of course."

"Yeah, because if you were having sex with someone else, this marriage would just fall short of my marriage with Hunter."

"And I really want to break that record," he said seriously. "It's just a little something, for your ears only, so don't let anyone listen to it, okay, there's a lot o personal stuff on there about you and me, and everything that's happened between us, and I don't want other people mocking me."

She pulled the CD to her chest, "Just between you and me, got it…does that include Sawyer, can he hear it?"

"No, _your_ ears only, what part of that don't you get, Steph?" he asked, wrapping his arms back around her. "It's just to show you how much I love you and how good these past two years have been…and they have been really good, Steph, really, really good."

"Have they been really, really good, Chris?" she asked, mocking him.

"Yeah, I just…look, I never…when I met you, I didn't expect to like you, and when I first met you, you weren't bad, then I got to know you, and you were bad, you were a really big bitch, and you treated other people like crap--"

"This is _so _romantic," she said, pretending to swoon as she put a hand to her forehead. "Tell me more, Chris, tell me how you wanted to kick my ass or call me a whore, it's so beautiful."

"Fine, I'm not going to tell you how much you mean to me now, you blew it," he told her, kissing her nose. "We should probably get to the arena though, I've got a meeting with your dad, which I'm not looking forward to."

"Why not?" she asked, giving him a smirk, knowing why.

"I don't even want to talk to him. I'm thinking about just skipping it and suffering the consequences."

"That's very brave of you," Stephanie told him. "Do you really think that you can get away with that? You are a contracted employee after all, you signed a contract saying that you were going to be doing your job, and part of your job is to meet with my dad."

"You only say that because _you_ don't have a meeting with him," Chris said, tugging at her hair playfully. "I don't even know what this is in regards to. This is my wedding anniversary for God's sake, don't you think that I should get a pass on today of all days. I mean, I made the man's daughter so very happy, you'd think that he would give me a pass."

"You've made me happy?" she wondered. "When did you do that? I'm trying to recall and…no, not remembering any instances of you making me happy…sorry…"

"You're a cold one," Chris told her. "Very, very cold."

"I bet you it's because he wants to get your opinion on last week, and you're going to have to tell him."

"Shit," Chris muttered. "How do you tell him that it's a pile of garbage and you would rather stick pencils in your eyes and ears than ever see that segment again…is there any nice way to put that?"

Stephanie giggled, "You have the unfortunate job of doing that. But then again, he can't fire you, you own part of the company, so you really don't have a lot at stake here, because you're practically on even footing."

"True, but your dad could you know, ban me from seeing you."

"I'll sneak out after he goes to sleep," Stephanie winked as she got her papers and Sawyer's diaper bag. "Come on, I guess we should go. You know, this isn't exactly how I expected to spend my wedding anniversary."

"You expected differently?" he wondered. "Steph, we didn't even get a honeymoon, we barely got a first wedding anniversary because you were carrying the monster, I don't think we're going to have any particularly memorable anniversaries. Besides, I like our other anniversary better, it's longer, means something more."

"Because marriage means nothing," she said, walking out the room as Chris pushed Sawyer's stroller. Chris raced down the hallway towards the elevator, Sawyer giggling the entire way as Chris careened down the hallway at break-neck speed. Stephanie rolled her eyes at the man she had married. He was just so silly sometimes.

Chris walked tentatively into Vince's office later that evening. He sighed when he saw Vince smiling up at him. He really didn't want to discuss last week with Vince. It was embarrassing and it was even more embarrassing that he was part of the McMahon family and therefore was a representative of this company. He didn't want to be associated with that horrible segment any more than he had wanted to be associated with the Hunter and Kane feud involving Katie Vick. There was just something about necrophilia that didn't sit right with him…maybe because it was disgusting.

"Chris, sit down, right on time, I like that."

"Yeah, Stephanie mentions that," Chris said, sitting down and unbuttoning his suit jacket. "I hope this won't take long, Vince, I'm going in on a call with Natalie Niedhart to make sure that she's adapting in OVW."

"I don't think this will take long."

"Great, so what is it that you needed?"

"I want you back," Vince stated firmly.

"Um…I wasn't aware that we were…dating, Vince," Chris said, cocking his eyebrow at Vince. "I'm kind of married to your daughter so this is creating a very awkward situation for me."

"You know that's not what I meant," Vince said, narrowing his eyes at him as Chris chuckled at his joke. "I think I would like to bring you back on television. Work you into WrestleMania, I think that with Hunter going down, we have this empty spot that I would love to have filled. We could even bring you in as a surprise entrant at Royal Rumble, and then you'd go against Cena at WrestleMania, I really think that could work."

"Wow, Vince, I'm flattered, really, that you've been thinking about this, but you haven't even wanted me to come back before--"

"Of course I have!" Vince protested.

"Well, yeah, in passing or when I'm talking to you casually as Stephanie's husband and not as an employee, is this because Hunter is injured and you're in a lurch."

"That, and the fact that you are one of our most popular wrestlers, and you're here as it is, so you can just suit up, get on out there."

"Vince, you signed me to the desk job, I'm happy with where you've put me right now, it's giving me a lot of time to sharpen my other skills for after I really retire from the business."

"So you're saying that you don't want to come back?"

Chris thought about it for a moment, taking a cleansing breath. It wasn't that he didn't want to come back because sometimes, when he heard someone's music going off, or he could hear the cheer of the crowds, his legs ached to walk out there and bask in the glow of the crowd, to let the adrenaline flow through him like water and then experience the satisfaction of punching a guy in the face or putting him in the Walls of Jericho. But he was in a place in his life where he was happy with what he was and what he was doing. Because he wasn't a part of the show, he didn't have to go to all the other shows, he just had to come to Raw and the Pay-Per-Views, he could spend as much time with his son as he wanted, and that's really what he wanted to do right now.

"That's not what I'm saying," Chris told him. "What I'm saying is to give me time. I need to think about this, and I need to discuss it with Stephanie, because this is a big thing…I mean, she won't care, obviously, but still, she should be informed…she, uh, likes to be informed about things."

"Yes, I'm aware, but think about it, you know that you can come back at any time, you just have to say the word and we'll put you on television," Vince explained, looking at him critically.

"What are you looking at, Vince?"

"Your hair is just really short, that's all," Vince said. "But besides that, I also wanted to ask your opinion on--"

"Oh man, I forgot to do something!" Chris interrupted, knowing what Vince was going to ask. "I completely forgot that I was going to call the…place where I'm taking Stephanie for our anniversary tonight to confirm my requests. I've got to go do that!"

"Right now?"

"Yeah, if I don't do it now then they might not do it later, and I want our anniversary to be good, we really couldn't do anything last year, what with us working, and then Stephanie being pregnant with Sawyer, so I wanted this year to be a little bit nicer," Chris said in one breath. He had to get out of here now.

"You don't have a minute to spare?"

"No, no minutes, I should've been out of here already," he said, standing up quickly, "I've really got to make that call, time is money, right, Vinnie, you think that, right?"

Chris walked to the door and opened it, only to find Stephanie walking past with Sawyer at that very moment. She smiled as she turned and saw her husband. Her father stood up and grinned as he saw his grandson. Chris made a scared, "get out of here" look to Stephanie, but she was confused and looked at him like he had grown two heads. Vince was starting to walk towards them.

"Stephanie, oh good, I'm glad to see you, I wanted to ask you."

"Oh!" Stephanie said, eyes widening as she realized what her father wanted and what Chris's look meant. "Sawyer needs a diaper change! Oh yeah, wow, that is really gross, Sawyer, you little sicko!" she told the little boy, who just looked up at her. Stephanie looked at Chris, widening her eyes to make him in on the idea.

"Oh, oh, yeah, gross, kid, seriously, um…Steph, you don't know where I put the diaper bag, let's go," Chris said, taking her by the free arm and rushing her out of there. Stephanie giggled as they got around the corner. Chris breathed a sigh of relief. "Wow, that was close."

"Did my dad ask you? Did you tell him?" Stephanie inquired as they went to her office.

"Yeah, but I told him I needed to do something. That wasn't what the meeting was about, thank God, I don't think I could keep a straight face and lie to him if I had to."

"What did he want then?"

"He wants me to come back to television."

"And what did you say?" she asked excitedly. "Chris, are you coming back? Do I get to book you in matches, oh my God, I can book you into matches, and I don't have Bischoff or anyone standing in my way. Everyone knows about us, everyone likes you, this is perfect!"

"Whoa, hold your horses there, McMahon, I didn't say I was coming back. I told him I'd think about it, and I will think about it. I know what you want me to do, but I have to decide, okay?"

"But…"

"I know what you said earlier, that we're a partnership, and trust me, I will let you know what I'm going to decide and you will have you input in it, but the initial decision, let me handle this one, okay, Stephanie."

"I don't see why it has to be yours, and then I get input, that just means you're going to decide, I'll put in my two cents, and then you go with what you wanted anyways. Because I know that if I had said, 'hey, your haircut makes you look like a douche bag,' you still would've gotten it."

"You think I look like a douche bag?" he asked, a little hurt as he self-consciously ran his hands through his hair.

"No, it kind of reminds me of the haircut of a guy that I went out with after my divorce from Hunter and before I started dating you. One date, total douche bag, never talked to him again. Just reminds of that."

"Wow, you're so nice, and no, I will take your opinion into consideration, it's the least I can do," he told her, kissing her cheek. "I've got actual work to do so I'm going to head to my office, you want me to take the monster?"

"Yes, please," she said, handing him over. "He's been changed, so you don't have to do that. I'll see you later."

"Yeah," he said, kissing her again. "As for tonight, I think a pretty outfit is just what is needed."

"Good," she smiled as he walked out of the office with their son in tow. She went to her desk and sat down to plot out the show for tonight. She was about fifteen minutes into doing that when her door flung open. She looked up and didn't expect to see Trish in front of her. The same Trish that had barely left her house in the past few weeks because she had been miserable, Stephanie blinked and asked, "Trish, what are you doing here, when did you get here?"

"I got here a little while ago, I came straight from the airport, I'm here to see Carlito, I was hoping that you could tell me which locker room is assigned to him," Trish explained.

"You decided…to come see him?" Stephanie asked hesitantly. "Trish, did you really think this through?"

"What's there to think through, Steph, I mean, I told Christian how I really felt about him, and now I need to tell Carlito about it. I have taken Christian out of the picture, I told him that I hated him, it can work out now, we can work out now," she said, and she was trying so hard, and that made it kind of sad to Stephanie.

"I just don't want you to get your hopes up in case something bad does happen," Stephanie said.

"I'm not, believe me," she responded. "Don't you want this for me, Steph?"

"I want you to be happy, trust that," Stephanie told her. "I just don't want you to think that you're going to go get something and then when you don't get it, you lock yourself in your house again. You have a tendency to…"

"To what?" Trish asked suspiciously.

"Cut yourself off if you don't get your way," Stephanie told her, but she didn't feel good saying it. "I just don't want you to be unhappy, you're one of my best friends, and you know…maybe Carlito had a point."

"Not you too."

"I'm not saying you're still in love with Christian, I'm just saying that maybe there's still some underlying tension there. It might not be much, but I don't think that the two of you really got closure. If I remember, you told Christian you wanted to go on a break, and then during this break, you started seeing Carlito. Did you ever really break up with Christian?"

"He knew what was going on, I told him what was going on, he knew," Trish tried to defend herself. "I just…I want Carlito, I want him to know what he means to me."

"I'm sure he does, I just…he's been hanging around Torrie a lot."

"That's because she's been trying to get her claws into him, that whole plan with Christian, she's just doing it by herself now, she's not genuine, I'm genuine, Carlito and I are genuine, he gave me an engagement ring, we planned a wedding, how can he just let that go? I just don't see how he could let that go."

"Okay, fine, I'm not going to talk you out of this, am I?" Trish shook her head, so Stephanie rooted through her papers looking for the list of locker rooms. She found it, and was reluctant to tell Trish where Carlito was. "He's in locker room, 42J, which you make a right and then it's the fifth door on your left."

"Thanks, Steph, you don't know what this means, I'll name my first-born after you," Trish told her jokingly. Stephanie gave her a crooked and pitying smile as Trish bounced out of the room. Stephanie didn't want to feel pity for her friend, but she did. She just didn't think this was going to turn out the way that Trish hoped. But then, you never could tell what was going to happen, you just let things happen as they come and hope for the best.

Trish went to Carlito's locker room, almost skipping the entire way. She knocked on the door and was shocked and disgusted when Torrie answered. The taller blonde gave Trish a blithe look, and sucked at her teeth a little before giving that entirely too fake smile of hers, the one where she tried to look like she didn't know exactly what she was doing, but you knew she did.

"Trish, fancy seeing you here."

"Get out of my way, Torrie, I want to talk to Carlito."

"Haven't you done enough?" Torrie asked sarcastically. "I think that you've done enough to poor Carlito, so you can just take yourself and get out of here."

"No, _you_ get out of here," Trish said, ready to punch Torrie in the mouth. "Get the hell out of here before I make you get out of here."

"How are you even here anyways? Aren't you retired or something, you should be sitting at home, you aren't welcome here anymore."

"Oh give it up, Torrie," Trish snorted as she took on a defensive stance. "I can be wherever I want to be. You think they're really going to deny me entrance. You think that they're going to see me and not realize who I am."

"Whatever," Torrie replied, rolling her eyes and folding her arms in front of her chest, pushing her breasts up even more. "Just leave."

"No, Carlito!" Trish yelled over Torrie's shoulder. "Lito, we need to talk!"

"Get out!" Torrie said. "He's just starting to get over what you did to him!"

"What _I_ did to him? What the hell do you even know about it?"

"I know that you were still pining over your ex-boyfriend while dating Carlito. You broke his heart because you couldn't commit to him, he deserves better than the likes of you. He deserves someone who can love him whole-heartedly."

"Well, that's not you because to love someone whole-heartedly, you have to have a heart, now get the hell out of my way before I make you get out of my way," Trish threatened, her brown eyes dancing with barely contained fury."

"No," Torrie said simply, holding her ground. That set Trish off. She shoved Torrie out of the way, making Torrie scream as she lost her balance, falling on her ass to the floor. Trish picked her up and threw her out the door, slamming it in the blonde's face. Trish smiled to herself and turned around to an empty locker room.

"Oh shit," Trish cursed to herself. She sat down on the couch and leaned her chin on her hand. She waited for a few minutes before Carlito walked into the room from the bathroom. He looked shocked to see her sitting there. She just beamed at him and whispered, "Lito…"

"Trish, what are you doing here?" he asked. "Where'd Torrie go?"

"I threw her out," Trish told him, standing up. "I needed to see you, Lito, I miss you…"

"Trish, you shouldn't be here," he told her. He was hurting just looking at her. This woman should've been his wife. This woman should've been his everything and the person that he got to sleep next to every night. He should've gotten to wrap his arm around her waist and show her off, not as a trophy wife, but as the hottest thing ever.

"Where should I be?" she wondered sadly. "Should I be on my honeymoon?"

"Trish," he sighed. "I said what I had to say."

"Yeah, you did, and now I need the chance to say what I need to say. Lito, you're wrong, about everything, you're wrong about me and Christian being still in love, you're wrong about us not being right for each other, you're just wrong. We belong together, I love you, Lito, I love _you_."

"Trish, don't make this any harder, I saw what I saw."

"Christian came to see me, after you dumped me," she explained. "He came because he cared about me, as a friend, and I told him I hated him, and I do. I hate him for ruining this for us. I cut off all ties with him and told him that I could never speak to him again, and I won't, Lito, I won't…for us…"

"He came to see you…"

"Absolutely nothing happened," Trish emphasized. "Nothing happened at all. He just needed to…I don't know, I just told him I hated him, I won't ever, _ever_ see him again, I promise!"

"Trish, that's well and good, and everything, but do you really hate him?"

"Well, no…but that's beside the point, I told him I didn't want to see him."

"That's pretty harsh," he said. "And how would you even do that, he's friends with Chris and Stephanie, and so are you?"

"I can avoid him," she explained. "Lito, I don't love him…"

"Are you positive about that?"

She paused for a moment too long. She hesitated for a second longer than she should've. She didn't realize it, it didn't sound like a pause to her ears, but he could hear it a mile away. She had to think about it for a moment. She had to think about it and maybe she didn't know it, maybe she didn't even realize that she had to think about it, but it was there, and he saw it and he couldn't ignore it, no matter how hard he had tried. He couldn't live with her taking that extra second. He just couldn't do that.

"I'm positive," she told him, just a second too long.

"Yeah, Trish, you had to think about it," he told her. "You thought about it, and that means there's still some part of you that wants him. I don't want to stand in the way of that."

"But there's nothing between us, we let that go."

"That may be, but maybe there should be something between you, I don't know, Trish, I just don't feel right marrying you when you might have feelings for another man."

She teared up. "What's it going to take, Lito? What can I do to make this better? What can I do to make us better? I'm willing to do anything, I've already cut off all contact with Christian. I don't know what more I can do!"

Carlito could hear the desperation in her voice and he rushed over to her, kneeling down in front of her as she covered her face with her hands. He didn't think she was crying, but she was probably ashamed for throwing herself at him like this. He hugged her and her arms were immediately around his neck, holding onto him tightly. He couldn't help it, his arms wrapped around her tightly. She wasn't crying, just clinging to him.

"What can I do, Lito, what can I do?" she whispered into his shoulder.

"Trish, please…I just…" He didn't want to break her heart again. "I think you should probably go."

"What? No," she said, pulling away from him. "I came all this way just to see you, just to be with you."

"I know, but I don't think it was a good idea, Trish, I really think that you love Christian. I'm not okay with being second best to you."

"I'm not in love with him!" she shouted, getting angrier by the second. She didn't know what she could do to prove her love. She wasn't going to pull a Van Gogh and cut her ear off or anything. "I'm in love with you, I said yes to marrying you!"

"I know you did, but I just…you don't have to see it, Trish, and I don't think that you do see it. I see you with him, and it's so obvious to me! You love him!"

"No!"

"Yes, you may not remember it, maybe you're afraid of loving him, but anyone who has eyes can see it. I just think everyone didn't want to hurt your feelings, but we do see it. When you're around him, you're different, and I just ignored it at first, but when you're going to marry someone and then you see them with this other guy and it's like their world lights up, you can't just let that lie."

Trish's lip quivered as she thought about what Carlito had had to endure. But he was so wrong. None of that existed. She loved Carlito and she had wanted to marry him. She had never even come close to taking that plunge with Christian. With Christian, marriage always seemed this far-off thing, something that they thought about, but always put off for a later discussion. Sure, she had envisioned the wedding, but things changed, plans changed, people changed…

"I don't think you're right," she whispered to him. "I've got to go."

He didn't stop her, just watched as she fled through the door, leaving only the sweet smell of her perfume. He sat down where she had just been sitting and he ran his hand down his face. He had to forget about her, that was the only way. If he couldn't forget about her now, then he would face unbearable pain later. He just had to focus on something, anyone, anything that could get his mind off of Trish.

So out of sync was Carlito, that he had dared to defy Vince McMahon later that evening. Stephanie was sitting there when she saw Carlito mechanically walk by, and she knew, just by looking at him, that Trish had not succeeded. She felt bad for the two of them. Nobody deserved to cancel their wedding a week before it was to happen, and nobody deserved to think the person they loved, loved someone else. She wondered what he was doing walking past her, but didn't have long to find out as he went down the ramp to where Torrie was being forced into another dumb skit by her father.

Carlito was numb, that's the only reason to explain it. He was numb, and he didn't care that he was going out to defy and insult his boss, the person who signed his paycheck, the man who had the power to fire him on a whim. But what did he care anyways? He had just let the woman that he loved walk, or flee, out of his life once again, and it hadn't been any easier. So he was just numb…and that rendered him stupid as well. He had nothing to lose because with Trish, it seemed like he had everything, and without her, it was like he had nothing. So what did this even matter?

Even when he was being pummeled by The Great Khali, he barely even felt it. Sure, he felt the physical pain and reacted as anyone would, but otherwise, it was like nothing. He couldn't be hurt anymore than he was right now, he couldn't be touched. It was what it was, and he was numb to the pain, numb to Torrie coming to check on him. Vince might be laughing at him, but the laughing of the powers that be that caused the woman he loved to love someone else, that was a million times worse.

On the other side of the spectrum, Chris and Stephanie were back at their hotel room (they had cut out early, Chris whisking her away while Vince was having his way with Carlito) and getting dressed for dinner. Stephanie put on her new dress, a teal number that showed off her curves. She didn't know if she wanted to be so risqué with her choice of clothing given that she hadn't gotten all of the baby weight off, but it was her anniversary, so she didn't care. Chris was dressed sharply as well, in a black, long-sleeved button down with black dress pants. Sawyer, on the other hand, was in his pajamas since he was asleep and in his stroller for the moment.

"Are you ready?" Chris asked.

"Yeah," she answered, pinning her hair back as he walked out to her.

"You look beautiful," he said, kissing her gently. "Come on, I don't want to be late."

"Tell me where we're going," she insisted as he led her out of the room.

"Not telling," he told her, as they walked to the elevator. "Have a little faith in me, will you, Steph. I promise that you'll love it. I swear."

"I trust you…I think."

"Good, and did you remember my present?" he wondered.

"Maybe," she answered slyly as they got to the lobby. She headed off to where their rental car was parked, but Chris steered her away from that area, back into the hotel. "Where are we going, the car's parked out there."

"Yeah, we're not going to the car," Chris said as he tugged at her hand. He led her to the arboretum, which was closed off.

"Chris, what are you doing, it says it's closed, and I don't want to go to here at night, I wanted to go during the day. This is just going to make us late for our reservation. And it's already pretty late as it is…"

"I know, which is why I made special arrangements," Chris said as they walked into the arboretum further and that's when Stephanie saw some twinkle lights set up and a beautifully set table in the middle of the indoor garden. Stephanie looked around, even seeing a crib off to the side where Sawyer could sleep while they were eating. Chris had thought of everything.

"Oh Chris," Stephanie breathed.

"It's really easy to get things done for you when you're rich," Chris laughed. "It's amazing the doors that are open for you."

"Okay, well you're forgiven for the hair."

"Yes!" Chris said, pumping his fist. "Score one for Jericho."

"This is just…it's gorgeous…"

Chris went over and picked up Sawyer and put him gently into the crib. He went back over to Stephanie when he was through and grabbed her hand, giving it a little squeeze as he led her over to the table. He pulled her chair out for her and she sat down gracefully before he pushed her chair in. He leaned down to kiss her and she grabbed his face in her hands and kissed him back. When he pulled away, his eyes were dancing with something, she couldn't quite place it.

"Do you want your present now?" Chris asked, and it was like he could barely contain his excitement.

"If you want, can I give you mine first?" she asked. He nodded eagerly. She went over to the bag she had brought with her, and she grabbed a couple of gifts out of it. She thrust them at him and he took the larger box-shaped one, opening it up and his eyes lit up as he laughed and held up the Star Wars storm trooper figure. "There's eight of them, since your mom threw them away. Those are expensive too, so you know."

"You must think I'm the world's biggest geek now, because I _love _this," he told her, reaching across the table to grab her hand. "Thank you, and dude, we are so having a war when we get home."

"You're going to take them out of the thing!" she asked, alarmed. "The guy who I bought it from said their collectors now and they should just be on display."

"Oh fine," Chris sighed, looking longingly at the toy and wanting to rip it from the confines of its box. He grabbed the flat present and opened it. It was one of the originally released albums of Iron Maiden's first record, signed by the members. He had signed stuff from them already, but now their first album, but a lot of their more recent ones, he did have signed. "Oh my God, Steph…"

"I just wanted to add to your collection," she told him. "So there's the first, you don't have that one right, I studied all of the ones on your wall and I didn't see this one, right?"

"No I don't, thanks, oh wow, this is going to look great on my wall, wow, thank you so much, see, this is why I love you, you know all my little quirks and hobbies, and one is collecting all of Iron Maiden's albums with their original release."

"Everyone has a hobby," she laughed. "I found that by chance actually, I had been saving it for our anniversary and I almost gave it to you at Christmas because I didn't have a gift for you, but it's more an anniversary gift I think because it's more personal."

"Yeah, I know what you mean, which brings me to my gift," Chris said, "Before you open it though, I didn't know what to get you, because you have everything, so I was stumped and decided to talk to your mom."

"You went to my mom?" she giggled.

"Yeah, I did, and I asked her if there was anything she could remember you wanting when you were little that you didn't get. Well, considering you're filthy rich, there wasn't a whole lot that you didn't have," Chris said. "So she said she'd think about it. Well, about two weeks ago, she called me and she remembered something."

"Really, cause I was pretty spoiled, I got most everything I wanted."

"Yeah, well, she said that your grandmother had a jewelry box that played music, but it had broken before you were born. But every time you would go to your grandma's house, you would open it and see if the music would play, and it never did, and your mom said you would get so frustrated with it, which is just so you to get angry over something you can't even control. But your grandmother never got it fixed, and every time, you'd get angry that you couldn't hear the music, so…open your gift…"

He took something off the ground next to him and set it down in front of her. It was her grandmother's jewelry box. Tears sprung to her eyes as she looked up at Chris. She remembered this jewelry box. She would stare at it sometimes, angrily, like if she got mad at it, she could hear the music that it was supposed to play. Even after she wound it up, nothing, and she would complain to her grandma, who only laughed and lifted her to her lap and explained that it was broken. Chris urged her with his eyes, and she gently went to lift the lid of the box. When she did, a song started to play, its simple chimes breaking through the silence.

"It only had a couple springs missing," he explained.

"How did you get this?" she asked, her voice getting choked up.

"You remember that business trip I had a couple weeks ago? When I said I was going down to OVW to scout the talent?" she nodded. "Well, I didn't. I actually flew back to Connecticut and stayed with your parents, I know, crazy, and I had to search in their creepy attic for it. It took me four hours to find it. I didn't know what you'd want, and I wanted to get you something unique."

"It's just like how I imagined it," Stephanie said laughing. "Thank you so much."

"It was nothing," he shrugged.

"No," she shook her head. "This is really sweet, Chris, this is really…it reminds me of my grandma, and that's…that's really something…thank you, it's…wow, this is like, so thoughtful and well-executed, I feel like I don't even do anything for you."

"Um…what?" he said, pointing towards the crib where Sawyer lay quietly. "That's a pretty big something that you did for me. In the last year, you've made me a father, that's a huge something."

"Still…thank you, and I love you."

"Yeah, I love you too…so," he said, raising his glass, which was filled with wine. "To us…"

"To fifty more years," she said, clinking her glass with his.

"Whoa, fifty years, I never said I'd commit to fifty years…"

"Well Jericho, now you're stuck with me."


	122. Majorly Distracted, January 22, 2007

"Do you really think that you should be here?"

"Why not?"

Christian looked at him. "Well, just don't tell them that I was with you, because I just ran into you, I didn't want to come here, and bring you, I just happened to run into you."

Kurt looked at him and shrugged, "I know that you did. I just had to have a meeting with Vince over a contract issue that we were having, it's not a big deal."

"She's in there though, they both are," Christian said, looking at the building.

"I know, but I really wanted to get this squared away and Vince told me this was the only time that he had. I think he's doing this on purpose, but what can I do? I had a stipulation in my contract that I had to appear in every WrestleMania, and for some reason, when my contract expired, and I left, that stipulation stayed, and I'm not going to wrestle here again."

"I don't think anyone would accept you back," Christian espoused. "Honestly, I don't think many people like you around here, anyways, you're definitely not high on anyone's list."

"Like I care," Kurt said, toughening up. "I don't care what anyone thinks of me anymore, I'm just going to go out there and be the best. Having friends is overrated anyways. You should look at everyone like they're the enemy and you have to overcome all the enemies."

"That's no way to live though," Christian said. "I mean…that's like saying you're okay without having someone that you love, that you're okay being completely alone, and I'm not okay being completely alone."

"But you aren't with anyone, and correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Trish going to marry Carlito…or was according to the gossip mill."

"Was," Christian responded. "And yeah, she told me she hated me, but I don't care…I'm here to talk to Carlito anyways. We didn't exactly have the best of meetings a couple of weeks ago, and I don't know where he lives, and since I can come here and know that he's here, I decided to do that."

"Why do you want to talk to him? He's the one that stole your girlfriend."

"He didn't _steal_ her," Christian told him. "It was a lot more complicated than that and you know it. I need to talk to him about Trish. I just…I need to clear things up."

"But why do that?"

"Because I love Trish, and she's unhappy, and I'm unhappy that she's unhappy, and if she can be happy, then I'm going to help her."

"You'd be willing to do that."

"I know, it doesn't sound like me, does it?" Christian said, laughing mirthlessly. "But I've had time to think about it, and I've had time to think about her, and maybe she's right, maybe we just aren't meant to be. And if we aren't, better we found that out now than before everything really went to hell or we got married, or had kids or something."

"True," Kurt said. "Well, good luck."

"To you too," Christian said. He was referring to Kurt having to go into that building knowing that the woman he called a best friend for years would be in there. It wouldn't be easy for Kurt, and Christian knew this firsthand. Kurt could put on this act like he was tough and didn't care what people thought, but every once in a while, he'd let his guard down, and Christian would see that he was lonely, or Kurt would slip up and ask how Stephanie and Chris were doing, if Sawyer was big now. Christian had seen firsthand how Kurt's eyes lit up when he had told him that Sawyer was crawling around now. This wasn't going to be easy for him in the slightest.

It wasn't going to be easy for Christian either. He had had time to think about the past, the future, and everything that came between those two extremes. He hated where his mind had ended up, absolutely hated it. He didn't want to give up on the dream of him and Trish, not when he had held onto it for so long, but that's what he was going to do today. He was going to lay it all out there for Carlito and let everything lie. The last time they had seen each other, Christian had been seething over Carlito breaking Trish's heart, but now, he was resigned and knew that he had to do this. And if Trish hated him for the rest of her life, he'd have to deal with that too, but he wouldn't have this, any of this thing with the three of them, on his conscience for the rest of his life.

"Surprise entrant, that's all I'm saying," Stephanie said as she bounced Sawyer on her knee, to his jubilation. "Come on, Chris, there are still three spots open, I could pencil you in, tell my dad, who would be ecstatic, and then it's done, that's it, that's all."

"Except I would be in the Royal Rumble, unprepared for it."

"No, you wouldn't be, you work out, I've seen you, I live with you, I know you're routine, come on, please," Stephanie pouted, then stood Sawyer up on her knee and put her chin on his shoulder. "Please Daddy, show me why Mommy thinks you're the best wrestler in the world."

"You really think he's thinking that?" Chris said, furrowing his eyebrows. "I think the only thing on his mind right now is whether or not he wants to play with his blocks or chew on the edge of his picture book."

"Daddy's insulting you," Stephanie said to her son. "Are you really going to stand for that, Sawyer Jericho…wait, what's that?" she asked, putting her ear next to his mouth. "Oh my God…Chris, Sawyer just entered himself into the Royal Rumble."

"Really?" Chris asked. "Is he going to represent the family then?"

"What, Sawyer?" Stephanie said. "Oh, no, see, he was hoping you would be in it so he could kick your butt and then throw you over the top rope. He's vicious…wait, you want to go on and kick Cena's ass for the title, oh, and hold it for how long?" she asked, widening her eyes at his silent answer, as Sawyer looked at her with concentration. "Oh, for at least five months so you can beat your daddy, wow…cold, Sawyer…I like it."

"You're a bitch," Chris said. "Those four months I held it were the best four months ever."

"Nice to know your best months ever don't include your wife and son," Stephanie said. "Sawyer, we just don't matter to Daddy as much as the title, isn't that the saddest thing?" Sawyer looked up at her and then reached for the spaghetti she had been eating, grabbing a few strands in his fingers and shoving them into his mouth. "You have no manners," she told him as she helped him chew on the spaghetti while not getting it all over his sweatshirt.

"I'm not going to come back this weekend, Steph, I need time to prepare if I come back, besides, I'm swamped, what with all the releases over the last week, and having to fire one of the trainers, Bill, down there, and then hiring a new guy."

"But Dr. Tom has worked with us before," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, I know, but I had to relay just what kind of guys your dad wants, since he's picky."

"Yeah, speaking of my dad, he said he was going to be here tonight, but I have yet to see him, or even hear from him, and that's unusual. I wonder if he's mad at me because I didn't return his calls this weekend. I just didn't really feel like discussing how much better he is than everyone else. He's probably mad at me."

"When isn't he mad at you?" Chris joked, then off her angry look. "I mean, never, who could ever be mad at _you_?"

"Better," she told him. "But if he doesn't want to talk to me tonight, I can live with that, I can definitely live with that. I'm going to have my hands full anyways with the Rumble coming up this week. Whenever there's a Rumble, everyone feels like they need to beat up everyone else, and I'm stuck trying to direct traffic."

"And what a beautiful traffic director you are," Chris told her. Sawyer started to whine and look at the ground so Stephanie set him on the ground next to her. He sat down on his diaper-covered behind and looked up at his mommy. He held his hands out and Stephanie held her left hand out and let him pull himself up. She let go of him and let him stand for a few seconds on his own, which he had just started doing before he started to teeter a little bit and she gave him her hand back.

"I think he needs some fresh air," Stephanie said. "I'm going to take him outside for a while."

"It's cold out there, it's nighttime, he'd probably be better off just going back to your office and playing and then getting to sleep…you know, we're very fortunate that we have a kid who can sleep like a log."

"Yes, we are at that, but I think that he's unhappy because he's been inside for so long. We'll just be out there for a little while, and then we'll come back inside, is that okay with you?"

"Yeah, it's fine, whatever, I'm going to go get some work done, be the businessman," he said, stuffing the rest of his roll into his mouth. She rolled her eyes and went to run her hand through his hair out of habit, but there was none and she scowled. "Oh, get over it, Steph, it'll grow back."

"Whatever," she said, shaking her head a little as she stared at him. "Sometimes, I wake up and then I gasp wondering who this guy sleeping next to me is."

"Sure you do, sure you do," he told her, standing up and kissing the top of her head. "I didn't care when you wanted to go blonde."

"Well, I'm cute as a blonde, you with no hair…not so cute," she said, picking up Sawyer as Chris cleared their table. "We'll see you in a little while."

"Okay," he said, walking out one door as Stephanie walked out the other. She knew that she should probably actually get to work since the show would be starting soon, but she had her priorities, and the show couldn't come before her son, and he looked like he wanted to go outside, even though there wasn't a whole lot to do out there.

They headed out the door and Stephanie put Sawyer down, holding both his hands as she moved him forward, Sawyer taking a couple very clumsy steps, just kind of putting his foot in front of him, but not actually trying to move in any way. They went over to the sidewalk next to the building and Stephanie sat down on the edge, standing Sawyer in front of her as she watched him look around curiously. She pulled his coat tighter around him, making him look like a little puffy marshmallow in his blue jacket.

He breathed out and his breath could be seen in the cold air. He tried to grab at it as Stephanie watched and laughed, "Baby, that's your breath, you can't grab that, you silly boy."

"Stephanie?"

Stephanie looked up to see Jeff hovering over her. "Jeff, hi."

"Hey, wow, I didn't expect to see anyone out here," he drawled. "I usually come out here to mentally prepare for my matches, clear my head."

"Oh, are we bothering you?" Stephanie asked. "We'll get out of your hair…"

"No, stay, it's cool," he said, sitting down next to her. "Hey there, little one," said Jeff to Sawyer. He reached his hand out to shake Sawyer's. "You really look like your dad, you know that, right?"

"He knows, I also think he thinks he's a badass like Chris does," Stephanie joked. Sawyer draped his arms over Stephanie's leg as he studied Jeff for a moment, before reaching out and trying to grab his hair. "He likes hair," Stephanie explained to him. "And since Chris now has barely any, he has to pull everyone else's…plus, your hair is a different color."

"True…hey, while you're out here," Jeff said, running a hand through the aforementioned hair. "Have you seen or talked to Trish lately?"

"Yeah, I saw her over the weekend, she baby-sat for me and Chris when we wanted to go to the movies," Stephanie said. "Why?"

"I was just wondering how she was," he said sheepishly. "I would've called her, but I just didn't have the time, and I was hoping that she was doing okay after everything that happened. It's hard not to hear things around here."

"People can be such gossips," she giggled, "She's doing okay right now, she's still upset, and she's not over it, but she's definitely good, I'll send your hello to her if you want."

"Thanks…I might just end up calling her. It's too bad that we lost touch, I know our past is…spotty at best, two failed tries at a relationship, but I still consider her a friend, and it really sucks when you drift apart from a friend."

"Yeah, it's just strange when you don't talk to someone, it's like, you want to, but you just don't know how to, so you just kind of stay in a state of limbo."

"Deep," Jeff said, then standing up and stretching. "I better go though, I've got a match…don't you work tonight?"

"Yeah, but Sawyer wanted to come outside," she said. "And he has to come first."

"Totally."

If Stephanie had been inside, and especially if she had been with Chris, she would've seen Kurt leaving Vince's office and she would've stopped in her tracks like Chris had. He didn't even know what Kurt was doing here, and with Vince no less. Unfortunately for Chris, the only way to get to his office was to get by Kurt, because tonight he was unlucky enough to have the office right next to Vince. He narrowed his eyes at the sight of the other man, wondering briefly if he was okay after that concussion he had read about. But the thought soon dissipated as he thought about the way Stephanie had been right after her blowout with Kurt.

To say she had been distraught would be an understatement. There was that cliché saying, that you looked like you lost your best friend, and Stephanie had been the embodiment of that statement. She had truly lost her best friend, the person that had been there with her through the lows, when Chris hadn't been there to gently pick up and put the pieces back together, Kurt _had_ been there, and he had been the shoulder Stephanie could cry on. Chris hated to think what would've happened to his wife had she not had that grounding factor in her life. He shuddered to think it really. And he had lost his best friend too, and it was just a shame that it all had to come to this. Stephanie had healed though, resilient like usual. It probably helped that she had Sawyer, who could brighten up any room with that contagious smile of his. Sometimes though, when she wasn't thinking, and she thought of something funny, or Sawyer did something amazing, she would say she was going to call up Kurt, and then remember a moment later that there was no call to Kurt, there wouldn't be again either.

Chris leaned against the wall and waited for Kurt to spot him, which didn't take long. Kurt walked over and nodded his head at him. "I had a meeting with Vince," he said shortly.

"Why?"

"There was a thing I needed to take care of regarding an outstanding contract," Kurt said in a professional tone that was foreign to Chris's ears.

"Did you get it taken care of?"

"Yeah, I did."

"So you're leaving then?"

"Yes, I am," Kurt said in a clipped tone. Their conversation was hardly a conversation and they might as well have been grunting at each other for all the progress being made.

"I don't want Stephanie seeing you here," Chris said, his voice almost threatening.

"I wouldn't want to see her," Kurt said, and Chris grit his teeth at the tone that Kurt had taken. It felt weird to hear him be so blasé concerning Stephanie. "So if that's it, I'll go before I have to see her, that way we both win."

"Fine," Chris nodded curtly, brushing past Kurt on his way to the office. There was so much more than he wanted to say to Kurt, that he felt he needed to say, but the bridge had been burned between them and he just really didn't think that he could recapture the friendship they had once shared. Hadn't this man been the best man at his wedding, priding himself for helping them get together in the first place? Hadn't he been the first person to know that he and Stephanie were having a baby? How had someone he had entrusted with everything he knew turn out to be such a jerk? Chris had no answers to these questions.

Kurt was just out the door when, like a movie, Stephanie walked inside, Sawyer on her hip, leaning his head against her shoulder, still a big, puffy, blue marshmallow, his hair tickling her neck as he gently sucked his thumb. His legs were dangling back and forth a tiny bit and Stephanie kissed his forehead before whispering something at him, causing him to smile around his finger at the sound of his mommy's voice. Kurt stood frozen a moment, not having seen Stephanie in months. For a moment, he wanted to rush up to her and give her the biggest hug his body could muster, and then ask everything about Sawyer, if he was standing, could he say anything yet, even if it was just gibberish, what was his favorite food, anything, everything. Then he remembered who he was.

Stephanie looked up from Sawyer's head, and it was like she was in a dream. She didn't expect to see Kurt…well, ever, and then there he was, in front of her while she was at work? That didn't seem right, and it didn't compute for her for a good minute or so. But when it did register, she stood in her spot like she had just stepped in wet cement. She couldn't move, and suddenly all the hurt she had felt came rushing to her like that elevator of blood in _The Shining_. It might as well have been an elevator of blood considering who was in front of her. But she steeled herself, like only she could, and she move forward, towards him, and yet, ignoring his presence.

"Come on, baby boy, I think it's bedtime for you. You can sleep in Daddy's office while I work," Stephanie told her son softly.

"Hello," Kurt said, cutting through the icy silence she was directing towards him.

"Hello," she said back, forcing her voice not to break.

"I had to meet with your father over a discrepancy in a contract I had," Kurt explained, like he needed to have a reason to be there. Stephanie knew that he wasn't there for her, but a small part of her was sad that his explanation was simply business-related and not for her, but she shouldn't have expected it to be about her at all.

"Did you get that cleared up?" she asked, and found herself wanting to prolong this, just because Kurt was actually here and not a figment of her imagination, this entity that she had thought was once her truest friend, he existed, he really existed and hadn't been made up.

"Yeah, I did," Kurt said. "I don't know why your father needed me to come all the way here and why we couldn't clear this up in Connecticut, but either way, I would've had to fly, so I guess it doesn't matter."

"Uh huh," she nodded, at a loss for words. I think he just wanted to do it here because he wanted to show off, that's my father."

"It is, yeah," Kurt said, then looked at Sawyer. "He's getting so big, the last time I saw him, he was so small."

"He eats a lot," Stephanie said, still feeling dumb.

"He looks like Chris."

"Yeah, everyday, he looks like him, the eyes, the hair, it's like I cloned Chris, except for the chin dimple and the nose, I don't think he looks anything like me." It felt slightly normal now, this neutral discussion, like nothing had happened, like she hadn't called him out, like he hadn't yelled and insulted her. It was comfortable in its ignorance.

"He's crawling I heard."

She wondered where he had heard that from, but she nodded nonetheless. "Yeah, he's crawling, he can stand on his own too, for a few seconds and then he drops down to his butt, but it's something. He doesn't like to stand by himself that often though, I think that he's so used to being carried everywhere he's gotten spoiled and doesn't want to do things on his own."

"Well, if I could be carried everywhere, that'd be pretty tempting to do too," he said, making a light joke to which she smiled shyly at. "Pretty soon he'll be walking and talking and then you'll have to chase after him everywhere."

"I'm used to it, it's what I do with Chris."

Kurt smiled at that like she had smiled at his joke. "So um…a little late, but uh…happy anniversary, it was two years last week."

"Yeah, it was," she said, knowing that he wouldn't forget things so easily just because they weren't friends anymore. "Two years, I almost couldn't believe that we've made it so far, I just…you know, I always feared I'd screw it up somehow and Chris would see the real me and hate it and then I'd be left alone, or with Sawyer…"

"I knew you wouldn't screw it up," he said softly. "I should…uh, probably go though, I have a flight that's leaving late, I have to catch that, I didn't want to stay overnight if I didn't have to, and now that this final tie is severed, I can feel comfortable…with where I am…"

"And are you…"

He nodded slowly, "Yeah…"

"Good," she told him, then looked at Sawyer, who was starting to seriously doze. "I better…get him to bed anyways, um…bye, Kurt."

"Bye, Stephanie," Kurt said softly, watching as she scampered away, Sawyer falling asleep rapidly in her arms. Kurt sighed and then turned to leave, almost turning back to go to her, but then realizing that she hadn't seemed as sad as he might've hoped. He wasn't asking for waterworks, but he hadn't been expecting to just talk to her and not have her break. He guessed he was just hoping for something out of his reach.

Stephanie walked into Chris's office, baby in tow. Chris stood up from what he was doing, which was watching the show, and went to help her take off Sawyer's jacket and shoes before laying him in the portable playpen they always brought with them. Chris turned off the lights, leaving the only light coming from the television. He didn't usually do work when Sawyer was asleep anyways. Stephanie, having been a little shell-shocked from her Kurt encounter, just sat herself down in Chris's lap.

"Shouldn't you be getting to work?" he asked, "Or should I say, shouldn't you get to work?"

"I should, but my dad is here, he likes to handle those things, and if he sees I'm not there, then he'll just take over, it's what he does…I don't…I just don't feel like seeing anyone right now."

"What's wrong?" he wondered, looking up at her. Her eyes were reflecting off the light from the television, and he was enraptured by them, brushing his fingertips over her cheek comfortingly.

"I just saw Kurt earlier, it's no big deal, I just kind of need to stew in it for a while."

"Oh, I told him to get out of here, did he bug you?"

"No, that's the thing, he didn't, it was like…it was like we were just acquaintances, I think that hurts more…it's just so odd, you know…that feeling."

"What feeling?"

"That you used to know this person inside and out…and now you just…you don't know them anymore, and it's by choice and then by nature. I just…my life has been so focused on you and Sawyer, and then Trish and her situation, I haven't really had time to think about me and Kurt, and how it's like…we never knew each other."

"Except you did."

"Yeah," she concurred. "It's like I know everything and nothing about him, and it hurts and it doesn't because we can fall into that comfortableness with each other, and…then I miss him, and I don't want to miss him."

"Yeah, I miss him too."

"Good to know," she said. "I don't know, it's just weird losing someone you cared so much about.

The same thoughts were running through Christian's mind as he conjured up all the courage that he had to go talk to Carlito. He had to be the bigger man in this situation and that's what he was prepared to be. It wasn't going to hurt any less, but at the end of the day, he could live with the knowledge that he had tried to do the right thing. The most he could do was put the ball in Carlito's court and let the rest fall into place. He loved Trish, and he had to do the right thing by her, finally.

He admitted readily that he hadn't been the best at their relationship, he had stumbled through it at times, done stupid things, said stupid things, but through it all, one thing prevailed, and that was the fact he loved Trish. Come hell or high water, he would love Trish, and that was it, that was the driving force for everything that he did. In preparing what he was about to do, he was still loving her, and maybe he was loving her in the right way, finally in the right way. He didn't much care if she knew what he was doing here today, he didn't care if she never found out, it was for his own conscience, knowing that he had done what was right, and had done right by the woman he loved.

He knocked on Carlito's door, and willed Carlito and only Carlito to answer. At least one of his wishes was granted when Carlito opened the door and stared narrowly at his adversary. "Can we talk?" Christian asked earnestly.

"Come in," Carlito told him and Christian walked past him into the room.

"Look, I don't want to stay for long, but I felt like I needed to talk to you," Christian said. "I don't know if you've talked to Trish, I don't know what has been said, but I have to say something too since you've dragged me into this."

"I didn't drag you into anything," Carlito protested. "I saw what I saw."

"Yeah, you did, and you came to your own conclusion," Christian said, his voice rising before he took a deep breath "I'm not going to fight with you, I'm just not going to go there, I just wanted to talk to you. Man, you did drag me into this the moment you used me as an excuse not to marry Trish."

"You weren't an excuse," he argued. "She loves you."

His answer was immediate, "She doesn't, she hates me, she's told me as much, and I believe her. I think she blames me for all of this, and I don't want that. I don't want her to think of me badly, and I think that's how she thinks of me right now, as the guy who dared to ruin her wedding. I don't want to be that guy, and I don't want to be the guy that you're afraid of because you shouldn't be."

"I know what I saw, Christian," Carlito told him. "I see the way she looks at you…"

"Yeah, as a friend she cares about. I've come to terms with the fact that's all I'll get from now on, but it isn't all that you have to get. She loves you, she told me as much, and she was broken up over the fact that you dumped her. Doesn't that count for anything? Doesn't the fact that she has willingly cut me out of her life signify anything to you?"

"Should it?" he asked, and now he was just being a smart aleck.

"Yeah, it should. It should count for a lot. I'm stepping out of the picture. I'm gone. I love Trish, and I want her to be happy. She's happy with you, and it kills me, but it is what it is, and I'm out of the picture."

"So what? You won't ever talk to her or see her again?"

"If that's what it takes," Christian said. "Then that's what I'm going to do. I want Trish to have everything she's ever wanted. She wants that romantic stuff, and the flowers and candy and all that. I could never really deliver that. You can, so go get her back and make her happy. You know she wants you, I mean, you do know that, right?"

"Sure," he said noncommittally.

"She does. Trish and I were always up or we were down. Most of the downs were my fault, but all of the ups were due solely to her. Don't make the mistakes I made, Trish is one of the…if not _the_ best woman in the world, don't blow it, seriously man, do _not_ blow this opportunity."

"And if I do take her back, and she sees you, and she finds she's in love with you…"

"It's a risk, but everything in life is a risk. You take the risks and hope for the best. She took a risk on me a long time ago, she banked on the fact that I wasn't a jerk, and I tried to hold onto her for so long, but she wants you, and I have to respect that."

"I don't know…she's…"

"Don't blow this," Christian said. "Really, don't blow it, don't make my mistakes because you only get the one chance, and that's it."

"Are you really doing this because you love her?"

"Yeah, I really am," Christian said. "That's what you do, I guess…well, good luck."

Christian didn't say another word before he left. Carlito watched him go and sighed. He picked up his phone and dialed Trish's cell phone number. It wasn't the fact that Christian had gotten through to him, it was just…he didn't know. He missed Trish, missed being with her, and it wasn't that the fears were erased, but Christian's words had been powerful in their emotion. If someone could love Trish that much, she had to be something special.

"Hello?"

"Trish…"

"Lito, is that you?" she whispered.

"Yeah, it is," he said with a smile. "I just wanted to call and say hey."

"Really?" she asked, stupefied. "I guess…hey back."

"How are you?"

"I'm doing okay, and yourself?" she asked, wondering why he was being so nonchalant when he had so recently broken her heart, telling her just last week that they were over.

"Christian came to see me."

"What!" Trish said, anger creeping into her voice. "How dare he go and see you! I told him that I wanted him out of my life and he goes behind my back and sees you, how dare he butt into my--"

"No, no, no, it wasn't like that…he said he wanted to talk sense into me, he wanted to say he would never have contact with you again if it made you happy with me…he was trying to fix things."

"He was?"

"Yeah, he was trying to tell me to go back to you, that you were worth it."

"Oh," she said, feeling a short pang in her heart. "He went all the way there to tell you that?"

"Yeah…I miss you, Trish."

She smiled, "I miss you too, what does this mean?"

"I think it means that maybe we can start over, maybe we can take it a little slower this time?"

She grinned, "I'd like that."

"Good, I've got a match though, I think Torrie is trying to seduce me or something, she's always hanging around, but I'll call you tomorrow, or later, we'll see if we can meet up, maybe get something to eat."

"Yeah, please call, I'd love that," she told him, her voice hopeful.

"Great, bye, Trish."

"Bye." She couldn't keep the grin off her face. Slow was good, she could live with slow. Slow was something, and that was so much better than the nothing that had been staring her in the face. She was glad that she was getting a second chance, but that thought was crushed a moment later when she thought of the selfless act that Christian had done when she had been so cruel to him. She had said to his face that she hated him, and now, with time to think, he hadn't really been involved, not directly and yet she had placed all of the blame squarely on his shoulders unfairly. She looked at her phone and dialed the familiar number.

"Trish?" Christian asked incredulously after seeing her name on his phone ID.

"Thank you," she said genuinely, her voice filled with emotion. "Thank you so much."

"For what?"

"Carlito just called me."

He smiled, "Good, it's good to know you'll be with a guy who has enough sense to know when he's got a good thing going."

"You didn't have to do that, Christian, you didn't…after I treated you so horribly, I'm ashamed of myself for treating you the way that I did…I--"

"Don't worry about it, Trish, I know that you were hurting, and I knew that maybe you didn't mean it."

"I didn't mean it, truly, I am embarrassed about it. It wasn't your fault, it had nothing to do with you, you were just a really hard habit to break, you know, I didn't know how hard it would be to get over you, and I haven't really fully done it yet."

"Yeah?"

"I don't think I ever truly will," she confessed. "You were my first 'it,' Christian, the first person I felt 'it' with, and you'll forever be in my heart for that. You went to bat for me today, big time, and I just owe you the hugest apology."

"No, you don't, really, Trish, I just want you to be happy, as cliché as that sounds. I'll survive, I always do."

"Thank you, Christian, thank you so much…"

"You're welcome."

After she had hung up the phone, something settled into the pit of her stomach. Something she didn't think she'd feel again, but it was rising and rising. She smiled to herself as she clutched her phone against her chest. She sighed and set it back down in the receiver. She and Carlito were on the verge of being back together, and things were definitely looking up all around her life. And this feeling in her stomach, well…it was starting to feel a little familiar.

Christian knocked on Chris's office door, having found nobody in Stephanie's office. Someone called from inside and he opened it to find it pretty dark. He saw the playpen and the sleeping baby and understood, slipping quietly into the room. Chris and Stephanie were on the couch, watching the closed-circuit television. She was cuddled up to his side and he sat on the other side of her.

"Hey Christian," Stephanie whispered, "What's up?"

"I just gave up the woman I love, you?"

"I just let go of my best friend."

"We're pathetic," Chris said. Christian laughed and nodded. Yes, sitting there in the dark, they all felt a little bit like losers, like they had all lost something and they didn't quite understand how.

But that's exactly what had happened.


	123. Trump AND Vince, Yikes, January 29, 2007

"Oh no, what happened to him?"

Stephanie looked down at Sawyer, who was still crying, his voice screechy as his lip quivered and his blue eyes widened at the sight of a new person. He let his head fall against Stephanie's arm, and then cried some more, wetting her arm with his salty tears. Stephanie looked down at the top of his head and held the towel full of ice to his small head.

"He's a bit of a klutz," Stephanie said good-naturedly. It was funny the kind of contrast that Stephanie had between her employees and with her own son. She wasn't even this nice to Chris half the time, but when it came to Sawyer, Stephanie stopped being the Ice Bitch and instead was the most caring person you had ever seen. "He was leaning over a chair standing up and then he started to fall and smacked right into the seat of a chair, and he got a bump on his head, so I'm putting ice on it."

"Oh Sawyer," Trish said as she sat down next to Stephanie. Sawyer looked at her with a pouty face, and she knew he was aiming for sympathy. She leaned down to get face to face with the little boy. "Hey there sweetie, did you hit your head?" Sawyer sniffled a little bit and then babbled softly. "Oh yeah, I bet that hurt, huh?"

"He'll live," Stephanie said, kissing Sawyer's head. "It's better than him falling and hitting his head on the ground or something. He'll be fine, it just stunned him. He slammed into it, and then he looked at me for a second like he couldn't believe he had done that and then the waterworks started."

"He's a trooper," Trish replied, giving Sawyer her hand to look at. It was missing one engagement ring, but she was dealing with that right now.

"So…you're here…"

"You knew I was going to be here, I have to go through you to get passes to be back here, remember?"

"Yes, I know, but I wasn't sure that you were actually going to show so I'm surprised that you're actually here."

"Well, baby steps, Steph, baby steps," she told her. "I'm just happy to be here, and I'm just happy that Carlito wants me to be here…we're going to take it slow, just be…a normal couple, you know, be in a relationship for a while and get to know each other so much we don't need to even think about what the other one needs or wants. That's what we need, I think, just the time to develop."

"Yeah, time is a good thing, trust me," Stephanie told her. "I'm glad that you guys are back on the road to recovery, I hate seeing you so upset."

"Me too," she joked. "But maybe this is something we needed. We talked a lot this past week, and I think that we're going to be okay, or we _will_ be okay, hopefully. I just want to be okay, I missed him."

"That was really something that Christian did for you."

Trish sighed and thought about her former boyfriend who had done something so sweet for her that it made her feel guilty not only for saying she hated him, but also because he didn't have to do that for her, and yet he had. He could've just walked away, let her stew in her miserable life, like she had probably done to him not so long ago. Instead, he had stepped up and done the right thing, and she had to…well, she didn't know what she had to do with that information.

"I know," she said softly. "He didn't have to either, but he did, and…"

"Trish," Stephanie said, her voice accusing.

"Don't even think that, Stephanie, don't even insinuate it…"

"But you can't help but think it, if only for a second, you did love him for a long time," Stephanie pointed out. "And he made a total sacrifice for you. I would have to look twice at any guy who would do that for me."

"But shouldn't he have been out of my life in the first place?" she countered. "I mean, we broke up and he was supposed to be gone from my life. If Carlito hadn't been insecure about our relationship, then who knows, I would be married right now."

"Yeah, but still…he loves you," Stephanie said, "and you can't deny that the prospect of him and you…I don't think it's ever really far off from either one of you."

"So what are you saying, Stephanie? Are you saying that I should not try this again with Carlito, and instead, I should just go be with Christian."

"No, that's not what I'm saying, not directly anyways. All that I'm saying, Trish, is that the man did something for you that he didn't have to do, and he made a big sacrifice for you. I see this from both sides because I'm your friend and I'm Christian's friend, and I want you both to be happy, I just don't want you to miss out on something."

"We had years, and we could never make it truly work, we're not like you and Chris, Stephanie. I know that you hate the comparison, but you have to look at your life and think its pretty damn good, am I right?"

"Yes, it's good," Stephanie agreed.

"Yeah, but some people don't get that on the first try--"

"Second…try," Stephanie interrupted. "Chris is my second husband, don't forget."

"Yeah, well, see, you know what I mean then, you know that sometimes the first guy that you think you're going to spend forever with isn't the guy you're going to spend forever with. So don't lecture me, okay?"

"I'm _not_ lecturing you," Stephanie said, feeling some water dripping on her arm and pulling the towel away from Sawyer's head and checking on it. There was a small bruise and she kissed it gingerly, making Sawyer give her a ghost of a smile. "Look, I didn't want to say it before, but you're my friend…I agree with Carlito, I think that you do still love Christian, at least on some level."

"What!" Trish said. "How dare you think that!"

"Why?" Stephanie inquired, cocking her head to the side. "Look, I just see it how I see it, I think you should really mull over what you want out of this."

"Don't try and tell me what to do, Stephanie."

"Look, don't get defensive with me," Stephanie said, trying to remain calm as Trish's cheeks turned red with frustration. She had held her tongue for so long, had pushed the thoughts away because she truly believed that Trish was happy with Carlito, but when Trish had been talking about what Christian had done for her, she had gotten this look on her face. It was a little bit wistful and there was a little bit of dreaminess mixed into it. It was plain in Stephanie's eyes because she often got that same dreaminess when she was talking about Chris. "I'm just telling it like I see it."

"Well then keep it to yourself," Trish told her. "I don't need anyone's input with this, I don't need anyone telling me what to do or who to love. I know what I feel. I know what I feel in here," she said, patting her chest. "You don't know what I think."

"No, I don't, I'm not looking to argue with you, Trish, in fact, I'm not going to argue with you, so if you really feel that I'm being out of line, then you can go, I'm just trying to tell you what I see when I see you talking about Christian."

"Whatever," she muttered, stomping off and out of the room. She didn't want to talk to Stephanie anymore. She didn't like the things she was hearing because they sounded like what Carlito said about her. They were all just...they didn't know what she felt and she hated that people were trying to project their own ideas on her. It hurt to think that the people who supposedly loved her would think things of her, would think that she was disingenuous when living her life.

Stephanie sat Sawyer down on the table in front of her and bit her lip. "I think I just made Auntie Trish mad, baby, can I get a kiss to cheer me up?" She leaned forward and let Sawyer lean forward to smack his lips against the corner of her mouth. She laughed and pulled away as her husband sat down next to her.

"So you won't believe who just called me because someone wasn't answering their phone."

"Was it my dad?" she asked.

"No, guess again."

"Hunter."

"Nope."

"Well then I'm stumped, was it Santa Clause, have I already gone over my bad girl quotient for the year because I can do better, I swear!" she joked.

"It was Donald Trump, apparently he wants on the show tonight, well, no, that's not right, he demanded to be on the show tonight," Chris said. "And you try talking to that guy, I swear, he was going to bust out his catch phrase at any moment, he was going to fire me, I was going to have to take my suitcase and leave in a cab."

"Funny, what did he want to do on the show?"

"Um…I don't know, challenge Cena for a match," Chris said, rolling his eyes. "He wants to show up your father, what else do you think he wanted?"

"Are you telling me what my father said actually bothered him?" Stephanie asked, a kind of giddiness inside of her. She didn't exactly want her father to feud with Donald Trump because seriously, that would be stupid, but it was just funny to her.

"I guess, I didn't exactly get into an in-depth conversation with the man. He doesn't even know who I am."

"Oh that's not true, I know he watches," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, but he doesn't know me as the guy who answers phones and all that shit."

"So what'd you do? Did you tell him it would be okay? Oh my God, are you not going to tell my father and then let Trump interrupt him since tonight is Fan Appreciation Night, or some such nonsense that my dad came up with. Oh my God, Chris, is that what you're going to do!"

"What! You think that I'm going to do something deliberately mean to your father, _me_?" Chris asked innocently, putting his hand over his chest. "You really think that I'm capable of something like that?"

"We can't not tell my dad," Stephanie told him. "I mean, that's needlessly cruel, and we're not cruel…much…"

"Trump was telling me how he had his own personal cameras always at the ready, and how we could get a satellite link-up like that, like he knew what he was doing," Chris scoffed, "but I did go to production and they said that they could actually do that, the things that people can do with technology nowadays, it amazes me. So yeah, he's going to appear on the show tonight, the things I put up with for you."

"For _me_, you act like I _want_ stuff like this to happen."

"Not because of that, because of the fact that you had to fall in love with me and then make me fall in love with you, and I'm never getting out."

"You wanted to get out."

"I eventually wanted to retire, yes, get married, maybe coach my son's hockey team, leave wrestling behind and let it be something in my past, and now…now I'm never getting out. I'm stuck here…for life."

"You were never getting out anyways."

"You don't know that," Chris finally looked at his son and narrowed his eyes, "What the hell is that on Sawyer's head?"

"He has a bruise, don't point it out, he's very sensitive about it," Stephanie answered, rubbing her thumb gently over his bruise. "He's not tired anymore because of it."

"Where did he get a bruise?" Chris asked, obviously concerned.

"He slammed his head into a chair, there, now you know that our son is stupid and hits his head on furniture, are you happy now? You've embarrassed him, and now he's going to walk around with his head down so that nobody will look at him funny," Stephanie said. "You've shamed him."

"Oh, well sorry," Chris shrugged, taking Sawyer from the tabletop. "Hey, you know, when I go tell your dad about the whole Trump thing, I think that I should bring him with me. How can Vince get mad when I have his grandson with me? And with a bruise no less, there's no way he'd be anything but happy."

"Don't tell him," Stephanie said. "It'll be fun."

"Are you serious?" Stephanie nodded. "Seriously?"

"Come on," she pouted. "We never have fun anymore. It'll be like old times, having plans and seeing them through, plotting and then watching people as they squirm. It'll even go back to our business partnership days, remember those?"

"I don't remember much but the errands that I ran for you, perfume, earrings, lotion, any of those ringing a bell, I think you even made me go buy you a bra that wouldn't show through one of your shirts, that's how much you had me as a whipping boy."

"But you loved it," Stephanie affirmed, "because you were falling so hard and fast for me."

"No, you're wrong, I did it because I thought you would have some secret way to defeat Hunter at WrestleMania, but I don't think I retained at that show, did I retain?"

"Like that was _my_ fault," Stephanie scoffed. "And before you even say it, I had nothing to do with the rematch either. You were the one acting like a jackass--"

"What! No way, you were the one who slapped me because I _accidentally_ hit you. You were at fault with that one, that was all on you," Chris told her. "So yeah, I don't really think that going back to our business partnership days is really a sound idea."

"Don't tell my dad."

"Fine, fine, fine, but only because you're cute."

"Yeah, and because I'm still mad about your hair and you'll do anything so that I won't kick you out of our house and make you sleep on the street."

"If you kicked me out of our house, I'd just go over to Trish's, or if you really, really hated me and wanted me completely gone, I would just go to one of our other two houses. Since I married rich, that's the luxury that I can afford."

"Well, the house in California was all you, and the one in Connecticut still has my name on the deed."

"Well the house we live in regularly, the one we call our home, that was originally bought by me, so if I wanted to kick _you_ out, I could do that, and don't tempt me, baby, because I'm so close to kicking you out."

"Oh yeah, yeah you are," she said, standing up and taking Sawyer back from Chris. "I'm going to go feed him a little, see if he wants to eat before we hit the sack, want to come?"

"Yeah, sure, what else do I have to do since I'm corroborating to make my father-in-law look like a fool?"

"Like he doesn't deserve it."

Trish was pacing up and down the hallway in front of Carlito's door. Why she was letting Stephanie's words sink so far into her brain, she didn't know, but they were. They were seeping in like a slow-moving liquid. She couldn't believe Stephanie's gall at saying that she was actually still in love with Christian. She had given that up a long time ago, and she wasn't going back any time soon. And how dare Stephanie do that? It wasn't like Trish went and told Stephanie before her wedding to Chris that she thought Hunter was a better match for her. Okay, so that was a bad example but the thought was the same.

The door flew open next to her and Carlito stepped out, "Trish, what are you doing?"

"Thinking," she said, putting on her best smile as she went over to him and hugged him. "I don't know, I guess I looked pretty silly."

Carlito looked around at the people milling about in the hallway. "Well, this is WWE, anything can happen here so I think that you pacing the hallway is the least of your worries."

"Yeah, that's true, funny how you forget things when you haven't been here for a week or two," she joked, looking down at the ground and then up at him. "I'm glad that I'm here with you though."

"I'm glad too," he said sincerely and she wrapped her arms around his neck and held onto him tightly. "I'm just sorry that I couldn't be here with you before, totally sorry."

"It's my fault," he chuckled. "I should've trusted you, I guess we add that to the list of things we need to work on."

"We've got time though," she said. "This time we don't have to rush through everything and make it like we're in a sprint. We can just take a leisurely stroll through our relationship."

"Okay, the analogies are wearing a little thin," he told her, kissing her forehead. "I'm just glad you're back in my life."

"Were you totally devastated without me?" she asked coyly, looking up at him, her lips jutted out just the tiniest bit. He pushed a stray lock of hair away from her forehead and nodded. She grinned widely and reminded herself of this feeling, that nothing in the world could go wrong. This is the feeling that she wanted, and this was what Stephanie could never understand.

Being with Christian, though the times were good, there was always an uneasy feeling in her stomach. Their relationship was hard, that was really the only way to put it. Their relationship had been too hard. They couldn't get it right long enough before they'd break up over something, and then they would do it again and again, and a relationship shouldn't be so hard, and being with Christian was hard.

Compare that to Carlito and it was a walk in the park. Sure, they had their bumps in the road, the fact that they weren't sporting matching wedding bands attested to that fact, but they were going to bounce back and be stronger this time, something that maybe hadn't happened with Christian. Of course, Trish could just be denying herself of what she knew, deep down, to be true. She could've been totally in love with Christian, and the past hurt prevented her from thinking it, but if that was the case, she hadn't let herself in on it yet.

"Trish Stratus…"

Trish turned her head and saw the annoying blond next to her, "Torrie Wilson."

"Didn't expect _you_ to be here," she said, glancing between Trish and Carlito. There was a fire in her eyes. She couldn't believe this little, blonde bitch was here. She had thought she had disposed of this little whore and now she was back. Torrie wanted to spit on her, just once, just to make that stupid face cringe for a second.

"Well, I didn't expect you to look like a hooker…oh wait, yes, I did…"

"Hey, hey, hey, you be nice," Carlito told her, pinching her playfully in the hip.

"Do I have to?" Trish asked, batting her eyelashes and trying her best to look innocent and not deserving of any berating.

"Yes," he told her. "Torrie is going to be escorting me to the ring tonight and she's going to be in my corner with Super Crazy for our tag-team match."

"Oh, aren't you sweet?" Trish cooed falsely at her nemesis. "And here I thought that you were only capable of standing around in dresses and being pawns for the likes of Vince McMahon. I thought the damsel-in-distress thing really suited you, it played to your strengths, standing around and looking cheap."

"Well, I just followed your example," Torrie said, her own voice sickeningly sweet and dripping with rage. "That _is_ what you did when you came into the company, right?"

"Right, it was…and then I realized that looking and being a tramp wasn't my style so I decided I wanted to kick ass, and man, can I kick all kinds of ass," Trish told her, and she started forward a little bit, but felt Carlito's hand pulling her back gently.

"Trish, come on, why don't we go inside, okay?" Carlito whispered to her, kissing her temple. "Torrie, I'll see you later when I have my match."

"Sure, Carlito," she said, trying to sound upbeat, like she could prove that she was the better and bigger person in all of this. Trish saw through that and she allowed Carlito to pull her into the room, where she went red with fury.

"Can you believe that little bitch!" Trish exclaimed. "She was coming onto you right in front of me, like I was invisible or something."

"She just has a crush on me," Carlito told her.

"Oh yes, she has a crush on you, no, no, no, she wants to sink her claws in you because she sees that you're going somewhere, and when you get to the top, like I know you're going to, she's going to want to be there, to reap the benefits, and I'm not going to let that happen."

"I wouldn't let it happen, I know her agenda."

"Do you?" she wondered. "I mean, you might think she's innocently going after you, but you weren't here during the Invasion. She was vicious. She went after like, everyone, the Hardys, and Vince…"

"Well, to be fair…you were kind of with Vince too," he said delicately.

She slugged him in the arm and frowned, "But I wasn't really…I had my reasons, and besides, she is just bad news, trust me, at least back then, I didn't pretend to be who I was, I was who I was, but she's disguising who she is, and I don't want you falling for her crap."

Carlito took her face in his hand and crouched down so that he was eye level with her. He gave her that smile of his, the one that was just a little bit too cocky for his own good, "I'm not going to fall for her crap. I'm smarter than that."

Trish gave him a lopsided smile, "I just hate her so much."

"I got that, I did, but you have got to trust me."

"I do trust you, I really do, I just…she makes me so mad and I don't trust her for a second because she's willing to completely debase herself to get what she wants. She'd probably walk around naked if it meant she could get a rich husband who would take care of her."

"Well, as tempting as that sounds," he kidded. "I don't want that."

"Good," she said, blushing ever so slightly.

"Now, can I go meet with my tag partner, do you trust me not to get pounced on by Torrie?"

"She might just pounce on you, throw you into an empty room and then lock you in, be alert," she told him, grabbing him by the bottom of his t-shirt and pulling him down completely to her level while also capturing his lips with her own. She pulled away moments later, "Now go, and remember that I'll be here, waiting for you."

"Oh, trust me, I will," he said, before he left. She looked around the locker room for a moment before flouncing down on the couch in the center. She leaned her head against the back of it, pulling her phone out of her pocket and checking for any text messages. She didn't see any new ones, but she found herself going to the list of phone numbers she kept on her phone. Before she could really think about it, she had pressed the name of someone she wanted to talk to, but probably didn't need to talk to.

"Hello?"

"Christian, hey."

"Trish," he said, recognizing her voice. "What's up? Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, everything's fine, I just felt compelled to call you, are you busy?"

"No, I'm not at the second."

"What are you up to?"

"Well," he started to answer, feeling himself smile just by hearing her voice. It was amazing how the sound of a person's voice, hundreds of miles away could bring a smile to his face so easily. "I'm actually at the tapings for the show, I'm going to face Kurt."

"Really? Kurt?"

"I'm avenging him for Stephanie," Christian told her. "But don't tell Stephanie that, it'll be our little secret."

"You are so sweet," she said, and it was true. Only Christian would do something like that and not want the credit for it. That brought her mind back to what had happened last week. He had flown out to the show just to tell Carlito that he should take Trish back, that there was nothing there between them. He had sacrificed his feelings for the sake of her feelings. It was just such a simple yet profound gesture that she couldn't get past it. It would've just been so easy for him to do the wrong, easy thing, and instead he went for the right, but extremely hard thing.

"He hurt my friend, and well, I know that Chris can't do anything about it right now, and plus, he's a total jackass backstage sometimes, but you know, I think that's because he misses Stephanie and Chris, mostly Stephanie."

"You make it sound like he was in love with her," Trish laughed.

Christian snorted. "Yeah, right, no, I just think that Stephanie understood Kurt, and now he doesn't have that, it's sad, and I think he's lashing out. I wish he would see that, but whatever, I'll just kick his ass and maybe that'll make him see."

"I hope you succeed, I'd love to get the old Kurt back, the one who was just a big goofball with the best bear-hugs in the world," she said.

"So is there anything that you really wanted? I mean, not that I don't enjoy talking to you, I really do, I just didn't expect you to call me," Christian explained, not wanting to scare her off. If he could keep her on the phone forever, he would do just that, if only to hear her voice some more.

"Oh…uh, not really, I just saw your name on my phone and thought I'd call…I just…I can't get over what you did for me last week, really, Christian, it was just above and beyond."

"Don't worry about it, Trish," Christian told her nonchalantly. "I was just trying to help. After seeing you so upset, I just wanted to make sure that you were going to be okay, and you're okay now, right?"

"I'm getting better," she answered. "You're going to be in Tampa this week, right? You're not going back to Canada or anything, are you?"

"No, I'm not, why?" he asked.

"Oh, I don't know, in case I see you around or something. I think that Chris and Stephanie are going to have a small gathering on Sunday, you know, Super Bowl and all that. I mean, they're not really into that stuff, but any excuse for a party," she laughed. "Carlito can't make it because he's going to visit his sister this weekend, but I thought it might be fun."

"Yeah, Chris called me about that, an excuse to drink beer and watch television, I'm going to be there. We might even find a hockey game to watch," Christian said. "Since we hardly care who wins the Super Bowl, Bears, Colts, I mean, you'd think a Bear could kick a Colt's ass, but then a Colt is really fast, so it would just run away because Bears are slow and lumbering, but again, it could hurt a horse at least…"

"An actual bear and colt aren't going to be the ones in the game," Trish giggled. "So I think it'll come down to…the people in the game, right?"

"Yeah, I guess, if you want to take all the fun out of it," he joked right back. "I guess we can watch that, there looks to be some funny commercials, that's always good, I mean, that's what people watch for, right?" (Unless your team is _in_ the Super Bowl, of course, which is like…the best, seriously, crazy cool)

"Uh huh, so I'm glad I'll get to see you there, it'll be like old times."

"Oh yes, where we have to have a toast every freaking ten minutes, right?"

"Definitely, I mean, how can you not have a toast, it's tradition!" she said in mock protest. "I'm glad you'll be there, I'm still just so embarrassed with the way that I treated you."

"And once again, don't worry about it, I knew that you didn't mean it, and you were upset, and I burst into your house thinking I was going to be the knight in shining armor that saved you."

"You were my knight in shining armor," she whispered to him. "You did save me."

"You did the saving all by yourself," Christian said. "There's no other girl in the world I would go to bat for. Just you…"

That sentiment made her go all warm inside and she smiled softly at it. That warmth was spreading to the tips of her fingers and the tips of her toes, and it was almost as if she was blushing all over. Why was he making her feel like that? Because he did something for you, Trish's mind said, and that's the only reason. She appreciated him more now, that was what was happening. She appreciated him being in her life.

"Well…thanks," she responded lamely, completely at a loss for words. "I better go though, I don't want to keep you."

"Yeah, I really should go, my…thing with Kurt."

"Yeah, please kick his ass," Trish told him. "Bye Christian, I'll see you soon."

"Soon…" he echoed, and he liked the sound of that, seeing her soon, it held a lot of promise in it, and maybe even the tiniest ray of hope.

Stephanie and Chris watched in anticipation as Vince went out there for his big promo. They knew precisely what was under the black sheet since Chris had been the one to go get it blown up. Just another perk of being the boss's son, he got to know things before they happened. And because of that, he got to pass it along to his wife, who just groaned when Chris told her that her father had wanted his cover from _Muscle & Fitness _blown up.

"I'm sick of that damn cover!" Stephanie said. "Why must my family hold onto things for so long…too long?"

"Wow, and this coming from the girl who held a grudge on a guy for years because he happened to think she looked like one of Godfather's hos."

"Don't even go there."

"Oh, touchy, another trait inherent to the McMahons," Chris said as he watched Vince walk into the ring. "Hopefully Sawyer doesn't pick that up from you."

Stephanie rolled her eyes at Chris, not exactly enjoying how he was pointing out her shortcomings. "Well…"

"Well what?"

"You're stupid," she finished dumbly and that sent Chris into uproarious laughter. He leaned over to kiss her briefly before she went back to watching her father's segment.

"That was good, baby, real smooth."

"Give me a break for once, will you?" she asked. "I'm just trying to work here while you're trying to distract me."

"You just want to see your dad get made a fool of," he pointed out astutely.

"Yeah, that too, so give me my moment."

Chris did give her, her moment as Vince droned on about how he was a billionaire and all the people there tonight were just pawns for him to get more money. Two things hit Chris once again. The horror that he was related to this man and that they shared a blood relative in Sawyer, and then the awe that came again knowing that he was stinking rich and he had done nothing to earn that except fall in love with Stephanie. He looked over at her and wondered why money hadn't jaded her like it did with some people. She worked so hard, too hard sometimes, and yet, she could just sit back and be Paris Hilton if she really, really wanted to. Yet, all the McMahons were self-admitted workaholics, but why was that?

"What?" Stephanie asked.

"What?" he repeated.

"You were staring at me, why?"

"No reason," he said, grabbing her free and lacing their fingers together. "I was just thinking about how glad I am that you're not Paris Hilton."

"What! Were you even comparing the two of us? Because if you think that I'm in any way, shape, or form like Paris Hilton, then we've got a _huge_ problem here," she said. "Is it the way I dress? The hair, it's the hair, I shouldn't have gone blonde, oh God, I'm getting my hair dyed when we go home."

"No, it was…it was a money thing," Chris said. "You're nothing like Paris Hilton, _nothing_."

"Thank God," she said, relieved that she wasn't being compared to that walking disease. "That wasn't nice by the way."

"This coming from the girl who is humiliating her father," Chris waited until Trump came onto the Titantron, "right this very second. That's real classy of you, Stephanie."

"If I can't poke fun at my father, who can I poke fun at?"

Vince went through his little spiel and then Trump came on the screen and Chris and Stephanie waited in heedless anticipation, and Vince didn't disappoint. He reacted just as Vince always reacted, and when he came backstage, fuming of course, he went straight after Stephanie and Chris, who were sitting there with Chesire-cat type grins on their faces.

"Why didn't you tell me about this!" Vince demanded to know.

Stephanie held out Sawyer in front of her, "We're sorry, Daddy, but that was the best way to go about it, to get the full reaction from you for the segment. Look Daddy, Sawyer got a bruise, isn't that the saddest thing ever?"

"He got a bruise," Vince said, pulling out his glasses and slipping them on as he took Sawyer from Stephanie's hands. Stephanie turned to Chris and gave him a sly smile, knowing that her father would completely forget about the Trump thing and their part in it if he had Sawyer wit him. "Right on his forehead, how did he get this?"

"He was standing and then smacked his head on a chair," Stephanie said. "He cried, it was upsetting, wasn't it upsetting, baby, show Grandpa how it was upsetting?"

Sawyer, who was so obviously going to be a manipulator like his parents, pouted a little bit, as if on cue. "Oh, this is horrible, the poor guy," Vince said, sympathetic to his grandson's injury. "He should go to bed, why don't you two take the night off, let him sleep in his crib."

"No, Dad, that's okay."

"I insist, go, have fun, have a nice dinner or something," Vince said, shooing them off. "And don't think I don't remember that you set me up, we'll talk about that next week. You're just lucky that you have a son."

"It's the reason why we had him the first place," Chris said. "Built-in excuse."

"Okay, have a nice night you two."

Vince walked away just as Trish blustered in. She walked straight over to where Stephanie and Chris were sitting and knelt in front of the table, leaning her arms on it. She leaned her chin on it, a distressed look on her face and it was almost disheveled. Stephanie and Chris looked at her expectantly.

"I think I have a big problem."


	124. Show, What Show? February 5, 2007

"Trish has a crush, Trish has a crush."

"I'm going to crush _you_," Trish said, pouting as Chris and Sawyer both pulled identical faces on her. It was like a double assault of teasing and that was the last thing she needed right now. In fact, right now, she wanted to fall into a hole and then become a nothing, a nobody, she wanted everyone to forget that she ever even existed. That would be the easy way to do this because her life just couldn't be simple.

No, her life couldn't be like Chris and Stephanie's right now, blissful, easy, and so many other synonyms that she'd get tired of thinking of them all. Nope, she was living in the middle of a hurricane, and not even in the eye of a hurricane where it calm, no, it was like she could the calm in the storm, but she couldn't get to it because the winds kept blowing her farther and farther away, and she tried so hard, and gained so little ground. Her life had been screwed up again, and she didn't know what she was going to do.

"You wouldn't crush your friend," he said to her impishly. "Oh come on, Trish, you go about being all about Carlito and then the truth comes out, and I can't tease you? Where's the fun in that?"

"It's not funny when it's your life," Trish said, almost starting to regret what she had told her friends.

"_I think I have a big problem."_

"_Is this something that can be solved easily or difficultly?" Chris asked her._

"_Why does that matter?" Trish asked. "Shouldn't the fact that I have a problem be enough for you to go on?"_

"_Not when Vince just told me and Steph that we're free to go, and you know, I hardly get alone time with my wife with the kiddie around, so I was looking to get a little action tonight."_

"_Chris, sometimes you're so gross," Stephanie said as she stood up. "Why don't you come to our hotel room and hang out with us? Sawyer is tired so he's going to go to bed, but we can talk if you really need to."_

"_I really need to," she insisted. Revelations were no fun sometimes, and this was one of the times where they were no fun. It was like…it wasn't like a light-bulb because it was brighter than one, it was like…a volcano erupting and spreading its knowledge out for her to see. "I'm..I have a problem."_

"_Yeah, we heard that," Stephanie said as she walked away. Trish and Chris were trailing behind her, since she was all business where Sawyer was concerned. Chris wrapped his arm loosely around her. _

"_Don't you think you should tell Carlito that you're going to be going with us?" Chris wondered._

"_Oh yeah," she said uneasily. She didn't really feel like seeing him right now lest she say something that she was really going to regret, and right now, with her emotions so volatile, the chances of that happening were very large. "I don't…can you just tell him for me?"_

"_Why can't you talk to him?" Chris wondered, looking at her. She just bit her lip and stared straight forward, not telling him anything. But the more Chris stared at her, the clearer things got to him, and he sucked on his teeth a little. "Oh…I get it."_

"_You get what?" she asked critically._

"_Nothing, I'll let you tell the whole story, I'll go find Carlito and tell him that you're getting a ride back to the hotel with us."_

Oh yes, she had told them the whole story alright…

_Trish sat with them, nursing a beer. Stephanie was drinking an iced tea while Chris was drinking a bottle of water. She felt a little out of place drinking alcohol while they were drinking non-alcoholic beverages, but then they had a baby who needed them to be alert and she hardly needed to be alert. Besides, she really needed alcohol right now._

"_So you can talk anytime now," Stephanie told her as she leaned against Chris, yawning a little. Sawyer slept through the night just fine, it was just when he was awake that he was a handful. With him starting to stand now and wanting to try and walk, even though he was rather unsuccessful, he was becoming quite the job for his parents, add in the fact that he actually_ could_ crawl, and they were all over the place all the time._

"_So Carlito wanted to break up with me because he thought that I was in love with Christian, right?"_

"_That's what you told us, so yeah," Stephanie said in a tone that prompted her to go on. "So you can continue now."_

"_Well, it's like…I love Carlito, I really do, and he's sweet and funny, and he loves me, with no baggage, no nothing in our past that would put us at a disadvantage. With Carlito, everything seems new because it _is _new. And I love that, and I love him…"_

"_But…" Stephanie said, glancing over at Chris, who looked at her knowingly. They could both read the writing on the wall it was only a matter of Trish admitting what they already knew. How they would react, they didn't quite know yet, but they could definitely tell what her news was going to be._

"_But I think…I think he may have been right…"_

"_About Christian, you mean?" Chris asked, but he knew that's what this was about._

"_Yes, about Christian," Trish said with a deep sigh. "I'm just so…I was okay, but then Christian went and he was so unselfish over me, he was so kind and he didn't even need to be and here I am, basking in the glow of my relationship while there's this guy willing to give it all up for me."_

"_Yeah, he did, and it was probably hard for him," Stephanie said. "And that makes you feel like you owe it to him to love him?"_

"_No, I don't know," Trish said. "I just know that it feels like…I don't know, I guess I was scared."_

And Trish was scared, at least on some level, she believed this. It was easier to think of Christian as the guy that she would never work with, the guy who left, the guy who cheated on her, the guy who…the guy that…the guy…It was just so much easier to think of him as just that guy that she could never be with. To go back to the notion that she might actually have to think about working through whatever they went through, it was overwhelming and she was scared to go back there.

She had once thought that she had given Christian everything her heart had to offer. She wasn't sure if she thought that now because she felt like there was one piece she hadn't yet given him. But then there was Carlito and she loved him too, and maybe more, maybe more than she had ever loved Christian. Then she felt guilty for trying to quantify her love for either man, comparing two people who had no right to be compared. The guilt was weighing on her shoulders and she didn't need this right now.

"You know, you're probably making too big a deal out of this," Chris told her. "Just some advice from a friend."

"You think so?" she asked. "Deciding who I love, who I want to be with, possibly forever, that's not a big deal to you?"

"No, it's not, relationships are always going to be fragile and growing, evolving," he said to her. "I think that you think this is the last great obstacle that you're going to have, you choose a guy, you get with said guy and then it's over. I think that you think that this is the final decision, choose this, get everything."

"I don't think that," she protested stubbornly, but beneath her petulance lied a shred of truth. Maybe this was the final decision, the decision of the man she would spend her life with. She was going to make it and it would be over, forever, maybe…

"Yes you do," he laughed. "I think that Stephanie thought it when we got together, and for it worked out, but our relationship changes all the time. We're way different now than we were when we first started dating when all we did was scheme and have sex. Now we're committed and we have a kid together, as evidenced right here in my arms," he pointed to Sawyer, "you think that if you get with Christian, it's going to be the same as it was before, he's going to leave or he's going to screw up and you're going to get hurt. And then you think with Carlito it's all going to be a bed of roses and you should get married after being together for like three months, I wasn't even ready to marry Stephanie until we'd been together a year, and we had known each other for like 3 years before that point. Relationships change."

"How did you get to be so smart?" she wondered.

"Stephanie gave me this speech and told me to come talk to you. She had a lot of work to do and I'm just reiterating her point right now. I had time because Vince is angry and he's taking over the show and Stephanie is trying to calm him down."

* * *

"Daddy, no, I don't think that you should book yourself in a match tonight," Stephanie said, trailing her irate father. She was trying to keep up with him, but he was walking way too fast for her in these damn heels. 

"Thinks he can show me up, thinks he can come to Raw and just be on the show, that's fine, I'll just make him join the Kiss my Ass Club, that's what I'll do," he said, his eyes lighting up.

"Oh, gross, Daddy, that's disgusting," Stephanie protested, "Why don't you just let me take care of the show for you, and you can just relax and not think about this thing for a whole week? I'll just take care of everything, you know that I'm good at that, right Daddy?"

"I know that you're good," he snapped and she winced and wished that she had Sawyer with her right now. Lord knew that Sawyer was one of the three things that always calmed Vince down, the other two being Declan and Kenyon. Vince had a definite soft spot for his grandsons and Stephanie longed for her baby right now to calm her father down. She was too old and not new enough to bat her eyelashes and be Daddy's Little Girl. "I just want to show him that I run the things around here."

"Yes, we all know this, Daddy, but you hired me to do this for you. You hired me to run the show and you're the one who's running around."

"He's going to kiss my ass."

Stephanie just sighed.

* * *

"I feel sorry for her," Chris chuckled. "I can only imagine what Vince is saying to her right now. You know, I should probably go see if she's okay. But seriously, Trish, deciding who you want to be with now, it's not going be the be-all, end-all of your life."

"You're right," she said. "I may not even last even if I do choose."

"Exactly," he told her. "You know, nothing is ever set in stone. Stephanie and I, we could end up divorced by the end of this year, we don't know. We just do what we can to be who we are, and those are words from me and not from my lesser half."

"Only you would call her your lesser half," Trish joked.

Stephanie rushed into the room breathlessly, hands on her knees, Chris looked up at her in worry, "Baby, what's wrong, did something happen?"

"I need Sawyer," she said, out of breath.

"Why?"

"My dad is being an asshole and Sawyer is the only person in the building who can calm him down. I'd use Declan or Kenyon, but they're not here, so I'm stuck. Sawyer, put on the charm, baby, because we have to go calm Grandpa down."

"I was just telling Trish what you told me about relationships," Chris told her.

"Oh," Stephanie said, taking Sawyer from Chris's lap and replacing it with herself. Chris groaned a little at the weight, but adjusted quickly as Stephanie got comfortable. "We're right, Trish, relationships evolve, they're not easy."

"Is this your guy's way of saying that you think I should be with Christian?" She secretly hoped that they would tell her what to do. If she was told what to do, that would make her life so much easier. It was just easier to have someone say you should do something and then it if goes badly, you have a scapegoat. But deciding things on your own just meant that if it did go wrong, she would have to own up to her mistake.

"No way," Stephanie said. "We are not deciding anything for you. You are deciding on your own. It's bad enough that we know, it's going to make for very awkward conversations with both Carlito and Christian. Why couldn't this be about guys who we're not friends with, you know like, John Cena or Randy Orton or something?"

"Because life is never that simple," Trish said, laughing for the first time. "And like I'd ever be attracted to John Cena, I like my guys not posers, thanks very much."

"Ouch," Chris said as he rubbed Stephanie's back. "We're not going to influence your decision, Trish, but do you really think it's the best idea to avoid Carlito like you have all night. Does he even know that you're here?"

"No," she said sheepishly. "I told him that I was going to go visit my sister this week because my niece was in the spelling bee, I'm awful, aren't I?"

"A little," Stephanie conceded. "I think I saw him with Torrie earlier…yeah, I did see them, he has a six-man tag match. He might have already had it actually." She looked at her watch and thought the match had already started.

Which it had. Carlito was just hanging around Torrie because Torrie was hanging around him. She was tough to get rid of. After his match had ended, he was pretty sure that she wanted to get in the shower _with_ him, which understandably made him uncomfortable. She was kind of like a leech who would latch herself onto him and it was really hard to get her off without her hurting him.

"So where's Trish?" Torrie finally asked, since he had demanded silence before his match, to which she had accompanied him.

Still a little peeved about his match, he snapped, "She's not here."

"Oh," Torrie said, rightly chastised. "But…where is she? Is she at the hotel?" She was trying to sound a little bit nice about the entire thing, so as not to have him think ill of her, but she really just wanted that bitch out of the picture like…yesterday. She had also seen Trish sneaking around backstage earlier, so she was going to exploit that to the best of her ability because it seemed that Carlito didn't even know she was in the building.

"She went to see her sister in Toronto," Carlito said. "That's where she's going to be all week."

"Really, is that so," Torrie said, tapping her chin and acting surprised. "Because, I could've sworn I saw her earlier. I mean, maybe my eyes were playing tricks on me, but I swear, I thought it was her."

"Here, you saw her here?" he asked, staring at her like he was going to read her mind. "But she's not even in the state. She's in Canada."

"I swear it looked like her," Torrie told him. "I think that she was going into Chris's office, at least that's the impression I was under. I wonder what she was doing going in there…with him…do you think…oh my God, could there be something going on between them?" She feigned incredulity about that.

Carlito turned towards her and gave her a harsh look that stopped her in her tracks. "If you honestly think that about Chris Jericho, then you should actually talk to the man. He loves his wife."

"Oh…okay," Torrie said, obviously hitting a nerve that she hadn't meant to hit. "I was just…I think it was her."

Carlito walked out without a word, and she was starting to regret her decision to say that about Trish if it elicited such a reaction from him. She had only wanted to make him suspicious, but that had definitely backfired. She just wished she knew what would break this man down. He didn't need Trish, he could do just fine with her, but it was like he was Trish's little puppy-dog, wagging his tail and following her around like she was the only person in the world that he could see. It sickened her; she wanted him for herself and Trish was ruining it all.

Carlito went to Chris's office and he opened the door without knocking and he was shocked to see that Trish was there, talking with Chris and Stephanie. She gasped audibly when she saw him and got up. He shook his head and she looked to Chris and Stephanie, who had no words to say, having them get caught in their throats. She was tempted to pull the same tactic that Stephanie and Chris always pulled, which was to grab Sawyer and hold him out in front of her face to defer the attention away from her. But she doubted that it would work with Carlito since he wasn't a big baby guy.

"Carlito…"

"What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to…surprise you," she said, extending her arms. "You completely ruined the surprise. I was going to come find you when I knew that you had showered and gotten dressed. My niece's spelling bee got cancelled for some reason because there was a flu outbreak in the school and a few of the competitors are going to miss it, so I decided to fly down here to Iowa and see you…so…surprise!"

It was lame, she knew that, but she acted on Raw, she could act right now. And as the smile was borne onto his face, she knew that he had bought it. Stephanie rolled her eyes towards Chris and he laughed and kissed her softly. Carlito went and hugged Trish and she hugged him back, knowing that she loved this feeling. She just had to remember this feeling. If she could remember this feeling, it was easier to think that she belonged with Carlito.

"This is a great surprise," Carlito told her. "Torrie told me that she saw you and I didn't believe her, but here you are. We can go out to dinner or something, do you want to go?"

"Actually, I was talking with Chris and Stephanie about something important, you know, it's like, well, I just have…"

"Chris and I were thinking about getting matching tattoos and Trish was trying to tell us that it was a dumb idea, but…I'm not so sure, I think that it solidifies a relationship, you know the long haul and what not." Chris held in his snicker at Stephanie's horrible lie and she elbowed him in the stomach. He grunted from the air being pushing out of his lungs and instead decided to focus on Sawyer. Sawyer couldn't talk and he didn't have a love life, except for loving his Mommy and being a Mama's boy. But that was something that Chris could work with.

Sawyer sat there, alternately chewing on his right hand while pulling at Stephanie's blouse with the other, fascinated by the buttons on it since he didn't have any of his toys with him. Chris looked to Sawyer and made a funny face, which Sawyer tried to emulate. Stephanie glared at him back to seriousness and stuck his tongue out to Sawyer, letting him know that Mommy was being annoying.

"Tattoos are cool," Chris said when he realized that Stephanie was looking at him for help and not because he shouldn't be playing with Sawyer.

"Do you have _any_ tattoos?" Carlito asked.

Chris chuckled and answered, "Uh…no, but I've heard things…"

"Me too," Stephanie said, "and we would get them in places that nobody looks." Chris looked at her a little disgustedly, thinking about where a tattoo would go where nobody got to see, and only thinking of a few places. Stephanie shrugged helplessly.

"I can meet you…back at the hotel," she said.

"Okay, I'm going to go catch dinner with Torrie," he said, wondering if she was going to blow up again. It was more than obvious that Trish hated Torrie and likewise, so he was wondering if she would refuse.

"Oh yeah, okay, have fun," she said distractedly, her only intent to be to get him out of here. She just needed to not see him right now, she just needed him to not be here because he was going to confuse her already muddled brain, and that was the last thing that she needed. She wanted to push him out the door and tell him to let her think for herself. He couldn't influence her decision, if there was a decision to be had.

"Are you okay, Trish?" he asked, calling her out on it. "Because you're acting strange or something. Normally you would hate it if I were to go out with Torrie, but now you don't care."

"I'm sorry, I'm just still jet-lagged. I cannot stand Torrie, but you have to eat, right? I wouldn't deny you food, Lito, come on, what kind of wife do you think I'd make if I never let my husband eat?"

"Not a very good one," he said, glad that her mood had improved. He leaned down to kiss her, and ignored the feeling of her not really kissing him back as intensely as she usually did. He just chalked it up to that pesky jet-lag. He pulled away, looking sheepish when he remembered that Chris and Stephanie were still in the room. "You'll come to my room tonight, right?"

"Yeah," she nodded vigorously, "yeah, definitely."

"Good, you know what room it is, right? I called you this morning to tell you what it was."

"I remember," she said, tapping her head. He gave her one last parting kiss and she watched him go before turning to Chris and Stephanie. "I'm advising you on whether or not you're going to get matching tattoos!"

"I was thinking we'd go with bees," Stephanie said. "Because we're as sweet as honey."

"You guys sicken me," Trish said. "Thanks for all the help back there."

"You're welcome," Chris said. Trish looked like she was going to breathe fire on him. He scoffed and looked at her. "We're not the ones who are running from our boyfriends."

"You have a boyfriend?" Stephanie asked.

"No, I'm talking about your boyfriend," Chris said. "You know, blond guy, totally hot, great in bed."

"Oh, Edge, okay, yeah, I know what you're talking about now."

"Okay, you guys have the cutesy banter down, how about cooling it while the blonde _girl_ over here has a conniption fit."

"Trish, avoiding Carlito isn't going to make the problem disappear. He's going to get suspicious and then he's going to want to know what's wrong, and are you prepared to confess what you feel? Do you think that you could tell him that now you're wavering? Because this is the reason why he broke up with you in the first place, he gave you an out, you didn't take it, and now you're reneging on the entire thing. That's not cool to play with his heart, Trish."

"I'm not playing with his heart," Trish argued. "I just don't know who or what I want."

"And then with you not showing up yesterday, I think Christian felt like you couldn't be in the same room as him," Stephanie said.

"I got that vibe after he told me that he hoped he hadn't driven you away," Chris added.

"He thought that?"

"Yeah, he did, he tried not to act like he was hurt by it, but he was hurt by it, Trish. I know that you're in a bad position right now, but someone is going to get hurt, and the longer you play this out, the more someone is going to get hurt. And I don't want either of them hurt that badly."

"I don't want to hurt either one. I just can't get past what Christian did for me, it was just so selfless, I never expected it to be in him like that."

"Really? Because I think that it's always been in Christian's personality. I just think that you forgot that in the aftermath of all the hurt that he put upon you. It's not supposed to be easy, Trish. I couldn't even tell anyone about my relationship with Chris for almost two years. That's a long time. It's supposed to be a struggle, that's what we're made for. The good things never come easy. I hated this man for years."

"Yeah, I think she put out a hit on me once," Chris said.

"Thanks you guys, you're invaluable," she said sarcastically. "I'm going to head out and see if I can call Christian. I just need to talk to him, and then I'm going to find Carlito."

"Don't toe the line too hard," Chris told her.

Trish smiled and left and Stephanie let out a breath of relief. Being the friend of someone in crisis was hard. She had had to pull out the big guns, the "sympathetic friend" card if you will. "You know, I'm just so glad that we're past all that drama. I'm glad that we don't have to worry about love triangles or dating, or finding the perfect person for you. I've never been so happy to be off-the-market."

"Alright!" Chris said, high-fiving Sawyer. "Did you hear that, kid? For once, I make Mommy's life easier, mission accomplished!"

"Yeah, but then he just makes it hard again," Stephanie said to Chris about Sawyer. "But seriously, I am glad there is no drama like they have, I just think it's all so unnecessary. She's just going to choose who she feels like choosing and then two months down the line, she's going to be waffling again. I think we should get her drunk, pick one of the guys for her and then get them married and she can't waffle around anymore."

"Solid plan, but which one do we choose?"

"Let's flip a coin."

Trish found an empty hallway and grabbed her cell phone. It wasn't like she completely needed privacy when she was talking with Christian, but she wanted it to be in private. She hadn't been able to hide her being her tonight thanks to that whore, Torrie, but she sure as hell could keep her phone conversations private. So long as Torrie wasn't in the ceiling or air vents or something. She looked up just to make sure before she dialed Christian's number, knowing where it was on the list by heart.

"Trish, hey," Christian said after looking at the display on the phone. "I haven't talked to you in a while. I was hoping to see you yesterday, but you didn't show."

"Yeah, I had things I needed to do, I'm sorry that I missed you," she told him honestly. She was worry that she missed him. Maybe if she was around Christian and saw him up close, she could put away this rather silly crush that she had on him. She laughed silently. She wished she could just call this a crush, and then be done with it, but that would be too simple, and her life was now complicated beyond words, why try to make sense of it now?

"Yeah, me too, I was hoping that you would be there, I was kind of crushed you weren't, I had to watch Chris and Stephanie act like idiots all afternoon, it wasn't fun, granted Hunter was able to come up and he brought Victoria. I think he was getting really bored from the rehab."

"That's good that he's up and about though," Trish said, deferring how he was kind of crushed not to see her. "But I was just busy, I guess time ran away from me or something."

"You sound weird, is everything okay?"

Okay, so that was points to both men for noticing that she was acting funny. At least they both seemed to know her moods. Not that this was a test or anything, because this wasn't the kind of thing you put two guys to the test to do. Yet, it did bode well for both of them that they were so concerned about her. Add that to the pile of reasons why she couldn't decide between the two. If only she had one guy, like Stephanie had Chris, and that was it, there were no other takers or claimers. Life would be a walk in the park if one of them would just leave her life.

That wouldn't be true though, because both guys had a piece of her heart, and that made it even harder because they did have her heart, and they both had different parts so she was even more torn. "I'm okay, Christian, how are you?"

"I'm good, you just sound like you have something on your mind, do you want to talk about it, I'm not doing anything."

"I'm sure you're doing _something_," she told him. "I mean, I wouldn't want to bother you with my stupid problems. You can't possibly want that."

"I can and I do, some come on and spill. I want to know, we're friends now, this is what friends do, they gossip and if you were here, I'd be doing your hair and you could give me a pedicure and then we'd have a pillow fight, it'd be very girly."

She giggled, but then got serious, "Really, Christian, you don't want to know."

He turned serious too, "Even if it has to do with Carlito, I'm willing to listen, believe me. I want to be there for you Trish, if only as a friend, it kind of helps ease things for me, it's helping me find a niche."

"It does have to do with Carlito…and you," she added, almost so quietly that he didn't hear her.

"Did you guys have another fight over me? Because if you really need me to stop calling you, I will in a heartbeat…just say the word…"

"I know you'd that for me," she told him, and she smiled as she turned to face the wall, closing herself off to everything around her. "I don't need you to do that though. I just…I need you."

"What?" he asked, dumbfounded. Three words had knocked him out, he was down for the count, the referee was hovering over him, lifting his arm and watching it fall lifelessly to the mat.

"I'm confused, Christian, about Carlito, about you, about us, me, him, everything, I don't know what it means, I don't know what _we_ mean, but I just needed you to know right now that I feel something. After what you did with me and Carlito, I felt something for you and it was something I hadn't felt in a while, and I needed you to know that. I needed to be upfront with you because we were never upfront with each other and I hated it. So I'm telling you now, Carlito was right, I do have feelings for you."

"Don't lie to me, Trish, please, not about this," he said, his voice cracking with emotion. There was light at the end of the tunnel, he could see it becoming brighter now.

"I'm not, trust me, I'm not," she told him. "But I love Carlito too, but I needed to come clean, just once, okay, it's nothing set in stone, I need time, I need to think, but I needed you to know that there was something."

"God…thank you," he told her. "You have no idea…just…thank you so much, Trish, I…I don't know what to say."

"I'm going to go now, okay Chrissy, is that okay? I need to talk to Lito," she told him.

"Yeah, go ahead," he said, still too stunned. Trish needed to talk to Carlito and she knew that it would break his heart, but it wasn't like she had made her choice. She hadn't. She went to his hotel, but he wasn't there yet so she sat outside his door. He came a while later and saw her sitting there. He knelt next to her and tapped her on the shoulder, smiling, but that smile faded when she looked up.

"Something's wrong," he said plainly, just stating the obvious.

"You have no idea," Trish said. "Lito, I need to tell you something."

"Yeah?" he said, the nerves already crashing in him.

"When you told me I still loved Christian, I didn't believe you. I should've, I still have feelings for him, what they are, I don't know, but they're there, and you needed to know. I love you too, though, and I'm confused, so if you can be patient with me and give me time…"

"Yeah, sure, whatever," he said, and it was too quickly. "Look, we probably shouldn't see each other then…"

"Lito, no…" she pleaded, "I don't want you to think that I'm just going to jump into his arms, I'm not, I just need a chance to think, really think. I hopped from him to you, and I didn't get a chance to think, and I just…"

"Think all you want, get back to me when you make a choice."


	125. Heh, Vince Bald, February 12, 2007

A/N: Sorry this is up tonight, but well, Raw wasn't on in the US until tonight, so I guess you had to wait and I hope it didn't disappoint. Also, I'm having this actually take place on Monday, so leave a review, pretty please with Chris Jericho on top. Enjoy :)

* * *

Chris and Stephanie's heads snapped towards each other, their eyes widening simultaneously. Stephanie's father, Chris's father-in-law had just agreed to be in a hair vs. hair match as managers, respectively. Now Chris had spent years making fun of Vince's hair, sometimes to the point where Stephanie would be crying from laughing so hard. But now he had put that on the line. Stephanie pictured her father totally bald like Austin and she started laughing.

"Shut up," Chris hissed. "If your dad comes back here and he sees you laughing, he's going to fire you!"

"I can't stop!" Stephanie said, holding her stomach. "Picture it, Chris, picture it!"

Chris tried very hard not to, thinking of anything and everything under the sun, but the image settled in his brain and he started to snicker, trying valiantly to hold in his laughter. He was about to break when Donald Trump came backstage. He walked over and smiled genially at Stephanie and she stood up and shook his hand.

"Stephanie, long time, no see," he told her. "I hope you've been well."

"Yes, Mr. Trump, I have, and how is your family?" she asked, trying to be nice, even though now she was picturing him with no hair, and that was another funny image.

"Very well, thank you," he said, then turned towards Chris, who was holding Sawyer in his lap. "Is this your son?"

"Yes, this is Sawyer," Stephanie told him. "And my husband, Chris."

"Nice to meet you, we spoke over the phone," Chris added, reaching out to shake Donald's hand.

"Ahh yes, I remember now, how old is your son?"

"He's nine months," she answered. She was about to gush about her son when Vince stalked backstage and saw his daughter and son-in-law speaking with his enemy. He walked quickly to the threesome and stood his ground.

"Get away from my family, Trump," Vince said angrily.

"I was just talking to your daughter."

"You stay away from them," he told him. "I won't have you trying to bribe them or something, because I wouldn't put it past you to do that, you can just leave the premise before I call security on you."

Vince stood there as Trump shrugged and walked away. Vince stared after him as Stephanie sat down slowly, wondering if her father was going to spontaneously combust any time soon. He looked so angry and put out, but then, why shouldn't he? He had been called out on his own show and practically forced into a match that she knew he didn't want to be in. Yes, this was a tricky situation right now, luckily she and Chris had a secret weapon, and had had one for the last nine months and conceivably for the next thirteen years or so.

"Can you believe the nerve of that man?" Vince scoffed, turning to his family. "He just comes in here like he can run everything, like he's suddenly the man and he thinks he can upstage _me_, Vince McMahon, who does he think he is?"

Chris wanted to say that they were both blowing a bunch of hot air, but with the way Vince was acting right now, he knew that would be the absolute wrong thing to say. Instead he said, "I think he thinks he's Donald Trump so he can pretty much own everything in the building."

"Sounds familiar," Stephanie said, glancing over at Chris and smirking. He rolled his eyes at her and she looked to her father and the smile dropped from her face as he stared sternly at her.

"And just what is that supposed to mean, Stephanie?"

"Nothing, Dad, I'm just saying that you can dish it, but you can't take it, that's all," she explained.

"Well, this is my show, is it not?" he inquired.

She nodded. "It is your show, Daddy," she told him, putting on the charm, "but I'm just saying that if you want to be able to compete with him, you can't take it sitting down, right, Chris, he should fight back, right?"

"I'm not getting involved with any of this," he said. "I don't want to have anything to do with this, don't even put my name on this match."

"Well, I was thinking that you could be the wrestler that I represent," Vince told him, rubbing his chin. "I think that you would be a worthy candidate, and I think that you could be any and all people that he could possibly pick."

Chris guffawed and rubbed his hand over his face. "Vince, I thought we've been over this…"

"Yeah, Chris, why can't you?" Stephanie asked, turning to him. "You know, you could be in my father's corner. That would pretty much mean he wouldn't get his head shaved, you're the best in the business, nobody can even touch you."

"I thought I went over this with _you_ too," Chris said, turning to her. "Stephanie, we've discussed this at length. I'm not ready to come back. I realized that when I left, I was burnt out, I needed some time away. Plus you were pregnant, and Sawyer is still just a baby--"

"Yeah, and that would be different if you were a wrestler and I was just a wrestler's wife. Then yeah, I can understand you not coming back and wanting to spend time with your family, but we are your family and Sawyer is here all the time with you," she pointed out, literally pointing to Sawyer. "I don't understand…"

"Steph…Vince, I'm not ready to come back, and I'm just learning the ropes here with what I do, being a guy back here, you know, with recruiting and training and pulling up guys. I feel like I'm still a rookie at running the business, and you aren't going to be running the business forever, and I want to do this business proud."

"You can still wrestle," Stephanie told him.

Chris glared at her, "Stephanie, I'm not getting into this with you right now."

"I do think you would make a good representative on my side," Vince added.

"Look, you two, I don't know how thick those McMahon skulls are, but the fact of the matter is that I'm not coming back right now, that's it, end of discussion!" Chris snapped, standing up with Sawyer and walking off. Stephanie narrowed her eyes as she watched him walk away. Her lips turned down into a frown as she looked at her father.

"You just had to talk, didn't you, Dad?" she told him.

Vince looked at her incredulously, "Stephanie, I think you need to talk to your husband."

"Like I'm going to take marriage advice from you," she grumbled as she stood up to go follow her husband. She didn't know why things that had to do with him getting in the ring were so sensitive. It was like he didn't even want to talk about it at all and she just couldn't wrap her mind around any solid reason why he wouldn't want to even consider the possibility of coming back and helping her father at the very least.

She wondered if going after him was the best idea right now. She, like Chris, sometimes needed time to think about things. She knew that going to see him right now might end up in a bigger fight and she didn't need that, she thought, as she rubbed her temples. But on the other hand, she wasn't one to let certain things lie. She contemplated for a moment later before walking faster. She just made it around the corner in time to see Chris and Sawyer heading outside. She sucked at her teeth a little, it was cold outside and Sawyer was a baby. She followed them out there and saw Chris sitting on the curb outside with Sawyer in front of him, and remembered that he was wearing a long-sleeved shirt that night.

"What do you want, Steph?" Chris asked without even turning around.

"I just want to understand," she told him. "I want to know why you won't come back, please tell me, Chris, I think it's wonderful that my dad wants you to be in his corner, don't you think so?"

"Well maybe I don't think it's wonderful, did you ever think of that?" he shot back, still not looking at her as he, instead, watched Sawyer stomp in place.

"But why?" she pleaded to know.

"Why does it matter? Can't I have some privacy at all, when was it decided that I couldn't have any privacy, huh? Why do you have to know every, little thing about me, is it okay not to have you know everything about me? Sometimes I think I deserve a little privacy."

"Um…no, I don't think that you do, I think that you forfeited that a long time ago," she said. "I demand to know."

"Well you have no right to know!" he snapped at her again, angrier this time, and she was having none of it. She went right over and snatched Sawyer from his grasp and held him to her, startling the little boy, who had been happy to show off his stomping to his daddy. "What the hell are you doing?"

"I'm taking _my_ son back inside where it's warm," she told him. "If you aren't so willing to share what's going on inside your head, I'm not going to share what grew inside of my body."

"What? That just doesn't make any sense, he's my son too, I can have him if I want to," Chris told her, standing up and taking Sawyer from her arms and holding him. Sawyer looked between the both of them, confused. He had never really seen them fight before, and he had become quite the keen observer of behavior. He could already emulate a high-five.

"I carried him," she said, taking him back. "So if you don't want to talk, then don't talk to either of us. We'll just get our own room tonight."

"You're being unreasonable."

She scoffed and turned to face him again. "Are you kidding me with that? You think that I'm being unreasonable. I'm your wife, Chris, your _wife_, the person you pledged your eternal love to, you don't keep secrets from me. Sue me for thinking that it would be great for you to come back, sue me for wanting everyone to be rooting for my husband, sue me for wanting Sawyer to see why I fell in love with his father, but whatever, if that's the way you want to play this game, well, I'm good at games."

Chris rubbed the back of his neck, "Fine, you want to know everything about me!"

"Yes!" she shouted at him, again, startling Sawyer, but this time, he started to whimper. She rubbed his back as he leaned his head against her shoulder, playing with the collar of her blouse.

"For the first time in a long time, I'm not waking up in pain," Chris told her. "I wake up, and everything feels good, I feel good, like a normal person. I've put a lot of wear and tear onto this body, and I feel good right now, and I just…I want to enjoy this time with Sawyer before I go back to the ring and end up being sore and not being able to play with him. I love the ring, Steph, but I don't love it more than I love my son, and I'm sorry, but that's how I feel. I didn't want to tell you because I know you'd hate to hear I was in pain and you'd make me go to the doctor or something, and I know that another part of you is so anxious for me to go out there and wrestle, but that's it…"

"Well…you didn't need to hide that," she said, hugging him. "I'm sorry I didn't let you keep your secrets. I'm glad you aren't in pain. I don't want you in pain, ever…I mean, you look at what it did to…Kurt…"

"That's exactly why I didn't want to tell you."

"You haven't been taking painkillers all this time, have you?" she asked, worried because she didn't want another scene like the one she had experienced with Kurt. She didn't want to relive that moment ever, confronting someone you loved with something so dark.

"No, I didn't, and it was hard because sometimes I'd wake up in a lot of pain, but I'm not experiencing that now and I just want to enjoy being a father and being a hopefully good businessman," Chris told her, running his index finger down his wife's cheek and letting it trail to her jaw. "I want to enjoy what I have right now and not jump into that whole addiction that is wrestling."

"Okay, I understand…for now," Stephanie added quickly. "I want you back in that ring, but…I guess I can wait for it to be on your terms, even though I don't see why one match wouldn't hurt, one tiny match for my father's honor."

"You mean your father's hair," Chris corrected as he wrapped his arm around Stephanie's waist. "I'll think about it, is that good enough for you?"

"Thank you, I just…one match," she pouted. Chris took a step forward and leaned down to kiss her softly. She deepened the kiss and moaned slightly against his mouth as he pulled her ever closer, trying not to crush his son, but wanting to feel his wife's body pressed into his. She fit so perfectly against him, and he loved how they were like puzzle pieces, the only trouble was that they had a little piece in the middle of them that didn't quite fit at the moment.

"Sawyer…" Chris whispered against her mouth.

"Damn it," Stephanie giggled as she pulled away. "Sawyer, seriously, sometimes you cramp our style."

"Yeah, he can be a mood killer," Chris said, taking her from him and setting him on the ground. He stood for a few moments, which he was getting better at, before he started to totter around and Chris grabbed his hands. He bounced him towards the door where Stephanie followed, giving Chris a friendly pat on the ass. He looked over at her and she blinked innocently. They headed inside where they saw Vince again and Chris looked over at Stephanie once again in exasperation. "We're never escaping him."

"Don't worry, we'll just go with Plan S."

"Oh, so did you two work things out?" Vince asked. "And have you thought more about the offer, Chris?"

"Oh, Dad, we'd love to stay and chat, but I've got to feed Sawyer and then I've got more work to do, thank you so much for overseeing what I was doing while I talked to Chris, but Sawyer is really getting whiny and he's hungry, aren't you, baby boy?" she said, looking down at her son. He looked up at his grandpa with his big, blue eyes, so innocent and sweet, and Stephanie was so glad she had a baby.

"Okay, well, we'll talk later, I'm sure," Vince said to them, nodding as they walked down the hallway.

"Wow, Plan S always works," Chris said. "Do you think your dad will figure out that we're going to California tomorrow so we can stay at our house?"

"Who cares?" Stephanie said as she pushed the door open to her office. Chris set Sawyer down on the couch and Stephanie sat down next to him. "High five Sawyer for being the best part of Plan S." Sawyer held up his hand when he saw Stephanie holding her arm up, emulating her as she reached out and gave him a high five.

She saw Chris get up and root for something in one of his bags and he came back with something wrapped up. She looked up at his questioningly while he smiled and thrust the gift over to her. She looked down at the prettily wrapped gift, a box with pure white wrapping and red and pink ribbons crisscrossing over the top of it. She pursed her lips and looked up at him again.

"What's this? It better not be what I think it is…"

"It's a Valentine's Day gift, from Sawyer and me, to you," he said. "I know it's not for another few days, but we couldn't wait. We think that it should be worn before Valentine's Day, right kid?" Sawyer babbled and clapped his hands together as he looked at his mommy.

"I hate Valentine's Day, you know this, in the past four Valentine's Days we've spent together, I've never, not once wanted to celebrate that ridiculous holiday. I hate it, I hate that we're supposed to love someone just a little bit more on that particular day," she spouted off, going into a rant.

"Just open it, will you?" he told her. "I think you'll like it."

"And if I don't, can I burn it?" she asked.

He rolled his eyes and looked to Sawyer for support. "Yeah, if you hate it, then by all means, burn it, get smoke into our son's lungs, that'd be just perfect," he told her, sarcasm dripping from his voice.

"Fine, fine, I'm opening it," she said, pulling off the ribbons and ripping the paper. She opened the box and then laughed as she looked up at Chris.

"Are you going to burn it?" he asked.

"No, I'm not going to burn it," she said, looking down at the bib that said, "I hate Valentine's Day" on it. "I like it, really, can we put it on him?"

"Yeah, sure, he's bib-ready," Chris said as Stephanie hooked the bib onto him.

"You look very handsome, Sawyer," Stephanie observed. "And you can share the same sentiment as me and Daddy."

"Well, I don't hate the day like you do, I'm just grateful I have a wife who hates is so that I don't have to spend a ton of money on you."

"Well, the sentiment is there, Valentine's Day sucks."

Carlito was pacing his locker room while Torrie watched. "How dare Flair say that shit to me! How dare he call me out like that! Who the hell does he think he is!"

"I don't know," Torrie said.

"Did you hear him talking about how I had my head between my legs, that I had no guts, he thinks I have no guts, can you believe that?"

"No, I can't," Torrie mimicked, sounding like a parrot, just repeating what he wanted to hear.

"No guts, no _guts_! I have a ton of guts and I've put myself out there," he said and he was unconscious to the fact that part of this wasn't really about Flair at all, but it was about a blonde woman that he loved. "I put everything out there, everything and just…everything was out there…"

"I know, Carlito…"

"And then he calls me out, says that I don't have the heart, I have heart, no, I have no heart, my heart…she has my heart," he said brokenly, "She has my heart and I gave it to her and she took it away and now I'm…I knew it, I knew that she was still in love with him, and I'm so stupid…"

_This_ was where Torrie could step in. She stood up and went and wrapped her arm around his shoulder. "You shouldn't put up with her crap. You should just forget her, let her take Christian, she deserves a scumbag like him. You're too good for her, don't you get that Carlito, you're way too good for her. She doesn't even deserve to look at you."

"Whatever," he mumbled.

"No, listen to me, you are such a good man, and nobody gives you enough credit for that. Not Flair and certainly not Trish. I just hate what she's done to you, it's like she had this all planned out and she's messing with you and you deserve better than that, you deserve someone who is going to treat you like the only man that matters," she said, hoping to hint at herself. "Let her go…"

"You don't know how hard that is."

Meanwhile, on the other side of the country, Trish was nervously walking up the pathway to a house still somewhat unfamiliar to her. She knocked on the door and cleared her throat as she waited. Christian opened the door and she smiled softly. He invited her in and as soon as she had crossed the doorway, he hugged her.

"I'm really glad you came," he told her.

"Thanks for making dinner, that's really sweet of you," Trish told him.

"Not a problem, it's only spaghetti and meatballs with garlic bread, nothing fancy," he said sheepishly. "I didn't want to go for something fancy."

"That's fine," she giggled. "I'm really glad that you wanted to see me. I just…I know that I've put you in a difficult position here, what with me telling you that I still…that there are feelings lingering."

"Look, we don't need to talk about--"

"No, we do," she insisted. "It'll just be hanging in the air if we don't. I'm glad I told you what I was feeling, you deserved to know. You've been in my life, you've _been_ my life for so long, Christian, and I thought I could get over you if I had someone else, but it's not that easy, it's never been that easy getting over you."

"Likewise," he told her. "I understand the jam that you're in though, Trish, and I support any and all decisions that you make. If you don't choose me, if you don't want to be with me, I understand, and I'll move on. I _can_ do that, you know?"

"I know," she answered easily, smiling softly at him. "I wish Carlito could be the same way, but I know why he's so upset. He saw this coming and he tried to stop it and…now look, I'm torn between the two of you, I should just choose myself."

"We don't live in 90210," he pointed out.

"Nice reference," she told him. "I know he doesn't understand, but I hope in time that he does. I just need to work this out myself. I have to do this myself because it's my life, you know, and that sounds so selfish, huh?"

"A little," he gave up, "but I think that it's okay. You've been through a lot, for all intents and purposes, you should be Mrs. Trish Colón, and not still Trish Stratus."

"Trish Cage sounds good too," she pointed out.

"It does," he said softly, "It really does."

Stephanie couldn't be found. Chris had taken care of feeding Sawyer while Stephanie went back to work and now his son had a full stomach and he wanted to see his wife. He was walking down the hallways when Candice, of all people, had to come up to him and gush at Sawyer and how cute he was. She took one look at his bib and looked up at Chris.

"He hates Valentine's Day, but why?"

"Because Stephanie and I don't like it," he told her.

"That's not good, it's so romantic," Candice said. "Don't you think?"

"No."

"You shouldn't make your baby wear that," she said to him. "It's not very nice to all the people who like the day, you know? You shouldn't be so bias."

"I'm not being bias," he said. "It's just something we believe."

"Yo, Chris!" Carlito said, rushing up to him. "I can't stay long, my match is coming up, but do you know where Trish is, she isn't answering her phone and I've been trying to get a hold of her. Do you know where she might be?"

"I don't know, man," Chris said. "Try again, she might just not hear it. Why are you calling her though, I thought you were mad at her, last time I checked you were mad at her."

"I am…but I just want to talk to her, I need to hear her voice."

"Oh, well, definitely, try again."

"Thanks," he waved. "I'll try after my match."

Chris felt bad for lying to his friend. He knew that Christian and Trish were going to have dinner together. Or at least that's what Stephanie told him, and that's what Trish had told Stephanie. So it was second-hand information, but he wondered if maybe "eating dinner" was just code for "we're going to have sex," which was why he was so hesitant to even bring it up with Carlito. If Trish and Christian were sleeping together, again, Carlito might just want to wave goodbye to his relationship with Trish. Sleeping with someone just put in too many strings that were too easily tangled. And Christian and Trish would definitely get tangled up, they usually did, and he didn't want Carlito to get burned by it, which he probably would anyways.

He wandered around again before hearing Stephanie's laughter coming from somewhere. He stopped and listened, hearing it again, but not being able to pinpoint just where it was coming from. He stood again and listened and finally turned right and went up to one of the doors where production was set up. He opened it up, sticking his head in and saw Stephanie cracking up at something one of the production guys was doing. He walked in a little further and hearing the noise, she turned.

"Oh, hey sweetie, come here and see what David made," she told him, waving him over. He went over and saw that he was fooling around with Photoshop and had made Vince look bald. Stephanie cracked up again and covered her mouth briefly before she snorted in hysterics. "Is that not hilarious?"

Chris had a hard time holding it in while being presented with the actual picture of this. "Okay, now I _have_ to see this. Now I want to be in this match so I can throw it and watch your dad get his head shaved. If he looks like that, I want to see it."

"You're so cruel," Stephanie giggled. "Oh man, okay, no, he's my father, I shouldn't want him humiliated."

"Sawyer's birth…"

"Okay, so I want him a little humiliated," she admitted with a laugh. "David, you have to print out a picture of this for me. You _have _to."

Trish settled herself on the sofa in Christian's living room, glass of wine in her hand. Christian was nursing a beer as they turned on a movie. They were sitting an appropriate distance apart, but they were still close enough so it wasn't totally awkward. Trish was having fun, feeling very relaxed, but it always felt relaxed when things were good with Christian. She felt very safe right now, and warm, and just at home, but this could be a definite friendly feeling and not like a loving feeling.

"How do you know we aren't just meant to be friends?" Trish asked him, tearing him away from the television screen.

"What?"

"How do you know we aren't just kidding ourselves and we're really only supposed to be friends, but we're trying to push our way into a relationship? How do you know that this could be right?"

"Because when I look at you, I don't just see a friend," he answered honestly. "When you look at me, what do you see?"

"Years of memories," she told him. "I just see…everything that we've been through and where we are now, I don't know though, how do you know that we aren't just falling back into a pattern, one that's just familiar and that familiarity is just us being scared to move on?"

"I know what I know, Trishy," Christian told her. "I know that for the longest time, I've wanted you and only you. If it's not meant to be, truly, I'll deal with that, but what I feel for you isn't just some fleeting feeling, if it was, I think this would've ended a long time ago."

"Yeah, I guess you've got a point," she told him. "I just don't know what to do, what to decide, I'm so confused."

She did look a little lost and Christian saw this and felt so badly for her. He wished that she could have the same kind of assuredness that he had, but it was easy for him, it had always been Trish. He had seen other girls, had tried to sleep around to get over her, but he had failed, and it all just led back to her. She hadn't yet figured out where her path led back to; she didn't know if it would lead to Carlito, to him, or to someone else entirely and he didn't envy the position she was in.

He scooted closer to her and took her in his arms, holding her against him. She teared up, letting a few tears slip past her closed lids and down her cheeks before they fell with a soundless drop onto Christian's shirt. He rubbed her back, not in a weird way, but in a supportive way. She was going through so much right now, so many emotions and Chris and Stephanie couldn't be her shoulder all the time, especially when they weren't even in the tri-state area. So he took it upon himself to help her.

"Shh, shh, it'll all be alright."

"You can't say that."

"I just did," he told her. "And I believe it too."

"But how do you know?"

"Psychic powers," he joked. "I got struck by lightning and it gave me this gift of foresight. So I was able to see that it was all going to be okay. You'll figure it out, life has a funny way of working out like that, if you just stick by your guns."

"I believe you…"

"You should, like I said, psychic abilities, I'm awesome like that."

"You're a great friend like that," she corrected him. "I don't know if I would…you being here for me, it just makes me so happy. I didn't think that it would be quite so good. I mean, you know, not like…just being friends, being able to hang out and not feel some of the tension that we usually have. I needed that with you, to remind myself of why I love you."

He didn't get overly excited by her saying love in the present tense, but he couldn't help himself. She really did still love him and he really did have a chance to win her heart back, he just had to do it slowly and carefully so he didn't scare her away or do the wrong thing. Most girls wouldn't be worth all this trouble, but Trish wasn't your average girl, and she was definitely worth the trouble. Twice over if necessary.

Christian heard something from the kitchen and looked at Trish, "Hey, Trish, is that you phone ringing?" he asked, knowing that it wasn't his ringtone. "I thought I heard something ringing."

"Oh yeah, that's my cell phone, hold on," she said, getting up and going into the kitchen. She took the phone off the counter and looked at the display, which said that it was Carlito on the phone. She looked at it for a second.

Should she answer it or not? Carlito hadn't attempted to make any contact with her since last week when she had confessed her feelings for Christian. She wasn't even sure if he wanted to talk to her at all or just cuss her out. She was sorry for what had happened, but she knew herself, and she knew that she was torn between the two men. Christian was being so supportive, but Carlito was hating her, and that's why she put the phone down on the counter, turning it to silent mode before she went back into the living room.

"Who was it?"

"It was a wrong number."


	126. So Much Going On, February 26, 2007

A/N: Basically there was no chapter last week because I didn't feel like writing a chapter last week because it was the holiday and my schedule was thrown off. But there's obviously a chapter this week. Enjoy, leave a review, please. :)

* * *

"I feel like I'm a traitor."

"You don't even work here," Christian laughed. "And come to think of it, you don't work for WWE either, so I don't know why you would feel like a traitor."

"I don't know, I'm loyal to Stephanie and Chris, you know, they're my friends and everything, and they're over there, and now I'm over here for the night."

"Chris came with me to a show last month," he told her. "He didn't seem to have the same problem that you're having right now."

"Well of course he didn't," Trish said. "He's married to Stephanie, he owns part of WWE, it's highly unlikely that he's going to just give all that up to go to work for someone else. It would get pretty messy if she had to divorce his wife to get to go to another company."

"Yeah, I think the likelihood of that happening is zero," Christian said. "He loves that woman."

"Yeah, he does, she's lucky," she said, furtively glancing up at Christian, who sneakily grabbed her hand in his own. She found her cheeks getting a little warm and she focused her eyes forward to save on the embarrassment of actually blushing around him. It was becoming more and more difficult to curb these feelings she was having for Christian. She couldn't believe she had let herself ignore it for so long, and that everyone else had seen it.

But then, even if they had told her, she wasn't sure if she would've believed it anyways. She loved Carlito, she did, but she knew now that she had always had feelings for Christian. He had just gotten under her skin so much over the past four years that she couldn't just let him go. Maybe that was the ultimate sign of love, this need for him that transcended thinking or rationality. When his hand was in hers, she wanted it there, she wanted to feel the rough calluses he had from his lifting or the almost sandpaper-like quality of his fingers that were such a contrast to her soft, womanly hands.

Yet, there was Carlito, and she knew that she had been ignoring him, but she almost felt good for punishing him. She had been so ready to marry him, and she had wanted it so badly. She would've too, and then where would she be right now? She might be happy and adjusted, she might not be wavering between love and…something else. She might feel like she truly belonged somewhere instead of thinking that she was stringing two men along for a ride. She remembered a lunch she had gone to with Stephanie last week.

_Stephanie was feeding Sawyer some of the rice from her plate and he was gobbling it up like he was starving as Trish laughed and watched her godson devour his mother's food while Stephanie tried to fit in bites of the taco she was eating. Sawyer tried to reach for more of her rice, instead getting his hands into her guacamole and he looked at his hand like he had gotten nuclear waste on it._

"_Oh, you," Stephanie cooed, grabbing her napkin and wiping off his hands and then moving to her face. "You're just like your dad, always wanting to eat off my plate because you don't like your own food."_

_Trish laughed, "You're introducing him to all these new flavors and he doesn't know what to do with this knowledge."_

_Stephanie nodded in agreement, "That's true, he seems to like Mexican food, so I can definitely deal with him. We'll see though." Trish stared at him a little bit longer before taking a sip of her margarita. "You know, Trish, if you stare at my son any longer I think that I'm going to start thinking that you're going to kidnap him and raise him as your own."_

_Trish laughed and shook her head. "I'm sorry, it's just, the more I'm around him, the more I'm around my nieces and nephews, the more jealous I get. I want it all, Steph, and I was so close to having it all, and now I feel like I'm back at square one, I'm starting the process all over again. It's like, was I even supposed to get married? It feels like it was all just some figment of my imagination."_

"_It would help if you actually talked to Carlito," Stephanie said, and it was with a little bit of derision that she said this._

"_I just…the way he acted towards me was so upsetting."_

"_You just told the guy that you might be in love with someone else, and he had dumped you for that very reason only to have taken you back thinking that it was all going to be okay."_

"_So it's my fault."_

"_I'm not going to lie, it _is_ your fault a little bit," Stephanie said, then added quickly, "I'm not saying that you're a bad person or you're doing something wrong, but Trish, come on, you're stringing two guys along, you're giving each of them false hope and now you're not even returning Carlito's phone calls. And he called the house the other day wondering about you and what could Chris tell him?"_

"_What did Chris tell him?" she asked, trying to process this new information. _

"_He just said that he didn't know where you were, which was the truth, and he didn't know what you were going to do about anything, which is also the truth, I don't think any of us know what's going on with you."_

"_Is that a crack?" Trish asked._

"_It's not a crack, I'm telling you as a friend…"_

"_A friend would support another friend," Trish pointed out._

"_A friend would also tell another friend when they're being a horrible person, and I'm not saying that _you_ are a horrible person, but this situation, you're going to hurt someone, potentially more than one person, and I don't want to sit back and see other people hurt."_

"_Because you're just so great, right Stephanie? You've never made a mistake in your entire life," Trish told her sarcastically, her voice still low because they were in a public place and she didn't want to make a scene. If she did, the next thing she knew, she'd be on every website being mocked for going on a tirade in a Mexican restaurant in Tampa, Florida._

"_Whoa, I never said I was great, or perfect," Stephanie snapped at her. "I have done my share of shitty things in my life, and I've acknowledged those things and I've tried to become a better person, but Christian is one of my close friends, he helped me get through some tough times when I thought _you_ and my husband were together, I do _not _want to see him hurt," Stephanie said. "I don't want to see Carlito hurt either, I've grown to like the guy."  
_

"_I love them both in their own ways," she defended._

"_Oh, I'm sure that makes them feel better, at least I was never so…loose with Chris's feelings," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes._

"_Yeah, because hating the man you love now for two years is really something to be proud of. Didn't you send Chris to the hospital one time?" Trish asked snidely._

"_Oh please, he deserved it," she said, munching on a chip. She looked down to Sawyer who was watching her intently, and she wondered if he could feel the tension at the table. "I don't want you to screw up and then become a recluse again."_

"_I know what I'm doing, Stephanie, I know who might be hurt by all of this, I _know_ this, but I don't need my friends pointing out how wrong I am, how I'm going to hurt someone, okay?"_

"_Okay, okay, I catch the drift, I catch it…"_

"So tell me what you're going to do here," she told him, reaching up to hold his arm in both of hers.

"Well, the same thing that I did when I was with WWE, I'm going to wrestle," Christian said. "Except since we're taping a couple of shows, I have to do twice as much, but yeah, it's basically the same, it's not like this is a whole new world or something."

"I'm sorry, but I've only ever worked in WWE, so I don't know what all goes on around here, I'm just trying to soak it up," she told him, resting her cheek against his arm. "You know, see what it is that you do every other week, what you make of yourself, you _are_ the champion after all, right?"

"That's right," he smiled smugly. "I'm the one with all the power over here, not like over in WWE with John having all the power."

Trish rolled her eyes, "He's such a jerk, I swear, I don't know how any girl could put up with him. I really think that Carlito should challenge him for the title, he's got all the…sorry, I shouldn't have brought him up."

Christian remained silent for a few moments before resolving on a way to handle the issue. "Whatever, I mean, he's there, right? It's not like I'm going to escape him or anything, unless…well, you choose me I guess."

"Yeah," she said, Stephanie's words creeping up into her mind again. She was starting to feel the weight of the world come down on her hard and fast. She didn't want it to be like this, this confusion and this lack of really living. She felt like she was straddling a fence right now, both sides holding equal opportunity and she just couldn't decide on which side she would come down. She supposed that she should give Carlito a fair chance, but it was so hard when Christian gave her the opposite reaction that Carlito had. She kept seeing the good side of Christian, a side she had forgotten during recent travails with him.

"Not that I'm trying to influence you either way, I'm really not, I just want you to be okay with what you decide," he added hastily. He didn't want to seem overeager. He had screwed it up enough times with Trish that he was willing to give her the time she needed to choose what she wanted. But being her with her was a win-win for both of them, she got to see how he was, how he could always be if she would just let him into her heart again, and he got to be around Trish, and really, that was all that she needed.

A startling realization came over Trish then, and she suddenly wished that Stephanie was here for her to talk to. As it was, she had no friends here except for Christian and he really couldn't' give her the kind of advice that she needed since he was part of the problem that she was trying to decide on. So she just clung to his arm and kept to herself for now, content to watch what Christian did while he was here.

"Christian!" a female called from up ahead, and Trish tried not to squirm with jealousy at the ease with which this woman called his name.

"That's my boss," Christian whispered to her, quietly assuaging her thoughts though he didn't have the intent to do just that. Dixie came over and she smiled and touched Christian's arm. Trish tried very hard not to grab onto his other arm possessively and it was a stretch for her. She was just supposed to be Chris's friend right now, not someone who got to be possessive of him. "Hey, what's up?"

"Oh nothing," she said, then turned to look at Trish and her eyes lit up, almost like she could see dollar signs. "You're Trish Stratus, hi, it's really nice to meet you, I'm a big fan."

"Thanks," Trish said politely, shaking the other woman's hand. "I'm just here tonight with Christian, I hope that's not a big deal."

"Of course not, the more the merrier, you show her a good time, Christian," Dixie winked. "It really was nice meeting you, I hope you enjoy your time backstage, and good luck with your matches tonight, Christian, I know that you're going to represent us well."

"Oh, no doubt," Christian said, giving a little mock salute.

"Yeah, I felt like all she saw when she looked at me was dollar signs," Trish confessed. "Does she always make you feel like you could be her next big signing?"

"Yup," he laughed. "She's nice enough though, don't worry, I don't think that you're ready to come back to the ring now, if ever, you're looking great with all the rest that you're getting."

"Still with the compliments, Chrissy," she said playfully. "I think Steph would throw a conniption fit if I signed over here."

"Either that or she would recruit you to be a spy and get other signees over to WWE, and in the process mend the bridge between her and Kurt, you know how Stephanie likes to multitask, I'm sure that she could make other people do that."

"I'm not sure she wants the bridge mended with Kurt," she said soberly. "I think that he really hurt her with what he said. She was really just trying to help and he just completely went bezerk on her, I think she's through with that."

"Yeah right," Christian said. "I hardly think that, and if you've seen Kurt, you'd think so too."

Kurt, was in fact, just down the hall from them, and he was angry. He couldn't pinpoint the exact reason why he was angry because if he were to do so, that would mean he would've had to think about Stephanie, and that wasn't something he did often these days. It was just easier if he pretended that she didn't exist. If she was out of his mind, then she'd be out of his life, and that's how he approached it. And if you asked him how he was coming along with that plan, well, he'd tell you something closely related to a lie, but the truth?

He was miserable.

He missed Stephanie and he missed Chris and he missed their wackiness in his life. Sure, he had other friends, and he had people to talk to here, but Chris and Stephanie had been his best friends. He wondered sometimes if they missed him as much as he missed them, but he figured they didn't. They had each other after all, and they had Sawyer, and with all of that, why should they even miss him at all? They were happy now, so he heard through the grapevine. People had been speculating almost constantly as to where Chris would end up, when he would come back, if he would come here, and the same thought always ran through his mind, didn't these people know how much Chris loved Stephanie? Then he reminded himself that he had known about them before anyone else, he had been the _first_ one to know, and that meant that he understood them better.

Or at least he used to.

So seeing Trish here, seeing Christian so obviously happy, it made anger stir in his stomach and settle there like something rotting. He wanted everyone else to be miserable. It was a simple saying, "Misery loves company," and in this instance, it was true. He was upset, he was alone, so why should Christian get what he wanted when Kurt had considered him a jackass. Christian was so obviously siding with them even though they had the camaraderie of being on this show together. Why should Christian get to see his friends when he couldn't, when he had been cut off from their lives? He just couldn't let it stand.

"Baby for sale, does anyone want a baby for sale!" Chris called out as he held Sawyer up by the back of his overalls, dangling him over the ground, much to the little boy's delight. He was the strangest kid sometimes.

Stephanie came up to the two of them and looked down at Sawyer. "I heard you have a baby for sale?"

"Yeah, cheap too," Chris said, lifting his son up, who was smiling giddily at his father as he clapped his hands in entertainment. Stephanie clapped too and took him into her arms. "He's really starting to annoy me, so if you want him, you are free to have him. He's a little bit messy, but what he lacks in general motor skills, he makes up for in cuteness."

"He does have some really pinchable cheeks," she said, reaching out to pinch one of said cheeks before Sawyer tried to swat her hand away. "Now, would you wanting to get rid of him have anything to do with the fact that you sprained your elbow?"

"Yes, it does, when your son gets you injured, it's time to turn him over to someone else," Chris said, looking down at his arm. "Can you believe he did this?"

"Okay, he didn't really do it," Stephanie said, "it was your fault for not watching where you were going."

Chris frowned at her and looked down to his arm, which was currently in a sling since he had sprained it over the weekend, which only put the fear of God into Stephanie. She hadn't known where the hospital was near their Southern California home, and so she and Chris had ended up driving for about an hour only to find the nearest hospital had been just twenty minutes away. Add to that the fact that Sawyer apparently hated hospitals and you had yourself the classic makings for a very bad day.

Then he had to go through x-rays and the whole nine yards before they put him in a sling and told him to immobilize his arm for the next two weeks, limiting his mobility to when he was in the shower. And all of this could be attributed to the fact that Sawyer wanted to try and crawl down the two steps from the front of the house to the kitchen. Chris had seen him trying to go for it, had run after him, tripped over the stuffed animal that Sawyer had been dragging along with him, and had landed on the kitchen floor, hands outstretched and elbow killing him as he grit his teeth in pain.

And then, and only then, did Sawyer crawl down those two steps with ease.

"It was _his_ fault for trying to crawl where I've told him repeatedly not to crawl _and_ for dragging that stuffed animal right there so I would trip on it," he said petulantly.

"Listen to yourself, you're blaming a ten month old baby!" Stephanie scoffed and looked down at her little boy, kissing his cheek as he gently clapped his fingers on her cheeks. "He didn't know what he was doing. He's just a baby."

"Oh sure, you say that now, but you weren't there when I fell flat on my face and was writhing in pain," Chris said, then pouted. "And then when you did come into the room to see the commotion, who do you go for first, that guy right there, and not your injured husband clutching his arm and groaning in pain."

Stephanie gave a pointed look to Sawyer before turning to Chris, "Are you jealous of your son? Because that's the vibe that I'm getting here."

"No, I'm not jealous," he said, sounding like a little kid. "I would like a little more sympathy for the arm situation though, you don't even seem to care about that and it really did hurt."

"It's a sprain, Chris, you act like he completely tore your arm off," she giggled. "And Sawyer would never be that vindictive, would you, baby?"

"And he gets more attention," Chris said, going over and sitting at Stephanie's station to watch the match between Jeff and Shelton. He slipped the headphones on and proceeded to take over Stephanie's job, talking over the entire match and which cameras they should flip to. She stood there, in the middle of the gorilla and shook her head.

"You made your daddy very angry," Stephanie told Sawyer, who looked up at her with the littlest glint of mischief in his eyes. Yes, he was going to take after Chris, she could see it already. She set him down on the ground, and he crawled over to where Chris was working, Stephanie trailing closely behind him. He crawled next to Chris's leg and shifted himself to sit on his butt and pulled on Chris's pant leg.

"What do you want?" Chris asked as he slipped the headphones around his neck. Sawyer whined a little and tugged on Chris's pant leg again. "I can't help you up, you've made me useless by taking away the use of one of my arms.

Sawyer whined again and grabbed onto Chris's pant leg. Chris shrugged as he looked down at him, but Sawyer was determined and he grabbed his other hand onto Chris's pant leg and pulled himself up, leaning his chin on Chris's leg and looking up at him with his damn identical eyes and expressions. He clung to Chris's leg so he wouldn't fall, feeling a little bit on the uneasy side about standing up.

"You annoy me," Chris told him as Stephanie lifted him up into Chris's lap. Sawyer stood on Chris's legs and leaned over the table with all the equipment on it, seeing all the pretty buttons and wanting to push them. Stephanie grabbed his hand away just in time, but he sent her the patented McMahon look of anger and she sent him one right back.

"I invented that look, Sawyer, so don't even try to give it back to me," Stephanie told him.

"Excuse me, what does a guy have to do around here to get some attention, would it be to sleep with you, Stephanie?" Shawn Michaels asked as he walked backstage. She saw John lurking around behind him, but he was casting suspicious glances and she looked to Chris, but he had his eyes trained on the screen in front of him, and he was questioning someone about some video.

"Well, yes, so I guess that never means _you're _going to get any attention since I would never let you into my pants, isn't that right, Shawn?" she said with derision. "Not that you didn't try though, I just didn't want an old man."

"Oh shut up," Shawn hissed.

"What? You don't want John to hear this?" Stephanie asked coyly then tilted to see John. "Hey John, did you know that Shawn hit on me a long time ago? He was a cocky little shit too. I was…I think nineteen at the time and he was like, thirty, does that seem creepy to you?"

John snickered over Shawn's shoulder at Stephanie's admission. "Is that true, Shawn? You tried to hit on her when she was nineteen, dude, she was like a teenager."

"Shut up," Shawn snapped at him. "I was in for the challenge."

"Yeah, the challenge," Stephanie said, nodding her head slowly. "Which is why you looked so upset when I stopped any and all of your advances."

"Okay, are we done with this damn trip down memory lane?"

"Oh, I was going to make fun of you some more, but if you want me to be finished, well then I guess I'm done for now, so what did you need? Because if you're going to come onto me again, I'm going to have to decline, I'm married now, and I was under the impression that you were too."

"Did you just see what happened out there?" he asked, ignoring her comments, that was just the best way to deal with it, to ignore it.

"Do you see me having the headphones on?" she wondered sarcastically. "What happened?"

"We were _supposed_ to have a tag match against Randy and Edge, except they said that they weren't ready to compete. Are you honestly just going to let them get away with that? You're the one in charge of the show, aren't you? Shouldn't you do something about this?"

"Oh, well, yeah, but did they say they weren't going to compete at all tonight?"

"No, they said not now."

"Okay, then I can shift everything up, and I can pull my dad's segment that he wanted to do and put it in the middle of the show and make this the main event. Is that to your liking, Shawn, or do you need a minute to calm down before you decide?"

"That's fine, whatever," Shawn said, stalking off. He looked to John pointedly and spoke, "Are you coming so we can strategize?"

"I'll catch up with you later," John told him and Shawn nodded, not wanting to be around Stephanie any longer. He hated that she had anything that she could use to hold over his head. Of all the women in the world, he had to hit on her, her, who wasn't afraid of anything or anyone or any freaking situation. He damned himself for his long ago mistake. John, meanwhile, was clearing his throat uncomfortably before playing with his wristband.

"John, I'm starting to think that Sawyer is going to say something before you do," Stephanie joked.

"It's about…Shawn. You've known him for a long time, right? And he was best friends with Hunter when you were married, right?"

"Thanks for reminding me," she groaned as she shifted Sawyer in her arms. "What about those dark days?"

"I guess you didn't see the video then," he answered uneasily. "I just don't…they showed a video and his…uh…I guess, he doesn't like to stick with one tag partner for too long, does he?"

"He's a slimy bastard, yes," she agreed. "Is that what you wanted to know?"

"I just don't think I can trust him."

"Don't, trust me," Stephanie said. "He has caused far more destruction than anyone realizes. I could barely stand him when I was married to Hunter and he was always over at our house. He's creepy and he can be mean, so yeah, I'd watch my back if I were you, that's only from personal experience of course, but you better watch your back or you'll end up through a barbershop window, probably my dad's barbershop window actually."

"Thanks," he said, wandering off and wondering if he could really trust Shawn Michaels.

"Stephanie!" a booming voice came from somewhere close.

Stephanie sighed and closed her eyes as Sawyer's head fell against her chest. "Yeah, I'm with you Sawyer, but just you wait, I've been hearing that voice for the last thirty years, you've only had to deal with it for the last four or so months since I tried to shield you from him."

"Stephanie," Vince said. "I was just informed that you were moving my spot from the end of the show to the middle."

Stephanie squinted her eyes and looked around, "How did you find that out? I just told that to Shawn not five minutes ago."

"I heard it from a production assistant who heard it from Chris."

"Chris," she said, turning to her husband, "This Chris?"

"Yes, that Chris, how many other Chris's are in charge?"

"Just because I have headphones on doesn't mean I can't hear you," Chris told her, turning his head before going back to do his work.

"So what's the meaning of this?"

"Well, Randy and Edge refused to go out for their match, so I had to switch the schedule to give them time, and I'm sorry, Dad, but I think that their match should take precedence."

"Don't move my time, I'm the owner of this company, I can't have my subordinated changing around what is rightfully mine, I ultimately pay for all of this to be shown on television, if I want the main event, then I should have it."

"You forget that I own part of this company too, and you have appointed me to the head of creative, so therefore, when you are a performer, you answer to _me_," Stephanie argued. "And I had to make an executive decision and it just so happened to deal with you, sorry Dad, but that's the breaks."

"Don't talk to me like that," he told her sternly.

"Don't insult my handling of the show," she answered, standing up to her father.

"I'll have you know, young lady--"

"Dad, I'm not a young lady anymore, I'm in my thirties, I'm married, with a kid, you can't boss me around anymore!" she told him. "Or else…or else Chris and I will quit!"

"We'll what?" Chris said, taking off his headphones.

"I will not have my decision-making questioned," Stephanie told her father in no uncertain terms, standing up and sitting Sawyer on the table in front of her. "I'm not going to have you taking over when you've specifically put me in charge."

"Um…and we'll quit?" Chris gulped. "Steph, I didn't agree to that."

"Trust me," she hissed, leaning down.

"Stephanie, I'm warning you, do not cross me?"

"Or what, Dad, you'll fire me, that's not going to work if I quit, is it?"

"You're not going to quit," Vince sighed. "Just go back to doing your work. I couldn't fire you and you know it, and I can't allow you to quit, you're my daughter, and you have to raise my grandson, and your mother would never let me hear the end of it. I guess I can go in the top of the second hour if I have to."

"That's what I thought, thank you, Dad," she told him, sitting back down and bringing Sawyer to her lap again. Chris closed his eyes before putting his headphones back on to go back to work.

"What? You didn't think I had that handled?" she asked with a laugh. "I've got my dad right where I want him, he can't resist Daddy's Little Girl."

So maybe Kurt had been right about Stephanie and Chris forgetting about him. Or maybe they were just better with coping with it. Whatever the case may be, they were definitely leading an easier life than Kurt was right now. To make up for the lack of his best friends in his life, he had been throwing himself further and further into wrestling and maybe further and further into some darker places that he never would've gone into had he been the happy, go-lucky Kurt of old. He wouldn't be thinking of doing what he was going to do.

"Ms. Brooks, can I talk to you?" Kurt said, going up to the dark-haired woman.

"What can I do for you?" she asked, checking on one of her nails.

"I need you to call Christian for me."

"Why don't you just go see him for yourself, oh wait, you two are like, you don't like each other, do you?" she said, sounding a little bored.

"No, we don't, so I'm asking you to do me this favor. I could even give you what you need to say if you want. I just need you to call him four or five times to make it seem like you're always calling him. And then leave a voicemail just saying that you can't wait to see him later, and wondering if that bitch he's with, Trish is gone. You don't even have to leave your name, you can call from a pay phone or something."

"And how much would this be?"

"I'll give you a hundred and fifty to do it," he told her, reaching into his back pocket for his wallet and pulling out a couple of bills. "Seriously, just do this for me."

"Okay, okay," she said, taking the money and putting it into her bra. He looked at her, boring holes into her skull and she groaned. "Fine, I'm going right now, geez, I said I'd do it, you don't need to get on my case."

Trish had just walked into Christian's locker room after wishing him luck during his match. She noticed that his phone was beeping and went to pick it up. Christian had never cared before when she went onto his phone so she went to check his voicemail for him. She wished she hadn't though when she listened to the voicemail that someone had left for him.

"_Hey baby, it's me, yes, you know who. Did you get rid of that skank yet, you know, the one you were telling me about, Trina or something, Trish…yeah, that's it. I mean, how pathetic right? I loved everything you told me about her the other night. Well, I hope that you were able to get away from her, meet me tonight in my hotel room, I bought some new things I'd love for you to see and then take off of me, if you catch my drift, bye love."_

Trish slammed the phone down and started breathing heavily through her nose. She couldn't believe what she had just heard. She looked through the phone and saw the number had been calling him for a while now. She frowned and sat down heavily, running her fingers through her hair. What had she done? What was she thinking trying to start something up with Christian when all he did was continually hurt her?

She grabbed her purse and stepped out into the hallway, turning quickly and almost running into someone, that someone being Kurt. He caught her and looked at her, trying to look sympathetic, though he knew why she looked so distraught. "Oh Kurt, I'm glad to see you, do you think that you can help me?"

"Help you with what?"

"Can I use your phone to call myself a cab? I just…I need to leave, right now, I need to leave right now."

"Of course you can," he told her and she dialed quickly, quietly mouthing her thanks to him while the phone rang. Maybe she would pass along this good deed to Chris and Stephanie, he thought idly to himself as she ordered her cab. She went outside to wait for it and he made sure to perch himself near Christian's locker room to see the fallout. He was going to enjoy watching this.

Christian came by a few minutes later, smiling as he opened the door and then Kurt started to count down. Christian came out fifty-seven seconds later and looked left and right. He saw Kurt and looked reluctant for help before shuffling over to him. "Have you seen Trish?"

"Yeah, she was like going to leave or something, wanted to use my phone to hail a cab."

Christian was off running and he slammed the doors to the outside open, startling Trish who was waiting there, tapping her foot against the cement on the ground. He was out of breath and he put his hand on her shoulder and she glared at him. She pulled away from his touch and he looked confused for a second, searching her eyes for answers.

"What's wrong, Trish?"

"What's wrong?" she guffawed before taking another step back. "Obviously I've made a huge mistake, I should've known all along you were nothing but a pig. I should've known better. You've done this to me so many times, I don't know why I expected differently. You've done this to me so many times."

"Done what, what did I do?" he pleaded to know. "Let me fix this."

"Oh give it up, go back to your whore," she said. "Yeah, I heard the messages."

"What messages?" he implored her to know, "Trish, I swear, I have no idea what you're talking about, I just don't."

"My cab is here," she said as a cab pulled up. "Leave me the hell alone, Christian."

"No, please, Trish, don't," he said, trying to pull her arm away.

"Let me go," she said, pulling away forcefully and getting in the cab as Christian tried to chase after it. Kurt chuckled to himself as he watched a fallen Christian sink to his knees in the middle of the parking lot.

If he wasn't happy, nobody else was going to be happy either.


	127. Shane, Shane, SHANE, March 5, 2007

Trish sheepishly walked into the arena beside her best friend, who was trying to keep a squirming Sawyer from falling out of her arms. He was especially restless tonight, but so was Trish. She had been working up her courage for the past week, talking herself into coming to Raw, but now that she was here, at the arena, she wasn't sure if this was the best idea after all. Actually, she was starting to regret it a little bit. Stephanie groaned as she stopped and put Sawyer into his stroller.

"First you want to ride in the stroller, then you want to be held, then you want to be in the stroller, would you please make up your mind, Sawyer?" Stephanie asked her son as she strapped him in. He whined and babbled to her, reaching out his hands. She kissed his forehead, leaving a little bit of lipstick on it and then went back to pushing the stroller when she looked over at her friend. "You're quiet today, you've been quiet since you flew in from Florida last week."

"I just haven't had much to say," she shrugged. "I guess I just want to go to Carlito and beg for his forgiveness, but I don't know how."

"I still can't believe that you told me Kurt was nice to you, I guess that's the part of the story that has me so confused. I didn't think he still had it in him," she said, a touch of bitterness in her voice.

Trish looked over at her. "I think he misses us a lot more than he lets on."

"Yeah, maybe, I don't know," Stephanie responded. "I just don't want to think about that situation, it's just nice that he was there and that he helped you in whatever small way that he could. I'm sure that he didn't have to."

"I should really call him to thank him," Trish said, and Stephanie envied her friend right then. She wished that she could call up Kurt like it was nothing, but Kurt had made his bed, and now he had to lie in it. Stephanie wasn't the most forgiving woman in the world, and she didn't think she could start right now.

"If you think it's necessary," she told her friend. "So do you know how you're going to approach Carlito? I hear that he's getting kind of chummy with Torrie. He has to know what a witch she is though, right? I mean, he knew what she was trying to do when you two were engaged."

"Yeah, he knew, maybe he's trying to get back at me for everything. I don't think that I'd blame him if he was, I was horrible to him. I practically dumped him with no warning, wanted to go back to my ex who has treated me like dirt for years, I'd say that was pretty good grounds for revenge, don't you think?"

"I guess," she said, trying to be supportive. "I just can't believe that Christian would string you along like that, it just doesn't make sense to me. The man claims to love you so much, he does all this good stuff for you, and then he turns his back and is seeing some other girl."

"Maybe I was a game to him."

"A game?" Stephanie asked to no one in particular. "I don't know, it just didn't seem like he saw all of this as a game. I can't believe he would be so low as to do that. I just can't see it coming from him. Edge, yeah, I think I could see him doing that now, but Christian…"

"Maybe Edge is rubbing off on him. Maybe he's changed while he's been over at TNA, maybe he's just not the Christian we thought we knew, it's possible, right?"

"Well yeah, anything's possible," Stephanie pointed out as they strolled down the hallway towards Stephanie's office. "I just never saw Christian as that type. Are you sure that the message was that incriminating? Are you sure that you didn't misunderstand it?"

"Stephanie, I told you what was on the message. I don't think it can get more clear than that. I mean, she might've said something like, 'Well, it'll be good to have all the sex with you later,' that might've been a little more clear, but honestly, it didn't get more clear than what was on the message as it was."

"Yeah, I know, you told me what was on the message, and I'm not doubting that it was really bad, but if I got mad for every female that called Chris on his cell phone, I wouldn't be married to him right now."

"I'm so sure there are women leaving messages talking about how you were a bitch and asking if you had left," Trish countered and Stephanie sighed and looked away. It wasn't that she didn't believe what Trish was saying, it was that she didn't believe Christian would do something like that. Stephanie had a special affection for Christian after all. He had been someone who stood by her when he really hadn't needed to. She couldn't help but have a soft spot for him. And to think that he had been playing Trish for a fool, it just didn't make a whole lot of sense to her. But then, a lot of things that went on in Trish's life didn't make a whole lot of sense to her.

Stephanie had a screwed up love life, not at this moment, but before, her love life had been one jumbled mess, going from a man who adored her very being to another man who married her to get back at her father, finally to the man she was married to now. But never had she been as confused as her friend, so she just tried to be a good friend and be there for her, but it was difficult because there were people involved in this sordid tale that she liked.

"Okay, so the message was very bad, and maybe Christian is a jerk, but don't you think that you should try and get some closure at least, or hear him out?"

"You would _not_ hear out Chris if you found the same thing. You would pack up your things, then pack up Sawyer's things and you would be out the door before he could say one word. Don't tell me to do things that you wouldn't yourself do."

"Okay, okay, so you're just going to get me on every single loophole there is out there, you're going to bring up my past indiscretions when I'm just trying to be your friend?"

"You're not being helpful," Trish said.

Stephanie stopped in the middle of the hallway and turned towards the blonde. "You know what, Trish, you're getting to be a little tedious for me, and you forget that I have a ten month old son who is just learning to get into things. You say you know what you want, and then you don't, and you bite at the people who are there for you. I never thought I'd get the opportunity to say this to anyone, but grow up! You are not the only person in this story, you are not the only person that your actions affect. Christian is my friend, Carlito is a good guy who I've come to like and they're involved. Hell, Chris and I are involved, Sawyer's involved, we're all involved and the world does not revolve around you. It doesn't revolve around me either, it took Sawyer for me to realize that, I think you need someone to tell you it isn't true for you either."

Stephanie stormed off, leaving a stunned Trish in her wake. She hadn't been expecting that, but now it all seemed so crystal clear. She should've caught the glances between Stephanie and Chris when she had showed up at their Southern California home, she should've caught the tone to Stephanie's voice. She couldn't believe her friend would turn on her like that. She looked around and caught some of the backstage workers staring at her, turning away quickly when her eyes fell on them. She was no embarrassed for herself and she walked quickly down the hallway before a hand reached out to grab her.

"Where you walking so fast?"

Trish turned and saw a familiar face and she smiled, grateful for the familiarity of him, "Hey Jeff, I just kind of needed a moment."

"I kind of saw what happened with Stephanie," he told her sympathetically, letting her know that he knew why she was running, and he wanted to help. She gave him a weak smile.

"Yeah, she's pretty angry with me, I should've seen it coming though. I guess there's only so much that Stephanie can take before she blows her top."

"Yeah, she's kind of like that. I just wanted to make sure that you were okay. I know that you've had a rough go of it," he drawled and she was glad that at least someone was being nice to her tonight. It calmed her nerves a little bit, and helped her keep her resolve.

"I have," she said emphatically, "I just don't know what to do."

"You'll figure it out," he told her. "And if you don't, you can always come talk to me, I like to think that we could go back to the friends that we used to be. I know that we didn't exactly part on the best terms when we tried to be together, I guess we were just always better as friends."

"You know, I really could use a friend right now," she told him, biting her lip a little. Jeff wrapped his arm around her and led her into his locker room. He still cared for Trish, and even though he couldn't have her, and probably wasn't right for her, he liked being in her life in some capacity.

Stephanie felt relieved that she had finally told Trish what had been stewing in her brain for the last few weeks. She was frustrated with her friend for being so insipid and flaky. Christian and Carlito both deserved better than that, and while she knew that Trish was a good person overall, she just couldn't get behind the person that she was becoming. She had never strung along two men at the same time, never, and that was saying something for Stephanie because she had done some pretty despicable things in her time, but never something like this. She was so engrossed in being angry, she didn't even notice Sawyer trying to unbuckle himself from his stroller.

Luckily for her, her brother walked in and saw that Sawyer was struggling in his chair and getting angrier by the second. Stephanie was pacing and being off in her own world, and he chuckled a little as he saw the same frustration etched in Sawyer's face. If ever there was a doubt of his mother, he was proving who his mother was right now. He knelt in front of his nephew and unbuckled him from his stroller before picking him up.

"Hey there little guy," Shane said. "What's up with your Mommy?"

"Bebebahbahbabha," Sawyer babbled to his uncle as Shane stood up. He walked over to his sister and tapped her on the shoulder, causing her to scream and jump up in the air a few inches.

"Jesus, Shane!" Stephanie said, hand over heart. "What the hell are you doing here? When did you get Sawyer?"

"While you were pacing," Shane answered. "What's got you so upset?"

"It's just Trish," Stephanie said. "She's got problems with guys, and she's being really selfish, and it's really getting bad, but don't worry about it."

"I know you've had problems with guys," he said. "Are you being too harsh on her?"

"No, trust me," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "So you're here for the vote, right? Because Dad wants you to be the special referee. I find it glaring that he didn't want me to be the special referee."

"Yeah, because Dad wants you in the ring with two guys that are both at least twice your size, that's exactly what he wants out of this match," Shane said sarcastically as he bounced his nephew around a bit, to the little boy's delight.

"I can take care of myself," Stephanie told him, leaning on her desk. "Do you forget who you're talking to? I'm Stephanie McMahon, I've always been good at taking care of myself, and people fear me, and trust me, Umaga and Lashley would definitely fear me."

"No way is Dad going to put his precious little girl into a match with two men that size. No way, and don't even go and argue with him over it because he's never going to let you, so you might as well forge it. Not to mention the fact that the board is already voting and I'm the one that dad wanted."

"I hardly think that's fair," Stephanie said, folding her arms. "Hey, maybe Chris can be the special guest referee."

"I don't think so, I don't think Dad trusts him not to call the match fairly, and in case you haven't been around Dad in a while, he likes when people will favor him and call the match the way he wants to."

"Did you just call yourself a suck-up?" Stephanie asked.

"No…"

"You did," she giggled. "And Chris could be bias, he's done it before for other people, and I think that he would do it for family. You forget that Dad is Chris's father-in-law, he's part of the family and Chris protects his family."

"Yeah, he protects _you_ and _Sawyer_ because you guys are his family and he loves you, but I'm not sure he really cares about Dad," Shane told her. "You just want him to come back on television, don't you? You're willing to do anything to get him back."

"Please, if I were willing to do everything, he'd be back by now," she said, and Shane grimaced at the thoughts that floated into his head at that admission. Stephanie groaned and shoved her brother in the shoulder. "Get your head out of your gutter. Anyways, I'm trying to give Chris time…he said that this is the first time in a long time where he doesn't have that pain that accompanies wrestlers, and he's enjoying his time with Sawyer, and who am I to take that away, you know?"

"But you travel with Sawyer, it's not like he'd miss him or something, he's with you guys all the time."

"No, like being able to play with him and stuff, you wouldn't understand, Shane, you aren't a wrestler," she said. "So I'm giving him time…it's hard though, sometimes I want to tell him that I'll divorce him if he doesn't come back, but I can't do that, obviously."

"I wonder what he'd do if you did that though," he said.

"Speaking of marriages, how is yours going with Rissa?"

"We're working on it…slowly," he gave up. "She still isn't ready to let me back in the house, but we're definitely working on it, and things are going a lot better than they used to be. We go out a lot and then we go out with the boys, and it's good, I think we're going to be okay…at least I hope so. I do love her."

"I know you do, I want you guys to work," Stephanie said. "I don't know why, but I do want that for you. You guys were good together when you guys _were_ together. You should bring the boys with you for WrestleMania, I know that Sawyer would probably like to see them. He might even be walking by then, but he kind of doesn't seem to want to try. How's Kenny doing with that?"

"He's making progress, he can walk when he's holding onto stuff, still doesn't say much though, he's not much of a talker, but I don't think that anyone could be when you have someone like D in the family, he's the talker for all of us."

Stephanie laughed. "Sawyer's a little talker, that's what he loves to do. He likes to stand though, but the walking is a no-go for now, he sticks to crawling."

"Knock knock."

Stephanie looked up and gasped. "Hunter! What are you doing here!"

"I came to visit," he said as someone pushed the door open and Stephanie saw that it was her husband.

"Oh look, the walking wounded," Stephanie said with a giggle and Chris glared at her before walking in and grabbing her around the waist and kissing her. She laughed and kissed him back, reaching up to run her hands through his hair and then getting bummed out again that there was no hair to run her fingers through. She groaned a little as she walked away and then turned to Hunter. "Hunter, do you mind if I kiss you, I've gotten so used to having hair to run my fingers through that I need someone with longer hair."

"Oh, I don't think so," Chris said, pulling her against him tightly as she settled herself against his lean frame. "She's all mine."

"Okay," she said with a dramatic sigh as she brought her left hand up and around his neck as he kissed her cheek. "Is this what you got so caught up doing? One second you were walking with me and Trish and the next you had disappeared, not that I really made notice."

"Yeah, it was," he confessed.

"How are you, Hunter, I see your on crutches, so you have to be making progress, right?" she asked, gesturing to the crutches that were now on the ground as he sat in a chair. Standing for long periods of times put a strain on him right now and he was still a long way from getting better, but he was sick and tired of sitting around, waiting for something to happen and just being faced with day after day of rehab, even the sporadic visits from Victoria didn't really help.

"It's going kind of okay," he said, and Stephanie immediately sensed the dissatisfaction in his voice. "I just hate that I'm missing so much time, it was such a fluke thing, I just…it's touch."

"Well, yeah, it's gotta be a tough break, but they said you should be back by SummerSlam, right, that's good, huh?" Stephanie said, trying to stay positive, and look, you're here, which means you flew, which is also good, you can come visit sometimes."

"Thanks for trying to cheer me up, Steph, but it's not really going to work," he said, offering her a small smile. "Hey Shane."

"Hunter," Shane nodded, still not on the best terms with the man. After the last feud that they had together, and the goings on of said feud, things had not glossed over so quickly between the two men.

"Hey there tough guy," Hunter said, smiling at Sawyer, who smiled at him.

"Steph, do you mind if I steal your son for a while, I'm sure that Dad wants to see him," Shane said, sending a weary glance to Hunter, and Stephanie could sense how uncomfortable he was."

"Yeah, that's fine, it's only five anyways, so Sawyer isn't due for anything right now, just be careful with him," Stephanie told him, taking the little boy from her brother for a moment to kiss him on the cheek. "Be good for Uncle Shane and Grandpa, okay, don't disappoint me."

"He won't," Shane said, taking him back and then leaving the room.

"Well he hates me," Hunter chuckled as Chris and Stephanie sat down. "So Chris told me what Sawyer did to him, that's a tough break."

"It is," Chris said and Stephanie rolled her eyes at Hunter, who laughed. Chris frowned and looked at his wife's profile. "She's mocking me again, isn't she? She thinks that it wasn't Sawyer's fault, but it was, the kid had it out for me, he wanted to scare me and then bait me into hurting myself."

"Yes, because he's ten months old and thinks of those things," Stephanie said and Chris pulled her into his lap as she squealed.

"Okay, you guys are starting to get a little sickening," Hunter said. "I do have a purpose here tonight though--"

"Oh my God, _you're_ going to be the special guest referee for my dad's match at WrestleMania," Stephanie joked, pretending to be surprised and this time it was Hunter who was rolling his eyes at Chris. "Wow, so I can't joke, I get it now."

"No, I'm not the guest referee, unless your dad suddenly decides to put someone he hates in and someone with limited mobility. I'm here to talk to him about when I can come back, that's going to be a fun conversation, I'm sure," Hunter said, actually dreading the upcoming conversation. If he was on bad terms with Shane, he was on double bad terms with Vince. Yet, the man was his boss and he did need to converse with him sometimes.

"You'll be fine."

"I can't outrun him."

"No, you can't, but it'll be fine, he'll be…accepting of having you coming back," she said, trying to sound supportive. "Are you sure that's the _only_ reason that you're back tonight, it doesn't have anything to do with a certain woman that happens to work on the show?"

"No, it doesn't have anything to do with Vic," he said. "I see her quite a bit, she tries to get down there and visit me. We're just hanging out right now, we're not too fond of the long-distance thing."

"What he means to say is he's not boning her," Chris said. "Tough break, man, I know how it is to go without, it's rough. That's the good thing about marriage, you've got a sure thing sleeping right next to you every night."

"I'm not a sure thing," Stephanie told him. "Far from it."

Chris winked at Hunter and he was glad that he had come for a visit. It really was getting lonely rehabbing, and he was glad that he could have a little bit of normalcy sometimes. It was even better because Chris was injured too, not in the same way, but he felt better knowing that he didn't have to garner all these sympathetic looks that he hated from people. He didn't want anyone's sympathy, sympathy was something that he hated. He could get by without the pitying stares of people, thinking he was some sort of invalid.

At least with Chris's arm in a sling, he could divert attention back to him instead of taking it for himself. It was strange being back here and not being able to be on the show. When he had torn his quad the first time, he had still been married to Stephanie, and he had come around a little at first before his rehabbing became more intense, and then he had stayed away, and that's when his marriage had really gone sour. All the other times he had been injured and had to take time off, he hadn't come back at all because he usually wasn't welcomed back. This time though, he was here, and he hated seeing the hustle and bustle going on around him and he couldn't partake in it.

The worst part was that he wouldn't get to be at WrestleMania. The biggest show of the year and he was going to be sidelined. He didn't know how Chris had kept away from everything for the past year and a half, he would be chomping at the bit to get back on the show. Chris had a lot more resolve than he had.

"So August, right Trips?" Chris asked as he looked at his friend.

"Yeah, August," he said as his cell phone beeped with the promise of a new text message. He looked at his phone and saw it was Victoria and he smiled. "Hate to cut this short guys, but Vic just got here, so I'm going to go find her, see you later, tell the tough guy I said to have a good night."

Hunter hobbled out of the room and Chris pushed Stephanie off his lap playfully. She grabbed his good hand and pulled him up off the couch and kissed him lightly as he went to the other side of the desk and sat down where she usually sat. He picked up a piece of paper and started to read it, looking over it as Stephanie sat across from him and leaned her elbow on the desk, resting her hand on it.

"What're you reading?"

"The updated list of matches for WrestleMania and the list of Hall of Fame inductees," Chris said, flipping the page around so she could see. "So far, it looks pretty solid, not the greatest show I've ever seen, but I think that it's going to be good. It'll be even better to see your father with his hair cut off. That's going to be such a trip. Maybe we should make sure that we have dinner with your family after the show so we can see it."

"We always have dinner with my family the day of the show, where have you been for the last few years?"

"I know, I'm just saying. Your father is going to be so pissed off, I'm going to enjoy it so much," he said, not above disliking his father-in-law sometimes. At times, Vince could be so frustrating and so self-absorbed that it bugged the crap out of Chris. On the other hand though, he was partially responsible for the woman that he loved, so it was always tempered with a bit of admiration for the man that had given him everything he had ever dreamed of having in his life.

She laughed a little bit. "I'd enjoy it too."

"So when is the prelim meeting for this and how everything is going to look? Do I have to be there?"

"Yeah, all of management has to be, the production people, the pyro people, the lighting, everyone has to be there, and that includes you and me,' she said. "It's going to be this Thursday in Connecticut, so we have to fly back there on Wednesday I think, I have to look at the tickets again. It might be tomorrow."

"Great, I hate flying cross-country with the kid, he hates it, I hate it," Chris said. "But I guess it's a necessary evil."

"Yeah, it's a necessary evil," Stephanie shrugged. "But we need to be at this meeting, my father would kill us both and then shave _our_ heads if we didn't show up, though you with a shaved head isn't so far off."

"You really don't like my hair, do you?"

"What tipped you off?" she asked coyly. The fell into a comfortable silence then as Chris read over some of the files sitting on her desk. She smiled a tiny bit when he glanced up at her and he smiled back before going back to his reading. She was content to watch him, the way his lips sometimes moved when he read, or how he would squint just the tiniest bit when he read something that he didn't care for. She wrung her hands a little and studied him intently.

"You're never coming back, are you?" she asked, her voice ringing out in the otherwise quiet room.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked as he set the paper down on the desk and stared at her. "And where did that come from?"

"Well, with Hunter I could tell that he's really mad that he's going to miss WrestleMania, and you just don't seem to be so worried about it. I don't know, it's like your not even the Chris that I fell in love with, and it scares me sometimes, this change…"

"Stephanie, do we have to get into this again?" he asked with annoyance. "I thought that we talked about it."

"We have, I just…I think I've come to the conclusion that you're not going to come back. I just have to come to terms with that, I'm just coming to terms with it, I'm not looking to start a fight."

He pinched the bridge of his nose. "I never said that I wasn't _ever_ coming back. Why do you insist on putting words in my mouth?"

"I wasn't doing that!" she protested, her anger rising. "It's just been so long, Chris, and I just see you changing before me, and I don't know what to make of that, okay. You say that you're fine with where you are, that you aren't waking up in pain and I like that, I support _that_ because I don't want you in pain, but you just don't see that you're changing and I…you know what, no, I'm not going to get into a fight with you right now."

"No, finish what you were going to say, please finish what you were going to say," he persisted, wanting to know just what was going through his wife's mind. Sometimes she was so easy to read and then other times, like right now, she was an enigma wrapped in a puzzle. Maybe he'd never figure her out.

"I wasn't going to--"

"Don't lie to me, Stephanie," he warned.

"You're going to change so much that you're not going to want me anymore, there, I said it, are you happy now?"

He held his hands up in front of him like he was telling her to stop or something. He rubbed his eyes with his palms a little bit and then looked at her. "Stephanie, you're going to have to repeat yourself right there, okay, repeat yourself."

"The reason I keep fighting for you to come back, asking and everything is because I don't want to lose you," she told him, and she looked away embarrassedly. "I don't want to lose you and…I don't want to lose us…"

"Steph, baby, what are you talking about?" he asked wearily, wondering how he couldn't see through her constant questioning. He thought she was just being annoying, but now it was really staring him straight in the face. How had he not seen the carefully calculated worry in her eyes or the way she nervously licked her top lip.

She shrugged, as if she couldn't put it into words, but she tried anyways, "I know that you're here every week…but you were always a wrestle before, and now you're not. Now you're doing all these things, acting, music, being here every week and being a part of management and you're great at all those things. You're going to be performing on stage again, then with Fozzy while we're in Detroit and you go to Windsor to perform, and then you do this, and you're changing, and it's not for the worse, sweetie, you're just changing into this guy that I'm afraid I'm not keeping up with. I'm not changing, I'm still just me, a bitch, power-hungry, dominating, always trying to one-up someone, somewhere, here in WWE, where I belong, where I've always belonged. My life is this, here," she told him, gesturing around her. "And yours isn't and you're changing and I'm…here, and you're never coming back, and I'm…here," she told him, and she wasn't tearing up and she wasn't crying outright, but she sounded so sad.

Chris slapped his forehead a little and then looked at her but didn't speak. He had all these engagements and now that he looked at them, he had been leaving out Stephanie a little bit. Whenever he had a show, he would invite her to come, but he wouldn't insist she come. Whenever he had a concert, he would tell her she could come backstage, but he could perform without her there. She might've felt like he was closing off a part of himself to her and that was the last thing that he wanted. He thought of something and feared that's what she thought.

"Do you…do you think that I'm still with you because you're the mother of my son?" he asked tentatively, scared that this was how far her thinking had come.

She shook her head vehemently. "No, you love me, I know this, I just don't know…we could grow apart, I can see it happening. I guess I just kind of wanted you back because then I would know the Chris that you were, I would know completely."

He got up and went to kneel in front of her, grabbing her hands and kissing each of her palms. "Don't ever worry about that, baby, because I'm not going anywhere, and I need to remember that you are who you are, and that you are going to annoy the hell out of me until I find it necessary to come back to the ring, because I _am_ coming back to the ring, and growing apart? Wasn't it you who I had sex with last night?"

"Sex isn't an indicator of how close you are to someone," she said, lightly punching his shoulder.

"Okay, will knowing everything under the sun about you count then?"

"I guess."

"I am changing though," he told her seriously. "But don't even tell me that you haven't changed. You've changed too, you're less…of that bitch I hated, and with Sawyer, you've definitely changed. For the better."

"That's Sawyer's doing," she told him. "Not mine."

"He helped," he told her as his cell phone rang. "Why do people call me when I'm trying to convince my wife that she's the best wife in the world?" He looked at his phone and raised an eyebrow.

"Who is it?" Stephanie asked, trying to look at the phone.

"It's Christian, should I answer it?" Chris asked her. They had been avoiding Christian over the past week out of respect for Trish. But Stephanie was mad at Trish and she was wondering if what Christian did was really as bad as Trish thought it was. She nodded and he widened his eyes a little in surprise before catching the call before it was sent to voicemail. "Hey man, what's up?"

"Wow, I finally got you," Christian said, relief in his voice. "I thought I wouldn't…maybe you hated me."

"I'm not too fond of you right now, but you're still my friend," Chris said.

"I'm on your side right now," Stephanie said, which surprised Chris even more than her wanting to take the call. "I kind of got mad at Trish earlier and told her to grow up," she said, eyeing Chris as she said it, who was now even more surprised. That was the first he had heard of it.

"You what?" Chris wondered.

"I'm tired of the way she's treating Christian and Carlito," Stephanie explained. "She's stringing them both along and it's just not cool. I told her off, kind of…earlier. Not a great moment in our friendship, but not the worst, she did sleep with my father…"

Chris shuddered. "Don't bring that up."

"Yeah, please," Christian said, then cleared his throat. "I heard the message on my phone and you guys, you have to believe me when I say that I don't know what the hell that was about. It was one of the girls over here, and I don't know why she would want to screw up my relationship with Trish. She doesn't have a problem with me, I'm not feuding with her man. She just called and left that message and Trish heard it and I don't know…I don't know what happened, but she hates me and she's probably going to go back to Carlito and she didn't even give us another chance."

"Are you lying?" Stephanie asked. "Because Christian, she's pretty convinced that you were in on whatever this girl said."

"I swear to God, I wasn't aware of anything. I tried calling the girl, but I can't get a hold of her. I want to know why she cares about who I date. I guess she could be trying to get her guy a match with the champion, but it just doesn't make sense to me, but I won't know until I ask her."

"And you're really telling the truth?" Stephanie asked again.

"Stephanie, I'm telling the truth, I love Trish, and I wouldn't do that to her. I could swear on a stack of Bibles right now, I'll send you the picture, but I'm being serious. I would never want to hurt her again. I've done that too many times, and I'm not making that same mistake again, you have to believe me, you guys, I've got nothing else."

"I believe you," Stephanie said firmly. "I told her earlier that I just didn't think that you were capable of doing that to her. I believe you."

"Chris?" Christian asked hopefully.

Chris looked into his wife's eyes, and could see that she was being sincere with her thoughts. She believed that Christian was innocent, and he trusted her. He brought his hand up to her face and cupped her cheek. She rested her own hand on top of his.

"Yeah, Christian, I believe you."

Trish hugged Jeff as she finally left his locker room before his match that evening. She felt better after talking to him. She felt like she could actually go to Carlito and apologize for ignoring him for so long. She knew that rejection was a definite possibility, but she needed to do this. He might be her last hope because Christian had turned into a bigger jerk than he had ever been. Maybe the truth had been staring at her all along and she should be with Carlito.

She pulled the nearest backstage person by the arm and asked if they knew where Carlito's locker room was. After checking a list, the guy told her that he was just down the hallway. She thanked him quietly and looked down to his door. It was so close, but she felt like there was five miles between here and there. It would be a huge trek, every step bringing her heart closer to a sense of closure. Or rejection, either way, she had to talk to Carlito, she owed him that much.

Her feet felt heavy as she watched the door getting closer and closer. She ended up in front of it, and she knocked on it, almost chickening out and turning around. The odds were that Torrie answered the door with that stupid, smug smile of hers. But it wasn't to be as Carlito himself opened the door and he looked at her, disbelieving.

"Trish, what are you doing here?"

"I was wondering if we could talk," she said, shifting from foot to foot in anticipation.

"Well, yeah, I've got a few minutes, what did you need?" he asked, ushering her into the room. She stood in the middle, looking awkward. Her hands were stuffed into her back pockets and she was moving between being on her tiptoes and her flat feet. It was a dance of nervousness.

"I don't really know what to say," she said. "I just…I know that I've screwed things up between us and not answering your calls was probably a bad idea, which is why I'm here. You at least deserve a face-to-face meeting."

"You're going with Christian," he said, his head dropping down a little bit. He seemed resigned to his fate and that made her even sadder for her part in this.

"No, I just…he's not…what I expected, and I'm not saying that we should go get married, but I think…well, I was hoping that we could really fix this thing between us. I think that I made a mistake leaving you, and I'm sorry. I'm not expecting you to take me back right now, but if you could maybe think about it, get back to me?"

"Yeah, I can think about," he nodded. "I'll think about it."

"Please do," she smiled shyly. "I know that I was awful to you, not returning your calls, not acknowledging you at all. I was wrong to do that, I'm sorry about that."

"It's okay, we make mistakes," he said, then jerked a thumb towards the door. "I needed to…for my match…"

"Oh, of course, yeah, yeah, go ahead," she said and he gave her a wistful smile before turning and leaving. She sat there and wondered if she was doing the right thing. She was just taking Stephanie's advice after all, but was her advice the right advice? She didn't know, and life left her so confused.

"Fuck," Shane said as he hurried down the hallway. He couldn't find his dad anywhere and he needed to tell him the bad news. The board had nixed his idea, the vote being close, 5-4, but no cigar. Even worse was the choice for special guest referee. He didn't like that he had to his father the bad news. He looked down at his nephew and wished that he could take him to the ring to try and calm his father down, but Stephanie would never allow Sawyer to go out to the ring. There was another person he needed to find, but she was probably working right now so she'd be easy enough to find.

Stephanie was in a hallway, leaned over a trunk as she wrote something down while listening in on a headphone. "Are you freaking kidding me? Bischoff is here? Who the hell gave him clearance? Well then you get me that security guy's name. I didn't give him clearance for tonight…no, get on that now, thank you."

"Bischoff?" Chris asked from her side.

"Yeah, apparently he's here for some reason…oh God, maybe he's the guest referee…maybe my brother isn't going to be it. Although my father could've asked me."

"I wouldn't have let you get in that ring, are you crazy?" he asked, kissing her temple. "No way would I let you do that. I'd get in that ring before you did."

"So _that's_ what it's going to take," she said as her walkie-talkie went off. She sighed and held it up to her mouth. "Okay, tell me what you got?"

Shane spotted Chris and Stephanie and walked quickly over to them. "Chris, I need to give this back to you, I've got to find my dad, he's…things are not good."

"What do you mean 'not good'?" Chris asked.

"My dad lost the vote, the guest referee is…well, I've got to tell him, it's just not me," Shane said, remembering that Chris had no love lost for Austin. He didn't want the Canadian to flip his lid in front of him. He had enough of that coming with his father. Instead, he left his sister and her husband to continue his frantic search for his father.

Chris set Sawyer down on the trunk where Stephanie was writing something down furiously. He didn't have anything to do at the moment since Stephanie had told him he should do anything when he couldn't write anything without moving his elbow. Sawyer played with his mother's hair which was hanging down as she wrote. She felt him tug and looked up to see him there, surprised, but gave him a smile anyways.

"Mommy's busy," Chris explained.

"Always," she said. "I have to get to my station. Come with me."

"Yeah, sure," he said, going to pick up Sawyer, but Stephanie got to him first, scooping him up in one arm while she grabbed her papers. He went to protest but she shook her head and looked pointedly at his arm and he rolled her eyes at his protectiveness, though whether it was for Sawyer or him, he couldn't tell.

They walked down the hallway when someone they didn't expect to see was walking towards them, that silly grin on his face. Chris could feel his blood start to boil as he thought back to a moment over a year ago when he had watched this man assault his wife. Austin walked over and Chris clenched his good fist and cursed that it was his right arm in a sling and not his left so he could punch Austin the hell out.

"Stephanie, Stephanie, Stephanie, long time, no see…"

"Austin," she bemoaned, "What the hell are you doing here?"

"You're looking at the new guest referee," he said proudly. "I think it's fitting, don't you?"

"What!" she screeched, "_You're_ the guest referee!"

"The one and only," he said.

Chris couldn't hold it in any longer, "You have some fucking nerve, Austin, coming up to us like we're going to want to shoot the breeze with your sorry ass."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, look who's letting a little power go to his head?" Austin "joked." "What's the matter with you, boy? You get yourself in an accident?"

"You're going to get into an accident if you don't get out of our faces," Chris said through gritted teeth. This man could've hurt or killed his son, and that old, familiar anger was undulating in him right now. He had never been more worried about his son than that moment, and it would never leave his head.

"What did I ever do to you? Is this because you're a good, little McMahon now?"

"I guess the beer takes away all your memories, huh?" Chris said, stepping closer. Stephanie tried to stop him with her hand.

"Sweetie, not worth it," Stephanie told him.

"Yeah, _sweetie,_ not worth it," Steve mocked. "Wait, wait, wait, is this about when I gave Stephanie a Stunner, she deserved it, man, she came out there to mess with me, I couldn't let that stand, you of all people should know about Stephanie getting under your skin."

"She was fucking pregnant!" Chris screamed at him. This stunned Austin and he visibly paled a little. Chris repeated himself softer, but with more anger in his voice, "She was pregnant…"

"I didn't know," Austin said defensively. He turned to Stephanie, actually sorry, "I didn't know."

"Whatever, it's over," Stephanie said. "Chris, come on, let's just go work, okay, it's not worth it."

"Oh, it'd be worth it," Chris said, sucking on his teeth a little. He wanted to punch Austin, just one punch.

"I didn't know," Austin said again, finally focusing on Sawyer in Stephanie's arms. He had his head leaned against Stephanie's collarbone and was currently chewing on the block he was holding in his hand. "Is that your son?"

"Yes, this is my son, this is Sawyer," she said. "Look, it's over, let's not dwell, _Chris_."

"He's…okay?" Austin asked, actually nervous that he had somehow hurt someone's kid. He loved his own children and couldn't imagine someone hurting them and them not coming out okay. He knew this was bigger than his disdain for anyone McMahon, this was a child, an innocent child, and he had kicked her in the stomach and given her a wrestling move.

"He's perfect," Stephanie said. "So it's done…okay, we're all okay, he's okay, I'm okay, you're okay, it's all okay, come on Chris."

"No," Chris said, still boring holes into Austin.

Stephanie put the folders she was carrying between her and Sawyer, where he grabbed one of the folders with his chubby hand and started to try and chew on it. Stephanie grabbed Chris's good arm and dragged him away from Austin. She pushed him ahead of her when he wouldn't budge and practically pushed him all the way to her station.

"Chris, you can't hate him anymore, okay, it doesn't work that way," she told him with a sigh. She hated when she had to baby-sit her two boys.

"He could've hurt Sawyer!" he argued.

"But he didn't, Sawyer is perfectly healthy and perfectly on schedule," Stephanie said, holding him up for evidence. "The doctor said he's a perfectly healthy ten-month-old, well, nine-month old when he got his check-up, but still, he said he's perfect and that he's developmentally right where he should be, so why are you bringing this up?"

"Because it was a moment that scared me," he said. "I hated it."

"I wasn't fond of it either, but Sawyer is okay."

"Okay, fine," Chris said. "I'm not happy about that, but fine."

Not fine was Vince after finding out that Austin was the special guest referee. Shane had a strained look on his face as they went backstage and looked imploringly over at Stephanie. She picked up Sawyer quickly and walked over to her father. "Daddy, look, Sawyer wants to see you, don't you, baby boy?"

Sawyer couldn't have looked more disinterested of he tried, but Vince couldn't even see that. He patted the little boy on the head and walked away, a little shell-shocked. Shane rubbed his forehead with the palm of his hand. Stephanie looked at him. "Yeah, when Sawyer doesn't work, you know Dad is scarred. He's going to lose his hair."

"Yeah, he's going to lose it," Shane said as they both watched their father and his full head of hair walk away.

"Just so you know, Stephanie, you're wrong," came a female's voice. Trish was standing there with her arms folded as Stephanie turned around.

"What are you going on about?"

"I did the right thing, and I asked Carlito forgive me," Trish said. "See, I can make choices, and I can live with those choices."

"I think you're wrong about Christian," Stephanie shrugged. "I think something happened and I don't think what happened was his doing at all," she ended bluntly. "I think you're wrong."

"So you're going to side with him!" she yelled. "How could you!"

"How could _you_ underestimate him? I'm sorry, Trish, that's what I think."

"Well, fine, we'll see, Steph, I think you're wrong, but we'll see."

It would be an interesting few weeks, that was for sure.


	128. Countdown, March 26, 2007

A/N: Sorry about the whole no chapter thing the last two weeks. I had the flu, and was just in no mood to write, plus I had writer's block, lethal combination, so I just skipped it instead of burdening myself with it.

Anyways, here's tonight's chapter, expect a WrestleMania chapter of course. And I think I'm a little rusty, so excuse the crappiness of this chapter if it is indeed crappy, I'm getting back into the groove. Anyways, enjoy, and as always, leave a review:)

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"Thanks for meeting with me, Vince. I know you're busy tonight."

"Yes, but you're family, it's a little different for family."

"I suppose it is," Chris said. "I'm still not entirely used to that entire thing."

"It's been more than two years," Vince pointed out with a chuckle.

Chris shrugged, "It's hard to get used to when your boss is also your wife's father, it kind of feels like you're entering into the mafia and now you're part of it or something, you guys are like the mafia and I married the mafia princess."

"That's a…way of looking at it," Vince said slowly. "I'm guessing though that you didn't come here to talk to me about how you aren't yet used to being a part of the McMahon family, despite being married for over two years to my daughter and having a child with her."

"Yeah, that isn't it," Chris said as he ran his hand through his shortened hair. When he wasn't around Stephanie, he had to admit to himself that it was a lot harder getting used to this haircut than he would have anyone believe. At times, he even believed that he _had_ gotten it cut too short, but he would never admit defeat to Stephanie. She would lord it over his head for months and months until he got back his hair.

"Is this about Stephanie though?" Vince asked, his eyes narrowing just the tiniest bit as he regarded Chris. "Are you two having troubles? Are you going to divorce my daughter!"

"What!" Chris asked, alarmed, his head shooting up and staring at Vince in disbelief. "No, I'm not divorcing your daughter. I love Stephanie, man, no, God no, that's not even close to being what this is about."

"Good, because if I did find out…well, a marriage is something you work on, it doesn't come easy--"

"Vince, Stephanie and I are fine," Chris interrupted and noted. "We're fine, and yeah, we fight and stuff, but it's never bad, we're fine, I swear, it's really, _really_ not about that, I swear to you."

This seemed to appease Vince as he nodded, "Go on then."

"Okay, thank you," Chris said. "Stephanie wants me to come back to work on-screen and wrestle again. I know that you've been dropping some…non-subtle hints in my direction too, and that's what I came here to talk about."

"I'm sorry, I've tried to not push you too hard," Vince said.

"Yeah, thanks, not working, but thanks," Chris said, then sighed. "Here's the thing, Vince, I'm hesitant to come back right now because I want to enjoy my time with my kid. As you know, I've been…I'd like to say your most reliable employee over the past several years."

"You have been," Vince agreed.

"I never had a serious injury, nothing that ever put me out for more than a week at a time. I've been here and I've worked my ass off through a lot of shit, and I didn't complain too much," he smirked. "And that's really the thing that's holding me back right now. Being your most reliable employee meant that I didn't get a whole lot of time to rest, and now that I'm rested, I feel good and I get to play with my son."

"I'm happy about that, Sawyer's my grandson and I want what's best for him. I don't see where you're going with this, Chris."

"Stephanie is upset with me because I'm not back," Chris said, looking off and thinking about his wife. She didn't have to say anything for him to know that she was waiting. She would watch him sometimes, and he knew what she was thinking. She was trying to think of when he'd come back. She was just lying in wait, hoping, and hoping, and when she looked away when he caught her, his heart took a little bit of her hurt with him and carried it.

"Oh, and you want me to talk to her or something?" Vince asked, still confused.

"No, I want to discuss coming back," Chris said, nodding. "I love my wife, and she wants me back and I want that for her. She's…I don't know, but I told myself I'd be willing to do anything to make her happy, and I want her to be happy."

"You want to come back, like at WrestleMania?"

"No," he shook his head, "I want Sawyer to be at least a year old, I was thinking, maybe later this year, but I don't know when, I figured you could just leave the option open for any time this year."

"Of course, you know that you can come back at any time, there's no date where you have to let me know. You're my son-in-law, my daughter loves you and you're a part of this family, you can come back tonight if you wanted to, you can do anything."

"Well, thanks for the vote of confidence," Chris laughed and then rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably. Sometimes the power did really get to him a little. He didn't intend to go into this marriage to get any kind of power, and just the fact that he had it made him a little uncomfortable. Sometimes he wanted to go out there and flaunt it, use it for his own personal means, but then he knew he would be compared to Hunter, and that was the last thing that he would want in this world…well, it would be near the last anyways. "That's not what I want though, I was thinking sometime after the summer is over, tentatively of course."

"That sounds fine, if you come before SummerSlam we'll definitely have a spot for you."

"Thanks, great," Chris said. "Maybe after that though, I haven't really thought this through. It's just, I know that Stephanie wants me back, and she doesn't have to beg me for me to know that's what she wants, but I want to do this for her, think about her and everything, be the good husband."

"I don't think my daughter would hate you if you weren't to come back any time soon," Vince pointed out.

"I think you'd be surprised about your daughter," Chris joked. "But that was what I was thinking, and I felt that I owed it to her to do this, more importantly, I _want_ to do this for her, I do, Vince, I'm just not ready yet, and I want Sawyer to be at least a year old before I do, I want to spend my son's first year with him, where I can play with him and be a dad to him right now."

"I understand that."

"Good, I'm glad," Chris responded. "And…uh, can you keep this to yourself for now? I just don't want Stephanie to find out and get her hopes all up and think that I'm coming back next week or something. I want to take my time with this decision and I kind of want to surprise her."

Vince smiled, "I can do that. I won't tell her."

Chris stood up, Vince following shortly afterwards and he shook hands with his boss, "Thanks again for listening to me."

"Not a problem."

Chris was whistling when he walked out of Vince's office. He felt like he was on a solid path right now and he was happy with where it was leading. He always knew that he was going to want to come back, it was just a matter of getting that itch back, and it was starting to come back. He just wanted to see Sawyer walking and talking before he did so, that was all. He smiled though, knowing that this was definitely going to make Stephanie happy, and he couldn't help but love making Stephanie happy. She was going to be so ecstatic he almost wanted to run and tell her right now, but he knew that he shouldn't.

Instead, he calmly walked into her office where she was kneeling next to Sawyer on the ground as he played with some of his blocks, banging them onto his books and other various objects. Stephanie kept trying to take them, but he would pull his hand away before she could, giggling the entire time as Stephanie tried to look mean and intimidating, but Sawyer was just having none of that. Chris sat on the ground next to them, just watching his family and he was content in the knowledge that these were the people that he loved, these were the people that he did everything for.

"Where'd you go?" Stephanie asked.

"I just had some stuff to finalize before the show," he informed her, knowing he was lying, but it was for a good cause.

She nodded briefly, "But you weren't here to get something."

"Get what?" he asked, thinking she was going to lean over and kiss him. So while he was leaning in a little bit to get a taste of his wife, she was standing up and going over to the desk, retrieving a videotape and coming back over, sitting on the floor next to him.

"I got this from Britt, she said that you requested to have it delivered to the show tonight," Stephanie said. "It feels like a videotape or something, I didn't want to open it just in case it was something that I wasn't supposed to see."

"What do you think it would be that you couldn't see?" he asked her.

She blushed a little bit, "I don't know, something…naughty or something…"

"Did you think I had porn delivered to Raw?" Chris laughed, looking as her blush deepened. "Just when I think that you can't surprise me anymore, you go and do just that. If you really wanted to know what it was, you could've just opened it." He ripped it open and handed it to Stephanie. "It's just a video for Sawyer to watch to keep him occupied. Your dad won't spring for DVD's back here because there's no real use for them so I bought a video for when we're on the road with Sawyer, it's not a big deal."

"Oh, and here I thought we'd get to watch a porn," she said coyly. There was a knock on the door and she went to answer it as Chris helped Sawyer stand up and take a few clumsy steps towards the door. If you held onto his hand, he could take a few steps before he'd get tired and try to pull away from you, but it was progress towards him learning to walk, which would be a feat unto itself and would help Chris and Stephanie a lot since they wouldn't have to carry Sawyer everywhere.

Stephanie opened the door and saw Britt on the other side. "Oh, hey, Britt, what can I do for you?" Stephanie asked.

"Hey Steph, the guy you were meeting with tonight, he got his signals crossed somehow and he's in Chris's office right now, I was in there and told him I'd let you know that you were going to come soon."

"Oh, great, thanks Britt, I'll head on over right now," she said to her and Chris's assistant.

"Okay, I'll go let him know, oh, and Chris, the video packages are ready for you to look over for this Sunday, and Shane called because he wanted to talk to you about something regarding the Hall of Fame ceremony, he mentioned he wanted to know if you were going to help work it backstage."

"Thanks Britt, I'll call him."

"Great," she said before heading off.

Chris let Sawyer lean back against his legs as he looked to Stephanie, who was gathering up some of her files and stuff from the floor where she had been reading it while simultaneously playing with Sawyer, because who said you couldn't work and play with your kids at the same time. She kissed him briefly and then knelt down to kiss Sawyer, who reached out to her, but Stephanie pouted at him and shook his head.

"We can't hang out now, baby cakes, but Mommy will see you later," Stephanie said, kissing his forehead again. He made a grab for her files, but she scolded him gently, "Sawyer, baby, don't take Mommy's things, you know better."

"I don't think he knows better," Chris told her. "And who is this meeting with, this is the first I'm hearing of it."

"Because you don't need to know everything about me," Stephanie told him. "It's just with Daniel Rodimer, you know that guy that I happened to like down in OVW…"

"Not ringing any bells," Chris said, shaking his head. "I feel like I should know who he is, but I'm not sure that I know who he is."

"He's in OVW, and I wanted to bring him up to Raw, make sure that he got into some prominent matches, got a good push, because I thought that he could eventually be a star, a huge star the likes of like…Rock maybe--"

"Rocky?" Chris asked incredulously, raising one of his eyebrows in disbelief.

"Okay, not like Rocky, but someone good," she told him. "But then my dad, you know how he gets, well, I just wanted to kind of guide him along, make sure that he's getting better because I see a bright future for him."

"Wait, isn't this the guy that people are saying isn't ready…isn't this the guy _I _said wasn't ready when I went down to OVW to check out on the talent?" Chris wondered, trying to place a face with the name. "I think it is."

"It might've been," she said.

"How old is he? Isn't he kind of old for a rookie?"

"He's like, a couple years younger than me," Stephanie said. "But that's not a big deal, talent doesn't have an age, and if Flair can still wrestle at what, sixty-eight or whatever he's at now, then this guy can wrestle too, you're middle-aged and you still know how to wrestle, maybe…I'm not entirely sure."

Chris sighed and thought back to his discussion with Vince, "Stephanie, I'm not discussing that with you."

"I know, I have a meeting to get to," Stephanie said. "I'm meeting with this guy to try and get him ready, I see potential in him, Chris, I really do."

"Then we'll have to agree to disagree," he told her, "because I just don't see it in him. He's forgettable really, he's a big man, and that's why you like him, you're just like your dad in that respect, you think that any guy who has size is automatically going to bring it in the ring when you should be looking more for actual talent."

"So potential means nothing to you?" she asked, putting her hands on her hips as if challenging him to defy her.

"I think potential means a lot, but sometimes you can't get by on potential alone. I love you, Steph, I do, but I've seen a lot more wrestling in my life than you have, I've seen way more wrestlers than you have, and I've learned more--"

"Oh, so I'm just a nothing then, I'm just a stupid idiot with wrong opinions?" she asked, glaring at him now. He knew that he was in a tight spot right now, but he was already in this deep, he might as well go the full shebang and have her be completely pissed at him.

"You're not nothing, Steph, but I was wrestling when you were still in middle school, I've seen a lot more than you have."

"I grew up in this business, Chris," she told him.

"I know you have, but you haven't traveled the world, you have, but not in the sense I have, you haven't seen all the styles to be seen."

"So because I didn't have to live in dirt cheap motels and didn't drive beat-up cars, that means my opinion is not as valued as yours?"

"You're misunderstanding me."

"Apparently," she told him. "Whatever, I'm keeping a guy waiting right now and that's not very fair to him, so I'll see you later or whatever."

"Baby, don't be mad at me."

"Oh, I'm not," she told him, when she so obviously was. She coolly knelt down to kiss Sawyer again, sent him a short glare and was out of the room in a breeze of perfume and business suit. Chris looked down at Sawyer and tapped his finger on Sawyer's head, causing the little boy to look up at him curiously.

"Your mommy is mad at me and it's all your fault," he told him, but Sawyer just shrugged his shoulders carelessly and dropped down to his knees to crawl over to his play-blanket. "Hey, where are you going, this _is_ your fault? You know if you would ease up on her a little, not be so dependent, she wouldn't be so uptight."

"Meh beeg dut," Sawyer said as he grabbed his toys and began to play with them again, grabbing the blocks and trying to gather them all together with the rings. Chris sat next to him and Sawyer looked over to hand Chris one of the rings, smiling as he did so.

"Thanks," Chris said, "Is this your way of saying that you think Mommy would like a ring?" Chris made a face and Sawyer stuck his tongue out and giggled, as if laughing at his own joke.

Stephanie walked down the hallway towards Chris's office, wondering how the guy could go to Chris's office and not her own. She was miffed that Chris didn't believe in her instincts. She knew she had made some suspect choices in the past, but she was just trying to do what was best for the company. Even Chris didn't know everything there was to know, and how dare he act like he was better than her in some way. She was doing a great job around her and she didn't need him questioning her. She was still…wait, no, she wasn't his boss anymore, and she cursed the fact she had married him and given him the same power that she had. Now she couldn't one-up him.

She was stomping by the time she reached her office, but she wasn't expecting someone to be standing outside of it, leaning against the wall. "Carlito?"

"Hey, Stephanie, are you busy?"

"Actually, I just had a meeting that I had to get to, is this important?"

"Well, it's kind of about Trish…"

"So it's important," she finished for him, and he gave her a sheepish smile. "Can you give me like ten, fifteen minutes and then we can talk about her?"

"Yeah, sure," Carlito said, nodding. "I'll just wait out here."

"Okay, great."

Stephanie went inside, thinking about Trish, who she hadn't spoken to since she had told her to grow up. She still felt that particular sentiment, and she hadn't made up with Trish as a result of that. From what she could understand though, both Carlito and Christian weren't on the best terms with her. She and Chris were still on Christian's side, and after hearing more of Christian's side of the story, she was definitely siding with him. She knew Christian, and she knew him well enough to know that he wasn't lying. At this point, she wasn't sure that Trish even deserved Christian at all. She saw Daniel sitting there waiting for her, and she went into business mode.

"Hello again, Daniel," Stephanie said, walking over and setting her things down before reaching out to shake his hand.

"Hey, sorry for getting the wrong office, I could've sworn someone said that this was your office."

"It's okay, easy mistake, one office is Jericho, one office is McMahon-Jericho, someone is bound to get it mixed up," she said easily.

"Oh yeah, so this is your…"

"Husband's office," she told him. "Anyways, what I wanted to talk to you about was the fact that I see some real potential in you, and I wanted to let you know that if you work hard then I see a place for you here."

"Really?"

"Yes, really," she said. "I see something in you, and I just want to kind of guide you along, you know, monitor your progress because I think that you can really make it, and I would like to see you succeed."

"Wow, I don't know if I can ever live up to your expectations."

"Just try," she said. "I was thinking that I could come down to OVW to check out a couple of your matches, see how you're progressing and we could go from there."

"Thank you so much," he said, reaching for her hand to shake it again, "really, that's awesome."

She smiled, satisfied with herself, "You're very welcome, I like to think that I can be a judge of talent, no matter what anyone says," she finished off bitterly, still thinking about what Chris had said. She couldn't believe the audacity of that man, practically calling her out and making her out to be some kind of fool.

"Um, are you alright?" he asked.

"Oh, it's nothing, I'm sorry, anyways, I think that's all I have to say for right now, I'm sorry this meeting wasn't more engaging, but because of WrestleMania coming up so soon, I've got so much work to do."

"Don't worry about it, I mean, you're going the extra mile for me, so really, it's no trouble at all."

"Well, you're free to go."

"Thanks again," he said, nodding as he started to leave.

"Oh, could you tell the guy sitting outside that he can come in now?"

"Yes, of course."

Stephanie watched as he left and then tried to look at the files in front of her that was the itinerary for this weekend. She knew that Chris was going to be playing this Thursday in Windsor, Ontario, which was just outside of Detroit, so she had to plan for that and try to find baby earplugs for Sawyer because she knew how loud it could get at one of Chris's concerts, even when he was just going to be backstage, then there was the Hall of Fame ceremony, Fan Axcess, and then the actual show, and the party they had after the show, which somehow she had been volunteered to help coordinate with Linda's help. She had rented out a restaurant, but the menu wasn't set and she groaned in frustration at all the work she still had to do.

"That sounded like a bad groan," Carlito said as he walked inside.

"It's the kind of groan you get around WrestleMania time," Stephanie said. "I've got so much to do, and so little time to do it in, and Chris has got his own stuff to worry about, he's helping with the entire Hall of Fame ceremony and he's got his concert…"

"Oh yeah, I'm going to that," Carlito said, and Stephanie gave him a look, "No, metal isn't my thing, but he invited me, and I figured that I could go, have a drink, you know, get away from this situation."

"Christian's going to be there," Stephanie said, "Chris isn't exactly above inviting everyone he knows to one of his concerts, Sawyer is going."

"Oh, that'll be fun for him, I'm sure he'll love that," Carlito said sarcastically and Stephanie laughed. "She's…she's not going to be there, is she?"

"Trish?"

"Yeah."

"No, we didn't invite her, we're not exactly…on speaking terms with her right now," Stephanie mentioned, looking down. "I think this entire situation is just…it's all horrible and drawn out, and there's too many hurt feelings and broken hearts."

"I never wanted to hurt her."

"I know," she said. "I didn't want to hurt her either, but I just couldn't sit back and watch as she put you _and_ Christian through the ringer. And then she goes and accuses Christian of something that I just don't think he would do and that was the straw that broke the camel's back. I haven't talked to her. I don't even know if she came tonight to see you or what?"

"She mentioned it in a message she left me, so she's probably around. She was in Toronto, so the flight isn't that far."

"Yeah," she said. "So you've talked to her."

"No, I haven't, I don't even know what to say, I don't even know if I want to see her, that's why I wanted to see you, I don't know what to do and you're her best friend."

"That's up in the air," Stephanie said with a sigh. "I'm not even sure what we are right now. I just don't like what she's doing, and I think she's pissed that I'm not on her side with this. I can't tell you what to do, Carlito, because right now, I'm just as mad at her for dragging me and Chris into this. We have so many more things to worry about, Sawyer, our jobs, everything, and she's trying to make everything about her and it's just really annoying."

"She has been very 'me' lately."

"Yeah, that's the truth," Stephanie said. "And I just don't have time for it. Sawyer is just learning how to walk, and he's starting to be really verbal and I want to see that, not solve her problems for her."

"She's kind of being selfish, that's why it's making it really hard for me to want to see her. I know she's a good person, so do you, but she's not a good person right now."

"No, she isn't," Stephanie said sadly. "I hate to cut this short, but…"

"The show, yeah, I'm sorry."

"It's okay, it's just my dad is being crazy tonight."

"As opposed to…"

"Yeah, I get it, I get it," she laughed. "Anyways, good luck with everything."

"Thanks."

Stephanie got up and walked out with the intention to go talk to her father. Carlito sat there for a few moments before deciding to go back to his locker room. His match had been scratched from the WrestleMania card, and he had been bummed, but as he understood it, there'd be another match where he'd possibly tag with Flair. He would just have to get used to this kind of thing, at least he was pairing up with a legend.

"Carlito…"

Carlito looked up as he walked into his dressing room and saw Trish sitting there. He sighed, hoping that she hadn't made it there tonight. "Trish…"

"You haven't been returning my calls, and you're never home it seems," she said sadly. "I figured that this was the only way that I was going to get to see you."

"Okay," he said nonchalantly as he went to his bag. He didn't have to retrieve anything, but he just wanted to distract himself so that he wouldn't get caught up with Trish. He was supposed to be angry with her, and despite the fact that he was still mad at her, he found it hard to truly hate her when she was seated right in front of him.

"I just wanted to see how you were," Trish told him. "I've missed you and I just wanted to see if you were doing okay, I haven't heard from you and it was starting to worry me."

"I've been busy with WrestleMania coming up, everyone has," he told her, still digging through his bag.

Trish wished that he would look over at her, anything to actually acknowledge that she was sitting there with him. "Yeah, I figured as much, what with it being this Sunday and all. I know that you're busy, but I figured that you would at least…return my call, maybe."

"Like I said, I've been busy."

"Did I do something wrong, Carlito?" she asked softly. "Because if I did something wrong."

"Trish," he said, his voice tired, as he finally looked at her. She bit her lip and he looked away a moment to compose his thoughts. "Look, it's like this. I knew you were in love with Christian, and I gave you the out, and you didn't take it, then he supposedly does something to you--"

"Have you been talking to Chris and Stephanie?"

"Yes, I have."

"Christian hurt me, he was using me, I never should've trusted him."

"But you still loved him!" Carlito protested. "I don't want to marry a woman who doesn't think of me as number one, number two isn't good enough for me, Trish, I don't want you to settle."

"I'm not!" she argued. "He was treating me like shit. They're lying, they're believing his lies."

"But you still loved him, that's the thing," Carlito said. "You still loved him, and do you know how that makes me feel? I'm not going to take that Trish, I'm not going to be the consolation prize, so you know what, be alone, whatever, I'm done being the number two man in your life."

"You're not!" she pleaded. "You aren't…I swear, it'll be different this time, I'm devoted to you, Carlito."

"No, you're not, I gave you the out, Trish, I'm giving it to you again, take it, please, just take it," he said. "This thing, whatever it is between us, it's not cool anymore. I love you, that's not in question, I'm just not sure how much you love me."

"I love you, Carlito, don't doubt that."

"Except I do, look, just take the out. I've really got to go."

He didn't let her get another word in before almost literally racing out of the room. She sat there and had never felt more alone in her life. Was she really such a terrible person that she had alienated everyone in her life? First Christian, then Chris and Stephanie, and now Carlito. She felt like she didn't have anyone. Kurt had shown her a bit of kindness though when she had been with Christian that night. Was Kurt really the only one who had given a damn about her in the past few weeks? That alone was a sad, sad thought.

She stood up, not knowing what else to do, Carlito had pretty much ended it right then, and he probably wouldn't want to talk to her. So she really didn't have anyone to talk to. Chris and Stephanie were still mad at her and still siding with Christian (although she just couldn't figure out why), and while she was sure that other people would talk to her, it just wasn't the same. She had made this trip for practically nothing. She wanted to fly back home to Toronto and go back to the familiarity of her parent's house. They didn't judge her like everyone else seemed to be doing right now.

She walked down the hall dejectedly, throwing half-hearted smiles to people and hellos as well. But she didn't linger. She just wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible. She thought she saw Jeff, but she didn't feel like bothering with him tonight. She knew he could be a friend that she needed, but she just didn't want to discuss her life with anyone right now, it was way too depressing to her.

"One step, that's right, one foot in front of the other," Chris said as he walked down the hallway with Sawyer, who was going at a snail's pace. At least he was somewhat following Chris's directions and stepping forward, although still clinging desperately to Chris's hand, checking every so often to make sure that Chris was still holding onto his hand and hadn't tricked him into standing alone. Chris held his hand tightly as he walked forward a little, his bare feet getting dirty, but he was still too young to wear shoes for anything other than decorative purposes. Sawyer recognized Trish immediately and started to babble incessantly, causing Chris to look up.

"Hey Sawyer," Trish said, crouching in front of him, "What are you doing?"

"He's getting the hang of this walking thing," Chris said, though his tone was crisp. "Hasn't mastered doing it alone, but he's definitely making progress while holding someone's hand."

"Wow, that's impressive," she said. Then she looked up at Chris, "Look, Chris…"

"Trish, I just don't have the time right now," he told her with a sigh.

"I thought that you of all people might understand," she told him. "You always understood in the past, you were the one who always looked past things, even when Stephanie would tell you differently."

"Well, this time, I don't particularly like how you're treating Christian," Chris said. "I believe what he told me, and I believe him."

"But I know what I heard," Trish told him. "I know what I heard and what I felt."

"And I know what I heard," Chris said. "Trish, sometimes you have to take sides, and I did on this one. I just don't believe that Christian is the monster you're making him out to be. It's funny, really, this time last year, we were all hating him, but now the shoe's on the other foot."

"But we're friends."

"Yeah, we are, and you should really take your head out of your ass on this one, realize that you're taking a good thing for granted," Chris said. "I've got to go, Sawyer likes to see Stephanie before he goes to sleep."

"Yeah, okay, bye."

"Bye Trish, and really think about what you're doing okay, because the sooner you see, the sooner all of this goes back to normal."

Chris walked to the gorilla, where Stephanie was currently arguing with Vince. She couldn't hear exactly what was going on, but he had a good idea of what it was. He stayed back for a few minutes, bouncing Sawyer up and down in place as Sawyer giggled away.

"Dad, you're being mean to him!"

"So?"

"So, it's not right," Stephanie said. "It's not right and you know it."

"Oh, Stephanie, don't worry about it, he'll get over it," Vince said. "Now take over for me while I get ready for my match. Eugene probably doesn't even remember what happened last week, maybe he thinks that he cut his hair on his own."

"Oh yeah, Dad, I'm so sure, he's slow, not forgetful," she told him. "You're being unreasonable again, Dad, and you need a reality check right about now. You're getting too cocky."

"What are you saying?" he demanded to know.

"I'm saying that you're getting too cocky," she repeated. "And you're underestimating Lashley, and if you're not careful, you're going to get your head shaved."

"You think that Umaga is going to lose, you think I'm going to lose to Trump?"

"If you keep acting like you've already won, yeah, I think so," Stephanie told him. "I'm telling you the truth, Dad, you appreciate that."

"Don't worry, Stephanie, come Sunday, I'm going to be the winner, and I'll be personally shaving Trump's head. Now take over for me, and for the love of God, make sure the show runs smoothly, and if you see someone coming to interfere on Lashley's behalf, I want you to see to it that they are removed from the area, have security nearby."

"Yes, Daddy," Stephanie said as she watched her father go back to get ready for his match. Vince passed Chris and he nodded, giving him a knowing smile, and Chris briefly regretted telling Vince of his decision to return. Vince was going to bug him until he came back. At least he had added the stipulation that Sawyer had to be a year old, but that only left him a little over a month since Sawyer's birthday was coming up rapidly on May 1st.

Chris let go of Sawyer's hands, and he dropped to his butt after a few seconds before crawling over to Stephanie as quickly as his little butt would take him. He got over to her, Chris following, and grabbed the leg her of her chair, using her leg and the chair's leg to pull himself up into a standing position. She clapped for him and he smiled at her happily as she took him in her arms. Chris sat down next to her and stared for a moment.

"So…about earlier…"

"Whatever, Chris, I concede that you have seen more than me."

"And I concede that your opinions do matter, despite not having seen more than me," he added.

"Okay, white flags then?"

"White flags," he said. "Of all the weeks to fight, this is the worst possible one. I've got tons to do, you've got tons to do, and we should be working together to get it all done and not at each other's throats."

"I know," she said.

"Trish was here, I basically told her to get her head out of her ass."

"Good," Stephanie said as she watched the show. "We'll get everything done though, we always do. We make a good team."

"The _best_ team," he corrected. "I do love you, you know."

"I know, I love you too," she said, turning to him and leaning over to kiss him. "You know a year ago, I was still pregnant and unhappy because I knew that WrestleMania was going to be my last show before I had to go on maternity leave? I remember being so unhappy that I had to leave."

"I remember that well, your stomach was huge," he told her, smiling at the memory, "You were gorgeous."

"You lie," she kidded, leaning into him as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "It was worth it though, Sawyer's the coolest, and it's going to be his first WrestleMania, I bet he's going to be so awed. I was thinking…briefly…that maybe you could be in the audience, disguised of course, so you wouldn't get bombarded, and maybe you could bring Sawyer…you know, let him watch."

"That's not a bad idea," Chris said. "I'd like for Sawyer to get his first taste. I remember my first WrestleMania, I was facing Benoit and Kurt for the IC and the European Title, and I won the European Title, it was pretty awesome."

"I was in Hunter's corner for the WWE Title match," she recalled. "It was a McMahon in every corner."

"Yeah, and you go the bum corner," he said, kissing her temple. "I don't think I hated your guts yet."

"No, you didn't, I was a nobody to you then."

"So…your dad is totally going to go bald, isn't he?"

"Oh yeah, totally."


	129. Very Wordy, WrestleMania, April 1, 2007

A/N: Okay, so, this is a long chapter, let me preface with that, so sit down, grab something to eat, hunker down and then read away. ;)

So, this starts on Thursday. Thursday, you might ask, that's odd, you might say. Eh, not so odd. Chris was playing in Windsor, Ontario on Thursday, and turns out that Windsor, Ontario and Detroit, Michigan are like, right next to each other, and according to Yahoo Maps, they're four minutes apart, so…well, yeah, hey Chris, I hope you spent some time with Stephanie while you were there! ;)

Anyways, yeah, so it starts at his Fozzy concert, blends right into the Hall of Fame ceremony and then cruises on down to WrestleMania. I spent like, three days on this chapter, so please, _please_ read it and don't hate it, that's all I ask. Oh, and for a review, I mean, seriously, like take five seconds, tell me what you think since I spent like, hours on this, least you can do, right? Right?

So enjoy. :)

* * *

"You know, you didn't have to come."

"It's okay," Stephanie said as she pushed the stroller into the back exit. "We wanted to come."

"But you have so much to do with WrestleMania this Sunday, I just don't want you to start complaining if you don't get what you need done, done. Because you're going to be spending the whole day here while we do sound-check and lighting at everything."

"I brought my stuff," she said, patting the bag hanging from one of the handles of Sawyer's stroller. "Seriously, Chris, it's okay, we can just sit there while you do your thing, and Sawyer can sleep backstage, you said there are soundproof rooms, and we have his portable crib in the trunk of the car."

"Well, okay, you sound prepared," Chris said. "But really, if it gets too loud or something you can take Sawyer back to the hotel and I can get a ride with Christian or something."

"Chris, we're _fine_," Stephanie said as Chris held the door open for them. She kissed him briefly as she passed. "Are you trying to get rid of us?"

"Why would I want to get rid of you?" he asked.

"I don't know, because girls are going to throw their panties at you and you're going to flirt with the audience, maybe invite a girl up on stage to sing, maybe act like you're single and you want to sleep with every girl in the building," she said playfully. "Maybe so you can get with some groupie and sleep with her backstage while your wife and son are all nestled in their hotel room…maybe something like that."

"Okay, you caught me, I was going to host an orgy in my dressing room," Chris said. "It was going to be me and like twenty women and with you and Sawyer here, it's cramping my style."

"Well, I guess with me there it makes twenty-one women," Stephanie told him sarcastically as he followed them inside. "My God, it's dark back here."

"Well, it's a nightclub, it's not exactly going to be lit like a library," Chris said. "You've been to these kinds of places with me before."

"Not since we've had Sawyer, it must've slipped my mind," she said as she watched Sawyer looking around curiously. "You know, I think there are adults who have never seen as many places as Sawyer has seen, does that make us bad parents?"

"I think if we offered him beer from the bar we'd be bad parents, as it stands, I think we're just giving our son culture," Chris winked as he tried to spot anyone. He heard voices up ahead and saw his bandmates convening up ahead. "Come on, I bet we're up here."

"Can we watch you rehearse?"

"No, I'm going to deny you that," Chris said, rolling his eyes. "Of course you can, it's probably better if you do since you're going to be backstage during the actual show, this way you can actually see us play. Did you remember Sawyer's earplugs?"

"You think I'd get all my work and then forget my son's earplugs?"

"Absolutely," he said as they approached Chris's band. He high-fived them all and clapped Rich on the back. "Hey you douchebags, you ready to rock tonight?" Stephanie held her laugh, but managed to still roll her eyes. She looked down at Sawyer who was drinking from his sippy cup, watching Chris go about his business."

"Aren't you going to introduce us, man," Rich said, looking over at Stephanie and Sawyer.

"You all know Stephanie," Chris joked and then slapped his forehead. "Oh, that's not what you meant, well, stupid me." He picked up Sawyer from his stroller, the little boy looking curiously at his father as he took his sippy cup from him, Sawyer whining and reaching for it. "Come on kid, first impressions here. Guys, this is Sawyer, Sawyer, this is my band, you're going to watch us rock out tonight, aren't you?"

Sawyer gave him a look of anger for taking his sippy cup and Chris gave it back to him, causing him to smile and drink from it happily. He looked over Chris's shoulder to Stephanie and then leaned over trying to grab for her. Stephanie took him from Chris as Chris started his discussions about the show later that evening. Stephanie spotted Chris's dressing room and headed for it, pushing Sawyer's empty stroller towards it as she held him to her. When they got inside, she put him on the ground near the sofa, letting him pull himself up if he wanted.

"Steph," Chris said, sticking his head in the door. "We're going to go through rehearsals now if you want to come watch."

"Yeah, absolutely," she said with a smile as his head disappeared again. Chris was excited and she could tell. She knew that he liked to work with her at Raw and overall he liked his job there, but there was something to be said of his own projects. She was actually glad that they had things that were unique to their own person. Chris had his band and if it made him happy to play in it, it made her happy to see him play in it.

She went over and picked up Sawyer, grabbing his diaper bag along the way. She had some food in there for him if he wanted lunch while they were out there. She went and grabbed Sawyer's hand and he looked up at her curiously. "Do you want to try and walk it, Sawyer, or do you want me to carry you? His decision seemed to have been made when he let go of the couch and took a clumsy step forward, almost tipping over, but Stephanie caught him in time and straightened him. "Okay, compromise, baby boy, you can walk to the door, and then Mommy will carry you."

He seemed happy with the arrangement and she held his hand while he tried to make his way to the door, Stephanie being more patient with him than she was with everyone else combined. Maybe it had to do with the fact that Sawyer was actually hers, who knew, right? Sawyer grabbed on a chair to propel himself and Stephanie couldn't help the pride surging through her. She knew that Sawyer was probably still a ways away from actually walking by himself, but he was definitely making strides to walking and she couldn't be prouder of him for the accomplishment. It was a wonder that he could even take these few clumsy steps while holding onto someone's hand.

They finally reached the door and he slammed on it with his free right hand, as if telling someone on the other side to open it up for him because Sawyer Jericho demanded it. She laughed and scooped him up easily, though he was getting bigger, now being at a little more than twenty-two pounds. She opened the door with her free hand and walked out, seeing some people walking by quickly, all preparing for Chris's show tonight. Another surge of pride ran through her, but this one for her husband and not her son.

"This is all for Daddy, you know," she whispered to Sawyer, who was looking at everything with wide eyes. He always got that way around Raw though, like everything was moving at such a pace that he wanted to join in on it. Stephanie navigated her way through the backstage until she found the stage. Chris was standing on it talking to his drummer, Eric, and he waved at them. She walked over and said hello to Eric as Chris wrapped his arm around her waist.

"Why don't you go sit out there," he gestured towards the empty seats of the club, which would be filled to the brim later on.

"I am, just wanted to say hi," she said kissing him and then walking down the steps at the side of the stage to take a seat near the middle. She sat Sawyer on top of the table as she went to search for his earplugs.

"Dude, your wife is so hot," Eric said.

"Dude, come on, seriously," Chris chastised him. "Must you say that every fucking time you see her, it's a little excessive."

"Just telling the truth," he laughed. "She looks damn good."

Chris glared at him a second as he turned to watch Stephanie put the earplugs in Sawyer's ears, even as he tried to grab at them and pull them out. Stephanie stuck her tongue out at the little boy who stuck his out at hers and he could see her gasp in shock at his audacity, which caused Sawyer to giggle and clap his hands before Stephanie pouted and Sawyer covered his eyes with his hands. He loved to play Peek-a-boo after he did something that made his parents surprised. It was like he was embarrassed, but wanted to keep playing the game.

"Okay, everyone, let's do this thing!" Rich yelled as they got the go ahead from the sound booth in the back. The spotlight came up on them and they started to play as Chris tapped his foot to the beat of the song.

The first riff of the guitar scared Sawyer. He jumped a little bit, and looked at Stephanie, who was laughing at him. This was his first time ever hearing Chris's band live, and he had never been in the audience during a Raw so he wasn't used to loud, blaring things. Stephanie turned him so that he was facing Chris and his band as they started the first few bars of _All that Remains_, Stephanie was watching Sawyer though, who was looking like he was seeing ghosts. His eyes were wide and his mouth was a little open and he was entranced by all the colored lights and dancing going on. Chris smiled at one of his breaks in the song and Stephanie laughed as she pointed to Sawyer's face. Chris smiled as he saw it, wondering what kind of thoughts were running through Sawyer's mind right now.

He didn't even want to eat when Stephanie offered him some banana; he just pushed her hand away as he continued to watch Chris sing. Stephanie could see his fascination, the same fascination he got when he was watching Little Einsteins or Handy Manny in the morning, complete and total rapture. Stephanie leaned her chin on his small shoulder, observing his face, "Hey you, kiddo, you have to eat something and take your nap, you can't watch Daddy all afternoon." Sawyer turned to look at Stephanie and then pointed at Chris. "Yeah, that's Daddy, that's what he does on the nights he spends away from us, he goes and sings and acts like a goofball."

Sawyer went back to looking at Chris, but looked periodically at Stephanie to make sure she was watching too. She tried to get him to eat some more, but he was just so fascinated. She decided to take him back to the dressing room to eat and take his afternoon nap. He liked to take at least one nap during the day if he wasn't going to be cranky for later. This was his first WrestleMania weekend and he was going to have to get used to the hustle and bustle that went along with it. She walked backstage with him and sat him down on the couch before grabbing some of the food.

"Okay, we're not watching Daddy anymore, so you should eat your food," she told him. Just as she was about put a spoonful of carrots in his mouth, her cell phone rang. She groaned and grabbed some of the baby crackers she had and handed a couple to Sawyer, who chomped on it immediately. "I knew you were hungry." She looked at her phone and saw it was her brother and she sighed, knowing it was for one thing.

"Dad is freaking out!" Shane said. "I'm going to kill him and go to jail, Stephanie, so you better be prepared to take over the entire company."

"Deep breaths, Shane, deep breaths," Stephanie told him. "Just tell me what's going on."

"Dad has been looking everywhere for you, muttering something about the match on Sunday, how he can't lose his hair, how he's not going to, and he wants you to be making sure that the buses get here on time on Saturday."

"I told him a million times that Chris had his concert tonight and that I was going to be here with him all day," Stephanie said. "And tell Dad that I'm not going to come over there to calm him down, so you're going to have to. I'm with Chris, my husband, who wants me here."

"Okay, are the buses on schedule?"

"Yes, the buses are on schedule, I tracked them this morning, they should be here tomorrow morning and the crew will start getting the set up. Everything is going according to schedule, I checked all the contracts and sent them to the lawyers to make sure, payroll has everyone on it and all their bonuses, things are fine, the only thing Dad needs to worry about is going bald."

"Okay, so you've got everything under control, I get it," Shane said. "But you try telling Dad that when he's on edge, just like he always is around this time. What about the Hall of Fame ceremony?"

"Chris has got everything under control over there too, he's got the place booked and they should be setting up tomorrow afternoon. He made it look nice, he made sure that everyone who's getting inducted and coming has their tickets and are going to be on their way. He's good, Shane, almost as good as me, definitely better than you."

"Oh, thanks," Shane said sarcastically. "I'll give Dad the good news."

"Are you coming to Chris's concert tonight?"

"Well, I have Marissa with me."

"Ooh," Stephanie teased. "You have _Marissa_ with you…"

"What are we? Twelve?"

"No, I'm just glad to see that you're actually going places with her," Stephanie told him. "I want you to be happy, Shane, and I don't want you to be all mopey."

"When was I mopey?" he asked.

"After she left you…so is she on the verge of coming back to the house yet?"

"I don't know, we haven't really discussed it, but she's been spending nights there, and the boys have too, and they've been staying with me more, I'm hopeful though," he said, and she could hear that hopefulness in his voice. She hoped it happened soon though. "I think going slow has worked for us though, it's like we're dating and really getting accustomed to living together."

"Good, I'm glad," she said as Sawyer crawled into her lap and tried to grab the box of crackers out of her hand. "Shane, I'm going to go, Sawyer is hungry and he's crawling all over me trying to get food, so I have to go. But bring Marissa by tonight, it should be fun, just wear…stuff that people wouldn't recognize you in."

"Yeah, easier said than done," Shane said. "Maybe though, we'll see, later Steph."

Stephanie hung up and then went back to feeding Sawyer. When she was done with that and taken the earplugs out and put him down for his nap, she went about going over things for WrestleMania that Sunday. Chris stayed busy and she didn't see him for hours despite the fact that they were in the same building, so it was pretty much like every Monday that they spent together. Finally, when her clock said that it was coming upon seven and Sawyer was happily eating some of the dinner she had gone out to get a little while earlier, some macaroni and cheese for him, a burrito for her, Chris walked in.

"Hey baby, miss me?"

"No, can't say that I did," she said. "Is it almost time?"

"Yeah, sort of, I'm getting dressed anyways," he said, dropping his pants on the ground. She raised an eyebrow and he glared at her. "Are you ogling me, Mrs. Jericho?"

"I'm allowed," she told him sweetly. "I think that was one of the rules, I'm allowed to ogle you, besides, you're still in your boxers, it's not like you're getting naked for me, now that'd be ogling."

"I'm not having sex with you with my son eating dinner," Chris said, and she crossed her arms and pretended to act angry. "Hey, I can't help it if you're a pervert. That's what you get when you don't fully check out a woman before you marry them. You sure look like you're enjoying that macaroni and cheese, Sawyer." Sawyer looked up at him from his food, orange cheese covering his mouth and his hands.

"Don't judge him for being messy," Stephanie said, running her hands over Sawyer's head and through his blond hair.

"No one's judging, so the show is starting in about an hour, so if you want to come watch from the side, you know, feel free to do so. I'd really like it if you did," he said, and he almost sounded shy about the whole thing as he pulled on a different pair of pants.

"Aww, you want us to be there to see you, did you hear that Sawyer, Daddy wants us around!" Stephanie exclaimed and Sawyer instinctively clapped his hands together, and then became fascinated with the way they stuck together because of the cheese. "We wouldn't miss it for the world, but Sawyer can only watch a couple songs because he has to get to bed."

"Sounds good," he said, coming over and kissing her, and then taking a bite out of her burrito and then kissing Sawyer, "You taste like cheese, kid, try to aim for your mouth next time."

"He's trying," Stephanie defended him as Chris walked out of the room.

An hour went by quickly and Stephanie went to go watch Chris perform the first couple of songs before she had to go give Sawyer to Linda, with whom he was going to be with until Stephanie and Chris got to their hotel room later that night. Linda didn't have much to do with the actual setting up of WrestleMania, so she had plenty of free time, and she loved to spend that free time with her grandson, any one of her grandsons.

"Hey Windsor, thanks for showing up tonight, we're ready to rock this place down tonight," Chris said into the microphone, glancing to the side-stage and almost beaming when he saw Stephanie and Sawyer. Stephanie held Sawyer's hand up and he waved at Chris, smiling around the pacifier in his mouth, which he liked to have around bedtime. "First off, there are a couple people here tonight, one of which has never seen a show of mine, and I'm excited that this person can be here, even though he probably shouldn't be, but I'm glad he is, and I hope he's enjoying the show."

"Daddy was just talking about you," Stephanie told Sawyer and he looked up at her curiously before his attention was caught back by Chris's playing and she laughed, knowing that it was going to be hard to get him away from here without him whining and crying because he seemed to really be enjoying the live music.

About thirty feet away, Christian was just sitting down to the bar. He had a hat on and some dark glasses to shield his identity. He rocked his head to the music that Chris was playing and ordered a beer from the bartender. He was here to support his friend, the same friend who had chosen his side, and for that he was grateful. He knew he had done some bad things to Trish in the past so he figured that Chris and Stephanie would automatically assume that he had done it again. He had pulled a Christian and screwed up a good thing. Except this time, they believed him, and they didn't believe Trish. It was definitely a reversal and he was kind of happy that they were on his side, and the least he could do was support Chris.

He hadn't talked to Trish since the incident, and right now, he had no desire to talk to her. He had tried to explain himself to no avail and if she didn't want to listen, what could he do? There was nothing he could do to prove that he was right. Even if he got the woman who called him, Trish would probably say that she was just lying and they were playing her again. It figured to be a no-win situation and he would rather deal with that than deal with a million more stinging Trish rejections. He was a patient man, but he wasn't a saint and he wasn't going to wait forever.

In fact, maybe he should find someone here and take them home. There were plenty of groupies and ring rats, he was sure of it. They all loved Chris because he was so hot and they were probably looking to try and get with him for the night, not knowing that his wife was backstage and would rip any woman's head off that tried to sleep with her husband. But that didn't mean that he couldn't reap the benefits of that. If they were willing to go for one short-haired (ugh), blond, Canadian wrestler, than why wouldn't they go for another. He downed his beer in a couple chugs, ordered another and decided that plan was as good as any.

Of course, you can't exactly drown yourself in women and think that you're going to come out okay in the end. He loved Trish and he was afraid he was always going to love Trish, simply because they had no ending. There was no closure there, and how could he be expected to move on if he didn't really feel like he and Trish had ended? It just didn't work that way, but the beers would drown that thought out, and maybe he could find a petite, blonde woman so when he squinted his eyes and muted her voice, he could pretend that it was the woman he really wanted to be with.

Carlito slowly walked into the club, having the special passes that Chris had given him for the show. Everyone seemed to be watching the show and not focusing on him, and he was grateful. He was still pretty pissed that his match had been cut from WrestleMania, and he knew that it wasn't Chris or Stephanie's fault directly, but it still sucked. He wished that he could use their power in his favor, but that's not why they were friends, and they hadn't been friends long enough for him to feel comfortable asking for favors. So right about now, a drink sounded especially good.

He headed over to the bar, glancing up at Chris who was working the stage like nobody's business, and plopped himself down on an empty barstool. He turned to order a beer and then went to turn back when he heard someone groan and scoff. He looked to his left at the guy sitting there and then looked a little closer and saw that it was Christian. Of all the freaking seats in the entire place, he had to sit next to the one man who stood between him and Trish. Of all the damn luck…

Stephanie and Sawyer were dancing around backstage, which Sawyer was loving, if the big smile on his face was any indication (Stephanie had been on pacifier watch for the past ten minutes, his pacifier constantly dangling precariously from his lips, and she didn't have her spare with her). He kept clapping his hands, in no discernable pattern or rhythm, but he was having a great time, and Chris kept looking over whenever he'd do one of his little dance moves that brought him over to the stage.

Stephanie looked at her watch and then at Sawyer, "Sawyer, baby, Grandma is going to be here any minute so we have to say goodbye to Daddy, wave bye-bye to Daddy." Sawyer, understanding what it meant to wave bye-bye waved at Chris, who glanced over and frowned, not wanting Sawyer to go when he was having such a good time, but it was getting closer to his bedtime and she didn't want him to be cranky tomorrow or for the rest of the weekend. She went to grab his things and see if her mother was there.

"I can't believe of all people I run into you," Christian said.

"Yeah, well, I'm not crazy about running into you," Carlito grumbled.

"Why? Aren't you back with Trish, I mean, after she pretty much told me she hated me, I figured she'd go running back to you."

"She did, I didn't want to be second to you. I wanted to marry her, man, but it was always about you. It was always going to be you."

"Yeah, well not anymore," Christian said as he finished up his second beer. It wasn't having the desired effect yet, so he ordered a scotch on the rocks. "She hates me now, surprise, surprise."

"Yeah, well, I told her that I didn't really want to be with her," Carlito told him, downing his first one and seeming like he wanted to catch up to where Christian was.

"What?" Christian asked, surprised. "You actually turned her down? I mean, this is Trish…"

"Yeah I did, I'm sorry, but I really was sick of being second fiddle to you. You don't know what it's like to always know she's going to want someone more than she wants you, you're always going to be number one to her," Carlito said bitterly, wanting to spit the taste out of his mouth. He hated that he was talking with the man that Trish really wanted. It hurt him to think that he could never amount to the man that was standing in front of him. He didn't think that Christian was better than him, but there was obviously something that Trish saw in him that made her want him more. He wondered if he had met Trish first, would he be that guy and Christian would be the guy on the outside looking in.

"Well, you know, I don't think she's going to care about me anymore, so you might as well get back together with her, get married like you were supposed to, have 2.5 children, a dog, the white fucking picket fence, the entire thing, just have her already, she doesn't want me."

"No, because the entire time, she's going to be fucking wanting it all with you anyways," he said, trying hard not to slam his beer on the bar and get himself kicked out of here. The music from Chris's band was drowned out by their mutual misery. Both caused by one woman. "You know," Carlito started. "It's kind of her fault…"

"What?" Christian asked, ordering another scotch, though the bartender was starting to eye him a little bit. He took a swig of it, letting it burn down his throat smoothly. "Her fault?"

"Yeah, she didn't have to act this way, you know, she could've just made an actual choice for once," Carlito said, thinking about it as he finished his beer. "This could all be her fault."

Stephanie kissed Sawyer one last time as Linda took him away and down the stairs to her waiting limo. Stephanie let the door close and then went back to the side-stage to watch Chris in action. He was such a natural up there, and she hadn't been to one of his concerts in a long time, so it was almost like a new experience again for her. She hadn't been since before Sawyer was born, maybe even before she was pregnant, now that she thought about it. She had never readily admitted it to Chris, but she liked coming to his concerts. She liked to see him perform and be the showman that she always knew he was.

He needed a stage, she thought, Chris was never meant to be a person who stood on the sidelines or sat behind-the-scenes. He was meant to be in front of people, performing and being his loud, boisterous self. She could be the same way, but she also liked to be behind-the-scenes, the puppet-master if you will. She smiled wistfully as she thought about how much she would pay just to see Chris in that ring again, flying over the ropes, hitting opponents, or even just giving a killer promo that would incite the crowd like they hadn't been incited in a long time. But she respected his wishes and they were for the best of reasons, their son, Chris was doing all of this for their son, and that only made her love him more.

"Yeah, so then," Christian said, laughing before he could even finish his story. "She forgot that I hadn't packed yet, so she's pushing me towards the car, makes me get in, all the while, I'm like…doing something, talking or something like that, and she's jumping in and driving and I had no clothes!"

"No, no, no, one time, she was so afraid of looking bad as a cop for her show, that she made me look at all these alterations she wanted done, I've never been so bored ever!" Carlito said, guffawing. Christian started laughing, at what, he didn't quite know as he was pretty drunk by now.

"Hello Mr. Barkeep, please get my friend another drink," Christian said, adopting a bad English accent.

"Yeah, I think you and your friend may have had enough."

"We're fine!" Christian said. "I swear, and besides, we're not driving, so just give us one." He was impressed with how coherent he could sound as the bartender reluctantly gave them another drink.

"I'm cutting you off though," he warned them. "The only thing you're going to get from me is coffee or water, you hear me?"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Christian said as he slid a drink over to Carlito. "So let me tell about the time she made me change outfits seven different times…"

"Oh man, my record was four!" Carlito exclaimed.

Stephanie was a little tired of standing there. She wanted to be out there and she wanted to know what people were thinking of the show. Okay, so she was a liar and she really wanted to hear if women were talking about sleeping with Chris. She always got a perverse kind of pleasure of knowing that she was the only one who got to have sex with Chris, yet all these other women, thousands, millions maybe, would want to sleep with him. That was her husband and she was extremely proud of the fact that she had caught him.

So she decided to go out into the audience. She didn't look too flashy tonight, she was wearing a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, her hair in a ponytail and she was wearing her glasses. When you had a ten-month-old who knew how to throw food with amazing accuracy, you learned to dress appropriately. She actually blended into the crowd and nobody seemed to notice her. She did notice the collective drool over her husband and she was almost tempted to go to the bathroom, take off her panties and throw it at him. She wondered if he would recognize it since he had seen it this morning. She was seriously contemplating this when she heard the bits and pieces of the conversation of a couple of girls walking by.

"I heard he's going to come back sometime in September," one of them said.

"Seriously? That would be awesome, I can't believe I didn't hear about this."

"Yeah, I heard about it a few weeks ago, apparently he had a meeting with Vince or something and said that he had the itch to come back to wrestling, but that he wasn't ready yet, I don't know the reason, they didn't specify, but I swear, it sounds like it could be true this time."

"Um, excuse me," Stephanie said, glad for the anonymity that the dark surroundings of the club afforded her. It was pretty well-lit up near the stage and by the bar, but here, in the middle, it was pretty dark and she probably didn't look like her normal self.

"Yeah?" the first girl asked.

"You heard that Chris Jericho was coming back to WWE?"

"Oh yeah," the girl who had just been talking said excitedly. "Isn't that awesome news? I'm so ready for him to come back, I do not find any of the Raw guys at all appealing."

"Yeah, me neither," Stephanie said. "Thanks though."

"Yeah, no problem," she said, walking off with her friend and oblivious to the fact that she had just talked to _the_ Stephanie McMahon. Stephanie hadn't read any internet rumors as she tended to stay away from them. They always put her in a negative light, and sometimes words did hurt her. Chris had told her not to look at those kinds of sights and not to ever believe anything that came from them. She looked back to the stage where the band was taking a five minute break and she ran backstage, flashing her pass as she wanted to get a few minutes alone with Chris. She rushed to him and threw her arms around him.

"I'm gross and sweaty, baby," Chris told her, but hugged her back nonetheless as he chugged a water bottle over her shoulder. "I've only got a few minutes before I have to go back out. Did your mom get the kid?"

"Yeah, he's with her, we can pick him up later," Stephanie said. "I heard the strangest thing when I was out there though."

"You went out there?" he asked, throwing a thumb to the general area of the club.

"Yeah, I did," she told him.

"Did you hear how some girls were flirting with me or something? Because I haven't. And I'm not contemplating how to ditch you to go sleep with someone," he teased, poking her in the side as she swatted his hand away.

"No, nothing like that, although I'm sure some desperate woman is plotting how she's going to stake out the side door and wait until you come out and use her womanly wiles to seduce you into bed."

"So how long have you been staking out the side door?"

She gave him the middle finger as he kissed her briefly, the stage manager telling him he had two minutes. "Chris," Stephanie said, pulling away, "this is serious, we've got a couple minutes. These girls were talking and one of them said that you were going to come back in like September, and that you had a meeting with my dad, and that you were coming back, what was that all about?"

Chris froze for a moment and he hoped that Stephanie didn't notice. He did _not_ want it getting back to her. He didn't want to get her hopes up when the future was so uncertain. She was biting her lip, looking for an explanation, and he just couldn't tell her. There were just some things in his life that he needed to keep a secret from her so when it actually happened it would surprise her. He wanted this one, just this one. He didn't get to propose to her the way he had wanted to; he had wanted to present her engagement ring with her contract, and instead she had found the ring and demanded to know what it was. Although in that situation, if he had waited, he probably wouldn't have his son, and so that worked out, but the fact remained, for once, he wanted to surprise Stephanie because surprising someone as wily and intelligent as Stephanie was a difficult task.

"I don't know what they're talking about," Chris said. "I mean, I guess it was on an internet site, I saw it on there, but there's no basis to it. When will people learn that you need to take the things you read on the internet as a grain of salt? If we believed everything that was on the internet, I'd probably think you were still with Hunter and had his kid or something, and that's laughable."

"Yeah," she said, then kissed him. "Good luck with the rest of your show."

"Hey Steph, don't get your hopes up every time you hear something like that, okay?" he told her, running a finger down her jaw.

"No, I know, I'm learning," she told him with a brave smile, and he gave her a skeptic look. "I am! Now go before you miss your cue and your band gets mad at you, and for God's sake, dedicate a song to _me_, Sawyer got one, I should get one."

"You always get one," he winked as he rushed back onstage. She watched for a moment before going back out into the club area. She decided that maybe she would have a glass of wine or something. She was still occasionally breastfeeding Sawyer, but she didn't need to until tomorrow, so she figured that one glass of wine wouldn't hurt.

"So then," Christian said, "Wait, what…I totally forgot what I was saying, man…"

"I think it was about how she fell in the shower," Carlito said.

"Man, she never did that," Christian answered, laying his head on the bar. "She was balanced, yeah, in bed, she was great at that."

"Oh hell yeah," Carlito said, nodding his head, "but hey, don't talk…don't say…that's bad, she should be mine."

"Yeah, whatever," Christian said, "have her…she's like…I think she hates him…"

"Him who?"

"That Christian guy…oh wait, that's _me_," Christian said with a chuckle. "She hates _me_."

"Why man, you're…awesome…so…hey, what's the word I use all the time?"

"Uh…great?"

"No, but you…you are great," Carlito said, pointing at him. "You deserve her."

"No, _you_ do," Christian nodded. "You were there…I don't even know why she's mad at me, I wasn't lying, she thought like someone was calling me or her or something, a whore or something, but I wasn't, I wouldn't do that to her, you know, cause she's cool."

"Cool! _That's_ the word," Carlito said, slamming his hand down on the bar. "She's cool…but why wouldn't she believe you, you're believableness is off the charts."

"And your chartabilityness is awesome man," Christian said, clapping him on the shoulder.

"Whoa," said a female voice. Stephanie looked between the two of them. "What the hell happened here?"

"Stephanie!" Christian said, hugging her. "I missed you so much, Carlito, get in here man, group hug!"

"Yeah, group hug!" Carlito said, hugging Stephanie and squishing her between the two of them.

"Okay, violation of personal space here," Stephanie said and then almost gagged. "Eww, you guys reek of alcohol."

"And awesomeness," Christian added. He ran his hand over Stephanie's head. "You're so pretty, Stephanie, have I ever told you that? You're my pretty friend, Stephanie, isn't she pretty, Carlito?"

"Uh huh," he said, sitting down as the room started to spin a little bit.

"You're the prettiest pretty in the entire pretty, Stephanie," Christian told her. "You're such a pretty person, beautiful even, so beautiful."

"Thank you," she said, trying to sound gracious.

"You know, we could pretty up a bedroom, if you wanted, if you know what I mean, and if you don't, I mean well--"

"Christian, are you _hitting _on me?" Stephanie asked, glaring at him. "Because don't you remember…I'm…"

"Pretty," Christian said definitively, poking her in the nose playfully. "You're so pretty, remember when we kissed?"

"Yes, and it was awful, and I'm married to your best friend, and I have a child by your best friend, so don't hit on me, okay?"

"Okay pretty lady, but who's my best friend?"

Stephanie slapped her forehead. The both of them were drunk, and she sighed. "Okay you guys, I think you've had enough for tonight, let's go backstage, and you guys can lie down, okay?"

"I don't want to lie down, I'm better than that!" Carlito said, "I really want another drink."

"Me too," Christian said sadly. "But the bar man won't let us."

Stephanie realized the best way to get them to come backstage with her. "You know, in Chris's dressing room, there's a mini-bar and there's alcohol as far as the eye can see, if you guys follow me, we can have some," she told them, sounding exactly the same as when she would try to get Sawyer to do something.

"That rocks!" Christian said, throwing up the devil horns and sticking his tongue out. Stephanie was getting embarrassed and she knew it would only be a matter of time before they made a commotion and everyone would know who they were and then they'd leak it out that Christian and Carlito were drunk and Stephanie McMahon-Jericho had to be the one to drag their asses out of there.

She grabbed them both by the hand like they were little boys and dragged them through the crowd to the backstage area. By this time, the guy knew who she was and let the three of them through and she was grateful there hadn't been a fuss since neither Christian nor Carlito were wearing their backstage passes. She led them to Chris's dressing room, but they didn't want to go inside.

"I want to go to the car," Christian said, "I want to sleep."

"You can sleep on the couches in here."

"No the car," Christian whined.

"Yeah, the car!" Carlito said.

Stephanie groaned and looked at them critically. "No, I'm not letting you guys wander around the city and get yourselves into trouble for public drunkenness or lewd conduct or whatever. Although, well, Christian, I guess you could since you don't work for us anymore…no, you guys, get in here."

"I don't want to go into Chris's stinky locker room," Christian said.

"Yeah," Carlito said. "You guys should've given me a match."

"Carlito…"

"He's right," Christian said.

Stephanie wanted to scream as she heard Chris's voice blaring, but muffled. "This goes out to a special lady here tonight, if you want to think it's you, go right ahead ladies."

She laughed and took a deep breath, flagging down someone who looked like they worked here. The man stopped and walked over and Stephanie asked him, "Hi, I'm Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, my husband is playing here tonight, and my friends have seemed to be…they're drunk to put it nicely, and I was wondering if there were any empty dressing rooms or something because they're being petulant…"

"Yeah, um, just up ahead, there's no name on it, that's how you would know," he told her.

"Thank you," she said gratefully then turned to the men. "Okay, come on, I found you a room."

"Yay! Stephanie found us a room!" Carlito said, slapping hands with Christian. Stephanie rolled her eyes and pushed them to the room. She turned on the light and saw a couple of couches, thankfully and it did appear to be empty.

"Okay, you over there," she said, pushing Christian towards one couch and then pushed Carlito towards the other one, "and you, you get over there, and lay down okay, there's a bathroom through there, when you guys want to throw up, please use that. I'm not going to sit here and make sure you're not going to puke, so just do me that favor."

"Okay pretty lady," Christian mumbled as he lay down on his stomach. Stephanie watched them for a minute, making sure that they would be okay before she left the room, standing just outside. She rubbed her temples a little, thinking that she had been done taking care of babies when she had given Sawyer to her mother. She kept peeking in to make sure they were okay, and finally grabbed a folding chair to sit there until they had to leave.

Chris took the final encore and rushed backstage, crowing with his band about how good they were, they were all excited and happy with how things went and Chris especially felt the adrenaline flowing through him. He loved performing like that. He went down to his dressing room, expecting to see Stephanie there, but then saw her hunched over form sitting in a folding chair just down from his room.

"Baby!" he called out and she looked up and smiled, standing up slowly.

He rushed at her and picked her up, spinning her around, "Man, we rocked tonight, you should've been out there for the whole thing, baby, we were great, the crowd was loving us!"

"Of course," she said, wrapping her arms around his neck to steady herself against him. He leaned up to kiss her, running his tongue over his lips to gain access to her mouth. She let him in and he kissed her deeply, grabbing her by the hair to pull her closer.

He spun them to his dressing room, fumbling for the doorknob and pushing their way inside as he locked the door and pushed her against the wall. He fumbled for her jeans, trying to undo them while still kissing her and she laughed and pulled away to help him with it and he smiled at her as he went to capture her lips again. She let him tilt her head up as she went for his jeans, carrying this wave of adrenaline into something very physical.

"Come on, come on," she mumbled as he just took her against the wall, not even bothering to take their clothes off, "God, I love you."

"I love you too," he said against her neck, kissing along her collarbone.

When it was all over, Stephanie sighed happily and rested her head against Chris's shoulder. "Christian and Carlito are drunk and asleep in another room."

"That's not something you want to hear after you've just had sex," Chris told her lightly as he kissed her shoulder. He pulled away from her and helped her steady herself on her feet. "Why are they drunk?"

"I'll give you one guess."

"That broad is going to be the death of us, I swear," Chris said, pulling up his pants as Stephanie fixed her hair. "So do we have to go collect them and take them to their hotel rooms?" Stephanie nodded. "Great, just great…what a way to end out my night, taking my drunk friends home."

"Don't worry about it," Stephanie told him as she wiped a little lipstick off the corner of his mouth. "I'll show you an even better time later when we actually have time." She winked and went to get her things as Chris watched her.

"Yeah, time, I have a feeling that's going to be a commodity this weekend."

Turns out that it was. On Friday they were both busy making last minute preparations and hearing Christian apologize profusely for what he thought was a drunken pass at Stephanie, which she said was a pass at all but a lame attempt at…something. He felt bad about it though, still, but they didn't have time to hear it. They were grateful that Christian was there though because he was around to take care of Sawyer when they were busy and he was going to take care of him on Saturday when they had the Hall of Fame ceremony. This was a nice affair and Sawyer would've probably gotten cranky.

"You look lovely tonight," Chris told Stephanie as they kissed Sawyer goodbye about fifty times before exiting their suite.

"Yeah, whatever," she said, glancing back at the room.

"Come on, you're not getting separation anxiety _now_, are you?" he asked her.

"No, I was just thinking."

"About?"

"Nothing, my kid, don't worry about it," she told him, glancing up at him. "Thank you for thinking that I look lovely tonight, it's very nice of you to say that."

"That's all I ask," he told her, kissing her temple as they saw a couple walking ahead of them. "Hey, look who it is."

"Ooh, Shane and Marissa, sitting in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g," Stephanie called out to the people in front of them. Shane turned around and glared at his little sister.

"How old are you again, Stephanie?" Shane called out as they stopped to wait for them.

"First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes the baby in the baby carriage," Chris finished off as Stephanie giggled and looked up at him.

"And Chris, how the hell old are you?"

"Never to old to tease my brother-in-law," Chris said with a grin as they approached the other couple. "Nice to see you, Marissa, how've you been?"

"I've been good," she said, looking up at Shane with a smile. Shane looked down at her with the same kind of smile and Chris and Stephanie just looked at each other with knowing looks, and then a look of disgust as Shane and Marissa kissed. Shane saw them out of the corner of his eye and pulled away.

"Oh come on, are you two such an old married couple that this disgusts you."

"No, we're not," Stephanie told him. "It's just gross watching your brother make out with someone." She grabbed Marissa by the arm and started leading her down the hallway. "So it looks like you and my brother are on the right track…"

Marissa smiled shyly. It had been a long, long road to this point, but she was finally feeling on track with Shane. It had taken her a long time to get over him making out with Trish, simply because she had put so much trust into Shane at that point, and to have that stripped away from her in one cruel moment, it took a while to get over. She had lied to him about Declan, yes, but she had never gone behind his back with another man, and it stung her to think that he could do that to her and to their kids.

So she had avoided him, thinking that the best option. But she couldn't just ignore him when he was the father of her children. He would always be in their lives and as an extension in her life as well. Giving him another chance had been a risk, but then everything the world was a risk, and she had to take it, for the sake of herself, Shane, and her little boys, who didn't know any better. They deserved another chance at making themselves a family, and she knew that it was possible. She saw it all around her, that it was possible to work through the tough times to get to the good ones. She just had to make it through those tough times, and she was starting to, she was working through it all and the good times were in her sight, and she was grateful that she had gotten the opportunity to see those good times come to fruition.

"Okay, blushing about my brother, that's something I never thought I'd see," Stephanie whispered as she looked at her sister-in-law.

"Shut up," Marissa said, nudging Stephanie with her shoulder. "Things are going well, that's all I'm going to tell you, they're going well, and I like where I'm at with Shane right now."

"So when are you going to move back in with him, I have it on good authority that he wants you to move back in, and I think you should. He says that you're practically over there all the time as it is, so you should just move back in."

"I don't know…that's a big step…"

Shane looked at Chris as they walked behind their wives, "She's butting her nose into this, isn't she?"

"Of course she is, she's Stephanie," Chris answered."

"She annoys me."

"Hey man, that's my wife you're talking about," Chris said, mock angry. "She's just happy for you, is all, let her have that."

They all got into the elevator to the lobby where Linda and Vince were waiting. Once the round of hellos and "you look so nice" were finished, they all got into the limo, Vince and Linda on one side, Stephanie and Chris talking in hushed tones on the other, Stephanie occasionally giggling and Shane and Marissa sitting against the side. Shane took Marissa's hand in his and rubbed her knuckles with his thumb.

"I'm really glad you decided to come with me," Shane told her, his voice quiet so nobody else would hear, not that anyone would since, like usual, Chris and Stephanie were in their own, strange world, and Vince and Linda were discussing the workings of the show.

"I'm glad too," she told him happily. "It's nice to get away from the boys every now and then, spend a little time to ourselves."

"Yeah, as much as I love them, they can be a handful when we're around them and we don't exactly get too much together time when we're around them."

"That's the truth," she laughed, then kissed him softly.

"You look really beautiful tonight," he told her, kissing her cheek. "I just wanted to tell you that."

This was how it should be, Shane thought to himself. This is what he wanted, and he could honestly say that he was happy now, not like he had been before. When he and Marissa had first gotten married, he had been frightened that he had made a mistake. He hadn't been happy because he had jumped into it so quickly that he didn't have time to adjust from being a bachelor to being a father and a husband. But this time with her, this slow time of getting to know her better than they ever had and getting to be a family, it had done him a world of good. He was ready now, to be everything for Marissa.

They arrived at the venue and Chris helped Stephanie out first, kissing her and then walking inside, leaving everyone else behind, they were sometimes self-involved like that. They walked inside and Chris escorted Stephanie to her seat. He was going to be backstage running things with Vince since he had pretty much planned the entire event. Stephanie took his face in her hands and kissed him.

"I'm so proud of you," she told him. "This entire thing is going to be great, and maybe nobody will know, but I'm going to know that you did all of this and I'm so proud of you."

"Thanks, _Mom_," Chris said sarcastically.

"Come on, I'm allowed to be proud of you, and I am," Stephanie said, kissing him again. "You are so great, I swear, you are amazing, and I'm so lucky to have someone like you."

"Am I dying? Steph, I just organized a show, that's all," Chris told her with a laugh. She pouted a little and he kissed her again. "Okay, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, you're right, be proud of me all you want, I welcome it."

"Okay, go backstage and rock this mother out," she told him playfully. He gave her one last kiss and then headed backstage, meeting with Vince on the way. She watched him walking away, putting her hand to her stomach, feeling a fluttering. He could still make her stomach to do flip-flops and she loved that feeling. She had never felt more proud, except whenever Sawyer did something that required her to be proud.

She turned and then frowned. "You again?"

"You're never getting rid of me."

Stephanie grinned and went over and hugged him, kissing him hello on the cheek (heh, kiss), "Hey you, how are you?"

"Look at this," he said, walking around, no crutches or anything.

"You remind me of Sawyer," she said. "He's just starting to walk with assistance, and he likes to show that off, and then here you are, and you're showing yourself off, it's all very cyclical now that I think about it."

"Good to know I have something in common with a baby," Hunter told her. She laughed. "You look really great tonight, Steph."

"Thanks, you do too, with the whole no crutches thing, of course, it's good that you could come too," she told him. "I know that you wanted to be here. Too bad you didn't come out here on Thursday, you could've come to Chris's concert, it was great, he did so well."

"I heard he planned this whole thing," Hunter said and you could almost see the pride shooting off of Stephanie, it made her glow more than when she was pregnant with Sawyer.

"Yeah, the entire thing, he took care of it all," she said. "He's doing such a great job, I'm so proud of him, you have no idea. I mean, I never knew he had it in him, but he's great, he did this all by himself, I didn't even help him at all with any of the big things, I helped him with some of the more clerical stuff, and my dad and him collaborated on the overall image, but everything else, he took care of it himself, I don't think I've ever been prouder to be called his wife, I figure I would've been just as proud if I were married to him when he became the Undisputed Champion, but I was kind of married to someone else at the time."

"Funny," he said, sitting down since his knee was starting to hurt a little.

"Wait, so you're next to me again?" Stephanie asked.

"They needed a seat-filler," he joked. "I guess I'm it…actually, I wasn't sure if I was going to make it, and Chris gave me his ticket, so that's where they stuck me."

"Luckily I like you now," she told him, sitting down. "He booked the building and everything."

Hunter looked down and shook his head, "I'm scared to think of how you'll be when Sawyer finally walks or talks."

"Oh, I won't shut up about it, I can guarantee you that, but you won't be around then, it's going to happen before you come back I think, so you'll be spared," she said, patting him on the arm. "But right now, I just get to be proud of Chris, and I'm so damn proud."

"Yeah, I got that."

"How's Vicki?"

"She's good, she comes to visit every now and then, we're taking things slow. I haven't gone slow with someone since…well, Chyna."

"Oh," Stephanie said, staring straight forward. When Hunter had kidnapped her and married her, he hadn't exactly told his idea to Chyna, who was still under the impression they were together. It had created a rather awkward time period for the both of them when they fell in love. "It's good though, slow is good, I took it slow with Chris and we're good."

"Yeah, you guys also hid your relationship for what, like two years?" Hunter pointed out.

"Well, not from everyone, but we're very private about our lives, so sue us, we like to keep things to ourselves."

"Which is why Sawyer is not on your lap right now, is he backstage with Chris?"

"No," Stephanie said. "He's at the hotel with Christian. I don't want him on television, and Chris is too busy to look after him backstage, so he's being babysat. Christian is good with him, if you're coming tomorrow you can see him. Chris and I were discussing him being in the audience to watch."

"And not help you? I'm shocked."

"Shut up, we thought Sawyer might like it, it's his first WrestleMania, last year I was pregnant with him."

"I remember, you were very uncomfortable, I was next to you, remember?"

"Yes…is this your very long, and very slow way of trying to get me back, because if it is, I'm not sure that I'm going to fall for it."

"Oh well, it was worth a shot, you do look nice tonight though, just saying not trying to hit on you or anything. I'm friends with Chris now, and I wouldn't do that to him," Hunter said sincerely and she smiled.

"It's okay, you're the second one of Chris's friends to hit on me in the last three days, I'm used to it by now."

"Who was the other?"

"Long story," she told him as the ceremony started.

Stephanie was more impressed with how smoothly things seemed to run than by the actual events. Oh sure, she was happy for all the inductees, but she couldn't help the surge of pride at seeing how smoothly everything was going. She could picture Chris backstage, directing everyone, even her father, and she was sure that when the time came, he would fit in perfectly with her and Shane in running the company. All he had needed was a little direction, a push in the right direction. He was a people person and he was so charming she was sure that everyone who would work under him would like him instantly, with that smile and that demeanor. She was practically all smiles throughout the entire ceremony. Even when Dusty Rhodes made a joke about her, she laughed heartily and wondered if Chris had found that funny. She was sure he had. Nothing could ruin her mood that evening. She knew then how lucky she really was to have found Chris, and allowed him into her life.

Stephanie wished she had brought their video camera the next day. She kept looking back at Sawyer as they drove to the arena. Chris only rolled his eyes whenever she would do that. And she kept doing it, and she kept doing it. He slapped her on the thigh to try and get her to stop and she slapped him on the arm for bugging her. He turned to glare at her and she just sent him one back.

"Will you cut that out, Stephanie?" Chris asked as he continued to drive, "You are really starting to distract me."

"I just want to take the entire day in!" she argued with him, her voice raising a couple octaves. Chris winced at the tone, hating when her voice got this high. Sawyer looked up from his picture book at Stephanie, giving her a critical look like he was thinking, "This is my mother, man…"

"Okay, but you don't have to look at him every five seconds, he's not even doing anything."

"Still, it's his first WrestleMania, Chris, his first of many," she said excitedly, clasping her hands together. "I want to film him and just watch him take it all in, it's going to be so special. Someday, he's going to look back at this and remember that it was his first one, then he's going to go to you and he's going to be like, 'Dad, why did you have to such a dumbass and leave the company and make Mom unhappy? I bet you that's the reason why she left you.'"

Chris pulled to a stop at a red light and looked at her, "So now the you of the future has left me?"

"The me of the future is a lot less tolerant," Stephanie shrugged as she went back to looking at Sawyer, "Maybe the Chris of the present should have a little more patience when his wife is excited about something pertaining to their son."

"I'm excited for him too, but I'm not going overboard," he told her.

"Well, you haven't been with the company as long as I have which has been thirty-one years, okay? Take that into account," she told him.

"Fine, go back to staring at our son like a creepy woman. Sawyer, she's all yours, you take her."

"Shut up," she told him. "Did you remember to get your tickets because they aren't going to let you sit down without your tickets."

"I've got the tickets," Chris said. "I think they would know me."

"You can't tell people who you are, do you want to be mugged by people."

"You think people are going to mug me?" he snickered, trying to hold in his laugh at her choice of words.

"You know what I mean, Chris, they won't leave you alone and you're going to have our baby with you, a baby most people don't even know we have. Everyone thinks I have this daughter, and that she's the spawn of the devil and whatever. I don't want people seeing you, then making the connection," she explained to him.

"Stephanie, I will protect our son, okay?"

"I know you would protect him, I'm just…I'm not ready for people to see him just quite yet. I mean, they can see him as in he's not invisible, but I just want to…I want to keep him ours, and not have anyone really…"

"Say bad things about him because of who you are and who your family is," he finished for her. She looked down and nodded. He took her hand, and didn't say any words because there didn't need to be any words in that instance, except for Sawyer's gibberish from the backseat.

They pulled into the arena and into the wrestler's parking lot, hidden by the large trucks already parked there from the ring crew's equipment. Stephanie went around to get Sawyer as Chris gathered everyone's things. He set Sawyer's stroller down next to the car so Stephanie could put him in it. She strapped him in and they started to walk towards the arena. Now, Stephanie kept looking down at him, seeing if his reaction was going to be different.

It wasn't.

Sawyer had gotten used to going to new places every week. To him, this was probably just another week of shows that he didn't understand, but was still fascinated by. To him, there was nothing to discern this night from any other night that he was someplace new. He was so used to traveling by now, it was a second nature to him. The weird situation for him would be if he were to actually stay in one place for more than two weeks. He was just a jet-setting kind of fellow and that was his life and the only life he had known for most of his ten, almost eleven months on this Earth.

"Stephanie, stop, he doesn't even get it," Chris said as they walked inside. "He's too young, he doesn't know."

"Okay, whatever," she said, pushing him inside. There was already an energy backstage and the show wasn't for hours and hours. Her father had generously given her the morning off since she had been preparing all day yesterday. What her father didn't know was that she had been in contact with Britt who was already here so she had a jump on her day. She turned to her boys and smiled. "Well, I've got tons and tons of stuff to do, so I will see you around I'm sure, have a nice day, don't get into trouble and enjoy the show, and if something goes wrong, don't call me on your cell phone to tell me, I'll probably already be freaking out."

"Okay Mommy," Chris said, taking Sawyer out of his stroller. "We're not going to need this so if you want to take it to your office. Here's your stuff, and I have Sawyer's stuff, so we'll see you later?"

"Yeah," she said, kissing Sawyer's cheek and then kissing Chris.

"Have a great show, okay?" he told her. "And don't worry about the little things, you're going to be great, and you look gorgeous, just so you know."

"I know," she told him. "Be good, okay?"

"Yes, we will," he told her, giving her one last kiss before she rushed off into the action. "I swear, kid, if your mom doesn't leave me first, I'm going to leave her." He chuckled to himself at that as Sawyer poked him in the nose. "You want to go see everything being set up?"

"Baow foie foasi," Sawyer answered and Chris nodded seriously as they headed out to the arena part of the building. They entered from the side since everything for the stage hadn't been completely set up. Chris skirted himself around the barriers and sat down in some of the empty seats, enough distance that he wasn't in the way, but not far enough that he couldn't see what was going on. They were testing out some of the lights, making them go around and around, which Sawyer loved.

"So kid, this is your first WrestleMania," Chris told him. "Seems like as good a time as any for a father and son moment. This time last year, you were still inside your mommy, although she was here, much to her doctor's chagrin I think. But this is the biggest show of the year." He leaned his feet up on the chair in front of him as Sawyer leaned back against him, resting his head on his father's chest. "I was in _my_ first WrestleMania seven years ago. You weren't even on my mind seven years ago, let alone your mother. I mean, she was there, I didn't really like her because she was the boss and she wasn't a great boss, but I was in a match against Kurt, you know Kurt, remember him? And Benoit, you know Benoit, the guy with the one tooth. Anyways, I won the European Title that night, it was a pretty good night, would've been better had I won the Intercontinental Title, but what can you do, right? Your mom was in Hunter's corner, they were still married back then. It was a spectacle, the entire thing, it was like the mother of all adrenaline rushes. I know you haven't seen me wrestle, kid, but I'm one of the best, let me tell you."

He watched as they started to get the big screen working on the entrance, testing out different images and entrance videos. His was not among them and he vaguely wondered if they still had it on the file. He knew they pretty much kept everyone's, but still, he wondered. He looked down at Sawyer who was watching this all happen and he smiled, "You do know I'm coming back, right, kid, I don't think I could have you grow up and not see me at least one time. And I'll show you who's the best. So if you're thinking right now that someone like John Cena is going to be your favorite wrestler, you better think again because I can wrestle circles around him, circles. You know, if it weren't for you, I might be getting ready for my match later."

"Yeah, so you can suck."

"Shut up, Benoit."

"I come out here to think before my match later and find you infiltrating my space."

"It's a big arena man, you can find somewhere else to sit your ass," he said good-naturedly. Benoit chuckled lightly and climbed over the seat to sit next to his friend. "Hey there, kiddo, you taking good care of him?"

Sawyer smiled and Chris patted his head. "He's doing the best he can trying to stay sane when he has me and Stephanie for parents."

"I'll believe that," Benoit said. "So you wishing you were on tonight?"

"A little, but even if I could, I'm not ready, I'm not in ring shape, I'd have my ass kicked by whoever I was facing, even if it was a pansy-ass like Cena, he'd even kick my ass," Chris told him. "I need a few months."

"There's talk that I'm going to move over to Raw," Benoit said. "So I'll see your sorry ass more often, maybe I can whip you back into shape so you can come back and make your fans quit whining about you being gone."

"Keep them out of it."

"Okay, your wife, it'll keep your wife from whining."

"Nothing short of duct tape is going to do that," Chris joked. "Can I tell you something?"

"Yeah, sure, whatever."

"I'm going to come back…I mean, I'm seriously thinking about coming back later this year, maybe after SummerSlam, I don't want to share the spotlight with Trips and he's coming back around SummerSlam. But I already spoke with Vince about it, and yeah…"

"Oh, so those rumors were true then."

"Rumors?"

"Oh, I just heard around that you had discussed coming back."

"Oh man, how do these things get out, Stephanie heard some girls talking about it on Thursday, and now I'm wondering if Vince's office is constantly bugged or something. I wanted to surprise her."

"She probably doesn't know," Benoit said, clapping him on the shoulder. "It'll be good to have you back, and if we're both on Raw, let me do the honors of being the first one to kick your ass."

"Shut up, Benoit," Chris said, standing up. "I'll let you reflect, good luck tonight."

"Luck is never part of the equation with me."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Chris said sarcastically as he and Sawyer headed out to get lunch and generally stay out of Stephanie's way for the rest of the day. That wouldn't be difficult since he and Sawyer would be in the audience.

Unless someone read the internet all the time, and was familiar with all things Chris Jericho, they wouldn't know he had cut his hair. So that probably meant a lot of fans wouldn't even recognize him because his hair was short, which was a decided advantage later that evening when he was coming into the show with all those people around. The aid of a baseball cap and some dark glasses, and non-flashy clothing helped as well. Besides, everyone was so focused on the show coming up they could care less about a guy with a baby in his arms.

They were seated close, but not close enough that people would want to know who was sitting in the front row. They were in the fifth row next to the entranceway, the aisle for quick access in and out. The good thing about owning part of the company was you could get seats wherever you wanted to. Chris had kept Sawyer's diaper bag in the back, so if he needed to be changed during the show (which Chris figured he would), he could just go back there easily and not be tripping over five hundred people to get to the aisle.

By the time the show started, the entire place was pretty hopped up. Chris looked at Sawyer, who had never seen this many people in his entire life, which, come on, wasn't that long, but still, the estimated total, from the figures Stephanie had quoted him over the weekend, was somewhere in the neighborhood of 80,000 people, and that was a lot of people for anyone, let alone a little boy who was used to being backstage and not front and center. He stood on Chris's legs and looked around in awe. Chris put his earplugs in his ears before the show officially start and he had to bask in the weird feeling of actually being in the audience.

Stephanie, meanwhile, was backstage giving one last speech. "Okay, people, we are about three minutes from showtime, so let's make this night memorable, and let's make sure it runs smoothly. I don't want to see anyone slacking, and I want everyone to do their jobs right, okay? If someone doesn't do their job right, my dad is going to be on your ass, and does anyone want that? No, I don't think so, so let's make this the best show possible, okay, great, now…go!"

Stephanie watched the opening moments of the show, satisfied with it as the first match entrances began. She just wanted to keep things simple and make sure everything ran smoothly. Shane was somewhere backstage, she hadn't seen him yet, but she was definitely going to utilize him for the show. Her father was pretty much useless right now, so she would have to go it alone. Her father was just pacing back and forth, acting like it would be the end of the world if he got his head shaved. Hair grew back, she wanted to tell him, but refrained. She wondered if Chris and Sawyer were enjoying the show.

Trish was sitting in a car outside the parking lot. Being Trish Stratus gave her a lot of cache and while she hadn't told anyone she was going to be here tonight, here she was. Maybe it was the whole mantra of not being able to take something out of a person, but she felt like she needed to be here. Sure, she had said that she wasn't going to do anything with WWE for WrestleMania, but that wasn't what she was doing here. She had been trying and trying to get Carlito to talk to her and it was to no avail. He didn't want to give her the time of day.

On the other end of the spectrum was Christian and she wasn't sure if she ever wanted to see him again. It was such a contrast to how she had felt just a month ago. Just a month ago, she had felt like she was on the verge of something with Christian, something big, something life-changing. Now she felt like this was all a lie and she couldn't take that Christian had pulled one over on her once again.

"I'm doing the wrong thing," she mumbled to herself. She felt it too. She didn't know what she was doing in her life anymore. It was like the moment that she had walked away from the company her life had gone to shambles. Everything had fallen apart so quickly that she was just trying to trail after it, picking up what she could when she could, and no matter how quickly she went, she kept dropping more and more pieces.

Maybe everything she did was the wrong thing.

Sawyer was having the time of his life, climbing all over Chris and trying to look at everything and everyone, grabbing Chris's hat, which Chris scolded him about, trying to grab the person in front of him, and pointing at the ring when he so obviously recognized someone from backstage. He was just having a grand time, that is until the lights went out and The Undertaker's music hit. Sawyer's lip quivered as he saw the druids coming down the aisle. He looked at Chris for reassurance and through the darkness, Chris could see the little bit of light glinting off the tears that were forming in Sawyer's eyes.

"Kid, it's okay, shh," Chris told him as he leaned forward and buried his head into Chris's neck. Chris rubbed his back through his little, brown hoodie and t-shirt that said, "I've got my mommy wrapped around my little finger."

Sawyer started to cry outright when he spotted The Undertaker himself. Although he had met the man before, he still scared the crap out of Sawyer when he was like this. Thankfully Chris had brought Sawyer a pacifier and put it in his mouth, calming Sawyer down as he plopped his butt down in Chris's lap, but kept his head against him, probably getting a little sleepy too. Chris picked him up a little and held him to him.

"It's okay, kid, we know all these people, right?" Chris whispered, as Sawyer blinked back his tears. "And pretty soon we can go see Mommy, okay? She's just very busy right now, and she'd probably be very mean to us, so we should stay away."

"Stephanie!"

Stephanie turned and saw her father rushing towards her. She stopped and folded her arms, not really having time to talk to him, but it was her father and her boss so she really had no choice in the matter. What Dad?"

"I want you to get Sawyer, bring him in his stroller, your arms, whatever, just get him to my locker room. I need him for something, I'm going to show him off to that asshole, Donald Trump. And I thought of a great line, you're going to love it."

"What?"

"Come on, go get him, is he in your office?" Vince asked, grabbing his daughter's arm. Stephanie wasn't budging though and Vince looked at her. "Come on, Stephanie, time is of the essence here."

"Dad, couple of things here. Sawyer is not here right now, he's out in the audience with Chris watching the show. We wanted Sawyer to be able to watch his first WrestleMania. Second of--"

"Well have someone page Chris or something and tell him to bring Sawyer back here," Vince interrupted.

"Let me finish, Dad," Stephanie said. "Second of all, I'm not putting Sawyer on television, period. The general public doesn't know about Sawyer, and there not _going_ to know about Sawyer. I'm not putting him on the show when he's ten months old, Dad, that's not going to happen."

"He's a McMahon!" Vince protested.

"Yes, he's a McMahon and tell me this, Dad, how often was I paraded around to people at shows when I was ten months old?"

"That was a long time ago, things were different."

"No, Dad, I'm not exploiting my son to benefit you and whatever raunchy joke you want to pull over Trump. I'm not going to make my son out to be some sort of prop in one of your insane skits."

"But I have a great line," Vince said, almost petulantly.

"No!" Stephanie said firmly. "You're not making me budge on this, Dad, besides, nobody even thinks I have a son in the first place, people are under the impression that I have a daughter. Remember, Dad, because you were being a…"

"Stephanie, fine, get…something…and we'll film this."

Stephanie gave him a look, "Wait, let me get this straight, so you want to film a fake baby, pass it off as my own, just so you can insult Donald Trump?" If Chris were backstage, he would love this. She was so close to calling him and telling him to get his ass back here because she practically had her father begging.

"Yes! I don't care if it's fake, just…get Sawyer's stroller or something, we'll stick a camera, it'll all be in good fun, I'll say it's a girl if that makes you feel better."

"Well, it would make me feel better if you didn't come up with stupid plans like this, but…well, are you desperate?"

"Stephanie, I'm still your father, and I'm still your boss, and I can still order you around."

Stephanie rolled her eyes. "Dad, you pretty much came here to use me…and use my son, whom I love very much, for your own personal vendetta. Think about how that sounds to me. Did you go up to Shane and ask to use Declan or Kenyon?"

"They're not here and you know it, Marissa's parents are taking care of them while they're here."

"So just because I take my son to the shows, he's part of the roster?"

"I'll give you a bonus for working WrestleMania in addition to giving Chris a bonus for working the Hall of Fame ceremony last night."

"So now you're bribing us?" Now Stephanie was just stringing her father along. She would probably do what he wanted, because it was just so ridiculous that she had to go along with it. It wasn't like she was dressing up in a stupid Viking outfit with fur and a crown like some people were wont to do, not naming names, but some very weird people. Vince very literally looked like he was going to drop to his knees and beg before Stephanie conceded. "Fine, I'll go get Sawyer's stroller, and you can have your stupid, little scene."

"Thank you, you're coming too, right?"

"What!" Stephanie groaned. "I didn't say _I_ would."

"But you're the mother," he said as she walked to her office.

"Not of fake babies," she told him, getting the stroller and pushing it towards her father's dressing room as he commandeered a couple of the cameramen. "What the hell do you want me to do, Dad?"

"Follow my lead, you'll love the punch line," Vince told her as they entered the room.

She was not amused by the punch line.

Chris was not amused by the punch line either. He looked at Sawyer and then back at the screen and then back at Sawyer and he shook his head at what he was seeing. He wanted to know how Vince had convinced Stephanie to do that. Oh well, there was more show to be had and he intended to watch it.

Trish tentatively knocked on Carlito's door. She knew that she was starting to enter stalker-type territory by constantly coming to see him, but it was the only time that she actually got to see him. With him avoiding her like the plague, she didn't ever get a chance to talk to him, and it was frustrating her very much now. Carlito came and answered the door and looked down when he saw Trish.

"I thought I said all that I had to say."

"Did you?" she asked.

"Yes, Trish, this has got to stop, I'm not going to keep talking to you," Carlito told her. "Whatever we had, I'm sorry, but you need to make up your mind, you need to figure out what you want, and you haven't done that yet."

"I know," she told him. "I don't know what I want, you were good to me, Christian wasn't…"

"He's a good guy," Carlito said, thinking back to their drunken escapades. "Not a horrible guy like I thought."

"You…talked to him?" she asked, not believing that they would actually talk to each other. It kind of scared her to think about what they were talking about. Probably about what a shrew she was.

"Yeah, pretty much," Carlito said. "We were both at Chris's concert on Thursday and we happened to be at the bar. Look, I'm not going to hate you if you go to him, because I deserve better than being the number two guy in your life, so do whatever you want, I'm not going to stand in your way."

"I don't know what it is that I want, but I don't think it's Christian," she told him, but even she could feel that was a lie. When someone got into your heart as deep as Christian had in hers, it was so very hard to dig them out again.

"Well think about it, decide though, because me, him, whoever, we're not going to wait around forever for you, Trish."

"Yeah, I get that," she said. "Thank you for talking to me."

"Whatever happens, I'm going to be your friends, we _were_ friends once upon a time, you know, and I think if it came to that, we could get back to that place again."

"I hope so," she said, sticking her hand out. He pushed it away and gave her a hug instead. They were beyond handshakes now, and she probably needed one of these. But she also needed to know that she wasn't going to be pushing anyone over anymore. The people in her life had grown tired of it.

"I've got to go," Carlito said. "I haven't taken my shower yet, and then I was going to meet up with some of the guys for drinks. It's kind of hard not having a match on the biggest show of the year, so you kind of want to drown your sorrows in it."

"Yeah, okay, thanks again," she called out to him as she walked through the door.

Stephanie was just walking by, shaking her head about something and muttering to herself it seemed. It was only on closer inspection did she see that she was muttering something into a walkie-talkie. Trish was tempted to stop her, but this was WrestleMania and you just didn't mess with any of the McMahons during WrestleMania. Especially not with the hair vs. hair match coming up.

The backstage was abuzz when the Battle of the Billionaires started up. Stephanie was sitting serenely (it appeared) at her station, the only sign of her nerves being her hand covering her mouth. Shane was next to her, chin in hand and Linda was on the other side, watching intently as well. The only members not here were Marissa, who was probably around talking to someone and Chris, who was watching it all unfold beyond the curtain.

Stephanie just had a feeling her father was going to lose. Looking at her brother and he r mother, it seemed they had the opposite thinking. But she could feel it. She had seen Bobby Lashley and she knew that he was way better than Umaga. Her father was going bald tonight and it was going to happen very, very soon.

Chris watched as Vince came down to the ring and Sawyer immediately recognized his grandfather, pointing and trying to climb over Chris to get to him. Chris had to hold Sawyer to him, and he could feel it too, things were going to happen and Vince was going to get his head shaved bald.

Other things were happening too. Trish had just seen Christian walking down the hallway, talking to his frustrated brother. Christian was nodding along as Edge ranted about something, probably about him losing his match earlier that evening. Then it was as if he sensed something because he paused and looked up at him, and he stared at her for a moment. Edge kept walking, then noticed that his brother was no longer beside him and he looked behind him. He was about to ask his brother what was up when he turned and saw him looking at something. Following his gaze, Edge's eyes landed on Trish and he immediately understood. He clapped Christian on the shoulder before walking away.

Trish slowly got up and went up to him. "Christian…"

"Trish," he said in much of the same manner. "What are you doing here?"

"I was going to see Carlito," she explained.

"Oh," Christian said. "Good luck with that." He started to walk away.

"So that's it?" she asked and he stopped.

"What's it, Trish?"

"This, it's over now? You've made your choice and it isn't me?"

"I told you what I believed happen. I don't know why she called me, I don't know, but it is what it is, Trish, I told you the truth, you didn't believe me. If you don't want to believe me, fine. You're not the only woman in the world."

Something in that statement stung her heart. It was the truth, and she knew that anything she had with anyone was so precarious. She knew that Chris and Stephanie would talk to her again, they couldn't stay mad at her forever, but Christian and Carlito, they might never speak to her again and find other women and she would be left in the dusk. It was all so easy to lose. She still wasn't sure what she wanted of Christian, but she knew that she didn't want nothing.

"I didn't want it to end like this," she said pitifully.

"It never had to end at all," Christian told her. "I put myself out on the line for you, Trish, time and time again, maybe…maybe now you should put yourself out there instead of me trying to come get you all the time. And if it doesn't work out, it's not going to be the end of my world."

"Yeah, I get that."

"Not everyone gets to be like Chris and Stephanie, they're the exception, not the rule, and even then, they had to go through hell to get where they are. I'm envious that they have that kind of security, and they've been good friends. I want you, Trish, but if it's not in the cards, I don't need you."

Yes, that stinging feeling was coming back and it was stronger than ever. She looked down, ashamed of herself. She was starting to see the error of her ways. She had been stringing them both along, never really making any kind of solid decision. She wondered why neither one didn't hate her more than they did. They should, they should probably hate her so much they never wanted to see her again, and she would've deserved it too, she would've deserved every moment of it.

"You're not a bad person, Trish, so don't think that," he told her softly. "You're just a confused person. I've got to catch up with Edge, our mom and grandma flew down from Toronto to be here tonight."

"Oh, say hello to them for me," Trish said.

"Yeah, okay, bye Trish."

"Bye Christian."

Stephanie watched as her brother ran out to the ring and she shook her head, "Mom, how could you let Shane go out there, he's just going to do something crazy and then get beat up."

"Because sometimes you let people do stupid things and get beat up," Linda said. "Just like you let your father make a fool out of himself while you stand by."

"Touché," Stephanie said. "Do you really think he can help Dad?"

"I don't know," she told her. "I just know that something has to happen, I'm not sure I want to see your father bald, it might give me nightmares of Stone Cold."

Stephanie had to laugh at that, "Well, Dad could finally fit all those rumors that he wears a wig anyways."

Linda laughed a little at that, "Oh, your father, I don't know why he gets himself into situations like this."

Sawyer was totally caught up in the match. Chris was too, but for different reasons. Sawyer just saw his grandpa and his Uncle Shane out there, and he knew them so he obviously wanted to go visit them. Chris was finding it a trip watching his father-in-law and brother-in-law fighting right in front of him. He almost felt incited to stand up, rip his hat off and climb over the barrier to help Vince win this thing since, and Chris still sometimes cringed at this, he was family. Of course, he'd have to think of where to put Sawyer. He guessed he could hand him to the timekeeper or JR because he could just put him on the ground and let Sawyer crawl around the ring.

Yet, Chris knew that he couldn't do that, it wasn't really his place to interfere, despite it being his family, or his wife's family, but then they were related through Sawyer, who kept taking out his pacifier and trying to somehow hand it to Shane who was far away from him. It was past his bedtime at this point, but he was so excited Chris wasn't sure he'd sleep for the next week let alone that evening.

Then the bomb dropped and Vince had lost and Chris's eyes widened as the shaving commenced. He knew Vince was going to lose, he had felt it, and when Vince had chosen Umaga to Trump's Lashley, it had almost been in the bag. But still, this was shocking to him. Vince without his pompadour was like…well him without his hair and he suddenly realized what it must've felt like for Stephanie to see him with his new haircut.

Sawyer started whining and Chris looked at him, "What is it, kid?" He was starting to rub his eyes and Chris knew that he was getting really tired and wanted to go to bed. His sucking on his pacifier was intensifying, which was a sign that he wanted his nighttime bottle and he wanted to go to sleep. Chris knew it was time to go now and even though he wanted to see the main event, he'd just have to watch it backstage. He got up and walked down the aisle towards the side-stage where security was waiting.

"Sorry, can't allow you back here," the man told him.

Chris took off his glasses and hat and spoke, "Hey Tony, it's me, let me back."

"Oh, hey Chris, sorry about that," Tony said as he let Chris backstage. He took out Sawyer's earplugs and walked over to where Stephanie was sitting, her teeth gritted as she watched her bald father in the ring.

Chris walked over to them and Stephanie looked up at him and gave him a nervous look, she said, "Tell me, did it look worse out there than it does back here?"

Being mindful that Linda was right there, Chris just nodded and then held Sawyer forward. "So, he's tired and he has a dirty diaper, did you want to say goodnight to him before I take him back there to go to sleep."

"Come here to Mommy, baby," Stephanie said, taking her son from her husband. She kissed him on the cheek. "How did you like your first WrestleMania? Crazy, huh? How was it out there?"

Chris didn't really know how to respond to it. Honestly, it made him ache for the ring a little bit more. He could easily picture himself in there, fighting off…someone and pulling moves as quick as lightning. After being the one being looked _at_ for fifteen years, it was a strange thing to feel what the fans were feeling. He wondered if any fans wanted to get into the ring, just to see, because he wanted to get into the ring at a number of times during the evening. The bug was coming back to bite him, that itch was creeping through him.

He just had to keep it a secret from Stephanie until it happened. He would start his training back up now and maybe take up Benoit's offer to help whip him back into shape. He was far from ring shape right now, but he could be ready for later this year, when Sawyer was older and could talk. Then he'd surprise Stephanie and the world, and he would be home again, in the ring, the wind flying through his hair as he jumped or flipped from the ropes. He wouldn't be the fan, he'd be the guy the fans watched again. The itch was getting stronger.

"It was fun, everything so far has looked good, Sawyer went crazy because he knows everyone," Chris told him. "Hated Taker…"

His voice trailed off as Vince walked backstage in humiliation. He still had shaving cream on his head and Shane was trailing after him, looking beaten down, but in a different sense. Linda went up to hug Vince and he took the contact for a second before trudging on. Stephanie felt bad for her father, but that didn't stop the slight snicker from her lips. Chris tried to hold it all in just because this man was his relative. But it was funny, that was the problem, not as funny as Hunter had been the year before, but still funny. With those sad little drips of shaving cream and Vince's trudging steps, it was just a comical sight to see, and Chris was having a tough time holding it in.

"That was a uh," he swallowed a laugh here, "tough break, Vince."

"Yeah Daddy, I'm sorry it happened," Stephanie added, coughing to keep her laugh in. Shane sent her a glare, but she glared back and he hid his smile and she knew that he found it funny too, because it _was_ funny, the circumstances were funny and the fact that Sawyer now had more hair than his grandfather was hilarious as well.

"Okay, let me take him," Chris said, taking Sawyer from his wife. "If he gets any crankier, he's going to be Vince once he washes that shaving cream off."

"You're bad," she told him, but she giggled just the tiniest bit. "I'll walk you there though, I've got a moment and I haven't seen you all night, so tell me all about him being afraid of Taker."

Trish walked to the exit, knowing that she should leave. She stopped and leaned against the wall, looking to her right, "It didn't go well…with either of them…"

"That's rough," her companion said. "Do you want to go wait in the car?"

"Yeah…sure, but what do you have to do?"

"Nothing, I just…there's stuff."

"Oh, okay," she said. "I'll be in the car."

Stephanie threw out the dirty diaper that Chris had just changed on Sawyer and then folded up his clothes as Chris put him in his pajamas. They had an easy discussion about Sawyer's new fear of all things Taker and how he seemed to really like wrestling. They also had a good laugh over the entire thing with Vince and Stephanie explained that she wasn't going to bring Sawyer into the picture because she loved him and valued his privacy and the right he had to grow up without a camera constantly shoved in his face. They both gave Sawyer a kiss on the forehead before they lay him to sleep, his bottle tightly gripped in his hands as he sucked away, his eyes closing slowly as Chris watched to take it from him when he was done. Stephanie had to go back to work though and she walked out into the hallway and almost bumped into someone who had seemed to be standing there waiting for something.

"Excuse me," she said, looking up into a pair of blue eyes that were only slightly less familiar than her own husband's. "Kurt…"

"Hey Steph," he said, and his voice actually sounded contrite.

"I…uh, heard about your name in the press," she told him dumbly, having no other starter for a conversation.

"Yeah, that was a while ago," he said, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, "Who invited you?" She looked around as if someone was going to pop out with a hall pass.

"Oh, I cam with Trish, she needed to see Carlito about something."

"I had heard that you were a good friend to her," Stephanie said. "I'm glad she had someone there to help her, even if I think that she was duped by something or someone, but I'm glad someone was there."

"I miss you, Steph, and Chris, and even Sawyer, I mean, he's how old now?"

"Eleven months tomorrow," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, I miss you," he told her. "And I was a good friend to Trish because I miss you guys, do you ever…miss me too?"

"Yeah, sometimes," she told him. "When I want someone to feel goofy with, or I want to hear something goofy, or just need to talk to someone when I have a fight with Chris, it's weird going to Hunter because it's awkward when you were married to the person you're running to."

"I'm sorry for everything I said, Stephanie, I really am."

"Okay," she said. "I guess…I've missed you, Kurt!" She threw her arms around him, not being able to stand it anymore. She had to hug him, he was her Kurt and she had to hug him or else she'd burst.

Kurt hugged her back. He knew now that it was worth his entire plan because now he had Stephanie back into his life, and where Stephanie went, Chris was sure to follow. He was back with his friends, back in their good graces, and he had what he had been missing. And all it took was breaking up Christian and Trish, maybe forever, but this situation benefited him, and if his time alone had taught him anything, it was that you had to do what was best for you, and this was best. He had his friends back, and how he got to that point didn't matter. So he just hugged his best friend. Of course, had anyone been around at that moment, they'd wonder one thing, and one thing only.

Why was Kurt's smile so decidedly sinister?


	130. Catching Up, April 2, 2007

A/N: I was kind of burned out from the insanely long WrestleMania chapter, so this is last week's chapter, and this week's chapter will be up probably Wednesday night, which should catch me up. Thanks for the reviews of the last chapter, they are always appreciated.

Enjoy. :)

* * *

"He's so bald, Chris, you have no idea."

"I kind of don't want to know," Chris chuckled. "How's he taking it though, I mean, seriously?"

"How do you think he's taking it, Chris, the man was shaved bald."

"I'm guessing he's in denial," Chris told her.

"Bingo," she said. "I can't believe he actually made us all come with him. I mean, it's not like my mom or Shane have much to do because they do work back in Connecticut after all, but I _do_ have stuff to do, a lot of stuff to do because my dad is going to be no help tonight, and where am I? I'm looking at fedoras!" Chris chuckled and Stephanie huffed, "This is not funny, Chris, okay, this is not funny at all, so don't you even dare laugh or I will not have sex with you for the next month."

"Harsh," he said, trying to hold in his laugh, "but it's funny, Stephanie. Your dad is so vain, I swear, he eclipses me by a million. He can't even be seen tonight bald, and he's making you look at hats, look at it from my point of view, Steph, it's funny!"

"I don't know how you got out of this, tell me how you got out of this," she demanded to know.

"Um…because I'm not family," he told her, snickering to himself.

"Yes you are! You are my husband, you are part of the McMahon family," she told him. "I don't know why you got to get out of this and I didn't, and then when you got out of it, you should've told my father that you needed me urgently for something."

"Like what?" he asked. "A sex emergency? Could it have been a sex emergency?"

"I'm so bored of being here that yes, I'd take a sex emergency if it got me out of here," Stephanie told him and that pretty much told Chris everything he needed to know. She was extremely frustrated, but he couldn't help it, he found it really funny that she was so upset.

"It's not going to be that long, baby, you just have to persevere," he told her, smirking to himself about her situation.

"Chris, I swear to God, if you are snickering or laughing right now, I'm going to kick your butt."

"Wow, baby, you _are_ good," he told her. He looked over to the bed and saw Sawyer starting to wake up from his nap. The little boy was turning over and he opened his eyes to see Chris sitting on the chair talking to someone. He started to tear up a little and Chris bit his lip, knowing what was probably coming next. "Okay, baby, I'm going to have to go because your son just woke up from his nap and it looks like he's two seconds away from testing out his lungs."

"Sawyer!" Stephanie exclaimed. "He's what I can use as an excuse. He's a great excuse, don't you think? I mean, he's a baby, he needs his mommy, right? That's the perfect excuse, how could my dad ever deny his grandson his mommy, that's just cruel, right?"

"Yeah, I guess it is," Chris said. "But I'm taking care of him, so you know your father is going to bring that up. I think you're going to be stuck there, baby, that's just the long and short of it. I think that you are just going to have to go hat-hunting with your family."

"But I'm not a McMahon," she whined. "Not technically. I'm a Jericho, that's who I am now, hey, maybe I can tell him that! I'm a Jericho now, I'm part of my own family, not his. That would work, don't you think?"

"Steph, take your medicine like a man," Chris teased her. Sawyer pushed himself up and started crawling towards the edge of the bed, trying to get to Chris. Chris rushed over and sat next to him, effectively stopping him from falling off the bed. "Stephanie, seriously, I've got to go, your son is up, he's crawling towards the edge of the bed and I have to get him ready to go to the arena. So I'm going to let you go…"

"No! Chris! I am your wife and--"

"I know this, and I love you for it, I love you," he told her in a sing-song voice. "Sawyer loves you too, we'll see you at the arena."

"No," Stephanie said, but then the call ended and she cursed under her breath, leaning back against the wall in the far side of the hat shop. She looked to her left which was just a rack of bowler hats and she sighed. She still couldn't figure out why her father would definitely need her to come with him to help him find a hat for his head.

She still had a hard time looking at him. She had never seen her father bald in her life, and to see it was…well, she wasn't going to lie, it was very funny. She knew it was wrong to laugh and that she should be supportive of her father, but she couldn't help it. The entire situation was just so strange and weird. Her father had lost the right to keep his hair, and she wondered briefly what a normal life would feel like, a normal life with a normal family who got together every week for a nice dinner, and who didn't air their dirty laundry over to the entire world.

"Hey!" her brother exclaimed, jumping out at her.

She jumped, almost dropping her phone in the process, and glared at him. "Don't do that!"

"Sorry," he laughed, holding his stomach, "but I just saw you over here and I couldn't resist, what the hell are you doing hiding in the hats?"

"I was trying to talk to my husband and fade away into the background."

"Oh no you don't," he told her, grabbing her by the arm. "If I'm going to be stuck here telling Dad which hats look good on him and which look bad, _you're _going to be in the exact same boat, sorry baby girl, but I'm not going to be the only one who is suffering over here."

"It's not fair, it's not like _we_ were the ones who shaved him bald and yet we're the ones being punished," she pouted, folding her arms in front of her. "I think that Dad still thinks we're little kids and he can just order us around like he still controls us. I have to wave Sawyer in front of his face, remind him that I'm a mother now."

Shane put his arm around her casually. "Come on, Steph, it's not so bad. Just think of this like…getting revenge on Dad for all the shit he put us through, firing us, fighting against us, talking shit about us. It's all coming to him back in the form of his bald head."

"And yet we're still being punished by being here."

"What are you two doing over here?" Vince asked as he walked over. "Do you think that a bowler would look good on me? I'm not too sure."

Stephanie sighed and looked at her brother, who just tilted his head and gave her a pointed look. "No, Dad, I don't think a bowler would look good on you…let's go look over there." She followed her father to the other side of the store, but not before sending a glare to her brother.

"Hey dude, can we talk?" Christian asked as he caught up with Chris before the show.

"Don't you have tapings tonight?" Chris asked. "I thought you were flying out."

"Yeah, I don't," Christian said as he walked with Chris. "But I wanted to talk you when you weren't around Stephanie, so I figured now would be a good time."

"Okay, sure," Chris said. "But anything you say to me, you can say in front of Stephanie, she's my wife, she'll know anyways, and we had the entire time from when we were driving from Detroit to here tonight to talk."

"Yeah, but I didn't want to talk about it in front of Stephanie, is that a problem for you?"

"Anything you tell me gets back to her, I tell her pretty much everything."

"I know this, but it's _about_ her, so it's different."

"What about her?" he asked as they walked out to his car. Christian helped get Sawyer into his car-seat while Chris put Sawyer's things in the back, and his stroller in the trunk.

"I think that I might have…hit on her during your concert."

"You hit on Stephanie…_my_ Stephanie?" Chris asked. "You hit on my wife, Stephanie, that Stephanie?"

"Well, it's a little bit hazy to me, the entire night, I know that I got drunk with Carlito, and kind of ranted about Trish, and then Stephanie came along, and I said some stuff, ended up asleep on a couch, and then in my bed, and I'm pretty sure I got there because you and Stephanie put me there, but I distinctly remember calling her really pretty."

"Oh, so you hit on my wife then? What the hell were you thinking?" Chris said angrily, glaring across the car at Christian. "Who the hell gave you permission to hit on my wife, I don't care if you're intoxicated or sober, you stay the hell away from my wife!"

Christian looked at his friend and sighed, "You knew about it, didn't you?"

"She told me, I thought it was funny but I wasn't going to embarrass you about it," Chris said. "I know that you weren't thinking straight and that you didn't mean to hit on my wife, although if you had been sober and hitting on her, well, then our friendship would have to come to an end because I don't think you'd want to be my friend after I royally kicked your ass."

"Duly noted."

"Um…speaking of things that have happened, well…Stephanie saw Kurt last night."

"She did?" Christian asked. "What the hell was he doing there?"

"Well, apparently, he came with Trish because Trish wanted to talk to Carlito about something," Chris explained. "He's supposedly been a really good friend to her, so I'm seriously wondering if he's turned over a new leaf or I don't know…I hate to speculate because Stephanie has been trying really hard to just smooth things over with him."

"Has she?" he asked. "And you don't trust him or something?"

"I trust him, I mean, I've always trusted him, he's just…changed is all, haven't you noticed it? I mean, you work with the guy so you had to have noticed if there's been a change to him, so has there been?"

"Yeah, I think we've all changed though," he pointed out. "I've changed, Trish has changed, you've changed, Stephanie's change, mostly in part to Sawyer, but she's still changed. Kurt was bound to change too."

"I know this, I'm just not sure that I actually like the change, I'm wary is all, but like hell I'd tell that to Stephanie, she's really happy to have him around, and I want her to be happy, so I've been trying, I mean, it was only one night, last night really. I guess he'll be there today, Stephanie told him he had to, so I'm guessing that he will be."

"Just keep your eye out on him, that's all. I doubt that he's changed that much."

"I guess," Chris shrugged. "I'm different now too, so I'm bound to be a little guarded when someone who called my wife horrible names suddenly wants back in her life…do you think that he wants back into the company and he's using Stephanie as his way in?"

"No, I think Kurt is pretty happy with where he's at, and I'm not sure Vince would want him back," Christian told him.

"That's true, I know that Vince was concerned about his health, but that's really the extent of it. I don't think he much cared for Kurt basically badmouthing everyone, Vince isn't the type of guy who likes that kind of publicity. Take it from someone who has spent way too much time around him."

"I trust you," Christian said. "Or maybe…just maybe, he misses you guys and wants to be friends again, especially because you guys are so happy and he's kind of missing that, I mean, you guys belong in a Norman Rockwell painting your lives are so perfect."

"Yeah, that's why Stephanie is shopping for a hat with her family right now, because we're so picture-perfect, that's why our son travels around the country and he's not even a year old, that's how normal we are."

"I didn't say normal, man, because you're anything but normal, but perfect, sure, look, you have tons of people jealous of you."

"What? No, I don't," Chris scoffed. "I mean, yes, I have tons of people jealous of _me_ because they want to be Chris Jericho, but other than that, I repeat, what? Who's jealous of me?"

"People, me, for one. I mean, you're married, you have a good job that you're good at, tons of other jobs that you can do and succeed at. It's like, oh, throw a radio show at him, he can do well with that, oh, throw him in a play, excellent! Oh, throw him into management of a billion-dollar wrestling company, he'll be great at that too! And then you have this kid," he said, throwing him thumb into the backseat where Sawyer was sipping on his juice cup while looking intently out the window at the passing scenery, "and he's an awesome little kid, and yeah, people are jealous of you."

"Then they've never met Stephanie," Chris joked, but Christian wasn't laughing, "Oh come on, I'm not allowed to make one ball and chain joke? I've been married over two years, I think that I've earned that at least."

"I told Trish that there are other women if she doesn't want me," Christian said quietly, looking down, getting to the part of the conversation that he really wanted to get to. Luckily for him, Chris had just pulled into the arena and was showing his badge to security while pulling into the staff parking lot. He pulled into a spot and sat there for a moment.

"Why did you tell her that?" Chris asked, his mood instantly changing from playful to serious.

"Because it's true," Christian told him. "It's true and she needed to hear it. I'm sick and tired of waiting around for her, trying to be good enough for her, trying to be everything that she wants me to be. It's tough having to live up to someone's expectations and feeling like you're never meeting them."

"I know how that feels," Chris told him. "When I first took this job to replace Stephanie when she was on maternity leave with the kid, I didn't think that I'd ever live up to the expectations that Stephanie had set, but you get through it."

"I'm just sick and tired of trying to be everything that she wants me to be instead of being myself, it's hard, I love her, but I don't want to lose myself in her."

"That's a valid thing."

"Chicks man, they screw with your mind and just mess up your entire life."

"So you were serious then? When you said that there were other girls in the world, I'm getting the vibe that you were serious when you said that?"

"Look, if she thinks that we're not going to work out, what else can I do?"

"I feel like this conversation needs beer," Chris said. "You want to go see if we can find a vendor who'll help us out, we can drown our sorrows a little bit in it and talk about all our women troubles."

"What women troubles do you have?"

"Well, Stephanie threatened to not have sex with me for the next month if I laughed at her because she was stuck shopping for a hat for her dad, and that's definitely trouble because I don't like to go without for that long."

"Thanks for rubbing your sex life into my face," Christian said sarcastically. "Thanks for talking about it to the guy who is currently going through a drought."

"Hey, I can't help it that I'm married and I get it regularly now. It's a good feeling though, if you ever get married, I mean, yeah, there's some times when she doesn't feel like it, so you know, whatever, but usually--"

"Seriously man, don't rub it in," Christian told him.

"Sorry, I was just trying to lighten the mood, but seriously, do you want to go get a refreshing beverage and talk about it, I've had girlfriends who string you along until you feel like they're just toying with you."

"Wait, you think that Trish is toying with me?" he asked, alarmed by that. If she was actually, honest-to-God toying with him for the fun of toying with him, he was going to lose it. He had never wanted to be with anyone as much as her and to be a game for her, a silly game like Monopoly or something, that would sink to the pit of his stomach and settle there for all time. All the time wasted on her, and to think that she had just been using him for her own sick enjoyment.

"No, I don't think that, I think that she's a very confused person right now. I think that she honestly wanted to be with Carlito, but I think that she always knew that it was going to be you."

"That's reassuring," he said, but he didn't really believe himself. "You know that drink doesn't sound half bad right about now."

"I didn't think that it would," Chris said as they finally got out of the car. This time, Christian got Sawyer's stuff while Chris got the baby. He stuck him in his stroller and let Christian push him inside. Sawyer kept trying to reach out for stuff while Chris kept scolding him, but Christian could've cared less. He was thinking about Trish again.

He hadn't lied the night before when he told her there were other girls in the world. There were, the problem was that he didn't want to be with any of the other girls in the world. But if Trish was going to keep acting this way, he'd have to leave her, he'd have to navigate his own way. He was sure that he could be happy again, and there had to be another girl out there who could make him happy. He didn't need to remain hung up on Trish for the rest of his life; he was not going to become one of those sad, pathetic men who lamented their lost love.

"Hey man, we're right here," Chris said, and Christian broke from his reverie to see that he had walked right back Chris's office. He was so far into his own little world that he hadn't even noticed.

"Sorry," he mumbled, turning him and Sawyer around and pushing himself into the room.

"She's really got you distracted, hasn't she?" he asked.

"How could you tell?" he asked sardonically, frustrated with himself over it.

"Here, I'm going to go get us a beer, can you watch the kid for a little while?"

"Yeah, I can," Christian said. "I've babysat him before, I think I can do it now."

"Cool, thanks," Chris said, and then left.

Christian took Sawyer out of his stroller and put him down on the ground. He stood around for a few seconds before reaching out for Christian's arms. He held his hand out and Sawyer took it gratefully before walking himself over to the couch, holding onto to it as he walked using the furniture as his base. He walked to the edge of the couch and then back to Christian, laying his chin briefly on the man's leg before trying to go around him.

"Never meet a girl who will rip your heart out, okay, Sawyer?" Christian told his friend's son. "Because they will do nothing for you except cause you heartache and sleepless nights and you don't ever need that."

Sawyer looked up at him curiously and Christian patted him on the head as he moved to the other side of the couch. Chris got one of his diaper bags and pulled out the blanket that they knew Stephanie and Chris kept in there for Sawyer to sit and play on while they were working. He laid it out on the ground and put some toys and books on it for Sawyer. Sawyer's eyes lit up when he saw the spread and he walked over using the couch to the edge before whining and whimpering, holding one of his hands out while using the other to anchor himself on the couch.

"You need help?" Christian said, coming over to lend him a hand. Sawyer took his steps with Christian over to the blanket, happy with his accomplishment as his diaper-covered butt hit the floor and he made a mad grab for his blocks. "You are so lucky, you know that, Sawyer? You don't have to deal with any of this crap that I have to deal with."

He didn't know why it was so cleansing to talk to an 11-month-old, but somehow it was. Maybe it was because Sawyer wouldn't judge him, and Sawyer wouldn't even answer him back with anything but gibberish. But it felt refreshing to just be able to tell another human being something and not have to really deal with what they'd think. He wondered if anyone else used Sawyer as a sounding board and chuckled at the thought of Stephanie ranting to the confused boy.

"I love Trish," Christian said to him, and he knew that Sawyer knew who Trish was. "I love her because she's always been…you know, I was so scared to talk to her at first, I thought she was way too good for me. Funny now, huh? Your dad was actually the one that went up to her to try to find out if she liked me. He was okay with doing that since he had your mom or whatever. I don't know, maybe looking back it was the wrong thing to go after her, but I was stupid and not thinking…aww, who am I kidding, I was so happy when she finally said she'd go out with me. We've done some shitty…oops, sorry kiddo, we've done some rotten things to each other over the years, but I still love her, God help me, I still love her."

Christian sat against the wall, drawing his knees up and covering his face with his hands. He was so embarrassed to still be feeling this way. He had tried…he had tried so hard to get over her, but it was just not happening. Was this true love or was it just true stupidity? It was really starting to feel like the latter, because if this was what true love was about, then it really sucked. Going through hell and back for someone, it sucked, and he was so tired of trying to be strong.

He felt something touching his leg and he saw that Sawyer had crawled over to him and was trying to hand him one of his toys, a little light-up phone. Christian looked down at it and Sawyer babbled a little bit, still trying to hand it to him. Christian took it and laughed, "Sawyer, are you trying to tell me to call her or something? I don't think that I should be taking woman advice on someone who hasn't even turned a year old yet."

Sawyer shrugged carelessly, pulling himself up to look at Christian and smiled. Christian made a funny face at him and sighed, looking back down at the phone. Was he actually going to go on the nonsensical advice of a baby? Sawyer continued to look at him and Christian realized that he wanted to see Christian play with the toy. Christian obliged him, punching in some buttons and then putting the toy phone up to his ear.

"Oh hello…Trish, is that you? What did you say? You believe me when I say that I didn't have anything to do with that phone message? Oh, great, yeah, I told you I didn't, I'm so glad you believed me…yeah, you want to what? You want to marry me, well yeah, I'd love to, that's awesome, I'm so stoked for that. Yeah, I love you too."

"Christian, you do know that's a toy, right?"

Christian looked up and saw Stephanie standing there, and he could feel his face turning a bright red, "Oh, uh…sorry, Sawyer wanted me to play with it."

"Of course he did," she teased as Sawyer turned to reach his hands out to his mommy. Stephanie took him into her arms and hugged him to her. "Hey there, little boy, are you encouraging Christian to call Trish?" He babbled and she nodded and kissed her cheek. "Thought so."

"I was just watching him for Chris," Christian explained.

"Oh, that's fine, do you want to help me get his things, he's going to be staying in my office tonight, not Chris's. Chris had to take care of him all day while I went hat shopping, so I'm going to take care of Sawyer tonight."

"Yeah, sure."

"So where did Chris go exactly?" Stephanie asked.

"He went to go get us some beers," Christian explained. "I really needed it after the whole…Trish fiasco that I had with her last night, I kind of told her point blank that I wasn't going to deal with any of her wishy-washiness anymore, and that if she wasn't the one I was going to go out and find the one."

"Good for you, Christian," Stephanie said, her voice actually enthusiastic. "I really think that's just the kick in the ass that Trish needs. She needs to know that she's just not going to get her way all the time."

"Thanks for being so supportive," he said. "You seem like you're in a good mood again."

"Being away from my crazy father will do that," she laughed, "but I just talked to Kurt and he's going to come tonight and I'm going to get to see him, and I'm a little excited, I know that he was…a jerk to me, and he said some things that were hurtful, but I can't help it, I missed him like crazy. I'm just so happy that maybe we can get things back on track."

"I'm really glad you have that," he told her.

"Thanks, tell Chris when you see him that I'm here and he can come see me whenever. I think I'm going to have a lot of free time because my dad is trying to act like everything is normal and that he didn't get his head shaved last night so I suspect that he's going to be taking over the show from me."

"Lucky you."

"I don't know about that one, he's still being a weirdo about the whole thing, but he's my father, you just kind of let him do whatever he wants to do."

"Yeah, okay," Christian said as Stephanie left with Sawyer, leaving him alone again. But that was hardly a surprise, he was used to being alone, as sad as that was. Maybe he should really just get used to it since it was probably going to be his reality in the future. Maybe he was just destined to be alone forever…

Stephanie was anticipating the arrival of Kurt. She was anxious for it and whenever she heard any sort of noise outside her door she thought it was him. She was so excited that she might be getting her Kurt back. It was just the kind of thing she needed to boost her spirits, not that they needed much boosting, but still, Kurt was going to be here, and maybe everything in her life would go back to normal. Maybe Kurt would be the best friend she once knew and maybe Trish would take her head out of her ass and just get with Christian already.

"You haven't seen Kurt in a long time, baby," Stephanie said to Sawyer, hoping to pass the time. "He's going to be here though and I want you to see him. He's going to be so surprised to see how big you are now."

She tapped her fingers on the desk, watching the clock as the minutes ticked by. Finally, the door opened and she stood up in anticipation, trying to push down the feeling of giddiness that was surging through her at the thought that she had her best friend back. And then Kurt popped into the room and she grinned from ear to ear, circumventing her desk and rushing to him.

"I'm so glad you came!" Stephanie said, hugging him tightly. "You have no idea…"

Kurt should've felt guilty for everything he had done, from calling Stephanie all those horrible names to using Trish and Christian to get back into Chris and Stephanie's good graces, but he didn't. Christian was right, everyone changed, and Kurt had changed, he had grown more hard, less forgiving and less humorous than he had been. Everything was business now to Kurt, and hardly any enjoyment. He had wanted his friends back and if that meant pushing apart Christian and Trish, well, he had to look out for himself now, not those two. It would all work out in the end as long as he always got what he wanted.

"I'm glad to be here."

"Yeah, I know, it's great," she said to him. "So come on, we barely had any time to talk last night because Sawyer was getting cranky without me. I think that spending almost all day without me made him not want to leave my side for the rest of the night, but I want to hear everything now."

"Well, not much, just been working, you know how that goes."

"And is there anyone new in your life, I mean, I heard about you and Ashley, how she…well, the whole distance and different companies thing, is there anyone new in your life, anyone at all?"

"No, anyone new in yours?" he asked jokingly.

"Oh yeah, you know me, right?" she joked back, completely forgetting the hurtful words that she had had to hear a long time ago. "Sawyer is going to turn one on the 2nd of next month, so Chris and I are trying to think of what we want to do for that. Nothing too big, we know that much, Sawyer is never going to remember it anyways, but we'd like to have a little get-together. And you'll have to come of course, I've missed you, Kurt."

"I've missed you too, Stephanie," Kurt told her, and he had, he wasn't going to lie about that. But he was a changed man now, and Stephanie hadn't exactly reached out the olive branch to him, she had ignored him and pretended that he didn't exist. He wouldn't forget that either.

"I have to go check on the ring and everything, come with me?"

"You know I will."

"Great," she said, still grinning as she went over to get Sawyer. "Come on, baby boy, you have to come with Mommy since you were with Daddy all this morning and afternoon and you were with Daddy all day yesterday, you're going to start forgetting about me."

Kurt just followed the two of them wordlessly, observing, almost like a spider, waiting for its prey. Unfortunately, Stephanie was so caught up in talking with Sawyer that she failed to notice anything amiss with Kurt. Had she seen the look, maybe she would've thought twice about trusting him, but maybe, in this case, with this person, the Stephanie who was so calculating and conniving had a blind eye to one of the only men she ever felt truly cared about her.

Meanwhile, Chris was going back into his office, beer in his hand as he saw Christian sitting up against the wall, "Hey man, what are you doing down there?"

"Thinking," Christian said, "took you long enough."

"Well, you know, you'd think with being part owner of this here company that I'd be able to pull some strings and get a beer or two from one of the people selling beer here, but they can't before the show so I had to go out and buy some, so that's where I was, but I brought some, so here, have one," Chris said, grabbing one of the cans and tossing it to Christian who caught it and opened it quickly. "So you are really, _really_ intent on forgetting someone, aren't you?"

"Yeah, your son told me to call her, handed me his phone and everything."

"Sawyer is rather astute when it comes to things like that," Chris said lightly, going over and sitting next to his friend. "You know, you don't have to sit around moping for all time, why don't we go out sometime, maybe like next week or the week after, just you and me, we'll go to a club or something, I'll be your right-hand guy and we'll get you a chick."

"Like that wouldn't ruin my chances with Trish," Christian mumbled.

"But the name of the game would be to forget about Trish," Chris said. "Or at least let it be something where you get out of house, go do something. Maybe I can get my parents to fly down to take care of Sawyer and I'll bring Stephanie along."

"Yeah, so I can watch the two of you dirty dancing all over the floor while I'm stuck sitting there by myself."

"Again, the entire point would be to find you a girl, and it wouldn't even have to be someone you have a relationship with, maybe just someone you have a really good conversation with, that can't hurt, can it?"

"No, I guess not."

"If you're going to have to enter the game eventually, you might as well get a head-start on it right now," Chris said, grabbing a beer for himself and opening it to drink some, "and I don't dirty dance with Stephanie, for the record."

"Forgetting Trish is going to be hard."

"Well, yeah, but that's how it always goes right, I imagine if Stephanie and I ever split up it's going to be really hard to play the field again."

"It'll never happen."

"You don't know that," Chris said.

"I don't think so."

"Well…good then, but you and Trish, maybe you'll get over her, you never know until you try right, and trying never hurt anyone, and since Stephanie and I are old, married couple with a child, we're not going to want to stay out too late, so you'll have us there to save you if it gets too boring, look at all the safety nets you've got."

"Okay, you've convinced me, okay," he gave in.

"Awesome!"

Stephanie was walking back from checking the ring when she ran into Daniel again. She smiled upon seeing him, giving him an appreciative look. She really did think that he had tremendous upside and she wanted to explore that. He had a good look and as he stopped to wait up for her, she was sure that Chris was wrong and that she could help mold this young man. Kurt just stood there, watching the emotions play over Stephanie's face as she saw this guy.

"Daniel, so nice to see you tonight," Stephanie said as she shifted Sawyer in her arms. "You have a dark match right?"

"Yeah, I do, before the show," he said. "I hope to impress the higher-ups."

"I hope so too," she said supportively. "This is a really good step for you though, the more time in the ring that you get, the more you're going to feel comfortable in there."

"I've heard the rumors about me not being good, so I'm going to try my best."

"Oh, don't listen to that kind of talk," she told him, shaking her head at the masses that always seemed to converge over one issue that they knew next to nothing about. It was just in their nature to analyze and read too much into every single piece of information that they were thrown. "You should hear the things they say about me, I've just learned to ignore it."

"Yeah, I'm going to use it to fuel my work," he said, slamming his fist into his palm.

"Great," Stephanie said. "I'll be sure to watch your match and report it to my father later, I'm sure he'll see the potential in you, he's usually a pretty good judge of that."

"Thanks, Steph, I better go get ready though, I don't want to be late for the match, that wouldn't look too good with your father, or any of management really."

"Yeah, but good luck, you'll do great," she said as he walked off. Kurt turned to look at her and she looked back at him, "What?"

"Who's that?"

"That's Daniel Rodimer, I have high hopes for him," Stephanie explained. "I think that he has the potential to make it big so I've kind of taken him under my wing, you know encouraging him, trying to show him how he can be a better entertainer. That kind of stuff, he's really got so much potential, wouldn't want it to go to waste."

No, Kurt wasn't going to put anything to waste.

Christian ran into Carlito by accident. He wanted to get something to eat to balance out the beer that he had drunk earlier. He and Carlit exchanged amicable smiles, feeling like they were in the same boat finally, and not fighting over one woman. They were both trying to move on, trying to become their own people again and they had to respect that about each other.

"So how are you?" Carlito asked politely.

"I'm doing okay, much better than I was last Thursday, I'll tell you that," Christian said good-naturedly. "I talked to Trish last night, she said she talked to you."

"She did," he confirmed. "It was no big deal though, I pretty much told her the same stuff I've been telling her, but I need to move on, man, I think I might try to pursue something with Torrie after all, maybe be more than friends."

"That's cool, I told her that if she didn't decide, there's plenty of other women who would be glad to have me. I've done enough, you know."

"Hell, yeah, I know, it's up to Trish now, not us, just her."

Chris observed Stephanie and Kurt walking down the hallway, Stephanie talking a mile a minute while Kurt just listened. Chris watched them from afar for a few moments before turning to the man beside him, "So what do you make of that?"

"Am I supposed to make something of that?" Hunter asked.

"I don't know, I'm really unsure about this whole…letting Kurt back into our lives thing," Chris said, running a hand through his shorn locks. "I'm just not completely comfortable with letting him back into our lives."

"And have you told your wife this and not me?"

"No, she'd hate me for thinking it," Chris said, "which is why I'm talking to you, you're objective."

"I was married to your wife, there's no way I'm objective, Kurt kissed her when I was married to her, no way am I objective."

"I kissed her while you were married to her, twice, what's the big deal? It's not like you want her back, you have Victoria now, so it's like, I can tell you about this stuff, so you can be objective, do you think that I should tell her."

"Yes, you probably should."

"But she's so happy," Chris told him. "I don't want to ruin it for her."

"And saying nothing is going to get you anywhere?" Hunter asked. "That's why Steph and I fell apart, we didn't ever talk about anything, we kept living separate lives and then didn't talk and then she ended up somehow siding with you against me, and you were probably sleeping with her…"

"Negative," he interrupted. "I just think that Kurt is still a little…shady, I guess is the right word for it. There's just something that's not sitting right with me about him."

"So you watch him."

"I watch him?"

"Yeah, best way to find out about someone's intention is to watch them, come on Jericho, think about it. If you think he has nefarious plans, you watch him to make sure he doesn't do anything to hurt Stephanie."

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

"I know I'm right, trust me on this one…and yeah, you probably shouldn't tell Stephanie, she will yell at you for so long, been there and done that."

"Yeah, I've been there too, you're right again."

"I'm Triple H, it's what I do."

"Yeah, don't get cocky, you haven't actually done anything to really help me, like spying on him for me."

"Sorry, bum leg, what the hell do you want me to do, beat him up?"

"No, he can run away and you can't run after him with that leg of yours, so I guess it's just make sure that he doesn't do anything, I guess I have to be that guy, all paranoid and shit, but I just get a bad feeling about him."

"Then do what you have to do."

So he would, he'd be the watcher.

Suddenly it seemed like Kurt was the prey.


	131. Not Shane's Hair, April 9, 2007

A/N: Tried to get this up sooner, but the site wouldn't let me load anything so I had to upload it a different way, anyways, enjoy, leave a review. :)

* * *

"Don't you think that I should get an office here too?" 

Stephanie looked up at her husband as he sat across the desk from her in her Stamford office. He had his feet leaning on the desk and she stared pointedly at his feet for a few moments before he took them down, giving her an apologetic look. She set her pen down and looked at him questioningly.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I'm part of management now, I have a role here, right?"

"That's correct," she said, and it always made Chris just the tiniest bit aroused when she took on that business like tone. "But I'm failing to see why you would need an office?"

"I'm not saying that I _need_ one," he pointed out. "I'm just saying that shouldn't I have one?"

"Chris, how often are we actually in Connecticut?" she asked rhetorically.

"Not that much, but you still have an office here," he said, gesturing around the spacious room.

"That's because I've had this office for a long time," she told him. "I had this before we were even together, so I don't see why I should give it up when sometimes I do come up here for business, but your business is more road-based, therefore, I'm still failing to see why you would get an office."

"Okay, okay, I get it, I'm not office-worthy," he told her, holding his hands up in defense. "I was just noting it."

"Well note it somewhere else, I've got work to do," she told him as her phone buzzed, "See, look, actual work, and nobody else here has their husband hovering around them wondering what they're doing."

"Well, we don't have to be to the show tonight until later, and Sawyer is with your mom, so what the hell am I supposed to do?"

"I don't know," she said as she pushed the button on her phone, "Talk to me."

"Ms. Jericho," the voice said, and Stephanie crinkled her nose at the sound of her name without the McMahon attached. Chris saw this and flipped her off unceremoniously. Stephanie recognized the voice as her father's secretary.

"Hello Addy," Stephanie said, "What can I do for you?"

"Your father has requested your presence in his office immediately."

"Okay, thanks," she said, depressing the button again and looking at her husband. "What do you think that's about?"

"I can make a guess," he said, rubbing the top of his head.

"Oh no, I'm not going on another search for the perfect chapeau," she told him, shaking her head as she stood up. "You know, I can barely even stand to look at him. He doesn't even look like my dad, it's so weird, he looks so weird."

"Don't go bruise his ego with that information now," Chris said, "but if I were you, I'd get up there, your dad said immediately and you wouldn't want to mess with the boss, he could fire your cute ass."

"My ass isn't just cute," she winked as she leaned down to kiss him. He leaned up to meet her and kissed her briefly. "So what are you going to do for the rest of the afternoon?"

"I'm going to go collect our son from your mom and we're going to head down that stupid baby gym you want me to take him to so he can interact with other children and not muscle-bound men and women with their boobs practically hanging out. I don't think I want our son growing up to think that everyone looks like that."

She laughed, "Says his father who is one of those muscle-bound men."

"Said the mother with her boobs practically hanging out," Chris returned right back and she shoved him lightly in the shoulder. "You're going to regret that McMahon."

She squealed as Chris grabbed her by the waist and pulled her sideways into his lap. "Chris!" she gasped unexpectedly as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Don't do that! I've got a meeting to go to with my boss."

"He'll understand," he said, kissing her again then letting her go. "See, I just wanted one more parting kiss, no big deal, I wasn't going to hold you hostage or something."

"Yeah, right," she said, smoothing out her pants. "Have fun with the little monster, and make sure you bring lots of baby wipes, I don't want him getting all those germs from the other babies."

"Other babies aren't necessarily sick."

"That's what they'd have you believe, bye sweetie, give Sawyer my love."

"Bye baby."

Stephanie walked down the hallway to the elevator, pushing the up button as she waited for the elevator, then she felt an arm wrap around her from behind and lips kiss her neck. "Didn't I just leave you?"

"I forgot, in order to get that thing that's part of us, I have to go upstairs to your mother's office, so I was thinking," he said, lowering her voice as Stephanie looked around, hoping her colleagues weren't watching them. "Quickie in the elevator."

She had to suppress her smile and shook her head, "No, Chris, and get off me."

"You're just no fun," he said, pulling away from her like asked, but still wrapping his arm loosely around her waist. He looked at her, "Is this allowed? Am I allowed to wrap my arm around my wife's waist, or should I stand at least two feet from you?"

"Don't be a wiseass," she told him as the elevator doors opened. He let her step in first before stepping in after her. He winked at her and smirked and she rolled her eyes and turned away from him, pressing the buttons for both her mother's floor and her father's floor. Chris scooted close to her, and she playfully scooted away, and they continued their little game until she was in the corner. He kissed her temple and then moved down to her jaw-line. "Chris, I _am_ at work, you know?"

"I know," he said as the elevator doors opened. "Well, this is me, see you at the show tonight."

"Yeah, you will," she said as he waved over his shoulder at her. She watched as the doors closed and she went up the next few floors to her father's office. The doors opened and she stepped out, nodding at his secretary before going into her father's office. "Dad, you wanted to see me?"

"Oh yes, hello Stephanie," Vince said, turning his chair towards her. "Have a seat?"

"Okay," she said, taking a seat. "Dad, if this is somehow about your hair, I've got a lot of work to do so I don't really--"

"It's not about my hair," Vince droned. "I know that I've bothered both you and your brother about it, and your mother is threatening to leave me, but it's not about that, I assure you."

"Good, because I'm done talking about that," she said. "So what is this in regards to?"

"I'm giving you a promotion," he told her. "You've been doing such a wonderful job, I'm promoting you, so you'll have more power with the Board, and you'll have a new job title and a pay increase."

Stephanie raised her eyebrows a little, "Wow, I'm actually surprised, thank you, Dad, I'm glad you were confident enough in my work to promote me, this is very good news."

"Well, you're always at the shows, you barely missed any even with having Sawyer, and when you were pregnant with him, you were so dedicated to the show I think everyone took notice, you have been so dedicated, and one of our star employees…"

"Okay, Dad, you're starting to make me a little bit on edge here," Stephanie said. "Thank you though."

"Think of this as a consolation that I didn't name you the General Manager of Raw. But then you have to give me credit for not asking anyone else to be the GM of Raw, but I know that back then, when I _was_ looking at candidates I basically passed over you and that was wrong of me to do, so I hope this, in some way, makes up for it."

"You really didn't have to, Dad," Stephanie said. "But thank you anyways, I do like my work and I try to make what I do come out the best that I can."

"And I know that you'll continue those ways."

Stephanie was going to continue it right to the show that night. She hadn't seen Chris and hadn't gotten a hold of him on his cell phone, so she was getting anxious to see him because she wanted to tell him about her promotion. She was just excited that she was getting the recognition she thought she richly deserved. She had even gotten a new title, the Executive Vice President of Creative, which…well, didn't mean a whole lot, but the best part was she had more power, and anyone who had known Stephanie for a while knew that she could certainly be power-hungry.

She was walking around with a completely different air about her later that night, probably because of her new position within the company. She saw her brother and sister-in-law walking up ahead, and she quickened her pace to catch up to them, grabbing her brother by the arm as she passed. He jumped a little and turned to her.

"Hey Shane, what are you doing here?" Stephanie asked.

"What? I can't come to the show, it's in Connecticut tonight, very close to where I live, why wouldn't I come to the show tonight," he said quickly, almost like he was dodging the question altogether. "I'm just here."

"Okay…I was just asking," she said, looking at him and trying to analyze his strange behavior. "I just wanted to know, hey Rissa."

"Hey Steph," Marissa said with a smile.

"I didn't know you were going to be here tonight," she said, "but then I didn't know Shane was going to be here tonight, but since the show's in Connecticut and all…"

"Yeah, don't mind this weirdo," she said, jerking a thumb towards her husband. "He's been acting strangely all afternoon."

"I have not!" Shane argued, turning a critical eye towards his wife. "I'm not being strange, I'm acting normally."

"No, you aren't," Marissa told him, "I don't know what's up with you, but you are not acting normally, you're all on edge or something."

"Yeah, I'm getting that vibe too," Stephanie interjected.

Shane looked between his sister and his wife, "What is this? You're trying to double team me or something with this crap. I'm not acting weirdly, I'm acting in a completely normal fashion and I think it's rude of both of you to assume that something is wrong with me."

"Testy," Stephanie said, snickering as she looked to Marissa, who was holding in her own snicker. "Are the boys with you tonight, I'd love to see them. I feel like I haven't seen them in forever."

"No, they're not here tonight, my parents are babysitting, but you guys should stay in Connecticut this week. We'll have you and your boys over for dinner or something, we could take them out or something."

"That sounds great, and we were planning on staying in Connecticut since we're here and all, we stayed here last week too, I think Sawyer is starting to get suspicious since we never stay in one place for more than six days, he's going to grow accustomed to it."

"Where is he?"

"He's with his daddy, I had work to do and Chris is bringing him by later."

"So when are you going to get him a job, put him on payroll?" Shane asked, getting back at his sister for thinking something was wrong with him. In truth, there was just a tiny bit wrong with him. After Vince's meeting with Stephanie, he had called in Shane to his office. Vince had proposed something for later that evening, something to do with the show, and Shane was very apprehensive about doing it.

_"You wanted to see me, Dad?" _

_"Yes, I did Shane, sit down," Vince said. "I just spoke to your sister, and I gave her a promotion, she's very happy about it." _

_"Okay," Shane said, drawing out his syllables. "What does that have to do with me? Unless you're giving me one as well." _

_"No, but I wanted to discuss the show tonight." _

_"What about it?" _

_"You're going to be facing Bobby Lashley." _

_"I am?" Shane asked incredulously, "Just how did this come about?" _

_"He has taken this family's integrity," Vince said, pounding his fist on his desk. "Look at me, Shane! Look what he's done to me! He took my hair away and now he's disrespecting me and in a way, you, and your sister, and your mother, and your wife and kids, and Chris and Sawyer." _

_Shane wouldn't go so far as to think that. He didn't think that Declan or Kenyon in particular were feeling pretty disrespected right now, but that was just a guess. He also didn't think Stephanie or Chris felt disrespected, but according to his father, everyone in their whole family should feel disrespected. He wondered if that extended even to his uncle too, might as well. _

_"Dad, I still don't get why you want me to have a match with the guy, what purpose is that going to serve?" _

_"I'm going to make the ECW Title be on the line…" _

_"So essentially, you want me to take the title away from him?" _

_"Yes." _

_"Why don't you get one of the wrestlers to do that and not me?" he asked. _

_"Because you're a McMahon, damn it! And Lashley has been a subordinate to me, and if he's going to be humiliated, it's going to be by a McMahon." _

_"And Stephanie wasn't available?" _

_"Shane, I'm being serious." _

_"So am I, get Stephanie to do it," he said. "She's tough, she can do it." _

_"Technically, she's a Jericho now," Vince said, "and don't be facetious." _

_Shane didn't want to do it, but it always felt like he was trying to get his father's approval. That was just how his entire life seemed, and he wouldn't be surprised if he found out that Stephanie's was the same exact way. They had spent much of their childhood watching their parents build an empire, and not spend as much time with them, and that carried into adulthood, that strange sense of abandonment and seeking for the ultimate attention from their parents, trying to make them proud with every endeavor. _

_"Fine, Dad, I'll do it," Shane said with a sigh. _

_"Good, you're a good son." _

He was a good son. That was the only thing that he could think right now. He was doing the right thing by his father. He was going to go out there, declare that he wanted a match, and he would try and win that match. He knew it wasn't going to be that simple, and he knew his father probably had someone planned to help him, Umaga, he was sure, but still, things could go awry, but he was Shane McMahon, and didn't Shane McMahon go out there 110 percent every night and do his worst? Yes, he did, and that's what he had to do tonight.

"I'm thinking his first birthday," Stephanie answered. "I figured that he'll have been around here long enough to know the ropes, you know, get used to everything.

Marissa laughed and looked over Stephanie's shoulder, "Speaking of your little guy…" Stephanie glanced over her shoulder and saw Sawyer walking next to Chris. "Is he walking on his own yet?"

"No," Stephanie said, "he still likes to be tethered to something. How about Kenny? Is he still not interested in walking?"

"Nope," Marissa said, "but Dec was the same way, he didn't want to walk until he was fifteen months old, he was just content to crawl, so I'm not too worried about it, some kids are just late walkers."

"Yeah, I think Sawyer is going to walk soon, but if he wants to hold onto someone's hand to do it, then that's fine too," she said. "He'll probably walk before he talks, I think he's scared to talk since me and Chris never shut up."

"Who never shuts up?" Chris asked as he joined his family.

"Us, that's why Sawyer doesn't want to talk, because he knows that he'll have to talk a lot just to keep up."

"Oh," Chris said, "well, I'm handing over the reins to you, he's yours because I have a meeting with that Daniel kid you're _so_ fond of."

"Is that jealousy I detect?" Stephanie said, biting her lip and looking at him with a slightly silly look on his face. "Could it be? Chris…jealous?"

"Like hell I'm jealous," he said, grabbing her left hand and holding it up, declaring possessively, "Mine."

"Don't you love it when your guy turns into a caveman, Rissa?"

"Oh yeah, sexy," Marissa joked. "So who's this Daniel guy?"

"He's a guy from OVW," Stephanie explained. "I see a lot of potential in him, I think he could eventually be someone we would want to push towards the championship…bonehead over here--"

"I'm not a bonehead."

"Fine, my lovely husband over here doesn't see it. He thinks that he's never going to amount to anything and that I'm wasting my time."

"It's true," Chris said. "I don't think that he's that great at all."

"And I think he is," Stephanie protested. "I think he has a lot of upside."

"And I just don't see it," Chris said. "I could maybe say it if he was younger, but he's not and I'm just not seeing the kind of potential in him that I saw in other guys of comparable age. You just like him because he looks imposing. You like the big, imposing guys."

"I don't really like Khali," she argued.

"Well…come on," he shrugged, "he's not big, he's huge, but I don't know, I just don't see it."

"His work ethic is great, he wants to learn," Stephanie said, turning to Marissa and Shane. "He's not as bad as Chris is making him out to be, why are you meeting with him anyways?"

"Because we have him in some dark matches, and your dad wants me to evaluate them with him, give him pointers."

"Why not me?" she asked.

"Well, it would seem that you lack the qualifications to seeing as how well, how do I put this in words that you'll understand clearly, you aren't a wrestler, baby, and so you giving advice would be weird and probably not useful."

"You're just going to tell him he sucks, I'm going with you," she said, grabbing a hold of Sawyer's other hand.

"Stephanie…"

"What? I'm just trying to make him better."

"It's _my_ meeting, I will see you later, take care of the monster, okay?" Chris said, leaning in to kiss her, but she turned away from him. Shane rolled his eyes; that was just so like his sister to act petulant when she didn't get what she wanted. Chris took hold of her chin and turned it towards him.

"Don't you dare kiss me."

"I'm _going_ to kiss you," he told her with a smile.

"No, you're not, don't you dare, Chris, I'm mad at you," she told him, trying to hold onto her anger towards him. Chris leaned in quickly and kissed her. She pulled away and pretended to spit, "You're an ass."

"Your ass," he winked, "I'll see you in a bit."

Chris turned and Stephanie turned away from him as he walked away, bending down to pick up Sawyer. "Sorry guys, I've got things to do as well, but I'll see you later, and Shane, whatever it is that you're up to, good luck."

"I'm not up to something!" Shane said as his sister left him. Marissa turned to him and rubbed his shoulder. "I'm not up to something…"

"You are," she told him, "so you might as well tell me what it is right now, come on, Shane, you can tell me, I'm your wife."

That was the button to push, "I have a match tonight, my dad…he asked me, he wants me to challenge Lashley for the ECW Title, my dad wants to teach him a lesson for messing with the McMahons."

"Oh Shane, why do you agree to these things?" she asked, a little bit distressed, but she had always felt that way when he was going to get in the ring. She and Shane had been together for a long time, on and off, and she had seen him in many matches that had put a little bit of fear into her. Shane didn't know limits, he would go balls out on everything, not caring about his own safety, but instead focusing on how much punishment he could dole out to his opponent.

"Because I do," he said, trying not to sound testy, but it came across that way and he sighed, pulling Marissa to him, "You don't get it, Ris…"

"I get it, Shane," she whispered against his jacket, her voice muffled by his body. "I know why you do these things. It's to get on your dad's good side, you and Stephanie are always so afraid of getting on his bad side because you think you'll go too far one time."

"Ris, I don't want to get into it," he said to her. "I really don't."

"Shane, you _don't_ have to do this," she told him. "You don't have to go out there, you just tell your father that you don't want to go out there, it's so simple."

"It's my family, Ris, this is my family's business, and my dad has felt like he's been disrespected, how can I rationally let that go? I just…you don't get my family, we're all about…being in power, looking like we're in power."

"So you go out and do crazy things and Stephanie stays around working until two weeks before her due date, that's not normal, Shane, this isn't normal."

"And you think that my family has ever been normal?" Shane scoffed. "We're not normal in the slightest, we all work too hard and we all want to have more power than the others, but that's how we work, so just go with it tonight, okay, and don't go do something like tell off my dad."

"I wouldn't do that," she told him, hugging him tighter, "I just want you to be okay."

"I will be, don't worry," he said, kissing her head. "Hey Ris?"

"What?"

"Do you think that you might want to come back and live in the house?"

"You want me back?" she asked, barely containing her excitement at it. They had talked about it, but he hadn't ever explicitly asked her to come back. She wanted to move back in with him; she wanted to be a family again. She and Shane had worked so hard on their relationship and she finally felt like they were a married couple, a real married couple and not just a couple of people who happened to be married and happened to have two kids together.

"Yeah, I want you to come back…only if you want to, though, if you don't feel up to it, then take as much time as you need, but the proposal is out there."

"I'd love to," she said almost immediately. "I want to."

Shane looked down at her and tipped her chin up, kissing her. He usually felt a little silly with the public displays of affection, he always felt awkward kissing where other people could see him. He wasn't like Stephanie in that sense, she seemed to be willing to kiss her husband wherever, whenever, making everyone around them cringe; he supposed that she got all the PDA genes, but he made the exception this time since his wife had just agreed to move back in with him. He could finally say that he was at a place in his life where he felt settled.

"I love you," Shane told his wife.

"I love you too," she said, mumbling against his lips. "I still think you're stupid for being in this match for your dad, but I love you anyways."

Stephanie was just finding out why her brother was so nervous-looking earlier as she scanned a memo from her father to schedule in a match for the main event. She sighed, knowing, just like Marissa, that this was to appease Vince and not because he wanted to go in and win the title or anything like that. She knew the feeling well, knowing that you could only do so much, but you wanted to do more just to make your father notice you a little bit more. She didn't know how her father knew that Lashley would accept, but it wasn't unlike her father to be presumptuous. She adjusted Sawyer on her hip as he made a grab for the paper.

"Sawyer, no," she told him, "this is Mommy's." She stood there for a moment, biting her lip. "Do you think Daddy would hate us if we casually happened to walk into his meeting?" Sawyer slapped his hand over his mouth, "Yeah, I don't think Daddy would like it either, but seriously, we just don't see eye-to-eye here, but…you know what, I'm the Executive Vice President of Creative, and he's under me in the company, so I _should_ be able to do whatever I want to do, and I say that we go see Daddy, besides, if worse comes to worse than I can use you as an excuse because what good is having a kid if you can't use them as an excuse every now and then?"

Stephanie left her own office and went down the hall to Chris's office. She had a brief moment of respite outside the door, knowing she was doing something wrong, but it passed, but then came back again. Chris trusted her and loved her and she was going to blatantly manipulate him. Still, she was his boss after all, and if she said something, he should listen. With that thought in mind, she pushed the door open.

"You're not getting the right kind of momentum in your matches, they fall flat," Chris was saying as he looked up when the door was pushed open. He narrowed his eyes as he saw Stephanie standing there. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, I just thought I'd sit in this meeting, see how everything is going," she told him, going over and sitting next to Daniel, setting Sawyer down on the ground first. "So what's being discussed here?"

"Hey Stephanie," Daniel said, smiling at her, grateful for a kind face since Chris was being kind of harsh.

"Hey Daniel," she said amicably. "I hope that I'm not interrupting, I just wanted to see how everything was going in here. I heard that you had a meeting with Chris over here and thought I'd sit in."

"We're just going over his match," Chris said through gritted teeth.

"Great, keep going, don't mind me, I'm not even here," she said, waving her hands in front of her face like she really wasn't there.

"Then why don't you actually leave because then it'll really be like you're not here."

"Well, as the Executive Vice President of Creative, I feel like--"

"Wait," Chris said, interrupting Stephanie's haughtiness, "did you say that you were the Executive Vice President?"

"Yes," she said, not realizing that she had yet to tell Chris of her promotion. "What's that got to do with anything?"

"Steph, you were promoted?" Chris asked, forgetting that he was angry with her for barging in on him.

"Yeah, wait, I didn't tell you?" she said, thinking to herself and trying to remember if she had told Chris about it. "That's what the meeting with my father was about, he gave me a promotion and I get more power on the Board of Directors."

"Seriously?" Chris said, a smile starting to creep onto his face. "Baby, why didn't you tell me?"

"I wanted to, but you weren't answering your phone, and so I just decided to wait until you got here, it must've slipped my mind when I was speaking with Shane and Marissa."

"Baby, I'm so happy for you!" Chris exclaimed, then looked pointedly at Daniel, "Um, yeah, can we reschedule this?"

"Oh yeah," he said, leaving the room in a flash, he was already feeling uncomfortable when Stephanie had walked in here, the tension was thick enough to cut through. He knew that they were married, which made it weird.

"Steph, I'm so proud of you," Chris told her, coming around his desk to embrace his wife. "This is so awesome for you."

Stephanie never got any greater pleasure than when she made Chris proud of her. Her father said it so rarely and Chris said it so readily that it always made her heart skip the tiniest beat. She hugged him back tightly and she could actually feel his pride transferring from him to her. She reveled in the feeling, knowing that this was one of the biggest reasons why she loved Chris. He was always in her corner, encouraging her and taking any accomplishment of hers and making it an accomplishment of theirs.

"I was shocked," she told him, "I was totally shocked, I wasn't expecting it, but he said I'd been so dedicated in the past, I just…you're really happy for me?"

"Of course I am," he told her, brushing her hair back with his fingertips. "You deserve this so much, I mean, you've worked your ass off, you do this here, every week, you take care of our son, you take care of me, you deserve a little recognition every now and then."

She grinned, "Thank you, that means a lot."

Chris looked over to where Sawyer was walking with the aid of the couch and called him over, "Hey kid, come over here, Mommy got a promotion and you have to congratulate her." Sawyer babbled and did start walking towards his father, up until the edge of the couch where he didn't have anything to hold onto. He reached one of his hands out and tried to grab for Chris but he was too far and he started whining. Chris crawled over to him and lent him a hand so he could walk over to Stephanie. "Now tell Mommy that you are proud of her," he coaxed.

"Maaaaa," he said, drawing out the one syllable, which was the most they were getting out of him right now. She took him in her arms anyways and kissed him, thanking him for being there for her.

Shane was hoping that someone would be there for him later that evening. As he stood in the ring, pretty much shouting from the rooftops how great his family was and denouncing Lashley, he hoped that his dad had some great plan for him. He probably had a plan, it was the great part that was tripping him up. He was sure that his father was going to bring Umaga out, that was a given, but if Umaga couldn't beat Lashley at WrestleMania, what made him think that he could be beat now, when Umaga wasn't in the match? These were the things running through his mind as he stood in the ring.

"I don't like this," Marissa said to Stephanie, who had emerged from her office a few short minutes ago. "I don't like this at all."

"What? Shane fighting or Lashley making it a title vs. hair match?" Stephanie asked as Sawyer pulled on her hair.

"I'm thinking…both," Marissa said with a despondent laugh. "If he's going to look anything like your father, that's what scares me, I mean, I know it's just hair…"

"But it changes their entire look, until they become someone you don't really recognize?" Stephanie finished for her, thinking about the long, luscious locks that Chris used to sport. She had loved his long hair, could remember nights when she would be running her fingers through it. It just wasn't the same.

"Yeah," Marissa said wistfully, "Your dad better have a good plan or I'm going to take him down myself."

"Oh, many people have tried, Ris, many people have tried…" Shane walked backstage, but before Marissa could get to him, Vince intercepted him.

"You were great out there, Shane, now here's the plan for later…I'm not sure I liked you accepting the hair stipulation, but I've got something up my sleeve."

"What is it?" Marissa asked, coming over, "because I don't want my husband's ass kicked."

"It won't be, here's the thing, Shane, you just get yourself DQ'ed," Vince said, his eyes lighting up.

"So what's the point of the match then?" Stephanie asked. "If you aren't actually going to go through with it, than why have it in the first place."

"So we can set him up," Vince said, as if he were brilliant. "He'll think there's a match and then he'll come down for it and then you get yourself disqualified and we come down to the ring and it's bye-bye Lashley."

"Why don't you just ambush him?" Stephanie asked again. "If you want to get at him without him knowing, wouldn't an ambush be better?"

"Don't you have somewhere to be, Princess?"

"No," she said, but then, just a she said that, she heard someone calling her name.

"Steph?"

Stephanie turned her head and saw Christian out of the corner of her eye, "Christian, great, I'm so glad you made it!"

"Why did you even want me here?" he asked. "I mean, you said that it was something important, so I flew up, is everything okay? Is there something wrong with Trish?"

"No, I wanted you to come to Connecticut because as you know, this is where I'm from and where I grew up," she said.

"You're not going to take me on a tour of your hometown or something, are you?" he asked, already inwardly groaning.

"No, nothing like that, I just have this friend, she's a friend from high school and she still lives in the area, and she's single and she's really nice, and I really think that you would hit it off with her if you give a chance."

"Wait, you made me fly all the way up here because you want to set me up with your friend?"

"You only had to fly up here," she pointed out, "you're obviously going to be staying with me and Chris at our house, so you're accommodations are taken care of. Seriously, Christian, you mentioned that you might be willing to see other women, and try to move past Trish, and what better way to do that than to actually _do_ that. You can't stay hung up on her forever, waiting around until she makes up her mind."

"I know this, but you're just asking me to jump right in!" he told her. "I can't believe you didn't even give me any forewarning about this. Stephanie, you had no right to interfere with this. I wanted to figure this out on my own."

"Christian, calm down, I haven't actually called her, I'm running it by you right now. I told her that there was someone that might be willing to meet her, and that's it. She's really pretty and friendly, and everything that I'm not, which makes it weird that we were friends, but still, it's just a thought. We can all go out, you, me, Chris, and Tiffany."

"Steph, some people aren't like you, we can't just jump from one relationship to another."

"Whoa, what is _that_ supposed to mean?" she asked accusingly.

"Well, I mean, you jumped from Andrew straight to Hunter, and then straight to Chris."

"I didn't start seeing Chris until six months after Hunter and I broke up," Stephanie protested. "As for the Andrew thing, that was done against my will, and I just embraced it. Besides, Christian, you and Trish haven't exactly been together for months and months either. I'm just giving you an option."

"You're forcing an option down my throat," he corrected, running a hand through his hair. "I'm not ready…I just…"

"Okay, it was just a suggestion," she said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Christian…you don't sound like a man who wants to get over someone. You sound like someone who is trying to hang on."

"And what's wrong with that, really?" he asked. "So what if I want to hang on a little bit longer."

"I thought we were all united in our anger over Trish," she said quietly.

"It's hard though," he said. "It's hard to move past her when everything in you wants her…I don't…it's scary to try."

"But you're _not_ trying, that's the point," she told him gently, squeezing his shoulder amicably. She felt bad for Christian, and she felt that once upon a time, this could've been her. Actually, it probably was her for a time being after Hunter had dumped her. She didn't even know where to begin with dating and getting back into the game, after you're with one person who you believe you're going to be with forever, getting yourself back out there is hard. Luckily for her, Chris was a person who you should never turn down a hug from and he made it known by kissing her.

"Fine, I'll meet her, whatever," he said, giving her a small smile, "That's trying right?"

"Yeah, that's trying."


	132. Overseas Mayhem, April 23, 2007

A/N: There was no chapter last week because I sprained my wrist at the gym and I could barely type without it hurting, so I skipped the chapter. Enjoy this one. :)

* * *

"Staring at the phone isn't going to make it ring."

"I'm psychic, sure it will," Stephanie told her husband.

"Who are you even waiting for a phone call from?" Chris asked as he sat on the steps outside of the arena. Stephanie was standing above him, leaning against the wall, looking at her phone.

"Nobody," she said. "I mean, I am waiting for calls, either from Christian or from your mom."

"Christian isn't even going on his date for another few hours, don't forget the time difference, it's only five here, so it's only noon over there, Christian isn't even going on his date until way later."

"I know, but I thought that he might want to call and you know, tell me what's going on and how he's getting ready," she responded.

"I think you're mistaking Christian for someone else…like a girl," Chris said. "I hardly think he's going to call you to ask you what he should wear to his date or what he should do."

"He asked what we did on our first date when he was thinking about what to do with Trish on their first date, so what would make this time any different, you know?" Stephanie asked. "I'm just making sure that I'm there for him. I just want him to have fun."

"They're just going out to dinner and a movie or something," Chris told her. "Don't worry about it, everything is going to be fine, hopefully. I think it's a good thing that he's getting himself out there. I really do, this may be your finest moment."

Stephanie stuck her tongue out at him as she plopped her butt down on the step next to him. She looped her right arm through his and leaned her head on his shoulder as they sat there in the parking lot. It was the wonderful view of London that they were afforded at the moment, the WWE buses in front of them, and the cloudy sky above them. Chris turned a little and kissed her on the head.

"Are we going out tonight?" she asked. "You promised that you'd take me out."

"We are, I made reservations at this restaurant I was told was excellent, and they have dancing if you want to do that, we're going all out, nice clothes, the works, I think that we deserve a nice night out. I did promise that every stop we make around here, I would take you out, did I not keep up with that promise?"

"You kept up with it," she told him. "It's been pretty fun."

"I agree. Oh, did you hear, your prodigy changed his ring name apparently, did you tell him to do that?" Chris asked, staring straight ahead. Stephanie could hear the sarcasm in his voice straightaway, but she made no motion to move.

"No, I didn't tell him to do that, I didn't even know that he was doing that," Stephanie said. "That's fine though, what is it?"

"Rodman, now he's Daniel Rodman," Chris said, trying to hold in his snicker at the name. Not every name could be as cool as Chris Jericho, but of course, Chris had spent the better part of the last fifteen years making sure the name Chris Jericho was synonymous with wrestling. He just wasn't sure how relevant Daniel Rodman would be in the future of the business.

"Don't laugh, it's probably so that people will more easily remember his name," she told him, nudging him in the arm…hard.

"Steph…"

"Don't even go there, Chris, I swear, don't even go there."

"He doesn't have 'it.'"

"Oh, and what is this 'it' that you speak of, all might master of the wrestling universe? Tell me what this magical necessity is that you _have_ to have in order to be one of the greatest wrestlers ever. Enlighten me," she finished sardonically, turning to look up at him, waiting for an answer.

"It's just something you have," he told her. "It's just an intangible quality that you have that lets you win someone over, good or bad, and something you have in the ring that makes you stand out. A natural charisma or something. Rocky had it, even Trips has it a little bit, although more people hate his guts, but I just don't see it in this guy."

"But you don't know enough about him," Stephanie told him. "You're just so willing to write him off, and Chris…if you were just starting out, paving your own way, would you want someone to just dismiss you because they didn't think that you had something that you don't even know exists? And what if someone had told you that you were going to be nothing, that you weren't good enough, would you have listened?"

"Baby, I always had it," Chris said cockily and she groaned out loud. "What? You don't believe me, do I have to show you all the tapes at home?"

"Oh yeah, with the mullet and the fringe, my heart is beating so fast just thinking about it," Stephanie told him. "I just like the guy and don't want to see him fall through the cracks, and as for your 'analysis' of him, I think you're wrong."

"Stephanie, I've been around wrestling long enough to know who has got what it takes and who doesn't have what it takes."

"Well maybe you don't," she told him, pulling away from him a little and he knew that he had done it now. He couldn't leave well enough alone and now he was going to pay for it. It was always the same way with Stephanie. He always just pushed her far enough and she would crack and he'd be running for the hills. Even after almost five years, he could still make her hot like frying pan.

"Okay, well maybe you don't," he countered.

"I just don't understand why you won't give me this," she told him, "I just don't understand why you can't see that I see something in this guy. I'm not asking you to feel the same way, I'm not, I'm just saying that I feel this way and that's it."

"Well, I'm sorry, I think he's a bad wrestler and I don't see him having a long future, he's already, what, twenty-eight, I know that there are late-bloomers, but at some point, you think that a guy is going to pick something up. I think your dad even agrees with me. Isn't he the one who decided that he wasn't going to give him a big push because he wasn't ready?"

"So? That means nothing," she said. "And you know what, I'm a little tired of you acting like you're the only one who knows everything around here. You act like you're the best scout that ever walked the face of the Earth."

"What are you implying?" he asked accusingly. Their tempers were getting the better of them, and it was just their style. It was just how they worked, everything they had been through and all the obstacles they had gone through, they were still Chris and Stephanie, bound to get pissed off beyond belief and not ones to get over their anger easily.

"I'm implying that I think the power has gone to your head a little bit," she told him, cocking her head to the side as if to challenge him.

"Oh, I suppose this is the whole thing with you and me, and me marrying into the McMahon family, so that automatically means that I'm power-hungry and I want to grab it all away from you and from your family. Sorry, Steph, I'm not a McMahon, I don't have those kinds of thoughts."

"Well, maybe you do and you don't know it, since you're the foremost expert on what a wrestler should be, and tell me again, Chris, what is the prototypical wrestler supposed to be? Is he supposed to be blond-haired, blue-eyed, Canadian? Is that what makes the best wrestler?"

"Oh, ha ha," he snorted. "I'm sorry that I think you're little boy-toy has no potential and that he sucks to high heaven. Sorry that I think he's going to go nowhere except being a glorified jobber to the bigger, better wrestlers who could wrestle circles around him, hell, I could wrestle circles around him and I'm not even in ring shape."

"Yeah, I'm sure that you could, that'd be so great," Stephanie said. "I'm sorry that I'm not taking advice from the guy who was champion twice, and only twice, and only held the belt for five months…combined."

"How dare you!" Chris said, standing up and glaring down at her. Stephanie, never one to back down…ever, stood up too, a step above Chris to gain the leverage, but he stepped up too so they were practically face to face and nose to nose.

"What? The truth hurts, Chris, and let's not forget that you needed _my_ help to win the first time."

"I would've won regardless. I didn't need that chair to win that match."

"Oh sure you didn't, and then you did _so_ well when you were the Undisputed Champion, you held it for such a long time, and then you beat Hunter so well…oops, no, you didn't."

Chris's nostrils were flaring as he stared at her with fire in his eyes, "Well maybe if I didn't have to make sure that your sorry ass was safe I would've done a better job. And maybe I would've gotten the title again if it weren't for the bitch that had to interfere and make it a Triple Threat Match, you were supposed to help me in that match, not turn against me!"

"I wanted to help you, but you were acting like a jackass!"

"You were acting like a bitch! You were the one who tried to pin me…twice, and jumped on my back when I had Hunter almost tapping, that was your fault! I had that shit match because of you, so don't tell me that I should've won it again when I had you to contend with."

"And what about all the other times you got shots…I guess that the old saying was true, you never could win the big ones, but I'm so forgetful, you haven't wrestled in almost two years, my memories of you are vague."

"I told you why I didn't want to wrestle," Chris said, poking her in the shoulder.

She poked him back. "Yeah, I heard your _excuses_. But let's face it, Chris, you're never coming back, you're never going to wrestle again, so trying to stomp on someone else's dream, not cool at all."

"I'm sorry," he scoffed. "Why don't you run to your little pet project then, I'm sure he's better company than a has-been."

"Fine!" she said, storming back through the door and leaving him out there.

He was so pissed off he gripped the handrail next to him and he felt like he could literally bend it in two right then. He hated fighting with her, but he hated even more the words that she had said. He wasn't a has-been and he had beaten a ton of guys over the years and he was one of the greatest. Stephanie was just angry at him, but he was angry at her for saying that he was just full of excuses for not wanting to wrestle again. Yeah, he was so full of excuses, just his son, that was his excuse.

If only Stephanie knew that he was seriously considering coming back. He had even talked to her father about it, so it wasn't just a blowhard thought that wouldn't come to fruition. He knew that it bothered her, but seriously to say he was just making excuses, it was like she didn't believe that he loved his son enough to want to spend every waking moment with him. He sighed and sat back down on the step. He wanted to tell her right this second that it wasn't true, none of it, that he wasn't never going to come back, he was going to come back, he had promised her, and he never went back on a promise to Stephanie, not if he could help it.

But the need to keep it a surprise for her overrode his need to tell his wife. He wanted one surprise for Stephanie, just one. It was so hard to get anything past her and he just wanted, this once, to actually surprise her with something big. He had surprised the hell out of her when she had told him she was pregnant, and now he wanted to give her this.

He just wished she wasn't so damn stubborn.

Stephanie stomped down the hall, ignoring anyone who even attempted to try and talk to her. She was sure that she pushed at least two people away from her. She didn't want to talk to anyone right now, least of all her husband, that good-for-nothing, backstabbing asshole. She threw open the door to her office and didn't listen for it to slam shut, but she knew it did. She went over to her desk and sat down heavily in her chair, facing the wall.

"Well hello to you too."

Stephanie gasped and turned around, seeing her brother sitting on the couch in front of her. "Shane?"

"You're angry…let me guess, you're mad at Chris." She huffed and turned around again, not saying anything. "Okay, I _know_ you're mad at him. So what did he do this time?"

"It's nothing, don't worry about it," she grumbled, wanting to hold onto her anger. She wanted to stew in it, let it simmer until she could walk up to Chris and smack him across the face for being such an asshole to her.

"Steph, it's not nothing," Shane said, "not if you're in here, mad, pouting like a little girl who didn't get what she wanted. If I've learned anything from taking my time with Marissa it's that you really shouldn't keep what you're feeling inside, you should talk about it."

"And where did you learn that mumbo-jumbo, love yourself, crap?" Stephanie asked.

"Nowhere, but you pick up on things when you're trying to work through your marriage, when I started to tell Rissa everything, it got better, so maybe if you're mad at Chris, by telling me you won't be mad at him anymore."

"Oh, I'll be mad," Stephanie said. "And there's nothing to tell, if I don't want to talk about it, I don't want to talk about it. He's just so frustrating sometimes, acting like he's a know-it-all and I'm just a low-brow ditz who couldn't find her way out of a paper bag."

"I don't think he thinks that about you."

"Yeah, you'd think," she told him. "But he does, he thinks that I'm an idiot and that's just not cool, but I don't want to talk about it."

"Are you sure? Letting it out is good."

"My marriage is not failing, Shane," Stephanie told him. "I've had a million and one fights with Chris, this is just another one, let us have our fights, did it ever occur to you that sometimes fighting is a good thing because too much peace in a marriage makes it dull and then you start to think about why you married someone in the first place if your life is so damn dull?"

"Okay, that did not occur to me," Shane said sheepishly. "I was just trying to help."

"What are you doing here anyways? I thought you were coming on the European tour this time, you weren't here last week when we were in Italy, Dad was forced to go it alone."

"Yeah, well, the old man called me up, requested my appearance."

"Oh, so you came running then," Stephanie teased a little bit. "And just what does he have you doing this week? Is he going to have you facing off against someone else?"

"Only because you can't," Shane told her. "I don't know, Dad wants me to make a challenge to someone, something about what happened with the IC Title, I just go along with what Dad says, I feel kind of bad for him, what with the hair thing. It's kind of humiliating and I feel bad for him, it's like letting him win at something."

"Wow, I never thought I'd see the day, but you pity Dad," Stephanie said, marveling. "I mean, you honestly pity him, you're like the kid who lets his dad win at basketball just to make them feel like they're still the adult and you're just the child. You're doing this because you feel bad for him, not because you're his little lackey."

Shane blushed under his sister's scrutiny. "I didn't say that explicitly."

"But you do," said Stephanie. "You do feel bad for him. What's that like? I haven't gotten to experience that yet. I often wonder what it'll be like when you start to see Dad as someone not as strong as you are. I never thought I'd see the day."

"It's not that I don't think that Dad can't handle himself," Shane explained. "I just don't know…he feels different without the hair, you know, like he's not really Dad, like he's this weak…man. I just don't want him to feel more humiliated."

"That's a nice thing to do."

"Well, despite everything, he's our dad, you know…"

"Yeah, I know what you mean, it's why I can never stay mad at him forever, despite how much I want to sometimes."

"So are you sure that you don't want to talk about Chris with me?"

"I'm positive," she told him. "But could I get a ride with you back to the hotel, the last thing that I want to do right now is ride anywhere with Chris, Lord knows what would happen."

"Well, I can only guess," he said as her phone began to ring. Stephanie dove for her phone and Shane had to wonder who was it that had his sister so ready to answer the phone.

"Hello?" she said anxiously.

"Stephanie, hello!"

"Oh, Loretta, it's you, I'm so happy," Stephanie said, smiling for the first time since Shane had seen her. Shane realized that it was Chris's mom and Stephanie must've been waiting to talk to Sawyer. "How's my baby?"

"He's doing great, Stephanie," Loretta said. "He misses you though, I can tell. He kind of looks around for something and he pouts when he can't find it, I take that to mean he's missing you and Chris."

"It's because we're loud, he's used to loud," Stephanie said as Shane pointed towards the door. She nodded and watched him leave, but didn't much care. "He didn't start walking or saying his first word yet, did he? Because I'll never forgive myself if he did."

"No, he hasn't done either, I think he knows that you're not here, he's a smart little one," Loretta said and Stephanie could hear the pride in her voice. "He's having a good time though, he and Ted go on walks everyday around the neighborhood. We took him to the beach and he had a wonderful time. He just misses you."

"Well, it's nice to know I'm loved, has he been sleeping okay?"

"Yeah, right through the night although I think he's used to going to bed later than when we put him to bed."

"Yeah, he goes to bed kind of late with us," she said. "Can I talk to him, he's not napping or anything, right?"

"He's right here, hold on." Stephanie heard a shuffling and then she heard a little bit of silence followed by the inane pattering of her son's voice. He babbled on the phone, sounding distant at times because he probably turned his head away from the phone.

"Hello baby," Stephanie said happily. She lived for the times she got to talk to Sawyer. Deciding that she would be okay being without him for a couple weeks had been one of the worst decisions. She missed him terribly, but the flight over was just too long for a little boy. They almost never made the cross-country flights when they were over in the States and she didn't want to have Sawyer flying across any oceans so she and Chris had made the decision to come to Europe and leave Sawyer in Florida with Chris's parents. She talked to him everyday, but she hadn't seen her little boy in a couple weeks and she was starting to feel a real separation anxiety.

"Babababababa" he said back, but he sounded happy. That babbly word was one he had been saying a lot lately and Stephanie and Chris both figured that something like bottle was going to be his first word.

"Mommy misses you so much baby, so, so, so much, she wishes that she could give you a hug right this second," Stephanie told him. "Nobody said that it was going to be so hard to be away from you, but someone should've told Mommy. But don't worry, Mommy and Daddy are coming home later this week, and then your birthday is coming up, baby boy, are you as excited as I am?"

Sawyer didn't say anything coherent, but she smiled all the same. She and Chris were both excited for Sawyer's upcoming birthday on May 2nd. They were going to hold a little get-together, and celebrate the first year of her little boy's life, the little boy who had quickly become the light of Stephanie's entire life. She had never been more enamored than when she had Sawyer. He had her; he had all of her just wrapped around his little finger, and he wasn't relinquishing the hold any time soon.

"Your daddy is being a huge jerk, Sawyer, I think that you should call him next and tell him to quit it, he's just starting to really bug me about this whole Daniel thing and I think that you should knock some sense into him. He'll listen to you, he always does."

She heard a shuffling again and then Loretta came back on the line, "Stephanie, it's almost time for his lunch, call back tonight, okay?"

"Okay Loretta, thanks again for staying with him."

"It's not a problem at all, honey, you know that I love to be around my grandson, he's such a doll, really, he's pretty well-behaved, except for that temper I see sometimes, I'm figuring that might just be something he picked up from you and Chris."

She laughed, "You have no idea, tell him I love him."

"I will, bye."

"Bye."

* * *

"What the hell am I doing?" Christian muttered to himself as he sat in Stephanie and Chris's Connecticut backyard nursing a beer, in the middle of the day no less. But he figured that it would help calm him down for his date with Stephanie's friend later that evening. Or maybe date since he was having serious second thoughts right now. 

He had been out with other girls since Trish and him had broken up, but this time it felt different and that might be because it felt more over than it had before. He had finally laid it all out there, had told Trish what was what, and it somehow felt…over. Maybe it was all over, maybe this thing, this hold that she had over him was broken and he could finally move on with someone else, someone who wouldn't judge him for his past.

He and Trish had been through so much, so many ups and downs, on periods and off periods, never seeming to work for an extended period of time. He should sit down and see how much of the last four years were actually spent with her and then without her. Had they even really dated for that long? Maybe whatever he felt for her was just some stupid feeling that he was clinging onto when he should've let go a long time ago.

Moving on could be good, in fact, it could be great, it could be just what he needed, and maybe he'd hit it off with Stephanie's friend. They had talked on the phone a little bit to set up where they were meeting. Chris and Stephanie had let him have free reign of their house while they were in Europe, and he was glad for a little space from everyone. He needed time to mull over this next step in his life. Life after Trish, should he start the year with 1, this was year 1 LAT, and he could move on. He could do the right thing and forget about that blonde bombshell who had ruined him for life.

* * *

Chris was feeling pretty ruined later that evening. The show as going on and he was working, but it all felt very empty to him. He had watched his brother-in-law and then his father-in-law act like jerks once again, but even that couldn't bring a chuckle to his face. It wasn't that he wasn't used to fighting with Stephanie, but compound that with the fact that he didn't even have his son here to console him, he was feeling pretty bummed. 

In the one year that Sawyer had been in his life, the little boy had quickly cemented himself as Chris's best friend. Maybe it was stupid to declare your son your best friend, but Chris felt like Sawyer was his. He was a great replacement for Kurt, actually, because Sawyer couldn't talk back and couldn't hurt his wife and say horrible things about her. No, Sawyer loved Stephanie just as much as he had.

Not to say that he was totally devaluing Christian as his best friend, but it was different with Sawyer, obviously. Then there was Hunter, who had surprisingly become a good friend in Kurt's absence, Chris still couldn't believe that Hunter was a good anything to him, if anything he thought he would be a pain in his ass for all eternity, but Hunter had turned into someone that he could turn to, and it was kind of a relief to have someone who knew Stephanie and could understand what Chris meant when he said that Stephanie could be the most annoying person alive. Hunter understood, and it was weird that they could live without this total animosity anymore. He supposed that Victoria eased that for Hunter just the tiniest bit.

He decided he better go talk to Stephanie and let everything blow over. When he opened the door, Carlito was just walking past, muttering to himself and looking pretty peeved. Chris tapped his shoulder, and Carlito instinctively swatted it away before looking up to see who it had been, half expecting to see Flair again. He didn't need Flair.

"Oh, hey, Chris."

"Hey man, did something happen?"

"Nothing, I'm just pissed off, have been for a while actually?"

"Anything I can help with? That's what I'm around here for," Chris said. "You know, take the complaints and everything, I think it's actually in my job description as Talent Relations Officer or whatever bogus title I hold, but I'm pretty sure this is right up my alley."

"Yeah, okay," Carlito said, not in the mood to hear Chris rambling. "I've just felt like I can't wrestle since this thing with Trish. She's been on my mind so much, I feel like I've lost any momentum that I've been able to build up."

"Geez, she really pulled a number on you and Christian, didn't she?"

"Yeah, I mean, I've over it, I'm done with her, she made her choice and that's that, I just can't seem to get back on track with everything else. My wrestling has suffered, my attitude has suffered. I don't feel like myself."

"Women," Chris lamented, "They treat you like shit and then they expect you to just move on and whatever. It's just how they operate."

"Yeah,' he said, grabbing at his hair a little. "She's not weighing on my mind anymore, but seriously, she's just wrecked whatever kind of mindset I had. I need to get my head back inot it. When I do that, I think that I'll be better off."

"Don't worry, it'll pass, you just need more time."

"Yeah, that's what Flair keeps saying, but whatever," Carlito said. "Thanks anyways though."

"Yeah, no problem," he said, thinking to his own situation with Stephanie. It was times like these that he was so happy that he was married. He didn't have to deal with the crap that came along with dating, wondering who was right for you, going through different women in hopes that you had found the right woman for you. It all seemed to tedious now and despite his anger towards Stephanie, she had taken him out of that rat race and for that he was grateful.

* * *

Chris paced the bedroom for what seemed the thousandth time. He checked his watch again. It was past midnight. Past midnight and he had yet to see Stephanie. She had told him curtly at the show that she was going to get a ride from her brother and not to bother waiting for her. So he hadn't bothered waiting for her because he trusted Shane because that was her brother and he would never let anything happen to Stephanie, but it was past midnight and he had yet to hear anything from her. 

He picked up his cell phone again and dialed her number, getting that damn message again. "Stephanie, it's me, will you _please_ call me back when you get this, okay? Bye."

He hung up again and then dialed Shane's number, "Shane here?"

"Shane! I've been trying to call you all evening."

"Oh, sorry, I was talking with Marissa and the boys," he explained, "What's up?"

"Do you know where your sister is? She hasn't come back to the room yet and I'm starting to get worried, is she with you? She said that she was going to get a ride from you and she hasn't come back yet, are you still at the arena, did you go somewhere for dinner?"

"Yeah, we did go somewhere for dinner," Shane told him, "but I'm back at the hotel and I have been for hours. Stephanie walked into the hotel with me, so she should be there, are you saying that you can't find her?"

"Well, she hasn't come back to the room, she said she was going with you, I'm worried man," Chris said, and he did have the slightest hint of fear in his voice. "I haven't even heard from her, her phone is off, I'm seriously worried, did she get on the elevator with you?"

"Yeah, she did, pressed the floor that you're on, and got off when we reached it, I saw her with my own two eyes."

"Damn it," Chris said, going quickly to the door and opening it, scanning the hallway, "I don't see her, she's not here in the hall, and I know she's not in the room unless she's developed invisibility like that dude on that one show, because I don't see her."

"I wish I could help you man, but I'm freaking sore from that move I did earlier, that shit kills," Shane said. "Call me when you find her, okay? I want to make sure that she's okay, I know that I saw her get off the elevator on your floor."

"Thanks," Chris mumbled as he hung up. He scanned the hallway again before going back inside the room. He made one more check, just o see if she had somehow gotten by him and snuck in her, but she was nowhere to be found. He grabbed his jacket and pulled on some pants before heading out of the room. He was really starting to become nervous because Shane had seen her get off on this floor and then it was like she disappeared.

The first place he looked downstairs was the bar. It was a pretty nice place, not too upscale, but it had a homey, pub-like feeling and he looked around the darkened room. There were people sitting in the corners, but none with long, brown hair. He checked the bar area, but still, nowhere to be found. He wondered if she could've wandered into a restaurant or something, maybe another bar. He would comb London if he had to. He was really starting to get frightened that something bad had happened to her. Sometimes fans couldn't distinguish between reality and what they saw on the television.

He went back out into the lobby and was just about to go to the concierge desk to see if they had seen her, when he saw her himself sitting in the lobby reading. The anger rising as she looked calmly down at the page of words, he stalked over to her and pulled her out of her chair.

"Where've you been?" he demanded to know.

She rolled her eyes, "I've been right here."

"Do you know how worried I've been over you?" he asked. "I've been sitting in that hotel room for hours worrying that you were hurt or something. You weren't answering your phone, I thought something had happened to you."

"Nope, all in one piece," she told him. "I'm just waiting to see if they have a room available for the night."

"Stephanie, I was worried sick and that's all you have to say to me?"

"What do you want me to say? Oh wait, you are the master of the house, I mean, you get to order me around, right?"

"That's not how it goes and you know it. Look, whatever, I don't like Daniel, that's my opinion, let me have it."

"Then let me have mine!" she hissed.

"Why are you so into this guy?" Chris asked. "Why is he so important to you? I mean, seriously, if I didn't know better, I'd say you have a crush on him or something, is that it? You have feelings for him?"

Stephanie's eyes almost rolled out of her head on that one, "No, Chris, I don't have a crush on the guy. Look, for the first time in a long time, I have something that is mine, it's not ours, it's not Sawyer's, it's mine. Sue me if I just want this because I was starting to feel a little bit like I was being defined as Chris's wife, or Sawyer's mommy. Don't get me wrong, I love those titles, but sometimes I need to be Stephanie McMahon, and have something independent to you _and_ Sawyer. I had a life before I got married and had our son. I just wanted to have something unique to myself, is that okay with you?"

"Don't not tell me where you are, okay? I was about to call the police, or whatever they call it here," he said, taking her face in his hands. "Don't do that to my heart, okay? I couldn't take it if something happened to you?"

"You're a cheeseball."

"Well don't break this cheeseball's heart."

* * *

"No, I mean, Stephanie was really nice in high school, but the girl could hold a grudge like nobody's business," Tiffany said over dinner with Christian. 

Christian laughed and nodded, "Oh yeah, she's the same way now. If you get on her bad side, watch out. Her husband was trying to find a way to get her job back so he could propose, but she thought that he was with…" It was here that the lump in his throat formed, but he pushed it down forcefully, "this girl, and so Stephanie and I pretended to be together to get back at him."

"That's so Stephanie," Tiffany said. "She's great though, she's been a good friend, surprising as that is with all her traveling."

"Yeah, she is a good person, so what is it that you do exactly? I don't think we got around to talking about that."

"I'm a doctor actually, general practitioner, I'm part of a small clinic here in Greenwich. It's a great job, I like helping people."

"Wow, I suddenly feel like an idiot."

"Oh, no, don't," she told him. "I scare more guys away with the doctor thing, I feel like I should come with a disclaimer or something. It's just a job, I mean, yes, it's my life, but being a doctor doesn't define who I am, just like I'm sure being a wrestler doesn't define who you are."

"You're right," he said, "now I'm feeling not as smart as you."

"Great, I'm 0 for 2 now," she laughed. "Is wrestling fun though, I mean, it has to be right? Stephanie loves it, Chris loves it, they say it's fun, so do you think it's fun?"

"It's great," Christian said. "It's hard, I've seen more doctors in non-dinner settings than I'd like to admit, but it is fun, and I wouldn't trade being a wrestler for the world. I'm actually a champion."

"Wow, see, and you were all worried, I'm in the presence of a champion," she told him with a smile. "Now I feel kind of like royalty."

He laughed at that. He actually liked being out with her. He didn't really expect to hit it off, but she was funny and pretty and…dear God, had Stephanie been right? Did this woman match up with him well? Great, now she was going to gloat and he was going to have to take it because so far, he didn't want this to be the last date he had with this girl. She was interesting and he wanted to get to know her better.

He felt a short, sharp twinge of guilt at that thought. While he had been engaged in conversation with Tiffany, he hadn't thought about Trish that much, but now that Tiffany was eating her salad and he was focusing in on his soup, she barged her way into his thoughts again. She would hate to see him on a date…wouldn't she? He was having trouble reading her though, since she had seemed to change before his very eyes. He used to be able to read her, but now, now she was a mystery. But yet she still had this hold on him. She still made him twinge up with guilt.

But he pushed it down, forcing it down. He wasn't going to give in, not this time. He was having fun and he shouldn't feel guilty. Trish was going to _marry_ another man. This was nothing. She had moved on, she had moved on effectively, maybe, but he was going to succeed with this one, he was going to see it through. He would just have to force all thoughts of her out of his mind. No more blondes for him…

"So Tiffany, tell me more about your practice."


	133. Vince is Nuts, April 30, 2007

"Okay, say it again."

"Stephanie…"

"What?" she asked, looking over at him to see what he wanted.

"Don't you think that he's tired?" Chris asked.

"How could he be tired?" Stephanie asked. "I mean, really, it's not like I'm asking him to run a marathon or something." She tried to hold in her smile and Chris tried to hold his in too, he couldn't help it, he had been all smiles since they had gotten home from Europe the prior week. So how could he realistically expect Stephanie not to feel the exact same way? It was nearly impossible.

"Yeah, but you've been treating him like a trained monkey for the past several days," Chris said, but his tone was light, but life was good right now, life was definitely good and he couldn't imagine how it could get any better. He liked it when life was like this, and he hadn't really experienced too many moments like this. A good chunk of his adult life had been all about establishing himself, taking every step forward with two steps back, but now he felt like he was constantly taking steps forward and not taking any steps back.

He had felt this way after he had won the Undisputed Championship. After that, he had felt on top of the world, like nothing could touch him and that night, nothing could as he flew through the air and kicked all kinds of ass to be the last man standing. Everything felt like it had been leading up to that moment, the hours he had put in at the gym, the wear and tear on his body, the matches, the feuding, the traveling, everything seemed to culminate at that moment, and it felt good, it felt like nothing could touch him.

He felt that way after he married Stephanie too. He had spent so much time getting her, so much time into their relationship and hiding them and everything, so when he finally married her, it was a good feeling, one of the best feelings. He finally had her, and she was finally his wife, and that was just the best feeling, it was the best feeling until she told him she was pregnant and then a whole other kind of feeling overtook him. And now, he was feeling it again, he was feeling like there were no steps back, just steps forward, so many steps forward.

"I have not!" she said, but with a laugh as she looked to Sawyer, who was standing on the couch, leaning against the back and looking between his mother and his father. "I'm not treating you like a trained monkey, right baby boy?"

"Mama," he said, looking at her and Stephanie's grin grew even wider if you could believe it. She looked to Chris, her eyes completely bright and happy. She really wanted to squeal, but held it in as best she could, but a squeak did get by her.

"Did you hear that, Chris, did you hear that?"

"I heard it, baby," Chris told her, looking at his son who loved getting all the attention that he was getting. He had a smile on his face too, but that was mostly because Stephanie and Chris kept smiling and he wanted to be in on the joke.

Stephanie was totally ecstatic and she could barely contain herself. She hadn't gotten any work done since she got home, and she hadn't gotten any work done tonight. She wanted to be around her son at all times just because he had said his first word, and it was her! She couldn't believe it when the night she got home, while they were all eating dinner, Sawyer had reached over to her and said, "Mama," for the first time ever. She had looked around the table at Chris and then her parents-in-law in complete shock as she stared at Sawyer like he had grown another head.

He was her first word. It just hit her in the stomach when she thought about it. She was someone's first word. Sawyer had learned her first, he wanted her first, it was the first time she had ever felt like she was truly and completely loved unconditionally and without reservation because of her past. She knew Chris loved her in spite of her past, and her parents loved her because they were her parents, but Sawyer just loved her, period, it was all he knew, and he had shown that to her.

"He said my name first," she told him, and now her cheeks were red.

"You're surprised by this?" Chris asked incredulously. "Steph, he adores you, you're obviously his most favorite person in the world, there was never any doubt that you would be his first word."

"Still, I was his first word, he said Mama first," she told him.

He laughed, "Okay, so he talked, we can't dwell on this all night, we've got things to do, people to see, things to argue about. So I think that I better take the monster so you can actually get some work done."

"You're going to take him from me?" she said with a pout. "But what if he wants me?"

"Then he'll tell me he wants you," Chris said as he stood up and went to take Sawyer from the couch. "Steph, we actually do have work to do, and you can't just blow it off, you know? Besides, aren't we supposed to be celebrating, your dad is the new ECW champion after all."

Chris said that with such distaste that she had to laugh a little. She couldn't believe that her father was actually champion. It was like when he won the WWE championship all over again. There he was gloating and holding it over everyone's heads, demanding the website guys to switch his profile over to the ECW part of the website. That was so like Vince, to gloat though it wasn't a true individual win, and Chris sighed again that he was related to the man.

"Yu know, this doesn't reflect well on me, right?" Chris said.

"What doesn't?"

"This who thing with your dad and him winning and I'm sure whatever he does tonight is going to embarrass me even more. I mean, I'm supposed to be antiestablishment. I'm supposed to be the one denouncing the higher-ups and wreaking havoc, I did it back in the day."

"Yeah, but it's different now, now you're married to me."

He nodded and looked at Sawyer, "I know that, I just never think about the implications that sends when I think about everything I've taken on since I've been with you, since I've married you."

"Like what?" she asked curiously, but her eyebrow was cocked like she was demanding to know what the hell he was talking about.

"I mean that I'm not 'one of the guys' anymore, I can't walk down the hallway and have someone just think I'm here to kick ass or something. People look at me differently, they talk to me differently, and your dad winning has reminded me of that because I'm what? I'm supposed to be happy for him since he won the title when he got it by not even really doing all that much and relying on others to win for him?"

"Nobody's asking you to cheer for him, _I'm_ not cheering for him, I told him last night that I thought he was just being a jackass, and of course, he didn't care because he's my dad and he only listens to what he wants to hear, but I'm not happy either, but haven't you learned by now you just go with the flow?"

"But still, it's like, he's disgracing that title, Stephanie."

"Well, what can I do about it, Chris? There's nothing."

"Do you think if I talked to your dad…"

"Yeah, try that," she said sarcastically. "He never listens to reason, he's not going to listen to you. Chris, I know that things are always going to be different now for you, I know that every new guy that comes into the company is going to suck up to you because you're married to me, you've been handling this for two years now, you should be used to it."

"I am, usually, but with your dad with the belt, it doesn't reflect well on us as a family."

"You're worried that guys are going to think you support this creating an even bigger gap between you and them?" she said, realizing what this was really about. "You're embarrassed by us."

"Not by all of you, not you and not your mom, and not the kid, but well, for Vince and Shane, yeah a little bit."

She shook her head and rolled her eyes, "You're the same Chris Jericho you've always been, everyone freaking knows that. You're still the brash, cocky jackass you've always been. So what if you're part of the McMahon family, that doesn't mean that you're truly one of us, so get the hell out of here."

Chris smiled at her, "Thanks, I needed to hear that."

"Anytime, sweetie, but seriously, get the hell out of here," she told him, "I do have work to do and if Sawyer stays in here any longer, I'm never going to let him leave."

"Okay, say bye to Mama," Chris said, pointing at Stephanie.

"Mama!" Sawyer said, imitating what his father had just said, and he waved his hand like Chris was doing.

Stephanie grinned at her boys as they left and she tried to focus on her work, but it was increasingly difficult with all the big things going on in her life right now. Sawyer had just said his first word, which was monumental and he had done it a week before his big day. His birthday, his very first birthday was coming up on Wednesday and she was in disbelief that she had had Sawyer for an entire year; it had seemed so short, like she had only had him for the blink of an eye, but then sometimes it felt like she had never lived without him in her life.

She was excited for his birthday because he didn't even realize it was his birthday and someone had to be excited for him. She heard a knock on her door and she called out, "Come in."

She looked up and saw Daniel in front of her and she smiled. She really liked this guy, "Daniel, hey, what's up?"

"Nothing much," Daniel said, "I was talking with your dad and he was saying how he thinks that it might be good for me to stay in OVW for a while longer to get my skills better, but he wanted me to keep traveling every Monday and he said that I should coordinate my schedule with someone but when I went looking for Mr. Jericho, he wasn't in his office, and you were the next person I thought of."

"Oh, okay," she said, waving him in, "why does my dad want you to travel, do you know?"

"He said something about having me in some dark matches to get me crowd-ready."

"Oh, I see," she said, grabbing her cell phone, "Let me give him a quick call and we'll see what's up."

"Okay," he said, sitting down and trying not to look uncomfortable, though he was. The last time he had seen Stephanie, she had seemingly been in a fight with her husband until he found out about her promotion which was when things got really weird and he felt like he had been stepping in on a private moment, and he didn't want to repeat that now.

Stephanie dialed her father's number and tapped her fingers impatiently as she waited for him to pick up. "What up, holmes?"

"Dad?" Stephanie asked as she furrowed her eyebrows together. "Is that you? Did I call the right number?"

"Oh, Stephanie, hello!" Vince said jovially, "I didn't know it was you, what's up with your bad self?"

"Um…nothing," Stephanie said, her face contorting into more confusion, "Why are you talking like that, Dad?"

"Because I'm the ECW champion, I'm the best there is around here and I'm out to prove just how extreme I can be," Vince explained and Stephanie's face conveyed her utter disgust. She was starting to see what Chris meant and she dearly hoped that her father reigned it in for the show.

"Okay…well, um, I'm here with Daniel Rodimer, and you told him that he should continue to travel with the company on Mondays for what reason?"

"I want him to stay to work dark matches, so coordinate the schedule with him, really, Stephanie, you should know what to do in this kind of situation."

"Normally I do," she said snottily, "but you didn't exactly give him or me the specifics on what you wanted so it was kind of hard to figure out. So you want me to make sure that he gets his schedule in OVW to exclude his traveling is what you're saying?"

"Yes, that's what I'm saying, so do it, I'll see you later tonight, your brother and mother are going to be there at the show."

"Mom?"

"Yeah, she wanted to see Sawyer since he said his first word," Vince explained. "Shame that it wasn't Vince or something."

"Okay, Dad," she said, rolling her eyes, and hanging up the phone before he could embarrass her even more. She muttered, "yuck" under her breath at the thought that Vince would be her son's first word. She almost hoped that Vince would never be a part of his vocabulary, but that was a pipe dream. She remembered herself and looked up to Daniel, "So yeah, my dad wants me to make sure that OVW knows we need you, so I don't actually need you here to do that."

"Oh, yeah, sure," he said, "Thanks for understanding."

"It's not a problem, how do you feel that your progress is doing?" she asked him curiously. "Do you feel like you're learning anything?"

"Yeah, I feel like I'm getting better and getting more experience," he told her, getting comfortable again after almost standing up to leave. "Your husband is kind of harsh, but I guess he's just being truthful and I need to take his advice."

"Well, yes, my husband is kind of a douchebag sometimes," Stephanie said, and he was a little shocked that she would so readily refer to him as that. He was neglecting to remember that she used to hate the man she was married to and occasionally, like when it came to the man in front of her, they tended to disagree with each other vehemently.

"Oh…"

"I mean, by all means, listen to him because he knows what he's talking about and he's good at what he does, but sometimes he doesn't know talent if it hit him in the face. He's a wrestler, they don't know how to scout," she said, reassuring him while putting down her own husband, which struck him as a little odd, but who was he to correct the boss. "I think that you have a lot of potential, and my dad wanting to you for house shows, shows that he has confidence that you can go places too."

"Wow, I'm really glad then," she said, feeling more encouraged by Stephanie's words. He just needed a lot of confidence.

Another knock came on the door and Stephanie mumbled, "Man, I'm popular." She called out again, "Come in!"

The door opened and she had to smile again, "Hunter, what're you doing here?"

"I'm rehabbing in Birmingham, you guys were in Nashville, it's a short flight, I wanted to be here tonight, it'll make me rehab even faster," he said, walking into the room. He saw Daniel sitting down, "Oh, I'm sorry, was I interrupting something?"

"No, not at all, I was just talking to Daniel Rodimer, have you two met?"

"No, we haven't," Hunter said, extending his hand, "Hunter."

"Daniel," the younger man responded, "It's really nice to meet you."

"Yeah," Hunter said, sitting down, "what were you two discussing?"

"I think that he has a lot of potential to go places," Stephanie said, easing herself into her seat again. "I think that he can go far."

"Interesting," Hunter said, "are you debuting soon or something?"

"No," Daniel said, "I'm actually going to be doing some dark matches for a while, try to get a little more experience."

"And I think he's going to be great," she said, sending Daniel a smile. "He may even surpass you, Hunter, so you better watch out."

"Yeah, I guess," he said nonchalantly.

"Anyways, Daniel, I'll get that schedule squared away and when you go back to OVW, they should give it to you," Stephanie smiled kindly, "and it was really nice seeing you again, have a great night."

"Thanks, Steph, and it was nice meeting you, Hunter," Daniel said as he left the room. Hunter turned to look at Stephanie for a moment, but she had turned to the sheet of paper in front of her that laid out the show for the night. Since her entire family was here, it lightened her load a little bit, although with her father going around gloating to everyone and her brother hanging on his coattails trying to get his hands on the belt, she might actually have _more_ work to do than usual. She felt Hunter's eyes on her and she looked up at him slowly.

"What? What are you staring at?" she asked.

"You," Hunter told her. "You were almost shamelessly flirting with the guy."

"What are you talking about?" she asked incredulously, putting her pen down. "What do you mean I was flirting with him?"

"I didn't say you were, but you were acting awfully coy," Hunter said. "I mean, do you have a crush on the guy or something, you were gushing about him like he was the second coming or something."

"What? I was not!" she protested. "I just see a lot of upside in the guy and I was expressing that to him because my husband has decided to berate him every chance that he gets. I just wanted the guy to know that he does have a lot of potential, what's wrong with that?"

"Nothing, but you didn't have to do it in such a way that makes it seem like you want to grab him and take him to bed," Hunter chuckled. "I mean, really, Stephanie, are you searching for husband #3 because I think you can do a lot better."

She rolled her eyes, "I'm a happily married woman, so I'm not looking to flirt with the guy, but if it happens to seem that way, what can I do?"

"You can…not flirt with him," Hunter smirked, knowing that he was pushing all of Stephanie's buttons; she hated so much when someone questioned her intentions with something, it set off the little alarms in her head.

"I wasn't flirting with him!" she told him. "I just think that he's a good wrestler, so sue me, what the hell is wrong with that?"

"Nothing's wrong with that, but yeah, you were flirting."

"Oh, you wouldn't know flirting if it hit you upside the head with a sledgehammer," she told him, "I mean, you honestly thought that whatever the hell Trish was doing to you wasn't flirting and she was bent over like she was a table. So don't even get started with knowing when someone is flirting."

"I'm just saying, watch out, because I do not want to have to initiate Chris into the club of men who have divorced you," Hunter told her.

She glared at him, "Why do you have to say things like that? I'm not going to go out and fall in love with some other man. I love my husband, I loved you when I was married to you and I never cheated on you, I'm not that kind of person, I've seen my father do it one too many times and I know how much it sucks."

"Okay, I'm just saying, I like Chris, he's a good guy and maybe he's getting the wrong idea, did you ever think of that?"

"What do you mean?" she asked. "Do you think that he thinks that I have some thing for him? Did he say something to you?" She was grilling him for answers. She tried to think back to any conversation she had with Chris over Daniel, trying to remember if she had found anything strange about him.

"He hasn't said anything, keep your thong on," he said, rolling his eyes, "I'm sorry I brought it up now. I just wanted to say hi. I'm actually here for a reason, I had a meeting with your husband and he's nowhere to be found."

"You had a meeting with Chris?" Stephanie asked. "How come I didn't know about this? I'm usually on top of these things, and I help Chris with his date-book and everything."

"It was short notice," Hunter explained. "I just wanted to catch him up on my rehabbing, since he is a talent scout guy right now right, he works with the talent?"

"He does, but…"

"I was catching him up so he'll know about what time I'm ready to return, I'm aiming for a July return, but I have some people telling me it's too early, like they know my leg, right?" he said, frustrated that people were trying to keep him away from the ring.

"You really should take more time off."

"Not you too, Steph, come on, I'm getting better, stronger, and I think I'll be back by July, but I really should be discussing this with your husband and not you, but I can't find him anywhere, and when I asked around, nobody could tell me where he was."

"He's with Sawyer I'm sure," Stephanie said. "Did you hear, Sawyer said his first word!"

"What was it, help?" Hunter joked and Stephanie's grin turned back to that icy glare.

"No, it was not help," she said sardonically as she made a face, "It was me."

"Me was his first word, well, with you and Chris as his parents, I'm sure he's a little bit self-centered."

"No, you jerk, it was Mama, as in me, I'm his first word, can you believe that, I was his first word," Stephanie said proudly. "That means that he totally loves me, and loves me enough to know that I'm his first word."

"Well I'll have to go see this amazing feat for myself, do you have any idea where he might be?"

"Try my dad's locker room, my mom is here to see him, so she'll probably be around him," Stephanie said. "Stop by tomorrow if you're still around, we'll have breakfast, catch up on what's been going on."

"Sounds good," he told her, standing up, "Thanks, Stephanie."

"No problem."

Chris was actually with Linda, who was doting over her grandson. He looked at his watch and then back up at them, "Hey Linda, I hate to cut this short, but I have got to get to work, I had a meeting with Hunter that I needed to get to."

"Oh, let me watch Sawyer for you, just for a little while," Linda said, holding onto Sawyer. "I never get to see him, not as much as Declan and Kenyon, and I miss him so much."

"Okay," Chris relented, actually glad that he would get some work done. "I'll come by to pick him up, or you can drop him off with me when he starts to get tired. He's been up lately because of all the birthday prep that we've been doing."

"I will," she said, looking at her grandson and practically forgetting that Chris even existed.

He shrugged slightly and got to leave. He was out the door and a few steps down the hallway when he saw Hunter walking his wave. He waved shortly at him before walking over where the other man had stopped to wait for him, "Hey man, how's it going?"

"It's going okay," Hunter told him, "I was looking for you, ended up in your wife's office."

"Sorry, I was with Steph's mom, she wanted to see Sawyer since he said his first word, which was of course, Mama, because he loves Stephanie and barely tolerates me," Chris joked, "so how's the leg coming along?"

"It's going, and I think I can come back by July."

"July? Really?"

"Don't even, Chris."

"No, I'm not saying anything, if you want to come back then, that's your prerogative, I'm just saying that it might be better if you were to take some more time off, really make sure you're in ring shape before you do."

"Chris, you of all people should know how much it sucks being away from the ring, or have you forgotten since your sorry ass has a desk job now?"

"Funny," Chris said, "and now I haven't forgotten what it's like, not that I was injured much…or at all, not like a certain guy I know who has been a little injury-prone and should probably take time off."

"You sound like my mother, man," Hunter groused, "she's telling me to take time off, go on a family vacation with her and my dad and my sister and her family, like I really want to do that when I can be in the ring."

Chris snickered, "Family vacation, sounds like fun, are you all going to pile into an RV and go cross-country?"

"Shut up," Hunter said. "It's not funny at all, and I have a feeling if I did go on said vacation, my mom would be trying to push every female within my age range on me like I'm some sort of damn charity case."

"I do have some single friends…"

"Again, shut up. I have Vic, and we're taking it slowly. I haven't told my parents about her yet."

"Yeah, you didn't even tell them that your ex-wife had gotten remarried and had a child, so I'm not surprised that they wouldn't know about your current quasi-girlfriend," Chris told him.

"Well what about your wife's quasi-boyfriend?" Hunter kidded.

"What are you talking about?"

"Daniel Rodimer," Hunter said. "He was in her office earlier, something about scheduling and OVW, and I don't know, I'd watch out for him, man."

"Watch out for him?" Chris honestly didn't know what Hunter meant by that, but it seemed like a warning of some kind. He looked off for a moment, trying to think about what that could mean before he turned back to the taller man. "I'm not getting you here."

"She seemed like she was flirting with him, like she could have a crush on him or something," Hunter told him. "And I'm not saying this because I believe it to be true, but you're a friend, I thought I'd give you a heads up."

"You think she has a crush on him?"

"No, but I wouldn't be surprised if he developed a crush on her," Hunter said. "Trust me, Chris, I have been there. When we were married…I mean, there was Kurt, and you…I really should've worried more about you than I did about Kurt."

"I didn't sleep with your wife while you were married," Chris told him, "How many times do I have to tell you that?"

"I don't know, a million?" Hunter said, "But seriously, guys were always trying stuff with her, which is why you called her all those horrible names I'm sure. You honestly thought that she was some slut, but it was always the guys flocking to her. I'm just saying that it could happen again, people probably haven't done anything because you're happy with her and because of Sawyer, but guys see her and they see the chance to advance their careers, I saw it too, I'm sure you saw it, but didn't act on it, but it's there."

"Great, so I have to watch out for Kurt, who is coming to Sawyer's party on Wednesday, _and_ I have to watch for this Daniel guy, do I have to watch for you too, Trips?"

He chuckled, "No, I'm good, trust me, I've had my fill of Stephanie McMahon."

"You know, you keep telling me to watch all these guys around Stephanie, and you're not even helping a damn bit, and I can't ask Christian because he's off with Stephanie's friend trying to rebuild his life, so I'm stuck here, trying to fend off dudes who want my wife?"

"Them's the breaks," Hunter shrugged. "You had to know what you were getting into when you married her, and you dated for how long? Two years was it? She's the boss's daughter, you're going to have to be curbing off guys for the rest of your life. It's a hard job."

"You're absolutely no help, jackass," Chris said. "You should help because you were married to her."

"Oh, so now it's a good thing I was married to her, wasn't so good when you knew that I've seen her naked."

"Oh God, don't put that image in my brain," Chris said, walking away, "I hate you, Trips, this is why I think you're a bastard."

Hunter laughed as he trailed after his friend. Stephanie was just watching the show get underway and she found it strange that she hadn't seen her father or her brother yet. She knew that they had planned a match for Umaga against RVD because of what he had said, and so they were going to be in the building, but she hadn't seen them. She wondered what they could possibly be up to.

Her father was up to being a really big weirdo. The belt had completely gone to his head and now he thought he was the best ever. She saw him on the monitors talking to John, and she just added the incident to the many incidents that her father had gotten into over the years. One of these days she was going to hire a therapist to sort this all out. Oh, a therapist would have a field day with her entire family. They might even need shock therapy.

"Hey baby girl," Shane said, plunking himself down next to her. "What's up?"

"Watching Dad," she said, gesturing towards the screen in front of her. "Shane, why do you put up with him? Why must you be his lackey, have you no self-respect?"

"Do you think that he'd let me hold the belt?" Shane asked. "You know, I should get a share of that, don't you think?"

"Um…sure?" she told him. "Shane, you're supposed to be the sensible one here, and I'm supposed to be the nonsensical one, don't make me be the one who has to be logical, I'm not good at it."

"Oh come on, Steph, let him have his moment," Shane told her, ruffling her hair a bit. "I mean, he's Dad, let him do what he wants, he's having fun and for once has forgotten about losing his hair, so I think we should let him have this."

Stephanie was starting to see Chris's point. It was embarrassing having her father represent an entire part of the company. He wasn't a wrestler, he didn't win that title in a fair match, and now he was prancing around like he had just won an Oscar or a Nobel Prize or something. This was her father, and he was an embarrassment. Not for the first time, Stephanie was just embarrassed to be related to Vince.

"But…I mean, do you really think he deserves this?"

"Whatever," Shane said, "you're no fun, just let him have the spotlight, it's going to be good, he's happy now, which means he's not going to do something even more stupid."

She wished that was the case, but as her father tried to act like he was hip or something, it just kept hitting her that while she was her father's daughter in many senses, the biggest one was that she was extremely opinionated, and not a follower like her brother tended to be. She patted him on the shoulder, wondering if he ever really understood. Ever since she had been with Chris, it felt like sometimes she was so detached from her family and she couldn't help but think that she was either growing more mature than her family because of Chris, or if she was getting more normal because of Chris, whatever the reason, it made her feel bad for her brother right then.

"He'd probably let you hold the title if you sucked up to him," Stephanie said.

"You think so?" Shane said. "It's been a long time since I held any kind of title, but never one of the bigger ones."

"You should probably have it before Dad, but you're a little more sensible than he is," she said, trying to convince him to come over to her side. Her side was sane and normal and good.

"Thanks," he laughed, "but that's easy. I'm going to go find him, see if he wants to give up that title for a while."

"Okay…oh, you, Rissa, and the boys are coming this weekend for Sawyer's birthday, right, it's on Wednesday since everyone has that day off, you're coming right?"

"Yeah, we're coming, you came to Kenny's birthday, so we have to return the favor, it'll be fun," Shane said, waving to his little sister.

She looked off for a moment before hearing the clear yelling of, "Mama!"

She turned and saw Linda and Sawyer walking down the hallway together, his little hand in her bigger one. She laughed and grinned when she saw them. She'd never get tired of her hearing her name. Now all Sawyer had to do was walk on his own, but she didn't see that one coming in the near future. He really hated to not be tethered to something or someone, although he could walk if you were holding his hand to steady him. She thought curiously about whether he may be able to actually walk by himself, but chose not to because he didn't want to.

"Hey there, baby boy," she said enthusiastically as his face lit up at seeing her. He tried to toddle over more quickly, but he was losing his balance and Linda had to steady him before they toddled over to Stephanie and she scooped him up into her arms. His eyes looked a little red and puffy and he was rubbing his eyes. "Oh, someone's tired, huh?"

"Yeah, I thought you might want to say goodnight."

"Oh, I do," she told her mother, kissing his cheek. "Hey Mom, before you go, can I ask you something?"

"Always."

"Do you ever feel like you're not really a part of your family, like you're so different from everyone?"

"Why? Do you feel like you're not a part of your family because Chris loves you, and Sawyer loves you too."

"No, not my family, our family, you, me, Shane, and Dad? Do you ever feel like you don't belong?"

"All the time," Linda laughed, "and don't you tell me that you're any different from your father and your brother. You three are more alike than anyone wants to admit. You and Shane are your father's children, and yes, at times I've questioned your motives for things and your decisions, but I'm always reminded that you are just like your father."

"You mean, I act like _that_?" she asked.

"Well, no, but you know what I mean. It's easy to think that you're different, but you're not, you and your father have so much in common," Linda said, brushing her daughter's hair out of her face. "You're Stephanie McMahon, you've always been a little bit unique like that."

"Thanks, Mom," she said, giving her a smile, "You always know the right thing to say."

Chris was now looking at every guy suspiciously. What Hunter said had made a lot of sense. Why should all the guys in the company want a little piece of Stephanie? She _was_ Vince's daughter, worth a lot of money, and on top of that, had a lot of power around here. Even he knew that going into a relationship with her, though he hadn't really cared about that at the time when he just loved being with her, and still loved being with her, but now, now he was ready to start a fight with just about any man that looked at his wife the wrong way.

He saw her sitting at the table with her mother and Sawyer and he walked over, glancing over at Cade who was standing off to the side, and he wondered if he had any designs on his wife. He sat down next to her and pulled her in for a kiss. She kissed him back and then went to pull away, but he pulled her back again and deepened the kiss. He could feel her surprise, but didn't stop kissing him until he had his fill of her.

"Whoa, what did I do to deserve that?" she asked.

"Nothing, I just love you so much," he told her firmly and with passion. "You have no idea how much I love you."

"I love you too," she told him, kissing the corner of his mouth. "You know I do."

"Yeah, I know," he said, wrapping his arm around Stephanie's waist, almost possessively, staring daggers around the room. "Did you want me to take Sawyer and put him to bed, it's getting really late."

"He had a late nap today," Stephanie said, "but yeah, take him."

"I could put him to bed and watch him," Linda offered, "really, I want to."

"Oh, thanks, Mom," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, thanks, Linda," Chris added as Linda took Sawyer from Stephanie's arms, but not before he and Stephanie gave him a big goodnight kiss. Chris was glad because it gave him a moment with Stephanie. "Hey, Steph, I've been thinking and if you really want me to help work with this kid, then I can do that."

"With Daniel?"

"Yeah, with Daniel," Chris said, "I mean, if you see something in him, then I guess I can help him too, we're a team right? The both of us, we're a team, and I should be more supportive of the endeavors you choose to take."

"Really? You really meant that?"

"I really mean that," he told her and she threw her arms around him in a tight hug. He hugged her back, resting his cheek against her shoulder and just holding her for a good, long second. There was a little thing called compromise and he was willing to do that for her.

"You won't be disappointed, Chris, I really just think he needs time," she told him, pulling away to give him a languid kiss, slow, deliberate and full of love for her husband. "I'm so glad that you want to help."

"Anything for you, baby, you know that," he said to her. "I just love you, and I want you to be happy, and if this makes you happy, then it makes me happy."

"It makes me so happy, I just want a project, you know, someone I can kind of make into a great wrestler, I'm so glad you're going to help!" she told him.

"Me too."

He was also glad that he could make sure that Daniel never, ever, evvvvvver, touched his wife.


	134. Birthdays and More, May 7, 2007

A/N: So leave a review and make me happy. Also, this starts last Wednesday. :)

* * *

"A whole year."

"Don't get sappy on me, McMahon," Chris said as they both looked down at Sawyer, asleep in his crib, since it was after midnight, and usually kids would be asleep at that hour of night. But Chris and Stephanie had snuck into his room, reminiscing about the moment a year ago when this little guy had burst into their lives like a little firecracker.

"I'm not, I'm just surprised."

"You're surprised? Well, that's not the normal reaction from someone celebrating their son's first birthday."

"Not surprised, just…we made it, you know, and I know that's stupid to think because of course we made it, but…I don't feel like a bad mother, and I don't feel like I'm floundering, and _that_ is something that I'm surprised about."

"You aren't a bad mother," he whispered, running his hand through her hair. "You never were. That kid loves you more than he loves everyone and anyone in this world, more than me, and I never thought that possible."

"What? That someone could love me more than you, or that he loves me more than you do?" she wondered.

"The first one."

"Oh come on, don't be jealous," she said, playfully reaching out and pinching his cheek. He pulled away, glaring at her before she spoke again, "You come in a close second though, Sawyer likes you, just not as much as he likes me. It's because I'm so great."

"Shut up," Chris said, leaning his hands on his crib. "It feels like he's been around longer than a year. Can you even remember what it was like without him?"

"A lot easier if I recall," she laughed softly so as not to wake her son. "I don't know, it's like he's been here forever and he hasn't been here enough. I just can't imagine the past year without him."

"Neither can I," Chris admitted. "I love him more than I thought I could love a kid. I mean, yeah, he's gross sometimes and I can seriously do without changing diapers and calming someone down, but he's just such a good kid, even with his faults."

"Hey, question, do you think he can walk?" she asked as she ran her finger over his little arm.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Do you think that he can walk?" she asked again. "Like by himself, I mean. He walks just fine when someone is holding his hand, but he doesn't seem to want to walk by himself, but if he's with someone, he walks just fine. So do you think that he can walk by himself, but he doesn't want to?"

"What? You think that when we're not looking he's just cruising around, walking by himself, and then the moment that we walk in, he drops on his butt?" Chris joked.

"No, I don't think that's what he's doing," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "I just think that he knows how to walk and he's just not walking because he knows that we're always going to be here to hold his hand. Do you think that we should like, stand him in the middle of the room and see if he can?"

"Yeah, let's just leave our son stranded in the middle of a room and see if he can walk and he's just bluffing," Chris told her. "Don't you think that's a little cruel?"

"No, I'm just curious because he walks when he's with someone," she told him. "I read that most babies start walking around this time, I don't want our son to be behind, he's a Jericho. He shouldn't be behind in anything."

"He's not behind, Steph, he's talking, and walking will come soon, you can feel it, so what if he only walks when he's holding someone's hand, he doesn't have to be completely ahead of anything," Chris rationalized. Stephanie scowled, not at him, but just in general. He leaned over and kissed her cheek. She turned to him and he laughed a little.

"What?"

"You're cute," he told her. "He's cute too, I have a very cute family."

"You're so corny," she told him with distaste. "And I'm not cute."

"You are," he teased. "I'm glad that we had him, I know that we didn't exactly…want him for lack of a better word, but I'm glad that we had him because he's great. Thanks for having him."

She laughed, "That's an even cornier thing to say."

"Shut up, it's my son's birthday, I can be a little bit corny, can't I?"

"Just a little," she said, holding onto his arm as she yawned. "It's getting late, how long are we going to watch him sleep?"

"Not long," he said. "We're just commemorating the moment here. One year ago today, I was holding this little, tiny thing that barely weighed eight pounds and you were a rock star of epic proportions. I mean, I'll never get that image of…well, him coming out…out of my mind, that was scarring right there."

"It couldn't have been that bad," she said, challenging him to defy her as she gave him a look.

"Stephanie, you had a baby coming out, it was frightening. I mean, I've blocked the image from my brain mostly, but if I didn't block it out, I'd _still_ be traumatized, it was really gross."

"I'm glad you find my body gross," she kidded.

"Well, no, your body is just fine," he told her lecherously, smirking as she glanced at him. He pulled her tighter against him and kissed her neck, running his tongue over her skin a little bit. She tried to push his face away, but whenever she would push him away, he'd just go back to the spot where he had been before.

"Are you angling to have another kid nine months from now or something?" she wondered.

"Hell no," Chris said quickly, "I love my son, but I think I should love him a little bit longer before we even start to think about another one."

"Oh, so we're going to think about the next one then, we're not just going to jump into the whole thing like we did with this one?"

"Yeah, I think thinking would be good."

She turned and leaned up to kiss him, wrapping her arms around her neck as he played with the top of her pajama pants. He was about to sneak his hand inside her waistband, when she slapped his hand away playfully. He pouted against her lips and pulled away, giving her the puppy-dog look. She shook her head and glared at him.

"That look doesn't even work with the monster, why do you think it would work with you?" Stephanie asked.

"Because I'm the original version," he said with an impish grin. "Come on, let's go to our room."

"I'm not having sex with you on our son's birthday, it just seems…wrong…and weird, so I'm going to have to veto that idea right now, and what the hell are you trying to do getting in my pants in our son's room? Talk about perverted, sweetie, I don't know, this is behavior becoming of a father…except mine of course."

"I was just taking his lead," Chris winked, and when she groaned quietly, "Okay, no taking leads from your father, got it."

"Good," she told him, then looked over his shoulder as someone walked by the door. The person stopped and took a few steps backwards.

"Stephanie, Chris?" Ted asked as he squinted into the small light streaming from Sawyer's room from his nightlight in the corner. "What are you two doing up?"

"We were just watching Sawyer sleep, since this is just around the time that he was born," Stephanie explained. "What are you doing up?"

"I was going to go for a glass of water," he responded, but came into the room. "You two looked pretty involved in each other for two people who are watching their son sleep."

Stephanie laughed, "Well, we were going to go back to our room to sleep, but we just wanted to see him, you know, remember how a year ago he was born and just about the ugliest newborn you could ever see. He grew out of it very well though. He's very adorable now."

"Handsome," Ted said, taking a peek into his crib. "You might want to leave him alone though, in case you wake him up. You don't want to have to deal with a cranky baby, your mother and I learned that lesson while you two were gone."

"Yeah, he's very easily angered," Stephanie said. "He has a very set way of thinking, he gets that from Chris."

"Me? I don't think so," Chris said. "But my dad is right, we should leave him alone so he can actually get some uninterrupted sleep."

"Yeah, you're right, you go ahead though, I'm just going to make sure he's warm enough," Stephanie said. Chris nodded and kissed her cheek as he slapped his father's back as they exited the room and headed downstairs, talking in hushed tones.

Stephanie leaned over the crib again and thought back to the past year. It had been such a change for her to focus all of her attention on someone else that wasn't her. She had been thinking solely for herself for so long, looking out for number one, that she had thought at first that she would be a bad mother, but she loved Sawyer with every fiber of her being. She loved every little thing about him, from the way he smiled, to the way he threw his food if he didn't like it, to him right now, looking like an angel. She smiled crookedly as she adjusted the sock on his foot that was falling off.

"Love you baby boy," she whispered before leaving the room.

* * *

The festivities the next day were going to be subdued, and mostly family and friends since Sawyer was only turning a year old and having a huge party for someone who couldn't even participate would be pointless at best. Sawyer, for his part, didn't understand one single bit of it. He just knew that people were milling around and kissing him and holding him. While he was all for the attention, it was getting to be a little too much for him, so he was glad for his afternoon nap, which, curiously, he had taken with two other people, his cousins, Declan and Kenyon.

"Christian, I'm so glad you could make it," Stephanie said as she ushered in Christian into the house. She grinned at the person behind him, "Tiff, finally, you get to see where I live!"

"I know, right?" Tiffany said, hugging her friend. "Ever since you've gotten too good for the Connecticut upper-crust, you haven't even invited your old friend to your new house, I have to tagalong with the guy that I'm dating."

"Yeah, and ruin your fake tan with actually being in the Florida sun, I think not," Stephanie teased back.

"Oh, too good for even me now," she said, pulling away. "So where is this rugrat of yours? I haven't seen him in months and months because I've been so busy through the flu season, did Sawyer get his flu shot? Because he's so young and--"

"Yes, Tiff, Sawyer got his shot," Stephanie interjected.

"Good," she said, then continued, "but yes, I haven't seen him for months except for in the pictures you send me, so let me see him, I bet he's a cutie."

"Yeah, he is, _and_ he can say my name now," Stephanie said excitedly, grabbing her friend's hand. "Come on, he's with my mother, let me show you. Christian, I'm stealing your girlfriend!"

Chris came up to the man as he watched Tiffany and Stephanie chatter away as they went into the backyard. He clapped Christian on the back as he watched Stephanie, "So you two look like you're actually having fun."

"She's great," Christian said, smiling after his girlfriend and then turning to Chris. "You know, for the first time in a long time, I feel like I might actually be getting over Trish."

"Wow, never thought I'd hear that," Chris said. "It's good though, I'm glad."

"So am I."

Christian was glad. It felt nice being with someone different. He wasn't saying that this was going to be the best thing to ever happen to him, or that Tiffany was the love of his life, but he honestly liked being with her, and while that wasn't the best of things, he was learning to move on without Trish. It was unreasonable of her to think that he would just sit around waiting for her to make up her mind. He hoped that Carlito wasn't doing that either. Being with Tiffany made him happy right now and she was a genuinely nice, smart, pretty woman. He still marveled at the fact that he was dating a doctor, but Tiffany marveled equally over the fact that he was a champion.

"You do know that Trish is going to be here, right? We invited her because she's Sawyer's godmother, and despite everything, she's still a friend."

"No, I figured she'd be here, so I'm prepared, and I'm not going to worry about it. I'm here with Tiffany, and that's that," Christian said, though Chris couldn't tell if he believed it or not. Chris looked over Christian's shoulder and saw Kurt walking into the house and he cleared his throat a little and Christian followed his gaze.

"What's he doing here?" Christian asked.

"Yeah, Steph invited him, if you'll pardon me, I think I need to catch up with an old friend."

Chris made his way over to Kurt and stood next to him a moment, "Kurt, nice seeing that you could make it."

"Oh, hey Chris," Kurt said genially, noting that Chris's voice was clipped. It seemed that while Stephanie was readily accepting him back into her life, Chris was more reluctant to do so. He was right to be on the suspicious side. "Thanks for inviting me."

"Yeah, have fun," Chris said, keeping it short. He just didn't have anything to say to Kurt anymore. He had more in common with Hunter than he did with Kurt, and the thought sickened him just the tiniest bit. He wondered if Hunter was here, maybe he could keep an eye on Kurt for him.

He wanted his son, that's all he knew right now. That kid could put him in a better mood instantly. He just needed to be around him. He walked into the backyard and saw Stephanie sitting next to the pool with Sawyer in her lap as she spoke with Tiffany and her mother. He walked over and placed his hand on Sawyer's head, causing him to look up and see his father. He smiled at him, and Chris took him from Stephanie, who let him go willingly.

"Where are you taking my baby?" Stephanie asked.

"We're just going to chill," Chris told her. "I kind of need him."

"Everything okay?" she asked, looking at him with a slight concern.

"Yeah, I'm cool," he said giving her a reassuring smile as Sawyer leaned his head against his neck, staring out at everyone there, still not understanding why everyone was here. He certainly didn't think that it was for him, so he was left thinking that they were just all there for some other reason.

Christian walked over to where Tiffany was and knelt down next to her, near her ear, "Hey Tiff, you want something to drink?"

"What do you guys have?" Tiffany asked Stephanie.

"Everything, beer, margaritas, whatever," Stephanie said.

"Get me a margarita," Tiffany said, kissing Christian's cheek.

"So that's going well?" Stephanie said knowingly.

"He's so sweet," Tiffany gushed, blushing a little bit. "And funny, and why is he still single? What's wrong with him?" she joked.

Stephanie laughed, "He is a good guy, I know from the experience of being his friend."

"He told me about Trish," Tiffany said, "just so you know and you don't have tiptoe around it. He told me their whole convoluted history, and I understand, I mean, you know about what happened with Bryce."

"Yeah, I understand, I mean, we all have our histories," Tiffany said. "I'm not going to be bothered by it, I've never even met the woman."

"Oh uh…well…she's going to be here."

"Oh…well, that's different," she laughed nervously as a margarita appeared in front of her face. She looked up at Christian and thanked him before taking a large gulp from her drink. Christian sat down next to her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders as he took a swig of his beer.

"So what's up, Steph?" Christian asked.

"Nothing," Stephanie said, "Just making sure that Sawyer has a good birthday, he is a year old and everything."

"Yeah, I have to tell him to have a happy birthday," Christian said, looking around, "Where is he?"

Chris took Sawyer inside and into the kitchen. He set Sawyer down on the counter, standing him up as Chris held him around the waist and looked out the window to the party. Sawyer pointed outside and Chris smiled and kissed his cheek, "Yeah, I'm sure you want to go back outside again but I have to put more sunscreen on you so you don't burn."

"I thought I heard voices."

Chris looked over his shoulder and saw Trish standing there awkwardly. "Hey, the party's outside."

"Yeah, I know, but I'm trying to ease my way out there, I know that I'm not exactly the most welcome party guest," Trish said nervously. "I thought that maybe I'd just hang around inside for a while before I went outside."

"We're glad you came, you're Sawyer's godmother, and we want you here," he said to her.

She smiled a little bit, "Thanks, what are you guys doing in here anyways, shouldn't you be out there since he's the birthday boy?"

"He needs more sunscreen," Chris said. "I don't want him to burn."

"Makes sense," Trish said. She looked at Sawyer for a moment, who was looking at Chris, then pointed outside to where Stephanie was.

"Mama," Sawyer whined, leaning towards the window.

"Yeah, I know that Mama is out there, but we have to make sure you don't get burned because I'm not going to be the one staying up with you at night while you cry your eyes out over a sunburn, kid," Chris said, taking the squirming Sawyer and grabbing the sunscreen sitting on the counter.

"He's speaking," Trish said as she followed Chris to the table where he sat Sawyer and took one of his arms and started slathering sunscreen on it.

"Yeah, he spoke last week when we came home, completely out of the blue, of course, Steph's his first word, but I'm not too jealous."

She laughed as she watched them together. "You know, I think maybe I'm going to head outside."

"Okay," Chris said, almost ignoring her because Sawyer was trying to get off the table by just jumping off of it.

Trish headed outside, well, no, that wasn't right. She headed towards the outside, but paused in the doorway. She watched everyone mingling and interacting with each other, and she just felt so out of place, and she had never felt that around her friends before, if they were still her friends. She had been so nervous to come tonight, but had sucked it up because she loved Sawyer and wanted to be with him on his first ever birthday. Still though, she felt like she didn't belong.

"Trish?"

She looked off to her left and saw Stephanie, with what looked like a kind smile. "Hey, Steph."

"Hey, I'm glad you could make it," Stephanie said, reaching forward to hug her, "I know that we've been…in a fight or something, but Sawyer loves you and I'm glad that you came." Stephanie was not going to let this day be ruined by her petty fight with Trish. It was Sawyer's day, and she was going to make sure it ran well.

"Me too," she said, hugging her friend back.

It was right then that she saw it. She didn't mean to, and she wasn't seeking it out, but there it was. Christian was laying on a lounge chair, the kind that you can lay out on, and he had a beer in his hand. That wasn't the shocking part though. The part that was shocking her, the part that made her stomach lurch was the fact that he wasn't alone. There was a woman lying on the chair with him as they spoke with Marissa. Christian was smiling and laughing and she could see that his free hand was intertwined with this woman's. Then he leaned over to kiss her cheek, and she almost felt like she wanted to throw up, but she resisted because Stephanie was pulling away.

"Why don't you get something to drink or eat, and just have fun, it's not really like, a kid's birthday party since Sawyer is too little to really do anything, it's more just a barbeque type thing."

"Oh yeah, I haven't eaten, so I'll go…eat," she said, trying to maintain her composure. She made a beeline for the bar area, grabbing the nearest alcoholic beverage. It happened to be a beer, and she took a long sip of it, practically chugging half the bottle. The cool liquid evened her out a little bit, but it didn't wash away the bitter taste in her mouth. She had to turn away because watching them was starting to make her feel honestly sick.

She walked around, sitting as far away from them as possible, and she tried to remain inconspicuous. She didn't want Christian to come over here with what was obviously his new…girlfriend. Just the thought of that word made her sick…yet, why should it? She had basically dumped him, and he had basically been using her, right? Isn't that how it went? It was blurry to her now, and not because of the alcohol.

"Hey, I have to use the bathroom, so if you'll excuse me," Christian said, getting off the chair, but not before giving Tiffany a parting kiss.

"Don't waste time, I don't want to be by myself," Tiffany teased and he flipped her off playfully as he entered the house.

Trish saw this as her chance and she left her drink on the table and walked inside the house. She just had to talk to Christian, there was no other way that she could get through this party if she didn't talk to him. She didn't know what she was going to say, but she knew that she had to talk to him right now.

"There's my baby, where have you been?" Stephanie asked as Chris walked outside with Sawyer by his side.

"Well, after we put on his sunscreen, he decided that he'd have a dirty diaper too so we went to get changed, but we're clean and we're ready to party, right, kid?" Sawyer smiled up and lifted his hand to Stephanie.

"Mama," he said, looking up at her with his clear blue eyes.

"Oh come here birthday boy," she said, lifting him up and taking him over to his presents table as Chris trailed after them. "Look at all these presents for you, you are one lucky, little boy, I barely got anything from anyone for _my_ birthday."

"Well, you're not as loveable, so says some people," Chris said as he leaned his chin on her shoulder.

"Neither are you," she said back.

"Ouch, the claws are out," Chris said with a chuckle. "But I'll concede, we're both not very loveable, but we're also not that cute either."

"Speak for yourself jackass," Stephanie said, gesturing towards herself with her free hand. "This is too hot for words, and every guy wants a piece of this."

"You mean every guy has _had_ a piece of this, right?"

"Oh, shut up, Sawyer, kick your father's ass for me, you're a year old now, you should be able to do that for me." Sawyer just looked up at her confusedly. "Be a man, baby boy, you're old enough now."

"Yeah, right," Chris said.

"Mama," Sawyer said happily.

"Yes, I'm your Mama, come on, let's go mingle with the guests and show them who the cutest one year old in the world is."

Trish was leaning against the wall in the hallway. When Christian walked out, he almost jumped at seeing her there, "Geez, Trish, do you want me to fall into the toilet."

"Who is she?" Trish asked.

"Excuse me?"

"The girl that you're here with, who is she?" Trish asked, arms folded over her chest.

"I don't think that's any of your business," Christian said as he went to walk by. He didn't get far though because Trish was trailing after him and cut him off in the living room. "Leave me alone, Trish, I don't want to talk to you."

"I'm just asking a question, is she a wrestler? Does she work over there?"

"No, she doesn't, she's a doctor," Christian answered dully. "She doesn't work for any company or with wrestlers or anything, I met her through Stephanie, now will you quit with the third degree."

"Oh, I can't ask?"

"No! Okay, no, you dumped me! What the hell more do you want from me, Trish?"

"I didn't dump you, you used me!"

"I told you I didn't use you!" Christian exclaimed, exasperated by her bring up that point constantly. "I told you what happened, Trish, and you _chose_ not to believe me, so what was I supposed to do? Pine for you? Is that what I was supposed to do?"

She huffed a little bit, "I told you I needed time to think things through."

"So think," he told her. "What do you want me to think, or say? I don't owe you anything, Trish."

"You've hurt me so many times, you couldn't even give me the time to think about this! You couldn't even give me the time to think about what I wanted, you just pushed and pushed, like you just knew that we were supposed to be together! I just wanted time!"

"I don't care anymore!" he said.

Stephanie looked to Chris outside, everyone had paused and everyone could hear Trish and Christian fighting. She looked to Tiffany, who looked very uncomfortable, sitting there, staring into her drink. Stephanie looked to Chris, who was looking more and more pissed off by the second and she knew exactly what he was thinking because she was thinking the exact same thing. Sawyer was with Vince at the moment, so she stood up and Chris followed suit, going inside the house to see the two fighting.

"Okay, what the hell is going on?" Stephanie asked as Christian and Trish turned to her.

"You guys are embarrassing yourselves," Chris said. "Act like adults."

"This is Sawyer's day, not your day, okay. It's his day and I'm not going to have your in his birthday," Stephanie hissed. "You two sicken me, you know that, both of you. You can't act civil for a few hours. It is my son's first birthday, and he has to watch it be turned into the Trish and Christian show! I'm not going to allow you two to act like this at my son's birthday," Stephanie said angrily. Chris grabbed her hand to try and calm her down, but she was having none of it. "Seriously, get over yourselves. You're both adults, act like it."

"You guys, this isn't cool," Chris added.

"Sorry," Christian muttered. "I was just trying to go to the bathroom and I was interrupted."

"I'm sorry too, I don't want to spoil Sawyer's day."

"If you have to talk, then go into a room or something, but don't make everyone uncomfortable," Chris told him. "It's not fair for the rest of us."

"I can do that," Trish replied, embarrassed by her behavior. "I really didn't want to hurt Sawyer."

"Fine, apology accepted on both counts," Stephanie said, leading Chris back outside.

"Can we talk?" Christian asked, gesturing towards Stephanie's office. Trish nodded and they silently walked down there, Christian closing the door behind him. "Trish, it's like this. I'm tired of waiting for you to decide if I'm good enough for you. Stephanie introduced me to Tiffany, and I like her, and I'm dating her now, and she's probably completely embarrassed."

"But Christian…I just needed to figure out my life, where I wanted it to go."

"And I wish you luck," he told her. "But I'm not going to put my life on hold for you, not anymore, I can't do it, Trish, I just can't do it, and it's not fair of you to make me sit around and wait. Carlito isn't doing it, and I'm not going to do it either. I like Tiffany, I do."

"More than me?" she asked.

"Don't make me answer that," he warned her. "That's not fair."

She took a few steps towards him. "We were so good, Christian, do you remember? Do you remember how good we were?"

He closed his eyes, "I'll never forget."

"I miss you," she told him softly.

His back was pressed towards the door and he had nowhere to go. Trish bit her lip and looked at him like she used to. He used to never be able to resist that look, and it was getting a little hard right now. She looked so upset, so dejected that his breath started quicken and he swallowed audibly. She placed her hands on his chest, then snuck one up to his neck, pulling him down. She lightly kissed him before he pulled away and he shook his head vigorously.

"No, Trish, no…"

He was gone a moment later amid the distant sounds of "Happy Birthday."

* * *

"Come on Sawyer, you're dragging."

Chris stopped once again to let his son catch up to him. He was a few paces ahead of him, but still clinging to his hand since Sawyer still refused to walk without assistance. Chris was honestly starting to believe what Stephanie had said about Sawyer actually being able to walk on his own without any help. When he was holding onto someone's hand, he walked just fine, great actually, but when he was by himself, he hated it, and refused to do it. Stubbornness, had to be from his mother's side, Chris thought…stubbornly.

Right now, Sawyer was dragging his bag behind him. It wasn't his usual diaper bag, which Stephanie had taken on ahead while he walked with Sawyer. No, it was a bag of all the new toys that he had gotten for his birthday last week. He refused to go without some of them since he had been so excited about ripping open the paper. Once he got over how cool the paper was and saw the actual toys, he was even more amazed, and refused to part with them now. At least it had kept him occupied on the plane. For that, Stephanie and Chris were thankful; there was nothing worse than getting dirty looks from other passengers. Besides, they were staying in Connecticut and Sawyer going without his toys for that long wouldn't be pretty. Still, Sawyer refused to relinquish the bag holding his toys and even though Chris had tried to take it from him, Sawyer's whining and crying and calling out for his mother had made Chris hand it back to him as he held it in his right hand, dragging it behind him, which severely impeded their forward progress.

"Sawyer, I don't have all day," Chris said impatiently. "I have meetings I need to get to because of your mommy, so if you could hurry it up a little bit."

This only made Sawyer seem to walk slower and Chris groaned as he watched him. Finally, totally exasperated, Chris scooped Sawyer _and_ his bag up into his arms. Sawyer folded his arms and frowned at his father, obviously annoyed that he had just picked him up when he was having a grand time on the ground.

"Don't give me that look, you know while we're here that Mommy and I have to work, so don't act like you're new around here, you've been around for a whole year and you _know_ that Mommy and I are busy on Mondays." Sawyer didn't cease his frowning and he sighed, kissing his son's cheek, "Don't be like your mother, okay? Please, I can only deal with one of her, I don't need you to follow in her footsteps and hold a grudge until I beg for forgiveness."

Sawyer kept frowning at him, but thankfully Chris was used to it. He arrived at Stephanie's office and pushed open the door with his shoulder. "Okay, he's all yours because he's mad at me."

"What did you do?" Stephanie asked as she stood and took Sawyer from his arms, "What did Daddy do, baby?"

"Mama," Sawyer said, cuddling up to her. Stephanie tilted her head to look at Chris accusingly.

"Oh come on, he's the one who was taking forever in the hallway because he had to drag around his toys, he probably wants me to injure myself again so he can laugh at me," Chris said, giving Sawyer a look. "I wouldn't put it past him."

"Yeah, neither would I, Daddy's mean, isn't he?" Stephanie said as Sawyer nodded and she nodded right along with him, "Yeah, we don't need Daddy, do we, no?"

"Good, because I've got a meeting with Daniel."

Stephanie's face lit up and she looked at him, "And you're going to be nice?"

"I'm going to be nice," he said in a monotone voice. "I'm not going to embarrass you or anything, I promise."

"Good," she said. "I'm glad that you're willing to help, that's really sweet of you. It's a big help, Chris, because you really know the ins and outs of the ring, the moves and everything, you're good at that kind of technical stuff."

"Thanks," he said. "You're just lucky that you married someone that knows what he's doing and not some doctor or lawyer or something."

"You mean who my father wanted me to marry, someone upstanding and not someone like…you?"

"Yes, that's exactly it," he said, giving her a peck on the lips. "I'll see you later."

"Without fail, you always find us, isn't that right, baby?" she asked Sawyer, who was still mad at Chris. Chris just shook his head and kissed Sawyer goodbye anyways.

He didn't want to meet with Daniel, that was the absolute last thing that he wanted to do tonight. He would rather go over specs for the Diva Search with Vince than talk with Daniel, which just showed how much distaste he had for the younger man. He didn't trust him. He especially didn't trust him around Stephanie. Ever since his talk with Hunter, he had become keenly aware of other men in the company. He knew that some of them were probably waiting out his relationship with Stephanie, sitting there, thinking that they could be husband #3, and he'd be damned if that happened.

Daniel was already waiting in his office, speaking briefly with Britt, who had been in there to give Chris his messages. He smiled gratefully as he scanned them, and they were all from Vince, which probably meant he _did_ have to think about that stupid Diva Search that he hated with a passion. Ah well, still better than talking to this stupid guy sitting in front of him. Chris detected a bit of nervousness from the man in front of him and he was satisfied with that. He wanted to instill a little bit of fear into the man. Let him know in no uncertain terms that he was Stephanie's husband.

"How are you today?" Chris said, and remembered himself, trying to sound genial and not annoyed.

"I'm good, thanks for meeting with me."

"Well, Stephanie asked me to, and she's hard to say no to," he told her. "She's just great like that, don't you think?"

"She's really nice," Daniel affirmed. "She's been really nice to me and making sure that I don't fall in the cracks."

"Yeah, she's just wonderful like that, I don't know how I managed to snag her to be honest with you," Chris said with a false chuckle. "She just kind of wormed her way into my life."

"She's been really great every time I've interacted with her, you're a really lucky guy."

"Oh, you think so?" Chris inquired.

"Yeah, she's a good person, I mean, you know, she's very business-like, but not too business-like, she's nice too, and professional," he stuttered.

"Yeah, she is at that. We've been together for almost five years, I can't imagine life without her. She's just perfect."

Daniel laughed nervously, "Yes, she's really…nice."

Chris gave him a look and then turned to the monitor next to him, "Well, let's get cracking on those tapes, I wouldn't want Stephanie to be mad at me, she's got quite the temper on her."

"Yeah, okay," Daniel said, eyeing Chris a little wearily. He wasn't sure what it was about the man, but he was just so intimidating. He really did have a larger than life presence and it almost felt like he was going to pound him into the ground right then, but Daniel tried to keep his cool since Chris was actually being nice to him, which probably should've worried him more.

Stephanie was completely unaware of her husband's intimidation of the guy she was trying to help. But that was better since Chris didn't want her to know about it. Instead, while Sawyer occupied himself with his new toys, grabbing one and then using the couch to walk to one end and drop it down, then walk back to the other end and bring all his toys from one end to the other, she was looking over the show for the evening and she sighed when she saw that her father was going to cut a promo and she could only imagine what that was about.

She didn't have to wait long as her dad burst into her office unannounced, startling Sawyer into dropping one of his toys and he tentatively let go of the couch to pick it up to continue transporting it to the other side. Vince smiled at his grandson before walking over to his daughter's desk, patting his belt as he stood there.

"Yes, Dad."

"I just wanted to make sure that Bobby Lashley was here, could you make sure that he is," Vince said. Stephanie nodded mutely and grabbed her walkie-talkie.

She buzzed one of the backstage workers and asked if Bobby was already here, the person answered in the affirmative and she nodded to her father, "He's here, Dad, I'm guessing you're going to call him out and humiliate him again."

"What use would he serve otherwise?" Vince chuckled. "I figured it would be okay to rub his nose in this a little bit more."

"Dad, don't get carried away, you have a huge target on your back as it is."

"I know, I know, I'm just having fun, won't you let your father have that?" Vince asked, and he sounded kind of pathetic. Stephanie didn't make mention of this thought because Vince would throw a hissy fit if he knew that his own daughter found him pathetic.

"I guess, I'm just worried that people are going to hate you even more, and then you're going to turn into an asshole again and Dad, I hate when you turn into that man," she told him, "It makes me not want to speak with you, and Sawyer has already gotten accustomed to you in his life."

"Well the boy has nothing to worry about," Vince said, glancing back at Sawyer who was busy organizing his toys, "How does he like his presents?"

"He loves them," Stephanie told him, "but it's not really about Sawyer? I just don't want you to humiliate the family. Chris is already ashamed that he's related to you and I'm on my way there."

"Does Chris realize that I sign his paycheck?" Vince asked.

"You know Chris doesn't need this job, he's only here because he loves the business and he loves me. He has tons of other projects going right now but he loves me enough to stay here, you know his book is coming out later this year."

"Are you in it?" he asked.

"No, I'm pretty sure it just covers his time before here," Stephanie said. "He won't let me read it and he won't tell me what it's about specifically because he wants me to read it when it comes out. Either that or there's some really bad stuff in it that he doesn't want me to read and when it rolls around he'll have me so preoccupied with something else I won't be able to read it."

"Well, if you're not in it, what's the point?" Vince said, "I don't have time for reading."

"I wasn't asking you to read it," she told him. "I was just saying that he doesn't come here because he needs to, he comes here because he _wants_ to, big difference. And I'd like to keep him coming here, and not go off on the road or stay at home because I kind of want my son to have a father around."

"He shouldn't be ashamed of me, I'm family."

"Precisely. Chris is part of this family too, Dad, and he has a lot of friends back here that he would like to stay friends with, and sometimes the way you act makes him feel like he's being alienated because he's married to me."

"Well, I'm not giving up my belt, and I'm not going to back down."

"We didn't expect you too, it's just something we have to deal with, but please, keep it in mind. You have three grandkids now, and they will be of school age before you know it, especially Dec, he's already in preschool, we don't need our children mocked because they're grandfather is a jerk and everything."

"Okay, I get it, I get it," Vince said, "you didn't have to bring up my grandsons, you know that they're the weakness."

"That's precisely why I brought it up," Stephanie said, "Sawyer, show grandpa that you don't want him to embarrass you."

"Mama," he said with a smile.

"See, he's siding with me, Dad."

"I'm not promising I'll tone it down," Vince said, "but I'll keep your words in mind."

"Thank you," Stephanie said, "See how easy it is to have a normal conversation, Dad, it's really good, isn't it?"

"Just make sure that Bobby is ready."

"I'm on it," Stephanie said as her father walked out, but not before patting Sawyer on the head. She knew that her father was not going to stop being the jackass. Every word she ever said to him went in one ear and out there other. She knew a losing battle when she saw one, but she had to try at least. She wasn't going to have her husband embarrassed about her family.

Another knock came at the door and she called out that it was open. She was surprised to see Christian and Tiffany there and she stood up, "What are you guys doing here?"

"It's like a four hour trip and we decided road trip!" Tiffany exclaimed. "What better way to gauge a relationship than spending four hours stuck in a car together?"

"Twelve hours on a plane?" Stephanie joked.

"Oh God, hell no," Tiffany said. "I don't think we'd last, but four hours, that was nothing. We just thought it'd be fun to come to a show. I've never been to one, but Christian said that next time I have a free Monday that he'll take me to a show, I'm very excited."

"She works a lot," Christian said. "Helping people, curing people, all that good stuff."

"You compliment me too much," she said, hanging off his arm. "But I'm excited to be here, it's already buzzing back here, I can now see why you're drawn to it, Steph, it has all the buzz that you love."

"Yeah, you got me, I was going to say that you guys should grab a seat in the arena, but I don't think that Christian will go unrecognized."

"True, he's a champ," Tiffany said proudly. "Where's Chris?"

"We have separate offices," she explained, "He's in a meeting."

"I'll never get used to hearing that," Christian said. "Hey Tiff, you should try to find my brother and introduce yourself to him while I talk to Stephanie, I just want to speak with her for a minute."

"Oh, girl talk, I got it," she winked, kissing him. "I don't remember what your brother looks like though, should I just wander around and ask every blond guy if they're Edge?"

"Yeah, that'll work, see how far you get, maybe you'll get it right on the first try."

"I'll just look for someone who kind of looks like you, but not as good-looking."

"See, this is why I keep you," he said, kissing her again before she left. He made sure that she was completely out of the room before turning to Stephanie, who had a sly, little smile on her face. "What?"

"You two seem cozy."

"She's great," he told her plainly. She looked at him pointedly, "I'm not going to say anything Stephanie, so stop fishing for it."

"I was right though, you have to admit that, I was right. I knew that you would hit it off with her, I knew that you'd like her, so I was completely right and you were wrong."

"Okay, okay, yeah, you were right, don't rub it in, okay, that's not cool."

"So why did you need a moment?"

"I just wanted to apologize again for what happened at Sawyer's birthday party. I really didn't want to ruin his day, I would never do that to him, I love Sawyer, he's a great listener and a great friend," he said, looking over at the little boy, who was sitting on his play blanket. "I just wanted you to know that again."

"I know, I forgive you, so does he," Stephanie said. "And I have a feeling there's more…"

"Trish tried to kiss me," he said with a sigh. "I pushed her away because I have Tiff, but she kissed me and I don't know what to do about that situation."

"Oh," Stephanie said, not believing that Trish would do that, "I'm honestly shocked. I didn't figure her for doing that, I thought that she was…well, you know, mad at you or something…"

"So did I, but she was talking about time, asking if I like Tiff more than her, and it was all so confusing and then her lips were on mine, and I pushed her away, I mean, I don't want her to get the wrong idea, and I don't want to cheat on Tiff, but…it was tempting…"

"I'm sure it was."

"I don't know what to do."

"I think you already know, I think you already did what you had to do," Stephanie said. "I mean, you pushed her away, that has to count for something. You obviously didn't want her to kiss you."

"That's the thing, I think that I did want her to kiss me," Christian said. "I don't know anymore. She just continues to confuse me, and now, when I'm legitimately trying to move on, she's throwing herself at me like nothing happened between us to tear us apart."

"She's probably jealous," Stephanie pointed out.

"You think?"

"Well, she sees you with another woman, she goes a little ballistic, yelling and trying to kiss you, I'd say that's jealousy."

"So kind of like what Chris has over that Daniel guy."

"What?" Stephanie asked incredulously, "what makes you say that?"

"Oh, see, now I really shouldn't have said anything, should I?"

"Um, explain yourself."

"I was just talking with Hunter and Chris at the party, and Hunter was ribbing Chris for being jealous of all the attention you're paying this Daniel kid, like he's some sort of prodigy and how you don't see that you're flirting with him and how you probably have a crush, I thought it was just a joke."

"I'm going to kill Hunter," Stephanie said, slapping her forehead. "I swear to God, he's such a jerk sometimes."

"I thought it was a joke."

"No, don't worry about it," she said, "I just have to straighten something out is all. I can't believe that he'd be jealous, seriously, that boggles my mind."

"Trish being jealous boggles mine," Christian said. "Do you think that I should call her?'

"No, I think you should leave well enough alone. If you're happy, you're happy, don't let her ruin it for you. Don't fall into the rut if you don't want to, Christian, you don't deserve that."

"Thanks," he said, hugging her. "Now I better find Tiff before she actually does go up to every blond guy and ask if they're Edge."

"Christian, if you want to be with Trish, seriously want to be with her, then be with her, it's as simple as that."

"Oh Steph, you know it's never as simple as that…"


	135. Run, Shane, Run, May 14, 2007

A/N: For some reason, whenever I tried to get onto my account it said that the site was temporarily unavailbable, so I couldn't update until today. Anyways, hope that you like the chapter anyways, leave a review since I'm a review whore, and if you don't...oh well, thanks for reading anyways. Enjoy. :)

* * *

Chris burst into Stephanie's office and his eyes widened as he saw her on the computer. He rushed over saying, "What are you doing? What are you looking at?"

Stephanie, startled, looked up at him like he had grown a second head, "Who said you could just barge into my office?"

"I'm your husband," he returned.

"Husband or not, you really should just barge into someone's office without knocking, I don't barge into your office like you just did right here."

"I'm not going to apologize," he told her, "What are you looking at?"

"What's it to you?" she wondered. "Do you think that I'm doing something behind your back or something, because I'm not, just to let you know."

"Then why won't you tell me what you're doing?"

"I won't tell you because you're acting weird, and I'm afraid if I say the wrong thing you're going to pounce on me like you're a lion and I'm a mouse or something, so I'd rather divert all my attention into getting you to leave than you interrogating me, if that's okay with you."

"I'm just asking," he said in his defense, folding his arms over his chest and looking at her suspiciously. She folded her own arms and looked at him suspiciously. They stared at each other for a few good moments before Chris frowned. "I was just asking. Are you on the net?"

"No," she finally answered, and she looked at her screen, not seeing his sigh of relief. "I'm actually taking care of our accounts, you know, the money we use to live, pay off our mortgages, gas, electric, you're lucky that I'm good at accounting or we'd have no running water. Satisfied with that answer, sweetie?"

"Sorry, I was just…uh, wondering if you were online because I wanted to check a hockey score," he lied, but he was so smooth about it, she didn't even notice. Either that or she had gone back to balancing their accounts.

"Well, I'm not so why don't you go bother someone else and let me take care of this before the show starts and I lose track of all the numbers in my head. I mean, you've got things to do too, right? Don't you have a meeting with my father about the Diva Search?" He didn't miss the smirk on her face at that. He hated to see her so smug because she was getting out of it, but he was also happy that they were at a point in their relationship that she felt completely comfortable letting him be around other women.

"I don't know why your dad keeps doing this, and why he keeps roping me in."

"Because that's what you do, you scout talent, they're potential talent, finish the equation, Chris, that's all you."

"And then your dad with his, 'well, let's make the divas wear more clothes' decree, only to renege on that deal a week later, talk about flip-flopping."

"Are you new here?" she scoffed. "You knew that wasn't going to last. The divas around here should just walk around in their underwear."

"There's only one female in the company I recall never showed off the goods, too bad too, since the goods are so nice to look at," he said, eyeing her lecherously.

"What are you saying? That I should've participated in bra and panties matches?" she asked. "Because if that's what you're implying, then get your head out of the gutter. I don't have time for this crap with you."

"Why are you in a bad mood?" Chris asked. "Is it something I did, because if it is, then we have a problem because I am not in the mood to deal with a mad Stephanie, a boastful Vince, and anything relating to the Diva Search."

"I'm pregnant," she dead-panned, and Chris's heart thumped wildly in his chest as his mouth went dry.

"What?" he mouthed.

"I'm kidding, just trying to show you that things could be much worse than dealing with me, my father, and the Diva Search," she said sarcastically. "I'm not in a bad mood, I'm just in a working mood, and if that means that it sounds like I'm in a bad mood, well then, yeah, that's a bad mood."

"You make no sense," he told her, "And don't do that to me again! I thought I was going to have a heart attack…speaking of, where the hell _is_ our kid?"

"You don't have him?"

"Wait, was I supposed to have him?" Chris asked.

"You said you had him!" Stephanie said.

"Oh my God, did we leave him in the car!" Chris said, about to race out to the car.

"No, he's with my father," Stephanie said, and Chris glared at her. She gave a look that she knew she was in big trouble as Chris circumvented the desk to come get her. She quickly got up and raced around the desk, facing him. He went to go right so she shifted to her right, and then he went back, and they had a little showdown before she made a break for the door. She was just in the doorway when two strong arms grabbed her from behind and she tried unsuccessfully to break free. "Let me go."

"This is not 'Torture Chris' day, baby," he said. "You should be punished for being so mean to me."

"I'm sorry," she told him regretfully, leaning back into his body, creating a heat between the two of them. Chris kissed her neck, brushing her hair away. "Don't punish me."

"Only because you're pretty," he told her, running his fingers up and down her side. "It's okay though, I'll just go look at all those tasty pictures of diva hopefuls. I'm sure I can find wife #2 in there."

"Don't joke," she said, reaching her left hand up to place it on the back of his head, making him lean down to kiss her cheek. "It's not nice to make me think that you want to leave me for a younger woman. It's like, the minute I turned 30, you were turned off to me."

"Hell no," he whispered. "I think I proved that a couple nights ago."

"Was that you? I mixed you up with my 1 o'clock appointment," she teased.

"No, that was me, not your other lover," he told her, nibbling on her earlobe a little bit. "Didn't you say you had work to do?"

"Yes, I did, but you're kind of holding me all tight, so I'm not exactly as mobile as I would've hoped at the moment," she said to him.

Shane was just walking by Stephanie's office and happened to glance at it since it was his sister's office. He wasn't expecting Chris and Stephanie standing in the middle of the room looking like they were two seconds away from stripping each other down.

"Gross, you two," Shane said as he stopped. "Why don't you try something like closing the door?"

"Because we want everyone to see how much I love this woman," Chris said, kissing Stephanie's neck again as she gently elbowed him in the stomach.

"You sicken me," he said, grabbing the door handle and closing the door. He groaned and made a disgusted face as he continued down the hallway. He wanted to go see his father and ask him about this match with Coach later on. Shane wasn't sure that he wanted Coach representing his family because they surely could find someone better. He walked into his father's office only to find him sitting with Sawyer sitting across from him on top of the desk.

"Say 'you're fired,' Sawyer," Vince instructed the little boy, who instead, thought the do-rag on his grandfather's head was a plaything and tried to make a grab for it. Vince put his hand on top of his head and scolded the young boy, "No, Sawyer, you don't take that from Grandpa."

"Yeah, you wouldn't want to humiliate Grandpa," Shane said sarcastically. "Because Grandpa's never been humiliated."

"What is this in regards to, Shane, I'm trying to talk to my grandson."

"Brainwash him is more like it," Shane said. "I'm just wondering if Coach vs. Lashley tonight is a good idea, I mean, really, Dad, don't you think…"

"Shane, I don't ask for you opinions on what I choose to do," Vince interrupted. "I like this idea, and besides, we'll all be in his corner, you just have to support me on the decision."

"But--"

"No buts, Shane, you're either with me, or you're against me, there's just no other two ways about it," Vince said. "Lashley needs to know his place. Besides, he can't touch us unless we provoke him."

"Which we will do, right?"

"Of course, after the match, when it's safer," Vince said. "Follow my lead, that's all I ever ask you to do, Shane, just follow my lead."

Shane nodded mutely before letting Vince go back to playing with Sawyer. Sometimes Shane hated the turns that his life made. Sometimes he couldn't figure out if he was his own man or just an extension of his father. He didn't like being his lackey sometimes, someone who was always going to do what he said, but like Stephanie, Shane was constantly looking for his father's approval. He almost wished that his father had let him be the champion, just this once let him take the reins with something.

It wasn't meant to be though, as he thought about what he was going to have to do later. He was sure that it was some elaborate plan that involved him doing something stupid. He was Vince's go to guy, that's what go to guys did. Sometimes he envied his sister's defiance. He had had that defiance once, way back when he had bought WCW right out from under his father. He smiled thinking back to that time period. He remembered recruiting Stephanie over to his side and how surprisingly easy it had been.

"_I'm offering you ECW," he told her._

_She looked at him over her menu, raising a delicate eyebrow. "What do you mean you're _offering_ me, ECW? I thought that it was pretty much defunct."_

"_Well, we're going to bring it into the fold, I've got Heyman on board, we just need the start-up for it. All of my money is tied up with WCW right now, and you've got plenty, and what are you doing right now?"_

"_I'm trying to be there for my husband through his rehab," she answered. "What do you think I'm doing?"_

"_But Hunter is always rehabbing, he hasn't really spent that much time with you, has he?"_

"_Well…no, but that's because he wants to get back on the road as soon as possible. He's just been working so hard," she explained. "It's not his fault that he's so driven, it's one of the things that I love about him."_

"_Yeah, okay, but still, if he's constantly rehabbing then you're free to do what you want," he told her. "So buy ECW and join my side. We'll take over, Steph, don't you want all that power, isn't that why you stayed married to Hunter in the first place?"_

"_I fell in love with him."_

"_Yeah, but you wanted the power, admit it," he said to her. "Steph, this is a golden opportunity, think about it, we oust Dad, and then we gain control of the WWF, and we can hire and fire whoever we want, make it better than even Dad imagined it."_

"_Fire whoever we want?" she wondered, intrigued at the prospect._

"_Yeah, you can finally get Chris Jericho off your back, you could send him packing to the curb, Steph, aren't you always complaining that he's a jackass, and wasn't it him that put Hunter in the Walls of Jericho right after he tore his quad?"_

"_He was," she said bitterly, "But…betraying Daddy like that…"_

"_What has he ever done for us, Steph? He's made us feel like we were never good enough, he's made us try so hard to achieve perfection that we've let our personal lives coast. He never listens to us and then he goes cavorting with everything in a skirt. This is not the kind of man we want running the company, Stephanie."_

"_You're right," she said softly. "So…ECW, huh?"_

"_ECW," he nodded._

"_Okay, I'm in."_

Stephanie had kept that stubborn streak. He had always lived in fear of having his livelihood taken away from him. Ever since his father had humiliated him after Survivor Series, he couldn't really recall a time where he had openly defied Vince like he had with buying WCW, but not Stephanie. Stephanie had done it time and time again, risking being taken away from what she loved. He envied that kind of confidence, especially at moments like these, when he felt like he was nothing more than a lackey to his father, never destined to be the one in the spotlight.

That kind of stuck in his craw, but what could he do about it, realistically? Go against his father once again. That would be like setting yourself up for the kill, and he didn't want to go down that path again. He leaned against the wall, thinking about what his father was going to want him to do later. He had to mentally prepare himself for it. He saw his sister walking by with a bunch of papers in her arms and he reached out to grab her. She turned and smiled at her.

"What's up, Shane?"

"Nothing…Dad wants me to…"

"Let me guess, be your right-hand man," she told him.

"Yeah, that's right," he sighed. "I don't know what to do about it…any suggestions?"

"Nope, because if I were to handle it, it probably wouldn't be pretty," she told him. "I've got a lot to do though, sorry I can't stay and talk, you know Shane, it's not the end of the world to be Dad's right hand man."

He knew she was trying to make him feel better, but it wasn't the truth, what she said. Deciding that he needed a walk, he started down the hallway, head down, hands in pockets, hardly the prototype for someone who was considered the boss around here. But that's how he wanted it at the moment. Maybe he'd call Marissa and see how she and the boys were doing, maybe she could put Declan on the phone since he had a better chance of being up this late. In any case, he just wanted to be around someone he knew loved him.

Chris ran a hand over his face before entering Vince's office. He had been secretly tailing Stephanie to make sure that she didn't get wind of the internet rumors spreading around about him returning to wrestling. He swore that someone has bugged him or was following him around catching his every word. He hadn't even made that much mention about returning, only throwing it out there as an idea, but it seemed that everyone and their mother was commenting about him.

He looked up to see Sawyer and Vince playing peek-a-boo and it was probably the silliest sight that he had ever seen. Sawyer turned to look over his shoulder and saw Chris and his face it up. He turned over and reached his arms out for Chris. He came over and scooped up the little boy and sat him in his lap while he looked at Vince.

"So you wanted to discuss the Diva Search with me?" Chris said, looking down at Sawyer, who was cuddling into his t-shirt.

"Just that we're getting the preliminary things done for that," Vince told him. "As one of our new talent scouts, I'm going to be looking to you to help determine who gets in. As you know, we've contacted different agencies, so I know that you'll do a good job."

"Yeah, okay, we'll discuss this further, I'm sure."

"Of course, nothing is set in stone or anything."

"Vince, can I talk to you about something else, like, well, it's not so much personal, but it does have to do wit Stephanie, so I guess it is a little bit personal."

"Has to do with Stephanie?"

"Yeah, well, you know what we discussed a while ago, about the whole, me coming back thing? Sometime later this year…"

"Oh yes, I remember, why, do you want to come back now? Because we can schedule that, you know, in fact, we can have you come in this Sunday at Judgment Day, you can come with my match, or the title match if you wish."

""No, not this soon, Vince," Chris told him, rolling his eyes a little bit at the impulsiveness of all the McMahons. They were all so quick to jump into an idea and they wouldn't just let things take their course. God forbid if he told Stephanie he was planning to come back. She'd start writing in his comeback right this moment.

"Oh, so what is this about?"

"Well…somehow it's gotten kind of…well, not leaked, but people are starting to suspect that I'm coming back, which…I don't know how anyone could possibly know since you were the only one that I told. So I don't know where this stuff is coming from."

"I didn't tell anyone," Vince said sincerely. "I know that you wanted to keep this between the two of us, and I have."

"Well then I don't know, someone's just guessing or someone's spying on me, it's not cool though because now I'm going to have Steph around and she's going to be reading all of this stuff, and if she gets wind of it…I'm not 100 sure I'm coming back yet, Vince, and I don't want her getting her hopes up."

"I understand."

"Do you?" Chris implored. "You have no idea what this is doing to me. It's like, every time I try to do something nice for Stephanie, every time, it gets derailed somehow. I mean, even my wedding proposal didn't go the way that I planned it. For once, I'd just like it if I could do something nice for my wife without someone interfering."

"Okay, well, we'll deal with this situation on the down low," Vince said, and Chris looked down at Sawyer to give him a look at the way Vince was acting. It was like he suddenly thought that he was in a hip-hop video all the time. That made Chris want to laugh. "We want you back, Chris, you know this, you've known this."

"I know."

"With recent injuries and what not, we may need you now more than ever," Vince said.

"Stop trying to make the hard sell, Vince, I'm part of your family, I'm not going to suddenly disappear off the face of the Earth, I come here every week, we're kind of…well, Sawyer means that I'm not getting out of his family…forever, so you know, don't worry about it."

"Sorry, it's just so much easier to forget that and try and get you back on television. What with Sawyer now over a year old and starting to become more independent, don't you think it feels like time?"

"Not really," Chris laughed, then conceded, "I miss it a little, I may be persuaded to come back sooner, but I'm not sure yet, just give me time."

"Of course," Vince said.

"Thanks," Chris said. "And when I do come back, Vince, I expect everything to go my way and the title to be mine."

"We'll see, Chris."

"I'm going to take this if you don't mind," Chris said, pointing down at Sawyer. "It's just about time for bed."

"Yeah, of course," Vince said, nodding at him. "It'll be good to have you back, Chris, I hope you know that."

"Don't get sweet with me, Vince, it'll creep me out," Chris said, standing up and holding Sawyer to him. The little boy was already starting to doze, reaching out to Chris, and Chris knew that he wanted his pacifier, which was in Stephanie's office.

They walked there together, Chris already whispering comforting words to the little boy. He walked in and saw that Stephanie was back on the computer, and she smiled as she looked up at him. He smiled back at her and went to the diaper bag to get a fresh diaper and a pair of pajamas for Sawyer to get comfortable in. Stephanie got up to grab Sawyer from Chris, and he tossed a pacifier at her, which she gave to the little boy, who took it anxiously, very tired as he was.

"So what did my dad want?" Stephanie asked quietly.

"Diva Search stuff, starting next week, I'm going to be interviewing girls for the damn thing," Chris sighed. "I should ask my boss about this…hey Boss, do you think that I could get out of this?"

"No," she said, shaking her head. "I'm afraid not, there's this thing called favoritism, and it wouldn't be fair of me to show blatant favoritism towards my husband."

"Oh, damn," he said as she took the diaper and pajamas from Chris and went to lay the little boy on the couch while she undressed him and changed him before putting on his pajamas and putting him to sleep. "You know, we should get something, like a truck or a van or something that Sawyer can sleep in."

"We're fine, Chris," Stephanie told him.

Chris went to sit at her desk since she was taking up the entire couch and noticed that she was online. "What were you doing online?"

"I was bored," she said. "I wanted to check out the website, see how it was looking nowadays, I haven't had time to really look at it, so I thought I'd take a moment, and then you walked in and responsibility knocked me over the head."

"Oh yeah, responsibility," he said, casually looking at the other tabs in her browser, hoping that she hadn't gone to any site that was even hinting at his return. Thankfully the only other tabs were for the Bloomingdale's website and a gardening site. "Are you planning to plant a garden?"

"No," she said. "I thought that maybe it might be nice to change the backyard, I was just getting some ideas."

"Who said you could do that?" he asked.

"I did," she said, lifting up Sawyer and grabbing a bottle from the bag. "Could you go heat this up for him?"

"Why don't you go do it?" he asked.

"Because I'm sitting here, with our son, so do you really want me to walk out there when he's probably cranky?"

"Fine, fine, fine, just…" He was going to tell her not to go online, but she would get suspicious and he wasn't in the mood to come up with any lies right about then. "Fine."

"It's so touching that you're willing to do something for your _son_," she said sarcastically.

"I said I'd go." He took the bottle from her and left the office. He went down to catering and was looking around for the microwave when he saw Carlito muttering to himself at one of the corner tables. He mulled it over for a second and decided that Sawyer could wait a few minutes. Stephanie was probably reading him a story and making him repeat her name about a hundred times anyways. He went over and pulled out a seat, turning it around and plopping himself down on it. "How goes it, man?"

"Oh hey, Chris," Carlito said shortly.

"You look…troubled," Chris said lightly.

"Don't worry about it," Carlito said.

"Well, we're kind of…friends, so I thought I could, you know, help in some way. I'm also your boss, so also, you know, kind of want to make sure my talent isn't going to go off the deep end," Chris said, using his authority for the power of good.

"Can you get me a match with Flair this Sunday?" Carlito asked, looking at him critically.

"Wow, that's a pretty tall order," Chris said, looking off for a moment. "I don't really have the authority to sign off on a match. I can definitely bring it up with Stephanie though, she's in charge of that kind of stuff. I don't think that she'd have a problem with it though, she's always looking for ways to pad off a line-up. So you know, it's almost as good as done…any reason why you want the match so badly?"

"I just want to show that good-for-nothing has-been that he's wrong about me. I'm better than everyone here, man…"

"Well, I wouldn't go that far," he muttered to himself. "Yeah, so, that's reason to be all mad."

"No, I'm mad because I didn't realize this sooner. Trish turned me soft, than Torrie turned me softer, ditching that broad was the smartest thing I've done yet."

"She was probably hurt by it though," Chris reasoned.

"Yeah, well, I found out, through her, that she had been planning to steal me away from Trish anyways, so the bitch had what she had coming to her. I'm glad I cut her loose."

"Yeah, that's rough," Chris said. "Although, you don't have to be an ass about it."

"Yes I do, I'm sick and tired of people calling me soft or not with it, or lazy. I'm tired of it, Chris, and if I have to go out there and prove it, I will do that."

"Okay, fair enough, I'll see about the match with Stephanie," Chris said, getting up. "I have to go heat this for the monster."

"Yeah, sure," Carlito said, then before Chris could get away completely, "Hey, um…how's Trish? Just for you know, knowing's sake. I'm not like, going to call her, I just kind of wanted to know how she was."

"Well…I saw her last week at Sawyer's birthday party and she looked okay. I think she's still trying to figure a lot of stuff out in her own life, but I think she looked physically okay."

"Good, I just wanted to make sure that she was doing well," Carlito said, looking down a little, "Um…was she with anyone?"

"No," Chris said immediately, "she wasn't."

"Cool, cool," Carlito said, staring off into space and Chris decided to leave him to think. Carlito missed Trish, he wasn't going to lie. He missed her and the overall presence she had in his life. He was going to marry that woman and that commitment that he had made to her had been real. It hadn't been some impulse that he didn't see through or had come to his senses about. He had loved her, still did, actually, and he had wanted to marry her, but it hadn't been right, it might never be right.

That didn't stop him from thinking about her constantly. He hadn't actually heard from Torrie that she had been trying to sabotage his relationship with Trish. He had come to see it on his own, and figured that's what was going on. He didn't need any more blondes in his life right now. He knew that he was going to move on from Trish, but he also knew that it was going to be slow going. He couldn't push his heart out there right now. Not when it was still entrenched in her.

Chris felt sorry for the guy, actually he felt sorry for everyone involved with the situation, from Christian, to Trish, to Carlito, to all the tertiary characters in their little tale, straight on down to Sawyer, who had almost had his birthday party ruined by Trish and Christian. It just reminded him again how lucky he was to have found Stephanie. He was glad that he was done with all that bullshit about dating and what not. He had found Stephanie, married her and now he was happy.

Still, he had to watch out for the men who wanted his wife, of which, he was sure there were many. It was weird having to be on the defensive now that he was married, but he knew the threat was there. Public enemy #1 was Daniel; Chris was just so sure that the guy had nefarious intentions for his wife. So he would keep a close eye on him for now, just to make sure that his little admiration of Stephanie stayed that way. Old public enemy #1 was Hunter, but luckily that situation had solved itself.

Chris heated up the bottle and returned to Stephanie, "Where have you been?"

"I've been doling out advice," he answered simply, handing her the bottle.

"Well he's been cranky," she said, handing Sawyer his bottle, which he took greedily from Stephanie and drank from eagerly, staring up at his parents while he started to doze off easily, Stephanie turning off the lights, leaving the bathroom one on for light.

"Sorry, I was talking with Carlito," Chris said. "He was angry…which reminds me, he wants a match with Flair this Sunday."

"Okay," she said, and off his look, "We could always use another match, and that should be good, I'll have Britt start with the paperwork regarding that, get it signed off tomorrow, contracts written up. Thankfully we're not too far from Titan, so the paperwork and everything can be processed pretty easily."

"You're efficient," he told her. She looked down at Sawyer and ran her hand over his head soothingly as Chris watched. It was the quiet moments like these that he appreciated the most. "You know, seeing the problems that everyone is having…kind of makes me glad that I found you."

"Good for you," she said as she lifted Sawyer and went to put him in his portable crib. She went to her desk after that and then looked over at Chris, "Do you think anyone has said anything about him?"

"Like…who?"

"Websites," she answered.

"Uh…how would they know about him, I mean, we don't much talk about him publicly, at all."

"I don't know, inside sources who know that the fake baby I have is just that, fake, a story that makes for a good laugh every now and then," she said. "Maybe I should do a search, like, Jericho, baby, and McMahon or something. Or just Jericho, baby, because he's Sawyer Jericho…do you think I should do a search for just Sawyer Jericho?"

Chris started to panic a little, "Um, no, no search, don't do a search for his name, it's not going to turn up anything."

"How would you know? Have you googled Sawyer Jericho?" she asked playfully.

"No," he said. "I have not, I just don't think it's a good idea, what if you find something that _is_ about him, and then it says something bad about him, how he's part of the axis of evil, or he's the spawn of the devil, or how he should try to break free from you right now because you're just going to screw him up? How is that going to make you feel?"

"Well, I'd be angry, and then I'd get someone to hack that site," she said.

"I don't want you seeing something like that, you love Sawyer," Chris said, fearing that if she did google anything with the name Jericho in it, the first thing that would come up would be something pertaining to him and his supposed comeback.

"I know I love Sawyer, you don't have to tell me I love Sawyer," she said. "I just want to see, is that such a big deal?"

"No, it's not, but come on, we've got work to do," he told her.

"Not at the moment," she said. "The show is starting in like, five minutes, I've got enough time to check it out."

Chris was getting desperate now and cursed the McMahon stubbornness. There was no way that he was going to get out of this one unless he went to drastic measures. So he went to drastic measures, getting up and going over to the desk. He knelt on the ground next to Stephanie and slowly swiveled his chair towards her. She looked at him curiously and he leaned up to press a kiss to her neck, rubbing her thigh.

"Chris, what are you doing?"

"You said we've got five minutes until the show," he told her huskily.

"You're going to distract me. I don't have time for this," she said as he fingers went to the keyboard. Chris knew he was using blatant manipulation, but he wanted this for Stephanie. How he had managed to keep her clueless up until now was a feat unto itself and he was going to try his damnedest to keep it that way. He deserved this for her, and she deserved this too.

He gently took her fingers off the keyboard and kissed her knuckles, taking care to kiss each one separately. She looked down at him, partly amused and partly annoyed. He gave her an impish grin and licked his lips just the tiniest bit. He gently put his free hand on the back of her neck, pulling her down and connecting his mouth to hers. She kissed him back briefly, but then pulled away.

"Chris…"

"Come on, baby," he whispered.

"No, I've got work to do, I'm just going to go before you somehow manipulate me into sex in the bathroom or something," she told him. She stood up as he did as well, and she kissed him on the mouth before leaving. Chris gave a sigh of relief as he sunk down into her chair, thankful that for now he had gotten her out of here. He knew that it was going to become harder and harder to keep this from her, but he hoped to do it. Luckily, she wasn't too much into checking out wrestling websites, so unless one of her assistants told her about it, there was probably no way that she would read it herself, but he would rather be safe than sorry.

Shane leaned back against the building, the cool night air refreshing to him. Shane had been questioning himself a lot lately in regards to his place in the company. He felt like his father trusted him, but then he went and gave Stephanie the huge promotion that had everyone clamoring. He wasn't jealous, per se, but…no, he was a little jealous of her, and that stuck in his craw a little bit. It wasn't that he had been angling for the same promotion, but it just seemed like Vince played favorites. It was so like Vince to play favorites.

It wasn't that Stephanie didn't work her ass off, she did, she came here every single week, even when Shane himself didn't feel like coming and stayed home. Stephanie put her life on hold for this job, and she brought her life with her with this job, bringing her barely one-year-old son with her on the road. It was made easier by the fact that her husband was a wrestler, or former wrestler, or something. Marissa worked for the company too, but she was only part-time and worked in the Stamford offices, so she didn't need to travel.

Stephanie absolutely deserved to be promoted after her loyalty to the company, but it still…it bothered Shane, and then it bothered him more that he was jealous of his baby sister. He was the Executive Vice President of Global Media, which was all well and good, but Stephanie seemingly had power over everything that happened before the public, from the talent, to the production, everything, and it felt almost like he was getting passed over; why he was surprised by this development, he had yet to figure out.

Shane always suspected that Vince preferred Stephanie. Oh sure, he would say that Shane was the first-born and he would eventually carry on the legacy, but Shane knew deep down that since Stephanie was born, Vince had seen her as the apple of his eye. She could really do no wrong to Vince, and even when he berated her, fought her, fired her, it was all because he was angry that she hadn't given in to him, and deep down, Vince admired that and it frustrated the hell out of him. She had betrayed him, hid relationships from him, kept her son from him, and still, still Vince thought she was perfect. Vince saw a lot of him in Stephanie and that's probably why he preferred her. Shane was more like Linda, a bit more subdued, but able to assert himself if need be. Stephanie and Vince were all guns out, shooting, and that just wasn't his style, never would be.

Yet he still craved his father's attention, still wanted to be the one, the best one, but it was never to be. So he went out week in and week out and did his father's bidding because he had no choice; he wanted his father's approval that badly. Shane sighed and pushed himself away from the wall. He'd have to live with his choices, and maybe one day, Vince would recognize that he and his son had a lot more in common than he had ever thought. Shane couldn't be more like Stephanie, that was impossible as Stephanie was one-of-a-kind, but he could be Shane and hope for the best.

Shane decided that he might as well go see Coach for a little pre-match pep talk. He knew the man wasn't looking forward to his match, but he wanted to show Vince that he was going to support him no matter what. That was all that he could do.

Support him he did, and he even saved his dad's ass while he was at it. How many times had he done that? Too many to count in Shane's head. The only time he ever went totally balls out was when he was in the ring. He didn't know why being around that ring brought out the animal in him, but it never failed to as he rammed his shoulder into Bobby Lashley. Shane was down on the ground and for a moment it felt like he had broken his nose or cut his lip or something. He kept checking for blood, but found none, thankfully, he didn't want Marissa to worry about him.

In his checking, he failed to see that Lashley was not going to stay down and his eyes widened as he realized he was essentially alone. Shane, who had enough sense, ran the hell out of there, hopping over the barrier. He could hear the crowd cheering so he figured that Lashley was chasing him. Unfortunately for Shane, he didn't realize that Lashley was smarter than just chasing him, he circumvented the crowd and cut Shane off at the pass. Luckily Shane was wearing shoes more adept for running. He ran backstage, trying to lose the larger, much larger, man, but to no avail as he dodged in and out of equipment.

Lashley made a dive for Shane, but he was too quick and lost his jacket in the ensuing scuffle. He ran outside, where there was a limo waiting. He didn't know whose it was, but whoever it was, was about to get a new rider. He jumped onto the trunk and through the sunroof, falling ungracefully to the floor in a heap. He yelled at the driver to go and the driver drove off quickly. He looked around, but saw nobody.

"Where to, McMahon?" the driver asked.

"Was there someone waiting for this limo?"

"No, your father requested it for you," he said.

A set-up, he shook his head, his father had set this up. He shouldn't have expected any differently, but was thankful that he hadn't fallen into some enemy's limo. He told the driver just to take him back to his hotel. He sighed and leaned back in his seat. He should have seen this coming, of course his father would have a plan. He refused to be hurt though, by his father not telling him about the plan. He would just enjoy the ride to the hotel and live to think about it another day.

Stephanie walked into her office, where Chris was reading his e-mails, poring over them, and deciding which ones to delete (most of them) and which ones to keep (not a lot of them). Stephanie waved and he waved back as she went to grab some papers, then heading back out. She paused in the doorway though.

"Oh, you know," she said quietly so as not to disturb her son. "I heard the strangest thing on the way here."

"Oh yeah?" he asked.

"Yeah, someone was mentioning you and how you're coming back at SummerSlam."

If not for the darkness of the room and the eerie glow emanating from the computer screen, Stephanie would've noticed Chris visibly blanching. At this point he had no intention of coming back before SummerSlam, but just to know that Stephanie was hearing rumors troubled him. He'd have to talk to Vince about this. He licked his lips a little and forced himself to laugh.

"What a crock, huh?" Chris laughed. "People these days."

"Yeah, I know, I mean, I like to think that you'd tell me if you were coming back, you know, although, I don't care if you didn't, just come out next week and there you are, that'd be funny," she said. "I don't know where people get these ideas."

He shrugged, "Nosy, right? I mean, I have the Diva Search and that's going to take some time, I have to do interviews and everything before the competition starts."

"Yeah, I don't know, thought it was weird, but thought I'd mention it since you'd get a kick out of it."

"You don't seem so anxious to get me back," he said, noting that for the first time. In fact, she seemed rather calm about the entire thing and he expected her to be bouncing off the walls, or at least bouncing on her feet begging for him to say it was true.

"Well, I mean, you told me your reasons and I understood them," she told him. "When you're ready, you're ready, and if you're never ready, well…I still get you, so it's kind of a win-win situation."

"You want me back, don't you?" She cracked and bounced on her feet a little bit.

"You have no idea."


	136. Dropping Like Flies, May 21, 2007

"Everyone seems to be dropping like flies."

"Well, what do you want me to do about it?" Chris asked.

"I don't know, whatever," Stephanie said. "I wasn't asking you to _do_ anything, I was just making an observation."

"Well, people getting fired was your idea," he pointed out.

"It had to be done," Stephanie said, her tone sharp and unremorseful. "If you don't have a place for someone, you have to trim the fat and let them get on with their lives, and their careers. I don't want to pay anyone who's doing nothing…"

"Was that a crack at _me_?" he asked. "Because I don't answer to you."

"Yes, you do," she told him. " You absolutely do, and I wasn't implying anything. I was just saying that if someone isn't doing anything, I fail to see why the company should pay for said person."

"Fair enough, it's not like you're firing me."

"Anyways, I wasn't talking about the firings," she replied. "I was actually talking about all the injuries that have been happening to some of our top people. And then with Shawn out, not that I'll miss his actual presence since he sincerely hates me, but on-screen sure, he's a big part of the show."

"Oh, that's what you meant, sorry, I did not get that," Chris said. "Don't worry about it okay, you'll do fine, everything will be fine."

"How do you know this?" she asked, looking at him critically. "Do you have some psychic ability that you failed to mention to me before? Or a crystal ball perhaps? Oracle bones?"

"No, I just kind of know," he said, tapping the side of his head, "It's an intuitive thing. Look, everything seems really bad when you first look at it, but if you give it a moment, some time to settle down, then it won't seem so bad."

"How do you know that though, that's what I'm asking," she replied.

"Because I know, that's it, leave it alone, Stephanie," Chris told her. "I'm really sorry that so many of your guys seem to be injured, that's going to be a rough stretch heading into the summer, but if anyone can take care of things, it's you."

"You really think so?"

"I know so," he told her. He stood up from the chair in front of her desk and rounded the furniture to lean next to her, his butt on her desk. He folded his arms across his chest. "Stephanie, I believe that you are capable of being a totally kick-ass leader around here. You don't have to worry about leaving your mark or whatever, you just have to go over what you have and do a good job."

"I want to do a great job," she told him. "You don't understand, Chris, I mean, I have the chance to at least, to get out of my father's shadow a little bit, to…do stuff that he doesn't, and I guess I'm going to get carried away at times, but isn't that why I married you? To make sure that I stay on track…"

"Well, I guess if you really want me to take that position too," he said, his voice slow and drawn out. He ran a hand over her hair. "You're awesome, you know this, me telling you doesn't change the fact that you are."

"What are people saying about me?" she asked. He looked off to the side and she bit her lip, "Not good, huh?"

"I don't know I haven't really looked." And that was the truth. Chris wasn't sure that he wanted to really delve into what people were thinking of his wife. He was a quick-tempered man and even when he was mad at Stephanie, he still never wanted anyone to speak badly of her. Right now, he wasn't even mad at her, so that made his temper even quicker. He knew that Stephanie herself was a volatile subject, but he didn't care, he hated anyone talking crap about his wife and the mother of his child.

"You haven't?"

"No, I don't want to read that stuff, let them think what they think. Then let them come in here and do your job, and we'll see how easy they think it all is," he said, a twinge of bitterness in his voice.

She leaned her chair forward and rested her arms on her legs, looking up at him with nothing less than adoration. "I love you."

"Thanks," he said, gently punching her in the chin. "I already knew that though so next time try to come up with some new material."

"You really haven't looked?"

"Nope," he confirmed. "I'm sorry, Steph, but I don't want to read anything bad about you. I just don't, there are…look, I love you, and I don't want to read about people treating you like you're not human. It's not fair when I know how many good things there are to you."

"Like?"

"Like the way you take care of us, me and Sawyer, like that, or the way you so willingly let me do whatever I want, with Fozzy, with radio, television, plays, everything, you take everything that I am, everything that I _do_ and you take it in stride. Nobody knows about that part. Not that anyone has to, but they don't, and it irks me, like you're some…story they can rip apart and analyze. You're a person, with feelings, and all your incredible features mark out your flaws."

She smiled at him, and it was luminescent. She needed to hear that; she so desperately needed to hear that. She looked down a little bit, grabbing his hand and kissing his palm lightly as he gently ran his hand down her face. She didn't have any adequate words for him in that moment, so she just kind of rested his hand against her cheek, letting it warm her up with his presence.

"For the record, I love you too," he told her quietly. "So does Sawyer."

"That's all that matters then."

* * *

"Do you know how many people might need me while I'm here?"

"You work too hard," Christian said, whisking her into his house. "Come on, it's about time you came down here. I was starting to feel like a bum just hanging out at Stephanie and Chris's house like I was just some lousy houseguest."

"But my practice…"

"You've been crowing about your practice since we left Connecticut. You left all your patients in good care," he told her, brushing her hair back with both hands until her hair was behind her ears. "When was the last time you took a vacation?"

"A couple years ago," she told him, then smiled smugly, "So see, I'm not married to my work, I do get out occasionally?"

"A couple _years_?" he asked incredulously. "You've only taken one vacation in the last couple of years?"

"Sometimes people's work doesn't take them all around the world," she pointed out correctly. "Besides, I love what I do, and I hate feeling like I'm leaving someone stranded that needs me. You don't understand, Christian."

"I understand plenty," he told her, kissing her lightly, "but forget about work for now. You left all your stuff back at your house, and you're here to have fun and I'm here to show you Florida, so it's a win-win for both of us."

"I guess," she said sweetly. She looked around, "I do love your place though, it's really beautiful, and it's beautiful down here. I'm sorry we didn't get to stay when Sawyer had his birthday party."

"Well, you know, emergencies are emergencies," he shrugged, "but you're here now, and you should enjoy your time off."

"I am! I am!" she told him as she walked further into the house. She looked around the living room before plopping herself down on his extra-cushy couch, almost sinking into the cushions themselves. "So tell me, how do I look? Do I look like I could fit in here? Or do I look like I'm an alien?"

He looked at her with a small smirk on his face. He had to admit, Stephanie was so right when she said that he and Tiffany would hit it off. This was the happiest he'd been since he had last truly been with Trish, with no strings, no past hurt, no nothing. Tiffany seemed to bring the best of him back. He hadn't felt like he'd been back since now; he felt like he had been on some strange, sad ride that he couldn't get off, but was forced to repeat in circles.

Until he met Tiffany, who was just so different from everything that he ever imagined he wanted. He tilted his head from side to side, as if judging the angles, "Okay, I think you look like you could fit in. You definitely have potential."

She patted the seat next to her, inviting him over to her, "Come sit with me, we'll see if this whole picture looks better when you're next to me."

"And what are we going to do if I sit next to you?" he asked, trying to sound like he was suspicious.

"Oh, plenty of things, making out, making love, watching television, sitting around, talking…"

"I think I liked that second thing the best," he told her as he came over with a lecherous grin on his face. She pretended to be scared and held her hands over her face, as if to shield him away from her. She squealed when he grabbed her and tickled her. He pulled her arms away from her face and she smiled at him, leaning up to kiss his cheek. "You make me really happy."

"Likewise," she told him. "I'm glad Stephanie is a nosy person who has to stick her nose in other people's business because then I never would've met you because I know exactly squat about wrestling."

"No, you're learning," he told her.

"That's right, I'm learning," she nodded, looking off to the side, "So does that mean you just want to watch television? We could watch some matches, maybe some of those promos with your brother you're _always_ telling me about…E&C, right? Or maybe--" He cut her off with a kiss, and he pulled away to wiggle his eyebrows suggestively. "Oh, so that's what you want to do…"

He nodded his head and leaned back down to kiss her.

* * *

Shane was tapping his fingers against the chair in his father's office. He knew his father was partially angry with him that he had been the one to get pinned last night. He had had to think quickly on his feet in order to not lose his belt, and Shane couldn't help but feel partially, or fully responsible for all of that. Vince hadn't out and out said that it was his fault, that he should've done a better job, but he knew it was on his father's mind.

He hated letting him down, especially when all he wanted to really do was impress the man. He sighed and waited for his father to show up, hoping that it would be soon so he could apologize. He didn't know why he was going to apologize, but he just felt it in his bones that he should. Maybe Umaga should apologize too. The door opened and he straightened, taking a deep breath with what he was about to say. Then he saw it was his sister with a small stack of papers in her hand.

"Oh, hey, Steph," he said, loosening up a little bit, "What are you doing here?"

"Dropping off some things for One Night Stand for Dad," she explained. "What are you doing sitting in here yourself?"

"I just wanted to apologize to Dad."

"For what?" she asked.

"For last night."

"You mean for getting pinned?"

"Yeah."

"Are you kidding me? _You're_ going to apologize? Why would you do that, you didn't do anything wrong. You were in a match, there were two people on your team who should've had your back, you don't need to apologize."

"But I let myself get pinned."

"Like hell you did," she said, putting the papers on Vince's desk where he would see them. "Shane, come on, seriously, don't give in to that kind of crap. You don't owe Dad anything. He still has his belt, and he's still happy, don't put yourself out there like that."

"Whatever," he shrugged.

"Okay, your choice."

Stephanie went to leave and Shane turned in his chair and looked at her back, "You know, he wants you to take over."

"What?" she asked over her shoulder, staying the doorframe.

"I heard him. He wants you to be his successor, not me, he wants you to be the president, he wants you, Stephanie," Shane said, his voice almost still, like he was just sending a ripple through a pool of water, not disturbing much, just quiet and almost invisible.

"When?" she asked sarcastically, turning and folding her arms just under her breasts, "When did you hear him say this?"

"Last night," he said, "after the match. I heard him talking, saying something how he trusts you more, how you have more…strength of will than I do. How you're willing to do whatever it is that you have to do to get whatever it is you need to do done. How you're fearless…"

"You're fearless too, Shane," Stephanie told him. "You go and do crazy things in all of your matches. That's just as crazy."

"Except Dad thinks that you're stronger. He thinks that you're the right one to take over, not the both of us, just you. What am I doing here, Stephanie? What am I going to accomplish here if Dad doesn't even think I'm worthy to face someone in a match. He has no faith in me now. He has complete faith in you."

"Shane, don't do this, okay, I'm really not in the mood to fight with you. Dad was being Dad, impulsive, you know how he is."

"The promotion, everything that's come along with that, putting you in charge of practically _everything_, and what the hell am I'm in charge of, the media section, not the actual overseeing of integral business."

"We both have the qualifications, I'm just around more," she explained. "Shane, you have a family that's not able to travel with you. Declan is getting closer to preschool age, and Marissa is needed in Stamford, and Kenny needs you too, you have a life there. The only reason that I have this job is because I'm here, and Chris travels with me and so does Sawyer. That's it."

"How can you be so naïve, Stephanie?" he said. "Dad wants you to be everything. He wants to entrust everything to you. So maybe, if I can be everything he wants _me_ to be, I have a chance at being something and not just your lackey when you take over."

"Now that's funny," she said, looking off. "Having you doing my bidding, that might be fun actually, maybe I should try to ramp it up so that Dad will want me as his successor even more. That could be fun."

"Shut up, baby girl," he said good-naturedly and she smiled at the nickname, glad that things weren't going to devolve between them. She didn't want to lose her brother, especially over something as stupid as her father's whims. She knew that this week she might be her father's favorite, but it wouldn't be long before she did something against him and he would hate her again.

"Shane, who was it that had me compete in an 'I, Quit' match and then choked me with a novelty-sized wrench?" Stephanie asked.

"Dad."

"And who was it that humiliated me when I begged him not to let me go after Survivor Series?"

"Dad."

"And who was it that was making out with Candice Michelle while I was in labor with my very first child?"

"Dad," Shane said drolly.

"See, I'm the flavor of the week, it won't be long before I'm out of his good graces again and you're back in them and suddenly the future is yours. Remember who you're dealing with, Shane. This is Dad, Dad will change his mind whenever it suits him. He likes me right now, but who knows, next week he could demote me and have me doing menial tasks."

"You're right," he said reluctantly. "Thanks for that."

"Anytime, big bro," she said genially as she left the room. Shane felt a little bit better after that, because she was right, after all. Their father was never one to stick with a plan and he had no reason to believe that he would stick with this one right now. Their father was an ever-changing man and he changed right up until the end. He sighed and stood up, realizing he had no reason to be there now.

He was right about one thing though, Stephanie did have more strength.

* * *

"I'm going out of my mind, Sawyer!" Chris said, exasperated as he laid another photo on the table. "Do you know what I get to do this week? Huh, kid?"

"No," Sawyer said, which made Chris laugh and poke his foot.

"Okay, I get it, that's your new favorite word, no, and Mama, well, you're set for life, that should get you far," Chris told him. "And yet, you still won't let go of my hand when you're walking, how about you try that next time instead of learning a new word."

"No," Sawyer said, looking at his father with a grin.

"Funny the first fifteen hundred times, kid, not so funny now," Chris said. "Anyways, I have to go through this entire list, and then I have to interview the ones I think have a mere shot of making it onto the show. And I have to make sure that in case these girls lose, they're still WWE material, which is doubly hard. Plus, add onto that the fact that some of them are going to try hit on me in order to get on the show. And you know who's going to have a problem with that?"

"Mama," Sawyer said with a nod of his head.

Chris nodded solemnly, "Yes, Mama, she is going to have a big problem with that because she doesn't like to hire bimbos, she just doesn't. Not that I like to see her with other guys, I mean, she is pretty powerful." Sawyer kept nodding his head at Chris, slamming his hands down on the desk next to him. "Yes, she is, she can fire you from the family!"

"No," Sawyer said.

"Oh, so you think you're more powerful now, is that it? Since you can talk now, you think that you're running the show," Chris said, then Sawyer smiled at him, that same smile that was his own and Chris sighed, "Okay, so you _may_ be running the show after all. It's still time for bed, though, you don't get that much say around here."

"Mama."

"Yeah, Mama is the one who gets all the say," he said, picking up Sawyer and grabbing some of his things. "So kid, do you think that there's any guys around here that I would have to watch out for?"

Sawyer didn't say anything as he stared at Chris with his brow furrowed. Chris took him out into the hallway, a bottle in his hand, to go to catering so he could warm it up. Stephanie was probably already barking orders to everyone backstage about how this had to be the best show ever. But better she was out there then around a computer, just in case she looked around on it.

"Hey, Jericho."

Chris turned around and saw Cena sauntering up to him, his title slung over his shoulder. He groaned inwardly and adjusted Sawyer in his arm to look at the younger man, "What is it, Cena?"

"I heard a rumor you were coming back," he said, "What's that about?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Chris lied. "I haven't made any plans."

"No plans, huh?" Cena asked, rubbing the back of his neck a little bit. "Might be nice to see you come back, you know, if you do, you know my number, right?"

"I don't need your permission to fight you if I wanted to," Chris said, and Cena raised an eyebrow and then opened his mouth to speak, but Chris cut him off, "And don't take that to mean that because I'm Stephanie's husband that I'd abuse my power, the fact of the matter is, people think you're the reason I left, not this kid right here, so when I come back, and trust me, it's going to happen, I will make sure that you are on the top of my list, not because you just let me fight you right now, but because it's long overdue that someone puts you in your place."

Cena scoffed, "And what makes you think you could be that guy?"

"Because Cena, unlike you, I've got the fans behind me," Chris shrugged, "but then, I've always been a crowd favorite. You may hold the belts, but that's more on the faith of everyone back here, not on individual talent because I can rattle off a list of names of guys who are far superior to you. So enjoy the belt, John, enjoy it. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a child to take care of."

Chris turned and walked away, a smirk planted on his face as she leaned down to kiss Sawyer's head, "Okay, so that was me being the kick-ass guy that I am. You'll see, because I'm going to come back, kid, and you'll be amazed, you thought watching WrestleMania was cool, well, wait until you see me in action, and I promise you, that night, you'll have a definite favorite wrestler."

"Mama."

Chris rolled his eyes, "No, not Mommy, how many times have I told you that Mommy is not a wrestler, do I have to show you the Triple Threat Match again, she almost permanently ruined me, what with her head ramming right into…well, you'll learn about that later, come on, let's get you a bottle."

* * *

Stephanie gnashed her teeth as her father and brother came backstage with Umaga. She slipped her headphones off and stomped over to them. "What the hell was that?"

"What?" Shane asked good-naturedly, "Is this because I mentioned you among Dad's victories? You _did_ lose to him, Steph."

"Not that, doofus," Stephanie said, glaring at him for a moment, "Putting Lashley through the gauntlet? You didn't even plan this. You didn't even tell me this was a possibility."

"Well, it wasn't," Vince said, "but I couldn't very well back down from him. I'm the champion, and if he should make it through tonight, maybe I'll face him."

Stephanie sucked at her front teeth a little bit, "I had the whole show planned, now I've got to scrap a bunch of matches to make room for these matches. A little forewarning would be nice, you know. I mean, guys are getting ready and you're...whatever…I've got work to do."

Stephanie went over to her station and grabbed her headphones, starting to page her assistants to get on top of informing certain guys that their matches had been cancelled. Vince came over, Shane trailing a little bit as Stephanie looked up at them, annoyed that they were still around. Couldn't they see she was trying to fix what they had started?

"What?" she asked, looking at them like they should speak now or she was going to punch them in the brain.

"Well, don't you know who we want him to face?" Vince asked, prodding Stephanie along.

"Well, no, Dad, I really don't, but…since you're forcing me to change the show last minute…go right ahead, give me the list," she told him.

"Don't speak to me with that tone."

"I'm not, trust me," Stephanie said, "but you tell me every week that I'm in charge here, you gave me a promotion to prove that, and I have booked this show, solidly, I might add, only to have you come in and undo everything without notice. I don't know if you know, Dad, but you pay me to run and execute things around here, not to run on your crazy whims, so next time you want to pull something like this, warning please so I don't have people running around here acting like their heads are cut off trying to salvage something that you broke apart."

"I'm sorry," Vince said. "You're right and I'm sorry."

Stephanie was a little surprised by this and looked to Shane, who only gave her a look back that said everything he needed to say. She was so obviously his favorite that it made him feel like he wasn't even a part of the family. He shifted on his feet a little bit and looked down. Stephanie, feeling some brotherly affection at the moment, thought about how to include her brother in this.

"You know, Dad, maybe Shane should be the one to finish off Lashley," she said. "He didn't get the chance to last night since you didn't much have his back."

Shane's head snapped up as Vince looked at her, "What?"

"Well, you let him get pinned, didn't you? Not cool, Dad, you were a team, and irregardless of how or where you were, you owed it to him to save him from getting pinned and you didn't. So give him a little redemption tonight, have Umaga get at Lashley and then have Shane finish him off so he can regain his McMahon glory."

"That's a brilliant idea," Vince said. "You…Stephanie, sometimes you honestly amaze me."

"Oh, don't thank me for that one, Shane was mentioning earlier how he wanted to be the one to take out Lashley so that he could get back at him for pinning him, isn't that right, Shane?"

He gave her a grateful smile, "Yeah, I wanted to because that bastard was asking for it last night and I want to finish the job and make sure that he doesn't even get a sniff of that title."

"Good man," Vince said, slapping Shane on the shoulder, "So Shane, who do you think the other challengers should be?"

"You're asking me?" Shane said.

"Yes, I think that since you're a part of it, you should have the say in it."

"Um, well, how about Masters, Viscera, Umaga, and me, it'll seem simple to him, but maybe we could set it up so that Umaga does something to him that would make it easier for me," Shane suggested.

"Yes, I like that idea, I'm going to go round up those guys and tell them what to do, meet me in my office."

"Yeah, sure Pops," Shane said, then turned to Stephanie, "Hey, you know, thanks."

"It's what I do," she told him, "So go, go beat Lashley tonight so you can feel like the big man on campus."

"Thanks, really…"

* * *

The doorbell rang and Christian groaned.

"Seriously, why do people pick the worst times to show up?"

"Because the world is a mysterious place," Tiffany suggested. Christian kissed her again before standing up, adjusting his shirt and heading for the front door. He glanced back at Tiffany who gave him a coy, little wave and he shook his head as he made his way to the offending doorbell-ringer. He opened the door and he sighed deeply.

"Trish," he said.

"Hi, Christian," she said, looking down. "Look, I know you don't want to see me, and that's fine. But I've finally worked up my courage to come see you, so please, don't slam the door in my face."

"Look, Trish--"

"No, no 'look, Trish,' please, Christian, I flew all this way, I called your brother to make sure that you would be here, please, just don't turn me away, I'm asking for two minutes of your time, that it's and then I'm done."

"Okay, fine, and you don't have to do two minutes, you can talk," he said, leaning in the doorway, looking at her.

"Thank you," she said sincerely. "I'm sorry for what happened at Sawyer's birthday, the fighting, everything…I'm just so sorry that it happened. I saw you with another woman and I just kind of went nuts for a moment there, and it was stupid of me, and I'm sorry that it even happened. I just want you to know that I don't begrudge you for finding someone, and I'm happy that you have someone, I really am. I concede that maybe I was wrong, and maybe I misinterpreted things when I heard that phone, and no, I'm not asking for you back or anything. I saw you with that other girl, I _did_, and I'm not here to sabotage your relationship. I just came to apologize. I'm sorry I fought with you, I'm sorry I kissed you."

"You kissed?" a new voice said, and Trish peeked over Christian's shoulder to see the woman from the party, whose name she couldn't recall, if she had even learned a name for her.

"It's not what you think," Christian said quickly.

Tiffany nodded, "It wasn't?"

"No," Trish spoke up, "It wasn't, I'm sorry it happened, it was impulse, a stupid one and I regret that I did that."

"You must be Trish," Tiffany said kindly walking over. "I'm Tiffany, it's nice to meet you, Christian has spoken of you very highly."

"Oh," she said, shaking this woman's hand, this woman who seemed so nice and grounded. "I'll leave you two alone to talk, so take your time, I've always been very good at occupying myself. I'll just be upstairs, Christian."

"Yeah, my room is the last door in the hall, can't miss it," he said, "I've got a TV in there for your viewing pleasure."

She gave him a squeeze on the arm, not wanting to flaunt in front of Trish. Christian watched her walk upstairs, not realizing that he had a smile on his face. Trish noticed though and it made her heart ache just the tiniest bit, if there was any heart left. "She seems really nice."

"She is," Christian said bluntly. He turned to Trish and looked heavenward for a second, as if contemplating his next move and looking for approval from the guy upstairs, "Do you ever just get tired of this rollercoaster we're on?"

"Excuse me?"

"Us, this rollercoaster," he said, gesturing between them, "We're up, we're down, we're up, we're down, it gets really frustrating after a while, doesn't it?"

"It does," she nodded. "Like you wouldn't believe."

"And still, it's like, we can't get off the ride, we're stuck in this loop, over and over again, up and down, and I hate it, Trish, not you, just…it, everything that happened between us, aren't you sick of it too?"

"Yeah, I am, that's why I'm apologizing."

"Trish, I'll always love you, believe that, please, but…I can't continue to be your doormat. Tiff has been good for me, she's helped me to see that there is indeed life after Trish Stratus, a world that I didn't know existed."

"I'm glad for you," she said genuinely, hating that she couldn't hate someone for making Christian happy.

"I take half the responsibility for us failing to miserably," Christian said. "But…you know, I wouldn't give it back. There was a time Trish Stratus, when I wanted to marry you, give you everything you'd ever hoped for."

"How did you picture it, Christian?" she asked curiously.

"I don't know, I just knew you'd be there, and that was all that mattered. But if I don't let go now, Trish, if I don't at least try and see what happens, then I'm going to be stuck here, on this stupid rollercoaster, and you're going to keep breaking me, and I don't want to end up as a shell of the person I _used_ to be."

"I understand, I do," she said. "I just knew that I needed to say this face-to-face. I don't blame you for moving on, in fact, maybe you're better off. Just…remember me well…"

"Always."

Trish leaned up to hug him, trying to ignore the spark that was always there with them. It didn't fail her now either as she felt that spark still. It was still there between them, even when things were seemingly over. She sighed against him and he closed his eyes, just relishing one more time in her arms. He had always believed her to be way over her head, an unattainable girl that he never should've had in the first place. Those times has faded and left them two very flawed people, but in this moment, they were nothing more than Trish and Christian, friends, more…everything…

If just for one more moment…

* * *

"So any word on how long Shawn is going to be out?" Stephanie asked as she looked over to Chris as they finished up some paperwork later that evening in their hotel room.

"Nope, his wife hasn't gotten back to me yet, but I did talk to her this evening about trying to get a definite date, but he's going to need some follow-up first."

"Good, keep on that," she told him, then paused to put her pen down. "You know, Chris, and I'm not saying this selfishly, well, not _too_ selfishly, but…well, with so many injuries, and me…firing people…it might be nice if you came back."

Chris set his own pen down and looked over at her. "Stephanie, I thought we discussed--"

"No, no, we did," she interrupted, we really did, I just thought, you know what…never-mind, I'm not going to push the subject."

Chris wanted so much to tell her what he was thinking, planning, saying to certain people, but he just couldn't find it in himself to ruin her surprise. Instead, he reached out and tucked some of her brown hair behind her ear so he could study her profile. It was one he knew by heart, one he could close his eyes and picture for all time. He loved that profile, the way her chin stuck out just a tiny bit because she was a McMahon, or the slight crookedness of her nose. It was her flaws that made her all the more beautiful, deviated septum and all.

"I love you, baby," he whispered.

She turned and smiled, "I know, I love you too."

"I'd do anything for you, you know that, don't you?"

"Yeah, I had an inkling."

"Good, just…keep that in mind, okay, when you think something isn't going to happen, keep that thought in mind."

"Why?"

"Just…keep it in mind…"


	137. Power Hungry, May 28, 2007

"Good, I'm glad you're all here, you are my most trusted employees."

Chris rolled his eyes as he looked to Vince's other "most trusted" employees, which happened to be Stephanie and Shane, his children. So pretty much, to Vince's thinking, the only people he could trust were the people who were a part of his own family. Chris found that ironic in a way since he had some of the bitterest feuds with the people in this room. But what did he know, he was just the guy who married into this mess.

"So, Sawyer's an employee now?" Chris said, lightening the mood a little since Vince seemed a tad bit irate. Sawyer looked up from where he was standing next to Stephanie's chair, leaning on her leg, at the sound of his name.

"Funny, Chris," Vince said, but he didn't sound much amused.

"What is this about, Pops?" Shane asked. "You dragged us all in here before the show was even ready to start.

"Well, I've decided something."

"Here we go," Stephanie muttered under breath, but when she got a sharp look from her father, she looked down to tousle Sawyer's blond hair. She then put on her best fake smile and looked back up, "What is it, Dad, what have you decided?"

"We need to shake things up in a big way," Vince said, slamming his fist down on his desk for effect, but only effectively startling Sawyer, who almost literally jumped when he heard the loud bang.

"Can you not scare my kid, Vince?" Chris said, glancing over at his distraught son.

"Are you three here because you want to help me, or are you here to goof off?" Vince asked angrily, staring at them like they were the children being totally petulant.

"You kind of dragged us in here," Stephanie said. "So we were kind of forced to be here, what do you want us to do, Dad, a cheer for you to show you that we're enthusiastic or something? We don't even know what we're in here for."

"If you'd all calm down, I could get to that," Vince told them. He looked to the three of them. Chris just looked bored out of his mind, slouched in the chair, his arms hanging to the sides. Stephanie was checking on Sawyer every five seconds, handing him back the toy he kept handing to her. And Shane kept looking at his watch, letting out a slow breath. Even Sawyer wasn't interested in what he was saying.

"We're calm," Shane said. "And can you hurry this up a little bit, Dad, I kind of promised that I'd call Marissa because Declan had an ear infection and I wanted to know if she was doing okay with it."

"Okay, I'll make this brief then, and you can leave while I explain it to Stephanie and Chris. We're having another draft, involving all three brands, in two weeks. Shane, you may leave now."

Shane got up and looked at his sister, winking and mouthing, "Ha, ha" to her. Stephanie's jaw dropped a little bit and she opened her mouth to say something to Vince, but Shane was already out the door. She hated that her entire family was here so she couldn't play like she had to call them. She turned and glared at the door a little bit before turning back to her father.

"So a draft again?" Chris asked. "And what if I get drafted to work as a scout on SmackDown?" he kidded as Stephanie snickered.

"I'm glad that you two find this so funny when it's a serious thing," Vince told them. "We're going to have to do a lot of work to coordinate it. I've got the lawyers working on new contracts for everyone, and you need to be on the ball that night to make sure that everything goes well and that nobody ends up where they're not supposed to be, do you think that you two can do that?"

"Dad, I've done it before," Stephanie said. "You didn't need to call us in here to do that If the lawyers have everything done with the legal end of things, basically what we have to do is act like couriers, getting the right contract to the right person and making sure that they sign. Really, it's up to whoever's in charge of each show to get the right guys for it."

"True, very true, and another thing, I want you to make the announcement for it, Stephanie. I like to make these announcements a big deal, and I can't think of anything bigger than having you out there to announce it. I would use your mother, but she's not here tonight, so I wanted you to do it."

"You want me to go out there in front of everyone and announce this, are you sure about that?" she asked.

"Yes, I'm sure, I want it to be an impact, and this would be a big impact to the show, I need that. Besides, you're the one in charge of all talent relations now, and this is related to talent, and I think that it fits in your job description.

Stephanie thought back to what her brother had told her the week before, about her father planning to make her his successor. This was just another small thing to indicate that this would be the case. She felt uneasy about the entire thing though because it all seemed to leave Shane out in the cold. How awkward would it be for her to have to promote her brother, or order around her older brother? She had always figured it would be split between the two of them, but if her brother was right, her father had his eyes solely on hers. She could only imagine how shitty that must've made Shane feel to hear.

"You know what, Dad, I think you should have Shane do it," Stephanie said, giving him an encouraging nod.

"What? Why would I have Shane do it?" Vince asked, genuinely confused. "There's no reason for Shane to do it."

"I just think that it would be the kind of thing that he'd like to do," she explained. "Besides, he's on every week, the fans are familiar with him, and well, you know, I think it'd be a nice gesture."

"He's going to have a match tonight, he should focus on that, I think that you should handle this."

"Yeah, I don't think so, Dad, I really think that you should have Shane do it. He should get the opportunity. How many big announcements does he get to make? None? Just give him this one, I'll handle everything backstage and you can handle everything in front of the stage."

"I really wish you would come back," Vince said, and then looked to Chris, "and you as well."

"Don't push him, Dad," Stephanie scolded. "So will you just let Shane do it, I know that he wants to. Give it to him."

"And there's no budging on this point?"

"No, there's no budging," she told him. "Look, I'm going to go feed Sawyer, it's getting near feeding time for the monster, so I'm going to go, just let Shane know that he's doing the announcement in front of everyone."

"Okay, Chris, can you stay?" Vince said, turning to his son-in-law.

"Yeah, I guess so," he said, glancing at Stephanie, who gave him a coy look, knowing that she was getting out and he wasn't. She stood up and scooped up Sawyer into her arms.

"Say bye-bye to Daddy, baby boy," Stephanie said.

"Mama!" Sawyer exclaimed, throwing his arms around her neck.

"Yeah, thanks kid, I really feel the love," Chris said sarcastically as Stephanie left the room. He turned to Vince, "Okay, Vinnie, what's this all about, you send your kids out of here and I'm stuck with you, hardly a fair deal."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know that none of you wanted to be here and none of you wanted to hear what I had to say, but I'm the boss so I don't give a shit what any of you think. I think that a shake-up would be good, don't you think?"

"Sure, it could freshen up some of the rivalries that we have going around here, and I'm exempt from it all so that's even better, I would hate to be a wrestler and praying that I didn't get separated from my wife and son," Chris shrugged. "But yeah, I think it'll be a breath of fresh air for everyone."

"Good, that's what I was thinking too. Now as I understand it, you're helping out that prospect we have, Daniel…something or other."

"Rodman is what I think he's going by now, why?" Chris asked, his voice conveying his utter annoyance with that stupid peon who didn't have an ounce of talent in that overgrown body of his. He took a deep breath and remembered who it was for.

"Yes, Stephanie seems to like him. How's he coming along?"

"Not well," Chris said bluntly, thinking that maybe Vince would keep that to himself.

"That's too bad, just like that other prospect who's nowhere near ready. This is just another reason why--"

"You want me back, I get it, Vince, God, the McMahon family just doesn't ever let up, do they?" Chris said, exasperatedly. He was getting it from all sides. He was surprised that Marissa didn't help Declan dial the phone and call him telling him to get back on the show.

"Okay, off the subject then, I just wanted to see if there was any progress, new blood would be a good thing."

"No, he's not, he's not…he's not good," Chris said. "I'm trying though. Stephanie sees something in him, and I love her, so you know, you go with it. If my wife has a passion for something, I want to see that happen, because I love her."

Vince smiled at that; it was nice to get little reminders that his daughter was happy and well-adjusted in her life. Chris was a good man, and was surprisingly good in management. He secretly hoped that Chris would attain his duties backstage even when he went back in front of the crowd. He'd hate to lose his work backstage.

"I'm glad you love my daughter," Vince told him casually.

"I'm used to it by now, it's been almost five years we've been seeing each other, so is that all you needed?"

"No, actually, there's a model agency that we use up here in Toronto when we need promotions or what not up here. They're going to be sending over a few models tonight that have shown interest in entering the Diva Search. They'll bring their headshots and what not, and I wanted you to interview them, see if they could be worthwhile for the contest."

"You mean see if they're pretty enough?" Chris asked dully.

"If you must," Vince said. "Just meet with them, just to get a feel for what kind of women we're seeking this year."

"When are they coming by?"

Vince looked at his watch, "Probably around nine-thirty, so just be prepared for that to happen."

"Yeah, sure," Chris said, "Can I go now?"

"You may go, and if you see Shane, tell him to come find me so I can tell him exactly what to say tonight."

"Will do," Chris said in mock salute before he finally, _finally_ left Vince's office. He decided his best course of action would be to find Shane, and he figured Shane would be either in his own dressing room, or tormenting his sister with the fact that he had gotten out of the meeting. He went with the former first, and when that proved fruitless, he went for the latter option, which did indeed prove to be fruitful.

"Shane, stop annoying my wife," Chris said as he sat down, "besides, your dad wants you."

"What? No," Shane groaned. "What now?"

"Something about the draft, I think you'll like it," Stephanie said, knowing just what her father was going to say.

"What are you talking about?" he asked.

"Just go, don't keep Dad waiting," Stephanie said, practically pushing him out of his chair. She looked to Chris, who reached across the small table to dip his finger in her mashed potatoes and then lick it off his finger. "Eww, don't be gross."

"What? I just wanted to taste them."

"Well, next time use a fork and not your finger which has been God knows where," she told him angrily.

"Well, I know where they'd like to be," he winked and her face scrunched up in disgust. "What? Too early for the dirty talk?"

"Uh…yeah," she said, glancing over at Sawyer, who was using his spoon to attempt to get some macaroni and cheese into his mouth. He missed a lot, but was still managing to get most of it. He made a reach for his sippy cup and drank from it, smiling around it at Chris.

"I'm getting food, I'll be back, then I'll let you know what fun times I'm in for tonight."

"Wait, hold on, what fun times?"

"Oh, your dad set up some meetings for me. I'm going to meet some women, do the speed dating thing and try to find myself a better wife than you. I'm thinking this time I'm going to go…redhead, petite, and soft-spoken."

"You're an ass," she told him as she handed Sawyer his spoon back.

"Oh yeah, definitely soft-spoken," he said, leaning down to give her a peck on the lips before going to get his own food.

* * *

"So Dad, what did you need now?" Shane asked as he watched his father end a phone call to someone.

"Well, you know my decision earlier, and I want you to announce it in front of the crowd."

"You want _me_ to make the announcement?" Shane asked, staring at his father for a moment, "But Dad, you always make the big announcements, well, you and Mom do, but you've never really asked me to make one of the major announcements, you really do handle those yourself."

"Well, I'm the ECW champion, that's a job in itself, and I thought that you could handle it tonight."

"Really, you really want me to kind of take charge then?"

"Yeah, you know, you should, I think that you should take charge. You do have a match tonight and you're the leader of that group, I'm not going to interfere at all."

"What? What's wrong? Do you have meetings all night or something? You never let _me_ handle anything, Stephanie, sure, but me, not so much. Is Stephanie not available, is that it?"

"Not to my knowledge she's not," Vince shrugged, "but I still want you to take care of it. It's about time I gave you some more responsibility, now that I think about it. Your sister was right in that aspect, I should've allocated this to you."

"Wait, Stephanie told you to do this?"

"No, Stephanie could never talk me into anything, she's still my daughter, not my boss," Vince lied. It had been Stephanie who had put him up to this, but there was no reason why Shane should know that. Stephanie was right either way. Vince had been so focused on Stephanie and making sure that she was running everything well that he hadn't given consideration to the fact that Shane had been here for several weeks, sacrificing time with his family at that, and he had nothing really to show for it.

"Oh, okay, I just thought…maybe she was the one who was trying to peddle this onto you."

"She wasn't, trust me, so do you think you can handle the responsibility? I don't want to put this into the hands of someone who can't handle it, because if that is the case, then Stephanie will be the person that I want to go to with this."

"I get it, Dad, and I know you like Stephanie and everything that she stands for."

"She's like me, work, work, work, and there's nothing wrong with that, but there's nothing wrong with what you do either," Vince said, not wanting his son to feel marginalized. If that happened, who knew, another Invasion-type thing could happen and Vince didn't have the energy to deal with that _and_ being the ECW champion. He had to make sure that all the balls juggling in the air stayed up there.

"She is pretty dedicated. Thanks though, Dad, I'll announce it and then I'll pin Bobby Lashley tonight after Khali and Umaga make sure that he won't be able to remember his name by tomorrow."

"Good man."

Shane felt good after the discussion with his father. He had feared that Stephanie was going to be the ultimate and supreme leader of the universe, and he would get passed over in favor of her. Maybe Stephanie was right and she was just her father's favorite this week. Vince was known for waffling on important things, and if that was the case here, then he was all for going back to being in his father's good graces. It just wouldn't be fair if Stephanie got everything and he got nothing. Little did he know that his sister had helped, and his sister was probably influencing everything right now while he wasn't so much with the influencing.

But what he didn't know couldn't hurt him.

* * *

"Trish?"

It was the voice that Trish didn't want to hear. Not because she didn't love the voice, once upon a time it was the only voice she wanted to hear, but now it was just a reminder of everything that she had lost. And she had lost so very much. She turned slowly to see Carlito standing there with a stunned look on his face, like he was seeing someone who had died and was reborn in front of him.

"Hey Carlito?"

"You cut your hair a little bit?"

"Just got a trim," she told him, running her hands through it nervously.

"What are you doing here?"

"I just wanted to come visit, you know, see everyone, since the show was in Toronto and I live here, I figured that I would be pretty welcome, right?"

"You look different?" he observed.

"Oh," she said, not knowing how to answer that. "Look, I hate to cut this short, but I don't think that we should talk, I guess it's just--"

"Okay, so now we'll just never talk again, that's it?" Carlito asked harshly. "Let's not forget who started this, Trish."

She closed her eyes momentarily. "I'm not trying to start something, Carlito, I'm really not. I just…I'm not in a place yet where I think I can be your friend, look, I think in our relationship, we were both in the wrong. When you broke up with me, I didn't want it, when I broke up with you, you didn't want it. I just don't think I'm in a place to discuss it."

"And if I am? I'm just supposed to wait around until _you're_ ready, right? Because it's all about Trish Stratus and what she needs and wants?" He didn't know where this anger was coming from, but there it was. He just hated that he had had her and then she had vanished from his life like she had never been there in the first place. It was a hit-and-run relationship, and he had yet to figure out if he had been the one hit or if he had been the one running.

"No, it's not," she shrugged helplessly. "Trust me, if I had my way all the time, this is _not_ the way that I'd have my life be right now, okay."

"Whatever," he said, walking away. He thought she might come after him, but he didn't feel her soft hand on his arm, or her sweet voice calling out his name.

Trish, for her part, watched him go, knowing that she probably wouldn't be able to comfort him in any way. How could you comfort someone if you needed comfort too? She wished she had someone to comfort her, but she had alienated pretty much everyone in her life with her stupid decisions. But she understood that she needed to be alone for now. If she ever wanted to be happy then she needed to figure out what it was that she wanted.

She wasn't going to lie, she missed Christian. For the past four years or so, for the most part, Christian had been someone she could always go to. And when he wasn't there, it was usually over something he did so it fell on her to seek him out and she usually did, when things got tough, Christian was always there. Except this time, he wasn't there for her, and she didn't think he even wanted to be there for her. He had looked so happy, so content with Tiffany (that name felt like acid on her tongue), that he had probably forgotten about her.

She wanted to hate that woman, but even after finding out she had kissed her boyfriend the only thing she had done was introduce herself and tell her about all the good things that Christian had spoken about her. On top of that, as if that wasn't enough, she had left them alone to talk without so much as a second glance. Why did Christian have to find the one saintly woman left in this world? A doctor at that, so add life-saving to the pile. What did Trish have? A whole bunch of confusion that had settled over her like a cloud, that's what she had.

She thought she might come and see Chris and Stephanie tonight, hoping they didn't hate her like everyone else seemed to, or at least everyone that mattered. She was sure that Christian hadn't kept his mouth shut about her kissing him (he never could keep his mouth shut), so they could be especially pissed at her. She just hoped that they weren't so pissed that they hated her.

"Trish Stratus!"

She looked up at the nice voice, a wonderful reprieve from Carlito's sharp tone, "Hey Shane!"

"Hey, I haven't seen you since Sawyer's party," he said, then shuffled his feet a little uncomfortably, since everyone and their mother had heard her fighting with Christian, "What brings you around these parts?"

"Well, you're in Toronto, and well…"

"Oh, I get it, hometown," he nodded, "You look good, you should come back for the night, the show is just about to start and we've got a diva battle royal to start off."

"No thanks," she laughed, "I'm not in ring shape, and you're not Stephanie, begging someone to come back."

"Okay, yeah, yeah, you got me," he said, giving her a hug. "It's really good to see you back around here though, feels like you should be back here, but I hear you've got a show or something lined up, that's great."

"Thanks," she said, so glad for the friendly face, one that wasn't filled with loathing for her and her actions. "You look happy, what's up with you?"

"Big night for me," he told her. "My dad is letting me make an announcement for a draft that we're going to have in a couple weeks."

"Wow, he's handing over the reins to you?"

"Yeah, come on, walk with me while I plan what I'm going to say," he said, nodding toward the direction of the stage entrance.

"Yeah, okay," she said, just happy to be normal for once.

* * *

"Do you really think you should let your kid stay up so late?"

"Do you really think you should tell me what to do, Jeff?" Stephanie asked as she looked at the colorful guy in front of her.

"Sorry, I just thought babies should be in bed by now," he told her, looking over at Sawyer, who was just getting sleepy right now.

"It's okay because we wake up late in the mornings," Stephanie said. "As long as he gets enough sleep it doesn't matter _when_ he goes to bed. So what's up, Jeff?" she asked, knowing she wasn't exactly friends with Jeff. And Chris had brought his plate of food back to his office since he had meetings soon.

"I was just wondering when Chris was coming back, I had heard that it was in September, but then I heard it was sooner than that, so I was just wondering when he was coming back. I'd ask him, but I saw you first."

"What are you talking about?"

"What? I thought you knew that he was coming back."

"Chris is coming back?" Stephanie asked incredulously. "Where did you hear this, Jeff?"

"Internet, there's been a buzz going around that he's going to come back soon, like end-of-the-summer soon, or at least before Survivor Series, I figured you'd be behind it. I just wanted to know because it'd be cool to face him again."

"Are you serious? People are saying this?"

"Yeah, I really thought you knew," he said, looking at her.

"Was it confirmed?"

"No, but--"

"Well there you go," she said, "it's probably nothing, I mean, if you think that it was real, I think you're wrong. Take everything with a grain of salt, Jeff."

"Sorry, I just…everything seemed to make it out like he was definitely coming back."

"Yeah, it's nothing," she said.

"Cool, sorry to bother you, night little man," Jeff said, slapping five with Sawyer. Stephanie cleaned the little boy up after Jeff left and picked him up, taking him to her office where she got him ready for bed, even though he wouldn't actually go down for a little while, while his food digested. She set him in his portable crib with a couple stuffed animals before going to her computer and turning it on and going online.

There it was, all this stuff about Chris coming back maybe this summer, and everything sounded so sure and she couldn't believe how oblivious she had been to it. She had to wade through a bunch of crap about her and how she was going on some sort of rampage instead of getting rid of talent who had no business being there anyways. She couldn't believe people. Other companies could fire people and it wouldn't be a big deal, but no, she was going on a rampage apparently. She sighed and looked over to Sawyer, who was starting to doze even now.

There was a rapping on the door, and slightly annoyed at the interruption, she called out, "Come in!"

"Hey, Steph," Trish said as she walked in.

"Trish, oh, hey, I didn't know you were coming tonight," Stephanie said, standing up and going over to her blonde friend. "Oh wait, duh, Toronto, right?"

"Yeah," she said, accepting the hug Stephanie offered with great gratefulness. "It's good to see you."

"Yeah, you too," Stephanie said. "And yes, I heard what you did at the party, and whatever, I don't really care, I'm staying out of it."

"Thanks," Trish said. "I wasn't thinking, but I'm getting on with my life, learning to love myself and that whole self-help thing."

Stephanie laughed, "Good, I'm glad that you're getting your life on track, you'll be fine."

"I will be, who needs men?" Trish said with a forced laugh.

"You can have mine if you want," Stephanie said, then was struck with an idea. "Hey, Trish, I hate to ask this of you, really, I do, but do you think that you can watch Sawyer for a few minutes. I need to see Chris for something and it's kind of important and I'd rather not wait until I see him later to discuss it."

"Yeah, sure I'd love to watch him," Trish said, looking at Sawyer who was already lying down and grabbing at his blanket. He wouldn't be too much trouble.

"Thank you so much," Stephanie said.

She stalked down the hallway, not bothering to talk to anyone unless it was imperative to the show. Her father was backstage tonight and wanted to take care of things since apparently, as Stephanie had heard through her headphones, he had put Shane in charge of a lot of things that night. She got to Chris's locker room and opened the door, seeing Chris leaned back in his chair in front of a blonde woman who was wearing a short, midriff-baring halter top and tight jeans. Lovely.

"Steph?" he said, sitting up in his seat, "What are you doing here? Sorry…Angie, was it?"

"Yeah, Angie," she said.

"This is my _wife_, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho," Chris said, glad that Stephanie had come in at this particular moment since this girl had been giving him the googly-eyes.

"Yeah, nice to meet you, interview over," Stephanie said. "He'll get back to you."

"Um…okay…" Angie got up to leave, leaving Stephanie and Chris on their own.

"Thanks for that, it was like you knew that I was sending you psychic signals to come save me, you are so the perfect woman for me," he said, pulling her down into his lap. He kissed her and she wrapped her arms around his neck, forgetting momentarily what she had originally come in there for. But Chris's kisses tended to do that sometimes, even against her will. He pulled away slightly, so their lips were still brushing and whispered, "Who's taking care of our son?"

"Trish," she whispered back before catching his lips again in a soft kiss. Finally, they broke apart and she remembered herself, "Chris, you're coming back, aren't you?"

"What?" he asked, surprised by her question.

"Jeff came up to me and told me that you were coming back and I went online and it said you were, it said all this stuff and it sounded true. I know I shouldn't believe it, but it all sounded so official, so you're coming back, right? I mean, you _are_."

"Steph, I'm just not…"

"Oh, so it was wrong, I knew it, I just thought, where are they getting this information, I could've sworn though. I mean, they were all cutting me down because I was doing my job, I should've figured they'd lie about you…but it all sounded so real."

"And if I told you I was planning on it."

"I'd be the happiest little girl in the world," she giggled, but then turned serious. "I'm not going to push you though, sweetie, because I love you, and you sit here day in and day out, working for me and interviewing girls that aren't me, and are trying to get into your pants…"

"It's not that, that bothers me," he said and she raised an eyebrow, "I mean, yeah, of course that bothers me to a degree--"

"To a degree?"

"Well come on, I'm a sexy beast, baby, and it never hurts to know that girls are still itching to get a little bit of Vitamin C."

She rolled her eyes, "Full of yourself, much?"

He smiled and kissed her again, "I'm allowed, look at me, I'm hot."

"You're vain."

"So are you, but what bothers me is they're all usually ditzes. For once I would just like a smart, intelligent, and still pretty girl to come on here. I know they exist, you're one of them, you're hot and smart, Trish is the same way, she was in medical school, so I knew she's got some brains. These girls, it's like, they get by on their looks alone and what happens when those fade."

"A career in porno?" Stephanie suggested and Chris laughed and rested his head against her arm.

"Baby?"

"Yeah?"

He was about to tell her that he was going to come back, but he couldn't, surprise, it was going to be a surprise, "I love that I'm with you."

"That's an odd thing to say."

"No, it's not, it's the truth, I'm glad that I'm with you, everyday, glad, me, that's it."

* * *

Later that evening, Trish was watching the closed circuit television in Stephanie's locker room. She was doing some paperwork while Sawyer was sleeping. Chris was reading a magazine next to her, but her eyes were riveted to the screen. Carlito looked so angry out there, so pissed off and it was all her fault. Maybe not this whole transformation into being a jackass, but tonight, his anger was concentrated solely on her.

When Carlito saw Torrie in that ring, and he kissed her, it wasn't so much that he had been kissing Torrie, it was the pent-up frustration of the situation with Trish. He hated what had happened between them, the utter degradation of their relationship. It wasn't fair, and just seeing the blonde flashing across the ring, he had lost it, kissing the hell out of her, pretending it was the woman he wanted to kiss.

Except it never would be again.

* * *

On the other side of the equation, Shane felt elated as the show ended. Everything had gone according to plan. His father was happy, he was happy, and life was good. He felt on top of the world. He may not have the belt like his father, but he felt more in control tonight than he had in a long time. He was afraid he'd always be in Stephanie's shadows with her being Vince's successor, but he felt like he was on even keel again, and man, did that feel good.

"It was a nice thing you did for him," Chris said as they began to walk to their car after the show, "for Shane, I mean, letting him have all the glory tonight. It was nice of you." Stephanie shrugged as she put Sawyer into his car-seat, kissing his forehead and inhaling his lingering baby smell, powder and soap.

"That's what sisters are for."


	138. Dread, June 4, 2007

A/N: This would've been up much sooner, but I got tired last Monday, and then last Wednesday there was an outage to my internet so I couldn't get on for more than a few minutes at a time, and I couldn't upload anything because of the insanely slow internet. It seems to be doing better today and hopefully stay that way.

The next chapter will hopefully be up sometime this week, but honestly, I think it might be up Wednesday or later because I really want to know what they do with this McMahon storyline this week because I'm completely undecided with where to take this. I was totally unprepared for tonight, and honest-to-goodness, I have no idea which way to take it, so I kind of want to read SmackDown spoilers to get a feel for where they're taking it so I can know where I should take it. I have two ways right now, but yeah, have to decide.

So I hope you enjoy this, and once again, please review, it does a body good. ;)

* * *

"Okay everyone, let's just please try not to bother my father with anything tonight. He's very much on edge, and I don't want you to get fired because you get on his bad side, so everything tonight goes through me, Shane, or Chris, no more, no less, you can't find one of us, go to the other, got it?" 

Everyone nodded, and Stephanie nodded as well then shooed them off with her hand. She looked down at Sawyer who had been in her arms and she shook her head. Her father was acting very strange tonight after his loss the night before to Bobby Lashley. She, for one, was happy that her father had lost, if only because it took that belt off of him. However, she was just waiting for her father to start going crazy at any moment, go on some elaborate tirade to get on everyone's nerves. It was what he did best after all.

"I don't want to be around when Grandpa Vince explodes, do you?" Stephanie asked him.

"No," Sawyer said with a smile and Stephanie laughed a little.

"Yeah, I'm with you, baby boy, we don't want to see him while he's angry because then he's no fun and he's scary. Mommy has gotten into many a tussle with him because of that temper."

"What are you talking about, Stephanie?"

Stephanie looked up and saw her father and gave him her best smile, kind of thrusting Sawyer forward like a shield, "Daddy, hello, how are you? Do you have everything you need in your locker room, because if you don't, I will have someone on that right now."

"I'm fine, Stephanie," he said sullenly. "What are you doing with Sawyer?"

"Well, we were just hanging around, seeing what needed to be done," Stephanie said, trying to sound light and lighten the mood. The last thing that she wanted to do tonight was fight with her father, she was most definitely not in the mood for that, especially since Sawyer had been upset all morning because neither he nor Chris could play with him for any extended period of time because they were focusing so much of their attention on the draft next week. He was not a happy camper because of that since he was used to getting his way most of the time, which he could say was just like her.

"Did you need my help?"

"No," Stephanie said. "You just take it easy tonight, Dad. Take the night off, don't do anything, just think about yourself, not about us, Sawyer and I will hold down the fort, Sawyer can handle things, I think he might know all the buttons on the console at the gorilla."

"Is that so?" Vince asked of his grandson, who pursed his lips as he looked at his grandfather. Stephanie knew it was a dirty tactic always using Sawyer to get her out of actually dealing with her father, but if a kid was good for anything, it was going to be this.

"Yeah, it is so, he's great at it, a born businessman," Stephanie said, boosting Sawyer up in her arms a little. He was getting so big that she was constantly surprised whenever she picked him up.

"That's good to hear, but maybe I should help, you know, I am the boss."

"Oh come on, Dad, one night, that's it, just take one night off," Stephanie said with a charming smile. "I mean, after the loss last night, don't you think that you deserve it, you're probably sore."

Vince's face darkened a little bit, "I never should've lost."

"Well, I mean, it is time to let someone else be champion, don't you think, Daddy?" she asked, pulling out the big guns. "You have so much work to do when you're here, you're the soul of the show, you know." Stephanie was laying it on so thick right now she was having trouble seeing.

"Stephanie…"

"What, Daddy?" she asked, batting her eyelashes a little as she tried to look innocent. "It's true."

He sighed, "What do you mean that I should let someone else be champion? Don't you think that I was a good champion?"

Stephanie opened her mouth and then closed it again, not sure what to say. If she was being honest, she wasn't crazy about the idea. Stephanie liked everything to have its place, that's just what she liked. It had been a transition when Chris had gone from wrestler to management, and seeing her father go from management to champion had been an even weirder transition and it wasn't a good one.

She bit her lip and looked at Sawyer. "I think I need to change his diaper."

"Stephanie, you thought that I shouldn't have held the belt?" Vince demanded to know.

Stephanie's eyes darted around, hoping that Chris would come around, or Shane, or some pretty, little thing that would distract her father from the truth of her own feelings, but nothing of the sort came up. She bit her lip again and said, "I really think Sawyer needs his diaper changed, I don't want him getting diaper rash again, he's no fun when he's uncomfortable, he cries and whines and yells out my name. It makes me hate that he knows my name and not Chris's."

"You think I shouldn't have held the title," Vince accused.

"Well…yeah," she said, knowing that it was the entirely wrong thing to say, but Stephanie was nothing if not brutally honest. She was like Vince in that manner. She wasn't going to bullshit you unless she really felt like doing so, and right now, she didn't feel like doing so.

"What do you mean!" he shouted, making Sawyer look at him with wide eyes, not knowing someone could be that loud. Even when his daddy was shouting during hockey he never got that loud.

"Dad, please, calm down, it's not totally what you think, okay?" she told him. "I just don't think that…you should've held it with all the duties that you already partake of backstage. Being champion is a difficult job and I wouldn't want you to overtire yourself."

"So you think that I would've been better off being nothing, losing?"

"I never said that," she told him. "I never said that, but Daddy, come on, look, you're not a wrestler, not really, do you really think that you should've been holding the title in the first place. You can't go out there and defend it every week, you don't have the time for that."

"I can't believe my own daughter would think this way," he said, shaking his head as his face seemed to go desolate.

"Daddy, I'm not saying that you're a bad businessman or anything, or bad for this company, but sometimes you have to let the wrestler be the wrestler and the owner be the owner. Besides, now you can focus on other things."

"I can't believe you would turn on me like this," Vince said, seeming to ignore everything that Stephanie was saying.

"I'm not 'turning' on you, Dad, I'm telling the truth, Chris felt the same way," she said, dragging her husband's name into this. If she was going down, she was going to bring Chris down with her, that's just how marriage was.

"He _what_!" Vince said, incensed again.

"Well, he was more embarrassed because he didn't think you should hold it at all," she told him, and then she wanted to slap her head because she knew she might've gone too far. She was only thankful that her husband wasn't wrestling at the moment or surely Vince would've put him against Umaga or something.

"He was embarrassed of _me_?" Vince asked. "I can't believe the two of you would treat me like this. We're family and you're supposed to support me. You both think you're better than me, is that it? You think that you're entitled to something."

"Dad, you're not even making sense now," she told him. "Look, that's just how we feel, but it's a moot point now because you don't have the title."

"Get out of my sight, Stephanie," Vince said, his voice low. "If I can't even trust my daughter and son-in-law…I thought you were behind me, I thought we were all on the same page and now I find out that you're traitors."

"We weren't traitors, Dad, it's not like we were selling your secrets," Stephanie told him. "It's just our honest opinions, don't begrudge us for having them."

"I can't believe you!" Vince exclaimed, still not over what he felt was a betrayal.

"Look, Sawyer really does need his diaper changed now, I'm sorry that you think I'm a traitor, Dad, but it really isn't a big deal. It's a belt, you're not even a wrestler."

Stephanie left her father then, not knowing that her words were going to have a profound effect on her father. His conversation with her would set the mood for the rest of the evening and it wouldn't be in the good sense, oh no, it wouldn't be good at all. She went into her office to change Sawyer's diaper, laying him on his blanket on the couch as she went to grab a clean diaper.

Chris walked in the room and made a face, "Geez, what the hell died in here…oh, it's just you, kid, should've known."

"So my dad hates us now."

"What? Why?"

"Kind of told him how we didn't like that he was the champion and with his loss last night…"

"Oh, Stephanie," Chris cringed. "How do you get yourself into these messes? I thought that we agreed that we weren't going to tell your dad."

"It slipped," she said guiltily. "Well, you know me and my big mouth."

"You can keep _us_ a secret for like two years, but you can't keep this a secret for a month?" he wondered incredulously and she shrugged while trying to give him an innocent look.

"I gave birth to your son," she said sappily.

"You're something else, McMahon," he said. "At least we can go home tonight and there's no chance of your dad getting the key to our hotel room and him murdering us in our sleep. I think I'll lock our bedroom door tonight though, just in case."

"You're insufferable. I told everyone backstage that if they need anything not to go to my father. I probably made it worse now so luckily I told everyone that if they needed someone to come to me, you, or my brother, so if you have random people coming up to you, that's what it's for."

"Oh, I'll be busy once again interviewing diva hopefuls," he said nonchalantly. "Your dad scheduled more meetings tonight for me. He said that Florida girls are especially pretty, I don't know about that, but whatever, that's what I'm doing tonight, aren't I lucky? Oh, and your dad has me going to the new developmental talent facility down here for the rest of the week to make sure it's getting off the ground well."

"You're just a busy, little beaver," she told him as she strapped Sawyer's diaper on and threw the other one away, setting Sawyer back down on the floor with his toys. "It's good for you though, since you don't have anything to do, you might as well do what you have to do well, right?"

"Yes, because I'm so good at interviewing and overseeing, it's what my life is made of," Chris said, pretending to act giddy. "It's no big deal though, as long as I've got my girl and my kid, I'm good to go."

"Well, you don't have us right now," she said, picking up Sawyer, "I just noticed the show is starting and we're needed at the gorilla. I'll take the kid."

"Good, because I've got to get to my office and get cracking on those hopefuls!" he exclaimed pumping his fist into the air, "Remind me again why I took this job when it's so obvious your dad would prefer to be the one interviewing pretty girls?"

"I think it's because you love me," Stephanie said. "Besides, it's good to spend time apart, it keeps us on our toes. I know that you want to be kept on your toes."

"Oh yes, always," he said, leaning in to kiss her as she passed. She was just about to walk out the door when her brother charged into the room.

"What the hell did you do to Dad?" he asked Stephanie suspiciously. She looked at him for a moment and sighed; if she had just kept her mouth shut none of this would've happened.

"I just told him I didn't think he was the best holder for the belt, why?"

"Well, you've really done it this time, baby girl, Dad is acting very strangely, and I think it's because of what you said," Shane told her, thinking back to the weird way that Vince was acting. It was like nothing he had ever seen before and he couldn't believe that his father was this broken up about a belt, a measly belt.

"Oh come on," she said, exasperated by the whole situation. "It's a belt, he never even defended it. You should defend the belt if you're the champion, I was just telling him my honest opinion. When honest opinions start costing you things, then come back to me and we'll talk."

"Dad's going to be in an assy mood because of you know, I hope you know that," Shane said. "And we're going to have to be the ones to deal with it."

"Oh you forget, Shane, I actually live in Tampa now, so I can go straight on home, not to the hotel," she shrugged. "I don't have to deal with him."

"You have to deal with him here," he pointed out.

"Not if I can help it," she responded. "Look, Dad is…Dad, he's always going to think that he's in the right, and when you slight him, he's going to go off the deep end, that's just how he is, that's just how he's always been. I'm not worried."

"Well I am, I don't know, Dad has just been acting strange lately, back me up here, Chris, don't you think that my dad has been acting weird?" Shane said, turning to his brother-in-law.

"Well, now that you mention it…no," Chris chuckled, "sorry, sorry, I don't know, your dad is a hard man to figure out, I've known him for like, eight years now, and I don't know him any better now than I did on the day I met him, well, no, that's not true, I do know him a little better now since I'm related to him…"

"You guys are no help, but I'm telling you right now, I'm pinning anything that Dad does tonight on you."

"He's not _my_ dad," Chris interjected.

"Wouldn't that be weird if you called him Dad?" Stephanie mused.

"Seriously, you two are no help, I'd get more help from Sawyer at this point," Shane said, looking at the little boy who looked up at him at the sound of his name. "Yeah, you Sawyer, I think that you're the only sane one in your family."

"That could be true," Chris said seriously. "But that's neither here nor there right now, I've got interviews to conduct, so…see you later family, and that includes you, Shane."

"Lucky me," Shane said as Chris left, he jerked his thumb in the direction that Chris left, "Who the hell is he interviewing?"

"People for the diva search," she shrugged, "Or girls for the diva search, rather, you know how Dad likes to hit up the local modeling agencies, and since we live down here, I guess Dad figured it would be okay for Chris to interview some people. I think he might also take the good ones to the new training facility to show them a little bit of what they might be doing in the future."

"Nothing like scaring the shit out of them so they won't want to enter."

"It's all part of his sadistic plan, now if you'll excuse the rest of the Jericho family, we've got a show to run, and a show to keep our father from running," Stephanie said, starting to sidestep Shane. He grabbed her arm before she could though, and she looked at him in exasperation, "Shane, what is it now?"

"I'm really worried about Dad," Shane said, "jokes aside, in all seriousness, I don't know, I think he's having a mid-life crisis, or later-life crisis."

"Another one?" she asked drolly. "Doesn't he have one of these like every two years? Usually it results in one of us…or Mom, getting humiliated. Maybe he'll mix it up this year and go for one of our kids."

"Steph, come on, be a little sympathetic," Shane said, trying to implore his sister to have a sense of compassion for their father. He knew it was tough though, with the way that Vince was. He was always so hot and cold, not just with his family, but with everyone. One minute he was up, the next down, it was like he was never content with hovering around the middle like a normal person would.

Stephanie sighed and rolled her eyes heavenward, "It's a belt, Shane."

"Haven't you lost anything important to you, Steph? Even if it was miniscule in the long run?" Shane asked her, knowing that she had a ton of answers, but the first one that came to both their minds was the most obvious one, the one staring her in her face right now; that was her job. For so long, her job had been the number one thing in her life, everything else a distant second, and it had cost her, it had cost her a lot. When she lost her job, they both remembered how desolate she had been.

Now, just because Stephanie had changed and had switched her priorities to be Sawyer, Chris, then her job, didn't mean that what she was like, how she used to live didn't happen. She could remember her desperation with her job, and how empty she had felt when she had lost it, to the point where Chris was afraid for her. Those days seemed so gone with the wind now, especially with Sawyer in her life. With Sawyer here now, it just felt like nothing really, truly mattered except for him, but she could remember.

"Okay, so I have," she said, looking down. "And it's not different, I'll give you that. But still…he'll get over it, he will, I'm not going to worry about him. You know how he is, he'll either be very sad, or he'll be very pissed, and we can deal with that, it's when Dad is completely content with his life that we have to worry."

"And I'll give you _that_," Shane told her, reaching out for Sawyer's hand. "Thanks for at least listening to what I had to say."

"It's what sisters do," she told him. "Now if you please, Sawyer has some very important business to take care of. He has to make sure the show runs well."

"Oh yeah, of course, don't let me keep you," Shane said, moving out of the way for them finally.

--

Chris blew out some air, trying to be patient until the interviews came to see him. He checked his watch again before a knock sounded at the door. He took a deep breath and put his best fake smile on his face. Some days, he still wondered why he would take a job like this. Not just interviewing or something, but this entire desk job thing. It was weird to him sometimes, just coming here and working and not going out and kicking ass, but actually doing work.

"Come in," he called out in his best professional "I'm the boss" tone, and adjusted the collar of his button-down shirt.

"Hey, man."

Chris relaxed a little, "Christian, what are you doing here?"

"I live here," Christian said like it was obvious that's why he was here, "It's like, not even a long drive, and I can't come to visit. "Geez, no love."

"Sorry, lapse of memory, it's always strange when you're at a show, but you're not actually on the road because this is your home, I mean, I get to sleep in my own bed tonight, it's an awesome feeling," Chris said. "So why did you come to see me? Can't you go bug my wife, or your brother, go bug your brother."

"Wow, you sure keep up with the show, don't you, my brother is on SmackDown," Christian pointed out. "And you…run the show? Wow, someone's lazy."

"No, you've got me mixed up with the other Jericho," Chris said, "she's the one that runs the show, I just hang on for the ride, but yeah, I remember now, your brother is on the other show, so seriously, what are you doing here?"

"I just wanted to see my friends, sue me."

"You never come here just because you want to see us," Chris pointed out. "It's usually when you have a problem that you come to see us. Now if we were at home, you'd usually come to see if you could eat dinner with us…so what is it this time?"

"Nothing," he shrugged, sitting down.

"Where's Tiffany?"

"She's in Connecticut," Christian said. "She's working, being a great doctor for all her patients."

"You love the fact she's a doctor, don't you?" Chris laughed.

Christian blushed a little bit as he ducked his head, "I can't help it, it's weird to be so proud of someone for helping other people…not that I'm saying that any other jobs don't help people or anything, but she's just so, you know, she's a doctor."

"Yeah, I get you, I know what it's like to feel proud of your woman," he said, thinking to Stephanie and the numerous things she did that made him proud to call her his wife.

"Yeah, I'm going to fly up there next week to see her."

"So things are going well in that relationship," Chris said, trying to make conversation. He wasn't like Stephanie, trying to mine information and be nosy; he was just genuinely curious.

"Yeah, things are going really well," Christian said with a small smile, almost a nostalgic one as he thought back over his short relationship with Tiffany. "I can honestly say that I really enjoy being with her…which…is kind of what brings me here…"

"I knew it!" Chris exclaimed. "I knew that you were here because you had some problem that you needed to solve."

"Whatever, suck it," Christian grumbled, lowering himself in his chair more.

"No thanks, I'll leave that to Tiffany," Chris said. "How come you always come to us with your problems? Can't you ever figure out something by yourself, man? We can't be holding your hands through every relationship that you have."

"I'm just envious of what you have with Stephanie. You're one of the only married couples I know, and you guys get along. I could go to RVD for advice, but that guy would just tell me that it was all cool and not to sweat it."

"Yeah, that sounds like him, his wife must be a saint."

"Yeah, see, they get along great, and…I don't have a dad, Chris."

"You have an older brother," Chris pointed out rather astutely.

"Have you met my brother, Chris?" Christian answered sarcastically. "The man thinks commitment it staying with a girl in the morning. Lita was lucky she got out when she did or else he'd have totally corrupted her too, not that I don't love my brother, he's awesome, just not with this."

"You need more friends then."

"Fuck off, you and Stephanie are in love with each other, you're happy, blissful, sickening, and well…I want that…with someone, you know, I want to be settled and be with someone and I want that…I thought I had that, and then I didn't, and now I don't know anything!"

"Okay, okay, calm down," Chris said as another knock sounded on the door. "That's probably my first interview, hold on…come in!"

A tall, thin girl walked in, loose black hair past her shoulders and smoldering eyes, or was that just the excessive eye makeup? "Hi, I'm here because the agency sent me, I'm supposed to be meeting Chris Jericho, which is you…"

"Yeah, sorry…uh…"

"Cassidy," she responded.

"Cassidy," he repeated. "I had a really important meeting that's run over, if you could just wait outside, or you know, you can walk around, get to know the place a little bit, talk to the people, get some nice words about me from the employees, and then come back."

"Okay…should I, uh, tell the other girls too?"

"You do that, thanks so much," he said, giving her a charming smile. She closed the door and Chris whistled, "Damn, did you see her? Jesus Christ, I didn't think they made girls that pretty, seriously…man alive…"

"And this is the guy I'm asking love advice from," Christian muttered. "The one who is so blatantly checking out other women."

"Seriously, did you _see_ that woman, she was gorgeous," Chris said, "wow, seriously, she does _not_ want to be in this competition, I would not want anything happening to that body or face. Sorry, you were saying something…"

"I think that I'm in love with Tiff, but…"

"There's another blonde in your life that is always on the fringes ready to complicate things?" Chris made an educated guess. There would only be one reason for Christian to be so hesitant about loving someone and that was someone by the name of Trish Stratus. The number that she had done on Christian _and_ the one she had done on Carlito were things of beauty really.

"Yeah," Christian said. "I mean, you know, I'm happy with Tiff, and I love being with her, and I'm pretty sure that I just love _her_, but then I never pictured myself loving someone after loving Trish. I always figured she'd be _the one_."

"There is no 'the one,'" Chris told him. "You say pretty things, and you think nice thoughts, but seriously, if there really was 'the one' then everyone would stay married once they got married because you'd theoretically think that every person would marry their _one_, but it doesn't work out that way, so don't buy into that bullshit."

"Do you think Stephanie is the one for you?"

"I think that I love Stephanie and she's the perfect match for me, and she very well could be my soulmate, but even Stephanie doesn't bank on everything. We both know and understand that we don't know where we'll be in five years, ten years, we take it day by day."

"Yeah, well, with Trish, I thought she'd be that day by day, but instead, she's the…ex. And there's Tiff, and she's great, Chris, she's like, so crazy awesome."

"I think that about Stephanie too sometimes."

"I'm in love with her, I know this, I just…she's holding me back."

"Move on, man," Chris said. "You've got this great girl who you love to be with, and you shouldn't dwell on the past. You and Trish are over, and you might get back to where you were someday, but you might not, but that's cool. You'll deal, you _are_ dealing. Don't let something really great slip through your fingers for something that might be long gone."

"You're right, and I knew that's what I had to do, it's just hard because so much of my life was Trish for so long and now I've got this amazing woman and she loves me, and I just…it's normal you know, and I never knew what normal was."

"It's a little overrated," Chris said.

"Oh please, you're anything but normal. No way do you know the meaning of the word."

"Well, I'm married and you're not so there," Chris said, making a face, "plus, I have a kid, so marriage, kids, nice houses…"

"Married your boss's daughter, had a kid you didn't plan for who travels with you when he's barely a year old."

"Still, I have that whole package everyone is always talking about," he said as the door opened. Stephanie walked in with Sawyer on her hip.

"Oh man, I saw like…the hottest woman ever out there, totally made me feel bad for not losing all of the baby weight, who is that girl?"

"Cassidy," Chris answered almost immediately.

"Wait, how would you know?" Stephanie asked suspiciously, then saw Christian sitting there, "Oh, hey Christian, thanks for saying hi to me," she said in mock anger.

"Sorry Steph, hey, what's up?"

"Nothing, I'm just swamped out there and I was wondering if you would be so kind as to join me, sweetie, love of my life, and watch our kid, which you helped make by the way….wait, how did you know that girl's name?"

"She's a prospect for the search," he said.

"Oh, you're not done with that?"

"I haven't even started, Christian had a life crisis."

"What about Trish this time?"

"I'm in love with Tiffany, I was just feeling a little weird about it. I haven't love anyone since Trish, so it was a new feeling for me, sue me, and shut up because I don't need any more commentary."

"None from me," Stephanie said. "Just schedule them for tomorrow, sweetie, you can do that. You can do it at the new facility and everything, because with the draft coming up next week, I'm just swamped with paperwork and running the show, and then there's Sawyer, and he's trying to play with me, and he wants to push all the buttons, and I'm pretty sure that he got on JR's headphones and was talking to him."

"Okay, yeah," Chris said, standing up. "Sorry to cut this short, man."

"No, it's cool, I think…I think that I'm going to pay Tiff a surprise visit. I don't think that I can wait to tell her."

"Same old Christian, not able to keep anything to himself," Stephanie teased as Chris came over and took Sawyer from her.

"You can shove it too," Christian told them.

--

"Okay, so I concede, your dad is acting like a screwball," Chris said as he watched Vince put Torrie in a match against Carlito. "Do you think Carlito is going to go through with that?"

"With all the pent-up anger he has towards blondes, I would say yes, that he is going to kick her ass in their match," Stephanie said. "So you think that my dad is acting strange?"

"Nobody should be that upset over a belt."

"If I recall, you were pretty upset after you lost."

"I was pissed, big difference," he said, "besides, I had you, and you were such a good business partner, you kind of deflected everything from me so that I wouldn't get all pissed."

"Well, I thought you were cute," she told him, kissing him lightly. "But yeah, my dad is kind of acting weird, I hope that he gets out of his funk soon though, I don't even want to know what he's going to do next--"

"Next week is going to be Mr. McMahon Appreciation Night," Coach said jovially as he came up to them. "Your father has been talking about it and I'm going to announce it later."

"It's…what? Excuse me?" Stephanie said, leaning her head in a little as if she were hard of hearing.

"You heard me," he responded. "It's going to be an appreciation night for your father, and we're talking a huge one, so get on that."

"Wait, he assigned that to me?"

"You and Chris, and Shane too, so you three and get on that right away," Coach said, drumming his fingers on the table in front of them before leaving. Stephanie turned to Chris, her eyes wide with panic.

"Are you kidding me!" Stephanie exclaimed. "On top of the draft with _three_ brands this time, my father also wants us to plan one, huge party for him? Oh my God, I cannot believe this! This is nuts!" Stephanie said, running her hands through her hair. "Doesn't he know how much stress we're already under, especially with the way that he's acting? Oh my God, he's going to wear us thin."

"I'll help, baby, don't worry," Chris reassured her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and pulling him into it. "You know what, let me and Shane take care of it, and you just take care of the draft."

She pulled away to look up at him, "You'd do that?"

"It's in the job description _and_ in the husband description," he said, kissing her forehead. "So don't go freaking out on me."

"Sorry, force of habit," she said as the next match, Ric Flair and Randy Orton began. "Well, at least I don't have to talk much since there's a match on. JR and King pretty much have the handle of everything with matches."

"You just hate when you don't know the moves," Chris teased.

"Shut up," she said elbowing him in the side. "You know, you can go soon, as long as Britt has told the girls that they can go home for the night. I know that Sawyer is probably getting tired…" Stephanie looked down to the floor where her son was playing and didn't see him in the immediate area. "Shit!" She stood up and looked under the chairs and stuff.

"The monster?"

"Yes, he knows not to crawl away, and it's not protected here," Stephanie said as she looked around. "Sawyer! Come here baby!"

"Holy shit," Chris said and Stephanie turned around quickly.

"Oh my God," she gasped. "Oh…my God!"

Sawyer had somehow gotten up and was now walking, unaided over to the gorilla, actually pulling the curtain like he was going to climb up the steps and go out to the ring. He heard his name being called by Stephanie and he looked back at her with a smile, letting go of the curtains and toddling, by himself over to her and Chris. They stood there, completely frozen as Sawyer traversed the entire space between them, stopping a few times when someone walked by, too wrapped up to realize that this little boy was walking by himself for the first time. When he finally reached them after his personal game of Frogger, Chris scooped him up into his arms.

"So you _can_ walk without my help!" Chris told him happily. "I knew you were faking!"

"Sawyer, you walked, away…again. Where the heck were you going?" Stephanie asked. "Were you going to go out and wrestle?"

"Yeah," he nodded with a smile as he clapped his hands.

"He takes after his old man," Chris said, kissing his son. "I can't believe this…it's so…anticlimactic."

"You think so?" she laughed. "Well, sort of since we knew he could walk with one of us."

"But now he's mobile, and…wow…he can walk, he can talk, he's like…he's a real person," Chris marveled.

"Batta," Sawyer said, which was his almost pronunciation of bottle, and his unofficial signal that he was ready for bed. "Batta!"

"Okay, bottle, bottle, got it, geez, you want a few steps and suddenly you think that you're the king of England," Chris said, looking down at his son. "I'm proud of you though, kid."

"Yes, Mommy loves her little boy," Stephanie said, kissing his cheeks repeatedly. "Are you going to take him home?"

"Yeah, I'm going to take him home," he said, giving Stephanie a kiss. "I'll see you when you get home, drive safely, okay, and if you're too tired, have Shane wait for you, okay?"

"Yeah, you worry too much."

"Because I love you," he said. "And if you need it, Sawyer can walk you home."

"Yeah, right," she said, "Those chubby little legs can't do much walking yet."

"Oh, I don't think that your legs are chubby."

She swatted his ass as he walked away laughing and joking with Sawyer about his new accomplishment. She saw her father walking around and she went up to him, wanting to talk about next week. "Daddy, what is this thing about a Mr. McMahon Appreciation Night?"

"I think it's a nice gesture, it may be the last nice gesture I ever get."

"What are you talking about, Dad?"

"There's something coming, Steph, I can feel it, something bad, and I have to embrace that," he said morosely.

"Dad, it's a _belt_," she emphasized. "No need to get dramatic--"

"No, it's not that, Stephanie, it's more than that, I just feel like time is drawing to a close."

"Okay, now you're kind of weirding me out, Dad," Stephanie told him, and he was. There was something about his demeanor that was unsettling in her stomach, and she almost wanted to walk away because he was scaring her in a way he hadn't scared her before, and that was saying something because her father had once choked her out with a pipe.

"I don't know, Stephanie, I just feel like I should appreciate the time that I have left."

"Left where…Dad, is everything okay?"

"I'm not sure, Stephanie, I'm not sure."


	139. Ending with a Bang, June 11, 2007

A/N: Never have I been thrown for more of a loop than I was last week. Honestly, I had no clue what to do, which is weird. It took me the entire week, and some outside help (thanks Jodi and Carolina) to finally figure out where I wanted to take this story. I hope it's not too terrible, and if it is, let me know of course. The next chapter will definitely be up tomorrow because Stephanie was on the show! I got actual material, and I'm very excited about that, so yeah, look for that tomorrow along with some other updates I think, depending. Anyways, leave me a review telling me if it's okay, and well, yeah, let's all see what they do with this crazy storyline. :)

* * *

"Ms. McMahon, we needed your signature on this delivery we got for some emergency pyros. We didn't have enough so we had to get a rush delivery."

"Yeah, sure," Stephanie said as the backstage hand put the paper down on a nearby trunk. Stephanie took a pen from her purse and looked over the delivery sheet quickly before she quickly signed her name on it.

"Thank you, Ms. McMahon."

"Well, that's what I'm paid to do," she told her before she turned to grab Sawyer's hand again. She looked down and saw that he wasn't there and groaned as she lifted her head to look around. Sawyer was about ten feet in front of her, toddling his way down the hallway like he didn't have a care in the world. Never-mind the fact that there were people buzzing from one place to another, oftentimes not even looking down to see if there was a thirteen-month-old little boy walking around, Sawyer just wanted to walk away and do whatever like he owned the joint.

Stephanie walked quickly over to him and scooped him up. "Sawyer, what has Mommy told you repeatedly since last week?"

"No," Sawyer said sweetly, tugging on Stephanie's hair a little as he went to stare at the ground before looking up imploringly at his mother.

"No, that's not what I told you," she said good-naturedly before she cleared her throat and made her voice more stern. "Mommy and Daddy have both told you that you can't just walk away from us if we're not holding your hand. I know that you can walk now and that's great, saves me a ton of time having to wait for your lazy, cute, little butt, but Sawyer, you can't just go walking around by yourself. You're not old enough."

"Yes," Sawyer told her.

"No, don't 'yes' me like you know what you're doing. Someone, namely you, is going to get hurt. Now…tonight is a very important and big night for Mommy and Daddy so we're not going to have a lot of time to spend with you. Tragic, I know, so you're going to have to be a big boy."

"No."

"Yes."

"No," he giggled.

"Yes," Stephanie nodded as some other backstage hand came up to her.

"Mrs. McMahon-Jericho, we're pretty booked tonight so someone actually put you with Mr. Jericho, and you know, we were wondering if that was okay because we can put you in a separate room and have someone else double up, it wouldn't be a problem," he said quickly, like he was terrified of her…and he kind of was.

"That's fine, I don't care, he's my husband after all," Stephanie pointed out. It wasn't like they were sticking her in an office with someone she hated, she kind of loved her husband.

"Okay, great, thanks," he said, scurrying off.

"See what I'm saying, baby boy? Everyone is on edge tonight, so can you please, and I mean for once be on your best behavior. And if you are, then I promise that we can walk all around tomorrow. We'll go on a walk to the park, walk to the airport, walk around the house, whatever you want, just tonight…be a good boy for Mommy, please?"

"Yes," he told her, not knowing what he was saying, but since saying it garnered him a kiss from his mommy, he repeated himself, "Yes."

"Okay, I get it, thank you," Stephanie said as she took her things and Sawyer's things and found her office for the evening. She was a little dismayed that there was only one desk, but she figured she'd be at the gorilla for most of the night anyways. The contracts had been drawn up by legal and they were all safely tucked into her briefcase, awaiting names and signatures. She could use Britt as her gopher for the evening, and getting the contracts to the right place.

Shane and Chris were handling the appreciation night for her father and they had been planning that all week, getting interviews, doing things like contacting people and whatever. She didn't really have a clue since she wasn't focused on that. But Chris could use the desk, if he ever got here. He had shown up with Shane earlier that day, citing that they had a project of some sort, and she had been too involved in trying to get Sawyer to eat his chicken that she hadn't paid attention to what they were saying.

Stephanie set up Sawyer's play blanket and some toys for him, and her eagerly walked over and plunked his butt down on the blanket before making a reach for his block set. Stephanie watched him for a moment before going around the desk and sitting down, pulling out some things for the evening. There was a definite structure for the evening due to the fact that it was a draft tonight. The way they had scheduled it, to Shane's suggestion, was to set up matches, with the winner of each inter-brand match getting the draft pick. It seemed fair, and totally based on merit and effort than luck or randomness.

The door creaked open and Stephanie looked up from her desk, "Oh, hello, Chris."

"Hey," Benoit said succinctly. "Is Jericho around?"

"Actually, I have no idea, I imagine he's somewhere. Try looking in the production booth, he came earlier with my brother, and I haven't seen him."

"Oh okay, I just wanted to say hi to him, since I'm here tonight."

"Yeah, of course, I understand," Stephanie said. "I hope you get to come over to Raw."

"I don't think that I could handle being around Jericho every week," Benoit said in his attempt to joke. "I don't know how you do it."

"Well, five years gives you enough time to get used to it…barely, but I've gotten used to him."

Benoit smiled a little before looking down at Sawyer, "He looks more like Chris every time I see him."

"He acts like Chris too," Stephanie said with a hint of exasperation in her voice. "They both insist on annoying me at the most inopportune moments."

"Sounds just like Jericho to me. So what's he working on with your brother?"

"No clue."

"He's really kind of…falling into this whole management thing, isn't he?" Benoit asked, leaning in the doorway now. He and Stephanie had never really become what you would call friends, but the woman was married to one of his oldest friends, so he didn't want to seem all rude and just ask where Chris was and then leave like she wasn't worthy of his conversation.

"Yeah," Stephanie said, almost wistfully. "I actually think that he's starting to enjoy it."

"Yeah, he seems like he does," Benoit nodded, looking down. "So you don't think that he's ever going to come back then?" Benoit knew better though. He knew that Chris had spoken with Vince and was seriously considering coming back sometime this year. He also knew from a recent conversation with Chris that Stephanie was getting suspicious and he wanted to keep it a surprise for her, so he figured he could help his friend out a little bit.

She shrugged and looked at Sawyer as he tried shoving some of his shape blocks into the appropriately-shaped hole. Right now he actually had the square block at the square hole, but he wasn't quite placing it in right. She gazed back up at Benoit, "No, I'm starting to think he's not."

"You really think so? I mean, you're his wife so I believe you..."

"I think…I think he likes where he's at. It just started as a thing to do for me while I was on maternity leave with Sawyer, but he has natural knack for it, and I think that he likes being around the show and not on it, and I think he likes that he gets to spend time with Sawyer."

"Understandable, it'd be a shame if he didn't though."

"I know," she told him sadly, "but I can't control him and his choices."

"Are you sure about that?" Benoit chuckled. "Because I know the man and he's pretty far gone for you. I think if you told him to kill someone, he would."

She laughed at that, "Well, no one's on my hit list right now, so I'm not too worried that he'll have to do that, but…I don't want to pressure him for the sake of my own nature. You know, that's like…I can manipulate a lot of people, and I do, trust me, but him…not so much."

"I get it," Benoit said. "I think I'll go find him and say a quick hey."

"You should, he'd be happy to see you," Stephanie said.

"Bye, Steph."

"Goodbye, Chris," she said nicely as he closed the door behind her. Stephanie thought a moment about what Benoit had said. Honestly, she'd love nothing more for Chris to come back and be on the show, but she couldn't do that to him. She loved him too much to want that for him, to just come back because she told him to. That'd be like him telling her that she had to quit her job and be a normal parent for their son.

The next person to come into her office was actually Chris himself. He circumvented the desk to give her a quick peck on the lips, "Hey baby."

"Chris Benoit was just looking for you."

"Damn, I missed him then," Chris said. "I'll find him a sec. I just wanted to see if you guys were here yet…and here you are. Was he giving you any trouble?"

"Who? Benoit or Sawyer?" she joked.

"The monster of course."

"Of course. Every time I let go of his hand, he was off and running…well, walking as quickly as he could," Stephanie said as she glanced at Sawyer again. "He's hell bent on being Mr. Independent. I think he's been searching the apartment listings behind our back, I swear I caught them under his pillow in his crib."

"You know the sad thing about that?"

"What?"

"He could actually afford to get an apartment thanks to the fact that you're stinking rich."

She laughed and leaned her arms across his thighs as she looked up at him adoringly. "So what have you been doing that's been keeping you away from me?"

"Stuff," he said evasively and she pursed her lips up at him. "What? I've been working, what the hell do you think that I've been doing?"

"Goofing around with my brother?"

"No," he scoffed. "We've been looking over the footage that we got this week and we've been reviewing the best parts of them."

"Oh great, did you get a lot of good stuff, because my dad will be crushed if there's nothing good," Stephanie told him. "And the last thing I need is for my father to be more upset than he is. He's been acting so strangely since he lost that belt. I don't know, it was like he invested everything in that thing."

"Yeah, you know, he has been acting strangely, but you know what, not our problem," Chris said blithely, pointing to him and Stephanie and then Sawyer, "This is our family, _my_ family, so if your dad acts weird, not my problem."

"He's your family too, Chris," she reminded him.

"Why must you always bring up that fact?" he groaned. "I don't want to be reminded of that fact. Why did I have to marry the boss's daughter?"

"Because I'm irresistible," she said impishly. "So did you get good stuff for my dad?" Chris cringed ever so slightly and if Stephanie couldn't read him as well as she could, she might not have noticed it, but she did, and then he wasn't making eye contact with her. "Oh no…"

"Yeah, it's pretty…well…we had a hard time finding anything, and I mean anything that was really…appreciative of your father. We kind of took the best stuff, and even that, well…."

"Great, now my father is going to be in a bad mood."

"Well…Father's Day is this Sunday, and we're all going to your parent's house for brunch, right?"

"Yeah, so what?"

"Well, we'll just have to…I don't know, make him feel better then, I guess," he said, trying to make light of the situation. "I mean, we'll get the boys all dressed up and whatever, and I guess Sawyer can wear that hideous hat your father got him. It'll be fine, we'll just have to make Father's Day Grandpa Vince Appreciate Day…for real this time."

"But it's your day too…and Shane's," Stephanie told him. "We can't commandeer the day just because by the end of the night my dad is going to be upset."

"I don't care," Chris said, rolling his eyes. "I appreciate the fact that there's a day for dads, but honestly, the whole thing, it just bugs the hell out of me, like you with Valentine's Day."

"So you're saying you hate Father's Day?"

"Yes, I hate Father's Day, seriously, Sawyer smiling at me, or you know, saying my name, on the rare occasion he does say my name, which is like his least favorite word, but all that, that's better than some stupid day."

"I knew you were the right man for me," she said dreamily.

"Yeah, so we'll just make Sunday all about your dad, he'll _love_ that."

"He will," she said, "yeah, okay, let's do that. I should tell Shane."

"Yeah, tell him _my_ great idea."

"Okay, Egomaster," she said, standing up to kiss him, placing both her hands on his shoulders. "So are you going to be held responsible for our son because I've got so many things to do with the draft and I would really appreciate it if you did."

"Yeah, I got it covered," Chris said. "Go, work, do your thing."

"Great, thanks, and oh yeah, can you tell Britt to pass out the contracts to those who get drafted?" Stephanie asked. "They're in my case."

"Will do, boss," he said, saluting her. She leaned in for one more kiss before whisking herself out of the room and heading down the hall. She spotted her father up ahead and she briskly walked up to him.

"Hi, Daddy, how are you feeling tonight?" she asked, treading on thin ice with him. After last week and him getting mad at her, she didn't want a repeat argument tonight, not when it was such a big night for all of them.

"I'm doing…okay, I think," Vince told her, and she wanted to tell her father that he was a being a big drama queen, but she abstained.

"Good, I'm looking forward to brunch on Sunday, Daddy," she said sweetly. "For Father's Day."

"Oh yes, that should be nice," Vince said in a kindly manner, giving her a weak smile.

"Come on, Daddy, tonight is going to go well," she reassured him. "I'm on the job, and so are Chris and Shane, and everyone knows that it's going to be a great evening. You just have to remember that."

"I know, and I trust you," he told her, cupping her chin a little, "Have I ever told you how proud I am of the way that you've turned out?"

Stephanie blushed under her father's scrutiny, feeling like she was a seven-year-old again and she had just drawn a picture for her daddy and he had told her that he loved it. "Thank you, Daddy."

"You may not have chosen the exact life that I've wanted for you, but you've been brilliant. I'm just so proud of both you and Shane. You've made a good life for yourself, Stephanie, and you're happy, right?"

"I'm very happy, Daddy," she told him. "What's not to be happy about? I've got a great job, a great husband, an adorable baby, I'm happy, very happy."

"Good, good."

"Daddy, you're starting to scare me a little bit, are you sure that you're okay?" Stephanie asked.

"Better than okay," he assured her.

"Okay, well, I've got the show to do, and you just sit back and enjoy, okay. Just soak it all in, and well, Chris and I have decided that this won't be your appreciation night, we'd really like it if Sunday was an appreciation day for you, Daddy, because we love you so much."

"You want it to be my day?"

"Yeah, Chris hates Father's Day, and I know Shane will be on board, and Sawyer, Declan, and Kenyon all love you, Daddy, it'll be fun," Stephanie said, trying to sound reassuring since she knew that her father was not going to like the things said about him tonight. Chris was probably being nice when he said they got the best of what they had, because she knew the best was probably still pretty bad. Her father had a lot of enemies, and a lot of people who would be willing to throw him under the bus.

"I'd like that a lot."

"Great, so enjoy your evening and don't even worry about the draft, we've got it covered like bread on a sandwich," she said, trying to sound cheesy and happy and peppy.

"Leave me some time at the top of the show, I've prepared a statement," he said, starting to sound a little like his old self. Stephanie was just glad for the change and he could've said that he was putting her in a Hell in the Cell Match that evening and she wouldn't have cared.

"Of course, I will absolutely do that, Daddy, I love you," she said, giving him a quick peck on the cheek before she made her way to the station, running into Daniel on the way. She stopped to talk to him briefly, wondering how he was faring before she actually made it to her station so she could oversee what she hoped was an explosive Raw (pun so intended).

Shane popped his head into Stephanie's office, "Hey bro, you ready for later?"

"Shane, yes, I'm ready, man, I get it, okay, leave me alone now," Chris said, rolling his eyes. "You're just like your sister, you never let up."

Benoit was walking by at that moment and heard Shane talking to someone. He turned to Shane, "Is that Jericho in there?"

"Yeah, it is," Shane said, pushing the door open more.

"Jericho, I've been looking for you everywhere," Benoit said.

"Hey Benoit, what's up, man?"

"I just wanted to say hi," Benoit said succinctly, "but you've been elusive. I wanted to see how the desk job is really working out."

"Doesn't he just look like a business man?" Shane asked, looking at his brother-in-law, who was more like a brother these days.

"Yeah, he sold out," Benoit said dryly and Chris flipped them both off.

"Get the hell out of here, Shane, oh, but before you get your ass out of here, this Sunday, we're kind of making the day about your dad because of all the shit we saw during the tapes for everyone we interviewed."

"Good idea, there's nothing worse than my dad in a funk. Later, bro."

"Later," Chris said, then invited Benoit in, "You don't think I really look too business man-ish, do you?"

"The haircut doesn't help," Benoit shrugged, sitting down. Sawyer saw someone new in the room and pushed himself off of his cute, little butt and walked over to Benoit, seemingly to say hello, but instead kind of slapped him on the knee. "I see your boy takes after you, wants to pick fights where he knows he can't win."

"You're underestimating my kid," Chris said, "Sawyer is twenty three pounds of unstoppable force, kind of takes after his father."

"So he loses and then quits and takes a desk job."

"Fuck you, Benoit," Chris cursed.

"Just a little incentive to get you back on television," Benoit said, "How is that going? Are you keeping it from Steph?"

"Well, with this draft coming up, she's been pretty focused on that, and I kind of calmed her ideas about it, so yeah, she's not really badgering me about it even though she saw it on the net. I'm still not sure when I'm going to come back though, so we'll see…"

"She'll want you back tonight if you tell her."

"I know, even though I'm not in ring shape at all, but that's Stephanie, all out and no thought behind it sometimes."

"Well, it'd be nice to see you on television again, that's for sure, seeing you like this creeps me out."

"It creeped me out first too," Chris chuckled, "but you know what? I kind of like it. I like the control and the power, minus the diva search, but other than that, I kind of like it back here."

"Oh yeah, total sell-out."

"Shut up, it's not like I _chose_ this."

"You _chose_ to marry Stephanie?"

"Well…yeah, not entirely sure how that happened, she just kind of…snuck up on me, but trust me, sometimes I could really just leave her family behind, not her, because I love her, but her family, yeah, sometimes I could really do without them."

"Well, that's what being married is all about, putting up with the other person's family. When I first got together with Nancy, her family hated me."

Chris laughed, "At least they knew about you."

"Touché," Benoit said, looking down at Sawyer, "So when is he going to be on the show?"

"Never, if Stephanie can help it," Chris said, glancing at Sawyer, who was looking up at Benoit in rapture, studying him like he was some exhibit at a museum. The man was kind of scary to him, but he felt like he recognized him. "You know how we are, if I come back, I don't even think Stephanie wants people on the show to think that we're married."

"Typical Stephanie."

"Ain't that the truth…"

"But you're so whipped for her, I'm sure you'd keep it a secret if she wanted."

"Yeah," Chris sighed. "She's got me mentoring this guy, you probably know him since you're on SmackDown, Daniel Rodman, otherwise known as Daniel Rodimer."

"Vaguely rings a bell."

"Well, yeah, he sucks."

"Maybe you just don't like him."

"No, he sucks," Chris nodded, "but Steph sees something in him, and I'll be damned if he takes my wife away from me, so I've got my eye on him, and if that means mentoring his untalented ass, then so be it."

"Paranoid much?"

"Shut up, I'm allowed, Stephanie is a beautiful, powerful woman--"

"Who is completely nuts about you. You should hear how she talks about you, like you light the sky or something, and trust me, you do not light the sky, no matter what your ego thinks."

"She's still beautiful and powerful though and guys see that and then the next thing you know, I'm finding her in our bed with another dude."

Benoit actually laughed at that, his missing tooth flashing, "Yeah, right."

"Whatever, man, don't you have a match or something, so you don't bother me anymore? It's a big night for me."

"I've got a match, but I want to catch up with you, man, it's been a while."

"Yeah, you just want to gloat if you win, I know what you're up to Benoit, people think that you just go out there and do what you do and do it well, they don't know the other side that likes to rub it in when you win."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," he smirked, "I leave the bragging up to you."

Chris flipped him off as Benoit left chuckling. Chris went over and scooped up Sawyer into his arms and decided to take him to catering so he could get some food. Sawyer had eaten already and would be sleepy soon so he wanted to take advantage of being able to leave the office now and not when he had to have someone watching Sawyer.

"Dada," Sawyer said as he laid his head against Chris's collarbone.

"Yeah, I'm Dada when you want something from me, otherwise it's 'hey blond guy to whom I have no attachments,' yeah, I know I'm second fiddle to mommy," Chris told his son as Sawyer tried to reach for the walkie-talkie in Chris's hand. "Who are you going to call, kid? Production? What are you planning tonight?"

"Batta," he told Chris.

"Hold on, me first, you second, got it."

Chris passed by a monitor just as one of the interviews that he and Shane had conducted over the week started to play. He cringed at the harsh words. They seriously could not find anyone with a genuinely kind and generous word for Vince. He had amassed a lot of animosity in his years and it was a wonder that someone could have so many people who disliked him, but that probably just went with being a CEO and a bastard. The only reason Chris liked Vince, and really the _only _reason was because of Stephanie, and his obligation to love Vince for giving him Stephanie.

Stephanie was watching the same interview and it was becoming abundantly clear that her father was going to be so mad by the end of the show. He wanted this to be an _appreciation_ night, not a night to berate him and make a fool out of him. If this was the best that Chris and Shane could put together over a week's time, she shuddered to think about what had been left on the cutting room floor. She started to mentally prepare ways to make her father feel better, maybe she could get Sawyer to say the word "grandpa" by this Sunday to cheer him up. Sawyer was a smart, little boy, he should be able to pick up one word from now until then.

Her walkie-talkie cackled to life, and she heard the distinct word of "batta" coming from the other side and she smiled and picked it up, "Hey."

"Oh, did we get your frequency?" Chris joked. "I thought that maybe we'd get someone else."

"So someone wants their bottle, huh?"

"Yup, and we were kind of wondering where it was," Chris said.

"Oh, I forgot, I didn't have room in his diaper bag so it's in his toy bag, there should be one in there for him," Stephanie said, then she lowered her voice, "so apparently nobody on Earth likes my father."

"That seems to be the general consensus."

"Yeah, it seems that way. Why don't people like him? I mean, beyond the fact that he's ornery, mean, vindictive, manipulative, willing to do anything for ratings…"

"You pretty much summed it all up right there. Trust me, baby, if I weren't married to you, I'd have a five minute interview on this show detailing why your father is the scum of the Earth."

"Chris," she whined.

"Stephanie, you know I have no love lost for your father. It's simply the fact that he's my father-in-law that endears me to him."

"I know," she said, "It makes me kind of sad that nobody likes him when he gave so many people so many opportunities. It's like they don't even appreciate what my father has done."

"Them's the breaks," he said, "but your son has gotten his batta and he's happily falling asleep now, so say goodnight to him."

"Night baby boy, I love you," Stephanie said through the walkie-talkie and she heard a faint, "Mama" in return.

She ended her conversation with Chris and went back to watching the show. It was pretty cut and dry, the only exciting part being the drafting of a random superstar that even she didn't know about. Britt was doing her job brilliantly as usual, so Stephanie was left to direct orders and make sure the matches were getting underway at the right time. But more than that, she was forced to sit there and watch as her father was lambasted by people. A few, very few had very few positive things to say, and they were usually said in a sarcastic manner, but…at least it was something. It made her just…so very sad though, because this was her father, and even through the bad times, even when she hated him with everything in her, she never forgot the fact that he was her father, and above everything, she loved him, and to see that people despised him, and even when complimenting him, it was back-handed, it made her ache for the days when she thought her father was a super hero, and he would protect the world from any danger. She wondered if that's what Sawyer thought of her and Chris, and she hoped her little boy hung onto that for a long time.

Having seen enough of this, and only having one more match on the card, and one that didn't need much moderation, she decided to go back to her office and finish up some paperwork pertaining to the supplemental draft they planned to hold on the website. Chris and Benoit were in there talking as Sawyer slept. She gave Chris a quick kiss before going over to her desk to finish out the night without having to hear more negative things spewed at her father.

"Are you almost done with all the contracts, Steph?" Chris asked a short time later. "Sawyer has been asleep for a while, and I think that he'd be more comfortable in a crib."

"Yeah, I'm almost done, I'm just making sure that I have them all," Stephanie said. She looked up at the clock. "The show's still on so it's not like I'm running late or anything."

"I know, but we have a son to think about," Chris said, pointing at Sawyer, who was sleeping on the couch. "He needs a bed."

"I know," she hissed, "I'm working as fast as I can."

"Sorry," Chris said, turning to Benoit. "Sucks man that you got drafted to ECW, I'd love to have you here, it'd give me a reason to slack off on my work."

"Heard that," Stephanie said, but didn't look up at him.

"Well, maybe someday," Benoit shrugged. "It'll be good to face new people though."

"Yeah, although, you'd be better off here." Chris paused for a moment, thinking he heard some loud bang or something. "Hey, did you guys hear that?"

"Hear what?" Benoit asked.

"Like a bang?"

"No, I didn't hear anything," Stephanie said.

"Me neither," Benoit said.

"Oh, okay."

A few moments later, the door flew open and Stephanie was just about to yell at whoever it was for, one, not knocking, and two, almost waking up Sawyer, but the person looked so frazzled that Stephanie set her pen down slowly. "There's been an accident with your father."

"What?" Stephanie asked. "He only just left."

"His limo…explosion," the person said.

"What!" Stephanie yelled. "What the fuck are you talking about?"

"I don't know, it just…it blew up…he got in and it blew up!"

Stephanie got up so fast that her chair slammed into the wall behind her. She was running out the door and Chris scooped up the sleeping Sawyer and followed quickly, Benoit right behind them. Stephanie was in an all-out run right now, her hair flying freely behind her as Chris ran to catch up with her. He had never seen her run so fast before, and he was actually having a hard time keeping up with her. But that might be because Sawyer was now crying in his arms from being jostled so much.

Stephanie threw open the doors to the parking area and she cried out in horror at the flames leaping and burning and the limo that was situated in the middle of the chaos. She had thought it some cruel joke, a ha-ha, gullible McMahon thing, but she was seeing it with her own eyes and her mouth was agape in horror as she stared for a moment. Chris was right behind her, and he almost dropped Sawyer to the ground when he saw the scene in front of him.

"DADDY!" Stephanie screamed at the top of her lungs, her voice never reaching that level of squeak before.

Before Chris could blink, Stephanie was running full out towards the limo. Chris, looking like he was absolutely terrified, shoved Sawyer none too kindly into the nearest set of arms (Benoit's) and chased after his wife. She was just reaching the inferno, the fire lapping at her almost mockingly when Chris's strong arms grasped her around her waist, pulling her away from the raging fire, much to the relief of the masses who had gathered outside.

"Let me go! Let me go!" she screamed, struggling against him, her arms and legs flailing, hitting Chris in the shin.

"Oww," he said, "Stephanie, come on, come on, baby, stop!"

"No! Daddy, Daddy's in there, he's in there!" she screamed petulantly, like a child as she kept trying to break free from Chris, but he was so strong.

"Steph, stop, you can't go near there, you can't, baby, you can't…"

"I have to," she said brokenly, her voice turned into a soft whimper, "Daddy…"

Shane burst out the doors, apparently too preoccupied with something else and only hearing about the explosion that instant. His eyes widened as he took in the crowd just watching, their face eerily lit by the flames.

"Dad…Dad!" he shouted, pushing his way through the crowd, shoving people roughly away as he ran towards the engulfed limo.

He ran right past Chris, who looked in horror…again, as his brother-in-law looked like he wanted to jump right into the fire. He let go of his wife, who slumped to the ground, the smoke starting to encapsulate them, and he made a beeline for Shane, who he grabbed, much like he grabbed his wife. Shane was a lot stronger than Stephanie and he tried to break free too.

"Let me go, Chris! Let me go, my dad…"

"No," Chris said, "Come on."

Chris, being the rock at the moment, dragged Shane away from the fire, and grabbed Stephanie on the way back, taking them out of harm's way before they all died of smoke inhalation. Shane was subdued now as he stared, seemingly through the fire to something else, something far off. Stephanie was in his arms now, her suddenly frail frame pressed against his. She felt small, they all felt small right now, or at least…that's what it felt like. He wrapped his arms around her waist tightly, aware of all the eyes on them, every single person backstage was watching them, and Stephanie buried her face against Chris's neck, and he could feel her lips against his skin, her breath warm and inviting.

The flames were still engulfing the limo and he could hear the faint beeping of cell phones, and soon after that, the keening cry of a fire engine. It was about time they got here. He suddenly wished that he could've seen the explosion, could've seen exactly how it had all gone down. It looked pretty intense right now, and the smoke was black and sooty, just like you'd imagine it would be after something like this. In a morbid way, it was kind of cool to see something like this happen, to see the way the car was melting away into nothing, like this symbol of money and wealth and dependency on outside help was all washed away in a single moment, reminding us that nothing and nobody is immune, not ever. Yes, it was almost artful in that fashion, a performance piece in the most basic sense.

"Hey, hey, it's okay, shh, it's okay," he said, using the same kind of inflections that he used with Sawyer when the little boy was cranky and upset. He said it loud enough so other people heard and looked around at the crowd who was watching the entire thing. He bit his lip to keep from breaking as he kissed the top of his wife's head. He felt her silently sobbing, enough that people were starting to come over to see if she was alright…to see if they were all alright. She just clung to Chris, face buried, expression unseen…

"Daddy…"


	140. She Steals the Show Again, June 18, 2007

She was subdued. And no it wasn't with the assistance of pills to calm her down, or booze, or anything, she was subdued of her own volition. She sat there, in her hotel room, and she was dead tired. She had never felt so tired in her entire life, not even after she had given birth to her son. After that, she was tired, but joyous. After this week, she was just tired to her bones. She was tired of just about everything and that put her on edge.

She sat back against the headboard, rubbing her temples as she closed her eyes and tried to clear her mind of everything. She wasn't going to go to the show tonight, that had been decided. She could just hear the whispers now if she did go, how she didn't care enough about her father to skip one week of work, how she must've wanted this all along so she could ascend to the mountaintop like she had always wanted. Yes, she could almost hear the whispers now, and she wanted to avoid that as much as possible.

"Hey, you okay?" Chris asked as he walked out of the bathroom, his hair gelled to perfection.

Stephanie opened her eyes and looked at him, giving him a strained smile, "Yeah, I'm okay, I just feel the beginnings of a head, but it'll go away soon, I just need to sit here, collect my thoughts."

"Yeah, there wasn't much thinking going on at our house this week, was there?"

"No, not so much, lots of talking, lots of planning, and meeting and whatever, but not a lot of thinking, much to my chagrin, you'd think we'd have had this thing better planned, you know, but you never really expect it, do you?"

"We probably should have," Chris said, giving a short laugh. "I'll miss you at the show tonight, I figured that once Sawyer was able to travel I'd never be in a position where I would need to run the show again, unless you hurt yourself or got pregnant again, which…don't get pregnant again any time soon."

"I can promise that," she told him.

Chris climbed on the bed and crawled over to where she was, laying down on his side so he could gaze up at her. "I know that this past week has been really hectic and well…strange, to say the least, but you're handling it well."

"My father wouldn't have wanted me to do it any other way, he's only told me a million times in my life that I always knew how to handle any situation, but a blown-up limo on live television, he didn't quite tell me how to handle that one," Stephanie said.

"Well, that's not usually on the list of things that need to be taught, right? It's not one of those little life lessons a dad tells his daughter."

"Well, in my family, it probably wasn't too far-fetched, enemies, Chris, we all have our enemies, I think my #1 right now would be HBK," she said, reaching out for Chris's hand. He gave it to her before bringing her hand to his mouth and kissing her knuckles. The grace with which Stephanie was handling this situation was astounding to him, and if he hadn't already been proud of his wife, this week would've done it. The way she just took everything in stride, the ups, downs, and those few moments where the dust settled right in the middle, she took it all with a grace and humility that she had never shown before.

"I'd kick his ass if he tried to hurt you," Chris asserted.

Sawyer, who had been in the middle of the bed on his stomach, playing with some toys, turned his head to look at Stephanie, "Mama."

"Hey baby, are you going to stay with Mommy tonight?"

"I think he'd like that better than coming to the show," Chris said, pulling his hand away from Stephanie's to run his hand through the wispy hair of his son. Sawyer looked at him and crawled across the short distance to emulate his father's position, giggling as he did so. "I envy him."

"Because he doesn't have to deal with all this crap?"

"Yeah, I mean, what does he do all day? He gets fed, he gets changed, he sleeps, he plays with his toys. I want that life," Chris laughed, "I want the life where I'm oblivious to everything except which toy is the best."

"So now you want to live vicariously through your son?"

"You bet," Chris joked, rubbing Stephanie's bare thigh. "So you'll really be okay here by yourself with Sawyer, because I know that it's Monday and you hate to be away from the show."

"I think I can handle being away this week," Stephanie said. "I kind of think that I have to, you know? I mean, what would it say about me if I went there and pretended like nothing happened, you know?"

"Well you don't have to pretend that nothing happened, baby," Chris told her. "You can show up and be hurting, you can show up and bawl your eyes out and get every guy in the joint to comfort you…wait, on second thought, I want you nowhere near that arena."

"After almost five years, you still get paranoid that I'm going to leave you?"

"I'll be paranoid until the day I die…wow, that was…well, suffice to say that I'll always be just a tiny bit paranoid that I'm going to lose you. Don't you feel the same way? I mean, look at me, hot, sexy husband with a great…everything, shouldn't you be a little bit paranoid too?"

"Oh, all the time," Stephanie told him with a small smile. "How do you make me forget all the bad in my life, Chris? How do you do that?"

"It's a knack that I have," he told her. "I love you, and I never want you to truly hurt, you know that. You know that if I could protect you from everything, I would gladly do that."

"I'd do it too," she told him, "just so you know."

"I know," he said with a smile, moving over to kiss her, almost squishing Sawyer in the process, who tried to push him away. "Hey kid, is this your way of telling me to get to work?"

"You'll be okay by yourself, running everything because Shane's not going to be there, and I'm not going to be there, and my dad…well, he's not going to be there either?" she said, her voice tapering off as she thought about that last one. It was definitely kind of a sobering thought to think that one day, she would go to the show, and one day her father wouldn't be there. He wouldn't be there to annoy her, or praise her, and to help her out when Sawyer needed something and she needed to leave her station.

"I will be fine, and besides, I don't think anybody is going to give me any lip tonight, not after what happened last week."

"True, there's a positive out of this entire thing. You know, I'm really starting to think that--"

"This entire thing is one crazy, weird, psychotic dream?" he finished and she nodded vehemently. Chris rolled his eyes and laughed, "Yeah, I feel like that too sometimes, especially last Thursday when your--"

"Oh Chris, no, don't even bring that up, okay," she said, shaking her head and laying down so she was on her back. She rolled over on her side so she was facing her boys. She smiled at the both of them, so alike in so many ways, and she was just reminded again how fortunate she was to have the both of them. "Sweetie?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm glad we had Sawyer when we did. I don't think I would've wanted to wait five years."

He looked down at the little boy in front of him, who looked like he was bored out of his mind as his eyes darted between both his parents like he was watching some sort of demented tennis match. Chris smiled and wondered what it would be like, what this week would've been like if they hadn't had Sawyer to anchor them and remind them that they needn't freak out over the little things, but that they had to fight through everything.

"Yeah, neither am I. He would've been wasted coming five years from now."

She smiled at that and glanced at the clock, "Oh my God, it's getting late, you should get to the arena before the show starts. I don't want them thinking that just because my father won't be there that we don't run a tight ship."

"Don't worry, I'm gone," he said, leaning over to give her another kiss as she rested her hand against his neck, pulling him a little closer by the collar. He pulled away just slightly, leaving their lips touching, "You're going to make me roll over our son."

Stephanie smiled against his lips and then pulled away completely, looking down to where Sawyer was squished in between them, "Okay, yeah, go, I don't need any more drama this week."

"Good," Chris said, giving Sawyer a kiss on the head before getting off the bed entirely. "Don't worry, the show is going to run smoothly. I still can't believe that we let your mom talk us into promoting Coach though, why would she do that?"

"Because he's loyal, and he's been a loyal right-hand man to my father for a long time now, so she felt that he deserved this in the wake of my father's…absence," she said.

Stephanie was having a hard time saying that her father had passed on, because she just didn't like saying those words. They sounded so…true, and she didn't want to talk about it like it was true. She wanted to say what it was, and so she did, eschewing the whole "death" thing because it was so unfavorable. This didn't go unnoticed by anyone, but they saw no need to correct her on this point, not now anyways.

"But don't you think that we could've come up with someone better?"

"Like who, Chris? Who do you think can step in for my father that's not in this family?"

"Okay, you've got me there," he said, "I guess we'll see how that pans out. Bye, I'll see you when I come back tonight. Be good for mommy, Sawyer, okay?"

"Yeah," Sawyer said, laying his head down on the comforter.

Chris took his leave of them and headed towards the arena, wondering what kind of shape everything would be in. This was certainly going to be new for him. For all intents and purposes, he was now one of the primary owners of the company, or at least, that's how everyone else saw him. He was now really in charge, at least on the surface where everyone could see. He felt a strange sense of power coming over him. For the first time in a long time, he remembered that he was actually a part of the McMahon family.

Now, he wasn't an idiot, he knew who he married, and what he married into, but for the most part, he stayed Chris Jericho. Sure, he took a desk job, and he helped run the show, and he acted as a talent scout, but he was still the Jericho that he had been, with just a touch more softness because of his son. Still, he was the brash, egotistical jackass that he always was and always would be, but sometimes the gravity of his married situation would hit him, and never had had it him before this week.

There were calls, so many calls that Chris had begun to hear the phone even when it wasn't ringing. Condolences, apologies for harsh words, questions, everything under the sun, but the one constant was that damn phone ringing, always ringing and never giving him respite. He had somehow become the official answerer of phones during the last week, the one who answered the questions and did everything and planned everything. He had even helped with the statement given on the website. But that was his job in all of this, to appear like the rock that they all needed him to be, and he accepted the challenge.

Now he was accepting the challenge of being the one to run the show, and he was doing it by himself tonight, no help, no nothing, no Stephanie, no Shane, certainly no Vince, and he wasn't nervous, but he wasn't as confident as he usually was. The show was pretty much laid out, he was sure, the directors and producers and everyone was good about that. He mostly sat back there, giving cues, making sure that people got there, that the lights were right, that the right camera was on the right person, that JR and King were saying the right things. He couldn't even imagine what they would say tonight.

It was somber backstage, and he wasn't expecting it. He wasn't quite sure what he had been expecting, but he didn't expect it to be so somber. Not that he expected everyone to be dancing and celebrating the fact that Vince was apparently dead, blown up in a limo, but he hadn't expected the air in the arena to seem completely deflated. Everyone went about their business, but it seemed to lack the chatter and adrenaline that it usually had. That surprised him, because he was pretty sure that there was absolutely no love lost for Vince.

"Hey, man, a male voice said behind him and he turned to see Jeff standing there.

"Hey Jeff, what's up?"

"I just wanted to say that I'm sorry about what happened."

"Oh, wow, thanks," Chris said, genuinely surprised. "Um…yeah, thanks."

"How's Stephanie? Everyone kind of saw how she uh…" and here he rubbed the back of his neck and looked down, "everyone kind of saw how she broke down, you know, when she ran out there, is she okay?"

"Yeah, she's fine," he said, then quickly added, "I mean, she's getting by you know, day by day and all that, you just kind of have to take these things day by day."

"Yeah, I know, I'm sure that it's been tough for all of you, is everyone okay in your family?"

"Well, we're doing as well as can be expected," Chris sighed. "You know, it's never easy these kind of things."

"That's the truth," Jeff said, "but if you need anything, just let me know, okay?"

"Thanks," Chris said as the other man walked off.

This scene repeated itself a few times as he made his way to his office. People coming up to him, talking about how sorry they were about what had happened, if everyone was okay, and it almost made him laugh. None of these people really liked Vince. Hell, he sometimes didn't like Vince and to Chris, Vince's real only saving grace was having raised a wonderful daughter that he loved. But in the face of death, it's like your slate is wiped clean and you're absolved everything that you ever did, and such was the case with this. Vince would absolutely love this.

"Chris!"

Chris saw Mick walking towards him and he was a little surprised to see the man, "Hey Mick, what's up?"

"First off, how's Linda?" Mick asked. Chris knew that Mick had a special affection for Linda because Linda had always been in her corner, even over Vince most of the time.

"She's doing okay."

"Good, good, and Stephanie?"

"Again, okay."

"How's that kid of yours, I saw him last week, he's a handsome little devil."

Chris smiled at that, "He's great, just started walking on his own a couple weeks ago, and he's learning new words faster than I can teach them to him, so he's doing really well."

"Great, great, I hope that you know that what I said last week."

"You said what you said, you weren't the only one, Mick, so don't worry about it."

"I was hoping that I could get some time at the top of the show to speak, not long or anything, but just to talk and you know, clear things up for the people," he said persuasively. Chris beckoned a nearby stagehand and got the schedule.

"Well, it looks like we have some time at the top of the show. I think that it was originally supposed to be for Vince to comment on last week, but since that's obviously not going to happen, I don't see the harm in letting you have the time."

"Great," Mick said, clapping him on the shoulder. "If there's anything I can do for you and for Linda, let me know, okay?"

"Will do."

He wondered as he was walking what people could actually do. It wasn't like they could use their voodoo magic to resurrect him or something. There wasn't much to do. He finally got to his office after having the same conversation about fifteen times and as he laid his bag on the desk, he let out a sigh and hoped that this wasn't how his evening was going to go the entire time he was here. It was bad enough that he had to listen to it all week, he just wanted a reprieve from it for a couple of hours. Britt walked inside and gave him a sympathetic smile.

"Hey, Chris."

"Britt, what's up? Got anything good for me?"

"No, unfortunately not, especially with what happened with your father-in-law last week," she said, flipping through her clipboard. "You've got a meeting scheduled soon with Daniel Rodman and--"

"I do?" he groaned.

"Yeah, Stephanie set it up last week, she probably didn't get a chance to tell you because of the…well, the thing," she said, trying to be sensitive to it all. "But you have that, and then of course the show, and I've gotten about twenty phone calls from former employees who wanted to pass on their condolences."

"Great, more people," Chris said. Britt looked at him for a moment, "Sorry, it's just been a little overwhelming for me. With the family supposed to be in mourning, I'm the only one that can do anything. So I've been stuck doing everything."

"Yeah, that sounds rough," she said, "but if you need anything, you know that I'm here, and it's my job to make your job easier, so if you want to leave early, I'm sure that I can arrange that paperwork-wise."

"You're a lifesaver, you know that, Britt."

"I'll be sure to put that on my resume," she said, trying to joke. She sat down in the chair across from him and placed her hands on her knees, biting her a lip a little. "There's also a federal agent here investigating the entire thing because they obviously suspect foul play since limos don't usually…blow up…"

Chris nodded, he had known about the agents, he had known about that for a while. "I expected it. Has he talked to you?"

"Yeah, interrogated me is more like it," she said, "I wouldn't compare it to talking. He's kind of pushy, but, I figure that's what it has to be because of the circumstances."

"Yeah, I guess I have to talk to him too."

"Lucky you," she said dryly, then cleared her throat. "I haven't talked to Stephanie since last week, I hope she's okay."

Chris knew that Britt and Stephanie had become friends once Stephanie had gotten over the fact that Britt was his secretary and she happened to be attractive. Plus, Britt had brought Chris back to her when he was drunk, and they had that crazy experience to bond over. He felt like Britt was the first person tonight to actually, genuinely want to know how Stephanie was doing. That made him not want to snap and yell at her, so he didn't.

"She's Stephanie, you know, strong and…well, strong," Chris laughed, and it felt good. "She'll do anything she wants to do because she's Stephanie and that's all she knows how to be."

"If she needs anything, _anything_, you tell her to call me," Britt said. "I better go though, I've got some stuff for the upcoming Pay-Per-View to take care of regarding the set."

"Thanks for being such a great help, Britt."

"Well, you know me."

She walked to the door and opened it, only to find that the federal agent that she had just been talking about was standing in front of her. She glanced over her shoulder at Chris, who was looking down at his work, and she opened the door more for the man investigating the entire crime. Chris looked up as he heard footsteps approaching him.

"Chris, this is the federal agent," Britt said.

"Daniel Beck," the man said, extending his hand towards Chris.

Chris stood from his seat and shook the man's hand, "I'm cool, Britt, so go ahead."

"Okay," she said leaving.

"Won't you sit?" Chris asked, taking his own seat as the man pulled a notebook of sorts from his breast pocket and sat down.

"I was hoping that you'd answer a few questions for me," Beck said.

"Yeah, sure, I have no problem with that," Chris said, leaning back in his chair. "Go right ahead."

"Just to get things started off, what exactly was your relationship with Mr. McMahon?"

"Well, he's my father-in-law, I'm married to his daughter, Stephanie."

"And how long have you two been married?"

"Two and a half years," Chris answered, not knowing what _that_ was pertinent.

"And you've been together?"

"It'll be five years next month," he said, a twinge of pride in his voice over that. He couldn't believe he and Stephanie were coming up on their five _year _anniversary. It was a feat he never thought he'd see.

"And what was your relationship with Mr. McMahon? Sometimes you have people who don't get along with their in-laws at all, so what kind of rapport did you two have?" Beck asked.

"Well…I don't know, it really depended on Stephanie's mood. I never minded Vince, I still don't. He was my wife's father, and he was my boss way before that. I'm glad that he had Stephanie because I love my wife."

"Is that so?"

"Don't ever question that," Chris warned him. "You can ask me anything, but don't ever, _ever_ question my love for my wife."

"Okay," Beck said, note duly taken because of the edge in Chris's voice. Obviously this man loved his wife.

"I liked Vince for the most part, when he wasn't treating his daughter like shit."

"And what would say was the worst thing that he had done to Stephanie? I'd heard that he had a match with her where he allegedly," he checked his notebook, flipping through it, "choked her with a wrench. That had to be pretty devastating."

"The worst incident would have to be the fact that he was with a woman not his wife when my wife was giving birth to our son."

"You have a son?"

"Yeah, he's thirteen months old."

"So this was recent when he ignored your wife then?"

"Yeah, but she eventually forgave him. The thing with Stephanie is that she loves her father, above anything else, she's always just wanted to make him proud," Chris said. "That's it. She just wants him to be proud of her."

"Would you say he was?"

"If you have stuff written down in there about my wife, make sure you know that she's awesome at what she does. She traveled into her ninth month because she loves her job."

"Where were the two of you when the explosion happened?"

"We were in our office, we were sharing for the night. I was sitting on the couch with my son asleep next to me and I was speaking with my friend, Chris Benoit. Stephanie was sitting at the desk, doing paperwork."

"Were you watching the show?"

"No, we weren't," Chris said. "We thought it was just the battle royal so we didn't. Someone told us about it and we went out there."

"Do you think anyone had the want to blow him up?"

"No way, I mean, you can make the argument that he had a lot of enemies, and he did, but to blow up a limo, that's just downright psycho."

"So you wouldn't want to blow up a limo?"

"No, I'm going to have to say that I wouldn't want to blow up a limo with a member of my family inside."

"I'm just asking questions, Mr. Jericho. Tell me what you did last week during the show."

"Well, I planned the video segments shown about Vince. I was working with Shane to get it all together and edited well. Then I took care of my son, which is what I do every Monday. My wife and I split duties for him on Mondays since we both have things to do."

"Kind of weird that you take a thirteen-month-old on the road with you, isn't it?" he asked.

Chris narrowed his eyes, "Why don't you let me come to your house and judge how you live, Mr. Beck. If you've met my wife, you know that she loves her job, and yeah, we bring our son along with us because we don't want some nanny taking care of our son. He loves it here, he's a McMahon."

"Okay, well, thank you."

"Yeah, and Mr. Beck, I love my wife, and she's a daddy's girl, to think that I would do something to hurt her intentionally is stupid, don't be stupid," Chris said as he escorted the man out of his office. He couldn't believe the gall of that man. He knew that he had to explore all avenues, but Chris always got offended when it pertained to how he felt about Stephanie. He would never intentionally hurt Stephanie; doing so would only break him as well.

--

"You want me to what?" Stephanie asked.

"Make a statement on behalf of the family."

"Why me, why can't it be Chris, he's already there?" Stephanie asked.

"Maybe because he's not exactly a part of the McMahon family."

"So when it's convenient, he's not a part of the family."

"He's absolutely a part of the family. But when people think of us, they think of _us_, and Stephanie, you're there, nobody else is there, right?"

"Right," she sighed. "What do you want me to say?"

"Say whatever you feel."

"Fine," she groused, hanging up the phone without saying goodbye. She looked at Sawyer who was sleeping next to her, his pacifier hanging out of his mouth, just about to fall out. His hands were tucked cutely under his head and his breath was soft and rhythmic. She sighed. She was supposed to stay here with him tonight, and now he was sleeping and she was just not supposed to be there. But she had to do what she had to do for the family, for everyone.

Stephanie gently lifted Sawyer from his spot, his pacifier falling completely out of his mouth, but he only stirred. He was a heavy sleeper, for which she was thankful. She held him in her arms as she quickly grabbed a diaper bag, forgoing anything she might need in favor of what Sawyer might need. She called the limo company that they used in the area and called them to come pick her up in twenty minutes. She forgot that it was cold outside, so she had to try to get a jacket on him without waking him up. It proved futile as his eyes opened a little, just enough to see the blue of them.

"Mama…"

"I know, baby, I know, but we have to do this for grandpa, okay, I have to go out there and talk about what happened," Stephanie told him. "We'll find Daddy while we're there, you'll like that, right, you want to see Daddy, right?"

Sawyer closed his eyes again as Stephanie zipped up his jacket, making him a puffy, little, blue marshmallow. She picked him up and they went downstairs to wait for the limo. She didn't feel like really talking to anyone, but she couldn't help it if people came up to her to talk to her. She couldn't be rude in light of everything that happened. The limo finally arrived and she got inside, hating that she had to hold Sawyer, but the car-seat was in the rental car, and Chris had the car.

Sawyer buried her face against Stephanie's shoulder as he slept and she sighed thinking about what she was going to say. That's all she felt like she was doing lately, sighing, sighing over the difficult situation, sighing over the way that she _had_ to act for everyone. She knew that the people might not care, or they would, she had no idea how they'd react. She'd probably get booed. She could see it now. She found herself gently rubbing the back of Sawyer's head, a calming gesture for the both of them.

They pulled up to the parking lot, and she decided that she needed to compose herself before she got out of this limo. She took a deep breath and leaned her head back, trying to get herself into the character that she needed to be to go out there and discuss what needed to be discussed. She kissed Sawyer's head and grabbed her cell phone which was sitting on the seat next to her.

She called Chris's number, waiting for the familiar voice, "Hey baby, what's up?"

"Can you come out to the parking lot?"

"The parking lot, what for?" he wondered.

"I'm out here, and I needed you to take Sawyer because he's here too. He's sleeping right now, and I don't want to bring him out with me because I don't know if there's going to be a camera following me or not and I don't want them to catch Sawyer on television."

"Why are you out in the parking lot?"

She shook her head a little though she knew that Chris wouldn't be able to see her, "I'm supposed to make a statement about the family and about my dad, and…well, then I'm supposed to announce that next week will be a three-hour tribute show for my dad."

"Oh dear God, are you serious?"

"So it was decreed, so it shall be done," she said, quoting some old movie she had seen once. "I know it sounds stupid, but…well, you know it's what he…well, you know that my dad always wanted the limelight."

"Yeah, I know, I'll be out in a minute."

Stephanie waited in the limo for Chris. He was making his way out and saw that there was a camera out there trained on the limo. He walked out the doors and looked at them, the camera looked to start filming him walking to the limo and he shook his head, "I have my kid, man, don't even think about it."

It was pretty well known that Chris and Stephanie wouldn't allow Sawyer to be filmed, so the guy backed off. He walked to the back of the limo and knocked on the window. Stephanie looked up to see him and she opened the door with her free hand. Chris slipped inside and sat next to her. She smiled at him as he took Sawyer from her arms, the little boy just snuffling and cuddling against him now instead of Stephanie.

"Hey."

"Hey," she said. "Thanks for coming to get him."

"He's half my responsibility…so the federal agent that's investigating this whole thing came to ask me some questions."

"He did, what did you say?" she inquired anxiously, wanting to know what Chris said.

"Nothing out of the ordinary. He was suspicious of me, and I told him to blow off basically. If that guy thinks that I would do something like that, especially to you, he's a jackass. I'd never do something like that to you."

"I know, I love you," she told him sincerely.

"I love you too," he said, leaning forward to rest his forehead against hers. "Are you ready to go out there?"

"No," she said. "I'm good, but I don't know if I'm that good."

"You'll be fantastic, and I for one would love to see your hot ass back on television."

"And what about your hot ass?"

"Well, we can keep that to ourselves for a little while longer," he said, kissing her forehead sweetly before he leaned down to give her a proper kiss. She tapped on the door to let her driver know that she was ready and he opened the door for her. She slipped out and started walking towards the arena, alone, but knowing that she had Chris's full support.

The first person she encountered was Coach, and she really didn't feel like talking to him, but he insisted. He even asked her if she wanted an accompaniment to the ring, but she knew that she had to do this alone. She was a McMahon, and when they needed to be strong, they could come out here and knock it out of the park. She walked down to the ring, her mind only focused on her task at hand.

She said the words that she needed to say, with the right emotion, and she hoped that the crowd believed her. She hoped that they took every single one of her words and ingested them as she put them out there, as she put _herself_ out there. She hadn't been on television since WrestleMania, and even that was nothing like this. It felt like it had been so long since she been out here, since everyone had trained their eyes on her, and she stood there, strong and proud and so utterly…_McMahon_.

She slipped up only once, referring to her father in the present tense rather than the past tense which she was forced to use now. Other than that though, she knew that she had spoken well, and it was a eerie feeling to be so happy to be in the ring while talking about such a depressing subject. But she couldn't help herself. She had loved the ring, ever since she had first laid eyes on it, and she was completely gone the first time she actually stepped inside.

Stephanie had ascended to the mountaintop, she realized. Her father had been grooming her for this since she had been able to talk and think rationally. Shane had even told her that her father wanted her to be the future, the one to take over, and now here she was. A feeling of purpose flooded into her. She was here now, she had made it, she was at the top, and nobody was above her. It was…good, but not as good as it would've been had this been more of an active choice, had she said to her father, "Daddy, I'm ready now." She wasn't quite ready to take the power relinquished from her father. She had no doubt that Vince still held the power, but she was here, and he wasn't.

Stephanie had finally made it.


	141. The Beat Goes On, July 2, 2007

A/N: I never thought that I'd have to write something like this again, but well, you just never know. I'm not going to explicitly mention anything that happened last week or over the course of the week. I allude to it, of course, because it could hardly be ignored, but I will not, and will never explicitly mention it in this story. Like I've said before, I prefer to keep the real feelings in the real world where they belong. I am not even going to guess what anyone is going through, and I'm not going to venture deeply into that territory because like I said, I prefer to keep the real feelings in the real world where they belong. This is a work of fiction, and will always remain as such (until Chris and Stephanie reveal what we all know to be true), and so I will not dive into that topic.

I have my own thoughts on the subject at hand, but again, you will never see it here. I am in no place to judge anyone's actions, and will never do so in this story, so if you're looking for a commentary on recent events, you will not find it here. Anyways, that's pretty much all I have to say on the subject, and the story will go on, and all parts prior to this will remain unchanged. Thanks.

* * *

"Chris?"

He knew that tone, "I don't want to talk about it."

"But, sweetie…"

"I _don't_ want to talk about it," he said again, sitting there morosely, his chin in hand.

"Fair enough," she told him with a slight nod.

Instead of talking, she went over to him and sat next to him on the couch that he had been sitting on. She sat sideways, studying his profile, his jaw was set and his eyes were downcast and she reached up to run her hand through his short hair, still not used to the feeling, and she briefly wondered if she'd ever get used to it. Chris closed his eyes at the contact, his jaw loosening a little as his body seemed to relax at her touch. She smiled at that, glad that she could give him at least the smallest amount of comfort.

He reached up to grab her hand, taking it into his and bringing it down to his lap. He just looked at her fingers, running his thumb over her knuckles, like it was the most fascinating thing in the world, and in that moment, it was. He knew these hands, so well, knew every curve, line, and bump. He had memorized the way they felt against his body, sometimes so cold he would jump when she touched him, and then other times, so warm, like home, she was like home to him. She reached out with her left hand and rubbed his lower back, and it felt so good to him in that moment. He closed his eyes again and she saw a tear escape him.

She hated seeing him cry, because it was too much a contrast for her to take. This strong, strong man, who so often was her rock, and the visage of him crying just didn't compute in her brain. It broke her heart to see him this way, absolutely and totally broke her heart. There was a pit of despair inside of him, an endless black hole. She took her hand away from his and wiped his tear away, leaning against him so he would know she was there.

"I love you," he whispered painfully.

"I love you too, sweetie, you didn't have to come tonight, you know, you and Sawyer could've stayed at home."

"And what, Steph? Sit around there and think. I don't want to _think_, the last thing I want to do is think," he told her, "I just…I don't want to think."

"I know, I know, sweetie," she said sympathetically. "So do you want to just do your normal duties?"

"Yeah, I just want some sense of normalcy around here," he told her. She looked at his red-rimmed eyes, clouded over with pain and she did the only thing she could think of doing. She took him into her arms and held him, tightly, and he had never felt so frail in her arms before. She never, ever once felt like Chris could break, but there were cracks on this day, there were deep cracks.

"You've handled yourself so well, you know that," she told him, almost like he was a child. "I mean, going out there, speaking, doing interviews, you are so much braver than I could ever be."

"That's not true," he croaked out. "You're way braver than I am."

"Nah, you were," she argued, "just the way that you composed yourself, Chris, you'll never know what that meant to me, to my family. You'll never know…"

"Thank you so much for being here for me."

"Never thank me for that, okay, never thank me for that."

"Why not?"

"Because that's what I'm supposed to do," she told him with a soft smile. "When I fell in love with you, and when I married you, I agreed to that, I took that role, and you've been there for me for so long when I felt low, I'm just returning the favor."

"I feel like I'm living in a nightmare," he confessed. "I feel like this is a nightmare, and I'm waiting desperately to wake up."

"I know," she said, "and I wish there were words to pretty it up, but there aren't. All we can do right now and for the coming days is live and move forward, that's it. It'll hurt, and it'll hurt, but you just keep living, okay, do that for me?"

"For you, anything." She kissed his temple. "You know, just last week, I was complaining that your dad was bugging the hell out of me for staying at our house because he was faking his death."

She gave a sad laugh, "Yeah, you did mention him cramping your style."

"Well, see, Sawyer, he's one, he doesn't know what kissing means, except for when we kiss him, and he certainly doesn't know what sex means, so when he's in his crib, or taking a nap, sex, us, good. Not so good when your father is in the house."

She rolled her eyes a little, "Oh, so you had to go without sex for, what, a couple weeks, oh, that's so harsh."

Chris scowled at her, "A man has needs, Steph."

"I like to think I've met those needs whole-heartedly," she told him, daring him to say any different.

"Not while your dad was there, it's embarrassing when you're making out in your kitchen and your father walks in and you've got your hand half up his daughter's shirt."

"I'm _not_ the one who put your hand there, besides, I think my dad knew we were doing it, I mean, we're married, we have a son, so at the very least, we've done it once," she told him. "But yeah, it was a little embarrassing."

"I'm just lucky I didn't have you half-naked, he said he was going to call Linda and that would take a while."

"Yeah, well, now you know."

"At least he's back home where he belongs."

"And we're all by our lonesome again. It was still good when he would take Sawyer to the park or something, disguised like a weirdo, but still, we got alone time, and that's always nice."

"True," he said, then glanced at her, "Thank you for distracting me, it feels good to think of something and smile instead of thinking of something and being horribly angry."

"You're welcome, but it's okay to be angry about this, feelings are sometimes good. Trust me, if I kept every one of my feelings bottled up..."

"You wouldn't be the Stephanie I know and love, that's for sure, you'd be a mousy brunette who dresses like a librarian," he said, kissing her, "Instead of the tawdry, manipulative, sex kitten that you are."

"Sex kitten?" she asked, obviously amused by his choice of words. "Is that your attempt at foreplay."

"Um…no, our son is sitting right there, reading a book," Chris said, pointing to Sawyer, who was on his play blanket looking at the pictures in his Goodnight, Moon book, slapping them every so often like he knew what he was reading, which he obviously didn't since he couldn't read.

"He's a troublemaker too, I almost had a heart attack when I caught him trying to climb over his crib," Stephanie said. "He was hanging on like he was going to do pull-ups or something, and then when I told him he was a bad boy, he hit me."

"I know, you were outraged, you made me discipline him since you couldn't do it because he's a mama's boy."

"You're his father," she reminded him, "besides, you went easy on him, a ten minute time-out, that's it, it should've been at least twenty minutes."

"He's one, he can amuse himself by himself so a time-out really isn't anything. He just babbles to himself and he's having fun."

"So discipline is hard at this age, we should make him eat snails or something," she joked, and he only just noticed that she was still rubbing his lower back. Even when she was trying to distract him, she gave him a constant reminder that she was still there for him, and she would never know how much he appreciated that, and loved her for it.

"I'm not making him eat snails, what are you, three?"

"Okay, no snails, got it," she said, then turned to her son, "Sawyer, you're lucky Daddy was here, because he nixed the snail idea, I would've made you eat them."

"Dada."

"Yes! Loves me more!" Chris said, raising his arms in victory.

"On what planet?" she asked.

"Fine, maybe we should have another one so he or she could love me more and then we'd be even, Jericho against Jericho for supremacy."

"McMahon-Jericho," she corrected, "and you seriously want another one right now?"

"It wouldn't be horrible," he shrugged, "I love the kid, and another one would be just as loved. But I don't really want one right now, to be honest, you?"

"Same, I just got over having Sawyer, he's only a year old, and me and my brother are seven years apart, and I think a gap is a good thing, maybe three, four years, you know, give us time with Sawyer, to enjoy being with him."

"And I do enjoy being with him," Chris said, and while Stephanie liked the sentiment, she knew that Chris's mind was a million miles away.

"I'm proud of you," she told him seemingly out of the blue. He looked to her and she shrugged, "I just wanted you to know, that's all. I mean, you don't say things like that often enough, nobody does, but it still applies, you know?"

"I guess," he told her. He went back to staring down at the ground. "Are you sure you don't want to go back to the hotel with the monster? You and him could have some bonding time, you know, Daddy and son time, and all that good stuff. You guys never seem to have alone time."

"Do you think we need it? He can hardly talk."

"True," she said with a nod. "But I thought it might be something for you to do so that you aren't...well, you know..."

"No, I'm good, you know, I mean, considering," he reassured her, realizing that she could actually be worrying about his well-being. He turned to her and gave her a strong smile, and she smiled back, just happy to see it on his face, just happy to see something else on his face other than the flashing of emotions he had been going through the past week.

"Good," she said, strengthened by his answer. "So you're good to go tonight, you won't be angry over anything that you have to do?"

"Oh great, what do I have to do?"

"Well, just..."

The door burst open, well, not burst, the door opened and William Regal popped inside, unannounced. Stephanie scowled, hating to be interrupted when she wasn't working. During the show she didn't much care because she had an open-door policy, but before the show, she didn't want to be interrupted, especially by someone who had no business barging into her dressing room.

"Regal, what do you want?" Stephanie asked in exasperation. Chris looked away and sighed, and she could tell that his mind was elsewhere again.

"Well, Coach is on holiday, so he informed me that I was to be taking over his duties this evening."

"Excuse me?" Stephanie asked. "Who the hell gave him the authorization to make that kind of decision, I'm fairly sure that this wasn't run by me."

"Oh well, my dear, I do think that he wasn't thinking, and he probably just thought it up on a whim," he told her. "But don't you worry about a thing, I will take care of things to the fullest of my abilities...I should think that you should thank me."

"Thank you?" Stephanie asked.

"Well yes, this gives you more time to focus on the things that desperately need focusing on, like the paperwork I'm sure you're up to your ears in."

"Okay, whatever," Stephanie told him. She wasn't in the mood to deal with anything tonight, but she, like Chris, didn't feel like sitting home and letting there be no McMahon representation at the show. "Just don't screw it up, Regal."

"I'll have you know, and you should remember this, Stephanie, this is not my first time in this position. I did run your company if my memory serves me correctly."

"I said it was fine, William, can you go now?"

"Of course, Stephanie," he said, giving her a smile as he closed the door.

She groaned, "You'd think that they would tell me of these things instead of just springing it on me."

"Well, what would a Raw be if you didn't know what the hell was going on?" he joked.

She was glad to see him in a good mood again, "Yeah, I guess you're right, I wonder if my dad even knows about this. I mean, it's one thing to let Coach be in charge, but when it's not even Coach that's in charge, I don't know what he's going to think."

"I'm guessing...he won't care," Chris said.

"Oh, you'd like to make a wager on that?" she asked.

"No, no wager," he said, "because you've known your father longer, and I'm not going to be the one who has to do something stupid like...run out into the street in my underwear to get the newspaper while you lock the door on me and then laugh from the window."

"It was one time!" she protested. "I swear to God, you never let things go. Besides, I thought you looked really cute."

"And that's what my life's mission is, isn't it? Just to make you happy, right?" he told her.

"Well, it doesn't have you be your life's mission, but today's mission, I think that we can both deal with that. Now as for me, I have to call my father and tell him this, because I think he was either expecting Coach to be working the show tonight or me, he'd probably prefer me, you know how he loves to plaster the McMahon name on everything."

"Well, if he must, I would much rather it be your face than anyone else's," he told her.

"Still…I don't want to take the company from my brother, and sometimes I think that my father wants that for me, I don't understand why he wouldn't want Shane to be a part of it," she told him, honestly confused about that. "I just can't believe Shane would know that he was going to give it to me."

"Well, look at it from his point of view--"

"My father's or Shane's?"

"Your father's. I mean, you're here every week, without fail, unless there's something that comes up that is really big. You were here during pretty much your entire pregnancy, and the only time you didn't travel was when you were physically unable to do so. I mean, that's dedication, baby, and your father recognizes it."

"Shane is dedicated too," she argued, then shrugged as she picked up her phone and dialed her father's number.

She was glad to be rid of her father from her home. It had been his unofficial "hiding place" while he had faked his own death, in poor taste, of course. But her father was her father, and she and her family could do nothing but go along with his insane ideas. And since Shane and Marissa lived much too close to Vince and Linda, he only thought it fitting that he come to stay with his daughter and her husband. He hadn't been the model house guest that he had assured them he would be.

Her father was seemingly everywhere in that house, since he couldn't leave without a disguise on. Whenever she got a moment in her office to do some work, he would come in and tell her how to do it better. Whenever Chris would practice his bass, Vince would be there, wondering if he could play it softer because he was busy doing…something, they never could figure out just what he was doing. When they wanted to make out, or get intimate together, her father would be there. It was almost to the point where she thought Chris would literally kick him out of the house. The only saving grace had been Vince doting over Sawyer and wanting to take him out.

Of course, then Vince had to "observe" their home life, like he was an anthropologist or something and they were his study subjects. And every day he'd comment on how strange it was seeing them in their element as an actual family. Or he'd make note of a picture here or there, asking where they took it, why they took it. She'd found out over the course of a couple weeks that she could only take her father in small doses. Chris had questioned how she ever lived with that man growing up because he was annoying now.

"Hello?"

"Mom, hey," Stephanie said. "I was wondering if Dad was around."

"Oh yes, he's in his office, going over some things that needed to be pored over apparently, but business has been tough."

"I understand," she said, and she did, thinking back. "But I was still wondering if I could get a word with him, it would only take a minute, I just wanted to inform him of something so that he wasn't blindsided when he watches the show tonight."

"Of course then," Linda said kindly. "How are you all doing?"

"We're doing okay," Stephanie told her.

"How's Chris?" Linda asked gently. Stephanie glanced over at her husband as he sat on the ground playing with Sawyer. Sawyer kept trying to get Chris to chew on the book he was holding, but Chris was pushing it away and making a face, which made Sawyer want to shove it in Chris's face even more.

"He's doing okay," she said, smiling a little to herself.

"I appreciate everything he's done," Linda said, "and while your father might not come out and say it outright, he does too."

"I'm glad."

"He's representing us well."

"I agree," Stephanie said.

"Hold on, let me get your father."

Stephanie waited on the phone, watching Sawyer, who had forgone the book and had moved on to some large toy cars that he had. "Dada!"

"What!" Chris said with equal enthusiasm.

"Hi," Sawyer said impishly.

"Well hello," Chris said. "I wasn't aware that I hadn't seen you in a while, but hello, what do you have here?"

"Batta!" Sawyer answered.

"This is not a bottle," Chris said as he took the toy car from Sawyer. "I don't know what your mother has been telling you, but this is not one of your bottles."

"Don't blame me for that," she said as she heard a shuffling over the phone.

"Stephanie?"

"Hey Daddy, how are you?"

"Well, and yourself?"

"Same, anyways, what I wanted to tell you was Coach decided spontaneously that he needed to take a vacation, and Regal took over for him for the night, apparently on Coach's orders, so I let it go through, I didn't really care."

"What! He didn't even clear this with you?"

"No, he didn't," Stephanie said. "But it's fine, Daddy, I've got a lot of other things to do, as you know, I've been swamped with things to do, so actually it's a help, really, it is."

"Are you sure? Because if you want, I will call Coach myself and tell him to tell Regal that he has no business running the show without my permission, or your permission since you are in charge," Vince said, obviously steamed. "Things do have to go through you."

"I know this, Daddy, but it's okay, I'm fine with it. It's a load off my mind actually. And I'll still be at the gorilla like usual, it just means I don't have to go onscreen. It's better, Daddy," she said, trying to calm him down. Everything was setting him on edge right now.

"Okay, if you're sure."

"I am, I just didn't want you to blow your top when you saw it later, so I was just telling you now."

"Thank you, Princess," Vince said kindly. "How's my grandson?"

"Fine, Dad, but I've got to go, the show is starting soon."

"Oh, of course, I should go watch, I do need a break."

"You do, take it easy for once, Dad."

"Never," Vince boasted before saying his goodbyes. Stephanie hung up the phone and glanced down at her boys, who were still arguing over whether or not the car was a bottle.

"No, this is a car!"

"Batta!" Sawyer said firmly, slamming his hand down on the car for emphasis.

"I don't know what planet your from, Sawyer, but this is a car, not a bottle, so you should really learn that."

"Batta," Sawyer said definitively, and then used Chris's knee to hoist himself up. He actually glared at his father, a very familiar glare and then turned to Stephanie, toddling over to her slowly.

"Okay, you know, I never thought I'd get that look from anyone else, but it just happened. Sawyer glared at me just like you glare at me, so it's official, I've got two of you now," Chris said, running a hand through his hair. "I thought…maybe I could mold him in my image, maybe he could really be the next great Jericho, but nope, it's not to be, he's a McMahon through and through."

"Mama," Sawyer said, leaning his chin on her leg. She lifted him into his lap and Chris smiled at the two of them.

"You know, he's more like you than you think," Chris said, knowing that Stephanie asserted that Sawyer was just like the mini-version of Chris.

"You're just saying that."

"I'm not, it's true," he said.

"Sawyer, Mommy has to do work, so you're going to go with Daddy tonight, got it?"

"No," Sawyer said, leaning his head against her.

"Chris, come take your son."

"Come, son, let us take leave of your mother," Chris said in a bad British accent. He scooped Sawyer up into his arms and gave Stephanie a quick kiss.

"What are you going to do?"

"I'm meeting with your boy-toy. Your father thinks he's improving."

"I knew it!" Stephanie exclaimed, dancing around a little in her seat. "What did I tell you, Chris, what did I tell you? You didn't believe me, but I'm totally right, I'm right, you're wrong, so ha-ha-ha."

"What the hell was that?" Chris said. "I didn't say anything, and for all we know, improving means that he just doesn't suck anymore, but is nowhere near good."

"Thanks for ruining the buzz, Chris."

"Well, hate to break it to you sweetheart, but you're still looking at the best right here," he told her with a wink. "I mean, King of the World, Highlight of the Night, the Ayatollah of Rock and Rolla…"

"Who isn't even on television right now," she reminded him. "Maybe if my husband were on television, wrestling, doing amazing things, then I could be totally invested in his career, but as it stands right now…not so much, I need a distraction."

"Well, thanks, I'm so sorry that I'm not a distraction for you."

"You should be."

"I'm leaving," he said in mock anger. He opened the door and almost smacked right into Hunter. "Dude, what the hell?"

"Oh hey, I wasn't actually looking for you guys, but hey."

"What are you doing here?" Stephanie asked as she stood and came to stand by Chris.

"Well, I heard that they were going to start hyping my return tonight, and I wanted to be here to see it in person, kind of like when I was coming back in 2002, and I came to Vengeance because they were showing my video."

"Man, that night was awesome," Chris said as Hunter and Stephanie stared at him, "What? That was the night I won the Undisputed Championship, come on…remember? I beat Rock and Austin in one night, so technically I won the WCW _and_ the WWF belt, then that became the Undisputed Championship, and I was the first…you guys suck."

Hunter laughed, "I remember you celebrating that night, it was sickening."

"Where were you?" Chris asked his wife, then smirked, "Oh, that's right, you were kicked out of the company, I remember now."

"Low blow, Jericho," Stephanie deadpanned. "So you came all the way here just to see a video about…yourself?"

"Yeah," Hunter said like it was nothing.

"Are you seeing now why I didn't stay married to you?" Stephanie asked.

"Oh, I thought that was because you were sleeping with Chris," Hunter said, giving a glance in Chris's direction.

Chris scowled, "How many times do I have to tell you that I did _not_ sleep with your wife while you were married!"

"Oh, I don't know, until I believe it," Hunter joked, then turned to Sawyer, "Hey there tough guy, what new words have you learned?"

"Say hi to Hunter," Stephanie told him.

"Hi," he said obediently.

"Well, that'll get him far," Hunter sad.

"I've got work to do, you can wait around for this video," Stephanie said as she walked past him. Hunter and Chris looked after her. When she was gone, Hunter turned to Chris with a concerned and critical eye.

"Don't even ask, man."

"Sorry, I was just wondering."

"I'm not answering that question anymore," Chris said.

"Okay, how about this one then? What's this rumor I hear about you coming back?"

"Seriously, do people have some sort of secret network that I don't know about? How does everyone hear about these things?"

"So it's true? I get to kick your ass again, great," Hunter said with a satisfied nod. "Maybe we can come back together."

"Yeah, and let's go skip through a field of daisies while holding hands while we're at it," Chris said drolly. "I'm not coming back with you, thanks, but no thanks, because we both know that you'd have to steal the spotlight."

"I'm a little insulted, man," Hunter said.

"Yeah, says the guy who flew all the way down here to see a video of himself, why don't you just look in the mirror and flex a little, it's the same effect."

"Because I wanted to see my friends," Hunter said. "Besides, the mirror got boring and so did rehab, I'm ready for the change. So this video is the first step to coming back, it means that it's happening, what about you though?"

"Maybe by the end of the year," Chris said as he sat in Stephanie's chair. "I'm not sure yet, but the itch is coming back."

"I know Steph would love it."

"You're telling me."

"The company could probably use you too."

"So everyone tells me," Chris said. "I'm not even in ring shape though, so if I were going to, then I'd have to start training again, and getting that past Stephanie is going to be tough."

"So you know what you do?"

"What?"

"You pretend like you're going to train that kid she likes, Daniel what's-his-name, but you really use it to help yourself get into ring shape, while teaching that kid that it's hard getting into this business, and who knows, maybe if you're lucky, you'll scare him into quitting."

Chris thought about it for a second. That actually didn't sound too bad. It had the potential to kill two birds with one stone. He rubbed his chin a little, if he did that, then Daniel could either actually start to get better, or he'd quit. Then he'd be out of his hair, and Stephanie would stop bugging him about him. No, that didn't sound bad at all.

"I think that's the first good idea you've ever had," Chris said.

"No, I think the first good idea I ever had was divorcing Stephanie, I'm sure you'll agree."

"Whole-heartedly," Chris said. "And with the new training center in Tampa that her family--"

"Your family."

Chris rolled his eyes, "_My_ family opened, it would be the perfect opportunity. I'm going to be spending a lot of time there anyways because I'm helping with the scouting and whatever there. You know, this could actually work. It's good to have a twisted and manipulative friend…"

"Well, I shifted my focus on getting you and Stephanie apart onto other things, I know a lost cause when I see one."

"Good," Chris said. "Oh man, I want to go tell her now. Do you think you can watch Sawyer for a little while?"

"Anything for the tough guy," Hunter said as he took Sawyer from Chris.

"I won't be long."

--

"You know, Regal, I have to hand it to you, a Beat the Clock for a title shot, not a bad idea," Stephanie said to the man as he walked backstage. "It's better than anything Coach would've come up with, I'll tell you that."

"Thank you Ms. Stephanie," Regal said with a cordial bow.

"Maybe you should replace him permanently," she joked. "Of course, now I have to come up with opponents for them."

"If I may make some suggestions," Regal said, taking the seat next to her as he looked over the roster.

"Please do," she said, remembering how much of a suck-up Regal was, but he was a suck-up with good ideas, she would give him that. He pored over the roster, circling names and drawing lines to who they could be matched up against. Out of the corner of her eye, Stephanie saw Chris coming over and she turned to him.

"Hey, where's our son?"

"With Hunter," Chris said, "but he just had a brilliant idea. What if I trained and helped Daniel?"

"What?" Stephanie asked, surprised. "You'd do that for me?"

"It could be good, it would help him, don't you think?"

"Heck yes!" she exclaimed, hugging him, then pulling away, "Wait, you're not even in ring shape, you'd go in there and you wouldn't be ready to do anything against him, lack of training or not."

"This would help me get into ring shape," he said, just the right touch of suggestively. Stephanie raised an eyebrow and studied him critically.

"Chris, are you--"

"Stephanie, I think these match-ups will be adequate," Regal said with complete disregard of the conversation she was having with her husband.

She turned to him and studied the sheet in which he had written down the match-ups, "That looks fine. Hold on a second, Chris," she said, turning to him as she put her headphones on. "Hey, Mike, we've got a little change of plans for the show tonight, we're going to have Randy vs. Jeff, Booker vs. Val, Mr. Kennedy vs. Super Crazy, and then Lashley vs. Shelton, in that order…Yeah, tell production to cue it up. Thanks." She turned to Regal, "Okay, done, thanks William."

"Always a pleasure."

"Of course," she said, then turned back to Chris, but then she slapped her forehead and grabbed her walkie-talkie sitting in front of her. "Britt?"

A moment later, "Yeah, Steph?"

"Get the legal team to get a contract lined up for the WWE Championship. I have a feeling that it's going to be done tonight, so just make sure someone gets on that. Thank God we always have someone from legal here."

"Will do, Steph."

"Thanks, Britt," Stephanie said as she turned off the walkie-talkie and turned back to Chris, "Okay, back to you…are you thinking about coming back? I mean, getting into ring shape, that's a huge deal, Chris, that's like…that's like coming back…"

He bit his lip, he wanted to tell her so badly, because who knew what tomorrow might bring, but he still wanted a surprise for her. He leaned up to kiss her and she gave in to his kiss just like she always did. She placed her hands gently on his shoulders as he leaned up to get more of her mouth. She forgot her question for the time-being and Chris kissed her until he had his fill of her, drawing from her everything that he could ever possibly need, just like he always did.

"Mmm," Stephanie moaned softly as he pulled away.

"I promised Hunter I wouldn't be long, I better get back and go get the monster."

"Okay," she said dreamily. "I wouldn't want Hunter not to see his big video."

"Yeah," he said, but he didn't make a move to leave, not just yet. It was funny how here, in the arena, at work, was sometimes where he loved Stephanie the most, even more than when she was laying in his bed. But she was just so damn beautiful in her business suits, headset hanging around her neck and determination in his eyes. He never could figure out how he had ever gotten by without her. "You know, it'll almost be five years since we first got together."

"I know," she told him, "we have it marked on the calendar."

"You don't know how much you've meant to me these past five years, let alone these past five, ten, however many days."

She smiled at him, and spoke needing few words and only a look to get her point and her feelings across, "Go get our son, Chris."

He ran his hand down her cheek, just taking her in and thanking God above that he had found her when he did, and kept her for so long. She was his pillar when he didn't think he needed one. She said that he was the picture of strength, but it was never him. It was always her, and it would always be her, with her soft determination and steely resolve, yes, she would always be the strong one, even when she didn't believe it, and when he needed to lean on something, when he tried to not to fall, she was always there, always the one to ground him. So he didn't need any words to express himself either, not words full of emotion or passion, but a look that said it all, and words that meant not much.

"Yes, ma'am."


	142. Muddling Our Way Through, July 9, 2007

"Hey man, what's up?"

"Nothing, but coming to see you, haven't seen you in a while since I've been spending a lot of time with Tiff."

"Is she here?" Chris asked as he glanced over Christian's shoulder.

"Yeah, she's here, we got the passes that you left, thanks for that, wouldn't want to have to bribe security or anything."

Chris chuckled, "Yeah, I don't think that they would allow that, just a hunch, it's good to see you, you look good."

"Yeah, well Tiff and I took a weekend up to Maine, and let me tell you, that place is the most boring place I've ever been. There is literally nothing to do, not that I complained too much since I just well…you know."

"Oh, okay, yeah, and spare me the details."

"You should have to hear them since I have to hear about you and Stephanie. Is she here?"

Chris cocked his head to the side and gave Christian a look, raising up one eyebrow, "Do you think she's here?"

"Okay, okay, stupid question, I got it," Christian said. "She's at Raw, right, I'm right, right?"

"Yeah, she's at Raw," Chris said, "because where the hell else would she be? She didn't want to miss the show."

"Do you at least have the rugrat?"

"Nope, again, you think that Stephanie is going to give him to me? No way, I don't think she really likes to be away from him, besides, her prefers her over me."

"But aren't you staying at your house tonight?" Christian asked. "Wouldn't Stephanie prefer it if you had Sawyer so that he can sleep in one of his rooms tonight?"

"No, she'd rather have him with her because she doesn't trust me," Chris joked, "nah, she just doesn't like leaving him. She was nearly going crazy when we went to Europe without him, there's no way she'd let me take him, besides, I've got to think, you know…not worry about him."

"Yeah, I understand," Christian nodded. "You ready?"

"Well, it's not the only thing I've done," Chris said with a sigh, "you know, I never thought I'd be on this program, or any program trying to defend what I love."

"I don't think anyone was," Christian said, patting Chris on the shoulder. "You're doing a good thing though."

"So Stephanie tells me."

"I bet she's proud as hell of you."

"So she tells me, but…she's family, you know, the McMahon family, they're my family too, and I'm not going to sit back and watch them get totally trashed, that's…that's my family."

"So you finally accept it," Christian told him.

"Shut up," Chris said, ducking his head. "I love my wife, so I'm not going to let anything bad happen to her. I would never want that to happen, not to mention my son. There's no way I'm letting anything bad even touch him, hence the reason we don't even talk about him publicly."

"Yeah, true," Christian said as Tiffany walked up to the duo. "Hey babe."

"Hey," she said, then smiled at Chris, "Hey Chris, I wish we were meeting under better circumstances, but…well, hello anyways."

"Hey Tiff," he said, giving her a light hug in greeting.

"How's Stephanie?"

"She's fine," Chris told her. "She and Sawyer are in Louisiana tonight."

"Figures," she said. "I shouldn't have expected otherwise."

"Thanks for coming you guys, it's always nice to have moral support."

"Well, when you called and said that Vince would pay to have us privately flown out on the jet, how could we resist?" Christian asked. "Plus, Tiffany has a conference out here anyways."

"Not really a conference, more like a convention, in San Diego, for new products, you know, stethoscopes, weight scales, thermometers," Tiffany rambled, "so it's no big deal, and if we could offer you any kind of support, well, I mean, Christian could."

"Still, thanks for coming, I hate making the trip out alone, Steph doesn't like Sawyer flying cross-country anyways, and it's always a little lonely out here, and with the show that I'm doing, everything I've already done."

"Yeah, you need a friend," Christian said.

"Yeah, you can never have too many."

--

"Cacker!"

"I'm looking, I'm looking!" Stephanie said as Sawyer stood next to her, looking up at her. "Would you stop hovering around me? You're annoying me."

"Cacker!" Sawyer demanded, grabbing the bag in his hand.

"Okay, you are really annoying me right now," Stephanie said, grabbing his hand. "Sawyer, I am trying to look for your crackers, but you are grabbing everything, and you need to calm down, I am getting your crackers, but you need to stop being grabby."

"No!"

"Sawyer, look, Daddy is not here tonight, okay? So that means it's just you and me, and I have a lot of work to do, so will you please cooperate with me? Please?"

"No," Sawyer insisted, pushing on Stephanie's leg before trying to get in the bag to look for his crackers.

"Okay, you are being a naughty, little boy now, you can't be bossy, I'm the mommy, I get to be the bossy one," Stephanie said, picking him up. Sawyer started crying against her, slapping his hands against her. "Hey, hey, hey, stop hitting!"

"No!"

Stephanie rolled her eyes, "You're going to get a time-out, I'm telling you right now, Sawyer, you're going to get a time-out and you are going to hate it because you are going to sit in the playpen with no toys."

"No!" he screamed, tears streaming down his face. Stephanie winced and sighed. Sawyer missed Chris, it was so incredibly obvious. He didn't usually make the trip without Chris there to make him giggle and laugh. Stephanie wasn't the funny parent, that was obvious, and there was nobody here to make him giggle and he was getting cranky as a result. "Dada!"

"Oh baby boy," Stephanie said, cradling him against her and kissing his temple, "I know, I miss Daddy too, but we get to see him tomorrow. We're going to fly up home and he's going to be there."

"Dada," Sawyer sniffled as he clung to Stephanie's top.

"So where were you when all the books were saying you'd have separation anxiety and you didn't, only now you decide to get it," Stephanie joked softly. "You're a little late with it…baby boy, Daddy had very important business to take care of and we need to be supportive of him."

"No," Sawyer whimpered.

"I know, honey, I know," Stephanie said, rubbing the back of his head for a moment before she took her free hand and went into the bag, rummaging her hand around until she hit his box of crackers. "Hey, look what I found, baby boy? Your crackers."

"Cacker?" he asked, lifting his head to look up at her. His eyes were especially blue right now since he still had a few stray tears clinging in them. She smiled to herself; even if Chris wasn't around, she could still see his eyes whenever she wanted in Sawyer. That was a bit of a comfort to her while she missed Chris and hoped he was doing well.

"Yeah, see, your crackers, now we're not going to be a naughty boy, are we? Because we have to show Daddy that we can get by without him, he'll be very proud of you if you show him that you're a big boy."

"Yeah," Sawyer said, making a grab for the crackers. She handed him the box and he tried valiantly to open it up with his pudgy, small fingers. He managed to get the flap open, but was having difficulty with the plastic wrapped around the crackers.

"Do you want any help with that?"

"No," Sawyer told her.

"Okay then," she said, putting him down on the ground, "if you need any help though, you know where I'll be."

"No." Stephanie shrugged and went to her desk to look over some of the things that would be in Chris's territory. There were some schedules for shows that he needed to go to and she made a mental note to mark them on their calendar and to remind him that he needed to schedule this. There was also the new territory in Tampa that they had acquired and he was overseeing that so he had plans and things with that and she set that aside to give to him when she saw him later.

She glanced up to check on Sawyer's progress and saw that he had taken out the crackers from the box and was now trying to rip the plastic off of it. She sighed and got up, taking the crackers from him and pulling a couple out before giving them to him. He smiled up at her gratefully and sat down right in his spot to munch on them. She laughed a little and ruffled his hair before going back to her desk to look over the schedule for tonight's show.

It was pretty cut and dry, like it had been for the past couple of weeks. They weren't really doing anything that would be out there and draw more attention to them that was already on them. She bit her lip a little, every now and then looking up at Sawyer, who was still eating his crackers happily. She was glad someone was completely happy around here. She was thankful for the fact that Sawyer was so easy to please because she was getting pretty tired of the fake smile that she was wearing for everyone.

She was worried for Chris, in the general sense. She just didn't like the fact that he kept having to rehash everything over and over again. On the other hand, though, maybe talking about it helped. She thought back over her relationship with Chris and her relationship with Hunter. She and Hunter had never discussed anything and that hadn't worked. She and Chris talked to each other and it made it better. Maybe it was the same with this situation. Well, if he needed her, he always knew where she was.

"Hey sis," Shane said, walking into the room, "Dad was wondering if he could get a hold of Chris after the show because he needed to talk about the Tampa territory, so if you talk to Chris before Dad does, which you will, could you let him know that Dad is calling him."

"What does Dad want to know, maybe I can help him," Stephanie said, "I just don't want to bug Chris, I know that he's really swamped, and I don't really have much to do since the show is pretty well-set tonight."

"Yeah, I think it's more evals," Shane said, sitting down in the chair in front of her. "Nothing is really getting advanced, I guess...I just guess that nobody really knows how to proceed."

"Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da," she shrugged before going back to her work.

"Excuse me?"

"You know, The Beatles, Ob-la-di, ob-la-da, life goes on...sorry, Chris has been listening to them, and their songs are stuck in my head," she apologized.

"He's been doing a really good job, you couldn't have married a better guy."

"Do you have a crush on my husband?" Stephanie teased.

"Yeah, I'm going to confess my love for him when he comes back...but look at you, five years almost," Shane said, starting a slow clap for her. She laughed and blushed, and it was such a foreign look to her.

"Yeah..."

"I can't believe you guys have been together for almost five years," Shane said, "It amazes me that he's put up with you for that long."

She flipped him off, "He loves me."

"A wonder to us all,"Shane said to her. Off her look, he laughed, "Come on, Steph, I know more than most that you're not the most easy woman to live with. You're just like Dad."

"Eww, take that back!" Stephanie exclaimed, "I'm nothing like him, and to that, I'm leaving, I've got things to take care of. Come on, Sawyer, grab your crackers."

"Cackers!" Sawyer exclaimed, pushing himself up. Shane watched as Stephanie took the little boy's hand in hers and they walked slowly to the door. Stephanie opened it for him and he toddled his way into the hallway. He looked both ways before deciding to go left, which incidentally was the way that Stephanie needed to go.

They walked to Coach's office, where Stephanie knocked on the door. Coach showed up a moment later, sucking up as much as ever, "Stephanie! So nice to see you, you're looking lovely tonight, and Sawyer, he's growing up quick."

"Yeah, I just wanted to see if you had any revising for the show tonight that you need to tell me before we get underway."

"I think we're good," Coach said.

"You know, at first, last week, with you giving Regal the go ahead for the show, I was a little wary, but I have to say that you made a really good choice. He did a really good job around here," Stephanie told him. "He was actually engaging and he thought of some very good matches, if you see him, tell him I said that."

"Oh," Coach said, looking a little bit miffed, which Stephanie didn't pick up on since Sawyer was hugging her leg and yawning.

"Yeah, so if you ever need vacation time, I know who can replace you while you're gone," she joked, but he didn't look like he was in the mood to joke. Her eyes widened in a look of confusion and she turned to go since Coach looked like he wanted to slam the door in her face at any moment.

Stephanie's cell phone rang and she grabbed it and looked at the display. She immediately picked up the call, "John, hello."

"Hey, Steph, you called? I saw your number on my phone like five times, what's up?"

"First of all, how did it go? I didn't get a chance to watch it."

"Fine, your husband done good," John said.

"Okay, that's not what I called about...anyways, I sent the video crew to your hotel, they should be there shortly, since the show just started, but I wanted to make sure that you were at your hotel or somewhere near there because I have you on in the second hour, but I need to make sure that you have enough time to get there or else this whole thing is a wash."

"Oh yeah, I completely forgot about that," Cena said.

"John," she said in exasperation. "I know that we were the ones that sent you out there as one of our representatives, but seriously, you need to remember your responsibilities here as well."

"I know, I'm sorry, it was just pretty intense," John said and Stephanie softened at that. She could only imagine.

"Okay, sorry, sorry," she apologized quickly. "If you can make it to your hotel, that's fine. I have a direct link between the crew and production over here, so you pretty much need to be there to discuss your upcoming match. I'm not sure how much time you're going to have, so try to be somewhat short and to the point. Really, all you need to do is be there."

"I can be there, they set us up pretty close."

"Good," Stephanie told him. "Thank you for doing that, by the way. I'm sure that you represented us well."

"I tried...really, your husband is a rockstar."

"Wow, coming from the guy who got him kicked out of the company," Stephanie said, cracking a joke with John for...probably the first time in years and years since she had been the SmackDown General Manager and he had been one of her wrestlers.

"Yeah, sure, we both know that happened because you got yourself knocked up," he joked back, and it felt good to him to let loose just a little bit.

"Partly," Stephanie admitted. "Are you still in the studio?"

"Yeah, we really just got done," he told her. "Chris is still here if that's what you wanted to know."

"It was, but I'm sure I'll be talking to him later, so don't worry about it. Just worry about getting to your hotel."

"Yes ma'am," John said, and she could almost picture him saluting her or something. "Later, Stephanie."

"Bye, John," she said, hanging up and putting her cell phone back in its case. She looked down at Sawyer who now had his head leaning against her leg. "I know, baby, it's almost time for bed, but Daddy should be calling soon and I know that you want to hear his voice."

"Dada," Sawyer smiled.

"Yeah, Daddy is done with his obligations, so it's on to us now," she said, scooping him up and letting him rest against her. "So do you know Mommy's checklist by heart now? Because I would start leaving my clipboard behind if you could just tell me everything that I need to do."

"No."

"Damn, that's too bad," Stephanie said, "and here I was hoping that you could actually be of use to me instead of just being that cute, little thing that's attached to my hip."

"Steph!"

Stephanie turned around and saw Hunter walking towards her. "Hunter, what are you doing here?"

"Doesn't your husband tell you anything?"

"No, he pretty much tells me nothing, we only talk in passing."

"He is heading up talent relations, am I correct in assuming that?"

"You are correct, sir," she said, "so what did Chris fail to tell me that you had to tell me yourself?"

"I'm back."

"You're...back?" she questioned, looking at him skeptically. "I didn't plan anything for you on the show tonight."

"No, I'm not _back_ back, I'm just back as in backstage, I'm back on the road, you know, traveling with the company," he explained to her.

"Why?" she asked.

"What? Why shouldn't I?"

"Uh...because you're still rehabbing for one, have you even gotten medical clearance?"

"I don't know if you know this, Stephanie, but your company has a pretty good bank of personal trainers who are equipped to help get someone into shape. My doctor said that I could rehab on the road. I'm tired of sitting around, you know that I hate that."

She thought back to their marriage and how eager he had been to get back in the ring. It got to the point where he focused solely on returning and nothing else in his world mattered, especially not her. "Yeah, I know you hate that."

"Yeah, so I wanted to come back, at least get into the swing of traveling again. I can walk, I'm just not in ring shape, but neither is Chris and he's..." Hunter started coughing and Stephanie tilted her head to look at him. She studied him for a moment, wondering where he was going to go with that question.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"No, not nothing, Chris is getting back into ring shape?" Stephanie asked, her breath stunting just the tiniest bit.

"No, I meant with him helping this Daniel guy that you like, he's obviously going to _inadvertently_ get into ring shape, you know, since he'll be in the ring helping the guy, and he might help other guys too, Chris would be good at that job, hey, maybe he should help me," Hunter finished lamely, gritting his teeth a little into a very uncomfortable smile.

"You're up to something," she said shrewdly, gazing at him long and hard. "Are you and Chris in on something that I don't know about?"

"Yeah, right, me and Chris, I hate that guy."

"No, you don't."

"Well, not now, but I did."

"You're confusing me."

"_You're _confusing _me_," he shot back, hoping to throw her off the trail. He couldn't believe he almost let Chris's secret slip. He knew first-hand how much Chris wanted to surprise Stephanie. He wracked his brain to think of something to change the subject, "So you and Chris, five years, huh?"

"What...oh, oh, yeah, five years on the 18th, it's pretty nuts," she told him, still trying to mull over the almost slip that Hunter had. She suddenly felt like she was out of the loop or something.

"What are you guys doing for it?"

"I don't know," she shrugged, "I mean, usually, we kind of make a big deal out of it, more so than our wedding anniversary. I mean, five years together, that's something right, maybe we'll have an anniversary party, or maybe we'll just spend it at home."

"Either way, you can't go wrong."

"No...so you think that Chris getting into ring shape is a good thing?" Stephanie said.

Hunter groaned inwardly, Chris was going to kill him if Stephanie found out before Chris was ready to tell her. He had spoken to Chris just a couple of days ago and Chris had said that when he planned to come back, he was going to try not to tell Stephanie at all, and he would just walk past her station and out there, not even seeing her reaction until he walked back through the curtain. Wait, station!

"Hey, why aren't you at your station?"

"Oh, Shane is here tonight to help me out since Chris is out in Los Angeles," she explained. "So he's got it covered because I have Sawyer."

"He looks sleepy," Hunter said, throwing his hand in Sawyer's direction. She looked down at her little boy, who did look sleepy. He still had half a soggy cracker in his hand, the crumbs all down the front of his blue-and-white striped polo shirt. She grabbed a tissue out of her pocket and wiped his mouth with it, Sawyer pulling away stubbornly and whining a little.

"He is, we're just waiting for Chris to call to say goodnight, aren't we, baby?"

"Yeah," he whimpered quietly.

"Poor guy."

"So wait, did Chris say that he _wants_ to get into ring shape, or he's just going to get into ring shape?"

"That latter, definitely," Hunter nodded. "Maybe you should call Chris so that Sawyer can get to bed."

"Why are you trying to change the subject so much?" Stephanie asked. "I know how tired my son is."

"I'm just saying, you wouldn't want to deprive your son of sleep, right, and...well, I think I might go talk to...some guys..."

"What guys? Not too many people like you around here, and Vic is on SmackDown, so I know you can't be off to see her. You just want to avoid this conversation because you know something that I don't know and you don't want me to find out."

"You think I know something about Chris that you don't? You're his wife."

"Yeah, I guess...he wouldn't keep things from me, he loves me too much for that," she said, more to herself than to him. "I guess...I'm just overzealous I guess, I haven't been pressuring him to return, so I guess I just needed to take it out on someone."

"It's cool, so uh...yeah, going now."

"Bye, Hunter."

"Later Steph, later tough guy."

"Say bye-bye, Sawyer."

"Bye," Sawyer breathed out, obviously on the verge of sleep.

"Okay, baby, I know, I'm sorry, let's go see if we can find Daddy and talk to him."

--

"So dinner, good, this place is nice," Christian said, looking around at the restaurant. "And it's nice to just get out the two of us, since Tiff went to meet that friend of hers and Steph is being Steph."

"Yeah."

"You know, you're doing a good thing."

"You think so. It's hard."

"Life is supposed to be hard, didn't anyone ever tell you that. I mean, look at us, man, we both worked our way up from nothing, and now we're here, living it up, two gorgeous women on our arms, and for you, a kid to be proud of."

"Yeah, life has turned out pretty well, considering."

"We're both lucky, man, remember that," Christian reminded him.

"I don't need reminding for that," Chris said, thinking about Stephanie and Sawyer, his family, the two people that mattered most to him in this world. Everything he did, he did for them, every word he spoke was for them.

"Yeah, but did you ever think we'd get here, I mean, well, look at you, married to the daughter of the king of wrestling."

"I never intended for that to happen."

"But it did."

"Yeah, it did."

"I'm sure she appreciates the great attention you've paid to protect her."

"I don't think she really knows that I'm protecting her," Chris said, running his finger around the rim of his water glass. "All the better though, the things I do for Stephanie I don't need to be loud about it."

"Yeah, I get you...so...you'd let Sawyer be a wrestler?"

"Hell yeah I would. Stephanie and I both want that for him, something in the business. He loves it already," Chris chuckled. "But if he wants to be something else, that's cool too, as long as it's not like...dangerous...or stupid."

Christian laughed, "I can't imagine Stephanie accepting the fact that Sawyer would not want to be in the company."

"Yeah, she might just force him. Whatever he wants though, I'm all for."

"When I have kids, I'm going to be the same way."

"So have you told Tiffany about the whole loving her thing?"

"Yeah, I told her," Christian said proudly and he couldn't stop the grin from coming to his face. "It was hard, I won't lie, but I feel it, and she needed to know."

"And Trish?"

"Trish is...Trish. I don't know, she's always going to have a part of my heart, but I can't just sit around waiting for her."

"So if she was to...I don't know, come to you tomorrow, tell you she loved you, and had a real conversation with you, a real one, like where she talked about how she felt, and she said she wanted you back, you would..."

"Thanks for breaking out the big guns," Christian said, but then went quiet. He didn't quite know how to answer that. Was there even an answer that would suffice to that? He and Trish had shared so much, but not all of it was good, but he wouldn't trade any of that in. Yet, he was extremely happy with Tiffany. She made him happy in a way that Trish hadn't for a long time. He didn't feel inadequate when he was around Tiffany, and he didn't feel like he was constantly competing with himself to be the best boyfriend. Shouldn't that mean she'd win?

"I notice you're not answering."

"Well, in the event Trish ever does that, I will tell you what I decide."

"I'm just glad I have no problems like this anymore. You know, once you're married, you realize how shitty the dating game is. You go out with someone for a while, you break up, you find someone else and it's all about finding the right person, 'the one' so to speak, and I'm just glad I'm settled. I hated dating, especially with my schedule, I could never find a girl who wanted to stick around if I wasn't there."

"That's what's great about TNA for me, it's lighter, it gives me more time to spend with Tiff, and she doesn't even mind because she works all the time too. I should marry her."

Chris laughed, "Okay, no more alcohol for you, dude, you've had _way_ too much."

"Shut up, it's a thought, in the future. I love being with her."

"Figure out where you are with Trish before you ever propose to someone else, do not make the same mistake that she did with Carlito. That guys is still torn up about it."

"I would be too, hell, if Trish had ever agreed to marry me, and then I found out she loved someone else, supposedly, I'd be an ass too."

"I fail to see what is so great about Trish, I love her, she's my friend, but yeah...don't see it."

"Uh, maybe because you have a wife."

Chris's cell phone vibrated and he grabbed it from its holder and looked at it, "Speak of the she-devil, this would be the wife now. I'll be right back, man." Chris got up and went to the bathroom area, leaning against the wall before answering the phone. "Hey, baby."

"Hey, sweetie, how did it go?"

"It went," he said with an inadvertent sigh, and he hoped that she hadn't heard him.

"That doesn't sound good."

"No, it was okay, it's just the subject matter that gets to me."

"It will for a while. You're doing a good thing."

"So people are telling me," he said. "I want the truth to be known though, and I like doing that part of it. Plus...never-mind...what's up?"

"Well, the monster is just about to fall asleep, literally, he dozed off while I was changing him and putting his pajamas on, but we're trying very hard to stay awake so that we could say goodnight to you, but we had to wait until after your interviews."

"Poor kid, how's the show going?"

"It's fine," she told him casually. "There's nothing to it, I think we're just really trying to ease back into the routine, it's been hard, but I don't have to tell you that. Shane is here to help me tonight, good thing too, since Sawyer has been clingy. He misses you, he was crying earlier because you weren't here, and I don't make him laugh nearly as much as you do."

"You're not the cool parent."

"You're sure that you're okay though, right? Nobody verbally attacked you and called you pretty boy or something, or even worse, someone called out the fact that your hair is short," she said, trying to lighten the mood a little even though she was so far away.

"Stephanie, you're the only one that cares about my hair."

"I'm also the only one you're allowed to stick it in, so I'm allowed to say whatever the hell I want about your hair," she told him. "So Hunter is back on the road...oh wait, you knew that, right? You know, if I had a husband who was in talent relations and he knew one of our biggest wrestlers was coming back, I hope he would tell me."

"Sorry, but you know how much this trip has weighed on my mind. So he's there I'm guessing."

"Yeah, he's here."

"You didn't sleep with him, right?"

"Oh...is that against the rules?" she asked. "Next time, inform your boss of any incoming wrestlers."

"My boss is a bitch, I can't stand her," he said.

"Hunter also said something interesting, he mentioned you getting into ring shape, and I just found it odd he would use those words, is there anything that you want to tell me Mr. Jericho that would possibly make my entire year?"

"I love you?" he said, mentally cursing Hunter. That was the last time he told the older man anything.

"Well, that's old news, more like...coming back news?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"I figured as much, I'm just thinking that now would be as good a time as any to get you back, shift focus to the future, you know, get things back on track. The fans would get a kick out of it and I know that we could work something fantastic for you. I just...I miss the old Chris Jericho...not that I don't love the recent incarnation because I know you on a deeper level than most people, I don't know, I just...I kind of miss the old you, the one that I could see in the ring, the charisma that shot through the screen, but it's not a big deal."

"Steph..." He wanted to tell her, oh God did he want to tell her after hearing the tone of her voice. It wasn't sad, it was just...wistful, like she was honestly reminiscing and seeing old times through her rose-colored glasses.

"Let me get the monster, he wants to talk to you before he goes to sleep." Stephanie took the phone over to Sawyer and put it up to his ear, letting the little boy take the lead and bring the phone closer to him.

"Hi," he said, looking up at Stephanie.

"Kid, hey, what's up?"

"Dada!" Sawyer said, recognizing the voice. He looked up excited at Stephanie with a bright smile on his face, his previous fatigue completely forgotten about as he heard his father's voice. Stephanie sat next to him and let him lean his elbow on her leg as he shifted on the couch in utter giddiness.

"Yeah, that's me, cool, you know my name," Chris joked. "Are you being good for Mommy?"

"Dada!"

"Avoiding the question."

"Yeah."

"Oh, so you have been naughty then."

"Yeah," Sawyer said, accidentally implicating himself. Now he was practically in Stephanie's lap as he lay partially on his stomach, holding the phone more firmly in his small grip. He turned to look at Stephanie again as he giggled happily.

"Do you miss me, kid, because I missed you, and then I was forced to think about you, not that I don't think about you all the time. You're my kid, of course I think about you, and you better be good for Mommy, or she'll put you in time-out and I'm not there to help you."

"Yeah."

"Okay, well, put your mommy back on so you can get some shut eye."

Stephanie let Sawyer stay on the line for a few more minutes before she took it back from him. He laid his head down on her leg as she went back to the conversation with Chris. "I've got your work to do here, Chris, so I'm just going to go. I'll call you before I go to bed later, and we'll discuss what we're going to do about the living situation, and where we're going to go and meet up."

"Sounds good." He really just wanted to tell her what he was planning. That he was planning on coming back, he didn't know when, but it was going to happen.

"I should be watching the show right now," she admitted, "you know the actual wrestling that we do."

"Wefle," Sawyer said, his voice muffled against Stephanie's leg.

"Sawyer, what did you just say?" Stephanie asked as she pulled the phone away from her ear.

"Wefle," he repeated, "Wefle, wefle, wefle!"

"Sawyer!" she exclaimed. She put the phone back up to her ear, "Chris, Sawyer just said wrestle, he said wrestle! He's so going to be in the business now, listen!" She held the phone up to him, "Say what you just said, Sawyer, so Daddy could hear."

"Wefle!"

"Did you hear that, Chris?"

He chuckled, "Yeah, I heard that, he's well on his way to becoming a wrestler now."

"So do you think he'll debut before you come back? What are the odds on that?"

Yeah, he should tell, just let her know right now, put her out of his misery. "Well, Steph." Sawyer grabbed the phone from Stephanie's hand and started pushing the buttons, hitting the one to end the call, just as Chris said, "I'm thinking about coming back." He listened for a moment. "Stephanie...Steph?"

The phone vibrated a few seconds later and Chris answered, figuring that it was Stephanie calling back. "Sorry, sweetie, Sawyer grabbed the phone and hung it up, he must've learned that from you since you hang up on me a lot, you were saying something?"

"Nothing...just that I love you."

"Is that all?" she asked with a laugh, "because I kind of already knew that."

"Yeah, that's all."


	143. Five Years and Counting, July 16, 2007

A/N: Five years ago on Wednesday, Stephanie wouldn't hug Chris and I wanted to write a story explaining why. So I did, a short one-parter, not even 1000 words. Someone told me to write more, to keep going with it. So I did…and I kept writing, and I kept writing, and so forth and so on until I ended up with this monstrosity of a story.

I love it though, writing it, reading it over, I love all of it. I hope you do too, and if you don't well…oh well, can't please them all I guess. But anyways…I love this story. And I still feel that I have so much story left to tell, I don't even feel like I've scratched the surface, which is completely frightening, I know.

But I hope you enjoy this chapter anyways, and as a celebration of this story, I've updated every single one of my stories PLUS, I will have a special anniversary chapter up on Wednesday, which is the actual five-year anniversary of this crazy story. :)

So if you will, and I hate begging, but I will, please leave a review, I mean, come on, five years, don't you think I deserve one review? Hee, thanks. :)

* * *

Stephanie walked into her office, Sawyer on her hip. Once she was inside the door, she set Sawyer down first, and then his diaper bag, keeping a hold of her own bag. Sawyer toddled over to the couch, the first thing he always did, and like always, he tried to climb on, even though it was way too high and he ended up half on and half off, calling for his mommy to help him. Stephanie went over to her desk, and she shook her head as she gazed down at the top of her desk.

Chris came in a moment later, and surveyed the room and the people inside. Stephanie looked up at him curiously, and he glanced down at the tabletop, "Hey, what's that?"

"What's this?" Stephanie asked, looking down, "Well, why don't you tell me?"

"I didn't send those," Chris said, looking at the five roses sitting on top of her desk, bundled up with a blue, satin ribbon. "Who sent them?"

"Chris?" Stephanie said knowingly. "You've been sending me things everyday for the past week, last Wednesday, it was my favorite ice cream, last Thursday, it was lingerie, which, I don't want to know what that has to do with ice cream, Friday it was a new briefcase, Saturday and Sunday you gave me tickets to a concert and a Broadway play, so I'm pretty sure you sent these."

"Nope, not my doing, sorry," Chris shrugged.

"There are five roses, five, for every year we've been together," she said, holding up the bouquet. She looked at the card, and it read, "Mommy," on it, and Stephanie looked at Chris with annoyance.

"Do you know who sent it?" he asked, trying to hold in his smirk.

"Well, since only one person calls me Mommy," she said, sitting down and plucking the card out of the flowers. She opened it and looked down, reading aloud, "Mommy, thank you for not hugging Daddy, love Sawyer."

"Wow, nice, kid, real nice," Chris said, turning to Sawyer, who, as predicted was hanging off the couch, one leg on top of the cushion, the other one hanging. Chris went over and gave him a boost, pushing on his little bottom to help him up.

"Sawyer's handwriting looks suspiciously like yours," Stephanie said with a smile this time, still thinking that it was a nice gesture. Chris had been going all out for her in the week leading up to their five year anniversary.

Chris came over and looked at the card, "Yeah, that doesn't look like my handwriting," he said, pointing to the top of the card where there were different color scribbles from Sawyer's crayons. "But it's nice to know that he's grateful, right? I mean, if you had just hugged me that night, then I would have no reason to believe that you were attracted to me, and I would've lived happily ever after without you."

"Yes, don't act like being with me has been any good or anything," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes.

"Oh, it's been good, I'll admit to that," he said, leaning against the desk. "You said that you didn't want to do anything special _on_ our anniversary, but you didn't say anything about the days around our anniversary."

"Yeah, I realize that," she said. "but I still don't want to do anything, I mean, seriously, it's a big deal, we're going out to dinner, and Christian is babysitting Sawyer, but it's like, being together is good enough, being with you is the only thing that I need."

"How romantic of you, Steph," Chris told her, leaning down to kiss her. "Still, I want you to know that for the most part, the past five years have been great…a little weird at times, but overall great."

"Well, I've tried to make it as easy as possible for you," she told him. "So let's get this straight, you're planning on leaving me on Thursday, right? You've done your five-year sentence, so you'll be moving on, correct?"

"Yeah, I think that was the deal we signed, and I get a bonus for giving you a child, I think that was in there, what do you consider fair compensation for that?" he questioned, jerking his thumb over towards the couch where Sawyer was happily hitting the arm of the couch.

"We can figure that out later," she said, grabbing his hands. "I'm glad I didn't hug you."

"You and me both," he said, then looked back to Sawyer, "What the hell is he doing?"

"I don't know, I think he's starting his training now, look at that punch, he'd do some damage."

"Speaking of that, Daniel told me that he's coming down to Florida later this week, so…"

"If you're asking me to let him stay with us, I'm going to say no, that house is still in _my_ name and the last thing I'm doing is letting that guy stay with us."

"Nice to know that after five years you still get jealous of me," Stephanie said, putting her hands over her heart. "It's sweet, really, and cute. I mean, look at you, thinking that I'm actually going to go out and cheat with Daniel."

"I'm not jealous," he scoffed, not making eye contact with her. "Please, why in the hell would _I_ be jealous of some…dude? I've been with you for five years…no jealousy here."

"Uh huh," she said, placing her hands on his knees, "Why are you so jealous?"

"Now you're just teasing me," he said, getting up, "but he's not staying at our house!"

"I didn't invite him to stay in our house," she chuckled. "That'd be really weird, he's not a friend or anything, he's just someone that I see potential in, big difference, so don't worry, I'm not going to suddenly rip my clothes off in his presence and offer myself up to him."

"Well that's…a relief."

"And if you tell me you actually thought I'd rip off my clothes and offer myself up to him, you've really, really learned nothing in the past five years that you've been with me," she told him, giving him a pat on the knee, "now if you'll excuse me, I've got things to do, so do you have the monster?"

"Yeah, I've got him," Chris said, getting up and going over to the couch, where Sawyer was still hitting the couch like it was a punching bag. "Whoa, kid, what the heck are you so mad about?"

"I told him he couldn't hit me or anyone else, so he's letting that couch know that he's the boss," Stephanie said as she came over and stilled Sawyer's hands, kneeling next to the couch so she was facing him. "Can I have a kiss goodbye, baby boy?"

Sawyer leaned forward, his lips puckered up as he bumped lips with his mommy, giving her a kiss, "Mama."

"Love you too," she told him, winking at Chris.

--

Hunter walked down the hallway and spotted someone rather familiar up ahead of him, someone that he didn't expect to be here. He narrowed his eyes and stalked over as fast as his leg would let him. He grabbed the guy by the shoulder and turned him around. He relished in the surprised look on his face.

"What the hell are you doing here, Angle?" Hunter asked.

"None of your damn business," Kurt said as he glared at Hunter.

"Well, you don't work here, and you aren't friends with anyone here. And yeah, I know you're going to pretend like Stephanie is your friend again, but we both know differently, don't we?" Hunter said, looking at him suspiciously. "I know an untrustworthy person when I see one, hell, I am one."

"Let me go," Kurt said, "or I will kick your ass."

"I'll kick yours first, now tell me why the hell you're here," he demanded.

"No freaking way," Kurt said. "Why I'm here has nothing to do with you."

"Stephanie is my friend, and I'll be damned if I let you hurt her like you did before. You say you're reformed, but you're not, let's both be real."

"Yeah, I wasn't, I'll admit that, and it took me a lot sooner to realize that…as I recall, you tried to break Stephanie and Chris up for years."

"I did, which is why I'm trying to make up for that, so I think that you should get your ass out of here before Stephanie sees you."

"No," Kurt insisted. "You're not security _and _you don't run things around here, so if you think that I'm going to leave just because _you_ said so, then you're sorely mistaken, now get out of my way because I need to see Stephanie."

"I'm not letting you see her," Hunter said, shoving Kurt in the chest.

"You have no say," Kurt said, pushing back.

Hunter lunged at Kurt, who took the brunt of the blow in his chest. It nearly knocked him over, and while he was trying to get his bearings, Hunter was able to gain a clear upper-hand. But Kurt was wily and managed to get some shots in on Hunter. A crowd was starting to gather around them when Stephanie walked down the hallway. She saw a group of people and as she walked closer, hear the distinct sounds of a fight. She quickened her pace and pushed her way through the crowd. Needless to say, she was surprised to see who was fighting, especially since one of the guys didn't even work here.

Realizing her place, she went up tot hem and grabbed the nearest one to her, which happened to be Kurt, "You guys, stop!" she screamed, "Cut it out!" They didn't listen to her and she had to step back quickly in order not to get hit. That just made her angrier and she yelled at the wrestlers watching, "Are you just going to stand there, get them apart!"

Heeding their boss's warning and knowing she had a husband who could be not kind, they pulled Hunter and Kurt apart. Both were breathing heavily, glaring at each other. Hunter's hair was disheveled and their clothes were awry. Stephanie stepped in between the two and just stared at them individually for a moment.

"What the hell is going on here?"

"He started it," Kurt said through gasps.

"It was his fault!"

Stephanie let out her breath in exasperation, running one hand through her hair, "Okay, everyone except Kurt and Hunter, get the hell out of here before I suspend you!"

Everyone scurried away and Stephanie again looked between the two of them. He grabbed both of them by the sleeves and dragged them into a spare hallway where nobody was walking. Hunter stood on one side, still glaring at Kurt, his eye throbbing from a particularly hard shot from Kurt. Kurt licked the blood from his lip and glared equally as mad at Hunter.

"Okay, you two better start explaining what happened, and Kurt, what are you even doing here?" Stephanie asked. "I thought that you were in Florida, why…why are you even here?"

"Yeah, Kurt, why are you even here?" Hunter said snidely.

"Hunter, shut it," Stephanie warned.

Kurt ran his hand on his lip, feeling the swelling there, "I wanted to come see you, I needed to talk to you and Chris."

"About what?" Stephanie asked.

"I'd rather not say in front of _him_," Kurt said, looking over at Hunter in anger. Hunter snarled at him.

"Don't trust him, Stephanie," Hunter said. "He's a jackass."

"So were you," she said, "and don't tell me what to do, Hunter, we're not married anymore, and even if we were, I wouldn't let you tell me what to do. I don't even let Chris tell me what to do, Sawyer, maybe, but not Chris."

"Sorry," he mumbled as he hunched over a little bit.

"I just need to speak to you and Chris," Kurt said. "If that's any and at all possible, is he here tonight?"

"Yes, he's here…you should've called, Kurt, you know that we're busy on Mondays," Stephanie said. "Is it really important?"

"Yeah, I think it is," he told her seriously.

She sighed, "Hunter, you can leave us alone now, I think that I'll be okay, I can take care of myself."

"But, Steph--"

"It's okay, we'll talk later, and for the love of God, please don't get into any more fights around here, you're coming back soon, we don't need you to get injured needlessly in a fight with someone you shouldn't have been fighting with in the first place."

"Fine, fine," he said, brushing past Kurt without another word. He looked to Stephanie with a smile, "I'll see you later, Steph."

"Okay," she said plainly before drawing her attention back to Kurt. "Okay, you've got some explaining to do. I've got the show in twenty minutes and Chris has a lot of things to do as well with the new training facility in Tampa and training a wrestler, so you've got minimal time to speak."

"Thank you for hearing me out."

"Well, you almost gave me no choice, you came all this way, the least that I can do is hear what you have to say. What is this about anyways?"

"Everything, I mean, that happened with us, you and me, and Chris too, I just…I need to talk to you is all," he said uncomfortably, rubbing the back of his head and then coming over to his face.

Stephanie just looked at him for a long moment. He did look troubled. She hadn't had too much contact with Kurt, but she had been convinced that they were doing okay, or at least…they didn't hate each other. She didn't feel the closeness that she had once had with him, that was for sure, but she felt like she was in a place where she could at least send him a Christmas card and not have it be a bitter reminder of what used to be.

"I can get him, he's probably just looking over documents or talking to my father about the diva search or something," she said quietly, as if using a louder voice would disrupt the quiet of this moment.

"Okay," Kurt said, his tone matching her own.

She grabbed her cell phone, her easiest link to Chris and dialed his number, all the while wondering what it was that Kurt had to discuss with her, and with Chris for that matter. She knew that Chris distrusted Kurt, and was upset by how the man before her had treated her after his departure from the company. She wasn't even sure that he would listen to anything that Kurt had to say.

"Hi!"

Stephanie laughed a little, "Hey baby, can you put your daddy on the line?"

"Mama!" Sawyer said excitedly.

Stephanie heard a shuffling, and then Chris come over the line, "Oh hey, Steph, I was teaching Sawyer how to answer the phone so that he could be my assistant and actually do work around here instead of sitting around like a lazy, little kid."

"How's that working out for you?"

"He's a people person, but he has horrible communication skills," Chris said, "so what's up? I wasn't expecting to see you or talk to you for a while since your dad isn't here, and I've got that important weekly call with him."

"Oh yeah, my dad likes to know about the progress," Stephanie said. "Anyways, Kurt is here and he wants to talk to us, are you still in my office?"

"Kurt wants to talk to us?" Chris asked skeptically.

"Yes," Stephanie said, turning away from Kurt to have a more private conversation with Chris, even though Kurt was still right there and could probably hear everything that Stephanie was saying. He really hoped that Chris would give him a chance to talk, but Chris had a temper, and he could hold a grudge, like Stephanie could.

"Oh Lord, what does he want?"

"I don't know, really, I don't."

"If this is some lame attempt to make us friends again, I'm not going to go for it," Chris told her. "I'm done with him, if you want to be friends with him, fine, I don't care, but I'm not going to be friends with him, sorry."

"Chris," she hissed, "I think he's serious, please, will you do this for me?"

"Stephanie, no, I'm done with him," Chris told her. "I hate what he did to you, and I'm not so easy to forgive. I'm sorry, but you're on your own."

"Chris, please…you've been doing a million things for me this week when I haven't asked for anything, but this, I'm really asking you to do it."

"Stephanie, that's low," Chris said. "All that stuff was to celebrate our anniversary."

"Exactly," she told him. "But this is what I really want from you, please, please, please, please. We're not even having a party for our anniversary…"

"Well, you decided that we weren't because it's not our wedding anniversary and _you_ decided that we should put more emphasis on our wedding anniversary than this one."

"I suggested no such thing," she protested.

"Stephanie…"

"Maybe just a tiny bit, but please, Chris, I so rarely ask you for anything," she begged.

"What? Is this Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, because you never asking me for anything? That's a load of crap right there," Chris told her. "You're always asking me to do things, and I always give in."

"So that means that you're going to give in with this one too, aren't you? So why don't we just cut the crap and we'll come there because you know that you're going to give in at any moment, so let's just skip the fighting."

There was a moment of silence. "Fine, but only because it's our anniversary in two days, and if I hadn't already bought you something, I would count this as your gift."

"You got me something?"

"Stephanie."

"Okay, okay, I won't push it, we'll be there in a few minutes," she said, hanging up the phone and turning back to Kurt, who seemed liked he had been forgotten about. "Well, it took a little convincing, but Chris is willing to hear you out…whatever you have to say, come on."

Kurt followed her wordlessly, waiting to say his words in front of the two of them. He had been doing a lot of thinking lately, and everything that he felt stemmed back to one incident. He needed to clear his conscience, and he needed to do it soon before it ate him up inside. Stephanie looked good and happy, and he was happy about that fact. He never wanted to hurt her, not really, but circumstances were never in his favor.

They arrived at her office and she pushed open the door. Sawyer was stomping around the middle of the room, obviously not tired at all. He turned when he heard the door open and he smiled at Stephanie, dropping the large puzzle pieces onto the ground and toddling over to Stephanie, a big grin on his face as he made his progress to her, arms outstretched. Chris watched him from Stephanie's desk.

"Mama!" Sawyer said, "Up!" Stephanie picked him up and he hugged her, giving her a kiss on the cheek. He had decided that this week he was going to be super affectionate with everyone.

"Hey there, baby boy," Stephanie said as Sawyer snuggled into her fiercely. "I was only gone for a little while, sweetheart."

"Yeah, well, he hates me," Chris said. "Kurt."

"Hey, Chris."

"So what did you want?" Chris asked testily and Stephanie threw him a look of warning, silently telling him to knock it off, that it wasn't going to work with her tonight.

"Kurt go ahead and talk," Stephanie said, taking a seat on the couch. Sawyer tried to reach for one of his toys on the ground and Stephanie leaned over to pick it up and hand it to him as he sat on the couch and played with it while Kurt took a seat on the other end.

"Um," he cleared his throat and then began to speak, "Well, the last few weeks have been…strange, to say the least, a little bit…well, you both know, so I don't need to get into it. It just reminded me that there are things far more important in life than grudges…and…I miss you guys," he said, his voice sounding raw. "I really, I just…I miss you guys, you have no idea how much."

Chris sucked at his teeth a little, "Well, whose fault is that?"

"Chris!" Stephanie snapped at him.

"Sorry," he grumbled.

"It's my fault," Kurt said. "Stephanie was concerned for me, and I took that as being nosy, and I'm sorry, Stephanie, you have no idea, but…look, I've been an asshole, to both of you when you've been my best friends for so long. I don't want to live the rest of my life knowing that you hate me, that we can never be the friends we were. I was the only guy there for you, Stephanie, when you needed someone."

"You were," Stephanie said, looking down at Sawyer. "When I was completely alone, you were always there for me, and I appreciated that."

"And Chris, we were tag partners, and I was the best man at your wedding, and the first person to know about you two. We've been through everything, the three of us," Kurt said. "I just…I miss that."

"Well, what do you want us to do about it?" Chris asked.

"I just want your friendship back, that's all. You never know when something is going to change, it can be in the blink of an eye, but I never want to look back and realize that I made huge mistakes, and I did make huge mistakes."

"You can say that again," Chris muttered.

"Christopher Jericho, don't make me come over there and slap you," Stephanie told him.

"No, Stephanie, it's okay, really, if you don't want my friendship, I totally understand that, and I'm willing to take that. But still, I just needed you to know how I felt. I needed to let you know that this was what I was thinking, but if you don't want to accept it, then fine."

"It was really brave of you to come here, Kurt," Stephanie said sympathetically.

"Yeah, well, that's not all I wanted to say," Kurt said. "You know how…well, how Christian and Trish are on the outs?"

"Yeah, he's with someone now."

"I know, I've seen her, well, I had someone call Christian pretending that he was using Trish."

"Wait, the phone message, that was you behind that?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, I just, I thought that if I could help Trish, you guys would see me and well, I was wrong, it was a stupid thing to do, but I want you to know how serious I am about being your friend again, so I'm confessing everything."

"This is bullshit," Chris said, pushing the chair away from the desk. "I'm not sitting in here with him for one more second. Later." Chris walked out of the room without another glance, leaving Stephanie and Kurt alone.

"You know, that really messed things up for them."

"I know," he said remorsefully. "I know it did, and I'm very sorry."

"Well, I'm not the one you should be apologizing to in that situation," Stephanie said. "Although you're lucky that Christian is really happy right now, if he were still pining over Trish, then I'd be worried."

"I'll tell him," Kurt said, looking down. "So…uh, do you feel the same way that Chris does? I did some horrible things, Stephanie, and I said some horrible things to you, but I'm here now, and I'm begging for your forgiveness."

"It's not easy to forgive you knowing that you knowingly hurt other people, Kurt. You hurt me too, with the words you said, and I forgave you once, but now I see that you were just using other people to get to me, which, while flattering in a way, was the wrong thing to do."

"Oh."

"But…I've done horrible things to people, time and time again, and for the most part, they've all shown me the compassion to forgive me and love me, and I can't be a hypocrite, I just can't. It'll take me a while to trust you again, but Kurt, you know you've always had a place in my heart."

"I don't deserve your forgiveness now, but I'm telling you, I'll make it up to you, Stephanie, I swear it."

"I believe you."

"I just didn't want an entire lifetime to pass by without me saying that you and Chris have been the best friends that I could've ever hoped for…I just hope that Chris can forgive me for it someday.

--

Chris went outside to get a breath of fresh air after that talk with Kurt. He was still hurt over it, even though Kurt hadn't really said anything about him, but when someone insulted his wife, he didn't know, he just went off the deep end trying to protect her, even though he knew better than most that she hardly needed protecting. Hearing that he had hurt Christian and Trish had just been the straw that broke the camel's back. It was one thing to involve them, but then to hit their friends, to the point where things had been so screwed up for weeks, well, that was all he could stand.

"Sorry, didn't know you were out here."

Chris looked up and saw Cena standing there. "Yeah, well…I am."

"I can see that," Cena said, then pointed to the ground next to where Chris was sitting. "Seat taken?"

"No," Chris said, turning to stare straight ahead as Cena sat next to him, staring out into the darkness too.

"Nice night."

"Yeah," Chris said, not having many words for Cena at the moment, no, he didn't really have that many words for anyone right now. He should just send Sawyer in his place, he was more willing to talk than Chris was at the moment.

"So last week was rough."

"Well, you do what you have to do."

"You're a stand-up guy, Jericho, I was wrong about you," Cena said. "I guess you aren't covered in cheap sauce."

Chris smirked at that, "Yeah, well, I guess that's a good thing."

"It is," Cena told him. "I mean, I've seen what you've been doing, we all have, and dude, you're awesome."

"Glad to see you're finally coming around."

"You must really love her, huh?"

"Yeah," Chris said simply while Cena nodded.

"Lucky girl."

"Are you hitting on me?" Chris asked, glancing over at the other man.

"Hell no," Cena said, even taking care to scoot over a little bit. "So that whole thing about you coming back? Is that true?"

"Why would I tell you?" Chris asked.

"Just wondering, making conversation, you know, trying to keep in the loop and all that," Cena said, feeling like he was intruding on a moment that Chris needed by himself.

"Sorry, I'm just…yeah, I am thinking about coming back," he said. "And if you breathe a word of what I just said to Stephanie, I will come back and kick your ass, Cena, although, when I do come back, I'll probably exact my 'revenge' on you since you were the one who got me kicked out in the first place."

"Yeah, act like it was me and not your kid."

"Thanks, I will, but yeah, I'm thinking about it, later this year probably, after Trips comes back, since I'm not sharing the spotlight with him, he'd threaten to take it all."

"True dat," Cena said. "So I'm taking a wild guess here, but Stephanie doesn't know about all this planning, am I right?"

"No, she doesn't, and she won't," Chris said, and off of Cena's questioning look, "It's going to be my surprise for her. Long story short, the way that I wanted to propose to her, way back in the day was to get her, her job back, and have the ring on the pen when she signed it. She found the ring, and so the proposal was shot to hell. I want this for her, she wants me back so badly, I want to surprise her, so just shut your damn mouth about it around her."

"Dude, what did she think after she saw you on television last week? You weren't exactly keeping in the information," Cena said, recalling how Chris had answered the question of his return.

"Stephanie's been so busy she hasn't had time to watch it. She's almost been working double time because of…everything, and she doesn't really have time to sit around and watch television when she has her job and a fourteen-month-old son who has learned to pull down things from the counter."

"Oh, I see," Cena said, "lucky you then."

"Yeah."

"So why the hell are you out here then?"

"Shit with Kurt Angle."

"Hey, yeah, didn't I hear he was fighting with Triple H earlier, what the hell is that all about?"

"Hunter's got the right idea," Chris said, clenching his fists. "We had a falling out with him, and he comes back tonight, all apologizing and shit, like he wants to be our friend again, and to that I say hell no. He's out of my life for good."

"Look, Jericho, I know I'm not your friend, and we're barely…anything, other than coworkers, or boss and employee," Cena said, not knowing Chris's official title. "But if the dude's genuine…could it really hurt to see if he's telling the truth."

"Why would I want to do that? More importantly, why would I want to take advice from _you_?" Chris questioned harshly.

"I know, it sounds like something from a sci-fi flick or something, but it is what it is man, you should know that. Don't let shit get in the way, we should all just let bygones be bygones, don't you think we're at that point now?"

"He said some pretty shitty things to Stephanie."

"If my memory ain't failing me, so did Triple H, and you guys are buddy-buddy, food for thought, Jericho, I'm out, later," he said, standing up and walking back into the arena.

Chris sat there for a long time, just thinking about everything, about life, about the curveballs you're thrown when you least expect it. Everyday you wake up and you never know what to expect, some days end up being just an ordinary day and others end up in so far away from how they started, but you still get out of bed, everyday, because despite what happens, you keep on living.

Five years ago, he was just a guy, a single bachelor, living by himself, a girlfriend every now and then, nothing special. He had teamed with a girl, someone he used to hate with a passion. When she left, he figured that was it, it was over. He had continued those months like she never really, truly existed because she wasn't much of anything to him then. A former partner, a former enemy, a former, a former, a former…

Then she came back, whisked right back into his life, and when he saw her again, all he wanted was a hug…okay, not true, he wanted a hug, and then he wanted her to give him a title match at the next big show, which she didn't give him. Then everything changed, and it had led him to this point. There were plenty of twists and turns along the way, plenty of changes, but he had ended up here, with three houses instead of just one, a wife by his side, and the coolest kid to ever exist.

Those things, well, minus the houses, but the wife and kid, they made everyday easier on him. When things were bleak, he knew that they were there, and he was happy over that fact. He shuddered to think how he would've gotten through the last few weeks, let alone the last few years without Stephanie, so strong and powerful, by his side. If there was ever a case for someone being someone else's better half, Chris was sure he was the guy. She would say the same about him, which just made them so perfect together.

If he didn't have her to lean on when things had gotten tough, he would've never made it, plain and simple. He loved her, and he had loved her for the past five years, and he was so thankful for her. And she loved Kurt. He had loved the man too, had once been the best of friends with him, invited him to be the best man at his own wedding. Stephanie would want him to forgive Kurt. But if he was going to do that, then there was something he had to do first.

Christian answered the phone on the second ring, "Hello?"

"Hey man, it's me."

"What's up, Chris? Aren't you at work?"

"Yeah, but I'm on a break," he said. "There's something I needed to tell you that you should probably know."

"That being?"

"Kurt was the one behind the phone call to Trish that one night, the night where--"

"Everything fell apart?" Christian finished.

"Yeah."

"Wow," Christian said, a little stunned, "I never would've even have guessed. I think we might have been feuding at the time, I probably should've kept a closer eye, wow, it was Kurt, I never…I just…wow…"

"Yeah."

"I think I need to process this," Christian said.

"Of course, I'll talk to you later."

"Yeah, thanks," Christian said, "can you tell Trish?"

"Yeah, I'll call her now," Chris said.

"Thanks, bye."

"Bye," Chris said, hanging up on the call before calling Trish's number and seeing if she would answer her phone.

"Chris, hey," Trish said. "What's up?"

"I have news."

"What kind of news?" she asked.

"You know that phone call, the one that Christian got that you thought…"

"Yes," she said, her voice softening noticeably, like she was trying to hold in a world of hurt, and in that moment, she really was. Thinking back to that night, the last night she had with Christian, it brought this almost burning pain to her chest, even now. She tried not to think about it because it hurt too much, knowing that now, when she was ready to forgive him, it was too late for them because he had someone else.

"It was Kurt."

"What?"

"Kurt was behind it," Chris said. "He admitted to it, it wasn't Christian."

"But…Kurt was the one that…came to my aid," Trish said, her voice trailing off as she thought back to that night. No wonder Kurt had been so willing to help her out. "I can't believe this."

"I'm sorry to have to tell you."

"Yeah, I'm sorry too," Trish said, "I trusted Kurt, I can't believe he'd do this to me, I mean, I could've…Christian and I…I need to be alone."

She hung up before he could say anything else. Trish had always believed that Christian was behind the phone call, even when he had denied it there were parts of her that believed he was lying to spare her or try and win her back. Now she had the confirmation that it hadn't been him at all, and what had she done? She had yelled at him, called him out, dumped him over him telling her the truth. She felt so small in that moment, like she was shrinking quickly. It was only her own fault that she had lost him. She should've believed him because you believe the people you love.

But now he was gone.

Chris knew that his friends knowing the truth was the only way that he could face Kurt now. He walked back inside the building intending to find Kurt and explain his feelings. He wasn't in Stephanie's office, in fact, nobody was there and he figured Stephanie and Sawyer to be at the gorilla position. She was probably upset with him since it was now past Sawyer's bedtime and he was probably still awake because he had vanished.

He did find them near the gorilla position. Stephanie was talking on the headphones while trying to keep Sawyer's smaller hands away from the mess of buttons in front of her. He went over and took Sawyer from her. She grave him a grateful look as she pulled her headphones off of her head.

"Where have you been! I've been looking for you, Sawyer is tired and he needs to go to bed," she told him.

"Where's Kurt?"

"Around, why?"

"I just wanted to talk to him, explain that it's hard for me to look at him, but…he was a friend to me, my best friend, and he's right, we shouldn't let pettiness get in the way of that. I don't want to lose another friend," Chris said with a sigh.

Stephanie tugged him by the bottom of his shirt and he came to kneel in front of her, "I love you."

"I know you do," he said, leaning forward to kiss her.

"You don't have to accept what he did, you know, you just have to move on."

"I'm well aware of what I have to do," he said playfully. "Consider this part of the anniversary festivities though."

"I'm telling you, Chris, nothing special, we go out to dinner, that's all, I'm telling you, Christopher, if you do anything and I mean anything for our anniversary, I'll divorce you and leave you penniless."

"I got it, I got it, I just have to go cancel my party plans."

"No parties!" she told him.

"Fine!" he said with a smirk.

"Chris…"

"Well, okay, we'll just wait and see…"


	144. Here's To Another Five, July 18, 2007

A/N: Kind of fluffy, kind of not, I don't know, leave a review, it's been five years, people, give a review for my madness! Enjoy. :P

* * *

Bang! Bang! Bang! 

"That's lovely music, sweetheart," Stephanie said as she scurried around the kitchen, gathering different toys to put back in their places. "Do you think that you want to stop though?"

"No!"

"I don't think Christian is going to appreciate it as much as I do," she said, putting on her other earring which had been sitting on the counter. "He probably doesn't enjoy pots and pans drums, but that's just a guess."

"No," he whimpered, banging pathetically on their slow cooker.

"I know, it's tragic," Stephanie said, pouting too. "But I don't know what Christian is going to do with you tonight, but I'm sure you'll have fun, whatever you do."

"Up," he said, standing up and holding his arms up to her.

Stephanie picked him up after adjusting the skirt on her halter dress. She and Chris had never been to the restaurant that they were going to that evening. She had never even heard of it before, but Chris had told her that the attire was nice so she had bought a new dress for the occasion. It was a black and white halter dress, an almost dizzy pattern on it. Chris thought she looked hot in it, so it was effective to say the least.

"You don't have sticky, yucky hands, do you?" Stephanie asked Sawyer, inspecting his hands. "Because Daddy and I are going out to dinner tonight and you're going to stay with Christian, because the restaurant doesn't allow little boys who yell and bang around with pots and pans."

"Dada," was the only thing he responded with.

"Daddy's upstairs getting ready," she told him, "but I guarantee you that he's not going to be sympathetic to your cause, it's a big night for Mommy and Daddy, and we'll be damned if we let you horn in on it." Sawyer kissed her cheek and she melted almost. "Nope, even that's not going to work tonight, because you know what tonight is?"

"Yeah," he nodded eagerly.

"You do?"

"Batta," he answered seriously.

"Well…yes, you do get a bottle tonight, but you get one every night before you go to bed," she said, finding it a little funny that Sawyer knew his routine already. "But that's not what I was talking about actually."

"Car?" he asked.

"Well, yeah, Christian will probably play cars with you," she said, "Sawyer, stop being logical, today is a _special_ day, do you know what that means?" He stared at her blankly before, pointing down to the ground where his makeshift drums were sitting. "Today was the day that Daddy and I got together, it's a very important thing."

"Oh."

"Yes, oh, see how serious it is? Now, you weren't around, and you weren't even a thought in my mind or in Daddy's mind, I mean, if I had been thinking of children before I even went on my first date with Daddy, I think that he would've gone running for the hills, not that I even wanted children at the time…or when I found out I was pregnant really, you were something I didn't exactly plan for…not that I hate you! Don't get me wrong, I love you very much."

He smiled at her, and kept looking down at the ground. "Oh, sorry, I get it."

She set him down on the ground, "Ank-boo."

"Baby boy, it's _thank you_, not…oh whatever, you're fourteen months old, the fact that you can even have any politeness in you is a miracle," she said as he toddled back to the pots and pans and picked up the large spoon he was using to bang on them. She winced at the volume before checking to make sure that she had everything in her purse. "Chris! Are you almost ready! I don't like being late!"

"Yes!" he yelled from upstairs, "Geez, give me a break, you were in here for like five hours, and you're expecting me to be ready in twenty minutes?"

"Yeah, I am!" she yelled back over the din of noise her son was making. The doorbell rang and she sighed. "Can you get that!"

"No!" he yelled from upstairs, "Still changing!"

"Asshole!" she yelled at him as she went to make a move to go to the front door. "Sawyer, do not go anywhere, okay? I swear, if you do, you're going to time-out," she told him as she made a mad dash for the front door, glad that she hadn't put her shoes on. Sawyer had gained a penchant for pulling things down from tall places, and they had already narrowly escaped him getting a concussion. He was getting so smart, she had even caught him climbing onto a chair to get to the top of the table, and she didn't even want to know why he would climb on top of a table.

She opened the door and smiled, appearing as not flustered as she was, "Hey, Christian."

"Hey, Steph, where's the kid?"

"He's in the kitchen," she said, "Follow me."

The sounds of pots and pans got louder as they got closer, "Oh, so he's discovered how to make music, I see."

"He's a very busy young man."

"I'd expect no less," he said as they walked into the kitchen.

"Look who's here, Sawyer," Stephanie said. Sawyer looked up and smiled at Christian, waving his little hand with the spoon before he started banging on a pot again.

"We're going to have a blast tonight," Christian said as he crouched down to Sawyer's level, "I'll take good care of him, Steph."

"I know, and you know the drill," Stephanie said, "Food, bed, diapers, and all that junk that's not so fun."

"Yeah, I know, you really should get another babysitter," he joked.

Chris finally walked into the kitchen, dressed in a red dress shirt and dress pants with a black suit jacket and no tie. He did a little twirl for Stephanie, whose only response was to tap her watch. "What, I'm not allowed to look good."

"I don't like being late," she told him.

"We're not, don't worry," he told her, coming over and giving her a quick kiss. "You still look fantastic though, totally not making me regret kissing you that night."

"Well, I'm glad that I'm reinforcing your love for me by looking good and not having a great personality, or intelligence, how shallow, Chris."

"I know," he said, then turned to Christian, "Thanks for watching him tonight, man, I don't know what we'd do without you."

"Well, I look at it as being prepared in the event I should ever become a father," Christian shrugged. "Now you two have a good time tonight, and Sawyer and I will have fun too. I was thinking, beer, strip clubs, you know, the usual."

"Just make sure he doesn't use all his ones," Chris said, going over to lift Sawyer, "bye, kid."

Stephanie came over and gave him her own kiss. "Have a good night, baby boy, be good for Christian, okay? I don't want to hear anything bad about you, and don't forget, Christian, if he gets unruly for you, feel free to give him a time-out, ten minutes tops, we're not horribly mean."

"Got ya," Christian nodded.

"Okay, bye," Stephanie said as Chris handed over Sawyer to Christian. "Bye, baby." Sawyer waved to her as she left and she smiled as they made their way to the car.

"So is this place nice?" Stephanie asked as they got in the car.

"Yeah, I think so," Chris told her. "You really do look good tonight, I can't say that enough."

"Is it the cleavage?"

"A tiny bit," he told her. "You know me?"

"Unfortunately," she told him. "Hey, did you ever think we'd make it?"

"What kind of question is that?" he questioned.

"I'm just asking," she said. "I'm making conversation while we drive to dinner, and it is our five-year anniversary, so it's not out of the question to be asking about when we first go together. I don't want to drive in silence."

"I would've turned on my music."

"Yeah, drown me out why don't you?"

"Aww, I love you too," he said, then cleared his throat a little bit. "When I married you, yeah, I thought we'd make it, still do as a matter of fact, but when we first got together, I don't know, I didn't think that far ahead."

"You didn't?"

"Well, no, I mean, why would I?"

"Don't they say like you know who you're going to marry within the first 72 hours or something?"

"How should I know? I liked you, I knew that much, and I knew that I wanted to go out with you. It was a little bit awkward, right after I kissed you--"

"You thought it was awkward?" she asked. "I didn't know that!"

"What, it was!" he told her. "I mean, not too bad or anything, not enough for me to want to just run away from you, but you even have to admit that it was awkward right after we kissed."

"No, it wasn't, I thought it was a sweet moment," she protested, crossing her arms in front of her.

"Why are we even talking about this? It's not like we didn't get married and have a kid together, why does it matter what happened after we first kissed?"

"Because it was an important moment, it set everything into motion."

"It wasn't the first time we kissed, or the second."

"Still, the other times didn't count."

"Uh…yeah, they did…we kissed, you kissed me back both times, though you don't want to admit it outright, well, not then anyways, but man, you were totally kissing me back, you wanted me so bad."

"I did not!" she told him with a frown. "I was startled both times, you startled me, that's all."

"Yeah, sure," he scoffed. "I'm not going back on thinking that it was awkward after the fact, that's like revising history."

"It was not awkward!"

"I'm not arguing with you," he told her. "Not on our freaking anniversary, not going to happen, Princess, so stop trying to make an argument."

"I'm not."

"You are," he told her.

"I'm not!"

"Yes, you are!"

"Ugh, you are so annoying," she pouted, looking out her window. "Where is this place?"

"I'm getting us there, geez," he said, "shit, I forgot, we needed to pick up diapers, Sawyer is running out, that kid is just an eating, pooping machine."

"Now? We have to go _now _when we aren't even going to see him for hours?" Stephanie said, turning back to him again. "This can't wait until after dinner. There are 24-hour stores, Chris, we can just stop by one after dinner and get them then."

"We'll just go now so we don't forget."

"This is so stupid," she told him. "What about our reservations?"

"I'll just call the restaurant," he said, plucking his cell phone from his belt. "It'll take two minutes, I'm sure they'll understand."

"And if they don't? Where are we going to have our anniversary dinner, McDonald's or something?" she asked testily. "Why do you test my patience, Chris? I just want to have a nice dinner to celebrate this milestone, but this is not going how I planned it to."

"Lighten up, baby, everything will be cool, I promise," he said, searching through his numbers for the right one. "Hello?"

"Hey," Shane said.

"Hi, this is Chris Jericho, I have a reservation for six-thirty, me and my wife are running a little late and I was wondering if you would hold our reservations until we got there."

"Great, you guys are on your way then?"

"Yes, we are," Chris said.

"Are you out getting the diapers?" Shane asked.

"Uh huh, that's right, six-thirty, under Jericho."

"Christian called and he and Sawyer are on their way so try to stall her for a little bit longer, Christian said Sawyer is hard to tear away from his toys, but they're definitely making their way here, so just try to stall a little more."

"Thank you so much," Chris said, glancing at Stephanie. "Goodbye."

"What did they say?"

"It's fine, they just switched it to seven, it was no problem," Chris told her. "See, what did I tell you?"

"I hate doing stuff like that," she told him. "And all because we need to get diapers? We could've just called Christian and asked him to go out and buy Sawyer some diapers."

"He doesn't know what kind we use."

"Because going into Sawyer's room and looking at the bag would've been so difficult," she said sarcastically. "This is so out of the way it's crazy."

"Indulge me, baby."

She rolled her eyes and didn't say another word. Chris hung a left and headed to the nearest store. Stephanie let out a breath, hating that they were going to be late for their reservation. She hated to be late for anything and Chris knew that, or at least he should've known that if he had been with her for five years, hell, he could've been with her for five minutes and he would've known as much. They pulled into a spot and Stephanie looked at him.

"Don't even expect me to go in there with you," she told him.

"You're going to sit here?"

"I'm all dressed up," she said to him, brushing her hands over her dress. "I'm too dressy to go into a store right now."

"Suit yourself," he said, "I'll be back."

Chris disappeared into the store as Stephanie turned the car back on to turn on radio. She grabbed one of her CD's from the side pocket and slipped it into the player before pulling down the visor to check on her makeup. Only her husband would stop for diapers before they were going out to dinner. She didn't even recall Sawyer running low on diapers to begin with. When had she bought the last bag? Maybe Chris had checked before he came downstairs. She wiped a smudge of lipstick from the bottom of her lip before taking a peek at the time. It was only twelve minutes until seven now, and they were probably going to miss their new reservation if Chris didn't get out here soon.

He was taking forever, and she wondered how hard it was for him to find diapers. Wasn't there usually a whole big aisle with baby and toddler stuff? It wasn't the first time that he had bought diapers before. Just when she was about to go in there and get him, he came out with the diapers. He threw them into the backseat and she glared at him as he sat down and put his seatbelt on.

"What?" he asked.

"You were taking forever!" she told him angrily.

"Sorry," he shrugged as he started up the car and started to drive to the restaurant.

"You're pushing it, Jericho," she told him, but she was fighting a smile. She couldn't help it, she loved him so much, even when he was begin a total jerk.

"I always push it, McMahon-Jericho."

They drove for a few more minutes, and Stephanie narrowed her eyes, "Chris, what are we doing here?"

"It's your favorite restaurant, right?"

"Yeah, but I thought we were going to a new place," she said, "why are we here?"

"I wanted to take you to your favorite place, that's all," he said, "we're still dress appropriate, so are you surprised?"

"You threw me a party, didn't you?" she questioned, narrowing her eyes at him.

"What? No…"

"You threw me a party!" she exclaimed, "and that's why we're here. Chris, I told you no parties, oh man…"

"I didn't throw you a party," he said. "You said no parties."

"Yeah, but you threw me one anyways," she scoffed, "Oh…and the diapers, that was so Christian could get Sawyer to the party, am I right, I am right, damn you, Chris Jericho, I told you that I didn't want to make a big deal out of today."

"Fine, okay, you're right," he relented. "I've had this planned for a while, I wanted to have a party, I'm sorry, Steph, but it's my anniversary too, and I'm proud of the fact that we've been together. Look, we didn't get a honeymoon, both our anniversaries, we've either been working or you've been pregnant, and we've never gotten to really celebrate."

"Don't make it all sweet," she told him, "Chris, I'm not even in party mode."

"Are you kidding me? You look so hot, you look great."

"Fine, let's get this over with," she said.

"Can you at least act surprised?"

"Well…for you, anything…when will you learn that you can't put anything by me?" she asked, winking at him.

Stephanie went to get out of the car and Chris smirked. Yeah, he couldn't keep this secret from her except the one about him actually coming back and that was the one secret that he desperately wanted to keep, so what if she found out these little ones? He got out of the car and jogged to catch up to her, wrapping his arms around her waist from behind and leaning down to kiss her neck teasingly. She giggled as they went to the door and opened it up.

"Surprise!" rang out from every corner of the establishment.

"Mama!" Sawyer decided to yell since he wasn't exactly adept enough to yell out surprise.

"What is this?" she said, pretending to be surprised. "I can't believe this! I said no parties!"

"Well, you know how it goes," Chris said, kissing her again. There were fifty or so people there, and Stephanie smiled and waved to everyone before the party started to get into full swing. The first person to come up to Chris and Stephanie was predictably, Sawyer, who toddled over. Stephanie picked him up.

"I thought I was getting away from you tonight," she told him while giving him a kiss.

"Well, we couldn't stay away," Christian said as he sauntered over. "But if you'll excuse me, I've got a girl to find, Tiff is around here somewhere, probably getting drunk off her ass."

"I am not!" Tiffany said as she came over. "Hey guys, congratulations!"

"Thanks," they said in unison before Stephanie said, "I'm surprised you could get away."

"I didn't take any afternoon appointments, and I'm not taking any morning appointments tomorrow just to be here for this, Christian insisted I come so he could show me off some more, this time in a dress."

"Well, people have seen you in normal clothes, I wanted them to see how fabulous you look in a dress," he told her. "But we'll be seeing you guys later, enjoy the party."

"We will," Stephanie said, then muttered, "the party I deliberately didn't ask for, so come on, let's mingle."

--

Trish took long sips of her martini, gulping down the pure alcohol like they were going to run out. Her eyes were glued on Christian and had been since he had walked in the place with Tiffany on his arm. They were all smiles and giggly and it was making her sick. She hated to see him with her before, but now he knew that it was her fault they were together. If she had just believed Christian when he had said that he wasn't responsible for that call. But their history, everything that had come prior to that phone call didn't work in her favor.

"Trish?"

She sighed as she recognized the voice. Kurt had managed to sidle up to her and she refused to look at him. He had called her after Chris to explain what he had done, and she was angry with him, even though she was angrier with herself. "What do you want, Angle?"

He winced at her tone, "I just wanted to talk to you and see how you were."

"How do you think I am?"

"I'm really sorry, Trish, still, I just wanted to apologize again. I was jealous that you were still friends with Chris and Stephanie, and I guess it just got the better of me. I'm just so sorry that this happened, I really am."

"Well, you know what," she said, turning to him. "Yeah, it sucked what you did, it really did, but I should've trusted Christian too. Look, just stop apologizing for it, I'm sick of apologies and words and whatever, I just want to get stinking drunk, wish my friends a happy anniversary that I will never, ever have and then fall into a hotel bed, preferably with a guy I've never met so he can do me through the floor so I can forget this incredible hurt stewing inside of me, that's it, thanks for coming to talk to me."

She started to walk away, but he grabbed her arm, "Trish, please, is there anything that I can do?"

"Leave me alone, Kurt, everyone can just leave me alone and let me live my life," she said, storming away from him. He sighed and felt such remorse for the things that he had done to her. He wished he could take everything back and he was still shocked that Chris had even talked to him on Monday, let alone invite him to this party.

_Chris held Sawyer's hand as they walked around the arena, Sawyer stopping every now and then to pick up something stray off the floor, usually a piece of paper or a coin or something. Then he would hold it up for Chris's inspection. He was like their own personal janitor, making sure the halls were clean. He was getting tired now though, so Chris picked him up and let him rest against him as he pulled his trusyt pacifier from his pocket and gave it to Sawyer, who took it and stuck it in his mouth. Up ahead, he saw Kurt talking to Jeff Hardy and he took a deep breath before walking over._

"_Hey, uh, Jeff, do you think that I could get a moment with Kurt?"_

"_Oh, hey, Chris, yeah, sure, see you later, man," Jeff said as he shook hands with Kurt before leaving Kurt and Chris alone._

"_Hey," Kurt said uncomfortably, "come to throw me out?"_

"_No, I didn't give you a fair chance earlier, and I wanted to talk to you."_

"_Okay."_

"_Look, the things you said to Stephanie, the things you said to me _about_ Stephanie, they were really uncalled for, and you know how much I love her, I mean, you _know_ how much I love her, Kurt, you've been there the entire time, you know how much she means to me."_

"_I'm sorry for the things that I said," Kurt responded. "I was…I don't know what I was thinking. I guess I was just hurt, and upset, and I didn't really mean them."_

"_You said them, so you meant them, you don't just say things that you don't mean, that's not how it works," Chris said. "But you were right when you said that life is too short. You learn things in the face of tragedy, and you either move forward or you stay stuck, and I'm not too happy with staying stuck…I don't want to know that I didn't at least give you a second chance, because at some point, I'm going to need a second chance, and it'll suck not to be given that, and so I have to do the same."_

"_So what are you saying?"_

"_I'm saying that I'm having a surprise party for Stephanie on Wednesday, down in Tampa, and I was wondering if you wanted to come. It's for our anniversary."_

"_I would love to come…are we…friends again?"_

"_Well, we're working on it, deal?" _

"_Deal," Kurt said. _

Trish went to a deserted corner of the restaurant, sitting down in a chair as she watched everyone else. She felt lonely in that moment and it was sad. She leaned her elbow on her leg and leaned forward, just watching everyone else who seemed so happy. There were Christian and Tiffany again, and he was whispering something that made her smile and lean up to kiss his cheek. It sickened her and she wished that she hadn't left her drink over by Kurt. She leaned back and stared up at the ceiling not wanting to see how happy Christian was. A few minutes passed before she heard someone sitting down next to her.

"Having a rough go of it?"

She looked over and saw the last person she'd ever think she'd see, Marissa McMahon, "Oh, uh, no, I'm just tired. I flew in really early."

"Are you sure?"

"Look, I appreciate your concern, but…"

"I'm trying to be nice here, Shane insisted," she joked, but then turned serious again. "I know that we're…whatever, but I'm not going to be a bitch about it. I've been in some really complicated relationships, and I know a girl who needs a friend."

"So you know about me and Christian?"

"Yeah, I do," she said, glancing over at him. "It's hard, I know."

"Yeah, it is, I just…I screwed up and it's really hard looking in the mirror right about now."

"You should talk to him."

"No way, I can't…I wouldn't even know what to say right now, there's no way that I could talk to him, none," she said, shaking her head. "I just can't talk to him anymore, I need to move on from him, move on in my life."

"And you'll never do that if you don't talk to him," Marissa said. "I thought I was going to die when I had to tell Shane that I was pregnant with his child and that my other son was his too, but I did it because it had to be done, and now, a long, long time later, things are good with us."

"Yeah, I think it's slightly different."

She shrugged, "Maybe but at least you'll get closure, nice talking to you, Trish, I really don't have a problem with you anymore, just don't go around kissing my husband."

She cracked a smile at that.

--

"Hey Loretta," Stephanie said as her mother-in-law walked over with Sawyer in her arms.

"Did you know he said hello to me?" Loretta said as she gestured to Sawyer, who was very tired at this point. Stephanie was surprised he wasn't crankier, but there was a large crowd here, so she figured that he was too overwhelmed to really throw a fit she knew he was capable of.

"Yeah, it's a new thing with him," Stephanie said as Sawyer continued to suck on his pacifier.

"I just wanted to say congratulations, I'm ecstatic for you and Chris."

"Thanks," she said. Sawyer held his arms out for her and she gave him a little pout as Loretta let him go to her. He snuggled up to her, nuzzling his face against her neck. "I'm going to take him somewhere quiet, see if he wants to go to sleep."

"Okay, bye sweetheart," Loretta said as she wiggled Sawyer's foot.

Stephanie took him out of the room and into one of the more private areas where people weren't eating and talking with each other. There were some booths back here and she slipped into one as she held Sawyer close to her in the darkened room. He whined a little around his pacifier, and she laughed.

"Were you actually having fun in there?" Stephanie asked him. His answer was muffled from the pacifier and she just kept rubbing his back soothingly. "You look very handsome tonight, I must say…even though I thought it would be just me and Daddy tonight…kind of wanted it to be just me and Daddy tonight."

"Is that right?"

Stephanie looked up, startled to see Chris in the room, "You scared me."

"I saw you slip in her with Sawyer, and I thought I'd check up on him, he's been passed around a million times I think, I thought he might be exhausted."

"I think he is, but he's so excited to see all these people here that he's trying to stay awake."

"I'm sorry this isn't what you wanted," he told her, slipping into the booth next to her.

"It's okay," she said, leaning her head against his shoulder. "You thought enough of me to want to spend it with all our friends and family, so I'm okay with all of this."

"I just thought you might like it, I'm sorry that you don't, next time, we'll spend it alone."

"It's just that…this is a big night for _us_ and I wanted it to be for us…and Sawyer, I mean, he's us too, he's part of the equation. I mean, we've gone five years without wanting to enter a Hell in a Cell and beat each other up, that's huge."

"That is huge, and I wanted to share that hugeness with everyone I love, because I love you," he told her. "I just…look at what we've accomplished, people should be bowing down before us."

She laughed and nudged him in the shoulder. "Well, I agree about the bowing at least."

--

"Christian," Trish said as she caught him alone. Tiffany was off…somewhere.

"Hey, Trish," he said, turning to her, and she didn't know what hurt more, the fact that he was here with someone else, or the fact that his voice sounded so…normal, not anguished, not sullen, just…normal, like she was nothing to him, a nobody.

"I was wondering if we could talk, just for a minute."

"Yeah, sure," he said, then scanned the area, "I should tell Tiff that I'm going to be talking to you, where is she?"

"I think I saw her with Stephanie's parents."

"Oh, well, if she's talking with people, I don't want to bug her," Christian said. "Why don't we go outside, there's a nice view and it's a nice night."

"Okay."

They went outside the restaurant, which had its own pier and they stood against the railing, looking out on the water that was gently flowing by. It was a little chilly out, but nothing extraordinarily cold. Trish placed her arms on the railing as the gentle wind blew against her. Christian noticed her shiver a little bit and took off his jacket to place it around her. She felt his jacket and looked up at him, shock in her eyes.

"You looked a little cold."

"Thanks," she told him.

"No problem," he said with a kind smile.

"So you were the one to get Sawyer ready, huh?"

"Yup, but Chris laid out his clothes for me, but that kid, he doesn't really like socks too much, I finally just put sandals on his feet," Christian said. "I had to get him here in time."

"Yeah, he looks adorable as usual."

"He's cool, we're friends," Christian joked. "So what's up, Trish?"

"I just wanted to talk to you about the thing with Kurt, I wanted to apologize for it."

"No worries," he told her simply. "I mean, yeah, it really sucked while it was going on, but I can't blame you for thinking what you thought, the evidence was stacked up against me anyways. You were totally justified."

She was surprised to hear that he was okay with everything, but why shouldn't he be, he had moved on from her anyways, "Still, I wanted to apologize for it. I jumped to conclusions and I didn't trust you, I just…I should've trusted you after everything we've been through, I should've known you instead of just pretending like I knew you."

"Well, it's not your fault really, Kurt never should've done it, but really, it's okay, Trish, I understand."

"There wasn't a lot of trust with us, was there?"

"There was, there just wasn't…I don't know, maybe it was trust, maybe we were just scared of loving each other, maybe we just got scared of being so close to each other that we ultimately couldn't sustain what we had."

"I just need to be reminded that we were good together," she said to him as she pulled his coat tighter against her slight frame

"We were totally awesome together," he joked playfully, "but honestly, Trish, don't blame yourself for what happened between us, a relationship is a two-person thing and we just couldn't cut it, but it's okay, we're both doing alright, right?"

"Yeah, we're both…great," she lied. She missed him, she missed being with him. "Are you happy with Tiffany?"

Christian grinned broadly as he thought about his girlfriend, "She's amazing. I wish she would move down to Florida though, that would be the best if she could just move her practice down here."

Christian wasn't so stupid as to tell Trish that he loved Tiffany, but she could tell that he had strong feelings for her. She slowly took off his coat and handed it back to him, "Maybe she should be the one wearing this."

"But we're out here," he said, and she smiled at how he was still just Christian, a little oblivious, but overall so good-meaning. Her eyes teared up at thought. Despite everything that had happened, she hadn't ruined him and made him some other form of Christian. He was still just the man that she loved, and he hadn't change, and she doubted he ever would. Christian caught the glint of her tears and he frowned, his eyebrows knitting together, "Trish, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," she said, turning away so he wouldn't see the tears that were threatening to fall. She wiped them away quickly, then turned to him with her best smile, "See, nothing wrong."

He took her chin in his hand and looked critically at her, "What's wrong?"

"Christian."

"Trishy, come on, don't think that you can lie to me," he told her gently. "Did I do something?"

"No, I just…I just miss you is all," she said. "It's funny how much you can miss a person, you know? You don't think you will, but I do, I just miss you."

"Well I miss you too," he told her with a smile, "I like to think that we can be friends again, don't you think? We were friends for a while there, and I think that we can be friends again. We don't have to let what happened get in the way of that, so do you think that friends would be cool?"

"Yeah, friends," she said, thought she was still disappointed. "Sounds good."

"Awesome!" he exclaimed, giving her an impromptu hug. She hugged him back, trying to ignore how familiar it felt. "Let's go back inside, okay?"

"Sure," she told him as they headed back indoors.

--

Chris walked up to the bar, taking a seat next to Kurt, "Hey, man."

"Hey," Kurt said, smiling at his new old friend.

"Enjoying yourself?"

"Yeah, this is great, I'm sure that Stephanie is pissed at you for throwing a party when she probably told you no parties, but it's fun."

"Yeah, she's just a little bit mad at me, I'm not the doghouse or anything," Chris chuckled. "But maybe I'll hear an earful before we go to bed tonight, I wouldn't be surprised if she was just saving it up for later."

"That would totally be Stephanie."

"So how has…work been?"

"It's been work," he said, "but I can't complain, I'm happy with where I'm at right now, so it's good…what about you though? I've heard that you were coming back, at least that's what the internet has said, and well, you said last week."

"Yeah, I have, but don't tell Steph, it's a surprise, I'm thinking later this year," he said in hushed tones.

"She'll go crazy with happiness, I bet," Kurt said.

"Well, yeah, she's been hounding me for a long time to come back, and well, I've definitely been thinking about it. I just wanted Sawyer to be at least a year old before I came back, I wanted to spend that first year with him. But now, now would be a good time for me to return, but after Trips, I'm not sharing the spotlight with him."

"I can't believe you guys are really friends with him now, to the point where he's defending you," he said, thinking back to their fight as he instinctively licked his lip.

"Once you get past that assholish exterior, the interior is much better, he's a good guy."

"I find that hard to believe."

"So did I, but it's true," he shrugged. "Well, have a good time, tonight, man, I've got something that I need to do."

Chris went over to the small stage that they had in front of a dance floor and clinked his glass with a knife, telling the band to stop playing. "Okay everyone, can I have a quiet moment for just a second." The room quieted down and all eyes turned to Chris. "Okay, um, is Steph around, baby, where are you?" Her hand shot up and Chris called out, "Can you come up here?"

Embarrassed, Stephanie came up there with Sawyer in her arms. He was blinking very slowly, actually falling asleep right before their eyes. Chris gave her a hand to step up onto the stage and he looked at her as she adjusted Sawyer in her arms, his legs dangling as the pacifier threatened to fall to the ground. He was lightly snoring now and Stephanie just kept rubbing his back as she looked to Chris.

"What is this about?"

"I just wanted to thank everyone for coming," he said to the group in front of him. "I guess…I just wanted you all know how much I love this woman."

"Aww!"

"Okay, just shut it," he said good-naturedly. "But half the reason I wanted to throw my wife a party was just to let her know how much I love her."

"Chris," Stephanie said with a slight blush. "We've done this before, it was called our wedding."

"I know, but…I love you, Steph," he told her, and it was like she and Sawyer were the only two people in the room. His smile was so warm that Stephanie felt overwhelmed. "I love you so much, and sometimes I feel like I don't tell you this enough."

"You do," she said softly.

"No, I don't, because you have been everything to me. I don't know how I survived thirty-one years without you. I just don't. And while I was trying to think of what I wanted to say to you, I started to think of what my life would've been without you in it…because you make me _feel_, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, you give me the sparks, is all. When I picture my life without you, I see much of the same things, I see wrestling, but it couldn't have been as fun if you weren't there to be such a thorn in my side. I see a wife, but one who is so dull and cookie-cutter and who doesn't make me want to simultaneously rip my hair out and make out with against a wall."

"Same with me," she interjected.

"And I see kids, but no kid could ever be as cool as Sawyer is, no kid could ever come close to him in my heart if you weren't his mother, and whatever kids we have after this, I will feel the same way, because you are the only woman who I want to have kids with, one, two, however many."

"I'm not pregnant," Stephanie said, turning to everyone, "just so you know, not pregnant, and not going to be any time soon."

"Needless to say, everything I am today, Steph, is because of you," he told her. "You're everything to me...that's it."

Stephanie laughed and leaned in to kiss him as everyone clapped cheesily, then they all went back to their prior conversations as Stephanie pulled away. "I love you too."

"So five years, huh?"

"Yup."

"What do you say we do this again…fifty years from now?"

"Ambitious, aren't we?"

"Okay, five years? Ten? Fifteen?"

"I'm in."


	145. He's Bionic, July 23, 2007

A/N: I updated my co-authored story Playing with Fire as well, so go check that out and thanks for those people who reviewed the story last week, you rock. :)

* * *

"So we need to come up with a new #1 contender."

"Well, I think we should wait until the end of the show," Coach said.

"Why do you think that?" Stephanie asked, honestly making a concerted effort to get along with the man in front of her. Right now, he was the face of management and he should have a say even though she thought that he should just stick to sucking up to her father.

"So we can see what everyone is made of," he explained.

"We _know _what everyone is made of, we're here, week in and week out and we've watched these guys a million times, why should we wait until the end of the show?"

"For build-up then," Coach said and Stephanie sucked at her teeth a little bit.

"See, now that I can get behind, if we're doing it to keep the fans in suspense, then that could work, they would watch until the end of the show, and that's what we want, my father has been going on a tear over the ratings, and I don't want him any more stressed out than he already is."

"And you think that I do?" Coach asked.

"I didn't say you wanted it," she told him, rolling her eyes, "but you're not related to the man, you don't have to eat meals with him, have him as your father or anything, so don't tell me that it's hard for you, it's doubly hard for me."

"Fine, so who are we going to choose?"

"I thought you wanted to wait until after the show," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes, "to see what everyone is made of."

"I can take a hint when you send one my way, Stephanie," he said sarcastically, "you want to set someone up right now instead of waiting to see who wants it the most."

"Who wants it the most? Are you kidding me with this, Coach? They all want it the most, I bet you I could go up to any wrestler in this place, ask them if they want the opportunity to be the WWE Champion and they will all agree, it's not a matter of who wants it the most, because they all do, it's who deserves it."

"Well how about I throw a name out there and then you throw a name out there?"

"Fair enough, go ahead."

"Randy Orton," Coach said.

"Seriously…no," Stephanie answered, "No way."

"Why not?"

"Because he hasn't done anything to warrant it. I'm sorry, but beating up a man old enough to be his father doesn't scream, 'give this guy a title shot' to me. I think any one of our guys could beat up Dusty Rhodes, you're going to have to do better than that."

"No, I think it should be Randy…who do _you_ suggest?"

"Carlito," she told him definitively.

Coach scoffed, "That smacks of favoritism right there, vetoing that."

"Who said you got a veto?"

"I'm working directly under your father, not you, Stephanie."

"I should hope not, because sorry I don't want you in my bed, Coach, no offense. I don't think my husband would be too fond of that, and he can kick your ass quite easily," she threw back at him.

"Very funny, but no on Carlito."

"Yes on Carlito, I think he wants it and I think he's been through a lot and should get the title shot," Stephanie argued. "He's been put in matches to his disadvantage, and I think it's about time we recognized him for it instead of Randy who insists on beating people way past their prime and dubbing it as legend-killing when what it really is, is beating up on old people, and that's not cool."

"I say no on Carlito, this is SummerSlam, Stehpanie, the second biggest show of the year, we can't have a weak card."

"Wow, and you think that just because you've been doing this for a while, you should get final say, I'm surprised, Coach," Stephanie said. "I don't think Randy deserves it."

"Well, you suggesting Carlito is just because he's your friend."

"So what? That's inconsequential, and I'm not playing favorites."

"Yes, you are."

"Uh, no, I'm not."

"You are."

"No."

"Yes."

"No, if I were playing favorites, I'd say it was Chris, but I'm not suggesting him, so…I'm not playing favorites, see how that works?"

"Chris isn't even a wrestler right now," Coach said, "so saying that is totally stupid."

"And would totally be playing favorites. Fine, I'll compromise, we'll flip a coin over it, how does that sound, do you think that's fair?"

"Fine," Coach said as Stephanie pulled a coin as if from nowhere, and he wasn't about to ask her where she got that.

"Call it in the air," she said as she tossed it up.

"Heads," he said as he watched the coin intently as it reached its apex before tumbling back down smack into Stephanie's hand. She turned it over and lifted her palm to show what it was. Coach grinned as Stephanie cursed under her breath, "Yes!"

"Damn it," she muttered to herself. "Fine, it's Randy, but don't say I didn't warn you. Hold off on announcing it until later tonight, I'm still not sold on the main event for tonight, though."

"What's wrong with it?"

"Oh, I don't know," she said, feigning obliviousness, "maybe the fact that you have Candice going up against Umaga and the tag champions, she's a petite woman, Coach, that's unfair and you know it. This is just your attempt to soften up John."

"So…you don't like him either."

"True as that may be…oh what the hell, I don't give a damn, the schedule's fine, I'm fine with everything, don't screw it up, Coach," Stephanie said as she stood up. "I've got a show to run, so just be the on-air presence and do your job."

She left, taking a deep breath before she continued walking down the hallway. She saw a few of the guys starting to walk towards her and she could only guess it was because they wanted to make a case for themselves being the #1 contender for the title. She knew that it was a big deal that, to their knowledge, no new contender had been announced yet and SummerSlam was just the place to get your career jumpstarted. She had tunnel vision though and went straight to her office, which was empty at the moment and she breathed a sigh of relief.

She had just picked up the phone when it rang in her hand. She stared at it in disbelief, wondering if it was the person that she was going to call. It wasn't. It was just Trish. She didn't know if she wanted to talk to Trish, but she felt bad not answering when Trish knew she probably had her phone on her.

"Hey Trish, what's going on?"

"He called me!" she said loudly. "He called me like it was nothing!"

"Christian?"

"Yes, he called me like he just wanted to shoot the breeze. How could he think that I would want to shoot the breeze with him? I mean, does he know me at all?"

"I thought you two were trying out this new friends thing," Stephanie said gently. "Wouldn't that entail calling each other just to find out how the other is doing? I mean, that's what friends do, isn't it? That's what you and I do."

"But I didn't date you!" she said, running a hand over her face. "I didn't go out with you or sleep with you."

"Thank goodness for that," Stephanie tried to joke, but Trish wasn't having any of that tonight.

"He just can't expect it to be different this soon," she said to her friend. "He just can't expect that everything is suddenly fine between us. I mean, can he honestly expect that from me when we were together for so long?"

"Maybe he's trying to get past the awkwardness," Stephanie said. "If you never try, you're never going to get past the weirdness in your relationship. Maybe he just wants to face that head on instead of dodging around it. The least you can do is give it a chance."

"It's hard."

"Well, what did you say when he called?" Stephanie asked.

"I said that I had to take a shower, that I just got back from the gym and couldn't talk," she admitted sheepishly. "I just didn't know what to say to him, I still don't. I want…"

"What is it that you want, Trish?"

"Christian…" Her voice sounded so pathetic and small and Stephanie honestly felt bad for her and that hadn't happened for a while. Stephanie usually thought of Trish in a strong light, as a strong person, but she wasn't exactly demonstrating that right now. She seemed very lost, very alone.

"Hey, Trish, why don't you come down and stay with Chris and me? We're staying in California for a while, so it'll be nice, the weather is great down there, and it'll be fun, it'll take your mind away from other things."

"Is Christian going to be there?"

"Why would Christian be here? He lives in Florida," Stephanie told her.

"I don't know, maybe he wants to hang out with his friends," Trish said snidely. "Since apparently I'm no different from you or Chris."

"Hey!" Stephanie said, offended by that.

"You know what I mean, Steph," Trish said, rolling her eyes. "I have a history with Christian and it's very complicated and now he just wants to be friends, and I don't know how to deal with that, how did you become friends with Hunter?"

"Um…by not being in love with him," Stephanie said hesitantly.

"Great, so I can't even get a break there," Trish said. "Friends! Can you believe he thinks that's actually going to work?"

"It could, if you would just give it a chance," Stephanie told her. "What do you have to lose, Trish? If it doesn't ever work out between you two, then at least you would have him as a friend, and isn't that better than having him as nothing?"

"No," Trish scoffed. "That would be pure torture. If you ever divorce Chris, tell me how easy it is to be his friend after that."

Stephanie rolled her eyes, "Chris and I are settled, marriage took all those kinks out of our relationship, so come on, come down to California, enjoy the California sun and eat some In-n-Out Burger to drown out your sorrows, it'll make you feel better, I swear."

"I don't know."

"What the hell are you doing up there?"

"Nothing for the rest of the week," she said slowly.

"Sounds like a free schedule to me, come on, Sawyer likes you and I'm sure he'll be happy to see you," Stephanie said enticingly.

"He likes everyone," Trish argued.

"Still, that means he'd like you."

"Fine, you've coaxed me into going, but only because I really don't have anything better to do," Trish said finally, giving in. She did need a vacation though, so that wasn't a lie. "So should I call him back?"

"Yes, because you don't want to seem like the rude bitch who didn't call him back," Stephanie said. "Just be friendly, discuss things that are nonsensical, and keep it brief, simple as that."

"Okay, thanks, Steph, I'm sorry to bother you during the show."

"Whatever, it's fine," she said, sighing quietly as she looked at the work in front of her. "Good luck."

"Thanks," Trish said, hanging up the phone after their goodbyes. She turned it on again as she stared at the keypad. She had dialed Christian's number so many times it was implanted in her brain like her own address. If she stared hard enough, maybe she'd notice how the numbers on her phone were slightly worn in the pattern that was his number. But she had never had to dial it knowing she wasn't going to get the response she wanted on the other side.

In her own stupidity, she had lost him. It was all her fault, not Kurt's, not Christian's, not Mickie's, not Carlito's, not anyone's, it was all on her. She had chosen the paths she had gone down and she had to suffer the consequences of those paths, and she truly was. For the first time in a very long time, she saw no future with Christian. It was strange seeing a new future evolving in front of her, one that didn't have his face in it at every turn, but this was her reality now.

She had to face the fact that she was probably living the end of a relationship, the last breaths of a dying star, getting ready to collapse unto itself. For so long, even when they were apart, she figured that her future would always include Christian. She saw their life together so perfectly, so crystal clear that she had no reason to doubt that someday she'd get it, just like she pictured it. That picture was starting to fade from her mind, crumble like an old, forgotten wall that was so strong and had kept so many out.

She eventually dialed it, knowing she had to and wanting to get it over with. "Trish, hey, you called back, have a nice shower?"

Why did he ask her things like that knowing what she looked like naked and how they had showered together and she would end up pressed against the cool tile, "It was fine…wet, you know how it goes."

He chuckled, "I just wanted to see how you were, you were pretty wasted at Chris and Stephanie's party and I wanted to make sure you hadn't like, gone on a drinking binge."

He was obviously joking, but a drinking binge didn't sound so bad right now. "No, isolate incident, I guess I was just _too_ happy for Chris and Stephanie," there, she could joke too, and make it sound believable too.

He laughed, getting it, "Good, good to hear, anyways, I just wanted to see how you were doing, and say that I'm really glad that we can be friends now, really. I just…with how everything went, maybe this is the best thing for us, you know, take some time away from each other in _that_ way, and see where it goes."

Wait, that sounded like, "Christian, are you not ruling us out?"

"What?"

"I mean, you said, 'time apart.' That makes it sound like you think that we still have a chance somewhere down the road…do you think that?" she asked hopefully, a long-cold ember starting to flicker inside of her, just waiting to burn again.

"I'm not ruling anything out," Christian said, "you know I'd never do that, but what I am saying is that right now, I'm happier than I've ever been and I'm not going to be screwing that up any time soon, but I can't predict the future."

"I know," she said, but there was still a thin shred of hope. Maybe Christian shouldn't have given her that hope, but he could recognize when Trish was hurting and even now he wanted to curb that hurt, even if it meant telling her a partial lie. He _was_ happy right now, and he could picture very clearly a future with Tiffany, and so he had lied just a little bit because he was starting to believe that any future he had with Trish had gone by the wayside, but he just didn't have the heart to tell her that outright, so he gave her a tiny bit of hope.

He still loved Trish, he always would, but he understood, finally that it couldn't always be about her, that it had to be about him too. "Good, well, I'll let you go, but we'll talk later, when I fly up to see my mom and grandma, I'll come visit, and we'll go out to dinner or something."

"Sounds…good," she said with a tiny smile. "Bye Christian."

"Later, Trish."

Christian felt guilty just a few minutes later over what he had done. Tiffany came up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist, "Hey, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," he said, turning in his arms, "This whole…long distance thing sucks, doesn't it?"

"A little, yeah, I miss you when you're in Florida, do you miss me when I'm here in Connecticut?" she asked with a soft pout.

"Yeah, I do," he said, holding her tighter. "Do you think that we should start thinking of a more…permanent compromise?"

"What, we move to North Carolina and split the difference?" she joked and she smiled and leaned down to kiss her gently. She responded immediately, bringing her hands up to his neck, softly wrapping her arms around his neck as she tried to gain leverage on him.

"I don't know, but it's a thought, finding something to do about it."

"Do you ever think that you could…move your practice down here?"

"That's really hard," she told him, "since I have an established clientele, and it's not like I can make them move down to Florida, I suppose that I can try and see if I can join a practice down here, that would be my best bet."

"So it could work?"

"It could," she said, thinking a little bit. "I mean, we're not set in stone or anything, but it's a thought, I will definitely inquire about it."

Christian grinned, "Well, a thought is better than nothing."

"I suppose," she said, leaning up to kiss him again. "But you moving to Connecticut would be a no-go?"

"Well, it's just we film in Orlando and it's a lot easier--"

"No, I get it, I was joking with you," she said. "Besides, if we're down in Florida, we're around all your friends and stuff, and I'd have Stephanie there, so I'd at least have one friend."

"Oh yeah, your friends, I don't want you to go without your friends," he said, alarmed. This was turning out to be more complicated than he thought it was going to be. This whole distance thing wasn't working for either one of them. Either way, someone was going to have to leave something behind, and was he being selfish for thinking she should make the sacrifice?

"It's fine, we're not even deciding on this for sure yet," she reminded him. "It's just a discussion…"

"Oh yeah, just a discussion…"

--

"No, Vince, I understand your apprehension, but I don't know what you want me to do about it."

"Come back, that's it," Vince said.

"Vince, we discussed this. Hunter is coming back next month at SummerSlam and I'm not sharing the spotlight with him."

"So come back next week, I really think that we would have a boost in the ratings if you were to come back," Vince argued. He had been trying unsuccessfully for the last ten minutes to convince Chris to come back as soon as possible. Vince was trying to get the ratings up and he was trying to think of solutions and Chris was a definite solution to his problem.

"Next week? Just a random Raw with nobody to feud with, uh-uh, Vince, not going to happen, I'm not coming back next week," Chris told him. "You're crazy if you think I'm going to come back next week."

"I'm not crazy, it's perfect!"

"No, tonight would've been perfect because then you could've announced me as the new #1 contender, but oops, too late, the show's already booked, the contender already picked, so you _just_ missed the boat."

"Chris…"

"Vince, I can decide what I want to do, we're on even keel, remember?"

"Are you using your leverage with me?" Vince asked incredulously. "You're using your position in this company to argue with me?"

"Yeah, and you can't fire me so you know, I can say whatever I want to say and what I say is that I'm not ready to come back, that's it, end of story."

"Fine, I thought I'd try, and you're right about Hunter coming back."

"See, rational thinking, feels good, doesn't it, Vince?" Chris said sardonically.

"I'm leaving now, I was going to talk to your wife, hopefully that conversation will be more productive."

"She is good," Chris said. "Bye, Vince."

"Goodbye, Chris."

Chris hung up the phone and laughed as he looked over at Sawyer, who was playing on his blanket. "Your grandpa just doesn't let up, kid. We need to have a talk to him about that. You know, with him wanting new faces around here, maybe you should step in, I could come back, get in a feud with Randy, and then you can come to my defense, who in their right mind is going to hit you?"

"No," Sawyer said, more to himself than to Chris, but Chris chuckled nonetheless.

"Yeah, nobody, you're just too awesome to want to harm," he said, going over and picking him up, "now let's go find Mommy and see if she wants to eat. I swear, if it weren't for me, she'd weight ten pounds because she'd never remember to eat."

"Batta," Sawyer said, looking up at Chris hopefully.

"No, it's not bottle time yet, it's sippy cup with dinner time," he said as he glanced down at the papers in front of him. "Oh damn it, I forgot to talk to grandpa about the diva search, oh well, we can save that for another day."

Sawyer laughed at this and Chris picked him up, laughing too as they went down to Stephanie's office. Stephanie was anticipating them and already had the door open. Chris set Sawyer down outside the door and let him toddle right by. He would've walked completely by and towards the exit if he hadn't turned to see Stephanie at her desk barking orders at someone.

"Mama!" he exclaimed, hanging a hard left and toddling towards her large desk.

Stephanie heard her son and turned to see him walking towards her, she waved and then continued to speak, "No, no, he wants fruit, so just grab some from catering and get it out there, we're on in ten minutes!" She turned off her headset and took it off before turning fully to Sawyer, who was walking around her desk to where she couldn't see him. "Where's my baby?"

"Mama!" he screamed, just peeking his head around the corner.

"There he is!" Stephanie exclaimed. She scooped him up and sat him on his lap. "What are you doing here?"

"We wanted to see if you would join two handsome gentlemen for dinner," Chris said charmingly.

"I'd love to, but I've got to get to the gorilla and work on the show," she said regretfully, "but don't let me stop you from getting something to eat, and Sawyer too of course, he's my little, growing boy."

"Okay, well, we'll bring you something, okay?"

"Thanks," she said, standing up and walking over, giving him a light kiss, "What would I do without you, Chris Jericho?"

"I don't know, shrivel up into a little ball or something," he joked as he wrapped his arm around her waist, "Will you at least allow me to walk you to where you need to go?"

"As if you have to ask," she said as they started down the hallway. "Oh, by the way, Trish is coming to stay with us, I forgot to mention that earlier."

"Why?"

"Because she needs some time to reflect," Stephanie said. "What? It's what she has to do."

"So all that wild, loud sex we were planning on having, that's just going to go to hell now, is that it?" he said in mock anger. "And here I was planning to make you scream like nobody else in the world ever has."

"What the like, three guys I slept with before you?"

"Yes, that's exactly it, and don't lie, baby, you know it was more like three hundred," he joked.

"No, I think you're thinking of yourself," she said, "that _is_ how many you said it was, right? Am I right?"

"Wow, make me out to be a manwhore, why don't you? It was nowhere near that number, it's just three hundred women that _want_ to sleep with me at any given moment, but I reserve all this Vitamin C-goodness just for you," he told her, kissing her cheek.

"Oh, and here I thought I'd get to share, you know, get you off my hands a few times a week."

"You know you'd never share this," he said, gesturing towards himself.

"Okay, yeah, I'd never share, not that sharing isn't good, sharing is very good, Sawyer, very, very good to share, just not people, don't share people," Stephanie told her son. "Because we like to share toys and what not."

"Yeah, that kind of sharing is good, like if Mommy wants to share her new lingerie with me--"

"Chris!" Stephanie cut him off. "Come on, not around our kid."

"He doesn't even know what lingerie is," he argued.

"Do you want him to start to say lingerie?"

"That's like three syllables, no way does he even say anything coming close to lingerie. His version of thank you is ank-boo, I mean, ank-boo, that's _nothing_ like thank you, he'll really need to brush up on his vocabulary to be able to say lingerie…and even then, he wouldn't know what he was saying."

"I don't want my son to grow up and think it's okay to talk about sex and swear and all that other stuff."

"And yet we continue to bring him to this show where he's surrounded by people swearing, girls in revealing clothing, and men fighting it out in rings, we're setting a really good influence for him," Chris said with a smirk as Stephanie elbowed him in the stomach, "Oww, what was that for?"

"Suggesting that we're bad parents," Stephanie said.

"We're not bad parents, we're…different."

"But not bad different, right?"

"No, definitely good different, we're choosing to raise our son a different way, but that doesn't mean we love him any less than the parents who make sure their child is surrounded by education at every turn. I hate those kind of parents that think that even one second of television is going to corrupt their child and make them an idiot for life."

"Get the soap box ladies and gentlemen!" Stephanie exclaimed as they reached her station.

"I'm leaving, you're getting on my nerves, give me my son," he told her as she handed over the little boy. "Maybe we'll just leave you since you're being such a bitch."

"Chris, bitch, come on, that's one syllable, he can learn that word, and I'd blame you."

"Go right ahead, seeing the insults Sawyer would throw at you would be well worth it."

She stuck her tongue out at him, but he was already turned away and walking towards what she presumed to be catering. She put her headphones on and began to settle into the show. She was a bit angry that Coach would take all the credit for last night. She had been there too, and she had done a much bigger job than Coach had done. Just because he was an on-screen presence in her father's stead didn't mean that he should be the one taking all the credit. She resent ed that a little.

It was only a few minutes later that a plate of food was set down in front of her. She saw Chris next to her, his own plate of food. "Sawyer ate over there, I thought we could eat together."

"That's sweet," she said as Sawyer chose that moment to burp rather loudly, "and that's gross, not very nice, baby boy."

"That was nice, kid," Chris said, kissing his son's head as he tried to make a grab for a piece of Chris's chicken. "Stop, you just ate, don't be a pig."

Stephanie laughed as she took a spoonful of macaroni salad. She spotted Hunter out of the corner of her eye and waved at him. He smiled and ended his conversation with Jeff Hardy and walked over to her, sitting down on the empty seat on the right side of her. He leaned back his chair and gave a nod hello to Chris and Sawyer, who was still trying to make a grab for Chris's food.

"Hey, man, can you take the kid off my hands while I eat?" Chris asked as he swatted Sawyer's hand away.

"Yeah, sure," Hunter said, taking Sawyer into his arms. "Hey there, tough guy, I didn't get to see you at your parent's party, did you have a good time?"

"Yeah," Sawyer answered.

"Awesome, so did I."

"Well, Sawyer slept through most of it, so of course it was fun for him, he couldn't even remember half of it," Stephanie said as she wiped her mouth with a napkin. "He fell asleep in one of the empty booths, he was just so beat."

"Too bad, he's usually the life of the party," Hunter said as Sawyer played with some paper that he found sitting in front of him. "So my video is airing again, it's great to see the promotion for my return, I deserve it though."

"Wow, and I though I was cocky," Chris mumbled.

"You are, and when you come back, or if you come back," Hunter added, just to throw Stephanie off, "I'm sure they'll be hype for you too."

"You better believe I'm hyping the hell out of that," Stephanie said, grinning at Chris and taking his hand. "The fans won't even know what hit them they'll be so much promotion for his return."

"I don't want any promotion," Chris told her. "Not much anyways, not like Trips over here who seems to want everyone to bow down before him when he returns at SummerSlam."

"Not bow down, maybe just sing my praises, that's all…so uh, what's going on with you guys and Kurt?" Hunter asked.

"We're giving it another go," Stephanie said, "even Chris, he decided it's better to forgive and forget than to live the rest of your life with a grudge over someone. I mean, we started to like you, didn't we, so we can definitely give Kurt a second chance, liking him again is nothing compared to liking you for the first time."

"Hey, you loved me at one point."

"Very briefly, a moment really, one second."

"Yeah right," Hunter scoffed, "we both know that you were crazy about me."

"Let's emphasize the 'were' in that sentence, shall we?" Chris asked. "Because I really don't feel like being the odd man out in this equation when I've been with Stephanie way, way longer than you have."

"Way to mark your territory," Hunter smirked.

Just then, Dusty Rhodes and his attendees burst through the curtain, and all three of them turned to see the commotion. "Oh shit," Stephanie said, "I've got to attend to that."

"You stick with the show, I'll go see what's going on," Chris said as he went over to the group as they headed towards the trainer's room to assess the situation. Stephanie was glad that Chris was there so that she wouldn't have to deal with that and could stay here and do what she was truly good at.

"So, looks like you're going to need me for a little longer," Hunter said as Sawyer continued to play with the paper he had in his hands.

"Do you mind?"

"Nah, it's cool," Hunter shrugged, "so is Chris really behind giving Kurt another chance, he mentioned once the things that Kurt said to him about you, and they weren't pretty, I don't think I was even so harsh."

"You said that I was the Grand Canyon, Hunter," Stephanie said, turning to him as she sucked at her teeth a little bit, "and that I was the great, wide open, now, I've got a second opinion on the situation, and he pretty much refutes that claim."

"Wow, I've never heard someone be so disguisedly raunchy before," he said, "but damn those were good times, you got so angry."

"Because you pissed me off," she said, "and lies, all lies."

"I know, but it was still fun…but the things Kurt said…"

"I know about them, and yeah, it was…hurtful and rude, but…we have to let things go, every single one of us," Stephanie said, "It's better this way, I'm happy to have Kurt in my life again, he was there for me…a lot, when I had nobody else by my side, when even you weren't there for me."

"I'm sorry about that, you know, we probably could've been good together."

"But I never would've been satisfied," she said, "neither would you have been, we'd never have been totally happy. We'd just be power-hungry and that's no way to live. It was fun while it lasted, but it never would've last forever."

"True, and it is better…oh wait, wait, here it is," he said as he turned to the screen.

Stephanie had never seen this video before, so busy was she. She watched it as it played on the screen and half-way through, she had to cover her mouth to keep from laughing. She looked over at Hunter, and he was so excited she could almost see him bursting from pride. She turned back and wanted so badly to laugh, but held it in.

It was an almost ridiculous promo for him. She thought a simple on would work, something mysterious to get people excited about his return, but what that did? Well, that was…strange, to say the least. She knew the fans would want Hunter back (why?) but she knew there were much better ways to go about it than to pretend like he was some sort of bionic man with parts of him that weren't human, or enhanced parts (though he wasn't enhanced where it really mattered).

"What did you think?"

"Who handles your videos, Hunter?"

"I don't know, but did you like it?"

"Because whoever does the video can say a lot about them and their philosophy. Did you think of that idea yourself or did you just let them handle it."

"I let them handle it, I don't really have a say in how they promote me, but I did get to see it before it aired, to get my approval, and I did film parts of it of course, so come on, tell me, what did you really think of it? Did you like it?"

"When did you film that?"

"A couple weeks ago," he answered. "I went to Titan to do it, you were in Florida."

"Oh okay, because I didn't hear about that."

"So, don't leave me hanging, Steph, what did you think?" he asked eagerly, wanting to know her answer. She didn't want to say what she really thought because he really seemed to like it and she didn't want to hurt his feelings over something so trivial.

"Well…"

She was saved from answering as Chris showed up, "Hey Trips, I never knew you were part robot."

"Shut up, man."

"That was freaking hilarious, that had to be Shane's work," Chris said, "He _had_ to be the one that approved that, because seriously, I never would…no, you know, I totally would've let that go through, people need a good laugh every once in a while."

Hunter narrowed his eyes, "You didn't like it?"

"Uh…it was hilarious, you're totally part robot now, you're the Six Million Dollar Man, wait, wasn't the Six Million Dollar Man Steve Austin? Oh man, you're Steve Austin!" Chris said, pointing and laughing, "You know, that was almost as good as what you wore to WrestleMania last year."

"Wait, what was wrong with that!"

"Fur, crown, big necklaces, there was everything wrong with that," Chris chuckled. "Oh man, part robot."

"I'm not part robot," Hunter said angrily. "I thought it was pretty cool…it made me look tough."

"And partly made of metal and computer chips," Chris added.

"You know, part robot, that makes so much sense to me now, I guess an inter-species relationship was never meant to last."

"You two suck, you know that, that video was great and everyone loves me."

"Yeah, you keep believing that, Hunter, you keep believing that."


	146. Time For The Maury Show, August 6, 2007

A/N: Uh, the show was really bad last week, I felt uninspired, so I didn't write…sorry, even I get writer's block sometimes. Anyways, enjoy, and leave a review if you know what's good for you. ;)

* * *

Stephanie rubbed her hands in front of her face like she was preparing for something. She just didn't know what she was preparing for. Maybe it was for the show, maybe it was for her father's arrival, she just didn't know. Her father hadn't made an appearance in a while, not since…well, not since he had decided that his best course of action would be to fake his own death and make her, Chris, Shane, and Linda all a part of it. That plan had fizzled however, and now he was here again, ready to take over in his very own special way.

The door opened and Chris walked in with Sawyer a step ahead of him. Chris looked decidedly annoyed and as she looked down to her son, she saw why he was annoyed. Sawyer had ink all over his hands, staining his usually clean skin with dark blue of all things. He was staring at them in fascination, drawing his fingers together and then spreading them out as he tried to figure out how the ink was able to stay on his hands. Chris actually had to nudge him forward so he would keep walking. Stephanie got up and knelt in front of Sawyer, taking him by the elbows and looking down at his hands.

"What happened to him?" Stephanie asked.

"Well, we were talking with Santino over the whole injury thing, seeing how he was doing with that, how he was feeling, checking up on the talent. So Sawyer goes over to a table where someone has left a pen, and being the curious and annoying kid that he can be, he figured out how to get it open and got ink all of his hands and then," here Chris held up his own hands, which was streaked with blue, "got them all over _my_ hands trying to get him to stop."

"Sawyer, you know better than to get into things," Stephanie chided him gently. He pouted and looked down, trying to garner sympathy from Stephanie, like Chris did when he knew that Stephanie was mad at him. "Oh, now you're being like Daddy? See what you teach him, Chris?"

"What _I_ teach him, the kid has learned to whine in grocery stores when he wants something that he doesn't need. I don't think my fifteen-month-old son needs a meat thermometer, but he decided that he wants to get to grilling and had to grab it and then get angry when I put it back."

"Well, that's how it's going to be for a little while. He's going through that phase where he's supposed to be pushing our limits, and boy is he," she grumbled, looking again at Sawyer's hands. "This is not good, Sawyer, you were a bad boy."

"No," he told her, looking up at her from under those blond eyelashes of his.

"Yes, it is, and don't try to make me into a sucker."

"No!" he yelled at her and she raised an eyebrow, giving him a look. Sawyer knew that look though, it was the first one that he had learned and he knew that it meant Stephanie was angry with him, and he got a little wide-eyed. He was starting to learn what would provoke Stephanie, and he was finding out a lot of things provoked her and not in the good way. Deciding the best way to diffuse the situation, Sawyer leaned forward and kissed her near her mouth.

"Not working," Stephanie said to him, staring down at his hands again. "You may go play with your toys for right now." She let go of his hands and he toddled over to the toys that they had brought. He rooted through some of them, trying to decide which ones to play with as Stephanie stood up and faced her husband. "Remember when he was a baby and didn't talk or walk or act out?"

"You know that was only months ago, right? And we've got a long way to go."

"I thought having a kid would be fun…what the hell was I thinking?" Stephanie joked as she went to look at Sawyer for a moment.

"So when is your dad getting here?"

"Soon, and I'm dreading it. He told me he needs to tell me something, and I have a feeling that I'm not going to like what he has to say. Usually when he wants to meet in person it means that it's not going to come out well for me."

"What's the worst that he could do?"

"Uh…I don't know, he's my father, when you think that he's gone the lowest he can go, he goes a little lower. I'm just glad that this entire faking his death thing is over. I mean, who does that?"

"Elvis?" Chris joked.

She rolled her eyes. "I love that you can be totally not serious."

"What do I have to be serious about? Vince doesn't want to talk to _me_," he said. "Just you, so I'm out of the woods, plus I get to go to sunny California soon to film divas, life is good!"

"Since when are you excited about seeing divas?" she asked him, tugging on his collar.

"Since I get to go to California, I need a vacation, I've declared that I work too hard, I really need to relax once in a while, and what better way to do that than to go to California, live in my awesome beach house, get some sun and a nice tan, live large."

"You do know that we'll be there too, right?"

"I was just getting to the good part, spending time with my gorgeous wife and son…are you sure we can't leave him behind yet? He really likes this whole independent thing. He's always trying to walk away from me when we're here, seeing people, talking gibberish to them. I think if we leave some baggies of food behind he'll be able to survive, what do you say?"

"Tempting…but no, we're kind of a package, he and I, where he goes, I go, where I go, he goes, we come together."

"That's going to be hard to market when I leave you and you become a single mother. I don't' think many guys are going to want to date you."

"Oh well, I'll become a spinster then," she said, leaning up to kiss him lightly. "But I don't have any more time for fun and games because I've got work to do and since my dad is here, I've got to put it in high gear."

"You always want to appear busy to him instead of the slacker that you really are."

"Shut your mouth," she told him, pressing her index and middle finger against his mouth then pulling them away quickly to give him a peck on the cheek. "We'll talk later I'm sure, good luck on making sure that the talent is happy."

"I'd rather just make you happy."

"Yeah, you haven't done that in five years, I'm not holding my breath," she said as she breezed through the door.

Stephanie was a busy, little worker bee after the left Chris. It wasn't that she wanted to look busy…okay, yes, she wanted to look busy and in charge. She got that way sometimes around her father, especially after a long absence like his had been. This time she felt she had good reason though. She knew her father was on a virtual warpath after the ratings debacle the week before, and the low ratings before that.

As head of all thing matches and creative and all of that good stuff, a lot of the blame fell squarely into her lap. Even more unfortunate was the fact that the shows were up here in the Northeast, where she would be living in Greenwich, and where she'd be able to attend meetings at Titan and not just conference call in to meetings. It was a lot easier to face her father over the phone than in person.

He had been so distraught over the ratings last week, and she had been concerned as well. She had almost thought about honestly getting down on her knees and begging Chris to come back just so they would have something fresh to work with. Luckily for all parties involved (and for her knees), there had been an error in the ratings and they hadn't been as dismal as everyone first thought. Still, it had not excused her from the numerous brainstorming sessions that her father had insisted they have.

She had sat and listened to him berate her and her colleagues and it had been painful to hear. She didn't want her father thinking that she was a failure. She had come home a few times almost in tears of anger over the harsh words her father had said. Then when they found out that there was a snafu in the calculation of the ratings, her father offered her no apologies only went about business as usual. That stung a little bit and she was determined to prove that she could handle this job. She was a McMahon, and they were a special breed. You went silently about your business until you were forced to manipulate.

Her father had made the final decision of course, as he was wont to do, and like any good McMahon, you stepped up to the plate and he was stepping up to the plate and facing those who were trying to bring them down. It had been a strange several weeks around here, stranger than any she could ever remember. At some point she felt like she was being attacked from all sides and she could only imagine how her father felt as the president of the company. A lot of things fell on him, and he was sure feeling it, but so was the entire McMahon family.

Sometimes, every once in a while, for the briefest of moments over the last several weeks, she wished she wasn't a McMahon. It was something she had wished sometimes as a child, when her mother and father had no time for her. Sometimes she wished that she could have a normal family, especially when she saw some of her friends with the situation she longed for. As she got older, she got harder and steelier, which is what she predicted was what her parents wanted for her in the first place. They wanted her to be thick-skinned, and she was glad for it now. If she wore her heart on her sleeve all the time, she would've sunk in the world she lived; she would've been a shrinking violet, but Stephanie was like a sunflower, tall and proud.

Stephanie got the call on her walkie-talkie that her father had just arrived. She walked out quickly to the parking lot and was waiting for her father as he pulled up to the door. He got out and gave her a light hug. "Hey Dad, how are you?"

"Well, and yourself?"

"I'm doing fine, and before you ask, so is Sawyer."

"Good, good, you need to bring that boy to our house more often when you have the moment, he keeps me young."

"He makes me old," she joked with him. "So you wanted to speak with me?"

"Yes, let's walk and talk," he said, gesturing for her to walk ahead of him. "I was going to address some of the issues surrounding my last appearance, so I wanted to get the top of the show."

"Of course," Stephanie interjected with a nod.

"I also want the entire roster to come out there, but I'll tell Coach to get that together…"

"Why do you want them all out there?" she asked.

"Well, I'm going to have a Battle Royal for the GM position," he told her. "I think that would be the most fair."

"Oh," Stephanie said, looking down slowly. Once again she was getting passed over. She tried not to feel hurt over there, burying it like the hurt she had been feeling for the past week since her father had been practically blaming her for the ratings slump. "Well, that does seem fair."

"I thought so," he said, proud of his decision. "I'm just not sure that Coach is the right choice or direction that we should be going in, do you think he's the right choice?"

"He annoys me," Stephanie said. "He's a really big suck-up, that's my biggest problem with him, Dad, he never listens to me either, just goes ahead and does whatever the hell he wants to do, I mean, insubordination, that's not good in an employee."

"I agree, that's why I think a Battle Royal will solve the problem."

"Do you really think that's the right way to find someone to run the show?" Stephanie asked. "I mean, what if someone like…say…Umaga wins, which is entirely possible in a Battle Royal format. How is that going to blow over?"

"I didn't think of that," Vince said, rubbing his chin a little. "That's a very good point."

"Don't you think that there is someone more qualified to step into the position?"

"Like Shane?" he asked. Stephanie sighed and looked off. What the hell did she have to do to get her father's attention? Shane had mentioned that their father was breeding her to take over and not him, but her brother never saw this side of her father, the one who completely looked over her.

"Well, I don't know if Shane wants to travel every week, what with the kids and everything," she pointed out.

"He could bring them along like you bring Sawyer."

"Yeah, but Shane's not like me," she told him.

"So then staying within the roster _is_ a good idea."

Stephanie cleared her throat, "What about me, Dad?"

"What about you?"

"For the position," she answered.

"Don't be ridiculous, Stephanie, I'm not going to hire you right now."

"What do you mean? Why wouldn't I be a perfect fit, Dad?"

"Because you have enough responsibilities here at work, and on top of that, you have a young son."

"I also have a very capable husband, he helps, I could take over and I'd do a really good job. You know that I'm qualified, Dad, and that I did a good job on SmackDown until you had me kicked out of the company. You _know_ that I'd be perfect."

"I have no doubts on your ability, Stephanie, it's simply time that I have to factor in. I know you, Stephanie, I'm your father, I know how much you commit to something, you may not have noticed, but I've been around your entire life, and I've seen how you've pushed other things away in pursuit of other things."

"Like what?"

"Your entire marriage to Hunter."

"That is water under the bridge, we just weren't suited for each other. We had no future because we had no past except where I betrayed you to be with him. Not my wisest of choices, but…I was young, I made mistakes."

"You're a mother now, Stephanie," he reminded her, like she needed reminding or something. She knew she had a son, she spent most of her waking hours taking care of said son, she knew that he was around.

"I know this, Dad, I still fail to see how this would interfere with the duties of being the General Manager."

"You'd be onstage, you'd be backstage, you'd be planning this, you'd be planning that, and I don't want to take you away from your son."

"Dad, I turned out fine when you and Mom were working."

"I don't want that for you though, Stephanie, trust me, I'm your father, I know these things, just trust me, you should spend as much time with Sawyer as you can. My decision is final."

"And unfair! You said you'd offer it to Shane! Shane has _two_ kids who don't even travel with him! This smacks of favoritism, Dad!"

"Stephanie, this is not favoritism, I merely suggested Shane because Shane's duties are not as heavy as yours are at the moment. You have a very important job here, Stephanie, and I don't want to pile more onto you if I can help it. You're my daughter, I'm not going to over-work you."

Stephanie huffed and kind of felt like Sawyer after he didn't get something he wanted. She was very frustrated and whiny. "Fine, but Dad, do not just overlook me because I'm someone's mother."

"I wouldn't dream of it," he told her, "and it's not the only reason, I just feel like we need your talent elsewhere."

She sighed, "Whatever."

"Stephanie…"

"Sorry, Dad," she grumbled.

"Now will you please go find Coach for me and tell him to come find me?"

"Yeah, sure," she said, trying not to stomp off and act like more of a little kid than she already was. She couldn't believe that Shane thought that she was the favorite and that her father was grooming her for some kind of greatness. Her father wouldn't even consider her for a position that she had already held. Instead, he thought a random wrestler would do a better job than she would and that really stung. She happened upon Coach talking to a production assistant and she went up to him, not speaking until he was done.

"Stephanie McMahon…"

"Coach, my father wants to see you, I suggest you make it quick, he has announcement s that he needs to make."

"Oh, sure, I didn't even know he was here," he said, scurrying off like the boot-licker that he was. She scowled at his obvious brown-nosing.

"What's with the face?"

She turned to Chris, "What face?"

"The 'I'm so angry' face."

"Just my dad overlooking me again for something," she answered, her barely controlled rage being hidden behind her tight-lipped smile. "You know, I think my dad does this on purpose."

"Does what on purpose?"

"Pitting me against my brother somehow. First he'll give me a promotion then overlook me, then he'll give something to Shane, then overlook him. I think it's his twisted way of really seeing which one of us is better equipped to run the company, stupid, sick game. He knows that I'm a good GM, but you know what, no, he's going to have a Battle Royal for it, he's going to hand it over to one of the employees like it's _so_ easy."

"Wow, maybe I should join that," he joked, trying to lighten the mood.

"Would you?" Stephanie asked, her eyes lighting up as she took his free hand. "Please, oh, please, would you go in there and win and make sure that nobody dumb gets the position? And then we could really rule around here!"

"Whoa, time warp, I just caught glimpses of 2000-2001 Stephanie and boy was that taking me back," he said, looking down at Sawyer, who was a few feet away looking at a lock on a trunk. "Okay, whew, the kid is still here so I know I haven't fallen into some sort of temporal distortion and I'm back in time."

"Funny, but would you? That'd be great."

"You kind of forget one thing, Steph, I'm not under contract as a wrestler, only as management."

"Damn it, I was so close to getting you do it too, I think a little flash of the goods would've done the trick, would it have?" she asked coyly.

He moved his head from side to side, then said, "Yeah, I think it would've, too bad though."

"Yeah, I better get back to what I do best, sit behind-the-scenes, pretend to let other people run things around here while I do all the grunt work."

"You make it sound like I sit on my lazy ass, but who's the guy making sure that all the injured guys are on schedule? That would be me," he said, pointing to himself, then over at Sawyer, "and him too, he helps, he asked Hunter how he was doing."

"Did he?"

"Well, he said hi, I assumed that to include the, 'how are you, how's the leg' into it, but he did help me dial the phone to call Edge, so he was a big help, it only took him five minutes too. So we're learning, I think he needs to be on the payroll."

"Yeah, that'll be the day, the last thing I think anyone needs is another McMahon running around here acting like they were in charge," Stephanie said, going over and scooping up her little inked up boy. "Hey baby boy, you look like Mommy and Daddy have let you get some weird tattoos."

"Car!"

"Okay, yeah, a tattoo of a car then, we let you get a tattoo of a car all over your hands and your Daddy's hands."

"Excuse me, who said that he was just a McMahon, last time I checked, the birth certificate reads Jericho."

"Here," she said, handing him over. "I have to go make sure that things run smoothly."

"We'll sit with you," he said. "The kid already ate and watching here will make him sleepy and he'll go to bed."

"Okay." They walked over to her station and she sat down with Chris next to her. "You know, if someone completely incompetent wins this thing, I'm going to end up doing all the work anyways, so I might as well have the title."

"You really just want to hold every position possible, don't you? What's next, heavyweight champ? Ring announcer…wait, wait, time-keeper, right?"

"Shut up," she said.

Stephanie had to watch as her father had all the superstars out into the ring. Then she had to watch him make the announcement. The only pleasure she got from the entire thing was the fact that Coach was so chagrined over her father's decision. She did admire her father for laying it all out there like he had, like he was going to. It was the only way to put the whole ugliness behind them. She just hoped that he wasn't inviting more ugliness by having some random stooge become the General Manager.

By the time the Battle Royal got down to the final four, Chris had already taken Sawyer back to the office to put him down for the evening. So Stephanie was forced to sit alone and pray for someone not crazy to win. It was down to Cody Rhodes, Carlito, Sandman, and Shelton. She couldn't decide who among those guys she would take. She was friends with Carlito, but seriously, him as the GM? She could just envision Raw becoming one huge cabana with a congo line every week…but why would Carlito of all people want a congo line?

She was so distracted by this thought that she didn't see that it was The Sandman who had won and she groaned. She knew next to nothing about the guy. She got up to go ask Chris about him since he had worked with him in ECW when half-way between sitting and standing, she saw Regal come out of nowhere and win the entire Battle Royal. Stephanie sat back down slowly. She tilted her head a little to the side and cinched up one side of her mouth. She could live with this. Regal did have good ideas, and she had worked with him in a General Manager-type position before. It could be a hell of a lot worse, she realized.

She was one of the first there when he walked backstage and she extended her hand, "Congratulations, William."

"Thank you, Miss Stephanie," he said gallantly. "I look forward to working with you."

"And I you," she returned before letting him get cleaned up for the rest of his evening. She sighed, knowing that even if Regal was great at this, she could've been better, but maybe Chris was right, maybe she was going after too much, grabbing too much and making herself overbearing back here when she should take a step back and let others share some of the glory. She just wasn't really accustomed to that, so she still had to learn.

The rest of the show was pretty uneventful for her. Regal really did know what he was doing and he was very professional so he only really came to her to change a segment here or there. Being his first night, she pretty much gave him free reign. It also served the purpose of showing her father that he couldn't get under her skin, if this was indeed some sick game he had, pitting her against Shane. She could show that she was just as mature as her brother, maybe more so since she had never cheated on Chris, and since she was willing to travel with her son for the benefit of the company.

Yes, she was okay with this. She was okay with the entire situation until she saw her father talking with Regal later on that evening about his fake death. She didn't take so much exception to what he said about Shane, even though she knew it not to be true, but she did take exception to what he said next. Her father had the audacity to say that she had got to three different attorneys in order to see how much money she could get. Stephanie bit her bottom lip for a second before she couldn't hold it in any longer. She sauntered to her father's office, opening the door.

"How could you lie!" she angrily exclaimed. "Dad, I never, _never_ went to those attorneys to see how much money I could get!"

"Stephanie…"

"You just made me look like a money-grubbing, good-for-nothing daughter right now!" Stephanie screeched at him. "As if my reputation wasn't bad enough! Now you have to go and tell people that I'm all about the money and that I want you to die!"

"Nobody is going to say that, Stephanie," Vince told her nonchalantly.

"Do you know what they say about me, Dad? Do you? Do you know what they say about Sawyer, Dad? The things they call him because he's my son?" she said, shaking her head. "And now you've added something to the list. I was seeing those attorneys because you didn't know how long you would have to play dead and you wanted to know when we could access your estate so that we could get you the money, _that's_ why I went to them, not some bogus reason like you just told the world."

"Stephanie, come now, it's not as bad as you think it is," Vince told her, "you're overreacting, I'm just playing it up that we need to be a family united in all of this rubbish with Congress and the media and what not."

She sighed, "Not at the expense of my reputation, Dad. People already hate me, and you're inviting more people to hate me, it's not exactly a situation your daughter wants to be in. I hate it, Dad, that people see me as this unsympathetic, conniving slut. I'm none of those things, except maybe conniving…sometimes, and…you're the one that called and told me to make that speech."

"Stephanie, now more than ever we have to appear sympathetic, it starts with me, then it trickles down to you and your brother and your mother. We all start to look very good, like a nice, tight-knit family."

"You're crazy, Dad, you didn't need to drag my name through the mud for that."

"Stephanie…"

"No, Dad, whatever, just…make sure whatever you have cooked up works, I'm going back to work."

Stephanie wanted to quit for the night, but she didn't want to just leave. When she was walking down the hallway, she could see some people looking at her differently. It wasn't necessarily suspiciously or anything, but it was differently, like she had actually gone for personal gain after her father's demise. At least her father didn't tell anyone she was in on it, that might make her look even worse that she would go out there and publicly weep all the while knowing her father was alive.

Still, her father knew nothing of the way that people saw her. She had a bad reputation with a lot of people, she knew this, she understood this. For the most part, she ignored it, mostly at Chris's prompting. He would often tell her that they didn't know the real her so they had no room to judge and she believed him most of the time. Sometimes she wished she could be more like Shane, or even her mom, people seemed to like them more, maybe because they were less like her dad, and she was so absolutely her father's daughter.

"What are you looking at!" she snapped at someone who was looking at her. The person, some no-name turned away from her quickly and almost ran away at her harsh tone.

"Whoa, what's got you all angry?"

"Go away, Hunter, you're like, the third to last person I want to see right now."

"Well, what if I leave and one of those two people you want to see less come around, then you're pretty much screwed, right?"

"I'm just not in the mood."

"Is this over what your dad said?"

"None of your business," she said. "What are you doing here anyways? You're not even coming back until SummerSlam, you do nothing around here, you just talk to people you know and watch yourself."

"Wow, yeah, something is bothering you," he said calmly.

"Okay, so it is what my dad said, he had no right to paint me like that, I'm not like that, and now…now everyone sees me as this…horrible person, and I'm not a horrible person."

"They kind of saw you as a horrible person before though, why so mad over it now?" he wondered.

"It's just a whole bunch of things," she told him. "Sorry about saying you were the third to last person I wanted to see, you're easily like the seventh to last."

"Gee, thanks. Maybe you should take the rest of the night off, Regal looks to be handling himself pretty well."

"Yeah, like I should take advice from you," she said. "I'll be fine, I just need time to get over it, and probably a hug from my son, just wait until you have kids, there's nothing better than getting a bear hug from your kid, puts you in the best mood ever."

"I'll keep that in mind in the event that I ever have kids."

Stephanie nodded her goodbyes and decided that hug was what she needed, and maybe she should heed Hunter's advice. Her father had pretty much given Regal freedom to do what he wanted tonight and she wasn't needed since Regal was making things happen. She could sit by herself all night, pretending to look busy while her father gave her no power or she could be with her wife and son. The choice was easy.

Sawyer was asleep by the time she got there, but she still gave him a kiss and breathed in his clean, baby smell that she loved. It put her in an infinitely better mood. What put her in an even better mood was climbing into Chris's lap as the show went on and watching it on the television as he stroked her hair gently, brushing his fingers through it every so often, just enough that she could feel the sensation on her scalp. She sighed against him, feeling like her eyes were getting heavier and maybe the stress of tonight and the stress her father had put on her was getting to her and making her fall into this delicious sleep.

Then something put her right back into that bad mood.

The show was practically over, Chris was nudging her awake as she must've dozed for a few moments. "Hey, come on, let's get our things and get out of here, the show's over."

"How did the main event look?"

"It was good," he said, "I think Regal did a good job, I think that you'll have a better time working with him than you did with Coach."

"Well, as long as you don't pee in his tea, I think that we'll get along fine," she kidded, yawning and stretching her arms as Chris pushed her gently off his lap as he started to gather Sawyer's toys from around the floor. Stephanie stood up and stretched her legs a little bit from sitting in such a weird position next to Chris (Sawyer was hogging the couch).

Stephanie had just packed up most of her briefcase when she glanced up, hearing Coach's voice on the television in front of her. She wondered what this was about, but seeing the papers in his hands, figured it was about the summons that her father had received. She wondered what they would have to deal with now and if this was all part of her father's evil plan. Maybe he hadn't planned for something, but had gotten himself into trouble or something, that would be typical Vince. It looked like he couldn't catch a break right now.

Then Coach told Vince what the papers were about and Stephanie dropped her briefcase onto the desk in front of her. Chris, who had paused to look at the television as well, was flipping his gaze back and forth, from the television to Stephanie and back again, like a tennis match.

"Did…did he just say what I thought he said?" Stephanie asked.

"I think he said that someone is claiming your father is their dad."

"Oh…you've got to be kidding me, right? This is a joke, right? There's no way that my dad is someone else's dad, there's just no way. I mean, he had me and Shane and that's it. There's just no way."

"Steph…" Chris put Sawyer's toys quickly into his duffel bag before slowly taking a few steps towards his wife, "don't go crazy on me here."

"No! I just, I cannot believe this! My mind…my mind is blown, it is seriously blown, I just, I don't get this, I don't…no, this has to be a mistake, I have…I have to go see my dad about this," Stephanie said. "I just…cannot believe this!"

Stephanie pushed past Chris and pulled open the door so hard that it smacked into the wall, causing Sawyer to wake up abruptly and angrily. Chris quickly picked him up as he cradled him to him as he slung all their things over his shoulder and went as fast as he could after his wife. He wasn't very fast though since he had so many things, but he managed to get out there just the same, just in time for Stephanie to locate her father.

"Dad, what is the meaning of this!"

"Stephanie, not right now, okay," he said, and he sounded beaten. Chris came up a few yards from them and stopped to listen in on the conversation and make sure Stephanie didn't do something royally stupid like start beating up the limo.

"An illegitimate child, Dad, of all things, a child! Another child!" Stephanie yelled. "What…how could this happen, I mean, I know the _hows_ of how it could happen, but how…what about Mom?"

"Stephanie, please," he said, grabbing the bridge of his nose. "I don't know what this is about."

"Oh like hell you don't," she said. She could vaguely hear a phone ringing, but she paid it no attention as she seethed in front of her father.

The phone was Chris's and he pressed his headset on, "Hello?"

"Chris, it's Shane, my father and my sister are not answering their phones, what the hell is going on? My dad has another kid?" he asked incredulously.

"I don't know, man, your sister is having it out with your dad right now."

"Good, I mean, what the hell, right? Who…whatever, just…I need to process this, tell Stephanie to call me back."

"I'll make sure she does that."

"Thanks, bro," Shane said before hanging up to ponder it some more.

"No, Dad, this is serious, there could be…this could be fake, right? I mean, this could totally be fake, somebody wants our money, or our name, a job, someone wants something from us. We have to fight this, Dad, make them realize that this is harassment and that we can't stand for this. Another McMahon, silly, right…tell me it's silly, Daddy, please?" Stephanie said, now honestly scared that there was someone out there who looked like her.

"I don't know, Princess," he said and watched as her lip quivered. Vince rubbed his forehead with his palm, "I just…I haven't read over the summons, we'll just have to see what it's about. You know that I cheated on your mother, but…I don't know, Steph…"

"Daddy, no," Stephanie said. She had no delusions about her father, those had been shattered long ago, but the fact remained that she was her father's little girl. The thought that he might have some other little girl, some other Princess, was frightening. She knew in a lot of ways, despite what she thought earlier, she was the apple of her father's eye, and she wasn't ready to share that.

"Stephanie, I'm sorry."

"No, it's all lies!" she told him, told anyone that could hear. "No, I can't have some…brother or sister out there, I just…I can't, Shane is my only brother, he's my only sibling, it's just Shane and me, Shane and me against the world. This is…this is crap is what it is, crap! I can't believe you, Daddy!"

Now the temper was taking over and Chris walked over, laying his hand on Stephanie's shoulder. "Baby, come on, let's go back to the hotel so Sawyer can get some sleep and you can get some sleep too."

"Okay," she said, giving in easily because she didn't want to look at her father anymore. She couldn't believe what he was now bringing to her family. She had an established family. It was her, Chris and Sawyer, with Shane, Marissa, Declan, and Kenyon on the other side, and her mother, Linda McMahon, and her father, Vince McMahon, that was her family and always had been. The thought that there was some…other McMahon out there was disturbing. She sat in the car quietly for a while before speaking, her voice hoarse from all the anger spewed that evening. "Can you believe I could have another brother or sister?"

"Scary, I might have more McMahons to deal with, I can barely handle the ones I have," he said, trying to make light of it.

"A brother or sister, Chris, my dad…he's such a liar."

"A leopard can't change its spots."

"My mother, I can't imagine what she's thinking now," Stephanie said. "Does he have any idea how many lives he could be affecting?"

"I'm guessing no," Chris said.

"This is…it's crazy. It can't be real, I will not believe it is real until I see it with my own eyes, until I look at this person and until I know the truth, and until then…"

"Until then?" he inquired.

"Until then, Shane and me, we're it."


	147. She Doesn't Mince Words, August 13, 2007

"We need to shake things up."

"Who says?" Chris asked, speaking on behalf of the rest of the creative team as they sat in a meeting that was being conducted by Stephanie. Her father had been pleased with the ratings they had gotten last week, but he wanted them to be better. She knew that she was going to have to do something big about this, she just didn't know what exactly.

"I say," Stephanie said, trying not to make this a personal argument. "Look, my father was pleased with the rise in ratings, but not pleased enough, he wants more out of the stories, he wants everything to be better, and more entertaining instead of being so…personal."

"What do you mean by personal?" someone asked.

"I mean, oh, we telegraph how people hate each other, and we put our personal lives out there, but…what if we just did that to some extent? Some of us are boring, and I'm not naming names, but some people are just really boring, I think some of you will agree with me," Stephanie said as she saw some nods as she looked around the large table. "So we need to do something about that."

"Are you suggesting that we bring people in?"

"No, I mean, eventually we will be bringing people in, but not just that, I mean, we need to make people care about our wrestlers, and the wrestlers we have just aren't doing it anymore. I was speaking to my father, and this paternity thing, God help us, my father is…behind it as something on television."

"He is?" someone asked incredulously, "How do you feel about that?"

"Well, I don't like my personal life on display," Stephanie said, looking at Chris with a small smile. "I think most of you know that I'm very private about my marriage and my son to the masses and I like it that way, but…my father, and the rest of my family really, have never been too scared to discuss our family dynamics with everyone who wants to listen, so I'm not surprised by this."

"But you may have a brother or sister out there."

Stephanie sighed. She realized this was a very real possibility now. She had lived in the state of denial for a couple of days, refusing to acknowledge that she may have a brother or sister out there, but Chris had eventually coaxed it out of her. He had made her realize that this was a real thing and regardless of how her father had acted, she might have a brother or sister who needed her, who wanted her in their life, and in trying to be a better person (a thing she was still working on and would continue to work on all the days of her life) she had to accept this.

She hadn't yet talked to her father about it though, keeping their conversations to the actual business part of their lives. He was her boss, and she was his employee, and so they had stayed in this pre-determined boxes that they were living strictly by. Of course, she knew that she would eventually have to deal with this, hash it out with her father. It had been so hard to forgive him for the cheating, and now that she found out there were consequences, it was going to be even harder to forgive him again, but she knew she would.

Honestly, the lingering thought about all of this was that this illegitimate child would be a girl, even worse, this would've been a very recent affair and the girl would be young. She was being incredibly selfish, but she didn't want to share her father with another girl. She just didn't. She had been her father's little princess since the moment she had been born and she didn't want to share that. It was hard enough trying to make her father proud of her, if he had another girl…

It scared her that this other girl, if she did exist, would be prettier than she was, smarter than she was, more successful than she was. She pretty much knew that she wouldn't have a hotter husband than she did, or a better kid, but the other things were definitely in reach. Deep down, Stephanie was insecure, though she had buried that feeling for the longest time and it rarely saw the light of day, but this…this was something that wanted to make it come out full force.

"I know," she responded after choosing her words. "I know, and I'll deal with that, that has nothing to do with the workings of the show or the other wrestlers. That has to do with me and my family. I can work past it."

"So about this plan?" Chris asked, diverting the attention away from that particular situation. Stephanie was so grateful Chris was here.

"Yes, I was thinking, well…we make stuff up, like regular television shows," Stephanie said. "I'm not saying everything, I'm just thinking that we take existing stories, things that are happening and…jazzing them up a little bit."

"How so?"

"Well, um…that's where you guys come in," Stephanie laughed. "I'm not entirely sure this would even work, but I'm willing to do it on a trial period. So take myself for example, and this is solely an example. I'm Stephanie McMahon, to the fan's knowledge, I'm divorced from Hunter, I'm not on television right now, I'm Vince's daughter, I'm manipulating, I'm a bitch, I'm power-hungry. Now say that I want to come back to television, what do you see about me that you can come up with?"

"Well, people don't know you're with Chris," someone said. "I mean, we can use that, we can say that you're married to Chris, you can use that."

"No," Stephanie said. "See, that's too personal, Chris and Sawyer are off-limits, at least until Chris comes back, whenever that may be."

"Stephanie…focus," Chris said.

"Sorry," she said, biting her lip. "Anyways, Chris is pretty much off-limits, you can say I'm married, that's fine, but Sawyer, completely off-limits, he doesn't get mentioned by name, he doesn't get mentioned by reference to a son, as far as the fans are concerned, I have a daughter named Aurora and that's that, no son."

"Why don't you want your son out there? He _is_ the heir to the company."

"I love my son, I don't want him exposed to the cruelty of fans until he decides what he wants to do with his life, look at me, thirty-one, screwed up because my father couldn't keep me away, so Sawyer is not to be talked about at all, punishable by demotion or termination of contract," she said, very seriously and making eye contact with everyone seated around the table.

"How about you…are still married to Hunter!"

Stephanie scoffed and if she had been drinking any type of liquid, it surely would've ended up in your typical television show spit-take. "Excuse me?"

"Yeah, excuse me?" Chris said, staring down the guy who dared suggest that she would still be married to Hunter. "She may not want us discussed, but that isn't an invitation for _that_."

"Well, you said think of things to use, and people know that about you," he explained, trying to avoid Chris's predatory stare. "I mean, you know…they know that about you since you guys were all over television."

"That is true," Stephanie said. "That is something we can use if Hunter and I were still married."

"Stephanie…"

"Chris," Stephanie said. "It's not like we're actually married, uh, married to you, remember?"

"Still, that's horrible, that's just an example though, right?"

"I'm not sure, I kinda like the idea, good job Don," Stephanie said as Chris stared at her, mouth agape in shock that she would think such a thing was so good. "Chris, mouth closed, please," she winked at him. "I think that going back to what worked before is a good idea. Besides…hmm…if I had Hunter as my fake husband, he could defend me or something of that ilk against my father, my dad would _love_ that."

"Okay, I'm coming back!" Chris said, "That's it, I'm coming back!"

"Chris, don't joke," Stephanie said seriously.

"No, I'm coming back, I'll defend you."

"Sweetie, we'll talk later," she said, her voice controlled and stern. "Anyways, I'm liking where this is going, and I really think that idea could work. I want everyone to just think of ways to make things interesting, nothing too outrageous, and we'll reconvene later this week or early next week to brainstorm some more, thanks guys."

The meeting was adjourned and people trickled out of the room. Chris sat there, tapping the top of his clicky pen over and over again. Stephanie sat down next to him and gave him a look, but he refused to look at her, instead clicking that damn pen over and over again. She reached out and covered his hand with her own, ceasing the clicking that was starting to get on her nerves.

"Chris, come on."

"No, no come on," he said to her.

"Chris, it's not a big deal, it's just pretend."

"Pretend married! You left him years ago, you moved on years ago and now you want to re-invite that into our house. _We're_ married, Stephanie, us, you and me, you guys have been divorced for a long time now," Chris said, his jaw set now, and she knew that he was really steaming over this. She rubbed his knuckles with her fingers, trying to calm him down.

"I know that, sweetie, but the fact remains, we keep ourselves a secret. We don't go out there and flaunt it."

"So? This is dumb!"

"I think it's rather clever…you're friends with Hunter now, remember?"

"I know, but that doesn't mean I want people thinking you're still with him, you're with me now, and you have been for the last five years, _five_ years, Steph, this is crap, all of this," he said, standing up. "I'm going to go get Sawyer from the daycare and we're going to go home."

"Chris, don't be like this," she said, walking briskly after him and grabbing him around the waist to stop his forward progress. "Sweetie, it's not like that, it's not like I'm actually going to be sleeping with him or something. It's a story."

"I hate the idea," he said. "For once, can't it just be about me?"

"Excuse me," she said, stepping around to stand in front of him. "I haven't even bugged you about coming back in a serious manner in forever, I've respected all your wishes and this is how…you think that it isn't about you?"

"Stephanie, not that way," he said. "Look, it just bothers me, is all, this thing, this idea, it bothers me because we've all managed to move past that, and revisiting it is a bad idea."

"Fine, we'll nix it, but let's just keep it in mind, okay? For future reference?"

"Steph, you don't get it, you don't get why this would bother me so much, do you? It's not just a story, you know, it's our lives. You go on pretending, people start to believe you're a couple, you start 'acting,' and we're right back where we started except this time, we have a son."

"You can't be thinking I'm going to leave you for him, please tell me that's not what this is about?"

"It's entirely possible, you _loved_ him, Stephanie! That's not something to take lightly," Chris told her. He started to walk away again. He was going to go get Sawyer and go home where they belonged.

"This is not over, Chris," Stephanie said, chasing after him again as he got into the elevator. She managed to slide in before the doors closed and stood next to him. "Sweetie, it's acting, people do it all the time."

"Whatever, I'm not going to talk about it anymore."

"Well, fine, I love you though," she said coyly, tilting her head and looking at him adoringly and with a hint of teasing in her eyes. Chris tried to avoid her gaze and looked up at the numbers that were descending to the third floor where the in-building daycare center was located. "I love _you_, Chris."

Chris sighed, he just couldn't stand there anymore, "I love you too," he said grudgingly and she hugged him around the waist as he rolled his eyes and kissed the top of her head. "So when are you going to talk to your dad about everything?"

"When pigs fly," she told him, shuddering in disgust. "You should see my mom, Chris, she is so pissed off, I don't even want to bring it up with her. I mean, she knew about the other times, some of them, I don't know about when I was younger, but the more recent ones when I was a teenager, and adult, she knew for the most part, but this…this has really disappointed her. She's forgiven my father for so much, but…this, I don't know, I don't think she's going to be so easy to forgive."

"I know I probably wouldn't forgive you if you were to get pregnant by another guy," he said. "I'd probably leave you."

"I'd leave you in the same situation."

"I don't think I'm going to end up pregnant."

"Very funny," she deadpanned. "I think what my mom is most worried about is that if this thing pans out, if this kid is my father's, I think she's afraid that it happened when she was pregnant with either me or Shane. I don't think she likes the idea that while she was happy to be pregnant that some other woman was happy too with my dad's kid."

"That's valid…do you know what she's going to do about it?"

"I think that she's trying to be supportive, but…it's hard you know? I know we should expect this kind of behavior from my father, he's done it time and time again, but nothing really prepares you for this."

"She hasn't been to the office in the last week, has she? I haven't seen her around."

"She's opted to work from home this week. I think she's humiliated to be honest," Stephanie said with a sigh. "I mean, way to telegraph that you can't keep your husband into you. She'll be fine though, she's resilient."

"I believe that," he said as they rode down to the daycare center. "Maybe we should invite her over for dinner tonight or something, you know so she isn't alone."

She smiled up at him, "I think she'd like that. I know she'd love to be around Sawyer, and maybe we can invite Shane and Rissa over too, and they can bring the boys, it could be fun for her. And…thanks for thinking of my mom."

She said it so shyly that Chris had to laugh a little. It was like they were on their first date and she was nervous about kissing him or something. He kissed her forehead as the doors opened and they stepped out, "She's my family too, and I love your mom, she's a really great woman, and not just for the fact that she had you, because she is a good person."

"She really doesn't deserve this, I think of all of us, she's really the one who's had to put up with the most crap. Between my father, my brother, and me, I think we've taken years off of her life, we're not an easy family."

"I know from experience, I'm _in_ your family, remember?" he said. "But let's just get our son and get out of here."

"Sounds like a plan to me."

By the time Monday rolled around, Stephanie was more on edge than ever before. She was still steaming a little bit over the words that Vince had said about her last week, about her trying to find out what her piece of the pie was. She hoped that her father was chagrined now that he had even brought that up, what with the paternity test. She knew that it was probably a pipe dream to hope that, but she was a little bit optimistic, only very little after the conversation that she had had with her father the night before.

"_I wanted to have time at the top of the show tomorrow."_

"_Okay," Stephanie said dully._

"_What? That's it, no fuss or anything, no telling me that I can't," Vince said, and Stephanie sighed._

"_I'm not going to argue with you, Dad, you'll get your time at the top of the show."_

_It shouldn't have been that easy for Vince. His daughter should be raging at him, yelling, screaming, denouncing him like she had in the past. Wasn't this the same woman that wouldn't let him see his grandson for the first six months of his life because she could hold one hell of a grudge? She seemed so subdued right now that it honestly surprised him. He was expecting and lashing out of anger, but not this._

"_But…you surely must've had some idea with something else."_

"_I can switch it around, put a match later or something," she said to him. "Is that all you needed?"_

"_I wanted all the talent to be out there, I don't care what show they're on, I want them out there," he said, now just making demands and not caring what was what. _

"_I'll send out a memo to inform all the ECW and SmackDown stars to be there tomorrow," Stephanie responded. "I don't think it'll be too much of a problem since everyone is in the area anyways."_

"_Are you still upset about last week?"_

"_I didn't appreciate what you said about me, Dad, especially when it's untrue, but I suppose that you had to say it to save face, and if that's your reason behind it fine. It also does me a favor by not revealing that I knew all along you were alive and not only that, but you were staying at my house at the time."_

"_Then what is it, Stephanie? What's with this silence and saying yes to everything?" Vince asked, wanting to know what was up with his daughter._

"_You want to know what's wrong with me, Dad?" Stephanie said, a little bit of that fierceness creeping up into her voice._

"_Yes!" he demanded._

"_I'm just sick of the way that you treat Mom. You know, I know that I made and make tings about me a lot of the time, that I really only concern myself with what I feel and what my family feels, but not this time. This time it's not about me, and it's not about my family, it's about my mother, and I know, Lord I know that I've done some horrible things to Mom, I've slapped her, degraded her, I've treated her like crap, but not for so long. I love Mom, despite everything we've been through, and I know at the end of the day, she loves me too, and I will protect her, Dad, with everything in me because I've realized that of any of us, she doesn't deserve this."_

"_Stephanie…"_

"_No, Dad, this isn't time to make excuses. Look, what happened…is reality, it just is, and…we're just all tired, Dad. You don't know how hard it is to be your family sometimes, and we're not asking for praise or anything, you just don't know how hard it is to be one of us looking at you," she said. "You don't need to explain anything to me, I'm not the one you need to explain to."_

"_I've tried talking to your mother, but--"_

"_Dad, this is so beyond anything we've had to deal with, cut us some slack," she said. "Look, you have your time at the beginning of the show, and I'll send out that memo, is that all you needed?"_

"_Yes, Stephanie, that's all I need."_

Stephanie was on a mission that morning. She woke up early, earlier than usual in fact. Sawyer was a "late to bed, late to rise" kind of kid, so he didn't usually wake up until nine o'clock. Today though, Stephanie was up earlier, staring up at the ceiling as she absently rubbed Chris's arm which was strewn across her stomach. She contented herself listening to his breathing, the slight shuffle of the sheets as they went up and down with his breathing as they lay snuggled into their nice, cozy Connecticut-home bed. The air conditioning made it a cool morning indeed, though she knew that it wasn't deliriously hot outside.

She had been curious since last week to know about this mystery child of her father's. Or supposed mystery child, her brain corrected, as there was no conclusive evidence to point her father as this person's father. She hadn't even told Chris how curious she was, but she did want to know. She wanted to go see this person and find out what they were like. Stephanie had never wanted another brother or sister; she had always thought that having Shane for a brother was more than enough. That's what made this whole thing worse. Stephanie didn't want another person in this family.

She went to get out of bed when Chris's arm tightened around her waist. "Where are you going?"

"I'm getting up."

"Sawyer's not up yet though, it's still early," he said, lifting his head just the tiniest bit to look at the glaring numbers on his bedside clock.

"I know, but I needed to go do something," she said, but in contradiction to that mentality, she scooted over so that she was cuddling with Chris.

"What did you need to do?"

"I was going to go try to find out who the person is that claims to be my father's child," Stephanie told him. Chris groaned as a response and buried his face into his pillow. "What? What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing, I just knew that you were going to find out at all costs," he said. "You can't wait to find out who the potential new McMahon is?"

"No, I can't, I need to see, Chris, I _need_ to…what if…what if it's a girl?"

"Is that a problem?"

"Uh…yeah," she said, rolling her eyes, "I mean…I always liked being Daddy's Little Girl, deep down, deep, deep down."

"Uh huh," he said, not convinced that it was that deep. "I guess you'll just have to find out."

"Yeah," she said, throwing his arm off of her and climbing out of bed. She slipped her feet into the slippers lying on the floor before turning to look at Chris, who had pulled the sheets up a little bit. "Will you take care of the monster?"

"Sure," he said.

"If it is a girl, or a boy for that matter, do you think my father will love them more?"

"What the hell kind of question is that?" Chris asked, but didn't look at her as his eyes were still closed, trying to recapture sleep.

"I mean, come on, my father shows blatant favoritism between me and my brother at any given moment, and we're screw-ups. What if his new child is like a nuclear physicist or something, or a Nobel Prize winner, and perfect and has never banked all their money on a stupid endeavor, or slapped their mother or gotten into matches with him?"

"You're right about your dad showing favoritism, but you guys work here, your dad is going to hand the keys to the kingdom to you, that's something he has to be proud of."

"More than a Nobel Prize winner?"

"What do they do with that prize? Is it made of chocolate? Can they eat it?"

"I love how you downplay everything," she said. "I don't know, I guess it's stupid, but I'm not entirely sure how you're supposed to react when a new child comes out of the woodwork. I do so hope that this is just a scam, because there's that chance."

"There is, do you have a preference of who it might be?"

"As long as it's not you, Hunter, or Marissa, I think I'm going to live through the results of who it is."

"Well, I know it's not me, because I do not think that my mom, sober, drunk, or otherwise would ever end up in bed with your dad," Chris said as he shuddered at the mental picture of that. "Not that my mom doesn't like your dad, but she thinks he's a little on the odd side."

"She can just join the club," she said. "And it can't be Hunter, he looks very much like his dad."

"See, that leaves…Marissa, uh oh, is Shane a pervert?" Chris joked.

"So it's not one of those three, then I can deal." She went into the closet to grab some clothes. "I guess I just wouldn't know how to welcome this person into the family, especially with my mom. What's the etiquette there? I don't want to hurt my mom's feelings, but I don't want to shut out a potential sibling."

"I think your mom would understand where you were coming from," he told her. "I think she would want you to know your brother or sister."

"Yeah, she's like that," Stephanie said as she emerged in her robe and heading for the shower. "But let's not forget, this could be all a big mistake."

Stephanie wasn't able to get to see the papers directly. They wouldn't share with her a name or an address, not even hair color. The only thing they noted that was of any note to her was that he or she was employed by her father's company. That narrowed it down a lot and left Stephanie dazed. She asked them to elaborate, wondering if it was in the offices or if it was a wrestler, and it was indeed a wrestler; she had had to use her womanly wiles to get that out of the attorney.

Chris and Sawyer were at the arena early because they were filming earlier that day to accommodate the Saturday Night Main Even tapings they were going to do immediately following the show. They didn't usually do it this way, but they were to have the whole roster here and it would be a money-saving effort to film two shows in one night. Stephanie arrived at the arena, and decided that she'd keep the news to herself until her brother arrived. She was surprised however when the first person she saw there was her mother.

"Mom?" Stephanie said as she saw Linda talking amicably with what appeared to be Mick Foley…Mick Foley? "Mick?"

"Stephanie, hello," Linda said, turning to her daughter.

"What are you doing here?" she asked her mother, then turned to Mick, "and what are _you_ doing here?"

"Anything for a cheap buck," Mick joked, "Regal called me, he wanted to do this American Idol type thing, and I wasn't doing anything, and seriously, anything for a cheap buck."

"Wow, okay, weird," Stephanie muttered.

"How're things?" Mick asked, trying to be polite. He didn't really ever get along with the youngest (maybe) McMahon, but she had certainly calmed down in recent years, to the point where he didn't feel like a conversation with her would result in him getting his crotch kicked in.

"They're…good," she said, "things are going very well, thanks."

"How's that little whipper-snapper of yours?" Mick asked with that crusty tone of voice he used every now and again.

"He's great, a little bundle of energy," she said, then turned to her mother. "Mom, I didn't think you'd be here tonight, you know that Dad is going to be here, rightc"

"I know, but I wanted to spend some more time with Sawyer."

"It's good that you're here though, I wanted to call a family meeting as soon as Shane gets here, do you know if he's here?"

"I don't think he's here yet, I haven't seen him, and he knew that I was going to be coming by so I like to think he would've come and said hello to me if he knew that I was going to be here," she said. "I was just talking with Mick and noting how wonderful it was to see him."

"Uh huh," Stephanie said, thoroughly distracted now. "I'm going to go find Chris and Sawyer."

"Okay, honey," Linda said.

"It was nice speaking with you, Mick," Stephanie said.

"You too."

Stephanie still didn't know what to do with the news she had received, but she was already noticing a difference in her demeanor. Now, every superstar that passed by her, she was trying to draw some sort of comparison. She was totally conscious that she was doing it, but she couldn't help herself. It was so easy to try and figure out who was her brother or sister if she could just study everyone for a moment.

Did Maria have the same eyes? Was that a chin dimple she saw on Randy Orton? What kind of timeframe would she be looking at? Did the person know that they were at the heart of a paternity suit? Did someone around here believe that they were Vince's kid? If they did, why now, why wait until now to come out about it? Questions were swirling around her brain as everyone seemed to blend together. It wasn't until she felt something wrap around her leg that she broke free from her freestyle investigation.

"Hey baby boy," she said, looking down at her leg to which Sawyer had attached himself. "Where's Daddy?"

"Mama," he said, smiling up at her. She found herself looking around to see if anyone was watching them with interest, like whoever was her brother or sister would be completely fascinated with her.

Stephanie picked up her little boy and kissed his cheek, "Hey you, where's your daddy?"

"Batta," Sawyer said.

"Oh, is he getting you something to eat? He just let you wander around here?"

"Yeah," Sawyer answered. She looked over her shoulder and saw Chris and Hunter walking casually down the hallway, talking with one another, Chris glancing up every so often to make sure the Sawyer hadn't run off somewhere. Stephanie walked up to the two of them.

"So Hunter, you coming back tonight?"

"Hell no, I'm not going to come in early and blow a comeback, are you kidding me?" Hunter said.

"So just like last time then, when they hyped you for Vengeance and then you didn't show?"

"You've got to build it up until people can't stand it," he explained, "Then everyone loves you when you finally do show up…"

"Not everyone wants you to come back, I think some people would be fine if you never showed your face here again."

"Well, those people, I've got two words for them…"

"Not around my son please, the last thing I need him to learn is to say _that_," Stephanie said.

"Those two words are, please stop, see, not offensive in the slightest. But yeah, I'm not coming back on a random show with no build-up whatsoever, you should know me better than that, Steph."

"I do, trust me."

"So have you found out anything about this mystery guy or girl that's your sibling?" Hunter asked.

"I'd like to keep that to myself if it's all the same to you," Stephanie said. "No offense, I just…it's a really weird situation and I don't think telling you anything I may or may not know before I inform my family is the way to go."

"I understand…well, no I don't, I don't have any brothers or sisters running around out there that I don't know about, but I sympathize with you."

"Thanks," she said, then saw Shane, "well, if you'll excuse me, I need to speak with my family, Chris, that includes you."

"Oh man, and here I thought I'd get out of it," he said. "See you later, Trips."

"Later, man."

Stephanie grabbed Chris's hand with her free one and dragged him over to where Shane was, "Shane, where's mom?"

"Uh, I saw her by the entrance earlier, but I haven't seen her in a good ten minutes."

"Can you go get her and meet me in my office in five minutes," Stephanie demanded rather than asked. "I have something important to tell you guys and I wanted you all to hear it at the same time."

"You're pregnant again?" Shane said, looking down at her stomach which was obscured by Sawyer's legs that were wrapped loosely around her torso.

"Whoa, if you're pregnant, you really should tell _me_ first," Chris said, raising his hand a little.

"I don't know whether that's an honest mistake or an insult," Stephanie said. "Are you trying to tell me that I'm fat or something? Because if you are, that's really rude of you to say."

"Yeah," Chris agreed, "I love my women a little bit curvy." He grinned lecherously at Stephanie and Shane looked thoroughly disgusted at the display.

"I don't know why you guys think it's okay to act that way in front of me," Shane responded. "I'm her brother, man, okay, I don't go around with Marissa talking dirty to her in front of people…and family."

"That's because Marissa is at home," Stephanie said, "and for the record, no, I'm not pregnant, thanks for making me feel like I look frumpy and dumpy. Can you go get Mom because I have news about the kid that Dad may or may not have had with another woman."

"Oh," Shane said, rightfully subdued. He, like his sister, didn't know how to handle the news. He knew that it would be easy to be angry, and yes, it would've been very easy to be angry with his father, but Shane just wanted resolution. He was a guy who was constantly wanting to move forward, and he just wanted to do the same with this. He wanted to get it done with and find out if there was a brother or sister out there for him.

He would find it decidedly strange if this person turned out to be older than him. Shane had always been the first-born, the big brother, the first to do everything. He knew that a lot of the time, Vince favored Stephanie, but still, he was Vince's eldest and he just didn't like the feeling that someone out there could be the "heir" to the throne so to speak. Even worse, what if that person were to swoop in and take over everything that he had worked so hard for? Shane had started up on the ring crew of all things, and he had worked his way up through the ranks and was a better person for it. Stephanie's road had been much easier, but she had worked too, and to have that usurped, well, he was going to make sure that didn't happen.

"Yeah, oh, so go get Mom, meet us in my office."

"Okay," he agreed, immediately scurrying off.

"What did you find?" Chris asked.

"I'll tell you with the rest of them," she said. "I just don't feel right not telling you all at the same time."

"You can tell the kid."

"I guess, but he's a little talker, he'll blurt it out before I can get a word in edgewise."

She didn't tell Sawyer, but she wished that he was the only one she had to tell this too. Like promised, Shane and Linda were there in less than five minutes. Shane sat next to his mother on the couch as Stephanie paced a little bit in front of them. The news wasn't groundbreaking or totally shocking, it was just…it was weird how small a world this could be, if the mystery person hadn't planned this.

"What is it, Stephanie?" Shane asked.

"The person who filed the suit, the child in the suit, well, they wouldn't reveal names to me either, since they said I could be representing my father, which is stupid, but they have procedures they need to follow--"

"Spit it out already."

"The person, the child, they work here," she said. "Not just that, but they're a wrestler. Someone that wrestles here could be our brother or sister."

"Are you kidding me?" Shane said, his worst fears being realized. What if it was someone huge, someone whom their father would adore just because of their wrestling skills? Vince had always wanted to be a wrestler, and now, he might have that in some other kid.

"I know!" Stephanie said. "I really just want to tell Dad and make him cringe."

"Do it," Shane said.

"What? Go out there?"

"Yeah, go out there. Tell Dad off, you do it best anyways," Shane said.

"I couldn't…"

"Hell yeah, you could, I saw the schedule, Dad has time at the top of the hour, what you want to bet he talks about this? Go out there, tell him off. You run this entire thing, you're entitled to do whatever the hell you want to do."

"Mom?" Stephanie said as if silently asking for permission.

"I think you should," she said succinctly, and she knew that she was going to.

She found the perfect break in her father's rant to go out there. She took off her wedding ring and engagement ring, handing them to Chris, who questioned her as she told him that she might end up slapping her father and she didn't want her rings to fly off while she was doing so. Her father had been talking about nothing bothered him, well she was about to change that. As she walked down the ramp, as the crowd pumped her up, she became fearless, and it was a seamless transition.

There was just something about the arena, the ring, the atmosphere that brought out the best in Stephanie. Backstage she could be kind and motherly, but out here, she was ruthless, like a caged animal looking for a fight, and right now, she saw her prey in the middle of the ring. The superstars were all staring at her, and she took a moment to stare back, wondering who it was, who was related to her, who (if they were in fact her sibling) would have to deal with her and her crazy family for the rest of their lives?

She went to tell off her father for what he said last week, and she knew at this point she was being petty and withholding. She had known her father was not dead, but she didn't bring that up, not wanting to drag her name in the mud (it was just an omission of the truth, not lying). She hated that her father brought up the money again, which she didn't care about. He was being insufferable to her, so she delivered that final, fatal blow.

Vince was actually shocked and she was very satisfied with that. Let him stew for a while, it served him right. She walked purposefully backstage, not even glancing back once. Her family was waiting back there and she smiled.

"What do you say we bail?" she asked, such a self-high she was on. She didn't even care that she was basically not going to work. She was on such an adrenaline rush that leaving, showing her father he had no control over her, didn't even phase her. "We'll go have a nice dinner or something…"

"I want to stay," Linda said. "You three go ahead, I want to stay and see what your father does with this news."

"Do you want us here?" Stephanie asked. "We'll stay."

"Oh, no, don't do that on my behalf."

"No, we'll stay," Stephanie said, and a strange feeling washed over her. For the first time, really, ever, for the very first time, she felt like she was completely on the same page with her brother and her mother. Now, she had often felt that way with Shane, since he practically raised her, but with the difficulties with her mother, she always felt that there was some sort of disconnect there, that even though they got along now, the past wrongdoings would always form a bit of a gap for them. But not on this night, oh no, on this night, she felt a kinship with her mother that she hadn't felt in a very long time. For once, she felt like they were together on something. Yes, they were a force, an almost unstoppable force…

All against Vince McMahon.

(For now anyways…)


	148. I'd Rather Have Fake H, August 20, 2007

Vince had had better weeks.

That wasn't to say that this was the worst because it, by far, was not the worst week of his life. It might not even crack the top ten of his worst weeks, but he had certainly had better. Better would include any of his family members speaking with him, getting to play with his grandsons, and getting to actually step foot on his property. This week, none of those things had been afforded of him.

His family was mad at him, and for once, he couldn't blame them. Was he angry that they were taking this stance? Of course he was, but he could hardly blame them. Vince wasn't a stupid man, but he could be oblivious to human feelings every once in a while, a trait that his children (the two that he knew were indubitably his children) had picked up from him. He couldn't understand why they wouldn't support him during this trying time, just a little bit. He could understand that they were mad, but to show no support, he couldn't believe that.

Shane and Stephanie were in support of Linda during this time. Linda didn't deserve any of this, but honestly, Linda didn't deserve most of what she actually got. She had finally come to think that everything was settled down. She and Vince could be happy turning over the company to Stephanie and Shane, and Stephanie and Shane both had beautiful families, wonderful spouses who supported them, and children to carry on the family tradition. It was a time in her life where she should be slowing down, but instead, she had to deal with this.

"Yeah, don't worry, Mom, we'll be back tomorrow, I'm sure that Sawyer will not have grown too much in the interim," Stephanie said as she finished up a phone call with her mother. "Yeah Mom, I love you too, bye."

"So how is she?"

"She's okay," Stephanie said with a nod. "She's strong. Besides, Marissa and the boys are there with her to take her mind off of things."

"She's been spending a lot of time with her grandkids."

"I know, I just think she wants to surround herself with people that she loves, and who better to love than your grandkids, who don't know any better," Stephanie joked. "If she's around them, she can think about them."

"Wouldn't it be weird if your supposed brother or sister had kids?" Chris asked as he played around with Sawyer's mini basketball hoop and Nerf basketball. Sawyer kept trying to grab the basketball from Chris's hands, but he would throw it at the hoop before he could get it and then Sawyer would go running for it and bring it back to Chris.

"Why would that be weird?"

"I don't know, just…you know…bigger family…" He was floundering and he knew it and she rolled her eyes and laughed. "Come on, I mean, aren't you wondering about it? I know you are because you've told me you are."

"Well…yeah, I'm wondering, I think that it's very natural to wonder just who your brother or sister is. You don't have any siblings, you wouldn't know, you grew up the apple of your parent's eyes. I see it as plain as day in your parent's house. It's like the Chris Jericho Museum."

"Wow, I never thought of having my own museum," he mused. "That'd be awesome."

"Focus, Chris, focus," Stephanie said. "All I'm saying is, you never had to share."

"Well, you don't know that I don't have some brother or sister running around out there," he said. "My dad was a professional hockey player for a long time. Maybe he wasn't faithful some year and I've got an older brother or sister running around out there."

"Yeah, that probably didn't happen," Stephanie said sarcastically, "who do you think it is? Like no joking around, no nothing, who do you think it is?"

"You're asking me honestly?"

"Yes."

"I have no idea," he said, rolling the ball to Sawyer, who picked it up and put it into the basketball hoop and laughed at himself for getting it in. "Nice one, kid…what do you want me to say, Stephanie?"

"I want you to tell me who you think it is."

"I haven't actually thought too much about it, I've got a lot on my mind right now, Diva Search, SummerSlam, Raw tonight, you know, I don't really think about it as it doesn't pertain to me."

"It doesn't pertain to you?" she asked incredulously. "Chris, on January 15, 2005, you officially became a part of this equation."

"So then on August 20, 2007, it would be okay for me to officially secede from this union?" he asked. "Your family has gotten just a _little_ bit too much for me. I thought I could handle it, but when you start throwing me illegitimate children, then I'm going to have to draw the line."

"They're not _your_ illegitimate children," she said, "so it's not like it's all about _you_."

"Oh yeah, not mine, right, right, right," he said, shifting his eyes almost comically. "Because I certainly don't have anyone that I've impregnated, there are no other little Jerichos running across the country, no way…uh-uh."

"I'm glad you're taking so much pleasure from my pain."

"And why would I do that?" he asked. "Sawyer, would I take pleasure from Mommy's pain?"

"Dun," he said with a shrug.

"Sawyer, it's 'I don't know,'" Stephanie said.

"See, he didn't say that I would."

"He didn't say that you wouldn't."

"Well, he didn't say that I would."

"I'm not going to get into this with you. I think it's a guy. I don't know why I think that, but I think it's a guy, and he can't be too old, I don't see him being older than my brother."

"Do you think that he's older than you?"

"I don't think so," Stephanie said. "I don't know, I'd hate it if we were the same age, it would make me less…I don't know, special I guess is the word for it, because it's like, I wasn't the only McMahon born that year. It's very confusing, I'm just so confused," she lamented, sighing and running a hand through her hair.

Chris crawled over to the side of the bed and knelt down next to her, running his hand up and down her arm. "I would be too, if we're speaking candidly. I mean, how freaky is it that there's someone that you are related to, that is your brother or sister and you know next to nothing about them, well, not next to nothing if they work with you, but next to nothing personally."

"That's what really gets me," she said, turning on her side so she could simultaneously talk to Chris and watch Sawyer as he kept playing with his basketball. "I'm close to Shane, I love my brother, he's almost always been there for me, he raised me a lot of the time that my parents were away. I'm not going to be close to this person because we don't share any of the same experiences, and what if it's someone that hates me? What if it's like…Shawn?"

Chris started laughing, "It's not Shawn!"

"I'm using him as an example because he hates me, so them I'm out a sibling?"

"Well, that's life, it's rough," he said, kissing her gently. "It'll work out and you have to remember that you don't even know if this person is your brother or sister, this is all speculation."

"I know," she said. "I hope it's not true, I don't want to have another crazy person in this clan."

"Let's get to work, shall we?"

--

Tonight was the night for Christian. He was going to finally, officially ask Tiffany to move down to Florida with him. They had talked about it some, but not extensively. Their relationship was so solid right now, going so well that he hoped that Tiffany would see things his way and want to move down with him. He straightened his tie as she walked out of her bathroom, combing her hair with her fingers just to get those final kinks out.

"So where are you taking me? Tell me!" she pleaded, sticking her bottom lip out as far as it would go.

"I'm not going to tell you," he told her, shaking his head. "It's not even as big a deal as you're making it. You're only asking because I didn't tell you."

"Yes, you didn't tell me."

"We're just going to that restaurant that you like, I forget the name right now, but it's on Pinnacle I think it was."

"Oh, well, that kind of ruins the surprise."

"It wasn't a surprise," he laughed. "It's just dinner, I don't see what the big deal is."

"It's a Monday night, you usually like to watch Raw on Monday nights to catch up with what the guys you know are doing and scope out the competition," she said, running her hands down the back of his shirt to straighten out the wrinkles. "Do you know how to use an iron?"

"It's tough flying with nice clothes," he said, trying to make a subtle hint, but she just stuck her head over his shoulder and stuck her tongue out at him through the mirror. "Mature, Tiff, very mature."

"Oh yeah, this coming from you? Yeah, right, Captain Charisma."

"I never should've shown you old tapes, never," he chastised himself with a headshake. "And I wanted to take you out tonight because you know that I'm leaving on Wednesday and I don't want to spend my last night taking you out when I can take you in."

"Man, you are one, big cheeseball."

"Yes, but you love the cheese."

"No, I love you, the cheese I can leave behind," she said, wrapping her arms around his more muscular arm. "Are you done primping yet?"

"Are _you_ done primping yet?" he threw back at her.

"Yes."

"Then I am too…and if you think this is bad, then you should've seen me when I had long hair, I had to make sure that I looked good," he told her as they descended the stairs together and out of the house.

"I can't imagine you with long hair," she told him, squinting up at him trying to picture just what he would look like with long hair. She had seen the pictures and the tapes from that period, at least a little bit, but still, seeing him in person and imagining that other person to be him, it was strange to equate one with the other.

"It was a sight to behold," he said, as if being nostalgic. It just reminded him that Tiffany didn't know all of him, the past him that used to exist; the one that was insecure because his brother got all the attention, the one who had turned on said brother and had been a bad guy. She didn't know that guy, and while it would've bothered him in the past, he was glad to still have that fresh slate and show her the guy he was now without all that added baggage.

"So are we going to have a great time tonight?"

"I hope so."

--

"Hey, isn't that your dad's attorney?" Chris pointed surreptitiously at the man walking towards the exit.

"Yeah, I think it is, I wonder what he's here for, he usually stations himself in Connecticut," Stephanie said. "Take this."

"Did you hear that kid, you're just a 'this' now," Chris said as he took Sawyer from Stephanie and then set him down on the ground so he could walk by himself and look at all the fascinating things at his eye level, which included a lot of shins.

"Mr. Rosebloom!" Stephanie called out, quickening her pace. The man ahead of her stopped and turned, giving Stephanie a warm smile.

"Stephanie, so nice to see you again."

"You too, Mr. Rosebloom, excuse me for asking, but what are you doing here? I've never seen you travel with the company before, usually you send your associates if it's something that my dad needs," Stephanie said.

"Oh, well, your father wanted me to handle this paternity suit personally, so I've taken it on myself," he explained. "I had some news for your father, and he didn't want to hear it over the phone, so here I am."

"Why didn't he want to hear it over the phone?" she wondered.

"Well…your father seems to think…that you and your family might be bugging his phone to get information for some kind of suit that you might undertake."

"That's silly, why would I do that? Or any of my other family members for that matter," Stephanie said, shaking her head. Her father was starting to get paranoid again, but she was starting to believe that her father did actually believe that they were all about the money when she really didn't need it because she and Chris lived rather comfortably of their own devices.

"I'm not going to speculate, but I'm sure if anyone knows your father, it's you."

"Unfortunately, yes, I know him all too well," Stephanie said, rubbing her forehead a little. "What was the news that you wanted to tell him?"

"I don't think that I'm at liberty to divulge that information to you, Stephanie, I'm sorry, but I have to practice extreme confidentiality with this considering that the person in question works for this company and any news leak can create chaos."

"Mr. Rosebloom, you've known me since I was a little girl, you've been my father's lawyer for so many years, you know that I'm not going to tell anyone, and don't you think that I deserve to know about my potential brother and sister, and my mother, think of her through this time."

Stephanie put on her doe eyes, the best ones she had. This man had known Stephanie for a long time, but didn't know how good an actor she was. It wasn't that she wanted to use the information to undermine her father, she just wanted to know more about this child to ease her mind and find out if there was any way she was already close to her brother or sister.

"I'm really not supposed to…" He was cracking, she could feel it.

"I just want to know about the person, like me an Shane, I want that, don't you think that we should get that opportunity?"

"Well…the woman that brought up the claim is not divulging many details, it's rather frustrating actually, but she's got a hold of the law. What I did manage to find out was that the child in question is a male, so you have a potential brother."

"Brother…do you know when he was born?"

"I haven't found that out yet, I'm sorry, Stephanie."

"It's okay, you've been a great help, thank you, Mr. Rosebloom."

"It's always a pleasure talking to you, Stephanie. Now I'm going to try to catch the next flight out of here."

"Good luck," she said as he walked away. She turned to Chris, her eyes ablaze as she giddily walked over to him. "I could have another brother."

"Well aren't you just a modern-day Nancy Drew," Chris said, "being a little detective all over the place."

"Shut up. This narrows the field down a little and don't you get what this means?" she asked of him.

"Yes, I know exactly what this means," he responded. "It means that you're the only girl in the family and as such, you get to retain the crown of being the crown jewel of the McMahon empire. It's amazing how many men there are in this family."

"You make me sound vain," she told him. "I just didn't want to have to compete, and did you hear Melina last week, talking about how she'd take all of Dad's money? I mean, I've entertained thoughts of that, but still, I'm so glad she isn't my sister."

"Me too."

"Why me too?" he asked.

"Well, no, actually, it would've been good, because if I were to get with her, it wouldn't be that far a jump you know, I'd already be familiar with the family, I'd still get to spend holidays with the kid."

"You're just not funny, I'm going to go call my mom and tell her about this, if you see Shane before I do, tell him the news, okay?"

"Will do, do I have the monster?"

"Yeah, please," she said, but she was already walking away. Chris turned and smacked right into Randy Orton.

"Watch where you're going," Randy said.

"Uh yeah, I was standing here, you were the one walking, what the hell's the matter with you anyways?" Chris asked, finally daring to ask Randy what had happened to him. "You used to be cool, and now you're like obsessed with taking out legends, most of whom are either washed up or injured."

"You're just afraid that I'm going to get you too someday."

"Oh yeah, that's really it," Chris said, rolling his eyes, "Get over yourself Randy, seriously, man, didn't you have so much more fun when you weren't being a complete jerk to everyone. I think people actually liked you back then too."

"Yeah, and where did that get me? Nowhere, that's where, man, and I seem to remember that you had the same idea when you were the Undisputed Champion and you talked crap about the fans."

"Yeah, and where did _that_ get me, oh yeah, a loss at WrestleMania."

"Whatever."

"Don't underestimate John."

"Please, after last week, that pansy-ass should fear me," Randy chuckled as he walked off.

Emerging from the shadows a moment later was John Cena himself, "Whoa, do my ears deceive me or did Chris Jericho said that I shouldn't be underestimated."

"Jesus, Cena, what the hell are you doing skulking around?" Chris said, giving the younger man a look of disgust.

"I'm making sure that Randy doesn't see me, I've got a good feeling that he's going to call me out, and he thinks I'm not here so I'm going to surprise attack him."

"Oh sounds great," Chris said, rolling his eyes, "and for the record, I wasn't praising you, I just think that Randy has gotten way too cocky for his own good. You injure one guy and your head gets too big."

"Yeah, guess we shouldn't talk about someone's head getting too big," John said underhandedly.

"Excuse me, what the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Dude, your kid is walking away," John said, nodding to the side where Sawyer really was walking away, seemingly intent on going somewhere alone.

"Sawyer!" The little boy stopped and turned briefly before starting to walk again. Exasperated, Chris went and grabbed him, scooping him up into his arms. "Don't just walk away, do you know how much your mother would kill me if you got lost?"

"Yeah."

"Well, good, I'm glad you know," he said, making a face at the young boy before turning back to John. "So you think I've got a big head, why is that?"

"You've taken to the desk job pretty well, I don't want to speculate, but your last match _was_ with me, I think you're scared."

Chris guffawed and actually started laughing heartily, until his cheeks started to hurt, "You're actually suggesting that I'm sitting back here because I'm scared to come back and all of that because of _you_? I lost that match only because my wife was pregnant with my son and we were going to take time off."

"She ain't pregnant now, is she? I think you're scared of me."

"Don't tempt me, man, and don't think I don't know what you're doing, you think we have unfinished business, don't you?" Chris asked, a smirk slowly spreading across his lips.

"You didn't give me one-hundred percent that night, you're damn right we have unfinished business," John told him. "I just want to make sure that you come back while I don't feel guilty kicking an old man's ass. But if that's not cool enough for you, I guess I can wait for your kid to become a wrestler and I'll take on him."

"Yeah, and he'll kick your ass," Chris said. "Whatever man, I'll come back and I'll make sure to save some room to kick your ass properly."

"Sure you will, Chris, sure you will…"

--

"Man, this sucks."

"It's just rain, Christian."

"Yeah, but I was hoping that we could go for a walk and now instead, we can't because it's raining."

"Well, it's not the weather's fault," she said as they ran towards their car as they emerged from the safety of the canopy outside the restaurant. They made it there, but they got a little bit wet in the process. As soon as they were inside, Tiffany shook her hair out a little, getting little droplets all over the car as Christian pulled in beside her. "So home?"

"Yeah, sounds good," he said as she put the car into reverse and pulled out of the space.

"What do you want to do when we get there?" she asked.

"Well, there's a few things I want to do _later_," he told her, and she shook her head, recognizing the tone in his voice.

"Yeah, I think I know what that means."

"Before that though, maybe just some television, or a movie or something. I can't think of a better way to spend a rainy night than to watch some really bad movie that it just prime for mocking."

"Ooh, my favorite pastime," she joked as she drove back to her house.

Christian had planned to ask her the big question when they were on their walk, but the rain had derailed that plan so he just had to ask her while they were watching the television. He hated that everything was going to hell, but if she said yes, he didn't care how it came about as long as it came about.

"You're quiet tonight, what's up?"

"Just tired, wrestling tires you out," he said and it wasn't a lie in the slightest. Wrestling could be very tiring and a lot of the time he was tired, but tonight, tonight he was just a whole bundle of nerves and nothing more.

"Oh, good, I thought that I had embarrassed you or something."

"Yeah, I think if anyone is going to embarrass anyone it's going to be me embarrassing you."

"Oh, such high expectations," she joked as they got closer and closer to her house. Closer and closer to his potential doom, he thought with a soft chuckle. He was being way overdramatic. Trish would've called him on that once upon a time, and damn…there she was.

It was getting easier to forget about Trish, especially when things were going so well with Tiffany. He loved being with Tiffany, and he _loved_ Tiffany, and it was such a refreshing kind of love too, one without strings or stipulations or extra baggage that he was stuck dragging behind him. It was a different kind of love than what he had felt for Trish, and yes, he had thought felt because he could say that he had moved on.

Of course, saying and doing are two completely different things.

She still popped into his brain every now and again, though he managed to pretty effectively push her out a few moments later. Sometimes he found himself unconsciously comparing this relationship with the one with Trish, but then he'd come to his senses and realize that every relationship is different, but she still came to his mind. The dull ache that accompanied a thought of her was considerably easier to handle and he thought that this was a great thing. He was moving on, and hopefully, so was she.

"We're here, slowpoke," Tiffany said as she was already out of the car.

Christian scrambled out himself, embarrassed that he had gotten lost in his thoughts. They scurried into the house, discarding their wet clothes as they opted to go sans their outer garments as they settled on the couch. They were the only ones there, so it mattered not how much they were wearing. Tiffany snuggled into his side as she grabbed the remote.

"Hey, Tiff?"

"Hmm?"

"I was wondering if you would move in with me," he asked her point blank.

"Huh?" she asked, looking up at him, "You want to…what?"

"I want you to move in with me, and I know there's a lot to consider with your practice and everything like that, but…I'm getting tired of constantly calling you and flying up here, or you flying down there. We've been together for a while now, I love you, I love being with you, and I was hoping that this would be a little less…long-distance and a little more…short-distance."

"Wow, Christian, that's…that's very serious," she said, honestly shell-shocked by his question. "I mean, yeah, that's a lot to consider."

"You don't have to answer now of course, just…whenever you get the chance."

"Okay, yeah, let me think about it."

--

"We are not all about the money!" Stephanie shouted as her father came backstage.

"Yeah, Pops, seriously," Shane said. "I think that's really petty of you."

"Oh yes, and that's why you once went behind my back and bought two companies and tried to overthrow me. You seem to have forgotten that…and the fact that I beat both of you and kicked you out."

"We haven't forgotten," Shane said, taking the lead on this one, "but you seem to forget just why we did that. Treating Mom like crap ring any bells, huh? So now you think you get a do-over with whoever this kid is?"

"It would be a refreshing change to have a child who appreciates me."

Stephanie dug her fingernails into the palms of her hands. She knew that her father was just trying to get a rise out of her. She just had to not give in to him, that's what he wanted. Shane was about to step forward, but Stephanie held his arm. He looked at her, pleading with her to let him go, but she shook his head.

"It's not worth it," she whispered to him. "Let's just go."

Shane looked at her and then looked back at his father, "Okay, but first, you know, Dad, you haven't been the greatest father, but we stuck by you a ton of times, sometimes, I don't think _you_ appreciate _us_."

Stephanie led him away, giving him a smile, "That was nice."

"It's true though, and he sure as hell doesn't appreciate Mom," he said bitterly, thinking about what his mother had had to go through these many, many years of living with their father.

"I know that's the truth," she said as she saw Sawyer running (okay, walking as quickly as he could) towards her, arms outstretched. "Sawyer, what are you still doing up?"

"He's not tired," Chris said as he approached them, scooping up Sawyer from behind and holding him towards Stephanie, who took him. "He doesn't want to go to bed."

"No!" Sawyer said, his eyebrows knitting together, "No, no, no, no, no."

"See what I mean," he said. "He's being stubborn and I'm the nice parent."

"So you brought him to the mean one?" Shane chuckled. "Typical, Stephanie is the mean one."

"I'm not mean," she pouted, "Sawyer, you know that it's time to go to bed. Don't you want to go to bed?"

"No, no!" he said, shaking his head and folding his arms in front of him.

"Yes, yes, yes," she told him. "That way Mommy can get some work done instead of being sad that you won't go to bed, do you want Mommy to be sad when she loves you so, so much?"

"She's good," Shane whispered to Chris.

"I know."

"Mama…" Sawyer looked up at her with his blue eyes shining, like he was going to cry and then whimpered out, "No…"

"Wow, he's even better," Shane said.

"I know," Chris said, "it's like a battle of wills with the two of them."

"He takes after her."

"Please, baby boy," Stephanie said, her voice very coaxing and soothing. "I know that you wouldn't want to be cranky tomorrow when we go home and see grandma. So won't you go to sleep." Sawyer tried to shake off the sleep that was coming fiercely, but he was having a hard time as Stephanie rubbed his back. "And then you can play with Declan and Kenyon tomorrow too, like we did last week, that's fun, right?"

"Toy," he whispered.

"Yeah, you guys play with all your toys, you're all spoiled, little boys," Stephanie said, kissing his forehead now as Chris and Shane reveled in her masterful performance. "But you won't get to do any of those things if you don't go to sleep."

"No," he whined, but his voice was fading fast.

"For Mommy?"

"No," he said, but his head fell against her shoulder.

"I'm going to take him to my office," Stephanie mouthed to Chris and he nodded as she walked down the hallway, whispering things in Sawyer's ear.

"It's so weird seeing her be such a mother," Shane said. "I never quite expected it."

"She's awesome at it, but there's no surprise there, she's Stephanie," Chris shrugged then saw Mr. Kennedy hanging around watching them. "Can I help you?"

"No, you guys were just blocking the hallway," Kennedy, said, giving them the once-over as he passed. "Your kid is cute."

"Yeah, thanks," Chris said, looking confused as the man passed, "What's he about?"

"Whatever," Shane said. "Let's see what kind of havoc we can wreak around here, bro."

"Now _that's_ what I'm talking about."

--

"Now see, isn't this better?" Stephanie asked as she laid Sawyer down in his portable playpen, which served as his crib when they were working. Sawyer snuggled into his pillow and Stephanie helped him take his shoes off so he could fall asleep quietly. Sawyer nodded off a few minutes later and she smiled and ran her hand through his soft, blond hair. It was starting to get long and she wondered how long it would be before he needed his first haircut. Knowing Chris though, he wouldn't let her get their son's hair cut.

She heard her cell phone vibrating on the desk and went to check on it only to find out that it was Chris's cell phone that he had left there. It read Christian's number, so she decided to answer it in his stead. "Hello?"

"Steph, hey, it's Christian."

"Yeah, I gathered as much from the display, what's up?"

"Well, I wanted to talk to Chris, is he around?"

Stephanie sat down and started going over some of the plans for SummerSlam, like the work order for the parts needed to make the stage. "Um…he's with Shane right now, I don't know where they are, but they're probably doing something dumb."

"Oh, that's too bad," he said, "because I wanted to talk to him."

"Will I suffice?"

"Yeah, I guess, I mean, he probably told you what I was going to ask Tiff."

"No, can't recall anything regarding you or Tiffany," Stephanie said as she signed off of on something and then went to check on the whereabouts of a package they needed by SummerSlam. She clicked on her keyboard as she continued to multitask. "What…wait, ask her something? Oh damn it, Christian, did you ask her to marry you?"

"No, no, I'm not ready to get married, no way," Christian said, and he knew precisely the reason why he wasn't ready to get married, well, his heart knew, but his brain hadn't quite made the connection yet.

"Oh, so what did you ask her?"

"I asked her to move in with me, down in Florida, to come down and live with me."

"I got that much from the first sentence you just said," she responded. "So you asked her, that's a big step you know?"

"I know that's why I was calling Chris to tell him. He thought I was going to chicken out or something was going to get in the way and I wouldn't be able to ask her, or I'd be too scared to ask her, but nope, I totally asked her."

"What did she say?" Stephanie said as she looked over the contracts for the match against Umaga. She just had to wait for a winner, but she needed them both to sign just so she'd be prepared and then she could just void whichever person lost.

"Well, she's thinking about it, I just wanted to tell him I wasn't a chicken."

"So you called to just say that you asked, you have no answer?"

"You make it sound like this isn't a big deal," Christian said.

"No, no, it is, it is," she assured him. "It's just normally someone would already have the answer before they started to spread it around. Where is she?"

"She's asleep upstairs, she has an early morning tomorrow, but I just wanted to tell someone and when I called Edge, well, he was with someone and he didn't want to talk and Chris was the only other person I told, and now you're the third person."

"This is great, Christian, really, I'm glad that you've been able to move on, and I'm glad that you and Tiff are happy."

"I really have to thank you, Stephanie, you're the one who pushed me to this and introduced me to Tiffany, and I'm really happy with her, happier than I've been in a really long time and it's thanks to you," he said gratefully. "I'm really happy."

"Good, good, I'm happy for you too."

"So how's everything on the whole brother or sister front?"

"I have a brother," she informed him. "I found out tonight, I don't know who it is, who would you think it was, Christian, do you have any speculation?"

"Uh, maybe it's John Morrison, he could kind of look like you."

"Maybe," she said, thinking about it. "I don't know, I guess I shouldn't waste my time thinking over a situation in which I have no control."

"That must kill you."

"A little," she admitted, "but as long as it's killing my father more, I think I can deal with it."

"On the outs again?"

"Kind of siding with my mother on this one," Stephanie said.

"Oh yeah, she's due," he chuckled. "Okay, I'm going to go before she notices I'm gone, I don't want her thinking I'm this freak that has to call people after everything. I think she's going to say yes though, I know it's a huge thing, but I think she'll say yes."

"Congratulations, Christian."

"Thanks, Steph, bye."

"Bye." Stephanie was glad that Christian's life was going so well, he deserved it. After everything that he had been through with Trish, he deserved to be happy. So did Trish though, and she thought about calling her friend to see how she was doing, but she figured that could wait until tomorrow. She picked up her walkie-talkie and pressed the call button. "Hey, Britt, can you get me Kennedy and Carlito, please, separately though, tell Kennedy to get here first, oh, and let him know I have the baby so if he could be as quiet as possible…"

"Sure, Steph, I'm on it."

Stephanie went over the contract again until there was a soft knocking on the door. She stood up and went to the door instead of yelling out for the person to come in. Kennedy was on the other side of the door and she smiled politely and professionally at him as he walked inside. He glanced around the dimmed room, the only lights coming from Stephanie's laptop and a small desk lamp next to the laptop. If there was no little boy fast asleep he might've thought that Stephanie had designs for him.

"Please, sit down," she said, gesturing towards the seats in front of her desk. "I just needed to get your signature for this contract about the match with Umaga."

"What if I don't win?"

"I'm just going to void the contract of whoever loses," Stephanie explained to him. "It's just easier if I get it done now rather than after the show when guys want to go home."

"Oh, makes sense," he shrugged as she pushed it across the table.

"It's just your normal contract, blah, blah, blah, you've done this before," she said. She handed him a pen and he took it, and signed the contract. "Thanks."

"No problem, so this entire thing with your dad…"

"Oh, don't worry about it, it won't interfere with the show," she said, "I know he's been…weird, and I know I've been crazy, but don't worry about the atmosphere, nothing will change, I'm not going to start my own company or anything, so your job is secure."

"Good," he said, glancing over at her son again, "Do you think he should travel with you?"

"What?" she asked, confused. "I'm not leaving my son behind somewhere if that's what you're suggesting."

"Oh no, sorry," he said, feeling uncomfortable. "You grew up here too, didn't you?"

"On the road, not so much," she said, "but we had wrestlers over all the time, I loved Andre the Giant when I was little, he used to carry me in one arm, I loved it. I liked that, I think Sawyer likes being here too, he's very sociable, I think it's good for him to get used to situations."

"He's lucky, I would've loved to have grown up around wrestling."

"It's a trip, that's for sure," she laughed, "Anyways, thanks for signing, good luck later."

"Thanks, I don't really need it, but thanks," he smirked at her.

"Yeah, that's what they all say…"


	149. Not What We Want, August 27, 2007

"So I'm pretty much beloved."

"Wow, those are strong words."

"Did you _see_ the reaction I got last night?" Hunter asked, "Or were you like, trying to get in Stephanie's pants or something?"

"You know, I know we're friends, but it still sounds kind of creepy when we discuss sex lives, so…let's keep that part of the relationship to ourselves because I don't need the weekly reminder that you've slept with my wife…a lot."

"It was more than a lot," Hunter nodded.

"Yeah, see, that's not cool," Chris said. "And you got a good reaction because you've been gone for a while, and there was really no guy that took your spot, so people were just glad to see you, don't worry, pretty soon, they're going to hate you again."

"Oh, so you don't have faith in my ability to keep the fans on my side?"

"No, not really," Chris said with a shrug. "You're not very likeable."

"Well now you're just being mean," Hunter said with a scoff. "Obviously all the touring with your band has made you deaf because they went crazy for me last night, absolutely crazy. They loved me, they all loved me."

"Well, can you imagine how it'll be when _I_ come back, pandemonium in the aisles. I think there'll be riots," Chris said with a nod as he pictured it. "Yeah, I'm going to get mobbed, people will come from miles around to see me, I'll blow the roof off the joint, last night was nothing compared to when I come back."

"Yeah, right, you wish," Hunter dismissed.

"Dude, have you ever met a Jerichoholic?"

"No, can't say that I have, do they even exist anymore. I thought that they went the way of the dinosaur, you know, extinct," Hunter said with a snorting laugh.

Chris scowled and leaned back in his chair, glancing around the mostly deserted room. There were people on the other side, but they weren't paying attention since the meeting for the show had ended about twenty minutes ago. Hunter and Chris were just shooting the breeze, trying to pass time until the show started.

"They're hardly extinct, and Jerichoholics, they are crazy about me, I'm going to go ahead and say that they're the most loyal of all fans. They love me, and they're always ready to defend me when I need defending, which isn't often."

"Whatever, have you ever met a Triple H…ohoholic?"

"Oh no, dude, tell me you didn't just say that," Chris said, trying to hold in his laugh.

"Shut up, my fans don't have names."

"You don't _have_ any fans," Chris pointed out. "Dude, you're like…yeah, no fans."

"See, now you're just trying to rile me up or something, I've got fans," he said, almost petulantly, like a child really.

"Okay, parents and family do not count," Chris said.

"Yeah, keep it up smart guy and I'm going to tell your wife that you are planning on coming back and then your entire cover is going to be blown and what are you going to do then, huh? You're going to cry like a baby."

"Dude, if you tell my wife, I will make sure that both of your quads are torn, and don't tempt me because one of those surgically repaired legs is surgically repaired because of yours truly," Chris said, pointing a menacing finger in Hunter's face.

"I could sue you."

"You're a jackass, I'm way more beloved than you are, way more."

"No, you're not."

"You're delusional, people love me," Chris said, "and why shouldn't they? Looks? Check. Great personality? Check. Funny? Check. Smart? Check. Hot Wife? Check."

"Wait, so they should love you because Stephanie is hot?" Hunter asked.

"Yeah," he said. "She adds to my face value, you know, how I look to other people. It's like, 'Oh, look at Chris Jericho, he knows about commitment, he doesn't kidnap a girl and marry her, he's an upstanding citizen who has never, ever, ever gone to the ring dressed in wrapping paper and with thongs, we love him,' see, face value, same goes for Sawyer, he makes me look like a family man."

"What about the ego?"

"Don't even start on egos because we both know that yours is way bigger than mine," Chris said. "So are you going to steal time tonight so you can make this The Triple H Show, guest-starring a bunch of wrestlers that nobody should care about because Triple H is so great?"

"Stephanie said she'd find time for me."

"Oh, how nice, you're just what everyone wants to see."

"You're jealous of me, aren't you?" Hunter joked.

"Yeah, that's exactly it, I'm totally and completely jealous of you," Chris said, rolling his eyes as he stood up and stretched his arms over his head. "Well, if you'll excuse me, I've got work to do, I don't get to sit around like a lazy ass and soak up praise."

"Hey, I wrestled last night, when's the last time _you_ wrestled?" Hunter shot back.

Chris thought about it for a moment and it dawned on him. It was two years ago that he had left the ring. The night after SummerSlam; the night after he had lost to John Cena. He gazed off a little bit, thinking about that night, that decision, the way that Stephanie had told him that she was pregnant. He remembered the match and how the fans had been behind him and how they had wanted him to win, to regain that gold that had only seemed like a dot on the horizon for so long as he languished far away from that most sought-after prize.

He also remembered how after the match he had felt…nothing, no anger over losing, no anguish, no, he had only felt this surging feeling in his stomach as he came backstage to see Stephanie standing there, looking sympathetic. But the match was already long forgotten, replaced by other, more important things.

_The ride to the hotel had been pretty silent. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence. The two of them seemed to be bursting at the seams to say something, but whatever they wanted to say, they didn't want to say in the car of all places. It should be more…special than that, at least that was the logic behind it, if there was logic._

_The second they walked through the door though, Chris was picking her up and hugging her tightly as she tried to push him off of her. "Chris, let go!"_

"_No way," he told her, swinging her around before he put her down. "So you're really pregnant?"_

"_Well…I think so," she told him. "I'm pretty sure, I just…it's been…I'm late, like, by a lot more than is comfortable to me, and it's the only explanation for it. I've also been kind of tired and nauseous and I put two and two together, and…I wanted to tell you before I took the test because I wanted you to be there with me."_

"_Holy…we're gonna have a kid!" he said, the excitement seizing him. "I can't believe this, I know that…I know that we didn't plan this, is that okay?"_

"_Well, you know, I would've preferred, but I'm not going to complain," she responded. "I want this."_

He couldn't believe that was two years ago. It felt like a lifetime ago now. That was his second-to-last night wrestling, when he and Stephanie had decided to take time off, which lasted all of two weeks before the call came back to Stephanie. He had made his own decision regarding wrestling and it had brought him to this point, where he was part of management, a "suit" if you will. Two years ago, Sawyer had been a dot on a sonogram, and now he was this walking, talking, little boy.

"Did I lose you, man?" Hunter asked.

"Sorry, I was just remembering the last time I actually wrestled," Chris said.

"Did you have to go that far back in the vault?"

"It was two years ago, almost exactly," he said in disbelief. "I can't believe it's been that long. Man, that night…I was still…I still couldn't believe I was going to have a kid and now I just can't imagine life without Sawyer."

"He is an awesome kid," Hunter agreed. "Now _him_, I could see being beloved."

"Yeah, okay, I can definitely see that."

--

"I wish you were here."

"Christian…"

"What? I can't wish that you were here with me?"

"No, because you're going to see me tomorrow," she told him. "You are getting way too clingy for my tastes, Mr. Cage."

"Oh, you haven't seen anything yet."

"Oh no, I completely dread that day then," she told him.

"So…have you thought any more about that offer that I gave you last week. I mean, I know that you wanted time, and I'm trying to be respectful of that, but I was hoping to hear about it soon, not that you should rush, I'm not saying that you should rush."

She sighed, "Christian, it's just such a huge thing for me, you know. I don't want to hurt your feelings by taking so much time, but this is honestly something that I have to think long and hard about. I've been living in Connecticut for my entire life almost, except for college. So many of my friends are there, my practice is there, it's a big change."

"I totally get that, babe, and that's why I'm trying not to pressure you about it."

He really was trying not to pressure her about this. He had learned from his mistakes from his experiences with Trish. He was starting to think that he had pushed things too much with Trish. He was always pushing for more and more when she probably didn't want more. It was a lesson well-learned. He wasn't going to make the same mistake with Tiffany. He loved her, and he wanted to be with her for the foreseeable future and if that meant that he had to be patient, he needed to do that.

"I know, you're being a complete sweetheart about it, I love you," she told him sincerely. "I just need to figure out of this is something that I want to do right now, and let me stress right now, okay, Christian, because even if I say no, which I'm not saying right now, but if that's what I choose, that in no way means that I'll never want to be with you."

He laughed at her rambling, "I get it, babe, I do, I was just wondering."

"How's work?"

"It's work," he told her. "I just wanted to call you and see how you were doing."

"Great, but I'm going to have to cut this short because I've got an early day tomorrow."

"Okay," he said, disappointed that he wasn't going to get to talk to her any longer, but he understood that she had her own work to think about and he couldn't just interrupt her schedule. "I love you."

"I love you too, night Christian."

"Night, babe," he said as he hung up the phone.

He smiled to himself after he hung up the phone. Things were going really well with Tiffany, and he loved being with her. Sometimes, though, he felt himself holding back. It wasn't necessarily because of Trish, he just didn't want to mess this relationship up. The potential for doing that was so high though, given his track record with women. Tiffany was the first woman since Trish to make him feel something genuine and he really didn't want to lost that feeling because of his own stupidity.

He felt compelled, and before he could think, he had picked up his cell phone and dialed Trish's number. "Hello?"

"Trish?"

"Christian?" she asked incredulously.

"Yeah, uh, hi."

"Hi," she responded lamely. "What's up?"

"I kind of called you without thinking," he chuckled. "I guess it was impulse, but, now that I have you on the phone, can we talk?"

"Of course," she said, her heart pounding in her chest. "What about?"

"How did I screw up?" he asked bluntly.

"Excuse me?"

"How did I screw us up?" he asked again. "I just want to know how I screwed up what I had with you. I mean, I know that we both made mistakes, but…what did I do wrong with you that I can do better?"

"Christian, that's not something I feel comfortable answering," she told him. It wasn't something she even wanted to think about. Christian hadn't screwed up, now that she thought about it, not nearly as much as she had by pushing him away. He had never been anything but good to her, perfect even, and she had taken it for granted.

"Well, think of one thing, just one thing that I could've done to make you happy."

"You did make me happy," she told him.

"But we never could sustain anything," he reminded her. "It was always on or off, it was us or no us and there had to be something that was wrong with me that I can make better. I just…I don't want to screw up what I have with Tiffany, and I fear that I am."

The hurt in her heart lessened every time she thought about Christian and Tiffany. It was still hard for her to hear, and she suspected until she found a new love herself, it always would, but she was slowly starting to warm up to the idea of being friends with Christian. She knew that it would always be a work in progress, but that didn't mean that at some point she wouldn't mind being an actual friend to Christian.

"You won't screw up with her," she told her. "As long as you…love her then you'll be fine."

"Don't sugarcoat it for me, Trish," Christian said lightly.

"Christian, you were a great boyfriend, I'm the one that took you for granted."

"Trish, stop, no, okay, it was both of us, and don't be stupid enough to think that it wasn't. I'm not going to have you thinking that it was all your fault for the rest of your life. It wasn't your fault, it was _our_ fault, so please, stop beating yourself up about it, please, for me?"

How could she possibly deny his request? How could she even begin to say no to him when his pleading was stinging her heart like it was? "Okay, I'll try."

"Don't try," he said to her. "Trish, you have to understand, maybe we just weren't right together. It happens to everyone. Not too many find it on their first try."

How could she explain what she felt was endearing love? Sure, maybe someday, maybe even tomorrow, she would find someone else. Maybe she'd fall in love with a guy and marry him, and have tons of kids and white picket fences. But that vision was so far off for her right now that it didn't even register on her radar. What she felt inside was still all Christian, and until that subsided, she wouldn't believe in not right together, not just yet.

"You're right," she told him. "But sometimes you let the right try go."

"Well then you're stupid for it," he said, not realizing that she was talking specifically about him. Maybe he just didn't want to hear it.

"Christian, as long as you're the Christian that I know and love," and she choked out that last word, hoping she wasn't overstepping her boundaries, "I don't see how Tiffany couldn't love you with everything in her."

"Thanks, Trish, you always know what to say."

It was easy to know what to say to the person you loved.

--

"No, Shane, I told you, I will call the attorneys tomorrow."

"Are you sure that you want to be the one that handles that?"

"Do _you_ want to? Because I'm not dragging Mom into this, that is definitely out of the question. She has enough on her plate right now, I'm not going to make her be the one to deal with the attorneys."

"I can't believe we have to go this far."

"Dad is being ridiculous," Stephanie said. "He's hell-bent on making whoever this guy is out to be some savior son or something. Why is he never satisfied?"

"He's just projecting, Steph, don't let it bother you," Shane said gently, still looking out for his baby sister. He knew that her temper was simmering just below the surface and he was trying to keep her from exploding.

"I will just never get him," Stephanie said. "I love him, he's my dad, but I don't think that I'll ever understand him…Sawyer, stay away from that!" Sawyer looked up at Stephanie from the trunk that he had been trying to open. "You're going to snap that thing on your fingers and you're going to cry."

"What's he doing?" Shane asked.

"Getting into things he has no business getting into."

"What a true McMahon," Shane joked, but upon not hearing his sister laughing, cleared his throat and got serious again. "He just thinks of this son as a do-over, like maybe it'll be a clone of him or something. He hates that we're independent-thinkers, he wants a drone."

She did laugh at that, "I just don't get why he does these things to Mom. Conversely, I don't know why she puts up with this time and time again. I know that if Chris was cheating on me multiple times, I'd divorce him. If he wrestled Sawyer when Sawyer is older and choked him with a wrench, I'd be very angry and I'd probably leave him. I just don't get why we have to act like this is okay behavior."

"We're in a lifestyle where this kind of stuff is normal," Shane said. "We're weirdos, Steph, every one of us."

"Okay, I concede that," she said as she reached to pull Sawyer's hand away from some lighting equipment. "Sawyer, how many times do I have to tell you to stop touching things? We are going to Mommy's office, not dilly-dallying around."

"Steph, he's one, cut him some slack."

"They say if you don't discipline now, they turn unruly. I do not want an unruly child."

"Yeah, then he'd end up just like you."

"Oh, you crack me up," she deadpanned.

"Okay, look, I'll come with you to the meeting tomorrow," Shane told her. "I don't want you to have to go this alone, and two heads are better than one, so I'll go with you. Are you coming home tonight?"

"Yeah, Chris and I are driving to Connecticut tonight, so we'll be there definitely."

"Great, okay, bye, baby girl."

"Bye, Shane," she said, hanging up her phone and putting it back into its holder. She looked up to see Sawyer walking down the hallway, apparently now taking her orders very seriously, except now he wasn't stopping to wait for her and was a good thirty feet ahead of her. Sawyer was turning out to be a very independent, little kid, and she figured it was just a trait he picked up from her and Chris. She walked hurriedly to catch up to him, grabbing his hand from behind, "We don't go around by ourselves, Sawyer, it's dangerous, anyone can take you."

"No," he told her.

"Um, yeah, people are crazy, Sawyer, they take kids and you have to stay away from those scary people."

"'kay," he told her and she nodded. No sooner than three seconds later, Sawyer was pulling from her grasp and practically sprinting down the hallway, and by sprinting, we mean toddling faster than usual.

"Sawyer!" she exclaimed in exasperation. The little boy looked back at her and didn't watch where he was going and barreled right into a set of legs, knocking him right down on his butt. He looked startled for a second before his bottom lip quivered and he looked back at Stephanie with those big, blue eyes. "Oh, baby, come here."

She scooped him up as he hugged her tightly, milking this for all he was worth. "Mama….bang."

"Yeah, you went bang," she told him. "What has Mommy told you though about running and being a nuisance?"

"Mama," he said again, jutting his bottom lip out.

Stephanie kissed his cheek, causing him to smile before turning to the person who Sawyer had run into, "I'm so…sorry."

"Stephanie," came the curt voice of Hunter's mother. Of all the people in the world Sawyer could've run into, Hunter's mother was the last person she expected.

"Oh, uh, hey, Pat," Stephanie said politely. This woman could still make her feel bad even more than five years after the fact. "How are you?"

"Well, I'm well," she answered succinctly.

"Are you here to watch Hunter?" she asked stupidly. Why else would they be here?

"Yes, my husband and I both are."

Stephanie only then noticed that Hunter's father was standing there too. "Oh, yes, of course, hello, Paul."

"Stephanie."

Well this was nice and awkward. "Well, I'm sure you won't be disappointed, he got quite the reaction last night."

"We saw."

"Of course you did, and why wouldn't you?" she said. "He's your son, I'm sure you were waiting for him to come back, and he blew everyone away, really he did."

"Is that your son?" Paul asked.

"Yeah, this is him, Sawyer…Sawyer Jericho, say hi, baby," Stephanie prompted him.

"Hi," Sawyer repeated on command, leaning the side of his head against Stephanie's cheek. He didn't understand awkwardness, and even if he were capable of knowing what it was, he had no idea the history that was involved in this.

"Handsome," Pat said, but there was a definite edge to it, and she knew what that edge was. She only wondered how long they were planning on carrying a grudge against her. She knew that she had gone about dumping Hunter all wrong, but it wasn't like he was completely faultless in the entire thing, in fact, a lot of it had to do with him and his neglect.

A couple of hallways over, Chris and Hunter were walking around, "So how did you manage to get that Rodman kid fired?"

"I didn't do that," Chris said, shoving Hunter in the shoulder.

"Yeah, right, it was pretty well-documented that you didn't like the guy."

"Well, he asked for the release," Chris said. "And I wasn't going to deny him the chance to leave. That's his prerogative."

"I'm sure you had no problem with it, what was Stephanie's reaction?"

"Well, before he asked to leave, I had her come down and see one of our training sessions, and well…suffice to say that he wasn't doing very well, and she may have conceded that he wasn't as good as she might have thought."

"Wow, Stephanie admitting she was wrong, crazy," Hunter said, shaking his head at the thought. It must've really pained Stephanie to even think that, let alone voice the opinion to someone else, even if it was her husband. She did think she knew it all when it came to the business.

"There she is," Chris said, finally spotting the familiar brown hair, and those oh-so-familiar curves. "Steph!"

Stephanie turned partially and was so grateful to see Chris, and even more grateful to see that Hunter was with them. "Hey guys."

"Hey, baby," he said, coming over and seeing who she was talking to. For a moment he couldn't place where he had seen them before, but then it came to him in recognizing the facial features of the man in front of him with the man next to him.

"Mom, Dad, you came," Hunter said.

"Well, you invited us."

"Yeah, but I didn't expect you to come," he said, "this is really a surprise."

"Well, you made such a big deal out of this comeback that we wanted to be here for it and since yesterday we couldn't make it to the show, your father and I thought that it would be perfect if we came tonight, so here we are."

"Yeah, here you are," he said, then remembered himself, "Well, you know Stephanie, and this is her husband, Chris."

"We've met, briefly," Chris said, smiling politely and extending his hand, which only got shaken grudgingly. "At the facility where Hunter had his surgery."

"Oh yeah, you guys came to visit," Hunter said. "Yeah, well, this really is out of the blue, Mom, Dad, but well, I was just hanging out with Chris, here, doing nothing, slacking off until Stephanie decided to give me time."

"You know you're welcome to any free moment," Stephanie told him.

"Yeah, I know, and thanks for that," he said jovially, trying to lessen the tension that was in the air. He turned to Sawyer, "Hey there, tough guy."

"Hi," Sawyer said, clapping his hands together at being around so many people, and feeling like the center of attention. He was the center of attention but for all the wrong reasons. Sawyer reached out his arms to him and Hunter shook his hand.

"He likes me," Hunter explained to his parents, "but, uh, why don't we go to my dressing room, maybe even get you some seats so you can watch me or something." Now he was just floundering. He led his parents away from Chris and Stephanie, looking back at them apologetically. "I'm really glad that you came."

"You hang out with her husband?" Pat said, practically spitting with anger. "After everything she did to you?"

"Mom, it's in the past, the very far past."

"So! She hurt you," Pat said, being overprotective of her little boy.

"Mom, seriously, Stephanie and I are finally at place where the past is a moot point. We're both happy with where our lives are. Can't you respect that?"

"That should be your son," she said.

"No, it shouldn't," he responded. "Look, Mom, I loved Stephanie, but I don't love her anymore, not as anything more than a friend. She's happy with Chris, and I'm happy for her. It took us a long, long time to finally get it all out in the open. Sawyer is Stephanie and Chris's son, and I like him, he's a great kid."

"Still…"

"No, no still, Mom, this is it, Stephanie and I, we're through, over, done with, not going to happen again…"

--

"That was bad," Stephanie said as Sawyer reached for Chris, who took him and gave him a hug. "I need to find Regal."

"Why?"

"I'm going to use him as a go-between with me and my father. I don't want to talk to my dad tonight, I'm just not in the mood to deal with his utter disappointment in me being his child. I really, really hope his son is someone like Umaga or…one of the Highlanders or something, someone totally crazy so that I look great by comparison and then when he comes crawling back to his family, we all reject him ."

"You won't reject him, he's your dad, you love him, you've never been able to stay completely away. The longest you stayed away was right after you had Sawyer, and that had some justification."

"Well, I'm going to--" She spotted Regal up ahead. "William!"

William turned, "Oh, Miss Stephanie, what can I do for you?"

"Hello, I was wondering if you could relay a message to my father when you get a chance. It's not urgent, you just have to tell him tonight."

"Of course, what message shall I tell him?"

"Tell him that I, along with my brother, and my mother, will be speaking to my father next week over this whole mess, and we will be bringing our attorneys."

"This is in regards to your father's case I'm sure."

"Yes, it is, I think it's high time to tell my father that he doesn't really control us, and we are more than him and we can crush hi…or something to that affect," she told him. "Just tell him that we're not going to lie over like usual."

"I will tell him, but I fear he'll be terribly mad."

"Good, the madder the better, he deserves it," Stephanie said bitterly. "He's infuriating, and I'm sick of dealing with him day in and day out when he won't change for anyone. It's ridiculous now."

"I will relay him the message," Regal told her.

"Thank you, William," she said, and for once, someone that was hired by her father didn't act like it was a competition between her and them. It was a new one, that was for sure. She turned back to Chris, "Well, now that that's taken care of, I've got to get to work. I need to earn a living somehow."

"Okay," Chris said. "You know, Steph, in all of this, and I know it's really difficult for you, I get that, but in all of this, don't forget that you have a potential brother, one who might want to get to know you, and I think that you have to remember that it's not his fault…unless he's a huge jerk, then fair game."

"I know," Stephanie said.

"Doesn't that bother you though? You're going after your father tooth and nail, but shouldn't you be focusing your attention on whomever your brother is?"

"I will get to that, but you can't know someone when you don't even know what their name is," she pointed out as they continued to walk towards her station. "Look, it's easier if I just focus on what I know rather than what I don't."

"He could be a great guy."

"He could," she agreed, "if he's my brother, I hope he is."

"You're scared," Chris said, studying her.

She scoffed and flipped her hair over her shoulder haughtily. "Excuse me? I don't know the meaning of that word when it comes to the business. In real life, motherhood, maybe, but when it comes to this place, there's no fear. Your enemies feed off fear."

"I'm talking about real life," he said, rolling his eyes as they sat down. Chris set Sawyer down on his lap and gave him some paper and a pen to play with, not really caring if he got it all over himself. He was a kid, he'd learn. "You're scared to accept someone into your family."

"Don't try to analyze me, Chris," she warned him.

"I'm not, but this is huge and you're talking attorneys and confrontations, and it's like you're gathering the mob and Shane is bringing the pitchforks, and your mom is bringing the torches, and you all seem to be forgetting that in the middle of this, there's a guy, who could be your brother, and regardless if you want revenge or whatever on your father, you have a potential brother."

"Stop, okay," she told him, facing him. "Don't presume to know why I do the things I do, Chris."

"Stephanie, I've been with you for five years, if you think that I haven't gleaned onto some facets of your personality, you're wrong."

"You don't know everything about me, Chris."

"I think I do, and I think you know everything about me," he told her.

"Oh, you think that?"

"I do," he told her.

"Then tell me how the hell much I know about why you won't come back to wrestle?"

"Low blow, Steph," Chris said. "You know that I'm not--"

"Ready or whatever," she finished sarcastically, "yeah, I know the cover answer, but maybe you're just sparing me the inevitable, thinking that you can just retire, fade away and that it'll just soften the blow. I don't know what's holding you back, Chris, so no, I don't know _everything_ about you, so don't think for one second you know everything about me."

"What I choose to do with regards to my wrestling is a personal choice. It's _my_ body I put out there, and I'm sorry that it doesn't work on your timetable," he told her, starting to get angry with her.

"I don't have a timetable, you know what, fine, never come back, ever, never show your stinking face on my television screen ever again."

"Okay, and go wage war against your father, hope you have enough ammo."

"That was lame," she told him.

"You're lame," he said.

"You are," she said, sighing. "I'm sorry."

"I am too, I just get on edge."

"Me too," she told him. "I'm not scared though. I'm just not prepared to welcome someone into my already established family."

"Nobody can prepare for that."

"I look for him every Monday," she confessed. "I find myself staring at guys, just wondering if he's the one, if that's the person that I'm supposed to accept and get to know. What if I don't want to get to know them, Chris? What if I'm happy with who I have in my life, but he wants to get to know me? I'm not prepared for that. I don't think that I even want that."

"Then you don't have to accept it," Chris told her.

"I like my family the way it is, warts and all," she told him. "We're not perfect, far from it, but it's all that I know."

He hugged her briefly. "Yeah, they've gotten under my skin too."

"You mean that."

"Well, you know what they say."

"No, what?"

"Stay in the asylum too long and you just become one of the crazies."


	150. She's So Volatile, September 3, 2007

A/N: Stephanie being on and me going on a trip tomorrow kind of made it hard to write because I was so distracted, but yeah, here's the chapter, leave a review, they're good for the soul, you know. :)

* * *

There weren't many happy members of the McMahon and Jericho families that evening. In fact, the only happy member of the family was a sixteen-month-old little boy who was running through the hallway with a zest for life that neither his parents nor his uncle or grandma felt right then. Of course, that too came to a crashing halt as Sawyer tripped over his own feet and sent himself crashing to the ground, his small hands falling in front of him as he slammed them into the ground catching his fall. He started wailing, more stunned than anything, but wailing nonetheless.

"Mama!" he screamed, looking up at Stephanie as he shifted himself to his butt.

Stephanie quickened her pace as she caught up with her son, picking him up off on the ground and hugging him to her. "Baby, are you okay?"

He sniffled, "No."

"Oh, I see," she said, kissing his forehead. "Where does it hurt, your knee?"

He patted his knee, and she laughed a little, not knowing if it was in fact hurt or if he was just pointing it out because she had mentioned his knee and one of his favorite games was to identify parts of his body. She lifted his jeans a little bit to check out his knee and it was a little bit red and she knew that he was going to get a bruise. She leaned down and kissed his knee as he sniffled.

"You're very clumsy," she told him. "You're always falling down all over the place."

"No," he said, shaking his head, his hair following.

"Plus you need a haircut."

"No," he repeated as Chris came over. Sawyer reached his arms out towards him and Chris took the little boy into his arms.

"He's mad at me now, I told him he was clumsy."

"The Jericho men are _not_ clumsy," Chris said, indignant than she would suggest that their son was clumsy in any way, shape, or form. "He's just getting used to running. He'll totally be light on his feet and kick ass in the ring, won't you, kid?"

"Dada," Sawyer said, snuggling up to Chris.

"Okay, and we're off," Chris said, holding Sawyer up by his jeans and "flying" him towards their office for the evening, Sawyer reaching his hands out like a plane and laughing the entire way. Stephanie waited for her mom to catch up to her and placed an arm around her shoulders.

"How are you doing, Mom?"

"I'm fine, Stephanie, you need to stop asking that," Linda said gently.

"I'm sorry, Mom, this is new territory for me. I mean, you've supported me so many times, and it's still a little strange when I have to support you," she said. Since she was a little girl, she had always thought of her mother as the strong one. That's just how she thought of Linda because that's exactly what Linda was. While she, Shane, and her father were privy to going out of control at any given moment, Linda wasn't like that. Linda was always in control and always so strong and unwavering.

"I'll be fine," she said. "Your father can do nothing more to me than he's already done. I've learned to deal the good with the bad. It makes it easier that I have three beautiful grandchildren to make me feel young again, and whom I can spoil."

"Yeah, you have three _very _spoiled little boys to love," she said as they walked down the hallway. "Are you sure we shouldn't have brought the attorneys with us. You just know that Dad is going to have his, and we need to fight fire with fire."

"No, we've discussed everything we could possibly discuss with them, and we know where we stand legally."

"I hate that Dad is making us out to be money-grubbing low-lifes," Stephanie said bitterly. She already had enough trouble with people thinking that she was a slut or that she had no idea who her child's father was, or whatever they were saying about her this week, she didn't need them thinking she was waiting for her father to die so she could get a piece of his fortune.

Linda recognized that Stephanie was getting frustrated and spoke to her in comforting tones. When Stephanie was a little girl, she used to get frustrated so often, headstrong that she was, and Linda's comforting voice would be the only thing to calm her down. She figured now that there were other things that calmed her down, mostly consisting of Chris and Sawyer, but since they weren't here at this precise moment, it was left to her.

"Darling, you know you're not a low-life or money-grubbing. You and your brother are both salaried employees that make more than enough money to sustain your lifestyle," Linda said rationally. "Your father has no leg to stand on here and he knows it, he's only grabbing the closest thing he can grab onto."

"Can't we sue him, Mom?" Stephanie asked, and she sounded like such a child asking such a grown-up question that she had to give a soft laugh. She brushed her daughter's hair back away from her face.

"We're not going to sue your father, though if I were to divorce him, I'm sure that I could leave him penniless," she said, a gleam in her eye as Stephanie giggled.

"Now let's go find those boys of yours before they start to wreak havoc around here. I don't want to add damages to arenas to the grievances your father has against us."

"I don't think he's say anything bad about Sawyer, I mean, of all the things that he could bring up, I don't think that Sawyer would be one of them, he wouldn't be that low. He's still my father, and I know that deep down he still loves me and respects my decision to keep Sawyer out of the limelight."

"If your father so much as brings up Sawyer, Declan, or Kenyon by name, I will personally see to it that he pays for that," Linda said vehemently. She loved her grandsons, and while Vince could say anything about her and her children, her innocent grandchildren were off-limits to Vince, and he had better get that straight right now.

"When is Shane supposed to get here again?"

"He said he'll be by in a little while, he needed to take care of some things at home. I know that he hates to leave Marissa alone with the boys."

"Yeah, well, I've got a lot of work to do, Mom, do you mind if I leave you alone, we can meet up later, or you could come back to the office and you can hang out with Sawyer if you want to. Chris and I just have a lot to do tonight, it's been a pretty hectic week."

"Oh yes, as if this wasn't enough to deal with, I know exactly how long a week it's been," she said, referring to the fire that it seemed they were constantly under. It had been many sleepless nights for the entire company she was sure. "But you go ahead and you take care of that. Do you want me to take Sawyer off your hands?"

"No, it's okay, Chris and I can take care of him, unless you want to take care of him, I don't mind at all," Stephanie said, trying to give her mother something to do. It wasn't like Linda needed something to do, but she wasn't sure what her mother would do if she didn't have something to do.

"Oh no, you go ahead, don't let me stop you."

"Are you sure?"

"Stephanie, your life doesn't revolve around me anymore. You have your own family and your own responsibilities and as one of your bosses, I expect you to work and not think about what your mother is doing."

"Okay, okay, I get it," she said with a smile. "I'll see you later, Mom."

"See you, honey."

Stephanie walked towards her office, opening the door and seeing Chris sitting on the ground instead of working. Sawyer was building something out of his blocks and Chris was trying to knock it down, but Sawyer was hitting his hand away. Chris kept trying and Sawyer got up and started to push Chris away as Stephanie laughed and walked to her desk.

"Chris, have you forgotten that we're really busy."

"I don't want to work tonight."

"You just don't want to have to suspend guys."

"I've been in their shoes," Chris groaned.

"You've never been suspended," she pointed out. "Not that I can recall…even though I wanted to suspend you so badly during the McMahon-Helmsley Era, but no, you were never suspended. Especially not for this."

"I know, but you have never been on the other side of the fence, Stephanie. This almost feels like treason, like Benedict Arnold, you know. I was one of the boys once too, you know."

"I know, and you'll probably be one of the boys again," she responded, and Chris swallowed hard. Did she know something that he didn't know about? She couldn't possibly know about what he was thinking about doing. There was just no possible way that she could know. He hadn't even discussed it with anyone recently.

"Uh…yeah, maybe," he said.

"Chris, it wasn't you that ratted them out," Stephanie said. "They were apparently in direct violation and we have to settle the matter. Look, despite everything going on with my father, there is still business to be done. Now, he's probably out in the stratosphere right now thinking that his family is going to spite him, so it falls to us to take care of this. Chris…are you going to help me take care of this."

"Still feels like treason," he muttered.

"Sweetie, they violated something they knew would get them in trouble, so they brought this upon themselves. I'm not going to make excuses for them and neither should you," she said. "They were in direct violation of our policy and with the business under attack like it is…it's a very stressful time."

She ran her hands through her hair, hoping she hadn't messed it up. Chris sighed and got up, leaving Sawyer to play by himself. He knelt next to her chair and ran his hand up and down her back, "I know that you're stressed, I'm stressed too…"

"It's not just wrestling, you know, it's everywhere, but because of circumstances beyond our control, we're getting the majority of the blame for it, as if we're the seedy underbelly," she said angrily, but more so, she was frustrated. She was frustrated with this entire situation. She wasn't naïve, she knew what went on in the business. She just hated being targeted like they were the only offender when it expanded over so many sports, like that guy in football who had been suspended.

He tucked her hair behind her ear, leaning in to kiss her. "We'll get through it, all of us. So…what are we going to do with Umaga? Are we just going to take him off television and take the title from him and vacate it?"

"No, that's not punishment enough, just letting someone else swoop in after it's gone. I say we put him in a match and tell him he needs to lose it."

"Really? That's the way that you want to go?"

"Yes, it is. I don't see why we should sugarcoat it, we have him throw the match," Stephanie said. "I'm not into being nice over this. I'm just not going to be sympathetic when it's me who's going to have to suffer with this. I'm in a high place in this company, Chris, I can't just let something like this go. I think I'm handling it rather well."

"You have been," he agreed. "I know that it's hard, it's hard on me too, with the strain of this and then taking care of the kid, it's a difficult balancing act."

"Thank you for being there though."

"I just hate that it has to come to this."

"Are you still harping on this because you think that you're one of the guys? You aren't one of the guys anymore, Chris, you're part of management and as such, you have to look at this from the business perspective. It's self-preservation."

"Stephanie, I am one of the guys, no matter how much you try to change me," Chris told her.

"Change you?" she scoffed. "No way, uh uh, Chris, I haven't tried to change you at all. I asked you to take over my position because I was pregnant with _your_ child, do you remember this? You got me pregnant, forcing me to stay at home, and I asked you to take over for me in the interim. You were so good, you stayed, that wasn't on me, Chris. You know I'd love to see you back in the ring, you know this, so don't even try to accuse me of trying to change you. If you want to go with that argument, get on Sawyer's case too because he changed you too."

"Okay, it was a poor choice of words, but sometimes I think you forget what I used to be. I lived out of cheap hotels, Stephanie, I slept on gym floors, my life has been hard work, and yes, I'm fortunate now, I have a great job, and I'm quite wealthy, but that doesn't change the way that I grew into this man."

"Chris, we can't show leniency, not with the pressure that we're under," she told him. "Do you get where _I'm_ coming from?"

"Yes, you don't get where _I'm_ coming from."

"No, I do, there's this code that I'll never understand because I was born into a different world than you were. I didn't have to work my way up into this world, I was given it all on a silver platter. You're the one judging me because I didn't go the same route you did."

"All I'm saying is that I'm uncomfortable with actually having these guys escorted out of here after they've made their final appearance before their suspension. It's like, hey, nice seeing you, here's a kick in the ass for all your trouble."

"We're not kicking them out," Stephanie said. "Where did you get that idea?"

"I heard you saying…"

"That was for the fired people, Chris, I'm not kicking them out," she said, rolling her eyes. "They're not allowed back on the road once the suspension starts, but by no means are they not allowed to stay tonight."

"Oh, I guess I misheard you then."

"Obviously," she said. "Look, Chris, I get where you're coming from, I know that it has to feel uncomfortable for you sometimes, but you took on this management position because you know that you're good at it. You're in talent relations now, so you're going to have to deal with the bad."

"I know," he said, giving her a smile. "Sorry I overreacted right there."

"It's okay, I'm used to you overreacting," she said, patting his knee. "So if you could just tell Umaga that he will be dropping the belt to Jeff, that would be a great help to me."

"See, dirty work, like I'm the bouncer around here or something."

"You're the muscle in the relationship, haven't you figured that out by now?" she said.

"I thought he was the muscle," Chris said, jerking a finger towards Sawyer. "Sawyer, show us your muscles."

Sawyer lifted his arms and flexed his arms like Chris had taught him. Stephanie's eyes widened as she pretended to be impressed, "Wow, looking good, Sawyer, baby, I didn't realize that you were so strong. I bet you could bench press more than Daddy."

"He can," Chris said.

"So will you please do that for me and not complain about it?"

"I wasn't complaining, Stephanie," Chris told her, rolling her eyes. "All I'm saying is that you've never been on the other side of the fence, so you don't know how that feels. I'm not complaining. It just sucks to see guys be so careless."

"Yeah, well, you've seen _my_ side of the fence and you know that it's equally as hard. They go out there and wrestle, that's their job, everything around them, absolutely _everything_ from their wardrobe to that ring their standing in is my responsibility."

"I'm not complaining about it, Stephanie!" he said, then clenched his fists. "We've been having a lot of these little fights lately, have you noticed that?"

"We're stressed," she shrugged. "I mean, we got all this work, pile this whole scandal and suspension thing on top of that, then put my father's infidelity on top of _that_, not to mention we have a sixteen-month-old son who has decided the entire world is his playground and loves to prove that by getting into anything and everything. We're bound to fight."

"I don't like fighting with you, you know that," he said, giving her a warm smile that still sent butterflies aflutter in her stomach.

"Well, I don't particularly care for the practice either."

"We really need a vacation."

"Vacation? What's that?"

He laughed, "The last time we got an honest-to-God vacation, you were about a month pregnant, and that was a long, long time ago. Plus, I practically forced you to take that vacation, yeah, we definitely should take some time off."

"Except that's just what my dad wants," Stephanie said. "I really hope that he takes our advice tonight. I'm really worried about him. I mean, he's always going to be my dad, so I'm always going to love him. I know he's going to be a jerk, but maybe, just this once, we'll get through to him."

"Yeah, I'd like to see that happen," he said, then stretched his arms over his head. "Okay, I'm going to go inform Umaga that he's dropping the title. Do you want me to bring the monster, or do you want to take care of him?"

"Can you take him?" Stephanie asked. "I'm just so busy I'm afraid that I'm going to forget that he needs to eat and then I'll feel like a terrible mother."

"I'm on it," Chris said, then turned to Sawyer, "Hey, you, yeah you over there, come on, you're coming with me."

"No!" Sawyer exclaimed, giggling as Chris pretended to walk over like a Frankenstein monster. Sawyer got up off the ground and started running towards Stephanie, his earlier running debacle completely forgotten about. He crashed into Stephanie's leg and clung on to it, burying his face into her leg. "Mama!"

"What a mama's boy," Chris said as he lifted Sawyer up. "Come on, Sawyer, you can be my protection, I really don't want to be slammed into any walls by any disgruntled wrestlers."

"You're such a drama queen," Stephanie muttered as Chris left the locker room with Sawyer. He set the boy on the ground and he started walking forward, glancing back every so often to make sure that he hadn't lost Chris, and he was happy to find that every time he did look back, Chris was still there. Chris saw Umaga up ahead doing some sort of callisthenic.

He walked over purposefully, catching up with Sawyer and holding both of his hands as Sawyer stood on his feet. "Hey, Umaga, a moment?"

Umaga just grunted.

"Yeah, okay," Chris said, looking down at his son who was a better conversationalist than the man in front of him. "I just want to inform you that you are dropping the title to Jeff tonight. So yeah, you're to throw the match."

This time the grunt sounded a bit angrier.

"If you don't, then you will be stripped of the title before you officially start to serve your suspension. So it's in your best interest to drop the title to Jeff and make it easier on everyone, grunt if you understand," Chris said.

He grunted.

"Good, sorry to be the bringer of bad news, but well, you kind of brought it on yourself, sorry," Chris said, pivoting around and walking away with Sawyer still on his feet as Chris clomped down the hall. "Well, that was something else, wasn't it?"

"Yeah," Sawyer said, grinning up at Chris.

"And hey, thanks for the help," Chris said sarcastically, "I could've used your help right then, and where were you, I got nothing from you. If you're going to be part of this family, you're going to have to start being just a little bit on the mean side. Seriously, this 'I'm so cute, love me' act that you've got going, it doesn't gel with the McMahons or the Jerichos for that matter. Get tough, kid."

"Kay," Sawyer said, probably having no idea what he was giving in to. Sawyer spotted Hunter up ahead, drinking some water and his eyes lit up at seeing someone that he knew. He pulled away from Chris, almost stumbling as he got off Chris's feet and ran towards Hunter.

"Kid, where the hell are you going?" Chris said, walking after him (his run was not very fast, but he was just a little kid, give him a break.)

"Hi!" Sawyer said exuberantly as he came upon Hunter and slapped on his legs.

Hunter laughed, "Hey tough guy, now you're just out and out running away from your parents?"

"He hates us, you want to take him?"

"How bout it, kiddo, you want to come live with me?" Hunter asked.

"No!" Sawyer said, his eyes wide.

Chris started to crack up, "Oh, that was priceless, I guess once you get one McMahon out of your life, none of the other ones want to have anything to do with you."

"All the better, if he's anything like his mother, he'd make a mess of my house."

"You are such a neat freak."

"Oh shut up," Hunter said. "Hey, by the way, I…uh, kind of got wind of something that Vince was planning on doing later. I thought, since you guys aren't exactly on the best of terms with him, you might want to mess with him a little bit."

"How the hell did you find out anything?" Chris asked.

"Chris, my friend, do I make you reveal the secrets you have, like how you got Stephanie to fall for you and thus divorce me?"

Chris rolled his eyes, "Okay, so what is Vince planning to do?"

"Well, I heard that he's planning to appeal to his family, and that's made a little piece about Stephanie in particular."

"A piece about Stephanie? What is it like the piece that you made for her that one time? With all her embarrassing moments, because that seriously wasn't cool, you know," he told him, getting defensive over his wife, which made Hunter chuckle as Sawyer kept tugging on his jeans. Hunter leaned down to pick the kid up and held him.

"Tough guy, you should've been there that night, your mom was humiliated, it was great," Hunter said. "Anyways, no, it's a fluff piece. It's all about how she's Daddy's Little Girl and whatever. He's trying to guilt trip her into siding with him."

"She's already on his side in this battle thing, she just thinks that her father is sick, that's all," Chris explained. "But he's going to broadcast her childhood all over television?"

"That's his plan," Hunter said. "I figured that you might want to know about that. It's kind of a dirty trick."

"Something you and I would do though, you know that," Chris said.

Hunter shrugged again, "Yeah, probably, but…I mean…you've got power around here."

"What are you suggesting?"

"Well, you can get any footage you want, can't you?"

"What do you mean?"

"You have all-access to the archives, whenever you want. Unlike us common folk who have to request it days in advance, you get to have access whenever you want and they send you the video almost immediately, right?"

"Yeah, I do have clearance pretty much everywhere within the company," he said without blinking an eye. The thought used to bother him, that he had so much power he could literally get anything from the company.

"Damn I do miss those perks from being married to Steph," Hunter grumbled.

"Wait, I get what you're saying, we show all the bad moments that Vince had with Stephanie, and humiliate Vince…like when they had the match."

"Exactly, I was actually thinking of the time that he had her kicked out of the company, you know, when she was begging to stay and the guards had to escort her out and she was clinging to his leg."

"That's more embarrassing for her. But the match they had."

"He was the one that should've been embarrassed over that," Hunter said deviously. "So come on, we've got a video to make."

"You're evil, you do know that, right?"

"Please, you're evil too."

Meanwhile, Stephanie was walking around, hoping to locate William Regal so they could discuss the logistics of his suspension. He was in a position of power, and she was going to discuss the possibility of stripping him of that power. She didn't want to have to do it, but it made the most sense to her right then. Maybe she should be discussing it with her father, but she didn't want to get into it with him right now when she knew it would only lead to a fight.

She saw him standing around and then saw Melina speaking to him. She got closer and could actually hear what Melina was saying. She grit her teeth as she listened to Regal call her filthy for whatever she had said to Regal. Regal finally saw her over Melina's shoulder and Melina turned around knew she was in trouble. Stephanie reared her hand back, her palm itching for the sting of one of her patented bitch slaps. But this woman wasn't worth it. Some stupid, little slut wasn't worth it.

She put her hand down only to see that her mother was behind Melina and as soon as she turned around, she got a much less forceful slap, but a slap nonetheless. Stephanie laughed as Melina walked away, thoroughly embarrassed as she should've been. Stephanie kept laughing.

"Mom, you have the worst slapping technique."

"I haven't slapped as many people," Linda joked back.

Stephanie remembered herself and called out to Regal who turned to her. "William, a word, please?"

"Yes, Miss Stephanie."

"Well, this is in regards to your suspension. I was thinking it over, and I thought that it might be best of you to forfeit the position."

"Oh no, I don't want to do that," Regal said defensively.

"I know, but I mean, you violated policy and as such, I have to keep going while you're gone, and, well, I think it would be in everyone's best interest if you were to resign as General Manager and let someone else step in."

"Can't you find someone in the interim, a temporary replacement? I can definitely do this job, Stephanie, you've seen me."

"I have, William, and I appreciate your business sense, but I can't let this slide."

"Think about it then?"

She weighed her options. Regal _had_ been the best General Manager since she had been around. Maybe giving him this wouldn't be so bad. She mulled it over and decided that maybe this was the best course of action. "I'll think about it, that's all I'm promising, and this is simply on merit alone."

"Thank you," he said, bowing a little before he took his leave.

"You handled that well," Linda said.

"Had to be done," Stephanie said. "There's not much else that I could do, really."

"I know, times are tough, but we'll get through it, we always do."

Chris laughed as he watched Sawyer be fascinated with the footage in front of him. It was like the moment Stephanie was on-screen, he became enamored with her. He kept touching the screen, like she was going to come right through and say hello to him. He looked at Chris as he slapped the image of Stephanie again.

"Mama," Sawyer said, still looking at Chris.

"Yeah, that's Mama, you know her," Chris encouraged. "That was a long time ago though, way before you were born, or thought about. She's fighting against Grandpa because Grandpa hated her."

"Oh," Sawyer said, going back to watching the screen.

"This is going to be hilarious."

"Just as long as Vince doesn't have my head for it."

"Oh please, what's he going to do? You own part of the company as it is, the man's got nothing," he said. "You really need to learn your place around here. You own the joint, act like it."

"I'm getting tips from _you_ of all people. The one that abused his power."

"Not abused, just used it to its full capacity," Hunter defended. "Besides, Vince and Shane were gone and someone had to take over and if you remember, Stephanie wasn't exactly the ball-breaking bitch Stephanie that we know now."

"That's true, she wasn't as strong."

"You have me to thank for that."

"No, I don't," Chris scoffed. "Stephanie is Stephanie because that's who she is."

"Whatever, keep believing that."

"I think I will."

"Fine then."

"Okay."

"I said fine."

"And I said okay."

Stephanie was intently watching the monitor later that evening as Regal was carted off. Seems that her little problem had resolved itself on its own. She was starting to think of replacements when she saw Shane walking by the ambulance and she smiled. Finally, he had shown up and they could get to the confrontation with her father. She got up and went to go cut him off before he got lost in the seeming labyrinth of halls.

"Shane!"

"Hey, Stephanie, the fireworks haven't started without me, right?"

"Nope, you're just in time," Stephanie said. "How are Rissa and the boys?"

"She's managing, since the boys are getting older, it's easier."

"Good, so are you ready for later? Do you know what you're going to say?"

"Yeah, I know, I mean, it's pretty cut and dry, Dad seriously…you know, he just needs to take a step back and look at his life, really look at it."

"I know. But we have to be ready, because I have a feeling, it's going to be a wild ride."

It was at that. Vince kept saying they were all about the money, which they weren't, and it stung to hear that. Didn't he understand that all three of them made their own money, plus Marissa and Chris had jobs which brought in income, granted both of them worked for WWE as well, but still, none of them were hurting in the money department. Stephanie cheered her mom on as Linda told Vince that she could take him for everything if she wanted. The look on her Dad's face was great, but then he said that she would understand why her father cheated so many times.

"Wow, cue up my music, Chris," Stephanie said as she set Sawyer, who had been in her lap, on the ground.

"Can I get Stephanie's music cued up, please?" Chris said into the headphones he was wearing. He winked at Stephanie, who smiled and strolled out there when her music hit.

She hated how she would be reminded of how much she loved this feeling. She strode purposefully down the walkway, inwardly smiling that she was getting more cheers than boos this time around. Maybe he luck with the fans was changing. Oh, who was she kidding, they'd probably hate her next week. She slowly climbed into the ring, looking for a microphone and making sure her skirt didn't ride up and give fans a view of what was only Chris's.

Meanwhile, Chris was making sure that the video was ready, because he knew Vince would pull it out soon since Stephanie was there now. He was so engrossed in what he was doing, he didn't see that Sawyer was right near the curtain that led up to the stairs where the stage was. He looked up to the monitors near the entrance and saw a fluttering of the black curtain and the disappearing image of a small shoe.

He threw off his headphones and went up to the curtain, pulling it back to see that Sawyer had made it up the few steps and was walking down the long corridor, probably because he had seen his mommy disappear through here too. Chris walked quickly to catch up with him before the people in the arena got their first glimpse of Sawyer Jericho, toddling down the ramp like he owned the joint. He could only imagine Stephanie's face if she saw Sawyer walking down the ramp towards her, his eyes having tunnel vision as he would go straight for her.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Chris asked as he scooped up Sawyer.

"Mama," he shrugged, pointing towards the stage.

"Yeah, I know Mama's out there, but you can't go out there after her. Do you know how much time and effort we've put into you getting a normal childhood…well, normal in the sense that you're not in front of everyone? Lots of time, kid."

"Mama," he said again.

"Come on, you, we'll watch Mama on the television screen. You really should be in bed, this is what we get for letting you take two naps today."

Chris walked back through the curtain to see that Shane had arrived in the vicinity and he was watching the scene unfold before him. Chris nodded to him and went back to the station, putting the headphones back on. "I'm going to need that video cued up and ready. Vince is going to be the one prompting it, but make sure you give my version."

"Are you sure that he's okay with this, Chris?" someone from the production truck asked.

"He's not, but don't worry, I've got you covered."

Stephanie could only imagine what her father had put on a video of her. This was just going to embarrass her, she knew. Who did her father think he was, using their private home videos to try and guilt trip her into being on his side with this entire thing? She did love her father, very much, but he was just so over-the-top with this. She turned to see what this video entailed and she almost laughed when she saw that it was from her match against her father.

The screen came up on Hunter, and he very guiltily said that it wasn't him, and Stephanie knew that it couldn't have _just_ been him. Hunter didn't have access to everything, but she knew one person that did and she smirked as Hunter said hello to her. That man sometimes, she just couldn't believe him. She turned back to her father and said that it wasn't about all of this, she still loved him, always would probably, but he should step down.

Shane came out shortly thereafter, talking the most sense as usual. Shane was always the logical one. Her father's words about her being volatile weren't inaccurate; she just wasn't the _most_ volatile person in the family. That title belonged to her father and it wasn't even a close race. But yes, she could be volatile and therefore irrational, but that's why Shane was in their family, to be logical about the whole thing, though she did take offense when he said that he'd always wanted a brother. She gave him a look, what did he mean by that? She wanted to ask him, but he put his hand on her shoulder to quiet her.

Vince did seem to want to change, actually getting down on his knees. It was hard to believe him though, since she, and her brother, and most especially her mother, knew that her father was a great liar. He could manipulate you into thinking anything. She nodded along to his words when Kennedy's music cued up. He walked down the ramp and Stephanie looked at him suspiciously. The brash superstar started speaking to Vince, revealing that he was his son.

Stephanie gave a hollow laugh and her volatile side was bursting free as she cut off Kennedy and got right in his face. She told him that he might be a bastard, but she wasn't her father's son. He then had the audacity to call her "sis," to which she wanted to punch him in the face, even more so after he said he didn't need proof. She felt Shane's hand on her arm, pulling her back, because he was familiar with her volatile side too. Kennedy then said that Shane should pull her away and this man was seriously seconds away from a stiletto to his balls.

Chris licked his lips backstage at the display. He loved when Stephanie was like that, so in control and fierce. "Damn kid, you so damn lucky she's your mother."

"Yeah," Sawyer said, not even paying attention as he scribbled on a piece of paper with a crayon that Chris had given him.

Stephanie was incredulous at Kennedy's words, and if this was her brother, well, then they'd have a bit of a problem because she would not accept that man into her family. She hoped her Dad wasn't believing this. Much to her relief, Kennedy wasn't his son, according to another lawyer. Lawyers seemed to be infiltrating their life right now. At least she wouldn't have to deal with that idiot as her brother.

They all walked backstage, Linda and Vince speaking with each other in hushed tones over what, Stephanie didn't know. She walked with Shane, turning to him. "Always wanted a brother? What's wrong with a sister, huh?"

"Uh, you're a girl," Shane said. "I wanted a little brother to play football with, and to play video games with, kind of hard when you have a sister who only wants pretty dresses and dolls."

"I resent that," she said.

"It's fine now, I have Chris as my brother, so it's all good," Shane said.

"He made that video, I know he did."

"Yeah, I made it," Chris said, showing up right there as they walked through the curtain. "Hunter helped, he heard what Vince was up to."

"You're bad, you know that, right?" she told him, pulling him closer by the collar as she kissed him deeply. "Very bad."

"Look at you, being all in charge, stepping right into Kennedy's face, I thought you were going to kick his ass right there," he said, the lowered his voice to an almost whisper, "it made me so hot for you."

"Yeah?" she asked with a smirk.

"Hell yeah, you know I love when you're in charge like that," he practically growled.

"Oh God, seriously? Again with you two?" Shane said in exasperation as he threw his eyes skyward and walked off, disgusted by his sister's behavior. "This is why I wanted a brother, he wouldn't be disgusting in front of me."

"Shut up, Shane," Chris said as he captured Stephanie's lips for another kiss, running his hands lightly over her back and under her shirt. "Sawyer managed to get close to the entrance without me knowing."

"He what!" Stephanie said, pulling away, looking at Sawyer who was kneeling on a folding chair, still scribbling away, although he sometimes missed the paper and got the table, luckily crayon didn't show on it.

"Yeah, made it through the curtain and up the stairs and everything."

"So he wants to be a part of things then?"

"I guess so…but you…man, you are so hot out there."

"Oh, Chris," she said with mock coy.

"So, you want to show me your volatile side?" he asked, sucking at his teeth a little.

"I'll show you any side you want."


	151. Hornswoggle, Really, September 17, 2007

A/N: If you didn't read my profile, I just wanted to let you know that with classes underway, I'm really swamped with reading and work, so updating on Mondays has become nearly impossible, so instead, I'm moving updates to Tuesday nights. Thanks, and leave a review:)

* * *

"_If it turns out to be Hunter, I think I may jump off a bridge."_

"_I think I might join you if that happens."_

"_Because there's no amount of brainwashing fluid in the universe that will wash away that disgustingness from my body," Stephanie told him as she shuddered once again. "Obviously Hunter went to this guy and did this, because all the things he's saying describes Hunter, and that's gross."_

"_You're telling me," Chris said, "I'm disgusted just thinking about it, but to actually live it, yeah, I might want a divorce if it comes out that you married your own brother. I haven't minded being in the McMahon family, but this just might put you over-the-top, sorry, baby."_

"_And for once, I don't think that I would blame you," she said as one-by-one guys started leaving the arena and coming back, Stephanie's face growing more and more dour the longer that Hunter stayed out there. "Why is the lawyer messing around like this? Whoever this person's mother is, she seems like a bigger bitch than I am. Obviously she hates my father, I get that, but seriously, does she not realize that he has other people in the family that might want to know about this?"_

"_Apparently not."_

"_Not to mention…I mean, I really want to know if this can work out, you know what I mean."_

"_You want to know if you can accept this guy as a brother?"_

"_Yeah, I just…I don't think that I'm prepared to do that. I don't think…I just have this feeling that I'm not going to accept this guy, whoever this guy is. I mean, there's this guy out there who could be my brother, and I might've missed out on him for my entire life. You can't build a brother-sister bond in a day or a week, it took me like twenty years just to appreciate Shane."_

_Chris laughed, "Well, if it comes down to it, you don't have to welcome this guy into our family. That's _your_ choice. I don't think I'd welcome a brother into my family…not that I have to worry because the folks broke the mold with me."_

_She groaned as she watched the television and watched the lawyer say that Vince's son liked to play the game. She leaned forward and put her head in her hands, "Oh dear God, please no, please, God no."_

"_Hey, baby, it's okay, I'm sure this is some kind of joke," he said while simultaneously grimacing. He reached out to rub her back, pushing his hand up her shirt and getting to her bare skin. His hand was warm against her, leaving a trail of that warmth as his hands caressed her skin. Chris continued to watch as Stephanie rocked in her place. "Hey, Steph, look, it's not Hunter."_

"_What, not Hunter!" Stephanie said, then looked horrified as Hornswoggle of all people was grabbing onto her father's leg. "What the hell is he doing in there?"_

"_Uh…that's the guy apparently," Chris said._

"_Uh…what?"_

"_Yeah…"_

"_Well," she said, giving Chris a look, "it's better than Hunter, anybody except for you would've been better than Hunter…I guess, and there's still no proof."_

"_That's true," Chris said._

"_This is weird," Stephanie said. "I just…I don't know exactly what to say, what do you say to that? I mean, what can you possibly say to that?"_

"_I don't know," he shrugged, and he didn't. What could he say? It was just…it was odd, like most everything that came with being in the McMahon family. Every day it was something new, every day it was someone being pitted against someone else. It never ended. Something strange was always going on in that family. "You know something…"_

"_What?"_

"_Sometimes I wonder what it would be like if I married a normal person, just someone who had a normal job, parents who were retired, living in some little small house and being sweet and kind. You know, just some random woman, a girl-next-door type."_

"_You do?" she asked accusingly, raising an eyebrow as she looked at him. "And what's wrong with me?"_

"_Nothing's wrong with _you_, not specifically anyways, just…well, your family. It's a fleeting thought, really," he said, trying to cover up his tracks and not stick his foot in his mouth any more than he probably already had. "I know you've wondered what it would be like to have a normal existence."_

"_Yeah, true," she said, leaning in to him. "I just want to go back home and climb into bed and sleep for the next fifty years, that way I won't even have to think about brothers or families or anything, I can just dream nice dreams where my life is normal like you said."_

"_See, I knew you'd see it my way," he laughed. "Come on, I'll grab our stuff if you grab the kid."_

"_Deal," she said as she got up and went over the portable playpen that played bed to their son. She picked up the sleeping toddler and held him to her, putting his blanket over him to try and shield the harsh hallway lighting that they were heading into momentarily. Chris deftly closed up the playpen and grabbed their things in both his hands as Stephanie turned the television off and opened the door for Chris who went out first, Stephanie following closely behind him, holding Sawyer tightly to her to try and muffle the noise around them as the show ended. She wasn't even up for talking to her father right then and she just wanted to find the exit and leave._

_She wasn't so lucky as a big body ended up next to her. "Hey."_

"_Shh," she reprimanded the person next to her._

"_Sorry," Hunter whispered, finally seeing what Stephanie was carrying. From a distance, it just looked like some coats or blankets or something. Of course, he didn't see the little guy that was underneath the blanket, still soundly sleeping. "I just wanted to apologize."_

"_For what?"_

"_Yeah, I kind of bribed that guy to make your dad think it was me for a little bit. I mean, it was just to freak out your dad, I didn't mean for it to freak you out."_

"_Well it freaked the both of us out," Chris interjected as he threw his response over his shoulder as they kept walking._

"_Sorry about that, really, I didn't want you thinking that you know, _we_ were brother and sister or anything, because I can assure you, we're not. We're so far away from being brother and sister…even though we're both from Greenwich, that's irrelevant of course."_

"_Of course," she said. "Because my father wouldn't blatantly cheat on my mother in the same town, he has some scruples, very few, but they're there."_

"_Yeah," he chuckled softly, "anyways, I hope I didn't traumatize you too much."_

"_Oh, it was just enough, trust me."_

"_Good, wouldn't want you thinking that we…because…no."_

"_Yeah, and thank God for small miracles."_

"Stephanie, I need your help."

"You need _my_ help?" Stephanie said, pretending to act incredulous. "You, Vince McMahon, seriously asking someone else for help? I don't believe it, I just don't believe it. Can I get this in writing? Or videotape, that would be even better."

"I'm serious here, Stephanie. I need your help."

"With what, Dad, the show is pretty well laid out tonight, we've got a lot of great, hopefully great, matches set up, I don't see what the problem is."

"Not with that," he said irritably.

"Then with what, Dad?" she asked as she watched Sawyer running around the park that they were at. They didn't have to be at the show for another couple of hours and she and Chris decided that getting some fresh air would be good for everyone. Chris was chasing their son around playfully as she sat there. "What else could you possibly need help with?"

"This…this _thing_," he said disdainfully. "I can't get him away from me."

"Um…you mean the…son thing?" she asked delicately. She didn't even know what to say about that anymore. She had a week to process it, but it still felt all jumbled up. It was weird finding out she had a brother, it was even weirder finding out some leprechaun-wannabe was her possible brother. And what of the mother? Where was this phantom lady and was she trying to play some horrible joke or get a piece of her father's estate?

"Yes, the son thing," he snapped. "I don't want anything to do with him, but he keeps hanging around me. I can't even leave my hotel room without him being right there."

"Well what do you want me to do about it, Dad? I thought that you didn't really want anything to do with me because you thought that I was all about the money, I mean, before your fake apology to us, you kind of thought we were gold-diggers," she pointed out, knowing that she was making her father squirm, but he deserved it. In fact, it was the least that he deserved. If she was going to make a list, this was definitely the least that he deserved.

"He's like…he's a child."

"Well, I don't think he's actually a child," she pointed out. "Maybe he _acts_ like one, but I don't think he is one."

"He's annoying me, Stephanie."

"Again, Dad, what the hell do you want me to do about it?"

"Can you come get him or something?" he asked.

"Come get him? And do what with him?"

"Just get him the hell away from me," Vince told her, and she could hear the frustration in his voice. It made her giggle a little. "Are you laughing at me?" her father demanded to know.

"No," she lied, "Sawyer and Chris are making funny faces at me and I'm laughing at them." In reality, Chris and Sawyer were still running around the open park they were in and she wasn't sure they could even hear her talking at this point.

"Oh," Vince said. "Well, you can come get him and get to know him."

"I don't want to get to know him," Stephanie said bluntly. "I said it before to Chris, I'm not ready to welcome anyone else into my family. I think it sucks that I was kept from someone who could be my brother for a long time. I'm set with my family, Dad, I really am."

"Well, you should…want to get to know him," he said quickly.

"Yeah, my family and I are having a day out together, a much-needed day out together, so you're just going to have to deal with this yourself."

"Stephanie, please, I can't even leave my room. He's out there, I know it."

"He's not a monster," Stephanie pointed out. "He's a human being. A rather strange human being, but a human being nonetheless."

"He's annoying and I want him out of my life."

"Well, I'm sorry, Dad, but I have my own family to worry about, not what you are doing, so you're on your own with this one."

"Stephanie, I am your father."

"Don't pull that with me, Dad. You made this bed, and now you're going to have to lie in it. It's what you chose to do. You chose to cheat on Mom, you chose to take that chance. I can't be some person that you have on some leash all the time, pulling me back to do your bidding. I'm an adult now, with responsibilities and a family of my own. This is _your_ mess, Dad, you deal with it."

"This is hardly fair…"

"Oh my God, _fair_, you think that this is fair to any of us? It's not, Dad, we're barely tolerating it. This is your fault, so why should we correct your mistakes?"

"Just one evening, take him for one evening, I swear, it's just for this one evening."

"No, I'm not, I have a sixteen-month-old, Dad, Hornswoggle or whatever his real name is, he's your responsibility, he acts like a child, and well, I guess you treat him like one? I don't know. I have a child."

"Well, can you at least tell me how to deal with him?"

"I don't think I've ever even met the guy," Stephanie admitted. "And why would I have to, he's been on SmackDown this entire time, and you know that's not my show. I would have no reason to interact with him, and plus, I don't think too many interact with him anyways. He seems just kind of…odd."

"He is, which is why I don't want to deal with him."

"Well, sorry, Dad, your problem, bye," Stephanie said, hanging up the phone.

Chris came over with Sawyer in his arms as he set the boy down and then sat on the grass next to his wife. "So what's up? Who were you on the phone with?"

"You couldn't tell by the look of frustration on my face?" she said sarcastically. "I was, of course, talking to my father."

"Oh, about the whole…brother thing?"

"Yeah, about that. He actually wanted me to go over there and take Hornswoggle off his hands. He wanted me to take care of the situation for him. That's so typical of him, just pawning off something to the next person. I think that's what he did with me and Shane, just pawned us off to my mom, he's such a jerk sometimes."

"Well, I mean, of all the guys it could've been, Hornswoggle, isn't that guy like…a weirdo or something?"

"I don't know, I don't really pay attention to what he does. I didn't think that I'd have to think about him."

"Do you really think that he's your brother?"

"I don't know what to think anymore," she said, rubbing her temples. "I just don't know what to believe. Maybe this woman is just trying to mess with my father. If you had the means, don't you think you'd want to get back at my dad for something?"

"I do have the means, but I'm not sure that I would actually go through with anything. I mean, your dad could screw with someone's life. I'm not really seeing the resemblance between you and Hornswoggle though," Chris said with a snicker.

"Shut up," Stephanie said, shoving him a little bit. "I don't care, I wasn't prepared for a brother before, I'm sure as hell not prepared for one right now. Let my father deal with it, it is his problem after all."

"Maybe he can do a makeover, integrate him into upper Connecticut society."

"I don't think my father would've been able to do that with anyone who claimed to be his son, let alone with Hornswoggle. My father hasn't even been successful doing that with me and Shane, or himself, I really think that my mom is the only one who would fit in that world."

"True, your stock went down when you married a wrestler."

"Yeah, you brought me down, I got shunned by society," she joked, nudging her shoulder against his. "Well, it was worth it though."

"Heck yeah it was, I'm Chris Jericho, besides, I've moved up in the world, look at me all management-like."

Stephanie smiled and grabbed his hand, "I wish you were back to where you were before, but I like where you're at now, and if you're happy, I'm happy."

"Your dad's been hitting me pretty hard to come back," Chris admitted. "And my agent has been telling me that TNA has come calling again. Can I ask you a serious question?"

"You know you can," she told him, already knowing where this was going without having to be asked the actual question, but she let him go ahead and ask it anyway so as not to take the power away from him in this moment.

"What if I got a better offer from TNA? What if I decided to take it?" he asked, turning to her as Sawyer crawled into her lap.

"That's two questions," she said lightly, but then turned serious as she thought about the question. It was a legitimate question, and she had thought about it some. "I don't control what you do."

"But you _are_ my wife, that means that whatever I do affects you, and affects him," Chris said, ruffling Sawyer's blond hair.

"I know," she told him calmly. "But you've never stood in the way of me wanting to do something, the least I can do is extend the same courtesy to you. If that's something you think would make you happy, I'm for that, if it also means that you could be a spy, I'm all for that."

He laughed, looking down and shaking his head, "I won't make any decision without consulting you first, except…well, we'll see."

"What do you mean, we'll see? What are you planning on doing, Chris Jericho?" she asked suspiciously.

"Nothing, I meant nothing by that," he told her. "You're my wife, I would only do things that would ultimately make you happy."

"Ice!" Sawyer yelled as he pulled himself up from Stephanie's lap, "Ice!"

"Oh, look, ice cream, you want to share an ice cream with the kid?"

"Yeah, you know what I like," she said as Chris got up, lifting Sawyer up by his jeans and then setting him down on his shoulders while Sawyer rested his hands on Chris's head and they headed off to the ice cream truck. She watched them with a small smile on her face as someone came up to her for her autograph. They were still in line when she was through.

She wondered if Chris was planning to come back and not tell her. That would be something that he would do. But no, he would surely tell her if that was the case. Something that big was something that she just couldn't miss. She had her hand in almost all the areas of business though so there was just no way that Chris could slip that by her.

There was just no way.

--

"Hey! Guess what!"

Christian looked up from the couch as he saw Tiffany walking through the door. "I don't know, what?"

"Well, I have a meeting set up with someone who is willing to invite me into their practice down here!" she said, clapping her hands a little bit.

"Are you serious?" he said, standing up. "You're not joking with me?"

"I'd have no reason _to_ joke with you, Christian, now would I?" Tiffany said, sticking her tongue out. "A colleague of mine knows someone down here, and they're always looking for a good general practitioner, so she's willing to meet with me."

"So you might actually get a job lined up here?"

"That's what it's looking like."

"So if that happens…I mean, if you want, if you're going to be working down here…"

"Come out and say it, Christian…" she prodded.

"That means that you could come live down here, with me."

"Yes, isn't that something!" she said, opening up her arms to him. "Come on, Christian, this is great news, right? You didn't get so tired of waiting that you completely gave up on me, right, because that would break my little, old heart."

"No way!" he exclaimed, rushing to her and hugging her. "I'm so happy."

"Good, now I'm not saying this is going to pan out, you have to know that this might not pan out. But it's a good thing, it means I have the opportunity here."

"You're the best doctor in the world, of course you're going to get this position, they'll welcome you with open arms, how could they not? You're you, you're the best, who wouldn't want Dr. Tiffany Allen in their practice?"

"You think way too highly of me," she told him, hugging him tightly.

"Well, I just so happen to think that you're the best."

"Oh, is that so?"

"It is so," Christian said, kissing her gently. "Tiff, you're the best, and I love you. So you know, I hope that you get the job because this place gets really lonely when you're not here and I would really like it if you were to move your ass down here. In fact, I think I'll go clear some closet space for you right now."

"You mean I'm going to get coveted closet space? Well, this is a big day. But don't forget that I haven't gotten the job yet, there's the whole matter of the meeting, and a lot goes into it. It's not just I switch over, I have to establish a clientele down here, and integrate myself into this system…"

Before she could get another word in, Christian's lips were on hers. She moaned lightly against his mouth as his hand tangled into her long hair. She wrapped her arms around him to steady herself as Christian pulled her ever closer, his arms completely encircling her waist. She let herself be lifted up a little bit as Christian deepened the kiss. Finally the need for air overrode this burgeoning desire and he pulled away.

"I'm going to clear away that closet space now."

She giggled. "Okay, go do what you want."

"I am," he grinned as he went towards the stairs, taking them two at a time. She watched him with a smile on her face. She loved Christian and she wanted to be with him and if that meant compromise, she was going to compromise.

Christian opened the door to his closet and started to scour the space for…well, more space. He started to grab some of his older clothes stuff he didn't wear anymore and put it in a big pile on his bed. He started to sort through it, stuff that he might wear again and stuff that he would give to charity. The charity pile grew and grew as he saw stuff that he would never in a million years wear again. Why hadn't he cleaned this place out before? He was just getting to the bottom of the pile when he saw it.

There it was, lying amongst his ugly shirts and too-short pants. A shirt that he had given Trish. It was a sparkly number that she loved, low-cut because she also loved it. He found himself picking it up and holding it to him. It smelled like her. He didn't need to bring it up to his nose to figure that out. He just needed to keep it close to her for her scent to waft up and overcome his senses. He sat down heavily on his bed, the shirt still against his chest.

Why was it she always brought him back to this place even when she wasn't around? He hadn't talked to her in a really long time, had no need really. He was happy with Tiffany and he loved her and she was going to move down here with him. Things were going perfectly in his life, he had friends, a great job, and a woman who loved him and was so spectacular in his own right. But would his heart ever really obey? Would the ghost of Trish ever really part? Maybe that's the downside to relationships.

Maybe her ghost was meant to linger. Wasn't there a saying out there, "the one that got away," yes, that was the one. They wouldn't coin such a term if it didn't exist. Maybe we're all doomed to carry this invisible burden of the ones that came before and the ones we let get away, slip from our grasp until we're reaching for air, the essence of the person that isn't there anymore. Then we're reminded and we stew about it and nothing that's good in our lives seems to compare to what was so great in the past.

Yes, he was doomed, as we all are at some point.

He could see her ghost now, the ghost of their relationship. Laughter seemed to echo through the rooms, running past his room in a flitter, a buzz of air until it flew down the stairs and joined more laughter, more passion, more everything. Funny how one shirt was enough to bring back everything. Funny how we never let go when we know that it's time…it's so far past time for us to let go. It was like he could hear her voice whispering in his ear.

_Would you have married me?_

"Yes…"

_Would you have loved me forever?_

"Always."

_Will you remember me fondly?"_

"Til the day I die."

And then he got up and put the shirt in the charity pile, burying it underneath a myriad of other clothes with no reminders. He threw them on the floor when he was through sorting, the shirt lost forever, a symbol of something long dead and something that needed to remain buried. And so it was and would be, a shirt forever lost in a pile, and he knew it was there, but he made no more motion for it.

Her scent still lingered in his brain after all.

--

Stephanie squeezed her eyes shut as she saw her father deal with her new…brother. She had to admit, it was hilarious to see him get his comeuppance. At this point it didn't matter if Hornswoggle was her brother or not, she didn't care as long as her father could feel this level of frustration for weeks to come. Sawyer kept laughing too since Stephanie was laughing so hard.

"What do you think is so funny, baby boy?"

"Mama," Sawyer said, pointing at her and poking her in the chin.

"You want to know what I'm laughing at?" she asked.

"Uh uh," he said, shaking his head.

"Aww, well I'll tell you anyways. Your grandpa is going through a very difficult time, and it's _very_ funny, so whenever you see Grandpa, you should laugh and laugh, and if you can, point at him, that'll really drive it home."

"Mama," he giggled as he climbed down off her lap and toddled over to his toys, getting on his hands and knees as he pushed a couple of trucks around.

"It's not funny, Sawyer, this is probably one of the only times we'll really get to make fun of Grandpa, well, to his face anyways, we need to take advantage of it. Don't you get it, baby boy, we have the upper-hand. Your grandpa is humiliated."

"Vroom, vroom," Sawyer said, ignoring her as he concentrated on pushing his trucks along imaginary highways that only existed to him.

"You're not enjoying this as much as I would've hoped, baby boy," Stephanie said as she observed her son, who was oblivious to the hustle and bustle going on around him. She made sure that he wasn't wandering off and getting into trouble though. Apparently he had developed a penchant for trying to see what was behind the black curtain, the curtain that lead to the entrance to the stage. Ever since Chris had caught him walking down it in an attempt to get to Stephanie, he had been curious as to what was really behind there. Sometimes she'd catch him staring at it as someone appeared from behind it. He probably thought that it was magic or something.

"Get back here!" Coach yelled as he chased after Hornswoggle. Stephanie laughed as Sawyer looked up at all the commotion.

Vince came walking quickly next and stopped in front of Stephanie, "That…person is going to be the death of me."

"Come on, Dad, how bad can it really be?" Stephanie asked.

"You want to know? Do you really want to know? I feel like St. Patrick's Day exploded on me," he told her, his face pursed.

Stephanie stifled her laugh, "Dad, come on, I mean, you were so excited to find out, what happened?"

Hornswoggle passed again, still being chased by Coach, "_That _happened! I don't know what to do with him. He won't leave me alone, maybe…hey, maybe I can pawn him off on someone…yes, well, I'll be seeing you, Stephanie, I've got an emergency phone call to make."

"To who?"

"No time for that, hello Sawyer," Vince said politely as he passed by his grandson. "At least you're well-behaved."

"That's what he thinks, right baby boy," Stephanie said to him when Vince was out of earshot. Sawyer looked up at her and smiled before going back to the business at hand, which was to push around his trucks and make truck-like noises.

"Well, he reaped what he sowed," Stephanie said as Hunter showed up in front of her, laughing from just having seen Vince. "What's so funny?"

"Your dad, oh man, if we were still married and he couldn't fire me on a whim, I would be in his face right now and laughing my ass off."

"When did you not having job security stop you from laughing in my dad's face?" Stephanie wondered.

"Oh yeah, remind me to do that later then," Hunter said, still holding his stomach and laughing. "I just wanted to know when my match was. I know I've got a handicap match, aren't I lucky? How much do you think I could pay your husband to come be my tag-team partner?"

"Not enough money in the world, besides, you're way too cocky not to think that you can take care of this yourself."

"You're right again, are you still harboring feelings for me, Stephanie?" Hunter winked.

"No, I just know you," she said. "But we have you on later in the show, no time determined, but definitely in the second hour, so you've definitely got time. I think that you can take care of them both easily. I'd watch out for Carlito though, you know he's gunning for you."

"What do you see in that jackass?"

"He's not bad, just like you're not bad. People are different around other people, you of all people should know about that. Wasn't it not that long ago that you despised my husband, now you're all 'buddy-buddy-I-want-to-be-tag-team-partners-with-him' and if you asked me if that would happen a year ago, two years ago, I'd have spit in your face for being a damn liar."

"Okay, you've got me there, we can be different around other people, you don't have to shove it down my throat," he said as Hornswoggle once again ran by. "What the hell is up with that little dude?"

"You're asking _me_?" Stephanie inquired.

"He is your brother, isn't he?" he joked.

"Shane's my brother, even if it had been…I don't know, Jeff Hardy that had come out as my brother, I don't think I would've accepted it. It's not that I wouldn't welcome someone, I just don't want to. I like my family the way it is."

"Some people would call that being a bitch."

"Well those people can kiss my ass," she said disdainfully. "I'm entitled to the way I feel."

"It's gotta be weird."

"What's gotta be weird?" Chris asked as he came upon the group.

"The whole brother thing."

"Yeah, you know, I'm not so sure he's your brother."

"What? Where did you find that out?"

"Well, I can't say this for sure, but I saw that lawyer guy skulking around again, and I don't know, he seems kind of shady. He seemed shady last week too, I mean, what kind of lawyer gives you hints to something. I know they can toy with you, but like that? It's just weird. I think something is going on."

"Yeah, like a mystery?" Hunter asked.

"Yeah, Shaggy, like a mystery, do you what to get in the Mystery Machine and go down to Uncle Jeb's supposedly haunted farm, I'll go get Scooby, just make sure we have enough Scooby snacks, okay, Daphne?"

"Aww, he thinks I'm Daphne," Stephanie said, grinning. "I'm not Velma."

"Yeah, and I'm Fred," Chris said.

"You guys suck," Hunter said. "I was just asking."

"Okay then, yes, Hunter, I think it's a mystery."


	152. Could it be Him? September 24, 2007

"Wake up, wake up, wake up."

"Shut up, shut up, shut up," Stephanie mumbled as she turned over on her side. "It's too early."

"But it's your birthday," Chris said in a sing-song voice as he hovered over his wife as they lay in bed on the morning of her thirty-first birthday. "It's my wife's birthday and I want to celebrate with her."

"No you don't, not right now," she told him, shoving him away with her right hand. "It's too early right now, Chris, and the monster will be up soon, and that means I have to get up so if you want to keep parts of you that you like, then you will stay the hell away from me until I'm damn good and ready to get up."

"You're getting meaner in your old age."

"You say that every year."

"Because you get meaner every year," he said, leaning down to kiss her cheek, which was buried into her pillow at the moment.

"I'm serious, Chris," Stephanie said through gritted teeth, "if you don't let me sleep I'm going to rip you a new hole that you don't want."

"Geez, okay," he said, laying back down on his back as he stuck a hand under his arm. "If you're this tired, I think it's a sign that you've been working too hard."

"Of course I've been working too hard," she said, flipping over so that she was cuddling into him. She much preferred his chest to the pillow anyways, Chris had this soft firmness about him that made him great for a morning cuddle. She grabbed him like he was her own personal teddy bear and threw her leg over both of his. "My father has been gallivanting around with that bastard son of his, trying to keep him in line, so where does that leave me? Doing all the work."

"You've got me," Chris said.

"I know, but you deal more with personal issues. You're like…you're like the HR department for the wrestlers, you take care of the other end of things while I take care of the more creative things," she told him. "So it's not that you don't help, you just don't help that much with the specifics that I do. My dad usually takes care of some of it since he likes to be so hands on, but…well, he's busy."

"So get your brother," Chris said as he ran his fingers through her hair, massing her scalp lightly which was lulling her to sleep again.

"I can't ask him to travel with me," she responded with a yawn to punctuate her point. "I don't like taking him away from his family, it's different for me because you're my family, and Sawyer is my family, and you spend every day with me, but he likes to be with his family, I can't ask him to do that."

"So I can help more," he suggested.

"It's okay, I just need to sleep," she told him as she cuddled further into his body, falling asleep rather quickly as Chris continued to massage her scalp.

He lay there with her a few moments, then leaned down to kiss the crown of her head, "Happy Birthday, baby."

--

"Hey, you guys, you arrived."

"Yeah, hey Britt, what's up?"

"First of all, happy birthday," Britt said to Stephanie, handing her a small gift, "this is for you."

"Thanks, Britt," Stephanie said, hugging her assistant, "you really didn't have to get me anything."

"I know, but you're my friend," she answered.

"She's sucking up to you," Chris said from across the room where he was changing Sawyer. "Trying to get a raise I'm sure."

"Shut up, you," Stephanie said. "It was a nice gesture, and I really appreciate it."

"No problem, but that's only part of the reason that I'm here, your father requested your presence and Chris's presence in his office as soon as possible. He wouldn't tell me what it was in regards to, so I can't give you further information."

"Damn it, what now?" Stephanie said as she set her laptop on top of her desk. "I swear to God, I should've just been an accountant at a firm, and I shouldn't have entered the family business. There's just no way that any other boss would want to see me so much."

"Well, he is your father," Britt said.

"I know, what's it like being a regular employee?" she asked Britt jokingly. "I bet it's wonderful because when you go home, you probably don't have to worry about your boss calling you…or even having your home number."

Britt laughed, "True, but I've got parents, and trust me, most parents are just as overbearing."

"Oh well that's something at least, thanks for letting us know, we'll be there shortly."

"Great, did you want me to watch Sawyer for you while you guys were in the meeting?" Britt asked as she glanced at the little boy who was happily walking around in his new diaper, picking up various things that he had dropped along the way and holding them all in his arms, getting angry when one thing managed to drop again to the ground.

"Would you? That would be such a big help."

"Yeah sure, I can just take him with me while I go finish some stuff you wanted me to finish up with the production team, you still wanted me to do that, right?"

"Definitely," she said as she walked over to Chris, who extended her hand out. "We'll be back shortly, I don't envision this being a long meeting with my father…probably because I won't let it go long because I don't want to talk to my father."

"Okay," Britt said, shifting her things to one arm as she extended a hand to Sawyer. "Come on kiddo, we'll go to the production truck, I bet the guys there will let you push all the buttons."

"Yeah," Sawyer said excitedly as he abruptly dropped all of his things and reached for Britt's hand. She took it firmly in hers as they left the room, her holding the door open for the little boy as he walked through happily.

That left Chris and Stephanie. Chris turned to his wife, "Are you going to open your gift?"

"I can open it later," she replied, "I think it'd be better if we just went to see my father right now and got it over with. I can only imagine what he wants us for."

"Me too," he said as he pulled her closer to him. He leaned his chin on her shoulder as he just looked at her profile for a few moments. "You're beautiful."

"You flatter me too much," she told him without looking at him. "You say all these lovely things because it's my birthday and you want to reassure me that I'm not getting old and that I'm still the one you wan even though I already knew that because you haven't yet divorced me."

"Well sue me for thinking that you're beautiful," he said, trying to act like he was offended. "Especially on your birthday, come on, Steph, have a party, it's your birthday, have a party," he said cheesily starting to do a really bad dance routine for her. She caught him around the waist and ceased his dancing by planting one on his lips.

"Stop," she said, "we have to be serious, we're at work."

"Why did your birthday have to fall on a workday?" he lamented.

"Because that's how the calendar works out, I can't just change the day that I was born," she told him. "Now can we please go?"

"Can we have a quickie first?"

"What!" she told him. "Chris!"

"It was a shot in the dark, I thought that maybe, just maybe, you might give in, since it's your birthday, the kid is taken care of, we're alone, the show hasn't started and most importantly the kid isn't here, hanging around…"

"Yet you're willing to do it while his toys are right there," she said, glancing at the toys strewn about the blanket laid down on the floor of her office. "His little stuffed bear and his trucks and his other playthings."

"Well, I mean, our bedroom at home has his stuff all over the place and we still do it there," he shrugged.

"No," she said, pulling on his collar, "no, no, no."

"Fine, I get it now, we have to go see your father."

"Finally! Something goes right on my birthday," she joked, kissing him again.

They walked down the hallway together, holding hands as she kept bumping her hips with Chris. Despite the way she was acting, she was excited that it was her birthday. She wasn't excited about the getting older part of the equation, but it was a special day, and she liked special days. She liked days when the attention was focused so much on her. She would never admit it, but she was a little bit jealous of her son nowadays. After he had been born, he got all the attention.

It wasn't that she needed or wanted _all_ the attention, but once Sawyer was born, everything became about him. She just became an extension of him, and everyone loved him, and while she loved him with all her heart, sometimes she missed the attention. She wouldn't trade Sawyer back for anything, but she liked the days where everyone's first thought wasn't on her son. She basked in the warm well-wishes from everyone, though she wondered if some of those words were because she was the boss. Oh well, she'd take what she could get.

Chris opened the door for her and she smiled as she stepped inside, Vince stood up from his desk and went over to embrace his daughter, surprised by his gesture, "Happy Birthday, Princess."

Stephanie smiled despite herself, "Thanks, Daddy." Sometimes, in some situations, you just had to fall into the moment and forget all the past hurt.

"I have something for you."

"You got me something?" she asked incredulously.

"Of course, you're my daughter, I'm expected to give my daughter something on her birthday," Vince said as he pulled out a small, but long rectangular box. Stephanie knew the kinds of things that came in those kinds of boxes. Back when she was in her early twenties, before she had started dating Chris, okay, before she had gotten married but not before she had started dating Chris, she loved those kinds of boxes. Things had changed now though, probably since she had gotten married. She still wore her jewelry, but she wasn't obsessed with wearing a lot of ice.

"Thank you, Daddy," she said, taking the box from him, but not opening it right that moment.

"Open it," he insisted.

"Oh, okay," she said hesitantly, lifting open the box and seeing a diamond tennis bracelet staring back at her. It was beautiful and she did appreciate the thought so she looked up at her father with a smile. "Thanks, Dad, this is beautiful."

"Do you want to put it on?"

"Oh, yeah, sure," she said, noting that she was only wearing her watch. "Chris, a little help?"

"Sure thing, baby, and thanks for making me look bad, Vince," Chris joked, "I was going to get her diamond earrings, but you had to outshine me."

"Oh, really, I'm sorry."

"He's joking, Dad, you can't tell he's joking?" Stephanie said, hearing the teasing in Chris's voice a mile away, but being married to him probably helped her assessment of his voice inflections.

"Oh, okay," Vince said, staring at them strangely for a moment as Chris strapped the bracelet onto Stephanie's wrist and then rubbed said wrist a little bit before letting go. "Beautiful," Vince commented, glad that he had such good taste…and that the jeweler had been a big help.

"Is this what you wanted us here for?" Chris asked, leaning back in his chair, but seeking out Stephanie's left hand and holding it, his thumb running over her engagement ring and wedding ring, twisting it on her finger.

"No, there's other things I wanted."

"What would that be?" Stephanie asked.

"I think I've decided how to handle this Hornswoggle problem," Vince said decisively.

"Oh yeah?" she asked, still trying to hold in her laughter at the obvious distress that her father had been in with Hornswoggle last week. She and Chris had probably watched that about fifteen times this past week. Whenever they needed a pick-me-up, they'd just get on the Tivo and start playing it and the good times would be rolling.

"Yes, I'm going to kill him with kindness."

"Oh, Dad, you do know that kindness doesn't mean acting like a jackass, right?" Stephanie said.

"Yeah, Vince," Chris added. "You might want to look up kindness in the dictionary because I don't think that you've ever had occasion to use that word so you might actually be confusing it with killing him with vindictiveness or manipulation."

"Very funny, you two," Vince deadpanned, not amused by his daughter and son-in-law's sarcasm around him. "I'm serious. Maybe all he lacks is direction, and I could be the one to give it to him. He is apparently my son--"

"Are you sure that he's your son, Vince, I mean, you haven't had a DNA test yet, have you?" Chris said, fostering this idea that he had that Hornswoggle might not be Vince's son. Maybe it was just a vibe that he got, but something didn't feel right about this entire thing.

"No, I haven't, but…"

"Vince, don't you think that you should do that beforehand, before you get carried away and actually start to _care_ about what happens with this guy?" Chris asked. "I mean, let's say I wasn't married and Stephanie came up to me claiming that Sawyer was my kid, and an obscene amount of time had passed, years, I would take action to make sure the kid was mine."

"Sawyer's yours," Stephanie told him sharply.

"I know that," Chris said, "I was using him as an example, I know he's my son."

"Good," she said. "But Chris is right, Dad, I'm not trying to be money-grubbing here, so don't even go there, Dad, even though I know that part of you still thinks it. Still though, you could get attached and this woman, she could be using you for money. You just don't know about these things, Dad."

"Well, I mean, I don't see why she'd bring lawyers into it if she wasn't sure."

"Oh, Dad, you're not stupid, you're not naïve," Stephanie said. "You know that there's the chance. I think…maybe you're just…no, you know, I don't know what your thinking is here. Maybe you're so confused about everything that you can't see it, but I think that you should look further into this."

"I should, shouldn't I?"

"Yes," Chris said.

"I will, as soon as I crush Hunter."

"What?" Stephanie said, blinking her eyes, "What does he have to do with this?"

"He's not a model employee, I can't turn around with him there trying to make fun of me."

Stephanie threw her hands up in frustration, "Are you kidding me? Dad, here's the bottom line, I don't think you're ever going to like Hunter. Even if you miraculously started to _act_ like you like Hunter, I think it would be just that, acting. You hate him, you hate him for reasons that should stay dead, and if you're hating him because of what he did to me, well…that was a long time ago."

"No, you have nothing to do with this," he said, shrugging off that part. "But the man insists on humiliating me at every turn, I can't stand for that, Stephanie."

She sighed, "Okay, but don't involve me in it."

"Vince, why don't you let this go and actually focus on something that affects your life," Chris told him.

"I am!" Vince said. "But it'll be easier to just take out Hunter while I can."

"The fans love him, Dad."

"The fans don't know what they're talking about," Vince said. "They can't possibly like him, they just missed him when he was gone. It'd be like if you were coming back, Chris, the fans would go crazy for you."

Chris glared at Vince, but Stephanie didn't notice it at all, she just rolled his eyes. "Okay, back to Hornswoggle, you're going to be nice to him?"

"Yes, I'm going to be nice to him, maybe that'll get him off my back and I can just be in peace for a little while," Vince said with a slight hint of disgust. "Because I don't think that I can deal with him anymore. He's very annoying and he's everywhere."

"Well, it's easy to kind of forget about him," Stephanie said delicately. "But he's not a child, you don't have to watch him all the time. He's weird, but he's not a child."

"You're right, anyways, I just didn't want to alarm you with what's going on."

"Wait, so you didn't come in here to ask our advice," Chris said. "You just called us in here to tell us what you were doing because you thought we'd freak out over it or something? What did you think that we were going to do, Vince, go on strike because you started treating someone nicely?"

"Sweetie, it's the nice part that my dad didn't want to alarm us about," Stephanie said gently as Chris started to laugh.

"Oh okay, yeah, that would definitely alarm me, I think the only people you're ever consistently nice to, Vince, are your grandsons, and it's easy to be nice to them."

"You two are still not funny," Vince said. "Now get the hell out of my office."

"Okay, okay, sorry, Dad," Stephanie said, but then stood up and hugged him. "Thank you for the gift though, it was really nice of you to get me something, and it's beautiful."

"You're welcome," he said, hugging her again.

Chris and she left again and she sighed and hugged him as he leaned against the wall. They just let the noise roll over them for a second. The show hadn't started yet, Britt was taking care of a lot of her things for her, and Chris didn't have anything to diffuse at the moment. Sawyer was also taken care of and so Stephanie just hugged him, burrowing herself into him and wrapping him up into a bear hug.

"I'm tired because you woke me up early."

"You're not even tired," he said, "you just want a piece of me. I told you, quickie in your office."

"That's not what I want," he said. He pet her hair a little bit. "You want to go watch the ring for a little while?"

"Why would we do that? Do you need to inspect it?"

"No," he said. "I just thought it might be fun to go sit in the empty arena. Before I started dating you, I did that a lot you know?"

"Chris, yeah, we've only been together for five years, but I've known you for a lot longer, if you don't think that I didn't see you at least once sitting in the arena by yourself, you really should brush up on…I don't know, everything."

"Fine, I get it," he said. "I just thought, since it's your birthday and we don't exactly get to do anything, you might just want to sit with me, in the quiet, reflect on how awesome a husband you have, one who is not afraid to let you speak and be friends with your ex-husband, one who gave you a kick-ass son, one who has taken over a desk job for you…"

"It's not _your_ birthday," she said, poking him in the back. "I'm fine just standing here, though."

"Okay," he said, looking at his watch over her shoulder. "We can stay here for a few minutes."

Meanwhile, Christian was cursing out Chris in his mind, as was Trish. Chris had invited him up to Milwaukee on him (well, Chris could afford it easily) for Stephanie's birthday. Since they couldn't really do anything since they were on the road, Chris had decided that he could at least take Stephanie out to dinner that evening with her friends. Tiffany had been invited, but she had work and couldn't get away. So here he sat.

With Trish.

Trish had been invited as well, and she hadn't been by to visit in such a long time so she had agreed readily to come. She also wanted to see her godson who she only got to see through the pictures that Stephanie had sent to her. She thought that it might be a possibility that Christian would be here (she didn't have enough courage to ask Chris if he would be), but she thought that she wouldn't be stuck in a room with him, sitting there, stewing, the both of them. The tension was thick, very, very thick.

Just ask Kurt, who was sitting in the same room, arms folded. He had been ecstatic when he had been invited back into the group. He had been talking to both Chris and Stephanie, and he felt like he was finally gaining their trust back. Then Chris had invited him to a nice, friendly dinner and it almost felt like he was really back. Of course, if he had known he'd be stuck here with the silent ones, he might have had his reservations. He felt a little responsible for this even though neither one of them blamed him, but still…

"So this'll be fun, right?" Kurt said.

"Yeah, sure," Trish mumbled.

"It'll be great," Christian said.

"Yeah," Kurt said, trying to sound enthused. "Can you believe that Stephanie is 31, I can't believe that, it's weird, I remember when she was like, way different than she is now. She's changed a lot."

"She's cool," Trish said.

"Great," Christian replied.

"I thought you guys were okay with each other," Kurt said, looking between the both of them. "I thought that you were cool."

Christian had been cool with her, until he had found her shirt in his closet. It had just dredged up a lot of memories that he didn't want to resurface. He was happy with Tiffany, her interview had gone extremely well, and she was just waiting to see if they would offer her a place in their practice, they were excited about moving her things in and he loved her, he really did. Then he saw Trish, and thought about her shirt and everything came tumbling down.

"I'm cool," Christian said. "I can be friends, right?"

"Sure," Trish said, "It's fine, great even."

"Cool," Christian said and Kurt rolled his eyes.

The door opened then and Stephanie walked inside, making out with Chris along the way. He pulled away and turned her around and she gasped when she saw all her friends there, "You guys!"

"Hey, surprise," Trish said, perking up.

"What are you doing here?"

"Chris's idea," Kurt said as Stephanie threw her arms around him.

"We're going to go out to dinner," Chris explained. "We couldn't celebrate at home, so I just wanted the gang to get all together for dinner."

"That's sweet, Chris," Stephanie said, hugging her husband. "It's not too big, it's just right."

"It's what I strive for," he told her. "I'm so glad you guys are here, this is great, are you going to go around and visit while I work?"

"That was the plan," Christian said. "Not that we don't love you, Steph."

"I know, I've got work to do anyways," she said, linking arms with Kurt, "but I'm really happy that you're all here, you don't know what it means to me. I was afraid I'd only get to spend my birthday with my boys, and while that's great, I like you guys too."

"Well, thanks," Chris said sarcastically. "Now will you guys get out of here so I can give my wife her gift?"

"It's not something in the form of getting naked, is it?" Kurt teased.

"She already shot that down," Chris said. "Though I did make the offer so she can't say that I didn't offer to give her a little bit of Vitamin C."

"Okay, that's enough of that, just give her your gift in front of us, unless it's lingerie, then I really don't want to see what you wear for sex," Christian said with a shudder.

"I've never bought Stephanie lingerie, ever," Chris said, shaking his head. "I'd rather be surprised by her on that front."

"The surprise is that I don't wear lingerie all that often, I don't feel comfortable in it."

"Wait, so if you don't wear lingerie," Kurt said, his voice trailing off.

"Don't even go there," Chris said. "I don't want you guys picturing my wife naked, that's over the line. I want to give her my gift alone, so if you don't mind, go talk with your friends, you still have those right, go, go…we'll see you later."

"Fine, fine, fine," Kurt said as he ushered Christian and Trish out of the room. They went in completely opposite directions from each other.

Chris pulled out a gift from Sawyer's diaper bag and handed it to Stephanie. He then grabbed another gift from the bag and gave that one to Stephanie too. She looked at the top gift and saw that it was from Chris. She smiled up at her husband as he nodded for her to take the gift and unwrap it. She tore the paper clean off and smiled before looking down and then that smiled faded into confusion.

"You got me…an advanced copy of…your book," she said distastefully. "Chris, everything you've written in here I've probably already heard from your mouth, why would you get me this?"

"Look inside," he told her.

"Okay," she said, pulling open the book and Chris flipped it a few pages.

"I had this specially made for you."

She looked down and read the dedication, "_To the person who makes me want to rip my hair out, and yet…the only person I truly love, Stephanie. If it weren't for these stories, my life wouldn't have been complete because I'd never have met you_."

She looked up at him, a teary smile on her face, "Please tell me you didn't have this put in every book."

"No, just yours," he told her. "There's even more."

"More?" He flipped to the middle of the book where there were a few sheets of paper folded up. He pulled them out and handed it to her. She pulled them open and saw his handwriting, "What is this?"

"A summary of what I wrote so you don't actually have to _read_ the book, since I know you don't want to."

Stephanie laughed and hugged him, "You're the best."

"Okay, second present time," Chris said, pulling the book and papers away and setting them on the coffee table. "Oh wait, hold on, you can't open this yet, I'll be right back."

"Okay…" She was confused as Chris ran right out the door. He was gone for a good five minutes before he returned with Sawyer in his arms. Chris smiled as he sat down, his breathing heavy from having run all around trying to find Britt and Sawyer. They had been in catering getting Sawyer an apple juice, which Chris was holding as he handed the glass to Sawyer, who brought it up to his lips to sip.

"Sawyer, put your juice down," Chris hissed, "Mommy's going to open her present."

Chris and Stephanie watched as Sawyer took a few more big gulps of his apple juice, some of it running down his chin a little as it missed his mouth. He pulled it away, holding the cup up triumphantly as he announced, "N'more!"

"Congratulations," Stephanie said as she took the cup from Sawyer and put it on the table next to Chris's book. "Can I open my gift now?"

"Now you may," Chris confirmed as Stephanie ripped the paper. Wrapped up in it was a picture frame with a finger painting from Sawyer. It was just a bunch of blobs and handprints but he had made it.

"Oh, thank you, baby boy," Stephanie said, kissing him on the cheek.

"Tank-Tank," he repeated.

"No, you don't thank me, I thank you," she told him, but he looked at her blankly. "Mommy is going to put this in her office in Stamford, that way, when someone goes in there, this will be the first thing they see."

"Wow, kid, you're in the big time now."

Later on, Stephanie was sitting at her station working. Chris was with Sawyer who was with Kurt, off somewhere doing something. Suddenly she was hugged from behind and she looked over her shoulder to see Hunter, who let her go and sat next to her. She smiled as he grinned at her.

"Happy Birthday, Steph," he said jovially.

"Thanks," she responded.

"I got you something, but it's in my car, I'll give it to you later though, is that cool?"

"Yeah, you didn't have to do that though."

"I know, I wanted to."

"Hunter!" Vince's voice boomed.

"Damn it, I've got to go," he said quickly.

"Hunter, what did you do?"

"No time to explain, gotta get out of here, bye Steph, have a great night," he said, rushing out there. Vince walked by a few minutes later, looking might perturbed with Hunter, whom he was still pursuing.

Chris showed up a few minutes later, sans Sawyer, and sat down next to her. "Hey, working hard?"

"Always," she said.

She sat there and watched as the screen turned to black for a commercial, but then suddenly a bunch of numbers came on the screen. She watched with confusion, her eyes narrowed, as this video played before her, the phrase, "SaveUs.222" flashing over and over again. When it was over, she stared at the screen for a few more seconds before firing up her headphones and looking angry.

"What the hell was that?" she asked production.

"A video, Stephanie."

"I can _see_ that," she said sarcastically. "But what the hell was that? Was that a Cyber Sunday promo or something? I've never seen that before."

"I'm not entirely sure," was the response.

"You're not _sure_?" she asked. "Excuse me? You aren't sure what this strange video is on the show. You're the production truck, you should know everything, how the hell could you air something that I didn't approve of?"

"It was authorized by your father, he said that this didn't need your approval."

"Oh no, he didn't," Stephanie said, her frown becoming downright evil at this point. "He knows better, do you know what the hell that was for?"

"No, sorry, Stephanie."

"Okay, thanks," she said, throwing her headphones off. "Can you believe that? My dad just authorizes things without telling me. He's off being nice to someone that might not even be his son, and I'm working, and then he swoops in and authorizes something behind my back that I don't even know about."

"It was just a video," Chris told her.

"But what the hell was it? Is my father thinking about bringing a new guy in, has he talked to you about that? I know that he called your office the other day, he's bringing someone new in isn't he? He has to brief you on new hires, it's a new hire, he's bringing someone up from OVW, isn't he?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Steph," Chris told her quickly. "None."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah," he said, swallowing as he said it. "It could be anything."

"That's the thing, _anything_, it could mean my father is going to start a new thing again or something, I don't know, are you sure that you don't know what that's about?"

"I'm sure," he told her.

"Well this is it then," she said, standing up and stalking off, with Chris in close pursuit. She barged to her father's office and threw open the door. "Dad, how could you authorize something without even consulting me? I run this show, Dad."

"I'm still your boss, what I say goes."

"What the hell was that about anyways? What do you have up your sleeve? What's going on, I demand to know!" Stephanie said, almost stomping her foot like a child.

"It's nothing, it's a project of mine," he said, glancing at Chris, "just leave it to me."

"No, I'm not leaving you anything, you are so preoccupied and now all of a sudden, you're making decisions regarding the show? It's not fair that you're doing something behind my back. If this is something that will affect my show, then I have ever right to know, I should know. I'm not a child anymore, Dad, you can bulldoze right over me."

"I'm not bulldozing anything, Stephanie," Vince said. "Don't worry about it, it was a short video and it was for Cyber Sunday, that's coming up you know."

"Okay, well, tell me next time," Stephanie said, calming down considerably, which made her miss the pointed look that Vince was giving Chris. "Don't do that again, Dad, if there's something going to be on my show, let me know."

"Stephanie, I'm your father and your boss, I make the final decision so if you see videos you didn't count on in the future, you should just ignore them and trust me."

"Trust you? Yeah…right," she said. Stephanie stalked out of the room, Chris on her heels.

But not before he gave a look back to Vince.


	153. Now is the Time, October 1, 2007

Chris thought it might be difficult than it was.

He thought that he'd have to keep his eye on Stephanie everyday and for every second of every day just to make sure…make sure that she wasn't trolling the internet sites. He thought he'd have to watch her like a hawk, but he didn't. He was thankful for that. She had been too tied into No Mercy and Sawyer to even care what was being said on the internet.

He was looking at it right now and he couldn't believe it. Chris knew he was liked, he knew this, he knew he was loved, he knew that. He knew that Jerichoholics were just about the most faithful fans a guy could get (we are), but he had never expected this. He remembered a conversation he had had with Hunter not too long ago about being beloved. He had joked around about it that day, saying that there were be riots in the streets for his return. He had been joking then though.

He might not be joking if he said it again.

The fervor was incredible. He never expected it to be like that. How could he have ever expected this? Okay, so he was lying, he expected a little of it, but he was trying to be humble. It was the thought and the time that went into this clue-searching that really stunned him. He had been on YouTube and he had seen the multiple videos analyzing and slowing down and just out and out seeing things that weren't even there in the video that had aired the week before.

And it might not even be for him.

Chris hadn't decided yet, you see, that was the mystery behind it. Chris had not officially said that it was him, though all indications were that it was him, that this video was him, and indeed, he had helped, somewhat with this video, he had seen to its inception, had gone over it with the graphics team, and he had lent his voice to it, but it still might not be for him. Vince had somehow persuaded him to actually do something. That was a first.

"_Vince, you wanted to see me?" Chris sighed as he entered Vince's office._

"_Chris, I was happy to hear that you were in the building," Vince told him._

"_Well…I was picking up Stephanie for lunch, and we were going to go…to lunch," Chris said implying that he wanted to go. He pointed towards the door. "But then someone told you that I was here, and then you buzzed Stephanie and now…here I am."_

"_Yes, here you are," Vince said, "take a seat."_

_Chris sat down across from his father-in-law, "What is this about, Vince? Stephanie is hungry and Sawyer is a little bit cranky today. He didn't get a lot of sleep last night because apparently he had a nightmare and I'm really tired today. You'll pardon me if I'm curt."_

"_It's fine," Vince said, not caring, "I want you back."_

"_I wasn't aware we broke up, Vince," Chris said yawning._

"_Very funny, I want you back on the show, in WWE, on Raw if you want it, SmackDown if you want that, I just want you back on the show, as soon as possible," Vince told him. " I'm not going to take no for an answer."_

"_Vince, seriously, _this _is why you called a meeting?" Chris said, exasperated by his father-in-law. Sure, Vince was his boss, but he seemed to also think that because Chris was his son-in-law he was obligated to just be at his beckon call all the time. _

"_Yes, I think it's time."_

"_I should get the say when it's time," Chris told him. "It's my career, Vince, we've been over this."_

"_I know this, Chris, but we need you now."_

"_Look, I told you I'd tell you when I was ready. That's it, Vince, seriously."_

"_Chris, I've already got it lined up how you can come back."_

"_You've got it lined up? You didn't even ask me, you just went ahead like I would just say that it was fine that you scheduled me to come back when I didn't even approve this? Vince, seriously, this is not cool," Chris said, running his hand through his hair. "You've already started the ball rolling on this?"_

"_I didn't think it would make you this mad," Vince admitted._

"_You didn't…" Chris started laughing humorlessly, "Vince, seriously…I can't believe you would do this."_

"_Chris, we're hurting after these recent suspensions, the roster is thin, and I think that you can revive it," Vince told him, and he was sincere, which made Chris want to groan. Vince was family, bottom line, he was family, and Chris believed in helping out family._

"_You're really hurting, you think this?"_

"_I think this."_

"_I'm not happy, but I'll see it out, but Vince, I'm telling you right now, I don't want it to totally seem like me, because if I choose not to come back, I don't want people thinking that I was going to come back and just didn't. So we'll make it vague."_

"_Absolutely, you can have full control of this, full control, and if you choose to make it not about you, we'll get out of it."_

"_Fine," Chris said. "You know Vince…sometimes, I think that you…"_

"_Thank you, Chris," Vince told him, and Chris rolled his eyes._

"_I'm going to lunch with my wife and son, later, Vince."_

So yeah, it was vague, and it was about him, maybe, if he decided to come back. That was still up in the air. Chris had gotten used to this life over the past two years. He knew that not much would change in his personal life if he were to come back to television and wrestle, but he'd be wrestling again, putting himself out there. Sometime over the past two years he had acclimated himself to the managerial life, and he found it a hard mentality to break out of. He didn't know if he could go from being in charge to being told what to do, not that Stephanie wouldn't give him a lot of free reign, he knew she would.

"So what do you think about that?" Chris asked Sawyer as they watched the video that was to air tonight. "Do you think that gives enough misdirection?"

"No," Sawyer said, leaning over the table so that he was almost nose-to-nose with the computer screen. "No, no, no."

"Well, gee, thanks, I thought it did a good job," Chris said. "I think that it makes people think it might be someone else, because you know, it doesn't have to be your old man. Did I show you all the stuff about me? People love me, kid, they really want to see me, I didn't expect it quite so much."

"Uh huh," Sawyer said as he pulled back away from the screen.

Chris lifted him up and sat him on the desk in front of him, making him face Chris. "So…well, I've been thinking about coming back, what do you think about that? Good idea, bad idea?"

"Bock," Sawyer said, pointing to his blocks which were on the floor on his play blanket. "Bock, bock, bock."

"That's what a chicken says," Chris joked. "Lame joke, I know. You've never see me wrestle, kid, and I'm really excited that you're going to. I know that you probably don't even think that I ever was a wrestler, but I was, a great one."

"Dada," Sawyer said, poking him in the nose playfully.

"Thanks," Chris said. "I know you think I'm silly, but I can't wait for you to see me. I mean, there's few things in my life right now that I can complain about, really, if we're being honest, I could do without the diapers, so whenever you're ready to potty-train, let me know. But I want you to follow in my footsteps, you know, be a wrestler like your dad, but you kind of have to believe I'm a wrestler in order for that to happen."

"'Kay," Sawyer said, then turned around so he was staring at the computer again. "Dada, Dada!"

"What?" Sawyer started slapping the screen. "Okay, okay, I'm putting it back."

He switched off the media player on his laptop and went back to the internet browser where Chris had it on the webpage for the kid's show, _Higglytown Heroes_. Sawyer's eyes lit up again and he delightedly clapped his hands as he pointed to his favorite character, Kip. Chris rolled his eyes, this show was weird, but it always captured Sawyer's attention.

"This show is creepy, Sawyer," Chris said "You have people who can put things inside of themselves, how do you not find that creepy?"

"Yayayaya," Sawyer said as Chris played a clip from the show on their website. Stephanie breezed in a moment later and Sawyer's attention was diverted, so was Chris's for that matter.

"I'm only in here for a few minutes, so don't get used to seeing me."

"Oh, sorry, I kind of already got used to seeing you," Chris said, snapping his fingers, "that means you have to stay here."

"Can't, have to go welcome back Regal, he's being reinstated, and then well, I've got things to do for later, and then things for Sunday, so I'm going to be pretty swamped this evening, might not even get to talk to you, I'm only talking in short sentences now, gotta go, love you both."

She breezed out again and she was down the hall before she could hear her boys say another word. She had a lot of things to do and she had tonight to do most of them. The rest of the week would be focused on making Sunday a great day. The card looked pretty good to her thus far, but she had far more than the card to worry about, there was the set and getting everyone there, so many things to worry about.

Fortunately for Chris.

"Steph, hey, Steph!"

Stephanie turned around and saw Jeff striding up to her. "What can I do for you, Jeff?"

"Hey, I wanted to ask you a question."

"Is it about tonight?"

"No."

"Sunday?"

"No."

"Then I'm sorry, Jeff, I don't have time to talk to you, I'm really busy tonight, but bring it up with Chris, I'm sure that whatever you need, he'll be able to answer you," she told him. "Unless it is really important."

"No, it's not," he told her.

"Sorry," she threw over her shoulder. She was walking down the hallway again, her destination already known. She just had to get there. She spotted Kennedy out of the corner of her eye and she stopped, knowing this was one stop that she would be willing to make, "Mr. Kennedy."

"Ms. McMahon," he returned.

"I hope that you're happy with what happened, that's what you get when you try to impersonate a McMahon. You thought that you could just call me sis, think that you could barge into my family? I don't think so."

"But let's be honest, Stephanie, wouldn't you rather have _me_ as your brother rather than that little weasel, Hornswoggle, I mean, come on, as if there's a comparison, I'm Mr. Kennedy…Mr. Kennedy…Mr.--"

"I know exactly who you are," Stephanie told him. "And I'm sick and tired of Mr. Kennedy, and you know what, no, I wouldn't rather have you, and I don't want Hornswoggle either, I would rather just have no brother except for the one I've known my entire life."

"Well good luck with that," Kennedy said sarcastically, "and to think, we could've been close, I could've been a great brother, and Shane and I would've been great together, I bet even your kid would like me."

"Whatever, I'm so glad that you're not in my family, you don't even deserve it."

She walked past him, shaking her head. She didn't know what she would've done had it actually been him. Maybe he would've fit right in, she didn't know. She knew that Hornswoggle didn't fit right in. He was weird, not that she wasn't weird because she knew that she was weird, but she wasn't weird like that. He was the crazy type of weird that you wanted to stay away from. Yes, that was how she'd describe him. She shuddered a little bit.

Finally she got to her destination and knocked on the door, Regal opened it moments later, "Oh, Stephanie, hello."

"Hello William, welcome back," she told him. "Are you feeling well?"

"Quite," Regal answered. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Well, I just wanted to let you know that my father is obviously here tonight and he's kind of taken charge so you answer to him rather than me," Stephanie said, "but that's pretty obvious, I just wanted to let you know and then to give you the schedule for tonight so that you're in the know."

"Thank you," he said, taking the sheet from her. "Is there anything else I should know?"

"No, I can't think of anything," she told him, "thanks, see you later."

"Thank you, Miss Stephanie," Regal said, bowing. Sometimes she thought he was just being the ultimate suck-up, but she could care less at the moment. Let him suck up all he wanted to, it wasn't going to suddenly make her give him a raise or something. Stephanie was a little wary of how people saw her sometimes, you could just never really tell.

Meanwhile, "So dude, it's so you, isn't it?"

"What is so me?" Chris asked as he watched Sawyer picking at his carrots, which he didn't really care for. He really liked green beans though because those were all gone, but carrots were weird to him and he didn't want to eat them. He did enjoy the chicken though as he had gobbled that up almost instantly, but the carrots were just a no-go. Chris was picking at the spaghetti on his plate.

"That video," Hunter said, flipping his chair around and sitting down facing Chris. "It was you, I read all the stuff about it."

"_You _troll around the internet, trying to find people who care about you again, Trips?" Chris said, cocking his head to the side. "Don't you have a match to worry about?"

"Please, it's against Vince…"

"And any little goons that he decides to send your way, did you remember that?" Chris reminded him. A match with Vince was never a match with Vince, it always included someone else, someone who Vince could see as an equalizer.

"Of course, but I can handle anyone he throws at me," Hunter shrugged.

"We'll see."

"Anyways, stop changing the subject, the video, everyone is saying that it's you, there's clues and shit, it's you, right?" Hunter said, leaning forward a little bit to make the conversation less loud.

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"B.S."

Chris shrugged, "I don't know, Trips, could be anything, really."

"Stop pulling my leg," Hunter said. "It's you, there's way too much crap in that video for it not to be you. People have gone obsessed with that video and thinking that it's you. So, as a friend, I'm asking, is it you?"

"It may be," Chris said, not really giving up his mystique.

"It could be? Isn't it, it is or it isn't? How could it just maybe be you?" Hunter asked, confused now. But Chris liked that. The more people confused, the more people who would be surprised when he made his eventual comeback. Eventual being the key word.

"It may be, Vince was pressuring me to make my return, so I green-lighted the videos, helped with them too, but left it wide open enough that there could be an escape if I decide that I don't want to come back, I'm mulling it."

"You're mulling what?"

"Coming back."

"What?"

"I'm not sure I want to come back."

"Now…or at all?" Hunter asked. "Because I'm so looking forward to kicking your ass again in a big match. It's always an easy win for me when we face each other because you've never been a match for me, you've never won."

"Well, I won Stephanie," Chris told him, nodding his head slowly, "That was a pretty big coup."

"Damn you," Hunter muttered knowing he was caught there. "But you can't be serious about wanting to retire, I mean, come on, Chris, you've always said at some point that you were going to come back, what changed your mind? Wrestling is our lives."

"Wrestling is still my life, I'm not a hologram, man, I'm sitting right here in the same arena on the same road, at the same show, every week, I'm here, I'm not going anywhere," Chris said. "It's not that."

"You lost the passion," Hunter said, disgusted with Chris.

"No, it's not even that," Chris said. "I know I could go out there tonight and kick ass, it's more than that."

"What is it?"

"I don't know, I feel comfortable, I guess, with where I am," he shrugged nonchalantly, trying to put into words what he felt. It wasn't that he didn't love wrestling, because he did, he wouldn't still be here if he didn't. Wrestling had given him so much in life that he would defend it until his dying day. He wouldn't turn his back away from it or denounce it, and he _had_ taken great care to defend it, always. It wasn't even all for Stephanie that he defended WWE through some dark days; it was also because this is what he loved. Wrestling gave him everything. Without it he wouldn't have a career, he wouldn't have his music, he wouldn't have his writing, he would be a normal Joe. Most of all though, it gave him Stephanie and Sawyer, and how could anything compete with that? How could anything that gave him those things fall out of favor with him?

"As a suit?"

"Yeah," Chris answered. "I know, it's crazy to me too, but I like it back here, I like up there too, but I don't know, this just may be what I want to do for the rest of my life, just be back here, with Steph, and taking care of my kid."

"Well, I mean, I guess that's admirable. I still think you should come back."

"You _really_ want to kick my ass, don't you?"

"No…well, yeah," he joked. "I think we could use you, I don't have to tell you that we're kind of hurting right now, you know."

"Yeah, that's why Vince started this thing, but I…" He stopped and Hunter wondered why he stopped mid-sentence, but then saw the flash of red that was Stephanie's off-the shoulder sweater top. "Hey, baby."

"Hey, I gave myself twenty minutes for dinner," she said, giving him a peck on the lips before sitting next to him and taking his fork to shovel some food into her mouth. "Yum."

"Yeah, thanks for stealing my food."

"Whatever," she said, leaning into his shoulder. "So what are you guys talking about?"

"Your husband as a suit," Hunter said vaguely, catching the pointed look from Chris that said if he confessed anything, he would kill him in his sleep (and he could probably do it too since Chris had access to any superstar's room since he was one of the high-higher-ups). He wondered how the hell Stephanie had not noticed the hubbub about her husband coming back.

"Oh, yeah, he's cute," Stephanie said. "I'm going to go grab some food, what's good?"

"The monster liked the chicken," Chris said. "So that must be pretty good, he wouldn't let me try a piece so I don't know exactly how it tastes, I just know that he liked it."

"Sounds good," Stephanie said, as she rubbed Sawyer's head.

"She doesn't know?" Hunter asked when Stephanie was safely out of earshot.

"No, she's been so busy with No Mercy, and her father told her it was just a preliminary video for Cyber Sunday and she hasn't had time to actually watch it and if you tell her…"

"I won't," Hunter interrupted. "Sometimes man, you are jus so lucky that your wife is a very busy woman."

"If she wasn't, if I didn't think I could totally pull this off, I'd tell her," Chris said. "As it is though, I think that I'm good."

"Good with what?" Stephanie asked as she sat down.

"Life."

--

Christian stared at his phone and then picked it up, dialing Trish's number. He had been doing this for a week now and he was sure that Trish knew that he was calling even though he had kept hanging up. Still though, this time he was going through it, pride be damned, he needed to do this and he needed to do it before it was too late.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Trish, it's Christian."

"Hi," she said hesitantly. "Called to yell at me again?"

"I was calling about that," he said. "It was out of line to treat you so badly."

"I'd agree with you, I don't know what I even deserved to get treated like that, Christian. I don't even know. I've left you alone, I haven't called, I haven't e-mailed, I haven't anything. I've stayed away because I know you're happy, but then you come and you yelled at me for something, I don't even know why you were yelling."

"I was frustrated and I'm sorry."

"About work?"

"No, not about work," he said. "I was just…I was cleaning out my closet and I saw…a shirt of yours or something and I don't know, it was just…made me think, and then seeing you and everything, it made me snap, I don't' know. I guess I still have some residual anger over the way we left things, the way things ended."

"There was no pretty way to end that, Christian," she told him. "Sometimes relationships end beautifully and sometimes they don't."

"Yeah, I know, I get that, I just…Trish, I don't hate you, I never could, or will…ever," he said disjointedly. "I don't think that I ever could look at you and our relationship, despite the ups and downs, as something not cool or not great when it was great."

"I know, but we're both moving on and I forgive you for yelling at me," she told him nicely. "It was a heat of the moment type thing and I didn't help my cause by yelling back at you."

"So you don't hate me?" he asked hopefully.

"I couldn't hate you either."

"I don't want it to be awkward with us because have the same friends."

"It won't be, I promise," she said, though she never knew how she would keep that promise. "I _don't _hate you, Christian."

"Thanks, Trish, I needed that."

--

"Dad, I…oh, hello," Stephanie said as she saw Hornswoggle in her father's dressing room.

"Hi," he practically grunted.

"Uh, do you happen to know where my dad is?" Stephanie asked uncomfortably.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Hornswoggle said as his eyes lit up.

"Um, where?" Hornswoggle shrugged and Stephanie sighed, "Oh, well, thanks anyways…it was…really nice talking to you."

"Yeah, uh huh, yeah."

Stephanie closed the door behind her. She definitely didn't know how to talk to that guy. It didn't matter if he was her brother or not, she didn't know how to talk to him. She really wished that her father would follow through on that DNA test. If she were her father, she would've made sure that was the first thing that happened. If some kid claiming to be Chris's came out of the woodwork, they'd be down at the doctor's the second after she found out, no thinking.

She went down to her station only to see her father was already on television. She checked her watch and frowned as she realized that it was going slow. Just her luck, now her watch was broken. It wasn't that great a week for Stephanie, but it was only going to get more hectic so she had to push aside this setback. Chris was sitting there with Sawyer, who was coloring to occupy himself until he got tired for bed. They made sure to give Sawyer late naps so he could stay up a little longer at night. They knew it was a weird method, but it worked for them.

"Let me have your watch," she told him as she sat down on the other side of Sawyer. He looked up at her and pursed his lips for a kiss. She leaned down and gave him a kiss as Chris looked at her weirdly.

"Why do you want my watch?"

"Mine is slow and I need to keep on top of things," she said as she showed him the offending watch.

"Oh," he said as Stephanie pulled his arm and took his watch off before slipping it around her wrist. It was big on her wrist, like a huge bracelet, but it would have to suffice for now. She put on her headphones and got to work on the show as she sat there with her husband and son, the former of which was on the headphones too and the latter of which could care less about headphones.

He was staring at the black curtain again. He really, really, really wanted to know what was behind there. He tried to think of climbing down and going over there, but he knew that his parents would notice. He looked between both of them like he was plotting some nefarious attack, but he knew better than to just climb down. He saw his grandfather come out from behind it and then a bunch of wrestlers behind it.

He pulled on Chris's sleeve and whined, making noises as he pointed towards the curtain. "That's to the stage, kid," Chris explained, but he didn't know what that meant. He wanted to see what was beyond it, what was so great back there, he could hear the cheers of the crowd, how loud it was, the music and everything, he vaguely could recall seeing people inside of something, running around and hitting each other, but it was vague. It sounded like fun beyond that curtain and so he stared at it intently, his eyes narrowed, looking very much like Chris.

"What's he doing?" Stephanie asked Chris during a commercial break as they stared at their son.

"Pooping?" Chris said, knowing that look of concentration on Sawyer's face.

Stephanie laughed, "Great, but he's staring at the curtain to the stage."

"Kid, what are you doing" Chris asked his son. Sawyer looked up at him confusedly.

"Go," he said, pointing at the curtain again.

"No, you can't go."

Stephanie turned to the screen in time to see another video for what she thought was Cyber Sunday, "I don't get my father's promotion of Cyber Sunday, I know it's still a little early to be promoting it, but I don't get it, savior self, is that the tagline, like saving yourself, every man for himself?"

"No clue," Chris said, looking at his wife who seemed to be thinking it out.

"I mean, I _guess_ I get the whole cyber thing going on, that makes sense to me, I'm just not sure where he's going with this, maybe I should talk him, you'd think that he'd at least show the name of the show or something," she said, glancing at Chris, "what's your take on this?"

"I think it's kind of cool, makes you think, you know, gets you hyped up for the show."

"Yeah, I guess I can see that," she said. "It's very cyber-y, if you know what I mean."

"Oh yeah, I get your meaning, all the computer junk, like oh, you get to pick out which matches and stuff like that," he said evasively.

"Yeah," she said. "The shows been pretty cut and dry tonight, don't you think? If things keep going like this, we might not even need to stay for the main event since everything should be covered by then."

"Yeah," Chris said, noticing that Sawyer was starting to slow down a little. "He's getting tired, I'm going to see if he wants to go to bed."

"Good idea," she said. "I'll sit here and be monotonously working."

"Sounds like a plan," he said.

Of course, things almost never work out the way you planned them. She stayed for the main event, maybe it was something that compelled her to stay, or maybe it was her job so she stayed regardless. She was glad she did as she saw John Cena coming back in obvious pain. She threw off her headphones and went over to where he was now sitting backstage, not even wanting to move anymore.

"What happened?"

"Botched move," John managed to wince.

"Damn it," she muttered, looking at the trainers, "what does it look like?"

"Well, it's hard to tell right now," the trainer said. "At the worst, it's a tear."

"Oh God," Stephanie said, running her hands through her hair. "How sure are you?"

"Well, I can't tell right away, not without the proper equipment," the trainer said, pulling her away from Cena, "but from the way he's favoring it and the way he's moving his arm and where the pain is emanating from, it looks like this is going to be the case.

She looked down, "Thanks."

"Sorry, Ms. McMahon."

"It's fine, thanks."

She walked numbly back to her office, already thinking about what was going to happen. Options were running through her mind as a fast pace. If the trainer was right, then John would be out for Sunday. He was champion, how could he be out for Sunday! Of all the time s to get an injury, there was no right time of course, but right before a title defense? This was horrible news. She walked inside the office only to see Chris on the computer looking intently at something.

"Oh, hey, baby," he said, giving her smile, but it soon dropped from his face as he looked at his wife. "What's wrong?"

"John's injured, the trainer told me privately that it could be a torn muscle, just from the where the pain is, and if that's the case then we're screwed. We'll have to strip the title from him and then what?"

"Seriously, I didn't even see."

"Botched move," she said, sitting down heavily in his lap. He pulled her close against him. "I thought I had the week all planned out. I had everyday scheduled accordingly, and now this happens. What match are we going to do, Chris? What can we slap together in less than a week that would make people want to _see_ this show?"

Well, he knew, but he didn't say anything, "We'll figure it out, and don't be so hasty, he may just be…I don't know, sore, or he pulled something, that's a possibility right, right after you pull something it hurts like a bitch."

"That's true," she said, lightening up a little as she played with the ends of Chris's hair absently. "It could be something that could be non-surgery, non-time-off-taking, I mean, best case scenario. I just don't know what we'll do if he can't go. What do we do? Who faces Randy? And it was a Last Man Standing Match, and those are usually huge, remember yours?"

"Bitterly," he said, frowning. "I had that match, I was so close, he got up two seconds before I did."

"Chris, not the time," she said, leaning her chin on his head. "I don't know who we'll insert, Hunter, do we put Hunter in there because he's the biggest draw? I'm _not_, and I repeat, _not_ begging Shawn Michaels to come back, that's out of the question, that jackass can stay gone for all I care."

"So now you're returning his hatred of you?"

"Yes," she said, then laughed a little, "sorry, I'm just upset. I mean, John is our biggest draw, he's the big name besides Hunter and he's never been injured this badly while champion. This hasn't happened in a really long time, not since I can remember. I guess we can put in Hunter…I guess, maybe…I mean, the title, if he can't go, has to be stripped, because a tear is a long recovery. Where do you think Edge is in his recovery? Lashley's still out, right?"

"Right," Chris said, "Edge was looking to come back next month judging from what he told me when I talked to him about a week ago, and his doctor confirmed that time schedule that he was on."

"Well, maybe we can push that up," she said, tapping her chin.

Chris was a little insulted, just a little bit, that Stephanie hadn't even made mention of his name. It used to be that if there was the slightest opening at any point in any show, Stephanie would be clamoring for him to come back. She'd be begging him. She wasn't begging him now. How ironic that she could care less about him now that he was seemingly on the verge of coming back. He cleared his throat a little, maybe thinking that would help her notice.

"What's wrong with you?" she asked.

"Nothing," he said. "If we have to, we can just make it a triple threat or something, absorb Randy into another match."

"That's great!" she said, kissing his temple.

"Or we'll find someone to insert."

"Oh yeah, _find_ someone, from where, off the street?" she said sarcastically.

"I don't know, you never know who might turn up."

"I told you, I'm not begging Shawn for anything," she joked.

"Yeah, not him."

"Then who? Who isn't on the card?" she said.

"I don't know, we'll figure it out, right, we're a team."

"Yeah, we're a team," she said, sighing and hugging him even closer. "I just don't know what we're going to do."

"I'm sure it'll come to one of us."


	154. Surprising, October 8, 2007

"So you obviously…"

"Obviously…" Chris inquired, his voice hitching at the end as he looked to Stephanie. She kind of shrugged her shoulders like he should know what she was talking about, or referring to. "Um, you're going to have to give me more than that, baby, because I'm not exactly sure what you're getting at here."

"Last night…"

"Was No Mercy and the show went pretty well I'd say, for a show that we kind of had to throw together, and that your father kind of controlled in more ways than one," Chris said, thinking back to how Vince had made Vince keep defending the title until he lost it. "He got what he wanted though."

"Unfortunately, he wouldn't keep from gloating about it all through breakfast," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes, "I still hate you for getting out of that, how _did_ you get out of that anyways?"

"I just told your dad that I had something that I needed to do in regards to the Tampa wrestling facility, and he let me go, baby, you know that you have to have like a Rolodex of excuses when it comes to your father, I'm surprised in your 31 years of experience with him, you didn't figure this out."

"Well, sorry, I'm just not prepared," she told him, "but that's not what this is about."

"Oh, well, you mentioned last night, so I kind of figured that you were referring to how the show turned out since usually that's in your realm of expertise. I do have to hand it to Hunter for seizing the opportunity to challenge Randy, I probably would've done the same thing."

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about," she said.

Chris's eyes widened and if he hadn't been looking down, he was sure that Stephanie would've noticed. Did she know that Vince had actually approached him to come back at No Mercy? He had declined because he wasn't in ring shape yet, not that he couldn't have gone out there and kicked ass, he just wasn't in the kind of shape that he wanted to be in. He had been secretly training while at home in Florida, to Stephanie's ignorance of course. He just said that Vince had told him to keep a close eye on the talent down there, Vince had corroborated Chris's story after Chris had informed him of what was up.

But maybe Stephanie knew, maybe someone had let it slip, and if he found out who that was, Chris was going to personally see to it they never spilled any secret again. He gulped a little and looked up at his wife, "You…did?"

"Yeah," she said. "Did you hear those chants out there for you? When my dad was talking about the belt and everything and who should get it and Randy, did you hear them chanting 'Y2J'? They were so loud, Chris, like _so_ loud."

"Oh," he chuckled, "yeah, I heard them."

"I was shocked, I wanted to come find you but I had work to do and it slipped my mind with everything else that went on, but Chris, they wanted _you_ to come back, I couldn't believe it, it was so out of the blue, wasn't it?"

Chris had to smile at that. He was doing a really good job at keeping Stephanie from finding out that he may come back. She was busy with work and Sawyer so that was also a help. He cheered himself a little at getting Stephanie pregnant so she'd have the ultimate distraction in a rambunctious seventeen-month-old son, whose whereabouts were a little unknown right now since the little boy in question was with Jeff Hardy. Yes, Jeff Hardy, but they couldn't find anyone else to watch him and Sawyer had insisted on running away at every opportunity and they needed to get things done.

"Yeah," he said, shrugging his shoulders.

"I mean, do they think you're actually coming back?" she asked. "Are people talking about that?"

"No clue," Chris said.

"I want to check, let me see my laptop," she said, trying to grab it from where Chris had been looking at it. He pulled it away from her, "Chris, what is your problem, give me my laptop?"

"I'm doing stuff."

"No, you're not, you weren't even looking at it for like ten minutes, you were just sitting there staring off into space."

"I was not staring off into space, I was staring at you actually," he said. "I mean, you were working and looking cute in your pantsuit, and I was staring at you, but I actually do have stuff to do."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah."

"What stuff?" she asked as she folded her arms in front of her. "If you have _so_ much stuff that you need to commandeer my laptop, tell me what it is that you have to do, I mean, I'm your wife, I do like to know what my husband is up to every now and then."

"Just business stuff."

"Oh, business stuff," she chuckled sarcastically, "well then, yes, of course, by all means, take it, you were _so_ clear with your answer and everything just go ahead and take it."

"Stephanie," he said slowly, "not everything has to be a fight, you know?"

"I know," she sulked. "I just wanted to see if people were talking about it. It made me excited. Chris, are you thinking about coming back?"

Chris looked at her a moment and thought about telling her, but backed off that idea. He just couldn't do it. He wanted to make it a surprise for her; he wanted to see her face when he walked backstage for the first time in two years, that was all he wanted, and it wasn't too much to ask. A lot of things in his life with Stephanie had been forced, not of his choice. He hadn't gotten to propose the way he wanted to, they hadn't had Sawyer on the terms that they wanted, he hadn't gotten her, her job back the way he wanted to. This one time, he just wanted it his way.

So what he was about to do was probably going to be construed as mean and even heinous, but he had to throw Stephanie off the scent. If it meant he had to stoop pretty low to do so, well, he was willing to go that low in order to carry out this plan. If just one time he could have it his way, just one time.

"Actually," Chris started, "there _is _something that I wanted to talk to you about. It's kind of serious."

"Oh?" Stephanie asked curiously, tilting her head a little bit. "What would that be?"

"I've been talking with TNA," he told her slowly. That was actually the truth…somewhat. They had been making offers and he had been declining said offers, citing the fact that it was really a conflict of interests with him owning part of WWE plus being married into the McMahon family. Still they pursued and pursued, so it wasn't like it was an entire lie.

"What?" she asked, seriously dumbfounded.

"Like I said, I've been talking with them, and well, I think that I might sign with them. I know that we discussed this, and you said that whatever I decided was fine, and I think this might be what I want to do."

Stephanie swallowed, she wasn't sure she was capable of any other function at the moment. "You…are going to sign with them?"

"At my age--"

"Chris, you're 36!" Stephanie exclaimed, "You're hardly old."

"I'm going to be 37 in a month," he pointed out, "that's not exactly a young wrestler, Steph, I'm not getting any younger, you know, and I've been out of the ring for so long."

"That was your choice," she told him, "that was only your choice, and 37? Hunter is older than you and he still wrestles every week."

"Yeah, well, Hunter is not married with a kid," Chris said. "I like spending time with my son and being able to keep up with him and not worry so much about wrestling, I like that, Steph, do you get that?"

"Yes," she told him, "but I just don't get why you would come back for the enemy, I mean, Chris, you're already here…does this mean that you're giving up your job as a talent scout? Are you going to give that position up?"

"Well, yeah, I guess," he said, "Steph, I think this is the right decision for me."

"No, I don't support this," she said.

"You said you would support me with whatever I chose to do," Chris said, narrowing his eyes at her, "that's what you told me, you told me that whatever I wanted, you would support."

"Well I _lied_!" Stephanie said, pushing herself out of her seat. "I lied, lied, lied! Hello, I'm a McMahon, we lie, and we're not ashamed to admit that, we lie and I lied. You think I would want you over there? No, of course not! You belong here, with me, with your _son_, that's where you belong, not over there, not with them, with me!"

"Stephanie," Chris said, standing up. This was definitely not going the way that he wanted it to go, but at least he knew now what Stephanie's position would be if he were to actually sign with another company, he wasn't sure if he particularly cared for it. "I thought--"

"Well you thought wrong, buddy," she said, poking him in the chest. "I've been patient, Chris, I've been _so_ patient with you, I've waited and I've not said one word about you coming back in a long time. I think it though, I think it every day, I think it with every show that we go through, I think to myself, 'Chris would be great right here,' or, 'I wish Chris could be in the title hunt,' but I've kept it to myself and now you're stabbing me in the back like this?"

She turned away from him then, hurt and stung that after supporting him for so long after heeding his wishes, he would choose to spurn that and go his own way. It wasn't so much what he was choosing to do, okay, so that was part it, but the larger part of it was the fact that he didn't discuss this thoroughly with her and he didn't see that in her silence she was supporting him, and hoping and wishing for his return. She really wanted to see him out there, to hear his music.

Chris could tell she was on the verge of tears. Well, this was just about the lowest he could ever feel. He thought about pulling her towards him and hugging her from behind and telling her that he was going to come back and it wasn't going to be for TNA, it was going to be for her show and he was going to be here all the time and she was going to be so surprised when he walked out there. But could he spoil everything like that? He didn't want her to be upset though, that was the last thing he wanted.

"Stephy, baby," he whispered.

"Don't Stephy me," she hissed, still turned away from him. She stood up straighter and squared her shoulders, and she was bracing herself, he could tell. She turned to him, face ice cold, "Fine, do what you have to do, go where you have to go."

"Stephanie!" Chris said as she started to leave, "baby, come on."

"I have work to do," she said in a clipped tone as she walked out of the room. He groaned and went after her, but before he could get to her a harried looking Jeff Hardy walked over with Sawyer in his arms, squirming around.

"Chris, you need to take him. Dude, this kid is like crazy, he's always all over the place, how the hell do you keep up with him?" Jeff asked as he handed over Sawyer to Chris. Chris took the little boy, who smiled at his Daddy and then looked at the ground.

"Down!" Sawyer exclaimed.

"No," Chris told him sternly, causing Sawyer to frown. "Don't be mad at me either, you. You're not going down so you'll just have to stay here with me. So he gave you trouble?"

"Trouble? That's putting it lightly," Jeff said, running a hand through his dyed hair, "I think that if my hair wasn't dyed, he would've given me gray hairs."

Chris laughed, "Yeah, you get used to it though."

"I don't know, man, that's pretty hard to get used to," he said, jerking a thumb at Sawyer.

"Thanks for watching him anyways."

"No problem, just…next time, see if anyone else will take him," Jeff joked.

"Yeah, I'll try, once word gets out that he's a troublemaker, I think that I'm going to have a hard time finding anyone that's going to want to spend time with him," Chris said as Jeff said his goodbyes and walked away. "Why do you insist on running everywhere and driving people crazy?"

"No," Sawyer shrugged, blowing a raspberry on Chris's cheek.

"God, you're gross," Chris said. "Maybe if we go see Mommy she won't be so pissed off at me…she's not pissed off at you, but she is at me, so let's go see if we can find her, shall we?"

Stephanie had just sat down at her station, rubbing her temples. She knew that she had handled the situation with Chris badly, but she didn't know how else to act. What do you say when your husband is a downright traitor? She couldn't believe his bogus motives. She hated his decision and she had every right to hate his decision and subsequently hate him for making such a stupid decision.

"Stephanie!"

She groaned and looked up, "Hunter, now is _not_ the time, okay?"

"What the hell? No, Stephanie it _is_ the time, I want my damn rematch tonight."

"You know that you're supposed to go into Cyber Sunday."

"I don't give a rat's ass about Cyber Sunday, I want it tonight."

"Can you just bring it up with my dad?" she asked, still rubbing her temples, "I am really not in the mood to hear about your whining right now. Look, I know last night was pretty unfair, and I know that you're angry about this, but I'm sorry, it's just…look, take it up with my dad."

"Your dad won't give me what I want."

"Well he's in charge, he decides things, I'm just here."

"Okay, this isn't you," Hunter said. "No way would you concede power to anyone, even your father, there's something wrong, what's wrong?"

"I don't feel like talking about it."

Hunter calmed down from his earlier anger. She knew his disdain for Vince McMahon and she would never send him to the wolves if she didn't have to. Telling her to take it up with her father was just one of the warning signs. He sat down next to her and gazed at her. She seemed upset, his earlier anger had clouded that fact from him. He almost reached out to touch her shoulder, but then didn't, not wanting to cross any borders here.

"You can tell me about it, that might make you feel better."

"Or it might make me feel worse."

"I doubt that."

"Well…it's like this," she sighed and couldn't continue, the words choking in her throat and she tried to swallow it down, this ever-growing lump, but it didn't seem to be working in the moment.

"Take your time," he told her. "I don't have anywhere to be right now, I don't even think I have a match, which just makes a rematch tonight make more sense. I beat Randy's ass once last night, and then had to defend my belt twice more, he got the better of me only because I was dead tired, he won't get me again tonight."

"Well, my dad will probably grant it to you so that he doesn't have you in the main event at Cyber Sunday," Stephanie told him.

"Okay, so then tell me, what's wrong with you?" he said gently, or as gently as Hunter could, which still kind of came off as brutish and harsh.

"Well, it…it's about Chris," she finally muttered.

"Did you guys have a fight?" he asked.

"Of sorts," she said. "I mean, it was a fight, it just didn't feel like a fight, it was very…one-sided, I was angry with him, we weren't angry with each other."

"What'd he do this time?" Hunter asked. "Did he say something stupid? He says a lot of stupid things, you shouldn't listen to him, like he'll tell you that I'm not a great wrestler and I don't deserve the belt for a 12th time, but that stuff, that's just crap right there, definitely don't listen to that spew."

"That's so not it," she told him. "He told me, God it pains me even to say it…"

"Steph, he didn't…he didn't cheat on you, did he?" Hunter said, all ready to go find Chris and kick his ass for hurting Stephanie like this. But he couldn't believe that Chris, of all people, would cheat on Stephanie. He didn't think that Chris would be the kind of person who would do that to his wife.

"No," she scoffed. "If I know anything it's that Chris wouldn't do _that_ to me."

"Okay, good, so whatever it is, in comparison, it has to be less than cheating on you."

"Well, technically, yes, but it still feels like a betrayal."

"Oh, so…what is it?" Hunter asked, still confused as to why she was so upset. It didn't sound like Chris had done anything particularly bad.

"He said he wanted to sign with TNA," Stephanie choked out, and the words were like bile in her mouth. She ducked her head down in embarrassment that she couldn't even get her husband to come back on her show. He had to defect.

Hunter was confused. There was no way that Chris was going to TNA. The videos were about him, that was straight from Chris's mouth. Chris had told him point blank that it was either coming back to the WWE or be a suit for…the WWE. None of those options mentioned those other three initials. He wanted to keep it a surprise for Steph, why would he…oh, it came to Hunter then. This was Chris's way of keeping Stephanie off the trail of him coming back. Well, that was sneaky.

"Oh."

"Oh?"

"Well, I mean, that's not so bad, right?"

"Hunter, do you get what I'm saying?"

"Yeah, I get it, but maybe…maybe you could persuade him not to go, I mean, you're his wife, and you look great naked so you could probably persuade him pretty easily."

"Don't picture me naked," she told him, shaking her head. "And you're right, not about having sex with him to get what I want, but persuading him not to go over there. I just…I really want him back you know. I want Sawyer to see that his father is the best wrestler ever."

"Present company excluded, right?" Hunter added cockily.

"No, present company included," she told him. "I think Chris is the best."

"Only because he's your husband, right? I mean, it's a bias."

"No, I think he's great," Stephanie said, "but I can use those wiles to get him to stay, even if it is as a suit. Although…I just want him to come back, one time, just to show our son how great he was. Sawyer never got to experience that and I regret it."

"You would've wanted to get pregnant earlier so he could see?"

"No," Stephanie said. "But…whatever, thanks for the advice."

"No problem, and if you could…oh, I don't know, get me a rematch tonight."

"Get out of here, Hunter."

"Sorry, sorry," he said as he got up and started to walk back to his dressing room to chill for a little while until he wanted to make his presence known. He saw that Vince had time at the top of the show so he would have to go out then if he wanted to speak directly to Vince. He saw Sawyer and Chris up ahead and nodded to them. "You know, throwing the trail of your impending comeback is all well and good, but Steph is honestly upset."

"I know," Chris said, shifting Sawyer in his arms. "I'm going to tell her it was a joke."

"I figured it out once she told me what was bothering her," Hunter said. "After what you said to me last week, I figured that this had to be some sort of plan of yours."

"You know me."

"Oh hey, I wanted to help you out."

"Me?"

"Well, not you specifically, but I know that Stephanie has too much pride and Vince would never go for it, but if you haven't noticed, the roster is kind of…depleted," Hunter said. "And you haven't gotten your ass back yet."

"Hey, quiet down," he said, looking around. "And I should've come back to kick your ass last night."

"Yeah, right…no, wait, if you had gotten me after Umaga, maybe I'd give you a chance."

"If Orton could beat you up, I could've beaten you up twice," Chris told him.

"You wish, you couldn't get me on your best day."

"My worst day is your _best_ day," Chris countered.

"Pfft, I'd like to see that, anyways, I got Shawn to come back, he's here tonight and looking for some revenge on Orton."

"Shawn is _here_."

"Yeah, he's in my dressing room," Hunter said. "It took a lot of coercion, but he's here and he's back, I don't know for how long, but he's definitely back. So when you get your ass over to your wife and apologize, you can tell her that Shawn is here."

"She hates him."

"I know, which is why I took it upon myself to ask him because I knew she never would in a million years. She's stubborn."

"He hates her too."

"I know, whatever," he dismissed, rolling his eyes.

"Well, he hates her because she drugged him, but it's because he hit on her and she ignored them, lucky for the both of us."

"Yeah, so the story goes, they were like that even when we were married. She's never been innocent, she just hides it well," Hunter said. "But I figured that you guys could use all the help you could get and Stephanie wasn't going to beg Shawn to come back."

"I forget that you know her."

"Yeah, well, I'm just saying."

"I'll tell her."

"She probably won't be too happy, not as happy as when you come back though."

"Yeah, we'll see, she might be so pissed off at me by then she'll not even care, which would suck so much because I really want her to be surprised about it," Chris said, smiling hopefully.

"Good luck with that," Hunter said, tapping his shoulder. "See you later, tough guy, you keep your parents in line okay, because if you don't do it, nobody is."

"'Kay," Sawyer said as he smiled at Hunter. "Down!"

"Okay, down, I'll put you down," Chris said as he set Sawyer down on the ground. The moment his feet hit the concrete floor, he was off and running. Chris shook his fists in the air and walked quickly after Sawyer, who was dodging people left and right, the adults swerving to miss the little boy who was very much someone they watched out for considering whose son he was, and whose grandson he was.

Sawyer kept getting lost and hitting exits and dead-ends before he looked back to Chris, "Mama?"

"Okay, you want to go see Mama, follow me," Chris said as they walked to her station which was actually only a couple of turns away.

"Mama!" Sawyer exclaimed as he ran happily to Stephanie, who scooped him up in her arms.

"Hey, baby boy, I missed you so much," she said, repeatedly kissing his small face as he giggled madly, loving the attention he was getting and trying to hug his mother while simultaneously trying to get away from her barrage of kisses.

"Do I get one of those?" Chris asked lightly.

"No," she told him in no uncertain terms.

"Steph, about earlier…"

"Chris, if you feel that's what you need to do, whatever, you know, disregard me and your family and my family, whatever _you_ want to do," and he would've thought she was genuine had it not been for the obvious edge to her voice.

"I was joking, baby, I wasn't going to go to the other show," Chris said. "I just wanted to see your reaction and you left before I could even say that it was a joke."

He wanted to throw Stephanie off the trail, sure, keep her distracted, make her think things were something else, but he conceded that this was too far. He didn't want to honestly hurt Stephanie's feelings in all of this and he felt like that was what he was doing. He wanted it to be a surprise, but not at the expense of her feeling hurt for however long it took him to come back. He wasn't going to tell her outright that he was coming back, but she didn't need to be hurt thinking that he was considering the complete opposite of coming back to the WWE.

"That was your idea of a joke!"

"Uh…yeah."

"You're such a jerk," she told him. She was about to say more, go on a tirade, but Chris leaned forward and captured her lips in a kiss, effectively quieting her down. She sighed against his lips, pulling him closer by the back of his neck. He playfully teased her with his tongue and she moaned a little at the intimate contact. "Don't joke like that."

"Sorry, baby," he told her, "I'm happy being backstage."

"I know," and she did know, even though her voice still sounded a little sad that he was so content with what he was doing.

"But speaking of things and backstage, Hunter kind of did something," Chris said.

"What? What did he do now? Did he attack my father?"

"No, he brought Shawn back."

"Wait, Shawn is…back? He's here?"

"Yeah, he's here and looking for revenge on Randy."

"Oh heaven help us all."

* * *

"Hey you," Tiffany said as she came downstairs.

"Did you measure the wall, will your desk and everything fit in there?" Christian asked as he watched Tiffany descend the stairs, the measuring tape still in her hand along with a notebook and a pencil for writing everything down.

"Yeah, it does, but before that, can we talk?"

"Always," Christian said, sitting down on the couch and patting the spot next to her, "what's on your mind?"

"Well, as I was doing the measurements of the room, I saw a pile of…well, for lack of a better word, belongings, female belongings to who I'm going to assume is Trish," Tiffany said, thinking of the pile of clothes and trinkets that were decidedly female, and knowing that Trish was the only woman who had ever lived with Christian she figured the belongings had to be Trish's.

"Oh, I'm sorry, that's just the pile of stuff I was going to send back to her, you know, in the mail, not seeing her," Christian said quickly.

"No, it's not that I want to talk about," she reassured him. "It's just…okay, so I'm moving in this Friday, right?"

"You are," he said with a smile.

"And I'm happy about that, crazy about the idea," she said firmly. "But Trish is the only other woman that you've ever lived with, and I want to make sure, I want to know for sure that this is what you want. Moving in together is a lot of together time, and it's very committed. I want to know before I do move down here, before I can't back out, that you want this."

"I'm sure," he told her.

"You loved Trish, do you still love her?"

He wasn't going to lie to her, "Yes, I do. Part of me always will, that's just the truth of the matter."

"Okay, I understand and accept that, as long as this loving her is not something that is here in your right now, you're not _in_ love with her, are you?"

It was a loaded question and he didn't know the answer to that. Even now, he figured that he and Trish would have the epic romance, the one that would end happily someday, but there were about a million bumps on the way to that perfect forever. Sometimes there's just a once-in-a-lifetime person but you have to go through multiple rings of fire just to get to that person.

But he wasn't in love with her right this moment, so he answered, "No, I'm not."

"Good, I just want to make sure, Christian, you understand, right? If you love her, then by all means, please, go to her, because I don't want to be the one that gets the short end of the stick when it could've been avoided."

"I don't love you less than I loved her if that's what you're worried about." Rather it was a different kind of love. This felt more adult while Trish…him and Trish felt like fire, getting doused by water sometimes, but the embers still burning until the flames would shoot out again. What he had with Tiffany was adult and mature and very, very nice in its own way. He wondered if this is what married couples had, this adult kind of love for each other.

"Maybe a little," she admitted. "I just don't want to move in only to have you find that you love Trish. I'd rather you get it out now and tell me now when I won't lose everything I've worked hard for. I'm not trying to be mean, am I coming off as bitchy?"

"No, you're coming off as honest," he told her. He sighed, "I don't know how to convince you."

"It's not about convincing, really, I trust you. I just don't want to be caught in the crossfire if this thing blows up. I know you still think about her, Christian, I'm not stupid, I know that you wonder sometimes, and I'm okay with that, I do the same thing with my exes, you just wonder, you always wonder, but this thing here," she said, gesturing between the both of them. "This is what I have and it's pretty damn good, and I love it…and I love you."

"I love you too," he told her sincerely, running his fingers through her hair.

"I just want this to work, Christian."

"I want that too, so bad, I don't want to mess up something that's been going so great."

"Please don't measure me up to Trish when I move in."

"I'd never do that."

"I just don't think I'd compare to her in your mind," Tiffany admitted, and it was what she thought. She knew she was going up against a specter in Trish and she didn't know if she could possibly compete with that. She didn't want to know because she'd probably lose.

"You don't have to compare," he told her. "I love you, and I'm with you, and when you move in, it'll be about _us_ not about what happened with me in the past, I can promise you that."

"I'll take that promise."

"Good, we'll be fine, Tiff, I know it."

But would they really?


	155. Should We Get Ready? October 22, 2007

A/N: So a couple of weeks ago, my grandmother died. It wasn't unexpected, but still, it was really difficult because she had a big hand in raising me and she meant a great deal to me. Since she died, I haven't had the heart to really write anything of substance. I really just felt kind of lost and my writing just didn't appeal to me at all. It's starting to get better now, thankfully, and my writing is starting to get back on track.

This chapter, and I use the term loosely, really doesn't have to do much with anything. It's just me trying to get back into the groove of writing at all. This takes place last week, and this week's chapter will just be tacked on to next week's chapter. Hopefully by then, life will settle down and my writing won't suffer. Anyways, hope you enjoy. :)

* * *

"Hey, so do you mind if I don't really work tonight?"

"What do you mean, not work tonight?" Stephanie asked, her eyebrow arched. "You know it's Monday, Chris, you know that it's the day in which we work the hardest, and the day in which all the other days we work culminate. Why must we go over this all the time when you don't want to work?"

"Oh, is that what it was?" he said, slapping his forehead, "Well, you learn something new everyday, don't you?"

"Shh," she said, pointing over to the couch, "He just went down for his nap and I don't want you to wake him, especially because he's been particularly annoying today."

"Aww, you hate him," Chris said, looking over at their son who was lying on a blanket on the black leather couch in their office with another blanket covering him, his hands tucked neatly under his head on the pillow, his mouth slightly open and a little line of drool peeking out. His blond hair was rumpled and falling over his eyes. He was so sweet-looking he'd give you a toothache.

"Well…yes, today anyways," she said, glancing around Chris to where Sawyer was lying. She gave a small smile just staring at her little boy. Then she turned to Chris, "Okay, so since I'm the boss and your wife, as both, I'd like to know why you want to get out of work tonight."

"I was thinking about hitting a strip club, getting a lap dance, you know, the usual Monday night, sex, drugs, and rock and roll," he said, giving her the little devil horns. She scoffed and rolled her eyes and he took her in his arms against her will, pressing their lower bodies together.

"For one, the only sex you're allowed to have is with me," she told him.

"Yes ma'am," he saluted with his right hand. "I will follow that order to the fullest, trust me."

"Hold it down, horn dog," she told him. "I swear to God, you have sex more on your mind than you have anything else. I really think that all day long you just walk around picturing me naked and dancing around in your brain." She tapped him on the forehead amusingly.

He smirked, "Yeah, that sounds about right, oh, there you are on a bed giving a nice, little display, oh, that right there, that's a Kodak moment." Stephanie slapped him on the shoulder and he laughed and kissed her forehead. "So what if I do picture you like that all day long, you should only be worried when you're not the naked girl in my head, I've seen plenty of naked girls, but you continually come out on top, and speaking of being on top..."

"Why is it that sometimes I feel like you're just going to break a promo out on me?" she asked, giving him her own smirk. "Oh, and second of all, drugs, I don't think so. Because if you brought drugs into the same house as my son, it won't be your house anymore."

"You drive a hard bargain, woman," Chris said, pulling her ever closer if that was possible. "And rock and roll, are you going to go all Footloose on me, going to take away dancing and rock and roll music from me and make me want to rebel."

"No, you can keep the rock and roll," she said, kissing his chin. "So tell me now why you really don't want to work tonight."

"Well, I was talking to my dad and--"

"How are they, I haven't talked to them lately, I should send them pictures of Sawyer, don't you think? I know they'd want to see how big he is. Maybe we should go visit them or something," Stephanie pondered aloud.

"That's a really sweet thing to do but will you let me finish my story before everything gets shot to hell and we're standing here eight hours from now still having this conversation."

"It's only two in the afternoon, we have plenty of time to just talk," she said, knowing that it would frustrate him if he couldn't say his piece because Stephanie kept interrupting with completely unrelated or stupid topics. "So, we should go see your parents."

"You are so annoying," he said, "anyways, my dad ran into a couple of guys I knew from Winnipeg, old friends, haven't seen them in a really long time. They went to high school with me and then college with me, and then we kind of lost touch when I decided to leave home and become a wrestler."

"Uh huh," she nodded, prodding him to continue his story.

"Well, I thought it would be cool to see them again, and catch up. They came to some of my earlier matches, so they were some true friends because I wasn't very good back then," he said with a chuckle. "But they work together at some advertising firm and they incidentally had a business trip to St. Louis, which I know is a kind of long drive, considering. Still, they're driving all the way up to see me and I figured I should be let out of work just this once to show them around, catch up."

"Are they wrestling fans?"

"No, I don't think so," Chris said, "My dad said they had said they hadn't watched wrestling since they lost touch with me, it was just the kind of baggage that came along with me. If you wanted to be my friend you had to follow my wrestling career."

"Oh, okay," she nodded. "Well, I don't see the problem with letting you shirk your responsibilities tonight, I can handle everything. What are you going to do with your friends?"

"I was just thinking hanging out, then maybe we'd go to a bar or something, just grab a couple and shoot the breeze about things. I figure they'll have some entertaining stories of their lives in advertising," Chris was being sarcastic and she laughed. "Maybe we'll go out to dinner, you wanna come?"

"I don't want to step on your time with your friends. Especially if you haven't seen them in a long time and they're driving a long way to come see you," she told him. "So you go out, you have fun and I'll take care of the monster, we'll be fine."

"Are you sure, because this is a very tricky area right here, if I didn't ask you, you'd definitely be telling me that I should've asked you, I don't want to get in trouble," he pouted and she kissed his chin.

"You're not going to get in trouble with me, maybe with your other wife, I don't know, I haven't talked to her yet, besides, it'll give me time to catch up on some paperwork that I want to do for Cyber Sunday," she told him as he hugged her closer to him. "You distract me when you hover."

"I never hover," he protested and she looked at him pointedly, "Okay, sometimes I hover, but I don't have anything to do."

"Uh, yes you do, I forgot to say that my dad wanted to meet with you very briefly because of some issue with Cyber Sunday and traveling and making sure that everyone was there," Stephanie said, trying to wrack her brain for what her father had said. He had made the mistake of calling while she was trying to bathe Sawyer. "Whatever it was, it was weird, and didn't sound in your area."

"Oh," Chris said, scratching his chin. "Yeah, well, I'll definitely go see him about that."

"When are your friends going to be coming down?"

"Not until later, do you know if your dad is here?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, he's here, are you going to go see him now?"

"Yeah, I'm going to see him now," he said, giving her another kiss. "I'll see you in a bit."

"Great," she said, going over to her desk to look over some paperwork. Chris left hastily and hauled himself down the hall to Vince's office. He knocked on the door loudly and waited for the person on the other side.

"Come in!" Vince's booming voice came across loud and clear.

"Hey, Vince," Chris said. "You wanted to see me."

"Yeah, have a seat." Chris took that seat and awaited what his father-in-law had to say. "So…we've been doing these promos for a few weeks now, and we haven't explicitly said anything to anyone about them."

"That's right," Chris said.

"Because you didn't know if you were going to come back or not, I'm assuming by now, seeing as how Cyber Sunday is next week, that you cannot keep up the charade for much longer if you wanted to play these off as just being for Cyber Sunday. So have you decided for sure that you are or aren't coming back?"

Chris licked his bottom lip a little bit, "I'm coming back, Vince."

Vince's curious look turned into an all-out grin, "I was hoping you'd say that."

"I'm sure you would Vince."

"So do you want to come back at Cyber Sunday then? It's a Pay-Per-View, a big show, I think that we can fit you in somewhere," Vince started and Chris could almost see the wheels turning in his head. Chris knew that the more he let Vince talk the more outlandish things were going to get.

"And trust me, Vince, I'd love to come back Cyber Sunday, really, but I've got plans."

"You've got plans? Like plans with Stephanie because she's going to be here and--"

"I'm well aware of where my wife is going to be," Chris said. "I've got a book signing in North Carolina, so I'm going to be there, Steph will be here as usual and I'm not sure where Sawyer will be, he'll probably jet off to New York or something, take in the sights."

"So you can't be here this Sunday?"

"I don't think I can make it, and really, Vince, what would you have me do there? Interrupt what match, you don't even know what the matches are to begin with," Chris pointed out. "Besides, all the matches have gimmicks, I'll just come back on Monday, I scheduled the next book signing in Philly where the show is, there's only so many days I can go without being around Steph."

"So next Monday then?"

"Yeah, I guess next Monday would work," he said, and already, the adrenaline was starting to pump through his veins; it would reach its fever pitch next week, but right now, it was just in its budding stages.

"And we could have you--"

"Vince, I appreciate the ideas," Chris said, though he really didn't, "but if I'm coming back, I'm doing it on my terms."

"Are you saying that you don't want to listen to me?" Vince asked, a slight tinge of incredulity in his voice.

"Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying, if I've learned anything in the past two years it's exactly the place that I hold in this company, and that you've really got nothing over me, Vince, not that I use that power all the time, but remember when I first signed and tried to get veto power?"

"Yes."

"Well, I have that now, and I like it," Chris said jokingly. "I do need a new contract though, don't I? For legal and everything."

"I'll draw one up for you and you can sign it next Monday, what are you going to tell Stephanie about this?"

"I'm going to tell her it's Bobby Lashley that's coming back. I figured that was the safe choice since he hasn't officially said when he's going to be coming back. I can just tell Stephanie that it's hype for his return, and she'll be none the wiser."

"How in the hell hasn't she figured this out?" Vince asked with a chuckle. "From what I hear, people are clamoring for you."

"Well, she's been busy. She's working, like usual, she takes care of Sawyer, and she decided that she wanted to read my book after all," he beamed, "so that takes up her free time. Besides, she really doesn't like going to those types of sites because she's afraid that they'll talk about Sawyer, and she doesn't want to read that, but they never do. I'm not telling her that though because I'm keeping this a surprise."

"I'm sure she'll love the sentiment."

"She better, I've put a ton of work into keeping this from her."

--

"Hey, Mike, Alan!" Chris called out as he stood in the parking lot. Two men around Chris's age walked over. They were dressed similarly, polos and khaki pants. Contrast that to Chris who was in a pair of jeans and a Beatles t-shirt. The three men met in the middle and Chris gave the both of them some manly hugs. "Wow, it's been too long."

"Yeah, it has," Mike said. "I can't believe you're still doing this."

"Well, I'm not actually wrestling right now, I'm a talent coordinator."

"_You _with a desk job, say it ain't so, man, I thought that out of all of us, you'd be the one least likely to ever take a desk job," Alan said, shaking his head like he was disappointed. "Sell out."

"Shut up," Chris said good-naturedly. "I took a step back from wrestling a couple years ago, I've been doing other things, but this is my main thing right now, I deal with the guys around here."

"Well, if it's good work," Alan shrugged, "heard you had a book out."

"Yeah, it's awesome, read it when you get a chance," Chris said. "Come on, though, I'll show you around."

Chris led the men inside, showing them all the sights and the inner-workings of the backstage. People were bustling now that the show had actually started just a short while ago. Mike and Alan were amazed by everything around them, having never seen anything like this before in their white-collar jobs. Production people kept coming up to him and he kept telling them he wasn't on duty, but he'd still look over their stuff.

"Chris, hey, Chris!"

Chris looked over and saw Britt walking over quickly and waving. "Hey Britt, before you tell me what you want, these are some old high school friends of mine, Mike and Alan, guys, this is Britt, my assistant."

"Nice to meet you," Alan said, giving her a winning smile.

"Yeah, very nice," Mike said, shaking her hand.

"Nice to meet you too," she said, then turned to Chris. "Anyways, Vince said that if you were up to it, he could meet you sometime this week at Titan, I don't know for what, he didn't say what it was in regards to."

Probably his contract. Mulling it over, Chris tried to figure out if he could get away with going into Titan without Stephanie knowing. Sure, he could leave after her, but once he was there, what if he ran into her? Then he thought about it for a moment and realized he was being stupid. If he ran into Stephanie, then he would just tell her he was surprising her. Hello, she was his wife, he was allowed to surprise her.

"Yeah, that's fine, tell him I'll call him."

"Will do," she said, making a note of it. She turned to the men next to Chris, "Nice meeting you, goodbye."

They said their goodbyes through their nods and then turned to Chris, "Dude, tell me you nailed that."

"Seriously?" Chris said, his voice holding in his laughter. "Aren't you two married?"

"Just Mike," Alan said, "The missus and I broke up about three years ago so I am a free man, and dude, I don't understand how you can work around all these beautiful women. So how many have you slept with? Don't hold back, man."

"Seriously," Mike said, "once you get married, well, my wife…she's kind of…yeah, you know, I have to live vicariously through someone and you've got all these hot chicks in their twenties, it's like a breeding ground. And you work with the talent, I'd be working over some of these ladies."

"Wow, you guys are pathetic," Chris told them.

"Have you ever worked in an advertising firm?"

"No."

"It's not like a leper colony, but there's a lot of guys in our division, not many women to speak of so we don't get this kind of luxury," Alan said, gesturing around. "I mean, I think I've seen at least five women I'd sleep with right now."

"You guys have not changed since high school," Chris chuckled. "So besides the advertising thing, and Alan being divorced, do you guys have any kids or anything?"

"I've got two with the ex," Alan said. "They're seven and five."

"Yeah, I've got three, nine, five, and three," Mike said. "They're good kids."

"That's pretty cool, sounds like you guys definitely settled down, which is hard for me to believe," Chris joked. "You two are totally crazy back then."

"_We_ were crazy," Mike said incredulously, "dude, you were the craziest of all, still looks like it too even though you've got a desk job right now, look around, man, I mean, come on, this has to be cool, working on television, working with beautiful women, surrounded by them even, it's got to be somewhat of a dream job."

"I like it here, it's where I belong," he shrugged, and it was true. He had ventured out in these past two years, done things that he probably wouldn't have done if he had just stuck around with wrestling the entire time. It was funny; he had left because his wife was having his son and he wanted to be there for her, but it ended up being that Sawyer was just part of the equation. He had really grown as a person over the last couple of years, and when he came back next week, he would be better than ever.

"Chris," Stephanie said, coming up to him but forgetting that he was around people, "Did you order the extra pyros for Cyber Sunday this weekend?"

"Yes, ma'am," Chris told her, but she wasn't even looking at him.

"Great, good job, I need to go talk to my father about…something," she said, absent-mindedly forgetting what it was that she wanted to talk about with her father, but she was sure that it would come to her soon enough.

She wandered off again, obviously in the throes of working and hardly paying attention to Chris at all, and certainly not the fact that he was with two people at the moment. He smiled after her as Alan said, "Okay, now _who_ was that?"

"That's Stephanie."

"She mentioned her father, is he the boss?"

"Yeah, Vince McMahon is her dad, he runs the joint," Chris said.

"You two were totally flirting." Chris thought that was funny, yes, he occasionally flirted with his wife.

"She's hot, now tell me you have nailed _that_, because come on, dude, boss's daughter, how forbidden is that shit?" Alan joked. Chris rolled his eyes playfully. These guys were just like he remembered them and it was nice to get to see some old friends that were still just like your old friends. Sometimes it was nice to get away from the rigors of being an adult.

Stephanie walked back again, "Chris, also, can you make sure that everyone has their travel arrangements set, I think the book is in my office to make sure that everyone has booked their way to Washington DC, oh, and you are flying to North Carolina on Saturday."

"I'll make sure travel arrangements are made," he told her dutifully. She smiled and patted her arm as she went over to a table nearby to write something down on her clipboard. Chris turned to his friends to say something, but they were both staring at Stephanie and Mike looked over to him and held his hands out from his chest and mouthed, "Look at that rack," to him.

Chris bit his lip a little as Alan whispered, "Huge," to him in regards to Stephanie's chest. Yes, her chest was rather…large, Chris had noticed this obviously over the years, in fact, he might've noticed first, but if Chris had a fetish with anything is was with women who had…enhanced their chest size through surgery. Still, he was a little upset that this was the first thing that other guys noticed about her, although, if he were being honest with himself, he didn't think a guy's eyes would immediately go to her pretty face.

"Steph, come over a second," Chris said.

Stephanie looked over her shoulder, her brown hair falling in her face. "Yeah?"

"Come over here a second," he beckoned her.

"I'm busy, Chris," she whined a little bit.

"Come on," he prodded.

She finished writing what she was writing and walked over, smiling at her husband, "Now what is it, I don't have all night, I'm busy trying to do tonight and then thinking ahead to Cyber Sunday where you _won't_ be."

"Sorry about that, I just wanted to introduce you to my friends."

"Oh yeah, I completely forgot that's why you weren't working tonight," she said with a soft smile. She turned to the other men around Chris and gave them a winning smile.

"Yeah, busy, right, you just wanted to ignore me," he told her with a wink, "anyways, Steph, these are my old high school friends, this is Mike and this is Alan. We also went to college together and they saw some of my earliest matches."

"Nice to meet you," Stephanie said shaking both their hands. "I don't often get to meet any of Chris's really old friends."

"And guys," Chris said, "this is Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, my wife."

The other two guys eyes widened when they realized their faux pas. Stephanie smiled and slipped her hand around Chris's waist, "He just likes to introduce me as that, I usually just go by Stephanie, or Steph, that's cool too, so you knew Chris in high school, what was he like? Was he cool or you know, a nerd?"

"Nerd, definitely a nerd," Mike said.

Stephanie giggled and kissed him on the cheek, "I knew it, I knew you were a nerd. I've never met anyone who knew Chris back then, so this is a nice revelation for me. I'm going to go though, think about my nerdy husband and get back to work."

"Bye," Mike and Alan said in unison. Stephanie walked off again, putting her headphones on and talking to someone on the other end. Alan spoke up first, "Dude, that's your _wife_?"

"Yeah, that's my wife, going on three years in January," Chris said proudly.

"Wow, I don't know, I guess I just never pictured you as married," Alan said. "I mean, you were interested in girls, but you were always one of those guys that seemed career first, how the hell did you end up with your boss's daughter?"

"Long story, we kind of hated each other and it turned into mutual attraction and then we dated and now we're married, and she just happens to be the boss's daughter," Chris said, putting their history very succinctly.

"Lucky man."

Stephanie was just pushing the door open to her office when she heard someone clear their throat to her left. She looked over and groaned inwardly at the sight of Shawn Michaels standing next to her door. She had been quite pleased when he had been away on injury. She had hardly even noticed that he was gone, but now he was back and probably back to bugging her. He'd probably tell her she was a bad mother again.

"What do you want, Shawn?" Stephanie asked.

"Well, I was just wondering when Chris was coming back because I wanted to be prepared to kick his ass."

"What are you talking about?" Stephanie asked. "Chris isn't coming back."

"Not what I heard," Shawn said with a smirk on his face. "I heard he was coming back next week."

"Chris would've told me if he was coming back," Stephanie said. "He's not coming back. Not yet anyways, he would've discussed it with me, what the hell are you trying to pull here, Shawn, huh? What the hell kind of game are you playing?"

"No game, just things you hear. I find it interesting though, that he wouldn't tell you, very interesting," Shawn said, wandering off. Stephanie's eyes narrowed as she watched Shawn walk off, hands in his pockets, whistling to himself. Stephanie made a disgusted noise before going into her locker room. She bit her lip and thought about what Shawn had said.

Chris wouldn't just…he wouldn't just come back, would he? No, he would tell her these things, especially knowing how excited it would make her. Shawn was just blowing a lot of hot air around and hoping to rile her up. She couldn't stand that man, and well, he couldn't stand her either so it was a mutual dislike. But unlike her constant feuding with Chris back in the day, she didn't enjoy arguing with Shawn, in fact, if he were to retire tomorrow, she wouldn't have a problem with that whatsoever.

Of course, curiosity was getting the better of her and her mind started to wander to thinking that maybe Shawn was right. She was tempted to go to some websites and check it out, but what did they know? Some of the stuff was correct, but some of it was just hogwash, and she didn't care for that part of those sites. Not to mention, well, people didn't like her, and she didn't feel like dealing with a bruised ego this evening. She suddenly wished that she had Sawyer with her, but he was with Hunter right now, her ex-husband watching him while she got some work done.

Her little boy would instantly cheer her up. He had that amazing effect on her with his bright smile and sunny disposition. He was just the best little boy she could've ever hoped for and he was so inquisitive about everything and for a few moments she could believe that he wanted to learn about the inner-workings of the show from the backstage, though she knew he really just liked all the hustle and bustle and wanted to be a part of it. Yeah, she wanted her son right now and she wanted to see him right this second so she got up from her desk to go retrieve him.

Chris was sitting in catering talking with his friends, catching up for the most part. Chris could barely get a word in edgewise as his friends were talking about some other people that they all had known. The discussion had gone back to high school and it was fun reminiscing about how they were total losers. Chris remembered all the stupid doodles and drawings he had done with himself as a wrestler, and they hadn't quite matched up to what had actually happened, though they were actually really better when he thought about it.

"Remember that guy who almost cut off his finger in shop class, I thought Mr. Beech was going to faint from all that blood," Mike laughed as Chris joined in.

"Man, that was disgusting, there was blood everywhere," Chris said, though he was used to lots of blood now, seeing as how he had been involved in matches were blood had become the norm.

"Rawr!" came a small voice that Chris recognized immediately. He looked to his left and saw Sawyer walking slowly towards him with his hands curled into little claws and baring his teeth as he continued to growl. Hunter was a few steps behind him, glaring down at the little boy. "Grr!"

"Chris, take this back," Hunter said, lifting up Sawyer and handing him to Chris. "I'm done with him for the night."

Chris laughed, "What did he do?"

"He keeps growling and he bit me!" Hunter said indignantly.

Chris laughed and looked at Sawyer, "Kid, did you bite Hunter?"

"Wion!" Saywer said happily, clapping his hands together. "Wion!"

"Yes, yes, you're a lion," Chris said, "that's why he bit you, he's going to be a lion for Halloween and he's very excited about that, he's getting into character."

"Yeah, well, his character bit me, and now I'm going to have a bite mark. I'm already injured, and now I've been bitten by a one-year-old, as if it weren't bad enough that I got injured last week," Hunter said indignantly.

Chris chuckled and looked at Sawyer, "Say you're sorry to Hunter, kid."

"No!" Saywer said defiantly. Chris gave him a look.

"Say sorry."

"Owwy," Sawyer repeated looking at Hunter, then he growled and gave him a dirty look. Chris laughed again as Hunter rolled his eyes and walked away. Sawyer grinned at Chris and growled at him again before deciding he had enough of that for now and wanted to snuggle up with his father.

"So," Chris said, "This is Sawyer, Sawyer, say hi to some of Daddy's old friends, I knew them way before you."

"No," Sawyer said as he looked over at the other guys.

"Yes, I did."

"No," Sawyer repeated.

"Okay, I didn't, I've known you for many, many years," Chris said. "This is my son, he's a little bit on the cranky side tonight so if he doesn't make the best first impression, forgive him."

"Now I've seen everything," Mike said. "Wow, we are a bunch of old men."

Chris shook his head, "Speak for yourself, man, I'm still a sexy beast."

"Plus his wife is hot," Alan added.

"Yeah, that too," Mike said. "He looks just like you, Chris, seriously, if you were ever unsure of his paternity, you'd just need to look at him to know."

"That's what everyone tells me," Chris said. "He's a good kid though."

"Do you take him on the road with you every week?"

"Yeah, we do, Steph and I don't want someone else raising him but we're both not ready to give up the road just yet, or ever. We've discussed getting him a private tutor when he gets old enough, but we're not sure we like the idea of him actually growing up here, it'd be weird, and we want him to have that school experience."

"Must be crazy to grow up on the road."

Chris thought about that. Sawyer seemed to like it here well enough. The little boy loved it. Sawyer couldn't wait to get to the arenas every week. When he got to be a part of all this craziness it was pure joy to him. Sometimes he'd see big things that were so colorful that his eyes would widen. He didn't know what these things were, but he figured that they were really fun to play with and sometimes he'd wander off from his parents whenever he saw something he really wanted to play with. Then there were lots of big guys that looked like they could play and girls in bright outfits that drew his eye. Yes, he loved it very much, plus he got to spend all this time with his parents and what could be better than that. The playground had nothing on being backstage.

"He likes it."

"There's my baby," Stephanie said as she came over and picked up Sawyer and hugged him tightly. "I missed you so much."

"Grr," Sawyer said, showing off his impressive lion skills to his mommy.

"Oh, you've been practicing," Stephanie smiled, kissing his cheek.

"He bit Hunter," Chris informed her.

"He what?" she asked, then looked at Sawyer, "You what?"

"Wion!" he exclaimed.

"This is what you get, Chris, for insisting that he go as a lion for Halloween, just because you were Lionheart, you think he's a walking, talking advertisement for your book," she said, pouting at Sawyer, who pouted back her, his lip jutting out exaggeratedly.

"Sorry," he said. "I was going to take off though, if that's okay with you, we were going to go out to dinner."

"Yeah, that's fine, but can I talk to you first, privately?" Stephanie asked, giving a kind smile to the other men, "No offense."

"None taken," Mike said. Chris stood up and walked over to a more secluded part of catering.

"I'm going to make this brief because I've got more stuff to do tonight, but um…are you coming back?"

"What?" he asked. "Where did you hear that?"

"Shawn told me," she said to him. "He was waiting for me outside my office earlier and said that you were coming back, and well…are you coming back?" Her eyes searched his for the answer to this all-important question.

Chris was going to kill Shawn. The only thing raging through his veins right now was how much he wanted to just pummel Shawn into the ground. Leave it to him to want to ruin something for Stephanie. He had worked so hard and so meticulously to make sure that this was a complete and total surprise to her. He had been planning on coming back next week, but Stephanie was suspicious now, and that threw him for a loop.

"Uh, well…"

"I mean, those weird promos, you said…they were for Cyber Sunday."

"They're not, they're actually for Bobby Lashley's return," Chris said quickly, getting the words out of his mouth. "He's coming back."

"Oh, well, I talked to him recently and he said he wasn't ready to come back and I thought we'd bring him back to SmackDown, I just…am I in the dark about this? I'm not usually in the dark over things like this," she said, narrowing her eyes.

"It's a preliminary thing, getting it hyped up for him, you know. It'll last a while longer of course."

"Maybe I should see what the buzz is, I think I'll talk to my father about it," Stephanie said. "And keep my eye out over the next week, I mean, I'd like to send some feelers out there if this is for Lashley, see what the people are saying."

"No," Chris said hastily, "I mean, I'll take care of it, okay, you have so much on your plate with Cyber Sunday, I'll make sure that this is taken care of."

"He said that you were coming back next week though, I mean, that's so time specific," she said, the wheels turning.

"I'm not coming back, I have my book tour, remember."

"Yeah, that's right," she said, the fact that it was before the show slipping from her mind. It was also in the same city and very close to the arena. "Man, I hate Shawn, leave it to him to piss me off like that. I can't believe…no wait, I can believe that he would do that to me. He loves to mess with my head. I should've known better."

"Not your fault. Hey, do you think that you can keep Mike and Alan entertained for a couple of minutes. Britt told me that your dad wanted to meet with me, so I'm going to do that before I leave."

"Okay."

"I think you'll just have to sit there while they drool over you," Chris said, "easy enough for you?"

"Drool over me."

"They think you're gorgeous, I didn't have enough in me to deny that, because I do think that you're gorgeous."

"I'm already letting you go out without me, what more do you want? My blessing to let you go to a strip club or something?"

"Wouldn't hurt."

Stephanie grabbed his chin with her hand and turned it to her, "No," she told him, then leaned in to press a kiss to his lips. Chris licked his lips as he looked at her, then gave Sawyer a brief kiss on the cheek before he left. Stephanie went over to the table with Chris's friends and sat down and smiled at them, noting how both their eyes seemed to drift down to her chest. She usually got that reaction from men so it didn't bother her that much.

"Chris will be right back," Stephanie said. "He just had to go talk to my father."

"Oh okay," Alan said.

"So, tell me what Chris was like as a teenager?"

Chris almost ran to Vince's office, bursting through the door and not caring what the man was doing. Vince was just reading over something, but looked up, startled, when he saw the door burst open. Then a flash of anger at someone barging in, but then when he saw it was Chris, it softened somewhat, "Chris, what is it?"

"I can't do next week, Stephanie is suspecting it, and she's going to be keeping an eye on the schedule I know this, she's going to get her nose in it, so I've got to postpone it, I can't do it next week."

"Oh, come now, she doesn't know."

"She's Stephanie, she'll know, she'll dig, I'm going to need more time."

Vince sighed, "Fine."

"Good, don't worry Vince, when I come back, I'll blow the roof off the joint."

"You better."


	156. Come Back Already, November 5, 2007

"_What the hell is your problem?"_

_Shawn raised his eyebrow. He didn't really have a problem with Chris, never really, really had, except when they were feuding that one time before WrestleMania, but he had to say, after being married to Stephanie for so long, he was starting to not like the guy. Especially now that he had just burst into his locker room like he owned the place. It escaped Shawn's mind that Chris actually _did_ own the place. But that wasn't even on Chris's mind. The only thing on his mind was getting to bottom of this._

"_What the hell do you think you're doing coming into my locker room?" Shawn demanded to know. If Chris wanted to act like a jerk to him, well, Shawn could act the same way._

_Chris had been waiting an entire week to talk to Shawn. When he had gone to see him after the show ended last week, he had been nowhere to be found, and so he hadn't gotten a chance to talk to him. So when Chris got here this evening, before doing anything else, he had gone to seek Shawn, giving Stephanie some lame excuse as to why he had to leave her._

"_Where the hell do you get off telling Stephanie that I'm coming back?"_

_At this, Shawn smirked, "What did I ruin something?"_

"_I'm _not_ coming back," Chris told him, and the fifteen years of his wrestling had taught him how to act like a master. _

"_Oh really?" Shawn asked, not convinced in the slightest. "Not even thinking about it."_

"_Look, things are good for me right now, I've got a successful career outside of wrestling, and a great family, I don't _need _this, but how dare you get my wife's hopes up like you did, how dare you do that to her!" Chris exclaimed, getting angry with him now. This man had no right to butt into his business._

"_I just asked her if you were, I had heard the rumors."_

"_Which are just that, rumors, I'm supposed to come back tonight, huh? That's what Stephanie said you told her. That was the plan, right?"_

"_It was."_

"_I'm not coming back tonight," Chris said, and that was the truth, he wasn't coming back that evening. It had been the original plan, but somehow it had gotten out, so now the plans had changed. He wasn't going to have Stephanie walking around _knowing _that he was going to come back. He had worked too damn hard for this._

"_Oh, my bad," Shawn said with that stupid smirk that Chris wanted to punch off. His fingers were tingling to feel Shawn's cheek against his knuckles._

"_Look, I don't know what the hell you have against Stephanie," Chris said. "Nor do I want to know. I don't care if it's because she tricked you and then drugged you or because she didn't want to sleep with you or whatever, but seriously, get over it. When you start dragging _me _into it, then it becomes personal. Don't mess with my family, Shawn, consider this your warning, if you so much as raise your voice to her, you'll see me."_

Sawyer kept banging on her desk, and it was annoying the hell out of Stephanie.

"Stop it," Stephanie warned him as she looked at his small frame banging his hands against her desk while she tried to finish up some paperwork that her brother wanted her to look over. He as having an important meeting with some sponsors and just wanted to go over some statistics with her and make sure that they were correct.

Sawyer continued to bang on her desk and, eyes flashing, she turned to him again, "I said stop it, Sawyer."

"No," he said defiantly, "Bang!"

"No, you will not bang," she responded to him. "I don't know who you think the boss is around here, but let me tell you that it's not you, and that's a promise right there."

"Me," he told her, pursing his lips up and narrowing his eyes at her, like he was actually challenging her. Yeah, Sawyer had been around hardly enough to know that you didn't make that kind of face with a McMahon, even if you were a McMahon yourself.

"Excuse me?" she told him. "I don't think that you're the boss, Mr. Jericho. And if you honestly think that you are, well, rude awakening, little boy, _I'm_ the boss around here, not even Daddy is the boss."

"Me," he said again and then started banging on the desk again, louder this time and with more force behind it.

"Okay, that's it," she told him, standing up and grabbing him.

"No!" he screamed, angry with her and flailing his arms and legs around in tantrum. She ignored it though as she set him down on the couch. He folded his arms in front of him and glowered at her, angry that she had interrupted his banging.

"I told you to stop doing and what did you do, did you stop?"

"No," he told her and she nodded somberly.

"That's right, you didn't stop what you were doing, so you're going to have a time-out now, you have to sit here," she said, tapping on the couch he was sitting on, "for the next ten minutes and you cannot play with your toys or come see me, you have to sit here and think about why you were a naughty boy."

"Mama," he whined, knowing exactly how boring a time-out was. He hated them and yet he didn't learn when not to do something and avoid them.

"No, don't tell me that, and don't give me that lip," she told him. "You were a bad boy, and you have to sit here for the next ten minutes, and if you disobey me, if you go and play with your toys," she pointed to his toys, "then you will get another five minutes, and you have the attention span of a fly, so that's like an eternity for you. Do you understand?"

He looked at her begrudgingly, sinking down into the couch a little bit, showing her that he was very angry with his punishment. She just raised an eyebrow and went back to her paperwork, looking up every now and then to make sure that he wasn't disobeying her rules. He wasn't, knowing that he didn't want to get into more trouble. She rarely ever did get to ten minutes though, usually giving in around seven. This time was no exception as she went back over to the couch and knelt down in front of her son.

"Hey, you okay?" Sawyer sighed and looked at her with a soft pout. "Yeah, I know, baby boy, you don't like the time-outs."

"Yeah," he said softly, still upset that he had to have a time-out in the first place.

"I know that you miss Daddy, sweetheart, I know that you do, but you know that he's coming in tonight, right?"

"No."

"Yes, he is, he promised," Stephanie said. "I know you don't like it when Daddy has to go away, but Daddy wrote a book."

Sawyer's eyes lit up at the word book, thinking that Stephanie was going to read to him, and he really liked to be read to. Stephanie sat up on the couch and pulled Sawyer into her lap, letting him cuddle with her as he leaned against her chest and reached for her hand, holding it in both of his as she smiled.

"No, I'm not reading Daddy's book to you, no way," Stephanie told him. "But Daddy's book is very popular, and a lot of people want to meet him, and we have to understand that and let Daddy do his own thing sometimes. I know that we both love Daddy and want him with us all the time, but it's just not realistic, baby boy. Now we're going to go with Daddy tomorrow, but the same thing is going to happen next week because Daddy is going to be in Washington and we're going to be in Kansas."

"No," he whined.

"We just have to be supportive," she said, "now since you've insisted that you don't want to behave and just play, we can do work!"

Sawyer's eyes widened, he knew that word, Lord how he knew that word, "Play! Toys!"

"Okay, okay, so you don't have my work ethic yet," Stephanie said. "You don't have to rub it in."

Britt walked into the room and smiled at Sawyer, who grinned up at her. "Hey Sawyer, you are looking very handsome tonight, I love your jacket, it's very you."

"Say thank you to Britt," Stephanie prompted.

"Tanks," Sawyer said, waving inexplicably.

"What can I do for you, Britt?"

"Well, Steve Austin is here, and he wanted to know where his room was, and I don't know, so I thought you might know, I know this is something under Chris's jurisdiction, but I checked and he's not here yet, so I was hoping you might know," Britt explained as Sawyer went over to her and tugged on her skirt. She picked him up and held him as he went to grab her clipboard, which she let him hold and play with.

"Oh, I'll take care of that, thanks for letting me know he was here," she said to Britt. "Come on, Sawyer, we have some work to do, leave Britt alone so she can get the hell out of here and call her boyfriend."

"Shut up," Britt said, her cheeks turning hot.

"Oh come on, like you think I wouldn't notice that you've been all giggly and happy and on the phone with some guy," Stephanie said as they walked out of the room together, Sawyer in Stephanie's arms now.

"Okay, so yeah, I do, but…whatever," Britt said, trying to dismiss the conversation right then. She was getting super embarrassed at this point. "I'm just going to go do what I'm paid for and not let you embarrass me further."

Stephanie laughed, then remembered something, "Oh, Britt, that reminds me, you booked my flight out to Washington on Friday, right?"

"Yeah, I did, I still think it's sweet that you're going to surprise Chris in Washington."

"Well, he thinks that I have to work, so I can't be there, but it'll be nice just to spend his birthday together, I know he was kind of upset that I wasn't going to be there for his birthday, and he realized he shouldn't have scheduled anything on his birthday, but well, I'll be there," she said with a smile. "It'll be like a mini-vacation."

"True, but I'll definitely make sure that flight is looking good," she said as she walked away.

Stephanie walked briskly, with Sawyer in her arms, towards the entrance, where she saw Austin waiting. The last time they had really encountered each other had been strange, since it had been after the entire thing with her getting kicked in the stomach by him when he went for a stunner on her. She had been pregnant then, a million years ago it seemed. Austin had apologized last time and she was glad that Chris wasn't here to assuage him with dirty looks and threats of maiming.

"Steve," she called out, causing the bald man to turn.

Stephanie put Sawyer down as she extended her hand to Austin, which he took and shook accordingly, "Stephanie."

"It's nice to see you again," she said politely and professionally, even as Sawyer ran around her legs like he was playing hide-and-seek with some invisible companion. She wasn't going to let past incidents that had no bearing anymore bother her. She was a professional through and through.

"You too," he replied and it seemed that it was going both ways. She did notice that he glanced at Sawyer every now and then with a curious look on his face.

"Sawyer, say hi to Steve," Stephanie said to her son.

"Hi," Sawyer said brightly from around Stephanie's left leg. He then ducked behind Stephanie's leg again like he was hiding. She noted that he looked a little relieved when Sawyer was able to talk and say hello and generally look and be normal, since he was right on pace with other kids, maybe just a smidgen more advanced, a smidgen.

"So let me show you to your dressing room for the evening," Stephanie said. "I'm sorry I didn't get to see you at Cyber Sunday, but I was just so busy."

"Don't worry about it," he said gruffly.

"Okay," she complied, picking up Sawyer and starting to walk in the other direction. Austin walked behind her, Sawyer watching him the entire time as he fingered strands of his mother's brown hair. He watched him intently, which was unnerving the older man. It wasn't so much that he had never been around children, but there was still a little bit of guilt when he thought back to how he had handled Stephanie that one night.

Sawyer smiled at him, "Hi."

"Hello," Austin said, nodding at him. Sawyer nodded back at him, scrunching up his face and looking remarkably like Chris.

"Here you go," Stephanie said, opening a door with her free hand. "If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask."

"Thanks," Austin said, and that was the finish of that exchange. She had nothing more to say to him, and he had nothing more to say to her, so he slipped inside his private dressing room.

Stephanie looked at her son, "You know, if I was a smoker, I think that Id need a cigarette right now, but how about you and I go get some fresh air, do you like that idea?"

"Yeah," Sawyer said eagerly, nodding his head. Stephanie set him down in front of her and he took off into a run, with Stephanie keeping up close behind him. He glanced back at her every now and then to make sure that he didn't lose her. He came to a hallway with different directions and didn't know which way to go, looking down both of them and concentrating on which choice was to be made here.

"This way," Stephanie said, turning her little boy in the right direction and there he went again, racing down the hallway with little regard for his well-being and heaven help anyone that ran into him because they were just going to get bulldozed over in his quest to find the outside door. Every time they came to another hallway, he'd stop and wait for Stephanie to point him in the right direction until they finally came to the door that led to the employee parking lot, which was guarded that evening. Sawyer saw a huge expanse of space and his eyes widened as he started running around. "Hey, Sawyer, I don't want you out of my sight, stay in this area."

Sawyer looked at her blankly for a second before he started running around again. He must've understood what she was saying though because he never left her sight. She didn't know whether he knew what she had directed him to do or if he was scared if he lost sight of Stephanie that she would just leave him there alone. She figured that it was the latter.

Stephanie sat down on the hood of the nearest car, not caring whose it was since whoever it belonged to wasn't there. There wasn't any traffic out here right now since the show was going on at this moment and everyone was inside already. Her father was here tonight and had insisted on doing her job since she was stuck doing some of Chris's work since he wasn't here. Since Chris only dealt with paperwork and the occasional phone call, she had a lot of time on her hands to do nothing. It was just as well though, since she was taking care of Sawyer and he got antsy if she worked for too long, as evidenced by the way that he was running around like he was just let out of the asylum.

As she sat there watching her son run around like a chicken with its head cut off she thought back to what Shawn had said a couple of weeks ago, about Chris coming back. She knew that he hadn't shown last week, like Shawn said he would, but she was really getting anxious for him to come back. Still, she was figuring it was never going to happen, and she was trying to reconcile that within herself. She had loved to watch Chris wrestle, hair flying through the air, punching, kicking, doing his Lionsault, putting someone in the Walls of Jericho. She had loved to watch him talk, he had a comeback for everything. But she saw how content he was now, and the hope that he was coming back was fading quickly.

"_Hey, let me ask you something," Hunter said as he came up to Stephanie._

"_Grr," Sawyer said as he snarled at Hunter._

"_So your kid just hates me now, is that it?" Hunter asked as he snarled back at Sawyer, who was not intimidated in the slightest. Hunter was a little surprised, but then not that much, Chris and Stephanie never backed down from anyone either._

"_Well, you were the only person he got to bite, so he's inclined to want to make you scared of him," Stephanie said. "He's just excited about Halloween, Chris has been telling him all this stuff and it's been getting inside his head."_

"_Starting early then," Hunter said._

"_What did you want to ask?" Stephanie inquired, tilting her head to the side a little as she shoved Sawyer's hand away from her earring that he was making a grab for._

"_What does your dad have against me this time?" Hunter asked. "I mean, yeah, I've sort of been getting on his case and everything, but he just said that putting me in this handicap match was very personal, and it didn't sound like his normal hatred of me, so can you enlighten me as to what I did this time?"_

_Stephanie shrugged. "You of all people should know that my father's moods change from day to day. You probably just slighted him in some way and now he's just pissed off at you, normal stuff, you know."_

"_Oh, I thought it might be something else this time. He's never going to get over me dumping you, is he?"_

"_I wanted you to dump me, let's get that straight right now."_

"_Do you think that you can get me some help for this match?"_

"_What? You _want_ help?"_

"_No, but I figured maybe you could pull a few strings. I was injured, you know, I don't particularly look forward to having to defend myself against two guys that want to demolish me, especially with Survivor Series around the corner."_

"_Well who do you want me to get, Chris?" she asked sarcastically, then paused a tiny bit. "Hey, let me ask you something in return."_

"_What would that be?" he said._

"_Chris…answer me honestly, is he coming back? Have you heard anything about this? I've gone to some wrestling news sites, but those are so notoriously bad sometimes, and there's nothing been said about Chris the past few days except for his book tour and how those promos are not for him. I mean, I know they're for Bobby Lashley, but…do you know if Chris is coming back? You're friends with him, I figured he might've told you."_

_Hunter almost wanted to chuckle. Chris had told her it was for Bobby Lashley? Well, that was a new one, and it was certainly better than him telling her that he was going to TNA. He had to wonder how out of the loop Stephanie was not to actually know it was Chris. Little did Hunter know, but besides him and Vince, nobody else knew about Chris's impending return. Well, the internet community knew, to some extent, but only Vince and Chris knew when it was exactly going to happen, whenever that was. He didn't want to lie to Stephanie, but he wasn't about to be the one to ruin Chris's surprise for Stephanie._

"_No, he hasn't said anything. He did tell me that he was really happy with where he was right now, so you know, I think he's just going to stick with what he's doing right now. He's happy."_

"_Yeah," she said wistfully, that not being exactly what she wanted to hear. She didn't exactly know what she wanted to hear. On the one hand, she wanted Chris to be happy with whatever he was doing, and if he was happy just being backstage and working for her, and then doing his own thing the rest of the time, she was fine with that, although she missed seeing him fly through the ring and cutting a killer promo on someone. On the other hand, she wanted him back, today if possible, but she wanted him back nonetheless. _

"_Steph…"_

"_No, it's okay, I've learned to live with it. It's been two years after all, and it's not like Chris is out of _my_ life, he's my husband, you know, I see him everyday, sometimes too much."_

"_He's actually did his book signing here in Philly tonight, isn't he?"_

"_Yeah, he did, and he told me that everyone was asking if he was going to show up tonight," she laughed. "But like that's going to happen. He's really proud of how many people like his book though. I'm really proud of him too."_

"_Here we go with the mush, Sawyer, save me," Hunter pretended to plead._

"_Play!" Sawyer said, wiggling around in Stephanie's arms._

"_No, that's not what I meant," Hunter laughed. "How is his book? Does he talk shit about me?"_

"_I'm not going to tell you," she said, "you'd have to read it for yourself to see if you were mentioned at all. You have to remember that it's all before his debut in the WWF, so I'm not even in it."_

"_Wow, you'd think that you'd be all over that, you know, similes, metaphors, analogies, you know, the works."_

"_I didn't even meet him until he debuted," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "So it's not like it was this major event in his life up until that point."_

"_Well, okay, you've showed me, so really…your dad just hates me because I was with you and we had a falling out?"_

"_Yes, that's probably the root of all his anger, don't burn a Daddy's girl," she said, patting his chest as she began to walk away, "and seriously, read Chris's book, it's good."_

"_You just want me to buy it because it puts more money in _your_ pocket," he jokingly called after her as she turned around and flipped him off._

He was never going to come back, she realized bitterly. Despite what the internet said, despite what the rumors were, they were just that, rumors. Chris was her husband, she knew him better than anyone and the thought of coming back to wrestling, seriously coming back to wrestling hadn't even passed his lips in months. Sure, he'd joke about it every now and then, but that's all they were, just jokes, nothing real behind them. She sometimes felt like his book was the last purge of wrestling from his body, like he had gotten his story out there, and that was it.

Okay, so she knew that wasn't _it_. She knew that he still worked backstage and had an integral part in the show. He dealt with the boys, and he was good at what he did as a member of management. He was still around, he still interacted, and the bottom line was that he was part-owner of this company and that wasn't going to change because he was married to her, and she didn't plan on letting him go any time soon. Still, it wasn't the same, and she knew it.

She didn't worry about them, that wasn't on her mind. She and Chris were fine, sure, they fought every so often and sometimes she wanted nothing more than to not see his stupid face, but she loved him, and he loved her, and that was the end of it. They had a child together, they had a _life _together, and it was better than the both of them could have imagined.

She still wanted him back.

She was selfish, she knew, not taking into account what Chris wanted. She _did_ think about him, and wanted what was best for him. She knew that he sacrificed a lot for her and always had. He never questioned any of the crazy things that she wanted to do. He took everything in stride and she knew that she wasn't the easiest person to deal with most of the time, and yet, Chris had been putting up with her for more than five years, that was half a decade, Chris had been dealing with her crap for half a decade.

"Mama!" Sawyer said, extending his arms like an airplane and running around making sounds.

"I see you, baby boy, you're looking like a real airplane," Stephanie commented, watching as he zoomed around the lot in front of her. Plus, how could she ever begrudge Chris for wanting to spend time with their son without feeling sore about it?

"Well, this is _exactly_ how I want to be greeted every time I come to a show."

"Daddy!" Sawyer yelled as he saw Chris walking through the large entryway from the outdoor lot. He barreled towards his father, Stephanie so zoned out that she hadn't even seen or heard her husband come in.

Sawyer ran right into Chris's legs, grabbing on for dear life before Chris picked him up and threw him in the air, catching him easily as he kissed Sawyer's cheek, causing the little boy to giggle and push his father away. "Hey, kid, I missed the hell out of you and it's barely been two days."

Sawyer hugged Chris tightly, "Hi."

"Hi back," he said as he looked over at Stephanie. "What's with your Mommy?"

Sawyer looked over at Stephanie, who had her chin in her hand as she sat there thinking, "Toy."

"Mommy wants to play with your toys…what, you won't let her?"

"No," Sawyer laughed as he clapped his hands on Chris's shoulder. "Toys."

"Well that's not very nice of you," Chris said "What toy does Mommy want to play with."

"Moo," Sawyer told him. "Cow."

"She wants to play with your barnyard toys?" his father wondered.

"Yeah," Sawyer responded seriously.

"Well, I don't know what Mommy is thinking," Chris said. "How dare she want to play with your toys, do you think I should put her in a time-out, have you had any time-outs tonight, hmm?"

"No," Sawyer said, shaking his head vigorously, then added, "Yeah."

"See, why do you think that lying is going to get you anything? Don't lie, don't be like your grandpa, please just don't be like your grandpa," he said as he finally made his way over to where Stephanie was still zoning out. He wondered what she was thinking so hard about.

"_Hey," Chris said, leaning in to kiss her._

"_I saw the new video for the Bobby Lashley return," Stephanie said, eyeing Chris as they walked to their car after the show had finished. They had barely even seen each other during the show. "I really like it, it's a nice way to hype someone up and keep the fans guessing."  
_

"_It sure is."_

"_So what's the time frame for his return, have you talked to him?"_

"_Well, I talked to your dad," Chris said, "and he said he wanted to hold it off for a while, you know, let it build until it's at a fever pitch. You know, it could boost ratings and then make Bobby into a real top-tier player, like I think your father wants." He opened the car door for Stephanie and let her strap Sawyer into the car-seat in the back while he threw their things into the trunk._

"_Oh, well, I guess I can see that," Stephanie said. "It might even be good to hold him off until the Royal Rumble and make him a surprise entrant."_

_Chris looked over at her as he started up the car. That actually wasn't a bad idea now that he thought about it. But he doubted that Vince would want to hold him out that long. He had told Vince that him coming back would be on his terms, but he knew that he would have to work with Vince on the time frame. He couldn't just barge into the show whenever he wanted to…wait, yes he could…but he wasn't going to. Still, surprise entrant into the Rumble didn't sound too bad at all. Leave it to his wife to have the best idea of them all when she wasn't even trying._

"_You're wonderful, you know that," he said out of the blue._

_She laughed and looked over at him, "Where did that come from?"_

"_I'm just saying, I think that's actually a really great idea, but I don't think your dad is going to go for that."_

"_I think he would, maybe I should bring it up with him."_

"_How about not?" Chris said. "I don't think your dad will go for it."  
_

"_We can see."_

_He rolled his eyes, "Yeah, sure, I guess we can see if you really want to see."_

"_I don't know, you kept me in the dark about this, here I am, sitting there stupidly thinking that these promos are for Cyber Sunday. How could I miss that it was for something else, for someone's return? I must've been preoccupied."_

"_You were," he said to her, "but we'll forgive you this one time. You can't be on the ball 100 percent of the time."  
_

"_Yes, I can, and usually I am. This is a lot of hype for him though, I hope he appreciates it," she said._

"_Oh, he does, I'm sure."_

"_Good, I don't even think Hunter got this when he came back, and I don't think that Edge is getting it now that he's coming back soon."_

"_Well, they're established, you know. They don't really need the hype," he said, deflecting the suspicions away from him since he was established too. "But Bobby, I mean, we need people to remember him, don't you think?"_

"_Yeah, I guess so," she said. "You're right, we should hype his return, I mean, we do want the fans to like him after all."_

"_See, I knew you'd see it my way."_

Chris lowered his voice, "Excuse me, is this your kid?"

Stephanie, startled, turned to Chris, "Oh, you jerk, don't scare me like that!"

He laughed, "What are you doing out here?"

"Just getting some air."

"What's wrong?" he asked, knowing immediately that something was wrong.

"Nothing," she lied, "let's go inside. I was just going over some things, and I thought you might want to take over since you're here now. My dad took over my job for the evening, and I took over your job for the evening, but since you're here, you can take over your job and I guess I'll just take the night off or go over the things I need to go over with my brother again."

"Okay, rambling, never a good sign," he said as he wrapped his left arm around her waist. "Come on, tell big daddy what's wrong."

"Don't ever call yourself big daddy again, that's disgusting," she said, then decided to deflect the attention away from herself, "So how was the book signing?"

"I'm pretty much loved all over the country," he said. "They adore me, seriously, adore me."

She smiled at that, "I'm really proud of you, you know."

"Well thank you, ma'am," he said graciously. "So stop talking about me and tell me what's wrong already. Don't make me get it out of you the hard way."

"Chris, you wouldn't lie to me, would you?"

"No, I wouldn't lie to you."

"And you wouldn't do something behind my back and not tell me, right?"

"Well, yeah, I would, that's how I wanted to propose, you know, making a plan, executing the plan and then asking you to marry me, remember that, long, long time ago," he chuckled, but then turned serious, "I'd never keep something from you that would hurt you, I'd never _do_ anything that would hurt you."

"No, I know, that's not what I was implying, I know you wouldn't do something that would hurt me like that."

"So what is this about?"

"I'm just…I'm confused is all. I just keep reading and hearing all this stuff about you coming back, and that excites me, you know," she said, "but then I talk to you, and you tell me that you're happy, and I know you're happy and you have your book tour and you're doing all these media things, like a million different things and I'm so proud of you, if I got any prouder, I think I'd burst, but you know, that's not wrestling, and I don't think you want to wrestle anymore, and that's fine, I'm just…I'm confused."

He hated seeing her like this, because she did honestly seem like she didn't know what to believe. He was leading her on, he knew this, but he just had to think of the pay-off at the end of it. She'd be so happy, she'd probably jump into his arms and declare him the best husband ever, and he would take that praise graciously.

"Then don't read that stuff," Chris said, and that was the easiest way to get her off those damn sites. "We both know that it's for Lashley, and the people are going to look stupid when they realize that it's going to be him and not me."

"Yeah, we both know it's Lashley," she agreed, though she didn't know she was agreeing to a lie. "Right. I'll try not to read that stuff."

"Good," he told her, kissing her temple and then he grabbed her arm gently, halting their walk. She turned to him and he leaned down and kissed her softly on the mouth, teasing her ever so slightly with the appearance of his tongue. She placed her hand against his neck, gently rubbing his skin with her thumb. "I missed you."

"I missed you too," she said, smiling against his lips. "You have no idea."

"So just do me the favor and not listen to what other people say or do, I don't want you to be confused."

"I'll try not to," she said as they kept on walking. They walked by a monitor where her father was talking to Hornswoggle and treating him like crap as usual. "So what do I do about _that _situation, oh wise one?"

"Nothing," he suggested. "Your dad is nuts, Hornswoggle is…nuts, and well…I still don't think that he's really your dad's son."

"I'm going to go see him."

"And do what?"

"Talk to him, actually, I just wanted to see if I could just fulfill my duties tonight anyways," she said, "you're back so I need something to do."

"Well, if you insist on leaving your hot husband just as he gets back…"

"I insist," she said, kissing him again. "We'll catch up later…when a certain someone goes to bed."

"Ahh, okay, yes, that _is_ when I like to catch up, come on kid, let's go find the cow."

"Moo!" Sawyer said as he kissed Chris's cheek.

Stephanie found her father in his dressing room for the evening and she knocked quietly on the door, lest she be disturbing him or something. He bellowed for him to come inside and she walked inside, smiling when he saw her. He looked around and didn't see Sawyer and frowned a little bit.

"Where's my grandson?"

"With Chris, he just arrived," Stephanie said. "Dad, can I talk to you about…Hornswoggle?"

"What about him?"

"Well, don't you think that you're being a little bit…harsh to him, I don't know, it seems mean to me, Dad, not to mention, how do you even know this guy is your kid? You really need to take a test or something."

"I'm showing him tough love."

"Tough love or being an ass about it?" she wondered. "I'm just wondering if you have to be so mean to him, you know, I mean, it was all well and good when everyone was laughing, but this Survivor Series thing, Dad, you might go too far, and if he isn't yours, well, then you look like a jackass, and if he is yours, you look like an even bigger jackass."

"Stephanie, let me take care of my own family, and you can take care of yours."

"I'm just…at least make sure he's yours," Stephanie said, knowing it would be futile to argue with him. "That's the least that you can do."

"We'll see," he said, and she sighed.

"Fine, if I can ask you something before I go?"

"Go ahead."

"Daddy, is Chris coming back?" Stephanie asked.

"Where did this come from?" Vince asked.

"Everyone is saying that he is, everyone except Chris, and I don't know what to believe anymore, and you would know, being the boss," she said. "Is Chris keeping this from me? Why would he keep this from me?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Vince lied smoothly. "Chris hasn't brought up coming back with me at all. Take what you read as a grain of salt."

"I _know_ that I should, but it's just all so in my face, and Shawn said last week…I don't know, I guess I should believe Chris."

"You should, Princess, believe in your husband, he wouldn't lie to you."

"Yeah, I know, he's not like that," she said, more to herself than him.

Still, she felt like she was completely out of the loop.


	157. Just One More Week, November 12, 2007

**Friday**

"You…are amazing."

Chris laughed, "Thanks, that's really nice to hear."

"No, seriously, you're…you're just such a pleasure," the girl said as she gazed adoringly at Chris.

"Again, thank you," he told her, giving her that winning smile of his, the kind that was sure to melt any girl's panties right into the floor. He just had that effect on people, women especially with his charming nature and sexy beast looks. Yes, Chris was a little on the arrogant side, but when it got fostered as much as it did, it was hard not to.

"Oh, and Happy Birthday too," she said, "Does it suck to be on the road for your birthday?"

"Honestly, no, I'm pretty used to spending my birthdays on the road," he told her as he signed her book. "I once was in the air on my birthday so it got extended a couple of hours."

She laughed, "Are you spending today alone?"

"Unfortunately, yes," he said with a fake pout, "But my wife and son couldn't be with me today since they're back at home in Florida, but they called me, so you know, just as good."

"Oh, that really sucks," she said. "I think you guys make a cute couple."

"Well, I appreciate that, and I'm sure Steph would too," he said, finishing up with the book, "Thanks, Sarah."

"No thank you, and your book was really good too."

"Have a great day."

She waved and he prepared himself for the next person in line. Every time he went to a new place he was amazed at all the people that would show up. He didn't know why he was so surprised, but he was continually overwhelmed by the sheer praise that he was getting for his book. The lines were great too, and he had to say that he had the best fans in the world. They were knowledgeable, funny, and he was going to have to tell Hunter that he absolutely had the best fans, might as well rub it into his face a little.

The only downside today was that he was in Washington and his wife and son were in Florida, and it was his 37th birthday and he hadn't spent a birthday without Stephanie since 2002, so he was kind of bummed over that fact. He hadn't spent a birthday without her and though she and Sawyer had called this morning, hearing their voices just wasn't the same as seeing them and being with them on his birthday. He put on his smile again though as he talked to another fan.

Little did he know that Stephanie was in the line right now, patiently waiting her turn. Donning a blonde wig from the good old days, and a pair of large sunglasses, she was playing the ultimate fan right now. In her one hand, she had her personal copy of Chris's book, and her digital camera around her wrist. In the other hand, well, that was being held by her little boy at the moment, who was starting to get antsy, and kept wanting to run up to the life-size model of Chris that they had and talk to it because he kept thinking it was Chris. That thought just made her want to laugh, she'd have to tell Chris that Sawyer couldn't tell the difference between him and a piece of cardboard.

The line was moving achingly slow though and she could just imagine that he was engaging every person going up to him in conversation. While that was nice, she had an eighteen-month-old son with her, and while she could wait, he was a different story altogether. First, he had wanted to take off his jacket, then he hadn't wanted to wear the hat she had made him wear and he had thrown that to the ground. Luckily he was back to wearing it again since she didn't want anyone to recognize her.

She felt Sawyer lean his head against her leg and he looked down at him. He felt her eyes on her and looked up at her with sad eyes. She scooped him up and his head went immediately to her shoulder. "Hey there, sweetie, I know we've been waiting for a while, but we're almost there," she told him, leaning to her left and seeing about twenty people in front of her.

"Daddy," Sawyer whispered, pointing to another picture of Chris they had on display.

"Yeah, he's around here somewhere," Stephanie told her son, kissing him on the forehead. "We're waiting to see him."

"Oh," he responded. "Food."

"You want some apple slices?" Stephanie asked. She had brought along a little food with her and Sawyer had eaten an early dinner, but he usually ate around 7:30 and it was now 7:45, so he might've been a little off-schedule and wanted to eat again.

"Yeah," he told her as he held his hand out. Stephanie shifted the bag that was slung over her shoulder and Sawyer grabbed it and started to root through it. Stephanie held it open for him and he finally found and grabbed the apple slices.

"Nice job, baby boy," Stephanie said, watching him try to tear the bag open. She took part of it and gently ripped open the bag for him as he went for an apple slice. He took a big bite out of it and then offered up the slice to Stephanie. She smiled and took a bite from it, chewing funnily for Sawyer, who laughed, "Thank you."

"W'come," he told her happily before chomping on his apple and then going for another one. He sighed happily as Stephanie tried to juggle everything in her arms. The line kept moving up a little bit more and more as Sawyer kept eating his apples.

"Remember what we talked about, baby boy?" Stephanie asked her little boy.

"No," Sawyer responded, shaking his head, his mouth full of food.

"When we get up to Daddy, you have to be quiet," she told him, "remember?"

"Uh huh," he nodded.

"No talking."

"No," he repeated dutifully.

"We're here to surprise Daddy," she told him, "he's going to be so surprised."

"Yay," Sawyer said, excited because he knew that his mommy was excited. He just wanted to make her happy, plus, he missed his daddy too. He hadn't gotten to see him since Tuesday, and he was extremely upset about that. That was what made Stephanie afraid that the moment Sawyer saw Chris, he'd go barreling for him. She had been coaching him over and over again that when they saw Chris, he wasn't to say a word until she was ready.

Finally, after another fifteen minutes or so they were only a few people away from seeing Chris. Sawyer was happily full, patting his tummy when he had enough of his apples, and putting the bag back into his diaper bag when she opened it for him. Then he made a grab for Stephanie's camera, so Stephanie put him back down on the ground again. He stood in front of her, leaning back against her legs.

"You want to read the book I bought you," she said, referring to the book she had bought when they came into the store and had perused the children's section for a while.

"Yeah!" he said brightly, forgetting completely that his mother had bought him something. She pulled the book out of the bag she had gotten with its purchase and handed it to him as he took it gratefully and threw open the pages to read all about Elmo and Grover and Big Bird too. He was so engrossed in his book that she had to scoot him forward every couple of minutes when the line got shorter and shorter.

She finally made it to the front of the line, just one person in front of her, a teenage guy, who looked like a rail, but was very much into her husband. She looked behind her then too, and saw that the line was really long and she was so happy for her husband in that moment. She also felt a little fangirly as well because she had never waited in line to see him, for obvious reasons, but with every step, hearing people talking about him, buzzing about him, she had gotten even more excited.

She had overheard some people speaking about Chris returning, but she had turned a blind's eye to that because she knew Chris, and he had told her point blank he wasn't returning. The guy mediating the line tapped her on the shoulder, getting her attention, "Your turn, go ahead."

"Thanks," she told him.

She grabbed Sawyer's hand and made him walk up to where Chris was sitting. It just so happened at that moment that Chris was checking his phone to see if Stephanie had called. Sawyer was so into his book, holding it with one hand and looking at it, that he didn't even think to notice Chris at that moment. Stephanie sat down next to Chris, hiding Sawyer to her side as the little boy sat on the ground to read. She pushed the book towards Chris, which he took from her.

"I just have to say," Stephanie said, disguising her voice as much as she could and ending up sounding like she was some demented southern belle. "You are my most favorite wrestler ever."

"Thanks," Chris said, glancing up ever so briefly at her, not even getting a real glimpse. He had seen so many people thus far that his eyes were starting to glaze over and he couldn't really distinguish at this point. Plus, Stephanie had taken great care to mask any noticeable features so Chris wouldn't notice her at first, or maybe even at all. But he'd find out soon enough. "Who do you want me to sign this to?"

"Stephanie," she said in her bad accent.

"Oh, nice name," he said, smiling wistfully and sighing as he thought of how he wouldn't get to see his wife on his birthday.

"You really think so?"

"It's my wife's name," he said proudly. "How do you spell it?"

"S-t-e-p-h-a-n-i-e," she told him.

"Yeah, that's how she spells it too, I tend to like all Stephanie's," he said with a smirk as he looked over at her, again, not really looking directly at her, but more in her general direction.

"Are you saying that would I remind you of your wife?"

"She's one-of-a-kind," he said, "Did you just want me to sign in the front of the book?"

"Would you mind doing it on the dedication page?" she told him. "But first, can I get a picture with you, just before you sign it?"

"Yeah, sure," he said. "Just give the camera to that guy."

She took her camera and handed it to the guy. "I also brought my son, do you mind if he's in the picture too?"

"Oh yeah, sure, I love kids," he said. "Where is he? How old is he?"

"He's only one," she said, going over to where Sawyer was and plucking him up off the ground. He had his head down in his book still, and she had bought him a new outfit just for today so Chris wouldn't recognize it. The beanie over his head helped too.

"Oh, he has blonde hair like you," Chris said as Stephanie pulled Sawyer into her lap, shielding his face a little bit. "Well, smile."

Stephanie leaned in close to Chris as he wrapped his arm around her, feeling like this was a really familiar position for some reason. She gave a big grin as the camera flashed and then before he could turn back to sign her book, she whispered, still in her accent, "Do you think that I could kiss you, just once?"

"Um, yeah, no," he said, pulling away completely, but then narrowing his eyes as the voice started to sound familiar, but he had heard like a million different southern accents over the past few weeks so he couldn't even begin to think of who was who. "Sorry."

"Just one?"

"I'm married," he said, shocked at the audacity of this woman. "I'll sign your book, then you can leave." He was actually starting to get a little bit angry with this woman. "Do you want me to sign your son's name too?"

"Sure," she said, right on the verge of giggling.

"What's his name?"

Just as Stephanie was about to answer, Sawyer turned the last page of his book and, satisfied, finally looked up at the voice that he recognized immediately. He grinned as he tilted his head back and said happily while letting his breath out, "Daddy."

Chris blinked a couple of times because _that_ voice, that voice he knew. He looked down as Sawyer grinned up at him, his tongue sticking a little bit out as he held his book close to him. Chris most definitely recognized that face, because the little boy in front of him in an outfit he had never seen before was absolutely _his_ little boy. His eyes widened as he looked up to the woman next to him, who was trying to suppress a grin.

"Stephanie?" Chris whispered, leaning in closer to her as if to scrutinize her face a little.

"I told you not to blow our cover, baby boy," Stephanie said in her normal voice. "We were so close."

"Oh my…" Chris looked around, seeing people watching them and putting on his best smile. "What are you doing here?"

"Happy Birthday, sweetie," she said, wanting to kiss her husband, but knowing it was not appropriate at this moment.

"I can't believe you're here," he said as he looked at the book and actually signed it. If he had taken the care to look at it, he would've seen that it was the copy he gave her for her birthday with the special dedication. God, he had seen way too many people today because he hadn't even noticed. "Well, there you go, ma'am, I hope you enjoyed the book."

"Oh, immensely, though next time, I think a couple chapters on Stephanie McMahon would be great," she said. "But thank you, I love this store so much, I think me and my son will go to the children's section."

"Wait for me there," he said as he leaned in to give her a hug. "I'll come get you when we're through."

"Thank you so much, Chris, you're the best." She stood up and started to pull Sawyer away from Chris, but the little boy started to whine. He wanted to stay with his daddy, and actually reached his arms out to Chris. Stephanie held him, "We'll see Daddy in a little while, baby, let's go read some more books, okay."

"Okay," he sniffled, even though silent tears were falling from his eyes. Chris watched them walk away, suddenly wishing that everyone would just leave right now so he could be with his family. He noticed that Sawyer had left the book that he had with him and so he put it under the table next to his wallet and some other things he had brought with him before the next person came up for their autograph.

When Chris signed his last autograph, the handlers at the store wanted to personally escort him to the limo he had come in, but he declined and said that he could handle getting around by himself. He grabbed the things that were under the table, Sawyer's book included and thanked the organizers of the event. He wandered over to the children's section, where he saw Stephanie in a chair reading to Sawyer, who was yawning periodically, but didn't look completely exhausted yet. She still had on the blonde wig and everything and he laughed.

Stephanie heard him and looked up, greeting him with a smile. She let Sawyer go on the ground and he stood there until he saw Chris, then ran over and let his father pick him up and give him a big hug and a kiss. "B'day!" Sawyer said as Stephanie walked over.

"That was as much of Happy Birthday as he managed to get," Stephanie laughed as she walked over. The people in this section could hardly care less who Chris was, so engrossed in their kids, so it was okay for Stephanie to talk to Chris normally.

"I can't believe you're here, I was sitting there, bummed out that you were in Florida, and you were in the line the entire time."

"Yes, and it's hard being your fan," she said, grabbing his things from him and shoving them into Sawyer's diaper bag before she grabbed Chris's hand.

"You want to get out of here?" he asked.

"Yeah, let's go back to the hotel," she said.

"Wait, you've been to the hotel?"

"Sweetie, I'm the one that booked your hotel, I told them that I was just coming in a little later, they had no problem with that," she said as they walked down to the doors.

"Oh wow, I had no idea, this is great though, how did you get here?"

"Private car," she said, "courtesy of the hotel, I figured that you wouldn't let your wife and kid stay around here and not let us come in the limo with you."

"You're right, come on, my driver is waiting, one of the employees went to go tell him to get ready," he said as they slipped out into the night, where Stephanie pulled Sawyer's hat further onto his head. They went to the limo and got inside where Stephanie promptly pulled off her wig , and then shook her hair out. "You being here was a total surprise, I wasn't expecting it at all."

"Good, did you honestly think I'd let you spend your birthday alone?"

"Yes," he laughed, but then hugged her and gave her a proper kiss. "I'm so glad you're here though, I didn't want to spend my birthday alone. So how was it being a fan?"

"Weird," she said, "and slow. You just had to talk to every single person there, didn't you?"

He laughed and picked up on her sarcasm, "Yeah, I did, I think I spent the most time talking to you. When you asked for a kiss, I was like, what the hell is she smoking, I'm not kissing her, but then at that point, I don't know, you were starting to feel familiar. I've just seen so many people, I didn't know if it was because you had come to another book signing or what."

"Don't even recognize your own wife's voice," she joked, shaking her head. "I thought for sure that Sawyer would just scream out 'Daddy' and would completely blow our cover altogether, but he was really into the book I bought him."

"Lucky for you," he said, looking down at his son who was just watching the both of them talk to each other, his eyes darting back and forth. "You were almost perfection, kid, you and Mommy had me pretty fooled."

Sawyer giggled, "Daddy…"

"Yeah, you did," he said, tickling his son a tiny bit. "This is the best present ever. All I wanted to do was spend the day with you guys, and you're here, you're really here, I'm just all happy now."

"Well, we couldn't let you be alone on your birthday," she said, leaning in to him. "Did you see all those people for you? It was amazing. I was so proud that so many people were willing to wait to meet you. I did hear people talking about you coming back though, but I ignored it like you said. I don't know where rumors start."

He tensed ever so slightly, "Neither do I, I would love to find out who started this particular rumor because I'd give them the what for."

"I'd pay to see that," she told him, "getting my hopes up like that. But I believe you when you tell me that you're not coming back. These two girls a couple of people in back of me were talking about how it was so you, and I just wanted to be like, no, it's for Bobby Lashley, and then when they asked me how I could possibly know, I'd just rip the wig off and be like, 'I'm Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, that's how I know,' but I refrained."

"Yeah, I don't think _you_ of all people should be the one to ruin the comeback," he laughed, kissing her temple and glad that she was deciding to just ignore what other people said. "I think people are going to be in for the surprise of their lives when he comes back."

"I think people are going to be disappointed at first, since it isn't you, but they don't know you, so they can't really judge. You're not on-screen for the noblest of reasons, for Sawyer, so you know, they should understand that. Besides, they'll be so amazed we were able to keep Bobby such a secret, they might actually just be happy to see him because they were fooled."

"True, true," he said. "Can you imagine if it was me, though, the people would go crazy."

She shook her head, "They wouldn't even know who you were."

"Ouch, that hurts, is that a joke about how I've been gone so long they've all forgotten me?"

"Most certainly," she laughed.

"Yeah, that stung baby, right in the heart."

**Saturday**

"Vince, can we talk?" Chris asked.

"Of course we can," Vince said. "Why do you always ask me that like you can't come in and talk to me? Of course you can talk to me, you're my son-in-law or have you forgotten?"

"_Want_ to forget, maybe," Chris said.

"Did you have a nice birthday," Vince said as the blond sat down across from his desk. "Stephanie told her mother that she and Sawyer were going to go surprise you in Washington, how did that work out?"

"They surprised the hell out of me," Chris chuckled as he thought about Stephanie in disguise, but then turned serious, "Yeah, the birthday was great, I didn't want to spend it without them so having them there with me was just the icing on the cake."

"Good, good," Vince said, "so what is it that you wanted?"

"I want to come back, Vince," Chris said proudly, and then added, "for real this time, no taking it back, no changing the date, this time I'm serious, the 19th, on Raw, I want to come back."

"Are you absolutely positive, because I can start with those immediately and have them ready by Monday announcing your return for the next week, covertly of course," Vince said, though they would turn out to be pretty blatant as Chris would find out the next day when Vince had his video people send him the finished product. They might as well have slapped "Y2J IS COMING BACK NEXT WEEK!" right onto the video since that was the level of subtlety they were working with.

"Yeah, I'm positive, I want to come back, the itch is too strong now, I don't even care what people tell Stephanie, I'm coming back, come hell or high water. So like, whenever you have the contract for me to sign to officially be on TV, I'm ready to sign, especially since I don't think that you're going to be duping me, right, Vince?"

"Well, I could try, but it would be like robbing my daughter and grandson out of money that can go to them, so I wouldn't do it," Vince said, then paged his secretary, "Could you please get me the Jericho file, the one I had filed away a couple of weeks ago."

"Sure, Mr. McMahon."

"You already have it."

"Well, I thought you were coming back last month, but that didn't happen because of that stupid Shawn Michaels," Vince said bitterly, and for once, Chris and Vince were on the same page, for different reasons, but on the same page nonetheless. "Now, you're absolutely sure of this? Because I don't want to hype it and not have it happen."

"It's going to happen, Vince, trust me. I'm done with the searching and all of that. My heart is with wrestling, it always has been, since the time I was a little kid watching it with my grandma, until now, working with my wife, who just happens to own the business, it's under my skin, it's in my blood now, since I'm part of this crazy family," he said, gesturing around the room, actually seeing pictures of himself in Vince's office. Okay, so that was really weird, how had he not noticed those before? Vince had always had pictures on his shelves, but he only just noticed that there were pictures of him and Stephanie, and him and Sawyer, and all of them on the shelves, including one of their wedding pictures. Okay, that was really weird.

"Good, we need you back."

"Aww, Vinnie, are you just saying that because you missed me?"

"Missed you? Chris, you're a part of my family, you still worked for me, I didn't miss you, maybe the fans missed you…"

"Maybe? _Maybe_? I don't think it's a question of maybe, Vince, the fans are clamoring for me, face it, they want me."

"Good, you'll bring in ratings."

"Which is really what it's all about," Chris laughed. "I'm just ready to come back now. I originally left because my wife was pregnant, and I wanted to be there for her. Of course, with Stephanie, her plans change from minute to minute and what she wanted to be a normal pregnancy ended up being her waiting until her 9th month to stop traveling."

"Well…"

"Yeah, I know, it's Stephanie, I should've expected it," Chris said. "It's cool though, I did a lot of other things, and I got to spend a lot of time with Sawyer, being with him and not worrying about wrestling, and that was definitely worth it."

"I'm glad something good came out of it."

"Sawyer's very good," Chris shrugged. Vince's secretary walked into the room with the contracts in hand, and she gave them over to Vince. He thanked her before she left, leaving them alone again. "Do I need my lawyers for this?"

"Do you?" Vince challenged.

"Well, my lawyers are your lawyers, so I guess not," Chris said. "I hope that you're offering me a fair deal."

"Shut up and sign the documents, Chris," Vince said, pushing them across the table.

"Geez, is this how you treat a returning employee?" Chris scoffed.

"You've been working for me since Stephanie went on maternity leave, you're not returning, you're just changing positions, though I hope that you will still help backstage, you were an invaluable member of the management team."

"I'll see what I can do," Chris said as he picked up a pen and signed his signature on the contracts where it called for him to. Normally he would have his lawyers look over anything he signed, but Vince was family and he wouldn't try to dupe him. He was about to ask how long the contract was for, and chuckled to himself.

"What's so funny?" Vince asked.

"I was just going to ask you how long the contract was for, and I remembered when I first signed the contract to come to your company and asked how long it was for and thought about what I can do. I was going to ask you again, but then realized, I kind of signed a life-long contract with Stephanie, so I'm not exactly getting out, am I?"

"Never," Vince chuckled.

**Monday**

"Thanks for coming tonight, Shane," Chris said as he nodded to his brother-in-law.

Shane looked over to Hunter who was leaning casually against the desk in Chris's office. He had his arms folded in front of him and one of his legs out with the other tucked behind it. Shane didn't know what Hunter was doing in here, not that he really minded, but he was curious as to why Chris had called _him_ here. All he had gotten was a call telling him that he had to come to Raw this week.

"What is this about, Chris?" Shane asked.

"Okay, well, I asked you both in here for a reason, Hunter, you already know the reason, but Shane, you don't."

"What reason?" he asked.

"I'm coming back."

"Where?" Shane asked.

"To Raw."

"Wait…you mean, those videos, Stephanie said they were for Bobby Lashley," Shane said. "She said she asked if it was for you, and you flat-out said that it wasn't, and it was for Bobby Lashley's return."

Hunter chuckled, "And you _believed_ that? Have you seen the videos?"

"Yes I've seen the videos," Shane said, narrowing his eyes at the other man, "Why aren't you…wait, did _you_ know?"

"Yeah, I've known for a while now," Hunter smirked.

"Wait, hold up, hold up," Shane said, putting his hands up, "he knew, he knew and I didn't know, man, we're like brothers, we _are_ brothers, you're married to my sister, and I didn't even get to know, and Hunter of all people got to know."

"He's around more," Chris shrugged. "Look, he's the only one that knows besides your dad and the video people who made the videos for me."

"I still can't believe you wouldn't tell me about this, I'm your brother-in-law!" Shane said. "This is a really big insult if you ask me."

"I'm sorry, Shane, there are you happy?" he asked.

"I gotta say, no, not really," Shane said. "So you're honestly coming back? Like for real, I thought that you were happy with where you were."

"I was, but I got the itch back."

"Thatta boy," Hunter said. "I knew it'd suck you back in."

"Shut up, why do people keep acting like I left, I never left, I've been here almost every week, I took over for Stephanie, for God's sake," he said, exasperated that people thought he had actually abandoned the business when nothing could be further from the truth. "I never left."

"On-screen then," Hunter said.

"So really, why am I here?" Shane asked again.

"Well, okay, so Vince commissioned the video guys to come up with a new promo for me. Anyways, I saw it, and it pretty much gives me away, like, completely. If Stephanie were to see it, she's going to absolutely know it was me."

"Why?"

"Well, it pretty much says Y2J on it," Chris explained. "Why they wanted to be so explicit, I don't even know, but they did, anyways, I need your help to keep Stephanie from seeing this. It's going to be shown twice, at approximately 9:55, and then again around 10:30 I think it is. Anyways, you guys, I really need your help, I don't want Stephanie to know."

"Why not?" Shane asked.

"He wants it as a surprise," Hunter said.

"Really?"

"Yeah," Chris said. "Look, I never get to surprise her with anything because she always catches on. By the grace of God, I've been able to keep this from her. I have one more week to do this, one week. I just want to surprise her, I know it's going to make her excited."

"How do you know she won't be pissed off at you?" Shane asked. "You know how she likes to be in the know about these things."

"He's got a point," Hunter said.

"Look, she'll be happy, I'm sure of it," Chris said, shaking his head. "Anyways, I figured if I could just get your help to keep her away from the monitors when this is happening. I mean, I can keep my eye on her, but she'd get suspicious, so if you would just kind of hang around her, but not too much."

"You do realize I have a match tonight in which I will have guys waiting on the outside of the ring to kick my ass, right?" Hunter said, squinting his eyes a little as he regarded Chris.

"Yeah, I know, I know what goes on, but up until then you're what, going to hang around with Shawn? Act like a complete doofus again, come on man, let's not kid ourselves thinking that you're going to be doing anything of substance," Chris said.

"You're an ass," Hunter muttered.

"Just you wait, I'll get to you soon," Chris said, pointing at him accusingly. "So please, you guys, if not for me, for Steph. She's been waiting a long time for this, and I just want to make her happy."

"Okay, for Steph," Shane said.

"Yeah, if it's for Stephanie, I can do it," Hunter said. "But you owe me."

"Whatever, you freaking owe me too so shut up," Chris said good-naturedly, "now let's go out there and make sure my wife is in the dark. Oh, and if anyone comes up to her and seems like they want to talk about it, get he away from that situation immediately.

--

"Shane?" Stephanie said as she looked across the room. "Shane, is that you?"

"Hey baby girl," Shane said, hugging his sister as she stood up from the table she was sitting at.

"What are you doing here?"

"Oh, Dad asked me to come."

"Are you going to be on the show?"

"No, just here for a meeting with him."

"Oh, it's great to see you though, come on, sit down," she said, pointing to a chair.

"Hi!" Sawyer said from his booster seat as he continued to eat his chicken pieces, scooping it up with a spoon.

"Hey Sawyer, how's my favorite nephew, you good?"

"Good," Sawyer said, giving him a patented Jericho grin. "Yeah."

"Well, that's good, that's good."

"Uh huh," Sawyer said as he went back to getting his dinner into his mouth. Stephanie stared at Shane suspiciously because his eyes kept darting around like he was looking out for someone or something to happen.

"What's up, Shane? Why do you keep looking around?" she asked, looking around herself and trying to figure out what he was looking at.

"Nothing, I'm just looking around," he said, nodding his head.

"You're weird," she told him. "Seriously, what are you looking for?"

"Nothing, geez, I can't look around now?" he asked. "I'm not doing anything wrong, I just wanted to come see you and talk to you, and see how you were doing since you guys never really come to Connecticut anymore."

"We were just there," she said, "and as I recall, I didn't get an invitation inviting me over to your house or anything. So that's your fault."

"Well, sorry," he said as he saw a production person approaching. "Can I help you?"

"What the hell, Shane," Stephanie said, irritated now. "You're not the one in charge around here, don't forget that I'm the one that's in charge of the show so if one of my employees wants to talk to me, then let them talk."

"Well, I'm sorry, I'm part of this company too," he asserted.

"What did you need?" Stephanie asked the person.

"Oh, I was just told that your assistant needed to see you."

"Oh, okay," Stephanie said. She looked to her brother, "Can you stay with Sawyer until he finishes his dinner, I don't want to drag him away from his meal."

"Yeah, sure," Shane said as he watched his sister take off out of the room. Chris had mentioned that Britt was in on everything too, knowing that she would come up with a ton of different ways to distract Stephanie.

Which was exactly what she was currently doing as Stephanie caught up to her. "Hey, Steph, I hate to bother you since the show is starting soon, but you needed to go over all the contracts for Survivor Series tonight."

"What! I was planning on going over those tomorrow and planning the list of the matches accordingly," Stephanie said to her. "What the hell, why do I have to do it tonight?"

"I don't know, but those are direct orders from your father," Britt said as she gestured towards the stack of papers on the desk. Stephanie groaned and stared at it, missing the smirk that came over her assistant's face. She thought it was sweet of Chris to go to such lengths to keep Stephanie in the dark about his return. She had to admit, she was kind of anxious to see Chris in the ring as well. She had never seen him wrestle before, not even in old tapes, and while she knew more about wrestling from being around the business, she didn't know enough about the past of it. She thought it would be cool to see Chris wrestling and doing what he does best, according to Stephanie.

"Thanks, Britt," Stephanie said as she sat down at her desk. "I just don't understand why he would need all of this tonight."

Britt shrugged, "I don't know either, but that was the order."

"Well, I don't need anything else right now, but thanks for letting me know about this."

"Not a problem," Britt said before she left and almost immediately ran into Chris.

"So did she get the papers?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, she's really mad about having to work on all of that, but she's dealing with it. It should keep her busy at least for a little while," Britt told him.

"Great, thanks," Chris said. "I just want to keep her busy tonight."

"Good luck," she said, patting him on the arm as she left to go finish up some of the work that Chris wasn't able to do since he was going to be watching out for his wife all evening. Chris went back to sitting on a trunk just a little ways down the hall from where Stephanie was. He kept his eyes on the door to make sure that she didn't get past him unnoticed.

After about twenty minutes and with the show already underway, she emerged from her office, raising her hands above her head and stretching. Chris was near her almost immediately. "Hey, baby."

"Hey, sweetie," she said, kissing him, "where've you been?"

"Around, where are you going?"

"I was just going to see where Sawyer was. I left him with Shane, and I wanted to make sure that he was still with him," Stephanie said. "I mean, I figure that he is, but I just wanted to check up on him and make sure that everything was fine."

"Well, okay, you go ahead and do that," he said, looking at his watch and deciding the coast was clear. He had a feeling the entire night was going to be like this.

**8:53 PM (Central Time)**

Stephanie was walking down the hallway, watching Sawyer up ahead of her run around and through all the things that made the backstage exciting for him. He stopped abruptly to wait for Stephanie to catch up to him and she walked over quickly and scooped him up into her arms. He laughed and hugged her tightly around the neck before they continued down the hall. She didn't have a destination in particular since her father had insisted once again that he handle the actual show tonight. She just didn't feel like arguing with him, so there he was. She thought that maybe she could go watch some of the show before she went back to her paperwork.

She just reached the monitor when she was pulled away suddenly. She turned to the person who had grabbed her and groaned, "Hunter, what the hell was that for?"

"I lost my wallet in my locker room and I was hoping you could help me look for it."

"You what, and you want me to what?"

"You're the first person I came across. I think that if it's not in my locker room that someone stole it, probably Umaga, and if that's the case, well, you can suspend them or something," Hunter lied, and it was a terrible lie at that and he wondered if she could see right through him, but as he glanced at the clock, Chris's promo was set to air in a minute, or right now, and he had to get her away from the monitor. "Please, Stephanie."

"Okay, okay, fine," she agreed as she started to follow Hunter to his locker room. "I can't believe you would lose your wallet."

"Well, I'm forgetful," he said as he held open the door for her, knowing that she probably had missed the promo by now.

"Hunter, you idiot, your wallet is right there," she said as she gestured towards the item which was on the folding chair right in front of her.

"So it is," Hunter said. "I guess I just completely forgot, silly me."

"Ugh, idiot," she muttered. "I'm going to go watch the show."

"Here, I'll walk you."

"I'm capable of doing this whole walking thing myself, you know," she told him. "I don't need your help."

"Well, I want to catch part of the show too," he said as he proceeded to escort her to the monitors and keep her engaged in conversation so nobody else could.

**9:04 PM**

"Hey, Steph," Shane said, wrapping his arm around the unguarded Stephanie. "Where's the kid?"

"With Chris, sleeping," Stephanie said. "I just wanted to get a breather from that paperwork. I know I keep stalling but Dad has never needed it this early so I'm thinking he's just giving me busywork so that he could run the show."

"Man, that is _so_ Dad," Shane said, shaking his head. "I guess he just wants to be in power."

"Yeah."

"Hey, Stephanie, so how about Chris, huh? Why didn't you tell anyone?" Jeff said as he walked by them. Shane glared at him.

"What about Chris?"

"You know, the whole…"

"Book tour, how well it's been doing, and Chris's book debuted on the New York Times Bestseller list," Shane interjected, "I mean, that's the only thing that you could be addressing, right?"

"Well, I was talking about…" Jeff saw the death glare that Shane was giving him and figured out that Stephanie didn't know about Chris. It was pretty plain reading Shane's face. "That, yeah, I was talking about that."

"Well yeah, I'm really proud of him," Stephanie said. "He's getting some great crowds."

"Yeah, well, wish him luck for me."

"I will, thanks, Jeff," Stephanie said, then looked to Shane. "Chris is so popular, you know, the fans, they love him. That's all I heard when I was waiting in line for him. They were all just talking about what a great guy he is.

"Hey, Steph, are you excited?" one of the production people asked her.

"For what?"

"Survivor Series," Shane interjected again.

"Yeah, it should be a good one, the show looks great," Stephanie said politely as she forgot about the production person who was now looking at her strangely.

**9:35**

Well, the only thing Chris needed to do to distract Stephanie at this point was make out with her, so that's just what he did.

Now he only needed a week to keep this a secret.

One week…


	158. Chris is BACK, November 19, 2007

A/N: Chris is back! Chris is back! CHRIS IS BACK! I don't think I need to say more, but more than 2 years was long enough and I can't tell you how good it was to see him last night, since you all probably know. I'm so freaking happy not just as a fan, but I actually get something to write about, can you believe it, I'm so excited. I really hope that you enjoy the chapter as much as you enjoyed Chris's return, and leave a review.

Also, I started a new story, "Twilight on a Broken Star," so go check that out and let me know what you think. :)

One last thing: Raw IS Jericho!

* * *

Lord help him, he was nervous. 

He couldn't understand it. He had done this for 15 years, and had already debuted once before, and it wasn't like he hadn't been here this entire time. Still, he was nervous, and he kept fidgeting and thankfully, Stephanie hadn't taken notice of this since Sawyer had preoccupied much of his time. But still, he was nervous, for what, well, for later, coming back, all of it, he was nervous, and it was such a foreign feeling to him. It almost felt like the first time he had ever wrestled, when those butterflies had fluttered in his stomach and had caused him momentarily to freeze up. That same feeling was coming over him now, but he was pushing it back. It would be great, he knew this, and he would finally get to surprise his wife, and that was the best part of it.

Finally, he got to surprise Stephanie. It was a long time coming.

Well, it would be if he could keep this in for just a few more hours. That's all he had left, just a few hours and everything was going to happen, for better or for worse. The months of speculation were going to come to a head tonight He knew that apparently everyone knew that he was coming back, but he had managed for the past week to keep Stephanie in the dark by basically becoming her shadow. He had finished up his book tour with her by his side, and he had scheduled a ton of things for just them this week. She must've thought something was up, but he could diffuse that easily if she just didn't talk to anyone at all.

That's why he was here, right next to her as she did his work. Sawyer was sitting on the floor playing with some trucks and he was watching her. She kept glancing over at him, not necessarily annoyed, but she was a little uneasy by how close he was to her. He wasn't even doing anything except staring at her, but it was starting to become a little unnerving. She loved being around him, but he wasn't _doing_ anything right that second.

"Okay, Chris, what did you do?" Stephanie said, finally breaking the silence that was between them.

"What do you mean? What are you talking about?" he asked innocently.

"You don't think that I haven't noticed that you've been hanging around me all week," she said. "What do you take me for, Chris? I figured that you were just wanting to be around me since you had your book tour and you were gone for days at a time, but you haven't been hanging around the monster as much as me, so that makes me think this is different, so what did you do?"

"Nothing!" he protested. "I didn't do anything. I just didn't spend a lot of time with you--"

"We've spent all week together, with you right next to me the entire time."

"I love you," he said, grinning at her in that way that still sent shivers down her spine. "Just so you know."

"Okay, seriously, what the hell did you do? I'm not going to be mad…you cheated on me, right?" she said, poking him in the chest. "With someone on your book tour, right? A blonde woman, I'm guessing, one with a son."

He laughed, "No, I didn't do anything, I swear to you, Steph, I just wanted to be around you. I just felt like we haven't gotten to spend so much time together lately and it's been bugging me, so I want to make sure I spent time with you."

"What about him?" Stephanie asked as she pointed to Sawyer.

"Daddy," Sawyer said as he looked over, "hi."

"Hey kid," Chris smiled. "I'm with him all the time. You kind of don't need to spend extra time with a kid when you're still changing their diapers, that's a pretty close relationship as it is. But between us, well, I don't need to help you so much, so I need to just spend time with you."

"Sweet…what did you do?" she asked again, arching her eyebrow.

"Steph, I have not done anything."

"I don't believe you." She looked at him suspiciously, "Why don't you just tell me what you did because I'm going to find out anyways, I always find out the things I want to find out. You know this and yet you continue to try and hide things."

"I'm not hiding anything, but fine, fine, fine," he said. "I was just…thinking, like, maybe, what if we were to have another kid, you know, start thinking about it and actually planning it out this time."

He knew it was a lie, he wasn't ready to have another child and he knew it. Still, he thought that would be enough to get her thinking about something entirely different and not why he was hanging around her all week. This would also serve as a major distraction for her, and she wouldn't even be able to concentrate on anything else. He had already made sure to have Vince tell her that he was going to take over production for the evening since it was the night after a big show and he wanted to make sure that the follow-up to Survivor Series was top-notch.

"Uh…what?" she asked.

"I love Sawyer, you know, and I just think that I'm ready to have another one."

"Wow, okay, you _do_ know that you aren't the one to carry a kid for nine months, right? And you aren't the one who has to stay at home with that kid for six weeks, right?" she told him. "Although, I guess you could stay home since you're not actually on the show. You could probably do your job from home."

"I know that you're the one carrying it, that's why I'm discussing it with you," he told her winningly. "I just wanted to discuss it. I feel like I have so much love to give, you know. And wouldn't a little girl be really cool? One that looks like you, that you can dress up and show off, and she'd be a total Daddy's girl," he said, taking her hand and rubbing it gently. Man, she was probably going to murder him in his sleep tonight.

"Well…that does sound nice," she said wistfully as she looked down at Sawyer. "And Sawyer was really cute as a baby, wasn't he?"

"He was," he said, hoping he didn't actually talk her into having another child. He was going to be coming back to wrestling and he didn't have the time to take care of another kid. He already knew it was going to be tight with him wrestling. He would have to be out there, and Stephanie would have to be back here, and God forbid they ever did anything together on-screen, where the hell would Sawyer go? Well, there were a bunch of people who would be willing to baby-sit him. Maybe a nanny…no, he didn't want some nanny taking care of his kid. It didn't matter, Sawyer would be well taken care of either way.

"Well, I don't know, I guess it could be a discussion," she said. "If that's what you really want, I mean, I don't want to disappoint you."

"You wouldn't," he said. "But yeah, a discussion, right, I like that."

His leg was bouncing up and down as he gave her a smile. She still thought it was weird, but if he was thinking about another child, then that was definitely going to be something that would make him act strangely. She didn't want to outright tell him that she wasn't ready to have another child. Sawyer was only nineteen months old, and that was still just so young to spring another child on any of them. Plus, she would almost feel like she hadn't really gotten any time to not be pregnant since she still had some baby weight left over.

But if Chris really wanted another baby, well, they'd have to think up some kind of compromise, like waiting an allotted time period before they started trying. She was back on the pill and so it wasn't going to happen unless they planned it. Of course, they hadn't planned Sawyer in the slightest, but she felt a bit more prepared this time. Still, another child? She didn't want to have to leave again.

Chris was pleased with his work on Stephanie. She was completely fooled and he loved it. "So your dad is running the show, huh?"

"Well, he ran Survivor Series last night, save for when he and my brother were out there with…Hornswoggle. You know, I don't really care for the guy, but I definitely feel bad for him. I don't know if my father is toying with him or if he's actually caring about him. Then I think Shane is just resentful, and I am just…confused. But since my dad took care of the show last night, he wanted to be the one to take care of it tonight, and whatever."

"You seem kind of upset," he said, tucking her hair behind her ear.

"I am, I mean, if this guy is my brother, he should know that…my father is an asshole, plain and simple," she laughed humorlessly. "That's the long and short of it. But…ugh, it just doesn't feel like he's my brother, you know. He feels like this stranger who is trying to be a part of my family. I'm not appreciative of it to be frank."

"He is a stranger though."

"yeah, I guess I just have to go with the flow, it's what we McMahons do," she said. "Another kid, Chris?"

"It's just a suggestion. I wasn't saying hey, let's go have sex right now," he said, though if that would distract her for the next few hours, then he would absolutely have sex with her…after dropping off Sawyer with someone since he wasn't too keen on traumatizing his son by having sex in front of him.

"Okay, well, yeah, I don't even know," Stephanie laughed. "You can't just spring this on a girl!"

"I'm sorry," he said, rubbing her back, "but you know, we'll talk later, tonight, later tonight, you better talk to me later tonight."

"Chris," she giggled, "we're definitely going to talk about this later, I mean, a kid is a huge deal, plus, you thought that I didn't even want Sawyer, what are you going to think this time?"

"Nothing because we have a kid," he told her.

"Are you cold?" she asked, noticing he was rubbing his hands.

"No, just, you know, a little," he said, not having a good explanation for why he was rubbing his hands. He was actually rubbing them because the anticipation was building up inside of him and it felt like it was going to reach a fever pitch soon and he was trying to prevent himself from yelling about his return.

He noticed that Sawyer had gotten up and was walking towards him, "Daddy, go."

"Where you want to go?" Sawyer shrugged. "How can we go somewhere if you don't know where you want to go? Do you want to go watch them test out all the stuff in the ring, is that what you want to do?"

"Yeah," Sawyer told him, nodding his head and then handing Chris a crayon.

"You're going to draw me a map?"

"'Ap," Sawyer giggled then turned to Stephanie. "Hi, Mama."

"Hey baby boy," Stephanie said, poking him in the chin, "why don't you take your old man out of here so he doesn't hover around me and then start to talk more nonsense about more kids, I don't think you'd take too well with having to share the spotlight."

"It's not ridiculous," Chris said. "Just…think about it."

"Fine, fine, fine, you know I think I'm going to go find my dad and see what the schedule is for tonight."

"Why don't you just wait and I'll bring it back when I come back, Sawyer and I are going to be like what, twenty minutes because he can't sit still for longer than that. I'll swing by your dad's office and pick up the schedule so you can see if you want to suggest anything."

"Would you do that? Because that would be so great of you," she said. "I really don't feel like going to see him right now."

He smiled, things were working beautifully. "Absolutely I will, you know, you should just lounge out in here for the night, take it off, not deal with anyone."

"If only, right," she laughed. "Go though, the sooner you leave, the sooner you get back with the schedule for me, and then I can look it over and complain."

If everything worked out the way he wanted it to, he didn't think that Stephanie was going to be complaining at all. He kissed her and then let Sawyer kiss her cheek before they left. Chris put Sawyer down on the ground in front of him before he snatched off the sign on the door that said Stephanie and Chris Jericho on it. He didn't want people to know this was Stephanie's office and walk in and tell her what was going on. He saw Shane down the hallway and nodded at him, to which he nodded back, keeping an eye on the door.

He slapped the sign with their names on it onto an empty room and figured if people looked inside, they'd just assume she wasn't there. He walked with Sawyer and noticed everyone smiling and nodding at him, but he tried to keep his cool. If he gave it away, someone might actually going to Stephanie about it and that was the last thing he needed since he was so close to actually getting back on TV.

They went down to the ring and sat at the announcer's table. "Well, kid, I think this is as good a time as any to talk about what's going to happen tonight. Now you have to promise not to tell Mommy, is that okay with you?"

"Yeah."

"Good," Chris said, though Sawyer didn't know what he was saying. "Anyways, about 2 and a half years ago, your mom told me that she was going to have a baby. Imagine my surprise at the news because we weren't planning you. But we wanted you, don't get us wrong."

"Daddy," he said, leaning forward and kissing Chris.

"Thanks," he said, wiping at his lips. "But your mom and I decided that we weren't going to stick around here because we wanted to do this thing right with you. Your mom decided that two weeks was enough, but there were other things that I wanted to do so I decided to stay away. I didn't plan for it to be so long, but it's been a long time."

"Uh huh."

"You've been talking to your mommy, haven't you?" he asked. "I was a wrestler for a long time, Sawyer, and tonight, you get to see that again, and I'm really excited about that fact. I really, really want you to see this, and you are, and I hope that you're going to be really proud of me. You need to be proud of me, kid because I gave it all up for you, and now…I'm getting back into it and I want you to be proud of your old man. So I hope you're watching, and…in the case that your mother is pissed off at me, can you kind of like, calm her down, be cute, you know, so she doesn't kick me in the balls?"

"'Kay," Sawyer said.

"Thanks, we better get back though, there's still some time I have to keep this a secret from your mother."

Chris picked Sawyer up and they walked backstage and Chris went to Vince's office, knocking on the door though Vince was constantly telling him that he needn't do that, but he never knew what he might walk into when walking into Vince's office. Who knew, really, he could walk in there and Vince could be with a diva, and that would disgust the hell out of him.

"Come in."

"Hey Vince," Chris said as he stuck his head in.

"There's my favorite guy."

"Oh, thanks, Vince," Chris said coyly.

"I was talking to my grandson, but well, you're among my favorites too since you are coming back tonight, and you _are_ coming back, right, because if you aren't, then I'm going to have to fire you."

Chris laughed, "Don't worry, Vince, I'm coming back. Trust me."

"Good, because we've kind of put all our eggs in one basket here," Vince told him. "I think that if you weren't to come back tonight we might have a mutiny on our hands. Do you know where you want to come in, because I can pencil in myself going out there or something and then it can be you instead."

"Well, can I see the schedule?" he asked. "Because maybe I want to interrupt someone."

Vince handed him the schedule and he perused it. It might benefit him to interrupt HBK since that guy was directly responsible for him not returning earlier and having to become attached to Stephanie at the hip. He thought that was where he was going to come back until he came to the bottom of the schedule and became intrigued when he saw that Randy had gotten time at the end of the show, but it wasn't for any match. He raised an eyebrow as he looked up to his father-in-law.

"See somewhere you'd like to interrupt?"

"I sure do," Chris answered. "What the hell is Randy doing at the end of the show?"

"Well, he said he thinks that he should get a torch passed to him since he's apparently the last one standing. So I gave him time."

"Perfect," Chris muttered. "Yeah, I'll be ready at the end of the show."

"What are you going to do, Chris?"

"Well, for one, knock Randy off his high horse, and as Stephanie's husband and a part of this McMahon family, I think that I should really be the belt-holder," he said, "the _WWE Title_ belt-holder."

"Well, it's about damn time you realized this," Vince smirked. "So how is it going keeping Stephanie from finding out?"

"She still doesn't know, I don't know how she doesn't know, usually she's on top of these things like you wouldn't believe, but I think she's just been busy and doesn't believe it's going to happen any time soon. I think she honestly believes that I'm never going to come back, which, though sad, makes this a hell of a lot easier."

"Well, she'll be surprised and that's what you want."

"Yeah, do you mind if I take this? Stephanie wants a copy," he said, waving the schedule around. "It doesn't say anything about me on it anywhere does it, I only glanced over everything."

"No, it's clean. Take it."

"Thanks, Vince, talk to you later," Chris nodded as he took himself and Sawyer out of the room. "I'm starting to get excited, kid, so you have to keep me grounded. I don't want to burst around your mommy, she'll definitely know that something is up. I just…I want this to be great. When I was going to propose to your mom, let me tell you, I tried to keep that one a secret because I had this elaborate plan, and it completely crashed on me."

"Bad," Sawyer said sympathetically picking up on the change in Chris's mood.

"Yeah, bad indeed," Chris said. "That's why tonight has to go perfectly, so you better keep my secret, I want Mommy to be very surprised, and if you ruin it Sawyer Jericho like you ruined Mommy's birthday surprise for me, I'm going to kick your cute butt out of the house, and you're going to have to go live with Grandpa Vince, and we both know that will be punishment enough."

Sawyer stuck his tongue out at him, "Westle."

"Shut up, kid," Chris joked as they came upon Shane who was still kind of stationed outside the door. "Hey, how's it going?"

"She hasn't left, and Britt is in there with her, I think she's distracting her because they haven't come out and all I hear is giggling," Shane said. "So seriously man, tonight's the night, right?"

"Yeah, it is, the end of the show," Chris said.

"Well, I have to leave half-way through because I really need to get my flight tonight. Dec has this thing for his daycare and Rissa wants me there to see it because it's been a big deal for Dec, so I have to be there tonight or the wife is going to kill me."

"I know how that goes."

"She's going to love this, Chris, seriously, she's going to freak out. If I know my baby sister, I know that she is going to love that you actually kept something like this from her. You know how much she loves the conniving."

"I'm banking on it," Chris said, shaking Shane's hand.

"And you know, welcome back too, you know the fans missed the hell out of you, right?"

"Of course I know they missed this sexy beast," Chris said. "Please, they've been dying to see me, and finally their fantasies are going to be fulfilled."

"Well, at least the abject cockiness didn't get thrown by the wayside," Shane said. "I don't think the fans would respond well to _that_. Though they may not like the hair issue."

"They'll get used to it," Chris said. "Stephanie eventually did and she was the charter member of the 'I Hate Chris's Short Hair' club. They'll all get used to it after a while. It doesn't detract from my sexiness."

"You're weird, but then again, so is my sister, so it's apt that you two would get together. It's weird though, a little right, because last time, you were leaving because your wife was pregnant and now you have this almost two-year-old kid, and you're older."

"Dude, you're older than I am," Chris said. "But it's a little weird, I mean, I'm here and I've been here for the last two years, but not in this capacity. I've never just gone through the curtains and gone out there, and it's going to be…surreal. I'm excited as hell though, man."

"Yeah, how could you not be?" Shane said. "You'll be great."

"Like I could be anything else," Chris scoffed.

"Okay, I've had my fill of Chris Jericho," Shane said with a chuckle. "Good luck, man, I know you're going to be great."

"Thanks," Chris nodded. "I'm going to go in the lion's den, tell Rissa and the boys that I said hi, and tell the boys that Sawyer wants them to come visit Florida so they can all play together."

"I'll tell them," Shane said, patting Chris on the back before he walked away.

Chris walked into the room and saw Britt leaning against the desk as Stephanie sat in her chair. Britt was talking at the moment, "And then he brought me lilies which are my favorite flower and I swear I didn't know he even knew."

"Guys have that way of knowing things," Stephanie said, not even knowing that Stephanie was in the room. "So what else did this guy do?"

"Well, he was just sweet, way sweeter than I ever figured he could be. I mean, you meet a guy and you get that first impression and sometimes you are just so set in that thinking that you're hesitant to judge them any other way."

"I was that way with Chris," Stephanie said, still not realizing that Chris was there. Chris became intrigued at this. "I thought he was a royal jackass, but he's not so bad."

"Thanks," Chris said from the door.

"I knew you were there, jerk," Stephanie said as Chris put Sawyer down.

"Mama, mama, mama," he said, running to her, "westle."

"I don't wrestle and you know it," she said, tickling him.

"Hi," Sawyer said to Britt, lifting his arms to Stephanie who put him in her lap.

"Hey there, little guy," Britt said as she turned to Chris and winked. Chris smiled at her and then went over and handed the schedule to Stephanie.

"There you go, baby," he said, "just your same-old, run-of-the-mill show. Doesn't look like anything exciting is going to happen."

She looked it over, "Why does Randy have time at the end of the show?"

"He wants to do some bogus ceremony where he's like the last guy standing or something, you know, last survivor, he's kicked everyone's asses and everything, you know how it goes, he's young, thinks he's the top of the world."

"Oh," she said. "Someone should put him in his place…oh well, let Shawn do it or something, then they can beat each other up and I won't have to deal with any of them. Wouldn't that be something?"

"Well, you don't have to watch it," he shrugged.

"True, by then, Sawyer will probably be asleep and we can leave. Did you decide if we were going to stay overnight here or drive back home, please tell me that you at least got a hotel room if we're going to stay here and not go home tonight, because I do not want to share a suite with my father, out of the question."

"Well, did you want to go home?" he asked.

"Do you think that you'd be good to drive four hours at eleven o'clock at night?" she wondered.

"I got us a hotel room, so don't worry, we're actually booked to sleep somewhere tonight. I don't think that I'd be up for driving tonight with such a long distance, there's a ton of other things that I want to get done tonight."

He figured that if things went well and Stephanie was especially happy that they'd be celebrating well into the night, and while the thought of her doing things to him in the car was certainly kinky, Chris had a big problem with doing that kind of thing while 1. he was driving 2. he was driving with his kid in the backseat and 3. when he had to do it in the middle of the night. At least in a hotel they got a two-room suite so that Sawyer would be happily tucked away and they could have fun to their heart's content. She was going to love him tonight.

"Like what?" she asked. "You've done nothing all night but stare at me, and take Sawyer out to the ring."

"I've also gotten the schedule for you," he said, poking the piece of paper in her hand.

"And this is my cue to leave," Britt said. "I do not want to get in the crossfire when you two start going at it, I made that mistake a long time ago and I've learned." Chris flipped her off and she laughed as she left the room to go continue to do her work.

"Oh yes, the schedule," Stephanie said, going back to their discussion. "What other things do you have to do tonight?"

Come back, he thought, but responded, "Well, I've spent all this time staring at you so I've actually been wasting my time. I have to make sure everyone is booked for next week, check flights, the normal thing that I do every week to make sure that every single one of your employees is here and ready to work."

"Well, good," she told him. "So go do that."

"We're sharing an office tonight, remember?"

"Oh yeah, do you want to squeeze into the chair with me and Sawyer?"

"No, I'm good," he said. "Hey, Steph?"

"Yeah, sweetie?" Stephanie said, looking up at him.

"Do you think I'm good at this job? Honestly, do you see me back here and part of management and actually _see_ me as fitting in with the rest of you guys?"

She thought for a moment as she leaned her chin on Sawyer's head. He grabbed a pen and started to color on the schedule, pulling it from Stephanie's hand and doodling all over it. She didn't mind as she had already seen it. She wanted to see Chris back in the ring someday, but she didn't want to lie to him and tell him he was doing a bad job.

"You're great," she told him in a small voice. She sighed, knowing if she told him this, he was never going to come back, but…he was still here and he never had to accept a position here, but he had, and she had to tell him the truth. "You're great at what you do and you should be really proud of yourself. You've changed so much and you've become this great business guy, and you understand what goes on back here. This _is_ something you can do."

"Thanks," he told her. She had nailed the final nail into the coffin of his wrestling career; she was sure of it. Now she just had to realize that he was a suit. She had turned her husband into a suit. "I just wanted to hear your opinion on it since I plan to hold the position for a while."

"Oh yeah?" she asked, forcing a smile on her face.

He leaned forward and kissed her, "Yeah." Her phone rang just then, but it was out of her reach. She looked pointedly at Chris and he picked up the phone and saw that it was Trish calling. He answered it, "Hey, Trish."

"Oh my God, Chris, why didn't you tell me you were coming back?" Trish asked. "I haven't watched Raw and then all of a sudden, I hear that you're coming back, when the hell did this happen?"

"Oh, you were actually calling for me, well, that's nice," he said.

"What, Chris, what's going on?"

"Let me call you back on my phone, okay?"

"Um…sure," Trish said. "Bye…"

"Bye," Chris responded, hanging up the phone.

"What did she want?"

"She wanted guy advice, I'm going to give her a call back," he said, taking his phone out of his pocket. "And this is a personal call, so I'll be taking it outside the room, thank you very much."

"Whatever, like I care where you take your calls," she told him scoffing as she went to looking at Sawyer's drawing, "Wow, honey, is this all the changes you want to make to the schedule, you want to do what at the half-hour mark of the first hour?"

"Doggie," he said.

"A dog collar match? We don't do that anymore, baby boy, think again."

"Uh…Batta?"

"No, no bottle matches, how would we hang it from the ceiling?" she asked, kissing his head.

Chris went into the hallway and looked both ways before dialing Trish's number. "Hey, Trish, it's me again."

"Why did you hang up on me?"

"Stephanie doesn't know I'm coming back, so don't call her or anything. I'm keeping this a surprise because she's going to be so excited," Chris said and he sounded downright giddy. Even Trish, thousands of miles away could hear the sheer joy in his voice and it made her involuntarily smile.

"That's really sweet, so you really are coming back?"

"Stick around for the end of the show," Chris said. "It's going to be great."

"I'm so excited for you," she said. "And this plan didn't involve me having to kiss you."

"I know, that's what made it even better," he chuckled. "So just…don't call her."

"I won't, I promise, are you really excited though?"

Chris ducked his head, "Yeah, and I'm a little nervous too, but once I get out there, it's going to be like an old hat. I know how to work the crowd, and I know how to cut a damn fine promo, so I'm not going to get too worried. I missed it. I was writing my book and I just…missed it."

"I miss it too sometimes," Trish said wistfully. "I had a lot of fun there. It's a little on the lonely side out here when you're not constantly with anybody. You're with all these people all the time and you never feel lonely and then you are, but you don't know what that's about, you're always there."

"Yeah, but you should come back," he said. "Show these younger women what a real women's wrestler is like."

"So now you're just one of Steph's minions, trying to get me to come back."

"Just a suggestion, but thanks for calling, it's nice to tell this to someone," he said.

"I'm definitely going to be watching, Chris Jericho, so you better rock my socks off."

He laughed, "Trust me, I'm going to."

"Later, Chris."

"Bye, Trish."

He went back inside Stephanie's office to make sure she was in the dark.

He managed to keep her in the dark for the entire time. It helped that Sawyer had decided that tonight was the night he wasn't going to sleep at all. It was nearing ten o'clock and he was still up and gallivanting around like he didn't have a care in the world. Stephanie had been trying to convince him that bed was the best thing for him at the moment, but he was having none of that. He could feel the excitement from his father and it just fueled his own energy and he wasn't going to stop until he had had his fill.

"Sawyer, bedtime!"

"No!" he screamed, running around the desk.

"Let him run, he'll wear himself out," Chris said.

"He should be in bed, Chris," Stephanie said. "I don't know why he doesn't want to go to bed."

Chris was sitting on the couch, his leg tapping against the ground, "He's just hyper tonight, if he is allowed to run around, he's going to get tired, that's just how it works, baby. So let him go to town, I bet he's only running around because you're chasing him."

"Sawyer, come on, bedtime now," Stephanie said desperately. "Please, come on, for Mommy?"

"Uh uh, no," he said, shaking his head and stomping his foot a little bit as he stood his ground. He folded his arms in front of him, emulating Stephanie's pose and narrowing his eyes like she tended to do sometimes.

Chris started to laugh, "Wow, and you say he's all me, all I see right now is a mini-Stephanie."

"Shut up," Stephanie said, glaring at him. "Sawyer McMahon Jericho, you are going to go to sleep if I have to…I don't know, but you're going to sleep!"

"No!" he yelled at her.

"I'm getting pissed off at you," she told him.

"Mama," he said pathetically, holding his arms up to her, "Up."

"Oh, baby boy," she said, knowing that her harsh tone had scared him. "Come here."

She picked him up and cradled him in her arms. He sniffled a little bit and Chris smiled as he watched them interact. He smiled and wondered briefly if he was doing the right thing throwing himself back into the ring with all the crazies. He enjoyed being able to play with Sawyer, get up in the morning and be just as energetic as his little boy and let him climb all over him and do what he wanted. He liked not being sore when he got up. He really liked that, but on the other hand, this was who he was, and Sawyer would enjoy that immensely. He was doing the right thing. Sawyer was going to freak out when he saw Chris. He was still angling to try and get through the curtain and see what the hell was out there. Now if he saw Chris go out there, his curiosity was going to double.

"Bed no," he told her.

"Okay, I give in, if you don't want to sleep, you'll just get tired yourself, and then you'll go to bed, sound good?"

"Good," he mimicked.

Chris looked at the time, "Hey, Steph, are you going to stay in here?"

"Yeah, I'm going to try and get him to s-l-e-e-p so can you like put a sign on the door that says 'Do Not Disturb'? That would help."

"Yeah, sure," he said, Stephanie playing right into his hand. He loved that he was pulling one over on her. She thought that she knew everything all the time, but once, just once, he was absolutely going to pull one over on her. "But I'm going to go, is that cool?"

"Where?"

"Just to talk to some guys," he told her.

"Sure, I guess," she shrugged, rocking Sawyer back and forth in her arms as she went and turned off most of the lights, leaving the bathroom light on to give the room a soft glow so she could still see what she was doing. "Just be back soon, okay?"

"I will," he lied, then went over to kiss her. She leaned into the kiss and tilted her head to the side to give him more access to her mouth. Then she remembered what they were going to talk about later, and she pulled away.

"Wait, Chris, do you have a few minutes?" she asked. He looked at his watch and it was already 10:06, but she did look like she wanted to talk.

"Sure, a few."

"Sweetie, I love you, I do, with all my heart," she told him. "I love this life that we have, this life that we've built for each other. I love that we have a family now, that we're a family now and I'm even happy that you're happy with your desk job."

"Okay, that's a lot to love," he laughed. "Is this going somewhere?"

"Yes, what I don't think I'd love is the idea of having another child right now," she said gently. "I know that you want another one, but I just don't want to have one right now. Don't get me wrong, this doesn't mean that I never want to have other children with you, I do, I want more, just not now."

"Oh." _This_ was what she wanted to talk about. Well, he didn't think it'd be that, but he could dispel it. "Okay, I respect that and I understand that."

"What? No fighting."

"No, it's your body, I can't force you to be pregnant," he said.

"Wow, that was easy, I thought you'd argue your point more," she told him, pursing her lips. "Are you just trying to appease me, but deep down inside, you're pissed off about this?"

"I'm not angry about this," he said, kissing her again. "I love you and I respect that decision, it's fine, now try getting this one to sleep since we can't exactly declare ourselves not ready for this one since he's already here."

"Yeah," she said, looking down at Sawyer, who was not sleepy in the least. He was just watching their conversation quietly.

Chris left and went down the hallway and knocked on the door marked, "Triple H." He tapped his foot and then the man in question opened the door. He smirked at Chris and opened the door further, allowing the shorter man entrance. Chris nodded as he walked by, and then went over to the duffel bag he had stuffed in here earlier and dumped it on top of a table.

"Thanks for letting me share, man."

"No problem, it's not like it's a big hassle," he said as Chris started to pull out clothes from the bag. "So you're really doing this thing?"

"This thing? You mean my comeback?"

"Yeah."

"Yeah, why, you scared, Trips?" Chris asked.

"Scared of _you_? Please, don't insult me like that," Hunter told him, giving him a look that said it all.

Chris sucked at his teeth a little and grinned, "You just can't handle the fact that I'm going to get a bigger pop than you are. You know that I'm way more loved than you are and the fans are going to go crazy for me. You're running scared, Trips."

Hunter rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, biting his lip gently. "You think people love you, people _adore_ me."

"They tolerate you, but just underneath the surface, they're simmering with hatred," Chris told him.

"Please, you're a novelty."

"Yeah right, I'm totally more loved than you are, just look at the campaign I got, what did you get for your return? Oh yeah, a lame video," Chris said good-naturedly.

"I'm not screwing the boss's daughter."

"Wow, that's low," Chris said, "and if you so much as bring up the fact that you have slept with my wife, I'm challenging you to a match right now."

Hunter shook his head, "Okay, okay, no picturing Stephanie naked and in my bed, got it."

"Ugh, there it is, I hate you," Chris said. "I'm changing."

"Not when I'm right here, I don't need a striptease from you," Hunter said, making a face. "That's the last thing I need."

"Dude, whatever happened to you and Vic?"

"Drifted apart, it was too hard with her over on SmackDown and me over here. We hardly saw each other. We weren't totally exclusive. It doesn't matter though, I've got someone else right now and I'm pretty happy with her."

"You do?" Chris said as he walked into the adjoining bathroom. "First I've heard of it, let me guess, you went to my better half for advice? Since she's the expert on those kinds of things, supposedly."

"No, actually you're the first person I've told. We're just keeping it on the quiet right now, don't want to jinx it, and how long did you and Stephanie keep your relationship a secret again?"

"Dude, I didn't even make fun of you for keeping it a secret, you were prematurely jumping the gun. What's her name?"

"None of your goddamn business."

"Wow, were her parents just mean or something?" Chris asked as he walked out of the bathroom, dressed in his outfit for his return, a pair of black pants, a white tank top, and a sparkly, silver vest. It was very reminiscent of the outfit he had worn many moons ago when he first debuted against Rocky. Man, those were some crazy times.

"Wow."

"What?"

"1999 called, they want their vest back."

"Damn you," Chris said, cursing under his breath. "Better than that hideous shirt you were wearing the other week, the one that looks like someone stabbed the hell out of you and you just forgot to change your shirt."

"Hey, people like that shirt," he protested.

"Blind people?"

"Well, yeah, the ones who were blinded by that vest," Hunter countered. "So you nervous?"

"Hell no, I know what I'm going to go out there and do, I don't need to think anymore, I'm damn ready for my return, it's going to be so sweet, and I want you to see it first-hand, Trips. If you can, bring an audio recorder, stick it in the arena and then replay it over and over again to know what a real ovation sounds like."

"Oh, I hear it…and more whenever I go out there."

"You do know that at some point, some crap is going to be stirred up between us, and we're going to have to fight it out."

"Hell yeah I know that, I look forward to it, we have some unfinished business, Jericho," Hunter told him. "And I intend to make you pay."

"Make _me_ pay, dude, I have to get you back for a ton of crap that you pulled on me, I have a ton to avenge, I never really did get my rematch for the Undisputed Title, that match with Stephanie should not have counted, I spent most of it trying to make sure that she was okay. So I will come after you again, Trips."

"I look forward to it."

"As do I."

"So you excited, nervous?"

"Ready to blow the roof off of this joint is more like it, the nerves went away, now I'm just ready to do this thing."

"Good man," Hunter said, patting him on the back. "Too bad you have to do it in an unfortunate vest."

"I'm going to kick your ass, seriously, dude, I'm going to kick your ass," Chris said, but it was all in good fun. "But I've got to get out there, and make my grand entrance, and you know, thanks for helping with Stephanie."

He shrugged, "You're a friend, and I happen to like seeing her happy."

"Still, thanks," Chris said, then looked at the time, it was just about 10:45 now, and he had an idea. "I'm going to run, thanks though."

"Good luck out there, and remember this, I'm way, _way_ more loved than you are."

"One day, Trips, you, me, that ring, I'm beating you for the 1-2-3."

Chris had seen the marathon runner all throughout the evening. How Randy had roped that poor sap into running the entire evening, he didn't know, but the worst of his evening hadn't even yet begun. He knew that he was eventually going to run into this arena and he just had to figure out where that was going to happen. He walked down the hallway towards the entrance when he saw the kid running towards the main entrance. He looked at his watch and knew that it was going to be starting soon, very soon. He smirked to himself and got ready for the biggest return these fans had ever seen.

When the runner got to his position, Chris clotheslined the hell out of him and it felt good, it really did, but not as good as it was going to be in a few minutes. He held his arms out in his pose, and the adrenaline was running through his veins at maximum speed. He started walking towards the ring, knowing that he had a stupid ceremony to interrupt. As he was walking backstage, people were giving him high-fives and huge grins all over the place, and he was basking in it. He could hear the loud speakers in the arena blaring out the video that was going to signal his return. Vince must have told the production truck to run it. He was just reaching the gorilla when the countdown started and it was music to his ears.

And then there he was, back to the audience, and it was home. Dear God, how it was home. The screams were louder than he had ever heard them. The best part was that they were all for him. This was all for him and as he turned around, yes, this was exactly what he needed. Fifteen years for all of this, and damn it, it was worth every moment. Every emotion he could think of rushed through his body, every memory written in his book or lived in his life came flashing before him, and the cheers continued to spur him on, the cheers were deafening and the grin on his face was about to burst because these people, they were _also_ the ones he came back for. He basked in the glory for a while, a little shell-shocked at the reaction, but mostly just grateful that they hadn't forgotten who he was. And for those that didn't know him, well they were about to get their first dose of Vitamin C, and they would know what they were missing.

He couldn't shake this feeling that was rising up in him. He had a microphone in his hand that Vince himself had handed him, a huge grin on _his_ face, and now he was preparing to show the world once again that you could knock Jericho down, but you couldn't knock him out, not by a long-shot. He was a different guy now, but deep down, he was still Chris Jericho, and he was about to show the world who he was, and what he wanted, and that was the WWE Title.

"Where is your father?" Stephanie asked, exasperated as she put Sawyer down on the ground. "Maybe he can get you to sleep." Sawyer had not slept all night, and while he had taken a rather long nap, he should definitely be in bed by now and it was frustrating her. Maybe Chris could get him to go to sleep and then she could finally not feel so frazzled.

"No."

"Come on, let's go find Daddy," Stephanie said as she opened the door and let Sawyer out. He started walking down the hallway as people were giving her funny looks. She groaned silently, thinking that people were giving her stares because she let her kid stay up this late. She wanted to scream at him that it wasn't her fault, that Stephanie had been_trying_ to get Sawyer to bed, but the little boy didn't want to go to bed. "Where could he be, baby boy?"

"No," Sawyer shrugged, not knowing where Chris was.

"I swear, he said he'd be…back…"

Something caught her ear in that moment, something that was now blaring through the backstage area. Suddenly her breath stunted and she felt like she couldn't breathe. She listened again because surely, surely her brain was making up the sound. No, it had to be something else, they had to be doing something…heaven help her it sounded like a countdown. She was hearing things now, it had to be some stupid thing for that Randy torch thing that he had going on. She continued to follow Sawyer, who was walking along happily and still not tired.

Then it happened.

There was no mistaking_that_ music. No, no, no, she _knew_ that music. Yes, it had been about two-and-a-half years since she had heard it like this, but she knew that song. She gasped as it continued, proving it wasn't just in her brain and her confusion was clouding everything. She knew enough though to scoop up Sawyer and run for the monitors near the gorilla position. She was flat out running right then and she was thankful that having Sawyer meant she wore flats most of the time. She got to the monitors, out of breath and her hair out of place, but she didn't care as she almost dropped Sawyer to the ground. In fact, she actually did let go of him, but she was so weak in the knees that he was only about a foot off the ground and he just stood there, looking up at the TV that his mother was looking at.

There he was.

Stephanie felt like she was pushing the air from her because she couldn't function normally. Her knees were slack and her arms limp at the sides as she gave a small gasp, a squeak really. She swallowed hard as she continued to see Chris pandering to the crowd, smiling, laughing, grinning, being the ham that she knew he was. She looked around frantically, as if the answer was going to hit her in the face right then. She saw behind him all the binary code stuff from the SaveUs campaign and then it hit her. That wasn't for Bobby Lashley.

That was for Chris.

She almost fainted, or at least that's how she felt. She didn't know what to feel in that moment, all she could do, all she could focus on was Chris standing on that stage. She wanted to cry. She was seriously on the verge of tears as she saw him, and she was still silently gasping with every movement he made because every movement he made was on that stage, in front of the fans, and heaven help her, he looked like Chris Jericho, there was no suit, no tie, no work, just him, cutting a promo!

Chris brought the microphone to his lips and after two long, long, long years (they were freaking TOO LONG), he welcomed everyone back to a very special show, Raw is Jericho. The fans cheered and this, this is where the tears started for Stephanie. She couldn't control herself, they were rolling down her face before she could stop them. He was here, and he was back, and he was talking to the crowd and he was suddenly the man she had fallen in love with again. She was enraptured by him right now, completely enraptured.

He said it wasn't a mirage and that it was definitely real and that was for Stephanie. He was reassuring her that this was it, he was back, and he was back not just for the night, not just for the next week, but he was _back_, baby, and ready to kick ass and take titles away from undeserving jerks like Randy Orton, who was looking at him like he had two heads instead of one gorgeous one. He went on to say that it was the second coming of Y2J, and was pleased they remembered who he was.

Then he went into classic Jericho mode, going completely off-rail and sucking in the fans to his all-day-all-night party that he insisted on hosting. He told them to take pictures, text their friends, do whatever to let them know that the sexy beast was back. He let the fans continue to cheer him on, letting them have their fun because he was certainly having his fun. How could he have forgotten just how much fun this was? He loved this, he had loved this for so long. He didn't understand now how he stayed away for so long.

He told them that from now on, it was going to be one hundred percent entertainment, one hundred percent electricity, one hundred percent Jericho, and he meant that. Randy interrupted him here, asking who the hell he thought he was and saying the last time he saw him, he was getting fired. He had to hand it to Randy, he very easily could've said something like he had knocked up his wife, or had a kid, but Randy knew who buttered his bread and Vince would be very upset if Sawyer was mentioned without Stephanie's permission. He just stood there listening to this youngster try to get the better of him, but it wasn't working. He wanted to roll his eyes when Randy said that if he had stayed Randy would've kicked him in the head and ended his career. Did Randy _know_ who he was? Had _he_ been kicked in the head…oh wait, yes, yes he had. Then Randy asked the million dollar question, what exactly was Chris going to save everyone from.

Well, Stephanie's bitchiness that he wasn't back for one.

But mainly, he was there to save everyone from having a douchebag champion who was a complete and total jerk.

"Look, baby boy, it's Daddy," Stephanie said through her tears as she kept sniffling happily. Sawyer's eyes lit up as he was finally able to see the monitor since he had to lean his head way back to see it since he was a short, little guy.

"Daddy!" Sawyer said, pointing towards Chris. "See Daddy."

"You can't go see Daddy right now, he's…he's cutting a promo," Stephanie said, laughing to herself. She noticed nobody was around her, but when she looked around, there were a few people there. Hunter was there, and he was grinning and so was Vince and they had to have known. And Britt had stuck around too. "You guys knew, didn't you? You all freaking knew!"

They looked at her sheepishly as she turned back to the monitor to hear him saying that the first chance Chris got, he was going to take that title from Randy and put it around his gorgeous waist, and that nothing, nothing in the company, the country, world, universe, it was all never, never, never ever going to be the again. Then his music started up again and he smirked that cute smirk of his before he started to fawn over the attention that he was getting. It was incredible, the reception that he was getting and he didn't ever want to leave again. He could've stayed in front of that crowd all night long, taking it all in, and he would've been completely happy. Still though, there were a couple of people he needed to see.

He took his time leaving just because he wanted this rush to last him for the rest of his life. He thought his first debut was great, but the anticipation for this one, he didn't know, it felt different, better maybe. He walked backstage and down the dark tunnel that led to the gorilla position. He stood there for a few moments, not knowing what he'd see at the bottom of those few stairs that would lead him straight to her. He wanted to see her though, wanted to know her reaction and so he pulled back the curtain and there she was.

She had been crying, he could tell, and she still appeared to be crying a little bit, but he was never very good at identifying which tears were good tears and which tears were bad tears. Sawyer was in her arms, and he was smiling, but he didn't quite get what was going on so he just kept smiling. Chris smiled at the two of them and Stephanie slowly put Sawyer down on the ground. He ran towards Vince and Vince took him and everyone was watching this exchange right now.

"You're back…" she said softly, her voice thick with tears.

"Yeah, I am."

"Those videos weren't for Bobby Lashley, they were for you."

"Yup," he nodded.

"You lied to me," she said, shaking her head. "You lied to me this entire time! You told me that you weren't coming back, you told me that it wasn't for you. Here I am, looking stupid, not know why everyone keeps thinking you're coming back and I'm the _last_ to know."

"I wanted it to be a surprise, I never get to surprise you; you always figure things out. You figured out that I was going to propose to you, didn't you? You ruined that plan, I just wanted one plan, that was it, just one plan."

"You lied to me, you got my father to lie to me, and my brother, and our friends, you got them all to lie to me, make me believe something that wasn't true. I thought for sure that you weren't coming back. I convinced myself that you were just going to be a talent relations guy for the rest of our marriage. You were going to be management and that was it. I convinced myself because you said it wasn't going to happen."

"I missed it, and…and I knew that you wanted this more than anything," he said. "Steph, don't be mad at me, please. I just wanted, one time, to surprise you and give you something I knew you wanted, and I couldn't think of anything else but this. This is all you said you've wanted, me to come back, how you missed me, how I would fit in here or there. Don't be mad at me please, and please stop crying."

"I'm not mad!" she exclaimed, throwing herself into his arms and wrapping her arms around him tightly. He smiled and hugged her tighter. "I…I…how could I possibly be mad?"

"I thought you might be mad because I kept this from you when I knew it was what you wanted."

"I can't believe I didn't figure it out," she laughed, tears streaming down her face. "Sawyer and I were going to come looking for you, and I was walking and heard your countdown but just thought it was something that Randy was doing and then I heard your music and I ran here to see, and there you were and you were standing there, and you were talking and I was crying, and I'm so happy, how could you think this would make me mad? This has made me happier than I've ever been. I can't believe you got one over on me, I just…you're really back?"

"I'm really, really back," he told her. "And I'm getting that belt from Randy. I've been training down at the new school we have in Tampa, I haven't actually just been overseeing the work on it, I've been working out, getting the ring rust off. I've got a new finisher and everything."

She covered her mouth with her hand as she let out a happy sob. "You're really back!"

"Yeah, baby, I'm back."

She hugged him tighter, than thought for a second, "Hey, wait, the kid thing, that was to distract me, wasn't it?"

"Yup," he said, hugging her again. "You were surprised? Really?"

"I've never been more surprised in my life, not even when Hunter drugged me and married me, this is incredible, I love you so much, thank you so much, I just…thank you so much, and Sawyer, he gets to see you wrestle and everything, oh my God, I have so many plans for you! We've got to start talking."

"Can't we at least celebrate tonight?" he whispered in her ear.

"Oh, yeah, of course, definitely, you are so getting laid tonight," she whispered back. "But then tomorrow we're going to discuss what you're going to do to get that belt, of course, I've got some great ideas floating around in my brain."

"Oh yeah, I'm definitely back."


	159. Sharp as Ever, November 26, 2007

A/N: I'm so pleased that you all enjoyed the chapter last week. My fingers had been itching to type that chapter for the past two years and I'm glad it didn't disappoint. Needless to say, yes, I freaked out when seeing Chris last week, and I've been anticipating this Raw all week long, and man, it's amazing how Chris comes back and suddenly, I feel so inspired for this story, like beyond belief. Anyways, thank you all so much for the reviews last week, it was great to get so many, so let's try and keep that up shall we, but enjoy the chapter, and leave a review. :)

* * *

"So you're, really, really back?" 

"Steph, this is the millionth time, yes, I'm back."

"So you're going to be on tonight, and next week, and the week after that, and then at the Pay-Per-View, and then next year, you're going to be here, I can schedule time for you, you're going to wrestle?" she asked excitedly, straddling one of his legs as she looked at him, her eyes shining with glee.

It was the same glee that had been in her eyes since last Monday. He wasn't ever sure he had seen her happier at work. They had been happier in their personal lives, sure, but never at work like this. She was positively glowing, almost like she was when she pregnant. She had not stopped smiling in the past week and she was constantly asking if this was real. He was especially happy that he was the one to bring that light to her face.

"Yes, baby, I'm back, full-time, you can schedule me for whatever you want," he told her, trying to calm her down because she was bouncing around in excitement.

"And when did you decide that you were going to come back again?" she asked, though she had been asking him to tell the story over and over again.

"Steph, I've told you this before, many, many times."

"But I like hearing it," she told him. "I like hearing the story."

"I decided last month that I definitely wanted to come back. Your father had already been putting up the videos on the show and I told him that I was still thinking about it so that he should have an out in case I didn't want to come back, but then I decided that this was what I wanted, and I wanted to make sure that I kept it a surprise from you."

"And why did you want to come back?"

"I knew that you wanted me back, and writing my book just brought that love back to me and I realized that this is who I am, I'm a wrestler."

"And how hard was it to keep it from me?"

"Not that hard actually, you were a big help in keeping it a secret," he told her, kissing her sweetly. "You were rather agreeable with the whole thing."

"You're in ring shape too, I just can't believe it," she told him, shaking her head. She had been trying to figure out how she could've been so stupid about this and it kept eluding her. She had thought herself a fairly intuitive person, but Chris had pulled the wool completely over his eyes. She just figured that if Chris was going to come back then he would tell her, and when he had told her point blank that he wasn't going to come back, she had believed him because she trusted his word.

She had heard the talk, but she believed her husband. Finding out that not only had he been planning this, but that he had been in training was just a whole other revelation. She had thought that he was working on getting the new Tampa facility up and running, but he had been getting the ring rust off. He even told her that he had a new finisher that he wanted to debut, and she was just outright shocked that she didn't see any of this.

The feelings from last week were still surging through her. When she had been planning the show for tonight and was looking over the roster, she had sat there in wonder looking at Chris's name on the page. She hadn't even known what to do with it. She was in awe that he was right there; his name was staring right back at her on the page, printed in the typical Times New Roman, _Chris Jericho_, there it was, and the smile on her face couldn't have gotten any bigger as she thought about putting that name down on that schedule. Of course, she hadn't found a place for him yet, but she figured that she would find a spot if he wanted one.

That was such a foreign thought to her and it was still strange. After two years of not even bothering to think about Chris and scheduling time for him, now she had him to think again. When she had heard his music last week, she swore that she was just hearing it in her brain. Like it was some far-off fantasy that she was somehow hearing when she was in her wakened state. When she saw Chris out there, she couldn't stop the tears from falling; it was too emotional a moment for her, way too emotional. She had given up hope at that point. She had given up the hope that Chris would come back.

She knew how happy he was, and the last thing she would ever want to do is hinder Chris's happiness. He had been seemingly happy living his life with her and Sawyer, and being able to be there for his son. She had been happy for him to an extent, but she'd be outright lying if she said that she hadn't wanted him back every second since he had told her that while she could come back to work while being pregnant, he wasn't going to come back and he was going to explore other options that he had out there. Seeing him in that ring had just been so overwhelming to her.

"Well, I've been working out and getting the ring rust off, and I'm sure soon enough you'll see what I can do," he told her, and he was smirking now to keep that grin from coming back. Everything about him was just electric right now. The buzz of his return was awesome, people were happy to see him back in this capacity, the fans were uproarious for him, his life was pretty damn good and he had nothing to complain about.

"And you have a new finisher," she said, shaking her head. "I can't believe you got all of this by me, what the hell was I _doing_ these past couple of months not to see this going on?"

"I think that the main thing that you were doing was taking care of our son," Chris pointed out. "He takes up a lot of the time, and well, it's easy to get distracted by him since he's such a handsome, young fellow, especially now that he got his hair cut."

"Yeah, it does look rather dashing," she said in a bad British accent. "So you're really back? Like you're going to be sticking around. You're an active wrestler. You're not going to be like Mick or Austin, right, like just coming back every once in a while?"

"First of all, I'd never be like that asshole, Austin," Chris said angrily, the fire flashing in his eyes briefly.

"Chris," Stephanie interjected, tilting her head in that way she did, "get over it, please. It's so stupid to keep holding this grudge when you're the only one that's holding it. Sawyer is fine, he's more than fine, actually, he's perfect."

"Well, I'm sorry if I'm not over it, he's my son, and I care about his well-being."

"He's my son too," she pointed out, "and I'm not as bitter as you are. If Sawyer wasn't…if he wasn't okay, then yeah, I'd be upset and angry, and I'd probably want to kick Austin in the balls, but nothing is wrong, Sawyer is awesome."

"Yeah, I know, but no, I'm back for the long haul, I never even really left the company, I kind of can't leave the company, if you remember that we're married and that you own the company, so I own it too."

"But the fans, they didn't see you out there, and you weren't what you used to be, sure you owned the place, but that's not the same," she told him. "Besides, I missed seeing you there too, I fell in love with that brash wrestler."

"Well, I'm back, so stop missing me…you shouldn't have even missed me in the first place, I guess I have to say it again, I never went anywhere," he said slowly, making sure she got every word of what he was saying. She gave a high-pitched squeak and hugged him again. She was hugging him tighter than tight, but he gave this to her. He wasn't going to curb her happiness in the slightest way. She, more than anyone, had been waiting for his return and he wasn't going to do anything to upset her.

"I know, but still!" she told him happily as she started to kiss him all over the face, trying in vain to find his lips, but she was just too excited and giddy to sit still at the moment. She wanted to run through the hallways screaming and waving her hands around announcing that her husband was back, and she didn't even care about how lame that sounded. She would be lame right now if she wanted to be.

"Well, that brings us to something that I waned to discuss with you, if that's okay."

"If that's okay? Are you kidding me! You can tell me anything you want…unless it's something like the only reason you came back was because you slept with someone and you just did this to soften the blow, because that's low, Jericho."

"No, Jericho, that's not it," he told her, using her married name. "Although, now that you mention that, maybe I should've slept with someone while I was in Hollywood or doing my play and then used this to soften the blow, that's a really good idea. Damn it, why didn't I think of that?"

"Focus, sweetie, focus," Stephanie told him, turning his face towards hers. "What is it?"

She was just going to be at his mercy by the time this night was over. It wasn't like he needed many excuses to sleep with his wife since Stephanie had always been pretty willing, but well, if she wasn't up for it, she would be after tonight, "I was wondering something…"

"What were you wondering? If it's how you could make me even happier, I don't think you could."

He laughed and gave her his winning smile, "I wanted to ask you for some time tonight, I want to cut a promo on Randy."

She placed her hands over her heart, "Okay, say it again, please."

"Can I please have some time tonight because I want to speak," he said again.

"Okay, so that little thing about me not being able to be happier than I am right now, I was wrong, so very, very wrong, because now I'm even happier. Say it one more time?"

"Stephanie, baby, I love you, with all my heart, but I'm not asking again, so can I or am I going to spend the entire evening sitting here repeating myself over and over again?"

"How much do you love me?"

"Steph…"

"Well, it would help in my decision."

He laughed, "You know, I've never seen you act like this."

"Act like what?" she asked indignantly, automatically thinking that he was going to say something negative about her demeanor. She folded her arms in front of her and looked at him as sternly as she could manage, but it wasn't very intimidating because she was just so happy she couldn't act any other way at the moment.

"You're just so…happy, I've never seen you this happy before. It's kind of sad that you seem happier about this than when we got married and when we had Sawyer."

"Well, you're back!" she exclaimed. "You and Sawyer are old news, this is new news and I've been waiting for it for what seems like forever, I wasn't waiting to get married to you for two years, because you only asked seven months before we got married, and Sawyer was like, nine months and there he is, but I never knew you were going to come back, I could only hope for it."

"You're just so happy and giddy, and you're making me all happy, and everyone is going to be happy and a big ball of crazy by the time the night is over. You're just acting like…not like the Stephanie McMahon I fell in love with, that's for sure. Does this mean that I need to get _you_ back on television in order to get my Stephanie back?"

"Stop it," she said, shoving him a little in the arm. "I'm sorry, I'll try to be Stephanie. How could you keep this from me! I thought we told each other everything and you lied to me for months! How's that?"

"Better," he told her. "Now, about the time."

"When do you want it?" she asked.

"See, now these are the kind of perks that I thought I should have being in the McMahon family," Chris told her. "Preferably either first or last or right smack dab in the middle."

"Well, I can't do first, Hunter has the first match of the evening, but you can have the first main event at ten, how does that sound?" she asked.

"Sounds great," he said, leaning forward to kiss her gently. "I do love you, you know, a lot."

"I figured that when you went through all the trouble to surprise me last week, it was the best early Christmas present that I've ever gotten."

"It was kind of me making up for you finding your engagement ring. I had such the plan for your engagement and I thought that I could do this for you because I love you, and I want you to be happy always."

Stephanie ran her hand down Chris's face, and smiled, "I love you too…are you growing a mustache?"

"_There's_ the Stephanie I know and love," he replied. He ran his hand over his chin, "Well, I didn't shave today, I may grow it out."

"Chris, no," Stephanie whined. "You look better clean shaven, I think that you should shave immediately."

"I don't carry around my razor with me, baby," he told her.

"Fine, fine," she told him, "but don't grow it out, it looks like you're a porn star if you grow a mustache, totally not the right style for you. So what are you going to go out there and say?"

"Well, I was going to go out there and tell Randy that I want a title match because I think that I should be the WWE champion. He hasn't returned my challenge at all, and I'm just here to let him know that I want that shot, and if I have to spell it out in words he'll understand, I'm going to do that."

"What did you have in mind?" she asked, and as much as Chris felt at home last week, Stephanie felt at home too. This is who they were, this is who they always had been. They schemed, they planned, they were unscrupulous. Just because they were older now didn't mean a goddamn thing, they were still Stephanie and Chris Jericho, and they hadn't changed that much.

"Well, maybe some visual aids for what I want?"

"Like what kind of visual aids, because I can get those up and running immediately for the show," she said, getting off of him finally and heading over to her computer. "I can send them to production and they can get them in plenty of time for your promo later."

"Well, let's see if we can put this in terms that Randy can understand, Me, as in myself, wants, as in wanting, the title, which is the belt, match."

"Well, so find something that goes with 'Me want title belt', which isn't grammatically correct by the way."

"I think you'll be the only one who cares about that," he said. "So obviously, for me, it should be a picture of this gorgeous mug." He moved his face in all different angles, giving his annoyed wife many different poses. She rolled her eyes and grabbed a picture of his return that she had on her computer (she had been using it as the wallpaper).

"Done."

"Want, what the hell can we use for want?" he said, screwing up his lips a little.

"How about you on your knees begging?" Stephanie giggled.

"Then that would be for _beg_, baby," Chris said, making a face at her as she continued to laugh. Chris shook his head as he tried to think and looked around the room for inspiration. What could he use to represent want, what could he use…then he saw one of Sawyer's books, the one that Stephanie had bought him when they were at the bookstore waiting in line for him. "How about Cookie Monster?"

"You've been spending too much time with Sawyer," Stephanie said.

"No, no, it's perfect, I mean, it's funny, it's unexpected, Cookie Monster always wants cookies, I mean, the guy thought that the moon was a giant cookie and proceeded to eat it, that's a lot of want right there. The added bonus is, when the monster sees it, he'll think it was great because he loves the Cookie Monster."

"So you think that you're not enough to keep your son occupied?"

"No, I don't think I am," Chris said. "He's got the attention span of a fly."

"True, true," she said, "okay, Cookie Monster it is. You're lucky I have the Sesame Street website in my favorites folder." She looked up at Chris, "What? Sawyer loves Sesame Street, so it's entirely for him…ugh, I'm such a mom."

He laughed, "You are. So what do we do…oh, well, for title, it should just be the title."

"Yeah, got that," she said, "and then for match? What about like, a matching pair?"

"Then he might think I want a title pair."

"Fair enough," she muttered. "How about a match like a strike the fire type thing?"

"That I can work with, definitely," he nodded. "Okay, so we're set, I'm going to go out and humiliate him."

"Sounds about right," she told him with a smile. "I can't believe you're really back, it all feels a little surreal."

"Get it through that gorgeous head of yours."

"Tell me once more."

"I'm back," Chris said.

She took a deep breath, "I still love it."

The door opened in front of the twosome and Sawyer toddled inside with Britt close behind him. He had juice all over his mouth, staining it red but he looked happy and contented and smiled at his parents. He knew something was in the air, and that something had started last week. His parents were acting differently and he had picked up on their utter joy so he felt inclined to join in on the fun. His constant gallivanting however was hindering their work, so for tonight, Britt was playing baby-sitter so Chris and Stephanie could retain their sanity.

"Hi!" Sawyer said to his parents. "Mama, juice!"

"I see that you had some juice all right," Stephanie said as Sawyer came towards her. She grabbed his diaper bag and rooted around for the baby wipes.

"I tried cleaning him up," Britt told her, "but he was having none of that. I managed to get his hands clean, but he wouldn't let me touch his face, so I figured that you could take care of that."

"Yeah, it's not a problem, sorry to dump him on you," Stephanie said. "I just had some things I needed to take care of and with Chris back, he has other things that he needs to focus on and we're trying to adjust with Chris working both in the ring and out of the ring."

"Don't worry about it," Britt told them, "I don't mind the added responsibilities, and Chris, you know if you need anything that all you have to do is ask, it'll make the transition easier I think."

"Thanks, Britt," Chris said thankfully. "I probably am going to need your help because I decided that I was going to keep my backstage job."

"It was really exciting seeing you out there last night. I'd obviously never seen you before, but you're amazing, and I'm not just saying that because you're my boss and my friend, I'm saying that genuinely, the crowd loved you."

"They did, didn't they?" Stephanie said excitedly as she placed Sawyer on her desk in front of her, pushing her laptop away so he could sit there. She took out a baby wipe, and despite Sawyer's protests she wiped his mouth clean.

"Yeah, you were great, are you going to follow that up tonight?"

"Of course," he told her. "And as long as you're willing to do things for me, would you mind making the confirmation calls for the roster next week?"

"Not a problem," she said, coming over and taking the folder that Chris handed to her. "You just focus on entertaining, I'll take care of this."

"Thanks, you're the best, Britt."

"Well, I try," she said as she walked out of the room.

Chris turned to his wife, "Whoever the dude is that's with her, he is seriously putting her in a good mood. I've never seen her quite so enthusiastic about working."

"And you took advantage of that," she said, then looked at the clock. "Oh man, the show is starting soon, I've got to get to my station since my dad isn't doing it this week because the man I love isn't going to be making a surprise debut, he's actually going to be on the show regularly. Did you hear that, baby boy, Daddy is on the show!"

"Okay," Sawyer said indifferently as he saw the picture of Cookie Monster on the laptop and growled, "Cookie!"

"Oh baby boy," Stephanie said, kissing his cheek and then handing him over to his father. "Are you going to take care of him?"

"Sure, but you know that I can't exactly bring him out there with me. I know this is the second coming of Y2J, but the third coming of Y2J, Sawyer edition isn't ready to make his debut just quite yet. I'd like for him to be able to _reach_ the middle rope before he can do that."

"You can leave him with me when you go out there, and you are going out there, right?"

"Stephanie, I'm going to kick you out of our house if you don't stop," he warned her, raising his eyebrow as he looked at her.

"Okay, okay, okay, I get it," she said, giving him a quick peck on the lips as she kissed Sawyer's forehead. Then she was off, practically skipping down the hallway as she went to make sure the show turned out alright.

In actuality, you could've asked her what had happened over that first hour and she wouldn't have been able to answer you. She was on cloud nine right now, and there wasn't any coming down from this high. She just wanted to see Chris again, just to make sure that he was really back and last week hadn't been some cruel joke perpetrated on her by her husband. She thought she might've talked with Hunter for a while, but she wasn't entirely sure that ever happened. You could've told her that Pope himself walked by and she wouldn't have even noticed.

"Steph…Steph!"

Stephanie broke from her daze as she looked up and saw her husband standing in front of her. He was wearing his new shirt and oh goodness, he was wearing ring tights! He was wearing ring tights, like an actual wrestler might! Chris was looking at her with trepidation because she seemed completely out of it, like she had been hit over the head with something. Sawyer giggled as he saw his Mommy's face and then continued to pull at Chris's collar.

"Oh, uh, yeah?"

"Can you take him?" Chris said, pulling Sawyer away from his body and thrusting the small boy towards his mother. "I kind of need to go out there, my music is supposed to be cued any second, right?"

"Yeah, yeah, sure, of course," she said, embarrassed that she had been so far gone. Chris kind of thrust Sawyer at her a little bit more and she sheepishly took the young boy from him. "Sorry."

"Are you okay?"

"I'm just excited to see you out there," she told him, blushing the tiniest bit.

"You know, I'm really glad now that I didn't tell you because every week it would've been you asking me if this was the week I was coming back," he laughed as Stephanie saw they were back from commercial. She pointed towards the gorilla and he smiled and waved at them before turning around.

"Cue Chris Jericho's music," Stephanie said proudly into her headset and she clung to Sawyer as Chris's countdown began.

It never got old. It just didn't. As he went down there, the cheers, the signs, it would never get old. He could be 96 and hobble his old, tired ass down to this ring, and it would still feel like he was a nineteen-year-old debuting his first match. He walked purposefully down to the ring and climbed inside, getting a microphone. He had been inside the ring in the past two years, but it wasn't like this. This was perfection for him. It was this sense of belonging, like the ring had been calling to him, had been among those begging for his return. It was never a love-hate relationship with this ring, it was always love, every day for the past fifteen years it had been love.

He saw a multitude of signs out in the crowd for him and he licked his lips in anticipation of what he was going to say. He paused a moment, letting the crowd get in their cheers while simultaneously collecting his words inside his brain. Then he began to speak about the sheer indignity of not getting an answer from Randy Orton regarding his obvious challenge the week before. He had been friends with Randy once upon a time, and well, Randy wasn't the brightest lemon in the barrel so he was sure that he would have to put this in simpler terms for the younger man.

"Cue up the pictures for Jericho," Stephanie said as she set Sawyer down on the chair next to her. He stood on it and leaned on the table, fascinated by his father on the television. He was definitely not used to seeing his father on the same thing that he watched Higglytown Heroes on. Did that mean that his daddy was going to be on Higglytown Heroes too? Was he going to be on every show he loved? This shocked Sawyer, and then he began to think about his father disappearing through that black curtain. When his mother had gone through there,_she_ ended up on the television too. He started to think that maybe if _he_ went through the curtain too, then he'd be on the television, and what if he could go wherever he wanted! He could go see…well, he looked to the screen again and his eyes lit up at what he saw.

"Cookie! Cookie!" Sawyer said, pointing towards the Cookie Monster which was on the screen and then saw his father again. His father was hanging out with Cookie Monster! Well now this he had to experience for himself, no ifs, ands, or buts about it, he had to get out there and he had to meet Cookie Monster too, it wasn't fair!

"Yes, it's Daddy," Stephanie said idly as she continued to call cues and make sure that they were running on time.

Chris, meanwhile, was having a great time. The crowd was loving him, and he had just issued his challenge towards Randy again, and now he was going to sit here and wait it out until Randy showed up and told him he was getting his shot. He wasn't going to settle for anything less than a title shot. He knew that by virtue of his wife's last name that he could get a title shot whenever the hell he wanted to, but just because he was back after a two-year absence didn't sway his feelings on using Stephanie for his own personal gains. He hadn't used her in his career before, and he wasn't going to use her now. No, he just thought that he deserved the title because he thought he was the best.

He was the best, by the way.

Instead of Randy's music, another person's music started up and Chris smirked. He should've known that Santino would come down here and bug him, he had no problem bugging everyone else. For the first time, Chris realized that all those guys that bugged him backstage, well, now he could kick their asses. That was a wonderful, wonderful thing, and he was actually looking forward to having Santino come down here and try to verbally spar with him. There were few guys in the world that could keep up with Chris Jericho.

Now Sawyer was just plain stupefied. He had _just_ seen that guy go through the curtain and now he was out there with his daddy. This was ridiculous. They were all hanging out with Cookie Monster, though Sawyer had not seen Cookie Monster in a little while, but he was probably lurking around and talking to _everyone_ but _him_, and this just made him even more angry. He tugged on Stephanie's sleeve, trying to lean over to her, but she just pushed him off of her and gave him a kiss on the head. This was starting to bug him now, he wanted to go hang out with the characters he saw on TV all the time, and his daddy wasn't letting him out there with him.

Despite being called KYJ, which he didn't want to find out what it stood for, though he had his suspicions, Chris was eager to see what Santino really wanted. He got into the ring and tried to call out Chris for wanting a title shot. Deciding to rib him a little bit, he acted as if he didn't know him. They got into some words where Chris deliberately acted like he didn't know his name, which just further served to frustrate Santino until he spouted off in Italian, which Chris thought was hilarious.

Stephanie thought it was hilarious too. She had seen Chris with Fozzy, and she had heard his radio show every week, watched his play, seen his television appearances, read his interviews, and read his book as well, but this was Chris through and through. He fed off this crowd, and they were his people. They were all eating out of the palm of his hand. It just reinforced what she already knew; Chris Jericho needed to be in front of a crowd. He was a good man, a decent and caring man when they were alone, a wonderful father, but the second you put him in front of a crowd and told him to entertain, he shone.

This was why she wanted him back. He couldn't see it, but she saw it every time he was in front of people. It wasn't that he put on an act or anything, he didn't, the Chris Jericho that people saw on television was the same one that existed behind the scenes, he was just more vibrant, more alive when he was in front of a crowd of people, his eyes were bright and it made her love him all the more. He had different eyes for her and Sawyer, and she knew that, and she loved it, but Chris needed those people just as much as they needed him. Everything felt right, right now.

They had a beautiful son that they loved, and he was the reason Chris had left in the first place, but he hadn't been the only reason he had stayed away, but now, now everything felt good, like it was really working. She liked this feeling, and when Chris said okay to a match, Stephanie was filled with another kind of happiness. She hadn't watched a Chris Jericho match in two years, and deep within her, she had been aching to see him in the ring again, that fluidity that only he had and the combination of his years melding into his own unique style.

Sawyer had just about had it. This was crazy. He was angry and he wanted to go out there wherever his father was and join in on the fun. Usually his parents would include him in whatever they were doing, they'd play with him, or he'd watch them work and his mommy or daddy would give him a pen. So why was it that when they disappeared behind that curtain that they didn't include him? He didn't know that it led out to the arena because whenever his parents brought him to the ring, they would use the side entrance and he knew where that led, but these stairs to that curtain, where did it go? He screwed up his face, which looked exactly like Chris's did when he did the same thing and decided that since his mommy seemed preoccupied with smiling at something, he was just going to have to explore it himself.

He climbed down off the chair, looking back at Stephanie and seeing her distraction knew that now was the time to make his escape. He walked slowly over to the curtain, as if it were this big, scary thing, but if his daddy could go through it, he could too. He looked back at Stephanie once more, and she was now sitting with her chin in her hand, looking expectant about something or another.

He lifted his foot to go up the stair and smiled at the little clang it made when his shoe hit the metal step. Another, and another and he was in the hallway and there was no more steps. He pulled back the curtain and saw the darkness in front of him. Sawyer was no fool, he knew that the dark was scary, but he was also a McMahon and a Jericho, and fear should crumble at his feet, okay, so curiosity was getting the better of him and he didn't care if it was dark or not.

He took those first few steps forward, the noise getting louder and louder, and he was so close, so close to seeing his daddy and all his favorite cartoon characters from all his favorite shows. He had already seen Cookie Monster so who knew who else was lurking out there. His mind was going wild as he imagined that his father was hanging out with all these cool characters. He couldn't believe that he wouldn't include him.

"Sawyer, come here, I want you to watch Daddy," Stephanie said, her voice trailing off as she looked to the seat next to her and saw nothing, just air. "Sawyer?"

Sawyer was fumbling around in the dark. He could feel the wall on his right so he kept walking along with his hands on the wall, going slowly, but if this was like an all-night party or something, well, he could stand that. He should've been tired right now, and usually he would be, but apparently his mother had forgotten that he had a bedtime and so he was just wide awake and navigating his way, although he _was_getting a little sleepy now that he thought about it.

"Oh my God, Sawyer!" Stephanie said, throwing her headphones off even though Chris's match was starting at any moment. "Sawyer!"

Sawyer could hear his mother calling him and he turned around, or at least he thought he was turned around, it was really dark and there was barely any light seeping in here and he was confused, but he wanted to trudge forward, yawning along the way.

"Have you seen my son?" Stephanie asked a random production assistant as they walked by. They shook their head and Stephanie practically shoved them away. She searched high and low and she couldn't find Sawyer anywhere. She was starting to panic. It was now two minutes that he had been missing. He couldn't have been kidnapped, that just wasn't possible, everyone back here worked here or got passes, and nobody who worked here would steal her kid, and even if someone had attempted to, they'd never get out of the building without someone recognizing Sawyer.

"Sawyer!" she cried again, her voice breaking and her hands starting to shake. "Baby boy, please come out."

Sawyer heard his mother again, louder this time, and she didn't sound right, so he felt inclined to call out since she was yelling his name, "Mama!"

Stephanie heard him, but it was kind of faint. She tried to pinpoint the sound and came to the curtain, drawing it back and seeing Sawyer more than half-way down the hallway that led to the entrance. She sighed in relief as she went and picked him up, promptly bringing him back to her station, despite his protests.

"What have I told you!" Stephanie said angrily. "You are not to go away like that! What if you had gotten hurt, huh?"

Sawyer had never been yelled at like this and it scared him. His lip trembled and he said pitifully, "Mama…"

"Sawyer, I was very worried," she said, taking her harsh tone down. "You can't go out there."

"Oh."

"I know Daddy is out there, but it's not safe for little boys," she told him, knowing that she and Chris would have to curb this curiosity soon or else this scene would be repeated often. "Now come on, let's watch Daddy's match and then you're off to bed."

"Okay."

Chris hoped that Sawyer was watching. This was the first match that Sawyer would ever see of him, and he wished that he could watch Sawyer watching the match, but that wouldn't work since he actually had to _be_ in the match. Hopefully this would make him his son's favorite wrestler and not make Hunter his favorite wrestler, as Chris was suspecting Hunter was trying to do. At first the match was slow, just some lock-ups as Chris tried to get a feel for this guy. He had seen him wrestle, but seeing and doing were very different things. Once he got into it, though, he knew he could handle this match.

There had been some fear on his part that he wouldn't be up to snuff now that he was back. Two years away from the ring was a while, and he was also older now, and had a son that he took care of all the time, which could be seen as a hindrance (if only he knew the kind of trouble his son had been stirring up). He got the upper-hand, performing a standing, vertical suplex on the other man. His springboard dropkick almost felt better than it ever had. Not wrestling maybe had its benefits in that his body had healed and he had a new spring in his step. Santino dropped to the floor and Chris resisted the urge to just give a little, "Come on baby!" for the hell of it.

Santino tried to leave, eschewing the match, but Chris was having none of that. He wasn't going to win his first match back by a count-out. He went and retrieved Santino, giving him a kidney shot as he threw him back in the ring, kicking him for good measure. If this was his response to some random dude, heaven help the man that insulted his wife. Of course, when he missed a dropkick, he was reminded of the other side of wrestling, the side where you didn't have the upper-hand, and that side kind of sucked a little bit…or a lot actually. Santino got some offense in on him, but it wasn't going to last as Chris got the upper-hand back, giving Santino an atomic drop and then the running bulldog (which, well, there's a lot you can say about the running bulldog, but let's not get into that), which leveled his opponent.

"Are you watching?" Stephanie asked. Of course Sawyer was watching, he still thought his father was hanging out with the guys from Sesame Street. Still, there was a certain fascination within Sawyer as he watched his father wrestle. He had never seen his father do any of these things before and his eyes widened every time his father hit someone especially because he himself had been the only one to hit him, except for the shots his mommy took at his daddy sometimes.

"Daddy," Sawyer said pointing to the screen.

"Yup, he's great, right? That's what he gave up for you," Stephanie said. "Not that it wasn't worth it, but isn't he incredible."

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, still watching as Chris continued to pour it on.

Chris was waiting to debut his new finished, a little move he thought would impress the crowds and appease the masses. He called it The Code-Breaker, and if you didn't like the name, well, then blame Shane because he was the one who came up with the name last Wednesday when Chris had been brainstorming on names to call his new maneuver. It worked for what he was portraying himself as these days, although it didn't have the same cache that Lionsault or The Walls of Jericho had…it was better than the Breakdown, if anyone remembered that short-lived finisher.

He executed it to perfection and easily got the win over Santino. He went back to his mission, wanting the title. He looked over to Jerry Lawler and gestured for him to get in the ring and get his licks on Santino. Lawler eventually got up and Chris sat on the ropes to get him in the ring. Chris, in turn, went to the announcer's table and threw on the headphones. Stephanie laughed as she saw him at the table and reached out to turn on the microphone that led directly to Chris's headset.

"You were incredible," Stephanie told him sultrily. Chris just laughed and continued to joke around with JR. "Here's Saywer…Sawyer say how proud you were of Daddy."

"Hi, Daddy," Sawyer said happily, "Happy!"

Chris just shook his head and watched as Lawler continued to pound on Santino. He was loving life right now, he had to say it, it might be cheesy, but it had to be said. He once again challenged Randy and then he was off, backstage to be with his wife and son, who greeted him happily as he walked back there.

"You were great," she said positively. "You have stolen the show again!"

"Thank you," he said. "Did Sawyer enjoy it?"

"He enjoyed it so much he decided to scare the shit out of me and go through the curtain to try and get to you."

"Again, kid?" Chris said to his son. "What did you think of Daddy, good, bad?"

"Good," Sawyer repeated. "Good, good, good."

"Yes, I've got the Sawyer seal of approval, my work here is done," Chris said, pumping his fist.

"I love the new finisher, very devastating, but in the event you ever need to perform one of your finishers on me, I'd still prefer the Walls, okay, because you always go easy on me when you do that."

"I know you've got a bad back," he said. Stephanie handed him Sawyer, "Take this please."

"Steph, I'm gross and sweaty."

"He needs to sleep, sweetie, I was willing to let him stay up and see you, but now that you're not on, he needs to get to bed. If he doesn't go now, he's going to be really cranky, and I don't need that, so will you please do that for me?"

"Yeah, okay, I guess I can have Britt watch him while I'm taking my shower."

"Just wait to take one," Stephanie told him, winking, and letting him know in no uncertain terms that he would not be showering alone later, and that he better make room for company in his shower.

"Okay, I guess I'll wait," he said, pulling his shirt over his head as he took Sawyer from Stephanie. The little boy was already starting to crash.

"Cookie," Sawyer said, rubbing at his eyes.

"Oh, you saw the Cookie Monster, huh?" Chris asked as they walked towards Stephanie's office and his locker room, wow, that was weird thinking again.

"Yeah," Sawyer told him. "Cookie."

"I know, but I wasn't_really_ hanging out with the Cookie Monster, you just saw his picture," Chris explained to him. "But I'm glad that you liked my match, I tried really hard to make it good, and I'm glad that you liked it. You're going to see Daddy wrestle a lot more. Maybe we should get one thing straight right now, sometimes in the morning, Daddy's going to be sore, so you know, give him a few minutes to get adjusted to the day before you decide to jump on me, okay, deal?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said.

"Good," he told his son as they went into the office. Chris spent the majority of his time getting Sawyer ready for bed, putting the little boy's footie pajamas on, brushing his teeth, and then setting him down on the couch with his sleeping sack and a pillow for his head. Chris called Britt and asked her to come watch Sawyer for a little bit, and when she came, he left the room in order to go talk some more with Stephanie.

He ended up standing in the hallway as Flair passed, clapping for a man he had watched as a child, and someone whom he had much respect for. Hunter had to give Flair his whatever, hugging him and Chris wanted to roll his eyes. For someone who claimed to not have friends, it sure didn't seem to apply here. When Flair had passed and he had clapped dutifully, he walked over to Hunter.

"That shirt man, seriously, worse than what I wore last week," Chris chuckled.

"Ass," Hunter told him.

"Oh okay, Mr. I Don't Make Friends," Chris said all serious-like, imitating Hunter. "You're so full of it, you know that, right."

"Please, I'm not friends with Jeff."

"The first thing to correcting your problem is admitting that you have a problem."

"I do not."

"You always have to have the upper-hand in everything. Do you think you honestly intimidated Jeff tonight?"

"Yeah."

"Sure, okay," Chris said. "So did you see me kick ass out there? Man, I've still got it, it's really incredible how utterly awesome I really am."

"Oh, here we go, you were alright, Jericho, don't go tooting your own horn just yet, anyone can beat Santino."

"It was a warm-up match," Chris told him. "It was nothing, did you see the new finisher?"

"Better than your old, lame ones."

"Speaking of old and lame, how's life going for you?" Chris said.

"I hate you," Hunter told him. "I really hate you."

"I know," Chris said, patting the taller man on the shoulder. "Was it me marrying your ex-wife that did it?"

"Yeah, that's exactly it, except I didn't want her anymore, so you got sloppy seconds."

"Wow, if you think Stephanie is sloppy seconds, I pity you, man," Chris said. "And seriously, dude, take off that shirt, if one time there was a need for you to rip off your shirt for no reason whatsoever, it's now."

"One day, Jericho, me and you in that ring, I will decimate you."

"Man, so now we're not friends anymore either?" Chris asked.

Hunter laughed at that, "You would've done the same thing, in fact, isn't that what happened with the Rock, you two were getting along or whatever, and then it all turned on you."

"I guess, whatever, I've got some business to attend to."

"Oh, so now he's got business to attend to, quit straddling the line, man."

"No, this is wrestling business. I have a feeling that I'm going to be the savior tonight, and I need to get ready."

Chris smirked as he walked to where Stephanie was watching the show and still working. He told her Sawyer's whereabouts and she nodded as she continued to work. She barely even noticed him, though he was rubbing her lower back through her blouse. It wasn't until that loss of warmth was gone that she saw him winking at her and going towards the side entrance and she could only wonder what he was up to.

What he was up to was saving Ric Flair's ass, and getting what he wanted from Randy Orton. Chris ran to ringside, cutting through the crowd and jumping the barrier to distract the referee. It wasn't so much for Flair that he was doing this, but to send a message to Randy Orton about how he couldn't be walked all over. He demanded an answer tonight and he was going to get one. If he had to help Flair so be it. Chris was happy to help the man prolong his career, so he was happy to help on that front, but what he wanted, what he _needed_ was an answer from Randy, and he was going to get it one way or another. They stared each other down as the show ended, but it didn't end for them there, Chris wanted his answer, he wanted to know whether or not Randy would accept his challenge and give him what he wanted.

Randy did.


	160. My EYES, December 3 and 10, 2007

A/N: I had 3 papers due last week and then yesterday so unfortunately writing takes a backseat to that, but I do have two complete chapters all smashed together, so this is last week and this week, so it's a very long update, and I hope you enjoy and please review because we got both Chris and Steph and that's so very rare.

Plus, I always love a challenge, even if it's in response to something rather...well, fill in your own adjective and be creative:)

* * *

** Monday, December 3**

"Your dad hates me, doesn't he?"

"I don't think he hates you," Stephanie said. "Why would he hate you?"

"I was under the impression that he wanted Flair to retire and didn't like the guy," Chris said as he looked over some of the papers that Britt had given him upon entering the arena that afternoon. He apparently needed to go down to OVW at some point and see how things were going down there. Things didn't look good down there as talent was moving down to Tampa, but Chris still thought he should go check it out himself. "Hey, what are you doing this week?"

"Nothing, why?"

"Want to go on a trip?"

"Sure," she said as she looked over the schedule for the evening. "But back to my father. I don't think he really cares."

"Uh, have you met your father, of course he cares. He hates when people interfere in things that he wants to happen. I think your dad still hates Flair from when he co-owned the company. That's probably why he wants him to retire."

"You really think that my dad is _still_ holding that grudge?" Stephanie asked, tilting her head to the side as she gazed at her husband.

"Yes, I do, he still hates Hunter for hurting you," Chris said. "And that was over five years ago, so actually right around the Flair thing, and he's still holding that grudge, and your dad still hates Austin to the bone."

"Okay, you've got me," Stephanie scoffed. "You obviously know more about my father than I do, I bow to the greatness that is Chris Jericho, pardon me oh great one."

"That's better," he said. "What are you doing?"

"I'm looking over the schedule," she said.

She had calmed down considerably in the past week over Chris's return. Okay, so she really hadn't, but she didn't want Chris thinking that she was an absolute nut and couldn't control herself around him. She was still so absolutely excited about seeing him in the company. Not only was he back, he was actually going for the title. She loved that. She felt that was where he belonged, and he hadn't even used his leverage to get there. He barely ever used his status to get what he wanted.

"Oh, the schedule, let me see?" he said, looking over her shoulder as he scooted his chair closer to her. Sawyer, who had been in Stephanie's lap, looked over at Chris with suspicion, like he didn't want him near_his_ mommy. Chris got closer and Sawyer reached out and slapped at Chris. "Hey, what's the big idea?"

"My mama," he told Chris, hitting him again.

"Don't hit me," Chris said good-naturedly as Sawyer hit him again. "Hey, that's mean!"

"Yay!" Sawyer said as he grinned at Chris with that toothy grin he had, which was more like him just opening his mouth rather than him actually smiling.

"He saw you in the ring last week," Stephanie said, "and now he's trying to emulate you."

"Well I don't think this would have happened if you hadn't watched that match for a million times over the last week," Chris told her. "And critique me…and tell me that I needed to get in more offense…or that I was a little bit on the slow side at the beginning, which, give me a break, baby, I haven't been in the ring professionally for two years."

"I just think that you could've gotten a little more offense in so that you could really show Santino who was boss," Stephanie told him. "You're better than that, Chris, you should've finished him off in no time flat."

"Again, baby, I hadn't really gone against someone in over two years, cut me a little slack," he told her. "If I see Sawyer attempting to do the Code-breaker, then I'm definitely going to be blaming you."

"Hit, hit," Sawyer said as he continued to hit Chris in the arm.

Chris let Sawyer hit him as he went back to looking at the schedule, "You don't have anything planned for the opening of the show."

"I was just going to put a match there or something, any suggestions?" she asked. "You don't have anything planned for tonight, I assume that you're going to do something though, right? You're not going to no-show the show."

"Wow, that's really subtle of you," he said, rolling his eyes.

"Well, I don't know, you say you're back and…"

"You think it's like, just for now?"

"Well…"

"Stephanie, how many times do I have to tell you?"

"I don't know, I guess it's just now I can see that you can be happy away from this ring I'm nervous that you actually are going to be okay with not being here, and like, you can leave at any time now."

"Stephanie, come on, seriously," Chris said. "You think that I would come back for two shows, three shows, a month and then just leave again, abruptly, leaving everyone hanging, leaving _you_ hanging? And where the hell would I go? I'm part of this family, you're here, unless I divorce you, I'm going to be here."

"Divorce?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Not even an option," Chris said, kissing her lightly, to which he got a slap and an angry growl from the direction of Sawyer. "She's my wife, kid, get over it. I can kiss her whenever the hell I want to, and you can't do a thing about it."

"No," Sawyer growled, giving his father an angry glare, which he returned and Stephanie just shook her head at the both of them.

"There's enough of me to go around."

"Oh baby, you're not fat," Chris told her, and got another slug in the arm, but this one decidedly harder. "Oww, geez…so tell me this, baby? Are you going to be on next week? Are you going to grace the WWE with your beautiful presence like I've graced the screen with this sexy, gorgeous mug?"

"Yes, I may," she said, giving him a coy look. "You never know what kind of surprises are in store. I mean, fifteen years of Raw, that's a long time, fifteen years ago I was a little sixteen-year-old, and you were…twenty-three?"

"Yeah, way too old for the likes of you, I would've taken one look at you and laughed, and you would've taken one look at me and thought, 'who is that sexy stud,' and I would've taken the compliment, but not you," he told her.

"Please, I've seen pictures of you when you were twenty-three, I would've been like, move along dork," she said, kissing him again. "Now though, you've aged gracefully, Mr. Jericho."

"Hey, wait a second, I am not that old, I'm in my thirties like you."

"_Late_ thirties," Stephanie pointed out, "while I am in my _early_ thirties, big difference, I could still date a guy in his twenties, but if you were to date a girl in her early twenties, well, sugar daddy."

"You're such a bitch," he said, rubbing her chin with his thumb. "But I'll settle for my _early_ thirties wife, thank you very much."

"Oh, you're too kind," she said, giving him a smile. "My father doesn't hate you, you would've heard about it by now if he had hated you. Besides, you know that Ric brings in the ratings, and above anything else, save maybe his grandsons, my father loves ratings. So in essence, you did him a favor because now people want to see Ric fight all the time and see if that's the night he retires."

"See, now you're just spinning it so that I actually come out looking good."

"Well, yes, I am, but it worked, right?"

"A little," he conceded. "But if you have nothing for the top of the show, I'll take it, I wanted to go out and talk a little about what happened after the show last week in case people didn't see it, also, I think that Randy isn't taking me very seriously."

"And he should," Stephanie said, keeping her excitement contained at the fact that Chris wanted time and he was going to cut another promo. She knew with time, this sense of urgency at seeing him on television would dissipate, but right now, she just wanted to hold onto this lingering feeling of euphoria that Chris's return had brought. He was talking so naturally about being on-screen and she felt like nothing had changed, like the past two and a half years hadn't happened, except now they had a son, but other than that, nothing…oh and his hair, but other than that, nothing!

"Damn right he should. I'm going to take that title away from him. I will be carrying the banner for the company."

"Oh, don't get me all hot and bothered," Stephanie said, loving the serious tone of Chris's voice added with the idea that all of this was over a match. "I always felt like if you wanted the belt you should just go for it. I believe in you."

"I know," he smiled. "So can I have the time?"

"Take all the time that you need," Stephanie told him, "I'll just pencil you in, and send this out immediately. You've got the top of the show, Jericho, nice to see you using your power for once in your life."

"How was this using my power?" he asked. "I didn't command you to give me time, I asked nicely like a good employee should, and not even as a man in management."

"True," she said. "Okay, well, start abusing your power, will you? You're in the McMahon family, start acting like it," she joked, as Sawyer started to get restless in her lap, climbing down and wandering over to his toys. "What are we going to do about him?"

"Shelter, clothe, and feed him for the next seventeen years I'm guessing."

"No, I mean about the curtain situation," Stephanie said, thinking back to how rapid her heartbeat had become last week when Sawyer had disappeared from her view. In those few minutes, not knowing where her son was, not knowing how long he had been gone she had felt like the worst mother in the world. There was a certain amount of terror that had flittered through her body in those moments, and she'd rather not repeat them…ever. It was only too bad because Sawyer was an independent fellow. He was already trying to insist on dressing himself in the clothes that he picked out, and though he was getting rather good with putting his shoes on, and sometimes buttoning up his shirt, his sense of coordination was lacking. He was always trying to wander off on his own, but Stephanie and Chris were hesitant to restrain the obvious creativity he absorbed when he was allowed this modicum of independence.

Chris and Stephanie were both independent people, which was a lot of the reason why this marriage worked so well. They loved each other, they spent almost all of their time together, but they were still allowed to do what they wanted, within reason of course. They were both scheming still, and they liked to do things in their own time, or without the other's knowledge, and they didn't want to hamper that in their son. They wanted Sawyer to formulate his own ideas and projects, like their own parents had done for them so long ago.

"Oh that," he said. "Well, I think we just have to show him what's behind the curtain. He's never going to try and stop looking if we don't show him."

"Yeah, I know, but we can't bring him out there during a show, what the heck are we going to introduce him as?"

"Um, weighing in at twenty-eight pounds, from Tampa, Florida, Sawyer Jericho!" Chris said in his best announcer's voice. "Then he can come toddling down to the ring in his diaper since he'd still be more clothed than like Trips or Randy. He can wave, so there you go, he can act like a lion so he's got the heelish qualities down, and he's got some pretty solid punches. I think we can send him out there, he can at least take Hornswoggle."

"Ugh, don't mention him, please," Stephanie said, groaning. "I just don't want to think about it. So do you want to take him out there right now, we should get this over with because I'm going to be busy tonight? My dad has put it partially on me to call some people for next week, specifically Trish."

"You like Trish though."

"Yeah, I know, but still I have work to do, _you_ have work to do," she said, the smile creeping up on her face, but she pushed it down. She didn't have the time to get giddy over Chris's night. Even though it was making her a little giddy right now. But no, she had to get that out of her brain for the time being.

"I don't have to work until the show starts, I've got time," he told her. "So do you want to come with us?"

"Yeah, I do," she told him. She wanted to see Sawyer's face when he walked through that curtain. She expected it to be a mixture of happiness at finally being able to go through it and then annoyance at seeing that he had already seen what was out there and it wasn't the party that he thought it was.

Well, it _could_ be the party that he thought it was if he went out there during the show. That would be funny though, if she was able to see Sawyer's face if he went out there during the actual show. He had been in the audience before, and he had loved it, so to be in front of the people, he might love that even more. Sawyer hadn't been out in the audience lately though, maybe she should arrange for him to see Chris wrestle, maybe at Armageddon. That thought was intriguing. Chris's first big match back, possibly winning the title, Sawyer should be able to see that. She liked that idea.

"Hey, you know what we should do?"

"What?"

"Let Sawyer sit in the audience when you face Randy," Stephanie said.

"Oh okay, let our nineteen-month-old son sit in the audience by himself I really like that idea," Chris said sarcastically.

"Not by himself, jackass," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "I meant like, maybe we can invite your parents to come down here, and they could sit with him. I'd like for Sawyer to see you wrestle in person. I think he'd like it."

"You don't think that he'd start to grab for me and yell and scream when I won't come to him. He's going to be yelling 'Daddy' the entire time you know," Chris said, looking at his son. "You know that he likes the attention and if I'm up there and he can't come see me, he's going to throw a fit."

"He won't throw a fit if you look over at him and smile every once in a while, just acknowledge him, if you're out on the floor, just kind of look in his direction or something. Or we'll put him near the entrance so that if he sees you, your parents can bring him backstage, it's all very convenient."

"Fine, I'll think about it, but what if I start bleeding and he thinks I'm hurt?" Chris asked.

"Well, your dad can explain, and then when you see him backstage, he'll see that you're okay. You think too lowly of Sawyer, Chris. He's a smart kid, he knows what goes on out there for the most part. Don't underestimate him."

"I'm not underestimating him," Chris said, rolling his eyes. "Come on, let's go."

Chris took Sawyer's hand and they walked out the door, Sawyer wondering what the heck was going on. He had been having a grand time playing with his trucks and now he had to go somewhere. He sighed a little. Sometimes his parents just didn't understand that he would just like to sit around and play with his trucks, not go around doing whatever they wanted to do. What about what he wanted to do? He felt another hand take his free one and looked up and saw his Mommy had taken his other hand. Okay, this was weird. He looked between the both of them, wondering what was going on.

"We're going to go see what's behind the curtain," Chris told him, as if knowing what he was thinking.

Sawyer understood see and behind and curtain and that was enough for him. He started smiling, immediately thinking that he was going to get to go to this awesome party and he was going to meet tons of really cool people and characters from all his favorite shows. In that moment, he was absolutely sure that he had the best mommy and daddy in the entire universe and he gazed up at them adoringly, so very excited to get to go and party. He wondered if they would stick around with him.

"I don't think I've ever seen him so happy," Stephanie told her husband.

Chris laughed as they reached the gorilla, "He honestly thinks whatever is behind there is going to be the greatest thing ever."

"He's going to be so disappointed," Stephanie laughed.

They let Sawyer's hands go and he ran towards the stairs, being careful to go up each one carefully. The last thing he needed to do right now was to fall and then he wouldn't get to see what was behind there. He reached up for the railing, but it was a little too high for him. Luckily for Sawyer, his father was right behind him so if he fell, he knew that his daddy would be right there to scoop him up before he hurt himself. He got to the curtain and pulled it back, seeing that dark hallway. He grinned up at Chris and then went walking down it, and his parents weren't even saying anything!

He kept walking, feeling his parents' presence behind him. They reached another curtain and this was farther than he had ever gotten. He stood there waiting for something to happen, but the only thing that happened was his daddy pulling back the curtain. Chris turned back to Stephanie. "You know, it'd be kind of cool if he could at least see the pyros and hear the music from this perspective."

"Well, maybe someday, maybe before WrestleMania, he'll be older then, he'll appreciate it more."

"Yeah," Chris said as Sawyer stood there. "Go ahead, kid, you can keep going."

Sawyer wasn't seeing much at the moment, so he walked beyond the curtain, almost holding his breath in anticipation. He turned the little corner and saw…nobody. Sure, there were a couple people down there, but there wasn't anyone else. He furrowed his brow and looked around, not understanding what had happened. He saw the ring, but he had seen that a million times, he even knew what it was since his mother and father never shut up about it.

"Ring," Sawyer said, pointing at it and looking back at his parents.

"Yeah, that's all there is, kid, just the ring."

He kept looking around, wandering out onto the ramp a little bit. He turned around and he knew this set; he saw it every week. He saw all this stuff every week! Where were the Muppets, where were the cartoon characters, where was Cookie Monster? This was a complete gyp, and Sawyer stood there in disbelief. What a rotten trick that his parents had played on him. He glared at them for a second before turning around towards the ring again. He could not believe that they would bring him out here and let him believe that there was a party out here. He scrunched up his face and stood there angrily.

"He's pissed," Stephanie said.

"I know," Chris agreed, trying to hold in his chuckles. "Poor kid."

"I know," Stephanie said, going over and kneeling next to Sawyer, "Hey baby boy, I'm sorry there's nothing cool out here."

"Cookie," Sawyer whimpered, looking at her.

"I know what you saw, but this is just where Daddy works," Stephanie said, taking his hand and rubbing it with her thumb. "But you still get to see everything that nobody else gets to see. Do you know how many little boys get to see things from up here? None, that's who, and you're very lucky that you get to. Very lucky."

Sawyer threw his arms around Stephanie's neck, very upset with how this had played out. Stephanie lifted him and he sniffled, thinking that he had missed out on everything. Why did his parents get to have all the fun while he was stuck doing nothing and being little? He buried his face into Stephanie's neck, not having fun anymore and wanting to go back and just play with his trucks…if they were even still there, maybe those had been taken away from him too.

"Oh baby boy," Stephanie said, rubbing his back. "It's okay."

"He's really upset about this," Chris said, surprised a bit at Sawyer's reaction. "Hey kid, it's okay, don't worry about it."

Sawyer sighed and kept his face against Stephanie's neck. "Do you want to go eat dinner?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said softly, "tummy."

"Okay, we'll go eat dinner," Stephanie said as they started walking back through that stupid curtain. They went backstage, and by the time they got to catering, Sawyer was feeling a little bit better. Enough to smile and eat his carrots, which usually wouldn't happen, but his mommy and daddy kept making funny faces at him which made him giggle and forget all about how disappointing it had been to see that there was no party. Now his daddy was sticking carrot sticks in his mouth and acting funny and Sawyer giggled as he munched on his own carrots, stopping intermittently to take a bite of his chicken, scooping it up in his spoon.

Stephanie, was on the phone though, listening to it ring, "Hello?"

"Hey, Trish."

"Steph, hey, what's up?" Trish asked. "Shouldn't you be working right now?"

"I am working right now," she said. "My job was to call you."

"What?"

"We want you to come for the fifteenth anniversary of Raw next week, my dad is asking all these old stars and well, the list wouldn't be complete without you, and for the record you're the first one that I called, that's how special you are."

"Or am I just the first one you called because I'm the only one you'd want to talk to."

"I have to call the Mean Street Posse, _of course_ you were the only one I wanted to talk to," Stephanie joked. "In all seriousness though, it'd be cool if you could come next week and make an appearance, I mean, Chris is going to be there on the show, and so am I, you should be too."

"I'm glad I'm thought so highly of."

"Trish, come on, you're one of my best friends," Stephanie said. "And one of the best female wrestlers to come into this business, you _have_ to be here, what's it going to take?"

"Nothing, I'll come, it'll be nice to see everyone again," she said. "I feel like I'm really back on track, so you know, might as well throw myself into the fray for one more night, screw myself up all over again."

"Hey, not everyone here is screwed up, according to Chris, I'm very normal," Stephanie joked. "But I can put you down, right?"

"Yeah, put me down, I'll be there, I can visit you guys and some other people, so that should be fun," Trish shrugged. "It'll be fun, we'll all hang out."

"And as always, you're free to stay at our house in Connecticut, so don't make any hotel plans."

"Okay, I'll let you get back to work since I know you're dying to, I'll talk to you later, Steph," Trish said, "bye."

"Bye," she said, hanging up. "Well, Trish is coming and I've got work to do, so I better go."

"Hey, hey, hey, the show is starting in fifteen minutes and I've got the first segment, remember?"

"Oh, oh yeah," Stephanie said, "well, I've got to get to my station, my dad isn't doing it tonight, and then I've got to make phone calls to the guys on the list my dad gave me."

"Steph, we can't leave Sawyer here, he's not finished, and I'm not even dressed."

"You look fine," she told him, looking him over.

"Stephanie, I have a big stain on my shirt from Sawyer's juice, I cannot go out there looking like this," Chris said, looking at the stain that Sawyer's apple juice had put on his shirt.

"It's better than those hideous vests."

"I thought you liked those," he said, feeling a little wounded.

"What in God's name made you think that?" she asked. "Chris, they're hideous, I don't know what you're trying to be, but those vests are hideous and I hate them and I hate that you look like you're growing facial hair."

"Well wow, way to late it out there for me, Steph," Chris told her. "So we're just laying it all out on the line."

"Okay, okay, I can be a little late with the show, so go ahead and get dressed and get out there and I'll take care of Sawyer."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm sure," she told him, "go, so you're not late!"

"I'm going, I'm going," he said, dashing off. Stephanie looked at Sawyer and waited for him to finish his dinner.

Chris knew it was time to be serious as he stepped into that ring. Randy had accepted his challenge last week and now it was time for him to focus. He wanted to be the WWE champion. It wasn't even because he was part of the McMahon family and he thought that as part of the royal family of the WWE that he should hold the title. He was just one of the Princes anyways, it wasn't like he was the King. He wanted it to prove to himself that he was still the best at what he did. Sure, Stephanie told him all the time that he was great and she was his biggest supporter (no lie, she is) but he needed to prove it to himself now. It was easy for Stephanie to believe in him, she loved him, but now it was his time.

He went on to discuss what had happened last week, making note that Randy had actually accepted his challenge, being clever about it and pretending like he had been…aroused by the news, but instead, pulled out his cell phone. He almost turned the phone on and had to catch himself before he let it turn on and then someone…or everyone might see that he had Sawyer dressed as a lion as his wallpaper for his phone. Oh wait, no, that wasn't right, he had switched two days ago. Now it was Stephanie and Sawyer asleep with matching cases of bed-head. He didn't think that Stephanie would want some clever person to get a screencap of that.

The footage rolled and before long, Randy had joined him. Chris stared him down as he walked to the ring and climbed inside. Randy went on to brag again and Chris was sick and tired of it. Bragging was all Randy seemed to do. Oh, he was the Legend Killer this, he was the Legend Killer that, and Chris was tired of hearing that. Once upon a time, he bragged too, but that was the past, even though he always would've beaten Rock and Stone Cold on the same night to become the first Undisputed Champion ever, but we digress. It was the here and now and Randy could be anything he wanted to be, cunning, manipulative, cold, whatever, but Chris was going to be the exact same way. Randy wasn't afraid…but he should be.

Chris was just getting ready to fight when Regal interrupted and made matches for them. He had never fought Umaga before, but Chris felt like he could take him. Chris, if anything, was agile, a quality that Umaga was not. Chris could outrun the monster that was Umaga and he was pretty sure he could kick his ass, then he'd get his hands on Randy and all would be right in the world, and maybe he could get laid tonight on top of that, that would just be the icing on the cake.

He walked backstage to where Regal was discussing the scheduling with Stephanie, who had a scowl on her face. Sawyer was sitting quietly next to her, reading a book Chris had brought for him before he went out there. Stephanie looked up when she saw Chris and she smiled. He could also see the worry in her eyes. She had expressed the concern to him that he was still rusty in the ring to an extent and she worried about his endurance. Chris had to assure her that he had been taking a lot of time to make sure that he was going to be ready for anything that was thrown at him. He had handled bigger men than Umaga and he had taken them down, this would be no different.

He scooped up Sawyer, knowing that Stephanie was busy and Sawyer needed to be watched and he had time before his match. How he spent that time before his match, you ask? Well, he would like to say that he spent it warming up, being cool and getting all pumped up for his match, but that was a lie. He spent the entire time playing trucks with Sawyer, on his hands and knees making truck noises as Sawyer rammed his trucks into Chris's. Before long though, Sawyer had to head to bed, and this is where Chris ran into a dilemma. Stephanie was working, he had to work, and Sawyer was rubbing his eyes and his blinking was getting slower. He got Sawyer ready for bed and put him on the couch, turning off the lights and letting his son fall asleep. Now he just had to get someone to watch said son.

He stuck his head out into the hallway, looking around and not seeing anybody that he would trust with his son. Chris was wrapping tape around his wrists and still looking for someone to watch Sawyer when Vince walked by and Chris sighed in relief, "Vince, can you do me a favor?"

"Well, I was busy, what is it?" Vince asked.

"It's Sawyer, I have to go wrestle and Steph is working and there's nobody to watch him. I don't know where Britt is, I'd normally ask her, but she's nowhere to be found. He's already asleep, so you'd just have to watch him."

"Oh, of course, it's my grandson."

"Thanks," Chris said, rushing off for his match…

Which didn't go quite as he planned, unfortunately for Chris. He had hit the Lionsault and then the Code-breaker and now he was going for the pin when he felt a hard kick to his stomach, he rolled over in pain as Randy got the better of him this time. He had to be helped to the back after that, and he hated when that happened. Chris was not a man who liked to be helped to the back. He pushed the referee away when he got backstage and Stephanie came up to him and felt around his stomach.

"I'm fine, don't worry about it," Chris told her.

"Are you sure?"

"Steph, come on, I'm fine."

"Okay, if you insist, you know, I've been thinking about my dad and inviting all these people. A lot of them don't like my dad, I don't know if he's doing the right thing inviting all these people to the show."

"Bring it up with him," Chris shrugged, wincing ever so slightly. Stephanie rolled her eyes. She hated when Chris pretended like he was okay. She knew that he'd probably have a bruise there when he woke up, but if he didn't want to acknowledge the fact that he was hurting, whatever, she'd let him suffer in the morning and let Sawyer climb all over him. Then he'd know better than to lie about how he was feeling.

Stephanie brought it up with him later, right after she saw Chris beat down Randy Orton. She smiled, but she was all business right then. She tried to warn her father, but he didn't want to listen to her. She was pissed off about that. Her father never listened to anyone but himself. He was so selfish sometimes that it pissed her off. Her father just sometimes…she didn't get him. Stephanie had built this life for herself and she liked it. She was stable; she had a husband and a son, and life was good. Chris was back, Sawyer was growing and learning and just plain awesome, her job was going well. She had everything she wanted, but why couldn't her father just be reasonable for once? She hated that they could never see eye-to-eye, but just like Chris, she had to let her father see that for himself.

"You know, people hate him," Stephanie pointed out.

"I know," Chris said as they lay in bed later on. "I hate him sometimes myself. It's only through you that I tolerate the guy, since he's your dad, since you know…kind of gave you life, so I'm indebted to him…damn it."

She laughed and turned on her side to face Chris, running her hands through her hair. "I'm really glad you're back, you know."

He turned on his side to face her, "I know you are. Why the hell do you think I came back?"

"It wasn't all for me though."

"Well, no, but you should think that, I like it when you think that," he said to her. "Don't worry about your dad. Just go out there, do that damn family portrait thing and go back to work. You don't even need to worry about it."

"Of course I do, my dad is going to embarrass me, again. That's just…that's my biggest fear with Sawyer. I'm going to be an embarrassment to him like my father is an embarrassment to me."

"Well, so far so good, I don't think you've embarrassed the kid. You and your dad are different people, Steph. I wouldn't have married you if you were just like your dad, trust me. A person can really only take so much Vince McMahon in their life."

"Yeah, well, I guess if he's going to embarrass me again I better start preparing."

"Yeah, you better prepare alright."

**Monday, December 10**

"Tish!"

"Hey there, sweetheart," Trish said, kneeling down as Sawyer came running up to hug her. "How are you?"

"Boo-boo," Sawyer said, holding up his hand where he had a band-aid around his ring finger. He pouted a little, knowing how to get the maximum amount of attention.

"Oh no, what happened?"

"Daddy," Sawyer said sadly.

"Your daddy did this to you?" Trish asked.

"I did not, stop lying, kid," Chris said, placing his hand on Sawyer's head. "We were running around and Sawyer caught his hand on a pole and he scratched it. Now he's going around blaming me for his own lack of coordination."

"I should've known, it's all about placing blame in your family."

"Yeah," he said as Trish stood up. He hugged her comfortably, "How've you been, Trish?"

"Actually, I've been a lot better lately. I finally feel like I've got myself back on track. I think the time away from everything and being up in Toronto and with my family was just what I needed. I was away from Carlito, from Christian, everything, and it was good for me."

"Well, I didn't need your life story," Chris said good-naturedly. "But I'm really glad to hear that. So…you won't be bothered that Carlito_and_ Christian are going to be here tonight."

"Oh, thank you for just laying the bomb on me like that," she said with a small laugh. "But I should be okay."

"Good to hear," he said. "I feel like it's a high school reunion tonight. I've seen so many guys I used to know, so many guys I kind of knew and then guys who I only watched on television when I was younger. It's a little surreal to say the least."

Trish shook her head as she and Chris walked side-by-side down the hallway to what was presumably Stephanie's office. Sawyer was out and running ahead of them and Trish understood now why Sawyer had a boo-boo on his finger. She hadn't been around here in a really long time it seemed, and it felt like an old glove, or an old pair of pants that she hadn't worn for a long time, but they still fit perfectly. People were continuously waving to her and stopping for a brief moment to say hello as Chris continued to chase Sawyer around.

Eventually they made it to Stephanie's office and Chris held the door open for them. Sawyer ran inside yelling the entire time, making Stephanie wince as she looked at her little boy, who was now pretending to be a monster and stomping towards her menacingly. Stephanie pretended to be scared as she cowered comically in fear as Sawyer started to giggle and tickle her, making her laugh as she scooped him up and gave him a sloppy kiss on the cheek, which he promptly wiped off. Stephanie set him back down again and he ran towards his toys, picking up some of the more interesting ones and bringing them over to the couch before climbing up himself.

"He's gotten so big since the last time I saw him," Trish said as Stephanie came over to hug her friend. "It's like he gets bigger by the second."

"He likes to think so," Stephanie laughed as she pulled back, "You look good."

"I feel good," Trish said as she laughed and looked at Stephanie.

"I feel like I haven't seen you in years."

"We talked yesterday," Trish laughed, "we talk like every other day, Steph, it's not like you could've been completely missing me, you know what's going on in my life."

"I know, but still, I feel like I'm the only girl in a boy's club around here. I've got Hunter and Chris always jockeying over some invisible prize."

"It's not invisible, he thinks he's better than me, but he's not, he's a douchebag," Chris said, obviously joking. "He's way below me."

"Obviously," Stephanie said. "See what I have to put up with. Come back, Trish, come back forever and ever and stay with me."

"Chris, how much coffee has Stephanie had today?" Trish asked.

"Um, probably eleven by now, I'm not entirely sure if she even went to bed last night. If we were in a hotel room, I'd know, but it's a little trickier when we're at her house--"

"Our house," Stephanie corrected.

"Yeah, you say that but I always feel like a visitor when I'm there," Chris said. "Anyways, did you come to bed last night?"

"Yeah, I did, I got like four hours of sleep, maybe five," she said. "It's just with so many people, and so many things planned, everything is on such a timetable. My dad wanted like fifty thousand people to come tonight and I feel like I'm planning a banquet."

"It is kind of like that," Chris said. "We rented out a restaurant for after the show, people can catch up and whatever, that was all my doing, thank you very much, I've got Britt on the job for telling everyone about it. Look at me, working behind the scenes and in front of the mic, Chris Jericho is one-of-a-kind."

"Oh God, Trish, let's get out of here before there's no room for us and his ego," Stephanie said as she linked arms with Trish. "Oh, sweetie, you're not anywhere on the show, what are you going to show up for?"

"Well, I was hoping the family portrait, but apparently…I wasn't invited and neither was my son, who happens to be _your_ son as well, little disappointing that we're not considered family."

"Sweetie, you know that we're not…public about our relationship, I don't need to go making out with you in front of the world to prove that I'm with you. What would that even prove? Besides, there's no canon for it."

"See, Trish, just because we've never been together on-screen, Stephanie feels like we're not even a couple," Chris said, pretending to be hurt. "And she won't even acknowledge our son, saying she has some phantom daughter."

"Please, the last person you will see on this show tonight, the _last_ person of the six billion people in this world that you're going to see here is Sawyer McMahon Jericho. Let me get that one straight. There's no way my nineteen-month-old son is going to be on-screen. I'd rather…I don't know, strip on the show to nothing than have my son on this show."

"Like I'm going to let _that_ happen, I think I'd rather have Sawyer on-screen than have my wife be naked in front of the world, but that's just me," Chris said.

"I'm leaving," Stephanie groaned, "come on, Trish, there's so many people that are here that we should go say hi too."

"Chris, regulate how much coffee your wife drinks!" Trish said, pretending to be angry with Chris. "She's being way too friendly."

"I suspect she's going to crash before the show even starts and she's going to be an even bigger bitch than she usually is."

"Who's a bigger bitch?" Hunter said as he walked into the room. "Steph, is it Steph?"

"Bingo!" Chris said.

"Twip!" Sawyer said, giving him a nod.

"Where the hell did he learn my name and how to nod like that?" Hunter said.

"Well, he knows who you are and he was just calling you nothing, so I kind of taught him how to say that because he's still on the one or two syllable thing, and the head nod, well, look at his mother for that one."

"Steph?"

"He sees me do it with people when I'm working," Stephanie said drolly. "I'm leaving. I'll see you later if I don't come back."

"But I want to see you go out for your family portrait," Chris teased. "Since I'm such a little part of the family, I thought that watching it backstage I might get to pretend like I was really part of the McMahon family, but you know, I'm just on the outskirts…"

"Drama queen," Trish said, rolling her eyes.

"You have to be assertive, I didn't let her push me into the background," Hunter said.

"You were also an asshole, what's your point?" Chris asked. "Plus, Stephanie was a bitch back then anyways."

"See what I mean?" Stephanie said. "This is all they do all night. It's like a pissing contest or something."

"Come on, the ladies are leaving."

"Oh, hold on, I've got to kiss my guys," Stephanie said, going over to the couch and giving Sawyer a kiss, which he leaned up to get. Then she gave Chris a quick kiss. "Don't forget to do something on the show, you're back for a reason, Jericho."

"Steph, I will obviously do something to Randy," Chris said. "Our match is this Sunday, I must take a stand. I'm obviously going to be somewhere on the show. I won't interrupt your family portrait time, don't worry."

"Good," she said, kissing him again. "Bye, Hunter."

"Hey, where's my goodbye kiss, I _used_ to be one of your boys, I used to be your only boy."

She scoffed, "I'm not kissing you, sorry, those days are long gone."

"So you say," Hunter joked.

"Husband number two_ right here_," Chris said, gesturing to himself. "I'm so insulted right now."

"Good," Stephanie winked as she and Trish left for parts unknown. Chris watched his wife leave, appreciating the swing in her hips that he knew was just for him. Damn did he love that woman.

"Nice ass."

"You dick," Chris said, glaring at Hunter. "Stop staring at my wife."

"She was mine first," Hunter said. "Besides, I came to talk to you about something. You're still in management, right? Like you still have that power going for you?"

"Uh, yeah," Chris said, "why?"

"Well, you might not want to interrupt that family portrait, but I know someone who does want to interrupt it."

"Oh God, Trips, what do you want to do now?"

"Well, I just have…a collection of people that I'd like to bring into this picture of theirs, and well, you know, Vince and Stephanie and Shane, I think I really only have one out three in that one, and Stephanie's still iffy. So…"

"You come to me?"

"Come on, man, you love me now, right, we're like brothers, bros," Hunter said, hitting his chest. Sawyer looked at Hunter and gave him a weird look. That man was so strange sometimes.

"I don't know where you got that impression."

"We're in the fraternity of Stephanie's husbands. We have a bond here," Hunter said, gesturing between the two of them with his fist. "You and me, man, we've been with that woman, and we know her better than anyone."

"I'm still with her, I think you're in the other club, 'Guys Who Weren't Good Enough for My Woman' club. It's got a lot more members than the 'So Awesome She Married Him and Had His Kid' club. I'm the charter member, I'm going to be the only member, and I might eventually have to make it 'kids' and not 'kid.' But we'll get to that when we get to that."

"Chris."

"Fine, just get off my case, man," Chris said. "Go…talk to Evolution."

"That was Stephanie's idea."

"Sure it was, you just want your face over everything like usual."

"Well…yeah."

"I'm going to go locate some other friends who won't use me," Chris told him. "See you when I see you, man. I'll tell production you're coming in and do whatever the hell you want to do."

"You're the best."

"I know," Chris said. "It's about damn time that you started believing it too. I guess this means in our eventual throwdown, when I'm beloved and you're reviled, I'm going to kick your ass, and it's going to be so sweet, Trips."

"You wish."

"I know," Chris said, tapping his forehead. He went over to Sawyer, "Grab one toy that you want."

Sawyer grabbed one of his toys and held it up to Chris. "Here Daddy!"

"No, I don't want it," Chris said, picking him up. "I'll just take you instead. See you later, Trips, think about what I said, how I'm so much more awesome."

"You wish, jackass."

Chris and Sawyer went down the hallway, Chris saying hello to everyone along the way. Some of the guys he had worked with when he was just entering the WWF were here, and it was weird to see them now. Things had changed so much, and he was such a different guy then than he was now. It was really something how far he'd come. Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine that he would end up where he was, with who he was with. Seeing all these old faces just reminded him of when he had been entering the company and felt like he didn't know anyone.

"Chris!"

Chris turned around and smiled at the familiar face, "Hey, man, hey, Tiff."

"Hey," the two said in unison and then looked at each other and rolled their eyes. Tiffany spoke next, "We obviously promise never to speak in tandem again. How are you, Chris?"

"We're neighbors, Tiff, you come over for dinner all the time."

"I'm being polite, Chris," she told him. "So this is like, crazy."

"I know," Chris said, looking around. "But Vince wanted everyone and kitchen sink to be here tonight, so that's who is here. It's like some demented high school reunion. I mean, it's kind of cool in a way, but in other ways, I feel like some guys are sucking up to me because they think I can get them a job or something."

Christian laughed and then raised his voice, "Oh, look at me, I'm Chris Jericho, I'm rich as hell, I have millions upon millions of dollars and I run the show and I'm on the show, and I have a great, hot wife, and a cool son, everything's going my way."

"Yeah, that's pretty much my inner monologue," Chris said. "It's what I think."

"Chris," Britt said as she walked by quickly, "Show's starting in a few."

"Thanks, Britt," Chris said. "Hey, I'm going to go watch at the gorilla, but I'll talk to you guys later."

"Cool, sounds good, I'm going to go find my brother," Christian said, "I know he's around here somewhere."

"Later."

Stephanie loved being in front of the crowd and sometimes she didn't know why she didn't do it more often. Oh that's right, because for the most part people hated her. Sure, they would sometimes cheer, but she always got the impression that it was more for her being against her father than it was for her. If she was by Chris's side, then she'd think it was just more for him than it was for her, just like when they were business partners she thought the boos were more for her than they were for him. Chris always had the crowd, always. She watched her father walk with an extra jaunt in his step and it made her want to laugh.

Her father wanted this to be perfect, and she just wanted to get it over with. She got what this was. Vince just wanting to show off, that's what this was. She was still a little mad about how her father had dismissed her last week, but she didn't want to get into it right now. It was neither the time nor the place to discuss this with her father, so she just decided to go along with it. Shane held the ropes for her and she smiled as she went through them. She looked out on the crowd, wondering how they'd respond to Chris if he came out. Or when he came out because it wasn't going to be a 15th anniversary without Chris here, and he was part of the active roster. She would've been kind of upset if his appearance had only been as a cameo because she had had to ask him to show up.

Oh, now she had missed what her father was saying. She waited as he took the time to introduce her and she smiled because it was fun up here. Then Hornswoggle's music hit and she was a little dismayed. She still didn't know how to act around him. Hell, he might not even really be her brother. Her father had refused to absolutely confirm this and it still bugged the hell out of her. Still, Stephanie wasn't going to ruin the moment with all that. She would still just take this picture and leave. That was her plan. She could talk with Trish, go see Christian, say hello to other people and get back to work. She awkwardly posed with her brother…brothers, and father, waiting for this stupid picture.

That's when Hunter's music hit and Stephanie knew she was in for a world of trouble.

Chris was watching backstage, Trish right next to him. He had a silly smile on his face. "She looks good out there, huh?"

"Chris, we go through this song and dance every time she's out there."

"I'm sorry, I just like seeing her out there," he said. "Maybe I should go out there."

"No," Trish said.

"You're right, looks like Steph is going to have enough to deal with, if I know Hunter, and I think I do," Chris said.

"Don't we all…"

Stephanie thought Hunter was a blowhard, she really did. First he said he could feel like Vince's son, and she rolled her eyes inwardly at that. She hated thinking about her former marriage. Then he had to bring out those whom her father had loved. Only he would come out here and parade whatever, all these women out that her father had…well…she didn't even want to think about it. She stood there, watching, and when Mae Young came out, she grimaced. Why was her dad the way he was? When he went on to explain what had happened, well, that was only worse and Shane could only take so much and left.

Why was it that Shane was always the sensible one and she was always the one who stuck around? Damn it, why did she have to be a Daddy's Girl and always see everything to the finish? She didn't know the answers to these questions, but still, still she stood there, against her better judgment. She knew this was only going to get more comical, and this was going to get more embarrassing and wasn't this what she had been afraid would happen, to a certain extent? She didn't want to be an embarrassment to her son like her father was an embarrassment to her. Here was the example and maybe by staying out here, she was embarrassing Sawyer, if Sawyer even knew what it was like to be embarrassed.

Now Hunter was just trying to be cheeky, but she was already really disgusted by her father. Hunter had just magnified it for her. After last week and her father ignoring everything she had said and then yelling at her compounding it with this right here, seeing women that his father had actually been with, it was embarrassing her and she couldn't believe she was still standing here. If Hunter had brought out Candice Michelle, that would've been it for her, she probably would've dismantled the ring herself, turning into some Hulk (the green one) version of herself. As it was though, she was blinded by her embarrassment and anger for her father and thought of the only thing in that moment that would make him as angry with her as she was with him.

So she kissed her ex-husband.

She didn't know where it came from. Maybe from the fact that he was the only one in the ring she'd be willing to kiss. She didn't even know why she chose to kiss Hunter. Okay, so she did know, it was going to piss the hell out of her father. She didn't even think about Chris in that moment, just wanting the revenge she could get at the moment. Unfortunately, the only revenge in this scenario was to kiss the hell out of Hunter and live with the consequences later. She pulled away and looked at her father with disdain, that should stick in his craw. Hunter mentioned jokingly that he would see her at home, an inside joke how they used to be married. It was only when Stephanie was leaving that she realized she had a husband and a son who were waiting behind the curtain.

"Did my wife just kiss another man?" Chris said, blinking as he watched the segment keep going even as Stephanie had left.

"Um…yeah," Trish said tentatively.

"Did my wife just kiss her _ex-husband_?" Chris asked again, his jaw dropping a little bit.

"She did."

"Oh," Chris said. "I'm not exactly sure what to do in this situation."

"I think she just wanted to get back at her father," Trish said.

"That wasn't the way I would've hoped she would go. I mean, she could've settled for slapping him or kicking him in the crotch, but she…kissed Hunter. She kissed the man she was married to. She kissed the man that she was with before me. This constitutes as cheating, right?"

"Well, under the circumstances."

"Yeah…circumstances…" Chris looked off in his own, little world right now, and Trish didn't want to disturb him. Sawyer was leaning his head against Chris's leg, engrossed in his own thing. The two Jericho men, very much alike, and she reached out to the bigger one and gave him a supportive arm.

Stephanie was honestly afraid to go backstage. She had opted to go through the side-stage, but she was out of sight right now so she was taking a minute to compose herself before she went back to see Chris. Chris wasn't normally that jealous a guy. He didn't much care who she talked to unless they seemed to pose a threat of some sort. Still, Hunter was different. Hunter was her ex-husband and for a long time, Chris felt like he could lose her to him. He was the competition, the other man in their marriage so to speak. It was so different because she had actually been married to Hunter. She had loved him, and now she didn't and she knew deep down Chris wondered if there was going to be a time when she would realize that she still wanted that number one and not number two.

"So…tell me, did that do as much for you as it did for me?" Hunter asked from right behind her.

"Jesus, Hunter, don't scare me like that," Stephanie said.

"Oh, wow, me scaring_you_, that's rich. Wasn't it you that kissed me just now?" he chuckled.

"I wanted to get my father mad, what else could I do, he hates you…ironically enough, he hates you for hurting me and I just up and kissed you," Stephanie groaned. "I didn't know what else to do."

"So tell me truthfully, what did you feel when we kissed?" he asked, noting that nobody was around since they were around the corner and out of sight.

"Nothing," she shrugged. "I didn't feel anything. It just felt like…I don't know, kissing someone as an act or something. I didn't feel a thing for you. Which is a good thing, I guess. I just wished that I hadn't kissed you in the first place. Wait, what did _you_ feel?"

"Same, nothing," he said. "Look, I have a girlfriend right now, and I really like her, I could love her, and when you kissed me, it was like, wow, Steph is kissing me, and that lasted for about a second before I thought that this was just weird."

"What happened to us, didn't we used to be good together?"

"Well, I think we just got older and wiser and less reckless," Hunter said. "So now you're scared to go see Chris."

"Well, wouldn't you be, aren't you?"

"Hell no, I didn't initiate that kiss, I knew you were doing it to get back at your father, and that's the only reason I didn't haul you off of me and tell the world that your husband and son were waiting backstage."

"I don't want him to be mad at me."

"He won't be."

"You don't know that."

"But I do know Chris," Hunter said.

"No, you know Chris, but you don't _know_ Chris. Look, Hunter, for a very long time, you were a sensitive subject, and…I don't know."

"Oh, well, I can go back with you, if you want."

"Whatever, at this point, I should just get it over with."

She went behind the curtain and looked around. It didn't seem that Chris was…wait a second, there was Sawyer, sitting on a chair and using a pen to draw something and behind him, and up against the wall, Chris was…wait, what the hell, Chris was making out with Trish! Stephanie looked at Hunter in shock before stomping over to Chris and pulling him away from Trish hard, who wiped her mouth and smiled at Stephanie.

"What the hell!" Stephanie said.

"Oh, I'm sorry…I thought that tonight was just, I thought we were allowed to kiss whoever we wanted and Trish was right here. I was thinking about going to Lita next, seeing if she wanted to make out, you know, I know she wanted a piece of me back in the day."

"Chris Jericho!"

"What?" he asked innocently. "I mean, you were out there kissing your ex, I figured, I pretended to be with Trish once upon a time, I can kiss her."

"Chris," she told him, tilting her head. She couldn't tell if he was angry or being funny. He was being so hard to read right now, an indifferent air about him that was starting to bug her. Besides, the image of him kissing Trish was disgusting her…just like the sight of her kissing Hunter must've been disgusting him. Oh, she got his little game.

"Hunter, if you want her back, you can have her, I'll just take the kid. I hope that you two have a good life together, I always knew that she'd go back to you, at least I got a kid out of the deal. Come along, Sawyer, it's time to look for your new mommy."

"Don't be a jerk," Stephanie said, slugging him in the arm.

"If you ever kiss him again without telling me…" Chris warned.

"It was impulse."

"Impulse my ass," Chris said, taking Stephanie and putting her into a light headlock. "You know I don't want to see my wife kissing her ex of all people."

"I'm sorry," she laughed as she pulled away.

"So does this mean I win?" Hunter asked. "Since she obviously still wants me."

"No, I felt nothing, it was like kissing a cardboard cutout of Triple H," Stephanie said.

"Good, she's mine, Trips, so stay away," he said, holding Steph tighter. "And Trish, thank you for your services."

"My pleasure," she winked.

"Okay, now I'm going to have to watch out for Trish, great, that makes…every woman in the world wants my husband now," Stephanie said, gently rubbing her hand against Chris's stomach, still trying to soothe it from last week.

"Well, that was fun and…weird, but I'm going to have to go find my own girlfriend and explain what happened," Hunter said.

"Wait, your girlfriend is here," Chris said. "Wait, wait, wait, I know who it is, it's Mae, isn't it? Oh, that makes so much more sense to me now, all the secrecy, all the hiding, come on man, you don't have to hide it any longer. I know it stings going from Stephanie to…Mae, but own up to it."

Hunt flipped him the bird, "You're lucky I didn't put any moves on Steph, she would've been melting in my arms."

"Yeah right," Chris said as he chuckled and kissed Stephanie's temple.

"Hey, I'll see you in a bit, you guys, I'm just going to go wish Jeff luck in his match."

Stephanie and Chris nodded as Trish went over to Jeff who was just down the hall waiting for his own cue. Chris turned to Stephanie and gave her a soft smile, but she was a lot more tentative. "Look, Chris, about what happened out there…I don't know what came over me."

"I'm not going to lie, Steph, at first it stung. At first it felt like you were going to leave me, and go back to everything that you used to be. That scared me, that thought has always scared me. I used to hate who you were so much, I'm always afraid that you're going to revert back to that and I won't have you anymore. But then I realized, hey, this is just Steph's way of pissing off her father, and while I think it was stupid, it could've been worse, you could've kissed Bastion Booger."

"You know, just when I think I can't love you more…"

"I'm amazing, what can I say?" he shrugged, "Just…uh, please don't kiss Hunter any time soon unless I know about it, like if it's going to make that vein pop out in your father's head. Then I want to be there to see it. He likes me entirely too much."

"Because you're a good son-in-law."

"Yeah, I'm going to have to start being a bad son-in-law. I'll let you get to work though, I held down the fort while you were out there, but I'm going to go take care of the kid. I don't see any segments I want to take part of so I figure I'll put him to bed, and I can ask Christian and Tiff to watch him."

"You're so organized, makes you sexy," she said, pulling him closer by the vest. "Chris…the vest…"

"It's black, it's subdued!"

"Was there like a sale or something?"

"Shut up," he said, going in to kiss her, then he pulled away abruptly. "Okay, I just can't do it."

"Can't do what?"

"You _just_ kissed Hunter, you need to like, change your lipstick or wash your mouth or something. You still have Hunter germs all over your mouth and if I kiss you right now, it's going to be like I was kissing Hunter, and yeah, I can deal with you kissing him to get revenge on your father, but kissing you right after his lips were on you, no, I have to draw the line."

Stephanie rubbed her mouth vigorously with her hand, getting all the lipstick all over it, but turning to Chris. He pretended to inspect her lips before he leaned in and caught his lips against hers. He teased with a little tongue and she was reminded again why she was with _this_ man and not Hunter. Chris was making her hot just kissing him. God, she loved this man. Had it always been this good? He pulled away and licked her bottom lip.

"I'll see you in a bit."

Trish was watching the ladder match on a monitor. It was strange seeing two men she had dated going at it. She had also wished Carlito luck in his match and he had been abrupt with her, but not rude. She suspected that was just the way it was always going to be with her almost-husband. She didn't know quite who to root for in this match so she just watched it go on, watched them beat each other up, wincing whenever there was a hard move. She didn't miss that about the business, she could tell you that. She was pleased when Jeff retained and then watched as Shawn talked.

After that there was a little montage of what appeared to be about kissing or hitting women or whatever. She saw herself kissing Rocky, he had been okay, she saw herself kissing Trish, he had gotten a lot better since that kiss they just showed, if what he was doing earlier to her was any indication.

Then there it was.

Her and Christian.

She wanted to cry, only a little, but it was there, it was still there. She had blown it with Christian, she knew this, but at times, her heart still ached for him. It was a dull pain now, and one she could certainly live with, but it was still there. She had moved on, gone out with a few men, some more than a few times, but it was never going to be quite the same. She was ready to accept that though. She was ready to accept that it was her life and she knew somewhere down the line, she'd find someone who could be better for her than Christian, but the waiting was hard.

"Man, you were beautiful that night."

Damn that voice, "You think so?"

"Hell yeah, with that cute top and those pants," Christian said. "It's a wonder we didn't walk down the ramp making out."

She laughed, "How've you been, Christian?"

"I've been great, and you?"

"Good, I've been good," she told him.

"You still look beautiful for the record. Retirement suits you," he told her sweetly. "You look healthy, happy, you know, the works. I hope that you are."

"I am."

"I miss you," he told her.

"Christian, don't."

"I'm sorry, Trish, but I do, and I know that I'm really happy, but I still need you in my life, you know."

"No, you don't, we're better off this way, _I'm_ better off this way," Trish told him. "Look, I love you, Christian, and if you love me too, then I can't be with you like this…I can't be your friend. We can never just be friends, that's just how it has to be. That'd be like having Chris and Stephanie break up and have them be friends, it's just not going to work."

"Oh. I'm really sorry to hear that," he told her.

"And I'm sorry I have to say it, but Christian, come on. I can't…I just, I'm sorry," she said, walking away. Christian didn't like leaving things with Trish like this. They had their closure, they had moved on, but everything in him still wanted to hold onto Trish in some capacity.

"Trish, wait."

"Chrissy," she said, letting it slip so naturally from her lips she didn't even notice. He relished in it for a second.

"I'm thinking about proposing to Tiffany."

That stopped her. "Why are you telling me this, Christian?"

"Give me one reason not to do it, Trish," he said to her.

She held her breath, not believing that he was putting that kind of pressure on her. How could he possibly do that to her? She looked at him in disbelief, almost daring herself to slap him for saying something like that. She couldn't believe that he would ask her something like that. What was she supposed to say? She didn't even know what she was supposed to say.

"I've got to go."

"So is Chris mad at you?" Shane asked later on that evening as he sat down next to his sister.

"What? Sorry, show going on," Stephanie said loudly as she had her headphones on. Shane rolled his eyes, knowing full well she heard what he said. He couldn't believe it when he had seen his sister kissing her ex-husband of all people. It felt like…well, it felt a little like when he had kissed Trish except less…public. Stephanie took off her headphones and turned to her brother, "What was it you wanted?"

"My brother-in-law, is he still my brother-in-law?"

"Oh," Stephanie said, looking down. "He, uh, he left. He said he needed to get some fresh air and then just left so…I have to get a ride back home with Trish tonight. Chris said that he was going down to Florida."

"Oh, Steph, I'm so sorry," Shane said, giving her a hug. "I can talk to him if you want. Explain that it was just a ruse to get Dad back for being a total jerk tonight and…you know, every night for the past forty or so years."

"It's fine, he hates me, I get that, I deserve it, I don't know what I was thinking," she said, continuing to look down so she didn't break out into laughter. She bit her lip to hide her smile.

"But it was a mistake!" Shane said. "We all make them, we all make mistakes, I made a mistake too, but Rissa and I are happy."

"You weren't once married to Trish though," Stephanie said, letting a fake sob escape so she could laugh. In doing so, she missed Bischoff walking out there to speak to the crowd. "I was married to Hunter, it's different."

"No, it's not, it was a mistake," Shane said, rubbing her arm. "It was just a mistake."

"But he doesn't think so," Stephanie said, covering her face because she was seriously on the verge of cracking up.

"Hey baby, I think it's time for me to go out there," a new voice said.

Shane looked up and saw Chris standing there. "Chris?"

"Yeah?" Chris said, looking at Shane. "Stephanie, what's up with you?"

"Nothing," Stephanie said, giggling as she pulled up to smile at Chris. "You're going to interrupt Bischoff?"

"Well, he is the guy who 'fired' me, besides, I think he's a douchebag. He needs a dose of Jericho to take him off his high horse," Chris said as Shane glared at his sister. "Dude, Shane, what's up?"

"My sister is a bitch."

"You're just _now_ learning that, I've known that since the day I met her."

"I'm cuing up your music," Stephanie said as Chris's video started to play. He leaned down to give Stephanie a parting kiss before going over to the curtain. He was just at the curtain when he turned around.

"Oh, the kid's with Tiff."

"Great," Stephanie said as Chris disappeared, leaving her with Shane. "I've got to get back to work."

"You're a bitch."

She laughed, "Oh, come on, Shane, it was funny."

"Making me think my baby sister's life is falling apart is not funny!" he told her.

"It was though," she giggled. "It was, I'm sorry, it was."

"I hate you," he said, "so Chris isn't mad."

"He knows the truth," was all she said.

Chris went out there and the crowd was great, he saw signs for him everywhere. Bischoff was just smirking, and Chris could just imagine what was running through that guy's mind. Bischoff brought up the entire firing thing and apparently someone had told him that mentioning Sawyer would be detrimental to his health and Chris played along. He wasn't lying about the being burnt out part, and he wasn't lying about laying in wait until the time was right. He had been waiting and biding his time. The time was now and he wanted to be the champion, and damn it, he was going to be the champion.

Bischoff scoffed at him, and Chris took offense to that, and pointed out Bischoff's failings. It ran deeper than just what they were saying though. Bischoff hated Stephanie, this much was clear as day and whatever Bischoff hated about Stephanie, he just transferred it to Chris, and bam, instant hatred. Bischoff then went on to make fun of his "Save Us" campaign and really, if that was anyone's blame, it was Vince's since he had gone ahead and started it without even asking for Chris's permission. There went any chance of Bischoff getting a job here again. When Bischoff suggested he forfeit his match, it was ridiculous. He was part of the McMahons, damn it.

He ended up knocking Bischoff out, and then Randy decided to intervene, but Chris was ready for him. He locked him in the Walls of Jericho and heard him tapping. He let go and grabbed the title. He wanted this title. He was going to get this title if it was the last thing he did. This gold was part of the reason that he came back. He wanted it, and he wanted it badly. He left the belt with Randy, and walked backstage, feeling full of rancor. Then he went up to Stephanie and kissed the hell out of her, and she was way more involved in this kiss than she had been for the one with Hunter earlier. She was moaning as he pulled away, asking silently for more, leaning her chin up as he sat down next to her.

"Sorry, adrenaline rush."

She sighed, "I hope you get more of those."

He laughed as Bischoff walked backstage, holding his face. "You're a bastard, Jericho."

"So are you, Bischoff," Chris countered. "Last I checked, you weren't even around anymore. What the hell gives you the right to just waltz in here like you own the joint?"

"Oh, I do want to hear this one," Stephanie said with mock enthusiasm. "I'm always so delighted by your presence, Eric. It's just so funny to me that after everything settled down, after you tried to bring me down time and time again, I'm the one left standing, and I'm better than ever, is that how your song goes?"

"You sicken me," he spat out.

Stephanie pointed at herself, "Still running Raw," then she pointed at Bischoff, "out on the street. Sticks and stones, Eric, sticks and stones."

"I love when you make him mad."

"Hey, he treated you like crap, I have every right," she said. "So sit with me for the rest of the night?"

Chris put on his headphones, "You got it."

In another part of the arena, Trish was sitting and thinking over what Christian had told her. "Hey, Trish."

She looked up and frowned, "Lita."

"Hey, yeah, look, I was hoping I could just apologize."

"Apologize?"

"I was a bitch, plain and simple. The time away has given me a ton of perspective and you were one of my very best friends, and I'm sorry we lost that, and since tonight we're here and we're both changed, I was hoping that we could put the past behind us."

Trish smiled. "I'd really like that, Li."

The rest of the show was entertaining, especially the end for Stephanie, when her father got humiliated. Austin invited all the superstars out there and Chris parted with Stephanie since she was still running things and went out there to enjoy a beer with his compadres. He said hello to people around there and went to watch as Hunter poured beer all over Vince. He had to laugh at that. Sometimes he just really loved seeing Vince get his comeuppance, father-in-law or not. Sure, he was family, but come on, this was Vince.

He wandered over to Hunter, "So do you think we should stage a fight right here for Stephanie's honor."

"Only if I win."

"Hell no," Chris said.

"So how long were you kissing Trish?"

"I waited until I saw Stephanie walking through the curtain," Chris said with a chuckle. "Just getting back at her."

"You're an ass."

"You kissed my wife, I'm so going to win that contest every time. I'm going to be pulling that card out for years. It'll be like, I want to have time on the show, Chris, and I'll be like, you kissed my wife."

"She kissed me!"

"But you were there, so…kissed my wife," Chris said as he took another sip of his beer. "So kissed my wife."

"I hate you."

"You kissed my wife, man, I think Stephanie was on to something here, I can lord this over your head forever. And you're not married, so there's no chance I can kiss_ your_ wife. You do have a girlfriend, but…yeah, I'm liking this."

"Let's get to the after-party, jackass."

"I'm taking my time and there's nothing you can do about it, you kissed my wife," Chris said, trailing after him as Hunter groaned loudly.

Chris and Stephanie were dancing. Marissa had come to pick up Sawyer earlier and drop him off with her babysitter at home before coming back to the party. So now they were dancing amid many people, but still off in their own little world, just like usual. Chris was sporadically kissing Stephanie's cheek as they were pressed together. The music was slow, but they were going even slower.

"Did you see that clip of us?"

"Yeah, I was right next to you when it aired," Stephanie said.

"I miss us."

"I miss us too."

"Who do you think Hunter is dating?" Chris asked.

"It's Britt," Stephanie told him in a quiet voice.

"Britt? What?" Chris said in shock.

"Oh come on, they both start acting happy around the same time, please, it's so Britt."

Chris laughed, "Man, I really should give that girl a raise. First she helps me, and now she takes H off my hands and probably will be making sure that your lips never touch his lips again, unless you know, circumstances arise."

"I think it's weird that you'd let me kiss him."

"Hey, I'm all for humiliating your father by any means necessary, besides, you're going to be the one underneath me tonight."

"Underneath? You mean on top."

"No, underneath."

"On top."

"Underneath, you, flat on your back."

"Me, on top, dominant female, I always come out on top."

"You always come out flat on your back too."

"Hey, you guys, have you seen Christian anywhere?" Trish asked as she came up to them.

"Um, bar?" Chris said.

"Thanks," Trish said as she pushed through the crowd towards the bar. Christian was there alright, but he was with Tiffany. She went up to them and smiled at the both of them, "Hey guys, having fun?"

"Yeah, it's great."

"Hey, Christian, do you think that I could get a moment alone?" Trish asked, "If that's okay with you, Tiffany?"

"Sure," she said. "I'll be here."

Trish led Christian to a more deserted part of the restaurant. Christian was sure that she was going to lay into him and he deserved it. He shouldn't have asked that of her. What was he thinking? He couldn't just do that to her. He had put her through so much shit, and he loved Tiffany, he did. They were great together and they were happy together, and he was scared of the commitment. He was scared to give himself up to someone like that and he was pushing his fear onto Trish, hoping that she'd have the answer. He was so selfish.

"Trish, look, I'm so--"

"Me," she told him.

"What? What about you?"

"One reason, Christian."

"One reason…" he repeated slowly.

"You needed one reason."

"Uh…I said that, yes."

"Me."


	161. This Better Be Good, December 17, 2007

A/N: I'm off of school now, so look for regular updating of this to be on Mondays again. :)

Enjoy...leave a review. Thanks. :)

* * *

"Would you just let me look at it?"

"I don't need you to look at it," Chris complained, pulling away from Stephanie's hands. "I'm fine."

"_This_ is fine," Stephanie said. "Chris, this is not fine."

"Stephanie, it's a black eye, it's not the end of the world," he told her.

"I _know_ that," she said with exasperation. "That's hardly the point. The point is that I just want to look at it. I look at Sawyer's cuts and bruises when he falls down. You're my guy too, so I want to look at this."

"I got kicked in the face, what did you think was going to happen?" he asked irritably as Stephanie grabbed his face and turned him towards her. Stephanie rolled her eyes as Chris tried to pull away from her.

"Chris, if you don't let _me_ look at this, I swear, you're going to have a matching shiner," Stephanie told him, getting equally irritated with his behavior. He had refused to let anyone look at his eye last night, and he had refused anyone looking at it today. The only good look Stephanie had gotten of it was when she had woken up this morning and he had been lying across from her. It looked worse now than it did then and she wanted to make sure that it wasn't more serious.

"Stephanie, I am fine," he asserted again, but she wasn't letting go, and when she wanted to, she could be pretty strong. "How many times do I have to tell you this?"

"Fine, be that way," she told him, taking her hands away from him, but then going back and shoving him against the chest.

"Oww," he said, rubbing his chest. "What the hell did you do that for?"

"Because you're being a jackass," she told him. "I just wanted to look at your eye and make sure that he didn't hit the bone or something, you know, structural damage and all that. That's _all_ I wanted to do, but you have to be a stubborn child."

"I'm not being a stubborn child," Chris said like a…well, like a stubborn child. "I'm a grown man, I think I would know if something was wrong."

"Yeah, but you are so pig-headed sometimes, even if you were hurt, you'd refuse to get looked at."

"How do know that?" he asked. "I've never even really been hurt since we've been together…or at all for that matter."

"Um…hmm, let me see," she said, tapping her chin sarcastically. "I only knew you before we got together, idiot. I know that you had a concussion after that SummerSlam match, and yet what did you do? Oh yeah, that's right, you pushed away all the trainers and started walking off, with a concussion!"

"I got medical help," he grumbled.

"Only when Kurt had to help you to your locker room."

"How would you even know, you hated me," he told her.

"Because I was going to go yell at you for kissing me, but…I took pity on you when I saw that you were hurt and figured that the kissing me thing was just the concussion talking, so I dropped it," she told him. "I was going to tell you how much I hated your stinking kiss."

"Oh, sure…look, I went then, so I would've gone last night if it was really that bad."

"What I'm saying is you're too stubborn. Would you just let me look at your eye?"

"No!" he yelled at her.

"Okay, why the hell are you taking out your anger on _me_? I wasn't the one that kicked you in the face last night, okay, not me, although you know, I'd like to kick you somewhere right now," Stephanie told him as she stood up and glared at him, hands on hips. "You are being a royal jerk, Chris Jericho, and you better knock it off."

"Or what?" he challenged, standing up and facing her down. "What are you going to do?"

"Don't even try me, Jericho," Stephanie said, her face scrunching up in anger, just like Sawyer's did when he got angry. Sometimes the similarities between the two were so noticeable. Sawyer definitely looked like Chris's little boy, he was Chris's son through and through when it came to looks, but Sawyer was definitely more like Stephanie in personality, though she didn't quite see it. "I swear to God, don't even try me."

"Like I said, or what?"

"I will kick your ass," she told him, sticking her chin out defiantly. "You don't scare me."

"Oh, I don't?"

"Hell no," Stephanie scoffed. "You never have."

"Looked pretty scared those few times I put you into the Walls," Chris said, taking a step closer to her, but she didn't back down. "I'll say it again, I'm a grown man, and if I don't want to see some stupid trainer about an eye that I know is not broken or whatever, then that is my prerogative."

"No, it isn't," she said, poking him in the chest.

"Don't poke me," he said, swatting her hand away. "And it is my choice."

"No, it's not just your choice," Stephanie said. "You forfeited just your choice almost three years ago, now it's not just your choice, it's _our_ choice, and if I say you should do something, then damn it, you should do it."

"Don't boss me around, McMahon," Chris warned her.

"Or what?"

"I'll leave again, this time for good."

Stephanie rolled her eyes, "We've got you under contract, Jericho, so don't think that you're going anywhere, and it's air-tight, not to mention the fact that--"

"I own part of this company," Chris said. "I can do whatever the hell I want to do."

"You own part of this company because you married _me_," Stephanie said. "I'm the one that has the power, and you are the one who just inherited that because you married me."

"Well at least I don't go around kissing my exes."

Stephanie narrowed her eyes and reared her hand back and slapped Chris across the face. "That was low, Jericho. That was seriously low." Chris rubbed his face and glared at her angrily. "How dare you use _that_ against me."

"Well, it happened, didn't it? Should I just let you run off with him, huh?"

"Oh my God, you're an idiot!" Stephanie yelled at him. "It was to get back at my father. And you were kissing Trish!"

"As a joke!" Chris said, stepping closer to her again. "And don't you ever slap me again."

"Why, Chris? Should I really be afraid of you? Ooh, I'm shivering in my shoes," Stephanie said, pretending to shake and be afraid, but it was rather comical and sarcastic. She stepped up toe-to-toe with Chris, and it didn't help that he was only a couple inches taller than her. They could almost see eye-to-eye, and if she had been wearing heels she might've even had the height advantage. She dared him to answer as they stared each other down, their noses practically touching they were so close. Their breaths were mingling together too, creating a tension. "Come on, what are you going to do, Jericho?"

"Get out of my face, McMahon," he told her with derision.

"Fine, do whatever the hell you want to do, maybe you'll go out there tonight and break a leg or something, why don't you go try another Shooting Star Press and fracture your arm again, go fly off the top rope into the barrier for all I care!"

"Fine, maybe I will," he told her. She flipped him off and went to her desk and angrily started typing away at something. Chris went over to where Sawyer was sitting, playing with his toys. He had been giving his parents a very annoyed look, but they didn't seem to notice. "Hey there, kid."

"Hi, Daddy," Sawyer said as he handed his father one of the wrestling figures he had been playing with.

"I don't want to be John Cena," Chris said.

"Oh," Sawyer said, then handed him an Undertaker figure.

"This is more like it." Sawyer frowned as he got a good look at Chris. He stood up and looked at Chris intensely. "What's up with you, kid? Are you going to the bathroom?" That was the kind of look he had on his face.

"Daddy," Sawyer said, folding his arms and looking at him just like Stephanie. "Boo-boo?"

"Oh, you mean this?" Chris said, pointing at his eye. "Yeah, Daddy got a little bit of a boo-boo, but don't worry about it."

Before Chris could stop him, Sawyer reached out and touched his eye, not understanding that it was hurting, "Boo-boo."

"Oww, damn it," Chris hissed at the pain. "Stephanie, can you come take him, geez, Sawyer, don't do that!"

Sawyer, not used to getting yelled at like that, whimpered a little before he started to cry. Stephanie, pissed off now, went and picked up Sawyer and cradled him against her as he continued to cry, burying his face into her shirt and effectively getting his snot all over it. If it was anyone but her son she would've been pissed off, but since it was Sawyer, she didn't care. He just continued to cry, not understanding why Chris would yell at him like that. He wasn't used to getting yelled at, talked to sternly sure, but never yelled at.

"Chris, look what you did!" Stephanie said. "If you're going to be an asshole all night, I suggest that you do it elsewhere because I'm not going to tolerate you acting like this and making our son cry!"

"Sorry, sorry," Chris said, standing up and sighing, "I'm sorry."

"Whatever," Stephanie said, turning away from him and checking on Sawyer. "Hey, baby boy, it's okay. Shh, shh, there's no need to cry, right? Big boys don't need to cry." She ran her hand up and down his back as he continued to cry. "Great, thanks, Chris."

"Here, give him to me," Chris said, walking around to face Stephanie. He held his arms out. Stephanie went to hand Sawyer to him, but Sawyer started screaming his head off and crying even harder, so Stephanie pulled him back towards her. Chris was now starting to feel really bad for yelling at Sawyer. It wasn't so much that he was mad at either of them, he was just mad at the situation. He should've had the title right now. He should be showing Sawyer how it hooked around his waist, but instead, he was sitting there with an eye that was still throbbing and sensitive to the touch and no belt except the one holding up his pants.

"Ugh, just go away, Chris," Stephanie said as she continued to whisper sweetly in Sawyer's ear. "You're doing nobody here any favors."

"I'm sorry."

"Whatever, Chris, you've done enough, believe me," Stephanie said. "Just leave!"

"Fine," he sighed, looking over at the two of them before he left the room. He needed to cool off anyways and so did Stephanie. He would wait a little while until she was calmed down and then he would go apologize to her and Sawyer.

He was just frustrated, that was all. Last night had been his shot. It had been the night where he was supposed to defeat Randy and save the WWE. It had all been in his grasp. He had had that title practically in his hand, and then…that damn JBL had to come in and ruin everything for him. He should've had the title right now and it was so frustrating to him that he didn't have it. He had worked that match to perfection. He had pulled Randy to the center of that ring and he was mere moments from tapping. He had almost been a 3-time World Champion (4-time if you counted the one that Stephanie revoked). But it wasn't to be, and it bugged him because he wanted a rematch right that moment, but Jeff was the new #1 contender, Jeff Hardy of all people!

That wasn't his only problem either. Vince was angry with him on top of that. Vince had found out that Chris had done nothing to stop any of the guys in the ring from pouring beer on him and making him look like a fool, and Vince hadn't taken too kindly to that. It was probably the first time since Vince found out about his relationship with Stephanie that Vince was honestly pissed off at Chris. It was a strange feeling to be the one feuding with him and not just on Stephanie's side while_she_ feuded with him. Still, it didn't bode well for him if his boss, and his wife's boss wanted revenge over what he had done.

He shoved his hands in his pockets and walked around, his head down a little as he lost himself in thought. "Chris!"

Chris looked up to see Britt walking towards him quickly. "Hey, I thought I'd never find you."

"Well here I am," he said dully.

"Yes, here you are," she said. "I wanted to tell you before the show started that JBL got back to me and he's turning down your invitation to be on the show."

"Brilliant," Chris muttered. "I knew that coward wouldn't show."

"How's your eye?"

"It's fine," he said shortly. "I can't believe that bastard thinks he can just show up and kick me in the face and cost me the match and then not explain himself. Well, I'm going to find out what happened anyways, I'll even go to SmackDown if I have to."

"Wow, that's pretty serious."

"Losing the belt is pretty serious…though I think you'd know."

"Huh?" Britt asked. "I don't know what you're talking about. How would I know what it's like to lose a belt?"

"Well, I figured, you know, you might be talking to someone who has…you know, won the belts quite a few times," he said as subtly as he could muster, which wasn't that subtle at all. But Britt refused to budge on this.

"I'm still not sure what you mean?"

"Oh," Chris said. "Well, thanks for letting me know that JBL isn't going to be here tonight, I guess the guy is just a damn coward."

"Yeah, I guess so. He shouldn't have kicked you like that."

"You're telling me."

"I have some work to do for Stephanie, but hope your eye feels better," she said, patting him on the arm.

"Thanks," he told her, turning and walking away again. He turned the corner and saw Trish sitting on a crate with Jeff Hardy next to her. She had spent the last week with Chris and Stephanie, and had generously offered to take care of Sawyer last night since he and Stephanie were extra busy with the show. He walked up to the two, "Hey you guys, hey, Jeff, congratulations on the #1 contendership."

"Oh, thanks," Jeff said, "sorry you didn't win."

"Those are the breaks I guess."

"Hey, I'll catch you later, Trish," Jeff said, kissing her cheek. "Later, Chris."

"Bye," Chris said, then raised an eyebrow at Trish. "So…"

"No, that's not even a possibility," Trish said, "Jeff's just a friend, nothing more, nothing less. Why do you look so upset?"

"I had a fight with Stephanie," he said, hopping up on the crate next to Trish. "Then I made Sawyer cry, so she's even more upset with me, and he hates me right now. I just didn't want her worrying about my eye, I'm_fine_."

"She's also your wife, Chris, she cares about what happens to you," Trish said. "You should feel lucky for that."

"I know that I'm lucky," Chris said, running his hand over his mouth, "believe me, I know I'm one lucky son of a bitch. I just hate when people fawn over me when I'm injured. I just want to take care of this myself."

"I'm sure she understands that, she just wants to make sure that you're okay, you can understand that, right?"

"Yeah."

They both became consumed in their thoughts. Chris was thinking about how he could make this up to Stephanie. He didn't like fighting with her, and didn't want to make another stupid mistake that would…he didn't know, make her leave him or something, though he knew that was the very worst case scenario. He hated that he had made Sawyer cry. He had never outright yelled at the little boy before and it had to have scared him, and he felt awful about that. He didn't want to be one of those yelling dads; he was just frustrated and he was taking it out on the wrong people.

Trish, on the other hand, couldn't stop thinking about last week with Christian. At first she had been so mad at him for putting that on her shoulders. He had asked her to give him a reason not to marry Tiffany. What kind of question was that? Why was he putting the weight of his relationship on her? She wanted him, yes, she still wanted him, and so she had told him, but they both knew it was a mistake. Well, she thought they both knew that it was a mistake.

"_Oh," Christian said as Trish searched his eyes for a response._

"_Christian?" she said softly._

"_Trish, I'm sorry," he started and her heart dropped as she started inexplicably nodding. "I shouldn't have put that on you."_

"_Yeah, I know," she said, head down, knowing where this was going to go._

"_I'm just scared to commit, I guess," he told her, running his fingers through his hair. "I just tried to put all of that on you because I was scared. I was scared to think for myself. I was being selfish, thinking that I could have some sort of excuse not to give myself in to her."_

"_I get that," she told him. "I was mad at first that you asked."  
_

"_I know," he said. "I'm really sorry, Trish, I didn't want to have to put you in such a difficult position. I just…I didn't know what else to do, and…I'm still scared."_

"_Well," she said, looking up at him earnestly, "if you love someone, and you want to be with that someone and they make you happy, then…do what makes you happy, Christian, and don't be afraid of that. Don't be afraid to make yourself happy."_

She was such a liar.

"Chris?"

"Yeah?" he responded.

"Have you ever felt just completely stupid?"

"Um…right now."

"No, I mean life-changing stupid," she told him. "Like why, why do I let myself keep falling into stupid traps with Christian?"

"Because you love him," Chris said simply, "and you miss him, and you keep thinking that one day, he'll come to his senses, or you'll come to your senses, and there'll be a field and you two will run across it with your arms outstretched."

"Well, I didn't think _that_," she said, giving a slight laugh. "Just that things would've worked out differently for us."

"Maybe it will, you don't know."

"I think I do know. He told me last week he's been thinking about proposing to Tiffany."

"Proposing ain't marriage," Chris said to her. "I think you proved that fact quite well, Stephanie proved that with Andrew."

"I guess you've got a point. He asked me last week to give him a reason not to propose to her," she said, giving a mirthless laugh at the situation.

"Seriously?"

"Yeah. I was angry at first, then I was stupid and gave myself as a reason, and then he apologized for asking me that in the first place because he was really just scared of commitment."

"Oh, Trish," Chris said, putting his arm around her. "Thanks for eclipsing my problems."

"My pleasure. I'm so stupid, Chris, I fall for it every time, and I just…I'm never going to get over him, and it's such a scary thought," Trish said, hugging Chris. He sighed and hugged her back.

"Do you want me to talk to him?"

"No, God no," Trish said. "That would only embarrass me more."

"But Trish…"

"No, Chris, please don't. This is why I just cut myself off from him, and pretty much everyone. I was finally getting out there again, going out on dates and stuff, even though it was mostly guys my sisters set me up with, but it didn't matter. I see Christian for one night, and all that progress is down the drain."

"He really shouldn't have asked that of you," Chris told her.

"You think so?"

"You're not in that relationship. He's just scared. Maybe he really does just want you and he just needed to know, you don't know that."

"Yeah, sure," she said, blinking back the tears. "Thanks for talking to me."

"Thanks for sitting with me and not asking about my eye."

She laughed, "Steph just worries."

"I know, I know, you know, I should probably go find her and apologize. If I wait too long, she'll probably get another hotel room or something, you know how she is."

"Yes, she has you completely wrapped around her finger."

"Well…yeah," Chris said. "I'll see you later, Trish."

"You'll have to, you're my ride," she joked, feeling a little bit better now.

Chris shook his head as he walked away. What a rotten thing for Christian to do. He shouldn't have asked something like that of Trish. That'd be like him asking for one reason to break-up with Stephanie or something. It was a dumb question to ask someone who wasn't in the relationship to begin with. He couldn't figure out those two. They obviously still loved each other, and while he had no doubt that Christian loved Tiffany, he did doubt whether Tiffany was the number one love of Christian's life. He wasn't sure that Tiffany held that title or could ever hold that title.

The show had already begun when Chris went looking for Stephanie, so it wasn't going to be very difficult to find her. It wasn't. She was sitting at her station, watching the show as Sawyer silently played next to her, running his toy cars over the table. Sawyer was the first one to see him. He looked at Chris and went back to his cars and Chris sighed. This was the first time he really felt like Sawyer was genuinely mad at him. It was a bad feeling, one that knotted up in his stomach.

"Hey," Chris said, coming over and saying hey to both of them, but since Stephanie had her headphones on and was currently talking, she probably didn't hear. She saw him though, and rolled her eyes as she looked away. He knelt next to Sawyer, who continued to make little vroom, vroom noises with his cars. "Hey, kid."

"Daddy," Sawyer said, but more to himself than to Chris.

"I'm sorry about earlier," Chris told him, brushing his son's hair out of his eyes. "I shouldn't have yelled at you and I'm sorry."

"Out," Sawyer said, referring to a time-out.

"Yeah, I did get a time-out, your mom made sure of that one," Chris said. "I'm really sorry that I scared you, you know I'd never want to scare you like that. I'm sorry."

"Daddy," Sawyer said, turning and grinning at him, and making Chris grin in the process. Sawyer reached out and hugged Chris and he sighed in happiness that at least one person in his family was willing to easily forgive and forget. Chris hugged his son back and picked him up, sitting down in the chair and letting Sawyer sit on his lap. "Voom, Daddy."

"Yeah, they go really fast, don't they?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said as he pushed them around.

Chris reached out and tried to grab Stephanie's hand, but she pulled it away from his. "Steph…"

"I'm working," she said curtly, so she could hear him after all.

"I'm sorry, baby," he told her. "Do you still want to look at my eye?"

"No, and don't think I'll be as easy as Sawyer, he's one year old, he doesn't have it in him to be pissed at you for long, but I _do_. Stupid jackass," she muttered, going back to her work.

"Steph, come on, baby, don't be like this."

"You had your chance, Jericho," Stephanie said.

"You are being unreasonable, Steph," Chris said.

"Unreasonable my ass," she said. "You were the one who didn't even want to let me check out your eye. So go out there and get another black eye for all I care. In fact, why don't you just go take a flying leap or something?"

"Fine, if that's the way you want to be," Chris said. "Sawyer and I will just go."

"Oh, no, you don't," Stephanie said, taking Sawyer back. "My son is staying with me."

"It's almost time for him to go to bed, Stephanie."

"I don't care, he can stay with me tonight," Stephanie said.

"Oh, here we go, so you're getting a separate room, right?"

"Whatever."

"Yeah, whatever," Chris said, walking off and leaving the two of them behind. He muttered to himself as he went back to his locker room to get away from Stephanie. Sometimes she could be so frustrating and unyielding. Yet, some part of him found that incredibly sexy when she got like that. Damn, what was wrong with him? He shouldn't' be thinking his wife was hot when she was trying to make him sleep in a separate hotel room, which would obviously come from his paycheck and not from their joint funds. That would be such a Stephanie thing to do. So why did he want to throw her onto a couch and ravage her? Damn her for being so sexy.

Stephanie watched as her father looked despondent out in the ring. Sometimes he was a bigger drama queen than everyone in the company combined. She couldn't believe it when he just sat in the corner of the ring like that. Even she never got like that. Hunter went out there to talk to him, and apologized for kissing her last week, which she thought was funny. Maybe she should kiss him again this week in front of Chris to make him mad. Okay, so it wouldn't make him mad since he would probably laugh.

She remembered a long time ago when she had actually used Hunter to make Chris jealous. It seemed like ages ago now when she had asked the favor of Hunter, and had shocked the hell out of Chris. That was the type of reaction that she wanted right now, but she knew even if she did try this now, Chris wouldn't bite. She cursed that they were married. They were just too comfortable now to get jealous. Now she was getting mad, which was the state that Hunter found her in a moment later.

"Up, Twip!" Sawyer said, standing on his chair and holding up his arms to Hunter.

"How goes it, tough guy?" Hunter asked him.

Sawyer yawned, "Night."

"You're tired, where's your dad?" Sawyer shrugged. Hunter looked at Stephanie, who looked mad. "What's up with your mom?"

"Nothing's up with me," Stephanie said.

"Oh, Mommy's mad, isn't she, tough guy?"

"Yeah," Sawyer agreed.

"I'm not mad," she said.

"Are you mad at me?"

"No, I'm not mad at you," Stephanie said. "Why would I be mad at you?"

"Because I was just making fun of your dad, and he put me in a match and I kicked his lackeys' asses."

"Like I care, he's mad at me too," Stephanie said.

"Your dad is mad at you?"

"After what I did last week, yeah, I think it's safe to say that he's pretty pissed off at me. I don't think he much liked that I kissed my ex-husband to humiliate him, and then he's also mad at Chris, and Shane too, and my mom for not showing up, so I think he pretty much only likes his grandsons right now, and that's iffy since they're the offspring of me and Shane."

"Oh…wait, why is he mad at Chris?" Hunter asked.

Stephanie made a face thinking about Chris. She was still mad at that jerk and had the sudden urge to ask Hunter to…make out with her or something and make Chris jealous. "Because he didn't help my father when he was lying outside of the ring last week. He was in there drinking beer and celebrating too, and my dad saw and was mad, and all of that."

"Oh, okay, so now he's mad at Chris for that, makes sense."

"Yeah, and I'm mad at Chris so he can just go to hell right now for all I care."

"Oh, you two."

"Don't you two us," Stephanie said. "Besides, it's only a matter of time before you and Britt have some stupid fight and you come crying to me too."

"Britt?"

"Oh give it up, Hunter, I know that you're dating Britt."

"What, I have no idea…fine, fine," he said, giving in after she gave him a sharp look. "Yes, I am dating Britt, want to make something of it?"

"Why would I want to make something of it, I'm married, even if my husband is a huge jackass right now. It's not like I care who you date, even if it is my assistant."

"I like her," he shrugged, sitting down as Sawyer laid his head down on his shoulder. "Are you aware, Stephanie, that your son is exhausted and probably wants to go to bed?"

"I know," Stephanie said.

"Uh, don't you think that you should put him to bed then?"

"Chris is probably in the locker room and I don't want to talk to him right now, and he made Sawyer cry so I don't particularly want Sawyer around him right now either."

"He made Sawyer cry."

"Well…he yelled at him."

"Why would he yell at him?" Hunter wondered.

"Well, Sawyer kind of accidentally touched his eye, thinking it was just a regular boo-boo," she said, not even catching that she was now calling bruises boo-boos. Hunter snickered though, thinking it was funny whenever Stephanie would get into her mother mode.

"That does hurt though," Hunter reasoned.

"Don't be on his side," Stephanie snapped.

"Geez, fine," Hunter said. "Stephanie, this kid is going to fall asleep on _me_."

"Well…um, do you think that you could watch him for me?"

"Watch him? I could go give him to Chris, the child's father," Hunter answered. "Because I don't know what to do with this kid to get him to bed. I've been with him while he's already asleep, but how he gets to bed eludes me."

"Fine, can you give him to Chris then?"

"That I can do," Hunter said. "Say goodnight to Mommy."

"Night," Sawyer repeated, laying his head across Hunter's broad shoulder.

"Night, baby boy," Stephanie said, kissing his forehead, "sleep well, okay?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said as Hunter started to walk him down the hallway.

"You know, sometimes I just don't get your mother. That woman can hold a grudge like nobody else. She gets that from her father, but don't tell her I said that, she'd kill me, and I'm way more scared of your mother than I am of your grandpa. Okay, here we are."

"What?" Chris said, pulling the door open as he heard a knock. He was not in the mood to speak to anyone right now. Except this someone was holding his son. "Oh hey, what's up?"

"Just me convincing your wife that it might be time to put your son to bed before he drooled all over me."

Chris took Sawyer from Hunter, "Well, once you're a parent, you'll get used to the drool…are you thinking about that at all?"

"Thinking about what?"

"Kids."

"Why would I be thinking about kids?" Hunter asked. "I don't want kids right now."

"How about your girlfriend, or does her job keep her busy, does she just work for multiple people or something?" Chris asked, still not being subtle, more like confusing.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Hunter said.

"Oh, okay," Chris said. "Um, I have to go out there soon, is Stephanie coming back to watch him or something?"

"I'll watch him, I'm pretty much done for the evening anyways, so you can go out there and find out why the hell JBL did that to you. That's rough, man, you really did have it won, and I would've so looked forward to kicking your ass and taking the title from you. It would really be just like last time, you have Stephanie on your arm, and I kick your ass at WrestleMania."

"Whatever, in order for you to do that, I think that you would've had to beat Jeff Hardy last night, how did that go for you?"

"Shut up," Hunter said bitterly.

"Yeah, that's what I thought," Chris said, as he laid Sawyer down on the couch and started to change him. Chris was an old pro at this by now, and was done in no time, throwing the dirty diaper away in the bathroom and coming back to put Sawyer into his pajamas.

"Dude, you should enter a competition for that," Hunter joked. "But thank God you're quick, wouldn't want to smell that."

"You don't even know disgusting after you've had a kid," Chris said. "Before, the thought of changing diapers was disgusting, but when it's your kid, it's different, it's just not so gross. I mean, Stephanie and I, we even share food with him and stuff, and it's like, oh, it has baby spit on it, who cares? I don't know, you lose your gross boundaries when you have a kid."

"Interesting, I wasn't aware we had gross boundaries."

"You'll find out whenever you decide to have kids," Chris said as he pulled Sawyer's shirt over his head. Sawyer laid back down on the couch in the sleep sack that he and Stephanie always brought for him as Hunter helped by turning off the lights in the main room while leaving the bathroom lights on. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it."

"I better get out there though, I'm scheduled to go on in a few. So Steph is still mad at me."

"Yeah."

"I swear to God," Chris said angrily, "I don't know what the hell her problem is, I tell her that I'm fine, and she refuses to listen to me. It's so frustrating, she's so frustrating. How the hell did you put up with her for as long as you did?"

"Wait, hold up, _now_ you want to discuss me being married to Stephanie?" Hunter chuckled.

"Well," Chris started, quieting down just a little as he rubbed Sawyer's back. "She's making me really angry with her, so yeah, I mean, seriously, how did you put up with her because I'm assuming she was just like this when you two were married."

"You've been married longer to her than I was," Hunter said, "so shouldn't you know by now how to deal with her? I mean, you're the one who's been with her for the last, what is it now?"

"Three years next month."

"Yeah, three years…damn, three years…"

"Thanks, make it sound like purgatory."

"Well, no, there are benefits to being with a McMahon," Hunter said. "And you seem to have got some good things out of the arrangement."

Chris looked at Sawyer, "Yeah, but she pisses me off, man. I tell her that I'm fine, but it's not enough for her. She keeps prodding you and prodding you until you just can't stand it anymore and you want to rip your hair out. Damn it, I've got to go." He started to get up but Sawyer whined from the lack of contact. "Can you just rub his back, he falls asleep faster that way."

"Yeah, sure," Hunter said, taking Chris's spot.

"Thanks, man."

Chris walked down the hallway angrily, and then got even angrier when a camera was practically shoved in his face. His anger with JBL and his anger with Stephanie just made him on edge. When he got to the ring, he was sarcastic and abrupt, alerting those who hadn't seen it to what had happened the night before and how he had gotten gypped out of the title. It was so close within his grasp. He wanted to call out JBL, but he knew he wasn't here, like the coward that he was. So he was going to do the next best thing; he was going to be going to SmackDown. Those were the perks of being the boss; he could go anywhere and do anything that he wanted to do.

What he didn't expect was JBL to actually show up by satellite. They had words with each other and Chris promised that he would see him Thursday, but there was a problem with that. JBL had actually gone to Vince of all people and came up with some silly stipulations over him. He couldn't go to SmackDown to confront JBL, and he couldn't even…it made him so mad to think about it. This was stupid. He wanted the title back, that should be his main focus and now he had this jackass who thought he has a wrestling god on his case. JBL was nothing.

Stephanie was furious. Her father must have overridden her and gotten the video of JBL up without her permission. On top of that, he had set some ridiculous stipulations for Chris to adhere to. Never getting a title match again? Not being allowed to be at the Royal Rumble? What kind of crap was that? She knew her father was mad, but that was just stupid. If Chris wanted to go to SmackDown, he should be able to go to SmackDown. When Chris came backstage, she walked up to him, seething, and Chris thought that he was going to get another slap.

"I can't believe my father would do that to you!" Stephanie said angrily. "I can't believe that he would manipulate you like that, doesn't he know who you are?"

"Well, he's mad at me, and there's nothing I can really do about it. I mean, he does get the ultimate say, I don't have the authority to change things like that."

"Like hell we don't," she told him, hands on her hips. "How dare he just barge into something and make you do something like that! That man cost you your title. He interfered in your match and you should be given everything that you want. If you want to kick his ass, then you should do as you damn well please."

"Well, I agree," he said, looking down at her.

"I mean, it wasn't like you ran into him on purpose, it wasn't like it wasn't an accident. And having the audacity…I mean, does he know who you are? JBL better damn well know that you are part of the McMahon family."

"I think he does."

"He better start acting like it," Stephanie said. "You should be the WWE champion."

"I know," he said, tentatively reaching forward and taking her in his arms. She was so furious that she didn't even notice. He leaned forward slowly as if the movement would scare her away like a gazelle being scared away from the watering hole.

"JBL better watch himself," Stephanie whispered, feeling Chris's forehead touching hers gently. "He better know that you're back and you mean business."

"Uh huh," Chris said, nodding slightly. "I'll show him."

"Damn straight you will, and then you'll get that title because you're Chris Jericho."

"I am," he said with a smile. "Are you still mad at me?"

"Oh," Stephanie said, remembering herself and the situation they had been in earlier that night. She was in Chris's arms now, firmly in them and her forehead was touching his. "Well, I mean, I was…I _am_, you know."

"Not mad at me?"

She shrugged, "I'm still mad that you wouldn't let me look at your eye and that you made Sawyer cry."

"I love you, and I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry I slapped you," she said, seeking out his kiss.

Why did they get perfect? Trish thought this to herself as she spied her best friends kissing. They had been fighting all night, they had had words, and then suddenly there they were, a united front again; they were ready to conquer the world together. Hell, their three-year anniversary was coming up next month. They had it all, and she was so jealous. She wanted to stop being confused. She wanted the cacophony in her brain to stop for once, just stop spinning and let her know for sure that was what she wanted.

Maybe she didn't even want Christian, maybe she did. Maybe she just wanted the idea of Christian, the idea of someone who knew her so well, inside and out. He had known her like that, and maybe that was all she sought. No…no, wait, she wanted Christian. That stupid question had elicited feelings in her that she had suppressed, that she had thought were in her past, but there they were, on the forefront again. Then he had told her to forget it, that it had been stupid, but she had allowed her feelings to be turned on and turning them off again was a whole process. He kept toying with her and it made her sad.

Christian made her sad.

"Dad! How dare you do that to Chris!" Stephanie yelled at her father. Chris was just glad that her anger was focused elsewhere.

"Stephanie," Vince said, glad that she wasn't face-to-face with him. Granted he was mad at her, he couldn't stay mad at her if she was right there, looking like the angry little girl of her youth. She was a Daddy's Girl and he was a sucker for her most of the time.

"No, don't Stephanie me," she said as she paced her hotel room later that night. Chris was watching her from their bed. "How could do that to Chris?"

"Well maybe if he had acted like I was family instead of laughing it up with the guys."

"Well, I'm sorry, maybe Chris thought it was stupid too that you named yourself the best superstar, ever think of that."

"I have been the best!"

"No, you haven't, and now…now what, you're never going to give Chris another title shot."

"I never said that, I just don't want him and JBL to get in a scuffle, that's all."

"You just want to punish him, well, you know what, fine, take JBL's side because you think that Chris somehow slighted you when he was completely in the right, but I know my husband, Dad, and he will kick JBL's ass."

"Stephanie, he didn't even help me!"

"You humiliated yourself, but don't worry, I believe in Chris."

"I'm not going to argue."

"Well we're already arguing."

"And then you kissed the stupid cretin."

"Oh, you just want to have things always going your way," Stephanie said angrily. "Fine, see if we care, see if we ever care."

"Fine."

"Fine!" Stephanie said, hanging up the phone. "Well, that went about as well as I thought it would."

"We still mad at him."

"We're still mad at him."


	162. Late Christmas, December 24, 2007

A/N: Hey, I hope that everyone had a wonderful holiday season and a great new year. The holidays were hectic for me, and then I was hit with writer's block, which sucked to high heaven. Anyways, I got over it, yay, and now I'm going to play catch up. So this is the like, Christmas chapter, sort of, well, it is, but it doesn't exactly cover Christmas, whatever. Anyways, tomorrow expect either a double chapter or the chapter for last week's New Year's show, either way there'll be an update tomorrow.

Anyways, here's to a great new year and hopefully 2008 sees Chris Jericho becoming champion and maybe, just maybe a Chris and Stephanie scene, please WWE, please!

Enjoy, leave a review. :)

* * *

**December 21st   **

"I'm not sure he's going to like this."

"I'm not sure either, but he's the one that dragged us over there. So we might as well let him go up to Santa and see what's what," Chris said as they stood in line to go see Santa. This was not their intention. They had come to the mall to buy some gifts for Declan and Kenyon, but Sawyer had seen this entire Santa's village thing set up right in the middle of the mall and had wanted to investigate, whining until he got his way; although, to be fair, his whining wasn't so much whining as it was pointing.

"And if he cries and runs away and acts crazy?" Stephanie asked.

"He's a year old, if this guy hasn't seen crying kids before, then you know what, he's in the wrong business."

"Oh yeah, the business of being a shopping mall Santa, that's really lucrative."

"Come on, Steph, these guys probably just have nothing better to do, why do you have to be bitter?" he asked, wrapping his arm around her. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she told him as they waited in line. "It's just that I kind of wish we were in Florida for the holidays, not around here where my father is…you know, acting like my father. I just want things to run smoothly, especially because we're having Christmas this year at Shane and Rissa's and I don't want them to have fighting in their house."

"Things will be fine, we can set aside all our pettiness and fighting for a couple days, trust me," Chris said. "At least we have a house up here and we don't have to spend those days with your parents."

"Even if we didn't have a home up here, I would stay with Shane or I would stay in a hotel. I mean, we can't," she tugged on the bottom of his shirt, "when we're at my parents. I mean, we can…it's just weird."

"We _have_," Chris chuckled, "but you're disgusting, McMahon."

"What?" she said as she looked up at him.

"We're in line to take our kid to see Santa and you're talking about you-know-what," he said, showing some propriety in the situation they were in.

"These kids don't even care, they've probably got their heads full of things that they want their parents to buy them. I'm just glad nobody has recognized you and started mobbing you, the short hair makes you incognito."

"I know," he said, plus the sunglasses were helping keep him on the sly. It wasn't that he minded signing autographs or meet with his fans, but he didn't like when it happened with Sawyer. Sawyer sure as hell didn't mind the large crowds, he was used to that, but it was Chris and Stephanie who liked to keep Sawyer as anonymous as possible. They knew that he didn't have the most normal childhood because he traveled with Stephanie and Chris, but they never exploited him or paraded him around. They just wanted him to be a little kid and get to do all those fun, little kid things.

"Who?" Sawyer said as he saw the fat man in the red suit.

"That's Santa," Stephanie told him.

"Ata?" Sawyer said, looking between his parents and Santa Claus. He looked terribly confused, feeling like he should recognize this guy. Oh wait, yes, that was right, they showed him on television all the time. He was all over the place. Sawyer would've thought him crazy-looking, but he saw crazy-looking people every week. The other week he had seen someone that looked like a clown, but not like any clown he had ever seen.

"Santa," Stephanie said slowly, leaning down to pick him up. "You're the one that wanted to go and see him, not us. Do you still want to go see him?"

"Uh…yeah," Sawyer told her, nodding his head resolutely. "Ata, red!"

"Yeah, he is red," Chris said. "Who else is red?"

"Uh…" Sawyer tapped his chin. Chris had been trying to teach him the entire WWE roster. Sawyer was able to identify the people on sight if Chris asked him who was who, but he only knew a few people's names, like Hunter or Trips, Edge, who he called Ed, and Undertaker, who inexplicably was Tater. Sawyer threw his hands up, giving up.

"Kane, right?"

"Yeah!" Sawyer said like it was just on the tip of his tongue. "Red."

"Yeah, he's red, but he's a scary kind of red, isn't he?" Chris said seriously.

"Uh huh," Sawyer said. They were getting closer and closer to the front of the line and as they became closer and closer with Santa, Sawyer became more and more thoughtful. He seemed to be thinking long and hard about what he was going to see. They hadn't taken him to see Santa last year, and even if they had, there was no way that the little boy was going to remember it anyways.

"You sure you still want to go see Santa?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah," Sawyer said as he looked at Stephanie. "Ata."

"Okay, fine, fine," she told him, kissing his cheek.

"Was this what it was like waiting for me when you guys came to my book signing?"

"Yes, but worse because you would talk and talk and talk, and then you didn't even recognize us so we were both very insulted," Stephanie joked as Chris wrapped an arm around her waist. "I think Sawyer was very hurt that you didn't recognize him immediately."

"Well, you put a hat over him, and I couldn't even see his face," Chris argued. "I think you would've put a ski mask over his face if he had let you do that."

"Oh, well, I'm not that cruel," she said as they got closer and closer to the front of the line. "At least then he had some snacks and a book to read. I think he's getting antsy."

Indeed, Sawyer kept looking around the mall, not really paying attention to where they were. Usually, they would just leave the line, but they were sure that Sawyer would notice and then he would get very angry and probably start screaming. The last thing they needed was for him to cause a scene by throwing a tantrum. He was getting closer and closer to those terrible two's that everyone talked about. Of course, there was no excuse for when Chris and Stephanie threw tantrums.

Finally they were at the front of the line and Stephanie put Sawyer down on the ground. Santa's helper took Sawyer's hand, and he looked up at her distrustfully, but his mommy was pushing him along so he figured he'd let this strange person lead him to that man in red. Stephanie and Chris were trying to hurry Sawyer along. They were supremely bored at this point and wanted to go home, especially because they wanted to leave enough time to get ready.

Tonight they were going out to dinner with Shane and Marissa, Hunter and Britt (Stephanie had convinced Hunter to bring Britt, and Chris was going to gloat all over the place that he knew), Christian and Tiffany, who were in Connecticut to spend Christmas Eve with Tiffany's family while flying to Toronto on Christmas Day, and then Trish, who had been staying with Chris and Stephanie for an extended visit. She was leaving the next day for Toronto to be with her family over the holidays so Chris and Stephanie wanted to gather everyone for a nice dinner party.

They had invited Kurt, but he had been unable to attend so to even out the numbers, Stephanie had found one of her friends from her days working in accounting at Titan, Cameron, and invited him as Trish's date. Trish had resisted at first to the idea of going on a blind date (especially with Christian being there), but Stephanie and then Chris had worn her down, reminding her of her resolution to get over Christian once and for all. She figured this was a good first step.

Sometimes, despite how much they loved Sawyer, doing things with him was incredibly boring. They didn't even want to bother with Santa, but Sawyer had insisted and they were just slaves to him at this point. They knew, from being around other parents, this was a normal occurrence and not everything your kid did was going to be fun for you. But you put up with it because it's your kid and you love them. Chris and Stephanie loved Sawyer so they would put up with this stupid excursion. The helper put Sawyer on Santa's lap and Sawyer looked at him strangely.

"Well hello, little boy, do you know how to say your name?"

"Sawyer," he said, which he had been practicing for a while now but had no practical use for. "You?"

"I'm Santa," he said jollily.

"Oh," Sawyer said like he knew all along that he was Santa Claus.

"Do you want any toys for Christmas?"

"Car!" Sawyer said, knowing the word toys and thinking this guy was asking about what kind of toys that he liked. Well, he did like to play with his cars so he might as well tell this dude that he liked cars. Why the heck would he want to know though? Sawyer looked at him, well, maybe the guy liked to play with cars too. "You?"

"No, no, I give _you_ presents for Christmas. I fly all around and come down the chimney and give you presents."

"No."

"Yes, I do."

"Okay," Sawyer said, not going to argue with this guy he didn't know.

"Do you want a picture?" the helper asked Stephanie.

"Yeah, sure," Stephanie said. "Might as well."

It would be a cute picture anyways, and she was sure that their parents would love a copy of it. The photographer told the two of them to look ahead and Sawyer turned in time to see some guy waving some stuffed animal at him like he was a trained monkey or something. He looked at the camera confusedly just as the shot went off. The Santa put Sawyer back on the ground and he ran for Stephanie still confused about what had just gone down.

Chris came over with the picture and showed it to Stephanie who laughed. Sawyer was looking at the camera with his jaw down like he was surprised at the flash. His blue eyes shone brightly because they were widened in surprise by the picture. It was probably the funniest picture Sawyer had ever taken and the two of them couldn't stop laughing at it as they walked through the mall with all the stuff they had bought earlier for Declan and Kenyon.

"Oh, this is priceless," Stephanie said as they were driving back home. "Our parents are going to absolutely love this."

"He honestly looks like he just saw a ghost or something, he looks completely surprised."

"I know," Stephanie giggled. "Sawyer, you're funny."

"Okay," Sawyer said as he looked at his mommy then back out the window at the passing scenery.

"When are my parents getting in again?"

"Tomorrow," Stephanie reminded him. "How many times do I have to tell you that?"

"Just that one more time," he told her, glancing over at her to give her a smile. "They still don't believe that I went over to Iraq, you know. I mean, they believe it because I told them I did, but I think they're in denial."

"Well, you only told them after you came back because you were scared that your mother would worry about you and cry or something," Stephanie responded. "She'll be so proud of you when she watches you on Monday. I know I was proud of you."

"I was proud of myself. It was an experience alright," he said. "I can't believe it was my first time."

"Well, when you were still wrestling, we usually sent the SmackDown guys, of which you were not. I'm glad you got the chance to go, I know that everyone else who goes usually has a really good time."

"I did, I really did. Those men and women over there, they really appreciate that we're there for them, and you know, they're doing a good thing, and if we can entertain them for just a little while, it's really worth it."

"I know, I can't wait to see how you did over there."

"I told you how I did, I was great until that asshole JBL interrupted my match."

"Chris, language."

"Oh, sorry, it sucked, that part of it, but being around the troops, that was pretty cool. Saw some really pretty women over there, just had to tell you."

"Shove it up your ass," Stephanie said.

Chris looked over at her, "Oh, and you complain about _my_ language around him."

"Fine, fine, whatever," she said. Stephanie turned around slightly in her seat. "Are you happy to spend tonight with Grandma and Grandpa, baby boy, more so Grandma since your Grandpa is mad at us."

"Me?" he asked.

"Okay, no, he's not mad at you, he's just mad at me and Daddy," Stephanie said. "I think that he likes you. You'll get to be with Dec and Kenny, so you'll have lots of stuff to do. If you guys want to be loud and start screaming in Grandpa's ear, I am all for that."

"Oh, great, you think my language is a bad influence, but you're telling him to be obnoxious, way to send our son mixed signals."

"It's different," Stephanie said. "You can't tell me you wouldn't want Sawyer to annoy my father just a little bit. I mean, this is the guy who said that you couldn't go to SmackDown to beat up JBL. He wouldn't let you even lay your hand on the guy who cost you the title."

"_Must_ you bring that up?" Chris asked, annoyed that she would bring that up again.

"I'm just making my point."

"Well your point is bugging me," he told her. They finally made it back home and Stephanie went to get Sawyer out of the car, putting him down on the ground as he ran towards the front door, being careful to take the steps very carefully, his arms out at his sides to maintain his balance. There were seven steps to get up to the front door and he was only on the fourth one when Chris and Stephanie came up the walkway. Chris grabbed his small hands and lifted him up the last three steps, setting him back down again on the even surface. "You always take forever, kid."

"He's not used to this house as much as the one in Florida," she said, making excuses for her little boy. "Plus, this is seven steps."

"Yeah, so…he's the same way at home with the stairs, the kid needs to learn how to take big boy steps."

"Jerk," she said good-naturedly as Sawyer slammed his hands on the front door. "Okay, I'm coming, what's inside that you want to see so much, baby boy?"

"Dunno," he said, but kept slamming anyways. Stephanie unlocked the door and Sawyer climbed the step to get inside. He wasn't really fond of this house because there were so many stairs around and they always took him longer to navigate. He went down the steps into the living room and went straight for the chest of toys that they kept in there. He didn't even see Trish and jumped when she tapped him on the shoulder.

"You scared the crap out of him," Chris laughed as he walked past to get to the kitchen and grab a water.

"Sorry, Sawyer," Trish said, "I was just wondering what you were going to play with?"

Sawyer pointed towards his big Legos and then fell right down on his butt right there, pulling them out and starting to build some masterpiece. Trish kissed the top of his head as Stephanie walked in. "Trish, are you trying to steal my son away from me again?"

"Yes," Trish joked.

"Okay, you can have him, he's a nuisance to me anyways, he's always getting in the way," Stephanie said, waving her hand off like she really didn't care.

"I think I'd much rather spend the evening here with Sawyer than going out tonight."

"Trish, come on, it's one date, it's not even a big deal."

"But it is a big deal, Christian is going to be there."

"So, don't let him ruin your evening," Stephanie said. "You just need to look past Christian. Come on, Trish. You need to move on or you're never going to be happy again, and I do not want to have to take care you of you in your old age, we don't have the room."

Trish laughed, "I'm just glad you'd consider taking care of me. It's just…what if Christian was the great love of my life?"

"Then you'd still be together."

"Gee, thanks," Trish said.

"People break up for a reason, I mean, if I were meant to be with Hunter, I'd still be with Hunter, but I'm not. And you know what, at first, it really, really hurt when we broke up. I remember crying my eyes out. I remember trying to figure out what it was that I did wrong or what he did wrong, or what we did wrong. I wanted him back so many times it was downright sad. But I did something about it."

"You got with Chris?"

"Well, that, but this was really when I was away from the company for those few months. I just took stock of everything and realized that if I were meant to be with Hunter, at some point, I'd be with Hunter. That's not how it worked out."

"Oh."

"Trish, move on or confess to Christian, seriously. I'm running out of speeches here to give you," she told her. "You need to move on, for your sake. Or just ask Christian very nicely if he'll take you back."

"He loves her."

"He's not married to her though," Stephanie said. "Look, I love Tiffany, and I love you, but it's whoever can make whomever the happiest. I'm happy, I don't need the drama in my life anymore. I think I'm going to go make out with Chris right now so I don't have to think about any of you guys anymore."

"I'm sorry," Trish said, giving a pathetic laugh. "I know that we dump everything on you guys. I guess we're just jealous…I know I am."

"Jealous, of me and Chris? Way to boost our egos even more," Stephanie joked.

"Well at least you guys are together," Trish lamented. "I'm going out on a blind date with a guy I've never even met. Blind dates are horrible. They just are, they never work out, and the person ends up ditching you before the night is over."

"I know Cameron, he wouldn't ditch you," Stephanie said. "Trust me. Besides even if he is dull, we'll be there."

"Yeah, as a couple, and then Hunter and Britt will be there…as a couple, and then Christian and Tiffany are going to be there, as a couple. Then what? There's poor, little Trish in the corner, all by her lonesome."

"Trish, seriously, honey, look in a mirror every now and again. You're freaking beautiful, you could probably have any guy that you wanted. Not _my_ guy, but any other guy in the universe. Open your eyes, it's full of possibilities."

"But you never know if that guy is with you for Trish Stratus the woman or for Trish Stratus the former WWE superstar. That's what I'm afraid of. I mean, what if I get with a guy, I really like him, and then we break up and he sells a sex tape to the tabloids?"

"Well, easy solution there…don't make sex tapes," Stephanie said. "Trish, you're over-thinking things. It's one date…just one date…unless, oh man, you want to make Christian jealous, don't you? Oh, Trish."

"Not jealous! Just…hey, look what you gave up. He deserves it after what he pulled the other week. He definitely deserves it."

"Well, whatever, I'm just going to try and have a nice time with my friends, that's it," Stephanie said. "And get one night away from that twenty-month-old terror," she finished, pointing towards Sawyer who had built quite the tower for his Legos. "Come on, Trish, just have fun tonight. It's the holidays, everyone should get the opportunity to have fun."

"I will," she said, then caught Stephanie's look, "Okay, I'll _try_, but that's all I'm giving. So this guy, he's really cute, right? Not that I'm vapid or anything, but that's how you described him. You said that he was really cute."

"He's definitely good-looking," Stephanie said. "I used to work with him when I was down in accounting when I first started with the WWF. We did a lot of projects together for my father, and he's a really great guy. We started around the same time so we're around the same age and we've stayed friends. He's a good guy."

"And Chris doesn't get jealous?"

"Ha! Chris get jealous, one could only hope," Stephanie said. "Even if Chris ever did get jealous, he'd never show it. He'd tell you about it but he'd never tell me about it. He likes to think that he has the upper-hand sometimes in this marriage."

"When so clearly he will never have that upper-hand."

"I let him think there's a competition for it," Stephanie said.

"Okay, well, since we're t-minus two hours from the awkwardness of my blind date I guess I should start to get ready. I mean, two hours should be enough time I think."

"_That_ I don't envy about the dating scene," Stephanie responded. "I mean, two hours to get ready is just insane to me now. I'm lucky if I get twenty minutes to get ready. If I'm trying to do something, Sawyer has usually found me and demands attention. If I'm trying to put on make-up and he's in the room he wants to climb all over me and get into my make-up because he thinks its face paint or something. I'd love to have two hours to get ready."

"Why don't you just pawn him off to the child's father?"

"Oh, like that's any better, then they both get bored and come find me and then I have both of them on my backs, no thanks. It's fine, I've learned how to look damn good even without the extra time."

"Well, I'm going to start getting ready then."

"Fine, and you wanted to have one of those," Stephanie said. "Good luck with that."

"You love him and you know it."

"Okay, so I kind of adore him. He's very lucky that he's a very agreeable baby. If I had gotten a brat of any sort, he'd probably be in a Swiss boarding school right now, far, far away from me," Stephanie joked.

"You're nuts."

Trish had to spend those two hours composing herself for her date. She was more nervous about seeing Christian than she was about actually going out on the date. Not that she wasn't worried about her date as well, she was marginally worried about that. She pulled her hair back and out of her face wanting to look clean and polished for the dinner tonight. Also, Christian liked it when she wore her hair down so out of defiance she was pulling it up and out of her face. She knew it was silly, but whatever, she didn't care anymore. She didn't even want him to go out to dinner with them, but he was here because of Tiffany, so she knew that Chris and Stephanie couldn't very well ignore him. She wished they would though.

The drive there was too quick, even though they had had to drop off Sawyer with Stephanie's parents first. Still, she wasn't really looking forward to this even though it was one dinner. That was it, just one dinner and then she could fly home to her family and everything would be perfect. That was all she was going for right now, just getting through the night. If she could just make it through one night, she'd be fine. She had bought a hot dress when she had gone shopping with Stephanie. It was definitely not weather-appropriate but she didn't expect to be outside. It was short and black and cut up to there and yes, so she wanted to make a certain someone jealous. Whatever, that was going to be her motto for the evening. Whatever.

"We're here," Chris said as he pulled into a spot. "I wonder if we're the first ones here?"

"Probably," Stephanie said as she turned to Trish. "Come on, Trish, let's go."

"Okay," she said though reluctant to even get out of the car. She pulled her coat on tighter as she and Stephanie got out of the car, Chris following behind them as they went inside. Stephanie checked them in and they had their coats checked before heading to the table. It was a large and beautiful restaurant. Two stories with a courtyard of sorts in the middle, and in that middle was a dance floor and a band was playing. They were led upstairs to a table right on the balcony and she graciously sat down as the host pulled her chair out for her, Chris mirroring the action for Stephanie, who rolled her eyes and sat down.

"This place is beautiful," Trish said.

"I know, right," Stephanie said. "I used to come here a lot with my parents when I was younger. I thought it was so cool and fancy…and it is cool and fancy."

"You're cute," Chris told her, kissing her nose.

"I hate you," she told him back, sticking her tongue out. Then her eyes lit up. "Cam, hey, did they show you to the table?"

"Yeah," he said, giving Stephanie a light hug. "You look great."

"Thanks," she said politely.

"Hey, Chris," Cameron said to Chris, shaking the man's hand. He often saw him at Titan whenever Stephanie was there for work so the men at least knew each other socially. "Nice to see you again."

"You too, man," Chris said genially.

"Cam, this is Trish," she said to him, then to Trish, "Trish, this is Cameron Davies."

"Hey, it's nice to meet you," Trish said, standing up and shaking his hand before they both took a seat next to each other."

"Yeah, I know who you are, I did some payroll at Titan so I saw your name quite often."

"I don't know if it's a good thing when the first thing a guy knows about you is your salary," Trish joked and he laughed.

"Oh, don't worry, I didn't pay attention to it," he joked back. "But if it makes you feel any better, I can tell you my salary."

"Tempting," Trish said. "So do you like working for the company? I never really got to talk to anyone who actually worked in the business part of it…besides Stephanie, but it's different with her."

"It's fine, just like any other job, really, I think," Cameron said. "It's not like it's exciting on my end of the department. But it's kind of funny to see people's reactions when I tell them I work for a wrestling company. I think half of them think I'm actually out in the ring or something. I've never even been to a show."

"You've never been to a show?" Trish asked incredulously. "How is that even possible?"

"I don't know," he said. "I guess I just never had occasion to go, you know."

"So you're not a fan of wrestling?"

"I watch it, don't get me wrong, I do keep up with the shows, but as for a huge fan, no I wouldn't say that I am, I definitely like the entertainment and athletic aspect to it…okay, so that's pretty much all that it entails."

"That sounds like a fan to me," she pointed out.

"Well then, I guess I am a fan," he said.

"So you know what's been going on with me then?" she asked flirtatiously.

"Well, I know you're not wrestling right now."

She laughed, "Well…yeah, so I guess there's really nothing going on with me right now."

"Well, I find that hard to believe. You don't seem like the type to sit around all day and doing nothing, even though you are retired, which is kind of weird to say, don't you think?"

"Why's it weird?"

"Since you're so young."

"Oh, you're good."

"They're hitting it off," Stephanie whispered to Chris excitedly.

Chris groaned silently. "You are impossible, McMahon."

"Sue me if I want people to be happy. I guess I just want people to be as happy as I wish that I could be. You know, if I were truly, truly happy with my husband, which I'm not, not at all," she said coyly.

"Please, you know that I'm the best husband you've ever had, in fact, I'm probably the best husband in the entire world, yes, yes, I am," he said cockily as he smirked. She shook her head and he nodded vigorously. "You love me, admit it."

"Never," she said, "Oh, look who's walking over."

Chris turned his head and saw Hunter with Britt on his arm. She was saying something g to him and he was giving her a small laugh. Chris was still pissed off that Hunter had disclosed the relationship to Stephanie and not to him. He had practically asked him point blank about it. Stephanie had been the one to actually ask point blank and had gotten the answer the straight to her face.

"Well, look who's here," Chris said sarcastically as Hunter helped Britt into her seat.

"Shut up," Hunter said.

"What, I barely even said anything," Chris answered defensively.

"It's a pretty good shot that everything out of your mouth could be responded to with a nice shut up," Hunter told him. "So, Steph, still not over this place yet?"

"What!" she pouted.

"We used to come here all the time when we were married, I think it's just because she wanted me to spend as much money as possible on her. The girl can eat."

"Hey, don't talk about my wife that way," Chris said. "If she wants to eat, I say let her eat. You can eat whatever you want and spend whatever you want."

"Dude, Chris, you've got her now, you don't need to impress her," Hunter said good-naturedly.

"Oh ha," Chris said sardonically.

"Chris is mad because you didn't disclose this little relationship that you have going," Stephanie said, gesturing between him and Britt. "He wanted to be in the know but I guess you didn't think that he was worth it."

"And I'm worth it!" Chris said petulantly.

"Of course you are," Britt giggled. "I've got to say, it's weird not seeing you guys in a work setting. It's like, you're all dressed up and you're all couple-y, not that you're not couple-like when you're at work, but now you're really just another couple that we might go out with, and there's no Sawyer, I hardly ever see you without the little guy."

"Well, he didn't want to be without us. He got a little bit on the cranky side when we had to leave him, but he'll have fun with Declan and Kenny tonight, so he'll get over it," Stephanie said dismissingly.

"Still, thanks you guys for inviting me," Britt said.

"You're a friend," Chris shrugged. "There's no reason why we wouldn't invite you."

"Oh, here's Shane and Rissa and Christian and Tiffany," Stephanie said as the last two couples to their group arrived and everyone said their hellos. It went unnoticed that Trish and Christian didn't say hello to one another. It did come to Stephanie's attention however that Christian chose the seats that were across from Trish in order to look at her. Stephanie just shook her head; these two were really pissing her off.

Trish spent her evening dutifully avoiding any conversation with Christian. They were involved in conversations here and there, but they never spoke directly with one another. Trish just didn't want to get into it with him while Christian was still embarrassed by what he had asked her the other week. He just wanted to forget that he had asked something like that of her and the aftermath of that very question that he asked her. He never should've put that on her.

The dinner was delicious and everyone seemed to be having fun. Trish had to admit that she was having fun too. Cameron had a personality that she liked. He was playful but could be serious as well. He was great to talk to and she actually found the evening fun. She wasn't expecting that. She honestly expected to be bored. He was good-looking too. He had short black hair and a tan complexion due to his Portuguese heritage. His eyes were green and intriguing and she liked looking at them. He was actually really nice and she could see herself going out with him again. What was she thinking?

"We're going to work off some of this food on the dance floor," Chris said as he pulled Stephanie out of her seat. "Later gators."

They walked downstairs and out to the dance floor where Chris took Stephanie into his arms. "So did you see the looks that Christian was giving Cameron?"

"No, I didn't, he was giving him looks?"

"Death looks," Chris laughed. "I swear, when are those two going to figure it out? We've been around them for what, more than four years now and they still haven't figured it out."

"It took us a couple of years," she pointed out.

"But we didn't go out and then break up," he pointed out. "I hated you."

"Did you, did you really?" she asked jokingly.

"Yes, you were a slut," he said. "Still, we didn't like each other so it wasn't like I was immediately going to see your good points. Those two were together and then they decided that they were going to be apart."

"And that doesn't make sense to you?"

"No, absolutely not. I mean, I wanted to be with you, I went through a ton of crap for you, and here we are, and we're happy and with a kid. They could have that, if they would just look at each other and think about what went wrong."

"But maybe it's too late."

"It's never too late," Chris said, shaking his head. "If you want something, if you want some_one_ so much that you can't forget about them, if you're constantly thinking about them, you owe it to yourself to pursue that."

"But what if that time has passed?" Stephanie asked. "Sometimes a person has to go forward, leave behind what they thought they wanted, and if they do, there's the potential to find someone better for you."

"But what if better is not out there, what if it's right in front of you all along? What if you never left it? If you're so deeply in love with someone that like, years after you break up you're still hung up on that person, I say you go back and you just tell them."

"So hypothetically speaking, we break up, my choice, like, I cheat on you or I fall in love with someone else, or I just think that we're not spending enough time together and we fall apart, but I want to be away from you. So you still love me, but say I'm with some other guy, and I love him, and we're living together, what do you do in that situation? It's pretty obvious that I'm loving this guy."

"Wait, hold on, you think it's obvious that Christian loves Tiffany?"

"You don't?"

"I think he loves her, I don't think he makes her light up like Trish did."

"Okay, well, say this guy doesn't _make me light up_ like you do, what would you do in that situation?"

"I would do everything in my power to get you back," Chris said immediately. "Without a doubt in my head, I'd try to win you back."

"Even if you knew that I was with someone else."

"I wouldn't care," he told her. "If I still loved you and I still thought that we belonged together, I'd get you back, trust me."

"But what if I didn't want you to?"

"I think Christian wants her to," Chris shrugged. "I don't know, he's never said anything, but I think that if Trish made a concerted effort to get him back that they would get back together."

"But still, what if I didn't want you?"

"You'd want me."

"You can't say that," Stephanie said. "You wouldn't even know."

"Heck yeah, I would know," Chris said. "If we were to break up that wouldn't mean I would suddenly not know how to read you. I would still know you, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, even if we weren't together. You're not with someone for five years and can't read them. I would know if you still loved me. Then I would get you back."

"But what if you read me wrong?"

"I wouldn't, Stephanie, I know everything there is to know about you."

"Oh, so you just automatically know everything that I'm thinking?"

"I didn't say that, I just said that I know everything about you," he said, kissing her lightly, just brushing his lips gently against hers as they danced to the slow tune wafting around them from the band. "And I do."

"There's some stuff that you don't know," she asserted.

"Like what?"

"I don't know, but there's some stuff," she said. "Oh, oh, oh, you don't know about my sex life with Hunter."

Chris made a gagging noise. "Okay, see, that's one thing that I don't want to even think about let alone discuss."

"But then that's not knowing everything about me."

"Evil," he told her, brushing some of her hair out of her face. "Besides, you're the mother of my child, that carries some weight around here. I know you, Stephanie, you know that I know you and you know about me too."

"Okay, so I do," she said. "It was just a hypothetical situation anyways. I wasn't thinking about leaving you."

"You don't have to put a disclaimer on it, I knew it was hypothetical," Chris said as he twirled her around and then brought them back face-to-face, his nose bumping into hers. "I'm really having fun tonight."

"It has been fun," she nodded. She noticed that Hunter and Britt were dancing close by and looked completely lost in their own little world. His forehead was leaned down touching hers as they kept whispering stuff towards each other. "Look at those two."

Chris followed Stephanie's gaze and looked at Hunter and Britt. "He looks happy, you know."

"I know, weird, huh?"

"Yeah, he's not his usual jackass self around her, it is weird," he kidded. "I'm glad for him though, took him long enough to really find someone to be happy with. I thought he was never going to get over you."

"You hold me in too high regard."

"You should be flattered."

"Oh, I am, I am," Stephanie said. "It's just crazy that we're out with him and his girlfriend. I never thought that would happen, especially considering all the shit that he put us through over the years."

"True, but it's a good thing," Chris said. "I don't have to worry about him stealing you away from me."

"He'd have no shot," Stephanie told him. "No shot at all."

"Thanks for the reassurance, like I needed it or anything," Chris said. "Our three-year anniversary is coming up in a few weeks so I was kind of convinced that he didn't have a shot."

"Well now you know for sure."

"Hey you guys, our desserts arrived," Christian said as he passed by them on his way back to the table. Chris and Stephanie followed him back and found they were the last ones to the table. They sat down to the soufflé they were sharing and both dug into it.

"You have chocolate on your chin," Stephanie said as she wiped it off with her finger.

"Hey, you guys, um, can I say something?" Christian asked to the other people around the table.

"Uh, yeah, sure," Shane said as they turned their attention to Christian. Only Trish continued to eat her sundae, spooning more of the cold dessert into her mouth, letting it foster her chilly reception towards Christian. She didn't care what he had to say. He could go jump off a pier for all she cared. In fact, she would drive him to one right now if he promised that he would do that.

"Okay, well, I was going to wait, but I just couldn't wait any longer, tonight has been really fun with all you guys and I just…it feels right so uh," Christian took a deep breath and turned to Tiffany. Stephanie's eyes widened and she looked over to Marissa, whose jaw was dropping slowly. They looked at each other knowing exactly what was coming because they had both been in this position before.

Trish still wasn't looking up. She was pretending to be fascinated by the caramel in her sundae and she was effectively tuning out Christian and anything that he had to say. Who cared what he had to say anyways? He was the one who had asked her for a reason and when she had given him that reason had turned her away and left her standing there feeling foolish. That was entirely his fault and he should rot in hell for that. It was actually much easier to hate him right now, maybe she should ride this wave of feeling towards him.

"Uh, yeah, I love you, Tiff, and I want to be with you. You make me really happy…"

It was here that Trish listened. She looked up at Christian as he was gazing at Tiffany. The words had pierced the stony exterior that she had just put up. She blinked slowly as she watched Christian take Tiffany's hand in his, caressing the back of it as he looked down at that particular hand. Trish couldn't blink, was she blinking right now? She didn't even know if she was blinking. Was she breathing? She felt her hand come up to her chest and she could faintly feel it moving up and down so yes, she was still breathing.

"I think we make each other happy, so I wanted…I wanted to know if you wanted to make that a permanent condition," Christian said, taking a small gulp of air before he brought the ring up to her view. Then he looked up and over a little bit, staring straight into a pair of brown eyes that he used to spend hours gazing at. "I guess what I'm trying to ask, what I've wanted to ask is…will you marry me?"

Everyone at the table was speechless, especially Tiffany. She looked down at the diamond solitaire ring, a marquise cut, and a gold band. She blinked a few times, wondering if this was real. Had Christian really just proposed in front of all these people? She looked around the table at the eight sets of eyes that were focused solely on her. She felt like the whole world was staring at her. She bit her lip a little bit as Christian cleared his throat.

"I mean, you can take all the time that you want, but I want you to know that it's out there, this question is out there. Do you need to think about it?"

"Yeah, yeah, I do, I just, I'm…I wasn't expecting this tonight," Tiffany said. "I'm speechless."

"I wasn't planning on doing it tonight, but it seemed like the setting was right and I just felt like this was the right moment to do this."

"Oh, well, that's…" she gave a little squeal as she flailed her arms around a little bit. "Christian! This is nuts!"

He laughed and pulled her into a hug, "You're crazy."

"No, you are," she told him, hugging him back. "This isn't a yes, I mean, I need to definitely think about this, but it's…okay, I just became completely aware that we aren't alone. Uh, sorry guys."

"No, uh, don't worry about it," Marissa said, speaking on behalf of everyone.

"Christian, come with me," Tiffany said as she pulled Christian out of his seat and away from the table, taking him downstairs to a more secluded area so they could really talk about this.

"Holy shit," Chris said. "I can't…wow…can you believe that?"

"No, man, seriously, that was out of the blue," Hunter said.

"I know," Shane said. "Wasn't expecting to get dinner _and_ a show tonight."

Trish had tuned everyone out as she tried to keep her emotions at bay. It was difficult though, trying to remain neutral when everything in her body was rebelling against her and wanting to throw herself off this damn balcony and land with a nice thud on the dance floor below. This must've been how Christian felt when he found out that she was going to marry Carlito. Okay, so she had just gotten a big dose of her own medicine and it certainly burned on the way down.

"Um, if you'll excuse me, Cam, I'm just going to go freshen up," Trish said, not knowing how she managed to say that with such relative calm, but she did. He smiled and nodded as she got up and almost ran for the bathroom.

This action didn't go unnoticed by Stephanie, Marissa, or Britt, who each excused themselves to go find Trish and talk with her. Cameron looked confused by them all leaving and Chris chose this moment to explain, "She and Christian used to date so it was a little weird for her having to see that."

"Oh yeah, I'm so stupid, I remember that, they turned on you, right, but you were with Stephanie at the time," Cameron said. "Stephanie told me about that way back in the day."

"Yeah," Chris said. "So I'm guessing she's bummed."

Christian let Tiffany pull her to a rather secluded corner up near the front of the restaurant. She kissed him lightly as he tilted his head slightly to deepen the kiss. She pulled away before she let it get carried away. "Christian, you proposed."

He laughed, "I know you did and you didn't say anything back. You left me hanging. I should be feeling humiliated right now. You turned down my proposal."

"I didn't turn it down," Tiffany said. "I just needed to think about it. I mean, this is huge, Christian, and I know we've talked marriage, but we've never seriously talked marriage, not in the serious sense. I mean, I know at some point, when a relationship is as serious as ours, the idea of marriage is going to come up as a serious thing, but you know, I'm the type of girl who wants to know the proposal is coming."

"So you would've wanted to…"

"Kind of plan it out, know that it was an understanding between the two of us and then you could've gone ahead and proposed."

"I thought spontaneous was better."

"It's sweet, it really is. I just, I don't know," she said with exasperation, not over the situation, but just with frustration that she didn't immediately know what she wanted. "I just…I mean, I know that we're living together and marriage wouldn't be all that different, but it's just the idea, I mean, marriage…it's huge!"

"I know this," he said, chuckling softly as he twisted his fingers in her dark hair. "I know that it's a big decision, and if you want to make that decision together, then I'm going to be all for that. I just…the question is out there, the discussion is out there, think about it, talk to me about it if you want. It's up to you, completely. I know what I want to do, but I'm willing to wait until I know what you want to do."

"Thank you, you're the best."

Trish was definitely not thinking that Christian was the best. She had gone into the bathroom to try and compose herself, but it wasn't working. The tears were coming to her eyes and she grabbed a paper towel and started dabbing at them, trying not to ruin her makeup. She didn't want anyone to know that she was crying. She would just get these tears out and go back to the table and pretend like none of this ever happened. She would talk and laugh with Cameron and that would be that. She could do this.

"Hey, sweetie," Stephanie said and she knew her cover was completely blown.

Trish sniffled and saw all three of the women there. "Oh man, you brought the cavalry?"

"We just want to help," Britt said.

"Thanks you guys, but I'm okay, really," Trish said. "I know I'm crying, but it's not a big deal."

"Trish…"

"No, seriously, can we just go back to the table, I really don't want to talk about this. I just really, _really_ don't want to talk about this."

"Okay," Stephanie said. "We can go back to the table."

"Thank you."

She wanted to forget this night had ever happened.

**December 23****rd**

"You know, Christian, what you did wasn't cool."

"What are you talking about, man?" he asked Chris as they sat watching football. They were only kind of watching right now though, since neither one was really into football. It was more background noise for them.

"Proposing like that in front of Trish."

"What? You think that was on purpose?"

"Absolutely," Chris told him. "I absolutely think that was on purpose."

"What! I can't believe you just said that to me."

"What do you mean you can't believe I said that to you, dude, are you kidding me? You knew that she was there, you knew that you had asked her to give you one reason not to propose, and yet, you still did that right in front of her."

"She was fine."

"Oh, yeah, right," Chris said. "You weren't there after she left. I can't believe you'd be insensitive like that."

"You called your wife a filthy, dirty, disgusting, brutal, skanky, bottom-feeding trash-bag ho."

"_Before_ we got together," Chris said. "I didn't get with her, break up with her and then spit in her face. You spit in Trish's face last night."

"I would've proposed to Trish if she wasn't off deciding to be with other guys."

"Dude, you left her, you left her when Mickie threatened you. It wasn't like she didn't try. Have you forgotten that? It would be hard for her to trust you after that, regardless of your motives. Proposing in front of her, knowing what you know about her, it was a bad move."

"Who the hell are you to tell me when I can or can't propose to my girlfriend?"

"When it hurts one of my friends," Chris said, raising his voice. "You know full well you could've done that someplace else."

"I didn't plan to propose to her the other night," Christian said. "I just felt like the time was right. I was actually going to propose on Christmas Eve with her family. That was my original plan, but it felt right on Friday night."

"How could it possibly feel right when the woman that loves you is sitting right there?"

"On a date with another guy! She was on a date with that Cameron guy and it looked like they were having a blast. Did you see them on the dance floor, she was laughing it up, she looked perfectly fine to me. Why should she care?"

"Oh my God, are you jealous?" Chris said, staring at Christian. Christian frowned. "Do not tell me you were jealous because Trish was on a date."

"I wasn't jealous! What the hell would I have to be jealous about? I'm with Tiffany, we're living together, she moved down to Florida to be with me. There's no way I'd be jealous over an ex-girlfriend who dumped me many moons ago."

"So this was…revenge?"

"Revenge? What the hell would I be avenging?"

"The fact that she got engaged."

"Look, I love Tiffany, end of story. I didn't question your love for Stephanie. I took that in stride. I didn't think that you were trying to…get revenge on someone…or something like that."

"You don't even know who I dated before Stephanie. Hell, I barely remember who I dated before Stephanie. Whatever the reason, whatever, the fact still remains that you were pretty much spitting in Trish's face on Friday night. What you did was wrong."

"What do you want me to do? You want me to apologize to her for proposing to my girlfriend? _Oh hey, Trish, I'm sorry that I love my girlfriend and wanted to marry her_. Yeah, that'll blow over really well."

"You asked her to give you a reason not to propose to Tiff!"

"I was nervous and scared that it wouldn't work out with me and Tiffany, that's it, end of story. That's the only thing that it was about."

"Oh give me a damn break," Chris scoffed. "You went to Trish and you got her hopes up. That was low too. Do you just want to make her hurt? Is that fun for you? Hurting her like that? Do you want her to hurt like you were hurting when she was with Carlito?"

"Whatever," Christian said, getting up. "Think whatever the hell you want. I'm leaving. I don't need to be harassed by you."

"I'm not harassing you, I'm trying to understand why the hell you hurt Trish like you did!"

"Because…just, whatever, okay…she could've had that and she threw it back in my face."

"Wait…so you wanted to propose to Trish?"

"Of course I did. I wanted to marry Trish a million times over! I wanted to be with her forever. I love her, and she was the only one that I ever thought about marrying, but she didn't want me and tell me, Chris, what the hell was I supposed to do! Was I supposed to sit on my hands until she decided that I was worthy of her? I couldn't do that, so I did the only thing that I could do, I moved on and trust me, it's been hard. I struggled with the idea of marrying Tiff because I didn't think that I wanted to marry anybody other than Trish. It was always, _always_ Trish in my mind, always. I couldn't escape her. Night after night after night I'd lie awake in bed and try to get rid of the pictures in my head of Trish Stratus walking down the aisle and looking happy to see _me_ at the other end. I'm sorry that I can't escape that, but I'm _trying_ here, I'm trying."

Christian collapsed to the couch in exhaustion. He covered his face with his hands and though Chris felt sorry for him, there was something repeating in his mind that bore repeating so he repeated it to Christian, "Uh, dude, you just said somewhere in that long-ass speech that you love Trish…as in present tense love."

"What?" Christian asked, looking up at him.

"You said you love Trish, you didn't say you _loved_ Trish as in used to but don't anymore. You said that you love her."

"You must've misheard me."

"No, I really didn't."

"Well then I misspoke."

"I don't think you did."

"I don't love her," he said quickly.

"Sure, you know, get it together, man, if you do something that you're not prepared for, if you do something that isn't what you really, truly want, you're hurting three people."

"I'm going, whatever, man, think what you want."

"Oh, I will," Chris said. "I will."

"Look, I love Tiffany--"

"I'm not doubting that you love her," Chris said. "I just think you need to take a long, hard look at your life and figure out what it is that you're going to want ten years from now. Who do you picture when you think about the future, Christian, seriously? You just went on and on about how you still picture a wedding with Trish. Do you picture that future too? Do you see a little girl with Trish's eyes and your smile? Is that what you picture?"

"No," Christian scoffed. "You mean to tell me that you pictured all that lovey-dovey future crap with Stephanie?"

"Heck yeah," Chris said. "I wasn't going to marry Stephanie if I didn't see a future with Stephanie. Trust me, she takes some getting used to. She's a different creature altogether. But yeah, I pictured the kids…years down the line."

"Did they look like Sawyer?"

"No, Sawyer's a helluva lot cooler actually," Chris said with a laugh. "Just…look, things right now are at the point where it's do or die. You either get with Trish or you don't, but you guys can't keep doing this for years. It's not good for either one of you. If Steph and I can figure it out, you guys should be able to as well."

"Okay, thanks, still, I'm going to go, you have a Merry Christmas."

"Thanks," Chris said, giving him a manly hug, "you too."

Christian had a lot to think about.

**December 24****th**

"You really do look happy to be there," Stephanie whispered to Chris as she sat on his lap at Shane's house. Seating was at a premium right then so she was perched on her husband's lap. The Raw Tribute to the Troops was playing right now and Chris had just come out for his match and he was working the crowd like he had never worked a crowd before.

"I _was_ really happy to be there," Chris said. "It was really an experience. Though I'm not ever going to tell my mom I was caught in a war zone."

"You didn't tell her about that?"

"No, and I'm not going to, she doesn't need to know about that," Chris said. "I mean, come on, you haven't noticed she's a little on the over-protective side?"

She laughed, "Okay, I noticed, but still, you should tell your mom stuff like that."

"Nah, she's too engrossed in Sawyer to care about me anyways," Chris said, looking at his mother who had Sawyer in her arms. He had been amped up for all the excitement of the evening. It was the first Christmas where he was somewhat cognizant of the fact that this day was pretty special. He had had a blast opening up all his gifts, ripping the paper open and shrieking over the things he liked. Now though, he was starting to slow down and falling asleep in his grandma's arms.

"Well, I just want to say this now then, I'm really proud that you went."

"You've said that."

"I mean it though."

"I know you mean it."

"I mean this too, Merry Christmas," she said, leaning in to kiss him.

"Hey, no making out with my sister in my house!" Shane said loudly as he walked in the room.

Chris only flipped him off.

**December 25****th**

"Christian?"

"Hey, I'm not interrupting family time, am I? I know that you don't exactly do the entire Christmas dinner thing."

"You remembered?"

"Hard to forget."

Trish laughed, "What are you doing here?"

"Well, as you know, we flew up here for Christmas, and I knew you were here because you live here."

"I do, and you're not getting to the point. So get to the point," she told him knowingly. She still knew Christian.

"Well, Chris basically kicked some information into my head and…I'm sorry for proposing to Tiffany in front of you. I was planning to do it last night, but I guess…I don't know, I wasn't thinking. I apologize for doing that in front of you knowing what I do know. It's just, Trish," he sighed and shoved his hands into his coat pockets. "No, you know, you deserve an apology and I'm really sorry."

"It's fine," she waved him off. "Don't worry about it, Christian."

"I wasn't thinking."

"I know that it wasn't intentional…at least I hope it wasn't."

"I don't even know anymore, I just knew that I had to come here as soon as possible and apologize."

"Has she said yes yet?" Trish asked.

"No, not yet, we're discussing it."

Trish nodded. "I would've said yes immediately…I mean, back in the day, if you had asked me back in the day," she said, trying to cover up the slip of her tongue. She hadn't meant to blurt that out at all. "Just, back…you know…then."

"Yeah, then, but anyways, I'm really sorry and I'm glad you accept my apology."

"I do, and thank you for apologizing, though you didn't need to do it."

"Merry Christmas, Trish."

"You too, Christian, you too."


	163. Auld Lang Syne, December 31, 2007

A/N: So by my count, this is chapter 400, though if you add it up, it's less, but I've combined chapters here and there obviously. I know, I know, I'm nuts, I get it, you don't have to tell me. Anyways, as my 400th chapter (and if you seriously like, don't want to read the previous ones, e-mail me and I'll let you know the gist of the story) I would like to take the time to dedicate this chapter to someone. So I wanted to dedicate this chapter to my friend, Jodi, who not only gave me an idea for this chapter, but gives me ideas for tons of stuff and listens to all my stupid, stupid ideas (I know, I know, they're not all stupid except for that particular one), and who I can go to with complaints of how Jericho is treated and who is responsible for that and who completely understands because she feels the exact same way. Plus, she's pretty much been a fan of mine since the beginning of this story and she's been there the entire time and that deserves some recognition, so Jodi, this one is totally for you, and not just because you got me a gift! ;)

Anyways, this is last week's New Year's Eve chapter, and tomorrow I'll be updating with Monday's chapter, which...well, ugh, I hated the show, but whatever. I hope that you enjoy this chapter, I enjoyed writing it and leave a review, please. See, I asked nicely. :)

* * *

"Do you think that Sawyer is going to make it to midnight?" 

"No," Chris said. "You can't tell me you think he's going to last until midnight?"

"Maybe we should throw a party in the middle of the ring and let him come and join it so he doesn't think that the ring is evil. I think he thinks that the ring is horrible now. He's never going to be a wrestler now."

"Baby, I think he's going to forget about this."

"Unless we've scarred him for life," Stephanie told him. "Maybe he's going to develop an aversion to the ring forever, like when some people have traumatic experiences with water and then they can't get in the water for the rest of their life."

"Steph, it wasn't a traumatic experience, he just saw that it was just the ring and there was no huge party with different characters out here with me. I think he'll get over it so your dreams of him being the WWE champion aren't gone yet," Chris told her. "So…2008, huh?"

"Yes, 2008," she said with a sigh. "Another year I was stuck with you."

"You should be saying another year that you were so fortunate to be with me," Chris told her mock-seriously. "You really were fortunate."

"So you say," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "So…2008, and when did we get together?"

"That would be 2002, ma'am," Chris said. "What, you're going to point out that this is going to be six years this July? Yes, it's going to be six years that we've put up with each other."

"Six years…wow."

"You say that like you didn't expect to last?"

"Of course I didn't, I figured that I was going to dump you once I got bored of you. I married you out of pity and would've divorced you had you not gotten me pregnant, but unfortunately I want my son to have a father so I'm not going to divorce you right now, maybe when Sawyer is older."

"Well, thank you, kid, for being around so your mommy wouldn't leave me," Chris said to Sawyer, who was in his arms. Sawyer didn't want to go down for his nap anywhere but in Chris's arms. After all the holidays and being passed around constantly he was being extra clingy. He had his head on Chris's shoulder and he was currently knocked out, his eyes closed and his mouth open slightly as he drooled on Chris's shoulder.

"He's asleep," Stephanie told him, checking on her son.

"Oh yeah?" Chris asked, running his hand softly up and down Sawyer's back. The little boy snuffled a little bit, but didn't wake up, just settling himself against Chris further.

"Yeah, definitely down for the count. He should be asleep until a little later this afternoon. I can get some work done."

"What about me? I'm the one with the kid attached to my shoulder."

"Put him down on the couch," Stephanie told him. "He's asleep, you can put him down and go do whatever it is that you have to do…what _is_ it that you have to do exactly?"

"Well, I was planning on taking my wife to dinner for New Year's, so I wanted to go make sure that my reservations were still in place. I wanted to ring in the new year with her by my side, maybe getting a cute, little kiss from her too."

Stephanie rolled her eyes, "What are we going to do with the kid?"

"Your mom is here to spend time with your dad, I don't know why, the man is impossible. Who the hell would want to spend time with him?"

"Welcome to the dark side," Stephanie laughed. "It's about time you joined the club. You were always so rational about my father. Always saying that he wasn't that bad a guy, that he was misunderstood, you feel pretty stupid now, don't you?"

"You actually want me to admit I'm wrong about this one, don't you?"

"It would be nice, yes," Stephanie said. "I figure that we should start the new year off right, with you thinking that I'm the one that's always right and you being the one who is always wrong. So come on, admit it, admit I'm right."

"You're not right," Chris told her. "You know as well as I do that whatever we have going with your dad right now is going to change sooner or later. Your dad holds grudges, you hold grudges, you all hold grudges. The McMahon family is like one huge grudge match. You have a grudge against Shane, he has one against Vince, nobody has a grudge against Linda. She has a grudge against Vince though, you know, it's never-ending."

"You say that like you don't hold grudges, which you do."

"Not really for anyone in your family before this."

"Oh yeah, I seem to remember you kind of holding a grudge for Shane when he was treating me poorly, and for my father when _he_ was treating me poorly. You're right, never for my mother, but you have held grudges, you're one of us, Chris. You're one of us," Stephanie said, widening her eyes and pretending to act crazy. "One of us, Chris, one of us."

"You're creeping me out, you psycho," he laughed softly. "Okay, I'm putting him down now."

Chris went to put Sawyer down on the couch, but the little boy started to whine and flail around a little bit. Chris sighed and pulled him back towards his body, where he quieted down. One of these days he knew that Sawyer was going to throw an absolute fit and he was going to have to bring Sawyer down to the ring with him. He could just imagine it, him walking down there for an important promo calling someone out for something they had done and then there'd be Sawyer, head on his shoulder, sucking his thumb or with a pacifier in his mouth so he'd be quiet as he listened to his father.

He didn't think he'd be all that intimidating with a toddler in his arms.

"Okay, calm down, calm down," Chris said to his son. Sawyer quieted down. "Why is it when he gets clingy he always gets clingy with me? Why is it he's never falling asleep on you and not wanting to leave you when he's trying to sleep?"

"Because he knows I have work to do. You see, Chris, the kid grew inside of me, so he's really, really connected with me. He knows the way I think and he knows when Mommy needs to work so he doesn't bother me when that happens. So he goes towards the next best thing…Daddy."

"That's a lie."

"It's the truth! He knows when I'm working. He was a good baby that way," she said. "You weren't there for those first six weeks and I had to work. He'd sit quietly and--"

"He slept for like 20 hours of the day," Chris laughed. The jostling made Sawyer whine a little bit again and Chris continued to rub his back. "He's just lucky that I don't really have anything to do in the middle of the afternoon."

"Well, you'll have stuff to do on the show, won't you?"

"I don't know, I guess it depends on whether or not I have a kid attached to me," Chris said. "I don't know, he might just be in one of those moods. He gets like this when he knows that he's not going to be spending the night with us. He senses it."

"Well, his parents want to get lucky, he's going to have to deal with that," Stephanie winked.

"Do you want me to drop him right now?"

"No," Stephanie laughed as she saw her mother at the door, "Oh hi, Mom, you're here early."

"Well, your father insisted I be here when he was here," Linda said. "How is everything going on that front, has your father come to his senses about the two of you yet?"

"What kind of question is that, Mom? Of course Dad hasn't come to his senses yet. You know how he is."

"I know how you are too, the both of you," Linda said, tilting her head a little as she looked at her daughter and son-in-law. "I don't expect Sawyer to be any different when he gets old enough either."

"Probably not," Chris said. "He is part McMahon after all. Heaven help us."

"Well, I suppose you just have to learn to bring out the Jericho side in him," Linda joked. She walked over and ran her hand over Sawyer's head. His hair was so downy soft and blond just like Chris's was at that age. Loretta had brought some albums at Christmas at Linda's request because she wanted to see if Sawyer really was the spitting image of Chris as a baby, and it turns out that he was. There was no doubting Sawyer's paternity now.

"I'm surprised that he didn't stay with your parents," Linda whispered to Chris. His parents were staying until the Royal Rumble. It was kind of weird having his parents around for so long, but they got to see Sawyer so little that they had wanted to stay for an extended visit. It was kind of like the time that Vince was staying with them. He felt weird touching and kissing Stephanie knowing that his parents were in the house.

Chris hadn't really had time for a lot of girls growing up. He was so into the whole wrestling thing that girls were always secondary. He had had a few girlfriends, sure, but never anyone that he'd been serious about. He was young, he didn't care. All he cared about was being a wrestler. Hell, that had been all he cared about until he got together with Stephanie. Women always came second best with him so there was never anyone serious. He let his mother think there was sometimes, Katharina came to mind, but there really never was a first love for Chris but wrestling.

So he didn't have experience being with a girl in front of his parents on his own turf. He and Stephanie were a lot more lovey-dovey in the comforts of their own home. Oftentimes they would do some chore together and they'd get sidetracked with kissing or something touchy-feely like that. What he didn't want a repeat of was the other night when he was washing dishes with Stephanie and they had been kissing and he had his hand up her shirt and his father had walked in to grab a glass of water. Embarrassment didn't even begin to describe it.

"He didn't want to. I told my parents that they should go to New York for the celebration and they are, they went some time back in my dad's playing days, so it should be a huge trip during memory lane."

"It definitely should," she laughed. "So you just pawn him off on us."

"He loves you," Chris said coyly.

"I don't mind, he should keep Vince under control," Linda said. "No matter how mad he is at you guys, he never gets mad at that little boy, any of his little boys in fact. If WWE were made up entirely of his grandsons, I think he'd be happy."

"Let's make it happen," Chris joked. "Thanks for watching him tonight for us though, Linda, we appreciate it."

"You two are young, you should be able to go out and have fun on New Year's Eve. Ring in the new year together without having to worry about Sawyer. I'm old, I can't even stay up until midnight, Sawyer and I will have a good night's rest while the rest of you have hangovers tomorrow."

"Well I would hope that Sawyer wouldn't have a hangover," Chris said. "Unless he drinks too much apple juice, his drink du jour. He loves the stuff, you should hear him, it's always, 'ap oose, ap oose.'"

Linda laughed, "Well, he's trying."

"Yeah, I'll give him that."

"How long has he been asleep in your arms?"

"Well, let me see…I've lost the feeling in my arm about twenty minutes ago, so I'd say he's been out for about an hour now," Chris said. "So I anticipate he'll be asleep for another hour or so and then after that I'll have to get this arm amputated because the circulation will be completely gone."

"Don't be a drama queen, he's a little boy, he barely weighs anything."

"Oh yeah, you try holding him for this long."

"I held him inside my body for nine months, so I think I know what it's like to carry him," Stephanie said sweetly. "I have to get this schedule out. I don't see your name anywhere on the show tonight, Chris Jericho, you better be on it."

"Stephanie…"

"Just saying…"

"Fine," whatever. Stephanie walked by him and gave him a quick kiss. She picked up Sawyer's hand and kissed the back of it before she left to go about her business.

"Why did she mention you weren't on the show?" Linda asked.

"Stephanie seems to think that if I'm not on the show every single week that I'm lying when I said that I was really coming back. She's worried that this is a 'just for now' type situation when in actuality, I'm actually back, not that I ever really left. She's just scared that I was lying. She…she likes me out there."

"We all do," Linda said firmly as she patted Chris on the arm. "We're all glad that you decided to come back in front of television. You do a good job back here, trust me, I know, but we, and the fans, like to see you in front of the camera too. I think it's where you belong."

"You sound just like Stephanie."

"Well, I am her mother."

Later that evening, Christian was standing outside Trish's door. He had a case of beer in one hand and some Chinese take-out in the other. It was all her favorite items from her favorite place in Toronto. He knew that he was going out on a limb here, but he wanted to try. Even though Trish had accepted his apology over what had happened with him and Tiffany, he still felt like he was a complete stooge for doing that in front of her. Maybe a part of it _was_ revenge for everything with Carlito, maybe it wasn't; he still hadn't quite figured that out yet.

He knocked on the door. Maybe she had another date tonight. Then he'd feel embarrassed, but what the hell, he didn't have much to lose anyways. Trish opened the door, expecting the pizza that she had ordered, but she was shocked to see Christian on the other side.

"I come bearing gifts," he said, holding up the Chinese food and the beer.

"I was waiting for pizza."

"Well, now we've got Europe and Asia covered, maybe we'll get some Mexican and somehow find Australian food," Christian said with a smile.

"We?"

"Yeah, I was hoping that you didn't have plans for tonight…do you have plans for tonight?" Christian asked.

Trish looked at him wearily, "Christian, what are you doing here?"

"Well, I thought we could spend the new year together."

"You have a girlfriend…or is she a fiancée now?"

"She's back in Connecticut. One of her old patients had an emergency and was insisting on having Tiffany treat her, and the woman wouldn't stop screaming until they got a hold of her and well…she's nothing if not dedicated to her work so she left. Those are the demands of a doctor I guess."

"She has good bedside manner."

"I like to think so," he chuckled. "Anyways, that left me alone. As much as I love my mother and my grandma, I didn't really want to spend New Year's Eve with them, especially given the fact my grandma is probably already asleep and my mom, well, she'll be asleep by ten I'm sure."

"Edge?"

"Edge found some girl somewhere and he's taking her out and doing exactly what Edge does with girls."

Trish nodded, "And we both know exactly what that will entail."

"Do em' and dump em'," they both said simultaneously, then laughed. When they were together that was what they always said when they discussed whoever Edge was dating that moment, which was usually a different girl.

"Yeah, so that's what he's doing, so I was stuck. I figured…well, I still hate the way that I treated you with the proposal thing, so I was hoping that you'd allow me to make it up to you. It's just a friends thing. I want to be your friend, or attempt it, and I want to show you that I'm apologizing for what happened."

"Well, I didn't have any plans. I was just going to sit here and watch the ball drop, so yeah, come on in. We can make a night out of it."

"Great," he said, following her into the house. "You hungry?"

"Not yet, but I will be," she said as they walked into the kitchen. Christian put the stuff down on the counter and then put the beers in the fridge, noting how there were a few in there. He grabbed a couple and handed one to Trish and then went into a nearby drawer to grab a bottle opener. "How'd you know where that was?"

"This is your old place," Christian said. "I think I'd remember."

"Oh yeah, I forgot we had been together when I still lived here, before I rented it out."

"Yeah," he said as he popped the cap on both of the beers. He took a slow chug of the beer before pulling it away from his mouth. "I got your favorites from Chef Chu's."

"That's so sweet of you."

"Thanks."

"This is awkward, I'm just going to say it right now, this is awkward. Okay, that's out of my system now."

"Well, yeah, I guess it was bound to be, I think that's why I brought the beers. It'll ease the tension a little bit. So you really would've said yes to my proposal?"

"Do you really have to ask?" she told him.

"No, I guess I don't," he replied. "Just trying to make conversation I guess."

"Yeah," she said as the doorbell rang. "That should be the pizza I ordered. I'll be right back."

When she was gone he looked around the kitchen. He remembered coming here every so often when Trish didn't come down to Florida with him. When she had moved in with him, she had kept this place and rented it out to an older couple. He figured somewhere along the way that she had gotten the place back and moved back closer to her family. Things hadn't changed much. There was new paint on the walls and new appliances, but other than that, the place was just the way he remembered it.

"Hey Christian, do you want to bring the food and beer in here, we can camp out in front of the television!" Trish called out to him from the living room.

"Yeah, sure!"

"Bring forks!"

"I will," he told her.

"And plates!"

"Yes, Trish."

"Napkins…"

"I got it, I got it," he laughed and suddenly he was brought back. Man, the more things change the more things stay the same, indeed. This was bringing up a lot of old memories and he was starting to question whether or not he should've come at all. He had to admit, it did kind of feel weird when she didn't call him Chrissy. He was just so used to the way it rolled off her tongue.

"Sorry," she laughed.

He grabbed all the necessities and brought them back into the living room where Trish had already opened the pizza box and grabbed a slice. He set everything down in front of them as he pulled the coffee table closer so that it was right in front of them. He grabbed a slice as well as they started to eat, putting the television on Raw since it was only just past nine o'clock and a lot of the New Year's Eve shows wouldn't be on for another hour or so.

"So…is Tiffany your fiancée yet? You didn't answer before."

"Nope, not yet," Christian said. "She's making me sweat it out."

"Apparently so."

"She just wants to be sure that this is the right decision for her. She likes to think things through," he said. "It's endearing if not a little bit…I'm a little nervous."

"That she'll say no?"

"Yeah, I mean, it's an answer she could give and I'm worried it's the one she's going to choose," he admitted, taking a long swig of his beer to wash down what he had just said to his ex-girlfriend.

"Why would she say no to you?"

"Uh, because she's way too good for me?" Christian said like it was the most obvious answer in the world. "I mean, seriously, look at her. Way, _way_ too good for me."

"And me?"

"You were too good for me too, I couldn't even work up the courage to ask you to marry me," he chuckled. "I just…I don't know, maybe this is all fun to her and now she's like, fun's over, he really wants something here and she's just not prepared to give that much to us."

"I just don't think she would. I mean, you're a great guy, Christian. Any girl would be lucky to have you, she's very lucky to have you, and I speak from personal experience. Sure, you're a bit of a blabbermouth and you are a little dorky and dumb every now and again, but you're a good guy and she has to see that. She wouldn't have been with you so long if you guys weren't good together."

"That's true. I don't know, the longer she takes the more insecure I get over it. Man, I never knew proposing could be so hard. I guess this is why Chris decided to wait forever to propose to Stephanie."

"Yeah, it must be nerve-wracking."

"It is! I mean, you have to figure out the right time, the right place, which I failed at," Christian said which only made Trish laugh. "So I was 0 for 2 there, and you have to pick out a ring and you have to come up with this beautiful speech and everything."

"But then the woman usually does all the wedding planning so you know, tit for tat."

"But by that time the guy has already put himself out there. He's basically begging the woman to marry him. I've begged her, that's what I've done. I've begged her."

Trish shook her head, "Chrissy, get a grip. She'll say yes. And I hardly think that asking her to marry you is begging. You just want to spend the rest of your life with her, it's a request if anything, a very simple request."

"Forever is a long time."

"It is, but if you love someone, and you see that forever with them, then it should be easy. Or relatively easy as I don't think marriage is any easier since there's a lot more at stake in a marriage."

"Which is why I think my brother is never going to get married. I'm going to have to build a little apartment over the garage for him to grow old in."

"Wait, hold up, I thought your brother was with Vickie," Trish said as she realized that Christian had said he was going out tonight with someone

"Uh, have you met my brother?" Christian asked with a scoff. "Although, maybe the chick he's meeting tonight is Vickie, I don't know nor do I care. Those two are weirding me out anyways. I went to visit him, and dear God, it was just gross."

"I bet, but that's nice you'll make your own little apartment for him."

"Yeah, but back to this begging thing. I like to think I made a fairly good presentation."

"Is the ring nice?"

"I have it on me," he said, pulling it out of his back pocket. "I keep it with me just in case she says yes, I'm always at the ready to slip it on her finger."

"Can I see it?" she asked. She didn't know if he would actually let her see it, but she'd like to see what kind of taste Christian had in engagement rings. If she let her mind go completely blank, she might even start to think that it was for her. He handed it to her and she looked at it, "It's beautiful."

"Thanks."

"It'll look good on her finger," she said, giving it back to him. "You have great taste."

"The one I had in mind for you when we were together was going to be an emerald with two diamonds beside it since you like emeralds," he told her.

"That would've been beautiful too," she said, then reached over and grabbed a plate and started loading some garlic noodles on it. "I'm sure I would've loved it."

He was sure too.

Meanwhile, Chris had regained feeling in his arm, but he was starting to lose feeling in his lap as Sawyer continued to stand on it as he reached over and tried to pus the buttons on Stephanie's station. The nap had done wonders for his stamina and Chris was starting to wonder if the kid could stay up until midnight. He was starting to believe that he could. Stephanie kept slapping Sawyer's hands away from her work while intermittently glaring at Chris for not having done anything on the show. She was starting to worry that he wasn't going to show and he had to show because he was part of the show now.

"Chris, can you occupy him!" she asked, irritated that she kept having to swat her son's hands away from the system.

"Yeah, sorry," Chris said, putting Sawyer down on the ground, much to his chagrin. He hit Chris on the leg in retaliation. "Don't hit me!"

"No!" Sawyer said, growling with anger.

"Go play with your toys," Chris said, pointing to a few toy airplanes that were on the floor right next to them, on top of a small blanket that they brought for them. "Pretend that we're at the airport with the big planes."

"Okay!" Sawyer said excitedly as he picked up an airplane and started making engine noises as he picked it up and flew it around. He started to run around with it, dodging people left and right, flying the plane around like the planes that he flew on all the time. He was so engrossed in what he was doing, he didn't notice the last set of legs and ran right into them. Much like his mother a lot of the time, Sawyer lacked a sense of self-awareness and legs of other people were quickly becoming his biggest enemy. He started to cry for attention and Chris sighed and went to pick him up before looking up to see that it was JBL that he had run into.

Great.

"Watch where you're going, you little brat," JBL said condescendingly.

"What the hell did you just say?" Chris asked.

"I told your stupid, little brat to get the hell out of my way. I'm JBL and he should respect where I am and not get his stupid kiddie germs all over this expensive suit."

"He's a little kid, man," Chris said.

"I don't care what the hell he is, keep him out of my damn way. I don't want him stupid, grubby, little mitts on me at any time, do I make myself clear? Can he even walk or does he just fall on his ass all the time?" JBL said.

"You did _not_ just say something about my son, you son of a bitch," Chris said, putting Sawyer down on the ground and standing up to JBL. "You cannot talk about my son that way, jackass. I will watch you burn in hell before you insult my son."

"What? You can't see that your son got hit with the stupid gene?"

Chris shoved JBL, "You take that back before I make you take that back!"

"Hell no I ain't taking that back."

"Then you're going to regret it," Chris said dangerously. It was one thing to insult him, fine, do that, but nobody, _nobody_ was going to insult his son and get away with it. Chris was fiercely protective of Sawyer. He went to swing at JBL when Stephanie stepped in front of him.

"Chris, no, stop!" Stephanie said.

"Listen to your old woman," JBL taunted. "She doesn't want to see you get your ass whooped."

"Oh whatever, you couldn't take me on a good day," Chris said over Stephanie's shoulder.

"Chris, he's not worth it," Stephanie said. "Don't."

"Well, now I know where the stupid gene comes from, must be your side of the family, does the little rug-rat walk into walls too? Probably just as blind as his old man," JBL continued to say. "Maybe he would've been better off not being born. Hell, didn't Austin kick Stephanie in the stomach one time, maybe he ain't right in the head."

"You son of a bitch!" Chris yelled at him, breaking away from Stephanie and charging towards JBL. He was caught right before he hit by Hunter, who had grabbed him by the waist. He looked over his shoulder, "Let me go, man."

"No, dude, don't let him get to you," Hunter said. "It isn't worth it, you could lose a shot at the title with the way that Vince is acting."

"I don't give a crap about the title," he said, still having the wherewithal to not swear too badly in front of his son. "I care about Sawyer."

"And you don't deserve to lose everything because of that."

JBL went out of his return on Raw, eluding Chris this time as Hunter let him go. Chris groaned and turned to Hunter and Stephanie, the latter of which was holding Sawyer, who had been a little distressed with all the yelling and the way his father was behaving. He didn't like seeing Chris so scary, it troubled him because he didn't really look like his daddy in those moments.

"You should've let me at him."

"And what, Chris? What good would it do?" Stephanie asked. "Challenge him to a match or something, don't go off the deep end. You were scaring our son."

"It would've made me feel better. How the hell does he even remember that thing with Austin? The bastard's got a good memory, I'll give him that," Chris said. "I just…"

"Don't get frustrated."

"He was one step away from saying that he wished that you had miscarried Sawyer. It was on the tip of his tongue, Stephanie, it was on the tip of his damn tongue, he was going to say that Sawyer never should've…that we should've…ugh, you know what, f-it," he said, still not swearing around Sawyer, but wanting to desperately.

Before Stephanie could even react, Chris was walking out and charging at JBL. Chris was working with unrestrained anger right now. It was one thing to take his title away from when he had it in his clutches, it was a completely different thing to insult his son. Chris had never really had to defend Sawyer like this, but he wasn't even aware that he could have such rage coursing through his veins. Sawyer was his entire world, that kid lit up his entire life, and Stephanie's life. He was, without a doubt, the best thing that had ever happened to him. He'd be damned if this guy was going to make light of that.

A bunch of referees had to drag him away from JBL even though Chris struggled to free himself from their clutches and continue to beat on that jackass. He was satisfied to see that JBL was bleeding from somewhere near his nose. Served that bastard right to bleed a little. He deserved a lot more than that though. He should be beaten into a pulp right about now. He struggled some more, but it was no use, there were too many guys around him, and they wouldn't let him go until he was backstage and with Stephanie.

"I had to do it," he said.

"Whatever," she said. "You were defending our son, I can hardly fault you for that."

"Thanks."

"For what."

"Understanding."

Even later that evening, the clock was starting to wind down on 2007. Trish and Christian weren't what you would call drunk, but they were definitely tipsy from all the beers they had consumed. They had been laughing and reminiscing all night long and it felt comfortable to the both of them. They had polished off the pizza and most of the Chinese food and they were watching Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve on television, laughing at how silly Ryan Seacrest was.

"Okay, so we're like, so close to midnight, so it's time to confess, 2007, good, bad?"

"Good, definitely good," Christian said. "I mean, I liked it, I had fun."

"I didn't like it, I didn't really have anyone."

"Did you like that guy you went out with last week, Cameron was his name, right?"

"You know, I did like him."

"So maybe you should go out with him again."

"You know, maybe I will," she said, clinking her beer with Christian's. "To new relationships…maybe."

"Yes, to new relationships," he said, meaning them in that moment. Maybe they could do this whole friendship thing.

"Okay, it's starting…10…9…8…7…"

"6…5…4…3…2…1! Happy New Year!"

In Greensboro, Chris leaned in and kissed Stephanie, pulling her closer. "Happy New Year, baby," he whispered against her mouth. "I love you…and I'll be doing this exact same thing when 2009 comes."

She smiled, "So you're sticking yourself with me for another year."

"It's the least I can do."

"I love you too."

In Toronto, Christian and Trish drank to the new year and then pulled away and looked at each other. "Well, two people are supposed to kiss to ring in the new year," Christian said.

"That's right," she said. "We shouldn't."

"We couldn't, I'm maybe getting married…unless she says no, man, I don't even know what I want anymore. Did you know that Chris told me that I need to figure things out with you," Christian said, scratching the back of his head. "He said that I need to figure out soon if you're the one that I want, isn't that crazy?"

"It's a little crazy."

"I'm confused sometimes. I don't know if I should tell you this, but I still picture our wedding, silly, huh?"

"No, that's not silly, it's sweet."

"You think so."

"Yeah, I do. Tiffany is silly for not saying yes immediately. How much thinking can she do? You're a great guy, a great, great guy. You're great."

"Thanks," he said genuinely. "I hope she thinks so too."

"She will."

"I still haven't kissed someone and that bums me out."

Trish leaned forward and kissed him chastely on the cheek, "There you go."

"Hey, thanks," he smiled. "Happy New Year, Trishy."

"Happy New Year, Chrissy, may 2008 be better than 2007."

It was going to be.


	164. No Chris, YUCK, January 7 and 14, 2008

A/N: Two chapters for the price of one. This starts last Monday. Enjoy, review. :)

* * *

"I just don't get why anyone would hate Chris so much."

"Loretta, not everyone is going to love him."

"I don't see why they wouldn't. He's a very nice young man, he's an upstanding individual, a family man now. He has a wife and a child and he's doing right by them both, I just don't understand why anyone would hate him."

"Well, there's just bad blood between them, we shouldn't have to understand."

"I should try and go talk to his man and tell him reasonably that he's making a huge mistake. I think if he would just talk to Chris for five minutes everything could be solved quite easily. I don't like that this man cost Chris the title right after he got back."

"I don't think that's going to work, Retta," Ted said good-naturedly. "You know, I'm surprised Chris even invited us tonight. I can't remember the last time that he actually invited us to a show. I think he's embarrassed of us."

"Oh, don't be silly, Ted," she told him. "You know it's because you usually make a scene."

"_I_ make a scene?"

"Yes, you make a scene, I believe it was you who was barred from the arenas when Chris was younger, not me, so put the blame on yourself," she said. "I also don't see why we couldn't drive with them up here."

"Because they had to be here a lot earlier and do you really want to be sitting around for hours? I don't think that you do."

"Still, it's a waste of gas."

"Only you."

"G'ma, car," Sawyer said as he pointed out the window at the passing cars on the freeway. "G'ma, car."

"I see it, honey," Loretta said as she turned in her seat to look at Sawyer, who was happily watching the passing scenery as they drove to the arena. "What color is the car?"

"Boo!" he stated excitedly.

"It _is_ blue," Loretta said, giving him a warm smile. She turned to her husband. "Did you hear that, Ted, did you hear him say exactly what color car that was? He knew what color it was and everything, and knew that it was a car."

"I distinctly heard him say that it was boo, not blue," Ted said, knowing he was antagonizing his wife, but delighting in doing so.

"You know what he meant," Loretta said testily. "He's a baby, Ted, he's just a baby, you can't expect him to get every syllable right. You remember how Chris was at this age, all he did was grunt and point and say the occasional word."

"He's sure making up for that now, isn't he?" Ted joked and Loretta gave a slight laugh.

"Yes, I think he is, now you can't get him to shut up. But Sawyer knows his colors and everything, I'd wager that he's advanced for his age. I bet if you put him with a bunch of other twenty-month-olds that Sawyer would be the smartest one in the group."

"You only say that because he's your grandson," Ted told her. "_I_ would wager to bet that he's right on par with where he should be. Not falling behind, maybe a little advanced, but you're making him out to be a super-genius baby. What's next, Retta, is he going to be performing surgery at age seven?"

"He could be!" she protested. "You don't know if he's super-advanced or not, and how dare you be so presumptuous as to think he's not advanced. He very well could be."

"I suppose you're right," he told her, patting her on the knee. "He's very smart for his age, not necessarily smarter than every other baby, but I'd definitely say that he's smart. He doesn't have the typical childhood, I'll tell you that."

"Well, neither did Chris or Stephanie, so it's only fitting that their child is raised the same way."

"Not the exact same way. Sawyer's traveled more than some adults and he's only been around for twenty months."

"He is a handsome, little thing, isn't he?" Loretta said, looking back to admire their grandson. "How could Chris and Stephanie think that they wanted to wait for this until their careers were settled down more? How could they want to put this off?"

"Because they're both professionals," Ted shrugged. "They just wanted to focus on their careers first, there's nothing wrong with that. A lot of people want to have an established career before they have children."

"Oh whatever," Loretta snorted ungracefully. "Look at this little boy. If they had waited, I think I would've pulled my hair out waiting for a grandchild. As it is we're lucky that Chris even got married in the first place. Before Stephanie, who was there? Pretty much nobody. He never brought anyone home to see us, not since early in his college days, and we were expected to believe that he was going to find the right one."

"If I recall correctly, you didn't much care for Stephanie when Chris brought her home. In fact, I think you downright hated her, if I remember that right. I think it took you two or three visits to finally thaw_that_ ice."

Loretta huffed and glared at her husband, who was giving her a teasing smile. "Why do you have to bring that up?"

"Because it's funny," he laughed. "You get so indignant about it, like it didn't happen, but you know that it did."

"I just didn't know her, that's all," Loretta defended. "I mean, I knew her, but I only knew her from what I saw onscreen, and that person wasn't very nice, in fact, she still kind of isn't nice when she's onscreen, but she's darling when she's off-screen."

"Which you didn't think at first."

"I was misinformed. You can't tell me that you didn't think she was horrible with all the things that she did to Chris. I mean, you saw, you were watching too. All those matches and him getting hurt and hit with sledgehammers of all things. You saw it. You thought she was an upstanding person after seeing that?"

"I thought she was pretty, actually," Ted said. "I mean, yes, she was doing horrible things to our son, but he could take it. If Chris really didn't want to be around her, he wouldn't have been around her, simple as that."

"So you're saying that Chris made fun of her and went through all of that because he wanted to be around her?"

"Of course he did!" Ted said in an obvious tone. "He knows better. He knew if he didn't want to go through all of that he would just stop talking to her, but he didn't. He obviously wanted her attention. It was a lousy way to get it, but he obviously wanted it."

"I see your point," she told him glibly as she folded her arms over her chest and stared straight forward, watching the great expanse of highway loom ahead of their car as they continued to drive towards their destination in Uncasville. "She wasn't very nice to him is all that I'm saying."

"No, she wasn't very nice to him, I will give you that."

"But I got over it. I love her now."

"Because she gave you a grandchild," Ted accused.

"No, that's not the only reason why," Loretta countered. "I loved her before she even got pregnant. But let me tell you, boy, am I glad that she got pregnant. I was so tired of hearing all my friends crow on and on about their grandkids. It was always Tommy did this, or Philip did this, and I was so sick of it. I could barely take it anymore. There I sat with nothing to talk about, nobody to brag about. It was humiliating."

"There are far more things to be humiliated about."

"Well, I know that, but you've never been around my friends. You'd think their lives revolved around one-upping everyone else."

"But Chris took pity on you and gave you a grandson."

"The _best_ grandson," she said, glancing back at the boy who had since fallen asleep. His head was nodded off to the side as he breathed softly, his chest rising up and down as his breaths came out in soft puffs of air. "He reminds me so much of Chris when he was a baby. He looks like him so much, not exactly because I can definitely see Stephanie in him--"

"Especially in the chin, with that chin dimple."

"True, definitely. I just like looking at him because he reminds me of Chris when he was a baby and sometimes I miss those days. He's not a baby anymore, but when I look at Sawyer, I'm reminded of Chris."

"He does remind me of Chris when he was a baby."

"He looks so darling," Loretta said, practically cooing over Sawyer. "He's all asleep and sweet and cute, and I should try and talk those two into having another one."

"They didn't plan this one," Ted said, jerking his thumb into the backseat, "what makes you think they'd plan another one when they've already got one they haven't planned in the slightest?"

"Because Sawyer is adorable," Loretta said.

"And that's reason to have another one?"

"Sure," she said. "Oh, Ted, Ted, Ted, that's the exit, over there!"

"Okay, okay, I've got it," Ted said, taking the turn-off as Loretta read the directions towards the arena.

Stephanie checked her watch again, "Where do you think that your parents are? I mean, they have Sawyer with them, and I was hoping they'd be here by now. It's almost time for his dinner and it's dark out there. I mean, you think they're okay, right? They were supposed to here like an hour ago."

"They could've run into traffic."

"Why is your dad's phone off?" Stephanie asked. "Why does your mom _not_ have a phone at all?"

"Because she doesn't feel the need to have one," Chris shrugged. "I guess that's just her choice. They'll be here, Steph, don't worry."

"I worry, it's what I do," Stephanie said, tapping her foot impatiently. "I mean, we don't really travel without Sawyer. He's certainly never traveled this far without us. What if he's cranky? Do you think that your parents know how to handle him when he's cranky? I don't think that they do."

"Stephanie, they've taken care of Sawyer before, for an extended period of time and--"

"He was younger then. He has different tendencies now that they might not know about. What if he's screaming his head off for me?"

"He knows who they are, Steph. It's not like he doesn't know who they are. And they've already raised a pretty great kid as it is, you know, _me_, so I think they definitely know what they're doing. Don't worry about it."

"Sorry, I know your parents are great," Stephanie said, rightfully chagrined. "He's just…I mean, if he's not at the show and at home, fine, you know, we know where he is and he's at home and he's playing with his trains or his cars or something. If he's going to be at the show it's usually because he's traveled with us."

She rubbed her hands together. She wasn't just worried about Sawyer, though that was her excuse right now. She was worried about Chris too. She had seen the vindictive nature of JBL and she was afraid that it was going to turn itself out on Chris, and she didn't know what she'd do. Of course, on the flip side, there was a part of her that was absolutely giddy about having to worry about him again. It had just been so long since she'd had to worry about him.

"You're too tense," Chris said as he came up behind her and started to massage her shoulders. "We should go gamble a little bit. We've got money to lose, right? I mean, if I went and joined the high roller table, that wouldn't be too huge a loss for us, would it?"

"It wouldn't, but you're not going to. Do you really want to get mobbed by people, or worse, ambushed by JBL?" she asked. "I want you to be safe."

"I'm safe, I'm right here. Steph, you can't keep me in a bubble," Chris told her. "I'm a wrestler, it's my job to get my ass kicked, and then to do some ass-kicking so let me do my thing and you can do your thing and we'll meet at the end of the night."

"Yeah, and Sawyer is also driving _home_ with your parents," Stephanie sighed. "Why do I worry about him so much?"

"Just a guess here, but maybe because he's your son? Don't quote me on that."

"Sorry, I'm just on edge tonight for some reason," she said, wringing her hands together again. "I can't explain it but I just feel like something bad is going to happen."

"Bad how, baby?" he asked, rubbing her temples.

"I don't know."

"Like do you feel like something bad is going to happen to the kid?"

"I don't know," she repeated. "It's just this bad feeling in the pit of my stomach. Maybe it has something to do with Sawyer, maybe it has something to do with you. Maybe it has something to do with one of our friends or families, I'm just not entirely sure, but it's there, right in the pit of my stomach."

"Come here," he said, physically lifting her out of her chair before he sat down and pulled her into his lap. He rubbed her stomach a little bit. "Sure you're not pregnant?"

"Shut up," she said, shoving him a little bit. "I'm _not_ pregnant, it's not _that_ kind of pit in my stomach, and if it was, heaven help you, Chris because I would unleash a tirade on you the likes of which have never been seen before."

"Ouch," he said. "Okay, so it's not that kind of feeling. But don't worry, I'm not doing anything to scary tonight. What do I have on the card for tonight?"

Stephanie picked up the schedule, "You have a match."

"Against?"

"I don't know, you're part of Raw Roulette tonight."

"Lovely, I'm probably going to get the one where I have to dress up like my opponent."

She laughed a little at that, "I don't know, but that's what you have going tonight. My dad is going to be the one who personally spins the wheel for you."

"Oh great, he's going to rig it so it goes between handicap match and steel cage and he's going to just put me in both of them at the same time, or even just throughout the night. I'll have to do every match on the wheel."

"My dad doesn't hate you _that_ much," Stephanie argued.

"Yeah, but he probably thinks that I can take it," Chris said with a sigh. There was a small knock on the door and Chris turned to Stephanie. "Are you expecting your boyfriend to come over?"

"Yeah, so leave now. I need to be satisfied."

"So what the hell did I satisfy in the middle of the night last night?"

"Probably your pillow," Stephanie said. "Come in!"

The door opened and the small pitter-pitter of feet trampled into the room. He yelled out her name happily. Sawyer ran into the room as fast as he could carry himself and Stephanie pushed herself off of Chris roughly as she went to her little boy. She kneeled on the ground and he ran right into her open arms. He sighed happily as he buried his face into Stephanie's shoulder. Stephanie turned and kissed his cheek.

"I haven't seen you all day, baby boy," Stephanie said as she looked at him. "Were you good for Grandma and Grandpa?"

"He was wonderful," Loretta said. "He was a little confused when he woke up though because you weren't there, but I think he understood."

"Good," Stephanie said. "Are you hungry, baby? Do you want to go get dinner?"

"Yeah," Sawyer said, still hugging her.

"Wow, someone's a little attached," Chris said sarcastically. "Mama's boy."

"You were a mama's boy too," Loretta said. "So I don't think that you should be talking. You were also a grandma's boy too, so you were doubly in trouble with that. I don't think you should be making fun of your son."

"I'm not," he said defensively.

"We're going to go eat, are you hungry you guys?" Stephanie asked. "Because we'd definitely like the company."

"Sure," Loretta said, speaking for both her and Ted. "What about you, Chris?"

"I ate already. I don't like to eat so close to when I go to wrestle, it gives me stomachaches sometimes. So I'll skip that. I also have to do a little work before I wrestle tonight."

"You're still working backstage?" Ted asked.

"I didn't tell you?" Chris asked.

"No, this is the first we're hearing of it."

"Oh yeah, I do both, I don't want my boss to get so bogged down by work that she has no time for her incredibly handsome husband who needs her very, very much."

"Jerk," Stephanie said.

"Wow, what a bitch for a boss," he teased. "I've just got to make some phone calls to confirm hotels for New York for the Rumble. I've been kind of switching up between a few hotels to make sure that nobody can really figure out where the wrestlers are staying."

"He's so smart, this one," Loretta said, pinching his cheek.

"Stop, Mom, go eat," he said, blushing, which Stephanie always found endearing.

Chris left the room to go find Britt so she could give him the information that he needed in order to call the hotels personally. He searched the hallways but didn't see her anywhere. He was getting a little impatient when he saw her currently pressed against the wall making out with Hunter. Chris gagged a little bit and decided that he never again wanted to see Hunter making out with anyone (least of all his wife).

Chris walked over and cleared his throat. Britt looked over, and then immediately wiped at her mouth. "Hey, Chris."

"Oops," Hunter said. "She's kind of working, isn't she?"

"Ideally," Chris said. "Can you two not make out in the hallways?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, is that against the rules?" Britt asked, now seriously embarrassed. "I didn't know, I didn't know if there was a policy on relationships within the company."

"There's not," Chris told her. "I just don't want to see this guy with his tongue shoved down your throat, it makes me throw up in my mouth a little."

"Oh, and how do you think it makes me feel to see you making out with Stephanie at any given moment?" Hunter asked.

"She's my wife, totally different."

"No," Hunter said.

"Yes, and I'm the boss," he said. "So do you mind if I steal your girlfriend for a little while?"

"What for?"

"Work, you know, just work."

"I'm really sorry, Chris," Britt said.

"Don't worry about it."

Meanwhile, Stephanie was having a nice conversation with Chris's parents. "Chris and I got you the best seats in the house."

"Front row?" Ted asked.

"Uh, no, Chris said that you weren't actually allowed to be that close to the ring since you get a little bit on the emotional side so you've got great seats nearer to where you can just come backstage if you want to. I've already let security know that you're on the list, but I've got passes for you both." She pulled a couple of passes out of her pocket. "So this will get you backstage. You probably won't need them though since everyone knows Sawyer around here."

"He's made quite the impression, hasn't he?"

"I think people are more afraid of what would happen if they were to treat him badly than they are about him in general."

"Never," Loretta said.

"Come on, let me show you to your seats."

Stephanie took the three of them out into the arena, which was just starting to fill with people. She wasn't wearing a lot of makeup or anything so she looked a lot different. Being so close to home and having to be at work so early, she just hadn't put a lot of effort into how she looked. It worked in her favor though as nobody really paid attention to the harried-looking woman. She led Ted and Loretta to their seats which were on the aisle and near the back and to the side of an entrance.

"Is this good enough for you?" Stephanie asked.

"This is perfect, thanks, Stephanie."

"Okay, great," she said, kissing Sawyer's cheek, "be good for grandma and grandpa and I'll see you soon. Enjoy the show, okay, and when you see Daddy, wave but don't yell, okay?"

"Daddy," Sawyer smiled.

"Yeah, you're going to see Daddy, so just wave to him and smile and he'll give you a smile and that's it, right?"

"Okay," he shrugged.

"Good," she said. "If he gets cranky or tired, just bring him backstage and you guys can go or he can just sleep in my office."

"Is that where he sleeps when he's here?"

"Yeah, we have a sleep sack for him, he's very comfortable in it," Stephanie said. "So just, whenever that happens."

"He'll be fine."

"I know," she said, giving Sawyer another kiss.

Sawyer had a great time in the audience, just like the last time that he had been there. He clapped when everyone else was clapping and he laughed and booed whenever the other people were doing the same thing. He was a great mimic basically. He knew now that there was no party out here with his favorite TV characters, but this was pretty good too. He liked being around all these people who seemed like they were having a lot of fun.

When Chris came out for his match, Sawyer was shaking with excitement, dancing in his seat as he heard his dad's music, which his father played a lot at home to annoy his mother. He saw his Daddy coming down the entryway and looked to his grandpa with his mouth wide open. He pointed towards Chris and grinned. He looked to his left and saw Sawyer looking at him happily and waving at Chris. Chris smiled at him. This was part of the reason why he came back.

He got in the ring and waited for whatever was going to come at him. Vince was spinning the wheel and Chris could only imagine what was going through his mind as he spun that wheel. He knew that Vince was mad at him and when Vince was mad at you, you usually got a raw deal. He sighed as the wheel landed on a handicap match. Of course he would get the one where he was going to be at a very big disadvantage. Vince _had_ to have rigged this.

His first opponent was Snitsky and that was fine, Chris could take him for sure. The second opponent was JBL and Chris rolled his eyes. Yeah, he was definitely on Vince's shit list. This was going to be just great. JBL was obviously going to want him out of the picture and he could only imagine what was going to happen.

Chris couldn't have imagined what was going to happen.

Before he could really think about what was going on, he was on the outside and he was getting hit by the ring bell. The bell practically knocked the senses out of him and he was out of it for a few moments. By the time he got his bearings back, he was completely at JBL's mercy. The crowd was gasping, that much he could make out. He tried desperately to get these damning cords away from his neck, but it was almost futile. He was struggling to break free, but JBL just had a stronger grip than he had at the moment.

He didn't know exactly what flashed through his mind at this point as it was so hazy. He just knew that he was being dragged across the ground. He was only aware of that fact. His shoulder was burning as his bare skin was rubbing harshly against the cement walkway towards the ring. As he continued to struggle thoughts flitted through his mind. The one thought that kept coming, flashing in front of his brain, was the fact that Sawyer, his little boy was in the audience, right there, being forced to watch this.

It was with that thought that he struggled to get up. He didn't want Sawyer to see him like this. This was what he was so afraid of. His son was so important to him and he didn't want his little boy to see his daddy like this. JBL hit him and he went right into the barrier where the fans were as he went for this throat again, trying to get them off. As JBL threw his head into the barrier in front of him, he caught the smallest glance of his little boy and tried his best to give him a weak smile.

Sawyer turned to his grandparents, but they were looking absolutely horrified and he didn't understand what was going on. Why did his daddy look like he was in pain? Why did his grandparents look like they did? He couldn't understand why people were yelling and he couldn't understand why his father was on the ground. This didn't look like any kind of game they played when they were together.

"Daddy," he whimpered though nobody could really hear it. His lip started quivering as tears were coming to his eyes. Why didn't his daddy come over here? He had waved just like his mommy had wanted him to. Now Sawyer was starting to think that maybe his daddy just didn't want to be around him and that made him start to cry in earnest, though the sound of it was deafened by the crowd noise around him. He wasn't having fun anymore. This wasn't fun anymore.

Chris was struggling for breath now. There were little black dots in front of his eyes and he knew that he was fighting a losing battle. He didn't know what JBL had in store for him, but he had to try to keep getting free. He tried crawling away, still pulling at the thing around his neck, but it was still no use. He was too weak and the air wasn't coming fast enough for his hands to do anything of productivity. His brain felt like it was failing him and finally, _finally_ people came out to help him.

He didn't know anyone had come out to help him though because everything was so fuzzy and it felt like a shroud had been put over his eyes. His hands kept going over his neck, trying so hard to find a deep breath. He was muttering to himself though he didn't know it, and only later on would someone tell him what he was whispering to himself.

"Daddy's okay, kid, Daddy's okay."

Stephanie had sat there, stunned, the entire time this was going on. She didn't even know how to react. Neither did anyone else apparently as it seemed like the entire backstage area had frozen in place, staring at the damning monitor. It was as if this was some movie playing out in front of them and they were just observers. She didn't know what to do. She couldn't think. She felt like she couldn't breathe either. It was like she was transferring Chris's pain onto her and her throat felt constricted as she pulled her t-shirt away from her neck. Was her throat tightening up?

Hunter had run from where he and Britt had been watching the show. He had just finished with his match a short time before and decided he'd watch a little bit before he went to take his shower. When he had seen what was going on with Chris he had rushed out, wanting to know how he could help. He was about to run out and help his friend when he saw Stephanie sitting there, visibly shaking. He rushed over to her and pulled her into a hug.

"Hey, you okay?"

"Can't breathe," she said, still pulling at her t-shirt.

"You're okay, you're okay," he told her, hugging her tighter and kissing her chastely on the forhead. "He's okay." He turned to the referees and other backstage personnel just standing there. "What the hell are you waiting for, go out and help him! Go!"

That seemed to incite something in the crowd and they rushed out there to help Chris. JBL was understandably pissed, but who cared what he thought right now? They went to Chris, who was on the verge of blacking out and got the cord out from around his neck. He kept whispering Sawyer's name though people were trying to tell him to calm down and not speak. He tried to gulp in air, but with each breath it was just a whisper of his son's name.

Sawyer was crying now, on the verge of bawling. Finally, Loretta noticed that he was crying and then went down the aisle, shielding Sawyer's eyes away from the disgusting visual in front of him and rushing him backstage. They didn't even have to show their passes. Stephanie was sitting in Hunter's arms when they got back there and her eyes lit up as she saw Sawyer. She got up to go to him when JBL tried to sneak backstage.

"You bastard!" Stephanie yelled, rushing towards JBL. She was quick too, since she didn't usually wear heels to work since she had to keep up with Sawyer. She was like a flash and suddenly JBL was down on his back from the force at which she had run at him.

He hadn't been expecting that and Stephanie kicked him right in the stomach, getting a groan from him. She kicked him in the crotch next for good measure, getting a sense of satisfaction as she got an even bigger groan of pain. Her anger was unbridled right now and all she saw was her husband, the love of her life, trying to gasp for air and nobody helping him. Oh yes, even if JBL had gotten up in that moment and tried to fight her, the adrenaline and the anger that Stephanie was feeling would've given her those superpowers that are often heard about when someone you love is in trouble.

"You bastard, how dare you! How dare you!"

"Stephanie!" Hunter said, grabbing her around the waist. "Calm down!"

"No, I'm not going to calm down. You stupid asshole! How could you. Let me go, Hunter, let me go!" Stephanie said, struggling against him, but he was holding her rather tightly.

"Tell this bitch to leave me the hell alone," JBL said as he stood up, trying to dust himself off. "Your husband got what he deserved. He's a pansy-ass, couldn't even handle a little roughing up."

Stephanie growled, baring her teeth like a feral cat. Then suddenly, and Hunter couldn't even explain how she did it, she broke free from his strong grasp and was yelling as she charged at JBL again. She hit him right in the knee, causing him to curse and drop to the other knee, clutching at it. Hunter grabbed her again. He made note of how nobody went to help JBL at all, and it was enough to get a good smirk out of him. Served the dick right. Then he realized that he had actually kind of had a situation like that with Chris, though there was no attempt at hanging, just a sledgehammer. He'd have to apologize about that later.

"Hunter, let me go," Stephanie said angrily, wanting nothing more than to kick JBL in the head like Randy did to his opponents on so many occasions.

He was about to tell her no when Chris was wheeled back on a stretcher they hadn't even noticed was brought out there. She broke free from Hunter again, this time with him letting her go and she was at Chris's side in an instant as Hunter decided to personally escort JBL away. Stephanie grabbed his hand as the paramedics were taking him to the ambulance. Chris was wheezing and having trouble breathing so they needed to bring him there immediately to get checked out.

"Hey, sweetie," Stephanie said as she fixed his hair idly. She didn't know what else to do but hold his hand with her right hand as she fixed his hair with her left. She was rushing down the hallways with him as his parents and Sawyer followed. She vaguely remembered her father coming out to make sure that he was okay, but she paid no heed to him since this was his fault in the first place.

They pushed Chris into the ambulance and Stephanie turned to Chris's parents, handing them the keys to her and Chris's car. She explained that Britt could get their things together and if one of them could grab them and put them in the car that'd be great. Ted also volunteered to drive Chris and Stephanie's car while Loretta drove their rental. Stephanie smiled, but said nothing more as she climbed into the ambulance with Chris.

Chris opened his eyes and could barely remember anything. He looked to the left and saw Stephanie standing next to the bed. She smiled down at him and brushed her hand against his cheek. "Hey, you."

He opened his mouth to say something, but she cut him off, "You're not supposed to talk, and I'm serious about this, Chris Jericho." Instead, she handed him a piece of paper and a pen that she had in her purse. "Here, use this."

_Why can't I talk?_

"Because he bruised your larynx," Stephanie told him, her voice quivering ever so slightly. He took her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "It's not bad, they said. It could be a bit of a nagging injury for a couple of weeks, but it'll heal faster if you just don't talk for the next week. They said it could've been a lot worse and that you were lucky. They were lucky that JBL wasn't in here since I wanted to kick his ass."

Chris smiled. _How long was I out?_

"A while," she said. "They had you on oxygen just because they didn't know how much you'd lost and you were struggling for breath just a tiny bit, but they took it off because you were doing much better. They said mostly that you can't talk and to eat soft foods and cold foods, like if you had a tonsillectomy. Oh, and they said that swallowing might hurt a bit, does it hurt?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I know it sucks, sweetie, but I was so worried. You passed out in the ambulance, and I swear I think that the paramedics were going to sedate me."

He wanted to laugh, but didn't. _Where are my parents and Sawyer?_

"I told them to go on home. Sawyer was asleep and your parents were tired so I told them to go ahead and go home and we'd see them tomorrow."

_Tomorrow? _

"Overnight for observation, you know the drill. I'm staying with you. They didn't want to let me, but I told them to shove off."

_You should go. I'll be fine here by myself._

"I don't care, I'm not going," she told him. "And you can't talk so you can't argue with me."

_You love the fact that I can't talk, don't you?_

"I don't like the circumstances under which this came to be, but well, silence is golden," she told him, kissing him lightly. "And yes, kissing is still allowed, you're not _that _hurt." She pulled away and he smiled again. "You had me worried sick, you know, I was paralyzed with fear back there. I mean, ugh…it was horrible."

_I couldn't stop thinking about Sawyer. I know that he saw me and I just didn't want him to see me like that. I couldn't think of anything else but him. Is he okay?_

Stephanie sighed and sat down on the bed, which worried Chris. The entire attack was hazy still, not easily remembered. The only thing he could clearly remember was seeing Sawyer looking at him as Chris tried to smile. "He's fine. He got a little bit scared out there and started crying."

Chris turned away, not wanting to hear anymore.

"I don't think it was particularly because of what was done to you as much as it was the fact that you were ignoring him and he wanted to see you. He's fine though. He got to see you while you were out, and he thought you were sleeping and kept poking you in the nose since he was sitting on your bed. You didn't wake up though and he got mad, thinking you didn't want to play with him because he kept saying toy, toy, toy, but yeah, then he got tired and fell asleep on your stomach, so your parents brought him home."

Chris nodded again and sighed. Stephanie just held his hand and kept brushing her hand against his cheek as he leaned in to her touch. He scooted over and patted the bed beside him. She lay down next to him and he had to admire her bravery. She hadn't cried and seemed so in control of the situation. He rubbed her back and plotted in his head all the things he was going to do to JBL when he got better.

"So I kicked JBL in the crotch after I tackled me to the ground."

She felt Chris's silent laugh in his chest as he kissed the crown of her head.

"When I was happy you were back, this wasn't what I had in mind, Jericho."

**Next Monday**

"Okay, so are you sure you're going to be okay by yourselves?"

"Yes," Chris said hoarsely, his voice still extremely scratchy and raw. He hadn't spoken anything since yesterday where he was then allowed to give one-word answers to simple questions, as per Stephanie's orders. Not speaking for almost an entire week had been so difficult. He felt like a baby who couldn't speak. It was torture, especially for a guy like Chris, who was so outspoken and loud all the time. Being quiet didn't suit him in the slightest. He never realized how much Stephanie talked until he couldn't answer her back. The worst part was the fact that he had to write out everything he said and sometimes he had a lot to say.

Finally though, he had been allowed to speak just a little bit. Stephanie, being the person that she was, had made him not talk and if she caught him talking well, she held the purse-strings of her body and that was a pretty big purse right there. So silent he had been. Thankfully, he was at least allowed to talk a little bit, though he was still on his no-solid-food diet, which sucked, but it actually was hard for him to swallow so it worked out for the best he supposed.

"But you're sick."

He shook his head, "Injured."

"I know, but that's the same thing."

_Other than the marks on my neck and the larynx thing, I'm fine, Stephanie!_

"Okay," she said, pouting a little bit. "Are you sure that you don't want me to stay? I could just have my dad take over for one night, and I know that's not really a good idea, but it's one night, what's the worst that can happen, right?"

"Go," Chris said and she didn't know how he managed to make that sound so forceful when his voice was barely above a whisper.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," he said in that forceful whisper again. If she thought long and hard about it, she kind of found that hoarse whisper very sexy. She gave Chris the once-over and sucked at her teeth a little bit. He was wearing a t-shirt and some sweatpants, but he was working it like nobody's business.

"What?" he asked.

"Nothing," she said. "You just look hot is all."

He smiled, winking at her. "Love you."

"That's two words!" she admonished him.

"Sorry."

"You should be."

"Parents."

"Yeah, I know your parents are here so I shouldn't worry, thanks for reminding me," she said sarcastically and he had to marvel at how she knew what he was saying just from one word being spoken to him. He raised an eyebrow, "And I love you too."

"Good," he told her, standing up to give her a kiss. She got caught up in it and before she knew it, she was running her hands over his shoulders and then wrapping them around his neck. He pulled away and hissed in pain as she touched one of the burn marks on his neck.

"Oh, sorry, Chris, I'm so sorry!" she apologized quickly. "I didn't mean to do that."

He nodded, "Okay."

"I love you," she said, staring at his neck. She sighed as she gently caressed it with her fingers. She hated seeing those marks on his neck. She knew it wasn't her fault, not in the slightest, but there was just this rising sickness in her whenever she saw them.

"I'm okay," he said, saying two words again, but not caring. He just wanted to reassure his wife in all of this. She threw her arms around him lightly and hugged him, resting her head on his shoulder. He knew that she had been very worried about his last week. He and Hunter had had a very one-sided phone conversation a couple of days after it had happened. Chris had text-messaged him asking him what had happened afterwards since Stephanie hadn't wanted to talk about it. Hunter had called him back and explained how Stephanie was so upset and shaking and he hated that she had to worry about him like that.

JBL was going to pay.

The flight to Mobile was three hours and Stephanie took that time to get some work done and not worry about Chris or anything else. She would just go to work tonight, then hurry back to the airport and fly home. That was it, in and out, and not worrying about that asshole JBL. She would probably need a bodyguard just to make sure that she didn't kick his ass again. Seeing those marks on Chris, she wanted to kill JBL, but she knew she had to just transfer that anger to Chris for their Royal Rumble match.

The arena was already abuzz with activity when she got there since she had taken the last possible flight she could to get there in time for the show. Britt briefed her on what needed to be done on the show that evening and she thanked her politely before going into her office to work for a little while before she had to go to the show. She had to take on a bit of Chris's work, just making sure everyone had their transportation for next week's show.

"Surprise, surprise!"

Stephanie looked up and saw Trish standing in the door, "Trish, what are you doing here?"

"Well, I know that Chris wasn't going to be here tonight so I thought you might want a little bit of company, so…ta-da!"

"Thanks, you didn't have to come," Stephanie said, getting up and going over to hug her friend. "It's great to see you though."

"Well, thank you. I didn't come alone though, I came bearing gifts," Trish said teasingly. "You interested?"

"In gifts? Of course I am!"

"Okay, get in here," Trish said, pulling someone into the room.

"Surprise!" Christian said.

Stephanie looked between the two of them. "Okay, I must be hallucinating. Did JBL come in here and knock me out for what I did to him last week? Because I'm sorry, I think I'm seeing things here, but you guys are Christian and Trish, right?"

"We are," Trish said. "But we're…friends again."

"Oh, really?"

"Don't give us that look, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho," Christian told her. "We don't need to see that look from you of all people."

"What look?" she said, trying to act innocent.

"The look that thinks this isn't going to end well," Christian said. "I know that look."

"Fine, but I don't think this is going to end well. What's up with the friendship? I was under the impression--"

"We're both adults and we decided that friends is a good thing."

Stephanie rolled her eyes, "Anything changing on the engagement front, Christian?"

"Nope, still hanging in the balance," he said with a sigh as Trish rubbed his lower back a couple of times. This didn't go unnoticed by Stephanie, who shook her head a little bit, which went unnoticed by them. Maybe they were figuring things out, one way or another; she just hoped they were straddling the line because she didn't want Tiffany to get hurt.

"That's too bad."

"She's keeping me in suspense," Christian shrugged. "I guess she's just…mulling it over. It's a big thing though, so I can understand why she wants to take so much time to think it over. She's been at her parent's house. I think she's just thinking it all over and needs some time."

"Did you break up?"

"No!" Christian told Stephanie. "We're not broken up. She just wants some time to think about marriage and whether or not it's something that she really, really wants. I understand, I told her to take all the time she needed."

Stephanie wondered if that was because it gave Christian the opportunity to spend time with Trish. She didn't say anything though. "I'm glad you guys came though. I probably needed some backup."

"Don't even tell me you were going to kick JBL's ass," Trish laughed.

"I was thinking about it," Stephanie said. "I did kick his ass last week. Asshole."

"How is the King of the World?"

"Better," Stephanie said, that bitterness coming out full force. "The bruise wasn't that bad. He's got some cable burn marks on his neck, definitely looks like someone has been strangling him. They look better now but they were ugly a few days ago. So ugly in fact that Chris took to hiding his neck from Sawyer and his parents so he wouldn't freak them all out. I wish he had spared me, they were so ugly."

"I'm so sorry, Steph."

"Yeah, me too," Trish added.

"It's fine. I started letting him talk yesterday," Stephanie said, "I've restricted him to one word sentences. He should feel right at home with Sawyer."

Trish laughed, "But he's going to be okay, right, for the Rumble?"

"Yeah, he should be. I just don't think anything would stop him at this point. Chris is so pissed about what happened. He couldn't talk to me all week, but he sure as hell could emote and most of that time was spent with a clenched jaw that was radiating anger."

"Well, you know how Chris gets."

"Yeah, I do," Stephanie said. "All too well."

"Yeah, I guess that's right," Christian said. "So do you need us to do anything tonight? We're willing to help backstage if you need it."

"No, I think I'm fine, I was just going to go to my station, do you guys want to come?"

"We're going to grab a bite first in catering, then we'll come see you, sound good?" Trish asked.

"Sounds good."

"Oh wait, I forgot," Christian said. "I left something with someone, I'll be right back, you guys sit tight."

"What's he getting?"

"He leant someone his sunglasses last time he was here and he wants to go get them back," Trish said with a shrug and an eye-roll. "I don't know, he just wants them back right now, crazy guy."

"So you know I'm going to ask…how did all of this come to fruition and how come I have not heard about it?"

Trish laughed. "He came over New Year's Eve because Tiffany had to go back to Connecticut for a medical emergency and he was lonely so he came over and we hung out and it was fun, so we've been hanging out."

"Has he been staying in Toronto?"

"Yeah, he has," Trish said. "Except when he's been filming for TNA of course."

"Did you go with him?"

"No, I stayed in Toronto."

"It hasn't been weird."

"It was at first, but we're working through it and I'm happy to be around him again. It's like…we're having fun with each other again, and it's not exactly what I want, but it's something right, and at this point, I can deal with something."

"See, that's where you've lost me, this isn't what you want so why are you settling for it? I mean, the guy proposed to his girlfriend in front of you."

That thought still stung Trish a little, but she was getting better at swallowing it down. "Yeah, he did, but he apologized, personally, and I forgave him. So all is well."

"You think this is all is well?"

"It's fine, Steph. We're friends, we're working on it."

"You guys are going to be having sex before you know it," Stephanie said sarcastically.

"Hey, I can control myself," she replied. "Besides, I'm not going to be _that_ girl."

"What girl?"

"The one who goes in and deliberately breaks up a relationship because I want the guy all to myself. I'm not going to steal him away because I don't want to be that kind of person. It's just not who I want to be."

"Well, good, because Tiffany is my friend, and I don't want anyone getting hurt."

"Nobody's going to get hurt, Stephanie, I promise you that. I'm going to go find Christian and grab some food, we'll catch you at your station."

Stephanie muttered to herself as she left, "They're so going to be doing it."

Meanwhile, Chris was just starting to watch the show. Sawyer was starting to get tired and his parents were cleaning up in the kitchen, insisting that Chris not to lift a single finger while he was injured. So this did have its perks. Sawyer was next to him, standing up and jumping on the couch cushion while holding onto his shoulder. He noticed something on his father's neck that he hadn't seen before. Chris had stopped covering up the marks on his neck for a few days, but this was the first time Sawyer had noticed them.

"Daddy?"

"Yeah?" Chris asked hoarsely.

He gingerly touched his neck, "Boo-boo?"

"Yeah, boo-boo," Chris told him quietly.

"Oh," Sawyer said, giving him a look of sympathy. "Mama?"

Chris would've burst out laughing at that if it didn't hurt to do so. The mere fact that Sawyer thought that Stephanie had been the one to cause his boo-boo was hilarious to him. Wait until Stephanie found out that Sawyer knew how mean Stephanie was to him. That would absolutely horrify her to an extent that would make Chris gleeful. Since he couldn't smile, though, he did the next best thing and gave a wide grin and a silent chuckle.

"No."

"Okay," Sawyer said, then added, "Good…toy?"

"Why don't we watch the show?" Chris asked as he pointed towards the screen.

"Ring!" Sawyer said, pointing to the ring and then settling down on the couch next to Chris. He quieted down as his parents came into the room and took a couple seats themselves as they settled in to watch the show that was being run by his beautiful wife.

Of course, tonight of all nights was the one where Hunter had to go completely crazy.

"Hunter, what the hell was that?" Stephanie asked as he walked backstage in a huff.

"Your father is an asshole, that's what."

"Well, I could've told you that, but you ruined the set," she told him. "That costs a lot of money, you know."

"Sorry, Steph," Hunter sighed. "I was just so frustrated. I just want to be in the Rumble you know, so I can win and get the title that I so greatly deserve."

"Chris deserves it more."

"He's been here for two months," Hunter argued.

"But he hasn't held the title in a long time," she argued back.

"Whatever, I just want in, and your father, asshole that he is, won't let me in and he's so damn threatened by me, and I wish that he would get over what happened between the two of us when we were getting divorced. Why is he _not_ over that yet?"

"I don't know," Stephanie shrugged. "Because you really, really hurt me?"

"But we've moved on, you're married with a kid and I have a girlfriend. I mean, there's not much more over than that. I'm friends with your husband…which, how's he doing, by the way?"

"He's doing better," Stephanie said. "But go on…"

"We've moved on, that's it and he doesn't seem to get that, and I hate him for that," he groaned. "I just wish that you were running everything. When is that going to happen?"

"Never, my father sold his soul to the devil so he's going to live forever."

"Great, just great," Hunter said. "I'm never going to get what I want."

"I'll talk to my father," she interrupted.

"You will? Seriously?"

"Yeah, sure, I've got nothing better to do than cater to you," she said sardonically. He glared at her, thinking she was joking and she wouldn't really go to her father. "I'll talk to him because you were there for me last week and Chris and I both appreciate that."

"Yeah, he texted me telling me that," Hunter chuckled. "He couldn't use the phone since you wouldn't let him."

"That's right, but I'll talk to my father right now, come on."

"You want me to come with?"

"Okay, so come a few minutes after me, but you can follow me."

"Sure."

They walked down the hallways until she came across her father. She walked right up to him and stared him down, "Dad, you're putting Hunter back in the Royal Rumble, and you're going to do it right now."

Vince laughed heartily, "What makes you think that I'm going to do something as stupid as that."

"Well, first of all, what the hell else is Hunter going to do around here if you don't give in? He's going to trash the whole show, so you might as well. Second of all, you were the one who put JBL in that match with Chris last week and look what happened when you did that. Chris ended up in the hospital over that, Dad. Not to mention it sent Sawyer into bawling hysterics." It never hurt to add a little hyperbole.

Vince mulled it over for a second but knew this was a losing battle. He _had_ put JBL in that match last week against Chris. He had felt guilty afterwards when he saw Chris on a stretcher. He didn't think it would go that far, but it had and he was sorry for it. Chris wasn't a bad son-in-law and he made Stephanie very happy. He sighed and knew he was giving in.

"Fine, _but_ he has to win a match that I assign next week."

"Tell him yourself," Stephanie said, brushing past her father just Hunter was going to walk up. Stephanie walked back to the gorilla position and found that JBL was there for his stupid 2nd coming. The bastard should be grateful he was getting any time, but she had let Regal talk her into it. She hated Regal now.

Christian and Trish were fooling around at her station and she went to walk over there when she caught JBL smirking out of the corner of her eye. She turn to him abruptly and spat out, "What the hell are you looking at?"

"Nothing," he said jovially.

"Asshole," Stephanie muttered.

"Where's that little brat of yours?"

"It's none of your goddamn business."

"Too bad, I had a message specially for him."

"He's at home with his father," Stephanie said. "So don't think that you're going to get anywhere near my son!"

"Hold it up, take it easy there," JBL sneered. "I just wanted to give the little guy a lesson about his father. But it's okay, I'll just address the little brat on national television, not a big deal at all."

This made Stephanie's anger bubble over. She stalked right up to him and pointed her manicured finger right in his chest. "You listen here, Bradshaw," she said derisively, "you better listen good to what I'm about to say. If you so much as mention my son's name, or mention that I have a child, I will personally rip your beating heart out of your body and then feed it to a pack of dogs while I cackle happily. I will most definitely fire you, and if you don't think I'm being serious here, try me. I swear to God, Bradshaw, try me on that one."

"You don't scare me," JBL said. "You're not your daddy's favorite person, right now, are you? I, on the other hand, am in the man's good graces."

"Let's get one thing straight here. My father may dislike me, he may hate me, he may despise Chris, but if there are a few people that my father loves, it's his grandchildren, of which Sawyer is one. Now you see, my father is never mad at Sawyer, never. My father also wants to protect my son's privacy, have you ever seen any public pictures taken of Sawyer? No, because my father wants it that way too. So what do you think my father is going to do if he hears you calling out his grandson for all the world to see?"

JBL set his jaw and didn't respond, which was response enough for Stephanie.

"Yeah, that's right, my father would fire you on the spot. So I'm extending the same courtesy, you mention my child, then I'm going to fire you as soon as you walk back through that curtain."

"Fine," JBL said coolly, even though inside he was steaming mad. "Fine."

"Good, I'm glad we understand each other. Oh, and for good measure," Stephanie said then slapped JBL hard across the face. "Don't you ever talk to me like that again or you're going to get more than my handprint on your cheek."

Stephanie walked back over to where Christian and Trish were watching in awe. "That…was amazing!" Trish exclaimed.

"He pisses me off, thinking he can go out there and talk about my son, no way, I don't think so," Stephanie said. "That bastard better not even mention my son or there will be hell to pay."

"Dude that line about the heart and the dogs and freaking _cackling_, Stephanie, be my mentor," Christian said sweetly. Stephanie shoved him in the shoulder as he laughed. "You were rocking. He's going to be eating his words when he faces Chris."

"I know."

She couldn't believe the audacity of JBL though. That bastard had gotten her on a technicality. She had mentioned to him that he was not to mention that Chris had a child and he was not to mention her son's name. He did neither, but instead said that Chris had children. That jerk had gotten her on a freaking technicality. He didn't say child and he didn't say Sawyer's name. By calling out Chris's children, he had called out just who he wanted to call out and still got to say all the mean and nasty things he wanted to say to Sawyer without getting caught for it.

Stephanie, through gritted teeth, turned on her microphones to JR and Lawler. "Just go with the children thing with JBL, I don't want you guys to correct him about Chris only having one child because as far as I'm concerned, as long as Sawyer isn't mentioned I'm fine with whatever he says."

She said that much calmer than she was feeling and she only wondered what Chris was feeling in that moment.

Chris was livid. He was absolutely, stunningly livid. Sawyer had fallen asleep a while ago and Loretta was upstairs putting him to bed so he could watch the show. Seeing JBL trying to talk to his son and talking about how his daddy was a coward, that made Chris wish he were there even more. He was going to pound JBL's face in. He was going to annihilate him come Royal Rumble. He wasn't going to let him get away with this, not in the slightest.

There'd be hell to pay for JBL.

The phone rang a moment later and Chris saw on the caller ID that it was Stephanie and picked it up, "Hello?"

"Are you watching?"

"Yeah."

"I want you to kick his ass at Royal Rumble."

"I will."

"Good," she said as JBL walked backstage with a self-satisfied smirk on his face. He gave a wide grin towards Stephanie and she sneered at him, standing up to go over to him even as Christian tried to grab her. "You think you're so slick, don't you?"

"Well, I didn't mention that he had a child, nothing wrong with mentioning he had children since that's a lie and not the truth. So…I didn't break the rules."

"Chris is going to kick your ass so hard…"

"Please, the pansy's probably sitting at home thinking about his former glory. Thinking is about all he can do nowadays, right, since he can't talk."

Stephanie started to raise her fist to punch him in the jaw when Christian came back and turned her around. "Not worth it, Steph, not worth it."

"It'd be worth it!" Stephanie yelled at JBL, who walked away chuckling, knowing that he had gotten away with one right then. Served that bitch right. Stephanie remembered that she was on the phone with Chris and put the phone back to her ear. "Sorry, sweetie, got caught up."

"With JBL?" he asked.

"Uh, yeah, how much of that did you hear?"

"Not much," he said, then paused, "muffled."

"Oh, well, good, I mean, did you hear him say children. I told him not to mention that you had a child, and definitely not to mention Sawyer's name or I'd fire him. He got around it by saying you had children, which technically isn't saying that you have _a_ child, but_children_. Can you believe the audacity of that man?"

"No."

"I know, he's just so horrible. I want you to smash his face in, seriously, Chris, face-smashing I want all of that to happen."

Chris laughed. "It's okay."

"It's not okay. He took you out of action for a week and you're supposed to be back, damn it!" she told him. "He's going to get what's coming to him, that's for sure. You're going to show him who is boss around here, and it's not him. You are an actual boss. Have people forgotten that around here? Have they forgotten that you are an actual owner of this company? Maybe they need a refresher course for this."

"Nah."

"They do! I hate this. It wasn't supposed to go this way," she said. "It was supposed t go out perfectly and you'd come out on top, but it's not happening right now and I want you on top and everything, and they should know that you're the boss! JBL should cower in fear of_you_."

"Don't want him to."

"Why not?"

"Not worth it," he whispered.

She sighed, "In other news, Trish and Christian are all buddy-buddy best friends over here, they surprised me. I'm shocked, are you?"

"Shocking, yeah," Chris said, actually stunned that Christian and Trish of all people were hanging out together. "Weird."

"I know, it's seriously strange. My bet is they're having sex by February 7th. You?"

"18th," Chris told her with a silent laugh.

"Okay, I'll mark you down for that. I miss you."

"You too."

"You are going to kick JBL's ass at Royal Rumble though, right?"

He only needed one word to answer that.

"Absolutely."


	165. Holy Hotness, Batman, January 21, 2008

"I was watching with my young…child…children, children..."

"Remember _that_," Stephanie told him as she sat in her chair, legs crossed and her hands clasped together with the index fingers up and tapping against her lips. "Okay, continue, go ahead."

"And when you looked into the camera and called me a coward, that I had no guts, my twenty-month-old son had been looking at my neck and--"

"Okay, no, I'm going to have to stop you here," Stephanie interrupted, making wild gestures with her arms.

"What?" Chris asked. "That's what I was doing. I was watching the show and Sawyer saw my neck and all the bruises and crap on it and he asked if I had a boo-boo, and then he asked if you did it."

"Oh my God, he did not!" Trish said from the couch.

"He totally did," Chris said, turning to his friend. "I said that they were boo-boos, and he asked me if it was Mama who did it. I wanted to start laughing if it wouldn't have hurt the hell out of my throat. It was hilarious. Only our son would ever figure it was Mommy who was doing the hurting."

"Shut up," Stephanie said. She turned to Sawyer, who was playing with his car set. "Thanks a lot, baby boy, I don't strangle Daddy."

"Hi," Sawyer said, turning towards Stephanie.

"Hey to you," she said, then turned back to Chris. "You can't say that."

"Why not? It's what happened. Sure, JBL said that I had children, but I can talk about the one child that I actually have. I'm not going to say, 'My son, Sawyer, who is twenty-months-old, who is sleeping backstage right now, in fact, why don't we bring him out here, Steph, my wife, that is, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, my _wife_, will bring out my son, whom I have with Stephanie, my wife, and then we'll talk about what went down last week when you called me a coward.'"

"Wow, I'd have to divorce you if you said that," Stephanie said. "I wouldn't walk out with Sawyer on my hip, but I would sure as hell walk out with divorce papers in my hand."

"How would you get divorce papers so fast?" Chris asked. Then paused and gasped, pointing at her accusingly, "Unless you have divorce papers already written up! You do, don't you, you've got them at the ready. I bet they're in your briefcase, that's why you never let me go in there! I thought it was because you had dirty magazines, but you have divorce papers!"

"I liked it better when you couldn't talk," she said, already exasperated by him. "You annoy the ever-loving crap out of me, Jericho, you know that."

"I know, that's why you have divorce papers at the ready."

"You only wish," she said. "Still, I don't want you talking about Sawyer."

"I'm not talking about him."

"His age, that's talking about him."

"So what, you want me to make up fake children like _you _have made up fake children? So we're just going to fake children up the joint? Well, if that's the case, I was watching that show on Discovery the other night, after you conked out, and this couple had sixteen, no wait, seventeen kids, right, so I think we should have seventeen fictional children, and then the one we actually have, so eighteen, but since Sawyer doesn't really exist, back to seventeen."

"Seriously, how about we play the no talking game," Stephanie said. "Because I'm about two seconds away from bruising your larynx again."

"Trish, you are my witness here," Chris said, turning to her. "I want you to take notes. The woman just threatened me with bodily harm. When you are deposed during our divorce case, I want you to mention this moment as the moment where Stephanie went absolutely crazy."

"Duly noted," Trish laughed. Sometimes she just loved to watch Chris and Stephanie interact. They were absolutely out there and outgoing, and cocky and bitchy, and they still had this normal relationship with normal problems, and normal solutions and a normal son. Man, when the hell did they get normal and she got…strange? Wasn't she the one with the stable relationship while they were all up and down? "Hey, what did you guys do for your wedding anniversary, anyways?"

"Wedding anniversary?" Stephanie asked. "Whose wedding anniversary?"

"Wait, did you guys forget about your wedding anniversary?"

"No, Stephanie has just decided that today is her day to be the bitch and tomorrow is my day to be the asshole. We just went out to dinner, not really a big deal. We also spent the day at the zoo with Sawyer in San Diego. So basically Sawyer got to celebrate the anniversary better than we did."

"That's sweet though, that you wanted to spend it with your son."

"Or more accurately we were in California and there was nobody _to_ take care of our son," Chris explained. "I mean, I could've called up Rob, because he lives down there, but I don't think I want to entrust my son to Rob Van Dam, it's just a feeling, you know."

Trish laughed, "Still, it's like he's all cute and part of the marriage."

"Well, no, we're not married to him," Chris said. "He is our flesh and blood though, it's like I breathed life into him when I impregnated his mother accidentally and then found out about it before I had a title match which I subsequently lost because I had just found out my wife might be pregnant."

"_You_ breathed life into him?" Stephanie asked, "I carried him around for forty weeks and three days."

"Yes, but he wouldn't have existed without yours truly. We've both breathed life into the little boy."

"You're a weirdo, but yeah," Stephanie said, turning back to Trish. "Sawyer had a blast. He loved seeing all the animals and you should've seen him at the petting zoo, the kid went nuts, I thought he was going to faint from excitement."

"You have never seen a kid get so nuts out of a goat before…except for the other kids going nuts over the goats."

"Yeah," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "I swear, we're probably going to have to get a dog at some point because he's going to want an animal. And that's just what we need when we're traveling, a dog."

"Well, at least he had fun, and you guys, three years, that's crazy."

"Yeah, but we've been together for going on six years this year," Stephanie said, practically shooting glowing beams from her face to Chris.

"And her husband just gets hotter with age," Chris said, popping his collar.

"I hate that I have to, but it's true," Stephanie said. "I hate having to admit that though."

"I'm sure you do," Chris winked at her. "So okay, you don't want me to mention my son, but can I still have a son? Is that okay with you?"

"Yes, but you give out no details. I want people to be looking for some kid that cannot be Sawyer. So if you go out there and decide to describe the kid, I want it to be like, this brown-haired, green-eyed, twelve-year-old."

"Okay, there's so many things wrong with that," Chris told her. "First of all, the brown hair, okay, that's fine, you have brown hair, but who the hell is this kid's father for him to have green eyes? I have blue eyes, and you have blue-gray eyes, so who the hell has green eyes, who did you sleep with?"

"As far as those people out there are concerned, it doesn't even matter who I sleep with because I don't talk about sleeping with you."

"You should, it would make all the ladies jealous of you."

"Like they aren't already."

"Ooh, I like my ladies feisty."

"Should I take Sawyer and get out of here?" Trish asked.

"No, because we're not done with this discussion. My point is--"

"Oh, and not to mention, twelve? That would mean I had this kid in my twenties, and I mean, I just had a book that talked about me all over the world, and with no kid, and people would hate me if they thought I had this twelve-year-old kid that I just left while I was off doing all that stuff around the world."

"You've done stuff when we had Sawyer?"

"Oh, come on, Stephanie, don't insult me," Chris told her. "I'm never gone for more than a few days at a time."

"You were gone for three weeks while I was pregnant with him. You missed three weeks of your son's growth and he's never forgiven you for that. That was a crucial time in his development. You weren't even there to find out if he was a boy or a girl, how do you think that made him feel?"

"Kid, do you hate me for not being there for three weeks when you couldn't even see me and didn't even know who I was. I mean, you'd heard my voice, but you'd obviously never seen me, just the insides of your eyelids, if you even had eyelids at that point. You could've come out of there and put me in a line-up and you wouldn't have been able to tell, so are you mad?"

"Yeah," Sawyer said idly as he continued to horse around with his toys.

"Well…I'm rightly owned," Chris said. "No twelve-year-olds, but I need an age, it's poignant if you give an age. It has to be under six, because the younger, the better, and he has to be able to talk, because I can't use the boo-boo story, which is far more sad."

"Would you have included how Sawyer thought it was Stephanie?" Trish asked.

"No, she'd kill me if I mentioned we were married, forget the fact that I've kissed her in public, people have seen us walking into the arena together and she'd been at my concerts, no, Stephanie insists we keep it a secret."

"If I had my way, Edge, Christian, you, Trish, Kurt, Shane, my mother, and your parents would _still_ be the only ones who knew about our relationship," Stephanie said.

"Ouch," Chris told her, patting his heart. "It almost stopped beating right there from all those harsh words thrown at me. I think it'd be hard to explain the whole pregnancy thing and kid thing if people didn't know about us."

"Chris, my family never mentioned on television who the father of my fake child was, so what makes you think I couldn't explain this?"

"He looks like me," Chris pointed out.

"I'd dye his hair."

Chris chuckled at that, "Oh, I'd love to see you try to get him to sit down long enough to put hair dye on him and then not touch his head while it's actually dyeing the hair, and then enough time to rinse it off without him opening his mouth."

"Okay, so you've got me there. I'd just leave for nine months, then have him and keep him in hiding."

"What? You leave for nine months? How did that work out for you last time?"

"I hate you."

"I love me," he said. "Okay, so the age has to be old enough to ask about what JBL said, I need people to _feel_ this speech. I want them to hate JBL. You know, actually, I should thank the man, children as in plural, is way more sympathetic than just one kid, sorry Sawyer, but you're not a good enough hook."

"Okay," Sawyer said and then gave a big sigh.

"What was that?" Chris asked.

Sawyer got up and went over to the couch and flopped over Trish, smiling up at her. "Hi."

"Hey there, sweetie," Trish said, leaning down so she was right over him. "What's the matter?"

"No car," he said with a slight pout.

"Your cars are over there," she said, pointing over to his cars.

He shook his head and repeated, "No car."

"What does he mean?" Trish asked, looking towards his parents.

"He's bored," Stephanie said. "It's the flopping all over you part. That's what he does when he's bored. He wants you to pay attention to him."

"Oh," Trish said, pulling Sawyer into her lap. "Hey there."

"Hi."

"I wish it was that easy for me to get in a girl's lap," Chris muttered. "Can we please get back to the children thing? I'm going out there at ten o'clock and I need some material."

"This isn't a comedy routine."

"You're not helping, baby," Chris told her. "Okay, so the kid has to be old enough to talk, so that rules out like, up to two years old, because the kid is almost two and he's barely coherent, I'd think he were a drunk if he were twenty-five years older."

"My baby isn't a drunk," she said, "so what does that narrow us down to, three to six?"

"Yeah, three to six, so…four and a half!" Chris said.

"Why don't we just round it down to four, four is still in preschool, still full of life and bubbly, and plus, Declan is almost four, he's going to be four next month, so we know what a four-year-old is like, and so you'd know what a four-year-old would say."

"This is true."

Sawyer sighed again, "Tish…"

"Oh baby boy," Stephanie said. She stood up and went over to get him. "Come here, baby boy."

"No!" he protested, wanting to stay with Trish.

"Well, I guess I know that I'm not wanted."

"Do you think four sounds good? My four-year-old son turned to me and he asked me if what he said was true? Do I look like a guy who has a four-year-old son?"

"You look like a guy who has a twenty-month-old son, but you can fib. I mean, come on, you're a great actor, you acted like you liked Trish over there for a good, long while."

"Hey, I'm very likeable," Trish defended. "Do you want me to take Sawyer? He seems really restless." Indeed, the little boy was restless. He had been in the building since around one o'clock and it was now six o'clock and he was definitely getting restless.

"Would you?" Stephanie asked gratefully. "I hate having him cooped up in here."

"Yeah, I know Christian is around here somewhere and--"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa," Stephanie said as Chris came up behind her and draped his arms around Stephanie's middle and sat his chin on her shoulder. Stephanie placed her arm instinctively over Chris's. "You did not tell us that Christian was here…did he come with you?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, this is weird, did he break up with Tiffany?"

"No, they talk all the time. She just wants a little space right now. So he's been staying in Toronto to spend time with his mom and grandma, since she's been a bit ill lately. So we've been hanging out."

"In bed?" Chris asked as Stephanie smirked.

"We're friend!" Trish asserted.

"In bed?" Stephanie repeated.

"Nice one, baby," Chris said, kissing her cheek.

"I hate you guys. No, we're not sleeping together, he's on the verge of getting engaged. I like to think I'm not the type who would break up an engagement. I don't…I want Christian to be happy, and if he's happy being my friend, I'm going to take it and I'm going to run with it."

"Okay, if you say so. But I mean, you guys have been spending weeks together and you mean to tell me there's nothing at all?" Stephanie asked.

"No, we're friends."

"I say bull…"

"Not in front of the kid."

"That's baloney," Chris said mockingly. "You two…friends, please, that's like saying, 'hey, Chris, stop having sex with Stephanie for a month!' not going to happen."

"Well, whatever, Christian is here and we can take the kid out to eat and maybe just walk around the mall or something, just something to get him out of here."

"I'd like that, thanks, Trish," Stephanie said. "Did you hear that, baby boy? You're going to go with Trish."

"Tish?"

"Yeah, Trish and Christian."

"Okay," he said brightly. Stephanie picked him up and set him down on the ground before going over and grabbing his jacket. Sawyer held his arms aloft as Stephanie slipped the jacket on him. She knelt in front of him and buttoned up the buttons as Sawyer tried to help her. "Hat."

"Yes, you need your hat," she said, as Chris got his hat and she pulled it over his head. "Do you want your mittens?"

"Uh huh," he nodded and Chris got those too.

"Okay, you look nice and warm," she told him, kissing the tip of his nose. "You have fun with Trish and Christian okay, and if you notice any suspicious behavior between the two of them, flirting, footsy under the table, be sure to log it in your brain and tell us when you come back, okay?"

"Okay," Sawyer repeated.

"You're both terrible, terrible people," Trish said as she slung Sawyer's diaper bag over her shoulder and took his hand in her own. "I may never return this to you."

"Oh, please take him, we wanted to trade him in anyways, he's worn out his welcome," Chris said. Then he contradicted himself by getting down on one knee and kissing Sawyer's cheek. "Seriously, kid, get the dirt."

"Ugh, Sawyer, you need to get a new set of parents."

The two of them left and Chris turned to Stephanie. She turned and pressed her back against his as he draped his arms around her again. He kissed her jaw and then her cheek as she just leaned back against him. She could feel his hand sneaking up her blouse and she pushed it back down again and felt his smile against her skin. She let him nuzzle into her neck and she sighed, happy for the quiet moment.

"We haven't had a quiet moment in a long time," she told him.

"Well, I was quiet for a whole week, and trust me, it was hell."

"I know, but I really like what you're going to go out there and say, and if JBL goes out there, well, you can kick his ass for the both of us."

"Uh, baby, you took care of that already," he pointed out. "You kicked his ass and he didn't even know it was coming."

"Well, you don't mess with my men," she told him. "You insult my husband or son and bitch is going to be pissed the hell off."

He laughed, "Man, I love you."

"I know."

"Three years, seriously, that's crazy, huh?"

"Crazy, three years is nothing," she said, "I'm looking to set a record here."

"We've already been married longer than you were married to Hunter, so we've set that record, and this is the longest marriage I've ever had."

"The _only_ marriage you'll ever have."

"Yes, ma'am," he responded. Britt walked in a moment later and saw the two of them and almost left. "Dude, Britt, it's fine, we aren't doing anything, what's up? Well, besides you sucking face with Hunter."

"We don't suck face."

"Looks like sucking face to me. Love is just in the air around here," Chris said, swaying with his wife, who rolled her eyes playfully as Chris held her tighter against him. "I've been with my wife for three whole years…as a married couple, you're with Hunter, which means he doesn't want my wife anymore, and Christian and Trish are soon to be bumping uglies, hopefully not with my son nearby…"

"We weren't sucking face," Britt said. "But uh, JBL heard you were here--"

"Where the hell else would I be?" he asked. "Seriously, did he think I _wouldn't_ be here tonight?"

"I don't know, maybe he thought you were more injured," Britt shrugged. "Anyways, he refused to come into the building."

"What do you mean he _refused_?" Chris asked.

"Just that, he left, he said that he wasn't going to come into the building."

"Wow, so that's it, huh? He doesn't want to come in because he's scared of what I'm going to do to him. Well that's fine," Chris said. "Fine, let him not come tonight, I think that really just proves his damn cowardice. If my fake four-year-old son were here, I would tell him to his face, I'd say…uh, Jeremy, JBL is the coward, not me."

"Jeremy?"

"I don't know, it was the first thing that popped into my head."

"Jeremy Jericho?" Stephanie said.

"He's not real, I can name him whatever I want. I could name him whatever I want to."

"We're not naming another child Jeremy, I'm vetoing it right now."

"You're not even with child," he said. "But fine, that doesn't matter. It's better this way, this gives me a whole new direction to steer in. This is going to work out just fine."

"Thanks for coming to dinner with us," Trish said as she put Sawyer in his car-seat (which she had had to go get from Chris and Stephanie's car, walking in on them practically on top of each other).

"It's my pleasure," Christian said. "Like I'd want to miss dinner with one of my favorite dudes, you okay back there, Sawyer?"

"Okay," he said as he swung his legs and played with the strap on his seatbelt, letting it occupy him for now. "So what's this about Chris and Stephanie and some fake child?"

"Oh well, you know how protective Stephanie is of Sawyer, well, she told Chris that he couldn't tell the story of what actually happened, and that he couldn't mention Sawyer, so that put Chris in a bind, so…in order to corroborate the story, and gain himself some crowd sympathy, they came up with a fake child."

"Those two, I swear. I think Sawyer's going to have an identity crisis. He's going to grow up and watch the old tapes and ask why his mother gave birth to a fake daughter, why his father said he had children, and why he has some older brother that never existed. He's not going to know what to do with himself."

"They just want him to be safe," Trish said. "They don't want him growing up with a spotlight over him. Shane is the same way. He doesn't like anyone to know anything about his boys. I guess it must be hard having children who people want to see."

"Yeah, I wouldn't know."

"Neither would I, but I see Chris and Stephanie enough to speak on their behalf about it," Trish said. "They just don't want people seeking out Sawyer. He's a little kid, he wouldn't know what to do with that information."

"Here we are," Christian said as they pulled up to a restaurant he knew about around here, surprisingly enough. But that was something Christian had always been good at. Maybe he was just hungry all the time, but he always knew where to find food. "You want me to get Sawyer?"

"Yeah, sure," she answered as she got out of the car. Christian went around to the back and pulled the little boy from his car-seat and put him down on the ground. He took a deep breath of fresh air and started running across the parking lot. "Damn it! Sawyer!"

Christian chased after him and plucked him from off the ground. Trish ran up to them and heard Christian chastising the boy gently, threatening him with a time-out. Christian had baby-sat Sawyer enough to know that a time-out was Sawyer's absolute most-hated thing in the entire world. For a kid who liked to run and play and do tons of stuff, sitting on the couch was the worst punishment ever, and he knew time-out better than he knew his own name.

He pouted as Christian set him down and took his hand. They walked inside and got a table near the window. "Do you need a booster seat for your son?" the hostess asked.

"My…son?" Christian said, then looked down at Sawyer, making the connection, "Uh, oh, yeah, sure, a booster seat would be great, thanks."

"Okay, I'll get one right now," she said before disappearing again.

"Did you hear that?" Christian laughed, "She thought that Sawyer was my son, that's hilarious."

"Yeah, that really is something," Trish said as she sat down across from him.

The hostess came back with the booster seat and set it on the chair next to Christian. "Up, up!" Sawyer said when he saw the seat and the crayons that were sitting on the table.

"Okay, okay, kid," Christian said, lifting him up and putting him down on the seat.

"Tank," Sawyer told him, immediately grabbing for the crayons as the hostess handed them their menus.

"Your son is adorable," she said.

"Uh thanks," Christian nodded, looking over at Sawyer who was drawing all over the children's placemat they had.

"Enjoy your meal."

The moment she was out of ear-shot, Trish and Christian started cracking up. "Wow," Trish said. "I'm sorry, but neither of us even look like Sawyer."

"I guess the blond hair was the connection he made," Christian said with a hearty laugh. "I'm sure that Chris and Stephanie would love to know that people will just mistake their son for someone else's at random."

"Well, I guess it would be hard to know if someone was baby-sitting," she said. "I guess it's funny to think…wow, us with kids. I shudder at the thought. We'd probably be the worst parents in the world."

"If Chris and Stephanie can come up with as cool a kid as Sawyer is, I think that we'd be okay as parents," he told her, not even getting the implications of what he was saying.

"But we don't have him 24 hours a day, I have to imagine that it's a lot different when you're around for all the diaper changes and the tantrums, and the nightmares. Chris and Stephanie have to do this _all the time_. I don't know, I don't know if I could do it all the time."

"Sure you could, because you love your kid," Christian said. "Do you think that Stephanie and Chris like having him around all the time? Hell no, they've told me they don't like having him around sometimes and that he bugs them occasionally, but they love him."

"Yeah, I guess," she said, looking over at the little boy. "Someday though, I'll find the right guy, and we'll get married all perfect-like and then I'll have a little kid for my very own and Stephanie and I can bitch and moan about how kids suck the life out of you."

Christian shook his head. "That's the spirit."

Things were so settled between them now and she was happy for it. She didn't like not speaking to Christian. It was just so much better with him in her life. Even if it had to be friends, she was happy for the change. Even if he married Tiffany and had tons of kids with her, he could live with that if it meant that Christian was in her life in some capacity. Was it going to be in the way that she wanted? Probably not, but this was something and she was going to take it and ride it out and see where it ended up.

"Good luck out there, sweetie," Stephanie said. Stephanie checked the monitors as Chris went out and down to the ring. The new set was way different and he'd have to get used to it, but that wasn't what was on his mind. No, he only had his match with JBL on his mind. He wasn't even in the mood to look at the girls ogling him (though they were because dude, HD loves Chris Jericho, and we love Chris Jericho, so everyone pretty much loves Chris Jericho…almost everyone).

He started talking about what had happened the other week. He came up with the concocted story of his fictional son who asked him fictional questions (he still thought Sawyer gently asking if he had boo-boos on his neck was the better story—he scowled thinking about how Stephanie wouldn't let him tell the story—but he didn't want Sawyer's name out there for the taking either, so it was a real toss-up). He then went on to say that JBL's biggest mistake wasn't finishing the job.

He had been doing this for seventeen years. He had been in the middle of this crazy jungle of wrestling for seventeen years, and he had been to places and seen things that nobody would even believe. He had wrestled for chump change, he had lived in crappy hotels, been beaten down, had been robbed in the middle of a country where he didn't speak the language. He had worked his ass of to get where he was, so if he thought that JBL was going to scare him off, if JBL thought that he was a coward, well JBL was wrong.

Chris was still here.

Sure, things were different now. He was a different man now than he had been when he had started on this crazy journey. He had a vastly different life. He never really thought about it, but he never had to worry about money again in his entire life. His children (well, child, and future children) would never have to worry about money. Hell, his grandchildren (should he have any…uh, we may not get that far in this story) would probably never have to worry about money. He was in a secure place now and Stephanie was loaded. Still, that didn't erase everything he had been through to get where he was now.

He was still here.

He was going to show JBL just who the coward was. He didn't come back to be some wallflower who only came on the show once in a while and wrestled in some damn vanity match to appease his multitude of fans. He came back to kick ass (and make Stephanie happy). Kid or no kid, what JBL said was out of line, and he was going to kick his ass come Royal Rumble. That was it, he was going to kick his ass. JBL was going to learn what it meant to be a coward because Chris was going to make him want to run away with his tail between his legs.

He was still here, and he was going to make JBL pay.


	166. I'm Optimistic, January 28, 2008

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, I'm glad you're still enjoying this monster. The story is going to start including a little bit more of that other two people that I try to include every now and again, so yeah, there's that. Anyways, Chris was pretty rocking last night, I loved his interview and though I don't think he has a chance to win the Elimination Chamber (for obvious reasons, grumble, grumble) I do hope that it at least gets down to him and H, I could live with that if I can see Chris kick some H butt. Oh, and how hot was Chris at Royal Rumble, very, very hot. Anyways, enjoy and leave a review. :)

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_Chris could feel the cut on his head bleeding slowly, the drops warm and sticky as they ran down his face. He didn't care though. He didn't care about anything right now other than making sure that he kicked JBL's ass. He knew that if he could see his own face right now he'd probably be shocked. He could feel the blood on his chest and on his face, but he wasn't lightheaded. No, he seemed to be seeing more clearly right now. He wanted to end this, and he was going to end this now._

_He grabbed a folding chair and proceeded to slam it into JBL's head. He took satisfaction in the loud crack that it made against his skull. It threw JBL for a loop, but Chris wasn't done yet. He remembered what JBL said about Sawyer when Sawyer had accidentally run into him and JBL had the audacity to say that he should never have been born. For that he threw the chair right at JBL's head and then went at him with his some right hand punches, releasing his anger in spades._

_He recalled the bruises on his neck and how Sawyer had seen them and wondered what they were. He remembered the threat to his kid and that put him over the edge. He left the ring and went around looking for a cable. He found one and grabbed it, bringing it back to the ring and looping it around JBL's neck, pulling hard. If JBL wanted to choke him out, then he could do the same, he continued to pull, climbing onto the announcer's table as the crowd cheered wildly around him. This would teach JBL to mess with him. He finally let go and got down on the ground again and started to walk backstage, but then grabbed the cable again and got a little bit more revenge on him. It felt so good to be able to release his anger this way._

_He went backstage and immediately someone handed him a towel. He took it, not realizing what it was for at first but remembering that he was covered with blood. He looked down and saw that it had gotten all over his chest. Stephanie was working on the show right now, but she glanced over at Chris and cringed. Sawyer, who was laying on his stomach on top of the table and playing with some crayons and paper saw Stephanie out of the corner of his eye look up. He followed her gaze and saw his daddy walking over._

_Chris felt a lot of his anger fade away then as he saw his family. He wished that this towel was wet because all it was doing was spreading the blood around. He could feel the blood especially in his right eye as he could barely open it without blood splashing into it. He pushed the towel to where the cut was, trying to get it clean and to stop bleeding. There was still a small trickle of blood coming from it._

_Sawyer's eyes widened as he really looked at his father. He didn't even look like his daddy. He had red stuff all over him and it was all over him. His lip quivered at the scariness of the vision in front of him and he started to cry. His crying didn't ebb either, it only worsened as Chris got closer. When Chris went to reach for him to reassure him that he was okay, Sawyer burst into hysterical sobs. He screamed as Chris came closer, thinking it was a monster of some sorts._

"_Sawyer!" Stephanie cried, grabbing him off the table as he tried to scramble away from Chris. He practically leapt into her arms. "Oh, baby boy!"_

"_Kid…"_

"_No!" Sawyer yelled, trying to squirm away from Chris even further. He buried his face into Stephanie's neck and was crying and kicking around._

"_Chris, you need to get out of here," Stephanie said pointedly._

"_I just want to tell him that I'm okay."_

"_Okay, how about you tell him that when you're not covered with blood__?" Stephanie asked. "He's obviously scared of you right now."_

"_Kid, I'm okay," Chris said as gently as he could._

"_No, Mama," Sawyer mumbled against his neck._

"_Okay, I get it, he doesn't like me like this, I'll go get cleaned up."_

"_Thank you," Stephanie said as she tried to curb Sawyer's screaming in terror, but he wasn't stopping. He just kept crying and crying and Chris was feeling especially bad. He didn't want to scare his own kid. Then Stephanie smiled at him a little. "I wasn't as traumatized as Sawyer was, I think you were pretty kickass out there."_

_Chris smiled and licked a little of his blood off his lips. Stephanie smirked and gave him the once over. She could get used to this Chris Jericho._

"Come on, kid," Chris said. "Don't you want to play with me?"

"No," Sawyer said, not even looking over at Chris. Chris sighed and looked at Sawyer, scooting a little bit closer to his little boy. Sawyer, who was sitting on the ground playing with his _Go Diego Go_ phone, moved away a little bit. He wouldn't let him touch him or anything. When Chris tried to tuck him in his bed last night, Sawyer had cried until Stephanie had come to get him. This morning, Sawyer wouldn't eat when Chris gave him his food, but when Stephanie had come back with the exact same food he had eaten it happily, as long as Chris was out of the room.

"I'm okay, kid," Chris said. Sawyer didn't say anything. "Well, your mommy is working right now so she's not around, so you're stuck with me."

Sawyer continued to push the buttons on his play phone, giggling to himself as he heard one of his favorite characters. Chris tried to reach out for the phone, but Sawyer pulled it away from him at the last moment. Chris looked at him. He honestly didn't think that Sawyer would get as upset as he was over Chris last night. He knew that he had to be a bit scary with all the blood last night, but he didn't think that he was scarring. If he had known he wouldn't even have shown up. Stephanie told him later that when he had started to look really bad, Stephanie had stopped allowing Sawyer to watch the match.

"Sawyer, do you want to play with Wayne and Pizza Guy?" Chris asked as he picked up one of Sawyer's _Higglytown Heroes_ toys.

"No," Sawyer said.

"Do you want to go eat?"

"No," Sawyer said.

"You're going to have to eat soon, though," Chris told him.

"Uh uh," Sawyer responded.

"Yes, you are because you're going to get hungry, and Mommy is busy and I'm not busy so you're going to have to deal with me."

"No," Sawyer told him. He grabbed his toy and got up, going to the other side of the room and climbing on top of the couch. Chris sat on the floor and watched his son play by himself. He didn't even know how long this was going to last. What if Sawyer hated him for the rest of his life and became deathly afraid of him? He knew that was irrational, but he was still a little worried that this wasn't going to go away. He didn't know how much Sawyer could retain in his head, but he hated the thought of Sawyer hating him.

Stephanie breezed into the room and saw her boys on opposite sides. "Is he still not happy with you?"

"He hates me," Chris said, obviously defeated. "He absolutely hates me."

"He doesn't hate you."

"He didn't even want to talk to me, he won't let me touch him, he doesn't want me to eat around him, or feed him, or change him, he doesn't want to play with me, he hates me, Steph," Chris said, his frustration on his face. Stephanie shook her head and rolled her eyes. "Don't roll your eyes like this isn't serious."

"Chris, he was scared last night, he'll get over it," she told him. "I mean, he's only twenty-one months old, he's not going to remember this a week from now."

"You don't know that!"

"Yes, I do, because do you remember anything that you thought when you were a year old?"

"Everything as a matter of fact," he countered.

"No you didn't," she scoffed. "He was just scared of all the blood. He's never seen anything like that before, not with you. It has to be a little bit of a shock to see your father covered in blood."

"Did it freak you out with your dad?"

"By the time my dad really got into the ring, I was old enough to laugh at him, not be afraid of him," Stephanie answered. "So I can't say I've ever been in his position, but can I say right now that you were kind of freaky-looking last night? I mean, with all that blood, it was all over your chest and pouring down your face, I mean, it wasn't even like, a slow trickle of blood. When you started bleeding it was pouring out, and it was all in your eye and you could barely open it and then you decided to freak the hell out of our kid."

"I just wanted to tell him I was okay!"

"But you didn't even realize you were just smearing the blood all over you," Stephanie said with a laugh. "Which made you even crazier-looking, I'm sorry, I shouldn't laugh, but I mean, it was just a little funny. Did you see how fast he scrambled away from you? I think that if he had been on the ground he would've been running."

"Stephanie, this isn't funny," Chris told her with no emotion on his face at all. "My kid is frightened of me. I mean, this isn't what I signed on to do when I came back to the company. I wanted Sawyer to be proud of me, I didn't want him to be scared of me. Yeah, he scrambled away from me last night, but do you know how that made me feel?"

"Chris, you had blood all over you, that's not going to be a situation that you find yourself in all the time."

"So? I don't want my kid to be scared of me. Maybe this was a bad idea."

"Maybe _what_ was a bad idea?" she asked, giving him a stern eye.

"Coming back, all of that."

"No, it wasn't," Stephanie said loudly. "That was not a mistake and you know it, don't let me hear you ever say that again, do you hear me?"

"Steph--"

"No! You coming back is the best thing ever, don't take that away from me," she told him. "Look, Sawyer was just scared of you last night, that doesn't mean that he's going to be scared of you forever. Give him a little time to reconcile that the daddy he saw last night was _not_ the daddy that he sees all the time."

"I'm trying! I've been trying all day to be with him and he doesn't want me!"

"He was scared! Give him that!" Stephanie yelled.

"But he was scared of_me_! Do you know how it feels to have your kid scared of you?"

"Yes, the kid gets scared of me when I yell at people."

"No, that's different," he told her. "He was scared of _me_, Stephanie. He didn't want to be around me, I made him _cry_, for God's sakes. He was bawling because of me. He wouldn't even let you out of his sight for the rest of the night. He wanted me to sleep in another room."

"So you went into the other room for a while until he fell asleep. It wasn't the end of the world."

"My kid hates me," Chris said, standing up and sitting down in Stephanie's chair. "My kid thinks that I'm scary and he doesn't want to be around me."

"That's not true, sweetie," she said, sitting down in his lap. "He loves you."

"No, he doesn't, he's scared of me. I never wanted to make my kid be scared of me. That was one thing I never wanted. I was never scared of my dad, I love my dad, and I don't want my son to be afraid of me."

"Chris, sweetie, he's not afraid of you," she told him gently. She got off of Chris's lap and went over to Sawyer. She picked him and he leaned forward and gave Stephanie a sloppy kiss on the mouth. She wiped it off with the back of her hand and looked at her son. "Sawyer, we're going to go see Daddy and you're going to give him a hug."

Sawyer stared at her blankly as she started to walk over to where Chris was. She went slowly over as Sawyer looked at Stephanie curiously, wondering why they were walking so slowly. He looked over her shoulder and saw Chris there and only saw that scary image of his father from the night before and he started to cry. Stephanie looked at him and turned him away from Chris and then looked at her husband who looked like he was going to cry too.

"See, Stephanie, what the hell did I tell you," Chris said as he got up.

"Chris, wait."

"No, just leave me the hell alone, okay?" he said. "You're not helping with your damn lying."

"I'm not lying!"

"Whatever," he muttered as he left the room.

Stephanie sighed and looked at Sawyer, "You know, kid, you're really hurting Daddy's feelings."

Chris stuck his hands in his pockets and wandered around the arena. The show wasn't set to begin for a while yet. It was only six o'clock right now and so he had another three hours to burn. He had thought he was going to spend those three hours taking care of his son, but Sawyer didn't even want Chris to touch him. He dug his hands deeper into his pockets at that thought and leaned against the wall, his head down as he was thinking.

"Hey man," drawled Jeff as he came up to Chris. "I was hoping that we could talk about our match later."

"Oh, uh, hey, Jeff," Chris said, obviously so distracted that he had barely noticed the younger of the Hardy brothers. "What's up?"

"Didn't you just hear what I said?"

"Sorry, I was just thinking?"

"About last night?"

"No, well, yeah, actually. Sawyer just got really freaked out by all the blood last night and now he's scared of me."

"What do you mean he's scared of you?"

"He doesn't even want me near him. He starts crying and throwing a tantrum if I even come here near him. And if he's not crying he's ignoring me."

"Well, he's a baby," Jeff said. "Don't babies do that?"

"Well my baby never has," Chris said. "But now he really just hates me and it's so frustrating to think that I could've avoided this. I never should've come back. If I just stayed in the back, I'd be fine. I wouldn't have to worry, I'd just do my job."

"Do you really want to go back to the desk job? I mean, seriously, are you happy just being on the sidelines and not being in on the action?" Jeff asked. He had taken his own time off from wrestling and it had done him a world of good too, but his heart and his passion had always been wrestling.

Chris pursed his lips the tiniest bit as he thought about that question, "No…I knew I'd always come back. I just didn't want my kid to hate that I was back."

"He doesn't hate it, he was just scared," Jeff assured him. "He'll get over it."

"I hope so…so about the match?"

"Well, I figure…we've worked together before, we know what we want to do out there."

"We worked together like six years ago."

"Yeah, so, we still know each other," Jeff laughed. "I don't think that it'll be that hard, you tag me in when you need it, I tag you in when I need it, it's really not rocket science. I know you want JBL, so if it comes to that, I'll tag you in."

"I want Randy too, I should've been the champion."

"Yeah, I should've been the champion too, at least you lost because someone interfered, what's my excuse?"

"Um, you were blindsided?"

"Just like you blindsided JBL with that chair, that was pretty awesome," Jeff told him.

"Thanks, a little revenge was due. I hate that guy."

"He is a pompous jackass," Jeff said. "We'll take care of him tonight, don't worry."

"Cool, man," Chris said, shaking Jeff's hand. "See you later."

"Yeah, and don't worry, the kid will come around."

"Thanks," Chris nodded as Jeff wandered off to do whatever Jeff did while he was at the show.

--

"Hey, Christian."

"Hey, babe," Christian said as he lifted Tiffany into his arms. "It has been way too long since I've seen you. Do you know how much I've missed you?"

"I have some idea," she said with a soft smile as she brushed the back of her hand against his face.

"You have _no_ idea," he said. "I missed you so much. It just wasn't the same without you around. I actually had to fend for myself, for the most part anyways. It was very lonely without you, the house missed you."

"I'm glad you came to Connecticut."

"Me too, it was nice of Chris and Steph to let me stay at their house. I know that your parents don't really like having me spend the night over there. So…Chris and Steph won't be home until way later, do you want to maybe come inside and we can order a pizza or something and then we can just enjoy each other's company?"

"Well, the pizza sounds good," she told him as she took off her coat and walked further into Chris and Stephanie's house, throwing her coat over a chair. "So, what have you been up to while I was at my parent's?"

"Not much, spent time with my mom and grandma, and Trish and I are friends again," he said happily.

"You are?" she wondered.

"Yeah, I really think we're moving past everything. I can have a conversation with her and it doesn't feel weird or awkward. It feels normal, you know, I really, really like it. I'm just so glad that I finally feel like I can breathe around her, you know? I don't have to walk on eggshells."

"Yeah, I'm really happy for you," she said, giving him a light hug.

"So um…have you thought about what I was talking about?" he asked.

She frowned and looked at him, "Christian, marriage is such a big thing."

"You've had a month to think about, Tiff," Christian said. "I know it's a big thing, which is why I was going to ask you. We've been together for a while now--"

"Nine months, Christian," she reminded him. "Months, not even a year. It won't even be a year until April, and you think that we're ready to make this kind of commitment?"

"Yes, I know I am."

"Are you, are you really?"

"What? What is this about?"

"Nothing," she answered. "I'm just wondering if this is actually the right step for us. We both got out of big relationships before this one, and so we were both burned. I'm not saying we rushed into anything, but I'm just saying that…I don't know, I don't want to get burned again."

"Is this about Trish?" Christian asked. "Are you worried that I'm still in love with her or something? We're just friends now."

"No," she said, shaking her head. "I believe you when you say that, I believe what you tell me, Christian. You've never given me any reason not to believe what you say. I'm just saying like, most of my friends, the married ones, or the engaged ones, all of them were with their boyfriends for longer than we have and some of them are falling apart. My friend, Maggie, she was with her husband for three years before they got married, and they're getting divorced."

"So, time doesn't matter, not if you love someone, not if you know you're right for someone…do you not think I'm right for you?"

"It's not that. I just don't want to feel like we're rushing into a marriage. Nine months isn't a lot."

"It is though, I think it's a good chunk of time."

"You do?" she asked skeptically, leaning her head down to look at him over the top of her glasses.

"Yeah, I do," he said. "I love you."

"I love you too," she told him and he hugged her again but she was tense against him. He pulled away and looked at her and she smiled, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. They just looked kind of pensive and he brushed her dark hair out of her face to get a better look behind the aqua blue of her eyeglass frames.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"No, there's something wrong," he said. "I know you, Tiff, I know when something's wrong."

"Fine, a month ago, before you asked me to marry you… I got this job opportunity that would take me away from Florida."

"Where?" he asked. "I can live anywhere, that's fine with me, we'll move," he told her.

"It's in London."

"London…"

"Yeah," she said. "It's a great opportunity, and it's good money and it offers me the chance to actually go back and study another type of medicine and widen my horizons. It actually affords me the opportunity to go to Oxford and study more medicine. I've always kind of wanted to branch out into more medical research type stuff, and this gives me that chance."

"London…"

He was speechless, she could tell. "I was going to tell you and then you dropped that bomb on me with the proposal and I didn't know how to tell you about it, and it was like, how could I possibly decide between the two. I was given two paths…"

"How long until you have to make a decision?"

"Ideally soon, March, but no farther than May."

"So you only have until May to decide then, at the very latest?" he asked, his eyes kind of glazed over. He felt like his entire body was kind of glazed over. This news had come entirely out of the blue to him.

"Yeah."

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked, his voice turning harsh as he looked at her. "I mean, you knew about this for at least a month, more than a month actually, and you didn't once tell me! Were you going to just run off and dump me?"

"No, Christian, it's not like that."

"But you were given a choice, and you're obviously not going to choose me."

"It's not that I wouldn't choose you," she told him.

"You'd just choose that."

"I can't give it up," she told him.

He nodded, "Okay then."

"Christian, I want to be with you, I do, I love you, and I love everything about you. I just don't think it's fair of me to live over there and expect you to wait or something, or have a long-distance relationship with me."

He ducked his head. "So this is it then?"

"I don't want it to be, but I don't want you to wait for me, and I know, I _know_ that you can't live in London with me. If you could though, I'd want you there with me every second and I'd marry you in a second."

"Okay, fine, that's good, fine," he said. "I'll do it, I'll quit TNA and I'll go to London with you."

She laughed sadly, "Christian, you love wrestling."

"So I'll live with you for 5 days a week and then I'll fly over for tapings and stuff."

"And your friends?"

"Don't need them."

"I can't do that to you, I can't separate you from everything. I will be back. If you're so inclined to want to wait for me, but if you don't, I'll understand. I'm really sorry that I didn't tell you, I just…I just kind of didn't want this to end," she said, starting to cry. "I do love you. You make me so happy, Christian."

"You make me happy too," he said, taking her into his arms again. She hugged him tightly around his middle as he rested his cheek against her smooth, dark hair. She was sobbing into his shirt and he hated to hear it. He just stroked her hair, not saying anything more, his voice completely lost as he closed his eyes and tried to block out the pain of losing yet another woman.

He didn't think he could handle this again.

----

"Okay, so you want to do the Elimination Chamber?" Stephanie asked as she walked down the hall with Regal.

"Yes, that's correct."

"Who do you want in it?"

"Well, Umaga of course, and I think JBL."

Of course he would pick the jerks first, "And?"

"Well, I suppose it only fair if Jeff Hardy were in it as well."

"Okay, three more spots," she said, writing it down on her clipboard so she would have the graphics ready. She had already been alerted that there may be an Elimination Chamber match for No Way Out so she already had that graphic; she just needed the participants.

"Triple H, I think he would do well, and I guess if we have Hunter we must have Shawn."

"One more," she said as she wrote the two names down, scowling at Shawn's name.

"Well, I think Chris should be in it."

"Chris, my Chris?" she asked. "Chris Jericho."

"He is the only Chris."

"Oh, um…okay, I guess." She didn't like him in that match. Her mind immediately went back to when Kane through him through the cell inside that chamber and the chains and how beaten up he had been. If this ended up with him even more bloody than he was last night, Sawyer was never going to acknowledge he had a father at all.

"Thank you, Stephanie, I'm going to make the announcement right now," he said as he went through the curtain and went to make announce the participants as Stephanie sat down at her station and let the people know that they were going to need to cue up a few videos.

"Twip, cawwy!" Sawyer yelled as he lifted his arms up to Hunter.

"Okay, tough guy, geez," Hunter said as he lifted up the little boy. He leaned in to kiss Britt. "What are you doing with him?"

"Stephanie's working and Sawyer is terrified of Chris, so she asked if I would watch him."

"Terrified of Chris?"

"Yeah, with the blood last night, it really spooked him. You should see it, he won't even go near Chris without either walking away or screaming his head off. I guess he just saw all the blood and it really scared him."

"Oh come on, tough guy, you're not afraid of a little blood, are you? I thought you were tough," Hunter told Sawyer.

"I good," Sawyer said with a nod.

"Well, I know you're good, but you must be making your dad feel pretty crummy."

"No," Sawyer said.

"You did see Chris last night, right?"

"Yeah, it was pretty ugly, I'll admit it," Hunter said. "But I mean, Sawyer has seen worse, he lives around here, he knows what kind of scary crap goes down."

"Not with his Dad," Britt said, rolling her eyes. "He's never had reason to be afraid of Chris. Undertaker, yes, even he creeps me out a little bit, but he's never had to worry about Chris, so that's why he's pretty scared."

"You're so damn smart," he told her, leaning in for another kiss. Sawyer coughed and Hunter pulled away, leaning his forehead against Britt's. "I figure this is what he does to get his mom and dad away from each other."

She laughed. "Sawyer, do you want to come with me?"

"No, Twip," Sawyer said, nodding and grinning at Hunter.

"I have a match soon though, tough guy, and your mom will kill me if I take you out there with me. She's very guarded about people knowing about you. She makes people think that she has a daughter and she makes people think that your dad has more than one kid floating around."

"Oh."

"I know, so I think you should go with Britt."

"No," he said.

"Come on, she's really nice, and she's very pretty," Hunter said. "I know that if I had some time right now and didn't have to work that I would want to be in such pretty company."

"Stop flattering me," Britt said, shaking her head. "I'm already your girlfriend, who exactly are you trying to impress?"

"Well, we've only been going out for a couple of months, so I'm still trying to make the best damn impression on you so you don't think I'm an asshole or not worthy of you or something, though I am definitely worthy."

"And cocky," she said. She took Sawyer from Hunter. "Come on, kiddo, let's take you to your mommy and say goodnight then I'm going to get you to bed because it's really late and you should be asleep right now."

Britt wandered off with Sawyer after a parting kiss with Hunter, who was drinking some water before his match, trying to psych himself up. Shawn hadn't arrived yet and he wondered where he was at. He decided it'd be best to just go look for him and headed off himself. Britt went to Stephanie and handed her Sawyer. Sawyer gave his mother a kiss and a hug before Stephanie went back to work and Britt went back to Stephanie's office. Chris was sitting on the couch and Britt tried to hand him Sawyer, but the little boy protested.

Chris, upset enough as it was, left and let Britt take care of putting Sawyer to bed. He ended up at the gorilla position and just stood in front of the monitor watching Hunter's match. Stephanie saw him and since the match was going on, she decided to go up to him. She put her headphones around her neck and walked up behind Chris, wrapping her arms around his waist from behind and leaning up a little to rest her cheek on his shoulder.

"Hey."

"Don't even talk to me," Chris replied.

"I didn't say anything."

"I don't care," he said. "I'm not in the mood, Stephanie, seriously, okay, I'm not in the mood to hear whatever crap you have to spew."

"I wasn't going to say anything, I was just going to say hi and tell you that you're in the Elimination Chamber."

"I know, I was watching, what the hell do you think I was doing back there?" he asked with an aggressive tone to his voice.

"Don't take it out on me! I'm sorry that Sawyer is scared of you, but deal with it. I was just going to tell you how worried I was that you were going to be in another Elimination Chamber, but with the attitude you have right now, I hope you get demolished."

"Oh, that's nice, thanks," he said sarcastically.

"Well, maybe if you weren't a huge jerk," she said. "Whatever, forget you."

She stomped back over to her seat and sat down, not even bothering to look at him again. Hunter walked backstage and he was going to go up and talk to Chris, but he looked pissed off right now so he figured that it was best that he not talk to him. Chris had a temper, and he really didn't feel like getting beat up on twice in one night. He did want to talk to Chris about being in a match again, but thought the better of it and decided instead to go take a shower and find Britt.

Chris channeled all of his anger into his interview with Todd Grisham. Yes, a new Chris Jericho had emerged last night, one that frightened his own child. In the context of the fight though, it had felt so good to just let loose like that. This Jericho had shown his face before; he recalled how deranged he had been when he had been at odds with Chyna. Chris had a viciousness inside of him that he rarely let out, but that didn't mean that it wasn't there. He was hungry for the title and he was going to get to WrestleMania, and JBL would be flat on his ass.

His match was a way to release his frustrations. He was pissed off about a lot of things, but the most important thing was that his son was afraid of him. For that, JBL had to pay. Chris didn't care who he was in the ring with though, he was going to decimate whoever. He hadn't felt this good in a match for a long time and he really felt on his game this evening. He was flying around the ring and for the first time in a long time, he missed his long hair. It used to whip behind him as he ran the ropes, but it wasn't there now and he missed it a little bit. He didn't miss it getting pulled on though.

The match went on for a while and he countered and re-countered whatever was getting dished at him. For him and Jeff it was like they had just worked together the week before. They had had a good chemistry back in the day. He remembered teaming with him and being a formidable team. It was just like that, a cohesion existed between them. As tag matches tend to do, this one ended up being a bit of a clusterfuck. Somehow, Randy and Jeff had ended up on the outside and Chris had put the Walls of Jericho on JBL. He waited for the referee to tap, but no tap came and suddenly he was meeting the mat.

He was dazed, but aware that he had lost the match. Well that just put the icing on his perfectly crappy day. He rolled out of the ring and slowly made his way up the ramp. Stephanie didn't even bother to look over at him as she closed the show. He didn't even want to look at her right now. She wanted to laugh at the situation, fine, let her laugh. He'd like to see her reaction if Sawyer hated her. He walked into his locker room and saw Britt and Hunter sitting on one couch, talking with each other, their heads close together as Hunter held her close.

"Hey, man," Hunter said.

"Hey," Chris said in a defeated tone. Suddenly, from somewhere outside there was a loud bang that caused Sawyer to be startled into wakefulness. He started from his sleep-sack and sat up a little, starting to cry from having his sleep being disturbed. Chris instinctively went over to his little boy and sat down next to him. "Hey, kid, it's okay."

"Daddy," Sawyer sniffled, more scared by what woke him up than who was right there.

Chris picked Sawyer up out of his sleep-sack and held him against him, even though he was still sweaty and gross from his match. Sawyer rubbed his face against Chris's shoulder and Chris sighed happily. Having Sawyer in his arms and him not crying was a great relief. He hadn't realized how this gesture was just so ingrained in his daily routine. His arms actually felt empty without Sawyer around.

"Hey, it's okay, there was just a loud bang, but it was out there, not in here, and Mommy is going to come back soon and then we're going to drive home."

"Daddy," he said sleepily, rubbing his eyes.

"Shh, shh," Chris said, letting him fall asleep.

Seeing as how Chris was in a better mood, Hunter spoke up, "So finally, we get to meet again, huh, Jericho?"

"What do you mean?"

"You, me, Elimination Chamber. It's going to be so great to get my hands on you again. I've been looking forward to kicking your ass for some time now. I think this is the perfect opportunity."

"Who do you think that you're talking to?" Chris asked. "I'm going to kick your ass and then beat you because you suck…and I'm due to kick your ass."

Hunter scoffed, "You wish, I'm winning and you know it. I think it's about time we really settled our differences. I know there's been some stuff still simmering in the background for us. I think it's only fair we settle them in the harshest environment possible."

"Oh, and the Hell in a Cell wasn't enough?"

"You two were in a Hell in a Cell match?" Britt asked.

"Yeah, I won," Hunter said cockily.

"After I clocked him with a barbed wire 2x4 on top of the Cell," Chris said calmly. "I look forward this time to putting you through one of those cells, and then slamming you face into the chains."

"And I look forward to Pedigreeing you on the grates on the outside."

"Ha! You wish."


	167. Well, What Now? February 4, 2008

A/N: Hey everyone, thanks so much for the reviews, I appreciate each and every one of them so keep them coming! I just wanted to give a quick reminder: I will mention stuff that actually happens outside of Raw, rumors and stuff that is posted on sites and Chris's book and all of that good stuff, but anything that doesn't happen directly on Raw I take a lot of liberty with so keep that in mind when I talk about outside stuff that you may or may not recognize. Thanks. Enjoy and review:)

* * *

"_Do you really have to go__?"_

"_Yeah, I really do," she told him as they lay face to face on the bed they had once shared and the bed they were sharing for the last time. Neither one wanted to get up and admit that this was it. So they laid there, their hands connected in the middle as they both looked at each other. She had watery eyes and his were drooping at the sides, a sign of sadness rather than age. He felt, though, like he had aged at least ten years over the past several days._

_Seeing her packing up all her things and then stowing those things into her car were just the nails in the coffin for him. Now they were lying here, and he didn't want her to leave and she didn't want to leave, but after stewing for several hours, he had listened to what this opportunity entailed for her and he had to let her go. The things she was going to be doing, the people she was going to meet, it was too good to pass up. She would've never inhibited him if his job took him a million miles away, the least he could do was the same for her._

"_I don't want you to," he said, though he knew that she was going to be leaving, probably in a few minutes, and he might not ever see her again. That thought sat in his stomach like a rock, or like a small seed that was progressively growing and growing until it would make him burst._

"_I know, I don't really want to either, but…I have to, I mean, you think so, right?" she implored, searching his eyes. The way that she was looking at him right now, he knew that if he had told her to stay, if he had asked her not to leave, she probably wouldn't have. He was tempted to tell her that very thing, but he just couldn't. _

"_Yeah, I think so," he said sullenly._

"_Yeah," she agreed, her tone matching his. "You're right." She glanced over his shoulder at the clock on the nightstand. "I should be heading out."_

"_Do you have to?" He knew the answer to that one too, but he still asked._

"_Yeah, I do have to, I don't want to miss my flight later. I'm going to be flying up to Connecticut to say goodbye to my parents and then I'm going to be heading on out tomorrow morning. I wish you could be there."_

"_Yeah, but it's better this way. If I don't see you, it's like you didn't really leave, you're just visiting your parents or something. We will see each other again, won't we, Tiff? I just can't imagine going the rest of my life and not seeing you."_

"_Of course we will," she said. "I'm still friends with Stephanie and Chris. If they have some huge party, which they will, I'm sure that I'll end up going and you'll be there, and we'll see each other again and it won't be awkward because we didn't end on bad terms, we just…had to go our separate ways."_

"_I don't know how I'll get over you, you kind of got under my skin there," he told her, his voice light and that made her really happy to hear. She was going to miss the hell out of Christian, but she had been more worried about he was going to take it. She didn't want him to be sad or have him think that he had to pine away for her or something. She wanted him to go out there and be Christian, that was it. She didn't want him to lose his identity._

"_You got under _my_skin too," she told him. "Christian, I love you."_

"_I know, I love you too."_

"_Good, then this will be easier to hear because you know I'm genuine. I want you to be happy. You didn't seem all that happy when I met you, and if I even made you happy for one second, then I feel really good about everything that happened between us."_

"_You made me happy a lot more than just one second."_

"_Good," she said, taking a deep breath. "Find someone, okay, because I think that you're much better when you're with someone than you are alone. And I'm not saying that you're dependent or clingy, because you aren't, you know that, but I just think that you are a guy who is meant to be in love with someone. It does something to you, it makes you happier."_

"_How do you know I'm not happy when I'm alone__?"_

"_You forget that I can see and hear things. I've talked to your brother enough times to know that you weren't kind of a dweeb when you were alone. Edge has made sure to tell me a million times that I'd be better off with him than with you."_

"_Wait, my brother said that? Dude, that's so not cool," Christian said._

_Tiffany placed her hand on his cheek to quiet him, "I told him that I was with the cuter brother."_

"_That's my girl," he said proudly. "I bet Edge was rightly humiliated."_

"_Of course," she said. "But just…be happy."_

"_I will, I'm sure I'll find someone, I'm sure you'll find someone…just…not too quickly okay, take a little time to get over me before you go finding someone," he told her and she smiled and shook her head._

"_I will, don't worry, you'll be a hard act to follow, I'll tell you that. You know, we weren't even together a year, but it felt like so long, it felt like I've known you forever."_

"_I know, it was weird, we just kind of clicked."_

_She sighed happily and then her face got more serious as she took a deep breath, "You said you'd find someone."_

"_Yeah, I will, I believe whoever she is, is out there. Since unfortunately it's not you, she's gotta be out there somewhere and if be some chance, I really, really can't find her, I guess I can just switch teams and see if the right guy is out there for me."_

_She giggled a little, but then took that serious face again, "I think you've already found her."_

"_Tiff, don't make this any harder than it is, I did find you, but we can't be--"_

"_No, Christian, I think she's out there, but I think you know exactly who she is."_

"_What do you mean?" he asked, genuinely bewildered by where she was going with this._

"_Christian…"_

"_What, I don't get it, so please, tell me what I'm missing here," he told her, raising an eyebrow._

"_You know, I never begrudged your friendship with her because I knew that you were committed to me. I knew there were points when you thought about what it would've been like to end up with her instead, and I understood that, you were with her for such a long time and you had to have thought about what was going to happen. I didn't get bothered by that because I knew you wanted to be with me. You're not the kind of guy to go out with a girl and lead her on, you're just not. So I didn't care, but I've also got eyes, and ears, and a sense of what happens around me."_

"_Trish," Christian sighed._

"_Yes, the infamous Trish," Tiffany said. "The girl that I had to try to live up to."_

"_I never made the comparison."_

"_No, but I did for a while. And I'm sure you thought about my ex too and where you ranked with me."_

_His eyes darted around a little bit. "Okay, yes."_

"_See," she said with a tinge of smugness. "Once I stopped trying to live up to that standard, things were so great between and I love you and I know, I _know_ you love me too. I also know that you aren't comparing how much you love me to the way you loved or love Trish because it's completely different, but the fact remains that I am positive that she made you happy, and did she make you happy, Christian? And don't answer if I made you happier or if she made you happier, that's not what I'm asking. This is a Trish-specific question. Did she make you happy?"_

"_Yes," he said without hesitation._

"_Even in the bad times? Even when she kissed Shane, even when she dumped you, even when you had to leave, even through all of that crap? Did she make you happy, when you were around her, for those few seconds or minutes or whatever, did she make you happy?"_

"_Yeah."_

"_Then for the love of God, Christian, just do it," she told him. "Our lives are taking us away from each other and I know and you know that we're both going to be okay. We were great together, for sure, and maybe, who knows, we'll be great again. But you have someone else that you know makes you happy. Don't be stupid, Christian. Don't be stupid and don't waste time. You are not an idiot, so do what you have to do to be happy, whatever, and whoever that may be."_

"_I guess I'm just--"_

"_Don't even tell me you're scared," she told him, pressing her index finger against his slightly open lips. "Don't pull that crap with me, Christian. I know you far too well to fall for that tripe."_

"_You're too good to me."_

_She laughed, "I try to be. Don't be scared, just jump right in. There's no obstacles. I won't be here and I only want what's best for you. Next to me," she kidded, "I think that Trish would be good for you. There's nothing standing in your way now, and I know that you two…you two are constantly on some crazy collision course, so don't mess it up this time."_

"_I don't know, Tiff."_

"_Christian," she said, staring him straight in the eye, "Don't. Screw. It. Up. Just. Go. And. Get. The. Girl."_

"_It's weird having your girlfriend telling you to go with some other woman."_

"_The second I get off this bed, I'm not your girlfriend," she whispered, and with that, she got off the bed. He got up too and followed her downstairs and into the foyer. He couldn't bear to watch her drive off so he stopped there. She turned to him and leaned up to kiss him, wrapping her arms around his neck and holding on for dear life. He lifted her off her feet and kissed her back. Finally, she pulled away and kissed his chin. "Love you."_

"_Go make me proud," Christian said, putting her down on the ground again._

_Then she walked out of his life._

"Then we run, run, run around!" Chris yelled as he ran around the ring with Sawyer following close behind him as they played in the ring before the show. The ring had just gotten set up and Sawyer had been especially cranky and Stephanie had been especially cranky when she found out that Hunter wasn't going to be here tonight and she had him planned for a match so Chris thought it best that he get Sawyer out of there for everyone's sakes. Sawyer had been whiny because he had been restless so he figured that letting him run around the ring for a while would quiet him down for later.

"Daddy!" Sawyer said, trying to catch up with Chris.

"You can't get me," Chris said as he continued to run around the ring.

"No!" Sawyer said, hating that he couldn't catch up with Chris. Chris ran at the ropes and then dropped down to the middle of the ring as Sawyer came and climbed on top of him. "Daddy!"

"Hey there," Chris said as he lifted Sawyer above him, much to the little boy's delight. "You wanna know something?"

"Yeah," Sawyer replied.

"If it weren't for this very ring, you never would've existed," Chris told him very seriously.

Sawyer didn't understand, but still responded with a very somber, "Oh."

"Yeah, I know. If I hadn't gotten the wrestling bug very early from great-grandma, I never would've wanted to become a wrestler, and you know what would have happened if I had never become a wrestler?"

"No."

"I would've never met Mommy, she just would've been someone I saw on television and she might be married to someone else, and then you wouldn't have even been a thought in either of our heads. I just would've thought that Mommy was some hottie on television that I might meet by chance, but would probably be too chicken to go up and meet."

"No," Sawyer said, trying to reach out and grab Chris.

"Okay, okay, I would've gone up to her because I think that your mother is hot, and I'm Chris Jericho, so I wouldn't have been intimidated, but I can assure you, she would've played very hard to get instead of just falling into my arms." At the falling into his arms bit, he dropped Sawyer unceremoniously on the mat next to him. "Okay, kid, that was your very first bump."

"Up?"

"No, bump," Chris said.

"Up."

"Yeah, sure, it was your very first up," Chris said as he stood up. Sawyer scrambled to his feet to emulate his father. Chris went over to the corner and climbed up and sat on the top rope. Sawyer wandered over and he leaned on the ropes looking up at Chris. "What do you want?"

"Up!" Sawyer said and Chris laughed. Sawyer tried to climb up to where Chris was, but he was hardly coordinated or tall enough to do so. He ended up falling on his side a little and got mad at the ropes, hitting them with his small hands.

"You can't get up here, kid," Chris said as he stood on the top rope and jumped towards the center of the ring, landing perfectly on his feet. Sawyer watched on with wide eyes, hardly believe that his father had just flown through the air like that. He was completely amazed and mesmerized and wanted to do that too.

"Me!" Sawyer said, trying to get up that rope with extra vigor now. Chris went over and picked him up. He stood him up on the turnbuckle as Sawyer laughed and held his arms out. Chris held onto him as he started to bounce up and down like he wanted to jump off. Chris flew him through the air and then fell down with him onto the mat, Chris taking the bump with his back.

"Fun, huh?"

"Yeah!" Sawyer said excitedly. Chris saw it then. There it was—the spark. Yeah, Sawyer was too young to even have a clue what he might want to do, but this fascinated him. The slight give of the mat and the taut ropes and everything that came with it: the steps, the ramp, everything, they were all fascinating to this little boy. He would probably forget this in a week (he forgot how much he was scared of Chris), but Chris could see the earliest signs of it. His kid was going to be a wrestler, and not just a wrestler, the greatest wrestler that ever lived.

How could he not be with the genes that he was blessed with? He had the McMahon genes which he guessed would help with the shrewdness and all that. He might be hated for that fact, but the one thing Sawyer had on his side was that he didn't have McMahon for a last name. A middle name, yes, but not a last name. Sure, he could go by Sawyer McMahon if he so desired later in life, but he couldn't see that happening unless his son turned into a power-hungry businessman or asshole or something. He would just be Sawyer Jericho, the next generation of Jericho, with a bit of that McMahon-ness tossed in there as well.

He was going to rule the world.

Sawyer got up again and Chris followed. Sawyer began running around again and again, wearing himself out. Stephanie would be so happy when Sawyer went down at his actual bedtime instead of staying up way later than he should and then waking up late. They both shuddered to think what it might be like if Sawyer went to preschool. He'd have to get up at a regular time and he'd have to go to bed at a regular time and they just didn't have that right now.

They were still struggling with the decision as to Sawyer's academic future. He was going to be two this May and that was approaching nursery school age. But with Stephanie running the show, and Chris on the show nobody could be there for Sawyer. They vehemently refused to have a nanny, that was out of the question, so they would have to have someone close to stay with Sawyer because neither Stephanie nor Chris was willing to give up their jobs to stay at home for seven days a week. It wasn't in their style, and they knew that Sawyer would understand that they weren't putting themselves first, they were just not putting themselves last.

Their compromise right now was wondering if they could have someone stay with Sawyer on Mondays and Tuesday mornings to see that he got off to school. The second option was just enrolling him for three days a week, which was probably going to be the solution to the entire problem. It was going to be hell when Sawyer started real school, absolute hell and they both already knew it.

Sawyer kept running around and running around and then suddenly, he fell, like he was prone to do, except this time, he fell forward with the momentum of his running and didn't get knocked down on his butt like usual. He put his hands in front of him instinctively and they hit the mat hard and he was crying instantly. Chris ran over to him, wondering who in Stephanie's family was the clumsy one and picked up Sawyer. Sawyer was looking down at his hand in horror and Chris looked at what his child was looking at.

Chris saw it immediately. One of Sawyer's fingers was already starting to swell up and he had only just fell a moment before. Chris went to touch it and that caused Sawyer to scream his head off. Chris winced at how screechy and loud Sawyer's voice could actually get, but he shouldn't have been surprised given he was Stephanie's son. He tried to pull Sawyer's hand away so he could look at it, but Sawyer was hurt and he didn't want to show it because it hurt so much.

"It's okay, I'm just looking," Chris said, taking a look at the fourth finger on his left hand. "See, just looking."

"No…" Sawyer said, trying to pull his hand away. It hurt so much. It was throbbing and he couldn't get it to stop. He had been hurt before, he fell a lot, but this hurt really bad, really, really bad and he wanted his daddy to stop looking at it and give him his hand back so he could try and make it not hurt anymore.

"I know, it hurts, but I'm just trying to see what's wrong," Chris said as he got out of the ring. "We're going to go and put some ice on this, and then we're going to go to the trainer, okay?"

"Boo-boo," Sawyer whimpered pathetically.

Chris nodded and kissed Sawyer's temple as he walked quickly backstage and straight to the trainer's room. The guy was just setting up all his equipment for the long night ahead and was startled when Chris came into the room. He looked down at the little boy who was sobbing and burying his face against Chris's shoulder and figured it had something to do with the little guy.

"What's up, Chris?"

"Hey, Don, I was hoping you could give Sawyer's hand a look. We were in the ring and he fell and hurt his hand. His finger is already swelling up and this happened maybe five minutes ago."

"Sure, let me take a look, put him down on the table."

Chris sat Sawyer down on the examination table that the company traveled with for those who might get injured during the show. Sawyer looked terrified as he looked up at Chris, wondering what the hell was going on. If Chris was going to leave him here, he was going to scream louder than he had ever screamed before. Thankfully, and gratefully, a moment later, Chris laid his hand on Sawyer's back, letting him know he was staying.

Don picked up Sawyer's hand gently and looked at the rapidly swelling finger. He prodded around it with his gloved hand, which caused Sawyer to go into practical hysterics. He started to squirm and try to get away, but his father was holding him and he couldn't move so he screamed louder and louder. Don looked at Chris, who looked at him apologetically as Don continued to look at the finger.

"Well, at the very least, it's a sprain, but I can't rule out a broken finger."

"Please tell me you're joking," Chris said. "Please, please tell me you're joking."

"I have the portable x-ray machine, I can get it done right now."

"Thanks," Chris said. "Stephanie's going to kill me, she's going to absolutely kill me."

"I don't envy you," Don said. He had been working here for twelve years so he knew all about Stephanie and how she could sometimes react to things. When he had told her that Hunter may have torn his quad, she had almost slapped him, and would have too if Hunter hadn't been complaining about her lack of attention towards him. And that was just her husband, one she didn't even like that much, this was her son, her baby.

"Thanks," Chris said. "Are you sure it's not just sprained? It's just swollen."

Don picked up Sawyer's hand again and showed it to Chris. "Look at this finger, Chris. If this just happened, this is rapid, rapid swelling, and he can't bend it without crying. I think it's broken."

"Man, I thought that just running around the ring would get him tired."

"Hey there, little guy, we're going to have to get you some x-rays," Don said. "Give me a few minutes to set up the machine and then we'll get a couple x-rays of that hand and we'll see what's up."

"Okay, thanks, man, at least we have a trainer around here for this kind of thing."

"It's been a long time since I've had to look at a kid and not at an adult male with weird injuries."

"I'd rather not be here."

Don went about setting up the equipment as Chris sat next to Sawyer. Sawyer was still crying and looking at his hand like it was going to melt off or not. He fell against Chris's side as he continued to cry. Don set up the portable equipment and left for a few minutes to get the protective gear that he was going to need to get x-rays of Sawyer's hand. While he was gone, Chris took the opportunity to look at Sawyer's finger again and saw that it was starting to bruise too and he felt bad that he hadn't been watching him closely enough. Sawyer started to wail again as Chris got to close.

"Sorry, sorry," Chris said apologetically.

Stephanie had just pulled her headphones off when she heard a child-like screaming. The only child that was around every week was _her_ child. Some of the other guys brought their children around, but she knew that scream anywhere. That was her son's scream, and it sounded like he was in trouble or something. She started walking quickly towards the sound of Sawyer screaming and walked right past the trainer's room when she heard the screaming behind her and backed up, turning her head left.

"Chris?"

"Damn," Chris said, looking to his left and seeing Stephanie standing in the doorway. "Baby, hey!"

"Chris, what's going on, why is Sawyer crying?" Stephanie said, coming inside. "Why are you in the trainer's room?"

"No reason…" Chris said, even though Sawyer was still crying into Chris's shirt.

Stephanie wasn't buying it. She walked around Chris to where Sawyer was sitting. She took one look at him, saw his hand and gasped. She went over and grabbed his wrist gently, looking down at his hand. "Chris, what the hell happened?"

"We had a little accident."

"Where, where did you take my baby?" Stephanie said, crouching down so she was eye-to-eye with Sawyer. "What happened baby?"

"Boo-boo," he told her, thrusting his hand out to her. Chris rolled his eyes, of course Sawyer would willingly show Stephanie what happened while wailing at the very thought of Chris touching his hand.

"Oh, honey," Stephanie said. "How did this happen!"

"We were kind of running around…"

"Where?"

"The…uh, ring," Chris choked out, clearing his throat a little bit. "You know, just…uh…the ring."

"You took him in the ring!" Stephanie yelled. "What were you thinking?"

"We were just running around," Chris defended himself. "We weren't practicing moves or anything, we were just running around. I wanted to tire him out for later. That was my intention, he just fell forward and hurt himself."

"Chris!" she yelled.

"Like Sawyer's never gotten hurt with you."

"It's never looked like this!" she said, pointing to his hand. "Why are you sitting here?"

"Don's getting some x-ray stuff."

"X-ray? What are you talking about?"

"His finger could be broken."

"You broke my son?" Stephanie asked slowly.

"_Our_ son," Chris reminded her gently.

"You broke my son, my son is broken!"

"Not broken, no, it's just…bent, or something."

"Get out of here, Chris, I'm telling you right now, get out of here and let me take care of this," Stephanie said.

"Stephanie, I'm his father, I can stay if I want to."

"This is your fault, you took him in the ring! He shouldn't be in a ring, he's not even two years old yet!"

"He will be in two months."

"Go away, I'll take care of this, just…go prepare for the show."

"Fine, but I'm only leaving because staying would make you even more insufferable. I'm perfectly allowed to stay here I want to. I half-made this kid, I can stay and see what's wrong with him."

"Chris, just…I don't even…I know that Sawyer can be a little bit heavy on his feet since he isn't quite as coordinated as we are most of the time, but it's the fact that you brought him into the ring! What if he had gotten too close to the edge and had fallen out? What if he had poked his eye out on the ring steps or something? You know how dangerous it is."

"Yeah, I'm sorry, I didn't see the harm, I'm sorry," she said.

"Here we go," Don said walking in with the vest. "It's a little big, but we can maneuver it…oh, hello Stephanie."

"Don," Stephanie said tersely. "You're going to do the x-ray here?"

"Yeah, it should only take a few minutes."

"What if it is broken, what do we do?"

"His finger isn't bent, so I'm guessing there was no dislocation, so it probably wouldn't require any surgery. It's more than likely a stable fracture, in which case I'd just put a splint on it and he'd have to keep it on for about a month."

"Oh, okay," she said, looking at Sawyer's finger, which was downright ugly.

Chris left then, feeling bad, especially after seeing Stephanie's concerned face. He went back to his locker room, her office, and sat down on the couch. He had never wanted to hurt his kid, and it wasn't even his fault, but he probably shouldn't have brought him out to the ring like that and let him run around like it was nothing. Sawyer would walk and run and do that stuff, but he was still a little kid and sometimes that escaped Chris's attention.

He needed a distraction so he got up and went onto Stephanie's computer, which was just sitting there. He smiled at the wallpaper of her computer, a picture of Sawyer pointing at the camera with a Cheerio stuck to his lip. He opened up the internet and just decided to surf the internet. He was bored almost instantly. Usually nowadays if he was on for any extended period of time, Sawyer would come running up and wanted nay demanded to go onto the Disney website or the Nick Jr. website and Chris would be forced to read stuff about Winnie-the-Pooh or Diego for hours on end. The things you did for your kid.

He went to a couple of wrestling websites to see if anyone was talking about him. He saw one sight that said he was regretting his decision to come back. He laughed at that. He never left! People were getting this weird idea that Stephanie had somehow coaxed him to come back. While she had been a huge part of it, she was certainly not the only part of it. He was very happy to be back out there, but he hadn't actually left. He continued to read some more stuff about what was going on and came across a weird little headline at the bottom of one page.

_Stephanie McMahon Pregnant?_

This, for obvious reasons, piqued Chris's interest. He clicked on it and it led to another site and he looked around and saw a small rumor headline that seemed to indicate that Stephanie could be pregnant again. He frowned as he read that over again, and then again, and then once more. After the fifteenth reading, it started to sink in a little. He looked around the room, as if the answer would be written in the wall with blood and he scratched his head.

His wife…pregnant again? She had not made mention of this development with him, and he found it weird that it was on some random, dinky website. Did this person, man, woman, whatever, maybe a dog who knew how to type, did they know something that he didn't? Dude, was someone else sleeping with his wife or something? Wouldn't he be the first person to know this besides Stephanie and maybe Sawyer, could Sawyer type? Did Sawyer leak something onto the internet without him knowing?

He swallowed hard as he tried to wrap his mind around this. Stephanie had been gaining a little weight lately, but he just chalked it up to the holidays and all the eating that was practically required of them. They celebrated a lot of stuff. They had the Canadian Thanksgiving, the American Thanksgiving, then there was Chris's birthday in November, and Christmas, and Chris celebrated Boxing Day and made her celebrate it too even though she didn't know what it was, and New Year's. He just thought that she had eaten too much and she would just lose the weight when she lost the weight, which usually happened around WrestleMania since she would be so stressed and working so hard that she'd just naturally lose it.

Chris didn't much care what Stephanie looked like from day-to-day. He didn't fall in love with her because she was beautiful. He thought her beautiful for years, but hated who she was. When she had changed her personality and became the Stephanie he knew today, that's when she truly became beautiful to him. He didn't care if she gained weight so he hadn't taken much notice. She was still great in bed so what did he care? He might be concerned if she ballooned up to 300 pounds or something, but some holiday weight, no, he didn't take notice.

What if it was baby weight though? What if it was pregnancy weight and he was just too stupid to notice. Stephanie had always been one who gained weight around the middle so it would be hard to tell if she was just by looking at her. Still, maybe it was. Maybe this person, whoever they were had heard something, and they had relayed it to everyone they knew and it got carried out of hands. He tried to think back to remember if Stephanie had her period lately, but he didn't make note of that. It was just one of those things that came along with being with a woman and he dealt, but didn't much ask about it.

She had been cranky lately, but she was Stephanie, she was always cranky. Cranky was ingrained into her DNA. Hell, her father was so cranky this evening that he was making Hornswoggle join the Kiss My Ass Club. He didn't think for one second that Vince was pregnant. Cranky was just what a McMahon was half the time, save for Linda of course. Had she been sick in the morning? No, but that wasn't necessarily an indicator, some women didn't get sic. She had gotten sick with Sawyer, but it hadn't been that bad. Maybe if she was pregnant, she just didn't have morning sickness this time around.

He thought back to the whole children conversation they had had a couple weeks ago. She had said she wasn't pregnant, but what if she had just found out last week or something? Maybe this person had gotten a hold of some classified information. Maybe they were spying or had seen Stephanie go to the doctor or pick up some pregnancy test or something. Maybe Stephanie really was pregnant and she was waiting for the right time to tell him!

He closed the window on the computer and sat back in Stephanie's chair. His eyes were glazed over a little bit. When he had joked and said he was ready for another child to throw Stephanie off the track of his return, he hadn't figured that it might be real. Was he even ready for another one? Was Stephanie? Was _Sawyer_? He had wanted more time with Sawyer, maybe something like four years, maybe even more. He wanted to enjoy his son before having to devote attention to another kid.

Plus they were barely getting along with Sawyer. Stephanie would have to go on maternity leave again, oh God, she was going to be so pissed off. She _hated_ it when she had to take time off before and this time would probably be even worse. It'd be even worse because obviously Sawyer would stay with her and she'd be pregnant and taking care of a two-year-old, and he was out on the road. He couldn't leave the company again, he had just gotten back so he'd have to be here. His stomach kept sinking and sinking the more he thought about having another child. The only upside was that they weren't in any kind of financial bind.

He thought back to what he said to JBL. Children. _Children_. That could be true. Right now, Stephanie could be preparing what she was going to say to him. She could be plotting and planning. Maybe she just wanted to surprise him. Maybe she wasn't at all, and he hated that he was hoping for that most of all, but he was. Still, if she was pregnant, he'd love this kid just as much as he loved Sawyer. He looked at Stephanie's laptop again, where Sawyer's picture was staring back at him.

He loved that kid more than life itself. Those blue eyes and that cute smile. Yeah, he'd love another kid, but still, this couldn't be true…could it? No, it couldn't. It just couldn't be true. It had to be some sort of stupid rumor that someone was trying to get credit for. Stephanie would've told him, or she would tell him. He found it unsettling that other people would know before he did, but such was the world. He knew that everyone knew that he was coming back before Stephanie, so the same could be said here.

The door opened and there she was. He looked at her, as if trying to see if she was pregnant or not. Sawyer walked in front of her, his hand looking at the splint that was now covering most of his left hand. By some chance, Don had had a smaller splint that he was able to convert into a smaller one for Sawyer. He advised Stephanie to make an appointment with Sawyer's pediatrician to get one that really fit him, and to just check up on it, and she promised she would.

"So he broke his finger," Stephanie said, glaring at Chris.

"Hey," he said, getting up. "Do you want to sit down?"

"No, I want to yell at you," she said.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking and I'm sorry," he told her. "It's my fault, and I'm so sorry, you know I'd never want to intentionally hurt him."

She softened at that. "Yeah, I know. Don said he'd be fine. Sawyer thinks the splint is fascinating. I don't think he's going to find it so fascinating when he has to wear it all the time. He's going to get angry or something, I can tell, just like you."

"Like _me_, you're the angry one around here," he told her. "But you shouldn't be angry, you should be calm, completely calm and relaxed, do you want to sit down, do you want me to give you a massage?"

"Chris, I'm fine," she said, eyeing him. "What's your problem?"

"Come here," he said, grabbing her hand and pulling her towards the couch. He sat down and pulled her down onto his lap gently. He held her around the middle and tried to see if she was getting rounder around the stomach or what. She just seemed a little paunchy, that was it. He tried to put his hands on her stomach and she pushed him off.

"What are you doing? I've got work to do, I can't be sitting in your lap all evening."

"You seem a little heavier," he said.

She narrowed her eyes at him, "Excuse me, are you calling me _fat_?"

"No! Not at all, you're beautiful, you're so beautiful."

"Okay, I get it, butter me up because you broke my son, but I have a lot to do tonight. Hunter had some _thing_ and he can't attend, Britt won't tell me what it is, but whatever he's not here. Then there's this silly arm wrestling thing with Cena and I don't know what goes through Regal's mind. Then finally, the piece de resistance, my father with Hornswoggle. My father has requested and ass buffer, I don't even know what that is, but he's requested it, so I had to get him an ass buffer, and so my day hasn't been great, and then you had to go and break my son."

"Steph, let's not stress out, okay." He didn't want her stressing out if she was pregnant.

"Just let me work tonight and you go kick ass on the show and--"

"Guys, I'm depressed."

"Oh great," Stephanie said, "Throw yourself onto the pile, Christian."

"Christian, did you follow us?" Chris asked. "I thought we left you in Florida."

"You did, but I was lonely, so I caught a direct flight, I was lucky, it was the last one all day, so now I'm here. I just didn't want to be alone. It's so lonely without her. I feel like writing a really depressing song."

Stephanie turned to Chris, "He's your friend."

"What! He's your friend too," Chris said.

"Okay, then you can go meet with my dad and schedule when you want Hornswoggle to kiss his ass, is that the trade-off, so, okay, go do that and I'll talk with Christian."

"Oh, that's…you can do that."

"I thought so, can you watch our son or are you going to break his leg too, will I come back with him in a full-body cast?"

"Shut up," Chris said. "We'll be fine, thanks."

"Good, bye Christian, feel better…please, for the love of God, feel better. I think Sawyer is starting to think that you're permanently attached to our couch or something."

"He did sit on top of me while watching TV and didn't think anything of it," Christian said as he collapsed onto the couch next to Chris.

"Dude, when was the last time you took a shower?" Chris asked, coughing a little.

"Don't know."

"Well, you should shower, and shave, you look like crap," Chris said.

"You don't look so hot yourself," Christian pointed out.

"Well, Steph's mad at me."

"What? I couldn't tell," Christian said and Chris had to look over to see if he was joking or not. He didn't look like he was joking—that was how much of a daze Christian was in right now—he had no concept of living within the outside world.

"Yeah, she's pretty pissed off at me because Sawyer and I were horsing around in the ring and Sawyer broke his finger," Chris said, looking towards Sawyer who was sitting quietly on the ground inspecting his splint like it was an alien or something.

"Oh, yeah, I thought something was different about him, he'll be fine," Christian said dully.

"Plus, Steph might be pregnant again," Chris said.

"What!" That got Christian's attention right quick. "Did she tell you? Oh my God, another Jericho is going to assault the world, oh man, this means I'm going to have double babysitting duty from now on?"

"She didn't tell me, I read it online."

"Whoa, that's not a cool way to find out. Shouldn't your wife be the one that tells you?"

"It was a rumor, but if it's true, I think she's trying to surprise me with it, so don't let on that you know anything, okay, because if she does want to surprise me, then I want her to have that moment. It'd probably be payback for me coming back to the ring."

"Oh, okay."

"Okay, so on to your problems…Tiffany said to go to Trish."

"If only it were that easy."

"It _is_ that easy. She said she wanted you."

"But that was before we were friends."

"She'd jump at the chance to be with you again."

"I'm not so sure."

"Just go after her, Christian. Stop wasting time pining away for the woman you love. Do you know how much time you're wasting right now when you could be with her? Sometimes I wonder what would've happened if I had met Stephanie before the whole debacle with Test and Trips. What if I wasted all that time…although I'd probably have five kids by now with another on the way so maybe it's better this way."

"I am wasting time, aren't I?"

"Yeah, especially because the girl told you as little as a month-and-a-half ago that she wanted you, so stop being such a wuss and go after the girl that you want."

"I guess."

"Not you guess! Come on, man, if you want to be with her, be with her. Tiffany wants you to be happy and I know you were happy with her, but you were happier with Trish, we both know it, I think Tiff knew it because she told you to go to Trish. Just face the facts."

"And if we break up again?"

"Then make sure it's for the right reasons."

"Yeah, thanks, do you want me to watch Sawyer for you tonight?"

"Would you?"

"Sure."

"Thanks, man, I'm going to go see my wife, kind of try to figure out what's what with her."

"Good luck with that, I hope that you get what you want."

"Me too," he said with a nod. He went over and kissed Sawyer on the head, "Hey, kid, you know I love you, right?"

"Yeah," Sawyer said, looking over at Chris, "Kiss." Then he kissed Chris on the cheek, which was pretty much like saying he loved you. Chris smiled and checked on his hand. "Feeling better?"

"Uh huh, boo-boo," he said, holding up his hand to show off the splint that was hanging off of it. He would definitely need to get a more kid-sized one, but this one was working for what it was. Chris looked at his young son, who looked like Chris when he was a kid, but acted more like Stephanie than anyone was willing to admit. He could get used to having another one. He just didn't want it right now if it was any and at all possible.

"You're going to stay with Christian and he's going to take you to eat and get you ready for bed, but you know Christian already, right?"

"Yah, Chissy," Sawyer said, pointing at Christian with his left and curious as to why this thing didn't let him bend his fingers all the way. He continued to look at it and Chris kissed him again. He had work to do, and he had a wife to find.

"Are you kidding me with this, Dad? You want me to send someone out to get you lotion so you can put it on your ass? Why do you ask me these things? You need to find an assistant for these kinds of things. I'm your daughter, I don't want to hear about that!" She turned off her headphones before her father could speak further. "Uh, Britt, can you get some gopher to go get my dad some lotion, doesn't matter what kind."

"Sure," Britt said uncomfortably, having heard the conversation. The turned around and practically ran out of the area.

"Hey, baby."

"What is it, Chris?" Stephanie asked. "I'm busy, where's Sawyer?"

"With Christian."

"Oh, okay," she said as she sat down. "My feet are killing me."

"Oh, anything else killing you, your stomach, thighs, breasts…"

"Breasts? What…we are not having a quickie tonight," Stephanie shuddered. "I'm not in the mood for that."

"Oh, are you in the mood for something else, food, or something, vitamins."

"Vitamins? I'm not getting sick," she told him as she watched the show begin. "What is your problem, Chris? You're starting to worry me, did you get a concussion while Sawyer was breaking his finger."

"No, I just worry about you is all," he said as he tucked some of the hair that escaped from her ponytail behind her ear. "I just love you and I worry about you. This job is really stressful and I would never want you to get overstressed."

"I don't get overstressed, I love it," she said, "why are you acting so nice to me? I already know that you broke my kid, so it's not like you have to hide it. My baby boy is broken, it's very sad and damaging to me as a mother."

"It was bound to happen, he's our kid…you know, when we were out there, I saw the spark in his eyes. He's going to be a wrestler."

"He liked it?" she softened.

"Yeah, he loved it."

"Well, at least the broken finger was for something," Stephanie said grudgingly. "Just…if you bring him out there, put padding on him or something, wrap him up in pillows, tie them to his body, make a foam body suit so if he falls he bounces right back up onto his feet. That's what I want to see."

He laughed, "I will."

"Thank you," she said. "Stop looking at me, you're creeping me out."

"Sorry, I just…sometimes I just think I'm the luckiest guy in the universe."

"Geez, I forgive you, is that what you want to hear?"

"Can I hug you?"

"Not right now."

"Can we have sex tonight?" he asked. If they were naked, surely he'd be able to tell. Unless she wasn't that far along at all; she hadn't even started showing with Sawyer until she was in her fifth or sixth month. Still, he was her husband, he knew her body like his own, every line, curve, scar, he knew it all.

"No, we cannot…what kind of question is that? You are really being weird tonight."

"Sorry."

This was not the right way to go about this so instead he focused on the show. When Shawn went out there he decided to go out there too. He talked with Shawn about their match together and how he won all these titles and how he headlined WrestleMania too, against Trips, with Stephanie by his side. He didn't really respect the man, but he didn't want to lose the crowd's support. He knew he was dripping with insincerity, but he didn't care. One day he'd mention the fact that Shawn had his on Stephanie when she was still a teenager and had gotten rejected.

He was going to win that Elimination Chamber though because he wanted that title back and he was going to get it back. He wasn't surprised when he had to team with HBK and Jeff later. He was glad for the match actually. He liked pairing with Jeff, and well, he could deal with Shawn for a little while, he guessed. He did look up to the guy once upon a time. That time had passed since he found out that Shawn hated his wife, but still, a long, long time ago, he wanted to _be_ Shawn Michaels.

Plus, preparing for a match brought a good distraction from whatever was going on with Stephanie. She wasn't acting pregnant, but this was Stephanie, she didn't really act pregnant with Sawyer so how could he tell? He didn't want to ruin this if it was a surprise, but he was really impatient. It wasn't fair that she got time to process and he didn't. Maybe Sawyer, his internet source, was typing up the truth right now on his little fake computer.

He went out last for his match later that evening, a tiny perk of being married to the boss, you got to look like the team leader. He met with his teammates and Shawn started things off. Chris got the next tag and went into the ring, trying to get at Umaga, but only got a head butt as a reward. Snitsky was tagged in and Chris wanted to laugh a little at the crowd chanting for him to brush his teeth. If they could smell his rancid breath right now, the cheers would be three times louder, maybe more. Chris gave him a springboard drop kick and then while on the offensive, tagged in Jeff.

He immediately dropped to his hands and knees and set up Jeff. Jeff ran at him, stepping on him to get the Poetry in Motion on Snitsky. He watched the match again and then it turned into a bit of a jumbled mess. Somehow, they found their opponents all on the outside of the ring and with little encouragement to each other and a great sense of timing, they all flew over the top ropes hitting simultaneous planchas on their opponents on the outside.

Chris was more pumped up than he had been in a long time and he continued to fight. JBL got him though and Umaga caught him in a bear hug. He tried to resist, and tried, and finally did break free, but he got tossed into the corner of his opponents and that only spelled bad news for him as he got pummeled by them all. He managed to break free of two of them and he finally, finally got the tag in to Jeff as he lay there a moment. The match ended with Jeff pinning Snitsky and Chris was glad the match was over. He wandered backstage and Stephanie gave him a kiss for his efforts and a hug. He hugged her back, sweat and all and held her there for a moment. He wondered if she was keeping secrets from him, just like he had kept secrets from her.

He would just have to keep his eye on her.


	168. Roll With the Punches, February 11, 2008

A/N: Couple of notes before you read the chapter. I know this took place last week, but I'm writing it as if it took place this week, so keep that in mind. Secondly, yes, I know about Stephanie McMahon, and -sigh- I really, really, really didn't want to have to write about it, like seriously, that was in NO plans of mine like, for another 4 years, but you just write what you have to write. Anyways, I also know that Stephanie was not at Raw last week, but she's here, so yeah, enjoy and leave a review:)

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Sawyer ran around the grassy area as he expended some of his excess energy before Christian would take him to the show. Stephanie and Chris had already left, but Christian said that he'd watch Sawyer so he wouldn't be cooped up in the arena all day. There was a small park attached to the hotel, if you could call it a park at all. It was really just a small grassy area with some benches scattered around. It had rained that morning so the grass was a little bit soggy and Sawyer insisted on finding every puddle and jumping right into the middle of it.

"Sawyer, why don't you try and avoid the puddles?" Christian asked.

"No!" Sawyer yelled at him as he launched himself into another puddle. Christian was going to have to change his outfit before they left later because his long-sleeved shirt was dotted with mud and his pants were soaked on the bottom.

"Okay, but you're going to get sick…wait, if you get sick, _I'm_ going to get blamed," Chris said, pursing his lips. "Hey, maybe you should come inside?"

"Uh uh," Sawyer said. "Stay, Chissy."

"Okay, fine, fine, fine, but don't get sick," Christian said to the young man. At least when he  was with Sawyer his mind wasn't on Tiffany and what she was doing. He missed her, far more than he thought he would. He thought it would ache, but it was downright horrible. He had just gotten so used to her and now she was suddenly gone and it wasn't very fun for him.

"Hey, guys."

"Oh, hey, sleepy head," Christian said as he glanced up at Trish who sat down next to him. "It's about time you woke up."

"Well, you shouldn't have let me have all those margaritas last night."

"Chris and Stephanie need to let the kid get baby-sat more often so they can come out with us and try to keep up, although you know, Chris still doesn't know if Stephanie is…with child," he hissed. Trish laughed and shook her head.

"He should just ask her. If a week has passed and still not word one, I think that it's safe to say that she's probably not pregnant, or if she is, she doesn't even know it yet and somehow someone knows Stephanie's uterus better than her."

"Well, Sawyer was inside of there, so maybe he's the one who knows the best," Christian joked and Trish made a face, "Too far?"

"Just a little bit. How crazy would that be if she were though? Two kids in under three years. They may not have wanted kids, but they sure got them, didn't they? If she is pregnant, though, because she's probably not."

"See, this has only got me thinking about it," Christian said. "I find myself looking at her all critically like I could tell. If Chris can't tell, then there's no way that I could tell. I think they'd be fine though. They love Sawyer."

"Yeah, but they wanted to wait…it's funny now, they wanted to wait for Sawyer, they didn't want him for another couple of years, and then she unexpectedly got pregnant, and they have this adorable little boy, and then once again they're like we're going to wait a few years and now she could be pregnant."

"I know, they're going to end up with like five children."

"Stephanie would kill Chris if he got her pregnant that many times," Trish said. "They're lucky though, through it all."

"Of course they are. Kids are cool," he said. Trish had come down for the week since they were doing two shows in Austin two weeks in a row. Christian had appreciated the companionship, but he would've preferred anyone else but Trish being there. Ever since Tiffany had pretty much given him permission to go after Trish he hadn't wanted to see her. He was convinced that it was a bad idea so he would just rather not do anything about it.

The day before he had been in South Carolina at a show for his own company, but he had flown back because he just had no real zest to work right now. He was lonely when he was at home by himself and Chris and Stephanie wouldn't be around to hang out with, and Edge was constantly with Vickie, so it was too quiet for Christian.

"Yeah, they are, aren't they?" Trish said dreamily as she looked at Sawyer. She was in her thirties now and the thought of children was certainly one that was on her brain. She looked at Sawyer as he ran around, completely oblivious to everything around him. He turned and saw her and his eyes lit up as he scrambled over.

"Hi, Tish," she told him, grinning widely at her.

"Hey there, how's your hand?"

"Boo-boo," he nodded solemnly, looking at the small splint on his hand. He held it up to her to show her the splint on his hand. Stephanie had taken him to the local hospital after the show last week to get him a smaller splint that fit better over his toddler-sized hand.

"Does it hurt?"

"No," he said in a high-pitched voice and he ran off again.

"He's soaking wet," Trish commented.

"He's been jumping in all the puddles. Something tells me that he's not allowed to do that when he's around Stephanie. He's taking advantage of me, like a true Jericho would," Christian said as Sawyer bent down to pick up what looked like a worm from the ground. "Sawyer, no, put that down!"

"No," Sawyer argued, shaking his head.

"Yes, put it down and come over here so we can go inside and change. Do you need to be changed?" Chris had told him that Sawyer was starting to show interest in being potty-trained, which he could only imagine would be a huge struggle between the toddler and his parents. He was coming up on his second birthday and Christian figured that was around the time a kid would be potty-trained.

Sawyer scrunched his face up and then shook his head, "Uh-uh, no."

"Good, because I don't want to change you. Now drop the worm and come over here so we can start to go."

Sawyer put the worm carefully back on the ground and wiped his hands on his shirt before he scampered over to Christian and Trish. Christian didn't want to pick him up so instead he took Sawyer's dirty hand and they walked back inside the hotel. Sawyer tried to squirm free from his grip, but Christian held him steady as they went upstairs to Chris and Stephanie's room, which Stephanie had given him the key for in case Sawyer needed anything.

Christian looked at Sawyer's shoes and hoped that Stephanie and Chris, more specifically Stephanie, didn't care if his shoes were filthy. They were muddy and grubby and Christian sat the boy on the couch to pull them off. Trish went into the other room to grab a new pair of clothes for Sawyer, a t-shirt and some jeans. She brought them back to Christian and he undressed and redressed the little boy, who tried to get his t-shirt on himself. He had a pair of red sneakers by the door and Christian put those on him as well.

"Okay, do you feel better now that you're not dirty?" Christian asked.

"Yeah."

"Good, because we have to go see your mommy and daddy soon and I don't want you making look bad, like I let you roll around in the mud or something."

"Mama, Daddy!" Sawyer exclaimed as he heard their names, practically jumping off the couch and running around like they were there.

"They're not here, they're at work," Christian said. Trish scooped up Sawyer as he ran by and took him into the bathroom to wash his hands. He clumsily handled the soap as he rubbed his hands together and then put them under the running water. Christian dried his hands and realized how close he was to Trish at that moment.

"All clean!" Trish told him and he held his hands up in victory.

"Hand," Sawyer said as he thrust his broken finger at Christian. Christian took extra care to dry around that one, making sure he didn't hurt Sawyer any further.

"Do you have his diaper bag?"

"Yeah, Steph and Chris brought all his stuff with them so we just have to bring that."

"Okay, man, if they have another one, I think that they're going to be really swamped. I just can't imagine them having another kid and juggling two kids and their jobs, especially since Chris just came back," Christian said.

"I know. I agree."

Chris couldn't stand it any longer. He had been sitting around the entire week thinking about what he had read and it was consuming him. He didn't want to go accusing her of something that wasn't true. If she wasn't pregnant, then maybe she was just gaining weight and she'd be offended if he just asked. Still, when they had been in bed together over the past week and he had been kissing her and kissing around her stomach and touching her, he could tell, he could just tell and it bugged him that he hadn't been able to tell before.

"Hey, uh, baby?" Chris said.

"Yeah?" she asked, looking up at him.

"Can we talk?" he asked.

"Since when do you_ask_ to talk to me?" she laughed. "Usually you just go into whatever you want to talk about and then you talk my head off."

"I know," he said, rubbing his chin a little bit and then clearing his throat. "I just…well, Sawyer's not here yet and we're alone--"

"Wait, so talk is just a cover for sex then?" she asked. "Chris, you've wanted to have sex every night this past week, I'm pretty tired from all the sex. So if you can just like, give me a night off or something."

"No, that's not what this is about. It's just that without Sawyer here we can really talk and I really want to talk to you, actually I _need_ to talk to you."

She noted the tone of his voice and how it was decidedly more serious than he usually used with her. She looked at him for a moment and he was rubbing his palms on his jeans. That alarmed her. Chris was obviously nervous and Chris was hardly ever nervous about anything. He was far too self-assured to ever be nervous about anything. Her mind started racing with what he wanted to talk to her about and none of them were good. She pictured illicit affairs, quickies with some ring rat, and divorce.

"Uh," she swallowed the lump forming in her throat. "What is it?"

"I was kind of wondering if we could go somewhere more private," he told her.

"More private than my office?" she asked, looking around at the emptiness around them.

"Yeah, I mean, people are always coming in here. Britt is liable to burst in any moment, not to mention your father with some of his asinine ramblings and all of those distractions. I was just hoping that it could be us and nobody else."

"Um, I'm not sure where that would be," she said, and her voice sounded strange. Chris had never acted like this before and she was really starting to get scared. Her mind was already trying to figure out divorce settlements and custody and her head was spinning right now and she rubbed her temples a little bit to relieve the tension.

"How about we go sit in the arena. It's empty right now, we can have privacy, people would leave us alone if they saw we were talking."

"Um, okay," she said, convinced that he was taking her to a public place so if he told her that he had cheated on her she couldn't kill him if there were potential witnesses. If that was what he wanted to talk about, then she was going to take Sawyer, go to Connecticut, divorce him, and then make sure that he never even sniffed any kind of title again.

He offered her his hand, but she declined it, waving it away from her as she stood up and walked towards the door. He opened it for her from behind and she walked through it. As they were walking silently down the hallway, he slipped his hand into hers. She looked down at it momentarily, wondering if she should pull it away, but he would suspect that she knew something was wrong and she wanted to play it as cool as possible. Sawyer wasn't here yet, so all she'd have to do is call Christian and tell him not to bring Sawyer and that she was leaving.

They went into the arena, and the only people there were some pyrotechnic guys hooking up the pyros for the evening and some production people around the ring, rigging up all the equipment. They nodded at their bosses and Chris and Stephanie went up into the stands, far away from anyone and everyone so that they could speak privately. They sat there, next to each other, for a long moment. Stephanie was looking off to the side and Chris was looking down at his wedding ring on the hand that was still gripping Stephanie's.

"So what is it?" Stephanie asked harshly. "You cheated on me, didn't you? Didn't you!"

"What!" Chris asked, shocked that she would make such an accusation.

"You've never_wanted to talk_ like that before. So it must mean you did something bad, you cheated on me, didn't you? Who was it with, Chris? Tell me? If it was a ring rat, I swear to God…"

"Steph, no, God no, I didn't cheat on you and I'm insulted that you think that."

"Oh," Stephanie said, "then why all this weirdness. Why taking me out here? Why do you need to talk, what's wrong, Chris?"

"It _is_ something that has to do with us," he told her. "I just…I don't know how to bring it up. I've been trying for the past week, but I keep chickening out because I'm not sure what I want to happen exactly."

"You don't love me anymore?" she said. "I did something and you don't love me anymore?"

"Stephy, baby," he sighed, looking at her. "Come on, baby, you know that's not it. I would never…"

"Then what is it? You have me worried, sweetie," Stephanie said, turning so she was facing him. "You _do_ still love me, right?"

"Always," he told her. "You don't have to worry about us like you did with Hunter. We're solid, remember?"

"Yeah, I remember. So please, tell me what it is," she pleaded.

He took a deep breath, "You're pregnant, aren't you?" Stephanie's eyes widened and she turned away from Chris and faced forward. "I thought it was just a rumor at first, one that I don't know how it got started, but when we were having sex, Steph, I could tell, I know your body, I just…you're pregnant, aren't you?"

"I don't know," she told him, covering her face with her hands.

"What do you mean you don't know?" he asked her gently. "Isn't that something you should…know?"

"Well, I mean," she said, her voice soft and quiet, long pauses between words like she was thinking out each one in her mind trying to find a coherent sentence to string together. "You know I've always been kind of off with my cycles because of all the stress and stuff, I've always had irregular periods and whatever, you don't need to know that."

"Okay," he said, slowly prodding her on.

"Well, I mean, I hadn't…I had had _one_ in a while, but I didn't think anything of it, thinking that I would get it soon, and then you know, a few weeks ago I figured out that this isn't just an irregular cycle," she told him.

"Oh, weeks?"

"Yeah, I know, I'm sorry," she said. "I just…it came as such a shock to me that I didn't know what to do." She started to cry and bent over, burying her face into her hands even further. "I just wanted to ignore it for a while. I know that sounds horrible, but I did."

"Okay," he said, scooting as close to her as he could and rubbing her back. "It's okay, baby."

"It's not okay!" she told him. "I didn't tell you and…I guess I just wanted to let it sink in or I wanted to ignore it for a while because this is where I wanted to be right now. This throws a wrench into everything. I was ashamed because I didn't want this baby. I really don't want this baby."

"Oh," he said with a nod. "So what do you want to do about this situation then? I mean…the offer I made you with Sawyer will always stand."

"No, that came out wrong, I don't want this baby right now, not that I wouldn't want a baby, period, I just…I feel like I _just_ had Sawyer. He's not even two years old yet," she sniffled. "He can barely talk, he just broke his finger and I don't want to leave work and you_just_ came back and now you might leave again and I don't want that most of all!"

"Okay, for one, I'm not going anywhere, I'm here now," he told her, stroking his hair. "And yeah, I know, this timing is really bad…"

"You think so too?"

"Yeah, I didn't want a kid right now, we wanted to wait until Sawyer was at least four, that was the plan," he said, leaning back in his seat and throwing his head back. "That was the plan here. Of course, the original plan was no kids until we were both ready in a few years from now and now we're going to have two…wait, have you been to the doctor, how far along do you think you are?"

"I think I'm at ten weeks, I have an appointment scheduled for Thursday, I was going to tell you tomorrow or Wednesday about this…how did you even know?"

"Internet."

"Internet?"

"Apparently we have gossipers around here, did you tell anyone?"

"Sawyer," she told him with a sad laugh.

"I knew he was the online leak," Chris joked. He saw Stephanie sobbing into her hands and he pulled her up and into his chest. "It's okay, baby."

"I guess people noticed the weight gain, that's how you knew, not that I didn't expect you to, I knew you would figure it out. I'm not ready for another one," she cried. "I'm not ready and I don't want to have to leave again and I'm going to be huge and Sawyer is going to have to deal with another baby and I wanted to give him time to have both of us and now you're going to be wrestling and worried about me and this is the worst possible time to have a kid."

"Shh," he said, kissing her head. "I know, it's hard, but we weren't careful I guess."

"I hadn't renewed my prescription for the pill because I've been so busy and well, you know."

"I know, for the record, I don't want this baby either."

She laughed and shook her head, "What the hell are we doing?"

"I have no clue," he told her, tilting her chin up, "Stop crying okay, this is nothing to cry about. We'll figure it all out. So we add another kid onto the pile, we can do it. I won't leave again, I promise. Plus, look at how you were with the kid, you stayed until you were just about ready to pop and you came back at the first opportunity. Maybe with this one…you know, maybe we can do like rock-stars and get a tour bus or something, like a really clean one that babies can live on and we can stay there for the first few weeks after you have the baby and you won't have to leave and you can work."

"Really, you'd do that?"

"Of course, whatever you want to make you comfortable…you're the mother of my…children," he said, shaking his head. "Who knew that JBL was a psychic, huh? I actually did have children and didn't know it."

"You're not mad at me?"

"Why would I be mad?"

"Because I kept it from you," she said, "because I didn't want it."

"No, I'm not mad, baby. This is a surprise, with Sawyer…I don't know, he was exciting, you know, this new adventure and now it's like, we're used to this kind of thing. We've done the pregnancy thing so there's not a lot of scary stuff to wade through. We'll be okay."

"I do love this child," she said.

"I love it too, so don't worry about it, okay, we'll be just fine. So it happens a couple years earlier than we wanted, at least this way Sawyer has someone to play with, right? Plus, our kid is freaking adorable…just uh…you know, stay away from Austin this time around." She shook her head and hit him lightly in the shoulder.

"So should we tell people?"

"Yeah, we can, who cares, right?"

"Right," she said, wiping at her eyes. Chris leaned in and kissed. "I love you, thank you for understanding and not hating me and you know…"

"Thanks for carrying my kid again," he said, kissing her again. She cupped his face in her hands and held onto him. He pulled away and kissed her on the forehead. "If we have any more children, then…can we please plan them ahead of time?"

She giggled, "We will certainly try. But apparently we don't have enough surprises in our life, what with the crazy life we already leave."

"Yeah, but no more crying, okay? Not over this, not until those pregnancy hormones kick in again, how have you been feeling?"

"Oh, so _that's_why you were asking last week," she mused to herself. "Actually, I'm doing a lot better than I was when I was pregnant with Sawyer. I don't really have any morning sickness, at least not yet, and I can't tell you how relieving that is. Mostly, I'm just tired."

"Not bad, not bad," he said, rubbing her stomach a little through her shirt. It was definitely a little firmer than he remembered it being before. "Maybe this will be the dream kid we've always wanted, you know, the complete opposite if the troublemaker that we're stuck with now."

"He's not a troublemaker."

"Okay, okay, he's not."

"He should be getting here soon and I have a lot to do tonight, and so do you actually. You have a match tonight against JBL and I want you to win, do you hear me? Your son, your unborn child and I want you to win."

"Wow, we really are that whole family thing now, aren't we? I mean, seriously, we are absolutely normal now, right? We've got the marriage, the 2.5 children, all we now is the dog."

"No, if I'm having another child, then holy…no dogs!"

"You know Sawyer's going to want one soon."

"I don't care," she told him. "He's getting a little brother or sister, that's enough for him to play with. He can pretend the new kid is a dog."

"That's exactly what we want to instill in our kid, let him think his brother or sister is a dog that he can just play with," Chris chuckled, rubbing Stephanie's scalp. "Holy shit, we're having another kid."

"Don't remind me."

"You want me to come with you to the appointment?"

"Sure," she said. "I think you're the kid's father so you might as well."

"Very funny," he told her. "So…we going to find out what this one is?"

"No, I say we keep it a surprise," Stephanie said. "We found out with Sawyer and that was all well and good, but it kind of took a lot of the anticipation out of it. I think it would be cool if we just kept it a surprise for the delivery room."

"Hey, maybe you'll get that girl you wanted."

"I don't know," she said. "Let's go though, I'm tired of wasting time sitting here. I need to feel like I'm doing something."

"You _are_ doing something, you are growing our child inside your body, that's a very big something right there," he told her cheekily.

She shook her head and stood up, grabbing his left hand between both of hers and pulling him up. He took the moment to lean down and kiss her again. She let him kiss her for a moment and then they walked down the steps and went backstage again. She leaned against him as he wrapped his arm around her and kissed her temple. She took comfort from his kisses. She had been so upset when she suspected she was pregnant, but leave it to Chris to make her feel completely comfortable about the situation.

"A baby will be cool, right?"

"Yeah, we're old pros," he said as they started towards her office.

"You have an early match tonight, it's second on the card, so please be ready for that," Stephanie said. "It's right after…right after my father's match with Hornswoggle." Chris snickered into his hand. "Don't even say it!"

"I didn't say anything!"

"You remember that you're part of his family now, and not only that," she said, poking him in the chest a little bit. "But you've given him two, count 'em, two grandchildren so you are going to be in this family forever."

"Is it too late for a paternity test for Sawyer?"

"Well, considering the fact he looks more like you than he does me…yeah, I'm guessing that it's a tad too late."

"Oh man, you know, this whole thing reminds me, we've got a couple of newcomers tonight," Chris said. "I have to give them the whole orientation spiel."

"Oh wait, that brother and sister team, yeah?"

"That's right, um…Paul Burchill and his sister Katie Lea," Chris said, racking his brain for the names. "Maybe you and Shane can team up and go against them and it'll be a brother and sister vs. brother and sister match."

"I'm pregnant," she reminded him.

"Oh yeah, I'd rather you just not go near the ring then."

"Yeah, I figured," she told him.

"Daddy!" Chris was pitched forward a little as two small arms came around his legs and effectively stopped him from going anywhere. Stephanie turned around and saw Sawyer holding onto Chris's legs. She nodded to Trish and Christian who were standing a few feet away.

"Hey, kid," Chris said, stepping away from Sawyer's arms and turning around to pick him up. "I didn't even hear you coming."

"Did you change him?" Stephanie asked as she looked at Sawyer.

"He was jumping in puddles," Christian said. "I didn't think you'd want me to return him and have him be all dirty and stuff. We just left his clothes in your hotel room. I didn't know if you had a special thing for cleaning them."

"No, we just throw his dirty stuff with our dirty stuff," Stephanie said. Sawyer leaned towards her and smacked his lips together.

"Kiss, Mama," Sawyer said, wanting a kiss. Stephanie leaned forward and kissed his mouth and he smacked again loudly. "Tank."

"You're welcome," she told him. "Love you too." He smiled and she guessed she could deal with another one. What was one more anyways? It wasn't like she wasn't a mother already, so it wouldn't be something new. She'd just have another child to deal with, but Sawyer was great and she'd be blessed twice and well…a little girl would be great. She could imagine a girl with brown hair and Chris's eyes and her demeanor…okay, maybe Chris's demeanor.

"He was good for the most part," Christian said. "He was picking up worms and he wouldn't put them down."

"Eww, Sawyer," Stephanie said, making a face. "You don't pick up worms, that's disgusting. Chris, tell him that's disgusting."

"Kid, that's disgusting," Chris told him, trying to act stern, but Sawyer gave him a smile and he just rolled his eyes at him. Sawyer leaned in and kissed him too and Chris shook his head. "So, you two are hanging around tonight, right?"

Chris gave a pointed look to Christian and he glared dirtily at Chris. Chris had been heckling him to go after Trish for the past week and it was to the point where Chris was going to get a nice shiner. It didn't help when he got Stephanie in on the action and he had the two of them trying to tell him what was best with his life. He just didn't want to ruin the rapport they had, and surely, surely Trish didn't want him anymore. There had just been too much rejection between them.

"Yeah, we're hanging around," Trish answered. "Got nothing better to do in Austin."

"So," Stephanie said, biting her lip as she looked at Chris. He smiled at her as Sawyer played with Chris's necklace. "I'm pregnant."

Trish and Christian blinked, but it was Trish who spoke first, "Wait, so Chris was right? You're going to have another baby?"

"Yeah, I'm almost positive," she said. "I have an appointment in a few days and we'll see what's what in there. But yeah, I'm pretty positive that I'm going to have another baby, so…yeah."

"Congratulations?" Trish said, confused as to how to react. If they weren't happy, she felt weird being happy.

"Yes, we're very happy about it," Stephanie said. "I mean, you know, once we get over the shock, we'll be very, very happy."

"Then…oh my God!" Trish said, going over and hugging Stephanie. "I can't believe you're having another baby!"

"Baby?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah, another baby," Chris told him. "But enough with the congratulations, some of us have work to do."

"I have to go meet with my dad, so I have to get going," Stephanie said. "Once I pick up some files. I'll see you later, baby, please remember that you have the second show of the night."

"I'll see you before then."

"I know, but with the kid, you have to get dressed in your ring outfit soon, the show starts in a little while, half an hour I think."

Chris looked at his watch. "Yeah, about that."

"Okay, see you later," Stephanie said, kissing his cheek and then kissing Sawyer on the cheek. "Thanks again for the congratulations, guys."

Stephanie walked off and Christian looked at Chris, "Again, man?"

"What can I say, I'm a baby-making machine," Chris laughed.

Stephanie walked into her father's office where he was flexing in the mirror. "Dad."

"Stephanie, hello," Vince said, turning to her. "Just getting ready for my match."

"Dad, do you really think this is a good idea?" Stephanie asked. "I mean, come on, don't you think that you're starting to act stupid. I think that you're just punishing this kid because you don't like him, not because he's your son or…whatever. You still don't even know if he _is_ your son."

"You saw what he did to me last week!" Vince exclaimed. "He bit me!"

"Well, no, I wasn't exactly watching because there was stuff there that, as your daughter, I just don't need to see," she shuddered. "But you're being a little ridiculous. I don't know why you feel the need to take everything out on your children, not very good behavior there, Dad. I mean, you don't see me making Sawyer do paperwork."

"He's a toddler, he can't," Vince dismissed that immediately.

"Yeah, but I wouldn't make him do something stupid as an adult. Dad, I really think that you should cut Hornswoggle some slack. I mean, I've sat back and watched you try to decimate him week in and week out, but it's getting ridiculous now."

"Stephanie, I do not tell you how to discipline your child, nor do I tell Shane how to discipline his sons. So I will treat my own children the way that I want to be treated, now what is it that you wanted?"

"I was just going to give you the finalized schedule for Sunday, and tell you that you're definitely on the first match, oh, and I'm pregnant, so you know, there's that," Stephanie said quickly.

"You're…what?"

"I'm pregnant again," Stephanie said matter-of-factly, "so I'm going to have to take time off in August, but Chris and I are discussing getting a bus of some sort so that I can travel after I give birth for those first six weeks."

"You're having another baby?" Vince asked, giving her the once over.

"Yeah, that's right," Stephanie said.

"Oh, Princess, that's wonderful."

She laughed and blushed a little bit, "Thanks, Dad. You can tell Mom if you want, or I'll give her a call tomorrow, just thought that you should know."

"Not much fanfare this time?"

"Well, it's our second," she shrugged. "So I don't think there should be as much."

"I'm happy for you, are you happy?"

She thought about that question for a moment. She wasn't scared, she found. She was still shocked, and she was still upset that she had to go away again. She was upset that this wasn't what she planned, that her kids never seemed to come when she planned them, but she wasn't scared about it. Sawyer would have someone to play with and she could see him being fascinated by a baby. If it was a little girl, he would be the overprotective big brother like Shane was to her, and if it was a little boy, well, she could just imagine them wrestling around growing up.

She and Chris were set. He was back where he belonged and they were happier than they had ever been. They still fought, but it was nothing serious. They usually fought over the little stuff. They had fought last week over Sawyer's finger, but that turned out not to be such a big deal, though she did still hate seeing her little boy's finger in a splint. This was something that she could look forward to and be happy about.

"Yeah, Daddy, I am happy," she said, finding that she was grinning from ear-to-ear. Vince came over and gave her a hug and she returned it amicably.

"Congratulations, and those are extended to Chris as well."

"I'll tell him, I better go, Dad, the show is starting. Dad, just…I mean, don't make a fool out of yourself, okay? I mean, you're still my father and I still have to be your daughter and when you embarrass me, it's not good."

"Stephanie, I'm still your father."

"So you say, but you don't have to be the one who has to apologize for your actions," Stephanie said. With that, she left and went back to her office. She walked inside and saw Chris sitting at her desk with a couple of people. It was funny seeing him be so serious when he was dressed in his ring tights and t-shirt. She looked around for Sawyer and saw him sitting quietly on his blanket, playing with some of his train toys.

"Oh hey, this is my wife, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho," Chris said as Stephanie came over and reached down to shake hands with the man and the woman. She then went and sat down gingerly on the arm of Chris's chair, trying not to lose her balance and topple over. "Steph, this is Paul and Katie Lea."

"Hi, I think we've met briefly, you've been doing a few dark matches for us, right?"

"Yeah," Katie said. "We're glad to make our debut."

"Cool, cool," Stephanie said as she smiled at them.

"So you guys pretty much know what's going on since you've been around here. You guys probably won't have your own locker room, so you'll have to share--"

"We don't mind sharing with one another."

"Oh, well, that's not what I meant, but I…no, that's not what I meant, anyways, I think that you have the third match for the evening, so that'll come up, I'd say around the 40 minute mark in the show. It's better if you're just ready for it before it happens."

"Like my husband here," Stephanie said cheekily.

"Oh, don't worry, I make sure that Paul is always dressed and ready," Katie said. Stephanie furrowed her brow.

"Okay."

"Whatever Katie wants," Paul said.

"Yeah, uh, so that's about it, you're free to go," Chris said. The two of them left and Chris looked up at Stephanie, who was looking down at him. "Yeah, I don't even know."

"So they were creepy to you too?"

"Yeah, you didn't watch them come in here, weirdos," Chris said. "Where do you guys find these people? The insane asylum?"

"Wouldn't that mean that you came from the insane asylum since as I seem to recall, you were once just a lowly wrestler who didn't know his way around, but you were awfully cocky for a newcomer."

"I'd been around, baby, just like you've been around a block or two in your time."

"Wow, and I thought you were supposed to revere pregnant women, boy, was I wrong," Stephanie sighed.

"Well, you're different, you're Stephanie, and well, you know."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, filthy, dirty disgusting, blah, blah, blah," she said, sticking her tongue as he pulled her into his lap. She kissed him lightly. "I love you. I'm happy that I'm going to be having your baby, just so you know. I may not have wanted it right now, but I want it."

"I know, I'm happy too, we can do this," he said, flopping his hand over like it was nothing. "We're pros. I mean, look at that kid over there, he's happy, healthy, all that good stuff…if you ignore the fact that his finger is in a splint."

"Because he was in a wrestling ring," Stephanie said, narrowing her eyes at Chris. He darted his eyes around the room as if looking for the nearest exit.

"I still contend that it was his fault for running around."

Trish laughed and dipped her fry into the ketchup sitting in front of her. "I can't believe they're really going to have another baby. That's crazy."

"I know, wow, now I_am_ going to get double baby-sitting duty. I guess this is what I get for having absolutely no life," Christian said with an exaggerated sigh as he plopped his chin down onto the palm of his hand. "I should just let them hire me as their nanny."

Trish giggled, then her eyes lit up, "Jeff! Over here!"

"Trish," Jeff said, the name falling from his lips so naturally. He pulled up chair and leaned down to kiss her cheek as he sat backwards. "Hey, Christian, what's up, man?"

"Nothing," Christian said, his teeth gritted a little bit as he saw Trish's ex-boyfriend.

"What are you doing here, Trish?" Jeff drawled, smiling at her. "I didn't expect to see you again this week."

"Well, I hung around, what better do I have to do?" she asked. "I'm retired now and it's a little boring staying up in Canada with little to nothing to do sometimes. So I come around here and hang out without the hassle of having to fight."

"You should stay, I have the main event tonight, we can go out afterwards and maybe grab a bite to eat and maybe a drink or something," he told her.

"I would really love that," she said. "I will definitely stay and watch your match."

"Great, awesome," he nodded. "I've missed you, you know."

"Oh Jeff, you flatter me too much," she said, batting her eyelashes comically as she slapped him in the arm lightly.

"Only cause you're beautiful," he winked. "I better get to working up for my match though, I want to make sure I tear the roof down tonight."

"You always seem to manage."

"I do, don't I?" he said, trying to sound cocky, but it wasn't really in Jeff's nature to sound cocky. He kissed Trish on the cheek again and then left.

Trish smiled at his retreating form and she turned to Christian, "What?"

"What?" he parroted.

"Why are you giving me that look?"

"He just asked you out on a date," Christian said.

Trish guffawed, "No, he didn't."

"Yes, he did."

"What? That was just a friend asking a friend out for dinner. He probably just wants to catch up and everything. We haven't talked in a while and he probably just wants to see how life is treating me. Don't blow this out of proportion, Christian."

"I'm not, I'm just calling it like I see it."

"Then so what if he is? I'm single, he's single, there's nothing wrong with it."

That stuck in Christian's craw. He looked at her and she just looked so unaffected and he knew then that she just didn't see it. He looked down at his half-eaten dinner and realized that he had just lost his appetite. He pushed himself away from the table and walked away. Tiffany was wrong, Chris was wrong, Stephanie was wrong, Edge was wrong. They were all wrong, every single one of them. They had no clue what they were talking about.

Trish was stunned to see Christian leave so abruptly. Still, he _had_ been acting strangely over the past week, but that probably had to do with his break-up with Tiffany. She knew that he missed her, and he was probably trying to get over her so his temper would be short. She sighed as she sat there alone. She wondered if Christian had ever missed her that much. Maybe he hadn't, maybe he had just wanted to get rid of her.

She got up herself, clearing up the plates in front of her and she started to wander around, finding herself gravitating to where Stephanie was sitting and working on the show. Sawyer was in her lap and he was showing her his splint again. She nodded along to his babblings about what was on his hand. She leaned her chin on his forehead as she reached out to push something on her soundboard. Sawyer reached out to touch it too, and she let him push it with her.

"So Christian was acting all weird," Trish said as she sat down next to Stephanie.

"Are you sure he wasn't just acting like Christian?" Stephanie wondered.

"No, he was pissed that I was going to go out with Jeff after the show."

"A date?"

"I don't know," Trish answered. "He just said going to grab a bite and a drink, very casually. It didn't seem like a date, but maybe it was. It wouldn't be terrible going out with Jeff again. He's a really sweet guy, he always treated me nicely."

"Christian's jealous, Trish."

"What? You're nuts."

"Oh, come on, seriously, do Chris and I have to lock you in a room together? You guys are starting to get a bit redundant here, so why don't you just get together again and save us all the trouble, huh? I want you guys to get married either before I'm as big as a house again or after I've had the baby, so please, can you do that?"

"He's not over Tiffany."

"I have it on good authority that Tiffany and him left on good terms so there's no hard feelings or anything. He'll get over her and when he does…if he isn't already, which I think he is, for the most part, because he wants _you_."

"Shut up," Trish said. "Focus on your husband, he's right there."

"Oh, hey, sweetie," Stephanie said, smiling up at him. "Hey, when are we going to tell your parents? I figure that your mother will want to hear it in person so she can go crazy with happiness and talk about how she's catching up to her friends, so should we plan a short trip up there?"

"Could we?"

"Yeah, sure, they'd like that," she told him. "Now go out there and win."

Chris was distracted during his match. He felt like he did that night when he had found out that Stephanie had been pregnant with Sawyer. It was different this time though. He had no plans to leave and he was going to be here the next week to kick ass and then the next week after that and so forth and so on. He would just have to do it with a jubilant heart. Truly, now, things were falling into place perfectly for him. He was back at the job that he loved and had reignited the passion for this job. He had a great son, hot wife, and another kid on the way. He was pretty much on top of the world.

He went out there to the cheers of the crowd and they propelled him in his match. It was a slow match because JBL couldn't possibly keep up with him. JBL was a lumbering fool and Chris was quick like a cat. He darted and shifted around. JBL just kind of stomped around and it was frustrating trying to have a good match with him when he wanted to wrestle one way and this jackass wanted to wrestle another way. He was pissed off when he got hit in the eye. It stung a lot and he grabbed it as he held onto the ropes. This jackass was trying to beat him with an eye poke? Chris was pissed off about that and they continued to brawl with each other.

JBL was one of the worst opponents he had ever had. All he could do was try and kick him with his stupid boot or try to clothesline him and it was pathetic. Chris was eventually able to get away from that clothesline and hit The Code-breaker on JBL for the clean win. He was happy with his win until Umaga of all people came and attacked him. He lay prone on the mat for a while before heading backstage, a little beaten up, but with a wincing smile on his face.

"Nice win," Stephanie said as she handed over a sleepy Sawyer into his care. Chris grabbed a towel first and wiped himself off before slipping on the t-shirt that he had given Stephanie before he made his entrance. Then he took Sawyer in his arms as the little boy nuzzled against Chris's neck, not caring if he smelled or not. He was tired and wanted to go to bed. "I can't believe we're having another one of those."

"Me neither," Chris said as he rubbed Sawyer's back up and down as he smugly smiled when JBL walked by, all defeated. "So did Sawyer enjoy me?"

"Well…"

"Oh, thanks, kid, you don't even like your old man."

"He liked you," Stephanie said. "So Jeff asked out Trish."

"What!"

"I know and Christian was jealous and Trish thinks that Christian isn't over Tiffany and doesn't want her."

"Man, what the hell goes on during my matches."

"So much good stuff," Stephanie giggled.

"Apparently, next thing you know you're going to tell me you got pregnant during one of my matches."

"I hate to say it…"

"So we're really doing this?" Chris asked redundantly.

"Well, take two."


	169. 5 Day Span, February 18, 2008

"So yeah, you're just about 11 weeks."

"Wow, 11, huh?" Stephanie asked as she toyed with her wedding ring.

"Yes, and I'm very disappointed that you didn't come in sooner," Dr. Sheldon said good-naturedly. "I would've liked to have checked you around nine weeks, but as it is, everything looks to be perfectly normal. I checked your levels and everything and they're going up and the blood-work looks great. I'd say that you're eleven weeks along into a very healthy pregnancy so far. The ultrasound looked good as I told you, and I'd set your due date at…August 31st."

Stephanie laughed. "And Sawyer was born at the beginning of May, they like new months for some reason."

Dr. Sheldon laughed, "Well, you two are old pros now, so you know the drill, I'll make out a list of prenatal vitamins that you should be taking and you know the rest, right?"

"Yeah," Stephanie nodded, "next time, we'll bring Sawyer here and he can listen to the heartbeat and everything. He'll have no clue what it is, but I think that he'll enjoy it. Have you seen him since he was born?"

"I don't think I've seen him since your six-week check-up actually," Dr. Sheldon said. "How's he doing?"

"Well, he broke his finger a couple of weeks ago so it's in a splint. He was running around and just tripped and fell. Other than that, he's perfect. He's talking and he loves to run around, he's great."

"That's a fun age," she said. "Okay, so I don't think there's anything else that we need to go over, do you guys have any questions or anything right now?"

"I think we're good, right, Chris?" Stephanie asked, looking over at her husband. He looked a little flustered by the entire thing, which she found amusing. He looked up at her, kind of in a daze.

"No, no questions," Chris said. "I'm just glad that everything seems to be going well."

"Yeah, she looks great," Dr. Sheldon said. "Okay, so I'll just leave the prescription with the nurse and we'll schedule your next appointment."

"Great, thanks, Eleanor."

"Bye, you guys, and again, congratulations."

Stephanie looked to Chris once the doctor had left. She gathered up her clothes as she took off the gross paper gown that she was forced to wear. "So what did you think?"

"I think we're having another kid," Chris said, chuckling as he shook his head. "I mean, I knew we were, but it was still something that had to be confirmed, you know, and now you're actually, honest-to-goodness, confirmed pregnant. You have another kid, we're going to have another baby."

"Sweetie, you knew this was a distinct possibility coming into today," she joked.

"But it's real now, I heard my kid's heartbeat," Chris said, biting his bottom lip in a smile. "I heard my kid's heartbeat, I saw him on the screen!"

"We're going with him again?" she asked, arching an eyebrow at him.

"I don't know, it just feels more natural, but we can call it a her if you want," he said as she buttoned up her last button. "Come on, we have to get Sawyer from Christian's house and then head for the airport if we want to make out flight to Canada."

"I'm coming, I'm coming," Stephanie said as Chris grabbed her hand. They walked out into the small hallway and up to the reception area. Stephanie scheduled her next appointment, making sure that it was day that Chris could be there if he wanted to be there. She also got the prescription for her prenatal vitamins and took them gratefully. There was a small pharmacy that worked in coordination with the doctors in this particular building of doctors so Stephanie went there to get her prenatal vitamins so she would have them over the weekend when she was at Ted and Loretta's house and then when they went to Las Vegas for No Way Out.

"So that was pretty damn cool," Chris said on the car to Christian's. "I can't believe we get another one of those so soon."

"I know," Stephanie said, pressing her hand against her abdomen lightly. "It's just really strange, right?"

"Incredibly so. I don't know, we weren't expecting it, were _you_ expecting it?" he asked in passing.

"Are you kidding me? You think I would _plan_ this right now? No way. Although I guess the timing is good. I'm not due until the summer, I can probably still make SummerSlam and there really isn't anything too big in the summertime. September and October have minor shows, then by November, it'll be fine because the kid will be about two and a half months and Sawyer will be two, so yeah, it should work out."

"I love that you think about work at a time like this," he said, laughing a little to himself.

"Well, what do you expect?" she wondered. "Of course I'm going to think about work, I mean, next to you, Sawyer, and this little one, it's the most important thing in the world to me. Of course I'm going to think about it. Sawyer's pregnancy went very well, I'm hoping this one does too and that I'm allowed to travel that far into my pregnancy again."

He shook his head, "You're nuts, McMahon."

"You're nuts too," she countered.

"I never claimed not to be."

She laughed and looked out the window. Chris would look over at her every now and again and he'd smile as he watched her watch the passing scenery. Her right hand was resting lightly against her stomach and she looked really calm. He knew though that her mind was racing thinking about what was going to happen to them in the very near future. They only had a scant amount of time before they'd be welcoming another person into their family. Granted it wasn't as scary as having that first child, this was still scary in its own way.

He was lucky though. There were people in this world who didn't get to have children and here he was getting his second on in the span of two years. It was funny to think about he and Stephanie had planned on not having any right now. Stephanie wanted to wait a few years into their marriage to have children, and he had been on board with that. It was just funny the way things turned out for the two of them.

He thought she looked beautiful right now and he had to resist the urge to take his eyes off the road completely and just stare at her. He had never expected that he and Stephanie would be perfect. He remembered when he had hated everything about her, from the way she wore her hair, to the clothes she liked, to the demeanor that was set permanently to bitch. Now they were having another child together. He shook his head a little as he turned into Christian's driveway.

They got out of the car and went to the front door, ringing on the doorbell. It took a few minutes, but the door eventually opened to Christian and Sawyer, who was holding onto his leg. "Hey, you guys, how did the appointment go?"

"I'm eleven weeks along," Stephanie told him.

"Wow, seriously, that's pretty far along," Christian said. "That's pretty cool though."

"Yeah," Chris said. "Was the kid good for you?"

"When is he ever good for me, of course he wasn't good for me. We spent most of the time running around and the only time that he wasn't running around was when he was eating lunch, and every time I looked away I got the distinct feeling that he was going to throw his food at me."

"Sawyer," Stephanie said, trying to act stern, but being very playful about it. She picked him up and he hugged her around the neck as he held on. "You ready to go see Grandma and Grandpa in Canada?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said.

"I got his diaper bag ready," Christian said, grabbing it from next to the door and handing it off to Chris. "I know that you guys wanted to go straight to the airport."

"Thanks, Christian," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, he's rushing us out of here, makes me think that he has Trish up in his bedroom or something and he's afraid that she's going to come down the stairs at any minute and we're going to catch them and tell them that we told them so," Chris said to his wife.

Christian folded his arms and glared at him. "She's not here. She's back in Canada, I'll have you know. I didn't invite her to stay at my house. I think that would be a little too forward right now."

"How many times have you seen her naked?" Chris asked. "I hardly think that's too forward if she was asked to stay at your house."

"Trish and I haven't been together for a very long time."

"And how much do you want to change that?" Chris asked.

"I don't!" he protested. "I'm friends with her. Things never work out between us, that's just how it is, and I get it now. I don't necessarily like it, but I get it. Look, you guys, I appreciate that you have this insane need to see me and Trish together, but if it's going to happen, just let it happen naturally and don't push me into anything that I don't want to do and Trish doesn't want to hear."

"I just think that you're both wasting time," Chris said. "Don't you agree, baby?"

"I do," Stephanie agreed. "Christian, what are you waiting for? You've always wanted to marry Trish and you've always wanted to have a family with her. If you guys are ever going to have that, get moving!"

"Look…"

"No, no, no look," Stephanie said, stepping up to Christian. She looked a little menacing actually. Her eyes were ablaze and though she had her toddler in her arms, there was something almost vicious in her gaze. "Stop it, Christian. Just stop it. Stop being afraid and stop wussing out. Trish is not going to wait forever. You two keep dancing this same dance and it's enough already. Chris and I got our acts together a long time ago. We're better for it, we're happy. You're not happy, you're just not and you're not going to be if you keep moping and stalling. Stop being this stupid wuss and go get her!"

"Wow," Christian said as he stared at Stephanie. Chris looked a little scared of her too. Though she had not sworn in that entire spiel, he still got the distinct feeling that she was on the verge of a profanity-laced tirade. "Um…"

"Get off your ass and do something about it!" Stephanie yelled at him, startling Sawyer, who looked at Stephanie like she had two heads. She took a deep breath and bit her lip. "Sorry, that was probably hormones."

Chris snorted, "Yeah, right."

"I'll take what you said into consideration," Christian relented. Stephanie smiled and patted him on the arm with her free hand. She knew that Christian probably wouldn't take her advice, but it was out there. He was stubborn though. Chris hefted Sawyer's diaper bag and waved as they headed out. Christian leaned in the doorway as he watched them go. A perfect, little family. Sawyer looked back at him and Christian waved goodbye to him. Sawyer waved back at him until they got in the car. He closed the door and thought about calling Trish, but instead went to grab a beer.

"He's asleep," Stephanie said as they made their way to Chris's parent's house later that evening. Sawyer hadn't been able to sleep on the plane, so the moment that he got into the car he was out like a light. It was already six o'clock and around dinnertime, but they weren't going to stop and eat. They were just going to head to Ted and Loretta's house.

"Great, he's going to be up all night then, he's going to climb into our bed and bug us."

"He's going to spend the night in our room anyways, you know that he doesn't really know your parent's house and gets scared if he's not in the room with us."

"That kid is so weird," Chris replied. "He can sleep in a hotel room in a completely separate room and it's not a problem, but you put him at our parent's houses and he's like this complete nutcase. I blame you."

"Oh yes, everything bad about Sawyer is _my_ fault, but all the good is all you."

"You're a McMahon."

"Being a McMahon is not conducive to bad behavior," Stephanie argued. Chris just looked at her and raised an eyebrow. "What? It's not, you've behaved badly in your life too. I mean, you've done some bad things. You hit Stacy with that chair one time."

"That was an accident."

"You put me in the Walls."

"I went easy on you."

"Whatever, he's bad because of you too, that's all I'm saying. I hope that I'm having a girl just so she'll end up like me and show you up."

"Great, thanks," Chris said, but with a smile on his face. She slapped him in the shoulder as they kept driving. "I wouldn't mind having a little girl though. She'd be cute, I bet. I mean, look at that strapping young gentleman in the back-seat. I think we'd have a beautiful daughter."

"I think so too," Stephanie said. "But you want a daughter so that you can have a Daddy's Girl, like I was with my father. You want someone to dote on and follow you around and look up to you."

"That'd be nice," he shrugged. "I don't care either way. But you know, we have a boy, so I think it's natural to want a girl now so we can have one of each."

"Yeah, I agree, I kind of want a girl too," she said.

"You just want to dress her up…oh my God, would that mean my daughter would become a diva? Uh uh, okay, no, I'm no longer on board with this whole daughter thing," Chris said, shaking his head. "There's no way in hell I'm letting my daughter ever go out in clothes like the divas wear. No way. Oh my God, we own the company, I'm going to have to watch guys ogle my daughter!"

"Chris, calm down, we don't even know that it is a daughter yet, we could have another boy," she said, rubbing his arm.

"Yeah, but if it's a girl…oh…it's going to be Hunter all over again. She's going to marry someone to spite me, I can feel it."

"She won't be my clone!"

"Sawyer looks like me."

"So? It's not like he's going to be you exactly…he'll be better than you."

"Whatever," he said, making a noise of disgust. "Guys are going…Playboy, no, there's no freaking way my daughter would ever pose for that magazine."

"Okay, we're getting _way_ ahead of ourselves here, we haven't even told everyone yet. We haven't even told your parents. It's a real pregnancy, yes," Stephanie said. "But we don't know what it is, Chris. Maybe we should call it a he so that you don't freak for the next nine months."

"I'm still going to think about it."

"Drop it for now, we're here," she said as Chris pulled into their driveway. "You go ahead and go in, I'll get Sawyer. Stop thinking about the far, far, far future."

"I'll try," he said, but stared hard at Stephanie's stomach.

"Staring at my stomach won't make it a boy," Stephanie said as she went around to the other side of the car where Sawyer had been sitting.

Chris sighed and turned to walk up the long walkway to his parent's porch. He got up there and rang the doorbell, turning around and watching for Stephanie and Sawyer. Sawyer was still asleep so he imagined that Stephanie would have to wake him up and then put his coat on and then let him come out of his sleepy haze and then he'd come barreling up towards the steps to his parent's house. He heard the door open a second later and turned around to look at his mom.

"Hey, Mom," Chris exclaimed, smiling cheesily.

"Christopher, what are you doing here?" she asked in surprise.

"Can't a son come see his mother?"

"Where are Stephanie and Sawyer?"

"Why do you automatically assume that they're here?" he asked. "I thought that I could come to visit whenever I wanted. I'm your son, I thought that I was allowed to come visit my parents on a whim."

"A whim?" Loretta asked. "You have a big match on Sunday. What did you do?"

"What!"

"You must've done something. Are you fighting with Stephanie, is that it? That's it, isn't it? Did she kick you out! What did you do?" Loretta asked accusingly, poking him in the chest.

"What?" Chris scoffed. "Mom! I can't believe that you're accusing me of fighting with Stephanie. If she kicked me out, do you really think I'd come to you, I mean, we have three houses."

"Yes, but if she left you, or kicked you out, she could've kicked you out of all your houses," she said, eyeing him suspiciously. "Why are you here? Christopher, you better not tell me that you did something to hurt her, I swear to God."

"Mom, come on! And who's to say that _she_ didn't do anything to _me_? I mean, she did used to hate me, remember? I'm sure that she could've done something to me. Maybe she did something to me and I left her, did you ever think of that?" he asked, insulted that his mother would think that he would be the one left behind by Stephanie and not the one doing the leaving behind. He could leave Stephanie just as easily as she could leave him.

"I don't think so," she said. "I want to know what you did, Christopher? You don't just come here, days before a big show, _without_ your wife and your son. There's a reason that you came here and didn't bring them. What is it? What happened?"

Meanwhile, Stephanie was setting Sawyer down on the ground. It had taken a little prodding, but he had finally gotten up. He yawned and hit Stephanie in the face with his hand when he stretched. She gave him a dirty look as he giggled, then shivered at the intense cold. The weather was below freezing, way below it and the roads had been dangerous and so had the flight in. She grabbed Sawyer's jacket and pulled him out of the car and set him down. His teeth were chattering in an instant.

"I know, baby, let's get your coat on," she said. Sawyer held his arms aloft and she put his coat on his small form, turning him around so that she could get the buttons on his thick coat. When she was through, she gave him a big hug, rubbing his back to make him warm and she wiggled in her arms playfully. "Warmer, now?"

"Uh huh," he said and gave her a kiss.

"Oh, thank you."

"W'come."

"I just don't understand why you would come alone," Loretta said. "Something's wrong."

Sawyer toddled over to the walkway and turned and his eyes lit up when he saw Chris and his grandma. He squealed in delight and started to run as fast as he could up the walkway. Stephanie followed closely behind making sure that Sawyer didn't fall. Loretta smiled when she saw her grandbaby trying to run towards her and then glared at Chris.

"You're horrible," she told her son.

"See, now you're just being mean," Chris said.

"Making me think that they weren't here."

"Well, you had to go and assume," he said.

Sawyer got up to the steps and started stomping towards his grandma, "Grrr, wion!" Sawyer said, walking towards her.

"He sometimes thinks he's a lion," Chris said.

Loretta scooped up the little boy. "Get inside this house right now. It's bitterly cold out there and I don't want my little baby to freeze to death." She went inside the house and Chris and Stephanie followed, closing the door behind them and reveling in the warmth of the house after standing out in the freezing temperatures.

Chris helped Stephanie with her coat as Loretta took off Sawyer's coat for him. "Where's Dad?" Chris asked.

"Oh you know, he's out tonight with some friends who came in from Boston I think it was, used to play with them when he was on the Bruins," Loretta said. "So it was just going to be me, but this is such a pleasant surprise. Why did you come? You have No Way Out on Sunday."

"Well, we thought that we'd come visit," Stephanie said. "We didn't want to go to Vegas early since we have Sawyer. If it were just us, we'd go and gamble and whatever, see a show, but with Sawyer, we're limited so we just decided to come visit you instead. I think Sawyer got used to having you around and he liked it."

"Is that an invitation to move down to Florida?" Loretta asked jokingly.

Chris snorted, "No."

"You can move down there if you want," Stephanie shrugged, earning a look from Chris. "I mean, I wouldn't want to live up here. It's freezing out there, how can you even stand it? It got cold in Connecticut growing up, but not _this_ cold, it's almost unbearable."

"You get used to it," she said. "I wasn't expecting you for dinner so I only bought enough for me."

"Oh, that's okay, I'm sure we'll find something," Stephanie said.

"Nonsense, I do have a lasagna in the freezer. We were going to have that later on this week, but since you're here, I'll heat it up. I think we have some French bread too so I can make some garlic bread, how does that sound?"

"Delicious," Stephanie said, already feeling her stomach growling. Her appetite had certainly increased since her pregnancy, even if she didn't want to admit it. She knew that someone would notice the weight gain.

"Great, I'll go put it in," she said as she disappeared into the kitchen.

"I was hoping we could tell them together," Chris said.

"We could wait."

"When my dad is out with old hockey buddies, we'll be waiting a while. It's only six, he won't be back until at least eleven."

"Maybe your mom can call him."

"Nah, it's okay, we can tell him later when he gets home and we're here until Saturday, so he'll see us tomorrow and then Saturday. I know he'll want to see the kid, but we've got time. We're staying, right?"

"Yeah, you have to get our bags out of the car," Stephanie said.

"I'll do it later, I don't want to go out there right now."

"It's only going to get colder."

"You're right, I'll go right now."

"Good boy," Stephanie said. Chris groaned and got up, grabbing his coat again and putting it on, not even wanting to venture out there in this cold without five layers of protection. He opened the door and rushed out as Loretta came back in from the kitchen.

"Where's Chris?"

"He went to get our things before it gets so cold that he doesn't want to go out there," Stephanie explained.

"Oh, yes, it's been horrible here," Loretta said. "Having you three visit is such a nice surprise though. I wasn't expecting you to show up, I wish that I could've gotten things straightened up before you got here though."

"It's okay, Loretta, your house is always nice and homey."

Chris came back in and slammed the door behind him. He shivered and set the bags near the front door. He took off his coat again and ran for Stephanie, hugging her tightly and trying to sap some of her warmth. She pushed him off of her and grabbed his hands, rubbing it between hers. "Damn, it is cold outside. Maybe you should move, Mom, because I can't even stand this anymore."

"Well, you live in Florida now and I don't think it gets like this down there," Loretta told him.

"I know, maybe you should move to Arizona or something."

"Or you can take our house in California, it's just sitting there now. Chris and I are thinking about just renting it out," Stephanie said. "We just don't spend enough time out there, and he bought it for the stupidest of reasons."

"It was your birthday!"

"That's not why you bought it. You bought it because you wanted me to have another house because I was pregnant with Sawyer and you thought that I would want a house in California because we could stop there."

"It was with good intentions."

"Well, I won't argue with that," Stephanie said.

"Gamma, toy," Sawyer said, looking around.

"Oh, baby, do you want your toys?" Stephanie asked. Sawyer nodded eagerly and Stephanie got up and went to his bag that had all his toys inside. She brought it over to him and he immediately started digging through it, putting all his toys on the ground until he got to his cars.

"Cars, Gamma," he said, showing them to her. Loretta sat on the floor with him and took some of his cars that he handed off to her and she played with him on the floor. Sawyer giggled as he made his own car ram into hers.

"Are you nervous about Sunday?" Loretta asked. "It's been a long time since you've been in one of those matches."

"I think I'm more nervous," Stephanie laughed. "I hate those matches. The last time…that one time when he got slammed through the chamber, I thought I was going to have a heart attack."

"I'll be fine, don't worry about me," Chris said. "I've been in three of these matches before, I know what it entails, plus it'll give me the opportunity to shove JBL into some chains, and of course get my hands on that asshole, Hunter."

Stephanie laughed, "Why do I see you and him actually working together?"

"Every man for himself!"

"I don't want you to be distracted though, I'm worried that you're going to be distracted," Stephanie said, giving him a pointed look. Chris had never had to wrestle more than a couple matches knowing that she was pregnant. One was last week, and he had been just a tiny bit distracted, and the other had been after she had found out she was pregnant with Sawyer, and he was definitely distracted during that match and had lost the title. She didn't want him to lose the opportunity to get to the main event at WrestleMania.

She was afraid that all he'd be able to think about was the fact that she was having his baby. "I won't be distracted, don't worry about me," he said to her. She gave him a weary look, but he just smiled at her and went back to watching his mother playing with their son.

"So what were you two planning on doing tomorrow?" Loretta asked, looking over at them. "Because if you're not doing anything with Sawyer, I'd love to bring him with me. I was going to go visit your Aunt Meg, and I know she'd love to see him. She has only seen pictures."

"Aunt Meg is here?"

"Didn't I tell you, she and your uncle moved here because your cousin is living here. They wanted to be closer to your cousin so they moved here. They've had the house for a while, but they just moved in a couple of weeks ago. It's so good to have her around again."

"You met my aunt at our wedding," Chris told her.

"Oh okay, I think I remember her," Stephanie said, vaguely remembering someone that looked like Loretta and who seemed to be very familiar with.

"Yes, and she's never gotten to see Sawyer in person and I'd love to bring him along. She's always bragging about her grandchildren. Last time I saw her, would you believe that she brought out report cards! Report cards to show off her grandchildren's progress! Never mind the fact that it looks like Tad is failing out of school."

Stephanie laughed, "Sibling rivalry at its finest. Go ahead and take him, Loretta. He loves spending time with you anyways."

"Great," she said. "I'll have him in the flesh. I just love him so much, have I thanked you for him lately?"

"You're welcome, Mom," Chris said, glancing at Stephanie. She smirked and shrugged. If Chris wanted to tell his mom right now, she wasn't going to protest to that. It wasn't like they weren't going to tell her or anything. They wanted to tell them together, but it was fine either way. They had told Vince before Linda already.

"I just love him," Loretta said, pushing some of Sawyer's hair out of his face. He grinned up at her in thanks.

"But you'd want more?" Chris asked.

"Who wouldn't?" Loretta said. "It's not like I'm the one who has to raise them. You do. I would just be the grandparent, around to spoil them, but I don't have to have the task of raising them. It's really the best deal around. I think that's why parents have kids, so they can have grandkids someday that they can spoil but they don't have to raise them at all."

"Oh, so we get all the dirty work?"

"Payback for when you were younger," she said. "I wouldn't mind you two having more, I know you want to wait though and I can see that. I probably would've waited about ten years before I had another child. Just because Chris was such a handful. That's probably why I didn't have more children, I could only handle this one."

"No, no, I broke the mold, Mom, come on, you know that I broke the mold."

Stephanie laughed and shook her head, "I see what you mean. If Sawyer were any more like Chris, I think I would feel the same way and leave him an only child."

"You would not!" Chris said. "I was a great child, model child, everyone loved me, I was beloved, tell her, Mom, tell her that everyone adored me."

"We tolerated him," she joked. "I only put up with him because I knew someday he'd give me this." She hugged Sawyer and he hugged her back before pulling away to play with his cars again, making little vroom, vroom noises around as he crawled around the floor pushing his cars.

"Thanks, Mom, I can really feel the love," Chris said sullenly.

"I'm just happy I have a grandchild, I think that was in some doubt for a while there. You had to wait until you were thirty-six to have one didn't you? That's a long time to make someone wait. Of course, Sawyer is a doll."

"But you want more?"

"Well, I didn't say that, but it'd be nice."

"Okay, done," Chris said, waving his hands around like he had just completed some intricate magic trick.

Loretta looked at him in confusion, "What are you going on about?"

"What your goofball son and my goofball husband is trying to say, Loretta, is that I'm pregnant again, we're going to have another baby. I'm about eleven weeks along, and I'm due at the end of August."

"No!" Loretta said, her eyes widening and her jaw dropping a little bit. "No, you can't be!"

"She is, Mom," Chris said, grinning at his wife. "We're having another one."

"Oh my God!" Loretta said, startling Sawyer. She got up as Stephanie stood up and she hugged her daughter-in-law tightly. "I can't believe this. Why…oh my…this is wonderful news! Oh, you two!"

Stephanie laughed, "I know."

"Congratulations to the both of you, oh sweetie," Loretta said, hugging Chris this time. "Wait until your father finds out. Oh, this is going to be great. I'm ecstatic. I get another grandchild, I'm so excited."

"We thought you would be," Chris said. "We just wanted to come and visit and relay the news to you."

"Well thank you," she said, looking at Stephanie's stomach. "How have you been?"

"Other than the soreness, all I've really been is tired. There are some smells that make me nauseous, for some reason I can't eat salsa, it disgusts me, but other than that, no morning sickness this time around, I've just been tired. It's been a lot easier than it was with Sawyer."

"Well, I hear the second one is usually easier. You're used to it," Loretta said, hugging Stephanie again. "Can I just say how happy I am for you two? Were you planning this one?"

"Nope, another little surprise," Stephanie explained.

"We're excited though," Chris said, looking at Stephanie.

"Yeah, we're excited."

--

"Yeah, so I thought Tomko was on my side, but he interfered and cost me the title, then I got jumped, can you believe that!"

"You act as if this has never happened to you before, you've been jumped plenty of times," Trish told him.

"Yeah, but it's never fun," he said. "I had a match and then I couldn't go out there for my match because I got jumped."

"Do you ever wish that you were back in WWE?"

"Sometimes," Christian admitted. "When I'm particularly lonely, you know. I mean, Kurt is there, but he's got his own problems, and we're always fighting anyways because I want the damn title. Did you see what happened with Karen and AJ?"

"Now, correct me if I'm wrong, Kurt and this Karen woman, they aren't really married, are they?"

"No, but I think they're dating, I see them together a lot."

"Oh."

"But yeah, I miss it when I'm lonely, the guys there are nice and everything, but you know, it's different when you're actually around friends that you care about and that care about you."

"I can see that."

"Are you sorry that you retired?"

"My body isn't sorry," Trish laughed, "but yeah, I miss it too. I should get a job backstage with them. I do have my gym that I'm opening of course, but that's…you know, it's a job, it's not a career."

"Well, you own it, so it's yours to run."

"I know, but still. I don't know, with Chris and Stephanie expecting another baby, I just kind of want to be around. I was around when she was pregnant with Sawyer, and I got to be there with them through it and I love that little boy. They're my best friends and it's weird not seeing them every week."

"You should move back down to Florida."

"No thanks," Trish said. "Knowing how I have lived, I'll go down there and then just move right back to Toronto."

"Could you see yourself ever moving back down here?" Christian asked. The phone went silent for a few moments and he could see her thinking from here, even though they were very far apart.

"Maybe…if the circumstances were good."

"Good, then maybe you can baby-sit for Chris and Stephanie and not me."

Trish laughed, "They don't make you baby-sit _all_ the time."

"No, they don't when I'm going out with them, then they get an actual baby-sitter."

"They just trust you more because you're a friend and they know that you'd take care of their baby…which will soon become babies. You'll have to take care of both of them. I can see the two of them just deciding that they want to go out and sticking you with two kids."

"Don't even jinx me like that!" Christian exclaimed, then suddenly, and rather randomly, said, "You should come with me to Impact sometime."

"The last time that happened it wasn't very good," she pointed out.

"But we're not even together," he said lightly, but he was also secretly trying to hear any reaction to that in her voice. He waited to see how she would respond to that.

"That's true," she said, and he thought he picked up the slightest tinge of regret and sadness over that, but he couldn't be too sure. "Why do you want me to come with you then? To curb your loneliness, cause that's kind of sad, Christian."

"So?" he guffawed. "Plus, I could kind of show you off, like, you know, I used to go out with this woman, yeah, that's right, she wanted to be with me, not with you, or you, and really not_ you_, she wanted me, oh, yes, she did."

Trish giggled, "Okay, then they're going to ask why the hell you're not with me." She sometimes wondered the same thing. He was single again and they had been talking and hanging out for a while now, even before Tiffany had left. She wondered if he thought about it too.

"Well, it's a very long, boring story, none of them have the attention spans for it so we're in the clear. Come on, you'd like it, I'd show you a good time, then you can come down to Florida and we can bug Chris and Stephanie."

"Christian, Stephanie is _pregnant_, do you think I want to get on her bad side? I mean, the girl is crazy when she's not pregnant, she's twice as crazy when she is. With the hormones and the emotions, and the whole 'not planning this pregnancy' thing and the fact that she feels like she just had Sawyer, come on, you think I'm going to taunt that tiger?"

"Okay, so we'll bug Chris…or Edge."

"Doesn't he spend all his time with Vickie anyways?" she asked.

Christian groaned, "Did you see SmackDown last night?"

"No, I didn't get a chance to, why?"

"He proposed to her."

Trish snorted, trying to hold in her laughter. "Your brother did _what_!"

"He proposed. On SmackDown, no less. He actually proposed to her and she said yes. Rey had something to say about it. Edge called me this morning to tell me that Vickie was alright and that they were going to get married."

"Your brother, your brother, _Edge_, is getting married?"

"So he says."

"No, no way," Trish said incredulously. "Your brother will sleep with any girl that comes along. Now he's going to commit to someone forever, someone with _kids_, she has kids, oh my God, what is your brother thinking? Wait, no, what is _Vickie_ thinking? There's just no way that Edge is going to be good for her."

Christian smiled, "I know, I agree, I told him he was just going to end up hurting her, but he wants to marry her, what can I do, right?"

"Are you going to be in it?"

"Hell no," Christian said. "I'm not going to take any part in this, I already told him."

"That's crazy. I mean, no, that's just crazy."

"I agree."

"So…" Trish said, not really having anything more to say.

"Yeah, so…do you have to go or something?"

"Oh, no, I don't really have to go or anything, I was just…I don't have anything else to say," she told him sheepishly. "I just…well, there's not much more to say is there."

There was _so_ much to say for both of them. The line went silent as all the words that needed to be spoken, but weren't being spoken floated through the line to the other end, unspoken and quiet. Christian wanted to take that leap, but figured she wouldn't, and Trish figured that Christian was not over Tiffany and wouldn't be receptive to anything she could possibly throw his way. He had wanted to marry Tiffany. He had never proposed to her like that.

"I guess I'll let you go," he said.

"Oh, yeah, okay."

"Yeah, well, uh…we'll talk, I'll bring you down here for Impact."

"Sounds good, bye, Chrissy," she slipped it in, not being able to help herself. Her breath didn't catch when she said it, she just let it flow into the conversation.

It made Christian smile widely. That was the first time she had called him Chrissy in a very long while and he loved it. "See ya, Trishy."

--

"Hey!" Britt exclaimed as she saw Hunter down the hallway. He turned at her voice and grinned as she quickly walked towards him. She wrapped her arms around him in a hug as he lifted her off the ground and hugged her tightly. "I missed you."

"I missed you too," he said. "Thank you so much for the flowers."

"It was my pleasure, I'm sorry that I couldn't be there."

"It's okay, my sister wanted only family anyways. Not that she wouldn't have welcomed you, just…you know."

"I know," she said, kissing him. "But I still missed you."

He ran his fingers through her jet-black hair and twisted his index finger around it. "So…I'm sorry we couldn't spend Valentine's Day together."

"So what?" Britt said. "You had familial obligations, and we see each other all the time, and it's okay, don't worry about it."

"I got you something, though."

"Oh, yeah?"

"Of course, didn't you get me anything?"

"The pleasure of my company?" she asked cheekily. "I got you tickets to a concert."

"You're not supposed to tell me!" he protested.

"I didn't tell you _who_," she pointed out, sticking her tongue out at him. He leaned in to get another kiss and she leaned up on her tiptoes to reach him. As they were kissing he reached into his duffel bag and pulled out a long blue box.

He pulled away and pulled it up to her eye-level. "Here, this is for you."

"Hunter!"

"Don't say I shouldn't have. I haven't really gotten to be with anyone on Valentine's Day for a good long while. I was either single or in the tail end of a relationship or too soon in a relationship. Stephanie hates Valentine's Day so we never celebrated it, and you and I have been going out for about six months now, though nobody knows that, which is good, so I wanted to get you something."

"Thank you," she said, leaning up to kiss his cheek as she opened the case and saw a beautiful necklace. It was a silver chain with a black, almost square-shaped pendant. "Oh, this is really beautiful."

"It's jade," he told her. "Do you really like it?"

"Yes, put it on me?" she asked.

"My pleasure," he told her as she turned around. He took the necklace and slipped it carefully around her neck, clasping it together as he took off the necklace she had been wearing and put it into the box and put it back in his bag to give to her later to bring home.

"How does it look?" she asked, turning around to face him.

"Looks beautiful," he told her.

"You guys sicken me."

Hunter turned to his friend, "Shut up, Shawn, you were the same way when you first got with Becca. Let me have my moment."

"Still, you two are so sweet," Shawn said with a laugh of mocking tone. "It _is_ better than you being with Stephanie though, so Britt, you've definitely got that seal of approval."

"I happen to like Stephanie, she's my friend," Britt said and Hunter smirked as he looked at her. She didn't often show this side of herself at work, but she definitely had a lot of spunk and Hunter really loved that about her. She had hazel eyes that popped against her dark hair.

"You should get new friends," Shawn said.

"Come on, man, Steph's not even around, don't go starting that crap," Hunter said.

"Fine, fine, whatever, anyways, Bec wanted me to invite you guys to dinner sometime this week. She'd love to meet you, Britt, since you're Hunter's girlfriend and she kind of likes to scope them out, don't ask me."

"She's a little protective of me," Hunter shrugged. "I don't know why, I think it's because she likes me better than her husband and she's secretly driving all of my girlfriends away while she secretly tries to work up her courage to leave Shawn for me."

"Nice, but yeah, come for dinner and a visit, it'd be cool."

"We'll see, man" Hunter said, slapping five with Shawn before he walked away.

"I don't like that guy," Britt said, claiming Hunter's hand in her own. "He thinks he's funny, but he's really not very funny."

Hunter laughed, "That's just Shawn, he's a good guy."

"Do I have to take your word on that?" she asked coyly. He nodded. She rolled her eyes, "Fine, as long as his wife is nice, is she nice?"

"Yeah, she's really nice, you'll like her, and that way, you can stay away from Shawn and you'll barely have to talk to him at all."

"I like the sound of _that_," she said, leaning in to him.

"Hey, Hunter!" Hunter looked to his left and saw Shane sauntering down the hallway. He came up on the two of them and nodded. "Have you seen my sister?"

"No, I haven't seen her tonight, I haven't even talked to her since last Monday actually," Hunter said. "But if I see her, you want me to tell her that you're looking for her?"

"Could you?"

"I don't think they're here yet," Britt piped up. "Usually they'd come find me or someone would alert me to their arrival so I can get to work so I don't think they're even here yet."

"Oh okay, I just wanted to talk to her about something."

"We'll let you know."

"Thanks," Shane said before walking away again.

"Well, he looks a bit crazy over something," Hunter said with a chuckle.

"I didn't think he'd be here."

"He just wanted to come to Vegas," Hunter laughed. "I wish we could've stayed a little longer, I would've taken you out and showed you a good time but we've got to go straight to Anaheim for the show tomorrow. How about I take you to Disneyland?"

Britt laughed loudly, "Okay, the image of you on _It's a Small World_, probably the funniest thing I've imagined in a very long time."

"Well, I wouldn't go on that, then," he told her, ruffling her hair a little bit. "I would just go on the more manly rides, you know, Matterhorn, Space Mountain…"

"Sure, you want to go on the teacups, don't you?"

"Hey, if you got me on the teacups, I'd spin you so fast that you'd throw up…actually, why would I do that?"

"No clue," Britt said as her walkie-talkie cackled to life, alerting her to the fact that Chris and Stephanie had just arrived. She picked up her walkie-talkie and thanked them for telling her. "You want to come with me while I get to work or do you have something to do?"

"I'm not on until the last match, I'll come with you, I want to spend as much time with you as I can before I go out there and win and kick ass. Then I'll go on to WrestleMania, win the title and you'll be dating the WWE champion."

"And are there any special benefits to that?"

"Well…uh…no," he admitted sheepishly. She laughed and pulled him along as they started walking. "So tell me again why I want you to be champion if there's nothing in it for me?"

"Because it will mean I'm the best, and you can tell people that you're dating the best."

"Oh okay, and what will you tell people about dating me?"

"The second best," he joked. She hooked her arm through his and leaned her chin on his shoulder, laughing at his stupid joke.

"You're crazy, you know that, and don't even say that you're crazy about me."

"Oh, but I am."

"Gross, you had to go there!" she said. "Don't be cheesy!"

"I can't help it, you make me cheesy!"

"I do not!"

"Did we walk into an argument?" Chris asked as he and Stephanie came upon Britt and Hunter, who were laughing over something. Sawyer looked up at them and then walked over to Hunter and tugged on his jeans. Hunter lifted him up and held him with his free arm. "So you ready to get your ass kicked tonight, Trips?"

"Twip!" Sawyer said, poking him in the shoulder.

"Hey, what gives? You've got your kid softening me up for the match later."

"Hey, tactics are tactics," Chris said, rubbing his hands together. "I look forward to finally getting the chance to kick your ass. It's a long time coming, man, a long, long time coming. I think that I'll go for the Lionsault then the Code-Breaker--"

"Yeah, right," Hunter said, shaking his head. "You do know we're not going to be friends in there."

"Of course we aren't, we're barely friends out here," he kidded. "Even if you win, or I win, somewhere down the line, we're going to fight, I'm sure we'll just finally let all this animosity get the better of us and I'll just have to beat you down."

"Britt, do you get the feeling they're just going to whip them out and measure?" Stephanie asked.

"Please, I'm better in every aspect," Chris said. "If you want to see Britt, I've got a half an hour and I can show you and you can judge who's better."

"Hey!" Stephanie said.

"Yeah, I agree with that hey!" Hunter said. "You're not sleeping with my girlfriend unless I get to sleep with your wife."

"You've slept with her…which…hey, that means Steph can judge, come on, baby, just give me my props now."

"Eww, boys are gross," Stephanie said. "Besides, I've successfully blocked all knowledge of Hunter out of my mind, sorry, Hunter, but my mind is a complete blank when it comes to that stuff."

"Lucky for me," Britt said. "Because I don't need to know that you know…"

"For me too," Chris said, patting her on the shoulder. "I'm still better though. While Trips was sadly, really not man enough to get his wife pregnant, I was able to get the same woman pregnant twice, thus making me man enough."

Hunter's brain stuck on one word, "Twice?"

Stephanie and Chris looked at each other before Stephanie spoke up, "You didn't hear?"

"Hear…no, I didn't hear…are you pregnant?"

"Yeah, I can't believe you didn't hear, I had to put it on the site and everything because there were rumors swirling around about it. I was sure you would hear about it."

"No! Thanks for telling me, Britt!"

"I thought you knew," she shrugged. "I would've told you otherwise."

"How far along are you?"

"Just starting my twelfth week," Stephanie said. "I'm due at the end of August. Chris is and I are going to get a tour bus though so I don't have to miss more than a few weeks! We're already looking at them."

Chris shrugged. "She's carrying my kid, the lady gets what the lady wants."

"Wow, congratulations you guys, that's really cool," Hunter said, and it was such a departure from how things had gone last time. Last time, Hunter had not been happy for them and had resented Chris for getting Stephanie pregnant because it made any and all plans that he had to steal her away all the more complicated. Those times had certainly passed, and it made him feel good, actually.

"Thanks," they said in unison. "We're…still trying to get used to the thought that we're going to have another kid."

"Yeah, I wanted to wait another couple of years," Stephanie said with a sigh of resignation, "but what can you do, right? When you're pregnant, you're pregnant and you deal with it. Plus, it'll mean that Sawyer has someone to play with when we're on the road, so that's something good."

"So you're going to be a big brother?" Hunter asked Sawyer. "You excited?"

"Dunno," Sawyer answered. "Down!"

"Okay, geez," Hunter said, putting him down.

"We've got to get to work, but we'll see you later," Stephanie said, scurrying after Sawyer who was trying to run away again.

"And I'll definitely see you later," Chris said, nodding curtly at Hunter, who nodded curtly back.

They did see each other later. Stephanie was worried about Chris going out there. He had only just returned a few months ago and now he was being thrown into a match he hadn't been in, in a few years, not to mention one of the most brutal matches. She was never going to be comfortable seeing him go out there for that match. Sawyer was sitting in her lap and Shane was sitting next to her. He had found her earlier and had gone out of his way to congratulate her on the pregnancy.

"Mama," Sawyer said, tapping Stephanie on the chin, "ring."

"Elimination Chamber," she explained.

"Enimamy Chomp," he tried to repeat and she laughed.

"Close enough, baby boy," Stephanie told him, kissing him on the head. She wasn't even sure that she wanted Sawyer to watch Chris in this match. It could end up like the Royal Rumble and then Sawyer would get freaked out again by Chris's appearance and the last thing she needed on top of being pregnant was being pregnant with two cranky boys to deal with. It was in that moment it dawned on her that she could have three very cranky boys to deal with soon. She looked over at Shane and hit him in the shoulder.

"Hey! What was that for?" Shane asked.

"For getting Marissa pregnant with two boys and making her have to deal with three of you at the same time," Stephanie told him.

"What? Wow, pregnancy hormones are making you nutty."

She stuck her tongue out at him and Sawyer followed suit as they went back to the match. Chris was going to start the match and was the second-to-last guy to go out there. He went over and got a kiss from Stephanie and from Sawyer before his music started up. Shawn, who was also waiting, rolled his eyes at the exchange. Sawyer waved goodbye to Chris before he went out there.

He was going to be going against Shawn to begin with. He didn't know if he liked that or if he would rather have the few moments to collect himself before he bust out of that chamber and kicked some ass. He got to the ring and climbed inside. He saw JBL in one of the chambers and made it a point to go over to his corner and make his signature pose. JBL was jawing his mouth at Chris so Chris jawed back at him. He got nose-to-nose with the chamber and JBL actually tried to slap it, but Chris laughed at him.

He and Shawn started it off and while there was no hate between them, there certainly wasn't friendship. He didn't have anything personal against Shawn, though his wife did. Shawn was just kind of there for him now. He respected him, he had been a hero to Chris, but a lot of that luster had worn off while actually working with him. They went back and forth a little while, neither one getting a clear upper-hand since their styles were so similar.

They exchanged chops for a while until Shawn got Chris into a corner. He was too quick though and lifted himself over the other man. Shawn got him in a pin, but he'd be damned if he got pinned when there wasn't anyone else in there, so he reversed it into another pin. This went on for a little while before they got up. Chris got Shawn in a hold, but Shawn got some elbows to his head. Chris didn't relent though and suplexed him, and then went for the pin, but Shawn kicked out and Chris really didn't expect to get the pin. Shawn got him into a pin, but again, it was a rather weak attempt.

"Say 'come on, Daddy,'" Stephanie told Sawyer as the little boy watched his daddy in awe. He loved watching Chris in there because it was just nothing like his daddy was when they were together.

"Daddy!" Sawyer yelled, looking up at Stephanie with wide eyes.

"We have to cheer on, Daddy, right?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer nodded.

"So you've got him trained pretty well, huh?" Shane asked.

"He likes it. Chris is his favorite wrestler," Stephanie said proudly.

Stephanie watched as Chris gave a backbreaker to Shawn and she let a little bit of a squeal at that. She just couldn't stand Shawn so any time Chris got a move on him, she was inclined to get a little bit giddy. It also made her a little bit hot because he was just so sexy in that ring. He got even sexier when he went over and taunted JBL again. That man had actually threatened both her children, even though they didn't know they had another one.

"He's doing so well, don't you think?" Stephanie asked.

"It's still early, Steph. Plus, you know, he's got a lot on his mind."

"Who cares?" Stephanie said.

"I'm just saying."

"He's not going to lose his composure."

"If you say so. I mean, you're pregnant, that's a big thing."

"So? I've been pregnant before," Stephanie said. "Chris will be fine."

At that moment, Chris didn't really have everything under control. Shawn was getting the better of him and he was down on the mat as Shawn climbed up the ropes. He went for a flying elbow drop, but Chris got his knees up just in time. Chris got up and gave Shawn a running bulldog, laying him out on the mat. Chris went for the Lionsault and somehow, even he didn't know how, he saw Shawn's knees coming up and he landed on his feet and immediately pulled it into the Walls of Jericho.

"Oh thank God," Stephanie said. Her own midsection would've hurt had Chris landed right on Shawn's knees with that move. "That's the Lionsault."

"Wion!" Sawyer said, recognizing the word.

"Lionsault."

"Wionsalt," Sawyer repeated rather clearly.

"That's right!" Stephanie said proudly.

"God, it's like you've got the kid brainwashed," Shane muttered.

Chris didn't get the Walls on him, and Shawn countered, trying to pull him into the Sharp-Shooter, but Chris refused and get him into a small package. Chris got an elbow drop, but nothing more. They both started running the ropes and hit each other at the same moment, laying them both out. Chris rolled over and tried to get up, but Shawn had gotten him right behind the eyes and he was feeling the throbbing.

He could hear the crowd chanting and figured that someone was going to be coming in soon. The lights dimmed and started spinning and he looked up to see who it landed on, and it was Umaga. Chris cursed a little bit, but got himself ready for another opponent. Chris tried to go after him, but only got clotheslined for his efforts. He got thrown out of the ring and onto the grating and he winced in pain Stephanie winced backstage for her husband and wished they would just show him and show if he was okay.

Chris decided that he was going to help Shawn try and get rid of Umaga. Instead, they both got clotheslined. Chris was lifted into a fireman's carry and somehow Shawn was on him and they both got Samoan dropped. Chris would've felt worse, but Shawn took the brunt of that bump. After being down for a while, Chris started to punch at Umaga, but it was for naught as he ended up on his back again. He wanted to laugh, but instead winced, when he thought about that seeing as how it was Stephanie who always landed on her back.

Umaga was going to get a flying headbutt on him, but he moved out of the way just in time. After Shawn got a flying elbow on Umaga, Chris went for the Walls again and actually got them on the large man. Shawn got in on the action with a crossface, and for a brief moment, Chris thought of his lost friend, but this was neither the time nor the place to actually think about that. He could hear people counting again and he tried to put the Walls on harder to get rid of Umaga before someone else came in.

It was JBL and Chris saw his foot coming, but wasn't quick enough to stop it and dropped to the mat. JBL wanted him, he could feel it and he made a beeline for him. Chris wasn't fresh so it he was an easy target. The longer he stayed in, the more tired he was going to get. He could still do this though, he knew it, he could feel it.

"Come on, Chris," Stephanie whispered to herself. "You can do it, come on…"

It was like he heard her because he started punching at JBL. JBL tried to get him in a hold, but Chris countered it into a spinning neckbreaker. Stephanie sighed in relief. Chris was doing really well. She had expected him to do okay, but it had been so long for him that she worried. Whenever she got nervous she found that she put her hand on her abdomen. Sawyer had moved to Shane's lap and the little boy was babbling away about his daddy and it was filled with nonsense, but still cute.

Chris tried to pin JBL, but it didn't work as JBL kicked out after two. Chris then got thrown over the ropes and onto the grating again. He would definitely have to warn Sawyer not to jump on him tomorrow. Hunter was the next one to come in and even though he was in pain and he was tired, Chris smirked. This was what he had been waiting for. Two years and they were finally going to get at each other. Hunter got the first blow and Chris cursed to himself. Sometimes he could really hate that guy. Chris got the second blow with a running bulldog and Stephanie giggled at that.

He tried to go for the Lionsault, but Hunter moved out of the way and Chris landed on his stomach, not being quick enough to land on his feet this time. Hunter tried to go for the Pedigree, but JBL clotheslined him and Chris rolled away. When it was clear, Chris got up and quickly gave JBL the Code-Breaker and pinned JBL for the 1-2-3.

Stephanie jumped up and clapped, cheering for her husband. She looked to her right where Shane was giving her a strange look and even Sawyer looked like he didn't know what she was doing. "Sorry," she said sheepishly as she sat back down. "Just got a little excited."

It was short-lived as JBL came back with a chair and hit Chris over the head. That was definitely going to hurt tomorrow. Maybe he could just tell Sawyer to leave him alone for the whole day. Chris could feel the warmth of blood flowing down his face and he made a mental note not to let Sawyer see him like this. He did not need another incident of Sawyer being scared of him. He kept trying to get up, but it was difficult; he was so tired. Jeff came in last and through some haze, he recalled that Jeff was jumping on his back for the Poetry in Motion.

It all kind of left him when he got busted right through that chamber. Chris knew he at least had a minor concussion. He could feel it, he knew this feeling of haziness was beyond exhaustion. Still, he got up and somehow, through this fog, he knew he hit the Code-Breaker on Umaga, and then he saw Jeff hitting his move and he covered Umaga to eliminate him. Two down...

Chris was suddenly hit with the Sweet Chin Music and he was down for the count. He honestly could not tell you what happened after that and how he got backstage. He thought he was helped, but maybe he made it on his own. He wasn't even out of the Chamber before Shawn was eliminated too, but he didn't even notice. He got backstage somehow and someone shoved a towel at him and he put it against the cut on his forehead.

He was swaying back and forth and suddenly Stephanie was in front of him. He would've shoved her away if she were anyone else. She looked at him and smiled, leaning up a little to give him a kiss on the cheek. He smiled through his haze and she took his arm and started leading him off somewhere, but he had no clue where they were going.

"The kid?" he asked, vaguely aware that Sawyer was not nearby.

"Shane took him, he's in the locker room gathering our things for us. I'm taking you to the trainer."

"The trainer? Why do I need to go to the trainer?"

"Because I think that you have a concussion," she told him.

"Oh, I think I do," he told her. "I can feel it, not…doesn't feel good."

"I didn't think so."

"I didn't win, did I?"

"No, but that's okay, you did really well."

"Damn."

--

"Mama! Daddy!" Chris groaned and rolled over, coming in direct contact with his wife. He nuzzled his face against her neck and went back to sleep. "Mama! Daddy!"

Neither one of them woke up and Sawyer started to jump up and down in his crib, angry that nobody was getting up to take care of him. He had a wet diaper and it was really bugging him. He had been awake for at least twenty minutes now and usually at least his mommy would come get him. He banged his hands against the side of the crib and whined.

"Up! Up! Up! Up!" he yelled.

Chris opened one eye, but all he could see with the side of his wife's neck. She was breathing out light whooshes of air and her arm had curled around his neck. He felt incredibly sore and his head was still throbbing a little. The trainer told him he had a mild concussion and it probably wasn't a great idea for him to wrestle tonight. The back of his head was the worst, where it took the brunt of the blow, but his back was aching too from hitting the grating so many times.

"Mama! Daddy! Up!"

Chris rolled away from Stephanie and winced in pain. Stephanie wasn't getting up so Chris pushed himself off of the bed slowly. He sat there for a moment before really standing up and he felt like all his joints were popping in unison, mad at him for some kind of betrayal. He went into the other room where Sawyer was still standing. He gave Chris a stern look like he was angry that he had taken so long to come get him.

"Morning, kid," Chris said, coming over to the crib.

"Daddy," Sawyer said angrily.

"Sorry, Daddy would've come sooner, but I'm not feeling well."

"Boo-boo?"

"Yeah, a boo-boo in the head," Chris said as he picked up his son. "You need to be changed?"

"Yeah," Sawyer said with a nod.

"Okay, then we can get dressed and we can get Mommy up, and then we can get breakfast, sound good to you?"

"Uh huh, play too?"

"Yeah, we'll play too, but very gentle stuff okay, because you saw what happened to Daddy last night, didn't you? Well, Daddy also got a concussion, which is like a head boo-boo so I don't really want to do much yelling, so no yelling, deal?"

"'Kay," Sawyer told him. Chris took him over to the couch and changed his diaper quickly before setting the kid down, just in his t-shirt and diaper. He could put his pants on later, he was a kid, he didn't care if he was running around with no pants on. He ran into the bedroom and over to Stephanie's side of the bed.

"You going to wake up Mommy?"

"Yeah," he said, then went closer to her and whispered, "Mommy…"

Chris went over to her other side and leaned in, "Stephy…"

"What!" Stephanie said, opening her eyes a little. "I'm sleeping, okay, leave me the hell alone."

"What's the matter?" Chris asked. Stephanie wasn't a morning person, but she wasn't usually so mean.

"I don't feel well, okay?" she said. "I feel achy, and I feel nauseous and I have a sore throat. I think I have a cold or something."

"Or maybe you know…"

"Oh, just because I'm pregnant that means that I'm going to feel crappy every day?"

"Uh, that's not what I said," Chris told her. "But I don't know, you're allowed, I guess, to feel crappy if you feel crappy. Are you going to get out of bed though, because Sawyer and I kind of wanted to go get breakfast?"

"Don't talk to me about food," she said, "it just makes me sick to my stomach."

"Okay, so um…what are you going to do?"

"Leave me alone," she said. "It's your fault I feel like this. If you could just keep to yourself every once in a while I wouldn't be in this position. But no, you're a man, you have needs, you need to sleep with me every other damn night, huh?"

"Wow, okay, you don't usually complain when we're actually in the act of you know…"

"Well I'm complaining now!" she told him. "The sight of you disgusts me."

Chris bit his tongue on that one, "Baby, come on, it can't be that bad."

"I feel like crap because of you, my breasts are sore, my head hurts, all your fault. I'm never having sex with you again. Ever."

"I think that's grounds for divorce."

"Fine, divorce me, I don't care," she told him, covering up her head with her blankets. "I don't feel like going to work today."

"Wow," he said. "So uh…you're just not going to go to work then?"

"I don't feel well," she told him, her voice muffled from being under the sheets. "I feel like I'm going to throw up, this is the first time this has happened with this pregnancy. If I go to work, I'm afraid that I'm just going to throw up over everything, and then I'll throw up on you for getting me pregnant."

"Are you sure it was me?" he joked.

"Don't go there, Jericho."

"Sorry, do you at least want to say good morning to your son."

"He annoys me too," she said, but then pulled the covers down, "but I love you baby."

"So do you want to watch him today?"

"No, you take him with you."

"So what? You want me to take over for you tonight?"

"Yes," she said.

"Okay then, uh, Sawyer and I are going to go get breakfast."

"Whatever."

Chris went and picked up his son and put some pants on him. He set him in front of the television and put it on the Disney Channel where they were playing _Handy Manny_. Sawyer clapped along with the song they were playing at the moment. Chris laughed at him as he got into the show in front of him. Sometimes he thanked God for television.

"Okay, you watch this while I take a quick shower and get dressed," Chris told him. "Learn how to build yourself a playground, okay? Then when we get home you can build one for yourself in the backyard."

Sawyer was too engrossed to care and Chris went and took his shower and got ready for work. He was going to take over Stephanie's job today so he got a little bit more dressed than he usually would and rolled up the sleeves to his indigo-colored shirt. When he came out, Sawyer was still watching television and was still glued to it. Chris went over and picked him up to take him down to get breakfast.

Chris sat Sawyer down in a highchair and went to get himself and Sawyer some breakfast. He kept his eye on the little boy while getting the food and came back with a small box of Cheerios and some fruit for Sawyer along with one pancake. He cut the pancake up into bite-sized pieces and arranged everything on Sawyer's plate and grabbed a fork to hand it to him. He was just digging into his breakfast when his brother-in-law sat down with his own breakfast.

"Hey, bro," Shane said. "Can I sit here or are you waiting for the wife?"

"She's moody today, and not feeling well, so she's upstairs, I don't think she wants to see me ever again. She's probably pulling out the divorce papers right now."

"What did you do?"

"Nothing, except the whole thing with getting her pregnant, it's my fault apparently, and solely my fault," he shrugged. "I wasn't aware she wasn't there when I was getting her pregnant, an anomaly that."

"So she's coming later?"

"Nope, she doesn't want to work, so you know it's bad. So I'm taking over for her tonight. I just won't schedule myself on the show, easy enough. I'll let Trips have some more time or something."

"Actually, that's what I wanted to talk to you about."

"Trips?"

"No, time on the show. I was hoping Steph would be coming, but well…anyways, I wanted Show to get some time."

"Why?"

"You know, I think he should apologize for last night, he was kind of out of line and I figured, you know, time?"

"Yeah, sure, I'll schedule it," Chris said as Sawyer stuck a Cheerio out for Chris. He took it and ate it, making a funny face for Sawyer, who laughed and went back to his breakfast, grabbing a chunk of cantaloupe and putting it in his mouth, chewing thoughtfully.

"Hey, thanks for telling me my sister was pregnant by the way," Shane said sarcastically.

"Sorry, how _did_ you find out?"

"I went to the company's freaking website and see her announcing it," Shane said. "So I called my mom, who confirmed it."

"Because Stephanie saying it isn't convincing enough for you?"

"Well, it could be fake."

"Trust me, it's not fake, so not fake, so very, very not fake. I think Stephanie and I are still getting used to the whole idea. Not to say that we don't want the kid or anything, but just…it's scary still. Sawyer's not even two yet, and won't be until May, and then suddenly what, three months later we're going to have this…baby again?"

"It's not that bad," Shane said. "You'll manage."

"Yeah, we'll see."

--

"Christian, what are you doing here!"

"Came to see you," he told her.

"You came all the way from Florida to see me?"

"Okay, no, not completely, you know how my mom is getting remarried?"

"Yeah, you mentioned it."

"Well, her husband-to-be is moving in and she needs help with moving and all of that. It isn't like my grandma can help her. Edge is in town too…he brought Vickie, so I needed to get out of there."

"What does your mom think?"

"She's trying to be nice," Christian said. "But she was not happy, I could tell. Well, I don't know, maybe she is happy, I mean, this is Edge we're talking about, I figured my mom thought the odds of him actually getting married were slim to none."

"She must've been disappointed about you and Tiffany?"

"Yeah, she was, but I told her it was for the best," Christian said, then added wistfully, "and it was for the best. She shouldn't have to give up such a great opportunity for me. I want her to be happy, and she is, that's all I can ask for, really."

"Yeah. So when's the wedding for your mom?"

"A month," Christian said. "He wanted to move in early to eliminate the hassle after the wedding. You met him, they've been together for years."

"Yeah, I've met him," Trish said, remembering the many times she had met him. "You know, your mom actually invited me to the wedding, I didn't want to say anything because I don't know her motives behind it. I figured that she…well…"

"Was interfering?" he supplied for her.

"Yeah," she laughed. "You know…"

"Yeah, I know," he said, and the awkwardness was back again. Trish fumbled with the hem of her shirt. She bit her lip a little bit and cleared her throat a little bit. Christian shifted from foot to foot and tried to think of something to say. "So hey, do you want to show me where this gym of yours is going to be?"

"Oh okay, yeah, just let me grab my keys!"

--

"Hey, where's your wife?"

"Sick," Chris said as he looked up at Hunter.

"Is she okay? Is the baby okay?" Hunter asked, and Chris could tell he was concerned and that was a new one for him.

"Yeah, everything's fine, she's just feeling under the weather and nauseous. All very normal pregnancy stuff. She's very moody today though, so she didn't want to come in to work, so I'm taking over for the evening."

"So you're not going to be on the show?"

"Nah, I have to take care of the monster," Chris said, gesturing towards Sawyer who was playing with a book that played music and he was singing along to it softly, lost in his own world, for which Chris was grateful.

"It's crazy that she's pregnant again," Hunter said. "I can't believe I didn't know."

Chris shrugged, "I didn't even know until I read a rumor on the internet. I just wasn't looking."

"Nice, I'm sure this new kid is going to love that it was ignored."

"I think Sawyer was the leak. I think that when I'm not looking he pulls out a laptop and just leaks all these spoilers onto the internet. I think he's just an evil genius and we're just not seeing it because of the cute exterior."

Hunter laughed, "That'd be hilarious. So how's your head? I heard you got a concussion."

"Mild, but my head is killing me so it's just as well that I'm not on the show. I don't want to risk anything, you know, concussions and all of that stuff," he said, his voice trailing off and Hunter nodded as he understood exactly what Chris was trying to say without words.

"Yeah, it's better that you take a little time off."

"Yeah, so let me guess, you want time?"

"It'd be nice, or do you hate me because I won?"

"I hate you for so many reasons, Trips, you should know that by now," Chris said. "It wasn't like you pinned me, you didn't even really get me. But someday, man, we're coming to blows."

"I thought we did and I kicked your ass in that cell."

Chris rolled his eyes, "You can have top of the show."

"Yes! Thanks. You know what I just thought?"

"What?"

"You are totally taking advantage of the fact that you're management so you can just take the night off whenever you want to. Wow, abuse of power right there," Hunter said, shaking his head. "I thought you'd never stoop that low."

"Shut up, oh, here comes your woman, maybe she'll knock some sense into you."

"I would say she's the better half," Hunter said as Britt walked over and kissed his cheek. "Hey doll, what's up?"

"Doll? You call her doll?" Chris snorted.

"You guys won't believe who's here," Britt said, looking between the both of them.

"Who?"

"Lindsay Lohan."

"Seriously?" Chris asked. "Wow, that's…strange."

"Yeah, I thought so too, but that's not why I'm here. Stephanie called on your cell phone, which you do not have, by the way, you left it in your office."

"Did you talk to her?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Did she sound mean?"

"I don't know, she sounded like Stephanie," Britt said, then she looked at her boyfriend, "So did you get time during the show?"

"Yeah, I did," Hunter said. "It helps that I'm in with the boss."

"Thanks for the message, Britt."

--

"So this is it," Trish said, opening her arms wide and spinning around in a circle.

"Wow, this is going to look great."

"It's not even close to being done, there's no equipment," Trish said. "Except for yoga mats, we do have some yoga mats."

"It's something," he said. He went over to the aforementioned yoga mats and pulled out a couple and put them down on the ground. He went to lay on one and patted the other one. Trish, catching his drift, went over and lay down next to him. "You should come to my mom's wedding."

"You think so?"

"Yeah," he said. "She likes you, she wouldn't have invited you if she didn't want you there. I think you should go."

"I guess, I don't even know who I'd bring as a date."

"Why don't you come with me?"

"With you, as a date?"

"No, as a friendly thing," he said quickly, trying to cover up his faux pas. "I meant, well, you know, as friends, because I don't have a date either, and I don't have anyone at work that I'd really want to ask. Well…no, no, I wouldn't want to ask anyone at work. There's no one in the WWE that I'd want to ask, and I'd feel weird asking someone I just met or didn't know that well to my mother's wedding. That leaves you and Stephanie."

"I'll go with you," she said. "I can't pass up an act of desperation."

"Mild desperation," he clarified. "Remember, I still had Stephanie."

"She'll be showing by then and then everyone will think you knocked her up," Trish pointed out.

"That's right," Christian said. "I don't want to go around all night explaining that I didn't get this girl pregnant."

"Plus, she's another guy's wife, so that smacks of just, you being pathetic," she joked. "Then there'll Edge be, with his fiancée, and you with your best friend's wife, and really, everyone is going to pity you and say to themselves, 'oh that poor boy, couldn't even get a date to his mother's wedding.'"

"Wow, thanks for making me look like the absolute, dorkiest guy in the world. You've painted the saddest picture ever for me. Do you think that people will feel sympathetic if I told them the girl I wanted to marry moved to London to be a research doctor?"

"Could earn you some points."

"Oh good, maybe I'll play up that angle," he said before silence settled over them. He broke it a few minutes later with, "Do you want kids?"

"Whoa, that was out of nowhere," Trish told him.

"I know, I was just thinking about Chris and Stephanie. We got together like six months after they did, and look where they are. They're already on their second kid. You're older than Stephanie and she already has two kids."

"Gee, thanks for reminding me, Chrissy."

"Sorry, it's just…do you ever feel like life is passing you by, like you're missing all these great things because you don't have that one thing that you really need to have all the rest? I mean, I'm really good with Sawyer, I feel like I could have a kid, but you know, missing that whole mother thing."

"I'd like kids," she said. "I love my sister's kids, they're really cute. I think I'd make a good mother. Sometimes I see Sawyer with Stephanie, or Lacey with Mel, and I get jealous, you know. I mean, my life has been pretty great. I can't complain, but you know, I see Sawyer running up to Stephanie and all he wants is her, and all he know is to love her, and he calls her mommy and he hugs her, and I guess it affects me a little. I want a little kid to come running up to me someday and I'm the only thing they see."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. When I'm babysitting, sometimes I'll watch some old wrestling tapes with Sawyer since Stephanie says he likes them, but I really think she's just making him familiar with wrestling so that he can get in the ring by the age of five, and whenever he sees Chris, his eyes just light up and he looks up at me like, 'do you know who that is?' and yeah, I want a kid to recognize me like that."

"We're lucky too, though."

"Yeah, we're lucky too."

They laid there for a while, thinking about how lucky they were, but also how unlucky they were at the same time.

--

"Hey, baby, you called?"

"Are you working?"

"Yeah, but it's commercial. Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah, I'm sorry about this morning, I didn't mean to snap, I just didn't feel well and the pregnancy was just catching up to me, you know. It was hard having to keep it a secret so I guess I just let all of that frustration go this morning."

"It's okay, I understand, what did you need?"

"How's the show going?"

"Fine, I'm not going to be on it though."

"Because of me."

"Not that, just my head, you know, I don't want to risk further injury."

"Oh, yeah, good, anyways, I was looking at buses, that's what I did today, productive I know, but I found one, it comes with a driver, and everything and we can just rent it, you know. It has everything beds, TV, whatever we need."

"How much is this going to cost?" he asked.

"A lot," she admitted. "But come on, Chris, it's great. This way we can travel with the baby, and there's even room for Sawyer and everything. It'll be great, we'll be able to travel and you won't have to pull double duty."

"Steph, how much?"

"Six figures," she told him, "which is why I think we should sell the house in California. We hardly ever go there, and I know that you bought it for me, and I love you for it, but it's not getting any use, or we can rent it out, like you said. We can do that, I like that idea. It's not like we don't have enough money to have the house _and_ the bus. I'm loaded, Chris."

"But Steph, you know that I don't like to spend all that much."

"I know, but you promised."

He sighed, "Fine, we'll rent the house in California, we should be able to get top dollar on that since it's right on the beach. Then we'll get that bus, but only after the baby is born will we use it. That way we can just use it for a couple of months and then we can just go back to our schedule."

"You're the best."

"I know."

"Bye," she chirped.

Chris hung up and went back to work. He was worried about Stephanie traveling with their newborn. He'd definitely have to ask her doctor about that arrangement. His thoughts pressed ahead to another child. He could picture a little girl in his mind, with Stephanie's features. He honestly couldn't wait until he was holding his baby in his arms. It felt like just yesterday that he was holding that tiny, little thing that had just been named Sawyer. He remembered the way he felt so light in his arms, the scariness of being a new father and not wanting to let his son down. He remembered how he had lain awake that night, alone in his bed, thinking about how he had a kid with Stephanie McMahon of all people and how he used to figure the only way he would ever sleep with her would be through copious amounts of alcohol.

He thought about the connection he knew they would now share for the rest of their lives. It was doubly true now as they were going to have another kid enter this world. Everything was different now though. He wasn't going to leave, she wasn't going to have a normal pregnancy spent at home with her feet up, and they weren't going to be new at this. Still, it all felt crisp and fresh. He remembered the first time Sawyer had opened his eyes and stared up at him. He looked over at Sawyer, who was listening to Shawn's music play and dancing around to it.

"Mommy would give you a time-out if she saw you dancing to this music," Chris told his son.

"Daddy," Sawyer giggled as he kept wiggling around and dancing.

"I find it disturbing that you're dancing to music that claims you're a sexy boy," Chris told him. Sawyer was still little, but he wasn't a baby anymore. He could walk and talk, though with limited vocabulary. He was independent, quite the dancer, and he had even broken his first bone, as evidenced by the splint on his hand.

That's why it bothered him later on when Vince came out to demolish his son. Chris still had his misgivings about Hornswoggle actually being Vince's son, but still, it was pretty crummy to treat someone you suspected as your son the way that Vince treated Hornswoggle. Vince came backstage and for once actually looked chagrined. His face was a bit ashen, but that didn't stop Sawyer from stomping over there, trying to act like his grandfather did.

"Gamps," he said, shaking his head and lifting his arm.

"Oh, hello, Sawyer."

Sawyer tilted his head, "Gamps, up?"

"Not right now," Vince told him. Chris sauntered over and picked up Sawyer, letting him ride on his shoulders.

"You know, Vince."

"I don't need to hear it, Chris."

"Okay, I was just trying to help, you know, son-in-law to father-in-law."

"I get it, Chris."

"As long as you get it." Vince said nothing more as he walked off. Chris felt Sawyer patting his head. "You know, the longer I stay in this family, the more scared I get, does that make any sense to you, kid?"

"No."

"I didn't think so."

"Next time, warn me that having a kid with your mommy just makes me more involved in this nuthouse."

"Okay."

"Thanks," he said before going back to sit down and get back to work. "What have I gotten myself into, kid?"

"Dunno."

--

"Thanks for coming with me to the wedding, I really appreciate it."

"It'll be fun."

"I think so too," Christian said, giving her a hug. He held on for a few seconds longer than he probably should have, but she just felt so good in his arms. He could feel her breath on the back of his neck and it was unsettling. Why was it he couldn't forget this woman? He had tried, he had tried so damn hard to forget her, to move on, but it kept coming back to her. He pulled away and they were so close that if he just tilted his head a little bit to the right, he would be kissing her. He didn't though, and pulled away.

"I'll see you later then?"

"Yeah, bye."

"Bye."

She closed the door and sighed against it. She had wanted to kiss him, but he was still talking about Tiffany and she couldn't push it. She could've sworn there was a moment there, though. She felt it. She couldn't resist that man, and she wished that she knew the words to say to make Tiffany vanish from his mind and for him to remember _her_ like he had before. She was so sure that if he just saw her, if he saw her again in his mind, if he pictured everything he wanted with _her_ that they could work out.

So much time was being wasted.


	170. Well, Sure, Okay, February 25, 2008

"Oh, did you?"

"Yes, yes that's right," Hunter said as he pulled Britt closer. "You know you liked me last week, you probably found it so hot when I gave both of them the Pedigree."

Britt shoved him in the side, but he barely moved, "It was…nice."

"It was hot!"

"Questionable," she told him coyly, rolling her eyes to the ceiling. "I mean…"

"I ripped my shirt off…that was specifically for you," he told her, kissing her forehead.

"So what explains all the times that you ripped your shirt off when we weren't together? You were trying to impress me or something? You thought that you could get me just by ripping your shirt off? You thought I'd like that?"

"Hell yeah, I did," he said. "Come on. You know you like this body."

"You are so full of yourself, Hunter," Britt said. She looked over and saw Chris sitting alone at a table with his chin in his hands, staring off into space. She nudged him in the ribs and nodded towards Chris. "Looks a little lost, don't you think?"

"I'll go see what's up."

"I have to go work anyways," Britt said. "You distract me from my work all the time, it's really quite upsetting. This is my livelihood here, and you are just asking me to be fired or something."

"Then you could spend _all_ your time with me," he said, giving her a parting kiss before he went over to where Chris was. "Thinking hard or hardly thinking?"

"That was lame," Chris said, looking over at Hunter. The man nodded at him and took a seat across from him. "Did I say you could sit there? Maybe I was saving that for someone that isn't you?"

"Who?"

"Um, my wife," Chris said, like it should be obvious. "She could be coming and you could've just taken her seat."

"And is she?"

Chris sighed and admitted, "No, she's not coming, but she could've been."

Hunter laughed, "What's up, you looked a little lost sitting there? You aren't still feeling the effects of that concussion you had, are you? Maybe you should skip the show tonight if that's the case."

"Nah, I'm fine, I'm just thinking," Chris told him.

"Oh, thinking is good."

"Sure it is," Chris said. "I'm just thinking about this whole situation with the baby and everything. It's still really new, you know. One minute, I'm just coming back to wrestling and that's really good, and I have my wife and my son and we're functioning, we're great, and everything is really falling into place. Then suddenly, we're having another kid. It's so unexpected and out of the blue. I mean, Stephanie and I would joke about other kids, but we had talked about it and we didn't want them until Sawyer was at least four."

"Why four?"

"Well, Shane is seven years older than Stephanie right, and so he got that time to be the only child, to be the one being focused on. I think we just wanted Sawyer to have the same opportunity. Plus, at four, you know, the kid needs attention, but not as much attention, you know. Sawyer's still in diapers, he can barely talk, he gets his point across. He isn't even two yet, and won't be until May. We're going to be just…it's overwhelming."

"But you get a kid," Hunter told him. "That's awesome, man."

"I know," Chris nodded, a smile creeping up onto his lips. "I know, and I cannot wait to meet him or her. It's going to be something else, and…I love Stephanie. I love her, and I can't imagine doing this without her and I just…I'm lucky, I just…everything feels like it's going too fast."

"Well, it is because you weren't expecting this to happen."

"Yeah, she continually said, 'I'm not pregnant,' or 'I don't want to be pregnant right now,' and then suddenly, I'm looking on the damn internet and there it is that my wife is pregnant. Some faceless drone on the internet knew before me, knew before my wife, I guess they thought she was looking a little bit thicker and assumed, whatever…it's just…I don't even know, man. It's crazy. This whole thing is just madness."

"You'll make it through. Come on, what's one more kid?"

"She hates being away from the company. She's going to hate it."

Hunter laughed and nodded his head, looking off as he thought about Stephanie. He recalled when he had torn his quad the first time and how Stephanie had come with him to get the surgery. She had stayed for the surgery, playing the sympathetic wife. Afterwards though, she had left him to go back to work at the first opportunity. That was just how she was. It wasn't that she put work first, she just loved to be busy with it.

"Yeah," Hunter chuckled, "she's going to hate it, but she did the same thing with Sawyer. It's not that bad, and aren't you guys going to rent a bus or something to travel in."

"I just don't like the idea of my newborn baby in a bus, you know," Chris said. "I know Stephanie's okay with it, but I'm not so sure I want my baby's first few weeks spent on a bus."

"I'm sure it'll be clean," Hunter said. "Stephanie wouldn't put her baby in danger, you know that. She loves Sawyer, and she loves this new kid."

"I know, it's crazy though, right? This whole second kid thing, it's crazy, isn't it?"

"Well, Stephanie and kids…that whole scenario just still hasn't set in for me, even though Sawyer is almost two years old. She just never said mother to me. I know that we tried to have kids…but that was mostly to save our marriage, the first time anyways, the second time she wanted away from me."

"Oh yeah, I remember the first time. She announced it to the entire world that you guys were going to try and have a baby. I think I puked in my mouth a little at the thought of you two spawning. Just the thought of her having a kid running around here, the thought disgusted me."

"Little did you know that the kid she'd have running around would be _your _kid too."

"Yeah, that part kind of shocked me, yes," Chris said. "I'll get over it, though, I mean, really, how hard can it be, right? I can handle Sawyer, which means that I can handle another kid. Right?"

"Sure," Hunter told him. "What do you want?"

"A girl," Chris said, "We have a boy, so you might as well round it out."

"Yeah, you'll be good, man. So is that all you were worried about, the fact that you think you're going to be overwhelmed."

"Well, no, that wasn't actually it, there was something else I was thinking about and wondering whether Stephanie would kill me or just torture me until I gave in to her."

"Okay, so this doesn't sound so good."

"It's not bad…for you anyways, actually, for you it's kind of good…very good in fact," Chris said with a smirk, acting more like the Chris that Hunter knew and tolerated.

"What is it?"

"Well, I was going to ask if I could just kind of…take a scaled-back approach to the show," Chris said.

"Scaled-back, like leave again?"

"No, not leave, just…well, I mean, you know, not go balls-out all the time."

"So you mean…not wrestling?"

"No," Chris said, rolling his eyes, "just not…be so focused on getting the title."

"Oh, so you just kind of want to be around without being _the_ guy?"

"Exactly."

"So do you want to leave now and get that head-start before I tell Stephanie that you aren't going to put your entire concentration on getting the title? I can probably stall her until half-way through the show then she's going to realize that you haven't _been_ on the show…so that's about how far I can stretch that…she probably can't run that fast with the baby, huh? So you might get some time that way."

"I know, she's not happy unless I'm giving 100 percent. I don't get that woman sometimes," Chris said.

"You and me both," Hunter said. "She'll understand though, once she gets more pregnant. I mean, two-year-old son who loves to run around, a stomach that's growing every day all that nausea and gross stuff, she's going to be happy to have you around and not focusing your entire life on the title. Remember, man, that's why she left me."

"Oh yeah, but come on, the comparisons," Chris said, gesturing between him and Hunter. "I think I'm just a little bit better than you are."

"Hey, man, I'm dating a girl in her twenties," Hunter said. "Twenty-six to be exact."

"Uh, so?" Chris scoffed, "Married your ex-wife, who is only thirty-one, by the way, so it's not like she's old. Plus, she's your ex-wife, who dumped you and didn't want you. But she wanted me enough to marry me, and carry two of my children."

"Damn it," Hunter cursed. "I swear to God, there's nothing that tops that! What the hell do I have to do to top that? I can't have you winning every argument."

"Well, talk to me when we're like sixty, and if you're still dating girls in their twenties, then maybe, _maybe_ I'll give you props, but…no, you've got nothing."

"If you ever divorce Stephanie, then I can marry her, and then I can say that I married _your_ ex-wife."

Chris started laughing loudly and actually had the audacity to slap his knee, "Okay, I'm sorry, you and Stephanie again? Yeah, right, right, that's not going to happen. Even if Stephanie and I don't work out in the long-run, there's no way that you two would get back together. She wouldn't want that, and I wouldn't allow that to happen."

"You never know."

"No, no, I do know," Chris said. "If you'll excuse me, Trips, I have to go see _my_ wife. You and Stephanie again? You crack me up, man, stick with Britt. How are things going with you two, anyways? I seem to see you together a lot."

"She's cool," he said nonchalantly. "She's really cool."

"So what, now that you're dating a girl in her twenties you have to act like you're in your twenties too?"

"I'm not going to kiss and tell."

"No fun," Chris said. "You should at least give me the chance to live vicariously through you. I wouldn't take it, but I'd like the chance at least. My dating days are over…thankfully."

"Yeah, dating isn't fun. Okay, it's a little fun when you can just have no-strings-attached sex."

"Yeah, that _is_ fun," Chris reminisced. "I remember this one time…never-mind, I'm married, two kids, shouldn't think about what I can't have. Besides, Steph is Steph. She's…Steph, you know, the mother of my children, man, that is _never_ going to be something I get used to."

"I'm still not used to hearing it."

"Oh, well, I should find Steph, the show's starting in a little bit and she's going to be busy so guess what that sticks me with, plus, if I recall the schedule right, you have a confrontation or something with Randy and Cena, good luck with that."

"So what the hell are you going to do for WrestleMania, I was sure that you were going to insert yourself into the title match just because you can because you're one of the bosses."

"Do you really think I'd pull crap that _you_ pull?" Chris asked. "I'll probably just get in the Money in the Bank Match, I was the genius who came up with it anyways so I might as well do that. I don't want to wrestle JBL anymore, that guy is like the worst; he's so slow in the ring I feel like I'm beating up an old man."

Hunter laughed, "Well, if that's scaled back…that's a pretty brutal match, you know?"

"Yeah, but there's going to be what? Seven other guys in it, I can just hide in the corner and only get in for the big spots or something, or when everyone is down I'll go up and get the briefcase."

"Which would give you a title shot that you said you wanted to avoid," Hunter pointed out.

"Well if the opportunity presents itself, then I'm not going to give it up," Chris told him. "I'm just not going to let it consume my every thought, from now until August 31st, my thoughts are going to be consumed by pretty much one thing and that is the health and safety of my wife and child, and that hanger-on, what's his name, oh yeah, Sawyer."

"Already he's getting left in the dust."

"He's lost his luster," Chris shrugged. "I'm getting a new 2008 model, the 2006 model is so outdated. Plus, the kid is getting heavy, he's 28 pounds, that's pretty heavy, my wife won't be able to carry that soon, so it's going to fall to me to carry him around and that's just too much. If you want to buy a twenty-one-month old little boy, I'll take the best offer or best trade."

"I'll see what kind of change I can scrounge up."

"Christopher Jericho!" a voice said.

"Word to the wise, Trips, women during pregnancy, don't get on their bad side," Chris said as he ran after the voice. Stephanie was in the hall, Sawyer in her arms, as she looked around for Chris, yelling out his name. She seemed on a warpath tonight so nobody was getting in her way. They all knew she was pregnant and didn't want to get on her bad side when she was moody.

"Chris, there you are!" Stephanie said as she turned around to the footsteps behind her.

"Hi, Daddy," Sawyer said as he saw his father. He reached his arms out to him and Chris took the little guy in his arms. He was in a carrying type of mood tonight. He didn't want to run around, he just wanted to stay with his parents and cuddle with them all night long.

"What's with you tonight, kid?" Chris asked.

"He's clingy," Stephanie said dismissively. "I have to get to work, watch him, bring him to me if you go on, what are you doing tonight? You're feeling better this week, right?"

"Are _you_ feeling better this week?" he asked her.

"Yes, I'm entering my second trimester and I'm feeling fine," she said, wiggling around a little to show that she was feeling good. "Last week was just the weird week where everything kind of hit me at once, but you're used to it, wasn't it just yesterday that I was pregnant with Mr. Clings-a-lot over there?"

"I was used to it even before Sawyer came around," Chris said and Stephanie frowned at the implication. He laughed and leaned in to kiss her softly. "I still love you though, temper and all."

"You're just saying that because I'm carrying your child."

"Partly," he told her, leaning in again to kiss her. "I love you."

"Oh Mr. Jericho, you do sweep me off my feet," Stephanie said. "What are you and the monster going to do while I'm working?"

"I have a phone call I need to make, a meeting of sorts."

"Meeting?"

"Yeah."

"With whom?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"It's just a meeting," he told her. "Oh, there was something that I wanted to talk to you about. It's kind of…well, it's not serious _serious_, it's just something that I wanted to discuss with you and was hoping that I could get a moment of your time about it."

"What's it about?"

"Us, not us as in the couple, us as in the expecting parents," he told her. Sawyer poked him in the nose and he swatted his son's hand away as he looked at Stephanie. "It's not really anything too bad, I mean, you may think that it is, you probably _will_ think that it is."

"Okay, spill," Stephanie said, pulling him closer to the wall. He leaned against it with his shoulder, Sawyer on the other side of his body as Stephanie leaned on the wall opposite him. "What is it? It's a little too late to change your mind about the whole baby thing. At this point, I'd have to veto the idea."

"No, no changing my mind on having a kid," he said, reaching forward with his free hand to graze her still relatively flat stomach. She hadn't popped yet, so she wasn't showing. She just looked like she had kept a lot of the holiday weight on. "There's no way that I'd not want to have this kid with you."

She smiled at the tenderness of his tone. She pressed his hand firmer on her stomach, like he could actually feel something in there when she wasn't even really showing yet. "Good, because it's coming whether we like it or not."

"I know," he said, "I like that. Anyways, what I wanted to say was…I'm not going to put forth so much effort into my wrestling."

"You're leaving?" Stephanie asked, her eyes widening, "Chris, no!"

"I'm not leaving, why does everyone think that?" Chris asked angrily. "I'm not leaving, I just…I've decided I'm not going to focus on going all out, I'm not going to actively pursue anything."

"So you're not going to what…wrestle?"

"Did you swap your brain with Hunter?"

"What?" she asked, confused by the question.

"No, I'm just not going to go all out trying to get the title, if the opportunity falls in my lap, sure, I'll take it, but I just…look, you have this kid inside of you, and you have this kid right here, and you're going to be stressed, we both know it, baby, so I just want to not be so _on_ all the time so I can focus on helping you. I'm not leaving and I'm not going to stop wrestling, I'm just going to not focus my life on the title and nothing else."

"You don't want to give it 100 percent, Chris, I have told you time and time again that you shouldn't go out there if you're not going to give it your all…is that Trish Stratus with Jeff Hardy?"

Chris looked over his shoulder and saw Trish walking with Jeff. He turned back to Stephanie and wondered, "Did we know she was coming tonight?"

"We did not," Stephanie said. "If that girl is thinking about going back to Jeff Hardy, I think we're just going to have to stop being her friend because she boy-hops like crazy, and it's always the same guys! Next thing you know, she'll be back at Carlito."

Chris laughed as Trish approached, "Hey guys."

"Trish, didn't expect to see you here," Chris said.

"Jeff invited me," she explained. "Jeff, I'll see you in a little bit, I'm just going to talk with these guys for a moment."

"Okay, later, later guys," he said, saluting to Chris and Stephanie.

"Hi, Tish," Sawyer said from where his head was laying on Chris's shoulder. He played with the collar of Chris's shirt, not even wanting to play today. He was unusually quiet, but Chris and Stephanie figured he was just tired today. He was usually active so every once in a while he probably needed a night off.

"Hey, honey," she said, rubbing his leg.

"What are you doing here?" Stephanie asked. "With Jeff…"

"He invited me," Trish said, then saw the looks on their faces, "as a friend, trust me. I wouldn't have come here if it was for more than friendship. I don't want that with Jeff, not anymore. We're just friends."

"Awfully defensive."

"No, I'm not being defensive, I just…I accepted because I needed some time to be away from where Christian can find me. He's just been hanging around me lately and it's…it's unsettling," she admitted.

"You don't want him hanging around?" Stephanie asked.

"No, I do, I _do_, he invited me to his mom's wedding next month," she explained. "As a date, sort of, but I don't know what that means, I don't what he means anymore. He shows up on my doorstep, he wants to hang out, but I don't know what any of it means, and it's frustrating."

"Because you want to be with him?"

"Of course I want to be with him!" Trish said. "He just doesn't want to be with me."

Chris and Stephanie shared a look, then answered at the same time, "Yes, he does."

"Guys, I've been spending way more time with him then you have. I think I know what he's thinking. He's still not over Tiffany, he still thinks about her. There's just no room in his heart for me right now, I can be patient. I mean, if it comes, you know, maybe he passed over me already."

"That's crap," Chris said. "You guys need to get it together. Now. Right now, go!"

Stephanie laughed, "He wants you, Trish, trust us. He just doesn't think that you want him. Stop playing games and wasting time. It's just too much time wasted, you could have so much more right now."

Trish looked at Sawyer and then at Stephanie's stomach, "Yeah, I know. I'm just here with Jeff to get my mind off of Christian, we both know it's nothing more. I love him, Christian I mean. I love him, and it's not going to stop until I see it through to the finish."

"I think you should tell him that."

"Yeah, sure, I'll see you guys," Trish said, wandering off.

"Crap, the show's starting," Stephanie said. "What are you going to do tonight?"

Chris shrugged, "I don't know, hang around I guess."

"Chris," she sighed, "you can't just step back because I'm pregnant. I'm going to be pregnant for a while. Your career is one thing and us, we're another thing, you just have to separate the two. You know what I want you to do tonight?"

"What?"

"I want you to enter yourself into the Money in the Bank Match."

"Steph…"

"No, do it. It's not a main match so it fulfills what _you_ want, but it'll make me happy to see you in it, so put yourself in it, you have the authority."

"Don't you think that I should ask for a qualifier like everyone else?"

"Why?" she waved off the question, "You're one of the bosses, you can do whatever the hell that you want to. If you want to put yourself in the title match, go for it, I don't care what you do. You have clout and power."

"I still think it's a little bit unfair though," he said.

"Whatever, I've got to work and you have that meeting or whatever," she reminded him.

"Oh yeah," he said, leaning in to kiss her. "Thanks for reminding me, I've got to go do that."

She kissed him back, then kissed Sawyer, "Later, boys."

Chris walked back to Stephanie's office and set Sawyer down on his play blanket. He whined though and as Chris sat down in Stephanie's chair, Sawyer came back over and hugged him around the leg. Chris sighed and picked him up and set him in his lap. Sawyer laid his head on Chris's chest as Chris grabbed his cell phone. He dialed a number and then waited for a moment as the line was picked up.

"What do you want, Jericho?"

"Is that any way to treat me, Rocky?"

"We both know why you're calling, man."

"Yes, I'm making the pitch."

"I already told your father-in-law that I wasn't going to do it. I'm a busy man, Jericho, you know this," Rocky said. "It's a good thing, I'm really happy that you're inducting my dad and grandfather, but The Rock is a busy man."

"Stop referring to yourself in the third person, it's weird," Chris said. "Look, man, first of all, I think it's weird when people refer to Vince as my father-in-law, it still creeps me out because most of the time, I don't like him. I'm not doing this for him, I'm doing this because it will make Stephanie happy."

"Why do I care about making the Princess happy?"

"Well, I do, I'd consider it a personal favor," Chris said. "Look, I've already gotten production to make up a graphic for it just in case you decide to do it, let me put that graphic up. The fans would love it man, they miss you."

"Of course they do."

Chris rolled his eyes, "Seriously, I'd consider it a personal favor."

"You are my friend, though you never call me. I get hurt over that fact, Jericho," Rocky said. "I wasn't even acknowledged at all, that hurt man, that really, really hurt."

"Shut up," Chris said. "Come on, you're going to do it. You're going to do it, Rocky, okay, we both know it, we both know you're stalling."

Rocky laughed, "How's the family? How's the kid?"

"He's right here," Chris said. "He's kind of clingy tonight so he's sitting in my lap."

"How's that wife of yours? She still a bitch?"

"Just as God made her."

"Hey, I heard she was pregnant again, thanks for telling me. Again, I thought we were friends and I don't even get to hear when your wife is pregnant."

"But you don't really like Stephanie so I thought it'd be fine if I didn't tell you she was pregnant since it's a win-lose situation for you. You like me, you don't really like her and since she's the one carrying the kid, then you probably didn't want to know."

"You make no sense," Rocky told him. "But she is?"

"She is," Chris said proudly, "she's due at the end of August."

"Wow, Chris Jericho with two kids? Never thought I'd see the day…so…put me down, I'll induct them, I'll be at the Hall of Fame, if nothing more than to bug your ass," Rocky said. "And then get in Hunter's face a little bit."

"We're cool now."

"Wait, _what_?" Rocky asked. "Chris, man, what did we used to say about that guy? We spent hours talking about what a douchebag he was, and now you're going back on that, I'm disappointed in you, I'm very disappointed."

"He's still a douchebag, I've just gotten used to it. Besides, it's hard to hate a guy when you practically took his wife, married her, and then had two kids with her."

"True, so go make your wife happy."

"Thanks, man, I do owe you."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah."

Chris hung up and went on his walkie-talkie to tell Britt to tell production that their project was a definite go. Stephanie was going to be so surprised later on when she found out that Rocky was actually going to be at the Hall of Fame. He loved doing things like that for her. He figured he might as well do the other thing he said he'd do for her tonight and go tell Regal that he was going to enter the match.

"Okay, kid, you're going to have to go with Mommy now, or someone else…how about Trish, do you want to go see Trish?" Chris asked.

"No," Sawyer told him, shaking his head as he wrapped his arms around Chris's neck. Chris rubbed the little boy's back as he stood up. He could just imagine having another one hanging off of him like this. God, Sawyer still wanted to cling to him, it would be even worse with another one holding onto him. What had he gotten himself into?

"Okay, fine, then you have to go to Mommy."

"Okay," Sawyer agreed to that.

He went and dropped off Sawyer with Stephanie before he went to find Regal and tell him that one of the spots was going to be taken by him. He made some light-hearted jokes about when he had peed into Regal's coffee, that was still classic in his book. Regal, however, seemed to not care about Chris's status and made Chris have to qualify for his match against Jeff Hardy of all people. Chris had no choice but to accept it and he was fine with that. He hadn't wanted to just walk into the match anyways. He felt like he should earn it just as much as the other participants had.

The match with Jeff started off well enough, with the two of them exchanging blows with one another. There was a lot of back and forth in the match with no clear upper-hand by either of them. It was hard because they were friends outside of the ring. Chris and Stephanie even trusted Sawyer with Jeff, so to have to win this match at all costs was a little off-putting for Chris, but he had to win so he did what he had to do.

Another thing that he found in the middle of his match was the fact that he couldn't scale back. When he was in that ring, he had to give it his all; that was just how he was. When he was backstage, it was easy to say that he would be fine having no match at WrestleMania, or he would be fine just doing a promo at the big show, but that wasn't who he was. He was born to be a competitor and if this was what was in store for him, he was going to put his all into it. He couldn't just throw a match when he stepped into that ring. The only match he had ever thrown was the one with John Cena when Stephanie had been pregnant the first time.

The match was a lot of counters, and a lot of moves, but also a lot of respect. He respected Jeff's abilities, and Jeff respected his. The match was fun, and he enjoyed a match where he knew his competitor could absolutely keep up with him. It was moments like these that made him happy to come back to the show. He thought they were putting on a pretty good, little match, but now it was time to really turn on the jets. Jeff could sense that Chris was picking up his pace and so he did as well as they both went for their signature moves.

It ended with a counter and Chris getting the pin for the victory. There was some jawing back and forth after the match, but they both knew where they were headed. Chris could say all he wanted that he would take a step back, but when he stepped in that ring for the Money in the Bank match, he was going to give it everything he had, unless of course he got distracted by his wife's expanding middle and then forgot where he was, but he doubted Stephanie would let that happen. He went backstage where he found Stephanie speaking with her father.

"Dad, what you did…you say that you just wanted JBL to control Finlay, but you didn't stop it, and now you're going out there to apologize? You could've stopped it way before it got to that point."

"I thought it was tough love."

"For what? I just don't get you."

"It wasn't like you were trying to be a good sister."

"Because I don't think that he's my brother," Stephanie said. "You never got a real test, Dad. You're just relying on what someone tells you. You of all people should know that you need proof to prove if something is real or not. I don't know therefore I can't really have a relationship with him."

"I'm going to apologize, what more do you want, Stephanie?"

"I don't know, Dad, I just don't know."

Chris went over and sat next to Stephanie, wiping himself down with a towel. She looked over at him and smiled, grabbing his towel and wiping off his shoulders of their sweat. He took it back from her and got his arms before he leaned back in the folding chair he was sitting in, the cool metal nice against his sweaty back. He was still panting slightly from his match, but he just needed to cool down. Sawyer looked over at him from where he was lying on Stephanie's shoulder and sucking his thumb lightly.

"I think Sawyer got scared of something last week," Stephanie told him. "He keeps looking around like he's going to see something and he won't go down to the ground or anything."

"What do you think he saw?"

"I don't know, a rat, spider, I don't know, maybe just something that scared him and now he's associated it with arenas."

"No, our kid cannot be scared of arenas, I mean, come on, we practically live in arenas."

"Whatever it is, he'll be over it soon enough," Stephanie said, hugging Sawyer to her. He hugged her tightly back, both of his parents unaware that he was actually terrified of the Big Show. He had seen him last week and the sheer size of that man had put the fear of God into him. He had been scared that he was going to see him again tonight and if that happened, he wanted his parents to be right here to protect him.

Chris and Stephanie were too engrossed in what Vince was saying to think about what was bothering their son. JBL had come out to seemingly apologize as well and then had dropped the bombshell that Finlay was really Hornswoggle's father and not Vince. Stephanie and Chris weren't surprised as they had always suspected something was fishy with that. They looked at each other knowingly, satisfied to know that they had probably been right all along. Then JBL dropped a bombshell saying that Stephanie and her whole family knew about this and had set Vince up.

When Vince came backstage, he strode over to her, "How could you do it, Stephanie?"

"Dad, I don't know what he was talking about," Stephanie told him.

"Tell me the truth!"

"I have been!" she said, handing off Sawyer to Chris as she stood up. "I told you the truth. I don't know what he was talking about." Just then, JBL walked by and smirked at Chris. Chris gave him a dirty look as he passed, knowing that he had set Vince up _here_ and not out there.

"No, you haven't, what you thought this was funny? You thought that you could laugh at me while I have to deal with that…boy?"

"No! Chris and I have been telling you over and over again to get a test done, get a test done, but you never listened to us."

"Maybe you kept telling me because you _knew_ all along that he wasn't my son, maybe you were deterring me from it."

"Why would I do that? What cause would I have to do that?" Stephanie asked. "Why would Mom, Shane, or I, or Chris, or Marissa, or freaking Sawyer, Declan, or Kenyon have any reason to make you think this?"

"Revenge."

"Revenge! Revenge for what, Dad? You've been amassing bad karma for years now, if we haven't gotten revenge yet, on a grand scale, what makes you think that _this_ would be the way that we went about it?"

"I don't know how your mind works, Stephanie, but I hope you're happy now that you've humiliated me in front of everyone!"

"I did not humiliate you!" Stephanie yelled. "This was not my fault! I don't know why you automatically take his side over my side! What the hell does JBL have that I don't in terms of credibility? I'm your daughter, Dad! I'm your daughter and you should give me the benefit of the doubt."

"Oh, is that right?" Vince said. "You probably laughed it up when I had to run around chasing after Hornswoggle. You probably had a grand time."

"You're ridiculous," Stephanie spat at him.

"You're lying!"

"No, I'm not!" she screamed. "Did you ever think that it was JBL who was lying, huh!"

"What purpose would that serve?"

"So he wouldn't get his ass kicked, obviously!"

"Okay, enough, you two, enough," Chris said, stepping in. "Vince, get away from wife."

"Excuse me?" Vince asked.

"I said get away from my wife, now," Chris told him firmly. "You're angry, fine, you want to blame us, fine, whatever, but you go do that on your own time, you are not going to do that around my wife."

"I'll do as I damn well please, she's my daughter, and this is _my_ company," Vince told him, staring him down.

Chris shook his head, "You may be those things, Vince, but she's my wife, okay, and you're yelling at my wife, who is pregnant with my child," Chris said stonily. "You are yelling at her in front of my toddler son, and I'm not going to have that, so you can either leave and go stew and pretend like your family is really out to get you, or I can make you leave, which would be fun for me, but not so much fun for you."

"I'm not forgetting this, Stephanie, I'm not forgetting this."


	171. Return of the Reel, March 3, 2008

A/N: So I just wanted to thank everyone for the reviews, they're great. I also just wanted to dedicate this chapter to a friend of mine for certain reasons one of which is that he loves this story, but yeah, love you, Man. Enjoy. :)

* * *

"And here I thought that I could put these clothes away for a while."

Chris laughed, "Is that a crack at me?"

"Of course it was. You're the one that got me into this predicament in the first place. I was married before, sweetie, and I never got pregnant in two years," she told him, "and now, what, we've been married for three years and I've had two of your kids, what does that say? What I think that means is that this is your fault."

"Sorry," he shrugged. "So do you just want me to take this baby when you have it? We'll just leave."

"Yeah, I think that'd be for the best," Stephanie told him. "Is he still asleep?"

Chris got up off the bed and took a peek into the other room which was mostly dark, the curtains drawn closed making the room as dark as it could be for the middle of the day. Chris looked towards the large bed in the middle of the room. Sawyer was still out like a light. He was lying on his stomach and he was splayed out like a little paint blotch. Chris didn't like the way he was burying his face into the pillow and went over to him, gently turning him over onto his back.

Sawyer let out a keening whine, but it was soft because he was still mostly asleep. His little sock-covered feet tried to kick a little at Chris, but Chris avoided the little feet as he let the boy settle back into the pillow. Usually he would be in a crib, but he took many of his naps on beds as they were trying to transition him to a big-boy bed. They were already beginning this when Stephanie found out she was pregnant, but with a new baby on the way, they had ramped it up to get him in the bed before the baby came and they were one crib short.

Chris came back into the other room and climbed on the bed with Stephanie again. "So he's still asleep?" she wondered.

"Yeah, he's still out," Chris answered, "he was on his stomach and he had his head in the pillow so I moved him onto his back and he decided that he'd take the opportunity to kick me."

"He doesn't like to be bothered when he sleeps," she reminded him. "He's very set in his ways."

"Do you think that he's going to be afraid at the arena today?"

"I hope not, I don't know what's got him so spooked."

"I don't either," Chris said. "So how are you? Nausea gone?"

"Yeah, I guess this little one decided that she would push all of the nausea up until the very last moment and then hit me with it hard," Stephanie said. For the past week she had been dealing with bouts of horrible nausea. With Sawyer, it had been pretty consistent, she got sick a lot at night, but not really in the mornings. With this one, she hadn't felt sick until these last couple of weeks before her first trimester ended and then it had just hit her hard, all day too, which was probably the worst of it. She never knew when it was going to pop up.

"Poor baby," Chris said, rubbing her stomach. Over the last week, Stephanie had "popped" so to speak, and was definitely sporting a new pregnant belly. It didn't look like she was just gaining too much weight. She hadn't started showing with Sawyer until a few weeks further into her pregnancy, but it was said that a woman tended to show sooner with other pregnancies. She hadn't expected it to be this soon though so it surprised her when she actually had physical proof of her pregnancy.

"I can't even wear my regular clothes anymore," she sighed, "oh, but that reminds me; I wanted to discuss something with you."

"Go right ahead," he told her. "Is this about the baby?"

"Yeah, it is," she told him, so he sat up a little bit more, wondering what she wanted. "So…okay, I was thinking about it, long and hard too, and I want to know what the baby is! I know we talked about keeping it a surprise, you know, but…I don't know, I don't think I can wait until August without knowing."

Chris laughed, "But I thought we wanted it to be a surprise after labor, something to look forward to."

"But think about it. If we know what sex the baby is, then we can buy accordingly. I mean, not all of Sawyer's clothes can be reused."

"Why not?"

"Some of his clothes are very boy-oriented. What if we have a girl? We can't dress her up in clothes that make her look like a boy," Stephanie told him. "That just wouldn't work. She's a girl."

"So, I mean, granted, we didn't put Sawyer into anything pink, but we put him in yellow, and that's very neutral. And you cannot tell me that you want to dress our daughter, if we have a daughter, in all pink all the time."

"No, I just don't want her in tons of blue if she is a girl, then everyone is going to think my daughter is a boy," Stephanie told him. "I don't want to have to correct people."

Chris rolled his eyes, "Like babies even know what's going on. People would probably think a girl looks like a boy anyways, so it doesn't even matter either way. They'd probably think that a boy was a girl."

"They wouldn't because we still have all of Sawyer's baby clothes because remind me again…when was Sawyer a baby…it didn't seem that long ago…"

"Sawyer's still a baby as far as I'm concerned," Chris said. "Until that kid can use the bathroom by himself and doesn't need to be changed, then I'm going to call him a baby, and you call him your baby boy anyways, what if we have another son, are you going to call him baby boy number 2?"

"Yes, and you're baby boy number 3," she told him. "I'm hungry."

"You're always hungry."

"Well, tell that to the person inside of me," Stephanie told him. "Because the person inside of me—girl, boy, whatever—is hungry too, and she…or he want to eat."

"Well, what do you feel like?"

"A burger, a double-burger with extra tomatoes and cheese, cheddar _and_ jack, no onions though, those give me heartburn, which is another bad thing about pregnancy, to add to the numerous bad things already. Then I was a side of fries, cheese fries, doused in cheese."

"Okay, okay, so I guess that the cravings are starting already too?"

"Not so much cravings, I'm just hungry, so find me a place," she whined. "Quick too because I've got to go to work and so do you. You're just lucky you're my husband so that you don't have to be at work right now and you can wait a couple of hours because you have a pregnant wife who needs to be tended to, but not only that, your pregnant wife runs the joint."

Chris laughed, "That's a perk?"

"Yes, it's a perk, it also meant that you could take a 2-year absence and come back like nothing was different."

"Oh, is _that_ what it meant?"

"Of course," she told him. "I mean, if you tell Regal or my father, who is such a jerk, that you were going to be late for the show, they'd have to understand because your wife is pregnant. My father would at least sympathize for my baby."

"True, true, see, this _could_ be a perk, but it's all about the kid and nothing about me," he said. "Or you for that matter, since your father seems to think that you're a big, fat liar who set him up."

"Shut up," Stephanie told him. "I swear to God, my father is more indecisive than a 15-year-old girl trying to figure out what to wear on her first date."

"Speaking from experience?" he asked playfully.

Stephanie stuck her tongue out and then leaned up to give Chris a peck on the lips. He dipped her down so she was lying back down on the bed and she wrapped her arms around his neck. She felt him press his weight gently on her, his left hand running up her leg and into her shorts to her thigh. She moved her head slightly to the left to catch her breath and Chris started kissing her neck, which she arched for him to gain access.

"Hey," he mumbled against her skin. "I just realized something."

"What?"

"We don't have to worry about you getting pregnant now."

Stephanie shoved him a little, "Only you."

"Only me, what?"

"Nothing, keep kissing me," she demanded as she pulled his head back down, kissing him again. She pushed his hands up her tank top, and towards the bottom of her bra. His hand grazed her stomach and he smiled against her lips. This pregnancy was becoming more and more real for the both of them and Stephanie starting to show was just the latest physical projection of that pregnancy and the upcoming baby they were going to have.

Stephanie moaned appreciatively as Chris touched her in a particularly sensitive spot. She arched up against him as he went back down to concentrate on her chest. "Mama!"

Stephanie pushed Chris off of her almost immediately. The suddenness of the action startled Chris and he toppled right off of the bed. Stephanie caught her breath and pulled her tank top down and got off the bed, stepping over Chris on the floor and going into the other room where Sawyer was just rubbing his eyes free from sleep. He saw his mommy walking over to him and he reached out his arms to her. She happily picked him up and held him to her.

"Did you have a nice nap?" she asked.

"Yeah," he answered, capping off his reply with a yawn.

"Good, are you hungry, do you want some food?"

"Yeah."

"He ate his lunch before his nap, Steph," Chris said.

"He can have some fruit or something, an afternoon snack, we haven't eaten lunch yet and it's getting late and I'm hungry, Chris, me and your unborn child are hungry," she said. "Find us a place to eat."

"What about that burger place we saw when we were coming up, Shakes and something or another, I bet they'll have what you want."

"Okay, let me get dressed then," she said, handing off Sawyer to Chris. The little boy looked at his father like he didn't want to be in his arms at all. Stephanie whisked herself over to her suitcase and Chris looked at Sawyer, who was giving him the dirtiest look a 2-year-old could muster.

"Hey, I wanted to be in her arms too," Chris said. "In fact, I _was_ in her arms and you were the one that had to come barging in and waking up from your nap. Look, let me level with you here, kid. Pretty soon, your mom and I aren't going to be able to be together, so you know, if you can, lay off of us right now. I've got to enjoy some things before they disappear."

"No," Sawyer said, giving him that look and squirming in his arms.

Chris sighed and put him down as Stephanie got dressed. He was already dressed, but Stephanie had taken the morning off to just lounge around. Chris had spent the morning walking with Sawyer around Indianapolis. It had been kind of cold out so they had ended up at Circle Centre Mall, walking around and looking at clothes and stuff. Sawyer had gotten some picture books and a new train out of the deal, plus a new pair of shoes that Chris was putting on his feet at this moment. Sawyer took a moment to stomp around in them like he was trying to break them in.

"Coat time," Stephanie said as she grabbed Sawyer's coat. Sawyer held his arms up and Stephanie put his coat on him and grabbed her hand. They walked out of the hotel and then down the street to the local Steak 'n Shake which had just the right amount of bad-for-you food that Stephanie was looking for. As she was ordering her large vanilla shake and her burger and fries, Chris had a few people come up to him asking for autographs, which he happily obliged in.

"You know what I realized?" Chris asked.

"No, what?" Stephanie asked as she slurped some of her milkshake.

"We haven't officially told a certain someone who is of the toddler persuasion that there's going to be a new baby in the house," Chris said, nodding towards Sawyer, who was eating some grapes at the moment. He was eating them with much vigor at the moment, grabbing one between his fingers and then putting it in his mouth so that he could viciously squash the fruit between his teeth, causing some of the grape's juice to squirt out of his mouth, like he was some wild animal feasting on its prey.

"I was hoping we could wait until, you know, I was showing, since it'd be like, hey, baby here," she said, pointing down at her stomach.

"Excuse me?"

Chris looked over to a young boy dressed in a blue Colts shirt who was holding out a piece of paper and a pen. Sawyer looked over at the kid like he wanted to punch him or something for daring to talk to his father and he started to lean over and reach out to grab the kid when Stephanie grabbed his hand and started wiping it. He looked at her like she was cramping his style, but relented when she gave him one of those smiles that he loved so much.

"Hey," Chris said nicely.

"Can I get your autograph, Mr. Jericho?" he asked.

"Sure you can," Chris told him, "what's your name?"

"Aaron," he told him. "I really like you and I like your moves and I like the Lionsault. My sister likes you too, but she's not here because she's with her friends, and she's going to be mad when I tell her that I saw you."

"Oh, well, I'm well-liked," Chris said, looking pointedly at Stephanie, who had only one person come up to her and ask for her autograph, but she wasn't nearly as popular as Chris was, which he loved to rub in her face, if the look he was giving her right now was any indication. "Are you coming to the show tonight, Aaron?"

"Uh huh, my daddy is taking me and my sister," he said proudly.

"Cool, well, maybe I'll see you there," he said, handing him the paper back. "Have a nice lunch."

"Thank you!" he said excitedly as he bounded back over to his father.

Chris turned to Stephanie, "So that makes the count…what, exactly? Seven to…one?"

"You're on television, Chris," Stephanie told him. "I'm not on television, so of course people are going to want to see you more. That kid probably didn't even know who the hell I was. I don't show up on television, I'm too busy running the show and…oh, raising _your_ son. Plus, it's not like I can really go on television _now_, seeing as how I'm pregnant, and we don't want a repeat of the Austin incident."

"Why is Sawyer always_my_ son when you're angry with me?" he asked coolly, giving her a winning smirk.

"Not funny."

"Oh, and as for the baby thing, you _are_ showing, so when do you want to tell the kid there's another kid whose come to replace him?"

"We're not using the word replace anywhere in any sentence we use to tell him what's going on," Stephanie said. "We'll tell him later, not now."

"So this is like his last meal before the executioner?" Chris asked.

"It's not going to be that bad, he'll be a good big brother," Stephanie said, looking at Sawyer who was picking off cheesy fries from her plate and eating them. "Hey, don't take my food."

"Sowwy," Sawyer said, but still went in for another, getting cheese all over his mouth.

"What a pig," Stephanie said as she eyed Chris's chili.

Chris looked up when he felt eyes on him. Stephanie was looking at him eating and then looking at his plate. "What are you looking at?"

"I didn't get chili as a side," she pouted. "I got fruit for Sawyer and then fries with cheese, and I forgot that they had chili and it looks really good. Is it good?"

"Yes," he told her.

"Can I have some?" she asked politely.

Chris sighed and pushed all of the chili over to her. He watched as she grabbed it delightedly and dumped all of it onto her fries. Chris watched with amazement and shook his head. "I didn't even say you could have it all."

"Oh, I thought that pushing it over was a gesture of good-will," she said.

"It's fine, you're pregnant with my child, eat away," he said. "Just ask next time."

She smiled as she popped a chili-cheese fry in her mouth.

--

"Okay, so I've narrowed it down to four dresses," Trish told Christian.

"Great, so why can't you choose one."

"Well, you're the one that told me that I had to dress extra special because I'd be sitting in front of everyone because it's your mom," Trish said. "So I want to look nice, I don't want everyone to think that you took some dumpy girl."

"Trish, have you seen yourself, nobody's going to think of you as the dumpy girl. Just don't upstage my mom and you should be fine…maybe you should dress up as a dumpy girl," he told her with a wink.

"Shut up," she said. "So you don't think I look dumpy?"

"What kind of question is that?" he asked her. "That's the dumbest question I've ever heard, you know you're beautiful, Trish, you don't need me to tell you. I've told you a million times before this, and I'll probably tell you a million times after this."

"Why are you spending so much time in Toronto?" she asked as she looked in her mirror. He was lounging on the floor of her walk-in closet, leaned up against the wall. She looked at him through the mirror waiting for his answer. All she got was a shrug. "That's it, a shrug?"

"Yeah, a shrug," he said. "I don't know. My mom is here and she's getting married and I want to be there for her. Edge spends all of his time up here too."

"No, he doesn't."

"Okay,_ some_ of his time then," Christian said. "The other time is spent with Vickie. You know, he's going to have step-kids if he marries her."

"Oh, that's right," Trish said, turning around to look down at him. "What the hell is Edge going to do with _that_?"

"Hell if I know. I don't think I've seen my brother around kids for a prolonged period of time. It'll be interesting to say the least."

"Yeah, the very least," Trish said, going back to the mirror and adjusting the straps on the dress. "You didn't really answer my question as to why you're spending so much time in Toronto. It's not like you film here, you film in Orlando, in Florida, where you live."

"It's lonely down there."

"Chris and Stephanie live there," Trish pointed out.

"I don't like being around them right now."

"Why?" she wondered curiously.

"Because she's pregnant, it's very uncomfortable."

"You were around…oh wait, you weren't around when she was pregnant before," Trish remembered. "But why would you feel uncomfortable, she's still Steph, you know Steph, you've kissed Steph."

"Once, and it was very awkward and bad," he said, sticking out his tongue in disgust. "It's not that, I'm just…I'm just jealous and they have this family thing going on and I have no family, not even a girlfriend since mine left for England."

"Yeah…have you heard from her?" Trish tried to ask nonchalantly. Her stomach was fluttering though at the answer to that. Maybe he and Tiffany had spoken to each other and had decided to try a long-distance relationship.

"No, it would just be too hard, you know, and weird," he told her, not picking up on her tone.

"It probably would be."

"Yeah, so single and loveless, that's me," Christian said, "so seeing Stephanie with her second child all growing up inside of her and Chris and Sawyer, it's enough to make a man cringe."

"They don't try to be."

"I know, but they are," he said. "Besides, I like coming to see you."

"Do you?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I do."

"I like that you come to see me too," she said quietly. "I mean, I'm really glad that we're in the place that we're in. I know that it seemed impossible for us to even get here, but I'm really glad that we were able to put aside everything that's happened between us and kind of start fresh, don't you think?"

"I like that I can talk to you too, and be around you now," Christian said. Trish grabbed one of the other dresses that she had bought, but Christian grabbed her wrist. She looked at him in surprise for a moment, but he pulled her down to the ground to sit next to him. She felt a little silly sitting on the floor in a new gown, but she settled herself against the wall. "Do you realize that we got together only a few months after Chris and Stephanie?"

"It was more like…five months, so it wasn't a few."

"Yeah, but still, five months, five months separates us from them and they have two kids and a healthy relationship and we have…"

"Nothing and nobody?" she supplied for him.

"Exactly."

"Not everyone is meant to work out, Chrissy. You can't compare the two relationships."

"But they were able to get over all that bullshit. Remember Molly?"

"Oh man, Chris and Molly, what was he thinking?" Trish laughed. "I mean, I know what he was thinking. He wanted to be with someone who was the exact opposite of Stephanie and he sure got her in Molly, but man."

"Remember your plan that separated them?"

"Yeah, I remember."

"Remember when that one dude…wait, you may not remember that actually…no wait, you would, who was it, I think it was Charlie Haas of all people that kissed Stephanie? Still, they got through it."

"They're strong."

"We're not weak," he told her.

"No, we're not, but you just never know who's going to end up being the one. Stephanie had to get married twice to figure it out."

"Still, here we are."

"Yeah, here we are."

"Do you ever regret us?" he asked.

"Never."

He reached out tentatively and his hand inched across the carpet. She wasn't looking at his hand as it made its way across the floor slowly. Suddenly she felt his warm hand enclosing over hers covering it almost completely. She looked down sharply at the contact and then looked up at Christian, smiling sweetly. She bit her lip as he stared at her for a long moment. His hand was curling around hers, tightening its grip.

"Oh, uh, you know, Raw is starting," Christian said as he pulled back, "I wanted to watch it, you want to come with?"

"Sure, yeah, okay," she said, missing the heat of his skin on hers. "Lead the way."

--

"Okay, so I don't think it was just me, but the second we walked in here, this kid was suddenly like my magnet, wasn't he?" Stephanie asked as Sawyer hugged her leg as she tried to get up.

"Kid, what is with you?" Chris asked as they sat in their dressing room. "What a weird kid."

"I agree," Stephanie said as she picked up Sawyer and held him in her arms.

"Hey, Britt, okay, so do we have the Jeritron 6000 ready?"

"Yes," Britt said. "Why do you call it that?"

"Because the Jeritron 5000 is currently in our guest room," Chris said.

"Soon-to-be nursery," Stephanie pointed out.

"Okay," Britt said, looking between the two of them in confusion, "but why do you call it that?"

"Because it's mine."

"Oh, that makes sense," Britt said, rolling her eyes. "But yes, that's all ready."

"My chairs?"

"Yes."

"Carpet?"

"That one was hard to get, but we managed," Britt said. "So this Highlight Reel thing, what do you do exactly? Do you review movies or something?"

Stephanie started laughing as Chris looked aghast, "You…you don't know!"

"Should I?" Britt asked. "I mean, I didn't know you before you left on leave. I haven't exactly watched much of the older stuff beyond what Hunter makes me watch and most of that is of himself. Oh, I did see your match against him at WrestleMania, you two were so hot for each other."

"We know," Chris said, "but the Highlight Reel is only the leading talk show in the WWE. I get the really good stuff out of people, and tonight it's Jeff's turn to take a spin at the Reel. See how I worked that?"

"Very nice," Stephanie deadpanned.

"Okay, well, I'm going to go check to make sure they've got the pyro for this special Highlight Reel," Britt said. "If either of you need anything, you know where to reach me."

"With Hunter's tongue down your throat?" Chris asked. Britt flipped him off as she stuck her tongue out. "Is that any way to treat your boss! I could fire you, Britt, on the spot."

"Sure you would," she joked, winking as she left.

"So…I think it's just about that time," Stephanie said as she sat down again on the couch. She let Sawyer sit in her lap. She looked to Chris and he remembered what they had to do and he went over and sat on the other side of Sawyer. Stephanie kissed his head and sat him so he was facing them. "So, Sawyer, Mommy and Daddy have something very important to tell you."

"Uh huh."

"So you sensed it?" Chris asked.

"Daddy," Sawyer giggled.

"Daddy and I are going to have another baby, Sawyer," Stephanie told him seriously. "That means you're going to have a little brother or sister."

"Baby?" Sawyer asked, only really picking up on that word.

"Yes, another baby," Stephanie told him. "You get to be a big brother, isn't that exciting?"

"Baby?" Sawyer asked again, then pointed at himself, "baby!"

"No, no…well, yes, you are a baby, but there will be another baby," Stephanie said. She handed him off to Chris and lifted up her shirt, pointing to her baby bump, "See that's where the baby is."

"Tummy," Sawyer said, patting his own tummy.

"Yes, that is my tummy, but there's a baby in there, you want to feel it?" Stephanie let him lean forward and she took his hand and placed it on her stomach. "See, that's where the baby is right now."

"Baby?" Sawyer said, staring hard at her stomach as he felt around it. He looked up at Stephanie, "Baby?"

"Yes, baby," Chris told him. "Mommy is going to have another baby, maybe another you or a little girl, we don't know yet."

"Play," Sawyer said, pulling back and getting off the couch and going over to play with his toys.

"Well, that went well," Stephanie said. "I think he either doesn't believe us, doesn't know what we're talking about, or is in denial."

"I think it's the denial."

"Me too, but well, I've got work to do, and you're on early in the show so do you want to just come hang out with us. You can protect me from my dad again, getting all mad like you did. Saying to get away from me because I was pregnant with your child and we had our son with us."

"Shut it, McMahon," Chris said, kissing her. "I did what I had to do."

"Sexy," she growled. "Come on, Sawyer, we're going to work."

"No!" Sawyer screamed, trying to get away from Stephanie, who was able to track him down rather easily and scooped him up. He cowered in her arms and she looked to Chris in amazement.

"What has gotten into him?"

"I don't know," Chris said. "I can't think of anything that he's afraid of. I mean, he saw a bug crawling outside and thought it was cool so I know it's not bugs, big equipment boxes?"

"Maybe," she said. They left the room and Stephanie put Sawyer down on the ground, his grip loosening reluctantly, but searching out her hand almost immediately. He held it in his own tightly as they walked down the hall. He kept looking up at his hand to make sure that it was near Stephanie's. "Sawyer, it's okay, baby boy. There's nothing to be scared of."

Tell that to the little boy who was unsuspectingly walking only to look behind him and see Big Show walking out for the match he was going to have at the top of the show. Sawyer's eyes widened at the sheer size of the man and he screamed at the top of his lungs, breaking free from Stephanie's grip and running down the hall as fast as his legs could carry him. Chris and Stephanie looked at each other in shock and then looked behind them at the Big Show and it all clicked. It was him that Sawyer was afraid of.

Chris ran after Sawyer and picked him up, cradling the boy in his arms. Sawyer was bawling at this point, tears streaming down his face as he pushed said face into his father's black shirt. Chris kissed him and whispered that it would be okay to him, but he didn't believe it as he kept crying. Stephanie caught up with him, Big Show in tow. He wasn't such a bad guy as to want to actually frighten little children.

Stephanie tapped Sawyer on the shoulder and he lifted his head a little bit and saw that the giant was _right there_ and started screaming and wiggling in Chris's arms in terror. "Baby boy, it's okay, it's okay," Stephanie told him, taking him from Chris's arms, though Sawyer tried to claw his way back to Chris.

"Hey there," Big Show said to Sawyer, "you don't have to be afraid."

"See," Stephanie said. "Look, he's nice."

"Yeah, nice," he said to Sawyer. Sawyer whimpered and looked up slowly, trying to be brave. His daddy was brave and he could be brave too. Big Show waved at him and he gave a small and very slow wave back, not sure what to do. "Hi, Sawyer."

"Hi," Sawyer said softly.

"See, nothing to be afraid of," she said, then turned to Big Show, "thanks, he's just afraid."

"Not a problem," he said with a nod before heading out to his match.

"Well, that was averted," Stephanie said, then her headset buzzed.

"Were we aware that John Cena was going to be the GM for the night because he's the GM for the night, he's running Raw according to Regal."

"What! Oh man, okay, I'm on it," Stephanie said. She turned to Chris, "Can you take over for a while, I have to make sure Cena knows that I'm actually the one in charge. When do you go out there for your thing?"

"Around 9:45."

"I'll be back before then."

Chris was excited to be doing the Highlight Reel again. It really felt like home now. Now if only he could have a scene with Stephanie, he would really feel like he was honestly and truly back (and his fans would be ecstatic I'm sure). Still, it felt good to be back in his old digs. He invited Jeff out to inform him that he wasn't going to be his friend for now until WrestleMania. He liked Jeff, he really did, but the fact of the matter was that they were going to be opponents so there could be no more good blood between the two of them.

He hadn't been expecting the Twist of Fate pulled on him though and he was pissed off that he hadn't seen it coming. He knew that Jeff wasn't the same guy that he was when he left (though his speaking skills still leave a lot to desire, though they were much better than the strains of 'Terry, no!' that still make people chuckle), but he was still beneath Chris's level, and always would be. One time he got him off-guard, but he was going to make sure that it was the last time.

As he stared at Jeff's retreating form, he was already plotting his revenge.

Vince was going to be plotting his revenge later that evening as he went out to find out what the hell was going on with Finlay and JBL. He came to the gorilla early to see Stephanie sitting there with Sawyer. Chris had his feet propped up on another folding chair as he leaned back and dictated what cameras should be where as Stephanie played patty-cake with Sawyer. He kept patting her stomach, which Vince noticed was rounder.

"Hello," he said gruffly, hands stuffed in pockets.

Stephanie looked up, "Dad."

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Playing with my son," she responded.

"Oh, yes, of course," Vince said, clearing his throat. "Hello, Sawyer."

"Hi, Gamp," Sawyer said, straining his neck to look at his grandpa.

"What are you doing?"

"Play, Mama," Sawyer said, going back to what he was doing with Stephanie.

It was to Vince's surprise and Stephanie's shock that Finlay had the audacity to claim that she had been in on some plan to make Vince think that Hornswoggle was his son, her brother. When Vince came backstage, he seemed resigned, but Stephanie was indignant. Finlay had the good sense to get backstage through one of the side entrances and not the main one.

"Dad, I swear, I have no idea what he's talking about."

"Yeah, we'll see," Vince said, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"I'm your daughter, Dad, why would I do that?"

"I believe you," he told her and of all the thing she expected him to say, that wasn't it. She expected him to rage against her, yell at her, do something to her, but to agree with her, yeah, that wasn't on the list at all.

"You…you believe me?"

"You're pregnant, I don't believe you'd do anything while you were pregnant."

"You obviously don't know Steph," Chris chimed in.

"I think he's up to something, we'll find out what."


	172. That Belt is Beneath Him, March 10, 2008

A/N: Thanks for the reviews guys, I appreciate them a lot, so keep them coming. :)

* * *

"No nap!"

"Yes, nap," Stephanie told Sawyer.

"Mama, no," Sawyer whimpered, pouting at her.

"What do you think is going to happen if you stay awake? Do you think that we're going to abandon you while you're gone?"

"Yes."

"Oh, really? Well, I can assure you that Daddy and I aren't going to abandon you when you're sleeping. Even if we did, I bet you could open the door and go find someone to tell that we left, you could probably find Grandpa or Uncle Shane and they'd take you in while Daddy and I ran off."

Sawyer looked at her, "No. No go."

"Okay, fine, you talked me into staying, but you need to take a nap."

"You nap," Sawyer said contrarily.

"I have to work, I have a show tonight, do _you_ have a show tonight?"

"No," Sawyer answered.

"Yeah, do you have a job?"

"No," he told her, shaking his head and sighing.

"Well, your official job is to be cute and be a little kid. That way when you're older and I work you into the ground, you can at least remember that I didn't rob you of your childhood or make you model for any catalogues, I'll show you what grandpa did to me when you're older," Stephanie said.

"Okay," he said, "you nap, Mama."

"I'm not going to nap."

"Yes."

"If I take a nap, will_ you_ take a nap?" Sawyer pursed his lips and took a very big breath and looked at Stephanie for a moment. He folded his arms like she was doing and then he nodded his head. "Okay then."

Stephanie stood up and went over to the couch that Sawyer was sitting on. She put him down on one side and climbed next to him, even though she was almost falling off the couch. Sawyer had to scoot over and sort of lie half on top of her to fit. He cuddled into her and she rested her head against the arm of the couch. Sawyer laid his arm across her chest and then kind of hugged her around the neck.

"Comfy?" she asked him.

"Uh huh," he told her as he rested his head partially on her shoulder.

"You should be able to sleep by yourself you know?"

"Uh huh," he told her, closing his eyes briefly. "Sleepy time."

"Yeah, it is sleepy time," she told him, resting her hand on her growing stomach. She hadn't expected to be showing so much this early in her pregnancy, but she was 15 weeks along and showing quite a bit. She hadn't really started showing with Sawyer until she was a little farther along so she wasn't used to everyone seeing she was pregnant so soon.

Sawyer saw her resting her hand on her tummy, which he admittedly thought was getting bigger. They had said baby when they were talking to him and his mommy had put his hand on it and it had definitely felt bigger. It was definitely bigger than his tummy, but what did they mean when they said that there was another baby? He was a baby, his mommy called him baby, he knew that, so what was this talk about baby and then her stomach? Surely there couldn't be a baby in _there_? That was his mommy and not a baby, and a baby in the tummy? He patted his own tummy and it wasn't like that.

"Baby?" Sawyer asked, sitting up a little to look at the bulge of Stephanie's tummy.

"Yes, there's a baby in there," she said, lifting her shirt a little so that he could see her stomach. He frowned as he looked at it. He couldn't_see_ any baby? Maybe his mommy had eaten too much. Sometimes he ate too much, so maybe his mommy had eaten too much, but _that_ much?

"Baby?" he asked again in disbelief. He dropped his chin down to his chest like he just couldn't believe this was true.

"Uh huh, another baby, not you, you're my first baby, but this will be my second baby."

"No," Sawyer said, shaking his head, "Me baby."

"You are one of my babies," she told him. "This is another baby. We're going to have another little baby, someone you can play with, and it'll be fun, and we'll still love you, so you don't have to worry about being replaced. You can touch my tummy where the baby is."

Sawyer reached out tentatively and set his hand next to his mommy's on her stomach. It felt different than his tummy, firmer. He giggled as he ran his hand across it a few times before lying on her chest, resting his head right under her breasts as he rubbed her stomach lightly. Stephanie laughed quietly as he continued to do this, just staring at her stomach.

"Baby," he whispered over and over again as he rubbed her tummy.

"See, you're making the baby happy," Stephanie told him and she could hear Sawyer giggle. He quieted down after a few minutes and she started to believe that he was falling asleep so she ceased talking and just concentrated on Sawyer's hand on her stomach.

She wasn't feeling much of a connection to her new baby right now. Maybe that sounded callous and mean of her, but she just wasn't feeling it. She could feel being pregnant and she was in awe that she was going to have another child, but she just wasn't feeling the connection that she had with Sawyer. Granted, it took her a little while to warm up to Sawyer as well. She remembered when Chris had told her she could have an abortion with Sawyer. It had surprised her, the depths of his love, but she could never get rid of her baby, and seeing him in front of her right now, there never even was a choice between keeping him or getting rid of him, it was always going to be keeping him.

The same could be said of this one that was growing inside of her right now. She never wanted to get rid of this little thing inside of her. It was a part of her now and it was a part of Chris and she would never want to get rid of anything that belonged to her and her husband. She just wasn't feeling very motherly towards him or her, and that scared her a little bit. What if she was going to be a bad mother to this child just because it came at an inopportune time?

Sawyer was just as much of a surprise, but she and Chris had been alone then, just a married couple and nothing more. Sawyer had made them feel like a real family, a mommy and daddy, and their little baby. He was like this glue that kind of cemented them together. Whatever happened in the future, Sawyer would always be this glue. Now they had this other one coming and they were as strong as they ever were. Sawyer was a handsome, adventurous little boy, Chris was back where she belonged, and she was running the show and everyone was happy and everything was going well, then this…thing, this baby bursts into their lives and throws everything back into a topsy-turvy. She just wasn't sure how she felt about the whole thing. As her stomach grew, it was just her stomach growing. She felt bad for loving Sawyer much more than this baby inside of her.

These thoughts led her to close her eyes as she fell asleep right there on the couch with Sawyer lying half on top of her, his hand resting comfortably on her stomach. Chris, meanwhile, was walking through the hallways with his brother-in-law who was here for the night to supplement Vince's not being there. Shane had caught up with him a little while ago while Chris had been grabbing a cup of coffee.

"You're really invested in this whole Mayweather and Big Show thing, aren't you?"

"Well, I was the one who invited Mayweather that night, I like boxing, you should know that by now."

"I know, you've dragged me to enough fights. I just don't get the appeal."

"You're a wrestler," Shane reasoned.

"The two aren't mutually exclusive. I'm also a hockey player, now that makes sense to me, you know, as a game. Two guys just punching each other doesn't. I get like MMA and stuff, where it's more than just punching, but this, I don't know. But if you're all for it, then more power to you," Chris shrugged.

"Yeah, thanks," Shane said drolly. "So I wanted to discuss something with Steph, is she available?"

"How should I know?" Chris asked, "I don't spend _all_ my time with Stephanie, you know. It just seems that way, but I do have a life that doesn't involve her, and a job that doesn't completely involve her."

"She's just your boss."

"So? She's not the boss of me for real."

"Sure, you say that now, but you know she's the boss of you."

"Sawyer is the boss of us, and this new baby is going to be the boss of us. We had the advantage of numbers with just Sawyer, but now we've got this new one and they're going to take over and Steph and I are just going to be along for the ride."

"I know how that goes," Shane said. "I can't believe you guys are having another one. Why don't you plan for these things?"

"See, I'd tell you, but it would involve me talking about your sister in ways that you're not going to want to hear. Let's just leave it at the fact that I think your sister is one of the most beautiful women in the world."

"Wait, one of the…not_the_ most beautiful woman in the world?"

"Hey, I don't know if I'm going to end up with her forever," Chris said, "I don't want to jump the gun with such assumptions so soon into our relationship."

"So soon? You've been together for going on six years, you've been married for over three, and you've got two kids, I think it's soon enough."

"Maybe, but six years in the grand scheme of things is nothing," Chris said. "We understand that, and we know that it might not last forever. We both went into this knowing that we may eventually come out of this."

"You two are way too logical," Shane said. "Who even thinks that?"

"We do!" Chris argued as they walked into Stephanie's office. Chris expected her to be at her desk, but she wasn't and he heard soft sighing from the side. He and Shane turned and saw Stephanie and Sawyer asleep together on the couch. Sawyer was resting on top of Stephanie, his hand on her bare stomach. His small body was moving up and down with his mother's breaths and Stephanie had her head nodded off to the side. "Okay, tell me that's not freakishly adorable?"

"It's pretty cute," Shane said. "Damn, she's getting really big, really early. Are you sure she's not having twins?"

"Oh my God, don't even suggest that!" Chris said as he rooted around Stephanie's purse. "She's just showing a lot earlier than she did with Sawyer. I think it's because this is her second pregnancy so her body is used to it."

"Is she mentally used to it yet?"

"I think so, I don't know, I haven't asked," Chris said as he found their digital camera.

"What are you doing?"

"I've got to get a picture of this," Chris said as he aimed the camera for his wife and son. He clicked the picture and the flash startled Stephanie into wakefulness. She looked up and around and saw Chris standing over her and Shane nearby.

"What the hell?"

"You fell asleep," Shane said. "We walked in on you."

Stephanie looked down and saw Sawyer was still asleep on top of her. "Hey, can you help me get this lump off of me?"

"I think that's going to be in you for a good chunk of time," Chris joked.

"No, not that lump, the other lump, the one that's actually on the outside," Stephanie said, not moving for fear that Sawyer would wake up from his nap. Chris walked over and carefully picked up the little boy and held him for a moment as Stephanie got up off the couch. Chris set Sawyer back down on his sleeping bag and he rested his head on his pillow before going back to sleep.

Stephanie fixed her hair and Chris kissed her cheek, "You were so cute, why was Sawyer's hand on your stomach though?"

"He wanted to see the baby," Stephanie said. "I still don't think he thinks there's anything in there, but well, he should start getting used to the idea now. I don't want to bring the baby home and Sawyer asking what the hell that is, and then sending it away because it takes away his time with us."

"He is diabolical," Chris said, tapping his chin.

"Hey, Shane," Steph said, greeting her brother. "What's up?"

"I was going to discuss something with you."

"What's that…oh, before I forget, Randy came up to me and he told me that he is putting you in a match tonight, sweetie," Stephanie said, turning to her husband.

"A match…against…"

"Jeff, for the IC title, I know, I know, that title is so beneath you, but well, Randy is the one in 'charge' tonight. I let him think that when we were meeting up that he had all the say in everything. He said that since Jeff got the better of you during your show last week that it was only fair of you to get a match for the title. I tried to tell him that you didn't want to hold that title, which is more like _I_ don't want you to hold that title, but he was insistent that_something_ be put on the line, so there it is."

"That's fine, we have good matches," Chris shrugged.

"You're better than that title though, you should be going after the WWE championship, you're a former champion, you deserve it, that's what you came back for."

"I know, but then you got pregnant, _we_ got pregnant--"

"No, no, don't say that, you're not pregnant, so don't even bring in the we stuff," Stephanie said. "Until you carry around something like this, you are _not_ pregnant."

"Okay, sorry," he said, "but you got pregnant, and I want to help you out, it's going to get harder for you with the kid and then…the other kid, I don't know what to call it yet, the youngin' or something. But you'll need help so taking a step back is fine with me."

"You might not even have to do that," Shane piped in. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about, Steph. I've been thinking it over, and I've talked with Dad and I've talked with Rissa, and I'd be willing to take over your position when you're on maternity leave."

"What?" Stephanie asked. "You want to take over for me?"

"You don't have to say that so harshly, Steph," Shane said. "You can't travel…"

"I am traveling!"

"Not right before or right after, when are you planning on leaving?"

"Probably a few weeks before I have the baby," she said.

"And coming back?"

"Probably two weeks after."

"Two weeks?"

"Yeah," Stephanie said. "Chris and I are renting a tour bus so that we can travel with the baby and so I don't have to miss too much time."

"Wow, but still, that's a month, so I was going to take over for you. I can do your job, Steph, and you trust me, I mean, I hope you trust me, and I want to help out. I didn't help out much when you were pregnant with Sawyer, and I'm sorry for that. I was just caught up with everything with Rissa, but it's different now, and I'd like to do this."

"I don't know."

"Let him," Chris said. "It saves me the trouble of doing it."

"See, now Chris can focus on his wrestling, and isn't that what you want him to do."

"What I _want_ him to do is win the Money in the Bank match at WrestleMania, now the IC title."

"I can do both."

"I don't want you to do both," she argued, but then thought about what she had just said. "Ugh, I don't know, if you want to win it…"

"I'm not going to throw a match," he told her. "I'll go out there and do my best."

"Good, I wouldn't want you to throw a match," she said, resting her hand on her stomach. "Fine, Shane, I guess you can be my replacement. I do trust you, and if it means that Chris can focus on his wrestling without having to take over my duties as well, I guess that I can live with that. For now at least."

"Great, thanks," Shane said. "I'll do a good job, Steph, I promise."

"Hey there, pregnant lady!"

Stephanie turned to the door and saw her sister-in-law. "Rissa, why couldn't you talk your husband out of stealing my job?"

"He's a hard nut to crack," Marissa said. "So let me see you. I can't believe that I haven't seen you since you announced that you were pregnant. Why haven't I seen you?"

"Because we're both busy," she said, hugging her sister-in-law.

"Look at you, I have to steal you for a while, quit working for tonight, doesn't Randy have everything under control?" Stephanie's face dropped into a serious look and Marissa laughed, "Okay, so he has nothing under control, but why don't we let Shane get into his new job and we'll go talk. I want to hear about the baby and stuff. I want another one, Shane."

"No," Shane said, shaking his head quickly. "No way."

"You ruin my fun," Marissa said.

"I guess I can for a while," Stephanie said. "Don't forget your match though, Chris, if I don't see you, and can you please take care of the monster?"

"Yes, ma'am," Chris said, saluting her.

--

"Trish, I know that we've had our differences in the past, but I would really like us to try again…oh man, who am I kidding with this?" Christian grumbled to himself. "What the hell are you man, a fifteen-year-old asking a girl out for the first time?"

"Christian, did you want to come down for dinner?"

"Oh, sorry, Mom," Christian said, turning to his mother. "I didn't hear you."

"It's so strange having you hang around," Judy said. "You haven't been around this much since you lived here. What happened to the big, independent man?"

"I still am, I have my own house!" he argued petulantly.

"So why aren't you there?" she asked. "Is it because a certain woman lives in Toronto that isn't me or your grandmother?"

"Mom," he blushed.

"I couldn't help but hear you trying to ask out your mirror," she joked kindly. Christian turned a nice shade of red with that statement. "I'd say you're smitten."

"Have been for many, many years."

"So why aren't you with her, and don't give me some mumbo-jumbo story about Tiffany leaving. She left and you were fine with that after a while, so it's something more. What is it?"

"I'm scared she'll reject me or we'll break up again," he admitted as he sat down on his bed. Judy came over and sat down next to her son, running her hand around his back before wrapping her arm around her younger son's waist.

"You should try again if it's what you want."

"I'm trying, I just don't know if it's what _she_ wants."

"Well, you'll know if you tell her. So come on, go tell her, stop wasting time. Between you and your brother," Judy sighed, "I don't know what I'm going to do with you two boys. First he gets engaged to that…woman. I don't even know what to make of that, then there's you and I want you to be happy, honey."

" I know, Mom, and I am, I am happy."

"To an extent, I know that you're fine on your own, but I don't want you to be on your own if you can help it. And I love Trish, she's such a sweet girl, and she's always cared about you, and I want you to be happy, and I know it's with her, because I hear about her constantly, and you're always hanging around her like you're a puppy-dog. Go and get her!"

"Mom, don't push me."

"Go, now, go ask her out to dinner or something."

"I don't…I couldn't."

"Christian…"

"Mom…"

"Christian, do it."

Christian frowned. His mom was very persuasive. There was just something in her voice that could make him do anything. It was probably his need to make his mom happy. After their dad had left when they were younger, he and Edge had always tried to do everything their mother wanted and make her prouder than proud of them. He always tried a little harder than Edge did though, and now she was asking him to do something and he didn't know if he could give in or not.

"I'll think about it."

"You boys…"

--

"Wait, wait, wait, so the belt is the most important thing in the world to you?" Britt asked. "More important than us."

"That's not what I meant."

"Sure sounds like that's what you meant," she told him. "I'm not asking to be #1, I'm not, I'm just asking not to come second to a belt. We've been together for over six months, Hunter, and I would like it if I at least knew what kind of place I had in your life."

"You do have a place in my life."

"Sometimes I feel like I don't," she sighed, setting her things down on a nearby table. They weren't exactly isolated right now, but they were in an area where there wasn't much foot traffic so she felt comfortable talking here. She had just watched the segment he had filmed earlier and she didn't know why, but it rubbed her the wrong way. It made her feel marginalized in his life.

"You do, I swear, I'm with you, aren't I?"

"But sometimes it's all about the belt. The belt is not a life, Hunter, you can't go home to the belt. I'm not asking you to commit everything to me, I just…you know, a little consideration."

"I feel like I am."

"You haven't even committed to anything but that belt since Stephanie. How the hell did she get you to stop thinking of the belt for five minutes?"

"Don't bring Steph into this," he told her.

"Why not?"

"She left me because of the belt too. I guess I just get so consumed with it. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make it sound like that's all I wanted, I was going more for the intimidation factor, you know, like I'm going to crush you and all that. All the stuff you thought that wrestlers said before you actually watched wrestling."

"Oh, so that's what you meant."

"Yeah…but I can see where you would think that."

"I'm sorry, I just…look, I'll level with you," Britt said and closed her eyes briefly before looking back up into Hunter's hazel eyes. "I love you…there, it's out there, I love you. I love being with you, and I love that you're a jerk a lot of the time, but you're funny and kind too, deep down in there, but I love you."

Hunter smiled, "You love me?"

"Yeah, I love you, so there…"

"I love you too," he told her, then leaned down to kiss her, wrapping his large arms around her and almost engulfing her in the process. She reached up and clung to him as he pulled away only slightly so their lips were still grazing each other. "Way more than the belt."

Chris walked by and saw Britt and Hunter making out and rolled his eyes. Yes, he was hypocritical because he was caught making out with his wife on many an occasion, but they were married with kids, so it was more appropriate, he reasoned. Sawyer was riding piggyback, his chin on Chris's shoulder as they raced down the hall to the gorilla position to wait for Chris's match to start.

"Rawr!" Sawyer said as he grabbed Chris tighter around the neck.

"Are you a lion tonight?"

"Yeah," Sawyer said. Chris got down on his knees so Sawyer could get down as they reached the gorilla area. Stephanie was sitting there with Marissa and Sawyer's eyes lit up when he saw her. He looked at Chris as he stood up and lifted his arms to him. Chris sighed and picked up Sawyer again. Sawyer reached down and patted Chris on the stomach, "Baby?"

Chris laughed, "No, I don't have the baby, your mommy has the baby, I'm a little insulted that you couldn't tell the difference. I've worked hard to keep these abs."

"No baby?"

"I don't have the baby, Mommy has baby."

"Mommy baby?"

"Yeah, Mommy has the baby," Chris said as he saw Jeff warming up in front of him. "Hey, how do you want to go be a lion over there with Jeff?"

"Okay, wion!" Sawyer said, curling his hands into claws and scrunching up his face into a very mean face. "Rawr!"

"Very nice, go be a lion with Jeff."

"Okay, yeah," Sawyer said, squirming in Chris's arms so he could be put down. Chris put him down on the ground and he ran towards Jeff and started roaring and stalking him with his "claws."

"Hey, kid, what're you doing?" Jeff said good-naturedly. He liked Sawyer, even if the kid was a handful.

"Wion, Jeff!" Sawyer said, Jeff being one of the people that he knew. He was getting better at identifying people even if he didn't know many names. "Grr…"

Sawyer started hitting at Jeff's legs and Chris started laughing. Stephanie, wondering what Chris was laughing about followed Chris's line of sight and saw him pawing at Jeff's leg. Sawyer was acting like a lion right now, she could tell. He had his days where he liked to pretend he was an animal. It enriched his imagination so they never had a problem with it, and right now, it was pretty funny seeing a little boy not leave Jeff alone, even after Jeff had moved.

"Sawyer, come on," Jeff implored. He turned around saw Chris snickering, "Oh, I get it, man, I get it, you sic'ed your kid after me, nice strategy, Jericho, what, you think that this is funny?"

"Yeah, a bit," Chris said.

"Not funny," Jeff said as he picked up Sawyer. "Hey kiddo, what's up?"

Sawyer chomped his teeth, "Wion."

"Yeah, yeah, you're a lion," Jeff said, "go tell your dad to leave me alone, okay?"

"No," Sawyer said.

"He's loyal," Chris said as Jeff's music went off. Jeff gave him a curt nod and then handed Sawyer back to Chris. Even after what happened last week, there was still mutual respect there, and Jeff was just the kind of person you couldn't really hate, no matter how much they got on your nerves. He was still going to kick his ass of course, but he was a nice guy. He turned to Sawyer and asked, "Can I have a good luck kiss?"

"Okay," Sawyer said, leaning forward and giving Chris a kiss, "Love you."

"Love you too, thanks," Chris said, putting him down on the ground. "Now go see Mommy and the baby."

"Sure," Sawyer said, racing over to Stephanie, as he made a beeline for her stomach, "Baby!"

"Yes, baby," Stephanie said, already picturing Sawyer being fascinated with her growing stomach.

Chris walked out there to a rousing ovation. He loved it when the crowd was behind him. He knew going into this that the crowd would be split because he and Jeff were both well-liked. That didn't matter to him because he was still going to kick Jeff's ass and win the title. He didn't much care as to whether or not he won the title, but it'd be nice, he supposed. He climbed into the ring and it was all business from there on out.

The two got tangled up and their match was a mess of moves and counter moves. Just when one person thought they were going to win, the other person kicked out, causing the frustration to build. In that match though, something of a rivalry started to build between him and Jeff. It was hard to explain because he had considered Jeff a friend, but something was breaking in that match. As they continued to fight, and as the crowd started to side more and more with him, they started to hate each other or something. Chris eventually won the match and the belt using the Codebreaker on Jeff and pinning him for the win.

He grabbed the belt and held it aloft, looking down at his beaten foe. It felt good to have the title even though this wasn't exactly the title that he wanted. He would take it though and he walked backstage with it. It was the first gold of any kind that he had held in over three years so it was kind of cool on that level, but it wasn't the belt that he felt he deserved. Sawyer was waiting for him backstage and he walked up to his daddy to see what he had.

"Here, kid, you want it?" Chris said, handing the belt over to Sawyer. It was a little heavy for him, but he managed to heft it. He looked at it in awe. It was so shiny and pretty. Chris picked him up and pointed to him as he looked at Stephanie. She nodded her head and watched as they left.

She rested her hand on her stomach again. She figured if she did that enough times that maybe she would start to feel something more for this baby. She didn't want to think of a child as an inconvenience, but right now, that's what this baby felt like. Chris shouldn't be going after the Intercontinental title. She knew that it was easier for him to do that because if he were to put all his time into getting the WWE championship, he wouldn't have time to take care of Sawyer, which was going to become more and more his responsibility as time went on.

She didn't even know if she was going to be able to pick up Sawyer in the coming months and Sawyer loved to be picked up. So many things were going to fall to Chris when they got too hard for her with her growing belly. They were all just getting into the groove of having Chris back on the road as a wrestler. Sometimes he woke up in the mornings and was sore and she had to help Sawyer get breakfast, but what about when she was too sore or too big and Chris was too sore? Sawyer wasn't able to take care of himself.

Plus, Sawyer was getting moved to his big boy bed, which freaked Stephanie out a little bit as it was. They were going to need the crib for the baby, and that meant moving Sawyer out. She didn't like the idea that Sawyer could wander around his room at night by himself with no supervision. What if he got past the safety gates and fell down the stairs or something? But it was a necessary evil getting him out of that crib so they'd have someplace for the new baby.

She rubbed her stomach, trying to get a feel for the new shape it was taking. She was only going to get bigger and she tried to picture another baby in her arms, but she only kept picturing how Sawyer had felt in her arms. He was so solid, but so light, like a piece of paper or something. He was such a beautiful baby, and she had loved him so much. She was comforted, however, by the fact that at first, she hadn't seemed to think of Sawyer as more than an inconvenience too. She didn't even plan to have kids right now, and now she was having two within two and a half years.

She tried to picture a little girl, and that made her smile just a little bit. She would like a little girl, not so much to dress-up or anything like that (though that would be fun) but just because it would feel like it rounded out everything. A girl and a boy, Sawyer protecting a little sister; that would be something she'd love to see. Still, there just wasn't that connection yet, and she kept waiting and hoping that it would come, but so far, nothing, just a growing stomach and heartburn.

Stephanie got a much-needed laugh when she watched her brother get in the middle of the skirmish between some of the wrestler's and Mayweather's posse. There was just something so uplifting about her brother being knocked on his ass. She laughed out loud when it happened and glanced over at Marissa who had joined her and she could see her snickering too so she didn't feel so bad laughing at her brother. Shane came backstage and looked between the two of them.

"Don't say a word!" Shane said.

"What?" Marissa asked innocently.

"We didn't say anything," Stephanie said, trying to hold in her laugh.

"I was pushed," Shane asserted.

"Sure you were," Marissa said with a laugh. That just started Stephanie up and they both started laughing at him and he stomped away angrily. "I better go after him, you know how he gets when he feels like he's been slighted."

"Yeah, I know."

Stephanie sat alone for a while until Chris came back. Sawyer was starting to wind down and Stephanie saw that he was sucking on a pacifier, which he still used occasionally if he was feeling in the mood for one. He used it so infrequently that when he did want one, they generally let him use it. He sat down next to Stephanie and she leaned her head on his shoulder.

"I feel nothing for this baby," she told him.

"Is that so?"

"I just don't feel a connection with it," she said. "It doesn't even feel real."

"That's too bad," he told her, kissing her forehead. "Why do you feel that way?"

"Because…because it's like, with Sawyer, he was a surprise, but I felt like we could be a family, but now we _are_ a family and this baby is just barging in on the good stuff we already have. I just don't feel like this is anything yet."

"Well, it takes time. Do you love this baby?"

"Well, yes, I love it, I know I will."

"Would you protect this baby?"

"Of course, with my life."

"So isn't that a connection?' he asked.

She thought about it for a moment. "I guess so." She didn't know if it was a connection or not, but Chris had the uncanny ability to make her feel better, so in that moment, she just let him make her feel better.

--

"Christian, you again?" Trish asked.

"Yes, me again," Christian said. "I hate to bother you, I really do, it's just, there's some things that I need to get off my chest. My mom told me to come here to do it, and I guess I just listened to her."

"Okay, what is it? I'm listening."

Christian took a deep breath and looked at her. She was beautiful in that moment. Her porch-light was illuminating her hair, making it glow like she was an angel or something. It was late, and he knew that she was probably wary when she walked to the door, but relaxed when she saw it was him. He knew so much of her habits, her quirks, everything, he knew everything about this woman, and his mother was right. If he wanted something, he should try.

"You're it."

"Are we playing tag?" she joked.

He laughed and looked down, taking a deep breath. "You're it for me, Trish. I know this. I've known it for a very long time. I know it's stupid, us, this entire thing. I know that we should just get up, walk away and move on, but maybe, maybe we're just not meant to move on. Maybe we've been trying too hard to be apart instead of being easy together." He paused.

"I don't know," he continued, "It's like, maybe all this time, maybe the break-ups, maybe everything was just us standing in the way of us. Maybe we created these stupid problems around us, these excuses just so we wouldn't be together. Maybe we've just been trying to be apart to protect us from the hurt we would really feel if we were to completely cut it off. You with Carlito, me with Tiffany, all of that, maybe it was our way of pushing each other away.

He bit his lip.

"I love you, Trish, okay? I love you, and you're the only woman who makes me feel like that kind of love. I had to come here and I had to tell you because…it's been too long, and don't you feel like we've been wasting all this time? Chris and Stephanie are married for God's sakes, with one awesome son, and another kid on the way, and they got together months, _months_ before we did that first time. We could have that, I _want_ that, but most importantly, I want it with _you_. I love you so much, Trish Stratus, and I don't care who knows.

I know there's been so much between us, but we're better than all of that, if we can just put that crap behind us. Not even start anew because there's just too much, but we can talk about it and move on from it. I love you and I want to be with you. If you don't want to be with me, fine, but I needed to tell you or else it was going to eat me up inside, and Chris and Steph are always telling me to tell you, that I should just tell you, and Edge is always telling me that I should just bite the damn bullet and get with you, and my mom and my grandma interrogating me, and it was too much, I couldn't take it and I want you, God, I want you. Tiffany gave me her blessing to be with you, she saw it, and I just, please tell me you see it, Trish, please tell me that you see it too."

Trish had started crying after Christian had told her he loved her. The tears had been unexpected, but she still let them fall. His words had spurned something inside of her and she took a deep, gasping breath because her tears were choking her. She sobbed into her hand as he finished his impassioned speech. He was out of breath, she could tell, and she was too, for entirely different reasons.

"You love me?" she asked, sniffling.

"Yes, I do, please give me another chance, Trishy, I'll be everything you want this time, I promise. If I can't make it with you, I can't make it with anyone," he told her. "Damn it, that was mushy, I wanted to avoid mushy."

"It wasn't mushy," she told him.

"Are you sure?"

She nodded, "You want to be with me?"

"Only if you want to be with me," he explained. "I just…I needed you to know what I was feeling. I've kept it inside for too long. I couldn't bear it if you were to find someone else and be happy. When Jeff asked you to dinner that one time last month, I thought…I wanted to fling him off a building. I think Chris is going to take care of that for me actually, but I don't want to see another guy with you knowing that it could've been me if I just got my butt off the couch and came to you."

"Oh."

"So, my heart is sufficiently poured out all over your front step."

"It's a lot to lay on a girl."

"I know," he nodded.

"I thought when you were with Tiffany that I was too late. I'm just as much of a coward, Christian, because I love you," she told him, squeezing her eyes shut so she wouldn't cry. "God, you have no idea how good that feels to get out there."

The weight seemed to lift off of her shoulders with that one statement. He smiled and reached out to wipe her cheeks free from the tears. He stepped closer tentatively. Sure, she had said she loved him, but he knew that she loved him as a friend. Maybe she didn't want him back though. He'd accept that as long as she knew his feelings.

"Are you in love with me?" he asked.

"Yes."

"After everything?"

"Yes, I am," she said. "I miss you, Chrissy. I miss you so much."

"Good, I'm not the only loser around here."

"No, we're both losers," she said. "So um, that was you asking for another chance, right?"

"It was."

"Granted, if you'll have me," she told him. He scooped her up into his arms and kissed her. She felt her legs dangling and if she wasn't careful, she might just believe she was floating and not actually in Christian's arms. He held her tightly around the waist like she was his favorite stuffed animal, but she didn't care. She wanted more of him right now, all of him. His lips on hers were like the most familiar pair of slippers that you wore when you wanted to feel like you were home. She wrapped her legs around his waist and just allowed him to kiss her and explore her mouth. It had been too long, much too long for the both of them.

"Chris and Steph are going to give us hell," Christian mumbled, "Edge is going to rub it in my face."

"Good, let them," she said, kissing him again. "God, you have no idea how long I've wanted this."

"Probably just as long as I have, and Trish?"

"Yeah."

"This time, I'm keeping you."

She grinned and kissed him again, feeling his fingers tangling in her hair. He stepped them over the threshold of her home and he closed the door behind him. She was still kissing him, right there in the foyer and it was still there between them, everything was still there between them. The heat, the passion, it was sitting there, surrounding them in its warm cocoon, and they were the happiest they had been for a long time. It felt right to be here, it felt like this was where they always belonged. They were giving each other a second chance.

And they were going to make this one count.


	173. He's Way More Talented, March 17, 2008

"Hi."

"Hey," Trish said as she looked over at her boyfriend. He was lying on his side in bed. His head was propped up by his hand and he was looking at Trish, who was lying beside him, wrapped up in her sheet. "So we're just saying hello right now then?"

"Yes," he told her. "That's all I wanted to say. I didn't want to look creepy just watching you."

"Well thank you for the courtesy," Trish told her, reaching up and pinching his cheek. "It's still a little creepy."

"I'm making up for lost time."

"Lost time of watching me in bed after sex?"

"Yes, do you know how long it has been?"

"Since what? Since we've slept together or since you've been creepy and watched me for periods of time while not saying a word?" Trish asked.

"Both," he said, pulling her closer and lying down again so that nose was nuzzling against her temple. "God, I missed this."

"My body?"

"Hell yeah, your body, but more than that and you know it."

"Are you going to get all cute on me again?" she asked. "Are you going to go into another speech about how much you just adore me and love me so much and need me forever?"

"No, I think we've both had enough of those," he said. "Still, I'm really glad that you're here, that we're here, you know. Tell me again why we were so stupid in the first place."

"We were just…stupid," she reiterated. "I think…I don't know…"

"No, what do you think? I mean, we've discussed a ton of crap over the last week, and I've been doing a lot of the talking, but I'd love to hear what you have to say about why you think that we just didn't do this sooner."

She paused and pulled his arm tighter around her bare waist. She cradled it against her, brushing her fingertips against his arm, making the hairs on his arm stand at attention. She could feel his breath against the side of her head and she closed her eyes. She had missed his presence so much and there was just nobody that could compare to the feelings that Christian stirred within her. A load was off of her shoulders and for the first time in a long time, she felt like she was just…happy.

"I just think that it was a lot of misunderstanding at first, and then a lot of fear. I think…we were just scared to go for it because we knew it was right."

"I agree," Christian said, kissing her. "You're so smart."

"I like to think that I've always been smart," she said, "do you agree?"

"Well, no, because if you were really that smart you would've made sure this happened a lot sooner, I mean, come on, Trishy, you should be on top of these things," Christian joked. "If you aren't, there's no way that I'm going to be."

"I love you," she told him, taking his face in her hands and kissing him lightly. "I love you so much."

"I love you too, you have no idea."

"I've got some idea."

"Well, if that's the case," he said. "We should probably get dressed though, shouldn't we? If we want to go see Chris and Steph. I think they've been trying to reach us for the past week, but we've been kind of MIA."

"Kind of MIA?" she asked. "I think it's more like definitely MIA. We didn't answer the phone for anyone. Not even your mom, until I made you answer the phone for her because she was starting to get worried about you."

"She could've waited a couple more days."

"You're so rude."

--

"So…you wanted some stipulations for later?"

"Yeah, I did," Hunter smirked. "Oh, boy, do I."

"That sounds ominous, did you want to have a match for yourself, or are you going to be taking it easy?" Stephanie asked as she looked down at the clipboard in her lap. "Being a lazy-ass all night or something?"

"Schedule me in a match with Chris…I'm in the mood to crush him," Hunter said jovially.

Stephanie raised an eyebrow but didn't look up at him. "Well, that's a no-go right there."

"Why?"

"Because I'm not giving that match away for free. _If_ you win the WWE title, and _when_ Chris wins the Money in the Bank match, obviously he's going to challenge your untalented ass for the title an then win it, and he will be the IC _and _the WWE champion, doesn't that sound wonderful?"

"Untalented? You didn't used to think that."

"I wised up over the ensuing years," she told him. "Figured out there was better out there, way better, and that's my husband, he'll kick your ass, don't worry about it, he will definitely kick your ass and he'll take the title and you'll be nothing."

"I think that you're the one who wants him to beat me up more."

"There's a lot of things in our past that have not been cleared up," Stephanie said. "So what better way to get a little revenge than siccing my husband on you? I think that's fair game. I never really got you back for some of the crap that you pulled on me, and then on us. You've barely paid for your past sins."

"And _you_ have?"

"I had my breasts pop out on national television, that was punishment enough," Stephanie said. "So what are these stipulations that you wanted for Randy and Cena's match. Plus, what the hell else do you want to do at the show?"

"I don't know, you can take care of that, can't you?" he asked.

"But you're in charge of the minor stuff, Regal makes sure things go smoothly, and I run the backstage stuff, this is the well-oiled machine that I run here, Hunter, and you're not helping me out."

"But this is your job so you can do your job."

"You just don't want to think about anything regarding the show that doesn't involve the guys that you want to beat into a pulp," she guessed correctly. He shrugged.

"You're capable."

Stephanie groaned, "See, this is why we didn't work out, no communication and you dumping everything on me and not taking responsibility for yourself."

"Is _that_ why we didn't work out? I thought it was me ignoring you, you faking a pregnancy and then me dumping you at our vow renewal."

"That too," she winked, "so come on, help me out here."

"You can do it!" he said. They sat there in silence for a few moments, both of them on the verge of laughing, but neither one giving in.

"Stop staring at my stomach," Stephanie said as she felt his eyes boring into her middle again. "That's like the twelfth time that you've done that."

"I'm sorry, it's just…right there!" Hunter said, gesturing wildly around her growing stomach. "I can't help but look at it, I wasn't exactly around when you were pregnant with Sawyer, I mean, I was, but you know."

"You weren't my friend, you were pretending to be my friend while trying to steal a pregnant woman from her husband," she supplied for him and he nodded sheepishly. "It's not a big deal, it's just a baby."

"But it's pretty cool, you think so right?"

"Yeah, it's pretty cool," she said quickly, going back down to her clipboard.

She was trying so desperately to feel more connected with her baby and it still wasn't coming. She had tried everything that she could, but it just still wasn't coming to her. She had listened to its heartbeat and she had laid with Chris as he rubbed her belly and Sawyer loved to rub her stomach now too and watch it like it was going to grow before his very eyes, but she wasn't feeling much of anything and she was the one carrying it. She kept telling herself it would come, but it wasn't coming yet. She had started to tell herself that once she felt the baby move around inside of her, that's when she'd really feel that connection.

She hadn't felt the fluttering yet of her baby, but it had taken a little while longer for her to feel Sawyer moving around inside of her. It would probably be a couple of weeks before she felt this new one swimming around in there. Then she'd probably feel more like she was expecting a baby and not just getting a fuller stomach. She did love this child, she just didn't really feel like there was a child at all, except she knew there was because her doctor told her, and the stomach was an indication.

"Are you sure you aren't having twins?"

"Oh, what was that?" Stephanie asked, looking over at him, "Are you making a crack about my weight?"

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding," he told her, holding up his hands in defense. "Don't hurt me, I've got a big match coming up in a couple of weeks and I don't want to miss WrestleMania again this year. I don't think it'd make me look cool if I said I was beaten up by a pregnant woman."

"Well, it'd be me, so they'd believe it," she told him. "So you really don't want to have anything to do with the rest of the show _and_ you don't want a match? So basically you are going to bum around."

"I'm allowed, I was put in charge, wasn't I?"

"You could help a pregnant woman out by coming up with more stuff for the show."

"Sorry, Steph, not my area of work," he said.

"Fine, will you _finally_ tell me what plans you want for this match later on with Randy and John? You've kept me in the dark."

"Okay, you're going to love this," Hunter said, turning so he was facing her more. Stephanie remembered when he got excited about some plan he had back when they were married. He'd usually outline his devious intentions for her and then his eyes would gleam over. 

"Go ahead."

"So they're supposed to be a tag team," Hunter said. "But you know that one of them, or both of them, is going to want to abandon the other, so…I'm going to make sure that they can't."

"Okay…"

"If Cena leaves Randy, then Cena's out of the match at WrestleMania and it'll just be me and Randy," he explained, "and if Randy walks out of the match, then the title will be stripped from him and John and I will just go for it at WrestleMania."

She thought it over for a moment, "I like it, good job."

"Well, it's not my first time at the rodeo, you know that," Hunter told her. "I want to make sure both of them get a little bit tenderized for our match. I'm going to win at WrestleMania, mark my words right now."

"Okay, okay, I get it, I get it, you want to win at WrestleMania."

"_Will_ win at WrestleMania is more like it," Hunter said.

"Get out of my office," she told him good-naturedly as she stood up and went to go over to her desk to see who was here tonight. "Since you want to be a bum, I have a lot of work to do finalizing a schedule."

"You look good for what it's worth," he said as he stood up. "You've definitely got that pregnancy glow thing going on that they always talk about."

"You think so?"

"Yeah, definitely."

"They say that's because there's more blood pumping through my body with the baby," she explained, "so there is actually some kind of glow."

"Oh, okay," he said. "You're beautiful, you always have been."

"Wow, are you hitting on me?" she asked. "This is _so_ awkward, what with you being with Britt and me being married with a kid and another kid on the way."

"No, it's not me hitting on you, it's just me telling you something," he said, "friend to friend of course, but you really are beautiful. I kind of always pictured what would happen if we had a kid and I definitely think you would've been beautiful carrying my kid."

"Oh, I would've been the hugest bitch on the planet to you," she told him.

"Okay, yeah, there's that," he chuckled. "So…thanks for letting me do the stipulations. And for taking care of the rest of the show so I don't have to think, thanks for that too."

"You just want to spend the entire night making out with your girlfriend, don't lie."

"Caught me, I should go find said girlfriend…she told me she loved me last week," Hunter admitted and Stephanie looked over at him to see him grinning from ear to ear. Usually that grin was reserved for when he was pounding someone's face in or holding up a newly won title. She was surprised to find it here.

"Really?" Stephanie said, suddenly not interested in the schedule. "That's getting pretty serious, isn't it?"

"I think it is."

"You guys have been seeing each other for a while though. She lives in New York though, do you guys see each other a lot on your down time?"

"Yeah, she's been…she's been staying with me actually," he said. "It's just easier that way. I've been to her place in the city, and…you really should pay her more, she lives in like a shoebox. It really is tiny. My house on the other hand…"

"Is like sterile country. I cannot imagine my children living there. I think you'd throw a fit if they dropped something. There are juice stains all over the carpet at home, you'd probably faint from having to live there."

"Why don't you replace the carpet then?" he asked, actually aghast that she would just leave juice stains on the carpet.

"Because he's just going to spill again. He's not even two years old yet, his hand-eye coordination isn't what it should be right now, so why replace it when it's just going to get worse. Plus I've got this other one on the way who is going to spill. I'll get new carpets when this one turns seven."

"By then your carpet will be an entirely different shade."

"Here's hoping, so did you tell Britt that you loved her back?"

"Of course," he said. "She's the first person that I've said that to since…well, since you actually."

"I am hard to live up to," she said haughtily. "She's still probably not as good as me, but I'm sure that she suffices."

"Shut up, be happy for me."

"I am happy for you, are you kidding me, Hunter? I'm really glad that you've been able to move on from everything. I only…okay, no, I do want you to be happy, despite what your mother says I'm sure."

"She does think that everything you do is out of some sick revenge for me. Wait until she finds out that you're pregnant again."

"Yeah, but I'm glad you're happy."

"Me too, so I'll talk to you later, bye, Steph."

"Bye, and hey, if you see my husband, tell him I'm looking for him…actually, I think I'm just going to go find him myself. I'll walk you out."

"What about the schedule?"

"I can think and walk," she said. She walked towards the door and he followed her, rushing ahead of her so that he could hold the door open for her. She smiled up at him and then walked through the doorway. They walked down the hallway until Hunter spotted Britt and said his goodbyes and then walked over to his girlfriend, kissing her lightly. Stephanie smiled and was genuinely happy for her ex-husband.

"Mommy, up!" she heard a voice said as she looked down to see Sawyer clinging to her leg. 

"Where's Daddy?"

"There," Sawyer said, pointing down the hallway where Chris was talking animatedly towards Vince. It looked like they were having an argument of sorts. Stephanie wondered what that was about and decided to find out. She started to take a step, but remembered that Sawyer was still next to her clinging to her pants and he tugged on them, looking up at her imploringly. 

She leaned down and picked him up carefully since he was getting heavy and she was getting heavy as well, "Come here, you. Let's go see what Daddy is doing."

Stephanie walked over and could hear their argument more clearly, "What purpose does that serve you, Vince, if you're just going to lose a match at WrestleMania?"

"Because it would give me the distinction of ending his career," Vince told him.

"But you've been promoting the match against Shawn Michaels and people want to see that match and they've been anticipating that match," Chris told him. "So you're just going to erase that and erase a match that you've already set up for WrestleMania to what? Stroke your ego just a little bit more? Come on, Vince."

"What's going on, you two?" Stephanie asked as she stood next to Chris.

"Your dad wants to have a match against Flair tonight, for Flair's career, and not only that, a street fight."

"Dad, we've already got Shawn vs. Flair for WrestleMania, why do you want to ruin one of the matches, and a really big one too? People are going to want to see if Flair's career is going to end at the hands of Shawn…although for my money I'd like to see Flair knock some of Shawn's teeth out."

"Easy," Chris said laughing. "See, she agrees with me, Vince."

"I'm on a roll, I might as well take out the trash while I'm on this incredible roll. I mean, look at me, I'm in good health, I'm riding high after I got a star on the Walk of Fame, do either of _you_ have your own stars, I don't think you do, and I've got three great grandsons, and another grandbaby on the way, and the stocks are rising, why shouldn't I just take care oft his myself?"

"Because you have set up a match," Stephanie said like it should be obvious, which it was.

"So? It'll be good, people will love it, it's happening, I'm going to go make a video announcing that right now, you can play it later, see you three later, oh wait, I should say four, see you four later," Vince said, touching Stephanie's stomach.

"Don't touch my stomach," Stephanie told him. "Nobody's allowed to touch the stomach."

"Nobody?" Chris asked as he turned to his wife.

"You're exempt," she said, leaning up to kiss him. "So I guess my dad against Flair is happening, that's one spot filled, write that down, baby boy."

Sawyer, who was holding her clipboard for her looked at her for a second and then answered, "Okay, Mommy."

"Thank you," she said. "So…my lovely husband, what do you want to do tonight?"

"I thought Hunter was taking care of this."

"You and me both, but he stuck me with it. How about a Highlight Reel? You're already dressed for it, you can start off the show!"

"Sure," he shrugged. "Who will be on the show? You? Can it be you? I want it to be you? I can see it now. 'Ladies and gentlemen, Jerichoholics of the world, I've got a special guest here tonight. She's beautiful, she's sassy, she's wonderful, she's…pregnant with my child, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho!' Then the crowd would go wild and you'd come down looking all sexy and we'd make out or something to show off and then I'd ask you about who you think is going to win the Money in the Bank, where you will say me of course…"

"No," she said simply. "I'm not going out there."

"Why not? Give me one good reason why not. You won't be in harm's way, it would just be me, and Lord knows I wouldn't hurt you, seeing as how you know, we're married, you're pregnant with my kid and the fact that you can beat me up."

"If the fans think that I'm a cow when I gain a few pounds, I'm not laying myself to scrutiny right now. I'm still getting into the pregnancy groove."

"You're pregnant, nobody's going to moo or whatever."

"You never know, besides, I'd have to get makeup and a new outfit," she said, looking down at her drawstring pants and her maternity shirt. "I'm not feeling very pretty tonight, Chris, so please don't make me go out there."

"Okay, and for the record, you're pretty," he told her. "Sawyer, do you think that Mommy looks pretty tonight."

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, then looked at Stephanie, "Love you."

She smiled, "Well, I love you too. Why don't you just have someone who has a big match coming up? Have Hunter on your show."

"No, he'd probably just take the entire show over and then rip his shirt off for no good reason…how about Big Show? After last week, it might be interesting to have him on," Chris said.

"Okay, fine, I'm in no mood to think right now," she told him. "Hey, you know what I realized?"

"Like right this second?"

"No, not right this second, but like a little while ago."

"What?"

"I called Trish last Thursday and she's not gotten back to me yet. I hope everything is okay with her. It's not like her to not return her calls, especially days after the fact. She's very on top of that."

"Maybe she's not at home."

"But I called her cell phone too and that went straight to voicemail. Why wasn't I thinking more about this? How could you just let me forget about this, Chris? What if she's in trouble? What if she fell in her house and she couldn't get to the phone and she's rotting away or something!"

"Whoa, mood swing," Chris said, taking a step back. "She's probably busy. We don't know what she does in Toronto? Maybe she just got so busy with her opening up that new gym of hers and she just hasn't had the time. No reason to panic."

"Yeah, I guess," she said. "But I'm still a little concerned that she hasn't answered me back. It's just strange, don't you think?"

"No, not really. I've been known to return calls very late."

"Fine, I guess, whatever," she said, shaking her head. "I'm going to start off the show with you, so be ready for that, okay?"

"I'm born ready."

--

"We almost didn't make it!" Trish exclaimed as they were stumbling towards the door of the show. "The show is going to start in like fifteen minutes."

"So, it's not like we're on it," Christian said, wrapping his arms around her from behind. "We're not even part of the company, we're just visiting friends."

"But you know how busy they are during the show, especially now that Chris is back to wrestling. And with Stephanie pregnant, and Sawyer to boot, they're going to be so busy and I want them to share in our joy."

"Share in our joy? That's weird."

"It is not," she told him pouting. He stopped them and turned her around, kissing her and rubbing his hands up and down her sleeve-covered arms. 

"You are so cute," he told her. "I love you."

"I love you too."

"Man, I will never get tired of hearing that, ever, ever, ever…tell me that for the rest of my life, okay?"

"I'll try," she promised as she turned around and went towards the door. Christian sidled up next to her and opened it for her. She stuck her tongue out and walked inside, instantly getting hit with the hustle and bustle of the backstage area. Sometimes she missed it, the adrenaline and the frantic pace of Monday nights. The last week had been such a lazy one for her, lounging around with Christian, spending most of it in bed.

When he had showed up to her door last week, she had been mildly surprised. He had taken to coming to her house lately and she had just thought it was another visit. Even when he started talking she wasn't sure what he was there for. She momentarily thought that he was there to tell her that he could never see her again for as long as he lived. That struck fear into her, but it had actually been the exact opposite. She had not expected the words from him, but they had not been unwelcome.

Only in her wildest dreams did she think that Christian would show up on her doorstep with proclamations of love for her. She wanted to pinch herself and make sure it was real, but she knew as soon as he kissed her that it was for real. She had melted into his arms and let him lead her upstairs and they had practically lived in her house for the past week, only going out when they needed food. Neither one was willing to let the other out of their sight so they did everything together, and it was so comfortable and so much like old times.

They had talked too, about everything. They had talked about how Kurt had spoiled what they had and they had talked extensively about their relationships since then, especially with Carlito and Tiffany. They had talked and talked until words were no longer relevant and then they had sought out each other's touch. This was what they both wanted so very desperately and they were grasping on tight this time. There were no more obstacles, just them and they were happy. They were just so happy.

"So I bet that Stephanie is at her station, you want to go find them there?" Trish asked.

"You're the leader," he said, "Lead me!"

"Dork," she said. "I was hoping Jeff would be here, you know, after his house and everything, but since he's suspended."

"Did you know he had a problem?"

"He hides himself well." Normally Christian would tense over Jeff, but that had been one of the topics they had discussed. Trish saw Jeff as a friend. True, at one point there had been romantic feelings between the two of them, but they were just two very different people who were more suited to be friends rather than lovers. 

"Yeah, I get that vibe from him," Christian said. He moved beside Trish and held her hand as they walked through the hallways, stopping occasionally to say hello to someone on the way there. That was the caveat of knowing everyone. They were just nearing the gorilla when they heard Chris's music going off and they were both kind of bummed that he was going out there first. 

"We should wait until they're both backstage," Trish whispered conspiratorially to Christian. He nodded and they ducked out of the way a little bit.

Chris walked out to his beautiful set. Only the best for someone who was part of the McMahon family, he thought to himself. He thought quickly to what he wanted to say. He hadn't much time to prepare, but this is what he was good at, going out there and just talking. He wasn't one of those guys who had to write down what he was going to say before he went out there and said it. Years of practice had honed his improvisational skills.

He went out there and welcomed the crowd to Raw, which is Jericho after all. Then he introduced his first guest, which wasn't so much a guest as an object. To be honest, until Stephanie had thrust the title in his direction moments before he went out there, he had forgotten he was even the Intercontinental Champion. After he had taken some pictures with the belt after he won it last Monday he had let Sawyer have free reign of it. The only time he had really held it after that was when Sawyer tried to draw on it with some crayons and Chris had to take it away.

The little boy loved the belt far more than he did and had taken to lugging it around the house by the strap. The first night he wanted to sleep with it, thinking it was actually just a gift from his father, a really shiny, heavy gift that he liked very much. He had whined a little when he saw that Chris was taking it out there. Wait until he got his hands on the WWE title, Sawyer was going to freak and have to _really_ lug that belt around because it was much heavier.

Seeing as how he had to acknowledge the fact that he had won the belt, he started in with a spiel that sounded suspiciously like what he had said to Stephanie earlier. Maybe she could think of this as a shout-out to her, except everything he did was pretty much one big shout-out to Stephanie considering he had come back for her, for the most part anyways. 

After that was over and done with, Chris invited his real guest, Big Show. He didn't know quite what to expect from the man. Big Show wasn't completely the bad guy when you were around him, but he was kind of a jackass. Chris tried to thread that thin line and be on Big Show's side, just because he was a fellow wrestler and someone who took time off like he did. Big Show crossed that line when he said that Chris wouldn't last two minutes with him.

Was Big Show forgetting that Chris _had_ wrestled Big Show before and won? What kind of remark was that? Then he went on to say that he was the Floyd of the WWE? Chris had had enough of that and things had escalated until there was a match later. Chris wasn't going to turn down a match and he glared at Big Show as he left the ring and walked away. Couldn't hang with him? Chris had more talent in his pinkie than Big Show had in his big, oafish body.

When Big Show got backstage, he was met with a very angry pregnant woman. Stephanie only stood 5'7, but it was a very intimidating 5'7 and she had put men in their place before, oh how she had put men in their place. "Who the hell do you think you are, Show?" 

"Stephanie, move out of the way," Big Show told her.

"Or else what?" Stephanie dared him, raising an eyebrow. She knew he wouldn't do anything to her. She was pregnant, but perhaps more importantly, she was the boss's daughter. She could fire him on the spot. Sure, he had a bit of leverage, but she was Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, and she had the control.

"Just move out of the way."

"Let me tell you something, _Paul_," Stephanie said, using his real name for the first time in a long time. Everyone usually just called him Show since that was pretty much his nickname. "You better watch yourself, okay, seriously, you better watch yourself because you're not as good as you think you are. My husband has beaten you before, so watch out."

She said it with such a threatening voice that it threw him a little bit. "Just move out of the way."

"You were way over the line!" she told him. "Way over it!"

"Steph, Stephanie," Chris said, rushing to her and pushing her away from the larger man. "Come on, drop it. No need to make a scene."

"I can make a scene if I want," she said, glaring at Show. He just rolled his eyes and walked away. The McMahons were all the same. Stephanie looked at her husband, who was handing over the belt to Sawyer, who had come over with his hands extended, wanting his toy back. "Why did you pull me away?"

"Steph, it's so not worth it, I'll just kick his ass later. What are you doing? You shouldn't be yelling at him."

"Why, because I'm pregnant?"

"No, because it's a stupid argument. He challenged me to a fight, it's not a big deal, people are going to challenge me. I can beat him."

"What he said was crap and that Napoleon line, you should've called him the Jolly Green Giant, or Goliath or something."

He laughed, "I like Jolly Green Giant, that's good." He took her in his arms and hugged her to him, feeling her stomach pressing against him, a small reminder of what was going on with her body and what they were going to have in a scant amount of time. "Don't go flying off the rail because I'm wrestling again."

"I don't go flying off the rail."

"Yes, you do," he said.

"Hey you guys!" 

Stephanie turned and saw Christian and Trish walking over. She noticed the clasped hands almost immediately, but thought nothing of it because they had been holding hands before. She just looked to Chris who had the same look that she no doubt had. These two were never going to figure things out and if they didn't see it they were deaf, dumb, and blind. Chris wrapped his arm around Stephanie's waist, resting it lightly on the side of the protruding middle.

"We weren't expecting you," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, I know, we wanted to come visit you guys, and sorry for not returning your calls, Steph, I've just been busy," Trish said as Chris nudged Stephanie. She nudged him back harder as Trish continued, "How's everything going? How's the baby?"

"The baby's fine, we decided we're going to find out what it is. The big ultrasound is going to be in a few weeks and we're going to find out what we're having, no surprise for us," Stephanie said. "What were you so busy with?"

"I was busy getting back together with my boyfriend," Trish said, looking up at Christian, her smile growing as his grew as well. Chris and Stephanie stared between them, disbelieving looks on both their faces.

"Don't tell me you two finally got off your asses and got together," Chris said. 

"We did, we are officially back together and you can stop yelling at my poor Chrissy," Trish said, snuggling up to him.

"Wow, so _this_ is what we're in for?" Chris said. "Maybe we shouldn't have been pushing for you two to get back together."

"We're in the new couple phase," Christian said.

"No, you're not, you two got together in 2002," Chris said.

"But we just got back together so therefore we're a new couple," Christian argued his point. "So we're a new couple right now and we're allowed to be lovey-dovey."

"Oh," Stephanie said. "I'm really happy you guys figured it out. Really, really, really happy, and can you just make it work this time because I for one am tired of hearing about the crap you guys go through. I'm having a baby here and I've got my own problems trying to figure out what to do with two kids."

"We're going to work this one out," Trish assured her. "So come on, I've got things to tell!"

Trish pulled Stephanie away towards where she usually sat. Trish pulled up a chair with Stephanie and that left Christian and Chris kind of standing there. Chris was going to go get dressed for his match, and nodded his head towards the hallway. Christian nodded and started walking with him.

"So you and Trish again, don't mess this up," Chris told him.

"I'm not going to, trust me. I went to her and I just told her everything. I want her."

"Good for you," Chris said genuinely. "It's about time you two figured that out, only took you what, five years? In the span of those five years, I've gotten married and had two kids, while you were dicking around not sure if you wanted her, man, I am so awesome."

"How did I know this was going to turn into the Chris Jericho Love Hour?" Christian said. "With any luck, Trish and I will be working on our second when you're working on your seventh or something."

"Seventh?"

"Well, you two never plan these pregnancies, so unless you take extreme measures, I expect surprise kids to pop up on you all the time. Maybe you have kids elsewhere."

"God, Steph would probably divorce me if that was the case," Chris shuddered, "even if any kid I did have would be older because I obviously have not slept with anyone since I've been with Stephanie."

"Trish and I will plan any kids we decide to have."

"So you say now and before you know it, she's knocked up. Trust me, it sneaks up on you, it snuck up on me, twice."

Meanwhile, Stephanie and Trish were gushing over the beautiful things that Christian had told her in his big speech. Stephanie sighed, "I do love when Chris just gives me a big speech about our love. It's sweet."

"I know, I swooned," Trish said. "I'm so happy though. He still wants me, it's the best feeling."

"It is the best feeling."

"So how are you feeling?"

Stephanie sighed, "I don't feel connected to this baby and it bugs me."

"Well, it came at an inopportune time, but you love this baby, I know you do, and when you get to hold him or her in your arms, you know you're going to be completely gone like you were for that one," she said, pointing to Sawyer who was playing with some action figures over Chris's belt.

"Yeah, I'm hoping when I feel him or her move that'll do it for me," Stephanie said, resting her hand on her stomach.

Sawyer saw the gesture and thought it was time to talk to the baby and shifted over to Stephanie's stomach, "Hi, baby!"

"Oh my God, that's adorable," Trish said.

"I think he thinks my stomach _is_ the baby."

"That baby," Sawyer said to Trish as he ran his hand over Stephanie's covered stomach.

"Is that your baby brother or sister?" Trish asked.

"My baby!" Sawyer said, throwing his hands up in the air like it was a victory for him before he placed both hands on his mommy's tummy possessively. He didn't really think there was a baby in there, but if his mommy and daddy kept saying it and kept touching it like this, he wanted to be in on the action too. Maybe it was like a game or something. That would be super fun.

"He's so cute," Trish said, running her hands through Sawyer's soft blond locks.

"Don't get any ideas," Stephanie said. "You _just_ got back together. Chris and I have been together for going on six years."

"I know, I wasn't saying that I wanted one right now, just…I do want one soon, I'm not getting any younger."

"Trish, you're only like a year older than me."

"And look, you've got two!"

"Yes, but they were not planned. I like to think if I planned it, it would be easier. So don't just jump into it."

"I'm not, we're not. We're still getting past the fact that we're together again. There aren't kids on our horizon…yet."

"It's the yet that's scary."

Later that evening, after her father had lost, Stephanie couldn't help but want to go up to him after his match to tell him that she and Chris had told him so. She refrained for the most part, but when he came over to her to see what Sawyer was doing, she couldn't help it and she had to open her mouth to tell him.

"You know, you asked for that, Dad," Stephanie said smugly.

"I don't need your input, Stephanie."

"I'm just saying, was it worth it to do that?"

"Well of course it wasn't worth it," he told her. "I should've won, that would've been worth it."

"Well, that's what you get," she said. "You go out there thinking that you're just the best at everything and then you get proven that you're not and you go off sulking about it."

"I'm not sulking."

"Look at the bright side, now you have that match at WrestleMania and isn't that what you wanted? Something to bring in more buys," she told him. "Don't be an idiot, Dad, it's better that you lost, you really shouldn't have gone out there in the first place."

"Stephanie, I'll have you know that…are you okay?" Vince noticed that Stephanie looked a little pale.

"I feel okay."

"You look pale."

"I think it's the lights," she told him. "They wash me out a lot."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm fine, Dad, stop trying to draw attention to me when you know that I'm trying to prove that I was right and you were wrong."

"There was no such thing," he said.

"Oh sure, uh huh."

"I'm going, are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, I'm sure."

"Well, if you say so, say goodbye to Grandpa, Sawyer," Vince said. Sawyer stood up on the chair and hugged his grandfather.

"Bye Gamps," he waved and then kneeled on the chair to go back to his action figures. 

Stephanie sat back in her chair, watching her son for a moment before going back to work. Chris was coming up soon and she was anxious to see him wrestle and show up Show. Oh, how he was going to show him up with his superior skills. He showed up a short time later with Christian and Trish on his heels, kissing every now and then, which made her think about how she'd never get that new relationship feeling ever again. 

"Hey, wish me luck," Chris said, coming over to her. She smiled a little. Nah, she didn't need that new relationship feeling when she had that content, life-loving feeling. She kissed Chris lightly and then he went over to Sawyer and knelt next to him. "I'm going to need the belt for a while, kid, but I promise to bring it back to you, okay?"

Chris went to take the belt from him and Sawyer tried to pull it away, "No, mine."

"I know it's yours, but I just want to borrow it, is that okay? Please, see, I'm asking very nicely and I said please."

Sawyer gave him a very Stephanie look and then let go, "Okay."

"Thanks," he said, kissing Sawyer's cheek.

Chris took it from him and strapped it around his waist. He gave one last look to Stephanie and Sawyer and then went out when his music hit. He was prepared to kick Show's ass all around this ring. Show just couldn't keep up with him and he would get him back for the things that he said about him earlier. He waited for Show to get to the ring so the match could commence. 

So the match pretty much was going Show's way, with Chris getting in some offense every now and then. He was gaining momentum though and he was going to take that idiot down, he could feel it. He winced when Show walked over him, and grabbed his stomach. The referee ran over to Chris and knelt near him and Chris wondered what the hell he was doing. He came closer to Chris as if to check up on him.

"Chris, there's something wrong with Stephanie, an emergency," he told him.

Chris's eyes widened and he was so shocked he moved out of the way in the nick of time. He was frantic now and had to end this match. The referee hadn't been able to tell him anything because he was in a match at the moment. Chris went for a dropkick and then the Lionsault. He thought it was over, but Show kicked out. Desperate now, and not caring how this match ended, he grabbed his belt and hit his opponent with it. It got him disqualified, but he could care less at the moment. Something was wrong with his wife.

What if it was the baby? Oh God, but she was already in her 16th week, the threat of miscarriage was lower, but it still didn't mean that something couldn't happen to his baby. He didn't have much time to think about it before Show clocked him one and then left. Chris was woozy, but he just knew that he had to get with Stephanie. He had to be helped to the back, which was humiliating, but when he was back there, Christian ran up to him, Sawyer in his arms.

"Where's Stephanie?" Chris asked groggily.

"She went to the bathroom with Trish and Trish came to tell me she was freaked because she saw blood, you know, _blood_, and she went to the trainer's and he's making her go to the hospital since he's not a baby guy, and yeah, so they're on their way and we're going to go now too. I told Vince, he's going to do the show."

"Okay, come on, wait, I have to get my stuff."

"Britt and Hunter got it," Christian said as he handed Chris a t-shirt. Chris threw it on hastily and followed Christian as they went out to Chris's rental car since Trish was driving theirs with Stephanie in it, plus this one had Sawyer's car-seat in it. "I don't think it's that bad though. Stephanie didn't freak out like crazy freak out, she just was like, didn't know what it was, that's what Trish said. She was very calm, I think."

"Okay," Chris said, but wasn't thinking right now. "Sometimes stuff like this happens. I read about it."

"You mean like…miscarriages?" Christian said, whispering the last word like it was taboo."

"No, what the hell, man!" Chris said angrily. "Look, she's in her second trimester. That…the chance of _that_ happening is slim, okay, so don't say that again."

"I'm sorry," Christian said. "I didn't mean to imply."

"Yeah, I know, I'm just on edge, I mean, this is the woman I love. I swear, I thought she had fainted or collapsed or something. The ref didn't really give me much time to think about what was going on."

"Oh," Christian said. "She's probably fine, it's just a precaution."

"Yeah, she's probably fine," Chris said, but that didn't stop his stomach from untying the knots that had formed. "She's just pregnant, you know, so everything is up in the air. I don't want anything to happen to my kid. When she was pregnant with Sawyer and she got kicked in the stomach…I don't think I'd ever been more scared in my life, and now this, it's like…can't we just have one pregnancy with no scares?"

"Dude, this is probably nothing, and nothing's wrong with Sawyer, and other than those two incidents, wasn't Sawyer's pregnancy, and this one, haven't they been relatively easy?"

"Yeah, you're right, I'm just focusing on the negative." They arrived at the hospital and went to the ER where Chris went up to the receptionist. "I'm looking for Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, she was probably just checked in."

"Oh, the pregnant woman?"

"That's her," Chris said.

"How do you know her?"

"I'm her husband."

"Oh okay, follow me," she said. Christian signaled that he had Sawyer, who had fallen asleep in the car on the way over. The little boy was nestled in Christian's arms and Chris followed the young nurse into the ER area and to a curtained off section. He walked inside where Stephanie was lying, the doctor looking over some things in a file. Stephanie's eyes lit up when she saw him and he went over and kissed her.

"Hey, what's up?"

"I'm leaving," Trish said, "I'll be waiting out there with Christian."

"Okay," Chris said. "What's wrong?"

"I was just bleeding and I wanted to get checked out," Stephanie said. "It worried me, I didn't really bleed with Sawyer, so I didn't know."

"Is she going to be okay? Is my kid going to be okay?" Chris asked.

"Well, I did a pelvic and she seems to be fine, have you two had sex recently?" the doctor asked.

"Yeah, this morning, was that was caused it?" Stephanie asked.

"More than likely," the doctor said. "I still would like to do an ultrasound, we'll get the machine in here, I just want to make sure that everything is up to par in there. Its heartbeat is normal so I'm not terribly concerned, but I just want to make sure, hold on while I go see where that is."

"Okay, thanks," Chris said as the doctor left. He turned to Steph. "You freaked me out. I disqualified myself to come to you."

She looked up to his forehead and saw the bruise already forming, "What happened? Did Show hit you? I'm going to get on his case so bad…"

"No you're not," he said, kissing her forehead. "So what happened exactly?"

"I went to the bathroom cause I thought I had to go, and yeah, there was blood, enough for me to be a bit worried about it so I asked Trish to take me here," she told him. "I didn't think it was too much of an emergency, but I guess somewhere along the telephone line someone got it mixed up. I didn't want to worry you."

"I know, but it's my kid, you know. Does this mean no sex?"

"No rough sex."

"I wasn't rough," he told her with a smile. The doctor pushed back through the curtain with the machine and a technician who sat next to Stephanie. They pulled the sheet down and lifted up her hospital gown to show her stomach. After they poured the warmed up goo on her stomach, they took the wand and spread it around, looking for the best angle.

"Okay, here we go," the doctor said, asking the technician to stop. "And you said you were sixteen weeks along?"

"Just starting my sixteenth week," she said. The doctor kept looking at the ultrasound and it was starting to make Stephanie a little bit nervous. "Is everything okay?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, yes," he said. "I was actually thinking you might be farther along with the size of the fetus, you might be closer to seventeen weeks, but that's something you can bring up with your obstetrician. You've definitely got a baby who's right on schedule and there isn't any distress and the heartbeat is normal. With your pelvic, everything looks fine, you're not dilated so there's no worries there, and I expect all your levels to be normal when I get the lab results back. I'd like to keep you here until we do make sure, but yeah, I'd just say you had some irritation and that caused the bleeding."

"Okay," she said. "I'm sorry, I was just worried. I didn't have blood with my first one so it was a little scary."

"I understand," he said. "Would you like a picture of your baby while you're here?"

"Yeah," Stephanie said, glancing up at Chris. The doctor had the technician move it around until they could get a good shot of the baby. It was really the firs time that Stephanie had gotten to see what actually looked like a baby on the screen. That was her kid, that was an actually kid and she could see the little flutter of a heartbeat that seemed like a fast blinking. She loved this kid. She had been so worried when she saw that blood and it struck something inside of her heart.

"So cool," Chris breathed, in awe of his baby. 

For the first time, really, Stephanie thought it was so cool too.


	174. Wow, a SD chapter, March 21, 2008

A/N: So I didn't even know Chris was going to be on SD until like, two hours before the show started (thanks Joanna!) so I didn't even know I'd have to write this. Anyways, I started writing something that I could tack onto this week's Raw chapter and I got a little into it and it ended up kind of being a chapter. I say kind of because nothing really happens and it's more like an interlude.

Anyways, I decided to just make it its own chapter, or sub-chapter, whatever. It's by itself is what I'm saying. As for this week's Raw, I'm going to make it part of the WrestleMania chapter because I want to do a week long thing for that chapter, kind of go day-by-day like I've done with some other chapters, so expect that update on Sunday evening/Monday morning. Hopefully that'll be a good ride.

Hope you like this short interlude, and thank you all so much for the reviews, they've been really great lately and I appreciate every single one of them because it really helps to get insight from you guys. Oh, and I'm happy you're happy over Trish and Christian. I've had this in the works for a while now, I have people who can attest to that, and I'm glad you like them. :)

* * *

Sawyer didn't much recognize any of these people

Sawyer didn't much recognize any of these people. Some of them he felt like he had seen before, but most of them were strangers and that kind of worried him. Where the heck did his parents take him now? They were always going somewhere, although most of the time he knew the people around there. This wasn't part of his schedule though and he was a little unsure about their whereabouts.

It was true though, for him to feel out of place. They had never been to SmackDown before. His mother had once been the General Manager of the show, but that was way before he was born so he had no idea what this show was about. He looked up at his mommy who was saying hello to people like she knew them, but how did she know everyone. He tugged on her jeans and she looked down at him.

"What is it, baby boy?"

"Dunno," he said, looking around, holding his hands out in confusion.

"What don't you know?"

He looked at a random person and then back at Stephanie, "Dunno."

"No, you don't know, do you know where we are?" she asked. He shook his head. "We're at SmackDown, you know how Daddy is on Raw? And you know how I run Raw?"

"Yeah!" Sawyer said happily, like that was something that he would of course know. He wasn't a stupid little boy, of course he knew that his mommy and daddy were at that show every week, and he was at that show every week too. So it was sort of like his job to be there too. Sawyer had even taken to helping Stephanie pack his things for their trips. It mostly included him pulling everything out of his drawers and then bringing them one by one to Stephanie, but still, it was helping.

"Well, there's another show too, called SmackDown, and both me and Daddy used to be on this show too, but we aren't anymore because there was a draft back in 2002, although Daddy and I weren't in that draft because we had a match against Hunter, which I lost and got kicked out and your daddy felt bad, but that was before we started dating. Anyways, your daddy was put on SmackDown, and then I came back as the General Manager of SmackDown, and I sent your father to Raw to spy on Bischoff for me, this was after we started dating, right after, like a week after we started dating, but your dad already liked me a lot, well, because I put out and because we had gotten to know each other better."

"Oh," Sawyer said, looking confused.

"This was way before you were born though," she told him. "I mean, your daddy and I had talked about kids, but really only in passing if someone else was pregnant, you know, not really in-depth, in fact, we never really talked about them in-depth until you came along because really we wanted to wait and that was the extent of the conversation."

"Uh huh," Sawyer said nodding, but he didn't understand a word of what his mommy was saying. She was just talking a lot. He glanced around as she kept talking and he wondered if maybe _this_ was where they had all the parties.

"Sawyer, are you listening to me?"

"No," he told her.

She laughed, "Okay, I get it, anyways, we're here because Daddy is going to be on the show because he was invited to be on the show by someone named MVP, can you say that?"

"Uh uh…no," he told her.

"That's okay, let's master Y2J first, okay?"

"Okay," he said. "Daddy."

"Yes, that is Daddy, at least you recognize that," she said proudly. "We'll have you chanting Y2J in no time, Daddy would love that, are you going to watch Daddy at WrestleMania?"

"Yeah," Sawyer told her.

"Who are you going to watch it with?"

"Baby!" he said, opening his mouth in excitement.

"No, you're not going to watch it with the baby," Stephanie told him, pretending to be stern. "The baby can't see yet, it's still in my tummy. Guess again, who are you going to watch Daddy with?"

"You?"

"No…"

"Hmm," Sawyer said, covering his mouth with both of his hands as he stood there thinking about this. He didn't know who he was going to watch the show with. He wanted to watch it with the baby, but his mommy said that wasn't possible. "Twip!"

Stephanie laughed again, "No…"

"Chissy?"

"No…"

"Gampa?"

"That's right, and Grandma too," she said, picking him up. "You're going to have tons of fun with them and you get to cheer on Daddy, but you can't go to Daddy, right, because Daddy is going to be working and we can't interrupt Daddy while he's working."

"Uh huh," Sawyer said seriously, matching his mother's tone. "No…"

"Yeah, we have to sit nicely and cheer Daddy on because he's going to win the match and he's going to get the WWE title and he's going to be the best and then you can play with an even bigger belt. I don't think you'd be able to carry that one."

"Uh huh," Sawyer told her.

"I don't think so."

"Uh huh, Mommy," he told her, nodding the whole time.

"We'll see when Daddy gets it, does he have your belt?"

"Yes," Sawyer said, then frowned. His daddy had taken his toy with him _again_. He wanted to play with it but it seemed that his daddy was always needing it and that bugged him. It was so shiny and pretty and he wanted to carry it around with him everywhere. He had even been told that he could bring it to show his cousins when they came down next week, not that he really knew what she was saying at the time, but the way she said it had promise so he was excited for it.

"Hey, you two haven't moved since I left," Chris said as he came upon the two of them. "You're just lazy bums like I expected you to be."

"Sawyer didn't know why we were here and he didn't know where here was."

"Oh yeah, he's never been to a SmackDown has he?" Chris said. "This is the other show, kid, you'll rule over this someday too, don't worry."

"He'll rule over everything," Stephanie grinned, with just a hint of malice in her eyes that made Chris draw back a few paces.

"I'm sorry this was such short notice though, baby. I know that you had to reschedule that doctor's appointment you had for today."

"It's okay, I'm going in on Wednesday next week, and that'll be fine, you know. We'll get the big ultrasound done, hopefully see what the baby is and then we have the Hall of Fame ceremony, then we have WrestleMania, then we have you winning and kicking butt all over the joint and all will be well in the world."

"You're nuts," he told her, leaning over to kiss her. "So…I got the schedule and I'm not going on until midway through the show, so I'm not on until like around nine, so we should be able to get settled in at least, then we don't have to stay since you're not running things."

"Sounds good, I know Sawyer will appreciate that. So…do you get your own dressing room?"

"Of course I do, you told them to give me one before we came and since you kind of own the joint, I kind of get what I want," he said. "Come on, I saw it when I came back to get you two, I thought you would've found it already though."

"Well, excuse me for fostering our son's imagination and creativity, I wasn't aware you wanted him to be dumb."

"Ouch," he told her. "Do you want me to take him? What with the stomach situation?"

"I love how you just refer to it as the stomach situation," she told him, "as if there's nothing going on in there."

"Well, who knows, you may actually be farther along than we think, we don't know if it's a boy or girl, right now, all we have to show for this kid is your ever-expanding middle…oh my God, you're tricking me, aren't you? This is Trips all over again, you're pretending to be pregnant so that I won't notice this excessive weight gain!"

"So you're calling me fat then?"

"Yes, I am," he told her. "It's okay, I didn't marry you for your looks, just the money."

"Oh, well then, I'm going to gain two hundred pounds."

"Please don't," he told her with a laugh as they came to his dressing room. "It's weird being here, I'm going to admit. I don't really know half the guys on this roster just because we don't much interact with them, you know? I mean, what do we really know about MVP? Do you know much about him?"

"No, not really."

"But you own the company, shouldn't you know about guys that are employed underneath you? You're in charge of everything pertaining to the shows, you should know!"

"I don't pay attention to everything that's going on around me at all times," she protested, "besides, you own the company too."

"Only by marriage."

"It's not like the company is a bastard child that you're a stepfather to. You are part owner of this company as well, so you should get to know _your_ employees, Chris Jericho and stop looking towards your wife for all the answers," she replied, sticking her tongue out. Sawyer accidentally kicked her in the stomach and she turned to him, "Sawyer, don't kick me in the stomach, it's bad for the baby."

"Oh, I sowwy," he told her, "down, pease."

"Okay," she said, setting him down on the ground. He went right over to Chris and held his arms out. "Toy!"

"Kid, I'm going to need it tonight."

"No, my toy," Sawyer said, making a grab for the belt. Chris sighed and gave him the belt. Sawyer squeaked happily when he had it in his arms again. He brought it over to Stephanie and yelled at her stomach. "My toy, baby!"

"I think the baby gets it," Stephanie said as Sawyer took his belt and put it on the couch to look at it again. Stephanie got his toy bag and put it on the couch next to the belt so he could start pulling out his toys and placing them around his belt. "I'm going to hate to see him when you don't have that belt anymore."

"Let's not think about that right now," Chris told her, "come here, I wanna see my wife."

Stephanie threw her eyes to the ceiling and shook her head. She walked over to him and she sat down in his laugh, Chris giving an exaggerated groan as she sat down. She slugged him in the arm for insinuating that she was gaining too much weight and he kissed her shoulder. She wrapped her arms around him as he encircled her middle.

"So how are you feeling?"

"I'm fine," she told him. "No complaints here, and you know, it's going to be weird coming on a show where I'm not expected to do anything. I'm just a wrestler's wife right now, so strange for me."

"Well, you're not _just_ one of the wrestler's wives, if you didn't have that name McMahon then you would be, but not so much, if you decided to drop the McMahon though."

"I've told you a million times that I'm not going to be Stephanie Jericho."

"Okay, okay, fine," he said, leaning his chin on her shoulder now. "So come on, you've got to know something about MVP. I do watch SmackDown, but probably not with as much attention as I should've. It's hard though when I've got an twenty-two month old at home."

"Yeah, blame the kid," she said. "He's cocky, like you, so you'll be able to verbally spar with him I'm guessing."

"Out-spar him you mean."

"Of course."

"So, uh," he said, rubbing her stomach. "What do you think it is? We haven't really gotten to talk to much about him or her."

"I think it's a her," Stephanie said as she placed her hand over Chris's.

She had been scared earlier this week when she thought that something was wrong with the baby. There hadn't been anything wrong though and the spotting had dissipated, easing her fears. Feeling like her baby was in trouble had stirred a little something in her towards this baby, but she still wasn't feeling quite connected to it yet. She had felt some flutters in her stomach that _might_ be the baby moving, but she wasn't clear on that yet. It was still a little early and she hadn't felt Sawyer moving around inside of her until she was nineteen weeks.

She wasn't so worried that it would never come, she was just impatient for those motherly feelings to come at her full force. She just guessed that she wasn't the type of person to go completely ga-ga over a pregnancy. She just went about her daily business while trying to get used to having a pregnancy belly once again. She was confident that she would feel connected with this thing growing inside of her soon enough.

"Yeah?" Chris asked, the corners of his mouth turning up into a smile. He liked that idea. He could picture a little girl now, looking up at him adoringly like Stephanie had done with Vince.

"Yeah, I don't know, call it a hunch, but it doesn't feel like a boy. Sawyer felt like a boy. Maybe I can just feel what kind of baby I'm going to have or something, but I feel like this one is going to be a girl. I mean, my mom had a girl than a boy, so I think I am too, not that it's conducive or anything since gender is determined by the father."

"Thanks for the bio lesson," Chris said. "Besides the fact that any daughter I have is never going to date unless I approve of the guy, I think a little girl would be cool. Of course any kid we have we're going to have to turn right over to that monster over there."

"Oh yeah, I think he's going to be clingy. He already is with my stomach," she said. "It's cute though, that he wants to talk to her so much. I think he's going to make a good big brother, as long as he doesn't get jealous, which we have to make sure doesn't happen. I don't want him feeling like he was left in the dust."

"We wouldn't do that, I love that guy," Chris said. "He's my best friend."

"What?" she asked, her face softening immensely.

"What?" he mimicked.

"He's your best friend?" she said, feeling very girly at that moment.

"Yeah, sure, I mean, I spend most of my time with him, and he's pretty much the coolest person that I know, I love him, you know. He's like, one of the four best things that's ever happened to me."

"Four…I know there's Sawyer, and me, and this kid, but who's number four?"

"Not who, what, and that what is wrestling since…you know, it gave me the other three. Very good venture, that one was."

"Oh okay, I was going to say, you're going to have to try harder to hide your secret girlfriend."

"Sorry, I'll try harder next time, and of course he's my best friend, he's the one person…besides you of course…that I really love to be around. Sure, we can't go out and grab a beer or anything, but I can have a beer and he can have an apple juice or something."

"You're cute," she told him.

"Well, I do try to be the cutest husband for you," he said, rubbing her stomach. She found the gesture comforting as the door opened before them. Edge walked inside and nodded to them, "Hey man, ever heard of knocking?"

"I knew you wouldn't be doing stuff in here because you don't travel without the kid."

"How would you know, we never see you," Stephanie pointed out.

"I've been busy, I go to Texas most of the time now. It's just easier than having Vick travel over to Florida."

"You two are weird," Chris said.

"Yeah, yeah, I've heard it, spare me. Don't you dare lecture me, Stephanie McMahon," Edge said, pointing a finger in her direction. "I know that look on your face. You really want to just tell me something, but don't, okay, I've thought about all of it."

"You're a skirt-chaser though," Chris said.

"Maybe not anymore."

"Hi, Ed," Sawyer said idly.

Edge sighed, "Can you _please_ get your kid to say my name right? I'm not Ed, Sawyer, it's Edge, _Edge_!"

"You get worked up too easily," Stephanie told him. "Way too easily. I think that's why everyone thinks you're a jackass, besides all your little plans and stuff."

"Like you guys don't plot your next moves when people aren't around. I bet you drill information into Sawyer's head every night."

"I do," Chris said, "I instill all the information from _The Cat in the Hat_ and _Where the Wild Things Are_. It's all very covert."

"Funny, funny," Edge said. "I just came to say hey to you guys and to say congrats on the whole baby thing, I know I haven't been around, but you know, congratulations on the whole new baby thing and dudes, isn't it great that my brother finally got his act together?"

"Yes," they agreed. "I can't believe it took them so long."

"Edge!"

"Oh, hey, Vick," Edge said, leaning down to kiss her cheek.

"Hi, Vickie," Chris said, nodding her head to the woman in question. He still didn't know what to think about the two of them. He liked to think that Edge was genuine in how he felt for Vickie, but he knew Edge and he knew what Edge was about.

"Edge, come on, I want to go talk to you."

"Well, that's my cue, I guess," Edge said, "Later guys, later Sawyer."

"Bye, Ed."

Edge shook his head as he left the room, leaving Stephanie and Chris again. They both looked at each other and started laughing. There was just something so absurd about Edge and Vickie. Edge had just been this womanizing guy for so long that to think he was going to settle down for good was such an odd thought. On top of that, though, Vickie had daughters. Edge would have potential step-children, and Edge barely liked to be around Sawyer for an extended period of time which is why he didn't get baby-sitting duties over his brother. Christian was like a big kid who loved to be around Sawyer.

"I just can't see that lasting."

"What relationship does in wrestling?"

"Hey!" Stephanie said. "I like to think that _we're_ going to last. My parents have lasted."

"I mean ones that started solely because of something in front of the camera," he told her. "Ours started as far away from the camera as humanly possible, ours started in like, a dark, lifeless spot in a dark, abandoned house on the corner of nothingness and vacuum."

She gave him a strange look, "We will last."

"Is that a threat?"

"Well…yes, I guess it could be. I just don't like thinking that we might not make it," she pouted. "I mean, we have _two_ children, Chris, two children, not one anymore and I love you and I know you love me too, I don't have to ask that anymore because I just know, but the future is so uncertain sometimes."

"Cut out this talk, baby," he said, lifting her off his lap as he stood up. He leaned down to kiss her. "I love you more today than yesterday, but not half as much as tomorrow."

"Oh my God, you did not just quote a song to me."

"I did," he winked. "I'm going to go get a feel for this MVP guy, you just sit here and do nothing because you're pregnant and even though the bleeding was because we got a little too…uh…you know, you were supposed to take it easy anyways."

"I am taking it easy."

"You never take it easy."

Chris wandered off and it was weird being back on the show. He hadn't mentioned it to Stephanie, but the last time that he had been here, it had been the last time he and Stephanie had been seen on-screen together. He remembered it like it was yesterday. They were a week into their relationship and even though they had already slept together more than once, he still felt like he had so much to learn about her.

_Stephanie was fretting. She couldn't get a hold of Kurt Angle and she was fearing that he was the one who had defected from her show. It would devastate her if he was though because Kurt was her best friend. He had stood by her through everything and to see him become some kind of a turncoat would just be the ultimate stab-in-the-back gesture. Why wasn't he answering his phones though? He should be so in tune with her that he just knew when she needed to talk._

_She tried not to think about it anymore as she fell heavily into her leather chair, the cool material curving to the lines of her body. She sighed and wracked her brain over the roster, trying to think of defectors. It was easy to pigeon-hole some people into one group over the others because she knew exactly where their loyalties lay. Edge, for instance, he was definitely staying. She wasn't stupid, she had seen the way that he was looking at her earlier that evening. She had been a piece of meat in his eyes. Nothing more…it wasn't him though, at least that was a comforting thought._

_Chris, meanwhile, was bored out of his mind. He didn't have anything to do until his cage match with Edge. It wasn't what he wanted, not by a long-shot, but he didn't have much choice in the matter. Stephanie had granted him the match last week, though he thought granted wasn't the right word. Maybe the better way of putting it was that she had _stuck him with it_, yes, that sounded better. He didn't want a stupid match with Edge, he was above Edge, above all of that, but no, she couldn't change it now that it was already signed._

_He hated Edge right now, that stupid jackass. He wanted to leave him lying in a pool of his own blood later. He envisioned himself grating Edge's face against the cool metal that compromised the structure they were going to be locked into that evening. He grinned at that and channeled it all into the anger he was going to bring into that match. That's what he was doing right then, channeling all of that pent-up frustration into adrenaline for his match. Listening to his new CD helped him do that. He couldn't explain why his own voice was so calming, but it was in a weird, narcissistic way._

_His mind brought him back to his new boss, Stephanie McMahon. She also happened to be his new girlfriend, but they were keeping that under wraps for now. He understood her need to keep it a secret for the time being, and besides, they had only been seeing each other for a week and part of that time had been spent in their respective homes, her in Connecticut and him in Florida, hundreds of miles apart. Still though, there was hopefully something brewing there._

_It wasn't like he was looking for something long-term, but Stephanie had just kind of fallen into his lap so to speak. He had never expected her to be back. He hadn't even known she was going to be back at all. He was kind of hurt over the fact that she wouldn't have at least given him fair warning. They had left on pretty good terms. He had wanted to kiss her that last night and had resisted the urge a number of times. He had never thought being around Stephanie McMahon could be an enjoyable experience, but she had pretty quickly changed his mind on that matter when they had become business partners._

_She was pretty and she was a bitch, but she had other qualities that he had never known existed about her. There was a small part of her that was just this vulnerable girl who was desperately seeking attention and success, and that part was quite endearing. When she had been with that dolt of an ex-husband, she had let all the bitchy qualities out and had tucked away the insecurities, but she was just trying to be what she thought Hunter wanted her to be. When he had suddenly changed, she didn't know how to handle it._

_It was sad and he had felt particularly bad for her when they were business partners. The divorce had been getting progressively messy, cars, clothing, dogs all falling like items off of shelves in an earthquake. He had heard that it was messy up until it was finalized. That wasn't from Stephanie herself, but from other people around. He wasn't sure if he wanted to bring up the divorce with her. It might make her think of her ex-husband and miss him, and he didn't want that._

_Stephanie was thinking…and that was a definitely scary thing. Thinking never got her much of anywhere good because she tended to overanalyze to the point of near-insanity. Her mind now was thinking about the fact that maybe Chris was the one who was jumping ship. It was all so convenient if he was. Last week she comes back, they have a stilted, yet polite conversation and then suddenly he's bursting into her office wanting to know why she wouldn't hug him, and then they kiss and a few days later they're sleeping together._

_Maybe Bischoff had specifically told Chris to seduce her in order to distract her so he could take more of her roster right out from underneath her. She couldn't put it past Chris. She knew from being business partners with him that he was ruthless. She knew from being his enemy that he would be willing to humiliate her. This worried her. She had had sex with the guy; she didn't want him just using her for a quick lay and a distraction. But they had been good as business partners, and she didn't think he was such a good actor that he could've faked the anger he had shown her last week._

_She spotted him sitting on top of trunk in the hallway, headphones on and rocking out to something. She licked her lips (oh yes she did) and walked over to him. She tapped him lightly on the leg and he took off his headphones to speak with her, a very intense look on his face. She ranted a little bit about what was going on with Kurt and everything before asking if he was happy there, with her, on SmackDown._

_He was surprised by the question. The worry in her eyes was real though, and he stood up to speak with her. After plugging his new CD and giving her a copy (a sure token of his affection), he told her that he was going to beat Edge that evening and that was going to make him very, very happy that evening. They shared a look filled with lust and then he was gone again and she took a deep breath. She knew him, she kept telling herself, she knew him and she knew that he was telling the truth._

_Still, she was a bit worried, she ran after him, the camera not following her like a lost puppy this time and she grabbed his arm. He turned and looked at her again. "What now?"_

_It came off harsher than he intended and she took a small step back, "I'm sorry, were you busy?"_

"_Nah, you want to come talk to me in my locker room, might be safer." They had only been dating a week and already he could read her. That didn't bode well for her being withdrawn in this relationship. If it was a long-term thing, they weren't even really exclusive or anything. Were they?_

_He led her to his locker room and opened the door, letting her go in first. She turned immediately and asked, "Are you the one leaving?"_

"_What? How can you ask me that, of course I'm not the one leaving, why would I leave, unless…unless you want me to leave…is this about last week, with us sleeping together, did you regret that because I can definitely take it slower, it's fine with me."_

"_No, it's not that, I guess…I'm glad you're not leaving."_

"_Good, I'm glad I'm not leaving too," he said. He stepped forward a little bit and started to lean in to kiss her. His movements were slow because they hadn't kissed like this many times and he was still unsure of how to act around her now that she was girlfriend-potential and not just a thorn in his side. She leaned up to kiss him and it was a sweet kiss, very chaste and only lasted a few seconds._

_She blushed inexplicably. "I'm sorry that I thought you were leaving. I guess I should know, you know, but it's still so new."_

"_Yeah, I know, do you want to go out to dinner with me tonight? If you don't have plans or anything, if you do, you know…"_

"_Of course I don't, so yeah, I'd love to spend another night…I mean, that came out wrong, I'd love to have dinner with you."_

"_Pick you up after the show then."_

That had been the last time he was on the show. It seemed eons ago now. He remembered how everything was still a little awkward around Stephanie. They didn't know if they were exclusive or not, they didn't know where anything was going. There was certainly no talk of marriage or children for them. They were just kind of there and kind of together. He couldn't believe that was the last time he had been on SmackDown, but it was. That last time he was here everything was different, his entire life had changed in the ensuing years and it was strange because he owned part of the company and still hadn't even been on-screen for SmackDown in over five years.

"Daddy?" Sawyer yelled for him, looking around, trying to find out where he was. Chris looked over and saw the little boy running ahead of Stephanie like usual. Five and a half years ago that kid hadn't even been a thought in his mind, not even an afterthought, not even the afterthought to an afterthought. He was more like a nothingthought.

"Over here, kid," Chris called out to his son. Sawyer navigated his way around the sea of legs around the gorilla and saw his father, running over to him and throwing his hands up in the air. Chris picked him up and Stephanie came over.

"What were you doing?" Stephanie asked.

"You know, the last time I was on SmackDown, like the show, it was the last time we were on-screen together?"

"Really? How long ago was that?"

"Like 5 and a half years ago."

"Oh my God, you mean people haven't been graced with our adorable presence in that long?"

"Adorable, when were we ever adorable on-screen?"

"Hot?"

"Yeah, I'll go with that. I was just thinking about how much things had changed since then, you know. We had been dating for a week and I never envisioned any of this," he said, gesturing between the two of them and swishing his hand around Sawyer and Stephanie's stomach. "Five and a half years later and we've been married for over three years and we have two kids, I mean, weird…"

"Only to you."

"You couldn't have honestly thought that we were going to get married and have children together because that's just plain creepy and it's going to make me think that I was just a part of some crazy master plan of yours."

She gave him a particularly creepy smile, "Oh you were, Chris. You see, I just wanted beautiful children, so I knew I had to go with the most good-looking guy in the entire company. You happened to be it, I was blinded into thinking it was Hunter, but then I knew it was you, so I've been using you for breeding purposes. I really _did_ plan both of my children."

"You're just plain scary now," he said, kissing her. "Five and a half years, what the hell have I been _doing_ in that time? You'd think I'd have shown up at least once or something."

"You also took a two year break, remember that?"

"Oh, you mean where I basically just stayed backstage?"

"Yes, it was a horrible dark time for all of us," she told him. "Oh, your segment is up next."

"Crap, it is," he said, thrusting Sawyer at her. Stephanie took her son as Chris made his way over to the production table. He told the guy there, who apparently did Stephanie's job on SmackDown, that he had some stuff set up with production and he'd cue it up when he was ready. The guy, recognizing that Chris was his boss, nodded enthusiastically. Chris stepped away and rolled his eyes towards Stephanie. For the most part, everyone at Raw knew that they should treat Chris just like any other wrestler, but he understood that people here hadn't gotten that memo.

He watched MVP talk about having him on the show and then go into a small diatribe about how he was better than everyone else in the Money in the Bank match. Chris took offense to that and interrupted him before he could say Chris's own name. Chris was the front-runner for this match. He was a former Undisputed Champion and he was the freaking creator of the Money in the Bank match. This guy didn't know what the hell he was talking about.

Chris got in the ring and reminded the fans that he hadn't been here in a very long time, but he was happy to be back. He was just going to start talking about the last time he had been here and about Stephanie, but MVP cut him off. Who did this guy think he was, The Rock? Nobody was allowed to cut off Chris. MVP started going off on him a bit, and Chris thought the entire thing was silly. Chris was obviously better than him in every respect and set out to show him.

Plus, he had already brought sexy back, and sexy was currently rounding the track and circling back because Chris had so much sexy to give that it had lapped itself.

Chris went back to his old-school antics, finding a weak spot in someone and hitting it over and over and over again. In this case, it was the fact that MVP liked to call himself MVP, like it was some god-given conclusion that he was the MVP of just…stuff. Chris called to his attention more suitable nicknames for him, for which MVP took more and more offense to, but Chris loved this kind of stuff. Once you dug under the skin a little, people got so irritated with you. That irritation was one of the main reasons that Stephanie had hated him for a good couple of years.

Putting her in the Walls of Jericho, hitting her in the face with a pie, saying she did everyone in a ten-mile radius, comparing her to road-kill and calling her a filthy, dirty, disgusting, brutal, skanky, bottom-feeding trash bag ho didn't help either.

MVP then had the "clever" idea to actually climb the ladder to demonstrate what he was going to do to Chris at WrestleMania. He was going to climb that ladder and win. That was all well and good, but did MVP think that he was stupid or something? Chris nonchalantly walked over and tipped over the ladder, sending MVP right into the ropes. Really, had MVP thought that was a good idea, putting himself in such a vulnerable position? Chris didn't care as he picked up his belt and the suitcase, demonstrating what hopefully would take place on Sunday. He wanted to win that Money in the Bank match and get another title shot. He deserved one.

That WWE title needed to be around his gorgeous waist once again.


	175. Chris Lost, WrestleMania, March 30, 2008

A/N: WARNING: This chapter is LONG. It's so long I had to split it up into two chapters because the site wouldn't let me upload the whole thing. That's how long it is, so take your time, it's a marathon, not a sprint, you don't have to rush through it. It is a lot to read, over...well, it's over 30,000 words is what I'm saying here, so take your time.

So, in other news, yeah, a lot of this is probably boring, sorry if it is. WM sucked, I'm sorry, it's like, what the heck are you doing, WWE, seriously, Chris deserves a title shot. I guess he can get one by his own means, but seriously, like, I don't want him to languish in midcard hell when he's so much better than that. But that's all I'll say, oh and hee, H lost.

Anyways, enjoy the chapter, I hope! And if you make it through this monster, I hope that you'll leave a review, hopefully, maybe. I mean, I wrote all this, so you can write me a review and either tell me I'm crazy or what, I don't care, just leave a review, pretty please. But yeah, let me know what you think, I love a good review. Oh, and yes, there will be a Raw chapter tomorrow night, and no, it will not be this long. :P Enjoy! :)

Oh, and as an aside, as usual, I go by what happens on Raw, SD, or PPV, everything else, I switch around at my leisure. :)

* * *

**Monday**

"It's the most wonderful time of the year!"

"Your mother is officially crazy, I fear for the child growing inside of her," Chris said as he looked in the rearview mirror of their car. "We're going to have to rescue your little brother or sister from her and leave the country!"

"Okay!" Sawyer said as he looked between his mommy and daddy in the front seat.

"Great, this'll be an adventure!"

"Ventur!" Sawyer yelled as he put his arms in front of himself like he was Superman.

"I'm not crazy," Stephanie told him. "I don't know where you get these ideas, but I'm not crazy, but don't you feel it? I mean, the buzz is definitely in the air, can you feel it, sweetie?"

"No, because quite frankly, I'm not like you."

"Sure you are," she told him. "Oh, come on, Chris, you have to be at least excited, it's WrestleMania week, the best week of the entire year. Everyone is buzzing, the big show is this Sunday and there's so many things to do."

"I know, baby, I know, and I'm very excited."

"You should be, we all should be, things are good, Chris, they're very good, we've got a jam-packed week ahead of us though."

"I have a feeling that you're going to enlighten me right now on just how jam-packed it is, so lay it on me, McMahon, what kind of week are we looking at here."

"Well, first of all, we have Raw tonight, and then tomorrow we have my doctor's appointment, I had to switch it because on Wednesday we are going to be in New York because you are going to be on Larry King, and that evening, we're having dinner with Hunter and Britt in the city, and then we're spending the night in Connecticut and then Thursday night we're having dinner with my parents and Shane and Rissa, big family thing with all the kids. Friday…what's Friday? Oh yeah, you have a match for SmackDown, and then Saturday we have the Hall of Fame ceremony and Christian and Trish will be taking care of the monster, and then Sunday is the show."

"Wow, so there's pretty much no time for sleeping."

"That's right," she told him. "I'm _so_ excited though. Oh, and your parents will be flying in on Friday and we're meeting them at the airport because their flight is arriving forty-five minutes before our flight, so they're just going to wait there. But yes, so excited. It's the best time of the year."

"Most people say that about Christmas, but you, you say it about WrestleMania. You really are a workaholic."

"Yes, which is why it bugs me that I have to take time off again," she said, momentarily sullen. Chris had been noticing that she did that a lot. It wasn't anything enormous or anything, but she said things like that with more bitterness than she had with Sawyer. Everything with this baby seemed somehow just an inconvenience with her, and he got the distinct feeling that they were not on the same wavelength with this baby. He was convinced that she would catch up though so he was being patient with her.

"It won't be for that long and Shane is going to be taking over for you."

"I know," she said, "I just don't like the idea of leaving is all. I mean, it was bad enough with Sawyer, you know, I was a fat pig by the time WrestleMania that year rolled around so at least this one had the wherewithal to wait until around SummerSlam rather than WrestleMania, it makes it easier to stand being away, but then, I mean, even if we do get a bus, I'm still not going be there for at least a month, and that's just hard on me."

"It's not that hard."

"Look, your sabbatical was self-imposed. You left because you _wanted_ to leave."

"I didn't want to leave!" Chris argued. "Are you kidding me here, Steph? You think that I wanted to walk away from something I loved. If I remember correctly, and I usually do, you wanted to have a 'normal' pregnancy. What was that again? Oh yeah, you wanted to stay at home and be a normal couple…yet I seem to remember you working until two weeks before our son was born."

"You could've come back!"

"I had done a whole thing where I was fired, I couldn't come back two weeks later all like, well, we were just joking," Chris said, raising his voice mockingly.

"Of course you could have."

"No, I couldn't have. Look, as far as people watching the show goes, they don't even know we're married because we don't advertise it anywhere besides our wedding rings and the spawn that we've put forth on the Earth. You don't get introduced as Stephanie McMahon-Jericho and I don't go out there and talk about how I own the freaking company."

"You still could've come back, I wanted you to come back."

"I came back for you!"

"Oh, so if there was no me, you wouldn't have come back at all, you'd still be somewhere off doing whatever?"

"What would it even matter to you anyways?" he asked. "If we weren't married, I'd just be another employee and you wouldn't have cared what happened to me. I just would've been stuck on that page in the WWE Alumni section and you wouldn't have given me a second thought."

"Well…maybe," she admitted, "but the fact of the matter is that you aren't. You're my husband, the man that I promised to love and honor for the rest of my life. The one who I've had children with, not child, children as in plural."

"Still, I didn't want to leave in the first place, you were having my kid and I didn't want to do anything that might upset you because you were having my kid, so I agreed to your whole thing, that was on you, Stephanie. I wanted your pregnancy to run as smoothly as possible, especially after the thing with Austin, I would've flown to Thailand if you wanted Thai food, that's how smoothly I wanted it to run."

"But you didn't have to stay away for two years," she pointed out.

"I had other commitments, excuse me for finding out that I could have a life outside of wrestling. I found that I was good at other things, so don't go putting the blame on me for this one."

"You're the one that got me pregnant, it's not like I wanted to get pregnant right now, it's not like I asked the pregnancy fairy to throw her freaking fairy dust all over my stomach. You were there too, buddy."

"I know I was there, believe me, unless you still are a slut."

"I was never a slut and you know it. You only did that because you wanted my attention. You wanted me to fall head over heels for you to stroke that enormous ego of yours. You saw that I was committed to my husband and you were the one always antagonizing me and kissing me."

"You kissed back both times so it couldn't have been too happy a marriage and don't act like it was suddenly my fault you two didn't work out."

"I wasn't suggesting you were, there you go, stroking that ego of yours again. It's a wonder you fit through the door."

"Likewise," Chris muttered.

"Oh, was that a pregnant woman is fat joke? You are _so_ clever, Chris, give yourself a pat on the back for that one, really, you're just so amazing with that wit of yours," she said sarcastically.

"I know, I'm great," he responded drolly. "Look, you're missing one freaking month, okay, get over it, that's four shows, four godd--"

"Don't you dare swear in front of our son," Stephanie interjected with a warning for him.

"Four freaking shows," Chris corrected, looking at Sawyer who was watching them like this was some kind of tennis match. He had seen his father angry and he had seen his mother angry, but the both of them angry at the same time was like an explosion and it fascinated him. "That's nothing."

"For you, maybe, but this is what I do, and I'm going to be stuck at home with a newborn and a two-year old while my husband gets to go out there and do what he loves."

"Yeah, while also waking up sore the next morning or with bruises or cuts because my opponent wasn't careful. We all have crap that we need to deal with, I just don't go spouting off at the mouth about it. Give me a break, Stephanie, you're not the only one here capable of throwing themselves a pity party."

"You think that's what this is, a pity party?"

"Whatever, it's just you being all weird about missing a few weeks of work. Most people would be happy for the time off."

"I love my work. I don't like people taking over for me and potentially screwing things up."

"Take a step back for a change, geez, the world doesn't revolve around wrestling, Stephanie, it just doesn't, it doesn't revolve around you and your love for the job. Look, we didn't set out to become pregnant, I think that's pretty clear, but why don't you just suck it up and just deal with it."

"Oh, why don't you try to have a fuc--"

"Don't swear around the kid," Chris said, warning her like she had warned him. Sawyer was just liable to start saying the f-word everywhere he went and that would be slightly embarrassing for his parents if they had to keep their hands over his mouth all the time.

"Why don't you have a freaking kid growing inside of your for 40 freaking weeks and then we'll talk, okay, Chris? A few aches and pains, oh, okay, I would take that in a heartbeat over a kid that is inevitably going to tap dance all over my bladder and use my spine as a xylophone!"

"You're impossible, you know that," Chris said as he parked the car. "Look, we didn't plan this kid, but it's here, it's right there, growing inside of you. We _chose _to keep that child. We knew there were options--" 

"There were no options. There's no options here," Stephanie said. "It's either keep the baby or keep the baby, that's the option."

"Fine, then don't complain with the stuff that goes with it. Look, you say all the time that yeah, I had to be there when it happened, but so did you, Stephanie and I'm going to go out on a limb and say that you really liked it when we were making that kid."

"Whatever, you obviously don't understand," she said. "I'm going inside, don't talk to me tonight okay, you are already ruining WrestleMania week for me, why don't you just go ahead and ruin the rest of it."

"Maybe I will, maybe I'll double-cross you at every turn."

"Fine, go ahead and do that!" she yelled at him. "You don't understand me!"

She grabbed her things and stormed out of the car, leaving Chris and Sawyer sitting there. Chris sighed and put his hands on the steering wheel, gripping it tightly so he wouldn't punch his window or the console or something. He sighed and looked to the back-seat where Sawyer was sitting there, staring at him from his car-seat. Chris gave him a shrug and then turned forward.

"I really shouldn't stress her out with the baby," Chris said, more to himself than to his son. "She's impossible sometimes though."

"Yeah," Sawyer said sympathetically.

"Yeah, you probably know, you were inside of her once, you grew up in there, you probably had to see all that junk around you pulsating with anger," Chris said. "Too bad you weren't anywhere near her brain, you could've told me what the hell goes on in there because sometimes I don't know."

"Uh huh," Sawyer told him.

"I just…sometimes she pisses me off, you know. I want to say she turns back into crazy Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley, that was her name before she divorced Trips and married me, Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley, just the name sends shivers down my spine. The thing is, as much as I hated her back then, I liked that she pissed me off. Maybe I've just always liked your mommy deep down."

"I like Mommy."

"I know you do, I think you're the only person in this entire world that loves her unconditionally. Don't get me wrong, I love your Mommy, but she pisses me the hell off sometimes," Chris said. "She just pisses me the hell off."

Stephanie stormed inside her hair whooshing back behind her. It was like there were fans blowing at her, that's how fast she was walking. She got to her office without speaking to a single person and threw her things on the couch, and it wasn't just a light toss, no, she threw her bag down with force. She almost yelled in anger, but just grit her teeth and made a growling-type noise instead.

She was so frustrated with Chris right now. A month to her was a long time. She loved this business. It had been instilled in her for as long as she could remember. Wrestlers were in and out of her house all the time when she was little. She knew everyone, she wanted to be Miss Elizabeth when she was growing up. She had dreams and aspirations like Chris did, and even though she had a far easier road to get here, it was a road nonetheless. She had had to work too and it was different being a woman. She had to deal with this pregnancy and she was angry that Chris would just get to go to work the Monday after she had the baby. It wasn't fair.

Plus there was the fact that she still felt a little detached from this pregnancy. It was like she had post-partum depression way too early. It wasn't that she was ignoring the baby; she took all her prenatal vitamins and she made sure she ate the right portions and stayed away from everything she was supposed to stay away from. She just wished that this baby could've waited a little while longer to show up. She wasn't ready for it. She wasn't ready for number two, she had barely been ready for number one.

She sat down heavily behind her desk and looked down at her now sizeable stomach. It was plain to see that she was pregnant now and everyone could tell that she was. People were probably thinking that now Chris had an even bigger stake in the company. Stupid people, as if this were Chris's master plan, to get her pregnant with his children so he'd be set for life. Chris barely spent money if he didn't have to, except on things that she wanted or needed or stuff that Sawyer wanted or needed.

She had to be farther along than they had initially thought. She felt like she was bigger than she was supposed to be. Thank God she wasn't having twins though, that might send her straight to a nervous breakdown. She could barely handle one baby growing in there that she didn't feel much attachment too, but two? That would've been torture indeed. She sat back and rubbed her stomach, and it was like there was no sensation running through her, she was just rubbing her stomach, nothing more, nothing less and it frightened her.

The door opened and Chris walked through with Sawyer. He turned to her, "Don't mind me, there's this little snafu tonight, see, since you're my wife, we kind of have to share a room, it sucks, I know, I realize that. I think I'll just go share with Trips, you can watch our son."

"Whatever, see if I care what you do."

"Good, I hope you don't, I won't care what you do."

"Fine, maybe I'll go sleep with someone then, I'm sure someone around here would want some. Spend enough time away from your wife or girlfriend, I'm sure it's easy."

"Well, I'll test that out and see what happens," he told her snidely before kneeling down to kiss Sawyer on the temple, "Later kid, you be good for Mommy and if she gives you any trouble, you just come find me okay?"

"Okay, Daddy," he said, giving Chris a big, sloppy kiss.

"Okay, kid," he said, making a funny face for him before flipping off his wife and opening the door. She set him off with a bird as well and groaned when he left.

"Don't listen to anything that your father tells you," Stephanie said. "He's a jerk, a huge jerk. He was the one who had a crush on me, not the other way around. I was a married woman, Sawyer, this was way before you came along, but I was married to Hunter."

"Twip?"

"Yeah, I know, hard to believe, right? Anyways, long story short, your father was the one that kissed me first."

"Oh, okay," he said as he started to unpack his toys.

Chris stalked down the hallway. God, that woman, sometimes he would be happy to divorce her, quit the company and never speak the name McMahon again. He almost pounded on Hunter's door and was somehow not surprised when Britt answered. Her eyes widened like she had been caught and he wondered what the hell they were doing in there.

"I'm sorry, Chris, did you need me to do something for you? Hunter and I were just talking."

"No, I don't need anything," he said. "I was just wondering if I could share with Trips, but um, were you two busy? Because I can find someone else to room with."

"What's up?" Hunter asked, coming to the door. He didn't look unkempt.

"I was wondering if I could share."

"Who's mad at whom?"

"We're mad at each other."

"Yeah, come on inside," Hunter said. He and Britt moved out of the way. Britt whispered something to Hunter and he nodded and kissed her before she left. "She went to go see if your wife needed anything since you know, that's her job."

"Yeah," Chris said distractedly as he looked through his bag.

"So what do you think of the new shirt, awesome, right?" Hunter said, popping his new t-shirt.

"It's nice," Chris said.

"You didn't even look at it."

"I took a look at the schedule, I've got the first match of the evening, right after the guy you're going after, Cena, does a little promo, so I kind of want to be ready, you know, in case something unforeseen pops up."

"Like…you and your wife making up."

"That bitch can stew tonight."

"Oh, so now she's a bitch?" Chris nodded absently as he grabbed his wrist tape. "Well, I knew the time would come, welcome to the club."

"Club what?" Chris asked as she started taping up his wrists, making sure the thick black tape didn't get too tight and cut off the circulation. "I'm not divorcing her, well, not yet, I mean, you know, it's just a fight."

"I know," Hunter said. "But come on, you think Steph and I never fought? If there's anyone that you can vent to about the issue of Stephanie McMahon, I think I'm the guy. I also think it's safe to say that despite you guys being together for what…"

"Six years this July."

"Damn," Hunter said. "Six years, despite that, you've probably fought less than Stephanie and I did in our two-year relationship."

"I don't know about that."

"You don't know about us."

"Why is she so invested in her work? Seriously, sometimes you'd think that she's married to that instead of me. I love her drive, don't get me wrong. I love that she is so awesome at her job, and I have no problem with her working insane hours. The part that gets to me is that she seems so unwilling to take time off to give birth to our _kid_. If she didn't want to take a two-week vacation, fine, whatever, I'm down with that. But this is our child, our baby and it just seems like she'd leave the kid at home by herself if she could do that to come back to work."

"Come on, man, this is an easy one."

"You think so, well enlighten me then."

"Stephanie thinks the only way that she's ever going to be noticed is from her work."

"Whoa, I notice her."

"Not by you, by Vince. Stephanie has serious Daddy issues. We tend to think that Vince just had all of this handed to him when he bought the company from his dad, but this company was crap when he bought it. He built it, at the expense of spending time at home."

"It didn't affect Shane as much because he was twelve when Vince really started getting the business going, but Steph was only five at the time."

"Yeah, Shane got a lot more time, Steph's still trying to prove herself to her father."

"I know what you mean, I get that, and if that were it, I'd be fine with it. But she wasn't like this with Sawyer, you wouldn't know, you were still a royal jackass then. I just don't get the sense she likes being pregnant right now and I really think she'd rather just forget she was."

"Maybe that's something you need to talk to her about."

"I guess," he said, tearing off the wrist tape with his teeth. "So how are you and Britt doing?"

"Fantastic. I never felt this way for Steph."

"Why couldn't you, dude?" Chris joked. "Would've saved me about six years of trouble. That woman, I swear."

"Britt is nothing like Stephanie, nothing like her and I'm counting my blessings while secretly laughing that you got stuck with Stephanie. She's no peach, I'll tell you that. Britt and I go better, I can see big things with her."

"Marriage?"

"I don't know if I'd get married again, it wasn't that much fun the first time."

"Well, like I said, you were a royal jackass when you two were married. You guys were nuts, the both of you, which is why nobody liked either one of you. You were just an ass to everyone and she was a bitch to everyone."

"We made the perfect couple, didn't we?" Hunter said jokingly waxing nostalgic.

"You can have her back if you want, I'll hand her right over."

"Oh no, no thank you, you married her in an actual ceremony and everything, you're the one stuck with her now. Plus you've got two kids with her, I only had a fake kid that wasn't even mine that I tried to protect that didn't even exist."

Chris laughed, "Maybe Steph has a very elaborate stomach going on there, like she glued it to herself and she's just trying to gain sympathy."

"Oh yeah, so she willingly wants to take time off work, you're delusional, man, absolutely delusional."

* * *

"So have a great time on your honeymoon, Mom, you too, Sam," Christian said to his mom and his new step-father.

"Yeah, don't do anything I wouldn't do," Edge said as his mother looked at him sternly, "I mean, have a nice time, Mommy."

"You are too much," she told her oldest son. "I'll find a way to watch you on Sunday though, I want you to beat that guy."

"I will, Mom, don't worry, he's old and I'm great," Edge said cockily. Christian and Trish looked at each other. Secretly, they had both picked Edge to lose his respective match against the Undertaker. You just didn't bet against a guy who had a winning streak like Undertaker had.

"Yes, you are, so win," she told him in no uncertain terms. She turned to her younger boy, "And you be good too, okay?"

"I'm the good son, Mom, it's my _job_ to be good."

"Watch your brother, okay, because I don't trust him as far as I can throw him," she told Christian. Edge's jaw dropped, "Yeah, you heard me, young man, I don't trust you. You've always been this little rebel."

"Rebels are cool, they don't have causes," Edge said quietly.

"I'll make sure he doesn't do anything stupid, Mom," Christian told her.

"Good," she said, acting like they were still teenagers who would get sent home from school for setting up wrestling matches in the school gym. She leaned up to hug Christian then turned to Trish. "Trish, I'm so glad that you could come to the wedding, it was so nice to have you there."

"Thanks for inviting me," Trish said as Christian's mother hugged her. "I'm really glad that I got to be there."

"Oh, I am too, trust me," she said with a smirk and Trish blushed. "It's about time with you two, that's all I'm going to say on the matter. It's about damn time and this time, don't screw it up, okay?"

"No screwing it up, got it," Trish said.

"Okay, we're going, see you boys, bye Trish."

They watched as they left for the security line and Trish turned to Christian, hugging him around the waist, "I'm hungry, can we go eat now?"

"Yeah, airport food fine with you?"

"No," she said, making a face, "take me somewhere nice, I'm worth it."

"I don't doubt that, but it might be hard to find someplace nice when we're not exactly dressed to go out that much," he told her, grabbing her around the neck and kissing the top of her head.

"You two are gross," Edge said. "Come on, let's just go get some Japanese, I'm in the mood for some sushi."

"_We're_ gross?" Christian scoffed. "Excuse me, King of Gross. You wanted to have sex in the ring in front of millions of people, the most Trish and I did in front of everyone was make out, and now you're with…you're with Vickie."

"What Vickie and I have is not gross," Edge said, defending himself, "we have true love on our side."

Trish looked up at Christian, then turned to Edge, "True love, that's what you classify it as? What if she couldn't get things done for you, huh?"

"I would still love her."

"Come on, it's us," Christian said. "You can't be serious."

"What! Why does nobody believe me?"

"Because we just don't believe that you can commit to one woman," Trish said. "In the entire time that I've known you, Edge, you've committed to maybe…two women, Lita and Vickie, and you and Lita were…well, you guys seemed to…I don't know, just be lusting after each other."

"So? It was still a commitment. Look at the two of you."

"What about the two of us?" Christian asked. "We're together and happy and in a definite committed relationship."

"Yeah, after how long?" he said as they got to their car in the short-term parking lot. Christian and Edge got into the front seats while Trish took the backseat. "You two had pretty big relationships without each other, but here you are. If you guys can get back together after being apart forever, I can be with Vickie. Our relationship is a lot less complicated than whatever you two have going."

"Maybe, but she has children, children by a guy that you used to wrestle against. How the hell are you going to be a stepfather to those girls?"

"They're sixteen and twelve, they're practically grown up," Edge shrugged. "I've got everything under control you guys, trust me, everything's under control. I'm feeling good, so I'll pay for dinner tonight, it will be my way of saying, 'hey, I'm going to beat Undertaker this Sunday.' You guys are coming to the show, right?"

"Yeah, we're coming," Christian said. "We're flying up on Saturday. Trish and I are going to baby-sit Sawyer while Chris and Steph are at the Hall of Fame ceremony."

"We're all going to Disneyworld that day, I don't know how we're going to drag Stephanie to this considering it'll be the day before WrestleMania and she's pregnant so she can't go on anything, but that's the plan and then they're just going to go to the ceremony that night."

"Wow, so you two are acting all domestic," Edge said.

"Because we're baby-sitting?" Trish asked.

"You guys baby-sit Sawyer a lot, Chris and Steph never ask me."

"Ever wonder why?" Christian asked his brother. "Maybe because they don't trust you around their son?"

"They trust me," Edge said. "Maybe. But hey, I _am_ going to have a couple of step-daughters, they can trust me with their son."

"Sawyer likes Christian though. So that's why they ask. It's not a big deal. I like Sawyer, he's a cool kid," Trish said.

"The coolest," Christian added. "I love that kid."

"So are you two going to have one soon then?"

"No!" Trish said. "Don't get ideas into your head, Edge. Christian and I have only been back together for a couple of weeks now, and we're not going to rush into something like a kid."

"But you two are constantly talking about how you were together and you're back together."

"We need to make sure we'll definitely work this time before we're going to bring something like children into the relationship," Trish told him. "Right, Chrissy?"

"Yeah, I don't think either one of us is ready for that yet."

* * *

"Do you want the baby to be a boy or a girl?" Stephanie asked.

"Dunno," Sawyer told her.

"Are you a girl or a boy?"

"Boy, Mommy," Sawyer said with a silly tone.

"You're so smart," she told him. "Okay, who do you think is going to win the Flair and Shawn Michaels match? Do you think it's going to be Flair or Shawn?"

Sawyer thought about it for a moment, "Uh…"

"Remember that I don't like Shawn."

"No Sawn," Sawyer told her immediately.

"That's my boy," she said, ruffling his hair. "So you really don't know if it's going to be a boy or a girl? You were in there once, you know what the real estate is like in there. Do you think she or he is comfortable at least?"

"Yes."

"Oh, so you were comfortable in there?"

"Yes."

"Interesting, interesting," Stephanie said as she saw Hunter and Chris walking up. Chris went and stood over by the monitors, not looking at her and Hunter just looked between the two of them like they were absolutely nuts. Sawyer didn't seem to notice as he grabbed his belt and dragged it over to his daddy.

"Daddy, up?" Sawyer said as he tried to lift the belt over his head.

"Hey kiddo," Chris said, picking both Sawyer and the belt up. "You holding that for me?"

"My belt," Sawyer nodded solemnly.

"Oh, I'm sorry, do you want to defend it next week or something? I'll put some bumpers on the ring for you and you can take whoever wants to challenge you."

"Twip," Sawyer said.

"What?" Hunter asked.

"Sawyer's challenging you to an Intercontinental Title match next week," Chris informed him. "He won the belt off me this weekend. We were wrestling around at home and he pinned me, so it's his now."

"I can't believe you let your kid just have the belt."

"Why not?" Chris asked. "It's not like I'm living for the belt or something. It's not like it's the most important thing in the world to me. I mean, for some people, sure, belts are important and they want to spend all their time on it."

"Okay, wiseguy, I get it," Hunter said. "I have a girlfriend though, an actual life outside the business."

"_Now_," Chris told him. "But that's a rather recent development isn't it?"

"You suck," Hunter said. "Not all of us have this perfect life."

"Yeah, right, perfect, that's why my wife is staring daggers into my back and plotting how she's going to turn my children against me," Chris said, glancing over his shoulder and, indeed, Stephanie was staring daggers at his back.

"Like it's not perfect most of the time," Hunter said. "But what if he spills something on that belt?"

"Then I wipe it off," Chris shrugged. "He likes it, I'm going to let him have it."

"If you'll excuse me," Hunter said as he watched the show in front of him, "What this segment is severely lacking is a little bit of The Game."

"Oh God."

Hunter walked out there where the other men were gathered in the ring. He stalked closer, watching all of them like hawks. One thing about Hunter's gaze, it was piercing and when he looked at you, it was just like he was staring straight into you. It was intimidating for sure. He had probably scared more people than he ever knew with that stare. Some people got over that, though, Stephanie had, Britt had, and underneath that gruff exterior, he was a good guy.

First he pointed out his new shirt, just so people knew of course, not like he was pimping himself…much. He knew he was going to win on Sunday, it was like a forgone conclusion. He was going to get that title back. Chris had been right, partially, when he said that he was all about the belt. He couldn't help it, from the moment he broke into this business, it had been the ultimate prize. He had had it enough times that it was an addiction. The status of it just made him feel like a man. Chris had tons of stuff in his life, so he couldn't understand the burning passion that Hunter had for that belt.

He was going to show everyone on Sunday that he was the champion and that the belt belonged around his waist. He walked backstage and Britt was bent over in front of Stephanie's table, writing something down. He walked over to her and pulled her up, kissing the hell out of her. She wrapped her arms around his neck slowly, shocked at his brazenness. Hunter wasn't exactly one for the huge romantic take-you-in-my-arms-and-kiss-you gestures.

She pulled back and looked at him in surprise, "What was _that _for?"

"Just wanted to."

"Whenever he gets all excited over the belt, it makes him like that," Stephanie explained. They both looked at her. "What? I was married to the guy, I know these things."

"I'm going to win on Sunday," Hunter said, leaning his forehead against hers.

"I know," Britt told him. She pulled at the hem of his t-shirt a little bit, "I think you're going to demolish Randy _and_ John. You're going to get that big, gold belt around your cute waist. I'll be back here cheering for you."

"You better be, I won't take too kindly having my girlfriend rooting for those asses."

"Yeah, I figured," Britt said, mock seriously.

"Are you going to be rooting for me, Steph?" Hunter asked.

"I don't care who wins."

"I'm your friend."

"I have no problems with the other two, sure Randy's a jerk and John is…John, but give me one good reason why I should root for you over them."

"Because I'm your friend!" he repeated.

"Eh, not good enough."

"Well, gee, thanks. Come on, Britt, let's go where we're appreciated."

"I appreciate Britt," Stephanie said.

"You're so funny," Hunter said sarcastically. Hunter wrapped his arm around Britt's waist and walked off with her, slapping Chris's shoulder as he walked past him. Chris was still over by the monitors, jumping up and down a little to get ready for his match which was next. CM Punk was nearby, but honestly, Chris didn't know the kid all too well so he kind of kept his distance. He had met him in passing of course, but he was one of those people that saw Chris more as a management type guy and acted accordingly.

"Chris, you're up first," Stephanie told him icily. He gave her a dirty look and she returned it as he knelt down on the ground in front of his son.

"Hey, kid, I'm going to need to borrow the belt for a little while?"

"Why?"

"Because people expect to see it on me," he explained. "Do you think that I could borrow it for the match? I'll bring it back to you right after."

"Okay," Sawyer said, handing over the belt to his father. He laid a big kiss on his cheek and took the belt.

"Now go sit with Mommy, okay, and no running off."

"Okay," Sawyer said, running over to Stephanie and climbing on the chair that was next to her. Chris walked out there without a look back and Stephanie rolled her eyes. That man was insufferable sometimes. If she could just punch him in the face, she absolutely would.

Chris went out for his match, soaking up the cheers and getting into the ring. Leave it to Stephanie to make him have to come out first. She was probably telling MVP and Carlito to kick his ass and make him bleed. That'd be so Stephanie of her to do that. CM Punk came down to the ring and Chris nodded to him as he climbed in. They stood apart from each other, partners by chance and not be choice.

MVP was out next and he came out talking trash to Chris. Chris started talking back, demonstrating how MVP had fallen off the ladder last week at SmackDown and how he was going to be falling down at WrestleMania on Sunday. MVP started circling the ring, but Chris followed him with his eyes, never losing sight of him.

The match wasn't so much a back and forth. He felt like he was on the defensive the entire time. He couldn't help but think it was Stephanie's doing, but he was mad at it probably wasn't. He had never fought against or with some of these guys so it was definitely a feeling out process for him. But he was Chris Jericho and he knew what he was doing, so he just went out and put on a show like any other night.

Except on this night. He had missed an enziguri and hit CM Punk instead of MVP, costing his team the win. He felt bad for nailing the kid, but not bad enough to go out and see if he needed help. It was a minor move if anything anyways. He eyed MVP, knowing he'd be one of the ones that he needed to watch for in this match. He was tough, Chris could tell. He was going to stand in the way of Chris, he knew it, but Chris would prevail.

He went backstage and Stephanie snickered at him losing.

It was going to be a long week.

**Tuesday**

"Are you coming?"

"God, don't rush me."

"Oh, I'm sorry, I thought you just might like to know what sex your child is," Stephanie told him, folding her arms.

"Well, excuse me for wanting to make sure that my son's shoes are tied, next time I'll just let him trip over them," Chris said, looking up from where he was bent over trying Sawyer's little red sneaker.

"Well I don't want to be late."

"I don't want to be late either, why do you think I'm trying to go as quickly as I can."

"It's not quick enough."

"Then you bend down and tie his freaking shoes," Chris said, looking up at her. She didn't respond and instead folded her arms to wait for him. "Yeah, that's what I thought," he muttered.

"Oh, like I didn't hear that," Stephanie told him. She started tapping her foot and Chris glared up at her.

"Stop that," he said as he stood up and took Sawyer's hand. "Look, we're ready."

"About time."

"I'm glad you just want your son to fall all over himself," Chris said as they walked outside.

"When we're at the doctor's, can you please act polite?"

"Oh, I'll act polite if you don't act like a bitch to me," Chris told her. "Oh wait, you pretty much act like a bitch to me all the time."

"Don't swear in front of our son," she hissed.

"He doesn't even get it," Chris snapped at her, scooping up Sawyer and running to the car with him. Sawyer laughed as Chris tossed him up in the air and caught him on the way down before opening the door and putting the little boy in his car-seat. Stephanie got into the car and pulled her seat belt on.

Chris put in a CD of Sawyer's music for the car ride, wanting to occupy him as much as he could. Stephanie and him didn't talk at all on the ride. Stephanie just sat there and looked out the window, feeling the hatred coming off of Chris in waves. It was just like old times when they would be in the ring together and all they could do was hurl insults at each other at a rapid-fire pace.

It was different this time because they had rings on their fingers and two children, but that's what it felt like. She felt like setting up some match for him to get decimated in and she was sure that he felt like throwing a pie in her face. They got to her doctor's office, Sawyer just finishing up singing along to The Wiggles and Chris turned off the car, getting out wordlessly and getting Sawyer. Stephanie walked in front of him as he and Sawyer kept pausing to look at various things.

Sawyer was fascinated with pushing the elevator buttons and if Chris hadn't stopped him, he would've pushed all the floor buttons instead of just the one that they needed to go to. They got there and Stephanie checked in and went to wait next to Chris. Sawyer had gone over to a little kiddie table which had been set up and she figured that a lot of pregnant women probably brought their children to join in on the fun. That was why Sawyer was here. First they were getting an ultrasound done and then Stephanie would be getting a full check-up with the ultrasound results and everything.

"Stephanie McMahon-Jericho."

"Yes, hi," Stephanie said, standing up. Chris and Sawyer followed suit.

"Where?" Sawyer asked, looking around.

"We're going to see the baby."

Sawyer's jaw dropped and his eyes widened, "See baby?"

"Yeah, we're going to see it."

"I say hi," Sawyer told his father.

"I think the baby will like that, we also get to find out if it's a girl or a boy. That's going to be pretty exciting huh?"

"Yes."

"I didn't get to be there when we found out what you were. I was away on a trip playing with my band, you know the band, you've heard them. So I had to wait and find out what you were after, but I knew you were going to be a boy," Chris said. "I knew from the moment your mommy told me she was having you."

"Oh, okay," Sawyer said as they were led into a dark room. Sawyer was not trusting this place. Why were they all going into a dark room? This seemed awfully ominous. He watched as his mommy laid down on a table and pulled her shirt up and pulled her pants down. What the heck was going on? They turned on a machine and it came to life, but he couldn't make heads or tails of it.

"Okay, you ready?" the technician asked.

"As I'll ever be," Stephanie said.

"Now, before we go in there, did you want to find out the sex of the baby?"

Stephanie looked to Chris and they had a short conversation with their eyes. At least that way no snide comments would escape from their mouths. "Yes, we would."

"Great," she said, then picked up the bottle of goo to pour on Stephanie's stomach. Sawyer saw them about to put something on Stephanie and he started to squirm in Chris's arms.

"No!" Sawyer said.

"Oh, did you want to sit here, baby and watch?" Stephanie asked. Chris put Sawyer down on the table next to Stephanie and went over to her.

Stephanie thought he was going to hug her or something, but he put his hands on her stomach, "My baby!"

"Sawyer, you have to let the woman do her job so we can see the baby," Stephanie said gently. Sawyer looked to her and pouted. He didn't want anyone touching his mommy. Stephanie looked at him again and gave him a sad smile back and he pulled away from her.

"Come here, kid," Chris said, picking him up again and letting Sawyer stand on his legs. He held him around the waist and pointed towards the screen as the technician, Andie, poured the warm goo all over Stephanie's stomach.

Andie took the wand and started moving it around Stephanie's stomach, checking everything out. She turned on the machine and the heartbeat filled the room and Sawyer furrowed his brow as he listened to it. Chris thought it was awesome and Stephanie tilted her head to watch the ultrasound as it was moved around her pregnant belly. Andie stopped it in a particular spot and wrote something down on the piece of paper that was sitting precariously on her lap.

"Well, I know we were looking for gestational age and it was first reported that you were about a week behind where you actually are, so the ER doctor was right. Right now I think we're going to put you at 17 weeks pregnant, just about to start your 18th tomorrow."

"Really, wow, so my due date is August 31st, what is it now?"

"I'm going to say August 27th, just from what I'm seeing right now. I think that's a good approximation from how far along the fetus is."

"Okay, wow," Stephanie said, looking at Chris.

"And there's your baby," Andie said, stopping the wand once again once she got a good profile shot. "There's the head, there's the hands right there, feet, this is a really good shot, she's moving around too."

"There's the baby," Chris whispered to his son.

"Baby?" Sawyer asked, looking at the screen. What _was_ that? That did _not_ look like a baby. He looked to Stephanie's stomach and back again, was that what was in his mommy's tummy? That wasn't a baby, she must've gotten some bad information or something.

"Yeah, see, it's waving at you," Chris said as the baby's arm moved inside of Stephanie.

"Hi, baby," Sawyer said, a little confused. Was it really waving at him? But it couldn't see? His daddy was very strange.

Stephanie laughed, "He likes to think the baby is going to be just his when it comes."

"That's sweet, do you want to know if it's a boy or a girl, Sawyer?"

"Okay," he said quietly.

Andie kept moving the wand around, trying to find a good position as Chris and Stephanie waited. They knew they might not be able to see what the sex of the baby was right now. With Sawyer they hadn't been able to the first time they tried. The little brat had made sure that he wasn't in any kind of position to show them what he was. Chris leaned his chin on Sawyer's head as they waited.

"Well, congratulations, it looks like you're going to be having a little girl."

"Oh my God, a girl," Stephanie said, putting her hand over her mouth. "Really?"

"As far as I can tell, yeah, you're going to be having a girl."

"Wow," Chris said with an incredulous laugh, "Wow, a girl."

"A girl," Stephanie said. "Did you hear that baby boy, you're going to have a little sister."

"Oh, okay," he said, looking over at Stephanie.

"Everything looks really good on this end, Stephanie, just take these notes up with you when you go visit your doctor and you're set," she said, wiping off the goo from Stephanie's stomach and ejecting the tape from the ultrasound machine. She handed the tape and the file to Stephanie and she took it as Andie left.

Stephanie sat up and looked at Chris, their fight momentarily forgotten. "Chris, did you hear that, we're going to have a little girl? A girl."

"I know," Chris said. "Wow, a little girl, she's so going to be beautiful."

"I hope so," Stephanie said. "I have to get to my appointment though, you know, make sure everything really is okay in there."

"Yeah, yeah, of course, did you want me to come in with you?"

"No, I think I'll be fine," she said. "You and Sawyer can go wait outside for me. I don't want him to have to be cooped up and you know, around…stuff when stuff is being looked at rather blatantly."

"Oh, yeah, that's right," he said. "We'll just wait outside for you."

"Here, take this," she said, handing him the videotape. She dared to lean up and give him a small kiss on the cheek. It was certainly more than he had gotten since yesterday.

"Thanks," he said, giving her a small smile as they left the office. Chris and Sawyer went one way and Stephanie went the other to her appointment. There was a small courtyard in the middle of the medical offices and Chris let Sawyer run around for a bit.

He was having a little girl. That stirred feelings inside his stomach that he hadn't felt in a long time. When Stephanie had gotten pregnant with Sawyer, Chris had just known from the get-go that it was a boy. He had felt it with everything in him. This one he hadn't been so sure about, the spontaneity of the pregnancy blowing away any rational thought. Now he knew he was having a little girl and he could picture a little girl with her brown hair in pigtails and wanting to see everything that he did.

Stephanie had been a Daddy's Girl and he could now see his daughter being one too. Wow, a daughter. That was a crazy thought. He was going to have a son _and_ a daughter. They were going to be one of those cute, ideal families that didn't have to try five times to get a girl. They were doing really well with these pregnancy things, not that they were going to rush into more. Stephanie was going to be the mother of his son and his daughter. He was going to have to get used to even saying daughter.

He was so zoned out that he didn't even notice Sawyer coming over to him, out of breath from his running, and lay across his father's lap. Sawyer just watched him until he tapped his father against the stomach and made him look down at him. Chris smiled at his young son and then made a funny face for him. Sawyer climbed up onto the bench next to Chris and hugged him around the neck.

"Are you excited that you're going to be getting a sister?"

"My baby," Sawyer said.

"No, it's my baby," Chris argued.

"No," Sawyer said, drawing out the syllable. "My baby, not you."

"But I made that baby, and I made you, so I control you too."

"Uh uh."

"I didn't make you?"

"Uh uh."

"Who did then?"

"Dunno," Sawyer shrugged, "Mommy?"

"Well, she half-made you, I half-made you too, and I half-made your sister, so you're going to have to share her. She's not just going to be your baby, she's going to be our baby, and Mommy's baby too."

"No," he whined, "My…"

"We're going to have to teach you to share," Chris said. "We can all have the baby."

He pouted and sat down heavily next to Chris. He didn't want to share the baby, that was his baby. Chris picked him up and sat him on his shoulder, but Sawyer wanted nothing to do with that. He just wanted to pout because his daddy was being quite unreasonable. He wanted the baby and his daddy just couldn't have it.

"So you're mad at me too?"

"Yes," Sawyer said.

"Okay, well, I respect that," Chris said.

Finally, Stephanie came out and walked over to where she saw them sitting, "Everything looks good, and yeah, my new due date is August 27th so now we have even less time to get ready for this one."

"Yippee," Chris said. "Are you still mad at me?"

"Yes, yes I am," she said, walking next to him. "You're just being a huge jerk."

"You're being unreasonable, what if I told you right now that I didn't want to rent a bus for us after she's born?"

"What?" Stephanie said, stopping right next to their car. "No, Chris, you don't get to take that back. We already discussed this. We already decided that we were going to rent a tour bus until it was safe for our daughter to travel on planes."

"Well, maybe I don't want to do that anymore, how do you like that?"

"You cannot do that," she told him. "You already said we could, you agreed with me."

"I don't like the idea of my little girl living on a bus for her first few weeks of life," Chris told her.

"Well, she's _my_ daughter too, and I can rent a bus, I have more money than you do. You can just do your whole little plane thing and I'll travel with the kids."

"Oh, like that's going to work," he said, opening the door and putting Sawyer into his car-seat. Sawyer was confused by all the fighting. He didn't much like it though, no, he didn't much like it at all.

"It could work. I can take care of them. That's essentially what you want me to do. You want to leave me with Sawyer and our daughter while you go off and do whatever the hell it is you want to do."

"What do you think that entails, Stephanie? Enlighten me, please."

"I don't know."

"Tell me what I do nowadays that would make me seem like I'd just go do whatever I want to do? I take care of my family, I wrestle, I take care of my family some more. Sometimes I go out with Christian and Edge, sometimes I go out with Trips. Sometimes you go out with Trish though, so I don't know where you're getting these notions that the second I'm away from you, I'm going to flip the hell out and go sleep with whatever's in a skirt?"

"I never said anything about that, but is that what you're _planning _to do?" she asked sarcastically.

"Why of course!" Chris said, making a face like it was obvious. "I'm going to throw away a six-year relationship, a three-year marriage, a son, and a daughter, all the best things in my life for one night of carnal satisfaction."

"Well you're married to what you probably think is a big, fat cow."

"When have I ever thought you were a cow? A slut, yes, a dirty ho, yes, a cow, no. Maybe you're mistaking me with one of the other five hundred guys you've slept with."

"Oh ha ha, I read your book, Chris, I know who you've had sex with," she said. "Let's not go there."

"Go where, there's nowhere to go."

"Take me home."

"Gladly. Then I won't have to look at you. How dare you think I would cheat on you, how dare you! I may think that you're being a royal bitch right now, but that's a freaking insult right there."

"Sorry, there, happy now."

"No, I'm not happy now. Why don't you just stay home tomorrow, I don't want you coming to Larry King with me. I don't want you to be there."

"Can't stop me, Jericho," Stephanie said.

"Why not, McMahon?"

"Because I own you," she told him.

"Oh, right, okay."

"See this," she held up her left hand and pointed to her wedding and engagement ring, "yes, that says Chris Jericho is mine, so as such I can go as your wife. Oh, oh, oh, and wait, what's this, I'm your boss, my dad is going to be there, so I can damn well be there if I want to be there. Besides, we're going to my parents for dinner on Thursday so I have to be there."

"Fine, whatever, come, I don't care."

"Good."

They drove home as quickly as possible. Stephanie helped Sawyer out of his car-seat and he ran for the front door, wanting to open it up. Stephanie and him waited for Chris to show up and he did a second later. He unlocked the door and Sawyer dashed inside and went immediately to the living room to get to his kid-sized table so he could color. Stephanie was going to walk towards the kitchen to grab a glass of water when Chris grabbed her arm gently.

"What do you want now, Jericho?" she asked, annoyed that he was keeping her from her nice, tall glass of cool water.

"You know, I just wanted to say, it sucks that your wife of three years, the woman you have done everything for accuses you of something that isn't going to happen, ever. I've never even thought about being unfaithful to you. Even if I thought a chick was hot, you knew about it. To have you even suggest that I might want someone else because you're carrying our daughter, not cool, Stephanie, not cool at all."

He let go of her arm and walked away, hurt by the entire situation.

**Wednesday**

Stephanie was a prideful person. Blame her father, blame her upbringing, it was just something she was. She had heard what Chris said the day before, but she had been giving him the silent treatment ever since. Or maybe he was giving her the silent treatment. Either way, they weren't speaking to each other. Stephanie just wasn't going to apologize for anything because she felt like she was right. Chris was being unreasonable towards her. First of all, if she wanted to miss work while she had to go on maternity leave, she was entitled to do so. Second of all, they had already discussed the bus issue and had come to a conclusion and she wasn't going to let him back down now.

She wasn't completely heartless though, she knew that she had gone over the line with the cheating comment. Chris wouldn't cheat on her; she knew this as sure as she knew that she loved her son. She knew that Chris was faithful because she _knew_ him, but she wasn't going to apologize for that when she wasn't speaking to him. It would just have to wait. She looked across the limo at him and he was staring out the window, looking at the scenery and not talking.

Chris was hurt. Stephanie had yet to apologize for that remark and they had joked about him cheating before, but this time had just struck a nerve with him. They had just found out they were going to have a little girl, he says that maybe, _maybe_ he doesn't want his daughter to spend her first few weeks of life on a bus, and Stephanie decides to break out with a cheating remark. He had never cheated on Stephanie, ever. Sure, he had found other women attractive, and he flirted (so did Stephanie), but he had never slipped some chick his phone number and told her to call him so they could fool around. He had never had some one-night stand (how could he when he and Stephanie spent almost everyday together). He had a wife and children that he adored.

But still, no apology and that hurt.

He bit the end of his thumb and chanced a glanced at Stephanie. She was sitting next to Sawyer, who was amusing himself by watching the scenery go by. New York City was huge, and there were so many buildings and he never really got to drive downtown like this at night. There were lights everywhere, blinking and the lights grabbed his eyes and he was leaning over in his seat trying to see everything. Stephanie was looking down at a book of notes she had for things she had to do this week. Her hand was resting on her stomach, rubbing it gently.

He sighed and went back to looking outside.

They finally got to the CNN headquarters and they pulled into the garage. Stephanie took care of Sawyer as he fidgeted with his cuffs, getting out of the car and waiting for them. They were running a little late since had had a signing earlier that day and had to come here straight from the airport. Thankfully, he didn't look crumpled or anything from the flight, but Sawyer was a little cranky this afternoon, his nap not being satisfying enough for him.

They went upstairs with the escort who had been waiting for them in the parking garage and they were led to the green room. Vince, Hunter, Big Show, and Floyd Mayweather were already there. Sawyer went towards Vince and Stephanie followed, Vince standing up to give his daughter a friendly hug. Chris nodded to Hunter and sat down next to him, the two men shaking hands.

"She still mad at you?"

"Yeah, I'm mad at her though, too."

"So dinner with you guys is going to be majorly uncomfortable, isn't it?"

"Yes, it will be, but it's okay, Britt and Steph can talk and we can talk and we'll never have to converse with each other. Where is Britt by the way?"

"She'll be down a little later. She's taking care of something for Stephanie actually, for the Hall of Fame ceremony, no big deal, but she's on the clock all week. I'm surprised you didn't know that."

"Steph is mad at me, remember?"

"Oh, yeah, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised. It's cool though, she's getting a big bonus for working on her days off and for WrestleMania, so she's really happy to do the work so she can get that bonus."

"Yeah," Chris said distractedly as he looked over at Stephanie.

"Why don't you just make up with her?"

"She said some crap…stuff she needs to apologize for and I'm not going to talk to her until she apologizes for it," Chris said.

"What did she say?"

"Don't worry about it," Chris said. "Just stuff that…just stuff that she shouldn't have said is all."

"Vince, Triple H, we're ready for you first."

"Later, man," Hunter said, slapping Chris on the arm as he walked out with Vince.

Chris sighed and looked at the closed circuit television that was currently airing the package to start the show. Sawyer had come over to him and was leaning his head against Chris's knee. Chris lifted him up and put him on the couch. He was getting sleepy and he kept tugging at Chris's jacket like he wanted it for a blanket or something. Chris took him in his arms and held him, letting the little boy snuggle into him.

Chris watched with only a modicum of interest while Hunter and Vince were talking. He kind of zoned out, trying to ignore Stephanie's presence on the couch with him. He felt like they were enemies again, in forced captivity, like caged animals of rival breeds. Maybe they'd start circling each other to prepare for the ultimate death battle. That would probably amuse Big Show and Floyd.

"Mr. Jericho, you're up next."

"Thanks," Chris said. He nudged Sawyer. "Kid, I have to go."

"No, Daddy," he whined, rubbing his face against Chris's shirt.

"Yeah, I have to," he said, and Sawyer whined even more and refused to let go of Chris. He couldn't do the interview with his son hanging off of his neck, talk about not fitting into the interview. Although Sawyer was charming like he was so maybe it might bring in the female demographic to the show if they could see Chris's adorable son.

"Here, let me have him," Stephanie said, trying to pull Sawyer away even though he was trying to hold on with all his might. Sawyer was actually horizontal, that's how hard he was gripping at Chris's neck. Chris pried his little hands away and he started to cry, holding onto Stephanie and crying.

Chris sighed and kissed him, "I won't be long."

"We'll just come out and watch you so he can see you, obviously he's being a Daddy's boy right now," Stephanie deadpanned. Nice to see someone in his family liked him.

Chris went out there for the interview and he sat down and immediately made a joke, forgetting that his wife was angry with him right now. This was certainly a different feel than the last time he was here. The last time he was here, he was still in mourning over his friend, but this had a decidedly more upbeat tone and it was easy because he was with his father-in-law and one of his friends. The first question was an easy one, just asking how they plotted out the matches.

Chris likened it to a jazz band, ebbing and flowing with the crowd. He went out there and wrestled and that was it. They didn't have freaking storyboards. They just went out and wrestled their hearts out. Hunter compared himself to a flutist and Chris laughed at the comparison. Larry then said that was it basically like he gave two people some time and they wrestled, and that was pretty much it. He commented on Hunter beating Chris and Chris quipped that, that particular scenario was usually how it went, causing his father-in-law to chuckle. Hunter wasn't that amused, but it was all in good fun since Hunter knew very well that was the truth (unfortunately).

Chris kept glancing off-screen to Sawyer, who was watching him intently. Chris sent smiles his way and Sawyer would wave sometimes or sometimes he'd just stare and continue to watch. Stephanie just focused on Larry and not on him and he kept the smile on his face despite the fact that the hurt was growing in his chest. While Donald Trump was spouting off about something his mind wandered a little and he asked himself if Stephanie actually believed what she had said to him and that's why she hadn't apologized. How could she actually believe something like that? Because she was pregnant?

He had had sex with her until a few days before Sawyer was born and he found her beautiful then and he found her beautiful now. He was broken from his thoughts when a question about how much he earned was thrown at him. Hunter answered first, or rather, Vince answered that it was too profitable for him, which Chris laughed at it. Hunter went off into his answer and then they asked John and he answered, then Chris was asked.

Once again, Vince chimed in, outing Chris as his son-in-law, which obviously meant that he did extremely well. Chris probably didn't even need a salary really, he could work for nothing. He glanced again at Stephanie as a picture of him and her was flashed for everyone to see. She slapped her forehead with her free hand, wondering if her father had given them permission to use pictures of the two of them. She and Chris liked to maintain their privacy. If there was so much as one picture of Sawyer on this show, she was going to kill her father and claim that the pregnancy hormones made her do it.

During the commercial, Stephanie stalked onto the stage as Larry looked at her, "You must be Stephanie."

"Yes, nice to meet you," she said, then turned to her father, "Dad, who said you could use pictures of Chris and I? You _know_ that we don't like to discuss or flaunt our relationship to the world. We are extremely private people."

"Oh, Stephanie, come on now, the two of you have been married for three years, I think people are in the know about our marriage."

She groaned, "You just don't get it. Look, fine, whatever, but if you have given them any pictures of my son, so help you, Dad, you are not going to make it to WrestleMania."

"I wouldn't do that."

"Sure you would, just don't," Stephanie said. She looked at Chris as she walked by him and he gave her the tiniest of smiles, which she returned with an even tinier smile.

"That's my wife," Chris said, jerking his thumb towards Stephanie as he turned to Larry.

"That's my ex-wife," Hunter added and Larry's eyes widened a little.

"And you two are friends?"

"Now anyways," Chris said as they returned from the commercial.

The next segment was mostly centered around the Big Show and Mayweather fight and then he and Paul left the set so they could talk exclusively about the fight between those two. Sawyer immediately reached for Chris when he was in sight and Chris took the little boy before going to grab a cookie from the catering table. Stephanie stayed and watched her father speak on the match. Hunter came and stood next to her.

"So defensive."

"Shut up, Hunter."

"I'm just saying, do you honestly think people don't realize that you and Chris are married? I mean, you know, there are wedding photos floating around, aren't there?"

"No, there aren't," Stephanie said. "I've made sure of that."

"But there are pictures of Sawyer, right?"

"No, again, we sneak him into the arena. Look, it's between me and Chris. When I was with you, we…we flaunted everything and it didn't work. Chris and I being very private about our lives and our children, it's worked for us."

"Well, you are fighting."

"Don't want to talk about it," she said in a sing-song voice.

"Fine, but you're both being idiots."

"We're well aware."

"So did you find out what you're having?"

"It's a girl," Stephanie said and she got a sweet smile on her face. It was the first one Hunter had seen when she was referring to her new baby."

"Oh wow, congratulations," he said. "That's so cool. You're going to have a mini-you, just what you've always wanted, a minion."

"Yes, I'm going to make her be just like me," she told him.

"God, I hope not, the world can only handle one of you."

Chris walked back over and stood on the other side of Hunter. Hunter rolled his eyes at the imposed separation. He turned to Chris and said, "I just heard you're having a little girl, congratulations."

"Thanks," Chris said happily.

"So is she going to be a diva?"

"No way, I'm not letting her dress like that," Chris said, shaking his head. "Guys would ogle her and no way is Playboy getting their hands on my little girl. Not going to happen. I am so not letting people see my little girl naked."

"Already protective, nice."

"Well, with the whole Maria in Playboy and the Bunnymania thing, which…whatever, I don't even know what goes through Vince's head, but just…no, I'm not going to let my daughter become a diva like that. She'll be like Trish…with more clothes."

Hunter laughed at that, "You're crazy, man."

"She's my daughter!"

They all kept quiet while the interview was going on and then he and Hunter were called back to the set. Stephanie took Sawyer again, who was less whiny this time because he was tired and Chris and Hunter squeezed in next to Big Show. The first question that was asked, from a fan was how they balanced work and home life. Big Show answered first with that one and then Hunter was asked next.

"Well, unlike these two, I'm not married, but I do have a serious girlfriend. She works in the company so I get to see her, but it's like Show said, you just kind of have to leave some work behind when you're on your downtime."

"This guy doesn't leave work at work," Chris interjected.

"Very funny," Hunter said. "This guy works all the time."

"Do you, Chris? How about your situation?"

"Well, I'm kind of part of the wrestling business now, it's bigger than me," he joked. My work and my home life have just merged together ever since I started dating Stephanie, Vince's daughter. She's an executive in the company and she runs our show, so she's busy a lot of the time and I actually had taken some time off and I started working backstage as a kind of handler for the wrestlers, so I really do have two jobs that involve me in the company."

"He also owns part of the company with my daughter," Vince said. They showed another picture of him and Stephanie and it was weird because he had never even seen that picture before. They were at her station and she was looking up at him as he was bent over writing something down. Who the hell was taking pictures of them when they weren't looking? He glanced at Stephanie and she looked confused too. At least they were on the same wavelength.

"Yeah, there's that too."

"Does that ever create a conflict of interest?"

"Not really, I still earn every shot I get. I don't want nor do I get preferential treatment when I'm working because I don't want it," Chris said.

"Yeah, that's true," Hunter added. "He never does get anything he didn't earn."

The rest of the show went by quickly and then they were done. Stephanie put Sawyer down and he ran towards Chris. He scooped him up into his arms. "Hi, Twip."

"Hey, tough guy," Hunter said, "what did you think of your old man?"

"Good," Sawyer told him.

"Thanks," Chris said to his son. "Are you ready to go spend the evening with Grandpa and Grandma?"

"No," Sawyer told him, shaking his head.

"It's late though, and you should be getting to bed. You ate and you just need your pajamas and then you can go see Grandpa and Grandma for a little while and then when you wake up, you'll be at home with Mommy and me."

"No, I stay," he said.

"But we're going out to dinner with Trips and Britt."

"I go too," he said, like that was the best solution.

"You'll be very tired."

"Uh uh," he said antagonistically.

"Yes huh," Chris told him back.

"Uh uh, I know."

"You know you'll stay awake?"

"Yes."

"Well, that's too bad because Grandpa and Grandma really, _really_ want to see you."

"Yeah?"

"Uh huh."

"Oh," he sighed, "Okay…"

Chris laughed at his resigned attitude and took him over to Vince, who had just gotten Sawyer's things from Stephanie. Chris handed over Sawyer to Vince and Sawyer gave him a smile, "We're going to have a great time."

"Okay," Sawyer said, looking to Chris and giving him a look that said that he was only doing this for his parents and not because he actually wanted to go off with his Grandpa.

"Come on, we'll get his car-seat," Chris said as they all left the building. Britt had breezed in a short while ago and she and Hunter were already gone and Chris and Steph would just be meeting them at the restaurant. Without Sawyer, they kind of feared the car ride. At least Sawyer served as a buffer, but without him there, the silence would be even more frigid.

Things were not getting better.


	176. But Heh So Did H, Part 2, March 30, 2008

**Reminder: This is Part 2 in a 2-part chapter, go back one more to read the beginning. :)**

* * *

**Thursday**

"Chris and I are having a little girl."

"Oh, honey," Linda said, getting up and going to hug her daughter, "I can't wait, it's going to be our first granddaughter, this is so exciting."

"Yeah, I think so," Stephanie said as she looked around the table.

Chris was smiling and it was the first time she had seen him smile like that in days. He had slept as close to the edge of the bed as he could last night and things were still pretty frozen between them. She didn't much like it, but it wasn't like they were sleeping in separate rooms. She had longed to reach out and touch him last night, but she had refrained from it. Damn pride. It was just everything coming at her at once that was making her the way she was.

She had felt the baby move for the first time that morning. She had been laying on her back in bed, listening to Chris's soft breathing and staring at his back. She could mentally see his face though because she had seen his face sleeping so many times before. They were just such passionate people that when they fought, they _fought_, but when they were happy, they were so happy. She wanted to apologize, but he should apologize too and she knew that he wasn't going to apologize to her.

That's when she felt it. It was like a soft fluttering in her stomach, like butterflies or something, but it was definitely a movement. She smiled to herself and put her hand on her stomach. There it was. She felt it, she could feel her little girl and it was something else entirely. She was in there and she was just another tangible, living thing that represented her and Chris. The other tangible thing was in his room right now, probably sleeping too. She closed her eyes and just felt her daughter moving around in there.

She wanted to tell Chris, but he was mad at her and she was mad at him.

"Are you excited, bro?" Shane asked.

"Yeah, I am," Chris said. "I can't believe I get a son and a daughter."

"She's going to be beautiful," Linda said, "oh, I can't wait to buy some dresses for her. Now, I'm not saying that I don't love my three grandsons, but a little girl is just going to be so different and adorable."

"Oh, thanks," Shane said, "I'm sure D, Kenny, and Sawyer are going to appreciate that remark, Mom."

"Well, it's different, I'm used to little boys now, so it's going to be different having a sweet, little girl."

"A daughter of Stephanie's being sweet?" Shane scoffed. "Ha!"

"Hey!" Stephanie protested. "I'm sweet."

Nobody said anything and she frowned, but then started laughing as everyone started laughing as well. "So when do you think you'll go on maternity leave?" Vince asked, "Out of curiosity of course."

"Probably the middle of August, pregnancy willing. I was able to travel with Sawyer until about then, so I'm hoping that I will with this little girl. Then we'll be traveling on a bus afterwards, so I won't miss too much time, maybe a month," Stephanie told them, looking at Chris, who chose to stare down at his coffee.

"Interesting, are you excited?" Marissa asked.

"Yeah, I felt her move for the first time this morning," she told everyone happily. Chris's head shot up. He hadn't known that. She had felt their daughter move and she hadn't even had the decency to tell him. Well that just added another piece of hurt to his already hurting heart.

* * *

"Move in with me!"

"What?"

"Come on, Trishy, move in with me. I'm tired of flying to Toronto."

"Well, did you think that I was maybe tired of flying to Tampa?" she asked.

"Yes, which is why you should move in with me. We've done it before. If you're uncomfortable living where Tiff lived, we'll move somewhere else if you want, we'll buy a new house in Tampa."

"You move to Toronto."

"I can't, you know that."

"But I have my gym there, and it's just getting off the ground, Chrissy," Trish said. "I can't just abandon it."

"You can run it from here," Christian told her. "Come on, Trishy, this going back and forth isn't working and you know it. You like it down here, what's up in Toronto besides your gym, huh? I'm not up there, and you love me, right?"

"Yes, I love you, but other than my gym, I have my family up there."

"Only your parents and one of your sisters lives in the Toronto area. Your other sister lives in Wisconsin."

"So, your point being?"

"I'm down here, and Chris and Steph are down here, and you like them, right, and you like Sawyer, right, and I bet their daughter is going to be absolutely gorgeous and you can Stephanie can dress her up and stuff…"

"This is your enticement? I get to dress up a baby?" she joked.

"A cute baby."

"Chrissy…"

"Trishy…"

"You are not endearing yourself to me."

He kissed her and smiled against her lips. "Come on, you love me, you want to move in with me, I know it, I know you do, you just have to let yourself say yes. Trish, this is our…well, admittedly, it's like our fifth chance, but this is our chance, and come on, let's live together…again…again, right, because we've tried this twice before."

"We're so pathetic," Trish laughed.

"Never! We're not pathetic, we just like to take our time with these things," Christian said.

"Oh yeah, the very, very scenic route."

"Exactly, we're smart," he said, tapping his forehead. "We didn't rush into marriage or children like some people we know."

She laughed, "Okay, I'll move in with you, you've convinced me, besides, I think there's still some of my stuff in your house."

He laughed and hugged her.

**Friday**

"Hi, Loretta, hey Ted," Stephanie said as she hugged Chris's parents.

"Hello, hello," Loretta said as she moved to Stephanie. She hugged her and then pulled away, "Now you look like a pregnant woman."

"Loretta," Stephanie blushed, rubbing her stomach. "We've got an active little girl on our hands this time."

"A girl," Loretta said happily, "Thank you again for marrying that lug I call my son."

"Most of the time, it's my pleasure," Stephanie said. She was doing her best to look and act the part of a happy wife. She was still angry with Chris, even though now it was just kind of like they were angry for the hell of it. At least Stephanie was. Chris was still hurt and angry that Stephanie had accused him of even thinking of cheating and that she hadn't told him that she could feel their daughter.

"Of course. How are you though?" Loretta asked as she hooked arms with Stephanie and walked ahead. Ted, who was holding onto his grandson, walked behind them.

"I'm good, the baby is moving and she's always moving. It's pretty great," she said genuinely, feeling like she was definitely ready to be a mother again. "I think she's going to be an active one like Sawyer is."

"I'm sure you'll love that."

"Yeah, I think I will. I'm sorry again that Chris couldn't be here. He was pretty much challenged to a match tonight for SmackDown, so he's in North Carolina. He's taking a latest flight home though, so if you're up, you'll see him tonight."

"Oh, it's okay, we see too much of him as it is," she joked. "I didn't know he was going to be on SmackDown, I thought he was exclusively on Raw."

"He usually is," Stephanie said, "but with him being in the Money in the Bank match, he's facing guys on other shows so he was a guest on this guy's show last week and they got into a skirmish and now they're going to be fighting each other this evening."

"I'm surprised you aren't there with him."

"Well, you know, all the traveling and stuff wears on Sawyer and all we've been doing this week is going places and we are again. We had Raw on Monday, and then we had to come back here to Tampa on Tuesday for my doctor's appointment, then Wednesday we flew up to New York, then back down to Tampa today and then we're driving to Orlando tomorrow, all of us because all the wrestlers are on lockdown tomorrow night. Well, not Chris, but you know, everyone else, Chris and I, and Shane, and Rissa, and you guys and all our family are pretty much going to be baby-sitters for the wrestlers."

"Sounds like you've got everything under control."

"I try to, it's my job," she said. "WrestleMania is one of my favorite times of the year. There's just always this buzz that surrounds it and I finally feel like Sawyer is old enough to enjoy it a little more than in previous years. I'm so glad you guys could come so he can watch Chris wrestle on such a big stage."

"He's been to WrestleMania before though."

"Yeah, he was in the audience last year. But this year he gets to see Chris wrestle and he's going to be so excited, I can tell."

"You know we can baby-sit him tomorrow night too, we don't mind."

"It's fine," Stephanie said. "Christian and Trish like baby-sitting him, and then you guys can come to the Hall of Fame ceremony if you want, or you know, go out to dinner, I know that Ted wanted to take you out."

"Yes, he wanted to take me out at some waterfront place on some lake or something."

"That's sweet, see, don't mind your stupid children and grandchildren."

Loretta laughed and looked at Stephanie's stomach, "So do you two have names picked out yet?"

"No, we don't have a single name, but Chris really got to choose Sawyer's name, so I think that I'll get to choose her name. I've always kind of liked the name Guinevere, but I think it's a little too fancy."

"You'll figure some great name out, I'm sure of it."

"Thanks," Stephanie said. "We've got time."

* * *

"Okay, so do you think that you're ready to meet my parents?"

"Don't say it like that," Britt told him, gripping onto his hand tightly with both of hers. "Stephanie has told me horror stories about them so I'm extremely nervous about this entire thing."

"Thanks, Steph," Hunter said sardonically. "My mom just hates her guts because of the whole fake pregnancy thing. She refuses to see that I had a part, a big part, in that divorce. She heaps all the blame onto Stephanie."

"And you don't think that's kind of scary?"

"She's not scary…she's…intense," he said slowly, looking for the right word.

"See, that's a scary word."

"You like that I'm intense," he said to her.

"Yeah, but on you, it's cute, and that's just what you are, you know," she told him. "I know you, and I love you, do your parents know that? I'm not in this because I'm just looking for something. I'm in this because I love you…why did they have to come to Orlando for WrestleMania?"

"Because I invited them. It's a big show, and I'm going to win the title, so I wanted them to be here, and I wanted you to be here and--"

"I have to be here, I work for the company, I work for your ex-wife, your ex-wife is my friend, your mother is going to rake me over the coals for that, isn't she? She's going to smell that weakness out and she's going to exploit it."

"She's not Satan."

"Okay," she said as she looked at the doors of the restaurant. "Let's run away together."

"Run away together?" he chuckled. "Where would we run away to?"

"Your rich, anywhere, we'll go to Tahiti. They don't _really_ need you for the WWE title match. They've got John and Randy, people will love that, we'll just go sip on mai tais and we'll be fine and rich and happy."

Hunter laughed, "You're crazy, I kind of want that belt."

"Fine," she sighed, "Okay, you win, let's go inside."

"Thank you," he said as they walked in the restaurant. She stood a little behind him and to the side, hiding behind his much larger body as he went to the hostess and said they were there. They were told that the rest of their party was already there and she bit her lip and gripped Hunter's hand tighter. He gave her a reassuring look, which was never very reassuring. She wasn't sure if Hunter was really capable of looking reassuring. He mostly looked…perturbed.

They were lead to a table where an older couple was sitting. Britt recognized a lot of Hunter in his father and she sat down tentatively across from him when Hunter pulled her chair out for her. Hunter sat across from his mother and they were handed menus. She wanted to hide behind it, but Hunter set it down gently before she could open it. She looked at him pleadingly, but there was that "reassuring" smile again.

"Mom, Dad, this is Britt Montgomery. Britt, my mom and dad, Patricia and Paul."

"It's really nice to meet you," Britt said, giving a little wave.

"Britt, is that short for Brittany?" Paul asked.

"Oh, no, actually, it's just Britt, my father is British and well, I guess he wanted to remind himself of home because he moved here when he was twenty and he's just very patriotic for Britain, you know, so…Britt. They wanted to name my brother Union Jack," she joked and Ted chuckled, but Patricia was looking at her.

"You're very funny. Is your mother British too?"

"No, she's from Pennsylvania, actually. They met over here."

"How old are you?" Patricia finally asked.

"Twenty-six."

"You're quite young for my son, don't you think?" she asked.

"Mom, come on, age doesn't really matter nowadays, you've got older men with younger women, older women with younger men, it's fine, Mom."

"Oh, you think so."

"I really love your son," Britt said, gazing at Hunter. "He's a great guy once you get past the really tough exterior."

"I've heard that before."

"You're referring to Stephanie," Britt stated rather than questioned.

"She said the same exact things."

"Well, I know and like Stephanie, but I'm not Stephanie."

"No, you're not."

"Yeah, so you know, I would hope that you'd give me a chance."

"Mom, seriously, I love this girl, okay, so stop interrogating her like she committed some crime. This is the happiest I've been since Stephanie and I got divorced and I'm not going to let you take that away from me, okay?"

"Hunter…"

"No, Mom, no Hunter this or Hunter that, you either accept it or you don't."

"Fine, let's just enjoy our meal then."

"Thanks you," Hunter sighed and Britt had never been more in love with him than in that moment. People were always giving him a bum rap, calling him an asshole or a jerk. Yes, he could be those things, but he wasn't like that all the time, at least not to her. He had a compassion in him that nobody else got to see and she took his hand under the table and he gave it a squeeze and now, _now_ she felt reassured.

* * *

Chris walked into what felt like unfamiliar territory. It shouldn't really feel like this, but it was definitely feeling like it. Usually he traveled with his wife and his son, but both of them were in Tampa right now, enjoying the company of his parents. He had to get used to this though. Pretty soon, Stephanie was going to be on maternity leave and she was going to take Sawyer with her to stay at home and he was going to be all alone on the road. Well, not completely alone, he'd have Shane traveling with him, and that was cool, but his brother-in-law was no substitute for his wife.

Maybe Stephanie thought he was going to seek out the familiarity of a woman tonight. Maybe she was thinking he'd cheat on her with some ring rat. He grumbled as he found a locker room with his name on it. It had all the best things inside, but he expected it to be that way. Just one of the small perks he did get when he married Stephanie. He set his things down and then laid down on the couch.

He stared up at the ceiling and felt the urge to call Stephanie, but he wasn't going to call her when she should be the one calling him to apologize. So he just laid there waiting for his match, which was the second-to-last segment of the show. That meant a lot of downtime with nothing to do and nobody to talk to.

"Hey, bro! What the hell," Shane said as he pushed open the door.

"Shane?" Chris asked, looking behind him, "What are you doing here?"

"Well, Stephanie said she wasn't coming to North Carolina and since she's a control freak, everything for WrestleMania is running through her, so that leaves her older brother with…nothing to do. So I decided to come to SmackDown and see how this show was doing."

"She sent you, didn't she?"

"Okay, she sent me, but you're here. It wasn't because _you _were here or anything. She just wanted me to be here to make sure that there was enough hype going into WrestleMania. She said she didn't feel like traveling even more with Sawyer."

"Yeah…"

"You don't sound enthused. Come on, bro, it's WrestleMania, and you're first one back in years, _years_, and Sawyer gets to watch you."

Chris cracked a small smile as he sat up. "Yeah, I'm really happy about that part."

"Good, so what's up? You worried about your match later? Come on, you can beat MVP. You've beaten pretty much everyone in the business, you can beat him, he doesn't have half the experience you do."

"Nah, it's not that, I can beat most of these guys with one hand tied behind my back."

"That's what I like to hear," Shane said, crashing down on the couch next to his brother-in-law. "It's good to have you back where you belong. I think my sister would've had a fit if you weren't back by now."

"I don't know, maybe," Chris said. "It's weird being here without them."

"Don't tell me that," Shane said. "It's going to be hard enough for me to do it for a month without Rissa and the boys. How do kids and a wife get so under your skin?"

"Dude, you were with Marissa on and off for like ten years, you knew each other when you were kids, I really think she was bound to get under your skin," Chris said, "Where I on the other hand, before I actually met Stephanie, the only things I knew about her was that she had posed for the WWF catalogue and she was being stalked by Taker."

"Then you hated her."

"Yeah…"

"So are you two fighting or something? I noticed, and so did everyone else, I think even Kenny noticed that you two hardly spoke to each other last night at dinner."

"We were trying to make it unnoticeable."

"What's up? Everything's okay, right?"

"I don't know," Chris sighed.

"You don't know?" Shane asked, concerned now. Usually when he asked this type of question it was followed by something stupid like it was just a stupid fight over who was spending more time in the bathroom, or swearing in front of Sawyer. "What does that mean?"

"She just said some stuff that didn't sit well with me, that's all."

"Well, that's Stephanie."

"Yeah, I know that Stephanie has no filter on her mouth, but I would think by now she would've apologized, but she hasn't and it's only gotten worse and it's just…it's been bugging me this entire week."

"Dude, you've got to sort this out," Shane said. "You cannot go into a match like Money in the Bank thinking about Stephanie constantly. It's going to distract you, and that's how bad things happen. You've got to make up with her."

"Well tell that to her!" Chris said. He ran his hands over his face. "She frustrates the hell out of me, you know that. She absolutely frustrates me until I can't think straight, but I won't be distracted on Sunday. I know when to leave my personal life behind."

"Normally that would work, but you do realize that your wife is going to be sitting backstage. She's kind of a big deal around here."

"You should've warned me before I married her. Dude, Shane, you're the sensible one."

"You're thinking of my mom."

Chris laughed, "So first off, your sister said that I was probably thinking about cheating on her."

"Not cool, not cool," Shane nodded. "Because you aren't thinking that. If you were, I'd have to break your jaw."

"Don't make me laugh, man," Chris said, glancing over at Shane, who looked a little bit insulted. Chris laughed a little, "It just kind of…the tone of it was different. I know that she was a little bit insecure with Sawyer, but with this little girl, I don't know, she seems more so."

"Well, you know how she is."

"I know, but then it's like, the way she said it was like she actually thought that I was going to go out and find some woman and sleep with her, and that just isn't…that doesn't sit well with me. I've been with this woman for six years, and the way she said it was not joking or sarcastic, it was dead serious."

"You know how my sister is, Chris, come on, like you said, you've been with her almost six years, you know her tendency to hit you where it hurts. She's so damn good at that, like my dad. She's been guilt-tripping us all since she was in diapers."

"She didn't have to say it, and then she didn't even tell me when she first felt the baby move. I don't care how mad we are at each other, I mean, that's my kid in there, if there's some milestone, anything, I want to know."

"Okay, so _there_ I can relate, since you know, Rissa kind of kept D's paternity from me."

"Oh yeah, you can."

"Yeah," Shane said, thinking back to that revelation. He was going on two years with Rissa though and it was better than he ever could've imagined it to be. "Maybe you just need to reach out first."

"Hell no, she's the one being unreasonable, she can reach out and apologize."

"Chris, this is Stephanie we're talking about."

"Yeah, I know, and I know she's not this huge bitch, but just a little bit of courtesy would be nice."

"Okay, bro, I'm not going to argue with you."

"Thanks."

"You two are going to be okay though, right?" Chris shrugged. Shane shook his head, "No, man, you're not going to let a fight get in the way of what you guys have. It's one fight, how many fights do you guys have?"

"Tons, we fight all the time."

"Serious fights."

Chris hedged for a few moments and remained quiet, "Okay, not many."

"Yeah, that's what I thought, you'll be fine."

"Whatever, I don't want to talk about that slut that you call your sister."

Shane chuckled, "See, you're already back to the name-calling, you two will be fine. Plus, man, you're having the first McMahon granddaughter, my parents already love you for giving them Sawyer, but now…a girl, my father and mother get to spoil a girl? It's all over. I wouldn't be surprised if my dad went out on Sunday during the WWE title match, strip Randy of it, cancel the match and just declare you the WWE champion."

"All because I happened to knock Stephanie up?"

"Well, you put a ring on her finger first, so that earned you points."

"Yeah, sure."

"You know, all joking aside, I bet you if you asked my dad to do that, he would. I know it's not in you, it's not your style, but he would."

"I didn't marry Stephanie for that."

"See, you do love her, you'll work everything out."

"You're a jerk, Shane," Chris laughed, knowing he had fallen into some sort of trap designed to make him make up with Stephanie. Shane looked innocent and put his hands up like he wasn't guilty of anything.

"I've got to go make sure the show runs smoothly, boss's orders…do you find it kind of odd that Stephanie has like a higher place in the company than I do? I mean, she's my younger sister and she seems to have a higher ranking job where she can order me around."

"She does have a higher position than you actually."

"How did that happen?"

"Well, she works her ass off."

"Yeah, and you love her for it."

Shane left with those parting words and in that moment, Chris was so glad he had no actual siblings. Shane was sibling enough for him. The man had been pretty heavy-handed about Chris making up with Stephanie. Still, he wasn't going to be the one that caved, that was just silly. He was definitely not going to be the one that caved in first. That would have to be Stephanie and Stephanie alone.

Maybe this train of thought actually did distract him during his match. Something felt a little bit off in the match and that probably led to him being not totally into it. He won by disqualification, but he didn't really care as his mind was elsewhere. Knowing that Shane was going to probably tell him that he told him so, after the match, he grabbed the IC title and gave MVP the Code-Breaker before he went to get a ladder and beat up on MVP a little bit more.

He hoped it would be a precursor for Sunday.

**Saturday**

"Sawyer, get back here!" Christian said, running after the little boy. He knew that Stephanie shouldn't have let him have a little bit of that cotton candy when they had been at Disney World earlier that day. Now he was bouncing off the walls and Stephanie and Chris were off getting ready for the Hall of Fame ceremony while he chased after their son, Trish cackling behind them.

He turned to his girlfriend and she just said to him, "Sorry," like that was really going to help him. He finally caught up to the little boy and picked him up, throwing him over his shoulder. He walked back over to Trish, who was still laughing.

"Thanks for helping me."

"Sorry, it's just funny seeing you get outrun by this two-year-old, not even two-year-old."

"Well, I can't help it if he's better at maneuvering because he's this tiny guy," Christian said as he shifted Sawyer so he was carrying him in his arms, a much more comfortable position. "Why do you always insist on trying to run away from me?"

"Funny, Chissy," Sawyer told him.

Christian frowned, "Yeah, it's funny until you get lost and go find your mommy and daddy and tell them that I lost you. Then your dad and your mom would beat up on me."

"I'd protect you," Trish said as she wrapped her arm around his waist. "So, I was talking to my realtor earlier, while you, Chris, Shane, Marissa, Declan, Kenny and Sawyer were on Peter Pan's Flight, and he said that there was already a really big interest in my house."

"That's great, are you sure you want to sell it though. We could always rent it out like Stephanie and Chris are doing with their California home. It might be a nice, little source of income or something."

"I thought about it, but I'd rather not have to deal with it," Trish said. "It's just too much to have to deal with. The gym will bring in enough income, I think, plus I'm doing fine financially and I have that show I'm doing, plus you're wrestling and we're pooling our money together, we'll be fine."

"Yeah, you're right," he told her. "So tell me again, what is the plan for tonight?"

"Well, we're baby-sitting Sawyer until Ted and Loretta get back, then we're going to the after-party for the Hall of Fame. Everyone's going to be there, so it'll be a good time. You can show me off as your trophy girlfriend or something, if you really want."

"You can show me off as your trophy boyfriend if you really want," he told her.

"See, in order for me to do that, you'd actually have to become a trophy boyfriend," she told him leaning up to give him a kiss.

"Ouch, you are harsh," Christian said. "Sawyer, isn't Trish harsh?"

"Yes."

"See?"

"The kid just likes you better than me," Trish pouted.

"Well, we do hang out a lot, don't we, Sawyer?" Christian asked. Sawyer nodded and Christian held up his right hand. "High five for being buddies."

"Yeah!" Sawyer said, slapping his hand as hard as he could.

"You should've seen this kid on the rides today, he was a champ. Too bad you got stuck sitting with Stephanie. The only thing that she could go on was the Jungle Cruise, which, sorry, lame."

"She's pregnant, she can't go on all that stuff…besides, it would mean having to sit with Chris and Lord knows she doesn't want to do that right now."

"They're getting back at us, obviously. This is all part of their evil plan to make us suffer for making them suffer. It's quite masterful of them actually, quite masterful."

"No, this is all part of their plan to make sure that we don't want children right now. They want to stick us with Sawyer as much as possible so that we don't get any ideas. They think that we should wait for children."

"Well, don't you think that we should wait for children?" Christian asked. "I mean, I definitely think we should wait. I'm not ready for children right now."

"Neither am I," Trish said, "well, I'm glad that we had this conversation and that we have both decided that we don't want children right now and I can say correctly that we're going to both take every precaution to make sure this doesn't happen?"

"Yes, I'm not ready to be a father, a baby-sitter, yes, but not a father."

"So, come on, Sawyer, do you want to have pizza for dinner, there's an Italian place right there. Do you want spaghetti?" Trish said as she took Sawyer from Christian. "You can have whatever you want, within reason of course."

"Dunno," Sawyer said as he thought about what he wanted to eat.

"We'll go in there to get dinner," Trish said as she let Sawyer down and took his hand as they walked. Christian slipped his hand into Trish's free hand and she looked up at him slyly as he rubbed her fingers.

"I wanted to hold your hand too, the kid shouldn't get all the perks."

* * *

"Chris?"

"What?"

"I can't zip up this dress, can you please help me?" Stephanie said dully.

"Yeah, sure," Chris told her succinctly. He walked over to her and she turned to expose her back to him. He took in her naked back for a moment. He wanted to just run his hand up and down the soft skin, but he refrained. He was mad at her, he wasn't going to have sex with her and grant her that. She should suffer just as much as he was. He grabbed her zipper and pulled it up, grazing the knuckle of his index finger up her back. He could feel her shudder a little and that satisfied him greatly as he pulled his hand away.

"Thanks," she told him, her voice a little shaky.

She turned around and she looked beautiful to his eyes. He wanted to just take her in his arms and hug her, but he just couldn't do it. The two of them were perhaps the most stubborn people in the entire world. They weren't going to back down for anything or anyone and they both knew it. Stephanie locked eyes with him for a short moment and there was no apology in either one of their eyes. It was nothing but defiance for the both of them.

"You're welcome, are you ready."

"Yeah, I just need my shawl." This was the most they had spoken to each other in days.

"Okay, because we should get going."

"Oh, so now you're the one ordering me around."

"Don't go misconstruing my words," Chris told her. "I'm not _ordering you_ to do anything. I'm just saying that we should get going because your parents and your brother and Rissa are waiting downstairs and I don't want to keep them waiting."

"Well don't take that tone of ordering with me."

"When have I ever ordered you to do something? I don't order you to do anything," Chris told her. "I never order you, what kind of guy do you think I am? You're the one who is always ordering everyone else around."

"So now I'm just what, a slave driver, I like and demand the best from my employees and the people I'm around. I put out a damn good show as a result, so I don't think you have any right to question me about that."

"I wasn't questioning you, what the hell is your problem? Is this your pregnancy, is that the thing making you a bitch?"

"Oh, nice, blame the pregnancy for everything, that's smart," Stephanie said sarcastically as she grabbed her clutch, pulling her sheer shawl closer to her body. "Let's go."

"See, now who's ordering someone around."

"Shove it, Jericho."

"Where would you like it, McMahon?" he asked her. She flipped him off as they left their hotel room and rode down to the lobby where many wrestlers were hanging out. Chris thought for a moment about catching a ride with one of them, but he probably couldn't, given his family. They would throw a hissy fit.

They walked over to where Vince and Linda were waiting. Shane and Marissa weren't there yet so they stood there, waiting quietly. Vince and Linda were involved in some heated discussion about something so Stephanie and Chris stood there, next to each other, not touching, not talking, not doing much of anything. A few agonizing minutes later, Shane and his wife showed up, looking apologetic.

"Sorry, I was making sure that the boys were okay," Rissa said. "My fault."

"It's fine, let's get going," Vince said as he gathered his family together to go to the limo.

Stephanie needed a little bit of help getting into the car and Chris offered it to her reluctantly. They sat on one side of the limo, at least a foot of space between them. Everyone else in the limo could feel the tension that was brewing between them, but they ignored it for the most part. They didn't want to get involved in a fight with the two of those hard-headed people. They'd work it out themselves, they usually did.

They arrived at the building and Chris helped Stephanie out and then contact was lost. They walked inside and down to where other wrestlers were gathering and talking. Stephanie disappeared for a few moments and Chris sighed, then was tapped on the shoulder and he looked over his shoulder and started laughing. He shook hands and hugged Rocky briefly before pulling away from him.

"Thanks for showing up, man, you know I'm looking at this as a personal favor."

"For you, anything," Rocky joked. "What's with the hair, man, you stick your finger in a light socket?"

"Yes, I did, that's how I do all my styling."

"Where's that wife of yours, I'm still insulted that you didn't tell me she was pregnant and I had to find out with the masses. I thought we were friends."

"We are friends, but how come you never invite me to your movie premieres?"

"Because I don't like you that much," Rocky joked. "So how is she?"

"She's good," Chris said. "We're having a daughter, got any advice for me?"

"She's going to have you completely wrapped around her finger, believe me, she's going to be like, everything, man."

"Here's your seat," Stephanie said, coming over to Chris and handing him a ticket. "Hello, Rocky, you're looking well, thank you for coming to this, we're glad to have you."

"Well, I can't say no to Chris."

"Oh really, I can," Stephanie said.

"Wait, so now you're moving my seat?" Chris asked, looking at the ticket. "Stephanie…"

"I'm not sitting next to you, you can go sit by yourself," she told him. "Away from me."

"Congratulations on the pregnancy," Rocky told her.

"Oh yes, it's wonderful carrying the child of a jerk," she told Rock with a saccharinely sweet voice. "Bye, Rocky, I'm sure the fans will love you tonight."

"Okay, pregnancy hormones?"

"She's mad at me, I'm mad at her, it's a whole thing," Chris shrugged. "And of course, she has to get some sort of revenge on me because she can."

"She's pretty powerful, you know?"

"Yeah, I realized that a while ago," he said. "So knock them dead up there."

"Yeah, we'll talk later though, man, definitely," Rocky said, shaking Chris's hand, "I'm just going to go find my mom and dad."

"Cool, later."

Chris stood there for a second and was going to go talk to Hunter and Britt for a moment before he heard his name being called behind him. He looked and saw a blond woman approaching him wearing a white dress. He frowned for a moment, trying to figure out whose wife this was, because it was probably someone's wife. She came closer and he thought for a moment.

"Chris, hey, oh my God, I didn't even know you still wrestled."

"Jessica…"

"You remembered," she said to him.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

"Well, I live in Orlando now, and I'm friends with one of the guys who has a developmental contract and they invited me here, oh my God, I didn't even know you still wrestled. I haven't watched…well, you know I never really was a fan," she laughed.

"Oh, uh, yeah, my God, you look…really good," he said, putting on his best fake smile. He had dated this girl for about seven months around ten years ago. He thought for a moment, yeah, it had been around 1997, so almost eleven years ago.

"Thank you," she said, hugging him unexpectedly. "Wow, you look good too, your hair, you finally cut that hair, how sad."

He laughed a little politely and ran his fingers through his hair. "Yeah, I decided that it was time, you know, grow up just a little bit."

"Not too much I hope."

"No, not much, trust me, not much."

"Good," she said, touching his arm. "You really do look amazing. I can't believe how well the years have treated you. It's been, what, like ten years or something since I last saw you."

"Yeah, I think about that."

"Crazy, where does the time go?" she wondered. She flipped her blonde hair back a little bit. "So you're still wrestling, right? I mean, I'm assuming so because you're here and everything."

"Yeah, I am, I actually joined the WWE in 1999, and I recently came back last November after taking a couple years off to do music and write a book and everything."

"You wrote a book, wow, I'm impressed," she told him. There was an announcement over the sound system announcing that the show was starting and everyone should take their seats. "So I'm assuming that you're going to the huge party after this."

"You assume correct."

"Great, maybe I'll catch you there and we can catch up."

"Um, sure," Chris said.

"Great, awesome," she said, touching his arm again.

He sighed and walked to his seat. It was on the aisle and he sat down heavily, resting his chin in his hand and looking around at everyone. Show was right behind him and he nodded to the man out of courtesy. Tonight was a night where there were no rivalries or anything. Austin came up in front of him and he rolled his eyes and turned away at the man. He was just never really going to forgive him for putting his little boy in danger. Of course Austin was sitting in front of him. Stephanie _would_ do that to him.

He saw her walking over with her mother and glaring at him. Linda looked between the two of them but said nothing as she sat down next to Stephanie. She had put him within his eyesight and Shane gave him a sympathetic look as everyone sat down. Nobody sat down next to Chris and he groaned silently. Leave it to freaking Stephanie to make him sit next to nobody and look like some kind of pariah. Or maybe so she could continue to glare at him throughout the evening like she was doing right this second.

She would look away every time he went to glance at her. One time he caught her and gave her a dirty look and she gave him a dirty look back before they went back to watching the show. The obvious highlight before Ric's induction was Rocky coming out onto the stage. The crowd loved him as usual and he was going to work the crowd like only he could. He went off on Austin a little bit. Then he saw Chris sitting behind Austin and decided to get Chris in on the action. Chris took it all in stride, pretending like he was going to get up there and fight Rocky for making the remark about his hair, but then essentially agreeing with him.

"Speaking of Jericho, yes, I'm picking on you. You know, he was the guy that asked me here," Rocky said as the crowd started cheering Y2J, "Yeah, yeah, you cheer him now, he's great, he's great."

Chris nodded along with that, causing Rocky to laugh, "And then there's his lovely wife, Stephanie. Stephanie, Stephanie, Stephanie, I see you've gotten a bit hefty."

Stephanie shook her head at him and laughed sarcastically, "Oh wait, you're pregnant, that's right, that's right, again, right? Do you know who the father is this time? Is it that guy in the back row there, hey you, no, no, not you, two over, no, next to you, yeah you, did you get her pregnant? You really should keep track of these things, Stephanie."

"Ha ha," she called out a little bit. She looked back at Chris, who was looking at her. They locked eyes momentarily, but then went back to watching the show. Ric's induction was emotional for everyone and Stephanie found herself crying and she didn't think it was from the hormones. Everyone rose for Flair, who was bawling and not leaving a dry eye in the place. After that, Chris came over because they were leaving. The ride was a little less chilly between them, but not much. They were both happy that Rocky hadn't talked about Chris being the father of her child. There were just some things they didn't want discussed.

The large restaurant they had rented out was hopping by the time they got there. Stephanie left him cold when they got inside and he was at least glad she couldn't drink so he wouldn't have to drag her home later. He went immediately towards the bar and saw Trish there sipping on a wine. He went over to her and she smiled at him.

"Hey, where's your significant other?" Chris asked over the din of the crowd.

"Where's yours?" Trish asked.

"Hating me, yours?"

"Dancing with someone or something like that," she said, taking another sip of her drink. "Actually, I think he just went to go talk to someone."

"Oh," he said, signaling to the bartender that he wanted a scotch on the rocks.

Trish looked at him, "Stiff drink?"

"I need one."

"You had a bad time."

"Stephanie decided to make me sit all by myself, and I mean all by myself. She put me in the aisle with nobody sitting next to me."

Trish giggled, "She did not!"

"She did too! I was literally sitting there with nobody. She's punishing me and she can because she owns the freaking company." He got his drink and took a large swig of it, letting the alcohol burn its way down his throat.

"Chris, you love her."

"Not when she's a bitch," Chris said.

"Well, what's your excuse for most of the time then, because hate to break it to you, Stephanie's a bitch most of the time."

"Yeah, well, when she's not being a bitch to me then."

"Chris, come on, take some of your own advice and suck it up and go talk to her or something, you know you want to, you know you miss her."

"How can I miss her when she's constantly around?"

"Okay, you've got me there," she said, "but you miss being with her. You don't want to go into WrestleMania, her _favorite_ holiday of the entire year and have her be pissed at you. You know this, Chris," she told him with that tone of hers.

He downed the rest of his drink and ordered another, "Yeah, sure, I guess." He got his drink, "I'm going to go mingle, it's what's expected of me."

"Don't act bitter."

"I'm not, hey, how's my kid, by the way?"

"By the way? Nice, Chris," Trish told him. "He's fine, he had fun. We went and got pizza at Downtown Disney and he loves artichoke hearts by the way, just letting you know, he gobbled them up. Then we walked around for a while, someone mistook him for our son…again, and then we came back to your room and put him to bed, and your parents came and they're with him now."

"Great, well, I'll catch you later, we're having breakfast tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah, later."

Chris wandered off, nodding to people and drinking his drink, letting it float straight to his head. He was kind of bopping along to the music but not really dancing. He saw Stephanie talking with Mae Young in a corner and he kind of smiled. He could only imagine what those two were talking about. It was probably how Mae would wrestle her daughter when she was old enough. He bumped into someone and turned around to apologize and found Jessica again.

"Hey, you again, I was hoping I'd find you."

"Yeah," Chris said, topping off his drink and setting it down on a passing server's table, grabbing a beer that was sitting on top of it and taking a swig. "How are you?"

"Good, I'm good, especially now that I've seen you."

"Cool," Chris said, the alcohol starting to take effect on him. He wasn't used to drinking such hard liquor since he didn't drink much now that Sawyer was around him most of the time. Two scotches and a beer was enough to give him a pretty good buzz, and it was taking effect right now. "It's been way too long, you know, what are you doing now?"

"Advertising," she said. "Finally got my degree after partying way too hard for way too long. But yeah, I'm good."

"You do look good, Florida is agreeing with you."

"I really think so. But you're still in Tampa right or have you moved in the forever since I've seen you?"

"No, I've not moved. Still living in Tampa, I love it down here too much to move now," Chris told her, taking another swig of his beer. This was pretty damn good, he thought, as he looked down. As he was looking down, Jessica's arm came snaking up his and he looked at it like it was a UFO or something. It was totally foreign and totally not like Stephanie's.

"Wow, cool, so…are you staying in the city tonight?"

"Uh, yeah, I am."

"Oh, I was going to say, I have a place you could crash tonight," she told him, taking a step closer to him. "If you felt so inclined."

He furrowed his brow and looked at her critically, "Inclined to what?"

"Inclined to catch up a little bit more. You've definitely changed in the amount of time that we've been apart. I know that you dumped me because you thought I was going nowhere fast, but I'm somewhere now and that somewhere has obviously brought me to right here."

"Oh, yeah, I've changed."

"You have, you are definitely better-looking than I ever remember, and we were together for a while, right, seven months. I remember how you told me back then that it was the longest relationship you had ever had. I was shocked, you weren't very into relationships, were you? But you know, there's always second chances."

"You think so?"

"Of course I think so," she told him. "So yeah, my place isn't even too far from here. I'm not drunk, so I'm okay to drive."

"Oh."

* * *

Shane whisked Marissa across the dance floor and then pulled her in close again, giving her a soft kiss. "Have I mentioned you look beautiful tonight?"

"Don't pull a line on me, Shane."

"What, I'm complimenting my wife," he said to her, pushing her dark hair out of her face. "I'm having fun, you having fun?"

"Yes, I'm having fun," she said. "A night away from the boys, is perfect for me."

"I think Stephanie's happy to be having a girl so she doesn't have to deal with three Chris's."

Marissa laughed, "I think three Chris's is way different from three Shane's."

Shane laughed, "She'll love having a girl."

"I'm jealous," Marissa told him. "I want a girl!"

"What? No, we're not having another kid."

"You're no fun," she told him, kissing him and then pulling away. "You haven't really gotten to be involved with any of my pregnancies."

"Sure I was."

"Yeah, but you didn't know you were D's father and you only half-way knew that you were Kenny's father."

"Yeah, still, I was with them enough, and I'm with them now."

"Wouldn't you want a little girl?"

"I'm happy with two little boys, we didn't even get a wedding."

"About that…" Marissa said. "We never even got to celebrate getting married."

"Do you want a wedding?"

She thought about for a second and shook her head, leaning up to kiss him again. "No, you know what, I think I'm happy enough as it is, I don't need to flaunt it."

"God, I love you."

Meanwhile, Stephanie was speaking with Christian, "He likes artichoke hearts? That kid is so weird."

"I know," Christian said as Hunter came up and put his arm around Stephanie in a friendly way.

"Hey, you, how'd you like my speech?"

"Very nice," Stephanie said, "I approve."

"Good, since you're in charge of everything, just wanted to make sure that you were approving it. Anyways, I was talking with Ric and he wanted me to come find you, so are you busy with Christian?"

"No, I'm not," Stephanie said. "Thanks again for watching him, Christian, I'll see you later or tomorrow if I don't see you later."

"No problem," Christian said as Hunter lead Stephanie away. He took her to where Ric was standing, a group of people surrounding him and thanking him for various things. Ric's face lit up when he saw the younger McMahon sibling. She walked over to him and he hugged her.

"I just wanted to thank you for making tonight so memorable for me."

"Ric, I hardly did that," Stephanie said, hugging him back.

"You did, you organized the entire thing, your father told me that you had, and thank you for giving me an outlet to say thank you to everyone. You really are going to make your father proud."

Stephanie blushed, "Thank you, Ric, that means a lot, and you've meant a lot to this company. Between you and me, you better win tomorrow, if only you winning meant Shawn had to retire."

Ric chuckled, "I'll do the best that I can."

"Good, thanks," she said, then turned to her left and saw Chris talking very closely with some girl. She could tell from here that Chris was buzzed and she sighed. "Ric, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go find my husband, Jon Bon Jovi."

Ric laughed, "I think my kids were more impressed by him than anything and it wasn't even him."

Stephanie laughed, "Well, Chris will love to hear that."

She hugged him again and then walked over to where Chris was standing. He was definitely out of it and this woman seemed to be taking advantage of that. She rested her hand on her stomach and stood a couple feet away to observe this conversation. She could feel the baby kicking and she figured the baby knew that Daddy was being naughty, or potentially naughty, right now.

"So come on," Jessica said, tugging on his sleeve. "You know you want to, we can blow this stupid party and have our own party."

"No thanks," he said, drinking his beer. "I don't want to."

"What? Chris Jericho doesn't want to? That's news to me. I don't think the sex was ever a problem between us," she said, just coming out and saying what she wanted.

"I don't remember," he told her, "but um, I'm going to go."

"Why? Come on, Chris. Give me one good reason why, I dare you."

"Well, first of all, I don't want to," Chris told her.

"Oh, but…well, it'll be fun."

"No, I have a wife, I love her."

"Wife?"

"Yes, a wife, if you'd have let me get a word in edgewise I would've told you. I'm married and I have two children, so leave me alone," he said, getting really upset now.

Stephanie recognized this and she walked over. "Chris, you okay?"

"Tell her to leave me alone,' he said, irritated by this woman now.

"Okay, sweetie," Stephanie said, running her fingers through his hair. She recognized that he was out of it and he didn't like it. She turned to this woman, giving her the once over. "Please leave my husband alone. He doesn't want you around him trying to proposition him so obviously."

Stephanie led Chris away and they went to a little enclave where the bathrooms were. It was quieter here and Chris leaned against the wall. Stephanie rubbed his temples and he closed his eyes. He started to speak, but she shushed him, whispering quiet words to him as she leaned in against him. He wrapped his arms around her and she kept rubbing his temples.

"How much have you had to drink, sweetie?"

"Too much…I wasn't going to cheat on you, I wasn't," he told her, a hint of desperation in his voice. "I wasn't…"

"I know, I heard you," she told him.

"Why did you say that? Why would you say that to me?" he asked her pathetically.

"Shh," she said, kissing his chin. "It's okay."

"No, no, it's not okay," he told her. "It's not okay! Why did you tell me that that I would cheat on you, why would you do that, Stephanie? I love you…"

"I know, I love you too," she told him. "Come on, let's go back to the hotel, okay? I think that you need to sleep this off. You're not used to even drinking a couple of beers anymore."

"Cause of Sawyer…"

"Yeah, cause of Sawyer," she agreed. "Let's go."

"Why didn't you tell me about the baby?"

"Because I was mad at you."

"Oh," he said. "I had scotch."

"Oh, Chris," she said, trying to find her parents. She eventually found them and told them that she was taking Chris back to the hotel. They caught a cab to the hotel and Stephanie paid the cabbie as Chris waited for her by the door. They walked up together and she opened the door as he stumbled in. Ted and Loretta were sitting there watching TV and Stephanie wondered if they had ever seen their son on the verge of drunkenness.

"Chris?" Loretta said.

"He had a bit too much," Stephanie said as she tried to support Chris's weight.

"Let me get him," Ted said, "you shouldn't have to support him."

"Thanks, Ted," Stephanie said as he took Chris from her. He helped Chris to bed and laid him down before walking back out. "So how was Sawyer?"

"Asleep, he's been asleep all night, cute thing," Loretta said.

"Thanks again," she said. "You two don't have to stay, I can take care of Chris from here."

"Okay, we'll see you tomorrow then," Loretta said, hugging her daughter-in-law. They left, leaving Stephanie with Chris. She walked into Sawyer's room and saw that he was asleep in his bed with pillows on either side of him to prevent him from falling off the bed. She went over and kissed him on the head before going into the bedroom where Chris was lying on the bed, his hand over his eyes. She went to take his shoes off and his suit before pulling him up and making him go brush his teeth. He mechanically did so and then went back to collapse on the bed. She covered him up and then got ready for bed herself.

She climbed in and Chris was on her in about two seconds. He started kissing her neck and she sighed happily. She hadn't felt his lips on hers since Monday and it was torture, absolute torture trying to stay away from him. She reached up to run her hands through his hair and he moved up to her jaw until he got to her mouth and from there gave her a steamy kiss that set every nerve on fire.

"Chris," she sighed.

"Why do you hate me?" he asked.

"What? I don't hate you, you know that."

"Why did you say those things?"

"Chris, not right now, okay?"

He seemed to take that for face value and continued to kiss her. His right hand found the bottom of her tank top and he snaked his hand underneath it and against her stomach. She was extra sensitive around there since her skin was getting taut and her receptors were on high. He rubbed his hand around her stomach and she could still feel the baby moving around in there and it was extra special because though she knew that Chris wouldn't be able to feel it, she could feel it and it was a special moment.

She let herself fall into him. It had been days and days since they had sex and she wanted this far too much to stop. So she just didn't. It wasn't like Chris was some random guy, he was her husband and drunk or not, when she woke up, he'd be her husband and they would go to WrestleMania and everything was going to be wonderful.

**Sunday**

Chris woke up and was immediately aware of the body that was wrapped around him. He could feel her stomach resting against his and he wondered how they had gotten to this position exactly. He looked down at her brown hair and remembered last night and all the sex they had had. She had taken advantage of the fact that he had gotten buzzed and he shook his head, but still didn't move her. How dare she just think that sex would solve everything, although it had been good from what he could remember, but still, it was the principle of the thing.

He looked to the clock and it was six. He wasn't tired though and so he pulled himself out from underneath Stephanie. She snuggled up to the pillow and he pulled the covers over her while finding his boxers and slipping them on. He went to the other bedroom and peeked in on Sawyer. He was still asleep. He looked so comfortable that Chris went and lay down next to Sawyer. Sawyer turned from the extra weight on the bed and opened his eyes a little bit in the darkened room. Chris ran his hand over Sawyer's head and the little boy closed his eyes again and fell asleep. Chris started to fall asleep as well until there was a knock on his door.

Chris got up carefully and went to the door, seeing Christian through the peephole. He opened the door a little and peered out, "What do you want, man?"

"I needed your help with something."

* * *

Stephanie woke up a couple hours later and she opened her eyes, smiling up at…nobody. She looked around the bed and didn't see Chris. She looked at the clock and realized Chris had let her sleep in an extra hour. That was nice of him, but she had a lot of stuff to do for later. She got out of bed and quickly put her clothes back on so Sawyer wouldn't walk in here. She walked out into the room and saw Chris watching TV and she looked to see that Sawyer was actually still asleep. She wondered when exactly he had gotten to bed the night before.

She went and sat next to him, cuddling up to him. He pulled away from her and stood up. She was confused, "Chris, what's wrong?"

"When did we make up?" he asked.

"Well…"

"Yeah, we didn't."

"But I thought we were okay."

"Because we had sex, no, I don't think so."

"You were drunk, how do you know we didn't make up?" she asked.

"Because I wasn't totally drunk, I still remember what happened. I'm not saying you took advantage of me, you're my wife, you can't really take advantage of me, but seriously, Stephanie, you said some crap to me that sex will not solve."

"What! Like you didn't say stuff to me too."

"Not nearly as bad!"

"What! You've been calling me a bitch and you've been going back on your promises!"

"You thought I would cheat on you! You didn't tell me about my daughter moving!"

"Daddy! Mommy!" Sawyer yelled from the doorway. They both looked at him. He was glaring at them angrily. They looked sheepishly at him and he stomped his way into the room. He lifted his arms to Chris and he picked him up. "Food, pease."

"Okay," Chris said. "We'll get ready."

They got ready quickly and then went downstairs for breakfast with Christian and Trish, who were nuzzling each other when they sat down. They didn't stop until Chris cleared his throat and Christian and Trish looked sheepishly over at their friends. Trish wiped at her mouth as Christian did the same, then took a sip of the water in front of him. Chris would normally look over at Stephanie, but didn't dare look at her right now.

"So you guys ready for the big night?"

"Hell yeah," Chris said, excited about his match later on.

"Yeah, I'm ready to work," Stephanie said as she sat Sawyer down in the booster seat that Christian and Trish had thoughtfully gotten for them.

"Us too, it'll be fun to watch," Trish said with a smile. "It's a serviceable day. Do you think that it'll rain?"

"It might," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, maybe," Chris said.

"Do you have everything in place?"

"Yeah," Stephanie said.

Christian and Trish looked at each other and knew that Chris and Stephanie were still fighting. It made the mood significantly less jovial. Chris took a sip of the coffee that had just been poured for them and everyone just kind of stayed silent. Trish and Christian rolled their eyes, a role reversal of the past few months when Chris and Stephanie were the ones rolling their eyes at the ineptitude of Christian and Trish and their continuing trials.

"So, I decided I'm going to move in this week," Trish said, trying to make the news sound really great.

"Yeah, we're going to get all her stuff from Toronto and just drive it down," Christian said with a grin.

"That's great," Stephanie said happily, "I can't wait until you're back down in Florida so that we can hang out with each other. It'll be great to have you back, it's been too long since I've had someone I can just call up for lunch."

"And since I'm retired from wrestling, when you're pregnant and you're without Chris, you can just call me to hang out and I can make sure that she's okay, right, Chris?"

"Yeah."

"So have you thought about names?" Christian said. "You know what's a cool name for a girl?"

"What?" Chris asked.

"Chrissy."

"I'm not naming my daughter Chrissy," Chris said. "Sorry, man."

"How about Trish?" Christian said.

Stephanie laughed, "No, I've got a few ideas in my head though. Since…Chris kind of named Sawyer, he's named after his mom's maiden name, well, that's where we got the name from, so I guess that I'm going to be naming this one."

"We decided this when?" Chris wondered.

"I would've consulted you of course," Stephanie said, "I'm just saying that you got a majority say in Sawyer's name so I thought I might get the majority say in this little girl's name, you'd probably want to name it something…I don't know."

"You don't know what I would want to name her," Chris argued.

"Well you don't know what names I like."

"Well fine, what names do you like?" Chris asked her. Trish and Christian looked at each other and hoped this didn't get ugly.

"Well, I like Mattie, Jamie, Maryann, and Flynn."

"Oh."

"What? You hate all my names, is that, Chris? You want to just make the pregnancy disappear, you seem to like things and then go back on them a little while later."

"Because I don't want my daughter to live on a bus?"

"You guys, come on, we're in public," Trish told them.

Chris lowered his voice, "I don't want my little girl to live on a bus, and for the record, I like the name Flynn, I would like that to be my daughter's name, it's a really good name."

"Fine, then Flynn it is."

"Fine then."

"Fine," Stephanie said, looking at the menu as the waiter came over. They ordered their food and Stephanie turned back to Chris. "She would only be on a bus for a couple of weeks, maybe four."

"Oh, a couple to four, why don't we just live on a bus forever now?"

"Okay, I will," she said. "It'd be better than dealing with you."

"I'm sure it will, so go do that," Chris said.

"You guys, you're being ridiculous now."

"He's being ridiculous, I thought we were fine last night, and then he comes at me this morning like I have the plague. Do you remember you talking with some random woman last night, hmm?"

"That wasn't a random woman, it was an ex-girlfriend, if you must know."

"Oh, an ex, that makes it even better."

"I dated her ten years ago, you know all about every woman I've dated."

"Whatever, you should've gone with her, you probably wanted to," Stephanie said, though she absolutely knew that wasn't true, she was angry and prone to just blurt things out. Chris's jaw dropped and Christian's eyes widened. That was a low blow, especially after what Chris had told him that Stephanie had said.

Chris pulled out his wallet and threw a few bills on the table, then stood up. "That should take care of breakfast, I'm not going to sit here and take that, sorry, you guys, but I don't want to ruin your breakfasts."

He left then and Stephanie stared at Sawyer. Trish spoke up first, "Stephanie, that was low and you know it, go after him!"

"No," Stephanie said. "No, I'm not."

"You were wrong," Christian said. "You shouldn't have gone there, you _know_ why he's mad. I can't believe you would say that to him."

"I don't want to talk about it, can we just eat our breakfast?"

"Fine, whatever," Trish said.

Chris decided to just go to work. He got into his rental and drove to the arena. It was seriously early and there probably wasn't anyone there. That was just fine with him. He got there and the wrestler's lot was empty like he thought it would be. He walked inside, greeting some of the set-up crew who had been working around the clock to set up the ring. He walked out to the entrance and looked around at the empty arena and the ring and everything.

He found a seat and sat down, just looking around. He loved coming into the empty arena before a WrestleMania. The venue was usually much larger than the usual ones they were in. This one was open-air too, so Chris let the breeze wash over him as she extended his arms out over the chairs next to him and just propped his feet up and looked up at the sky. He liked to calm down before a big show.

This was his first WrestleMania in a couple of years. It felt good to be back. It felt like home. Even if he hadn't had a wife who wanted him back, even if he had no physical ties like marriage to connect him to this business, he would've been back. He would've come back because his blood pumped for this business. He had started this back when he was 19, and it was always a goal to be here, and here he was, WrestleMania, the biggest show of the year.

His 19-year-old self would've been so proud of him right now. His 19-year-old self would also be pretty shocked that he was married to Vince McMahon's daughter. Vince McMahon had been this…deity of sorts. The puppet-master to end all puppet-masters, that was Vince McMahon to him. Now that man was his father-in-law and he was going to be on the biggest stage later that evening. This was his passion and even if he stepped away for a while, it would always be his passion.

He visualized himself climbing up that ladder and getting the briefcase. He was the Intercontinental Champion, but he could be so much more and he knew that. If Stephanie was fine with the entire pregnancy and didn't need him for anything, then why shouldn't he go after the title? He knew that he and Steph would make up, they always did, they just were so angry at each other right now that they weren't conversing properly. They still loved each other though.

He actually really liked the name Flynn too. It was cute without being girly. He could imagine having a little girl named Flynn. It also felt good to know that Stephanie had actually been thinking about names. He had been starting to believe that Stephanie didn't really care about this pregnancy, but she had come up with a list of names for their daughter, so that was something. He only hoped that Stephanie really was happy with this pregnancy, even if she wasn't happy with the kid's father.

"I messed up," Stephanie said.

"Uh, yeah, you did," Trish said.

"That woman last night did want to sleep with him."

"So do many women."

"Yeah, and instead he gets stuck with this," Stephanie said, gesturing towards herself.

"Except he adores that."

"Okay, he does," Stephanie said with a smirk. "It's just been a really bad week for us, not helped by the fact that we've had stuff to attend so we've been forced to be together a lot."

"Yeah, you'll be fine."

"I know…he liked my name," Stephanie said with a smile.

"See, you'll be fine."

"Yeah, we'll be fine."

The buzz started to get bigger and bigger as more people arrived at the stadium. It was a little different for everyone to be in a stadium rather than an arena, but it was a good different. It was something new and there was never anything wrong with that. Wrestlers started to trickle into the stadium, pumped up for matches or excited to be watching matches. People were talking and peeking out into the actual stadium where the ring was set up.

This was the atmosphere that Stephanie walked into. It had been raining intermittently and she watched as Sawyer tried to walk through every single puddle in the entire parking lot. He didn't have on any galoshes, just a cute, yellow raincoat with the hood up over his blond hair. She made sure he side-stepped all of the puddles, even though he looked at her with disappointment because he liked the big splash that his feet made.

"No, Sawyer, you're only wearing shoes right now, do you want to have wet feet the entire night?"

"No," he said softly.

"Yeah, I didn't think so," she told him. He peered up at her from under the hood of his raincoat even though it wasn't raining in that moment. He just liked to wear it with the hood up because he was a weird, little kid.

"Okay," he said.

"Are you ready to watch Daddy kick butt?"

"Yes…baby too?"

"No, the baby can't watch yet, but next year I bet she's going to be right there next to you watching Daddy."

"Yeah?" he asked excitedly.

"Yeah, she wouldn't miss it for the world. She's coming in August, that's a few months from now, we just have to be patient. Daddy and I were impatient for you to come and you know what?"

"Wha?"

"You were late!" she said, opening her mouth wide.

"No!"

"Yes, yes you were," she said as she walked them into the stadium. "You were three days late!"

Sawyer's jaw dropped at his mother's tone, "No…"

"Yes, you were and does Mommy like being late for things?"

"Uh uh, Mommy," Sawyer said, shaking his head.

"That's right, so you better hope that your sister is on time, right?"

"Yes," he nodded solemnly as they found her office. "See Daddy?"

"Okay, you want to go see Daddy before he has to work later?"

"Mmhmm," Sawyer nodded as he started to unbutton his raincoat. He was becoming more coordinated as the days went by and he could pretty much unbutton something.

"You better leave that on though, baby boy," Stephanie said. "It could be raining again and then you'll get sick if you're not wearing your raincoat."

"Hot."

"It's hot?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, well, we'll go find Daddy right now since it is rather warm in here." They were in an office of some sort, but it was rather small since the stadium wasn't really made to house wrestling events like this. It was small like a closet and she would have to share with the husband she wasn't currently speaking to. She thought to what Trish had said and she was sure that things would eventually work themselves out.

She had a good feeling as to Chris's whereabouts. She knew he would come here after leaving breakfast. She hoped that he had at least eaten something because she didn't want him to get light-headed during his match later on that evening. She'd just have to make sure he ate before he went out there, even if she had to put someone else on the job. She'd get Christian or something to go make him eat if he still didn't want to talk to her.

She took Sawyer's hand and they left her closet of an office. Sawyer skipped happily down the hallways which had various posters and signs and memorabilia interspersed throughout the area. Sometimes he would stop and point something out and other times he would just stare at something in fascination until Stephanie reminded him that they were going to go see Chris and then he lit up and started walking again. They got to the entranceway and it was a long way down.

Stephanie spotted the blonde hair immediately. She saw it everyday on both of her boys and there was a good chance she'd see it a third time at the end of August. He looked to just be watching them test things. It was still hours before the fans would be let in. She looked around and saw other wrestlers, some alone, some in groups, milling about. She knelt down and kissed Sawyer's cheek, causing him to look over at her.

He was completely in awe. He had never, ever been in a place this big before. The set was huge and everything was just so grand. Now _this _is where they must party. This had party written all over it. He looked behind him at the actual set and it was so big that he couldn't even see all of it. His jaw dropped to the ground and he just stared around. Oh, now come _on_, there had to be some sort of party here tonight.

"Big, huh?" she said to him, looking around herself. It was quite the spread.

"Yes, big," he said, extending his arms out as far as they would go.

"I know, it's very big, and guess where you get to sit?"

"Dunno," he said, still looking around in awe.

"Mommy has the hook-up, so you, Grandma and Grandpa are going to sit in the second row. I know, I have a lot of pull around here so I could've gotten you front row, but I think that if you see Daddy out there in the ring, you'd just jump over the barrier and start running up the ring steps to interfere. Now I know you'd want it, but you're still not under contract."

"I help."

"No, you can't help."

Sawyer giggled, "Yes-huh, Mommy."

"Oh okay, well," she said, turning him around to face the front towards the ring. She leaned over his left shoulder and pointed towards the ring. "Look who's over there."

"Daddy!" Sawyer said excitedly, recognizing Chris.

"Yeah, that's Daddy, why don't you go see him?" she said. Sawyer took off and Stephanie didn't mean for him to just start running. She didn't want him falling down. She walked quickly after him, but he was making a mad dash for Chris and having no regard for his safety. Sawyer got a little confused as to where Chris was when he reached all the chairs and couldn't see over them.

"Daddy!" he called around him, looking around.

Chris perked up at the voice and looked around him. He saw Stephanie first, her hair blowing gently in the wind and pressing her maternity shirt closer to her rounded stomach, showing off their daughter. He looked to her left where Sawyer was searching around for him. He waved his hand and Sawyer spotted him and tried to get over to him, climbing onto the chairs and trying to step on them. Stephanie got behind him and put him down on the floor and let him run over to Chris.

"Big, Daddy!" he said, gesturing around.

"I know, it's crazy," Chris said as Sawyer nodded vigorously.

"He wanted to see you," Stephanie said as she sat down next to him, well, not exactly next to him, there was a seat between them. "He's impressed by the spread."

"I bet," Chris said, "I'm pretty impressed by the spread. I wasn't sure what you had in mind when you described it to me, but this is pretty incredible, Steph."

"Thanks," she said, looking around. "I really only gave them my ideas and Rod was the one who really designed everything. So it's like 10 percent my idea and 90 percent Rod's."

"Still," Chris said, "It's pretty damn cool. I'll look good walking down that ramp."

"Yes, I think you will," she said. "Are you nervous?"

"A little, it's a ladder match, as weird as it sounds, those are scarier than Elimination Chambers."

"Well, you can fall off," she said. They sat there for a few seconds and it was weird. They were talking like they had no connection at all, like they were just two people who happened to work together and happened to be sitting next to each other. They both watched Sawyer as he ran up and down the aisles, playing and chattering to himself. "Be careful out there."

"I will."

"Have you eaten anything today?"

"Um, I grabbed a donut when I walked in."

"Make sure you eat, okay?"

"I will, I'll feed Sawyer too, before he has to come out here. I think I'll tell my parents to take him in after Trip's match. It's third from last on the card, right?"

"Yeah."

"Yeah, he'll probably be sleepy then."

"Yeah. Are you coming out to dinner with Christian and Trish tonight, it might be nice, you know, considering this morning was a disaster."

"Yeah, Christian and I talked about it."

"Oh, okay, well, I have a lot of work to do, good luck later."

"Thanks," he said. She looked like she wanted to say more, but she ended up saying nothing and silently getting up and walking away. He watched her walk all the way up the ramp before he turned and watched Sawyer running around.

Pretty soon he had to get his son and walk backstage. Stephanie was already at her station, being the consummate professional. She was supposed to be sharing duties with the guy who ran SmackDown, but she was probably going to just take over his job too. Vince was always so impressed with her savvy during big shows and so she was ultimately the one in charge. Shane was going to help her out a little bit, just to get a feel for the show. He would probably have to do SummerSlam in August, and while it wasn't _as_ big a show, it was still a big show that had to be meticulously planned.

"Have you two made up yet?" Shane asked as Stephanie tested the audio on her headphones.

"Me and Chris?"

"No, you and Hunter, have you guys decided to get remarried?"

"Chris and I are not made up."

Shane groaned, "What is the matter with you two?"

"We're human? Don't lecture me, Shane, you kissed another woman while married and separated from your wife, so you have no room to talk."

"Low blow, Steph, very low blow."

"Well, it's the truth," she said.

"But we're good now, we're happy and we're together, and that's all that matters. I love Rissa."

"I know you do, and I'm happy for you."

"Daddy! Tell Kenny to stop!" Declan said, running over to his father.

"What's he doing?"

"He's bugging me," Declan told his father as Kenny came up to him and smiled what he thought was an innocent smile but was anything but an innocent smile. Marissa came up behind the two of them and she looked a bit disheveled.

"Shane, you're taking one of them because they need to be separated_ now_."

"Okay, who wants to stay with me?"

"Me!" Kenny said, going over to Shane and hugging his leg.

"Okay, I've got this one then," Shane said, putting Kenny on his lap. Stephanie made a funny face for him and kissed him on the forehead.

"I want a kiss, Auntie Stephy," Declan said, wanting whatever his little brother got. He came around and she gave him a kiss on the cheek, "Thank you, where's Sawyer?"

"I think he's eating."

"Oh," Declan said. "Is he going to watch the show?"

"Yeah, he's going to be in the audience with his grandma and grandpa."

"Grandma Linda and Grandpa Vince?"

"No, Uncle Chris's mom and dad."

"Oh," Declan said. "Is he with Sawyer?"

"Yeah, he is, they should be here soon because Sawyer's going to go out there soon."

"Cool, he's lucky," Declan said.

"I want him to see Chris wrestle."

As if he heard his name, Chris came walking up with Sawyer, who was still wearing that raincoat. He saw his cousins and ran over to Stephanie. She put him on her lap and he slapped five with Kenny, who laughed and slapped five again with him. Sawyer smiled at his cousin, who was just about the same age as he was.

"Baby," Sawyer said, patting Stephanie's stomach.

"Baby?" Kenny asked.

"My baby," Sawyer nodded, looking at his cousin. "No baby you."

"Don't be mean," Stephanie told him. "That's going to be his cousin. He can see the baby too when she comes."

"No," Sawyer whined. He didn't want anyone to be around his baby. "My baby."

"Okay, okay, it's your baby."

"Yeah," Sawyer said, hugging her stomach. "My baby."

"Okay," Kenny said with a shrug.

By the time the show started, Sawyer was situated in his seat in the second row. He had finally taken off the raincoat (all by himself) and he was pointing at everything while looking at his grandfather, whose legs he was standing on. The initial pyro had scared the crap out of him. He jumped into his grandpa's arms and buried his face against his neck, but then laughed at himself for being scared when he knew what this was. There were so many people there he couldn't get over it. He had definitely never seen this many people. Surely there was going to be a party now.

He wondered if his daddy was going to come out here. His mommy kept saying he was going to. Maybe he'd bring Oscar the Grouch, that grouch was sure funny and made Sawyer giggle. The first thing that he saw was something with the man who had hurt his father. He watched him distrustfully and with a sour expression on his face. Loretta thought it was hilarious how he watched the entire match with his arms folded and that look on his face. It reminded her of Chris when he was young and didn't get his way.

The next match was infinitely better for Sawyer though. After a bunch of boring people came out, he turned to see the entranceway and saw his daddy's picture on the big screen. He bounced up and down in Ted's laugh and he would've jumped right off if he wasn't being held, darn it. He started clapping his hands, the sound meshing with the thousands upon thousands of people who were also cheering for his daddy. He was very impressed.

They were on the aisle, so Sawyer crawled over his grandpa's lap to climb into his grandma's lap and he leaned over to see if he could see if his daddy was really here. He was! Sawyer was happy and clapped even more, looking behind him to make sure that his grandma and grandpa were clapping too. He kept looking at Chris, then back to his grandparents, then back to Chris.

"Your mommy told me you learned something to say when you see your daddy, do you know what that is?" Loretta whispered in her ear.

"Yeah!" he said, remembering what it was, "YJ! YJ!"

Loretta giggled, "Y_2_J, sweetie."

"Oh," he said, perplexed for a second, "Y2J?"

"Yeah, that's it. Great!"

"Okay," he said, "Y2J!"

"There you go."

Sawyer kept that up for a few seconds and after what seemed like hours, his father was finally passing him. He reached for him, but he couldn't reach him, he was too far away. This displeased Sawyer greatly and he pursed his lips a little bit. He didn't want to be ignored by his daddy. He knew something important was happening, but that was his daddy.

"Daddy! Daddy!" Sawyer yelled, but it was lost in the cacophony of the crowd and he started getting really irritated. If his daddy was going to party, he should be there!

"It's okay, sweetie, we're going to watch your daddy wrestle," his grandmother said. Chris walked _right by _him and he saw Chris look at him briefly with a small smile, but he wanted his daddy right now and started to cry a little bit at the lack of attention. "Shh, shh, it's okay, let's watch him, okay?"

Loretta didn't want a scene and handed Sawyer back to Ted so he wasn't so close to Chris. The match started shortly thereafter and Sawyer forgot all about the fact that his daddy was right there because he became fascinated with the match itself. There was so much going on that his eyes kept darting back and forth. Chris was very aware that Sawyer was right there watching him, and he glanced over every so often, the blond hair of his son catching in the lights and he wanted to win this for him. Sawyer was giving him the determination.

There was a lot in this match. He had to be aware of six other guys and what they could possibly do to him. He had the most experience though, and he knew how to get around the ring expertly. Stephanie was sitting backstage, biting her lip. She was worried for her husband, mad or not, she cared about his safety. She wondered how Sawyer was liking this and was tempted to do a crowd sweep with the camera to see his cute, little face.

That face was frozen in awe. His father was now climbing a ladder and then someone had pushed it over! Sawyer stood up on his legs to see where his father had disappeared to and saw him laying out in the ring. He looked like he was sleeping, which was very silly of him to be doing right now. He looked back to his grandparents and they had funny looks on their faces. He couldn't quite place them.

Chris knew he was doing well. He hadn't yet grabbed the briefcase, but he was doing well. It was great to get his aggression out in this match. Stephanie had frustrated the hell out of him all week long, so this was the perfect territory. He put Morrison in the Walls on the ladder and got him effectively out of the match. Everything was going swimmingly and he was dominating this match and he knew it.

Then he made a big mistake.

He let the hurt get to him. He had been doing a good job of just focusing his anger on every other guy in this ring. Then he actually thought of the things that Stephanie said to him, and the hurt that was laced with that. He thought about last night and how he had seriously thought that Stephanie thought he would sleep with that ex of his when he had wanted nothing more than to take his wife in his arms and just hug the hell out of her for days. He let it get to him.

He lost his concentration.

It was just a momentary lapse, but it cost him a lot. It cost him that suitcase. He tried to get it, but it was useless. He had lost, and it felt definitely bad, but nothing could be as bad as the hurt and loneliness that he had experienced this week. When it was all over, he felt weak and vulnerable and it was all her fault. He hoped Sawyer didn't think he was a failure, even though he was certainly feeling like a failure right then.

"Daddy?" Sawyer said.

"He didn't win, sweetie."

"Oh, that okay," Sawyer said with a grin, "My Daddy."

"He is your daddy," Loretta said, wondering if Chris would want Sawyer right about now.

Chris slowly got to his feet after it was all over and got out of the ring. He was bummed for sure, but there was his kid again stretching out across the aisle to try to get to him, desperately straining to get at him. His mom was trying hard to keep him still, and he was stretching so much that he was almost horizontal with the ground.

"Daddy," Sawyer growled like a lion.

Chris laughed a little as he heard his little boy growling at him. He went and grabbed his hand a little like he was giving it a high five, but he rubbed it a little, letting his son know that he was definitely acknowledging him. He could hear various people saying that he should've won and he slapped some hands of the people who were sticking their hands out. He resisted the urge to pick up Sawyer and just cuddle with his son to make himself feel better.

"Go wif Daddy," Sawyer said as he watched Chris walk away.

"We'll wait a little while, okay? I heard you want to see Hunter, or Trip."

"Twip!" Sawyer said, looking around.

Chris went backstage and he saw Stephanie. She looked sympathetically at him, but she couldn't do anything because the next match was up next. Chris didn't even want to look at her right now. He figured it was a mixture of shame over losing and just…disappointment. A kiss from Stephanie right now would be ideal, but they were still in a fight, nothing resolved because they were too pig-headed to just sit down and talk. Maybe later, but not right now.

Stephanie watched him walk away and she wanted to go after him, but she had a job to do and Chris understood that. She looked to Shane and Kenny, but they were occupied, Shane showing Kenny what all the different knobs and things were on the console in front of them. She wished she had Sawyer here right now because he could give her one of his patented hugs. That might make Chris feel better too.

* * *

"You're going to win, I can feel it."

"Thanks, babe," Hunter said, kissing Britt. She deepened the kiss and he eventually pulled her away from him, "what are you trying to do, make me hot before I have to go out there?"

"You just look cute in your little underwear outfit," she said, tugging at his ring-wear.

"You are bad."

"What!" she giggled. "I can't help it. It's not very many guys that could pull off this look."

"I hate you," he said, walking down the hallway. She giggled and caught his arm. "No, get away from me."

"Before your big match, no way. I took an official coffee break for you, and Stephanie wasn't happy because it's during the show."

"Wow, for me?"

"All for you, so make it worth my while and beat John and Randy into a pulp and bring me back a belt," she told him huskily, slapping him playfully on the stomach.

"You better believe I am."

They got to the gorilla and his competitors were there so he decided to go stand near Stephanie. She was freaking out at the moment, yelling stuff into her headphones because there had been something wrong with the lights, which had gone off in the middle of the Bunnymania match or whatever it was called. She kept yelling through her microphone.

"What's going on?" Britt asked.

"The lights are out, look," she said, gesturing towards the screen where the lights were out during the match for the women. "Yes, Andre, get the lights back on as quickly as possible. No, I do not care. No, I do not want it near water, why was it near water in the first place! No!"

"Wow, okay, hun, I think that I've got to help out with this," Britt said, but then the lights came back on in the ring. Stephanie calmed down considerably and looked at Hunter.

She stood up and patted him on the shoulder quickly, "Good luck out there, you hear me?"

"I'll win, don't worry," he said.

"He's definitely going to win," Britt said cockily. "How did Chris take his loss?"

"I don't know, hard I'm guessing," she said. "I'll talk to him later."

"Good, about time," Britt said.

Hunter made his way down and he saw Sawyer, who looked surprised to see him. That kid was a riot sometimes. But now it was time for business to happen. He had waited a long time for this opportunity and he was going to get _his_ belt back. It was about time he did too. He was at a point in his life where he was extremely happy and what better to compliment that happiness than to win his belt back.

The match was his to lose, he knew this and as he was fighting off these two other men, he just felt like he was better than them. Randy was formidable champion, sure, and Cena was good, but he was Triple H, damn it and he should win this match. He was _going _to win this match, he thought as he got into the match more and more. They were all going at each other and at one point he even got the crossface on Cena. He didn't even know he had that in his repertoire, but there it was. Cena got to the ropes though and he was forced to break the hold.

He got hit with the Five Knuckle Shuffle, but he reversed Cena's attempt at an FU. So it was like he was giving his own FU to Cena. He went for the Pedigree, but it was countered and he cursed to himself. He should win it now. He turned on another jet, electrifying himself it seemed. He got a spinebuster and he was pumped up now, feeding off the energy everyone was giving him. He got the Pedigree on Cena and he was going to win, but instead was kicked in the face.

He lost.

He _lost_.

_He_ lost.

It was not what he was expecting. And now he was pissed. The beast had truly been woken and Randy Orton was going to pay for what he had just done. He had had Cena down, he was going to pin him and Orton came in and…oh yes, Randy was going to pay. Hunter was going to make sure of that.

He wasn't going to lose again.

* * *

"Well, that was a relative success, wouldn't you say?"

"Did you see the power failure?" Stephanie asked. "That was not successful and the fireworks at the end."

"Think of the positive."

"My husband lost, there's no positive."

"Sure there is," Trish said. "Come on, we're supposed to be having dinner."

Dinner was successful. Chris was obviously distracted so Stephanie didn't push it. Christian was quiet too, but they figured it was because he was tired or something. Trish and Stephanie just talked about the show and how it had been really cool to be backstage when Ric got back there and with everyone clapping for him, giving him almost an internal standing ovation with just the workers.

"Trish, want to go on a walk?" Christian asked.

"Sure," she said. She figured that Christian wanted to give Chris and Stephanie time to talk. Little did they know that they would just sit there and work on their desserts.

Christian took Trish's hand and they ended up in a little garden off the side of the restaurant they had been at. They sat down and she leaned in to him. "The stars are nice tonight, from what you can see of them."

"It's pretty clear, not too many clouds," she said, looking up.

"Do you still have that necklace I gave you, the one I sent you a couple years ago for Christmas?"

"The moon-shaped one?"

"Yeah."

"Of course, see," she said, holding it up to him. "I'm also wearing the hair clip that you gave me, I'm all bedecked in my Christian wear."

"Nice, did I ever tell you that there's a necklace that completes that one?"

"No, but there is?"

"Yeah, I have it at home. I'm really glad that you're going to be moving back in with me."

"So am I, it feels right, doesn't it?"

"It feels very right."

"Yeah, it does. I'm really happy you got up the nerve to come to me because I don't think I would've gotten up my nerve to come to you. I was just so convinced that you didn't want me anymore. You proposed to Tiffany in front of me. When that happened, man, it was just the worst feeling."

"I know, and I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that. I shouldn't have done that to her either though. I don't know, I made a lot of mistakes with that one."

"You corrected them," she said, taking his hand in hers and squeezing it gently. "I guess everyone was just right and we were too stupid to figure it out."

"A little, but we did, and we're here and that's good."

"Do you think Chris and Steph have killed each other yet?"

"Yeah, one of them is going home on a body bag."

"Come on, let's go see," Christian said, standing up and pulling her up with their still linked hands.

They walked back to the restaurant and the lights were dimmed and suddenly there were tiny lights strung up all over the place and Chris was sitting on a stool with a guitar. Stephanie was just sitting next to him and he started to play. She recognized the song as _Life is a Song_ by Patrick Park, one of her favorite songs. Chris wasn't singing along to it, but he was playing it on his acoustic guitar.

Trish turned to Christian and he knelt down next to her and she started shaking her head as Chris played in the background. "I can't play the guitar, but I know you love this song so I wanted it to be playing and I asked Chris to play it for me."

"Chrissy…"

"A long time ago, we had a fight and this fight resulted in me yelling at you, asking if you'd marry me," Christian said with a chuckle, "It was perhaps the world's worst proposal. You obviously said no because you deserved better and I agreed. I've been trying so hard to make it better, but it just wasn't happening. Stuff came up, life came up, other relationships came up. Now we're here and things are good. Do you agree?"

"Uh huh," Trish nodded as she looked to Chris, who was focused on the music in front of him. Stephanie was just flipping the pages of music for him, not paying much attention to them and give them their moment.

"Good, well, um, like the song says, it's time to let go of all the things we used to know, ideas that strengthen who we've been. It's time to cut ties that won't ever free our minds, from the chains and shackles that they're in," he said. "So, you know, I think that we should learn from the past, but let go of everything that kept us apart for so long. Things are good, Trish, they always are with you. All this time had given me one reason, one…thought. You're it. You're it, Trish, and I want you to be it for me, forever, so…um, cutting to the chase, put me the hell out of my misery and marry me?"

"This is for real, right?"

"Absolutely, and I do hope it's better than the last one I gave you," he said, then shook his head, "I'm dumb." She wondered if he was going to take it all back, but he reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring. "I _do_ have a ring, so you know, there you go, maybe, hopefully."

It was beautiful. It was a platinum band with an emerald in the middle with diamonds on either side. "Oh my God…"

"I seem to remember you commenting that you didn't want a traditional engagement ring and please, please, please tell me this doesn't look like the one Carlito gave you."

"No, it doesn't, no, not at all, this is beautiful."

"Do you think you want to wear it?"

"Oh God, I haven't answered, have I?"

"No, you kind of haven't."

"Yes!" Trish yelled out, startling Christian. "Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes! A million times yes, so much yes that I can't…yes!"

"Hell yeah!" Christian said, jumping to his feet and taking Trish into his arms and actually lifting her off the ground. She wrapped her legs around him and squealed into his neck as he hefted her weight while trying to kiss her. Their lips eventually found each other and they started making out right then and there. "I love you."

"I love you more!" Trish exclaimed.

"What do you say we leave them to their moment?" Chris asked.

"Yeah," she said, smiling wistfully.

The two of them left the newly engaged couple, but they didn't even notice, they were so caught up in each other. Stephanie remembered the weekend after Chris had proposed. They had spent the entire time in bed and all she could do was stare at her ring in between having sex with her fiancé. She looked down at the ring on her finger as they were driving back home. It was a long ride, an hour and a half, but they wanted to sleep in their own beds tonight.

The light kept flashing against her ring and she heard Chris turn on some soft rock station to break up the silence in the car. She still recalled the feeling that had risen up in her when she found this ring. It had been a total shock to her system to see it sitting there, so pristine in its Tiffany blue container. Her hands had trembled while picking it up and now she couldn't imagine it off her finger, though it would have to come off soon because it was starting to get tight on her finger from the pregnancy.

"I like the name Flynn, for real," Chris said, just trying to make this silence more bearable.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, I really do, Flynn Jericho, it has a nice ring to it."

"We can call her Flynnie," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, I like that."

It was back to the silence after that for the duration of the ride home. They pulled up into their large driveway and it was very late by this time, past two and they were exhausted. They walked inside quietly, not wanting to wake up Chris's parents or Sawyer, though he was a sound sleeper. Stephanie cracked her neck and went into the kitchen to grab a glass of water. Chris followed her and leaned against the counter, watching her go about her business.

"We've had a pretty crappy week, haven't we?"

"Yeah," she answered quietly.

"Yeah, worse than usual."

"Worse than at any point, well, I don't know, maybe not, but it was bad," she said.

"Yeah, it didn't help that we had to be around each other so much."

"It just made us angrier. Chris, I don't think you'd cheat on me," she told him. "I mean, I know you wouldn't cheat on me, ever, I know you love me, and I shouldn't have said that. I'm sorry that I said it and I'm sorry that you thought I meant it."

"Thank you," he said. "I needed to hear that. I'm sorry that I reneged on the bus thing and that I thought you were more invested in work than in our family. I still don't like the idea of Flynn being on a bus."

"Well, we can talk about it, right?"

"Yeah, a talk would be good."

"She moves around all the time. She…I think she likes your voice, she's always moving whenever you're around. You should've felt her last night when you were touching me, she was going crazy in there. She's already a Daddy's Girl."

He laughed at that, "Fighting with you is weird and I don't feel better right now either."

"You don't. What do you think we should do then?"

"I just didn't get time to breathe you know?"

"Time to breathe, what are you saying?"

"I don't know."

"Are you saying that we should spend some time apart?"

"Stephanie…"

"Do you want a separation?"


	177. Thanks for the Memories, March 31, 2008

**Added April 8, 2008- There will be a double chapter next week. :)  
**

* * *

A/N: So from the response to last night, I think I know which way the cookie crumbles with the readers. Thanks, and enjoy. :P

* * *

"You're nuts, let me tell you."

"What!"

"You're crazy, you are absolutely nutty."

"You're so mean to me."

"_I'm _so mean to _you_? Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, no way."

"Yes, yes you are," she told him. She turned in his arms and pouted at him, reaching up to pat him on the cheek. "You're the meanest guy ever."

"Hey, no, you should be loving me right now," he told her sweetly.

"You should be loving me a million times over."

"A million times, give me one million reasons for why I should love you?"

"A million?" He nodded. "Well okay, fine, for one, the ring on my finger is quite nice, and being with me, you know, just being with me and wanting to be with me, but then here's one reason I don't love you, for freaking me the hell out."

"Freaking you out? I did no such thing."

"Yes, you did, did you know how surprised I was last night? Do you have any idea how nervous I was last night? You obviously have no sense if you're willing to scare me like that without any warning."

"I was simply reacting."

"Well, react differently, mister," she told him.

"Okay, Ms. 'Do You Want a Separation?' At least I didn't say that word," Chris said spitting out his words. "Separation, um, because we fought for a few days, what do you take me for?"

"An idiot," she responded immediately.

"I'm not the one who thought separation, now I have to wonder what goes through your mind when I'm not around. One week without me and you're thinking crazy talk, lady!" Chris told her, kissing her forehead.

"Well, you were talking all that stuff about not feeling better and us being too close the entire week, and you dampened my entire WrestleMania week, Chris Jericho."

"You dampened my week."

"Let's go back in time and do it over then, and this time, I will run down to the ring an d make sure that you win the briefcase," she said.

"Oh yes, I want my pregnant wife to be in the ring with six other guys with ladders. Thanks, Steph."

"Fine, fine, and I will admit, I was rather…jumping to conclusions with the separation talk I didn't think you meant me taking a spa weekend or something with Trish because she just got engaged, my bad."

"Yes, you're very bad," he said. "I didn't mean separation, geez, what do you take me for? I don't want to leave you, I love you, I thought that was well established, like you know, over weeks and months…someone should really write our story down because we are fascinating."

"I'm fascinating, you're…passable," she told him.

"Passable? Flynn, am I passable?" Chris asked her stomach.

"She doesn't even know you."

"She's half me!"

"Yeah, but she hasn't seen you. She might see you and she'll look at you with distaste and hoping that you aren't her daddy."

"She likes to move when I'm around," he pouted, putting his hands on Stephanie's stomach. "Separation," he scoffed. "What the hell would I do without you, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho? I mean, you know, talk about a separation, I'd see you every freaking week."

"Yes, and I'd make sure that I looked smoking hot every week, or try to, since I'm getting all pudgy and pregnant," she said distastefully rubbing her stomach, "but I'd make you so angry."

"You already make me angry."

"I know you wouldn't cheat on me, sweetie."

"You better."

"Well, when you and your husband spend as much time as we do together, you can't cheat, not really, unless it's super-quickies and we both know that you like to take your time," she said, running her finger along his shoulder blade. He winked at her and leaned down and kissed her. She deepened the kiss and tilted her head a little. He pulled away and smirked at her. "You're never letting me live down that separation thing, are you?"

"Nope, never, you blew it, McMahon."

"Not even after I give birth and hold your darling, little girl in front of you?"

"Nope, I will just tell her that her mommy was the one that secretly wanted a separation."

She gasped in mock shock, "No, you wouldn't!"

"Oh, I would," he told her, "and I plan to…hmm, maybe Sawyer needs to hear about this separation thing, I think he'd like to weigh in on it."

"Chris, you're mean, I'm having your baby!"

"Yes, yes, you are," he said, "now where is my son?"

"With your parents," she said. "They want to spend as much time with him as they can before they go home tomorrow. You really should think about moving them down to Florida or something."

"No way," he said, "I'm sorry, but you like distance from your parents on your downtime, and I like distance from my parents."

"But it'd be easy to have them baby-sit or take the kids off our hands," she told him. "Just think about it?"

"Fine, I'll think about it. They said that Sawyer had a blast last night. He didn't like that I didn't come to him when I was walking down the entrance though. He threw a fit and started crying because I didn't come get him."

"And good thing," she sighed and frowned, "I wanted you to win."

"I wanted to win too," he said. "It's okay, don't worry about it, I'm still the IC champion and I'll get my chance."

"You're too rational for me. I want to just charge out to the ring tonight during Raw and demand that you get a title shot every week until you get the title. I figure you can beat Randy in one match, don't you think so?"

"Well, yeah, I do, despite the fact I've wrestled him and lost."

"You had that match won, Chris, it was JBL's fault that you didn't, and you _had_ the match last night. You should've seen me when you were climbing, I think my heart-rate was so fast that it scared the hell out of Flynn."

"Aww, she loves me too," he said, walking with Stephanie in his arms as they shuffled down the hallway.

"Too? Who's the other person that loves you, surely not me?"

"Nah, it's Sawyer," Chris said, kissing her neck.

"You two are gross," Edge said as he looked at them. He was pissed off that he had lost to the Undertaker. Undertaker was old, he was young and he should've retained his title. He was pissed off and taking it out on everyone that he passed.

"Thanks," Stephanie said excitedly.

"Hey man, I lost too."

"Yeah, but you didn't lose your title," Edge pouted. "I should've won that match. I had everything going for me. I bet you Taker uses black magic or something to make sure that he wins matches like that. How else can you explain the winning streak? It's not of this world."

"Yeah, he's doing voodoo on you right now," Chris said, resting his chin on Stephanie's shoulder. "Have you seen your brother today?"

"Yeah, I saw him this morning, I gave him the appropriate congratulations and all of that. He just wants to copy me and Vickie. He was probably jealous that I was engaged and had to do what big brother was doing."

"He's been with Trish longer than you've been with Vickie."

"Still, they never got engaged…to each other before," Edge said, then looked down, "whatever, he's a copy cat, I'm totally going to be married before him."

"If you say so," Stephanie said. She saw Sawyer running down the hall towards her and he crashed into her legs.

"Baby!" he yelled at her stomach.

"Wow, when did we become so unimportant?" Chris asked as Sawyer reached up to touch Stephanie's stomach.

"When we told him there was something inside of me, it fascinates him, maybe he'll want to become a doctor and then I'll have to tell him that no, he cannot become a doctor because he's supposed to be a wrestler, a _wrestler_, Sawyer," Stephanie told him.

"You're the only mom in the universe who doesn't want their kid to be a doctor," Edge said.

"Hi, Ed!" Sawyer said to the man.

"Edge, kid, _Edge_."

"Ed, you Ed," Sawyer said nicely. Edge sighed and walked away. That kid was never going to get his name right and it was just another thing to add to the laundry list of things that were bugging him today. He didn't know why he had to be here in the first place. Everyone on the roster was supposed to be here though. Damn, he should've won last night and he was pissed that he didn't.

"I love the way it looks on my hand, don't you?" Trish said as she gazed at the ring.

"Are you looking at that again?" Edge asked as he pulled up a seat to the table his brother and his new fiancée were sitting at. "It's a ring, that's it."

"Well, it's not just a ring," Trish said. "Christian and I are together now, forever, hopefully."

"Hopefully?" Christian said. "You mean we're going to be together now, forever, definitely."

"That sounds a little creepy to me," Trish said. "Makes you sound like you've had this plotted out for many years and you've kidnapped me and forced me to marry you, and that's not the case, I wanna marry you, tomorrow."

"No, we are so not getting married tomorrow," he said. "My mom's still on her honeymoon."

"Oh yeah, my parents wouldn't be able to fly down from Toronto. They should see me get married to a cutie-pie like you."

"Oh my God, I thought Chris and Stephanie made me sick."

"Wait, are those two okay now? They totally cut out on us last night, which was nice of them, since we wanted to be by ourselves," Trish said, making googly eyes at Christian. He grinned down at her and kissed her temple. "But I haven't seen them today, they're okay? They were not okay yesterday."

"Well, they were walking down the hallway with his arms wrapped around her and they were being cutesy, but not as cutesy as you two are being right now, it's sickening."

"It's spring, love is in the air," Trish said happily. "Birds chirping, babies laughing, it's all so great. I'm so glad this silly fight with Chris and Stephanie is over, those two fighting sets off the balance of the entire universe and I don't want anyone unhappy on the day after I get engaged to the best man ever!"

"I'm not happy," Edge deadpanned.

"Well, happy out of the ring."

"I'm not happy out of the ring. I'm pissed that I lost. I look like a stupid fool now because I said that I was going to win, and I lost, to the Undertaker."

"So have a lot of guys," Christian shrugged. "I've lost to him, what's the big deal?"

"What's the big deal! What's the big deal, oh my God, I lost my title, man, I lost my title! That's the big deal," Edge said, leaning down and putting his face in his hands, shaking his head. "That was my title, I said I'd end the streak."

"You're too uptight."

"You're not uptight enough," Edge said harshly. "You just got engaged, you're not in the right frame of mind right now. You cannot share in my outrage because you're getting married and you're happy, happy people disgust me right now."

"Then we are the most disgusting people in the entire building," Trish said with a giggle.

"Do you know of _anyone_ that is as angry as I am? I mean, I thought Chris would be, but he made up with Stephanie, which means he got laid last night and that put him in a good mood."

"I'd try Hunter," Trish said, "right, Chrissy?"

"Yeah, if anyone's going to be pissed off, Hunter's pissed off. He had that match one and Randy came and pulled the rug out from under him."

"That's right," Edge said, rubbing his chin. "Yeah, but he doesn't like me and I don't like him, so it'd be awkward."

"Well yes, seeking out someone simply to share in your misery is a little bit on the strange side," Trish told him. "But I know he's probably sharing in your misery right about now."

"Yeah, sure," Edge said.

"You are dampening my buzz, bro," Christian said. "I just got engaged, and look at my wife-to-be, smoking!"

"Chrissy," Trish blushed, shoving him a little bit. She grabbed his face in her petite hands and pulled him down to press her lips against his. Christian grabbed her hands off of his face and then pulled away to kiss her palms, taking care to fiddle with her engagement ring for a moment.

"Okay, yeah, I can't even stand this," Edge said. "Can't even stand it."

Edge got up and left and Christian and Trish just looked at each other, oblivious to Edge even leaving. Trish gave him a grin and he just returned it so she gave him a wider grin and his grew wider until their lips sought the other's out again and starting making out. He pulled her into his lap and wrapped his arms securely around her small waist. Anyone walking by got quite the show.

Elsewhere, Stephanie was settling in behind her desk when Hunter walked in. Chris was off somewhere with Sawyer, probably letting the little boy wreak havoc wherever they went. Stephanie smiled at him and gestured for him to take a seat since he didn't look like he had come in looking for Britt. He took it graciously and sat there for a moment, as if waiting for her to initiate the conversation, so she did.

"What did you need?"

"Well, you know how you're giving Ric time at the end of the show?"

"Yeah, to give a farewell address," Stephanie said, "what about it?"

"Well, I was hoping that you could spare a few more extra minutes for that," Hunter told her.

"Did Ric want more time?"

"No, I just…I've arranged some stuff."

"You've arranged some stuff?" Stephanie asked. "What have you arranged, Hunter? I mean, you're not going to like wrestle him one last time or something, let him drop a knee on you or something."

Hunter laughed, "No, I called up some of the guys, you know, the Four Horsemen, some of Ric's friends, and I thought we could give him one helluva send-off."

"Wow, really, here I thought you'd be brooding over the fact that you lost your title in one of the worst possible ways."

"Oh, I'm pissed as hell, believe you me, and I'll deal with that little snot who thinks that he can just take what's mine, I will have my revenge on him," Hunter said darkly, but then brought himself forcibly out of that mood. "That's beside the point though. Ric is one of my best friends and he had guided me more than anyone ever has. I just want to be able to show my thanks to him, and I know that everyone here wants to as well."

"That's true," Stephanie said. "Well, it's a good idea. I was going to have another short match, but I can absolutely cancel it, and you can have the time at the end of the match, have you told Ric about any of this?"

"No, and please don't, I want it to be a surprise, and um, I was wondering if you or your dad, or Shane even could come out during this segment and you know, be there, you know, since you're a big part of his career."

"Oh, well," Stephanie said. "I wouldn't feel comfortable going out there with what I'm wearing." She looked down at her pants and simple shirt that covered up her stomach. "But I'll think about it."

"Just a representative from your family, you know, you could talk to your dad about it."

"Yeah, I'll definitely bring it up with him."

"Okay, cool, just let me know who it is ahead of time," Hunter said. Then he looked at Stephanie and tilted his head a little, "You seem happier today, is something going on with you that I don't know about?"

"No, nothing," she said, furrowing her brow. "Um, I'm a day more pregnant than I was yesterday?"

"No, I guess there's nothing then, thanks for letting me do this, I know that you run a tight ship around here and that the schedules are out and everything, but I was just hoping that it would be okay if I could do this for him."

"He deserves it," Stephanie said. "He definitely deserves it and it's a really nice gesture. Everyone's going to call you a big softie after this."

"Great, my reputation is ruined," he said. He watched as she stood up, "Are you going somewhere?"

"Yeah, a couple places actually, I was going to find my dad, let him know what's going on and then I was going to find Shane. He's kind of helping me out, getting into the groove of things for when I'm on maternity leave with Flynn."

"Flynn?"

"Yeah," she said with a smile, "Her name has been decided, and we're going with Flynn Jericho."

"You do realize that Sawyer and Flynn sounds like Sawyer and Finn, which sounds like Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn."

"Wow, I didn't even think of that, oh well, that's kind of cool if people think Chris and I are so cultured that we'd name our children after literature characters instead of for entirely different reasons altogether."

Hunter laughed, "Well, if that's what you want. Flynn, Flynn, I'll have to get used to that."

"It's a name, you'll get used to it, or you'll call my kid some weird nickname like you call Sawyer tough guy."

"Your kid is tough. I saw him yesterday during my match. He looked surprised to see me. Are you telling your kid that I'm usually in scrub matches? Did you show him my match against The Ultimate Warrior where he squashed me?"

"He may have recollection of this match, yes," she said, sticking her tongue out a little.

"Let me walk you out," he said, walking with her to her office door. He let her go out first and they started walking in the same direction but for different reasons. He shoved his hands in his pocket and looked at his ex-wife's stomach and then at his ex-wife. "So…was it difficult living with me?"

"What?" Stephanie asked.

"Was it difficult living with me, you know in my house?"

"Oh, I thought you meant in the shed," she said sarcastically. "Why do you want to know if it was difficult living with you? Are you inviting me to live with you…oh, did Chris tell you we were getting separated!"

"What? You and Chris are getting separated?" Hunter asked, shocked. "Wow, maybe I should ask you out."

She glared at him, "No, Chris and I were talking last night and he suggested time apart, but he meant time apart as in maybe taking a spa weekend with Trish since I'm pregnant and I'm stressed out a lot of the time and since Trish just got engaged and I didn't know what he meant so I asked if he wanted a separation and then he laughed in my face, and when I say laughed in my face, I mean he pretty much got right in my face and _laughed_, and then said that's not what he meant, but I jumped to conclusions like I do, and he's being a jerk and laughing about it."

"Okay, wow, no, he didn't tell me that, though it is kind of funny…in a very non-funny way."

"I think he did it on purpose so I would apologize, he's like that…wait, so why do you want to know what it's like to live with you?"

"Well, uh, I was thinking about asking Britt to move in with me permanently."

"Wow, serious."

"I know," he said. "It's just an idea. I mean, the drive to New York doesn't bother me a lot, it's not that long from Greenwich to New York, you know that. It's just that her place in New York is really small. She makes good money, as you know since you pay her, but it's expensive to live there, and I live on a huge property."

"With a huge, scary house."

"Exactly. I've got the room."

"Don't move in with her because it's more convenient for her," Stephanie told him. "She should want to, not just because you have more space, though you do have some great closet space in there."

"Thanks, but I know it shouldn't just be for that. That's why it's an idea. Did you move in with Chris before you got engaged or married or whatever?"

"Um, it was very gradual. Greenwich and Tampa were never close together, so it was always, well, whose house are we going to? Since we were hiding our relationship, it was always to his house because the risk of running into my father was less if we were in Tampa, and so I just brought more and more stuff until I realized that all of my stuff was there and it was just kind of…that's that."

He frowned, "So there was no big moment?"

"No, we just kind of woke up one day and I was like, hey, I live here."

"You're no help to me."

"Is Britt neat or messy?"

"In between."

"Oh, well, then it shouldn't be too much of a problem, should it? She'll get used to your obsessive cleanliness. I did."

"Did you really?"

"No," she joked. "Just ask if you want to ask her, what's the worst that can happen, Hunter? Hmm."

"She can say no."

Meanwhile, Chris was meeting with the newly rehired Cryme Tyme in catering. Britt was sitting next to him with some paperwork for them and Sawyer was on his other side, eating small pieces of pork chops and applesauce with green beans. He was watching his father carefully, wanting to know what he was doing. Chris took a couple sheets of paper from Britt.

"So, you know, welcome back and all that, we've got you scheduled for a match against Cade and Murdoch, that'll be the first match on the card, second segment of the night after Randy, so be prepared."

"We're always prepared," JTG said.

"Great, then it shouldn't be a problem," Chris said. He pushed the papers across the table, "These are the itineraries for the coming weeks, you know the drill, guys, I shouldn't have to inform you of anything. Just welcome back and try not to get into trouble and get yourselves fired."

"Yeah, whatever," Shad said, then looked to Sawyer, who was watching them. He opened his jacket to reveal some toys hanging there. "Hey kid, you want something?"

"Toys, Daddy," Sawyer said, looking in fascination. These guys had toys in their coats. He never had toys in his coats, maybe he'd have to talk to his mommy about this.

"Please don't try to sell toys to my son," Chris deadpanned.

"I think we should let the young man decide."

"He'd wear underwear on his head if he got to decide everything," Chris said. "You guys better go and get ready, the show is starting really soon and you don't want to be late on your first day back, welcome back again."

"Thanks," they said before getting up and walking away. Chris looked to Sawyer, who was eating intently, seemingly thinking hard about something. Chris didn't know what it was so he left it alone (Sawyer was still thinking about toys hanging from coats, maybe his grandpa could buy him one of those).

"So you and Stephanie are really, truly cool? I don't have to walk eggshells around you?"

"No, no eggshells," Chris said, "we're fine. There were some misunderstandings, some stupidity, but that's par for the course with Stephanie and I. We worked things out, just like everyone said we would."

"Good, because seriously, I'm your assistant _and_ her assistant, it would've been just as awkward for me if you two were to continue fighting and get divorced or something."

"If we got divorced, I don't think I'd need you anymore since I'd be fired or sent back to the developmental territory."

"Well, I'm glad things are settled, oh, here are your mom and dad, I'll go now. Stephanie probably needs me for something. Later, Chris."

"Later."

Ted and Loretta came over and with him at the table. Loretta kissed Sawyer's head and he offered her a green bean, which she graciously declined. "Hey, Mom, Dad, what's up?"

"We're thinking of driving back to Tampa. Your mother is tired and she doesn't think that she can stay up for the whole show and we have an early flight tomorrow that we should go to be early for."

"What? Are you sure? I have a match tonight, don't you want to see me?"

"Not particularly," Ted said.

"Wow, thanks."

He chuckled, "We just wanted to let you know and wanted to know if you wanted us to take Sawyer with us so he could get to sleep in a normal bed like a normal child does."

"That was a bit heavy-handed, Dad. Sawyer is used to living on the road, whether or not that's a good thing considering he's not even two yet, I don't know, but he's used to it. He can stay here with us. It's Ric's last night and well, I think it'd be cool if he were here."

"Oh, okay, that's fine, we'll see you in the morning then?"

"Yeah, don't leave without saying goodbye," he said, hugging his parents before they both went to give Sawyer a hug. That left Chris and Sawyer alone again. He looked at his son who was almost finished gobbling up his food. "So your mother wanted to get a separation last night, what are your thoughts on the matter."

"I like Mommy," he said plainly.

"Well, I do too, that's why it came out of the blue. You know what you should do when we see Mommy?"

"What?" he asked.

"I think you should say, 'Don't separate from Daddy.' Do you think you can handle that?"

"Um, no, he told his father.

"Too many words huh?"

"Too many," Sawyer parroted.

"Don't leave Daddy?"

"No eve, Daddy?" he mimicked again.

"Hey, that's not bad, you're just learning new words left and right, aren't you? Pretty soon you're going to be writing dissertations and then you're going to want to go to law school and Mommy will send you to wrestling school, it'll be a vicious cycle, I think your mom wanted to be a ballerina."

"A ballerina, gag me," Stephanie said, sitting down with a big plate of food, which covered all the food groups that she had to eat. "I would've never wanted to be a ballerina, not only that, I've got the bad knee, you know that."

"Hey," he said, giving her a kiss. "I dealt with Cryme Tyme so they're all set, they know when they're going on. Do _you_ know when you're going on? Do you think that you can eat all that food before the show starts in oh…" He looked at his watch, "ten minutes."

"Shane's taking care of the first part of the show for me. See, you say that I care too much about work, well look at me, I'm slowly letting Shane take more responsibility for the show and actually leaving him to run part of it without me even watching him. I'm just going to sit here and eat my dinner."

"While silently freaking out."

"No, just eating, making sure your daughter and I are well-nourished. Aren't you proud?"

"Yes, you've shown me up again, McMahon."

"I try to do it at least once a day," she told him, eating the same green beans that Sawyer was eating right now, though he was significantly farther in his green bean eating. Chris had already eaten since he wasn't a slowpoke like his family.

"How's Flynn doing?"

"This kid never sleeps, I'm convinced of it. She's so frantic in there. Before you know it, she's going to be big enough so that you can feel it," she told him, her eyes lighting up. "You'll love it, and Sawyer is going to be so freaked out."

Chris laughed, "He's going to lay more claim over your stomach than he already has. I just think he's going to kidnap his baby sister when she's born and take her away. He thinks we're unfit parents I think."

"Yeah, he wants to spare Flynn."

"Hey, Sawyer, what did you and I talk about a little while ago, didn't I tell you something."

"Oh…yeah. Mommy?" he said, looking at her while biting his bottom lip. Chris insisted that wasn't a trait of his, but it completely was. He did that all the time, biting his bottom lip and then smiling. She even had photographic proof, but Chris was a nonbeliever.

"What?"

"Don't eve Daddy."

"Don't eve Daddy?" Stephanie said, rolling the words around in her brain and trying to figure out what he little boy was saying. She mumbled it a couple of times and then she looked at Chris icily, "Don't leave Daddy, oh, very funny, Chris, very, very funny."

"What? I was just discussing it with the kid and he was like, up-in-arms about it. He couldn't believe that you would say something like that. I tried to explain, but he was having none of that. He got pretty angry, that's his message to you."

"Oh, sure it is," she said, wanting to fling a mashed potato into his face. Chris just smiled at her lazily and grabbed her fork to spoon some of her mashed potatoes into his mouth. He helped her out too by feeding her some mashed potatoes as well. "Don't steal food from your unborn child."

"Sorry unborn child," Chris said to her stomach. "When you come out, I owe you one spoonful of mashed potatoes." He turned back up to Stephanie. "I really am impressed that you're not in front of the monitors at your station."

"After last night's lighting disaster and other near disasters, I deserve the break."

"You are so overdramatic sometimes. Oh, lights this, lights that, my husband wants to _leave_ me."

"I swear to God, Jericho. I'm about to punch you in the face," she told him. He just leaned over and kissed her.

The show started and Shane sat at Stephanie's station at the gorilla and Declan was next to him, sitting on his knees as he looked at all the buttons in front of him. "Daddy, what does that do?"

"That's what I use if I want to talk to the referee," he told his son.

"Like in a match?"

"Yeah, like if I have to tell them that the match is running long or that we're going to a commercial or something like that. Like a couple weeks ago, Aunt Stephanie had to go to the doctors and Uncle Chris was out in the ring and we needed to tell him, and so this button was pushed and he was told."

"And Auntie Steph was alright, right?"

"Yup and Uncle Chris was able to come see her."

"Cool," Declan said. "What about this one?"

"That one goes to JR, you know JR."

"Yup, is the show starting, Daddy?"

"Yeah, so watch me make some magic," he said, making a funny face towards Declan, who made a funny face back, but watched his father closely as he pushed a bunch of buttons and talked to various people over his cool set of headphones. Shane was just glad that he wasn't completely boring to his son. He wondered what Declan would think of him if he had seen that match he had against Kurt years ago. He probably would've thought he was crazy or scary or something.

"Do you remember which button is JR's?" Shane asked.

"Yeah," Declan answered, "that one."

"Press it for me."

Declan's eyes lit up and he pressed it eagerly and then watched as his father gave some sort of directive to JR on the other end. Then he went back to talk to people he didn't know and he watched the monitor in front of him and whenever his father would tell them to change something with the camera, something happened on the screen so it was especially cool to see that his father was in charge of everything. It made him want to be just like his dad.

"You two are happy!" Trish said, wiggling in her shoes as she saw Stephanie and Chris sitting together with Sawyer. Trish clapped her hands, "Yay!"

"Wow, did someone turn on the laughing gas?" Chris asked with a chuckle.

"No, I was just thinking about how you should be happy because me and Chrissy are happy and I want everyone to be happy tonight and for the rest of their respective lives," Trish said. "And Chris, thank you for playing for me last night, that was really sweet of you to do."

"You're lucky that I actually can read music," Chris told her, "but it was my pleasure."

"And thanks for turning the pages, Steph!" Trish said, hugging her friend. "You two are good now, right?"

"Stephanie asked for a separation," Chris said.

"Christopher Jericho," Stephanie seethed. She turned to her friends, "He's being a jerk. There was no talk of a separation. He's just rubbing it in because I misunderstood something that he said that was very vague. He said we should spend time apart, what does that mean to you?"

"Um, I don't know," Christian said.

"I thought it meant he wanted a separation."

"When I really meant that maybe it'd be nice if Stephanie got away for the weekend."

"Yeah, he thought that maybe it would just you know, give us a little space apart from each other so we can you know, regroup. The pregnancy is stressful so he wanted to make it easier for both of us because instead of a jerk, he's actually a thoughtful jerk. So Trish, what are you doing this weekend?"

"Nothing."

"So come with me to a spa, we'll get pampered, it'll be like an engagement gift or something. We'll leave the boys alone and it'll just be us girls, you, me, and Flynn. Even though she can't really enjoy anything right now."

"I'd love that, man, this is like the best!"

Stephanie laughed, "It'll be great to just get away, for me at least, and this way, I won't have to miss work. So now that that's over with, let me see this ring!"

"Oh my God, that's right, you haven't seen it! Oh my God, you have to see it in better lighting, let's go," she said, standing up and grabbing Stephanie's hand as they scurried away from the guys and out of the room.

"Congratulations, Christian, I'm really happy for you two. It's about time you made an honest woman out of her," Chris told him. "Are you excited?"

"You have no idea," Christian said, turning to his friend. "She loves me, man. She loves me and she wants to be with me forever, you just have no idea."

"I kind of have an idea."

"Please, you and Stephanie broke up like, for what, two seconds? Don't even compare it."

"Okay, I'm just happy that you're happy, it's been a long time coming and I'm just really happy for you."

"You're a groomsman, dude, I'm letting you know right now."

"Edge your best man?"

"He has to be, he's my brother."

"Of course I will."

Trish let the light glint off of her ring as Stephanie examined it. "Oh, that's beautiful, Trish. It really sets off your eyes."

"He's so thoughtful," Trish said. "He remembered when I said that I wasn't a really big fan of diamonds so he got me the emerald, but it's beautiful and I love it, and I'm so happy, you should've told me the kind of happy that I was in for."

"I thought the whole marriage and two kids thing was kind of a tip-off."

"And the sex, oh my God, the sex," Trish said. "You're going to be a bridesmaid for me, right? I'm having one of my sisters as my maid of honor, you know, tradition and all of that, but you're my best friend, you have to be one of my bridesmaids."

"Absolutely, but when's the wedding, I don't know if I'd feel comfortable being in a wedding if I'm nine months pregnant."

"Oh, no, we haven't set a date, but I'm thinking some time in September, so you'll have already had the baby by then. I wanted Sawyer to be the ring-bearer though, I know Christian wants him to be the ring-bearer too. He loves that kid you know."

"Yeah, I definitely get that."

"When he's around him, he just adores him."

"Trish…"

"No, don't worry, none of that yet, Christian and I discussed it, we aren't ready. But we'd love it if he could be in it too."

"He'd love that, are you kidding me? Half the time I think he's ready for the ring."

"Yeah, right, like you'd let him, but thank you so much," she said, hugging Stephanie, who hugged her back. She spotted Carlito over Stephanie shoulder and she pulled away with a sigh. Stephanie didn't understand until she looked over her own shoulder to where Trish was looking.

"Hey, you know, I've got to get to work some time this evening and what better time than now, you know," Stephanie said indelicately. She was trying not to be obvious about why she was leaving, but she was completely obvious. "We'll talk later."

"Yeah, definitely," Trish said, already distracted. She was walking towards Carlito, who was just leaning against the wall reading a magazine. She got closer and cleared her throat. Carlito looked up and saw her, his eyes widening in surprise. He had heard she was around, but they hadn't really seen much of each other. "Hey, Lito."

"Hey, Trish, what's up?" he asked, trying to remain nonchalant.

"Nothing, I just wanted to say hi, you know," she said, clearing her throat again. "How have you been?"

"Got a few complaints, but you know, it's not too terrible or nothing."

"That's good, I heard your brother is just about ready to come up to the main roster, that's gotta be kind of cool, how is Eddie?"

"I think he wants to be on the main roster now," Carlito said.

"So, look, before anyone else really finds out even though probably everyone has by now--"

"I know you're with Christian."

"Oh, well, yeah, I figured, but we…we got engaged last night, and I just wanted to let you know before it all gets out."

"Oh, wow, congratulations," he said, and he sounded mostly genuine. "I figured it was bound to happen at some point."

"Yeah, well, I'm sorry, you know, I loved you, I did."

"I know, it's cool," he said, though they both knew it really wasn't. She didn't have anything left to say to him, so she just said a quiet goodbye before she went to leave and find Christian again. She didn't like being without him for even a few minutes since they got engaged.

Carlito watched her walk away with a wistful look on his face.

Stephanie was trying to figure out if she was actually waddling now. Her stomach wasn't huge, she was only four and a half months pregnant, but she felt way bigger now than she had with Sawyer. She just felt like she was bigger, but Sawyer was her first so things were developing for her a little quicker this time. She didn't want to be waddling though, waddling was not fun and she kept thinking everyone would think of her as a duck.

"Stephanie!"

She turned and saw Ric coming towards her and a warm smile covered her face. "Hello, Ric."

"Hello, you're looking beautiful tonight," he told her, "pregnancy agrees with you."

"Oh, don't flatter me, I feel awful," she told him. Everything was starting to get into that swollen phase too, and she knew that her face was getting the brunt of it right now as far as she was concerned. Chris always told her she was beautiful, but she sure didn't feel like it.

"Well you don't look awful to me."

"Thank you, how are you doing tonight?"

"It's emotional, you know. You've been in this business for what, 30 years now?" he joked, "You know how the script goes."

"I don't think I was coherent for most of those 30 years."

"Neither was I," he winked. "I just wanted to thank you for allowing me to have time at the end of the show."

"Oh, Ric, come--"

"No, no, don't say that I deserve it," he told her, cutting her off. "Just let me thank you for it. You've done an amazing job around here, your father must be very proud. It's a thankless job, I know, but you do it well."

"Ric, you're not leaving forever," she told him.

"I just wanted to tell you, your father is going to be leaving everything in some very capable hands."

"Thank you."

"No, thank you for making every show a pleasure."

She blushed again and he left her with those words. She walked to her station where Shane was. Declan had gone with Marissa back to the hotel to get back to bed. She sat next to her brother and grabbed a pair of headphones, slipping them on and slipping so comfortably back into her work. The time passed rather quickly as everyone was anticipating Ric's farewell speech. It was going to be an emotional night and Stephanie was chock full of hormones so she didn't know how she was going to react. She figured that bawling would be part of the equation.

Chris joined her before his match. Sawyer was with him, dragging along the IC title behind him. Chris was dressed for his match and she hated that stupid vest and wanted to rip it off and burn it. Oh, there were those rage hormones, she was wondering where they had gone to. Chris leaned back in his chair and lazily put his arm around Stephanie, watching her at work. Occasionally he would rub her shoulder gently or poke her in the arm, making her shove his hand away, but he would just put it back.

"I hate that vest," Stephanie said out of the blue.

"Huh?" he asked, surprised.

"It's hideous, you should get rid of it."

"Wow, thanks."

"If it isn't three of my children, or children-in-law."

"Wow, Vince, never, ever call me your child-in-law, that's creepy, very, very creepy," Chris told him.

"What is it, Dad?"

"Nothing, just coming to see you at work, and we have to figure out which one of us will go out for Flair's farewell. You did mention that Hunter, I can't believe you're letting him coordinate this, but you mentioned that he wanted someone to come out individually to represent the McMahon family."

"Yeah, that's right."

"I think it should be Steph," Shane said.

"What? No, I look awful, I'm not going out there looking awful."

"You can go to makeup and get done up in no time."

"Still, I'm pregnant, my husband doesn't want me near the ring, don't you, husband?"

"Well, not wrestling."

"Chris," she hissed.

"Steph looks hideous, like…like a slut or something, a two-dollar hooker, filthy, dirty, disgusting, yada, yada, yada ho."

"See?" she said. "I elect Shane."

"What? I'm trying to get the hang of things back here since I'm taking over Stephanie. I think I should have to handle something big like this, with all the cameras and the announcers and what not, I think it should be me staying back here."

"Then Dad, it's you," Stephanie said.

"No, it's not going to be me, I'm not going to take away from Ric's moment, so it's not going to be me. This should be all about him. So I don't think it should be me."

"Well, it has to be one of us," Shane said. "Send Sawyer out, he's part of the family."

"Wait a second…"

"What, you aren't actually thinking that, are you?" Shane asked. "He's a little too young, I don't think he can climb the steps."

"No, but there is someone here of age and under contract who is part of the McMahon family," she said, turning her head to look at Chris.

He looked at her when he felt her eyes on him. "Wait, what? Are you suggesting me?"

"I think I am," Stephanie said.

"Um, McMahon," he said, gesturing to the three people around him, then he pointed at himself, "Jericho. Do you not see the difference? I've heard of couples starting to look alike as they stay together longer, but this is ridiculous, I don't look like a McMahon."

"But you _are_ a McMahon, well, you're part of the family," Stephanie said. "Right?"

"That's right, Chris, you are part of the family," Vince said.

"One of us, one of us," Shane chanted at him and Chris flipped him off.

"Right, you can't deny it."

"I may be…on the outer edges of the family, yes, outer edges!"

"No you're not. You're the father of both of my children," Stephanie said. "Therefore, and a huge therefore, there are McMahon and Jericho's mixing together in our son and daughter, so you are bound to us by blood now."

"Is it too late for a paternity test?" he asked.

"Yes," she told him. "Chris, you're a part of this family, you could very easily represent us."

"Stephanie…I have a match and I'm going to stink."

"You can shower, or he'll understand."

The three of them were looking at him like vultures circling around their prey. They knew he had a hard time saying no to Stephanie. He was like a sacrificial lamb and this was _not_ what he signed on for when he married Stephanie. He knew being in the McMahon family came with responsibility, but this was ridiculous. Still, he did admire Flair a great deal and he wouldn't mind getting to pay tribute to the man personally instead of just at some random moment.

"Fine," he gave in. "Fine, I will go out there and I will represent you crazy people. You should all be locked up for manipulation."

"When that becomes a crime, call us," Vince said.

"I've got a match," Chris said, leaning over to kiss Stephanie.

"Win this time. Show him who's boss," Stephanie told him. "He thinks he can beat you one-on-one, well he's got another thing coming to him, okay."

"I know. Sawyer, the belt."

"Okay, Daddy, here," he said, handing it over nicely. They'd had a nice talk about the belt and sharing this morning.

"Thanks, kid," he said, getting a kiss from him for good luck.

He went out for his match, the crowd cheering. It was going to be thunderous later when Ric came out. He could feel the anticipation in the crowd for that moment. Everything else tonight was just filler. As CM Punk came down to the ring, Chris thought about what he'd do after the match. He could take a quick shower, or he could just towel off. It probably depended on what Sawyer was doing.

Punk came into the ring and the two locked up, then traded kicks to the leg, which were mostly useless. These two had been the fiercest competitors the night before, so it was only fitting that Chris come out and prove that one-on-one, he was the better wrestler. Hell, he was probably better than 98 percent of the roster. The two went back and forth, with Chris trying several times for the pin, but coming up fruitless.

He gave the other man a side slam, but again, it didn't end the match. At one point, Punk was on the outside and Chris went for the springboard dropkick, but Punk was able to move out of the way at the last moment. They fought for a few moments, Punk giving him an elbow to the mouth before Chris flipped him over the ropes. He felt like he could taste blood and he checked to make sure he was okay. Chris knelt on the mat, but got back up to go for a baseball slide, but he slid right out of the ring, then got knocked into the barrier.

It wasn't looking good for Chris, but he managed to get Punk down and attempted the Lionsault. Punk moved out of the way, but Chris landed on his leg and man, that always hurt. Stephanie was going to give it to him later. She hated it when he attempted the Lionsault and missed. The upper-hand eventually swung his way again and he landed the Code-Breaker that got him the win.

He checked his mouth again and was handed his belt before he smirked. He moved his jaw around a bit and made sure he was totally okay. He held up his belt and looked at Punk for a second before climbing out of the ring and going backstage. Sawyer was the first to greet him, arms outstretched. He handed him the belt and he took it back over to Shane happily.

Stephanie was the second and she grabbed his jaw. "Oww, Steph."

"It's hurt, isn't it?"

"No, I'm fine, you're just grabbing me and you have nails."

"Oh," she said sheepishly. "Sorry."

"You should be," he said.

"What about your leg?"

"Fine."

"Next time, land it."

"I will, I will, geez," he said. "Is that separation offer still up for consideration? Because, on second thought, maybe I'll take you up on it."

"I'm going to take both of your kids far, far away," she told him, ready to work on his knee herself.

She didn't get a chance to as Hunter walked up to her, "Steph, you summoned me."

"You make it sound like you're Igor or something," she said, turning around. "Oh, and there's your mother, you sure do like to bring her along."

_Sorry_, Hunter mouthed to her and she just looked at him.

"It's nice to see you again, Pat," Stephanie said as politely as she could muster. This woman was going to hate her forever and it never got any easier seeing her. It was over six years ago that she and Hunter had split up, but if you looked at Patricia, she acted like it was yesterday. Hunter was such a Mama's Boy and didn't even know it.

"You're pregnant…again," she said, looking down at Stephanie's stomach.

"Oh, yeah, I didn't tell you, Mom," Hunter said. Chris rolled his eyes. It was funny to see Hunter so afraid of someone. He rather liked it. He wondered what Thanksgiving dinner was like in the Helmsley residence.

"That's…fantastic," she said with mock enthusiasm.

"Stephanie, your kid is trying to draw on the Intercontinental title!" Shane called out.

"Sawyer, don't do that, come here," she said. Sawyer obediently got off of his chair and sauntered over, a pen in his hands. She took it from him since it was an ink pen and she didn't want to clean up little blue hands later. "Now why don't you go just play with the belt."

"Play wif baby," Sawyer said instead since he was looking right up at Stephanie's stomach. He reached out to rub it gently and whispered to himself, "Baby…"

"Okay, you can play around the baby, since Flynn's still in my stomach," she said.

"So, you called," Hunter said, directing the conversation back to him.

"Yeah, I called you, I just wanted to tell you that Chris will be representing the McMahon family during Ric's thing later."

"Chris?" Hunter asked. "Chris _Jericho_?"

"Do you know any other Chris's in the McMahon family?" she asked slowly.

"No…"

"So yeah, come on, Sawyer, let's go play," she said, going over to her station.

Hunter turned to Chris, "How did you get roped into that one?"

"Stephanie, Vince, and Shane all staring at me. I'm surprised they didn't get Linda, Rissa, D, and Kenny in on the action."

Hunter laughed, "It's good though, so I'll just call you out then."

"Yeah, just call me out."

"Cool, later man," he said, walking away with his mom trailing behind him. "Don't even say it, Mom."

"She's pregnant again?"

"She's not rubbing it in."

"Oh, she is absolutely rubbing it in."

"Mom…"

"Who does she think she is?"

"Mom, I love Britt, let's remember this."

"She's twenty-six."

He just rubbed his temples and kept walking.

There aren't many times when you can safely say that you think you're going to be a part of history. Chris felt like that though when he was waiting backstage with a bunch of legends. Ricky Steamboat was standing right there and Chris was always agog whenever he was around. He resisted the urge to go over to him and act like a fanboy. He owned the company, he was dignified, who was he kidding, this was _so_ cool.

Flair was out there right now and he was already emotional. Chris couldn't imagine what it would be like out there, knowing that you had done everything in this crazy business for a number of years and then to walk away from it. He was trying to hold it together as Stephanie held onto him. Everyone was back here, packed in tight, wanting to watch the moment and yes, it felt like history to him. Wrestling could be such a fraternity this time and it felt like the head of the fraternity was graduating and leaving everyone behind without a leader.

Stephanie sniffled a little when Flair said he would never wrestle in this ring again. She remembered years ago, begging him to let her back on his show, but he wouldn't budge. She remember selling her shares to him and him being excited to come in and own part of the company. She felt Chris kiss her head and she smiled. She wouldn't have been able to go out there.

Hunter went out there, microphone in hand to greet his friend. Flair had been an inspiration for him when he was young and a friend to him when he was older. This man was one of the finest men he had ever encountered in his life. There weren't many people that knew the real Hunter, or cared to even _know_ the real Hunter, but Ric was one of them. He was one of the few that knew this man and knew the goodness in his heart and Hunter would miss that dearly.

So as one last hurrah to him, he brought back Ric's past. He brought back old friends and newer friends. He started with the Four Horsemen, legends apart, perhaps bigger legends together. He brought out Ric's friends, he brought out the man that had been in Evolution with him, the one and only Batista, who lifted him off of his feet. A couple more guys and then Hunter announced Chris's name.

Chris came down to the ring, absolutely humbled by getting to be there. He wasn't just representing the family he happened to marry in and the company that he partly owned, but he was there as a fan of Ric Flair's. He got into the ring and embraced the man who had treated him like a human being in WCW when he had felt like he was nothing more than a pawn in a war. Ric embraced him warmly and Chris returned the embrace.

"I'm here on behalf of all the McMahons," Chris whispered to him.

"You take care of that wife and those kids, okay, they're the next generation."

"You're amazing, Ric, amazing."

"You're going to get that title back, I know, just keep working, the fans love you."

"Thank you so much for everything," Chris said, pulling away and feeling completely in awe of this moment. He stood back, letting Hunter go on with his tribute and he nodded to his friend, who gave him a smile and a nod that seemed to thank him for letting him do this. Cena was out next and then his family came out and Ric, who was already gone, was even farther gone and it was even getting to the toughest guys right now.

Eventually, Hunter invited anyone else who wanted to come out to come on out from the backstage. Out the came, every single person on the roster, from every roster, backstage people, everyone came out and joined in the raucous chants thanking Ric Flair for stylin' and profilin' for so many years and entertaining so many people. He was in complete appreciation for everyone showing up for him, and humbled by the experience. If there was ever any doubts in his mind as to why he did this day in and day out for so long, for why he put himself out there for years, it was here. He had friends gone whom he wished could be here, but they were here in spirit.

Everything he could possibly ever want was here, and he was thankful.

The cameras stopped rolling, but nobody was leaving, the cheers only getting louder and louder. Undertaker came down to pay tribute, a rare show of solidarity and now that the cameras were off, Vince felt like he wasn't stamping on the moment so he came down as well. Chris and everyone got out of the ring and gave Flair a chance to give one final farewell and in true Ric Flair fashion, he did it with class, style, and a hint of being the dirtiest player in the game. He brought his family back to the ring one last time for his final bow and then he left the ring, and everyone seemed to hold their breaths as he took that one final step down. He walked up the ramp, the crowd parting for him.

Vince patted Chris on the back for representing them so well and they watched as Ric approached Stephanie. He hugged her again and she kissed him on the cheek. She had been one of the last to come out, since she had been crying like a baby back there. Sawyer was still backstage with Christian and Trish. He laughed and pulled away and then hugged her again.

"Thank you, Ric, for everything."

Then he walked away, but it wasn't too sad, more…wistful than anything else. Yes, a legend had just left the ring, but he had that legacy and nobody can ever take that away from you. Nothing could take away from the kind of wrestler that Ric was, and the admiration from his fans and colleagues alike was enough to warm his heart a million times over. So it wasn't so much an ending for him, just a step in a new direction.

The chants of "Thank you, Ric" would ring around the entire locker room for hours.


	178. Chris as Ref Not Bad, April 7to14, 2008

A/N: So I was going to update last week, then heard Chris was supposed to be on American Idol and I was thinking, "How could I _not_ write about that, think of the possibilities!" Anyways, he obviously didn't show (grumble, grumble, Stephanie was going to tease the heck out of him), so yeah, this chapter is just last week and this week since there was no Chris mid-week. Anyways, I'm so glad everyone seems to be enjoying the story, and thank you so much for the reviews, I really appreciate them and they really do help, so please keep them coming. :)

* * *

Chris sat in his car, drumming along to the beat that was playing over his stereo system

Chris sat in his car, drumming along to the beat that was playing over his stereo system. He was so into it that he had his eyes closed and he was just feeling the music. He was here later than usual so he decided to take a few moments to himself before entering the chaos that was Raw. He didn't normally get to listen to his music on the drive over, but today he was alone so it was two and a half hours of his own metal music blaring through the speakers of his car.

When the song was finished he nodded his head in satisfaction, happy that he didn't have to play kid's songs or slower rock stuff like Stephanie enjoyed. No, for a couple of hours, he had been a free man, free to listen to what he wanted and stop where he wanted to eat and not what Flynn was demanding Stephanie eat, or what Sawyer thought looked like a fun place. Nah, for a few hours Chris was just one man, a bachelor again and it had been great, refreshing even.

He looked at the building. Inside the building was work and that meant he would have to give up being the independent guy, the long wolf. He had arrived by himself tonight, so he didn't have to wait for anyone and grabbed the duffel bag sitting in the passenger seat and pulled it out with him from the car, beeping the doors shut before he started walking towards the building, cherishing these last few moments of freedom.

It ended quickly as he saw Stephanie ahead of him. She was talking with one of the crew guys, pointing at something in the back of one of the huge trucks. He rushed up behind her and took her into his arms, dropping his duffel bag as he started kissing her neck. She groaned and pushed him away, but he was persistent.

"Chris, stop!" she said, turning to the guy next to her, "Yeah, so we'll call the insurance company about getting that fixed, luckily we brought a back-up."

"Yeah," Alex said. "I'll get that for you."

"Thanks," she said, then pulled Chris behind her as she walked back into the building. "Don't do that while I'm working."

"Sorry, I couldn't resist, you were just looking so hot," he told her, leering at her.

"Why do you insist on doing that?" she asked him.

"Insist on doing what?" he asked.

"Telling me that I'm hot, I do not feel hot, so please don't tell me that I am hot right now. It just alerts me to the fact that I'm only getting bigger and will eventually have to leave because I'm going to be waddling around like a duck."

"You're beautiful, Steph, come on, you were beautiful with Sawyer, you're beautiful with Flynn, and you'll be beautiful if we have more kids."

"I want five," she told him.

"Don't you ever joke about that," Chris told her. "Don't you ever, ever joke about that."

"What? What if I do want five? I want to make sure that the company is set."

"Five kids, you're killing me, McMahon. You're going to have to find some other guy to help us out with that. What do you think Hunter is doing?"

"Eww, no, I should get to choose who I sleep with," Stephanie said, then pointed at John Cena who was just arriving, "What about him, do you think he would father my children?"

"I'm not sharing you with _him_," Chris said, kissing her neck again. "In fact, I don't want to share you with anyone, so I guess I'm just going to have to deal with having five kids, _five_? Geez, Stephanie, can you make it like four and a half?"

"Well, we'll compromise at some point," she told him. "You have the Highlight Reel tonight, that's all I have scheduled for you."

"Why?"

"What do you mean, why?"

"No match?"

"No, is that a problem?" she wondered.

"Well, I don't know, I kind of like to wrestle, you know, it's what I signed on for, but if you want me to just do a Highlight Reel, I guess that's fine. I'll do whatever you ask me to do because you're my boss."

"And your wife."

"That too, unfortunately."

"I just didn't want you to be sore tomorrow," she pouted, "I guess looking out for my husband isn't top priority to me."

"No, looking out for that thing growing inside of you is top priority," he said, rubbing her stomach. She smiled at him. "Damn, when is she going to start kicking so I can feel her? Sawyer started kicking around this time."

"Well, maybe it's because Sawyer was a boy or something," she said. "Maybe he was just bigger than she is, I don't know these things, Chris. She'll kick harder when she feels like kicking harder and not a moment sooner."

"Wow, so she is going to be like you then," he said as he took Stephanie's hand as they walked down the hallway to her office. He let go of it a moment later though to wrap it around her waist so that he could put his arm on her growing stomach. Now that they were settled into this second pregnancy, he was starting to enjoy it more.

It was incredible to know that there was something growing inside of Stephanie again. Now that they were really, really into this pregnancy, now that she was almost halfway through it, he was really starting to appreciate it. They knew they were going to be having a little girl, and he was excited for her. She was probably going to be beautiful, and now that he thought about it, he loved having a baby in his arms. It was surreal just getting to hold your child for the first time and he was looking forward to that more than anything else. He could just imagine her now with Stephanie's eyes and Stephanie's everything. Sawyer looked so much like him that he still wondered what kinds of kids he could produce with Stephanie. There were only a few discerning features in Sawyer that could be traced back to Stephanie, like his chin dimple. So he hoped that Flynn was going to be a perfect blend of him and Stephanie and show the world what it truly meant to be beautiful.

He could imagine her having Stephanie's mannerisms too. Sawyer was a lot like Stephanie, though he was like Chris too. Still, a lot of the time, he was just like Stephanie with his short temper and his easy frustration. He could imagine a little girl just like Stephanie too, and he thought that would be adorable. He rubbed her stomach a little bit more and he was happy to know that Stephanie was happy about this baby too, it just sealed the whole deal. She had confessed to him that she hadn't really felt any kind of connection with this baby until she moved. That had been the turning point for Stephanie and it seemed appropriate that something that big would set off the emotions in Stephanie.

"Oh, well aren't you two just freaking cute."

"What is it now, Shawn?" Stephanie asked.

"Nice stomach."

"It's called pregnancy," she said snidely, "so really, what do you want?"

"What do I have on slate tonight?"

"Highlight Reel," Stephanie said, which made Chris look at her, "with Batista, so be ready for that one."

"Batista?"

"Yeah, I figured with you two being…all macho, might be nice to have you both on the Highlight Reel."

"What are you setting up, Stephanie?" Shawn asked.

"Nothing, noting at all," Stephanie said innocently. "Trust me, if I were setting up something, I would make sure that I had my husband doing the dirty work because that would give me a lot more satisfaction."

"Oh, I'm sure it would," Shawn said snidely, walking away from the two of them.

Chris turned to his wife and said, "You are up to something, aren't you?"

"Dave's a friend," Stephanie said, "if I want something done, like him coming here and confronting Shawn on my husband's show, I can make it happen."

"Very sneaky," he told her.

"I have it in me every now and then," she told him with a wink. "So how was my baby when you left?"

"He was fine, he was sleeping peacefully," Chris told her. "I don't think he'll freak when he wakes up and his grandma is there. I think if we had left him with a babysitter, he might've been a little freaked out, but he'll be fine. He got his meds before he went to sleep so he should be pretty okay."

"I never should've let him sit out at WrestleMania when I knew it was wet and cold out there," Stephanie said, berating herself, "that plus what was it, 77,000 people, yeah, that's a good combination for a 2-year-old boy."

"Almost two," Chris reminded her.

"I know how old my son is," she said, sticking her tongue out at him. "I just shouldn't have let him go out there."

"Hey, I was the one out there without a shirt on," Chris said, "why aren't you worried about me?"

"Because you are old," she told him, "plus, he's just a little boy, I don't like it when he gets a cold, this is only like his second cold ever, and it sucks. He's my little boy, I don't like seeing him sick like that."

"I don't either, but he's getting better, he'll be fine."

"I know," she said, downtrodden. "I miss him, that's silly, isn't it? I mean, he's usually here every week and he loves being at the show and seeing everyone. Now he's stuck at home and he doesn't get to be here."

"Yeah, but the kid gets to go to London next week, how cool is that for him?"

"Like he'd know what London is. He'd just think that it was another plane ride and another place where people talk funny. He won't know. Plus, it's a long flight and I'm worried he's going to get bored, are you sure we should bring him with us? I don't mind staying home to be with him. It'll be good, you know, we'll actually get that time apart since I couldn't get away this weekend with Sawyer being sick."

"Steph, you wouldn't want to miss the show."

"Yeah, but Shane is helping me now, so it could be good for him to get used to it."

"Do you really want to stay at home?"

"No…but Sawyer…"

"We'll keep him occupied," he said, kissing her forehead, "he's very easily occupied."

"Well, if you say so."

--

"Hey, where's your ring?"

Trish looked down at her hand, where Christian was also staring, "I took it off."

"What do you mean you took it off?" he asked. "I didn't think that you were supposed to take it off. It means something."

"I know what it means," Trish said, giving him a look, "but it's still a ring so it's meant to be taken off, since when do people have to weld rings onto their fingers?"

"I've never seen Stephanie without her rings," Christian pointed out.

"Are you kidding? She didn't wear them for half of her pregnancy with Sawyer," Trish told him. "Her fingers got too big. It's not like I took the ring off in public and then started waving it around like I didn't have anyone that I was engaged to."

He smirked, "I really like that word."

"Engaged?"

"Yeah, just sounds so permanent."

"More permanent than married?" she asked.

"Well, no…"

"I didn't think so. I took my ring off so I wouldn't lose it while we were moving everything. I wouldn't want it to get lost, would you?"

"No, I wouldn't want that," he said, "still, your ring looks so bare without it."

"Aww, you're sweet," she said. "So…speaking of the wedding, we're going to kind of need a date so we can start to plan it, I'm going to assume that we're having it in Toronto, am I right? It's our hometown."

"But we live here now," he reminded her.

"So, your point is…"

"Do you think we should get married here?"

"No, I think that we should get married in Toronto," she told him. "Our families are there, both of our families, it's our hometown, I think it would be nice, I already know of some nice places where we can get married, and it would be easy for our families to come and attend."

"Well, you've got a point there."

"I know I do, I just think it would be really nice to get married in the town where we both grew up and didn't even know that we were growing up in together. Do you ever think about that?" she asked randomly.

"Think about what?"

"What it would've been like had we met earlier," she told him. "Don't you think about that? You're not much older than I am. Two years, we could've been in the same high school together for all we knew."

"We didn't, we went to ones across town from each other."

"Still, you would've only been a junior while I was a freshman, what if our schools played each other and we saw each other and we fell madly in love?"

"That would've been weird," he said, "because we both ended up as wrestlers. What if we fell madly in love with each other and then we broke up because we were young and then we both ended up in the WWF, I think that would create a very awkward situation and we probably wouldn't be where we're at right now."

"Or we could've seen each other again, realized that we were both ready to try again."

"Isn't that what happened?" he asked. "I mean, we weren't ready before, but we're ready now, you know?"

"Well, I guess," she said, "but that's not a very good story. I mean, high school sweethearts that lost touch, ended up in the same profession, in the same company and finding love again, doesn't that sound so romantic?"

"You've gotten really weird since we've been engaged," he told her jokingly. "It's all romance this, romance that, where's my Trish?"

"I'm still here, I'm just incredibly happy," she said as she made her way around her boxes and walked up to him, wrapping her arms around his waist. "I'm so happy you have no idea, I mean, I know you wanted to me to move in with you, but we're engaged! That's like…serious."

"Well yes, marriage is serious," Christian said, giving a short laugh. "I would hope it was serious. I don't want it to be an open thing."

"Never," she told him. "We're getting married!"

"I know!" he exclaimed, matching her enthusiasm, "But you're not wearing your ring!"

"I didn't want it to get lost, you probably didn't think to get a replacement, did you?"

"Well, no…"

"That's what I thought. So it's better that I took it off. Besides, there's nobody here, so there's nobody I have to make sure knows that I'm a taken woman now and that I will be taken forever and ever."

"Damn straight."

"I want to get married in September," she told him, hugging him tighter. "Summer's just ending and fall's just beginning and it's warm, but not too warm and everything is just really beautiful in September. What do you think?"

"I will marry you…you just say the word."

"Great, then September it is."

--

"Has your mother always been like this?"

"Been like what?"

"Completely overbearing," Britt answered.

"She's a little much, I know, but she's not that bad."

"Not that bad? Hunter, she _is_ that bad. I love you, you know this, but your mother is just…she's so…she sent you e-mail with pictures of her friend's daughters who are, and I quote, 'around your age, tell me if you want to meet them,'" Britt said, reading off of the particular e-mail.

"You shouldn't be reading my mail," he teased.

"You wanted to check it!" she protested. "Because I'm allowed to have it because it's company-issued and you were bored. It was fair game, Hunter."

"She just thinks you're young."

"Yeah, because I'm such a child," Britt said sarcastically.

"She means well."

"No, she doesn't. How can you just excuse this, Hunter! She doesn't like me and she's trying to get you to dump me," she told him. "How is this possibly okay to you?"

"She's just opinionated."

"I'm sorry, but it's disrespectful."

"Britt…"

"Don't Britt me, Hunter, I'm not trying to make her like me, if she doesn't, she doesn't, I can't change that, but she doesn't have to treat me like this. She doesn't have to treat me like I'm not worthy to date you."

"That's not how it is."

"That's exactly how it is!" Britt said. "If you can't see that, then, you know what, I don't want to see you."

She folded up her laptop and got her things before she started to walk out of the room. Hunter got up from the bench he had been sitting on and went after her, grabbing her by the arm so she wouldn't leave. "Britt, come on, babe, please don't go."

"No, you're being so nonchalant about this, but it's not funny. I don't like the idea of your mother setting you up with other women when you have _me_."

"You are good enough for me."

"Tell that to her," she said, "I've got to go."

"Britt, wait."

"I have work to do, seriously," Britt said as she walked out of the room, letting it slam behind her.

--

"You want to watch Raw and see your daddy?" Linda asked.

"Mmhmm," Sawyer mumbled to her as he swiped at his eyes. Linda wasn't even sure he'd make it to see Raw. He was still getting over his cold and he wasn't feeling well. He had been cranky when he had woken up from his nap, but a stuffy nose will do that for you. He took a big sniff in and Linda sat down next to him, running her hand through his blond hair.

"Do you like watching Daddy?" she asked.

"Yeah," Sawyer mumbled around his pacifier. Linda had called Stephanie earlier and she told him that Sawyer could have his pacifier if he really wanted it. Usually he wouldn't want a pacifier, but when he wasn't feeling well or was upset, he would want one. It was the same with his bottle. Usually he didn't want one, but if something was wrong, he would crave the familiarity.

"I thought so," Linda said very seriously.

Sawyer coughed a little bit and that upset him because he hated feeling like this. He also hated the fact that his mommy and daddy weren't here. He was used to the routine by now. They would spend some time at home, then they would go off somewhere that he had never been before and it would be fun and exciting and he got to see lots of people and his daddy would take him to see things and his mommy got to push a lot of buttons.

The phone rang and Linda reached over to grab it, knowing immediately who it was. "Hello, sweetheart."

"Oh, hi, Mom, I'm predictable, aren't I?"

"Just a little bit."

"Sorry," Stephanie said. "Were you this protective over me and Shane?"

"Well, I was of Shane because he was my first, I didn't like him sick, by the time you came alone, I was used to it," Linda told her. "I think the same can be said for Flynn. You'll be used to it."

"How is he?"

"He's fine, he's trying to stay up to watch the show, is Chris going to be on early?"

"No, I have his scheduled for later in the show. Sawyer will probably try to stay up regardless though, he's stubborn like that. He'll probably fall asleep before Chris is on, can I talk to him?"

"Sure," Linda said, then turned to Sawyer. "Sawyer, your mommy wants to talk to you."

"Okay," Sawyer said, pulling the pacifier out of his mouth and handing it to Linda. She took it from him and then handed him the phone. He took it with both of his hands and held it up to his ear. It was backwards at first, but he knew this wasn't right and put it back the correct way. "Hi?"

"Hi, baby boy!" Stephanie said brightly.

"Mommy," Sawyer sighed happily.

"Aww, you recognize my voice," Stephanie laughed. "I just wanted to call you and see if you were feeling better. Do you still have your cold?"

"Uh huh," he told her, and she could see his pouting even from Albany. "Where you?"

"I'm at Raw right now with Daddy, but we'll be home tonight and we'll come and give you our goodnight kisses when we get there, we promise."

"Okay," Sawyer said, his voice perking up a little bit more. He did want his mommy though, but he knew she would come back, she always did. "Daddy?"

"Daddy's off somewhere being Daddy," Stephanie told him. "Daddy acts silly, huh?"

"Yeah, silly," Sawyer said, smiling, but then getting seized with a coughing fit. Stephanie winced as she heard it, not because of the volume on her phone but because she didn't like to hear her little boy coughing. She should've put him in something warmer for WrestleMania. What was she thinking just letting him go out there in a light sweater and a raincoat? He needed something warmer. He was very small.

"Okay, well, Mommy has to go work, but you be good for Grandma, okay?"

"Okay, I good," he confirmed for her.

"I love you."

"Love you, Mommy," he told her. He handed the phone back to his grandma, "I done."

"Oh, well thank you," Linda said, "do you want this back?"

"Binky, pease," Sawyer said, taking the pacifier from her hand and putting it back into his mouth. He went back to lying on the couch, sniffling the entire time.

"He sounds a little better," Stephanie said. "He only coughed a couple of times."

"Yeah, he's definitely on the mend, but you should go, you've got a show to take care of."

"Yeah, that's right, well, bye."

"I'll be expecting your call in an hour," Linda said smugly.

"Bye, Mom," Stephanie responded drolly.

"Bye, Stephanie."

Stephanie ended the call and put her headphones on. A second later, Shane came over with Declan by his side. The little boy looked happy to be with his father. Shane was trying out the traveling thing with Marissa to see if she could possibly travel with him while he took over for Stephanie. Marissa had already told Declan's preschool that he would only be coming in three days a week, and Kenny wasn't in preschool yet. Marissa worked for the company, so it was easy for her to travel. He thought if Stephanie could do it so easily, he should be able to as well.

"Hi, Auntie Stephy," Declan said as he climbed onto a chair.

"Hey there, cutie," she said, kissing his forehead.

"Where's Uncle Chris?"

"Probably off somewhere being goofy."

"I want to be goofy!" Declan exclaimed. Uncle Chris was just so much fun to be around.

"Well, you can probably be goofy later," she told him.

"Okay," Declan said, "Daddy let me push the buttons."

"He did?"

"Uh huh, I got to help," Declan told him. "I got to help because Kenny's a baby, and he can't help. He's with my mommy and they're tired…Kenny is."

"Oh, Kenny's tired?"

"Uh huh, because he's a baby."

"He seems like a big boy though."

"I'm a big boy," Declan said. "I'm four. Kenny's only…uh…two, right?"

"Yeah, he just turned two."

"That's right," Declan said.

"Yeah, it is," she told him. "Are you going to help your dad again tonight?"

"Uh huh, does Sawyer help you?"

"Well, he tries," Stephanie said. "Maybe when he gets a little bit older like you he can do stuff too."

Stephanie was about to answer when Britt sat down next to her in kind of a huff. She pulled open her laptop and started typing. Stephanie had to say it was a very angry typing. She didn't say anything as the show got under way. She let Shane take the lead. She remembered her fight with Chris and she didn't want him thinking that she really did spend all of her time working and couldn't take a step back.

It was a difficult transition for her. When she was pregnant with Sawyer, Chris had been the one taking over for her. That was a good thing because he still let her do most of the work because he knew that she wanted to do most of the work. Shane, on the other hand, didn't know that she wanted to keep working full-time until she could no longer work at all so he was doing more and more. She just let him, knowing he liked to work as well and knowing that it would show Chris that she was letting someone take over for her.

She listened to Shane direct the show and ran her hand over her stomach. She loved her daughter and she desperately wanted to meet her, but her children always came at inopportune moments. She was just getting into the groove again, the one that had been disrupted by Sawyer, and now she had to leave again. She and Chris had wanted to wait until Sawyer was about four to even bring up the subject of more children, but it seemed that things never went as planned for the two of them. Stephanie didn't get to tell he father on her own time, Chris didn't get to propose the way he wanted to, Stephanie didn't get pregnant when she wanted to, Chris didn't get to come back when he wanted to, and now Stephanie couldn't have her second pregnancy when she wanted to.

She could hear the angry typing even through her headset and she looked back over to Britt, who was indeed typing angrily still. She pushed her headphones off, she didn't need them anyways, and kind of peeked over Britt's shoulder. "You must really be mad that we're traveling next month if the way you're typing up those itineraries is any indication."

"It's fine."

"Something wrong?"

"How open are you to talking about your marriage to Hunter?" Britt asked.

"Wow, um, ask away? I'm not married to him anymore, so I can pretty much tell you anything…you know, within reason, I don't think I'd be comfortable thinking about our sex life," Stephanie told her.

"Nothing like that," Britt said, turning away from her keyboard. "Did his mother hate you?"

Stephanie laughed. She couldn't help it, she just had to laugh. "At first, she really liked me. I think probably because he had been dating Chyna before me and she didn't like her. At first, she was so happy we were together. She wanted us to have a baby right away. I think she was the one that coerced to start trying the first time we started trying."

"You…tried for kids with Hunter?"

"Sort of…it was never like a concentrated effort, but there was a bit of planning, you know," she shuddered now at the thought of sharing children with him. "But apparently I can only get pregnant when I'm not trying."

Britt gave a short laugh, "But then what happened?"

"Well, after Hunter and I started drifting apart, she kind of turned on me. She didn't like me, and then, well…the whole fake pregnancy thing just soured her on me. I don't blame her for that. I was in a bad situation and I just didn't know how to get out of it. I didn't think…I didn't think Hunter would divorce me if I asked, not with the perks, so I hurt him to make him not want me anymore. It was bad for a while, there was a lot of bad blood between us, there had always been bad blood between him and Chris, so when we got together, it wasn't pretty, but we all got over it. Unfortunately, his mother saw this as a slight towards him. She thinks me having kids is rubbing it in his face."

"She hates me," Britt said. "I've seen her twice, but she hates me. She thinks I'm too young for him."

"Really? It's not like you're 19 or something."

"Apparently 26 is too young for him."

"Oh…"

"And he excuses her behavior, like it's nothing. She's sending him pictures of women for him to date around his own age, can you believe that? She says stuff about these women being around his age and all of this. It's frustrating and he does nothing."

"Well, he is a mama's boy, a huge one. He'll never tell you to your face, but he is. He just excuses her behavior as him being her little boy since he's the youngest."

"Yeah, well, I'm mad at him," Britt said. "He needs to stand up to her about this. I'm not going to sit back and watch her try to break us up. That's just…no, I'm not going to do it."

"Well go you!" Stephanie said, encouraging her. She paused, "That sounded really dumb, didn't it?"

"Just a little," Britt said with a laugh.

"I thought so."

--

"So I was cleaning out some stuff while you went and got the pizza and well, um," Trish said. "I found a bunch of things belonging to Tiffany. I didn't know what to do with them so I kind of put them into a box. It's upstairs."

"Oh, I'm sorry, I thought she had gotten everything when she left."

"It's okay."

"You sure you're okay, I know that can be kind of a shock, you know."

"I knew you were with her, and I know she lived here, Chrissy," Trish said. "It's not like you can erase her from my memory."

"I know, I just…"

"It's okay, you loved her and I'm okay with that," she told him. She wasn't sure if that was true, but she couldn't change the past. It happened and it was there, and they were together now so she wasn't going to let herself stew about it.

"Are you sure?"

"Chrissy."

"Trishy, you can tell me anything that you want to tell me. We're engaged now, you're supposed to tell me about these things. If something's bothering you, you tell me. This is what we're supposed to do."

"What we're _supposed_ to do?"

"Yeah," he encouraged. "So what's up?"

"It's nothing, really, it's like, very minor, not a big deal. I just…it's the past, you know, and…it's hard to erase some of the hurt so quickly. I will be okay. It's just there's so much stuff that's still lingering in my head."

"Trish, I love you more than…"

"No, no, I don't need that," she told him. "It didn't matter if you loved her more than me or less than me or even just the same as me. I know you love me and I know you want to be with me."

"There's something else in your head, Trishy?" Christian said, scooting closer to her. He took her plate and set it down on the coffee table. "Come on, it's just me, you can tell me."

"Chrissy, I'm fine. I promise."

"Okay, but if you want to talk to me…you know where to find me."

"Yeah," she smiled, "I always know where to find you."

--

Hunter looked at Britt, who was refusing to look at him. Oh, she knew he was there alright, she had felt his presence when he walked in and she could feel his eyes on her right now. But she was not looking at him, and she wasn't going to look at him either. She was upset with him and she wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of knowing that she was thinking about him. Let him have to be by himself for a while.

She was upset with his insistence that his mother wasn't being malicious. It sure felt malicious on her end. She knew that Hunter was older than her. It had occurred to her before they started dating, when they started dating, and right this very moment. She didn't much care though. She knew Hunter didn't either, and that should be the end of it. His mother was just taking this too far and Hunter needed to say something to her, but he was being way too passive for her liking. He claimed to love her, but he wouldn't defend her.

She could feel him walking over. She concentrated even more on her work. He stood there for a good few seconds, just standing there, arms folded, staring at her. Stephanie, who had been talking to JR through her headset, took note of Hunter just standing there. She smirked as she watched the two of them. How many times had she been in Britt's position? It felt like a million times over that they had fought just like that.

Hunter heard laughing and looked over at Stephanie. "You think this is funny?"

"A little," she admitted. "Just go to your mother!"

"Whatever, stay out of it," Hunter said, walking off and onto the stage. Britt smirked happily. She had withstood him standing there. He wasn't going to intimidate her into talking to him. If he didn't understand why she was upset, then too bad for him, it wasn't her fault he was being dense.

However, she was kind of happy that Hunter had gotten another shot at the title. She wondered if this counted as his rematch clause that they always had in title matches. She had become familiarized with the contracts since joining the company a couple of years ago. She did want him to win, she loved him after all, but she was mad at him, and when he came back, happy with this new title match, she went back to ignoring him. It was the same routine again. She sat there as he watched her.

This time, Chris came into the area, wanting to talk with Stephanie about something when he saw Hunter just standing there, staring down Stephanie…no wait, he was staring down Britt. He glanced at his wife and she shrugged. He walked next to Hunter and emulated his position, standing there for a few moments without saying a word.

"What are we staring at, dude?" Chris said.

"What? Huh, oh, I didn't see you there, Jericho."

"What's up?"

"_Britt_ won't talk to me," Hunter said, saying her name loudly to get her attention.

"Maybe there's a reason for that," Britt said nastily. "I don't want to talk to someone who just lets their mother dictate everything that they do."

"That's not what I'm doing," he protested.

"Of course it is! You're letting her walk all over you. What next, Hunter, you going to let her talk you into going out with one of those girls?"

"No," he said, "I wouldn't let her do that."

"Sure you wouldn't," Britt said.

"Britt…"

"Leave me alone."

"Fine!" he said, stalking off, fed up with her behavior. Britt, embarrassed and still angry, closed her laptop and decided to finish her work in Stephanie's office. Chris took her seat and leaned over to kiss his wife.

"Where have you been?" Stephanie asked.

"Around," he said vaguely.

"Well that's nice and descriptive, does around mean that you were sleeping with someone else who doesn't have to be creative because they have a rather large bump growing out of their middle?"

"Yeah, that's exactly what that means," he shrugged.

"Damn you," she teased.

"So tell me, were we like Britt and Hunter when we were fighting?"

"Worse, we've both got worse tempers."

"That's true," Chris said.

"Hi, Uncle Chris!" Declan said, jumping off of his chair and going over to his Uncle Chris, hugging him around the waist awkwardly.

"Hey Big D, what' up, my man?"

"Do you want to go play?"

"Don't you think it's a little bit late?" Chris asked, looking at his watch.

"No, Daddy said I could stay up because…"

"Because?"

Declan had forgotten, but he needed an answer, "He likes me!"

Chris and Stephanie laughed, "I hope he likes you," Stephanie told him. "It would kind of be bad if he didn't."

"Oh, yeah, it would," Declan agreed seriously. "Let's go play, Uncle Chris!"

"Did you ask your dad?"

"You don't have to," Stephanie whispered to him. He shrugged. It was fine with him if Declan wanted to play. He was missing his own son right around now and he was kind of lonely, so playing with his nephew would be fun.

"Dad!" Declan said sharply.

Shane glanced over to Declan, "Yeah?"

"Can I go play with Uncle Chris?"

"Yeah, sure," Shane said, actually happy to have Declan be occupied. How could Stephanie and Chris think this was fun for Sawyer? What little kid wanted to hang out here every week, was the question running through Shane's mind. "If Uncle Chris isn't busy?"

"Nah," Chris said, "come on, kid, let's go get into trouble somewhere."

"Yay!"

"No," Stephanie said, looking at him.

"Okay, just a little trouble," Chris said as Declan ran ahead and he started jogging towards the direction where Declan had run off to.

Stephanie turned to her brother, "You've got things covered, right, Shane, I've got a meeting."

"Yeah, sure," Shane said distractedly, already back into the show.

Stephanie figured he was okay and got up to leave. She walked down the hallways, hearing Chris and Declan from somewhere around the arena. They were probably running around like a couple of little boys. She rolled her eyes. Sometimes her husband was such a child. She didn't know how he was going to act when Flynn was old enough to run around. He was probably going to wear their kids out. She found the locker room that she had been searching for and knocked.

"Come in!"

Stephanie walked in and smiled, "Hey."

"Hey, Steph, what's up?"

"I just wanted to thank you for coming tonight."

"You know it was my pleasure," he said, walking towards her and giving her a light hug and a kiss on the cheek. "You look good, pregnancy is agreeing with you."

"Thanks, it's okay," she said, looking down at her stomach.

"I heard you're having a girl."

"Yeah, we work quick to get the whole little girl and little boy thing," Stephanie joked. "So are you sure you're okay with this?"

"I didn't like HBK to begin with, it's no problem knocking him down a few pegs," Dave said. "I just can't believe you hate him that much."

Stephanie sighed, "He's been making snide remarks to me since I was like 19. It's getting a bit infuriating now. It doesn't even have to do with the Ric thing, though it was convenient. I haven't really told Chris, but ever since I got pregnant this second time, whenever I see him, he always has to make some stupid remark about how I don't know who my kid's father is, or how I'm a slut, or how my daughter is going to end up just like me, and that's the one that really bothers me."

"He really is a jackass, isn't he?"

"Yeah, except nobody would believe me if I told them. He's still that jerk that he was back in the day. That stupid, cocky jerk, but nobody sees that side of him. It bugs me, I just want him knocked down a few pegs."

"You do have a husband, you know."

"I know, but…he's already so protective of me…if he found out just how much Shawn bothers me and the things he says, there's no way…he's going to go off and in a bad way. I'd like for my husband not to go to jail. When you bring his children into the equation, that's when he gets ugly."

"Yeah, I can understand that."

"Yeah," she said. "So, well, you two had this…well, it just looked like you weren't happy with him either, so I called you, and I do consider this a personal favor."

Dave waved that off, "Don't, you're a friend. I never get to see you, but you're a friend, we go way back when you wanted to get back at Hunter, even though now he's like, what, your best friend."

"God no, I'm not that desperate," Stephanie laughed. "Thanks though, and I'm sure Chris has got your back. He knows, at the very least, that I don't like Shawn, so he kind of dislikes him by association."

"Whipped."

"Just a little bit."

--

"Okay, I'll talk to my mom."

"What?" Britt asked.

"I'll talk to my mom. I'll tell her that she needs to stop treating you like that."

"Really?" Britt asked.

"Yes, really. You're partly right."

"Partly?" she interrupted.

"Yes, partly. I shouldn't let my mom intimidate you. I'm sorry for that."

"Well…thanks," she told him. "I forgive you."

"Yeah?"

"Come over here."

--

Chris didn't want to get involved in the whole Shawn and Dave thing. It wasn't his match to win or even fight in so what did he care? He just kind of let them go at it with each other and took a step back. He didn't really hate Shawn, per se, but he certainly hated the way that Shawn treated his wife. Still, that was nothing to really get upset about, so he really just kind of faded into the background while they were talking with one another. Better not to get involved with things like this. He had his own stuff to worry about.

Though the smirk that Stephanie gave Dave when he walked backstage intrigued him.

**April 14, 2008**

"Daddy!"

"Yes?"

"Daddy," Sawyer growled through gritted teeth as he stalked towards him. "Monster!"

"You're a monster?"

"Uh huh."

"So in England you're a monster, but in America, you're a lion?"

"Yes," Sawyer said, very seriously.

"Oh, okay," Chris said, just as seriously. "Do you want to go find Mommy?"

"No."

"No?" he asked, surprised. "You don't want to go see Mommy?"

"No," he repeated, shaking his head. "Wanna play."

"Oh, you can play around Mommy, you know? She likes to play with you too, not just me," he said, lifting Sawyer up and sitting him on his shoulder. "I bet she'd want to play with you too."

"No," Sawyer said again, patting Chris on the head.

"Well, can _I_ go see her?" Chris asked.

"No," Sawyer said, "No Mommy."

"I can't see Mommy?"

"No," Sawyer said, "we play."

"Okay, but can I just go say hi to Mommy?"

"Okay," he sighed unhappily. He wanted to play, but all his daddy wanted to do was go see his mommy. He didn't feel like seeing her. They were in this strange place and everyone talked really funny and acted really funny and he wanted to go explore. His mommy couldn't explore, but his daddy could and they had gone walking all over the place! His mommy couldn't walk that much. She had to sit down a lot now. That was really too bad because it was fun exploring.

"Just for a second, why don't you want to see Mommy."

"No play."

"Cause she can't play?" Chris said, wanting to know if he understood what Sawyer was saying.

"Yeah."

"Oh, well, she has Flynn in her tummy, remember? So she can't do a lot of stuff."

"I know," Sawyer said, "baby."

"Yeah, the baby, but guess what?"

"What?" he asked curiously.

"Mommy is more than halfway through her pregnancy, so now we get to countdown until the baby comes?"

"Oh," he said. "Okay."

"Yeah, so in only 20 more weeks, you're going to be a big brother, can you believe that!" Chris asked, tilting his head to look up at his son.

"No!" Sawyer said excitedly, though he didn't really know what Chris was going on about. What was 20 weeks? Was that a long time?

"Me neither, I'm going to be a dad to two kids, crazy."

"'Azy!" Sawyer emulated.

"Do you want the baby?"

"Uh huh, my baby," Sawyer told him.

"I know, I just hope that you'll allow me to see her every now and then, maybe pick her up and hold her. I mean, I'm just her daddy, right?"

"My daddy," Sawyer said.

"Well, I'll be Daddy to both of you. I'm her daddy too, unless your mommy has something to tell that she really should've told me before I got attached to the new baby."

"No, Mommy nice."

"Okay, yeah, Mommy's nice to you, but what about me."

"You too."

"Very little," Chris said as he pulled Sawyer down off his shoulder and held him in his arms. "You know, you're not even two years old yet and you get to come to Europe, how did that happen?"

"Dunno," he told his father.

"You're spoiled."

"Yeah," Sawyer conceded. Chris laughed and shook his head.

"Well, at least you know it."

Chris was about to say something else when he heard his wife's voice. He smiled at it. Sometimes you just had to smile when you hear the voice of the love of your life and now was no exception. He was about to turn the corner when he heard another voice and he stopped. He was intrigued as to what these two would be discussing so he decided to lay low for a second and see what was going on.

"I want time at the top of the show."

"Take it up with my brother or Regal, I'm taking a step back from everyday procedures. I'm easing into a more managerial role for now," Stephanie said.

"Give me a break, you know you could give me the time if you wanted to, but you would rather just torture me, right?"

"No, I would rather you go away," Stephanie told him. "But I'm serious. I'm preparing my brother to take over for me so take it up with him."

"You, not work? I just half-expected you to go into labor in the ring so that everyone could see because you'd love the attention," Shawn said.

"What the hell is your problem? Are you actually standing there, whining to me because you aren't getting your way? I told you that you can take it up with my brother. When and where I choose to work is none of your business."

"You could give me the time."

"I could, but I'm not going to because I'm not the one who's ultimately in charge. How hard is it to go to my brother and say, 'Shane, I would like some time at the top of the show'? Not too hard, right?"

"Why, so he could just tell me that you told him not to do it?"

"Oh yes, because that's what I want to do. Why are you constantly haranguing me?"

"Because you're a spoiled, little brat," Shawn told her.

"You're unbelievable. I drugged you, I know, I get it, it was an awful thing to do, but why must you hold a grudge over it?"

"I just think you're a horrible human being, is that too hard for you to understand. I mean, do you get what you did?"

"It was like, two years ago, Shawn, get over it."

"You used your son, remember, that precious, little boy that you hide from everyone."

"Don't you dare bring him into this, and so what? Have you met Sawyer, that kid is awesome, he'd approve."

"Oh that's great, let your son approve of you drugging people. He's going to grow up exactly like you and the rest of the McMahon family, corrupt, manipulative, and what about this daughter of yours, huh? She going to be a slut just like Mommy?"

Stephanie slapped him across the face. "Don't you dare say another word! I have told you repeatedly not to talk about my daughter that way. Look, I know that there's no love lost between us, there never has been, okay? I know that we got off badly, you didn't make the best first impression on me, whatever, okay, I drugged you, but you went too far, Shawn, don't you ever insult my children. I have _never_ insulted yours."

Chris had to make his presence known. He walked around the corner, Sawyer still in his arms as he walked up to the older man, standing side-by-side with his wife. "Hey, what's going on here?"

"Nothing," Stephanie said. "Shawn was just asking for time at the top of the show, but I told him to go ask my brother."

"And that's where I was going."

He walked off and Stephanie turned to her boys and smiled, "Hey, guys, did you have fun today?"

"Yeah, we did," Chris said, but then turned serious. "I heard everything, Steph."

"Oh, don't worry about it, Chris," she said, taking Sawyer from her with a groan. "Baby boy, you're getting too heavy, I won't be able to carry you soon with all this extra weight from Flynn, can we say Flynn now?"

"Fin," Sawyer said, trying his best.

"It's okay, we'll have you saying Flynn before she comes," Stephanie said. "Can you take him back?"

"Yeah, sure," Chris said, taking Sawyer back from Stephanie. He frowned a little. Even though he hadn't wanted to play with his mommy, that didn't mean that he didn't want to cuddle with her. He didn't quite understand yet that Stephanie wasn't going to be able to carry him all that much. It was going to be a blow to his system when he couldn't even carry her for a few seconds. He was used to being held by Stephanie whenever he wanted and that was all about to change.

It would change even more once Flynn arrived. Sawyer didn't know it fully yet, but he was going to have to share the spotlight with someone else. Flynn was going to need a lot of attention and a lot of care and Sawyer was getting bigger and more independent. Stephanie and Chris had already moved him to his toddler bed (though he had been used to sleeping in a bed for a while since he slept in beds at the hotels they stayed at), and he was in the first stages of potty training, where he knew when he had to go to the bathroom, just now how to do it by himself yet.

Flynn was going to be carried a lot as well and she was going to cry and be fed and she was going to be cute just like he was, but he didn't know that yet. Sure, he saw Declan and Kenny together and that looked like fun, and some of his playmates from home (Stephanie arranged play-dates with neighbors) had other siblings, but he was still too young to grasp fully that everything was about to change for him. He wasn't going to be the only number one anymore, he was going to share that position, maybe even take a step back since Flynn was a baby. He should ask Chris for pointers since Chris had had to leave Stephanie's spotlight once Sawyer was born.

"You said repeatedly, has he done this to you before?" Chris asked. She could tell that he was way more pissed off than he was acting. Maybe it was for the benefit of Sawyer, maybe it was for her, or maybe he just didn't want to explode in the hallway and get guts all over the wall.

"Chris, I don't want to talk about it, I'm handling it."

"What do you mean you're _handling_ it?"

She smirked at him, "I'm handling it."

"Stephanie did you hear what he said about our daughter?"

"Chris, did you hear me slap the hell out of him?" Stephanie countered.

"Touché," he said. "How long has this been going on?"

"Um…12 years?" she said.

"Steph, be serious here."

"Chris, it's nothing that you have to worry about, okay?" Stephanie said. "Just focus on being the Intercontinental Champion. I still don't like that, you know. I really should've had them insert you into the title picture, Shawn would've hated that."

"Stephanie, he's insulting our kids."

"I know this, Chris, trust me, I know this," she told him. "But like I said, I'm taking care of it."

"All you do is fight with him," Chris said.

She shrugged. "I guess so."

"Did you sleep with him?"

"What!" Stephanie said, looking at Chris with a mixture of shock and disgust. "Okay, my pregnancy must've rendered me deaf because it sounded to me like you asked if I had slept with Shawn Michaels. Please tell me that's not what you asked."

"That's what I asked."

"God, no!" Stephanie said.

"He acts like a jilted lover or something. I know that he asked you out when you were 19, but this is just ridiculous. Are you sure you didn't have a one-night stand with him and it meant more to him than it did to you?"

"Chris, drunk or sober, I would never sleep with him, I love you."

"I didn't mean since we've been together, I know you haven't slept around on _me_, but I meant before, before Hunter, before him, all of that."

"No, see, I've had this little thing called taste."

"Well, you just argue with him…oh my God, you're going to marry him!"

"Okay, now you're just teasing."

"This is why you wanted the separation. You _say_ that you hate him, but deep down, you're attracted to him, aren't you? Aren't you?" he accused and she glared at him.

"Not even close to being funny," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "See, now I'm wondering why I went ahead and stuck myself with you. I mean, I could've left you at the altar, it would've been so very easy. But no, I had to be stupid and say I do and then have two of your children."

Chris leaned over and kissed the answer right out of her. It was a sweet kiss, his tongue only gently exploring her mouth before pulling away. "I love you."

"I love you too," she whispered.

"How are you handling things, Stephanie?"

"Chris, I told you not to worry about it. I'm going to take care of it, okay?"

"But how, and how often does he do this?"

"Chris…"

"Stephanie don't. It's my business, okay, when it involved my children and my wife, it's my business. That's how this whole family thing works, I know you might be hazy on the concept, but that's how it goes," he told her.

"Can we not do this in the middle of the hallway? I'll tell you when we get to my office."

"Fine."

--

"I'm ready to talk."

"Finally!" Christian said, rubbing his hands together. "I've been waiting all week for you to spill the beans."

Indeed, he had. He hadn't prodded necessarily, but he had kept letting her know that he was there for her and that she could talk to him if she wanted to. She had appreciated his adamancy, but she just didn't feel like talking about it, thinking that it would gloss over in her head. It had, to a degree, glossed over, but it was still on her mind, though not at the forefront. No, it was more like a nagging thought.

"I know," she said as she pulled him towards the couch. "Okay, here's the thing. I love you, okay, let me just preface with that, I love you."

"Okay, I love you too," he said, starting to lean forward to kiss her, but she stopped him. "You don't want to kiss me?"

"No, it's just," she paused and gave in, kissing him gently. He tilted his head a little and deepened the kiss, pressing the palm of his hand against the back of her neck as she leaned in towards him a little bit more, trying to close the distance that sat between them. She gained her bearings and pulled away, "No, no, I want to talk."

"Okay, go ahead."

"Do you think, do you think that you rushed this engagement?"

"Do _you_ think that I rushed this engagement?" he asked with wide eyes, that being the last thing he would've ever expected out of her mouth. He thought this had been a long time coming, what with their history.

"No…well, sometimes."

"What? But Trish, we've been together so many times, for so long," he said, stuttering slightly. He was started to get scared that she would break off this engagement. That would absolutely break him. He wouldn't be able to handle that in the slightest. Things were going so well, they were going so well, she couldn't want to break it off, not now.

"I know, I get that. What worries me is…what worries me is this thing with Tiffany."

"But I broke up with her, she said I should be with you."

"I know, and I appreciate that, but it's just, it's April right, and well, you proposed pretty much in April, and well, you proposed to her in December. I mean, you loved her enough to propose and then suddenly, she's gone, here I am, and I'm getting proposed to, and I don't know, sometimes I feel it's like, well, Trish is _always_ there, so I should marry her since I couldn't get the first person I wanted to marry me, I'll settle."

"Trish, oh my God," Christian said. He shook his head, "Is this what you think, for real?"

"Just sometimes, it's just, like you jumped from one woman to the other when the other left. What if Tiffany had said yes that night, Christian? You can't tell me that you wouldn't be marrying her."

"That's true," he said slowly. "I probably would be. I love Tiff, you know this. I did love her and I think I would've been happy with her."

Trish turned her face away slightly.

"But would I have been as happy as I am now? I can say with absolute certainty that I wouldn't be. You make me so happy, Trishy. Happier than anyone else I've ever been with. I proposed to you because I could not wait one second longer to be with you. I want to marry you."

"Then let's do it," she told him.

"What?"

"Let's just go and get married."

"What!" he repeated, more surprised this time.

"Yeah, what's stopping us?"

"The fact that we'd want all our friends and family there."

"Oh…yeah," she said, a little deflated. "Well there goes my great idea."

"Are we okay?"

"Yeah, I just, I don't want you to settle, ever, even if it's with me. I want you to have what you really want, me or someone else, I don't care, as long as you're happy with whomever you're with, that's all that matters to me."

"I love you…it's not settling."

--

"So, after I saw that confrontation they had and after I knew how broken up Dave was about Ric's leaving, I decided to give him a call. He was very much obliging about the entire thing and he said he would take care of HBK for me."

"You called in a favor."

"You can say that if you want."

"I can't believe he's been saying this crap about you. I can't believe he's been talking like that about our daughter, repeatedly. I mean, to say that she's going to end up a slut like you, Stephanie…I can't stand it."

"Chris, it's fine, I've got it under control."

"Stephanie, I don't care, this guy is insulting the most important people in the world to me besides me. My son and daughter come first, than you, and this guy is treating you like crap, no, uh-uh."

"Chris, don't do anything, okay, I have Dave handling it."

"I'm your husband!" he said. "_I_ should be taking care of it. I don't necessarily think it's in the job description to wrestle on behalf of your wife, but I'm sure that it doesn't hurt. This guy…he's unbelievable."

"I know, but don't worry about it, I'm thick-skinned. I can take it when someone insults me like that. I've certainly dealt with Shawn," it's fine," she told him, climbing into her lap. He wrapped his arms around her and gently rubbed his stomach. "His words are just words and I'm taking care of it."

"By being sneaky," he said.

"I love plans," she told him, kissing his jaw. They were wet kisses, as she ran her tongue over his skin.

"Yeah, I'm well aware," he said, closing his eyes at her touch.

"Flynn is moving around, she really likes hearing your voice," Stephanie whispered into her ear. Chris rubbed her stomach a little more firmly.

"I want to feel her," he whined.

"I know, soon though, hey Sawyer, do you want to feel Flynn kick when she starts to kick more?" Stephanie asked her son, who was drawing with big pieces of construction paper and washable markers.

"Yeah," Sawyer said, looking over at her.

"Good," Stephanie said. "So you trust me with this?"

"I trust you."

He trusted her, yes, that wasn't a matter of debate. Chris trusted Stephanie with his life. She had carried and was carrying his children and there had to be a good deal of trust there. That didn't mean that he didn't want in on the action though. He was getting pretty sick and tired of all the shit that Shawn was saying about Stephanie. It was getting to be too much. He had put up with it before because it all seemed rather benign. Sure, he would insult Stephanie, but Stephanie was a big girl and she could handle it. His kids on the other hand? You didn't mess with them. You just didn't mess with them. JBL had found that out the hard way when Chris had wrapped a cord around his neck. Austin had too when he had put Sawyer in danger. Now Shawn was going to get it.

That self-righteous, pompous man went out there to talk about what Dave had said. Stephanie was with Sawyer, sitting at her station. Sawyer was watching Shane do all the work. Chris had told him to put on Flair's music and it was blasting now. He knew it was a dirty trick, but it would certainly garner Shawn's attention. He waited a few more seconds, glancing over at Stephanie, who didn't look terribly pleased, but she let him do what he wanted in spite of that fact.

Chris walked out there, and at first glance the symbolism was not lost on him. Shawn was wearing a white shirt, like he was the knight in shining armor and Chris was in black, the evil knight. Except it was the other way around. Shawn was the bad guy here, but the fans didn't know it. Hell, even if the fans knew that he was merciless with Stephanie they still might cheer him. He knew his wife wasn't popular among the masses, not terribly popular anyways, though why that was stumped Chris.

He went to the ring, fully intending to defend his wife's honor. He did just that when he called out Shawn on what he was. He was despicable. The fans loved this cocky persona and that was fine, but he took glee in other people's pain. That's just who he was and that was who he had always been. He was sick and tired of hearing Shawn denigrate his wife time and time again. Yeah, so she had turned him down over 12 years ago, yeah, she had drugged him, but other than those two incidents, it seemed like the sole reason that Shawn hated his wife was simply because of her maiden name.

Chris wanted Shawn to admit it, just admit that he took pleasure in other people's pain. He egged him on, wanting him to admit it. They both knew this wasn't about Flair or Dave. They both knew that this issue was much deeper. Shawn knew that Chris had heard him earlier and that he probably now knew that this was a regular occurrence between him and Stephanie. Just like JBL had insulted his kids, Shawn had done the same, except he had been more secretive about it. Shawn was still the same guy who had thrown Marty through a barbershop window and who had screwed Bret Hart, he was still that guy, even if the fans didn't see it.

Chris saw it though. Chris saw it and he saw it affecting his wife and he wasn't going to stand for that. So he kept egging him on, wanting him to admit that he was just a pompous jerk who thrived on hurting other people. Chris wasn't expecting the kick to his chin, but he should've. He should've expected it and when it came, he felt a flash of pain mixed with his own stupidity. He grabbed his jaw as he hit the ground and he moved it around, making sure it wasn't broken. It seemed okay and he only briefly heard Shawn say something above him before leaving.

Shawn walked backstage and he glared at Stephanie for a moment before smirking wickedly at her, like he had won some sort of game. Stephanie didn't flinch though, she couldn't. She just stared down Shawn like she was a hungry lion and he was a piece of raw meat. She would get him, oh yes she would. She didn't need her husband to defend her, though she loved him even more for doing so. Shawn would get what was coming to him soon enough. Chris walked backstage, still rubbing his jaw and he walked over to his wife angrily.

"I want in on the match with Dave and Shawn."

"Take it up with my brother or Regal."

"What?" Chris said.

"Chris, you know I'm taking a step back from things, I'm showing you that this doesn't consume me, so take it up with them."

He grumbled, "The one time that I want to ask you something…"

"One time?"

"Okay, whatever, fine, I'll find Regal," Chris said after looking at Shane, but he was far too busy to even notice him.

"Why do you want to be in that match anyways? It's not your fight."

"Not my fight!" he exclaimed. "The man just gave me the Sweet Chin Music and you expect me to sit on my hands? Not only that, he insulted you and my kids."

"I told you I was taking care of that."

"Well, I didn't like how you were."

"Oh, nice," she told him.

"I'm getting in on that match. Regal made a Fatal Four-Way, he can make it a Triple Threat."

"Okay, go for it."

"You could be a little supportive."

She sighed, "I am supportive," Stephanie told him. "Sweetie, I love that you want to defend me, I really do, I just, I know how angry you get and I don't want you to completely lose it, you know. Things get personal so easily and this is intensely personal now."

"I can keep my feelings in check, I'll catch you later."

He wandered off in search of Regal. When he found him, he demanded to be put into the match between Dave and Shawn. Regal refused, however, and made him the guest referee. He didn't want to be the stupid referee for the match, he wanted to be _in_ the match so he could freely kick Shawn's ass. He was getting pretty steamed right now. Regal, being the jackass that he was, put him in a match with Umaga later for the Intercontinental Title match.

Something kind of popped inside of Chris and before he knew, after the cameras had stopped rolling, he said, "You know, I do own you, right?"

"Yeah, but you are a wrestler and technically I'm in charge of these kinds of matters."

"Yeah, but I own the company, I could put myself in that match if I wanted to be in that match," Chris told him, the power surging through his veins.

"It's already signed off, I'm sorry," Regal told him coldly. "You can however, be the guest referee, I suggest you take the position, Chris."

"Fine, I'll take the position."

Chris was now just angry with everyone. Well, maybe not angry at Stephanie, more disappointed that she didn't want him in this match. When he sat down next to her before his match later that evening, she just smirked at him and reached out to rub his arm with her hand. Sawyer was cuddling into her on the other side, starting to get a little bit sleepy and she rubbed his head with her other hand. Her boys needed such attention sometimes.

"Guest refs can do a lot, you know?" she told him quietly.

"I guess."

"You can make sure he doesn't win and then beat him down."

"That's true," Chris said, starting to warm up to the idea. "You know, you're right, I can still kick his ass, and in fact, I'll be the referee so there's nobody saying that I can't do that."

"See?"

"Wow, okay, yeah, I can do this."

"That's my boy."

There was something coursing through Chris that evening. Power, maybe, maybe something else. But there was definitely something there. He felt a little bit superior on this night, so that's why he didn't feel bad using the ropes for leverage against Umaga. He owned this company, he could do what he wanted. He was going to be the guest referee so he could do what he wanted there as well. This was just a small taste of what he would give to Shawn at Backlash, this power that was running through him.

Shawn was going to wish he never super-kicked Chris.


	179. Darn, No Kiss This Time, April 21, 2008

A/N: So another chapter dedicated to my friend, Manny, because he's feeling better and that makes me really happy, you're a _wonderful _friend. Love ya. :P

Enjoy the chapter, I hope. And leave a review, please. :)

* * *

"So Stephanie told me what all you're doing with her."

"Did she?" Dave said. "Where is she by the way?"

"She's sightseeing with Sawyer today," Chris said. "She said she and Sawyer are going to have a nice dinner without me, so you know, if she wants to have a dinner with an almost two-year-old, who am I to stop her? They're meeting up with a friend who lives over here."

"She just wants away from you."

"Yeah, that could be it actually," Chris said with an exaggerated sigh. "So okay, we have to come up with something tonight."

"What do you mean we have to come up with something?" Dave asked. "You're going to have a Highlight Reel, I'm going to come on the Highlight Reel and talk about my match. How did you finagle getting to be the referee? I mean, Regal must've talked to Stephanie, right? She put you in it."

Chris frowned, "No, I had to actually ask for it myself. I guess if Regal had said no I would've gone executive decision on him and put myself in it, but you know I don't like to use my powers for evil."

"You should, I would if I were in your position."

"And then get compared to Hunter, no thanks."

"I thought you liked the guy now," Dave pointed out.

"I do, but he was still a jackass when he was with Stephanie," Chris said with a shudder of disgust. "I don't want to be like that. I didn't marry Stephanie for that. But I really wanted to be in your match, we could've double-teamed Shawn and kicked his ass."

"We can still do that with you as a referee," Dave said, "I think that's the whole point of this, right?"

"Well, ideally," Chris said. "So that brings me to what I wanted to discuss with you tonight."

"Hey, before that, I don't think I got to congratulate you on the second kid. I hardly get to see you since I'm on SmackDown and everything, but yeah, congratulations on having another kid, you excited?"

"Yeah, I am," Chris said with a smile, "We're having a little girl, it's going to be so weird. Stephanie and I are used to that crazy boy that we have, I don't even know what a girl is going to be like, it'll be strange."

"Girls are cool though, I have daughters."

"Yeah, I'm excited though, I hope she looks like Stephanie."

"That'd be a trip, so what do you have in mind or something?"

"Well, it's like this, I don't want Shawn thinking I'm automatically on your side."

"What do you mean, don't you think he's going to guess that you're on my side simply because you hate him and your wife despises him? I think those are two very good reasons to be on someone else's side."

"Yeah, but I want to make it seem like I'm not on your side, Shawn doesn't know that we're on the same side, he doesn't know that Stephanie propositioned you and then recruited you to beat Shawn up, although I can take care of that, you know, I don't know why she doesn't come to me with these things."

"You've been with her how long and you haven't figured out that she likes to plan behind people's backs? Didn't her buying ECW tip you off to that back in the day? Or even just staying with Hunter?"

"I prefer to block out much of the time of her first marriage, frightening thoughts," Chris said, "but still, I'm back, you know, wrestling, she can come to me."

"She knows that, but this is still Stephanie."

"Yeah, anyways, you need to do something to me," Chris said, "tonight on the Highlight Reel, you need to do something to make it seem like you aren't on my side. You need to insult me and everything."

"I can do that…very easily as a matter of fact."

"Yeah, thanks," Chris said as he looked at the much larger, but not so intimidating man. "I want Shawn to at least think for a little while that you want nothing to do with me. Then when we gang up on him, which we're going to do I'm sure, he will at least not expect it off the bat."

"Yeah, I guess so, maybe you should refer to your wife when you're making plans because I think she's better at it than you are."

"She's been at it longer than I have too," he pointed out. "She's the one that's faked pregnancies, I mean, that's pretty high scale right there."

Dave chuckled, "Yeah, so you go out there, you insult me and I'm just going to insult you back, I don't think that has enough impact. I don't think that'll really go very far in the believability column."

"Well then what do you want to do, we have to do something," Chris said. He noticed that Dave was smirking and he didn't much like that smirk. It looked like the smirk of someone who wanted to do something very, very bad to him and that feeling was now growing in the pit of the stomach. "Um, what did you have in mind?"

"Why don't I give you a powerbomb?" Dave asked, that smile growing as large as the knot in Chris's stomach.

"Why must everything end with me on the ground writhing in pain?"

"Because you're an easy target?"

"What are you implying?" Chris asked suspiciously.

"That you run your mouth a lot so it's easy to want to kick your ass?"

"I resent that."

"Sure you do," Dave said. "So I powerbomb you, you look like a stooge or something and problem solved."

"I'm not on board with this."

"Well, I think that's what I'm going to do," Dave nodded, as if weighing his options and deciding that yes, this was what he was going to do regardless of what Chris thought.

"Don't I get a say?"

"Nah, not so much, you're the one who came in here and said that we needed to make sure that you didn't look like you were on my side, so I think…yes, I think that I came up with the best solution for everyone. So you know, there we go, sounds good, we've got the first segment too, so you better get out there."

"What? Wait, I don't want to get powerbombed, did you see the superkick that Shawn gave me on Monday, that hurt, I'm hurting, man, I don't think that I should be going through such punishment, I have a two-year-old son, he needs to look up to me."

"He's not even here and he's probably not even going to watch," Dave pointed out.

"I'm still not happy with this though."

"Too bad."

Chris made a huffing sound as he went to the door, "You know, I may not say it all the time, or at all really, but I do own everyone here, I could tell you that you're fired right now if I wanted. I wouldn't because then I'd have to explain why I fired one of the bigger stars, but I just want you to know that I could."

"So _now_ you want to bring that fact up."

"I choose my spots."

Chris was not happy when the Highlight Reel started. Yes, he knew that he had to establish that he was not on Dave's side and Dave didn't want to be on his side either, but he was tired of getting his ass beaten for no good reason. That superkick from Shawn on Monday hadn't done much damage to him physically, but it wasn't exactly and ego-booster and now he was going to get the same treatment from Dave. He wished he were in the match so he could counter whatever Dave wanted to do and just punch him in the face and then give him a Lionsault. But no, Regal was seemingly against him.

Dave came out there and Chris was cordial at first and then went into some crap about how Dave had been the one who wanted to retire Flair. Deep down, he figured that maybe Dave actually _did _want to be the one to retire Flair, so it might not even be far-fetched. As he was saying that, he kept thinking that it was probably Hunter who really wanted to be the one to do the honors and that made him almost want to chuckle. Chris wondered if Hunter had a Ric shrine somewhere in that pristine home of his.

Then he got powerbombed and he was still a little pissed, but it did accomplish what he wanted to accomplish with all this. He wanted to make Shawn think that he had no sides, that he was going to target Dave as much as he was targeting Shawn. He wanted to seem truly like the man in the middle of this entire mess and even though now his back was hurting, he had gotten that message clear. Usually he would've asked Stephanie for a massage before bed, but now she would just come at him with the fact that _her_ back hurt from carrying a child around.

He was losing battles everywhere.

By the time Monday rolled around he was back to being in good shape and his wife was with him, which made his mood infinitely skyrocket. His son was with him too and he wasn't lonely anymore without them. He held Stephanie's hand as she looked over some papers with the schedule on it and he had noticed that she was taking a step back just like she said she would. He was still hoping to convince her that making their daughter spend her first few weeks of life on a bus were not the best idea, but it was one thing at a time.

"So I'm letting Shane take care of the first two hours so that he doesn't have to stick around and he can take Declan back to the hotel, and I'm going to take the last hour."

"While our son sticks around."

Stephanie shrugged, "He's used to it. He's here every week."

"I love how you justify that," Chris said with a pretend sigh of happiness.

"He's two, he's got boundless amounts of stamina and energy, if everyone around here had that stamina, well, let me tell you, we'd get a lot more work done," Stephanie told her husband. "As it is though, I can't harness his energy in anyone else. Oh, would that child labor were legal."

"Just when I think that you can't say something even crazier than some of the stuff you've already said, you break out with the legalization of child labor."

"He just sits around and plays with his toys all day, come on, he can at least sort things for me, he knows his colors," Stephanie said, grinning at Chris.

"See, I'm starting to think you're getting pregnant on purpose just so you can have more employees running around for you. I can't wait until the day comes I come backstage and my son is the one who's handing me a towel to wipe down after my match, dressing in a little WWE shirt that says staff on it."

"Speaking of that guy, did you call them to set-up the playground?" Stephanie asked. "Because if you didn't, I swear…"

"Stephanie, I did it."

"Okay, because it was the _one_ thing I asked you to do, so if you hadn't done it, I would've been very upset."

"I called, they're going to install it the day before his birthday party, he is going to be so surprised, I can't wait until he walks out into the backyard and sees his very own playground, he's going to have a blast on it."

"I think so too," she said, "I'm so excited, can you believe that our little boy is going to be two years old, I can still remember when he was just a tiny baby and he fit so perfectly in my arms…now I can't even pick him up."

"Well that's because you've got another baby," he said, reaching out to touch her stomach. "I can't wait to meet her. I think she's going to be so kickass."

"Oh, what a nice way to describe our daughter, kickass," Stephanie joked.

She couldn't wait either. Every day it seemed that Flynn was getting stronger and stronger in there. She could feel her moving around constantly and it just made her want to meet her daughter that much more. It seemed like August was so far away and she didn't think she could wait that long. Obviously, she didn't want her daughter to be premature, but she wanted to hold her and just have that new baby smell around her again. Sawyer was old news and she wanted to read the new news.

"Well, she's going to be."

Stephanie's cell phone rang and she saw it was Trish so she put it on speakerphone, "Hey, Trish, what's up?"

"September 27th!"

"Oh my God, have we transported into the future!" Stephanie exclaimed. "Chris, what day is it?"

"Shut up," Trish said good-naturedly, "That's the date, that is _the_ date for my wedding, I am getting married on September 27th, isn't that exciting?"

"Wow, right after my birthday, it's like you're doing it in dedication to me," Stephanie said playfully.

"That's exactly why we picked it," Trish joked back, "But I decided that I wanted a September wedding and I knew that I couldn't do it if it was near a Pay-Per-View because you guys wouldn't be able to come and neither would a lot of our friends, so we didn't want that, and then I wanted to give you enough time to be in it and not feel fat, so September 27th feels good, it feels right, do you think that you'd be up to it?"

"Well, my due date is August 27th, so that's a month, Sawyer was a few days late, so assuming that might happen again, but she could be early, so I think I'm in the clear," Stephanie said.

"Good, because I don't want you to feel uncomfortable at my wedding," Trish said. "It's going to be so great, you have no idea. I have so many ideas. Now that we actually have a date I feel like my mind is just bursting with ideas. So when you guys get home and let me say right now, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, you have been gone _way_ too long, you should've never gone to Europe, we are going to talk about all of this."

"So I should look forward to long visits from you?" Stephanie asked. She didn't mind though. She was so happy that Trish was back in Florida. It got lonely sometimes when she didn't have anyone to talk to and now Trish was back and close by and she could visit whenever. It also had the added benefit of company when she would go on maternity leave and Chris would travel with the company.

"Yes, you should, and lunches all the time, which I'm sure you're all for because you're eating for two right now, so it's great for everyone!"

"What about my dress though?"

"Oh, we can wait on that until after you have the baby, we'll just kind of guess what size you were a month after Sawyer was born," Trish said. "So save the date, okay? Because you guys are in our wedding so you have to be there."

"Okay, okay," Stephanie said, "I'm really happy for you guys."

"Thanks, you too, Chris?"

"Ecstatic," he told her.

"Great," Trish said, "Okay, I know the show is going to start soon so I'll let you guys go and you know, yay!"

"Bye, Trish," they said in unison before they ended the call. Chris turned to Stephanie and they both laughed for a minute at Trish's happiness. It was so refreshing to have them actually happy for once and not moping around lamenting their lost love. "So are you going to tell Christian that you met up with Tiffany while we were in Europe?"

"I don't know," Stephanie said, pursing her lips. "I mean, you know, on the one hand, we talked about him, on the other hand, why bring it up, you know? They broke up and that was that and he's moved on and she's on her way to being moved on."

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

Stephanie hadn't told Christian or Trish that she was going to see Tiffany while they were in Europe touring for obvious reasons. Tiffany was still a friend of hers though and she wasn't going to stop just because she broke up with another of her friends, especially when the breakup was mutual. Still, she didn't think that Christian might want to know that she had seen his ex-girlfriend.

"_So how is he?" Tiffany asked. The question had been avoided most of the night as Tiffany had mostly spoken about her new job and how much she loved it while being simultaneously being amazed at Stephanie's pregnancy. Tiffany hadn't known that Stephanie was pregnant, so a person could imagine her shock when Stephanie walked over to the table with her stomach jutting out in front of her._

"_He's good actually," Stephanie said uncomfortably. She knew that Tiffany had said it was okay for Christian to pursue Trish, but this was still awkward for her. _

"_Yeah?"_

"_Yeah, actually, um, he's…he's good."_

"_Is he with Trish?" Tiffany asked and she could sense Stephanie's embarrassment. "It's okay if he is, I told him to go get her, you know. I think part of the reason that I took this job was because I knew that I was always going to be second best, you know, and I could've probably lived with that because Christian did love me, but I think I just deserved more than that and he did too."_

"_Yeah, they are," she finally relented. "They're getting married."_

"_Oh wow," Tiffany said, sitting back in her seat. "Wow, I'm gone for a few months and everything changes, you're pregnant, Christian is engaged, next thing you know my brother is going to have a sex change or something."_

_Stephanie gave a sympathetic smile, "He's really happy though."_

"_No, no, I'm glad, that's what I wanted for him, and I'm happy. I told him not to wait for me, that it would be stupid to wait for me and I wasn't going to wait for him. It's just, you know, that could've been me. I know that I probably would've said no even if I had stayed, but it's just strange thinking that I could've been in that position."_

"_You guys _were_ good together."_

"_Yeah, we were, we just weren't the best together."_

Trish hugged Christian around the waist as he barbequed on their outdoor grill. She took in some air and her mouth watered a little as she could practically taste the burgers he was grilling. She could picture many days just like this one. A lazy day where they didn't have to do anything but enjoy each other's company; she sighed deeper as she held him close to her. This was exactly what she wanted for the rest of her life and she was so foolish to have kept pushing it away from her with both hands.

"So I told Chris and Steph to save the date," Trish said. "I had forgotten that it's right after Stephanie's birthday, but that's okay, we can celebrate that at like the rehearsal dinner or something, she won't mind."

"Yeah, I don't think she'd mind a bit," Christian said. "Chris might if he has something planned for her."

"Well, he'll just have to do something close to Toronto then," Trish said, slyly putting in that they were going to get married in Toronto even though it wasn't official. Christian was on the verge of giving in though. He was willing to do whatever Trish wanted to do, that was his thinking in all of this. He wanted the perfect day for her.

"Whatever you want."

"You're too much," she said. "It should be good though, it should be really good. I can't wait until Stephanie finally gets home so I can talk to her about it. I talked with my sisters of course, but Steph's my best friend so it's different, different relationships, different dynamics. Stephanie's like a sister to me now, more so than my own."

"You've become a lot chattier since we got engaged," Christian said.

"I can't help it, I'm happy!" Trish exclaimed. "I have so much to talk about!"

"I think it's cute," he said, kissing her forehead. "If had known how excited you would be over an engagement, I would've asked you a long time ago."

"I probably wouldn't have said yes."

"Ouch, that one hurt."

"Yeah, I know, but whatever, I'll say what I want to say because you already asked and you can't take it back now."

"Oh, I can't."

"Nope, you can't," she said, sticking out her tongue.

"I wouldn't."

Shane walked after his sons and his nephew, who were racing down the hallway yelling at each other. It was one of the more deserted hallways so they weren't about to run into anyone. Kenyon was by far the most tired of the three of them since his bedtime was earlier than the other two. Usually he would be about to go to bed, but he had been playing with Sawyer earlier and he didn't want to go to sleep.

Declan was the leader of this little pack of hellions since he was the oldest. Even he went to bed earlier than Sawyer did though, most nights. Shane figured if they were allowed to run around for a while they'd go to sleep easier and that would be helping his sister since she was pregnant and he didn't want her to have to work. It was just the overprotective nature that came with being a big brother. His little sister was going to have a baby and he wanted to make it as seamless as possible for her.

"Daddy," Kenyon said, pulling on Shane's pants as he rubbed his eye with his other hand.

"Hey there, kiddo," Shane said, picking up his son. Kenyon immediately wrapped his arms around Shane's neck and buried his face into his father's neck, sighing in sleepiness. "You tired?"

"Bed, Daddy," Kenyon whispered to him.

"Okay, we'll find Mommy, okay and she'll take you and D back to the hotel, okay?"

"Okay, thanks," Kenyon said and Shane laughed at his kid's politeness.

"Hey, you guys, come over here a second," he yelled to his eldest son and nephew. They looked to Shane and then each other, like they were contemplating whether or not to bolt or not. They decided not to as they came over obediently and stood next to Shane. "Hey, D, Kenny's tired so we're going to go find Mommy and you guys are going back to the hotel."

"Daddy, I don't want to!" Declan said, "We're playing!"

"I know, but Kenny is tired."

"But Sawyer's not tired and he's younger."

"Yeah, but he stays up later."

"Not fair," Declan pouted, folding his arms in front of him. "I want to stay and play!"

Sawyer watched this argument like a tennis match, his eyes darting between his uncle and his cousin, "I know you do, but we can play tomorrow and then next week is Sawyer's birthday so you'll get to see him next week twice."

"Oh," Declan said. "But I want to play _now_."

"Well you can't," Shane said, "Come on, let's go. Come on, Sawyer, we'll find your mommy or your daddy, okay?"

"Okay," Sawyer said, walking ahead of Shane and next to his cousin, who looked angry. Oh well, he didn't mind going to see his mommy and daddy right now. It had felt like ages since he had last seen them and he wondered what they were doing and if they missed him. They probably missed him a lot, and it had been a long time since he was around the baby! Oh man, his parents definitely needed him, he was sure of it.

"Hey, there're my boys," Marissa said as Shane walked into his office. "You tired, Kenny?"

"Uh huh," Kenny nodded as he went into his mommy's arms.

"I have to go," Shane said, kissing his wife and son. "D's not h-a-p-p-y that he has to go to b-e-d, just so you know, he wanted to stay and play with Sawyer."

"Oh, I understand," Marissa said in hushed tones. "D, we can watch Raw when we get to the hotel, doesn't that sound like fun?"

"No."

"Oh, well, maybe we can get ice cream…"

"Oh," Declan said, his ears perking up, "Ice cream?"

"Yeah, we can see if we can find a place," she said, knowing she was pretty much bribing her kid. Sometimes that's what you had to do. Even Sawyer was perking up at the thought of ice cream and he was about two steps away from going with his aunt and forgetting about his parents.

"Okay," Declan said, a little reluctantly.

Shane said his goodbyes to his son and then took Sawyer's hand and went to his station. He figured that if his sister or brother-in-law wanted their son they could just come and get him. The show was starting soon anyways and Chris had the first match so they were bound to come collect their son. They were there a few minutes later and Sawyer's eyes lit up when he saw them and he bounced in his seat in excitement. Chris lifted him up and kissed him on the cheek and then sat him back down next to Stephanie, who had just taken a seat next to her brother.

"So you ready to win, bro?"

"Yeah, I mean, I think it'd be cool to win, you know, I've won a ton of stuff around here, but never that, you know. I think I had a good chance in 2000, but there was just this major distraction that made me lose. Damn, I wish that hadn't happened."

"What happened in 2000?" Shane asked.

"Oh, some bitch ran in during my match," Chris said. "Cost me the match because she tried to hit me with a belt."

"Well, it's not like she asked you to kiss her, now did she?"

"I couldn't resist," he said, then leaned over to kiss her, "Still can't actually."

"You two sicken me," Shane said as he cued up Chris's music, "get the hell out of here before I throw up my dinner all over you guys from the sweetness of it all. Sawyer, you should just shield your eyes whenever your parents are around."

"Okay," Sawyer said with a shrug.

Chris went out there for his match, thinking that it would be pretty cool if he got to be the King of the Ring. Would it be his biggest accomplishment? Not by a long-shot, but it would be something else to add to the growing list of things that made him awesome. He was a Grand Slam champion, one of only a few people to actually hold that distinction, and his was even more impressive because he had held the Cruiserweight title as well. Not many people knew that though.

He was facing MVP in his first match and he wanted to chuckle slightly as he thought about Stephanie rushing down the aisle to interfere and cost him the match and then he'd kiss her again. He wouldn't drop her this time though because she was pregnant and it was his child so he didn't want to put her in danger or anything. MVP came down to the ring and Chris eyed him carefully, ready for the battle at hand. The two locked up and began their match.

MVP actually tried to spit in his face and that was the set-up for the match. He wasn't' going to be disrespected like that. They two of them started to fight aggressively with each other, each one wanting the upper-hand. MVP had made it personal with that move and Chris wasn't going to let him win this match now. It was as simple as that, Chris was going to do whatever it took to win this match. He started to kick MVP while he was down and that worked for about 30 seconds before he got pushed into the corner and hit. He kicked at MVP and then picked him up to lay him into the ropes. Served him right actually, Chris thought as he threw himself through the bottom ropes and hit MVP into the barrier. He kicked him while he was down again and then went to shove him back into the ring.

He got back inside and got a kick to the head for his troubles. MVP hit a side slam, but that wasn't enough to bring Chris down. MVP got him into a submission hold and Chris screamed in anguish, but he wasn't about to give up. He kept his resolve about him and managed to break out of it using sheer brute strength. He got some elbows to MVP's face and then knocked him down until he stayed down, but MVP got him again and tried for another count, but that wasn't going to get Chris the loss.

Chris got a suplex on MVP and went for the pin, but didn't get it, but tried again. MVP lifted them up and they went back and forth again, with Chris getting a boot to the face. Chris went for a move, but MVP got him into a fireman's carry and then dropped him on his face. Chris was down for a moment, but then the next managed to get a clothesline on his opponent. That didn't get MVP out so they continued to fight.

MVP got the upper-hand, but Chris took it right back and tried to go for the Lionsault and missed. Stephanie was going to kill him. She hated when he missed that move. MVP went for the Playmaker, but Chris was able to counter out of it and lock in the Walls of Jericho. He kept it on until he started to hear his music play and the referee pull him away. He had won and he raised his hand in victory, grabbing the back of his head. He grabbed his belt and left the ring.

He walked up the ramp and to the top of the stage. He smiled at the crowd and then looked to his right to see the "throne" they had set up. Feeling particularly cheeky, he walked over to it and looked at the chair. He thought better of it for a second, but decided to sit down anyways, folding his arms as he sat on his throne. He found it funny for a moment as he looked up to see himself on the big screen. It looked like he was presiding over everything and everyone and with the position he held in the company, it was kind of like he was above everyone else, not that he used that to his advantage.

He walked backstage, ready to have Stephanie chew him out for missing the Lionsault when he saw his son walking up to him with a towel and a plain white t-shirt with the word "STAFF" written on it with a Sharpie. He looked to Stephanie, who was trying to look like she was minding her own business, but she was sneaking glances over at them, wanting to see Chris's reaction.

"Here you go," Sawyer said, holding up the towel in his hands to his father. It was then that Chris noticed Stephanie had even given the little boy a headset that was hooked up to his jeans, which were now sagging a little from the extra weight, showing off his diaper.

"Thanks," Chris said, taking the towel from him. "When did you get hired, you look new around here."

"Mommy," Sawyer said, "She said."

"Oh, I see, do you have to get back to work?"

"Uh huh, see," Sawyer said, holding up his headset for his daddy to see.

"Oh, well don't let me keep you."

Sawyer actually put the headset on and then started to walk out of the area like he was actually going to go do some work. Some of the people working backstage looked at the little boy as he walked by them and either started laughing or were seriously confused and worrying about their job security if Sawyer was actually decent at what he did. Chris quickly wiped off his face and then ran after his son and picked him up from behind, startling the little boy as they went back to Stephanie.

"What is the meaning of this?" Chris asked, holding his son out like he was a skunk or something. Sawyer just stuck his tongue out a little.

"What? I figured that he could be the towel boy, he's part of the staff now," Stephanie said as she smiled at her little boy.

"I work!" Sawyer said, trying to twist his head to look at Chris. Chris set him down on the chair next to Stephanie and proceeded to wipe his chest off.

"You looked good out there," she said to him, and he could sense more coming.

"But…"

"Well, if you're going to do the Lionsault, can't you make sure the guy is _actually_ down, instead of maybe he could be down, maybe I should go for this move?"

"I knew you were going to say that. As soon as I missed, I knew you were going to say that."

"Well, can you blame me?" Stephanie said. "I don't want you to get hurt…I don't want to raise two kids by myself."

"You won't," he said. He leaned down to kiss her, but she stood up at the last second. "Hey, what gives?"

"I have to go do a promo thing with Hunter for his match at Backlash. You go get cleaned up, take Sawyer with you, okay? Britt said she'd watch him while he goes to sleep, so if you can do that, that'd be great."

"Yeah, sure, but she better find me fast, I don't know when my next match is going to be."

"I'll let you know," Stephanie said, giving him the kiss this time. They split up and Stephanie went to go find Hunter, who was already where they were filming the little segments where the competitors for the match on Sunday got to speak. He was leaning against the wall, his arms folded and he looked angry, but he could've just been psyching himself up. "Hey, Hunter, you ready?"

"Sure," he said sullenly and Stephanie wasn't so far removed from her marriage to Hunter that she couldn't tell his moods. This was definitely not a mood where he was just psyching himself up for a match.

"What's wrong?"

"What, nothing, I'm just trying to make sure that I'm ready with what I want to say to those jackasses that I have to face."

"No, no, no, no, this isn't what this is about?"

"Britt's just pissed at me again," he admitted.

"You didn't talk to your mom, did you?"

He looked a little startled that she could call him out so easily, though he shouldn't have been surprised because she used to do it all the time when they were married. "How did you know?"

"Because you never stand up to your mother," Stephanie said. "You're such a Mama's boy that you won't even speak up to her. She still insults me every time she sees me and you don't really say anything to her about it even though we've been divorced for six years."

"Yeah, does that bug you?" he asked.

"Oh no, I like being thought of as a whore who's rubbing it in your face that I'm pregnant, it's just great!" Stephanie said sarcastically.

"Sorry," he said, for his stupid question. "I don't know, I just don't want to upset her. I'm her son, her youngest, you know and she's always looked out for me and I know she has good intentions with this."

"You love Britt though, Hunter. You've let so many women slip through your fingers and now you've finally got someone that you love and you're going to let your mother stand in the way of this? Because Britt is…oh my God, 26? That's stupid and you know it."

"I know, but she hasn't my best interests at heart, that's why she doesn't like you now, she just thinks that you used me the entire time we were together."

"And you say nothing. It's funny how much of a coward you are around her. You know, if someone were to face you, I think that would be the ultimate weapon right there. I think that if they got your mother and your mother told you to lose, you'd do it."

"Shut up," he told her.

"You know, I think I'm going to tell this to Chris," Stephanie said, her eyes widening. "I think that he would love to hear this. He's never beaten you so it'd be perfect! Here I thought I'd be the ultimate distraction, but it turns out that it'd be your mom. Now how do I get her to come to Chris's side? She doesn't like him because of me…"

"Yeah, good luck with that."

"Talk to her, don't lose something potentially great because you're scared of Mommy."

"You know, Sawyer's probably going to be like this. You're such an intimidating person, he'll be just like this."

"No way," Stephanie scoffed. "That boy would be out of my house and in his own apartment if he had his way. He already stands up to me as it is, so I don't think he'd have a problem standing up to me twenty years from now."

"Yeah, we'll see."

"Oh we will, I'm sure," she said. "Let's just get this promo done so that I can give it to production to play later."

"Fine, and I will talk to her, you know, I _will_."

"I'll believe it when I see it."

Later on that evening, Stephanie was sitting with her brother, minding her own business when she felt something in her stomach. She gave a little "oh" of surprise as she looked down at the bulge of her stomach. Well, that felt unusual. She didn't think anything of it until she felt it again and she looked down at her stomach again, as if it would have something written on it like a magic 8 ball. She put her hand to her stomach right around where she felt it and then she felt the kick against her hand.

She grinned as she reached under her shirt to see if she could feel it better and there it was again. That was the first time she had been able to feel Flynn on the outside of her stomach. Usually she only felt her little girl fluttering around in her stomach from the inside, like a butterfly waiting to fly off. She pulled her shirt down and bit her lip as she had felt her daughter's kicks from the outside and it was about time. She had first felt Sawyer's kick from the outside when she was 19 weeks along, and she was almost 22 weeks now.

Chris came by a little while later for his match again CM Punk, who had won his match earlier that evening as well. Stephanie beckoned him over to her and he came over quickly, "What is it, I've got a match."

"Someone wanted to wish you luck," she told him.

"Okay, thanks, I kind of want to kick CM Punk's ass," Chris said, "you could've just yelled it."

"Not me," she said, grabbing his wrist and pulling him down into the set next to her.

"Stephanie, I don't have time for this, my match is up next."

"You have time, trust me."

"No, I don't, I don't have the time."

"Trust me, you do," she said as she pulled her shirt up slightly and brought his hand to her stomach and then moved it around a bit until she was satisfied. She looked to Chris as she held his hand.

Chris only wondered for a moment what she was doing. As soon as her shirt had gone up to expose her stomach, he knew. He concentrated all of his energy on his hand and then he felt it. It was a small patter against his hand, but it was definitely there. It was a lot stronger than the first kick he had ever felt of Sawyer's and he could feel her kick against his hand again. Chris's eyes widened as he looked up at Stephanie in awe.

"You felt it?" she asked, though she could tell his answer by the look on her face.

"Wow, that was so…wow," Chris said with an amazed chuckle. "She kicked!"

"I know, she just did this earlier."

"She kicked, oh my God, we've got to wake up Sawyer!" Chris exclaimed.

"Later," Stephanie said, "You've got a match, remember?"

"Oh, damn it, yeah," he said, wanting desperately to just continue to feel his daughter kicking against his hand. It was so real now. Everything pointed to that and he was so excited for his little girl, but she had just kicked against his hand, like she knew that it was her daddy and she just wanted to say hello. He leaned in and kissed her stomach, "Hey there, Flynn, sit tight okay, Daddy's going to try and win King of the Ring for you."

Chris went out there and waited for CM Punk to show up. Chris got the early offense in the match, getting CM Punk down a couple of times but it wasn't fruitful for him. In the early goings of the match, he had to admit that he was distracted. It was like he could still feel his little girl kicking against his hand, the memory burned on his palm forever. He wanted nothing more than to just put his hand on his wife's stomach and feel the kicking of his daughter for the rest of the evening, but he had to focus on the show, on this match, on getting this win so he could become the king.

The match was very back-and-forth between the two of them. They even came to a sequence where they just countered roll-ups, neither one being able to get enough to win the match, which was frustrating for the both of them. Certainly there was no love lost between them and they both wanted to get this win. Chris was eventually able to lock in the Walls of Jericho again, but unlike MVP, CM Punk had some fight in him and he reached the ropes, forcing Chris to break the hold, which he did reluctantly.

The finish came with Punk getting the win after hitting the GTS. Chris would've been angrier about not getting a chance to become the King of the Ring if he hadn't gotten a bigger gift earlier with his daughter (wow, did it still feel weird to think that) kicking and him getting to feel it. He checked his jaw again and he was angry that he hadn't won. King of the Ring would've been something cool to say to people, but sometimes you just didn't get what you want.

He would live with it.

Even later that evening, Chris was sore and lying in bed. Stephanie was sore too, her back killing her after having to work for the entire last hour, worrying about this and that. She was glad then that Shane was there to take over for her. This time around she might actually try to take some time off and just travel with Chris as his wife and not as his boss. Chris was lying down near her stomach as he rubbed her stomach, looking for his daughter to move again.

"She's a bad luck charm," Stephanie said, "she made you lose tonight. I should give her up for adoption when she's born."

"I wouldn't let you, and she's not a bad luck charm, she's a best luck charm," Chris told her, rubbing her stomach some more. He stopped and smiled, "There she is. She heard what I said, she knows that Daddy loves her."

"You're sickeningly sweet."

"I can't help it, my daughter is moving, my little girl, and I can feel it," he said in awe. "How awesome is that?"

"Pretty awesome," Stephanie agreed. She ran her hands through Chris's hair and everything felt kind of perfect right then. Chris was back where he belonged, she was taking a step back, they had a great son, a good pregnancy and for just one moment, Shawn was not on her mind. Oh, there he was again.

"_So Stephanie, how much did you have to beg Daddy to get your husband in the match?"_

"_Oh, clever, clever," Stephanie said. "Except I wasn't the one that did that, you can look to Regal for that one. I wouldn't have been so nice though, I actually would've put Chris in the match against you, just so I could watch him clean your clock."_

"_Yeah, I'd like to see him try."_

"_Oh, he'll try alright, and he'll succeed, don't underestimate him, Shawn. He's way better than the last time you two faced each other. You think you have it hard with Dave, you have no idea what you'd be getting into with Chris."_

"_I think I could take him," Shawn said derisively._

"_You insulted his daughter," Stephanie said. "How do you think he's going to take tha_t_? I don't think you would like it if someone insulted Cameron or Cheyenne, so how do you think it makes Chris feel when you insult Sawyer and Flynn?"_

_Well, that shut Shawn up pretty well. Stephanie was careful not to make it seem like she had something with Dave going on. Better that Shawn think she was just an innocent bystander. She smirked at him and then walked past him, satisfied that she had left him speechless. She almost wanted to dare him to bring his kids by, but she was above that. _

_But she wasn't above plotting against him._

"Mommy!"

Stephanie and Chris looked at each other. Sawyer hardly ever woke up during the night, if he even woke up at all. Chris got off the bed and went into the other room in the suite and saw Sawyer sitting up and rubbing his eyes. Chris went over and sat down on the bed facing him and Sawyer immediately crawled over and laid his head down on Chris's leg.

"Hey, kid, what's wrong? Do you want some water?"

"No," he sniffled and Chris realized he had been crying.

"Oh hey, come here," Chris said, holding onto Sawyer. "Did you have a bad dream?"

"Yeah," Sawyer sniffled, rubbing at his eyes still. "Mean."

"There was a mean person there?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said.

"Oh, okay, well, do you want to come lie down with me and Mommy, we'll take care of any mean people who want to come over," Chris said as he walked into the other room. Stephanie sat up as Chris set Sawyer down. "He had a bad dream."

"Oh honey," she said. "You hate those."

"Yeah," Sawyer said, "No like."

"I know you don't like," she said, "come on, lay down."

Sawyer lay down between them and he felt a lot better. That dream had been pretty scary. He got cozy as Chris settled in on one side of him. Stephanie looked to Chris and then to her stomach and he was confused until he realized what she was getting at and he nodded enthusiastically.

"Hey, baby boy, you want to feel something?"

"Okay," Sawyer said, "what?"

"Stand up for a second."

Sawyer stood up next to Stephanie, wondering what was going on. His mommy pulled up her shirt and he smiled as he saw the baby. Stephanie took his small hand in hers and he thought that his mommy just wanted to hold his hand. That was dumb, he wanted to go to bed, not go for a walk or something. She pulled him closer to the baby and then put his hand on her stomach. He didn't know what this was for and almost pulled it away, but his mommy kept her hand on his.

Then he felt something bump against his hand and he looked confused. Stephanie pulled her hand away and Sawyer stared down at Stephanie's stomach. He kept his hand there and felt it again and his eyes widened to the size of small saucers. What _was_ that? He rubbed around the area thinking that it would give him some clue, but it didn't and there it was again! Something was pushing against him, something in his mommy's tummy.

"That's the baby," Stephanie said. "She's kicking to say hi to you."

"Baby?" he asked in absolute shock. He couldn't believe the baby was trying to talk to him! Well it was about time that it wanted to play. Now it was kicking…hey, maybe there was a soccer ball to play with in there, he liked the one his daddy had gotten, maybe his mommy had gotten the baby one.

"Yeah, it's Flynn."

"Baby," Sawyer said, rubbing her stomach soothingly as he laid his hand on top of her stomach. "Hi, baby."

"Aww, the baby was saying hi to you too."

"Oh," he said reverently. "Baby…"

"Kicked," Chris supplied.

"Kick, yeah," he nodded, "baby do."

"Yeah, the baby did do that."

Sawyer went to a spot on her stomach near where the baby had kicked and felt something again and he giggled madly at that before he rested his head against her again. He wanted to feel the baby all night long and Stephanie and Chris laughed softly to themselves as Sawyer fell asleep in that position. They both knew one thing was going to happen when this baby was born.

She was going to be all Sawyer's.


	180. Expected Outcomes, April 28, 2008

"So, it looks good on me, doesn't it?"

"You're so cocky."

"Yes, but this is what you love about me, isn't it?" Hunter asked as he ran his hand over the title perched on his shoulder. He had gotten his baby back and damn did it feel good. He was the one who should be champion, he had known this ever since he lost it months and months ago. That taste he had gotten at No Mercy had only heightened his want for the title and last night, he finally had back what was rightfully his.

"You think I love you because you have the title?" Britt asked as she rubbed his back. They were outside in the parking lot, taking a moment to themselves before they had go back to the rigors of the workday. Her hand was up his t-shirt and she was massaging his aching muscles. Her hand felt so good on his back. He had fought his heart out last night and he was paying for it today. Still, it was worth it.

"Well, I think that it helps."

"You think that it helps me love you more if you're the WWE champion? Honey, are you forgetting that I didn't even start watching wrestling until I came to work for the company? Why the hell would I care if you were the WWE champion? I didn't even know how many times you had held it until you told me…over and over again."

"Are you saying that you didn't care to know how many times I have been the WWE champion?"

"No, can't say that I do," Britt said playfully, her rubbing getting progressively deeper into his muscles. She could tell that he was loving this so she continued to massage him. She had done it last night before they went to bed, but he had stiffened up during the night so he was sore again.

"See, I knew that I should've gone out with some diva," Hunter told her, leaning back into her hand. She was sitting on the hood of their rental car as he stood there. She brought her other hand and stared to massage his sides. "I'm sure _they _would've appreciated it."

"Like they could handle you. Tell me again how many divas you've dated?"

"The number is greatly exaggerated."

"Really, so you wouldn't mind telling me then?"

"Well, there was Chyna…"

"Uh huh, Chris told me about her," he said. "They were enemies and then friends for a while, but now she's just kind of…crazy, is it? Chris told me that it's because of you. That you ruined her or something, that it makes you a really evil guy."

"I didn't ruin her. God, I'm going to kick Chris's ass."

"Then there was the infamous Stephanie McMahon," Britt said, "and I've had to hear about that relationship plenty of times, far too many times for my liking actually. I don't need to know about you guys."

"We're over, we've been over for a long time, in fact our divorce anniversary is coming up soon."

She groaned and slapped his lightly on the side, "No, just no. Then you had this like, dry spell because you were so broken up about Stephanie."

"I was not!" he protested.

"Oh sorry, but then there was Victoria, right, she was like, the last diva that you dated, right?"

"Yeah, but that just didn't work out, it's for the best."

"Still, there's a new crop of them that have come in," Britt said, leaning forward and resting her chin on his shoulder. "So why don't you go with one who will appreciate that big hunk of gold? Hmm…maybe that Cherry girl or something…or Maria? She's single now."

"I like a girl with brains and I don't even know who this Cherry girl is that you're talking about."

"Oh, good answer," she told him, wrapping her left arm around his waist, where it rested on his abdomen. "Good way to get points in your girlfriend's book, pretend like you don't notice any other women."

"I never said that, I just don't particularly care about those two," he shrugged. "I still notice women, you're just the one that I notice and want the most. I still notice other women."

"Well, that's not…what I want to hear," she joked. "I love you."

"I love you too," he told her happily. For the first time in his life, the belt was coming second. He loved that he had it, and he knew that it belonged with him, but for some reason, standing here with Britt, being with her, having her touching him and _loving_ him, it made the belt disappear a little. It had never been that way with Stephanie and that was his most committed relationship to date. There was just something different about Britt.

"So we are going to Sawyer's birthday on Saturday, right?"

"Yeah, I just…"

"You just?" she asked, not liking the tone he was using. It was the tone when he talked about his mother, who still hated her. Hunter had not yet talked to her and she knew it. Hunter told her that he had spoken to her, but she knew by now when he was lying (it wasn't that hard, he lied all the time). She just didn't press it though because it wasn't worth it. Hunter was a mama's boy and it was just better to accept him as such and not try to force him into doing something he really didn't want to do.

"Well, my mom wanted a family dinner this weekend. Since you know…with my sister and stuff, she's always wanting to have family dinners, but I've been busy with work or going to Europe for work, or yesterday with work…"

"Yes, you have been busy with work," she told him. "What did you tell your mom?"

"I didn't tell her anything, but she just kind of assumed that I would be there this weekend and I would hate to disappoint her, you know."

"You wanted to go to Sawyer's birthday, I wanted to go to Sawyer's birthday," Britt said. "Chris and Stephanie invited us and you love that little boy, Hunter. You've already bought him his gift. You want to be there when he unwraps his gift and sees you got him a tricycle of his very own, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do," he admitted. He had gone to great lengths to find the perfect tricycle for Sawyer, and he had found one and it was sitting in his garage ready to travel with him to Florida late this week.

"I'm not saying blow off your mom or anything, but do you think that you can schedule the dinner for Sunday night? That way you can go to Sawyer's party. He loves you."

"I guess I can ask her."

"You guess you can ask her or you will ask her?" she asked him, prompting him like a child. That was the best way to deal with him when he got like this though. She had never met a man so afraid of his mother before. Although, she had to admit that Pat was pretty scary.

"I will, okay, I will," he told her. "I hate when you do that."

"Do what? Make you confront your mother?" she asked.

"Whatever."

"Hunter, I'm just saying that we already had plans. You just have to tell your mom that."

"She's going to hate where I'm going."

"So what? You know what, fine, go to your parent's for dinner, you don't want to talk to your mom about it, fine."

"No, no, I will, I'm sorry," Hunter said, pulling her back down near him. "I'm sorry, don't be mad at me."

"I'm not mad, honey, I'm just frustrated with the entire situation. What if we get married, huh, or decide to have a kid together--"

"Wait, why is that an or situation, you wouldn't care if we had a kid and we weren't married?"

"No," Britt said.

"Oh," he said. He had always thought you should do things the right way, married first, then the whole kids thing.

"We've never discussed marriage before, you know, I think that title is completely going to your brain," she told him, trying to lighten the heavy mood that had settled over them. "First you win the title, now we're talking marriage, you really, _really _just want to have everything, don't you?"

"Well, it would be nice," he told her. "Not that this was a proposal, it wasn't a proposal at all."

"I didn't think it was," she said, "I have you pegged for someone who would do an extravagant proposal, you know, flash it on the screen or something."

"Wow, I've been figured out," he said.

"Oh no, that's not how this is going down, Helmsley," she told him, finally getting off the hood of the car and grabbing his hand. "I've got to get to work though, and so do you. I think Stephanie said when I talked with her earlier that you could have time at the top of the show to speak since it is customary for the new champion to speak."

"Champion, I really like that word."

"Of course you do, it means you're the best and you just _have _to be the best."

"Why do you hate me so?" Hunter said as they started to walk inside the building. "I thought that you were supposed to love me."

"Oh, I do, too much probably for someone who's such a mommy's boy," Britt teased, bumping her hip against his leg. "I can't believe how big a one you are. I'm going to take you to meet my family and you are going to see how a normal family functions."

"Hey, why _haven't_ I met your family?"

"Because my parents split time between Hawaii and California," she told him, "and neither one of those are very short flights from here."

"Oh yeah, would they like me?"

"No, they'd hate you," she said, "I don't know, they'd probably like you as long as you don't pull Triple H on them. They probably wouldn't like that."

"Yeah, I guess I can get intimidating."

"Just a smidge," she told him, holding up her thumb and index finger to indicate that it was just a little smidge of intimidation that he had.

"Hey there, champ," Stephanie said as she walked up to the duo, "did Britt tell you that you've got time at the top of the show?"

"She did, she's a good assistant, give her a raise," Hunter said, then looked at Stephanie, "You look really pretty tonight, by the way."

Stephanie shrugged, "I'm pregnant, I've got to make myself feel pretty somehow. It offsets feelings like I'm getting heavier and heavier, which I am, by the way. I thought making myself look pretty would cheer me up."

"You need cheering up."

"Just feeling very pregnant today, bloated, you know, sore back, ankles hurting from the added weight."

"You poor thing," Britt said.

"It's okay, working will probably help."

"How is walking around and working going to help?" Hunter asked.

"Because it will," Stephanie snapped at him, "sorry, mood swings too, those are a bitch."

"Um, I'm going to go think about what I'm going to say out there," Hunter said quickly. He leaned down to kiss Britt, "I'll see you later, babe."

"Bye," Britt said before turning to Stephanie, who was smirking at her.

"What?" Britt asked.

"You two are so in love," Stephanie teased her. "He is so crazy about you, I never thought he'd find a woman as spectacular as his first wife, but he is so in love with you."

"Well, he's great," she said.

"And champion."

"Whatever, I don't care about that," Britt shrugged. "It's just a title, it's not like it makes him who he is or anything."

"Oh, you'd be surprised," she said, rubbing her stomach. "As if my day couldn't get more stressful, Flynn has decided to make herself known to the world. She's kicking harder and harder everyday. I really think she hates me."

"How typical for a girl to hate her mother sometimes," Britt said, "may I feel?"

"Well, generally I hate it," Stephanie said, "but sure, you're a friend."

"Cool," Britt said. She reached out and touched Stephanie's stomach where her hand had just been and felt a small kick against it. "Oh my God, I felt her. That's so incredible. Wow, I'm jealous now."

"Don't be, trust me, what you see here is _not _pregnancy. Pregnancy is behind the scenes," she explained. "It's the crappy feeling you wake up with every morning and the swollen ankles and the hemorrhoids and the constipation, and the aching back and the stretch marks, that's pregnancy, you just see the vanity part."

"But you do get a baby out of it."

"Yeah, that's the only good thing about it," Stephanie said. "Chris is already hoping that she looks like me, but I'm hoping that it looks like him. Don't tell him though or he'll start talking about how Sawyer looks like him and how he wants a kid that looks like the both of us. You'll be stuck listening to him for half an hour."

"Duly noted," she said as they started walking down the hallway. "So Chris was good as a referee last night, he should go into that."

"I thought he looked hot myself, but he's just so multi-talented. I was angry that Shawn had to win though. I had thought this plan would work. I mean, Dave is bigger than him, you would think he could overpower him. I didn't want him injured though, I don't want that on the guy…much. I just wanted Dave to win and put Shawn in his place."

"I saw Chris helping him after the match though."

"Chris is too nice a guy," Stephanie said. "Hunter, if I were still married to him, he would've knocked him on his ass and then laughed…or left, one or the other. Still, he would've done something last night, probably hit Shawn in the knee."

"Aren't they best friends though?"

"Yeah, I don't know why, old loyalties or something, but Hunter would've done it for me."

"I wish he would actually talk to his mother for me," Britt said, rolling her eyes, "She wants him to come to a family dinner on Saturday and he's too afraid to tell her that he has previous plans."

"Are you guys still coming to Sawyer's party?"

"Yeah, we're still going to be there," Britt said. "It'll be fun, since you're having adults there and stuff."

"Yeah, we're going to have a bunch of Sawyer's friends from home there and their families, it'll be fun," Stephanie said, already anticipating the party that she was holding for her son this weekend. She couldn't wait to have the party for him. They hadn't really been in Florida for a couple weeks and the playground they had bought for Sawyer should've already been set up and waiting for them with a huge tarp over it. Christian and Trish had overseen its building while they were away. Sawyer was going to be blown away by it and she couldn't wait to see his face when he got to climb onto the swings for the first time.

"Yeah, it should be," Britt said. "I can't believe he's going to be two, that means that I've been around here for almost two years, it has not felt like that long."

"Hey, that's right, my dad hired you right after Sawyer was born, as an assistant for Chris," Stephanie said with a laugh. "You know, the first time you answered his phone, I wanted to reach through that thing and strangle you."

Britt laughed, "Thank you for not hating me on sight."

"Oh no, I absolutely hated you on sight," Stephanie joked. "You were a threat, of course I hated you."

"Oh yeah, like Chris could ever have eyes for anyone else."

"You never know," Stephanie shrugged. "Chris and I have no problem realizing that this thing between us might not last forever, kids or no kids."

"You'll be connected through them though."

"True."

"So what are you going to do about this Shawn situation? He's been harassing you, and you know, his wife isn't that nice," Britt said conspiratorially, "I mean, she's nice enough, but like, I don't think she likes Hunter."

"She doesn't," Stephanie said. "She's heard of all the stuff the two have done together in the old days, and she doesn't like it, I don't blame her, Hunter was really a jackass back then. It's hard to break out of the mentality that he isn't still a jackass."

"Oh…so what are you going to do?"

"Chris is taking care of it," she answered cryptically.

Chris watched as Sawyer pushed the train around the floor, making train noises to go along with it. Chris crawled after him, thinking about what he was going to say later on that evening. He and Stephanie had come up with a plan, and though it was…strange, it was eye-catching and sure to catch Shawn's attention and that's just what he wanted to happen. It wasn't a subtle plan, not by any means, but it was a plan nonetheless.

Chris had played the straight man last night. He had even come to Shawn's aid when he needed it and had called the match right down the middle. He hadn't intended to do it, but when he saw that clearly Shawn was going to win this thing, he took matters into his own hands. Dave had been upset that he had lost (because who liked to lose), but he was more sorry towards Stephanie for not helping her the way that he had promised to help her. She had absolved him and she hadn't known what was on Chris's mind as he had helped Shawn out of the ring.

She had been understandably mad at first though…

"_Why were you helping _him_?" Stephanie demanded to know._

"_Stephanie, baby, can you please calm down, for Flynn's sake?"_

"_Flynn wants to know what the hell is going on too. She doesn't want her father to help out the man who said she was probably going to end up a slut like her mother."_

"_Baby, come on, when have you ever known me to do something without some kind of plan behind it?"_

"_What do you mean?"_

"_I'm going to take care of things for you."_

"_You're going to take care of things for me? Just how are you going to do that? Kill Shawn with kindness?" she asked sarcastically._

"_No, if he thinks that I was truly unbiased, well, he's right where I want him to be."_

He did have a plan. Dave hadn't been able to take out Shawn like Chris and Stephanie had wanted and that was fine. Chris was taking care of the business that was his in the first place. Stephanie was his wife, Shawn was insulting_ his_ wife and kids and he should be the one to defend them, to be their knight in shining armor. It wasn't like he wasn't back to wrestling, he was, and that meant that he could go out there and he could kick Shawn's ass to his heart's content.

That's just what he planned on doing.

"Daddy, play," Sawyer said, ramming his train into Chris's foot.

"What? Oh, sorry, kid," Chris said, turning to his son and giving him a mean face. "I think I'm going to steal your train."

"No!" Sawyer said, crawling around his father with his train, trying to get out of his father's reach.

"Oh yes, I think I am," Chris said, grabbing Sawyer and starting to tickle him. Sawyer started laughing, tears coming to his eyes. He hated that his father knew he was ticklish and used it to his advantage. He curled up his body and tried to push Chris away, but it wasn't working. Finally, his father let up and he took in a few huge gulps of air. "You excited for your birthday?"

"Birfday," Sawyer said with a smile. His parents had been telling him that it was his birthday every day for the past couple of weeks. To his understanding, that was a very big deal and it had something to do with him.

"How old are you going to be?"

"Two," Sawyer said, his mouth opening at the end as if he were amazed that he remembered that. For an added bonus, he held up his hand and gave two fingers to his father (though it would've been funnier if he had given one particular finger to his father, but he's young yet) that he had been taught over the last couple of weeks.

"Yeah, that's right, you are so smart and how old is Flynn?"

"Nothing," he laughed.

Chris laughed too, "Yeah, she's not anything years old yet because she's not born, right?"

"Right," Sawyer told him. "In…in…" he sighed, not remembering what he wanted to say. "I no know."

"She's in mommy's tummy."

"Right," Sawyer said bright, "In tummy, baby…"

"Yeah, the baby's in mommy's tummy, and what's her name?"

"Mine," he said, then put on a funny face and laughed as he had made the funniest joke in the universe.

"No! Her name's not Mine, and she's not going to be yours either," Chris said, "we're going to have to teach you the meaning of share."

"Uh uh," Sawyer said, shaking his head, "My baby."

"Why can't she be my baby?"

Sawyer thought hard for a second, then answered, "Cuz."

"Cuz why?"

"Mmm," he thought again. "Dunno, my baby."

"No way."

"Not yours," he told him in no uncertain terms.

"You're mine."

"I not yours," Sawyer said like it was a silly notion. Sawyer didn't belong to Chris, that was just silly. He shook his head at that. Silly Daddy, he didn't belong to anyone, he was just Sawyer and that was that.

"Yes you are," Chris told him. "Look here, before you, there was me and Mommy, then me and Mommy had a baby, that was you, so…you belong to us."

"Uh uh."

"So you're not accepting this?"

"No," Sawyer answered.

"Okay then, well, I guess I'm just going to leave you to fend for yourself. You'll do okay, you've got money, Mommy's loaded, so you can just go find yourself a job, an apartment, transportation, a cute 2-year-old girlfriend, all of that since you don't need me or Mommy. I'll see you later."

Chris got up from the floor and started walking towards the door slowly, pulling it open slowly and looking back at Sawyer with a slow wave. He was about to step out the door when Sawyer got a scared look on his face and got up, running to Chris and grabbing him around the leg. Chris laughed to himself and looked down at the little boy.

"Hey, I thought you didn't belong to anyone."

"No go!" Sawyer whined, burying his face into Chris's jeans, not wanting his daddy to leave him alone. He was actually starting to tear up a little. Sometimes he was real clingy with his parents, not wanting them to go anywhere without him.

"Oh, come here," Chris said, picking him up and holding him. "Let's go find Mommy and Flynn, okay?"

"Okay," he said, his voice muffled as he clung to Chris.

As this was going on, Hunter was walking out to the cheers of the crowd. Was it wrong that he didn't like getting cheered? He felt like it ruined the tough guy image that he was trying to portray. He liked it when the fans booed him, it gave him motivation to prove everybody wrong, prove that he was the best. With their cheers, it was like he didn't really have an uphill battle, and he liked that uphill battle.

It didn't matter though, because he was champion again and that was all that mattered. It felt good to be the champion again, to have that familiar weight on his shoulder. His victory speech was interrupted by Randy and Hunter should've expected that. He was challenged to a rematch tonight and who was he to deny Randy Orton another ass-kicking. Now that he was the champion, he was in a very giving mood. He'd be happy to beat Orton again and officially declare that the Age of Orton had ended.

"See, this is what I'm talking about," Britt said. "Look how confident he is out there, then he comes back here, I ask him to talk to his mom and he's afraid."

"It's his mom though," Stephanie said. "Chris's mother hated me when she first met me."

"She did?"

"Yeah, right, sweetie?" Stephanie said, looking over at her husband.

"Yeah, for months actually, until she realized Stephanie wasn't the devil."

"See, things can change for you too."

"I suppose," she said as Hunter walked backstage and over to her.

"Did you hear what he said out there?" Hunter said. "Wants to use his rematch clause, make it happen. I'll just beat him again, he's not getting this title back, and Chris, if you think that you're getting your hands on this baby, think again."

"Wow, well now I'll never go after it ever again," Chris said sardonically, "thanks for telling me, Hunter, I would've challenged you for it right now."

"I know you would have, you want it."

"I've got bigger fish to fry," he told his friend. "Namely my daughter and kicking Shawn's ass, in that order."

"Uh huh, you're jealous and you know it."

"Of course I am, of course I am," Chris agreed, then gave the cuckoo sign to Stephanie who laughed a little before turning back to Hunter.

"Take it up with Regal. He seems to want to take his GM duties even more seriously, so I suggest that you get that confirmed with him. He should be in his dressing room if you can't find him."

"What was up with him winning last week?"

"He won," Stephanie shrugged.

"Is he going to wrestle now?"

"I don't know, take that up with him. Take Britt with you so that she can sign off on the match for me."

"I have no problem taking her anywhere with me."

"He says that to all the girls," Britt said as she took Hunter's hand. They walked down the hallway to Regal's locker room and Britt waited outside so Hunter could talk to him face-to-face without having to curb his attitude around his girlfriend, which Britt thought was silly and sweet at the same time.

Randy was walking down the hallway trying to psych himself up before his rematch later. He knew he was going to get the match. He just had to ask Regal for it. That's what Stephanie had directed him to do so here he was. He saw Stephanie's assistant standing outside Regal's office and he struggled to remember her name, wasn't it something like Bethany or Brittany, Britt, that was it!

She was cute, easy on the eye. She wasn't very tall, probably standing somewhere around 5'4 or 5'5. She had jet black hair and he liked girls with dark hair. She was definitely pretty in that understated kind of way. She was dressed professionally a nice blouse and a gray a-line skirt and sensible shoes, a far cry from some of the stuff the divas wore. Why wouldn't she go for a guy like him? He was way younger than Hunter was and way cuter. What better way to break Hunter's psyche than to steal his girl right out from under him?

"Hey…Britt, right?"

Britt looked up from the piece of paper she was reading, "Yes, did you need something?"

"No, I just wanted to say hi," he told her.

"Okay, hi," she said, confused since he had never spoken to her before. Even when she was relaying a message to him, usually all she'd get was a grunt or some other noise that usually indicated that she should get the hell out.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm going over a checklist."

"I mean outside Regal's office," he clarified.

"I'm just waiting for Hunter to get the match signed for tonight."

"Oh, he's getting it signed."

"He wants to beat your ass tonight," she said matter-of-factly. Randy liked girls who spoke their minds. Well, sometimes, sometimes he just like girls who would screw his brains out and then be content with him leaving the next morning. He needed to find more of those kinds of girls, there had to be a whole treasure trove out there.

"Do you think he's going to beat my ass?"

"I'm going to go with…yes."

"Ouch," he said. "I like to think I'm pretty good in the ring, what do you think?"

"I don't know, I don't really pay attention."

"Come on," he said charmingly, "you know that can't be true. I'm not saying that the eye goes directly to me or anything, but you must've noticed me a little bit, I was the champion, and I will be the champion again once the night is over."

"Delusions of grandeur much?"

"What?"

"Nothing," she told him, giving him a big smile. "I guess you just kind of blend in with the crowd."

"I…what!" he exclaimed, then decided that this was not the best approach and softened his tone, "I mean, maybe you should pay attention to me more, I think you would like what you see, if you know what I mean."

"Oh, I think I do," she told him with a smirk. "You are quite bold, Randy Orton."

"I'm also younger than your boyfriend."

"Wow, and you just tell it like it is."

He smiled and nodded, "Plus, I mean, come on." He gestured towards his body and then gave her a smarmy look. Unbeknownst to him, Hunter had just opened the door behind him and was now staring at Randy hitting on his girlfriend, probably in some lame attempt to distract him or get him pissed off so he wouldn't think later on when they were in their match. He was momentarily proud. He had been the one to teach Randy all these tricks for getting to your opponents and now the kid was using it to his own advantage. Too bad he was the one who invented this game and could see through it a mile away. Randy might as well have been a plate of glass right now.

"Oh, yes, your body is awesome," Britt said, knowing Hunter was right there. "Best I've ever seen."

"I know, right, I agree," he nodded. He liked this girl more and more as the seconds ticked by. "How old are you?"

"26."

"See, I'm 28, just two years older than you, isn't Hunter like 42 or something?"

"No, he's not 42, he's 38," Britt said.

"How could you want to be with someone that _old_?" Randy asked derisively. "I could take you out to better places than he could, so what do you say, you, me, dinner, drinks, dancing?"

"Wow, the three D's, that would be quite the time."

"It would, I promise," Randy told her, giving her what he thought was a winning smile. Then he felt a tap on his shoulder. He looked over and saw Hunter standing there. Before he was _Randy Orton_, the Legend Killer, when he had been lowly Randy Orton, he would've been freaked by Hunter standing there, but he just looked smugly at Hunter before turning back to Britt. "So can I put you down for a yes?"

"You are bold, I like that in a guy, but I think I'm going to let my boyfriend handle this one," she said, walking in the room to make sure that Regal had signed off on the match.

"So I got it cleared by Regal, you, me, tonight," Hunter said. "Be prepared."

"I'm already ready, I could take you right now," Randy said, walking away from Hunter slowly, facing him as he walked backwards. "Face it, Hunter, you're old. You're an old man, I'm young, and I'm great, Legend Killer, and what better way to reinforce that than to kill the King of Kings? In fact, maybe _I _should just declare myself the King of Kings once I dismantle your face. Then I can take Britt out to that dinner."

Randy laughed and walked away and Hunter wasn't so proud anymore. Randy was using every trick he had, but Hunter wasn't going to let this ruin his focus. No, he was just going to use it as motivation. Britt didn't care how old he was. She never made mention of it unless someone else brought it up. So what, he was 38 going on 39 and she was 26 going on 27, that wasn't a huge age gap? Nowadays that was tame.

No, he wasn't going to let Randy get into his head.

Later that evening, Stephanie was helping Chris get ready for his Highlight Reel. She couldn't stop giggling as she put his vest on and buttoned it up for him. He just kept rolling her eyes at her as she smoothed out the shiny fabric down his chest. Her head was bent slightly as she went about putting his cufflinks into his cuffs.

"What is so funny?"

"You just look so cute," she said. "I don't know, like you're going to prom or something!"

"Okay, that's it, I'm taking this off," he said, starting to go for his buttons.

"No, no, no, I'm sorry," she told him. "You look very dignified, like you're going to a state dinner, or the Oscars or something, very nice."

"You're just saying that, you think I look like I'm going to the prom."

"Just a little," she said, "but you're not, you're going to go make fun of Shawn. That's the idea here and you're going to be great."

"The fans are going to hate me, you know."

"Let them," Stephanie said. "They don't have to know that this is personal. I just wish that they knew the real Shawn Michaels, but whatever, they don't need to know the real Shawn Michaels, they can just know that fake."

"I know that he's faking that injury," Chris said, "though if it's real, I'm sure as hell going to work that when I have a match with him, which is what I'm banking on."

"Good."

"You should've just let me take care of it in the first place," he told her. "You didn't need to go to Dave to get someone to beat up Shawn. Don't forget that I'm back to wrestling, now, baby, and I'm the one who's supposed to take care of you and the kids."

"I know, but I'm asking you now."

"And I'm going to take care of him," he told her and he was certain that he was going to. Dave couldn't finish the job, but Chris sure as hell was. If Shawn couldn't take the hint that he needed to stop harassing Stephanie, then Chris was going to pound it into him with his fists. It was a matter of his family now and he took his family very seriously. Speaking of which, Stephanie was looking a little pale. "Hey, you okay?"

"What do you mean?"

"Pregnancy-wise."

"Oh, no, not really," Stephanie said. "I'm just feeling achy tonight, it's not a big deal. Pregnancy is just catching up with me and with Flynn kicking more and more, and her kicks getting harder and harder, it's just all kind of catching up to me."

"I'm sorry," he said, kissing her forehead and pressing his hands on the sides of her stomach. "If it's any consolation, Sawyer and I really love feeling the baby kick."

Stephanie looked to Sawyer, who was asleep on the couch in his sleeping bag. "I know, he loves it. He thinks it's the coolest thing ever. Feeling him kick for the first time was just like that, and now he gets to experience it."

"He said the baby was his."

"He's not going to let her out of his sight."

"I know, but I'm glad he loves her already."

"Me too, can you believe he's going to be two? I can't wait for his birthday. My baby is going to be two years old. This is nuts."

"I know, time has flown and now everything's changed. I'm back to wrestling and you're pregnant again. Do you believe we get to do this all over again, with a girl this time?"

"It's going to be surreal," she told him. "I can't wait until Sawyer gets to open his presents, he's going to be so happy. I got him one from Flynn, I think he'll like that."

"How cutesy of you."

"Shut up," she said good-naturedly, leaning back into Chris's firm body. She relaxed in his arms, the first time she felt like she as relaxing today. Chris's hands were still on her stomach, massaging small circles into her stomach. "That feels good."

"Why don't you rest the rest of the evening? There's not much show left and Regal can handle it. That's what he's there for, to complement what you do. Just give him a call and tell him he's in charge."

"I don't know…"

"Oh come on" he said. "Look at it this way, if Shane had been able to come tonight, you would've let him handle the rest of the show. You're feeling achy, baby, and I don't want you to overexert yourself and land yourself in the hospital or something. I know that we're less than twenty weeks from baby time, but I would like her to stay in there as long as possible."

"Okay, you're right, if Shane was here, he would be working right now and Regal can handle it."

"I love this new and improved, smarter and more aware Stephanie."

"Shut it," she said as she deftly tied his bowtie. "There, now you're ready to go out there."

Chris felt a little ridiculous going out there in a tuxedo, but he was always conceding to Stephanie and letting her dictate what happened. It was the least he could do since she was carrying around their daughter, who was causing her nothing but agony this evening. If putting on a tuxedo and having a lame "awards" show made his wife feel better, so be it. He came out there with one purpose though, and it wasn't to entertain the fans.

He was there to call out Shawn. He didn't know whether or not Shawn had been faking what had happened last night with his knee, but that didn't much matter to Chris. If he was faking, good, he could nail him on it, if he wasn't, well that gave Chris an easy target. It was like a cheetah going after a wounded gazelle, Chris was going to strike quick and make fast prey out of poor, old, injured Shawn. He half-expected Shawn not to show up, but he did and even if it was just a tiny bit, he had to give Shawn credit for coming out to what he knew had to be something that would make fun of him.

Chris kept it verbal, not doing anything physical to Shawn just yet. If he could get under Shawn's skin first, that would be the best strategy. Shawn would give him a match quicker if Shawn thought that Chris wasn't going to let up without a fight. Shawn tried to say that he was actually hurt, but Chris continued to mock him, taking his down a few pegs.

What he wouldn't give to be able to tell Shawn off the way he wanted to. Unfortunately, Stephanie hated their private life being out there, so he kept his mouth shut. Shawn knew, though, exactly what this was about and that was probably why his face looked so pinched. This wasn't about some stupid in-ring thing, this was his family. Chris had never said word one about Shawn's wife or kids, but how dare he say all this stuff about _his_ wife and kids? Chris was intent on teaching him a lesson.

Dave couldn't handle it, but Chris would.

In all her years of working for her father's company, Stephanie had never seen anything like what Regal had done. She had been watching the show with Chris, lounging in Chris's lap in her dressing room watching the end of the show. All of a sudden, the camera had cut to Regal in the production truck, talking to the show director who was taking care of the cameras. Regal was ignored at first and Stephanie had trouble hearing what he was muttering. It became quite clear when Regal went ballistic on the director and the broadcast's video was turned off as was the commentary after a few moments.

Livid, Stephanie got up and left, stomping her way straight down to the production truck where Regal was just exiting, "What the hell was that, Regal?"

"I will not be disrespected. If I see fit to cancel the rest of the show, I will do so."

"You do not have the power to do so!"

"I'm the General Manager, of course I do," he said, "and the show needed to end, that's it."

"No, that's not it."

"I'm afraid that it is, Stephanie," Regal said sinisterly. "You see, you left me in charge and I was hired by your father to be the GM of this brand, so it's well within my rights to cancel the show if I see fit to do so."

"Don't do it again," Stephanie told him, "but it is_ not _ within your right to potentially screw with our sponsorship."

"I did the right thing."

Stephanie felt like she couldn't catch a break. Everything was always coming at her from all sides. First the thing with Shawn, then dealing with work, now this thing with Regal, all of it was just exhausting. He was going to insist he had done the right thing cutting off the show in the middle of a match and that pissed her off. Why should he get away with someone so careless? She was going to talk to her father about punishment. She had so many things on her plate right now, so many plans and ideas and taking care of everyone around her and she found herself glad for the strangest thing, one thing she never thought she'd be glad for, but maybe this was a good thing to want, considering it was going to happen whether she wanted it or not.

She was glad she was going to take time off.


	181. Second Birthdays, May 2, 2008

A/N: So I was working on the chapter and it starts with Sawyer's birthday and it was starting to get really long, so I just decided to make Sawyer's birthday one chapter, so this is it. Raw's chapter will be up tomorrow night, so you know, look out for it.

Beware though, there is some fluffiness ahead! Enjoy, thanks for the reviews and please continue to review. :)

* * *

"So we're definitely doing a whole girls night/guys night thing?"

"Yeah."

"I don't get why," Chris said. "Why do we have to be separate at all?"

"Do you want to sit around and discuss Trish's wedding?"

"No…"

"Well, Trish wants to start planning it, so that's what we're going to be doing," Stephanie explained to him. "Tonight, it'll just be about flowers and cakes and dresses, and you guys are going to be so bored. How many times did you like discussing our wedding?"

"Hey, I did plenty of stuff for our wedding," he pointed out.

"I know you did, but you weren't very happy with the planning part of it, and I'm one of Trish's bridesmaids so she's going to want to discuss it at length with me, especially because her sisters are in Canada and she's living here now."

"Okay, okay, okay, I get it," Chris said. "You don't want us here. How come Sawyer gets to stay?"

"Because Sawyer is a baby," Stephanie said. "He'll just sit there being cute and then he'll go to bed…hopefully early because tomorrow is his birthday and I don't want him to fall asleep right in the middle of his party."

"Yeah, you're right, it probably wouldn't look very good if he fell face-first into his cake as he fell asleep," Chris laughed. "Is everything set up for his birthday?"

"Yeah, everything is supposed to go as planned," Stephanie nodded. "I'm still in awe that it's our son's second birthday. I still remember bringing him home from the hospital with that new baby smell and wondering if I was going to even be a good mother…I like to think that I'm doing an okay job."

"You're doing a great job. I think that the only way you can measure something like that is how happy your kid is, and our kid is an extremely happy kid so I definitely think that you're doing a good job."

"Thanks," she said as she sat at their kitchen table going over some stuff for the shows that coming Monday. "He thinks it's weird that he can't go in the backyard."

Chris laughed, "But then doesn't he forget about that five seconds later, he has the attention span of a fly."

"Yeah, but it's funny when he tries to grab for the handle and can't get it. Oh man, my baby can try to open door handles," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "He's still my little baby and now he's talking and walking and doing God knows what when we're not watching, probably hitting on girls or something. He's probably got a job we don't know about."

"I remember the first day we brought him home, I was showing him around the house and I think I remember telling him that he wouldn't be using the doors for a while, and now he's like, opening and closing doors on us. He wants to lock us out of the house."

She laughed, "He's so big. He's going to be two, Chris, _two_, that's multiple years, that's not just one year, that's multiple years."

"I'm aware of how many two is," Chris told her. "But we get to do it all over again with that one."

Stephanie looked down at her stomach. Flynn had settled down for a little while now, probably asleep in there or something. Occasionally Stephanie would feel a light kick, but other than that Flynn was giving her a break. She rubbed her stomach a little, thinking about how they _were_ going to get to do all that again. She wondered if the second time around would feel anything like the first. She didn't know. Bringing Sawyer home, holding him, taking care of him, it was all so new, so different from anything she had ever experienced. It couldn't be the same with Flynn.

It was like going to your first wrestling show and being in awe of everything around you, the sights, the sounds, the cheers of the crowd, the sound of slamming bodies onto the mat, the crackling of a wrestler's voice over the sound system, all of it was new and fresh and everything assaulted you all at once and it was like you were home, like you were finally among people who understood you. Every time after that first time could be just as good, but that sense of awe was replaced by the sense of familiarity.

She figured that this was going to be true for Flynn as well. While she would still be excited for the arrival of her daughter, it was going to be mixed in with that familiarity of being in this position before. It didn't mean that she loved her daughter less, it was just this was something she had experienced before. Flynn had the smarts to end up being a girl so there was that whole new experience to be had.

"Yeah, we do," she said, smiling to herself.

"How's my little girl?" Chris asked.

"I think she's asleep, thankfully," Stephanie told him. "I don't think I can handle another seventeen weeks with her kicking me constantly. Even Sawyer had mercy on me sometimes. By the time she comes out, my insides are going to be rearranged completely."

Chris laughed, "She's got you written all over her."

"I don't think I like what you're insinuating," she said playfully.

"Oh, of course not," he said. "So are you also going to talk girly baby stuff?"

"Yes," she told him, "so you won't want to be here even more."

"The guys are going to kill me if you put any ideas in their girl's heads," Chris said. "So try not to talk up pregnancy too much."

"Trust me, I won't, because this," she said gesturing to her stomach area, "is not as much fun as they make it on television. On television it's all flowers and roses and they never tell you about all the very not fun things that come along with pregnancy."

"Yeah, I could do without the gas," he told her.

She glared at him, "Chris Jericho, I'm going to kick your ass if you say another word."

"I was just agreeing with you that pregnancy isn't easy!" he exclaimed, his grin widening.

"I hate you with a passion," she told him. "It's all your fault this happened."

"Yes, because you were claiming celibacy, give me a break, Stephanie. If you didn't want to have sex with me, you would tell me that you didn't want to have sex with me, but oops, that's not the case…"

"Trish wants to take me baby shopping for little girl things. Which reminds me, we have to start on the nursery," Stephanie told him. "You have to paint!"

"What color?"

"Sawyer's room is green, right?"

"Last time I checked, yes."

"Blue!" she said, "I want it to be a sky blue. Yeah, that's what I want."

"Our daughter is going to have an identity crisis."

"Oh please, I hate this whole, boys have blue, girls have pink thing. I like pink well enough, but a pink room, yikes, too much. I like blue and I think it'll be nice and calm. That's what I want, I think Flynn would like it."

"Fine, fine, and we're using Sawyer's old crib for her, right?"

"We may be rich, Chris, but we're not stupid enough to buy a new crib when we've got Sawyer's 1000 dollar crib sitting around," she told him dully.

"Okay, okay," he said.

"Mommy!"

"Sounds like someone's at the top of the stairs," Stephanie said getting up. "Where are you, baby boy!"

"Stair!" he yelled back at her. Stephanie nodded and went into the foyer where Sawyer was standing at the top of the stairs. The little weasel had actually learned how to climb over the safety gates they had installed by pushing stuff to climb on in front of the gate and then climbing over. Stephanie had gotten so angry with him over that he hadn't dared to try it again.

"Hey, you, have a good nap?" Stephanie asked as she went up the stairs. This was the last remaining safety gate in the entire house. Sawyer could get down the stairs by himself, but Stephanie didn't like the idea that he was getting down the stairs unattended.

"Yup," Sawyer said as Stephanie moved the gate. Sawyer carefully grabbed onto the railing and took each step down tentatively until he reached the bottom step and jumped off onto the ground like a gymnast completely a difficult program. "Done!"

"Well, yeah, you're done going down the stairs," Stephanie said as she followed him into the kitchen where he was expecting his after-nap snack.

"Hey kid," Chris said to his son when he saw his little blond hair rounding the corner, "what do you want to have for a snack?"

"Apple," Sawyer answered, climbing onto the chair next to Chris, "Hi, Daddy."

"Hey," Chris said, tousling his hair, "so you're stuck with all the girls tonight since Mommy's kicking me out of the house."

"Okay," he shrugged.

"Wow, what a ladies man," Chris joked as Sawyer looked at him quizzically. He turned to Stephanie, who was slicing up some apples for the kid. "Hey, when do my parents get in again?"

"Tomorrow morning, early, they're just getting a car so you don't have to pick them up. I'll be up early tomorrow so it's not a problem letting them in, I'm sure your mom will help me out."

"Oh okay, just wondering," he said, "because if they came in tonight, I'd feel bad for going out with the guys and not going to see my parents."

"No, you're fine," she said, putting down the apples in front of Sawyer along with a juice box for him. He was happily eating them as Stephanie took another seat at the table. "I'm not doing any of the cooking obviously, but I'm going to pick up the stuff that we need early and then you're going to cook, right?"

"Barbeque, but yeah," Chris said. "I want to try out the new grill I got for summer."

"Of course you do, I'm thinking that you'll need to use it a lot because you've got a growing boy and a growing wife and a daughter who needs her nutrition."

"I know," he said, rubbing her stomach a little. He and Sawyer were the only ones allowed to do that without asking.

Sawyer took note of what his parents were saying and he turned to his mother, apple in hand, "Want apple?"

"No thank, baby boy," Stephanie told him, "that's your apple, you should eat it."

"Oh," he shrugged, then popped it into his mouth, "okay."

"So he'll share the apples, but he won't share the baby," Chris said with disappointment as he shook his head. "Are you sure that we have to go out without you tonight, are you absolutely positive, what if I just send Christian and Hunter out and I stay with you."

"Bridal preparations…"

He groaned, "Okay, okay, hey, are you going to be the one planning Trish's bachelorette party?"

"Why?" Stephanie asked.

"Well, because you can't exactly drink, you know, with you breastfeeding and all of that."

"That doesn't mean that I can't plan it. Her sister will take care of it though, I'm sure, because it's in Toronto," Stephanie said. "I don't know enough about Toronto to actually plan it, so she'll definitely take care of it. I'll be the designated driver for that evening, probably limit myself to a glass of wine or something."

"I was just wondering, you know, no big deal."

"I shudder to think of how Edge is going to plan a bachelor party. I think a night full of debauchery is going to be how it goes down," she said.

"Probably, knowing Edge, well, I don't know…he might be married to Vickie by then."

Stephanie laughed, "Yeah, right, I'll believe that when I see it."

--

"I wanted to stay home, but no," Chris said, "Stephanie said that I couldn't stay, I didn't want to come out with you guys."

"I'm very nice," Christian said, "I can't speak for you, Hunter, but I'm very nice. You should want to come out with me."

"I would much rather spend the night before my son's second birthday with my son not with you two stooges," Chris said. "You don't get it, neither of you have any kids."

"Yet," Christian said. "Trish and I are planning on it down the road."

"Britt and I passed through the subject very briefly."

"You need to get over your mommy issues before you even think about having kids," Chris said as they walked up to the third floor of the club they were in. "Why have I never been to this place and why do you know about this place, man?"

"My brother, duh," Christian said, looking around for the bar. "He said to go to the rooftop bar because there's not a lot of people up there so it's easier to get a drink."

"Oh okay," Chris said as they went to the stairs to get up the two flights to the rooftop. The three of them were having to talk loudly to be heard over the din of the crowd. The place was packed for a Thursday night, all three of them so far removed from school they didn't realize that a lot of the people there were students who had no classes on Fridays. They got to the roof, which was definitely quieter. The three of them went to the bar and ordered a round of beer on Chris. They went to some couches lining the sides of the roof and sat down, "Why am I not surprised that your brother comes here often?"

"Because it's my brother," Christian said. "If he weren't with Vickie tonight, I guarantee you he would be the first guy here."

"I don't understand why we had to come here," Hunter said as he looked around. "Why couldn't we have just gone out to dinner or something?"

"Because what's the fun in that?" Christian asked. He and Hunter were not close at all and Christian was still a little perplexed by the man. He liked him well enough, he supposed, but he never actually talked with the guy, so what did he really know about him? But if Chris liked him, well, Chris was his friend after all so he gave the guy the benefit of the doubt.

Hunter looked around as he sipped on his beer, "This place makes me feel old. You have to be, what, 21 to come into this place, I'm going to be 39 this year, 18 years, I could be 18 years older than some of these girls. That's old enough to be their father."

"I'm only 38, plenty of age left," Chris joked. "Hunter, you're just not attractive."

"Hey, my girlfriend is 26, that's plenty attractive, I mean, your wife isn't exactly young, she's in her thirties."

"She's 31," Chris pointed out, "plus she's my wife, plus she was _your_ wife…for two years."

"Yeah, she was like young then," Hunter chuckled. "But if that's fine with you."

"I would hope it's fine, considering that she's my wife and carrying my child," Chris said as they kind of bopped along to the loud music blaring through the speakers. This wasn't really the scene for any of them, but at least it was exciting and got them out of the house where their significant others were discussing wedding dresses as Stephanie was pulling out her wedding dress from her closet as Trish and Britt sat on her and Chris's bed, Sawyer watching TV behind them.

Stephanie unzipped the dress, "So here it is."

"See, I'm wondering if strapless is the way to go with me," Trish said.

"That dress is beautiful," Britt told her, "What was your wedding like?"

"You've never seen the pictures?" Stephanie asked. "You've been here for two years and you haven't seen the pictures?"

"No, just the ones you have on your mantel," Britt said. "I think Chris mentioned that it was in Hawaii."

"Yeah, it was in Hawaii on this cliff overlooking the water at sunset," Stephanie said, reminiscing about the day. "It was pretty great."

"You should've seen Stephanie, she looked absolutely gorgeous in that dress," Trish said. "I think Chris forgot how to breathe when he saw her. It was great, and they said their own vows and everything, very romantic."

"Was it big?"

"No," Stephanie said. "With that first wedding disaster and the sheer lack of people who knew about me and Chris, we decided to go fairly small, I think there was like 30-50 people. It was nothing extravagant at all."

"Their first dance song was _You Really Got a Hold on Me_."

"Wait, doesn't that song start with something like, 'I don't like you, but I love you?'"

"Yeah," Stephanie laughed, "I picked it out, I thought that it was apt."

"Did you get the dress specially made?" Britt asked.

"Yeah, I had to have the dressmaker come to shows because I just had not time for fittings," Stephanie said, "I think it was worth it though. Of course, now I couldn't fit in this thing if I tried."

"You're pregnant," Trish said. "Big difference than just gaining weight."

Stephanie shrugged, then looked down at her dress, "I think you could pull off strapless."

"I know I could pull it off," she laughed, pointing to her breasts, "I just don't know if that's the style I want. I was thinking, and you might think this is really lame. I was thinking of a theme wedding."

"A theme?"

"Yeah, I was thinking either a Grecian type wedding, you know, looking like Greek goddesses, since I'm Greek, you know. Or I was thinking like a vintage-type wedding, like very 40's-style stuff, you know, I thought that might be cool."

"For the guys too?"

"Well, I mean, they'd be wearing tuxes and those haven't really changed. I just thought it might be kind of cool."

"Whatever you want," Stephanie told her, "this is your wedding, you should have it be everything that you want it to be. Idealistically you should only get one of these, so you should make it count when that moment does come around."

"You're right," she said, "do you think that Christian would go for the idea?"

"Christian has been waiting years for this, if you wanted to get married underwater, naked, sky-diving, I think that he'd agree at this point."

"Well I don't want any of that," Trish said, "what do you think he's doing?"

"Complaining that he's not with you?" Stephanie wondered.

"Let's go down to another level," Christian said. "I can't stand this music, it's horrible."

"Okay," Chris said, grabbing his second beer and heading down the stairs to a more accommodating setting. Each level of the club had a different style of music, so there was a lot of variety. He was pushing his way through the crowd when he caught the eyes of a few girls who liked older men.

"This is better," Christian said, moving along to the music. The three sat there nursing their drinks as people danced around and talked and what not.

"I'm going to grab another beer," Chris said as he stood up, "you guys need more?"

"Nah, I'm good," Hunter said.

"Me too."

"Cool," Chris said as he started for the bar. In order for him to get there, he had to go through the huge group of dancing people. He made it through just fine and tapped his empty beer bottle to the bartender as he waited for his drink.

"So uh," Hunter said as it was just him and Christian, "congratulations on getting married."

"Thanks," Christian said, picking off the corner of the label on his beer. The glue came off pretty easily and he tore it off and rolled it into a little ball.

"How long have you two been together?"

"Um, this time?"

"Oh yeah, you guys have been together before, right?"

"A bunch of times actually."

"I almost got with Trish, you know," Hunter said casually.

"Um, yeah, okay," Christian said, not wanting to think about that. He didn't like thinking about other guys being with his fiancée, especially not Vince. Oh God, he never wanted to think about Trish and Vince again. That was a part of Trish's life that he would rather not ever remember. It wasn't like every time he saw Vince he was reminded of it, but every once in a while he was reminded of it and it caused him to shudder.

"I'm just saying, I was faithful to Stephanie" Hunter said.

"I never said you weren't. She was probably faithful to you."

"She was," Hunter chuckled, "whatever that's worth."

"Yeah…"

"So you excited to get married?"

"Yeah, really excited."

"Cool, cool," Hunter said, taking a swig of his beer, feeling a little uncomfortable around this guy. He had barely had a conversation with the guy since the Facgime as they liked to call it. He looked around for Chris and his eyes settled on the man, "Hey, is that…is that Chris?"

"Where?" Christian asked, following Hunter's line of sight.

Christian saw Chris in the middle of the crowd, two or three girls in their twenties dancing around him. He had his fresh beer high in the air as he danced around with them. They were gyrating and moving against him, one of them seemingly rubbing up against the front of his pants as she grinded into him. Christian looked back at Hunter, supremely confused.

"What the hell?" Hunter said with a weird chuckle.

Christian laughed uneasily, "I didn't think Chris danced like that. He has _never _danced like that with Stephanie."

"Well obviously he can…do you think he's drunk?"

"After a few beers, no way," Christian said.

The two of them watched Chris for a good ten minutes, dancing with these girls. It was all very touchy-feely and it made Christian and Hunter look at each other intermittently as Chris would talk to one girl, leaning in close to hear her as she leaned up to whisper in his ear. He'd laugh and pull away and continue to dance to the house mix that the DJ was playing over the loudspeakers, drowning out most of the noise as the strobe lights illuminated a million different surfaces at once.

"So that's weird, right?" Christian said.

"Uh yeah," Hunter said. "He looks a little too into it, I mean, at least I think so, do you think so?"

"Yeah, I agree," Christian said.

They continued to watch as Chris kept dancing with these girls who looked barely out of high school. The DJ eventually stopped to take a ten-minute break and some other music came on to fill the gap. Christian and Hunter watched as two of the girls wrote something down on scraps of paper and silkily slid them into Chris's pocket. After that display, to which Christian and Hunter looked at each other with wide eyes, Chris came back over, his beer still in hand.

"Hey guys," Chris said, sitting down and making no more mention of what had just happened.

"Um, hey," Hunter said. "Thought we lost you there for a second."

"Nah," Chris said, drinking from the bottle in his hand. "I'm cool, right here, see."

"Yeah, right here."

Christian and Hunter gave each other another, more pointed look before trying to forget what they had seen.

The next morning, Stephanie was up bright and early since her bladder was about to burst and she needed to get to the bathroom immediately. She relieved herself with a sigh before she went back into the bedroom and slid into the covers again, reveling in the warmth that she had so briefly retreated from. Chris was laying with his back to her and she ran her hands up and down his bare back.

"Geez, Stephanie, that's cold," he said as his body instinctively shrunk away from hers.

"Today's our baby's birthday," Stephanie told him. This caused him to turn around and face her, his eyes still closed.

"I know," he told her, "it's pretty exciting huh?"

"Yeah, it is," she said, giving him a small smile. "Today's going to be good."

"I agree, I think it was smart to celebrate with just family today and then doing the party tomorrow," Chris told her, "it just feels right that we're just having the family here, you know. Everyone can see him tomorrow, but today is about us."

"You're sappy," Stephanie told him, running her finger up and down his arm, "and I love it."

"Well, I do try very hard," Chris said. "So did Flynn wake you up?"

"Nah, she's not that strong yet, but her position near my bladder made me have to pee," Stephanie said. They lay there in silence for a moment before she spoke again, "Do you think that Sawyer is awake?"

"No," Chris said immediately. "It's only 7:30 in the morning, you know that lazy-butt doesn't get up before 8:30."

"He's not a lazy-butt," Stephanie defended. "I'm going to get up though. I wanted to start prepping the food for tomorrow."

"You sure you want to handle that."

"You've taught me how to prep things!" she told him with a pout. "Besides, I've gotten better with the whole cooking thing, seeing as how I had to cook for myself when I had Sawyer and you were on the road. I'm going to have to do that again now when I go on maternity leave with Flynn."

"And when do you think that will be?" he asked curiously.

"God willing, the same time I left for Sawyer," Stephanie told him, her voice firm and leaving no room for argument.

"Are you sure? You were saying the other day about how burnt out you are," he reminded her.

"Yeah, I was burnt out," Stephanie said with a sigh, "but with Shane there sharing my duties for me, I think that it'll be easier for me to spend time at work. This week was just hard because Shane wasn't there and Regal decided to go all crazy on us."

He laughed and took her hand and kissed the palm, "Whatever you say. I trust your judgment."

"Thank you," she said. "What if we went and just saw if he was up?"

"I really don't think he's up," he told her with a laugh.

"Well, he's not doing anything today, we're just going to have a nice family dinner," she told him. "So it's not like he has to stay up late anyways. Can we just go see him and maybe wake him up?"

"Steph…"

"Okay, okay, fine," she said, getting out of bed. "Well _I'm_ getting dressed and going to the kitchen, follow whenever you want."

"Do _not_ go wake him up," he warned her.

"I'm not," she said, "I said I wasn't going to and I'm not."

"I don't trust your word."

"Oh that's great, I've just got this going on for the both of us," she said, turning to the side and pointing to her stomach, "but you don't trust me."

"Hell no I don't," he joked around with her.

"I'm glad you didn't get drunk last night," she said, sort of out of the blue, "you would've been very cranky this morning if you had a really bad hangover."

"No, I just got to the point where you're a little tipsy and everything is feeling fine but instead of a hangover, you just kind of get really tired, that's the point where I stopped drinking last night," he said, "can't hold my liquor like I used to, I blame you for that."

"Blame Sawyer, it really is _his_ fault. What I wouldn't give for a nice gin martini right now."

Chris laughed, "Go for it."

"Shut up," she said, sticking her tongue out at him.

He languidly lay in bed as he watched Stephanie get dressed. She stood in front of her racks of clothes trying to figure out something comfortable to wear. After she had Sawyer and lost most of the baby weight they had put her clothes into the spare room where they kept a lot of their old junk. She wasn't too happy having to dig that stuff out again and find spots for it in her closet. She finally picked something and got undressed.

"Stop staring at me!" she told him, turning to the side.

"Hey, I think you're pretty, sue me," he told her playfully.

She shook her head and got dressed. He did think that she was pretty. There was just something about Stephanie when she was pregnant. He just guessed it was a feeling among a lot of guys when they looked at the woman who was carrying their child. It was a mixture of awe and plain gratefulness that someone would actually willingly carry their child. Stephanie was willing to carry his child and that made a world of difference for him. She was the only one so far willing to do that (who he actually knew).

She left the room and went downstairs and into the kitchen. She resisted the urge to just peek her head into Sawyer's room. Instead, she brought out all the vegetables that she wanted to cut and put away for tomorrow. The sooner she got this done, the more time she could spend with her little boy on his big day. Halfway through slicing carrots she heard the doorbell ring and she figured it had to be Chris's parents just arriving from the airport. She wiped her hands, wondering where her lazy husband was and went to the front door.

"Hey you guys," Stephanie said as she opened the door to her in-laws.

"Hi," Ted said, "Retta's just getting her purse from the car…look at you though, you're getting huge."

"Thanks, Ted," Stephanie said sarcastically, "you're just as blunt as your son."

He laughed as Loretta came up behind him, "Oh wow, Stephanie, you are definitely pregnant."

"That's what the doctors keep telling me, but I think I just ate too much."

"Very funny," Loretta said, giving her a hug, "How's the baby doing?"

"She's doing really well," Stephanie said. "She's been kicking me lately, a lot, so you know, that's exciting for Chris and Sawyer."

"I bet, where are they?" she asked, looking around.

"They're upstairs sleeping," Stephanie answered. "I was just in the kitchen getting stuff ready for tomorrow."

"Oh, you shouldn't have to do that," Loretta said, "I'll help you with that, you should go rest and put your feet up."

Stephanie laughed, "Loretta, you do realize that I work every week, right? I haven't taken time off yet."

"I know, but let me do this for you," she said. "That's my granddaughter in there and I want to spoil the both of you while I can."

"You really don't have to."

"I want to, so go, sit down, rest."

"I think I'm just going to go see if Sawyer's awake yet."

"Okay, good, I want to see the birthday boy."

Stephanie went upstairs and opened the child gate to get to Sawyer's room. She peeked her head inside and saw that he was still asleep, his left hand tucked under his pillow while his right was flailed off the side of the bed. His head was nodded off to the other side and she went to that side and just sat on the floor next to his bed, watching her little boy as he slept, untouched by the waking world.

"Steph, I told you to let him sleep," Chris said as he leaned in the doorway. He had just been about to head downstairs when he saw the door to Sawyer's room wide open. Upon further inspection, he found his wife staring at their child.

"I am, I'm just watching him," she said. "Come on, your parents are downstairs and they're taking care of things."

"So we can freely sit and creepily watch our son?"

"Yes," she whispered with a smile, patting the spot next to her. Chris shook his head and came and sat next to her. Stephanie linked her arm through Chris's and leaned her head against his shoulder. "Isn't he handsome?"

"He looks like me, of course he's handsome," Chris said, kissing her head.

Sawyer must've known that he was being watched because he started to stir and wake up. He opened his eyes slowly and saw that he was being watched by his parents. He was startled by this and recoiled a little as they laughed at him. He sat up and rubbed at his eyes, before laying back down and looking back at them.

"Mommy?"

"Hey there, birthday boy!" Stephanie said, crawling over to his bed and kneeling next to him, running her fingers through his blond hair, neatening it up as it was sticking up and out.

"Birfday?"

"Yeah, you're two today," she told him excitedly.

"Two?"

"Yup," she said, "you're such a big boy, Happy Birthday, baby."

"For me?" he asked.

"Yes, for you, you silly boy," she told him.

"Happy Birthday, kid," Chris told his son.

"Happy day you," he said.

"No, not for me, it's _your_ birthday," Chris told him with a laugh. "You're two today, you're an old man."

"You old," Sawyer said with a giggle.

"Hey!" Chris said. "That's not cool. Just because it's your birthday doesn't mean you can go insulting me."

"Okay," he said, "You lie?"

"We can't all fit in your bed," Chris said, "that's just silly."

Sawyer giggled, "No silly."

"Are you excited for your party tomorrow?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah!" he said, raising his hands above his head like he was victorious at something.

"Grandma and Grandpa are downstairs, do you want to go see them and have some breakfast?"

"Yes."

"Okay, come on then, birthday boy," Stephanie said, prompting Chris to pick him up since she couldn't do it herself at this point.

The day was spent quietly with the family, nothing terribly big or special today, but Sawyer had fun all the same. He knew he was on the cusp of something big though, he could feel it around his parents. It kind of felt like whenever they were at the place where his mommy and daddy worked and everyone was walking around really quickly and not paying attention to anything. Whatever it was, he wanted to know all about it and wanted to participate this time.

As the next day rolled around, Sawyer was practically bouncing off the walls. He knew something big was going on because everyone he knew seemed to be coming into his house. His cousins had come over and they never came over here to play. His grandparents were here and Trips was here too, and that hardly ever happened. The only thing that wasn't unusual was Christian and Trish being over. They were always over here so it was no big deal.

He watched as everyone went outside and wondered why he couldn't go outside. Every time he tried to, someone would push him back inside. If this was like what happened when his daddy was with Cookie Monster, and he couldn't go out there, he was going to be so pissed off. This would be like the third time this happened and he wasn't going to stand for it.

"Out," Sawyer whined at his mommy as he saw one of his neighborhood friends going outside with his mommy. "Mommy, out…"

"I know, sweetie, just a second, okay," Stephanie said as she sat with him.

"Why?"

"Because I said so, silly," she told him, kissing his nose. He sighed and dropped his chin down to his chest in exasperation. Stephanie kissed his forehead and gave him a hug. "I love you."

"I love you," he returned.

Chris stuck his head in the door and looked at his family, "Hey, you guys, you can come out now."

"See," Stephanie said as Chris helped her up and she held Sawyer's hand.

They took him outside and everyone was out there and looking at him. Chris lifted him up and then went over to the grassy area behind the pool and his eyes started to widen impossibly big as he saw a huge playground sitting there. His jaw dropped as he looked between his parents, who were watching his every reaction. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. There was a playground at his house! It had a slide and swings and a bridge and it was huge to his small eyes. He couldn't believe this, this was _way_ better than Cookie Monster!

"Happy Birthday, baby boy," Stephanie told him. "That's your new playground."

Sawyer screamed in excitement, squirming right out of Chris's arms and straight towards his playground as everyone watched and laughed as he started to climb the steps up towards the bridge. Chris and Stephanie had it completely kid-proofed so Sawyer couldn't fall from any massive heights. His friends and cousins started running on now that they knew they were allowed to play on it and Chris and Stephanie just watched as he excitedly waved at them from his new playground.

"He loves it," Stephanie said. "He absolutely loves it."

"I knew he would," Chris said. "This kid is going to expect this all the time I bet."

"Well, he is ours," she said. "I'm going to grab the food in the kitchen and I'll bring it out so you can start grilling, okay?"

"Yes, ma'am."

Stephanie went to the kitchen, passing by Hunter and Christian , who were curiously standing next to each other as they leaned against a wall and watched as Chris opened the barbeque and turned the flames on so it would get hot enough to cook. They had narrowed their eyes as Stephanie had leaned up to kiss his cheek and now they were just watching him.

"One of us should tell her," Christian said.

"Yeah, I think so, but here?"

"The sooner the better, man," Christian told him. "We can't keep this to ourselves. We saw those girls giving him their numbers and we never saw him take them out of his pocket."

"He could've when he went to the bathroom," Hunter pointed out.

"I saw part of one sticking out of his pocket when we were leaving," Christian said.

"Oh, okay," Hunter said. "So yeah, I guess…well, we don't want him to _use_ them."

"Well no, I wouldn't want him to use the numbers, come on," Christian said. "Why would we want that?"

"I didn't say that we wanted that, never-mind, one of us should go tell her," Hunter said.

"Okay, go ahead."

"Me?"

"Yeah, you," Christian said. "You're closer to her, you were _married_ to her, the most I've ever done with Stephanie was have a very awkward kiss, you were married to her and all of that, so you should go tell her."

"And devastate her potentially?"

"It has to be said. I can't have this on my conscience."

Hunter sighed, "Fine, I'll do it."

"Good."

Hunter cleared his throat and pushed himself off of the wall. He walked inside where Stephanie had disappeared to and saw her in the kitchen pulling things out of the fridge. He stood there a moment and then cleared his throat, startling her. She looked over her shoulder and laughed at how silly it had been for her to be frightened at all. She set down the tray she was holding on the counter and looked at Hunter.

"Do you need help?" he asked.

"Yeah, sure," she nodded. I've got more than one tray to bring out there."

"Oh," he said, rubbing the back of his neck nervously, "do you think that we could talk for a minute?"

"Yeah, sure, I've got a minute, what is it?" she asked, leaning against the counter.

"Well, it's just, I really don't know…I really don't know how to bring this up to you," he said. "I guess I'll just say it, Chris was uh…Chris was dancing with these girls the other night, when we went out. He was dancing with them and they were dancing really close."

"Oh…what do you mean, close?"

"Like, um, they were grinding up against him and stuff, and they just looked, um, they looked really young."

"How young?"

"Early twenties, definitely."

"Oh, why are you telling me this?"

"It was just…it was really out of character for him, or at least I thought so. I just didn't want you to get hurt or anything and thought that you should know the truth. It made Christian and I both uncomfortable."

"It was that bad?" Stephanie asked, biting her lip in the way she did when she was particularly nervous about something.

"Um, yeah, it was just…yeah, it was a little uncomfortable, they were just, he was just…well, they were touching him a lot, there was a lot of touching going on."

"I see," she said, her lip starting to tremble now.

"Steph, we didn't want to hurt you…but um, there's more."

"More!"

"They, uh, they gave him their phone numbers and we're sure that he brought them home with him. The girls slipped them into his pockets and Christian saw them later," Hunter told her. "If you want, we'll go kick Chris's ass."

"I can't believe he would do this!" Stephanie exclaimed. "I just can't believe it…"

"I'm really sorry, Steph, I really am, I didn't mean…I just didn't mean for it to be…I didn't want to hurt you, but you needed to know, you know."

"I just…I knew that getting pregnant would make me disgusting. I knew it was only a matter of time before something like this happened, I knew it. I'm getting fat and ugly, and I knew he would stray, I just knew it!"

"I'm so sorry, Steph," Hunter said, hugging her. "I really am."

"Oh God, he's going to divorce me and my kids won't have a father…"

"Shh, it's okay, we'll kick his ass."

"This just a nightmare," Stephanie said, covering her face.

"I'm so sorry."

"I'm sorry too," Stephanie said, "sorry that you are so gullible."

"Huh?"

Stephanie pulled away and laughed, "Chris told me all about the girls that he was dancing with last night. He told me _when_ he came home last night. I know all about the numbers, in fact, they're right there on the fridge. I thought about prank-calling them, but decided it wasn't worth it."

Hunter looked to the fridge and right there were a couple of napkins with numbers written on them in lipstick. Stephanie laughed, "You knew…"

"Of course I knew, Chris tells me these things. He thought putting them up there would make him cool. He likes to rub it in my face that he gets hit on all the time, wherever we go. Then he says only guys with a pregnancy fetish would want me."

"So you knew…"

"Yes, I knew," she said, "now help me out."

Hunter was a little surprised that he had been so wrong. He grabbed one of the trays and followed Stephanie out to Chris. He set the tray down and went back over to Christian , still a little shell-shocked and he couldn't quite put his finger on why. Christian looked at him, wondering what had happened because it didn't seem like Stephanie was mad at Chris. In fact, she was whispering something in his ear and he was laughing and looking over here.

"What happened, man?" Christian asked.

"She knew, he told her everything, the numbers are stuck on their _fridge_ right now."

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah, it's a joke between them. She thought it was funny that he got hit on."

"Geez, those two," Christian said as he wandered off in search of his fiancée.

Hunter stood there for a moment thinking about the dynamic between Chris and Stephanie. He looked back over at them again, but Stephanie wasn't around. He scanned the backyard area and saw that Sawyer was running towards her with a big hug just for her. She told him something and he scurried away to go play with his friend again and she stood up to smile at him. She had known all along.

He hadn't even kept it a secret from her. He had come home and he had told her. That was something that was severely lacking from his relationship with Stephanie. They never communicated, just left things to be discovered whenever, like when Hunter had been "helping" Trish and Stephanie had walked in and assumed the absolute worst. Stephanie didn't expect the absolute worst with Chris.

He was so forthright over her, telling her everything and it sent up little red flags in his brain. Chris just told Stephanie everything and probably did everything for her and he couldn't even talk to his mother on behalf of his girlfriend, whom he loved. Britt came over during this interlude and she cuddled into his chest.

"Hey, I was looking for you," she said.

"Hey, where's the birthday boy, I haven't gotten to see him."

"Over there," Britt said, pointing to where he was playing tag or some other game with the other kids. "He's going to love the tricycle we got him."

"I hope so," Hunter said. "You know, I really haven't been fair to you regarding my mom."

"Huh?"

"I really should talk to her, I owe you that."

"Wow, um, what brought up this change of…well, everything?"

He shrugged, "I want to be honest with you, I love you, and you deserve better than how I've treated this situation."

She hunched her shoulders a little and hugged him tightly, "I love you too."

At the grill, Chris was flipping burgers while Stephanie watched on, "I want a double burger with cheese."

"This one's yours," he said, pointing to two patties on the left side.

"Oh good," she said as Sawyer ran over again. He looked up at Stephanie and smiled.

"What's up, baby boy?"

"What that?" he asked, pointing to the immense pile of presents.

"Those are presents for you."

"For me?" he asked.

"Yeah, because you turned two yesterday, you get to have presents today all for you."

"I two!" he said with a great, big smile.

"I know," Stephanie told him, "that's why everyone is here."

Trish came up to them to ask a question and Sawyer tugged on her jeans, "Tish, I two!"

"I know," Trish said, picking him up as he hugged her. "We got you a big present and everything because we're so happy that you're two years old."

"Yeah?"

"Uh huh," she nodded. "Come on, let's go look at all those presents and try to guess what they are."

"Okay," he nodded as they walked over to the big pile of presents. Stephanie rubbed her stomach as Chris touched where she was rubbing and felt Flynn kick against his hand.

"She awake?"

"She wanted to be up for Sawyer's birthday," she said. "She didn't want to be left out of the festivities."

"She kicking hard?"

"Always," Stephanie said. "I think today is going well, everyone seems to be having fun, the birthday boy is especially happy."

"You look nice and relaxed."

"Yeah, I was thinking, you know, I think I'm going to really step back from my duties on Raw. I mean, I'll be there, but I think that I'm just going to be like a special consultant, you know, I'll just focus on the paperwork and not any of the dirty work."

"Are you serious?" he said. "I mean, you said you would do this for Sawyer, and that lasted all of two weeks."

"Well, this might too, I'm just burnt out, and you have no idea how good it feels to relax and not worry about work and instead worrying about my family."

"Well, if that's what you want to do, I have no problem with that."

"Thanks, I love you."

After everyone had eaten, they sat the birthday boy down and put his cake in front of him. The candles were lit, and unlike his first birthday, this time around Sawyer could actually blow out his own candles and did so with ruthless efficiency. Everyone clapped for him and he clapped to because everyone else was doing it. Plus, he got cake and that deserved a good round of applause. He even got a big slice of it and when his mother handed him the fork, he dug right in.

They had even sung for him, but he didn't know what the _hell_ that was even about.

Stephanie got an even bigger slice for herself and was stuffing her face even more than Sawyer was at the moment. She watched as people kept doting over Sawyer as they ate their cake. He was loving all the attention that he was getting and she was glad that he had this. She knew when Flynn came, he was no longer going to be the novelty. Everyone was going to want to be around Flynn and she just hoped that Sawyer wouldn't become jealous of this fact.

"Present time!" Chris exclaimed as he started dumping presents in front of Sawyer, who watched in awe.

It is very easy to please a two-year-old. He didn't mind getting anything as long as he got to tear that paper off and see something new beneath the paper. He got a lot of toys from his friends and his aunt and uncle had given him a big train set that he wanted to rip open right now. His grandparents had gotten him big play-sets that acted like a fake tool shop and an auto shop so Sawyer could…hone in his wood-crafting and automotive skills? The next one was awkwardly shaped and was pushed towards him.

"That's from us, tough guy," Hunter said and he smiled as he ripped the paper and saw a tricycle beneath it. He had something like this, but this was so cool. It was a red Schwinn Roadster with pictures of Mickey Mouse on it.

"You want to try it out?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, I twy," Sawyer said, nodding enthusiastically. Chris helped him get on the tricycle and Sawyer instinctively put his feet to the pedals, but didn't know what to do beyond that as he had never owned a bike of any kind.

"He might be a little too small for it yet, but the seat adjusts and stuff and he can still push himself," Hunter said as he came over.

"Did you hear that, kid, you can still ride it," Chris told him as Sawyer tried to pedal, but the pedals got too far away and he was forced to just let them go around and around. "Tell thank you to Trips and Britt."

"Tank Twip, Bitt," he told them.

"Here's something for you," Stephanie said as she gave Sawyer a smaller present. He refused to get off the tricycle and Hunter was so pleased that he had gotten him something that he obviously adored. "It's from Flynn."

"My baby?" he asked, looking down at the gift.

"Yeah, the baby got you something. She didn't want to feel left out."

Sawyer's mouth opened wide as he opened it and saw that it was a toy console and there was a t-shirt on top of it. Stephanie grabbed it and held it up to Sawyer and showed it to him, but he couldn't read so it made no sense.

"It says, _World's Best Big Brother_," Stephanie said. "That's you!"

"Me?"

"Yeah, you, Flynn already thinks you're great. You want to say thank you to her."

"Thank you!" he yelled at her stomach, then petted it lightly, "Hi, baby."

"Aww, she's kicking, she's glad you love your present."

"Happy Birthday, kid," Chris said as he kissed Sawyer's cheek.

"Yeah, Happy Birthday, baby boy."


	182. Well, Hey Trish, May 5, 2008

A/N: As I'm sure some of you relate, school is winding down and finals are coming up and school's been kind of kicking my butt, so I'm trying to catch up with this, but I don't have a lot of time to write. Subsequently, this is last week's chapter, and I'm going to try to update with tonight's chapter tomorrow. I have more time starting Thursday, so updates should be regular again. Sorry for the inconvience, but I hope you enjoy the chapter, and leave a review. :)

* * *

"I two."

Sawyer smiled at the stagehand he had just walked up and then kept on walking. Stephanie was waiting up ahead of him and watching him as he meandered his way down the hallway. Shane and Regal were taking over for her tonight. She watched as he ran up to another person and tugged on their pants before holding up his right hand and then showing his two fingers. He finished up with that person and then ran up to the next person who entered the hallway, William Regal.

"Hi, I two," Sawyer said to the stuffy, English gentleman.

"Well congratulations, young man," Regal told him, bending over slightly at the waist like he was bowing to the little boy.

"Yes, two," he let out a breath, then added, "good."

Stephanie walked over to her son, "Come on, Sawyer, let's go find Daddy."

"Ahh, Stephanie, a word?"

"What is it, William?"

"I heard that you wouldn't be working tonight, is that true?"

"Um, yeah, Shane will be taking over for me tonight," Stephanie told him. "I'm not really feeling up to working tonight and since Shane is going to be taking over for me when I go on my maternity leave, he's going to take care of tonight's show. I'll just be doing paperwork."

"Excellent, then."

"Why is that excellent?" Stephanie asked. "You know, William, you might be the General Manager, but that's mostly just a vanity position. You get some rule over everything, sure, but don't for one second think that you actually run anything. That's my job and in my absence, Shane's job, so I wouldn't get too cushy if I were you, especially if you think that you're going to pull the same crap that you did last week."

"I disagree," William said to her and she turned to him.

"Excuse me?" she wondered.

"Well, your father put me in this position so I think that ultimately I answer to him," Regal said, and she knew he was trying to sound polite but there was a snide tone to his voice that she didn't appreciate.

"Well, I wasn't warning you, Regal," she told him, and now she was getting a snide tone. "I guess you can look at it as me merely suggesting that you might want to adjust your attitude, but that's just me."

"Very well."

"Yes, very well," Stephanie said, taking Sawyer's hand and prompting him to walk down the hallway and away from Regal. She was not in the mood to deal with him of all people this evening.

"Mommy?"

"Yes," Stephanie said as she continued to pull him down the hallway.

"I two now."

"I know you're two, you're very old."

"No…uh, yeah," he told her with a giggle. She just laughed and shook her head as she reached her office.

"So we're just going to hang around all night, how does that sound?" Stephanie asked.

"Why?"

"Because I don't want to have to work tonight, your sister is kicking me and I'm not feeling well, so Uncle Shane is going to take over for me tonight and I'm just going to do paperwork and maybe talk with Auntie Trish."

"Okay," he said, going over to the huge pile of toys he had brought with him tonight. He had gotten completely spoiled at his birthday. There had been a mountain of toys waiting for him and by the time he got through them all, he had been exhausted from all the paper ripping. There were so many toys that Stephanie had taken the ones he didn't seem interested in and ha decided to donate those to charity. Sawyer was already spoiled and his grandparents tended to go all out, so it was better that instead of him playing with something once, Stephanie could donate it and give it to a kid who would like it better than her own.

He picked up some of his new toys and started to play with them by himself. She went and sat at her desk and looked over the paperwork that she had to do for that evening. She had to admit it was a bit of a relief not having to come up with the entire schedule that evening. Her brother was taking care of that right now and she had gotten word that her father wanted time at the top of the show, for what she could only guess.

She smiled at the idea that she wouldn't have to have her father burst in here demanding for time and her having to talk him down from taking over the entire show. This whole pregnancy thing did have its perks beyond actually getting a child out of it. She wondered what Chris would think if she were to have some sort of appearance on the show. Sometimes she just wished she could go out there as his wife and cheer him on and accompany him to his matches. She just didn't like people invading into her relationship so she never did.

The door opened without a knock and she knew that it could be only one of several people who would actually walk in here without knocking. It happened to be Trish and she smiled as she walked in and closed the door behind her.

"Okay, so what are you doing tomorrow?" Trish asked.

"I don't know," Stephanie shrugged. "Probably lounging around."

"So you don't have any plans?"

"Not that I know of," Stephanie said. "We weren't going to go to Winnipeg since we just saw Chris's parents, so it's not like we have anywhere to go, why?"

"Well, I think I found the place that I want to get married, and I wanted to bring you to see it. I'm going with my sisters tomorrow and I was hoping that you could come too and check it out since you're one of my bridesmaids."

"Uh," Stephanie thought for a moment, "yeah, I think I can have Sawyer going off with Chris tomorrow."

"Oh good," Trish said. "Christian's going to come with us to check it out too."

"Where is it?"

"It's this old castle called Casa Loma, and it's beautiful, it has gardens and like this huge reception hall and it's really old and just cool," Trish explained. "I think it would be perfect for our wedding and it completely fits in with the entire theme that I want to do."

"Wow, that sounds pretty great," Stephanie said. "I would love to see this place."

"Great," Trish said. "I'm so excited."

Stephanie laughed as Trish flopped down on the couch sitting against the wall. She watched as Sawyer played on the floor, making little noises that she couldn't quite decipher as he pushed his new stuff around. After a little while of watching him play and looking at Stephanie doing paperwork, Trish watched as Sawyer got up and walked over to Stephanie, tapping her on the leg.

"Yes?" Stephanie asked the little boy.

"Want juice."

"Want juice…"

"Pease," he said, dragging out his vowel and giving her a big grin.

"Okay, what kind of juice do you want, apple or grape?"

"Uh," Sawyer said, sticking his tongue out a little bit, "Apple."

"Okay, you got it," she said, pushing herself off of her seat and going over to the cooler in the corner of the room on top of a fold-out table. She opened it and grabbed an apple juice box. She handed it to Sawyer and he ripped the straw off of it and handed it back to Stephanie, who then put it through the hole in the top of the box and handed it back to him as he sipped at it happily. He climbed on the couch next to Trish and sat there drinking his juice as he smiled around the straw at Trish.

"So I've been thinking about something," Trish said as she turned to Stephanie. She felt Sawyer lean his head against her arm and she smiled down at him as he grinned impishly up at her. He was a little charmer, just like his father.

"What?" Stephanie asked, giving her friend her full attention.

"I think I want to bring up something with Christian."

"If you're breaking up with him, I'm going to kick your ass," Stephanie said. "And don't think that I can't do it just because I'm pregnant. I will and can."

"No, no, nothing like that," Trish said. "I'm definitely going to marry that man, trust me, I'm definitely going to marry him."

"So what's the problem then?"

"There's no problem, I just…I think I want to tell him that I want a child right away."

"Wow," Stephanie said, "are you sure?"

"I want a baby, I want one right now," Trish said. "If I could get pregnant right now, I absolutely would."

"Well, I hate to break it to you, but I'm not really equipped with those parts," Stephanie joked.

"Ha ha," Trish deadpanned, "but wouldn't that be great if I had a baby and you're pregnant right now and I had a little boy and then they could grow up together and get married or something, or if I had a little girl, then Sawyer could marry her and we'd be in-laws and they'd get married."

Stephanie laughed, "Trish, I'm not really into prearranging my children's marriages. We don't live in those kinds of places."

"It'd be cute though, I just…want one."

"I also think if you got pregnant right now, like right now, as in tonight, you'd probably start to show before your wedding and well, do you really not want to look absolutely excellent for your wedding."

"I don't know, I guess," she said. "I guess I could wait until right after the wedding or something. I think I'll bring it up with Christian though, if we wait until we're married, I want that to be at the top of the list of what to do."

"Wow, actually planning to get pregnant, what's that like?" Stephanie asked.

Trish laughed, "Well, some of us are getting pregnant left and right and on accident."

"One day, I will plan a child," Stephanie told her.

"You want more?"

"I told Chris I want like five."

"Oh my God, you're crazy," Trish told her, "what did Chris think of that?"

"Well, at first he thought I was crazy too, but deep down, I mean, come on, five little Jericho's running around, the guy's ego is already large, if he were to have five kids and they were mostly to take after him, he'd love it."

"I guess I could see that. Do you think Christian would go for the kid idea?"

"Well, he loves you, and you know he'd love a kid with you, I don't see where he wouldn't want one, I don't know if he'd want one immediately, but you're going to talk to him."

"Did you and Chris talk about kids before you were married?"

"Of course we did, I think you have to find out those kinds of things before you get married. Chris and I talked about kids and what we both wanted out of our long-term relationship. It's important going into something really serious knowing that you're as compatible as you can be. You don't have to like the same things, but it's nice to both want to go in the same direction."

"So what was your thoughts on kids?"

"Well, you know them, we didn't want them for a few years at least. We wanted to be established as a couple before we had children, time to ourselves."

Trish giggled, "And how long were you married before you got pregnant with Sawyer?"

"Seven months, shut up," Stephanie said, "Like I said, my kids like to just pop out of nowhere. You know, when you think about it, Flynn should be my first and Sawyer shouldn't exist."

"Aww, but I love him," Trish said, looking down at the little boy, who was slurping every last drop out of that juice box.

"Yeah, I'm fond of him too," Stephanie said, affectionately looking at her little boy. "Are you sure you want a kid though?"

"I'm not getting any younger," Trish said, "I'm a year older than you are, you know. I want one, I just…I want one, I can't even explain it, I just know that I want a child. I want someone that's part me and part Christian and I think Christian would be a great father."

"I can agree with that. He's great with Sawyer, and Sawyer adores him."

"Yeah, he loves Sawyer too, so it's easy to see him with his own child, and I think he'd be great."

"Yeah, I always knew that Chris would be a great father, he's such a goofball that any kid would automatically love him. Declan is probably the one who loves that I married Chris the most, he loves his Uncle Chris."

"Yeah, hey, if I have a baby, you and Chris can baby-sit."

Stephanie laughed, "I guess we do owe you guys."

"That's for sure," she said. "So you don't think that I'm crazy for wanting a baby?"

"You're an adult," Stephanie said, "you can make your own decisions. Just make sure that you're having a kid for the right reasons, you know, not just because you want one right now and you know, they're hard work, they're a lot of hard work. I'm not looking forward to not getting any sleep again. It was like heaven when Sawyer started sleeping through the night, heaven."

Trish laughed, "I think I'm going to go find my husband-to-be."

"Okay, good luck," Stephanie said.

"Thanks."

Trish went to the door and almost ran into Shane. She smiled at him as they passed each other, Shane coming into the room. Stephanie saw her brother and stood up, "What's up, Shane?"

"Dad, he's being a jackass."

"Welcome to my world," Stephanie said.

"I don't know how you deal with this stuff, I really don't, do you think that you could go over the schedule with me."

She sighed and sat down, "Sure, let's go."

"So yeah, I can't get him off the thing, even though he's still a little too small for the pedals, but he loves to go around the driveway with it. He'll just push himself around on it. It's kind of funny actually. Sometimes I'll push him around though, he likes that."

"I'm glad he likes his gift, it took me forever to find that thing."

"He definitely likes it, I think it's his favorite gift besides the playground. Kind of makes me wish Steph weren't pregnant because she can't chase after him so I have to chase him all around that thing."

"As long as he likes it though, right? Plus you have another on the way so it'll definitely get usage."

"Yeah, that's the plus about this, and that was really part of the reason that we got the thing in the first place. Stephanie wants multiple children so it'll get its use."

"Thank God it's with you and not me, I think one kid is enough."

Chris shrugged, "I like kids…"

"I like them too, when they belong to other people," Hunter said, "I like Sawyer, he's cool, and I like my niece and nephew, and I'll probably like Flynn."

"Well, if your mom says that you're going to have more than one, I think you'll just have to listen," Chris teased good-naturedly.

"Shut up, like your mother never pressured you to have kids, ever."

"Well, yeah, she definitely wanted grandchildren, but um, I think she would've liked to have gotten me started earlier than 36 years old," Chris said.

"Whatever, besides, I actually stood up to my mom, and you know, I actually have you to thank for that," Hunter told him.

"You do?" Chris asked, "You're going to have to enlighten me on this one."

"Well, you know how you were dancing with those chicks at the club we went to last week?"

"Yeah," Chris said, "what does that have to do with anything?"

"Well, Christian and I saw them slip you their numbers, and we saw how close you were dancing and well, we were a little concerned because you were a little involved with them. So we decided to tell Stephanie about it, to warn her because we didn't want you to cheat on her or anything like that."

"I wouldn't cheat on Stephanie," Chris told him, narrowing his eyes, "I'd never cheat on Stephanie, I love her."

"Yeah, I know that now, I knew it then too, it was just, well, you see things and I guess you just assume."

"I guess, but I don't like you implying that I would ever even think about cheating on Stephanie."

"I know, I'm sorry," Hunter said, "can I continue with my story now?"

"Yeah, go ahead."

"Anyways, I went up to Stephanie at the party and told her what we saw and told her we saw them slip you their numbers. At first she acted like she was completely devastated and she thought you were cheating on her and then she told me that she knew because you had told her and even showed her the numbers."

"Okay…I'm still not seeing how this got you to confront your mother. Sounds like you trying to steal my wife away actually."

"Oh yes, I want to steal her away while she's pregnant…"

"Hey, actually, that's not a bad idea, how about we just swap, you can have Steph, I'll take Britt."

"No thanks," Hunter shook his head, "anyways, I did talk to my mother as a matter of fact. So you can't make fun of me for that anymore."

"You stood up to your mom?"

"Yes, because of you."

"Still unclear on that front."

"Well, if you would let me finish my goddamn story."

"Fine, geez."

"Anyways, I just…I saw how you told Stephanie everything, you know, like you guys really don't have any secrets or anything between you."

"Well, there are some secrets."

"But nothing that would seriously affect you or the kids, right?"

"Right."

"I mean, you told her about what happened, you could've easily hidden it and just moved on or whatever."

"Why? Nothing happened."

"Trying to make a point here."

"Sorry, go ahead."

"Anyways, you told her, you didn't have to, but you told her," Hunter said. "She trusts you, and you don't keep secrets, and it's like, I think I owe Britt some of the same courtesy, you know. I love her, and I don't want her to constantly have to deal with my mother trying to break us up."

"So you ended up talking to your mother?"

"Yeah, I did."

"And how did that go?"

"_Thanks for helping me with the dishes, sweetheart," Pat said as she put the dishes into the sink. "I'm so glad that you could come, what with you being champion and everything."_

"_Yeah, you made a great meal, I haven't had your cooking in way too long."_

"_Well that's because you need to come by more often."_

"_I guess," he said, "can I talk to you about something, Mom?"_

"_Of course, you can always talk to me about anything."_

"_It's about Britt."_

"_Did she do something to you?" his mother demanded to know._

"_No, she didn't do anything, it's more what you're doing to her."_

"_I haven't done anything to her."_

"_Except you have, Mom. You've been extremely rude to her and you've belittled our relationship. I love this girl, Mom, and I know that you probably hate that, but that's how it is. I love her and she loves me, amazingly."_

"_I'm not saying she isn't nice, I'm sure she is. She's just so young, and you know what happened with Stephanie."_

"_Yes, Mom, I know what happened with Stephanie, but we're both better off now."_

"_How are you better off?"_

"_Because Mom, I didn't love her like a husband should love a wife. She didn't love me that way either. We're both happier now. She has a really great guy who loves her so much, and she has the world's most awesome son, and a little girl on the way and she's happy, and I'm happy for her."_

"_How can you be happy for her when those should be your kids?"_

"_They shouldn't be my kids, Mom, if they were supposed to be my kids, they would _be_ my kids," Hunter told her._

"_Still, you two were so happy and then she had to go and break your heart and fake a pregnancy, who does that, Hunter?"_

"_She was just really unhappy and looking for a way out." It had taken him a long time to realize that particular fact, but he had found peace with that entire situation. If he were meant to have children with Stephanie, he would've had children with Stephanie, but that's just now how life wanted to work out. She had found love with someone else and so had he._

"_Still, you were so excited for that child, that nonexistent child, I remember you telling me about it. Then she just up and goes and gets pregnant with another man's child. How fair that to you?"_

"_That doesn't mean that Stephanie was my only shot at having kids, Mom. I have Britt and I love her, and who's to say that I won't have kids with her?"_

"_Oh please, that girl is a child."_

"_She's 26, Mom."_

"_Oh yes, 26, excuse me, I only thought you were an adult."_

"_Mom, she's not a child, she's an adult, trust me."_

"_I don't want you marrying someone like that, I think you should dump her."_

"_No, look," he said, gaining his courage. "Here's the deal, Mom. I'm sick and tired of you belittling my girlfriend. I love Britt, and if you can't handle that, well then maybe you don't need to be around me either. As for Stephanie and Chris, they love each other and I can't change that nor would I _want_ to change that. I love them, they're my friends, and I love their kid. I just bought him a tricycle for his second birthday yesterday, and I plan on buying them something for their little girl when she's born. If you don't like any of that, tough."_

"_Don't take that tone with me, young man."_

"_Don't talk trash about my girlfriend," he said, "You said that I'm an adult and I'm sick and tired of you making my girlfriend feel like she's nothing. You either accept her or I'm gone."_

"_You don't mean that."_

"_I absolutely do."_

_His mother stormed out of the room without another word._

"Are you guys talking?" Chris asked.

"No," he shrugged.

"Does that bug you?"

"Yes, but she needs to learn that she can't interfere like that," Hunter said. "I love Britt, you know."

"I got that."

"I just don't want to lose a relationship because my mother interfered. If I ever lose Britt, it's not going to be because of her."

"I don't think Britt would want you to completely cut ties with your mother over her though, that might make her feel bad."

"It might, but I'm sure this will blow over with my mom, I just don't think that she could actually not talk to me," Hunter said. "It would make for a very awkward Mother's Day."

"Are you doing something for your mom?" Chris asked.

"Well, we were going to have brunch. I guess we're still doing that, are you doing anything for Stephanie?"

"Stephanie has decided that Mother's Day is like Valentine's Day, a huge crock, and she doesn't want anything done for her. I think it's the pregnancy talking actually, she's been a little cranky as of late. I'll probably get her a small gift on behalf of her children. I'm giving my mom a gift and Linda a gift since, you know, the aforementioned Stephanie hating the holiday."

"She should like it, it's a holiday all for her."

"See, you would think that, but she's just on one of her pregnancy kicks, either that or she's completely freaked that her son is two now."

"Well, I mean, it really does seem like it was just a short while ago that she had that kid."

"I know, you're telling me, and now she has this other one on the way, it's kind of freaky to be honest."

"I can just imagine. So what's up with you and Shawn?"

"You mean the faker?"

"I don't know if he's faking, man," Hunter told him. "I mean, if he is, he's extending it to life outside the ring. I met up with him for breakfast this morning and he was limping."

"Of course he was limping. He knows that you and I are friends. If he wasn't limping and was acting like nothing happened, do you honestly think that he wouldn't show that to you? He knows that you would tell me, that's just being smart."

"Why don't you call up his wife?"

"Like that hasn't crossed my mind, but she probably knows what the deal is," Chris said. "I know he's faking it. He thinks that he's so smart, but I've got him right where I want him."

"Where's that?"

"He's the bad guy in all of this," Chris said bitterly. "He's the one making cracks about my wife and kids. I mean, what kind of guy would make a sick joke about an unborn child? I don't go around talking smack about his kids."

"That is true."

"See," Chris said. "He's a huge fake and I want to expose him for what he is."

"Well, if you say so," Hunter said.

"I'm going to go see my wife," Chris said.

"Wherever your wife is, my girlfriend might be close by, so I'll come with," Hunter said as both men stood up. "What are you doing on the show tonight?"

"Not a clue," Chris said. "Whatever I want, I guess."

"Perk?"

"Uh, no, not everything I do is somehow a perk, Trips. What are you doing tonight?"

"Match or something."

"Oh, I want to take down Shawn at Judgment Day," Chris said as they were walking quietly down the hallway.

"Then you should, teach him a lesson," Hunter said.

"You don't sound enthused."

"Both of you are my friends."

"Yeah, I suppose, except I'm better. I took Stephanie off of your hands. In fact, I'm responsible for your current relationship because if I hadn't gotten Stephanie pregnant with Sawyer, Vince never would've gotten me a personal assistant and you never would've met Britt."

"What do you want, a medal?" Hunter asked sardonically.

"Yeah, if you have one available, or if you have a title that you want to give me."

"You'll have to strip me of that if you want it."

"You know, it shouldn't escape your notice that I actually _can_ strip you of the title for no reason. Just like someone did to me, who _was_ that?"

"I was drunk with power," Hunter said as they reached the gorilla just as the show was starting. Vince was already out there and Stephanie watched as her father said that he was giving his full support to William Regal. She licked the back of her teeth briefly in anger and stood up, waiting for her father. It didn't go unnoticed to her that William had just given her a smug look. She glared back at him, not intimidated by him at all.

Her father came backstage and she walked up to him, "Dad, I had just finished earlier telling Regal that he _didn't _have the power around here and then you had to go and usurp me."

"He is the GM, Princess."

"Dad, please don't interfere with what I do here. You put me in charge and as the boss, the employees need to know they have to listen to me. Did he jump over my head with this? Did he go straight to you?"

"He may have come to me to discuss his actions last week."

Stephanie groaned, "I knew it, that little suck-up."

"Stephanie, you need to learn to work with him. Now I have put him in charge in a very public role, would _you_ like to be the GM and go out there for a very public role?"

"You're using my pregnancy against me here, Dad, and you know it. You know that for one, I wouldn't want to go out there looking like a whale and two because I wouldn't want to put my daughter in danger, you're painting me into a corner here."

"Well, then you won't object to having a mouthpiece."

"A mouthpiece, he doesn't listen to me."

"Then you need to make him listen."

Stephanie closed her eyes and counted to five in her head, "Fine, Dad, whatever, I'm not in the mood to argue with you. I'm not even working tonight."

"Well then, see, you don't have anything that you need to worry about," he said, patting her shoulder. She shirked away from him as he walked away. She sat down next to Chris and sulked. He wrapped his arm around her and she leaned against him a little as she watched her brother.

"I hate him sometimes."

"I know you do," he said, kissing his temple. "You know, with your brother taking over for you, it wouldn't be totally out of the question for you to start taking your time off now, you know. I'm not suggesting that you not come every week, but you know, maybe you don't do any of the live stuff, you know, working the show."

"So you're suggesting I go on partial maternity leave?"

"Something like that, yeah."

She sighed, "You know, normally I'd punch you in the face for even suggesting something like that, but I am getting a little tired of all of this. I don't know what's so different this time around, but I'm just like, tired of everything here."

"It's probably because we have Sawyer and I'm still wrestling. It was easier when I wasn't wrestling because I could take care of him more often and it was easier because you didn't have a two-year-old running all over the place."

"That's true, it's hard, but I can manage for now, thank you for thinking of me though," she said, leaning up to kiss him. He smiled into her kiss, rubbing her cheek a little bit before someone cleared their throat. They thought it was Shane, about to tell them they were disgusting and to get a room, but it turned out to be Regal, standing there staring at them. "What do you want, Regal?"

"I needed to speak with you, Chris," Regal said, practically ignoring Stephanie.

"What about?"

"I'd like to have a private meeting if we could."

Chris rolled his eyes, "Anything that you want to say to me, you can say to my wife and my son, so what is it already?"

"I said a private meeting."

"Ooh," Stephanie said, pretending to shake, "you better do what the boss man says, you don't want to get into trouble. Who know what he may do now that he's drunk with power. He could _fire_ you, and you've got two kids to put through college."

"Yes, I would hate to be fired. That would just be the absolute worst thing ever!" Chris said in the same tone of voice Stephanie was using. "What ever would I do if I were fired?"

"Oh, how quaint of you, joking like that, Chris?"

"Fine, fine," Chris said, standing up, he then bent down to give Steph a quick peck on the cheek. "I'll be back soon."

Trish bounded up to Christian, whom she had been looking for after having a short chat with Randy, who hadn't actually been a complete ass for once. She wrapped her arms around his waist as he turned around to see her. He smiled at her face and kissed her forehead, wondering where she had been. She looked around him and saw that he had been talking to Maria of all people. Well…that was strange.

"Hey, Maria."

"Oh, hey, Trish, congratulations on getting married!" she said in a bubbly voice. "That is so cool! You must be like, so excited."

"Yeah, I am."

"Well, I'll leave you lovebirds alone," she giggled before walking away.

"You were actually having a conversation with her?" Trish asked with a laugh.

"Well, she was saying that I should have doves at the wedding, I don't even know," he laughed, "so where've you been?"

"Around, actually, I wanted to talk to you," she told him, her voice turning quite serious.

"I wasn't doing anything with Maria," he said quickly.

"No, it's not that at all," she said, "It's just something that I wanted to discuss with you."

"Okay," he said. "Um, yeah, right now?"

"It doesn't have to be right now though, I mean, it'd be kind of awkward right now."

"You're kind of scaring me here, Trishy."

"Don't be worried, Chrissy," Trish said. "I'm just going to go find Steph and ask if we can use her office to talk."

"Oh, okay, I guess I'll…meet you there?"

"It's not bad!" she told him, wandering off, turning back around and blowing a kiss to him. He caught it playfully.

Chris couldn't believe that Regal was practically calling him out about Shawn Michaels. Of course he believed that Shawn was faking his injury. He knew how Shawn operated and he knew that he would do anything to make sure that he came out on top. The Montreal screwjob was the biggest example of that mentality. He was definitely faking this entire thing and it was an insult to him for Shawn to pretend otherwise. He was shocked when Regal actually put him in a watch _with_ Shawn as his tag partner. He was the last man he would want to partner with and now he was stuck with him.

He went sulking back to Stephanie, who was paying attention to her son, who was showing her something with the Intercontinental title he was holding. She was nodding along to whatever he was saying, though it probably didn't make much sense. He came over and crouched down next to his son, who looked over with a smile. He still loved that belt and half the time, Chris forgot he even had it because his son was always the one holding it.

"Hi, Daddy," Sawyer said sweetly.

"Hey, kid," Chris said, kissing his son's cheek. "What are you doing?"

"Wanna show belt," he told his daddy very seriously.

"You're showing the belt to Mommy?" he asked.

"No," he said with a sigh, hating that his daddy didn't understand what he was doing, "Baby."

"Oh," he said knowingly, "you're showing the belt to Flynn."

"Uh, F…F…" He couldn't quite get her name down and he frowned in frustration, not being able to say her name the way he wanted to say it. He understood it when his parents said it. The baby was called Flynn, he knew that much, but he was having trouble saying it.

"It's okay, kid, you'll get it," Chris said, "So you were showing it to her?"

Sawyer perked up again, "Uh huh, this…mine."

"I see, are you going to defend it?"

"Mmm…no, show."

"Oh, well, go on then," Chris said as Sawyer pressed the belt closer to Stephanie's stomach. Chris turned up to Stephanie and frowned.

"What's wrong?" she whispered quietly as Sawyer babbled to his little sister.

"I have to team with Shawn," Chris said.

"What!" Stephanie exclaimed, startling Sawyer into pulling away from her completely and falling back into Chris, who caught him and put him in an upright position again. "Sorry," Stephanie said to her son, "what do you mean you have to tag with him?"

"I mean that I have to tag with him," Chris shrugged, "Regal said."

"Oh, that is it!" Stephanie yelled. "I'm not letting him pull something like this. No way."

"Steph, calm down," Chris said, putting a hand on her wrist. "It's not a big deal, I'll just go out there, work the match and come back here, I won't even really deal with him. I'll just do my job."

"I'm really starting to not like that man."

Trish was staring confusedly at Trevor Murdoch as he continued to sing. Even with Ron's patented "Damn!" she still didn't know what to think or why he was singing in particular. The more things changed though, that was all she could think as she slowly backed away from him, unaware that she had been caught on camera. She had spoken to Stephanie a little earlier and she said that she could use her office and she had been headed back there when she got caught up with…whatever this was.

She finally got to Stephanie's office and took a deep breath, walking in…

And then completely chickening out.

"Hey, so what did you want to talk about?"

"Oh, nothing, just wedding stuff, I was hoping we could discuss tuxes for you and your guys, I was thinking kind of vintage…"

"Oh man, this _is_ serious," Christian lamented comically.

"Uh, yeah…"

Chris's match with Shawn was strange. He fully believed that Shawn was completely faking his injury and wanted to prove it. He felt like people were just giving this man a pass because he was Shawn Michaels and he should be "respected." Chris didn't feel that way. He knew Shawn because he, at one point, wanted to _be_ Shawn. Every rookie wanted to be Shawn Michaels, to achieve what he did, so yeah, Chris was in his head a little and he knew the score.

Still, after his match (a match in which he had to do _all_ the work), he saw Shawn writhing on the floor and he was putting on a good show. Still, for the briefest of moments, Chris saw Shawn's eyes clear and he knew he was playing it up. As he watched Shawn hobble up the ramp, a new idea came to him, a better idea, oh, how it was a better idea. He was getting nowhere calling out Shawn for his fakeness. That strategy wasn't working, but there was one strategy that would work.

"Kill him with kindness…"


	183. All Caught Up, May 12 and 19, 2008

A/N: I tried uploading this around 2 am last night and there was some kind of glitch in the system, so I didn't get to update until today. Anyways, we're all caught up, this is last week's chapter and this week's chapter, so updating is back on schedule. Thank you so much for all the reviews, I'm so grateful for them, and please keep them coming! :)

* * *

**May 12, 2008**

"Trishy, what's on your mind?" Christian asked as he looked over at his distracted fiancée. They were on their way to Raw. The show wasn't that far a drive from Toronto and they had both had so much fun last week they decided to at least go to one more show before heading back home to Florida. Trish had been quiet for most of the week, blaming it on wedding plans, which were overwhelming, but it was more than that.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"I know the wedding is going to take a lot of work, but the way you're thinking, you'd think that we were having the entire world watching or something instead of however many guests we're actually having."

"I'm thinking 200."

"200 _people_?"

"No, Chrissy, 100 people and a 100 ducks," she told him, rolling her eyes, "Of course 200 people."

"Uh, do we _know_ that many people?"

"I know a lot of people," she said, brushing off the question. "Plus, I have a big family."

"Not that big, or at least I didn't think so."

"Well, yeah, they are."

"Okay, well, that's not the only thing on your mind and don't tell me that there isn't something on your mind because we've been together for a long time, and I know you, Trishy, so don't try to hide something, that's not what I want out of this relationship anymore."

"Okay, you win," she told him, turning slightly in her seat as she watched him drive. "I just…I don't know if I should tell you while you're driving."

"What is _so_ bad!" he demanded to know.

"It's not bad, at least I don't think that it's bad, I think it's pretty great, actually."

"What is it, please don't tell me that you're moving to England or something," he joked.

She laughed and shook her head, "No, I'm not moving. I've just been thinking, a lot…"

"About?"

"Well, like, okay, so we spend a lot of time with Chris and Stephanie, right?"

"They're our best friends, yes," Christian said, "oh God, um, you're not suggesting we like, swap partners, right, because Stephanie and I have kissed and it was bad."

"No, God, eww, Chrissy," Trish said, sticking her tongue out.

"Sorry again," he chuckled. "Just a thought."

"Anyways, we spend a lot of time with them, and we baby-sit Sawyer a lot and everything," she told him. "I love that little guy."

Christian was starting, very slowly, to see where this conversation was heading. His brain was still mostly focused on the road though and he couldn't really concentrate on what she was trying to say, "I love Sawyer too."

"We're probably going to love Flynn too."

"She'll probably be cool, yeah, and we'll probably end up baby-sitting her a lot too."

"Yeah, she will," Trish said, "Chrissy, I want a baby."

If Christian weren't on the highway, he might've slammed on the brakes. If he were in a restaurant, he would've spit out his drink, if he were dreaming, he would've shot awake in a flash. As it was, he just kept driving, his foot going a little deeper into the gas pedal as he concentrated his energy on the road in front of him that was stretching for miles and miles.

"Chrissy?" she asked, wondering what his reaction was.

"You're not pregnant right now, right?"

"No, I'm not pregnant," Trish said.

"Are you sure, because Stephanie kind of didn't know that she was pregnant with Flynn, these things can sneak up on you."

"I know that they can sneak up on you," Trish replied, "but I'm not pregnant. Not at all. I just…"

"Do you want a baby right now?"

"Not right this second, no," Trish told him. "I just, I want children, I want a child. I look at Sawyer and the way that he looks at Stephanie, and I know I've told you this before but I'm so jealous. He loves her so much, and his face lights up when he sees her. Now she gets to have this little girl and I'm jealous, and I want one, it makes me ache for a child."

"Wow, so you're really serious about this?"

"Yeah, I really am serious about this," Trish said, biting her lip. "I just have so much that I want to do and having a child is one of them, and I'm ready, Chrissy. I think I've been ready for years, but with the constantly traveling, it was just never feasible. Well, that and the fact that I didn't have anyone to have children with, but Chrissy, I really want a child."

"But um, if you get pregnant, you'll be pregnant for our wedding…"

"Well, I was talking to Stephanie, and she suggested that maybe we start trying after we get married, like put in a concentrated effort."

"Oh."

"I'm not just jumping into this without you, Chrissy. I'm talking with you because I want to have a child with you and I want you to have that child. If you don't think this is a good idea, I'll do some sort of compromise with you."

"Compromise?"

"I don't know, I just know this is something I want, but I want you to want it too. You do want children, right? I mean, I know we've discussed it in passing, but we're engaged now so we really should think of the future and what we want out of the future. That's what Stephanie said and that's what my sister said, that we should get it straight the big things at least. So do you want children?"

"Yeah, I definitely want children," Christian told her, taking a moment to glance over at her. "I definitely do."

She sighed in relief, "Good, that's out of the way then. So…when do you want them?"

"Well not right this second," Christian said. "Do you really think that we're ready for a kid? I mean, given everything we've been through, do you think that we're ready?"

"Well, yeah, I mean, we take care of Sawyer all the time, and we take care of my nieces when we're in Toronto."

"That's way different than having a kid. We get to return those, we wouldn't get to return our own."

"I know that," Trish said.

"Good."

"So…what do you say?"

"Well, it's a tough call, you know, it's a big decision."

"It is."

"I guess…yeah, I want a kid too," he told her, a smile trying to burst its way through his face.

"Oh my God, we want a kid!" Trish said. "I mean, I think we _should_ wait until after the wedding because I think it would just be too much planning a wedding and planning a baby, but after the wedding, I would love to start trying."

"Okay, then let's do it. Let's have a kid," Christian said.

Trish clasped her hands together and breathed out happily.

--

"Britt, hey!"

Britt looked up from the table she was hunched over rewriting a memo Stephanie wanted to send out. She didn't recognize the voice so she looked up to see who it was that called out for her. She saw Randy walking over to her and she narrowed her eyes at him as he stopped in front of her, leaning against the same wall that the table she was standing next to was on.

"What can I do for you?" Britt asked, her tone clipped.

"I just wanted to see you."

"Why?" she asked, folding her arms.

"I just realized, you know, I didn't really know you all that well, and it's a shame, you know," he told her. "It's a real shame because I like to think that I know everyone around here…"

"What's his name?" Britt asked, nodding her head to a passing stagehand.

"You didn't let me finish, I like to think that I know everyone _important_ around here."

"And you consider me important?"

"Hell yeah, I do," Randy told her, smiling charmingly. "I mean, you might not think so, but you are pretty important around here, don't you think?"

"Not really," she deadpanned. "I'm just Chris and Stephanie's assistant. A glorified secretary."

"But don't you consider them friends too?"

She actually did think of them as friends if she was being honest. She figured most of that was Chris's influence. Stephanie didn't seem the type to make friends with employees on a regular basis, but Chris was friendly with everyone and he seemed to like to be friends with a lot of people and he was really the friendly one of that couple and Stephanie, once you warmed up to her, was equally friendly. It was hard not to become friends with them.

"They're my employers."

"And friends."

"Maybe."

"Plus, you're dating the WWE champion, that's pretty huge, don't you think?"

"I suppose, I don't really care that he's champion."

"A lot of people do."

"_You_ do," she told him knowingly, "which is why you're talking to me right now."

"I just want to get to know you better."

"Then what do you want to know, anything in particular, my blood type, maybe?" Britt asked.

Randy laughed, though it was a little forced. This girl was very no-nonsense and he could see where Hunter would like her. He liked women who were assertive like this, at least that was the impression he got from the time that he had been in Evolution with Hunter. Britt flipped her dark hair out of her face and stared down Randy, who seemed off in another world a little bit.

"I like you," Randy said, somewhat out of the blue.

"You do?"

"You've got something," he told her, smiling down at her. "You've got something really cool and I like you."

Britt narrowed her eyes a little bit, "What angle are you trying to pull here, Randy? Are you trying to distract my boyfriend so that you can win on Sunday? Is that your plan? Should I expect a trail of roses leading somewhere and a romantic dinner?"

"No, I just wanted to get to know you better, that's all. I like you."

"Uh huh," Britt nodded. "Face it, Randy, your days are numbered, this is like, your one rematch shot, right? Like, you only get one and then you have to back off or something, let someone else have a chance? Well, like I said, your days are numbered because my boyfriend is going to kick your ass. And I'll let you know right now that I'm going to _enjoy _watching him kick your ass. Later."

She started to walk off, but Randy, determined as he was, started walking quickly after her. He fell into step beside her and she glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. "See, I would really like to leave you alone, but I can't."

"Can't or won't?"

"Won't."

"Well okay then, how _do_ I get you to leave? That might be the easier question here?"

"Dinner."

"No."

"You asked what it would take to get me to leave and that's it."

"Look, it's not going to happen. I know what you're doing. I don't know who you think you are, but especially, I don't know who you think _I_ am. I have a boyfriend, who I love very much, so the dinner is a no. Plus, do you think that I don't know what you're trying to do? You're trying to get Hunter off of his game."

"Or I could be asking a beautiful woman out to dinner."

"You could, but not sincerely."

"And if it was sincerely."

"Aforementioned boyfriend," Britt told him.

"Yeah, but boyfriend isn't married."

"No, but I don't cheat and I somehow don't think that Hunter would just allow me to go out with his opponent six days before his very big match."

"But that means that you _would_ go out with me if you had the chance," Randy pointed out the flaw in her previous statement.

Britt rolled her eyes, "No, it wouldn't."

"Come on…"

"No," she said, shaking her head.

"One time?"

She paused, tapping her chin, "Again no."

"I think you're really pretty and come on, Hunter is almost 40, do you really want to be with a guy that old? He probably wants to get married soon and have kids and you're young, you should be with someone who doesn't have that on their mind?"

"How do you know that I don't have that on my mind? Maybe I want to get married and have kids, not everything has to be done when you're older, you know? So how do you know that the age gap isn't just right?"

"Well, then maybe you need someone to show you just how much fun you can have with someone your own age," Randy told her. "One dinner."

"Okay."

"What?"

"No," Britt said with a laugh, "That was good though, I liked that, you're gullible, very nice."

Randy tried to hold in his temper that was threatening to spill over. It didn't usually take him this long to crack a girl and it was frustrating him. She should be grateful that he was asking her out. Did she know how many women would love to be in his position? There were millions of girls who wanted him and she had the gall to turn him down? This was nearly unacceptable.

"I'm only asking to take you out to a meal, you have to eat, right?"

"I eat with my _boyfriend_, what part of that word don't you get, is it boy? Because I can take a few minutes out of my day to explain the difference between boys and girls."

He laughed, "You're funny too."

She rolled his eyes, "We're done here, Randy, and this entire thing," she ran her hand in the air between them, "is done. I'm going to go work now and you're going to go pretend like you're going to beat Hunter on Sunday."

"And if I follow you?"

"I will kick you in the crotch," Britt told him, then smiled, "You know, I think I _am_ friends with Chris and Stephanie because I don't think they'd reprimand me for that. Bye, Randy."

She walked off again and even though he was 90 percent sure that she wasn't going to kick him in the crotch, he still left her alone. Her long, black hair swished behind her as she walked away and he found himself actually intrigued by her in more than a passing sense. Sure, he wanted to throw Hunter off his game, but this girl was interesting and she didn't want him, which made her especially interesting to him. You often want the things that you can't have.

Britt was walking down the hallway when she felt an arm cover her shoulders and she turned, ready to hit Randy in the face, but visibly relaxed when she saw it was just Hunter. She leaned in to him and he kissed her temple. "What was with that reaction?" he asked in a low voice so only she would hear.

"I thought you were someone else," she told him.

"Someone else? Who the hell else is putting their arm around you?"

"Well, Chris does sometimes, but he does that with everyone," Britt said, trying to deflect Hunter.

"Oh, well, I don't think you'd have that kind of reaction for Chris, though he is odd," Hunter laughed, but Britt only chuckled quietly. "Okay, so whose arm were you so afraid of?"

"Well, you'll be happy to know, first off, that I handled the situation by myself," Britt said, hinting at something.

"Britt…" He said to her. She still didn't know that he had talked to his mother about her. He just didn't want her thinking that there was a rift caused by her between him and his mother. Mother's Day had been a cold, silent nightmare and it looked like the stand-off between him and his mother was going to continue for the foreseeable future. But still, he'd be damned if Britt found out anything about it.

"Don't Britt me."

"I really wish your name was Britney so I could break it out whenever I needed it."

"Well, my parents thought ahead then."

"And calling you Britt Larelay doesn't do it for me either, what kind of middle name is Larelay?"

"A very nice one, I told you before, it's a combination of Lars and Layton, with an 'E' in the middle to bind it together. Those were two of relatives who fought in World War I, so give me a break."

"You're crazy," he told her. "So come on, what did you handle?"

"Randy, you'd be proud."

"Randy?"

"Yeah, he was just bugging me, but I took care of it."

"Bugging you how?"

"He, get this," she laughed, "he asked me out to dinner! Like I'd want to go out to dinner with him."

"He asked you out to dinner?"

"Yeah, but I took care of it, honey," she told him, smiling up at him. "He was just trying to get under your skin before your match on Sunday, so I turned him down flat, show him to try and throw you off your game. You really like having that belt, so I wouldn't want you to lose it over something to do with me."

"I can't believe he would do that…no way, I _can_ believe he would do that."

Britt shook her head, "It's not a big deal. You'll still beat him on Sunday, I have no doubt."

"Yeah, I will," Hunter said assuredly.

"Of course you will, you don't get to be the WWE Champion if you're lame."

He smiled at her and leaned down to kiss her, "Yeah, I guess you don't."

"I've got to get to work though, have you seen Chris and Stephanie around?"

"Not that I know of," he said. "Do you want me not to bug you?"

"You can bug me any time you want to," she told him semi-seriously, a smirk peeking out from her lips. "Any time."

Chris scrunched up his face in concentration. Sawyer was watching him from the couch. He scrunched up his face as well, just like his father's, trying to emulate him. Chris then bit his lip and Sawyer copied that too and thought his daddy looked like a cartoon or something. He tilted his head to watch his father as he made the turn and started walking towards him again.

"Stop doing that," Stephanie told him from her desk.

"Yeah, stop," Sawyer said, being in a copycat mood as he was. Stephanie looked over at him and pulled a face at him and he laughed at her and made one back. "Funny, Mommy."

"Thanks," she told him. "Chris, it's really simple. You said that you want to lull him into this act, but you know, I don't really think that's going to work."

"Of course it's not going to work, he knows why I'm pissed," Chris said, pushing up the sleeves to his shirt again. "What I'm trying to do is annoy the hell out of him. When I talk crap to him, he doesn't respond, he just…stands there and takes it. He knows it makes me look like the bad guy and that's what he wants."

"I have no doubt, he likes having the fans on his side."

"Exactly, that's why I have to be the nice guy. That's why I have to apologize."

"Even though you know he's faking."

"Yeah, because my goal on Sunday is to make sure that I catch him right in the middle of that lie," Chris chuckled, "then he'll look like a fool and I'll kick his ass. Because nobody talks that way about _my_ wife and kids, right, Sawyer?"

"Right!" he said, clapping both his hands on the Intercontinental belt in his lap.

"What do you want to do to Shawn?"

"Walls!" Sawyer said, baring his teeth like he was a rabid dog.

"Yes," Chris said, tapping his fingers together evilly, "the brainwashing is going splendidly."

"Baby boy, what's Daddy's other moves?"

"Uh…Wionsault," Sawyer said happily then had to think hard for the last one and sighed several times before trying out, "Beaker?"

"Close enough," Chris said, "though it would be weird if I called it the Code-Beaker, I'd sound like a mad scientist or something. I didn't say the brainwashing was complete or anything."

"What if you brought him out there?" Stephanie asked out of the blue.

"Excuse me?"

"I'm just wondering," she told him, "what it would be like if you brought him out there with you. I mean, remember when Rey brought his son out there. It's happened before."

"You wouldn't want me to bring him out there."

"I know, but I was just thinking, do you think he'd get booed?"

"Why would he get booed, he's two."

"Yeah, but he's also a McMahon."

"He's my son, he'd be a Jericho when he went out there, people would only see Sawyer Jericho…and why are we having this conversation, you would never allow Sawyer to go out there with me."

"I'm just wondering, that's all. He might gain you sympathy votes."

"Oh my God, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, I love you to death," Chris said with a laugh "Only you would want me to bring our toddler out so the fans would turn against Shawn Michaels. Only you."

"What? I'm just wondering if they would side with you if they saw what an adorable son you had, Sawyer, be adorable."

"I no know," Sawyer said with a shrug, not quite knowing what adorable meant. What he didn't realize was that by answering that he didn't know what being adorable was, he was in fact _being_ adorable, with his shoulders hunched up near his ears and his blue eyes peeking out from under his mop of blond hair that was in desperate need of a haircut.

"See," Stephanie said, "they'd see that and they'd all immediately love him and they'd want Shawn to lose."

"Maybe they want him to lose anyways."

"Please, Mr. Golden Boy?" Stephanie said in disgust. "You know, one of these days, I should just go out there and tell everyone how he hit on me when I was barely out of my teens. I think they'd love that story of jerk Shawn."

"He didn't let it go after you did it, did he?"

"No, he kept pursuing me for a couple weeks after that until I threatened to tell my father if he didn't stop harassing me. He was a horrible jerk back then, but _I_ slighted _him_."

"Of course."

"Of course."

Trish burst into the room. "Christian and I are going to have a baby!"

"Oh my God, you're pregnant?" Chris asked in shock.

"Oh…no, no, but we're going to start trying after we get married," Trish explained with a grin. "He's into the whole idea and we're going to try as soon as we get married."

"Yeah," Christian said, walking into the room. "She's the boss, I just follow along."

"Welcome to my world," Chris said, slapping Christian on the back. "This is exactly how I function."

"Except I really am his boss," Stephanie said snidely. "So Christian, you're in on the whole baby thing?"

"Yeah, I like kids, well, I like your kids, so you know, there's that…I liked me when I was a kid," he added brightly.

"Congratulations on wanting a baby?" Chris said. "I mean, that's a big step, actually deciding that you want a baby and thinking about this baby and how you're going to do that exactly. What's it like?"

"Very strange actually."

"Yeah, I figured it would be, that's why I try to get Stephanie pregnant when she's not looking, if you catch my drift."

"That's disgusting," Stephanie said. "Come on, Trish, let's go talk babies! Come on, Sawyer."

"Okay, Mommy," he said, standing up and grabbing his title belt and bringing it with him as he left with his mommy and Trish.

"So you and kids?" Chris said.

"Yeah, me and kids, it'll be a trip, right?"

"Oh yeah, just you wait…"

Hunter's hand was twitching as he watched Britt work. He watched it twitch as he tried to sit there and be the model boyfriend. Sometimes she would glance up at him and he would smile at her, but as soon as she looked back down, his face turned into a scowl and his hand started twitching again. He was restless and he wanted to leave, but he couldn't.

"Do you want to go out for drinks after the show?"

"Yeah, sure," he said.

"Okay, cool," she told him. "I'll pay this time."

"What?"

"You paid last time, I'll pay this time."

"I should pay for you."

"Oh stop this now," she told him. "We continually go over this and I want to pay."

"Fine," he said, too distracted to argue with her.

This only served to make Britt suspicious and she looked at him, "No fight?"

"Not in the mood to fight."

"Well that's not like you," she joked and he laughed. "You okay?"

"Just thinking about my match, you know, I want to win."

"You don't say. Why don't you go walk it off or something?"

"You don't want me to stay?"

"I'm a big girl, I'm capable of sitting alone."

"I guess."

"Go, go!" Britt insisted, leaning over and pushing him out of his seat. He pushed back at her and he got up and leaned down to kiss her. She grabbed him by the back of his neck and pulled his down even more to deepen the kiss.

Hunter walked out of the catering area and looked back once to spy on Britt, but she was already back to her work, flipping through a few different sheets of paper and then taking notes. He cracked his knuckles and hung a left, knowing exactly where Randy's locker room was. He always made note of where people were, it was just something that he had gotten used to over the years.

He didn't even need to break into Randy's locker room because the man in question was standing right outside his locker room, looking as casual as ever. "Orton!"

"Oh, it's you," Randy said, pushing himself off the wall and looking at his mentor turned nemesis. "What do you want?"

"Stay the hell away from Britt."

"What? I was just talking with her."

"Yeah, I'm sure you were," Hunter said, "I'm telling you right now, you stay the hell away from her."

"Are you worried that you have competition, H?"

Hunter chortled, "You wish you could be my competition. You couldn't hold my jockstrap when it comes to wrestling skills or women."

"Is that why your wife would rather be with Chris Jericho than you?"

"Ex-wife," Hunter said, "and I didn't lose her to anyone."

"Whatever," Randy said, not having a great comeback for that.

"Just stay away from her."

"I just asked her out to dinner."

"There's no way that she'd want to go out with you."

"I wouldn't be so sure, H, I mean, you, me, you, me, I think the choice is pretty clear. I bet if we brought 100 women in here right now, I'd say…99 would pick me, and the other one is probably one I wouldn't want to sleep with anyways."

"Yeah, we'll see, Randy, we'll see," Hunter said, storming off.

Chris just happened to be walking the opposite direction as Hunter was as he stalked away. Hunter looked to be fuming about something and Chris hooked his arm. Hunter looked about ready to punch whoever dared to grab him, but upon seeing that it was Chris, he relented. Instead, he turned and ran his tongue along his teeth, trying to curb his anger.

"What the hell is up with you?"

"Don't you have somewhere to be?" Hunter asked irritably.

"Well, yeah, I'm supposed to be 'apologizing' to Shawn in a little bit, but I've got time, what's up, why the hell are you walking around like you're The Hulk and you're going to smash things?"

"It's just Randy," Hunter said, "He's been harassing and propositioning Britt."

"And did something happen?"

"No, she said she took care of it herself."

"So sounds like she took care of it herself," Chris said.

"I guess, I just don't like the idea of Randy trying to steal my girl away from me."

"She loves you though, I don't see that happening."

"Yeah, sure," Hunter said.

"You don't sound like you believe that."

"I don't know, I mean, I am older than her and Randy isn't."

"Don't fall into that trap," Chris said, "you stood up to your mom for this girl, are you talking to her yet?"

"No, not yet."

"There you go," Chris said. "Look at how much you've sacrificed for her already. I'm sure she appreciates that."

"She doesn't know that me and my mom aren't talking."

"You haven't told her yet, what are you waiting for, man?"

"I don't know, I don't want her to know that we aren't talking. She'll blame herself."

"Dude, do you want this to be Stephanie all over again?"

"I wouldn't be that."

"You're keeping something from her."

"Look, I'll deal with it. You're right, Randy isn't going to take her away, I was just pissed off, go apologize or whatever to Shawn."

Chris knew that things were not okay, but he wasn't going to stick around and have Hunter get more and more irate while he stood there like an idiot. He had things to do anyways, more important things, things that pertained to his family. He went out the ring in order to stage this fake apology to Shawn. He was going to take the high road and make himself look good and then he was going to drop the hammer on Shawn at Judgment Day.

He started with his "apology" to Shawn, stating that he now believed that Shawn was not faking an injury, but was actually injured. What actually happened was the opposite of what he had seen with Shawn. In those brief moments, he was only more convinced that Shawn was playing a clever ruse and was trying to dupe the entire world into thinking that he was the victim. He wanted to call out Shawn and as if on cue, his music started up and out came the man in question.

Shawn limped his way down the ramp and Chris tried to look sympathetic. Shawn climbed into the ring, still trying to keep up this silly game. What he wasn't expecting though, was to have Shawn own up to faking the injury. Chris didn't know what he was getting at with this, so he pretended like he actually believed what he was saying. Why would Shawn just come out and admit that he was faking an injury? It didn't make sense to him, so he played it up, telling Shawn that it wasn't his first time at the rodeo, that he wasn't some rookie who could be fooled. Shawn continued to insist that it was a fake injury, ruining everything Chris had been working for, for Judgment Day.

Chris started to get angry, about to call out Shawn, but he pulled back that anger, not wanting to reveal his true intentions. He had to look like the good guy here, he was the one who was supposed to believe in Shawn's injury now, turning over the new leaf. Shawn was not going to ruin Sunday for him. It was personal, deeply personal. JBL might have called out his son on national TV, but what Shawn did was lower class than even that.

He was ranting now, or trying not to rant when Shawn kicked him in the face. It was unexpected and Chris went down like a sack of potatoes, startled that he was now on his back. He lay there for a while stunned before he realized just what Shawn had done to him. He had taken away the element of surprise. He had taken it all away and now Chris was left looking like a fool. With every passing moment, his dislike of Shawn grew. He couldn't wait to get his hands on him at Judgment Day.

**May 19, 2008**

"Baby, baby, baby, baby," Sawyer said in a sing-song voice as he patted his mommy's tummy like it was a drum.

"What are you doing?" Stephanie asked. She wasn't even lying down or anything. She was sitting at her desk, but Sawyer was standing right next to her and bonking her on the stomach. She looked down at him.

"Baby, baby, baby," he said, wiggling around a little bit, then pat her on the stomach some more.

"You're crazy," she told her son and he grinned. "Oh, you think that's a good thing?"

"Uh huh, yeah," Sawyer said, rubbing his hands on Stephanie's stomach.

"Are you hovering around Flynn because you got to see her on Friday?" Stephanie asked.

"I see her," Sawyer said as he narrowed his eyes on her stomach. "I see…her!"

"I know!" Stephanie exclaimed. "It must've been so fun, huh? You got to see her move around and everything and you told the doctor that you got to feel her kick, didn't you?"

"Mmhmm," Sawyer nodded. "Baby…kick."

"What else do we kick?"

"Hmm," Sawyer said, making a bunch of noises while thinking about it. He knew that he liked to kick something around with his daddy, but he couldn't remember what that was called, oh, wait, of course he knew, "ball!"

"Yes, you do kick a ball, you're so smart," Stephanie told her little boy. "But Flynn can't kick a ball yet, can she?"

"Uh uh, she there," Sawyer said, pointing to his mommy's stomach. He got a few inches away from her stomach, his nose almost pressing into the soft, white cotton of her blouse. He stared at it intently, as if it would do something.

"Sawyer, baby boy, what are you doing?" Stephanie said as she looked between her arms and saw him with his face almost pressed against her. "You're not going to see Flynn."

"Yeah."

"You know?"

"Yeah," he told her.

"Okay, well as long as you know. Why don't you go do something? Get out of her and get some fresh air or something?" she joked around. "Go find Daddy and see what he's up to, if Mommy knows him, he's probably off causing mischief like you like to do. So go find Daddy."

"Okay," Sawyer agreed. "I go."

"Do you know where Daddy is?"

"I no know," he told his mother, "I go."

"Well, where do you think he is?"

Sawyer tilted his head from side to side for a moment before answering, "Gampa?"

"You think that Daddy is with Grandpa? Don't you think that's a little far-fetched since Daddy and Grandpa don't exactly get along?"

"Oh," Sawyer said.

"Well, if you think he's with Grandpa, what are they talking about?"

"Cars!" Sawyer said, running over and grabbing one of his cars and bringing it back over to her, "Cars."

"You think they're talking about cars?"

"Yup. Cars."

"Oh, do you think we should get a new car, is that what you're trying to tell me?"

"No, we good."

"That's what I think too, I think the car situation is very good," Stephanie told him. "So go find Daddy, or you can go find Uncle Shane."

"Um…D?"

"D's not here tonight," Stephanie explained. "Remember, it was a trial to see if he could come along? Well, he had to go back to school, preschool, but he'll be back soon because it's almost summertime and he'll have a lot more time and you can play…until you have to stay at home with me."

"Why?"

"Because I'm going to have Flynn."

"Why?"

"Because I don't want to carry her around forever."

"Why?"

"Because it'd be very uncomfortable."

"Oh," Sawyer said, then rubbed her stomach gently, "Hi F…I no know."

"You'll get it, Flynn, Flynn."

"I know," he said, "I go Daddy."

"But you don't know where he is!"

"I find."

"You're just going to go find him?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, pressing a kiss to her stomach (a new thing of his ever since he saw Chris doing the same thing) and then running towards the door, trying to get at the handle. He reached up on his toes and grabbed the handle, pulling it down and then open.

"Hey, hey, hey!" Stephanie called after him, "I didn't say you could go without anyone!"

"I go Daddy," Sawyer told her like it was obvious this was what he was going to do. Wasn't she the one that suggested that he go find his father in the first place? Sometimes his mother was so contradictory with him and he didn't get it. She had told him to find his daddy and he just wanted to go see him, was that so bad?

"You know you're not supposed to wander off, I tell you and Daddy tells you not to wander off, right?"

"Uh, yeah, yeah," Sawyer said and lifted his hands in the air so that Stephanie could take it.

"Okay, we'll go find Daddy, okay?"

"You work?"

"I know I have work to do, you don't have to tell me that I have work to do," Stephanie told him playfully. "If it weren't for you and your sister, do you know what I'd be doing right now?"

"What?"

"I'd be working and having fun, and I'd go out drinking with Daddy after work and we'd go party or something, we'd have lots of fun that doesn't include babies named Flynn or little boys named Sawyer."

"I Sawyer," he said, patting his chest with his free hand.

"Well I know who you are, I named you," she told him. "But you ruined all of Mommy and Daddy's fun."

"Oh."

"Yeah, oh, you should be very sorry and apologize to us."

"I sowwy," he giggled, scrunching up his face and sticking out his tongue a little bit.

"Well, I guess I can accept your sorry," Stephanie told him. They walked around for a bit, Stephanie constantly stopping to speak to people. Sawyer was getting increasingly bored by this. He wanted to go see his daddy and he couldn't get his mommy to stop talking to these people. He kept tugging on her hand, but she would just continue to talk and that was frustrating to him. On the fourth time that she stopped, Sawyer just took to rubbing her stomach and trying to feel for the baby. Sometimes he didn't even have to ask his mommy and he just found where the baby was himself.

He remembered looking at something like a TV when he went with his mommy and daddy to the doctor's. Only it wasn't a doctor for him, it was a doctor for his mommy. They had put something on her stomach and then they moved it around and on the screen was something like a person, but it was very hard to tell and very different from the TV at home. He didn't really find the TV at the doctor's fascinating. They kept telling him that was the baby, but he didn't understand how the baby could be in his mommy's tummy _and_ on the TV at the same time. His parents were probably crazy.

His mother was _still_ talking. He couldn't believe this! This was just getting ridiculous. Deciding that the only logical thing would be to make a break for it, he gently pulled his hand away from his mother's and looked up at her to make sure she hadn't noticed. It didn't seem that she had as she just kept talking. Sawyer started to walk off in search of his father.

"Daddy?" he called out, looking around for someone he knew. He recognized some of the people around, but he couldn't really tell who they were. "Daddy!"

Suddenly a pair of arms scooped him up, "Hey kiddo, what the hell are you doing by yourself?"

"Look Daddy."

"Huh? Oh, oh, you were looking for your daddy?"

"Uh huh, want see Daddy," Sawyer said.

"You want to go see your daddy, but where's your mommy?"

"There," Sawyer said, pointing behind him, but he had turned a corner so there was no Stephanie in his immediate sight.

"Where?"

Sawyer looked behind him, "Oh."

"Yeah, oh, do you know your mommy is going to freak if she sees that you're missing?"

"Yeah."

"You act like you own the place," Shane said to his nephew. "You don't quite own it yet, kiddo, so let's go tell your mom where you are and then we'll find your father."

"Okay."

Shane walked further with his nephew in his arms and then looked around for his sister. He saw her leaning against a wall talking with a stagehand and he walked over with his nephew in tow. He cleared his throat loudly, breaking Stephanie from her conversation as she looked to her brother who had her son in his arms.

"I believe you lost this."

"What? Sawyer was with me."

"If by with you, you mean around the corner and calling out for his father, then yeah, you had him."

"What? Sawyer, did you walk off?"

"Yup, find Daddy."

"Oh, Sawyer, you know you're not supposed to wander off," she with exasperation. She blamed this character trait on Chris. He was stubborn too. She excused herself from her conversation and looked at her little boy, "Let's go find Daddy, I guess."

Daddy was in a relatively quiet locker room, away from his family and stewing a little bit. Last night was just another night where he should've won and didn't. It was getting so frustrating not being able to win at the big shows. This one stung because of his opponent. He couldn't just walk away from this one. Shawn was too big a factor in his life. This wasn't the first time that Shawn had disrupted his life and he wasn't going to stand for it this time.

He had insisted on a rematch. Stephanie wasn't working tonight so he had gone to Shane and insisted on the match. Shane had been fine with the entire thing until Regal had come onto the scene. He was taking this GM thing too seriously and he was taking Vince's endorsement even more seriously. Chris ever really got the urge to use his power around here. He had gotten to where he was without Stephanie's influence and the benefit of being part of the McMahon family, but sometimes, sometimes he really just wished that he could be like Hunter and completely abuse the power and bend every rule his way.

Many of the ECW and SmackDown superstars were here tonight since last night had been Judgment Day. Apparently, Dave had gone to Regal requesting that _he_ get a rematch against Shawn. Regal had said that Dave was furious over the fact that Shawn had duped him. Chris understood the sentiment, but he wanted Dave to understand that _Chris_ was the one who needed to fight Shawn because he was more pissed off than Dave was. Unfortunately, he hadn't found Dave to explain the situation and now he had to fight him later for the right to fight Shawn at the next Pay-Per-View.

He was trying to get his mind off his lost last night when Dave walked into the room. The two men didn't hate each other by any means, but when there was something on the line, all alliances, friendships, whatever…were out the window. It was all about survival in wrestling, nobody could really help anyone out all the time, that's just the nature of it all. Sometimes you had to go in it for yourself.

Chris understood why Dave wanted this, it made him pissed that this was going on at all, but he understood. Grudges ran deep in this business and the littlest thing could be looked at as some huge slight against you. Dave was trying to intimidate him, but Chris wasn't intimidated. Chris had never been intimidated in his entire wrestling career. There was no room for it in his repertoire. He took every challenge and met it, and certainly this was not going to be his biggest challenge at all.

He told Dave he was going to beat his ass tonight, because that was just how it was going to be. Dave told him he wasn't going to be ready tonight, that after his great match last night (except for the ending) he would be much too tired to compete at a top level tonight. Chris wanted to laugh in his face about that, but he didn't want to show his deck just yet. The two stared each other down for a few moments before they started to back away from each other slowly, but it was like they just couldn't let the other one walk away first and they continued to stare each other down until Dave broke and walked away.

Chris couldn't believe that Dave would actually believe that he wasn't ready tonight. He had been working for 17 years in this business and if he couldn't do two matches in two nights, then he should just retire right now and get it over with. Dave forgot that just a few weeks ago, Chris had had more than one match in a night and he had been fine. Besides, Stephanie kept him busy so many nights, he knew that he had the stamina. He smirked at that thought, then his face hardened again as he thought about the family that he was fighting for. It felt good to have a cause. It also felt good that he could punch Shawn in the face and get away with it.

"I find you!" Chris looked over to the door where Sawyer was peeking his head, a hand about three feet above him holding the door.

"I wasn't aware that I was hiding," Chris said as Sawyer came into the room.

"Well, you were hiding to him," Stephanie said as she walked inside the room. "Why are you in here anyways, we have a locker room?"

"Because I needed a little bit of quiet, something that a wife and a two-year-old don't really provide."

"Well, looks like we're not wanted here, Sawyer, we should leave this man alone," Stephanie said.

Chris lifted Sawyer into his arms, "Nah, I like you guys too much."

"Hi Daddy," Sawyer said to his father. "What you?"

"What I what?"

"Uh, doing?"

"I'm warming up for my match in a little bit."

"Oh, I help."

"What are you going to do?"

"I no know."

"Yeah, I didn't think so," Chris said, then leaned in to kiss Stephanie, "Dave was just in here."

"I know, I saw him leave and figured you were in here," she said, capturing his lips in another kiss. She took a step closer to him, trying to get as close as her stomach would allow. She was getting bigger by the second it seemed and she had to lean over more and more each time she wanted to kiss her husband.

"I wanna kiss!" Sawyer said, pushing his parents apart.

"Hey, not cool, kid, not cool at all," Chris said to his son.

"Okay, here you go," Stephanie said as she laid a big, wet kiss on Sawyer's cheek. He giggled happily. "Wanna see…"

"Who do you want to see?"

"Mmm, no know."

"So how can we see someone if we don't know who you want to see?" Chris asked. Sawyer shrugged. "Do you want to go watch the show?"

"Yeah!" Sawyer said. "I go."

"He's been very independent tonight," Stephanie said. "Come on, we'll go watch at the gorilla with Uncle Shane. You want to come, sweetie, you're already dressed for your match and everything."

"Yeah, sure, where's my belt though?"

"Our locker room, you can get it later," Stephanie said. They left the locker room and walked to the gorilla. They sat down next to Shane, Sawyer in Chris's lap as he leaned on the table in front of him and watched the monitor closely. Chris had his arm wrapped around Stephanie's waist, rubbing the roundness on the outer edges of her stomach. Stephanie could feel Flynn moving around and kicking. She knew that the little girl probably couldn't feel her daddy rubbing along her mommy's stomach, but she liked to think that she could sense the presence.

She loved the way Chris's face looked whenever they got to see Flynn on the ultrasound. It didn't hold much of the awe that every ultrasound with Sawyer had given him, but it gave him this smile that she couldn't quite explain just yet. It was the most serene smile she had ever seen him give, as if he knew that they were on the cusp of something really great. They were still worried about taking care of two kids on the road and how much work that would be, especially with Chris wrestling now, but when she saw that smile, she knew that things were going to be just fine.

"Gampa, hi Gampa!" Sawyer said, practically crawling across the table.

"Hello, Sawyer," Vince winked at his grandson. But then he was gone and Stephanie and Chris looked at each other in confusion. They didn't know that Vince would be coming out there tonight. They looked to Shane and he looked just as confused.

The confusion was short-lived as they realized just what their father and father-in-law was doing. He was putting Regal in a "Loser Gets Fired" match? That was a new one, especially since Vince had been endorsing him not too long ago. Stephanie would never figure out her father. One moment he would do one thing, another he would do another thing and he always had stupid reasons for it. She would not be surprised if he came back here and gave some stupid reason for making the match, like she was pregnant and he didn't want to stress her out so he mad e an executive decision. She would just point out that she was pregnant two weeks ago and it hadn't seemed to stop him from endorsing Regal then. Her father was just so contradictory.

When he came backstage, he walked over and picked up Sawyer, who smiled happily and gave him a hug. At least some people loved him, but Declan, Kenny, and Sawyer didn't know any better, and Flynn wouldn't know any better either. "So what was that, Dad?" Shane asked, taking the reins from Stephanie.

"Well, the fans didn't like him." Oh, that was a good one.

"You didn't seem to care a couple of weeks ago."

"Well, it was getting over with, besides," here it came, Stephanie could feel it, "I know that it was stressing you out, Stephanie, and the last thing that I want is for you to be stressed out when you're pregnant. I'm just sorry it took me a couple of weeks to see it, but if Regal wants to keep this job, he's going to have to fight for it."

Stephanie rolled her eyes. Of course her father was going to say something like that; he was so predictable. The day her father did anything with just genuine concern for her family, well, that'd be the day she ate her shoe. Her father didn't care that she was pregnant. He had already demonstrated that by fighting with her. He probably saw that Regal was getting too powerful and wanted to smack him down. _That_ would be more like her father. He had done it to her when she had been the GM, so she should've expected it to happen with Regal this time.

"Okay, I've got my match soon," Chris said, "I'm going to go get Sawyer's belt."

"Okay," Stephanie said, "I've got a few things to do as well, if I don't see you, good luck."

He kissed her, swiping his thumb across her jaw as his lips touched hers, "Thanks."

Chris got up to go back to his locker room and Stephanie turned to Shane, "Shane, can you watch Sawyer for a second?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Thanks so much."

Then she was gone too. Sawyer looked up at his uncle, "Hi."

"Hey, kiddo," Shane said, ruffling his hair. "You want to put on the headsets?"

"Yeah!"

Britt was walking down the hallway talking into a walkie-talkie that was hooked up with production. She saw Randy up ahead and she grinned, ending the conversation and jogging up to him. "Randy, hey!"

Randy turned and looked at her, "Yes?"

"Looks like you lost last night."

"Whatever," he said.

"Oh, are you sad?" she asked with a smirk.

"It's not going to matter," he told her. "I'm going to get another rematch and this time, I'm going to win and then you can have dinner with the champion and not some loser."

"Oh, I'll have dinner with a champion, Hunter, my boyfriend, who will _be_ the champion. I don't think you'll even get that shot at the title."

"That's where you're wrong," Randy said, and he somehow maneuvered them so her back was to the wall and he was hovering over her, his hand above the left side of her head. "Because I'm going to get that title back."

"Sure you are, explain to me how you got it back last night," Britt said, not fully cognizant of how they were positioned.

"Your boyfriend got lucky. He won't be so lucky tonight and he won't be so lucky come One Night Stand when he had to face off against me. When he does lose tonight, you know what match I'm going to put him in."

"Well, if you want to win, I guess it would be the Biggest Wimp match because you would definitely own that one," she told him gleefully.

He scowled, "No, it's going to be a Last Man Standing Match. That way I can beat your boyfriend to within an inch of his life and then when he can't get up, I will take that title from him, and then you and I…"

"I don't come with the title," she told him, her voice steady and strong.

"I want you," he told her, his voice low and in his throat, almost a growl.

"You…can't…have…me," she told him, her lips curling up into a smirk.

"What if I don't want that?"

"Sexual harassment suit?"

He pulled away at that, "Look, I just…there's something about you."

He had actually dropped the attitude for that one, "Look, Randy, I'm going to go walk that way, and you're going to walk that way, and we will never speak of this again."

"But…"

"Never again!" she said as she started to walk away quickly, the clicking of her low heels the only sound reverberating in his head. He was starting to realize that he was really becoming attracted to the young woman, and it was starting to have little to do with his rivalry with Hunter. That was scary though, very scary.

"Come in!"

"Uh, hi," Stephanie said as she stepped into the locker room.

"What do you want? Something to do with the show?"

"No, actually, I came to speak to you," Stephanie said to him.

"Go ahead," Kennedy said, folding his arms.

"It's simple, I don't really like you. You tried to feign that you were a McMahon, and that's not cool, but this is more important, I just want to make sure that you put everything into your match tonight. I want Regal gone, that's no secret, but I want him gone, so just make sure that you put everything into it."

"I planned to."

"Good, just making sure."

As Stephanie was making sure that she would get rid of Regal, Chris was out to make sure that he got another shot at Shawn. He knew it was going to be a tough match. It was a lot of back and forth at first, before Dave started to get the upper-hand. Chris rolled out of the ring at one point clutching his knee like he was hurt. He wasn't, but he thought that Dave would appreciate the histrionics of the entire thing. He eventually got back into the action, the two of them fighting each other again.

Chris dumped Dave out of the ring and he started clutching _his_ knee and Chris thought it was great how they could simultaneously wrestle and make fun of Shawn, it was a great thing, but he had a task at hand. He got Dave back into the ring and decided to work on his "injured" knee. Then Dave seemed to get the upper-hand and Chris suddenly found himself at the announcer's table. He came into the ring and got a big boot for his troubles. Dave tried to get his finishing move on him, but Chris got him into a single-leg Boston Crab and held it as tightly as he could as Dave struggled to reach the ropes.

He reached them and Chris was forced to break the hold. He got him down again and tried for the Lionsault, but missed, which would piss off Stephanie. Dave tried to go for his finisher again, and failed again. Eventually though, Chris went for the Code-Breaker and Dave caught him and gave him the Batista Bomb for the win. Chris was understandably pissed. He should be the one getting the shot.

It was this thought that followed him through the entire evening.

"Chris, stop, you're moving too much," Stephanie said as they lie in bed later that night.

"I'm sorry, I'm just pissed."

"Yeah, but you have a pregnant woman in your bed, one who is happy that Regal is fired and if I weren't so sore, I would totally be doing you right now, but as long as we both wake up early, I don't see why we can't do that before Sawyer is up tomorrow."

"Sure, I guess."

"Wow, see, that just makes me think it's time to get a divorce," Stephanie said, "I didn't think I'd get a 'Sure, I guess,' from you when it regards sex."

He laughed and turned on his side, "Sorry," he told her, leaning over to kiss her neck. "I love having sex with you, believe me, and I'm not looking forward to the couple months or so when I can't have sex with you, trust me, I'm just pissed that I lost again."

"You put too much of yourself into your matches. They're just matches, sweetie, you'll get another chance."

"Yeah, I guess."

"No, you will, and you'll get a chance to do everything that you want to do this time around."

"Yeah, you're right," he relented, smiling over at her and tucking some hair behind her ear. "See, this is why I married you, so logical."

"I thought it had to do with the fact that I found my engagement ring."

"That too."

"Then you knocked me up."

"True."

"Then you knocked me up again."

"Again, true," he told her, grabbing her hand and lacing their fingers together. "Only fifteen weeks left and then we get to have our little girl."

"See, you're happy again."

"I'd be happier if Shawn were taken care of before she was born."

"Well, there's plenty of time for that, besides, who said that Dave should be the only one in the match?"

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying, let's not rule out one possibility here, sweetie."

"What's that?"

"Triple Threat."


	184. Vince Has Lost It, May 26, 2008

For a friend...

* * *

"A rose for a rose."

"Wow, that's a line for the _ages_," Britt said sarcastically as she looked at the rose in front of her face. She had just been minding her own business, working as usual when this…this flower was practically shoved up her nose. She actually had to cross her eyes to see it. Thinking about that for a moment, she grabbed Randy's wrist and pulled the flower out of her face.

"Well, I couldn't think of a better one, you want to find someplace quiet and we'll brainstorm about better opening lines."

"With you?" she said, and he nodded eagerly, "Never. I really don't know what you don't get about that word. I would think that you had learned that word very early. And if you hadn't, I figured that somewhere along the line you've heard that word from a lot of different girls."

"You're so funny, Britt," Randy told her, shaking his head, "I can definitely see what Hunter sees in you, that's what has me so intrigued."

"Yeah, right," she told him. "Then…when you start feuding with someone else, you going to go after their woman too? If you and Shawn get into some sort of fight, you going to go after his wife?"

"That's not what this is about," he said, clutching his hand to his chest, "and I'm a little insulted that you think it is about this."

"I'm sure you are, now go away."

"I don't want to go away, I want to talk to you."

"And if I don't want to talk to you?"

"Well, I'd be very sad," he said, trying to give her his best puppy-dog face, but Randy was admittedly not used to doing this face because by now he would've gotten what he wanted. It only came across as corny and not at all charming to the dark-haired woman.

"I'm sure you would, move along now, little boy."

"Won't you at least accept my rose?" he said, thrusting it towards her again. "I picked it out special for you. I figured you for a pink rose kind of girl. I think a deep red would get lost on you, but a pink one, I thought it was definitely the right kind for you."

"You actually put thought into what rose you would get me?"

"I did," he confirmed.

"That's sad," she said, pushing the flower away again. "Randy, please, just leave me alone. I know what game you're trying to play here and it's really just sad. It's not going to work. I don't even know what you expect me to do, rip my clothes off right now and ask you to take me?"

He gave her the once over then. She was wearing a simple pair of jeans and a cute maroon blouse with banded cap sleeves. Her hair was down and glossy against her shoulders, just brushing past them, sleek and straight without a hair out of place. Her makeup was tasteful and subdued and she was all-around just a pretty picture of seeming sweetness. He definitely felt attracted to her, but she was a pretty female and he was Randy Orton and he was attracted to a lot of females.

"That would make this a lot easier," he told her, giving that grin of his that was two parts lecherous and one part smarmy.

"Get a life," she said, "and get that flower away from me."

"I want you to have it though."

"I don't want it though."

"Please, just take the flower," he insisted.

"I _don't_ want it," she told him again, her voice starting to rise with anger. "So take your flower and give it to someone else."

"I want _you _to have it though."

"No," she told him.

"Please."

"No."

"Please."

Britt, frustrated with him, grabbed the flower. Randy smiled, until Britt threw the flower on the ground and stomped on it with her sneaker. She twisted the flower around under the ball of her foot, making sure to really imbed it into the floor as much as she could. When she was through with that, she dusted off her hands for effect and started to walk off, leaving a sad trail of flower guts on the floor. Randy frowned and looked at his gift, but then bolted after her, figuring that someone on the janitorial staff would clean it up.

"Britt, wait up!" Randy called out.

Britt rolled her eyes and kept on walking, ignoring him. She wasn't going to give him the time of day. She didn't ask for this extra attention and it was annoying that he was giving it to her. She just wanted to do her job right now, the one that she was paid to do, the one that kept a roof over her head and food in her stomach. But no, it wasn't meant to be. She had to fall for Hunter, which in turn made her somehow desirable to his rivals who had no previous knowledge of her existence. She almost wished she could just fade into the background again and just be Chris's personal assistant, nothing more.

"Britt, please."

"What the hell?" Hunter said as he walked out of his locker room and saw Randy practically chasing Britt down the hallway. Hunter went to catch up, grabbing Randy from the back of his collar, preventing him from going anywhere. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"This is none of your business," Randy said, pulling away from Hunter's grasp in order to face him down. They were actually going to face off later, but it seemed like they were both ready to throw down right now and get into it before the cameras even stopped rolling.

"Like hell this is none of my business, Britt is my girlfriend, I love her, so you're damn right this is my business," Hunter said angrily. Just looking at Randy nowadays made the older man angry. He was already pissed enough with the upcoming match, but adding Britt and this strange attraction that Randy had to her was making his blood boil.

"This is between me and Britt, not me and you."

"Did you not hear what I just said? Keep away from my girlfriend or else!"

"Or else what?"

"Or else I'm going to have to change our match at One Night Stand to a stretcher match because that's what you'll be going out on."

"You don't scare me," Randy scoffed. "Everyone thinks that The Game is so intimidating, that I should be shaking in my wrestling boots, but I'm not afraid of you. Why should I be? I know all your tricks. You think I wasn't paying attention when we were in Evolution? You thought I was just the random goof-off young guy ready to carry your jock and make you look like the best thing since sliced bread? No way, man, I was watching, observing, and I'm not intimidated by you, not in the slightest."

"Well you should be, because I'm going to decimate you."

"I'd like to see you try."

"Stay away from her," Hunter growled.

"No," Randy said defiantly. "You don't own her, I can talk to her if I want to talk to her and you can't say anything about it."

"Stay away from her!"

"No, I'm not, don't tell me what to do!"

"I'm warning you…"

"Okay, stop!" Britt said, stepping in between the two of them. "The both of you, just stop, oh my God, this is crazy. If you are honestly fighting over talking to me or whatever, then just, that's disgusting. I'm a person, I'm not some…_thing_ to be fought over like cavemen, so either both of you stop or I'm going to…I don't know, kick you both in the crotch."

Randy laughed, "You are _so_ funny."

"Okay, that's it," Hunter said, pushing Britt aside and slamming Randy up against the wall.

"Hunter!" Britt said, sharply, never seeing this kind of anger. "Hunter, get off of him!"

"No, this bastard deserves it," Hunter said, rearing his hand back.

"Hunter, I swear to God, if you hit him, we're through," Britt told him, and for the first time Randy had ever seen, Hunter actually listened to someone instead of just pummeling him.

"Why are you protecting him?" Hunter hissed.

"Because, what if you hit him, huh? You're going to get in trouble with Vince, who is in charge tonight I might add. Stephanie is not in charge, she's starting to take nights off before her maternity leave. Vince hates you, you've told me this a number of times, he will use this as an opportunity to use this to your disadvantage, do you really want that?"

"I can get Steph to help me."

"You know that she can't overrule her father," she said. "Hunter, think about it."

"Oh, I'm thinking about how good this will feel."

"Hunter…"

Hunter was torn. He really wanted to punch Randy until he bled, but Britt was standing there, looking sternly at him, and something was stirring in his stomach. He loved her and she was looking at him so imploringly. She actually believed that he could be a good guy. That was a new one, for sure. Hunter brought his fist down and let go of Randy, taking a step away from the younger man.

"See, that wasn't so hard," Britt said. She grabbed Hunter's hand, which was still balled into a fist and uncurled his fingers, taking her hand in his and pulling him away from Randy completely, "Come on, I've got some things to do and you can come with me, okay?"

"Okay," Hunter said, taking a few steps back and trying very hard not to look back at Randy.

Britt could sense this and she turned to him and just as his head was starting to turn left, she reached up and pulled his chin so it was facing her. She shook her head and then smiled, "I'm really proud of you. You did the right thing right then."

"It didn't feel like the right thing," he muttered.

"Well of course it didn't if the only thing that you're used to is beating up guys. There are times for that, Hunter. Don't worry about Randy, you'll get him in the ring."

"That's not soon enough. He should know to stay away from you."

"He's stubborn, but I'm telling you, I can take care of myself. I'm not a little girl, Hunter, believe you me, before I even entered this company I was taking care of guys left and right," she said, trying to joke and lighten the mood. Hunter was not so easy to break, however, because he didn't even crack a smile. "I don't like seeing you like this."

"Like what?"

"Upset, mad, like _this_," she said, gesturing around him with her free hand. "I like the Hunter that is sweet and nice and funny. I like that Hunter, bring him back for me, pretty please, pretty, pretty please."

"You're something else, Britt, you know that."

"Well, I got that a lot growing up," she joked around with him. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I guess," he said.

The thing with Randy was still going to weigh heavily on his mind. He knew that he was probably walking right into the trap that Randy was setting for him, but he didn't care. He would just use that fire and anger and concentrate it on Randy when they went into the ring for their Last Man Standing match. Then he was going to get his hands on that creep and silence him once and for all. Then he would take any comers for his championship and he would vanquish them all.

There was another weighing on his mind though and that was his mother. He had yet to tell Britt about that, even though Chris had told him that he should tell Britt the truth. He just didn't know how to broach the subject and he didn't know how Britt would take it if he told her that he wasn't speaking with his mother at the moment and it was all over her. She might want to break up with him because she wouldn't want to come between him and his mother and he didn't want that to happen. He loved Britt and he loved being with Britt. Dare he say it…he might actually love Britt more than he had ever loved Stephanie.

He wasn't entirely sure if the thing with Stephanie had been love. It certainly wasn't at first. At first it was revenge…for the both of them. They both wanted to stir up trouble, but those first few months were strictly business, regardless of how it came across on television. It was a feeling-out process if anything. They knew next to nothing about each other so they had spent that time dating, even though they were technically married at that point.

Somewhere along the line he had started to care very deeply for Stephanie, maybe even love her, but it hadn't felt the same as when he was with Chyna. He was starting to realize, years too late, that he might have even loved Chyna more than he loved Stephanie. He cared for Stephanie, for sure, he had done so much, but their relationship was doomed from the start. Having no time to really develop those feelings had been the death knell to their relationship.

"Honey, what are you thinking about?" Britt asked him after he remained quiet for a while.

"I was just thinking about the past."

"The past?"

"Yeah," he answered. Britt pulled him into catering and sat him down in a chair and sat down on his lap. "I thought you had things to do."

"I do, but you look lost, and you look like you want to talk, so let's talk and then I can go about doing my job. Besides, we've got time, I've got time. So spill, what were just thinking about the past for? You realize that you really do want Stephanie back?"

"No, I don't think I ever really loved Stephanie, our marriage was…doomed, I guess."

"Oh, okay, so what past?"

"I've told you about Chyna, right?"

"Um, in passing, I think, an ex, right?"

"Yeah, she was an ex," Hunter said. "It kind of ended ugly with us. I married Stephanie without telling her."

"Oh, yeah, that's…pretty ugly," she said, "what made you think of her? Has she contacted you or something?"

"No, because I love you, you know that, right?" Britt nodded. "Well, I don't think I've loved anyone as much as I love you since Chyna."

"Wow, so she must've really meant something to you then."

"Yeah, she did, and I just really haven't allowed myself to think about her in a really long time, and I was just thinking about how our relationship is so much better than my relationship with Stephanie, for various reasons. I mean, it's obvious that we weren't meant to be with how she is with Chris, but I don't know…"

"You don't think it's better than the one you had with this Chyna girl?"

"No, it's just different, and yeah, she just kind of crept up into my brain."

"Oh," Britt said. "Well, you can't choose who creeps up into your brain, can you?"

"I guess not."

"You really loved her?"

"She wasn't your typical beauty, you know, she was a wrestler."

"Oh, I see the connection you must've had…wait, a second, Chyna…Chyna…I feel like I should know who she is, it sounds really familiar."

"She was in _Playboy_ if that helps."

"I don't read _Playboy_," Britt laughed, "I don't know, go on. Wrestler…was she like a Trish type wrestler? Or like a Maria type wrestler?"

"She was like a…Triple H type wrestler," Hunter said.

"What?"

"She wrestled guys most of the time, ask Chris about when he was pissed at her, he'll tell you stories about feuding and tagging with her. At one point I thought they might be an item, but she wasn't Chris's type. His type was you know, brunette, bitchy, and Stephanie basically."

"Oh, so she must've been really scary."

"She was…she was awesome."

"Why don't you see what she's up to?"

"She wouldn't want to see me, we ended on _really_ bad terms and she hasn't…she's not been doing well since she left the company, in and out of rehab and stuff," Hunter said.

"Because of you?"

"I don't know, probably not, she's had a pretty screwed up life."

"Oh, I was going to say, that would kind of suck if my future involved rehab because you screwed me up so much."

Hunter smirked at that, "I probably will, I'm _that_ hard to get over."

"How's Steph doing with that whole getting over you thing?"

"She is always the exception to the rule," Hunter said. "But yeah, I don't think that Chyna would want anything to do with me. I think that she'd slam the door in my face or hang up on me or something like that."

"Well, if you really want to try, I think you should."

"Maybe," he said. "You go back to work though, I'm going to get ready for my face-off against Randy. I need to make sure that I don't completely blow up at him."

"Okay, I've got a meeting to go to anyways, there's a new wrestler that Chris is orienting and he wants me to make sure that the guy gets where he needs to go."

"Sounds like fun."

"Well, it's work, right, I'll see you later, _be good_," she told him, giving him a look and then kissing him, long and deep to remind him that she would be extremely mad at him if he were to go seek out Randy and kick his ass. He took her words to heart as she walked briskly to Chris's office.

"Mr. DiBiase, it's nice to see you again, I don't think we've ever actually officially met," Chris said as he stood up behind his (Stephanie's) desk for the evening. "I mean, I know who you are, I'd hope you know who I am, we did work in WCW at the same time, but um, well, you know, I wasn't used that extensively there and we didn't travel in the same circles or anything, but yeah, you know, Chris Jericho."

"I know who you are, Chris," Ted said with a nod.

"Great," Chris said, sitting down and inviting the two men in front of him to sit down as well. "Well, I mean, I'm pretty sure you know the ropes around here, Mr. DiBiase, so I anticipate that you can help your son transition as well."

"That I can do."

"Good, so I just want to make sure that you have everything you need, schedule, itinerary, all of that."

"I can take care of him," Ted said, looking at his son and slapping him on the back.

"Awesome, I'll just have my assistant, who should be here soon, give you everything and show you to your locker room," Chris said. "Are you excited?" he asked Ted DiBiase Jr.

"I think I'm going to like it here," the younger Ted said, nodding his head.

The door opened and Chris expected it to be Britt, but it was Stephanie instead. "Sorry, didn't meant to interrupt," Stephanie said sheepishly. "Sawyer just wanted some juice so I'm just going to sneak in here and get him his juice." Stephanie pushed the door open and tried to sneak over, but it was hard for a pregnant woman to sneak anywhere. "Pretend I'm not here, really."

"Kind of hard to do that, Steph," Chris said good-naturedly.

Sawyer walked in through the door and let out a loud, "Hi!"

"Sawyer, I told you to wait in the hall, we're really only going to be here for a second," Stephanie said, "I wasn't trying to horn in on your meeting."

"Well, you're already here, you might as well stay," Chris said. Stephanie smiled at that and went about getting Sawyer some grape juice, handing it to him as he walked over to his father. Chris pulled him into his lap.

"Do you plan on your son being a wrestler?" Ted Sr. asked.

"Yes," Stephanie said, answering for Chris. She ran her hand through Sawyer's hair, "He's going to be a champion. The WWE champion."

"Steph, let's not get ahead of ourselves," Chris said as Sawyer sipped his juice.

"How have you been, Mr. DiBiase?" Stephanie asked nicely. She always felt like a little girl whenever she was around a veteran from when her father was the sole man in charge and she was a little girl looking up to all these guys. She never felt like an adult around them, which Chris though was adorable.

"I've been good, Stephanie, you look like you've been well."

Stephanie ran her hand over her stomach, "Yeah, I've been pretty well, thank you."

"Sorry, I'm late," Britt said as she rushed inside.

"Oh, hey, Britt, yeah, I just need you to give an itinerary and schedule to the DiBiases and then to show them to their locker room for the evening," Chris said.

"Will do, follow me," Britt said, walking right back out the door, leaving Chris and Stephanie alone and with Sawyer.

"Hey," Stephanie said as she leaned down and kissed Chris briefly, "Ted's son is kind of cute, I have to admit."

"What!"

"What, I'm just saying," she laughed, "anyways, I actually did have a purpose coming back here that wasn't about Sawyer's juice, although that was my #1 priority."

"What purpose is that?"

"My dad wants to meet with us immediately," Stephanie said, "so you know, we have to go."

Chris could see she was trying to stifle a giggle, "What's so funny, McMahon?"

"Nothing," she said, trying to hold in her smile.

"Tell me…"

"You just have no eyebrow is all," she giggled, "I mean, you do, but it's gone too, and I'm sorry, it's so funny."

"I had to get stitches."

"I know, but you have no eyebrow," she laughed, then turned serious, "No, I'm sorry, I'm sorry you're hurt, baby, I really am."

"No, you're not, you think this is funny, and it's only partially shaved, thank you very much," Chris told her, standing up and starting to walk out the door, Sawyer in his arms, still sipping at his juice. "I'm leaving."

"Don't be mad," she laughed as she wrapped her arm around his waist, "I really am sorry that you're hurt, I really am."

"Sure you are."

"Just…no eyebrow!"

"I'm going to shave off your eyebrow while you're sleeping, just you wait."

"Please, I get up every ten minutes to pee anyways, you'd never have the time, stupid baby with its stupid kicking my bladder and getting bigger," she said, staring down at her stomach.. "Feel free to come at any time, Flynn."

"Don't listen to her!" Chris yelled at her stomach, "You need to stay in there for another few months, okay, Flynn, she just doesn't get it, don't come out now."

"Well, yeah, that's true, don't come out now, Flynn, you're not ready yet," Stephanie said to her stomach.

Sawyer watched as his mommy and daddy talked to her stomach and thought they were crazy. "What?"

"What?" Chris asked.

Sawyer just shook his head, "My baby."

"Sorry, didn't meant to talk to _your_ baby."

"It okay," he told his father as they got to his grandpa's office. Chris pushed open the door, allowing Stephanie to go inside before him. Vince was on the phone, but ended the conversation as he saw his daughter and son-in-law coming in. Chris put down Sawyer and he went over nonchalantly to his grandpa. "Hi, Gamp."

"Hello, Sawyer, have you been good today?"

"Mmhmm," Sawyer said, looking up at his grandpa before going and climbing on his couch and sitting there, watching as Stephanie and Chris sat down. He chewed on the straw to his juice, possibly trying to see if he could eat the plastic itself.

"So what is it, Dad?" Stephanie asked. Shane wasn't here tonight so it was just her and Chris, with her father taking charge of the show now that Regal was gone. She smirked at that thought.

"Well, as you know, I have a major announcement to make tonight."

"Yes, I know," Stephanie said.

"I roger that, Vince," Chris said.

"Well, I'm holding another draft in four weeks."

"Oh," Stephanie said, "_that's_ the big announcement?"

"No, that's just one announcement," he said.

"I'm exempt though, right, Vince?" Chris said, "I'm your son-in-law, I think I can have a little leeway where I won't have to switch shows, right?"

"No, you're on the roster now, of course you can be switched, nobody is exempt."

"Ugh, Daddy," Stephanie said, breaking out the word and the pout.

"Stephanie, no buts here."

"Fine, what's the other announcement then?"

"Well, I've decided to give some of my money away."

"To?"

"The viewers, the fans, those people out there," he said, waving his arm in the direction of the great beyond.

Chris looked at the direction of his hand, "You're going to give money to Sawyer?"

"No…not right now anyways, but to the fans, I'm thinking, a million."

"To _one_ fan!" Stephanie asked.

"No, maybe one every week, up to a million, not a million every week…or maybe it will be a million every week," Vince said, tapping his chin.

"Stephanie, you call 9-1-1, I'm going to go see if I can find a doctor here who can take care of your father," Chris said, turning to his wife.

"I'm not crazy, Chris, I want to do this for the loyal viewers, I'm not sure how I'm going to do this yet, but I want to do it."

"Okay, I'll go call 9-1-1," Stephanie said, pretending to push herself off of the chair.

"I'm not crazy!"

"Dad, this is you we're talking about, you don't give away money, except to your grandkids, but otherwise, there's no money being had out of your pocket."

"Well, I think it's time to change things, I want to fans to join in on the fun."

"Well, I guess," Chris said, looking at Stephanie.

"Yeah, I mean, you're the boss, right, Dad."

"I _am_ the boss," he said proudly, "so you two really don't get a say in it, and it doesn't matter because you two have your own shares of the company, so what does it matter to you, this will be my own personal project."

"Whatever," Chris said, standing up, "I'm outta here. Come on, Sawyer."

"Okay, Daddy," he said, climbing off the couch and handing Chris his juice box. Chris threw it into the trash and took his son out of the room. Stephanie stayed behind, watching her boys leave before she turned to her father.

"How's Flynn?"

"Everything's going really well," Stephanie told her father. "She's right on track as a matter of fact. So you know, you get to have a granddaughter in August."

"Yes, I do," Vince said. "You look beautiful tonight."

"Thanks, Dad," she said, "are you sure that you want to do this? I mean, come on, Dad, how are you going to pull this off?"

"I'll figure it out, don't tell me what to do."

"I'm not telling you what to do, I'm just making conversation, throwing things out there. I just worry that you're doing this on a whim, you announce it to the fans and then you take it back because you're Vince McMahon and you do things like that."

"I won't."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm positive."

"Okay," she said, pushing herself up. "If you say so…"

"I do say so."

Chris walked down the hallway with Sawyer running ahead of him, careening in and out of traffic. He saw Shawn up ahead, looking like he didn't have a care in the world. Chris was peeved that he hadn't won his match against Dave the other week. He wanted to be the one facing Shawn and making sure the only way he got out of the ring was on a stretcher. He could feel his fingers aching to punch the man out.

"What are we looking at?" Stephanie asked as she linked arms with her husband.

"Just Shawn…I want a rematch with him, can I have one?"

"You can't ask me, I'm not working. You have to ask my dad."

"What? You can't just do this one thing for me?"

"Sorry," Stephanie shrugged. "Not in my jurisdiction tonight. You'll have to go with my dad or you don't get the match, that's just how it goes."

"Mommy, play," Sawyer said, rushing up to her and grabbing her hand. He tried pulling her along, but she was very hard to budge.

"Okay, come on, I'll teach you how to make fun of Daddy for having part of his eyebrow shaved off," Stephanie laughed as she followed her little boy.

Hunter, meanwhile, was staring down Randy Orton in the ring. Their words sounded all well and good, but it was what wasn't being said that really counted. Hunter wanted to throw this podium aside and really get at Randy. He wasn't lying when he said that Randy was a scared, little boy inside a man's body. That's just what he was, resorting to petty games to try and get into Hunter's head.

He was going to save all this anger and use it on Sunday when he truly took Randy to task. The younger man wouldn't know what hit him. Hunter had been in various Last Man Standing matches, and they were tough, and he was the best. Randy would not know what was coming. He could try and prepare for the match, but Hunter would outclass him in every way. Then he would go backstage to _his_ girlfriend and that would be the end of that.

Randy wanted Britt. He was sure of that now, sure as he was about getting the WWE title. Britt had asked him last week if she just came with the title belt and while she didn't, he could make her switch sides and go out with him. He could make her like him if he just got that in. She was tough to crack, but he was Randy Orton and he could do it. It'd be nice to ring in the Age of Orton again with her on his arm and Hunter reeling from it all.

It would be nice indeed.

Chris contemplated whether or not he actually should ask Vince for the match, but he wanted to fight Shawn and if he couldn't do it Sunday, then he was going to do it tonight. He didn't bother knocking on Vince's door since he was family and all. Vince was meeting with a couple of wrestlers, Carlito and Santino, who were suggesting something to him in order to get the fan's appreciation.

"Ahh, Chris, back so soon," Vince said and he was glad to see his son-in-law. It saved him from having to listen to these two.

"Uh yeah, I wanted to ask you something, but if you're busy," Chris said, backing up, knowing that he was teasing Vince and finding it very funny.

"No, no, stay, stay, I'm almost through here."

"So that's our idea, Vince," Carlito said with a nod.

"Well, I'll consider it," Vince said, "thank you very much, but I think I should see what my son-in-law needs, it might have to do with my grandchildren or my daughter, so I should probably talk to him."

Chris stifled a laugh as he watched Carlito and Santino leave and Vince mutter something about how that had been a bad idea and Chris went along with it. Then Vince asked him what it was that he wanted, being very jovial tonight. Chris really was a few seconds away from making sure that Vince hadn't lost his mind or something. Chris requested a match with Shawn, citing the fact that their last match had been fantastic and had completely stolen the show (which it had, so take notice WWE!). Vince asked him if he was getting frustrated with Shawn. Chris nor Stephanie had informed Vince of exactly how much of a thorn Shawn was being in their side because they knew if he knew he would blow his stack and do something rash and stupid, just like usual.

Vince knew there was honest-to-goodness bad blood between the two of them, but not the extent of it so Chris gave a safe answer. Vince gave him the match, like he would really deny his son-in-law what he wanted. Chris was part of their family now and he made Vince's daughter immensely happy and he couldn't ask for much more. He was even giving Vince his first granddaughter, which was exciting, of course he could take out his frustrations on Shawn tonight.

Chris, thinking on his feet, and hearing Jillian butcher Vince's theme, decided to have a little more fun at his father-in-law's expense. Chris got a kick out of making fun of Vince. He suggested that Vince update his entrance music, maybe giving it a more rocking vibe and then demonstrating. Then suggesting a scat version and also demonstrating. Now Vince thought that Chris had lost his mind.

He was saved from having to comment when Cryme Tyme came into the room. Vince tried to play it cool, like he could actually be one of the guys, but failed miserably and just looked like an old guy with no clue. Chris played it off better and even JTG was impressed. Chris stood there as Vince told the guys they could take the paintings off the walls and auction them off. They were Regal's belongings and since Regal was gone, there was no more need for them.

Cryme Tyme broke out into song then, and it was like something came over both Chris and Vince as they got into the act and sang a bit with them, looking at each other and being so very dorky. When that was over, Cryme Tyme left with the paintings and Chris tried to convince Vince to do that scat version as Vince thanked him and put his arm around him.

"Oh…my God." Chris and Vince both looked to the door where Stephanie was standing with Sawyer. She started cracking up, holding her stomach as she laughed and laughed, "What…the hell…was that!"

"What?" Vince asked.

"You two were singing together," Stephanie said, doubling over in laughter. Sawyer, who wanted in on the action started laughing too, at what he didn't know, but he wanted to laugh with his mommy too.

"I got caught up in the moment," Chris tried to defend himself.

"That was one of the funniest things I've ever seen," Stephanie laughed, "Oh my God, you two were singing together! This is like the best day, I get to make fun of Chris having his eyebrow shaved, Flynn has decided to take it easy on my bladder and instead kick out, and now I get to see my husband and my father try to act cool but only come across as complete dorks, oh, yes, this has made my entire week, my _entire_ week!"

"It was a funny song!" Chris said, going towards her.

"No, so funny, oh my God, so funny," she said, taking Sawyer's hand and leaving.

"Stephanie, wait up!" Chris said. He grabbed her around the waist and kissed her neck. "Don't make fun of me, McMahon."

"Oh, sweetie, I'm sorry, but you were getting along with my father and not just getting along, singing in tandem, _in tandem_, oh my God, I am going to go home tomorrow and watch that on the Tivo like a million times so that I can laugh at you."

"You'll do no such thing."

"Oh, I am, I'm so going to."

"No, you're not, Flynn, kick Mommy until she doesn't make fun of me," Chris told her stomach.

"She's already been kicking me," Stephanie said, leading Chris's hand to her stomach where he felt Flynn kicking. "She can really hear now, so she probably hears you and is kicking to say hello or something."

"Baby!" Sawyer said as he saw his father's hand on his mother's stomach. He pushed Chris's hand out of the way and put his hand where it had been and felt the baby kicking against his hand, saying hello like his mommy said she was. "Baby!"

"Yeah, there's the baby," Stephanie said sweetly. "She likes hearing your voice, you should keep talking to her."

"Hi, baby," he said. "Play!"

"She can't play yet, baby boy."

"When?"

"A few months, then she can come out and you can really see her."

Sawyer sighed loudly, "Okay."

"Keep an eye on him, he's so going to steal that baby away," Chris said.

"Oh my God, singing," Stephanie chuckled, "did you get your match?"

"Yeah, I'm going to get Shawn this time though, this time he's not going to beat me."

Chris went out confident for his match. It was time for a little revenge on Shawn Michaels. It was just all too personal and he needed to get his hands on him and kick his ass. He regretted that he wasn't going to be the one putting him on a stretcher, but maybe he could make him leave on a stretcher tonight if he played his cards right. He waited for Shawn to enter the ring so they could start this thing.

The beginning was just them feeling each other out again. He tried to go for Shawn at one point and ended up going over the ropes and onto the floor. He composed himself before getting in the ring and brawling again. He got a dropkick on Shawn, but Shawn got him back with a backslide and a two count. Chris got his own two count and they were back to even. He got Shawn to the corner and tried to lay him out with some punches. He went for the bulldog and ended up in the ropes in pain. Still, Chris was able to get him into the Walls, but Shawn rolled him up for another two count.

Chris got back up and went for the Lionsault, but missed. Then Shawn missed an elbow drop, so neither guy was getting a real advantage in this match. Chris went for the Code-Breaker, but Shawn grabbed the ropes and Chris hit his head on the mat. Shawn tried to get his Sweet Chin Music, but Chris ducked out of the way and got the Walls of Jericho. He held it fast and strong, but somehow Shawn made it to the ropes and he was forced to break the hold. He eventually knocked Shawn out of the ring and got the Walls on him again. 

Chris took a lot of frustration out on Shawn in those walls. He wanted him to hurt. It resulted in a double count-out, but he didn't care. He wanted to punish Shawn and even when the referees tried to break it up, he wouldn't relent. He wanted to show Shawn that he wasn't going to mess around with his family. He grabbed a steel chair to ward off the referee and then turned it on Shawn. The other man was looking up at him from the floor. It was then that Chris came to a realization.

This is exactly what Shawn wanted.

Shawn wanted him to get his aggression out in this way. He wanted Chris to look like the bad guy. Shawn had tried to act like a bad guy a couple weeks ago, but he still came out looking good. If Chris were to hit Shawn right now, it would be playing into his game. Well, what Shawn didn't expect was that Chris could be the bigger person and he was about to be the bigger person right now. He extended his hand towards Shawn and helped him up. Then Chris walked away.

"What was that?" Stephanie would ask as she came up to him afterwards. Chris handed Sawyer his belt before he turned to his wife. Everyone else was around, starting to get ready to go out there and see what Vince's announcement was.

"It's not worth it."

"It would be worth it, yes, for me, remember, and Flynn and Sawyer."

"It's what he wants, he wants me to stoop down to his level, but I'm not going to. I'm not going to stoop down to his level and give him what he wants. I get to be the bigger person this time."

"I don't get you, Chris Jericho," she said, giving him a soft smile as she tried to wrap her arms around him, but found it difficult with her stomach in the way. "You say you want to kick his ass and then when you have the perfect opportunity, you can't do it. I would've done it."

"Oh, I know you would have," Chris laughed, "Believe me, I know, but I was just proving to Shawn that I'm better than he is. I don't need to hit him in the face with a chair, I can just walk away and not let it get to me."

"Though it does get to you?"

"Absolutely."

"Well, good, I'm glad you don't like me insulted." He kissed the tip of her nose and she smiled at him adoringly.

"Besides, this way, come One Night Stand, he won't expect me."


	185. No More Mr Nice Guy, June 2, 2008

A/N: Sorry this is up late, it's my birthday today, so I was a little distracted, but you know, hope you enjoy the chapter anyways, and leave a review, and thanks for all the reviews too. :)

* * *

"I didn't want you to hurt him."

"I didn't _hurt_ him," Hunter insisted, "He did that on his own. It wasn't my fault that he went and got himself injured. He knew going into the match that he could get hurt, that's all on him."

"I guess," Britt said, "what do you think, Steph?"

She groaned, "Why ask me?"

"Because we need an unbiased opinion," Britt said.

"I'm not unbiased," Stephanie told them.

"Don't mind her, she's not feeling well today," Chris said as he sat back down after taking Sawyer to the bathroom to change him. He put Sawyer back into his booster seat in between him and Stephanie. Sawyer was starting to show an interest in being potty-trained, which was just a perfect time now that Stephanie was pregnant and they were going to have a newborn in the house.

"Oh, I'm sorry, you're not?" Britt said.

"Just achy today," Stephanie explained. "The kid in here is starting to get bigger and bigger and it's more uncomfortable."

"Oh, well then, let's ask Chris," Britt said.

"Ask me what? What are we discussing?" he wondered as he took a sip of his water as they all waited for their lunch. "Are we telling each other forbidden secrets?"

"I know," Sawyer said for no reason.

"You know, tough guy?" Hunter asked. "I didn't realize that you could read minds."

"I do," he answered very seriously.

"It's the genes," Chris shrugged, "when Stephanie I procreate, we practically have superheroes."

Britt laughed, "We were talking about Randy's injury. I just asked Stephanie whose fault she thought the injury was on."

"Randy," Chris said. "It was Randy's fault that he got injured."

"See," Hunter said.

"I still feel slightly bad for him," Britt told them, and she did. It wasn't that she liked Randy or anything, because she could certainly say that she didn't, but she didn't want to see him injured either. She didn't like to see anyone get injured. She had even winced when Chris got busted open the other week and had to get stitched, she could barely look at his eyebrow, even though Stephanie kept mercilessly teasing about it. She guessed she was just a little squeamish with certain things and injuries.

"Why?" Hunter asked, looking at her critically. Stephanie and Chris looked at each other and Stephanie raised an eyebrow at Chris, holding a conversation with their eyes. Their conversation was saying that this had the potential to be a very interesting conversation. Sawyer just looked around at the outdoor seating and all the flowers they had around there and wondered where his chicken fingers were.

"Because he's a human being," Britt told him. "I would hope that you at least have a little compassion for him."

"No, I don't, the guy's been acting like a huge jerk," Hunter explained, a little bit on the harsh side. "I think he got what he deserved."

"Honey, I think that's way out of line," Britt told him.

"Are you kidding me here, babe?" Hunter said. "The guy tried to hit on you, blatantly, numerous times. He tried to play me for a fool, this was the least that he deserved."

"So when you get injured, that's getting what you deserve, when Chris gets injured, that's getting what he deserves."

"Chris doesn't get injured, he's made of Teflon or something!" Hunter said.

"Hunter!" Stephanie hissed as she looked around at the other patrons in the restaurant, some of whom were looking at the burly man who was glaring at the petite woman next to him. "Quiet down."

"Sorry," Hunter said, a little of Stephanie's Hunter coming out, "but Randy was being a deliberate jerk."

"I don't know," Britt wavered.

"What do you mean you don't know?"

"Look, can we just enjoy our lunch, please, because here it comes," she said as the waiter came to put their plates down in front of them. The meal was spent mostly in silence, nobody wanting to speak for fear that a fight would break out or something. Chris was too busy helping Sawyer with breaking up his chicken fingers and putting ketchup on his plate and Stephanie was silently suffering from a sore back that was just a lovely, little gem of pregnancy.

"Well this was lovely," Stephanie deadpanned as she and Chris walked out into the parking lot to get in their car and start the drive to the arena. Rather, Stephanie was driving Chris to the arena and then she was going to the local hospital to check up on Randy to assess how much time he was going to need to take off. She wanted the information straight from the doctor's mouth so Randy couldn't come back and get himself re-injured. He had been taken to a new facility this morning for a second opinion and she figured that she could take this since it wasn't overly strenuous.

"Those two are going to _fight_," Chris laughed as he held Stephanie's hand towards their car. Sawyer was sitting on his shoulders, patting out a rhythm on his daddy's head. "That's not going to be pretty."

"I think she just feels bad," Stephanie shrugged. "I can see where she'd feel sympathetic towards him even though he was a jerk."

"Yeah, I guess…I don't know, I don't think she should feel bad. The guy was being a pretty big jerk to her and she shouldn't feel bad that he got injured."

"You wouldn't understand."

"Oh okay, whatever you say," he said as he let go of her hand and knelt on the ground so Sawyer could hop off of him. He helped the boy down and Stephanie was looking for the car keys as Britt came up to them.

"Hey, you guys, I'm really sorry about that," Britt apologized.

Stephanie shook her head, "Don't worry about it, it wasn't that awkward or anything."

"See, now that just makes it sound like it was," Britt said. "But anyways, I was wondering…well, I mean, I just told Hunter that I had some business that I needed to take care of, but I was actually just wondering if I could go to the hospital with you, Steph. That is where you're going, right? To see Randy?"

"Um, yeah, that's where I'm going."

"So can I go?"

"I don't really _need_ you there, though," Stephanie pointed out.

"I know, I just kind of wanted to talk to him, if that's okay with you…if it's not, I'll just go to the arena, no problem," Britt said.

"No, it's fine if you want to go with me, yeah, sure, fine," Stephanie said as she found the keys buried in her purse. She beeped the rental car and gestured towards it, "Hop on in."

"Thanks so much," Britt said as she climbed into the backseat as Chris put Sawyer into his car-seat. He looked at his fellow backseat rider and smiled at Britt. She smiled at him as well and he grabbed a toy that he had been sitting on and handed it over to her, thinking that she might get as bored during the car ride as he sometimes did and that maybe she would like something to do. "Thanks," she said, taking the toy from him.

He pointed towards a couple of books on the floor in front of him, "Book, pease."

"Oh, okay, here you go," Britt said as she picked up a picture and sound book. Sawyer immediately pressed one of the buttons and a hearty "moo!" came from the book and Sawyer giggled. He turned to Britt and answered very seriously, "Cow."

"Oh, you know your animal sounds."

"Of course he knows them," Chris said, turning around in his seat as Stephanie drove. "My kid knows his barnyard animals, Sawyer, what does a duck sound like?"

"Um," Sawyer tapped at his chin, "Quack, quack."

"See, awesome, pig!" Chris said.

"Oink, oink, oinky," Sawyer said, laughing and trying to make his best little piglet sounds. Chris gave him the thumbs up and Britt actually was a little impressed by it. Sawyer never ceased to amaze her. Her brother had a kid, but she so rarely got to see him that she didn't really know many kids outside of Sawyer, and this little…thing of a person was completely fascinating.

Stephanie pulled into the parking lot and right up to the door, "Now get the hell out of my car," she joked to Chris. He leaned over to kiss her and Britt averted her eyes, not wanting to intrude on their moment.

"Later, baby, we'll see you in a little bit," he said, then turned to Britt, "you can sit in the front now."

"Thanks," she replied sheepishly. She got out of the car and then climbed into the front seat as Chris got Sawyer and all their things. Stephanie was off again shortly afterwards and the drive was quiet at first.

"So why do you want to see Randy?" Stephanie finally asked.

"I just want to see him," Britt said quickly. "I don't know, I feel bad for the guy."

"Do you have feelings for him?"

"No," Britt said quickly, "I don't. How could I? I mean, Hunter is so good to me, you know. He's the best boyfriend that a girl could ask for. I love him, I really do. He's incredible…I probably don't have to tell you that…"

"It's been more than six years since Hunter and I have been together, he's way different now, I'm glad you're happy, I just don't think that you should go ruining it."

"I'm not ruining it."

"Does Hunter know you're with me?" Stephanie asked.

"No…"

"Exactly my point," Stephanie said.

"He can't tell me what to do," Britt said.

"I know that, and I'm not suggesting that you _let_ him tell you what to do, but do you really think that he'd like this whole going to see Randy thing?"

"I guess not, but still, I just want to see if he's okay."

"Okay, whatever you say."

"Can we not talk about it right now?" she asked. "I just don't feel like discussing this anymore."

"Fine, choose a subject then."

Okay, fine, what was with Chris helping out Shawn last night?" Britt asked, deflecting back to Chris.

Stephanie shrugged, "I don't even know what goes on in that head of his, nor do I care to know. He can do whatever he wants to do for all I care. He runs his own life, I run my own life and then somehow we converge into this weird middling ground where we have two kids and we're in love or something."

Britt laughed, "You make it sound like it's an accident that you and Chris are together."

"Who knows anymore," Stephanie laughed, "Chris is, by far, the longest relationship I've ever had, I don't even know what to call it anymore, I mean, I know what to call it, obviously, but I don't know…it's just like we've settled into this life and it's like, wow, I've been with this guy for so long and yeah…life is good, well, sort of good, it'll be good once Flynn is born and I don't feel like crap all the time."

"Yeah, how did you know Chris was the one you wanted?"

"Okay, I just have to say how weird it is that I'm about to talk marriage with my ex-husband's girlfriend."

"Well, like you said, you haven't been with Hunter in six years!"

"I know, um, I just couldn't picture a future without him, I guess. It kept coming back to him. Even before we were together, it always came back to Chris, it was always me wanting revenge on Chris. He was always there. Then, when we were together, I just couldn't picture myself without him. I couldn't picture kids that weren't his too. It all worked out, but you know, that's my experience with it."

"Oh," Britt said. "I don't think that I'm ready to get married, but the thought is there, you know. If only Hunter would talk to his mother, but I'm not going to hold my breath or anything."

Stephanie held her tongue; she knew that Hunter had talked to his mother and was subsequently not talking to his mother. Normally, she would want to tell, but this was Hunter and he really should be the one to tell her. She didn't know what the big deal was. Hunter had done exactly what Britt had wanted and maybe Hunter's mother needed to be knocked down a few pegs.

"Sure."

"So you really don't know what Chris is up to with Shawn?"

"No, I really don't," Stephanie said. "I was just as surprised as everyone else last night."

Indeed, Chris had not told her of any plans he had to go out during Shawn's match. She had suspected that he would head on out there, but she honestly thought that he would slam Shawn's face into something or personally help wheel the stretcher so Dave could win. She wasn't expecting him to actually want to help Shawn and she was through with trying to think about it. She had asked Chris and he had simply said that he was taking the higher road.

Sometimes she just did not get her husband. There was just no way that he could actually want to help Shawn, there just wasn't. Shawn had insulted his daughter, Chris's daughter. Stephanie already knew this little girl was going to be a Daddy's girl through and through and Chris already adored his unborn child, his eyes lighting up whenever he saw his little girl move on the ultrasound. No way would he take anyone insulting his daughter.

That was what made this entire situation so odd. Stephanie had no idea whatsoever as to what Chris was planning, if anything. She figured he actually _could_ be taking the high road, but that just didn't seem in line with Chris's style, unless he thought that now, as a man with two children, that he had to be a role model or something. She thought he could be a role model while punching Shawn's face in, but that was just her.

Chris didn't really have a plan. He didn't know what he was doing really. Maybe he was trying to be a role model for his kids, or maybe he was just sick and tired of trying to play a game that he wasn't winning. Was it really worth it to go after Shawn? He wasn't so sure. And if he was going after Shawn, maybe playing the straight man would be the best way to go about it. He knew Shawn wasn't here tonight, so he couldn't confront the man, but that didn't matter tonight.

Perhaps Chris was just trying to do what Shawn had done, try to be the good guy and then at the last second, when Shawn was least expecting it, he would turn into one bad mother…well, he suffice to say that he would shock Shawn into oblivion, all the while getting his fans behind him. If he came off as the good guy, then everyone would see Shawn as the bad guy. It never hurt to try a little mass reverse psychology.

"Chris, is Stephanie here?" Vince asked as he came upon his son-in-law and grandson.

"She went to go see Randy, remember?"

"Oh yes, I had forgotten, anyways, here are the exact details of the contest as I had my lawyer write it up," Vince said, handing him a sheet of paper, "give this to Stephanie when you see her, just so she knows what's going on."

"As long as you aren't using our money, I could care less what you do with your own."

"You know, I think that you should defend your belt tonight…where is your belt?" Vince asked, looking at his waist.

"It's a little gaudy for everyday wear, didn't really match my jacket," Chris told him. Vince rolled his eyes. Sometimes he wondered why his daughter had married this brash, cocky wrestler who had a smart word for everyone. At least he didn't call him Vance anymore.

"You're the champion though, you should act like it."

"Sawyer has it," Chris said, looking at Sawyer, who was behind him, and behind _Sawyer_ was the belt that he was dragging along the floor. The belt was a security blanket of sorts for the little boy, something that was all his own (well, mostly) and he liked to take it everywhere. The only place his parents didn't let him take it was to bed, for reasons he didn't understand (germs).

"Oh, he still likes it?"

"Yeah, it's his, everything is his, the belt, toys, Stephanie, Flynn…he just lets other people live in his world," Chris said.

"Well, you're going to defend that belt tonight."

"I am…"

"Yes, you should, you haven't in a while, and you're my son-in-law, go out there and win, and why don't you have the title, the big one?"

"Um, because I haven't fought for it since I don't really have any beefs with Hunter."

"You don't need to have a beef with that…that _man_," Vince spat. "You should go after it, you're my son-in-law--"

"You said that already," Chris said. "I know who I am, Vince, you don't have to remind me. I married your daughter, who is like, the female you, so I'm well aware of who you are in my life, trust me. If I could conveniently misplace you, I would, but since you're my boss and all…"

"I don't need the sarcasm, Chris."

"Sorry, I thought we were on good enough terms for me to joke around with you, considering I've been a part of your family for a while."

"I think you'll defend against…JBL."

"What! Vince…"

"This is what you get when you smart-mouth me," Vince told him, giving him a snide look.

"Why do you hate me so? Is it because I married your daughter, because we hid our relationship for years? Is that it?"

"No, it's just like I said."

"I hate JBL, he called out my freaking kid, Vince, _your_ grandson, no way should that guy get any kind of shot, ever."

"Well, he is, so be prepared for that. Besides, you know that I like having you as a son-in-law, you're much better than that buffoon that Stephanie was married to before you. But this is business."

"Oh, silly me," Chris said, "come on. Sawyer, I've got to get ready since I'm being put in a match against a guy who insulted you, my son, Vince McMahon's grandson by his only daughter, _only_ daughter."

"Don't be a suck up," Vince droned.

"I don't have to be, Vince, you forget that I'm the only wrestler you have that you can't control, probably freaks you out," Chris told him, chuckling to himself as he took Sawyer and walked to his locker room for the evening.

Britt stood outside the door as Stephanie walked into Randy's room with a doctor in tow. She didn't think that she needed to be in there at the moment; besides, she was still contemplating as to whether or not she actually wanted to go in there. Stephanie's words were ringing through her head as she stood out there, wondering if it was in her best interest to actually go in there and talk to Randy.

"Well, thank you, doctor," Stephanie said as she walked out of the room a few moments later. Now that they were in the safety of the hallway, she spoke candidly, "so honestly, how long do you see this lasting?"

"Well, I said that a few months would be all it needed and it didn't need surgery, but that's a best case scenario. I would take a little longer, maybe four months."

"Oh okay, well, we can do that, certainly, thank you again for the information."

As Stephanie was speaking with the doctor, Britt slipped quietly into the room undetected. She stood at the door for a moment, her back against the hard wood and she looked at Randy, who was sitting there, looking down at the blanket that was covering him. He felt a presence and looked up, thinking Stephanie had come in again to ask him more questions. He was surprised to find her assistant standing there instead.

She gave a small wave and took a few steps forward, "Hey, Randy."

"Oh, uh, hey," he replied. "Did Stephanie need anything else?"

It was different seeing him sitting there, looking vulnerable and helpless. Everything that made him that cocky Randy Orton was stripped away. He just looked like a lost, little boy right now and it was a startling contrast. He was just a guy who was injured and was in pain and she felt extremely bad for that.

"No, I just came along wit her and I thought that I'd see how you were doing," she said, taking another few steps closer. "How are you?"

"I've been better," he nodded. There wasn't even any lecherous comment about how she would make him feel better if she could be so obliged. That was something new.

"Sorry you're hurt."

"Me too," he said, staring at his collarbone, "body failed me."

"Yeah, well, I just…I just wanted to see how you were doing. I felt bad that you got injured last night, you know."

"You did," his head shot up to stare at her, his eyes widening slightly.

"Well, it was in a match against my boyfriend, and you got injured, so yeah, I felt slightly bad, you know, bad by association, though Hunter doesn't care, but he's a guy, and a big…guy who doesn't really care if his opponents get hurt or anything."

"Oh, well, thanks for checking up on me, I'll be fine."

"How long are you out for?"

"Few months," he said. "Hopefully."

"That's rough, but you know, you don't need surgery, that's what I heard."

"Yeah, that's a relief, I guess," Randy said, nodding to himself. He didn't even have it in him to be smooth around her right now. That was something new, usually he could be smooth whenever he felt like it.

"Yeah, well, um, feel better, I guess," Britt told him. "When I wanted Hunter to pound your face in, I didn't expect this to be the outcome at all."

"It was my fault."

"So everyone tells me," she told him.

"Thanks for coming to visit me, didn't expect anyone to want to, and I know Stephanie's doing it for her job. She looked pissed when she was in here too, I think she's mad at me for getting injured at all."

"Nah," Britt laughed, "she's just sore today from the baby so I think she's going to be a little on the cranky side."

"Oh, makes sense. Thought she was mad at me."

"No, she's mad at everyone. I kind of can't wait until she has Flynn. One, Flynn will probably be absolutely adorable and two, she won't be so pissed off all the time."

Randy laughed, "Yeah, that should be nice."

"So are you stuck here?"

"No, they just wanted to keep me here for a while after they took the MRI and stuff, I can go home after you leave and then I'll be flying home."

"Oh, but, um, you know…"

Stephanie stepped into the room and saw Britt talking with Randy, "There you are, I didn't know where you went. I was going to get going if you want to…well, wrap up whatever you're doing, conversation or whatever."

"Um, yeah, okay," Britt said, turning back to Randy. "Feel better, okay?"

"Thanks again."

Britt patted his arm and then she was gone. Stephanie didn't say anything as they walked out of the hospital. They got back in the car and still Stephanie didn't say anything to her. She didn't know if the brunette was upset with her or something. Stephanie shouldn't have anything to be mad at her about, so maybe she was just worrying for nothing.

"Why aren't you talking?" Britt finally asked.

"What?" Stephanie replied. "I just didn't have much to say."

"Oh," Britt said. "I thought you were mad at me."

"Why would I be mad at you?" Stephanie inquired. "Because you were talking to Randy? It's not a crime to talk to someone."

"Yeah, but you know, the whole situation with Hunter."

"Oh, come on, Britt, I'm not going to think you're some cheating bitch if you talk to another guy," Stephanie said. "Why would I care? You're a free person, you can talk to whoever you want to. I talked to Hunter when it made Chris uncomfortable, I don't care who you talk to of all people."

"Oh, okay, well, uh, thanks," Britt stumbled as she looked out the window.

"Hi, hi," Sawyer said as he climbed on the chair next to Shane.

"Hey kiddo," Shane said as he looked at his nephew and his father, who had just sat down himself, "What's up, Chris?"

"Nothing," Chris said, "what do you think about this whole contest thing your dad is doing?"

"Let him do what he wants, if he focuses all his attention on this, then the less he wants to do with the technical side, which is where we are, so let him do whatever he wants with this."

"He put me in a match with JBL," Chris said. "Sometimes I just don't get your father."

"He likes you, just be thankful for that. I mean, look at it this way, you get the chance to pound on JBL a little bit more. He was the jerk who called out Sawyer, so you know, take this opportunity to kick his ass some more."

"That's true."

"Dude, if my dad didn't like you, he would be putting you in horrible matches every single week, handicap matches, the whole thing. I remember when he did that with Hunter. He likes you, trust me. He's happy that you married Stephanie."

"So you say…"

"Nah, he really does," Shane said. "I mean, you know, as far as wrestlers go, I know my dad didn't want Stephanie to marry a wrestler, but if she had to, he's glad it was you and not someone like…I don't know, someone bad."

"Well that's nice and vague, but yeah, I guess I can look at this like he wants to let me get some shots at JBL."

"Yeah, see, he's not all bad, right, Sawyer, Grandpa's not that bad, is he?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said very resolutely.

"See!" Chris exclaimed, "Sawyer believes it."

"Well…Sawyer's two," Shane chuckled.

"Yeah, but he's a smart two-year-old."

"Mmhmm," Sawyer definitely agreed with that point. He was very smart. He spotted his mommy over his uncle's shoulder and exclaimed, "Mommy! Baby!"

He hopped off the chair and ran towards his mommy, jumping up and down as he touched her tummy over and over again. He was also jumping so that maybe his mommy would pick him up. Chris came over and hefted up Sawyer and let Stephanie hold him for a little while. She could only hold Sawyer for short amounts of time before she started to get really sore.

"Hey, so what do you have on tap tonight?" Stephanie asked.

"JBL."

"What?"

"I kind of mouthed off to your dad and he put me in the match."

"Oh, Chris," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "Well, is it for Sawyer's belt?"

"Yeah, but come on, I'll beat him, no problem, how did it go with Randy?"

"Fine, he's out a few months, but they confirmed that he doesn't need surgery, so that was a positive. Britt went in and talked to him for a while."

"Nothing happened, right?"

"Not that I saw, just talking," Stephanie said. "I know that Hunter is going to be pissed though, either way that it goes down."

"I'm going to be pissed at what?" Hunter said as he walked up to go out there to talk at the top of the show. He was going to officially declare the Age of Orton deader than a doornail.

"Nothing," Stephanie said quickly, too quickly for Hunter's liking.

"What's going on? You're not telling me something," he said, looking at her suspiciously.

"Now that's an out and out lie, why would I have to tell you everything, we're not married anymore," she pointed out. "I was just discussing something with my _husband_ and it was a private conversation. Between me and my husband."

"I think he gets that I'm your husband," Chris stage-whispered with a laugh.

"Well…good," Stephanie said.

"What is the matter?" Hunter asked, starting to get really, really suspicious.

"Oh, oww," Stephanie said, bending over to set Sawyer down on the ground and hold her stomach, "Chris, something doesn't feel right, can you take me back to the dressing room, I need to lie down."

"Steph, baby, are you okay?" Chris asked worriedly, rushing to her side and bending over with her, placing his hand next to hers on her stomach. "Is it Flynn? Are you in pain or something?"

"I just need to go lie down, I'm hurting, very hurt," she said and Chris rolled his eyes at her.

"Oh, yeah, of course, of course, come on, baby, I'll help you. Sawyer, do you want to stay with Uncle Shane?"

"Okay, I stay," he said, rushing back over to his Uncle Shane, who was too embroiled into getting the show's entrance right to care what his sister was doing.

"Come on, Steph, let's go, can you walk?"

"I think so," she said, standing up and wincing.

Hunter looked at her sympathetically, not wanting anything wrong with her kid, not realizing that Stephanie was completely faking to get out of the awkward situation. He rubbed Stephanie's arm, "Feel better, okay?"

"Yeah, thanks," Stephanie said as she slowly made her way with her husband as Hunter went out there to cut his promo, his mind on Stephanie.

"You're evil," Chris told her as they both looked over their shoulders to see that Hunter was out of sight. Stephanie straightened up and grabbed Chris's hand as they were walking back to her office. "Using Flynn like that."

"Like I said with Sawyer, if he's our kid, it's in his blood, same with Flynn, it's in her blood, she doesn't mind," Stephanie said, rubbing her stomach a little. Flynn was probably asleep right now. This was around the time when babies had regular sleep patterns developing inside there and she could tell that Flynn was a morning person, always kicking and moving around early in the morning when her mother wanted sleep. She was dormant right now, the occasional kick being felt or bump, but other than that, not much going on in there.

"Only you would do that."

"No, I wouldn't, there's probably millions of mothers who are saying stuff like that to get out of doing things," Stephanie said. "I'm just one of them."

"Oh yes, sure."

After Hunter had cut his promo and had to deal with both Cena and Hardy, he went to go check on Stephanie. He felt bad that she wasn't feeling well today so he just wanted to make sure that she was doing okay and there was nothing coming out of her, like a very premature baby. He walked to her office, ignoring much of everything that was going on around him. He got to the locker room and opened the door, figuring that Stephanie and Chris wouldn't be naked or anything.

"So Randy told me that he was only going to be out three months," Britt said to Chris.

"You talked to Randy?" Hunter choked out.

Britt looked up in horror, "Hunter, I didn't see you there."

"Obviously not."

"It's not what you think," she said immediately. She needed to diffuse the situation right now. She just didn't know how!

Luckily for her, Chris was clever, "Stephanie and Britt went to go see Randy before the show started. Stephanie wanted to get the second opinion straight from the doctor and Britt went with her because Stephanie's having a hard time driving, what with the stomach and everything. I needed to stay in case I had a match or something, or else I would've gone."

Britt looked at Chris thankfully. She was so fortunate to have him as her boss and she wanted to kiss him right then for saving her ass. There was nothing going on between her and Randy, less than nothing, even, but Hunter would never ever see that. Hunter would never be rational about something like this. She didn't know _too_ much about Hunter's past, but she knew him well enough to know when he would not be rational about this in the slightest.

"Oh, sorry," Hunter said, "I just heard that you were talking to Randy, and duh, you're Stephanie's assistant, of course you would help her out."

"Yeah, of course," Britt said uneasily, giving him a small smile.

"You know, I'm ready for my match, so I'm going to hang out with my family."

He left quickly and he was just out the door when Hunter called out, "Hey, how's Steph?"

"Fine, it was just a cramp from holding Sawyer," Chris lied again. He left even quicker after that.

Stephanie was sitting and talking amicably with her brother as their father was out in the ring explaining the contest to the fans. Sawyer was standing on her lap (as much as he could stand on her lap) and looking at all the buttons that his uncle was pushing very carefully. Every once in a while Shane would let him push one, much to the young boy's delight as he pushed the hell out of that button. Chris came down and quickly sat next to Stephanie, tapping her on the shoulder.

"What?"

"Okay, so you had a cramp, that's why you were in pain, and then you took Britt with you to see Randy because you couldn't drive on your own and I couldn't drive you, that's the story, don't forget it."

"Oh, Hunter?"

"Yeah, so remember that."

"Got it," she said.

"Good."

Before Chris's match, he did a little interview, telling everyone that he wanted to defend the belt more. It was kind of a waste to have it and not defend it as much as he was. He was the Intercontinental Champion after all. It wasn't the WWE Championship, but it would have to do for now. He had bigger things to worry about anyways, not some title that one of his friends was holding. All in due time.

Stephanie didn't know what was coming over Chris with this nice guy thing he had going. She found it a little annoying, but didn't say anything to him as he came back from his match. He was his own person and if he didn't want to be ruthless, who was she to tell him not to do that? She knew he had to be going somewhere with this. Chris was just not the type of guy who didn't have a reason for doing something and not hitting people he hated with chairs, there was definitely something up with this.

She'd just have to wait to find out.

Hunter was still a little suspicious later on that evening. Britt seemed weird around him, he was picking up on a strange vibe from her and he couldn't quite place it and it was unnerving to him. He wanted to ask her about it, but he was sure that she wouldn't tell him. She just kept glancing at him and if he caught her, she would give him a quick smile and then turn away. Even when they were in bed later that night she had pretty much stuck to her own side of the bed, something she just didn't do that much anymore. He was starting to wonder if there was any more to this Randy thing.

It was the scariest thing Hunter had faced in a while.


	186. Yay, Heel Turn, June 9, 2008

"Oh, it's so good to see you guys."

"Steph, what are you talking about, we live in the same city," Trish laughed.

"Yeah, but we've been doing the whole West Coast thing and I feel so out of the loop with the wedding and everything," Stephanie gushed. She was feeling good today. Flynn was kicking, as usual, but she was kicking outward, not into her organs, which was a blessing. Sawyer was on her hip right now, clinging to her because he couldn't really get around her. He was getting heavier and she could barely lift him, but he would give her the most pathetic pouts and want to be carried. He just loved to cuddle his mommy.

"I e-mail you everything about it," Trish said. "My sisters feel the same way, they're just like, you never talk to us, you need to call us more, and it's horrible."

"Well, they're your sisters," Stephanie said, hefting Sawyer up again. He lashed his arms around his mommy's neck to hold on tight.

"Do you want me to take him?" Trish asked, eyeing the little boy.

"No, he's being clingy right now," Stephanie said. "He wants me to hold him because I don't hold him enough, I'm fine with it."

"Isn't he heavy?"

"Yes," Stephanie laughed, "but I don't mind. He's not going to get as much attention when Flynn is born, and I want to give him all the attention that he wants now while I can. I mean, I'm not going to abandon my baby or anything, he's just going to have to share it."

"I know what you meant," Trish said, ruffling Sawyer's hair.

"So you and Christian are heading down to Cabo tomorrow then?" Stephanie asked.

Trish smiled and nodded. She and Christian were trying to find places to go for their honeymoon and they wanted to go someplace where they knew they would have fun. They were going to fly down to Cabo tomorrow and check it out and see if there were any private places they could rent or just what they could do around there. They had planned a stopover in Oakland so they could see Chris and Stephanie, who were in Oakland for the evening where Raw was. The airport was very close to Oracle Arena and all they had to do was hop on the freeway and they could see the arena from the freeway.

"It's going to be so much fun," Trish said, wringing her hands together. "It's felt like forever since Chrissy and I have gotten to go on a vacation."

"Probably because it has been forever," Stephanie said. "I mean, face it, you guys haven't been back together for too long."

"Yeah, but look at the ring on my finger," Trish said, thrusting out her hand, "that's all that really matters to me. Chrissy and I are getting married and life is good. I'm so happy that he agreed to the whole kid thing."

"I knew he would, he loves you, he loves kids, he wants to have kids with you," Stephanie said. "Can we go sit down, it'll be easier for me if I can just sit Sawyer next to me or near me or just somewhere where I'm not carrying 30 pounds of weight."

"30 pounds? Geez, Sawyer, what have you been eating?" Trish joked.

"Food," he answered smartly. Stephanie laughed and gave him a kiss for his sweet answer. They walked over to catering and sat down again, Stephanie sighing as she pulled a chair close to hers so that he could cuddle into her side. He was obviously tired today (he had spent most of the day in a sandbox building things). He leaned into her side and just ended up rubbing his mommy's tummy softly, every so often leaning in close to her stomach and whispering something to his sister.

"What's he doing?" Trish asked on one of these occasions.

"He's talking to Flynn," Stephanie explained, rubbing Sawyer's shoulder.

Trish stared at Sawyer wistfully. It was hard not to want a kid right this second. She knew that her wedding wasn't that far off, September would be coming before she knew it, but it couldn't come soon enough for her. It almost felt like she was aching for a child, and it could just be the jealousy of seeing Stephanie with her little boy and one on the way, but it just felt right to want a baby right now.

"Steph?"

"Yeah?"

"Did you get the urge to have children at all? Like before Sawyer and before Flynn, did you just like, know that this was the right time to be having a child?"

"No," Stephanie said, "They both just sprung up on me so quickly that it was just kind of a surprise, it felt right after I was pregnant, like, hey, I can get used to this entire mother thing, but it wasn't like this whole thing."

"Oh, I just want one so much," Trish told her. "It just really hit me hard. I thought I was fine living my life with, you know, me and Christian, but recently, I've been baby crazy and I don't know if it's normal or what. I see a baby magazine at the store and I want to get it and I'm not even the one that's pregnant."

"I've had it with baby magazines, I'm a seasoned pro at this," she joked, "if I could raise this little one, I can raise anyone."

"I guess I'm just really wanting a baby. I really want to be married to Chrissy too. I cannot wait until our wedding. I hope it goes off without a hitch. That's what I'm afraid of the most…oh my God, am I turning into a Bridezilla?" Trish asked in fright. She didn't want to be one of those women who ran around all the time and demanded that everything be the most perfect thing ever or her entire wedding was going to be ruined.

"I hardly think that you're turning into a Bridezilla," Stephanie told her.

"But what if I turn out to be one? You're pregnant, you shouldn't have people yelling at you all the time."

"Tell that to my father, please, I'd really appreciate that," Stephanie kidded.

"I just don't want to lay too much burden on everyone and everything. I'm getting married in September, that's going to be right around the corner too. It's going to be here before I know it and I feel like I haven't gotten anything done. I mean, we have the place booked, and I have a theme and colors, it's all going to be very vintage. When I get home this week, I wanted to look at bridesmaids dresses. I know that you can't fit into what you're actually going to wear to the wedding, but I can try on the bridesmaids dresses in lieu of you just to get an idea of how I want them to be."

"What about your dress?"

"Oh my God, that's right! My dress!" Trish said, throwing herself into a mild panic. "No, no, wait, I'm okay with that, I've already got someone designing the dress. I collaborated with her a couple of weeks ago and she's going to draw up some designs and then we're going to pick one and it'll be beautiful and vintage-looking."

"Are the guys going to look vintage?"

"I haven't thought of that, I'm not on their side of the aisle yet, just my side. I think I want a blue and silver kind of tone, do you think that's too much?"

"No, that sounds really cool."

"How is the hell did you stay so calm when you were marrying Chris?"

"That was so long ago that you've forgotten how hard it was to get to the altar at all. There's no way that we made it look easy."

"You did…or my perception of the day is skewed. I just want a really great wedding."

"You'll get one, trust me, it'll be beautiful and you're going to be beautiful and Christian will look happen and we'll have good food and a great dinner, of which I won't want three helpings, and then you'll be married and it won't be that big a deal."

"Not a big deal! This is Christian and me you're talking about. We've never taken the normal path to anywhere."

"Well, change that."

"Let's just change the subject. What's going on with Chris and Shawn? I thought you hated him, I thought Chris hated him, now Chris is trying to be all buddy-buddy with him, I just don't get it, I mean, I know you two are okay, so it can't be to spite you, so what is it?"

"I have no idea what goes on in Chris's head, and I don't think I want to find out, so I let him do whatever it is that he wants, and he lets me do whatever I want, and we agree, as long as it doesn't harm the children, we're okay with that."

"Sounds like a plan…do you wish you know what he might be plotting?"

"Hell yeah, I do."

Christian followed Chris down the corridor. He was still getting scattered congratulations from people in the hallway about his engagement to Trish. He wouldn't say that people had always known those two would end up together, but it seemed that some people were kind of relieved. That made it a little weird to get such compliments, thinking that people actually thought they should be together when they were with other people.

"So why are we looking for Shawn again?" Christian asked. He wanted to go find his fiancée and be around her, maybe show her off just a little bit. It was sad how much he loved to just introduce her to people as his fiancée. It was something that he had dreamed of for years, but he had never gotten the privilege to do. He wondered why Chris hadn't told him how good it felt, but felt it inappropriate to ask such a question right now.

All night, Chris seemed to be waiting for something. Everyone was picking up on it. Stephanie was leaving him alone for the most part. Trish went off with Stephanie. He could see Chris's anxiousness when he kept tapping his foot while he was sitting down, even Sawyer didn't really want to be around him. There were definitely wheels turning in Chris Jericho's head, but nobody knew what they were turning towards.

"Because I want to see him."

"Why?" Christian asked, wanting to get to the bottom of this so he wasn't just tagging along like Chris's puppy dog the entire night. He came to hang out with his friends, not be a glorified bloodhound or something.

"I want to apologize."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Christian said, quickly stepping in front of Chris and stopping his forward progress. "I'm sorry, but I must be going deaf, repeat that."

"We can let bygones be bygones, right?"

"You and me, yes, sure, we're best friends, you and Shawn, no."

"Well, he's going to be on the Reel tonight and I just want to clear the air before we get in there. I mean, this guy was my hero growing up."

"Yeah, that was growing up, you're 37 years old now and your wife hates the guy. She rejected him or something and he's been bitter ever since. This guy insulted your children."

"I didn't like that, no, but what can you do about it. I'm going to take the high road and then we'll see what happens," Chris told him.

Christian could see a glint in Chris's eye that told him he wasn't being entirely truthful or even very truthful at all. The way he had said those last few words were another tip off. "We'll see what happens," that just sounded ominous. Christian looked at Chris critically, trying to figure out what was behind those blue eyes, but Chris was giving up nothing. If he had a plan of some sorts, he was keeping it very tucked into his vest, his ugly, ugly vests.

"Dude?" Christian said, the one word conveying everything that he had on his mind right now. He was Chris's best friend; he could know what was going on, right? He had to know what was going on, he got the privilege.

"What?" Chris asked, like he was oblivious to the question, which Christian knew he was not.

"What are you up to?"

"Nothing," Chris told him, furrowing his brow like he was actually affronted by the accusation. "Every once in a while, man, you just have to put all that crap behind you. Look, if I can forgive Hunter, of all people, the man who was married, _married_ to my wife, I can forgive Shawn, right?"

"I suppose…"

"Hunter has done much worse and I consider him a friend now, right?"

Christian conceded, "Yeah, you do."

"Yeah, so why can't I now? Look at it this way. I'm going to have a new baby in approximately 12 weeks, and what the hell am I doing? Am I sitting back and enjoying Stephanie's pregnancy, no, I'm holding some stupid grudge over some stupid lie. So he insulted my family, I can be above that."

Christian didn't think Chris could be above that and he didn't think Chris actually _was_ above that. But he shrugged and let it go, "Wow, you're a bigger man than I could ever be. If some guy insulted Trish like that and then insulted my kids, I don't know, man, I'd probably come up with something for him."

"Well that's you," Chris said as he pushed past Christian to restart his quest for Shawn Michaels. "You coming or not?"

"I think I'm going to find Trish," he told him.

"Suit yourself," Chris said as he disappeared from sight.

He didn't need Christian hanging around anyways. It would've been easier, though, if he had stuck around. Christian could corroborate with Chris's fake "I'm a better person" speech. Chris was not a better person. Christian had failed to realize that Shawn was one of Chris's heroes growing up. Shawn had just told him the other week that he was willing to do everything he had to do in order to win. Chris was the same way. If he had to suck it up and talk to Shawn for a few minutes, that's just what he was going to do.

Chris acting sympathetic towards Shawn was helping him a great deal. He wasn't physically saying anything to the man, but it was all in the body language. Chris had chosen not to say anything as he spared Shawn from being hit in the head with a chair, but it was just a small message that Chris was on the side of good and they didn't need to be enemies, that bygones should be bygones. It was the lull of security that he wanted Shawn to feel.

It was beyond the point where Chris cared what anyone thought of him. If the fans wanted to boo him over this, then he would deal with that, he'd let them boo. He didn't care if they thought he was the worst human being on Earth for daring to hurt Shawn Michaels. This was about the honor of his family. He felt his chest swell a little bit and finally realized what it felt like to be in one of those old, Japanese films were about. He was protecting something most sacred to him.

Finally Chris saw that familiar balding head, "Shawn, wait up!"

Shawn looked behind him wearily. He didn't feel like talking to Chris so he started to walk away. Chris sighed and actually ran after him, catching Shawn by surprise around the corner. "What do you want, Chris?"

"I just want to talk for a second, that's all," Chris said, trying to put on his best voice of neutrality.

"Save it for the Reel."

"No, this is important, so I wanted to say it when it was just us."

"What?" Shawn asked after a moment of deliberation. Chris didn't look to be threatening right now, so maybe he was stupid for thinking that Chris was just going to ram him into the nearest corner.

"I just wanted to see if we could have a truce," Chris said. "I know that we have our differences, but I've got no real grudge against you. You've said some hurtful things, I've said some hurtful things and personally, I want this to stop. It's just not worth it and it's taking away from my wife's pregnancy, so…can we have a truce?"

Shawn looked at Chris for a long moment. The man seemed sincere. There wasn't a snide remark hidden in there, there wasn't any hint of a smirk on his lips, or anger in his eyes. He just looked…like a guy who wanted a truce so that he could focus on his wife's pregnancy and his new baby when it came. He had two kids of his own and he wouldn't want to be fighting with someone while they needed him. The same could be said of Chris.

Still, Shawn was reluctant. Chris may not think he was, but Chris was a part of the McMahon family. It remained to be seen if he would really become one of them. So far, he was nothing like them. He still stood out from the family and he knew it. Still, with regards to this, Chris could be putting on a good act, but Shawn didn't really think that Chris was this good an actor. Obviously Shawn had forgotten the lost years Chris spent hating Stephanie McMahon all the way fighting off a weird sense of attraction that he had always received when he was around her.

Shawn tentatively sealed his doom, reaching his hand out to Chris and shaking it slowly. "Okay, truce then."

"Awesome, thanks," Chris said jovially as he walked away. He was only jovial because Shawn had fallen for it. He was going to get his and Chris was going to be the one loving to dish it out.

Britt looked at the flowers on Stephanie's desk. There was definitely a note and in neat cursive were the letters _Britt_. She ripped the envelope out and plucked it open, hoping that it was something from Hunter and that when he was off they would go wherever it was on the card and they could just have fun. It wasn't to be as she read and realized these were not from Hunter at all. The card read:

_Thanks for coming to visit me, you were one of the few and I really appreciate it…Randy._

Britt was taken aback by the gesture. He shouldn't be sending her flowers, but they were absolutely beautiful and she couldn't take her eyes off of them. They were colorful, a mixture of different types, not your typical bunch of roses. There actually had to be thought put into this bouquet and that made her slightly uneasy. Randy shouldn't be sending her flowers at all. He wasn't her boyfriend, and even if they were just as a thank you, it was too much.

There was a knock on the door and she called out, "Stephanie's not here."

That didn't stop the door from opening and Hunter sticking his head in. Britt did the only thing she could think of to do in that moment. She shoved the note and the envelope under a bunch of papers on her clipboard and then clipped it in so it wouldn't fall out. She gave Hunter a forced smile and tried to appear relaxed. Unfortunately, getting rid of the letter was a lot easier than getting rid of an entire bouquet of flowers.

"Who are those for?"

"Stephanie?" Britt said, "I don't know, there's no note and they were just in here when I walked in."

"I hope it wasn't Chris, I don't need to compete with him anymore."

"Maybe she has a secret admirer."

"Well he's pretty bold going after a pregnant woman like he did."

"Yeah, I guess so," Britt said, trying to divert as much attention away from the flowers. If he would just believe they were for Steph, she wouldn't have to lie and she hated lying to him. But if she told him that they were from Randy, then she'd have to explain last week and for all Hunter knew, all she did was drive Stephanie to get an update on Randy's condition. Hunter would be furious and she didn't want him furious with her.

"You never know what people can be into," Britt told him, stalling even more.

"Are you busy?"

"Um, yeah, actually, I'm really, really busy," she said, grabbing her things and starting to dart out of the room, giving Hunter a quick kiss, "I think I better be going, you know, I'm not paid to just sit around like I have nothing to do."

"Wait up," he called after her, "I'll come with you."

"It's all very boring," she told him, "I just have to make sure that the money got her for the contest and that it's being guarded, and I was supposed to get something from Mr. McMahon regarding amounts that he wanted to give away."

"Oh, I don't care, I'll come along," he said, wrapping his arm around her waist and kissing her temple. "You don't want to get away from me, do you?"

"No, of course not," she said, though she felt tense at his touch. "I wouldn't want to get away from you, ever, I love you."

"So if you love me, have you thought any more about moving in with me?"

"Hunter, I thought we discussed this," she sighed. "I just don't think that I should move in with you so soon just because my apartment is tiny."

"But you also spend tons of time at my house."

"I know, but I don't spend all my time there. You just don't like to come to my apartment, that's the big thing here."

"I can barely fit through the door."

"Well, I didn't ask you to grow muscles the size of doors," Britt told him and he laughed at that. She felt a little more at ease. It wasn't like she was secretly dating Randy behind Hunter's back after all. She simply felt sorry for the guy and she wasn't the kind of person who just left someone by the wayside. She did see good in Randy, and she felt like she was appealing to that good side of him, for no other reason than he looked like he needed a friend that day in the hospital.

"You're going to move in at some point."

"Oh, thank you for dictating my life, I really appreciate that," she said sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

"You know what I meant," he told her.

"Yeah, I know," she said, "I really should go do my work, alone, especially if I have to see Mr. McMahon, you know how he is, and you know how he is with you, he doesn't like you, and if he sees me working with you right here, hovering near me, he's not going to like that, he'll think I'm not actually doing my job."

"You've got a point, I hate that bastard sometimes," Hunter said, "can we meet up later?"

"Of course we can meet up later," she told him, leaning on her tiptoes to get to his mouth. "We kind of have to, you're the one that drove me here tonight, remember?"

He laughed and kissed her. She banded her arms around his neck and let him pick her up a little, since there was such a disparity in their heights. She looked positively pocket-sized when she was next to Hunter. He let her down again and she smiled and gave him one last, soft kiss on the lips, gently tugging on his bottom lip before she pushed herself away from him. The smile on his face wouldn't leave it and she gave him one last glance before leaving.

"So why did your dad decide to give away his money?" Christian asked after he had caught up with Trish and Stephanie. He was sitting with his arm casually behind Trish's chair, rubbing her bare shoulder gently.

"Because he's my dad," Stephanie said, "He saw the ratings were dipping and decided to take matters into his own hands. This is him taking it into his own hands."

"I'm surprised that you're not more concerned about this," Christian said.

"Why should I be concerned, I'm not working."

"Chrissy, I told you, Stephanie took her maternity leave," Trish said, rolling her eyes. "Don't you listen to me when I'm talking to you?"

"Sure I listen," he said, "I just must've missed this bit of information, when did you decide this, Steph?"

"Well, tonight's the first official night, but I haven't been doing anything for the last few shows, and it felt right to be doing that, I guess. I mean, I still help if they need me to help, but Shane's got it pretty under control, and my dad, for all his stupid ideas, has been coming around more and he's been helping my brother too."

"Didn't you work like, until two weeks before Sawyer was born?" Christian asked.

"Yeah, but that was different, I didn't already have a kid," Stephanie said, "I'll probably still travel until I can no longer travel anymore, but I'm just not going to do any work, it's fine, I'm fine with it, there are more important things to worry about, like my children."

"Ook, Mommy," Sawyer piped in at that second. He had been playing with some jars of Play-Doh, making what he thought was a masterpiece. Stephanie, being his mommy, thought it was a masterpiece too and not a blob of blue and green Play-Doh mixed together into a strange lump.

"Wow, that's so awesome, I should put that on the fireplace and take off Daddy's belt."

Sawyer laughed, "No, I play," he told her, smashing the Play-Doh down with his hand like he was Godzilla crushing a town between his feet. He squashed it flat, cackling very much like Chris and then started to build something again.

"What are you going to make this time?" Trish asked.

"Uh," he looked off trying to think, "Cow!"

"You want to make a cow?" Stephanie asked.

"Mmhmm….you!" he exclaimed, pointing at Christian.

"Of me?"

"No," Sawyer said, dragging out the syllable, why didn't people get him sometimes, it wasn't like he wasn't talking. He was talking very clearly what he wanted to say and people just didn't get it. Sometimes he thought the entire world was full of stupid people and he was the only one who really got things, that's why he wanted the baby here because the baby would probably know things too. "You!"

"What's he saying?" Christian said, looking very confused.

"Sawyer, do you want to make a cow _for_ Christian?" Stephanie asked him.

"Yeah," Sawyer nodded eagerly, his mommy was the best mommy in the world. He grinned at her and she made a funny face, making him giggle, then turned back to Christian, "You."

"Oh, wow, thanks," Christian said, honestly flattered that Sawyer would want to make him something. "I would love to have a cow."

"Okay, make," he said, getting down to business. He knew what a cow looked like. His mommy got him lots of books and they would look them over all the time, and some of the books had cows in them, and they went moo and gave milk. It was all very fascinating to his two-year-old mind. He let the Play-Doh ooze through his fingers and he gave a soft laugh to himself at how that felt funny.

"So uh, what's up with Chris?" Christian finally asked, now that Sawyer was engrossed in his sculpting.

"What do you mean?"

"Wanting to talk to Shawn and let things go, be the better person?"

"Oh, I have no idea," Stephanie told him. "Chris can do whatever he wants to do, as far as I'm concerned. The less I know the better."

"I'm going to use the bathroom really quick," Trish said, getting up, "I'll be right back."

"Okay," Christian and Stephanie said as they went back to their conversation on how Chris was acting weird, but Stephanie wasn't going to try and control what he did. "Don't you think it's weird and somewhat rude to you that he'd just so willingly…forgive Shawn for everything he's said? Chris told me everything that he'd said about you and Sawyer, and even about Flynn, it was disgusting. Why don't you yell at him not to talk to Shawn?"

"Because he's my husband and I try not to yell at him too much," Stephanie said, but that was a lie, she yelled at him all the time. "Besides, between you and me, Chris isn't going to let this last."

"What do you mean, you do think he's up to something, you probably _know_ he's up to something!"

"No, I don't know anything," Stephanie responded. "But I know my husband, and I know that above anything else, we're important to him, so no, I don't think he's going to take being a better person over protecting his family."

"So what do you think he's going to do?"

"I don't know, but I'm anxious to find out."

Trish walked out of the bathroom, drying her hands a little on her jeans. She looked up ahead and recognized a very distinct hairdo. She hadn't gotten to really speak to Carlito since everything had happened. She figured there was some avoidance going on for the both of them. She had been back here plenty of times, but hadn't ever run into him. Maybe she was the one avoiding him or maybe he was the one avoiding her, but it couldn't have been a coincidence that they never saw each other.

"Carlito," she said softly as she walked up to him.

He turned from where he was reading something and looked at her. She looked happy, that was the first thing he noticed and the most obvious. Beautiful was the next thing he noticed, but again, that was pretty obvious. He gave her a smile, the best one he could offer her at the moment. It wasn't much, but Trish appreciated that he was looking at her like that and not with a scowl or a frown, not that she didn't deserve one though, she probably did.

"Hey," he told her, giving her a nod in hello. This wasn't a situation where they could hug. They had spoken briefly after she had gotten engaged, but that was it.

"How are you?"

"I'm good, actually, really good," Carlito told her, and she wasn't sure if it was the truth, but she was willing to take it at face value because really, what right did she have to know the truth? She didn't even know why she wanted to talk to him, but she felt the impulse come over her and she just had to.

"That's good, I'm good," she stumbled.

"I figured as much, I've seen you with Christian, you look good, happy together."

"Um, yeah, we are…we're getting married in September." Why was she telling him this? What the hell was she doing, rubbing salt in the wound like she was. Of course, Carlito probably didn't love her anymore, so maybe this was all just a conversation to him, a very awkward conversation for him and that's why he was acting the way he was. It wasn't like she should expect him to pine over her forever.

"Wow, that's cool," he said, and yeah, she didn't detect a lot of pining going on there. "I'm happy for you."

Maybe he was, and that was a nice thought, "Thanks, I just wanted to say hi, felt like we haven't really talked."

"Well, cause we haven't," he joked, and yeah, this felt better. She was probably overreacting. "That's okay though, I don't think we really had much to talk about."

"True, true," Trish said, "well, I do hope that we can talk more, you know, if we run into each other."

"Yeah, we should, I'd like that a lot," he told her, giving her a smile and she was sure it was more genuine than the one he had given her before.

"Okay, see you around."

"Later, Trish."

She felt better after that. She shouldn't have expected him to just pine over her for years. That was silly of her and she felt silly now for somehow expecting it. If she could clear the air with him, it would make her wedding that much better. She couldn't wait to get married. Stephanie had told her she wasn't going to turn into a Bridezilla, but she thought she actually might, simply because she knew she and Christian were going to be together for the long haul and she wanted the day to be absolutely perfect.

Britt left Vince after talking about the money contest. She found a little deserted area and sat down for a moment. Vince had insisted on walking and talking everywhere and the man could walk very quickly. She composed herself, pushing her hair back as it had been flailing after her while she tried to keep up with Vince. She pulled out her cell phone and then sifted through the various numbers. She had been issued this company phone so it had pretty much everyone's phone numbers on it. She got down to the R's and pulled up Randy's information, getting his home phone number and dialing it.

"Hello?"

"Uh, hi, Randy, this is Britt, you know, from work."

He laughed, "I only know one Britt."

"Oh, well, yeah, I guess it's a…name," she said lamely, "Anyways, I mean, you shouldn't send me flowers, it's not right. I have a boyfriend, Randy, we've been over this, and I love him."

"Did you like the flowers though?"

"Well, they were very pretty, but you shouldn't have sent them."

"But you liked them."

"That's not the point here, I have a boyfriend and I love him, and I don't want him getting the wrong idea. I checked up on you because I felt bad for you. You were just sitting there all alone and nobody came to see you because nobody likes you, and it was in a match with my boyfriend. You were still over the line with what you were saying to me, how you were acting around me, and that's not cool. You know I have a boyfriend."

"You're not married to the guy."

"Still, I love him, so please do not send me flowers anymore."

"Okay, fine, sorry."

"Thank you, goodbye," Britt said, hanging up and staring down at her phone. She had a sick feeling in her stomach that this wasn't going to be the last time that she had to deal with one Randy Orton. He couldn't be here to get beat up so what was going to stop him from sending her stuff and doing stuff for her? She didn't like the feeling that was settling into the pit of her stomach. She didn't like it at all.

She found Stephanie snacking on some chips in catering. She was alone except for Sawyer, who was eating his dinner. "I have a problem."

"What, is there something wrong with the show?" Stephanie asked, ready to jump into action if needed.

"No, Randy's like in love with me or something…he sent me flowers, I said they were for you from someone."

"Oh thanks, now my husband is going to see flowers, know he didn't send them and think some guy is sending me flowers, thanks a lot," Stephanie said, pretending to be serious about it, but only joking.

"Oh my God, that's right, I'll tell him!" Britt said, about to get up and race to find Chris and let him know there wasn't some guy after his wife. Wife was more important than girlfriend in this instance.

"Britt! It's okay, sit! Even if they were for me, Chris wouldn't care."

"But he might think some guy is after you."

"It wouldn't matter if there was, I'm kind of pregnant with Chris's baby, been married to him for three years and our six-year anniversary is next month, I think he's pretty secure in our relationship at this point," Stephanie explained.

"Yeah, you're right, I'm stupid, he sent me 'thank you' flowers."

"Well, you were the one that wanted to see him, so you really should've expected something like this."

"I love Hunter."

"I know, so what's the problem?"

"Um, Hunter finding out that Randy has been doing this, and I've been…I don't know, helping it along without meaning to?"

"Well, yeah, Hunter does have a temper," Stephanie reasoned. "But maybe you should just explain that you're a sympathetic person and then everything will blow over."

"So you say, but I just don't think it will, this is Hunter, you should know, you were married to him, you said it took him forever to get over your divorce."

"That was a divorce, plus, I pretended to be pregnant when I wasn't, then joined up with his biggest rival immediately after we separated, I wasn't exactly being a model person. You, on the other hand, don't want to break up with him, so I think he'll be a little more forgiving."

"And if he isn't?"

"Well, you can make him see, can't you?"

"I guess," Britt said. "I suppose I'll go find him."

"Good girl," Stephanie said as Britt got up. She walked out of the room in a daze, almost bumping shoulders with Chris on the way out.

He walked over to where he saw his family and leaned down to kiss Stephanie, jerking a thumb out towards the door, "What was with her?"

"Randy loves her," Stephanie said in a teasing voice.

"Oh, well someone we know is not going to be happy about that," he said, looking down at Sawyer who was finishing off some broccoli.

"We haven't seen you all night," she pointed out, taking his hand as he sat down. She placed them on her stomach where Flynn was kicking and Chris smiled as he felt his daughter underneath his hand.

Stephanie had just entered her third trimester so they were really in the home stretch now and it was exciting. It was only a mere twelve weeks until their daughter was going to join the family and Stephanie got her stomach back. Everything was looking extremely good and Stephanie, for the most part, was having an easy pregnancy, much like she had with the little kid who was scarfing down his grilled chicken pieces.

"I was talking with Shawn."

"Chris…"

"Stephanie…"

"I love you," she just said simply.

"I love you too," he told her, gazing at her adoringly. "Leave this Shawn stuff to me."

"I am, I wasn't even going to say anything!"

"Sure you weren't," he told her.

"I wasn't, I just kind of want to know what's up."

"Nothing's up, I talked to the guy, we called a truce, end of story. Look, you're having my kid in twelve weeks, that's it, and I feel like I've been working and I haven't gotten to really focus on you or Flynn, so you know what, whatever, he can say what he wants. I know it's not true, you know it's not true, so what."

Stephanie wanted to call bull on what he was saying, but she kept her mouth shut. She kept her mouth shut for another couple of hours too. Chris was getting ready for the Highlight Reel. Chris's idea of getting ready for the Reel was holding his son by the back of his jeans and flying him around like a jet, to the delight of the little boy. Since they were in California that evening, he wasn't even tired in the slightest and all he wanted to do was play around with his daddy.

Her own daddy was out there giving money away when he introduced the Highlight Reel. Chris quickly set Sawyer down and went out there, ready to speak his mind. He glanced at Vince, who gave him a proud smile and then went backstage. It was funny that the winner had just been a girl named Stephanie; it just brought his mind to his own Stephanie. Chris casually went to the ring and climbed inside. He was in a very good mood right now, but he was trying not to let it show. He started talking about what Shawn had meant to him, and it was true, he had been a hero and Chris had watched him for a very long time. That part was true. The part that was not true was the good friend part. He had never considered and never would consider Shawn a good friend.

Shawn came down to the ring and Chris could feel himself shaking with the anticipation of it all. He tried to joke around, saying that the fans loved him. Shawn wanted him to get to the point. Shawn would regret rushing Chris, oh yes, he would regret rushing Chris. Chris stated how he lied to everyone, but everyone was still on his side. Shawn smugly said the only person he lied to was Chris himself. The implications of that went far deeper than what the fans could possibly know. Chris ignored it for the most part, then started talking about how the fans had turned on him in favor of Shawn. It was funny that even those Shawn was the liar in all of this, even though he had been the bad guy more times than not, Chris was looked at as the bad guy.

This was evidenced by boos that were starting to rain through the arena. Fickle fans, how quickly they were to turn on you. Well, they'd have reason enough in a moment as Chris beat the hell out of Shawn. Shawn fought back for a while, but then Chris hit him where it hurt and Shawn dropped like a sack of potatoes. Chris held his head for a second before staring down at Shawn and then shoving him to the ground, muttering that it was all his fault, and it was entirely his fault. You didn't cross Chris when his family was involved, you just didn't.

He was the one that started all of this. Chris was relentless. He picked Shawn up and told him that the worst was yet to come and that was a warning to stay the hell away from his wife and children. If Shawn wanted to talk about them again, well, Chris wasn't going to be nice anymore. He proved that a second later by throwing Shawn into the Jeritron 6000. He didn't care about the damage, he owned this company and could do whatever the hell he wanted to without consequence. He smirked at that. Then he got out of the ring, walking slowly up the ramp. He didn't look back, but he had a swagger in his step, a dangerous swagger.

Stephanie was standing backstage, her arms folded in front of her as she smirked at her husband. Chris shrugged and gave her a look, "You knew already, Steph, don't act like you didn't."

"Of course I knew you were planning something," Stephanie told him, "I haven't been with you for so long and not picked up on it. What were you saying to him anyways?"

"The worst is yet to come, he's going to get his, I'm going to make sure of that."

"So everything earlier, that was all just bull?" she asked.

"Of course, I wanted this to be my own thing, and it is, because now, everyone and their mother knows what I want to do with Shawn."

"And you're okay with the fans hating you?"

"Absolutely."


	187. Please Let Them Feud, June 16, 2008

A/N: Who loves H/Chris staredowns? I do! I do! If we get an H/Chris feud, I will be so, so, so happy. I love their feuds (not the ultimate outcome though, grumble grumble), but I love when they feud because there's so much real animosity there, awesome! Anyways, hope you like the chapter, I liked writing it and leave a review! :)

* * *

He got some dirty looks. He could hear the whispers from some people. But some people didn't. Some smiled at him, grinning broadly. Seems Shawn had a few more enemies in this company than anticipated. He was fine with that, he liked that. He knew some of the people knew what Shawn had been saying to Stephanie and they were probably on his side because of that. There were many people who liked Stephanie and hated to think that someone was insulting her while she was pregnant. Some others probably had their own vendettas against Shawn.

Chris Jericho didn't give a damn about that.

Chris Jericho was only concerned with four people, himself, Stephanie, Sawyer, and Flynn. Those were the people he cared about, those were the only people he cared about. Everyone else's opinion of him or thoughts on him didn't count in his mind. They just didn't count because he didn't care about what anyone thought anymore. Chris was through with caring about what people thought. This was between him and Shawn Michaels. He was going to make things worse for the man, worse in so many ways. He just had to figure out a way to do that, and get the right people on his side.

"Chris, come back to the world of the living," Stephanie prodded gently, her finger poking him in the side to try and get his attention.

"What? Sorry," he told her, looking over at her with something of adoration. She looked beautiful tonight, he noted, and he liked to think that was because he finally let his true colors show. She always did look more beautiful whenever some plan was executed and tonight was no exception. She was wearing a blue and white patterned shirt, zig-zags and criss-crosses everywhere, drawing the eye away from her rounded belly. She bottomed that out with a pair of tasteful black pants, stretchy, which she hated, but you couldn't see that under the top.

"I was just talking about Flynn and you were ignoring me, so I figured that you were pretty deep in thought."

"What about her?" Chris asked, a touch of alarm in his voice. Stephanie was in her third trimester now, the true last leg of her pregnancy and it was kind of putting him on edge. He knew that his little girl was coming and coming fast and it just made him a bit edgier in general.

"Just how she's kicking _again_," Stephanie said, informing Chris every time Flynn seemed to want to play soccer with her organs. It was her subtle way of blaming Chris for getting her pregnant again. Chris thought it was endearing that she still wanted to blame him for it, even this far into the pregnancy. "Plus, my back still hurts."

"I gave you a massage earlier."

"Didn't help."

"Well, when we get home, you and Trish can go for that spa weekend," he told her. "Remember, to get away from each other for a little while. I think it would do us good."

"Why are you trying to get rid of me?" Stephanie asked, pretending to be sad about this, "I really do think that you want to get separated and you're really just saying you want to be with me because of our kids."

"I love you, I do," he said with grandiose. He grabbed her hand and pulled it towards his heart, extending his arm as if to get on bended knee and recite the most romantic of love poems. Stephanie, embarrassed by the gesture, tried to pull her hand away. Chris looked at said hand and sighed, "I should be asking you the questions, I mean, you're not even wearing your engagement or wedding rings. That hurts, baby, that really hurts."

Chris held up his left hand to show off his gleaming wedding ring, the light glinting off the platinum band. Stephanie rolled her eyes, "You know very well that my fingers are too fat to get my rings on. So unless you want to have a wife with four fingers on her left hand, then you won't question me again."

She said it so coolly but with such malice that he had to laugh a little bit and lean in to kiss her. The kiss got heated pretty quickly and they had to be forcibly stopped from making out right there in the hallway by their son, who sighed with much exasperation at their feet. He had walked ahead of them, only to look back and see that they were still standing where they were. Didn't they understand that he had places to be and things to play with? His mommy had bought him new markers and he just _had _to try them out.

Stephanie, however, didn't want to break the kiss. Ever since Chris had just out-and-out beat up Shawn, it was like her libido had gone even more through the roof than it had been. Pregnancy made her very open to sleeping with her husband, but Chris scheming and planning and then beating on Shawn had made her positively craving Chris. They had gone at it this morning before Sawyer woke up in the other room. But she wanted him again, he could tell by the insistence of her kiss and the look in her eye as he was forced to pull away.

"What do you want?" Chris asked irritably of his son, or as irritably as he could muster since he loved Sawyer.

Sawyer looked up at him, blue eyes meeting with nearly identical blue eyes and Sawyer smiled, "Play, Daddy."

"I _was_ playing," Chris said, throwing a smirk to Stephanie, who wanted to shove him against the wall right now and then slip down to…she changed her line of thinking, remembering that her two-year-old son was right there and she shouldn't be thinking such dirty thoughts about her husband, but oh if they were alone…

"No," Sawyer laughed, knowing that his father hadn't been playing at all. Where were the blocks, where were the crayons, or the Play-Doh, or the sand or anything! Sawyer wasn't stupid and knew exactly what Chris had been doing. "You kiss."

He knew what kissing was because his mommy kissed him every morning and every night and lots of times in between. "Well, I can't argue with that answer," Chris shrugged. He lifted Sawyer up and laid a big kiss on him. "Okay, now we'll go play. But we have to walk slow because Mommy and Flynn are slowpokes."

"I'm not, it's Flynn, she's holding me up," Stephanie said, hooking her arm through Chris's. "And you're sure that Shane said that Shawn wasn't here?"

"Yes, I talked to him earlier and he said that Shawn wasn't going to show up, so you know, Shawn's not going to show up."

"What are you going to do?" she wondered. She had been involved this morning with Sawyer. They had gone to the local mall to restock on toys for him. They hadn't been home in a while, opting to just travel from city to city and not fly cross-country or almost cross-country because of Sawyer being so you and Stephanie being so pregnant. The less flying the three-and-a-half of them did, the better. Still, that meant that Sawyer was without many of his toys so it was necessary to restock whenever they could so the little boy wouldn't get so bored.

"Well, I think that I'm going to have to explain my actions," he told her.

She could sense that he meant much more than he was saying, but she liked to let him loose once in a while. She never needed to know everything that was going on in her head and it was better that she didn't. She liked to have things that were separate from Chris, it kept things good between them. They couldn't spend all their time together; it would drive them absolutely nuts if they did everything together. They were just two independent people who needed some of that independence to still exist.

"And just how are you going to explain to the people what you did?"

"Don't worry, I'm not going to bring you up and I'm not going to bring Sawyer or Flynn up. The fans can go to hell, for all I care. This isn't about them, I'm through with them."

"That was quick," she told him.

"When they're willing to love that ass…you know, they can just all go to hell and that's fine, I know what I want to do and say," Chris said, his anger creeping into his voice. "I just really don't care."

"I got that," she said, rubbing his chest a little as they got to Chris's dressing room finally. Sawyer had already reached up to try and open the door and he had the handle as Chris reached forward to press it down and open the door for him. He smiled up at his father before bounding inside, waiting for his father to put down his bag of toys, which he did immediately, letting the kid have free reign of the room.

Chris sat down on the arm of the couch they had and pulled Stephanie as close to him as she could manage, which left a pretty sizeable gap between the two of them. That was okay though, because that gap was housing his daughter. "Don't worry about it, okay, I've got everything under control. I'm going to make sure, once and for all, that Shawn leaves you alone."

"I trust that this is what you're going to do," she told him, trusting him without apprehension. "I trust that you'll take care of things because that's what you do, you take care of things. You take care of us the best way you know how."

"Yeah," he told her with a nod. "Now, I've got things to take care of, okay, you going to be okay here with the kid?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine, I should get used to it since this is how it's going to be when I have to go on maternity leave. It'll just be me, Sawyer, and Flynn, so I should start getting ready for it."

"Actually, I've been meaning to talk to you about that."

"Chris," she sighed, "we talked and I understand, we won't do the bus thing."

They had had a long discussion about the pros and cons of renting a tour bus and traveling around in that so Stephanie could come back to work as soon as possible. Both of them had laid out their arguments, but Chris had won out. Stephanie wasn't stupid and she didn't want her daughter to get sick in her first few weeks of life so she had made the decision to stay at home. It was a tough one, but her kids came first, always, and she would just have to deal with the disappointment.

"It's not about that," he told her, shaking his head.

"So what is it about?"

"I was thinking that maybe Sawyer could come with me."

"What?" Stephanie said, though she knew what he was saying. She just wanted Chris to explain it further.

"Well, we're going to have two kids, and we're two people and I know that it's probably going to be hard for you with the two of them. Flynn is going to require a lot of care because she's a newborn and then you'll have Sawyer, and we're committed to starting potty-training soon so you're going to be stuck with a newborn and a kid who's potty training. I don't know, I just don't think I could leave you in a situation like that."

"So you think I can't handle it?" she asked, affronted by what he seemed to be implying.

"Stephanie…"

"What! That's what it sounds like!"

"No, that's not what I mean," he told her, rubbing her stomach. "What I mean is that I don't want you to _have_ to take care of both of them, it would make me feel bad. I'm trying to help here."

"By separating me and my baby?"

"Stephanie, it's Sawyer, he's a big boy, you've been separated from him before. And it'd only be for like, two days at the most. Baby, I'm trying to help."

Stephanie sighed and looked off at Sawyer. He was playing with some wrestling action figures. Right now he had a Jeff Hardy and an Edge that he was playing with and she briefly wondered why he wasn't playing with one of Chris's. She looked back to Chris and he tried to give her his best smile. She tilted her head a little, melting. He did so try to protect her every chance he got and she loved him for it.

"I guess it would be okay if you took Sawyer with you," she resigned. "At least the first week and we'll see how it goes."

"See, that's all I wanted," he said, glancing at his watch, which she found curious.

"Got somewhere to be?"

"Actually, yeah, I do," Chris told her. "Do you mind if I go? I just wanted to talk with Shane and make sure that he knows that I want time."

"Okay," she told him, leaning forward to kiss him. She placed her hands behind his neck, tilting her head slightly to the left to get at his mouth more. Chris just thought she was insatiable. He tried to pull her closer, but she couldn't get any closer; her stomach was already pressing rather insistently into his own stomach. "Mmm, love you."

"I love you too," he told her, pulling away to give her a look. She pulled away completely and he bestowed a short kiss to her stomach. Stephanie shook her head at his cuteness and then he was out of the room.

Chris crossed Britt on the way to where he was going and she nodded and gave him a smile, but said nothing to him. She had things to do after all. She was now also working for Shane, since he was taking over Stephanie's position. He was actually much more lax than Stephanie, which shouldn't have come as a surprise, but it did, a little. She didn't know what she was expecting when she had transferred her services over to Shane, maybe she thought since he was older he'd be even more of a workaholic than Stephanie was, but that wasn't the case. He was definitely more laidback.

She had not been contacted by Randy in the last week and for that she was grateful. She didn't want him bothering her, she decided. She didn't want him anywhere near her actually. She was better off with Hunter, she loved him and wanted to be with him. She didn't realize that she might be just convincing herself of these things rather than believe them. She did love Hunter, however, and she did love being with him. She nodded her head to herself as if to reassure herself that she was doing the right thing. Yes, she could say with certainty, she was doing the right thing.

Chris ran into Vince, who was with some guards and a very large case of cash. Chris wanted to walk by his father-in-law, but didn't get the opportunity. He groaned inwardly. Why was it he could never escape this family? "Chris, come here a second."

"No can do, Pops," he said, earning a glare from Vince, but he didn't care. Vince couldn't do anything to him. That wasn't to say that Vince couldn't do anything _for_ him, but that could come at a later date. "I've got somewhere to be."

"You can stop and chat a moment."

"I really, really can't," Chris told him. "I'm already running behind. I've got to make sure that Shane knows I want time."

"You can get to Shane later."

"Vince, I can't!" Chris said, wondering why he had to deal with these people. Oh yeah, that's right, he accepted a job from Vince and then fell in love with his daughter. It was moments like these he wished he had met another woman who blew him away like Stephanie did before he met Stephanie.

"Of course you can, I need your opinions on some things," Vince said, making sure to keep an eye on his money. "Now, I realize that last week, I was boring people with my giveaway."

"Vince, you bore people all the time," Chris deadpanned and this wasn't untrue. Oftentimes he would be having dinner at his in-laws house and would want to drown himself in a vat of wine rather than listen to Vince relay again over dinner some odd accomplishment. Stephanie would always have to nudge him in the ribs. This, of course, was when they weren't all hating each other and glowering at each other across the table.

"Now was that necessary?" Vince asked good-naturedly.

"Yes, it was because _I've got somewhere to be_," Chris said, slowing down his words and showing his impatience.

Vince chose to ignore him, "How do you think I should spice this up? What kind of things can I do to get everyone interested? I'm sure you're full of ideas."

"Well, I'm not," Chris said, "I'm empty of ideas."

"Chris, come on, I'm practically your father."

That stopped Chris dead in his tracks. Never, in his entire relationship with Stephanie, had he ever, _ever_ thought of Vince as his father. He didn't hate Vince most of the time, and they had a serviceable relationship, but they were not close, God, no, they were not close at all. Vince probably only liked him because he wasn't Hunter.

"No, no, no, no you're not," Chris said, "Don't ever think that again, please, for the love of my sanity, don't ever insinuate that you are anything like a father to me."

"Well, we're related at the very least," Vince said, "through blood now, because your son and daughter are my grandson and granddaughter."

Once again he wanted to damn Stephanie to hell for being born and obviously bewitching him into marrying her. That was the only explanation for entering into this crazy family willingly.

"Vince, I don't know how to amp it up, I just know that I've got to go, okay, I've got to go," Chris said impatiently. "Why don't you go ask your daughter, she's not doing anything?"

"She's pregnant," he answered.

"Yeah, she's pregnant, but not stupid. Just because she had a baby growing inside of her doesn't mean she's lost her brain."

"Just a couple ideas, I don't want to bother her while she's pregnant."

"Sure you do, of course you do."

"No, I really don't."

"Fine, I don't know, you know, ask WWE trivia of them or something, give them more money every time they answer it correctly, or some other prize, I don't know, give them tickets to something, have them have breakfast with a superstar, _not me_, do something to make the fans want to win and enter, okay, there you go, problem solved."

"Well I hardly think that's solved."

"Well, too bad then," Chris said, storming off, cursing under his breath. Now he was probably going to miss Shane and not get the time that he wanted.

He rushed to where he thought Shane was, but only found Britt. He sat down next to her, intent on waiting for Shane. "Shane already gave you time at the top of the second hour."

"Thanks, it's like you read my mind," Chris said, glancing over at her. She nodded at him, looking subdued in a way. "You okay?"

"Yeah," she fidgeted.

He was about to ask her something, but then Hunter walked by and, spotting his girlfriend, wandered over, giving her a smile. She returned it as best she could and he leaned down to give her a small kiss on the lips, a peck really. Hunter looked up at Chris and gave a slight nod, "Hey man, what's up?"

"Nothing, just wanted to talk to Shane," Chris explained.

"Cool, cool, well, I know where I'm wanted," he said, jerking a thumb towards the curtain. "Can't have Cena spewing his mouth off. I'll see you two later."

"Yeah," Britt said, giving him another smile as he disappeared behind the curtain, the only thing left the fluttering of the cotton as he disappeared behind it to the immense roar of the crowd. Chris soaked up in it a little, knowing that he wasn't going to be hearing that much for a long time.

He watched Hunter on the monitor before him, looking over at Shane's empty seat every now and again. He resisted the urge to pick up the headphones and do it himself, but he knew someone in production was taking care of the technical aspects of the show and JR and King could manage on their own without someone telling them what to say. He kept watching Hunter and then turned to Britt, who was back to fidgeting.

"Okay, what's wrong?" he asked.

She didn't seem too eager to talk, darting her eyes around like she was looking for someone, but there was nobody to look at. There were several people milling about, production people and wrestlers alike, but nobody she knew that well. She sighed and looked to Chris, as if he was some priest and she was at confession. He gave her an encouraging smile and a slight tip of the head, as if to tell her that she could get on with it.

"Well, it's like this, it's just…it's Randy," she said quickly, her words almost stumbling together like they were all one, gigantic word.

"Oh, yeah, um, Steph told me about that," Chris said, sounding more sure of himself than she did at the moment. Yes, Stephanie had told him all about Randy and the flowers and everything. "What do you feel like?"

"I just feel like…I don't know, that there's something there between us, that there's something that could happen between us and it's scary."

"His return is being pushed back to probably October, so it'll be a while before you'd have to see him again…unless you want to see him again," Chris said quietly.

"I don't know, I mean, I do know…I mean, no, I don't really know," Britt said, stumbling over her words again. She was talking without thinking and that was a dangerous thing. "Hunter is an amazing guy…but there's just something about Randy, I don't know what it is. It was like we had this…this connection ever since we first started talking."

"What compelled you to go see him in the hospital?"

"I just had to make sure he was okay. I felt partially responsible for him being there," she explained. "I mean, I know that he was in a match with Hunter, a Last Man Standing match of all things. Hunter made me watch the one you two had, it was brutal. I guess, with how he started acting…nice to me, that I should kind of return the favor, you know."

"Oh, I see," Chris said, though he didn't really. "So you like Randy?"

"I think…I think I might."

"Then maybe…maybe you should see that through," Chris suggested lightly.

"What do you mean? Do you mean I should go on a date with him?" Britt asked.

"Sure, I mean, if you want to, of course, but I don't think it could hurt to go out with him."

"What if I like him better than Hunter?"

"Then you get with Randy, simple as that," Chris told her, and it was the truth. Someone else, though, wasn't quite seeing it that way.

"What the hell!" Hunter said, storming back through the curtain. "What the hell, Jericho!"

Chris looked startled at the other man's appearance, "Were you eavesdropping?"

"Kind of hard not to hear your girlfriend telling someone that she's fallen for another guy!" roared Hunter. His voice was rising with every syllable until it was loud and booming. "And then you suggesting that she go with him! I thought we were friends."

"We are."

"A friend doesn't tell another friend's girlfriend to dump him."

"Hey, I didn't say that," Chris said, standing up and facing the man in front of him.

"You might as well have. So what? You want to take another woman from me, huh? Is that it? You can't stand to see me happy so you have to drive Britt towards Randy?" Hunter said, firing question after question at him, "You did used to be friends with Randy right, against me? So is this your little plan, getting her to leave me too?"

"I think the girl can think for herself," Chris said, well aware they were drawing a crowd of people, ready to see the two of them fight if the need came. "I was only saying that maybe she might want to find out her feelings. I was _helping_ you."

"Helping me, ha! If that's your idea of helping me, I would hate to think what would happen if you hated me."

"Oh give it up, Trips, are you so freaking insecure about relationships that you honestly think that I'm trying to sabotage yours?"

"I'm not insecure about anything, why don't you just stay the hell away from my girlfriend and stop putting ideas in her head."

"He wasn't putting ideas in my head!" Britt spoke up. "Chris was just offering me advice. Yeah, so there might be something between me and Randy, he was just saying that maybe I should see what happens there so I could be sure about my love for you."

"Oh, that's rich, you just want to straddle two guys, is that it?" Hunter spat. "The two of you disgust me. I bet this was your plan all along, wasn't it, Jericho? I bet that you wanted this to happen, right when I was champion. It's brilliant, really, you secretly meet with Randy to steal my girlfriend away from me--"

"Nobody has stolen anybody!" Britt yelled. "I'm my own person!"

Hunter ignored her and kept talking, "and then you get to face a weakened champion, that was it, wasn't it?"

"Oh my God, why does everything had to be some set-up, I was giving her advice and you're jumping to these outrageous conclusions. How do I know that you weren't using Britt to get closer to me or to my family, awfully convenient that you're so pissed off right now, don't you think? Thought you were a pretty rational guy with rational ideas."

"Well, I was until I found out my girlfriend has been visiting other men in the hospital, and those flowers last week, they were from Randy, weren't they? They weren't for Stephanie, were they?"

"No," Britt admitted sheepishly, "Randy gave them to me…as a thank you, as a _friend_."

"Yeah, friend, well, why don't you just take Jericho's advice then, I'm sure he'd love to throw me off my game and come get my title."

"Why don't you just marry the title," Chris told him, "I'm sure you two would be very happy together, that's all you ever really care about, isn't it? And keep your friends close and enemies closer, I bet that's what you've been subscribing to all this time. Dating my assistant, brilliant, Trips, brilliant, you going to steal my wife and kids from me now too?"

"You stole her first!"

"Oh, here we go, still not over any of it," Chris sneered.

"You're not over Stephanie?" Britt asked, actually aghast.

"Of course I am, but you want another guy, so what's it to you what I want to do. Go take Randy," Hunter said, glaring at the two of them. "And to think, I considered you my friend."

"Please, we both knew this day would come," Chris said. His fists were clenched, as were Hunter's, both of them ready to strike, like poisonous snakes, staring each other down, cold blood circulating in their veins. "We both knew it would come to this. I hate you and you hate me, we knew it from the very beginning."

"You're right, Jericho, you're absolutely right," he said, then turned to Britt, "Find your own damn ride home, maybe your knight in shining armor, Randy, will come and get you."

"Hunter, wait, please!" Britt said, chasing after him.

Chris looked around at all the people that had gathered around and he stared them all down, "Get back to work, all of you, we don't pay to stand around gawk at other people."

The word got back to Stephanie incredibly quickly. She had been in catering with Sawyer, eating when she heard the buzz around her. That could only mean there was some good gossip making the rounds. She didn't know what it wasn't getting to her though. It seemed to ignore her table. Was it because Sawyer was here and it was too delicate for his young ears? She wondered what it could be, but it was something.

"Maria!" Stephanie called out.

Maria, frightened that she was being called out by her boss, tentatively came over to the table where Stephanie was sitting, "Yes, Ms. McMahon?"

"What…Maria, you know you can call me Stephanie, how many times have I told you that?"

"Oh yeah!" Maria said, as if she just remembered, which she did. "I forgot, what is it?"

She was more bubbly now, "What's going on? Why is everyone whispering?"

"You didn't hear? Wow, I thought that you would be the first to hear, but maybe…maybe like, I don't know, maybe you just weren't listening hard enough, sometimes that happens to me, just sometimes though," she said sweetly.

"Okay, what's going on?" Stephanie asked again.

"It was your husband," Maria said, her eyes ablaze with gossip. Stephanie's stomach dropped a little bit. Her husband? Her husband almost never made the gossip rounds. Sure, some people had been talking about last week, but most people just thought it was another thing going on that didn't concern them.

"What about Chris?" Stephanie asked with trepidation.

"He and Triple H got into a _huge_ fight, like this huge fight, I heard they were about to throw punches at each other!"

"You must be mistaken, they're friends," Stephanie said, just knowing this slow-witted girl had gotten it all wrong.

"Uh-uh, Stephanie," Maria said, like she was chastising a child, "they really did. Everyone's talking about it, it was huge, in front of everyone, and it had to do with Britt. I think that Hunter was dumping her or something."

"Dumping…"

It was all too much for Stephanie. What the hell was going on? Hunter and Chris were fighting, Britt and Hunter were breaking up? She didn't understand but she couldn't move because Sawyer was right in the middle of his dinner and she couldn't go find Chris and leave her son hungry, there were priorities here.

"Yeah, dumping or something, I'm not clear on that part," Maria said. "I've got to go, I'm in a bikini contest!"

Stephanie, only now realizing that Maria had been in a robe the entire time, watched as the young woman rushed off to the ring. She sat there with Sawyer, watching him eat his dinner diligently, probably wanting to get back to his toys.

"So there's something weird going on around here," Stephanie said. "I just don't get what she meant. She had to be wrong, don't you think so, baby boy?"

"Yeah, wong," Sawyer nodded as he continued to munch on a celery stick.

"Yeah, why would Daddy and Hunter get into a fight? She must've been wrong, I'll just clear it up with Daddy when we see him," Stephanie said rationally. Maria must've had the wrong information, that just had to be it because Chris and Hunter fighting, it just didn't seem possible anymore. She wanted to ask someone else, but it seemed as if everyone was to engrossed in their own conversations that they wouldn't go over to her even if she called out to them.

"Uh huh, Daddy, see," Sawyer said, agreeing that all would be explained once they saw Chris.

"Do you think if I faked that I was in pain someone would come and help me?" Stephanie asked.

"No do," Sawyer said, shaking his head at her.

"I'm sorry, it was just a thought," she told him, her little moral compass. "Since when are you so good? You're not like Daddy and me, are you?"

"Mmhmm, I am," he told her.

"I suppose you are," Stephanie said. "I just wish I knew what was going on."

Chris was in a foul mood to everyone he walked by. His hands were still clenched at his sides and he was still hot from his argument with Hunter. It was like Hunter was _trying_ to find something to fault Chris on and it frustrated him to no end. What the hell was up with that? He wasn't suggesting that Britt go out and _marry_ Randy or anything?

"Hey, bro, wait up!"

Shane caught up to him and Chris gave him a curt, "What?"

"Heard what happened," Shane said, "You still want time at the top of the hour?"

"You bet your ass I do," he said, his mood cheering up almost instantly. "I can't wait to get out there and call out everyone."

"Yeah," Shane said. "Defending my sister, I can definitely live with that."

"I thought you could, but I've got things to do, to prepare," Chris said, looking down at his clothes. He wanted to be prepared for a fight so that meant that he had to get dressed in his ring gear. He turned to his brother-in-law, "Shawn's still not here, right?"

"Yeah, as far as I know."

"He would know that you'd tell me, I better be prepared, I'll see you later," Chris told him. Shane nodded and turned back the other way, presumably to get back to work before Stephanie found out he was slacking on the job and officially fired him and took back her post.

Chris went back and got dressed into a pair of ring tights and a vest (one that wasn't heinous for once, Stephanie had approved) and then went to go get some baby oil so he could rub it on himself (probably for the benefit of all his admirers, of which there are many). By the time he got there, he was in a good mood again, Hunter be damned. He was going to lay it all out there for Shawn. He suspected that Shawn was in the building somewhere just lying in wait. He'd be prepared though.

Chris went out there as soon as Vince finished off another one of his silly calls. Maybe Vince would take into consideration what he said for next week. Vince watched approvingly of his son-in-law as he made his way down the ramp. He had heard of the fight between Chris and Hunter and it pleased him. It pleased him that his son-in-law was finally seeing Hunter for the real scum that he was.

Chris was determined as he walked out there to speak to the fans. He knew exactly what he was going to say. He was going to pander to them any longer. It reminded him a promo he made long ago, to a female he loved very much. When he had been the Undisputed Champion, he had realized the fans had never done anything for him. There was always someone they deemed better and he didn't need them then and he didn't need them now. If only he could tell them what Shawn was really like, how he really acted, they might understand, but he wasn't going to drag his children into this. His personal life was personal and it was not who he projected himself as here.

He showed the clip from last week, reminding everyone again of what he did. He smiled as it played, reliving that glorious moment when he had slammed Shawn's head into the grossly expensive Jeritron 6000. He supposed that he would have to buy a Jeritron 7000 now. He blamed what happened to Shawn on the fans and that was partly true, but not really. Shawn brought it on himself, but the fans didn't help. He was sick of them cheering a guy like Shawn, just plain sick of it. They were not on the same side now, so he was turning his back on them. Maybe, _maybe_ when they saw the truth he would swerve them back to his side. Yes, maybe when they saw.

He told the fans he was tired of trying to save them. He was trying to show him the way, but they just flat-out refused to budge. So let them cheer a guy who would insult an unborn child. Let them cheer a guy who would not let go of a decades-old grudge. It would no longer fall on Chris to make them see the light. He was tired of it, let them decide who they wanted to cheer for, and if it wasn't him, so be it, he could live with that. He said it wasn't personal, but it was, it was intensely personal, but he let the fans think it was their fault, burning that last bridge.

He could feel Shawn in the building, lurking somewhere, so he called him out, half-expecting him to jump him from behind. He kept glancing over his shoulder slightly to make sure that he wasn't going to get ambushed. Then he heard, of all things, Ric Flair's music starting up. Chris's jaw dropped appropriately and he watched as Flair stalked to the ring. Chris stood statue-still and just watched, his mouth closing slowly as he adopted a look of disbelief and shock.

Flair came right up to him and they stared each other down. It seemed that the moment was lasting forever, the cheers of the crowd surrounding them like a web. Chris started to speak to him, but he snatched the microphone from him and told Chris that Shawn would be there if he could. He then told Chris that he couldn't wrestle him, but he could fight him in the parking lot. He took off his jacket in a great huff and threw it down into the ring and then left quickly. Chris waited a few moments and then followed at a safe pace. He gave off an air of morbid curiosity, wondering if he was actually going to have a brawl in the parking lot of all places.

He walked to the doors that Ric had just walked through and looked at them for a moment. He half-expected Shawn to be on the other side, ready to give him some Sweet Chin Music so it was with great reluctance that he opened the door. He half-stepped inside and stopped, his gaze growing steely. He took a step back, staring at the man that not an hour before he had called his friend. The two men looked at each other and then Hunter began to speak to him and Chris held his tongue to listen.

Hunter asked if he hadn't caused enough problems the last few weeks. Chris just glared at him, telling him it was none of his business, not anymore it wasn't, was the implied wordage added onto the end of the sentence. Besides, who the hell was Hunter to tell him what to do? Chris was the one who owned the place. He didn't answer to Hunter just because he was the WWE champion. Hunter told him in no uncertain terms that ever since he came back, he had been trying to make Chris his business. They both knew this was a lie, but both of them were too angry with one another to speak the truth. They didn't care as they glared at each other, hated enemies once again. Hunter said that all he wanted was to fight Chris, and Chris knew exactly why, because of some perceived notion that Chris was this horrible, horrible guy, but Chris was starting to see Hunter for what he was.

Chris walked away, not even deigning him with an answer. He didn't have to, he knew this. Then he turned around, seeing there were a few more people watching and he smiled inwardly. He let a look of dawning come upon him and he went back to Hunter, "This is about Shawn."

"What?"

"You're not mad about Britt, you can smooth this over with her. You're loyal to Shawn."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," he said, seeing Flair enter the building and stand with Hunter. Flair must've been here to visit with Hunter.

"Yes, you do," he said loudly. People were listening with attentive ears, though they tried to remain inconspicuous, pretending to go about their business, but really just wanting to get the scoop so they could spread the juicy gossip. "You turn on me because I want to get back at Shawn."

"I don't care what you do to Shawn."

"Of course you do," Chris said, scoffing. "You would absolutely take Shawn's side because Shawn almost always takes _your_ side. Us, me and Stephanie, we hated you for so long. We fought, we beat you up, of course you'd take Shawn's side. Then trying to paint me as the bad guy…this is _exactly_ what Shawn did to me. You get to act like a complete ass to me, but everyone still loves you. It's the perfect thing, really. You take Shawn's side and you come out smelling like roses."

"Whatever," Hunter said, though he acted like a guilty man.

Vince was approaching and Chris walked off, not wanting to talk to the older man. He knew what was coming. And come it did. Vince was ecstatic that Chris had finally seen the light. This was what he had been waiting for, for so long. He took great pride in throwing Flair the hell out of there, not because he disliked Flair (though a big chunk of him still did) but because he hated Hunter and anything to make Hunter angry made Vince extremely happy. Then he made a match against Chris for Hunter, knowing that he was going to let his son-in-law get at this bastard and hopefully beat him. Yes, things were good for Mr. McMahon that evening.

"Okay, so I'm sorry," Stephanie said, "I don't get it…he's on _Shawn's_ side."

"Yeah," Chris said hastily. "He's on Shawn's side. He's acting like Shawn, that's proof enough. Then he goes and blames me. I was suggesting that Britt figure out whatever this is with Randy before she completely destroys what she has with Hunter and he goes ballistic on me."

"Maybe he misunderstood, maybe you didn't word it nicely," Stephanie said as she looked at her husband. "I mean, this is all so silly. Him taking Shawn's side? We're friends."

"Steph, do you remember when Hunter and I became friends?"

"No, not really."

"We always knew we'd come to blows, we always knew. As long as Shawn and I kept this animosity between us, it was fine, Hunter didn't have to choose a side. But now…now it's out there, it's tangible to him, because you know the ring is his life and anything involved in it is now his life. So he had to choose a side, and he chose Shawn's, simple as that."

Stephanie didn't think it was simple, but she was tired of discussing this. "I want Flynn to just get here, I'm tired of being pregnant."

"I know," he said softly, his voice changing and losing that rough edge it had sported a few seconds before. Sawyer was already rubbing Stephanie's stomach, trying to feel for his sister. Stephanie suspected Flynn was asleep, but Sawyer seemed to refuse this as an answer. He was up, so that meant his sister should be up too.

"Baby, baby, love," he sung softly to his mommy's tummy. His face was practically smashed against it. Sawyer was just absolutely fascinated by this living thing growing inside of his mother. They figured he knew what a baby was since when they asked him on a page full of pictures, he could point out which picture was the baby.

"Are you sure you can't patch things up?" Stephanie asked as Sawyer started to get under her shirt and she swatted his hand away.

"Mommy," he whined.

"Sawyer, you don't breastfeed, so stay away," Stephanie told him sternly. He went back to her stomach, trying to gain x-ray vision so he could see inside of it. He started to yawn, his mouth opening and drooling a little bit onto Stephanie's stomach. She wiped it off with her shirt and lifted Sawyer onto the couch between her and Chris, where he fell against his father, his body going limp with relaxation.

"So, are you sure you can't?"

"I'm sure," Chris said succinctly. He thought about Britt for a moment. She had asked him if she could go earlier and he had let her go. He would check up on her later, just make sure things had turned out okay for her.

Chris had only fought against Hunter once that he could remember since coming back from his hiatus and that was in a match with a number of other guys. It was strange facing this man again. Chris had no meaningful wins against him and if he won tonight, he'd _still_ have no meaningful wins against him because this was nothing. He was nothing. The match started and Chris immediately went after the bigger man, but it only lasted a little while as Hunter turned it right around so he got the upper-hand. Hunter got a back body drop on him and Chris tried to go for a splash, but it didn't work and Hunter was definitely gaining control.

Chris gained it back though as he started to beat on Hunter. This was short-lived as they both ended up down on the ground. The count got to five before they got up. They were trying to pull out all the stops for the match. Chris was also trying to keep on his toes in case Flair or Shawn was here and ready to attack him, though he was positive that wasn't going to happen. Chris went for the Walls, but Hunter kicked him back into the corner. Hunter managed to get a spinebuster on him and he groggily got up and was put into position for the Pedigree.

Now Chris paused a moment. He had been wrestling against Hunter since 2000. Many, many times he had been put into the Pedigree, this was no stranger to our hero. So he wasn't a fool who let himself get Pedigreed, oh no, he reversed it and hit Hunter in the stomach, momentarily stunning him so Chris could get a running bulldog, perhaps the finest running bulldog ever. He tried to go for the Lionsault, but predictably, Hunter moved out of the way, as he had been almost the victim of that many a time before.

Hunter tried for the Pedigree again, but Chris was not going to go quietly. He fought that move like nothing else in his world mattered. He wasn't going to lose, not on this night, on this night he was not coming out the loser. Chris got free and backdropped Hunter onto the mat. They ended up on the outside brawling each other.

Then something unexpected happened. Lance Cade, of all the people in the company, Lance freaking Cade came down and started beating on Hunter. Chris, unsure of why this guy was helping, just let it happen. He wasn't going to stop it. He helped get Hunter into the ring as they continued to beat him down. Cena came racing down because he has a hero complex and always must do the right thing in every situation or else, either that or he was a glory hog. Chris didn't expect this, but he should've, damn he should've. Damn Cena for coming and trying to interfere in this. This was _way _beyond his understanding.

Cena knocked Chris out of the ring and Chris wanted to kick his ass until he was a pulp for that. He looked up and caught a glimpse of Hunter spearing Cena and then the two fighting each other, which afforded Chris an opportunity and that was all he needed. Cade had gotten his bearings back too and he went after Cena as Chris went back after Hunter, his original target. He beat him into the corner, kicking and punching at him. Then Hunter wandered too far from the safety of the corner and Chris got his Code-Breaker on him and sent him down.

He glanced over at Cade appreciatively and stared at his handiwork, clapping for himself. It was great luck this kid had actually come out to help him, maybe he wasn't so bad. Chris raised his arms out, not in victory but because he was Chris Jericho and he could. He had accomplished just what he wanted to accomplish tonight and even more, yes, even more. It had been almost a banner night for Chris and dare he say it, dare he think it…yes, this was the best night since his return, yes, the best.

He was sure that everyone had missed the smirk on his face.


	188. The Draft, Part 1, June 23, 2008

A/N: Darn now I won't get that feud...I really wanted it. Oh well. I don't have to see H on Raw, so that's a plus. Anyways, last night's Raw was so jam-packed that the chapter was getting too big and things were getting really lost in the shuffle so I decided to separate it into two chapters. This is the first one and I'll post the next one tomorrow night. I just wanted to make sure everything got the spotlight that I wanted it to get. Anyways, enjoy the first part. :)

* * *

"Look Auntie Stephy, I got a hat."

"Wow, I see that," Stephanie said, looking at the jauntily placed cowboy hat on top of Declan's head. "You look very good."

"Me too, Mommy," Sawyer said, pulling his own cowboy hat even more so his eyes were almost disappearing. He had to tilt his head way back to even see any part of his mommy. His cousin, Kenny, was standing next to him, in pretty much the same predicament, hat slung low over his eyes.

"I see that. That's a very stylish hat, baby boy," Stephanie said to her son. She looked up at her sister-in-law. "Thank you so much for taking him for the afternoon."

"It wasn't a problem," Marissa said kindly. "I know that you have a lot to do tonight since you told your dad you would work on the whole draft thing and I know that everyone's been running around. I was glad to get away from that. We had fun today, didn't we, boys?"

"We went to the zoo, Auntie Steph, and we saw lots of animals and they had ponies and we got to ride them, but only one at a time since Mommy can't hold us all at the same time," Declan said matter-of-factly. He was turning into a little talker, that one was, as Stephanie nodded along, listening to what he had to say diligently. "Then Mommy took us to a store and we got hats and she said that we could get boots, but they didn't have any for little kids."

"Oh, that's too bad," Stephanie said sympathetically, "you all look nice in your hats."

"Thanks," Declan said, rubbing his hand against the brim of his hat.

"How much was the hat, Rissa?"

"Don't worry about it," Marissa said, knowing that Stephanie wanted to pay for the hat. "Consider it a treat. I got something else for you though."

"What?" Stephanie asked.

"Mommy, Mommy," Sawyer said, tugging on Stephanie's pants.

"What, baby boy?"

"Hippo," Sawyer told her. "We see."

"You saw a hippo?"

"Uh huh, big, big, big," Sawyer said, reaching his arms out as far as they could go and almost smacking Kenny in the face. He turned towards Kenny, "Right?"

"Yup," Kenny said, "and see wion."

"Oh yeah," Sawyer said, like he honestly forgot, "I see wion, grr." He curled his fingers into claws and pawed at Stephanie again.

Stephanie laughed, "Sounds like they had a blast."

"They did, but if you three would let me talk for one second," Marissa said good-naturedly, "They've been talking all day. D has officially declared himself the ambassador to the two-year-olds, he's the only one who seems to consistently know what's being said. Anyways," Marissa continued, bringing up a bag to view. "This is for Flynn."

Marissa pulled something out of the bag and held it towards Stephanie. Stephanie laughed as she looked at the little pink cowboy hat. It had a white star on the front and a little strap to put it on a baby's head. Marissa had to have known that Stephanie would never put this on her daughter. Stephanie didn't even plan to put those little baby girl headbands that every baby girl seemed to wear, regardless of whether or not they had hair.

"Oh my God."

"I saw it, and I was like, I have to get that for you," Marissa said. "Just the thought of a baby wearing that is hilarious to me, but _your_ baby wearing that, I would pay money to see that, good money."

"So you're just willing to give it away like my dad?" Stephanie joked as she took the hat and put it on her stomach like she was trying it on. "This is hilarious. Chris will get a kick out of this."

"I'm sure he will," Marissa said. "What's he doing tonight?"

"Probably going to call out Shawn since he's here tonight. They have everyone here tonight, obviously, big show."

"You miss working it?" Marissa asked.

"Not really…okay, a little," she said off Marissa's incredulous look. "But it's getting harder each and every day to do the normal stuff so in a way, I don't miss it. I'm only ten weeks away from popping this little girl out."

"I'm jealous," Marissa said, reaching out to touch Stephanie's stomach lightly. She knew that Stephanie hate that, so she kept the contact brief. Stephanie didn't much mind because Marissa was the closest thing she had to a sister. Since Shane had been off and on with Marissa for many, many years, Stephanie had grown up with her, so she was like a sister.

"Why?"

"I love D and Kenny," Marissa said lowly, looking to her two little boys who were talking animatedly a little ways away to where they had wandered to. Declan seemed to be doing most of the talking, but Sawyer and Kenny were talking too. "But they're boys…you get a girl. I just want a girl."

"I think this is a conversation that you should be having with my brother and not me," Stephanie kidded and Marissa stuck out her tongue. "It is pretty cool though, you know, one of each."

"Is Chris as excited as he's acting?"

"Oh God yes, but he still gets these bouts where he's terrified she's going to be a diva who wears skimpy clothes and all these guys ogling at her. I don't have the heart to tell him that this is probably exactly what's going to happen. I mean, if she's a diva, she's probably going to have guys going nuts for her."

"Yeah, that's true," Marissa said.

"Mommy?" Kenny said, coming over to Marissa.

"Yeah."

"Go see Daddy," Kenny told her.

"Yeah, Mommy, can we go see Daddy?" Declan added.

"Okay, come on you two, let's go show Daddy these cool cowboy hats, he'll be so jealous," Marissa said, ushering her two together and then gently nudging Sawyer forward, "and let me return this one to you."

"Thanks, see you later," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, bye," Marissa said as Declan and Kenny echoed the sentiments before wandering off in search of Shane.

Stephanie felt a slight pressure on her hand and looked to her side and saw that Sawyer had taken her hand and was smiling up at her. "So you saw a hippo, did you?"

"Uh huh, it big," Sawyer said, "I like it."

"You like it."

"Why big?"

"Because it was made that way," she answered.

"Who did?"

"Who made it?"

"Uh huh, who made?" he copied.

"Um, I guess God," Stephanie shrugged. That seemed the easiest enough answer and Chris was Christian so it made sense to answer that way. "You want to go find Daddy and tell him what you saw today?"

"Yeah, I do," Sawyer told her. "Where Daddy?"

"You know, I'm not that sure," she said as they started to walk down the hallway together. The halls were crowded with people, many of whom would part for Stephanie and Sawyer like they had the plague. Many of them were also nodding and smiling at her, saying their hellos. It wasn't like she could change a draft. Sometimes she hated when people sucked up to her.

She didn't know where Chris was at the moment. He had disappeared almost as soon as they had got there, saying that he had something important that he had to do and then leaving. She figured it had something to do with Shawn. Ever since Chris had had a falling out with Hunter, it was like he was even more vigilant in bringing down Shawn. Stephanie figured that Chris was missing his little playmate in Hunter. The two of them had been getting along so well and it was like Chris had someone to hang around with that wasn't her and he needed that.

"Hi," Sawyer said to random people, not even knowing who they were. It was like he was looking through this sea of people for his daddy.

Hunter was leaning against the wall, watching everyone go by with a disinterested look on his face. Everyone was filled with trepidation, but he didn't care. Either way, however things turned out tonight, he was going to be the WWE champion regardless. He was giving off his sour mood in waves to all passersby so nobody was coming to talk to him about anything.

Then someone cleared their throat behind him. He whirled around, though he knew the voice, even from just a simple cough. He turned his expression straight to dour. "What do _you_ want?"

"I just wanted to inform you that you have a match tonight," Britt told him icily, her eyes darting around from left to right and back again, looking like she was watching for people eavesdropping on their conversation.

"You could've had someone else tell me," he said, "spared me from having to see your face."

The jab stung, but Britt swallowed it down, repeating the same mantra she had said all day long. It was getting easier and easier to believe the tiny voice in her head, reedy though it was. "Well, seeing as how I do work here and I'm currently working for the person that's running the show."

"Oh yes, the McMahons and the Jerichos, lovely people, all of them," he said sarcastically and with much derision.

"You know, I'm starting to think that Chris was right about you. You were forced to choose sides and you chose Shawn's side and now you're trying to justify it," Britt told him, her chest puffing out a little bit, knowing that she was getting in all the good blasts at him.

Hunter straightened. "Don't meddle in things you don't know."

"Oh, I know damn well," she said, not backing down from him. She had nothing to fear from Hunter. He may intimidate about 95 percent of the people that he came across, but she was in that special 5 percent for whom Hunter's presence did nothing to make her back down. "You forget that you dragged me to that man's house on a number of occasions where I was forced to interact with him and his wife."

"Don't you dare say another word."

Britt looked over Hunter's shoulder and caught sight of a new person listening in on their conversation. She tried not to let her mouth curl up into a smirk and she could feel the side of his mouth twitching. She kept it at bay though and continued to stare at Hunter, giving no more glances to the person who was listening in. "I can say whatever I want since you've decided to _freeze me out_."

She raised her voice slightly and Hunter could almost be heard growling. "Well your little friend Jericho didn't have to suggest what he suggested."

"I thought he had a very valid point, actually," Britt said, her voice trying to remain as strong as possible. Thankfully it was holding up.

"Why am I not surprised that you'd say that?" Hunter said. "So who's my match against, since that was the _only_ reason you came to talk to me, right? It wasn't because you wanted to come torment me or anything."

"Yeah, that was the exact purpose of this, for me to come and torment you, oh, I'm the devil," Britt said, giving herself little devil horns with her fingers. "It's against Mark Henry, you'll be opening the show tonight."

"What!" Hunter asked, obviously affronted by this proposition. He wasn't some curtain-jerker. "This was Jericho's doing, wasn't it?"

"I work for _Shane_," Britt said. "Last time I checked, Shane and Chris were two different people. Good luck."

The wish of luck was definitely not given with the air of someone who wanted him to win. She walked past him and he finally caught sight of the person who had been eavesdropping on their conversation. Randy was standing there, smug as ever (his injury had not knocked _that_ out of him), looking lecherously at Britt, who was walking past. She just looked at him, no true expression on her face and no acknowledgement whatsoever. Hunter sucked at his teeth a little and started to walk the same way that Britt had just gone.

"Well, well, well, trouble in paradise?" Randy asked as he walked past.

"Mind your own damn business," Hunter snarled.

"Does that mean she's free?" Randy asked, trying to sound as innocent as possible.

Hunter grabbed Randy by the good arm and threw him up against the wall as best as he could. There was a fire in his eyes that Randy had never seen before, "You stay away from her. I've told you that once, do not make me tell you that again. Stay the hell away from her if you know what's good for you."

He roughly threw him back and then stalked off. Randy straightened his shirt as best he could. He was royally pissed off now. He looked around him to where he could see a few people smirking. He wanted to yell at them to get the hell away from him, but he was too mad. How dare Hunter try and tell him what to do? Who the hell did he think he was around here? The man better remember that he wasn't married to Stephanie anymore and he didn't get to call the shots around here. Hunter telling him to stay away from Britt did one thing and one thing only.

It made him want her more.

"I'm killing two birds with one stone," Chris said as Stephanie found him in the production truck. It was the last place she looked and she had only looked there because she happened to run across Edge, who said he was there.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I went to Lance earlier."

"Oh, did you?"

"Well," Chris grunted as Stephanie shifted her weight in his lap. There just wasn't enough room in the production truck for a lot of people to sit down and Sawyer had climbed into the chair next to Chris before Stephanie could even waddle her fat butt into the trailer. She frowned down at her son as he tried to spin himself around. She had had to squeeze into Chris's lap and he was pretending to be crushed under her weight. Chris didn't much mind though, for all the theatrics.

"Look, Daddy," Sawyer said as he spun himself around.

"You're going to get dizzy," Chris told him.

"No, my hat," he said, pulling at the brim.

"You look like you're going to go wrangle a horse or join the rodeo," Chris told him.

"No, I stay," he giggled, not wanting to go somewhere else. He was perfectly content just sitting there with his mommy and daddy. "Hat for baby."

"Oh, you got a hat for the baby too?" Chris asked.

"Uh huh, pink," he said, showing off how much he knew about colors. He looked a little like he was gloating, but Chris refrained from saying anything about it. He was going to gloat later about what he had done to Shawn and how he had figured out what Shawn was really about so he could hardly blame his son for wanting to gloat about colors.

"Wow, I'm sure it's nice," he said, looking at Stephanie who shook her head. "Anyways, as I was saying, I was talking with Lance earlier…"

"_Hey, Lance Cade, right?" Chris asked as he walked up to the tall man._

"_Yeah," Lance said, and he was going to say that the man in front of him was Chris Jericho, but that would've been stupid because everyone knew who he was._

"_Cool, cool," Chris said casually. "So you know, thanks for coming last week, though I kind of wish you would've come later because I really wanted to…handle Hunter on my own, you know what I mean?"_

"_Uh, yeah, sure," Lance said, though he didn't really know. He hadn't really had the kind of feuds with people that Chris did. His feuds had mostly been misunderstandings. There seemed to be some genuine bad blood between the two last week._

"_Anyways, I was kind of wondering why you came out in the first place? I wasn't aware if you had some kind of fight with Cena or Trips, so you know, just looking for an explanation," Chris said. It was true that he didn't know why this kid, who really had no business being there, had interrupted his match like he had._

"_Oh, well, I trained at Shawn's school," Lance started and Chris's brain was already working overtime, the wheels being greased and starting to increase in speed._

"_Did you?"_

"_Yeah, and he seemed like a nice guy, you know, when I was there," Lance said, tilting his head a little as if thinking back to that time period. "But you know, what you've been saying makes a whole lot of sense. He'll be your friend for a while and then it's like he turns on you once he's figured out that you can't do anything else for him."_

"_Yes, that's exactly it," Chris said slowly. "You know, Lance, you've just given me a hell of an idea. Do you have a match tonight?"_

"_I don't think so."_

"_Good, great, well, I'll be in touch," Chris said._

"So, I'm going to interview him, I think I'd like to foster that a little bit."

"Foster him, you mean like make him great?" Stephanie asked.

"I didn't say that in so many words," Chris said, kissing her shoulder. "But it might be something good if I were to take this kid under my wing."

"I don't like the thought of you having to align yourself with anybody. You've always been this guy who has kind of worked alone, you know. You were just good enough by yourself, you never needed anyone tethered to you," she said. Chris was a strong, independent person and it was very much a part of him that he had worked his way up on his own and without relying too heavily on anyone else.

"Yeah, that's why I uh…aligned myself with you."

"That was different," she protested.

"Tell me exactly how that was different?"

"You were falling in love with me," Stephanie said. "Totally different scenario."

"What? I was not, that's a blatant lie," Chris told her, making a face. "I was not falling in love with you."

"I think you've confessed before that you wanted to rip my clothes off."

"That's lust, not love."

"But tell me this, do you want to rip my clothes off right now?" she whispered into his ear.

"Well, of course, when don't I?"

"Point proven, you were falling in love with me, so it's different. I don't know, Cade is just…how do you know he's not working for Shawn, you know? He could be trying to lull you into a false sense of security and then Shawn is going to strike. Like you told me, Cade went to Shawn's wrestling school where I'm sure they teach dirty tactics. This could be one of those."

"No, it's not," Chris said, almost immediately.

"How do you know?"

"I just know."

"But _how_?" she whined. "You're not letting me in on this plan of yours, what you want to do with Shawn, and you're killing me! I want to be in the loop, Jericho."

"No, McMahon," Chris said, kissing her shoulder again. "You, like the world, are going to have to wait until I do it right. You'll love it, baby, I promise. You're going to watch me finally kick his sorry ass. Then maybe he'll get the point you were trying to make years ago."

"I really think that the drugging burned him more. I guess he thought me using my pregnancy was just one of those unforgivable things."

"The man is pretty religious, baby, and pretending your baby is in pain, I don't know, they frown down upon that, I think. I think he just thought you were so wrong about what you did and he's held a grudge since."

"Whatever," she muttered. "You still haven't explained what you're doing in here."

"Oh, I was just compiling some video of how many times Shawn has backstabbed his so-called friends," Chris explained. "Got quite a bit of stuff here. This is when it really pays off to be one of the controlling people around here."

"Yeah, I'm worried you'll be drafted to SmackDown or ECW."

"I don't think it's going to happen, though, and if it does, we alter our schedule to fit it in," Chris shrugged. "What else can we realistically do unless we rig it?"

"What if we…"

"No, we're not going to rig the machine so that I don't get picked to go to another show," Chris said in disgust. "If it happens, we deal."

"So if you want to kind of do something with Cade, does that mean I can take some wrestler under _my_ wing?"

"Oh my God, did your dad hire back that Dan guy?" Chris groaned.

"No," Stephanie protested. "And for the record, I still think that there was a lot of talent and potential in him and you should've given him a chance, but you didn't and now he's gone and we never got to see just how good he could've gotten and that hangs on you, Chris. That's all you."

"What! I don't think so. The guy was never good…who do you want to mentor this time around?"

"Well, I mean, Ted DiBiase Jr. is new here."

Chris groaned again, "Stephanie, his father is a legend, the last person you need to interfere with is him. You just want to do that because you think he's cute, which is a complete insult to me because I'm your husband and the hottest thing this show has to offer."

"You're old news, I have no use for you any longer," she said haughtily.

"Daddy, I see hippo!" Sawyer exclaimed.

"Well that's not a nice thing to say about The Big Show," Chris chastised and Stephanie laughed. Chris laughed too, and Sawyer, not wanting to be left out, laughed as well.

"So you're going to just go out there and talk?"

"Yeah, that's pretty much it. I'm going to try and help you with stuff. It's going to be hectic and I don't think that you and Shane can handle the entire load."

"He has Britt."

"Even so."

"So have you talked with Hunter tonight?"

Chris cleared his throat, "What? Why would I talk to him?"

"To patch things up over this misunderstanding," Stephanie said like Chris should've already known this. He should too, because she had been nagging him over the entire week to make up with Hunter. This was a stupid fight and they were really good at being friends it surprised even her how much they got along and she liked that Hunter and Chris better than the Hunter and Chris who hated each other's guts.

"Misunderstanding? Steph, baby, this wasn't a misunderstanding. He was looking for a way out and he found it and took it. What this boils down to is the fact that he chose Shawn's side and there just isn't enough room on this show for him to like both anymore."

"Oh, you're impossible!" Stephanie said, standing up and off of his lap. "You take care of your son, I've got things to do and people to meet with who get drafted. I have to acquaint them to whatever show they get on."

"Stephanie, don't be mad at me."

"I'm not mad," she said airily, which meant she was mad. He just signed and went back to the videos he was watching, Sawyer still swirling around in his chair, thinking about all the different animals he had seen today. "Oh," she said before she exited. "I hate your shirt."

"So uh…what are you going to do tonight?" Hunter asked as he sat with Shawn.

"Well, I was going to wait and see."

"Going to go after Chris?"

"I might," Shawn said noncommittally. "If the mood strikes me. I mean, the guy was a bastard to me and now he's slandering my name, and for what? Seriously, he needs to chill. I don't really even know what his problem is."

Hunter bit his tongue. "So you're not planning any secret ambushes or anything?"

"No, there's not going to be any secret ambushes," Shawn said. "You could help me though, since you've finally seen that Jericho is a nobody. I don't even know why the hell you hung out with him in the first place."

"Yeah," Hunter grunted.

"You're better off man, it's you and me again, you know, you're not hanging around with him anymore, doing whatever it was that you two did. You're free from that, we'll go out later," Shawn said.

"Sure, so you're really just going to sit here."

"I'm really only here because Vince demanded that I be here for the draft. I don't think I'm going to go anywhere. I'm still hurt," Shawn said, pointing to the bandage near his eye.

"Yeah, that's really rough," Hunter said. "Well, I think I'm going to go now, I've got the first match, probably Jericho's doing, like he's trying to embarrass me or something, whatever though, I'll kick Mark Henry's ass easily enough."

"Of course you will," Shawn encouraged.

"Yeah, later, man, let me know if you are going to go out there, I'll help you rough up Jericho if you want me to."

"I can take care of that, trust me."

Hunter won the match like he thought he would and was rewarded with Raw getting the first draft pick. He watched the big board along with the crowd to see that Rey Mysterio had been drafted to Raw. The smaller man came to the ring and for the first time that evening, Hunter actually acted genial. It didn't last when he ran into John Cena and it wore down even more when he saw that Randy Orton was supposed to go out and help Vince give out more money to the fans; instead, Randy had told Hunter and John that he would get the title back whenever he came back from injury. Empty threats were all that Hunter thought that was.

Randy was still angry when he walked backstage, but that was short-lived as Britt sauntered over to him, her dark hair flowing behind her as she stopped in front of him. She looked around as if looking for someone, but she seemed satisfied with one quick sweep as she drew her eyes back to Randy, eyeing the sling with a bit of sympathy.

"How've you been, Randy?" Britt asked.

"Been better," Randy said, not really in the mood to talk, even if he did find himself being sucked into a vortex.

"That's too bad. I can't believe Vince would make you come while you were injured. It's really brave of you to come all this way," Britt said, her voice a trifle bit airier than it usually was. It sounded a bit more aloof too.

"I know…" Randy said slowly, "I wish I didn't have to come." He wasn't really wishing that right now though.

"I'm kind of glad you did. I really did want to know how you were doing. I don't know, I guess I just feel partially responsible for that since you were in a match with Hunter and he was so mad over me, but forget him, you know, I don't even like talking about him right now."

"What happened between you two?" Randy asked, genuinely curious.

"Well, he was…and I said…and Chris did," she stumbled over her words, trying to collect her thoughts. "I was…confused about something and asked the advice of Chris. Well, he gave me his advice and it was sound advice. The only problem was that Hunter overheard us and he didn't think it was such great advice and basically blew up at us both."

"Oh, so that's why they really were facing each other last week."

"Oh yes, they were completely angry with each other, fought all night."

"Wow," Randy said, laughing on the inside. It served Hunter right to get dumped by one of his friends. He was an insufferable human being and he didn't deserve friends and he certainly didn't deserve Britt.

"Yeah, it was awful."

"What were you confused about?"

"Oh…nothing, nothing at all," Britt said.

"So does this mean that you two are calling it quits?" he asked.

"I guess that we're on a break or something. I don't think we've officially broken up…I mean, I don't know, why do you ask?"

"Well, you know, that offer for dinner still stands. If you want to go. I'm free obviously, what with the arm and everything. If you're not doing anything tonight after the show, or even tomorrow."

"You know what," she said, without thinking much about her next response. "I think that I would like that very much. I'll call you and we'll get details."

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah, I'm serious."

"Okay then," Randy said eagerly. "I'm going to see if I can find a good place, but um, yeah, call me, we'll set it up, that'll be great."

"I think so too."

Britt watched as Randy practically ran out of the area. She turned around to walk the other way and saw Hunter standing there, watching her like a hawk. She smirked at him, her lips glossy and the slightest shade of pink. His face was drawn, his mother a thin line, no emotion creeping into it though she wondered what was simmering below the surface of that relatively calm face. She hoped that he had heard every word.

"Sawyer, can I have my belt?"

"No," Sawyer told his daddy. He was playing with his toy cars over the belt, making them go over every bump and crevice on the top of this belt. He had been playing with his action figures earlier, but his daddy kept giving one that looked like him and he didn't want to play with that one so he had given them all up and started zooming his toy cars across the belt.

"Why not?"

"Mine," he told his father like this should be common knowledge and to Sawyer it was. He understood sharing and all of that and he knew he should share, but he liked this thing too much to share it with other people.

"Would you share it with the baby?"

"Um…no."

"Mommy?"

"Mmm, no."

"I wouldn't get the belt!" Stephanie cried with alarm. She pretended to collapse into a seat next to Sawyer and pretended to bawl her eyes out. "Why wouldn't you share, baby boy?"

"Cause, it mine," he told her. Stephanie laughed and Chris felt the urge to kiss her, so he did. He heard Shane groan over the two of them, but Chris was too engrossed in his own wife to care what his brother-in-law thought. Stephanie was bent over as much as she could, which wasn't much, so Chris pulled her into his lap again, their lips still attached like they were a hose or something. Sawyer groaned too and that broke Chris and Stephanie from their brief encounter.

"Come on, kid, give me the belt."

"No, mine, Daddy."

Chris wasn't getting anywhere and could see that he had no hope. "Fine, fine, you can keep the belt, I just won't have it on me."

"Okay," Sawyer said, not really paying attention to what his daddy was doing. As a result he didn't even see him go out there, but all of a sudden his voice was coming over every speaker in the place and he smiled as he could hear him, wondering where he was. His eyes lit up when he saw him on the television and shifted in his seat to get a better look. It was still too far away, so he climbed as much as he could on his mommy's big waist. Sawyer inadvertently kicked Stephanie in the stomach as he tried to pass, causing Flynn to go into a little gymnastics isplay.

"Watch it," Stephanie said.

"Sowwy," he said, but he didn't really mean it, she could tell.

"It's okay, I just don't want you to kick Flynn so hard that she gets mad at you and comes out just so she can kick you."

Sawyer's eyes widened at the prospect. Stephanie was sure that as her due date got closer that Sawyer was going to want to be even more involved. He loved kissing Stephanie's stomach like Chris did and he loved helping her. He would probably want to be her birthing class partner, shoving Chris out of the way so he could take all the glory. This kid was going to adore his little sister. He was going to simply adore her.

"I no want," he said, not wanting his sister to come out of anywhere and kick him. He was still trying to grapple with the thought of getting a new baby sister. Right now, all he loved was a big lump in his mommy's tummy.

"Me neither," she said.

"Daddy," Sawyer exclaimed as he watched his father.

Chris was out there doing exactly what he had planned earlier. He wasn't here to save the fans anymore. This was just him and Shawn. It felt like a showdown and both men were going to draw and fire away at the other. He got to show his video and he got to show Lance Cade and that was really all that he wanted. The fans could cheer Shawn all they wanted, but they didn't know the real Shawn and he was okay with that now. If he exploited some of the stuff Shawn did, he was sure to have the fans' support, but that didn't matter to him now.

Backstage, Stephanie wondered how Chris could've gotten all those clips of Shawn on such short notice. They had very specific dates and Stephanie was unsure that Chris had known them all by heart. She knew that Chris, in his misguided youth, had looked up to Shawn, but there was no way he could remember so many specific dates without a little research. He must've put some thought into this.

Chris was out there, knowing that of all places, Shawn's hometown would not yield him any leeway. He wasn't surprised when Shawn came out to attack him and he wasn't even really surprised that Shawn attacked him. He had been ready for it. Shawn pummeled him first, but that was fine, Chris wanted to let him think he was in control. Chris wasn't wrong when he said that the worst was yet to come, he was sure the worst would come for Shawn.

It did in a weird way. Chris sent Shawn careening into the announcer's table and hit his eye. He fell to the ground, moaning and making a general scene. Chris thought he was a drama queen. It couldn't have hit that bad. He was beyond feeling remorse for Shawn. It was just cold, calculating thought when it came to that man. He was satisfied to think that Shawn was writhing in pain, but something told him that Shawn wasn't. The histrionics were too much, the movements too engaged. Maybe Chris had become more observant over the past few months, maybe even longer than that, but it seemed he had knack for knowing when people were really sick or really hurt.

Shawn was being attended to and still he hung back. He was happy he had gotten the upper-hand and he hadn't lied when he told Shawn that the worst was yet to come. He wasn't through with the man and he hoped to get a match with him against Shawn so that he could beat him fair and square. Chris couldn't help but think that Shawn was playing mind games again. He was lulling people again, playing the victim when he was anything but. As Chris stood there, there was only one thought floating through his mind.

Shawn was faking.


	189. The Draft, Part 2, June 23, 2008

A/N: And here's the rest of Monday night's chapter, starting from Chris's promo against Shawn. In order to supplement the chapter a little, if you go to WWE's website and look at the photos from Vince's "accident" you can see that Chris was backstage looking all worried and stuff, which helps the story a lot, thanks WWE! Anyways, enjoy and leave a review. :)

* * *

Chris continued to watch as Shawn writhed around the floor in pain, or at least acting like he was in pain. Chris had barely smashed him into that table. It really looked like his cheek had been the thing to bounce off the announcer's table. Now he was writhing around like Chris had spilled hot coffee all over him. Even if he had spilled hot coffee, he would only do that as a mistake (like with Kane, total accident). Shawn was over-exaggerating to the point of nausea for Chris, but he let him. He let Shawn have this.

Chris had continued to say that the worst was yet to come and that still held true. The worst _was_ still left to come for Shawn. This was nothing, and Chris knew that Shawn thought it was nothing too. There was no way that this was real, it just couldn't be. He thought that he saw Shawn smirk towards him and he knew they were playing a game with each other, toying with each other, trying to feel out the next person's move. Yes, Shawn knew how to play the game and played it well, if all the clips that Chris showed earlier were any indication.

Chris knew how to play the game too though.

Chris smiled at his adversary. It wasn't so much a smile for what Chris had done, but for what Chris was going to do. The wheels had been in motion for a while now, but they had picked up speed, oh yes, they had picked up speed and before long, Shawn wasn't going to know what hit him, and that was just what Chris wanted to happen. Chris laughed as he walked up the ramp. He couldn't wait for everything to come together just as he planned. He wanted to see Stephanie's face when that happened too.

"Did you see him out there?" Stephanie asked as she came up to Chris afterwards. He knew that she saw the same thing that she did. "Oh, my eye, my eye! Oh, it hurts so much! I didn't even see him really hit his eye."

"You know, sometimes, I love you so much that it just hurts," Chris told her, trying to wrap his arms around her waist, but finding that he had a really difficult time doing that so he just went to her side and kissed her.

"What? I don't get it," Stephanie told him, looking genuinely confused.

"What? You don't want me loving you?"

"No, you know that you can love me, but loving me so much it hurts? Never really got that one before. Kind of nice to hear actually. Loving me so much it hurts, yes, I do rather like that, especially because I'll be going through an immense amount of hurt soon," she said, rubbing her stomach. "But still, why do you love me so much now?"

"Because I was thinking the exact same thing," he explained.

"Oh, were you? I hope that everyone was because it was just so over-the-top," Stephanie said. "I just don't get why people don't like you and like him instead. If they just knew what we knew…if I knew what you were up to…"

"That was a lame attempt at getting me to talk," Chris said, shaking his head as Sawyer wandered up to them, tired of being left alone with his uncle who was working and not paying attention to him. Chris turned to him and tipped an invisible hat, "Howdy there, par'ner."

"Hi, Daddy," Sawyer said in his normal voice, not picking up on what his father was doing.

"Oh, I forgot that I have to go meet with CM Punk and give him all the stuff for Raw," Stephanie said, slapping her forehead. "Sawyer was supposed to remind me, but he didn't, thanks a lot, Sawyer."

Sawyer looked surprised, "I no know!"

"Of course you did," she said, then spotted Ted DiBiase Jr. and unconsciously fluffed up her hair a little as she saw him. Chris noticed this and followed her line of sight and shook his head. It should be disconcerting to him when his wife got these little crushes on guys, but he had been with her too long to care. He wondered what she'd think if he decided to get a little crush on one of the divas.

"Hey, Ted," Stephanie said coyly and Chris wanted to know who she was kidding. Maybe, _maybe_ she could make this guy like her if she didn't have a stomach that was protruding so much that she couldn't see her feet and kept knocking things off counters at home.

"Hey, Ms. McMahon…Jericho," he said, not really sure how to address this woman before him.

"Stephanie," she answered that question for him. "So how are you liking Raw so far?"

"It's great, thanks," he said, smiling at her nicely. Stephanie smiled back and Chris rolled his eyes so far back he figured they might just have rolled a 360 all the way back to the front.

"Oh, I'm so glad that you're having a good time here, it's a great atmosphere, you know, and we're always glad when a legend's child comes back since wrestling is so much like a fraternity," Stephanie said, sounding like she was a recruiter or something.

"Stephanie, CM Punk," Chris reminded her.

"What?" Stephanie asked, clueless to what Chris was telling her. Then she remembered herself and shook herself out of her reverie. "Oh, oh, oh yeah, CM Punk, Raw, yeah, sorry, um, sorry, Ted, I have to run, but it was really nice talking to you, and if I don't, good luck on Sunday."

"Thanks," he told her as Chris grabbed her by the arm and started leaving her away.

"So when should I draw up the divorce papers?" Chris asked as they were walking. Stephanie pulled her arm away and linked it through Chris's as Sawyer ran ahead of them towards Vince. Chris groaned and could feel like this was going to be one of those times where he was stuck talking to Vince.

To his surprise though, he didn't. Vince had spotted Sawyer and Sawyer almost went barreling into Vince because his cowboy hat had fallen over his eyes and he was running blindly down the hallway. Vince scooped him up in time and then held him in his arms, reaching out to lift the cowboy hat so Sawyer could see. Sawyer knew these were not his father's arms, but was okay with seeing that it was his grandpa who had picked him up.

"Hi Gamp."

"What are you wearing?"

"I get hat," Sawyer told him.

"Who got you this hat?"

"Attie Wissa," Sawyer said.

"Oh, your Aunt Rissa, that was nice of her," Vince said, handing Sawyer over to Chris when they reached him. "Nice seeing you two, but I've got more money to give away. Chris, you should be one of the people that comes out there to help me. I really think some fan would love to answer their phone to you."

"You think so?"

"I think so," Stephanie piped up. "But Dad, you don't want him to answer the phone and talk to him because what if it's a girl, do you really want someone attempting phone sex with Chris over live television."

Chris snorted with laughter and even Vince gave a chuckle, "Well, maybe we'd screen just that one call, you two get back to work with whatever you're doing."

Stephanie looked at her dad and kept walking, shaking her head. Sometimes her father just didn't know how to show affection for the people he loved. Stephanie turned to Chris, but he was discussing something with Sawyer. They reached her office for the evening and she went inside while Chris and Sawyer waited outside. CM Punk was already sitting there, waiting for her and she sheepishly sat down (slowly because she had no other choice).

"Sorry about that," Stephanie said, eyeing him. "Got caught up."

"No biggie. So I was told to come see you."

"I just have stuff to give you, that's all, it'll take like two minutes," she said, grabbing a file and pulling a bunch of papers out. "I think you can read so I don't really have to explain, just a new contract, itinerary, stuff like that."

"Cool."

"Yeah, so there you go, that's really it, read over the contract, get it back to me tonight if you can, if you can't, bring it next week," Stephanie said. "If you want to have someone look over it, but it's just your contract from before revised for Raw instead of ECW."

"Okay, yeah," Punk said, then got up to leave. Stephanie got up too to tell Chris he could come inside.

She went outside, thinking that he would be standing right there, but she found him a little ways down the hall, Sawyer in his arms talking to Natalya Neidhart. He was laughing at something and she was grinning widely and she spied on him for a few minutes. Natalya tilted her head to the side gently and then her smile seemed to grow even more as she laughed. Sawyer stuck his hand out to her and she shook it a little, talking to him and even he looked enchanted by the blonde.

"What the hell is your daddy doing?" she whispered to Flynn, though Flynn probably didn't hear that, but maybe she was getting the vibes from Stephanie's brain while she was in there all tucked and cozy.

Stephanie wandered over to where Chris was. "Yeah, I really do like it here, it's great. Everyone has been really…well, no, not everyone…not everyone is friendly, I shouldn't say that, but I guess the wrestling business does create a lot of rifts."

"It's all politicking," Chris said. "I should know, I've been doing it long enough."

"Yeah, but look at you, you're really good, you shouldn't have to do much to get what you want…oh man, I'm sorry, did that sound like I was accusing you of using your power, not that I even know what your power is around here, I mean I've heard rumors and stuff…man, I sound stupid, huh," she said, obviously flustered. Chris liked the thought that he could still make a girl flustered (though he should know he makes many a girl flustered).

"What kind of rumors?"

"Not really rumors, I don't know, you're just, I mean, you're part owner and you know…right?"

"Yeah, that's right, through marriage."

"Yeah, and you're having a baby!"

"Yeah," he laughed.

Stephanie came up to them, "Hey, I'm done for now."

"Oh hey, Stephanie, you know Natalya, right?"

"Sort of," Stephanie said, shaking the woman's hand forcefully. "I don't really get to interact with many of the SmackDown people, though if Chris gets drafted there, I guess I'll be there too, I'll probably run it once I pop this kid out."

"Or if I come to Raw," Natalya said, which just made Stephanie scowl. "Anyways, I've got a match, it was really nice meeting you, Chris."

"Yeah, you too," he said, waving after her as she rushed towards the gorilla. Stephanie glared at him and he smirked at her. "What?"

"What the hell was that?"

"Wait, wait, so _you're_ allowed to flirt with Ted DiBiase, but I can't talk to a girl," he said, knowing he was baiting her and loving it, loving every second of it.

"Well…no," she said, "I mean, you were…she was awfully close, don't you think?"

"I think she was a reasonable distance apart…and it's not like every person here doesn't know that I'm married to you, I'm pretty sure it's common knowledge backstage that you're my wife," he said, and she was starting to get hot under the collar.

"You were flirting with her."

"You were flirting with Ted, don't think I didn't notice that you were giving him your 'I'm so sweet and wholesome' look, which doesn't even work because you're not very wholesome and sometimes you're not very sweet, like now for instance."

Stephanie growled and started walking away, but Chris caught up to her and he grabbed her hand. "I love making you mad."

"I hate you…isn't that Britt coming out of Hunter's locker room?" Stephanie said, looking up ahead. "I thought they were mad at each other. Maybe they made up."

"Um, I don't think so, she looks kind of pissed," Chris responded. "I think they were probably fighting or something. Maybe she was trying to make him see the light and he was having none of it."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. I just don't like seeing such disarray in my life, I guess, I was hoping that things would calm down and you would go back to being friends with Hunter because things were so much better when you two were friends."

"You think so? I think that we were just biding our time until everything came crashing down. I mean, who were we kidding? I know I didn't cause your divorce from Hunter, but I certainly couldn't have helped the situation. I did kiss you twice while we were married, you know?"

"I seem to recall these incidents, but you also compared me to roadkill, called me a filthy, dirty, disgusting, well, you get the picture," she said, looking at Sawyer, who was listening attentively and not wanting to give him any words to call other people. He didn't think someone would appreciate it if a two-year-old came up and called them a ho. "You threw a pie in my face, you spit water at me, so I don't think you really hurt the marriage."

"Still, you aligned with me right after and you were right, I was falling in love with you."

"I knew it!" she exclaimed, startling Chris and Sawyer. "But anyways, it didn't have to come crashing down."

"We were both married to you, Stephanie, it was bound to get awkward."

"No," she argued, "because you could joke about me and everything."

"It was never really joking," Chris said. "There was always an edge to it."

"You're just seeing things now how you want to see them," she told him. "You wouldn't have been saying this stuff two weeks ago."

She was right. Chris was trying to skew everything so that it made sense that he and Hunter were no longer friends. Yes, they were friends too, he couldn't deny it. Sure, everything had come together because they had called a truce, which ostensibly should've, by definition, been a temporary thing, but that truce had turned into a real, true, honest-to-God friendship. It was perhaps the most unlikely union of all in this craziness. Chris genuinely liked Hunter and the sentiment had been returned in full. But Hunter had always been friends with Shawn, and Shawn had never been a favorite of his wife and vice versa. He wondered how Hunter had put up with it because Shawn was his best friend.

He hadn't admitted to Stephanie, but it was weird not talking to Hunter tonight. The two men would usually hang out while their significant others worked or talked or did something else. A conversation with Hunter and Chris was always full of banter and good-natured sarcasm. The man had been willing to help Chris in a lot of different schemes and it had been an easy friendship once they got through all the tension from the past. Once the tension was cleared, so too was the air around them and they were friends and now he really only had Stephanie to talk to about life. Sure, there were other guys here, but Chris didn't have really anyone to talk in-depth to.

Edge was here, but conversing with Edge was like conversing with a wall sometimes. Edge was not a deep guy, he didn't like to be a deep guy. What you saw of Edge on the surface was what Edge was on the inside. Besides, Edge was on SmackDown and unless he got transferred to Raw, tonight was the only night he'd really get to see him. He didn't really want to see him though because if he saw him, then Vickie would be with him. Vickie had been in Florida a couple weeks ago and he had been forced to go out with them and Christian and Trish, who invited Chris and Stephanie because they didn't want to be alone with Edge and Vickie.

That dinner had been a disaster. Edge and Vickie had spent the entire night all cozied up together and it had been quite sickening for the other couples. Stephanie finally feigned that she was having Braxton-Hicks contractions and needed to go home and lie down. He only found out later that Trish pretended to have food poisoning so they could leave too.

"Maybe I would've," he countered and she shook her head. It was no use arguing with him when he got into a mood like this.

"Yeah, I guess maybe you would've."

Britt walked past Randy's locker room for about the fifth time. She didn't really want to go out with him tonight and she was contemplating whether she should just go in there and tell him that she didn't feel well. She had been hasty in telling him that she wanted to go out. She recalled whose locker room she had just been in and with whom she had been with in that locker room. Though Hunter was still acting chilly with her, he was technically still her boyfriend and she didn't like the thought that she might be cheating on him, even though they were on the outs right now.

She stared at Randy's door. He was probably in there, stewing, he didn't look like he was in a good mood tonight. That pretty much matched her mood. "You're chickening out?" a very real voice whispered in her ear.

"No, I'm not," she said.

"Yes, you are."

"I'm not."

"Just go do it, you already said you would go out with him, didn't you?"

"Yeah," she said reluctantly.

"Don't back down now."

"I'm not," she said, still staring at the door. "I can postpone, can't I? I can just tell him that I can't do it tonight because I'm really tired and then we'll do it some other time."

"He's not going to be here next week, he's injured, remember?"

"Oh yeah."

"Now or never."

"Fine, I'll go out with him, but I'm not happy about it."

The laughter echoed against the cold walls as she knocked on the door in front of her. The door opened with a start, but Randy was actually happy to see her. He opened the door wider and she let herself inside. "Britt, I didn't expect to see you."

"I thought we could hang out for a little while. I'm on my break right now, fifteen minutes, that's all I get, but instead of doing something like smoking, which I don't even do anyways, I thought I'd come see you."

"Yeah, I was really bored, I'm glad you came to see me," Randy said.

"Yeah, me too," she said, forcing herself to smile. She looked around a little awkwardly. "So…um, when are you coming back?"

"I want to be back by August," he said. "The doctors don't really think that I can do it, but I'll show them what I can do. I'm already ahead of schedule with it. I should be as good as new. I just hope that I don't get sent to SmackDown, I hate that place, I belong where everyone can see me, right here on Raw."

"Yeah, it'll be weird seeing all these new faces. I know that I work here now, but I have to admit that I don't really watch the other shows unless I have to. That's really bad of me, isn't it?"

"Nah, what use do you have for those other shows anyways?" Randy said, waving his hand in the air casually.

"Not much, I guess, I don't work for them."

"Yeah, exactly, and you know, since I know you and Hunter have broken up, maybe it'd be better if he got shipped over there."

"Yeah," she said, taking a deep breath, "yeah, space between the two of us might be a good thing, right?"

"He doesn't need to interfere in your business anymore."

"Was he interfering in my business tonight?" she asked curiously, trying to read between the lines of what Randy was saying.

"He was, get this, he was actually trying to tell me what to do with you, like he has any say, right, I couldn't believe the guy. You guys aren't together anymore, so you should be able to go out with whoever you want to go out with. The guy needs to take a serious chill pill because he does not control you."

"No, he really doesn't control me," Britt said slowly. "I control the things that I do, you're right."

"Yeah, you don't need him, babe, you really don't." Randy took a chance and wrapped his good arm around Britt, and she didn't seem to mind.

He didn't notice her mind was a million miles away.

"Jericho, suit up, we need you for the Battle Royal," Cena said, coming upon Chris, who was lounging backstage with Shane. Stephanie was off with the draft picks somewhere, probably passing out notes. Sawyer was asleep with Britt, so he was all by himself here with Shane, helping out where he could and now Cena was coming towards him with a red shirt.

"Who else is on this 'team'?" Chris asked.

"It's me, you, Kane, Dave, and Punk," Cena said.

"I don't feel like it, I think you should get Hunter to do it," Chris told him.

"Dude, H already had a match, and I don't want to team with his sorry ass anyways. He fought Henry."

"Yeah, at the beginning of the show," Chris scoffed. "I think that it would do him good to get a little more practice in. Maybe you could beat up on him or something."

"You honestly won't do this."

"I don't have to. You can't just pin this on me," Chris said. "Besides, I have the power to veto this, and I want Hunter to take my place in the match, be sure to tell him that it was me who requested he be in it. You know, better yet, what's Shawn up to?"

"That's low, man, that's really low."

"Oh come on, he did _not_ hit his eye, make him go out there, I'm sure that given the opportunity, he'll throw all of you Raw guys out of the ring so he can get all the glory."

"Whatever."

"Remember to tell Hunter it was me who put him in the match!" Chris said.

He smirked to himself as he sat back in his chair and lifted his legs to put on top of the table in front of him, careful of the equipment that Shane was using. He put his hands behind his head and waited for Hunter to show up. He was going to love seeing Hunter going out there when he didn't even have to. Two matches in one night, he liked the sound of that for Hunter. It wasn't often he used his power, but this instance gave him great delight. If only he could fire people…

"What the hell, Jericho?" Hunter said, storming into the area, brandishing the shirt that Cena had meant for Chris.

"What?" Chris asked casually.

"You're supposed to be in this match!" Hunter said, glaring at him.

Chris shrugged. "Didn't feel like it, you go instead."

"No," Hunter said, throwing the shirt onto the table. "I'm not going to be in your match for you. That's your job, that's what you're paid to do, so do it, I'm not your little whipping boy."

"Oh, but I think you are," Chris said. "You want to turn on me, you think that you can just turn on me?"

"Whatever, you're the one who was talking crap to Britt," Hunter said. "You're the one suggesting she go out with Randy and now she is, and I hope that you're happy with that, in fact, it's probably better for you."

Chris brought his legs down and stood up in front of Hunter, "Well maybe if you got it through your thick skull that I wasn't saying what you thought I was saying. I was trying to _help_ you, but _no_, you have to get all indignant like I was slighting you, and _why_? Oh, that's right, because you love Shawn so much and you had to take his side against me, against Stephanie."

"Well at least he's not a jackass who throws his power everywhere."

Chris guffawed, "Oh, that's a rich one, Trips, that's really rich. Give me five, that's all, _five_ encounters where I have used my power to get my way, then let me triple that when I describe the way that _you_ used your power when you were married to Stephanie."

Hunter scowled, "I'm not doing the match."

"Yes, you are," Chris said. "You want to take sides, you want to fight the good fight along your best little buddy, you go right ahead, I'll fight with what I have on my side and what I have on my side kind of trumps what Shawn has on his."

"What the hell are you going to do, fire me, you can't fire me, you don't have the power," Hunter challenged.

"Oh, but you're mistaken on this one. Who am I married to again? Oh, that's right, Stephanie, and Stephanie has more than enough capability to fire you and she kind of loves me. If I ask her to…"

"You wouldn't dare, the fans love me."

"You know, you're right…how would ECW like you, I think that they need a huge star now that Kane is on Raw, I'm thinking…"

"Fine, whatever, you jackass," Hunter said, throwing the shirt on hastily and ripping off the sleeves with gusto.

"Good boy," Chris said condescendingly, causing everyone in the immediate area to give him the stinkeye, but he just resumed his position in his chair, lounging about, finally glad of the power that he had over everything. Hunter glared at him the entire time they stood there until he had to go out with his team, pissed off and almost wanting to eliminate himself, but he chose not to.

After the match was over and he was standing on the outside, the new draft picks for SmackDown were being announced. He was fine with Kennedy leaving, he couldn't stand the guy anyways. Then, he waited a moment and to his great surprise, he saw his own picture on the screen. He was shocked. No, that couldn't be right, he was supposed to stay on Raw. He panicked a little bit. He hadn't been on SmackDown for a long time, a very, very long time. He was perplexed by this development and thought about all the things that he was leaving behind on Raw and he got a little panicky.

This wasn't supposed to happen. It wasn't supposed to go this way, not at all. He was nervous now, and he couldn't really explain why. He didn't even notice that Vince had come out for his stupid money thing. He never much cared what Vince was doing anyways. He just stood there, kind of stupefied and thinking of what his next move would be. He had to go to SmackDown? But he didn't want to go to SmackDown, he didn't want to go at all!

He thought over what he had been doing all evening, what he had been trying to accomplish. He thought about his match on Sunday and he thought about the things that were here on Raw that he needed to do, and there suddenly seemed like so much. He thought quickly. Chris…something with…Chris did this! That was it, that was the explanation right there. That was perfect. Chris did this and he was shipping him off to SmackDown. Yes, that would be something that Chris would do, that was definitely something he'd do, rig the thing so that he got picked to SmackDown.

He barely registered the set falling in his mind as he walked slowly up the ramp to the backstage area. He was plotting what he was going to say to Chris once he saw him. Lots of anger was to be expected, but he wanted to say something totally and completely scathing to the man, something that would make the toes curl of everyone in the room. Maybe that was why he didn't notice the stage floor collapsing.

"Chris can we go?" Stephanie said, yawning as she stretched her arms above her. She knew she should meet with Kennedy and Hunter about switching to the Raw brand, but she could catch up with the both of them tomorrow morning before their flights left. Her feet were sore and her back was sore and her stomach kept bumping into things and the only thing she wanted right now was a soft bed to lie in.

"Yeah, sure," Chris said. "You don't want to watch your dad?"

"Doing what, being my dad, no thanks," Stephanie said as she leaned into Chris. He wrapped his arms around her as they stood their watching her father giving away a half-million dollars. Stephanie's eyes kept drooping. Trying to keep up with Sawyer and doing work on top of that while she was 30 weeks pregnant was hard stuff. "I just want to go."

"Okay, we'll go, we'll go," he said, massaging her scalp. "Do you want me to give you a massage when we get back to the hotel, it'll help you sleep."

"Yeah, that'd be nice, thank you," she said, recognizing the fact that Chris was constantly trying to make her feel comfortable during this last stretch of her pregnancy. Everything was getting harder for her, but he trooped along with her. She closed her eyes completely and let herself fall into Chris.

"Whoa, what the hell was that?" Chris asked as he saw a part of the set falling down and a bunch of sparks.

Stephanie wasn't paying attention until he said that and she opened her eyes just in time to see the floor under her father fall and saw him disappear from view. She pulled away from her husband and stood up straight to see what was going on. She didn't understand what was happening and she glanced back at her brother and he looked flabbergasted too as they both watched their father climb out of wherever he had fallen. She found herself breathing a sigh of relief when she saw him.

It instantly turned to horror when she saw the set fall right where her father had been standing. The shock coursed through her like waves, starting at the top of her head and flitting its way down to her toes, rippling through every vein and nerve. She couldn't feel anything, she was aware of that at least. She couldn't feel Chris tensing up beside her as she watched a rush of people going towards her father. Surprisingly, one of the quickest to get there was her ex-husband.

Hunter had just thought of the perfect thing to say and he smiled, wanting to see Chris immediately when he went through the curtain again. Then he heard a lurching sound and, having not paid attention to the floor collapsing, was shocked when he saw part of the set falling straight towards Vince. He stood a moment, yes, just a moment, before instincts kicked in. It wasn't even Hunter thinking about who he was about to go help. If he thought straight right then, he might not have even helped Vince after all the crap the man put him through, but all he saw. All he could think of right now was to help Vince.

He ran over, trying to see where Vince was and trying to push Stephanie out of his brain where she was creeping up. Vince was lying face down and if Hunter could, he would've lifted that entire set himself, but he wasn't that strong. A few of the straggling wrestlers ran over, barking for more help as they tried to lift the massive set to get to Vince. Vince was laying motionless, but Hunter could hear moaning coming from the man and he was assured that he wasn't dead. They got help to him and they were putting his neck in a brace as Vince kept calling for someone named Paul, but he was looking straight at Hunter.

Hunter didn't know what to do so he pretended he was this Paul character, who was probably one of the production people. Leave it to Vince to curse out someone on the ring crew while he lay there hurt. He kept saying that he couldn't feel his legs and that was startling Hunter because that meant it could be deadly serious. He didn't know why he was feeling for Vince right now, but he was, wanting to see this through to the finish. He was upset seeing this man here, broken and weary. It was frightening.

"Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God," Stephanie kept repeating as she saw Hunter and others rush to where her father was. "Oh my God!"

"Stephanie, calm down," Chris told her, holding her tightly. She wanted to rip free from his arms and go towards her father, but Chris wasn't letting her.

"Damn it, Chris, my father needs me!" she screamed. "He's hurt!"

"I know, but you can't go out there!" Chris told her. "I'm not going to let you go out there where you could get hurt too!"

If three things could go wrong with the set, he wasn't going to let a fourth thing happen to his wife and child. If she went out there and something else fell and, God forbid, hit her, he would never forgive himself. No, she was going to stay put. Stephanie was in a panic though. She didn't know what was going on, nothing like this had ever really happened before and the only times that something with the set had malfunctioned. She shuddered thinking about it, absolutely shuddered.

"No, Chris, you have to let me go out there, he's hurt!"

They showed her father finally, lying there and she gasped. Chris tried to get her to turn her head away, but she refused. "Come on, Steph, let's go."

"No!" she screamed. "No, Daddy! I have to get to him, let me go!"

Stephanie broke free from him and she started making her way towards her father. She was beyond worried, her heart rate picking up and beating so hard it felt like she was going to just burst into flames at any moment. She was running as fast as she could, trying to get to her father, trying to see what was going on, wanting to draw back the curtain and run towards her daddy and tell him that everything was going to be okay. But then suddenly, that numbness she had been feeling evaporated into a worse feeling

She doubled over in pain, "Oh my God." This was a different 'oh my God' from moments before.

Chris was by her side in a moment and then her brother was by her side too, "Steph, what is it?"

"Hurts, oh, it hurts," Stephanie said, clutching at her stomach. She was too hazy to think at the moment, too hazy to evaluate what was truly going on with her body so she just kind of stood there, hunched over, hand low on her stomach.

"Damn it," Chris said. He didn't know what to do. This couldn't be happening. His father-in-law wasn't being strapped to a gurney and his wife wasn't doubled over in pain. Wake up, Chris, wake up, Chris! WAKE UP! But there was no waking up as he stood there, panicking now. He could deal with the Vince thing, he could deal with that just fine, but he couldn't deal with this Stephanie thing. Flynn wasn't due until the end of August and it was only the end of June, it was too early, it was _way_ too early.

"Chris," Stephanie moaned. She started to sway. "Chris, I don't feel well."

"I know, baby, I know," Chris said. "We'll get you help, okay, I promise, we'll get you help."

"Chris, let me take her, I'll take her to the ambulance, they can take her, I'll go with her," Shane said from her other side. She didn't register this as she was in a flux. She didn't know what was going on, but she wanted her daddy.

"No, no, I want my dad, I have to make sure he's okay," Stephanie said, pleading with Chris, her eyes begging him to let her stay.

"Baby, you're in pain, this isn't right, this isn't right at all," he said, "I can't let you stay, you have to go with Shane, he'll take you to the hospital."

"No, my dad!" she said, "I need to see my dad!"

"I'll stay, okay, you go with Shane and I'll make sure that your dad is okay, okay?"

"You promise?" she asked.

"I promise," he said.

She nodded and Shane started to lead her away quickly, actually picking her up halfway down the hallway and rushing her towards the bank of ambulances they always had at shows. Chris wanted desperately to go with her, terrified that his daughter was just going to come popping into this world much too early. But he had promised her that he was going to stay and he wasn't going to back down on that promise.

Just as he thought that, Vince was rushed backstage and Chris barely had a moment to think before he was jogging alongside the stretcher. Hunter was holding onto Vince's hand and Vince must've been in a bad way if he wanted Hunter of all people. The two men made eye contact briefly before thinking back to the task at hand. What Hunter planned on saying to Chris had died on his lips far earlier in wake of what happened. Many of the other wrestlers were trailing afterwards, Britt was actually trying to push her way through, Sawyer with her, his head lolling on his shoulder as he tried to sleep, but found it near impossible with the shouting and the running and everything. Chris kept looking at Vince, but the man was obviously spaced out. He just decided to run alongside and then get the information, get Sawyer, and get the hell out of here.

Finally they were at the ambulance, the other one long gone and headed towards the hospital with a nervous Stephanie and a scared Shane in the backseat. The crowd had dissipated somewhat, leaving just him and Hunter. They loaded the stretcher into the ambulance, told Chris where they were going since he was family and then they were off, the sirens fading into the distance and leaving Hunter, Chris, and now Britt and Sawyer, alone.

"Where's Stephanie?" Hunter asked dumbly.

"Oh God, Stephanie!" Chris said, as if just coming to himself. "She's…she was in pain, they took her, Shane took her, they're going to the hospital, I have to go!"

"What!" Hunter said. This was too much.

"I have to go," Chris said, frenzied now, "she could be giving birth, oh my God, what if she's giving birth?"

"Here," Britt said, taking charge. "You go to the hospital, I will grab all your things, yours, Steph's, Sawyer's, and I'll bring him to the hospital and all your stuff, okay, you go! You go make sure that Stephanie is okay!"

"Yeah, thanks so much," Chris said, hugging Britt. "Oh, she's going to…"

"I'll find out, don't worry, go!"

Chris was off and running, having taken his car keys from Britt, who really did think of everything. He just had to make sure that Stephanie was okay. She had to be okay, oh God, what if Flynn wasn't okay? He'd never live if something happened to his daughter. Two months was too early. Not impossibly early, but way too early.

"I have to cancel with Randy," Britt said absently.

"I'm coming with you," Hunter said.

"Hunter, you can't," Britt said, looking him in the eye, "you know you shouldn't."

"I want to make sure she's okay, I have to make sure she's okay."

"Okay," she relented, quickly this time as she wanted to get to the hospital. "Fine."

Chris was sitting with Stephanie in the waiting room. She had overreacted to the highest degree. They had found out in the ambulance that everything she thought was wrong was just a bunch of stuff put together to look serious. The pain in her stomach that she thought was a contraction was actually just a stomachache mixed with a Braxton-Hicks contraction. Her stomach had contracted when she saw her father's accident and the false labor contractions she had gotten used to coupled with the abject fear in her stomach made for what she thought was a painful contraction. They had checked Flynn's heart-rate, which was perfect and did a quick pelvic on Stephanie to find she was not dilated. The doctors had told her to take it easy and take Tums if she got any more stomachaches. She felt a little foolish, but it could've been much worse.

"Why aren't they letting us _see_ him?" Stephanie asked impatiently.

"I don't know," Chris said, his hand rubbing over her stomach gently. He was both trying to calm her down and reassuring himself that his daughter was still snugly inside his wife's uterus and not ready to come for another couple months.

"Hey, you guys, sorry we're late, we dropped Shane's stuff off with Marissa."

"Thanks," Shane said dully.

"How's your dad?" Britt asked.

"They haven't really said anything yet, tests, tests, and more tests," Stephanie said with a sigh.

"Wait, you're here, how are you?" Britt asked, Hunter was anxious for that answer too.

"Don't mix shock with a Braxton-Hicks contraction is all I'll say," Stephanie said. "I'm fine and so is Flynn."

"Thank God," Britt said. "I was so worried."

"Me too," Hunter chimed in, but nobody responded.

"Thanks for being with my dad," Stephanie said. "Though I don't know why you did it."

"I don't know, instincts I guess, he kept calling me Paul so he had no idea who I was. He probably would've taken anyone's hand at that point."

"Yeah, I guess."

"I wish they would tell us something," Stephanie said again.

"We'll all find out soon enough."


	190. The Match Is On, June 30, 2008

"Daddy, where belt?"

"Sawyer, I told you, Daddy lost the belt last night," Chris told his son. Sawyer frowned and sighed. Yes, he kept hearing his daddy saying this, but how could his father lose his belt? That wasn't his daddy's belt to lose, that was _his_ belt, and his father had just lost it?

"We find," Sawyer told Chris, already looking around as if the belt would just be lying around and it would show itself momentarily.

Chris chuckled. "It's not lost like that, kid. I lost it as in I was in a match with someone and I lost the belt to that person."

Sawyer's eyebrows knitted together. He was trying to get this straight in his head. His father had taken _his_ belt, had taken it from right out from under his nose and he had _given_ it to someone else? How dare he! He had let his father use his belt last night and it had never gotten back to him. How could this have happened? He had trusted his father to bring back his belt and he hadn't.

"Want belt," he whined. "Mine…"

His voice was high-pitched and keening and Chris felt bad for his son. He had really gotten attached to that belt, much more so than Chris. Chris had held the belt how many times now, 58? He didn't much care about the loss of the belt last night, he was actually a little glad to be rid of it so he could go after the belt he really wanted. He was much more upset that Shawn had interfered, but he had gotten a measure of revenge last night and he smirked at Shawn's acting again. Trying to gain more sympathy from the fans, the man was pathetic.

"I know it was yours, but remember how we talked about sharing?" Chris said to him.

"No," Sawyer said bluntly and Chris laughed again. Leave it to his kid to gainfully ignore something like that when it pertained to something he wanted.

"Well, we're going to share the belt this time, okay?"

"I no wanna," he told his father.

"Well, maybe I can get you an even better belt," Chris told him as he watched his son's eyes widened at the prospect. Just what was his father getting at? There were _bigger_ belts than the one he had. That was the biggest and best toy that he had, but there were other ones he could have that would be better! Well, this was just the most exciting news.

"Yeah?"

"Well, I'm going to damn sure try," Chris said. "You see, your father rocks, let's just get that straight right now, and it's about time I focused more on this goal."

"Oh," Sawyer said, very solemnly as he regarded his father. "Mommy?"

"Are you asking if Mommy would approve?"

"Um…okay," Sawyer agreed to what Chris was saying.

"Well, see the thing is, I thought that I wanted to take a step back from title-hunting because Mommy is going to have a baby."

"Fin!" Sawyer piped up. He had been practicing all week on his sister's name. He couldn't quite get the "ly" part down yet, but he was trying very hard. That's the name that his parents were always using when talking to his mommy's tummy so he was dedicated to learning it too.

"Yes, Flynn," Chris said, saying her name slowly so that Sawyer could pick up on it. He nodded his head, listening to it carefully. "But since Mommy is doing well with the pregnancy, thank God."

"Thank God," Sawyer mimicked.

"Thanks," Chris said drolly. "Since your mommy is doing so well with the pregnancy, and since Flynn has decided to make herself nice and cozy for the long haul, I think that I can go for the title, don't you think?"

"Mmhmm," Sawyer told his daddy.

"Good, good," Chris said. "That makes me feel better to know that I've got your approval. Sorry about the belt though, maybe if you ask Kofi to play with it, he'll let you."

"Who?"

"Kofi, he won the belt last night…see the one problem with wanting to go after the WWE title or the World title is that…well, it's on the other show and I'm not over there, so we kind of have a dilemma, do you see what I mean?"

"No," Sawyer told him, not seeing at all what his father was getting at.

"I'd have to go to SmackDown, but I'm not on SmackDown, I'm on Raw," Chris said, gesturing around to the building, "do you see anyone from SmackDown around here?"

Sawyer looked around to where his father was gesturing, but he didn't know what he was looking for exactly so he went back to looking at his father. "No, I no see."

"See, this is what I'm saying. Do you think that I should just go over to SmackDown and challenge Edge or Trips to the title? I'm sure that I can beat both of them," Chris told his son.

"Twip!" Sawyer said excitedly, thinking that he was going to see his friend, but again, when he looked around, he didn't see anyone and he was discouraged. By now a ton of people should've been up to see him, why were people avoiding him? He didn't realize that a lot of people were miffed with his father over what had happened with Shawn.

Chris could care less about what happened with Shawn. Once again the guy had been faking to the highest degree. He just couldn't believe that people didn't see this going on right under their noses. Nobody could be _that_ hurt without something serious going on. Shawn would _not _show up to interfere if there was something seriously wrong with his eye. He knew that Shawn was a competitor, but messing with your vision, he wasn't sure even Hunter would go that far. So Shawn was just trying to pull his leg, catch him off guard.

He had seemingly already done that by sweeping Hunter out from right under him, but Chris was on top of things now, maybe he had always been on top of things. He was going to stay one step ahead of Shawn. Last night had been something unexpected, but not totally unwanted. Chris had fervently believed that he was better than that belt anyways and this freed him up to go seek out better opportunities.

"You know, kid, I do own the joint and it would be quite the coup if I could just show up on any show that I wanted to," Chris said, thinking aloud more than talking to his son, who was squirming in his arms.

"Daddy."

"Yeah?" Sawyer scrunched up his face, a face that Chris was very familiar with. "Wait, do you have to use the potty?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer nodded.

"Oh okay, well, um, God, why do you have to do that now with me and not with Mommy?" Chris said, "I don't have your potty seat, but um, you know, if I did, you could try that, even though you don't quite get it, but um, yeah, let me put you down, you do your thing and I'll change your diaper."

"Okay," Sawyer said as Chris put him down. Chris looked anywhere but at his son and Britt came up to him.

"Hey," she said, looking down at Sawyer, who was looking very concentrated. "What's he doing?"

"Using the bathroom," Chris said subtly. "What's up?"

"Oh, um," Britt said, making a face, "McMahon family meeting in Shane's office, so I was sent to get you."

"Oh well, there you go," Chris said, pointing to Sawyer. "Can you tell Stephanie that he needs his diaper changed?"

"What are you talking about?"

"McMahon family meeting, Sawyer's the only one here part of the McMahon family, so you can take him."

Britt gave Chris a look, tilting her head and narrowing her eyes a little, "You know good and well that you are part of the McMahon family and that this means you. So come on, Stephanie and Shane are waiting and I think that they're going to have Linda on the speakerphone."

"Why do I have to?" he whined, sounding like Sawyer. "I'm not part of the family, I just married _into _the family, it's a huge difference, it's not like I had much of a choice about the matter."

"You chose to marry Stephanie," Britt pointed out.

"Yeah, but I couldn't help that, it was her fault. I don't wanna go."

"Wow, okay, _Sawyer_," Britt told him derisively. Sawyer looked up at the sound of his name. "No, sweets, I wasn't talking to you, sorry."

"Change me," he said, tugging on Chris's jeans.

"Okay, I will…see, you heard the guy, I've got to change him, no time for meetings."

Britt picked up the walkie-talkie that was hooked onto her belt. She pressed a button and started speaking, "Stephanie?"

A few seconds later a crackled voice responded, "Yes?"

"He doesn't want to come."

"Christopher Keith Jericho, you better get your ass in here as soon as possible or else," Stephanie said over the walkie-talkie to him. Britt gave him a smug look and he gave her a dirty look in response. "Do you hear me?"

"Yeah," Chris mumbled.

"He said yeah," Britt relayed.

"Good, over and out," Stephanie said.

"You're evil," Chris told her as he grabbed Sawyer's hand.

"I know how to handle you now," Britt told him. "Now, I've got things to do, go see your wife."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I will. If I didn't she might beat me within an inch of my life. It wouldn't be too hard either, she's getting so big she'd just need to sit on me to flatten me out."

"Tell her that, I'm sure she'd love to hear it."

Chris chuckled and he and Sawyer walked first to their locker room to grab Sawyer's diaper bag before they made the short across-the-hall trip to Shane's office. He knocked briefly before opening the door, not bothering to announce who he was. This was, after all, his family and he didn't have to wait to be let in. Stephanie glared at him as he arrived and shrugged carelessly as he and Sawyer went to the couch, Chris helping him up so he could change him.

"Okay, Mom, he's here," Stephanie said, "About time, Jericho."

"Shut up, McMahon, I shouldn't even be here, I'm not a McMahon," Chris told her. She rolled her eyes.

"That's always your excuse," she said as Chris changed Sawyer quickly, letting the kid pull up his own pants before Chris threw away the dirty diaper and let Sawyer have free reign over the scant few toys in his diaper bag.

"Cause it's true," he said, pulling up a chair beside Stephanie and grabbing her hand, "So what's going on?"

"We have to make a statement for my dad," Stephanie said.

"Oh," Chris said, thinking about what happened last week. He had gone back to watch it when they had gotten home for the weekend and Chris hated to say that it had actually made him laugh a little at first. Sure, the part where the thing collapsed on him was not funny, but he couldn't help but think that Vince falling through the floor was kind of funny. He'd never tell Stephanie because she would probably put him in a 3-on-1 match.

"Yeah, we need to figure out what to say," Shane explained. "Then we can record it and play it at the top of the show."

"What can we say?" Stephanie said. "The doctors are still performing tests and stuff so we don't even know and he doesn't even want to see us, what is with _that_! We're his family, we have every right to see him and he won't let us. Mom, did you talk to him about that?"

"Stephanie, I talked to your father and he would just rather us not see him like this. I think that you of all people can understand that," Linda said patiently.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, am I allowed to even be in the hospital when you give birth to Flynn?" Linda asked.

Shane snickered, "She's got you there."

"Shut up," Stephanie hissed to her older brother, "okay, Mom, I see your point, but still, this is not like giving birth, this is like, you know, it's Dad…why is he being so stubborn about this!"

"You're stubborn too," Shane said. "I get what Dad wants. He doesn't like us to see him when he's in a weakened state."

"Those incompetent doctors can at least tell us what's going on with him," Stephanie said. "But no, they don't know the full extent yet, though you would think they would, body going into shock and all that malarkey--"

"Malarkey?" Chris laughed.

"You know what I mean, they doublespeak and all of that. Then Dad enforcing the doctor-patient confidentiality thing so they can't tell us anything, can you believe that? I mean, we're his family, we have a right to know of his condition."

"They have the best doctors on him, honey," Linda told her daughter.

"Even so," she frowned. "If they could just tell us _something_, positive _or_ negative, I don't care. Why are they keeping us in the dark? What are they trying to hide? Maybe Dad is worse off than any of us know. Maybe he's dying or something."

"He's not dying," Linda said. "I just talked to him this morning and he seemed in good spirits, but said they wanted to keep him still."

"Oh," Stephanie said, "well, okay, maybe it's not that dire, but maybe it's very bad and he's trying to spare us or something!"

"Well, maybe your dad is being really nice because you're _pregnant_ and nobody wants that little girl to come out sooner than she has to," Chris told her, telling her indirectly that she needed to cool it with the attitude. Last week wasn't anything big, but it just highlighted how easy it was for Stephanie to get stressed and he'd be damned if something happened that made Stephanie go into premature labor.

"You really think that?" Stephanie asked.

"No, but still, it could be one of the reasons, a minor one if you will."

"He's being ridiculous," Stephanie asserted. "Absolutely ridiculous and one of us is supposed to make an announcement about that tonight? What the hell are we supposed to say? 'Hey, this is the McMahon family, but we have no idea how our father is because he's being a stubborn, old fool.' How does that sound?"

"Well, I'd like it to sound a little nicer," Shane said. "So I assume you're going to do it."

"Excuse me?" Stephanie said, "Who assumed that?"

"Now you two, I want you to work this out, I've got to go, behave," Linda said sternly to her children before she said goodbye to everyone in the room. Stephanie had a sour expression on her face that was starting to appear as if it would be permanent.

"She really does get meaner as she gets more pregnant, doesn't she?" Shane asked his brother-in-law.

"Don't look at me to answer that," Chris told him quickly, "the woman is carrying my kid, I owe her big time for that so you're on your own on that one."

Stephanie looked over at Chris and blew him a kiss, which he winked to, "So see, my husband doesn't think I should do it."

"I didn't say that," Chris interjected, "just that you aren't meaner."

"So you think I should go out there, in front of everyone when I look like this?"

Chris looked at her and he didn't think that she looked much different. She was rounded out of course, having gained weight with the pregnancy and she was getting bigger by the week and he knew that Flynn was too. He thought she was still beautiful and it wasn't just because she happened to be caring his kid. She looked good tonight too. She was wearing a flowery summer top that fell casually over her stomach and some black Capri pants with flats.

"I think you look cute," he told her.

"See that, Steph, he thinks you look good, and people like you and they'll like seeing you and since you're pregnant, they'll all feel so sympathetic towards you."

"I'm not doing it."

"You're the one who was just complaining about what's going to be said. I think the only way you're going to be satisfied is if you are the one to speak."

"No, I'm not going to," Stephanie said, putting her foot down. "Look, I don't feel like I would look good on television, so cut me a little slack okay, neither one of you have a kid constantly kicking around your insides."

"I can't wait until you have this kid so I don't have to hear that excuse again," Shane said. "Fine, I'll do it. What should I say?"

"I don't know," Stephanie said, hating that she had been put on the spot by her brother like that. She didn't feel like being in front of the camera right now, or maybe even for a long time.

"Look, just tell them that in the interest of your family, you're keeping Vince's condition private, but you hope that everyone will come together and work together while Vince is off recovering or whatever," Chris said.

"That's really good, I'm going to use that, I'm going to go film that now so it can air first thing," Shane said. "See you guys later."

"Later," they said in unison as Shane left them alone with Sawyer, who was busy playing with some puzzles, trying to fit the pieces in and getting frustrated when they didn't quite seem to fit. Chris turned to Stephanie, "Hey, so you know, I was thinking about how I lost the title last night."

"Yeah, what about it?" Stephanie asked and it came across harsher than she had intended, but Chris didn't seem to care or mind. He must be used to her acting a little bit moody day in and day out.

"Well, I'm fine with losing the title," Chris explained to her. "I mean, you know, when I first said that I was going to take a step back, I figured that I'd just be happy with fighting and doing my thing, but I don't think I am."

"Okay," she said, wondering where he was taking this speech.

"I want to go after the title, I feel good when I think about going after the big, gold belts," Chris told her.

"That's great, I fully support that," Stephanie said excitedly. Nothing would make her happier than to see Chris as the WWE or World Champion. He deserved it after all. She had somewhat marred his big title run, she knew this now, making it more about her than it had been about him being the title-holder. She wanted to be able to tell everyone that her husband was the champion and what better way to have someone representing the company than someone who was in the ruling family.

"Yeah, just one problem…"

"Oh, whatever," Stephanie said, "Flynn is not going to be that big a deal. We're used to babies, remember?"

"It's not about Flynn. I know that we'll be able to take care of her and Sawyer, it'll be like taking care of him twice as much or something," Chris told her, "the problem is that both of those titles are on SmackDown."

"Oh yeah, I completely forgot about that."

"Yeah, and I don't think it'd be fair of me to just show-hop…unless you think I can show-hop."

"You could, I guess," Stephanie told him, "I don't know though, I mean, do you think that would play into people thinking that we play favorites with you. Everyone heard about what you did with Hunter last week, making him take your spot in the main event. Now everyone thinks that you're finally going to use me."

"Well, I thought he should be in the match, that's what I thought so I put him in the match," Chris said.

"I'm well aware of what you did," Stephanie said. "I don't know, are you comfortable with people thinking that you're getting used to the power, that you're using the McMahon name to get what you want?"

"If people want to believe that, fine, they're the same people who think that Shawn is actually injured," Chris said bitterly. He had never been really accused before of using his power for his own personal gains. He had never even held a major title since he started dating Stephanie, let alone being married to her. People were constantly getting the wrong perception of why he married Stephanie. It seemed nobody had eyes anymore, well, maybe Shawn actually didn't, he thought with a smirk.

"I'm not saying you can't, you can do anything you want around here except fire people," Stephanie told him. "If you wanted to show up on SmackDown, challenge Edge or Hunter for the belt, I say do it."

"You really think I should?"

"I want that title around that gorgeous waist of yours," Stephanie said, "It'll look good on you, and then at least one of our waists will look good."

He laughed at that and reached out to rub her stomach, "I think that your stomach looks good, so you don't have to worry about that, I think that your stomach would rival the belt around mine."

"So mushy," Stephanie said as she leaned forward to give him a small kiss. The kissed turned deeper as Chris leaned forward in his chair, scooting forward until his butt was more than halfway off the seat. Stephanie pulled away and sighed, "So does this mean that you're going to be on SmackDown this week?"

"Nah, I want to finish off Shawn once and for all and then I can move onto bigger and better things," Chris told her, "I'm going to challenge Shawn tonight…for a match at Great American Bash. It's about time he stopped faking this bogus injury and faced me like a man."

Stephanie licked her lips a little. She loved when Chris got intense like this and it seemed that's all he was lately, except when he was around Sawyer or Flynn. Otherwise though, he was so focused on kicking Shawn's ass and she thought it was incredibly sexy. Even now, he was just looking off into space, his brow furrowed and the curves of his face set. She reached out and ran her index finger down his strong jaw.

"Shawn's not here tonight, Shane told me he's not coming because of his eye."

"That damn eye," Chris said angrily. "I'd poke him right in the eye if I could."

Stephanie couldn't help it, she giggled, "I'd like to see that, sweetie."

"So do you think I can have the match?"

"Sweetie, what did we just get finished talking about, whatever you want, you've got it. You know, it probably wouldn't be such a bad idea if we stripped one of the titles from SmackDown, it's not very fair, is it, to have them have both titles."

Now the wheels were turning in Stephanie's head. This must've been what it was like when she was married to Hunter. There was a cold, calculating look in her eye that suggested pure manipulation. She was like a snake sometimes, slithering around, waiting for her prey. Damn he loved her more than words could say sometimes. Whenever he was doing something underhanded, she was right there to cheer him on or even make suggestions and for that, he adored the hell out of her.

"Stephanie…"

"What? It was just a thought," she said as she pushed herself out of her chair. "Come on, I want to go back to our dressing room. Sawyer, come on, baby boy, we'll go back to the rest of your toys."

"Okay," he said, gathering up his things and carrying them over to where Stephanie held his open diaper bag. He stuffed his things inside the best he could and took Stephanie's hand in his. He turned to her, facing her stomach, and yelled, "Hi baby!"

"Wow, that was quite the yell," Stephanie said as they started to leave, Chris right behind them. They walked into the hallway and started to take the few steps to Stephanie and Chris's room when they all kind of stopped short.

"What are _you_ doing here?" Chris asked through gritted teeth.

Hunter scoffed, "Now is that any way to greet me?"

"Hunter, you're supposed to be at SmackDown, you were drafted to SmackDown so you really shouldn't be here," Stephanie told him gently.

"Hi, Twip," Sawyer said casually as he walked past the man and over to the door of his parent's locker room, standing by the door and waiting for someone to open it for him.

"Hey there, tough guy, you want to go in there?"

"I play," he said seriously, as if that was his job or something.

"Oh, sounds like fun."

"Hunter, really, what are you doing here?" Stephanie asked, shifting a tiny bit so she was standing in front of Chris. She didn't want him to go attack Hunter and she could feel the tension coming from both of them and hitting right in the middle.

"Well, you see, last week, it was awfully convenient that after I got pissed at Chris that I ended up on SmackDown."

"You think that Chris rigged it?"

"Think? No, I _know_ that he rigged it so that I would go over there, thought he'd be clever, though he could just get rid of me that easily," Hunter said, eyeing Chris in a predatory fashion. "Well, I'm not going to let that stop me from going wherever it is I want to go, and I think that coming to Raw is something I want to do."

"What purpose would that serve?" Stephanie asked.

"Well, I know it would bug the hell out of Chris, here, and I think that's good enough reason for me," Hunter said, folding his arms across his chest after he had hefted his WWE title over his shoulder. Chris eyed that title and wondered, since Hunter was here, if he wouldn't just challenge him for the title right now and take it from the man in front of him.

"I didn't freaking rig anything. That wasn't my fault."

"Like hell it wasn't," Hunter growled.

"Oh get off it, I don't care enough about you to want to do that. If anything, I would've sent your little buddy, Shawn, to SmackDown and kept you here so that I could kick your ass!"

"You? Kick my ass? Tell me when was the last time you ever managed to do _that_?" Hunter said mockingly, hitting Chris somewhere deep inside his very soul.

"Right now, bastard," Chris said, shoving past Stephanie and lunging at Hunter, having no regard for anyone else. He was going to slam Hunter to the floor and then land a few punches on his face for good measure. He was going to decimate him. He was going to pound him into the floor.

"Chris!" He could hear Stephanie shouting, but it sounded distant, like she was far away. The blood pumping through him was crashing into his eardrums until it was the only thing that he could hear, the sound of his own heart thumping in his chest. He didn't make it to Chris as he felt nails digging into his arms. "Chris!"

This time he came out of the haze that he had been in and saw that Stephanie was practically holding him back with all her strength. Chris didn't want her to overexert herself so he tried to take a couple deep breaths to calm himself. It managed to work, somewhat, because he was able to take a couple steps back and catch his breath. He didn't even know why he was _out _of breath, but he was.

"Good thing you have your wife here," Hunter told him coldly, "because then I might've actually had to beat you senseless."

"Why are you guys acting like this!" Stephanie yelled, chastising them both. "You're both adults and you're being ridiculous, the both of you. I mean, come on, you guys were friends and now you're acting like a couple of brats, grow up and put this aside."

"No way," Hunter said, "He told my girlfriend to go see another guy and now she wants to, and now we're practically broken up. I can't even talk to her anymore without thinking that she wants Randy."

"Well he'd be better than a lying, two-faced, backstabber like you are," Chris retorted. "I mean, the second Shawn tells you to come running, you're sprinting to his side. God forbid you turn on your precious Shawn. Never-mind the fact he's a liar and that he has tried to make Stephanie's life hell and that he's insulted my children."

"Don't say things you know nothing about."

"Oh, I know where your loyalties lie."

"Oh, I'm sure you do," Hunter said, "I'm sure the great Chris Jericho has it all figured out."

"As a matter of fact, I do."

"Like hell you do," Hunter said.

"You guys need to stop this, it's upsetting," Stephanie said. Sawyer had been watching this in fascination. Everyone was yelling and seemingly mad and it was terribly exciting for the young boy. If his daddy wanted him to bite someone, he would do it gladly and with extra gusto. He was already baring his little pearly-whites.

"Whatever, I'm staying and I'll be coming back every week, so get used to me, Jericho."

"How does one get used to such an ugly face?" Chris asked sardonically. "Besides, I run things around here, not you. You can't just say you want to be someplace without permission."

"So you're going to kick me out, that's what you're saying?"

"Well now that you mention it…Stephanie, can you get security on the phone and tell them we have an intruder and said intruder should go back to where he came from and better pray I don't make things even harder for him.

"Chris, come on, this is stupid," Stephanie said. "Can't we just let bygones be bygones?"

"No, absolutely not. I'm not going to let get into a friendship with him again," Chris said as he looked at Hunter. "What the hell was I even thinking the first time?"

"Hunter…"

"I'm not going to be friends with a jackass who probably purposely sent me away from my girlfriend. Why don't you just go cook dinner for Randy and Britt? Why don't you just go play some romantic music for them or something, drive them even further into each other's arms."

"You misinterpreted me, but I will not have this insolence towards a superior." Chris grabbed the walkie-talkie from Stephanie's belt and put on the frequency for the security booth. "Excuse me, this is Chris Jericho and I'd like someone removed from the premises."

"Yes, sir, we'll be right there."

"And you say you didn't rig the draft," Hunter scoffed. "I'm glad we're not friends anymore, I hope that Shawn kicks your ass."

"Well, maybe if this eye injury is actually legit he'll get super-sight or something because with one bad eye, he's never going to catch me, I'll make sure of that."

"Yeah, right, you only wish that you could beat him. What happened when you two faced each other at WrestleMania, and what happened when you two faced each other this year? Didn't you lose _both_ times?"

"I'm different now, now it's ultimately personal," Chris spat. "So you go run and tell Shawn what I said. The little chicken didn't want to come tonight, he went crying all the way home with his tail tucked between his legs and his _fake_ eye injury."

"Yeah, we'll see how fake it is," Hunter said, stalking away angrily.

"Why do you have to do that?" Stephanie asked in disappointment. She folded her arms over her stomach and looked at him. "Why do you have to act like such a jerk sometimes?"

"Because I am a jerk, you should know that better than anyone," he snapped at her.

"Jericho," she said warningly, telling him in one word to knock it off around her because she wasn't as forgiving as Hunter was with him just leaving. She would pester him.

"Sorry," he grumbled. "He just makes me so angry. Anyone with any kind of brains can see that Shawn is faking it, but Hunter would rather just blindly follow the leader like he has been doing for the past decade."

"That's not fair."

"Yes it is, ever since the Kliq, he's been Shawn's sidekick practically. That's how he got to where he is today, you know, all those connections were bound to help him get to the top. Plus he kidnapped you and married you, catapulting himself even further. He's like a leech who doesn't think he's a leech, but that's exactly what he is."

"And you?"

"I got here on my own, baby, I didn't have help from anyone, I clawed my way up, you know that," he told her.

"You did have help though, you didn't just blindly make your way here, you had help, even if it was a little bit."

"Not nearly as much as that dumbass."

"Chris, don't say things like that," she said, nodding her head towards Sawyer, who was listening intently to the both of them.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to," he said, "that man just pisses me off so much. I invited him into my home. God, I let him come into my house!"

Stephanie rolled her eyes and pushed Chris into his locker room. "Come on, stop focusing on that and focus on your match later that you have against Kofi."

"But I told you, I don't really want the belt."

"Well then focus on me and your daughter."

Hunter took a few calming breaths before he saw Britt. He hadn't seen her since last week since he had spent the week with Shawn and she was not on SmackDown as she didn't work. She was talking with Shane about something and she kept pushing her hair behind her ear. He had missed her this past week, more than he thought he would. She had wormed her way under his skin and she was settling there.

"Hey," he said quietly as he walked up to her.

She turned away from the retreating Shane and saw Hunter and she half-smiled, but then made her face impassive. "Hey."

"Haven't seen you…"

"I know," she told him.

"Yeah," he said, rubbing the back of his neck and looking around, trying to avoid the urge to kiss her, which was rising up inside of him quickly. He couldn't do that right now. He couldn't kiss her like he wanted to. He'd just have to stand there, rooted to the spot.

"Is there something you needed?"

"To be around you, mostly," he told her and she gave that half-smile again before it disappeared back into her face.

"Well…uh, I've got work to do and stuff," she said, jerking her thumb to the great unknown. Her phone rang then, "See, work, work, work."

She pulled the phone out of her pocket and looked down at it before she put it back into her pocket, even though it was still ringing (Hunter made note that she was using his theme song as her ringtone). "Who's that?"

"Nobody," she said quickly.

"It was Randy, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, he was probably just checking to see how the show was going, you know? He likes to know since he's on the show, but injured, of course," she stumbled.

"Yeah, whatever," Hunter said, walking away even angrier than he had been after talking with Chris.

Britt plucked the phone out of her pocket and then pressed call to take her straight to the last person who called her. "You have the worst timing."

"I do?" Randy said.

"Yes, you do," she told him. "I was just…you know, never-mind, what did you want?"

"I just wanted to say hi and how bummed I am that we couldn't go out last week."

"Yeah, well, I had to take care of Sawyer and make sure that Stephanie hadn't gone into labor, so I was a little busy," she said harshly.

"Sorry, I know that you were busy, I was just kind of upset that we didn't get to go out since I was really looking forward to being with you," Randy told her sincerely and the ice started to melt off of Britt.

"Yeah, I'm sorry, I'm just stressed," she lied, but only partly. She felt like she was living some kind of double life. Everything wasn't how it was supposed to be and it was starting to really get to her, but what could she do? She didn't have many options at hand so she just kind of had to go with the flow.

"Hey, you know, why don't you fly down to Atlanta when you get off, we can spend time together," he suggested.

She was taken aback. "You want to…you want me to come down there to see you?"

"Yeah, what do you say?"

If Randy could see her face, he might just take back the honor. She cleared her throat a few times as it felt suddenly dry and she looked around as if the answer would be written on the wall in front of her. "Where would I stay?"

"With me."

"Um, I haven't even been out with you one time."

"I wouldn't make you stay in the same room!" Randy told her. "I have a house, you'd have your own room and I promise I wouldn't sneak in at night."

She laughed, "I don't know…"

"Come on, you owe me a date," he told her.

"Yeah, I guess I do, sort of," Britt said, very unsure about this. "I just…I mean, you know, there's…well, him, you know who I'm talking about and it's just…"

"I'm not asking you to marry me, Britt, just to spend some time with me," Randy told her gently. "I don't think I'm such a bad guy when you get to know me, I'm grossly misunderstood by everyone."

Another laugh, "Is that so?"

"Well, okay, I want them to see what they want to see and I want them to see a power-hungry jackass because that's the only way that I'm going to get the title or beat someone up. I don't have time for niceties when I'm there, but I'm a nice guy, I really can be. Go ask Trish…or Stephanie, even, they'll vouch for me."

"They would?"

"Maybe, hopefully," he chuckled. "Seriously, I'm not a bad guy."

"I guess not."

"See, was that so hard?"

"Yes," she told him with a laugh.

"Come on," he said persuasively.

"Maybe, I'll think about it."

"Okay, get back to me then, alright?"

"Alright," she confirmed, "bye, Randy."

"Bye," he said sweetly before they hung up. Britt took a deep breath and went about her work.

Chris and Stephanie were both stunned when CM Punk won the World Title. It had been completely unexpected and the two of them looked at each other, shocked at what they had just seen. Just like that, Punk had claimed the title for his own. It was very smart on his part to take the match at that moment, kind of cheap, but very smart.

Chris didn't expect Stephanie to blow up at that, but she did, "What the hell!"

"Huh?" Chris said, not understanding her outburst.

"That should've been you!"

"It should have? Why didn't you tell me to go out there, then?"

"No, I just...that should've been you who won the Money in the Bank, you should be the champion right now, this is not fair!" Stephanie yelled, being extremely irate. She groaned in frustration and picked up one of Sawyer's toys and threw it at the wall, startling both Chris and Sawyer, who stood up and went over to pick up his toy.

"No throw, Mommy!" Sawyer said sternly, looking up at his mother in disappointment.

"Sorry," Stephanie told him, but she didn't mean it and everyone in the room could tell, Flynn could probably tell that Stephanie was not sorry for throwing anything.

"Steph, come on, this just makes it easier on me, I mean, CM Punk, I can beat him. I _will_ beat him," Chris shrugged.

"That should be your belt, why can't you just let me strip him of the title, say it wasn't an officially sanctioned match! Yes, that I could do, I could just tell them that like, there should be someone else to fight him tonight and I'll make it you."

"So you won't make an announcement about your father, but you'll go out there and rig a match for me?"

"Yes, I love you…I tolerate my father," she told him. "Let me go do it."

"No, Steph, it's fine, I will get the title."

"I want you to have it now," she whined.

"Mommy," Sawyer said, shaking his head like this was no way for her to behave.

"Oh you be quiet," she said, looking at him and smiling. He smiled back and came over to give a big, wet kiss to her stomach.

"Love you," he said to her stomach.

"Hey, what am I, nothing to you?" Stephanie asked in a hurt tone.

"Love you, Mommy," he said, before running back over to his things.

"He would let me rig things."

"That is a good, upstanding kid, no way would he let you rig anything for me," Chris said. "Don't worry though, I'll get the title, I will, at some point, first I have to take care of enemy number one and that is Shawn Michaels and nobody else."

Chris jumped up and down in place, ready to go out there and put out his challenge for Shawn Michaels. Sawyer was trying to emulate Chris, jumping up and down in place, though Sawyer could only get a little bit off the ground and he was in a hunched position. Stephanie just stood there, watching her boys and rubbing her stomach as Flynn continued to do somersaults and other gymnastic feats in her stomach. She saw Ted DiBiase coming over and she walked over to him.

"Ted, I just wanted to congratulate you on winning the Tag Titles," she told him sweetly. "I think it was really clever of you to get Cody on your side. Holly never saw it coming."

"It was easy," Ted shrugged, "just kind of appealed to him, said we had a lot in common, we're both the sons of wrestlers and we should stick together, you know. You should know, though, right, I mean, your dad is Vince so you grew up in the system too."

"Yeah, I did, believe me," she said. "I think you'll go far with those brains, just make sure there's no dissention in the ranks if you know what I mean."

"Oh, don't worry, I plan on making a very big splash around here," Ted told her, then patted the belt around his waist, "this is only the stepping stone to bigger and better things for me, I can feel it."

"I hope you're right, you've got a lot of talent, I can tell."

"Hey," Chris said coldly as he came up to them. "I'm about to go out there."

"Oh okay," Stephanie said, turning to him and giving him a peck on the lips, "Good luck."

"Thanks," he said, eyeing Ted and then his wife. "You mind watching our son."

"Oh yeah, of course," Stephanie said, then turned to Ted, "Bye, Ted, congrats again."

"Thanks, Steph."

"_Now_ should I sign the divorce papers?" Chris asked.

"What?"

"You have the hugest crush on him. And how old is he?"

"25 I think," she answered, "but I do not have a crush on him."

"You so do, and he's too young for you."

"What? Excuse me, he's only like six years younger than me and if I'm not mistaken and I'm not, trust me, I'm six years younger than _you_."

"But we're both in our thirties."

"So? Plus, whatever, I don't have a crush on him."

"Oh Ted, you're so great, oh Ted, you're so smart, oh Ted, oh Ted," Chris said in a high-pitched voice as he batted his eyelashes comically.

"Shut up," she said, shoving him. "I don't understand why you're so jealous."

"Jealous? You think that I'm jealous?"

"Yes, I think you are," she told him, giving him a smug look.

Chris scoffed and turned away from her piercing gray eyes, "No way, why the hell would I be jealous of him?"

"I don't know, you tell me."

"What! I'm not jealous of him, why would I be jealous?"

"Because you think I have a crush on him," Stephanie said.

"So?" Chris said. "I can have a crush on someone if I want to."

"Uh huh," she said, unconvinced by his stance.

"I could…I could get a crush on…on…well, I don't know exactly, but someone," he stumbled through his speech as Stephanie laughed at him, which just made him angry. Sawyer, who thought they were going to fight, stepped in between the two of them, leaning against Chris's legs because if he leaned against Stephanie, he wouldn't be able to see anything over his mommy's tummy.

"No fight," Sawyer said with an angry sigh. Why was he constantly the grown-up? His parents were always acting silly and he was the one who had to tell them not to do something. What had they done without him?

"I'm not fighting with her," Chris said, looking down at his son, who was looking up at him with his identical eyes. "I'm just pointing out she has a crush on the dude."

"Sweetie," Stephanie said, "there's no need for you to be jealous. It's not a crush, I just like him, besides, what is there to be worried about, you have me, you know that. You had me last night, didn't you?"

Chris smirked, "Yeah, I did."

"See, now get out there and challenge that bastard to a match!" she said, pushing him towards the stairs and causing Sawyer to topple over onto his butt.

"Mommy," Sawyer groaned as he pulled himself up. Sometimes they were impossible.

Chris didn't care much for his match, but he did care about challenging Shawn Michaels. It was time for Shawn to stop faking injuries and start having matches. Lance Cade was out there with Jericho, nodding along to what he was saying. Kofi came out and they had the match, but Chris wasn't much into it. He didn't care about this title anymore, he was beyond it now. Let this young guy have his hand at it, Chris had held the belt eight times before, he didn't need it anymore.

Once he was through with Shawn, it was time for a bigger belt to give Sawyer.


	191. Yay, It's Steph, July 7, 2008

"So last week was a disaster."

"It was?" Chris asked. "That's news to me."

"Yes, it was," Stephanie said from in front of Chris. "It was an absolute disaster because _you_ didn't get the belt. I mean, I'm just not seeing how anyone thinks that CM Punk can honestly carry this title."

"Why don't we actually give him more than a week with the title before we start to assess his run?" Chris asked.

"Because you should be holding the title. I'm so tempted to tell you that you should just forget this thing with Shawn and go after the title. I mean, come on, JBL? So no better than you are, he's a jerk. Dave? Dave is cool, but he doesn't have your charisma or experience in the ring. Kane? _Kane_? I don't think so, he's big, but he's never really held one of our major titles. And Cena? Please, his time is past and it's your time now. You should go after it."

"When I'm this close to pulverizing Shawn?" Chris said with incredulity. "Do you know how much time I've put in to bringing him down?"

"No, I don't, I only live with you," Stephanie said sarcastically. "The belt is more important than that."

"Stephanie, the man insulted our children, how is that less important than the belt?"

"Because the belt means power, sweetie," Stephanie said as she leaned a little to the left so Chris could massage a particular spot on her lower back. It had been aching a little bit and Chris's ministrations were helping to ease the pain.

"So? I can go after the belt any time I want to."

"This would be the perfect time, a weak, new champion. It's perfect."

"I'm going to have to agree with her," Shane said. Chris glared at him for a moment, but Shane didn't seem phased. He just shrugged and looked at his brother-in-law. "Bro, come on, this is the World Championship we're talking about. And think of how good it would be if someone in the McMahon family held the belt."

"Why are you people constantly trying to lump me in?" Chris asked with exasperation, pressing extra hard on Stephanie's back and causing her to yelp, "Sorry, baby," he told her, "If, _if_ I were to win the title, I would carry the title as a representative of Chris Jericho, not of the McMahon family. Like I said in that interview I just did, I don't play well with others. I'm the lone wolf of wrestling."

"I wouldn't say you're the complete lone wolf," Stephanie said.

"What? No, I've always preferred working with myself."

"You were with the Un-Americans," Shane pointed out.

"No, he wasn't," Stephanie said. "He associated with them, but he wasn't actually Un-American because that would've been very silly of him. Chris was born in New York so he's a U.S. citizen by birth."

"I have dual citizenship, thank you very much," Chris said. "But she's right, I never actually aligned with them, but not for the reasons Stephanie said. I just didn't want to be grouped with them."

"But you still left with them," Shane told him. "For Raw."

"No, I didn't," Chris said, "you probably don't remember, hell, I barely remember, but I actually went to Raw because my girlfriend at the time asked me to. She wanted to get the inside dirt on this guy and sent me to do it so I switched shows."

"Oh yeah," Shane chuckled, "Whatever happened to that girl?"

"I don't know, I think she ended up with some really awesome guy and has a couple of kids," Chris answered with a chuckle as he knead Stephanie's sides with his hands.

"Sometimes," Stephanie said, "but how about this, you and Christian?"

"That wasn't a big thing, we were tag partners."

"You're also best friends."

"So, it's not like I held his hand and went tra-la-laing through the forest with him," Chris said. "I prefer to be alone, like I said."

"Chyna?"

"That was just a complete lapse in judgment."

"Okay…you and Kurt had a short thing."

"Convenience."

"What's his face, the bodyguard guy you had in WCW," Stephanie said.

"That was hardly a partnership, he was a stagehand I picked up for a while."

"Here's one for you," Shane said.

"Okay, lay it on me."

"My sister," Shane said, folding his arms in front of him as he prepared himself to watch his brother-in-law weasel his way out of this one. If there was ever a partnership that had lasted, it had to be this one. Chris couldn't deny that he was with Stephanie since Stephanie was sitting in front of him, pregnant with their second child.

"No, see, us, me and her, we didn't last," Chris said.

"He's right," Stephanie said. "We ended."

"What! No you didn't."

"Yes, we did," Stephanie said. "He couldn't save me from getting fired and that was the end of our partnership. I didn't…I don't know, that was out of convenience. Chris had what Hunter wanted and I wanted to hurt Hunter, so it made the most sense. If it had been Rocky holding the belt, I would've probably asked him to be my business partner."

"Yeah," Chris added.

"You know, maybe I should've," Stephanie said. "Then he might still be here and I would've persuaded him to stay and people would love him…man, why _didn't_ I get together with Rocky?"

"Spare me," Chris gagged. "You guys never would've lasted."

"But you two are together now," Shane said.

"Yeah, but that wasn't part of the original thing. I didn't even think of getting with Stephanie until she wouldn't hug me. If she had hugged me, I don't even know if we'd be together right now to be honest. I mean, it's easy to say that we would've found one another somehow, but what if I honestly believed that she hated me. I could've easily left SmackDown because my friends were leaving and then we'd be on separate shows, never seeing one another, years could've gone by and Stephanie could've met Ted DiBiase Jr. and she would've fallen in love with him and she would be dating him right now."

"Shut up!" Stephanie said, her cheeks reddening against her wishes.

"Ted?" Shane asked, his eyebrow perking up.

"Steph has a crush on him," Chris said, leaning forward to rest his chin on his wife's shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her middle, letting them rest on top of her rounded stomach where Flynn was surely kicking around.

"I do not," she pouted, then looked at her skeptical brother, "I do not!"

"Sure, you don't," Chris said. "But see, things could've turned out very different."

"But they didn't, so I assert that you two had a lasting thing."

"Whatever, we should get back on topic, you were talking about last week being a disaster," Chris said, steering the conversation away from the tangent it had gone on.

"Yes, that's right, I just…I don't know, I don't think it was up to snuff. It felt like the wrestlers were running things and I know I'm pregnant and I think people are taking advantage of that and I think they were taking advantage of you, Shane."

"You think so?"

"You're not as stern as I am, or dad is, it's just not in your nature. You're like Mom, you're the calming effect, I guess."

"I can be stern."

"Obviously not if people are not afraid of you," Stephanie explained. "Then they look at me and it's like, oh, pregnant lady, she's not going to want to get worked up because she's pregnant, so we can do whatever the hell we want to do. I should just kick someone in the shin or slap them or something."

"Shh," Chris whispered to her, "you really _aren't_ supposed to get worked up."

"Too late, I'm always worked up." Chris rubbed her stomach comfortingly. "I guess you just have to go and tell everyone again that they need to rally together. Can you believe that Dad is still refusing to see anyone? He just keeps telling us that he's doing okay, but he still doesn't want anyone to see him. I should just barge in there one day."

"You think they'd allow that?" Chris asked.

"I'm pregnant, they'd take pity on me."

"I'm not so sure they would."

"So if you thought last week was chaotic and you want it better this week, you do it," Shane said.

"What? No, you just go do it again."

"No, Stephanie, obviously they don't listen to me, so you do it," Shane said.

"Chris, sweetie, will you do it?" Stephanie asked sweetly, turning her head to the side to see his profile just over her shoulder. "I am carrying your child, your second child, and you want me to be as comfortable as possible, don't you? You wouldn't want me to strain myself, especially when I'm sore, right?"

"Well, no, I wouldn't want those things, but I'm not going to do the message for you. What the hell would that even do? Nobody would listen to me."

"But you can beat people up."

"She's got a point there," Shane told him. "You _can_ beat people up."

"So what, now I'm just the muscle, the security guy?"

"Yeah, pretty much," Shane joked. Chris flipped him off.

"Please, Chris?"

"Stephanie, no this has to do with your dad, not my dad. If my dad suddenly turned crazy and for some reason got his own show where he could act crazy, then yeah, I would go out there, but this is your dad, your responsibility."

"I hate you," she told him. "You're going to make me do this, I look hideous!"

"You do not look hideous," Chris said, kissing her cheek and then nuzzling his nose against her. "I think you look beautiful."

"I do not," Stephanie said. "Besides, you're not even busy tonight."

"Actually, I will be, Shawn is going to accept my match."

"How do you know that?" Shane asked. "I mean, you seem pretty sure he's going to."

Chris looked down, "Well, you know, this is Shawn Michaels, he's not going to turn down a challenge, right?"

"Yeah, you're probably right."

"I heard that his eye actually might be more injured than he's letting on."

"Now how did you hear_ that_?" Stephanie asked. "Did you call up his doctor or something?"

"No, I didn't, I just…I have my ways is all," he told her. "Come on, let's go film this thing so you can go sit down."

"Okay, later, Shane."

"Yeah, later, bro," Chris said.

"Bye, you guys."

Trish ran after Sawyer and scooped him into her arms, kissing his cheek as he tried to squirm away. It wasn't many guys that would turn away a bevy of kisses from Trish Stratus, soon to be Trish Cage…well, okay, maybe she'd just stay Trish Stratus, now that she thought about it. Sawyer laughed and giggled as she put him down and he started running again. He saw Christian come out of nowhere and he screamed in surprise as he turned and tried running the other way. Christian caught up to him easily and pretended like he was going to grab Sawyer, but let Sawyer out of his grasp so the little boy could continue to run around the small park. Though there was a lack of playground equipment, he just seemed happy to run around.

Sawyer got tired and took a deep breath as he went over to the blanket that Christian and Trish had brought and sat down heavily on it, tired from running around. Christian ran up to Trish and lifted her off her feet, running over to the blanket and depositing his fiancée on it. The sun was just beginning to set and they would soon leave, but they wanted to catch their breaths first. They had all eaten dinner before coming to the park and Trish was sure they had run off their meal chasing after Sawyer.

"And you want one of those," Christian said, shaking his head.

Trish lifted Sawyer so he was in her lap and she leaned her chin against his head. "Yes, as a matter of fact, I do. I want one so bad. Tell me again why we can't just start now?"

"Because we're getting married in two months and we can wait two months."

"I suppose," Trish said. "Say it again though."

"Say what?"

"The getting married part."

"That we're getting married in two months?" he wondered.

"Yeah, I just like hearing that."

"Okay…we're getting married in two months."

Trish closed her eyes, "I never thought we'd get here and now here we are, two months removed from our wedding, our _wedding_, Chrissy, can you believe it? Can _you _believe it, Sawyer? Christian and I are going to get married!"

"Okay," Sawyer said, looking over at Christian, who was grinning like a crazy person. Who smiled like that?

"I'm going to marry Christian."

"What?"

"Marry him, it's going to be him and I forever and ever, and then hopefully soon, we're going to have a baby, and maybe it'll be a boy and you can be best friends or something," Trish said. "I mean, I don't want to get ahead of myself or anything, but you know."

"Baby?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah, Christian and I want to have a baby as soon as we're married," Trish said, like she was talking with an adult and not a two-year-old who didn't really have the capacity to understand what she was saying.

"Oh, you no tummy," Sawyer said, patting Trish's tummy. His mommy had a baby in there and her tummy was really, really big, it looked like she ate a really big ball and it just kept growing and growing! He was starting to get afraid that his mommy would pop because her tummy looked like a balloon.

"I know," Trish said, "I don't have a baby yet, but I'm going to."

"I have baby," Sawyer said.

"I know, you're so lucky, I'm jealous."

Sawyer giggled, "Fin!"

"Yeah, Flynn, are you excited to meet her?"

"Yeah, uh huh," Sawyer said.

"Me too," Christian added. "Then I can baby-sit for the both of you and I'll know how to take care of girls and boys. It'll really come in handy when I become a father. Wow, me as a father, that'll be crazy, for sure."

"Yeah…hey, weren't you supposed to be looking after Vickie this evening."

Christian groaned. "I don't want to."

"But you told Edge you would."

"They broke up, I don't see why he wants me to tail after his _ex­_-fiancée for him when they're not even together anymore. Don't you think that's stupid?"

"Chrissy, come on, after all of our break-ups, and they were numerous, you can't tell me that you didn't at least ask Chris or Stephanie to check up on me or anything. Edge, I don't know why, I really don't, seems to honestly care about Vickie and you told him you would. It's got to be rough for her. I mean, in her condition, or whatever."

"Condition, what condition?" Christian scoffed. "I don't like her."

"You don't have to like her," Trish said. "Edge is your brother and you love him. You don't have to love her, but you love him, and you promised him you would keep an eye out for her when he found out she would be here tonight."

"Why couldn't he have done it?"

"Because your brother is like you, pig-headed and stubborn."

"I'm neither of those things."

"Just do it for him, he obviously cares about what happens to her and you know that if he was in your place, he would do it for you. You know he would make sure that I was okay for you."

"Yeah…he would, even if he is a flake a lot of the time, he's still a good brother."

"He is, so come on, let's get out of here so you can check on her."

"Undercover though, I'm not supposed to talk to her."

"Oh, okay," Trish said, rolling her eyes and standing with Sawyer. Sawyer leaned his head against Trish's shoulder and yawned. He was tired from all his running around and Trish knew Stephanie would be happy that she didn't really have to deal with him. Things were getting more and more difficult for Stephanie to do and time was winding down before she took her actual maternity leave and left the show. Trish couldn't imagine traveling this far into a pregnancy, but Stephanie was bred of a different stock, a very tough stock that never seemed tired or phased by anything.

She wondered how it would feel to carry around a child, knowing that you were going to have someone's baby, that you were joined with someone through a child. She could see the manifestation of that in Sawyer, this sweet, boisterous, little boy who was adored by pretty much everyone he met. She wondered what it felt like to feel a kick coming from another human being inside of you and the wonder it would fill her with. She wanted it so bad and the next couple of months could not come soon enough for her.

"I look horrible," Stephanie whined.

"You do not," he told her. "You look great."

"I don't, I didn't plan on being on TV so I didn't do my hair, my hair is limp and ugly and there's not enough time to get it done properly because I'd need a wash and a rinse and the show's starting in a half-hour and I don't have the time to get it restyled."

"Your hair looks fine. I like it."

"Don't lie, Chris, I don't look fine. I'm not even dressed nicely, I didn't expect to be on TV. I've got no makeup! Where's Jan?" Stephanie asked frantically.

"Stephanie Marie McMahon-Jericho," Chris said, grabbing her by the shoulders. "You look fine, you look beautiful, okay, and I will tell them that you should be filmed from the chest up. Nobody even needs to see your stomach and your hair looks great and your face is gorgeous and if there weren't all these people around, I'd completely throw you gently against the wall and do you as best I could."

"You're just saying that."

"Yeah, I am because I really wouldn't do you because…come on, we're in front of a bunch of people."

"I don't know what to say."

"Yes, you do," Chris told her. "It's just a short thing, come on, Steph, you're a pro at this. I'll tell you this…"

"What?"

"You're going to be on for like a minute tops, but I bet everyone is going to forget every other female on this show," he told her, his voice low as he stared into her eyes with complete sincerity. Her face softened and she nearly forgot everything that she was worried about. Chris had such faith in her and she was never quite aware of where it came from.

"Okay, I'm ready then," Stephanie said. "Chest and up remember."

"I will."

"Do I look bloated…be honest."

"You look rounded…but you're pregnant, people know that and they won't care, trust me," he said, giving her a kiss. She smiled and took her position.

Stephanie got in front of the camera, hoping she didn't look dopey and started to speak. She reminded everyone of what her brother had said the week before and how the show had ended up being completely chaotic. Well, to her it was chaotic. Chris should've been the one to win the title, then everyone was making matches and acting like they were in charge and it was frustrating for someone like Stephanie. She implored everyone to rally together again, but she wasn't sure how much of that message got through to people.

Evidently, not much. The first person to come out was a female probably more universally hated than she had ever been, Vickie Guerrero. She was here for something about the belt and then everything just got so clustered again. At least they managed to figure it out on their own without interference. In fact, it might be an entertaining match, well, if there were one minor change.

"You should put yourself in that match," Stephanie told Chris.

"What?"

"Put yourself in, beat them all and get the title shot."

"Um, I challenged Shawn, remember?"

"Oh yeah," she said dejectedly. "Why don't you just beat him up tonight so he can't compete and then go and kick all those other guy's asses and then go win the title from CM Punk? You would make such a great champion. Everyone would love you."

"I highly doubt that. You have too much faith in me, though, thinking I could take down five other guys in one night, what do you think I am?"

"I don't know, someone that could beat up five guys in one night."

"Mommy?" came an inquiring voice.

"I know that voice," Stephanie said as she pushed herself up with a bit of help from Chris as she waddled in front of the table to intercept her little boy who was barreling into her. "Hey there, baby boy, did you have fun with Trish and Christian?"

"Uh huh, eat and run."

"You ate and you ran?"

"Yup, fun," he told her as he took her by the hand back to where Chris was sitting. "Sit, Mommy."

"Am I a dog?"

Sawyer giggled, "No, you Mommy."

"I am Mommy."

"Mommy, lap?" Sawyer said, patting her lap.

"Ask Daddy to help you, and say please?"

"Daddy, help, pease?" Sawyer said, giving Chris his own grin right back at him. Chris laughed and relented, lifting Sawyer into Stephanie's lap, maneuvering him so he wouldn't fall off from being bumped by Flynn. He ended up having to practically pin Sawyer to the table, but Sawyer was happy to be around his mommy.

Stephanie saw Trish walk over, "Thanks for watching him, Trish."

"It was no problem, I'm going to need the practice," Trish said, gazing fondly at Stephanie's stomach.

"Where's Christian?"

"He's checking up on Vickie, secretly of course, you know, that favor for Edge."

"That is the strangest relationship ever. I mean, I thought Chris and I getting together was strange, that's off the charts."

"Yeah, I know, I mean, I really think Edge feels genuinely for her, it's really strange. I guess it just goes back to that old saying, you can't choose who you love," Trish said as she pulled up a chair behind Chris so she could talk to Stephanie. "And Edge loves Vickie…maybe, I don't know."

Stephanie laughed. "So, we haven't really had time to talk, how was the fitting?"

"Oh, hey, baby, I've got to go meet up with someone," Chris said, interrupting Stephanie. "I don't mean to just up and run out on you, but yeah, I've got to go meet with someone, so yeah…"

"Who?"

"Just Lance," Chris said quickly.

"Oh, okay, bye."

"Bye, later, Trish."

"Later," Trish said. "So you were saying."

"Yeah, how was the fitting?"

"Great, the dress looks great on me. I love the style of it, the entire ceremony is just going to look so cool. Which reminds me, Christian has ordered the tuxes and Chris and Sawyer both need to come in so they could get theirs fitted."

"I'll call in and make an appointment."

"Also, my sister is usually your size so I had her try on a dress for you. We can have it altered up to three days before the wedding. Any sooner and it probably won't be ready in time for the wedding."

"That should be good, by then Flynn will have been out for a month." Sawyer was getting bored of the conversation that his mommy and Trish were having and there was nothing for him to do so he decided he might as well talk to his sister. He started to lift up Stephanie's shirt so he could get to her stomach like he and his daddy did sometimes in the mornings. They would all lie in bed and talk to Flynn when his mommy pulled her shirt up so that he could see her tummy. "Sawyer!"

"I talk Fin," Sawyer said, still trying to lift up her shirt.

"Sawyer, you can't talk to her right now," Stephanie said, grabbing her shirt, but Sawyer was not relenting and held on tighter, trying to lift it up so he could talk to his sister. He didn't understand that Stephanie didn't want her stomach exposed for everyone to see. "Sawyer, stop!"

"No!" he said angrily. If he was going to be bored, he at least wanted to talk to the baby.

"Sawyer, I said stop or else you're going to get a time-out," Stephanie said. "Do you want that?"

"No," Sawyer said dejectedly.

"I didn't think so, now you can give Flynn a kiss and you can talk _through_ my shirt, but you can't go lifting up my shirt. What if you lift it too much and everyone sees me without a shirt?"

"I no shirt," Sawyer said, lifting his own shirt up.

"Well you have a weightlifter's body," she joked. "I've got a pregnant mommy's body, not very good."

"Oh," he said, then quickly kissed Stephanie's exposed tummy, "Hi, baby." Stephanie pulled down her shirt and Sawyer leaned his head against her firm tummy and then his eyes widened and he laughed when he felt a bump against his kick. "She say hi!"

"She always says hi for you, she loves you," Stephanie told him affectionately as he just laid against her stomach.

"Why do you do these things to me, Steph?" Trish asked as she stared jealously at Stephanie and her kids, or one kid and the other one that was on the way. "You're killing me here with this."

"Oh, and I was going to kill you even more."

"Oh no…"

Stephanie reached for her files, "I got this on Friday, but you and Christian were in Canada doing all your wedding stuff." She handed Trish a small piece of paper and Trish's uterus started to ache as she looked down at the ultrasound. "That's the newest one, and you can definitely see her in it."

"Look at those hands!" Trish exclaimed.

"Whose hands?" Christian asked as he walked over, sitting down in the chair Chris had just occupied. "So Vickie seems just really pissed. Now I'm starting to see why she's good with my brother." Nobody laughed and Christian pretended to hit an imaginary microphone, "Hello, is this thing on?"

"Look, it's Flynn," Trish said, turning the ultrasound around so Christian could see. "And you can see her little hands and everything."

"Wow, that's pretty cool…how big is she now?"

"The doctor put her right around four pounds, so she's getting pretty hefty, that one," Stephanie said with a laugh. "But yeah, there she is, already ready for all the pictures everyone's going to take of her. Chris's parents are thrilled about having another grandchild and they're actually going to buy a condo down in Tampa and they're going to spend their winters down there since Canada is horrible in the winter. They can help with the kids too, so that should help. My parents are loving the fact she's a girl since Shane only has boys and I have Sawyer. I think everyone is anticipating her coming out, me especially since I'm the one she's decided to take over."

"I saw Chris in the hallway, he looked like he was in a hurry," Christian said. "He was ducking into some locker room."

"He had a meeting with Lance, he said," Stephanie explained. "I don't know what about."

"No, that's not right, I saw Lance like five minutes later talking with someone."

"Are you sure?" Stephanie asked, her brow knitting.

"Yeah, I know what I saw."

"I wonder who Chris was meeting with then."

"Search me," Christian said.

Stephanie let Christian and Trish talk about Flynn and the ultrasound picture as she thought back to what Christian had just told her. Chris had been awfully secretive as of late, going off, talking in low tones in his office when he used to just talk in front of her. He was up to something and her stupid hormones were making her think crazy things that her logical brain knew couldn't be true. Her logical brain was obviously winning out, but the hormones were sneaking in little hisses to her brain.

"Shane?" Stephanie said, turning to her brother who had been working this entire time.

"Hmm?"

"Is Natalya here tonight?"

"Niedhart?"

"Yeah."

"No, why?"

"No reason, I was just wondering if anyone from any of the other shows was here besides Vickie and I saw a blonde diva and I can't even tell them apart anymore."

"No, she's not here, you may have seen Kelly Kelly though, she's on Raw now," Shane told her.

"Oh, yeah, maybe that was it…Kelly Kelly?"

"Yeah."

There was that little hiss again, but it was softer and Stephanie beat it down. Chris was allowed to do what he wanted. Chris was better than anything those stupid hormones could think of and hiss into her ear. Chris was the best man she had ever come across and that made her smile. So what if he was lying to her, she lied to him too so it wasn't like she didn't do the same thing to him. So why all the secrecy? Something was going on and she couldn't figure out what it was, but something wasn't right about this entire situation.

She didn't get a clear answer later when Chris came back. Christian and Trish had taken off to go see if Vickie was okay and she was with Sawyer, who was playing with some Play-Doh, molding it into different shapes in front of him, right now he said he was building a car. Chris sat down next to her and he smiled at her.

"Daddy, car," Sawyer said, holding up his piece of Play-Doh.

"Brilliantly done, my son."

"How was your meeting with Cade?"

"Fine, we decided that we were going to interrupt Shawn when he went out to speak. I know that he's going to accept because that's who he is."

"Did you know that Kelly Kelly was on Raw now?"

"Who?" Chris asked, honestly not knowing who she was talking about.

"Kelly Kelly, from ECW, that really young blonde."

"Oh, um, okay," Chris said, wondering why she had changed the subject so abruptly. "I have a hard time telling all those blondes apart to be honest."

Stephanie smiled. _Back you hiss, back!_ Yes, the logical part of her brain was roaring loud now, banishing that hissing voice and pushing her hormones down. Chris must've had something very important to do. He was embroiled in this thing with Shawn so he was probably doing something to prepare for that. Chris knew what he was doing and she had to trust that she knew he would only have her best intentions at heart. He loved their family and he couldn't wait for Flynn to come and he was already protecting his little girl. Yes, Chris was just preparing for Shawn.

"Yeah."

"Why did you ask if I knew that she was on Raw?"

"Just a question…so uh, do you know for certain that Shawn will accept?"

"Yeah."

"How do you know?"

"I just do, Shawn's not going to back down from a challenge like this."

"I guess you're right, do you know what you're going to say out there?"

"Yeah, I know what I'm going to say."

"What?"

"I'm just going to tell him that I think his eye injury is worse than he's making it out to be, at least that's what I've heard, maybe it'll shake him up a bit and then I'll ask him why he does stuff for the fans when they really don't do anything for him and then tell him that he's going to be forgotten. Then when he responds with some crap answer about how he'll never be forgotten, that the fans will always love him and remember him, how they have loved him even though they've seen even the worst of him, I'll tell him that he gets a free pass from them, he'll know what I mean. Just because they love him doesn't mean he gets a free pass with me."

The scary part to Stephanie was that when Chris came out, it almost went exactly as he had explained it to her. It was truly uncanny the way that he had the foresight to know exactly what Shawn was going to say to him. It was a little suspicious too. Had Chris been spying on Shawn? How did he know so specifically all the things that Shawn would say before Shawn even said them? Stephanie kept watching, trying to flip it over in her brain. Sawyer had gone back to the hotel with Trish and Christian so she was free to think and think she did as Chris continued to speak.

Chris knew it was going to go down like this. He knew it was going to end up like this. He was prepared for it. He knew what he was going to say and how he was going to play it all. Chris was wily and he knew what he was doing. He had a comment for everything Shawn said and he knew what Shawn was going to say before Shawn even knew what he was going to say and he loved having that kind of upper-hand on him.

He wasn't prepared, though, for the insult to come. Shawn talked about all Chris had accomplished in the company, and he was actually surprised that Shawn knew he had won every major title in the company and that Shawn was not the only Grand Slam winner in the ring right now. But then the insult came and it was a slap in the face that almost hit as deep as when Shawn had insulted his kids. Nothing could compare to that anger, but this was coming close.

Chris wanting to be Shawn? Maybe when Chris was a rookie, just starting out in this business, but now? No way. Chris had carved a niche in this business, one of his very own, crafting his own personality. Sure, sometimes the comparison was there, but it was bound to happen as both guys had a lot of similarities to the other, but Chris had become his own person and a unique wrestler in his own right. Chris had achieved so much in his career that he didn't need to be Shawn Michaels.

He wasn't some wrestler who would fade after a while. Chris had been in this business since he was the ripe age of 19. He was one of the most well-know wrestlers and he had been a champion of every title and everyone knew his name. So the fans didn't forgive him every grievance, he didn't much care about that, let Shawn have that because he seemed to need it badly. Chris was doing just fine with his career and his life and he didn't need Shawn telling him what or what he didn't want to be.

"I don't want to be you," Chris practically spat. "I would never want to be you."

"That's BS," Shawn told him. "Pure BS."

"Why the hell would I want to be you, Shawn?" Chris asked through gritted teeth as they continued to stare each other down. "So I can go around insulting people and their families? No thanks."

"Face it, Jericho, I have."

"Here's something to face, Michaels, you have no idea what I'm capable of."

Chris turned and motioned for Lance to follow him. They climbed out of the ring and up the ramp. Stephanie was waiting for him and he walked over to her, letting Lance do his own thing. "How did you know what he was going to say?"

"Huh?"

"Shawn, you knew, you knew everything. How? How did you know, did you spy on him, are you bugging him, you're spying on him, aren't you?"

"I have my ways…"


	192. He Needs Disciplining, July 14, 2008

"Would you just come on?"

"You do not have to pull me like I am some dog or something."

"I'm not pulling you," Hunter said with exasperation.

"Look, you are the one that asked me to come with you here, I do not even know why we are here in the first place."

"I told you," he said succinctly.

"No, you did not tell me," Maryse told him. "You come up to me after SmackDown and ask me out, but it is not even out, you did not even take me out anywhere. We were supposed to be in Charlotte and yet you take me to Raw and it was a three-hour drive and it was boring, you are boring."

"Thanks," Hunter said, then stopped and turned to her, "I'll get this out now, you're not here as my date, I mean to say, this isn't a _real_ date."

"Well I should hope not because it would be one of the worst dates ever," she told him blandly.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, look, my…Britt is in there and you are here because of that."

"Wait, you are using me?"

"Yeah, so what?"

"So what? You drag me three hours away from where I am supposed to be and you think this is okay?" she said. "We took my car, you wasted my gas."

"I paid for that," Hunter told her. "So can we go inside now?"

"No, I don't want to be used, I don't care what this is for or who it is for, I'm not going to be used by you!"

"What if I gave you a hundred dollars, would that do it for you?" he asked, fishing for his wallet out of his back pocket.

Maryse looked aghast at the proposition that he was making for her. Did he really think that she could just be bought out or something? "I am not a hooker."

"I didn't say you were a hooker, was I paying for sex?" he asked her sarcastically.

"No, but this is using me, I'm leaving, you can find your own way back," she told him turning on her spiked heel and striding back to the car.

Hunter started after her for a few steps, saying, "Maryse, come on, seriously, you'd be doing me a huge favor and I swear I'd repay it."

"No."

She opened the door to her rental, got inside and slammed the door, barely taking any time to put the key into the ignition and driving off, her tires screeching as she pulled out of the parking lot, leaving Hunter stranded. He sighed and looked towards the arena looming up over the night sky. Well now he had to get a ride. He thought for a moment and realized that would be easy. Shawn was in there and that actually worked out quite well. Shawn would give him a ride for sure, they were friends after all.

He trudged into the arena and everyone was already hustling and bustling around because the show was set to start shortly. He had been cutting it close with Maryse, but she kept asking to know where they were going and it caused him to drive slower than he normally would because he couldn't stand listening to her and trying to drive at the same time. Her voice could be so shrill when she wanted it to be. He pitied any guy who honestly wanted to be with her.

He got into the building with no trouble, people seeing him and obviously knowing who he was. He got a couple stares here and there, but he took no note of these. They would probably just ask themselves as to why he was here. Everyone had heard about the falling out between him and Chris and subsequently him and Britt. He had brought Maryse along in the first place so Britt could see them together. Maybe he should've brought Natalya instead. He could picture her (from what he knew of her) going along with what he planned to do.

No matter, things were still going okay. He had yet to see Britt, but he knew that she had to be around here somewhere.

Britt felt slightly uncomfortable. She was trying to work at Chris's desk and well…Randy was staring at her. She was still surprised that he was even here, but he had just showed up, showering her with a "Surprise!" and now he was sitting there, watching her and she couldn't focus on the page in front of her. She kept glancing up at him and every time she looked up, there he was, staring at her.

"Can you stop doing that?" she asked, her voice on the testy side.

"Doing what?"

"You're staring at me."

"Oh, sorry," he chuckled to himself. "I didn't even realize I was doing it."

"Oh," she said, looking down at the sheet in front of her. She had a lot more responsibilities tonight because Shane _and_ Stephanie weren't here so Chris was the one in charge, but he was also wrestling tonight and couldn't really be in charge so most of the work fell on her. She hadn't even seen Chris in over an hour. She kind of wished he would save her from Randy.

"What're you doing?"

"Working."

"Oh yeah, yeah, sorry," Randy said, feeling stupid.

"You still haven't explained what you were doing here," Britt said, pushing the paper away from her. She wasn't going to be getting anything done regarding the upcoming schedules and itineraries with Randy constantly looking over at her like he was doing so she gave up on it.

"I wanted to see you."

"Unannounced," she pointed out. "Randy, we're not…we're not together, you know, we've never even been out on a date, I'm not even…I mean to say…things are up in the air with Hunter right now."

"Well where is he then?" Randy asked, looking around exaggeratingly, like he was actually searching for Hunter in the empty space around him. "Let me tell you something, if you were my girl, there's no way that I would just let you sit here alone. Even if we were _up in the air_ as you say, I would be doing everything in my power to make sure that we weren't _up in the air_."

"I'm sure you would," she mumbled under her breath, but then spoke louder so she could hear him. "Well, maybe he would but I'm not allowing him to. Did you think of that?"

"No," Randy admitted, "but I wouldn't have cared."

"This isn't a pissing contest between you and Hunter," she told him. "It's not whoever is manlier or whatever. That has nothing to do with this."

"Are you two broken up?"

Britt didn't have an answer for that, not an honest one at least, "We're…he's on SmackDown right now and he's trying to get situated over there, I'm sure, I can't just…it would be weird…I mean to say that he's getting used to things over there because he hasn't been over there in years and it's a new schedule and everything and he wasn't expecting to get sent over there so he had to mentally prepare and there's a whole new set of competitors over there as well…"

"So what you're saying is he's ignoring you or he's forgotten about you?"

She looked at him indignantly, "He hasn't forgotten about me!"

"So where is he?"

"Like I said--"

"Yeah, all very convenient things, but I'm _here_, Britt, I'm here and I'm talking to you, which is more than I can say about your supposed boyfriend. If you're not over there at SmackDown with him, how do you know he isn't with some girl over there, there's divas and female workers over there too."

"Shut up," Britt told him, "what are you trying to prove here? Are you trying to upset me so I'll go running into your arms or something? Do you think that I'm just going to crumble?"

"I'm just saying that I don't think that Hunter is right for you," Randy said. "Didn't he like, not tell his mother about you? Or like, she didn't like you and he didn't defend you?"

"Have you been spying on me?" she demanded to know.

"No, but word gets around. Wrestlers are a bunch of gossips. Hunter tells you, you tell Hunter, someone overhears and it _always_ gets around."

"So then if Hunter _were_ with some other woman, don't you think that would get around to me?" she asked smugly.

"Well, if you're good, then nobody has to know anything. Chris and Stephanie hid their relationship for years before people found out," Randy pointed out, knowing that would hit Britt since she was friends with the two.

"Look, I'm not going to hold an inquiry over what Hunter is doing over on SmackDown."

"He's too old for you anyways," Randy said. Britt glared at him some more. She hated when people brought up the age disparity between her and Hunter. They were both two consenting adults, she was not straight out of her teens or anything. Sure, Hunter was older, but he wasn't an old man, he wasn't in his 60's, he wasn't even yet in his 40's. It wasn't like she was dating Vince McMahon, which apparently Trish had done (Britt still kind of didn't get how Stephanie could be best friends with a woman who had slept with her father, but she had never felt comfortable enough to ask about that situation).

"No, he's not!" she yelled at him. "Don't say that!"

"Sorry," Randy said contritely, not expecting a reaction like that.

"Whatever," Britt said, "I've got things to do."

"Can I come with?"

Britt opened her mouth to tell him no, but then remembered herself. She took a deep breath to compose herself and then brushed some of her dark hair out of her face, more out of having something to do rather than the hair actually bothering her. She sighed, "Yeah, sure, come along."

"Awesome," he said, like nothing she had said previously had phased him at all.

He ran ahead of her and opened the door for her, letting her walk out first, checking out her ass as she walked ahead of him.

"Chris!"

Chris turned around and saw a stagehand coming over to him. He was overwhelmed with work this evening and he didn't need anything else on his plate. He already felt bad for dumping so much work onto Britt, but he couldn't concentrate on a behind-the-desk job while he had to go out there and wrestle that evening. He had requested a match yesterday and Shane had granted it to him, giving him a softball opponent as a warm-up for Great American Bash, but he hadn't anticipated what had happened last night.

Last night, while he had been peacefully sitting at home watching television with Stephanie after dinner and after putting Sawyer to bed, Linda had called and said that Vince "wasn't up to working" and requesting that Stephanie come and help. Stephanie had told her mother that she was on maternity leave, but Stephanie had given in because she loved the company and pregnancy or not, she was going to help where she could. So this morning, his wife had flown off to Connecticut to help with the business and he had flown off to Raleigh to take over where his wife and her brother could not.

He didn't have time for anything. His mind was focused solely on Shawn Michaels and making sure his message was sent before Great American Bash. "What is it?"

"You're needed in the production truck. We just got something from Titan."

"Can you ask Britt to look over it?" he asked, rubbing his temple with his right hand.

"Aren't you in charge?" he asked.

"Yeah," he sighed, "Okay, I'm on the way."

Chris started towards the production truck, walking briskly so he could get this over with. It wasn't that he hated that he had to work. He understood that he was needed and he understood the unique position that he had in this company. He was sort of in a limbo between being a higher-up and being a wrestler and sometimes the line blurred slightly and then sometimes the line just outright disappeared.

He pushed open the door and looked around, saying to nobody in particular, "I was called here, what's up?"

"Oh, hey, Chris," one of the directors said, "we got a video from Stephanie and we wanted to make sure that it was okay. She said to put it at the top of the show, but I mean, you're in charge and everything."

"Oh, yeah, um, I guess let me see it," Chris said, sitting down.

The multiple screens in front of Chris lit up with the pictures of Shane and Stephanie, Stephanie sitting down to hide her pregnant stomach and Shane standing next to her. For a moment Chris thought they looked like one of those family portraits people got in the 80's. He laughed a second before Stephanie and Shane started to talk. Stephanie _must_ have talked Shane into doing another one of these things. That woman…

Shane spoke first, saying how he and Stephanie had both made pleas for everyone in the company to rally together and act accordingly now that Vince was unavailable. Chris rolled his eyes. The only reason Vince was unavailable was because he was making himself unavailable. He still refused to see everyone and Chris was starting to think that Vince had just faked the entire thing and gone on vacation, leaving his children to run things. Chris had even heard from Stephanie this morning that Marissa was back part-time helping out. This would be such a Vince thing to do.

He went back to watching as he chuckled under his breath as he watched Stephanie look up adoringly at her brother. She turned to speak herself, saying how the behavior of the Raw superstars had been abhorrent. She went through a laundry list of offenses, from Kane assaulting Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler to Cena, JTG, and Shad defacing JBL's limo. The last one though he knew Stephanie had included especially because of him. She mentioned CM Punk winning the title unadvertised and unexpected. He was surprised that Stephanie hadn't started raging on and on how CM Punk shouldn't have won the title at all. Maybe she was clenching her fists when she said it.

Chris felt a stirring at his shoulder and then a weight lift off of it. "Mommy?"

"Hey there, kid," Chris said as Sawyer lifted his head off of Chris's shoulder. "Are you feeling better now?"

Sawyer had been upset when he realized Stephanie, and more importantly Flynn, weren't around and he was stuck with Chris. He had cried himself to sleep asking for Stephanie. He looked around, "Where Mommy?"

"She's right there," Chris said, pointing to the screen and Sawyer's face lit up.

"Mommy!" Sawyer said, happy now that he could see her.

Since it was a prerecording, Chris went back to watching in time to catch Shane and Stephanie say that they were physically unable to be at Raw that evening, which is why Chris was sitting there in the first place. It was also why Sawyer was with him, since Stephanie had been working all day and wouldn't have been able to take care of Sawyer, so he had gone on the road with Chris. It was also a test to see if Chris was able to take care of Sawyer by himself so they could travel together after Flynn was born. Other than Sawyer not wanting to leave Chris's arms for the past few hours when he realized Stephanie wasn't around, things had been going swimmingly.

The siblings went on to say that if things didn't shape up this week that actions would definitely be taken next week and that they hoped everyone would rally together and they would be watching. Sawyer was watching attentively at this point, watching his mommy on the screen. He was a little disappointed when the video ended and he couldn't see his mommy anymore as the screen went blank.

"Mommy," he whimpered.

"It's okay, kid, we're going to see Mommy tomorrow," Chris said, kissing his son's head. "I miss her too."

"Uh huh."

"Yeah," Chris said, "Okay, you guys, that's fine, if Steph wants that at the top of the show, that's what's going to happen."

"Okay."

Chris asked if that was all and after getting the all clear, he left and went back to his locker room and office. Since Sawyer was now up, Chris set him down on his play blanket for a while. He had already eaten so it was just time to wind down and fall asleep for the little boy. Britt had promised to watch him while Chris had to work, but she wasn't here like she expected and she wondered where she could be.

"Daddy?"

"Yeah?"

"Where Mommy?"

"In Connecticut."

"Fin too?"

"Yeah, Flynn too."

"We go see?"

"Not now."

"Oh."

"I know, kiddo, but it's okay, I promise, we'll see them tomorrow."

Britt could feel Randy's presence right behind her, like he was hovering around her and it was starting to really annoy her. She stopped and turned to speak to him when she saw Hunter over Randy's shoulder, like he had been stalking them too, like the hunter that he was. She audibly gasped and Randy turned around to see the other man standing there. Randy took on a defensive pose, his chest sticking out a little like he wanted to challenge Hunter right there.

"Hunter," Britt breathed, "What are you doing here?"

"Thought I'd hang around…I wasn't aware you'd have company," he said pointedly.

"Randy surprised me."

"That's right," Randy said, the challenging tone still in his voice.

"I see," Hunter said. "So you didn't plan this?"

"Why would I plan this?" Britt asked. "Huh?"

"No reason," Hunter said, "do whatever you want, don't let me stop you."

"What did I tell you, Britt. The man isn't willing to fight for you."

"You stay out of this," Hunter snapped at him.

"See what I mean."

"No, really, stay out of it," Britt told Randy. "This isn't between us and you, this is between us, me and Hunter and you shouldn't just come barging into it. You don't know the situation at all, okay."

"I'm just calling it like I see it and all I see is that I can do better."

"Oh, and you're better? You think that all you see is you when speaking about doing better?" Hunter asked. "Yeah, right, Orton. She could do a million times better than you if she really wanted to. You're nothing but a pansy as--"

"Hunter, stop, okay, you're not on this show anymore and you should go."

"I'm here to see Shawn," Hunter lied.

"I don't care, you shouldn't be here, neither should you, Randy, you're still rehabbing. I don't even know why you're here in the first place. You should've told me. You don't just surprise someone that you aren't even…anything to. We've never even been out."

"Ha!" Hunter said.

"Shut up," Britt chastised him, "this really isn't a pissing contest. I could leave both of you right now if I wanted and tell you never to speak to me again."

"You wouldn't do that," Hunter said.

"Like hell I would, you two are being asses, the both of you," Britt told them, "in fact, yeah, both of you just leave me alone for the rest of the night."

She walked off, leaving the two of them together. Hunter looked at the younger man in anger, "See what you did?"

"What _I_ did?" Randy scoffed. "I'm still on Raw, I can be here if I want to, you're the one who's coming over from the other show. Can't you see that she wants to move on from you?"

"Can't you see that we haven't officially broken up?"

"So you're just stringing her along, nice, man, very nice."

"Get off of it, Orton, you're not going to get her."

"Like hell I won't, why would she want _you_ when she can have _me_, the younger, better version of a true man? Why would she want to stick with an old man like you?"

"You bastard!" Hunter snarled as he lunged at Randy, who wasn't able to duck out of the way. The two of them fell to the floor and Randy tried to defend himself but, being still injured, he was not able to get the upper-hand. People started to mill around them, egging them on while some people were shouting.

Somehow, the news of this fight got back to Chris, who groaned and scooped up Sawyer before running down the hallway and seeing the two men rolling around on the floor like little boys. Chris set Sawyer down and rushed over to the two men, his son staying close to him in all the chaos. Chris tried to pull at Hunter, but he kept coming just out of reach.

"Get security!" Chris yelled at some random person that he didn't take the time to see. "Stop it! Stop fighting!"

The two men paid no heed to Chris's words. Chris couldn't believe that not a single person was trying to break up this fight. Damn wrestlers wanting to see action all the time. Chris tried to pull Hunter away again, but it was just no use, the man was pummeling Randy with reckless abandon.

"Break it up you two!" Chris tried again.

"STOP!" The loud, booming voice coming from such a small body startled everyone, even Chris. Hunter and Randy actually stopped fighting at the sound of the shrill yell. Every head turned to the little boy who was standing there with his hands on his hips and a stern look that channeled his mother to a tee. "No fight!"

Hunter stood up and away from Randy. It wasn't necessarily because Sawyer had told him to stop fighting but because he loved the heck out of that little kid and he didn't want Sawyer to see him lose his temper like this. It could potentially scare the little boy and that was the last thing he wanted to do. Randy struggled to get up, but managed, wiping a trickle of blood off of his lip.

"Good," Sawyer said, wagging his finger at them like Stephanie did when he was bad. "No fight…"

"Thanks," Chris said, patting his son on the head, impressed by his skills already. Maybe Stephanie was right and they could put him to work now. "What the hell is going on here and what the hell are you two fighting about?"

"Britt," Randy explained, knowing this was not Chris, the wrestler, but Chris, the boss who could have you suspended or worse.

"Oh give me a break," Chris said, thinking this was ridiculous. "Have either of you two been listening to anything that Shane or Stephanie have said. This is no time for fighting right now, okay? This isn't a lawless country where you can be vigilantes looking for your own brand of justice. You both are going to have to leave."

"What?" Hunter said. "He started it."

"I don't care who started it, the both of you are out. I'm in charge tonight and what I say goes."

"Look, I don't have a ride, Shawn's my ride."

"Oh, well then you won't have a problem waiting out in the parking lot, now will you?" Chris said, looking pointedly at Hunter. Hunter looked at him for a moment, studying him, every nuance, every look. Then he nodded slowly in reticence, pushing through the crowd of people and down the hallway. Chris turned to Randy, "You're out too and for the love of God, don't go provoking people when you can't defend yourself. We're going to need you back and I don't want to add any more months to your rehab." He turned to the crowd. "Okay, show's over, we've all got another show to worry about so would you please get back to work!"

"Work!" Sawyer yelled at them all. Chris laughed at his son.

"You're becoming too much like your mother," Chris said, grabbing Sawyer's hand. "Come on, I've got just the babysitter for you."

Stephanie hoped that tonight's show went off well. She was in a cranky mood and the last thing she needed was to turn on Raw and see chaos once again. For once, she just wanted things to run smoothly. She had spent the entire day working when she didn't want to and being pregnant when she wanted to pop this kid out already and she was achy and tired and her father still didn't want to see any of them.

"Why? That's all I want to know," Stephanie said as she balanced a bowl of popcorn mixed with chili powder on her stomach, a food she had developed quite the liking for over the past few months.

"I don't know, honey," Linda said. "We just have to respect your father's wishes."

"I don't think there's anything wrong with him, I think he's lying," Stephanie said boldly. "He probably just wanted away from all of us. Then he's going to come back and wreak havoc and I'm going to be in labor with Flynn and I'm going to turn on the TV and he'll be there making out with…Layla or something."

"I highly doubt that."

"If he'd just let us see him, what's he being so secretive about?"

"I don't know, but we just need to be patient, okay?"

"I'm not patient," Stephanie said, shoveling some popcorn into her mouth. "If he is faking, the least he could do is record one of these things himself. Maybe then people will listen. Everything is just topsy-turvy, I mean, Punk winning the title before Chris, before _Chris_, that's just wrong and I hate it."

"Stephanie, honey, calm down. I don't want you going into labor and having to explain to Chris how I let you get so worked up you went into labor in the first place."

"I'm good," Stephanie said, "there's nothing wrong with Flynn."

"I know, and let's keep it that way, shall we? Now turn on Raw, it's about to start and I want to see my beautiful children," Linda said. "I still don't know why you couldn't have brought Sawyer with you."

"Because I was working."

"We have a daycare, you know."

"I know, but I stayed well past the time so it was just more convenient letting Chris have him, shh, we're on."

Stephanie watched herself pleading to the WWE employees. This week, she had had notice so she looked a million times better and was happy with the way that the message was coming across. She and Chris were staying in Connecticut this week so if something were to go wrong, she could absolutely be there next week because it would only be an hour and a half away to Raw. Sure, she had been there the last couple of weeks, but now she was pissed and that made a huge difference.

After her message was set to end, she hoped the wrestlers had taken that into consideration. They did not because immediately, and it was the second after the message stopped airing, Chris and Shawn were brawling on the outside of the ring, both of them trying to hit the other and get the upper-hand. So much for listening to her message.

Chris had been smiling as he heard Stephanie's voice echo throughout the arena. He wondered if Sawyer, who was probably about to fall asleep in Chris's locker room, could hear Stephanie's voice and was comforted by it. He walked out right after it ended its showing in the arena, unaware that the viewing audience at home was on a delay and didn't see him walking down to the ring and didn't see him calling out Shawn again and didn't see the two of them rush to each other and start to fight. They came right in the middle of the fight.

It was like something broke inside the two of them. Chris had been anticipating Shawn's arrival, but the other man was getting the upper-hand and that pissed him off. Chris was trying to block the blows when he felt someone else's presence and Cade pulled Shawn away from Chris. Lance pulled him up and then the two of them left the area, going backstage as he grabbed his eye, faking it like Shawn.

He was still heated when he went backstage and barely got a word in to Lance before Shawn was running towards him and spearing him to the ground. Chris got pissed now and he started hitting Shawn before someone pulled him away. Shawn, seeing that Chris was incapacitated, went after Lance and Chris tried to break free, doing so momentarily and kicking Shawn wherever he could reach. Some other guys pulled Shawn away from the melee and Cade got up and pulled Chris away while Chris spewed curses at the other man, who was trying to break free as well.

"Calm down, man, you'll get him Sunday," Lance told him.

"Yeah, yeah, you're right, maybe even later," Chris said with a smirk, "maybe he'll make the mistake of turning his back and we can get him."

"Hell yeah!" Lance said, ready for some fighting if it was going to happen.

Stephanie was trying to reach Chris, but it either went to voicemail or Britt answered and told her that Chris still wasn't there. Finally, on the sixth try, she got the voice that she wanted to hear, "Hello?"

"What the hell was that! What the hell do you think you were doing?" she accused. "Did you not see my message? I know that you must have because they told me that you had to approve it so I _know_ you saw it. Now I look like an idiot because I asked all the employees to behave like adults and what happens _right_ after the message ends, it cuts to you, my husband, fighting like you're on the playground."

"Stephanie, he was the one that came out and rushed at me, I was trying to defend myself."

"I don't care! You're supposed to be setting an example here. How am I supposed to get my message across when right after I say it, my husband of all people is breaking it? Chris, I love you, but you can't break the rules all the time."

"It was his fault," Chris told her. "I was just out there, didn't you see that?"

"No, it just went from me to you, it was kind of poetic in a way," Stephanie said.

"How?"

"I don't know, but I miss you okay," she snapped at him. There was that mood swing thing that was happening occasionally with her.

"Yeah, I miss you too, but Sawyer misses you most of all."

"Is he asleep?"

"Couldn't you tell by my low voice?"

"No, actually, I couldn't," she told him. "Is he okay?"

"He's fine. He actually broke up a fight," Chris told her.

"He what?"

"Hunter and Randy were fighting earlier."

"Okay, you're going to have to explain _that_ one to me."

"Well, they were both here and they were fighting over Britt and it was this whole thing and they were brawling on the ground and I was telling them to break it up and they weren't listening to me, then your son, _our_ son, our two-year-old son who's still in diapers yells out of the blue, yells with all the air in his little body for them to stop and they did and Sawyer was like, telling them not to fight and they stopped."

"Oh my God, I would've loved to have seen that."

"It was you, baby, it was all you. He even had his hands on his hips like he was going to punish them, you've made our son into you," Chris laughed.

"Well that's not nice," she said, then remembered that she was angry with Chris. "Chris, please, don't get into it with Shawn like that for the rest of the night, or next week, I'm going to tell you, on camera so everyone knows that I'm not playing favorites, that you cannot go around just beating people up."

"Well if you saw what really happened, if your video hadn't cut into my time, everyone could've seen that it was really Shawn who antagonized me."

"I'm so sure…so you mean this was another small glitch?"

"I guess."

"Can you just make sure that nothing happens for the rest of the night, please? I'm pregnant with your child over here and it's not fun. She's kicking all night and…I miss you."

"Baby, it's one day, you and Sawyer, man, it's one day, okay? We're going to be separated longer once you go on maternity leave for real and stay home."

"I know, but…I love you."

"I love you too."

"Make the show a good one, okay?"

"I'll try."

"Don't try, just do it. You'll save me from actually having to show my big, fat face next week. Do you think that if I did an in-ring promo that they would film me from the chest up if I asked and no long shots?"

"They might, you're awfully persuasive."

"Maybe you could stand in front of me the entire time?"

"Yeah, that won't make you noticeable."

"I'm just not comfortable being out there."

"You won't have to be, I'll make sure the show runs without a hitch."

"Chris?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you scheming while you're there? Since I'm not there, are you scheming?" Stephanie remembered last week and how he had known exactly what Shawn was going to say and exactly how to respond to it.

"I think my scheming slowed down this week due to extenuating circumstances."

"What circumstances?"

"Now would it really be a plan if I just told you what I was doing?"

"But I'm so curious."

"All in due time, baby, you'll find out in due time," Chris said. "I've got to go now, got to make sure that everything runs smoothly for you. It's the least I can do since you're carrying my daughter. You know, I don't think I've said it much, but having a daughter, saying my daughter, it's a little strange."

"You're so cute, but go, patrol the hallways, be vigilant!"

"I will, I will, I love you."

"I love you too."

Chris hung up the phone and smiled to himself, tapping his cell phone against his lips as he thought about his wife. "Wipe that grin off of your face."

"Just babysit my kid, okay?"

"I am, I am."

"I've got to go make sure everything goes okay and then I have a match. Sawyer will probably stay asleep."

"Okay, I got it."

Chris left, determined to make the show run smoothly so Stephanie wouldn't have to stress about it. He had a match with Paul London later that evening, but it was a cakewalk. London managed to get a little offense in on him, but not much at all. Chris had almost complete control of the entire match and Lance didn't need that silly chair that he was holding. Chris got the easy win with the Walls of Jericho, really putting it on London, not even giving him the half-assed Walls of Jericho that he usually did. This forced London to tap out and Chris grabbed the microphone.

He might not be able to brawl with Shawn right now out of respect for his wife, but he sure as hell could talk to the man. Chris baited Shawn right into his trap, knowing after earlier that Shawn would come out here, if only to show that he wasn't afraid of anything that Chris could dish. He told London to change his career path and follow the true and right way, Chris's own way. He got the message imbedded in London's brain when Shawn came out, claiming that they were both on different planes of thinking, but come Sunday, that would be tossed aside and they would both be on the same page, one of destruction.

Heeding Stephanie's words, Chris didn't go after him, though every bone and nerve and muscle in his body tried to break free and go hurt Shawn before their match. His love for his wife overode any of those other thoughts running through his mind. Stephanie might not mind though…no, she would mind. Chris couldn't wait until Sunday when he got to really beat up Shawn and he was completely confident that he was going to win. It wasn't even a hunch, it was this deep, down feeling he was getting and he felt it now. He was going to get his hands on Shawn and it was going to be so sweet.

Chris tried to make sure the rest of the show ran smoothly and for the most part it did. Until the end that is. Chris watched as Cena strolled out into the parking lot, looking for JBL. When Cena was standing in front of the transparent tent, Chris thought that JBL was going to stand up from behind the clear plastic and knock Cena in the head. But Cena couldn't find him and Chris was going to end the show but decided against that. He wanted to see where this was going.

Straight into John Cena's body apparently.

Chris's eyes widened at what JBL might have just done. If John was indeed where JBL had left him, they were screwed, Cena would undoubtedly be seriously injured. Chris ran for the exit, not seeing JBL anywhere, but people were starting to look between both of the cars. There came a groan, not loud, but loud enough to hear without straining. Chris went towards the sound and saw Cena tucked under the car.

"Are you okay, Cena, do you need an ambulance?"

"No, I ducked out of the way just in time," Cena said. "I was just grazed, no biggie."

Yeah, no biggie for him, but Stephanie had undoubtedly seen that and she wasn't going to be pleased. She wasn't going to love this at all.

He was starting to believe she might pay a visit to Raw.


	193. Six Years Strong, GAB, July 20, 2008

A/N: So as of last Friday I've been writing this story for six years. I'm obviously off my rocker, but I love this story so much and I feel like I still have so much to tell so I guess I'll keep chugging along. :P

Anyways, I started writing this as of SmackDown on Friday and then went into the Pay-Per-View last night and it was hovering around 20 pages before I even got to Raw, so I just decided to make this a separate one because I wasn't even close to finishing and it'd probably end up being somewhere in the 36 page range so I'm saving you a little time. I'll update the rest tomorrow, but enjoy this anniversary chapter and leave a review, please, six years, that deserves a review, right! :P

One more thing, a special thanks to Allison, who tipped me off to a hilarious clip of Chris that is mentioned in the chapter. :)

* * *

"Are you sure that you should be doing this?"

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"It just means that…well, do you really think you should marry her?"

"Of course I should marry her! What kind of question is that?"

"It's a legitimate question, especially with your past," Christian said. "I mean, let's be honest here, Edge, your track record with women isn't the greatest one and Vickie…well…I mean, do you really love her?"

"Do you love Trish?"

"Yes, I can say without a doubt that I love Trish."

"Maybe you should just go be concerned about your own wedding then," Edge told his brother, "because then you can stay out of this."

"Oh, don't get on my case now," Christian snapped. "Nothing can bring me down about my wedding with Trish, so don't even try it. We're getting married in September and then we're going to get pregnant and have a baby."

"I could have a baby with Vickie if I wanted to," Edge countered.

"What? What does that have to do with anything?" Christian said. "I worked my ass off to get where I am with Trish--"

"Oh, and you don't think I worked my ass off to get where I am with Vickie?" Edge asked as he adjusted his tie.

"Uh…no," Christian said. "Maybe because I don't believe in you guys. Maybe because I know that my brother is the kind of guy who sleeps around with anything in a skirt. I know you, Edge, you're my brother."

"Yeah, and you're mine. I thought you would support me in this. I asked you to be my best man, didn't I?"

"Yeah, you did and frankly, I'm thinking this is a little ridiculous, what are you trying to prove here?"

"Nothing. I love her."

"Oh yeah, that sounded convincing."

"Go worry about Trish, who knows, she could find out that she has another crush on some other guy. How many would that make for her?" Edge said snidely. "At least I know where Vickie's been. Trish has slept with Vince McMahon, _Vince McMahon_."

"That was a long time ago," Christian snapped, "and she's not like that anymore."

"Wasn't she also engaged to Carlito, how did that pan out?"

"Low blow, man, low blow," Christian said to his brother.

"I'm just pointing out that you are not in the perfect relationship so you have no right to judge my relationship."

"I stayed committed to Trish."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Edge asked accusingly, staring his brother down. Christian held his ground. When they were younger, even so much as a few years ago, Christian tended to back down to his brother. He was mostly content to let Edge run the show while he tagged along for the ride, but he had matured and he was not going to let his brother intimidate him right now.

"I think that you know what it means," Christian said with the same tone of accusation.

"That's it, you're out."

"What? Out of what?"

"You're not the best man anymore, hand over the rings," Edge said, holding his hand out.

"I'm not the best man?"

"No, I've had to hear you go on and on for months about how Vickie and I aren't right for each other, how I'm not good for her, how I can't make a commitment and today is my wedding day, I'm getting married in an hour, so give me the rings back, you are no longer the best man."

"So you're kicking me out of the wedding?"

"Yes, you are kicked out!"

"I can't even watch?"

"No, because you don't support it, so leave if you want."

"Mom is not going to like this."

"Mom gets to stay."

"I'm staying."

"No, you're not!"

"Yes, I am!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, what's going on here?"

"Mom, Edge is kicking me out," Christian said, turning to his mother, who was dressed in her periwinkle dress, her corsage already pinned on and everything. "He doesn't want me at his wedding."

"Do not make me say your real name, young man," Judy said, turning to Edge. "Because then you know I mean business, what is this you're talking about, kicking Christian out of the wedding?"

"Mom, he is being a butthead."

"I am not!"

"Okay, shush, the both of you, you're grown men," she chastised them. "Edge, tell me your side of the story first."

"Why does--" Christian interjected.

"Because I said so. Go on, Edge."

"He doesn't think I love Vickie," Edge said. "He doesn't want me marrying her, so he's out, and I get the say because it's _my_ wedding."

"Okay, I understand, and this is how you feel, Christian?"

"Yes, Mom, this is how I feel."

"Can your brother stay and watch if he wants to?" she asked Edge, giving him a look. He looked at his mother for a moment, sighing a little bit and nodded his head. Christian rolled his eyes. Maybe he just wouldn't stay here. He had flown all the way here to attend his brother's wedding and now he was being kicked out. But how many times would his brother get married? Knowing Edge, maybe five or six times.

"You know, I don't want to be here," Christian said defiantly.

"What?" Judy asked. "Oh, darling, you don't mean that."

"I do, Mom, I think this entire things is bogus and I don't really want to stick around for it. I think you're making a huge mistake, Edge, I've been saying this all along. You're welcome to come to my wedding, but I don't want to be here."

"Well maybe I won't come to yours then," Edge said.

"Boys!"

"No, Mom, whatever," Christian said. "I don't want to be here."

"Christian, stay," she said. "You should be here for your brother. You can sit with me."

"But I don't want to."

"_I_ want you to," she said sternly and Christian knew he wasn't going to wiggle out of this one. There wasn't much these two wouldn't do for their mothers and Christian knew that trying to defy her would have bad ramifications. She was their mother, after all.

"Okay, I'll stay, I guess," Christian told her sheepishly.

"Good," Judy said, running her hand through her son's hair. "That makes me very happy. You both look so handsome."

"Thanks, Mom," they said in unison then glared at each other for no good reason.

"I'm going to go ask Chavo to be my best man," Edge said snidely and pushed past Christian out of the room, leaving Christian and his mother alone.

She turned to him, "Now what's this all about with you and your brother, for real."

"I just know that he's not getting married for the right reasons, I don't even know why he's getting married in the first place."

"Why do you think he's not getting married for the right reasons?" she asked.

"I just know, that's all," Christian shrugged, not wanting to get into the details with his mother. She must know that Edge liked the ladies, she wasn't stupid, but he didn't want to discuss his brother's…escapades with his mother of all people.

"Well, you have to let your brother make his own mistakes, that's the only way that he's going to learn anything. Lord knows I wanted to get involved in your life, but did I?"

"Not really."

"Yes, because I knew that you were going to have to do this on your own," she told him. "Let your brother do this, if he's stupid for it, let him be stupid and then you can tell him you told him so, okay?"

"I would like that."

"I know you would," she laughed, "so why isn't Trish with you?"

"She didn't really want to come, so she stayed in Florida. She's still working on wedding stuff."

"How's that going for the two of you?"

"It's going fine. It'll be a lot easier for Trish to get everything done when Stephanie stops traveling because of the baby and can help Trish with all of the details and stuff."

"Are you helping?"

"Yeah, I've got the stuff that I'm in charge of," Christian said, "I don't want Trish to be overwhelmed with wedding stuff. I know she's retired and she has a lot of time on her hands now, but it's our wedding and I want to make sure that I'm part of it."

"Aww, I raised you right," she joked.

"Yeah, did I tell you that Trish and I want to have kids immediately after we're married, we're going to start trying after the wedding."

"That's wonderful, sweetie, I've wanted grandchildren for some time now," she told him, "come on, let's go find our seats."

"Okay," he said, his mother looping her hand through his arm as he escorted her to the small chapel. There weren't a lot of people there, Vickie and Edge had wanted it "intimate" or some such nonsense like that. They took their seats near the front and waited for the ceremony to start.

Christian was antsy during the entire thing. It was weird watching his brother get married. He knew that Edge had not been totally faithful to Vickie, but it wasn't his place to say anything to her. Edge would just deny it anyways and Vickie would let him off the hook. These two were oblivious to everything, maybe that was love, Christian didn't know, but it didn't seem like it to him.

The two just didn't match up and his mind wandered during the short ceremony. It wandered straight to the woman that he was going to be marrying in a couple of months. His smile widened at the thought that he would be marrying her in such a short amount of time. He felt like he would never get to that point with her, that everything between them had been lost. Now he was marrying Trish in a couple of months and he wanted those months to just fly by. It was going to be an eventful couple of months too, what with Chris and Stephanie having Flynn at the end of next month. Everyone was going to be so happy and he was glad for that.

He just knew, though, that Edge and Vickie weren't going to have the same kind of happiness.

Linda watched as Stephanie slowly bent down to grab a container of yogurt for Sawyer. The little boy was eagerly bouncing on his feet, waiting for his snack. Stephanie kept shooing him away from her when he got in her face then grabbed some lemon yogurt, handing it to Sawyer, who ran to the table with it and climbed up on the seat next to his grandma. Stephanie came over with a spoon and set it down next to her son and opened the top of his yogurt for him.

"Thanks, Mommy," he told her as he dug into his snack.

"You're welcome," Stephanie said as she slowly sat herself down at the table.

"Gamma, like yoyert?" Sawyer said, like he wanted to make conversation over his snack.

"I do like yogurt, so you better eat that all up before I snatch it from you," she said, pretending to go for it. Sawyer's mouth opened and he pushed it away from his grandma as he started to eat faster.

"Not so fast you silly boy," Stephanie told her son, rolling her eyes.

"Are you sure you don't want me to baby-sit Sawyer tonight?" Linda asked. "It is your six-year anniversary."

"It's fine, Mom, we want him here, we kind of like him," Stephanie said, looking affectionately at her son, who had yogurt around his mouth as he concentrated on eating.

"I know, it's just that it's your anniversary, don't you want to spend it alone, have a romantic evening…"

"It's hard to have a romantic evening when you can't see your feet," Stephanie said. "Besides, Chris and I are going low-key this year, we're just going to have dinner here. He's going to cook for me."

"That's very sweet of him."

"He likes to feed his wife and children."

"Good, I'm glad that he's a good husband to you or else your father and brother would've done something to him by now."

"He wouldn't have even been let back in the company if that had happened," Stephanie laughed. "He would've had to have gone to TNA."

"So how does it feel?"

"What? Being pregnant? I thought we went over this, it's uncomfortable and now you can never say that I don't know what it's like to have two kids."

"Well, I did so like that, but I mean how does it feel to be with Chris for six years. It's almost crazy to me, the two of you, I really should've have expected it though, all that teasing just because you didn't like each other? I don't think so. I should've known you two would be together."

Stephanie thought about it for a moment and then nodded, "Yeah, it is a little crazy, just because I've never been in a relationship this long and neither has he, but I'm not tired of him or us or this, any of this. It just keeps getting better with the both of us and I love it. I thought that having each other was enough and then Sawyer comes along and it's like, wow, this is pretty great and then I found out about Flynn and at first I was like, I don't want another one, I don't feel anything for this baby and then she moved and it's like, okay, I can handle this too and it feels right."

"Yeah, I know the feeling," Linda said, sipping her coffee. "Pretty great, that feeling. I got the feeling after I had a little girl too."

"Yeah, it is pretty great."

"What did you get him?"

Stephanie looked to Sawyer, who was watching her and she knew he had a blabbermouth, "Nothing special, actually, just a new c-o-m-p-u-t-e-r because he's going to start writing his second book soon and I want to make sure he has something nice to write about me on."

"Is he actually going to write about your relationship?" Linda asked, knowing how private the two were about themselves and their family.

"I asked him not to, I just…it's not anyone's business, I told him he could write about me when I was on the show and stuff, that should be a fun read, I hope that he's truthful and doesn't say that I really am a slut or anything."

"Well, if anyone knows about you, it's him."

"Exactly, and that's scary, giving him so much power and letting him loose. He just better make me look good because I can make him never see his children again."

Linda laughed, "Well, congratulations…where is he again?"

"Shopping."

"He get food," Sawyer chimed in, then thrust his yogurt at Stephanie, "I done."

"Where do we put things that are done?" she asked him pointedly.

"Dunno."

"Yes, you do."

He sighed, "I know."

"Yeah, that's what I thought, now go put that stuff away and you can go play in the living room, okay?"

"Okay," he said as he got off his chair. He stood there for a moment, orientating himself with the room. He was used to his house in Florida, not the one in Connecticut so everything kind of threw him off and when he would usually go darting in one direction, that wasn't where he wanted to go. He finally spotted what he needed and ran over and threw the yogurt container into the recycling container. Then he climbed a little stepstool that led to the sink and put the spoon in with a clatter. "I did it!"

"Good boy, well go play, go be a kid, no running!" she told him as he dashed out of there. "I swear, I don't know what to do with him sometimes."

"Now you know how I felt with Shane. When he was a little boy, he'd go running off and I wouldn't even know where he was. You, you just liked to hang around your father and watch him do things."

"And look at me now, I still love doing the same kind of things Dad does, except hide out and not let my family see me," Stephanie said bitterly.

"Does this mean you'll let us in the delivery room?" Linda said smartly.

"Mom…" Stephanie knew that she was caught red-handed because she didn't want them anywhere near the hospital when she gave birth.

"That's what I thought."

"Oh, you should've seen Sawyer the other day," Stephanie said, changing the subject blatantly, "He's insistent on helping Chris with the nursery, which Chris has _finally_ started on. He wants to help paint, he wants to help pick out stuff, he wants to help pick out clothes and toys and lamps and all of this. I honestly think that this kid thinks that this is completely his baby."

"That's adorable though," Linda said, happy with the subject of her grandchildren. She never got tired of that subject.

"It is pretty cute. I can't imagine what he's going to be like when she's born. He already loves her so much now, it's crazy. This little girl is going to have one overprotective brother. I think Chris has been secretly training him in this so he has back up for when Flynn dates someday."

"Can you imagine some boy coming to the house to take her out and coming face to face with a suspicious Chris?"

Stephanie laughed, "Oh, he is having none of that. He's already afraid that she's going to be a diva and go around wearing skimpy clothes. I can just see him backstage in the production truck putting censor bars over her even though she's clothed so nobody can see her or ogle her."

Her mother laughed at that, "I think your father would've done the same thing. I can imagine Chris being like that."

"Like what?" Chris said, walking into the kitchen with his arms full of groceries, "Hey, Linda."

"Hello, Chris," Trish said, "Stephanie and I were just talking about how you're going to be so protective of Flynn."

"Well, she's my little girl."

"I was saying how you'll censor her if she's a diva so nobody can look at her."

"That's a good idea. Do you think it would be wrong to bring back the Right to Censor around then, make her wear long skirts and stuff?"

"Only you," Linda said, shaking her head at her son-in-law who was more like a son these days. He made her daughter indescribably happy and for that, he should be known as just her son. She got up and went to hug Chris, "Congratulations on the anniversary."

"Thanks," he said, hugging her back.

"I secretly can't believe you've put up with her that long," she teased in a loud whisper.

"Hey, Mom, I'm not that bad!" Stephanie argued.

"That's true, Linda, she isn't that bad," Chris teased, "most of the time."

"Well now we're not making it to seven years," Stephanie pouted as Linda and Chris laughed to themselves.

"I'm going to head out you two and let you enjoy your anniversary, are you absolutely sure that you don't want me to take Sawyer? He can even spend the night at our house, then you two can get a break from him and everything."

"Steph, you want to?"

"I don't know, I just…I mean…I kind of want him to stay."

"If you want him to stay, that's fine with me," Chris said.

"Um, can we bring him by later?" Stephanie asked her mom.

"Of course you can," she said, hugging her daughter. "You can bring him by any time today."

"Okay, thanks, Mom."

"Yeah, thanks, Linda."

"Let me walk you out," Stephanie said, starting to get up.

"No, no, I'll see myself out, you just rest."

"Mom," Stephanie whined, I'm not an invalid."

"I didn't say you were, but I want you to sit and rest," Linda insisted, "I'll see you later."

"Okay, fine," Stephanie said, watching as her mother walked out, making a detour towards the living room, undoubtedly to say goodbye to her little grandson.

"I'm going to go upstairs and do some work," Stephanie said, getting up anyways. She walked over to Chris and hugged him around the waist, maneuvering so she was slightly at an angle so she could get her arms around him. "What are you making me?"

"Something good," he told her, kissing her forehead.

"Okay, well, I'll see you in a bit."

Stephanie came down later to the delicious smells emanating from the kitchen. She had been working for hours, trying to pick up the slack that her father had left with her and she was feeling the strain. She had holed herself up in her office but the stomach growls had roused her from her work stupor and she waddled her way down to the kitchen.

"Hey," Chris said as she saw him rushing around the kitchen. "You've been gone a while."

"Yeah, I was just working…where's Sawyer?"

"I already brought him to your mom and dad's, didn't you hear me calling up to you?"

"No, I didn't, wow, I guess I must've been really into my work," she said, not even recalling Chris calling up to her. "Maybe you were yelling at me when I had my headphones on."

"You were trying to drown us out so much you put headphones on."

"No," she giggled as she sat on a stool. "Finding everything okay in here?"

"Steph, I've been with you six years, even though we don't live here a lot of the time, I think I know my way around this house," he told her.

"I know, but like you said, we don't live here most of the time. I just wanted to make sure that you were doing okay."

"I'm fine," he said, "Just go relax."

"I'm relaxed, was Sawyer okay that he was going to spend the night at my parent's?"

"Well, he wanted to make sure that Flynn would be okay but once I reassured him that she would be just fine, he was willing to go. I told him that he probably wouldn't see Grandpa because Grandpa is a freak who doesn't want to see anyone, but he understood, he's really starting to understand the dysfunction in your family."

"Shut up," she said good-naturedly.

Chris continued to cook as Stephanie watched. Chris noticed she kept looking at him funny. Stephanie giggled a little as she looked at Chris. He heard her and turned to look at her, but she was turned away. He didn't know quite what to make of this so he continued to cook dinner for them. He had promised after last year's huge anniversary celebration that this year they would do something, just them. Sawyer was over at her parents and it was just the two of them, celebrating something pretty great. He couldn't believe how happy she still made him.

He heard her giggling again and he looked towards her, "Okay, what's going on?"

"Nothing," she told him with a smile.

"Then why the hell do you keep giggling? Do I have something on my ass?"

"No," she told him, "you're just cute."

"No, that's not a cute laugh, that's a 'something's on my husband's ass and he doesn't know' laugh. Did I get sauce or something on my ass?"

"No, your ass is fine, looks good, way better than my ass," she told him.

"Well, obviously," he said, "I mean, I'm a sexy beast."

"Oh, so you're saying I'm a fat lump?"

"A beautiful lump," he told her affectionately.

"Are you almost done?"

"Yeah, I'm almost done, geez, keep your pants on…for now," he told her, winking at her over his shoulder as he poured something into the pan he was working with. She giggled at him and this was definitely a cute laugh for him as she watched him get things together for their meal.

"Your daughter is hungry."

"Well, my daughter is going to have to wait," Chris said, "it's almost done, I swear."

Chris was right and the meal was nearly done and he set it down in front of the two of them, cheesily lighting a candle and handing his wife a rose, which she took with a laugh. The meal was delicious and it was just them, something she had wanted last year but hadn't gotten. This day was for them, something they had accomplished together. She was happy with her husband and he was happy with her and they didn't need to share that with anyone.

"So what do you want to do now?" he asked after they had finished dinner and Stephanie had eaten thirds on her food. She wiped her mouth and smiled at him.

"I don't know, we don't have the kid or anything so I'm not entirely sure what to do right now," she laughed, "I guess it's just so part of my routine to make sure Sawyer's okay. Do you want to watch TV?"

"Sure," he said, taking her hand and leading them into the living room where they settled on the couch together. Stephanie cuddled up to him as he found a movie and put it on, but the volume was low and they were just happy to be next to each other. Chris held Stephanie's hand, rubbing her knuckles with his hands.

"Put it on SmackDown," she told him.

"You want to watch wrestling?"

"Yeah, I mean, I've been working, I'd like to see the product, besides, I want to see how things are going after the draft," Stephanie said.

"You're lucky I love you so much," he said, putting it on the show.

"So…um, when were you going to tell me about the girl?"

"The girl?" Chris questioned, looking down at his wife.

"Yeah, I thought you had told me about all the girls you had dated, but I don't think you were being very honest with me," she snickered.

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, I just thought you had told me about all the girls you dated, but I think that you left some off of there."

"Did someone call you or something?" Chris asked suspiciously.

"No, I just saw it with my own two eyes," she told him, turning her head to look up at him.

"Saw it? Stephanie, what the hell are you talking about? Did some chick bug you or something? Because I swear that I have no idea what you're talking about."

"I think you do though, because you were there, I saw it."

"Saw what!"

"I mean, I can see where you're a little on the apprehensive side to tell me, but I thought you wanted to be honest with me and I mean, after six years of being together and three years of marriage, you'd think that you would just come out and tell me."

"Stephanie, what are you talking about?"

"Well, I was upstairs, right, and I was checking my e-mail and I got an e-mail from my brother telling me that I had to watch something and that I would be absolutely shocked by what I saw, so I clicked on the link he sent me and let's just say…I was absolutely shocked."

"Um, okay…"

"I mean, my husband on The Dating Game…that's something you want to know about."

Stephanie had never seen Chris turn a darker shade of red than he had that moment. Stephanie's mouth gaped open as she saw how badly his cheeks were burning. He wasn't even looking at her as his face flushed. Chris suddenly realized that it wasn't having something on his ass that made her laugh, it was seeing him now and thinking about that then. He could feels his ears burning as she laughed at him.

"How did he find out about that?"

"I hate to break it to you, sweetie, but it's on YouTube," Stephanie told him. "Anyone can watch it."

"You're kidding me."

"Nope, now I know where you got that voice you do for Sawyer's stories, you were the mayor of Tiny Town," Stephanie giggled, loving that she could mercilessly tease him about this. "Where's my day?"

"I hate you," he told her, his face still flushed, "I hate you so much. And I hate Shane too, he's like my brother and he does this to me."

"Sweetie, you don't have a brother, this is _exactly_ what brothers do to you. If you didn't already know and hadn't already been involved in about 75 percent of my embarrassing moments, Shane would be telling you and showing you. Didn't he actually show you that one from my recital when I was seven and fell off the stage?"

"Yeah…still, this is embarrassing."

"Why, I'm your wife, you shouldn't feel embarrassed that you were on a dating game that usually featured lame questions and even lamer answers," she told him, trying to fight off the grin on her face.

Chris buried his face in his hands, "There's not many things I'm actually embarrassed about in my life…that is one of them."

"It's not that bad."

"Not that bad…"

"Okay, so the girl was slightly…well, too much lip-liner, but come on, it's not that bad, I got a good laugh out of it. I also love the fact you just hang around in those tight, little shorts," she said, licking her lips, "Why don't you wear those anymore?"

"I'm married, I don't have to look good for anyone anymore."

"Except you check your hair about fifty times before you go out to cut a promo…"

"That's different."

"There were so many things wrong about that," she said. "First of all, you're not from Alberta, you're from Manitoba and you didn't get the name Lionheart because of the way you attack people, and he even said Jerichoholics wrong."

Chris laughed and kissed her, "Only you would get mad at an old television show because they got something wrong about me."

"I'm just saying," she said, "And the way he kept going on about Paragon of Virtue…how was the date by the way?"

"Do you see me married to her?"

"Well that's because we're amazing together."

"She was a fan, she knew it was me, blah blah blah, I never saw her again, it was a competition and I wanted to win. I didn't even want to go on the stupid thing, but I was under contract, just one of the many things that happened to me that I wanted to forget about that place."

She rubbed his stomach, "Well, I'm glad they did it to you, for one, it made me laugh and I needed it, Flynn's been bothering me today. She's all over my bladder and in case you haven't noticed, I've been peeing every five minutes it seems. Second, it made me miss your long hair," she told him, running her fingers through his short hair, "do you think that maybe…for me…you could grow it back?"

"No, that's not my present for you."

"Fine," she pouted, "third, because it made you want to leave there and you came to the WWF and got with me, and fourth, because it eased the tension you had for your match on Sunday."

"That's true, you don't think less of me because I was on a stupid show like that?"

"Oh, I absolutely think less of you," she said, "and on that note, yearly evaluation time…so how was I the past year? What did I mess up on, what can I improve? Anything of note that I've done over the past year?"

"I'd say it was a good year, you worked hard at being my wife, you did a good job being a mother to our son and most importantly, you're carrying our daughter, I give you an A for effort. What about me?"

"Well, you did the one thing I wanted you to do this past year so I'd say it was a great year, you came back home and everyone loves you...well, they did, now they don't really like you, but that doesn't matter. But you came back and you surprised me, so you get an A too."

"Great, so are we that old, boring couple now? I mean, the first year together, I did something big and elaborate for you, I've had parties for you, I've taken you on trips and now we're spending it watching SmackDown, I mean, we're old and boring."

"Nah, we're comfortable, and that's the way I like it."

**Sunday**

He had a mission tonight.

Stephanie and Sawyer weren't here tonight, opting to stay with Linda back in Greenwich and watching on television. This was for the best because he didn't want either one of them here tonight. They would be a distraction to him and he didn't want any distractions tonight. Tonight was about destroying Shawn Michaels and he didn't need his very pregnant wife or his rambunctious son hovering around him. He loved them, definitely, but he needed ultimate focus tonight.

He jumped in place near the entrance, far enough away that he was isolated, but close enough that he'd be ready to go out there when the time came. He knew that Lance wanted to talk to him, but Chris had told him he needed this time to be alone and he did. He wanted complete focus for what was coming and he couldn't have that if someone was yapping in his ear. He stretched his arms, his eyes narrowing as he mentally pictured just how this match would go. He could picture every move he wanted to do, every punch he wanted to lay, every kick he wanted to administer.

He had it on very good authority that Shawn's eye was in pretty bad shape. He smirked at that. He would work that tonight and make sure that Shawn felt the worst. Let the fans believe that Chris had some inferiority complex, let them think he was some whiny bastard; he didn't care because tonight he was getting vindication. Tonight he was going to make Shawn Michaels pay for what he had said and done.

And it was going to feel sweet.

He came out and he was pleasantly surprised to hear a few cheers in the midst of the booing. Seems that some people saw Shawn for what he really was and that was a reassuring thought, that some of the fans would still support him regardless of who he didn't like. Or maybe they were just people who didn't like Shawn. He could live with that. He paced the ring until the familiar strings of Shawn's music started up. He stood in the back of the ring, leaning against the ropes as he stared at Shawn coming down to the ring.

The two continued to stare each other down as Shawn climbed into the ring and threw off his shirt and stupid cowboy hat. The referee took a few steps back and the two of them just continued to stare each other down, neither one making the first move. Chris finally had enough and took a few steps towards Shawn, never breaking eye contact with him. They almost got nose-to-nose with each other when the bell finally rang to signal the beginning of their match.

"_Well, if it's for Stephanie and Sawyer…"_

They stepped away from each other and charged, locking up and giving each other elbows to the face. Chris started punching him into the corner, just letting a little of his aggression out. Chris had the definite upper-hand until Shawn ran the ropes on him and got him down with a chop. Shawn whipped him into the corner and started to lay blows on him. A sequence of events happened and Chris ran into Shawn's foot. He walked away, moving his jaw and didn't see Shawn targeting his knee. He fell down to the mat and Shawn eventually got him in a leg-lock.

Chris should've expected it, but he didn't, so now he was struggling, struggling to get to the bottom rope. He tried not to let thoughts of Stephanie flit into his mind, but it was almost like he could picture her sitting on the couch, yelling for him to get to the ropes. He screamed in pain, but didn't relent, not this time. He made a grab for it and got it, forcing Shawn to break the hold.

Chris was not winning right now and he was crouched in the corner like a complete loser. But things could still swing his way, the match was still in its early stages and better that Shawn get his energy out now so Chris could get him down easier later. It seemed almost like Shawn was targeting his knee, but Chris was tough and his knee was fine, but then he thought, maybe if he played it up a little, Shawn would go after something that wasn't even hurt. A little bit of a red herring might be in order.

He got up and whipped Shawn back to the corner, making him fly up and when he wasn't looking, Chris landed a dropkick on him, making him fall to the outside. Chris then collapsed in the ring, grabbing at his knee, knowing there was nothing wrong, but selling it like it had been torn in half.

"Oh my God," Stephanie yelped, jumping from the couch. "He's hurt!"

"He's not hurt," Shane said, "come on, we both know he's probably faking."

"You don't know that," Stephanie said, "why wouldn't he let me come? I could've come with him and then I'd be there, but no, he says that he just wanted me to stay at home, what if he's hurt!"

"Look," Shane said, pointing to the ring where Chris seemed to be okay as he climbed to the outside.

"Oh…well, I didn't know," Stephanie said, sitting down on the couch again. Sawyer was glaring at her for disturbing him as he had had his head in her lap and had been almost roughly pushed away from her jumping up.

"Mommy," Sawyer said, laying his head back down in her lap. "Stop moving."

"Sorry," she said, running her hand through his hair.

"Okay," he said, "Go show?"

"Not tonight, baby, just watch Daddy."

"Fine."

Chris was kicking Shawn in the head, teasing him, playing with him like he was a used toy that Chris didn't want anymore. He continued his assault on Shawn, slapping at him, loving this, loving that he could take out his aggressions like this, in front of the world so that everyone could see Shawn for what he really was. He locked Shawn into a submission move, though he knew Shawn wasn't going to give up this easily, but he knew Shawn had a bad back and hat better way to help Shawn out than by testing out the torque.

Good things don't often last as Shawn seemed to find himself and get back into the match, but Chris countered that with an enziguri. He only got a two count with that, so he slammed Michaels to the mat. Chris went to the corner and climbed to the middle rope, taunting Shawn, beckoning him to get up so he could punish him some more. Nobody treated his wife like crap and didn't pay for it later. Chris went for a flying elbow but was intercepted with an atomic drop that hurt like a bitch.

Shawn knocked them both down, but they both got up quickly, going after each other. Shawn went for a slam, but Chris countered brilliantly and locked the Walls of Jericho on Shawn. He held it tight, yelling at the referee to ask Shawn if he was submitting.

"Mommy, walls," Sawyer said sleepily from Stephanie's lap.

"I know, baby boy."

"I do that."

"You can do that?"

"Mmhmm," he sighed, trying to keep his eyes open and watch his daddy.

Shawn got to the ropes and Chris was reluctant to let go, but the referee pulled him away, lecturing him like he was a rookie. Chris panted with exertion and with anger as he looked at Shawn laying on the ground. Chris took that anger and went and stomped Shawn in the ribs. Shawn tried to go for the Sweet Chin Music, but Chris caught it, balking inwardly at Shawn's lame attempt at trying to get him. Chris went to go for the running bulldog, but was caught with a clothesline and went down.

Chris couldn't believe Shawn would try to pin him with _that_. Who the hell did he think he was facing, some just out of wrestling school, green rookie? He was Chris Jericho, damn it, and he wasn't going down with a clothesline of all things! Shawn obviously had no idea who he was messing with, but maybe if he had figured that out before, he wouldn't be in this predicament. He watched out of the corner of his eye as Shawn climbed the ropes. Chris waited until the right moment then got up and hit the ropes, sending Michaels down.

Chris tried to get up for a superplex, but Shawn was fending him off. Eventually it ended up with Chris on the mat and Shawn flying at him. Chris grimaced as the pain hit, hard and fast. This seemed to pump Shawn up as Chris rolled on the mat. Chris got up groggily and when he did, he saw Lance at the side of the ring. It didn't take a genius to figure out what had happened there and Chris was fortunate for the kid, but this was his fight. He went for the Code-Breaker, but Shawn had a hold of the ropes and then countered into a pin, but Chris wasn't down yet.

Neither was Shawn though as they started to trade blows. Chris tried to make a move, but Shawn threw him over the rope and straight into Lance. Chris thanked him silently again, knowing the fall would've been much worse if Lance hadn't been there. Chris looked up and saw Shawn flying at him, and he was down again. Chris was hazy, but got up again, seeing that Shawn was too.

"_Go for the eye, it's the weak spot, just go for it, trust me."_

Chris was trusting now and he elbowed Shawn as hard as he could in the eye when he felt Shawn behind him. Chris gave a satisfied smile when he saw that Shawn's eye was bleeding profusely. He had only just hit him too, but it was glorious. He kicked him in the face and then punched him in the eye, taking great pleasure in Shawn's pain. His tip had been right. Now he had a target.

Chris was relentless and without pity for the other man. This was the most fun Chris had had since he had come back into the company. Then Shawn got him in a crossface, completely surprising the hell out of Chris, who hadn't been expecting Shawn to fight back, something he should've known better than to assume. But Chris was good and he got out of it quickly, throwing Shawn into the ropes.

The referee tried to get Chris to hold off on Shawn, but Chris was at his best right now. The adrenaline was flowing through his veins and he was alive, he felt truly alive. This punch was for Stephanie, that one was for Sawyer and that extra hard one was for his little girl, who would watch this someday and know that her daddy would protect her from anything. Lots of people thought Chris was a nice guy, lots of people though he wasn't capable of the same ruthlessness that someone like Hunter had, but he was, but the circumstances had to be right. Insulting his family was the right circumstance. Shawn was not worthy of Chris's mercy.

Then it was over…and Shawn was left as a bleeding mess in the middle of the ring.

Chris walked backstage with Lance excitedly talking to him about how great that had been. Chris just wanted to take a shower and rinse this blood off of him, this blood that didn't belong to him, and then get the hell out of here and get back to his wife. He saw Hunter leaning against the wall and he looked hard at the older man, then smirked as he walked past, not giving him another glance as Hunter undoubtedly waited for Shawn to show up.

Lance handed Chris a towel and he toweled himself off as he made his way to the locker room. He sat inside for a while, deciding that he wanted to revel in this win a little bit. Lance was still talking about how awesome it had been to see Shawn go down like that. Chris nodded along, not really listening as he went to his bag to get his clothes.

"Detached retina."

Chris looked over his shoulder and saw Hunter leaning in the doorway. "What?"

"Shawn's got a detached retina, just thought you'd like to know," Hunter told him.

"Actually, I did want to know. He's finished, I assume?"

"Isn't that what you wanted?" Hunter asked.

"It was."

"I should kick your ass," Hunter told him.

Chris raised an eyebrow, "You've got a big match coming up, Hunter, wouldn't want to exert yourself for that."

"No, I wouldn't," Hunter said, then left.

"What's his problem?" Lance asked.

"He doesn't have a problem," Chris said, "I'm showering, go home or to your hotel, kid, I'll see you tomorrow and thanks."

"No problem."

Chris was about to go shower, but then decided he had a little announcement to make.

It seemed the arena went quiet when he was out there. Or maybe that's just how he perceived it. It felt even better now to go out there and interrupt the little diva's celebration. He had much more exciting news for everyone. After hearing Hunter's little message to him, he had to come out here and share it with the world. He had won, he had won big tonight. Yes, he had won the match and that was all well and good, but he had avenged his wife and that felt even better.

"I saw what you did to Vickie and Edge on Friday."

Hunter looked up from his stretching and saw Britt there, "Oh, yeah, did you?"

"Yeah, I did, kind of harsh, don't you think?"

"She deserved to know the truth about her husband."

"Oh, is that so? And you took absolutely no pleasure in humiliating them?"

"None at all," he told her with a straight face, so she didn't believe him. "I did what I had to do. I took Edge out of the match tonight. That was the entire goal. Look at Chris's match, I'm sure something took Shawn out of that match."

"A busted eye, he seemed pretty pleased with his announcement a little while ago, did you see it?"

"I saw it."

"You're not reacting much."

"I've got things to think about."

"I thought Shawn was your best friend, don't you think the reaction you give should be on the angry side. Don't you think it would make sense if you were to lash out at someone like Chris for this?"

"Not tonight, any night but tonight," Hunter told her. "Tonight is about me and my title."

She knelt down next to him, leaning in close, "Good luck."

"You sure you want to be doing that for someone who gets kicks out of humiliating others?"

"I'm absolutely positive. I want you to win."

"Is there a catch?"

"No, no catch at all," Britt told him. "It's just the way I want things to go."

"How else do you want things to go," he flirted with her.

"Well, we'll just have to see how that turns out, now won't we?"


	194. He's Been Saved, July 21, 2008

Chris was incredibly sore. His body ached, but his mind was rejoicing. He was incredibly tired from his match, but he had won and most importantly, he had gotten his message across. If Shawn didn't know now that he shouldn't mess with Chris, than Shawn needed to get some glasses or get something to make him see the truth. He lay there with his eyes closed wondering what was waking him up.

He realized it was Stephanie kissing his bare shoulder and moving her way up to his neck. He opened his eyes and looked up at her, "Hey, what time is it?"

"Late," she said, "I let you sleep in."

"Until?"

"Well, it's almost one," she told him. "I wanted to wake you up so you could get to the show. It's a two hour drive from here and I wanted to make sure that you got off alright."

"Are you sure you don't want to come?"

"I wish I could, but with my father still incapacitated or lying about being incapacitated I've got to fill in. I don't know why my family can't see that I might not want to work this far into my pregnancy, but what can I do?" Stephanie said. "And Shane has things he needs to take care of, it's a whole thing."

"Well, maybe you wouldn't have given your family the impression that you're willing to work if you hadn't traveled so much."

"Sue me," she told him, sticking her tongue out at him before she laid down partially on top of him. Chris wrapped his arm around her and she sighed happily, "What time did you get home last night, I didn't hear you come in."

"You were out of it," Chris told her, snuggling closer to her. "I didn't want to wake you up so I just checked on the monster and climbed into bed."

"I watched you last night," she said coyly.

"I figured as much."

"You were amazing," she told him, running her finger up and down his chest. "If I had been awake, there's just no way that I would've been able to keep my hands off of you. The way that you just punished him and punished him and he was bleeding and you were just merciless. You were just hitting him and kicking him and toying with him…"

Chris looked down at Stephanie and saw she was flushed and he smirked, "Where's the kid?"

"Unfortunately, he's in his room getting the toys he wants for when you guys go. I have to get to the office soon anyways, I was supposed to be there hours ago, but I just pushed everything back and whatever I don't get done today, I'll get done tomorrow."

"All for me?"

"No, because I didn't want to leave our son by himself with a sleeping father," she said, "I loved what you did to Shawn though, it's what I've been wanting to do for years so seeing you just crush him and then hearing about how he's definitely getting a taste of his own medicine, it was like music to my ears. Then they showed you making the announcement and they caught your face and your eyes were so blue and sexy."

Stephanie bit her lip and Chris noticed that she had somehow maneuvered herself into a straddle of his body. Her weight was a little much on his sore torso, but she was just so hot and beautiful in that moment that he wanted to take her right here and right now. She grabbed his hand and kissed the palm slowly, then kissed the tips of his fingers before taking one in her mouth and swirling her tongue around his index finger.

"Stephanie," he said in a strangled voice. She knew she was getting a rise out of him and she loved it. She was feeling pretty unsexy nowadays so to know that she could still get her husband going was a reassuring one. She didn't want him going off and sleeping with some ring rat while she was taking care of their daughter. Of course, Chris would have Sawyer and she would think Chris would have the decency not to have an affair when he had their son with him.

"Yes?" she asked seductively.

"What are you doing to me?" he asked her playfully, but his voice was husky and low.

"Thanking my husband for defending me," she said, the corners of her mouth turning up into a coy little smile.

"Normally I'd say that I don't need thanking for something like that, but well, I like this kind of thanks," he told her.

"I thought you might, besides, I want to make sure you get enough of this before I have Flynn."

Chris groaned, "That's the worst part of it, the fact that I can't have _that_ kind of fun with you for at least six weeks. It's torture, baby."

"Well, then I guess I have to give you enough to sustain you," she said, starting to pull him up a little so that she could kiss him properly.

"Mommy, I done!" Sawyer said, running into the room and climbing onto the bed and kneeling next to Chris. "Hi, Daddy, you sleep."

"Oh, Sawyer, someday you're going to understand why I hate you at this moment," Chris said as Stephanie got off of him, giving his chest a little rub as she scooted over so she was on the other side of Sawyer, lying on her side. Sawyer, deciding that Flynn made a good pillow, sat with his back against his mommy's tummy.

"Hate?" he asked with wide eyes.

"Yes, I hate you."

"No nice, Daddy," Sawyer told him.

"You'll understand when you're older, trust me, when you have little Sawyer's around," Chris told his son. "Did you watch me last night?"

"Uh huh, wif Mommy and…Unca Shane…and…Gamma!" Sawyer answered excitedly. "We see you."

"Did you see me win?"

"Yup, uh…he got boo-boo," Sawyer said.

"Yeah, he did, he deserved it though."

"Mmhmm," Sawyer agreed, but then asked, "Why?"

"Let's just say, he said mean things to Mommy."

"Mean to Mommy?" Sawyer asked, aghast that someone would be mean to his mommy. His mommy was the best and she always made him laugh and smile and he loved being with her. How could someone be mean to his mommy? He turned his head to the side and looked at Stephanie, "He mean?"

"Yeah, he was very mean."

"I no like that," Sawyer said seriously, shaking his head.

"Well neither did I, that's why I kicked his ass," Chris said, an almost sadistic grin coming over his face.

"Chris," Stephanie said, warning him not to swear around Sawyer, who could imitate what Chris said and she didn't want her son going around swearing.

"Sorry," Chris mumbled.

"We go now?"

"We'll go in a little while, okay?" Chris said. "I haven't even eaten or gotten dressed. I want to look good for tonight, I've got a few things to say."

"What?"

"Just some things, don't be such a nosy, little boy."

"Mommy, you ready?" Sawyer asked Stephanie.

"I'm not going to go with you tonight, baby boy, you're just going to go with Daddy like you did last week," Stephanie explained. "I'm going to stay here because I have a lot of work that needs to be done and I can't go."

"No Mommy?" Sawyer said, looking at Chris to confirm the news. Why didn't she want to come with them?

"No Mommy tonight," Chris said.

"I no go," Sawyer said, "I stay."

"But I'll be lonely," Chris pouted.

"I dunno," Sawyer told him.

"Mommy has a lot that she needs to do and she already goes really slow because of Flynn."

"Oh," Sawyer said while Stephanie glared at Chris. He didn't have to mention that she was slow, she was going as fast as she could in the condition that she was in.

"Yeah, so will you go with me so I don't have to be lonely?"

Sawyer pursed his lips and thought for a moment. He wanted his mommy to be with him, but his daddy looked so sad and he didn't want his daddy to be sad about this. "Okay, I go."

"Thanks," Chris said with a grin.

Trish looked over the tops of her sunglasses as her sun was impeded by a towering figure. Christian settled into the chaise next to Trish and handed her the margarita he had just made for her. She smiled in thanks before taking a cooling sip and setting it down on the little table between them.

"Who was on the phone?" she asked, having heard the phone ring indoors and Christian talking heatedly.

"It was my brother, calling to complain again about last night and how he was slighted and how he wouldn't do that to Vickie and all this stuff about how I should believe him and how it was uncalled for, for me to tell him I told him so about the entire situation."

"You did tell him, repeatedly," Trish agreed.

"I know, and he refused to listen," Christian said, "now I think he wants my help with the entire thing, figuring out just what happened."

"Oh, and are you?"

"I've got bigger things to worry about than my brother and his marital problems, if they can be called marital problems since they were married for what, eight hours before things got all shot to hell."

"Let's hope we have a better record," she joked.

"Oh, I at least plan to make to twelve with you," Christian joked back. "I've got my own wedding to help plan. What does Edge expect me to do, spy or something? I'm not going to."

"Good, you shouldn't, we do have a lot of stuff to worry about. I want to go to Toronto next weekend. I have my sister's dresses and I need them to try them on and I need Melissa to try on Stephanie's dress since Steph can't try hers on."

"I've got the flowers all set up, you wanted calla lilies for your bouquet, right?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I want, long stem too," she said.

"Okay, and I've got to meet with the cake designer while we're there."

"Yes, please get that done with. I just want everything to go smoothly, I don't want to take your brother's lead with these things."

"I think we're going about this a little better than my brother is. It's not like he was forced to kiss his own wedding planner. He's just pissed he got caught is all and with Vickie in a position of power. I mean, this is exactly what Hunter did to Stephanie."

"Yeah, so I'm sure Hunter was able to spot it a mile away," Trish said, "not that I'm all that sympathetic towards Vickie or anything, she's kind of a shrew. If they stay together, do you realize she's going to be our sister-in-law?"

"Wow, I never really thought of her in terms like that," Christian shuddered. "Maybe we should take a page out of Stephanie and Chris's book and plan something so they don't end up together."

"Oh, well, if that's how you want things to go down."

"A couple that plots together, stays together," Trish said, then turned a little somber, "we won't end up like that, will we? I mean, you have to admit that we fight…a lot. I mean, sometimes we just fight over stupid, petty things. Plus, we've been more on and off than a light switch."

"Don't worry," he told her, reaching out to grab her hand, "we're good now, remember, turning over that new leaf and stuff. Plus, we're planning for the future and we know what we want together. We're going to get married and have a kid and that's good, that's so good."

"So you're definitely sure this is what you want?"

"I'm definitely sure, I've been definitely sure for years. I know when something's good, Trish, and this is good. We're not going to end up like my brother and Vickie, not by a long shot."

"Well, as long as you're sure."

Britt saw Hunter by the door, his belt proudly on display over his shoulder. Leave it to him to walk around gloating without saying any words. Britt walked up to him and stood there. He wasn't blocking the door, but she felt like she had to stop when she got to him. He gave her the once over and she looked at him critically.

"Hey," he told her.

"Looking good," she said, glancing at the belt. "Are you happy with the way that you won?"

"Very," he told her. "I just came by, wanted to see how you were doing."

"I'm doing just fine, thanks," she told him. "No need to worry about me."

"Who's worrying?" he told her. "I'm not."

"I figured you wouldn't be."

"How are things going with you and Randy?"

She tensed, "They aren't…he…he can be unlikable."

"Britt…"

"Don't Britt me, Hunter, don't do that," she told him. "Don't even give me that look."

He shrugged his shoulders, looking at her again. She felt uncomfortable under his gaze. There was something about the way Hunter looked at her. It wasn't like she was being undressed by his eyes or something, but it was like he could see her and read her every nuance, every twitch, every pulse that ran through her. It was an intense gaze.

"Stop," she said softly.

"Sorry," he told her. "You better get inside and go to work, I've got things to do here."

"Shawn's not here," she told him. "Just so you know."

"I know, I talked to him last night and then again this morning."

"So you're up-to-date on his condition?"

"He is my friend, after all."

"Yes, your friend…"

"If you want to do things right with Randy, do them right, Britt," Hunter told her, giving her that look again. She felt like squirming and making him cut it out, but he was already holding the door open for her and she was already walking through it, like she was floating almost and it was a strange sensation.

She knew she had to get to know Randy before she could judge him. She had a set image in her head and if she stuck with the image than she was safe. She liked being safe. She wasn't a risk-taker. To date, the biggest risk she had ever taken was with this job and that wasn't a huge risk at all. She had never been involved in anything like this and didn't know how to handle or conduct herself. This business was strange, with so many interloping elements that she didn't know if she was coming or going sometimes. It was just a big mass of confusion.

Chris wasn't confused though, not now. Not when things were so good. Today felt like he could breathe better. What made it even better is that nobody could be outright rude to him. He was in charge tonight since Stephanie and Shane had once again been unable to attend the show. That meant that if anyone wanted anything done they would have to suck up to him, despite what he had done last night. He noticed some scowls in his direction, but he was on cloud nine and nothing was going to bring him down, not a damn thing.

Plus, he had Sawyer with him, so nobody was going to mess him with him. They liked the little boy even when they didn't like his father so much. Sawyer kept wandering off though, looking at different things and becoming fascinated by the most mundane of things. Chris kept having to scoop him up and away from whatever was distracting him at any given moment. He wanted to get to being in charge and showing everyone that not only had he hopefully ended Shawn's career, but he was part of the ruling family.

"Chris, I heard that you were in charge tonight, I wanted time at the top of the show," Dave said, walking up to Chris.

Chris had actually wanted the time at the top of the show for himself, but he didn't think putting Dave on his list of enemies was a good idea. "Sure, you've got it."

"Great, thanks, man," Dave said, slapping him on the shoulder, "and great job on the win last night."

Chris knew a part of Dave was kissing up to him, but he took it anyways, "Thanks, I appreciate that."

"No problem, sometimes you've just got to put people into their places, you know?"

"Yeah, for sure, what are you going to do, challenge Punk again?"

"Yeah, that was the plan."

"Interesting, well, do what you want," Chris said, not tethering him in. He didn't care what Dave did, he just wanted the world to know what _he _had done. He had taken out one of the biggest names in the business and after hearing what happened with Shawn and the laundry list of his injuries, he wouldn't be surprised if this was for good.

Britt didn't want to talk to Randy, but the man was pursing her almost relentlessly. She had come into Chris's office once again facing a bouquet of flowers. She didn't think they were for Chris from anyone so they must've been for her. The card confirmed they were from Randy and she sighed. Sometimes she felt like she was being tugged in a million different directions and she didn't like it. She was almost to the point where she just wanted to forget it and quit.

Unfortunately, the wrestling business had gotten under her skin and she loved it here, even the bad parts about the job. She should be happy and thankful that two hot wrestlers were apparently fighting over her, but it just made her miserable. Her mother had given her the sage and slightly cliché advice of trusting what her heart told her. Her heart, if anything, was not jumbled, not in the slightest, but she kept pushing that feeling down, so far down that it seemed to reach her feet at this point.

It was not easy saying no to what you really wanted, but it was like she did that everyday, even though that wasn't the case. She stared at the flowers, fingering the petals softly, secretly delighting the way they were soft like a well-made pillow. Should she call Randy again? She felt almost like she was toying with him about this. She had said she'd go out on a date with him, but that date had yet to happen. Something was always coming up or she was making something up so as not to go out with him. What was wrong with her? So many women would kill to be in her position, but she would kill to be out of this position.

"Hey, nice flowers, for me?" Chris teased as he and Sawyer entered the room.

"Randy," Britt said morosely.

"Usually when someone sends you flowers, it's a nice thing."

"Usually, but I don't want all these gestures from him, it just makes me uncomfortable is what it does."

"Oh," Chris said. "So his Operation Get Britt plan isn't working then?"

"Not so much," Britt told him, "I don't know what he really wants from me. I mean, at first, I know he was going after me because it was incensing Hunter and they had a huge fight coming up, but that's over and now it's just…it's a mess is what it is."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Chris said. "But please don't kill the buzz I have going here."

"Oh, don't be so self-centered," Britt told him.

"That's just the pot calling the kettle black," he responded and she widened her eyes. "You're pretty into yourself right now is all that I'm saying. You know you're my friend, I'm not really insulting you."

"Whatever, insult me, I'm the one in this mess in the first place."

"You don't have to be, you know?"

"I know, but the alternative, look, you don't understand."

"Of course I understand," Chris said with a scoff. "You know, before I was married I did have other girlfriends and I was in weird situations."

"Not like this and you know it."

"Oh, the stories I could tell you."

"So tell them then."

"Look, you know what you have to do."

"I know," she said, starting to sound like she had resolve. "Do you think Hunter would want to get married just so that I wouldn't have this problem?"

"Wow, _there's_ a solution to all your problems."

"It would be, we could be together and happy and Randy wouldn't bug me, or he would bug me, but I'd just shove a ring in his face. I don't even need a big wedding, I could just hop a plane down to Vegas, we'd go through a drive-thru, history tells me he's familiar with that scenario and then this would all be done with."

"Now where's the fun in that?"

"The fun would be in the wedding and stuff, surprising everyone, you're married, I'm sure things are easier for you."

"How do you mean?"

"I mean, like, dating, you don't have to deal with it."

"Oh, that's true, but I do still have women throwing themselves at my feet…but can you really blame them, I mean, if you look at me, how can you really not want me? I look at myself in the mirror--"

"I don't care and Sawyer doesn't either," Britt said, pointing to Sawyer, who had laid out all his things on the couch and was sitting with a book for some light reading before an early dinner. "Do you think your Daddy's boring, Sawyer?"

"Boring," Sawyer echoed, trying to find out about this _Green Eggs and Ham_ character.\

"See."

"Fine, long story short, yeah, I'm glad I'm off the market."

"The case for a speedy marriage is mounting."

"You'd regret it."

"No, I wouldn't."

"Okay, fine, get married."

"I can't do that! My parents would kill me."

"_You're_ killing me, Britt, seriously, just figure it out."

Trish was sitting in front of the television watching something mindless. The doorbell rang and she got up slowly, not wanting to be bothered by anyone selling anything unless it was some Girl Scout with a ton of cookies. She would of course try to resist said cookies because she had to fit into her custom-made wedding dress, but she was weak for cookies, so very weak for them. She opened the door, already grabbing her purse when she saw her future brother-in-law.

"Edge, what are you doing here?

"I live like three blocks away, remember?" he asked, slightly on edge, ironically enough.

"Yeah, I know that, but don't you have somewhere to be, shouldn't you be where SmackDown is going to be."

"No, I needed to talk to my brother, is he here?" Edge asked, looking around.

"Yeah, he's upstairs playing video games," she said, then turned and yelled, "Christian, your brother is here."

There was silence for a few seconds and then the sound of walking on the wood floor and then Christian was at the stairs. He didn't know if Trish had been telling the truth, but there looked a harried Edge. Christian came down to the ground level and looked at his brother, "What are you doing here?"

"You've got to help me figure out what's going on around here," Edge pleaded.

"Um, you kissed another women, case closed!" Christian said. "Now, I'm on a very important mission upstairs and I don't want to leave my comrades helpless."

"I _know_ I kissed her. I got carried away…"

"Of course you did."

"Yeah, whatever, that's not what I need to figure out."

"Then what do you need to figure out?"

"How did Hunter set up that camera in the first place? I mean, I know that I can get Vickie back and I am going to."

"Oh my God, you're going to try and _stay_ with her?" Christian asked in disgust.

Trish cut in, "I don't mean to be a killjoy, Edge, but you kissed another woman like, right before your wedding, a woman isn't likely to forget that, hell, most people aren't likely to forget that."

"I was just…excited about the wedding and it just came spilling out."

"Onto another woman's lips?" Christian asked.

"Shut up, I want to stay with Vickie, we're married. Don't you think that I have the obligation to make things work with her?"

"Not if she doesn't want you to," Trish said. "Have you talked to her?"

"Did you _see_ what I did to her last night, Trish? Do you think she's going to talk to me after I did that to her?" Edge snapped.

"Hey, don't speak to my fiancée like that," Christian said defensively.

"It was a dumb question. She won't let me talk to her. I haven't even seen her since last night."

"Well, I can't blame her for that, you speared her," Christian said.

"On accident, I was going for Alicia. I think there's something up with her. I think she was in on it or something. That'd be just perfect, you know. She and Hunter, messing with my head. But how could she have gotten that camera…it just doesn't make sense. How the hell…I want Vickie back. I need to prove it wasn't my doing."

"I can't help you."

"Why not, you're my brother."

"Yeah, the brother you kicked out of your wedding in the first place."

Edge scowled, "You were being an ass."

"I said that you weren't going to be able to be faithful to Vickie, you proved that to me hours after I said it, _hours_. Come on, man, count your losses and get an annulment."

"I don't _want_ one."

"I think he's serious, Chrissy."

"Thank _you_, Trish," Edge said, "see, Christian, she sees it."

"Well, I don't know what you want me to do."

"Just help me. I mean, Hunter had to get that camera in there somehow. We just need to figure out how."

"What good would it do though? I don't think Vickie will care because in the end, you still kissed another woman, pretty voluntarily from what we could see."

"I told you, I can handle Vickie."

"I'll think about it."

"Tha--what do you mean you'll _think_ about it?"

"I said I'll think about it."

"What's there to think about!"

"I don't think you're right for each other, so if I'm going to help restore a relationship that I think is doomed to fail anyways, I'm going to need some time to think about it. I'll get back to you before Friday."

"Christian…"

"You're lucky you're still my best man," Christian said. "I won't hold what you did against me…too much."

"Now you're just being a baby."

"You were the baby first."

"You were," Edge countered.

"No, _you_ were."

"_You_ were!"

"Oh my God, stop you two, he said he'll think about it, Edge, that's obviously all you're going to get tonight, so would you please go now and let us enjoy the rest of our day?"

"Fine, but I'm your brother, Christian, your _brother_."

Edge left and Christian started up the stairs, "Are you going to help him?"

"Probably not," Christian admitted. "I think we should just leave the camera mystery to a happy, little coincidence. It was good for Vickie to get to see Edge for what he really was. Now he gets to see her for the shrew that she really is, I think it works out quite well, don't you think?"

"You love that your brother is miserable, don't you?"

"Trish, I'm hurt," he said with great exaggeration.

"Like hell you are." She told him and he just shrugged and continued walking upstairs.

Chris didn't think of Lance Cade as a friend, not yet anyways. The kid was good to have around, kind of like a bodyguard and he knew that Lance wanted to be friends, but Chris couldn't say they were. Maybe Chris was more like a mentor to him, but what he loved about the kid was his willingness to do anything to impress Chris. If Chris said to jump, the kid asked how high and Chris liked that very much. He wasn't a guy who often aligned himself with anyone, but for now, Lance was doing a job well done.

Stephanie got out of the limo and looked up at the building. She had finished early and decided to make an impromptu visit to Raw. She wasn't going to work tonight, but she was going to observe and see if everyone could be on their best behavior for just one night. More importantly, she wanted to be around the show a little bit before she had to leave, just to soak it all up until she couldn't go anymore. Plus, her husband and son were here and she never had to have an excuse to want to see them.

Chris was out in the ring when she got there. She went up to a monitor, folding her arms over her daughter, who was thankfully resting, and watched as he stood there in the ring. He looked good tonight, but she knew he was still hurting from his match. That wasn't bringing him down obviously. He looked happy, happy that he had won and happy that he had given what he felt Shawn deserved. He looked at peace with what happened and she was happy for that.

Now was the time when they shouldn't have to worry about things like this. They had a daughter to plan for and Chris had a nursery to finish (with Sawyer's help of course). Chris didn't need to focus on Shawn anymore and Stephanie was glad for that, almost as happy as Chris so obviously was.

Chris took a look at the fans. He told them Shawn wasn't coming and he knew this was a fact because he was in charge and was able to find out everything about anyone. He knew the injuries Shawn had sustained and there was no way he was going to be anywhere near this arena tonight. He showed the footage from last night and it looked even better now than it did when he watched it when he got home last night. It must be the big screen.

The fans hated him for it, most of them anyways, and he blamed them for it. It was easier that way. The fans had glorified this man who didn't deserve any glorification. They loved a man who should be reviled. They didn't know Shawn Michaels, _he_ knew Shawn Michaels and he felt no guilt whatsoever for what he had done. The fans should be ashamed of themselves for it, too. Maybe they did want the old Jericho, but he was older now and more mature. In the time he had been gone, he had had a family and his family had been threatened and it was his job to make sure that never happened again. A detached retina was a good start.

He had saved himself and his family and that was all that mattered to him.

He walked backstage and was surprised to see Stephanie there. He bounded over to her and hugged her, "Baby, what are you doing here?"

"I was done early so I decided to come to the show and see you and make sure things were running smoothly. Where's Sawyer?"

"With Britt."

"Oh, okay, I liked what you said out there."

"You always like what I say."

"Yeah, you're cute…I do kind of miss the guy who has long hair and crazy jokes though, so if he wants to come back."

"I'm constantly making jokes, I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh yeah, sure…Hunter?"

"Stephanie…Chris," he nodded curtly.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

She couldn't believe that he was still showing up here to "show up" Chris and Hunter's bogus idea that Chris had somehow rigged the draft to get him sent to SmackDown. Hunter should be happy now. He had broken up a relationship and he had kept his championship, he loved doing stuff like that.

"No reason," he said. "Just wanted to hang out."

"Don't make me sic security on you," Chris told him.

"I'm not doing anything and I am part of the company," Hunter said. "I came to see Britt."

"She didn't say anything about it."

"Well, maybe she just didn't want to," he said.

"Well just don't get into trouble," Chris said, letting nothing down his good mood tonight. He walked with his wife to his office, occasionally stopping to kiss her or nuzzle her neck. She giggled when he did that until they were in his office and he really kissed her properly. It wasn't until he was done that she started to think a little.

"You didn't seem that mad at Hunter."

"I'm in too good a mood tonight, I don't care what he does."

"Yeah, of course not," Stephanie said. "But you two aren't friends?"

"Not at all, no way."

"You guys know I'm right here, right?" Britt asked from Chris's desk.

"That's why I stopped making out with my wife," Chris told her.

"Okay, just making sure."

"So you can't just bury the hatchet with Hunter now that everything's over."

"Nope."

"Why not?"

"Things may not be over."

"But you said…you know all of the injuries."

"Yeah, but this is Shawn, I wouldn't put it past him to have the doctors lie about his condition. He has to know that I'm the one in charge, I'm sure he was informed that I was in charge and he could've just had the doctors lie and then he's going to show up."

"You sound awfully confident that this might happen."

"I don't know what's going to happen."

"You sure?"

"I'm positive, yeah, I'm running things while you and Shane are stationed at Titan, so that means if I want a medical condition of one of my employees, I'm going to get it. But Shawn's persuasive. I'm just playing the odds here. We both know what Shawn is like."

"I suppose," she said, looking at him critically.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"No reason," she said, "I'm going to grab a water from catering. I haven't really had anything to drink and your daughter needs it."

"Okay, I've got some stuff to do for later in the show, you know, booking matches and all of that stuff."

"Of course, of course."

Stephanie walked out of the room and down the hallway. She saw Hunter again and she walked straight up to him, tapping him on the shoulder. He turned around and looked slightly surprised to see her standing so close to him. Or maybe it just seemed close because her stomach was getting so big.

"Hey, Stephanie."

"Hey."

"How's the baby?"

"She's fine, doing really well and right on schedule," Stephanie answered, then started in on Hunter, "So, I saw what you did to Edge on SmackDown. Chris and I were watching."

"Interesting."

"I love how you off-handedly mentioned our situation."

"It seemed appropriate given the circumstances, you can't be mad about that."

"I'm not, just, you know, was watching and it was interesting."

"Well, I'm a funny guy."

"How did you get the camera in his hotel room? It was position perfectly."

"Well, I'm good."

"Yes, but you aren't that good. Also the camera said Camera 2 on it, implying that there was more than one camera. I can understand one camera being maybe easy to smuggle in, but more than one camera, sounds like a set-up to me."

"Well, I was setting him up, I wanted to capture this."

"But how long could you have had those cameras up for? Cameras only have a certain time limit when they run out of batteries. You had to have known something was going to happen."

"Maybe I got Alicia to put them up."

"Edge would've noticed, don't you think?" Stephanie asked.

"She could've put them up when she was there earlier or with Vickie."

"You didn't seem chummy with her."

"So, you don't seem chummy with the people that you conspire with," Hunter said. "That's a rule of thumb, you want to make people not see anything suspicious. Alicia working with me, not suspicious at all."

"Of course not," Stephanie said. "How did you know where Edge was?"

"Easy, followed him."

"Without him seeing you, you're not exactly easily hidden, Hunter."

"I'm good, you should know that, we were married for two years, I figured you would've picked up at least that from me."

"Yeah, but I know people who are better. People who can get you clearance to go into a room because they know every room that a person is staying in. Someone who can just call a front desk and tell them to let you up."

"What are you implying?" Hunter asked, narrowing his eyes at her.

"I think you know exactly what I'm implying. Give and take," Stephanie said, "Nobody's going to help you for free so there must be something happening in return. Maybe someone was helping you because you were helping them."

"Alicia and I came up with the plan. She knew where Edge was."

"Doesn't explain how you got in. Hunter, don't play me for the fool. You couldn't have hidden cameras that fast, so don't tell me this Alicia woman is somehow faster than even you are."

"We set it up, Stephanie, call her tomorrow, check it out."

"I will," she said to him, "that should give you enough time to call her to make sure that she corroborates your story. I've known something was going on, everything is making a lot more sense. It's all very interesting, though, very interesting indeed and when the time comes, I want an explanation straight from your mouth. I'd love to hear it."

"I have no clue what you're going on about, Stephanie."

"Yes, you do, Hunter, yes you do."


	195. Well, Lookie Here, July 28, 2008

A/N: Okay, so it wasn't a Smoochy scene per se, but dude, at this point, I'll take anything! I loved how out of the 4 clips, two involved Stephanie, it was like, poetic or something. I wonder (okay, this is what I believe) if Chris was the one who chose those clips. It was just really cute, like, highlights and there's him and Steph and then there's him and Steph again and it was like, aww, I miss those two crazy kids and obviously someone is a fan if they got 2 clips. Still, it made me really happy to see, I just wish I could've seen Chris's reactions at the live show to what was shown on the screen. If anyone was there and wants to let me know...feel free!

On another note, congratulations to Stephanie on her new baby, yay for Stephanie! :D

So enjoy the chapter!

* * *

Stephanie tapped her pencil against the dark wood incessantly. It was just her and her brother now and she was starting to get annoyed. She and Shane had a flight in a few hours to get to Washington DC before the show. Shane was scheduled to appear and she was scheduled to be there with her family. Chris and Sawyer were already there and she was supposed to follow and then they would fly home to Florida tomorrow and the nursery would be worked on and she could rest and start making plans for Flynn and everything was going to be great.

But no, she was stuck here.

"Stephanie, I already run things backstage, I don't want the responsibility of being up front too," Shane said.

"Well, you're the person Mom suggested," Stephanie said. "She said that you would do a great job and she'd like to see you out there taking the reins while Dad is sick…or faking, I still think he's faking."

"Would you give that up?"

"I will not give it up until I get to see him with my own two eyes."

"You're going to stop traveling soon so it's going to be a while before you'll get to see him. He's probably laid up somewhere. Maybe he's horribly disfigured and has decided to live his life as a hermit."

"Don't even joke about that."

"What? They can make a movie about him. _The Man Without a Face 2_, it'll be a poignant tale. People would flock to see it."

"Shut up," she said, "I just think he's not being truthful with us. Chris, what do you think?"

"I think it's stupid that you patched me in just to hear you and your brother arguing about who's going to be the next Raw GM."

"Chris, you are part of this family and we have to think of someone suitable and someone for whom the board would support. It's a huge decision that my father has so graciously," she said sarcastically, "put upon us."

"He's grooming us," Shane said.

"He's pawning it off on us is more like it."

"What about Chris?"

"What about him?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, what about me?" Chris asked.

"You, why don't you be the GM? I mean, you're part of our family, you already know how to run things, you'd be perfect for the job. Stephanie and I trust you, Stephanie trusts you with her life and so would I if the circumstances arose. My parents adore you, you'd be perfect for the job."

"Tempting, but no," Chris said.

"Why not?" Shane asked.

"A multitude of reasons. Do you want me to be Hunter?" Chris asked.

"Speaking of," Stephanie said. "Would he happen to be there right now?"

"How would I know?"

"I think you would," Stephanie insinuated, trying to get Chris to slip up. Something was just not right with this entire thing. Chris knew too much and Hunter was getting too much help. It just didn't make sense to her and she wanted to know what was going on but neither were budging. Were they trying not to include her because she was just about ready to pop? Did they think she was just so delicate that she'd faint because they had some big, elaborate plan?

And if they did have some big, elaborate plan, how the hell had Chris convinced Hunter to join their side? Hunter was Shawn's best friend and not Chris's. He and Chris had been getting along for a while now, but it just didn't make sense for Hunter to all of a sudden turn his back on Shawn after so many years of loyal friendship. The only thing that came to mind as to why Hunter would choose to help Chris was the fact that Shawn might not like Britt like he didn't like her. But that didn't make sense because Hunter and Britt were in limbo. This was infuriating her and she was itching to do some detective work.

"Um, okay," Chris said, acting confused by her question. "I guess I might if I got the lists for who had come in tonight, but I don't really go over those too thoroughly."

"Oh really, so you wouldn't even know if Hunter were to show up?"

"Why would I care? I hate him."

"Do you?"

"Yes!"

"Okay, you two, you guys need to just stop this. I don't know what this is about, nor do I care what it's about--"

"I'll tell you what it's about, it's about my husband secretly doing something and not telling me about it!"

"I don't have to tell you anything," Chris told her over the safety of the phone. Stephanie had not yet developed the ability to reach through phones to strangle her husband.

"I'm going to be there tonight."

"So?"

"We've been together for six years, Christopher," she told him.

"Less, actually, because we did break up twice."

"Are you trying to make me go into labor?"

"Don't pull this on me."

"Stop!" Shane implored them. "We have been sitting here for hours trying to think of someone to take over this damn position and we're no closer now than we were when we started this thing. Stephanie and I have a flight we need to catch so we have to have someone!"

"Okay, sorry," Chris said.

"So you'll accept, Chris?" Shane said.

"No, I'm not accepting."

"Why not? What the hell are you doing anyways? You already say you've ended Shawn's career, don't have much on your plate now, do you?" Shane said.

Stephanie glared at him for her husband, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I'm just saying he has nothing to do."

"There's plenty for him to do, right, sweetie?"

"Yeah, I actually wanted to talk to you about that when you got here."

"About what?"

"Focus, you two, focus, oh my God, why did you two have to get married? This conversation would've been much easier if you two hated each other."

"You really, honestly think that?" Stephanie asked. "Because I think it'd be even more difficult than it is right now. Chris and I would be sniping at each other."

"Okay, maybe it wouldn't. Chris, why not?"

"I don't want to and you can't make me. You can't, Shane, I have just as much say as you do in this matter."

"Damn it," Shane cursed.

"You guys have all been ignoring the obvious and I'm a little hurt," Stephanie said.

"No, Stephanie, Ted DiBiase is not going to be the new GM," Chris teased. Shane snickered as Stephanie's face turned red. She really did have a crush on the guy. He found it absolutely hysterical that his 31-year-old sister had a crush like she was 12. It looked like Chris found it equally as hysterical, which was a good thing considering he could be very jealous over the entire thing.

"Chris, why do you do this to me?"

"It's cute, baby, you're allowed to have crushes. That just means I'm allowed to sleep with someone while you're away."

"No," Stephanie said, then turned to her brother, "I want to throw my name into the discussion."

There was silence from both her brother and her husband and she didn't like it. She looked at her brother and he just stared at her, his eyebrows knitting every now and then, tilting his head to look at her, like he was going to say something but then decided against it. The phone was equally silent except for the random giggles coming from her little boy as he did something funny in the background.

"What?" Stephanie asked, looking at her brother and then the phone, like Chris could see her looking at him. "What's wrong with that? Say something."

"You're aware that you are carrying a child in your stomach, right?" Shane asked. "That's not just from too much cake."

"I'm well aware of what I have in me."

"Stephanie, being GM would mean you'd have to be there, when are you due with Flynn?"

"I'm not due until the end of August, well, more towards the middle."

"It's almost August now, you're going to have to stop traveling soon, you can't possibly think that we would make you the GM when you're not going to be around here for at least two months."

"I can be here, Chris, I can be here," she said to the phone, where Chris had yet to say anything.

"Steph," Chris sighed, "baby, I'm going to have to agree with your brother on this one. I don't want you to be the GM, I don't think it's the right direction for you right now."

"Why not? We could make it work."

"Baby, you're going to have Flynn soon and adding extra stress onto yourself, I don't want to see you do that."

"You just don't want me to."

"Well, yeah, that was the point of all of this, we don't want you to."

"I want to!"

"Stephanie, I can't do it, you can't be there, and I'm not going to let you go out to the ring tonight and put my niece in danger. Chris would probably intercept you before you even step foot out there."

"I don't even want to talk to either of you," she said, leaning back in her chair with her arms folded over her stomach.

"You can't honestly think that you can have this job right now, do you?" Shane asked.

"I could do it!"

"You're pregnant!"

"So!"

"Okay, no fighting, you two," Chris said this time. "Look, baby, I would love it if you took this job under any other circumstances, but what about our daughter? You're not going to be able to travel and more importantly, she's not going to be able to travel until she's six weeks old. You didn't travel with Sawyer, don't you think you should extend the same courtesy to Flynn. She's our child too."

"It's not fair."

"What's not fair?" Shane asked.

"This whole thing, it's not fair that I'm not getting considered because I'm pregnant. I didn't ask for this, you know. Chris and I didn't plan this little girl, we didn't plan Sawyer. Hell, if I had my way I wouldn't even have started wanting kids until next year. But now I've got two and I have to take a step back and it sucks."

"I know, baby, but you know I'm here."

"Yeah, but you get to be in front of the cameras, you get to go out there while I sit here with my stomach being the majority of my body, with people coming up and touching it _without _permission, and a human being crowding all my organs around and kicking me."

"Baby…"

"Fine, I just won't do it," she said sullenly.

"You'll come back better than ever."

"So you say," she said, looking down at her stomach.

"Excuse me, Mr. McMahon, Mrs. McMahon-Jericho?"

"Yes, Stella?" Shane asked.

"Um, I just received a fax from your father," she said, coming into the large, but practically empty conference room. She set the fax down on the table. "It said was urgent and that you needed to receive it as soon as possible."

"Thanks, Stella," Shane said and the woman nodded and left.

"What is it?" Chris asked, having heard what was going on from his end of the phone line.

"So our father refuses to see his family, but he has no problem sending faxes to his employees to give to us?" Stephanie wondered sarcastically. She was convinced that her father was just living it up somewhere while letting the rest of his family look like fools. "What does it say?"

"It says that we are to make Mike Adamle the new General Manager and that's his final say and we are to go with it."

"What!" Chris exclaimed.

"What?" Stephanie echoed. "That's silly. That man cannot be our GM."

"This is what Dad wants."

"So, tell him to come here and do it himself if he wants that inexperienced goon to be the GM. I would make a better GM from my hospital bed than he would if he gave 1000 percent. This is ludicrous."

"Stephanie, it's Dad's orders."

"He's not here, I'm not going to take part in this," Stephanie said. "This is not on my head, Shane McMahon."

"Stephanie, what do you want me to do? I don't even know how to contact Dad right now. We should just go with this and be done with it."

"Fine, do whatever, make it a disaster, call him up, I've got a flight to catch."

"Stephanie, wait up," Shane said as his sister started her retreat from the conference room. "I know this isn't who we wanted, not by a long-shot, but if this means that Dad wants to get back involved with the company end of things, then that's good. That means that the responsibilities that fall on us lessens and you don't have to worry when you have Flynn."

"Chris, baby, I'll talk to you later," Stephanie said, walking over and hanging up the phone without a word. She wasn't even sure if Chris had any words right now. Mike Adamle? She would've rather seen Sawyer be the GM, at least Sawyer knew what the hell was going on.

"Stephanie, talk to me," Shane said.

Stephanie walked to her office and went to gather her briefcase. She grabbed it and then Shane grabbed it, not letting his little sister carry anything when she was so pregnant. She was nearly nine months pregnant and she wasn't going to let his sister do anything strenuous, even if her briefcase was light. He already had his things with him and his bags had been sent ahead with Chris, so he just had to follow his sister out to their limo.

"Steph, come on," Shane implored.

"Don't you get what Dad's doing to us here?" Stephanie told him as they drove to the airport. "Don't you see his motives?"

"Um, I don't think so, I think he just made a bad choice."

"Oh, Shane, sometimes, you _are_ too much like Mom. I know you can be manipulative and conniving, but you're just not to the level that Dad and I are at. Sure, you bought WCW and formed the Alliance, but…never-mind…anyways, you don't see what Dad is really doing here."

"I guess I don't…care to inform me since apparently you're _so_ conniving."

"Dad is pinning this on us. He knows that Adamle is going to piss off a lot of people, but that's who he wants because Dad likes the guy for some reason, but if things don't go well, who gets the blame? Not him, oh no, he's holed up somewhere and he's all sad and injured and _faking_, but not his children. No, his children get to announce it and look like complete and utter fools!"

"You really think that?"

"Look into Dad's mind, Shane, what do you see?"

Shane had no more arguments.

Trish looked at Edge as he lounged around on her couch. She didn't even know when the last time he had taken a shower was and she was kind of hoping he would get up so she could spray the couch down and clean it. She was afraid there'd just be one greasy, Edge stain when he got up. She wasn't sure if Edge actually spent the night here, but he was here when she went to bed and he was here when she got up and came down for a cup of coffee. His mournful moaning had startled her and she'd almost spilt hot coffee on herself.

"Why is he here?" Trish whispered to her fiancé. "My mom and dad are coming down for a few days and I don't want them to have to see…him like this. Why is he here? I thought you told him you were not going to help him find out about the video."

"I did, I think this is our punishment," Christian said. He walked further into the room, "Edge, why don't you go home?"

"He might be there."

"He? The Undertaker?"

"Of course The Undertaker! Who else would it be?"

"The nice men in white with the big nets?" Trish grumbled and Christian stifled his laugh.

"What was that, Trish?"

"Nothing, I was just reciting my shopping list."

"Can you get me some cereal?"

"You're not staying here, are you, Edge? You have a house, a perfectly good house that you can go to."

"I know I have a house, but he could be there…plus, a lot of Vickie's stuff is there and she's the one who did this to me. One week, that's all it took for her to do this to me. I understand she was upset. I can even understand why she would reinstate him, but to put us in a match."

"You did kiss another woman," Trish said. "I would've done the same thing to Christian, hell, if I found out Christian did that on our wedding day, I'd leave him and do something to cause him the maximum amount of pain."

"You would?" Christian asked.

"Hell yeah I would," she told him, then smiled, "but you wouldn't because you love me."

"I do love you," he said, kissing her forehead. "I love you so much. You're my lady."

"You're so sweet."

"You two are making me sick over here," Edge said.

"Then leave our house."

"I can't, I don't want to and you can't make me."

"Yes, we can, this is our house," Trish said. "You can't just stay if we ask you to leave."

"If I just knew whose fault this was besides Hunter's."

"Don't dwell on it. It won't get you anywhere," Christian told him quickly.

"So how long do you plan to stay on our couch?" Trish asked.

"I don't know..."

"Well it's not going to be forever, I'm telling you that right now," Trish said. She was not sympathetic towards Edge. He had knowingly kissed that girl and _now_ he was acting all broken up about it, especially now that she turned on him. It was exactly what he deserved.

"Why not?"

"Because it's pathetic and my parents are going to be here and I don't want them to see you laying on the couch. I mean, it took them long enough to warm back up to Christian, I don't need you tainting the happy home we're creating."

"Well, _excuse me_ for going through something."

"You kissed another woman, Edge!"

"I didn't mean to, it was a moment of weakness, I swear it was. I would never really do that to my Vickie, I wouldn't, I would never…there's her things sitting in my house and…I miss my Vickie!"

Edge bemoaned on the couch, burying his face into a couch cushion. Trish and Christian slowly backed out of the room and looked at each other. They didn't know whether to laugh, cry at the stupidity, or just take off running away from the crazy that was Christian's brother. Ever since his thing with Lita he had gone completely off the deep end. Wait, the thing with Lita…

"Do you think he secretly still wants Lita?" Trish asked.

"Whoa, random," Christian said, pulling Trish into his arms. She leaned back against him and felt his chin rest against the crown of her head as he thought for a moment, "I don't really know how to answer that."

"I don't know, he's just been…more…I don't know, crazy since she left him…since she left the company, really. He's just not been…he's been more clingy and piney and just…I don't know, I mean, at least with Lita, he was a jackass, but not a whiny two-year old."

"Hey, I happen to know a very cool two-year-old who would take that as an insult."

Trish laughed, "No offense meant to Sawyer of course. I don't know, maybe he misses Lita and that's what this is really all about. It's not really about Vickie and it's about Lita."

"I think you're giving my brother too much depth here. I mean, really, all of this just because he's actually missing Lita? Don't you think he would've just gone after her? He _married_ Vickie."

"Because she has the power he wants, but maybe he's still in love with Lita."

"You think they loved each other?"

"In their own, twisted, weird way, yes, I do think they loved each other. I loved you when I wasn't with you, why can't he love her under the same circumstances. Hell, I got engaged and I knew it probably wasn't the best idea. I thought it was at the time, maybe this is the same case."

"Well, if you want to find _that _out, you're on your own, Trishy, I love you to death, but this, I don't know if I believe it."

Stephanie walked in through the door, "I'm here!"

"Mommy! Fwynn!" Sawyer exclaimed, rushing towards his mommy and bumping right into her stomach with an oof. He couldn't get his arms around her so he moved to her side and hugged her leg tightly, not wanting to let go.

"Hey there, baby boy," Stephanie said, ruffling his hair. "You can't have missed me that much, I saw you earlier."

"I know," he said, grabbing her hand and leading her over to where Chris was sitting. He smiled at her and she took a seat across from him. "Sit, Mommy."

"Why, thank you," Stephanie said, "such service."

"I sit too," Sawyer said, climbing up onto the seat he had obviously been sitting in. There was some Play-Doh sitting on the desk in that little corner and Sawyer's hands were covered with little spots of Play-Doh, which he went back to work on, letting it squish between his fingers and then ooze out, much to his delight.

"So, what do you think about what my dad did?"

"I think your dad is crazy, absolutely crazy," Chris said, looking away from his stuff. "It's nice to see you back where you belong."

"Well, don't get too cozy, this is probably the last week that I'm going to show up here. I guess I should just soak it all in and then remember every sour and mean face I'm going to see when I leave later."

"People are going to know it was your dad."

"Are they? Are they, Chris? I'm not so sure."

"Come on, this smacks of Vince."

"As far as everyone is concerned, my dad is sick or something. They're going to see this as me and my brother and they're going to hate me for it."

"They're not going to hate a pregnant woman," Chris said, rolling his eyes. "They'll hate me."

"Well…yeah…what was it you wanted to talk to me about?"

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot about that."

"Look, Mommy, kitty," Sawyer said, holding up his clay. "It go meow," he giggled, giving his best impression of a kitten.

"Wow, that's nice, is that supposed to be Declan and Kenny's new kitten?"

"Mmhmm, kitty me?"

"You can't have a kitty, baby boy, we travel too much and you wouldn't be able to take a kitten with you everywhere we go. It's okay though, you'll have plenty of other things to do and maybe when you get older we'll get a dog or something."

"Doggie?"

"Yeah, a doggie," she smiled, then turned to her husband, "so continue."

"I'm doing my last Highlight Reel tonight."

"Oh my God, you're leaving again…"

"What?"

"You're leaving, oh my God, this is Sawyer all over again!" Stephanie exclaimed. Sawyer looked over when he heard his name mentioned. They were talking about him? What were they saying about him, was it bad? Did he do something bad?

"Mommy, I bad?" he asked.

"No, baby, go back to your Play-Doh."

"Oh, okay," he said, going back to playing, but keeping an ear out.

"No, Stephanie, baby, no, that's not what's going on."

"Are you sure?" she asked, "Because I can take care of my baby, you don't have to leave, you're wanted here. People…well, they pretty much abhor you, but there are some that love you, your loyal Jerichoholics."

"I'm not leaving, baby, trust me, I just…I'm done with that crap, that pandering to the fans crap that I used to do. I…uh, I'm retiring my old persona."

"You are? What exactly does that mean?"

"It means I've turned over a new leaf."

"Are you having a mid-life crisis? Is that it? Second child coming, responsibilities mounting, are you going to go buy a sports car and like…I don't know, change your wardrobe, buy a boat."

"Well, we don't have a boat…anyways, I just think that I'm not as focused as I could be."

"Because of the kids?"

"No, because of work, because I've been trying so hard for them out there, the fans. I've played the nice guy, the fun guy, the party host, you know what I mean, I've done everything for them, do you realize that I hated you because of _them_."

"No, you didn't," she said, "you hated me because I was a bitch, and I still am a bitch, you just got used to me and fell in love with me."

"I treated you like crap because the fans hated you too."

"You hated me because I put you into stupid matches, had you put through a set, remember?"

"Whatever, what I'm saying is that I was what they wanted me to be and it's time to start being what I want myself to be and that's a vicious winner."

"So you want to turn into my ex-husband, lovely, just what I've always wanted, to be married to Hunter…again," Stephanie said drolly, rolling her eyes and looking at her son. "Sawyer, go knock some sense into your father."

"I no hit," Sawyer said, like he too was growing more mature and the more mature Sawyer wouldn't stoop so low as to hit his father. He was above such childish behavior.

"You can hit him, I give you permission," Stephanie told him.

"I'm not turning into Hunter."

"Good, I wouldn't want that."

"But do you realize, I've only had two major title runs in my career here."

"That never really seemed to bother you before."

"Because I was _that_ guy, the guy who wanted the fans to adore me, I'm not that guy anymore. I wrestle for myself because I love it. I wrestle for you and for Sawyer and for Flynn because I love you. I don't wrestle for them, except the loyal ones, the ones who stuck by me through everything."

"Sweetie, I understand, but just because you want to wrestle for yourself doesn't mean you have to give up on them."

"What have they ever given me?"

"Love and support."

"Bulls--" Stephanie shook her head and nodded towards Sawyer. Chris wanted to swear, but reined it in, "That's crap and you know it."

"Chris, I'm not sure I like this change in you."

"Change?"

"I don't know, you're different," she said, looking at him like the difference was on the surface.

"I think I'm more focused now, besides, just because I'm serious with my work doesn't mean I'm going to be Mr. Scrooge at home. I'll still be the same Chris that I always am with you. The fans just don't deserve it."

"They've built you up, Chris. They love you, just like they love Shawn. They liked the guy that was funny and kooky."

"Stephanie, I want the World Title belt," he said seriously, his jaw setting as he gazed at her.

Stephanie's kind face turned smooth and cold, her eyebrow raising as the corner of her mouth raised into a smirk, "The title?"

"You're right, CM Punk as the champion? It should be me."

"It should be," she said and her entire demeanor had changed. It was amazing how in tune the two of them could be sometimes. Sawyer had given up on his Play-Doh and was now practically laying across the desk, watching his mommy and daddy. There was something different about them, something he couldn't quite figure out. They looked kind of mean actually.

"Yes, and if I have to change my thinking, if I have to become hard and calculating, it'll all be worth it in the end."

"You deserve that belt," Stephanie said, "you deserve to be champion. I want this for you."

"I thought you would," he told her and the heat between them was rising and converging and creating an inferno between their bodies. Stephanie licked her lips a little, loving the thought of Chris being the World Champion, having the gold that he so greatly and richly deserved. It was like music to her ears to know that he wanted it just as bad as she wanted it for him.

"You are so sexy," he said huskily.

"So are you," Stephanie told him, leaning forward a little bit.

"Mommy, Daddy…" Sawyer had no idea what his parents were doing.

Chris broke from this trance, "Well, I've got things to do, I've got a special, little video that I wanted everyone to see tonight."

"About Shawn?"

"You'll see," Chris said, standing up and then leaning over to kiss her, slipping his tongue into her mouth briefly. She resisted the urge to moan, thinking about her little boy who was sitting right there. "Be sure to watch, okay?"

"I always watch when you're on, sweetie."

"Okay, later then."

"Bye," Stephanie said.

Trish opened the door, "Hey Mom, hey Dad!"

"Darling, hello," Alice said, hugging her daughter, "how are you?"

"Pretty good, did you bring down the pictures of the place?"

"Yes, I did, and I brought some of the samples of chairs settings and things that you can check out and choose how you want to configure everything and we've got to start doing seating arrangements, everyone's RSVP'ed, right?"

"Well, we gave them a little more leeway," Trish said, "So not completely, but I would like to get started with it."

"Good, where's Christian?"

"Uh, his brother is here, he's kind of…"

"Oh my," Alice said as they walked into the living room. Edge was still slumped against the couch and if it was even possible, Trish thought he looked even dumpier now than he had earlier. Had he gotten even more disgusting and unkempt in the five minutes she had been gone. "Is he okay?"

"He's _fine_," Trish said, kicking Edge lightly in the shin. "Edge, we have company."

"Hi, Trish's parents," he mumbled.

"Why don't we go into the kitchen?" Trish said. "I'll make some tea, it'll be good after your flight."

"That sounds wonderful, dear." Christian came over and said his hellos to her parents and then left Alice to talk with Trish as her father went to put his bags in the spare room upstairs.

"So why is his brother like that?"

"Marital problems."

"Oh?"

"He got married about a week ago and at his wedding reception…or something they were trying to disguise as a wedding reception, well, it came out he had cheated on her before the wedding and hell broke loose and now he's upset."

"Cheating?"

"Yeah."

"Oh."

"What's with the oh?"

"Well, I don't know, a week of marriage and already cheating. And he's Christian's brother."

"Mom, Christian isn't like that, you like Chris."

"I know, I do, but I want to make sure he's right for you."

"Mom, let's not even go there, you can't compare Edge to Christian. They're both incredibly different and Christian would never do that to me."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm positive, Christian loves me, he loves me and he would never cheat on me."

"I just want to make sure, you understand, don't you?"

"Yeah, but I'm happy now, I'm happy with Christian."

Stephanie looked around Chris's locker room from his desk chair. "This is where I really belong, behind a desk. You know, if it weren't for you and Flynn, I would be the announced GM tonight. Then I could take over and make matches for Daddy."

"Oh," Sawyer said, "I sowwy?"

"You should be," Stephanie said, "you and the baby. I could've had it all, but no, just because I'm pregnant, just because your father did this to me, yeah, you heard me right, your father did this to me, just because of that I can't be the GM when I would obviously make the best GM."

"Oh…I like Fwynn."

"Well, I like her too and I like you, but that doesn't mean that I should have to put my life on hold for you, does it?"

"No…"

"See, but I can't. Then Grandpa comes swooping in with his asinine ideas. Does he just go crazy when I get pregnant, can he not deal with his little girl being pregnant, is that it? Does he just have to go off the deep end every time I'm carrying a child?"

"Yeah," Sawyer nodded.

"You're probably right, he probably does go crazy." There was a knock at the door and Stephanie called out, "Come in."

"Stephanie," JBL said, and she narrowed her eyes, "I was just talking to your brother about SummerSlam and the main event and everything, he said to talk to the new GM and I was wondering if you could tell me who that is."

"Oh, man, I've got to pee, really badly, stupid baby, I mean, I've been peeing all the time, you know what I mean, do you have kids, probably not since you saw fit to insult mine, but yeah, this peeing business," she said, standing up. "It's pee now, pee then, peeing before breakfast, definitely _after _breakfast."

"Uh, you know, I can wait," JBL said, "I can wait…"

"Oh, well, I mean, I just had to pee is all."

"Yeah, definitely, I'll wait."

"Okay," Stephanie shrugged, then sat down when JBL left. "What does he take me for? He hurt my husband, does he think I'd just forget that."

"Mommy, firsty."

"Oh, okay, let's go get some juice and then we'll head to bed, okay?"

"Okay," he said, starting to get sleepy now that it was getting later. He gave a big yawn, opening his mouth wide and rubbing at his eyes. He hopped off the chair and went towards Stephanie, laying a big kiss on the underside of his stomach. "Baby firsty?"

"Nah, she's not going to be thirsty for a little while. She gets plenty of food."

"How?"

"Through the umbilical cord."

"What?"

"Through the belly button," Stephanie said, poking Sawyer in the nose and he giggled, then lifted his shirt.

"There?" he asked incredulously

"Yup, right through there, but there's something connecting me and Flynn through right there, you know you're belly button was connected to me too."

"No!" Sawyer said in surprise as they walked towards catering.

"Uh huh, when you were in Mommy's tummy, that's how you ate."

"Oh, I no know," Sawyer said, not knowing that he had actually been connected to his mommy; that was strange. They got to catering and Stephanie got Sawyer his juice and they decided to go find Chris. She was just innocently walking down the hallway when Cena came up to her.

"Hey, Stephanie, I was just wondering, you know, if I could pick the new GM's ear, if you could tell me where they are, it would be a big help," he said, trying to sweet-talk her.

"Oh, you want to know who the new GM is?"

"Yeah, if you could just let me know, I just want to make sure they know that this'll be fair, you know, this match, this whole thing with Dave."

Stephanie sniffed the air, "Oh, Sawyer, did you go to the bathroom? Oh, I'm going to have to change him, he hates a dirty diaper, starting to potty train and all that."

"Mommy, I no--"

"It's okay, baby boy, I'll get you cleaned up and put to bed," Stephanie said, "Sorry John, motherly duties and all that, it's a rough job, but someone has to do it, right?"

"Uh, yeah, right," Cena said, watching Stephanie walk off. She was really embarrassed by who the new GM was and if she could just avoid talking about it, that would be favorable. It was a good thing she was taking care of Sawyer because that meant she could just stay holed up in Chris's locker room and claim a sleeping toddler as an excuse not to talk to anyone.

This didn't stop her from watching Chris's promo though. She left Sawyer to Britt for a little bit, knowing the little boy would just sleep his way through it. She walked to the monitor, telling anyone that came up to her wanting to know who the new GM was that she wanted to go see Chris, which wasn't untrue. She wanted to see what the final Highlight Reel would be all about. She remembered when he first started these things and she had thought it a clever idea. Now it was going to be all over.

He was out there with Lance Cade again, who he felt was like a bodyguard of sorts, more than a protégé or anything. He was out there with Lance Cade again, who he felt was like a bodyguard of sorts, more than a protégé or anything. Chris was looking delicious tonight and it took a lot of her willpower not to just ravish him. She might actually save that for later in their hotel room when Sawyer was asleep. He was just wearing this suit cut perfectly for his body and he was so serious and sexy and she was starting to pull at her collar a little, feeling very hot all of a sudden and it had nothing to do with Flynn.

At first this was just stuff that she had heard endlessly about Shawn. She was actually getting a little tired of Shawn. Then Chris started talking about how he'd changed and she could agree with that. She could agree that he had changed and wasn't the same person. He said tonight he was going to show a Highlight Reel, but not for Shawn, oh no, but for Y2J. Stephanie got a little worried that he actually was going to quit or something, but it quickly died down as this video started playing.

The first clip made her laugh. She remembered when Chris had dressed up as Doink. She vaguely remembered a conversation she'd had with him afterwards where she had made fun of the clown makeup and he had made some lewd comment about her doing clowns or something. It was funny now to think about. He actually looked kind of cute now that her eyes had opened. She had changed too apparently.

The second clip made her cringe. There she was, looking shocked as Chris talked about her breast implants, the very same breast implants that Chris had loved and still did love. She remembered the humiliation that had coursed through her when Chris had shown that side-by-side comparison. She hadn't wanted to draw attention to herself, but she had been practically asking for it. Subconsciously, as the clip was playing, she crossed her arms over her chest, like she didn't want anyone staring at her. She didn't think this was so much a highlight for her. She was humiliated that night and then to add insult to injury, later that evening he had tried to put her in the Walls of Jericho in a skirt and she knew he had gotten more than an eyeful that night.

The third clip was his return and that was all well and good, it really was a highlight. Then there was another clip of him humiliating her. Her cheeks grew redder. Did Chris need to remind everyone of this? Hadn't his career been more than humiliating her? If a new fan had just started watching Raw tonight, they would've thought his whole career revolved around her. Little did she realize, it kind of did all revolve around her.

She could still remember the stickiness of the pie that he had thrown in her face. It had taken her a while to stop feeling gross and sticky after that, even though she had taken multiple showers. She had never been hit with a pie before and it was another humiliating moment in her repertoire. What was he going to show next, when he pointed out her zit? Or how about when he kissed her against her will? Or when he compared her to roadkill? What the hell was Chris getting at here, that he liked insulting her?

If that was the case, this was the most public way to announce you wanted a divorce.

Chris watched, slightly disgusted with himself over the way he had treated his wife. He loved her and he had treated her like gutter trash. He told everyone how embarrassed he was about those clips. He had included two of Stephanie for that very reason. He hated how he had treated her, but he was a changed man now. He was a better man now, with a wife and two children and he didn't need to be that guy anymore. Sure, people liked that guy, but he didn't like what he saw on that tape. Making fun of his wife? Throwing a pie in her face? He should've risen above that then, but he was resigned to do it now. He was turning over a new leaf and getting what he wanted.

He was going to make that title his. It should've been his in the first place and it was time to get the gold that he really wanted. No more minor titles, no more place-holding, he just wanted the big, gold belt to be his (and Sawyer's, the little boy was going to confiscate it the minute Chris walked in with it. It was just too bad the thing was way more than Sawyer could even hope to carry). He was giving up that person he used to be for the new person that he was now and he was driven and focused with no distractions any longer.

"So what did you think?"

"Why did you have to show me like that?"

"I was embarrassed by what I did back then, I was making my amends," he said, hugging her tightly.

"You weren't embarrassed by it."

"Yes I was."

"Chris, you loved it and you know," she said, "You're just trying to make the fans think that you didn't, but you loved putting that pie in my face, you made fun of me the entire time I was walking to my locker room. You kept telling me that you had more pies if I wanted to eat some and that you bet I wouldn't be able to tell if there was a monkey in my bed or if it was Hunter."

Chris laughed, "That does sound like me."

"Because you said it," she told him. "You said it and you liked it and you still like it. You just want to act embarrassed by it. Besides, that's how we got together. If you hadn't hated m and I hadn't hated you, you never would've wanted my help, never, so you're not."

"Okay, I'm not, but well, I thought I would make a public apology and show you that when I think of my career, you come to mind a lot."

"Well, I did get half your clips of your like seven year career here. Glad you didn't include any of you and Trish making out."

"We kissed like once."

"Still, I'm more important, just like it should be, oh look," Chris said, grabbing Chris's hand and placing it on her stomach, "our daughter agrees, oh, I'm going to like it. And in all fairness, you should've shown when you were looking at my underwear just to prove how big a pervert you were."

"I could've chosen the one where you have the tantrum and I was laughing at you."

"I would've hated you," she said.

"Stephanie, just who I was looking for," Paul Burchill said, coming up to Stephanie. Stephanie looked confused, had she ever spoken to him before. "I wanted to get the Intercontinental title and I was wondering if I could discuss it with the GM."

"Oww," Stephanie said, grabbing her stomach. "You know, I'm just…pregnancy, hard, very hard pregnancy, I need to lie down."

"Oh," Paul said, "well, if you must…"

"I must," she said, grimacing comically. Chris helped Stephanie walk away until Paul was out of sight.

"What are you doing?"

"I don't want to talk to anyone about the new GM and everyone keeps asking me. So let's get our stuff and go. We'll grab our things, nab the kid and get the hell out of this joint."

"You don't want to stay? This is your last Raw for a while."

"I know, but I don't want my last image being of a wrestler spitting on me because they thought I made a horrible choice that isn't my horrible choice at all."

"You know what I was thinking?"

"What?" she asked.

"What if your dad is working through Adamle?" Chris asked conspiratorially.

"Oh God, I didn't even think of that, oh God, that's probably _exactly_ what he's doing, damn it, that's probably it, that's probably it exactly, it makes sense. Of course. Damn him," Stephanie said. "I can't believe him sometimes."

"It's just a thought."

"Probably the right one, but everyone is still going to see me and Shane as the culprits. Shane has to say, but nobody said I did, so let's get out of here. I want to go."

Stephanie wanted absolutely no part in anything having to do with Mike Adamle. She knew she was leaving Shane to sharks, but he could handle it. He'd probably tell everyone it was their father who did it and he'd be believed whereas she'd probably suffer from the aforementioned spitting. Shane was like their mom that way, just like she was like their father. So she left Shane to it. She'd just have Chris and Shane keep an eye out on Adamle, maybe give him a trial period. Maybe he could only last a month or two…

Then Stephanie would pounce on the job.


	196. What is He Wearing! August 4, 2008

A/N: It took me forever to write this chapter because I kept stalling because I can't stop thinking about Chris in those ring tights and laughing my butt off. I love Chris to pieces, but just...wow, there are no words...

* * *

"I miss you."

"I miss you too," Chris told her. "You'll be okay though, it's only for one night and I'm coming home tomorrow."

"This kind of makes me wish that you weren't back on television so that you could be here with me. I don't like being here alone."

"You're not that alone, you told me earlier that Trish and Christian were going to come over and you were going to go out for an early dinner and then come home and watch Raw."

"Well, not Christian, he had things to do for TNA, but Trish is coming over, we're kind of going to make a girl's night out of it," Stephanie said, "and go over wedding stuff, but she's not you, you know."

"Baby, it's one night, you can survive one night."

"I'm uncomfortable and I don't feel well," Stephanie told him.

"Do you not feel well because of the baby or because this is the first night that Adamle is going to be the GM on Raw and you're not here to steer him in the right direction?" Chris asked, pretty much knowing what the answer was going to be with that one.

"Well, maybe the latter," Stephanie said slowly. "Of all the times that I have to go on maternity leave. And I can't go back for a while, I can't fly anymore and then Flynn is going to be born and I can't go when she's here unless the show is close by and even then…I mean, I know we took Sawyer when he was a baby, but I don't know…I hate this."

"I know you do," he said kindly, "but I'll keep an eye on him. I'm sure he'll be fine if your father really is the one holding the puppet strings for him."

"Yeah, I really do think you're right about that. Why else would he be so insistent about it? This is probably why he won't let us see him, not that I could see him anymore anyways since I can't fly. Stupid doctor with her stupid rules."

Chris chuckled, "Baby, it's not stupid, you're entering your ninth month and you shouldn't be traveling anyways. The airlines make you have a note and everything and with that whole stress level thing and your blood pressure being high."

"It was only high because I had just gotten off the phone with corporate trying to contact my father to chew him out. It was not that high normally," Stephanie said testily. When she had her doctor's appointment several days ago she had been on edge because she had spent the couple days prior trying to get in contact with her father, but nobody was budging, or nobody knew where he was.

"Yeah, but Dr. Sheldon said that you can't travel even if you wanted to, that's what you get for letting yourself get worked up."

"Oh shove it up your ass," Stephanie told him.

"Are we having mood swings?" Chris teased.

"Look, the second you can carry a child inside of you, _then_ you can talk to me about mood swings and stuff like that. But since you can't, you need to shut up," Stephanie told him. "I am having this kid in 23 days, and I am not in a good mood because I feel like crap so you better bear with me."

"So if I don't show up tomorrow, keep this conversation in mind, okay?"

"Where's my baby?" she asked.

"He's right here, eavesdropping on my conversation like the little snot he is," Chris said, sticking his tongue out at Sawyer. Sawyer's jaw dropped a little at his father's audacity and he shook his head and stuck his own tongue out. "And now he just stuck his tongue out at me! This kid needs to be disciplined, bad."

"What about his father, who should be disciplining him?"

"If you're up for the job," he said, his voice trailing off in a deep whisper.

"You're insatiable."

"I got used to getting sex whenever I wanted," Chris said, "you've spoiled me, baby, because you are willing to give it up all the time. You're just as insatiable."

"Yeah, and look where that's gotten us, with two kids we didn't even plan to have," Stephanie said with a laugh. "So Sawyer's okay?"

"Baby, I'm his father, I think by now I know how to take care of him. He's running around with his toy planes and playing airport. Right now he's flying around the plane and pretending that we're inside it enjoying our meal and a movie. He's very imaginative that way."

"Good, if he misses me though, you know you can call me anytime you want," Stephanie said.

"Stephanie, you've been away from the boy before and he's been away from you before."

"I'm sorry, I'm in that mood where I'm protective of my babies," Stephanie said, "they call that nesting, you know, so it's a thing, a valid thing."

"I understand," he said, "do you want to talk to the baby and see for yourself that he's okay and that I'm taking very good care of him?"

"As a matter of fact, I do, put him on, I'm tired of talking to you, you're boring."

"Nice to know," Chris said, looking over at Sawyer, who was on his hands and knees and making his planes take off into the great blue yonder that was the sky. "Hey, you over there, the one with the plane?"

"Me?" Sawyer asked, looking up his father.

"Yeah, you, what's your name again, I forgot."

"No," Sawyer said, shaking his head. His daddy wouldn't forget his name. "You know."

"I do? I'm sorry, I'm drawing a blank here, you're going to have to refresh my memory, I really don't remember your name."

Sawyer giggled, "Daddy!"

"Your name is Daddy, well, that's pretty unusual."

Sawyer ran over and threw himself into Chris's lap. "You know!"

"I know your name?"

"Yes," Sawyer said, "you know."

"No, I really don't," Chris said, shrugging his shoulders, "should I know it?"

"You silly, Daddy," Sawyer said to his father. He kept giggling, "I Sawyer."

"Oh," Chris said, as if he just remembered, "that does sound familiar, yes, Sawyer, that's right, I remember now, your mother is on the phone and she wants to talk to you, do you want to talk to Mommy?"

"Yes…pease," he added, giving a cheesy grin that his father wore often when he was teasing. Chris handed Sawyer the phone and he took it in his small hands and held it up to his ear. "Hi!"

"Hey there, baby boy."

"Mommy!" Sawyer said excitedly, his face lighting up as he walked away from his father. Chris laughed at him. It looked like he thought this was a private conversation and Chris couldn't listen to what he said.

"Hi, baby, how are you?"

"Daddy silly," Sawyer told his mommy.

"Oh, Daddy's silly?"

"Yup," Sawyer said, nodding, even though his mother wouldn't be able to see it. "He funny."

"I know, he makes me laugh all the time too."

"Where baby?"

"The baby's here."

"Oh, I see her."

"I know you did, I was there, remember?"

"I know," Sawyer said, exasperated. The baby was in his mommy's tummy, _of course _she would be there with the baby. Now his mommy was being silly.

"Oh, okay, are you going to help Daddy tonight?"

"No, I play," Sawyer said.

"So you're not going to help Daddy at all?"

"Um…no," Sawyer told her.

"Wow, well, I guess if that's what you want to do. You be good, okay, I miss you."

"Me too," Sawyer said, pouting a little. "I see you?"

"Tomorrow, you and Daddy fly home tomorrow and then you and me get to spend the day together on Thursday all by ourselves because Daddy has to go to New York to meet with some people."

"Oh okay, Daddy," Sawyer said, rushing back over and handing him the phone back. Chris smiled at him and took the phone.

"Hey."

"Oh, he didn't even want to say goodbye, well then," Stephanie laughed, "what are you doing tonight?"

"Not sure yet, but I'm going to go…"

"Wait, before you go, I needed to discuss something really important with you," Stephanie said, her voice losing that playful tone it had just had. Chris knew that whatever it was, he better listen or she was going to be angry with him.

"What is it?"

"Well, I've been thinking about what you said about my dad being behind the whole Adamle thing, you know, pulling the strings and everything. Well, I want to know if he is."

"Okay, what does this have to do with anything?"

"I need you to get on Adamle's good side," Stephanie told him. Chris groaned audibly and Stephanie was quick to respond, "Chris, I _need_ you to do this for me. I'd do it myself, but I'm not a wrestler and I'm not there, or else I would be trying to see it."

"Stephanie, do you understand what this means I have to do?"

"Most people hate you anyways," Stephanie told him, "so you can do this for me, Chris, I want to know if my father is the biggest jackass on the planet."

"You're the only one who honestly cares what he's doing and I thought it would be pretty clear by now that he _is_ the biggest jackass on the planet," Chris told her. "Besides, how the hell can I get on his good side? I'm part owner of the company, I don't need to listen to a General Manager, I can make up my own rules, if I want to have all the divas in a huge ice cream sundae in the middle of the ring, I can do it."

"Why is it the first thing you think of when you want to do whatever you want is for you to have all the divas doused in ice cream?"

"It was an example of a hypothetical and ridiculous situation," he told her, "I can do whatever I want. Why would I want or need to listen to him? Is your brother here tonight?"

"No, because I'm in Florida, pregnant with your child, he has stuff to do at Titan. It pisses me off to no end. I mean, yeah, I'm working from home and that's all well and good, but nobody's there, you're there, but you wrestle. So it all works perfectly for my father, don't you see? He has Shane working at Titan, doing all his work, I'm conveniently pregnant--"

"You make it sound like your father paid me to get you pregnant or something," Chris interjected.

"I don't hear you denying it." Chris chuckled at that and she smiled on her end of the line. "But I'm not on the road. He knows you're wrestling and can't handle all the duties, so he appoints someone working directly under him and he gets to run the show while his family is mostly out of the picture."

"You need a hobby, baby, maybe sculpting or pottery or something."

"Be quiet, you know I'm right."

"Even if you are, your dad is the president, what can you do?"

"Track him down and wrest power away from him."

"Yeah, that'll work, why don't we just all come to the conclusion we know is best and appoint Sawyer the General Manager. I told you what he did with Hunter and Randy the other week, the kid's a natural. Sure, his speaking skills could be a little bit better, but I think he could get his point across pretty well without many words."

"I would, you know, don't tempt me," Stephanie said.

"I know you would," he told her. "But I've really got to go, baby, I've got things to do."

"Planning, scheming, talking with Hunter?"

"No, I was going to have a chat with Ted."

"Stop, you're only saying that because I'm onto you and Hunter."

"You make it sound like I'm having an affair with the guy and I can assure you, that's not the case. I'm not friends with him, you're delusional. Maybe I'm just planning to divorce you after Flynn is born and I'm asking to join the 'I've Divorced Stephanie' Club, did you think of that?"

"You're scheming!"

"So are you!"

"But I'm including you."

"Only because you're pregnant and can't physically be here. If you were here, you'd be off getting all buddy-buddy with Adamle so you could eventually kick him in the ass or something. I wouldn't put it past you to do some ass-kicking."

"Yeah, he's not the one whose ass I want to kick."

"You're not suggesting it's _me_?" he said, acting all indignant that she might want to beat him up. He knew he was provoking her, but it was so much fun he couldn't help it. He loved when he pushed all her buttons and she got so angry with him. He only wished he could be there to see it because she was so beautiful when he face got flushed with anger and her chest heaved with angry breaths. Okay, now he was going to get himself worked up and there was no way that he could have her right now.

"No, my father," Stephanie told him.

"Oh, in that case, kick away."

"So will you do this for me?"

"_Stephanie_," he whined. "Why do you make me do stuff like this? This wasn't what I signed up for when I married you."

"What did you sign up for?"

"Sex, pretty much, lots of it," he deadpanned. "You're making me regret kissing you."

"You only got with me because I wouldn't hug you and give you what you want. Essentially, we got together because you have a huge ego and you needed it stroked."

"Well, that's not the only thing I need stroked if we're on the subject."

"We weren't, Chris, please, just to know if this is what my dad is up to. I mean, he had to have a reason, didn't he? He just wouldn't do this."

"Fine, fine, fine, I will keep my eye on him, are you happy now?"

Stephanie grinned, "Very. I'll let you go."

"Of course you will, you want me to go find Adamle right now and tell him how happy I am that my family chose him and how we have the utmost confidence in his competence for the job and how I'm looking forward to the direction that he's going to take Raw in."

"Oh, that's good! That's exactly what you should say to him."

"I'm getting off the line now, I'm ending this conversation, you're going to be on your own."

"You're not even going to let me say goodbye to my son."

"Hey, kid, say goodbye to Mommy."

"Bye, Fwynn!" Sawyer yelled out to the phone.

"Wow, that was quite the snub," Chris said, "don't you want to say goodbye to Mommy too?"

"Bye, Mommy!" he yelled again.

Chris got back on the line as Stephanie spoke, "Did he just say goodbye to the baby before he said goodbye to me?"

"Yes, he did."

"Wow, I'm feeling loved right now," Stephanie said.

"Well, I love you and I want to say goodbye to you…and then to Flynn, see, I've got my priorities straight."

"I love you too, bye," Stephanie said.

She hung up the phone and put it on the counter as she walked over to the fridge to get herself some juice. She knew she was just going to have to pee in ten minutes, but she was really parched. It was hot outside and though she had the air conditioning on, she still felt hot and it was so muggy out there and humid and she hated it. She longed for wintertime. Her feet were swollen and everything was sore and she was so ready to have this baby. She almost wanted to just rip Flynn out from her stomach.

She went into the living room to lounge on the couch for a while and put up her feet but just as she sat down, the doorbell rang. Stephanie nearly cried in frustration. She got up slowly and walked to the door. Trish was on the other side, Edge behind her. He looked a little worse for the wear and Stephanie wondered why he was here and why Trish looked annoyed.

"Hey, what's up?"

"Hey, nothing," Trish said, coming in.

"Hey, Edge," Stephanie said, "I wasn't expecting you."

"He's not staying," Trish said pointedly. "He followed me here."

"You followed her?" Stephanie said.

"Well, you never know what could happen."

"To Trish."

"To _me_," Edge said. "I mean, with Undertaker on the loose."

"He thinks that Taker is stalking him," Trish said lightly, but with very much annoyance.

"Still?" Stephanie asked, then looked over at Edge, "_Still_?"

"Stephanie, you don't know. Just when I let my guard down, he's going to get me, I just know it, I feel it. Can you believe that Vickie would reinstate him? I mean, Chris kissed Trish, remember, and you didn't bat an eyelash."

"He was trying to get me my job back, not the same situation," Stephanie said. "But you're free to hang out here if you want."

"Thanks," Edge said, rushing past her. "I'm just going to go chill and watch TV."

"Okay," Stephanie called out as Trish closed the door.

"I can't stand having him everywhere. He's like a child and it's very annoying. He won't leave."

"Let's have something to drink, _away_ from Edge."

"Thank you," Trish said gratefully. "So how's the baby?"

"She's great, as usual, her mother, not so much," Stephanie said. "I hate being here by myself, so thank you so much for coming over tonight."

"It's my pleasure, gets me away from Edge," Trish said. "This isn't what I signed up for when I got engaged to Christian. Didn't think I'd be living with his brother."

"Luckily for me, Chris has no siblings and Chris likes Shane, so it all works out. How was the fitting this morning?"

"Good, good, the dress looks fabulous. Now that you're home, you can come with me some time and see it so you can tell me how it looks. It's so vintage-looking, it's fabulous. This wedding is going to look so cool. I'm excited to see it all come together. Has Chris showed you the tuxes for the guys?"

"Yeah, they're great, they totally look like the ones you see on men in the movies from like the 20's and 30's. Sawyer's is adorable, he's going to look so cute in his little tux. I can't wait to see him."

"Oh no, I just remembered, are you going to be able to take Flynn with you. She'll only be a month old," Trish said.

"We're going to see. With Chris's parents moving down here, they'll be able to take care of her if she can't travel. Speaking of her, you're on board with the baby operation, right?"

"Oh, absolutely. Christian and I are prepared to take Sawyer whenever you go into labor. When does Flynn Watch start?"

"Two days, I'll be full-term in two days, so any time after that she could be showing her little face, and it won't be a moment too soon. I'm tired of being pregnant and ready to meet my little girl. And the sooner she comes, the sooner I can go back to work."

"And there it is," Trish said. "So…we haven't really gotten to talk about it…Adamle?"

"Oh, yeah, that's all my father's doing…I have no idea what he's up to."

Chris let Sawyer run around him with his plane, flying it around and making engine noises. The things he did for his wife were ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous. The door opened and Britt walked in and looked down at him lying on the couch in his suit and she stared for a moment before handing him the schedule for later that evening. He looked it over half-heartedly before he let his arm drop.

"What's the matter with you?" Britt finally asked.

"Nothing," Chris said, then sighed again.

"Okay, what can I do to help?" she asked.

"Have sex with me," Chris told her.

Britt nearly choked on her gum and then looked at Chris, "Excuse me?"

"Just have sex with me right now, just give Sawyer to someone, rip my clothes off, rip your clothes off and then let's just have sex right now."

"Well, I'm going to have to give a big, fat no to that proposition and then ask you why you want to have sex with me in the first place."

"Because Stephanie thinks that Adamle is working directly under her father and following his specific orders so she wants me to get buddy-buddy with the guy and I don't want to. So I figure if I have sex with you, she'll leave me and I won't have to do this stupid thing."

"That's a very stupid plan," Britt said, patting him on the stomach, "suck it up and do what your wife says."

"I don't wanna," he whined.

"Okay, _baby_," Britt muttered. "Some of us have actual relationship problems. Unlike you, who has a great marriage with a woman you love and a wonderful son and a daughter on the way, so stop showing off."

"What, how am I showing off?" he asked.

"Sawyer's here," Britt said, gesturing to the little boy who was having a juice-box at the moment and flipping through one of his books that made noises. He was currently pressing the sound that a chicken made and giggling as he quietly tried to emulate it.

"Hi," Sawyer said, looking up at the sound of his name.

"Hey," Britt said, "look, he's showing off too, being all cute like he is."

"He does do that cute thing an awful lot."

"Yeah, so showing off. Then there's some of us who have unwanted…suitors or something."

"Suitors? What, is Randy trying to woo you. Will your parents be paying a hefty dowry when the day comes for you to get betrothed to your beloved?"

"You know what I meant. He annoys me. He just doesn't get that I'm not interested and when I do tell him I'm not interested he thinks I'm playing hard to get. It's this whole thing and I don't like it, but it's like there's outside forces at work."

"I thought you had something going on--"

"I do, I guess, I don't know. I keep getting told that I should go out with Randy, that I should see what's there, that I should explore, that I should start a relationship with him and he's hot, I should just do him already, that was some bad advice from Beth, but who _knows _what's going on with her and Santino. Anyways, it's like, I try, believe me, I've tried and every time I just choke up."

"Well then you aren't trying hard enough."

"Or I'm trying very hard and he just doesn't get it and I'm not getting it and," she groaned and collapsed next to Chris on the couch.

"I think you need a vacation," Chris said, sitting up and wrapping his arm around her shoulders. "I think you can use the time off."

Britt looked up into Chris's blue eyes, which were filled with concern. "You would give me time off?"

"You're due for your vacation days," Chris said. "You didn't even take them last year, crazy fool that you are. So take some time off, go visit your parents or your brother or something. Get away from this madness. Best thing I ever did was get away for a while and step away from the ring. It tends to consume you, all this traveling, burn you out."

"Yeah, I can see that," Britt said. "I don't think it's necessarily the traveling, it's just the relationships within the company that are challenging."

"You're saying I'm challenging?"

"Nah, you're the best," she said, hugging him tightly. "I'll take some time off, maybe in a couple of weeks. I'll definitely wait until after Flynn is born though, that way you know, you'll at least have time to focus on that."

"You're the best," he told her. "And if you're willing to do that, I guess I should listen to my slightly-lesser half and go talk to Adamle."

"Good boy," Britt said as Chris got off the couch. "I'll watch Sawyer until you get back. Sawyer, do you want to show me the book you're reading?"

"Um…sure," he said, running over and climbing on the couch. "Pigs go oink-oink."

"Thanks, show-off," Britt said good-naturedly as Sawyer flipped to the start of the book.

Chris went to Adamle's office and stood in front of it for a few minutes, psyching himself up. If he was going to make this believable he was going to have to think of what he was going to say first. This wasn't going to be easy by any means. Sure, Chris had known before anyone else that he was going to be chosen the new GM, but it didn't soften the blow any. This man, to him and most everyone, was an incompetent buffoon who knew next to nothing about the business they all loved. It was like a little slap in the face, but the man was perfect for what Vince was probably doing. Vince could work this guy masterfully into the mold of what he wanted. "Fresh meat" was a phrase that came to Chris's mind.

He finally knocked, knowing that he would have to and not just walk in like he owned the place, which he did. The door opened and Adamle smiled at Chris and immediately let him in, like Chris knew he would. Chris felt awkward and stood in the middle of the room, rubbing the back of his neck as the two men stood there.

"I just wanted to wish you congratulations on the job," Chris said, his voice stilted and forced, but the other man didn't seem to notice.

"Thank you so much, that means a lot to me. I was shocked and happy when your brother and sister named me the new General Manager. I feel like I'm perfect for the job."

"Yeah, I'm sure you'll be…great," Chris told him. "I used to run things around here so you know, if you ever feel lost, you can come to me, since, you know, I am part of the McMahon family, or at least they tell me so all the time."

Chris never really liked to say that he was part of the McMahon family. It always felt unnatural when he said that, but he was doing a job here and if that endeared him to Adamle, part of the McMahon family he would become.

"I will definitely take you up on that, thank you, Chris, that really means a lot to me."

"Good, glad you feel that way," Chris said, going so bold as to slap the man on the shoulder. He knew he was putting an extra sting into it and the wince on Adamle's face made him grin. "I'll see you later then."

"Yes, you will," he said, "I'm going to start the show as a matter of fact."

"Great," Chris told him, grinning falsely, "just _great_." He could not stand this guy, he could not stand him at all, which made him absolutely perfect as Vince's lackey.

"I thought so…so if that's all you needed…"

"Yup, that's all," Chris told him, "I'll be seeing you."

"Oh, and Chris, congratulations about the baby."

"Oh…uh, thanks," Chris said, giving him a strange look before leaving. Well, that was done with, now he just had to get through tonight. Then tomorrow he could go home to his wife and plan for next week and the week after that and the week after that.

Stephanie and Trish sat down on the couch. Edge was hanging over the loveseat, his legs in the air, snoring softly. Trish had told Stephanie that Edge hadn't been sleeping much lately, instead staying up and trying to figure out where everything went wrong. He still wasn't completely over the idea of finding out who had helped Hunter get that videotape. Trish kept telling him to let it go, but the fact remained that Edge was married without being actually married and it was infuriating him to the point of insanity.

"At least he's asleep," Stephanie said as she turned on Raw.

"Yeah, he won't bug us," Trish said as she saw Adamle walking out to the stage. "So do you think Chris has talked to him like you asked?"

"I don't know, I hope so, I want Chris to get the dirt on him. I don't trust him. I don't trust my father either to be quite frank and this is just something that he would pull. He's still in control without really being in control. He doesn't trust us," Stephanie said. "Maybe it's an elaborate test for Shane and I or something."

"That's a pretty lame test."

"I have a pretty lame father," Stephanie said as JBL came out to request a World Title match. Stephanie didn't want him to have it, but she was hardly in the position to go there and tell him that he was an idiot and she should have this job and if it weren't for the little girl in her uterus right now she _would_ have his job.

Thankfully for her, Chris came out right then, interrupting and she gave a small smile to hear the crowd at least partially cheering him. You could take the Chris away from the fans, but you couldn't take the fans away from Chris. There was just something about her husband that was likeable and even when he was being the world's biggest jackass, he was still likeable in even just the remotest way and people were always going to be able to see that. He looked good in his suit tonight and she was glad she had packed that particular one for him. She should've packed about fifteen razors though, just so he would get the message that she didn't like it when he grew facial hair. It made him look older than he was, but he would just argue with her over it. Maybe she'd threaten to not let him see Flynn if he didn't shave. Would that work?

She was happy to see that he was being complimentary towards Adamle as that was exactly what she wanted to happen. Chris, for his part, wasn't being complimentary because Stephanie wanted him to be; he wanted that title match. He had stated last week that the title was what he was after now. He had become, in essence, a Legend Killer by eliminating Shawn from the WWE. Maybe he should adopt Randy's moniker in his absence. The title was what he was after and it didn't deserve to be around Punk's waist.

He and JBL got into an argument, but JBL's arguments paled in comparison to his. JBL beat up John Cena, big whoop, he had ended a man's career here. Then he brought up the fact that he had kicked JBL's ass the last time they fought against each other in a big match. In fact, Chris was pretty ruthless the last time they saw each other and he was more than qualified to be the one facing CM Punk for the title. He should be the one in the match. He was surprised when Adamle set up the match for later on and the stipulations of the match. He didn't have much time to think because JBL was yapping at him and he was yapping back, saying that he deserved it, which he did. He absolutely deserved a shot, it had been far too long that a World Title belt had been around his gorgeous waist.

Stephanie was silent for a moment and Trish was staring at her. "He looked good."

"Mmhmm."

"That's your scheming face."

"Why would Adamle have notes out there?"

"Um, for his speech? That one about Reagan."

"Yeah, but what else could've been on those?" she asked. "What else could they have said? He was pretty quick on his feet with that match he had for later, you know, and I can't really recall that stipulation before, awfully quick to know that kind of thing for such a moron."

"Well, I don't know, maybe he's not such a moron."

"Oh, he's a moron," Stephanie said. "I bet he knew to do that because of my dad."

"How though, he couldn't have known they were both going to come out there."

"My dad could've given him situational stuff," Stephanie argued. "I bet that's what he did, I bet it is. That'd be just like him."

"You're nuts," Trish said.

"I'm almost 37 weeks pregnant, give me this, okay, I've got little to nothing else," Stephanie said. "My husband and son are in Tennessee and I finished all my work for today, I've got nothing, Trish, _nothing_."

Trish laughed, "You're still nuts."

"Just a little, it's in my blood, at least I'm not my father, tucked away in some disclosed location controlling people like puppets."

"Okay, so you're not the craziest person in your family, is that what you want to hear?"

"Yes, it is what I want to hear. And for you, at least you're not marrying the craziest person in Christian's family."

Trish looked over the sleeping Edge and nodded, thankful for that. "That's for damn sure."

"I just want to know what game my dad is playing…you know, I've got an idea."

"Oh no…this cannot end well."

"No, it could end well, I'm going to call Mike."

"You are?"

"Why not!" Stephanie said, pushing herself up. "I can call him, I'm his boss, why can't I? I can try to weasel some information off of him, yes, that's brilliant, oh, sometimes I even surprise myself. I'll be in my office, you sit and watch, I'll be back."

Trish watched her walk out of the room and she said to herself, "Okay…"

Chris helped Sawyer pull on his pajama top over his head as the little boy got dressed for bed. They had just brushed his teeth into a glowing set of pearly whites and now he was getting into his pajamas before he went down for the evening. He was getting tired, yawning a lot and rubbing his eyes. That usually meant bedtime for the little boy and he was starting to get quieter and wind down.

"Okay, now that you've got your pjs on, you're ready for bed, right?"

"Mmhmm," Sawyer said as he sat on top of his sleeping bag.

"You tired?"

"Mmhmm," Sawyer told him, punctuating his sentence with a great, big yawn. "Mommy?"

"She's not here, but I can tuck you in just as well."

"Okay," Sawyer said as he laid down.

"Just let me get my ring tights on, okay? That way I can sit with you until you fall asleep, however long that takes."

"Okay," Sawyer said, his vocabulary dwindling as his mind clouded with exhaustion.

Chris went into the bathroom and changed into his new (but certainly not improved) ring tights, which were now different because he had taken on a new persona. He was the new Chris Jericho, the more serious Chris Jericho (and apparently serious translates to the wrestling equivalent of underwear) and this was how he needed to make the shift. He pulled on a t-shirt so he wouldn't freeze to death in the cold arena and walked back into the room, watching Sawyer settle into his sleeping bag.

"Daddy?" Sawyer said to him.

"Yeah?"

"No pants," Sawyer told him, looking at Chris strangely. Why was his father walking around with no pants? His mommy hated it when _he_ walked around with no pants, why was his father being allowed to walk around without any?

"These are my new wrestling tights," Chris told him, "what do you think, do you like it?"

"No," Sawyer said, "No like."

"Oh, well," Chris said, "what do you know, anyways, you don't even pick your own clothes, you have your mommy do that."

"Uh huh," Sawyer said as he closed his eyes. Chris came over and rubbed his son's back, turning the television on low, but watching the end of the Mickie James and Katie Lea match, not interested, but he had to keep track of the time for when he had his own match.

"Mr. Adamle?" Britt said, knocking on his door.

"Yes…I'm sorry, I don't really know your name."

"Britt," she said, "I was to inform you to call Stephanie McMahon, do you have her number?"

"Her home phone?"

"Her home office," Britt explained.

"Oh yes, I think it's in my phone, yes, I'll call her immediately."

"Good, she's looking forward to speaking with you."

Stephanie sat in her chair, leaning back as far as she could and rubbing her stomach. Flynn had apparently just woken up and now she was kicking. Couple that with the Braxton-Hicks contractions she was having and she wasn't a happy camper. She didn't know if she was going to make it through this phone call, but she had to play the part or else she'd never get any information on what her father was up to. If only there was someone she could call to find out if Chris and Hunter were really working together.

The phone rang and she picked it up, "Hello?"

Adamle said hello back and thanked her again for her and her brother making him the General Manager. She wanted to say it wasn't her, but she had to be cordial or die trying, "Well…"

She couldn't get a word in edgewise though because he was talking about WWE and thinking outside the box and all this mumbo-jumbo ass-kissing that she absolutely hated. She kept trying to say something, but he would absolutely not let her talk. Did he know she was going to interrogate him or something? She was about to speak when he congratulated her on the baby and then pretty much hung up on her.

She stared at the phone in disbelief. First of all, who the hell did he think he was, brushing her off like that? People didn't brush her off. And congratulations on the baby? Wasn't it a little too late to congratulate her on being pregnant? Either that or it was a little too early to be congratulating her for having a baby that was still kicking around inside of her and pushing her organs around. Her dislike of Mike Adamle ratcheted up about a hundred percent in the span of that conversation.

Chris wondered why Stephanie had called him after he had told her that he would take care of the butt-kissing with him. No matter though, he had things to do and people to beat up, namely JBL and CM Punk. He was going to get his title shot. Right now though, he was rubbing Sawyer's back as the little boy drifted off to sleep, comforted in the knowledge that his daddy was right there with him and he would be there when he woke up.

Britt walked in to watch Sawyer and took one look at Chris and her eyes widened. "Are you not wearing pants?" she asked, then hissed, "Are you in your _underwear_? Oh my God, Chris, eww, put some pants on!"

"These are my new ring tights," he explained.

"What? Oh…new ring tights," Britt said, "Sorry, I thought you just hadn't changed…uh, yeah."

"Yeah, so I'm going to go warm up."

"Yeah, I think I'm going to call Randy and do that whole thing, just get it over with and tell him that I'm not interested. He deserves that much, I think."

"Good, sounds like we both have a plan."

"We do."

Stephanie had come back to the couch and Trish had explained what Adamle had done after hanging up on her. "He made a match like that? That has my dad written all over it. My dad would absolutely come up with matches like that. He's so behind this and what the hell was that about congratulating me on the baby, it's like, hey thanks for announcing to the world I'm pregnant when I didn't want to make a big deal out of it."

"Yeah, that was weird, I thought you had gone into labor in your office and just decided to hell with it and delivered Flynn yourself," Trish joked.

"If only," Stephanie laughed. "That'd be a little messy though. Still, what a butt-kisser. He's trying to get on my good side for what reason? He's under my dad's thumb as it is, why would he need to kiss my ass?"

"Maybe he's just a kiss ass," Trish said, hearing Edge groan. They both looked over at him and he stirred, but went back to sleep.

"Geez, he is down for the count, isn't he?"

"Yeah."

"He can spend the night here," Stephanie said, "I wouldn't mind the company. I can let him crash in the guest room."

"Oh thank you!" Trish exclaimed. "One night without him will be heaven."

"He's really bugging you that much?"

"Yes, like, okay, when you were with Chris--"

"Kind of still with Chris," Stephanie pointed out.

"Let me finish," Trish told her with exasperation as she brushed a strand of hair out of her face. "When you were with Chris and engaged, not married or dating, engaged, did you guys have sex a lot?"

"We've kind of always had sex a lot. Did you not hear the story about how we had sex a few days after our first date?"

"I've heard it, but I'm assuming that being engaged on the verge of marriage made you…want it a little bit more, if you know what I'm saying."

"I guess," Stephanie said, shrugging. "I don't necessarily think we did it more than we usually did, well, we did like the day we got engaged, that was really good. Kind of surprised I didn't get pregnant from that."

Trish laughed, "Well, you're pretty fertile now, but yeah, me and Christian want to…celebrate a lot with the engagement and Edge over there is always barging in on us and it's awkward and uncomfortable and I don't like it."

"Kick him out."

"I'd feel bad."

"Oh, well, yeah, he can stay here, I'll put him to work on Flynn's nursery. Thank God she's not due for another few weeks because nothing is set up at all."

"Oh, look, Chris's match is coming up."

Stephanie clapped her hands together excitedly. She wanted to watch her husband get the shot he so richly deserved. He had been deserving of another title shot and she would go so far as to say CM Punk was a weak champion and her husband would be able to beat him no problem. Tonight he was going to get his chance and he was finally going to have that title around his gorgeous waist. If it weren't for Flynn, maybe she and Chris would have to be business partners again.

Chris's music started up and she grinned as he walked out…and then her jaw dropped. She blinked a few times, making sure she was actually seeing what she was seeing and not imagining things. No, he was still there in the wrestling briefs that she had never seen before _ever_. Stephanie had no words for what she was seeing. She could hear Trish cracking up beside her, laughing her head off as she sat there and stared at her husband, who looked absolutely ridiculous.

"Oh my God, is that a joke!" Trish laughed.

"Don't look at him!" Stephanie told her.

"Why not?"

"I don't even know," Stephanie said, "I just…I feel like he's in his underwear, except he's a boxers guy, but, it's like he forgot his pants. He's showing skin that only _I_ should see, so you shouldn't look at him."

"Is this the _new_ Chris Jericho he was talking about because wow…that is…wow…"

"Shut up, oh my God, what is he thinking?"

"He didn't clear this by you?"

"No!" Stephanie said, "I would not let him have gone out like _that_. Oh my God, he's…oh my God…stop looking at him!"

"Stephanie, he's right there, I can't not look," Trish said, laughing. Stephanie finally lost it too and she started cracking up and she couldn't stop. He just looked so…unlike Chris and ridiculous and she didn't know what to think. So she laughed and laughed.

"Well, I guess I'll be able to tell if you're really…satisfied with Chris. It'd explain a lot as to why you suddenly went from hating him to loving him," Trish said sneakily.

"Trish," Stephanie blushed deeply as she watched her husband.

Chris was turning over a new leaf. He was a new Chris Jericho and a new Chris Jericho called for a new look (can we please have the old Chris Jericho back?) and this was it. He was going to introduce it tonight and he thought he looked presentable. Great even. He was Chris Jericho, he looked good in anything (or so most of us thought). Plus, this wasn't about his new ring attire, this was about winning this match and getting his World Title shot. Before the match started, Adamle added a time limit to the match and Chris was suspicious. That had Vince written all over it, but no time for that now, he had a match to win.

He had to admit, wrestling in the briefs was a little bit on the…breezy side. He had to get used to that, definitely. He didn't know how Hunter had been wearing these for so long, kind of cut off the circulation a little bit. At first he and JBL did the most logical thing and that was to double team Punk and soften him up so one of them could pin him or neither if that was the case.

That plan disintegrated pretty quickly because he and JBL were both selfishly looking to get their desired match for SummerSlam. It went back and forth for a while, each one trying to get the pin and Chris was frustrated every time JBL came in to break the hold or break up the pin. He wanted this match and he deserved to have this match. This shouldn't have even been an issue because he should've just been given the match by Adamle.

Chris would make the fatal mistake though and a stupid one at that. He hit JBL who fell onto Punk for the pin. That just incensed Chris to the point where he wanted to seriously go and kick JBL's ass, kick Punk's ass, then kick Adamle's ass for making the match in the first place. He was going to get out of here, he didn't even care to stay the rest of the show and keep an eye on the new GM. He wanted to get to his hotel room and punch a wall or something. This was not how it was supposed to go. He was supposed to get his match without incident and now because of a fluke, a _fluke_, he wasn't going to get his title.

He walked backstage, angry and grabbed a towel as he walked to his dressing room. Britt came up to him when he got inside and handed him his t-shirt and then told him, "I just got a call from your wife, she wants you to call her and she said you better have an excuse for wearing what you're wearing right now."

"Great, thanks," Chris said before she left.

He went to his locker room and called up Stephanie. "What are you wearing!"

"New ring tights."

"Um, no," Stephanie told him. "I don't like it, and I don't like the facial hair."

"You can't tell me what to do."

"Yes, I can, Chris, you looked stupid. I'm telling you because I love you, you looked stupid. I mean, you were leaving not much to the imagination and that's all mine, you know, all of that, mine."

"I can wear what I want to wear."

"You can't honestly tell me you thought you looked good."

"I did."

"Oh, we're going to talk when you get home, believe you me."

"Stephanie…"

"I don't…there are just no words," Stephanie said, then started to laugh, "I love you, sweetie, but come on. I mean, I'm sorry…I can't…I can't stop laughing about it!"

"I'm not talking to you for the remainder of your pregnancy," Chris said. "Aren't you going to comment on how upset you are that I didn't win?"

"You didn't win? I'm sorry, I was too distracted from the underwear you were wearing to the ring. Kind of hard to concentrate when one false move and my husband is naked in front of the entire world."

"I wouldn't have been naked."

"Pretty sure you would've, judging from what I know that Hunter wore underneath those things."

"Well there's an image I didn't need in my head," Chris said. "I think I look fine."

"We're going to talk about this when you get home, we so are, what did Sawyer think, did he see you?"

"Yes."

"What did he think?"

Chris answered sheepishly, "He thought I was in my underwear and I wasn't wearing pants."

"See, and I bet if Flynn could see and she could talk, she'd be embarrassed you were her father, so there, 3 against 1."

"But I'm the one and I'm wearing them."

"We'll see," she told him.

"I think we will," he said, then looked at the TV and saw Shawn. "Hey, hold on, let me watch this." He watched as Shawn tried to downplay what Chris did and how he was going to announce his condition to everyone. Chris smirked. Yeah, he was going to announce that he was going to hang it up and Chris was going to make sure he had a front row seat for that. "Did you see that?"

"Yeah, I saw it," Stephanie said. "What do you think he's going to say?"

"That it's over," Chris said with a smile, "that it's all over."

"One can only hope."

"Oh, he's done, Steph, he's so done."

"So how done can we make those ring tights?"

"I'm divorcing you."


	197. Here We Go Again, August 11, 2008

A/N: Okay, monster chapter alert. So buckle up, grab a sandwich, read to your heart's content, then leave a review! :P

But before all of that, I just wanted to take a moment and once again give a huge shout-out and heaps of praise to Jodi (penname: StephanieIrvine, go read her stuff, seriously, she captures emotion like I only wish I could), because seriously, none of my stories would be any good if she totally didn't help me with ideas and read over stuff I've written and make sure I don't look like a total goober to all of you, although she refused to read this chapter beforehand, so if it sucks, blame her! ;) Thanks Jodi!

So obviously you know something's coming, so enjoy the ride! :)

* * *

**Thursday**

"Mommy, play wif me."

"Sawyer, I can't, baby boy," Stephanie said as she sat there uncomfortably. Sawyer had been playing with his little kid CD player, lugging it around and dancing around to it, but he had tired of that and now he wanted to play with his mommy, who had just been sitting there the entire time doing nothing.

"Go park?" he asked, then added with a cheesy grin that was all Chris, "Pease?"

"Honey, Mommy can't walk to the park with you," she said. "Mommy is very uncomfortable with the baby inside my tummy."

"Oh," Sawyer sighed, sighing very loudly and hunching his back over like the weight of the world had just settled in on his shoulders. She laughed at him and beckoned him over. He came over and leaned on the arm of her chair. "Hi, Mommy."

"Hey there, baby boy," she told him, kissing him on the nose. "Do you want to go into the backyard and play?"

"You play too?" Sawyer asked.

"I can watch you, Mommy is just very sore."

"Oh, you have boo-boo?" he asked her. "And-aid?"

"No, honey, your sister is kicking," she told him. "Come here, give me your hand." Sawyer gave it to her obediently and she put it on her large middle. Flynn kicked and Sawyer felt it and opened his mouth. He really never got tired of feeling that. He had felt the baby kick many, many times, but he never seemed to get sick of it or any less fascinated by it.

"Baby…" he breathed out softly, looking up at Stephanie with wonder. "When Fwynn?"

"About a month," Stephanie said. "That's almost 30 days, and we can to ten, so that's counting to ten three times."

"I do that," Sawyer asserted. "One, two, free, four, six, seven, eifth, nine, ten!"

"Close enough," Stephanie laughed. "Okay, time to help me out of the chair." Sawyer ran around in front of her and grabbed her hand, pulling as hard as he could and trying to help Stephanie out of her seat. She pushed herself up and sighed when she stood up. She felt a million times bigger now than she did with Sawyer, but she hadn't even gained as much weight as she did the first time, plus she still had another three weeks of this. "I'm thirsty, baby, so I'm going to get something to drink first."

"I help you," Sawyer said as he ran into the kitchen and she envied the fact that he could still run while she had to waddle all over the place. It didn't help that this time around she had a two-year-old who loved to run around and be active and she couldn't even pick him up at this point. She knew that fact disappointed him a little bit. He loved to cuddle with her and hug her and he couldn't even see her face if he was standing near her stomach. Sawyer grabbed a chair and started pushing it towards the fridge and went to open the door.

"Baby, let me get that," she said, helping him climb down and grabbing some orange juice. "Do you want a cup?"

"No," he said as he pushed the chair back and then climbed on it and then climbed on the table and sat down. "I wanna play."

"I know you do, let me just get some juice," she said, looking over her shoulder at him. "Sawyer, get down from the table, okay, I'm not going to tell you again."

He got down off the table and then climbed down the chair and went up to her to see what she was doing. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She had a newfound appreciation for all those women who did this day in and day out. She hated sitting around here and doing nothing. Taking care of herself and Sawyer was a full-time job and she wanted Chris back, but Chris wasn't coming home until later because he had a meeting with his publishers today in New York. It was just a business meeting, but it was difficult to maneuver around and get what Sawyer needed when she couldn't do certain things because of her size.

She'd been having indigestion or something and she probably shouldn't have had three breakfast sausages that morning because they felt like they were coming back up. Acid reflux had to be the most uncomfortable non-ailment ever and she felt like she should be burping, but she wasn't and this feeling kept coming and going at random and it was bothering her. She thought that maybe washing it down would help and if it didn't, well, she'd just have to break out the Tums and eat a few.

She poured some of the juice and then drank it all in about three gulps. It really hit the spot for her and she smiled in relief. She couldn't believe that she'd have to do this for another three weeks at least. She didn't think she was going to make it. The summer months had been so difficult for her, with her feet swelling and her back aching, plus she was sweating like a pig most of the time. The term barefoot and pregnant was the best way to describe her. She was just glad that they could afford to have the air conditioning on at a constant flow. She had tried not to complain too much about it though, keeping up (for the most part) her happy, peppy, "I'm happy I'm pregnant!" look.

It was still only the beginning of August and her due date wasn't until the 27th so there wasn't any ending in sight it seemed. She rolled her neck around, trying to relieve some of the tension that constantly made her body feel like it was in a flux. She looked next to her where her little boy was looking up attentively at her. She smiled at him and reached down to ruffle his hair. He grinned up at her, wishing that she could pick him up, but she had to tell him time and time again that she couldn't pick him up.

"I know you want me to pick you up, sweetie, it won't be too long before I can again, okay?"

"Okay, we go play?" he asked.

"Okay, come on," she said taking his hand as he offered it. They walked outside and past the pool to the grassy area behind it where Sawyer's playground was set up. He let go of Stephanie's hand and ran towards the playground as Stephanie followed slowly behind. He started climbing the steps carefully towards the slide, holding onto the chain railing and crossing the wooden bridge.

"Watch, Mommy!" Sawyer said as he stood above her on the slide. He sat down and pushed himself down the winding slide, coming to a stop after a slow skid at the bottom.

Stephanie clapped for him, "You're really good at that."

"Uh huh," he told her as he ran back towards the steps to go again.

"Are you going to show me again how you go down the slide?" Stephanie asked.

"Yup," he said as he got back on the wooden bridge. Sawyer ducked under the protective barriers, peeking his face out in the small space between the railings and the floor. "Kiss, Mommy."

"Okay, I'm coming," she said, laughing because she could only really see his nose and mouth from peeking out. They had installed the excessive railing to prevent him from falling over onto the ground. She gave him a kiss and he pulled away and ran towards the slide, sitting down on his butt and sliding down quickly, propelling himself with his arms.

"Yay!" he said as he climbed off the slide. "Swing, Mommy, swing."

"Okay, you want me to push you?" she asked. He nodded and then scrambled over to the swings. They were pretty low on the ground so that he could reach it and sit on them. The only one that was at normal height was the tire swing, but she couldn't even lift him in to that right now.

"Yes, pease," he told her as he tried to climb onto the swing. He failed a couple of times as he tried to get on and he was getting frustrated.

"Take it slower, baby boy," she told him. "You're trying to get up too fast, if you go slower, you're going to get on faster."

"Okay," he said as he started to go up slower. He managed to get himself up on the swing after a couple more tries. Stephanie grabbed the chains and started to push him back and forth a little. He tried to pump his legs like Chris had taught him, but he didn't quite have the hang of it yet. He was squealing happily though as Stephanie kept pushing him. "High!"

"Okay, okay, higher," she said, pushing him a little bit higher. He laughed in delight as he went back and forth on the swing, getting just a tiny bit higher every time he went forward. He knew to keep his concentration on the swing so he didn't look back at his mommy.

Stephanie rubbed her lower back. She had been having backaches all morning long, well, worse than usual. She'd had an aching back from the weight for a while, but she must've slept awkwardly last night. It had started right around the time she got up to go see Chris off to the airport for his very early flight to New York. She was so sick and tired of being pregnant. She watched as Sawyer soared through the air on the swing, obviously having a good time and she envied him. She kept rubbing her back as she pushed Sawyer with one hand.

"Having fun, baby boy?"

"Yup, Mommy," he told her.

Stephanie winced at a particular weird pain in her abdomen and then a few moments later felt something gushing between her legs. She looked down in horror as she realized that was her water breaking. That was a definite sign of labor and she realized that she had probably been in labor for some time, but with her due date still being weeks away she had just chalked it up to backaches and indigestion.

"Sawyer," she said, grabbing the swing and halting him to a stop, "We need to go inside, okay?"

"Why?" he asked, looking at her as his eyes widened, "Mommy, you wet pants!"

Stephanie had to laugh at that, he was just in so much shock over it, "No, baby, I didn't wet my pants, that's kind of a sign that Flynn is coming."

"Baby?" Sawyer asked, his eyes widened even farther, like little saucers. "Fwynn!"

"Yes, Flynn, so let's go inside, can you go get the phone for me?"

"Uh huh," Saywer said, running ahead and pulling the screen door open before going for the phone that was sitting on the end table. He grabbed it from its spot and ran back out to his mommy and thrust it up at her, "Here, Mommy, pone."

"Thanks, baby," she told him, taking it from him as they continued to walk inside slowly. Sawyer was watching Stephanie intently, probably wondering what the hell was going on right now.

First she called her doctor's office to inform them that her water had just broken. They had told her that she better head to the hospital even though her contractions weren't bad, just because the longer Flynn stayed inside of her with the water broken, the more likely she could get an infection and they wanted to monitor everything so that didn't happen.

When she was through with that, and just getting inside the house, Sawyer still watching her, she called Chris, "Hey, baby."

"Hi, sweetie, so um…what are you doing right now?"

"Nothing, the meeting isn't until noon and it's only ten. I'm at a coffee shop right now drinking coffee because I'm so tired from waking up early. Kind of people watching, the tally right now is at thirteen."

"Wow, that's quite a bit."

"Well, when you're me, people come up to you," Chris said haughtily.

"Did any of them happen to tell you that you look like an idiot in your new ring attire? I would love to meet _those _people," Stephanie told him.

"What have you been doing?" Chris said, changing the subject. Stephanie had been constantly bringing that up with him.

"Well, Sawyer wanted to play outside on the playground so we were out there on the swings."

"Sounds like a fun time had by all."

"Chris, my water broke, I'm in labor."

"What!"

"I'm in labor," she repeated.

"Stephanie! You _start_ a conversation with something like that, you don't just insert it into your day, are you sure…wait, of course you're sure, your water broke, of course you're sure," he muttered to himself. "Okay, well, what are you doing right now?"

"Well, right now I'm going to change because my water broke and it's really gross and I'm not getting in a car with my pants wet. Then I'm going to call Christian and Trish to see if they can take the monster, and then take me to the hospital."

"Good, good," he said. "Okay, well, I'm going to call my publishers and tell them that I have to cancel the meeting because there's no way that I'm meeting today when you're in labor, I'll catch the next direct flight down there, okay, please don't have Flynn when I'm not there."

"I'll try, I'm not even having any strong contractions, which is why I didn't even realize that I was in labor to begin with. My water breaking completely surprised me."

"Damn it, she's early," Chris cursed. "Okay, call me if you need anything or if she's…coming out or something."

Stephanie laughed, "Okay."

"I love you," Chris said, "the whole lot of you."

"We love you too." Stephanie hung up the phone and looked at Sawyer, who was staring at her like she had grown two heads. "Hey, sweetie, I'm going to need your help, okay? Mommy is going to have the baby and I need to get upstairs and change, do you think that you can hold my hand as I walk upstairs?"

"Yes, I can," Sawyer told her. Stephanie took his head and they walked slowly upstairs. Now that she knew what was happening, she could feel the contractions. She hadn't expected to be going into labor this early. Her due date wasn't for a few weeks, but she was considered full term so she wasn't too worried about Flynn's health. Every now and then on the stairs she had to stop for a moment as a bit of pain rolled through her.

"Thank you," Stephanie said as they got upstairs and she went to her room to grab some new pants. She knew she'd have to change, but she didn't care, she wasn't wearing soggy pants to the hospital. While she was in the closet changing, she called up Christian and Trish's house, but it went to the machines. She sighed and called Christian's cell phone, which went straight to voicemail. "Hey, Christian, it's Steph, what a time to have your phone off. I'm in labor, so I needed to get to the hospital and I needed someone to take care of Sawyer while I was there, so if you get this, call me back on my cell phone."

She called Trish and left pretty much the same message before she changed her pants. Sawyer had climbed up on the bed and she looked at him watching her. "Hey, you, so I don't quite know what to do with you, you weren't in any of my plans for my hospital visit."

"Oh," Sawyer said, dangling his legs over the side of the bed.

"Yeah, well, it looks like it's just you and me for a while, baby," Stephanie said, looking at him. "Can you go pack your toy bag, grab only the toys that you really, really want to play with."

"Yes," Sawyer said as he hopped off the bed and ran towards his bedroom to grab his toy bag and put what he wanted in it. This was something he did all the time so he knew exactly how to do it.

"Of all the times to have nobody around," Stephanie said as she waddled after Sawyer. By the time she got there Sawyer was already packed. The contractions were still quite far apart, enough to be able to still function and short enough where it wasn't a great deal of pain.

"Done, Mommy."

"Well, we're going to go downstairs and we're going to drive to the hospital."

"Okay!" Sawyer exclaimed, feeling like he was on some adventure with his mommy. Stephanie grabbed his toy bag from him and he ran in front of her. He was thoughtful enough to stop at the stairs and wait for her. They both went down very carefully, taking each step slowly before reaching the bottom. Stephanie had her things in a duffel bag by the door and she grabbed that as well before she grabbed her cell phone, purse, and car keys, locking the house before going out to the car.

She cursed the fact that Chris had taken the car of all things that day and she was stuck with the SUV. She had a hard enough time getting into that, but she couldn't lift Sawyer. She beeped the car open and opened the backseat, throwing her things beside Sawyer's car-seat. She looked to her son and then looked to the car and then looked at her stomach. She had no idea how she was going to get him up there. She tried to think of a way but nothing was coming to her except intermittent bouts of pain.

"Son of a…" she cursed a she looked at her little boy. "Sawyer, do you think you can climb into the car by yourself?"

"I dunno," he shrugged, but he decided to try. He went over and tried to lift himself up, but was only able to get himself about halfway there on a few tries, his body hanging half-off the side of the car. Stephanie bent over as much as she could and hoisted him the rest of the way.

"Okay, that wasn't so hard," she said, even though it was difficult and put her in an awkward position which made her feel some pain in her back. Sawyer climbed into his car-seat and she strapped him in. She kissed him on the nose, "Thanks for being the best, Sawyer."

"Welcome."

Now she had to get herself into the vehicle. She stepped up and hoisted herself up there and into the driver's seat. She got there and sat for a moment, hoping that she could drive herself safely. She wasn't in too much pain, but she never knew when she might just burst with a painful contraction. But she could do this, she could do this, she had to get to the hospital. She moved the seat back a little bit to accommodate her stomach and started driving towards the hospital.

She ended up being a lot better than she thought because they got there without incident and in decent time too. She got out of the car calmly and got Sawyer, holding his hand as he jumped out of the vehicle. She went around the other side and grabbed her things and Sawyer's toys. Sawyer walked next to her, mindful that she had to go slow as they walked into the emergency room.

"Can I help you?" the nurse said.

"Hi, yes, I'm scheduled to give birth in this hospital, well, not scheduled, but I called my doctor, who should have a room ready for me. I'm in labor obviously."

"Oh okay," the nurse said, sitting up straighter. She had thought that it was another paranoid mother with a young son who got something stuck up his nose. "Name?"

"Stephanie McMahon-Jericho."

She typed it in and saw there was a birthing room ready for her, "Oh okay, let me have someone get you a wheelchair and then we'll get you over to admitting."

"Okay, thanks."

Stephanie waited for the wheelchair to come and it did a few minutes later and she sat down gratefully. The male nurse who was going to push her to admitting took her bag and Sawyer's things and Sawyer sat on Stephanie's lap, partly on and partly hanging off the wheelchair. She felt sorry for him because he didn't know what was going on. When she got to admitting, Dr. Sheldon was there and waiting for her.

"Hey, Steph, they called me down and said you were here. I don't want you to have to worry about this right now, we want to get you to the birthing room as soon as possible, can Chris take care of the paperwork?"

"He would, but he's not here," Stephanie said.

"Did someone bring you?"

"No, Chris is in New York on a business lunch, but he's flying back here right as we speak, and my friends who were going to take Sawyer can't be reached and we don't have any family down here, so I drove myself. Sawyer and I were home alone."

"Wow, sounds like you've had quite the day, and so have you, huh, Sawyer?"

"Mmhmm," he said with a solemn nod.

"We'll just have Chris take care of this when he gets here," she said, "come on, let's get you up to your room."

They took Stephanie up to her birthing room, which was large and spacious. This wasn't your ordinary run-of-the-mill hospital; she only had her kids in the best of places. The walls were a soft green color and there was plenty of natural light. She put on the hospital gown and got into the bed. One of the helpful nurses put Sawyer on the bed with her since he pretty much had nowhere else to go with the machines and everything that she was now hooked up to monitoring the baby. They put his bag of toys with him and he now had them spread over parts of the extra wide bed.

"Why here?" Sawyer asked as he examined one of his _Higglytown Heroes_ toys.

"Because I'm going to have Flynn," she explained.

"Here?"

"Yes, right here actually, right where you're sitting," she said menacingly.

"Mommy," he giggled. Stephanie smiled at him and then paused when she felt another contraction coming. They were coming faster now, still not less than ten minutes apart, but the intensity was certainly rising and she had to take a moment to compose herself and take a couple deep breaths. "Mommy, okay?"

Stephanie let it pass before opening up her eyes, "Yeah, sweetie, I'm okay, I'm just in a lot of pain right now, like when you fall down and scrape your knee, you know how that hurts, well, it's like that over and over again, and then it starts hurting more and more."

Sawyer frowned at that. He didn't want his mommy to be hurting. He crawled over to her and hugged her around the waist, or what he could get around her waist, "No hurt, Mommy."

"Thank you, baby boy, but I'm going to be hurting a lot more than I am right now, but hopefully you'll be off having fun with Christian and Trish and you won't have to see that. Are you hungry?" she asked, looking at the clock. They had been here for an hour and a half and it was nearing noontime. She knew that she could get some nurse to get her son some food.

"Stephanie, Sawyer, hello," Dr. Sheldon said. "I just wanted to come and check up on you two, and see how far along you are."

"Probably not far, I don't feel far," Stephanie said.

"Well, let's take a look." Stephanie pulled all of Sawyer's toys towards her and she held her little boy as she laid down to get examined. She was glad that Sawyer was only two and would probably forget all about this traumatizing experience of having to see his mother in labor. She lay there as she was poked and prodded by her doctor.

"Well, you've still got a ways to go, I'm thinking, since your contractions aren't on top of each other yet. Still, with this being your second, don't expect to be here forever. You were only in labor with Sawyer for eight hours so this little girl could easily come in at five or six and you've probably been in labor for a couple of hours now."

"She knows to wait for Daddy," Stephanie said. "I just hope he gets here soon."

"Well, I'll be by to check on you for a while. If you start feeling the need to push, just buzz one of the nurses and she'll come get me. Try and relax and make yourself comfortable, we've got people caring for you."

"I know, thanks so much."

"Don't worry about it, bye Sawyer."

"Bye," he said quietly. This entire place was kind of intimidating for him. It was kind of intimidating for Stephanie too because she was all alone with her son. She felt kind of abandoned at the moment, but it wasn't like she was anywhere close to her due date. Nobody expected her to go into labor on a Thursday weeks before her due date.

"Daddy will be here soon, baby," Stephanie said, kissing Sawyer's head. "Then you won't be stuck here, okay?"

"I stay, it okay," he told her.

"Thanks, how is it that you know what to say but you don't even have an adult vocabulary?"

"I dunno," he shrugged as he pulled some of his toys closer to him and started to play with them again. They did that for a while, Stephanie watching him while trying to breathe through her contractions which were getting progressively closer together. She didn't want to show how much pain she was in, in front of Sawyer.

About twenty minutes later, Sawyer was starting to get hungry so she called up a nurse and asked if she could bring him some lunch from the cafeteria. She was really accommodating, knowing Stephanie was alone with just him. She brought him up some chicken nuggets, fries, and fruit, and though she tried not to give Sawyer fries, at this point, she would've let him eat dirt because she was starting to feel worse.

Her doctor came in and checked on her told her she was progressing nicely, but she wanted to progress _quickly_ so she could get this kid out of her. Why did it seem like everything was faster with Sawyer? Oh yeah, Chris was there joking around with her. She wanted him here and she was starting to get desperate, feeling like a caged animal without anyone to talk with except her little boy.

"Nugget?" Sawyer asked, holding a nugget towards her.

"I can't, baby, I can't eat anything."

"Why?"

"I don't know, I just can't," she said, "besides, you need to eat it because you're going to be a big brother really soon and you can't show up seeing your sister hungry and wasted away, so you eat the chicken nugget."

"I will," he said as he continued to eat, watching Stephanie as she kept wincing in pain. He didn't like seeing his mommy like this. He finished up with all the food he could eat and picked up the plate to hand it to Stephanie. She took it and put it next to her, but a particularly bad contraction hit and she almost dropped it. She whined a little in pain, but she tried to hold it in while giving a weak smile to Sawyer. "You okay, Mommy?"

"Yes, baby, I'm okay."

She didn't look okay to him and she had to lean back on the pillows. The contractions were coming almost two minutes apart now and she was in the transitional phase of labor as she was at about eight centimeters dilated. Dr. Sheldon said that she was very close to when she should feel she needed to push. Like last time, they were going at her body's pace and not the doctor's pace. She wanted to scream out with the pain, but she wasn't about to scare her son.

Sawyer didn't like this at all and he crawled to where Stephanie was. He knelt next to her and put his hand on her forehead and in the sweetest gesture he had ever done for her, he just rubbed her forehead. It was something she did for him whenever he was trying to fall asleep and he remembered it and she looked at him. She smiled as another contraction hit and she closed her eyes, just feeling Sawyer continue to help her out.

"Love you," she heard him say and she winced again as the contraction passed.

"Love you too."

"You have boo-boo?"

"Kind of," she said, shaking away the pain. "Do you think you can hold my hand? I really just need someone to hold my hand, baby boy."

"I hold it," he said, taking her hand and she felt a million times better. She would've been feeling very lonely if not for her little boy sitting right there with her. She couldn't imagine anything worse than actually having to give birth with nobody next to you to hold your hand and be with you. She was glad for the company, even if it was her two-year-old son. She closed her eyes and tried to concentrate on her breathing.

"I'm here! I'm here!"

Stephanie opened her eyes and they were watering, both from pain and relief, "Oh God, Chris, you're here."

"Yes, I'm here," he said, rushing to her side, "and so is our son…wasn't expecting that one. What's he doing here?"

"Hi, Daddy, hi!" Sawyer said, grinning at Chris.

"Hey, kid," Chris said, picking him up off the bed and holding him.

"I couldn't get a hold of Christian and Trish," Stephanie said. "So I had to bring him with me."

"You drove yourself here?"

"I had no choice," she told him. "I couldn't just sit there at home and wait for them to return my calls, with my water breaking, I…oh God!"

"I hold Mommy hand!" Sawyer told Chris, squirming from his father's arms. Chris put him down on the bed and he went over to his mommy, quickly grabbing her hand because that's what she wanted him to do. "See."

"Oh, okay," Chris said as he brushed Stephanie's hair back. She was being a real trooper right now as she breathed through her mouth and through the contraction. Sawyer took Chris's lead and he pat Stephanie on the shoulder. Chris looked at the machine to his left and saw the contraction was ending and Stephanie breathed a little easier. "I'm going to really quickly go see if I can reach Christian and Trish."

"Okay," she said with a smile, "I've got Sawyer, so I'm fine."

"Okay," he told her, leaning down to kiss her sweaty forehead. When he left, Sawyer leaned his head against Stephanie's shoulder blade. She reached up with her hand and rubbed his head a little bit as he sighed against her.

"You okay, baby boy?"

"Uh huh, you okay?" he parroted.

"Yeah, for now," she said as Sawyer cuddled in closer with her.

"Hey man, sorry I didn't pick up the phone when Stephanie called earlier," Christian said over the phone. "Did she get to the hospital okay? I tried calling her, but nobody was answering."

"I think she probably left her cell phone in her car, she drove herself here since I was in New York, but she's okay now, I was just wondering if you could possibly come over and pick the kid up."

"Oh yeah, of course," Christian said, knowing which hospital Stephanie was at because he and Trish were in on the entire birthing plan to begin with. They were going to be the back-ups if Stephanie went into labor on a Monday while Chris was working.

"Thanks, I won't be staying the night so I'll be able to come pick him up tonight."

"It's cool, I'll come pick him up."

"Cool, great, just ask the information desk where Stephanie's room is."

"Cool, see you in a bit."

"See you."

"Oh, and hey, congratulations."

"Thanks," Chris chuckled.

He hung up the phone and walked back into the hospital. He walked over to the admitting desk where he was told to go by Stephanie's doctor and proceeded to fill out all the necessary forms that Stephanie hadn't been able to fill out. As he had left Stephanie's room he had run into Dr. Sheldon, who told him that Stephanie wasn't far enough along that he couldn't leave and go fill out the paperwork that needed to be filled out.

Still, his wife was in labor so he wanted to get this done as quickly as possible. Then he remembered his parents and in-laws and wondered if Stephanie had called them. Well, he could kill three birds with one stone and when he was through with the paperwork, he went outside again to use his cell phone (since it was against hospital policy to use one inside and he'd be damned if he got kicked out of the hospital while his wife was having a baby). He scrolled through his contact list to get the name he wanted.

"What's up, bro?" Shane asked as he answered his phone.

"Well, I just wanted to ask you a big favor."

"Depends on what it is. If Stephanie is craving something weird from New England, I'm totally not flying down there with like a bowl of chowder or something," Shane joked.

"Nothing like that, I just wanted to ask if you could call your parents and my parents and tell them that Stephanie is in labor right now."

"Steph's in labor!" Shane asked, "This is really early! Is she okay?"

"She's fine, she's actually at full term right now, so Flynn isn't really premature, just early, we hit the full term plateau a little while ago," Chris assured his brother-in-law. "Everything's going fine. I just got here because I was in New York when her water broke. She drove herself and Sawyer here."

"Sawyer's there?"

"For now, he's up with Stephanie holding her hand," Chris said, "Christian is going to come pick him up."

"Oh, sounds like you've got things under your control."

"I wouldn't think that," Chris said, "but I know that you'd want to know when she was in labor and so would Marissa, so I'm just letting you know what was up, and if you could notify your parents and mine…do you have my parent's number?"

"Yeah, I have it filed away, we do send them cards and stuff since you know, we always do family functions together since you're an only child, I've got their number, I'll let them all know, are they flying down?"

"Yeah, my parents want to fly down, I know Linda is, Vince, as always, up in the air since we have no idea where the hell he is."

"Off faking according to Stephanie, but dude, that's exciting, make sure my sister is okay, man."

"I will, don't worry, everything's going great right now."

"I can't wait to meet my niece, later, Chris."

"Later, and thanks again, Shane."

"No problem."

Chris hung up again and then rushed upstairs to Stephanie's room. She had just finished with another contraction and he went to her and she grabbed his hand, almost crushing it in her grip. He kissed her temple and she looked at him, trying to hide how much pain she was in for Sawyer's sake. She didn't want to frighten the little boy.

"How are you feeling?" he whispered into her ear.

"I'm okay," she told him, taking a couple deep breaths.

"No, you're not," he told her, rubbing her hand. "It's okay to you know, act like you're in labor. Sawyer wouldn't hold it against you, he's used to you yelling all the time."

"Did you call Christian and Trish?"

"Christian's going to come pick him up. Everything should be good."

"Oh, okay, good," Stephanie said.

"I also called Shane and told him to tell our parents. I figured that I could just let him tell the news so I could come back and see you. I don't think you want our son to be your birthing coach."

Stephanie laughed a little bit and Chris felt bad for her. She was obviously in pain and trying to hide it for Sawyer. Her hair was matted to her forehead with sweat and her cheeks were a deep pink. Her eyes would intermittently water as she tried her best not to show Sawyer that she was in a lot of pain and scare him. Chris brushed her hair out of her face and continually ran his fingers down her jaw, trying to bring her a little comfort.

Chris looked at Sawyer, who was on her other side. He was lying down with her, his head laying on the pillows that were behind Stephanie's back. He was wearing shorts and sandals and a little polo shirt, his hair falling into his face. He had Stephanie's hand cradled against his body, holding onto it with both of hers. He was just laying there quietly, playing with Stephanie's fingers every once in a while, his eyes opening and closing slowly.

"It's almost his naptime," Chris told Stephanie of their son.

Stephanie looked at the little boy, "Yes, I know, he can take a nap when…"

She had to pause and started breathing through her mouth again, deep breaths and Chris saw that she was having another contraction, very soon after the last one she had just had. She gave a keening sound, her teeth gritted as she sat up a little bit, closing her eyes and gripping the hands of her two boys. This woke Sawyer up a little with the tightness of his mommy's grip on his hand and he sandwiched it in between his own, but didn't move from his spot. He was bored and tired, a deadly combination for a two-year-old. He could feel that it was close to when he went to sleep, but he didn't know if he could actually sleep here.

"Should I go get the doctor to check on you?" Chris asked.

"She came in before you came back, I'm not ready yet," Stephanie answered when the contraction had subsided. "She said that since Flynn is a little early that my body as a whole might not have been ready for this baby or something like that, I don't know. I just know that this hurts a lot, it feels worse today than Sawyer, I don't even know why."

"I don't know," he told her, rubbing the back of her neck. "I'm sorry that I wasn't here this morning when you needed me."

"It's okay, you probably would've been freaking out anyways, and Sawyer was very calm and helpful," she said, grinning towards her little boy. "You tired, Sawyer?"

"No," Sawyer said defiantly, but she could tell that he was.

"Has he eaten anything?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, one of the nurses was nice enough to go down to the cafeteria and get him some lunch. He's full," Stephanie explained, rubbing Sawyer's head. "He's going to have a good nap whenever Christian comes to get him. When is that again?"

"Soon," he laughed. "He should be here soon."

"Okay, good," Stephanie said. "And everyone's going to be informed?"

"Yes, everyone will be informed."

"Good," Stephanie said, closing her eyes as a little ripple of pain ran through her. "Chris, I want her out of me."

"I want her out of you too," Chris said, sitting on the bed next to her and starting to massage her back. "I want to meet my little girl. She was so anxious to come meet us she came three weeks early, that's so crazy, Sawyer was late, and this one is early, she's already like you."

"Shut up," Stephanie said, moaning softly as Chris worked on her tense muscles. Chris glanced over at Sawyer, who was just watching them, not saying anything, but just watching. "I like to think she'll be like you too, just like Sawyer, and maybe she can look like you, you're better-looking."

"I would like to dispute that right now," he said, kissing her neck. "You're beautiful."

"Even when I'm sweaty and gross from being in labor?"

"_Especially_ when you're sweaty and gross and in labor," he told her. "How could you not be beautiful when you're having my kid?"

Stephanie closed her eyes and gripped Sawyer's hand again and Chris leaned on her shoulder and counted with her quietly, every now and then muttering a word of encouragement to her as she leaned forward and tried to get through the pain. She was working very hard and started to silently weep as the pain was getting to be almost unbearable for her. She didn't scream in pain, but clammed up in pain instead.

"Okay, and it's done," Chris said as he checked the readout from the monitor.

Stephanie tried to collect her breath, "It's getting worse."

"You're getting closer," he told her. "It'll be over before you know it, and then Flynn will be here, and it'll be so awesome."

"Noisy, it'll be noisy," Stephanie said, "I hope that her crying doesn't keep up Sawyer at night."

"Well, she'll be in our room a lot, so she probably won't," Chris said. "Besides, this is Sawyer we're talking about, the kid sleeps during Raw, I think he can sleep if he hears a baby crying."

"I hope so."

The three of them continued to work through Stephanie's contractions, the doctor coming in to check her every now and again to make sure that she was progressing and that everything looked okay with Flynn. Stephanie was being a trooper, putting up with all the hoopla around her and focusing on getting this kid out of her body as soon as possible.

"Hey, you guys!" Christian's voice drifted in from just outside the door.

"Oh hey, Christian, come on in," Chris called out to him.

"I'm not coming in!"

"There's nothing hanging out, Christian, you can come in for a second," Stephanie told him.

"I thought that you didn't like people seeing you while you're in labor, you know, banning everyone from the hospital."

"Well, right now, you can come in," she told him, but then a contraction hit as soon as he walked in. Christian stood there, actually really, really uncomfortable and kind of scared to be in there. Sawyer was on one side, rubbing her arm as Chris held her hand, squeezing it really hard and looking like she was crushing it. Luckily Chris was a strong guy and could probably take it.

Christian stared at her and realized this was what Trish was going to look like someday when they had their child. She was going to be in this immense amount of pain, her eyes shut tight as she had a sustained grimace on her face, her hair wet with sweat and clinging to her flushed skin. There would be a soft groan of pain that would gradually grow louder and Christian would have to sit there and take that all in, knowing that his wife would be in pain and he could do nothing but sit next to her and whisper stupid, nonsensical words in her ear until it passed.

He waited until it passed and then gave her a weak smile, which she returned with her own weak smile, "Are you sure I'm not interrupting?" Christian asked.

"No, it's okay," Stephanie said, shaking her head, "I'm okay now."

"Um, okay, you look, you look good," he told her hesitantly.

"Liar," she called him out. "I do not look good right now."

"Well, I didn't want to upset you because you're in labor," he said. "So I'll just pick up Sawyer and go."

"Thank you so much for watching him, we really appreciate it," Stephanie told him.

"It's not a problem, Steph, I mean, come on," he said, gesturing towards her. "How could I say no to you when you're…you know, about to have a baby?"

"True," she said, then another contraction hit her and Christian seriously wanted to pack Sawyer under his arm and run out of the room. Stephanie gripped Chris's hand as she leaned forward again, trying so hard not to push because it wasn't time yet. Chris kept kissing her by her ear, another tactic that he was using to let her know that he was there for her.

"I'm just going…to…take Sawyer now," Christian said as Stephanie nodded, still trying to recover from her contraction to answer him. Christian slowly went over to the side of the bed where Sawyer was staring up at his mommy, oblivious to everything else. He knew something was wrong with her, she didn't look like she normally did and he was very worried about her, picking up on the tension in the room immediately. "Hey there, kiddo, you want to come play with Trish and me?"

"No," Sawyer said, shaking his head as he looked over at Christian finally.

"Really? Because I thought we could go to the park or something," Christian said, "or we could go do something else fun."

"Uh uh, no," Sawyer told him, "I stay."

"Yeah, but it's boring here," Christian told him.

"Yeah, kid," Chris said, "You don't want to be bored, Mommy and I are just going to do very boring things."

"I stay," he insisted.

"But you have to go take your nap," Chris explained, "and then you can go play with Christian and Trish, you always have fun when you're with them."

"No, Daddy, no," Sawyer said, dragging out the vowel on his last no for about five seconds longer than he should've. "Mommy need me."

"Baby boy, Mommy was so happy that you were here when I needed you. You held my hand very well, but you should really go with Christian right now. Then you can go with him and play and have fun instead of sitting here with boring old me. Then when you come back tomorrow or later, you can see Flynn, that'll be exciting, huh?"

"Mommy, no go," Sawyer told her, his breath coming out in angry pants. He didn't want to go. He knew that his mommy needed him, she had told him to hold her hand and he wanted to hold her hand. Why was everyone trying to make him leave? He didn't want to leave his mommy, he wanted to stay with her when she needed him. Plus, she looked like she was hurt and had a really bad boo-boo and if his mommy had a boo-boo, he wanted to stay with her.

"Please, baby," Stephanie pleaded with him. Another contraction hit and Christian's eyes widened at being this close to the action. Stephanie wasn't his wife and it felt very wrong being here, like he was an intruder on something pretty special and private.

"Come on, kiddo, let's go," Christian said, picking up Sawyer as a doctor came in to check on Stephanie.

"NO!" Sawyer yelled, startling everyone in the room, even the mid-contraction Stephanie, who looked up in distress at her little boy. "No, I stay! Mommy, pease!"

Sawyer started to cry and wriggle around in Christian's arms, trying desperately to grab at Stephanie as Christian tried to take him away. Christian was having a difficult time trying to keep Sawyer from squirming right out of his arms and falling to the ground. Stephanie couldn't bear the pain and had to look away from Sawyer, who was bawling now, tears streaming down his face.

"Mommy, stay, Mommy, pease, Daddy!" Sawyer said, crying and making a scene.

Stephanie took a deep breath, "Sawyer, you have to go baby, okay, I'll be okay, you just have to go."

"No, Mommy, no," he told her, begging her not to let him go. His face screwed up pitifully and he reached his small arms towards her, wanting nothing more than to be with his mommy. "I no go, Mommy! MOMMY!"

Stephanie was starting to cry too and it wasn't from the pain. She turned to Dr. Sheldon, who was feeling a prick in her heart at the little boy too, "Is it okay if he stays in here?"

"Yes, children are allowed in the delivery room in this hospital," Dr. Sheldon said, understanding that the little boy felt he was needed here with his mommy.

"Okay…come here baby boy!" Stephanie said, reaching her arms out to her son.

"Steph?" Chris asked, "Are you sure that you want him here?"

"Chris, look at him," Stephanie said as another contraction hit her, and they were coming very close together now, almost on top of one another. Stephanie groaned as she grabbed at her stomach.

"Um, yeah," Christian said, not really knowing what to do. He put Sawyer back on the bed and he crawled frantically towards his mommy, hugging her arm like he never wanted to let it go and sniffling as he rubbed his wet eyes against her. Christian grabbed Stephanie's hand, which she grabbed tightly and her grip was tight. "Good luck, okay, Steph, and if anything changes with him, call."

"We'll call," Chris said, "thanks, man."

"No problem," Christian said, kissing Sawyer's head, "You be good, kiddo."

"Okay," Sawyer mumbled as he kept close to his mommy as Christian scurried out of the room.

"Okay, Stephanie, you're getting really close. I'm thinking that you're going to be ready to push within the half hour so it won't be long okay, I'm going to start checking in on you every ten minutes."

"Sure," Stephanie said as she leaned back and closed her eyes. Dr. Sheldon smiled at Chris and left the room. "I couldn't let him be upset. I couldn't take it."

"I understand," Chris said. "He doesn't like seeing you like this, it's scaring him, but he doesn't want to leave you."

"Uh huh," Stephanie said. She turned to her little boy, "Sawyer, you okay, baby boy?"

"Yup," he told her, cuddling up to her. His crying jag had made him even more exhausted and his eyes were closed.

"Of course, of all times, he's going to take a nap _now_," Stephanie said as she rubbed Sawyer's hand with her own.

"Can you believe that we're having another baby?" Chris asked out of the blue, like he had only _just_ realized that they were having their second child. "This is really crazy," he told her. "I can still remember just about everything with Sawyer, how it felt, how it all went down and now here we are again and it's so different, but so much of the same."

"Yeah, for you, sitting there," she told him with a tinge of bitterness. She cringed as another contraction hit her. It was becoming increasingly difficult not to push, but she had a lot of support from her boys. Sawyer, who was now almost fully asleep, seemed to sense her tense was gripping her arm tighter, like he knew she still needed him.

"You are so incredible, let me tell you," Chris said. "This is exactly why I chose you to be the mother of my children. You're a trooper and you let your son stay with you and you drive yourself to the hospital, and you just generally rock."

Stephanie laughed, "Well, I'm glad I'm appreciated, I guess. I just wasn't expecting this to happen today, I wasn't prepared, with Sawyer he was a few days late so I knew he was coming. I wasn't prepared for this to happen today, for her to come so early. I think Sawyer left a note in there saying I didn't appreciate his tardiness."

"And now he's asleep," Chris said, looking towards their son, who, in the hustle and bustle of the entire day had just conked completely out, his head buried in one of Stephanie's pillows and his arms still loosely hanging around Stephanie's left arm.

"So since I'm having your baby and all," Stephanie said as Chris used a washcloth to wipe the sweat from her brow, "can I bring something up?"

"Of course you can."

"Your tights, they're awful," she told him. "Please, for the love of God, make that the first and last time."

"You're honestly bringing that up _now_?"

"I figure that when you see me in pain like this, you'll come around to my side of the fence."

"We'll see."

"Oh God, here's another one," Stephanie said, trying to swallow down the pain, but this one was truly unbearable and she screeched in pain. Chris winced and saw Sawyer stir slightly, but then fall back asleep. If the kid could sleep through Raw, the kid could sleep through anything. He didn't know if it was good that his son had learned to block out the world. Chris turned his focus completely to Stephanie. Sawyer seemed content enough with being near Stephanie, so he went to make sure that his wife was doing okay.

Dr. Sheldon came in just as Stephanie was getting through this latest contraction. She checked again and her eyes widened, "Well, Stephanie, this whole ordeal is almost over with."

"Oh thank God," she practically sobbed.

"I know, it's been a long day for you," her doctor said. She and Chris helped to scoot Stephanie forward so that she could start to push. This meant that she had to let go of Sawyer. Luckily the little boy was so far gone that he just laid there and instead of curling up to Stephanie's arm, he curled up to the pillow that smelled like his mother and sighed in his sleep.

"I envy him," Stephanie said as she glanced back at her son. "I'm so tired."

"I know, baby," Chris said, bracing himself behind her, making sure he wasn't crushing any part of his son. "But it'll be over soon."

"It hurts," she said as another contraction came over her, "I wanna push, I wanna push, Chris."

Her words were jumbling together now as she was almost delirious from the pain of it. She wasn't mentally prepared to give birth today. She hadn't even really planned anything. She had wanted the birth to go smoothly, with her and Chris dropping off Sawyer with Christian and Trish before driving calmly to the hospital and having her daughter there without complication. Flynn's nursery wasn't even ready yet and here she was, close to having her little girl and she just wasn't prepared for this even though her body had other ideas.

"Okay, Steph, you can push, you know how to do this, right, you remember?" Dr. Sheldon said.

Stephanie nodded and Chris braced himself against her as the pain shot through her and she started to push, bearing down and pushing with all the strength she had left. Chris was behind her, soothingly rubbing her back and kissing her sweaty neck. She could barely feel it though as she continued to push and push until it was over and she leaned back against her husband, who was strong and barely budged from her weight against him.

"Hurts," Stephanie whispered to Chris, her eyes closing slightly.

"I know," he whispered, "but we're so close. I mean, you're just a few pushes away from giving up your baby to Sawyer."

Stephanie gave a weak smile at that, "He better appreciate that."

"He'll be the only two-year-old left to raise a newborn baby," Chris said, "I'm sure he'll appreciate that."

"Okay, Stephanie, here comes another one, you ready to push?"

Stephanie nodded, bit her lip and started to push as the urge arose inside of her. Chris was behind her and she was gripping the sheet next to her as she grit her teeth and pushed with all of the strength she had left in her body, which didn't feel like much. She wanted this over with, it hurt so much and it was like flashes of blinding pain were dotting in front of her eyes. When she finally opened them again, she could still see those tiny dots of pain floating in front of her eyes.

"You okay?" Chris whispered to her. She just kind of grunted a response. She didn't have it in her to even answer.

"Steph, you're doing really well, after this next push, I think your baby is going to be crowning, and then it'll be just a couple pushes from being over," Dr. Sheldon said. Stephanie smiled a little, the corners of her mouth turning up. "Do you think you have it in you to keep pushing?"

Stephanie nodded slightly, not really sure if she had it in her, but knowing that she had absolutely no choice. She could feel that Flynn was only a few pushes from being born and it was terribly uncomfortable. She looked slightly to her left to see Sawyer's little brown sandal-covered feet. Okay, she could do this, if that's what she got out of this, she could do this. Chris felt her kind of sit up a little bit and he knew, he knew immediately that Stephanie McMahon was coming out.

Another contraction hit and Stephanie was pushing right along with it, grunting from the effort, but putting more than she currently had into this push. She was gritting her teeth and screaming through them as she pushed with all her might. The contraction finally passed and she leaned back against Chris, who held her tightly in his arms and kissed her temple.

"You are amazing."

"Your baby is crowning, would you like to see, Chris?"

"Um, no, thank you," Chris said, remembering the last time that he had seen down there when Sawyer was crowning. That was a sight that was forever burned in his brain and for all the wrong reasons. He knew better this time, knew that he didn't want to see anything that was going on down there because then his sex life might truly be ruined. He leaned into Stephanie's head, pressing his nose against her scalp and whispering, "Once you've seen one kid coming out, you've seen them all."

That got Stephanie's biggest smile in the last few hours and she felt ready to push again, though it wasn't time. "Okay, Steph, contraction coming up, one more push and then the big push, okay?"

"Kay," Stephanie said, her voice a hoarse whisper at this point.

"Good, and push!"

Stephanie pushed again, feeling that Flynn was coming and wanting it over with soon. The sooner Flynn was out, the sooner that she could go to sleep. She wanted to sleep desperately, but she kept pushing that feeling back and away from her. She had a mission to accomplish and she just couldn't stop now when there was a freaking baby coming out of her right this second. So she pushed, and she pushed and she knew it was probably all kinds of disgusting down there, but she didn't care as she kept pushing. Then it was over and she was ready to just keep pushing, but she needed a short break.

"One more, Stephanie and then you're done, just one more."

"Did you hear that, baby?" Chris asked. "Just one more."

She'd heard her doctor, obviously and she shot a short glare in Chris's direction and he looked at her sheepishly. Then he glanced over at Sawyer, who was miraculously still asleep, though Chris did see him stirring every now and then out of the corner of his eye. He guessed he was just trained to sleep through tons of stuff. He was probably just exhausted from the day though and happy that he was near his mommy even though there was a baby coming out of her right this second. Sawyer would _never_ see that though.

"Okay, Steph, one more."

Stephanie just nodded, took a deep breath and started pushing. She pushed as hard she possibly could, gathering up every bit of strength from every dusty corner of her body and pushing like her life depended on it. If this kid was out, she could go to sleep next to her little boy and that's what she wanted to do, she wanted to sleep next to Sawyer and let him cuddle up to her and she would close her eyes and everything would be euphoric. She just needed to push.

It was like all the sound was eliminated from the room. She was so concentrated on what she was doing that it was like all her senses failed on her. She closed her eyes and she grit her teeth and it was like the sound flew out of the room and she was left in an inky silence as all she could feel was pushing this kid out of her. She couldn't feel Chris rubbing her back and telling her encouraging things. She couldn't hear her doctor telling her that she was doing so well and it was almost over. She couldn't feel the slight kick of Sawyer's foot against her thigh as he opened his eyes slightly to see what the commotion was about because he could certainly hear and his mother was screaming. He looked at her, saw she was doing something and fell back asleep.

Stephanie was in her cocoon and then suddenly, she was free and the noise came back like a loud cymbal being crashed. There was noise around her and then this pink, bloody, wiggly, little thing was being put in her lap. She looked down through hazy eyes and saw her little girl right there, but she couldn't hear what anyone else was saying because the noise was too much, too blended together and so she just looked at this little thing that was in front of her and stared in surprise.

"Chris, once again, would you liked to do the honors?"

"Sure," Chris said as he went over and cut the cord, still looking away, remembering how he had looked away the last time. He turned back a second later to look again at Flynn.

Chris was looking at his little girl with wide eyes. She was crying softly, nothing like wailing, just crying softly. The doctor took her a second later and Stephanie kind of looked at him and gestured towards the baby so he pulled away from her, letting the doctor tend to the afterbirth as he went to go see them clean up his daughter. He made sure they took extra good care of her. By the time that he looked back at Stephanie, she was asleep, Sawyer finding her in his own sleep and cuddling up to his mommy, whose head was leaned on his.

Dr. Sheldon took off her gloves and came over to Chris as they wrapped Flynn up in a blanket. "She did great, there was no tearing or anything, so we didn't have to stitch her up, she's a trooper, that's for sure. Flynn looks completely healthy and she's not too undersized. I think you'll be able to take her home tomorrow or the next day."

"Great, thanks so much," Chris said gratefully to the woman who continually took good care of his wife and children.

"Just doing my job," Dr. Sheldon said kindly. "We'll be moving Stephanie to a different room shortly, so if you want to follow her. We'll get her set up and then we'll let you hold your little girl."

"Awesome," Chris said as he shook her hand and then watched as she went to go work on some charts or something.

They wheeled Flynn out of the room and he watched them go. He wanted to hold her right this second, but he could wait to hold her and really get a good look at her. He looked back towards Stephanie, who was getting cleaned up and stuff and he walked over and ran his hand over her head. She moved a little and opened her eyes, squinting up at him and he leaned down and kissed her chastely, relaying how proud of her he was.

She stayed half-awake until they moved her from here to the other room, Chris helping to get her into the new bed, putting her in first and then gently helping Sawyer next to his mommy. They pushed Flynn in a little bit later and Stephanie was incredibly hazy at this point, her eyes drooping almost comically, but never dropping completely. She watched as they wheeled Flynn over. The nurse gave her to Chris and he took her in his arms and just stared down at her.

"Whoa," Chris whispered.

Then Stephanie completely fell asleep.

Chris thanked the nurse and she said she'd be back in a bit with a bottle if Stephanie didn't wake up and want to feed her. Chris nodded and sat down in the chair next to Stephanie's bed. He was so in awe of his little girl and the love he already felt for her was overwhelming him. She was beautiful and pink from just being born. Her eyes were looking up at him and they were blue, but not like Sawyer's eyes, they were slightly darker, more like Stephanie's and he was happy for that. She had darker wisps of hair on her head too, peeking out from under her little pink hat, not completely brown, but close to it.

"Hey there," he whispered, and he had no clue as to why he was whispering, but whispering he was. "I'm your daddy. You might not have known that seeing as how you've been inside Mommy all this time. Maybe you recognize the voice, but I figure that the only voice you're going to recognize is Sawyer's."

Flynn kind of scrunched up her nose at that.

"Yeah, you're going to love him, he already loves the hell out of you. That's why I'm holding you right now because I know when he gets up, I'm never going to get to hold you again. He's going to steal you away from us and I don't want that quite yet."

He ran his finger down the bridge of the nose and she flinched at that. She was absolutely gorgeous. He could not take his eyes off her. After a long wait, she was finally here and he couldn't be happier if he tried. This was a moment for the ages, one of those ones that you tucked away in your head for when you were having a bad day. He closed his eyes and just took in the moment, the way that she felt in his arms for the very first time, the way she smelled like a new baby, the softness of her blankets.

He opened them again and she was still staring up at him, "Hey, so it looks like we're the ones who are going to stay awake in this family. Your mommy and big brother are being sleepyheads right now, but not us, huh?"

She blinked at him and he gave her his finger and she gripped it in his tightly. She felt very comfortable in his arms, whoever this guy was. He gave her a crooked smile at that and couldn't wait to tell everyone about his daughter, his little girl. Oh man, he had to call his parents. He thought about doing that, but then looked down at his daughter and knew that they could wait a little while longer while he sat here with his little girl. He didn't want to move; he just wanted to sit here and enjoy his new baby. It was surreal, having two kids now. He knew now what guys said about their daughters. There was just something so special about having one that was so different from having Sawyer.

"You've got just as strong a grip as your brother did, I remember," Chris said, actually remembering how Sawyer's hand had felt around his finger. Flynn was gripping him for all he was worth, like he would disappear if she let go. "You're going to be a wrestler too, aren't you? Yes, you are. I know you are. Just…you know, can you be like, a very clothed diva, please, no see-through tops like Mommy, I don't think my heart will be able to take that."

She just gripped him even tighter.

"I'll take that as a yes. You have that cool new baby smell, you know, that wore off of Sawyer about a year ago," Chris told her. "Glad to know that I have that back. I was getting tired of that little guy anyways, you're the new, improved version, aren't you? Yeah, because you look like you're going to be more of a blend between me and your mommy, so you're automatically better because Sawyer looks too much like me."

Chris went quiet then, just taking in the brevity of the moment and watching every movement his daughter made. She didn't seem sleepy in the slightest, in fact, she looked rather alert for a newborn. Her eyes were squinty and she kept looking up at him, as if to memorize his face in case this guy decided to show up somewhere else. Chris would occasionally laugh at her and hold her a little tighter to him, never wanting to put her down, but knowing he would have to soon.

Soon came within the next few minutes as he saw Stephanie stirring out of the corner of his eye. He stood up with Flynn and walked to her bedside. Her eyes were fluttering and she opened them so they were narrow slits, but then she closed them again for a long moment before opening them and taking a deep breath. She looked around like she didn't know where she was before they settled tiredly on Chris and a pink bundle in his arms. She looked up at his face and he was grinning madly, like he had just been let out of the madhouse.

"Chris?" she said, but there was no real question attached to that.

"Hey there, baby," he told her, his grin growing even wider. "You feel better?"

"A little bit more rested," she told him. She pushed herself up gently so she was sitting up, careful not to disturb the little boy who was still latched to her side. She was more awake now as she looked at the bundle in her husband's arms. "Gimme, gimme!" she exclaimed eagerly.

Chris laughed and came closer to place the baby in Stephanie's arms. She was a seasoned veteran now so all that was left was awe. When she had Sawyer, there was a nervousness about her, wondering if she would be a good mother or even just a competent mother. She needn't worry about that now so she was just left with the awe of having another child. Chris checked Sawyer, then went over to her other side and sat next to his wife, who looked so beautiful holding their daughter.

"She looks like a Flynn."

"Flynn Murphy Jericho," Stephanie said. "She's beautiful. I mean, Sawyer was one ugly mess, but she's absolutely gorgeous."

He stared down at her. "She is pretty gorgeous. Just don't let Sawyer hear you calling him an ugly mess, that kid is mean."

"She's so much cuter than Sawyer was though," Stephanie said. She looked up at Chris, "She's ours, can you believe that? She's actually ours, we have a little girl, we have two kids, Chris, we have _two_ kids!"

"I know," he laughed, "What the heck is going on? When did this even happen?"

Stephanie ran her finger over the bridge of Flynn's nose, just like she had with Sawyer. "She's so small. She's perfect, she's absolutely perfect. Thank you for this, I mean, I know I hated you at times, and I know that I was kind of difficult and demanding, but thank you for this, she's perfect."

"Well, I can't take all the credit," Chris said. "I mean, look at those eyes, huh, those aren't completely my eyes so I can't take the credit for all of her."

"You know what else is perfect about her?"

"What?"

"She looks like she could travel right now and be perfectly happy with a mother who was the GM of Raw," Stephanie said sweetly.

"Okay, she's not _that_ cute," Chris chuckled and Stephanie frowned, "Baby, no, you're not going to be the GM."

"I don't see why I couldn't be," she argued.

"Let's focus on our daughter now, shall we?"

Stephanie relented and gushed, "She doesn't have that whole 'I was just born' look on her face or anything. She's just pure cute, you know. She's adorable. She's going to be so beautiful, I can already tell."

"She's already beautiful," Chris said.

"Hey there, Flynn, I'm your mommy," Stephanie said to the little girl. "You may not recognize me from the outside."

"She's so light. She felt like nothing in my arms. Sawyer was so solid, you know, but she feels so light, like a feather or something."

"Well, she is two pounds lighter than the monster," Stephanie said. "So you know, he was a big boy and she's just smaller than he was." She looked up at Chris as she felt Flynn settle in her arms, looking up at these two people, probably wondering where that person who yelled at her all the time was. "So I'd say that we made the right choice in getting pregnant."

"It wasn't so much a choice though," he reminded her.

"Revisionist history," she said to him. He laughed and kept looking at their daughter. She had that chin dimple that both Stephanie and Sawyer had. The McMahon was strong in this one.

"I can't stop looking at her and thinking about how beautiful she is."

"Me neither," Chris said. "She has dark hair already."

"It could lighten up, it probably will," Stephanie said. "Her eyes could lighten up too."

"I hope not, I want her to have your eyes," Chris said, glancing at Stephanie.

"Shut up," Stephanie said, blushing a little bit.

"What, I can't want my daughter to have my wife's eyes? That's kind of mean, don't you think?" he asked.

"I guess she can have my eyes, just as long as she doesn't have your fashion sense for ring attire," Stephanie said smugly as she continued to look at Flynn. Chris couldn't see her face, but he knew there was smirk on it and he scowled.

"There's nothing wrong with them."

"Oh yeah, of course not," Stephanie said, "you just look stupid in front of the entire world, that's all, no big deal."

"I don't look stupid."

"We beg to differ. All of us."

"She hasn't even seen me."

"It'll be the first thing I show her when we get home," Stephanie told him. "She can see that her father looks stupid and horrible and…I don't even want to know how you got your legs smooth, I really don't, and then she'll probably spit up and not because she's a baby, but because the sight disgusts her that much."

"I think it'll be because she's a baby," Chris said, reaching for his daughter's hand again. "She's going to be a Daddy's Girl, I can feel it."

"You'd love that."

"Well, you've got one that adores you, this time I get to be someone's first word," he said, "isn't that right, Flynn, you're going to say me first."

"It's not a competition."

"What life are you leading? Of course this is a competition," Chris joked as he stroked Flynn's soft hand with his thumb. "So should we tell Sawyer when he wakes up that we're going to be getting rid of him since she's here now?"

"It would be for the best," Stephanie said as she ran her hand over Flynn's head with her free hand. "We have a son and a daughter, feels pretty right, doesn't it?"

"Right? Well, yeah, I'd say that's a good word for it," he said, "Let's record this moment and then in a few weeks when Flynn is crying we'll replay it and see if we still feel the same way. That'll be fun."

"Oh yeah, tons of it," Stephanie said as she felt a small kick to her side. "I think that we're going to get the main event in a second. Looks like the monster is finally going to get up. He's lucky, he does absolutely no work and yet he's the one who gets to sleep."

"Well, his baby came today, it was very exciting for him," Chris said. "Hey, Flynn, you're about to meet your big brother. I expect you to recognize him immediately and smile for the first time despite the fact you aren't supposed to smile for a little while yet. This kid adores you and he's never even met you, so be prepared."

Flynn blinked at him and Chris laughed, still running his thumb across her tiny, pink, little knuckles. Her skin was just so soft and fresh and she had no clue what she was in store for with this family. She didn't know that her parents were scheming and manipulative and ruthless. She didn't know she had a crazy grandfather who was holed up somewhere refusing to see anyone like he was Howard Hughes or something. She didn't know that they were all involved in the wrestling business and that it was their lifeblood, for all of them.

"Mommy," Sawyer mumbled as he opened his eyes slowly. He blinked a couple of times, not knowing where he was and he was startled for a second, thinking that he was alone, but then he turned on his back and saw his mommy and he visibly relaxed.

"Hey there, baby boy," Stephanie told him. "Something happened while you were sleeping."

"Yeah?" he asked, his voice still laced with sleep.

"Uh huh, there's someone here who I think you're going to want to steal," Stephanie said, then turned to Chris. "I have the camera in my bag, get it, I want to get this moment for sure."

Chris didn't want to let go of Flynn's hand, but he didn't want to miss this first meeting and so he went to Stephanie's bag and grabbed the camera. He came back over to his family and Sawyer was sitting up and rubbing his eyes. That wasn't the best nap he'd ever taken, but he wasn't anywhere he recognized, so that probably had something to do with it. He looked over at his mommy, more clearly now that he was really starting to wake up and he saw her holding something wrapped in a pink blanket that seemed to be moving slightly. What was that?

"What that, Mommy?" he asked, looking up at her innocently, then heard a soft mewling-type sound coming from the blankets and looked at it confusedly.

"Why don't you look?" Stephanie said, lowering her arms down to Sawyer's eye level.

He peered over the top of the blankets and his jaw dropped down to his chest and his eyes widened. He looked up at his mommy, then back down at her arms, which were holding a baby! A baby! "Baby," he breathed out in awe of the thing. "Baby!"

This startled Flynn and her eyes widened very slightly. Stephanie laughed, "Yes, this is the baby, I had the baby while you were asleep."

"Weally?" he asked. How could he have missed that? He shook his head slightly at not knowing what was going on. Stephanie nodded and he continued to stare at the little baby in his mommy's arms, "Fwynn?"

"Yeah, this is Flynn, she couldn't wait to see you. She heard you playing on your playground and she was like, I can't stand it one more minute, I have to get out of here and go see my big brother since he loves me a whole lot."

"I do, I like baby," Sawyer said, making sure his mommy knew that he liked the baby. "You see baby, Daddy?" he asked Chris, who was taking pictures of this exchange.

"I did see the baby, she's awfully cute, don't you think?"

"Uh huh," he said, still in awe.

"You want to hold her?" Stephanie asked. "I think she'd really like it if you held her. I know she knows your voice since you talked to her all the time. She wants to meet her big brother."

"Okay!" Sawyer said excitedly. He was actually going to get to hold her. "No tummy, Mommy."

"I know, she's not in my tummy anymore," Stephanie said good-naturedly. Sawyer was so in shock it was adorable. It was like he couldn't believe there actually _was_ a baby inside of his mommy and now it was here. "Okay, baby boy, hold out your arms."

Sawyer held them out diligently, "Done."

"Okay, now I'm going to set Flynn in your arms, okay, and you have to be very careful because she's very fragile, which means that she can't really get bumped around a lot like you can," Stephanie said, kissing the top of his head. "You have to be extra careful with her head because that and her neck are the most fragile parts of her body, okay, I'll help you get her, okay?"

"Okay," Sawyer said. Stephanie carefully placed Flynn in Sawyer's arms. He seemed even more in awe of this than anything. She was kind of heavy for him, but she didn't weigh that much, his old toy that his daddy gave him weighed more, until his daddy gave it away without asking him. His mommy was holding onto her head as Sawyer held her in his lap. He looked down at her and she looked like a person and everything but she was so little. "Daddy, she very little."

"I know, you were that little once, you know."

"No way," Sawyer said.

"What! Hey, I'm your daddy, I know what I'm talking about and you were that little."

"I a big boy," he said.

"I know," Chris said, "do you think she's cute?"

"Uh…I cute," he said definitively.

"Well we already knew that," Chris said with a laugh as he looked at his children.

"She little," Sawyer repeated, staring down at her and whispering, "My baby…"

"Is she your baby?" Stephanie asked, hearing him and smiling over at Chris. Flynn was going to be Sawyer's, they could feel it. They also both loved the little scene in front of them. It was one thing to have a baby, but now they had two, little babies and they were adorable together. If Stephanie were a more emotional person, she would've been tearing up at the sight.

"Uh huh," Sawyer said seriously, "My baby."

"Not ours?" she asked.

He shook his head, "Uh uh, she _my_ baby."

The nurse walked in and smiled at the picture they made. "Hey, Stephanie, you're up. I just wanted to bring you a bottle. Since you had your baby a few weeks early, you might not be lactating, but we still encourage you to let her latch on and get that down, but I brought a bottle in case you're not lactating yet."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, taking the bottle.

"No problem, I'll give you a little while and then we'll put Flynn back in the nursery so you can get some rest and everyone can have a little break."

The nurse left then and Stephanie looked to Sawyer. "Sawyer, do you think I could have her back so she can eat?"

"No, she mine," Sawyer said protectively, holding Flynn a little closer.

"Well, if you give her back and she's not hungry with me, I'll let you feed her. She definitely likes you, she hasn't cried for you or anything."

"I know," he said. "My baby."

Stephanie had to stay in the hospital for a couple of days to recover from the labor, but after that, she and Flynn were ready and healthy enough to go home. Sawyer and Chris had been by everyday to see their girls and Sawyer was especially excited to bring the baby home so he could see her all the time. He ran into Stephanie's hospital room and saw her sitting there waiting for the nurses.

"Hi, Mommy, where Fwynn!" Sawyer said as he looked up at her.

"They're going to bring her to me and then we're going home."

"Okay!" he said very happily, hugging her legs. She lifted him up and hugged him, letting him cuddle close. He let himself melt into her. It had been a while since he had really gotten to hug his mommy without her tummy being in the way and he was taking full advantage of it right now.

"Are there people at home?" Stephanie asked Chris.

"Yeah, but not too many, just our parents. Tirsh and Christian are coming later, Edge may be with them, but I'm not sure. I'm not sure I want him around my kid after what happened on Friday."

Stephanie laughed, "Well, I'm not really in the mood to see anyone, but I guess I have to."

"Considering my parents and your mom are staying at our house, yes, you're going to have to, but you don't have to stick around, it's not you they want to see anyways," Chris joked. Stephanie gave him a look that agreed with him because she knew that she wasn't what anyone wanted to see right now.

"Where my baby?" Sawyer asked impatiently. He wanted his baby with him right now. He leaned against Stephanie's shoulder and sighed deeply.

"She's coming, you impatient, little boy. You have to be patient, okay."

"I want Fwynn," he explained to his mommy.

"I know, I want her too, but she can't walk so you'll just have to wait, but we're going to go home and she'll be there and you can watch her for me, okay?"

"Okay," he said as a nurse pushed in a wheelchair and another one brought in Flynn. "Baby!"

The nurse laughed and nodded, "Yeah, it's your baby sister."

Sawyer grinned widely. Stephanie stood up and handed Sawyer to Chris, who left her arms a little reluctantly. He hadn't gotten to hug his mommy in a long time and he didn't want his daddy. "Down, pease," he asked of Chris. Chris put him down and he watched attentively as they put Flynn in his mommy's arms. It was hospital policy for Stephanie to be wheeled down to the car. Sawyer walked quickly along with the wheelchair, making sure that Flynn was okay as they left.

He watched as Stephanie put Flynn into her car-seat and didn't even notice that Chris was lifting him into his own until he was strapped in and heard Chris slamming the door shut next to him. He looked out the window, but then turned his attention back to Flynn, who was sitting right next to him. She was awake right now. She had been asleep when they came to visit yesterday and she wasn't as fun to look at when she was sleeping, but nobody was fun to look at when they were sleeping.

She was facing the other way from where he was sitting so he had the perfect view of her and he was fine with watching her. She looked over at him and squinted from under her soft, white hat with pink flowers on it. He leaned way over his car-seat and reached out his hand to touch her, but before he could, his mother's hand shot out at his and took him by the wrist.

"What are you doing?" Stephanie asked.

"I see baby," Sawyer said.

"You can't touch her unless you wipe your hands, we don't want her to get sick because she's so little," Stephanie said, then reached out to grab Sawyer's diaper bag and took out a baby wipe and handed it to Sawyer. "Wipe your hands and then you can touch her, but only her hand, okay?"

"Okay," Sawyer said, taking the cloth and wiping it all over his hands and then handing it back to Stephanie. Then he reached out and took Flynn's hand. He could only reach the fingertips, but he still wanted to hold onto her. He still couldn't believe she was really here. He hadn't expected this at all. It was very different just talking to his mommy's tummy and knowing something was in there, but this? He wasn't expecting something like this.

He held onto her hand the entire way, sometimes whispering things to her in a language that only he understood. They arrived back home and Stephanie looked back at him, "You're going to have to let her go for a while, baby boy. We're going to go inside and let everyone see her."

"Oh," he said, but he didn't want to let her go. He just wanted to see his baby sister. But then his daddy was helping him out of the car and he jumped onto the pavement and ran to the front door. Stephanie was lagging behind with Flynn in her arms and he waited for her to catch up. Chris opened the door and he ran inside. Everyone was standing in the kitchen and he ran inside and started jumping up and down. "Baby here!"

Everyone laughed at him and came out into the living room where Stephanie was placing Flynn into a carrier on top of the coffee table. Everyone started rushing around to see the little girl, but none were faster than Sawyer, who stood right next to the coffee table and watched over his little sister. His grandma started to go for her, cooing at the little girl and Sawyer looked at her.

"No touch!" he told her, like his mommy had told him. He didn't want anyone touching her. "No touch, Gamma!"

Linda looked at him, "I can't hold her."

"Uh uh, no touch," he said, swatting her hand away.

"Why not?" she asked nicely.

"Cuz…I say," he said, like it should be obvious to her that she shouldn't be touching his baby sister.

"Oh, I see," Linda said.

Stephanie came over and looked at Sawyer, "You're not going to let anyone hold her, baby boy?"

"No," he said, "no touch."

"Well, I guess that's that," Stephanie said, "he's in charge of her, she's his little baby, unless, well, do you think that you could let some people hold her. You can watch them and make sure they do it right since you know how to hold babies now, don't you?"

"Yes, I know how," Sawyer said seriously. He had gotten to hold Flynn a bunch of times and he was really good at it if he did say so himself.

"So do you think that you can let everyone else hold her if they want?"

"Okay," he said. Linda smiled and went to pick up Flynn and Sawyer chastised her almost immediately, "Gentle!"

Linda laughed and held the little girl, "She's beautiful, sweetie, look at her, she's gorgeous."

"I know, I was surprised that she was so cute because Sawyer was kind of ugly-looking when he was born."

"Mommy," Sawyer said, hearing his name and ugly in the same sentence.

"You aren't anymore," she reassured him.

At this time, his grandparents were starting to look at Flynn and talk about her and Sawyer couldn't see her anymore and was dismayed because everyone was passing off Flynn and holding her and he couldn't really see what they were doing, but they were not including him in this and it was bugging him. Nobody was paying attention to him at all and that was kind of a new thing. Usually people paid attention to him and wanted to talk to him. He stood there, alone, and just watched as his grandma held his sister.

"I never thought I'd get a grandchild, now I have two in the last three years," Loretta said with a laugh as she held onto Flynn and let the little girl hold her finger on her free hand. "She's so tiny, I can't even believe it."

"She's so beautiful, isn't she?" Linda gushed. "She's going to be breaking boy's hearts."

"Not if I can help it," Chris joked. "She's going to be the most well-dressed diva there is, and I'll make sure nobody likes her."

Loretta laughed, "Already protective of her."

"I know what divas wear, of course I am," Chris said as he ran his hand over Flynn's dark-haired head.

"She's got a lot more hair than Sawyer did," Ted said, "she's a cutie."

"I think so," Chris said with a proud smile. "She's been pretty quiet too. But she's got a set of lungs when she does cry. Plus, she was early, you know, so she's definitely Stephanie's daughter. I bet you that she realized the sooner she came, the sooner Stephanie could get back to work."

"I heard that!" Stephanie yelled from the kitchen.

Linda laughed, "Somehow, I believe that though."

Sawyer was standing around, not knowing what to do with himself. All of a sudden, he was scooped up and he squealed in surprise as he looked over his shoulder and saw his mommy. He turned in her arms happily, hugging her again. God, he had missed this, being able to actually be held by his mommy. She kissed his cheek and held him close.

"Everyone's not going to stay forever, baby boy, and then you can help with Flynn, okay? Everyone just wants to see her right now because she's new."

"Okay," he said, not much caring who was holding his sister right now because he was with his mommy and she made everything better.

"Ted, you haven't held her, you should hold her," Stephanie said as she and Sawyer came over to the rest of the group.

"Okay, if you insist," Ted said, taking the baby from Loretta. "She's really adorable, really very adorable."

"We like to think so," Stephanie said.

"We make beautiful children," Chris said cockily. Stephanie just rolled her eyes and kissed Sawyer's head again. He had his eyes closed, the excitement of the day was starting to get to him a little bit. He tried to stay awake though because he wanted to make sure that everyone was being very careful with Flynn.

"Congratulations, honey," Loretta said as she hugged Stephanie with one arm so as not to crush Sawyer. "Thank you for another little one."

"I had some help," Stephanie joked.

"Do you like being a big brother, Sawyer?"

"Uh huh," he said, "I like it."

"He adores her already," Stephanie said. "You saw how he was, he's going to be overprotective with her. The typical older brother, he'll probably end up being exactly like Shane was with me."

"It's sweet though, how are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, still a little gross from the entire birth thing, it seemed harder this time around, but I'm fine. I'll be okay."

"Good, your mother and I are going to cook you guys dinner tonight and we're going to leave you alone so you can enjoy the evening," Loretta told her.

"But where are you going to stay?"

"Well, yesterday Ted and I went to buy some furniture for our new condo that we bought down here and your mother helped pick out stuff and they're delivering it today, so she's going to come stay with us and we'll be out of your hair."

"Oh, Loretta, you didn't have to do that, you know we don't mind you staying here."

"I know, but you should have the first night to yourself with your new baby and not have your whole family out here. So we'll make you dinner so you don't have to worry about it and then you guys get to be a family."

"Thank you, that's so sweet of you."

"Well, you gave us a granddaughter. A little girl! It took Chris like thirty-five years to give us a grandchild and now he's given us two, it's the least I can do for him finally giving me bragging rights among my friends," she joked. "They are going to think this little girl is the most adorable thing ever."

"She is pretty cute."

"But we're going to head to the store so we can get all the stuff," Loretta said, "Linda, Ted, did you want to go to the store now?"

"Oh yes, we did," Linda said, coming over to kiss Stephanie and Sawyer. "We'll be back."

Once they left, Stephanie finally took a moment to really relax. She flopped down on the couch, Sawyer still in her arms. Chris, who had taken Flynn, sat down next to her, holding the little girl securely in his grasp. She had fallen asleep and was nestled against Chris's chest, her small head feeling like a soft pillow pressing against Chris's strong waist. He rubbed his hand up and down her small back as she slept.

Stephanie looked over at them and smiled. They were making a sweet picture together and it was so nice to finally have Flynn here to complete this family picture they made. She didn't have many distinguishable features that were either hers or Chris's. Her hair could lighten up, her eyes could lighten up, the only real thing that would stay was that little chin dimple that proved she was a McMahon through and through. Her head was almost tucked neatly under Chris's chin and she looked content and happy to be in her daddy's arms, like she knew this was someplace that she belonged.

"You look cute," Stephanie whispered, not wanting to wake up her daughter.

"She's so light, I can barely feel her," Chris whispered back, scooting ever closer to Stephanie. "This whole thing…it feels a little surreal, doesn't it?"

"A little, yeah," Stephanie said. There were times, many times when she had pictured having kids. She could remember when she was in her mid-20's, thinking that children were this far-off thing that might not ever come. At that time, she thought Hunter would be the father of her children. Then he was out of the picture and children seemed that far off again. She was embroiled in a divorce, isolated from the business she loved and she briefly flirted with the idea of just getting pregnant so she could have someone that wouldn't leave her or turn on her, but that idea fizzled because she didn't want to be a single mom, not because she couldn't do it, but because work was too important to her.

Work was still important to her now, but it was so different. She knew she'd put Sawyer and Flynn ahead of her work any day. She had gotten her job back anyways, so that thought of getting pregnant had been pushed down again. Then Chris had kissed her and her world changed and she was brought to this very moment and it had all seemed so impossible before. She never would've figured that not only would she be with Chris Jericho, but married with two children that were his children as well. If you had told the Stephanie who had pie on her face that this was going to be her reality, she would've given a bitch slap of epic proportions.

She wondered if Chris thought the same thing.

He was too involved in holding his little girl to be thinking too much of the past. It was one thing to know his little girl was inside of Stephanie and growing and seeing her on a sonogram, but it was an entirely different thing to have her here where he could see her and hold her in his arms. She was tiny and light and smelled of baby powder and just that new smell of someone just coming in untouched to the world, innocent to everything. Her breath against his skin was feathery light, the softest breeze imaginable. It was like Sawyer, but different.

Flynn had been terribly unplanned and virtually unwanted at first, neither one really wanting another child this soon. Both Chris and Stephanie had wanted to enjoy their time with Sawyer before they introduced someone new to the family, but life always had a way of taking you and shoving you into a different direction than the one you planned. Still, right now, he couldn't imagine having a world where this little girl didn't exist. She was perfect and his and everything he wanted was right here. He had wrestling back, he had a beautiful, bitchy, successful wife, an adorable son, and a new little girl who he already loved beyond measure.

The doorbell rang and startled Flynn, who started to whimper and then cry. This roused Sawyer to action and he practically flew from Stephanie's lap over to Chris, kneeling next to him and taking over for Chris, rubbing Flynn's back, emulating what he kept seeing his parents do for her. He knew that he liked his back rubbed when he wasn't feeling well so it probably worked with her too. She stared at him and he smiled at her as Stephanie got up and went to the door, finding Trish and Christian (minus Edge) on the other side.

"Hey, congratulations!" Trish said. "I can't believe you had her so early, I didn't even get a chance to throw you a baby shower."

"I didn't need a baby shower," Stephanie laughed, "I've got everything I need."

"Still, I'm sorry we didn't answer the phone when you called. We were out and we just didn't hear it. Christian told me about Sawyer wanting to stay and how upset he was."

"It was fine, I was glad to have him there actually, he kept me from screaming and stuff," Stephanie laughed, "come on, you have to come see her."

"I want to," Trish said excitedly as they followed Stephanie into the living room. "Oh, that's her, oh my God!"

"Hi, Tish," Sawyer said, then turned to Flynn, "That Tish."

Trish aww'ed and came over, "Can I hold her?"

"Of course," Chris said, standing up and carefully placing Flynn into Trish's arms. Trish sighed and sat down with the baby in her arms.

"This is heaven," Trish said as she looked down at the little girl in her arms. Flynn looked up at her with a tiny bit of curiosity in her eyes, but then settled down and let this person hold her. Trish ran her finger along Flynn's cheek and sighed. This is exactly what she wanted. This was everything that she wanted right here. She wanted a baby of her own. She could feel it was time for her to settle down and really start a family and Christian was the man she wanted it with. She wanted a baby just like this, to hold and love and protect. "She's beautiful," Trish said quietly.

Stephanie sat next to Trish and rubbed Flynn's head, which Flynn seemed to respond well to. "I know."

"You're so lucky," Trish told her best friend, "I'm so jealous of you."

"You won't be so jealous when you're all swollen and you can't see your feet and you're begging the gods to get this baby out of you."

"Oh, I don't know, I like to think that I would be a great pregnant woman," Trish kidded.

"Better than me, I'm sure."

"I want one right now, oh my God, I want one," Trish cooed, looking down at Flynn again. She was so perfect. "I want to have a baby so bad."

"Just you wait, it's not all fun and games," Chris said as Christian congratulated him. "You want to hold her, man?"

"I don't think I'm going to be able to give her up," Trish told her fiancé. She didn't think she ever wanted to let go of this little baby. It just made something inside of her ache. She had put a lot of time into her career, but now she wanted the family part of the equation. She was so ready to be married and have a baby. She had been Trish Stratus, now she was ready to be something else, take another journey that she had no clue as to where she'd end up at the end of it.

"See what you've done," Christian joked. "Now I'm never going to get babies off of her mind."

"That's right," Trish said, letting Christian hold her.

"Wow, she's so light," Christian said, "she feels like nothing."

"I know," Chris said. "I had the same reaction. She's two pounds lighter than Sawyer was when he was born."

"This is pretty cool," Christian said, "Hey Flynn, I'm Christian, I'm probably going to be baby-sitting you a lot. Don't worry, though, Sawyer will tell you all about me, I'm sure. You'll like it when I baby-sit, I'm good at what I do."

"You want to take her now?" Stephanie asked.

"Don't even tempt her," Christian said, "because Trish will take this little girl home, I bet you, she will."

As Christian held her, Flynn started to get tired and hungry and she started to cry. Christian didn't exactly know what to do so Chris took her from him and held her close, but she kept crying. "Yeah, I think she's hungry and tired," Chris said, "you want to take her, Steph?"

"Yeah, give her to me," Stephanie said, taking her from Chris and holding her. Flynn seemed to know this was the person she wanted and started to cry a little softer, but still letting her mommy know that she was not happy at the moment. "Sawyer, you want to help me put her to bed?"

"Yes!" Sawyer said, hopping off the couch and standing close to his mommy as she left the room.

"Well, now that the baby is going to sleep, we're not going to stick around," Trish said. "We just came by to see her."

"Gee, thanks," Chris said.

"We'll be by tomorrow though," Trish said. "It's just…well, Edge is still at our house and I'm sure you saw the way he was acting and I don't really want to leave him alone with all our things. I'm afraid I'm going to go back to our house and see that Edge has put up a bunker or something."

"She thinks too poorly of him," Christian said.

"Did you _see_ how he was at SmackDown?"

"That was towards the Undertaker."

"I don't care, that nutjob you call a brother is not staying alone at our house," Trish said. "He actually wanted to come today, but I figured that he would actually scare the baby so I didn't let him come, told him that you never knew who would be here because babies attract everyone. He bought it."

Chris laughed, "Okay, thanks for coming by though."

"Thanks for letting us see your baby," Trish said.

"I'm not going to hear the end of this," Christian said. "So thanks a lot, man, thanks a lot."

"Well, get to getting this one pregnant then."

"Not every woman snaps and gets pregnant like Stephanie does," Christian countered.

"Dude, low blow. Just because my wife is fertile doesn't mean you have to make jokes," Chris said good-naturedly.

"Call us if you need anything though, okay?" Trish said. "Anything at all."

"Thanks you guys," Chris said as he walked them to the door.

Trish and Christian waved as Chris closed the door and Trish sighed, "Did you see that baby? She was like the most adorable thing I've ever seen. She was beautiful. I definitely want a baby girl. Not that I don't love Sawyer, but did you see how snuggly she was. I want one, Chrissy."

"I knew that seeing her was going to put ideas into your head," he laughed as he wrapped his arm around her.

"I can't help it. I just…oh man, she was gorgeous. I know they're hard work and everything, but I would think it was all worth it, don't you?"

"Yeah, I think it'd be worth it."

Chris, meanwhile, walked upstairs and looked into Flynn's as-yet-unfinished nursery. Flynn would just have to sleep in Chris and Stephanie's room until Chris finished up everything in here. Flynn coming early had thrown them all for a loop and Chris was hardly prepared to have a baby in that room. He mentally planned what he would need to get in there as he walked into his bedroom. Stephanie was sitting on the bed, breastfeeding Flynn as Sawyer lay next to her, sipping on a juicebox that Stephanie must've gotten for him before coming upstairs.

That was his family now, one more person added and still very complete. "Hey, looks like there's a party going on in here and I wasn't invited."

"Well, we wanted to be exclusive," Stephanie said, "come on over. Sawyer was shocked that I was feeding Flynn like this."

Chris laughed, "Hell, I'm still shocked you can feed Flynn like that."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked accusingly.

"I have no idea," Chris said as he came over and kicked off his shoes before lying down on the other side of Sawyer. "So how's my family doing?"

"Fine, I think," Stephanie said as Flynn pulled away from her. Stephanie lowered her top again and went to get the bubbles out, rubbing Flynn's back. "Sawyer, you fine?"

"Yup," he said around his straw, then reached up to hold onto Flynn's foot. She kicked at his foot a little and Sawyer smiled around his straw.

"I'm fine," Stephanie said, then looked to Flynn, "she looks fine, looks like she's going to fall asleep pretty soon, she's had a long day, coming home and meeting everyone like she did. I think the only person we don't know about is you, are you fine?"

Chris looked at everyone in front of him and chuckled softly before nodding, "Yeah, I'm fine."

**Monday**

"You got there okay?" Stephanie asked as she spoke on the phone with Chris.

"Yeah, we're all set and headed to the arena, I'm just sorry that Flynn wasn't awake to see us off this morning."

"Well, if you don't want me to be a cranky bitch when you come home, you should be thankful that you didn't wake her up just to see you off."

"She's only a few days old, it feels wrong leaving her," Chris pouted. "Maybe I should just skip the shows this week and come home to stay with you guys. I would have a lot more fun."

"No, Chris, you're not doing anything at SummerSlam thus far, and you should be doing something."

"What about kissing you?" he asked lecherously. Stephanie shook her head on her side of the line and gave a small laugh, thinking back seven years ago when Chris had the audacity to kiss her. Not just kiss her, but stick his dirty tongue into her mouth like he owned it or something. Nowadays she welcomed his tongue wherever it wanted to go. But that was what got them into this situation in the first place.

"Well, that's all well and good right now," Stephanie said. "Are you boys going to be okay?"

"Well, it'll be hard without you, but I think that we'll survive," Chris said sarcastically. "It's one night, we can do it. You two going to be okay without us there?"

"Yeah, I think we'll be fine. Flynn sleeps most of the time anyways. So it's basically me by myself," Stephanie said. "But we'll be okay."

"Okay, as long as you'll be okay," he said. "Tell Flynn that I love her, okay?"

"She won't know what you mean," Stephanie said. "It's just a hunch, but I'm not sure that Flynn understands English just yet."

"Very funny…then give her a kiss from me," Chris said. "I can't believe I had to leave her behind."

"Don't be a baby, I don't need three," Stephanie teased. "You'll be fine and then you'll come home tomorrow and you can spend the entire week with her and you'll have lots of fun changing diapers and what not. Thank God Sawyer is potty-training so he'll hopefully be out of diapers soon."

"Yeah, that'll be a real help when I don't have to change his smelly diaper," Chris said, throwing a look to Sawyer, who was in the seat next to him, strapped into his car-seat, looking at pictures of Flynn that Stephanie had given him before they left. He had been crying and whining that he didn't want to leave Flynn behind. She was only a few days old and Sawyer was already attached to her. After seeing she was asleep and wanting her to get all the sleep she wanted, Sawyer had reluctantly left. Looking at pictures of her seemed to be helping.

"Yeah, just replace that with Flynn's smelly diaper," Stephanie said.

"What's she doing right now anyways?" Chris asked. "Are you filming her?"

"I told you already, Chris, I'm not going to film her all the time you're gone, that's just silly. I don't think you're going to miss many milestones over the next 24 hours. If you come back and she's walking and talking, you were gone a lot longer."

"Fine, but what's she doing?"

Stephanie looked over at Flynn, who was sitting in her carrier on top of Stephanie's desk. Yes, she was only a few days removed from labor and she was still doing work. But that was her father's fault for still being in parts unknown. He _had_ sent her a note telling her congratulations on the baby, so it was definitely better than what happened with Sawyer. Flynn was just lying there, kind of looking around, not really doing much of anything. There were a lot of things in this room and she just kind of flitted from one unfocused thing to the next.

"She's with me, she's awake, looking at all the wrestling memorabilia. She's wondering what part of the company she should enter into."

"Wrestling of course, within reason, she should wear lots of clothes. Maybe bring back Right to Censor when she's older, start a new version so she can be clothed."

"How about we start the RTC back up tonight and you be the first member so you'll actually wear some pants," Stephanie said smartly.

"What? What's that, static, can't hear you, tunnel!" Chris yelled, pretending to be jumbled up.

"Oh, you are so full of it, Jericho. Where the hell do you get off wearing those things," Stephanie told him, angrily. "I find it awfully convenient that the week I'm gone, the week right after I go on maternity leave, you show up in those…those things."

"Oh yeah, it's a conspiracy against you of all people. I wanted to get back at my pregnant wife," Chris said, rolling his eyes. "Anyways, I've got to go, we just arrived at the arena and the guy is parking the limo."

"Okay, fine," Stephanie said.

"Tell Flynn I love her, okay, and I love you too."

"I should hope so, after giving birth to your daughter," Stephanie said. "I love you too, and I'm sure if she knew the concept of love, Flynn would tell you she loves you too, do you want to tell her yourself?"

"Hell yeah, I do," Chris said. He heard a shuffling on the line and when it stopped, he spoke, "Hey there, little girl, it's Daddy, I just wanted to tell you I love you very much."

"Daddy, talk Fwynn?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah, I am, you want to talk to her?"

"Yes!" Sawyer said, making a grab for the phone. Chris handed it to him. "Hi, baby! It me, hi!"

He heard more shuffling and then he heard his mommy, "Is that you, baby boy?"

"Hi, Mommy," he said sweetly. "I talk baby."

"I know, she totally recognized your voice, her face just lit up and I said to myself, she must be talking to Sawyer, and I want to talk to Sawyer too. I miss you."

"Me too," he said. "I okay."

Stephanie laughed, "Okay, give the phone back to Daddy so I can say goodbye to him, okay?"

"Okay, bye, Mommy."

"Bye, baby boy, I love you."

"Love," he said back, then handed the phone back to Chris. Chris took it from him and patted him on the head as Sawyer went back to looking at pictures of his baby sister.

"Okay, we're going to head out, I love you guys."

"We love you too, oh, and Chris?"

"Yeah?"

"I totally took those butt-ugly shorts out of your bag while you were in the shower this morning. Like hell I'm going to let you go out looking like a freak, Jericho. Your tights are in there, love you, bye."

She hung up before he could get another word in edgewise and he shook his head. Wouldn't she be surprised when she found out that after his shower he had stuffed his toothbrush and deodorant into his bag and saw that she had put his tights in there and made sure that she hadn't taken them out and when he found out she had, he put them back in. He didn't see the big deal. He thought he looked fine in them and most of the guys wore them anyways. She was just overreacting (or he was under-reacting and should lose them immediately for everyone's sanity).

"Okay, you," Chris said, "let's get to work."

"Work," Sawyer said very seriously as Chris unstrapped his car-seat. Sawyer hopped out and tried to open the door. Chris opened his door and Sawyer practically zoomed right out and Chris rolled his eyes at the little boy.

"Yup, work," Chris muttered to himself, wondering what would be harder: taking care of Sawyer or actual wrestling? He didn't know what he was doing tonight though. Stephanie still wanted him to get buddy-buddy with Adamle, but his daughter was born several days ago and he didn't want to have to deal with much negativity tonight. Tonight he just wanted to come here, do his job, then leave and get back home to his wife and daughter.

His _daughter_. The word was still so fresh in his brain and so foreign to his ears. He obviously knew what he was getting into when Stephanie was pregnant. He knew that he would have a little girl on the way, his very first daughter after having Sawyer a couple years ago. Still, nothing could've prepared him for how he felt about the little girl and how wondrous she was. He knew she wouldn't be exactly like Sawyer, but the differences were already so noticeable. Flynn was already very inquisitive. Sawyer had liked to look at things, but he really did spend most of his time sleeping and eating and pooping and doing the newborn thing.

Flynn, on the other hand, she was constantly looking around. He had read that newborns really couldn't see all that well, only about 18 inches in front of their face, but that didn't stop Flynn from constantly looking around, like she was searching for something she had lost. She liked to have her hand held too. She liked to know someone was there. She also didn't like cuddling as much as Sawyer had. Sawyer was a cuddler, through and through. Chris could cuddle him right now and Sawyer would eat it up. Flynn liked to be in her carrier, away from prying hands. She already had a personality.

He grabbed his and Sawyer's things and followed the young man into the building. Sawyer walked quickly ahead of him, tugging on everyone's pants or skirts and holding out a picture of his sister, saying, "Look! Look! That my baby!"

Many people smiled at the little boy and congratulated him and then congratulated Chris on the newest addition to the family. It was surprising how many people were willing to just ignore what they hated him for just a couple weeks ago. Of course, Flynn was also part McMahon and these people knew who buttered their bread, but it wasn't like Chris was going to write down the names of every single person who didn't congratulate him and have them fired.

"Hey, heard about the baby," Dave said, "Congratulations."

"Thanks," Chris said with a smile.

"That my baby," Sawyer said, holding up the picture to Dave. "See!"

"Wow, she's cute," Dave said politely to the little boy. Sawyer saw Britt up ahead and started running after her. "He looks excited."

"He is, he's completely in love with her."

"How's Stephanie?"

"She's good."

"Good, I'm glad. The baby really is cute."

"Thanks, I better go after him before he gets into trouble, thanks again," Chris said, taking more congratulations from people as Sawyer finally caught up to Britt.

"Bwitt! Bwitt!" Sawyer said, jumping up and down in front of her.

"Sawyer! Sawyer!" she said to him excitedly, then smiled up at the approaching Chris. "What's up, cutie pie?"

"See!" he said, thrusting one of the pictures up at Britt, "That my baby!"

"Oh, is that your baby?" Britt said, taking the picture from him. It was a picture of Sawyer holding his baby sister in his arms. His clear blue eyes were trained on the little bundle of blankets and Britt could see a very small face peeking up into the light.

"Uh huh, that my baby," Sawyer said with a nod. "I have more."

"Oh, well, I'd love to see them."

"Okay," Sawyer said, grabbing her by the hand and dragging her off somewhere. Britt steered them to Chris's locker room and she let Sawyer inside as he ran for the couch and climbed up on it, waiting for Britt to sit down.

Britt was hugging Chris though, as soon as he had put his things down, her arms were wrapped around him, "Congratulations! I know I told you over the phone, but still, I'm so happy for you!"

"Thanks," Chris said, hugging her back. "I'm excited too."

"I can't wait to meet her, oh, I can't wait until she gets to come on the road with you guys and I can watch her and hold her and oh, it's going to be so great," Britt gushed, still loosely hugging Chris, forgetting to let go in all her excitement. "How's Stephanie? I mean, she said she was fine, but I figured that Stephanie would've said she was fine even if she wasn't fine, why the hell am I gushing?"

Chris laughed and pulled away, "She's fine. Everything went well. She and Flynn stayed in the hospital a couple of days, just to make sure Flynn's lungs were developed since she was so close to the full-term line, but she was perfectly healthy. So family's complete and doing well."

"Oh, I'm so glad," Britt said.

"Yeah, and now you can go on that vacation," he said. "Stephanie's working from home and I have nothing to do here. I think Shane has honest-to-goodness left Adamle in charge because he's so busy at Titan because Vince is still missing. Stephanie's probably going to send out a search party soon if he doesn't show his face. So you know, you're being an assistant to nobody."

"So you're firing me?" she joked.

"Yeah, that's it exactly. But really, take the time off, collect yourself, find yourself, you know, all that good stuff."

"I will, thanks," she said. "I really want to meet up with Randy."

"I'm sure you know what happened to him," Chris said. He usually got the news first since he was part of the McMahon family and news always got to them first so Chris was always in the loop.

"No, what? I really haven't kept up with things, is he returning soon?"

"No, he's actually out longer, he had a motorcycle accident," Chris explained. "I'm surprised you didn't know."

"Oh, I didn't, I guess I just…I didn't," Britt said. "Well, I guess I have a good excuse to go see him, he's okay though, right?"

"Just hurt his collarbone again. He'll be out another few months."

"Great," she said sardonically.

"Bwitt!" Sawyer said impatiently. He had gone through all his pictures and now he was just waiting for Britt to sit down so he could show her his new sister.

"Sorry, sorry," Britt said, shrugging at Chris as she sat down next to Sawyer. "So let's see this new baby sister of yours."

"Okay, here," he said, handing her the first picture. "That my baby."

"Oh, she's adorable, totally adorable," Britt said as Sawyer handed her another one.

"That my baby too…and Mommy," Sawyer explained, handing her another picture of Stephanie and Flynn. Stephanie was holding Flynn up to the camera and smiling, showing off the newborn who had no idea what was going on and why that thing was flashing at her.

"Me!" Saywer said, handing her one of him holding Flynn and giving her a kiss on the forehead.

"Oh my God, this is quite possibly the cutest thing I've ever seen. Chris, she is darling," Britt told him. "Man, if I knew for a fact that I'm not ready for a kid, this might persuade me to have one."

"With who?" he teased.

"Oh ha ha, because I've got Randy on my tail, nice, very nice."

"It was really too easy."

Stephanie opened the door and laughed as she saw Trish, "Back for your daily baby watch?"

"Shut up," Trish said. "I know Raw is on and everything, but I just wanted to see her, tell me she's awake."

"She is," Stephanie said, "I think she knows that her daddy is going to be on TV so she wants to stay up for him. Either that or you know, this is like the two hours she'll be awake and then she'll sleep for two hours."

"But she's darling so it makes up for everything," Trish said. "You know it does."

"Slightly," Stephanie joked, "I'm kind of glad that Chris has Sawyer though. I love my baby, but I just don't think I could handle the both of them right now on top of all the work I have coming into me from Titan."

"I can't believe you're still working," Trish said. "You should take the time off."

"I am, I'm not at the shows," Stephanie said. "I'm just dealing with behind-the-scenes stuff, now come on, Raw is on and I want to see what Chris is doing."

"Are we going to get any surprises like last week?" Trish asked, remembering her response when she had seen Chris come out in his ring trunks. She giggled a little bit as Stephanie shuddered at that thought. They walked into the living room where the TV was already tuned to Raw and John and Dave were talking. Flynn was sitting in her carrier on the couch, facing the television. The light was reflecting off of her blue eyes as she stared as the mass of light that was in front of her. She moved her hands a little like she was stretching. Trish rushed over and sat next to her, like it was the best seat in the house.

"There you are, baby girl," Trish said. "Can I hold her?"

"Yeah, sure, go ahead, she's freshly changed and fed so she's not cranky at all," Stephanie said. "She's excited to see her daddy on TV though, well, she would be if she could see that far, but she understands."

"Oh yeah, I'm sure she understands nothing except wrestling is important."

"I like to drill it in their heads at a young age," Stephanie said as she kissed Flynn's head.

Trish sighed, "She just smells like a baby, all nice and powdered."

"Well, come around when she needs to be changed and we'll see if she smells just like a baby then," Stephanie said. "She's a really good baby so far though, I think she's even better than Sawyer was and Sawyer was a relatively good baby."

"You're just lucky when it comes to kids," Trish said, "Hello there, Flynn, it's me, Trish, I know I keep coming around to hold you but I can't help it. You're just so cute and pretty and I can't help myself. With any luck, I'll be having a playmate for you pretty soon."

"That'd be nice, I won't have to go seeking out playdates like I have to do with Sawyer," Stephanie said, "I hate doing it. I'm thinking about putting him in preschool soon."

"But you travel."

"He'd only go three times a week," Stephanie said. "I don't think he's ready for the full time yet. Besides, with Chris's parents moving down here, when Sawyer really needs to start going to school, they've offered to take care of the kids so Chris and I can still travel."

"That's really convenient."

"Well, we talked to them about it before they decided to come down here."

"I don't think my parents would ever leave Toronto, I'll have to borrow your in-laws when I need baby-sitting."

"We'll see if I let you," Stephanie kidded.

"Hey, you owe me, I baby-sit Sawyer all the time."

"But now you're trying to steal my baby away from me."

"You get her all the time, I just want a few minutes with her," Trish said. "I can't help it, she's just so tiny and beautiful. I didn't want a baby when you had Sawyer, but I want one now so I should hold her all the time and get used to the feeling."

"You should be focusing on your wedding, it's in just a little over a month."

"Oh yeah, that reminds me, you, dress, fitting," she said.

"I will, I will," Stephanie said.

"Will Flynn be coming to the wedding?"

"I don't think so, I think she'll just have to stay behind," Stephanie said, then heard Chris's name on the TV, "Hold on." She watched as Adamle announced a match for Chris later that evening against Kane. She didn't like the idea of Chris going against Kane when he was so volatile, but she couldn't get on Adamle's bad side right now. He had called her about 5 times to congratulate her about the baby and she was getting sick of him, but she couldn't just outright tell him to get lost forever.

"Oh, you never answered the question, will Chris be gracing us with his trunks again this week?" Trish giggled.

"No, he will not," Stephanie said, "While he was in the shower this morning, I switched it with a pair of his old tights. I'm not going to have my husband looking stupid again this week."

"I thought he looked kind of cute," Trish said, but she couldn't hold in her laughter.

"Oh yeah, yuk it up, like Chrisitan has never looked foolish. Well, I remedied that because I took them away. He was acting like a little boy about those so I took them away from him like I'd take something away from Sawyer."

"You're insane."

Chris finished putting on his trunks. That'd show Stephanie for trying to switch them without him knowing. He had a little bit of time before his match, but he wanted to get ready. Sawyer wasn't tired, so Chris was letting him stay up and wear himself out. He was still trying to show Chris the pictures he had seen a million times over so Chris threw on a t-shirt and decided to let Sawyer run around showing people Flynn's pictures if it got him to bed.

"Okay, you, let's go show people Flynn," Chris said, lifting the boy up and kissing his cheek before setting him back down and opening the door.

Sawyer raced out and went up to the first person he saw, which happened to be a production assistant, "Hey! Look! It my baby!"

"Oh wow, nice," the kind woman said, then congratulated Chris. He nodded and Sawyer ran off to the next person, who was Mickie James, "Look, my baby!"

Mickie knelt next to Sawyer and let him show her the pictures, "Is that your sister?"

"Uh huh, that Fwynn," Sawyer nodded, letting Mickie hold the picture, "That me."

"She's pretty."

"Uh huh, I know," Sawyer told her.

"Thanks for showing me."

"W'come," Sawyer said, rushing off to another person. Mickie stood up and smiled at Sawyer as he ran away.

"Congratulations," Mickie said as she passed by Chris.

"Thanks," Chris said proudly, though he didn't know who was more proud in this situation, him or Sawyer. Maybe if Sawyer let him get his hands on those pictures he could be the one going around showing them off to everyone, but prying them from Sawyer's hands would be like trying to pry work away from Stephanie, an impossible mission.

"Twip! Hi!" Sawyer yelled, seeing Hunter leaning against a wall. "I have baby!"

"I heard, congratulations," Hunter said, lifting Sawyer up when he raised his arms. "I see you have pictures."

"Yup," Sawyer responded, "See?"

"Of course I want to see," Hunter said nicely to the little boy. Sawyer pulled out a couple of pictures and held them up. "Oh, that's you holding her hand, that's very nice, was she crying?"

"Uh uh."

"Does she cry a lot?"

"Um…uh huh," Sawyer said, thinking about it. She did cry more than the usual person did so he guessed she cried a lot. "I help."

"You help?" Hunter asked, acting like he was amazed.

"I do!" Sawyer said, "I help." He helped all the time, he was the one practically raising that baby, if he did say so himself. He was always around her and if she cried, he would rub her head like he saw his mommy doing. Sometimes, he even got to give her a bottle and that was helping a lot. He couldn't reach her bed though, so he couldn't really help with that, but if he could reach, he could help with that too!

"Wow, I'm sure your mommy and daddy appreciate that."

"Yup," he said, though he didn't know what appreciate meant.

"Hey, man," Chris said, looking around.

"Hey," Hunter said, looking around himself. "Congratulations about Flynn, she's really cute. Sawyer's in love with her already, I see."

"Like there was any doubt," Chris said. "And she's the perfect baby."

"Like you would have anything else, right?"

"Of course, Stephanie and I make perfect children, that's why she never had any with you," Chris told him. "The kid wouldn't have stood a chance when Stephanie and I had kids, it wouldn't have even been a contest and God didn't want a poor kid to go through that."

"Well then you lucked out with these two," Hunter said.

"See, Twip, see," Sawyer said, showing him a picture of Flynn sitting propped up against some pillows. She looked dwarfed by them all around her, like she was a doll or something.

"I see, I like her, I can't wait to meet her."

"I know," Sawyer said, "I like baby."

"That's good, you should like the baby," he said, then turned back to Chris, "How's Stephanie, did she get through it alright?"

"Yeah, she's great, you know how she is, she takes a challenge, grabs it by the balls and makes it submit."

"Yeah, that's how she is alright, so…I've got to ask, why the switch to the trunks? I mean, you know, you stuck with the pants for a long time."

"Change of pace."

"You look good."

"Yeah, that's not weird in the slightest," Chris said, making a face. "Don't look at my legs, that's just weird, man."

"I shouldn't even be talking to you right now, you know, if your kid hadn't come barreling up to me."

"Can you blame him? He has a new baby and he wants everyone to know about it. I just let him tell everyone and I take all the congratulations. Let him do all the hard work," Chris said. "So what are you even doing here?"

"I had things to do, people to see."

"Of course you did," Chris said, "So how's Shawn?"

"Doctors are still monitoring him, so I wouldn't worry about that. He won't tell me what his doctors have been saying to him though."

"You think he suspects?"

"He might," Hunter shrugged, "I made my choices, I have to live with them. He might just not know anything though and I'm leaning towards that being the case."

"Do you think he'll be back?"

"Yes, because it's Shawn and he'll do it, he'll come back, be prepared for it though. If he isn't…I don't know, I'd just be careful, you don't have a match for SummerSlam, do you?"

"Not as of yet," Chris said, "just this stupid match against Kane."

"He's scary."

"I can beat him," Chris shrugged it off. "Do you think that Shawn would challenge me to a match at SummerSlam, like during the show?"

"Can't be sure, wouldn't be surprised, you know how he loves the dramatics."

"That's what I have you for, look, I'll talk to you later, I've got to go for my match. I probably shouldn't even…just in case Shawn has his own spies or something."

"Nah, he doesn't, trust me, I'd know," Hunter said. "For as much as Shawn is liked by the fans, he doesn't have too many people back here who like him, why do you think nobody's bothered to kick your ass on his behalf."

"True," Chris said.

"I'll take Sawyer to Britt, you just go take care of business."

"Thanks," Chris said, "Bye, kid, show Flynn off to everyone for me, okay?"

"Okay!" Sawyer said enthusiastically.

Chris started warming up for his match. Lance showed up a little bit before the match and Chris was actually surprised to see him since he had broken his nose. Chris welcomed him though since Kane _was_ a big guy and Chris was not above having someone cheat for him. That's how it had to be sometimes, you cheat to win. Lance shook his hands in congratulations, which Chris accepted graciously, but this wasn't about Flynn right now. He had a job to do and thinking about his little girl would just distract him and he didn't want to be distracted, even though Flynn was still on his mind.

Stephanie was holding Flynn, who had started to get cranky. Trish tried to calm the little girl down, but she only wanted her mommy in that moment. The second she had hit Stephanie's arms she had quieted down. She was in one of her cuddle moods, which were infrequent, but still occurred every so often it seemed. Her small head was tucked neatly against Stephanie's collarbone, her hands tucked under her body. She was still awake and alert, she just wanted to be warm against her mommy right now.

"Oh, here he comes," Stephanie said, then her jaw dropped _again_, "What the hell!"

"I thought you said you took away the trunks."

"I did! That sneaky bastard," Stephanie said, the movement making Flynn move. She was too small to lift her head away from Stephanie, but she moved it around. "Sorry, honey, but your daddy is pissing me off with those things."

"Oh, it's not that bad, Stephanie," Trish tried to reassure her.

"Oh yeah, sure, not that bad. You with your snickering over there. What compels him to do these things? Now he's just doing it to spite me, I know it. And after I gave birth to his daughter four days ago. You'd think he would at the very least not wear them tonight."

"What does you giving birth have to do with it?"

"I may…have asked him during labor not to wear those."

"Oh my God, Stephanie, you're hilarious."

Chris walked down to the ring, knowing it would be a daunting task to beat Kane, especially when he was being especially weird with this bag he was carrying around. Everyone thought it was his mask and if that saved Chris from seeing his ugly mug, then Chris was all for it being Kane's old mask. Whatever it was, he didn't care because he had a daughter waiting for him at home. He just wanted to get through this match as quickly as possible and that's where Lance was a huge asset.

The match didn't get off to a great start for him as Kane gave him a huge dropkick. Things didn't get any better for Chris, but it was hard to get the upper-hand on Kane, especially when the man was so much bigger than Chris. That didn't stop Chris from trying, but all his efforts just led him to the outside of the ring, looking like an idiot (not just from the trunks). Lance was invaluable at distracting Kane and Chris made a mental note to ask Stephanie to give the kid a raise because he was saving his ass right then. Chris managed to get the upper-hand after that slight interference by Lance and he used it to his full advantage. He was trying to let the adrenaline he felt as a new father propel him through this match. He just needed to picture those cornflower blue eyes and that dark mop of hair on her head and her tiny hands and feet with the nails that were nearly invisible.

This obviously led to a bit of distraction as Kane started to get the upper-hand back as Kane got a side slam on him. He got Chris into the corner and got Chris with a right hand, but Chris regained his head and tried to go for the Walls of Jericho, but Kane was too big to be put into it properly and Kane overpowered him and got another slam on him. Kane was in charge now and Chris was just trying to get through the match. He felt like he was going to lose, but then Adamle and some security showed up.

Chris was through with this crap and got the Code-Breaker on Kane and ended the match. That was it, he was done and he was going back to his wife and child back home. He didn't care what Kane had in that bag, he was getting the hell out of Dodge. He got backstage and went straight to his locker room, only offering a short goodbye to Lance. He wanted his little girl. He wanted to hold her in his arms and hear her soft breaths. Wrestling was secondary and he didn't even care he wasn't doing anything for SummerSlam. Hell, he could miss it altogether and he'd be fine with it if it meant he could spend time with Flynn.

"Wife," Britt said as soon as Chris walked into the room. Britt smiled at Hunter who was with the sleeping Sawyer, the two of them having put Sawyer to bed a little while ago. Chris rolled his eyes at the two, thinking that they were fooling anybody. They should just officially get back together and get it over with, they were seriously sickening with their _problems_ and their _separation_.

"Hello?"

"You're a jerk."

"I love you too," Chris said.

"I took those out of your suitcase."

"I know, I put them back in. Stephanie, I've been with you for six years, do you really think I don't know all your little tricks. I'm going to wear them because I want to wear them and you can't say anything about it."

"Like hell I can't, I can ban you from my house."

"_My_ house, remember, I'm the one who bought it, you just kind of live there."

"We're married, we share our assets, doofus," Stephanie told him. "And I'll ban you, and I won't let you see your daughter."

"So you're going to let Sawyer stay out in the cold."

"I'll build a Sawyer-sized door so he can come in, but you can't. You know, I don't even want to know how you get your legs that smooth, the thought of you shaving your legs, are you shaving your legs? And tanning?"

"I did tan, yes."

"When?"

"When you were in the hospital," he answered calmly.

"Oh, so I was just recovering from giving birth to _your_ daughter and you were off tanning and not just tanning, tanning in that…that _thing_, oh God, you sicken me, and you know you have to…oh God, did you wax, did you _wax_, Chris?"

"Well, they offered it at the same place."

She groaned, "Do you know what Hunter used to do, he waxed all over, _all over_, and you're becoming like that!"

"Well that's an image I never needed to have," Chris winced, shifting his gaze away from Hunter, who was right there and now that image was in his head and he shuddered.

"That's what you're like, waxing and tanning, I don't even…you're so not getting to see your daughter."

"You're cruel, woman!" he protested. "Fine, I'm not letting you see Sawyer."

"Oh, you will not do that."

"Well you're not taking Flynn away from me."

"You're just wearing those things to spite me. You know I don't like them so you're wearing them. It's like when you cut your hair, you knew I liked you with long hair, so you cut it short."

"Is that what I did?"

"Yes, and this is the same thing, but fine, Chris, fine, we'll see who wins."

"Baby, this is stupid."

"You're stupid for wearing those things."

"Why do you get mad about these things, it only makes me hot for you and I can't have you."

"And this is our cue to leave," Hunter said, waving at Chris, who nodded to him as Hunter left with Britt, probably off to talk some sense into her.

"You disgust me. Since you're showing so much skin now, just go find someone. I'll just have Ted."

"No, you won't."

"I will, and why don't you have a match at SummerSlam?"

"I love you so much," Chris said. There was just something about Stephanie that made him absolutely love her. She was four days removed from giving birth, but instead of being concerned about her daughter, she was concerned about his ring attire and the fact he had no match at a big show. Only Stephanie was capable of that. "Where's my daughter?"

"In my arms," Stephanie answered. "She's appalled. I told her that was Daddy, but just looked at me in disbelief."

"You sure that wasn't gas?" Chris asked, but smiled. Stephanie was getting pissed at him with their newborn in her arms. It was a great mental image to replace the scarring image of Hunter getting waxed _everywhere_.

"No, it was plain disgust, so why don't you have a match?"

"I have reason to believe I will be engaged with Shawn at SummerSlam."

"Oh, you were conspiring with your little buddy then."

"I have no idea what you speak of."

"Of course you don't, idiot," Stephanie said. "So help me God, Christopher Keith Jericho, you are not going to be wearing those things forever, if I have to burn every damn pair, you will not wear those things."

"I love it when you get worked up, I think I'll wear them forever."

"I hate you."

"We are just one happy, loving family."

"Shove it, Jericho."

"Love you too, McMahon. Give my daughter a kiss for me." He could almost hear Stephanie softening on the other end.

"Give my son a kiss from me."

"You got it."


	198. He Ducked, SummerSlam, August 17, 2008

A/N: SummerSlam chapter...Raw chapter tomorrow. :P

Also, I'm putting up a poll on my profile page. I just want to know what side of the fence people are sitting on regarding H/Britt and H/Randy, so if you could go to my profile and tell me what you think it'll give me a better idea of where I want to go with it. Thanks. :)

Enjoy!

* * *

"I can't believe I let you talk me into this."

"What do you mean _let you talk me into this_? Chris, there is a hurricane in Florida right now, do you want me and your newborn daughter in a hurricane?"

"No, I don't, but do you think that I wanted you to fly with her?" Chris asked.

"Well, it's over and done with now and the airline said that their policy was anyone over two days old, but preferably over seven days old and Flynn is ten days old. I don't know why you're getting on my case. The flight is already over and she's fine," Stephanie said as she looked at Flynn in her car-seat. "Look at that cute face."

Chris looked at his daughter, who was sitting in her car-seat as they were driven to their home in Connecticut. With the weather issues in Florida, Chris and Stephanie had decided to temporarily relocate to Connecticut. They had taken the utmost care in transporting Flynn, but were relieved to find that the airline they were traveling on accepted newborns on the flight without a doctor's clearance. Flynn had been a little uncomfortable during take-off, but had slept her way through most of the flight and now they were headed to their second house, which fortunately did have baby furniture that they had used for Sawyer in it or else Flynn would be stuck sleeping in Stephanie and Chris's bed and she would've hated that as she really liked to sleep alone.

Flynn was staring up at him as he peered over at her, sucking on her pacifier intently, her little lips moving back and forth as she moved the pacifier in her mouth. He reached out and grabbed her hand, giving it a little squeeze. She turned her face towards him, but she was still too young to see him clearly and kind of looked in his general direction without making eye contact. She kicked her legs out a little as if stretching them out after the long plane ride.

"I just don't like the idea of her flying this young."

"Sawyer was, what, two weeks old when he first flew and now he's a champ, aren't you, baby boy?" Stephanie asked, looking over at Sawyer, who was seated facing the side of the limo in his own car-seat.

"Okay," he said as he continued to look out the window directly in front of him.

"Don't get too cozy, kid," Chris said, "we're staying the night and then we're going to Indianapolis for SummerSlam."

"Why don't you just leave him here with me?" Stephanie said. "I can take care of him and then you won't have to."

"What? But you'd have both of them, are you sure you can handle that alone?" Chris asked. "I don't want to leave you high and dry with them. It's not just for one night either, it's for Sunday and Monday night that you'd have them."

"Yeah, but we're in Connecticut and my mom is here and she can stay with us for a couple of days while you're gone. My dad is still MIA so she probably wouldn't mind having the company," Stephanie pointed out. "Plus, you know she loves to see Sawyer."

"Yeah, but are you positive?"

"Yes, I'm positive, besides, it'll be good for you to have a couple of days where you can act like a bachelor without the responsibilities of a marriage and fatherhood."

"Did you just give me permission to cheat on you?" Chris asked, raising an eyebrow at his wife.

"No!" she exclaimed to him, startling Flynn a little who turned in Stephanie's direction.

"Really? Because that's what it sounded like to me, I mean, act like I don't have any responsibilities, that sounds like code for letting me go sleep with another woman…wait a second, is this your way of telling me that you're going after Ted!"

Stephanie blushed, "Shut up…and no, you cannot cheat on me, I just meant that you wouldn't have to deal with these little monsters. Besides, if I take care of both of them, then you're going to owe me a favor."

"What kind of favor?"

"I don't know, like if _I_ want a weekend by myself…or if I want to come back early," Stephanie mumbled the last part so it would get by Chris.

"What did you say?"

"Well, it's just, Flynn did really well on the plane, you know…"

"Stephanie, I'm not letting you come back with our newborn, it's too risky, she could get sick and then you'd have a sick newborn on your hands and you'd get mad at me and then Sawyer would catch whatever it is and you'd be mad at me, and since you were taking care of them, you would get sick too and then get mad at me."

"I wouldn't get mad at you."

"Of course you would. I'm sorry, Stephanie, but I'm putting my foot down on this one."

"Excuse me?" she asked, looking at him incredulously. Chris had never acted like that before, so adamant about something that he actually asserted himself as some kind of leader in this relationship.

"I'm not letting Flynn fly any more than she has to. These were special circumstances; I don't want my daughter and my wife stuck in a hurricane while I can't get to them, that's all well and good, but do you have any idea what you're asking here?"

"Since when do you ever get to put your foot down?" Stephanie asked. "Since when do you think you have the authority to put your foot down?"

"Well, I am now."

"You can't do that…I will take it into consideration, but you are not the boss of me," Stephanie said.

"Well, we share the children, so I get a say, I veto the idea."

"Fine," Stephanie said, pouting on her side of the seat. "Fine, we'll wait the entire six weeks."

"She's almost two weeks old, it's really only a month, you can live a month, can't you? Come on, baby, you can stand to be away for a month, that's nothing for you," Chris said, reaching over Flynn to take Stephanie's hand. Flynn saw a big thing in front of her face and made a grab for it, gently slapping her small hands against her daddy's forearms.

"I guess," she said as they pulled into their driveway. She looked curiously out the window, "My mom is here."

"Maybe she was airing out the place for us," Chris responded.

"We were here not that long ago, though," Stephanie said, as the limo driver pulled open the door next to her. "I'll get the baby, you get the monster."

"Okay," Chris said, kneeling in front of Sawyer's car-seat as he unstrapped the boy and let him get out of the car on his own, Sawyer stumbling over Stephanie's legs so he could be first out of the car. Stephanie carefully took out Flynn's car-seat and lifted the handle, picking her up and out of the car as Chris gathered all of Sawyer's things, stuffing it into his diaper bag before taking out his car-seat and sitting it on the pavement as he grabbed their things.

The driver left the things with Chris and then left as Stephanie went to the front door, opening it up without the key as her mother had left it unlocked. Sawyer ran inside, but then stopped and ran back to make sure Flynn was doing okay. He could barely see her though and stood on his tip-toes and tried to walk, but found it difficult so he just waited for his mommy to set Flynn down on the couch before he climbed up and knelt in front of her seat.

"Hi baby, okay?" he asked her, like he was wondering if his mommy was jostling her too much. He'd scold her if she did.

"Mom?" Stephanie called out.

"Oh honey, hello," Linda said, emerging from the kitchen, wiping her hands on a paper towel. "I was just stocking up your fridge so you wouldn't have to go to the store tonight. You're probably tired from your trip and everything."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, "so what is it you really need?"

"Am I that transparent?" Linda asked.

"You're a McMahon, we always have alternate agendas, so what does Dad need me to do now? Did he send a message by carrier pigeon this time?" Stephanie joked.

"No, but…well, your brother is already on a business trip for the company. He's going to be meeting with some sponsors for when SmackDown makes the station change," Linda said, "I'm sure you know that."

"I do," Stephanie said. "Just because I live in Florida, I'm not out of the loop, you know."

"I thought you might be with Flynn's birth being so recent."

"Well, that was just one day and then she was actually out, you know," Stephanie pointed out. "So what is it? A meeting?"

"Well, with it being SummerSlam, a huge show, you know, the second biggest show we have, well, your father wanted one of us there…one of us who knows how to handle running a show that large."

"And Shane's out of town, Dad's missing, and you don't know how," Stephanie said. "So that leaves me."

"Well, I mean, Chris…"

"But Chris has his hands full, so Dad told you that he wanted me to go. He _knows_ that I just had Flynn, Mom!"

"I know, I told him and he's…well, you know your father. I'm sorry that he's doing this, and I told him that he shouldn't do this."

"You talked to him?" Stephanie said.

"Briefly, I did," Linda said.

Chris walked in and saw Stephanie and her mother talking and Stephanie didn't look happy. He put the rest of their stuff down and stood there, watching them. Stephanie had a bristled look to her and he wondered what they were talking about. "So, what's going on?"

"Well, my dad apparently wants me to leave my two young children and travel with you to Indianapolis," Stephanie said, not taking her eyes off of her mother.

"What?"

"Vince wants one of us there," Linda explained. "Shane's away on business and I don't know how to run a show and even if I did, I hardly think anyone would listen to me when I speak. So he wanted Stephanie to go."

"Mom, does Dad not get that I just had a baby, a baby who needs me."

"Honey, I know, I told him that, but he insisted."

"Is he even really injured!" Stephanie said. "Why won't he let us see him? Why is he doing all this? He just wants to control everything without actually controlling everything and being the bad guy. I don't want to leave my baby."

"Steph," Chris said gently.

"Don't tell me to go."

"You wanted to go anyways though," Chris pointed out rather correctly.

"But that was with Flynn with me, she's only eight days old, Mom, eight _days_ old. I can't leave my newborn daughter alone."

"It'd just be for one night, you wouldn't have to go to Raw," Linda said. "Sweetheart, I'm sorry for this, I know your father is way out of bounds with this, but you understand the position we're in. You know as well as I do how important this company is to all of us."

"Yeah," Stephanie said, glancing back at Sawyer and Flynn. Sawyer was still kneeling over Flynn, but he had grabbed one of her rattles from her diaper bag, a black and white one and was running it in front of her face as she moved her head to look at it.

"Steph, you can come, it's okay, nobody's going to hold it against you?" Chris said. "It's not even your choice, remember?"

"I guess, I just don't feel right leaving her here, can you handle the both of them, Mom. Flynn doesn't sleep through the night," Stephanie said, "she needs constant care. Constant. She's a newborn."

"I've had experience, sweetheart," Linda said. "Thank you so much for doing this."

"I'm not happy though," Stephanie said. "Tell _that_ to Dad next time you see him. I'm not happy that he's asking me to just up and leave my daughter. I know he did it when I was born, at least, but it's different."

"I know, I'm sorry."

"Forget it," Stephanie said, "just forget it."

Stephanie wandered off and Linda gave an imploring and sympathetic look to her back as she walked away. Chris went over to Linda and shrugged his shoulders. "It'll be okay. It's only for one night and she'll be fine. I think once she's there, working, she'll be fine, you know how she is."

"I'll get out of your hair now," Linda said. "I'm really very sorry."

"It's not your fault, it's just Vince being Vince," Chris said. "Are you going to come here and stay with the kids?"

"Yeah, all your things are here so I'll stay here with them. I only anticipate Stephanie being gone for SummerSlam, so it'll only be for one night."

"Okay, bye, Linda, Sawyer, say bye to Grandma," Chris prompted.

Sawyer barely turned his head away from his sister, "Bye, Gamma."

"Bye, honey," Linda said, going over and giving him a kiss on the head and then rubbing Flynn's hand a little bit.

Chris looked to his kids and they seemed pretty okay. "Hey, you two, Sawyer, do you think you can watch your sister very quickly. Like for a few minutes?"

"Yes, I can," Sawyer said dutifully.

"Do not take her out of her carrier, okay?"

"Okay," Sawyer said as he went back to flinging the rattle around in front of Flynn's face. She made half-hearted attempts to grab them, but it was really just her moving her arms up and down. She was starting to get sleepy again. She slept a lot, Sawyer noticed, but that was okay, sleeping was good for babies, that's what his mommy had told him. So if she slept a lot, she would get bigger, then she could play.

Chris sought out Stephanie and found her in her office, pushing some papers around idly. Chris lifted her up and sat down, pulling her into his lap. She bowed her head down and he ran his hand across her cheek, lifting up her chin to look him in the eyes. He had such a warm, open look in them that she couldn't help but let a smile slowly creep onto her face. He licked his lips a little and leaned in for a kiss, which she eagerly returned, deepening it.

He pulled away and said, "You're going to get me all worked up and we can't have sex for a while."

"Sorry," she told him. "I don't want to go with you, no offense."

"None taken," Chris said. "It's one night, baby, that's it. I know you don't want to leave Flynn behind, but she'll be fine. She's part McMahon, which means she rolls with the punches. Besides, you'll fly back tomorrow morning and bam, there you are, right back with our daughter."

"I guess you're right," she said. "I just didn't want to have to leave her so soon. Are you sure she can't come with us?"

"We just flew with her," Chris said.

"Yeah, right again, Jericho. Oh, and how convenient for you that you don't have a match tomorrow so you can't have me burning those horrible things you pass off as wrestling attire."

"Why do you hate me so?"

"Because they're gross and stupid," Stephanie told him, rolling her eyes. "Besides, they give away too much. You're leaving way too little to the imagination. I don't like them and heaven help you when I come back, Chris Jericho, heaven help you."

"I think it'll be really weird to put 'wearing wrestling trunks to the ring' on the divorce papers," Chris said, tapping his chin. Stephanie shoved him a little then stood up. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to start pumping breast milk so Flynn has something to eat while I'm gone," Stephanie said. "Where are our children by the way?"

"Crap!" Chris said, pushing Stephanie out of the way and going into the other room. Sawyer was still sitting with Flynn, who had fallen asleep. Sawyer was rubbing her hand with his small hand, which seemed perfect for his little sister.

"Hi, Daddy," Sawyer said with a smile.

"Leaving our children alone so you can make out with me?" Stephanie said. "Oh, Jericho…"

**Sunday**

"What are you doing to me, McMahon?" Chris asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Look at you."

"What?" she said, looking down at her outfit.

"You're killing me."

"What are you going on about?" she asked as he held the door to the arena open for her. "Explain yourself."

"You look hot tonight, how am I supposed to keep my hands off of you?" Chris said. "Is this my punishment for getting you pregnant? You can't have sex so you've decided to dress extremely sexy?"

"Don't do that," she told him. "Don't tell me that I look hot because we both know that I don't. I'm still carrying baby weight and we both know I don't look hot."

"Hey, you gave me a daughter, I don't care about the extra weight, plus you're wearing a low-cut top," Chris said. "You know how I feel about those things."

"You called them out on national television."

"I hated you then, you were a skank," he told her, wrapping his arm around her waist. "Now I appreciate the full…extent of your beauty. You are looking smoking tonight and you did your hair the way I like it and you put on make-up…you're trying to impress Ted…"

Stephanie grit her teeth, "Would you stop it? You make it sound like I would leave you for him if he showed me the slightest amount of interest."

"Would you?" he teased. "I would want to know ahead of time."

"I look nice because I'm not supposed to be here tonight, but I want to look damn good if I have to be here. I want everyone to think that I look great, that's why I look great," she said, "it's not because Ted is going to be here. And yes, I do think Ted is very good-looking and he seems like a very nice guy, but I married you and had kids with _you_."

"Wow, way to make it sound like a chore," Chris said. "I'm feeling loved."

"Look, I've got work to do so don't act this way with me tonight, plus, I'm freaking lactating and I have no baby with which to lactate."

"You're leaking?" he asked with distaste.

"Yes, thanks for bringing that up, I'm going to have to pump when I get to our locker room."

"What are you going to do with the excess…uh…milk?" Chris said, trying to hold in his laughter.

"Look here, Jericho, do you think I want to be here while my breasts are leaking milk?"

"Sorry…"

"I'll just have to dump it, I'm not going to drink it, are _you _going to drink it?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"While I have tried it before, no, I will not be drinking it."

"Didn't think so," she said as she pushed open the door to their locker room.

"Hey, you're here, man," Hunter said, standing up from the couch and coming face to face with his ex-wife. His eyes widened as he stood there and Stephanie nodded her head as she looked back to Chris.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" Stephanie said, looking between the two men who both had had claims to her at one point in time or still did in Chris's case. "Quite the jovial greeting for two guys who supposedly hate each other. Could it be that you two are actually conspiring against Shawn? But how can this be! You fought! You hated each other!"

Chris pushed Stephanie into the room and closed the door behind her. Hunter rubbed the back of his neck, "I wasn't expecting you here."

"Of course you weren't, I should be at home tending to my newborn and I would too if my dad wasn't a jackass who made his daughter, a new mother, work," Stephanie said. "So do you two want to explain or am I just left to assume that you're secretly having an affair on me?"

"Fine, we're working together," Chris relented. "And have been this entire time."

Stephanie pretended to gasp, "You don't say!"

"Okay, we get it, you knew all along," Chris said.

"I just want to know how you convinced him."

"_Can we talk?" Chris said, pulling up a chair to Hunter's table in catering._

"_You're already talking," Hunter said as he took a swig of his energy drink. "What is it?"_

"_I have a big favor to ask of you, a huge, huge, huge favor."_

"_Sounds huge," Hunter joked._

"_Look, I'm sick and tired of Shawn, as you know."_

"_I do know, what's that got to do with me though?" Hunter asked, looking at his friend. Chris raised an eyebrow. Hunter should've been smart enough to know what this was about and it only took a few more seconds before it dawned on him. "You want me to spy on Shawn for you."_

"_Precisely."_

"_He's like my best friend, Chris, I can't do that," Hunter said._

"_I thought you'd say that, and I understand, but that means that you'd be the perfect person to do it. Look, you're not married anymore--"_

"_Because you stole my wife," Hunter said calmly._

"_Whatever, I didn't steal her, besides, you stole her from Test."_

"_And you haven't thanked me for that yet, may I add. If I hadn't abducted her and married her, she might still be married to him and have his kids and where would you be?"_

"_Maybe happier," Chris joked. "Look, it's different when you have kids, I can't…I can't explain it, but when he says that stuff about Sawyer and Flynn, and Flynn's not even born yet, man, she's not even born…it gets me in the gut. I just…I can't explain it."_

"_I know, he shouldn't have said those things about them," Hunter said._

"_You love my kid, Hunter, face it, you're gone for that little boy," Chris said._

_Hunter shrugged. It was true, he did love Sawyer. If he had a son, he would probably want him to be just like Sawyer. He loved that little boy. "I do love him."_

"_Yeah, how would you like it if some guy started talking crap about your kid," Chris said, his voice taking on a bitter quality. "It's my kid, man, it's my kid. I love my kids and there's this guy and he's talking about them like he knows them, talks about my wife like she's some whore off the street and had the audacity to talk about my unborn daughter, saying that she would be a whore too, like her mother…how do you get over that? How can you get past that?"_

_Hunter stayed silent for a long moment. It was true. He wouldn't want someone talking about his kids like that. He knew Chris loved his children and he loved Sawyer. Sawyer was a great kid and what Shawn was doing. He would probably have the same reaction, but Shawn was one of his best friends._

"_I'm not asking you to _do_ anything," Chris said. "All I want is information…stuff that could help me beat him. It wouldn't be much, just what you can. That's it. I'm not asking you to hit him or hate him or anything, just help me."_

"_For your kids?"_

"_Yeah, I just want to protect them."_

"_Okay, fine, I'll do it, but only because I love Sawyer."_

"You love Sawyer!" Stephanie gushed, putting her hand over her heart. Hunter actually blushed and that was even more endearing. "That's so cute."

"Look, it is what it is. Chris and I had that 'fight' because we wanted to make it seem like I wasn't getting information with him."

"That's how you've been able to beat him," Stephanie nodded. "And after what happened with his eye?"

"Well, somewhere along the way…I kind of realized you guys are really close…I've gotten close to you guys and I'm not saying Shawn isn't my best friend or anything, but yeah, it is what it is."

"Whatever, I'll leave you to your boy's club, just know, both of you…I was right," she smirked as she left. "Oh, and when I come back, you better not be here, Hunter, because I've got to pump breast milk."

"I've seen your boobs plenty of times," Hunter said.

"Dude!" Chris scoffed.

"Yeah, you have, but have you ever seen one of them with a pump attached and milk coming out?" Stephanie asked in a sickeningly sweet voice.

"Um, wow, that image is kind of scary," Hunter said.

"Wait until you see it live," Chris joked and Stephanie flipped them both off.

Stephanie walked out of the room and went to go see the setup for the show later. People seemed surprised to see her there and they should be because she shouldn't even be there to begin with. A lot of them came up to congratulate her on the baby and tell her how great she looked. She thought they were sucking up though because she didn't look great and they were probably sucking up to her. And here came the biggest suck-up of all.

"Stephanie! We weren't expecting you here tonight," Adamle said, being the biggest butt-kisser.

"Well, my father requested that a member of my family be here tonight and with my brother and mother unable attend, it fell to me to attend."

"Well, I'm so glad to see you and thankful that you're here, you're great at what you do."

"Thank you," Stephanie said.

"Thank you again for the promotion."

"Of course, so…let me ask you, do you…think things up for yourself, all these ideas are fairly good and I just wanted to know if you were coming up with them because we might want you to move somewhere where we can use your naturally given talent," she said, trying to get information from him.

"Oh no, I like it best here," he said quickly. "I want to stay here."

"But your ideas."

"They're stupid," he interjected. "They're all just really stupid. Don't worry, I'll do better as the GM here."

"Okay," she said, trying not to sound suspicious of him, but she was. He had been very quick to answer and her mind was racing thinking that he didn't have anything to do with any of those ideas and he was in contact with her father. She just didn't know how to prove it, but she would get to the bottom of this. "I you think this is where you belong."

"I really do. I like to think I'm needed here."

"I'm sure you would," Stephanie said, "but if you'll excuse me, I've got a big show to take care of."

"Of course, of course," Adamle said like the peasant he was.

Hunter sat down as Chris adjusted the cuffs on his suit, "So you've taken a step up in the world of fashion, I see, reminds me of my days in Evolution…or is this just the influence of the McMahon family baring down on you."

"My own doing," Chris said, "I like the look."

"So motherhood hasn't seemed to soften Stephanie," he joked.

"Did it with Sawyer? What made you think that it would happen with Flynn?"

"She looks good."

"I told her, she doesn't believe me, she won't believe you either," Chris said, "so what's Shawn going to announce tonight?"

"He's kept pretty tight-lipped about it, but he told me that he's going to walk away, spend more time with his kids. I think he's bluffing though. I think he's really got something planned for you; you should go out there and call him out."

"You think so."

"Might as well go full-tilt now," Hunter told him. "If he's actually serious about leaving, you need to call him out. Make him admit that you were the one to end his career. He's never going to admit that, even if that's what happened."

"Do you think I actually did?"

"I think you put the final nail in the coffin, if he is leaving, but Shawn's not going to leave. He's fine. The doctors think he's fine, but he's thinking about leaving anyways, but he'll never admit to you that he's not fine and you may have injured him."

"So I should go out there?"

"Hell yeah you should."

"You really, _really_ don't like that the fans like you, do you?"

"It gets tiresome," he said. "Sometimes I just want to take a chair and bash someone's brains in, but whatever. I'll play the good guy as long as it suits me and as the champion, it suits me just fine."

"Of course it does. I want the title."

"I don't know why you don't just strip Punk and put it on yourself."

"That's not obvious," Chris said, rolling his eyes.

"Oh yeah, before I forget, Shawn brought Rebecca with him. I think he wants the sympathy. If he brings her out there, everyone sees family man Shawn, you know, regular, nice guy Shawn. He knows how to project an image when he wants to."

"Damn it," Chris muttered. "What kind of game is he playing here? He knows I'd never come out there with Stephanie. We're too private with our lives. What's next, he's going to bring his kids out there knowing that I would never bring Sawyer or Flynn out there?"

"You know he likes the fans to think a certain thing."

"Yeah, I do…how about you though, you ready for your match?"

"I'm not looking forward to it. I think I should just run around the ring until Khali gets tired and then I'll Pedigree him and get the win. The man is huge, he must get tired pretty easily. I don't really see him as a threat."

"Who _do_ you see as a threat?"

"Not you if that's what you're asking. Acting like a wimp not even thinking about going out there to get at Shawn. What the hell were you going to do tonight anyways, sit around, watch your wife work? Your wife who gave birth, what, a week ago."

"Nine days, thank you very much, and yes, I was going to watch her work, she looks great tonight."

"Yeah, whatever, I've got to get into a groove, I'll talk to you later."

"Yeah, sure, later," Chris said. He had to think of what to say to Shawn anyways.

He holed himself up in his locker room and thought about all the things he wanted to say to Shawn, but it was hard to know what to say when he didn't know what Shawn was going to say. Was he actually going to try to walk away from it all? If he was, Chris was going to make sure that Shawn knew it was him that drove him to walk away. Maybe his eye was fine and Shawn was milking it for all it was worth, but even if that were the case, it was Chris who drove him to the brink and pushed him over into the great abyss of retirement. He smirked at the thought.

Nothing would give him more satisfaction than to be the reason that scum left the company. There was a time when he respected the man, a time when he would've ignored this silly, little feud between his wife and Shawn. The Shawn that had hit on his wife was a long time removed from this Shawn, but this Shawn was obviously still bitter about it. He took it out on his wife and kept citing an event which took place over two years ago.

Shawn had made it personal with Chris when he had dared mention his children to Chris. That was absolutely off-limits. What did Shawn really expect him to do? Did he really expect him to just ignore the fact that Shawn was insulting his innocent children? Chris had never gone to that level, had never stooped so low as to start insulting Shawn's children and yet Shawn had reached that low with mentioning, with disparaging words, over and over again, Chris's children. Hell, Chris didn't even insult Shawn's wife and she had to be an easy target for him because he had known her from WCW.

He found himself wandering around and ended up with Stephanie. He didn't say a word as he sat down next to her, but she was busy at the moment and took no notice of him until a match started and she pulled back to see him there. He made no motion that he noticed her though and she watched him in deep concentration for a few minutes before she reached out and ran her hand through his hair.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

"I'm just thinking," he said, looking at her. "How some people can see a guy and think he's great when he's not."

"Oh," she said, rubbing his cheek. "You going to keep this thing?"

He laughed, "You are amazing, you know that."

"What? How?" she asked coyly.

"I don't know," he said, but gave her a smile. "You just make me smile when I need one, make me laugh when I need to. You're here and you're a mom and you're amazing, you know."

"Well, I've never been one to turn down a…" Her voice trailed off and she looked over Chris's shoulder. He turned and saw Shawn and Rebecca walking towards them. He thought they were going to start a confrontation right here and right now, but Stephanie was talking curtly into her headset about getting music ready for Shawn and he realized it was time for Shawn's announcement.

He sat up straight in his chair as Shawn passed him. He stopped for a moment to glare at Chris, as if daring him to even come out there. Chris already knew he was going out there, one way or another and returned the glare. Rebecca gently pushed Shawn towards the ramp and Shawn reluctantly tore his gaze away from Chris, but Chris kept his gaze firmly on the man in front of him. He could barely feel Stephanie's hand rubbing up and down his clothed arm.

Shawn went out there and almost pretty much said what Hunter had said he was going to say. He was going to walk away. He was going to walk away from it all and become a full-time husband and father. Chris shook his head. No, it wasn't going to end like this. It wasn't going to end without Shawn admitting that Chris had gotten the better of him. It wasn't going to end until Shawn told everyone that Chris was better. It wasn't going to end until Chris got to avenge his children.

Nobody talked about his children like that and got away with it.

"Cue up my music, baby," Chris said, standing from his chair. Stephanie was on top of it, eager to see what Chris would say to the man who tormented her.

Chris walked out to his music, his jaw set and ready to get what he came for. This wasn't how it was going to end, not by a long-shot. He walked into the ring and called out Shawn. If he could mention his children without Stephanie killing him, he would have, but Shawn knew what he meant. Shawn knew that Chris wanted Shawn to admit that he was the better man, that he had gotten the upper-hand. Chris could see Rebecca tugging at Shawn, wanting him to walk away, but this wasn't about her. She was just a bystander. She probably didn't even know half the things her husband had been saying and it was such a shame that someone who had been nice to him in the past had to be married to someone so ugly. He had the audacity to implore Chris for a bit of human decency when Shawn had taken what was left of his own human decency and taken to insulting 2-year-olds and unborn babies.

Chris wanted Shawn to admit it, he wanted Shawn to admit that Chris had broken him, turned him from strong to broken, giving him just what he deserved. Shawn wasn't going to bite though and part of Chris didn't expect him to bite. Shawn told him he would admit that he was beaten by Chris, would sit his wife and children down and tell them he was beaten by a worthless human being, but then Chris should go home and sit his wife and children down and tell them he would never have the legacy that Shawn did. Chris wanted to laugh at the thought of telling Stephanie he was no Shawn Michaels. She would probably raise her hands up to the heavens and praise the Lord Almighty for her good luck. But how dare Shawn, how _dare_ he mention Chris's children. That was it. That was just about all he could take.

But Rebecca was pulling Shawn away, trying to end it and Chris was pulling Shawn to hit him and like the coward that Shawn was, he ducked out of the way, leaving his wife vulnerable to meet with Chris's fist. When she fell to the mat, a sick feeling hit Chris's stomach. He didn't hit women on purpose, that wasn't the kind of guy he was. Sure, he had hit wrestlers who were women, Chyna (Stephanie on accident), but never like this. His mind raced back to when he had accidentally hit Stacy Keibler with a chair, but this felt worse. This was his fist to her face and he stood in the corner of the ring, not knowing what to do. This wasn't how it was supposed to go down.

Chris just watched, stupefied by his own actions. It wasn't even that it was Shawn's wife, knowing Shawn would retaliate some, it was just the fact he had hit a woman. It sickened him, but he hadn't meant to. He hadn't meant to do that at all. It got away from him, it got away from him and he wouldn't do that. That's not who was, that's not the kind of man that he was. He didn't know how he got out of the ring, but he did. He just kept watching, the noise turning into blurs of nothing as he just watched. This wasn't supposed to happen. This wasn't how it was supposed to happen.

He walked backwards up the ramp, his eyes glued to the scene in front of him. Then he was backstage and still shell-shocked, but then arms were wrapped around him tightly and the soft smell of strawberries was in his nose and the gentle rise and fall of a breath-filled chest against his own rising and falling chest. It was familiarity this body offered him, familiarity and love and warmth and just protection from something he hadn't meant to do, from something that had gone terribly, terribly wrong.

"I hit her," Chris said slowly as if the words were sandpaper, forcing itself across his tongue.

"It was an accident," Stephanie said, pulling away and looking him into the eye. "It was an accident."

"I hit her, I hit her in the face," Chris said.

Stephanie was suddenly thankful that her father had sent her here. Chris needed her now and if she hadn't been here, he would've been totally and completely alone to deal with this. But she was here and she knew the situation. "You didn't mean to, sweetie, we both know you'd never do that on purpose."

"But I hit her."

"Come on, sit down, just breathe, okay, you'll be fine, it was an accident," she said, taking him by the arm and leading him over to the chairs. She sat him down and knelt down to look at his glazed eyes. "Sweetie, you didn't mean to do that. I know you didn't, sweetie."

"I didn't, I didn't mean to," he told her, still not really looking at her.

Stephanie ran her hand down his face, "Of course you didn't, baby, of course you didn't. You would never hit a woman. Do you think I've ever been afraid you'd hit me in the six years we've been together, huh? No way. Never have I ever thought you would hit me. I wouldn't have stayed with you if I had. It was an accident. An accident."

Stephanie was so involved with looking after Chris and making sure he was okay, she didn't notice Shawn was walking his wife backstage. There were trainers with her and they were walking slowly. Shawn only barely gave them a glance, walking with Rebecca to wherever the trainers were taking her to get her checked out, probably for a concussion. Shawn took another glance and then let Rebecca continue walking. She was too much in shock to really pay attention to what he was doing, but he came back and went over to where Stephanie and Chris were.

"Get up, Jericho," Shawn said in a grave voice.

Stephanie stood up and faced Shawn. "Get away from us, Michaels."

"I told him to get up. Get up and face me like a man, you jackass!" Shawn said, getting into a fighting stance. "You hit my wife, you bastard!"

"Oh hell no," Stephanie said, stepping forward even more. "Don't you even go there."

"Shut up," Shawn said. "He hit my wife and then walked away? Walked away, I don't think so, he better get his ass up so I can show him just how much of a gutless bastard I think he is."

"Go look in a mirror, Shawn," Stephanie said, "because what just happened doesn't fall on Chris or Rebecca, but the blame falls squarely on your shoulders and you know it. You think it's going to make you feel better to hit my husband, hmm?"

"Yes, it will, actually because he is a woman-beater!"

"You take that back, Shawn Michaels, you take that back right now," Stephanie said, her voice as cold as the deepest parts of the ocean. "So help me God, you will not say that about my husband."

"I'll say whatever the hell I want to, you bitch," Shawn said. "He hit my wife, you think I'm going to let that go."

"Yeah, like I said, take a look in the mirror, Shawn, because you're the man who ducked out of the way. Can't take a hit, I think that's you, you left your wife open to take that shot and you know you did it. That's why you're right here, trying to get even because if you go to wherever your wife is, you have to face the fact that when it came down to it, it's still about number one and that's you, Shawn. You haven't changed. You're the same person you've always been. Leaving to be a model husband and a model father and a model person all around? You _ducked_ out of the way like a coward. Don't call my husband a coward when you knew full well what you were doing."

"How dare you," Shawn said.

"How dare _you_," Stephanie said, "would it make you feel better to hit him, Shawn? Because you're still going to have to face your wife. You ducked and let her get hit."

"Shut up, you're over the line, you stupid bitch," Shawn said.

Stephanie had enough, "Don't you come near me or my husband." She reared her hand back and hit him square in the face. He had gone too far with this brand of crap he was trying to sell to her. He had ducked out of the way so fast they probably needed slow motion to capture it. He had left his own wife vulnerable and that was not Chris's fault. That was not Chris's fault at all.

So Stephanie slapped the hell out of him.

"Damn you," Shawn muttered as he turned to face her again. He looked like he wanted to say something, but the fierceness of Stephanie's gaze stopped him from saying anything further.

"Hey Shawn, don't mess with the Jerichos."


	199. Give Him the Belt, August 18, 2008

A/N: Raw's chapter, hope you enjoy. I'll keep the poll up for like a couple of weeks, so be sure to let me know your opinion on the whole H/Britt/Randy thing. I'm anxious to know how that turns out. If you want to explain your choice, e-mail or review...or just review anyways, yes, that would be even better. ;)

Enjoy!

* * *

"You'll be fine without me," Stephanie told him. "It was Shawn's fault that this all happened, remember that okay?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"It's okay," Stephanie said, cuddling herself closer to him. "You'll be okay. You're going to go out there and you're going to tell everyone that it was Shawn's fault. They've seen it, maybe multiple times by now and they all must've seen that you were completely not at fault, Shawn ducked out of the way, right, Hunter?"

"He did," Hunter agreed. He actually agreed with Stephanie on this. He had had a long discussion with Shawn about it the night before, but he had to side with Chris on this one, Shawn did duck out of the way. It was on the tape and it couldn't just be ignored. Hunter felt sorry for Rebecca and to a certain extent, Shawn, but the man moved out of the way. Maybe it was instinct, but he had to know Rebecca was right there.

"See, Hunter agrees with me," Stephanie pointed out. "I'm sure a lot of people do."

"I still hit a woman."

"Remember when you hit me?" Stephanie said, then looked over at Hunter, whose eyebrows were raised, "not like that. Besides you've shoved me and stuff, I meant when you were in that match with RVD, remember and you accidentally hit me…multiple times. That was an accident."

"You probably blamed me too."

"Well, I didn't like you then, but last night was a total accident. It wasn't your fault at all. You were going after Shawn. You wanted your moment, you wanted to defend our children and you did, you did a great job. Rebecca was just in an unfortunate spot. Shawn was at fault here."

Chris sighed. Stephanie had been telling him that all night. He swore he had fallen asleep to her saying that into his ear. He had gotten numerous texts and messages from people saying it wasn't his fault. Trish and Christian had called, Edge had called (which didn't reassure him any as Edge was certifiably nuts), some of his non-wrestling friends had called. His mother had called him chastising Shawn for ducking out of the way and letting his wife get hit. He had even gotten a message from Sawyer, even though that message was just a jovial, "Night-night, Daddy!" Even so, that was his favorite one of all.

He knew that it wasn't his fault, but it was hard convincing himself of it and believing it. He just wasn't the type of man who hit women. It just wasn't in his nature and he was rightfully horrified at what happened last night. The fans loved Shawn and he could almost see everyone booing him tonight and for once, he deserved it. He didn't feel like he deserved a single cheer from anyone (even though he knew there would be some who would). He really just wanted to crawl into a hole and he had never felt that way before. This felt worse than almost anything. It made him into some sort of stereotype and that really hurt.

"You'll go out there and you'll explain and you'll place the blame on Shawn, right, Hunter, Shawn is the one to blame."

"He really kind of is."

"See?"

"You guys don't need to work in tandem," Chris said. "I get what you're saying."

"She's right though, man, really," Hunter said. "I think you should go out there."

"I want to go home with you and be with Sawyer and Flynn."

"I know and you will be tomorrow and they'll cheer you up. You'll look at Flynn's cute, little newborn face and you'll melt. It'll be okay. You'll go out there and you'll be fine, I promise, okay? And besides, nobody is going to talk crap to your face because you own the company. See, just another way that marrying me has helped you."

Chris closed his eyes, "Don't you have to go?"

Stephanie looked at her watch, "Damn, yes, I do. I don't want to miss my flight. Okay, just remember, sweetie, all Shawn's fault, all his fault."

"Okay, all his fault," Chris repeated. Stephanie smiled and cupped his face in her hands and kissed him deeply, causing Hunter to groan having to see these two make out in front of him. Stephanie flipped him off mid-kiss and then pulled away, going in for a couple small pecks on his lips. "I love you."

"I love you too," Stephanie said.

"Tell Sawyer and Flynn I love them too."

"I will," Stephanie said, "bye, Hunter."

"Bye, Steph," Hunter nodded, "don't worry, I'll take care of him."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, grabbing her bag and waving before leaving.

Stephanie didn't immediately go down to alert the desk that she needed a car to the airport. Despite Chris needing her all of last night and today, Stephanie had been planning something. She wanted to know if Adamle would do what _she_ said or if he was really completely under her father's thumb. She got to his room and knocked on the door. She tapped her foot against the floor as she waited and finally he opened the door.

"Stephanie, I wasn't expecting to see you this morning."

"Of course you weren't," she said. "I'm leaving in a few minutes, but before I went, I wanted to make sure that I told you a few things for the show tonight. Just some suggestions…or things that I want to make sure that you do."

"Okay, if you insist…"

"I do," she told him. After she had gotten Chris to sleep last night, she had thought up just what she wanted to do to test Adamle. If the ideas were ridiculous or out there enough, she couldn't imagine her father not coming out of hiding or at the very least actually talking to her.

"Well then…"

"Just a couple of things, nothing really," Stephanie said. "Just things to improve the show. First, Unforgiven is coming up and I was brainstorming…brainstorming different kinds of matches and how to make a fresh match and I think I came up with a good one."

"Oh, that's…that's great."

"Yes, here," Stephanie said, handing him a sheet of paper. "It's just a match I thought up. Having wrestlers wrestle for an allotted time and whoever scores a pinfall is the champion and this will go on and on until the end of the time and whoever has it at the end, wins. I've got a list of participants for that. I want you to announce that it's from me and my brother." She wanted her father to watch and if Adamle actually adhered to this, she wanted her father to know that she wasn't going to take what he was doing sitting down.

"Okay…um, your husband isn't on here."

"I expect him to be doing something different come Unforgiven," Stephanie said, knowing that Shawn was probably going to challenge Chris to a match so she left the spot to someone else. "But that does bring me to my second thing, this one I don't want you to announce is from me. Just make it happen, understood?"

"Yes…"

"I want Chris to take on Punk tonight, non-title, just see to it that they fight."

"Okay, ma'am."

"Good, then we're fine," Stephanie said, "Have a nice day."

"Yes, have a nice day."

"Oh, one more thing, Mike, Chris wants to explain his actions about last night and I want you to give him time at the top of the show. If anyone else asks, it's taken."

"Okay, yes, fine."

Stephanie turned on her heel and walked away, pulling her suitcase behind her. Chris getting a match, though non-title, against Punk was sure to get his spirits up. She was absolutely positive that he could beat CM Punk and if Chris beat him tonight and did it well, how could that not make him think that he honestly had a shot at the title? She wanted to give something else to focus on and giving him a match with CM Punk was the way to do that. He just didn't have to know that she was pulling strings for him. But she was sure that this would work.

Chris practically skulked into the arena later that evening. Hunter couldn't be seen with him right now, but he had arrived earlier and was probably hanging out in Chris's locker room. Britt was nowhere to be found since she had gone on vacation for a couple weeks so it was just him, Hunter, and a bevy full of guys who probably hated his guts. He wouldn't blame them if they did. He was trying to stay glued to the walls when he walked in. He got some dirty looks from people, but Stephanie must've been right about the intimidation factor because most guys left him alone.

"Schedule," Hunter said as soon as he walked in the door.

"Where's Britt?" Chris asked almost immediately.

"You knew she went on vacation, right?"

"Yeah, but I mean, is she at your place?"

"She's with her family last I heard."

"Last you heard, sure," Chris said. "Just wondering. I've got the top of the show."

"Yeah, so you can go out there and explain."

"I don't even know what to say."

"Shawn's fault, it was all Shawn's fault and you know it," Hunter said. "Just go out there and say that. What else do you want me to say, man?"

"Tell me what you talked about?"

Hunter sighed. "He was upset, understandably, but he actually does blame himself for getting her hit. Now, I don't know if it's because he brought her out there or if it's because he ducked, but he does blame himself. He said that he talked with Cole. He's pissed at you and he's pissed at Stephanie, did you see what she did to him?"

"No, I was kind of out of it last night, she did something to him?"

"She just slapped the hell out of him. She actually caught him with her nail a little and scratched him. I know she had it in her, but still, whenever I see her get like that, a part of me kind of misses the old broad."

"She's not an old broad," Chris said. "I can't believe she did that."

"She also told him not to mess with you guys."

"Now that I believe."

"You don't believe she would slap the guy…um, how many times did she slap you?"

"Touché," Chris said. "So he blames himself?"

"Yeah, he does, I mean, that shouldn't completely make you feel better, but it should help a little, right? Look, man, everyone knows you're not that type of guy. Everyone knows, deep down, despite the things you've said that you would never deliberately hit a woman. People know this."

"I suppose."

"No, none of that crap. People know that you're not that type of guy," Hunter said, "so just go out there and place the blame where it's really at, Shawn, for ducking out of the way knowing his wife was right there."

"Yeah, sure," Chris said as his cell phone rang. He plucked it from his pocket and answered it without looking.

"Hi, Daddy, hi," Sawyer said from the other end.

Chris smiled for the first time since last night, "Hey, kid, what's going on?"

"I play," Sawyer said. "An' I help."

"You helped?"

"Wif Fwynn," Sawyer answered. "I help Gamma."

"Wow, she must be really happy you're there, huh?"

"Uh huh, I wif Mommy," Sawyer said. "She play too."

"Did she?" Chris asked. "So your mommy is there?"

"Uh huh, she help me."

"Helped you?"

"You."

"Oh," he said, "she helped you call me?"

"Yeah," he said. "You wight, Daddy."

"I'm right, thanks."

"Uh huh an' I like you."

Chris chuckled softly. "I like you too. In fact, I love you a whole lot and I really miss you and I can't wait to see you and your sister tomorrow. How is Flynn, is she good?"

"Yes, she good, she cwy."

"I know, she's going to cry, but I bet you helped with that too."

"I did," he said. "I like you, Daddy."

"I like you too."

"Mommy say," Sawyer said. "She say dat."

"Wait, did she tell you to tell me that you liked me?"

"Uh huh and Fwynn too!" Sawyer said. "She no talk."

"I know, she doesn't really talk," Chris said, "but do you really like me or are you just saying you like me because Mommy told you to?"

"No! I like you," Sawyer asserted. Of course he liked his daddy. His daddy would play with him all the time and he pushed him way higher than his mommy ever did. When he was on the swings with his daddy, his daddy made him go so high that he felt like he was going to fly right off of that swing. Plus his daddy could throw him higher in the air and he was very funny. Didn't his daddy know these things yet?

"Good, I like you too."

"Good," Sawyer mimicked. "I…no like…Sawn."

"What is your mommy doing, signing to you or something?" Chris asked.

"She tell me."

"Can you put your mommy on, please?"

"Okay," Sawyer said, handing the phone to his mommy. He leaned against Stephanie's shoulder so he could look at Flynn. She was asleep right now though, but his mommy hadn't put her to bed yet so he wanted to watch her, even if she was asleep right now.

"Hello?"

"How much are you bribing the kid to say all of that?"

"Bribing, please, the kid loves you and he was just expressing that love to you and telling you that even if you did come home, sat him down, and told him you will never be Shawn Michaels that he would love you all the same, in fact, he'd probably love you more because you _aren't _Shawn Michaels."

"So you got home okay?"

"Yes, I did and Flynn missed me, I could tell," Stephanie said. "She's with me right now, I just couldn't bear not to have her in my arms as soon as I got home. She feels heavier. She must've eaten a lot while I was gone."

"Good, I want my little girl to be big and strong."

"So how are you feeling?" Stephanie said. "Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah, now that I got to talk to Sawyer I am. That kid has the incredible ability to make me feel better, even when I'm otherwise feeling like complete crap."

"He is a superhero," Stephanie responded. "You have the top of the show, right?"

"How did you know…you got me the spot, didn't you?"

"I might have suggested it, but anyone worth their salt would know that you should get to go first after what happened last night. Do you know what you're going to say?"

"I have an inkling. I thought a lot about it on the flight from Indy to here."

"Good, I want you to be prepared when you go out there. People won't understand, we both know this, right?"

"Yeah, we both know this," Chris agreed. "They're probably going to want to roast me over hot coals after last night. But you're right, it wasn't my fault."

Stephanie wished she could be there with Chris right now. She knew he was a strong guy, he didn't need to prove that to her, but she wanted to be there to support him and make him realize that he wasn't the one to blame for the incident. Even though he had just told her that he knew it wasn't his fault, she knew he was beating himself up over it. If she were there, hell even if Sawyer were there, he would feel better about the entire thing.

"It wasn't, sweetie, even Flynn thinks so and she can barely distinguish anything, but I can clearly tell just by looking at her that she thinks you're not at fault."

"Oh, she just up and told you?"

"It's all in her eyes, they are the eyes of a little girl with an innocent daddy," Stephanie said. "There need not be any comforting in the Jericho household tonight. We're all very good, trust me."

"I wish I could be there with you guys."

"We wish it too, but you will be and then you don't have to think about this entire mess," Stephanie said, "but I'm going to tell you something right now, Chris. I want you to channel this experience. I want you to channel all those boos and everything and I want you to let that fuel you."

"Fuel me towards what?"

"Chris, come on," Stephanie chastised gently. "What have we both wanted since you came back? The gold, Chris, we want you to have the gold. That's what we're working towards. Now, you won't allow me to put you in a match or just strip Punk of the title, but this is what we both want for you. You've got to tune everyone out. The fans aren't behind you anymore and that's good. You put too much focus on pleasing them anyways, you demonstrated that the other week when you were showing all those clips. You were so focused on things like my breasts that you didn't focus on the bigger picture. When did you get the WCW and Undisputed titles?"

"2002," Chris said.

"_No_, it was after I had gotten kicked out at Survivor Series. I wasn't there to distract you."

"Well, you're here now though," Chris said.

"I don't distract you anymore. We're married, you have me all the time, I can't distract you anymore. So you can focus on the title. I put you in a match later against Punk. Non-title, but I just want you to go out and prove to the world that you can beat him. Prove it to yourself and then when all of this…stuff with Shawn blows over, you can go for the title."

"Yeah, I guess."

"No none of that. Chris, you've got to stop beating yourself up about this. You didn't mean to do it, everyone knows that. You wouldn't do that. So just stop thinking about it."

"I'll try."

"Don't try, do," Stephanie told him. Chris was about to respond when he heard a keening cry over the phone and smiled at the sound of Flynn. That boosted his spirits a little bit. "So I'm guessing you hear the thing that's crying right now."

"Yes, I do."

"I've got to attend to my motherly duties. You just go out there and win…in those stupid briefs of yours. You know, Chris, you don't have to oil yourself up, you aren't a greased pig or anything."

"Why are you so critical of me? You're supposed to love me unconditionally."

"Yeah and you're not supposed to go out there in your underwear. If anything you're confusing our son who's going to think it's okay to walk around with no pants on. So if our son becomes a nudist or a streaker, it's completely your fault."

"Well, counter-balancing that with all the issues you bring to the table, I'll take my chances," he said. "Give my kids my love."

"I will, but I don't know how I'm going to watch you later. You insist on wearing those things and I just don't get it."

"Stephanie, I'm my own person."

"I know, I mean, you cut your hair without telling me, you come back without telling me, you wear these things without telling me. Next time I get pregnant, I'm just not going to tell you and then I'll leave and come back with a baby and you'll be all annoyed."

"Yeah, I think I'd be annoyed if you just got pregnant and left," Chris said and Hunter, who had long ago drowned out the conversation Chris was having, perked up at that comment. What the hell were the two talking about? Surely they couldn't be planning _another_ child after just having this one. Nah, Stephanie would never go for that much time off.

"I love you," Stephanie said.

"I love you too, and the kids, I'll talk to you tomorrow and thanks for calling, you've really helped."

"You thought I'd leave it all up to Hunter, no way," she said, "bye, sweetie."

"Bye, baby."

Stephanie hung up the call and looked down to Flynn, who was still crying in her arms. Sawyer was trying to hover in. Couldn't his mommy see that his sister was crying? Did he have to do everything around here? Stephanie started to pull Flynn closer to her chest, but the little girl was not in the mood for cuddling or really any coddling of any sort. She wasn't wet and she had been fed immediately when Stephanie had gotten back. She was probably being a cranky baby.

"Shh, come on, baby girl, you don't want to cry," Stephanie said, rocking Flynn back and forth a little.

"I do it," Sawyer said, trying to horn in on his mommy.

"I had to be away from her, don't be a Flynn hog," Stephanie said.

"I good wif Fwynn," Sawyer told her resolutely, "Gamma say."

"Yeah, I know you are, why do you think I keep you around?" she said playfully. "Do you really think that I would've kept you if you had no use for you? Come on, Sawyer, keep up with the times, you're old news."

"Mommy," he giggled. She was so funny sometimes. He felt compelled to kiss her so he stood up and did just that. "Daddy…"

"Is at Raw, remember?"

"I no go."

"I know, I thought it might be best if you didn't travel, you know, and who would bring you? I have to stay with Flynn and you can't fly by yourself."

"Uh huh," Sawyer said with a nod.

"Oh okay, you're going to go to the airport, get yourself through security, get your ticket, get on board, fasten your seatbelt and ride all the way to Chicago by yourself?"

"Yes," he nodded.

"Well, I'm sorry if I don't have the same faith as you do. We'll talk about that when you turn three."

"I two," he said, then turned to Flynn, who was still whimpering. "I two."

"I know, I'm your mommy and that's generally information I would know," Stephanie said. "It's kind of a thing with mommies."

"How Fywnn, old?"

"She's going to be 2 weeks this Thursday," Stephanie said.

"Little," Sawyer said as Flynn started up again.

"Oh, come on, baby girl, crying, that's such a cliché for a baby. Now tap dancing, a newborn tap dancing, now that's never been done before, so maybe you'd want to try that instead. Just a thought." Flynn did not respond well to this as she started to cry more. "Okay, okay, you're not a dancer, neither am I, I get it."

"I howd her," Sawyer said, once again trying to get in on the action. God, this boy could be pushy when he wanted to be? That was probably something he got from her…and Chris. They were kind of pushy people when she thought about it. "Mommy, I help."

"Okay, okay, I see where the wind is blowing here," Stephanie said, "sit down and you can hold her, okay?"

"Okay," he said happily, wanting to help his mommy very much. He sat down obediently on the fluffy, comfortable couch, leaning back against the pillows before he stuck his arms out. He was a pro at this now, knowing exactly what to do. His mommy didn't even have to hold Flynn's head anymore, that's how much of a pro he was.

Stephanie carefully placed Flynn in Sawyer's arms and miracle of miracles, she seemed to settle down. "Oh, that's great," Stephanie said. "Of course you calm down for him. I was the one who carried you around, Flynn, remember that. Plus I'm the one with money."

Sawyer grinned at her and she rolled her eyes, leaning down to kiss his head. Of course Flynn would want to be around Sawyer, it was obvious that kid loved her with everything in him and she could probably pick up on that and liked it. She rubbed Flynn's head a little, making sure Sawyer had his arm firmly underneath it so her head wasn't lolling around. Sawyer was happy now that he had his sister in his arms and if she had the help, it couldn't be that bad a thing.

"I'm going to turn on Raw, you want to watch?"

"Yeah, Daddy."

"Oh yeah, Daddy's going to start the show, explain what he did last night."

"He hit."

"On accident," Stephanie explained. "We don't normally hit people like that, right?"

"Wight," Sawyer nodded. "No hit."

"Yes, that's right, we don't hit. But Shawn was a word that I like to call…cowardly. See, if your daddy and I were in a ring and there was another person accusing us of things, making us do things, and he was about to punch Daddy, Daddy would…take that hit, see, that's the difference. Shawn, he ducked out of the way. Daddy would've taken the punch for me. Or he would've gotten the first punch, knocked the guy down and then wailed on him. _Or_ he would've ducked, I would've gotten hit and then your daddy would've kicked the guy's ass. That's the difference."

"Okay," Sawyer said. "We see Daddy."

"Yeah, let's see Daddy."

Chris's nerves had calmed down considerably after his phone conversation with Stephanie. She was right, once again. That woman always knew how to make him feel better. He just guessed it was the six years of experience she had under her belt. Or because she was completely manipulative and knew what to do to make anyone do her bidding. It was probably actually that one. But it wasn't his fault. No, it wasn't his fault at all. It was more Shawn's fault than his fault.

No, he didn't like hitting a lady, ever, but it wasn't his fault Rebecca had gotten hit. Shawn wasn't here tonight, he knew that from Hunter and that was a good thing. He didn't want to confront Shawn right now. Tempers would flare, it just wouldn't be a good idea. Chris just wanted to keep his head down and get through the night and then go home to his family. All the well-wishes from last week regarding Flynn had disappeared this week, instead replaced with silence from all sides. Some people were on his side, some weren't, but neither one spoke up so he just walked through the hallways without making eye contact with anyone.

If he had Sawyer here, that would probably ease the blow a lot. Sawyer was so boisterous and filled with personality that you couldn't hate him. Chris would've just held the boy the entire night and he would've worked his magic, saying hello to everyone and telling everyone something funny and cute. Damn it, where was his cute kid when he needed him? And if he had Flynn, well, everyone would be on his side. How could anyone hate a guy who carried around a newborn baby girl? He'd just have to make sure Flynn wasn't in one of her moods.

He walked down to the ring looking and feeling stalwart. He took a deep breath as he climbed into the ring. He looked around at the crowd, seeing a number of signs that denounced him and he expected it. He took Stephanie's advice and let the boos rain down upon him and he took it all and focused it into what he had to say. He went right into it, not fancying up his words like he used to, using funny phrases and sayings. He just came out and said what was true, that Rebecca getting hit was Shawn's fault.

He told it like it was. Shawn ducked out of the way, letting his wife get hit. Chris couldn't for sure say what he'd do in a situation like that, but he liked to think that he wouldn't let Stephanie get hit for anything. He asked them to roll the footage of last night and watched it intently as it played on the large screen. Seeing it now, he could see that the error never laid with him. Shawn so very clearly left his wife vulnerable, looking out for Shawn and Shawn only.

Stephanie listened to the boos that Chris was getting and they were loud. She almost decided in that moment to hell with it, let the world know about her and Chris and their marriage. Open up the book on what Chris had been through. Let Sawyer and Flynn out there and let the world see what Chris was protecting. This wasn't fair, letting him go out there, letting everyone see him at this monster when his reasons were sitting next to her, Flynn falling asleep secure in her brother's arms. She dared not take Flynn right now because if Flynn woke up, she'd just start crying and Sawyer would tell her she was doing it wrong. He tended to forget that she had already raised a baby, which was, in fact, him.

But she would take them both out and announce to the world that Chris was a good and decent man, the best husband she could've asked for, and a wonderful father to their children. How could they hate a man who loved his kids as much as Chris loved Sawyer and Flynn? Chris was thinking on the fly now, connecting Shawn's announcement with the fans, deferring the blame from himself. He had thrown a punch intended to hit Shawn, which would've been fine. If Shawn had admitted what Chris wanted, it wouldn't have happened. And what was Rebecca doing out there anyways? Was it so Shawn could just make himself feel better, a selfish move by a selfish man?

Shawn deserved what had happened because he let it happen. Let him stew in his own misery over something he caused. Chris was going to let it wash over him. He had more important things in his life than to think about how Shawn had let his wife get hit. Chris had a family to think about, a family that loved him unconditionally. He had a newborn daughter who he couldn't wait to see. Let Shawn wrestle over this. Chris was through with it. Shawn had been the one who ducked, not him. And apparently his wife wasn't getting punched, but the one doing the heavy hitting as she had been the one to slap Shawn last night when he was upset.

"I don't think you were at fault at all," Lance said as he caught up with Chris backstage. "He completely ducked out of the way."

"Thanks, man," Chris said, glad that someone had come up to say something to him. He should've figured that it would be Lance, but Chris was really warming up to the kid. Chris was still the kind of guy who liked to be alone. He had described himself as a lone wolf once. He was just a guy who liked to wrestle and be by himself, for the most part, but he was coming to like Lance, maybe even enough to consider him something of a friend.

"Yeah, I don't get people, you know. I mean, you told me everything he said about your family and that's just a bunch of crap, you know."

"Yeah, I know."

"Why don't you just go out there and tell everyone that Shawn isn't the good guy here? Tell everyone that you're only defending your family?"

"Well, you don't really know me and Stephanie," Chris said. "Have you heard about us?"

"Well, I know you're married and you have two kids, how's your little girl by the way?"

"She's great actually. She's already Little Miss Independent," Chris chuckled, thinking about how his little girl would rather be by herself than have someone holding her and cuddling her. "But I mean, have you heard about our history?"

"You hated her and then you started dating."

"Little more complicated than that. We kept our relationship hidden for like two years," Chris said. "We're just intensely private with our relationship. Stephanie is especially protective of Sawyer and Flynn. Stephanie grew up in the business and she was like seven when her father made her model clothes for the catalogue. She doesn't want the same for Sawyer or Flynn."

"Oh, I guess I understand, but it would make it a lot easier on you, don't you think?"

"Yeah, it would, but sometimes you just have to go with hard. I've got a match later, you want to accompany me."

"Sure, but I didn't see a match for you on the schedule."

"It was a late addition, Adamle hasn't announced it yet."

"Oh, okay, sure, yeah, I'll come out there for your match."

"I'll see you later then," Chris said as he reached his locker room. "I want to change and warm up."

"Yeah, sure, of course," Lance said, wandering off again.

Chris went inside and got a slow clap from Hunter, "What's that for?"

"You were good out there. Sometimes I wish the fans would just turn on me, but you were good. You said all the right things."

"You know, some people aren't going to like you if they know you're a double-crosser."

"Yeah, whatever. I'm still friends with Shawn, but I don't agree with what he's doing. You should understand that better than most people. You liked Stephanie when she was with me, but you didn't like what she was doing."

"Why do you even think that?"

"Because you married her. If you honestly despised her…"

"Whatever, but are you still friends with Shawn?"

"Yeah, I am," Hunter said. "We go so far back, you know. It's hard to let something like that loose, but I don't get along with his kids like I get along with Sawyer. That kid has me wrapped around his finger. I mean, for _nobody_ else would I betray Shawn, but that little kid, man…I don't know."

"He's Stephanie, are you kidding me?" Chris said. "He may look like me, but he's Stephanie. He can get you to do anything he wants. Thanks for helping me, I know I've said it, but thanks."

"We're friends," Hunter shrugged. "It's not all for Sawyer, you know, I consider you my friend, not necessarily my equal, but my friend."

"I could beat your ass. I'm _going_ to beat CM Punk's ass later on in our match and that should prove to you that I could easily be the champion around here. In fact, I _should_ be the champion and it's bogus that I'm not."

"And there's the Chris Jericho I know and tolerate," Hunter said. "And anyone can beat Punk. My mom could beat Punk."

"Did you tell your mom Stephanie had the baby? Because I don't want her coming around her and seeing Flynn and giving me that look again, like I'm a homewrecker," Chris said, then added quickly, "which I'm not because I didn't sleep with her while you were married. For the people that got that distinction, well, ask anyone within the tri-state area, you'll find your share of guys."

"You know, one day she's going to hear one of those jokes about her and you're not going to have to worry about accidentally getting her pregnant," Hunter told him, shaking his head.

"Very funny," Chris deadpanned. "I'm getting dressed for my match, if you'll excuse me."

"You're excused," Hunter said.

"Don't talk to me while I'm changing either, that's just weird."

"Has Steph come around to the briefs yet?"

"No, she threatened to burn them all."

"Sometimes I'm so glad we're divorced," Hunter said as Chris went into the bathroom to change his clothes into his wrestling trunks. His wife would just have to get used to them.

"And that is why you have to wear pants," Stephanie said as she looked at Sawyer. "You can't just go around with no pants, baby boy, because people should be clothed."

"Oh, okay," he said, after hearing his mother talk about how his father should put his wrestling tights back on and not wear wrestling briefs. Most of that went over his head though.

"I'm going to put Flynn to bed, okay?"

"I help," Sawyer said as Stephanie took Flynn from Sawyer's small arms.

"How do you want to help?"

"Sing," he answered as he trotted after Stephanie, heading up the stairs in front of her, holding onto the railings as he climbed the stairs in front of him.

"Oh, sing, that's a good idea, I think she'd like that," Stephanie told him. "What are we going to sing to her?"

"Um…Spider!" Sawyer exclaimed. It was the best song in his repertoire and he thought Flynn might enjoy it.

"Good choice," Stephanie said as they went into Flynn's room. Chris had moved all of Sawyer's old things out of storage and put them into one of the spare rooms Stephanie had. It wasn't the most baby-friendly of rooms, but they could decorate it later if they wanted to. It had all the essentials. Stephanie went about changing Flynn's diaper and feeding her as Sawyer watched diligently, watching Flynn to make sure she actually did fall asleep.

"I sing now," he said as Stephanie lowered Flynn into her crib. Flynn moved around a little as if she was getting comfortable. A lot of books said that newborns liked to be swaddled or wrapped up tight since they were used to it in the womb. Flynn must've had enough of that because she hated to be constricted. She much preferred to be free and roomy instead of tight and cramped. Stephanie fixed the top button on her onesie pajama outfit and then lifted Sawyer into her arms.

"Okay, and a one, and a two, and a…the itsy-bitsy spider…"

"Wen' up water pout, down came rain…"

"And washed the spider out…out came the sun…"

"Dwy up all rain," Sawyer sang. "An' the itty-bitty spider went down…"

"The spout again," Stephanie finished and Sawyer clapped for himself and his mommy.

"I good," Sawyer said, impressed with himself. That was the best he had ever sounded, but this was for Flynn so he wanted it to be great.

"What about me?"

"Hmm…okay," Sawyer said.

"Wow, you're the first person to tell me _that_," Stephanie said. "And look, Flynn's asleep, looks like your song did just the trick." She knew it probably had nothing to do with their singing, but seeing Sawyer's face light up at the thought that he had really helped was enough to let her believe that it was completely him that led her to sleep. "Now let's go watch Daddy wrestle!"

"Yeah!" Sawyer whispered, something his daddy had told him to do around Flynn when she was sleeping. "Daddy!"

Daddy was heading down to his match when they finally got settled in. Sawyer had been getting tired too, unbeknownst to him, but his mommy was usually pretty good at these things. She took him to his bedroom and got his pajamas on him. He yawned a couple of times but was determined to see his father wrestle. Stephanie let him pull his shirt on, kissing him on the nose when he got his head out of the shirt. He reached his arms for her and she picked him up again. He was so happy she could hold him again. He wrapped his legs around her as best he could and buried himself into her chest (which wasn't hard, what with her cup size being really huge right now due to her breastfeeding).

"Mommy, potty," Sawyer told her.

"Oh, you've got to go to the potty or you already went potty?"

"I go," he said.

She patted his diaper, "Looks like you haven't gone yet, you want to try your potty chair?"

"No, I see Daddy."

"He won't be on for a few minutes, let's try the potty chair, okay. I know that's a stupid word, but I don't want to use big words. The bathroom chair? Doesn't quite have the same cache."

"Okay," he said as Stephanie took him to the bathroom where they had set up a potty-training chair so he would know that it was there and this is where you generally went to the bathroom. Sawyer had used it a couple of times, but he still mainly relied on his diaper. He was getting the hang of it though and he was getting better at telling his parents when he had to use the bathroom. He may even be out of the diapers soon, which would be a huge relief for his parents, who didn't want twice the dirty diapers around here.

Chris had no idea of the strides going on at home as he was trying to make strides to get the World Title. Chris knew that Punk, being in his hometown, would get a huge burst from the crowd. There wasn't anything like a hometown crowd to spurn you on. That gave Punk the upper-hand to start the match, but Chris was out there to prove something. He was going to let this be the first step to the dominance he wanted to achieve.

He wasn't the kind of guy who wanted to rely on his name or who he married so this was necessary. Establishing himself in the ring and proving that he could beat the champion was just what he needed to do to assert the fact that he wasn't going to be a pushover for anyone. Chris was gunning for the title and once all the brouhaha with Shawn died down, that gold was going to be around his gorgeous waist and his son was going to have trouble lugging it everywhere because it was so heavy. He might even have to buy Sawyer a wagon when he got that belt.

Chris kept trying to get Punk to submit, applying submission hold after submission hold in order to get him to just tap out. He knew this wasn't for the title, but the win felt important. It was important for him to win and prove to himself and to everyone that he deserved to be champion. He had come back with that on his mind, with that one of his goals. Sure, he had done everything the sport had to offer, held pretty much every belt there was to hold, but it didn't hurt to have ambitions and to want to be the best again. Hey, if he won, maybe he and Hunter could have an epic match for supremacy, maybe a Hell in a Cell. Chris would like to get his hands on another barbed wire 2x4.

The match had a lot of back and forth and Punk was proving to be quite the adversary. Chris wouldn't say he was a worthy one, but he couldn't deny that Punk was better than he thought. Good, but not great, better, but not best, that's how Chris thought of him. Chris managed to get him in the Walls of Jericho and thought he had it here. He was in a good position, quite far from the ropes and he thought Punk would just end it now, but the guy got through it and grabbed the ropes, which frustrated Chris.

Punk managed to get at Chris, laying him out on the ground and waiting for him to get up. Lance, who was proving to be invaluable, distracted Punk long enough for Chris to gain his bearings and hit Punk with the Code-Breaker for the win. It was the best Chris had felt in a while, getting that win. It wasn't so much just winning, but knowing he could leave this arena, leave the awkward stares and fly back home to the people most important to him. Hell, he could be walking into a house with a potty-trained, little boy, which would be icing on the cake for Chris.

In the short term though, there was another thought racing through Chris's mind. It didn't take a genius to figure out what had happened in this match. No, not with Lance, but with Chris and CM Punk. He had just beaten, without physical interference, the World Champion. What did that say about the sorry state of the belt? Chris had a clear mission now. Let the crap with Shawn die down and then get the title. He could do it, he knew he could do it now. He had just beaten CM Punk. If Shawn dared to come back (and his interview indicated he would) then Chris would beat him down too. Then he would get what he wanted. Then he would get the one thing that would make everything complete.

The World Title.


	200. Oh, It's On Now, August 25, 2008

"Hey there, flutterby."

Chris leaned over the crib and into the face of his two-week-old-daughter, who was unhappily. She had probably woken up to find that there was nobody there to be with her. Usually, she'd like that as she seemed like she liked her alone time, but right now she wanted someone and since Stephanie was outside with Sawyer that left him to go check on his daughter when he heard her crying over the baby monitor he or Stephanie always had when they weren't with Flynn.

Flynn kept on crying, even though she knew that someone was here with her. Chris reached down and picked her up, cradling her to his chest. "Hey, I thought you'd like your nursery. I tried to make it nice for you, but this isn't our real home. We only stay here sometimes, so don't really get used to it. Your nursery at home is way cooler and I spent a ton of time on it."

Flynn's crying started to calm down as Chris patted her diaper. He could tell that she was wet and he went over to her changing table and started to change her diaper quickly. Luckily he was a pro at this and he had her cleaned up in no time at all and back in his arms. She wasn't a cuddly baby, she only really liked to cuddle when she was crying or upset or when she had just woken up from a nap. Still, this was one of those times and she appreciated the soft rubbing on her back.

"You want to go see what Mommy and Sawyer are up to? I bet they're having fun without us. Can you believe that? We're a part of this family too, right?" Flynn snuffled and burrowed her head against Chris's shirt. "I'll take that as a yes. Besides, it's been a whole 2 hours since your brother got to see you and that must mean that he's itching to talk to you, the little Flynn hog."

He laughed at his own joke and put Flynn back down on her changing table so he could put some socks on her feet and a hat on her head because Stephanie and Sawyer were in the backyard playing around. He could hear their laughing through the window in Flynn's room. Flynn flailed her little feet around as Chris tried to get her sock on and Chris laughed as he grabbed it and slipped it on.

"Okay, there we go, you wiggly, little thing," Chris said good-naturedly as he picked up his daughter again and held her close as he started downstairs. "I thought you newborns were supposed to want to be all cuddly and wrapped up and nice and cozy. You must've been uncomfortable in Mommy's body, huh? That must be why you came earlier than expected, you knew you'd have more room out here."

If Chris was being honest, he didn't care if he ever went back to wrestling. He just liked spending as much time as possible with his little girl and the rest of his family. The fans hated him even though it was an accident and he knew he was on a collision course with Shawn. Things were going to blow up sooner rather than later and though he looked forward to kicking the crap out of Shawn again, he didn't like the perceptions on his personality based on an accident. Besides, he wanted time with his little girl.

Flynn was so different from Sawyer, but she was just as fun. Even though Flynn kept them up at night and was a little monster like her brother at times, he still loved doing things with her and being around her. She was so small and new and he felt like every time he left he was missing something big in her life and she was only a couple weeks old!

"Hey, you two, what's going on?" Chris asked as he walked out onto patio. Sawyer and Stephanie were running around, Sawyer the one more out of breath.

"I play wif Mama," Sawyer said, trying to catch his breath as Stephanie started running towards him. This was probably the best way to lose her baby weight, running after her two-year-old son who seemed to have more than enough energy for the two of them. Sawyer screamed when he saw Stephanie coming for him and he started running away again. Flynn was watching alertly everything that was going on around her as Chris sat down, propping his legs up on another chair and watching Sawyer and Stephanie run around like crazy. Flynn just kind of leaned against his chest, her hands tucked neatly under her head.

"This is our crazy family," Chris told his daughter. "You'll get used to it, trust me. You haven't even met Grandpa Vince yet. That's when you know that you really are a part of a dysfunctional unit. You liked Uncle Shane and Auntie Rissa though, huh? She loved you, I think she wanted to take you home. I don't blame her."

"Daddy, help!" Sawyer said, running towards Chris and hiding behind his chair.

"I can't, I have Flynn," Chris told his son.

Stephanie ran over and grabbed a squealing Sawyer as she started to tickle him, "Mommy, no! Stop!"

Stephanie sat down next to Chris and held Sawyer. He cuddled into her and Stephanie looked over at Chris. "How's the little monster doing?"

"She's okay, was cranky and wet, but she's changed and feeling pretty damn good," Chris said. "She may get to enjoy a bottle filled with her favorite beverage in a few minutes."

"Yeah, that I have to make," Stephanie said, sticking her tongue out as Sawyer closed his eyes, tired from all the running around, which was precisely Stephanie's intention.

"Hi, Fwynn," Sawyer mumbled through his haziness.

Stephanie cooed as she held Sawyer tighter, "You want to take your nap, baby boy?"

"No," he said stubbornly, not wanting to take a nap. He just wanted to stay with his mommy. Sometimes she had to spend a lot of time with Flynn so he wanted to spend time with her right now, cuddling into her body.

"Okay…so…I was thinking," Stephanie said as she ran her hand through Sawyer's hair.

"Oh no," Chris said, "when you think nothing good comes from it."

"Shut up…I was just thinking that…well, Raw is in Wilkes-Barre tomorrow, right…and that's only about 3 hours from here. Flynn can certainly travel in a car for a few hours."

"Stephanie…"

"But it's not like we'd be flying with her. We brought Sawyer when he was that young, remember?" Stephanie said, "He did fine when he was there. I just…I was there last week and I missed her, but I was still working and that was great. So this time I would have her with me _and_ I would be working, it's a win-win situation."

"Stephanie, what would it take for you not to go?"

"A lot," she told him. "I mean, come on, it's not even that long a drive! I'll even volunteer to drive after the show. You can just lounge in the car, or you know what! We can rent a limo! Let's do that, we won't even have to drive and then we can have the driver take us home afterwards and we'd have plenty of room. Chris, when Sawyer was a couple weeks old, we flew him all the way to Texas for a show."

"She's littler than he was. She was early so she doesn't weigh as much."

"So what? She's perfectly healthy," Stephanie said, "Please, come on, I can be there for moral support. You were saying last week how you missed us and you wished we had been there. We _can_ this week. I'm not saying that we'd make this a habit, you know, but we have this golden opportunity here. I'm not suggesting we fly or anything, that'd be silly because we'd never get a non-stop and we'd have to make a bunch of stops…"

"Okay," he said, knowing he was fighting a losing battle. Stephanie was not the type of person who would let someone dictate what she was going to do. He got some say over Flynn, but none over Stephanie and Flynn was Stephanie's baby too…and it just would not work out in his favor so he gave in. "We'll take a limo."

Stephanie grinned. "It'll be great. Who the hell is going to hate you when you have a newborn baby in your arms? I bet you that Shawn has not thought of that, besides, his kids are older, they're not babies anymore, but you have a little girl who is so adorably new. People can't hate you for that."

Stephanie was always thinking of the next angle she could work. He had to admit, the idea of having Flynn there did make him happy a little bit. She _was_ a healthy baby and he couldn't see what was horribly wrong with bringing her, plus that would mean his family was there and he did need the support. The fans hated him and had no inkling as to why Chris was so vehemently going after Shawn, so they were left with this bad impression of him. Having his family there would soften the blow.

"I'll arrange to have the limo tomorrow morning," Stephanie told him. "I'll do that as soon as I put Sawyer down for his nap. Is he asleep?"

"Yeah," Chris said, looking at his son, who was breathing deeply and rhythmically.

"Okay, good," Stephanie said, slowly getting up. "You won't regret it, Chris. This'll be great. It will be. I can't wait!"

Chris sighed and watched as Stephanie took Sawyer inside to put him down for his nap. He continued to rub Flynn's back. The little girl was still awake and she probably would be for a little while yet. She might like Raw and she'd have to get used to it anyways. When she turned six weeks and was old enough to really travel, she was going to be flitting all over the place with her parents and brother. Sawyer was used to it and he had no doubt that Flynn would get used to it too. It made him smile to think about an older Flynn and Sawyer running around and having fun at the shows. He liked that picture.

"You want to give her to me?" Stephanie asked and Chris didn't know how long he had been in his reverie with his little girl. It must not have been that long though.

"Why?"

"Because I have breasts with which to feed her," Stephanie said, "unless you've grown a pair and I don't know about it."

"Oh, sorry," he said, carefully handing over the little girl and watching as Stephanie proceeded to feed her. "Are you sure you want to come tomorrow?"

"Yes, I'm positive," Stephanie said. "She'll love it."

**Monday**

"See, look, she wasn't a fuss or anything, she's completely my kid," Stephanie said as she lifted Flynn from her car-seat. "She traveled that entire way and had a great time."

"I don't know if she had a _great_ time," Chris said, but conceded, "she was really good though, I'll admit that. She was a good baby."

"I told you," Stephanie said proudly. "She's completely my little girl, she already loves to travel and be at shows, couldn't you tell she was excited?"

"I think that was just gas," Chris told her.

"Nah, she's excited to be here," Stephanie told him as Chris let the driver know where to park and at what time to pick them up. Stephanie lifted Flynn up to her face. "You liked driving, didn't you, Flynnie? Yes, you did."

"Mommy, I like too!" Sawyer said, jumping up and down.

Stephanie laughed, "Well I know you do. You've been traveling for years now, you're used to it. You're one of the most jet-setting babies there is."

"Uh huh," Sawyer nodded seriously.

"Okay, so are we ready?" Chris asked.

"No, you should walk in with Flynn," Stephanie told him. "Put your things down, I'll carry them inside, you carry Flynn inside. It'll look great. You walking in with your newborn daughter, nobody is going to be able to resist."

Chris laughed a little, "Your mind just never stops, does it? It just keeps going and going, like the battery. You're always thinking of your next scheme."

"Like I should be talking, Hunter-lover."

"Okay, that's just creepy," Chris said, "I can't let you carry all my things. Don't you think that makes me look bad, making my wife carry my bag? Why don't I just get Sawyer to lug it in there, that'll make me just look super."

"Look, I'm not some weakling, I can carry your duffel bag, it's not even that heavy unless you're carrying weapons or something, it's just clothes…stupid clothes I'm sure. Stupid, revealing, ugly, hideous clothes, but they're still clothes."

"Wrestling tights weigh less than wrestling trunks."

"Oh, sure, the what half an ounce is going to make so much difference, would you just take the baby already? Nobody is going to say word one if you have your entire family with you. And look, Sawyer combed his hair just for the occasion, didn't you, baby boy?"

"I did, Daddy," he told him, "by all me."

"Yeah, see, all by himself and I think he did a good job, even though you need a haircut," Stephanie said, running her fingers through Sawyer's soft, blonde hair. He tried to shoo away her hand since he had spent a lot of time combing his hair earlier.

"Okay, I get it, you made sure that I had the ideal family," Chris said. "What if Shawn brought his kids?"

"Ours are cuter," Stephanie said quickly and dismissively. "Just by default, now let's go inside!"

"Geez, pushy, lady, huh, flutterby?" Chris asked his daughter. Flynn just squinted up at him and yawned. Stephanie put a pacifier in her mouth so she wouldn't start crying and ruin the image she was trying to go for with Chris.

He walked into the arena with her, Sawyer and Stephanie trailing behind him and he had to admit, the air was kind of different. Where he would probably usually be getting sneers and dirty looks, he was getting soft looks and curious looks at his little girl. Man, Stephanie sure knew when to get pregnant and when to have her babies. He glanced back at her, but she was talking with Sawyer. Maybe she definitely planned these things, he wouldn't put it past her and that mind of hers.

"Oh my God, is that your baby?" Kelly Kelly said excitedly as she rushed up to Chris. Chris had never had a conversation with the girl, but she had just run up to him. "How cute! It's a little girl, right, with the pink."

"Yeah, it's a little girl."

"Oh, she is adorable, completely adorable," Kelly Kelly told him, running her hand against Flynn's. "She's so cute and soft. I wish I could get skin like that, what's your secret, you little cutie-wootie-pootie-pie?"

"Just being born I think," Chris told her and Kelly Kelly laughed.

"She's just the cutest thing ever," she cooed. "You're lucky, she's adorable."

"Thanks."

"Later!" Kelly Kelly said and then was gone again.

Stephanie came up next to Chris and whispered, "What did I tell you?"

Chris rolled his eyes and proceeded to walk to his locker room, many people commenting on how cute his daughter was. He couldn't argue with that point. Even CM Punk, whom he had beaten last week, threw out a "cute baby" to him as they passed in the hallway. Damn, this baby could do wonders. Maybe he should just take her out there with him. Everyone would love him and that'd be pretty good…except for the part where Stephanie killed him because he took Flynn out to the ring.

"It's too bad Britt is still on vacation, I know she'd want to see Flynn," Stephanie said as she pushed open the door and saw Adamle on the other side.

"Stephanie, we get the pleasure of seeing you this week too?"

"Um, yeah," Stephanie said, eyeing him suspiciously. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I wanted to inform Chris that Shawn will be on the show tonight and I think it's in both of your best interests to stay away from each other. I don't want another ugly incident like what happened before," he told Chris. Chris's jaw set at the thought of being in the same building as Shawn again. "Is that your daughter, my, my, my, she is a cute, little thing, isn't she?"

Stephanie wondered if he was going to go running to call her father and tell him that he had seen his granddaughter and tell Vince everything about what she looked like. "Yes, she is, but there was hardly a doubt of that happening. Is that all you needed, Mike?"

"Yes, just…I don't want anything bad to happen under my watch, you understand, right?" Adamle said.

"Yeah, I think I do," Chris told him as Adamle left. "So Shawn's here tonight…"

"How dare he tell you not to do anything? You don't have to listen to him," Stephanie said, her anger rising at the thought of this man being under her father's thumb. "You know, when I told him what to do last week, I bet you that he went to my father and asked permission first."

"Maybe."

"If Shawn does come out, I _want_ you to go out there. Show Adamle that he can't dictate what you do. You own this joint, try and tell you what to do, how _dare_ he."

"Mommy, no mad," Sawyer said as he grabbed his toy bag and dragged it over to the couch.

"I agree, don't get mad. That'll just make Flynn mad…I wonder what she looks like mad."

"Like me, probably," Stephanie said. "I don't get his angle. If you want to go out there and beat the hell out of Shawn, that's your choice. _He_ does not get a say in that. _We_ own this company, we're employing him and when I come back…oh, he better watch out."

"Mommy's crazy, huh, kid?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer nodded seriously.

"See, what about you, Flynn?" Chris asked. Flynn's eyes trained up, but she just continued to suck on her pacifier. "Keep sucking on your binky if that means yes…see, she thinks you're crazy too."

"Yeah, well, you married this crazy lady and it could be worse, I could be like…Edge, who's completely crazy. Plus, you're crazy for marrying me, so there."

--

"Has he come out of his room yet?" Trish asked as she saw Christian come downstairs.

"Still says he's too hurt."

"I can't believe we have to take care of your brother. He's even _more_ paranoid now than he was before the match," Trish said with a sigh. She was kind of tired of Edge hanging around everywhere. This time though, he refused to even leave the room. At least there was a bathroom attached to the room so he didn't stink up her whole house, but now he was just milking his injuries and being paranoid and she was getting married in less than a month and she didn't need a crazy almost brother-in-law getting in the way of her wedding plans.

"He's hurt, Trish. You've never had to go through a ring, have you?"

"I don't think so," she admitted.

"Well, it hurts, he's hurt."

"So you're saying you wouldn't kick him out if you got the chance?"

"I didn't say that," he said, lifting her legs so he could sit down. He put her legs on top of his lap and watched what she was watching for a few minutes. "It's not so bad, is it?"

"No, but I just wish he'd go to his own house."

"His life is in shambles right now."

"Well, what do you want me to do?"

"Remember when you mentioned that he might be missing Lita. I really think the last time he was truly happy and not…dysfunctional was when he was with Lita. He really liked her. Now, I know you two made your peace when you both went to the Raw 15th anniversary…so you know…could you call her, maybe?"

"What? You want to set up your brother back with Lita?"

"Yeah, I was thinking about it. It might get him out of his funk."

"He's married," she told him. "I know that it's not a very good marriage, or even really a marriage right now, but…he's still married."

"I don't think that's going to work out, to tell you the truth. That could be just a hunch though, I'm not sure."

"Well, I don't think so either, but you know, we could've been wrong and he actually loves Vickie and we're forcing Lita on him? Don't you think that's kind of wrong?" Trish said. "I mean, I guess I could call her up, maybe she could talk to him."

"See, that's good, I'd take that," Christian said. "Maybe it would get him out of the house."

"That'd be nice," Trish said. "I don't know if she'd come though. I mean, did she and your brother end okay? I don't think they did, I don't remember."

"It's worth a shot. I don't want my brother to be the thorn at our wedding. I want that day to be the best day ever for the both of us and if my brother is acting like a paranoid jerk, it's not going to be fun and this is the only time I'm going to get married so I want it to be good."

"That's sweet," she said, moving so she was kneeling next to him. She kissed him and he wrapped his arms around her, starting to move her down towards the couch, hovering over her. She wrapped her own arms around him and deepened the kiss. Trish could hear walking in the kitchen and she groaned against his mouth. Christian thought he was turning her on. "No, no," Trish said, pushing him away, "your brother is in the kitchen."

Now it was Christian's turn to groan, "Edge, are you in there?"

"Just getting food!"

Trish rolled her eyes, "Didn't you have enough dinner?"

"No," Edge said. "I'll be out of your way."

"Of course he will, he's going to his burrow," Trish hissed to Christian. Christian laughed a little and resumed kissing Trish, but she was having none of that with Edge a few feet away. She had no problem making out with Christian in front of people, but him being on top of her, that was kind of a line.

"Going back upstairs!" Edge yelled as they heard him going towards the stairs.

"I'm going to go talk to him."

"Let him eat first," Christian said.

"You just want to make out with me."

"Well…yeah, but he can wait," Christian said as he lowered himself over Trish again.

--

Stephanie paced back and forth. Something was brewing inside her head. "Shawn doesn't know you're here."

"No," Chris said as he hooked a mobile over Flynn's carrier. He pushed it around a little bit and she stared up at it in fascination, her eyes looking over the shapes and colors as Chris played with her foot. Her little sock was coming off so he pushed it back up her foot. "What about it?"

"What if he didn't know at all?" Stephanie said.

"What do you mean, I'm not getting you."

"I mean like, what if he thinks that you're not here at all and then you show up backstage to confront him. That way Adamle would see it and would prove to him that you don't listen to him."

"And if he sent me home?"

"He can't send you home," Stephanie said. "How could he possibly send you home? He can't do it."

"Well, he is in charge."

"Please, the guy is no more in charge than…Cena is in charge," Stephanie said. "So he can't possibly kick you out and then Shawn thinks you're not here and then, surprise! You ambush him and kick his ass again for making you look bad when he's the one that ducked out of the way."

"I guess I could."

"Well no more guessing…we just have to lay low. We can do that, right? Oh, I have to talk to Adamle. Damn it, I don't have any kind of disguise. I'll call him!" Stephanie said, grabbing her cell phone. "I know I have his phone number on here somewhere…here it is," she said giddily, pressing the number and waiting for it to connect, "Hey, Mike, it's Stephanie."

"Stephanie, hello again."

"Yeah, I was hoping you could come to Chris's locker room and we could chat, thanks," Stephanie said, trying to sound as nice as possible.

"Of course I can, I'll be right there."

"Thanks, til then," Stephanie said, then hung up.

"What are you going to tell him?"

"I'm just going to tell him not to tell Shawn that we're here tonight. If he is working for my father, he'll listen to me, he proved it last week. My father knows what Shawn said to me, he has to know, so he'll let it by. If Shawn's here tonight, he's going to go out and say something. Maybe he'll challenge you to a match, he probably will, to 'avenge' his wife, then you'll…show up on the screen! We can just say you're in Connecticut…but then some people have seen you, but you'll be backstage anyways…yes…I like this."

Chris stood up and grabbed Stephanie around the waist. Her eyes were lit up like she was staring at something she wanted very much. Chris kissed her neck and she hardly seemed to notice so he just nuzzled his nose against her, taking in the soft scent of her shampoo. He liked that he could get his arms around her again. He sighed against her skin and closed his eyes.

"I love you," he mumbled, his lips gently brushing against her skin. "You're so devious."

"Well, I try to be," she said, watching as Sawyer, who had seen Chris get up, go over to Flynn and sit next to her, shaking her mobile around. Sawyer grabbed her hand and reached it up to the objects floating around and the little girl made a grab for it. "Who does Shawn think he is, anyways? You're not intimidated by him."

"No, I'm not," Chris said.

"It was an accident and if he doesn't see that…why shouldn't you blame everyone else. If Shawn had taken his punch like a man you wouldn't have hit Rebecca. Why did he even bring her out there in the first place? Who the hell cleared that? I bet it was Adamle. She shouldn't have been in the ring in the first place."

"Shh, quiet time," Chris said, rubbing her stomach. "I don't know why she was out there, but it happened. I'm still sorry about it though."

"Well, you're a good man, despite what everyone thinks about you," she said as a knock came to the door. "That must be him. Get off of me."

"No," Chris said, "I just want to hold you."

"I can't act professional with you hanging all over me," Stephanie said, gently untangling his arms from around her waist and going over to the door. "Mike, thanks for coming. Chris and I have a huge favor to ask of you."

"Anything," Adamle said, probably realizing that above anything else, Stephanie was his boss and could fire him at any moment.

"Thanks so much," Stephanie said. "Anyways, we know Shawn is here obviously and have you spoken with him yet, by the way?"

"I have not."

"Good…I want you to not say anything about Chris being here."

"You want me not to tell him you're here."

"Yes, that would be best. We've got…issues with Shawn and well, I have my children with me and I figured that Shawn is not in the best of moods and with my kids here, you understand my concern, right?"

"Of course, of course," Adamle nodded. "I wouldn't want to put your kids in danger. I will absolutely not tell Shawn that you're here if I do speak to him, which I anticipate happening. Are you going to make an appearance?"

"Leave that up to me," Stephanie said kindly. "I'm sure you've got so much on your plate already that you don't want to have to worry about this too. I wouldn't want you to either. I am coming back full-time in a month, let me take care of this situation."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive, just don't mention we're here and it'll be fine. If he's heard we're here, just tell him that we left, okay?" She smiled at him, hoping that she was getting her message across. Though she was being friendly and sweet with him, it was a deathly cold kind of friendliness that threatened malice if her words went unheeded.

"I will do that, is that all?"

"Yes, thank you, keep up the good work," Stephanie said as he left. "Good, now that we have that settled, I need to go speak to production…damn it, I should've asked for a walkie-talkie. I'm going to quickly head down to production and have them set something up for you."

"What?"

"Your fake studio. You know, it makes perfect sense that you'd be at Titan. We're in Connecticut because of the weather situation in Florida and we're staying there until Flynn can really travel…of course you'd be at Titan. Oh…that is perfect. This is all working out so well."

"I'm surprised you aren't just challenging Shawn to a match the rate you're going."

"Shawn wants to live, getting in a ring with me would be against his better judgment. He'd never hit me because I'm a woman and I'd beat the crap out of him because he wouldn't hit me."

"You really think of everything."

"I'm heading out. Stay here, I'll grab you some food…I don't want you to be seen. If someone sees me, I can just be like, 'I'm here to drop something off and I'm leaving, do you think I'd leave my newborn, no way,' and they'll eat it up."

"Okay, get food for the kid too."

"Oh, okay, I was seriously going to forget about my son," Stephanie said, "I'll be back, remember, lay low, I'm taking the name off of your door, keep it locked, I'll knock five times on it so you know it's me."

"Aye, aye, Captain," Chris saluted. Stephanie glared at him, then went in for a quick peck on the lips before she scuttled out of the room. Chris went over and sat next to Sawyer and Flynn and looked at the two of them. Sawyer looked up at him. "You guys are very lucky that she's your mommy, you know that. If she wasn't, she could be plotting against _me_ and who knows how that would've turned out."

"Bad," Sawyer said.

"Yeah, see, you know how Mommy is, it would've turned out bad," Chris said with a nod.

"Uh huh, Mommy yell," Sawyer told his father, like he really needed to tell Chris.

"You know, she used to yell at me all the time, before you two came along, your mommy hated my guts and you know what she did?"

"Mmm…no?"

"She threw a bucket of water on me for one, right in the middle of a match!" Chris exclaimed indignantly and Sawyer reacted to the way his father said that with widened eyes, like he was actually shocked that his mommy would do such a thing. "Granted, I spit in her face once."

"Oh," Sawyer said, directing his attention back to his sister.

"We weren't very nice to each other when it came down to it."

"Yeah, I know," Sawyer said.

"What do you know, this was way before you were born, it was way before your mommy and I even got together. Have you been sneaking tapes into your room or something?" Chris asked.

"No, I know," Sawyer just said. "Fwynn smells."

"Oh, I thought that was you," Chris winked as he lifted Flynn up. "Oh yeah, looks like someone has a not-so-nice present for me, huh, Flynn? We should throw that stinkbomb into Shawn's locker room, that'll have him vexed for sure."

Stephanie was busy getting everything ready for Chris. She had managed to duck into the production truck fairly easily, nobody really paying attention to her (it could've been the speed-walking). She told them that she wanted a set put up in one of the spare rooms, making it look like they weren't even in the building. She oversaw what it looked like and was satisfied with what they came up with. Shawn would never suspect that Chris was even here tonight.

She laughed to herself as she thought of the havoc Chris would wreak on Shawn when the time came.

--

"Edge," Trish knocked. "Can I come in?"

"Sure," Edge said.

Trish stepped tentatively into the room. She hadn't actually been in here since Edge had been camping out at their house. She expected garbage and filth and just an overall smell of musty…male scent or something, but it was relatively clean, much cleaner than she had expected it to be. That was a relief at least. She half-figured there would be mold seeping out from under the door by now.

"Can we talk?"

"About what?" Edge asked suspiciously.

"Things, I guess."

"Are you going to kick me out of your wedding?" he wondered.

"No, that's not my decision to make, your Christian's best man, if he didn't want you to be best man anymore, that's entirely up to him. He's taking care of his groomsmen and I'm taking care of my own thing," Trish said. "As far as I know, he still wants you to be his best man."

"Oh, okay."

"Yeah, I just wanted to talk about the Vickie situation…you know, what's going on with that and everything…"

"Nothing, we haven't spoken since…well, you've seen what's happened."

"Yeah, and how are you feeling?"

"Better, I guess, nothing can quite prepare you for going through the ring and almost being set on fire," Edge said and Trish didn't know if he was trying to make her laugh, but she kept her mouth shut in case he wasn't being funny.

"Yeah, well, that's rough."

"Yeah," he said morosely and part of her believed he really did love Vickie. If that were the case, she really wanted to know why because she couldn't find one redeeming quality in that woman.

"Maybe she's just not right for you."

"I don't know." He seemed so lost and she was shocked she hadn't seen it. But maybe she was just so involved in her own wedding and wanting him out of her house that she just didn't see it. "Maybe…"

"Yeah, anyways, Christian and I were talking and we just trying to remember the last time we thought you were truly happy, you know, just like, that carefree guy that you were and we didn't see that when you were with Vickie. I don't know why we didn't see it, but there it is. We just didn't see you guys really fitting together."

"You're not the only one."

Trish swallowed her words, "Yeah, I figured we weren't."

"Chris and Stephanie didn't get it either and neither did my mom or my grandma or my step-dad or really, anyone…except everyone in La Familia."

"Well, I get that," Trish responded. Of course they would support it. "Anyways, we were thinking and thinking and we came to the conclusion that you were really happy with Lita. You were a horrible jerk to most everyone, but you were really happy with her."

The hint of a smile peeked its way onto Edge's mouth, "We did have a lot of fun. It was like we were in a serious relationship, but we weren't at the same time, you know. It's hard to explain, but it felt good to be with her."

"Yeah, we thought so too, well, we thought you thought that you were good with her…do you miss her ever?"

He shrugged, thought for a moment, then answered, "Sometimes, I guess. I don't really know. I mean, I do and I don't. She was great though, wasn't she?"

"Yeah, and you know, if you wanted, I could call her up. We really cleared the air between us when we appeared on Raw last year. I've actually kept in touch with her, albeit few and far between, but I know where to reach her. She's out with her band, she's having fun, maybe it…maybe it would be cool if you saw her."

"Really? You think so?"

"It'd be worth a shot, don't you think?"

"I don't know…sure, I guess."

"Awesome, you won't regret it, it'll be therapeutic," Trish said, patting him on the leg.

Maybe this was step one to getting him the hell out of her house.

--

"You're sure I look okay?"

"You look great," Stephanie said. "I think Shawn is going to be coming out right after this commercial. They just showed him walking to the ring. Then we'll hook up to you and you can do your thing. You can see and hear him on the monitor and…well, you know what to do. You'll know what to say and we'll just stand here and watch you, being supportive and everything."

Stephanie pulled out of sight, holding Sawyer's hand with one hand and holding Flynn in her arms with the other. Flynn was asleep, her head laying on Stephanie's shoulder, comfortably resting against her mommy. Sawyer kept wanting to wander over to where Chris was, wanting to stand next to his father, but Stephanie kept telling him that he couldn't go over there, which kind of bugged him. What was his daddy doing that meant he couldn't be with him? He wasn't out in the ring, he _knew_ that area was off-limits and besides, it was really boring out there; there weren't any parties or anything.

The monitor came on in front of Chris and he watched as Shawn went out to the ring to speak. He spoke about Rebecca and how she was tough and how she'd be okay and Chris was thankful for that. He honestly didn't want to hurt her. Shawn said he was watching last week and saw Chris have no remorse for what he had done and Chris took offense to that. Maybe Shawn hadn't seen it because Chris had busted his eye, but Chris was deeply remorseful for what he had done. He never wanted to hit Rebecca. He just didn't think it was his fault and he would stand by that. Shawn had ducked right out of the way, anyone who could see could've seen that.

Chris bided his time until he felt it appropriate to interject. He figured that Shawn wasn't going to go anywhere, he had anticipated that move. That was fine with Chris. If Shawn wanted his ass kicked a little bit more, Chris was ready and willing to fight him again. Suddenly, Chris showed up on the screen and Stephanie gave him a thumbs up, giving her silent support of him. Chris started off with what Stephanie had told him to do, telling Shawn he wasn't there. Shawn bought it and so did the crowd.

He told Shawn exactly what he thought and the words just poured from his mouth. Shawn didn't want to face Chris again because Chris would give him double what he gave him before. It must've just been something about having his little girl in front of him now that made him ultra-protective of her. Thinking about the things Shawn had said about his daughter and then holding his daughter as she looked up at him in wonder, it made Chris's blood boil to the point where if he got Shawn in a ring again, he might not be responsible for his actions.

Shawn challenged him to a match like Chris thought he would, an unsanctioned one, which meant that this would be absolutely no holds barred. Just the two of them in a match where anything could happen. Stephanie hadn't realized that was going to happen, but she couldn't tell him that she had an uneasy feeling about that. Shawn was already calling Rebecca tougher than Chris because he hesitated. Chris wasn't going to take that and accepted as Shawn went off about something, saying he was going to take an eye for an eye. Chris thought it a lame pun, inappropriate for the situation.

"Unsanctioned?" Stephanie said. "I'm not sure I want you in a match like that."

"Too late," Chris said, taking Flynn from Stephanie. Stephanie bent down to pick up Sawyer, who was starting to get sleepy. He reached sleepily across for Flynn, whose arms were limp against her sides as she slept, only momentarily opening her eyes as she was transferred from one person to the other.

"Down, Mommy."

"You want to go down?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer nodded, so Stephanie placed him down on the ground.

"Yeah, you'll win anyways," Stephanie said confidently. "Come on."

They walked out of the room and waited, and waited and then there was Shawn. He looked surprised to see them there. "You didn't think I wouldn't be here, did you, Shawn?"

"Don't mess with me tonight, Jericho."

"How dare you say that I wasn't remorseful," Chris said.

"I'm surprised you didn't come out there tonight," Shawn said, ignoring him. "I figured you would want all the spotlights on you. What, were you afraid I was going to beat your ass to within an inch of your life?"

"Everything between us is personal," Chris told him. "I don't care if the fans are right there. This is between you and me now."

"Yeah, it is. You could be a little contrite for what you did, you know."

"I was, I didn't mean to hit her," Chris said. "You ducked out of the way. Why should I take the responsibility for that? That was you, Shawn, not me. But I'm here to face you right now, no cameras on us, you're not the ShowStopper and I'm not Y2J. We're just two men who don't see eye to eye so to speak."

"Is that all it is?"

"You went too far with your words, Shawn. I'm sorry that Rebecca had to get caught up in the middle of it, but I'm not sorry for what I've done to you, not by a long shot."

"You should be…and look at you, bringing your kids to the show, how old is your daughter? Not even a month and you've got her around here, what the hell does that say about you?" Shawn said, then turned to Stephanie, "What, your work is so important that you're willing to risk your daughter's well-being?"

"Oh give it up, Shawn," Stephanie said. "Chris wants to be around his kids, that's all. You can't blame a guy for that, can you?"

"Whatever, we'll see what happens when I get you in the ring. You're actually lucky you have your kids tonight because that means I won't beat you up, you son of a bitch."

"Watch what you call me, Michaels," Chris said, his jaw set tight. "I will not hesitate to give my daughter to my wife and kick your ass right now. I'm not going to tolerate someone coming up to me and insulting my family. I've never said word one about your children. No, I don't think they should watch the match we're going to have and I don't think my children should either, but that's a warning, that's not calling my unborn daughter a future whore, now is it, Shawn? I've never said anything about your little girl and yet here you come, throwing insults left and right."

"What do you think the fans would think of that, Shawn?" Stephanie interjected. "Do you think they'd still be by your side? Oh, yeah, Chris hit your wife, but it was an accident, your words on the other hand, they were deliberate and cruel."

"This doesn't involve you, Stephanie."

"You're lucky it doesn't," Stephanie said, "because trust me, you insult my children, I _will_ come after you. If you didn't have an airtight contract, I would've had you fired so fast that your head would've spun. As it is, I'll just let my husband take care of you and he will too."

"And if he doesn't?" Shawn asked smugly.

"Then I'll make sure you come out of it looking just as bad as I do," Chris told him.

"You mean," Sawyer said, walking around from Stephanie's leg.

"You don't know what's going on, little guy," Shawn said, actually acting kind to the little boy.

"Uh huh, you mean," Sawyer said definitively. This guy just rubbed him the wrong way. He could probably feel the hatred flowing off of his parents and he could sense it and he was embracing it. "I no like, Mommy."

"You've got good judge of character," Stephanie told her.

"You probably trained him to say that, didn't you?"

"No, he's just very intuitive," Stephanie told him. "I guess he knows a jerk when he sees one. Although in this case it's pretty easy to tell." Shawn grit his teeth. "What? You want to hit me to get even with Chris? Well how about this, you say that Rebecca is so tough, let's see, why don't you bring her and we'll see who's tough, me and her…oh, but wait, maybe I'll just tell her what you called my daughter and maybe she'll see where we're coming from."

"I'll see you in the ring, Jericho," Shawn said, walking away.

"I'll call her then!" Stephanie called after him, pretending to be sweet. "Well, I would've liked more punching going on, but that can wait."

"I'm going to be ruthless with him," Chris muttered so only Stephanie could hear.

"I'd expect nothing less."


	201. What Happens Now, September 1, 2008

Stephanie leaned over the crib. Flynn's face was screwed up in apparent anger at having to wake up. Stephanie laughed a little at her face. She just looked so upset and like Stephanie was the last person she wanted to see. She probably was though. Stephanie was starting to think that she was the last one in the pecking order of who Flynn loved. Sawyer was by and away her favorite person in the entire world. Flynn couldn't yet smile purposefully, but Stephanie had no doubt that she was going to smile at Sawyer first. Then came Chris, and then, coming in dead last was the person who carried her for 37 weeks. Maybe Flynn was just tired of her after 37 weeks of being with her constantly.

"Hey there, Flynnie," Stephanie said, picking up her little girl. "It's just you and me tonight, sorry. I know you'd probably prefer Sawyer were here."

This only caused Flynn to cry even more, but Stephanie figured that was more from the dirty diaper than from not getting to see Sawyer tonight, but she couldn't be too sure. She took Flynn over to the changing table and changed her, which helped to bring her cries down to little whimpers. Stephanie took Flynn back into her arms to help quiet her down completely and she bounced Flynn around gently, rubbing her back at the same time. Flynn calmed down after a few minutes and just laid on Stephanie's shoulder, breathing softly.

"So what do you want to do? Do you want to eat?" Stephanie asked. "I know you ate a little while ago, but you might be hungry again. Are you hungry, baby girl?"

Flynn of course didn't answer, but Stephanie took her daughter downstairs into the living room and sat herself down on the couch, sitting cross-legged as she grabbed the remote and turned it on. Raw would be starting in about ten minutes and she of course wanted to watch the show. Her husband was on it after all. But if Sawyer showed up on it, then he wouldn't be her husband anymore, she laughed to herself. Even though it would be alarmingly cute to see Sawyer come out with Chris if he were to cut a promo.

She had been pleasantly surprised when Sawyer had told Shawn he didn't like him. She had never said anything of the sort to the little boy, but she realized he probably had a good judge of character at this point. He could probably sense the tension between his parents and Shawn and it wasn't out of the question for him to side with his parents, whom he loved dearly over someone who was making his parents very angry. Maybe Sawyer could go out there and declare that he didn't like Shawn. Who would boo a little boy?

But no, she couldn't do that. She couldn't have her little boy out there, exposed to the world. She had been put out there in catalogues when she was a little kid and she didn't want the same for Sawyer. She wanted Sawyer to have as regular a childhood as he could. She knew it wouldn't be a regular childhood by the definition of regular, but it was far more regular than the one she had been. It could be worse too, all those celebrity's kids were traveling around more than Sawyer did and probably didn't get to see their parents as much as she saw her kids.

Stephanie shifted so her back was against the arm of the couch. She stretched her legs out a moment before bringing her knees back up. She carefully rested Flynn against her thighs and held her daughter's tiny hands in hers. Flynn was just passing how much Sawyer weighed at birth, coming in at a hefty nine pounds and was steadily gaining weight, becoming a cute, chubby, little thing like her brother was. She still had her dark hair though, and it hadn't lightened up at all, though her eyes had a little. They were still rather dark though, like Stephanie's and not the clear blue that Sawyer and Chris sported.

"You want to watch Daddy tonight?" Stephanie asked. "I want to watch Daddy too. I think it'll be fun. Did you have fun last week?"

Flynn just looked up at her mommy, a small yawn gracing her little face. Stephanie smiled and continued to rub the back of Flynn's hands with her thumb. This was the kind of cuddling Flynn preferred. She didn't like to be coddled or really held close, but she liked the contact with someone and they had found she really just liked to rest with a person. Well, that wasn't true, she liked when Sawyer held her, but that was different, she loved Sawyer a lot and her parents were just kind of along for the ride.

"I think you did," Stephanie told her daughter. "I mean, I know you can't really do anything right now, but I think I saw the spark of interest. You'll get used to it though, Sawyer is. I mean, some people might be like, 'why do you take a little boy across the country, he deserves a stable home!' but what is a stable home, you know? Me and Daddy are together and I like to think that Daddy loves me, I know I love Daddy, and Daddy loves you and really isn't that all we need. I think you'll like it when you go on the road. Sawyer loves it, he says hi to everyone there, he has a great time. Everyone's going to love you too, you're an adorable, little girl. Daddy thinks it's because you look like me, but who are we kidding? You'll probably end up looking like Daddy and then everyone will love you."

Stephanie laughed as she realized she was trying to have a deep conversation with a 3-week-old baby who couldn't possibly understand what she was saying let alone answer her in any way. She ran her hand over Flynn's bare head. Usually she'd be wearing a hat, but it was warm inside the house so it was unnecessary and she'd be damned if she was going to make her daughter wear one of those lame headbands that all little girl babies seemed to wear. Maybe if there were some sort of Jericho headband, maybe then.

"Anyways, did you see how everyone reacted to you last week? I think if you had gone out there with Daddy that everyone would've instantly turned on Shawn and did you even see what Shawn did out there. Daddy was feeling completely remorseful and Shawn just turned it around on him. I should warn you now, baby girl, there are going to be guys in this business who will try to use you. They're going to try to use you and hit on you just for what you can do for them. You're going to have to prepare for it, but maybe you can use a different name. You don't have to be Flynn Jericho, maybe you can just go by…Flynn, how does that sound? I mean, that's your name, but maybe…hey, what about Aurora? That's a really cool name. Oh, and you can wear outfits that have like, stars and stuff on them, that'd be really good, but you'd have to wear a lot of clothes, your dad isn't going to allow you out there in anything skimpy. Just a fair warning."

Stephanie looked up and saw the ending of the U.S. Open flashing across the screen and then the opening logo for Raw. "Okay, let's get ready and watch Daddy, that'll be fun, right? Daddy misses you I'm sure, but he's protecting us because that's what Daddy likes to do."

Chris had the entire bevy of WWE lawyers around him. That was one of the perks, he guessed, of owning the company. He got to have all these lawyers looking after him and making sure this match was going to be fair and legal. Shawn's lawyers had actually drawn up papers and sent them to Chris's lawyers. They had been going over them with a fine-tooth comb ever since. They appeared to be okay, but they were still going over them.

"We'll continue to look these over, Chris."

"Thanks," he said, "I'm going to run, my kid is probably getting tired by now."

"Oh of course, you can take care of that," one of them said, like he was allowing Chris to actually go take care of his child. Chris nodded and left them to their business as he went back to his locker room to get his son. He walked inside and saw Sawyer and Britt playing some sort of game on the floor. "Hey, you guys."

"Hey, Chris, Stephanie just called to ask when you were going to be on the show. Don't tell me she still thinks that if you don't show up you're somehow not really back," Britt laughed.

"She's probably doing something with Flynn and wants to make sure that she won't miss it."

"I'm still kicking myself for not being here last week. Sure, I was off getting rest and relaxation, but I missed meeting Flynn. Everyone got to meet her except me and I'm seriously bummed out that I couldn't see her. I bet she is absolutely the most precious thing ever."

"Uh huh," Sawyer nodded very seriously. He knew Britt was saying something about his baby sister and though he wasn't quite sure what "precious" meant, it was probably something good because people were always happy when they were around Flynn, except when she had a stinky diaper, but he could sympathize with that. Except he was learning to go potty, which made his parents especially happy, he noticed.

"Thanks for making me feel bad about not being here," Britt pouted and Sawyer giggled at her and threw himself into her arms. She gave him a hug and she relented, "Okay, well, I guess I can deal with this."

"Nice, kid, getting on with the ladies already," Chris said.

"Yeah, but this boy won't try to grope me."

"Whoa, are you suggesting _I've_ tried to grope you?" Chris asked with a laugh.

"No, because I know exactly what your wife would do to you if you even ever tried so much as a grope. She would grab you in your kid-maker and drag you away to torture you in the worst possible way, which I imagine would be copious amounts of polka music."

Chris shuddered, "You're sadistic. So we didn't get a chance to talk earlier," he said as he slumped on the couch. Sawyer didn't appear too tired so Chris left him alone. "How was your vacation?"

"Good, relaxing, I needed it, but I'm glad to be back in the chaos. I've gotten used to this job, so don't fire me, okay?"

"And lose the best assistant I've ever had, no way."

"I'm the only one you've ever had."

"See, I have nobody to compare it to," Chris said, "so you've got to stay. I also noticed that you came back tonight and Randy came back tonight. Did you two travel together or something? It's awfully convenient, don't you think? I mean, he comes tonight, you come tonight."

"It's none of your business, Chris," she said as she played with some of Sawyer's bigger-sized Legos.

"That usually means something nefarious has happened," Chris said. "So come on, dish it."

"No dishing."

"Is Hunter here tonight then?"

"I don't know."

"Yes, you do, don't lie," Chris told her. Britt seemed to bristle a little at this and Chris thought about dropping it, but he wanted to know what was going on with Britt and Hunter. It made Hunter a lot more bearable when he had Britt in his life. The man was a downright joy to be around. "I just like you and him together."

"Oh yeah?"

"Sure, he's…a nice guy."

"You kind of hesitated there," she told him, smirking at him. "You don't really like him, do you?"

"Well, I just always have to get past the fact he's slept with my wife," Chris said. "You'll excuse me if that's the first thing I always think of when I think of the man. I can't help it. Maybe if I could go back in time…maybe."

"Maybe I came with Hunter then," Britt said, "and maybe he couldn't come in here because he's with a certain person who we both know you don't like. Maybe that's where he is."

"And Randy?"

"Maybe I came with Randy, maybe I've spent the last couple weeks with Randy."

"You're a bitch, have you been taking lessons from my wife?"

"She is very good…but come on, answer the question, who are you bringing to Christian and Trish's wedding? Hunter? Randy? A new guy?"

"I'm not going to deign that with an answer," Britt said. "Now I've got things to do because I offered my services to Adamle for the evening. I figure if I'm here I might as well work instead of hanging around with you. When is Stephanie coming back again?"

"Three weeks," Chris said with a smile. He couldn't wait until his entire family was together. Then he could have his little boy _and_ his little girl with him. He couldn't wait until Flynn was older and really knew where she was and could be just like Sawyer with his fascination for wrestling. She could be fascinated too. He would absolutely love to have both his kids in the business. That would feel so right, having his entire family here.

Stephanie held the phone up to her ear with her shoulder, "I can't believe you're actually going through with this. Do you remember that little reign of terror they had going?"

"I know, but it's different now, she's cool now," Trish said. Christian started kissing her neck and she pushed him away. "I've talked to her since then and she's cool. I think the time away has done her well."

"How much of that is because she's not with Edge anymore, though?"

"Okay, so you've got a little point there," Trish said, "very small…Christian, stop it."

"What? I'm not doing anything," he told her. "I'm just sitting here."

"No, you're not, you're all kissing me and I'm trying to talk to my best friend here, I don't think that Chris is over there kissing her neck."

"He's at Raw, we _saw_ him there on TV."

"I'm actually sitting here with Flynn," Stephanie said as she looked at Flynn, who was still lying on her legs. She was happy and content on her mommy's legs so Stephanie wasn't going to disrupt this quiet moment by moving her.

"Oh, what's she doing!" Trish asked excitedly, pushing Christian away again.

"She's just sitting here with me, she's on my legs. We're going to try to stay up and watch Daddy on TV, aren't we, Flynnie?" Stephanie asked her daughter.

"I bet she looks adorable."

"She doesn't like to brag, but she is looking adorable."

"Oh, I want to come see her, next week, I'm going to come see her. So you better get ready for me."

"She'd love to see you, she likes to have company. As long as you don't get all up in her face, then she gets cranky."

"It's been too long since I've seen her. If I had known you were going to be at the show last week, I would've come to see her. It would've saved me the trouble of having to stay here with Dumb and Dumber."

"That is_ such _a lame reference," Christian said. "Come on, Trish, I'm marrying you, I don't want to be married to a loser."

"Go back to kissing me, jerk," she told him. "So okay, you've got a point…Christian!"

"Okay, you're just making me think there's something really dirty going on over there," Stephanie laughed. "Please don't make me think that. I don't want to sit here with my daughter and think of other people doing…stuff."

"Why? Because you can't?"

"Ouch, low blow," Stephanie said. "And I can tell Chris wants to. He's constantly getting me worked up and I can't really, it's just…you know, stuff has to heal down there, but he wants it and then we have to--"

"Okay, okay, I get it, you don't want to hear what we're doing over here. We're sorry."

"It's okay, you're in that phase."

"What phase?" Trish asked as she leaned back against Christian, who was kissing her neck again, feathering her skin with light kisses. Edge was upstairs again so they were fine to be down here and kind of fooling around, but not really.

"The phase right before you get married," Stephanie said. "When it's so close and you're just so ready for it to be here and you guys are all feeling in love and everything and you can't keep your hands off of each other and you just want to be together…it's a good feeling, been a while since I felt that since you know, married over here."

"It is a good feeling, I can't believe we're getting married this month. Did you ever think Christian and I would get here?"

"No," Stephanie joked, but a part of her was serious. Christian and Trish were always so up and down, in and out of a relationship that it got confusing and she just figured they'd eventually realize they weren't going anywhere and one of them would leave or something. But they had figured it out. "I mean, I hoped you would, we love you guys. And you know, Chris and I can't be the ones with the normal relationship, that's just crazy."

"Except you guys have a completely normal marriage. With kids."

"True, but I'm happy for you guys, it's a great feeling, that one around your wedding, when you're not going crazy with preparations. Are you going crazy?"

"A little, we're having problems with Sawyer's tux, in that they can't find it in his size with the style we want, which is very 1930's upper-class. I don't know what to do about it, I'm freaking out about that."

"We can get him a special one, we'll pay for it."

"I couldn't ask you to do that, besides, Christian and I aren't poor. If it comes to him, we'll have it specially made, we're just trying to find one his size. It'd be weird if he was in a regular one and everyone else was in the theme."

"Yeah, have I told you how much I love the bridesmaid dresses?" Stephanie said.

"Thanks, that means a lot. There's just so much to think about, I kind of wish I had gone your route and done a small wedding. How many people were at your wedding again?"

"I think it was something like 45-50," Stephanie answered.

"See, we're having 200 people there, 200 people, I don't even know how we know that many people, but there you go," Trish said, "and please tell me you are bringing that darling girl to our wedding."

Stephanie snorted and looked at her daughter, who was calm for the moment, "Trish, you do not want my daughter at your wedding, trust me. I know you love her and I know you love being around her, but you don't want her at your wedding."

"Why not?"

"Because she'll cry, for one," Stephanie said, "I don't think there's a number two here, she's going to cry and if it's in the middle of the ceremony, there's no way that I can just stand up there and not go to her and then you'll be in the middle of your vows and it'll be this whole thing. I think we're either going to leave her with my mom or something."

"That would suck though."

"Trish, trust me, you don't want her at your wedding."

"I guess," Trish said, "I just like seeing her is all. So, okay, back to the situation at hand…"

"Hold on, I've got another call," Stephanie said. She pushed the button. "Hello?"

"Hi, Mommy, I not tired," Sawyer said.

Stephanie laughed, "Well, I'm not sure that's a good thing. You're a little boy, you should go to bed soon."

"Uh uh," Sawyer said. "I not tired."

"You will be though, are you and Daddy being good boys?"

"Yeah, I am," Sawyer told her and he was. He wasn't doing anything that would make his daddy yell at him, so in his book, that meant he was being a good boy. "You?"

"Yes, I've been very good," Stephanie said good-naturedly. "Did your daddy help you dial me?"

"Mmhmm, he here," Sawyer said, looking over his shoulder at Chris. "Mean, Mommy."

"Daddy's being mean?"

"Yeah, no me," Sawyer said.

"Oh, not to you?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, that it," Sawyer told her.

"Who's he being mean to? Everyone else?"

"Yup."

"Well, Daddy's very serious tonight, he has to sign a contract for a very big match he's having on Sunday. It's not going to be a regular wrestling match."

"Oh," Sawyer said, "Why?"

"Well, you remember that guy from last week that you didn't like?"

"Yes, I do."

"Well, we don't like him and he doesn't like us so Daddy is going to fight him, but it's going to be like a brawl, I know you don't know what that is, but that's what it's going to be, so you know, it's going to be a pretty big match."

"Oh, okay," Sawyer said like he understood. "Here Daddy." There was a small shuffling before Stephanie heard more shuffling and then Sawyer again, "How baby!" He couldn't believe he forgot to ask how his baby was! That was so silly on his part.

Stephanie smiled, "She's good, she misses you though, I know it."

"I miss baby," he said, "I see her."

"Yeah, you'll see her tomorrow, can I talk to Daddy now?"

"Okay, bye Mommy," he said, then there was more shuffling over the line.

"Hey, baby."

"Your son tells me you're being mean to everyone."

"Well, I'm surrounded by incompetence, how could I not be? Britt says hi by the way. She's mad she didn't get to see Flynn last week. She said if she'd known Flynn was here, she would've been here. I think she was off with Hunter. I think those two are together and they're trying to mess with Randy."

"They're doing a terrible job if that's true. So you and Shawn have a contract signing, I see. Are you still not allowed to touch each other?"

"Yeah, that's how it goes. This entire thing is stupid. I don't need to sit there and watch him sign a piece of paper or talk to him about it. I want to get my hands on him and end his career."

"Mean Daddy!" Sawyer yelled and Stephanie laughed.

"What the hell kind of faces are you making that are frightening our son?" Stephanie laughed.

"I don't know what his problem is," Chris said, glaring playfully at his son. Sure, when he was around everyone else, he was mean because he wanted it to be Unforgiven already, but with Sawyer, he never wanted to seem like a mean guy, it would probably be damaging for the young boy to see his father being a complete jackass.

"I've been thinking about what you should say."

"Well so have I."

"Okay, you go first," Stephanie said.

"Well, remember when Shawn was all like, sit your kids down and tell them you'll never be Shawn Michaels," Chris said, doing an intentionally bad impression of the man in question."

"Yeah…"

"Well, I'm going to say I did and that I wasn't going to be this like, egotistical jackass of a man, how does that sound?"

"Good, I like it," Stephanie said. "Better than my idea, so I definitely like your idea."

"Great, I'm going to say that then, it'd be true if I did it too though, I mean, Sawyer wouldn't care and Flynn wouldn't understand, but it wouldn't change the fact I said it, and you understand it anyways. I think I'll also tell him that I'm not going to let them watch it on Sunday."

"Will you let Sawyer watch?" Stephanie asked. "Flynn doesn't really care what you do. I mean, she wants you to win obviously, but she doesn't really care about the how's of it. Sawyer, on the other hand…"

"I don't know yet, what do you think?"

"I don't know if _I_ want to watch it to be honest," she told him, "I'm just worried about you, you know. I mean, this guy thinks you had no regard for his wife and you did and he's mad and you're mad and it's volatile and I know I hate him, Lord knows I do, but you're still my husband and I love you and I don't want you hurt. And what if you get hurt! You'd be out…oh God, now I'm worried again."

"I'll be careful, I promise. I'll kick his ass, but I'll make sure it's not at the expense of my health. There could be a lot of blood though, so I think I'm not going to let Sawyer watch. Last time I ended up with a lot of blood he freaked out on me."

"Yeah, that's true. I wouldn't want that to happen again. So I guess he can stay at home this weekend," Stephanie said.

"It'd probably be for the best," Chris said, "it could get really ugly and the last thing I want is to scare my child."

"See, this is the guy that people need to see," Stephanie said. "If they saw this guy, they'd cheer you so much."

"Yeah, well, I'm happy with who I am, I don't need them. I need you, and Sawyer, and Flynn and that's it. How's my little girl by the way?"

"She's here with me," Stephanie said. "She's just watching Raw with Mommy, well, I'm watching Raw, she's on my legs sucking on a pacifier. She's starting to look like she's getting a little hungry, then she'll burp, poop and then fall asleep. Do you not know her routine by now?"

"I know, she's an eating, burping, pooping, sleeping machine," Chris said, "it's a wonder I love her anyways, can I talk to her?"

"Of course you can," Stephanie said, then pulled the phone away from her ear and put it up to Flynn's ear, who was curious as to what this thing was pressing against her. "It's Daddy, baby, say hi to Daddy, he needs the moral support."

Chris listened over the line and could hear the faint sounds of Flynn sucking on her pacifier, "Hey there, flutterby, just wanted to say hey."

"She said hey back, in her own language of course," Stephanie said, "but…oh crap, I forgot I have Trish on the other line, I've got to go! I love you and Sawyer, bye!" Stephanie ended the call and switched back, "I am _so_ sorry."

Stephanie didn't hear anything over the line, but then suddenly, "Oh hey, you're back, it's fine, Christian and I were…well, we were fine."

"Okay, sorry, it was Chris," Stephanie said, "and we got caught up, anyways, it couldn't hurt to call Lita I guess, but be aware that she might not be so receptive to it."

"I know, I think I'll just wait a little while to see how Edge is doing. I mean, he hasn't really even talked to Vickie since everything happened, so I don't even know what's going on there. He won't talk about it, he's like…he's like a baby in his 30's. I feel like his mother sometimes. I'm just trying to find a way to help."

"You're too nice."

"I know it, but he's my future brother-in-law," Trish said, smiling widely. Christian smiled back at her. They were so close to their wedding and it was all coming together and in the right way too. They weren't going to let anything dampen their day and if they had to set Edge up with Lita just to get him through the day, just to give them the day they deserved and had been dreaming about for years now, they were going to do it, no questions asked.

"Well, you're doing the right thing then, but I agree about waiting."

"Thanks, okay, I'll let you go now, let you go be with that cutie of yours. Is she still awake?"

"Yeah, she stays up for a few hours at a time now, a little less maybe, but she can stay up for a while. She's just looking at me, watching me, wishing I were Sawyer."

Trish laughed, "Okay, love you guys, bye."

"Bye."

"Hey."

Britt looked up, "Hey, Randy."

"You haven't answered any of my calls…so I stopped."

"I noticed, it was deliberate," she said, "how are you?"

"I'm good. So…"

"Randy, no, I've told you a million times," Britt said. "I'm just not interested."

"But I think you are and you're afraid."

She laughed, "You're just coming up with lines now. Come on, Randy, if I were interested at all…if I found you attractive at all, I would hope you would just be natural around me and not this…fake person."

"I'm natural."

"You're also a pretty big jerk," she said with a nod, "I saw you out there."

"I wouldn't be like that around you."

"Well, I guess, but still," she said. "It doesn't cast the best shadow on you if you know what I mean. I just…look, I'm sure you're a nice guy, but this has got to stop. What is it going to take to really get you to stop? Because I honestly don't see a future or anything for us. I'm not even sure what you see here when I keep rejecting you."

"One date, you told me you'd go out with me and you never did, so one date and I will show you exactly what Randy Orton has to offer."

"That sounds ominous," she told him.

"That's the deal."

She took a deep breath, "Fine, one date, next week, you show up here and I'll be here and we'll go out. Okay?"

"You won't regret this and _don't_ cancel on me," he warned her in what he thought was a playful way.

"I won't, trust me," she said. No, she was going to go through with it this time. She had to. Randy just had to see there was no future for the two of them. One date couldn't hurt, could it? One date couldn't hurt anything and she wouldn't have a good time.

Would she?

"Hey, what's going on?"

"Nothing," Britt said as she walked back to Chris's locker room. "I just agreed to go on a date with Randy."

"Excuse me?"

"He was bugging me again and I said I would and I'm not backing out, so don't expect me to," Britt said as she pushed the door open and two strong arms wrapped around her torso. I'm just going to go out with him, consider it a free meal and be done with it."

"Do you have to?"

"Yes, what you want me to start dating him and have a secret affair with you?"

"Yes, I would like that very much, sharing you would be great," Hunter said sarcastically, holding her tighter against him. "Can he get bitchy, morning you? I'll just take hot, sexy nighttime you."

"Yeah, you'd love that, wouldn't you, just pawn me off in the mornings. Excuse me if I find your morning regime to be a little too rigid to my liking," Britt told him. "What are you doing?"

"I was actually going to get a water for Shawn. I should probably go get that, but I couldn't resist coming to see you. It's been too long since I've gotten to hold you and Shawn keeps talking about Rebecca and well, you know."

"That was the worst proposal ever," Britt told him.

"That was not a proposal. I'm not ready to get married again," he said.

"That's the first I've heard of that."

"It's not that what happened with Stephanie scarred me for life, but I just jumped into it with her and it was bad…well, it was good and then it was bad, but it wasn't great all the time, you know what I'm saying…what _am_ I saying?" he chuckled. "I guess what I'm getting at is that I just want to take things slow, take it slow and make sure I'm ready."

"That's a very mature way of looking at things," Britt told him. "I don't want to get married now anyways. Plus, we've only been seeing each other for like, a year and a half, right, something like that."

"Well, I didn't want to take it so slow that you'd forget when things happened between us."

"Sorry," she said, "you better go back to Shawn before Chris comes in here and teases us. I kind of like keeping people in the dark about us. It'll make it easier with this Randy thing and then when I finally convince him we'd be bad together, then we can just go back to being normal…semi-normal. I mean, I know that we've been doing this separates thing because of your thing with Chris and Shawn, but you know, semi-normal is something to shoot for."

"So this tattoo I got of your name on my ass is going to have to go?"

"Definitely, that's just frightening."

"Okay," he said, kissing her cheek. "I'll see you later."

"That you will."

Hunter left the room and went to get Shawn his water. He had only volunteered because he needed to get away from Shawn for a few minutes. It wasn't that he hated Shawn or anything now, they were still friends, but he was seeing both sides of the coin. He saw things from Chris and Stephanie's perspective and to be quite honest, he saw it better from theirs. He sympathized with Shawn, but he did the same with Chris and Stephanie. Plus, he loved Sawyer, he loved that little kid like nothing else. Maybe it was just that he saw what he could've had with Stephanie and that gave him this weird bond with the kid, but he just liked that young boy.

"Hey, here's your water," Hunter said. "Those the papers."

Shawn was looking over the papers, "Yeah, Jericho's lawyers have them now, I think they're going over them with him."

"Oh," Hunter said, tossing Shawn the water.

"I can't wait to make him suffer like Becs suffered."

"Isn't she fine though?"

"Still, man…"

"No, no, no, I know," Hunter said, "I get it. You know though, it _was_ an accident. He didn't mean to hit her, I mean, he meant to hit you."

"Your point?"

"No point, I just…I don't think Chris is particularly happy that he hit a woman. I don't think he's that kind of guy. I mean, I got to know him you know and he loves Stephanie a lot, I guess he proved that by going after you since you…well, I mean, you know."

"You can't be siding with them."

"I'm not," Hunter said, turning stoic again. Stuttering? He didn't stutter. "Trust me, but seriously, you can't see it from his side at all?"

"All I see is a jealous bastard," Shawn said, "one who hit my wife."

"Okay, if that's the way you see it."

"It _is_ the way I see it."

Chris looked over the documents as one of the lawyers went over them. Lance had found him and he was sitting in on this little session with the lawyer as Chris talked about the kinds of things that were going to be allowed and what wouldn't be allowed. There weren't going to be any real weapons, Shawn wasn't going to come down to the ring with a knife, but Chris figured that was a given. But it had to be in the contract or there'd be some loophole that Chris could use to what, stab Shawn? That was preposterous. He didn't need weapons, he could use his fists to bring down Shawn Michaels.

By the time he got back to his locker room, Sawyer was starting to get sleepy. They had invested in an air mattress for him and the little boy was getting situated on it, bouncing a little because it made him giggle. He was really getting the hang of potty-training, but at night he still wore a diaper, just in case. Chris came over and knelt next to Sawyer, who was burying his head in his pillow. Britt let Chris take over tucking in Sawyer.

"Hey kid, you going to bed?"

"Yeah, you too?"

"Nah, I'm not going to bed, I've got some things to do before I go to bed, but you get to sleep now, okay?"

"Night to Mommy," he said.

"I'll tell her that you said goodnight, okay?"

"Fwynn…"

"Flynn too, but I think she's probably asleep too since she's little and she needs her sleep," Chris said, running his hand through his son's hair. He really did need a haircut. "I've got to go out and do something with Shawn, remember him from last week?"

"No like," Sawyer said, his way of remembering.

"Yeah, that's the one, well, I've got to sign some things. I'm not going to let you watch our match on Sunday though, okay? You're going to stay at home with Mommy and Flynn and maybe you and Mommy can play some giant game of hide and seek or something, but a very safe hide-and seek so you don't get hurt."

"Okay," he said as he closed his eyes. Chris leaned down and kissed Sawyer's head as the little boy yawned and started to fall asleep.

Chris went and sat on the couch, just sitting there and thinking about later, getting his intensity up. He thought about Flynn and hearing her over the phone. Sunday was going to be a brutal match and he had to be more mentally prepared than physically prepared. He had discussed something with Lance earlier and he went over that plan in his mind a little bit. Britt watched him for a few minutes and she opened her mouth to speak, but decided against it. She didn't want to break Chris's concentration.

Stephanie sat there feeding Flynn as she watched Chris come down to the ring. He looked great tonight. She couldn't say that she hated his new look because she loved the way he looked in a good, tailored suit. She had to commend herself for that somewhat. Before she started dating Chris and even a little bit into their relationship he would just buy a suit and wear it and they tended to be ill-fit and make him look awful. But she had pushed him to get them tailored like her father and brother had been doing for years and it made a world of difference. It also helped that she sent him to the same place her dad got his suits so they were also very well-made and it showed.

She just wished he would get rid of those stupid trunks. She cringed at that, but looked down at Flynn instead, "You know, Daddy is looking good tonight. If I didn't have you right now, I'd be over there and I'd be planning the kind of fun we'd be having once Sawyer fell asleep, but you just had to barge in on us, didn't you?"

Chris got into the ring and waited for Shawn to show up. He lounged in his chair, not caring at all about Shawn. Shawn was trying to be intense with him, but Chris put on an air of indifference. He wasn't going to let Shawn intimidate him. This was a guy who was on the cusp of retiring, who _should_ be retired because Chris had taken such good care of his eye, but Shawn just had to come back to avenge his wife and that would be his downfall. His hero complex was going to get him in trouble. Chris just focused elsewhere and thought about his little girl who he adored and his son backstage who hopefully thought of him as his hero.

Chris could feel Shawn's eyes on him, as if daring him to look, to be afraid, to show that Shawn was indeed the superior man, but Chris didn't give him the satisfaction. King told them what they already knew: Adamle had told them they couldn't touch each other before the match. What did Adamle know anyways? He was probably working through Vince. Chris sucked at his teeth a little. He could control himself right now. He was adult, not some animal who was on the prowl and couldn't control his attack instincts. The security surrounding them was seriously ridiculous.

They were told to sign the document and he pulled it towards himself and flipped to the last page, signing on the line above his name. _Chris Jericho_ was signed with a flourish and he pushed the thing back on the table. His part of the deal was done and Shawn signed his part and they were definitely going to be in the match, pulverizing each other until neither one could stand. Shawn probably wanted the unsanctioned match because Chris had the entire company at his disposal. Any harm to him and Stephanie would be in a rage, finding someone, anyone to make sure Shawn paid in the worst way. This way was easier, just the two of them.

Chris grabbed the microphone laying next to him and brought it to his lips, cutting off Lawler and bringing up this excessive security. He didn't need it and at last, he and Shawn agreed on something and they sent everyone else out of the ring. Chris told him the story he had concocted about telling his kids just what he thought of Shawn Michaels and that they wouldn't be watching on Sunday. That part was true. Well, maybe Flynn would watch since she would have no clue what was happening, but he'd be damned if Sawyer saw him covered in blood again like he had been in his match against JBL and be terrified of him again. Sawyer would just have to wait until he was older to be able to watch this match. If he could really end Shawn's career he would add it to the highlight reel of his career.

The tension rose when Shawn was talking and got right in Chris's face. He fought the urge to smack him, but it was hard because Shawn was goading him into doing it, he could feel it. If Chris lost his temper than Shawn had won without winning and it would be just like Shawn to take the easy way out, pin it all on Chris, just like he had done with what happened to his wife. If he could pin all the blame on Chris, it absolved the fact he had ducked out of the way and allowed his wife to get hit. Easy way out.

Shawn took off his jacket and Chris stood up and if there was going to be physical contact, he was not going to take it lying down. Then Chris's plan came to fruition and Lance showed up, but Shawn intercepted him and attacked him. Chris hurried out of the ring and went to try to get Lance, but Shawn went for him, falling out of the ring. Chris backed up and then walked up the ramp, never letting his eyes leave Shawn. Chris could see that Shawn was favoring his arm and this intrigued him.

He watched that arm and he saw Shawn grimace and his eyes widened ever so slightly. Was Shawn hurting? It sure seemed plausible and the possibility almost became delicious to him. Normally, he sympathized with a guy getting hurt, but Shawn? There was just no love lost between them and at this point, any kind of advantage going into a brutal match was one Chris had to take. So he kept an eye on that arm, then kept his eye on Shawn's face. He had been in the business enough to know when someone looked hurt and Shawn was giving that look.

Chris may have found a way to win.


	202. It's About Time, September 8, 2008

A/N: I planned to have a short, little thing for Unforgiven, just a little piece on it, a flashback really, but then I checked the results and was completely shocked when I saw Chris had won the World Title. I'm so freaking happy about it and he deserves the title, he's deserved it a number of times, but I'm so happy he finally has it again. He's the best thing Raw has going and I'm glad they seem to have finally recognized that.

So here's an Unforgiven/Raw chapter for you all. Enjoy and review! :D

* * *

"Can you give Flynn her binky?"

Stephanie held out the pacifier to Sawyer. Flynn was crying from her cradle swing that was sitting on the kitchen floor. Flynn had been rocking back and forth, but the swing had stopped and apparently this greatly upset the little girl and she started to cry. Sawyer and Stephanie were eating their dinner and both of them looked to the little girl as she started to cry.

"Where my binky?" he asked as Sawyer took the pacifier from Stephanie.

"You don't use a binky anymore, silly boy," Stephanie told him.

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, nodding as he climbed off of his seat and went to his sister. He gently gave her the pacifier and she took it gratefully, giving him what could only be construed as a look of adoration and love. He rubbed her head for a few moments, brushing the wisps of dark hair back, "I do."

"No you don't, you don't use binkies anymore."

"I do, Mommy," he insisted.

Stephanie laughed and shook her head, "Thank you for giving her, her binky."

"Tank you," Sawyer echoed, not really knowing that you weren't supposed to thank someone back but instead say you're welcome. He ran back to his chair and climbed on, kneeling on the chair and grabbing his fork back. He slowly tried to stab his piece of chicken with the fork, sticking his tongue out a little bit as he concentrated. He was doing relatively well with dinner. His shirt was only half-covered with sauce and juice. He was getting better at eating and not being a complete mess. He got the chicken and ate it triumphantly.

"You're welcome," Stephanie said slowly so he would start to understand what you say when someone thanks you. She continued with her own dinner, every so often checking on Flynn and making sure she was doing okay. She got up and turned the swing back on, hoping the movement would lull Flynn to sleep.

"Where Daddy?" Sawyer asked her, obviously trying to make some light dinner conversation.

"Remember, he left yesterday while you were eating breakfast," Stephanie told him.

"Oh yeah," Sawyer said. "Where go?"

"He has a show tonight," Stephanie explained to him. "He had to fly to Cleveland yesterday, you've been there, you probably don't remember."

"I do," he said, though he really didn't.

"Well then, that's where he is. He's going to be fighting someone tonight, you know what he does," Stephanie said.

"I go," Sawyer said. Usually he went with his daddy and his mommy and Flynn would stay at home.

"Not this time, baby boy," Stephanie told him. "Tonight we're going to be very good and we're going to go to bed early because that's what other little kids do, you know?"

"Oh," he shrugged and went back to his chicken. "I see Daddy?"

"You can't, it'll be on too late," Stephanie told him.

Sawyer screwed up his face a little bit at that, looking like Chris. Stephanie and Chris had both mutually agreed that Sawyer wasn't going to watch this match. Maybe when he was older and could understand they'd let him watch, but they anticipated this being a grudge match of epic proportions and they wanted to shield Sawyer from that kind of raw hatred. Sawyer wouldn't even care if he missed the match. Stephanie could distract him with Flynn anyways.

"Oh, but I wanna see," he told her. He liked to see his daddy on TV. And why couldn't he go anyways? He always went with his daddy to the shows so why couldn't he go this time? There was something very strange about this. He didn't have it in him to be suspicious yet, but he guessed he didn't mind being with his mommy tonight. At least he got to be around Flynn.

"You can see Daddy tomorrow," Stephanie told him.

"I go then?" he asked.

"No, we're just going to stay at home, you don't want to fly tomorrow, do you?"

"Yes," he told her.

"No, you don't," she said, shaking her head at him.

"Yes, Mommy," Sawyer nodded. "I go."

"You'll see Daddy on Tuesday, he'll fly home and then you can play with him and I'll go away, how does that sound?"

His mouth dropped open a little, "No, Mommy."

"Well, only because you insist," Stephanie told him. "Come on, finish your dinner and we can watch your _Go, Diego, Go_ DVD, okay?"

"Fwynn too?"

"Yeah, she can watch too while I feed her," Stephanie said.

This seemed to appease Sawyer and he went back to his dinner, asking for more ketchup. They ate the rest of their meal and then went into the living room. Stephanie got her breastfeeding pillow and settled herself in as Sawyer climbed on the couch and laid his head down on the arm of the couch. Stephanie turned on the DVD and let him fall into the music and pictures in front of him. Stephanie had worn him out today, running around and going for a walk. He probably wasn't going to be up for much longer.

She was right as within 15 minutes of the beginning of the video, Sawyer's eyes were starting to droop. Stephanie just sat there as Flynn finished up with her own dinner and pulled away from Stephanie. She lowered her shirt and rubbed Flynn's back to get her to pass the air in her tummy. She would probably be asleep soon too. Sawyer whimpered a little bit, trying to keep himself awake, but it was no use, he was asleep before the DVD ended.

Stephanie let him sleep there while she went upstairs and got Flynn ready for bed. She was already in her comfy onesie and her diaper was clean for now so it was really just putting her into her crib. Stephanie kissed her forehead and watched as Flynn's blue eyes closed slowly and her head nodded off the tiniest bit to the side as her fists unclenched. Stephanie ran her finger along Flynn's hand before she went back downstairs to her little boy.

She picked up Sawyer carefully, trying not to jostle him awake. He sighed against her as she held him in her arms. She took him upstairs and into his bedroom. She changed him into a nighttime diaper (they were trying out no diapers during the day. He was kind of getting the hang of it, but he had had a few accidents). She took them into the bathroom and woke him up a little so she could brush his teeth. She was quick though and he was in bed in no time, cuddling into the covers of his small bed.

"I love you," Stephanie told him, kissing his head.

"Love," Sawyer breathed out softly and then fell back asleep.

Now came the hard part, Stephanie was going to have to watch her husband all by herself. She had planned it that way though. Her mother had offered to come over, but she had declined the invitation. Stephanie just wanted to watch and stew by herself. Her only consolation was knowing that Shawn's wife was probably stewing over this as well. She was worried for her husband and what was going to happen to him in this match. She wished she could be there, but she couldn't bear to leave Flynn here by herself. She needed to be a mother to her children so she was stuck here.

If she could be there though, she knew she'd be a nervous wreck right about now. It was bad enough when Chris went into matches like the Elimination Chamber, but it was an entirely different thing for him to be in a match where there was nothing protecting him. Shawn could do pretty much anything to him and it would be legal. It was a grudge match in every sense of the word and she had a bad feeling about what was going to come. She grabbed a water from the fridge and sat down, placing Flynn's baby monitor on the coffee table in front of her.

She turned on the show and the Tag Team Championship match was just coming on. She smiled a little when she saw Ted DiBiase. She couldn't deny that she thought he was very good-looking and yes, she did have the slightest crush on him, but she was sure Chris had had a crush on some girl when they were together so it didn't bother her that she was openly eyeing the man walking down the ramp to his match. It wasn't like she was going to act on it or anything. She was very happy with her husband; in fact, she wondered what he was doing right now.

There was a lot of mental preparation to this match. Chris was staring down at the ground, running his hands through his hair every now and then, just mentally visualizing how everything would go down later. He knew that Lance would be there to help him and that was going to be an advantage, but this kid had never been involved in anything like this so he wasn't going to be much of a help, Chris knew this already. Chris had 18 years of experience doing this and he had been in matches that were brutal, so he knew there were a lot of risks coming his way, but Lance didn't and he had been so optimistic when Chris spoke to him earlier.

There was a knock at the door and he called out hoarsely, "Come in."

The door pushed open and Hunter stepped through. Chris briefly wondered if Hunter had been seen coming in here. He took a seat on the opposite end of the couch, "Britt told me you were up next."

Chris was thinking too much to contemplate the fact that Hunter had just been around Britt. He didn't have it in him to tease right now. "Yeah, how's Shawn?"

"Just thinking about how he's going to kick your ass."

"Oh," Chris said as if he didn't hear Hunter at all.

"So you're nervous?"

"Not nervous, just thinking," Chris said, finally looking up at his friend. "You know, it's entirely different when you have kids, this entire thing." He gestured around him. "This whole wrestling thing, it's like you have to approach it completely differently. You have to think about whether or not something is worth it, whether you can go out there knowing that you could be hurt beyond reason when you've got kids at home and I've got a two-year-old little boy and a one-month-old and it's like, is it worth it to do this? Then I think this is my job, of course it is."

"That sucks," Hunter said because he had no children and couldn't relate.

"I want to win."

"I can see you winning," Hunter said. "You just have to remember that in this whole thing, he's going to feel like he has more to rectify than you do. He's going out there with a huge chip on his shoulders and you have to be careful of that."

"I will be," Chris said. "I just have to remember that I'm doing this for my family, you know. How could you have better motivation?"

"This is all the motivation I need," Hunter said, patting the title on his shoulder. Chris looked at it for a long moment. "Now don't tell me you don't think the title is worth it. I thought that you wanted to go after it."

"I do," Chris said, "but that's not what tonight is about. Tonight's about getting rid of Shawn…once and for all."

Chris went out first to his music, determined to win this match. He knew that Shawn was coming out with that same determination. The match had no rules and it showed from the beginning. Shawn was pulling out all the stops and took to hitting Chris with his cowboy boot when Chris was down on the mat. They continued to fight, ending up over the barrier on the outside of the ring. Shawn hit him in the face and he could feel the blood rushing through his nostrils and out his nose. It didn't feel broken though, so he was lucky, but he had no time to think about it as the match continued and his face went into the steel ring post.

He managed a little offense after that when he got out of the way of a chair shot. He got to Shawn and threw him against the announcer's table, putting a little extra zest to it. Chris went to get some tables out and was going to powerbomb Shawn through one of them but didn't get the chance when Shawn countered the move, but it wasn't like Chris couldn't get him later with something else. He just rolled Shawn into the ring to continue his assault. He could still feel the blood at his nose, but he hadn't yet wiped it away.

Chris climbed into the ring with a chair in his hand, hitting Shawn in the stomach with it the moment he stood up. Chris watched as Shawn fell and he repositioned the chair in his hand and waited for the right moment. The moment came and he hit Shawn right in his bad back with the chair and took satisfaction in the resounding crack that came from it. He started taunting him, though he knew it had the potential to be a bad idea. Chris continued to work on his back though.

Stephanie loved it when Chris was focused. There was just something that changed in him when he had a goal in sight, but not just any goal, a goal in the ring. The term "ring general" was often bandied around when speaking of guys who could just command a match, but it wasn't even so much that Chris fit that title. There was just a whole other level for Chris when he was in the ring and focused. He got this intensity that disappeared into casualness when he was with her and their kids. But she loved that look and she trusted that look could get any job done and she was confident he could do this. He could win this match and come back home to her with only a smile on his face.

Just as soon as Chris thought he had the upper-hand, he didn't and was thrown into the post again, but this time from another angle. And even when Chris tried to get a vertical suplex on Shawn, he countered it and Chris tumbled to the ring. Chris couldn't get the offensive back and then Shawn was choking him out and Chris was briefly taken back to when JBL had choked him out with a cord. That was much worse than this so he just had to try and fight his way through it. At least this time he knew Sawyer wouldn't be watching and wondering what the hell was going on.

He couldn't seem to get any offense in and Shawn was continuing to pound on him, but he was making no headway until he was in the crossface and Chris noticed the chair he had positioned in the ropes was still there. He countered and launched Shawn right into it, his face hitting the steel hard. Shawn started to writhe around in pain. Chris targeted the eye and gave Shawn a little of his own medicine, starting to choke him out now. It went back and forth for a little while, but Chris was coming out on top and his resolve was strengthening as he tried to strengthen the hold he had on Shawn with the Walls of Jericho.

Unfortunately with such a move, he was unable to see behind him and couldn't see that Shawn had gotten a fire extinguisher of all things until he was getting sprayed in the eyes. It stung like a bitch and he fell to the mat, grabbing at his eyes. It was like pepper spray or something and he groaned in pain. Yes, he was very glad that Sawyer was not watching this match. Shawn wasn't done with the extinguisher yet as Chris suddenly got hit in the face with it and fell out of the ring.

Shawn kicked Chris with no hesitation at all and then grabbed him by the back of his head and threw him into a light next to the walkway to the ring. Chris grabbed his arm where it hit, but Shawn just grabbed him again and threw him into another barrier as Chris groaned in pain. At this point, he was kind of hoping Stephanie wasn't watching, but she was sitting diligently on the couch, biting her lip, her hands wringing in her lap as she wanted this match to be over. It was harsh enough now, but it could be much, much worse and she wanted it to end before it got to much worse.

Chris was on the ropes now. He was getting tired and Shawn was getting in too much offense and he wasn't getting enough. This would only energize Shawn and give him the precious momentum that was fueling this match. Shawn suplexed him onto the steel and his back stung as he hit the floor. He was taken back to the ring when Lance finally got out there and tried to interrupt the match in Chris's favor. Things started to go Chris's way since he had a little help now and they managed to get Shawn into the ring and Lance held Shawn back so Chris would beat him up.

Shawn managed to come back though, managed to dismiss Lance and while Chris was on the turnbuckle, Shawn hit him with the chair and sent him flying into the table that Chris had set up earlier. Chris was exhausted at this point, but he was going to soldier on until he finished this match…and won. But Shawn kept getting at him and getting at him and Chris was having a more difficult time fighting back, so he started to stay down and Shawn took advantage of his vulnerability and that made him so angry, but everything was just kind of coming to a head and he wasn't really moving.

It was all over then, he could feel it. He didn't even need to lose the match, he could feel he was going to lose. The fight was drained. He wasn't even aware of much after that except that there were trainers near him and he didn't know why they were there. He was fine, he had to win the match. He could feel his strength coming back or was that really even strength at all? He wasn't too sure any more. Maybe he wasn't able to continue.

Stephanie wanted to call Chris, but she refrained. He was probably nowhere near his phone right now. He was probably getting checked by the trainers so she resigned herself to watching the rest of the show. She laid down on the couch, pulling the quilt laying over the top over her as she watched the next match and worried about Chris. Shawn's whipping was sure to leave marks on his back, but that was the least of her worries. He had been bleeding from the nose and she hoped he hadn't broken it. Maybe she could just call and maybe Britt would answer and give Chris the phone.

She grabbed the phone on the side table and dialed Chris's number, listening to it ring, but nobody was picking it up. Maybe Britt wasn't around. "Hey, sweetie, it's me, I just wanted to make sure you were okay. Could you give me a call back as soon as you can to let me know how you are? I love you and I'm so proud of you."

She hung up the phone and put it back in its receiver before she lay down again. She took a deep breath to calm her nerves, which were still on end from that match. She knew it could've been much worse, but she still worried, having seen Chris on the ground like he was. That wasn't a good sign at all and she worried that he was more seriously injured than he was letting on. She just continued to watch the match and hope Chris got her message soon.

Chris had been refused treatment after his match. He wasn't humiliated, per se, he just didn't want to be around anyone so he had staked out a wall in a far corner of the arena and he was just sitting there. The blood was caking around his nose, but he didn't wipe at it. His nose didn't feel broken so that was a plus. His arm was bleeding too, but he didn't care about that. He just…he felt like he had failed in a way. He was supposed to get the better of Shawn. He was supposed to avenge Stephanie and what happened, he had been forced out of the match not even of his own accord but because he wasn't deemed "fit" to finish it. That thought stuck in his craw.

In his own recollection, he could never remember a time where he had pretty much given up in a match. Even in that Hell in a Cell match with Hunter years ago, it had been brutal and tiring and his loss had been immensely unsatisfying, but it had been _his_ loss, it wasn't because the referee decided that he just couldn't possibly continue. He could've continued out there. He just needed a minute or two to compose himself. That was all, but he hadn't been granted that. That must've been what Stephanie went through when her mother had thrown in the towel for her. She had wanted to continue, but her fate was in someone else's hands, just like his was.

Chris walked back to his locker room slowly because he couldn't walk any faster. He just wanted to get out of here and go back to his hotel room and fall asleep for the next few days until he could go home to his family. He'd probably take a bath to nurse some of these injuries and put copious amounts of ice all over his body and then call Stephanie and ask her to put Sawyer on the line, even if the little boy was asleep, just so he could hear his son's voice.

He was just stumbling towards his door when he heard, "Chris, I've been looking all over for you."

Chris looked up through his bleary eyes into those of Adamle's, "What do you want?"

"I've wanted to inform you of something."

"Get on with it then, what is it?" Chris asked.

"You're in the World Title match, you'll be the fifth entrant."

"What?" Chris asked. "I don't understand. I'm not in the match."

"Punk was attacked by Randy Orton, among others, earlier this evening. I needed to find a suitable replacement, someone who is of championship caliber and that's you, Jericho. You're in the match."

"What?" He just didn't understand any of this. He was in the title match now? It should have made more of an impact on him, but he could barely think right now and now he was being thrust into a match.

"Don't worry, someone will come get you when it's time."

Chris was too beat up to think so he just sat there, confused about what was going on. Punk was attacked? He was in the match? Fifth entrant? He just couldn't wrap his mind around this. Was it some kind of sick joke? He was injured for God's sakes. He could feel the bruises on his body and his nose had caked blood around it that he hadn't yet wiped off and he was pretty sure his elbow was bleeding again.

Stephanie kept the show on, but really she just wanted Chris to call so she could talk to him. She was proud of him, win or lose and wanted him to know that. She loved him and wanted to make sure he was okay. Maybe they would give an update on his condition to the audience and she could get a little reassurance before he called. She was getting tired though and she couldn't stop herself from getting comfortable on the couch and pulling the quilt further over her. Maybe she should go upstairs and watch from the bedroom.

She closed her eyes as the World Title match came on. She'd have to call and congratulate Hunter tomorrow for winning his match. Of course, he didn't really have much competition in those other four guys. None of them had even been the WWE champion before so it wasn't much of a match. She heard Kane's music and she was drifting now, wondering if Chris had even gotten her message yet, maybe she should call again. Maybe he was more hurt than he let on. Wouldn't someone call her though? She was his wife and his boss, she would be informed if he had a concussion or something, wouldn't she?

These thoughts started to drift off as she started to fall asleep. The bad part of running around with Sawyer was that it sapped her energy too, although she was losing the baby weight so there was a definite plus to that at least. Finally, sleep was ceasing the muddling in her brain and she was on the verge of sleep. Then a loud explosion and Chris's music and her eyes shot open and she sat up almost instinctively. For a moment she was disoriented and thought that Flynn had started crying over the baby monitor, but it was silent. Then she looked up and saw her husband limping his way towards the ring, holding onto his elbow.

"Chris," she breathed out and she made a grab for her phone, but what use would it be, he wouldn't answer, he was right there in the match. The title match, Chris was in the title match? But how could he be…then she remember Punk had been attacked, but Chris? How could Adamle do this? Chris was injured. It was plain to her eyes. It wasn't a biased view either, anyone who could see saw that Chris was injured. "What are you doing? Don't go in there…"

She was now even more worried for his safety. He was limping towards the ring, the pain obvious and she wanted him to just walk back out. He was going to get hurt. She could see the welts on his back from Shawn's belt and she cringed. She'd take good care of him once he got home. Maybe he wouldn't even go to Raw tomorrow, maybe he could just skip it and come home. She was more worried about his well-being than him showing up on Raw. She was starting to shake slightly from the nerves. She didn't sign on for this with him. This was very bad.

Chris finally got the ring, wincing almost the entire way. He had to get in the match though so he climbed into the ring and tried to make a move, but it was every man for himself and Dave just had to add injury to insult for Chris and speared him. Chris felt his whole body tense like he was in a car accident and he fell back to the ring and rolled out. That was stupid of him, that was so stupid of him.

Stephanie almost whimpered when she saw Chris take that shot. She tried searching for him, but the action never went back to him and she didn't know where he was. She just wanted him to stay out of everything. She wanted him to get out of this okay. She didn't want him to be hurt and have to be out for a long time. She breathed a sigh of relief when it seemed Chris was going to stay out of this fracas. He didn't need to get involved. He had had his match and damn Adamle…

Her father.

She scowled when she realized that it was probably her father who had called Adamle and told him to put Chris in that match. He would want his son-in-law to get the opportunity to win the title and damn him! Didn't he know that Chris was hurt and tired? What kind of game was this? He wasn't fit to wrestle. Sometimes her father was just so wrong in the way he went about doing things.

The time was ticking down and Dave got the pin and she was fine with him being the champion. Chris was going to be okay. He was going to be okay and she would get him tomorrow off so he could come home to his family. Suddenly, behind Dave, something was happening and the camera shifted and she saw a flash of blond on top of Kane and a 3-count and then a new champion. Stephanie's jaw slackened as time ran out and Chris was having his hand raised and he was the champion!

"Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God!" Stephanie felt like she was hyperventilating. Chris stood up and was handed the belt and Stephanie started jumping up and down and she screamed loudly, then covered her mouth and listened to make sure she hadn't woken up Flynn. There was nothing from upstairs and so she started squealing a little and jumping up and down. He was the champion! Her husband was the champion!

Chris had been watching. Nobody was paying attention to him and he was fine with that. He was watching though, taking note of everything that was going on. He could also see the clock from here, flashing the time. He saw Dave take down Kane and pin him. There was only about 30 seconds left and Dave turned to see Rey coming at him. Chris, thinking simply on instinct and impulse clambered up into the ring and pinned Kane. The referee counted the three and moments later the time ran out and he was champion.

He almost couldn't believe that he was the new champion. Dave started walking towards him and he crawled away and then was given the belt and he held it aloft. The title was his! He was the World Champion! He clutched at the belt like it was one of his children and celebrated. He was the World Champion and what was once a really crappy day suddenly turned glorious.

Stephanie was grinning madly and her happiness couldn't be matched except when she got married and had her babies. This was an incredible feeling. She felt like she was floating and now she _really_ wanted to talk to her husband. So maybe her father had done something right after all. She celebrated in spirit with Chris as he celebrated in the ring. She had never been with Chris while he held the title, not in the sense of them as a couple. She had been his business partner, but not his girlfriend or fiancée or wife. So this was a whole new level of joy.

She wanted to tell Sawyer. She had to tell Sawyer, even if he didn't understand. She grabbed the baby monitor and the phone and rushed upstairs. She went upstairs to Sawyer's bedroom and walked inside, sitting gingerly on the bed. She ran her hand through his hair and he stirred, but didn't wake up. She did it again, but still, he didn't wake up.

"Baby boy," Stephanie whispered. He was really out because he didn't wake up then and just continued sleeping. She laughed quietly and decided to just let him sleep and tell him tomorrow. "Daddy's World Champion," she whispered, kissing his head. She decided to get in her own bed and see if Chris would call her.

She climbed into bed, grabbing one of her books from her bedside, but she was too excited to read. Her hands were still shaking slightly from excitement and she let a little squeal of delight escape her mouth. This was what they had both wanted when he came back. She had wanted nothing more than to have that big, gold belt around his gorgeous waist. Suddenly everything that happened with Shawn seemed almost inconsequential. He was the World Champion and it completely negated the match with Shawn.

She kept staring at the phone, willing it to ring, but the show had only ended about 10 minutes ago so she shouldn't be so impatient. Still, she wanted to talk to Chris desperately. He had to call her. She was his wife, he would definitely call her. She just kept staring at the phone, hoping that it would ring. She wanted to talk to Chris desperately. Oh man, he had to have the phone now, right, she should call him, yes, maybe he wasn't calling her because all their friends were calling to congratulate him.

The phone rang and she picked it up hastily, nearly dropping it in the process, "Hello?"

"Hey, can I speak to the wife of the World Champion?"

Stephanie giggled, "This is her."

"Can you believe it?" Chris asked.

"I'm so proud of you, sweetie, oh my God, you're the champ, you're the _champ_, everyone looks to you now, _you_ are the focus of the entire show. Everyone has to go after you. You're the number one guy there now. They should all bow to you."

Chris laughed, "Good luck with that."

"I didn't want you out there," Stephanie said. "I was so worried about you and then when Dave speared you, I couldn't see you…"

"I was on the outside, I pretended to be down, but I was watching. I was looking for an opportunity. Dave forgot about me."

"Huge mistake on his part," Stephanie said. "You took advantage and you won and I'm so happy, you have no idea."

"Thanks."

"How are you feeling?"

"A little worse for the wear, but I'll be fine. I'm going to go though, I'm sorry I have to cut this short, baby, but I really want to get back to the hotel and put some ice on myself."

"I wish I was there."

"I wish you were here too, but you're with our kids so I can't fault you too much. How are they?"

"Sleeping, the both of them. Sawyer got to bed early tonight so he didn't even mind that he missed you. If I had known you were going to win the World Title I would've let him stay up so he could see you win it."

"Best not to right now, I can't wait to show it to him, he's going to be so impressed."

"Of course he is. But I'll let you go take care of yourself, I'm glad that you're okay, but I guess I shouldn't have expected anything less because you're you. I'm really just so proud of you, sweetie."

"Thanks, I've already gotten voice messages from Trish and Christian and my mom and dad and your mom and Shane and Rissa, so I've got some people on my side. Britt gave me a hug and Hunter smiled at me, I take it that means he was happy for me, but I think he's bitter because I'm so obviously going to steal his spotlight now that I'm champion too."

Stephanie grinned and laughed, "I love the way that sounds, World Champion Chris Jericho. It's about damn time is all I have to say…if you had just let me fix things in your favor…"

"Would it feel as sweet as it does now?" he asked.

"Okay, no, it wouldn't have, but still, I'm just…I wanted to wake up Sawyer to tell him, but he's so stubborn and Flynn is actually sleeping so I couldn't wake her up or she would get mad at me or something. I'm not sure she likes me," Stephanie joked.

"She loves you."

"I think she's just using me for the food," Stephanie said. "I want you to come home. I was going to tell you to skip Raw tomorrow, but now you can't because you're the champion and you have to be there because you're the champion, the World Champion, the big, gold belt holder."

"You just like saying that."

"I really do," Stephanie said. "I love you. I'm glad you're okay."

"I love you too, tell Sawyer and Flynn I love them."

"I will, we'll be watching tomorrow."

"You better be."

**Monday**

"It's an early dinner," Britt said as Hunter drove her to the restaurant where she was meeting Randy. "It'll be over before you know it."

"Am I going to sit out here waiting for you?"

"What do you want to do, sit inside with a wig and sunglasses on, maybe a fake moustache and hold the menu over your face in the entire time except for when you peek over the top to spy on me and him?"

"Preferably, yes, but I was more wondering whether he'd be driving you to the show."

"Oh," Britt said, "well, I don't know, but I suppose he could. I'm surprised you would let him drive me anywhere."

"I would rather he not, but don't you think he'd get a little suspicious if you come out here after your…meeting and he were to see you climbing into the car with me?"

"I didn't think of that," Britt told him. "But of course, now I'm thinking it. I guess I'll just ask him for a ride. If the date is torturous, I'll make you pay for it somehow, Helmsley."

"And if it's not torturous."

"Well, I'll dump you," Britt told him, her smirk turning into a smile.

"You're extremely cruel."

"And you're not?" she said. "You're ruthless, Hunter, let's not kid ourselves. You do whatever it takes to get what you want. So you're cruel too."

"I don't make dates when I'm taken."

"Well, I wouldn't if you didn't have some silly, little plan with your boyfriend, Chris that involved us looking like we were fighting over something to do with Randy. Of course, then we were so into it that we even made Chris believe we were mad at each other. Maybe I should go into acting."

"Don't quit your day job," he said, "then I'd never get to see you."

"You're cruel _and_ cute," she told him as he parked the car.

"Here we are," he told her. "I really don't like that you're doing this."

"Deal with it. It'll be over soon," she said, leaning over and kissing him. "I love you, just remember that. Randy is nothing. He's probably just using me or something. Something tells me that a guy like him is all about status and saying that he was the reason for us breaking up, it's the ultimate insult to you. That's all this is."

"You sound so sure of yourself."

"I'm sure," she said, kissing him again. "I'll see you later, go…help Chris or something, he's got to be sore today after what happened last night and just go hang out with him to take your mind off of this."

"Easier said than done."

Britt got out of the car and walked up to the restaurant. It was nice, but not too nice. She felt comfortable in what she was wearing anyways. She walked inside and found that Randy was not there yet so she opted to wait by the bar. She was working tonight, sort of, since Stephanie wasn't back yet, but one drink couldn't hurt so she ordered a mojito from the bartender and sat down. She looked around for Randy, wanting to get this over with as soon as possible. She had mostly felt pity for Randy, that she knew and that pity had turned into whatever this was.

"You shouldn't drink alone."

Britt turned to Randy, "Hi, and I'm not drinking alone if you're here."

"True, that's true," he said, ordering up a beer as the bartender set Britt's drink down. "So how are you?"

"I'm fine," she said, taking a cleansing sip of her drink.

"I told them we're here, they're getting our table ready."

"Good," she said, taking another sip and letting the alcohol run down her throat. "How's your arm?"

"Better."

"I bet," she said, "since you don't seem to be too concerned about it. Are you actually injured or are you just kind of playing around?"

"Excuse me?"

"I don't know, everyone's saying you're faking it right now, who knows why, but that's the buzz around the place," she told him. "I have no reason to not believe you, but I thought I'd make conversation."

"I'm still hurt and not medically cleared."

"So you decide to take someone out because you're so angry."

"He deserved it."

"Of course he did, because he was so rude to you, right?" Britt told him. "I'm sorry, I just didn't see the point in doing that. I talked to Adamle though and he's giving Punk the match he deserves, the match you took away from him."

"Shouldn't you be happy, your boss won the match with my help."

"He didn't need help, he probably shouldn't have even been out there with the injuries he had," she said. "It's just not fair that you think you get to dictate what happens around there. Plus, you had your little goons--"

"They're not my goons."

"Well they sure seemed like it," Britt said as the hostess came over with a couple of menus to direct them to their seats. They sat down, Britt noting that Randy just sat down and didn't even offer to pull her seat out. She didn't much care, but it was something she noted anyways.

"They were just there to help."

"I still think they were your goons," she said as she picked up her menu. "There's nothing really wrong with having goons though, if that's what you want. You guys can form a little clique or something. Isn't that what you're doing now?"

"You think we have a clique, I don't even like those guys," Randy protested.

"But you're giving them advice, using them, I think you're in a clique," she laughed, "would it be better if I called it a posse?"

Randy laughed, "My entourage."

She laughed too, "Fair enough."

Chris looked at the belt sitting across from him on the folding chair. It was beautiful. They had just given it back to him after getting his name plate put on him and the "Chris Jericho" placard glimmered in the neon light. He admired the belt that he hadn't gotten to have in over six years. The last time he had this belt, his wife had been only his business partner and she had probably still been in love with her ex-husband, who was now one of his friends. So much had happened between now and then.

He had spoken to Stephanie this morning and she had told him that she was going to hold off telling Sawyer until the show started tonight. He was going to kick off the show with a promo as was fitting of the new World Champion. He couldn't get enough of thinking that. When he first came back after his hiatus, the belt was what he wanted the most. It was all about getting the belt, beating Randy Orton and getting the title back. It had taken him nearly a year to do it, but he finally had the title back in his grasp.

He was paying for last night though, so it wasn't all going swimmingly for our hero. Stephanie wasn't around to give him one of her massages so he had been forced to put ice all over his body, but it did little to help. He was extremely stiff today and his joints were aching and screaming at him. His bruises were all sensitive to the touch and ugly as the blackest of souls. They were spread out mostly on the right side of his body and it hurt to sit back in chairs because he had scratches and bruises all over his back. His right arm was also bandaged up heavily from the gash he had suffered when he was thrown into the barrier. He hadn't realized how much blood there had been until he got checked out. It could've been worse though and he was thankful that he had not only come out with the title around his waist, but his health as well.

"Hey, man," Hunter said, walking into the room without even knocking.

"Oh hey, what's up?"

"Nothing," Hunter said, observing Chris's new belt. "Nice."

"I think so."

"So now I suppose you think you're just as good as I am," Hunter said, "but it ain't happening, Jericho, you know I'm still the best around here."

"You're only the best on _your_ show. This thing right here," he said, jerking his thumb towards his belt. "This means I'm the top dog around here. I'm the champion now, so you can't lord it over my head that you are better than me, because you're not, besides, my belt looks like a real belt and yours is…does yours still spin?"

"Shut up," Hunter said.

"You can't tell me to shut up, I'm the champion around here."

"I'm the champion too."

"So we're going to what, have to settle this once and for all?" Chris said. "I'm not ready for another match so soon after last night. Dave spearing me did not help any of my injuries. Plus I had to sleep alone, which sucks when you're hurting."

"Oh, the Steph massage? She is very good at that," Hunter said and Chris cringed. "What? What did I say?"

"Do you have to use that tone when you refer to my wife. It's like…it's like you're picturing her naked or something and it makes me very uncomfortable. I know you've seen Stephanie naked, I know you've…done things with her, but I prefer to think that Stephanie was a virgin when I met her."

"Oh man, you're kidding, right?" Hunter chuckled.

"Hey, you make her sound like she actually did sleep around the block," Chris said, wincing slightly as he shifted in his seat.

"You used to say she did."

"Well, that was before. Besides, she's the mother of my children, you shouldn't be talking like you're going to picture her naked."

"Please, like you aren't picturing her naked most of the time anyways."

"I'm her husband, it's my job to find her desirable. It's hard though, with Flynn here and everything. Now we've got two kids and Sawyer already interrupts all the time, so he's lucky I love him."

"What does he think of the win?"

"He doesn't know yet, we didn't let him watch the match so he doesn't know that I'm the champion, he'll see it when I'm on in a bit. He probably won't get it until I show him the actual belt. I wish he was here tonight," Chris said wistfully. He really wanted to share in this special moment with his family. It was the first time he'd be the champion with them and he wanted to share with his wife and kids.

"Oh, so Stephanie was actually for not letting him watch?"

"Remember when he freaked out when I was covered in blood, I'd rather not have my kid terrified of me. It's okay though, he'll get to see me tonight."

Stephanie felt more tugging on her jeans. She looked down and saw her little boy smiling up at her. She looked back to his plate and saw that he wasn't quite finished yet, but he was probably curious as to what she was doing. "Mommy, where step?" he asked, licking some of the juice from the side of his mouth.

"It's over there," she told him, pointing to the space next to the fridge. He grinned and ran over there and hunched over to push his little stepstool all the way over to where his mommy was. He pushed it up against the wall and then climbed it, hanging over the counter as he watched his mommy place his little sister into her bathtub that was made to look like a little rainforest.

"I help you," he told her. Stephanie had been intent on giving Flynn a bath while Sawyer ate while there weren't any dirty dishes in the sink. She was using the same bathtub she had used when Sawyer was a baby, which wasn't too long ago, and had put it into the sink so she could give Flynn her nightly bath. Stephanie liked to give her a bath every other day, sometimes every day if she was particularly dirty from her day of eating, pooping, and spitting up.

Sometimes Stephanie or Chris gave Sawyer a job while they were giving him a bath. They liked to include him as much as possible in caring for Flynn so he wouldn't feel left out. They knew it was easy to lessen the time they spent with Sawyer because they had a new baby and they didn't want to make him feel any less important than he had before Flynn arrived so they would find out ways he could help take care of Flynn or help with them to make him feel like he was a big boy and a huge part of their lives, which he was.

Stephanie usually gave him a couple of jobs. She either let him help wash Flynn's hair with the baby shampoo or they let him soap down her feet, two jobs that were hard to screw up. He liked to be a help and he knew he was practically raising this kid by himself. His mommy and daddy let him hold her and take care of her. He was a very good big brother to her and was always doting over her and making sure that everyone was treating her accordingly. Stephanie thought it was cute he was so eager to help her so she and Chris had mutually agreed on which jobs he could have. Luckily for her, she tasked Chris with the responsibility of why Flynn's body looked different from his own and had laughed at the awkward way Chris had tried to explain the difference between boys and girls. She couldn't wait to see him with the birds and the bees talk. He was going to stammer his way through that one.

"Okay, you can wash her feet, how's that?" Stephanie asked since he was down by her feet anyways.

"Okay, I do," Sawyer said, as Stephanie handed him the soap and he started washing her feet. "I clean, Mommy."

"Yes, you're really helping."

"No," he said, sighing because she didn't get what he was saying, "Me bath."

"Oh yeah, you'll get your bath after Daddy opens the show tonight. I want you to eat your dinner and _finish_ your dinner before you take a bath," she said, knowing that he usually made a mess of himself. "And I found your boats in your toy chest so you have those to play with."

"Yes!" Sawyer said, elongating the last letter into a hissing noise. Stephanie leaned down and kissed his forehead as she continued to bathe her daughter.

"Daddy has a big surprise for you," Stephanie told him. "Something very good happened last night."

"Toy?" he asked, wondering if he daddy bought him a toy. He knew he had a lot of them, but there was always room for more toys, at least that's what he thought. Flynn had toys too, but they were boring toys that didn't do anything. His mommy said that she was too little to play with toys like he was, but if she got to have toys, shouldn't they be more fun?

"Sort of," she said, wondering what Sawyer's reaction would be to the belt.

"Oh," he said happily as he finished with Flynn's feet, "Done, Mommy."

"Okay, give me your hands so I can rinse them off," she said, pouring some water on his hands so he could get the soap off of them. "Now go finish your dinner or you're not going to get to see Daddy at all."

Sawyer did not like the sound of that and ran back to finish his dinner. Stephanie laughed to herself and looked down at Flynn, "If you were coherent enough, you could enjoy Daddy's win too, but I think that he'll feel a lot better once he sees you and your brother. You guys have magical healing powers or something? I don't know, seems like you do."

Britt laughed, "Wow, so you were really like, friends with Chris and Stephanie and she got you to turn on Hunter?"

"She's persuasive as hell."

"She really is," Britt said. "It's no wonder she ended up with someone like Chris."

"Yeah, they're good together. I wasn't really around when she was with Hunter so I don't really know how they were together in private when they weren't on TV. I guess they just weren't right for each other."

Britt thought about Hunter and she missed him. He would be making her laugh right now because the service was a little slow and he would be threatening to tell someone and she'd be holding back and telling him that they were just letting them pace their meals, but she knew he would know and was just messing with her. People tended to see him and get intimidated and he would use that intimidation to make her laugh. Randy was fine, he wasn't as funny as Hunter could be, but he was at least a nice dinner guest, if nothing else.

Flynn was crying softly as Stephanie buttoned the last of Flynn's buttons and picked her up off her changing table. The baby smelled like lavender baby lotion and Stephanie loved the scent of it so much she used it on herself. Sawyer was already downstairs, eagerly awaiting seeing Chris. Stephanie held Flynn close to her and the little girl rested her head on Stephanie's shoulder as they went downstairs and into the living room where Sawyer was waiting.

"Shh, come on, baby girl, we're going to see Daddy in a few minutes and we can't cry when Daddy's on, we have to be happy when Daddy's on. Don't you miss him?" Stephanie as her daughter, rubbing her back gently. "When he comes back, he'll hold you, but he won't cuddle you, we know how you don't like that."

Flynn wasn't down with that though. She was tired of being held and she wanted to be away from her mommy right this second as her soft crying steadily grew into loud crying. Sawyer put his hands over his ears because she was being extra loud. Stephanie knew that Flynn was trying to tell her that she wanted to be alone so Stephanie grabbed her cradle swing and set her down, turning it on so she gently swung back and forth. Stephanie put it right next to the couch and shifted it so she could see the TV. She knew that Flynn couldn't possibly see what was going on, but maybe she could recognize Chris's voice if she heard it.

Sawyer cuddled into Stephanie's side as she turned it to USA. "What are we going to watch Daddy do tonight?" she asked her son.

"Westle," he answered.

"Daddy's not going to wrestle tonight though."

"Why?"

"He had a match last night and he's got a lot of boo-boos," Stephanie said, remembering how Chris had detailed what he had to her when they had spoken this morning. It wasn't that bad, she kept telling herself, it could've been worse. She just kept repeating that to herself.

"I no see," Sawyer said.

"I know, but it was a pretty bad match, so I don't think you'd want to watch."

"Oh, okay," he said, taking that for face value as the Raw opening sequence started up. Sawyer danced around a little to it and she found that hilarious as they cut to a shot of the crowd and then to Lillian. She introduced the new World Champion and Chris's music started up. Sawyer sat up a little bit straighter as he saw his daddy walking down the ramp. "Daddy!"

"Yeah, it's Daddy," Stephanie said, and he had the belt over his shoulder. He looked so happy, but she could tell he was incredibly stiff from his match and hoped he was really okay and hadn't lied to her. Even so, he just looked so great with that belt over his shoulder, _his_ belt. He had gotten it without her help, all on his own, he had worked hard for it (not last night in particular, but over the last six years he had worked hard to get where he was at that moment and put up with a lot of crap from her family and from herself and from many other people).

"What dat, Mommy?" he asked, pointing to Chris's shoulder. It looked…it looked like his toy! Did Daddy get his toy back! "My toy!"

"Sort of, that's a different toy, you'll see it tomorrow."

"I want!" he said greedily and Stephanie was pinning that one on Chris and taking no blame for that.

"Tomorrow," she insisted.

Chris walked to ring, hearing the boos from the crowd, but it didn't matter, he was the World Champion and everyone who loved him was proud of him and they were the only ones who mattered. He introduced himself as the new World Heavyweight Champion. He started talking about his match with Shawn and how Shawn was a hypocrite. Shawn wasn't a good person or a good man. He was going to show everyone how "good" a person Shawn was. He started to unbutton his jacket to show everyone what Shawn had done to him.

Stephanie focused a little harder on the show, wanting to see the damage from last night. Chris was taking off his jacket and then his tie and was starting on his shirt and she was starting to get a little hot and bothered by the action of him stripping. This was a scene repeated many times in her own life and the images of that were infiltrating her mind and slowly spreading out like warm molasses. Chris loved to strip slowly to tease her, make her want him more and she wished he were here right now because he was looking delicious in the ring right now.

Until he pulled off his shirt that is. Chris knew Steph was watching and was probably curious as to the extent of his injuries. The mere fact he was out here should reassure her enough that he wasn't so injured that he would need actual medical care when he got home. Still, he knew she would not be pleased to see what Shawn had done to him and he anticipated some of her wrath being somehow extended to Shawn at a later time when Flynn could travel with them. He held up his arm and invited the camera to show everything that had happened to him.

Stephanie was thankful that he wasn't completely covered in bruises, but what she did see didn't look great either. Sawyer looked hard at the TV, "Boo-boos, Mommy? Daddy have boo-boos?"

"Yeah, those are Daddy's boo-boos from the guy you don't like," Stephanie explained.

"Oh, I no like him. He huwt Daddy?"

"Yeah, he gave Daddy those boo-boos."

Sawyer frowned, who the heck did this guy think he was? Next time he saw him, he was going to kick him. That would teach him. "I no like, Mommy."

"Me neither."

He continued to talk about the match and how the fans loved to see him beaten, but Shawn hadn't won anything. The match wasn't on the books, so it didn't even matter. Shawn was probably celebrating, but he'd be celebrating something even bigger than Shawn's celebration. Maybe a party was in order. He had gotten the ultimate prize. He held the belt aloft again and then brought it back down, smiling at it. It really was gorgeous and he deserved it.

He was a good person and he absolutely should have this belt, whatever the fans though. So he wasn't exactly completely honest, but he was honest when it counted and what did that matter anyways. He explained what happened last night with Adamle. Stephanie had explained how she thought it might've been her father who was behind it and for once (if it was Vince) he didn't hate the old crone. He didn't give Chris the belt, but just an opportunity to win it and he took that opportunity and made it into a title win.

Chris added more names to the list of guys he had beaten. He did outsmart everyone and he was the winner and he was the top guy on this show, as it always should've been (seriously, it always should be Chris). He was better than Shawn Michaels because he was the champion. This was just about when Adamle came out and told Chris that he'd have a match the next week against Punk for the title. Chris had no problem with that, he had already beaten Punk once before and he could do it again. He was surprised it was a steel cage match, but he could deal with that.

If that was all, he was going to leave the ring and go. He wanted to get home to his family as soon as possible and if he wasn't needed for the rest of the evening, it was his right as the World Champion to catch and early flight home and go back to his family. But Adamle wasn't done and said he needed a main event for tonight. Surely he couldn't think Chris could compete tonight after the match he had been through last night, surely that wasn't what he was implying here. Chris was upset when he was put into a match against Batista. Was Adamle blind? He couldn't wrestle with all of these injuries. He was starting to feel phantom pain.

If Stephanie didn't have Sawyer next to her, she would've jumped up and cursed at the TV. What the hell was Adamle doing? She was beyond pissed. Though she took a moment to notice someone in the audience had a sign that said "Y2J, Put Your Pants On" and she wholeheartedly agreed to that sentiment and also thought about calling in and getting that person front row seats so Chris could see that sign. But Adamle was being an idiot right there. She checked on Flynn and it seemed that Flynn had recognized Chris's voice, at least somewhat because her eyes were towards the TV.

"Thanks for the ride," Britt said. "And for dinner."

"No problem, I hope you had a good time."

"Look, Randy, you're a really nice guy and under normal circumstances, I would really like you, you know, but these aren't--"

Randy had already leaned in and was pressing his lips against hers. Her eyes widened as he did so and she didn't kiss him back, but he was trying to deepen the kiss. She put her hands on his chest and gently tried to push him away. He pulled back a moment later with a self-satisfied smirk on his face. "I'll call you, okay?"

"Randy, I don't think," she started, but he winked at her. "Randy, would you let me talk?"

"I've gotta go, we'll talk later."

He was either the most stubborn or the stupidest man she ever met. She rolled her eyes and wiped her mouth with the back of her head. Well that was something alright. He was kind of pushy. She walked to Chris's locker room and found him inside talking with Hunter about how unfair something was. She looked between the both of them as they stared up at her.

"What?" she asked.

"Your lipstick is smeared," Chris pointed out and Hunter's jaw set. Chris didn't seem to notice Hunter's reaction and continued, "Can you believe that he won't even let me recover from what happened? He's just throwing me to the wolves. What kind of game is he playing?"

"He kissed you?" Hunter said, ignoring Chris altogether. Chris looked between Hunter and Britt.

"Yeah, it was nothing," Britt said, "trust me, okay?"

"I can't believe--"

"Oh, so you two are still together," Chris said.

"Shut up, man."

"I'm just making an observation. You don't have to insult me, I've been insulted enough thank you very much. Stephanie just sent me a text saying that she was going to kill Adamle the next time she saw him and bury him in the woods and then another text telling me someone had a sign telling me to put my pants on and she agreed so you know, I've dealt with enough tonight."

"He kissed you!"

"It was closed mouth, I didn't invite it…he just kind of thinks we're…going to do this again."

"Well you're going to go tell him right now that you are taken," Hunter said.

"Hunter, do not order me around, okay? I put up with a lot of crap with you regarding your mother so don't even start ordering me around. I will tell Randy that we can only be friends, but you're not dictating me, do you hear me?" she said and Hunter looked visibly subdued.

"Yeah, sorry."

"Good, I will handle this," she told him, leaning in to give him a peck on the lips. "I couldn't stop thinking about you."

"Yeah," he said, a smile creeping up on his lips.

"We would've had more fun I think. You would've made me laugh more." Chris made gagging noises. "Oh get over it and don't say anything to Randy. I will handle it, the both of you understand?"

"Yes," they both mumbled. "Good, so what's this about something not being fair?"

Chris went all the way to Adamle to talk about what an abomination this was that he had to wrestle after being in two matches the night before. Kelly Kelly was in there and he asked her to leave, using a cold tone to get his message across. He told Adamle that he was in no shape to perform, either mentally or physically and he wasn't a machine, but Adamle wouldn't listen. Chris got frustrated with him, but the match was not changed and Adamle was not deterred.

So he was forced to go out there. He had Cade by his side, but that offered him little solace in the face of Dave. Normally Dave was a nice guy who liked Stephanie, but in the ring tonight, it was every man for himself and Dave would have no pity on him and he knew that. He was going to go home even sorer than he was right now. He knew he had to be a fighting champion, but this was ridiculous.

Adamle must've seen the error of his ways because he sent JBL to help Chris. Chris was initially not happy to have JBL's help. The guy had insulted his kids, but at this point, he just wanted to go home so he let JBL do most of the work and he got the pinfall for the win. He scurried out of there quickly, lingering on the ramp to look at Dave, but then getting backstage and getting his stuff out of his locker room. He wanted to get to bed so he could go home the next morning bright and early, maybe he could even catch an earlier flight.

"Hey, I'm home!" Chris yelled as he walked in through the front door.

"Daddy!" Sawyer exclaimed from where he had been playing with his kiddie keyboard. Stephanie was already running towards the foyer, not even caring if Sawyer kept up.

Chris dropped his bags as Stephanie came running towards him and she launched herself into his arms, wrapping her legs around his waist. Her arms were around his neck and he barely had time to wince as she hit a bruise when her lips were all over his, shoving her tongue down his throat. He fell back against the door he just closed and winced again, but wrapped his fingers up in Stephanie's long, brown hair, kissing her back fervently. She started to go for his jaw, feathering kisses along his skin as she pulled back and unbuttoning his shirt.

"Steph, Steph, wait," Chris said, his voice husky. "We can't…Sawyer."

Stephanie looked over her shoulder and Sawyer was looking at his parents like they were crazy. "Oh yeah," Stephanie said, "but you won! You won! You're the champion, I'm so happy, I'm so proud of you." She resumed making out with him and he set her down gently, but she pushed her body into his and it was getting a rise out of him. "Where is it? Where is it?"

"In my bag, let me get it." Chris got his bag and unzipped it, taking the title off the top. It was huge and Stephanie snatched it from him and grinned.

"This is really it, you're really the champion. I knew you could do it. I believed in you. I'm so proud," she said, her eyes tearing up because she was just so happy. "I just…I never thought you'd come back and then you did and now you're the champion and I just…I never thought you'd come back and look at us now."

Chris laughed and hugged her, "You're so crazy. You don't cry when you have either of our children, but when I bring home the championship belt, _then_ you decide to tear up."

"Shut up," Stephanie said, wiping at her eyes. "I'm just so happy. This is ours, we've both worked so hard for this."

"Yes, we have, but I think I have to share it." Chris walked over to his son and knelt by him. "Remember when I had to take your toy away because someone else took it?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, fondly remembering his favorite toy that was so shiny.

"I promised you that I would get you an even better and bigger one, didn't I?"

Sawyer couldn't really remember, but he answered anyways, "Yes."

"Well here you go," Chris said, holding the title up to his son.

Sawyer's jaw dropped. This thing was _huge_. This was way better than the one he had before. Had his Daddy gotten this just for him? He tried to grab at it, but it was so heavy he couldn't even hold it. He looked up at Chris and Chris just laughed and put it on the ground. Sawyer wanted to play with this immediately. This was the coolest thing he had ever seen.

"I show Fwynn!" Sawyer said, grabbing the strap and trying to haul the heavy belt into the other room to show it to his sister. Then he was going to try to play with this thing.

"We're going to have to share that," Chris told him, but Sawyer was paying no attention. He hugged Stephanie again and she hugged him back.

"We can't have some celebratory fun, but I can do this," she said, whispering something to him and Chris's eyes widened.

"Stephanie!"

"Mmhmm, so how bout it, Chris, let's be more than friends," Stephanie told him seductively.

"Sawyer, naptime!"

It was good to be the champ.


	203. Cages and Ladders, September 15, 2008

A/N: If you didn't read the note in my profile, this wasn't up last night because some real life stuff came up and I was extremely distracted, so sorry for the delay, but still leave a review. :)

* * *

"Just one more week, my adorable, little girl."

Flynn had little to no joy in her face at this declaration. Instead she just stared up at her mommy, who was looking extremely excited about something. Flynn didn't understand this though and instead focused her attention back to the swinging toys in front of her face. Stephanie yawned as she looked at her daughter. The last week had been especially tiring. She was so excited for Chris, but Flynn had been crying a little more and Sawyer had discovered how much fun toilet paper is to pull and he kept tp'ing the hallways as a nice, little surprise for his parents.

It was slightly easier with Chris around, but when he wasn't around, sometimes she wanted to drop her kids off at her mom's and go sleep for a week. She tried not to show it too much, but having two kids was extremely exhausting and she was barely hanging on by a wire. She truly believed that maybe being on the road would restore some of her sanity, especially because it meant she could have a conversation that wasn't with a little girl who couldn't answer back.

Chris ran after Sawyer as he lit off down the hallway, running his hand over things as he giggled. It was easy to catch up with him and he lifted the little boy into his arms, tossing him up in the air and catching him again. "What do you think you're doing?"

"I play!" Sawyer said, feeling extra hyper today. Chris was glad Sawyer was with him and not with Stephanie. After Sawyer's little toilet paper stunt, she had been extra mad at him and the little boy didn't take too well to yelling. He started getting angry so he had an angry wife and an angry son and probably an angry daughter too if she had been awake at the time. His house had turned into a nuthouse in the span of a few days.

On top of that, Sawyer would not stop playing with Chris's belt, which also irked Stephanie, but not because he was playing with it, but because Stephanie wanted to be the one holding it. It was almost like when they had been business partners and she wanted to go get it shined constantly. She kept looking at it and grinning at him and just generally being happy and he was happy he could give that to her. She was worn out from Flynn, he could tell it in her eyes and he was glad he gave her something that was separate from Flynn that she could be happy about. Her eyes were a stormy gray nowadays and he wished he could be there more for her and for Flynn, but he had work.

Plus, he took Sawyer with him, so that gave her a bit of a respite. He hadn't been with him last week, but he was this week and he was being rambunctious as hell. Stephanie and Chris both thought it was because Flynn had needed a lot of extra attention this week and they had both needed to spend time with her and not with Sawyer and he was acting up a little. Flynn had been pretty upset and had only wanted to be around Stephanie for some reason so Sawyer felt left out.

"Where are you going to play?"

"I dunno," he said, then growled at his daddy. He wanted to play animals with his daddy and he was going to be a bear.

"Okay, what are you supposed to be?"

"Bawr," he answered, then growled again.

"You're a very good bear. If I put you down, are you going to run away?"

"No," Sawyer said, giving his father a winning smile that was pretty much Chris's own smile circa two years old. Still there was a little bit of that McMahon mischief in his smile and Chris knew that as soon as he set Sawyer down, the little boy was going to be off and running.

"Are you sure?" he asked suspiciously.

"Uh huh," Sawyer nodded resolutely.

"Really?"

"Yup, down, pease," Sawyer said, pointing to the ground.

"Okay," Chris said, but he was still suspicious. As soon as he set Sawyer down, though, just like he thought, he started off running. Chris sighed and ran after him, or rather walked quickly, and overtook the little boy again. "What did I _just_ ask you?"

"Nofing," Sawyer said.

"You're a little liar," Chris told him. "I'm going to tell Mommy you were bad and she's going to yell at you again."

Sawyer's eyes widened. He didn't like it when his mommy's anger was directed at him. He was generally a good boy, but sometimes he was a bad boy, but he didn't mean to be. He tried his best to be good, but it was just Flynn was crying a lot and he couldn't sleep and then he couldn't even help with Flynn and that made him mad. If they had just given Flynn to him he was sure he could've stopped her crying, but he hadn't even been given a shot. He could help Flynn.

"No," he whimpered.

"Well, she will if she's knows you're being a bad boy and then I'm going to have to yell."

"You?" Sawyer asked. He couldn't recall a time when his father had ever really yelled at him (even though it had happened), but he didn't want to see what that was like. He had seen his daddy being mean to other people and it was kind of a scary sight.

"Yes, me, and you won't like me when I'm angry," he said, quoting a show or something, but Sawyer of course didn't pick up on that. "Come on, let's go for a walk and that'll wear you out."

"Okay," Sawyer said as Chris put him down and he started running again, proving that everything Chris had just said went in one ear and out the other with his son. Chris started walking after him, following the little kid to wherever he deemed fit to go.

Trish looked around the large room. This was where her reception was going to be. The reception to her wedding. She grinned at that last part and glanced around the large ballroom. She and Christian wanted to get a feel for the place in the evening and so they were here. They were also looking at place settings and tables and chairs and making all those last-minute decisions before her wedding on the 27th.

"So, looks good, doesn't it?" Christian asked, looking around.

"Yeah, it's beautiful. I was thinking, maybe we could have candles, do you think that would be too much?" Trish asked. "I just kind of like the atmosphere it would create."

"I don't know, I wouldn't want any drunk people to set themselves on fire since we're having an open bar."

"Nobody would come if there wasn't an open bar," she joked.

"That's true," Christian laughed, taking her in his arms. "So this is where all our friends are going to celebrate our marriage. Our marriage, I really like the sound of that. You and me getting married…are you getting cold feet?"

"No," Trish said and it seemed as the date got closer, the less nervous she got. It was weird because she thought the nerves were going to get worse as the date got closer. But as the date got closer, she was getting more and more sure of herself. She was absolutely positive this was what she wanted. In fact, it had probably been what she wanted for years.

"You're not."

"I'm really not," Trish said, turning her head to look at him. "I don't know, I just…I'm positive this is what I want, you know. I know this is where my life should be leading me and I'm good with where I'm at."

"Good, glad to hear that. I don't want anything to happen between now and the 27th. Come hell or high water, I'm going to marry you," he said, kissing her cheek. She laughed and pulled his arms tighter around her.

"Is that so?"

"Yes, this time, Trish, this is it. No more breaking up, no more leaving, no more being with other people, just us. Just you and me for the long haul, and whatever children we have as well, we'll include them."

"Other people were nice, but they never felt completely right, you know. They just didn't fit, I don't know, did you feel like that?"

"Absolutely," Christian said. "Which is why I'm with you now. I know it took us a while to get out of that relationship purgatory."

She laughed, "Is that what that was?"

"Yes, or hell if you prefer," he said. "But we're getting married and we'll be just like Chris and Stephanie."

"Oh God, I don't think I want to be just like them. They're crazy," Trish said.

"Well, the only other real model of marriage we have is my brother and Vickie, do you really want to look to them for advice and guidance?"

"Okay, you've got a point there," Trish said. "Let's just be our own selves, deal?"

"Deal. So what's the deal with the Lita plan?"

"I talked to her last week and she's touring right now, but I actually got her to come as Edge's date for the wedding, so you know, maybe things will be better for your brother and then he can divorce Vickie, who doesn't even seem to care about him."

"Well, I'm glad he won't be single at the wedding. If he's feeling better, he might hit on all the single women and having to explain that's my brother is not something I look forward to doing."

"That night is going to be _our_ night. We're not going to let anyone or anything get in the way of that."

Stephanie lounged on the couch. Flynn was sleeping in her swinging cradle so she was trying to get some sleep in before Flynn woke her up with her neediness. She wanted to watch Raw, which would be on in less than an hour, but she also wanted to sleep and she weighed her options. She was on her bed right now since she had been folding laundry. Four people created a lot of laundry, but when one of the persons was a 2-year-old who spilled on everything he owned and the other one was a newborn who spit up on everything _she_ owned. Her bed was still so comfortable though and she found herself pulling up her covers and resting her eyes.

The phone rang and she startled herself awake, grabbing the phone next to her quickly before Flynn woke up and started crying. Stephanie just wanted a small bit of respite from those high-pitched wails. "Hello?"

"So okay, I am at the place where I'm getting married," Trish said excitedly.

Stephanie laughed, "Am I going to have to hear about this every day until the big one?"

"Yes, because I'm pretty much booked every day until the big day so I'm going to have a ton of different things to get excited about. Christian and I are in the ballroom and it's gorgeous. We are going to look so great in here. And we're looking at place settings and everything and it's beautiful."

"I'm glad," Stephanie said, stifling a yawn. "What does Christian think of everything?"

"He loves it, but I think that's more to do with the fact I love than whether or not he really loves it. I think he's just agreeing with everything I'm saying."

"Yeah, that's pretty much it," Christian said and Trish rolled her eyes.

"Did you hear that?"

"Yeah, I did. Chris was pretty much the same way though. He just wanted agree with me, but he did help sometimes. Our wedding isn't even half as big as yours is though."

"I'm starting to believe you're lucky for only having a small wedding. Sometimes it's definitely a hassle. Especially the seating chart and making sure some people don't sit next to other people and oh my God, it's a hassle."

"Yeah, I bet," Stephanie said, her eyes drooping.

"Where's Flynn?"

"Sleeping, thankfully."

"Oh, I'll let you go then, I know you've had a rough week with her, so sleeping is probably at a premium right now, huh?"

"Yeah, I'm already kind of falling asleep right now," Stephanie said. "She's been a nightmare this week and then Sawyer was a nightmare this week because she was a nightmare and he took advantage of it and acted out like he never has before. He was running around pulling toilet paper around the house."

"Oh God," Trish said sympathetically. "Don't scare me out of children."

"Sorry, but if I can warn just one person against this," Stephanie joked. "Then I think my job on this Earth will be done."

"Except I want one soon," Trish said.

"Yeah, good luck with that," Stephanie said, "but thanks for letting me go, I'm about to fall asleep on you."

"Okay, we'll talk later then, tomorrow I'm looking at the flowers and making sure they're going to be arranged the way I want," Trish said. "I'm really getting married, Steph, for real this time."

"If you don't end up getting married to Christian, I'm going to kick someone's ass."

Trish laughed, "Don't worry, this is happening."

The little terror was running down the hallway towards the entrance. He could hear them playing music over the Titantron and he wanted to go out there and see what was going on. He was screaming the entire way and Chris was running after him. Sawyer had managed to get away from him a little bit when he turned a corner earlier. Chris had momentarily lost sight of him and now he was catching up to Sawyer.

"Got you again!" Chris said, grabbing Sawyer by the back of his pants and lifting him up. "Do you know how sore Daddy is?"

"Yes," Sawyer said and he did know. His mommy was always asking how his daddy was so that must mean he wasn't doing too well, plus, his daddy was wearing a big, white thing on his arm and when he went to inspect it, his daddy had told him it was because he had gotten a really bad boo-boo. Sawyer knew what that was like because he had to wear a thing on his hand for a while when he hurt his finger.

"Then you shouldn't run around, where are you getting all this energy?" Chris asked, but Sawyer was a little kid and that's where he got all his energy from.

"I dunno," he said, then looked to the ring and opened his mouth, "What dat?"

Chris looked to the ring and took a deep breath. He was going to have to be inside that thing later on that evening and he wasn't looking forward to it. He was still feeling incredibly sore from the 3 matches he had over the span of 24 hours last week. Then he had to take care of his newborn and his young son and it was a lot to ask. Stephanie was doing so much and he felt like he wasn't doing enough so he probably overcompensated this week with his parental duties, making sure to take care of everything around him.

"That's a steel cage," Chris said, his voice a little choked. "I'm going to be going in there later for a match against CM Punk."

"I go too," Sawyer said, wanting to go down again. He started trying to run even though he was suspended in air by his father so he ended up looking like he was trying to swim through the air. Chris pulled him up and held him with his good arm as they went down to the ring.

"You want to go inside?" Chris said. The cage was down because they had just installed it in and had yet to raise it. His match was the first on the card so they should just keep it down. He climbed the ring steps with Sawyer and let the kid go wild. Sawyer didn't know what this thing was around the ring, but it looked like fun. Sawyer was going to crash right into, but once again his daddy grabbed him and now he was getting mad.

"Stop!" Sawyer told him.

"You can't just go barreling into that, you'll get hurt," Chris told him and Sawyer whined and tried to break free. "You know, I'm going to be in here later."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, I am, I'm going to have to escape. You want to see how you do that?"

"Uh huh!" Sawyer said, clapping his hands and forgetting that he was supposed to be mad at his daddy for grabbing him, but he was anxious to see how you could escape from here as the door had closed behind them and he felt trapped in here.

"Okay, you have to promise to stand right there, okay?" Chris said seriously. He didn't want Sawyer getting hurt under his watch again. Stephanie was so on edge she would be liable to break his arm if he broke anything of Sawyer's.

"Okay," Sawyer agreed.

Chris was in some sweats and a t-shirt right now, even though he had his ring trunks on underneath his sweats he didn't want to be walking around in no pants and just his wrestling trunks, which people would probably mistake for underwear. Still, he was dressed appropriately for climbing and he might as well get the practice in. He climbed the ropes and then started scaling the cage, getting to the top and waving to the astonished Sawyer before he went on the other side and held on before dropping to the ground with a grunt.

He stood up and Sawyer looked even more amazed and had actually come over to practically smash his face into the cage to see what his daddy was doing. That was one of the coolest things he had ever seen. He didn't even know you could do something like that, but now he just _had_ to try it. "I do too!"

Sawyer started to grab onto the cage like he was going to climb up, but Sawyer had never climbed anything like this before and didn't know how to do it. So he was just kind of positioned there with one leg up and his hands grabbing and him trying to propel himself up like his daddy did. His daddy had practically flown up the side. He wanted to fly up the side too!

Chris got into the cage again and went over to his son, who looked like he was stuck on the cage like one of those stuffed animals people stuck to their car windows. Chris lifted him up, helping him "climb" the cage and Sawyer squealed as he got higher and higher. Chris lifted him as high as he could reach and then grabbed Sawyer and fell back against the canvas like Sawyer had knocked him down. Sawyer giggled and tried to pin Chris.

"1-2-3! The winner and new World Heavyweight Champion, Sawyer Jericho!" Chris said and Sawyer laughed. "Let's go get your belt, okay?"

"Okay."

"Then Daddy has to get ready for his match."

"Okay," Sawyer repeated as they walked up the ramp again. Chris could only hope his real match was better.

Chris was already headed out there and Britt was sitting with Sawyer watching on the monitors. He was on her lap, trying to get to the buttons that his mommy pushed whenever she was here, but Britt kept taking him by the wrist and pulling him away. He heard his Daddy's music and saw him on the monitor and tugged on Britt's hand to show her that was his daddy and his belt. He had been playing with it all week and it was the most fun thing ever! It was really heavy though and sometimes he had to ask his daddy or his mommy to help him move it, but they usually helped.

"I know, I know, it's your daddy," Britt said, leaning her chin on the top of Sawyer's head. "So is your baby going to be coming next week? Because I can't wait to meet her."

"Uh huh, Fwynn," Sawyer said, though he was distracted by Chris.

"Britt, hey, I've been looking all over for you," Randy said as he sat down next to Britt in the empty chair that should've been Sawyer's had he not wanted to sit on Britt's lap to watch the match.

"Randy," she sighed, "didn't you get the hundreds of messages I sent you in response to the hundreds of messages _you_ sent me?"

"Yeah, I did, but you know, I'm a persistent guy," he said, giving her a coy smile, trying to be charming.

"Bwitt, look," Sawyer said as his daddy was put into the cage. He bet his daddy was going to climb the cage like he had earlier. Sawyer didn't realize that CM Punk might have a thing or two to say about that, but his daddy had practically flown up the side of that thing.

"I'm looking, sweets," Britt said, turning back to the television. "Ooh, that's scary, huh? Do you want to go into the cage?"

"I did," he said.

"You did?"

"Uh huh, wif Daddy," Sawyer told her.

"Oh, your daddy took you in there?" Britt asked and she nodded. "Wow, you must've had a lot of fun."

"Uh huh."

"Britt, come on, I thought we had fun the other night."

"Randy, I told you, you're nice and everything, but I don't want a relationship with you and I didn't appreciate you trying to kiss me last week."

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that, but can you blame me, you're beautiful," he told her winningly. Britt sighed and ignored him, putting her chin back on Sawyer's head as they watched the match at hand. Randy thought she was silently inviting him to watch the match with her so he started watching as well.

Chris was about to throw the first punch, but Punk got him first and somehow he quickly ended up on the ropes. This match was already starting off kind of lousy. Chris was getting no offense in and was getting beat by Punk. He was still smarting from his matches last week and to be expected to just keep going was an unreasonable request. Punk threw him to the corner and he leapt up off the ropes and started climbing to the top of the cage. The point of the match was to get the pin or escape and he was just escaping.

Punk got him and brought him back down and the match continued. Chris was starting to get on the offensive now, capping it off with the Walls of Jericho and he thought he got the hold in pretty tightly, but then he could feel Punk dragging himself away. It wasn't until Punk was at the door that Chris realized he was trying to escape. Punk tried to pull against him, drag himself out this way, but Chris was too strong and grabbed and pulled Punk back in after hitting him with the cage door. He only got the two count.

The match went back and forth until Chris had his back to the cage and Punk was punching at him. Chris was hitting back and then suddenly he was falling and looking up at the cage. He had won and he almost couldn't believe it was as easy as falling out of the cage. They gave him Sawyer's belt back and he held it as his hand was held up in victory. It was probably a mistake of the referee's to let the cage remain open for so long, but he had taken advantage and he was still the champion so he was perfectly happy with the outcome.

He stumbled backstage and saw that Sawyer was leaning back against Britt, content to watch. Britt nodded to him that she had Sawyer and Chris silently thanked her. Sawyer looked the most calm he had been in days and he was thankful for the short respite. For some reason Randy was sitting with her, but he didn't venture an inquiry since the moment Sawyer saw him, he would probably want to be with him and him alone, although he really did look content to be leaning against Britt, little ladies man that he was.

When he started towards his locker room he was almost immediately greeted with Adamle, who was talking to Kelly Kelly again. Why was that girl constantly around him? Chris smirked to himself before walking over to hear Adamle say that he should start preparing for No Mercy. Chris couldn't believe the nerve of this guy. He was the champion and he shouldn't have to consistently wrestle and wrestle match after match while he still had no time to recover from the beating he had taken the week before. Adamle needed to protect his champion and Chris needed to have a word with him.

He followed him to Adamle's office and Stephanie wondered briefly what Chris would say. She could usually care more, but her eyes were nearly closed and she was just listening to what was being said. She could hear Chris's voice, irate, telling Adamle that he was the most valuable part of Raw and somewhere in her hazy mind she agreed. She was sleeping shortly afterwards, unaware of what was going on around her.

"So what is it you wanted to discuss?" Adamle said and Chris scoffed. Was this guy that dense?

"Look, Mike, I don't like to play the power game around here, it's my least favorite game in fact, but I will not hesitate to use my pull if I think my safety and health is at stake," Chris told him. "I do own part of this company, you know?"

"I'm well aware of this," Adamle said matter-of-factly. For a moment, Chris thought he sounded like even if Chris threatened there was nothing Chris could honestly do to him. That made him suspicious and he knew Stephanie would pounce on that.

"Yes, so I'm saying that there should be something done about No Mercy. I need to heal up and I'm not getting that opportunity."

"You are the champion, Chris, people expect to see you."

"And I understand that, I'm just saying that you are supposed to protect me as your number one commodity around here. It also doesn't hurt that I'm the boss's son-in-law and you may think this isn't a concern of yours, but it should be. I could have you out of here so fast, but don't make me do that, okay? Because I don't like to use my power like that."

"I'll see what I can do for you, Chris."

"Don't see, Mike, just do," Chris told him cryptically as he left to go take his shower.

If Adamle was indeed under Vince's thumb then he wouldn't listen to Chris's advice, but he had to believe that he had some say with the man. He wasn't a machine and he needed to heal some of these injuries. He wasn't asking for time off though Stephanie could probably use some of the help, but he was just asking not to be put into matches that somehow seemed designed to hurt very badly.

Then apparently everyone wanted a shot at him. He watched as opponent after opponent tried to get the number one contendership to face him. It actually felt kind of good not to be on the other side of that. He didn't have to compete with a bunch of other guys just to get a shot at the title. He was the actual title holder so everyone was gunning for him. In a perfect world, he would be able to choose his own opponent and he would've chosen someone like Michael Cole, someone very easy to beat.

None of them were getting this title though. He had wanted this title since he had come back to Raw and he was going to hold onto it until someone forcibly pried it from his hands. He had earned this title, had not used his wife in any capacity to get it, and that felt damn good. He had gotten this belt by himself and nobody was going to take it away right after he had gotten it. Besides, Sawyer would probably be beyond devastated if someone else got his big, shiny, gold belt. He had really grown attached to the thing.

He was just out of the shower when JBL came up to him to talk about what a great tag team they had been. Chris almost couldn't believe this man would go there. Did he not forget that he had cost Chris the WWE Title he had been sure to win? Did he not remember that he had dragged Chris around with a power cable in front of his little boy? Did he not remember the threats he had made against his children? Chris might not be well-liked by the fans, but that didn't meant he had lost his moral compass. He wasn't going to side with a guy just because the fans hated him too. He hadn't been able to speak for a week because of JBL, but now he was expected to consider him a great tag-team partner? No way.

Stephanie woke up to Flynn's crying and saw the last few seconds of Chris's discussion with JBL. What the hell was he doing even trying to get buddy-buddy with Chris? He had choked Chris. She frowned as she got up and went over to Flynn's cradle and picked her up. Stephanie grabbed her breastfeeding pillow and yawned as she set herself up, glad that next week she'd be at Raw and could actually go up to JBL and tell him off for even daring to talk to Chris.

She picked up the phone as soon as she saw the camera leave Chris and hoped he had it close by. He had obviously just taken a shower and he usually left his phone in his private locker room, which sometimes didn't have a shower. Still, she could see that he had his bag there, so he probably had it with him. She dialed the number and waited for him to pick up.

"Hey, baby, what's up?" he asked and he sounded tired.

"I just saw what JBL said," her voice was still sleepy as she looked down at Flynn.

"Did you just wake up?"

"Yeah, I fell asleep, sorry."

"Don't be sorry, was Flynn sleeping?"

"Yeah," Stephanie said, "so seeing that I didn't see a little boy sitting with you, I'm guessing our son is well taken care of?"

"Britt is putting him to bed right now. I've got to find out who the number one contender is. I actually came up with an idea after I saw all the guys who want to kick my ass."

Stephanie laughed, "You're just so popular right now."

"I know, but it's nice to have everyone gunning for me. I'm the number one guy around here and they better know it," Chris said, "but anyways, my idea is to let Dave and JBL go at it for the contendership at No Mercy and then whoever wins can face me later that night."

"Oh, so they're tired while you're fresh," Stephanie deduced as she adjusted Flynn against herself.

"See, you just get me, baby," Chris told her because that was exactly what he was thinking. He wanted to have a worn down opponent so he would win the match and retain his title.

"I like the idea. I would be behind it," she told him.

"Well, you're important, maybe you can overrule Adamle and get your way," Stephanie said. "Anything to keep yourself the champion because I'm used to it now. I like telling people that my husband is the champion."

"I'm sure you do," she said "I don't see why Adamle would deny the request. It's a very good one and you don't have anyone else that contend for the title. It's not like Randy is ready to come back now."

"I don't know, maybe it's like Santino said," Chris chuckled.

"What are you talking about?" she asked.

"Oh yeah, you were asleep. Santino just said that maybe Randy is like his dad and brought up how his dad always wore that cast, remember?"

Stephanie laughed too, "I'm missing all this good stuff, I really hope Dr. Misch says that Flynn is okay to travel. But maybe Randy is just faking, who knows, right?"

"Randy, stop following me around," Britt said. She thought she had gotten rid of him when he went out there to speak with JBL. She had actually gotten up to put Sawyer to bed for Chris when she found Randy lurking around behind her, trying to catch up. She admitted that she had tried to run even faster away from him, but he was quick and now he was almost next to her.

"Sorry, I just thought I lost you from earlier."

"You lost me because I left. I've got to put Sawyer to bed."

"I'll help you," he said. "I know how to tuck kids in."

"Sure you do," she said, rolling her eyes. "Randy, seriously, why do you have so much interest in me? I don't like you and yet you just keep coming back for more. Do you have a complex or something?"

"I'm going to wear you down, Britt, trust me, I'm going to wear you down," he told her, winking at her as he walked ahead of her. "I think you like me and I'm going to make you see that you like me because I like you."

"I don't like you," she deadpanned.

"See, I'm not buying it."

"Oh my God, I don't like you!" she told him in no uncertain terms, but he just shrugged.

"Sorry, didn't hear that. I better go though, I think I'll have a little talk with Adamle about when I get back. I think that I'm going to want a title shot first thing when I get back. So you want to catch something to eat after the show?"

"No, I don't," she told him.

"Come on, just dinner."

"I consented to dinner with you," Britt told him. "I went out to dinner and that was the only obligation I had to you."

"Well, one more time then."

"I'm going out to eat with Chris, he's treating," Britt said. She actually hadn't made plans with Chris, but Hunter wasn't here tonight so she had to improvise right now so she wouldn't have to go out with Randy again. He was a sweet guy for someone else that wasn't her. She just couldn't appreciate him in her life when she already had a guy she appreciated.

"Oh, well, maybe next week since I've been hanging around until my arm gets better," he said, shifting his arm around. Britt nodded her head.

"I guess you just need to stay off motorcycles then," she said as she reached Chris's locker room. "Randy, don't follow me in here."

"I won't," Randy said, "but you can't stop me from waiting out here for you."

"I'm going to stay in here, do you think I'm going to leave a little boy in here by himself. Even if I did like you, I wouldn't do that. I'm entrusted with his care," Britt said. She pushed the door open and went inside, hoping that Randy could take a hint.

She was starting to think Randy was just doing this to get on her nerves. Maybe he knew she was still with Hunter and he was trying to get under Hunter's skin and make him snap or something. She didn't know _why_ he would do that, but why did anyone need any kind of reason to do something? Maybe he just didn't like Hunter and wanted to try and steal her away. She didn't even want to think it was something as stupid as that.

Maybe he actually liked her and in that case, it just made him a little more pathetic and she did feel bad for him if that was the case. "Hey, Sawyer, what do you think about Randy? Do you think he's sincere?"

Sawyer was very sleepy at this point and his eyes were drooping. They felt very heavy to him. He had done a lot of playing tonight. His daddy had used his belt too much though, he kept taking it away to show people. _He _wanted to show people the belt too! It was his toy after all, hadn't his daddy gotten it for him?

"Uh-uh," Sawyer mumbled sleepily. He burrowed his head against the soft fabric of Britt's sweater. She didn't smell like his mommy, but she smelled good and she was very comfortable, but still, it wasn't like his mommy.

"Thanks, I'm glad you agree."

Britt saw that Chris had already blown up Sawyer's air mattress. The show was nearly over, but it wouldn't be fair to make the little boy stay up any longer. Britt grabbed his pajamas and helped him into them. Chris came in just then and took over for Britt. He helped Sawyer brush his teeth and get into the bed. Sawyer wanted to fall asleep with the belt, so Chris put it next to him, knowing Sawyer would be out in a few minutes.

Chris watched Sawyer until he fell asleep. Cade knocked on the door and Chris got up to let him in. "Hey, man, so what's up?" Chris asked the other man.

"Batista just assaulted me, I don't know what his problem was," Cade said, shaking his head, "So do you have a plan?"

"Yeah, I'm going to suggest JBL and Batista go at it at No Mercy and then whoever wins can face me," Chris said.

"Oh, okay," Cade said, "that's a good one, see, you're just full of good ideas."

"Yeah, you know, let's get out of here, I don't want to wake up the kid," Chris said. "Britt, you've got him, right?"

"Yeah, I've got him," Britt said, looking up from the book she was reading by the desk lamp she was sitting next to.

Chris and Cade left the room and started walking towards the gorilla. They could talk louder there and Chris could outline what he was going to say out there. He expected Adamle to like his idea since it gave him what he wanted, but also protected Chris in a way. Along the way there, some kid came up to Chris and tried to introduce himself. Chris told him his arm was sore and sent the kid on his way as he continued to walk towards the gorilla.

Chris hated when people did that. Sure, he didn't know whether or not this kid was sincere, but he always erred on the side of insincere. He noticed he had become a little more guarded since he had married Stephanie. It was easy for people to want to get buddy-buddy with Chris because they thought he had some inside track to getting people where they wanted in the company. It was like he could suddenly make someone a champion just because they were friendly to him. Chris hated when people just assumed.

Cade seemed different though. He actually seemed like someone who genuinely wanted to know how Chris had gotten where he was at. Maybe he wasn't sincere and maybe he had his own designs, but for now, Chris didn't hate the kid and that was the best he could do for now. If he was with him for other reasons, he was sure they would come out sooner or later and Chris would just kick his ass or something for his troubles. If he was trying to use him for some kind of higher position, at least he wasn't being blatant about it, coming up to him and asking to shake his hand or something silly like that.

He went out there and proposed his idea to the crowd and to Adamle. He really thought it was a sound idea. Adamle came out and agreed that it was a good idea, but he didn't want to schedule a wrestler for two matches in one night. Well, it was too late for that since he had done it to Chris, although he had gotten the title out of it so he was okay with that. Something stuck in his head though, quarterly meetings with Stephanie? What did that mean? He hadn't heard word one about meetings with Stephanie. He figured he would have given the fact that he shared a bed with the woman and two children, so what was Adamle talking about?

Stephanie wanted to know what he was talking about as well. She hadn't heard a thing about meeting with him. She hadn't even wanted to schedule meetings with him. But maybe Shane was meeting with him. Sure, she talked to him occasionally about what was going on with the show and she gave him directives, but meetings? Could that have been a slip up for meetings with her father? She wouldn't put it past him to slip up, the guy was stumbling over his words like they were boulders.

Chris had an innate feeling that he knew who the number one contender was going to be and it made him sick to his stomach that it was going to be HBK. He could feel it in his gut though. He couldn't think of anyone else. Randy and Cena were injured and JBL and Batista were already going to be in a match. He figured Kane would fight against Rey, so that left Shawn. He know, but wanted to ignore and push down the feeling, but he knew. And when Shawn mentioned the match he made famous, Chris knew it was going to be a ladder match and he clutched at his title. He wasn't going to give it up for anything.

Yet, Shawn claimed he put the ladder match on the map and while that might be the case, Chris wasn't a stranger to the ladder match. Oh no, he had had a rather epic one with Chris Benoit that people seemed to remember just as much as any of Shawn's ladder matches. He didn't show his cards right then, preferring to make Shawn think he was actually afraid, but Chris was rather good with ladder matches and this was for his title so he would be extra motivated. Plus, he wanted revenge for what Shawn had done to him at Unforgiven.

He was going to give Shawn as good as he had gotten and he was going to make it hurt.


	204. We Want Steph, September 22, 2008

"I really like it."

"Oh good, I mean, it's too late to change the venue now, but I just wanted to make sure that it was nice, you know. God, you must think I sound like a complete idiot. I'm sorry, I don't mean to."

"I know," Stephanie said. "It's hard not to get excited for you own wedding. You're supposed to get all bubbly and excited, you're getting married! This is a big thing and a long time in the making."

"I know," Trish gushed. "I just cannot believe that this Saturday, _this_ Saturday, I'm going to be Mrs. Christian Cage…does that sound stupid? I'm not taking his name or anything, I've decided just to stay Trish Stratus, do you think I should take his name?"

"It's up to you, in social situations, I'm Stephanie McMahon-Jericho," Stephanie pointed out. "When I'm working, I'm Stephanie McMahon."

"But did you actually change your name?"

"Yeah, I actually changed it, but I was never going to go with Stephanie Jericho, that just sounds awful," Stephanie shuddered. She didn't like the way that sounded at all. She called Chris by his last name sometimes so it would be just confusing if she went by Stephanie Jericho. Sawyer Jericho and Flynn Jericho were fine, she didn't mind that and she didn't want them to have the McMahon-Jericho co-name, but for her, it just wasn't going to happen.

"Maybe I should go by Trish Stratus-Cage…but that sounds like a brand name. If you want the best in two, get the Stratus Cage! It'll be great!"

Stephanie laughed, "You're thinking about this way too hard."

"Or not hard enough," Trish said. "There's still so much to do…or at least I think there's so much to do and I'm totally keeping you now and I know that you have to make your flight to Cincy because you get to go back to work, yay! But I really appreciate this. I love my sister's to death, but they're kind of flaky compared to you."

"I think Chris would say that everyone's flaky compared to me."

Trish smiled, "That's true. Besides, they're all jazzed about this bachelorette party their throwing me. I don't even know what they're doing for me, but I have a feeling it's going to incorporate half-naked guys."

"As if we don't see that all the time what with our husbands or future husbands being wrestlers."

"Speak for yourself, my husband-to-be actually wears pants to ring," Trish teased.

"Oh God, don't remind me," Stephanie groaned.

"I see that he's still wearing them though."

"Yeah, he is. We came to a compromise of sorts. I'm just going to turn the other cheek and he's going to try and knock it off with the Ted jokes about me having a crush on him. I expect that to last about five seconds when I get to the show later," Stephanie sighed. "He just loves to make fun of me about it, but I can't help it, he's just…he's got something. He's got something I saw in Chris, I guess…I don't know."

"That is so cute, you've got a crush," Trish said. "Maybe Chris is jealous and that's why he keeps bringing it up."

"There's no way Chris is jealous. Chris and I…suffice it to say there's nothing wrong with any part of our relationship. I have fun with Chris."

"Wow, is that what you've been reduced to after being with Chris for six years? Your relationship is just _fun_ now?"

"Fun is just one of the adjectives," Stephanie said. "We're settled. I mean, look at our lives, he lets me have my crushes, I let him have his…crushes or whatever, I certainly let him have his stupid tiny trunks even though I should just take them all and hide them somewhere."

"I bet he'd love that."

"I hate those things," Stephanie said, making a face. "I just hate them so much…but your sisters are going to take you to like, one of those Chippendale type things?"

"Yeah, that's what I'm guessing, which…I don't know, I tend to find those places more cheesy than anything else. I mean, I don't know, don't you think so?"

"Well, have you seen my husband, there's no way I need to go out and look at hot guys, I just go into my bedroom and there he is," Stephanie said with a lecherous note to her voice. Trish raised her eyebrow and then the both of them started cracking up. "It's true though, I think Chris is the most good-looking guy and he's mine so I don't need to have a wandering eye…too much."

"Too much, I like that too much part," Trish said.

"It's okay to notice other guys, I do it all the time."

"Like with Ted?"

"He's great, what can I say?" Stephanie shrugged. "I really like this place. If Chris and I weren't already married, I would probably want to have it in a place like this so I definitely approve of the choice."

"Great and the place settings?"

"Beautiful."

"Flowers?"

"Gorgeous…Trish, everything is gorgeous and going well and you'll be all set for when the big event actually happens, you need to calm down," Stephanie said, placing her hand on Trish's shoulder. "It's going to be great."

"I just don't want anything to go wrong. I just want it to be perfect, you wanted yours to be perfect."

"I think every bride wants their wedding to be perfect, but it's not going to be totally realistic that everything is going to go off without a hitch. There's always going to be something, but it's not going to derail what the day is really about."

"You're right," Trish said, taking a deep breath. "I'm sorry I'm acting like such a freak, you know I'm not usually like this."

"I know," Stephanie said, hugging Trish now. "You'll be fine."

"I know," she said, hugging her back. "Are you sure you don't want to bring Flynn to the ceremony?"

"I'm sure, Chris's parents already volunteered to take care of her so I don't have to worry and they haven't gotten to spend any time with her since she's been born so it's a win-win situation for everyone."

"I just love her so much," Trish said, "why couldn't you bring her again?"

"Because she flew all the way from New York to Cincinnati, I didn't want her to have to fly to Toronto and then to Cincinnati. That's a little too much flying for a little girl who just got the full clearance to fly a few days ago."

"So everything's good with her?"

"She's in great health," Stephanie confirmed. "She's a little rolly-polly, little girl. I'm fine too, thanks for asking."

Trish laughed, "Sorry, and how are you doing, Stephanie?"

"Clean bill of health," Stephanie said. "I can participate fully in any activities, even the kind that occur in the bedroom, though I'm not really feeling all that up to it to be honest. Flynn apparents has just discovered that her lungs are her most potent weapon and uses them whenever she can. I'm just glad when Chris is home because he takes her during the evenings."

"You mean if she wakes up during the night, he goes and gets her, all the time?"

"Yeah, he feels so bad that he's not here when he's working that he does it so I can get some rest. I let him sleep in though, it's not like I work him like a dog and make him get up at dawn or something. It's kind of like having a shift."

"Sounds like it works."

"I'm getting more sleep and I take Flynn away in the morning in a different part of the house so she doesn't wake up Chris and I warn Sawyer that Daddy will yell at him if he goes and bugs him, Sawyer is a good listener like that."

"Yeah, he's a sweetheart. Are you worried that Chris is taking care of both of them at once though? Has he done that before?"

"He's their father, I have complete faith in him."

Chris gently bounced Flynn in her bouncy chair. She reached her arms out to him and he smiled widely at her. He kept bouncing her gently, trying to see if she wanted to fall asleep. Stephanie was in Toronto until this afternoon helping Trish with some last-minute details so he was stuck with both kids. Luckily, Sawyer was "reading" a book at the moment and wasn't being loud so that Flynn wouldn't start crying. Sawyer got up from his place on his play blanket and climbed on the couch next to Chris.

"Daddy, play wif me?" Sawyer asked.

"I can't right now, kid," Chris said. "Your sister doesn't want to go to sleep so I'm trying to get her to go to sleep."

"Oh," Sawyer said, standing up and leaning on Chris's shoulder. "But play wif me…"

"We'll play after she goes to sleep, okay?"

Sawyer sighed and crawled across Chris's lap and went into Flynn's diaper bag. He watched as Chris kept bouncing Flynn in her bouncer and he frowned a little bit. Sometimes he had to sit back and watch while they tended to her and he had to sit there and act like a good boy. And whenever anyone came to see them, they would always go after his sister first and then him. He loved Flynn very much and he really believed he should be her sole caretaker.

He saw a pacifier in the bag and, recognizing it, took it out and put it in his mouth, sucking on it a little even though it had been months and months since he had even needed a binky to calm down. His mommy had said he didn't need binkies anymore, but he could have one if he wanted to. He scooted closer to Chris and laid his head on his thigh. Chris looked down as he felt Sawyer lay in his lap and laughed a little when he saw that Sawyer was sucking on a pacifier.

"What are you doing?" Chris asked playfully. Sawyer just smiled around the pacifier. "Don't you think you're too old for a binky?"

Sawyer pulled out the pacifier from his mouth and said, "No."

"But you just pulled out your binky to talk," Chris said.

"Uh huh," Sawyer mumbled around the pacifier.

"That's Flynn's binky."

"No," Sawyer told him, "my binky."

"No, it's not your binky, it's her binky," Chris told him. Sawyer shook his head and stood up and sat right down in Chris's lap. Chris held him around the waist and rested his chin on Sawyer's head. "I think you should give her the binky back, don't you?"

"No," Sawyer said, chewing on it. "It mine."

"Are you feeling left out?" Chris asked. "Because everyone is paying attention to Flynn, you want someone to pay attention to you too?"

"Daddy," Sawyer said, "I okay."

"That's good," Chris said. "I know it's tough now that you have this new sister around. I get that, kid, but you know we love you, right? You're our kid, and we're always going to be around to pay attention to you too, it's just the right now, Flynn needs a lot more attention than you do, but it's not going to be that way all the time."

"Okay," Sawyer said.

"And you know, you're a really big help with the baby too. Me and Mommy wouldn't know what to do without you, you're the one who made Flynn smile first, you know," Chris told him, thinking about that first gummy smile Flynn had directed towards Sawyer a couple days before. "She's very picky about who she likes to be around, she's like Mommy that way."

"Yeah, Mommy nice," Sawyer told him.

"To you, maybe," Chris said, "because you're her son, but haven't you seen Mommy being mean to other people?"

"She yell," Sawyer said, his eyes widening as he thought about it. "Yell, yell, yell."

"I know, right?" Chris said with a nod. "She yells at me a lot too." Sawyer giggled and that caused Flynn to start smiling at her big brother. "Hey, look, kid, you're making her smile, she likes you."

"Me!" Sawyer asked, pretending to be incredulous as Flynn continued to smile. Sawyer leaned forward in Chris's lap with Chris holding onto him and he hovered over his little sister, "Hi, Fwynn!"

She reached out her tiny hands and Sawyer looked back at Chris happily, his tongue sticking out of his mouth a little bit in excitement as he grabbed Flynn's hand. Chris knew these were the moments that he should be living for. Did it get any better than watching his son and his daughter together and happy? Three years ago, he didn't have any of this, and it all seemed to happen in the blink of an eye really.

His life had gone from bachelorhood to fatherhood in such a seemingly short amount of time. He could still recall the nights where he'd go out with the guys and drink the night away, happy to just be doing something that he loved as his career. Chris had always been a relatively thoughtful human being in his private life, so he wasn't a completely crazy person when he was single, but there was a certain freedom to it.

Now he had a wife and two children that needed him and it was just so different at the base level. It wasn't him just being happy with his career and going out and doing whatever. Now he had people he needed to go out there for and they were sitting right here in front of him, acting as adorable as humanly possible to get him to do…something. These were his children and it seemed like such little time had passed between the bachelor part of his life and the fatherhood part of his life. Flynn was still smiling at her older brother as Sawyer gently rubbed her soft hand with his still small fingers.

"She play too, Daddy?"

"Still too young, kid," Chris told him. Sawyer climbed onto the table next to Flynn and he ran his hand over her head gently like Chris and Stephanie told him to do all the time because she was so little. "See, she really likes you."

"I like me," Sawyer told Chris definitively and Chris laughed.

"I like you too," Chris told him. Flynn gurgled a little and tried to arch her neck a little to look at her brother. She was holding her head up a little more now, a sign that she was really getting older and bigger and pretty soon she'd be crawling and talking and probably being even more adorable than Sawyer was.

Of course, this is when that serenity was broken.

Sawyer had left to go play some more and that upset Flynn as she started wailing. Chris winced at her crying and went to pick her up. She was jerkily moving in her bouncer. She had gotten a lot more into cuddling the past couple of weeks so Chris brought her close to him and rubbed her back, trying to calm her down. She was probably getting tired and that's why she had started bawling her eyes out.

"Daddy, potty," Sawyer said, shifting from side to side.

"What, you have to go right now?"

"Uh huh," he nodded. He was almost at the point where he was daytime potty-trained. He was telling them when he had to go and he was pretty much going with only a few accidents. Nighttime was a different story and he still wore his diapers at night. They had tried one night where he didn't wear his diaper and it had been a disaster, so for now, diapers it was.

"You're positive?"

"Yes, I go now," Sawyer said.

"Okay, um," Chris said, looking around. If he put Flynn down she was going to cry even harder, but he had to make sure that Sawyer could go to the bathroom since he didn't want his son having an accident on the floor. "Hold on…I think I can…"

"Hey bro," Shane said as he walked, then looked at the scene in front of him. Sawyer was looking a bit distressed and Chris was standing around with Flynn, who was crying. "Did I come at a bad time?"

"No, you came at a perfect time, can you take her?" Chris said.

"What am I supposed to do with her?" Shane asked, smiling at his niece.

"Just kind of bounce her around, you have two kids, Shane, you know what to do, Sawyer has to go to the bathroom," Chris said.

"Oh, okay," Shane nodded. He was going through the same thing with Kenny. "I've got her."

"Thanks so much," Chris said, rushing Sawyer into the bathroom before he went all over himself.

Shane looked at his niece. She was still crying, a little louder now because she didn't recognize who this guy was, even though Shane had been around her before. He kind of bounced up and down a little, patting her diaper-covered bottom. "Hey there, cutie. You don't want to cry, do you?"

She didn't answer and he didn't say anymore. He had held Flynn before, but this was a different kind of holding. She was nestled against him and it felt really different, but familiar to have a baby like this against his chest. He could still remember when Kenny was this small, all new smell and onesies. Flynn looked a little like her cousins with the dark hair and mostly Stephanie's eyes. He could see Chris in her too though.

"Come on, cutie, don't cry."

Flynn was starting to calm down ever so slightly when Chris came back into the room with a relieved looking Sawyer. Chris looked a little relieved too. "I do it."

"Well, congratulations," Shane said, looking at Chris who was trying to suppress his laughter.

"You know what I'm going through, right?"

"Yeah, I do," Shane laughed. "How the hell did our parents do it?"

"I don't know, God, I would think potty-training Stephanie would be hell on Earth," Chris joked. "So what's up?"

"Is Steph in from Toronto yet?"

"No, she's cutting it close. She probably won't be here until after the show starts, why?"

"I was just wondering because she's supposed to be taking over the second-half of the show, remember?"

"I remember," Chris said, "what, you think I don't remember when my own wife is supposed to work? She's excited as all get out though. She's finally free is what she said. I know she's still tired, but just working and all that, it gives her adrenaline. I think she was jealous of Sawyer getting to go all the time."

"I did go," Sawyer said, not understanding what his daddy was saying. He had just gone to the bathroom pretty much all by himself. It was a lot better than having to wait for his mommy and daddy to change him.

"Yeah, I know," Chris said, ruffling Sawyer's hair. "She'll be here…hey, look, you got her to stop crying."

Shane looked down at Flynn, who was indeed quiet. "Unca, give me baby."

"You want her."

"Uh huh, you no good," Sawyer said, berating him for how he was holding Flynn. He climbed on the couch and held out his arms, "Fwynn."

"You might as well just give her to him, he's going to throw a fit if you don't," Chris shrugged. Shane walked over and put Flynn into Sawyer's arms. He looked happy to hold her and she looked happy to be in his arms so Chris let them be. "So yeah, Steph should be here soon enough, don't worry about it."

"I'm not worried, but it'd be better if she were here. It's like an evaluation of Adamle and we have to look like a united front…does Stephanie still think that Dad is working through the guy?"

"Of course she does. She's just letting it go for now since it seems like he's not doing anything crazy. She'll probably tail him the entire night though, I wouldn't be surprised. She's a sneaky one."

"So was she as hopping to get back to work as she was when we had dinner on Thursday night?"

"Probably even more, she was so excited this morning. She dressed Flynn up, I had to remind her that Flynn was only six weeks old and she probably didn't need to wear a dress to the show and she'd probably be more comfortable in her warm clothes."

Shane laughed, "That's my sister for you, the second she can come back, there she is. Anyways, I've got to go check up on Mike and see how he's doing and see what he's up to. I just want to make sure he's doing a good job. You know, since my dad is not _officially_ in charge, if you wanted to…"

"No, I'm the champion, Shane, the _champion_, I've got enough on my plate. I mean, you know, this thing with Shawn is coming to a head."

"He's a jerk, but you bring in ratings, Chris and to me, that's music to my ears. You should fight him every week, hell you would fight him every week if I had my say."

"You're more like your dad than you think," Chris pointed out.

"How dare you," Shane said, pretending to be angry. "If you weren't like a brother to me, I would strip you of that title right now and just put it around Shawn's waist."

"I'd like to see you try," Chris mock challenged him.

Britt was practically bouncing in the car. "Would you hurry up, Hunter!"

"I'm driving the speed limit."

"I know, but we're already running late because you are such a slowpoke and I want to see Flynn! She's gorgeous, isn't she? Oh, I bet she's gorgeous and I want to hold her so bad. I haven't even gotten to see her in person."

"I bet she is cute."

"Do you ever think about that like your mom does?" Britt asked rather out of the blue.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Do you ever think that should be you?" She was just curious as to his answer. If one, tiny thing had been different, she could've never been in this picture and Hunter could've still been married to Stephanie. He pictured her pretty miserable though. Would Chris even be here? But how could Stephanie and Chris work together for this long without something happening? They just had this way about them that was so comfortable and natural that she couldn't imagine the two of them _not_ together. Maybe they would just have an affair or something.

"No, because if it should've been, it would've been. I was married to Stephanie, I had my chance, it didn't work out," Hunter shrugged. "Let Chris have her. She was a pain in my ass by the end. I couldn't even stand to be in the same room with her, she was insufferable. She needs Chris because when she's not with him, she's horrible and whiny."

Britt laughed, "So you're saying Chris is really what makes her the Stephanie we all know today."

"He's the only reason she is…well, no, I think Sawyer and Flynn have leveled her out. She probably passed the crazy on to them so she's less crazy now."

"Don't you want to hold Flynn?"

"Well, sure, I guess."

"You love Sawyer."

"I do love that kid, he's pretty awesome."

"You'll love this one," Britt said. "I mean, come on, cute, little girl, you'll love her."

Hunter pulled into the parking lot of the arena, passing into the employee lot. Britt already had her hand on the door and she was going to open it as soon as he parked. No sooner had the tires silently screeched to a stop in the space he pulled into was Britt flying out of the car, bag in hand and in towards the arena. If this had been a cartoon, there would've been a cloud of dust in the shape of Britt left behind. Sometimes women were so crazy about babies. He just hoped that Britt didn't want one right now…no, she didn't, he knew that.

Britt flew down the hallway, ignoring everything as she got to Chris's locker room. She took a moment to compose herself, not wanting to go in there looking like she had just come from a long hike in the woods. She opened the door with a big grin on her face and saw Chris and Shane talking with one another. She looked to the right and saw Sawyer holding Flynn.

"Oh my God, that's her!" Britt said, dropping her stuff and sitting on the couch.

"Hello to you too," Chris chuckled. "Glad to see you."

"Hunter was being slow," Britt said, not taking her eyes off Flynn. "Oh, she is so cute."

"My baby," Sawyer said, holding her a little closer.

Britt cooed, "Oh, yeah, I know, she's your baby and what a beautiful baby she is. Do you think that I could hold her?"

Sawyer didn't like anyone except him to hold his baby. He allowed his mommy and daddy to because they were his mommy and daddy, but anyone else he was apprehensive about. But he liked Britt, she was very nice and she always took care of him. He thought for a moment and answered, "Okay."

"Thank you," she said as she took Flynn from Sawyer's arms. "Oh God, Chris, she is so light. I didn't realize she'd be so light."

"Yeah, well, she was lighter than Sawyer was when he was born," Chris said. "I'm glad you're here, the show is starting in half an hour and I've got to plan a couple of things. I got time at the top of the show."

"What are you doing at the top of the show?" Shane asked.

"What do you think I'm doing?" Chris asked. "I'm the champion, Shane, it's like my duty to go out there, I need to go out there and show them I'm just as good at ladder matches as Shawn freaking Michaels."

"You're so pretty," Britt said in a high-pitched voice as she looked at Flynn. "Yes you are. You are just a beautiful, little girl. Oh and she smells good too."

"You're crazy," Chris said, coming over to Britt and standing close to her so he could rub Flynn's back, letting her know by his touch and by his voice that he was nearby. She probably didn't know who this crazy lady was and might start to think she'd been abandoned and he didn't want her thinking that.

"She's beautiful, Chris," Britt told him. "Where's Stephanie?"

"She went to Toronto to help out Trish with some wedding stuff," Chris explained. "She'll be here though. Do you think you could watch the kids though? I just have to get some stuff situated."

"Yeah, of course."

"Thanks so much. Flynn's eaten. If she's calm enough you can put her in her bouncy chair and she'll probably fall asleep within minutes. If she won't, she actually likes it if Sawyer rubs her head. You know what to do with the kid."

"Yeah, it won't be a problem," she said, rubbing Flynn's back. "Hunter is here too, obviously, since he drove me, he can help me if things go awry."

"Great, I'll be back," he said, leaving with Shane as they chatted about something.

Britt sat down with Flynn and just held her close. The little girl was gurgling a little bit, making baby sounds and lifting her head every so often, probably wondering where everyone had gone. Sawyer was watching diligently, so diligently, in fact, that he hadn't noticed Chris had taken the belt and was now getting it hoisted above the ring like a chandelier hanging down, all sparkly and brilliantly. Sawyer climbed up next to Britt and reached across her to rub Flynn's leg.

"Hi baby," Sawyer said, letting her know he was still here.

"You love your sister?" Britt asked.

"Uh huh, love, love, love, love, love," he repeated as he kept holding onto his sister's leg. The door opened again and Hunter walked in, having found Chris's locker room himself. He saw Britt and smiled.

"So that must be the new monster."

"Hi, Twip!" Sawyer said, furrowing his brow like he saw Hunter do all the time.

"Hey there, tough guy, that your little sister."

"Yup, she mine," Sawyer said, "my baby…"

"She's awful cute."

"I'm watching them for Chris."

Chris had much to do before the show started, but what it did start, he was standing cleanly with his suit creased in all the right places. He felt a little naked without the belt, but he would see it soon enough. His music started off the show and he walked down to the ring confidently. He had a few things to say that people may have forgotten about, that Shawn may have forgotten about. But being the honest, good man he was, he would remind the fans of what he was all about.

The ladder shone brightly in the ring, highlighted by the one spotlight boring down on it, making it glisten like a diamond in the sun. He grabbed his microphone and scaled the ladder with ease, hoping it would be this easy come No Mercy. But there was no way Chris was going to walk out of that show without his title. He would fight tooth and nail for it and if he was going to be "disfigured" as Shawn said, so be it as long as he came away with what he prized the most in this business, the World Title.

He straddled the ladder and looked out at the booing masses. He took it all in and let it wash over him. Backstage, Sawyer was pulling Hunter because he had just heard his daddy's music and he wanted to watch his daddy. Hunter was laughing as he came over to one of the monitors and a few empty seats in front of it. He wanted to see his daddy and Trips was going too slow so he practically had to pull him. Britt was behind him with Flynn, who was getting sleepy. She didn't know how she'd fare here, but it was worth a shot for a few minutes. So far she didn't seem to care, though she did keep opening her eyes to see what was going on.

Sawyer sat down and pulled Hunter down with him. Britt sat down with them, watching Chris on the screen. It was the heavy "HBK" chant that startled Flynn and she was obviously not enjoying the noise, not being used to it as she was. She started to whimper in Britt's ear and Britt stood up. "She needs to go back to the locker room. She's tired and cranky."

"Okay," Hunter said. Britt unconsciously kissed Hunter before leaving, smiling at him and then turning to walk down the hallway, bouncing a little on her toes for Flynn's sake.

She didn't notice Randy had been nearby watching Chris on the screen. He caught up with Flynn just out of Hunter's eyeshot, but not out of Chris's earshot as he could hear the Canadian talking in the background. "You're still with Hunter."

"What?" Britt said, not even paying attention to anyone else. She turned and saw Randy. "What?"

"You just kissed Hunter."

Britt sighed, "Yeah, so what?"

"You went out with me, you kissed me."

"No, _you_ kissed _me_, I tried to push you away and I went out with you to get you off my back. I thought these were both clear," Britt said. "And yes, I'm with Hunter, _still_ with in fact, we didn't break up, Randy, we never did. So there you go, everything you've been doing, moot point, goodbye…I've got a little girl who needs to go to bed."

With that, she left and Randy went back into the area, glaring at Hunter. He couldn't believe they had never broken up. He thought she had fun on their date and now he was feeling used and it pissed him off. If Hunter wasn't with Chris's little boy right now, he would pull that jackass up by the collar of his shirt and pound his face in.

Chris started talking about how he was a good and honest man, which he believed he was, okay, not so much the honest part, he knew he wasn't a totally honest guy, but he had to be better at it than HBK was. Something Shawn had neglected to say last week when the ladder match had been announced was the fact that Chris was just as good at ladder matches, maybe even better. He had won multiple ladder matches for titles and he had certainly had more practice wielding a ladder than Shawn did. Shawn wasn't going to stand a chance against him. He pulled down his belt with a look on his face that he saw on his son's all the time, though he probably denied it.

He half-expected to hear Shawn's music go off so he was pleasantly surprised, but not shocked, when Randy's music came on. Randy stalked down the aisle, looking especially pissed off and Chris wondered what exactly had made him so angry. He just looked perturbed and not even seeming to care that he was getting cheered by the crowd (which totally speaks to how good a heel Chris is playing when another heel gets cheered just to spite Chris). Chris told him he expected him out here. Randy kept popping up everywhere so Chris really shouldn't have been surprised to see him.

No matter though, Chris would beat him when the time came. Chris had nearly beaten him anyways before if it hadn't been for JBL. He could've been champion for even longer if it hadn't been for a kick to the face. He would've loved to have beaten Randy that night and held the title for this long. It incited a kind of anger into him that he hadn't been and there was nobody here but Randy so maybe he'd just punch him in the face for insinuating that he couldn't beat him. Unfortunately there was some sort of stipulation in place that he couldn't hit him. Knowing that he had to set an example, Chris left the ring, leaving an irate Randy behind him, still wondering just why Randy was so extremely angry.

Punk didn't have a problem hitting Randy though and Adamle was "forced" to suspend him. Shane had been watching this with folded arms and didn't agree with that. Sometimes you needed to get revenge on someone and it was stupid to punish Punk for something Randy had done to him and had done to him worse. He sought to rectify this, telling Chris, who was sitting there, to cue up his music because he had to intervene. He hadn't meant to get on-screen tonight, being content to just watch and see how Adamle was doing, but he had to step in here.

He couldn't believe that Randy would back-talk him. Did Randy know who he was? He was a McMahon and not like Chris, who couldn't fire people (the company would probably consist of Chris and Stephanie if that were the case), he absolutely could and would take charge. Yes, Adamle was the GM, but he was an owner and he wasn't going to take attitude from Randy of all people, being a third-generation superstar meant nothing when you were up against the boss so he sent Randy out.

And while he was there, he might as well make a match while he was at it. Shane, being the logical of the two McMahon children, saw a lot of potential in some of the match-ups coming up for No Mercy and decided to capitalize on that and made a very interesting main event with his brother-in-law and JBL versus Batista and Shawn Michaels. Yes, he liked that, he liked that a lot.

"Shane…we're family," Chris said as he got backstage.

"Oh, so _now_ we're family," Shane joked.

"What the hell are you doing putting me in a match with Shawn…and teaming with JBL?"

"What's wrong with you teaming with JBL?" Shane asked, honestly not remembering anything.

"Um, does insulting my children ring any bells? Does insulting your _sister_ ring any bells? Or how about me getting dragged around with a television cord wrapped around my neck?"

"Oh yeah, sorry," Shane said, remembering now. "It's fine, you guys will be fine."

"And why would you even put me in a match with Shawn?"

"Chris, Chris, come on, do you really think I wouldn't do this without having a good reason? Come on now. Look, you and JBL beating up on Shawn…I know you're going to because well, I know you are, just trust me on that," he said smoothly. "Then you soften HBK up, especially if you target that bum arm and then come No Mercy, even if he's reaching and reaching, he can only do it with one arm because you've totally taken out the other one beforehand."

"So you're saying that if I fight Shawn now, I can make him worse for the wear come No Mercy?"

"Exactly."

"God, you McMahons are evil geniuses."

"And you're lucky you're privy to our dementia," Shane said, tapping his forehead. "I'm sure Stephanie would've come up with something more elaborate, like a lumberjack match with guys you picked out."

"I could live with that," Chris shrugged. "I guess I should thank you."

"No thanks needed, I've got to go watch Adamle until my sister gets here."

"Okay, later then."

"Later, bro."

Trish lay in Christian's lap as she just looked up at her fiancé. "So what does Edge have planned for your bachelor party?"

"What do you think? Naked women of course."

"Even though I got Lita to come with him to the wedding?"

"Uh, my brother is…as he says, _in turmoil over the Vickie thing_, so to get over that turmoil, he's obviously going to want to see naked women and is just using my bachelor party as a cover for it."

"Maybe I should've vetoed Edge as your best man and made it like…Chris," Trish said, pursing her lips, "do you think Chris would've planned naked women into your bachelor party."

"Yes, he would have, I mean, Chris knows how to throw a party."

"But he's married."

"So…I don't know, maybe we'd just go out drinking. What else is there to do though? Maybe I shouldn't have a party, what's the point? I'll only be thinking about marrying you."

"You're so sweet," Trish said to him, kissing the back of his hand. "Do you think we're ready for this? You don't think we're rushing into this, do you?"

Christian laughed, "Too late for that now. You're stuck with me."

"I like being stuck with you," she told him, "feels right. For like the first time in my life, I really feel like I'm really doing what feels right to me. Even wrestling didn't feel as right as this does. I'm going to like being married I think, as long as at our wedding reception I don't see you kissing our wedding planner."

"Considering the woman planning a lot of it is like 60-years-old, I think that you're safe from that."

"Oh good," Trish said. "I wouldn't want to sick The Undertaker on you."

"I appreciate that."

Was it possible the air actually smelled better in an arena than it did outdoors? Stephanie took a deep breath as she walked inside. It felt like she was alive again. Not that having a daughter wasn't exciting, but she needed work. It was part of the equation with her. She could have her family and whatever, but she needed her work to feel totally complete. She was a workaholic and it was just not the same sitting at home with a baby. She felt reenergized and ready to take on the world…or just take on Flynn whenever she needed her.

She was greeted with polite smiles and hellos and she couldn't tell if they were being sincere or not. Maybe they were fake because people were not liking Chris too much or maybe they were sucking up. She didn't care, let them suck up. Some guy named Biggler or Wiggler or something came up to her and introduced himself to her. She didn't even know where to begin with that one.

She walked into Chris's locker room with renewed purpose and saw Britt with her daughter. "Hey, Britt, where's Chris?"

"Around, probably with your brother or with Sawyer and Hunter or something. Your daughter was tired so I brought her in here, she's been asleep for a while though. I bet Sawyer's going to be here soon because it's getting late."

"You know my kid's schedule better than I do," Stephanie joked. "She wasn't fussy for you, was she?"

"A little, yeah, but I calmed her down," Britt said, looking at the sleeping baby. "She's beautiful, Stephanie, seriously, she's absolutely…the cutest thing I've ever seen."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, brushing some of Flynn's wispy hair back. "She's a good baby for the most part, but she cries a lot, we'll have to do something about that, Chris and I. I wonder if they have something to get her to stop crying that doesn't involve my breast."

Britt laughed, "So you're working tonight?"

"Yeah, just the second half of the show, I'm going to be watching Adamle, making sure he's doing an okay job, try to see if my father is influencing his every decision, you know, just ease right back into the routine."

"Yeah, that's a great routine. I'll leave you alone for now, but you know how to get me if you need me."

"Thanks, Britt, I promise things will get back in the groove next week and then you'll actually have a job."

"I like having the time to do nothing," she shrugged, "I'll just go make out with my boyfriend."

"Not Randy?"

"Oh God no. I think I made him all pissy out there, don't know if you saw but he went out when Chris was out there and started talking crap to him, it was pretty funny on Chris's part. He just kind of took it all in stride. Then your brother said that nobody can hit Randy and Randy can't hit anyone."

"Oh, okay, I'll discuss that with him, thanks."

Stephanie watched her daughter sleep for a little while before getting her briefcase and starting to go over some of the files regarding things for No Mercy like the pyrotechnics order form and the seating chart for the venue and how many tickets had been sold thus far. Chris came in with a sleepy Sawyer not too long after and Stephanie glanced up from her pile of work.

"Mommy," Sawyer mumbled happily, trying to get out of Chris's arms.

"Hey, you're here," Chris said, giving her a kiss. "I think your brother just left a little while ago."

"Oh, that means I should probably go spy on Adamle."

"Actually, I wanted to talk to him about something," Chris said.

"What?"

"My match later."

"Oh yeah, I saw that on the TV a minute ago," Stephanie said, looking at the TV on the lowest volume setting. "What's that all about?"

"Shane made the match, I think I'm going to modify it."

"I'll call Britt to watch the kids."

"It's cool, Hunter is going to be here in just a minute, he was going to the bathroom. He can watch them, I'm going to put Sawyer to bed."

"Come here, baby boy," Stephanie said, grabbing Sawyer from Chris and kissing his forehead.

"Where's my kiss?" Chris pouted. Stephanie leaned over and kissed him. She took over Sawyer's bedtime duties for the evening, much to Sawyer's delight. He liked his mommy tucking him in. Just as he was drifting off, Hunter walked in and Chris told him he'd just have to sit with them.

"Night, baby boy."

"Night, Mommy, love."

"Love you too."

"Daddy?"

"I love you too, kiddo," Chris told his son as he went back to his discussion with Hunter.

When that was through, Chris and Stephanie went to Adamle's office. Stephanie hung back and watched as Chris explained about what Shane was actually saying and what Adamle should do about the match later on. Chris did know the McMahon family and Adamle had no choice but to take that as face value. It was common knowledge that Shane and Chris were brother-in-laws so Adamle believed that whatever Chris said about the McMahons had to be true because he was part of their family.

"I think it should be 3 on 2," Chris said as the cameras stopped rolling.

"I don't know…Shane said…"

"I'm telling you, he wouldn't care."

"In fact, I endorse it," Stephanie said, stepping out from the shadows and nearly startling Adamle. Chris knew she was there all along.

"Stephanie, hello again!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, look, Chris gets what he wants, that's the end of it. He's the champ and we want him to be as comfortable as possible, don't we, Adamle?" she asked and this was her. She was speaking in her authoritative tone and she meant business. "Understood?"

"Yes, Stephanie, that's understood."

"Good," Stephanie said, "now we're getting somewhere. I'm not saying play favorites or anything, but it's true, my brother _and myself_, we'd both like to see what _you_ bring to the table, right here, right now, do you have any other suggestions as to what we should do or would you need to…I don't know, think about it?"

"Chris's idea is fine, a good one actually," Adamle said quickly.

"Good, I'm glad we agree," Stephanie said. "But if we don't, I'm sure you'd have your _reasons_."

Chris nudged Stephanie in the ribs and nearly pulled her away from this interrogation. Chris kissed her chin and then moved up to her lips once they were in the hallway. "You were so obvious back there."

"Well, he's working for my father and won't admit it, but I'll get him to."

"I have no doubt that you will," he said, moving back down again to her neck. "I love that you're back."

"I love it too."

"You're the best."

"Well, he has to learn his place now," Stephanie said. "Because I'm back and I'm going to make sure that he doesn't screw this up, that my father won't screw this up. I'm in charge now, he better recognize that fact."

So Chris got what he wanted in a 3 on 2 match, but nearly lost a number of times, too many close times. He was going to have to shore up on going for things like the Lionsault at the right time and hitting it for once. He didn't let it happen though, not wanting those stupid "HBK" chant to break out, but he could still hear the vile words ringing in his ears. Sometimes it was good to be the champ and Vince's son-in-law. It meant he got his way and his way was having Cade win. He had to say the kid impressed him with his moves and with improved mic skills, he might actually be somebody.

Chris felt the urge to take him under his wing and show him how it was done. He had beaten Shawn this week while getting some good shots in on him. Was it what he had wanted to do? No, but he got in some good shots and he still believed he had the clear advantage of winning the ladder match. Shawn could hem and haw and claim he was the best, but Chris had proven many times how good he was in ladder matches. Shawn was injured too. It was going to be too easy. Shawn would be the one disfigured at the end of the match, not him. No, he would come away with his title.

The lion was seeking its prey.


	205. Wedding Bells, September 24 to 27, 2008

A/N: So...well, I was working on the entire wedding chapter thing and it was coming up on 35 pages, so I was like, okay, if I add Raw onto that, it's going to be really, really long, so I decided that since many of you have been waiting for this, Christian and Trish's wedding deserved its own chapter so here it is. It's pretty long so enjoy. It's also extremely fluffy, but what did you expect? :P

I was also deliberating and I'm thinking of waiting to update Raw and then SmackDown together since Chris will be on SmackDown this Friday. If you'd rather see me update with just Raw tomorrow, let me know in a review. Thanks. :)

* * *

**Wednesday**

"Like dis, Daddy?"

Chris looked over as Sawyer stirred the pancake batter with his right hand. He had it gripped in his little hand and was stirring it as vigorously as he possibly could. He was doing a pretty decent job. He could hardly see any of the flour left in the bowl and Sawyer was getting everything decently integrated into the batter.

Chris kissed his head, "You're doing a great job, Mommy is going to love her pancakes."

"Good," Sawyer said. "I get too?"

"Well, I don't know, I think these pancakes are all for Mommy and you're going to have to starve and you'll never get fed again," Chris said seriously.

"Daddy, no!" Sawyer said, his eyes widening in fear. Never eat again? But he liked to eat! This was completely unfair.

"Well, okay, I guess you can have pancakes. You can eat them with Mommy, how does that sound?"

"I like dat," he said as he continued to stir the pancakes. "Fwynn too?"

"No, Flynn's going to get a bottle," Chris said, taking the opportunity to glance over at Flynn sitting on top of the kitchen table. She was facing Chris and Sawyer but completely uninterested in what they were doing. Chris had put some dangly toys in front of her and she was trying to knock at them, but she wasn't quite reaching her arm out far enough. "She's getting in her exercise now so she's going to be completely tired out and hungry when we're done."

"Oh," Sawyer said, looking back at his little sister from his stepstool. "I see."

"Well good, I'm glad you see the situation at hand," Chris said as he continued to cook the bacon. He and Sawyer were going to surprise Stephanie with breakfast in bed and then she was going to whisk herself away to a day at the spa while Chris took care of the kids and then they were going out to a romantic dinner, just the two of them while Linda took care of the kids.

It wasn't going to be a spectacular birthday, but they were at the point where their kids' birthdays took a lot more precedent. He didn't know what they were even going to do on his own birthday, but he didn't expect anything extravagant. Maybe they would just go out to the park or something. At this point any time he could just spend relaxing and with his family was a good enough time for him. Like this moment, for instance, he was having a lot of fun with just his kids.

"Are you going to give Mommy the present you got her?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said seriously. "She like it?"

"Well she hasn't seen it yet, but since it's from you, I think that she'll really like it, love it even," Chris told him with a serious nod to match his son's serious tone. "I think she'd like anything you gave her."

"Oh, and Fwynn?"

"She got something for Mommy too, but I had to help her with that since she's not really old enough. I don't think Mommy would want Flynn's drool as a present."

Sawyer laughed and continued with his stirring. Chris pulled the bacon off the stove and started putting it on the paper towel he had laid out. He checked on Sawyer's progress and he was doing pretty well though he didn't really know how to get the clumps of flour out of the batter. He finished the bacon, putting the drippings into a glass before sticking the pan in the sink. He went back to Sawyer and stood just behind him.

"You did a great job!" Chris told him enthusiastically. "Why don't you give it to me so I can make pancakes and you can go check on Flynn for me, okay?"

"Okay!" Sawyer said, liking it when he was given something to do with Flynn. He ducked under Chris's arm and slowly climbed down his stool before he went over and pushed the chair next to the table and climbed up, throwing one leg and managing to hoist himself up to the table, standing on his chair so he could observe Flynn. She spotted her brother, turning her head a little bit to see him and smiling in his direction. She liked this boy, he was very nice to her, whoever he was.

"She doing okay?"

"Yup," Sawyer said, making faces at Flynn. This just made her smile even more. This kid was crazy.

"Good," he said, stirring the batter quickly as the griddle got hot. He stood over it and started putting down pancakes, adult-sized ones for Stephanie and kid-sized ones for Sawyer. He watched them and finished them up, sticking them on a plate before arranging everything else on the tray, one plate for Stephanie, one for Sawyer. "Okay you two, time to go wake up Mommy."

"Mommy!" Sawyer exclaimed, startling Flynn who stopped trying to reach for him. "Let's go!"

"Well first, I'm going to bring you and your sister up there, you can wake up Mommy, okay?"

"No," Sawyer said, shaking his head, "I help."

"What do you want to help with?" Chris asked. "You can't bring Flynn upstairs, I know you like to hold her, but you can barely get up the stairs yourself so I don't trust you to bring up your sister."

"No, Daddy, no Fwynn," he said to his father. He didn't want to carry Flynn upstairs. She would probably be too heavy for him to carry, but not as heavy as his belt was. That thing was so heavy he could only drag it a little. Most of the time he got his daddy to help him pull it around.

"Okay, so what do you want to help with then?" he asked.

"Dat," he said, pointing at the breakfast sitting on the tray on the counter. "I help."

"You want to help with the breakfast?"

"Yes," Sawyer said. He had helped _make_ the breakfast and he thought his mommy should see that he helped too. What the heck was his daddy going to do? Take the credit all for himself? Well he wasn't going to let that happen.

"Okay, you can carry up the flower, how about that?"

He weighed that option for a moment. He probably wouldn't be able to carry that entire tray upstairs. He was just a little boy and that was a very big tray. He could probably carry the juice, but he didn't want to spill it (he had a tendency to spill things). "Okay," he finally answered.

"Okay, then I'm going to bring Flynn upstairs first, you just sit here, do you hear me?" Chris asked.

Sawyer nodded and Chris nodded and looked him straight in the eye, giving him a stern look. Sawyer slowly sat down on the chair at his father's look, trying to look like he was going to be a good boy. Chris came over and took Flynn out of her carrier. She smiled up at the man holding her. She liked him too. He was around a lot and he was always very nice to her. He cuddled his daughter against him, patting her on the bottom as he walked quickly upstairs.

Stephanie was pretty exhausted lately, which could be attributed to Flynn. With a new baby, they weren't going to get a lot of sleep and sometimes it caught up with a person like it was catching up with Stephanie. She had started to wake up early this morning, her body anticipating Flynn's waking up. Chris, who had just been lying in bed staring at the ceiling and plotting out their day, saw she was waking up and kissed her and told her not to worry about it. She had mumbled something to him, something incoherent, before she went back to sleep.

Chris set Flynn in his empty spot, laying her on her back. She started to whimper from the loss of Chris's warmth against her small frame and Chris quickly knelt next to the bed and rubbed Flynn's tummy. "Flutterby, don't cry okay, just stay quiet for a little while longer, okay?"

He didn't know if Flynn really understood what he was saying, but she quieted down. It was probably his hand on her stomach that was doing the trick. Chris waited until she had completely quieted down and then he went back downstairs. Sawyer was still sitting where he had been left. He wanted to be a good boy. His daddy said it was his mommy's birthday and that it was a very special day. Chris kissed his son's head for listening to his directions and he grabbed the flower that was on the tray and handed it to Sawyer, who was eagerly bouncing on his feet, wanting to help so badly. He took the flower and practically ran towards the stairs, the water sloshing a little in the small vase in his hands.

"Sawyer, wait!" Chris said with a sigh. Even when he wanted to help that kid was way too eager.

Chris grabbed the tray and brought it upstairs. Sawyer was waiting near the steps for him, knowing that he shouldn't go up the stairs without an adult. He at least followed some directions given him, albeit only those that were told to him with lots of authority. He was two though, he wasn't going to be a model kid and neither Chris nor Stephanie expected him to be. They went up the stairs slowly.

Stephanie heard a soft whimpering beside her and at first she thought Chris was being weird with her, but when she went to throw her leg over his, her leg just fell to the bed without contacting skin. Then, in her dreamy haze, she thought Chris had gotten her a dog for her birthday and she was going to kill him. The last thing they needed in addition to an infant and a two-year-old was a dog. She opened one of her eyes to see what was making that noise and saw it was her daughter.

She smiled sleepily and reached out a hand to run her fingers on Flynn's leg, grabbing her foot and wiggling it around a little bit. "Hey there, baby girl."

Stephanie sat up and pulled Flynn into her arms, holding the little girl. Flynn stopped whimpering and smiled contentedly. Stephanie loved that smile. It was toothless, but so filled with joy. She loved that little smile. Chris and Sawyer walked in then, Chris with food and Sawyer with a flower in his hand.

"Happy Birthday!" Chris told her excitedly. "We made you breakfast."

"I help, Mommy," Sawyer said, running again and thrusting the flower in Stephanie's direction.

"Thank you," Stephanie said, taking it from him and putting it on her nightstand as she helped him climb up onto the bed. Sawyer crawled towards her and settled himself next to her. Stephanie wrapped her free arm around him and gave him a kiss on the head.

"Well, looks like I'm not wanted here," Chris said as he set the tray down in front of Stephanie and pushed it closer to her. "Happy Birthday, baby."

"Thanks," she said, "I'm old now."

"You're not old," he told her, tucking her messy hair behind her ear. "You're hardly old at all."

"You're just saying that."

"You're still in your early 30's," he said. "Can you believe I've been with you since you were like twenty-six?"

"Stop it, Chris," she told him, frowning at him.

"Oh man, I almost forgot, your presents!" Chris said, rushing out of the room and returning with three different boxes of various sizes. He put them on the bed and then got in on the other side of the bed. "Enjoy your breakfast first. Sawyer wanted to eat with you instead of eating first."

"Have you eaten?"

"I snacked while I was cooking, I'm good," he said, "here, give me the other one so you can eat."

Stephanie and Sawyer ate their breakfast, Stephanie complimenting how good the pancakes were to Sawyer. He beamed at her, glad that she liked his pancakes. He ate his entire breakfast, only getting some syrup on himself. He was extra careful when he drank his juice. He wanted his mommy to be happy today. When they were done, Chris took the tray away and dumped the presents in her lap.

"Here you go," he said. "Open this one first." It was Chris's present and he got her a new bag for her files and things. "It's just a little something, he said, I mean, you're doing your whole spa thing, which I got you, but yeah, I wanted you to have something."

"Thanks, sweetie," she said. "I like that you got me something practical."

"Me! Me!" Sawyer exclaimed.

"Okay, which one is yours?" Stephanie asked.

"Um…" he looked at the two presents. He remembered what he had gotten his mommy and it wasn't small and flat like that pink one. It must be the other one! "Dis one!"

"Okay," she said, taking the larger of the two presents. She shook it a little. "I wonder what it is."

"I know," Sawyer told her. He did know what it was.

Stephanie opened the box up and lifted the lid. It was a couple of things wrapped in tissue paper. She took the object on the left and pulled the paper back. It was a coffee cup with little squiggles drawn onto it with paint. The drawings had no rhyme or reason to them so they must've been done by Sawyer. She smiled at it though.

"I did that," Sawyer said, pointing to the cup. "More."

"I know, but I love it," she said, kissing him. "It looks really nice. I like it a lot."

"Thank you," he told her graciously. He peered into the box and grabbed the other thing. He gave it to Stephanie and she opened it up. It was a picture frame and inside was a picture of him and Flynn, obviously done by a professional. Flynn was in a light blue dress and Sawyer was in a little dress shirt and tie.

"This is great," Stephanie said genuinely. "I can put this in my office, it'll sit right on my desk. Maybe I'll just hang it on the door so everyone can see. I love it."

"Yeah?" he asked.

"Yeah, when did you guys do this?"

"When you went out with your mom, remember? You guys went out to lunch and to shop. I took the kids to take the picture while you were out. It was a little bit hard, but we got some good shots. This one was the best, I've actually got wallet-sized ones and ones for our parents and Trish and Christian and then your brother and sister."

"They look so adorable," Stephanie said, taking the way Sawyer was posing, looking all dignified and stately with his arm on the little table Flynn was propped up on. "This is wonderful. Thank you, baby boy, I love it."

"Yay," Sawyer said happily, grinning at Chris, happy that his mommy had loved his gift so much.

"One more," Chris said, handing the last present to Stephanie. "This one is from Flynn. She had a little bit of help from me on this one, but the thought was there. She wanted to give you something."

"Thanks, baby girl," Stephanie said, pressing a kiss to her fingertips and then pressing it to Flynn's cheek, getting a smile in return. She opened the last gift and knew it was jewelry before she opened it. She lifted the case and there was a necklace with a pendant hanging from the platinum chain. The pendant itself was a twisting helix type design inlaid with two different colors of green. "Chris, this is gorgeous."

"It's Sawyer and Flynn's birthstones," he explained. "I thought you might like it."

"I love it," she said, "Thank you all, I love everything."

Meanwhile, Trish was freaking out as she talked on the phone. "Are you kidding me? You're going to have to let the dress _out_. I don't think I've gained any weight. How long is that going to take?"

"It shouldn't be too long," the designer said. "It's not a big deal."

"I'm getting married Saturday, of course it's a big deal," Trish said, running a hand over her face. "Fine, just make sure it's ready by Saturday, _please_, that's all I ask."

"It'll be ready."

"Thank you," Trish said, then hung up her phone. As the day of her wedding got closer and closer it seemed like more and more things had the potential to go wrong. The caterers had called yesterday and said their supply of strawberries had gone bad so they weren't going to be able to have the chocolate-dipped ones for the wedding. The caterers were instead going to be baking individual bundt cakes with different glazings. It wasn't what she wanted, but it would have to do.

"Hey, Trishy, what's happening?" Christian said, walking into his mom's kitchen. They were staying with her that night. The next day they'd check into the hotel near where the wedding was taking place. That's when most everyone was going to start arriving for the wedding so the hotel would be busier and they wanted to be in the thick of things.

"I just got off the phone with the seamstress to my wedding dress, they're going to have to let it out," she said, sitting heavily down in her chair. "I mean, I just…I…how could I have gained enough weight to where they actually have to physically alter my dress?"

"Maybe they just got you at a bad moment. Like right after you ate lunch or something,' he told her.

"I guess," Trish sighed. "I don't know, I don't feel bigger."

"Isn't this dress supposed to fit like a glove?" Christian asked her. "Maybe that's another reason, every single pound counts and we've been eating out a lot because we've been doing so many things for the wedding."

"Yeah, but what if I start to lose that weight and then the dress won't fit on the actual day?"

"Well, you'll be putting it on early so they can take a little bit off, couldn't they?"

"I don't know," Trish said, running her hand over her face. "I'm stressed, Chrissy. I'm so incredibly stressed, I just want this day to come and be over with."

"Well thanks, I'm glad that marriage to me is just something you want to get over with," Christian said, going over and standing behind her, gently massaging her shoulders. She knew he was joking so she just concentrated on his hands on her shoulders.

"You know what I mean," she said good-naturedly, closing her eyes as Christian concentrated on her upper back.

"I know," he said, "but you'll remember it forever, no matter how well it goes, you'll remember it. It'll be fine. We get to party with all our friends and our family and you're going to look gorgeous and I'm going to look so hot that every woman is going to want me, it'll be great."

"Why would I gain weight?" she lamented.

He knelt by her chair and kissed her cheek. "I don't care if you've gained a few pounds, I know you're going to blow me away when you walk down the aisle. I've been waiting like five years for this so I wouldn't even care if you came down the aisle in a potato sack, I'd be like, that is the sexiest potato sack ever."

She giggled and kissed his cheek, "I love you."

"I love you too."

"It'll be great, right?"

"It'll be so great."

**Thursday**

"Hey, you're here," Trish said as she saw the Jericho family in the lobby. She had checked in early this morning. Sawyer was scoping out the joint, probably thinking about how he was going to cause havoc around here. His hand was loosely holding onto Chris's left hand as he talked with the man checking them in. Stephanie was next to him, peering over at what was going on as she held Flynn's carrier in her right hand, the little girl asleep, a pacifier dangling precariously out of her small mouth.

Stephanie turned around, "Oh hey. Yeah, we just got in."

"How was the flight?"

"Fine," Stephanie said.

"If you call fine Flynn crying nearly the entire way," Chris shot over his shoulder. "She was insistent upon making us look like horrible parents the entire time. Of course, now that we're here and we're about to go up to our room, she's as quiet as a mouse."

"That's parenthood," Stephanie said, looking down at Flynn, who was still asleep. "The car ride lulled her to sleep."

"She's getting so big."

"I know," Stephanie said. "I probably feed her too much."

"Where are your rooms?"

"Oh, we got a huge suite," Stephanie said. "It's just easier to have it with the kids and then Chris's parents are arriving later because they're going to take care of Flynn during the wedding and take care of both of them tonight."

"It's really nice of them to fly down."

"They love spending time with the kids so it's fine, they're fine with it. So what're the plans for tonight?"

"Oh man," Trish said, shaking her head. "I don't even know. I think there'll be sex shops involved and half-naked men."

"Sex shops?" Chris asked as he got the keycards for their room and came over with Sawyer. "What's this I hear about sex shops?"

"Well, you know, to get all that…stuff and everything," Trish blushed, not wanting to discuss this around Chris. It was embarrassing, but she could see her sisters doing something stupid like that, getting her edible underwear or something silly like that, or stuff that would just make her go beet red.

Chris laughed, "Is that what you girls do at bachelorette parties?"

"Well, I imagine it's what my sisters would do."

"You guys just went out to dinner before our wedding, didn't you?" Chris asked, looking at his wife.

"Yeah, I didn't have any friends who would want to take me to those places," Stephanie confirmed.

Chris nodded, but didn't say anymore. What could you really say to that? He didn't know what the hell they were going to do but as long as his wife didn't cheat on him, he didn't care what they did or what they saw. Besides, he figured his night would include seeing parts of women he hadn't seen in person in a very long time. Oh well, it wasn't like he was going to cheat on his wife either.

"So you guys are going to be completely…I don't even know," he said as they walked towards the elevators.

"Yes, we're going to be I don't know," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "I think I deserve a night off from everyone in my family."

"Hey!" Chris said, then nudged Sawyer.

"Hey!" he said, but it wasn't an indignant one like Chris's, but more a friendly hello. He grinned up at his parents and Stephanie was laughing and Chris was looking annoyed with him. Oh well, he was just saying what his daddy was saying.

They went up to the room, Trish in tow, talking with Stephanie the entire time, outlining the sequence of events leading up to the wedding on Saturday. They got up to the suite and relaxed for a while, Christian coming to join them after calling Trish to find out where she was. He had been wandering around the entire hotel looking for her. He knocked on the door and Chris answered.

"There's the man of the hour," Chris said, slapping Christian on the shoulder. "Is it too late to talk you out of this crazy thing you want to do?"

"I think so," Christian said, "we've made too many deposits to just up and leave now. I think I'm going to have to go through with it."

"Suit yourself, but you know, speaking as a married man, this Trish is not the Trish you'll see on the other side," Chris joked. "She's going to change, the minute you put that ring on her finger, she's going to change into someone completely different."

"Is that so, Christopher Jericho?" Stephanie asked, looking at him sternly.

"Yes," he sighed, "before we were married, she was loving and affectionate, always trying to make me feel like the most awesome person in the entire world. She was like my own personal…well, you know. Now I barely get to kiss her," Chris lamented. "She's always kissing those two party-crashers."

Stephanie laughed, "That is true, I do kiss them a lot more. But they're also cute."

"See, everything changes when you get married."

"I think I'll be okay," Christian responded. "You seem to be doing okay for yourself. You don't have many complains, do you?"

"Id' like more sleep, if that were at all possible."

"I'll second that," Stephanie echoed, looking over at Flynn being held by Trish. Trish had wanted to hold her since she had seen the baby girl in her carrier.

"We're not getting much sleep these days either," Christian said. "You could've told us how difficult it was to plan a wedding."

"I thought you could find that out on your own," Chris said, "besides our wedding was tiny compared to the Stratus-Cage extravaganza!"

"We should've gone small."

Christian's cell phone rang and he picked it up after seeing it was his brother calling, "What's up?"

"Where the hell are you?" Edge asked. "We are supposed to leave in like 20 minutes."

"20 minutes, dude, that gives me plenty of time, I'm already ready so I'll just meet you guys when it's time to leave."

"I wanted to leave early," Edge said.

"Dude, you can wait 20 minutes to get some girl's chest in your face," Christian said impatiently, rolling his eyes at the others.

"Fine, but don't be late," Edge warned.

"What? Are you going to leave without me? It's my party, you know."

"I'm just letting you know, so be there."

"Fine, bye."

"Bye."

Christian hung up the phone, "My brother is giving us 20 minutes to be in the lobby to go on our night of debauchery."

"It seems like he's over the entire Vickie thin," Stephanie pointed out.

"I think he's nervous about seeing Lita," Trish admitted.

"You really think so?"

"Yeah, he's been hyper and overcompensating all week. I think he's trying not to think about seeing her and being with her…or around her, not _with_ her, like that, I mean, I don't know what they do, whatever, never mind."

"I think you're underestimating my brother's love of naked women."

Chris laughed, "You want to get going?"

"Yeah, we better. I know of really do think that Edge would leave me here if I wasn't down there in time."

"You okay staying with the kids until my parents get here?" Chris asked his wife. She nodded and he bent down to kiss her goodbye. "Are you going to be good tonight?"

"We'll see," she winked, then whispered, "Don't spend too much money. Remember you have two children to feed."

"What's your net worth again?"

"Just making my point."

Chris kissed her again then went to go kiss Sawyer, who was rolling some toy cars over his belt. It was the road, but sometimes they crashed. Sawyer puckered his lips for his daddy, anticipating a kiss from him. Chris kissed him and Sawyer smiled and banded his arms around him as Chris told him his goodbyes. Flynn was a little less agreeable. She looked up at him but there was no puckering for the kiss. He took her from Trish's arms and held her up a little, making some growling noises at her and then kissed her repeatedly on her chubby cheek until she grinned at him, loving this silly man.

"You be good for grandma and grandpa," Chris told his daughter. She just smiled at him and he thought he saw a hint of mischief in those lips.

He handed her back to Trish and waved to his family. Christian felt a twinge of something in him when he saw this all happening. He was marrying the woman of his dreams in two days and this was how he envisioned his future. He wanted the wife and kids and saying goodbye by getting kisses. He was jealous of his friend, but he was going to start the ball rolling on getting everything soon. He walked over to Trish and gave her a kiss goodbye too.

"I love you," she said, looking at him earnestly, "have fun, but not too much fun, okay?"

"I won't have fun without you."

"I won't have fun without _you_."

"Oh my God, please tell me we weren't that sickening, baby?" Chris asked as he made gagging noises and tugged at Christian by the back of his shirt.

"We couldn't have been," Stephanie said as Trish glared at her. "Have fun you guys."

"Thanks," they said as they left the room.

Stephanie shook her head, "So I suspect we're going to have two guys with huge hangovers tonight."

"So do I."

"Chris can't hold his liquor as well as he did before we had kids. He doesn't drink much anymore," Stephanie said, "Plus, I think I'm going to be the designated driver tonight because I can't drink much at all, maybe a glass of wine, but that's it. I'm still breastfeeding so I can't."

"That sucks, I want you to have fun."

"I can have fun without drinking," Stephanie said. "I'm fine with it."

"You don't think he could end up sleeping with a stripper, do you?" Trish asked, looking over at Stephanie.

Stephanie looked a little incredulous. "Okay, that was kind of random."

"Well, you hear things about what goes on at bachelor parties and they always talk about how guys are just crazy and they forget they even have fiancées or families or whatever. It's like a complete night of hedonism and everything, what if that happens? What if he ends up like that?"

Stephanie laughed, "The guy's been waiting five years to be with you, to marry you, I don't think he'd blow that by doing this."

"Aren't you the least worried about Chris?"

"My Chris, Chris Jericho? No, I'm pretty trusting of him," Stephanie answered. "I don't think he's going to go off and run away with some stripper. So they go someplace, they looks at girls dancing for them, blah blah blah, whatever."

"So I'm overreacting?"

"Yes."

"I'm a little scared," she admitted.

"You are?"

"Yeah, I haven't told Christian, or anyone really, but I'm scare of what might happen when…you know, I just…I don't know," she said, tripping over her words and she didn't know how to put this. She mulled over her words and then started to speak, Stephanie waiting patiently for her to speak.

"Take your time," Stephanie said.

Trish took a deep breath. "Everything's too perfect, too good and it's like, I'm waiting for it all to go horribly wrong because this isn't supposed to happen. I mean, in the entire history of my relationship with Christian…we've had so many ups and downs, even when things were good, I don't know, maybe they were shaky at those points too, I don't know. I just know that things are going really well right now. I mean, wedding stuff aside, everything with me and Christian, everything in our relationship is really great. We both want to get married and we're actually getting _married_ in two days, two days. I never thought I'd get the opportunity to marry Christian, but it's happening. It's happening and I'm ecstatic and then we both want to try for children and we're on the same page about practically everything and it's just so good, everything is going so well and I'm happy for it, extremely, but it's _too_ good almost. I'm not used to this and I guess I just keep waiting for something to derail everything again, whether it be him running or me running or someone coming in from the past. I don't know, but it's just all so easy and I keep thinking it's not supposed to be this easy, not for me and Christian."

"Maybe it is though," Stephanie said. "Maybe after everything, maybe it's just supposed to be that easy."

"Really, do you honestly think so?"

"You guys deserve it," Stephanie said. "You guys have been through so much. Maybe that's enough, you know, maybe that's enough and now you get some good for once."

"Yeah, I suppose you've got a point there," Trish said. "I just don't want anything to go wrong, I really want this. I'm not scared of this future, not at all. I'm looking forward to it so much. I want to be with Christian."

"Good, he wants to be with you too," she said with a smile. The door opened and Chris's parents walked in. "Hey, Loretta, hey, Ted, you're here!"

"Yes, oh, there's my little girl," Loretta said, coming over and getting Flynn from Trish. "Congratulations on your wedding, Trish."

"Thanks," she said gratefully, having to field that statement everywhere she went. Loretta was already cooing at her granddaughter though, showing Ted how Flynn was smiling now and how adorable that was and how she definitely had Stephanie's smile.

"You two can go if you're ready."

"Okay," Trish said, looking at Stephanie.

"Go ahead, I'll be there in a second."

Trish nodded and headed out the door. She thought back to what Stephanie said as she waited for the woman in question to meet her at the elevators. Maybe this time it was supposed to be easy because every time prior had been so difficult. She still held on (just a tiny bit) to the hurt she felt when Christian had disappeared on her and she knew he held on a little bit to the hurt when she had chosen Carlito. But maybe they had to hold onto that, had to remind themselves of the bad so they could enjoy this more. Ever since she had started seeing Christian again, she felt so much better. Things were great and she just had to trust that thing could be good from now on, maybe not great, but good.

"Ready," Stephanie said.

The night started off the same way for the guys and the girls, with dinner. They were at separate places of course, but there was talking and drinking and just enjoying company. Edge did indeed drag Christian to a strip club and he was practically pushed through the door. He kept protesting that once you've had Trish, every other woman paled in comparison.

"Spoken like a true man about to get married," Edge said, slapping his brother's back in his sort-of drunken haze.

"She's awesome," Christian said, through his own sort of drunken haze. "You haven't lived until you've been with her."

"So hand her over," Edge joked.

"Wow, these two are awesome," Chris said to his brother-in-law. He, Shane, and one of Christian's high school friends had been designated as the designated drivers for the evening. Chris was fine with it, he had a newborn who didn't sleep through the night and he hated to leave Stephanie sole night duty of their daughter. Shane had just never been much of a drinker and Christian's friend wasn't a drinker either so they were roping in the other thirteen guys at this party. They were all in various stages of drunkenness.

Chris helped everyone sit down and laughed at the situation. He hadn't been into a strip club in ages and it felt kind of strange to be in one with his wife probably knowing where he was. He knew Stephanie didn't care, but it was still strange. He sat down next to Christian who was chattering away with the waitress, telling her that he had the best fiancée in the entire world.

"She's great," Christian said. "I love her a lot."

"That's nice," the waitress said.

"I know, I love her, so much, so, so much."

Chris wondered just how the girls were doing.

They were doing pretty much the same. There were different girls getting drunk and Trish's sisters were in the middle of the dance floor dancing with about five different guys all gathered around them. Trish wasn't really drunk, but she had a nice buzz going and she had just accepted a dance from a guy who knew exactly who she was. She had taken his compliment of her being the best female wrestler ever and was letting him follow her onto the dance floor. Stephanie even saw Marissa out there dancing. She sipped at her club soda, looking around and making sure all the girls were accounted for and not running off with some guy.

"Driving your friends?" a man said as he sat next to her.

"Excuse me?"

"You're just drinking like a water in a club, figured you were driving your friends around."

"Bachelorette party," Stephanie clarified.

"Oh," he said, nodding. "So it's getting a little crazy."

"Just a little."

"Craig," he said, sticking his hand out.

"Stephanie," she said back.

"So you don't dance?"

"I dance," she told him.

"You want to dance then?"

"Yeah, sure, what the hell," she said as she left her drink down to follow him and her friends out onto the dance floor. She might as well have fun tonight before she had to go back to her baby and stay up all night breastfeeding. Besides, her best friend was getting married on Saturday and it was time to have fun.

Trish let the lights come over her, swirl around her as she danced the night away. She was having fun but it wasn't all the alcohol in her system. She had decided to let things be easy. If things were going well, she was going to let them go well. She was happy right now and she just wanted to be happy and have her wedding be the best experience in her life and she wasn't going to worry about the past or anything. This was her time to have fun and damn it, she was going to have as much fun as possible.

**Friday night**

"So tomorrow I'm marrying you," Christian said as he sat with Trish on the couch in their suite. Trish was going to stay here and he was going to be spending the night in Edge's room. There was an extra bed in there since this had been the plan all along. Trish gripped his hand tighter and she felt him playing with her engagement ring.

"That's right," she said, "You actually better go though, you know, because it's almost midnight and after midnight is our wedding day and you can't see me."

"That's so stupid," he told her.

"No, Chrissy, it's tradition, come on, I even got my toenails painted blue for the something blue part of that saying," she told him and he kissed her for her cuteness. "What was that for?"

"Because I love you and I'm going to marry you."

"We're getting married tomorrow, in like…oh my God, by this time tomorrow we are going to be married."

"I'm really happy," Christian confirmed, "You?"

"Walking on air," Trish told him. "I like where I'm at right now, you know. I like where I'm heading too. I think that we're going to be great together. We're past all that crap from our past and we can just be happy now."

"I agree," he said. "To think of all the time we lost though."

Trish's lips curved down a little bit, "Don't think about that."

"It's hard not to. I mean, if we were stubborn or scared, we could've been married by now or we could've been married with kids. Our kid could be playing with Sawyer."

"At 11:40 at night?" Trish joked. "I would hope not."

"Knowing Sawyer, it'd be possible," Christian joked back. "I just hate to think about how we could've had this and more by now if we weren't such idiots."

"We needed to be idiots," Trish told him. "We needed that to be who we are. Like…you know, maybe if your brother and Vickie had taken the time to…oh, I don't know, be a regular couple instead of acting like smitten teenagers they wouldn't have gone completely in the dumps the day of their wedding."

"I think that relationship was doomed from the start."

Trish shrugged, "Maybe. I don't know, but like, my sister and her husband, they broke up a couple of times too and they were like us."

"Oh, so I can pin it on the Stratus genes for us breaking up so much because this seems to be a trend with your family," Christian said.

Trish slapped him on the leg but she was smiling. "Those are fighting words, Cage. Besides, you left me too, so you're at fault here too."

"Well damn," he said. "I'm not leaving you anymore."

"Well I shouldn't hope not, that would break my heart," she pouted and he leaned forward to kiss his lips.

"I don't want to do that, not again," he said, staring in her eyes to make sure she knew he was serious. There were just some things you needed to say when you were alone that you couldn't say packed in a room full of people. "I want you to know that, absolutely, I will never do that again."

"Well, you never…"

"No, I know," he said with all the conviction he could muster.

Trish just nodded, "I believe you."

"You better," he said.

"What time is it?"

"Um, it's like 11:53."

"Oh my God, you've got to get out of here, get your stuff and go," she said, hopping off the couch and grabbing his hand. "Christian, you can't see me after midnight!"

"Do you turn into a pumpkin?"

"Shut up, just go," she said, pulling him towards the door. She opened it with one hand and shoved him out the door. She took his duffel bag and threw it at him. "Go!"

"Okay, I'm going, I'm going," Christian said, but then he took a step forward and kissed her deeply, wrapping one arm around her waist. "I love you and I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Yes, you will."

"I'll be waiting for you, show up, okay?"

"You show up too."

"Deal," he said.

"Deal."

**Saturday**

Lita looked up and it kind of felt like she was embarrassed, but for what, she had no idea. It felt like her first date, but it hardly was. She didn't want to say she was…well, she had gone on her share of first dates. This was just Edge, just a guy she had dated for a while, just a guy she had left another guy for…just a guy. He was married after all so it wasn't like she was going to end up in his bed like she had so many times before. Who knew if he was even really faithful to her back then? She smoothed a wrinkle out of her deep purple skirt, which came just above her knee. It was a little dressier than she liked to wear normally, but this was a wedding.

"Hey," Edge said, taking her in. He only realized after the words hung there for a moment that they were soft and hardly like his own voice at all.

"Hey," she said back.

"I can't stay long, I'm sorry, I have you know, best man duties," Edge said. "But uh, you're my…uh, you know…"

"Yeah," she laughed, then threw herself at him, "it's really good to see you, even though you are still a huge jerk."

"And you're not still a bitch?" he joked a she hugged her back. She still felt so good in his arms. He wondered if Vickie had ever really felt like this.

"No, I'm awesome," she told him pulling away. "You look very…what the hell kind of wedding is this?"

"Vintage is the word they're going for," Edge said, smoothing the front of his tuxedo. It had the whole tails thing going on and he wasn't sure how to react to that exactly. "It's kind of cool though. Everything's all very retro, but really retro."

"Nice, I was happy to receive the invitation, but then, well, Trish called me and asked if I wanted to go with you and I thought, you know, what the hell, right? I mean, I know you're married and everything, but…"

"You can say it."

"It's not going well, huh?"

"Well, considering I needed my very soon-to-be sister-in-law to set me up on a date for her wedding, it's not going well at all."

"Have you talked to her?"

"No, she pretty much refuses. I don't know what to do really," he said, wishing he wasn't pouring his heart out to this girl. He hadn't even seen her in what felt like ages, but here he was, spilling it all for her to see, laying it out there and leaving himself exposed.

"I don't know, haven't been married," Lita said and she wished she hadn't said that. It made it seem like she was bitter that Edge had married this woman. Okay, so maybe she was a little bit bitter about it, but she was trying not to be. She had loved Edge, she knew that, he knew that and it was still there between them, lingering and clinging to them like a foul stench.

"Hey man, come on, we've got to get up there," Christian said impatiently, fiddling with his cufflinks. "Oh, hey, Lita."

"Hey, Christian, congratulations," she said genuinely.

"Thanks," he said, quickly, "Edge, come on!"

"Oh my God, stop acting like a kid," Edge groaned. Christian turned and left and Edge turned back to Lita. "I'll catch you after the ceremony. You can ride with me."

"Okay," she nodded, "I'll go get my seat."

Edge followed Christian to the front of the church. The ceremony wasn't slated to start for another good 15 minutes, but Christian was getting so impatient he just wanted to stand out there. Edge went and gave his mother a kiss before going to stand next to his brother. Christian kept messing with his outfit and it was distracting Edge. No man should be _this_ nervous.

"Quit it," Edge hissed at him.

"What?"

"You're acting like an idiot."

"Shut up," Christian said. "I'm nervous."

"Don't be, this will go great."

"So tell me, are you nervous?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, I am," Trish said. "I know that I shouldn't be, because I've been with Christian forever, but it's still nerve-wracking. I mean, declaring our love in front of everyone, it's a big step. Especially for Christian and I, we haven't had the best track record."

"Still, you two are great together, and you have to admit that you're never as happy as you are with each other. You two just click for each other."

"Yeah, and it has to be saying something that we've managed to stay together throughout this engagement. I mean, I thought we'd have called it off at least two times, only to reunite and then get married. That doesn't bode well for our marriage does it?" she asked nervously.

"You never know," Stephanie pointed out, "I mean, you don't know how it's going to be after you're married, you two might settle down, you never know."

"Yeah, hopefully, I don't want to continue being the way we are, and when we're married, just having so many fights, I don't see that ending well."

"Well you don't have to worry, things will change, they changed for me and Chris. I mean, before…and then now, it's settled, we're settled, everything is settled between us."

"Well I should hope so," Trish giggled.

Trish was pulled away by one of her sisters and Stephanie took the opportunity to go check on her boys. Stephanie kneeled down and adjusted Sawyer's little bowtie. She stood up and turned to Chris and rolled her eyes as she noticed that he needed his bowtie adjusted too. Like father like son, she thought to herself. She felt Sawyer tugging on her skirt and turned away from Chris to look down at him as he looked up at her, holding up his arms.

"Up pease, Mommy," he said to her.

Stephanie picked him up and held him, careful not to let him mess up her hair. "What is it, baby boy?"

"You walk wif me?"

"No baby boy, I'm walking with Daddy, you get to walk by yourself, just like we practiced last night, remember?"

"Uh huh," he nodded. "I walk to Daddy."

"Yup, you walk to Daddy and he'll show you what to do."

"I wouldn't let you down, kid," Chris said, punching his arm very lightly. "And after the wedding, you can sit with us while we eat so you won't be without us ok?"

"Okay," Sawyer said.

"Here, let me have him," Chris said. "So you don't have to worry about your hair or anything."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, handing Sawyer over to Chris. She smiled as she took the two of them in. "Aww, look at my boys, you two are so adorable, make sure we get pictures of the two of you in your tuxes, because you are so cute and handsome, the both of you."

"Did you hear that kid, Mommy thinks we're handsome," Chris said, holding up his hand so that Sawyer could high-five him. "I don't know about you, but I think I saw the flower girl eyeing you earlier, she's kinda cute, if you want to go after her, kid."

"Mommy?" Sawyer asked, looking at Chris confused.

"Don't pay attention to Daddy, baby boy," Stephanie said, pushing some of his hair out of his face. Stephanie saw Trish coming over again, looking over at Stephanie nervously. Stephanie went over to her friend and grabbed her free hand. "How are you?"

"I cannot believe this day is here," Trish exclaimed. "I don't know what to do. It just hit me!"

"Seriously, you didn't realize earlier that this was your wedding day?" Stephanie laughed.

"Be quiet, the magnitude just hit me."

"Just act normally, yes, it's big, but it's nothing you can't handle," Stephanie told her. "You're going to come out of this day with a lot more than you went in with, and it'll be good. Marriage is not easy, but its good, Trish, take it from someone who has been married…twice for that matter. It can be the best thing in your life if you let it be the best thing in your life, and until Sawyer came along, my marriage was the best thing in my life and it's a close third right now after him and Flynn, so go out there and you know that you love Christian, so go out there and show everyone just how much."

"You have a way with words, Steph," Trish said, hugging her friend. "I can do this, I _will_ do this. Are they ready?"

"Let me go check."

Stephanie went over to check with the wedding planner lady to see if the wedding was ready to begin. Trish took a couple of deep breaths to calm herself down, switching her bouquet from one hand to the other. She was surrounded by the deep smells of flowers, and that scent added a calming effect to her breathing. If she just breathed and stayed here, she would be fine.

"So Trish, how about we get the hell out of here and we elope?" she heard.

She opened her eyes and looked up. "Okay, Chris, where do you suppose you want to do that?"

"I was thinking Vegas, a little cliché yes, but I can't think of a better place to get married to someone as lovely as you are right now. Actually, we better go to Mexico, then I can get a quickie divorce from Stephanie."

"You flatter me too much," Trish said, smiling at him. "So you've seen my future husband, how's he doing? Is he freaking out like only Christian can?"

"Of course he is, he's Christian," Chris shrugged. "But I've been through this, Christian will get over it. I think he'll get over it once he sees you, you really look beautiful, Trish."

"Thank you," Trish said, leaning up a little to give him a soft kiss on the cheek

"Ok Trish, the lady said that everything was ready," Stephanie said, coming over to Trish and Chris. "What's going on here? Should I be worried?"

"We're going to run away together and get married, I'm going to divorce you. I just…I mean, look at Trish," Chris said, "she's gorgeous…not as gorgeous as me though, nobody's hotter than me right now."

"You've got competition and I'm afraid you've lost."

"Who?"

"My son, did you see him in his little tuxedo, adorable, I need to get like wallet-size pictures of him because he looks so cute. I've never seen him look so cute, with the little bowtie and the little cufflinks."

"Okay, we get it, Steph, our son is adorable," Chris laughed as he looked at his son who was standing right next to Chris, looking up at the conversation and wondering why they were talking about him.. "You never think I'm adorable anymore, not since he came along."

"Sorry Chris, you look adorable too," Stephanie told him, sticking her tongue out at him.

"Okay, everyone line up in your places!" the wedding coordinator said.

"Okay, that's our cue," Stephanie said, giving Trish a light hug, "See you up there, Trish."

"Bye guys, love you all."

Stephanie and Chris walked to where they were supposed to be. Chris walked Sawyer over to where the flower girls were congregating. He grabbed the pillow that Stephanie had been holding with the rings tied to it and handed it to Sawyer, who took it obediently.

"Okay kid, Mommy and I are right in front of you, all you have to do is walk to where I'm standing ok, and don't drop the pillow, be sure to hold it in front of you. Then come to where I am."

"Okay, okay," Sawyer said, exasperated. Chris could hear Stephanie snickering behind him.

He turned to his wife, "Shut up, Steph."

"I'm sorry, but even _he_ gets tired of you sometimes and that's hilarious," Stephanie said, covering her mouth so she could giggle. "Good one, Sawyer."

"Thanks," he said, grinning impishly at his mother. "Where Fwynn?"

"She's with grandma and grandpa," Chris explained.

"Not here?"

"No, but we'll see her tonight. We didn't want her to cry through the wedding."

"Oh, okay."

"Okay, well, you know what to do then, kid, so make Mommy and me proud."

Chris stood up and walked back over to Stephanie, who was glancing back every so often to make sure that Sawyer was alright. He was chatting with the flower girl and Stephanie nudged Chris, who glared at her. She stuck her tongue out at him, and nodded her head behind her. Chris did a quarter turn and saw his son talking with the little girl. He smirked to himself. Seems like his son was turning into a little lady-charmer.

"I'm telling you, we had a little heartbreaker…did you sleep with HBK or something?"

Stephanie guffawed, "I'd rather gouge my eyes out than do that in this lifetime…or any other lifetime I may live. Sawyer's just charming like his father. Nobody can resist that charm. Hell, I gave into it after--"

"Two years, oh yeah, that was quick," Chris said sarcastically. "I had you practically falling into my arms."

"I meant when you liked me, not when you hated me, I know you didn't want me then. You wanted me tied to a post and burned alive."

"No, a firing squad would have sufficed."

"Ok everyone, we're walking now, so please be ready."

Chris and Stephanie shut up then, since they didn't want to get in trouble with this lady. Chris held out his arm to Stephanie and she looped it through his as was appropriate for walking down the aisle. They shared a little kiss as one of Christian's friends and Trish's sister started walking down the aisle. Trish had seen Chris and Stephanie's kiss and she wanted that, and it seemed to calm her down immensely to see them so in love even after the years they had been together. She and Christian could have the same thing.

Chris and Stephanie got their cue and started walking slowly down the aisle, making a striking couple. Even if they weren't together, they would've made a striking couple. Chris was in his vintage tuxedo looking incredibly sophisticated, especially with his short hair. Stephanie was in her bridesmaid dress, a navy blue cocktail-style dress. It had a sweetheart neckline with that looked like a built-in bolero jacket. The skirt was bunched up on one side, held with a pink bow and the other side was seemingly tiered. The sleeves were three-quarters length and it just past the knees. They reached the front of the aisle and Stephanie threw Christian a wink. He smiled at her as she and Chris parted, taking their appropriate places on either side of the minister. Chris gave Christian a low five as he went and stood on the other side of Edge.

The maid of honor, Trish's sister Christy, came next. Then it was Sawyer's turn, and he stood at the end of the aisle for a second, looking a little confused. But then he saw Chris and started walking towards him at the front. He held the pillow in one hand and saw Hunter and Britt. He grinned wide and waved to them, causing everyone to give a little chuckle. He saw Chris when he got to the front and walked over to him. He held onto the pillow as Chris smiled over at Stephanie, who smiled back and scrunched up her nose as Sawyer leaned his head against Chris's leg.

The flower girl came next and then it was Trish's turn. There she was on the arm of her father and Christian's smile grew wider than he ever thought possible. Even though they fought all the time, even though they had broken up numerous times, he wouldn't trade his love for Trish for anything. Whatever they had together was so powerful they couldn't stop it. They couldn't stop from crashing into each other over and over again. She looked stunning in her wedding dress. It was a white satin dress that fell to the floor in a small train with an English net criss-crossing bodice. It hugged her body and Christian wanted to take a mental picture and remember it forever.

She reached the front of the aisle and smiled at Christian. "Gorgeous," he whispered to her.

"Thank you," she whispered back.

The minister began, "Welcome to you all, you all have gathered here today to witness the marriage of Christian and Trish. Marriage is a vow, it's a promise and it's something so sacred that you should not enter into it lightly. Christian and Trish have come here today knowing this and still, they want to promise their love for each other. If there's anyone here present that believes that these two should not unite in holy matrimony, speak now or forever hold your peace."

When nobody said anything, the minister continued, talking about marriage and how important it was and how it was an eternal bond. But Christian and Trish didn't hear any of it. They were too busy staring into each other's eyes. They loved each other, that was all they needed to know, and they fought, sure, but they always made up.

"Christian, if you'd like to say your vows now."

"Trishy, when I think about our relationship, the name of a Beatles song comes to mind. The long and winding road. It took us a long, long time to get here, and there were more fights than you could shake your stick at, but at the end of the day, it all lead me here. I love you Trishy, and I had the biggest crush on you, and tried to hide it, but you know I've never been good at keeping a secret…and I'm glad I didn't keep this one. I'm glad that you and I have made it here today…it seemed impossible, huh?" She nodded. "Yeah, I know, I thought it was impossible too. First of all, there was us, just…we were stupid. I know we were. Then there were all the other obstacles standing in our way, but we eventually muddled our way through. I didn't think it was going to happen sometimes, I guess I need to get better with the having faith thing, but then the path became clear and there you were.

"There you always are, Trish and I always want you to be there. I want to do everything with you and be everything with you and it doesn't matter if that's the most cliché thing I've ever said in my life, it's true. I'll be filled with stupid jokes and stupid clichés from now until forever and thank you for putting up with that and thank you for loving me. I'm going to make you so happy, Trish, just you wait, I'm going to make you _so_ happy. I love you."

Trish blinked back the tears in her eyes at his words, "Trish, your vows?"

Trish smiled at him, "Chrissy, I love you. I'm at the point in my life where I understand what I'm supposed to be doing and who I'm supposed to be with. All these years, I don't know, it was like I was trying to fight it, fight us and maybe I was scared, maybe I was stupid…no, I was definitely stupid, but with age, I guess comes maturity and I love you, that's it. I shouldn't fight it or not think it's right because we're right. We eased back into this relationship and I think it did us wonders. I think it made me see that this is right. We're right. I see love around us. I see families around us and I want that and I want that with you. I want the children and then house and all of that stuff you think is silly when you're young. I want to be settled. A friend of mine said that's what she is now with her husband, she's settled, but it wasn't like, a bad thing. It wasn't like this was it and she was stuck. It was this contentment in her voice and I want that too. I want you…that's it. I just want you and me together and no more breaking up and no more making up or running away.

"I'm through with running away. It only ever brings me right back to you, so how's that for a cliché. We'll just have our stupid clichés together. I love you, Chrissy and I want to be with you and I want all our friends and family to know that I'm going to be with you and I'm committing myself to you and it's the smartest decision I ever made, hands down. I love you."

"I love you too," Christian told her.

Sawyer yawned and tugged on Chris's pants while he was trying to watch the ceremony. Chris looked down at him and he held his arms up. Chris bent down quickly to pick him up so that he didn't cause a distraction during the ceremony that was going on. He was skipping his nap today so he was probably just worn out from all the excitement. Chris felt him lay his head on his shoulder. Chris took the pillow from his little hands and held it in his right hand while holding Sawyer with his left as they watched Christian and Trish say their vows for one another.

"May I please have the rings?" the minister asked.

Chris put Sawyer down and handed him the pillow. "Go up and give this to Christian."

Sawyer dutifully took the pillow and walked up to the altar, handing the pillow to Christian who smiled and ruffled his hair before getting the rings and handing it to the minister. He gave the pillow back to Sawyer who ran back to Chris and hopped into his arms, going back to laying his head on Chris's shoulder.

"I do good, Daddy?" Sawyer whispered in Chris's ear.

"Of course you did. You were perfect, look at Mommy, she's trying to tell you, you did a good job," Chris whispered back as Stephanie sent him a surreptitious thumbs up. Sawyer grinned and gave her a thumbs up too.

The minister asked Christian to pick up the ring he had on top of his book. Christian took Trish's left hand and rubbed her knuckles with his thumb, "Repeat after me. I, Christian, take you, Trish."

"I, Christian, take you, Trish."

"To be my wedded wife. To have and to hold, for better or for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and cherish, from this day forward."

"To be my wedded wife," Christian said, his voice barely containing its glee, "To have and to hold for better or for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love an cherish, from this day forward."

"Now put the ring on her finger and say, with this ring, I thee wed."

Christian slipped the wedding band on her finger slowly, "With this ring, I thee wed."

"Now Trish, repeat after me." The priest repeated the lines.

"I, Trish, take you Christian," she said, then repeated the rest, "To be my wedded husband. To have and to hold, for better or for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and cherish from this day forward."

"Now put the ring on his finger and say, with this ring, I thee wed."

Trish put the ring on his finger, her hands shaking just the tiniest bit, "With this ring, I thee wed."

"Let these rings be given and received as a token of your affection, sincerity and fidelity to one another."

They smiled at each other, wanting so badly to kiss.

"In as much as Christian and Trish have consented together in wedlock and have witnessed the same before this company, and pledged their vows to each other, by the authority vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."

Christian practically grabbed Trish forcefully and pulled her towards him, dipping her low as he kissed her deeply. Trish squealed against his mouth and wrapped her arms around his neck to keep from tumbling to the ground. She kissed him back eagerly though, the entire congregation cheering and whistling at the new couple. They finally pulled back up for air and Christian held her close, kissing her briefly again before they faced everyone around them.

"Let me introduce to you for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Christian Cage."

"And next we have another bridesmaid and groomsmen, Chris Jericho and Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, with the ring-bearer, Sawyer Jericho."

The three of them walked in, Stephanie in between her two boys as they made their entrance into the dining area. They walked around the room and to the head table. Chris pulled Stephanie's chair out for her and she smiled up at him before sitting down. Then he hoisted Sawyer into the booster seat that was next to Stephanie before sitting down himself waiting for Trish and Christian to come in.

"Next we have the maid of honor and the best man, Edge and Christy Aberdeen."

The two of them walked in and took their places and then it was just about time for Trish and Christian to come in. "And now, the bride and groom, ladies and gentlemen, the couple you've all been waiting for, Christian and Trish, come on in here!"

Trish and Christian walked inside and Trish was grinning, her smile wide and extremely happy. They waved around at everyone before taking their places at the head table. As soon as they sat down, glasses started clinking everywhere. Trish laughed and leaned in to kiss her new husband. Everyone cheered again as they pulled away. Trish blushed a little and buried herself in Christian's neck.

"We're married," she said as everyone talked with each other before the dinner started.

"I know," he said and his happiness was making his skin practically glow.

"I can't believe it," she said. "I'm so…I don't even know."

"Me too," he said, even though she hadn't really even given him any kind of answer.

"This is incredible," she said.

"What is?"

"Everything," she answered. "Everything is like a million times better than I imagined it in my head."

"Well, I'll take all the credit for that," Christian said, grinning at her playfully.

She leaned up to kiss him again and there were some cat-calling at them, but they didn't notice at all. She looked down at her wedding ring. It was twinkling in the dimmed light of the room and looked brilliant in the soft light. She likened it to a star in the night sky. It was standing out that much. Her finger felt different, heavier and she'd have to get used to that feeling because she wasn't taking this ring off for anything. Even if it gave her gangrene or something, she wasn't going to take this off.

"I love you," she told him, "I don't think I really can say that enough."

"Say it all the time, I don't even care," Christian told her. "I love you too."

"Okay, everyone, let's get this party started!" Trish's sister said as dinner was served.

After dinner and toasts, the two of them got to the dance floor surrounded by everyone who was watching them. Christian twirled Trish around and then brought her closer to his chest until she was wrapping her arms around his neck. He wrapped his arms around her waist and leaned his forehead against hers as the DJ announced this would be their first dance together. They were ignoring everyone and if you asked them what song was playing, they wouldn't have been able to tell you.

Their world had centered to the two of them and their eyes never wavered from each other. They were talking with them and everyone could see that they were going to be happy. Most people there knew about the tumultuous history of the two, but just looking at them now, people were willing to forget it because these two were so in love in this moment and it showed. This was how they were meant to be and it was how they were going to be.

Chris held Sawyer in his lap as he watched everyone dancing and mingling. Stephanie was talking with some of Trish's family, he recognized them from the rehearsal. She was laughing at something and he was just content to watch her over there. Sawyer was keeping him company anyways.

"Hey kid, you want to impress Mommy with something?" Chris asked, looking down at Sawyer.

"Yeah." Sawyer looked up at his father. He liked doing things with his mommy so it was okay if he got to do something with her.

"Okay, repeat after me, Mommy, may I have this dance?"

"Mommy I dance," Sawyer said with a smile.

"No kid, say, Mommy _may_ I have this dance?" he repeated.

"Mommy, may I dance?"

"Close enough," Chris laughed. "Okay, let's go. And you know what would be even better?"

"Huh?"

"Hold your hand out to her ok? She'll _love_ that."

"Okay, Daddy."

Chris stood up with Sawyer in tow and he walked over to where he was a few feet away from Stephanie. He pushed Sawyer's bottom a little bit to get him going and he walked over slowly to where Stephanie was standing, still talking, oblivious to what was going on around her and the little boy who was walking up to her. Stephanie finally saw Sawyer before he made his way fully over and she smiled and waved him over.

"Sawyer, baby, where's Daddy?" Stephanie said.

"Mommy, I have dance?" Sawyer asked sweetly.

Stephanie's mouth opened a little and she hated to admit it, but tears welled up in her eyes at the cuteness and sweetness of her little boy. She could hear everyone she had been speaking with say, "aww," which only made it worse for her. He held his little hand out and Stephanie looked at everyone around before she took her little boy's hand.

"I would _love_ to dance with you baby," Stephanie said, picking him up and leading him out to the dance floor. She swayed around with him as he held onto her arms. "Thank you for asking me to dance, it was very sweet of you to ask me to dance."

"Welcome," Sawyer shrugged. "Good dance, Mommy."

"Wow, the compliments keep on coming, I don't know what I did to deserve so much praise."

"Excuse me, may I cut in?" Chris asked as he stood next to them.

"I don't know," Stephanie said. "I'm dancing with a very nice boy right now and I don't think I want to give him up as a dance partner, he was complimenting me on how well I dance, and you don't find many boys like that."

"Oh well…I guess I came too late then," Chris said, holding his hands up in surrender. "I had seen you around, thought you were really beautiful, but if you have another guy, well then I don't think I can compete, not with someone as handsome as that guy."

"Daddy, you dance too," Sawyer told his father.

"Oh, so I can join, kid?"

"Uh huh, Mommy good."

Chris stepped closer to them and wrapped his left arm around Stephanie's waist and the other arm he wrapped around Sawyer's back. Stephanie leant herself against him, letting her head rest on her husband's chest as she let the music flow over her. She reveled in the sound that encompassed the air around her, as she held her little boy in her arms and she had her husband holding her. It was perfect, it was magical, and much to her surprise, it was all hers.

"Hey, you tired?" Chris asked, and she wasn't too sure if he was talking to her or to Sawyer, but then he said, "Steph?"

"Hmm?"

"Are you tired?"

"Nah," she said. "I was just thinking."

"About what?"

"Our wedding," she said, looking up at him. "It's a wedding, it was a natural progression to thinking about our wedding. A lot has changed since then huh?"

"Not that much."

"Well, we didn't have him," Stephanie said, looking at Sawyer. "And we didn't have the little girl upstairs who is probably pissed off that the nice man and woman and little boy who take care of her aren't there."

"Well yeah, I know, I think I would've remembered having kids at our wedding," Chris said. "But generally, things are pretty much the same, save for the kids, but other than that."

"I get it Chris, the more things change, the more they stay the same, and all that junk."

"Now you're getting it."

"Do you still love me?" Stephanie asked, knowing the answer, but just throwing the question out there, seeing where it went.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, do you still love me like you loved me back then, back when we were dating, when you first told me you loved me. Do you love me the same as the day we got engaged, or the day we got married, or when we had Sawyer or you know, several weeks ago when we had Flynn?"

"No, I don't love you the same amount as when I first told you that I loved you, and no, I don't love you the same way I did when we got engaged, or when we got married, or even the same when we had Sawyer or Flynn. I love you more Steph, you should know that."

Stephanie smiled against his chest. "Yeah?"

"And why shouldn't I? You have the uncanny ability to take care of all of us. I don't know how the hell you do it, maybe you're on speed or some other illegal substance that I don't know about. But you take care of me and Sawyer and Flynn and then you go out and do your job, and you're still s-e-x-y," Chris said, spelling out the last word so that Sawyer wouldn't know what he was talking about.

"Well that's good to hear," Stephanie giggled. "You always worry about that after you've had a child let alone children."

"I don't think you could ever not be beautiful," Chris told her. "And I'm just the lucky bastard who managed to capture your feelings."

"Chris, language," Stephanie chastised gently as she nodded to Sawyer, who had his head on Stephanie's shoulder. "Baby boy, you tired?"

"No Mommy, you talk lots."

Stephanie's jaw dropped, "Sawyer, that wasn't very nice! I do not talk too much!"

"I'm going to have to agree with the kid," Chris said, holding in his laughter at Stephanie's face. She glared at him and he gulped. "Uh oh, Sawyer, you made Mommy mad, she's going to yell."

"Oh no," Sawyer whispered. Stephanie just laughed.

"I'm not going to yell."

"Mama, bafroom," Sawyer told her.

"Oh, okay baby, hang on," Stephanie said, looking around quickly. "Chris, where's the bathroom?"

"Out the doors, to the right, do you want me to take him?"

"No, it's okay, you've been watching him most of the evening anyways, I feel like I've saddled you with him."

"He's my son, I don't think of it as being saddled."

"Oh well, whatever," she said, taking Sawyer to the bathroom.

On the way she passed Edge and Lita who were dancing and laughing together. "Oh man, see, I don't think we were really thinking when we were going to have sex in the ring. We _had_ to have been high on something, right?"

Edge laughed, "Except we weren't, I probably just wanted to show you off."

"Oh God, please, I don't know, I didn't feel natural then, I guess, no fault of your own," she told him. "I just didn't."

"And now you do?"

"I think getting away has been good for me," she nodded. "What about you? You've been on a bit of a break."

"Yeah, when you're estranged wife runs the show, you kind of don't want to show up. I should ask Stephanie to let me switch shows. I figure she has the authority to do that, if anyone does, it'd be her."

"How is she? I haven't talked to her tonight but I heard she just had a baby," Lita said.

"Yeah, they did. They have a daughter named Flynn. I've seen her, she's really cute. She looks more like Stephanie."

"That's so crazy that they have two kids now," Lita said. "I never would've guessed."

"They're cool."

"And why the hell is Hunter here?" Lita said, looking at Hunter as danced with Britt, who was laughing as Chris stood by talking to them.

"Oh, well, since he's friends with Chris and Steph, they kind of started getting along with Trish and Christian and so yeah, just don't tell HBK though, I think I heard that he doesn't know that Chris and Hunter are still friends or something."

"Oh, because Chris is feuding with him?"

"Yeah, so you still watch?"

"How do you think I knew what was going on with you?" she winked at him. "Of course I still watch. None of those divas are very good. They all suck."

"You were just good," he said to her. "This is really fun, I'm glad you were able to come."

"Oh Edge, you haven't given up the lines, have you? So tell me, have you actually been faithful to your wife. I mean, I know you weren't with the kissing and stuff, but since you've been married, have you slept with anyone?"

"Was that an invitation?" he asked.

"Shut up," she giggled, pushing him against the chest.

"I want to kiss you right now."

"No, you don't."

"I do," he said.

"You can't, you're still married…we've already been down this road before, Edge," Lita said, "I can't do it."

"Fine," he sighed as they kept dancing.

"Oh my God, you two," Stephanie said, hugging Trish tightly. "I'm so happy for you guys."

"Me too!" Sawyer said happily. He had just gotten a huge slice of cake so he was as happy as a pig in mud. "Hi!"

"Hey there," Trish said, picking up the little boy. He laid his head on her shoulder. "You did a great job out there. I was so impressed by you."

"Thanks," Sawyer said.

"Whoa, kid, are you trying to steal my wife now?" Christian asked Sawyer. He beamed when he said his wife though. Trish was now his _wife_. He just wanted to go around the entire room and call her his wife. Introduce her to every stranger in the city as his wife, announce it over the radio for everyone to hear.

"Uh huh," Sawyer told him.

"He's a true Jericho," Stephanie said. "Just goes after what he wants."

Chris walked over, "What's a true Jericho?"

"Your son is trying to steal my wife," Christian explained. Yes, God yes, he loved saying that.

"Well, who can blame him, you really look beautiful, congratulations you guys, welcome to the club."

"We're glad to be members," Trish said, beaming at her husband. "Maybe in 20 years, Sawyer, you'll have a chance, okay, but by then, maybe I'll have a little girl and you can date her."

"Oh God, us related, you're getting _way_ too ahead of yourself," Chris said with a laugh. "The wedding was great. You two are going to be happy, I can tell. I'm psychic like that."

"So he wishes," Stephanie said. "I'm really happy for you two. You deserve this."

"Thanks, you guys," Trish said.

They left and Edge and Lita came up to the happy couple, "You guys, that was a great wedding," Lita told them. "I'm really glad I came."

"I'm glad too," Edge said, smiling at her. Trish and Christian exchanged a look. "We're going to uh…head outside for a while, walk the grounds, you guys aren't leaving yet, are you?"

"No, we're not leaving yet," Christian said.

"Great, later."

"Twenty bucks says they're going to go do it," Trish said.

"Mrs. Cage, you are on."

"Stratus," she said, sticking her tongue out.

"Oh come on, Cage."

"I'm staying with Stratus."

"Cage!"

"Stratus!"

Trish laughed and kissed him. "I love you."

"I love you more."

It was finally their time.


	206. His Poor Tooth, Sept 29 to Oct 6, 2008

A/N: If watching Chris say Steph's name like 15 times is wrong, I don't want to be right, enjoy and leave a review! :P

* * *

**Monday (Sept 29)**

Sawyer screamed as he ran down the hallway. It wasn't for any particular reason he was screaming, he was just in a screaming mood tonight. He dodged people left and right as his mother ran after him. He could hear her behind him, admonishing him for running, but he really thought he could outrun her wrath. Frankly, she wasn't as fast as his daddy so maybe he could just get out of here and go find somewhere to hide. He kept screaming as she bore down on him.

She snatched him by the t-shirt and stopped his pursuit, but he kept trying to get away. "Sawyer McMahon Jericho, you better stop right where you are."

"Mommy!" he whined, wanting her to let him go.

"I'm not letting you go, you little monster," Stephanie said. She held him as she turned so she was facing him. She knelt in front of him and looked at him sternly, "You are being a very naughty boy."

He smiled at her charmingly, trying to look as sweet as possible. He was just an innocent, little boy. He didn't do anything wrong. "No, Mommy, I not."

"Yes you are. You took off running. We were trying to eat dinner, Sawyer. You can't just jump off your chair and decided to go for a jog," Stephanie told him. "Now Daddy and Flynn are back in catering and we are going back there and you are going to finish your dinner."

"No," he told her.

"Yes, you are."

"No," he said, frowning at her. He wanted to go play. He didn't want to eat dinner right now. He wanted to go play. He could hear everyone walking around and doing stuff and he knew there was a lot of stuff going on and he wanted to be a part of it. He didn't want to be sitting down and eating dinner because that was boring.

"Yes," Stephanie said and she frowned at him. Her look was a lot stronger than Sawyer's and he kind of shrank back at it. His mommy was getting upset with him and he hated that. He didn't want his mommy to be upset with him. His frown turned into a small whimpering and his eyes watered a little bit.

"Mommy," he whimpered, the light catching the tears in his clear, blue eyes.

"Oh, baby boy, come here," Stephanie said, pulling Sawyer towards her. He threw his arms around her neck and cried softly. "Baby, there's nothing to cry about, it's okay, come on, look at me."

Sawyer pulled away and Stephanie pulled out the napkin she had tucked in her pocket and wiped the barbeque sauce off of his mouth. That was the event that set off Sawyer's entire chase scene. He tried to pull away from her, but she held his chin in her manicured hand. He kept trying to pull away from her. He could wipe his own face! He was a big boy and he knew how to use a napkin himself.

"Mommy, stop!" Sawyer whined at her, starting to get really upset.

"I'm cleaning you up," Stephanie said, then picked him up. He forgot about how upset he was and banded his arms around her neck as she held him. "Where do you get this bad behavior from, is it from your father?"

"I think it's from you," a male voice said.

Stephanie looked up and rolled her eyes, "Nobody asked you, Shawn."

"Well, you asked a question, I was answering it."

"I was talking to my son, this doesn't concern you," Stephanie told him. She turned to Hunter, who was next to Shawn, "can't you control him?"

Hunter shrugged, "Easier not to even try."

"Hi, Twip!" Sawyer said, waving up to Hunter. Hunter couldn't help but smile at the young boy. He knew he was supposed to be all stern and on Shawn's side and whatever, but he couldn't do that when he was around Sawyer. He loved that little kid and he couldn't act like a jerk to a kid who knew nothing of the past or the grudges that people held.

"Hey there, tough guy, were you being a nuisance for your mommy?" Hunter asked.

"No," Sawyer told him. "I good."

"That remains to be seen," Shawn muttered. Stephanie stood up and looked at Shawn.

"You need to shut the hell up," Stephanie told him, stealing a line from her husband. If Shawn didn't shut his mouth right now, she was going to make sure he didn't make it to his match on Sunday with Chris. She would just take care of him right now and take pleasure in doing so. Maybe then they could roll out Shawn for his match against Chris and Chris could just put the ladder over him and climb towards his belt.

"Yeah, man, come on," Hunter said. "You don't need to do that."

"What? I'm not doing anything," Shawn told him.

Hunter gave him a look. "Just don't."

"Come on, Sawyer, let's go back and finish dinner. Daddy and Flynn are still back there."

Stephanie took Sawyer's hand and started walking away, not looking back at the two men while she walked back to catering where Chris and Flynn were probably sitting together, looking all lonely. Hunter watched her and wanted to go with her and talk to her and Chris, but he couldn't. He had been walking with Shawn so he couldn't just walk away.

"You don't have to be a jerk to her kid, you know," Hunter said.

"What? I was just saying."

"No man, look, have Chris or Stephanie ever mentioned your kids?"

"That's not…"

"Dude, just lay off their kids," Hunter said. "Or else I'm going to have to stop being your friend."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"I love that kid, okay, and I don't want to hear you talking about him, got it?" Hunter told him testily. Shawn looked at him critically, like he was an expensive work of art to be looked at an analyzed ad nauseum. Like Hunter was a series of brush strokes needing appraisal.

"Fine, okay," Shawn said.

"Thank you," Hunter said.

"Do you ever think that kid should be yours?" Shawn asked curiously.

Hunter hated when people asked him that question. When Sawyer was first born, yes, he admitted that he felt like Sawyer should've been his kid. He and Stephanie had tried, but it just never happened for the two of them, but it wasn't for lack of trying. It just wasn't meant to be, but when she suddenly overtook him this stupid competition in his mind, when she got ahead of him, getting married again, getting pregnant, having this perfect, little boy, he hated it. Somewhere along the line, a truce had been called and he really got to know Sawyer and realized this kid wasn't supposed to be his. If he had a kid with Stephanie, it would be nothing like Sawyer and he loved Sawyer. He'd do anything for that kid.

"No," Hunter told him. "I don't. I'm over Stephanie."

"You're too good for her anyways," Shawn told him.

"Whatever," Hunter said, surreptitiously rolling his eyes at his friend. When would people understand that he was completely over Stephanie? He had a girlfriend! He loved said girlfriend!

"Where the hell did Mommy and Sawyer go?" Chris asked of his daughter. She looked up at him curiously, wondering what he was saying to her. She went back to laying her head on his shoulder. Chris kept eating his food before he saw Stephanie and Sawyer walking back inside. They came over and sat down. Chris looked over at Stephanie, "Everything okay?"

"Yeah, we just ran into Shawn, made some snide comments like usual. I want you to kick his ass this Sunday."

"I'm going to, I'm not going to lose Sawyer's belt," Chris said, winking at his son who was back to eating his dinner. He was eyeing his mother while he ate though because he didn't want another napkin shoved onto his face.

"I just don't get him. I mean, it was an _accident_ that you hit his wife. Would you be this mad if someone _accidentally_ hit me?"

"If someone accidentally hit you, I think _you_ would be the one that mad and you'd go out there and fire the person or just put your stiletto heels in a strategic place," he told her with a laugh. "Don't worry about him, I'm going to take care of him tonight, then I'm going to take care of him on Sunday."

"I just worry a little."

"Stephanie, I've been in ladder matches before. I know what I'm getting myself into," he told her, a little insulted that she wouldn't believe in his unconditionally. "I've got everything under control. I've been in a--"

"That's not what I'm saying and don't get so worked up, you're scaring your daughter," she said.

Chris looked down and indeed, Flynn was looking at him with very alert eyes. She seemed curious as to what was going on with her daddy. Chris kissed her head and she smiled up at him. She really enjoyed being around him. She felt very comfortable and safe in his arms. She wasn't very scared at all, she was just wondering what was going on.

"What were you saying then?" he asked.

"Well, you have a match on Friday against Hunter _and_ Matt. Obviously you're going to be more, I don't know, beat up than Shawn is going to be on Sunday. You've got an extra match this week and he doesn't. I don't want you to lose."

"I'm not going to lose, baby," Chris told her casually, but determinedly. He took another bite of his food to project the ease he felt at the situation. He wasn't going to let Shawn take his title barely a month after he had gotten it in the first place. He wasn't going to lose this match, he was already planning next Monday in his mind and he planned to have the belt around his gorgeous waist.

"If you say so."

"I do say so, I'm not going to lose."

"What if he interferes on Friday?"

"Then he interferes."

"He could hurt you."

"He's not going to."

"How do you know?"

"Well, let's look at it this way," he said, lowering his voice. Stephanie felt very conspiratorial right now and wondered if Chris knew something she didn't. She leaned in closer to hear him. Sawyer, who had been focused on his broccoli and the distaste he felt for this green thing, looked at his parents and decided what they were doing was more fun so he leaned in too. Stephanie and Chris both looked at him. "This doesn't concern you."

"Uh huh," Sawyer said. This looked like a family matter and he was part of this family so he should be able to hear it too.

"Fine, it's not even a big deal," Chris said. "Hunter was just telling me how Shawn likes to spend his days off at home because he goes to church every morning or something."

"Oh, okay, well that isn't a big deal then," Stephanie said, leaning back again in her chair. "So he most likely won't show up at SmackDown then?"

"No, he won't," Chris said. "He's going to ask Hunter to do the dirty work for him, obviously."

"But Hunter won't?"

"Hunter and I are friend, I admit that, weird as it sounds," Chris told her, "but once we're in that ring, it's no holds barred and I'm going to do anything I have to, to win. If that means kicking Hunter's ass, that's what it means. I don't think he's going to go completely overboard with it or deliberately hurt me."

"Well, still, it's just the principle of the thing. Plus, you have a tag match tonight with Shawn and you don't even know who his partner is."

"It'll probably be someone like CM Punk," Chris said.

"Let's hope so. Cade could take him, right?"

"I'd think so, he's pretty good."

"I've never really spoken to him," Stephanie admitted and she hadn't and saw no need to.

"Maybe you could take _him_ under your wing, like you did that Daniel guy."

Stephanie rolled her eyes, but she knew Chris could've mentioned Ted and didn't. That was still their compromise. She didn't say anything about those godawful trunks and he didn't say anything about her crush on Ted, though she really did think he was quite adorable. He was also very in charge of the little clique he had going and she admired that. She wondered why Chris never had a clique, then remembered that he preferred to work alone.

"Are we done here?" Stephanie asked, looking around the table. "I've got to go keep an eye on Adamle. I think Shane being here and on his tail spooked him and so I want to follow-up on that."

"You're evil."

"I'm doing my job is what it is," Stephanie said, "I can take the monster with me or do you want to switch, I take the other one and you take Jericho original?"

"You can take the boy. I'll take the other one."

"Okay," Stephanie said, "Sawyer, are you done with your dinner?"

"Yes," he said. He had managed to choke down most of that broccoli so Stephanie let it slide that there were still a few stalks on the plate.

"Okay, we're going to go intimidate people, come on," she said, holding out her hand to him. Sawyer took this as an opportunity to start running off again. Stephanie sighed and looked at her husband who shrugged and held their daughter a little closer. Then she went after her son, who was no doubt looking to get into trouble.

Chris put Flynn into her carrier and then cleared the table, putting the dishes into the cleaning area. He went back to grab Flynn, who was starting to cry. He sighed himself and gave her a pacifier to appease her until they got to his locker room and he could get her a bottle from the cooler they brought with them filled with Sawyer's juice and her bottles. She spit out the pacifier once, but took it the second time, thankfully. He quickly walked to his locker room and opened the door, setting Flynn down just as she spit out the pacifier again to start crying.

"Okay, okay, flutterby, just be patient for a second," he told her. "Oh damn it, I forgot you need this heated up a little bit. I'm just going to run it under some warm water, okay?"

Flynn kept crying. She was hungry and demanded to have something to drink now and she wasn't going to take waiting for one more second. Chris pretty much ran into the bathroom, having to listen to his little girl's keening cries as he turned on the warm water, sticking his hand under it until it got to the sufficient temperature. He kept calling out soothing words to his distressed daughter as he stuck the bottle under the water to take the chill off.

He should've been thinking about his match later, worrying about strategy, but nope, he was here, worrying about his daughter. Sometimes he could barely remember what it was like before he had kids, before he had Sawyer. Maybe his life hadn't truly began until he had these two crazy monsters who invaded his life so completely. He went over to Flynn and set the bottle down next to her carrier before he gently lifted her out. He patted the back of her pink onesie that said Daddy's Little Devil on the back and then sat down with her. She was still bawling, her face scrunched up in anger.

"It's okay, flutterby, shh," he said as he grabbed the bottle and gave it to her. She started eating immediately, her cries ceasing as she went at the bottle pretty hard. She must've been so hungry, Chris thought to himself as he ran his hand over her head as she ate. "You're a pretty, little girl, aren't you? Yes, you are."

There was a knock at the door and Chris called out for them to come in. The door opened and Hunter slipped inside, "Hey, man."

"Oh hey," Chris said to the other man. Flynn saw movement in front of her and looked up briefly before going back to her bottle, tapping her hands against the container as she ate. She was going to sleep after this, she could already feel her eyelids drooping ever so slightly. "What's up?"

"Well I can see what's up with you," Hunter said, sitting down, "hey there, you're pretty cute…she looks like Steph."

"I know," Chris said. "Just what I've always wanted, two of them."

Hunter laughed, "So I'm Shawn's mystery partner tonight."

"What?" Chris said. "Hate to break it to you, but you're on SmackDown. I thought you couldn't just come over whenever you wanted."

"I think it's because I'm the champion," Hunter said. "But anyways, Shawn already cleared it with Adamle. Adamle thought it'd be great since we're going to fight each other this Friday. I guess he just wants the ratings."

"Trying to impress Shane and Steph I'm sure. So he picked you, so obviously he hasn't picked up that we're still friends even though we haven't exactly been hiding it, I guess."

"Yeah," Hunter said. "I will kick your ass when we're in this match together tonight though, you know that, right? I will also not hesitate to kick your ass on Friday when we meet again. When I'm in that ring, I just see red and go for blood."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, you're so intense, you must be everyone…and yet, just a few minutes ago you were cooing at my daughter," Chris pointed out.

"You never saw that," Hunter told him. "Who'd believe you anyways?"

"Yeah, I think people would be pretty surprised that you're actually a big softie."

"I think they'd get on your side if you just brought her out to the ring," Hunter said, gesturing towards Flynn. "Who the hell is going to hate you when you have that little girl in your arms?"

"I kind of shudder to think about what would happen if you were still married to Stephanie and you had kids. I just imagine the both of you being all manipulative or whatever," Chris said. "You want to hold her?"

"She looks comfortable, so you can keep her."

"Come on, you can hold her, it's cool, she's eating right now so she won't start crying. She gets very involved in her eating," Chris said, smiling down at his daughter. She looked up at him curiously.

"It's cool, I don't have to."

"You haven't held her yet, have you?"

"Um, I don't think so."

"So come on, hold her."

"Nah, she just looks really good in your arms so you should just hold onto her."

"Wait a second, have you…you've held a baby before, right? Your sister has two kids, doesn't she? You've had to have held them when they were babies."

"Not that young," Hunter said. "I'm on the road so much, I don't really get to visit them as much as I'd probably like to, besides, they live in New Hampshire…which I mean, it's not that far, but it's a little far from where I live."

"Okay, now you've _got_ to hold her," Chris said, starting to turn so Hunter could take her.

"No, you just take her. I don't do well with kids."

"My other kid likes you well enough."

"Yeah, but that's an anomaly, besides, I didn't really get to know him until he was older, you know."

"Not that much older, come on, she's extremely adorable and I promise she smells good," he said, "you do smell good, right, Flynn?" Chris looked down at Flynn who was still working hard at drinking. "It would be a huge favor for me, I'm not even in my ring gear yet."

"Fine," Hunter said. "Fine."

"Dude, come on, she's not a newborn, she's seven weeks old."

"She's still fragile."

"Yeah, but do you plan on using my daughter like a football?" Chris asked. Hunter glared at him. "Then you'll be fine."

Chris handed Flynn to Hunter so he could go change. Flynn felt really tiny in his arms. It was weird. His niece and nephew had been at least five months when he first held them and they were pretty solid at that age. Flynn felt like a feather in his arms as he held her bottle for her. She looked up at him a little distrustfully, not knowing who this guy was, but she didn't care. She only cared about the milk she was drinking.

"That good?" Hunter asked her, looking down into her dark blue eyes. They were a little cloudy like Stephanie's. She had that chin dimple too. It was like you weren't a McMahon if you didn't have one. Even Sawyer had one. "It looks like you like it."

She just kept drinking, pulling away sometimes to take in some air.

"I'm Hunter…um, I was your mommy's first husband. I guess that's, you know, a big deal or whatever, but that's what I am. You're cute."

Stephanie smiled as she sat near Adamle, watching what he was doing. Sawyer had some toys he was concerned with, but she was concerned with watching the Raw GM, who she suspected was still under her father's thumb. He looked nervous to be around her. He kept glancing her direction, and she would just smile cordially at him. Sawyer yawned and walked over to Stephanie, tugging on her sleeve.

"Yes, baby?" she asked.

"Tired," he told her. It was getting pretty late. He had wanted to watch his daddy, but he was really getting tired.

"Okay," Stephanie said, come here. She opened up her arms and he tried to climb into her lap. She helped him and held him close to her, resting his head against her chest, which was really very comfy. He felt his mommy rub his back and he smiled a little. He loved her. "So Mike, what did Shawn say to you to convince you to make the ladder match?"

"Well, I mean, it's a good match…right?" he asked with trepidation. Maybe she didn't like the idea of the match.

"It's fine," she shrugged, acting nonchalant. "Chris just gets another way to kick Shawn's ass, that's fine."

"Okay, good," he said as Kane came in.

"I need to talk to you," Kane said threateningly. Or it could've just been Kane in his normal voice, but it certainly sounded threatening. Even Sawyer had turned his head to see who it was. That man was kind of scary-looking, but he felt safe with his mommy. She could be very mean when she wanted to be. Kane looked over at Stephanie.

"Don't mind me, I'm just observing," Stephanie told Kane and she was the only one in the room not intimidated by him, even if they had had their…spats in the past.

"I want a stipulation for my match against Rey," Kane told Adamle.

"Oh…um, okay," Adamle said and he was almost physically shaking. Stephanie hoped part of that was because she was sitting right there. "Maybe Stephanie would be the better one to ask about this."

"Oh no, no, no," Stephanie said. "I'd like to see how _you_ handle this, Mike, if that's okay."

"Yeah, I guess," Adamle said, knowing he was going to be on his own with this one. "What's the stipulation?"

"If I win, I want Rey to take off his mask."

Adamle visibly relaxed. "Yeah, oh okay, that'd be fine. Right, Stephanie, that'd be fine?"

"You're in charge, I'm just making sure you're doing your job," she said, not interfering directly, but knowing she had Adamle on the ropes. If this was how he was going to act around her every week, she was starting to think she should keep a closer eye on Mike Adamle. Then he wouldn't be able to call her father and get the directions from him like he was so surely doing. "Do what you think is right."

"Then you'll get your stipulation, I guess…yeah, you will," he stumbled through his words.

"Good," Kane said, sending a dangerous look to Adamle before stalking back out.

"So that went well, right?"

"You don't need my constant approval, Mike. I think that you're doing an adequate job, but I think I would like to keep my eye on you, you know, just to make sure. Now that I'm back from maternity leave, I think you and I are going to work more closely together."

Adamle gulped. Even if he was working for her father, Stephanie was not one to be trifled with.

"That sounds great," he mustered.

"Well, I'm going to go put my son to bed," Stephanie said. "But don't worry, we'll have more of these little meetings. Got to make sure you're representing us well."

She loved that she could incite fear into people. She gathered Sawyer's things and walked back to her locker room, or Chris's locker room rather. He was there with Flynn who was sleeping in the portable crib they brought. Their locker room looked like a daycare since Chris had also inflated Sawyer's air bed. She helped the little boy into his pajamas and helped him brush his teeth as he jumped into his bed, loving how it bounced like a trampoline.

"So I was completely intimidating Adamle," Stephanie said gleefully.

"I'm sure you were loving that."

"Oh, I was. He was completely intimidated. I think he actually stuttered he was so nervous around me," Stephanie said as she pulled the covers over Sawyer. The little boy reached his arms towards her and she gave him a kiss.

"You're nuts," Chris told her.

"I am not, I just want to make sure he knows who's boss around here," Stephanie said. "I wasn't around because I was pregnant, but I'm not pregnant anymore so I can be around all the time."

"Daddy, kiss," Sawyer said.

Chris walked over and knelt next to the bed, giving Sawyer a goodnight kiss as he looked at Stephanie across the small bed. "I think he knows who his boss is."

"Yeah, my father, but I want to lurk around every corner."

"You sound like a stalker."

"I'm not a stalker, I think stalker implies that I would have to like the guy. He doesn't know what he's doing. He's constantly looking for assurance for everything he does and then when he's out there, it sounds like he's talking from a script…one my father probably gave him."

Chris chuckled. "You always need a project, huh?"

She blushed at him, "It keeps me interesting, doesn't it?"

"I thought you were interesting anyways," he told her.

"Shh!" Sawyer said from beneath them.

"Sounds like we're being too loud," Chris said as he looked at his wife.

"Seems so. You've got a match you need to focus on, I'll get Britt or Hunter to watch the kids."

"Hunter is Shawn's partner."

"What?" she asked.

"Yeah, so it's me and him."

Chris wanted to say it was weird being across the ring from a friend, but when he entered, Hunter was no longer his friend, but the enemy. There were no allegiances right now and it was apt that Chris and Hunter should face off against each other. They were friends out of the ring, but both of them were competitors inside of it and they weren't going to go easy on the other. There were still some lingering effects to the time period where they hated each other. You couldn't erase everything that happened.

Still, it was actually fun now to wrestle against Hunter. Before, Chris was just so intent on kicking his ass for everything he did to Stephanie and then before that, he had wanted to kick his ass because he was _with_ Stephanie and made his life insufferable. Now though, it was a friendly type rivalry type of thing. He enjoyed that aspect, yet still didn't feel bad whenever he got a move on Hunter. He especially didn't hate it when he got the Code-Breaker on him at the very end.

He knew he'd probably pay for that on SmackDown.

**Friday**

"I'm exhausted!" Trish said as she collapsed on her bed. "Remind me never to fly that much again."

"Says the woman who was a wrestler and traveled the world over like five hundred times."

"Shut up," Trish said as she closed her eyes. She could feel the bed dip a few moments later as Christian got on. Then she felt him start to hover over her and she opened her eyes to see him above her, a smile playing on his lips. "What are you doing?"

"Looking at my wife," he said, his smile growing into a grin.

"You just love saying that, don't you?" she asked coyly.

"I might," he admitted. "I like the way that sounds. My wife. I wish someone had told me earlier how good it sounded. This is Trish, my wife. My wife, Trish. I like it, I definitely like it. It suits you."

"So I should just change my name to wife, Trish?"

"Yes, I think that would work out just fine. I'll even change my name to husband, Christian so you can go around saying, 'This is my husband, Christian,' man, I love the sound of that. What too us so long to do this?"

"I believe the consensus was that we were incredibly stupid."

"Ahh yes, after the lengthy polls."

"That is true," she said, pulling him down to kiss her. She felt him settle himself and she pulled away again. "I love you."

"I love you too," he said, "so…I believe we had a discussion before we got married."

"Did we?"

"Yes," he said, placing his hand on her knee. "I believe there was some discussion of children and the wanting of the aforementioned."

"That's true," she responded.

"So I was thinking maybe we take a little while and start working on that proposition, what do you say?"

"I'm all for that, Mr. Cage."

Trish pulled him down over her again.

"Hi, hi, hi!" Sawyer said to various people as he walked around SmackDown. People waved to the little boy and he had smiles for everyone.

"What are you smiling at?" Chris asked him as they walked down the hallway.

"He's trying to improve your image," Stephanie said from behind them. "He knows that you're disliked so he's trying to show off that you're a good guy."

"Oh, well in that case, by all means, go right ahead, Sawyer, make me look good."

"Okay," he said, saying hello to everyone. "Hi! Bwitt!"

Britt walked up and scooped up Sawyer, "Hey, you guys, you finally made it."

"Yeah, we were running late and then we needed to feed him," Stephanie said. "It wasn't really imperative that we be here since Chris just has a match and that's it."

"I'm just going to wrestle and get out of here," Chris said. "I've got bigger things to focus on."

"Yeah, Hunter is the same way. He just wants to get through the show. I think he's a lot more scared of Jeff than he's letting on."

"Scared of Jeff? Jeff Hardy?"

"Yeah, you'd be surprised how he's feeling about it. You know how he is though…well, you do, Stephanie. He never shows that he's ever intimidated. At least he hasn't since I've been with him. Maybe it was different before."

"Nah, he was pretty much the same. Only once in a while did he ever let any kind of fear show."

"I just think he thinks that he's underestimating Jeff. How you can knowingly underestimate someone, I don't know, but that's what it is."

"I'm sure he'll win," Stephanie said.

"Same here. I'm not asking you to go easy on him or anything, Chris, I wouldn't ask you to do that."

"I wouldn't do that even if you asked."

"Ouch," Britt said.

"Bwitt, down, pease," Sawyer said.

"Oh, sorry," Britt said. "Did you need help with them tonight, Steph?"

"You're off the clock for the week, Britt, you don't have to help me," Stephanie said. "Besides, Flynn is already asleep and will probably sleep the whole time and Sawyer is just going to watch. It's not that late over here for the show so Sawyer's just going to try and stay up to watch Chris, aren't you, baby boy?"

"I watch Daddy," Sawyer said very seriously. He did watch his daddy, even when he was home. He had even watched his daddy _and_ his mommy together! He didn't understand why they yelled at each other or why his mommy would kiss Trips, but it was funny and he laughed. Someone walked by and Sawyer peeked around Britt's legs. "Hi!"

"Hi," the production person said.

"He thinks he's in charge," Stephanie explained.

"Why the hell is your kid in a dress shirt and dress pants?" Hunter asked as he grabbed Britt around the waist, startling her and making her emit a little squeal.

"Don't do that!" she told him, kissing his cheek.

"Sorry, but why is your kid dressed up?"

"We haven't been home since before Trish and Christian's wedding so we're going on the clothes we have and when you have a two-year-old who spills--"

"I don't, Mommy!" Sawyer told her angrily. He didn't spill…much. Sometimes it was just very hard to get things into his mouth, but he tried!

"He does," Stephanie whispered. "I haven't had time to get things washed, so this is the only outfit he had left that he wanted to wear. He didn't want to wear the other one."

"Weirdo," Hunter said to the little boy and he slapped Hunter in the leg.

"Stop," Sawyer said angrily.

"Okay, someone's cranky, taking after your dad now?" Hunter asked.

"Oh, very funny, because we're going to be going against one another, right?"

"I've got to get the mental edge."

"Yeah, you can have the mental edge, I'll have the physical edge when we're in the ring later," Chris said. "We'll see who the better champion is."

"Oh, I know we will and that's me," Hunter said. "You're going to be going down, Jericho. Don't they all say you got that title by fluke? Maybe you'll even lose to Shawn this Sunday, I don't know."

"You better watch out for Jeff, besides, you're going against his brother, he's probably going to try and soften you up."

"We'll just gang up on you since nobody likes you," Hunter smirked.

"Oh, that hurts, I'm so sad that the fans don't love me anymore. I guess we can't all be fan butt-kissers like you."

"Children, children, break it up," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes at Britt, who laughed. "You guys are nuts, you're _friends_."

"I'm still going to kick his ass," Hunter said. "Just because you're champion now."

"Yes, I am champion and I'm going to kick _your_ ass."

"Oh God, save it for the ring," Britt said. "Come on, Steph, let's take these little boys away before they start calling each other poopyheads."

"I'll see you in the ring," Hunter said as Britt pulled him away.

"Yeah, I'll be seeing _you_."

Chris walked nonchalantly down to the ring later that evening. He wasn't intimidated. If anyone should be intimidated it should be Hunter and Matt. He was going to decimate them both. He got into the ring and could feel all eyes on him. He gave the belt to Robinson and then looked across the ring at Hunter, who was staring back at him. He and Hunter locked eyes and started walking towards each other.

"I'm kicking your ass," Hunter told him.

"Oh yeah, sure," Chris said and the trash talking was continued from earlier and both men could just picture their significant others thinking they were little kids. Matt felt left out from this and tried to get Chris's attention, but it didn't work as he went back to talking with Hunter.

"Fine, whoever wins buys the other dinner, deal?"

"Fine, deal," Chris said as he and Hunter continued to ignore Matt, who tried to get their attention again. Chris slapped him across the face and the fight actually started.

It was only natural for him to get ganged up on. Hunter shrugged as he started to go after Chris, who tried to duck out of the way. This was every man for himself after all and he couldn't be concerned about his friend. Chris got thrown into the ring post and Hunter and Matt decided to go after one another. Chris was glad they stopped assaulting him. Chris managed to get some offense in on Hunter, but it went back to Hunter until Matt got involved again and Chris gave a dropkick to the both of them.

The match went well for the most part. Chris got in a lot of offense though he couldn't get the win he wanted to get. Hunter got him in a sleeper hold, but he managed to get out of it. He wasn't going to get beaten by the freaking sleeper hold. He got the Walls of Jericho on Hunter, briefly wondering where Matt was. He let go of the thought though as he locked the Walls in tight. He wasn't going to let Hunter go and he was going to win. He could hear Hunter yelling and he felt himself pulled towards the ropes. He wasn't going to give in though and started to pull Hunter towards the center of the ring. Matt showed up out of nowhere and made Chris break the hold. He got the Side Effect from Matt and saw Matt pinned so Hunter would win.

He was kind of pissed and decided to get the last laugh on his friend and got the Code-Breaker on Hunter. That would at least make dinner interesting later. He got the ladder, intending to hit Hunter. Not hard, just enough to send a message to Shawn. But then he saw Matt and decided he would rather not hit his friend and hit Matt instead. Unfortunately, before he could send his message to Shawn, Jeff got him and he went down. It was fine though.

This wasn't the match he was worried about.

**Sunday**

"Be careful."

"I can't be too careful," Chris told her. "This is a ladder match, after all. I'm going out there to win at all costs. You know this, Steph."

"I know, but I can still tell you to be careful," she told him, leaning forward to press a kiss to his lips. "I just want you to come back in one piece, okay? Just come back in one piece and make sure none of that one piece is broken either, okay?"

"Stephanie, I'll be fine."

"I know, but I'm your wife, it's my job to worry about you," she told him, kissing him again and running her hand through his hair. "I want you to win also, do you hear me? I want you to win this match. Do not come back without that belt."

"Or…"

"Or Sawyer will kick you," Stephanie told him. "Just…don't do anything completely stupid."

"I'll be fine," he said, but he didn't know if that'd be true. With every match you never knew how you were going to come out of it. It was even more so with a ladder match because you were introducing this huge weapon to the mix. He was well-versed with ladders though. He had been in enough of these matches, but it was always a risk.

Stephanie knew this, but she played along. "Good, good luck."

"Thanks," he said, going in for another kiss.

"Okay, baby boy, tell Daddy to have good luck in his match," Stephanie said, lifting their son to Chris's level.

Sawyer knew that something big was going to happen. There was a lot of buzz around here and this wasn't a day he normally traveled, he knew that much. He didn't know what that big thing was, but now his mommy was telling him to tell his daddy something. "Good lucky," he repeated what his mommy said.

"Thanks, kid," Chris said, kissing Sawyer's cheek. "I'll see you with our belt after."

"Okay," he said, looking around for his belt, but then remembered that his mommy had taken it away earlier and now he didn't know where it was.

Stephanie put Sawyer down and then went over to grab Flynn. Britt handed the baby over and she brought her over to Chris. "Say good luck to Daddy, Flynnie. He's going to be in a big match right now and he needs all our luck."

Flynn smiled at Chris as he took her in his arms. He held her aloft a little bit and then pulled her towards him, kissing her head. "I love you."

"She loves you too, she told me last night," Stephanie said, taking the baby back from Chris. "Sorry, you can't go out there with her."

"I didn't think so…"

Stephanie pressed her headphone to her ear as it crackled to life. "Okay, thanks…that's your cue, sweetie. I love you."

Chris just nodded and kissed her again. His music started up and he walked down to the ring. He looked around in what could look like trepidation, but was really just calculation. He was plotting the match in his mind. He knew it wouldn't go according to plan, but he could at least set his mind in the right place. He waited for Shawn's music to start. He looked up to his belt hanging there. That was his and at the end of the night, it would be his again.

The match started as any other would, with the two of them staring each other down. They both acknowledged the fact that this thing between them was far deeper now than when they started. It felt like the true peak because this meant something to the fans now too. Chris was the champion and the fans could see that. They couldn't see how he was with Stephanie and they couldn't see his kids, but they could see how much the belt meant to him and they wanted Shawn to have it. This went beyond Stephanie or Rebecca. It was between the two of them. That's what it was. The two of them, in a ring, that was their world.

They started after each other and inexplicably went for the Sweet Chin Music. Did he really just think he was going get the move and climb the ladder just like that? Who did Shawn think he was? Shawn seemed to go for the ladder, but Chris got to him. Shawn returned to the ring and tried to get some offense on Chris, but he turned it around on him and Chris started getting some offense in. He saw Shawn on the outside and launched himself at him, knocking him to the floor. He got Shawn, but Shawn turned around and started hitting him.

It went back and forth a little, but Chris got him into the ring post and then went for the ladder. It was time to get this match really underway. It wasn't a regular match, it was a ladder match and he was going to use the ladder to the best of his ability. He went at Shawn with the ladder, but was tripped and fell right on it. He had no time to think about this as Shawn was getting another ladder. He didn't let himself get hit again. He grabbed a ladder and started to push it into the ring.

He got it halfway and then climbed in to pull the rest. Shawn used this moment to use the ladder like a catapult and launched himself into it so it knocked up into Chris. He immediately knew something was wrong. He could taste the blood instantly. Chioda came over to check on him, but he kept insisting he was okay. He didn't know exactly what was wrong, but he was bleeding. He ran his tongue around his mouth, trying to find the cut or whatever was making him bleed. Then he felt a gap that was surely not there before. He touched his mouth a little and one of his teeth was nearly gone.

This just pissed him off more. That bastard had knocked his tooth out. He was going to pay. Stephanie could see blood on Chris's face, but there wasn't enough focus on his face to see where he was cut. Britt put her hand on Stephanie's shoulder and gave it a supportive squeeze and she gave a small smile. Chris had slammed Shawn down and was going to catapult him into the ladder, but he just hopped up and started climbing. Chris was having none of this and ran into the ropes before he knocked into the ladder and knocked Shawn to the mat. That wasn't enough though, not nearly enough.

He grabbed the ladder and hit Shawn in the stomach with it then threw it on him. Chris covered his mouth to try suck some of the blood out of his mouth, but it was still bleeding. He could feel it oozing and it was coppery and thick. He slid out of the ring and grabbed another ladder and threw it into the ring. He went after Shawn again after he set up the ladder in the corner.

"Where is he bleeding from?" Stephanie asked, looking at his face. "He's not bleeding from his mouth, is he?"

"I can't really tell."

"Boo-boo?" Sawyer asked from Stephanie's lap.

"Yeah, Daddy seems to have a boo-boo, I don't know where," Stephanie said, leaning her chin on Sawyer's head.

Now she was even more worried because Chris had gotten his leg caught in the ladder and he had fallen to the mat with the ladder still caught on his leg. He writhed in pain as Shawn continued to work on his leg. He held his knee as he saw Shawn setting up the ladder for something nefarious. He didn't have it in him to fight at the moment and Shawn slammed his knee into the ladder and he groaned in pain. Then he got Chris in a leg-lock and that hurt just as much.

Chris was by no means out and the anger at his injury fueled him. He kicked the ladder into Shawn's face and hoped he could knock out Shawn's teeth too. Chris was on the offensive now, catapulting Shawn's face into the ladder with success this time around. Stephanie cheered her husband on, but was still wondering the extent of his injury. He didn't seem to be in much pain, but she didn't know what was going on and that worried her. She told him to come back in one piece and so far so good.

Chris was pissed and acting on it, letting it undulate through his skin like a slow poison. He wanted his belt and he wanted revenge. Maybe Chris was a little vain, but damn it, he didn't want Shawn to get any satisfaction out of this. The blood was drying on his lips like lipstick from the morning after a one-night stand. It just spurned him on. He set up the ladder and started the ascent to the belt that bore _his_ name, not Shawn's. He could see Shawn going after him and he tried to shake him off. That just resulted in the ladder falling down. Chris landed on his feet and set up the ladder again. Shawn was still too cognizant for Chris to get up the ladder without him interfering so he decided to work on Shawn some more.

That backfired on him as he landed on the ladder. Stephanie bit her lip. Things so far didn't look so bad, but she wanted Chris to win and end it now…actually, if he could end it five seconds ago, that'd be wonderful. She cringed when Shawn threw the ladder right onto Chris. Sawyer watched curiously. He was not allowed to play with stuff like that, why would his daddy want to play with that kind of stuff? It looked like it hurt.

He turned up to his mommy and said, "Why do dat?"

"What?" she asked, distracted by watching Chris roll around the floor in pain.

"Him, why do dat?" Sawyer asked, pointing to the screen where Shawn was repeatedly hitting Chris with a ladder. Stephanie was too into the match to realize her son was watching his father get brutalized. This was actually probably worse than the Unsanctioned Match, but here she was, exposing her son to this.

"He's trying to take your toy," Stephanie answered simply.

Sawyer's mouth widened and he growled, "No take!" There was no way this man was going to take his toy from him. He was about ready to go out there himself and beat this guy up. That was his toy! _His_ toy! Sawyer was obviously not very well adept at the concept of sharing, but he was two and people let it slide. He didn't like sharing his sister either.

Chris was pulled onto the announcer's table. He saw Shawn start to climb and he gained his bearings back and started to go after him. He hit Shawn and started to climb after him, shoving for room. They fell backwards onto the announcer's table and Chris's body tensed up like he was in a car accident. He was going to feel this tomorrow. Thank God he had a wife who was understanding.

"Damn it," Stephanie muttered as she sat there.

"I'm sure he's fine," Britt told her.

"I don't know what possesses him in that ring sometimes," she said, then turned her headphones on. "Why are we replaying that so much! Stop replaying it!"

"Yes, ma'am," came the sheepish voice across the line.

Shawn got up first and Stephanie bit her lip. "Come on, Chris, you can do it, sweetie, you can do it."

Chris stumbled his way to the ring. He was gaining his bearings back and he could see what Shawn was trying to do. In a burst of energy, he dropkicked the ladder right into Shawn, happy to have made contact. Chris tried to suplex Shawn, but got pushed to the ring instead. Shawn elbowed Chris and both men were down. Shawn tried to get the Sweet Chin Music again, but Chris met him with the ladder. The match was getting seriously ugly now. He had completely forgotten about the gap in his teeth. He was simply running on instinct at this point. It must've been just instinct because no way in his right mind would he ever attempt the Lionsault with a ladder. It was bad enough with just a guy, let alone a metal object he had to land on.

Neither one had actually gone for the belt yet, but Chris was going to change that. He pinned Shawn under the ladder and started to climb. Shawn started pushing him though and it's almost a surreal experience when you know you're going to hit the ground. You can see it coming closer and closer and you think you'll be ready to hit, you think you can prepare for it, but you can't, there's just no possible way you're going to prepare yourself for it.

Chris grabbed his knee. It had taken the brunt of the fall and he pulled his kneepad down. It was killing him right now, the pain just flaring through it. Stephanie inched closer to the screen as if trying to assess the damage from this vantage point, like she had x-ray vision and could see through his skin. He had to be okay, he was Chris. He had to be okay. He was always okay, he was always the one who came out okay. He was the guy that they relied on because he was like Teflon. He was their Iron Man.

Chris could see Shawn starting to climb and he just clutched at his knee, seeing his belt going away slowly with each step Shawn took. He couldn't let this happen so he mustered up everything he had and started crawling towards the ring with a sense of raw desperation clinging to his skin like the sheen of sweat he had developed. He had spilled his blood for this match, lost a tooth for this match and like hell was he going to go through all that and not come away as the champion.

He was not coming out of this match without his damn belt and it was that thought that fluttered through his brain as he ignored the pain and pushed Shawn off the ladder and into the ropes. His knee was still throbbing with pain, but he ignored it, getting the ladder up and literally hopping on one leg up the rungs. His belt, he kept thinking, Sawyer's belt, he kept thinking, Stephanie's belt, he kept thinking, it was theirs, all of theirs and he was not letting his family down.

They were both up the ladder and fighting each other and then Shawn tripped and then he flipped backwards, hanging upside down. He saw a blur go by him and for a moment, a brief moment, he thought it was Stephanie coming down to kick Shawn's ass. He smiled a little bit, but it was too big to be Stephanie. It had to be Cade and it was, trying to get Shawn off the ladder. Cade provided enough distraction for Chris to get upright.

He grabbed the belt, Shawn had the belt. Then they both had the belt. They were tugging and tugging and Chris was trying to pry it from Shawn's hands. This one was for Stephanie, another one for Flynn, another for Sawyer. Then it was for him and he had worked too damn hard for this. Too many hours put in for this. Too many days away, too many days before that since his last World Title, too many days spent in WCW on the cusp of being great only to be pushed back down again. There was no way Shawn was taking this away from him. No way.

And then he won.

He fell to the mat and the adrenaline rushed out of him and he was left, broken and bruised on the mat. But he had his belt and it was worth it. His mouth was bleeding again, he could feel new wetness, but he was too tired to even lick it off. He got to his knees finally with his belt and savagely wiped the blood from his mouth, spreading it across his face like war-paint. He had not been in a real war, but this was a true war of wills and he had come out on top, just like he predicted he would.

Cade helped him out of the ring and up the ramp, letting him lean on him and he was going to get this kid a raise. He had the power to do it and he was going to. He nearly collapsed, but Cade helped him up again. He walked backstage with the help of Cade, someone handing him a towel, which he held to this mouth.

Stephanie was nearly on top of him the second he went through the curtain. "Where are you hurt? How's your knee? Where are you bleeding? Why do you have a towel on your mouth, what happened?"

"Steph, it's fine," he mumbled through the towel.

"Thanks for helping him," Stephanie said, turning to Lance.

"He's helped me a lot," Lance said to Chris's wife. He didn't really know her, but she looked grateful right then.

"I can take it from here, thanks again."

"Okay, congratulations, Chris, you deserved it."

"Thanks, Lance," Chris said genuinely, making eye contact with the young man. He really did owe him a lot and Chris wasn't going to let that go unnoticed.

"Where are you hurt?"

"I'm fine, it's not a big deal."

"Chris," she said as he leaned into her a little. "Where are you hurt?"

"It's just my mouth."

"What with your mouth?"

Chris pulled the towel away and smiled. Stephanie saw a big part of his tooth was missing. "I'm going to kill him," she said. "I'm going to kill him, where is he, that man is _dead_."

Stephanie actually pulled away from Chris and looked around crazily as if she was really going to pulverize Shawn Michaels right this second. She actually forgot that Chris was wobbly on his feet and he started to lose his balance, "Stephanie…"

"What?" she asked, then looked at him about to tip over. "Oh God, I'm sorry, sweetie. But I swear, that man is going to pay. I can't believe he did that to you, I can't believe…your beautiful smile. Your teeth, you're beautiful teeth."

"Steph," he said as she took his face in her hands, not caring about the blood now smearing on her hands.

"I can't believe he did that to you, you had such beautiful teeth and now…look."

"I see, I see!" Sawyer said, trying to jump up and down and see what his mommy was looking at.

"How's your knee?"

"Just tweaked it, I'm fine," Chris said. "As long as I don't have to wrestle tomorrow."

"Are you kidding me, you're not wrestling tomorrow at all!" Stephanie told him, aghast at the proposition. "You're going to take it easy. You must be so sore and your smile. Now it's…your…I'm going to kill him."

"I think I hurt him sufficiently."

"Oh, I'm going to make sure he hurts even more, I'm going to knock out all of his teeth," she said, her fists clenching and her face turning red. "I'm going to break every stinking bone in his body, thinks he can just hurt you like that, oh, I don't think so. He doesn't know who he's messing with."

"Mommy, I see," Sawyer said impatiently. He wasn't the least bit tired since they were on the West Coast and it wasn't even close to his bedtime. Chris knelt down to his level and Sawyer made a face at the blood. "Daddy?"

"Hey, kid, I got your belt back," he said, holding up the belt.

"Thanks," Sawyer said, glad his daddy had brought it back for him. He had seen it hanging there and wondered how the heck it had gotten all the way up there. Who had played that trick? Leave it to his daddy to get it back for him. "Daddy, face."

"I got hurt," he told his son slowly.

"Oh, I no huwt," Sawyer said, in fact, he felt pretty great. Maybe he'd go run over there for a minute. Nah, better not, his daddy didn't really look right. "You huwt?"

"Yeah, see," he said, showing his son his mouth. "I lost part of my tooth."

"I have toof," he said, grinning and showing off his teeth to his daddy.

"I know, you're lucky, you keep those, okay?"

"Okay," Sawyer nodded. He didn't want a big hole in his mouth like his silly daddy.

Chris stood up slowly again and Stephanie said, "We're going to the trainer and then tomorrow, I'm going to book you the best dentist in the area, the _best_ dentist and we're going to get that fixed. You can get it grinded down and then they can put a cap on it."

"Okay," he said, in no mood to argue with his wife who was feeling very aggressive right now. "And you know who's fault this really is?"

"Whose?" he asked.

"Adamle's, that's right, he made this match and he's going to pay, oh yes, he's going to pay."

Chris shook his head, "So now it's his fault?"

"He made the match, it's his fault and like I said, I'm going to scare the crap out of him."

**Monday**

"Okay, Stephanie, what did you want me here for?" Shane asked as he walked into Stephanie's hotel room. "Also, why couldn't we go out to lunch and talk? I had to rush out here to Seattle and I don't even know why."

"Well, we couldn't go out because I have the kids," Stephanie said, gesturing behind her where Sawyer was playing with a mini-golf set, wiggling his butt around and trying to hit the plastic golf ball into the little platform thing with his blue, plastic golf club. Flynn was in a swinging cradle trying to reach out for the toys hanging above her and smiling as music played from the toys she was trying to get.

"Fwynn, watch," Sawyer said as he tried to get his sister's attention. Exasperated that he couldn't get the attention of a two-month-old he went over and got her attention by waving his hand in front of her. She tried to make a grab for it, gurgling and cooing at her brother's hand.

"See what I mean," Stephanie said. "We can order food if you're that hungry."

"I got crappy plane food, what do you think?" he said, actually going over and grabbing the room service menu from the table.

"Hi, Unca Shane," Sawyer said as he ran over to his uncle and quickly wrapped his arms around his uncle's legs and then ran back over to his sister who had been wondering where he went. He swung some of Flynn's toys around and she grinned her toothless grin. This boy was so much fun!

"Okay, so..." Stephanie started.

"Where's Chris?" Shane asked, looking at his sister. Her face darkened a little bit. "Oh no, don't tell me you two are in a fight."

"No, we're not in a fight," Stephanie said. "He's at the dentist."

"Oh, because of the tooth."

"Yes, because of the tooth," Stephanie said, like her brother should've just known and not asked about it. "He's getting it grinded down today. They can't get the cap right now so he's going to have to wait until we go home and then they're going to fit him for one."

"Sounds good," Shane said, "so what's the problem?"

"The problem is my husband broke his tooth. I mean, yes, I know there are risks, but his tooth…I'm angry about it."

"It's just a tooth," Shane said.

"Chris has a beautiful smile," she said with a slight pout. "I don't want to see him with a marred smile."

"Wow…so there's like, tons of crap going on in the world and you're worried about Chris's smile."

"Yes, sue me," Stephanie said.

"When that becomes a profitable endeavor, let me know."

"I'm just worried about my husband, that's all."

"That still doesn't explain why I'm here," he said. "I don't even know why I flew out here in the first place. It's not like you said it was an emergency. I know I'm going to be asking for trouble with this one."

"Well, since my husband was disfigured last night," Stephanie said bitterly, thinking not only about Chris's tooth but his knee as well, "I wanted to make sure Adamle knows his place around here since he was the one to make the match a ladder match against Shawn."

"Okay…so you want to…what, put him in front of a firing squad?" Shane joked.

"No, but I'm going to incapacitate him," Stephanie said, smiling evilly.

Shane sighed, "Stephanie, what are you thinking?"

"Nothing bad. I think I'm just going to have Adamle unable to attend Raw tonight," Stephanie said. "That's all, I just want to talk to him. That's all."

"Talk?"

"Yes, just talk. You should've seen him last week, he's completely intimidated by me, completely. I was freaking him out, just sitting there and observing him while he worked. I didn't even have to say a word and he was putty in my hands."

"Okay, that's fine."

"I just want to scare him into knowing that if he does what my father says, if this is some little game with him, I'm going to win," Stephanie said. "I think we're going to need to have a very important meeting to assess him."

"So what about Raw?"

"I know what I'm going to do," she said as the door opened and Chris walked in, "Sweetie, hey, you're back, how did it go at the dentist?"

"See for yourself," Chris said, coming over and smiling at her. There was a noticeable gap in his teeth. The dentist had grinded it down so it was level and to where it would be easier when the cap was made to fit it over his tooth.

"Oh, sweetie," Stephanie pouted.

"I'll be fine, I'm okay, hey, Shane," Chris said, then did a double take, "Shane? What are you doing here?"

"Ask your wife," Shane said. "She beckoned me from Connecticut."

"Whatever," Chris said, "I need some baby time. That's the only thing that's going to make me feel better right now."

"It's not the only thing," Stephanie said as she watched Chris go over and take Flynn from her cradle. Sawyer frowned because he had been playing with her and trying to get her to take his stuffed animals. She seemed to like to pet them and he was giggling because she was smiling.

Chris held Flynn close to him and just kissed her head, taking in her baby-scent of powder and just fresh baby smell. He could hear a tiny sigh-like sound from her and he smiled at that. It was amazing the power a baby could have over you and she was making him feel a lot better about what happened. A tooth didn't matter, she mattered and the rest of his family mattered. He lifted her up above his head and made faces at her, causing her to smile at him before he went and sat at the table with his wife and brother-in-law. Sawyer, feeling left out, went over and climbed into the empty fourth seat, wanting to be in on this meeting too.

"Okay, so what do you mean she's not the only thing that could make me feel better?" Chris asked.

"Well, I was telling Shane my plan," she explained.

"What plan?"

"Well, Mike is going to find himself suddenly…incapacitated tonight," Stephanie said.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, it's time we assessed where he's at as the General Manager."

"What is she saying?" Chris asked Shane.

"You're asking me, I don't know."

"I'm going to pretty much tell him that he cannot come up with stupid ideas that get our guys hurt. I don't want another incident where someone's teeth gets knocked out."

"You mean Chris's teeth, I don't think you'd care if someone like…Kane's teeth got knocked out."

"She'd care if Ted's teeth got knocked out," Chris told his brother-in-law.

"That's true."

"Hey, that's breaking the promise," she told him indignantly.

"No, I'm talking to your brother, not you."

"That's it, I'm going to go into that bedroom and cut up every single one of those stupid wrestling trunks," she told him. "If you two would just listen, this is good. I'm going to make sure Adamle knows his place and get to freak him out into listening to me and not dad, which is so obviously what he's doing and then we'll truly be in charge and maybe that'll smoke Dad out of wherever he's hiding."

"She's crazy," Shane said to Chris.

"She's your sister."

"Chris, she's _your_ wife."

"So, she's still your sister."

"Bro, face it, I had no choice in the matter of being related to Stephanie, you, on the other hand, chose to marry her, so you know, you're just as crazy," Shane pointed out.

"I had no choice, or little choice in the matter," Chris said. "I mean, she wouldn't hug me! If she just hugged me, all of this could've been avoided and I'd probably have a half a tooth that I don't have right now."

Stephanie looked at them both with malice, "You'd also be down two kids."

"That's a good point," Chris said, looking at his daughter and Sawyer, who was half-laying on the table trying to listen to every talk around him. "Still, I probably wouldn't be stuck in crazy situations, have a crazy bunch of in-laws, no offense, Shane, and I'd probably be retired and very happy with whatever cookie-cutter wife I decided to be with."

"Probably a ring rat," Stephanie muttered.

"Okay, now that's just a low blow, just because you want to be with Ted and can't because you married me three years before you met him formally doesn't mean you have to get snippy."

"Oh, I'll get snippy alright with those stupid underwear you insist on wearing to the ring and waxing your legs for."

"Bro, seriously?"

"I have a look to keep up," Chris said defensively as Shane snickered. "Oh shut up, Shane, let's not start spilling dirty secrets."

"You shut up," Shane said to Chris, who gave him a look.

"Can we get back to the matter at hand!" Stephanie insisted.

"Yeah!" Sawyer agreed, with what he didn't know, but he wanted to be noticed. The three adults looked at him and laughed, Stephanie leaning over to kiss him.

"Thank you, baby boy. Look, the fact of the matter is I want Adamle to know he's on a short rope, so he's not running Raw tonight, you are, Chris."

"What?"

"You're in charge of Raw, executive decision. As one of the Executive Vice Presidents of the company, I say you're in charge tonight because Mike is going to find himself trying to salvage whatever dignity he has."

"Seriously…if you had just hugged me," Chris muttered, even as he caressed Flynn's back.

"You'll like being in charge, I give you full reign, within reason of course, you know what you can and can't do."

"How am I supposed to explain why I'm in charge?" he asked.

"You're the champion. Who better to leave in charge than the champion?"

"So you don't want me to go out there and say that my wife wants to torture the GM because she thinks he's secretly working for her father so she put me, her husband, in charge in what can only be construed as a narcissistic gesture?"

"Chris, tell me you don't love the idea," she challenged him. "Tell me you don't like the idea of having control over everyone on the brand, every, single person."

Shane looked at his sister and her husband and there was a moment where their eyes met and he could see how perfectly they went together. It was like they had the same look in their eyes and then they both started smirking and it was freaking him out. He decided to leave them to their silent conversations and study the room service menu.

"Hey, kiddo, you hungry, let's find something to eat."

Later on that evening, Stephanie and Shane had gathered up Adamle into a sound-proof room deep in the bowels of the arena. Everyone had been alerted that Adamle would be in very important meetings all night and would be unable to adequately run the show and therefore Chris would be in charge. That earned a groan from some people, but she didn't care and neither did Chris. It wasn't like there would be a total mutiny. While Chris didn't have the power to fire anyone, his wife did and nobody would cross him because of that.

"So, uh, Stephanie, what's this about?" Adamle asked tentatively as she paced around the head of the room. Shane was just sitting there reading the schedule for the show that Chris had given him. He chuckled to himself as he read the match Chris had given his new protégé, Lance Cade. This only made Adamle more nervous.

"Well, we called you here today to talk about how it's been going for you as the GM," Stephanie said. "I want to get your complete input on things, from how Raw is doing to Cyber Sunday, I want to hear all your great ideas. I mean, you've been coming up with some pretty great ones recently. You wanted Shawn to have the title shot, remember that?"

"Of course," Adamle said, "he and Chris put on a great show last night."

"They did, didn't they?" she said in a sickly sweet voice, like vinegar-tinged honey. "Match of the night some were saying, match of the year some other people said. I couldn't say I argued with what they were thinking since my husband happened to be in the match."

"That's right and won," Adamle said enthusiastically.

"Yes, that's right," Stephanie said. "Did you see what happened to his mouth though?"

"Um, I know he broke a tooth."

"Yeah, he did. Bet you didn't envision that happening when you were making the match, did you?"

"Um, no, it wasn't."

"That's okay, people get hurt, right?"

"Yeah, they do, it happens."

"Yeah, I'm just sorry it had to happen to my husband, now he's got this huge gap in his teeth and my son doesn't know what happened, but keeps asking why Daddy has a boo-boo. Did you see Chris's mouth today?"

"I don't…I don't think I did," he said, trying to smile.

Stephanie sighed and sat down. "It's completely bruised on the right side, all purple and red, it's horrible, really. I was so worried about him. I can't even kiss him because it's so bad and it hurts him."

"That's really too bad."

"I know, but you had to make the match with the ratings in mind and what the fans wanted to see, right?"

"Yeah, right, I did," Adamle said, trying to sound sure of himself.

"Yes, so let's discuss what other kinds of ideas you have."

Meanwhile, Chris was handing Flynn over to Britt, who kept staring at his mouth. "You can talk about what my mouth looks like, Britt."

"I'm sorry, I didn't want to bring it up if it was a sore subject," she said. "How's your teeth?"

"Fine," he said, showing her the gap. "It's not a big deal. I'll get it fixed."

"Oh okay, good," Britt told him. "I can't believe he did that to you. I don't know why Hunter is still friends with him. I wish I could just tell him to stop hanging around him. It would be fine with me, I don't really like him. His wife is fine…oh sorry, I didn't mean to bring her up."

"It's fine, Britt, seriously."

"Sorry, I'm just freaked out a little by the brutality. It got me thinking about Hunter being in matches and now I'm completely worried about his safety," Britt said. "I mean, what if he breaks a tooth, or worse?"

"He's _done_ worse," Chris pointed out.

"Well I wasn't here to see it," Britt said, "or care about it. I don't want him getting hurt."

"It happens, we all get hurt."

"You don't."

"I'm special, plus, look, no tooth," he said, pointing to the gap in his teeth. "Horrible, I'm horrible-looking, you should just turn away. Is Hunter here tonight by the way?"

"No," she said. "He was going to go see some concert his niece is doing tonight. So he's not here."

"Oh, okay, well, I'm in charge tonight, so I guess you can just help me out by making sure my children are well taken care of when I'm out there, which is in…oh, ten minutes."

"But Steph wanted me to sit in on the meeting she has with Mr. Adamle," Britt explained. "I think she mentioned something about taking extensive notes while the meeting is going on."

"Don't listen to her, she's just trying to scare Adamle or something," he shrugged off. "Okay, I'm going to go head down and do my little spiel and announce that I'm in charge the match I wanted to set into motion and about No Mercy last night."

"Okay, I'll watch these two."

"Thanks," Chris said as he left.

He was looking especially dapper today. After Stephanie had announced he was in charge for the evening she insisted on going to buy him a new dress shirt, which he was wearing right now. She said he shouldn't be seen in the same clothes, especially because he was in charge tonight. So now he was walking down to the ring with his belt over his shoulder and his extremely sharp suit as his wife was probably shining a light into Adamle's face backstage.

The crowd booed him heavily, but he just waited for them to finish before he began speaking. He explained that earlier a meeting had been called with Adamle and he would be unable to perform his duties. The meeting had been called in his suite by his wife, but he neglected to mention that part, though he did kind of like saying her name in front of everyone. Kind of felt like he was laying his claim on her (and talking about her, yay!). He then went on to say how he had been put in charge because he was the champion. It was actually because he was Stephanie's husband, but he didn't mention that part.

He had the full power tonight and that was all that mattered. After talking with Stephanie earlier, he had really warmed up to the idea of being the GM for the night. It wasn't that he wanted to flaunt his power or his status in the company…much anyways. He just wanted to have some fun and be in charge and show everyone in the company that _he_ was the champion. He was tired of the disrespect he was getting.

First things first thought, he had to address his match with Shawn the night before. Shawn did do something he wanted to do, he did disfigure Chris and he showed everyone his tooth to prove it. He was going to have that broken tooth forever and that thought bugged him. He couldn't believe he had been so stupid as to let that ladder hit him in the mouth like that. He wasn't going to give Shawn the satisfaction of thinking he had actually done the damage. No, Chris would count on his own carelessness for that happening. Still, Chris had done what he set out to do and that was beat Shawn Michaels and keep his belt. He hated to think of the devastation Sawyer would feel if he lost his toy.

Chris told Shawn in no uncertain terms that he was through with him. It was over, Chris had won and it was time to move on to the next challenge, which was probably Batista. Ever since Chris had snuck the win that should've been Dave's, the man had been giving him the cold shoulder and there was a current of animosity between the two of them. Chris knew friendships in this business were fickle so he didn't let it hurt him because Dave was really just another competitor for his title. Still, that wasn't what that was about right now. Right now he was trying to reward his protégé.

He gave Lance a little reward for last night, the chance to get back at Shawn for beating him up last night. He even gave Lance the perfect opportunity with a No DQ, anything goes match. Lance was a smart kid, he would know what to do and that was just a small token of his appreciation. He was still convincing Stephanie to give the kid a raise. She was leaning towards giving him a bonus usually reserved for those who actually wrestled at a Pay-Per-View and he could live with that, as long as Lance knew that Chris wasn't here to screw him over.

Other than that, Chris was done. He had said his piece and now people had to accept that he was the best in the business, yes, even better than Hunter. When was the last time Hunter was in a ladder match? Just as he was finishing up, Dave came out and Chris expected someone to interrupt and it wasn't out of his mind that it could be Dave. The bigger man had won last night so of course he'd want to see the man he was going to lose to. Dave came into the ring and started demanding numbers from Chris. Numbers that would signify how much time left Chris had with his belt.

Chris wasn't intimidated. Dave was older than him, sure, but Chris had experience on the other man. People seemed to underestimate the things Chris had seen in his career. Even Stephanie sometimes waved it off like it was nothing, but he had been around every possible type of wrestler there was and Dave didn't scare him. Chris had clawed his way to the top, not asking help from anyone. He could've, sure, in recent years. He had been with Stephanie for six years, married for three, almost four this coming January and the number of times before this he had held the titles: zero. He could've had the title 10, 20, 30 times if he wanted, but that wasn't his style. No, he had done this by himself, so nobody was going to scare him.

He told Dave to get out of his face and out of his ring right now and he knew if Stephanie was watching, she was probably salivating. She never said it, but he knew she wished he would use his power more. Stephanie was not as receptive to sex right now as she had been after Sawyer was born. He wasn't trying to push it, but he'd like a little something from his wife if at all possible and maybe that assertion could help if she was watching.

Dave just laughed in his face though and insulted him and then gave him a spinebuster. That was a big mistake on Dave's part. He was in charge tonight and so he put up Dave's number one contendership on the line and put himself as the guest referee. Then everyone would see why it was not a good idea to cross the man in charge.

Stephanie licked her lips a little as she turned the television off. She had wanted to see the start of the show with Chris. "Well, he's doing a wonderful job," she said. "Now let's assume that Dave wins tonight, just assume. We're going to need some kind of…idea for his match at Cyber Sunday against my husband, don't you agree, Shane?"

"I do agree," Shane said, starting to embrace this role. It was kind of like playing a huge prank.

"Great. So, I have some ideas and Shane, do you have ideas?"

"Tons of them."

"Do you have ideas, because you've had such wonderful ideas in the past."

"Um, a different kind of match?" Adamle said, feeling hot under this close scrutiny.

"Oh, so you want to put my husband in another match…what this time? Hell in a Cell? Iron Man? Last Man Standing?"

"I'm uh…not entirely sure what an Iron Man match is."

Shane snorted, "You don't?"

"No, I mean, I'm still learning."

"Obviously," Stephanie said, not explaining it to him. "Well, so what _are_ your ideas? You've been brimming with them lately and I'd love to know what they are, so please, enlighten me and my brother. We did trust the entire brand with you and we don't want you screwing up and making us look like idiots for hiring you."

"I wouldn't want that."

"Good," Shane said, "because my sister and I don't like to look like idiots. So really, help us out here. You continuously say you want to shake up Raw, so tell us exactly how you want to do that. We're all ears."

"Well, I…I've just…you know…do you think I could get some coffee, it helps me think," Adamle said.

"I'll get him some," Stephanie said. "You just talk to my brother for a while."

"Oh, okay."

"How do you take it?"

"One cream, two sugars."

"Coming right up."

Britt bounced Flynn in her bouncer on top of the table as she watched Sawyer eat his dinner. He was picking at some corn, eating it one kernel at a time. She had finished her own chicken sandwich and was just waiting with Sawyer. Flynn had eaten already and was happily sucking on a pacifier and just watching the people go by the table, all of them hustling off somewhere. Except one person who seemed to be coming straight for her.

"Hey, Britt."

"Randy…"

"Can I sit?" he asked.

"Whatever," she told him and he took a seat across from her. He had to scoot his seat to the left so he could be seen over Flynn's bouncer. "Did you need something?"

"You annoy the crap out of me," he told her in that deep voice of his. "You do. I heard you were with Hunter and I didn't even care. You annoy me because I want you so much, don't you get it?"

"Randy, there is _no_ chance. I love Hunter."

"And I understand that, but I think you'd be better with me."

"What gives you the right to come in and stomp on something that is very good in my life? I barely even know you. I went on one pity date with you and suddenly you think I'm the one or something. I'm happy, I'm _taken_."

"But you'd be happier with me."

"I don't know you! I know Hunter and I love him. Look, Randy, I'm flattered, really…unless this is like a lame attempt to get back at Hunter for something, but flattery only gets you so far. I'm just not really attracted to you."

"You could give me a chance."

"No," she said.

"Hey," Chris said, walking up, "everything okay here? Is he bugging you, Britt?"

"No," she said sulkily, but she was obviously lying.

"Randy, you, me, office, now," Chris said, not mincing his words. Randy got up and followed Chris to his office. Chris had no love lost for Randy after what he was doing with Britt.

He told Randy that he wasn't going to sit around here anymore but he was going to actually work for once. Maybe that would keep him away from Britt for the rest of the night. He would consider that a favor for Hunter. He could get the upper-hand with that guy again. That was a positive. He told Randy to stick around for the main event and he would give him something to do.

Britt came in with the kids a little while later, "I saw what you did, thanks."

"He was bugging you," Chris said, going over and taking Flynn, "now give me my baby. I need some loving."

"I'm going to go help out Steph. I'll come back before the main event."

"Thanks," he said. He was just making faces at Flynn when he heard his phone. He held Flynn with one hand and answered his phone with the other.

"Hello?" he said because he hadn't checked to see who was calling since he had Flynn with him.

"Are you okay!"

He chuckled, "Hey, Trish, where's the husband?"

"Right here," Christian said loudly.

"Oh, speaker phone?"

"Yeah, is your mouth okay? We didn't watch No Mercy last night, we were…occupied," Trish giggled as Christian kissed her neck. "We were watching earlier and your mouth looks horrible."

"Gee, thanks, just what I want to hear," Chris said, licking his teeth unconsciously and then coming against his gap and he frowned a little. The frown was alleviated as Flynn's head slowly dropped against Chris's collarbone, her soft, brown hair tickling his neck a little bit.

"And what happened to your tooth?" Trish asked.

"Hit with a ladder last night, I'm getting a cap for it," Chris said as Flynn's hand came up and rested on his chest near his heart. She was making some soft noises like she wanted his attention. Chris kissed her head and she quieted down. "It's fine…how are you two?"

"Great," Christian said.

"How was the honeymoon?"

"Well, think of your honeymoon and triple that," Christian told him. "That's how good ours was."

"Stephanie and I didn't go on a honeymoon, so tripling nothing means you had a really horrible time."

"Man, you missed out then. Honeymoons reek of awesomeness. I mean, all we did was just lay around and do nothing and it was so much fun," Christian said. "And let me tell you…"

"Chrissy," Trish said.

"Sorry, getting carried away. It was a blast though, we had so much fun," Christian said. "Sorry about your tooth though and the mouth thing."

"Thanks," Chris said as Flynn's whimpering got louder. "Looks like my darling little angel is tired so I've got to tend to her."

"Oh, you have Flynn?" Trish said, her voice turning soft. "I didn't know you had her."

"Yeah, she's right here, trying to use her daddy as a big pillow."

"Stop," Trish said, "you're making me completely jealous and then I'm going to never speak to you again."

"That'd be tragic."

"Tell her Trish says hi and I love her very much."

"Flutterby, Trish says hi and she loves you," Chris told his daughter. "Well, she said that she loves you too and she can't wait to see you again because she loves it when you take care of her so her parents can get a night off."

"Oh, absolutely, I need the practice for when I eventually have kids," Trish said. "Tell Sawyer I love him too and he did a great job at the wedding. I don't think I got to tell him that, but I'll tell him when I see him."

"Will do, take care you guys."

"Bye," they said in unison and then laughed and then Chris gagged and hung up his phone. "I'm kind of glad Mommy and I aren't like that anymore. It's better now, huh?" Flynn just cuddled with him some more, yawning a very tiny, baby yawn and clenching her fists. "Sawyer, you want to help me put Flynn to bed?"

"Yes!" Sawyer said, wanting to be involved with Flynn. "I can do it."

"Okay, well let's see, let me just change into something more comfortable."

"Okay."

Chris went to change into his referee shirt and his jeans. Meanwhile, Adamle had yet to fully crack, but he was feeling the heat. He was coming up with no ideas whatsoever and he was just trying to stall, sipping at his coffee every other second and pretending like that occupied his time. Stephanie and Shane were just so cool and collected and it was very intimidating for him and they just knew everything.

"You're not very helpful," Stephanie said. "And here I thought you would come up with something brilliant, but so far, nothing. I'm really disappointed."

"Me too, I would think you could come up with one thing."

"I just really like to think about what I'm going to do, you know, write down ideas and mull them over, I'm not a spontaneous guy. I like to plan."

"Oh, well, let's give you some time, then," Stephanie said. "I mean, we wouldn't want to interrupt your pure genius."

"No, we wouldn't."

"Okay, well, here's some paper, go to it," Stephanie said, staring at Adamle. She knew she was upsetting him, but the man deserved it. He was a horrible GM.

Chris had been upset to see Lance lose, but he had his own things to worry about. He was going to make sure Dave lost this match. It wasn't that he was scared of Dave, he just didn't think he deserved the shot after what happened earlier. So he had to make sure it turned out just the way he wanted. He was much more comfortable now in his jeans and felt like he could move. Flynn and Sawyer were taken care of and now he was going to be the best referee ever.

Okay, so he wasn't the best referee ever. In fact, he was a pretty biased referee who set a lot of ridiculous stipulations like Regal as the timekeeper and Randy as the commentator. He figured Randy would just sit there and act like a petulant child and he would be right. Regal at least helped, but Regal had always been a butt-kisser and Chris knew Regal was just trying to get on the McMahon's good side.

He was acted mostly in JBL's favor, but he had to, even if he didn't particularly care for it. If it came down to it, JBL was a blip on his radar, but Dave was a looming shadow and he'd rather have the blip than the shadow; it was just a matter of common sense. Chris almost felt like Shane out there, bouncing around on his feet, hoping out of the way. He just needed to do the little shuffle Shane did and the transformation would be complete. Maybe he really _had _been in the McMahon family too long. Now he was starting to do things his brother-in-law did. He slow counted, fast counted, ignored, and was generally just a bad referee, but he was having fun and wasn't that all that counted? No? Oh, well, yeah, he wanted to determine the outcome of the match himself, there was that too, that counted.

"Well that was a waste of time," Shane said.

"It wasn't, he was sufficiently scared of us so he'll listen to us in the future and didn't you find it suspicious for a guy who has had all these ideas for matches and things suddenly freezes up like he's a kid?"

"We make him nervous."

"Oh come on, we didn't make him _that_ nervous. He couldn't think of a single thing. Why is that? Why couldn't he think of anything, seriously, we asked him to think of just _anything_ and he couldn't do it."

"Okay, so it's a little suspicious."

"I'm going to find my kids," Stephanie said. "Actually, no, I'm going to go see my husband."

"Come on, I'll walk you."

By the time they got there, Adamle was sending out a real referee to officiate the match since Chris was temporarily incapacitated on the outside of the ring. He was probably sore. The match ended shortly after that since Chris wasn't around to make sure Dave didn't win. Dave did win and Adamle started talking, saying that Cyber Sunday would feature the match between Chris and Dave and there would be stipulations and that's just what he had been talking about with Shane and Stephanie.

"Oh, so now he's going to steal our ideas," Stephanie grumbled.

Except he didn't and came up with completely new ones, a special guest referee was going to be named for the match. The three choices were: Shawn, Randy, and…Austin? Austin. That was strange and out of the blue. She could understand Randy and Shawn, but Austin? When had that happened and why hadn't she been informed.

"Okay, now do you believe me that Dad's behind this?" she asked her brother.

The evidence was staring him in the face. Adamle had nothing not ten minutes ago, but now he had a huge plan. "Okay, you're right, it looks like Dad is behind this."

"Told you," she said as Adamle stepped from behind the curtains. "Mike, a word, please?

"Yes, Stephanie?"

"So you made a match?"

"Yeah, it just…came to me."

Chris walked through the curtain and saw Stephanie, guns blazing as her eyes flickered like sirens. Bright, dull, bright, dull. They were so full of vivaciousness. He walked over to where Stephanie was and lightly wrapped his arm around her waist.

"Oh, came to you, huh?"

"Yeah, good idea, isn't it?" he asked, obviously looking for approval.

Stephanie pulled away from Chris and took a step forward.

"I know what you're doing, Adamle, don't mistake me, I know what you're doing."

"I have no idea what--"

"No, you know _exactly_ what I'm talking about and I'm the last person you want to mess with."

"Stephanie, I'm not doing anything."

"Like hell you aren't, just remember, I'm around now, Adamle, and when I'm around, there's only one thing you need to remember."

"Um…yes?" he asked, shrinking out of her glare.

"_I'm_ in charge."


	207. Why Are You Teasing Us! October 13, 2008

A/N: There needs to be some freaking pay-off to Chris mentioning Stephanie so much, there needs to be! He was addressing her directly for goodness sakes!

* * *

"There's my Flynnie!"

Stephanie took her hands off her eyes and smiled widely at her daughter. Flynn smiled at her mommy. Stephanie leaned in close to her daughter and covered her eyes again. Flynn reached her hands out and slapped them softly against her mommy's hands. Stephanie pulled her hands away and made a funny face. Flynn smiled again and Stephanie took Flynn's small hands in hers and waved them around a little. This only made Flynn happier and she smiled wider as she cooed sweetly.

"Coo to you too," Stephanie said to her little girl. Flynn tried to pull her hands away and Stephanie kissed them. "I love you. Yes, I do, I love you lots and lots and lots. Do you love me too?"

Flynn just gurgled and stared up at her mommy.

"I'll take that as a yes." Flynn stuck her tongue out a little. "I figure you do since I'm your main source of food and you know it, huh?"

Flynn smiled at her and Stephanie picked her up and held the little girl to her. Flynn knew where was and made a grab for Stephanie's breasts. Stephanie laughed a little and pulled Flynn's hand away from her blouse. The little girl had been dangerously close to actually getting her hand inside of Stephanie's shirt. Luckily she was the only one in there right now or she might be embarrassed. Unless it was Chris of course, Chris would've just laughed and thought Flynn had the right idea…even though she and Chris had yet to be together since Flynn's birth. She just wasn't up for it and he didn't push it.

It was a little strange since they were both completely on edge after Sawyer was born. They practically mauled each other, but this time around was different. But it was a different kid so she shouldn't make comparisons. Stephanie settled into her chair and looked at the schedule and made some notes as she continued to hold Flynn with her left arm. Flynn had been in her carrier for a while so she didn't protest Stephanie's holding her.

"What do you think Adamle is up to?" Stephanie asked her daughter, not expecting an answer. "I tried to talk to him this week, but he kept avoiding me. Should I pretend like I wasn't really clear, I mean, I pretty much called him out. My dad has to know…"

Chris held Sawyer to him. "You feeling better?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said quietly.

"You tired?"

"No, Daddy," he answered. He wasn't tired, he just wasn't feeling like his normal self, but he felt better than he had before, that was for sure. "I sniffles."

"Yeah, you had the sniffles this week," Chris said, referring to the mild cold Sawyer had this past week. It was starting to get colder and the little boy had just caught a touch of it. That didn't stop Stephanie from going into freak-out mode with her little boy and girl though. That was part of the reason Sawyer was with Chris as the moment.

"Uh huh," Sawyer said. Chris didn't say it, but it actually made it a lot easier to deal with him and his sister while he was sick. Not that he wished for his kid to be sick or anything, but with Sawyer being mostly quiet, they didn't have to go chasing him around everywhere. It was a lot easier to take care of Flynn when you didn't have a two-year-old telling you everything you did was wrong.

"Yeah, but you're getting better now, huh?"

"Yeah, I sniffle," he said, showing how he sniffled with a particularly big one. Chris's eyes widened and Sawyer giggled and kissed him on the cheek. Chris kissed him back and Sawyer asked, "I have juice, pease?"

"Okay, we'll go get some juice, you want to get the juice yourself?"

"Um, okay," he said.

"What kind of juice? Apple?"

"Mmm, no," Sawyer said, shaking his head. "Owange, pease."

"Okay, orange it is. I think there's orange juice in catering, we'll check there, okay? I don't think Mommy brought you orange juice this week," Chris said as he set Sawyer down. Sawyer looked up and grabbed his daddy's hand, holding it tightly. Chris smiled down at him. "Daddy, toof."

"I'm not taking my tooth out for you," Chris said. Ever since he had gotten his tooth capped, Sawyer had wanted to know if he could just take the tooth out and show it to his son, which he couldn't. Sawyer thought he could just pull it out at will.

"Oh," Sawyer sighed, "Okay."

"Let's just get some juice."

"I go now," Sawyer said, letting go of Chris's hand and starting to jog away slowly. He wasn't going at his normal speed so Chris was able to keep up with him by just walking. Sawyer didn't even know where he was in the arena so he kept looking back at Chris to make sure he was still there. Occasionally he would stop and wait for Chris to pick up and then he would go again when he made sure he was in the right direction. He turned a corner and bumped right into someone's legs. "Oops," he said.

Chris turned the corner just as Sawyer was backing away from the pair of legs that impeded his trek to his juice. "Sorry about that," Chris said to the woman's back. He couldn't even tell who it was, that's how bad he was with figuring out some of these people around here.

"Oh, that's quite alright," Katie Lea said as she turned around. She turned to Sawyer. "You're a cute, little bugger, so I don't really mind."

"Okay, sowwy," he told her.

"He didn't mean to," Chris apologized for his son.

Katie Lea smiled at him, knowing she was talking to someone in a position of power so she wanted to choose her words carefully. She wasn't very much acquainted with Chris Jericho, but it never hurt to make sure you looked good to the boss. Chris had rarely spoken to the diva, but she was actually very striking. He was kind of reminded of Stephanie. They were both brunettes and their eyes were really set off against the dark hair. He was rather intrigued.

"Oh, it's fine," Katie said. "He's a little kid, they run into things, right?"

"Yeah, I guess they do," he said, chuckling. "I'll make sure next time he doesn't run into you."

"He's adorable," she said, then crouched down to Sawyer's level. "You can run into me any time, okay?"

"Okay," he said, giving her that charming Jericho grin. Katie stood up and was met with the same grin from the Jericho original. "I do that."

"Okay," Katie said, "don't worry about it, now if he had made me blow out my knee or something completely crazy like that, perhaps I'd be a little madder."

Chris laughed, "Well, I would've had to pay your hospital bills in that case so you wouldn't sue my son."

"I'm not sure I would win," she responded, "not against someone with a face like that. I might actually end up owing him money with a cute face like that."

"I am," Sawyer said, knowing he was cute. His mommy only told him that all the time and he had no choice to believe it.

"Well in that case, maybe he should blow out your knee," Chris joked.

"That wouldn't be too good," she said.

"Daddy, juice," Sawyer said, tugging on his father's suit pants.

"Oh yeah," Chris said, "sorry, if you'll excuse us, we have a date with a glass of orange juice."

"Oh, by all means, don't let me keep you from that," she said, gesturing in the other direction. "I would never come between a man and his juice. It's very important, especially for a growing boy like you are."

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, starting to walk away.

"That's my cue to go, nice talking with you," Chris said and it was nice talking with her. How did he not know that she had a really cool accent that was really nice to listen to? Sometimes Stephanie's slightly screechy voice could get on a guy's nerves even though he completely loved her voice at other times. And how did he not know she was rather funny.

"You as well."

Chris walked behind Sawyer, glancing back to look at Katie, who went back to reading a book of some sort. A reader too? That was pretty rare with the divas around here, the really, really vapid ones that he just could not stand. Chris could feel Sawyer pulling at him and he walked away towards catering.

"So Shane, what do you think I should do?"

"Well, first off, I'm glad you didn't drag me all the way there," Shane said over the phone. "I did not want to be dragged away from my family like last week."

"You had fun and you know it," she told him. "Anyways, I don't know what to do about this Adamle thing, do you know what I should do?"

"Nothing," he suggested.

She groaned, "You are no help whatsoever. Look, we both know Dad's behind this, we have to smoke him out, but I don't know how. Why do I not know how?" she wondered. "I usually know exactly what to do and when to do it and I don't know how to do it right now. Do you think Flynn sucked all the manipulation out of me?"

"Yes, Stephanie, while she was inside of you, she absorbed all of your manipulation and now she's like 12 pounds of pure evil," Shane said sarcastically. "She's just brimming with way to manipulate and connive her way through life."

"She could be," Stephanie said, eyeing her daughter who was in her cradle, sucking away contentedly at a pacifier. She didn't look evil right now, but who knew what lurked behind those smoky-blue eyes.

"She didn't, you're just not thinking hard enough."

"I guess," she said sullenly. "I just want to catch Dad in a lie for once, you know. He's always touting how he's so awesome and blah, blah, blah and always getting the better of me, except for you know, that time I married Hunter…or when I confessed about Chris…oh whatever, you know what I mean."

"Do I?"

"Shane," she whined.

"Stephy," he whined back. "You're 32 years old. You shouldn't have to come running to me whenever you have a problem."

"Dad put you in charge too, at least on the surface," she grumbled. "So this is part of you too. You're a part of this too and you need to help me with this."

"Fine, make Chris the decoy."

"What? How did you come up with that so fast?" she asked.

"Stephanie, do you really think I haven't been thinking of a way to get Dad to reveal his little game to us?" Shane asked. "I may not be as overt as you are with your scheming, but that doesn't mean I'm not thinking about every move. You just usually come up with something first and since you are a brilliant manipulator, I let you do it. I mean, you've convinced not one, but _two_ guys to marry you of all people. I mean, how the hell did you do _that_?"

"Oh very funny, Shane," Stephanie said and if he were there, she would've stuck her tongue out at him like a little girl.

Shane laughed, "It was too easy."

"Just continue with your stupid plan."

"It's hardly stupid," he told her, "in fact, I'd wager that it's pretty damn great."

"We'll see."

"Okay, so this is what I'm proposing. You have to make Chris like a decoy. He's our champion, right, who better to get on Adamle's case than our champion?" Shane said. "It's about damn time we used your husband to benefit us."

"Whoa," Stephanie said, "Shane, I've never heard you talk like that, it's a little weird to be honest."

"I'm just telling you my plan. Look, Chris is the champion, he's your husband, we have him at our disposal and he'll do what you want because he loves you, he _does_ love you, right?"

"Seriously, Shane, you need to shut the hell up before I fly back to Connecticut and kick you in the crotch," Stephanie told him. "My husband loves me."

"Okay, okay, just checking," he told her with a laugh. "I'm just saying, let's test the boundaries and see what he does. Let's make Chris an instigator and see what Adamle does."

"It sounds like you want to give Adamle full power and not even intervene."

"That's exactly what I'm saying."

Stephanie was confused. "I don't get it though, what purpose is that going to serve? We've already deduced that he's completely afraid of us. I was thinking that we can play on that. Maybe we can be more of a presence. Maybe we can be in his face all the time."

"I kind of just want to see what happens," Shane said. "Like, what is Dad really trying to do with him? I think we should give him full reign but make Chris just about the most annoying employee on Earth."

"That's a lame plan," Stephanie said. "Why do I even ask you? You're no help to me at all. You're just blowing smoke? Give Adamle all the power when we pretty much stripped him of his dignity last week."

"And what did he do as soon as we let him go, he comes up with some 'brilliant' idea that came from absolutely nowhere," Shane said. "I just want to see what Dad is going to do next, but make Chris like our pawn."

"My husband is not a pawn, he's the World Heavyweight Champion," Stephanie said proudly. "He's earned that title so don't call him a pawn."

"Fine, Chris is our piece of the puzzle then. Dad is working through Adamle, we'll work through Chris and we'll see which side breaks first."

"Okay, so let me get this straight. We give Adamle full reign of Raw, but make Chris an annoyance to him and just like, demand crazy things to him and see if he breaks?"

"Well, we can try it this week and see if it pans out," Shane told her.

She sighed, she was stumped so what would it hurt if she took her brother's suggestion. Maybe it would make Adamle flustered and then he'd go to her father and her father would get so pissed off at his peon's ineptitude he would finally come out of hiding. There was no way her father was still injured. It had been months and months since his first injury and he couldn't possibly have taken this long to recuperate. She didn't even think his injuries had been that severe so it made this self-imposed solitude even more frustrating for her. Plus, once again, Vince had not met one of his grandchildren, though at this point maybe Flynn never meeting her grandfather was a good thing. She was still innocent of knowing how disgusting her grandfather could be.

"Okay, we can try it, I'll bring it up with Chris and I'll tell Adamle."

On the other side of the country, Christian was making dinner as Trish sat on the counter, munching on a carrot. "So I talked with my doctor today and we discussed the whole baby-making thing."

"I like how you sound so casual about that," Christian said over his shoulder.

"Well, it's still just a discussion despite all the sex we've been having," Trish said, "but that's not baby-making sex, that's just honeymoon, newlywed sex, completely different. Now we have a purpose."

"Oh, a purpose? So the other times were for…"

"Fun, of course," she winked at him.

It was still surreal for Christian to think about Trish as his wife. After wanting it for so long and wishing for it seemingly every night since the moment he asked her out, it was just such a change to think of Trish Stratus as his wife, yet she was. She was his wife, Mrs. Christian Cage and it just felt so incredibly right that he wondered why he hadn't just swallowed his pride before and allowed himself to have this sooner. He could've had so much more time than this, but he shouldn't dwell since the destination was the same.

He looked at the ring shining on her finger, the one he had put there so carefully, his hand trembling just the slightest bit. He wasn't really the kind of guy who liked to mark his territory, but he was glad for this mark. He looked down at his own ring as he cut some bread. He was nearly done with dinner and knew they were eating way too late tonight, but they had been occupied with bedroom activities earlier and couldn't be bothered to think of sustenance.

"So now we're on the mission?"

"Yes, exactly. I like to think of it as Project: Baby Cage, does that sound weird? See, now it seems like we're in the market to build a baby cage."

"Do you think Stephanie and Chris would buy one for Flynn because we can sell them the prototype for the baby cage?"

"I think they'd want one more for Sawyer than for Flynn, except Sawyer had a little cold this week, the poor guy," Trish pouted. "Do you think we could handle a sick baby?"

"Uh, sure?" he said.

"Well, our future baby will probably get sick at some point, we should probably be prepared for that," she said as she stared off into space. "Yes, we should definitely prepare for something like that."

"Well, we've got a little time to figure out how to deal with sick babies," Christian told her. "So come on, what did your doctor say about the whole…baby thing?"

"Well, I just switched doctors, today was my first appointment," Trish said. "I didn't really have a doctor down here so Stephanie recommended hers and I can see why, she's really nice and helpful. She said that we should start finding out when I'm ovulating and that, you know, we do it then and the chances are a lot higher. She gave me a sample one, but you can just buy them over the counter now, so it tells me when the best days are to try and conceive and we try and conceive."

"What about that whole, special positions stuff?"

"Old wives tale," she brushed off. "But I'm going to do that test later and we'll find out when the best days are for us to conceive."

"You do know it could take months, right?"

"I know, but maybe we're just really fertile and we don't know it. I hardly think Chris and Stephanie knew it and look at them now. They have two babies in under three years, that's like nuts, don't you think?"

"Well, sure, I guess."

"We could be just like them. We've been pretty careful in the past, especially since I was wrestling, but now that I'm not, it's like, the baby is free to show up any time. I just wish I was already pregnant, it would make things so much more convenient."

"Yeah, convenient for me to freak out," Christian said.

"You wouldn't," she told him. "You're great with kids."

"Thanks," he said, "you're great with them too."

"Which hopefully means that we'd make incredible parents…do you think if we had a girl she'd end up marrying Sawyer?"

"You're marrying off our imaginary kid already!" he said, walking over to her and wrapping his arms around her slim waist. She had leverage on him and she wrapped her arms loosely around his neck as they smiled at each other.

"I'm not marrying her off, I'm just thinking about it. I figure that any kid we have is going to be close to their kids since they live like 2 blocks away. I figure in the event Edge has any kids, they'll be close too since he lives in Tampa as well."

"Who the hell knows, maybe Edge already has kids."

"Oh God, that'd be terrifying, Edge a father," Trish shuddered. "Oh, did you know he and Lita are going out again."

"You do know you're facilitating an affair here, right?"

"What?" she scoffed. "I am not. He needed a date for our wedding, I offered him one. It's not my fault if they hit it off again. Besides, he and Vickie are separated, aren't they?"

"Not legally."

"Yeah, but she's probably already filing the divorce papers as we speak. She seems pretty pissed at him, plus she's been going around with Big Show, what's up with that? Hmm?"

"You're nosy," he told her, then almost illustrated it by rubbing noses with her in an Eskimo kiss filled with so much sappy cuteness it threatened to leak out their ears.

"I'm just saying, they're going out again, that's all," she said, "but our imaginary kid can do a lot worse than Sawyer Jericho, you know?"

"Of course I know, I love that kid," Christian said. "But don't you think it's jumping the gun just a tiny, little bit? I love that you're really enthusiastic, but the days of arranged marriages are long over and I'd hate to think of what you and Stephanie would do to get your kids together. Besides, what if we have a boy? I mean, if he wants to get with Sawyer, I guess I'd be okay with that, but what if they don't swing that way?"

Trish laughed, "Then he marries Flynn."

"Oh, an older woman, interesting, I think I like future Christian Junior."

Trish made a face, "No, no, no, no, no, no."

"What?"

"We are not having a Christian Junior, that is out of the question," she told him in no uncertain terms.

"Why not?"

"Because, I don't like it."

"Our marriage is not getting off to a good start here if we can't even agree about our children's names."

"Maybe you're right and we should actually have the children first but I'm not naming my kids after you, there will be no Christinas," she said, kissing him as if to seal the deal. He pressed himself against her and started kissing her.

"Okay, no Christinas, besides, Chris would totally think we were naming our kid after him," Christian joked.

"Come here you," she said, as she deepened the kiss.

Chris walked down the hallway as Sawyer sipped his orange juice through a straw. The catering company had actually brought in one of those juice machines they had at the mall with the constant cascade of juice so Sawyer was able to get a soda cup full of it and he was happily sipping away at his juice as they made their way around the backstage area. They were just kind of meandering until Chris had to be ready for the show. He didn't know exactly what he was doing on the show, so he had to be prepared for anything.

Suddenly he saw a door fling open in front of him and his frantic-looking wife coming out of it. She scanned the hallway and her eyes lit up when she saw her boys. "Hey, you over there!" she called out.

"Me?" he asked, pointing at himself.

"Yeah, you, what's your name again?" she teased.

"Oh, you don't know me. I'm new here," he said.

Sawyer looked at his parents strangely. Why were they acting like they didn't know each other. "No, not Daddy."

"Oh well now I find out the truth," Chris said as they got closer to Stephanie. "So Sawyer isn't my son? I knew it. I knew it!"

"Shut up and get in here," Stephanie said, pulling him into the room. She went back out and picked up Sawyer. She put Sawyer down as she closed the door. "I have something very important for you to do."

"Okay…" He had no clue where she was going with this, but he knew his wife and whatever it was, it didn't look like it was going to be fun for him.

"Fwynn!" Sawyer said, starting to run over to his sister. She was actually awake! All week long his mommy had been telling him that Flynn was sleeping. That was an awful lot of sleeping for a baby.

"Hey, no," Stephanie said, pulling Sawyer away and lifting him up. "You can't see her."

"Why?" he asked. Was he being punished because that was probably the worst punishment he could ever imagine. Why couldn't he see his baby?

"You're sick, sweetie," Stephanie said. "We can't let Flynn get sick because when babies get sick, it's really hard for them. We don't want her to get sick, do we?"

"No," he said.

"Yeah, so you can look at her, but you can't touch her and you have to stay away so she doesn't get sick, okay? Don't forget, tomorrow we're going to go to Disneyland and I know you're going to have so much fun, okay?"

"Okay, Mommy," he said, but his eyes were filling with tears. He just wanted to see his baby and he couldn't. He hated the sniffles. He wanted to be around his baby sister, but he couldn't and that made him especially upset. He started sniffling even more and he was not consoled by the orange juice he had gotten from the cool looking machine.

"Oh, baby boy," Stephanie said, kissing his head, "shh, you can go look at her, okay?"

"Okay," he said. Stephanie put him down and he went to stand next to Flynn, but he couldn't even play with her.

"What is it, Steph?" Chris asked. "You wanted me for something."

Stephanie tore her eyes away from her kids and smiled, "Yeah, I did. Shane and I came up with a plan and you're the integral part of it."

"What plan?"

"We're giving Adamle full power, full stop. We want to see what our dad is coming up with and why he's doing so through Adamle and not us."

"What part do I play in all of this?"

"You're going to try and break him," Stephanie explained. They had tweaked the plan a little bit.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me," she said. "I want you to be the most annoying employee. Just out and out jackass to him. I know you can do it because you were a jackass to me for the longest time when I was running things."

"You were fun to mess around with," he said. "Adamle not so much."

"Chris, come on."

"Stephanie…I'm not just some…I don't know, puppet for you to control. I'm the champion and I have a really important match that I _need_ to be focusing on. None of the guys who might be referee like me, especially not Shawn or Austin. Plus, if I get Austin in a ring, I'm liable to beat the tar out of him…"

"Yeah, for hurting Sawyer, I get it, our son is fine, Chris." Stephanie pointed over to Sawyer, who was still watching Flynn intently. Flynn, for her part, had tilted her head to look at Sawyer, who looked at her sadly. She smiled at him around her pacifier, wondering where he had been all this time. She reached her little right hand for her brother and Sawyer smiled at her, but it was a sad smile. Stephanie sighed, "See, he's fine, better than fine, he's a great human being, smart, funny, cute, he's perfect, Chris."

"Still, that pissed me off," Chris said darkly. "You don't just get over that, Steph."

"Okay, whatever, look, I'm not asking you to deter away from all of that. I just want you to challenge him at every turn. We're just seeing how it does tonight, that's all."

"You know, Stephanie…" He shook his head.

"What?" she asked.

"I don't like you sometimes," he said, but he had a smile on his face when he said it. "Come here."

Stephanie came over and sat in his lap, "You love me all the time, though."

"You know who I find kind of pretty?" he told her.

"Me?"

"No, you're beautiful, big difference," he said, brushing her hair back. "I think Katie Lea is really pretty, she kind of reminds me of you, in a small way, looks only. I don't know."

"Oh my God, could it be? Could it really be happening? Could I finally have something to lord over Mr. Chris Jericho's head? Will the days of having to endure the pain of hearing about Ted DiBiase soon be over? Could you have a crush?"

"It is not a crush," he said, "I talked to her once, _once_, but she was really funny."

"Did you flirt with her?" she asked. "I'm going to pound your face in if you did."

"Do you flirt with Ted?"

"It is not flirting, I discuss things with Ted when I get the opportunity," she said coyly.

"Then I was just discussing things with her."

"Just you remember who bore two of your children, practically against my will," she told him, slightly twisting her finger into his chest. He kissed her softly. She smiled against his lips, but then returned to the task of kissing him.

"You make it sound like I held you at gunpoint." Stephanie smirked. "Oh, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho."

"I said nothing, so will you do it for me?"

"What do you want me to do?"

Hunter lifted Britt with ease as he set her down on the high wall outside the arena. It was a warm night in Southern California and they were pretty comfortable out here. Britt had just got done faxing some of the contracts to corporate and now she had nothing to do until the show officially started. He hoisted himself up next to her and she leaned in to him. The sky was just getting dusky, when the shadows start to slowly take over, but there's this hazy light still surrounding everything and making it feel like time was going in slow motion.

"So this Randy thing is getting out of hand," Britt told him.

"You said you could take care of him," but he was smirking so he was joking and she nudged him in the ribs, "hey, be careful, I may have to be in a Triple Threat."

"I think you will be, that's what I voted for," she told him.

"What!" he joked, acting surprised.

"They didn't have an option for you just retaining the belt. I should bring that up with Stephanie, maybe she can change it."

"Only if she can put in the option for her being the guest referee for Chris's match," he said.

"Maybe she can make Randy one of the options for you and then you can beat him up for me and I won't have to handle him."

"He knows we're together now and always were, why won't he give up?"

"He's persistent, I'll give him that. He's just having his fun. You know the type, you probably _were_ the type. They see something as a challenge and they have to go after it. He sees me as a challenge and he goes after me. I'd wager to bet he's slept with a lot of the divas around here."

"He has, or at least he did," Hunter commented nonchalantly. Britt gave him a look. "Sorry, we were in Evolution together and we were riding high and well, yeah, the divas are here and it's hard to resist sometimes."

"Disgusting," Britt said. "I didn't need to know that. So how many of the current divas have you slept with then?"

"I don't know, the current ones? Not many."

"Not many? Oh God…what have I gotten myself into."

"Well, you asked."

"Changing the subject now, do it, change it," she told him, making a face.

"So you're coming to dinner at my parent's this weekend, right?"

"Oh, thanks, you go from one bad topic to a worse topic. Do I have to go?" she pouted.

"Well, you were invited and it's a big step, you know."

"Is it because I'm 27 now? Did your mother deem me worthy because I'm a year older?" she asked with an edge to her voice. She knew Hunter's mom still didn't like her and was determined to push her out of Hunter's life. It just created for very awkward situations and she had only seen Hunter's mother twice since the truth was revealed.

"I talked with her, you know that."

"Yeah, but she still hates me," Britt said. "But I'll come, I don't want to know what kind of fodder she'd think up if I didn't show up. She'd probably tell you I'm completely disrespectful of you. You're 39 years old, you'd think she'd let you live a little."

"It's just because I was burned so badly by Stephanie…supposedly."

"Oh, of course. Well, I'm going to work."

"Don't be mad."

"I'm not mad," she said, kissing him. "I'm not. I'm just dreading it, just like I'm dreading running into Randy, but I know I am, because he's probably lurking behind a trash can right now taking notes on me or something. Olly-olly-oxen-free, Randy!" she called out as Hunter laughed and brought her closer to kiss her.

"So you're in charge," Stephanie told him. "In fact, you know what, I'm going to even not wear my headphones, turn off my phone and leave you in charge. I should've just realized you were nervous last week and once you weren't around the pressure of me and my brother, you were brilliant and I need to commend that."

"Thank you so much, Stephanie," Mike said.

"It's not a problem at all. I have complete faith in you," she grinned. "You're doing a wonderful job."

"Well, I appreciate the vote of confidence from you and your brother, it means a lot."

"Good, I'm glad," she said. "Well, I'll see you later…oh wait, no I won't because I trust you."

Adamle laughed, "You won't be disappointed."

"Oh, I won't be."

She walked out and scowled. She hated playing the part of the little goody-two-shoes, pretending she was happy with that horrible man and his insipid performance as her father's puppet. She would break him though, if it was the last thing she did. She just couldn't believe her father had absolutely no faith in her to run a company and forced himself to run it through his lackey. It was insulting to her and her brother. She was perfectly capable of running the entire company.

She walked into her office where Chris was with the kids. "Okay, you're up, Jericho."

"Wish me luck," he said, kissing her. She gave him her confidence from the slip of her tongue into his warm mouth.

Chris ran his hand through his hair as he went into Adamle's office to try and talk to the man. He told Adamle that what he did last week was completely against what he had promised Chris. He had told Chris that he was the GM, but Adamle said he was the temporary GM. Chris ranted to the man about how he was to be protected as the biggest asset on Raw. In reality, Chris was cocky, but he wasn't _this_ cocky. He also said that Adamle had no right to make that match for Cyber Sunday. Stephanie had made him mention that to put the pressure on him since he knew she knew it wasn't his idea. Adamle did seem to squirm a little at that, Chris noticed.

Adamle thought he had been doing Chris a favor putting him in the scramble match, but they both knew it was Vince. That was the little elephant in the room. Both men knew the truth, but neither was budging until the other did. Then Adamle made a match for Chris with Dave picking his opponent. That smacked of Vince and he knew Stephanie would be licking her chops, but that wasn't his job. His job was to make Adamle's job a living nightmare.

Chris went on another rant, saying this was completely unacceptable and how he needed to be protected as the champion. He was the face of Raw right now and he should get all the benefits to the job. Of course, what more benefit could you have than being with your boss's daughter, but that was beside the point. He threatened that this was all very unfair and he was going to go straight over Adamle's head to Shane and Stephanie, that he was going to call them right now, see what kind of reaction that got from Adamle.

He played it cool though and said they couldn't be contacted. Of course, that was a lie, but Chris knew Stephanie had relinquished the power to Adamle. He still could go over the GM's head though. He saw Stephanie every night since they went to sleep in the same bed. He saw her every day for pretty much the last six years so of course he could go over Adamle's head. In fact, maybe he should try, see how that worked out for Adamle. Another thing it did was prove that Shane and Stephanie _weren't_ in charge. If Vince couldn't see this, he would surely see Chris out in the ring trying to get Shane and Stephanie's attention. He would surely realize the power was all his and maybe he would make Adamle do more and the stress would break him. This was actually a pretty smart plan on Shane's part.

He went out to the ring, passing Candice and Mickie on the way, who were both snickering at him. He didn't like those chicks anyways. Though if it had been Katie, maybe it would've been different. Man, why hadn't he paid attention to that girl before? He called out the fans while he was out there, part of who he was now, but this wasn't about them so much as it was about this plan that he got sucked into.

Stephanie loved the way Chris said her name. She couldn't help it. It was just the way he said it with this mixture of disdain and lust. With his suit jacket flapping behind him as he walked he was looking absolutely delicious and she had to resist going out there and making his match with the special guest referee options being her, Shane, and Sawyer. Surely they could ensure Chris would get the win. He didn't want Austin in the ring with him, but not for the reasons he stated. Sure, Stephanie told him not to hold a grudge and Sawyer was a great, healthy two-year-old, but when he thought of Austin, that old anger crept up into him and he still wanted full retribution.

Chris played his part masterfully, trying to undermine Adamle's power, trying to make him appear weak. He would do so later too. He had plans for Dave's match. Yes, he had big plans and he would be taking matters into his own hands and seeing how Adamle liked that. He would see how Adamle liked to be played. There were two sides to this chess game and Vince's side was severely understaffed.

He wasn't really expecting Shawn to come out. He was done with this man and this thing didn't involve him at all. Hadn't he made that clear last week? Shawn said he would be unbiased if he were referee, but that was a bag of crap. No way was Shawn going to be unbiased. He'd probably just let Dave win within five minutes of the match starting. Shawn said he'd make Chris's life hell. Chris was nonplussed until Shawn hit him. This didn't involve him anymore and it pissed him off that Shawn was trying to make it all about him again. Leave it to Shawn to do that.

Then he had a brilliant idea. He would just pit his old opponent versus his new opponent and they could beat the hell out of each other. He came back out and announced that Shawn would face Dave later that evening. He went backstage and without speaking to anyone, he went back to Stephanie's office. Sawyer was playing with some Play-Doh and molds while Flynn was sleeping and Stephanie was just watching the screen.

"That was amazing. He really got flustered there for a second and that laugh was so false when you brought me up," she said.

"I've got an idea for the match, I'm going to make it a Lumberjack match."

"I love it."

"I'm not going to tell Adamle, I'm just going to do it."

"I love it even more," Stephanie said. "That's perfect. Undermine his authority. He can't _do_ anything to you…wait, yes he can, he has full power."

"I can take whatever he dishes out, whatever your dad dishes out, because he knows, I'm sure, but I can take it."

"Are you sure?"

"I lost a tooth last week."

"Yeah, but that's better now," she said, smiling at him. "And your knee was fine."

"I can take it, trust me. He can't fire me, that's the kicker, he absolutely can't fire me. Your dad can't fire me either. Sure, normally he would have the authority, you know, with any other person, but I'm married to you therefore I get immunity because I own part of the majority shares in the company."

"That's true, then do it, go for it. I'd love to see my father see you taking control and doing whatever the hell he wants. Maybe that'll put Adamle on spin control trying to explain why you get to do whatever you want."

"You don't think he'd bring up the kids, do you?"

"He better not or I _will_ fire him, find my father and then make sure he actually does get hurt," Stephanie said, looking at their kids. "Just make the match."

"Oh yeah, there's just one thing," Chris said, then went to the door. "Come on in, guys."

In walked Ted, Cody, and Manu, "I just wanted to let you know I've hand-picked you guys to be lumberjacks for the Shawn and Dave match later, you cool with that?"

"Yeah, sure," Ted said, speaking for everyone in the room.

"Awesome, great, Ted, do you think I could have a word with you?" Chris said, glancing over at his wife. Her jaw was clenched and her face was turning such a nice shade of red.

"Okay, I'll meet you guys," he said to his clique partners. "What is it, Chris?"

"Oh, just saying that you and your team, I think you guys are fine assets to Raw and I'm glad you've found your niche, wouldn't you agree, Stephanie?" he said, turning to her.

"Uh, yeah, great," Stephanie said. "You're great."

"Thanks, I appreciate that," Ted said, "see you later."

"Bye."

"Bye, Ted," Stephanie said, her voice trailing off. As soon as Ted was out the door. "I hate you. I hate you _so_ much right now. I could kick you out of our house."

"Kid, did you hear that?"

"Yes, I did," he answered.

"You're going to let her kick me out?"

"Yes, I am," Sawyer said.

"Geez…flutterby?"

"She's sleeping, you're an ass," she said.

"Well, I'm thinking that's the last time you will call me out for having a crush while you just have _discussions_," Chris said. "Love you."

"Hate you too."

Make the match he did. A nice, little Lumberjack match with all his hand-picked wrestlers at ringside. He wondered if Vince was fuming right now. He liked that visual. At the very least, Vince could've come out of hiding to meet his granddaughter. Flynn was over two months old now and it looked like this was going to be another Sawyer situation, with Vince not getting to meet his grandchild, this time by his choice. That disappointed Chris a little bit. He loved his little girl and doted over and the least Vince could do was see her once. She was part of his family after all.

He wasn't sure later if Vince was retaliating by letting Dave be the referee or if Dave was retaliating and Adamle and Vince were just all too happy to let the man have what he wanted, but he was getting a taste of his own medicine, just like Stephanie said. He felt like this was how it could be during Cyber Sunday and that was a scary thought. He didn't want to lose his belt, he liked being the champion, the figurehead for the company and Stephanie was so proud of him. They were like the ultimate power couple and he liked it, he liked it too much perhaps. Plus, Sawyer loved this belt.

But as he had been biased the week before, Dave was biased now. All three of the choices for Cyber Sunday hated him so it wasn't going to be a fair fight. It was going to be a battle for him. He would have to act like he had two opponents instead of one, but he could prevail. Whoever it was, he could prevail. Just like his wife was going to prevail over her father, or so she hoped. It wasn't a very good night for him though and he only hoped the next week would be better, that's what he thought as he lay on the mat. He was going to have to claw his way to another win. He wasn't going to have any of those referees by his side. But he still wasn't going to lose his belt.

"I knew he was going to do that," Stephanie said later that evening as they lied face to face in bed. Stephanie had been unable to resist the vision of Chris in that suit from earlier and had given Chris what he had surely been craving for weeks. Now they were lying with each other and were perfectly content for the moment, their fingers entwined as their kids lay asleep in the other room.

"Do what?"

"Let Dave call the match. He asked me if I let you change the match and I said I didn't, but I don't think he believed me."

"Oh, well you didn't."

"I know, but he thinks I did. I don't know, maybe next week I just don't come."

"You have to come, I don't like it when you don't."

"Yeah, I just want him to think he has it…and I was thinking, what if we completely abandon him too?"

"What?"

"Offer him nothing. He keeps saying we do things that we don't. I don't know, maybe I should just stay out of it and see what happens."

"That's not like you."

"I know, but maybe…maybe I can locate my dad and make him not say anything to Adamle and then see what happens. It just pisses me off that he keeps saying that I'm doing stuff and telling him stuff that I'm not. He's a liar and he's making me look bad."

"You know what you need to do, right?"

"What?"

"Show up."

"Oh, shut up, Chris."

"I'll tell you what, you can valet Ted to the ring."

"I'm going to hurt you," she said, climbing over him and starting to shake him. "You need to shut up or I'm going to cut up all your stupid trunks and then I'm going to start singing the K-I-S-S-I-N-G song if you're around Katie."

"You wouldn't dare," he told me.

"I'm willing to make my father pay, who says I won't do it to you?" she challenged.

"I'm going to call Ted right now, see if he wants to take you for the night."

"No!" she said as he playfully reached for the phone. "Don't you dare."

The two tussled for a little bit before Chris got the upper-hand and started kissing Stephanie's neck. "You sure you don't want Ted?" Stephanie laughed as he hit a ticklish spot.

"Ted who?"


	208. Ugh, He Lost, October 20 and 27, 2008

A/N: So last Monday I was just writing along, everything was going fine, had like 10 pages written already and then I started not feeling well so I was like, okay, I don't think I can finish, but I'm sure this will pass and I'll feel fine the next day.  Then the stomach flu hit me pretty hard and I got really sick so I couldn't update, which sucked.  Anyways, doing a lot better now and so here's the chapter from last week and this week.

This chapter probably sucks as after Chris lost the title, I am/was so pissed that writing as the farthest thing from my mind since I wanted to stew in my anger over him losing, which was so stupid.  I only hope they're totally going to swerve us next week and like have him win it back since it's a huge show and all.  That'd be cool.  So anyways, enjoy, and leave a review! :)

* * *

"I don't see why you don't just show up."

"Because I don't want to."

"It'd be cool, we could be in the ring…oh! Can I pretend to hate you?" Chris asked. "I bet I can still do it too. Hmm…Stephanie, it's so nice to see you again, how's my favorite slut doing?"

Stephanie rolled her eyes as she changed Flynn. "You'd say I was a slut?"

"Yeah, I would," Chris said. "It's an old stand-by. You know, slut, whore, lady of the night, hooker, prostitute…all of those are really good."

"Why do you hate me so much?"

"Maybe it's because you put me in stupid plans that involve me being a whiny ass," Chris suggested.

"I do not, you do them because you love me," Stephanie said as she picked up Flynn and kissed her cheek. Flynn looked at her, a calm look on her face. The little girl was gaining more personality by the day. Her eyes were still a smoky blue, more blue than gray, but the gray was enough for Chris to declare that she had Stephanie's eyes and this baby had been a success where Sawyer had failed. Her hair was dark too, not as dark as Stephanie's, not yet anyways, but it was a lot darker than Sawyer's was. She didn't like to be held for too long, but she wouldn't yell in your ear if it was, she'd give a whimper to warn you she was about to use her lungs.

"Oh, is that so? Maybe I'm just with you because we have children together, did you ever think of that?" he asked.

"Oh all the time," she said, furrowing her brow together like this was something she thought of constantly. I don't know what I'm going to do when you eventually find out that you're only with me because of the children."

"Hey, it could be true!" he protested. "Maybe I am only with you because I want my kids to have two parents."

"Yes, because I'm so sure if we got divorced you'd suddenly flit out of their lives," Stephanie said as she rubbed Flynn's back. The little girl wasn't tired in the slightest, instead seemingly listening in on her parent's conversation.

"Well no, but it still could be true."

"Uh huh," she said as she continued to rub Flynn's back.

"Oh, that's just what you want, isn't it? You want a divorce so you can go after Ted."

"I'm sure Ted would want a girlfriend with two young children, he doesn't seem like the kid type if you ask me," Stephanie said.

"So if you didn't have them, you'd just leave me and go after him?"

"Oh, absolutely," Stephanie said, "I don't think he would complain when I ask him to do something for me, he seems like he'd be a good boyfriend to do my bidding instead of the complainer I have right now. Do you remember when I asked you to switch shows to Raw and you did it without even batting an eyelash?"

"Yeah, I do, it was like a week after we started dating."

"Well where's _that_ guy?" she asked, jutting out her bottom lip a little bit.

"Well, _that _guy had been dating Stephanie McMahon for a week so he had no clue what he was in for. I mean, sure you were a bitch to me when we were business partners--"

"I was not!"

"Wow, is your memory that short?" he joked. "Come on, Steph, you had me doing all your errands and stuff."

"I did help you."

"You did," he agreed, "but I still lost my belt."

"Well, you weren't there to save me when Hunter gave me the Pedigree, if you had, maybe I could've helped you retain. You didn't help me when we were in the Triple Threat. I lost that match and had to leave for months!"

"Only to come back as the GM and not hug me," he countered. "I mean, what was with that?"

"You know what was with that, I had feelings for you when we were business partners and you couldn't read any of my signals and it was very frustrating and I didn't want to fall into that trap again because it would hurt too much to bring up those feelings and know they weren't going to go anywhere."

"And what happened with that?"

"That's beside the point."

"Yeah, I ended up getting all pissed at you and demanded to know the reason…then I kissed you and now six years later, here I am."

"All the better for it," Stephanie pointed out. "Still, that guy would've done it for me without question."

"That guy has been with you for six years."

"So you're saying that you're just willing to give it up now, you want to just give it all up so you can go after Katie Lea, who I'm sure you'd rather be with. Never-mind the fact that I married you and gave you two children."

"I do not like Katie Lea."

"You said, and I quote, you were 'intrigued' by her. What else am I suppose to infer here, Christopher?" she asked, grinning at him. His face was expressionless though and he looked at her drolly.

"That I find her intriguing. You just want to get back at me for the Ted stuff."

"Well…yes, but I'm waiting to spring that on you for when you least suspect it. Besides, I also have to get you back for wearing those hideous things to the ring."

"You're just never going to let me live that down, are you? You're just never going to come around to my side of the fence."

"No, I'm not," she told him. "I hate those things."

"Well, it's my body, I can do whatever I want with it."

"Yeah, well this," she said, gesturing down towards herself, "is _my_ body and I can do with it what I please and if the store's closed, there's no way I'm letting you in after hours and I know you're quite fond of what I sell."

"See, sell…definitely a prostitute."

"Ted is looking very good right now."

"Well, there'd be no shortage of women lining up to be with me if you left me, now, it wouldn't be as long as the line of men waiting to pay for a night with you, but it'd be a pretty long line. How much do you plan to charge once you're back on the streets?" Chris asked cheekily. "See, it's so easy! I can fall back into it at will, it comes naturally to me, it doesn't feel unnatural, but speaking of unnatural, there are two unnatural things right there."

Stephanie looked at him looking at her chest, "Oh yeah?"

Chris smiled at her and pulled her and Flynn closer, nuzzling his nose into the space right behind her ear, "I do like them though."

"You and Flynn both," Stephanie said, thinking of her greedy, little girl.

"I know, she's always hogging you. If I didn't love her so much, I think I'd give her away. I bet Trish and Christian would take her."

"I bet they would too, wouldn't they, Flynnie?" Stephanie asked her daughter, but Flynn just smiled slightly up at her mommy before she looked to her daddy and gave a wider smile because he was making a funny face at her and she thought that was amusing.

"Come on, come on the show tonight," he whined, pulling her even closer. "It'd be so fun."

"Why would you even want to pretend that we hate each other?" she asked.

"Because it'd be fun and I know there'd be no consequences."

"Yeah, you just keep on thinking that," Stephanie said, adjusting Flynn's bib.

"Come on," Chris said, his voice even whinier. She tried to push herself away from him, but his grip was strong and he barely budged. She tried again and Chris tried to pull her even closer and into his lap.

"Stop," she laughed, "I'm not going to be on the show tonight!"

"Please, please, please, please, please," he repeated, causing Flynn to look over at him and wonder what was going on. "You love being on the show."

"Not right now, I haven't lost any of the baby weight, I'm still fat and I don't want to go on the show."

"You're no fun, I want to call you a slut."

"Flynnie, tell your daddy he's being a jerk."

"I think you've confused our children, baby, this one can't talk, the other one can," Chris said, smiling at her. She shoved him away again, but he just kept coming back and capturing her lips.

"Why are you hanging around me, anyways? Don't you have somewhere to be where you'll be a jerk to someone else? Go be a jerk to Christian."

"I don't even know where he is," Chris said, "is that bad, that I don't know where the guy who has my son is?"

"Yes, you're a horrible father this way," Stephanie told him. "They're around somewhere, I'm guessing."

"So come on, just show up."

"No! Stop pushing me. Look, I'm not going to interfere tonight, period, end of story, no interference, no me calling the shots, I'm going to simply sit back and watch what happens, just like any other fan. I have to make Adamle trust me, think I'm not going to lower the boom on him at any given moment."

"While I do the dirty work."

"Of course."

"See, this is why I need to leave you."

"Because you hanging off of me is you leaving me. Why _are_ you hanging off me, again, I think I need to be enlightened."

"Well," he said, practically leering at her.

Stephanie's mouth opened a little bit, "So I've opened the flood gates? So because I finally gave it up to you, you think that you're going to get it every night?"

"No," Chris said, "although I did like that."

"Well, I'm too tired for that right now. Back when we were just dating and first married it was easy because we had the energy, but now it's like…a treat."

"I like treats," he winked at her.

"Oh God, you make me sick," Stephanie said. "I'm leaving."

"Where are you going to go? I thought you were just going to sit around and do nothing, like our lazy daughter right there. She doesn't do anything and I'm sorry, but when I make the comparison between her and Sawyer, she's falling way behind."

"Aww, did you hear that, Flynnie, Daddy doesn't love you," Stephanie said, making a pouty face at Flynn. Flynn didn't know what was going on. Chris wiped the drool off her of her chin and gave her a big grin.

"I do love you, flutterby," Chris told his youngest child, grabbing her socked foot and rubbing it a little, causing Flynn to smile, almost, but not quite a laugh. She wasn't quite up with laughing yet, but she was certainly getting there.

"I'm still going."

"Come out there tonight, you can come out with me, I won't even make fun of you, I'll extol all your virtues, I'll tell everyone that you're the most wonderful woman in the entire world and if you want, I'll tell them that if there _is_ a line of guys to sleep with you, I'm always at the front of it."

"You never used to be."

"Or you didn't know my true intentions," he said, giving her a peck on the lips.

"Yeah right, don't try to renege now. It's _way_ too late for that."

"Okay, but I can tell them you're the best I've ever had."

"You haven't had that many."

"_They_ don't know that, besides you are, half the reason I married you right there."

"I think the two kids prove that one," Stephanie said. "I'm still going. I'm just going to see what's going on, catch the buzz around here."

"The buzz? Are you from 1950?"

"Shut up," she said, pushing herself and Flynn off the couch, putting Flynn in her carrier so she could get a few things. "We're going to go. Go do whatever World Champions do."

"You know, Dave doesn't respect me."

"Well, don't focus on that," she said as she put a hat over Flynn's head. It was kind of chilly in the arena and she didn't want Flynn getting sick. Flynn reached her arms outwards towards Stephanie. It probably didn't mean she wanted Stephanie, just that she saw this big person and still wanted to be held.

"He should, I'm the champion."

"I know, but just focus on your match. You're going to beat him."

"He thinks I'm silly."

"He's silly," she countered.

"How?"

"Because he thinks he can beat you. I don't know why people don't think you can't kick everyone's asses because you can. If you have to go and prove that to every single person in the company, so be it, you'll do it and you'll end up on top."

He smiled, "Thanks."

"For what?"

"Your unwavering belief. Sometimes I need that, you know, and I don't know, I think if I married outside the business…I don't think it'd be the same, you know."

"I guess."

"You just get me and you get everything that goes on around here and I've learned to appreciate it, you know. I mean, not to say some other woman wouldn't get me--"

"Like Katie Lea?"

"Shut your mouth, just thanks for believing in me and that I can kick everyone's ass."

"You can, you've like beaten everyone in the company," Stephanie pointed out. "You're the champion, you're the figurehead, the leader of Raw. If others don't respect you, so what, demand it if you want it."

"You're ruthless."

"You're a pansy," she said, sticking her tongue out. "I'll see you later."

"I'm just going to come with."

"Geez, seriously, what is with you hanging off of me?"

"Just afraid I'm going to lose you to Ted."

"Now _you_ shut your mouth."

"I didn't say which Ted, I could've meant my dad, he's Ted too," Chris smirked.

"Yeah, I'm so sure you meant your dad. If you're going to follow me around all night, just say it."

"I'm going to follow you around all night."

"Fine, let's go then and stop wasting time around here."

"Yes Ms. McMahon-Jericho."

Sawyer had returned to his full strength. He felt great, better than great. He was feeling like his old self and that meant he could do all the things he loved to do. Running was one of those things he loved to do so that was what he was doing right this second. He was just running and running and he could hear Trish calling out to him, but he didn't want to listen to her. He just wanted to run around and show everyone that he was feeling very good. Then he would go see his sister and he would get to actually be around her since he wasn't sick. He was really happy when his mommy had lifted that ban.

"Sawyer!" Trish said. "Sawyer, come back here!"

"No!" he yelled back, wanting to surge forward. He had snuck away when Trish wasn't looking and now she was yelling after him and he thought it the funniest thing in the world.

He kept running and saw the lady from last week who was really nice to him. He liked her, she seemed like a very nice person and he liked nice people. He ran up to her and stopped, jumping up and down a little bit. "Hi!" he exclaimed enthusiastically.

Katie turned around and looked down, "Oh, hello, you."

"Hi, hi, hi," he said, bouncing on his feet in anticipation. He grinned widely at her, showing her all of his teeth. He had all of his teeth, his daddy didn't, even though his daddy got a new tooth, he wanted him to take it out, but he wouldn't. He didn't know why.

Katie knelt down, "Where's your mum and dad?"

"Dunno," he said with a shrug. He had been with Trish so of course he wouldn't know where his mommy and daddy were. They could be anywhere and he wouldn't know!

"Oh, who are you with then?" she asked, picking him up.

"Twish."

"Twish, eh?"

"Hey," Trish said, coming up just then and a little out of breath. For a two-year-old, Sawyer could really cover some tracks, especially when he got a head start like he had. "Sorry about that."

"Oh, no worries, Sawyer and I are old pals, aren't we?" she said to the little boy. He nodded gravely. "See, we go way back to last week."

"Uh huh," Sawyer confirmed. He looked past Trish and saw Flynn. "Baby!"

"Oh, well, this one has got a little set of lungs on him, doesn't he?" Katie said, pretending to clean out her ears. She looked to her left. "Oh, that's your baby sister, isn't it?"

"Yup, that Fwynn…Fwynn!" Sawyer yelled out.

Stephanie looked up when she heard her son's voice. There was certainly no mistaking that voice since Sawyer was usually the only kid around on Monday nights unless someone else brought their kids along. Stephanie looked up and saw Katie holding her son. Chris hadn't noticed because he was actually the one holding Flynn. He was staring at his daughter, talking to her in a low voice about something. She smiled slightly at what fun she could have at her husband's expense.

"Flynnie, there's your brother," Stephanie told her daughter. Chris finally looked up and over at Sawyer. He spotted Katie and his eyes widened slightly and then he looked at Stephanie, who was gazing at Sawyer. Or was supposedly gazing at Sawyer at least. "Come on."

Chris walked behind his wife and with the swing of her hips, he knew she was going to embarrass him or something. He was regretting slightly the way he treated her crush on Ted. "Hey, Katie, did he run into you again?"

"I think he likes me," Katie said, smiling at the little boy.

"That's sweet," Stephanie said. "I guess he sees a really pretty girl and gets…intrigued." Chris coughed. "Something wrong, sweetie?"

"No, sorry, Flynn just startled me," he said, though Flynn wasn't doing anything in particular at the moment.

"Your daughter is darling," Katie said, looking at the little girl. "She's adorable."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, "We like her."

"I don't blame you," Katie said, but then handed off Sawyer to Stephanie. "You probably want this though, I'm guessing. I've actually got a match to start the show that I should probably get ready for."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, taking Sawyer. Sawyer didn't really want to leave Katie's arms, but he liked his mommy's arms too so he went willing and wrapped his legs around her as best he could. "Good luck in your match."

"Thank you."

"You'll definitely win," Chris told her.

"I hope so, I do so hope you win when you're in your match on Sunday."

"Thanks," Chris said back.

"Well, goodbye, goodbye, Sawyer," Katie said, patting his shoulder. She walked off and Chris turned to watch her walk away. Stephanie rolled her eyes and slapped him on the shoulder.

"Are you actually checking her out in my presence?"

"No," Chris scoffed. "It's illegal now to just look over at something?"

"Yeah, it is."

"What are you two talking about?" Trish asked.

"Chris has a crush on Katie Lea."

"I do not," Chris said defensively. "Stephanie is just trying to get back at me because she has a crush on Ted, which I don't even really bring up at all."

Stephanie snorted, "Yeah, right, sure you don't. You bring it up all the time and you make fun of me. It's just too bad that Katie had to go because I was going to mercilessly tease you and I plan to do so next time I do see the two of you."

"You don't mind he has a crush?" Trish asked. "I mean…well, you know what I mean."

"Why would I care?" Stephanie asked. "It's not like Chris is going to act on said crush, are you, Chris?"

"Well, I was planning on it," Chris said, "where's your husband, by the way, Trish?"

Trish smiled at the way Christian was referred. "He's just around, talking to guys."

"I wanted to talk to him actually," Stephanie said. "Whenever he gets the chance."

"I'll go find him, where are you guys going to be?"

"We were just walking around, trying to get some air," Stephanie said. "We'll be back in Chris's locker room, meet you there?"

"Yeah, sure," Trish said, "see you in a bit."

Trish walked around, saying hello to various people and stopping to talk to others. It was nice to be back for the night. Maybe she and Christian could go to Cyber Sunday too. They had the luxury of not really doing anything right now. Christian had tapings on some Mondays and some house shows, but other than that, they didn't really do much. She had her travel show, but she had already filmed a lot of that. It was kind of boring being retired.

It wasn't that she was looking to get pregnant to have something to do. She just wanted to start a family with Christian. Things were finally where she wanted them to be and she wanted to share something like Sawyer and Flynn with Christian. Sawyer was looking so happy in Stephanie's arms and Flynn was looking so comfortable in Chris's. She smiled wistfully at the thought of Christian holding their baby.

"Hey!" Trish called out as she saw her husband.

Christian turned from his conversation with Rey Mysterio and smiled. He said something to Rey and then came over, bending down to kiss his wife, "Hey, Trishy, what's up?"

"Stephanie wanted to talk to you."

"Oh," Christian said, furrowing his brow, "do you know about what?"

"No clue," she said, slipping her hand into his. "She just said she wanted to talk to you. Come on, let's go to her office."

"Okay."

"What were you talking to Rey about?"

"Just shooting the breeze," he said. "It's been a while since I've been around here, you know. There are people that aren't you I want to talk to sometimes."

"Now I _know_ that's not true," she teased. "Now that we're married you should only talk to me and nobody else. You're mine now."

"I didn't know that was a rule."

"It is now," she told him as she moved to wrap her arms around Christian. "I especially don't want you talking to any females that aren't married or under the age of one."

"You're seriously limiting me here."

"That's right, it's about time I get full control over you," she said. "Now that we're married, I definitely get to have full control over you."

"Okay, you can't talk to guys I don't approve of," he teased. She pretended to act aghast, but she was really smiling into his t-shirt. They came to Chris and Stephanie's room and let themselves inside. Chris was sitting cross-legged on the floor with Flynn cradled in his lap and Sawyer in front of him, talking with him. Stephanie was doing some paperwork. "Hey, Steph, my wife said you needed to talk to me."

"You're so cute with all the wife business," Stephanie said. "Chris was just the same, he liked to call me his wife all the time."

"Now I just call her my burden," Chris joked from the ground.

"Well, Christian, I was talking with Trish and she mentioned your contract was coming up soon with TNA and I was hoping to incite you to come back."

"Wow, so this is work-related?" Christian asked.

"Yes, it is," Stephanie said, pulling her hands together and up to her chin. "I think we could really use you back. You've proven yourself over there and I know that we could have a working relationship again. I would hope that you'd keep that in mind, have you renewed your contract?"

"Isn't it like…illegal to talk about this or something?"

"I'm just having a conversation with a friend," Stephanie said with a smile, but it was anything but. The business-minded, unscrupulous Stephanie was shining through. "I just want to make sure you know that you know you have options."

"Can you believe this woman?" Christian asked Chris.

"Um, yeah, I've been with her six years, I think I know her," Chris said, tickling Flynn's tummy. She kept smiling so Sawyer joined in.

"I mean, I'll think about it, I guess."

"Good, because I do think we could find a spot for you again," Stephanie told him. "You could probably come to Raw."

"You're actually trying to already plan?"

"Just a suggestion."

"Oh, of course," Christian said, laughing a little. Stephanie could be so two-faced. Not in a bad way, she just had these two separate sides of herself and it was weird seeing this side when he was so used to the down-to-earth Stephanie he saw all the time at home.

"I think you should think about it, Chrissy," Trish said from where she had sat on the floor, pulling Sawyer into her lap. "I mean, how cool would it be to be back here again? I don't _mind_ TNA, I guess, but my best friend is here."

"Flynn, right?" Chris said.

"No, I just want to steal Flynn, that's all," Trish said, grabbing Flynn's hand.

"You guys make a cute family," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes.

"Thanks," Trish joked. "But still, it'd be cool, think about it, Chrissy?"

"Fine," he relented, "I'll think about it."

Chris had no time to think later. He was getting put into a stupid match that Adamle had "thought" up. Well, maybe he had because it was a really stupid idea. A simultaneous gauntlet match? He had never heard of it, but it didn't sound like a good idea to him. None of Adamle's ideas sounded good to him though. What would really happen? He and Dave in the ring together, separately, he just didn't understand. It was times like this, he wished Stephanie _would_ interfere.

"What do you think of that idea?" he asked her as he got ready for his match.

"I think it's an idiotic idea by an idiotic man," she responded as she fed Flynn, adjusting the baby against her.

"Who are you talking about, Adamle or your dad?"

"My dad," Stephanie said. "You know, he hasn't even seen Flynn. I just don't get him."

"Don't even try," he said. "I've stopped."

"Do you know how it's going to work?"

"Not really. I'm just going to go out there and wrestle where I have to and hope for the best."

"Yeah, it doesn't matter," Stephanie said. "Sunday matters, this doesn't matter at all. You're going to do whatever tonight and then you're going to win Sunday."

"I love how sure you are."

"Well, I love you and I believe in you," she said, shrugging one shoulder. "You're going to be great. You're the champion. You're the leader of this entire place. You need to demand respect around here. These people don't matter at all."

"You're the best," he said, going over to her and bending down to kiss her. "I love you."

"I love you too."

The match did not go the way he thought it would. It was even more stupid than he thought it was going to be. He originally thought it was going to be Dave in a gauntlet match and then him in a gauntlet match, not this stupid back-and-forth deal. Dave was going first against Regal and Chris took advantage of the fact that Dave had gone first. For the second two matches, it was the other way, which he thought a little unfair and he ended up losing the last two, but Stephanie was right. Tonight didn't matter.

Sunday mattered.

**Monday**

"Hey, morning," Stephanie said as she climbed into bed. Chris had just opened his eyes and it was like Stephanie had pounced on him as soon as he was up. She smiled at him as she cuddled up to him, rubbing the top of his head into his chin like she was a cat or something. Then she sat up. "How are you feeling?"

"Sore," he said dully.

"Sweetie, come on, don't be that way," Stephanie said, running her fingers around his belly button.

"Be what way?" he asked.

"I know you're upset about last night, I am too, but it'll be okay," Stephanie said, now just rubbing his stomach. "You'll get the title back, I know you will, if not tonight, then soon. I…I can't believe he just let it stand with all that interference and…you know, that's just not fair. I really should--"

"Remember your plan about doing nothing?" he said. "That was your plan, right? You wanted to catch your dad."

"You're bigger than any plan. You mean more to me than some stupid plan."

"Thanks, at least I know that much," Chris said, though he wasn't in any mood to really do anything right now. He knew Stephanie was trying to make him feel better, but he just wasn't going to feel better right now. He was really upset about what had happened the night before. It didn't even feel real. He knew Austin was going to be the guest referee, but it just didn't feel like a fair fight out there. He felt like he had gotten royally screwed and it wasn't fair.

The match had been a disaster with Austin as referee. He was screwed from the beginning. He had no love lost for Austin, who had almost hurt his son and he knew he was in for a world of trouble when Austin donned that black and white shirt. He wasn't expecting Shawn to come out there and the odds had been so heavily stacked against him. Who did he have on his side? JBL who was slower than molasses sometimes? Randy, who was still injured, or whatever he was? Yeah, a lot of good _that_ did him.

He felt like an absolute failure. Stephanie had been so excited to have him as the champion, crying over it even and Sawyer had been ecstatic when he had gotten him a new toy and to have to lose that, it felt horrible. He felt like such an ass for not holding up his end of some deal he had concocted in his brain. He found himself playing with the ends of Stephanie's hair and staring off into space.

_Chris felt sore and tired, but most of all, he was just upset that he had lost. More upsetting, though, was the fact he was going to have to face his little boy empty-handed. Sawyer was going to be so disappointed when Chris didn't come back with his belt. He slowly trudged his way backstage and through the curtain. The first face he saw was Stephanie's, probably because she had come straight up to him and hugged him tightly._

"_You were screwed," she said simply, needing no other words to describe what she was thinking. He just slightly nodded as he rested his sweaty forehead against her shoulder. _

"_Daddy, I see you," Sawyer said, coming up to them, wanting his daddy to know he saw his match and he was very impressed._

_Chris pulled away from Stephanie and knelt down to face his young son. "Hey, kid, you were watching?"_

"_Uh huh," Sawyer said. "I did, wif Mommy."_

"_I don't have your toy, kid, I lost it."_

"_Oh," Sawyer said, scrunching up his face a little. He really liked that, but his daddy looked really sad right now, so maybe he shouldn't be sad because he didn't want his daddy to be sad so he should be really happy even though he really did like that toy. It was so shiny and it was really good for his cars. "It okay, Daddy."_

"_Really?" Chris asked._

"_Yup," he said, giving Chris a big hug. He looked like he needed one right then. He'd never know how much that meant to Chris._

"Where are the kids?" Chris asked idly.

"Flynn's still sleeping, well, back to sleep, she woke up during the night, you didn't even wake up or anything, so I took care of her. She's still asleep right now. Sawyer is still asleep too, but he should be up in a little bit. So just us for now. Quiet time for once."

"Yeah, for once," Chris said. "I like it."

"Me too, makes it more like when we were just the two of us…doesn't it seem like that was the blink of an eye though?" she said quietly, trying to match her voice to the mood. "It feels like we've had the kids forever, at least Sawyer, Flynnie's still pretty new."

"Yeah, it's hard to picture a time when I didn't have him," Chris said. We were together like four years before we had him though, four years with just the two of us, wow, what a luxury."

She laughed and burrowed herself deeper into the bed. "I know. Sometimes it's still hard to believe I've been with you for six years. It feels so much shorter…or longer. I don't know, I don't know how you can just fall back into insulting me."

"It's easy, you could do it if you wanted," he said, loosening up a little bit. It still stung that he had lost last night, but there were more important things in life, _better_ things in life, like lying in bed with your wife and the mother of your children and just talking.

"Chris Jericho, I…I can't do it anymore."

"You do it all the time when you're mad at me."

"But that's wifely anger," she pointed out.

"So channel Hunter's wife's anger," Chris said, "I can do it, Stephanie, Stephanie, Stephanie, it's so nice to see you again, and speaking of two, I'm sure those two bags of silicone have been pawed at more times than a goat at a petting zoo."

"Yeah, by you," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes, "and Flynn."

"If I asked you to, would you reverse the decision from last night?" Chris asked.

"Yes," she said without hesitation. She knew Chris would never ask for that though. There were a lot of things Chris might ask for from her, some of them very naughty, but he would never ask for anything that interfered with their work. He hadn't married her for that.

"Oh! I forgot what I wanted to show you," Stephanie said, giggling as she pulled away from Chris's arms and got off the bed. Chris felt a little cold from the lack of body heat emanating from Stephanie.

Stephanie was halfway across the room when she heard, "Mommy!"

She looked to the doorway and Sawyer was there, rubbing his eyes. His hair was every which way imaginable and she went over and picked him up, "Hey there, baby boy, do you need to be changed?"

"Yeah," he said.

"Okay, hold on." Stephanie went and grabbed the diaper bag. Sawyer still used a diaper at night but was pretty potty-trained during the day. Stephanie helped change him and then let him climb up near Chris.

"Morning, Daddy," Sawyer said as he cuddled with Chris.

"Well, you weren't exactly who I wanted to cuddle with this morning," Chris said, "but I guess you'll do."

"Oh," Sawyer said, not really understanding what that meant.

"You are going to love this," Stephanie said as she pulled open her laptop and started pulling something up.

"What is Mommy up to?" Chris whispered to Sawyer.

"Food?" he asked because he was pretty hungry. At least he hoped his mommy was doing something about getting some food. He wanted blueberries. He liked the way they were small and squished in his mouth. When he did that, Flynn smiled at him. Where was she anyways?

"I don't think it's food, but uh…hey, lady, your son is hungry," Chris said to his wife.

"Hold on, baby boy, I'll order something up."

"Boobewys pease!" he said in a very whiny voice as Flynn woke up. "Baby! I go get!"

"What?" Chris said as Sawyer practically flew off the bed to get to his sister in the other room. Sawyer had raced across the bed and thrown himself to the floor and he was almost in a dead run by the time his little bare feet hit the carpet. Chris went after him, not that Sawyer could get to Flynn by himself, but he wanted to get his daughter even as Stephanie was still fiddling with her computer. "Whatever you're doing, baby, better be good."

"You'll love it, I promise," she giggled.

Chris went into the other room where Sawyer was jumping up and down trying to get a good look at Flynn. Flynn was crying her cute head off, her face contorted in anger at being awake apparently. Chris slowly lifted her out of her crib and patted her bottom. He could already feel it was a bit soggy and needed a change, which probably prompted Flynn's outburst.

"Shh, it's okay, flutterby, Daddy's going to change you and Mommy can feed you and you'll be as good as new."

"I help, Daddy," Sawyer said from beneath him.

"I'm just going to change her, you can play with her when we get back into bed, okay?"

"Okay," Sawyer said, content with playing because who didn't like playing!

Chris set Flynn down on the couch really quickly before grabbing her diaper bag. She was still crying when he got back, tears in her dark blue eyes, making them even darker and smokier. They were really like Stephanie's and he found them enchanting. She reached her tiny hands to him like she wanted to be carried, which she probably did because she was upset. Chris changed her as Sawyer watched on, making sure his daddy did the job correctly. When she was settled, he took her back into his arms, but she continued to cry right in his ear.

"Look, you're clean, that's at least one part of you that's good, right, flutterby?" Chris said as he rubbed her back. "I love you, you just need to quiet down so I can hear."

It was right around this moment that Chris realized he hadn't thought about his loss since he and Stephanie had just been lounging in bed. He thought it would hurt more, losing the way he did and while it did hurt and he definitely wanted his title back, it wasn't the most important thing. He recalled when he had been the Undisputed Champion. It almost felt like that belt had consumed his life. He had become all about the belt and that was how he defined himself. It was almost like he became obsessed with it, going so far as to align with an enemy to defend it.

Not so now as he went back into the bedroom area and climbed back into bed with his daughter and son. Flynn was starting to calm down a little so Chris chanced it and put her down on her back on top of the bed. She wiggled a little bit. Chris picked her up and put her on her stomach. She pushed herself up a little, turning her head slightly, looking like she was glaring at her father for putting her in this position. So she showed him by doing one of her new things, rolling over onto her back where it was more comfortable.

"Show-off," Chris told her as she rested on her back. Sawyer hovered over her, his face inches away from his sister's, as he rubbed her stomach. "Give her some room there, kid, she probably can't breathe."

"Here we go!" Stephanie said, coming over and climbing into bed alongside her children. She plunked her laptop down onto Chris's lap and pointed at the screen.

Chris looked and saw that it was blog by Katie Lea. Chris glared at his wife, but she just kept pointing at the screen. So he read what Katie had said. He got to the part Stephanie kept pointing at and saw that Katie was completely railing on Shawn, calling him old and telling him to find the smile he lost so long ago. Chris couldn't help it, he started laughing at what she was saying. She was really pretty funny.

"I knew you'd love it. I don't know, seems you two are on the same wavelength, I may have to set up a date."

"That's great," Chris said, "that really cheered me up."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Good, I thought it might," Stephanie said, scooting herself down so she was right behind Sawyer. She wrapped her arms around her son and kissed his head. "I think you and Sawyer both have a crush on her."

"It is not a crush!"

Later that evening, Trish was putting the last touches on her lipstick. "This is like the fifth time they've been out, do you think they're sleeping together?"

"I don't know," Christian said from the bed. "I don't want to think about my brother's sex life, thanks."

"I'm just curious. Do you think that'd be cheating since he's still married?"

"We've had this discussion before."

"Yeah, but I think we're both fairly positive that they're probably doing it."

"I don't know."

"You don't think so?"

"I think he'd want to do it right this time, you know."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I do."

"Honestly?"

"Oh my God, you're annoying," Christian said. "Are you ready yet? I've got what's called a taping tonight."

"I know, I'm ready," she said. "I just want to look good. We have an image."

"I'm surprised they haven't tried to recruit you."

"Not happening, I'm happy retired. Plus, when I get pregnant, I'm not going to go in a ring, that'd be insane," Trish said. "I do hope you're thinking about what Stephanie said though…about going back…"

"I am, don't worry," he said, "I'll talk about it with you too. I know where you want me to go though."

"I bet you do. I've made it pretty obvious. I'd love to travel with Stephanie again. I don't get to see her nearly as often as I would like. They're traveling again so I don't get to see her and Lord knows I'd love to be around Sawyer and Flynn."

"Yeah, it has the potential to reek of awesomeness," Christian nodded. "I don't know though, you know, like what if it's like last time."

"I would hope you'd be more assertive this time around, you know. You're a main guy in TNA so you can go right into WWE and be a main guy because you've proven yourself to be."

"Do you think that's how it works?"

"Not necessarily, but I think it would be…well whatever you decide, I'll be supportive of you either way. It's your career after all, I'm just your wife," she said, but she meant it. When it came to his career, she didn't want to interfere too much. He had had a great career without her and he certainly didn't need her input now. "I'm not trying to be naggy."

"You're not nagging, I don't think we're at _that_ part of our marriage yet," he kidded. "At least I hope not. I was hoping to get a good 5 years in first."

"Very funny, but I'm serious, whatever you want to do, I'm fine with."

"You want to be with your friends though."

"I'm just saying it can't hurt."

Hunter plunked himself down next to Chris, "Sorry about your title, that was rough last night. I hate Austin so I'm totally on your side."

"Gee, thanks," Chris told Hunter. "That'll definitely get me really far. Having your endorsement means so much."

"Ass," Hunter muttered. "I'm trying to be a friend here."

"I didn't think you had it in you to feel compassion for others. Does it hurt?"

"You're a jerk," Hunter said. "Are you going to go out there and get a rematch?"

"Hell yeah, I am, did you just expect me to sit on my hands?"

"No, are you going to have it tonight?"

"No, I need time to prepare, come on, man, keep up. Besides, I have a tag match tonight, I'm teaming with JBL. I don't know if Adamle is an idiot or if Vince is an idiot, but I can barely stand the guy and yet I keep getting partnered with him."

"Why can't you stand him?"

"Oh, I don't know, just getting a cable wrapped around the neck or something," Chris said. "No big deal."

"Oh yeah, I remember that," Hunter said, shifting his eyes. He could kind of tell Chris was pissed and wasn't sure if he wanted to stick around here while Chris was in a bad mood. He didn't want to be in a bad mood. "Where's Steph?"

"Around, spying or something."

Stephanie wasn't spying, but she was observing. That was it, observing. She had wanted to find Adamle and tell him what a great job she thought he was doing (which wasn't the case at all of course). That should boost his ego and let him think that he was allowed free reign around here. Chris insisted that she continue with her plan and he would continue to be a jackass in general. It wouldn't be hard now that he had lost the title.

"Ms. McMahon?"

Stephanie turned around and came face-to-face with Cody Rhodes. She couldn't help but look around for Ted, but he wasn't there. She was only mildly disappointed. "What can I do for you, Cody?"

"I just wanted to say I was kind of sorry we didn't kick Dave's teeth in when we had the chance last night. It might've helped Chris."

Stephanie couldn't tell if he was trying to suck up to her or something, "Oh, well, I'm…sure he understands."

"Good, good," Cody said, smiling at her. "I just didn't want to have him mad at me or anything, or us, Ted, Manu, and me. It's good to have connections in this business and everything."

"Yeah, it really is," she said, pretty sure now he was trying to suck up to her. "I'm not really in charge, you know."

"I know, Adamle is and everything, I just wanted to you know, get that out there. You're a third-generation star too, you know."

"Are you suggesting I join your little group?" Stephanie asked with a laugh. That'd be so funny if she was to actually join this little clique of theirs.

"Oh well, if you want to…the door's always open."

"Thanks, I think," Stephanie said. "You guys seem pretty good on your own, I think, I mean, you…have you run this by Ted even? He seems like the de facto leader of you guys."

"Ted and I have equal say," Cody said defensively.

"Of course, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to imply or anything," she said, "it's just he seems to take the reins more often than not, but I'm sure you guys are all on equal footing. Nobody better than the next."

"Yeah, that's how it is, but I don't think Ted would mind, he seems to like you too."

"Really?" she asked, her face brightening and her voice going a little higher.

"I don't see why he wouldn't."

"Oh, well…thanks for the offer, but I've kind of already aligned myself with someone," she said. "Sorry though."

"It's cool, it's cool, the offer's still out there though, in case you ever want to use it."

"Thanks," she said as she started to back away, "bye."

"Bye."

Stephanie would never get involved with a group again. Being in the new version of D-X had been quite enough to last her a lifetime. There were always people hanging around you didn't want hanging around and it was just a general nuisance to be with so many people. She had never been able to stand X-Pac. More than anyone else he had been a huge butt-kisser and was so obviously in the group because he thought it would make him a "somebody."

Although being in a group with Ted might not be such a bad thing, she mused. "Stephanie, how are you tonight?"

She turned, torn from her daydream, "Mike, hello, I was actually just looking for you."

"Oh, were you? I'm very sorry about what happened with your husband last night. I really thought he would pull it out."

She was so sure that's what he thought when he made that ridiculous match. Two of the three picks had been in favor of Dave. Even Randy wasn't a clear choice for her husband because Randy was bitter he wasn't in the ring yet. The whole thing felt completely rigged to her, but why her father would do that, she didn't know a real reason. Perhaps it was because he knew she had figured him out and Chris was being punished for it. That would be just low enough for her father to do.

"So did I, but he lives to see another match, right?" Stephanie said, putting on her best face even though she wanted nothing more than to rip every one of Adamle's hairs individually from his head.

"Right, I expect he'll use his rematch clause soon."

"I'm sure he will use it as soon as possible," Stephanie confirmed, "but enough about my life. I just think you've been holding extremely steadfast with your job and I want to commend you for it. You've proven yourself an extremely competent choice and I'm so glad you've been working for us."

"Thank you _so_ much," he said and he sounded like a weasel to her. A stupid, dirty, low weasel and she hated weasels.

"No, thank _you_ for representing us just so spectacularly well."

"I'm working," Britt laughed as Hunter kissed the space just below her ear.

"What are you even doing?"

"I'm doing stuff."

"Stuff? That's nice and vague."

"I'm just doing administrative stuff that you would find incredibly boring," she said as she sorted through different files. "I'm just coordinating some stuff for upcoming shows and different order forms, or rather copies of order forms, from various departments in order to forward them to accounting."

"Why kinds of orders? Dirty ones?" he leered.

"No," she said, rolling her eyes, "things like pyros, materials for ring outfits, you don't think those cute, little briefs you wear to the ring pop out of nowhere, do you?"

"No, I didn't, but you think I'm cute in them?"

"Or out of them, either way," Britt told him, winking before she went back to sorting everything. "If I don't get these right, then something could get screwed up and we could lose money and I'm not going to be responsible for the downfall of the company."

"Thank you, that might be a deal-breaker if you were to bring down the company I work for."

"You think?" she said as she shifted something around. "That's probably why you should leave me alone."

"No way, I don't want to," he told her, kissing her again. "I hardly got to spend time with you this week, no way am I just going to leave you alone. I love you."

"I love you too, but I'm working, I don't ride piggyback with you when you're going down to the ring."

"How funny would that be though?" he chuckled, then gave her the once over. "You know, if you really wanted, you could be a diva."

"Are you kidding me?"

"No."

"No, I couldn't."

"Yes you could, you're ten times prettier than any of those girls."

"You're saying that because I'm your girlfriend," she said, "don't be all lame like that."

"I'm serious. You've got a nice body, you've got an usual look. I mean, with the really dark hair and the eyes and you're really cute and funny and sweet, the fans would eat you up. They'd love you and make posters for you."

"That's stupid, what would I even be? I can't wrestle."

"My valet. Steph was."

"Yeah, Steph also grew up around here. No, I don't think I'd make a very good diva. Just love me for who I am, please," she said, jutting her bottom lip out. It was just begging to be kissed so he did.

Hunter opened his eyes mid-kiss when he felt like he was being watched and saw Randy over Britt's shoulder. He pulled away and gave a smug smile, his lips curling up ever so slightly. "Hey, Randy, what's up?"

"Don't do that," Britt hissed at him.

"What? I'm not doing anything," he protested.

"Don't be a jerk," she said, then looked over her shoulder. "Hey Randy, you look good this evening."

"Real good," Hunter chimed in, pulling Britt closer to him so he could read his chin on her shoulder. He knew he was holding her possessively and he was being what could only be construed as a real jerk, but it was also pretty fun seeing Randy turn such a fetching shade of red.

"Hunter," she warned, turning her head to look at him, but Hunter just took the opportunity to kiss her. She unconsciously deepened the kiss, loving the feel of his mouth over hers and his strong hand on her waist.

Randy turned and walked away, pissed off at what he had just seen. Hunter didn't deserve someone like Britt. Randy _did_. He was a nice guy, usually. He could treat Britt like a queen and he would too if Hunter would just get the hell out of the picture, but how? They seemed pretty attached and he didn't know how to break them apart with someone simple. It would require something way more elaborate.

Chris went out there knowing he had been screwed. Dave really _shouldn't_ have been proud of the way he won the night before. Austin had it out for Chris because he knew Chris had it out for him. There was definite bad blood there and it burrowed itself deep into the sinews of their match last night. He deserved better than to deal with all these people who were against him. How was he to have a fair match if the referee was terribly biased for the other guy? It wasn't fair and he was demanding his rematch the next week.

Every person had a rematch clause and Chris was bringing his up. He was also trying to be whiny about it to go along with Stephanie's plan. Yes, he was still going along with it because he loved her, so help him. Adamle came down and Chris expected him to approve of the match. Adamle dropped a bomb on him saying it would be a cage match. Hadn't Chris just recently been in one of those for the title? It was like Adamle was trying to punish him for some crime Chris didn't know he committed. He was pissed at the situation, but he was going to deal with it. He knocked into Adamle purposefully on his way out. He couldn't hit the guy outright, so that would have to do.

Randy came out after him and they actually passed on the ramp, giving each other a look. It wasn't necessarily a hateful one, but it wasn't a friendly gaze either. Randy was pissed off at everything right now. Adamle was just the newest target. He was demanding that Shane and Stephanie take charge and fire Adamle or Randy would walk. Stephanie was backstage with the kids waiting for Chris when she heard what Randy had to say. Chris had Flynn in his arms and Sawyer was leaning against her when Randy came backstage.

"I want him gone, Stephanie," Randy said seriously.

"What's he done to you?"

"He's been completely unfair. Haven't you noticed that his ideas are crap?" Randy was looking at her the way he used to, with friendship.

"Randy, you have no idea what you're dealing with here."

"Then I'm going to walk," Randy said. "That's the ultimatum here, Steph. You've got a week to decide what you want to do."

"What is this really all about?" she asked him, reading something else in his eyes. It didn't look like he was completely angry about the situation with Adamle, but with something else altogether.

"It's about the piss-poor job that man has done. I'm serious here, he goes or I go, that's the choice."

"Well, like you said, I've got a week, right?"

"Right. Do the right thing."

"I think I will," she told him, but she had no clue what that right thing would be. She couldn't just let Adamle go. She suspected her father would go ballistic or something and demand she hire him back…but wait…oh wait, if she _did _fire Adamle it could get her father to come back from wherever he was hiding.

"What are you thinking, McMahon?" Chris whispered in her ear. Flynn reached out her hand and patted her mommy's cheek like she wanted to know what was going down too.

"If I fire Adamle, my dad has no choice but to come back," she said, her eyes dancing a little jig, the pools of blue-gray looking like someone had dropped a pebble into it. "That could really work, Randy's a genius."

"Really? You think so?"

"He has the potential to be with this idea," she said, nodding her head slightly. "Oh yeah, I think that could work out very well."

"Does this mean you're going to be on the show?"

"I don't know, I may send Shane," Stephanie said, kissing Flynn's cheek, "but I like this, I like this a lot. Now you just have to go win your match later."

"I will, don't worry about that. I've got all this pent-up anger from last night. Austin didn't even stick around. That's how much of a coward he is. He didn't even want to face me the next day. A man would've confronted me over what he'd done."

"Don't worry about him, he was just a minor speed-bump. You'll get Dave next week and you'll get the title back, it'll be fine and all will be right once again."

"Maybe you can interfere on my behalf!" Chris said excitedly. "Or maybe Sawyer can climb the cage with the belt. He's been really working those biceps and triceps lately. I think he could do it, or even Flynn with her amazing rolling over skills. She could school Dave."

"I'm sure she could, but you don't need any of us, just you and your amazing talents."

Chris felt a weird camaraderie with JBL later on when they were in their match. They both hated Shawn. It didn't make up for what happened with his throat, but it helped ease the tension a little bit. What made it even better was when JBL beat up Shawn before their match, leaving Dave vulnerable. He had to hand it to JBL sometimes, even going so far as to admire him for what he had done. That was a weird experience.

It was a little hard for Chris to get into this match though. It wasn't a one-on-one match so it didn't require his complete focus the entire time. Whenever he wasn't in the ring he found his mind wandering towards next week. It would certainly be a big match against Dave. He wanted his title back and if he had to do it in a steel cage, so be it. Maybe it would reduce the interference. Dave was an intimidating presence, sure, but he was also older than Chris with a lot less experience. That had to work in his favor somehow. Chris was also a lot more agile than Dave, quicker (not to mention hotter, but that was Stephanie's opinion).

He was probably looking ahead too much since he lost his match, but what did this even matter? What mattered was that steel cage hanging from the ceiling next week. Just him, Dave, and the unforgiving environment. He could win that though, he could win back his title and everything could be that good again. Maybe Stephanie would even show up next week. Maybe so many things could happen.

Once again, he was anticipating what was to come.


	209. You Teases, November 3, 2008

A/N: Today's been a weird day for me. First and foremost, a close friend of mine had to have surgery this morning and I've been distracted by that all day and pretty upset about it. Writing is kind of a relaxing and distracting thing for me, so that's really what this was, my way of getting my mind off of things. So I guess I just wanted to ask if you could keep my friend in your thoughts and prayers and stuff for his speedy recovery, it'd mean a lot to me. Thanks.

As for the show. Oh WWE, why do you reward me and then punish me? Like, okay, Steph was on and that was really cool, loved that. Looks like they're going somewhere because she was really devious. Loved that too. Loved when Adamle came in to say she had been meddling because uh, dude, that's exactly what's happening in HaK. Chris winning the title back, awesome, definitely loved that. So you know, lots of good things to be had, Chris had a good night, Steph had a good night, all very good.

But WWE is such a freaking tease! I couldn't believe it when Shane came in and asked if Chris had seen Stephanie and they said she had just left! Six years we've waited and then they act like they had an off-screen scene together! I was so angry about that.

Anyways, enjoy the chapter, leave a review, hope you like it. :)

* * *

The doorbell rang.

"You get it this time," Trish said. "I think I've had enough trick-or-treaters to last a lifetime. Besides, seeing all those kids just makes me want to be one of those parents and jealousy does not become me."

"I'm tired of it too. We've been doing it for hours, it wasn't even dark when some of them came up."

"Fine, we'll both go," Trish said as she got off the couch. She went over to the other side and grabbed Christian's hand, forcing him up. He stood with a grunt and then pulled her close to him, wrapping his arms around her and kissing her gently.

"I love you."

"I love you too, but we've got trick-or-treaters at the door. It's only seven, we're going to have to deal with this for at least a couple of hours."

"Who goes trick-or-treating at 9?" he asked.

"Teenagers who want candy. It's not everyday you get candy for free."

"Oh, we'll just turn off our light then, pretend like we gave away all our candy and then eat the rest in a huge pig-out!" Christian said, his eyes dancing as he joked around.

"Okay, I'm up for that," she laughed as she doorbell rang again. "Persistent ones, come on, husband."

"Coming, wife," he said as he followed her to the door. She grabbed the large bowl of candy on the end table next to the door as Christian opened it up.

"Hi!" Christian laughed as he saw Sawyer standing there. Chris was right behind him and a little ways down the walk was Stephanie with Flynn in her arms.

"Hey, I think I know you, but I can't tell because you have a great costume," Christian said as Trish stepped in the door.

"Oh, hey, guys, we've been expecting you all evening, we thought you'd stop by," Trish said as Stephanie stepped up to the walkway next to Chris. "Hey there, Sawyer, what are you supposed to be?"

"I Daddy," Sawyer said with a serious nod.

"No, he's not," Chris said, "You're a rock star, remember, kid, a rock star."

"Oh yeah," Sawyer said, "I that."

"Well your costume is really nice," Christian said and it was a pretty nice costume. Sawyer was wearing his hair spiked up in a Mohawk and was wearing a tattered band shirt (which was probably something he already had in his closet) with jeans and boots and little fingerless gloves with studs on them. His face also had face paint on it to complete the look.

"It was Chris's idea…obviously," Stephanie said.

"The kid saw a picture of KISS in my office and he thought it was very interesting," Chris said. "I did his hair. I know how to do a Mohawk from my old days of long hair. Cool, huh?"

"It cool," Sawyer said. "Candy!"

"What do we say?" Chris asked.

"Mmm..."

"You remember, trick or treat."

"Oh yeah…tickerteet!" Sawyer said, jumbling the words together and holding his bag out for Christian to drop some candy in. He had been getting candy for free all night from people he didn't even know. It was just madness, this giving out of candy, but he was going to reap all the benefits of this crazy day.

"Close enough," Chris said.

Christian grabbed a huge handful of candy and put it in the pillowcase Sawyer was holding, which was loaded with candy. "There you go, kiddo," Christian said.

"Thanks," Sawyer said, looking into the bag.

"Did you guys want to come in for a minute?" Trish asked her friends. Stephanie was holding Flynn, who was leaning her head against Stephanie's shoulder-blade, sucking on a pacifier as she watched her brother go trick-or-treating. Sawyer let her hold a piece of candy and she was still holding onto the lollipop Sawyer had given her. She shook it a couple of times, but it didn't really do anything, but she still clung to it.

"We would, but we saved your house for last, as you can see by the loot Sawyer has. We were going to go home, put the kids to bed and I was going to finally get to watch Chris's show. It's been sitting on the Tivo all week it seems."

"Oh yeah, we watched, funny stuff," Trish laughed. "We won't keep you then. We'll see you tomorrow, oh, and Christian and I will definitely be there on Monday for the show."

"Good, we want you there," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, you can see me win the title back."

"Hopefully," Stephanie said. "We'll see you guys tomorrow I'm sure. You won't be able to stay away from my kids for that long."

"Don't tease," Trish said with a silly pout. She saw some other kids coming up the walkway. "Looks like we're back to work, we'll see you guys later."

"Bye, happy Halloween."

"Bye!"

Sawyer turned and started running down the walkway back to the street, dragging his candy behind him. Chris started running after him before he got to the street or got lost. That kid was so unruly sometimes. Stephanie waved and started off behind her husband and son. Stephanie caught up with them down the street as they went back to their house. It was a little bit of a walk so Chris put Sawyer on his shoulders and held his candy bag with one hand. There were tons of kids and teenagers running around the streets and Sawyer kept trying to talk to people.

They got home and Stephanie got a bottle for Flynn. Chris had dumped all of Sawyer's candy on the coffee table and was sitting on the floor in front of the couch. Sawyer was standing next to him and trying to grab at all the candy and pull it towards him, but Chris kept shooing his hand away. Sawyer just wanted to eat some candy! There was so much of it he didn't even know where to start. Chris was sorting through the candy and making sure it was all fit for eating.

"Would you quit it?" Chris told his little boy. "Here, you can have this."

Sawyer took the Milky Way from Chris and tried to open it, but couldn't. He thrust it at Chris and Chris opened it for him. He took it and started eating it as he watched his daddy take a piece of candy. He hit Chris in the arm and Chris scoffed at him and stuck out his tongue as he ate the Starburst he had taken. Sawyer glared at his daddy. That was _his_ candy. Stephanie came back with Flynn and her bottle and saw the candy and grabbed a little bag of gummi worms.

"Mommy, stop!" Sawyer said, pouting. "Mine!"

"You can share," Stephanie told him gently as she sat down with Flynn.

"No, it mine," he whined.

"We can have a couple, there's no way you're eating all this candy," Stephanie said. "You're a little kid, you're not supposed to have this much candy, so you're not going to eat it all anyways so you'll share."

Sawyer climbed on the couch and sat down, very angry that they were stealing his candy. Stephanie popped a gummi worm into her mouth as she adjusted Flynn against her and let the little girl have her bottle. Sawyer, who was still mad, did want to see Flynn so he crawled across the couch, kicking Chris's head a little as he passed. Chris looked at him, but it didn't seem malicious. He knelt next to Stephanie and rubbed Flynn's head as she ate from her bottle. She looked up at him and stared for a second because he looked very strange with spiked hair and face paint.

"Hey, kid, let's get you cleaned up, okay?" Chris said, lifting Sawyer up. "We'll take a bath and you can chill with me and Mommy, okay?"

"Okay," he said, leaning down to kiss Flynn's head.

Chris took Sawyer upstairs for his bath and Stephanie finished up with Flynn, burping her and then going upstairs to change her diaper and put her jammies on. She was well on her way to sleep when Stephanie put her down in her crib. She kissed Flynn goodnight and went to her and Chris's room to put on something more comfortable. She could hear Sawyer splashing in the bathtub and she stuck her head in the doorway.

"Hey, you almost done?"

"Yeah, we're almost done," Chris said.

"I wanna watch your show!" Stephanie said excitedly.

"Okay, we'll hurry."

Stephanie nodded and left to go downstairs. She threw herself down on the couch and turned on the TV, putting it on something to pass the time. Chris and Sawyer showed up about 15 minutes later. Sawyer ran to the couch, his hair still wet from his bath and he hopped up and cuddled with Stephanie. Chris came over and sat on the other side of Stephanie and wrapped his arm around her.

"Finally, I get to see this show. I mean, we didn't give you any time off for it or anything so you had to do it quickly and we couldn't even travel with you because of the baby so I'm really anxious and you wouldn't even tell me anything about it so I don't know anything about it. I mean, I know about it, but I don't know what happened or anything."

"I didn't want to spoil it for you."

"Like I'm watching for any other reason than to see you," she said as she intertwined their fingers together. "Turn it on."

"You're so impatient," he told her. He grabbed the remote with his right hand and turned it on. Stephanie watched the first part and kept waiting for Chris to show up. Then he was introduced and she giggled and looked at Chris as one girl said she definitely recognized Chris Jericho.

"So how many of them hit on you?"

"Oh, all of them, repeatedly, every time I saw them," Chris said in a mock serious tone. "I only took a couple of them up on the offer, so you're safe because I didn't do all of them."

"Oh, okay, good."

"Daddy, what doing?" Sawyer asked, watching his daddy on the screen. That wasn't wrestling.

"I hosted a show."

"Who dat?" he asked.

"That's a vocal coach. He helps the girls to sing."

"Oh," Sawyer said very seriously.

"That one girl, the one who said she recognized you, she wanted you, didn't she? What was her name?"

"Jazmin."

"Yeah, what was with her?"

"She was good in this episode. I didn't really interact with them except to be the bearer of bad news."

"You look good. You're doing a good job so far," she said as they continued to watch. "You have a knack for it."

They watched the rest of the show. Stephanie wasn't suspicious of any of the women or anything. She was very secure in her relationship and she trusted Chris with everything she had so it wasn't like she was worried. She just liked to tease him about it because it was fun to tease him.

"You were just checking her out!"

"What!" he said. "You're seeing things."

"You gave her the once over like you used to give _me_ the once over. When was the last time you gave _me_ the once over?" she asked, jutting her bottom lip out and somehow looking like Sawyer in that moment.

"Um, everyday when you're looking all hot," Chris said. He started kissing her neck, "you are going to look so great on Monday. You're going to show up everyone."

"Oh, you think so?"

"Mmhmm," he mumbled against her skin, which held the faint smell of baby powder and lavender baby lotion. "You're going to steal the show, even from me."

"Those are bold words."

"I know you, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho. You're absolutely going to steal it."

**Monday**

"Do you think I could sing on your show?"

"Hell no," Chris said. "You'd be the first one out and you'd embarrass me."

"That's not nice."

"Well you can't sing," Chris said. "I love you in spite of that."

"Gee, thanks. I'm going to go now. I want to make sure I'm at the airport in enough time."

"Okay, I'll see you at the show, blow my socks off."

"Stop."

"What? I'm just excited you're going to be on TV, that's all."

"Well don't be. This isn't about you."

"We're married, it's always about me," Chris said. "I wish we were going together so you could be all tough and I'd just be like, in awe of you and you'd have everyone cowering. So what are you planning to do? Are you going to plot with Shane?"

"No, Shane knows nothing about anything. I want to keep him out of this," Stephanie said. Shane was sometimes too good for his own good. She loved him, but he wasn't as tough as her. He liked to be diplomatic and she liked to be ruthless and rip people's heads off and eat them for breakfast. It was just their personalities. "I just…well, it's a game, right?"

"What's a game?"

"This thing with me and my dad. Shane helps, but he's not really into it, he doesn't care. He stays at corporate and he does his thing. He's not in the trenches so to speak. So he doesn't have to be involved with anything. I mean, we'll obviously both take care of the Adamle situation."

"Are you going to fire him?"

"I'm going to do it one better," Stephanie said.

"What's that?" he asked.

"I'm going to make him resign."

"How the hell are you going to do that?"

"Did you see him last week? The man is completely weak. I mean, oh, I'm going to slap Orton because he was being a big, bad meanie," Stephanie said, shaking her hands like she was actually scared.

"Hey, I slap people," Chris pointed out.

"Then you kick their ass," Stephanie pointed out, "there's the difference. You're cute when you do it. He's a wimp, I've been working on making him break. Now I'm really going to make him break."

"And you're not going to tell Shane?"

"This doesn't really concern him as far as I'm concerned," Stephanie said, giving Chris a look. He licked his lips and stared her down. "What are you looking at?"

"You are so hot right now."

"Get out of here, Jericho," she said. "You have a big match tonight that you need to focus on, not me. In fact, we shouldn't even see each other tonight."

"Excuse me?" he said, his eyebrows knitting together in the middle of his forehead. "You're going to have to run that by me one more time. You actually don't want to see me at all tonight?"

"Well, we're both going to be busy. Everyone's going to expect me to show up and take charge and it's about time I did. You have a huge title match to regain what is rightfully yours. There's no Austin to screw you over so you will be able to win this title, right?"

"I'm going to damn sure try."

"I know you will," she said, "so see, we both have really important things and maybe it's better if we just don't see each other while this is going on. We're only going to distract each other from our goals."

"God, you are so sexy," Chris said, lessening the space between them by taking long strides over to her and grabbing her around the waist. "I have never wanted you more."

"Really? Never?"

"Never," he growled, leaning in to capture her lips in a kiss. She pulled away but brushed her lips against his enticingly.

"You can't have me, Jericho."

"Of course I can, I can have you whenever I want."

"You've got to go, remember?" Stephanie said, keeping her lips just a breath away from her husband. "Tonight we're going to show everyone who the dominant couple in this business is. Adamle thinks he can get the better of me and Dave thinks he can get the better of you, not going to happen. We're going to show them."

"I like the way you think, McMahon," he told her. "So you really don't want me to see you at all tonight? Not even for a few seconds, not even for a second to see your hot husband?"

"Well, you will have my kids so I'm bound to see you at some point."

"All about the kids, I get it. You're just using me for the goods I can give you in making kids!" he said, pulling away. "Well I see how it is now, McMahon. If that's how you want to play it."

"Get out of here. Do you have all the kid's things?"

"Diaper bag for Flynn with a nighttime and spare training pants thing for Sawyer, check. Toys, check, air mattress for our kid, check, portable crib for our other kid, check, food for our little girl, check, juice and snacks for our little boy, check. Car-seats are in the car and strapped in. Pajamas for both kids, check. I think I've got everything," Chris said.

"Yeah, sounds like it. You know I have to make an entrance tonight, right?"

"Yes, because you're the boss, I get it. Trust me, I've been with you for six years, I know how this ticks," he said, tapping on her forehead. "I think it was the devious mind that first attracted me to you in the first place, Lord knows it wasn't that rat's nest hairstyle of yours and the slut clothes you wore."

"Leave now," she said, kissing him. "I'll help you with the kids."

"It's the least you can do since you're abandoning me tonight in favor of trying to get back at someone. This little game you and your father play. I mean, I don't even know how I got sucked into it."

"Yes, you do," she said as she went over to Flynn's cradle and picked her up. "You can get the boy."

"Thanks, stick me with the ultra-cranky one."

"Oh, and Flynn's not cranky? She only doesn't even sleep through the night, that's very cranky."

"Right now she's not cranky. Sawyer's always cranky. It's very McMahon of him."

"Don't blame it on me, you've been quite the sourpuss lately."

"Sourpuss?" he snorted. "What are you, 70? And no, I haven't been a sourpuss, as you put it, I've just been busy. I've had a lot of interviews with the new show and everything, plus losing the title has been hard and taking care of two kids while your wife is off plotting sinister plans against her father, it's bound to make you a little stressed."

"See, sourpuss. I don't think Trish has to put up with any of this from _her_ husband."

"They've been married a month, a _month_, we've been married almost four years come January. When they've been married that long, we'll get back to them for their opinion. Of course, by that time, we'll have been married eight years so we'll still have different experiences."

"Geez, way to depress me, two kids in not even four years of marriage."

"Are you just going to break out the comparisons to Trish and Christian now that they're married like we are?" he asked.

"Yes, that was the plan."

Christian and Trish walked into the arena hand-in-hand. Behind them, Edge was walking in, perching his shades on his head. Beside him was Lita, looking a tiny bit apprehensive about being there. Edge just gripped her hand tighter. The foursome almost immediately noted that it seemed everyone from every brand was here. This made Trish and Lita nervous for different reasons. Trish hadn't really seen Carlito since she had gotten married and she was afraid of the awkwardness of a meeting with him. Lita was afraid Vickie would be here and there would be some sort of confrontation and Vickie would make things extremely difficult for Edge. He assured her they were separated, but what did that even mean?

"Hey, what's wrong?" Edge asked as he leaned in close to Lita.

"I don't know, don't you think it's weird that we came?"

"I work here," he pointed out.

"I meant together."

"You just wanted to see friends, what's the problem with that?"

"Nothing, I mean, I'd like to see my friends and everything, that's great, really happy to do that," she said, "but you know, I guess, when I left, I didn't have the best reputation. Now I'm here, and let's face it, you're married and that one time I did come back, I was me, you know."

"Look, everyone knows Vickie and I are separated. I kind of already burned that bridge. Don't worry about other people. I wanted to be here with you and that's it. If anyone so much as sneezes in your direction, I'm going to kick their ass."

"You're still recovering."

"I'll still kick their ass," he said, giving her a small kiss.

"We'll see you guys later," Christian said. "We're going to see if Chris and Steph are here."

"Okay, we'll see you guys later."

Christian and Trish headed off in one direction and Edge and Lita in another. "You know, I really do think you should consider what Stephanie said about coming back here. Just think of how cool it would be to be back here where you belong."

"You don't think I belong in TNA?"

"No, it's just…well, answer me this," she said as she lightly swung their clasped hands between her. "Who do you hang out with when you're at work? Who do you talk with or just hang out with, I mean, off-screen, you know, just your real selves. Who?"

"I hang out with Rhino," he answered slowly.

"One guy, just one guy?"

"Well, I mean, I get preoccupied with doing actual work," he said.

"Our best friends are here. It'd be so much fun to travel with Chris and Steph."

"We'd get sick of them."

"We already do sometimes, but they're still our best friends and I know we annoyed the hell out of them when we were apart. Just promise you'll really consider it because I'd love to be back here."

"I promise, I will. Why don't we split up? Chances are they're going to be separate anyways and you can go find Steph and I can go find Chris and we'll each talk to our respective best friends and then we can meet up again and I can pretend like it's been forever since I've seen you and then I'll kiss the life out of you because I can."

"Well, I do like the sound of that ending," she said, kissing him deeply. "So 'til we meet again."

"Yes, I love you."

"Love you more," she said in a sickeningly sweet voice.

They were still in their honeymoon phase and it was wonderful. She couldn't get enough of being Mrs. Christian Cage. It was so much better than just being his girlfriend. That seemed more like a passing fancy. Now she was his wife and they were still very much in love and there had been hardly any fighting between them. He knew it wouldn't always be this good, but he really hoped this phase would stay a very long time. Maybe years, hopefully years.

Trish was walking down the hallway and minding her own business and she of course came across the one man she didn't want to run into. Actually, that wasn't true, she ran into Carlito's brother. She tried to avoid him, but he was peering at her for a moment before recognition reigned in his eyes. He came over, the tag belt over his shoulder and he nodded at Trish.

"Hi, how are you?" he asked nicely.

"Oh hey, I'm good, and you?"

"Yeah, I'm good. Oh, Carlito wanted to talk to you, so you just wait here. I'll get him."

Trish wanted nothing more than to run away, but she stayed rooted to the spot, waiting for this conversation. It was better to get it over with now, she thought, than to save it for later. Things had died between her and Carlito a long time ago, but the fact remained, they were supposed to get married. She had told him she would marry him and then reneged on the offer. Sure, he had offered first, but she wasn't supposed to take it. She was supposed to be Trish Colon right now and not Trish Cage. That was still a pretty weird subject. Carlito came over and Primo left them alone.

"Hi," she said.

"Hey, how are you?" he asked and he was much more at ease than she figured he would be. Maybe this awkwardness was only on her end.

"I'm really doing well, and you?"

"Tag champs, can't complain," he said with a smile as he patted his belt. "I just wanted to see how married life was treating you. Heard the wedding was nice, hope the marriage is cool too."

"Yeah, it's going really well, actually. Of course, I'm only a month into it, so what do I know, right?" she chuckled and it was only about 75 percent strained.

"They say the first year is the hardest so you're already like, what 1/12 done with that, you're cool," he joked and she laughed.

"So how is it tagging with your brother?"

"We're a regular Hardy Boy team," he joked again and this time her laugh was decidedly more genuine. "Didn't think we'd get these belts so soon, but it's nice to be holding gold again."

"How do you like SmackDown."

"It's different, definitely, I like it, it's a new thing."

"Yeah, Christian's thinking about coming back here when his contract expires with TNA. We might end up on SmackDown. I don't really know how that'd go. I haven't been on that show in forever it seems," she laughed. "I do hope that we'll get to travel with the company again."

"You should come back if he is, might as well."

"Well, that'd be kind of hard, well, I mean, it would and it wouldn't…uh, Christian and I are trying for a baby right now."

"Oh wow, a baby, so soon?"

"Yeah," she said, darting her eyes this way and that, "we're ready for one. I just, I don't know, I see kids and I know I want one."

"That's cool, cool, well, I'm going to go find my brother, keep him out of trouble, but I'll see you around."

"Yeah, you will."

"Later."

"Bye."

Trish walked him walk away and took a deep breath. That went a lot better than she thought it would. Suddenly, two arms were around her waist and she was being lifted off the ground. She squealed in surprise and was set down again. She turned around and saw Jeff and she laughed and hugged him tightly. He laughed too and kissed her on the cheek in hello.

"I didn't know you were going to be here," he drawled in that way of hers.

"I live in Tampa now," she pointed out, making a face at him.

"Oh yeah, because you married that dude."

"Oh, yeah, that dude, you jealous of him?"

"Most definitely," Jeff said, "you were supposed to be mine."

"Yeah, for the two seconds we dated."

"Yes, exactly," he said, wrapping his arm around her waist. "So where are we headed?"

"To find my husband and make him jealous."

"We're going to have to do it quick, I've got the first match tonight."

"You're wrestling?"

"Yup, just like old times, me and Matt against…someone, I don't remember who we're facing."

"Not good to not know."

"We'll pull it out, we've got more experience together than anyone here, including D-X. If your husband were back here and Edge wasn't injured, we could've made it a very old-school match."

"I'm trying to convince him to come back so I can be here."

"That'd be awesome, I'd love to spend more time with you."

"To steal me away?"

"Heck yeah. Don't you know by now, Trish Stratus, you and I are meant to be?"

"I'll have you know it's Trish Stratus-Cage now and don't you forget it," she said, sticking her tongue out at him as she wrapped her arm around his waist as they walked down the hallway. She briefly saw Randy pass them as they walked arm in arm down the hallway.

Randy was fuming. He had issued his ultimatum and he knew Shane and Stephanie were going to be here tonight, but he had no idea when. He was going to wait all night if he had to. He wanted his answer. He was not afraid to walk. He would quit this company and he could very easily go to TNA and make that the best company in the entire world. He was Randy Orton and he demanded respect and Adamle was giving him none and now Stephanie and Shane were giving him none either.

To add onto his anger, he had just witnessed Hunter and Britt making out, which just made him sick to his stomach. That girl was supposed to be his and now he was being forced to watch her make out with the overgrown lump she called a boyfriend. He was a manipulative, ugly jerk and she deserved better. She deserved Orton and he intended to make her see that fact.

He went out there and said he was going to wait until Shane and Stephanie showed up and answered what he had demanded they answer the week before. The choice was up to them and they were going to make it or he was going to sit there all night. At least it saved him from seeing Hunter and Britt act like a couple of idiotic teenagers who were experiencing their first crush. It was sickening is what it was and out here he didn't have to see or think about it.

Chris wondered when Stephanie was going to get here and if she was actually going to stay away from him all evening. He didn't want to stay away from his wife all evening. Flynn was happily lying on her blanket and rolling over, showing off how advanced she was. She was lifting her head when she was on her stomach, looking around, bouncing around and generally doing many cute baby things that anybody would totally fawn over. That's what he was expecting Trish in t-minus 10

9…

8…

7…

"Hey! We've been looking all over for you…where's Stephanie?" Trish said as she came in the locker room."

"Stephanie is arriving separately," Chris told her and Christian. Christian immediately came and sat with Chris and the kids. Trish sat on the couch for the moment.

"Separately, why? We're in Tampa, you guys live here, you can drive here together."

"She left me."

"What!"

"She left me with the kids, thanks for letting me finish my sentence. She left me with the kids because she's meeting her brother at the airport and they're making their big entrance. She wants to intimidate people, make them think she's important."

"She kind of is," Christian said as he played with Sawyer.

"So she says," Chris joked. "So you guys been here long?"

"No, not long," Trish said, coming over and sitting next to Flynn. "We came with Edge and Lita, this is the first time they're out and about in front of people they know. Lita's nervous."

"So you two are on good terms now?"

"Better terms. She and Edge are much better this time around. She's not such a…"

'The word Trish is looking for is whore," Christian said as he pushed a car around.

"Thanks for offering to watch the kids. Stephanie's off being a bitch in heels and I've got my huge match later so it didn't leave us lots of quality time to spend with the little ones. I think Stephanie even got her own office tonight. She says she doesn't want to see me, but we'll see how long that lasts."

"Hey, Flynn, what are you doing?" Trish asked. Flynn just rolled over onto her back and smiled up at Trish, kicking her legs out as she put her hands in front of her face and studied them for a second before sticking them in her mouth.

"Hey, you don't know where that's been," Chris said, grabbing a wipe from Flynn's diaper bag and wiping off her hands. "There, now you can chew on those cute, little fingers without worrying about germs. Mommy would kill me if she found out I let you get sick."

"She's just getting so big, you're just getting so big," Trish said to Flynn. "I can't believe she's almost 3 months old."

"I know, she's definitely getting older and wiser, that one is. She takes after Stephanie like that."

Stephanie looked out of the window of the stretch limo and then back at her brother. "So what do you want to do about the Adamle situation?" he asked.

"I don't really know," she lied. She knew exactly what she wanted to do.

"Oh, well, I don't really want to fire him. I know we didn't exactly hire him in the first place, but you know, I would like to keep him on because I'm really not in the mood to do any firing tonight."

"Do you think Randy is bluffing?" she wondered.

"Well, he's under contract, so even if he isn't, he can't just leave."

"I checked with his doctors, he's been cleared to wrestle for weeks, but has failed to disclose this information to anyone in management," Stephanie said. "So I think he's bluffing. You'd think if it was so important for him to gain respect or whatever it is he's demanding he would be in the ring earning it."

"Wow, I can't believe he didn't tell anyone."

"I know, but we can put him in a match tonight, for sure," she said.

"That's true," Shane said. "So we're not going to fire Adamle."

"I don't think that's the right move, no," Stephanie said. "But that's just me."

They arrived at the arena and waited for the door to be opened by their driver. Stephanie stepped out and smiled. This night was going to end up the way she wanted it, at least on her end. If Chris held up his part of the deal then it was going to be a banner night for the Jericho family. If Sawyer and Flynn wanted to get in on the action, Sawyer could be potty-trained during the nighttime and Flynn would start crawling, but she wasn't going to put such expectations on her children. So it would just have to come down to her and Chris.

Stephanie told Shane she was going to let him handle this one and he said he was fine with that as they went their separate ways. She was only a few steps away when Shane turned and yelled, "Hey, are you going to see Chris? Just so I know where to find you."

"Yeah, I was going to see him and see if he's getting ready for his big match and then I was going to check on the kids," Stephanie nodded, putting a smile on her face.

"Okay, cool, I'll see you in a bit. I would like you out there, but I know your family comes first."

"Definitely," she said. She watched her brother until he was out of her eyesight and then started quickly towards her destination, which was not her husband's locker room. She was sure Chris was doing a fine job with the kids and she had business to take care of. She got to Adamle's door and knocked, but stepped inside without waiting for an answer. She put on her sickly sweet smile and saw the man she wanted to talk to sitting at his desk. "Mike, hello."

"Stephanie, hi, so you and your brother are here?"

"Yes, we are, we knew we were needed here so we just had to come," Stephanie said, pretending to be serious. "I just don't know what to do, Mike, I just don't know what to do. I let Shane take charge of what's going to happen with Randy, but I'll admit that I'm really nervous he could walk."

"You don't think he would, do you?" he asked.

"I don't know, I've known Randy for a while, we were friends, you know. He has this impulsive nature to him. He very well could just quit. Then we'd be down one superstar and he's a huge star for us, you know, oh, of course you know. And what if he goes to TNA? That would be a huge blow to us."

"I wouldn't want that to happen. I've tried to be fair, Stephanie, neutral."

"I know you wouldn't. You've tried so hard, I know, but…losing Randy would just awful," she said, biting her lip. "This is a very serious situation."

"I don't…so I'd be fired."

"Oh, I couldn't do that. Not after you were approved by my brother and I. Sure, the fans hate you, most of the wrestlers hate you, not to mention the fact you've put my husband in some heinous matches, 2 Steel Cage matches for titles? Unsanctioned matches? I mean, you said you were neutral, but that hardly seems fair, don't you think? I mean, he lost a tooth in his ladder match and my little boy, he's just two, he wondered where all that blood was coming from. But I would never fire you. We have the utmost confidence, but this really puts us in a bind. How do we please you _and_ Randy?"

"I'm…I'm not sure."

"Oh, I was hoping you would," she could hear her brother's music reverberating throughout the arena. "Oh, there's Shane's music now, but don't worry, Mike, we'll figure something out, I mean, maybe Randy won't leave. Maybe he won't take all the people that _do_ like him over to TNA, you know, hopefully. Anyways, keep up the good work."

Mike looked on the verge of tears and she made sure to make her own eyes look glassy. She gave him a sad wave and then walked out of the room. She rolled her eyes and started down the hallway towards the gorilla position to watch the segment with Shane. But maybe she should lay low for a little bit and not appear too happy. Well, she might as well go check on her children so she wouldn't be totally lying to her brother.

She sought out Chris's locker room and walked inside. Chris gasped, "Oh my God, the princess is gracing us with her presence!"

"Shut up," Stephanie said. "Where are Trish and Christian? I haven't seen them all evening."

"They were here, they just went to grab some food."

"Have you eaten?"

"We are all well-fed, thank you for asking, some more than others. I kept it light for my match, don't want heavy food in my stomach. We've got leftovers at home so I'll just eat that when we go home."

"Smart," she said, pretty much ignoring that and turning on the TV in his locker room.

"Well, nice to know you care."

"I do care, I just need to see this and make sure it worked."

"What? Project Adamle Humiliation?"

"I don't want humiliation, if it comes to humiliation I'll just think of it as a little gift."

"You're a bitch."

"Language," she said, pointing to Sawyer who was practically nose to nose with Flynn having what appeared to be a staring contest. "What is he doing?"

"He thinks it's funny when she hits him in the face. That's pure born wrestler right there, for both of them. He knows how to take a punch, she knows how to give one. I think I'm calling this their first wrestling lesson."

"Be careful with her, baby boy, okay, don't hit her."

"I not, Mommy," he said, pulling away from Flynn, who tried to grab his shirt. She wasn't done playing with him.

Stephanie smiled at them and went back to watching TV. Chris sat next to her, already in his ring tights and a t-shirt. He wrapped his arm around her and she placed her hand on his bare leg and grimaced as she realized he didn't have pants on. She gave him a quick glare before going back to the TV.

Her smile grew into a grin as Adamle came out there and started talking to Shane. He was getting all emotional again and she groaned at how wimpy he was. Why was he crying over this? This wasn't something you cried over. You cried over being forced to quit. Nobody was forcing Adamle to quit. Her brother wasn't going to do that, she knew. But then it worked out perfectly because she had guilted Adamle so much, he resigned. She smiled and started rubbing Chris's leg unconsciously.

"What did you say to him?" Chris asked, shaking his head.

"I jut told him that I wasn't going to fire him, that we'd just lose Randy, but that'd be really bad. I made him feel like crap is what I'm saying and it worked. Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got things to do, people to see, lives to ruin."

"What the hell are you up to, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho?"

"If I have my way, Chris, I'll be ruling everything out of the ring and if you have your way, you'll be ruling everything in it."

"You really think I'm going to win?" Even Chris wasn't 100 percent sure though he was going to try his hardest. Cage matches were a different breed altogether. They weren't as brutal as Hell in a Cells, but they were their own brand of terror. A lot of it had to do with luck too.

"I _know_ you're going to win."

"Thanks. So now you want to steal power from Shane too?"

"If it's in the cards, yes."

"Always plotting, always plotting."

Britt pulled Hunter's hat on his head. "You look so cute."

"Oh come on, _cute_? I don't want to look cute, tell me I look like something else," he told her.

"Um, you look…dashing?"

"Dashing? You need better adjectives."

"Well, I do think you look cute with your hat and your t-shirt. It's like a little boys club. What was D-X like in their prime?"

"Well, it was awesome, we were like, pranksters, always wreaking havoc. Those were the good old days. I loved it then. We were just troublemakers, like kids. It was fun. Now we do it for the nostalgia factor."

"I wish I could've seen you back then, but I was like 16."

"Oh god, don't say that," Hunter said, kissing her lightly. "You're going to make me feel old."

"Well Mr. Helmsley, that's because you _are_ old," she teased, "but not as old as Shawn so don't worry about that, plus you have all your hair so double plus."

"We're going to have fun tonight, we're going to make you laugh."

"You always make me laugh, you're funny-looking," she told him.

"I'm going to knock you to the ground and pin you."

"You've taken too many shots to the head," she told him, cupping his cheeks in her cool hands. She was too short to really get at his face and look him in the eyes, but he looked down at her so she could look up at him. "There'll be no sex on the ground."

He laughed and put his large hands around her tiny waist. "Don't you have work to do?"

"No, I called Stephanie, she was being really secretive. She's up to something."

"She always is, ever since I've known her. You know, it was actually her idea to align with me in the first place."

"Not surprising."

"It was then because she was such a goody two-shoes…hey, you should learn how to wrestle. I'll teach you, then you can come on TV with me."

"No way, you're not getting me out there in front of all those people. I get stage fright. Didn't I tell you about that time when I was 11 and I was supposed to sing a solo in the Christmas play and I got so fidgety I fell off the stage as I was trying to sway with the music?"

"Oh God, the visual of that is hilarious," he said. "But that was a long time ago."

"Feels like yesterday. You just go out there and win, beat those stupid idiots. I mean, seriously, The Miz and Morrison? How many world titles do they have between them? Like zero. You, on the other hand, by yourself have, what? Like 13 or something? Plus Shawn has a number."

"Yeah, we'll beat them, easy. That'll teach them to make fun of us."

"Exactly, you're going to rock."

Trish popped a fry into her mouth. "So you were with Jeff?"

"Yeah, you jealous?"

"No," Christian said, but he then stuffed half of his burger in his mouth, possibly to keep from talking.

"You are! You're jealous!"

"Of Jeff Hardy? Please, I'm more afraid of a spider than I am of Jeff Hardy."

"I didn't say you were afraid, I said you were jealous. Oh man, that is adorable. Chrissy, we're married now, sacred vows, rings, the whole, nine yards. That's what it means. You can't honestly be afraid or jealous."

"I'm not, I was just wondering where you were and you were with Jeff and when I came up to you guys you were all over each other."

"I was giving him a good luck hug for his match."

"You should be giving me good luck hugs."

"I do…but it'd be impossible to give you one tonight because you're not working, you don't even work here. We're visiting. I could wish you luck on visiting."

"Well then where's my regular hug?"

"I hugged you when I saw you and I hugged you again a little while ago, not to mention kissed you."

"Damn it," he muttered. "You got me on a technicality."

"Or an actuality. That is so sweet that you're jealous when we're husband and wife now. Married, the big M."

"You dated him. You broke up with me to date him."

"You broke up with me because Mickie told you to. You left the company because of that, abandoned me, left me a Dear John note and packed your things, we both did stuff," she told him. "I was devastated when you left and you're upset over Jeff Hardy."

"You really liked him."

"Yeah, I did, but I obviously didn't love him or I'd be married to him and not to you, the man I've only wanted to marry for the last, God, five years?"

"Sorry," he said, "sometimes those old insecurities flair up, you know. Like, feels too good to be true sometimes and I guess I just look for stuff that isn't there."

"Oh, Chrissy, don't worry, we're together now and I take that very seriously," she said, reaching for his hand and giving it a squeeze. "I'm not your brother when it comes to marriage. Speaking of your brother, where are he and Lita?"

"Probably doing it in a broom closet somewhere."

Randy didn't know what came over him. In his mind's eye, he saw Hunter leaning over CM Punk. Maybe it was just his mind playing tricks on him, no, it _had_ to be his mind playing tricks on him because it wasn't Hunter. It was Ted and before he knew what he was doing, he was kicking him in the head, but he was picturing himself kicking Hunter in the head and getting Britt, the ultimate prize. Why should Hunter get everything Randy wanted? It wasn't fair and it was time to change that.

Stephanie was just checking her messages when Adamle walked in. He greeted her amicably, but then turned on her, accusing her of being the reason why he resigned, calling her out for everything she had done since he had been GM. It was all true, she had been quite manipulative and had changed things a lot to work to her advantage, but she also hadn't been the one to come up with the stupid ideas Adamle had claimed were ground-breaking. She was just trying not to make her family an embarrassment. He had the audacity though, to place all blame on her when most of it should be her father's.

Then he went over the line when he said motherhood hadn't changed her and she was still a megalomaniac. Nobody insulted her mothering skills. Stephanie had put in too many hours trying to be a good mother to her children, constantly putting them and their needs first. Was she your conventional mother? No, not by a long-shot. Chris had put it best when she had cried when he won the title. She cried when he won, but didn't cry during either of her children's births. But Sawyer was a well-adjusted, bright, funny, sweet little boy and Flynn was a wonderful baby and she was not going to have this man insult her like that.

She stood up, a menacing figure to anyone and looked down at the peon her father had insisted upon employing to this high-profile position. She wasn't going to stand for someone insulting her like that. She was a McMahon and she owned this business and she could do with it what she wanted. This man had been a mere roadblock and she had gotten rid of him without actually getting rid of him. Let Adamle explain _that_ to her father. Adamle left and Shane walked in and Stephanie put on her sweet disposition. Her brother was too nice sometimes.

He told her he had an announcement for Survivor Series and she implored him to tell her, but he wouldn't, insisting it was going to be a surprise. She was running this show and she wanted to know, but she knew her brother wouldn't give up the information to her. He liked his surprise announcements, but she wanted to know what it was. With Adamle gone, maybe it was now her time again and she didn't want Shane of all people putting a cramp in her plans. She looked down at her phone and scrolled through her numbers until she got to the one she wanted.

"It Mommy!" Sawyer mumbled with amazement. He was just trying to get to bed, but then his Mommy showed up on TV! His mommy was _never_ on TV!

"Yeah, it is," Chris said as he stroked Sawyer's hair, trying to get him to sleep.

"What doing?" he asked. "She TV."

"I know, she's on the TV. Before you were born, she was on the TV a lot. You were kind of a surprise so you know, she had come off TV, it was a whole thing. She just caused a man to resign. Your mommy figures now's the time to regain control of everything. You know how Mommy likes you to pick up after yourself?"

"Uh huh."

"Well…when she's ordering you around, she loves you. When she's ordering other people around, she loves the ordering around. She's trying to grab control from Uncle Shane because Mommy is…how can we say it? She likes the power."

"Oh, I do too."

"Oh really?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said as he yawned. "I power, Daddy."

"Spoken like a true McMahon," he said as he leaned down to kiss his son goodnight. His phone rang and he scrambled to pick it up before it woke up Flynn.

"Hello?"

"Hey."

"Hey, baby, you _do_ know we're in the same arena, right?" Chris asked.

"I need you to come over here," Stephanie said. "I'm in my office, please come."

"What is it?"

"I need a favor from you."

"My match is coming up soon, baby. I wanted to get some warm-ups in before then, you know, loosen up in case I have to climb. I want to be agile, though Dave isn't as agile as me, I think if we were to race up the cage, I'd get it."

"I know you would, you're fast, anyways, come here."

"Stephanie…" he whined.

"Sweetie, I need your help."

"With what?"

"Were you just watching?"

"Oh, you mean Adamle insulting you, you want me to beat him up, hang him from a flagpole by his underwear because you caused the man to resign from his job, that's a pretty hardcore thing to do to a guy so I don't know what I'd do as a follow-up. Oh, and he's absolutely wrong about the motherhood thing, you've changed. That guy knows nothing, I've known you for almost ten years, he's known you for what, one."

"I'm not worried about that," Stephanie said. "I know I'm a good mother. Can you just please come here?"

"Fine, let me just get Trish or Christian to watch the kids."

"Thanks, get here ASAP."

Chris hung up and sighed. His wife was so demanding sometimes. Sawyer and Flynn were both asleep so watching them would be a piece of cake. He stuck his head out the door and happened to see Edge and Lita sitting on a crate. "Hey, you guys, can you do me a favor?"

"What?" Lita asked. Being around Edge all night had really put her at ease.

"Could you come watch my kids until Trish or Christian get here. They're both asleep so you'd just have to sit here, but keep the making out to a minimum."

"Sure, I got your kids covered," Edge said.

"Okay, don't say it like that, I do want my kids in one piece when I get back."

"Ha ha, I think I know how to watch sleeping kids," Edge said, then added, "okay, dude, that sounded so bad and completely not what I meant."

Chris chuckled. "Obviously. If they wake up and need something, call me. I think Steph will probably be in here to see them during my match."

"Cool, we got it."

"Yeah, Chris," Lita said, "I'll make sure to keep him in line with the two little ones."

"Thanks, Lita."

Chris rushed to Stephanie's office, pulling open the door. "I don't know why I give in to you so easily."

"Love, anyways, if you saw that thing, my brother has an announcement. If it's big, that means it has to do with the World Title. He won't tell me because it's a surprise for me, but he'll tell you, you need to ask."

"_This_ is what I came running for? You couldn't wait like 20 minutes for him to say something?" Chris asked incredulously.

"Have you ever known me to be patient?"

"You've got a point," he said, taking her in his arms, "So what do I get if I help you out? I expect full benefits." His hand was snaking its way into her shirt. "I love that wore a low-cut top, all the more easy for me to get my hand inside your shirt."

"Get out," she told him.

"Oh, you want me to leave?"

"Out of my shirt, you ass," Stephanie told him, pushing his hand away. "What if someone were filming us?"

"There are no cameras, unless they're hidden, in which case, hey everyone in America and abroad, I'm feeling up my wife right now, it's totally okay because we're married and have two kids, that's right, two kids, and Steph is a wonderful mother."

"Thanks," she blushed.

"Sawyer saw you on TV and he said he wanted to be powerful like you."

"Great, now I don't think I'm such a great mother. Oh, I heard Shane's voice, I'm getting out of here, he'll never tell you if he thinks I influenced you."

"What the hell else is he going to think? We're married, I tell you everything and do everything you tell me to do."

"I know, just get the info!"

"Okay, okay."

Shane walked in as Stephanie walked out and Chris tried to appear nonchalant, but he was practically Shane's brother so trying to cull information was weird. Shane asked where Stephanie was because if anyone knew, it would be Chris. He said she was just here, but she left and that was irrelevant because he wanted to talk to Shane (thanks for _nothing_, WWE). He asked about the announcement and Shane gave it up pretty readily. He had to know Chris was going to tell Stephanie and Chris nodded. So he might have to face Cena. That'd be fine with him.

"So what was it?" Stephanie asked from just outside the door.

"Just whoever wins my match tonight will face Cena at Survivor Series."

"Oh, that's it?" Stephanie said. "Well, I guess that's fine."

"Yeah, see, and you were all worried over nothing."

"Do you not get the whole plan for complete and total power?"

"What are you going to do with your brother in that case, Stephanie? Throw him and Marissa out on their asses?"

"No, he'd have his same time, Vice President of Global Media. He's good at that. I'm good at this, that's what we'd do, he's in charge of that, I'm in charge of this. I want the power."

"I know, I know, already. Seriously, if I wasn't married to you and madly in love with you, I'd still hate your guts because you're really annoying."

"I'm not annoying."

"Okay, you're…irritating?"

"So are you."

"We're perfect for each other," he said, kissing her. "I left Edge and Lita with the kids, maybe you want to go take a quick peek with me."

"Edge? You left our children with _Edge_?"

"They're both sleeping, if he screws that up, there's no hope for him."

After they checked on the children (they were fine), the two went their separate ways. Stephanie went back to her brother and said she liked the idea he had, but he needed to tell her these things. She knew she was surreptitiously telling her brother that ideas ran by her and she needed to approve them. They talked about their father, but Shane was more genuine in his concern and want of praise for Vince. Stephanie, at this point, wanted him to show his face so she could punch it. If nothing else, the man should've come out of hiding to see his granddaughter.

Chris's match was next though so she had little time to really think about what she wanted. She ended up going to Chris's locker room and watching the kids and the match. She was worried for Chris inside the cage, but she knew he'd be okay. She was nervous and antsy during his match, grimacing with every hit and counting with every pinfall that ended just too soon.

Chris was doing a lot of brutalizing, but he was getting brutalized too. He almost got out of the cage, could feel it as he clung to the ring steps, but he was pulled back in. The match felt a little sloppy at points, but for the most part, it was going fluidly. Chris kept trying to escape, but Dave was just one step faster every time. It was frustrating to say the least. So close was he to the outside. Chris tried to get the Codebreaker on Dave, but was met with the steel to his back inside. He fell to the mat in a heap.

The sequence saw each of them going for a move and the other ducking or getting out of it. It went back and forth until they both fell to the mat, down for a moment. Chris got up first. He had been working Dave's knee, so he was a little slower to react. This could work to his advantage if he were to climb the cage. Dave would be too hurt to follow. Chris tried to climb again but Dave got him. Chris started grabbing at anything he could find to hold on and got a screw loose. Thinking resourcefully and just as evilly as his wife, he started hitting Dave on the head with this large piece of metal. Chris was satisfied when he saw the first few drops of blood.

Now was the time. He started climbing getting over by the time Dave caught up. He was on the other side, but suddenly, Dave had him by the throat. He was trying to get him off, but it wasn't working. Then Chris, thinking brilliantly, kicked at Dave's knee through the cage, sending the steel mesh into his knee and Chris watched as Dave started to fall and then he was falling

He ended up on the outside, Dave did not.

The belt was his again. He grabbed at it as the referee handed it to him. Dave looked stunned and he should be. Chris got his title back. He was the World Champion again. Stephanie looked on backstage, keeping her mouth shut for her kid's sakes, but she was giddy with excitement. Chris was the champion again and if she could wrest control, all of it, then she'd be in charge.

It was a good night for the Jerichos.


	210. This is Ridiculous, November 10, 2008

Sawyer had the best daddy in the entire world.

He had woken up last Tuesday morning and on his bed, right next to him, was his belt. He couldn't believe it as his eyes widened and he sat up in his little bed to look at the gleaming gold in the morning light coming through his window. When had this gotten here? Had his daddy gotten it back for him? He wondered this as his daddy came in and beamed at him, telling him he had gotten it back. Sawyer had jumped into Chris's arms and he threw the kid up in the air.

All was right in Sawyer Jericho's world.

Well, not completely right. His parents weren't here, so that was kind of bad. He really wanted them to be around because he loved them, but they had left him with Trish and Christian and told him they were going somewhere and he couldn't go with them. That didn't suit him very well because he usually went along with him when they went places. His daddy wrestled and his mommy had been on TV, so he went with them when they went there.

At least his baby was still here. He would've been doubly angry if they had gone away _and_ taken his baby with them. But no, Flynn was here with him too. He didn't mind it so much that he was here with Trish and Christian. He liked them a whole lot, so it wasn't so bad, but he did miss his mommy and daddy a little bit. At least he was at his house and not at someone else's house where there could be scary things, not that he was afraid of a lot of things, but you just never knew what could be lurking around.

"Sawyer, would you please eat your salad?" Trish said as she looked at Sawyer, who was looking at the plate in front of him.

"No," he told her, shaking his head. He didn't like this salad, it wasn't like what his daddy made. His daddy would make a big smiley face in his salad for him but this wasn't like his daddy's at all.

"Please?" she asked, jutting out her bottom lip.

"It's really good, Sawyer," Christian said, taking a big bite of his own salad and chewing it with a big smile on his face. Sawyer looked at him strangely; he had a big piece of lettuce stuck to his tooth. "See, yum."

"No."

"I've seen him eat salad before," Christian said, "so it's not like he doesn't like it. Maybe we should call Chris and Steph and ask them what he likes. Maybe he likes something particular on it."

"We can do it by ourselves. I don't want to call them while they're on vacation."

"But the kid isn't eating his dinner, he could be hungry later and then he'll starve or something."

"Sawyer, is there anything you want on your salad?" Trish asked sweetly.

"Face," he said. He wanted a smiley face with carrots for eyes and a tomato mouth like his daddy always did.

"A face?" Christian asked. "Come on, let's just call them."

"I don't want them thinking we can't handle their kids," Trish said. "We should be able to handle this. He ate his vegetables last night."

"That's because we know the kid loves squash. I think he just likes the name," Christian said, glancing over at Sawyer who was dipping his tater tot into a pool of ketchup and eating it happily. The salad remained untouched.

"We can do this."

"Trishy, it doesn't make us like bad people if we call a kid's parents and ask them something."

Trish was about to answer when Flynn started crying over the baby monitor. Trish sighed. Flynn was on the weirdest schedule right now. Stephanie had said that Flynn was unusually good in that she slept most of the night already, but the change in routine had probably upset her and now she was waking up all the time just to cry. Trish and Christian both had spent most of the night last night trying to calm her down. They finally had to wake up Sawyer, who held her until she quieted down. The little girl obviously adored the hell out of her brother.

"I guess I'll get her," Trish said, going into the kitchen and grabbing a bottle from the fridge, going to run it under some warm water to warm it up for Flynn in case this was her "I'm hungry" cry.

Trish and Christian had only had Sawyer and Flynn for a couple days and it was already a little overwhelming. Stephanie and Chris didn't necessarily make it look easy because Trish had seen them both looking tired and stressed, but she was starting to doubt her own abilities. It was one thing to baby-sit for an evening, but she was really on edge. It was probably the lack of sleep, but if two days with two kids was making her like this, what would happen if she had a kid around all the time? Maybe it was just normal to think about things like this.

"I'm going to go feed her, you guys can keep eating," Trish said as she headed upstairs to Flynn's nursery.

Once Trish was out of ear-shot, Christian looked at Sawyer, "I'm calling your mom."

Stephanie was lying on the king-sized canopy bed as Chris went and grabbed the bottle of champagne chilling by the fireplace. She had surprised him with a mini-getaway to a bed and breakfast place just outside of London. It was quite the luxurious place, all antiques and everything. She knew it wasn't normally Chris's style to go to a bed and breakfast of all places, but they had work on Monday and his birthday was on Sunday so she just wanted a quick little vacation from the kids where they could focus on themselves.

He grabbed the bottle and poured him and Stephanie a couple glasses and then hopped back on the bed. There wasn't a lot of things around they enjoyed doing so they spent most of their time in bed, enjoying each other's company. They weren't really bed and breakfast people so shopping for antiques and going on cheese tours wasn't really their style. Sipping champagne in bed, however, was definitely their style.

"Here you go," Chris said, handing Stephanie the champagne flute. "You know, this room is totally gaudy, but I kind of like it."

"We're not decorating our room like this at home," Stephanie told him with a laugh as she sipped at her drink, the fizzy texture of it tickling her throat. "We have two kids, we'd have juice stains on the carpet in like two minutes. Then Sawyer would be running his cars over it and it'd get caught and there goes the rug."

"I'm just saying…let's never go back. Let's just give the kids to Trish and Christian and stay here forever," he told her, leaning forward to kiss her. She kissed him back even as she was laughing.

"I think you'd miss them too much, I know I would," she said. "Though, I'm going to admit, this has been really nice getting away from them. I love my kids, but sometimes, well, you know, they get on your nerves."

"I know, I love them too. I can't wait to see them tomorrow."

"Do you really think Trish and Christian will be okay to fly with them all the way to Manchester?" she asked. Trish and Christian were going to take the kids to Manchester and meet Chris and Stephanie there for Raw on Monday. They had spent a wonderful three days together with just the two of them.

"Yeah, they'll be fine," Chris said, taking Stephanie's empty glass and putting it on the end table next to her. He climbed under the covers and pulled them up so he could appreciate what was underneath. "Now how about we make this an extra special birthday for me?"

"Well, it is officially your birthday as of…oh, a half an hour ago or so. If I come out of this weekend pregnant, so help me God, Chris Jericho, I'm going to kick your ass," she told him even as he ran his hand up her bare side.

"I'll take it upon myself to kick my own ass," Chris told her, his fingers tickling her a little so she squirmed as he snaked his hand around to her back and started pulling her closer. "You are so beautiful."

"I do like the sweet-talk," Stephanie told him, licking her lips. "Am I prettier than Katie?"

"Am I hotter than Ted?"

"Yes," she answered, sticking out her tongue. "Much. You get better with age and apparently 55 is a very fine age."

"I'm going to throw you out of bed," Chris joked, "and make you sleep in the bathtub. I'm only 38."

"Oh, okay, that's right," she said, running her hand down his face. "38, that's a good number, very good number." She started pulling him down over her so his face was hovering right above hers. "I don't think anyone could hold a candle to you."

"You love me that much?"

She kissed him lightly, "Mmhmm," she mumbled.

"I love you too," he told her. Stephanie's cell phone buzzed from the desk and he pulled away. "Work?"

"At this time? No," Stephanie said. She scooted her way out from under Chris and got out of bed. He leaned back against the headboard and watched her unclothed form walk across the room. He gave a little whistle and she glared at him and he licked his lips lasciviously. She picked up her cell phone. "It's the house. It's probably Sawyer. Throw me my robe."

"Why? I'm enjoying the view."

"I'm not going to talk to my kid while I'm naked, that's weird," she said. Chris sighed and grabbed her robe from the end of the bed and threw it to her. She put it on quickly, but the phone had stopped buzzing. She called back home though.

"Hello?"

"Christian, hey, you just called, or someone did," Stephanie said.

"Oh yeah, sorry to call you so late, did I wake you?" Christian asked.

"No, we weren't asleep."

"Oh man, I'm sorry."

"It's fine, what is it?"

"Anyways, I had a question for you."

Stephanie went back and climbed into bed next to Chris. He tried to get in her robe, but she kept swatting his hand away. Finally, he just leaned his head against her and tried to listen in on the conversation. Still, he'd try and sneak his hand into her robe when she wasn't really paying attention, but she always seemed to know when he was going to try and cop a feel.

"Shoot," she told him.

"Okay, so we made salad for dinner, but Sawyer won't eat it. I know he's had salad before, but I thought maybe we're missing something he likes. Can you help us out?"

"Here, give it to me," Chris said. Stephanie handed him the phone. "Hey man, so he won't eat his salad?"

"Yeah."

"You have to make a smiley face."

"What?"

"I always make a little smiley face in his salad for him, he likes it. The kid likes to eat stuff where he can pretend he's a giant eating smaller things. Don't ask me why, I don't know where he got that."

"He did say face when we asked him what he wanted, I guess that makes sense now. So how do I make the face?"

"Carrots for eyes, tomato mouth, maybe a crouton nose if you're feeling especially creative. He just likes seeing that face."

"Thanks, man. He's just sitting here, staring at it, but I'll definitely make the face for him. Your kid is weird by the way."

"We know, how are they doing?"

"Well, Flynn misses the hell out of you. Trish didn't want me to say anything because she wants to handle everything, but it's really hard. She misses you a lot. Last night she was crying a lot, we had to get Sawyer to calm her down."

"Yeah, she loves when he holds her. Probably more than me and Stephanie combined."

"Thank God he's here or we'd be at our wit's end," Christian said. "Otherwise though, they're both fine. He really likes to color."

"Yeah, he does. He likes lying on the floor when Flynn is on her play blanket."

"Okay, well, that's all I really needed, did you want to talk to Sawyer?"

"Yeah, put him on," Chris said as he moved the phone back to Stephanie's ear so they could both hear. There was a little shuffling on the line and Chris and Stephanie could hear Christian saying something to Sawyer and Sawyer yelling yes.

"Hi! Hi!"

"Well there go my eardrums," Chris said.

"Hi, baby boy, how are you?" Stephanie asked.

"Happy Birfday, Daddy," he responded.

Chris laughed, "Who told you to say that?"

"Cwissy did," Sawyer explained.

"Thanks, kid, are you doing okay with Trish and Christian?"

"Uh huh, Fwynn too."

"Oh good, I was just about to ask," Stephanie said. "I miss you."

"Miss too, Mommy," he told her, his voice getting a little down. "I see you?"

"You'll see me late tomorrow and then they won't be able to stop me from hugging you until you can't stand being hugged anymore."

He laughed, "I hug you."

"I know you'll hug me, what about Daddy?"

"Hmm…okay," Sawyer said. "I go now."

"You're going to go now?"

"Uh huh, I eating."

"Oh," Stephanie said seriously, "I don't want to interrupt your eating, you need your food and eat your salad, okay. Christian is going to put a face in it for you."

"Okay! Love you."

"I love you too," Stephanie told him warmly.

"Love Daddy."

"Love you too, kid, tell Flynn we love her too, okay, that's a very important job because we want Flynn to know we love her too."

"I do that now!" Sawyer said, "bye!"

"Bye," Stephanie and Chris said in unison as they hung up the phone. Stephanie turned to Chris. "I bet he is actually racing upstairs to tell Flynn right this second."

"Of course he is," Chris said. "It gives him an excuse to see his little sister."

"Yup, but…uh, I believe we were interrupted," Stephanie said suggestively, "right when I was about to give you an extra special birthday treat."

"Oh yeah," he smirked.

"Happy Birthday, Mr. Jericho."

**Sunday**

"Sawyer!"

Sawyer giggled as he ran down the hallway. His hair was still soaking wet from his bath and after Trish had put his little robe on him so she could help him get dressed, she had turned her back for one second and he had grabbed all his wet bath toys and was now throwing them every which way down the hallway. One of his toy boats was now falling carelessly down the stairs. Another one hit the wall and she stopped briefly to make sure it hadn't chipped the paint.

"Sawyer McMahon Jericho, get over here right now!" Trish yelled at him.

"No!" he yelled back as he ran towards his bedroom.

Trish caught up with him right as he got to the door and she scooped him up. "Sawyer, that was very naughty of you."

"Hi," he kissed her on the cheek to punctuate his statement.

Trish very nearly melted and figured that was why Stephanie and Chris put up with this. "Thanks for that, but you're still very bad. You can't just go running down the hallway, what if you fell?"

"I hurt."

"Yeah, you'd get hurt and your mommy and daddy would be very mad at me and wouldn't want to be my friends anymore and I'd be very sad."

Well Sawyer didn't want his mommy and daddy to be mad. He knew how his mommy got when she was angry. She always got this look on his face that he didn't normally see. It was very scary. He didn't want Trish to have to go through that. He loved Trish a lot. "I sowwy."

"Thanks, so let's just try and behave, okay? You're going to see your mommy and daddy later tonight."

"Yay!" he exclaimed as Trish took him into his room to get dressed.

"Trish," Christian said as he walked in with Flynn in his arms. "She won't stop again."

"Oh, Flynn, do you hate us that much?" Trish said. "Here, give her to me, you help Sawyer get dressed."

Trish took Flynn in her arms. The little girl's eyes were red-rimmed from tears and her eyes a smoky gray. They almost had the same ability to change at will like Stephanie's eyes, going from blue to gray and back again. Trish rubbed Flynn's back, but she continued to cry and bury her face in Trish's shirt. Trish managed to get her down to a soft whimpering, but she wasn't quieting down. Sawyer looked on, his lips pursed together as he looked at Trish and made many notes of how she was doing it wrong.

Trish saw Sawyer and asked, "Do you want to take a try?"

"Yes," he said, holding his arms out like Trish was just going to hand her over to a little boy who dropped a lot of things. Trish set Flynn down on Sawyer's bed and he climbed on top of it and knelt next to Flynn, who was now crying again because she didn't want to be out of someone's arms when she was so upset. Sawyer rubbed her tummy a little bit and then lied down next to her. "Shh, baby, shh," he whispered to her, like his mommy did all the time.

Flynn looked over at her brother and was happy for the familiar face. She didn't know _where_ her mommy and daddy were, but at least Sawyer was here with her. She sniffled as she reached her hand out to him and he smiled as he stuck out his tongue a little at her. She smiled even wider, forgetting all about her tears. Her brother was so silly!

"Oh my God, we suck," Trish said as she leaned against Flynn's dresser.

"We don't suck."

"A two-year-old can calm her down, but we can't," Trish pointed out.

"She's three months old, Trishy," he said, wrapping his arm around her waist. "She really probably only recognizes her parents and her brother, maybe like, one other person, but she's a baby, she doesn't really know what's going on. Sawyer knows that his parents went away, but they'll be back, Flynn doesn't."

"Yeah," she sighed, "I guess you're right."

"You know I am, come on, we still have to get these little monsters to Manchester."

By the time they actually arrived in Manchester, Christian and Trish were ready to throw Sawyer and Flynn at Chris and Stephanie and make a run for it. Sawyer was good on the plane, just playing quietly with his toys, but Trish was convinced that Flynn was part demon because she just hated anyone that wasn't Sawyer.

They arrived really early Monday morning. Stephanie and Chris were waiting at the airport near the baggage claim. Stephanie bounced on her heels trying to see her kids. There weren't many flights arriving this late so she should be able to see them. Chris kept putting his hand on her shoulder, trying to calm her down. She missed her kids and wanted to see them. She'd had enough of alone time with Chris and now she wanted time with her babies.

"There they are!" she hissed excitedly as the crowd seemed to part and Christian and Trish were there. Christian was pushing a cart with Flynn sitting on the top in her carrier, her head nodded off to one side as she slept. Trish was holding Sawyer, who was also asleep. Stephanie and Chris walked up to them and Stephanie ran her hand down Sawyer's back. Somehow, he knew it was his mommy's touch and he opened his eyes sleepily and then smiled when he saw her.

"Mommy," he breathed out, reaching out to her blindly.

"Hey, baby boy," she said, taking him from Trish's arms. "How were they?"

"Well, you've successfully convinced me that I do not want kids _ever_," Trish said. "I don't want to say it was a nightmare, it wasn't that bad, but it's a lot of work. Why didn't you tell me it was so much work?"

"You can't tell from looking at us?" Stephanie laughed. "We're always tired, Chris is completely irritable."

"I am not."

"Point proven," Stephanie said glibly. "But it's different when it's your own kid. You love your kid so you put up with all the crap that goes with it. But I guess this means he wasn't a good boy, were you a bad boy, Sawyer?"

"No," he mumbled, trying to keep his eyes open. He hadn't seen his mommy and daddy in forever it seemed and he didn't want to go to sleep just when they came back. But it was really hard keeping his eyes open. He was really tired and flying hadn't been the best experience for him.

"Was he?" Stephanie asked.

"For the most part he was really good, they both were, just…it's hard!" Trish laughed. "You need to tell me these things."

"We warned you when you volunteered to take care of them, but at least now you've got a taste of it. Come on, let's get back to the hotel so I can put this one to sleep. Flynn'll probably wake up and want to be fed."

"Okay, cool," Trish said as they went to the baggage claim to get their bags first. Chris had taken Flynn's carrier from the cart so they could load up the bags.

"Are you guys coming to the show tomorrow?" Stephanie asked as they waited for the bags. She kept rubbing Sawyer's back and he was clinging to her tightly.

"I am, Christian's not."

"He's not?"

"He's going to dinner with Tiffany," Trish explained, "so he's driving down to London."

"Tiffany? As in my friend, Tiffany, whom he dated for a long while and wanted to propose to? That Tiffany?"

"No, random Tiffany from the street," Trish said, "yes, _that_ Tiffany. Thanks for laying it all out there like that. Nice to think about my husband's almost-fiancée."

"That's very big of you to let him go out with her. I mean, I don't know if I'd do the same. I mean, now, I wouldn't care if he went out with all his ex-girlfriends at the same time, but one month into our marriage, I'm not sure."

"Oh yes, you would," Trish scoffed. "You would've let him when you were still dating, you don't care about that kind of stuff and neither do I. Christian married me, we're married, not them. If he wants to have dinner and catch up with her I don't think that means they're going to grab a seedy room and do it until the sun comes up."

"Well that's very trustworthy of you."

"Oh come on, you'd let Chris go, it's just trust, period."

"I would, I don't care, he loves me, he spent three days proving that to me," Stephanie winked and Trish shook her head as the boys got their bags and they headed to the car.

"Mommy, I tired," Sawyer said.

"Oh, I know, baby boy. We're going to tuck you into the fluffiest bed ever and you're going to get a great night's sleep and tomorrow we've got the show. You can even play with Daddy's belt, okay?"

"My toy," he told her in no uncertain terms as he turned his head in towards her neck. His breath was warm as he buried his face into her neck.

"I know, it's your toy," she whispered.

"Uh huh," he said. Sleep was winning big time. He wanted to stay close to his mommy though, he just wanted to stay in her arms. She shouldn't have gone away at all. She just should've stayed with him. But sleep was coming over him now and he was powerless to stop it.

He closed his eyes and fell asleep.

**Monday**

"Where we are?" Sawyer asked as he looked around. Everything had looked kind of different on the way to the arena. It was just slightly off and he couldn't figure out why. For one, his daddy was driving in a different place than he usually did. He knew that much, but there was other stuff. This place was weird.

"Manchester, England. That's a whole other country than the one you're used to," Stephanie said. "We live in the United States and this is England, which is a bit of a ways away. That's why you had a long flight yesterday and didn't get in until real late."

"Oh, it was long," he nodded. "I sleeped."

"That's very good, I'm glad you did," she said as they arrived at the arena. At least this place looked like all the others he went to all the time. "You need sleep to grow."

"I grow, Mommy," Sawyer said eagerly, like he was going to grow five inches right that second.

"See, he's all nice and well-behaved with you and with me he's like this crazy, little jumping bean or something," Trish said from her seat. "He's a demon child behind your back, Stephanie."

"Oh, I know," she said, sticking her tongue out at Sawyer as he stuck his tongue back at out at her playfully.

Britt watched as they put the phone booth into place. Stephanie had insisted upon the decorations to give it a more British feel. She laughed at the silliness of the stereotypes, but it was what Stephanie wanted. She had actually come down here a week early because her grandparents still lived in the UK and she had spent the week visiting with them and various other family members. While her father had moved to the States many years ago, a lot of her family had stayed behind so it was always a treat to come visit.

"Alone, I see."

Britt looked over her shoulder. "Well, there's nobody around with me, so yeah, alone I must be."

"I meant tonight, you're alone tonight. I didn't see you with that jackass you insist on dating."

"He's not a jackass."

"Millions of people would beg to differ," Randy said, coming up next to her. "Where is he? I'd expect him to be hovering around you and not letting you out of his sight."

"Oh yeah, because we're shackled at the ankles. He's doing a little thing called…working. See, you've been out of action so long, you probably don't know what that means. You were just lazing about, not bothering to let anyone know you could actually wrestle. What were you trying to hide, Randy? The fact you can't wrestle?"

"Ouch, that one hurt," he said, grasping his chest. "I could offer you my company."

"No thanks," she told him simply. "I'm not in the mood tonight, Randy."

"I'm _so_ much better than Hunter could ever dream to be!" he told her. "I don't know what you see in him. Have you looked at me? I mean, really, have you looked at me? I have everything Hunter doesn't, plus I'm way younger than him."

"I don't care how old you are."

"I'm still better-looking."

"Not to me," she said, brushing past him.

"Oh come on, you can't honestly believe that. I mean, if you put me and Hunter side-by-side and asked a hundred women who'd never seen us before who they thought was hotter, I bet I'd get like 98 of them to say it was me."

"Then I'd be one of the two that didn't think you were the hotter of the two," she told him.

"Okay, okay, I set myself up for that one," he chuckled, "looking down. I'm obviously not going at this the right way. I could be so much better for you."

"You don't even know how Hunter is for me," Britt told him. "How do you know you could be better for me if you don't know how he is?"

"Because I know his personality. You know, when we were in Evolution, he slept around a lot and I mean _a lot_. I saw it first-hand…I mean, you know, not _first-hand_ in that way, but he would tell us all about his conquests."

"I didn't know him then, I don't care. I know him now and that's what matters. I don't care about the person he used to be. He was married to Stephanie, for God's sakes, do you think I could be friends with her if I thought of Hunter strictly in terms of the past."

She was a hard nut to crack, Randy realized, "Well, he's not here now, working, so you're all by yourself, at least let me drive you back to the hotel or something."

"I'm staying with family, my father is from around here so I have family. They're coming to the show tonight so I'm getting a ride from them."

"Oh," he said, foiled again. "Well, um, I guess I'll see you later."

"Yeah…and thanks for the gesture," she said, giving him a genuine smile. "Even though I know that you just want me, it was still a really nice gesture to ask to escort me."

He smiled, encouraged, "You're welcome."

Stephanie placed Flynn in her stroller. The little girl looked up happily at her mommy. She hadn't known where she had been for a long time and it just wasn't the same being without her. She reached her small hands towards Stephanie, but Stephanie just leaned down and kissed the palms of her hands and that wasn't what Flynn wanted so she started to whimper.

"It's okay, Flynnie, you can come out soon," Stephanie said.

"I can't believe you would bring your infant on the road like this. Don't you think that's a little too far to travel? I would never take my kids this far, especially not at that age. She's probably going to get sick on the plane."

"What is your problem, Shawn? Do you go out of your way to annoy me? Is that what you're doing? Because it's getting pretty old fast."

"Nah, I just like doing it because I can," he told her, giving her such a sweet smile it had definite evil intentions behind it. "Besides, I really do worry about your daughter. I don't think I'd let my daughter travel, even at this age. I mean, I guess it's fine, but you know, a stable home is best."

"My kids have a stable home, thank you," Stephanie said sarcastically. She wasn't going to take anything of Shawn's seriously. He just liked to bug her about things. She just let it roll of her back for now, but she was definitely making a note of it. "At least I know my husband would take a punch for me, I can't say the same for some people around here. Come on, Flynnie, let's go."

Stephanie pushed her way past Shawn. She was trying to appear cool and the guise worked until she entered the building. Then she was fuming. She was sick and tired of the snide comments he was constantly making. It was going to end tonight, for good or for bad, it was going to end tonight. A plan was starting to formulate in her mind as she reached Chris's locker room. Yes, she rather liked this idea.

"Hey, where were you?" Chris asked. "We tried to wait for you and Flynn, but you were too slow, right, kid?"

"Right!" Sawyer said from Chris's lap.

"Where's Trish?"

"Talking around. She said she wanted to go visit some people. She's been acting weird today, don't you think?"

"I haven't really paid any attention to her, but now that you mention it, I do think I denoted a few wisps of weirdness to her, what do you think is up?"

"I have no idea, maybe she's glad to be rid of Christian for the night."

Chris laughed, "That could definitely be…why do you have that smirk on your face? Oh no, what am I going to be put through now."

"Well, considering Adamle is gone and good riddance, the control is back in Shane and my hands. I want it all in my hand, but Shane is starting to suspect that I want complete control."

"What tipped you off, the fact he asked if you were doing something behind his back?" Chris asked, referring to the call Shane had given Stephanie asking what she was doing after he had watched the tape of Raw. Stephanie had had to back pedal and just talk about how she was just talking about all the things he knew about her trying to get information from Adamle. She made no mention of her intentions of taking over completely.

"Well, tonight I'm going to go by the letter, exactly what Shane says, well, partly. Anyways, Shawn was bugging me, I'm so sick of him and I want him out of our lives for good. I'm putting an end to it tonight, all of this. He needs to move on."

"I agree, but what does this have to do with me?" he asked.

"Can you beat him tonight?" she asked.

"Why?'

"Just answer me, can you beat him tonight?"

"Yeah, I can beat him tonight, I can beat him any night, I think I've more than proven that," Chris said. "You want me to fight him tonight."

"I want it to end tonight and it's going to end. I'm going to put you in a Last Man Standing match with him," she said, holding Flynn to her. Sawyer was just watching his mommy and daddy talk to each other. It always fascinated him when they were being devious. They just didn't look like his mommy and daddy.

"What? Stephanie, you do know if you put him in a Last Man Standing match, _I'm_ also going to be in the match, potentially getting hurt."

"You just said you could beat him."

"At my expense, what if I get hurt?"

"You won't," she said. "Look, here's the thing. I want to bring a new era to the show. I want old feuds to be put away and you and Shawn have been fighting forever. I want to assert _my_ power tonight, and Shane's too, I guess, but I want to look good and people will love this. They'll want Shawn to beat you up, but then won't they be surprised when you win."

"Are you going to rig it?"

"No, I'm not going to rig it," Stephanie said as she sat on the couch and propped Flynn up on the pillows. She could hold her head up now so she sat there and stared at her brother and father. She didn't have the capacity yet to realize her parents were absolutely crazy. "I just think you'll win and show him that you are the champion, which you are. Because you were amazing last week."

"Resourceful, you mean."

"That too," she said, smirking as she thought about Chris's win. It was ingenious of him to think of using that steel part. The referee would never suspect him of foul play up there. "But you're our champion once again, taking your rightful place."

"You just love when I'm champion."

"Almost more than you do," she told him. "Anyways, I'm making the match."

"Without asking Shane?"

"He's not here tonight, I'm in charge."

"Wow, so that whole, 'I'm going to include Shane so he doesn't suspect me' thing lasted what? Two hours?"

"Oh, don't get me wrong, I'll still play that up, but I'll also push my own agenda," she told him. "Because I know what I'm doing. I'll appease Shane and then do what I want to do. That way, everyone wins."

"And Shane looks weak."

"Shane's not weak, just…not suited for being cutthroat. That's probably why the Alliance failed in the first place. He wasn't cut out to be the boss. He was too busy prancing around and doing his shuffle and pretending to be a wrestler. If I had been in charge, we would've been successful."

Chris rolled his eyes, "Talk about revisionist history. You were too busy making some guy's life a living hell. If I remember right, you kept aligning yourself with guy after guy and this guy beat them all. Then you ended up marrying that guy and having two of his kids, weird. Steph, you were just as busy having fun as your brother was. You were doomed to fail."

"Then we both should've focused and I learned my lesson. I'm way more driven now."

"I know," he said. "Fine, make the match, I'll be a part of it."

"I don't want to just be standing backstage though. I want to look professional. Do you think they have the set here? I could just pretend to be back in the States."

"Why would you pretend to be back in the States?"

"Because it makes me look like I'm more authoritative. I mean, you know, look like I'm at headquarters being all professional and everything instead of being here with my husband and two kids. That doesn't hold the same cache."

"Maybe you could fly back to Connecticut really fast?" he suggested. "Then you'd really be there."

"Shut up. I'm going to go see if I can set it up. I'm going to find Britt. I'll take Flynnie with me if you can watch the boy."

"Yeah, got it covered," he said, patting Sawyer's head.

"Great."

"Oh, hey, if you want to go full tilt on this power trip, you're going to, at least for now, until you gain complete control, you're going to want the fans behind you. So you're either going to have to be bipartisan or you're going to have to emphasize those that the fans don't completely despise."

"So you're saying don't like, start blowing you kisses whenever I say your name or hold your daughter on-screen?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

"Duly noted."

Christian stood up as Tiffany approached the table. She grinned as she saw him. He extended his arms slightly and she hugged him as he kissed her on the cheek. He pulled the chair out for her and she sat graciously as he proceeded to sit.

"You look good," Tiffany said, looking him over.

"Thanks, you do too, England agrees with you."

"Oh, I don't know about that," she told him. "I was so happy to hear from you. It's really been too long and I missed talking to you. I've wanted to catch up and I'm really glad you're here. So how are you?"

"I'm really good, actually."

"I heard you and Trish got married, that's so exciting, was it really nice?"

"Yeah, it was beyond anything I've ever done," he said, showing her his wedding ring. "I'm really happy it's over with now, though, you know. It was just so much work, but the day went off without a hitch. Are you seeing anyone?"

"Yeah, I am, a fellow doctor, actually. We met while working, obviously. He's great, his name is Alan. But yeah, I'm really happy. You should've brought Trish to dinner. I know we haven't really spent time together, but it'd be nice to see you guys together."

"She thought it might be too awkward so she opted out."

"Oh, that's too bad. I don't think it's too awkward, right?"

"Nah, not at all."

"So anything else going on?" she asked.

"We're trying for a baby," he added.

"Oh wow, that's so amazing. Can I call you and dispense my doctor wisdom on you while she's pregnant like I do to Steph? I swear she was sick of me by the time she had Flynn."

"Have you seen Flynn?" he asked.

"Not yet, but Steph and I are going to lunch tomorrow and I'm going to see her then. I can't wait, I bet she is completely adorable."

"She really is. You'll love her."

"I bet."

"So there's something I wanted to ask you and I knew you wouldn't judge and I was hoping to get your opinion."

"Okay…not sure what this is going to be about, but go ahead."

"Well, I was thinking about going back to the WWE, but I'm not sure. I do like TNA, but all my friends are in WWE and it'd be better, you know, Trish wants me to so she's not a very good person to get an opinion from. What do you think?"

"Oh Christian, I can't make the decision for you."

"Come on, it'll be like old times," he joked.

She laughed, "All I can say is that you have to go with the choice that is better for you, whatever that is and just take whatever Trish wants into consideration because she's your wife and ultimately what happens to you, happens to her."

"Remind me again why we didn't work out?"

She shook her head and looked at her ex, "Because you were in love with someone else and I had to move far, far away. But it worked out for the best. You're happy, I'm happy and we're both not miserable."

"Yeah, you're right. Still…"

"No still, come on, let's eat, I'm starving."

Dave came out to the ring demanding a title rematch. Stephanie, who was backstage and ready to make her announcement decided now was as good a time as any to make her announcements. She showed up on the Titantron, looking as gorgeous as ever, and informed Dave that unfortunately, he wasn't going to get a title match from her husband that evening. She got a sick pleasure out of denying him the match and she knew Dave thought she was giving special treatment to her husband. Dave used to be so much cooler before he actually got scruples. She could still get behind Randy Orton because, despite being an idiot about Britt, he was still who he was. Dave was playing the nice guy act too hard and it grated on her.

She decided this would be perfect in building up Shane. She discussed how Shane had said the winner of last week's match would face Cena at Survivor Series. Shane hadn't said that Chris couldn't defend it in the interim, but to make her brother look good, she said it wasn't going to happen. But what was going to happen was a few things were going to get settled as they passed into a new Raw era. The first was a match between Rey and Kane she didn't care about. Then she announced her husband's match and could barely keep the disgust out of her tone when she mentioned Shawn's name. It came out like she was happy about it, but it was bordering on the line to pure rage. Still, she got what she wanted and the match was set.

"Hey, Steph, that was great," Britt said as she handed Flynn back to Stephanie. Flynn looked around at everything going on behind her mommy. There were lights and cameras and lots of people milling about and there was so much for her to take in it was crazy.

"Thanks. Just making my presence known," she said.

"My grandparents should be here soon, do you mind if I go meet them?"

"Go ahead. I've got things covered."

Britt walked out and down the hallway. She went and stood by the entrance, looking out at it, waiting for her grandparents to show up so she could show them around. She was anxious to show them everything she did around here. They were going to be so amazed. She ended up sitting on a folding chair for a while, waiting for them to show up. They were old though, so it probably took them more time to get places.

She felt Randy's presence without needing to look up. She could tell he was around and when she looked back, there he was. "Why are you stalking me?"

"I work here, I'm not stalking you. I was actually out here to clear my head before my match later against Dave."

"Oh, you have a match?"

"Yeah, I do."

"Good luck with that."

"What are you doing? Sitting here, alone again."

"I'm waiting for someone."

"Can I wait too?"

"It's a free country," she told him. He pulled up a chair at sat right along with her. "You look good tonight."

"Thanks."

"I could take you out to dinner."

"No thanks."

"You sure?"

"Positive."

"Okay."

They sat against in silence until the doors opened and an old couple walked in through the doors. Britt stood up and Randy followed suit out of instinct. Britt walked quickly to the door. "Nana, Gramps, I'm so glad you're here."

"Hello, dear," her grandma said as Randy hung back a little, but didn't leave. She hugged her grandma and then her grandfather.

"There's so much I want to show you," she told them. "You should've gotten here earlier."

"Well, we would have if not for your grandfather being a bit on the slower side."

"I was going as fast as I possibly could."

Britt smiled. "Come on, there's still plenty of time."

Britt's grandmother looked up and saw Randy standing around, somewhat sheepish looking. "Oh my, this must be the Hunter I've heard so much about. Let me get a good look at you. Oh, you are a handsome one, I knew my Britt had good taste."

Randy positively beamed. "Hi."

"That's not Hunter," Britt intervened, "that's just Randy."

"Oh, I'm sorry," she said, "are you a friend of our Britt?"

"Yeah, I am," Randy said and Britt shot him a glare, but he looked back at her, daring her to say something in front of her grandparents. She hated that look and wanted to wipe it right off his face with a well-positioned kick. This was pretty low of him.

"Then you must accompany us, I insist," she said.

"Thank you, don't mind if I do," he said, falling into step next to Britt.

"I hate you," she muttered at him as they started walking down the hallway towards the action.

"It's awfully convenient that you got out of a rematch with me," Dave said as he ran into Chris and Sawyer after Chris took Sawyer to the bathroom and then to get some carrot sticks from catering.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Just that your _wife_ was able to get you out of facing me again pretty quickly. I was barely done with my statement and there she was."

"That's not my fault."

"Sure it isn't."

"Are you saying I got Stephanie to do that?"

"I'm just saying that you got out of it pretty quickly. She gave you a lesser opponent for the evening since you don't want to face me."

"I hate to praise Shawn about anything, but looking at the track record, I'd say he's got a few more stars on his badge than you do," Chris said. "Don't elevate yourself to a level you aren't even at."

"You've beaten Shawn before, you haven't officially beaten me."

"I did, last week, in the cage, that was a win."

"You got Stephanie not to give me the rematch."

"Look, I don't use my wife. I don't know who you think I am, but I don't use her. She's my wife and I love her far more than what she can do for me. I've never asked her for a thing. This was her idea for a match, not mine. I just go along with it. I have more respect for her than that."

"Yeah!" Sawyer interjected for no apparent reason.

"Yeah, that's right, come on, kid, let's go."

"I'm getting that rematch, Jericho."

"Oh, I'm sure you will, Dave, I'm sure you will."

Trish hung up her cell phone and darted for Stephanie's office, not even bothering to knock. Stephanie happened to be breastfeeding at the moment, but Trish didn't care and neither did Stephanie. She sat down next to her friend and looked at her curiously because Trish's eyes were looking wild, like she had just run a marathon or something.

"What's wrong with you?"

"I just got off the phone with Christian," she said.

"How's his dinner going?"

"Great, fun time, blah blah blah," Trish said, "that's not what this is about. It's about what Christian said to me when he called just now."

"Okay, well, are you going to tell me?" Stephanie asked as she adjusted Flynn so she was more comfortable. "Or are you going to keep skirting around it?"

"I'm going to tell you, I'm just so excited."

"You're pregnant?"

"No, not yet, plus why would Christian tell me if I was pregnant?" Trish said, "No, anyways, he was talking about coming back to the WWE and he said he was like 95 percent sure that he's coming back."

"Are you serious?" Stephanie asked.

"Yes, so we are this close to traveling again!"

"It'd be so great to have you here, finally, someone totally on my side," Stephanie said. "Everyone else is just a bunch of suck-ups."

"It'd be amazing. I just have to convince him for that other 5 percent. He has like a month left on his contract and I know they're trying to pursue him, but if you make him a good offer, a decent offer, I think he'd be more inclined to come back. I'm going to call Edge too and see if he can help. He'll have to take his tongue out of Lita's mouth first, but I think he can help talk Christian into definitely coming back."

"Oh, I'll get Chris on it too. I mean, who better to recruit than my husband, right? We have _got_ to make him come back. I want to see you more."

"Me too and I can spend time with your kids when they're not being crazy, little monsters who hate me."

Chris walked into this scene after cutting a little promo on the absent John Cena. He went out there to say that John's story was going to be like the others that challenged him before. It was going to end with Cena losing and him being the champion. He was not going to lose his belt again if he could help it. Cena was just going to have to realize that the Chris he was when Cena left was not the same Chris he was now. Besides, there was a bit of a revenge factor at work here since Cena had been Chris's last match before he left in 2005 for Sawyer's birth. It was time for Cena to pay up for beating him on that night so long ago.

"Whoa, minus the baby, this scene would be so hot," Chris said as he looked over at his wife and Trish.

"You're gross," Stephanie said. "Trish was just telling me some great news and we need your help."

"Are you serious? I haven't even done your match to beat Shawn and already you want me for something else? I'm starting to think you only see me as your personal whipping boy. It's always, 'Chris, will you do this,' or, 'Chris, will you fight him,' when do I get to go, 'Stephanie, will you do this?' When?"

"Tonight?" she said.

"Oh," he said, "Deal, so what is it?"

"You're so easy, I love it," Stephanie said. "This isn't a big deal though. Trish just told me Christian is almost positive that he wants to return here after his contract expires. Anyways, we just wanted you to kind of nudge him in the right direction since you're his best friend."

"Oh, that's it?"

"Yeah, see."

"That'd be awesome to have Christian around."

"Yes, I know," Stephanie said, "and Trish too…"

"Oh yeah, it'd be cool to have you around too, Trish."

"Gee, thanks, Chris, nice to know you don't even think of me," Trish told him.

"I'm distracted, sue me," Chris said. "I can do that, definitely. Yeah, that'd be cool. I'll definitely talk to him."

"Are you thinking about your match?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah."

"You're going to win it. Having the match also serves the purpose of you forgetting about Shawn altogether and going into this match with John free and clear. After tonight, you can focus completely on that match and win it. I think you'll win anyways because Cena probably has ring rust and you're as sharp as ever because you're the champion."

"Hey, that reminds me," Trish said, "are you like the new GM or something? I saw your announcement earlier, are you like, now in charge? You kind of seemed in control and last week, well…I mean, you were definitely plotting something. You lied to your brother."

"I just didn't want to worry him, you know. Adamle doesn't know what he's talking about. I was just trying to get the information about my father and he was retaliating. Shane and I are definitely working together. I just saw to it that some things happened tonight that I thought should happen."

"Yeah, that sounds like you're in control."

"Well, a little, but Shane was able to surprise everyone with that John Cena thing last week, so I can do that same."

"You are so up to something," Trish called her out. "Just make sure you don't do anything to my husband. I'm fiercely protective, you know. I'll cut you if you mess with him."

"I'm not up to anything," Stephanie insisted. "Really."

"Liar," Trish said. "Come on, Steph, what is it?"

"Nothing!"

"Chris, tell me."

"She's just being Stephanie. It's what she does best."

Flynn finished up and Stephanie pulled her up to burp her. "I'm not doing anything. I've got two kids to worry about. I don't have time for things like that."

"You are such a liar. Well, I don't work here anymore, so I'm just going to sit back and enjoy the show."

By the time Chris's match rolled around, he was starting to regret never asking Stephanie for anything. Last Man Standing matches were a different kind of beast. The object of the match was to be as brutal as possible. Maybe he had said something over their weekend together that made her mad and this was his punishment. It made sense to him. Why would she pick so brutal a match? Well, she wanted Shawn to go down, but he didn't want to be the one to go down either.

He thought back to one of the most brutal matches of his career, the Last Man Standing against Hunter. Up until that point, he had never really had a match that intense. He was asking for the beating that had come his way. Hunter had been overly protective of his wife, finding any slight against her punishable by unspeakable acts. He remembered the blows to his ribs from his favorite toy, the sledgehammer. He had antagonized the man until the breaking point and then added insult to injury when he sent flowers to his wife.

It was always funny that she ended up being his wife.

Still, that match had been difficult and drawn-out. He couldn't imagine this match comparing to that match so he went in with that in mind. If he could survive that match, certainly he could survive this one. He went down to the ring and awaited his opponent. If this was the last time he was going to face Shawn, he was going to make it count. A Last Man Standing couldn't just stay in the ring, it had to be more than the ring and he knew it. He looked around, scouting out things and places.

At first, it did stay to the ring, but both men knew it wasn't going to get the job done, not for a 10 count. Chris started up the ramp, knowing Shawn would follow. He kind of wasn't expecting Shawn to jump on his back though. That came as a surprise as he fell to the floor. Chris managed to get the upper-hand back and hit a running bulldog on Shawn so his face smashed against the cold concrete. Chris took Shawn up to the silly set Stephanie had them put up, but now it was looking like a wonderful place to kick Shawn's ass. Before he could though, Shawn got him back by throwing him right into a plastic mailbox. Luckily for Chris, it was plastic so it didn't hurt as much as it would have had it be oh…say, metal, like the real thing.

He got up again, not going down like that and they ended up near the cab. Shawn tried to pull Chris to the top, setting him up for a move, but Chris countered until he got Shawn into the Walls. He knew Shawn tapping would do nothing, but it could weaken him so he tightened the hold. He finally felt like he'd had enough and let go, pushing Michaels to the floor. Chris stood on top of the cab and jumped off, but was met with Shawn's fist.

Next thing he knew he was on the ground off the stage, just laying there. Chris got up before the count, but Shawn sent him back down again by hitting him with the camera crane. Chris got to his feet again and now Shawn was pulling him back towards the ring. Shawn started to get a ladder, but Chris turned the tides and hit Shawn instead, sending him crashing to the floor. Chris was going to hit him again, but Shawn ducked in time and Chris sent the ladder to the ringpost and hurt his wrist. He shook it off though, the adrenaline pushing the pain away.

Shawn started pulling things from the announcer's table and then put Chris on it. He climbed the ladder and came crashing down on Chris. Both men stayed down for a while, but managed to scramble to their feet just in time. Chris didn't see JBL go after Shawn at first, but then saw Shawn with him so Chris grabbed his belt and hit Shawn with it, but it wasn't enough to get him out. He got up and gave Chris the Sweet Chin Music, and then Chris heard a loud crash and saw Shawn crumple to the floor. They stayed down and Chris could hear 9 and then got to his feet for the win.

He got his belt back and stood over the beaten body of Shawn Michaels. He held his belt aloft, letting everyone know he was the champion. Shawn couldn't take it away from him, Dave couldn't keep it from him long and John Cena would meet the same fate. Chris would be standing over his prone form with his title still around his gorgeous waist. He was going to add Cena to the list of those who could not and would not defeat him.

"It's over," Chris told Stephanie. "Just how you wanted it."

"Good, now it's time to take down Cena," she said. "No more Shawn. We don't care about Shawn. We care about your next match."

"You're too much, baby," he told her, kissing her lightly as he watched Shawn stumble his way backstage with the help of some referees and trainers. "So are we happy with the final outcome."

"We're very happy," she said, pulling him in for a kiss.

And so ended the sad story of Shawn Michaels who was felled by the champion, Chris Jericho.


	211. It Was Worth It, November 17, 2008

A/N: Did anything happen tonight?

Okay, so who freaked out? Admit it, you know you did! I did! I couldn't believe it. I know they've been teasing it, teasing us for like a month now, first with Chris, then with Stephanie, but holy crap, tonight we got it! We got our Jericho/Steph scene and it was better than I ever could've imagined. Everything was still there, the looks, the cuteness, the way they spoke to each other and the chemistry! My God, the chemistry is still 100 percent there! It was so amazing and I am so happy that we finally got a scene. Someone calculated it and it'd been 2307 days since their last scene, isn't that horrible? But the wait is over!

So like, 6 years ago, I started this story thinking I'd have lots to write about. The last time we got a scene was Chapter 2 of the original story, yes, it's been that long. I'm going to come out and say it right now, this chapter is probably bad. How could anything written compare to the real Jericho/Steph we got? It just can't, but I do hope you enjoy this. I kept it normal, there's no freaking out in it, it's just a normal chapter, but I do so hope you like it and leave a review, even if it's just to share the happiness that is the Jericho/Steph fanbase today. We deserve it, we've waited so long!

Enjoy and here's hoping for more scenes! :D

* * *

"You know, I'm really not liking these John Cena tributes, who's behind them?"

"I'm not sure," Britt said. "Do you want me to find that information out? It'd probably be easy enough."

"Yeah, I guess so," Chris said. "It's just like, why doesn't he show his face? Is he really waiting for Survivor Series? It's hard to get some animosity towards the guy when he's not even on the show. I feel like I'm going to wrestle a specter."

"That'd be odd," Britt said, obviously distracted by something. Chris looked at her critically, his head tilted slightly. She kept glancing behind them. Did she think they were being followed or something?

"Yeah it would be. I'm trying to be intimidating here and he's making it awfully difficult. It's almost like he's disrespecting me by not showing up," Chris said.

"Hard to look intimidating with a baby in your arms," Britt pointed out. Chris looked down at Flynn, who was strapped in one of those baby holders. Yeah, he didn't look the picture of masculinity, but this was his daughter. She looked behind her again.

"Okay, let's stop right here," he said, turning towards her and almost hitting her with his daughter. Flynn was happy to be facing someone and kicked her legs happily while jerking her arms a little towards Britt. As long as she was with her daddy, she liked seeing new people because she wasn't alone with them.

Britt grabbed one of Flynn's tiny hands and held it in hers, making the baby coo and babble in little baby talk that made her even more adorable. She also had one little, dark lock of hair hanging over her forehead. "Why are we stopping?"

"Why do you keep looking over your shoulder?" Chris asked. "Are you being stalked?"

"Well, last week my grandparents came, remember, I introduced you and Stephanie to them," she said. Chris nodded, remembering since it was only a week ago. "Well, what I didn't tell you was Randy was hanging around me and my grandparents mistook him for Hunter and he tagged along and it bugged me a lot and I have a feeling he'll try it again this week because Hunter's not here again."

"Where is he?"

"Well, he'll be here later, but he's not here right now. He couldn't get an early flight. We're actually going to go on a little mini-vacation this week. He said he wants to clear his mind before his match on Sunday. I have no doubts he'll win, but you know how he is."

"No, thankfully," Chris said. "Look, if it really bothers you that Randy is bothering you, I'll do something about it."

"You will? But what can you do?"

"Whoa, you've only been around here for nearly two and a half years and you don't know what I can do for you? Do you forget who I'm married to? She's only the most powerful person here."

"Oh, so you'll ask Stephanie."

"She's a bitch, she'll give you what you want."

"So she's in full work mode again, isn't she?"

"Like there was ever any doubt. She's wanted the GM position since…well since it was open. She hated the fact that Adamle was going to get it. She wanted to throw her name into the discussion but she was pregnant with Flynn and couldn't. She's loving every second of this."

"Yeah, she wants me to," Britt looked down at her clipboard. "Set up the ring as a forum. I'm not really sure how to do that though. She said she wants to address all the Raw superstars who have questions of her. Do you know anything about this?"

"Not a clue, but then, I don't know half the stuff Stephanie does anyways," Chris told her with a chuckle. "She's an enigma like that."

"I don't even really think we have stuff for a forum, I'll have to have production scrounge around for things because I mean, when have you guys ever had a forum?"

"Never, that's my wife, always thinking up something clever, don't you think?" Chris said, proud of his wife for taking charge like she was. He had to admit, it was great having her back in this capacity. He hadn't ever really worked for Stephanie when she was actually on-screen and being both a backstage and an on-stage influence. He kind of felt like she was the schoolteacher and he could be the naughty boy who needed discipline.

"Sure, I guess," Britt shrugged. "You're really all happy about having her in charge, aren't you?"

"Absolutely."

Little did anyone know that Stephanie was dead-set on being the sole power on Raw. She kept telling Shane that she would take care of things, that she was already on the road with Chris so she might as well be the on-air representative too. But she would make little changes here and there, little decisions she wouldn't let her brother in on. Like she had matches set for tonight that she didn't tell her brother about. He didn't tell her his little announcement about Cena so it was just fair play that she not tell him what she was planning.

"Okay, well, I'm going to go find stuff for Stephanie's forum and find out who is behind those Cena videos. I will get back to you on it, okay, boss?" Britt teased.

"I'm not the boss, Stephanie is totally the boss."

"Oh yeah, that's right, I'll see you later."

"I'll handle the Randy situation," Chris told her.

"Thanks so much, you're the best."

Chris did think he was the best. He was the best and he was going to come out of Sunday with the belt. He wasn't going to lose it twice in, what was it, a month? There was no way he was going to be _that_ guy. Dave was that guy; he had only held the belt for 8 days. There was no way he was going to have an abbreviated reign like that. He had been busting his ass to keep this belt and he wasn't going to let John Cena of all people swoop in and take his title.

He had never really faced John Cena, not seriously.

Yeah, there was that thing they had before Chris left back in 2005, and Chris had thought Cena a fierce competitor and was ready to decimate him until Stephanie had told him right before his match that she was probably pregnant. That pretty much ruined any kind of momentum he had in the match because his mind kept wandering to his wife and the baby that may or not have been in her at that very moment. Turned out there was and an awesome kid came out of it, but it ruined the match.

Then he and Stephanie had decided they were going to leave so she could have a normal pregnancy. He had gone into "You're Fired" match knowing he was going to lose and leave. So he put little effort into it. His wife was pregnant, he didn't care about this match. He was getting a kid and that was all that mattered to him. So in the long run, that thing with Cena, way back when, it meant nothing to him and he had not given his full potential to the match.

Things had changed drastically since then. He was two years older and two years wiser. He was at the top of his game, a place he didn't really feel he was at two years ago. He was burnt out then, but now, now he was sharp and focused and knew what he wanted at all times. He also had two kids under the age of 3 so his patience was through the roof. It meant he could be methodical in the ring. Cena wasn't going to know what hit him because he had never dealt with Chris Jericho as he was now.

"I'm so going to kick Cena's ass on Sunday," Chris whispered to his daughter. "He's going down."

Flynn looked up at him and scrunched up her face as drool dribbled down her chin. Chris took her bib and wiped it a little and she smiled in thanks. He leaned down and kissed her forehead and she tried to grab at his face. If he still had his long hair, she would probably love to tangle her hands in it. But those days were long gone and he wasn't going to go through the pains of growing it out again. She might not even recognize him.

Chris walked into his wife's office for the evening. She had insisted that now that she was totally in charge, they needed separate rooms. She was a person of authority and she needed her own space. Of course, she was still sharing that space with little children, but she apparently couldn't share it with her big, bad husband. It was a little silly if you asked him, but if he wanted to escape his wife, well, he could do so easily.

Stephanie was typing something on her laptop while simultaneously on the phone with someone, yakking away at them. Sawyer, who was fascinated with his mother's multitasking, had his toy telephone and he was pretending to talk on it too, even though it really only made animal noises, but it was still fun to pretend. His eyes lit up when he saw Flynn though and he started to climb on Stephanie's desk.

"Sawyer, get down," Stephanie said, pushing her laptop away from him and then pulling him back down to his seat.

"Fwynn," he whined, reaching his hands out to her.

"Hey, you guys can have some couch time, okay?" Chris said as he unstrapped Flynn and put her on the couch. He propped up some pillows behind her as she watched as Sawyer hopped off his chair effortlessly and ran over to the couch. It took him a couple tries, but he got on the couch and sat next to his sister. She turned her head to look at him and he kissed her on the head gently because his mommy and daddy were always reminding him to be gentle with her. He hopped off again to grab some toys and he gave her one of her toys, a soft block toy. She grasped it and he played with his toys near her.

Chris sat down on the other side of Flynn so he could supervise her and make sure she didn't tip over. Stephanie finished up her conversation and turned to her husband. "Don't you have things to do?" she asked. "You are the champion. That comes with responsibility."

"Yes, master," he said in an Igor voice.

"Chris, I'm serious here. You're the champion and you're the go-to guy. Plus, big plus, you're my husband. Now I'm in charge around here and if people think you're not serious, then they're going to think I'm not serious."

"I'm serious, have you seen me out there? I've been working very hard and telling the fans what's what, plus the wrestlers. I've gotten wins over tons of guys. I'm doing my job and I'm the champion so I'm doing it well and proving day in and day out that you had nothing to do with this."

"Of course I didn't, you'd never let me."

"Exactly, I've been doing a great job."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, just keep it up, I guess," she told him. "I'm trying to create an image here."

"We're not the first family," he said.

"We are of wrestling and you're a part of it," Stephanie said. "So you have to do the same thing."

"You make my life impossible sometimes, you do know that right?"

"Yes, but you stay with me because of the kids," she smiled. "Your tie is crooked, come over here and I'll fix it."

She stood up and Chris rolled his eyes, but stood up as well. They met in the middle of the room. She pulled on his tie and adjusted it as best she could, pulling it this way and that. She had bought this particular tie for him and thought he looked dashing in it. He wasn't wearing his suit jacket at the moment, opting for the more business casual look. Chris watched her with a smile on his face. She definitely took care of everyone in this family.

"Thanks," he said when she had finished.

"You're welcome."

He looked up at her and a smile cracked his lips, "You look really cute tonight."

"You think so?"

"I think you're adorable when you wear your glasses."

"Well unlike some people who think glasses our a hassle and have to get laser eye surgery because they're _so_ vapid, I happen to like my glasses and the way I look in them," she told him, pushing them up her nose to make her point.

"Well, you're cute in them," he told her, kissing the tip of her nose. "You should wear them all the time, then I'd definitely think you were cute all the time instead of just some of the time."

"You make no sense," she told him, pulling him closer by his shirt. "You should want me without the clothes on, not with the glasses on."

"I'll take both," Chris said, "oh, by the way, what's with this forum tonight?"

"I told you already. I'm going to let the superstars ask me questions. "I'm going to be fielding their concerns, you know, getting in touch with them and what they want. I figure they'll think I actually care about them, not that I don't care, but I just want to appear really wonderful right now."

"So when you bring the hammer down everyone is surprised?" he asked.

"No, just…so everyone is on my side in case I decide to eliminate Shane from the equation."

"Which you do plan to do," he stated rather than questioned. He knew his wife was skirting around the issue, but she would toss Shane out on his ass if it came to that. It was the hallmark of her ruthlessness.

"Maybe, if it comes to that."

"Do I have to be out there?"

"No."

"I don't?"

"No, you're the champion, plus you're my husband, what could you possibly have to say? What could you possibly ask? And don't be dirty, okay, because I don't want to hear it," she told him. "And don't come out there and start talking to me and being all husband-y."

"Husband-y?"

"You know what I mean. You can just come out there and be like, 'I'm your husband and I think you're hot.'"

"You think I would do that?" he asked. "If I came out there, that last thing I would do is tell you you're hot. I'd have more pressing issues than that. I'd probably want to know why I have to face Cena."

"You know why, my brother said so. I can't believe he'd do that, but whatever, you'll rectify it by winning on Sunday. You'll be amazing, I know you will. You can beat Cena, he'll be rusty in the ring. The last thing you are is rusty. You've been in all these hellish matches because of Adamle. I'm so glad to be rid of him," Stephanie said angrily. "If only my father would come out of his hiding place. He hasn't even seen his granddaughter. He obviously doesn't care about her."

"I don't know who wouldn't care about her," Chris said, looking back at his daughter. She was trying to throw the block, but she wasn't coordinated enough to do it so she just kind of jerked her arm around.

"Me neither. I can't believe he wouldn't even see her."

"Yeah," he said, "anyways, I needed a favor of you."

"_You_ need a favor? Really? Like a big one? Like you want me to rig something for you?" she asked, her eyes dancing. They were especially blue tonight, like sapphires. He had to kiss her, he just had to. It felt like everything was finally coming together.

"No, not for me. Randy's been bugging Britt, she's mad about it, so you know, pull some strings or something," Chris said, "Isn't that what you're supposed to do? I mean, you are like, in charge now and that means making sure your employees are happy."

"I'll take care of it," she said. "You know, I did tell you I could be the GM around here not very long ago and you said I couldn't, but look at me now, huh? I'm the one in charge and I'm doing a wonderful job."

"You've been here for like a week," he pointed out.

"It's been a great week and tonight will be even better," she said. "I'm going to dazzle everyone. But if you'll excuse me, I need to go find Randy and talk to him about harassing people who work here."

"Do you maybe want to take one of our kids?" Chris asked.

Stephanie looked to her children and saw they were still interacting with one another. Flynn was watching Sawyer intently as he ran his dinosaur toys along the side of the couch, making growly noises as they attacked each other. He brought them back around and up to Flynn. She tried to make a half-hearted grab for one and he let her hold it for a second before he took it back. Her lip started quivering. She wanted to play too!

"Oops, waterworks," Stephanie said, pointing to their daughter. "They want to be together, I don't think I'll take them."

"You just don't want one of your kids," Chris said, acting disgusted. "I can't believe you would just neglect them like that. That's really bad, Stephanie, I think that makes you a bad mother."

"Oh, you think so?"

"Yeah, I think you should take Flynn with you just for that," he told her, shaking his head and looking at her sternly.

"You just want me to have her because she's about to cry."

"She likes you better," Chris said.

"That's a load of crap," Stephanie said. "She likes me the least. If I didn't feed her, she'd absolutely hate me."

"We'll just get Sawyer to take care of her then," Chris said, "we'll run away together and have no more kids and let those two fend for themselves. Sawyer's old enough to take care of himself, he's like 99% potty trained so he'll know what to do when Flynn starts potty-training, we're in the clear!"

"I'd love to run away with you," she said, kissing his chin, "but I've got work, go take care of my daughter."

"I'm not your nanny."

"Oh, too bad, I pay well," she told him before she whisked herself out the door.

Chris went over and picked up his daughter, who was bawling by now. She kept trying to squirm right out of his arms, but she was still too little to really do any damage so Chris just held onto her tighter as she watched Sawyer play with his toys, the toys she wanted to play with too. Why couldn't she play with them? Chris rubbed her back and muttered soothing words to her. This quieted her down immensely.

Trish looked at the door to the bathroom anxiously, as if the pregnancy test would just waltz right out and tell her the results. She didn't want to go in there too soon because then she might get a false reading. Better to wait and make sure the test was accurate. She could wait two more minutes. Christian was out with his brother and normally she would want him to be here with her to take the test, but if things turned out the way she wanted, well, she wanted to surprise him somehow.

She thought about asking Stephanie about how to surprise her husband with a baby, but Stephanie was surprised herself so she'd probably have no advice for her. She could ask her sister, but she didn't feel like divulging this stuff to her sister. So she'd have to come up with something on her own if this test turned out the way she wanted it to turn out. A plus sign could change her entire future.

"Trishy!"

Trish's eyes widened. What was he doing here? "I'm upstairs!"

She could hear Christian's feet pounding on their wooden staircase and then his feet came down the hall to their bedroom. He stood in the doorway and looked at her sitting cross-legged on the bed. "Hey, what are you doing up here?"

"What are you even doing here? You're supposed to be out with your brother."

"I was…am, actually. I forgot my wallet so I needed to come grab it so you know, I'd have money when we go out."

"Oh yeah, that makes sense," Trish said, very aware that she was fidgety and knowing that Christian was probably going to pick up on it very soon.

Christian went to the dresser and grabbed his forgotten wallet, pushing it into his back pocket before coming over and kissing Trish's forehead. He moved down and kissed her properly, snaking his tongue into her mouth. "I'm going to miss you tonight."

"You'll only be gone for a few hours."

"I don't care, I'll miss you," he told her sweetly. "Wait, so why are you sitting up here again?"

The test was probably done by now. "Well, I guess you can know. I'm taking a pregnancy test, it's probably finished right now and I'm just about ready to burst out of my skin from not going to check on it."

"Pregnancy…test? Do you think you are?"

"Well, I got the one where you can tell earlier so I'm not...well, I just wanted to make sure, you know. I just wanted to know, in case, because I was ovulating and we were trying and I wanted to see if it had worked. Couldn't hurt, right?"

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I wanted to surprise you if I was, you know, do that whole cheesy thing where I'd cook food that had baby in the name or play like lullabies or present you with an 'I Heart My Daddy' bib or something."

"That'd actually be awesome, I'm sorry I came home now. Do you want to go look?"

"Yeah, but I'm nervous. I know I shouldn't get my hopes up because it's only been a couple months we've been trying, you know, but I'm impatient. I want to start my family with you. It's making me on edge and it doesn't help being surrounded by babies."

"I want that too, believe me," he said, grabbing her hand. "I think it'd be so awesome to have a kid with you."

"Well, I know we're on the same page, so I guess…we look?" she said, glancing towards the bathroom. It was sitting in there. Her future was sitting in there. "I don't think I can."

"Of course you can, either way, you'd know, I mean, you'd probably go to the doctor to be sure and they'd say you were or you weren't and even if you didn't, I think in a few months you'd know either way."

She laughed, "Stop being funny, this is very serious business."

"I'm well aware," he said, pulling her up. "Come on, we've just got to look."

"Okay, here goes nothing," Trish said as they embarked on the short journey to the top of their bathroom counter. It was only feet away and she reached out to grab it, looking at it and staring at it. She sighed, "Nope."

"No?" he repeated as if he hadn't heard her just a second before.

"No," she replied. "Not this time."

"Well, we _have_ only been trying for a couple months. Some people, it take a really long time, not that I'm saying it's going to take us a really long, just that it'll probably take more than a couple months."

"Chris and Stephanie didn't try at all, not for either one of their kids," Trish said, trying not to sound sullen, though that was how she felt in this moment. She had really felt it, but then there was this disappointment.

"It'll happen," Christian said, kissing her temple. "Patience, right, that was the key. We just have to b patient."

"I'm tired of that," she pouted.

"Wow, two months and already you're tired, you're definitely going against what they tell us in all the books."

"Like I've ever been a conformist."

"Do you want me to stay here with you?" he asked. He would absolutely stay with her if she asked him to. She loved him for that but this wasn't anything she wouldn't eventually get over.

"I'll be fine," she told him, "go out with your brother and have fun."

"You sure?"

"Positive."

Stephanie arrived at Randy's locker room and knocked loudly. There was a little bit of cursing and he opened the door. "Stephanie, what is it?"

"We have to talk."

"Okay, about what?" he asked, leaning in the doorway now.

"I've been informed that you've been harassing Britt," she said, "and that's not cool with me, Randy."

"Harassing her, I haven't been harassing her," Randy said, his face darkening. "Who told you I was harassing her? I just talk to her."

"Well, it's on the border then, if you want to get absolutely technical. Assault doesn't have to be physical, Randy. If you're really bugging her, you've got to stop and I'm serious. What you do on your time is your business, go sit in front of her house all night for all I care, then the cops deal with it. But this is my turf and my decisions. If I so much as hear you were around her or anywhere closer than she herself is comfortable, I will suspend you, do I make myself clear?"

"This is crap," Randy said, "I haven't don anything wrong!"

"Do I make myself clear?" she repeated, firmer this time and with more harshness to her tone.

"Yeah," he mumbled, not wanting to be suspended. Then he'd never get rid of this pent-up anger. He wasn't assaulting her or anything, though it was a pretty rotten move last week.

"Good, then we're done here…look, Randy, I don't hate you, you know that, but this, I can't have stuff like this happen."

"Whatever."

"Okay, well, I'll see you later then," she told him.

"Sure," he said, then called out for her, "Stephanie?"

"Yeah?" she asked, turning around again. She was planning to go check on her children and then make sure she looked absolutely perfect for the show. She was still carrying some Flynn weight, but she didn't think she looked too bad. She could reconcile her looks with herself.

"What is so great about Hunter?" he asked. "Seriously, what's so great about that guy? I don't get why she likes him over me, I just don't get it. Does she not see that I'd be way better for her?"

"I don't know why she in particular is with him, but sometimes, he's really not a great guy and you just have to accept things as they are."

That was something for him to ponder.

Britt caught up with Stephanie as she was walking down the hallway. "So, I couldn't really find any platforms for the wrestlers to stand on in the ring, but I didn't find one of those things, award stands, you know, like they use at the Olympics. It was the best I could do on short notice. I got a podium for you though, so there's that."

"Thanks, that'll work, we'll make due with what we've got…I just talked to Randy for him, I ordered him to stay away from you or he's suspended."

"Shut up," Britt said, "you did not."

"I did, so if he bugs you again, let me know. I told him I was not joking about this. I think he's probably ready to throw me through a window, but he has to learn and respect authority. We'll just consider this his real punishment for not telling us he was cleared to wrestle."

Britt laughed, "Thank you so much. I just don't want to see him, especially after he was horning in on my time with my grandparents. It just rubbed me the wrong way and I don't want to see him."

"Well problem solved. I've got to get ready though, forum and all that."

Stephanie detoured back to her office. She walked inside, but nobody was there. She figured Chris had taken the kids somewhere, maybe to eat, so she just got ready on her own. She'd try to look very business-like tonight and she checked herself in the full-length mirror. Yes, she definitely looked like she meant business and she was ready to let everyone on the roster speak their mind. She was being tough, but fair.

She got down to the gorilla just as the last of the Raw roster was making their way to the ring. Chris and the kids were there, along with Britt, who was just hanging Sawyer his toys back after he climbed onto a steel chair. He knelt on it and continued to play in his own little fantasy world of dinosaurs and monsters. Flynn was in her carrier, sucking on a pacifier and slowly falling asleep.

"Hey," Stephanie said. "I've got to get out there."

"Good luck," Chris said, "you've got some disgruntled wrestlers."

"When are wrestlers not disgruntled about something, that's the true question," Stephanie said.

"I am a little disgruntled," he said, stretching his hands out and cracking his knuckles, "I think I should go out there and air my grievances."

"Chris, don't steal my spotlight."

"That'd be stealing your spotlight, really? You command all the attention all the time. How cool would it be if I were out there to support you, that's all? I could be your enforcer, standing behind you with my title, looking down on all the wrestlers because I'm way better than they are. I wouldn't even have to talk."

"You have nothing to come out there for. You don't have to ask questions, you're my husband, you can ask me anything."

"Anything?" he asked lecherously.

Stephanie's music started up and she was saved by the bell so to speak, "Oops, that's me."

"I'm totally coming out there," Chris joked, starting to get up. She pushed him back down and then went out into the arena. It was abuzz with activity. This was the first time she'd been in front of the fans in almost a year. She could never understand why she always retreated from this. Well, the last time was probably from Flynn, but usually, why did she leave? She loved this. She loved being in front of the fans. She wasn't sure they loved her too much.

She opened the floor for questions and like a moth to a flame, Randy had to start talking. She was afraid he might bring up something with Britt, but he just wanted to be the next in line for the title and couldn't understand why Cena got the title shot. She couldn't really understand it either, it personally wasn't something she would do, but she had to uphold Shane's wishes. She knew it made her brother look bad in the eyes of some of the wrestlers, but well, those were a few more wrestlers in her pocket.

She didn't say Randy would be the next in line for the title, he just kind of assumed it would be so. He was pissed off about the Britt thing and it showed. He was not assaulting her. Was it a jerk move last week? Yes, but he wasn't doing anything to her. The title shot was the least he could get if he was indeed supposed to stay way from Britt for a long time.

Cody asked why Randy wasn't suspended for kicking Ted in the head. She frowned a little. She was really sorry to hear Ted was hurt, really sorry because it meant she could see him. She _did_ get to have a great conversation with him regarding how long he might be out. He was actually kind of sweet once you got past all this elitist Priceless stuff. Yes, he was actually a decent guy underneath it all. Recognizing she could lose Cody, she made the decision to have Randy's match later be a 30 man Lumberjack match. That would appease him and also show Randy she meant business.

He was angry, of course, but she held her ground. Randy felt like he was being punished for something he didn't commit. He was just a mild jerk and this was what he got. This was unfair. Before he could say more, Santino Marella of all people came up to the microphone and Stephanie could hardly watch as he tried to rap something to her. Stephanie didn't relent.

JBL came up next and asked where her father was. She tensed at that. Stephanie said Vince was not in charge, she was and Shane was (though she was really, really in charge). Maybe if she knew where her father was she could accuse him of running the show with Adamle as his puppet, but she had to dismiss the question because she herself didn't know where her father was. If she did, she would've gone there and forcibly made him act like a human instead of a recluse. The very least he could've done was come out to see his granddaughter.

Shawn just had to interrupt. She hated that he played all nice to her when it suited him. It was always him pandering to the fans, just like now. She didn't care if he and JBL had a match right now so she didn't stop their brawl. She didn't like Shawn because of years of torment and she didn't like JBL for choking her husband. She was perfectly content having the two of them beat each other up. She just stood there while it happened, not caring about either side. Maybe they could take each other out of commission and she could kill two birds with one stone. Now _that_ made her smile.

She really had kind of expected Chris to come out during the thing. She knew she told him not to, but well, he always loved to interrupt her before she thought he might try and pull it again. It could've been like old times.

Britt hung up the phone backstage, "And Shane is the one behind the Cena packages."

"Shane?" Chris asked. "I didn't know he was doing them."

"That's what I'm told. They said Shane wanted them so the fans could remember who John Cena is and to incite interest in your match with him. Since John can't be here, this is his way of talking, expressing himself."

"That' a piece of…" He stopped when he saw Sawyer watching him intently, ready to imitate whatever Chris said, the words on the tip of his tongue. "roadkill."

Sawyer looked at him funnily, "Mad, Daddy?"

"I am mad."

"Why?" he asked curiously.

"Because I just don't think it's fair that this guy, this…idiot gets all these packages, you know. I thought I was filming something for a DVD or something, not _The John Cena Story: An Afterschool Special_. They're nauseating and where are my videos? Why am I getting ignored?"

"I dunno," Sawyer told him. He didn't have all the answers. "You bad?"

"Some people say so, but I don't think so. I think I'm good enough to warrant my own video."

"I do fow you," he said.

"You'd make one for me?"

"Yeah, wif Fywnn, she help," he explained. How hard could it be? He could just color it.

"What would she do?"

"Hmm, I dunno," Sawyer told him, "she can sit."

"She can sit with you?"

"Yeah, dat it," he said. "I cowor you."

"You'll color me?"

"Yes, I cowor you and you show."

"I'd show everyone."

"I do now," he said, hopping off the chair and leaving all his toys behind as he ran towards the locker room. He could color right now! Then his daddy could show it like they were showing that other man that made his daddy unhappy. Chris sighed and ran after him, leaving Flynn in Britt's care. He picked Sawyer up by the two straps of his overalls.

"You have to wait for people, kid," Chris said, lifting him fully into his arms. "We're supposed to be waiting for Mommy and Flynn, we don't go running off, okay?"

"Okay," he said, leaning over towards the direction of Flynn. They walked back just in time to see Randy give Britt a withering stare. He didn't come over and talk to her though, he wouldn't risk it with Stephanie right there. She would not hesitate to suspend him, so he had to play it cool for the evening.

Stephanie came backstage as Chris put Sawyer down on his chair, "So how did that go?"

"Fine, I guess, could've used more Chris Jericho, but I won't say anything," he told her.

"I thought you were going to ignore my wishes and come out there anyways, I was kind of anticipating it," she laughed.

Chris groaned, "Don't send me mixed signals. I didn't want you to get mad at me so I didn't go out there, now I learn that you would've been fine with me going out there. See, now I have a missed opportunity. I could've gone out there, called you a slut or something."

"Oh, that would've helped," she said drolly. "I'm trying to assert my power, be a friend to the people and you'd come out and call me a slut…or worse. That'd ruin my image."

"It would not, it'd be fun, everyone would have a great time. They might love me though because do they love you now, I can't remember."

"Is that a crack at me for having been gone so long?"

"That wasn't what I intended, but I'll go with that, yes."

"I haven't been on because I was pregnant, if you recall. I _wanted_ to be GM, but no, someone wouldn't let me."

"You were pregnant, of course I wasn't going to let you, are you kidding me with this?" he asked. "Next time, I'm going to come out and I'm going to ask how my favorite slut is doing. See, that way, I get the dig in and I'm really nice because I said you were my favorite slut and you really are, you know, you're definitely my favorite slut."

"That's not too reassuring."

"You could've fallen back into what we used to be like, you could've sneered at me and called me like, a pox on Earth or something, oh! You could've said that you were really mad to hear I was coming back but you should've expected I'd come crawling back to the company because you're nothing without us," she said, tugging at his collar and making a funny face. She was about to start talking again when something interrupted her.

A very high-pitched giggle.

Chris and Stephanie's heads turned quickly towards the table right next to them. Sawyer was leaning over Flynn and making funny faces at her and Flynn was absolutely delighted. She had been dozing off, but then she saw her brother close by and struggled to stay awake. Sawyer saw she was up and he grinned and started playing with her, making faces to try and get her to smile. But she was laughing! He hadn't expect that and she was absolutely enthralled and giggling and loving her brother.

"Oh my God, she laughed!" Stephanie exclaimed. "Our daughter laughed!"

Chris chuckled, the laughing was contagious. "That is probably the cutest laugh I've ever heard in my entire life." It was indeed cute, all high-pitched and very girly. His daughter had a girly laugh.

"Sawyer, baby, you made her laugh," Stephanie said. "That's the first time she's done that."

Sawyer looked aghast, "Weally?"

"Yeah, wow," Stephanie said, plucking Flynn out of her carrier. She made a couple faces to her daughter and was greeted with more laughing. Stephanie laughed herself, which only made Flynn laugh more and she held her daughter to her. "Wow, our daughter laughed, that's…wow. She's becoming a little person."

Chris laughed, "Come on you guys, giggling time is over, we've all got business to do. Sawyer, I believe you were going to make a video for me."

"Oh yeah!" Sawyer said and forgetting what Chris had _just_ told him, he started running.

"I'm going to ground that kid," Chris said, going after his son, leaving Stephanie behind to grab all their stuff.

Once they got all their things they settled down for the evening. Flynn, after her giggling fit, was extremely tired and decided to turn in for the evening. She was really good about sleeping so they knew she'd be out for the rest of the show. She was in her portable crib, her hands relaxed by her head as a pacifier dangled precariously out of her mouth. Sawyer was at Stephanie's desk, coloring.

She noticed he was coloring on something. "Sawyer, what are you coloring?"

"Dis," he said, holding up the copy of WWE Magazine with Cena on the cover. Except Cena was no longer distinguishable as Sawyer had colored over it with some of the big markers he had (which were thankfully washable).

"Oh Sawyer," she said, hoping he wasn't getting that everywhere. Cena was just a black blob in the middle of the page. "Well, at least you and your father have the same brain."

"I did not coerce him into that," Chris said from the couch, where he was lounging and doing nothing. "Why haven't we been on-screen together in so long?"

"Because we haven't," she said, "we spend nearly every minute together, we don't need to spend _every_ minute together."

"So you're saying you don't like me."

"Not one bit," Stephanie said, "Not one bit."

Hunter walked into the arena to find Britt waiting for him. She ran up to him and hugged him, "Oh, I'm so glad you're here, I missed the hell out of you," she said into his shoulder.

"Well that's definitely a good sign," he said. "I missed you too, even though I saw you like two days ago."

"I know, but two days is too long."

"This is why you should move to Connecticut with me," Hunter said. "I don't know why you won't."

"I told you, I'm not really ready to move in with you. I appreciate the gesture, I really do, but I'm just not in the right frame of mind for that."

"Because of that damn independent streak," he told her, shaking his head. "There's plenty of room for you at my place whereas I can barely get through the door at yours."

"You're too big," she said, squeezing his arm muscle. "At least when other people see you in my building they know not to mess with me because my boyfriend can pound them."

"I'm glad I can provide a service for you," he told her.

"You do, so I need to stay and take advantage of it."

"My place is better."

"Well obviously. I have to be ready though, you understand. You're like, my second most long-term relationship. I foresee a future with you, don't let it get to where it's going to be screwed up. You should understand, what with a marriage under your belt that did not work out and resulted in Stephanie marrying someone else."

"That benefits you, lady," he told her.

"I suppose," she said coyly. "So, Stephanie told Randy if he bugs me again, he's suspended."

"She did."

"Yup."

"I knew there was a reason I fell in love with that woman."

"Wait," Stephanie said, "my _brother_ is the one who wanted those Cena things?"

"Yeah."

"Do you think _he's_ plotting behind _my_ back?" she asked, a little alarmed.

"Knowing your family, probably, but then, this is Shane, he probably just wants to hype the match."

"That's true, Shane does want it to be successful. But why wouldn't he tell me? Because he's behind Cena? But you're his brother-in-law. You guys are more like brothers at this point because we've been together for over six years. Why would he not want you to win?"

"Maybe he does and he's just hyping a match, hyping a return to bring in more buys."

"Why not tell me though?"

"Because you weirdly overanalyze things?" Chris asked vaguely. "Steph, come on, Shane's not like you, maybe he doesn't have an agenda and just wants people to watch the show. He knows some people like Cena, though a lot of people don't, I've never seen someone get such mixed reactions, it's either love him or hate him."

"I don't weirdly overanalyze things," she told him with a slight pout.

"I just don't think it's very fair he's getting all this hype and I'm not."

"You go out there though."

"Not the same," he told her. "I don't get fancy packages like he's had. Why didn't you think of that?"

"Um, trying to gain control over here, I've got bigger things to worry about than a video making you look good."

"It'd have been easy. You could've even had me playing with Sawyer and Flynn, talk about making me look good. Me playing with our kids? Our adorable kids, how could anyone resist? Sawyer, be adorable."

Sawyer looked up confusedly from his drawing. His hands were streaked with different colors. He'd have to wash his hands soon. "Huh?"

"See, look at that face, with the marker and the new haircut to look like his daddy, who's going to resist and then Flynn with the giggling, my God, the giggling. People would love the hell out of me, not that I care, but they would."

"I'm not putting my kids on TV," she told him.

"So you don't want me to look good then?"

"If it means putting my kids on TV, no I don't want you to look good, I want you to look like a huge tool."

"What if I put in our wedding video? People would think it was so romantic, people like that, girls like that at least. I'd appeal to the females."

"Sweetie, you're hot, you already appeal."

"That is true," he said, licking his lips. "That is true. What'll appeal to the guys? Oh, hockey, I can show how I play hockey for charity _and_ my band."

"You don't care about the fans."

"I'm just saying it's not fair that I'm not getting a video. I don't even have a DVD, did you know that?"

"I didn't, actually, you don't?" Stephanie said, trying to think back.

"I don't. I had a video in 2000, but that's it. You'd think I'd have my very own 3-disc set. Lord knows I could fill one up."

"You could, that's so weird you don't have one."

"It'll probably come out after the _Best of Kung Funaki _DVD," he joked.

"Why _don't_ you have one?" she pondered. "I'm going to look into that."

"Okay, so there's a perk, wait…are you going to like, make yourself a prominent person in this DVD."

"Yeah, sure, it'll be the Chris Jericho and Stephanie McMahon-Jericho comedy hour."

"The funny thing is, it could be, what with our sordid and checkered past."

"You make it sound like we were in the mafia instead of just hating each other passionately and without abandon and then suddenly doing 180's and falling in love with each other."

"You liked me though, you just didn't want to admit it."

"Speak for yourself, Jericho," she said.

"I hated you, please," he said, then looked towards the screen. "See, look at this, seriously, _another _video. This is totally and completely unfair. Sawyer was supposed to be making a video for me, but I think he's given up." Chris got up and went over to Sawyer. "See, look at that, he's not drawing any pictures of me to show, even my own son doesn't think I deserve a great video."

"Stop being whiny," she told him. "It doesn't become you."

"I should at least get equal time to speak if I can't have videos made about me. I could go back to Winnipeg and win," he said with a scoff as they watched. They both became kind of enthralled with it.

The video ended mercifully and suddenly a camera was sneaking up on them that they didn't expect. Stephanie was slightly pissed at seeing it because her kids were in the room. If it so much as got even a fingernail of her kids on TV, someone was getting fired tonight. Chris asked if they were all set and she told him they were and if he wanted equal time, he could have it since he didn't get some "awesome video."

Chris asked if she was enjoying herself and she could tell he was going into Chris Jericho mode here. It wasn't her Chris, it was business Chris. Her Chris was hardly any business, she usually held up that end of the deal while Chris was the silly one. But when the cameras came on, she knew Chris turned serious. But she still didn't know what he meant by enjoying herself.

She asked him, wondering if he was going to say something stupid like he could make her enjoy herself, something crass and so totally Chris, but he didn't. She should've known better, Chris wasn't going to just tip her back and start making out with her, he knew the camera was on them. They didn't speak of their relationship on-screen, it was off-limits, as was the little boy who noticed his parents were being filmed.

Sawyer didn't know what the heck was going on. Since when did his parents talk so funny? His daddy's voice didn't usually sound like that, like he was whispering without whispering. His mommy looked very serious too. And there was a camera on them to boot. Were they on TV? Together? That was strange, usually his daddy was on TV or his mommy was on TV now, but together? Well that was just weird…but wait, was this? Could they be having fun without him? Was this a family thing? If it was, he wanted to get in on this, he was part of the family!

He got off his mommy's chair and started inching forward. There was wire on the floor and he didn't want to trip and fall. Stephanie could see him as she moved her eyes away from Chris for a moment and she just hoped she was being filmed so that even if Sawyer came up to them, he wouldn't be seen because of his short stature. Chris didn't see him though, still talking about how Cena would just divide everyone up, which could be true, he was a very…interesting character.

He said she knew it would happen and he knew she knew it would happen, well, maybe, he was her husband so he usually knew what she was thinking. He finished it by saying he knew she wanted him to win on Sunday, which should've been common knowledge. Of course she wanted him to win, she was his wife and she always wanted him to win. He turned to presumably go out to the ring now, even though his time wasn't right this second.

He nearly nailed Sawyer in the face, but managed to side-step him. The cameras were off and she called out, "Chris, your time's not right now."

"Oh, it isn't?"

"No, it's later, right now we have a match."

"Oh."

"You also almost kicked our son in the face."

"I didn't know he was there."

"You didn't see me looking down?"

"Too focused on talking."

"Out of your ass, what the hell was that about?"

"Well he got a video and I didn't, I think that's unfair, see, he's dividing people already!"

"I'm on _your_ side, as if you didn't know."

"But the people might not know you're on my side, I was hinting at it."

"I'm your wife, some of those people know that."

"Some don't. Are you rooting for me?"

"No, I want you to lose and devastate our son by losing the belt," Stephanie said, "things to hope for, right there."

"A lot of people don't like him."

"I know, I don't want him to win, I want you to win. If it were me, he wouldn't even be in the match because he hasn't even been back. I don't think it's really fair."

"This is why I love you, you want to enjoy yourself later tonight?"

"I absolutely thought you were going to make a dirty comment at me."

"I knew you would just blush and while that's cute, I can make you blush later," he winked. "I've got to get something ready."

"Something ready?"

"Well, I knew Sawyer wasn't going to get the video done for me in time so I got Britt to help me out," Chris said, "haven't you wondered why she's not around?"

"I thought Hunter was coming and she was probably in a broom closet somewhere not working."

"No, she's been working, gotta get it ready."

"How did you know you'd have time?"

"Well, sometimes I do know what comes with being in the McMahon family," he said, kissing her, "I love you, that was fun, we should do it again sometime."

"Being on-screen?"

"Yeah, I seem to recall two very different people being on-screen all the time…still my favorite slut though, baby."

"Thanks, that means so much to me," she said sarcastically.

Chris found Britt still at production, looking over a bunch of different things with Hunter, "Hey, done yet?"

"Nearly, you made me get a lot of stuff."

"It wasn't too much," he said, "Hey, man."

"Hey, saw you with Stephanie, surprised you didn't rip her shirt off and make out with her, could you two be any more obvious?"

"Obvious at what, we were talking."

"Yeah, talking, and stripping each other with your eyes," he gagged.

"Oh go focus on Kozlov or something, or maybe Jeff is lurking around here and he wants to attack you too so he can win the match you guys have. I wouldn't be surprised if he painted himself to blend in with the surroundings."

Hunter chuckled, "He'd do that."

"Yeah, so get it ready, Britt, I'm going on soon."

It was ready by the time Chris was out there. He felt charged after earlier and he talked about how Cena was just going to meet the same fate everyone before him was going to face. His story would not end happily. Chris was going to beat him and he was going to beat him good. He was going to save Raw from Cena and Chris was going to be the centerpiece. He didn't want Cena taking what was his, so he wasn't going to let him. Come Sunday, he was going to retain his title, no questions. He knew it would be hard, but he was at the top of his game.

Now if only he could get a cool video package.


	212. Great Scene, Bad End, November 24, 2008

A/N: I totally feel like we're going to get something with them, anyone else getting that feeling?

* * *

"I thought you and Vickie were separated."

"Well, we are," Edge said with a smirk. "I just know how to play the game, little brother. She's still the GM and she listens to reason. She knew I'd be a better champ."

"Is she aware you are dating Lita?" Christian asked, wondering just how forthcoming his brother was being to his estranged wife. He didn't even know if Vickie and Edge were on real speaking terms or if he had somehow charmed his way into the match.

"No, it's inconsequential," he told his brother.

"How is that inconsequential? You're still married to the woman and it seems like the two of you are trying to work things out and--"

"Whoa, who said anything about getting back together? I have _no_ plans for that," Edge interrupted. "I mean, we've obviously talked, but as for actually getting back together…uh, no. Maybe something will change soon, but I doubt it."

"So you're going to stay with Lita?"

"Dude, you and your wife were the ones to bring us back together so don't act like you didn't think this could happen. You pretty much made it happen."

"You were sulking like a baby!"

"And now I'm totally happy and it's all thanks to you and Trish."

"You're still married though."

"For now."

"For now?" Christian repeated.

"I love Vickie, don't get me wrong, I do, but Lita, she was like…you wouldn't understand the way we loved each other, the way we _love_ each other."

"Are you saying I don't love Trish?"

"No," Edge scoffed. "I know you love Trish, believe me, I know, but you don't have what Lita and I have. What we have…it's like crazy love, totally insanely, intense, total love."

"What Trish and I have is crazy," Christian said defensively. He and Trish could be pretty crazy. Their relationship had been very up and down for so long. They broke up and made up a million times, that was pretty crazy of them if he did say so himself.

"No, no dude, you guys are sweet and that's cool, but you wouldn't understand. There are just different types of love. Like you and Trish are sweet, Chris and Stephanie, their loves is so settled, like they can talk without using any words, that's freaky. Me and Lita, crazy love."

"You're so weird."

"We'll just play it out."

"Yeah, sure."

"So tell me, are you coming back here? I'm your brother, after Trish I'm the first person that should know about this development."

"Why do you care?"

Truth was, he was almost absolutely positive with his decision. Trish hadn't been pressuring him per se, but she had been seriously hinting that she wanted him to go back. He was expecting to open his fridge and see a WWE cake sitting there suggestively. The lure of being with his friends was strong. They'd had so much fun back in the day, all together, hanging out, keeping Chris and Stephanie's secret. Now it felt more separated. He was in TNA, Edge was on SmackDown, Kurt was a jackass, and Chris and Stephanie had two kids. If he was back in the WWE, maybe they could capture some of that back.

"Because you're my brother, for one, duh," Edge told him. "Second, uh, do you remember a little thing called E&C? If you came back on SmackDown, dude, come on, we'd so rock that show!"

"So I could be your sidekick again, no thanks."

"You wouldn't be my sidekick, we'd be partners, kick ass like we used to," Edge told him. "So come on, tell me!"

"I'm probably going to come back," Christian said. "I haven't decided totally, but I'm pretty sure I'm going to come back. Trish wants it and I kind of want it too. Unless you know, TNA makes a bigger offer, I have to think of the family I am going to have and how to take care of them. I want to make sure I'm going to be set."

"You've made a ton of money, don't tell me you've spent it all," Edge said, "I live a rocking lifestyle and I still haven't spent all of my money, plus, your wife is pretty set too, it's not like you guys are totally hurting."

"Still, kids are expensive, you know, by the time Trish and I have one, it could be super expensive, I might not have enough money even for that," Christian joked.

"Okay, how many kids are you planning on having?" Edge joked. "You talk like you're going to have 10 kids or something. If you're going to have that many kids, you need to start now."

"Believe me, Trish and I are trying," Christian said, thinking of their recent disappointment. He had been hoping she would be pregnant, but she hadn't been and so they just had to wait until she was ovulating again to try. "I don't think we want 10 kids, but 2 would be nice, you know."

"Yeah, I'll leave the 10 kids thing up to Chris and Stephanie, they're already working on it. I wouldn't be surprised if she got pregnant with number 3 any day now."

"Are you kidding me? With her in control now, no way. She's probably making Chris stay 15 feet away from her at all times. This is what she's wanted for the longest time, no way is she going to get pregnant right now."

"So you say, but she's probably already pregnant again."

Christian laughed, "If you're hoping anyone is pregnant, make it my wife, okay, because that would be awesome. I'm so ready to be a dad. I think I'm about ready to kidnap one of Chris's kids."

"Which one?"

"I think Sawyer because he's pretty much potty-trained so he'd be a lot less maintenance than Flynn. Flynn is a cutie though, you know, she's rolling over and giggling and everything, it's weird because she's still so young, you know. I guess babies are amazing. I want one."

"Adopt."

"If things don't really work out, that is an option of course. I mean, we'd want to have one of our own, but if it came down to that decision, it's one we wouldn't hesitate to make. There are a lot of kids out there who need homes…you know, maybe that should be a really viable option for us, even if we do have kids of our own."

"That'd be cool," Edge said. "So seriously, dude, come back, okay, we need you."

"I can't believe you're going to still date Lita," Christian said. "You're just asking for it. Vickie is your boss, your _boss_, she controls you. Dude, that's like if Chris cheated on Stephanie with Katie Lea or something. She would make his life a living hell, an absolute living hell."

"I didn't think of that," Edge muttered. "That is definitely something I need to consider. I wouldn't want to lose my title because I have a vindictive wife…but then, she's been going around with Big Show, maybe she's dating him."

"Seriously? You honestly think that?"

"I don't know what to think to be quite frank."

"There's no way she's with him, no way."

"She knows we're separated, why wouldn't she know that we can date other people? But you're right, I need to think about what she could do to me. I think I should probably keep the Lita thing on the down low so she doesn't go all ballistic on me."

"Yeah, I think that'd be best," Christian said as he rolled his eyes. He was lucky his brother couldn't see it over the phone.

"Cool, I think so too, but I'll let you get back to the wifey, as the champion I have duties and one of those is making sure my girlfriend is well-satisfied, I'll talk to you later, little bro," Edge said.

"Yeah, sure," Christian said, happy to get off the phone with his brother. Sometimes Edge could be so insufferable. It was true, he and Trish had gotten him and Lita in touch with each other again, but if he was going to do this, Christian didn't know, it felt kind of weird. He felt kind of weird, guilty almost.

"Are you done yet?" Trish asked as she ran her hands up his back. "You were talking to him for a while."

"He was crowing over the fact he has the title again. I was asking what was up with him and Vickie. He doesn't think it's a big deal."

"Well, it's his life, let him deal with it," Trish told him, leaning her cheek against his warm t-shirt. "You can't control Edge, if I know anything in this world, it's that. He's just going to be Edge, you can't change that."

"You're right. He's an ass, but he's my brother."

"Exactly."

Chris frowned. It was probably going to freeze on his face at this point, just like his grandmother had always warned when he was little. He had believed her. Growing up in Winnipeg, the winters were bitterly cold and he believed anything could freeze then, even his face. Tonight he didn't care if he was perpetually frowning. He was pretty angry about losing last night. Although it wasn't as bad as the last time and he couldn't figure out why.

Stephanie was walking in front of him and he remembered why. Chris looked down at the stroller and at Flynn, who was lying in it, looking up at him intently. She didn't look upset about a thing, but she was only a baby and didn't care about belts and matches and who was fighting whom. As long as she had her mommy and daddy and her most important Sawyer, she was pretty happy with life. Add in Stephanie's breast every now and then and a clean diaper and she'd be the happiest baby in the world. She didn't care if her father lost.

That was probably part of the reason why it didn't hurt so much. Sure, it hurt, but he had a really great family to fall back on. Business-wise, he was so pissed he was seeing red, but when he was around Stephanie and his kids, it disappeared because he needed to learn to separate the two. His wife couldn't do the separating so he had to do it for the both of them. She was hell-bent on making things great with the show and he was starting to think she was going to rig everything in his favor, but she wouldn't do that, he didn't want her benefits.

What really upset him about his loss was the way Sawyer was taking it. It had really hit him the hardest. He loved that belt. He had been sad when Chris had lost the belt before, but he had won that right back and just the strain of having to give it up again was hard on the little boy. He wasn't quite adept with the sharing concept and he didn't get why Chris had to give up the title completely. When Sawyer had seen that belt with Cena instead of Chris, it had broken his poor heart.

He had regressed a lot overnight. He was not his usual self today and hadn't been since he woke up. There was no jumping on the bed to wake him up this morning. Sawyer had just lain there quietly, something he never did. Usually he would sneak down the hallway at home and push open the door to his parent's room and crawl onto the bed with his little stepstool and get in between his parents, oftentimes pushing Chris right out of the way to cuddle with Stephanie. There'd been no running to get dressed or eat breakfast or use the bathroom or brush his teeth. In fact, he hadn't run at all today.

Stephanie was carrying him right now. He didn't feel like going anywhere. He asked about his toy, if he could have it back, but Chris had to tell him he didn't have it right now and Sawyer had cried a little. He had even wanted a binky, something he hadn't wanted in months, but today was a day of mourning for him so it only seemed appropriate he had the comfort of his binky. His chin was resting on his shoulder and his head leaned against his mommy's neck. He was watching Chris through his red-rimmed eyes and sucking on his pacifier. Chris tried to throw him a smile, but Sawyer didn't throw one back.

If Chris had known his loss would incite this kind of reaction in his son, he would've beat John Cena to near-death to retain his title. He wanted to do right by his kids, never wanted them to want for anything. All Sawyer wanted was a simple belt and he couldn't even do that for his son. Maybe he could get him a replica belt. It wouldn't be the same thing, but…well, hell, he could pretty much get the same thing if he really wanted, who was to say he couldn't get a realistic-looking belt for Sawyer, maybe one without all the gems, though they could keep the gold. Maybe they could look at them on WWE Shop and see what they had. That made him feel a little better knowing he could make Sawyer feel better.

They reached Stephanie's office; she had now insisted they permanently get separate rooms. Chris thought it was stupid, but Stephanie said it looked more professional if they had separate rooms. Chris was starting to think it was so she could pawn off their kids on him while she was working. He had to admit, it was really nice seeing her take charge of everything off-screen _and_ on-screen. His wife had a presence that nobody else in the company had. She was domineering and in charge and he loved it…and he didn't even get any real benefits from it! Except constantly having to take care of his children, but he liked them, so it was all good.

"Hey, Britt," Stephanie said as she walked inside. "Hey, Hunter, what's up?"

"Your brother's not here yet," Britt said. "I know there's still a half hour before the show starts, but he was supposed to start off the show. He called me personally to say that he wanted time at the top of the show."

"What?" Stephanie asked.

"You didn't know about that?" Britt said. "I figured you would since the both of you are in charge."

"No, I didn't, do you know what he wants to say?" Stephanie asked. She couldn't believe her brother would just try and swoop in and try and take over. He didn't even consult this with her. Maybe he _was_ plotting against her as much as she was plotting against him. Well, maybe plotting was a bad word to use, she wasn't actively trying to get her brother out, there was no grand scheme, she just wanted to phase him out of this end of the business. He could still work at corporate, she was fine with that, but this was her show.

"Well, he basically went over the basics with me because he said that he was going to need time during the show for the match he wanted," Britt said, looking over her clipboard at the notes she had made when Shane had called her. "Yeah, he said that Cena was going to end the show, you knew that, right?"

"Yeah, I knew that," Stephanie said tersely, glancing over at Chris and rubbing Sawyer's back. Sawyer mewled a little bit, but didn't move from his position on her shoulder. He was being extra clingy tonight. She happened to look over at Hunter and noticed he had a look very similar to Chris's and she remembered that he had lost his title too. As if the room wasn't dreary enough she had to have two losers from the previous night.

Chris was trying to busy himself with Flynn, taking her out of her stroller and holding her to him. He didn't much want to hear about Cena right now. "Anyways, he is going to schedule a #1 contender's match between Chris and Batista to see who is going to face Cena at Armageddon."

"He didn't even consult with me on that," Stephanie said, her teeth smashing together as she clenched her jaw. "Did he think he was just going to swoop in here…he wants to run things, he's trying to take over for me! Can you believe that, Chris? Can you believe he'd do that?"

"Well, I mean, maybe it's not as bad as you think," Chris said. He didn't want Stephanie to get mad right now. There were too many upset people around here and he didn't need to add Stephanie to the list.

"Or maybe it is, I can't believe…fine, fine, let him have all the time he wants," she said, her tone changing. It sounded kind of strange actually and Chris wasn't sure he liked the tone of her voice.

"Okay," Britt said, noticing the change in tone. "I'm sure he would've consulted with you if he wasn't pressed for time. I know he's already running late so maybe he just didn't have the time to call you."

"Yeah, maybe," Stephanie said. "I guess just make sure that everything is set up. I think I'm going to watch the show from the gorilla tonight, like I used to, I want to get back in the hang of things."

"Okay, I'll get right on that," Britt said, going over to Hunter and grabbing his hand. Stephanie noticed he hadn't said anything since they had come into the room. He must really be upset about the title. "Bye."

"Thanks," Stephanie said as the two left. "Well, at least you know someone has it worse off than you. At least you were aware of your opponent, Hunter was blindsided by the addition of Edge, he had no time to prepare and trust me, Hunter loves to prepare for any of his matches, that's how he was able to beat you so many times."

"Thanks for reminding me of that," Chris said dully.

"I'm trying to lighten the mood just a little bit," she said. "Flynnie, help me out here."

Flynn looked over at the sound of her mommy's voice but didn't do anything. She looked back to Chris who, to her, was making a face. She giggled at her silly daddy and that did help Chris's mood. "Thanks, flutterby, I needed that."

"So what am I going to do about my brother?" Stephanie said, leaning back against her desk.

"I don't know, apparently I've got a match I need to get ready for," Chris said. "I'm going to win it too, I'm going to get my title back, that belt is as good as mine at Armageddon. Did you hear that, kid, I'm going to get it back."

"Chris, don't get his hopes up," Stephanie said. "You will win that match, but…well…"

"What? What well?"

"I don't like the fact he made a match without consulting with me first. The Cena thing, fine, he put him on at the end of the show, I don't care about that, but making matches, I don't think that's in his jurisdiction here. First he made that title match for last night, which now that I think about, was a horrible idea." Chris smirked at that. "Now he's trying to control the title picture again. Who's another good candidate for the title picture?"

"You're asking me who I'd want to face?"

"No, who is _worthy_ of facing you," she told him.

"Okay, I'm going to go with…Jamie Noble."

"Very funny…I'm thinking Randy."

"The same Randy who you banned from seeing Britt last week, that Randy Orton? Why do you want to help him now?"

"I wouldn't say it was helping him exactly, I'm just giving him an opportunity. You're already in the match so it's not like I can place you into it, you know," Stephanie said. "I would have if it came to that, but it didn't. I'm going to inform Randy of this, I don't want him blindsided."

She went over to her headphones and tried to put Sawyer down, but he whimpered and didn't want to leave his mommy's arms. "Sawyer, baby boy, you're going to have to go down now."

"No," he mumbled around his binky.

"I need to work."

"No, Mommy, no," he told her. He didn't want to go down. He didn't feel like going down. He just wanted to hug his mommy and let her rub his back because it made him feel better. He wanted his belt back, but he couldn't have it and it just made him sadder and sadder when he thought about it. That was his favorite toy and it was gone again.

"Here," Chris said, placing Flynn back in her stroller and came over to take Sawyer off his wife's hands. Sawyer was a little reluctant to leave Stephanie's arms, but if it was to his daddy's arms, it was okay. "Hey there, kid, I had a really good idea, you want to know what it is?"

"Okay," Sawyer said.

"Well, I was thinking I'd get you a belt of your very own and it could even say Sawyer Jericho and everything."

"Weally, Daddy?" he said, taking the binky out of his mouth so he could talk. It was kind of hard to talk with that thing in his mouth.

"Yeah sure, come on, let's look at Mommy's laptop, okay?"

"Okay!" he said, completely enthused now. Maybe they could go to one of his fun websites with all the games.

"What are you doing?" Stephanie asked.

"Look, the kid loves that belt, but he's a kid, does he really know if it's the real belt or not. We just get him the most expensive of the replica belts and this kid is going to love it and nobody is going to take it away from him, plus, we can get his name engraved on it," Chris said.

"That's actually not a bad idea. I should have them make it special for him though. You don't have to go through the site, I'll just get it specially made," Stephanie said, "if there's one thing I can do for my son, it's that."

"Well, we're going to look at it then so he can see that he's actually going to get it."

"Okay, well, I'm going to go find Randy and tell him about his match," she said, grabbing her headphones and slipping them on. "Will you be okay with the both of them?"

"Stephanie, I love you, but let's face it, this scene, me with kids is not a surprising scene. Especially now that you're in control."

"Fine, I'll stop asking." She pushed the button on her walkie-talkie. "Hey, Britt, can you tell Dave he's got a match later."

"Yeah, sure, Stephanie."

"Thanks," she said, then slipped her headphones off. "I'll see you later. I might not be back so if you could just take care of the kids. Hunter is probably good to take care of him, it'll give him something to do to distract him from losing. He likes distractions so he doesn't have to think about his loss. He analyzes every move he makes to find the one misstep he always thinks is there."

"I should be more uncomfortable that you can remember the inner-workings of your ex-husband's mind."

"You should, shouldn't you?" she nodded. "I'll see you later, sweetie. Bye baby boy."

"Bye, Mommy."

Stephanie went and kissed her boys and then gave Flynn a kiss before leaving to go work on the show. Chris turned Stephanie's laptop on, being greeted with a picture of Sawyer and Flynn on the screen. Sawyer grinned and pointed it out, showing his daddy how it was him and his baby. Chris nodded and brought up the browser before going to the WWE shop. He went to the title belts section and clicked on the World Title.

"See, that's what I'll get you."

"My toy," Sawyer said in amazement, there it was. He could really have it back again. That would be the best. "I want, Daddy."

"I know, that's why I'm going to get it for you, it'll be your Christmas present or something," Chris told him, kissing his head. "I think you'll like it and it's probably lighter than the real thing, you may be able to drag it if you wanted. Plus it'll be all yours and you don't have to share."

Well that appealed to him. He turned towards Flynn's stroller, "Fwynn, I get belt! She too?"

"She's still too little for a belt, she'd need like a little, baby belt, but they don't make those. Someday she'll have the Women's Title. Or you know what, she can be the WWE Champion and you can be the World Champion and we can just dominate everywhere."

"Okay." Sawyer leaned over Chris, touching the screen, "See dat, Daddy."

"You want to see that?" Chris asked.

"Uh huh," Sawyer told him, nodding and wanting to see. "What say?"

"That says new releases," Chris said slowly.

"What dat?"

"It means all the new stuff."

"Oh," Sawyer said, feeling so much better now that he knew he was getting his belt back. "What's dat?"

"A Hardy's basketball jersey."

"And dat?"

"An Undertaker shirt."

"Dat one?"

"That's an inflatable bed…like the one you sleep on when you're here, remember that?" Chris asked him.

"Oh yeah," Sawyer nodded. "I want dat."

"But you have one."

"I like dat," Chris told him. "I want it."

"Well, we'll see, okay, I mean, I have to admit, you'd look really good in that and your mommy would think it was adorable, so I guess we can have that for you and you can sleep on it when you're here."

"Okay!"

Stephanie went up to Randy's locker room. She knocked on the door. Randy scowled when he saw her, not forgetting the stipulation she had put on him the week before. Stephanie was going to kill two birds with one stone here. "Randy, hello."

"Hi," he said succinctly.

"Yeah, anyways, I just wanted to let you know that I felt bad about the thing from last week, but you have to understand where I'm coming from. I just want things to go smoothly. Anyways, as a sign of good faith, I'm going to be putting you in a match later for the opportunity to face Cena at Armageddon."

"Really?"

"Yes, my brother was going to make a match tonight between Chris and Dave, but I want to add you."

"Wait, you want to add someone in a match that includes your husband, who you _always_ want to win, what's your angle?"

"I don't appreciate my brother taking charge and making matches without me so I'm…helping him out a little. I don't think you'll be disappointed to be in the match, will you?"

"No, uh, thank you."

"No, thank you, of course, you're going to lose to Chris, but if you can somehow beat him, that'd be fine, I guess," Stephanie said, a mock sweetness. She looked at her watch. "Oh, the show is starting soon, I have to go."

"Okay, thanks again."

Stephanie started walking towards the gorilla when her headphones crackled to life and Britt told her Shane wasn't here yet. The show was literally starting in moment and she couldn't believe her brother would actually be late for the show when he had specifically requested time at the beginning of the show. She ran a tight ship around here and when someone was supposed to go on, they were expected to be there. She turned and started walking quickly towards the stage. She would just have to make the announcements herself. She passed another monitor and saw her brother arriving in his car.

She rolled her eyes as he rushed through the backstage area, saying hello to various people. She eyed him suspiciously when he said hello to Kelly Kelly. He went out on stage in a rush, trying to catch his breath. Stephanie kept making her way towards the stage. She was not going to let her brother get away with this. Shane announced the match for later and she slammed her headphones down and grabbed a microphone.

She walked out there, smiling at her brother and appearing congenial, but she'd had just about enough of this. This was so typical of Shane and she was finally coming to realize it. Before, she hadn't cared when Shane would swoop in for a while, pretend like he was going to seriously work on the show and then leave a couple weeks later. She hadn't cared before because she understood he had a family that he wanted to get back to. She understood that, but now was different. Shane was acting like he was in charge and he had put in the hours and it wasn't true.

Stephanie made her Randy Orton announcement and put him in the match. Stephanie made a comment about surprises, knowing her brother would pick up on what she was really saying. She was about to leave when Shane stopped her, touching her arm a little.

"Steph, we're supposed to be working together, you know, the two of us in charge, remember? That's what we decided, to work together."

"Yeah, work together," she told him. "After you've made matches without telling me, put people in slots without telling me. What else aren't you telling me? Are you trying to take over the show for yourself, is that your plan? This is _my_ show."

The crowd broke up their argument. Stephanie announced a tag match she had just thought up and was starting to say Shawn's name when Shane interrupted her. Stephanie counted to ten, trying to calm herself down, but it was futile at this point. She'd had enough. Her brother was trying to play her. Stephanie told him in no uncertain terms that this was _her_ show. She was the one busting her ass here and he just swoops in and takes it over.

She really didn't want to do this publicly. Her family always seemed to be airing their dirty laundry where the world could see. The only thing she managed to keep private, and the most important thing, was her family. They were completely off-limits, but this was definitely her show and she wasn't going to let Shane yank it out from under her. She was not going to let him ruin things for him again.

Shane tried to defend himself, but she was already pissed. He was trying to make himself look good, but she didn't care about looking good. He could pander to the fans, but this was beyond the fans. He needed to leave. He was trying to stab her in the back. He could go run corporate, but Raw had always been hers. Shane looked like he was completely aghast at her behavior, but he was the one who had set the seeds in motion with his "little surprises." If he had just told her about his plans…well, no, she probably would've taken power anyways. Now she was just doing so vocally.

Shane went too far.

He asked if she was going to run Raw by herself or if she was going to sleep with another superstar and get herself a new husband. That was especially low, _especially_ low as her husband and two kids sat in the back watching. She turned away a moment and she could tell he was going to say a name. He was probably going to trot out Ted DiBiase's name and pencil him in for husband #3. That was too far…he went absolutely too far. It was like he was on the verge of mentioning her kids. So Stephanie did the one thing she knew she was good at.

She slapped him.

It felt good. She knew she was burning a bridge here, but she also knew Shane took it too far. He tried to retaliate, but it was too late. She stared down her brother, watching firmly as he walked away and then walked to the back herself. Shane was just walking away and Stephanie could let it go.

"How dare you bring up the fact I've been married twice!" Stephanie yelled at him. "Should I bring up the fact you didn't even _know_ Declan was yours until he was two years old?"

"Shut up, Stephanie, I don't know what the hell your problem is," Shane said, turning to her. "All of a sudden it's me vs. you. We were supposed to be working together."

"Yeah, I was! Until you started trying to take control."

"Because I made a couple matches, oh wow, sorry!" Shane said. "You are such a spoiled, little brat, you always have been."

"Oh and you are such an over-righteous suck-up. 'Oh, I'm just here to have fun,'" she said mockingly. "'I can just come on Raw, make a few announcements and then leave because I'm Shane McMahon.' You do not belong here."

"And you do?"

"Of course I do."

"At least I don't bring my infant around with me," Shane tried to shoot at her.

"I'm dedicated to this show. I've busted my ass for this show. I wanted to be the GM, I wanted to run it, but no, you had to turn me away. Well I'm back now and I've put in so many hours making this show what it is. I've always been here, _always_, even when I was pregnant, I came until I couldn't show up anymore. I've dedicated a lot and you think you can just come in here and take it away."

"I wanted to work together!"

"You never consulted me!" Stephanie yelled. "Then implying I was going to cheat on my husband and marry someone else. How dare you, how dare you do that, Shane. You know I love Chris! That was completely over the line."

"Was it? You seem to leech onto the power, don't you?"

"Oh, get off your high horse, you're not here, you don't even know…you couldn't even be bothered to show up on time, you're pathetic. I can run Raw just fine by myself. We don't need you here, this is my show, you haven't even been here!"

"You're such a bitch."

"You're a dick," Stephanie countered. "You've always wanted more power, you've always tried to push me down. When I was little Miss Goody-Two Shoes, telling me I couldn't date Andrew, when I married Hunter, when I wanted to buy ECW, you had to be the big chief while I was just your little sister, now this? No, you're not getting your way, Shane."

"I can't believe you see things like that."

"Well what the hell are you going to do about it?" she challenged, her head cocking from side to side for a bit.

"Okay, I think you two have had enough," Hunter said as he and Britt came on the scene. He touched Stephanie's shoulder and gently pulled her away. She looked ready to pounce.

"I'm outta here, I'm sure you'll be seeing me soon when you can't handle it."

"Please, Shane, I've handled it for years, good riddance!"

Shane stomped away and Stephanie turned, folding her arms in front of her. "What are you two looking at?"

"Nothing," Hunter said. "Your family just amazes me. It's like, at times, you're this normal, functional family unit and then the next, you're a bunch of raving lunatics. I don't know which I like to see more. Nice to finally see some fire in you though."

"I was pissed off, I shouldn't have done that in front of the fans, I'm going to lose them."

"So what, they're overrated."

Chris was shocked at his wife's audacity, but also very turned on. She was really sexy when she got like that. He wished she were around, but he was with the kids and couldn't just go traipsing around wanting to screw around with his wife. He guessed she was definitely the one in charge now. He wasn't sure whether he should be proud or terrified of the prospect of his wife running everything on-screen as well as off. Maybe he could have that in-ring thing with her where he got to tease her though; that was a lot of fun.

He had his match to focus on though and it was an important one. By the time it rolled around, Hunter was sitting with the kids. Sawyer was asleep on his air bed. He'd wanted to try and stay up for Chris's match, but he had nodded off after the excitement of getting his belt back. He had given up the binky, trying to put it in Flynn's mouth before Chris had intercepted it and told him he couldn't share binkies with Flynn. He was down for the count right now though. Flynn, on the other hand, was crying loudly. She was tired and cranky but refusing sleep, being just as stubborn as her mother had been earlier.

"Sorry to do this," Chris said, handing over the baby to Hunter.

"What do I do with this?" he asked.

"Just rock her, rub her back," Chris said. Hunter tried and she started to calm down a little. "See, it's easy. Kids are easy."

"Don't lie."

"Kids are easy when they're not yours. When they're yours, they're little terrors, but otherwise, they're completely awesome."

"Okay, well, I've got them, so you can go now."

"Thanks," he said.

Chris won his match. Michael Cole kept saying he was in the right place at the right time or that he was taking advantage of the situation, acting like a rat, doing under-handed things. The irony was that if it had been Dave taking the same steps Chris did, Dave would be praised. It was such a double standard. Still, he had used his brains once again and he'd won. Dave was shocked, unbelieving to the fact he had lost to Chris for the third time in the recent past. It was like he could not beat Chris Jericho. Sure, he had beat him once only to lose to him a mere eight days later for the title. He watched as Chris walked triumphantly up the mat.

Chris had not seen Stephanie all evening. Now that she had asserted herself as the dominant person on the show, the true leader, she had to be everywhere at once. Chris went to his locker room to take a shower and change. He was going to talk to Cena later. He'd decided that after his match had been one. He was the #1 contender so he should make an appearance as Cena's little shindig. He'd tell him just what he thought of him. Hopefully he'd get his belt back at Armageddon so Cena would have to eat any words he said about Chris.

As he was walking out there, he ran into Stephanie, who just happened to be near the stage. He smiled warmly when he saw her, trying not to lean down and kiss her. That was their usual greeting so being so formal was strange. Still, they had no on-screen romance going on. It didn't matter if Chris had seen Stephanie naked more times than he could count, there was still a sense of propriety here. She congratulated him on his win and asked what he was going to do. She was pleasantly surprised when she found out he was going to speak to Cena.

She would soon regret that.

It was like the JBL incident all over again, except without the cable. She didn't know what possessed Cena in that moment, but it was really kind of scary. She was glad Sawyer was asleep for this and didn't have to see Chris in this state. She was about ready to go out there and kick ass, but she'd already made enough scenes tonight and held back. Held back until Cena got backstage that is.

"You bastard," she said and it wasn't with the vitriol Stephanie usually used. This was cold and calculated, something far worse.

"Oh give it up, Stephanie," Cena said.

"Shut up, John, I'd just watch my back if I were you. Oh, I can be nice, I can make the fans love me, but I don't care if they hate me. Don't forget who my husband is, John, do not forget that I'm fiercely loyal," she said, her voice calm and serious, but there was a rattling beneath the surface, like a rattlesnake bearing its teeth and its poison.

"I do what I want, when I want."

"You'd like to think that, I know, but it's not true."

"It's damn true. I think your husband has lost it. The fans make us who we are."

"Chris made himself who he is, without any help from anyone. He clawed and scratched his way to the top in ways that would make a pretty-boy like you shudder. You couldn't handle his life. No, you just go around waving your hand in front of your face like a big man. But you're not big, John, not at all. In fact you're a peon in the grand scheme of things. Now I'm going to check on my husband, but before I leave, let me remind you of something."

"Go to hell," John tried to say, but Stephanie cut him off.

"My brother gave you time, right?"

"Yeah, so the hell what?" Stephanie lifted her head and look him dead in the eye.

"I run the show now…and I'm definitely not my brother."


	213. Yay, Another One, December 1 & 8, 2008

A/N: Sorry about last week, but here you go. Thanks for those who have reviewed and please enjoy and review this chapter, thanks! :) Oh, also started a new story that's not exclusively Jericho/Steph, so check that out!  


* * *

"I like having scenes with you again on TV. It's about time you showed your face on-screen."

"Well, I was too busy having a child to come on-screen."

"You know, I think you flirt with me. You're not professional at all, Ms. McMahon. I mean, last week, when I was walking down the hallway, it was a little suspicious having you standing there like you were waiting for me."

"I was not waiting for you," she protested, "I was overseeing my show. I was also planning on greeting the new champion since he had wanted time at the end of the show. That's what I was really waiting for."

"You were going to greet the new champion!"

"I'm running the show, aren't I?" Stephanie said. "It would be only fair to greet the new champion as the show is now mine…now if those plans to greet him happened to be by way of kicking him in the crotch, then so be it."

Chris smirked. "Flirting with me _again_. I don't know if I can work under these conditions, Ms. McMahon. I mean, I think I can consider this sexual harassment. I felt your eyes on me when I was walking away last week."

"Excuse me? How dare you make such an assumption," she said, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "You weren't even looking at me, you have no idea where my eyes were. I could've been looking at anything, what makes you think I was looking at you?"

"Because I could feel your eyes on me, boring in to me, checking me out," he told her.

"Why would I need to check you out, tell me that, Jericho?" Stephanie asked. "Because the last time I checked, I didn't need to check you out."

"Except you were, then I watched the video and confirmed that you were absolutely staring at me with what could only be considered lust. You know, I bet if I were to go back and look at old shows of us, I'd see that same look of lust."

"Or powerful looks of hatred."

"I think it'd be lust," Chris nodded. "This is why I love being on-screen with you, I can catch all the little nuances of you being so madly in love with me."

"How the hell did you get that impression from last week? I looked at the tape and it really just looks like I'm congratulating you for winning your match to become the #1 contender. Then asking you where you were going. I don't see what you see."

"So you don't see the obvious want and need in your eyes?" Chris asked, running his finger down her arm. "You don't see how much you absolutely want to rip my clothes off?"

"Absolutely not and get your hand off of me," she said, shoving him away. "I'm never going to be on-screen with you again if you go around looking for stuff that isn't even there."

"Baby, you were absolutely looking at me walking away and you could tell you wanted me."

"I'm allowed to have you," she told him, "so what if I was looking at you?"

"So you admit it?" he said triumphantly, raising his arms in victory.

"You can see me looking at you, but with lust? No way. Why would I look at you with lust, I can have you any time I want you, you're my husband, I don't need to look at you lustfully."

"Because you wanted me right then and couldn't have me, that's why you wanted to shake my hand, because you needed some kind of contact with me."

"I sleep with you at night," Stephanie said, "I'm constantly having contact with you, I married you, I've had two of your kids, the last thing I really need is to shake hands with you because I need the contact. I was congratulating you in a professional manner. I can't act like you're any better than any of my other employees."

"But I am," he pointed out. "Not only because I'm the best wrestler on Raw, but because well, have any of the other guys here really satisfied you the way I have…wait, please don't answer that, I don't need the laundry list of guys you've slept with."

"You really just want to insult me on-screen again, don't you?"

"I'd be _really_ good at it. You should let me, you should like set something up where I can interrupt."

"The fans probably don't like me and they'd cheer you if you were to insult me like that and you and the fans aren't exactly on the best of terms right now, especially with that punk Cena back. I wish I could ship him over to SmackDown. We could just take Edge or take Hunter back or something, probably Edge since he's the title holder. Maybe then he'd really get rid of Vickie."

"He'd try to marry you to get to the top!" Chris joked loudly.

"You kind of already took care of that."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, are you suggesting I slept my way to the top?"

"Well, if the shoe fits."

"Very funny. You would just have to be really good, like really, really good so the fans would hate me. That reminds me, do I get time at the top of the show to speak? Because I need to address the fans."

"Of course you do. I've got a lot of work to do tonight though, I'm glad my mom is here to take care of the kids. She's been wanting to spend time with them. So you're off the hook too. She might even take them back to the hotel early so we don't even have to worry about them sleeping here."

"That'd be great," Chris said. "Not that I don't adore those kids, but well, you know, I'm mad about last week and I've got some things I need to take care of and I know you've got stuff to take care of since you're the big, bad boss now, so yeah, that'd be great."

"We need a nanny," Stephanie laughed. "If I didn't like the fact that someone else would be raising my kids, I'd hire one right now."

"You'd never even seriously consider that," he told her. "Not in a million years."

"I know, I couldn't stand the thought," she said, thinking about her kids and how much she enjoyed raising them. They could be such a trip sometimes. They had their own little personalities, even Flynn, whose personality was really just starting to emerge. She loved when people made funny faces at her, that always got the biggest giggles and she loved to play telephone. Sawyer would talk into his toy phone and then he would hold up the phone to Flynn. At first she wouldn't do anything, but she had taken to actually gurgling and cooing whenever the phone was near her mouth. Chris said she took after the rest of them, talking at every turn.

"Me neither," Chris said somberly.

"So what are you going to say at the top of the show?" she asked. "I assume that you are going to make some sort of impact out there for what Cena did to you last week."

"What about what _you_ did to Cena?" Chris asked. "I mean, I hate to say it, baby, but you really don't need to fight my battles for me, I'm perfectly capable of handling them myself, not that I mind you handling things, but I don't want to look like an idiot."

"I was just telling Cena that I'm running the show so he better watch the way he treats you."

"That's probably going to make him want to attack me even more."

"Well I've got you covered," she said cryptically and he would've responded in question, but she forged through the conversation. "So really, what are you going to say out there? I mean, he was all about the fans last week are you going to denounce the fans?"

"Why do you think I'd do that?"

"Because you hate John Cena and you hate the fans for loving John Cena."

"I don't care if they love me, I really don't. I don't need fans to be successful. They're not there with me when I'm in the ring, sure, they cheer, boo, whatever, but they aren't there for me. They're not there the next morning when I'm bruised and so sore I can't even play with my son. I don't care about them."

"I know you don't, are you going to tell them that?"

"I don't know. I want to get my hatred for John across, but I'm not sure how. I mean, seriously, attacking me like he did last week was so bush league, don't you agree?"

"I always agree with you."

"Liar," he scoffed. "You don't ever agree with me."

"I agree with you over work," Stephanie said. "So I agree with you over this. I do think what he did was excessive. I mean, there's being brutal, but what he did crossed that line. I was upset and if Sawyer had seen that, he would've been upset too. As it is, I'm glad he was asleep for that."

"I am too," Chris thought bitterly.

"What about when you were 'fired,' remember? I mean, you could somehow incorporate that into the discussion. You can say how the fans continued to cheer him even though he cost you your livelihood, nobody really knows that you left because I was pregnant. So you can play up that. If John had been the champion when you came back I thought you would've brought that up, you know, as a way to get the in with the fans. You know, if you wanted John to be the bad guy, you would've had the fans on your side, you could've brought up your son and everything…oh wait, no, because I don't want Sawyer talked about."

"You could make an exception."

"No, look, I'm the boss and I decide what goes on the air, especially with you. You're not going to bring up my son, bring up your imaginary son."

"What imaginary son?" Chris asked, not remembering what she was talking about.

Stephanie sighed, "Remember when JBL choked you out. To make a sob story, you made up a son who was able to ask you about the marks on your necks, bring up this imaginary son now, he'd probably be what, five, five's a good age. Five's far enough away from almost three."

"Oh man, that's right, Sawyer is coming up on three, when the hell did our kid start creeping up on three years old?" Chris said, thinking about his oldest child. He couldn't believe his little boy was going to be three already. Time seemed to have flown because he recalled very clearly when Sawyer was a newborn and he was a nervous father trying to fit into this huge, new role. Now he was completely involved in being a father and had a new one to show for it.

"After he turned two?" Stephanie said glibly. "I can't believe he's going to be three either, feels like he just turned one and now it's almost two years later this May. Anyways, so you have this kid and well, you can talk about…oh! Oh, I know!"

"What?"

"Okay, here we go. You're going to love this," she said, rubbing her hands together deviously. "Okay, so you want to get across your pure hatred for Cena, right? Like you want everyone to realize how much you hate him, you want _Cena_ to know just how much you hate him, right?"

"Yeah, that was the plan," he said. "I mean, I want to get it across that I don't need to be some pandering fool to the fans and I can take care of John Cena and I don't care if the fans love me or not."

"Then you need to put your focus elsewhere, oh, I'm loving this. Okay, so you go out there, oh and you should start in the crowd, or somewhere and you should have bodyguards around you, just to be the antithesis of Cena, yeah, I can arrange that so easily now that I'm really in charge," she said, her eyes dancing with possibility. "Then you come through the crowd, be like Cena except you express how much better you are than him. Then you go into the ring and you talk about how you don't care about converting the fans except one and bring up this son of yours. Yeah, I like that, you say how he's a Cena fan and how you hate that and oh, you could've banned him…wait, you have to bring up how he was so young when you were fired, bring up fired, it makes you look madder at Cena. Oh, you are absolutely going to destroy him. Then you talk about how your son loves John Cena, even though it's not your real son, your real son thinks you're awesome, he loves you, as any son of mine should, but yes, you bring that up. Oh man, it'll make you look like you don't care even more and that'll make Cena so mad and then…well…you can do what you want of course."

Chris stared at his wife. There was something almost feral in her gaze. She was plotting something, he could tell. There were little gears going like clockwork in her mind, twisting and turning and making sweet music in the form of even sweeter thoughts. He really wanted to get across his hatred for Cena, make the fans aware that he cared nothing for what they thought and maybe if he showed that he would even go so far as to ban his own son from watching they would understand he was through with them and they could have their precious hero, Cena.

"Sometimes I really want to get in there," Chris said as he stared at his wife's head, grabbing her around the waist and pulling her to him, kissing repeatedly the spot where her jaw met her neck. "I think I would find it absolutely fascinating."

"There's stuff in here you don't even want to know, Chris," she laughed, pushing at him, but he didn't budge as he kept kissing her. "Now I'm going to go get you those bodyguards, just practice what you're going to say. You don't have to go by what I said of course, it was just a suggestion. I don't think Cena will come out there, but if he does, heaven help him."

"I've got some tricks up my sleeve, don't worry," Chris told her, letting her go because he knew work came first when they were here.

"Not as good as the ones I have up mine," she countered and he smirked in intrigue. "Now if you'll excuse me, this is my show and I have to run it accordingly."

Stephanie had little to no remorse for what had happened between her and Shane the previous week. She had simply said what needed to be said and that was that. She didn't appreciate her brother constantly swooping in and trying to put a quick fix on the show and then jetting off again to wherever he had to go. She was the one in the trenches, the one who came week in and week out and knew the inner-workings of the show. She had thrown her name into the GM pile for a long time and when she finally had the chance now to take that position, her brother was once again trying to swoop in where he didn't belong. She just couldn't abide by that.

This was her show now and she was going to run it accordingly. It wasn't that she didn't love her brother, she absolutely loved her brother, but he knew how much this show meant to her and, still, he was going to sweep it right out from under her. Stephanie was not the type of person to take that lying down and unfortunately that had to come out in front of millions of people.

"Britt, I'm going to need like five or six security guys on hand for the beginning of the show for Chris, have them congregate at the gorilla for further instruction," Stephanie said into her headset.

"Will do, Steph," Britt said from the other end of the line.

Stephanie walked down the hallway, looking for things to take care of, of which she was never in shortage. There was always something to do or check to make the show run smoothly. She loved the work though. She loved getting things done and knowing she was putting on the best show possible. This was her livelihood and if she didn't have kids, she would probably be working all the time with no rest. As it was though, she kind of needed to sleep with a near pre-schooler and an infant.

"Stephanie."

Stephanie turned around and saw her mother walking towards her. Sawyer was still bundled up in his coat, though his hood wasn't on like it was when they left. He was waddling down the hallway, smiling at his mommy, his coat so heavy and thick he was struggling to walk with it. He wasn't used to such heavy clothing living in Florida, but he needed to be bundled up. Flynn was in her stroller, bundled up as well in a pink coat with purple flowers on it.

"Hey guys, did you enjoy your time with grandma?" Stephanie asked, helping Sawyer get out of his coat, which he was struggling to unzip. She pulled the zipper down and let him get out of the thick coat.

"Uh huh, where's Daddy?" Sawyer asked, looking around.

"What? I'm not good enough," Stephanie said, taking Flynn and holding her. Flynn bounced a little in Stephanie's arms, giggling for no reason as she gently patted Stephanie's chest. "You don't want to know how I am or anything?"

"How you, Mommy?"

"Well, I'm good, I have a lot of work to do though so you're going to spend your night with grandma. She'll take care of you and you have to remember to say goodbye to Daddy, okay, because he's going to go away for the week."

"Where he going?" Sawyer asked his mommy, his tongue peeking out the side of his mouth as he anxiously awaited the answer.

"He's going to go to Iraq and be with the troops who protect the country and fight for us."

"Oh," he said, but didn't understand, "why he go?"

"Because it's part of his job and even though Daddy is not…nice to the fans right now, this is a different thing altogether and he really liked going last year so he wanted to go again this year so we're going to be on our own for a few days, but you'll be okay with that, right?"

"Right," Sawyer repeated.

"And you'll help me with Flynnie?"

"I do help," he said proudly.

"You do," she said. She turned to her mother. "They weren't bad for you, were they?"

"My grandchildren are absolute dolls, there's no way they could be anything other than perfect angels," Linda joked. Stephanie laughed. She knew how much her kids could be annoying, but they were still her kids.

"And you get to help me when we go home this week, you're so lucky," Stephanie said.

"Are you going to your station since the show is starting in a while?" Linda asked.

"Yeah, I'll go there for a while, but I'm always needed elsewhere. With running the show comes great responsibility, but I'm ready for it."

Linda looked at her daughter for a moment. She did absolutely look in control of things. There was a frenzied nature to the entire backstage, a common feeling when the show was set to start so soon, but her daughter had a different countenance than the rest. She seemed so calm and in control and at home here. None of the anxiousness was on her face, but just complete and dominating control.

They reached the station and sat down. Stephanie pulled Flynn into her lap, ridding the little girl of her coat. Once it was off, Flynn went about flapping her arms in the air like she could finally breathe. Stephanie kissed her head and made the girl smile as she leaned back against her mother. Sawyer was rooting through the diaper bag for some toys. He saw some wrestling figures so he took those out and started to bang them around the floor in what could only be called a Street Fight.

"So I wanted to have a mother to mother talk with you," Linda said once they were settled.

Stephanie brushed back some of Flynn's hair. She had way more hair than Sawyer ever did as a baby. It was sticking up right now, looking like Chris's hair when he put ungodly amounts of gel in it to get it to stick up like it did. "What about? Were my kids being unruly with you?" She knew it wasn't about that, but she wanted to change the subject.

"No, but _my_ kids are being unruly."

"Mom," she sighed, "you don't understand this."

"I do work for this company, Stephanie. I understand more than you think I do."

"You're more like Shane though, you do better behind the scenes. It's nice when Shane comes around every now and then, don't get me wrong, it's very good. The fans do like him and I like him here, so it's never a problem to have him here, but the day in and day out operation of this show? This is nowhere in his league."

"What about when you were pregnant, he took over then," she pointed out.

"Yeah, for a few weeks, if that, but his family is over here on the East Coast, he hates to go to the south or to the west because he wants to be with his family. I don't begrudge him that, Mom, I really don't. If Chris were just a normal guy with a normal 9 to 5 job, who stayed at home with our kids, then yes, I would be hesitant to leave too, but the fact is Chris is here, my kids are here and I'm here, week in and week out."

"You are supposed to be sharing with your brother though. Neither one of you is better than the other."

"I'm not saying I'm better! I'm just saying this is my show, I take care of the show, he takes care of…whatever Shane takes care of back at corporate. Mom, it works this way."

"He's unhappy with this arrangement, he wants say in this too."

"I'm not budging, Mom. Look, I love Shane, he's my brother, but this isn't his terrain. I've wanted to be the GM of this show for a very long time. Flynn impeded that, but I'm back now and I'm not pregnant, so I'm going to be running this show now."

Linda looked at Stephanie. She was so much like her father. She never bent when she thought she was right about something. She was so headstrong and she pushed through everything, bullying everyone along the way. "Are you sure you won't reconsider?"

"I'm not reconsidering on this issue," she said. "I'm sorry, Mom, but that's my final decision. If Shane really wanted to fight for this position, he would be here. If I were in his place and really wanted it, I'd be here."

"Stephanie…"

"I've got work, Mom," Stephanie said, turning to the monitors and the board in front of her. "Chris is going to be on in a second." She turned to her son. "Sawyer, if you want to see Daddy, he's going to be on."

"Daddy!" he said excitedly as he tried to crowd in on Stephanie, bullying his way to her lap. He didn't necessarily push Flynn out of the way, but nudged her a little. She slapped her tiny hands against his arm in what was probably protest for crowding in on her mommy. "Where is he?"

"He's out in the arena," Stephanie explained.

"Oh," Sawyer said, leaning in closer so he could watch his daddy. "See Daddy, Fwynn?" Flynn babbled a little at him, not caring if her daddy was anywhere near her. She was having fun slapping her hands on Sawyer's back.

Chris started off in the back, but he had security around him. The fans didn't love him, fine, but he wasn't going to invite them to be anywhere near him. He started talking about John Cena and how he fights for the fans, but Chris didn't fight for them, not anymore. Then he broke out into his little story, his sob story, so to speak. He tried to get in as many details as he could and he could just picture Stephanie backstage, mumbling to herself along with his story. He thought it sounded good, a son who loved Cena, a son who needed to be converted. That just proved he was all about his family and not the fans.

Sawyer loved him though. He was definitely Sawyer's favorite wrestler, there wasn't even a contest for Sawyer's favorite wrestler. The little boy wanted to be him when he grew up, so this was all bogus, but it sounded good. It also made him look intense, like he was so focused he would make even his children love him. He might have to convert Flynn. He didn't know where Flynn's alliances lied, he might have to look into that.

"Why does Chris have a 5 year old son?" Linda asked.

Stephanie smiled and looked to her mother, "He's getting his point across."

"I don't know about you two," Linda sighed, knowing there was no way her daughter was going to budge. If she and her husband lied routinely just to incite anger or gain fans, well, there was probably no way she'd convince her daughter to let her brother help her.

"We're just looking out for ourselves," Stephanie said. "Like I said, Mom, Shane is welcome to help, but he's not going to be running this show while I'm here. He's just going to have to deal with that."

"I'm not going to bring it up again," Linda said, taking Sawyer from Stephanie's lap. Sawyer looked up at his grandma but didn't say anything as he watched the tail end of his father's rant. He didn't know what he was really saying, but his daddy had looked very mean while he was saying it. He hoped his daddy wasn't going to be mad when he saw him. He didn't like it when his daddy was mean.

"Thank you," Stephanie said as Chris finished up and headed backstage. As soon as Sawyer saw him, he was out of Linda's lap and running towards his daddy. Chris picked him up and kissed his cheek and Sawyer was reassured that he wasn't in a mean mood, at least not with him. He came over to Stephanie, Linda, and Flynn.

"So how did I look?"

"Great," Stephanie nodded. "You looked great. I loved what you said, it came out perfectly."

"Awesome, I'm glad," he said. "Cena isn't going to know what hit him. I've got some people to get to though, I have to talk to some people. Hey, Linda, thanks for taking care of the kids."

"It's not a problem, Chris," Linda told him. At least Chris could separate his family from the job he did. There might still be hope for Stephanie yet. At least Chris was a calming presence for her. "I'm happy to help out."

"Yeah, it really helps tonight, I've got to go, baby, can you take this thing back?" Chris said, holding out his son to his wife.

"I not thing," Sawyer told his daddy.

"You're not? I thought you were."

"No, Daddy, I boy," Sawyer told him.

"Oh okay," Chris said like he didn't already know. "Well then can you take this _boy_ back?"

"Give him to his grandma," Stephanie said.

"You be good, okay? No running, okay?"

"Okay," Sawyer said, but he giggled a little, letting everyone know he was going to run anyways because that was his favorite mode of transportation.

"I'm not going to see you for a while, I'm going away after the show tonight so you're going to have to take care of Mommy and Flynn for me, do you think you can do that?"

"No, Mommy do dat," he told her. Mommy was the one who took care of him.

"Oh yeah, that's right, well can you help take care of Flynn then?"

"I do take cawa Fwynn," he told his daddy. He was the _best_ at taking care of Flynn.

"Actually, yeah, you are."

"Where go, Daddy?" Sawyer asked.

"I'm going to a big show really far away. Little boys can't go, it's too much for little boys and especially little girls like Flynn so you're going to stay with Mommy. I love you though."

"Oh," he sighed a little. "Okay, bye Daddy."

"Thanks for sounding so happy about that, Flynn-hog," Chris told him. Chris handed Sawyer back to Linda and then took Flynn.

"Hey there, flutterby, you be good for grandma too and Mommy. I don't want any crying, just laughing and smiling, okay?" Chris said, giving her a stern eye. Flynn giggled and ran her hand over Chris's cheek. "I love you."

"She's really good about sleeping through the night," Stephanie said to her mom. "Trust me."

"Okay, well, if you've got everything under control, I've got to go."

Chris had people to see and talk to, but so did Stephanie. She hadn't wanted to leave her station, but duty called as Rey got hurt during an attack by Mike Knox. She gave Flynn to her mom and gave both her kids a kiss and then left to do her job. She went to the trainers to check on Rey, updating Grisham and the WWE Universe to Rey's condition. It appeared as though Rey had torn some ligaments, but knowing Rey, he would still go later on that evening in his match. There were just some guys who would wrestle injured, Hunter was like that when he had torn his quad and kept wrestling.

This started off a chain of events for both Chris and Stephanie. Chris had to go see some people to see if they would help him destroy Cena. It wasn't that he couldn't do it himself, but why do it _just_ by yourself. Surely Cena had a number of enemies willing to help him out. He first went to Kane, whom Cena had a match with later that evening. He figured if anyone could see his point it would be Kane. He said that Cena was going to put him in the STFU, but Kane could take him.

He didn't quite get the response he thought he would from Kane. Kane was supposed to be a monster, a loner, but he had told Chris he liked entertaining the fans? Well that was news to Chris. He thought Kane of all people wouldn't care what the fans though. He was just very…well, scary, to put it nicely. That had been a bust, but he wasn't the only person Chris was going to speak to, so it didn't matter if Kane wasn't behind him.

Stephanie watched what her husband was up to. She found it interesting they had been on the same wavelength. She looked down again to the announcement she had to make later. She thought it was an interesting idea to bring the Slammys back and she was going to announce the nominees for Superstar of the Year. She slowly ran her highlighter over Chris's name. She knew she had little say in who got what award, but if she had any say, Chris would be the winner. He had an amazing set of matches with Shawn (she could say that now in hindsight) and he had won the World Championship and defended it well, even winning it back only a week after losing it, how many guys had done that?

"Superstar of the Year, Chris Jericho," she muttered to herself. "I like the sound of that."

Stephanie folded the piece of paper and knew it'd probably go to Cena or some crap like that. She couldn't stand that guy, taking her husband's belt like that. She shook her head, practically growling in anger. She needed to take care of some things and then she had a phone call to make.

Chris caught up with Randy Orton, knowing that Randy hated Cena. _That_ he could count on. Chris knew exactly which buttons to push with Randy, bringing up how even though Randy had beaten Cena, nobody remembered. He was an afterthought to people. It was all Cena, Cena, Cena and no Randy Orton. He knew as he walked away that he had gotten through to the man. Yes, he had gotten through to him…or at least he hoped so.

It wasn't that Chris was trying to gain an entourage. He wasn't looking to form the new Evolution. Chris preferred working by himself, but why strain himself before a huge match like that? He was just smart, knowing that it was better to get other people to do the dirty work for him. He was hoping he could count on Randy to help him out with that.

He saw his wife walking down the hallway, and smiled. She smiled too, stopping in front of him. "Hey, where were you?" he asked.

"I was just going over some stuff for the show," she said. "Where were you?"

"I was talking with Randy."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "I was just reminding him that he has no love lost for John Cena."

"Interesting," Stephanie said, then looked at her watch. "I've got to go."

"Well that was evasive. What's up with you?" Chris asked.

"Nothing," Stephanie said. She just held up a piece of paper. "I have to go out there and announce the nominees for Superstar of the Year."

"Oh really? Anyone good," he winked.

She showed him the paper where his name was highlighted. "I just highlighted the person I wanted to win."

"Oh, well that's a really good choice," he said, kissing her forehead. "I'll let you go. I love you."

"I love you too, I'll see you later."

"You will."

He grinned, but didn't see that she grinned too.

After Stephanie went out there to announce the nominees she went to her office and grabbed her phone. She scrolled through the many names and settled on one. She took a deep breath and pressed the call button. She was a professional, this was going to be easy and it was business, that was all, just business. The phone picked up on the second ring.

"Hello?"

"Ted, this is Stephanie McMahon-Jericho."

"Oh, hey, Stephanie," he said, "I'm a little confused as to why you'd call."

"Well, I know that you're kind of the de facto leader of your little alliance or whatever," she said, appealing to his ego. "I need your guys' help. Well, I need Manu and Cody's help anyways, since you're not here."

"Oh, yeah, sure, but why don't you ask them?"

"I don't think they'd listen to me, but they'd listen to you," she said. "I'd make it worth your while to help me."

"You would?"

"I would," she told him. "I'm in charge now so I can definitely make it worth your while."

"I'd like that, so what kind of help did you need them to do?"

"Well, as you know, my husband is kind of embroiled in a feud with John Cena right now and I have a feeling he's going to try and attack John and I just want him to have…back-up I guess. So if your boys can keep an eye out and help Chris, I'd be greatly indebted to you."

"I can do that," Ted told her. "I can definitely do that."

"Wonderful, thank you for your time, Ted," Stephanie said.

"No, thank you, Stephanie."

She hung up the phone and took a deep breath. She felt a lot better now that she knew Chris would have back-up for when he went out there. She could read her husband like a book and she knew he would have some kind of plan to attack Cena. Randy would probably go out there, he hated Cena and Chris was extremely persuasive. Now he had a little more back-up to help him out.

She was right as Chris did attack Cena. She was a little concerned when nobody was coming out to help him. Then Manu and Cody ran out and she smiled as her plan had come to fruition. Then Randy came out and she congratulated herself for being so prescient.

Chris hung back and then knew it was his turn. He took off his coat and rolled up his sleeves. Cena was down on the ground and Chris wound up and kicked Cena right in the stomach. It felt good so Chris decided to have a little more fun. He grabbed Cena and put him in the Liontamer, yes, not even the Walls of Jericho, but the Liontamer, his knee going right into the neck. It had been a long time since he had done the move quite this way and he felt like something was being unleashed in him.

He held it for as long as he could.

**December 8, 2008**

"Daddy!" Sawyer said angrily, slamming his hands against the arm of the couch as he looked at his mommy.

"Sawyer," Stephanie said, "Daddy will be here as soon as he can, okay. And when he gets here, I'm going to kick his ass for being late."

"Daddy," Sawyer whimpered, lying his head down on the edge of the couch. "I want Daddy."

"I know you do, baby boy, he'll be here as soon as he can," Stephanie said. "You want to call him?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said with a nod, but he wanted to _see_ his daddy more. He had talked to his daddy, but he hadn't seen him in _such_ a long time. It was almost like his daddy didn't want to see him at all. The door opened and Sawyer's eyes lit up as he exclaimed, "Daddy!"

"Whoa, Steph, is there something you want to tell me?" Hunter asked with a chuckle as he looked at Sawyer, who suddenly looked disappointed and frowned.

"Yeah, you have really slow swimmers if Sawyer was your son," Stephanie said as she looked over the schedule for tonight. It was an extra long show, which meant they had a lot of time to kill. That's where the Slammys had come in. It was a great way to kill time and entertain the fans. The awards weren't a total wash though, they were trying to make them as legit as possible. People within the company had voted, herself included. She didn't know the winners, but she wanted to take a peek at the envelope sitting on her desk.

"Maybe that was the case," Hunter laughed, "that's why we never had kids. So what's up with your kid?"

"He's waiting for Chris."

"You guys didn't come together?"

"Chris had some press things to do for his show, you know, the reality show he's hosting," Stephanie said, laughing under her breath. She had watched the previous week's episode the night before when she had been missing her husband. The shot of him walking into the room after the women had had a food fight was just so hilarious to her.

"Wow, so he had to go from Iraq straight to more work and he hasn't even seen you guys?"

"Nope," Stephanie said. "I'm this close to losing it too. It's extremely hard taking care of two kids by yourself, especially when one is really young and one is really bossy."

"Let me guess, Flynn's the bossy one?" Hunter joked.

"Well, yeah, she's bossy too, but I was talking about him. He misses Chris though, so I understand. I think this is the longest Chris has been gone since he's been cognizant enough to realize Chris has been gone. He's been cranky all week, which makes Flynn cranky."

"Is that why Flynn is in your arms right now?" Hunter asked. Stephanie looked down at her daughter. Flynn was just sitting in her lap, sucking on a pacifier and shaking a rattle around, fascinated by the little blue circles enclosed in the clear plastic.

"Yeah, she's in one of her moods."

"Didn't your mom help you out this week?"

"Yeah, but she also works, you know. I would've asked Marissa, but well, you know about that situation."

"You just have to be in charge of everything, yeah, I'm really familiar with that situation, trust me. I'm pretty sure that led to the dissolution of our marriage," Hunter said, tapping his chin.

Stephanie rolled her eyes, what the hell are you even doing in her anyways?" Stephanie asked. "Shouldn't you be off making out with your girlfriend or something?"

"No," he said, "I do more than that. I was just wondering when my match with Dave was."

"End of the second hour," Stephanie told him without looking at the schedule.

"So do you want me to win Superstar of the Year?" he kidded, knowing she'd love to see him lose.

"Oh yeah, definitely," she told him.

"Pway wif me, Twips?" Sawyer asked, coming over to the man, holding out one of his wrestling action figures.

"What do you have over there?" Hunter asked him, though he knew what it was. Sawyer had one of the Elimination Chamber play-sets sitting next to his very own replica World Title belt. If Hunter hadn't known better, he would've thought it was the actual belt with how close it looked to the original, but then, maybe Stephanie wasn't above actually switching the title belts and giving Cena a crappy replica. It looked like Chris and Stephanie had given the kid a little bit of an early Christmas. "Wow, you have the Elimination Chamber?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, looking over at his toy. He had gotten his big toy back from his mommy and he had been very happy about that _and_ she had given him another toy to play with as well.

"We get free stuff," Stephanie shrugged. "Declan and Kenny got one too. Perks of being a kid in this family."

"Oh," Hunter said. "Well that's really cool, do you like playing with it?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, but he kept glancing towards the door, obviously waiting for Chris to come through it. He went over to Stephanie and rested his head against her leg. Hunter had to peer over the desk to see him as Stephanie ran her hand through his blond hair. He sniffled a little and Hunter could see his lip quivering.

"He'll be here soon, baby boy," Stephanie said quietly to her son. "You want to play with Flynnie?"

"No," he said in a small voice and even Hunter could tell the kid was bummed when he didn't want to play with his sister.

"I'll play with you, tough guy" Hunter told him, getting out of his chair and going over to sit on the ground. Sawyer looked over and even though he had invited Hunter to play, he wasn't sure if he was up for it. But well, Hunter was willing to play so he went over and sat on his blanket next to his friend. "Who can I be?"

"I Daddy," Sawyer said, holding up a figure of Chris. "See?"

"Oh yeah, I see. But who will I be?"

Sawyer hummed a little and looked to his pile of wrestlers. He had a lot because his mommy gave him a lot. She said they were free, but he didn't know what that really meant. There were some he liked to play with and some he didn't. He mostly liked to play with the people he knew. "Um…dis," he said, picking up an Edge action figure.

Hunter could hear Stephanie snickering from her desk. He looked over at her, but she had her head trained on something on her desk, but he could see a smile on her face. Flynn was looking over however, but she probably didn't care. "Oh, him?"

"That Ed," he said with a nod and thrusting the figure in his direction.

"Is your dad going to beat up Ed?" Hunter asked.

"Yes, Daddy good."

"Uh huh, sure…I can beat him up though, I have in the past."

"No, Daddy bedder," Sawyer argued.

"What? No, I'm better."

"No, Twips, he bedder. He good, he westle and talk."

"I talk and wrestle too."

"Uh huh, but he good."

"What am I then?"

"Um…" Sawyer studied him for a moment. "You good too."

"Better than him?"

"No!" Sawyer said, shaking his head and then opening the chamber. "Pway now."

"Okay, sure."

Hunter started playing with Sawyer, letting him beat up on Edge, just like he was going to beat up on Edge this Sunday at Armageddon. Maybe it wouldn't be as brutal as Sawyer was making it out to be, but he would definitely get the job done and get his title back. He figured Chris was in the same mentality as he was. He was definitely looking to regain his own title. Could they both get it back in the same night? That seemed highly unlikely, well too bad for Chris, because he was sure as hell getting his title back.

Stephanie kept laughing as she watched Hunter, this huge guy, playing wrestling with her two-year-old son. It was nice to know Hunter did have some nice bones in his body. It also helped her out because it was getting Sawyer's mind off of Chris. She wondered where the hell he could be. He was supposed to be here an hour and a half ago and the show was starting soon and he was kind of on the show.

"Hey, I'm sorry you couldn't be here, babe, I didn't know she'd be here," Edge said over the phone.

"It's fine," Lita said, trying to put on her brave voice. "You're not going to be spending the night with her or anything, right? You're going to come to my room, right?"

"Yeah. I haven't spent the night with her, babe, I promise you that."

"I know," she said, then gave a light sigh. "I understand why you have to put up with the façade. She's your boss and you don't want her to start treating you differently. I get it, plus…well, she's your wife."

"I know," he said, then gave an equal sigh. "Babe, I know it was a mistake now. I just didn't think, well, I didn't think that things would start up between us. Damn my brother and his wife for having the best of intentions."

"I'm glad they did though, I missed you," Lita said, her voice getting a little choked up. "It just wasn't the same without you around. I don't think I was the same."

"A total bitch?"

"Shut up," she laughed. "I'm not a total bitch anymore, you, on the other hand, you're still kind of a jerk."

"I have an image to keep up."

"Sure you do. I hope you're declared the Superstar of the Year, you deserve that award more than any of the other guys. You were champion and then you got it back recently so you deserve it. They should give it to you."

"Well, I'd have to agree with you there."

"Just my luck, you and Vickie win Best Couple."

"I don't know who nominated us for that."

"Well, you guys did take up a lot of the time on SmackDown. I guess yours is just a classic love story. What with all that romantic stuff and your wedding and all of that."

"I should've married you when I got the chance."

"You tried to," she pointed out. "You were just impeded by a monster. I wish we could've at least said our vows. I think I would marry you in a second. If you were to get divorced right now, I would hop on a plane to Vegas as soon as possible. I'd drive there if I had to."

"I would push the car if it broke down," Edge told her.

He regretted breaking things off with her, or was it her that broke things off with him? He didn't remember and didn't care. She was back in his life and he was happy. Vickie just hadn't made him as happy as Lita. Maybe it had to do with the age difference and shared interests. Vickie was cool and he loved her, but he and Lita were like the same person, different genders. He didn't read a lot, but he remembered a girl he was pursuing, a reader that one was. She was obsessed with the classics, especially _Wuthering Heights_. There was a speech in the book that had stuck with her.

Edge had had to listen to this girl go on and on about this speech, this part of the book that she said "described what love should really be like." He had thought it was just a bunch of crap and love was no more than getting a girl in bed and not leaving the next morning. He acknowledge he was a bit of a…womanizer, but now those words made sense. The line had been something like, "I am Heatcliff!" said by the woman in the story, who went on to say how their souls were eternally combined. He wasn't sure if he'd go that far with Lita, but he felt like they were one in the same and that was a comforting thought.

"I'd change the flat tire if we got one."

"I would replace the windshield wiper fluid so we could get rid of the bugs on the window." Lita laughed brightly at that. "Hey, it's important that we have great visibility on the way to Vegas. I wouldn't want anything to stop us."

"Me neither," she said.

"Edge, honey," Vickie said as she waltzed into the room.

"Oh, I can hear her," Lita said, her voice dropping a little. "Do you have to get to her?"

"Yeah, I think so."

"Excuse me, Edge, who are you on the phone with?"

"My brother," Edge said. "I'll be off with him in a second."

"Okay, I just want to make sure my outfit is okay."

"Okay, well, um, bye, little bro, love you, man."

"I love you too," Lita told him. "Think of me while you're with her, okay?"

"I will."

"Edge, would you get off the phone," Vickie said.

Edge hung up and turned to her. "You know, this isn't making me want to stay with you all that much, you know."

"I just want to look beautiful."

"You look fine, I'm going for a walk."

"Where are you going?"

"A walk, I'm allowed, you know."

"You're supposed to tell me how I look."

"I said fine, geez," Edge snapped. "You look fine, great, whatever, okay, I'm going for a walk."

He left without another words, shoving his hands into his pockets. He just couldn't stand Vickie anymore. When she had been the only one around, he had been fine with her, but now, he couldn't even stand being in the same room as her. They were supposedly trying to fix their marriage, but he could care less about their marriage. Things were never going to be the same as long as Lita was in the picture and he wanted Lita in the picture for a very long time.

Chris walked into Stephanie's office. "Well, isn't this a cozy family portrait," he announced as he looked around and saw Flynn resting against Stephanie and Sawyer playing with Hunter. "I wish I could have a family exactly like this."

"Daddy!" Sawyer said, throwing down his action figure and running towards Chris, crashing right into his legs as Chris dropped his bag and lifted the kid in the air.

"Now _that's_ the kind of welcome I always want," Chris said as he kissed Sawyer. Sawyer banded his arms around Chris's neck tightly. "Whoa, okay, can't breathe, kid is choking me!"

"Where have you been!" Stephanie exclaimed.

"That's my cue to leave, I can feel a fight coming on, Hurricane Stephanie is brewing. Too bad I'm not facing you tonight, man, that'd be fun."

"Yeah, whatever," Chris told him. "I'd look forward to kicking your ass again."

"Again? I think you'd have to kick my ass for a _first_ time for there to be an again," Hunter said, slapping him on the back.

"I married your ex-wife."

"Damn it, still no good comeback for that one, but I will find one. I would say I have the title and you don't, but we were both losers on the same night, ambushed, you know, well, I was, at least you knew your opponent. Now you get a one-on-one match and I have a damn triple threat, which means I have to fend of two guys."

"Well, maybe if you had been a little better in your Beat the Clock match."

"Shut up, I'm going to go find my girl, happen to know where she is, Steph?"

Stephanie picked up her walkie-talkie and pushed the button. "Britt, where you at? Your lover boy wants to know."

"Tell Randy I'm on the ramp setting up the Slammy set."

"Very funny," Hunter muttered.

"I'll tell him," Stephanie laughed.

"I heard, see you guys later."

"Later," Chris said, still trying to breathe since Sawyer had a death grip on his neck.

"So are you going to answer me about where you've been all this time, you are so obscenely late, Chris Jericho."

"Don't I even get some kisses from my girls first before I get the light shined in my face?" he asked, opening the arm that wasn't holding onto to Sawyer. He figured, though, if he did let go of Sawyer, he'd still be dangling there from the sheer force of his hug. Stephanie reluctantly came over with Flynn and he kissed Flynn on both cheeks, making her giggle before he leaned in and captured Stephanie's kiss. He didn't mean to make the kiss so deep, but he'd been without his wife for a week and it was hard not to want her right then. "You look great tonight."

"Where the hell were you, Jericho?"

"Well, I would've been here on time, but they lost one of my bags on route from Chicago to here. So I spent like an hour trying to track it down. Turns out it went to a completely different city. So they're going to be sending it back home to Tampa and I'll have to pick it up."

"Oh," Stephanie said, "well that's a legitimate excuse then."

"Thanks, so when am I on?"

"Top of the second hour," she told him.

"Did you bring my clothes?"

"Yeah, I brought them," she said as she sat down on the couch with him. "I missed you and as you can tell, the kid missed you too."

"I miss, Daddy," Sawyer mumbled into his shirt. He didn't want to let go. "Where you?"

"I was doing some stuff for my show, remember?" Chris said. He was never going to leave for that long again. His kid obviously missed him. Flynn was smiling at him, so he kind of guessed she might have missed him too, but it was hard to tell with an infant. Stephanie let Chris hold Flynn with his free arm and he kissed both his kids. Flynn remembered the scent of this guy and the voice was familiar. She cuddled against him.

"Well, I'm feeling loved," Chris said.

"How was it overseas?"

"It was nice, I met a lot of great people, they must not watch that much, not too many hated me," Chris said, "until I got in the ring and stuff, but you know, I tried to be a little nicer."

"Good," she said, just idly rubbing his leg. "I'm announcing the Superstar of the Year Award. I voted for you."

"Gee, thanks," Chris said, "I thought you were going to vote for Jeff."

"Well, it was tough to choose, but I went with you, I figured since I'm the mother of your children, you should get my vote."

"Yeah, because if you didn't, you wouldn't be the mother of my future children."

"Okay, deal," she said, "who would it be though? Katie Lea? It'd be Katie Lea, huh? She's got child-bearing hips."

"I like your hips."

"While both our kids are in your lap? Chris Jericho, what am I going to do with you?" she said. "I'm going to be very angry if it's someone that isn't you, I'll throw the trophy at their head, especially if it's John, maybe I'll try and shove it in his gut or him in the crotch."

"See, now we're talking," Chris chuckled. Sawyer was still clinging to him. "Geez, this kid is like super glue. Here, take this one."

Stephanie took Flynn back. "Hey, kid, what's up?"

"Miss you," Sawyer told him. "Miss me too?"

"Of course I did, but I can't wrestle with you out there, hanging off on me. I have to beat Jeff, don't you want me to beat Jeff?"

"Yes."

"Thanks, I want to beat him too," Chris said. "Did you help with Flynn?"

"Uh huh, I give batta and I help wif baf."

"Wow, that's a lot, I bet you shoved Mommy right out of the way."

"No, she help too," he told his daddy, then went back to hugging his daddy.

"Well, can you maybe let go for a little while so I can change for my match?"

"No."

"Please?" Chris asked.

Sawyer though and finally relented, climbing off of Chris. "Okay."

"Thanks," Chris said. "Did you remember my things?"

"They're over there," Stephanie said, pointing to a duffel bag sitting on a chair.

"Thanks," he said, going over and rooting through the bag. He stopped for a moment and stared down at the contents. He sucked at his teeth a little and pulled out a pair of wrestling pants from the bag. "What is this?"

"Your stuff."

"Where's my wrestling gear?"

"It's right there, I was under the impression those were what you wore to the ring, was I wrong?" she said, feigning innocence. "I thought it was definitely what you wore, you know, pants, to cover up your legs and everything."

"Stephanie, where are my trunks?"

"I have no clue what you're going on about," she shrugged. "Those were what I saw."

"Well, I'm in luck, the bag they didn't lose is the one containing my wrestling stuff so I've got a pair of trunks on me, isn't that fortunate?"

"Damn it, I hate those things!" Stephanie said through gritted teeth. "They're ugly and I don't like you in them!"

"Well I'm wearing them, lady."

"Fine, go out there, be ugly, I hope you lose later…in the award thing, not the match, I want you to win the match, but the award, I hope it goes to Cena."

"You take that back," he told her, shaking his head.

"No, I'm not," she said, holding Flynn in front of her. "And you can't do anything because I have our daughter on me. Sorry."

"Come here, flutterby," Chris said, grabbing his daughter and kissing her repeatedly, making her giggle madly and stick her tongue out. He was really funny. Chris put her in her cradle and advanced towards Stephanie.

"Oh look, Cena!"

Chris looked over his shoulder and saw that it was Cena and he was trying to be The Rock again. Chris didn't get why this was supposed to be funny. Cena was making fun of his story from last week, but then said he would fight Chris that evening, come hell or high water. That put Chris a little bit on Edge, but as long as he stayed in here, Cena wouldn't touch him, not with his kids around. So he was going to do just that.

By the time his match rolled around he had forgotten about what Cena had said, but was reminded about it as he went out there. He wasn't going to let it bother him though. He just had to focus on beating Jeff Hardy and that's what he was here to do. He was completely focused as he went to the ring. He had a match he had to face and he couldn't worry about Cena's probably empty threats.

Stephanie was just getting into Chris's match when Randy and his posse came in. "What is it, I'm busy?" Stephanie said.

"I wanted that 3-on-2 match."

"Fine, go, away with you."

"That's it."

"Yeah, that's it," Stephanie said. "What more do you want me to say?" She just wanted to watch her husband.

"Well, do you want anything?"

"No," Stephanie said. "You got the match."

"You're friends with Hunter."

"Yes, but I don't care, I'll do what's best for the show, you have it, okay and damn it, you guys, the match is over!" Stephanie exclaimed, seeing Chris celebrating.

Chris was now aware of what Cena had planned and he was going to make sure he wasn't attacked.

Randy was happy to get his hands on Hunter. Any time he could get his hands on this douchebag was a good day for him. He had nearly given up on Britt, but just getting her stupid boyfriend in his grasp was cathartic. Britt just wouldn't leave this stupid log of a man. Randy was better than Hunter, so much better and yet this ass was nominated as the Superstar of the Year and he wasn't? He got Britt and Randy didn't? That was just bull and when he pounded his fist into Hunter's face, there was a certain therapy to it. He was getting all his aggression out. If he couldn't have Britt, he could have this.

Stephanie came out later that evening to announce the award for Superstar of the Year. She knew the men were backstage, waiting for the award to be handed out. Cena was noticeably absent though, probably trying to incite fear in her husband. She walked out there in front of the crowd. She had no idea who was going to win, but visions of whacking Cena in the face with the award were dancing in her head. Maybe she'd do the same if it were Dave, but the chances of Dave winning were about the same as Hornswoggle winning the World Title. So that was out of the question. Hunter, maybe, she could live with that. Jeff hadn't held the title so he was probably out of the running. Edge and Cena had both been injured, so it really shouldn't be them.

That left Chris.

She hoped it was her husband, but she wasn't getting her hopes up. People didn't like her husband right now, why would they vote for him even though he had done so much this year? He had been in brutal matches and held the title and it should be his. She said that the Superstar of the Year represented what a superstar should be and they were celebrating this achievement. She watched the nominees and tried to keep a straight face, but her smile grew wider when Chris was on the Titantron.

She opened the envelope slowly and saw the C and the J and she smirked. There was only one person with the initials CJ in the nominee list. She didn't even to open the envelope any further. Her husband had won. She smugly said her husband's name as she looked around. She held in her smile as she busied herself with getting the trophy, which would probably sit in Sawyer's room somewhere if that greedy, little kid had anything to say about it.

She turned and waited for her husband. He sauntered out a moment later, checking behind him. Stephanie waited with the award in hand. He took it, running his hand over hers. Stephanie licked her lips a little and winked at him. He just smiled and shook her hand before she left. He didn't see the smile on her face. He deserved that award.

And come Sunday, he deserved that belt.


	214. I Love Them, December 15, 2008

A/N: My internet's been down because of storms I guess, first chance I got to actually get this up. Anyways, I wasn't expecting a scene last night, but it was the best yet. When Steph came back, I was kind of hoping for that kind of scene where they argue, but the tension and chemistry is all there and that was totally there last night. They were so hot and she looked so sad at the end, like she hated fighting with him. I love how she's only on one scene last night and that scene is with Chris. I love it! So anyways, read, enjoy and please leave a review, reviews are love! :)

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"So what you're saying is you're leaving me high and dry tonight?"

"Baby, I'm not leaving you high and dry."

"Feels kind of like you're leaving me high and dry," Stephanie said. "I mean, I understand that you want to meet up with some old friends, I get that, right, I understand, but tonight is Raw and you know I have work to do and you _know _we have two kids. I'm not saying I can't handle all that, but it'd be nice to have help."

"I'm just going out for a little while, just an early dinner."

"So did you even think of me at all?"

"What are you talking about?" he said, glancing over at her. Flynn whined, wanting the attention back on her and Chris turned back to playing with his baby girl. Stephanie put her pen down and leaned her chin on her hand.

"What I'm talking about is the fact that you didn't even consult me on this. You didn't ask me if it was okay to go out with your friends. And of all the nights to go out with your friends, Raw night, seriously? You know that I'm busy."

"It's our only night here," he pointed out. "We're flying back to Connecticut tomorrow because we wanted to spend the holiday season in Connecticut where supposedly our kids need to see snow."

"Well, it makes it more magical than dressed up palm trees," she said sarcastically. "But the fact is you just said yes without consulting me and I'm a little hurt over the fact. You could've at least asked me if you could go."

"Since when do I _have_ to ask?"

"It's common courtesy!" she protested. "I'm your wife, you consult me, I consult you, it's called a relationship. I just think you could've been a little more considerate on a night that is very busy for the both of us. Do you even know when you're going to get to the show? What if I put you first and you're not there, what then, Chris? Hmm, what then?"

"I said I would be back right when the show started. So don't put me in the first slot. I don't even know what I'm doing on the show. You don't have to even include me, say I'm pissed off from last night, which I am."

"I am too, you should've won."

"You always think I should win," he said, tossing a soft ball towards Flynn. She tried valiantly to swat at it, like she wanted to hit it away, but it ended up just hitting her chest. She looked a little stunned that she hadn't hit it away, but when her daddy picked it up again, she was ready for another go.

"That's true, but I don't like Cena, I just don't, I just…I don't," she said and there wasn't malice in her voice, it was just more like annoyance. Yes, she found Cena more of an annoyance than anything else, what with his cockiness and his wanting to be The Rock, but failing. "I wish Jeff was our champion…I mean, obviously I'd want _you_, but if I had to choose, Jeff is the lesser of two evils."

"I'm happy for him, he deserves it," Chris said, thinking about his former friend. There were times, long past now, where he would hang out with the Hardy boys, getting into trouble and playing pranks on people. He thought back and actually remembered playing a prank on Stephanie. "Hey, do you remember that one time when your purse was filled with shaving cream and all this gunk?"

"Um, yeah, I think so," Stephanie said, glancing down at the papers in front of her. "Why?"

"That was me."

"What? Wait…oh my God, I remember that! That was like a 400 dollar purse, that was _you_! I should've known, I hate you," she said.

"It was like eight years ago," Chris chuckled. "I am happy for him, I sent him a message last night, you know, just congratulating him."

"Well color me surprised, Chris Jericho _does_ have a heart," she said, pretending to faint. "I didn't know you had one still left."

"Okay, come on, it's not like I'm abandoning you or anything. I won't be around for a few hours, come on, Stephanie. It's not that big a deal."

"You're still leaving and you didn't consult me. Do you know how that makes me feel?"

"Stephanie…I would let you go out."

"But this Monday, we have to work!"

"Stephanie, I would just like a little time with some friends. I think I deserve it after last night. I just want one night where I can have a little fun with my friends."

"So what are you saying? We're a burden on you? Your wife and kids are such a drag? Is that what you're saying?"

Chris sighed and looked at Flynn. She was smiling up at him, trying to reach out for the ball in his hands. He let her have it and she was able to hold onto it for a couple of seconds before it dropped from her hands and her lip started to quiver. He grabbed a stuffed animal and handed it to her. She hugged it to her and giggled. Yeah, this was such a drag. Sawyer, who was taking his nap right now, his belt nestled against him, wasn't a drag either. That kid was awesome. Stephanie, well, she was a little bit of a drag, he chuckled to himself.

"What are you laughing at?"

"Well, I don't think Sawyer and Flynn are a drag," he said, still chuckling to himself.

Her face dropped and she stared at him, "Oh, so I'm a drag now?"

"Steph, I was just joking," he told her.

"Go away," she told him.

"Now you're mad at me? Because I was joking? You're seriously mad about that?' Chris said, shaking his head and making a funny face at Flynn. "Stephanie, you're not a drag, I don't think you're a drag. You're my wife."

"Which automatically makes me a drag, right, Chris?"

"You're mad at me."

"You're leaving me."

"For a few hours, you make it sound like I'm leaving you for good. Do you know how many people would be on my ass if I were to leave you?"

"Maybe you should, it would get my dad out of wherever he is and maybe Shane would forgive me."

"So you're having a little trouble with the men in your family, what else is new?"

"Not helping and I'm mad at you."

"You can't be mad at me because I want to visit with some old friends. I'm not even going to drink at all. Not even one beer because of the show. I'm going to stick to water. I'll even do stretches in between the appetizer and main course so I'm warmed up for whatever you have to do."

"It's the principle of the thing, you just go out and leave me? You don't even ask."

"I didn't think I had to."

"Of course you do!"

"What is your problem?" Chris asked. "You're being particularly bitchy tonight and I'm not sure if I appreciate it. If I want to go see some of my friends, there's nothing that says I can't. I will be here for the show, I swear it to you."

"Fine, go do whatever, leave me here with _your_ children. Just go off gallivanting with your friends while leaving me high and dry here."

"Okay, I think I will."

"Fine, do it, just go right now."

"Well that'd be stupid to do right now, hours before I have to meet them," he pointed out. He was just about ready to leave though. Stephanie was in one of her moods and he wasn't in any kind of mood to deal with her. He was still upset about losing last night. That had been his rematch clause or at least it seemed to be. He wanted to get his belt back though, not for Sawyer this time, since he had his own belt now, but for himself. He didn't want to define himself only as the World Champion, but it was important to him to have the belt. It meant he was the best in the company and he liked holding that title. Now he just felt like any other wrestler.

"Well then go take a walk or something," Stephanie said and then began to ignore him. She'd had enough with him for the day.

She was just mad that he got to go out and she didn't. Once in a while, she would like to go out with just her friends, but it felt like forever since she had the opportunity to do so. Being the General Manager was hard work, but she was happy for it. Still, she also had a family to take care of and two kids to entertain constantly. Flynn was starting to grow into a more inquisitive face and she was gaining her own personality by the day. She smiled and giggled at everything and she loved to play with toys, any toy really.

Chris helped a lot too; he wasn't some deadbeat father who didn't pay attention to his kids. He was a hands-on father and he was completely involved in their lives. She looked up at him surreptitiously, wanting to watch him a moment. He had given up on his discussion with her and went back to playing with Flynn. Flynn was leaned up against the arm of the couch, gazing up at him adoringly. She just didn't want him getting to have fun without her, that was all. She didn't feel like it was too much to ask.

Maybe next week she'd go out on her own and leave him.

Lita sat curled up at Edge's side. She was leaning in the crook of his arm and watching the television in front of them as she played with his fingers. She glanced up at him, but he was still staring straight ahead. She wasn't sure if he was actually focusing in on the show or just staring off into space. The silence had been content for a while, but now she wanted to talk. She pulled her hand away from his own and reached up to place her hand on his cheek, gently turning his head down so it could look at her.

"What?" he asked and it was gentle and not harsh in tone, which just didn't seem like the hard-nosed Edge, but he was different around Lita. He was softer around her this time, mainly because he didn't want to screw this up. Lita was different this time around too, she wasn't as horrible or bitchy as she had been before. The time apart had eased the horrible out of her personality.

"What's going on inside that head?"

"Crazy stuff," he said, giving a soft laugh.

"Well I knew that already, but you're thinking awfully hard. Did you even know the TV was on? It looked like you had no clue and you were just hoping to knock that wall down with your awesome stare."

"I don't have those kinds of powers," Edge told her. "I was just thinking about last night. I can't believe I lost. I barely held the title and to lose to Jeff Hardy of all people. I can beat that guy in my sleep and I _lost_ to him losing one of the most important things in my life. God, I can _kick_ his ass and I lost."

"It was a fluke," she said, thinking about Jeff. She had been so close to him once upon a time. Things had obviously soured when she had cheated on Matt with Edge, but Jeff was such a good guy he never acted completely negative towards her. He would always engage her in a small conversation, even if it felt stilted most of the time. Jeff was too good to hate and she took advantage of that. "You are better than Jeff."

"And I actually got pinned by him too. I mean, look, losing to Hunter would've sucked, but at least the guy's been champion before. Jeff has had nothing and now I'm always going to be known as the guy he pinned to get his first championship."

"Nobody is going to care about that."

"Sure they will," he said, "I looked like an idiot."

"You did not," she reassured him, running her hand against his cheek rhythmically. Edge found the softness of her palm and the gentle scratching of her nails comforting. He closed his eyes for a moment and then found her lips covering his. He pursed his lips and returned the kiss. "You didn't look like an idiot and you'll get your title back."

"What if I don't?" he whispered.

"You will because you're the best in the company," she told him. "Everyone knows that. So Jeff beat you one time, don't let it get to you. Like you said, you can beat him any day of the week. You've got a rematch clause, so you can use it and beat him and get your belt back."

"That's right, I do have that clause," Edge said. "Wow, I didn't even think about that. Wow, you're the best, babe."

"Thanks," she said, removing her hand from his cheek and going back to resting in the crook of his arm. "Jeff isn't going to know what hit him."

"You like Jeff though, don't you?" he asked and it wasn't an accusation, like Lita was consorting with the enemy; it was just an ordinary question.

"It's hard not to," she admitted. "He's a good guy."

Edge just nodded and they went back to silence. Lita didn't know whether it felt as comfortable as earlier, but she didn't say anything about it. She wasn't going to lie to him about that. She sighed happily when he started to gently rub her shoulder with his hand and she closed her eyes, reveling in the feeling. She knew decisions were going to have to be made. Edge was technically still married, even though they were separated right now. He was putting on an act for her during the shows, making it seem like he wanted her just so he wouldn't get on her bad side, since she was his boss. She didn't mind Edge putting up the pretense, but eventually, she would like him all to herself.

"What did you want to do for dinner?" he asked.

"I don't know, take out?" she said, not really thinking about food right now.

"Okay," he said as the doorbell rang. "I wonder who that is."

"Maybe it's your brother."

"Oh yeah, it probably is. He wanted to let me know when we're going home and stuff for the holidays. We're going to Toronto to be with our mom. Then Trish and Christian are going to spend time with her family. Did you want to come?"

"I don't think that'd be a great idea," she said as the doorbell rang again. "I mean, your mom knows you're married, I wouldn't want her to think less of you because you're with me."

"I don't think she'd think that, she knows the situation with Vickie."

"It's okay, we'll spend the New Year's together, how's that?" she said.

He kissed her forehead, "I'd really like that."

"Now go answer the door before Christian's finger falls off," she said as the doorbell rang again.

"Geez, that's my brother for you, impatient as hell."

Edge disentangled himself from Lita's grip and got off the couch. He trudged his way to the door, not particularly wanting to see his brother, but having no choice. Maybe they could all go out to dinner though. They could swing by and pick up Trish; the two of them didn't live far away. Edge opened the door and Vickie smiled from the other side and his jaw dropped a little before he picked it up and glanced behind him nervously.

"Vickie!" he practically yelled, loud enough so Lita could hear. Lita's eyes widened and she jumped to her feet, looking around frantically for somewhere to hide. She spotted the door to the laundry room and hightailed it inside, closing the door most of the way as she left a little to peek out from the darkness. What the hell was Vickie doing here?

"Hey baby," Vickie said, leaning up to give him a kiss, which Edge returned half-heartedly. "I wanted to surprise you."

"This is a surprise, I didn't…I wasn't expecting you."

"I know, that's what makes it great, isn't it?" she said, pushing her way inside. "I know we're still working on our marriage, but I think that we can spend more time together and I didn't like the thought of us being apart, especially since you lost last night."

"I'm fine," Edge said and though he wasn't fine per se, Lita was the one helping him through that. He hoped she had heard him because he didn't want an awkward confrontation. "You really didn't have to come, you know."

"Oh, but I wanted to," Vickie said. "I want to be with you, Edge. We didn't win Couple of the Year on a fluke, you know. I want to recapture that."

"It's kind of hard, you know, with being apart. Maybe it gave us time to think, you know."

"Yes, it did and I think we're amazing together," she said, dragging out the word "amazing" for an obscene amount of time. "Just seeing all those moments brought it back for me. We belong together, Edge. I want to fix us."

"What about when you were practically hanging off of Big Show?" Edge told her, trying to get her to leave. Maybe if he picked a fight with her, she'd leave.

"Oh, don't be silly," Vickie laughed. "I wasn't hanging all over him, I was just having him take care of Undertaker because you weren't there. He did an okay job of it, but he wasn't you, I realize that now."

"Remember how we were kind of trying the trial separation."

"Yeah, I don't like that idea anymore," she told him. She walked into the living room and sat down very close to where Lita had just been. Edge looked around, but couldn't see where Lita might have hidden herself. He wished she didn't have to see this at all. "I want to be here with you. We haven't even gotten to be a married couple."

"Yeah, I know," he said and he tentatively sat down on the couch, a respectable distance from Vickie, who was still grinning at him. He cared about Vickie, heaven help him, but the love he felt for her, well, that was whirlwind and felt more like a friendly love every day.

"I want to get that back," she said, "I forgive you for what you did with our wedding planner. I'm sure it was just pre-wedding jitters and you were looking for a way out because you were nervous about us. I forgive you though and I want us to be together."

"Vickie, you can't just come in here and say that and expect everything to magically get better. It doesn't work that way," he told her, running a hand through his hair and looking around again. Where was she?

"I know, which is _why_ I'm here. I want to work on it, don't you?"

"I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?" she asked, her voice getting harder and Edge could see his chances at a title rematch flickering in the iciness of her voice.

"I just mean, maybe we need more time apart to reassess our relationship and figure out if this is really what we want. I don't want to be impulsive with this. Our relationship was built on impulsiveness and I just want to be sure that what we have is real."

"Of course it's real!" she told him, her voice rising. "How could you suggest it wasn't?"

"I'm not saying it's _not_," he told her, grabbing her hand. Lita was watching this and something ached in her stomach. Why hadn't she married Edge when she had the chance? Sure, Kane ruined their wedding, but they could've found another minister, they could've found a nice place to hold it. Trish and Christian had done it, surely they could've done it. Edge had looked so much more handsome and happy when he was marrying her than when he was marrying Vickie. "I'm just saying that we need time."

"We've spent _months_ apart," she told him.

"I know, I just, I'm so confused," he said, covering his face.

"Oh Edge, honey, don't be like this," Vickie said, scooting closer and rubbing his back. "We'll be okay."

"I don't know," he told her, looking up at her face again. "I just don't know."

"If you need time, I can give you time," she said. "I mean, we are acting like a couple at the shows and that's a start, right?"

"I think so, I do like being with you there," he told her.

"Yeah, so we can continue that and build on that, it'll be okay," Vickie said with a nod. "It'll be okay and we'll be okay."

"I think so too," he said, though he didn't think they would. He had this burning love for Lita. It had never been this hard with Lita. Things with her had always been so easy, so simple and he loved that. He loved being with her and laughing with her and it was never hard. Sometimes love was supposed to be hard, but with Lita, it felt like life was easy.

"Okay, um, well, I flew down here…but I guess, I guess I can go back home."

"That'd probably be for the best."

"Yeah, okay, I'm sure I can trade my ticket in. I was just going to stay here until we had to go to SmackDown, but I don't want to upset you."

"And I don't want to be upset."

"Yes, we wouldn't want that," she said, giving him a smile, "I love you."

"I," he paused for the briefest of moments before swallowing and continuing, "I love you too."

She leaned forward for a kiss and Lita had to look away. This was for his job, she kept saying to herself. This was for his job and it was something he had to do. It still hurt though because above anything they were, Edge and Vickie were married and that was something that wouldn't go away so easily. They couldn't ignore that fact. It wasn't a situation where you could just walk away with your dignity, there was actual paperwork.

"Okay, I'll see you this week then?"

"Yeah," he said weakly, walking her to the door. She wanted another kiss and then she was thankfully gone. She probably only bought his story because she didn't want a fight, but at this point, he would take it. He leaned back against the door and took a deep breath. He still didn't know where Lita was or if she had seen what just happened. He hoped she hadn't had to see that.

"You okay?" she said and he could tell she was close by, somewhere right in front of him. He opened his arms and she came and hugged him.

"What did you see?"

"Everything."

"I'm sorry, I didn't want you to have to see that."

"It's okay, you're doing it for your job. I understand."

"You're the best, you know that."

"I know."

Stephanie held the door open as Sawyer walked through it with his belt dragging behind him. He was pulling it along as Stephanie tried to juggle everything. She hated Chris more and more by the second. She couldn't believe him, going out with his stupid friends and his stupid dinner and leaving her here to deal with everything. It probably wouldn't have been so bad if he had just asked her if he could go. But no, he had no common courtesy for her. Stephanie sighed as she closed the door behind Sawyer.

She had a double stroller where Sawyer could sit in back of Flynn, a gift from her parents, but right now it was filled with Flynn's diaper bag and Sawyer's toy bag and all the stuff they needed for the night. Flynn's portable crib was balancing precariously under everything, the long apparatus teetering back and forth slightly as she moved. Sawyer's inflatable bed was tucked underneath, the mini-WWE air bed that he had come to love. She was lucky Sawyer could walk on his own or she'd have to just balance him on top of all this. Flynn was just slapping her hands and looking around.

"Follow me," Stephanie said as she walked down the hallway towards her office, wherever it was. She figured it'd be in a prominent area though. She was running late too because she'd had to gather everything herself and then take out the stroller and put Flynn in it and drive them and it was a whole process and her stress was through the roof. Chris Jericho was going to pay, oh yes, Chris Jericho was going to pay.

Stephanie finally found her office and once again, held the door open for Sawyer as he walked through. He put his belt on the ground for a second and looked at Stephanie expectantly. "Toy, Mommy."

"Okay, hold on," she said, trying very hard not to snap at her little boy. She wasn't mad at him, just stressed because she had to make up for lost time for being late. The show was starting soon and the schedule had just gone out. Britt had met her at her car and she was passing them out now and the wrestlers only had about 30 minutes to get ready. She'd scheduled a divas match first since they were probably ready to go, not needing as much warm-up as the men. That could give everyone a little breathing room.

In her anger, she'd given Chris a horrible match and she didn't regret it for one second. She'd put him in a match against Hacksaw Jim Duggan for being so horrible to her. That would show him not to mess with her when she had his career in the palm of his hand. If he didn't want to wrestle so beneath him, too bad, he could complain more and maybe she'd put him in a match against Dolph Ziggler next week. Yes, she was being vindictive, but Chris was acting like a jerk.

She had the feeling that he actually just needed time away from her. She didn't know where this feeling was coming from, but his "wife's a drag" comment had only furthered her thinking in that. Did he really think she was a drag and he only said it was a joke to cover up? No, Chris loved her, that was silly, she wasn't a drag. Maybe making that match hadn't been a great idea. It wasn't like Chris had done anything terribly wrong. Sure, he should ask her and not leave her alone with their kids when she had so much work to do and he could've helped her pack their things and he could've at least helped to feed Flynn before he left instead of getting dressed, but really, it wasn't enough to warrant putting him in such a low match, was it?

Maybe she should change it and put him in a better match. Maybe she could have him face Cena tonight and he could get the belt? No, she had to stick with what she was doing, stick with the anger, Stephanie! She should stay angry at her husband. Yes, that would be good. Besides, she was actually helping him. She was going to start a mini-tournament for the #1 contender. Dave thought he should be the #1 contender, she knew as much from his ranting, but his clause had expired and she wasn't going to grant it to him. It'd be suspicious of her to just give another match to Chris, so he'd have to earn it. He could look at his match tonight as a warm-up for next week.

She just couldn't stay mad at him, she loved him too much and he was an awesome husband. Now she missed him a little bit, "Mommy, my toys," Sawyer interrupted her thoughts. She looked down at Chris's younger doppelgänger and nodded. She grabbed his toy bag and laid out his play blanket and dumped his toys on top. He squealed in happiness and went about grabbing at his set of large Lego and went to building something amazing.

Stephanie set up Flynn's portable crib and then took the little girl out of the stroller and held her close to her body as she sat down to look over some things. Chris said he wouldn't be late, but she didn't know what time he would get that. She picked up her cell phone and scrolled through her contacts list before she came to her husband. She called his cell phone, but he wasn't answering. She bet it was loud wherever he was and he couldn't hear his phone and hadn't thought to put it on vibrate like any normal person would.

"Hey sweetie, I'm not mad at you anymore, so you're in luck, I'm not going to kick you out of bed tonight," she laughed, "Although I got here late because I had to take care of all the kid's things, so you owe me. I'm going to go for a spa day with Trish this week or something and you're going to take care of the kids. Anyways, I have you on for relatively early in the show, not first, but you're in the first hour so I hope you're close by because you need to be on. I have you in an easy match tonight, I'll explain later. I love you and I'll see you later, Flynn and Sawyer love you too."

She hung up and turned to kiss Flynn's forehead, "Daddy didn't answer his phone, he's a silly Daddy, huh?"

Flynn just giggled. She thought her mommy was hilarious. She obviously adored Sawyer the most; she had this look for him she didn't have for anyone else. If she heard his voice anywhere in the vicinity but couldn't see him, her head would turn, wanting to know where he was and wanting him close by her. If Sawyer was playing with her and she was happy, she'd give these little sighs of happiness that Chris found to be the sweetest sound in the world. Still, she thought Stephanie was hilarious. Flynn was always giggling with Stephanie, like they had some kind of inside joke just between the two of them and now was no exception.

Flynn was the most easygoing baby on the planet it seemed. She was already sleeping through the night and she cried, but not that often, only when she needed to be changed or fed. Otherwise, she'd kind of whimper at you, on the verge of tears, but never really letting them spill over. She had Chris's personality if anyone's. Sawyer was a little high-strung. He liked his routine and he liked things to be set, like Stephanie. Flynn was completely chill. She just went with the flow and Stephanie couldn't have asked for a better baby.

Stephanie grabbed her walkie-talkie and set the frequency, "Hey, Britt, keep an eye out for Chris for me, he has a match and he doesn't really know about it yet, so if you see him, make sure he gets ready really quickly. I got him his own locker room tonight since he's getting here late and I was mad at him earlier."

"Okay, cool," Britt said from the other line. She turned to Hunter. "So are you going to help Shawn with all his problems?"

"He'd never accept it."

"Well, you could try. Whatever he has going with JBL sounds really weird," Britt told him. "I don't know, if he were my friend, I'd offer to help."

"He has his pride though."

"Obviously not if he's willing to stoop this low," Britt said as she handed someone a schedule. "Steph was not on top of her game today, that's for sure."

"Well, didn't she just say that she was mad at Chris earlier?"

"Yeah, but still, I guess it is hard taking care of the two little ones. I still think you should at least offer to help out Shawn," she said, "that'd be the nice thing to do."

"He wouldn't accept it though. Yeah, whatever this thing is with Bradshaw is weird, I'll agree to that, but Shawn is doing that because he had the choice to do it. He wouldn't just accept free money from me."

"So I don't know, set it up for his kids then, set up a trust fund for them," Britt said, a smile gracing her face. "That way, it's not like you're giving them money for free, but you're investing in them."

"You know, that's not a bad idea," Hunter responded. "That's not a bad idea at all. I'm their godfather, for both of them, I'm pulling double duty. I could definitely just say I want to help with those kids as their godfather."

"See," Britt said, punching him in the arm. "Britt is right again!"

"You weren't right, you were just suggestive. If you want to be suggestive in other ways too."

"Oh shove it where the sun don't shine, Hunter," she said, looping her arm through his as they walked down the hallway. "I'm not doing it with you at work, that's just wrong."

"I'm not working," he said, grinning lecherously and kissing her temple.

"But I am, so knock it off," she told him, handing another person the schedule. "I'm also supposed to be keeping an eye out for Chris and you can help me with that, okay?"

"Do I have to?"

"Yes," she said. "Yes, you do. As my boyfriend, it is your duty to help me whenever I need help. I don't think that's too much of a demand, do you? I'm not asking for millions of dollars worth of diamonds, just help looking for someone. Randy would help me."

"You didn't just go there," Hunter said, lifting her off her feet. "You didn't just say that."

"I think I did," she said in a sing-song voice as he raised her eye-level and kissed her.

"No joking about that."

"Oh, why not? It's so much fun."

"Because I don't like hearing about that crap," he told her, pretending to be stern, but he was joking and she could tell. He leaned in to kiss her again and she teasingly turned her head so he kissed her cheek. He growled and she was about to kiss him when she spotted his friend up ahead, looking rather dejected.

"There's Shawn, go talk to him," Britt said, pushing herself away from Hunter as he put her down.

"Right now?"

"Yes right now, before he goes and does something else stupid."

"Why are you insistent about this? You don't like him."

"No, I don't, I think he's a jerk, but kids? Come on, that's a different monster altogether. I think even Chris and Stephanie would be sympathetic to that. They wouldn't want Sawyer and Flynn to go hungry or whatever, so I don't think they'd want someone else's kids, no matter how much of a jerk Shawn is, to go hungry or whatever."

"Yeah, you're right."

"I know I am, learn this, Hunt," she said, tapping his forehead. He grabbed her hand away and kissed the palm.

"Hey, Shawn!" Hunter called.

Shawn, who had never found out about Chris and Hunter's alliance, nodded at his friend and came over, "Hey man, I didn't know you were here."

"Just with the old ball and chain," he said, jerking a thumb towards Britt.

"I'm not your wife," she said, sticking her tongue out.

"It's good to see you."

"Yeah, so I was thinking…with Britt's help, I wanted to set up a trust fund for Cam and Chey."

"What?" he asked.

"I'm their godfather and I think it'd be a really nice gesture if I set them up with a trust fund so they didn't have to worry about college."

"I can't ask you to do that, man."

"I'm offering though."

"I appreciate it, but no, I can take care of my family myself, don't worry," Shawn said, "I'll be fine."

"Will you at least think about it?"

"Sure," Shawn said, but it was clear he wouldn't and he walked away without another word. He didn't want to discuss this with his best friend, it was too embarrassing. Hunter looked at Britt and shrugged.

"What an idiot," Britt said in disgust. "His stupid pride won't allow him to let someone help his own children, I don't know why you're friends with him."

"He has his dignity."

"Well his dignity isn't working so well for him right now and you come and offer something wonderful, to ease his mind and his own stubbornness won't let him accept any kind of help, you would accept it, wouldn't you?"

"I don't know," he said, "maybe…"

"Maybe!" she groaned. "These are his children, I just…they're his kids and he's refusing help and…men! I swear, it's okay to accept help every now and again, it doesn't make you any less of a man."

Hunter sighed, "Britt…"

"If you tell me I don't understand, I'm kicking you and you know I've been doing kickboxing so I can kick hard."

He laughed and shook his head, "For someone so small, you are seriously scary."

They started walking again, Hunter constantly trying to make out with her before they saw Chris walking into the building. Britt jumped from where she was and ran over to Chris. His match was set to start really soon and he needed to know what he was doing. Chris saw this petite bundle of dark hair run towards him and it could only be one person. He smiled as she came over and stopped in front of him.

"Hey, Britt, what's up?"

"You, as a matter of fact, you have a match in like seven minutes," she told him, checking her watch.

"What?"

"Yeah, I know," she said, "you have your own locker room this evening. I'm pretty sure Stephanie threw your stuff in there at some point, but you have to get ready because you are up."

"Shit, who am I facing? Randy? Dave?"

"Hacksaw Jim Duggan," Britt said, looking down at the schedule in front of her.

"Excuse me?" he asked, his voice disbelieving.

"It's right here," she told him, pointing to the schedule.

"Stephanie did this match?"

"Yeah, she did," Britt explained.

"I can't believe her," Chris said.

"Are you going to get ready?"

"I'll be ready, don't worry," Chris said, storming off.

Chris couldn't believe she would put him in a match like that. He had just competed the night before for the World Championship match and now he was pushed down to this level? Unfortunately he hadn't gotten her message so he thought this was completely motivated by anger. She could be so petty sometimes and vindictive. This was completely personal and this "punishment" had nothing to do with his in-ring performance and everything to do with their personal life. She was constantly pushing their personal life into a corner, dark and hidden and never to be spoken about, but when it suited her, she just thrust it out in the open. Sure, it wasn't like she had come out and said, "Hey, Chris is my husband and I'm mad at him so I'm putting him in a stupid match!" but she might as well have. Hacksaw Jim Duggan? A man so far past his prime he was lapping it? This was completely unfair.

This was what he feared when he was with her. If she was mad at him, she was his boss and could do whatever she wanted to him. Heaven help him if he was still wrestling and they ever got divorced. He'd probably be relegated to the lowest of the low, a jobber on ECW or something. He was _not_ going to wrestle Duggan tonight; he didn't care what she thought about that.

Stephanie was sitting by the gorilla, Flynn in her arms and Sawyer coloring on a piece of paper next to her. With all her work, she had relegated much of her duties here to a production assistant by the name of Neil. He took care of the board while she took care of all the other goings-on, plus making sure wrestlers had a place on the show. Chris glared at her when he walked by and she didn't know why. He wasn't dressed for his match, which was on right now, Duggan just having gone out and she wondered what he was up to.

"Hi, Daddy!" Sawyer said as he looked up and saw Chris. His daddy just nodded at him and that was strange. His daddy would usually at least wave before he had to go through the curtain. "Daddy mad, Mommy?"

"I don't know," she said, but she slipped her headphones on to listen to what was going on.

Chris was better than this and he knew it. He wasn't going to stoop this low and Stephanie would just have to deal with that. He went out there, refusing to wrestle. He had been the Superstar of the Year after all and he was coming off arrogant, he knew, but he didn't care. He was angry at his wife for punishing him and he didn't care what she said, he wasn't going to stoop so low as to become a part of her games.

When he went backstage, he walked right by her without giving her a glance or a glare, "Chris, wait!"

"Daddy!" Sawyer said as he saw his mommy start to go after his daddy. She had Flynn though and couldn't run, but he could. He ran up to Chris and hugged his leg, "Hi, Daddy."

"Hey, kid," Chris said.

"Mommy say wait," he told him. "You wait."

"I don't want to talk to Mommy right now, okay," Chris told his son. "I'll see you later though, okay, I have some things to do."

"Okay," he said dejectedly. Chris picked up his son and kissed him, "I just have to go cool off, okay?"

"What dat?"

"I don't want to yell at mommy, that's all."

"Oh, okay."

"Chris," Stephanie said, coming up to him, "What was that out there?"

"Oh, you know what it was, you know exactly what it was, later," he said, forgetting he had Sawyer in his arms and walking off with the little boy. It wasn't until Sawyer leaned his head against Chris that he let go of his anger long enough to realize he had taken his son with him. "Oh, hey you, I forgot I had you."

"Dat silly, Daddy," Sawyer said and once again, the kid came through for him and made him smile.

"I was going to go outside, but you're not warm enough, maybe we'll just go sit near the indoor parking?"

"Okay," he said, not having anything better to do. He knew it was bedtime soon, but he could stay up with his daddy if his daddy wanted him to. Chris and Sawyer ended up sitting on a couple of steps. Chris knew he was wrinkling his suit, but that was okay.

"I just don't get your mom sometimes," Chris told Sawyer, who listened diligently. "I mean, I work my ass off and just because she's mad at me, she puts me in a stupid match? It's not fair. I don't see her doing that with anyone else, you know? She's mad at Shawn all the time, well…Shawn actually has his own problems, but it's just frustrating that she would let our fight get in the way of work, it should be separate, you know?"

"Uh huh, you Daddy."

"Yeah, I am your daddy and that's separate from Chris Jericho, the wrestler and Chris Jericho, Stephanie's husband should be separate from Chris Jericho, Stephanie's employee. I mean, yes, I know she gives me benefits sometimes, but they're never great ones. She's never stripped the title off of someone and given it to me and I wouldn't want her to, you know."

"I know, you good."

"Thanks," Chris said, "I think so too, which is why it's an insult to be put in a match with someone of such low caliber. I was the Superstar of the Year, you know what that is, it's the trophy I put in your room, remember?"

"It shiny," Sawyer nodded. It was a cool thing too, it looked like wrestlers.

"See, I think it's cool too. And I liked that Mommy was the one to give it to me, did you see her last week, she looked beautiful, don't you think Mommy looked pretty?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer nodded.

"Me too, she looks good tonight too, no, I need to stay mad at her, Hacksaw Jim Duggan? I was facing _John Cena_ last night and now this? How is this not so obvious what she's doing? Huh? I just don't get her sometimes. I know she's your mommy, kid, but believe me, before that…you wouldn't have wanted to know her."

"I love Mommy," Sawyer said.

"Yeah, well you're her baby and you'd think she'd be nicer because I'm the one that helped give you to her, she should be thanking me everyday because you and Flynn are the only ones who don't have to deal with her meanness."

"Yup," Sawyer said. His mommy wasn't mean.

"She's just such a bitch sometimes," Chris sighed and then stopped talking. Sawyer leaned against Chris and then got down, went down the steps and start playing around as Chris watched, making sure he didn't get into anything gross or harmful.

"Chris?"

Chris looked behind him, "Oh, hey, man."

"Hey," Hunter said, sitting down next to him. "What are you doing out here?'

"What are _you_ doing out here?"

"Stephanie's looking for you, she seems pretty pissed. She sent me and Britt, but mostly me, to look for you. She said she wants to see you in her office and she sounded like she meant business."

"I'll see her later, I don't want to see her right now."

"Because she put you in a stupid match?"

"We had a stupid fight earlier and this is her way of punishing me."

Hunter laughed as he watched Sawyer hop on and then hop off the bottom step. "I remember that well."

"She did it to you too?"

"Hell yeah she did," Hunter said, then made a high-pitched voice, "Oh Daddy, Hunter was being mean, I think you should put him in this match tonight. She absolutely did it, but she made it seem like it wasn't her, but it was. Especially after that Trish thing."

"Oh yeah," Chris said, "so you know what I mean."

"She's manipulative, you knew that going into this relationship."

"She's just frustrating."

"You love her."

"That has nothing to do with it. Of course I love her, but she shouldn't let our personal lives interfere with our work."

"That's what happens when you marry your boss, come on, you knew it would come to a point where Stephanie would absolutely be in power. That girl is power-hungry in the best way. She'll be good for the show, but she will step on toes to get what she wants and then go home and be the best wife and mother ever."

"I'm still mad, I mean, seriously, wouldn't you be?"

"Yes, yes I would," he said, clapping Chris on the shoulder, "Go talk to her before she gets so mad she fires you."

"That'll be the day," Chris said.

It took him another twenty or so minutes to actually think about going to see her. By the time he did, the show was almost over and the only reason he did go see her was because Sawyer had fallen asleep in his arms. The kid needed his bed and so Chris trudged his way to Stephanie's office. She was in there, but she was tending to Flynn and didn't bother to look over when he opened the door. She must've known his presence. Chris helped Sawyer change into his pajamas and then brush his teeth and wash his hands before Chris set him down on his air mattress.

Then he looked over to his wife. She stood there glaring at him and the heat between them was palpable, even if they were surrounded by their kids. Chris said she wanted to see him and Stephanie went on a rant about what he had done out there. Now she was the boss and she was pissed. She told Chris if she said to dance, he would dance. Well Chris would never, ever relent to that and said maybe she wasn't doing a good job as the boss if she was going to let her personal life cloud her judgment.

He brought up the fact Dave's clause had expired and how he shouldn't get a shot and she said of course she knew about that and that's why she had set up the matches for next week and the week after that. She was going to fairly choose her champion's next opponent. She was doing what was good for the show and she had been doing Chris a favor giving him an easy match as a warm-up t next week. Hadn't he gotten her message? Chris didn't need a stinking warm-up match though, but Stephanie cut him off to tell him that if he had a problem with her to come to her. She was his wife, he didn't need to air his grievances out for the world to see. Chris left without a word and Stephanie sighed as he left. She hated fighting with him and she couldn't believe he was mad because she gave him an easy match. Sure, at first, maybe it was vindictive, but then she had kept it because it wasn't. Cena and Dave had it rough tonight, they would be beat up for next week and Dave and Randy had matches next week to decide if they would move on and be in the Fatal 4-Way for the title. They'd get beat up tonight and then they'd be banged up for next week.

Chris wasn't going to get banged up against Hacksaw Jim Duggan of all people. He'd be fine and ready to face CM Punk next week. Yes, she had helped him there too, probably giving him the weakest competitor of the competition for the contendership. But he just failed to see that she was thinking logically, so fine, let him act like a jackass, but he wasn't going to do it on her show and she was telling him that.

Chris was two steps out the door when he realized he was breathing heavily and incredibly aroused by the authority in his wife's voice. He loved when Stephanie was all powerful like that. But he was mad at her. No, he was attracted to her. No, mad. No, attracted. Mad. Attracted. Mad. Attracted.

"Damn it to hell," he muttered before he burst back into her office and grabbed her by the waist, kissing her hard. She gasped against his mouth and he took advantage, exploring her mouth with his tongue.

"Chris," she moaned against him as he his hand started to wander up her skirt. She was glad the cameras weren't here to capture _this_. That'd be a little bit much for the TV audience. Her hands were in his hair and pulling him closer. Flynn whimpered a little in her sleep and coughed, causing them to pull away.

"You are so sexy when you're mad," he told her. "I love it."

"What?" she laughed.

"You were just mad and in charge and I love it," he said, his lips smeared with her lip gloss.

"You're nuts," she told him. "Didn't you get my message? I don't know why you were mad at me."

"Because you were mad at me."

"No, I wasn't, I mean, I was, but I got over it. The match tonight was to give you an easy match. That's why I set up the 3-on-2 match for right now," she told him. "So Dave and Randy beat each other up and you can beat _them_ up when you obviously advance because I put you against CM Punk, who you've beaten repeatedly."

"You really were helping me?"

"Yes!" she told him, slapping him on the chest. "Of course I was."

"Oh, well…now you're not really as sexy," he joked, kissing her lightly.

"I still don't want you making a spectacle out there, you might've mentioned you were married to me and then you would see a fury the likes of which you've never seen."

"Oh, that'd make me want you even more."

"You are the craziest guy ever."

"Just don't put me in stupid matches anymore," he told her.

"Well, let's see how you make it up to me and we'll see."

"Later," he said, "you better watch yourself."

"Oh yeah?"

"I think I need a little payback for such an awful match."


	215. Nice to See Trish, December 22, 2008

A/N: Happy Holidays! :)

* * *

"So still no go on the baby?"

"Nope, I was about to take another one because I was a couple days later than I usually was and that's when Mother Nature decided to hit, so no, I'm not pregnant. I was hoping I would be and then I could surprise Christian with it as a Christmas gift, but it wasn't in the cards this time."

"That's too bad, I think it'd be cool if our kids were close in age so they could hang out," Stephanie said. "I mean, Sawyer has his friends from his play group, but Flynn doesn't have any friends right now and it'd be cute if they could hang out together."

"That would be cute," Trish said as she looked down at Flynn, who was sitting on Trish's lap at the moment, staring intently over at Stephanie, wondering why she wasn't in her mommy's arms right now. It wasn't that she was uncomfortable, she just kind of liked being in her mommy's lap, that was all.

"I think so too."

"I just…I know it takes a while, sometimes, for this to happen and I can wait, I just…don't want to wait," Trish laughed as she held Flynn's small, smooth hand. She still had that baby newness to her. "I mean, I'm just impatient for it to happen."

"Yeah, I guess I can understand that," Stephanie said.

"No you can't," Trish told her.

"What? Sure I can."

"No, you can't understand it, you and Chris got pregnant twice without even really wanting to be pregnant."

"First of all, Chris did not get pregnant, let's clear that up. I hate when people say that _we_ got pregnant. No, Chris might've had some discomfort because I can be a bitch during pregnancy, but in no way did he go through what I went through."

"Duly noted."

"You'll realize that fact when you're pregnant."

"I probably will, but still, you can't understand."

"Do you even remember a time when I was married before?" Stephanie said. "You should because I seem to recall you trying to steal my husband. So I definitely think you remember that."

"I'm a married woman now, I don't remember anything before Christian," she said smugly.

Stephanie shook her head and went into Flynn's diaper bag, grabbing one of the bottles. She asked the waiter if he could heat it up for her and he left to go warm it up after Stephanie gave him some basic directions. "What I'm saying is that Hunter and I tried for a kid and it kept coming up negative and it got frustrating."

"Well, Christian and I have only been trying for a few months so you know, we're in this for the long haul and we can be patient, I can be patient," Trish said. "I mean, we'll have one when we have one, right?"

"That's a good way of looking at it," Stephanie said. "I just hate to see you disappointed."

Trish gave a small smile, "I'm fine. I get to see Flynn tonight and my nieces and nephews over Christmas so it'll be good. The only bad part is I may have to see Vickie, but I guess I can act in the way of the holiday spirit and put up with her."

"Vickie? I thought Edge was avoiding her like the plague."

"He is, but she kept insisting they at least spend a little bit of the holiday together so she might be coming up here for a day or two and Edge may have to play the sympathetic husband or whatever the hell he's been playing when he's with her."

"He's still with Lita though?'

"Yeah, he just fears for his job if he were to leave Vickie right now, you know how she is, you are her boss. Hey, you should do us all a favor and fire her," Trish said. "That way Edge doesn't have to deal with her and he can finally be with Lita."

"She's actually pretty competent," Stephanie shrugged, "besides, things are running fine over there, sorry, I can't do that kind of favor."

"You would if it were for Chris."

"No, I wouldn't, not that big a favor."

"Isn't that why you got rid of Adamle? He kept putting Chris in stupid matches and it made you really angry?"

"No, that's not why I did it," Stephanie protested. "Did you ever even watch Raw with him as the General Manager? He was completely awful and had no idea what he was doing. He was pretty much a lackey of my father's and I wanted him out. I think the show is running much more smoothly with me there."

"I've noticed you putting Chris in easy matches," Trish said as the waiter brought the warmed bottle back over. Stephanie tested it on her arm and deeming it worthy of her daughter, she gave Trish the bottle. Trish let Flynn go at it and held it while Flynn drank her afternoon bottle.

"That was one easy match and don't bring it up because it made us have a fight."

"You guys had a fight?"

"Just one of our usual ones. He thought I was putting him in a stupid match to punish him because he made me mad last week and I was…initially, but then I did it because it was an easy match and I wanted to give him a warm-up match for tonight. He's going to kick CM Punk's ass and move on to next week."

"You also gave him the easiest opponent."

"What are you talking about?"

"CM Punk? Let's face it, Stephanie, of all the people in this tournament, he's the easiest to defeat because he has the least amount of experience. I don't see you putting him in a match with Kane or JBL."

"Because I did it randomly," Stephanie said, brushing her hair away from her face. "That's it."

"Are you sure?" Trish asked with a smirk. "Or did you realize that Chris would have the easiest time with the youngest guy in the tournament, the one who hasn't been in the wrestling business for years and years?"

"I don't think it matters who Chris faces, I think he can beat all of them."

"Then you put Dave and Randy in a match together. Those two are probably Chris's biggest opponents in this and you conveniently eliminate one of them," Trish said, rubbing her chin with her free hand.

"I did no such thing, random, Trish, all random."

"Face it, Stephanie, whether it's random or not, you do these little things for Chris because he's your husband and you want him to win," Trish said. "You should just admit it. I'm your best friend, you can admit it to your best friend."

"Okay, so it might be a little bit of my influence, but not enough to where it's suspicious," Stephanie admitted. "But if you ever, and I mean ever, bring this up with anyone or say anything, I swear to God, I will make your life a nightmare."

"You're evil," Trish laughed as Flynn pulled away to take a breath before she went back to her bottle. "Pure evil."

"I just give him a couple advantages, besides, there's no way I can rig tonight's match. He has to go out there and win it on his own, same with next week. I don't give him a leg up in the actual match, that's all Chris."

"Well, he's a good wrestler."

"Do you ever miss it?" Stephanie asked, cocking her head to the side as she broke a piece of her biscuit off and popped it in her mouth.

"Wrestling?"

"No, Trish, your sanity, of course I mean wrestling, what else do you think I would mean?"

"Well I don't know! You could've meant something else."

"No, I meant wrestling, do you ever miss wrestling? It's been more than two years since you've left and I was wondering if you ever missed it."

"I don't know, I guess I think about it sometimes, but I never really think about it too hard, you know," she said, staring off for a second before looking back at Stephanie. "I mean, I'm with Christian and he's still wrestling, you know, so it's not like it's out of my life completely or anything. I still have it there, it's always there. Besides, I'm friends with you and you own a wrestling company so it's definitely there, but the ring, I don't know, sometimes."

"You don't sound very convincing that you actually miss it."

"Well, with me wanting to get pregnant, it's probably best that I don't think about the ring too much," Trish giggled. "I guess I want more than anything to just settle down. Life in wrestling, it was chaotic, at least for me. For you, I think working is actually really calming."

"When you've got two kids under the age of three and a husband like Chris, of course it's calming."

"Yeah, I just didn't think wrestling was calming. Don't get me wrong, I loved it and I still do, it's just I was always like a rubber band I guess. I feel better now because I'm settled with Christian."

"You could've been settled with Christian even if you hadn't retired."

"I honestly don't know if that's true, what with our schedules. I got to devote time to Christian, time to our relationship and I think we're stronger for it in the end. You know when I retired, that's when I was with Carlito."

"Oh yeah," Stephanie said, thinking about her friend's other engagement.

"Yeah, I probably would've married him had I stayed, I probably just would've stayed and not done anything and I wouldn't have gotten to know Christian again and he would've married Tiffany and I'd be living a very different life right now."

"That's right, it's funny how life works out like that. If Chris had never interrupted me that night, I never would've been business partners with him. I just would've tried to make Hunter's life a living hell on my own while still wishing for Chris to go down or something and have the title go to Kurt or something."

"Hey, I heard some rumors that Kurt might come back here once his contract expires from TNA. Is there any truth to those rumors?"

"I don't know, his agent has sent out very tentative feelers," Stephanie said with a sigh. She simply didn't like thinking about Kurt. She thought she would eventually be over her ex-best friend, but she found it just easier to ignore his very existence. It just made it easier to deal with. She had loved Kurt and she still felt a small sense of betrayal from him. "I'm not sure how to respond to them though. I mean, what do I say? No, you can't come back because I don't want to face you? I don't think that's very professional."

"Probably not. That would be really awkward for you."

"A little, I think I could act professional though. So really, when is Christian going to re-sign with us? I want him to soon so we can figure out where to put him."

"He's still trying to see if TNA will give him more money," Trish explained. "He's suddenly very concerned about our future and putting kids through college and what not. He wants to make sure he has enough even though we're both doing fine. I don't know, I think he's nervous about whenever I do get pregnant."

"That's cute," Stephanie said.

"Obviously Chris wasn't like that."

"No," Stephanie said, knowing that she and Chris had more than enough to raise 10 kids if they wanted to. "He just worried about being a good dad, but he's a great dad. Christian will make a great dad too."

"I think so. He's a big goofball, I think he'd be great with kids. He'd obviously be the fun parent."

"Chris is the fun parent."

"Sawyer adores you though, I'm so jealous," Trish told her. Sawyer loved Stephanie so unconditionally and she wanted a little blond boy running around with Christian's eyes and mannerisms.

"Noticed you said nothing about Flynn."

"Well Flynn is all Sawyer's."

"That's true," Stephanie said. "That little girl would walk if she could to get to Sawyer. In fact, she'll probably start that any day just so she can be around him. She's probably wondering where he is right now."

Trish cooed at Flynn, "Oh, do you miss your big brother, sweetie?"

Flynn looked up at her and burped a little bit, Stephanie laughed, "Flynnie, that wasn't very nice."

"She's allowed, she's too cute to be mad at," Trish said. "I'm so impatient to have one of these, you have no idea."

Christian ran away from Sawyer. He, Chris, and Sawyer were in the park playing tag. It was freezing outside, but Sawyer had a bad case of cabin fever so they were running in the light dusting snow falling. Sawyer was starting to get cold so they would probably go inside soon, but he was still running around.

"Cwissy!" Sawyer screamed as he tried to run towards Christian. He was bundled up in a huge, fluffy jacket with a scarf and a hood and mittens and a hat under the hood and thick pants and boots and it was very hard for a little boy to run in this get-up, but he was trying.

"You can't catch me," Christian said, wondering if anyone in the neighborhood thought they were crazy for playing out here in this freezing weather. They were a block from his mom's house, where he and Trish were staying over the holidays. Chris and Sawyer had come over because they were giving Christian a ride to the show since Stephanie and Flynn had taken Trish out for a day of shopping and having girly-type fun, even though they did that when they were in Florida too.

"I will catch!" Sawyer said as he continued to try and catch his tall friend. Christian eluded the little boy once again and Sawyer let out a frustrated grunt as he tried to go after Christian again.

Because he couldn't see anything but catching Christian, Sawyer didn't notice Chris barreling behind him and scooping his fluffy blob of a son off the ground. Sawyer squealed and flailed his arms around a little and Chris held him close, or as close as he could get with the huge jacket Sawyer was wearing. "Hey, we're going to go back inside before you get hypothermia and need to have your toes cut off."

"Cut off?" Sawyer repeated. That did not sound good. He didn't want anything to be cut off, let alone his toes of all things.

Christian came over, panting and out of breath. "I think my mom will make hot chocolate if we ask her nicely."

"Weally?" Sawyer said. "I like dat."

"Well then let's go," Christian said as Chris put Sawyer down. Sawyer started walking off in one direction, then realized he had no idea where the hell he was going and looked back to his daddy to see where he was supposed to go. Christian intervened and grabbed Sawyer's hand as he led them in the direction of his mom's house. "Thanks for that," Christian said, "I think I'm so cold _my_ toes were going to have to be cut off."

"Mine too, it's freezing out here. I'm so not used to this anymore," Chris said with a bone-chilling shiver. The wind was making everything colder and Chris had lived in Florida for too long and it was just too cold. They quickly arrived at Christian's mom's house and went inside, relishing in the warmth of the house.

"You three look freezing," Judy, Christian's mother, said. "I don't understand why you had to go out there."

"Because Sawyer was getting antsy," Christian explained.

Judy picked up Sawyer once all his gear was off. "Did you want some hot cocoa?"

"Yes, I do," Sawyer answered with a bright smile.

"Okay, you can help me and put however many marshmallows you want in it, is that okay, Chris?"

"Yeah, thanks, you really don't have to have him help or anything, if he's a bother."

"Never a bother, I love kids," Judy said. "I have one already, I believe his name is Adam."

"Mom, don't use my real name!"

"I can call you whatever I want to," she said as she brought Sawyer into the kitchen to get him some hot chocolate.

Christian and Chris walked into the living room and saw Edge draped over the couch, the same position he had been in when he left. "Oh my God," Christian said, "You cannot _still_ be on the phone with Lita."

"Hold on, Li," Edge said then turned to his brother. "Yes, I'm still on the phone with Lita, what's it to you?"

"You've been on with her for hours," Christian replied, shoving his brother's feet off the couch so he could sit down. "I thought Vickie was supposed to be coming in today."

"She is, later," Edge said dismissively. "She's calling me or something when she gets to the airport. She's only staying until like, Christmas morning, then she's flying back to be with her family."

"As her husband, are you going with her?"

"No, we're separated," Edge said. "Why would I want to spend any extra time with her?" He scoffed and went back to Lita. "Sorry about that, Li, it was just my stupid brother."

"How is he stupid?"

"He just is," Edge said, glaring at his brother.

"This is what I have to put up with," Christian said.

"Just because I'm not _married­_--"

"Dude, you _are_ married!" Christian exclaimed in exasperation.

"Separated, I'm _separated_," Edge said. "Besides you're the one who brought her in my life so shut up."

"Because you were depressed."

"I'll get rid of Vickie, don't worry about it."

Later that evening, everyone converged at the show. Stephanie and Chris's office/locker room was filled with commotion. Sawyer was playing with Flynn on their play blanket, making Flynn laugh at every turn. Chris and Trish were talking while Christian was rubbing Trish's arm. Stephanie was on the phone, trying to conduct business, but everyone was being kind of loud.

"Hey, you guys, quiet down, please," Stephanie said. "Yes, Mike, you are not needed tonight so take the night off. I don't want to see you in the building."

"But Mrs. McMahon-Jericho," he whined.

"Nope, not listening to this. It's an order, you're not needed tonight and you're not going to be allowed on the premise tonight, end of story. If you want to defy my orders, I'm sure I can serve up a nice suspension for you."

"Fine," he grumbled.

"Good, I'm glad we're on the same page, have a nice evening and a happy holidays," Stephanie said then hung up the phone. She grabbed her walkie-talkie and turned it on. "Britt, can you please bring me Kane as soon as possible."

"Kane?" Britt asked.

"Yeah, I needed to see him ASAP."

"Okay, I'll find him," Britt told her. She turned to Hunter. "I have to go find Kane."

"Well I'm going with you then."

"Why? You think he's going to scare me or something, kidnap me?"

"After what he did with Kelly Kelly last week, I think I'll go with you to make sure he doesn't drag you to any rooms where he intimidates you."

"I don't think he would."

"You never know," Hunter said. "That is really weird what he did to Kelly Kelly. I like that girl, she's pretty cool."

"What?" Britt asked, looking over at her boyfriend. "You think she's _cool_? When did you formulate this opinion, Mr. Helmsley?"

"Well, I filmed that commercial with her, remember, for the video game. She's a cool girl, I mean, not really my type, I go for you know, darker hair, smarter and all that, but she's a sweet girl. She's young, very young…"

"I'm young."

"She's way younger, I mean, not that you're old, because you're hardly old, _I'm_ old," Hunter chuckled.

"Why are you stuttering?" she asked. "You leaving me for Kelly Kelly?"

"No way, I'm old enough to be her dad for crying out loud."

"Yes, that is true," Britt said. "I was just trying to figure out when you figured this girl was cool, that's all. You didn't need to get all defensive on me because that's when I get suspicious."

"Okay, got it."

"So…I was thinking…"

"You're finally going to move in with me," Hunter said, trying to force down any excitement creeping into his throat. He really felt like it was time he and Britt took their relationship to the next level. He loved being around her and he couldn't think of anything he would like more than to wake up every morning to her in their very own house. Plus, it would get her out of that shoebox she called an apartment.

"No, we've discussed this, I like my independence. When I'm ready to move in with you, _if_ that ever happens, you'll know, trust me. In fact, you'll be the first person I tell so you can get me a key," she told him, giving him a peck.

"Well, if it's not that, then what is it?" he asked.

"It's Shawn."

Hunter sighed, "What about him?"

His friend was exasperating him. He didn't know why Shawn would go through with this stupid idea. What did it even mean to be JBL's employee? JBL had some side business, he knew that, but was Shawn going to be involved in that? Was he like a personal bodyguard for JBL? He just didn't get why Shawn felt like this was the only thing he could bank on. He knew that Stephanie was malicious enough to give someone a pay-cut, but he didn't think that was the case here so he was stumped as to why Shawn felt the need to handle this alone.

"I want you to talk to him again."

"What? Britt, no, I already talked to him, remember?"

"I do remember, but I want you to just ask again, offer to help him, with everything, not just with his kids. Look, you're pretty frugal, plus you have a huge paycheck, so obviously you could help out and I just think you should ask one more time if he wants your help. It's a friend thing. Maybe his pride was too much last week, but maybe he's calmed down now and has seen the situation for what it is."

"I don't know," he said apprehensively. "I mean, maybe he would want my help, but I really don't think he wants it. He's a very prideful man, you saw that."

"Please, just one more time. I think it would be such a good Christmas present. That way everyone wins. You feel like you've helped a friend and Shawn doesn't have to be some lame employee for another wrestler."

"I don't get why you care so much."

"I don't know," she quipped. "Call it the holiday spirit."

Stephanie heard the door squeak open a little while later and Kane stalk in, looking pissed. "What is it?" he grumbled.

"You're going to apologize to Kelly at the beginning of the show."

"No."

"Yes you are," Stephanie said. "You hunted that poor girl."

"She lied to me."

"She didn't lie to you," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "You just think she did because you're insecure or whatever."

"Did you hear what she--"

"Blah, blah, blah, you're going to apologize to her."

"No, I'm not," Kane said, facing down at Stephanie.

Stephanie had had enough. She was the boss and she got to control what happened. She came around her desk and stood in front of him, "You are going to start the show by apologizing to Kelly Kelly and if I hear another word about how you're not going to do it, I will be forced to take action."

Kane stared at her for a few seconds and Stephanie stared back at him. She wasn't intimidated by anyone here. There was a time, very long ago, where the sight of Kane sent shivers down her spine. She remembered darker days, black weddings and Undertaker looming, but those days were long gone, replaced by power and the loss of that innocent, sweater-set wearing, sweet girl of times past. Kane nodded curtly before leaving the room and Chris let out a low whistle from the couch.

"That was hot," he told her.

She rolled her eyes, "I'm really busy tonight, I don't have time for that."

"I don't care, that was hot," Chris said, shaking his head. "So when is my match again?"

"Second hour," Stephanie said, "Yours is going to be the last match of this tournament I have going for the number one contender."

"The last one?" Trish said, smirking. "So you're essentially saying that Chris's match is the most important match of the entire four. Never-mind the fact that you guys were just hyping the whole Randy/Dave dynamic."

"Shut up, Trish," Stephanie said good-naturedly.

"What's going on with you two?" Chris asked, looking between them.

"Trish thinks that I'm setting up your win for this thing," Stephanie explained, "and while I have given you some…advantages, I would hardly say that I'm completely pulling the strings for your win. You still have to go out there and beat CM Punk, think you can do that?"

"With one hand tied behind my back," Chris scoffed. "I'm not stopping until that belt is back around my gorgeous waist."

"I have belt, Daddy," Sawyer piped in from his play area. He grinned from where he was. Flynn grinned too, just for the hell of it. She wasn't tired because she had taken an extra-long nap earlier.

"I know, I'm jealous, Mommy would never just give me a belt like that," Chris said.

"Tank you, Mommy," Sawyer told her sweetly, giving her a huge smile.

"You're welcome, baby boy," Stephanie said, giving him a huge smile back. "I like him better than you, although if you want me to strip John Cena of it, all you have to do is say the word. I would take that belt off of him in two seconds."

Chris chuckled, "Where's the fun in that? I look forward to kicking his ass at the Royal Rumble. Maybe after I win he can enter it and try to get it back. Who knows, right?"

Stephanie was about to answer when her walkie-talkie buzzed and she grabbed it, "What's up, Britt?"

"We have some bad news."

Stephanie groaned, "Who's unhappy this time?"

"Nobody," Britt said, "well, I don't know, maybe he is unhappy. Dave Batista isn't here yet. I've been looking everywhere for him to tell him when his match is on because it's a huge one and he's not here yet. I had that confirmed by looking at the arrival list. He's not here yet."

"Have you tried calling him?"

"I thought I should leave that to you, do you want me to call him?"

"No, I can handle it, thanks," Stephanie said. She turned to the other people. "I can't believe he's not here yet. What does he think he's doing?"

"Maybe he has a good reason," Trish reasoned. "You don't know."

"He better have a good reason," she said, scrolling through her contacts list until she came to his name. She had the number dialed, but there was nobody picking up. "Oh, this is just wonderful, voicemail…Hello, Dave, this is Stephanie McMahon. The show has now started and you are not here. Your match is midway through tonight's show so please arrive as soon as possible or you will be forced to forfeit your match. If there's some kind of emergency, please contact me, thank you."

"Can't say I'd be disappointed if he didn't show," Chris shrugged.

"Chris, don't say that. This is completely negligent on his part. Unless there's some sort of emergency, he should be here or he should've called ahead. He is one of our bigger stars and he should know better than to just not show up."

"You're right," Chris said, just giving in. "So…um, holiday plans, you guys. Are you going to be around at all for Christmas?"

"We're coming back on the 26th," Christian said, "why?"

"Just wondering."

"What are you guys doing?" Trish asked. "I don't think we found that out."

"We're having Christmas in Connecticut," Stephanie said. "It also works out because the show next week is in New Hampshire so it won't be too long a trip."

"Don't you love how she even figures out how to squeeze in work around Christmastime?" Chris said and there was still a hint of pride in his voice. She was doing a great job around here, he thought. Sure, he didn't have the title anymore, but Stephanie was the happiest she'd been in years at her job. She just needed total and complete control to gain that happiness. He knew she'd wanted this position for a long time, but pregnancy always seemed to derail that desire. Now she wasn't pregnant and happy with her job. He loved it.

"I'm just thinking and planning ahead," she defended. "But yeah, we're spending the holidays with my mom. Chris's parents are joining us. Shane and Rissa will be there too."

"So…you're going to have an awkward Christmas?"

"Pretty much," Stephanie said. "He's still mad at me about the show. I think he's even more mad that I haven't driven it into the ground yet. We both know he'd be the one to drive it into the ground."

"What about your dad? Is he going to be there?"

"I have no idea. You'd think he would come by at least to say hello or something from wherever he is. I don't know what's going on there and I don't care." There was a time when she did care, but now that she had control of the show, she was fine with her father never showing up again to stir trouble. "He _still_ hasn't even seen Flynn in person."

"You'd think that would take him out of hiding," Trish said. "Because who could resist that little cutie?"

"My father apparently," Stephanie said. "It's going to be an interesting Christmas, that's for sure. I think Shane can set aside his anger for me, anyways, maybe, for a day at the very least. I don't think he'd act all pissy with the kids around."

"I would hope not," Trish laughed.

Hunter sat in his chair and didn't budge. Britt tried to push him out of the seat, but she was petite and Hunter was like a behemoth to her. He barely even moved a centimeter despite her best efforts. She grunted and plopped herself down in his lap, playing with his hair, threading it through her fingers and giving it a tug. He looked up at her and smiled and she smiled back briefly before hitting him in the shoulder.

"Would you just suck it up and go talk to him again?" Britt said. "Come _on_, Hunter!"

"No, I talked to him, he said no, end of story."

"No, not end of story. He's one of your oldest friends and you can _help_ him. Make him see the light," Britt said. "I just think that you should try and help him, maybe force him to take some money from you. What if he's a sex slave, huh?"

"What?" Hunter said, laughing hard. He nearly doubled over in laughter.

"See, you don't know," she said, but laughed too. "I didn't mean that, but you don't know what JBL has Shawn doing."

"Um, helping him in matches probably?"

"I still think you should try and help him," Britt said, leaning in so she was kissing Hunter's neck. "Don't you think that would be really sweet of you," she mumbled against his neck, hitting all the spots she knew he loved.

"Britt, come on, this is blatant manipulation," he said, biting back a groan. It wasn't helping that she was in his lap right now.

"Could be," she said coyly. "Go talk to him."

"What do I get if I do?" he asked.

"The satisfaction of helping a friend?"

"I'm going to need more than that," he teased.

"Okay, well, I suppose I can give you an early Christmas present since you've been such a good boy this year."

"Have I?"

"Uh huh and this would just be the icing on the good boy cake," she told him, nibbling on his ear a little.

"You two are disgusting," Randy said as he walked back, shuddering in disgust at the sight in front of him. "Get a goddamned room or something, decent people don't need to see this crap."

"Shove off, Randy," Hunter told him, motioning to get up, but Britt calmly put her hands on his shoulders to stop him.

"Honey, no," she whispered, "just go talk to Shawn."

"But…"

"Shawn," Britt said, kissing him lightly.

Hunter gave in and went to talk to Shawn again. Maybe the last week had made him crumble a little bit and more receptive to Hunter's help. He caught Shawn talking with CM Punk, but the young man soon left. Hunter tried to offer his help to Shawn again, but again, Shawn rebuffed him and said their friendship wouldn't be the same once money became involved. Hunter thought that was a load of bull, but he wasn't going to push Shawn. He was pretty angry that Shawn had refused him again.

"Well, I guess that's that," Britt said when Hunter left the room. She had been standing in the doorway the whole time listening.

"Yeah, I never should've even asked him," Hunter said darkly, "Thanks for making me ask again and look like an idiot."

"What are you talking about?"

"I already asked him last week! And then you go and make me ask him again and he's not going to accept my help, don't you get that?"

"Hey, don't get mad at me," Britt said. "I was just saying you should help your friend."

"Yeah, by forcing him to take my help or whatever. I'm through with that, whatever, let him do what he wants."

"Hunter, don't be mad."

"Leave me alone, I wouldn't be feeling like this if you hadn't told me to ask him again. I _said_ he wasn't going to budge, I _told_ you, but you just couldn't leave well enough alone. You want me to pester him into accepting my help."

"I just wanted you to do something nice for him, that's all. I thought it would be a nice gesture if you just helped him out. Obviously he's not really into that idea, but it was the thought that counted, right?"

"Whatever, I'm…I don't know, I'm just going for a walk."

"Hunter, please, wait."

"I'm going," he said. He hated that he had to do that, like he was forcing himself onto Shawn. He never should've talked to him in the first place. If he didn't want his help, so what! He wasn't really mad at Britt, he was more mad at Shawn for being so stubborn. Couldn't he see he was just trying to do the right thing here? It was so frustrating and Shawn needed to put his pride aside because this arrangement with JBL was ridiculous.

Stephanie's night wasn't going much better. It seemed like there was a perfect storm of mishaps. First there was this whole Kane/Kelly Kelly thing and she had no clue what was going on there, but Kane was starting to get back into creepy, stalker mode and that worried her. Then there was this JBL/Shawn thing that was just weird and Hunter trying to play savior. But the coup de grace was Dave not showing up at all. Right before he was scheduled to go out there, he had called and said he was not able to go tonight and wasn't even in the state. This had sent Stephanie into a tizzy and her head was throbbing now.

He had gone on to say that he could have another injury, a more serious injury than just a kick to the head. He could have a torn hamstring that would put him out for months. She closed her eyes. This was not what she needed to deal with, but she had to and sent a referee out to tell them that Dave would have to forfeit tonight's match against Randy, letting the young man advance without fighting. Now she had to worry about how long Dave would be out. She'd have to contact the doctors to get an assessment on how much time he would miss.

Chris came back with his kids in tow. Sawyer had wanted to get some juice and with Flynn falling rapidly asleep and Stephanie working, he had to take Flynn with him to calm her down. She was nearly asleep in his arms and he rubbed her back as he looked to his wife. Trish and Christian were talking to people so it was just here in there. She looked stressed and was rubbing her temples and looked like she needed her back rubbed.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Have I ever told you how happy I am you seem to be made of like, steel?" she said, not looking up at him, but continuing to rub her temples.

"Um, no? I don't know what you mean."

"You're just…you're here, you know."

"Yeah, I'm here."

"I just mean that you're _always _here."

"I am married to you," Chris said, not catching on to what his wife was saying. "I'm generally here for you, you know."

"No," she groaned. "I mean, here, like, besides when you took your sabbatical, you've been here, we could always, _always_ count on you. You've carried us when others have gone done and I don't think I've appreciated that enough. How do you do it?"

"Um," he said, furrowing his brow. "I don't know…I eat right."

"What?" she said, shaking her head.

"Who's out?"

"Dave's potentially out for months."

"Because Randy kicked him?" Chris asked confusedly. He knew that Randy's kicks hurt, but to put someone out of action for months. That kick didn't even really look that hard.

"No, he could have a torn hamstring."

"Wow, that's not good."

"You're telling me, it's just--"

"Baby, I hate to cut this short, but my match is like in two minutes," Chris said, cutting his wife off. "I just kind of came to drop off these."

"Oh, sorry, yeah, your match, win, okay?"

"Well, thanks for being so blasé about it," he said. He put Flynn down in her portable crib. She was almost asleep and didn't protest too much. Sawyer had run up to Stephanie and he was now in her lap, perusing the papers in front of her. "I'll try and win."

"I know, you will though, Punk's no match for you," Stephanie said, glancing over at Flynn to see if she was indeed asleep. She'd turn the overhead lights off for her in a second.

"It'll be okay," he said, kissing her temple. "We don't need him."

"You say that now…"

"He's one less person going for the title, it'll all work out."

"You're right I guess."

She let him go then and he got to the gorilla just in time for his match. He walked out there to the cheers of the fans. It was Canada so that explained that bit of weirdness. It felt strange to be cheered again, but he kind of liked it. He didn't care what the fans thought, but if these people overlooked his gruff exterior and still cheered him, that was actually pretty cool on their part. He tried not to relish in it too much. He had a match he needed to prepare for. Admittedly, he hadn't put too much time into getting warmed up for this match. Life was often getting in the way. He had two kids he needed to take care of plus his friends were here tonight and it was almost Christmas and he was thinking about all the presents he and Steph had bought for Sawyer and Flynn. It was Flynn's first Christmas and they wanted to make it special since their family was more complete now that they had another addition to it.

Punk came out for the match and they locked up with one another, Chris getting a headlock a couple times on his opponent. Punk wasn't up to Chris's level of talent, but that didn't mean he didn't put his heart into his matches. He most certainly did and this time was no exception. Chris got the upper-hand a little with a suplex, but Punk came back with some serious hits on Chris. One of them was particularly hard and Chris fell to the mat. He was a little dazed, but didn't think he had a concussion. The referee came to check on him and make sure he was okay after that hit.

He wasn't going to give up that easily. It didn't feel like a concussion and even if it was, he had wrestled with a concussion before and though it had been sloppy he had finished the match (and kissed Stephanie while he was out of it, that was the explanation he had given anyways). Punk was still getting the upper-hand while Chris tried to recover, but he was eventually able to gain his bearings and get back at Punk. He slammed Punk to the mat and tried to get in some offense.

It went back and forth for a bit before Punk tried to get the GTS on Chris. Chris countered that right into the Walls of Jericho, the crowd going nuts for him. It seemed to fuel him a bit as he locked on the Walls for real and bent Punk in half. Punk tried to go for the ropes, but Chris kept pulling him towards the center of the ring, making the referee ask Punk if he wanted to continue. Chris wanted to end it here. Punk had other ideas as he countered out of the move and seemed to gain the advantage again. Still, Chris wasn't out of it and when Punk went for a springboard off the ropes, Chris jumped and in mid-air gave him the Codebreaker and took him down for the 1-2-3.

Chris laid in the ring, blinking, tired from his match and still a little out of it from those kicks to the head. He was okay though, he'd be fine. Stephanie would probably drag him to the trainer's, well, she would if she didn't have to sit with the kids. Maybe she'd make Trish and Christian watch them so she could drag him to the trainer's and have him checked out. Either way, he knew there was a trip to the trainer's in his near future.

No matter though, he had won and he was confident he could beat everyone in the Four-Way Elimination Match. Shawn and JBL would be easy, he could defeat them. Randy was going to be his biggest competition, he could feel it. He had to get the advantage on him in some way and then another title match would be in his sights and come Royal Rumble, Sawyer wouldn't be the only Jericho with his very own title belt. Chris would have one to match his son's.

While Chris was wrestling, John Cena was trying to find a partner. Kelly Kelly had bailed on him, citing that her things had been messed around with her and her hotel room trashed and she needed to go clear things up. He had let her go because nobody wanted their stuff stolen or vandalized, but it left him one partner short. He wished he had known this earlier because he probably could've gotten Melina or Mickie to be his partner, but they had already had a match and he couldn't ask them to have two matches in one night, especially not against Beth, who could probably crush them both at full strength let alone half-strength. Candice was nowhere to be found and he couldn't think of any other diva who would willingly team with him. That pretty much meant he was going to be wrestling alone tonight…but how would that work, he couldn't wrestle Beth, well, she was tough, he supposed, but still.

That's when he spotted Trish Stratus.

Sure, she was retired, but she was still in good shape. Maybe she could borrow an outfit from one of the divas if she didn't have anything on her. Why would she have anything on her, he thought to himself. She didn't wrestle anymore. She'd probably have ring rust. But didn't she own a yoga studio or something? Plus, her husband was still a wrestler and maybe she trained with him. It was worth a shot.

"Trish."

"Oh, uh, hey, John," Trish said, wondering what this man wanted with her. She had never really been close friends with him or anything.

"So, are you doing anything tonight?"

Trish looked at him strangely, then looked at Christian, who was sitting right there with her with a similar look on his face, except his was decidedly more dangerous. "I'm…married, this is my _husband_ right here."

"Oh, sorry, that came out wrong," John laughed. "I didn't mean to ask you out or anything."

"Oh, then what did you mean?"

"I meant, well, don't know if you saw, but I'm down a tag partner and I was wondering if you wanted to be mine."

"Tag partner…as in wrestle?"

"Yeah, I mean, there's nobody else. You could probably borrow something from Melina or something, some wrestling boots or something. An outfit," he said, eyeing her t-shirt and jeans. "You know, I'm just in a bind."

"Wow, I mean, I'm not really ready to go," Trish said, looking at Christian, who shrugged. "Do you think I should?"

"You're not pregnant, if you want to, go for it," Christian said.

"Yeah, I mean, I guess I could. I would probably suck though, it's been so long since I've really wrestled," Trish told John.

"That's cool, you'd just need to you know, kick Beth every once in a while, I'll take care of the rest."

"Well, um, sure, okay, I'll do it!"

When she was in front of the crowd in her borrowed outfit, it felt like home. The fans were crazy for her and she had missed them. Her music was blaring behind her and it almost made her want to come back right this second. Stephanie was probably already planning her return and she laughed as she made her way to the ring, loving the looks on Beth and Santino's faces. They hadn't expected her, nobody had, but here she was.

The ring felt familiar, the ropes against her hands and the slight springiness of it all. It was an old slipper that she could slip so easily into. She was rusty, yes, but when she laid those chops on Beth, it felt like it all came back to her in a rush. No, she didn't think she'd return or anything, but this felt good. She wanted a baby though, a family with Christian, so wrestling wasn't on her horizon now, but it was nice to have it to fall back on. It was nice to win too and as she jumped in Cena's arms in an act of impulse, it felt good to be a winner again. Maybe someday down the line, she could do this again, who knew, not right now though. Not right now.

"You were awesome!" Christian said as he hugged her when she came backstage. "Holy hell, you were great."

"Thanks," she said, kissing him. "Did you like me out there?'

"Like you, I wanted to run out there and be your tag team partner, just kind of shove Cena aside. I kind of wanted that hug too."

She laughed, "You get more than hugs?"

"Does this mean you want to return, you look happy," he told her. He liked when she was happy, it made her beautiful.

"Nah," she told him, "I've got bigger plans for myself."

"You do?"

"I most certainly do."


	216. More Smooch Next Year, December 29, 2008

A/N: Hope everyone had a great Christmas and that everyone has a wonderful New Year! Let's hope the new year brings us even more Jericho/Steph, that'd be awesome. Just getting some Jericho/Steph this year has made 2008 great. :P Anyways, enjoy the chapter and please leave a review! :)

* * *

"You think I'll win though, right?"

"Why would I think you wouldn't?" Stephanie asked.

"I don't know, you could secretly think that Shawn is going to win."

"I absolutely don't think he's going to win. Not with JBL as his 'boss.' He'll probably have to deal with JBL during the match, actually, that's something that you should look out for. They'll probably be working together, they both hate you, that's a recipe for trouble. That's probably how JBL approached him in the first place."

"I'll look out for them, don't worry. I just wanted to know your opinion on the matter. Some people think I've been getting too many chances, you know, so I was just wondering if you think the same thing, like, I haven't won it back yet, I don't deserve it back."

"You do deserve it back. You should go after it until you get it back," Stephanie said.

"Are you sure?"

"Chris, please!" Stephanie said with a sigh. She leaned her head forward so she was looking at her desk and rubbed her temples. "Please don't get into it with me tonight. Yes, I think you're going to win. Yes, I think you're the best. Yes, I think you should be the champion. Okay?"

"Geez, sorry, what crawled up your ass and died?" he asked dourly.

"Well, considering I'm still reeling from a patented McMahon family Christmas, I'd say it was that," she said. "It was just a very long, drawn-out holiday and I've had a headache since Thursday. I don't need this tonight, I just want to get through the show and go home and do nothing."

"You don't want to ring in the new year with your gorgeous husband?" he said, giving her a cheesy grin. "Oh and with your adorable kids, Sawyer, act adorable!"

"Huh?" he said, looking up from his Elimination Chamber play-set. "I playing, Daddy. Weave awone."

"Wow, I guess I can tell which way the wind is blowing around here, did you rub off your anger with him?" Chris asked his wife. He held Flynn up near his face, "Mommy, what's wrong?"

"Stop it, Chris," Stephanie told him.

"It's not Daddy talking, Mommy, it's me, Flynn, can't you recognize my voice?" Chris said in a baby voice. "I just want to make you feel better. I can laugh and smile, what more could you want?"

"A normal family."

"I resent that, Mommy, I am normal, haven't you ever seen a talking baby before?"

"Not you," then Stephanie shook her head, "I mean, God, stop it, Chris, I mean my family, my horribly dysfunctional family."

"Baby, I hate to break it to you, but you only add to that dysfunction."

"_Merry Christmas!" Chris exclaimed as he shook the bed. Stephanie tried to push him away, but he straddled her waist and started kissing her all over her face. "Get up, we have to get to your mom for presents! Presents, presents, presents!"_

"_Did you drink like five cups of coffee?"_

"_No, it's my little girl's first Christmas, I can't wait to see her with all the presents. She's going to be shocked. Nothing has compared to this in her life before, nothing ever!"_

"_Four cups?"_

"_I may have had a candy cane this morning. Flynn was up a little early this morning. You know, I have to say that I love that she sleeps through the night this early. She's like the perfect baby, way better than Sawyer."_

"_What time is it?"_

"_It's actually 10," he told her. "So you know, if you could get your butt out of bed, we wanted to head over to your mom's. Everyone's ready. We were nice and let you sleep since you've been doing a great job with everything and running everything."_

"_Wow, thanks," she said, pushing Chris to the side so she could sit up and stretch her arms. "So the kids are ready and everything?"_

"_Yup, dressed and cute. Flynn is wearing the dress my parents bought her and she looks like an angel or something, definitely the cutest thing in my life since you came along. Sawyer's looking cool, just like me. Did you even look at me, I'm dressed too, don't I look hot?"_

"_Sure," she said, glancing over at him._

"_I do, what with my new haircut," Chris said, running his hands over his hair._

_Stephanie looked at him longingly for a moment, "Sometimes I still wish you had your long hair. Not that I mind the short hair now, but sometimes I miss running my hands through you hair. It's just not the same."_

"_Not going to happen, baby," Chris said, giving her a peck on the lips. "Gross, morning breath, get yourself to a toothbrush, lady."_

"_Well, that's your fault for kissing me before I've gotten the chance to brush my teeth," she told him. "I love you though."_

"_I love you too."_

"_Is my Christmas gift you going back to wearing tights like you used to?" she asked sweetly._

"_No, not going to happen."_

"_Can't it be your New Year's resolution?"_

"_Nope, not going to happen," Chris shook his head. "I like them, I think I look good on them, and I've noticed the looks I've been getting from women when I walk down the aisle. They want to hate me, but they look at me in them and they just can't."_

"_I just hate them," she said, "and I'm the one who has to see you everyday."_

"_Well, that's all well and good, but I'm not going to do it," he told her, "now get up and get dressed so we can go! I think Sawyer is going to beat someone up if he doesn't get at his presents soon. He's been staring at them for weeks. I've caught him trying to peek."_

"_He's two, what does he really know?"_

"_He's almost three," Chris pointed out. "Get ready!"_

_Stephanie got ready quickly, dressing Christmas-appropriate. She had a couple of Santa earrings that she was wearing. She figured that with having young kids she should like Christmas and try to be into Christmas. She put on a red blouse and some comfortable jeans. Everyone was downstairs waiting for her. Loretta was playing with Flynn, bouncing her up and down and making Flynn giggle._

_They left for Linda's house and Stephanie wondered briefly if Vince was going to surprise them and show up for Christmas. He _still_ hadn't met Flynn and Stephanie wasn't 100 percent sure he had even seen her daughter. It was a shame because Flynn was a really great baby and she was growing so fast and Vince was going to miss all of that. She didn't really care what he thought, but her daughter deserved to know her grandfather._

_He wasn't there, neither were Shane and Marissa though. She knew they were coming, but she didn't know if it would be an okay situation or a really bad one. They hadn't really spoken since the incident at Raw. He left her alone, she left him alone and it worked. The show was doing well too. Whatever he thought about her making the show a laughingstock hadn't yet come true and wouldn't come true. She was doing a great job and nobody was coming to her with discontent. Well, they weren't mostly coming to her with their discontent. She was doing a great job, but Shane wouldn't give her credit she was sure._

"_Oh, she looks darling," Linda said as she took Flynn in her arms. "Is this new?"_

"_Yeah, Loretta got it for her," Stephanie said of the deep blue dress with white lace trim. It was cute on her without being too girly. _

"_You look so cute, sweetheart," Linda said to her granddaughter. Flynn giggled at this strange person._

"_When presents, Mommy?" Sawyer asked, looking at the large haul under the huge Christmas tree in the living room. It was way bigger than the one at their house and it was loaded with way more presents than at his house. He hoped they were all his._

"_Soon," Stephanie called at him as Sawyer went back to staring at all the presents._

"_What are you looking at?" Ted asked as he knelt next to his grandson._

"_Presents," Sawyer said with a sigh, looking at his grandpa. "Dey mine?"_

"_Well not all of them," he told him, "but I bet a lot of them are."_

"_Oh, good," Sawyer said. He liked opening presents._

"_So is Dad going to be stopping by?" Stephanie asked, looking around like her father was going to pop out with a Santa hat on or something._

"_He couldn't get away," Linda said tersely._

"_From what?" Stephanie asked. "What the hell is keeping him away? It's getting pretty ridiculous, Mom. I would understand if he was away on business or something, but he hasn't been around in months. Why is he in hiding?"_

"_I think your father is having a later-life crisis," Linda said slowly, like she didn't really know and was trying to come up with some sort of lie on the spot._

"_That's your response? You think he's having some sort of crisis? What gives him the right to just take off? He hasn't even seen Flynn. It's like he doesn't even care about us. At least I got rid of his little lackey, Adamle, and now I'm running the show," Stephanie said proudly._

"_Are you going to behave today?"_

"_I behave every day," Stephanie told her mother. Linda gave her a look and Stephanie flipped her hair a little. She worried that her daughter was going to make a scene. Stephanie hadn't yet budged on anything and Linda never expected her to. Her mother had to give her credit though, she was doing a good job and the job was running much smoother than it had under Adamle. Stephanie absolutely knew what she was doing._

"_I mean with your brother."_

"_I have nothing against Shane," Stephanie said coolly and Linda was tempted to retort in the opposition. "Don't give me that look, Mom, I really don't."_

"_You only called him out on national television."_

"_He was trying to run everything, I was just trying to make sure he knew his place."_

"_You are not the president of the company."_

"_I know this and I don't care, the show is my domain. Tell me you have a problem with how I'm running the show. Tell me something I've done wrong." Linda didn't answer and that was all Stephanie needed. "See, Mom, you agree."_

"_Okay, okay, just try and be nice, it's Christmas."_

"_I will be nice," Stephanie said, hugging her mom as best she could. "I have kids, I'm not going to ruin Christmas for them, even though Flynn probably has no idea what's going on or why she's in a dress like that."_

"_Merry Christmas!" came a loud voice from the front hall._

"_I'm going to go greet your brother."_

"_I'll be in the living room," Stephanie said, wanting to go reach for Flynn, but Linda was already walking away so Stephanie dropped her arms and went into the living room. Sawyer was sitting on the floor in front of the presents and he seemed to be moving closer every time she looked at him. He would probably just be sitting among the presents any second now. Stephanie went over to Chris, who was chatting with his mother, and sat down in his lap. He instinctively wrapped his arms around her waist as he kept talking. She didn't partake in the conversation, just listening to Loretta talk about how she had been showing everyone pictures of Flynn when they had been back in Canada and how everyone thought she had the most beautiful eyes._

_Shane and Marissa walked into the room, Declan and Kenny running ahead of them and joining Sawyer with the presents, lugging presents for everyone. The three little boys got to talking about all this madness around them and how they wanted to open presents. Sawyer was a big talker, but Declan could talk circles around him and he was going on and on about how it was really cool to open presents and he hoped they got a lot of cool things. Sawyer and Kenny just nodded along, wanting the same thing._

"_Hey everyone," Marissa said warmly, walking over and giving hugs to Loretta and Ted and then hugging Stephanie and Chris as well, who stood up to greet her. "Merry Christmas."_

"_Merry Christmas," Chris told her. "You guys brought your presents over too."_

"_Yeah, we let the boys open one gift last night, but then we brought the rest over."_

"_Us too," Chris said._

"_Okay, everyone take a seat so we can get to presents," Linda said, still holding onto Flynn, who was looking around, wondering what the hell they were all doing there. She kept grabbing the bottom of her dress and trying to bring it to her mouth to eat because it looked interesting. At the very least she could gum at it. Stephanie had noticed the beginning of a tooth in Flynn's mouth, but Flynn didn't seem to be in any pain so she would just give her things to chew on. Shane and Stephanie had not said hello to one another, but Linda was determined to break the ice. "Shane, why don't you pass out the presents?"_

"_Is Dad here?" Shane asked._

"_No, he couldn't be here," Linda said, kissing Flynn's head, making Flynn drop her dress and looked up at her grandma._

"_Oh, well, okay, I can pass them out, unless Stephanie thinks this is a job that only she can do, did you ask her?"_

"_What!" Stephanie said, her head turning quickly to Shane._

"_I wouldn't want to impose or anything."_

"_Look, I was just telling you the truth and you obviously couldn't handle it," Stephanie told him._

"_You two, it's Christmas," Chris said, "can we just cool it for the kids?"_

"_Yeah," Marissa agreed, "please, Shane?"_

"_Okay, fine, sorry," he mumbled as he picked up the first gift, "To Flynn, from Santa."_

"_Here, let me have her, Mom," Stephanie got up and went over to grab Flynn from Linda. She sat down next to Chris this time and Shane handed her the present for Flynn. They didn't meet gazes, an icy stillness falling between them. Stephanie put the present in front of Flynn and she slapped her hands on top of it a couple times before Stephanie helped her open the present as Shane continued to pass them around._

_They all sat down for a Christmas lunch afterwards. The presents had been opened and there was a mountain of wrapping paper and boxes in the living room. Flynn, of course, was enamored by it and insisted on trying to grab all of it and sit in the middle of it and play. Her brother and cousins just wanted the toys. Now they were all sitting down at the table enjoying their meal. Linda, Ted, and Loretta were talking about things only old people care about and Chris and Stephanie were talking amongst themselves about the show on Monday, while Shane tried not to pay attention._

_It stung that Stephanie didn't want him to be a part of the show. He thought he had come up with a bunch of great ideas. He was just trying to help out, but she thought he was trying to steal her show. Okay, so maybe he just wanted a taste of the power, but still, to be called out like that? In front of everyone? It was completely uncalled for and he hated that Stephanie had gotten so angry with him. It was like she was actually banning him from the show._

"_I'm going to heat up a bottle for the little one," Stephanie said, reaching into Flynn's diaper bag and grabbing a bottle. She kissed Chris quickly and went into the kitchen. _

_Shane felt a tugging at his sleeve. "Daddy?"_

"_Yeah, D?"_

"_Can I have more ketchup for my hash browns?" he asked nicely, then added, "please?"_

"_Yeah, sure, hold on," Shane said, getting up and going into the kitchen where Stephanie had Flynn's bottle in a pot of water. He went to the fridge and started looking for the ketchup, but couldn't find it._

"_What are you looking for?" Stephanie asked._

"_None of your business, I'm afraid you'd just take over in this situation too."_

"_I was just asking, geez," Stephanie said. "You're obviously looking for something and I thought I could help with what you were looking for."_

"_I think I'm fine, unless you want to change all the plans."_

"_You can't face the facts that I'm better at this than you are. Look at our titles, Shane, you're the Vice President of Global Media, so stick to it. Nobody's saying you're doing a bad job there. I think you're doing a great job. But look at my title Vice President of Talent Relations and Live Events. That means the show is _mine_."_

"_You can't even accept help, can you?"_

"_You're a flake, Shane McMahon," Stephanie told him. "When I was out on maternity leave, you stayed for a few weeks at best before you were back home. Look, you have a family and you need to be with them, fine, but don't hone in on my territory. And if you couldn't see, I'm doing a damn good job with the show."_

"_Yeah, giving your husband opportunity after opportunity."_

"_Tell me, Shane, do you think Chris doesn't deserve the shots he's getting?" Stephanie asked coldly. "Do you think Chris is some mid-carder with no talent and shouldn't be put into the spotlight? He _was_ voted the Superstar of the Year. That gives him a little bit of pull, don't you think? Disagree with me, Shane, I dare you."_

_Shane didn't say anything. "I was willing to help."_

"_I'm fine."_

"_I just don't get why you have to seize control of everything. Why is it so important for you to have power over everyone?"_

"_What is going on in here?" Linda asked._

"_We're talking."_

"_I want you two separated now, okay, you are going to enjoy this Christmas or I will rescind both of your vice president titles."_

_That shut them up._

"It really felt good last week," Trish said, sipping her drink.

"Well, you looked good," Lita said.

"Do you ever miss it?" Trish asked her.

"Wrestling?"

"Yeah, I was asked the same thing last week, just wondering if you felt the same."

"Sometimes, yeah." Lita thought for a moment, "I mean, we were awesome, weren't we?"

"Yeah, I definitely think so."

"Yeah, so yeah, I miss it. I think we could kick those young girl's asses, to be honest. Some of them are just downright bad if you ask me," Lita said distastefully. "It's like they get girls off the street and they don't care if they can wrestle or not and they throw them into the ring and it's sloppy and bad."

Trish wanted to say that sometimes Lita herself was sloppy, but she didn't. When Stephanie wasn't around, Lita was the closest thing she had to a female friend who could understand Trish's world. She had other friends, but they weren't married to wrestlers and didn't know wrestlers so it was difficult to connect on this level. Part of her thought it was strange to be so close to Edge's girlfriend when he was still married, but she didn't want to hang out with Vickie, in fact, if she could just avoid Vickie for the rest of her life, she'd take that option.

"Yeah, I don't know, I mean, sometimes I entertain the thought of coming back. I want a family, though, that's what I really want and if I go back, I have to put that on hold again. But then, when I was back last week, I don't know, it just felt so right," Trish said, not realizing she had pretty much just said Lita's whole catchphrase.

"Well, I guess you just have to decide what you want more."

"I want a family more, I'm fairly positive that's what I want."

"Fairly positive?"

"Yeah, I mean, I think wrestling is in my blood now. You don't put that much of yourself into something without letting it take over a piece of you, or leaving a piece behind. Besides, I'm still surrounded by it. Christian is still a wrestler, even though he's in between companies right now."

"What's he decided?"

"He's very close to signing with the WWE. Stephanie has been going over figures, trying to figure out what's a reasonable amount to bring him back. Christian said TNA believes that he's going to join with WWE, what with our best friends here and his brother here. If they were to lay a huge offer for him, I think he might re-sign with them, but right now we're thinking that the WWE is the place for us."

"It makes sense, it's where you have all the connections."

"Yeah, it is. I think Christian would be good there and I know I would be happy there. Stephanie's making the hard sell for it to happen. I'm happy with it. I want him there. _I_ was making the hard sell with him too."

Lita laughed, "So you and Steph can hang out all the time?"

"Well, yeah," Trish laughed. "It'd be nice to see them more than we do. They're always jetting off somewhere. Now we could just jet off with them."

"I wish I could go to the shows," Lita said wistfully. "Something's been bugging Edge, but I don't really know what it is. I wish he would tell me."

"What makes you think that?"

"He's just been acting weird."

"_Hey, Merry after Christmas," Lita said happily as Edge walked in the door. He looked distracted though and she grabbed his hand. "Hey, what's up? I thought you'd be happy to see me."_

"_I am, babe, I am," he said, tugging her by the hand towards him. He kissed her passionately, the only way they knew how to kiss really. He grabbed a handful of her hair to tip her lips up towards his and had a hard time pulling away from her. Still, there was something different in his kiss, like he was trying to make it last._

"_Okay, what's up?" Lita asked when they finally pulled away. Edge was panting a little from the heat of the kiss._

"_Nothing," he said. "I just want to celebrate with you is all. I missed you while I was away."_

"_I missed you too," she said sweetly. She loved the moments where they could just be sweet and coy with each other. Sure, there was always heat between them, a sizzling chemistry that could hardly be contained, but she liked just being a couple with him._

_He hugged her and held her for a long time. _

"I just don't know if he knows, you know," Edge said to his brother as they stood at the bar waiting for their drinks. "I just…it was weird, you know."

"I guess."

"What do you mean, you guess?" Edge scoffed. "He has to know, why else would he say something like that? Why else would they clarify that nothing happened? Why would he ask how my marriage was?"

"I think you're putting too much into this."

"I don't think."

"I guess."

"What do you mean, you guess?" Edge scoffed. "He has to know, why else would he say something like that? Why else would they clarify that nothing happened? Why would he ask how my marriage was?"

"I think you're putting too much into this."

"I don't think _you're_ putting enough into this," Edge told him. "I mean, what reason would he have for asking? Do you think he was with Vickie while we were separated? Do you think they were…sleeping together?"

Christian shuddered at the thought of Big Show and Vickie together in any sexual way. "Dude, I don't want to think about that."

"But what if she was, what if they were?"

"Why do you care? You've been with Lita since you guys were separated, why do you care if he was with Vickie?"

"Because they could be plotting against me," Edge said. "I've worked hard for my place and if Big Show somehow knows about me and Li, he could use that to blackmail me or something. He could hurt Li!"

"I don't think he knows."

"You don't know that though," Edge sighed, "I just don't want anything to hurt her, to hurt us, you know. I'm finally happy again. I mean, I guess I was happy with Vickie, but I think I was a little crazy."

"That's an understatement," Christian muttered.

"What was that?"

"Nothing," Christian said. "I'm sure that whatever is going on with you and Vickie and Lita and Big Show will work itself out."

"You really don't think he knows?"

"I really don't think he knows," Christian said. "I don't think you could miss a guy that big spying on you. You can feel him when he walks towards you because he's so loud. How in the hell could he be spying on you?"

"I don't know, but he could be."

"Then keep an eye out for anything or anyone strange," Christian said. "I don't know what to tell you, man, but I just don't think that anything is going on, trust me."

"Then why the comment?"

"Because he's trying to get you to cave or whatever. Maybe he was actually doing crap with Vickie and he's trying to gloat to you, but come on, Lita is a million times better than Vickie and since you two are obviously not really working, you're jus better off divorcing her and letting her actually go with Big Show."

"But she'd put me in stupid matches."

"You don't know that."

"You don't know Vickie."

Stephanie grabbed Flynn's sock. She was kicking her feet so much that it was flying off her foot. She took Flynn's foot and pulled the sock back on. Flynn pulled her feet up and looked at the multi-colored sock in fascination. She tried to pull it towards her so she could put her foot in her mouth, but Stephanie pushed it down again and Flynn gave her a small look of consternation. Chris flipped through his magazine and stopped.

"What the hell?"

"What?" Stephanie asked, looking up.

"Did you read WWE Magazine this week?"

"No, I'm sorry, I actually have a job to do and kids to raise."

"What is your problem tonight?"

"Sorry," she mumbled, "I'm just still on edge is all."

"Well so am I."

"Not in the same way, sweetie. I just don't appreciate my brother commenting…I don't want to talk about it."

"Don't get mad over that, he's just upset, he'll get over it," Chris said, then turned the magazine towards her. "This is what we need to talk about right now. I was selected as Jerk of the Year. _Jerk_ of the Year, can you believe that?"

Stephanie took the magazine from him. Flynn tried to make a grab for it as it passed hands above her head, but she didn't quite reach it and started to whine a little bit. Chris grabbed one of her toys and handed it to her and she took it happily, shaking it around before she promptly stuck it in her mouth. Stephanie's eyes skimmed the page and then she handed it back to Chris.

"Well, they just don't know you."

"Do you think I'm a jerk?"

"Yes, but I'm your wife, that's my prerogative to think you're a jerk."

"But like, do you really think I'm a jerk."

"Why do you care?"

"I just do," he snapped at her. "Whatever, you wouldn't understand."

"It _bothers_ you that people think you're a jerk? I thought you didn't care what people thought about you. Isn't that what you're always telling everyone?"

"Well, sure, yes, but it's like, these people can't see that I'm just telling the truth. Because I tell the truth, I'm considered a jerk? What kind of world do we live in that I'm considered a jerk? Do people remember Edge and how much of a jerk he's been? Do they remember JBL actually dragging me by the throat with a cord? How is that not more worthy? What have I done this year that's been a horrible jerk move?"

"I don't know," she shrugged as she tickled Flynn's tummy gently, making the little girl laugh.

"Sawyer, do you think I'm a jerk."

"No," Sawyer said as he made his action figures stomp around and climb to the top of the Elimination Chamber.

"Are you just saying that or do you mean it?"

"Mean it," Sawyer said, just repeating the last thing his father said. He couldn't be bothered with his parent's problems right now. He had gotten so many new action figures for Christmas and he wanted to play with them all. Then his evening would include making faces at Flynn and making her laugh and then going to bed. In fact, maybe it was time to play with Flynn. He dropped his toys abruptly and ran over to get in her face, making exaggerated faces that his little sister loved.

"Well, he's on my side," Chris said. "I just think this is a travesty."

"Absolutely," Stephanie said as she watched the show.

"Stephanie!" The door burst open and Cena walked inside. "I want to talk to you."

"Excuse you," Chris said, standing up and throwing the magazine down. "Did you just burst into our private locker room and yell at my wife."

"This has nothing to do with you, Jericho," Cena said, staring at the man in front of him.

"Don't talk to my wife like that," Chris said, his hands becoming fists without him even knowing it. "Now maybe you'd like to try that entrance again."

"Who's going to make me?" Cena said, trying to get in Chris's face.

"Okay, okay, look, I am in no mood for fighting right now, okay?" Stephanie said, picking up Flynn, much to Sawyer's dismay. "So just stop whatever this pissing contest is right now, I don't want to hear it."

"Steph…"

"Nope, sweetie, don't want to hear it."

"Fine," he said, stepping away from Cena. His hands were itching for some action though. He knew he had a big match later, but if he could just get his hands on Cena right now, he'd be happy. Just one good punch to his gut, that'd be perfect.

"Thank you," she said, shifting Flynn in her arms so she was more comfortable. "Though, I think you should heed Chris's advice and watch how you walk in here, John."

"Look, we need to talk," Cena told her, then eyed Chris, "preferably alone. I don't need _anyone_ breathing down my neck."

Stephanie rolled her eyes at the childishness in front of her. "Chris, can you please leave?"

"What?" Chris asked, totally aghast. "This is my locker room too, I don't have to leave if I don't want to leave."

"I know you don't…John, is this business-related?"

"Yes."

"Then I'm going to have to take this, sweetie."

"This is an outrage," Chris said, shaking his head. "First, Jerk of the Year, and now this. Today sucks."

"Maybe it's just you that sucks," Cena said.

"Stop!" Stephanie said. Cena shut his mouth as Chris grabbed his magazine and left. Stephanie looked to Cena and he was looking chagrined. Stephanie put Flynn on the couch, sitting her up against the back of it. Sawyer climbed up next to her and started handing Flynn toys until she had a whole pile next to her. "So what the hell is this about?"

John went into a whole spiel about how he found out he was doing commentary tonight. Stephanie explained to him that because the match was for the number one contender, he might want to be at ringside to watch the match. Chris had done that when he was champion, Hunter had done that while he was champion, she figured Cena wouldn't mind doing it either, but apparently he had a huge problem with it.

Stephanie watched as Cena tried to imitate Michael Cole, but ended up sounding like Bill Cosby instead. She wondered why Cena was trying to be a Rocky rip-off. If she were Rocky, she'd be a little insulted that Cena was trying to be him, but rather came off like the poor man's Rocky. Maybe she'd ask Chris to ask Rocky what his opinion of this was, if Rocky still watched wrestling.

Cena was so opposite in personality from the people she was used to dealing with. It was like he had drank a ton of energy drinks and was ready to bounce off the walls. She could only look at him strangely. She wondered if he was like this in his regular life. Was he always this…loud and boisterous? She glanced over at the couch and both Flynn and Sawyer were watching this man in weird fascination. He was acting so crazy and it seemed to be scaring Flynn. Her lip was quivering ever so slightly and Stephanie panicked a little thinking Flynn was going to start crying any second now.

Stephanie just listened to Cena and tried not to be disgusted by him. He brought up a good idea though and she had to consider what he was saying. She could fit in a match, maybe not a 2-on-1 like Cena seemed to be suggesting, but certainly she could think of something else. She was just starting to formulate the idea in her mind when Flynn started crying in earnest. Stephanie rushed over and picked her up.

"I know, baby girl, I know, it's okay, the crazy man is gone now."

Chris was really disconcerted about this Jerk of the Year thing. Kids read this magazine and they were impressionable and they were going to think he was a jerk. He wasn't a jerk. A man who told the truth like he did shouldn't be considered a jerk. Shawn Michaels was a jerk. Look at him now. He was someone's lackey because he hadn't been smart enough with his money. Stephanie was wealthy enough for the both of them, but if he wasn't married to Stephanie and was instead married to a regular person, he still wouldn't be where Shawn was at right now and he hadn't been wrestling in a big company as long as Shawn had been.

Todd Grisham caught him with the magazine and decided to get a few words about his match later. Chris could just not stop thinking about that Jerk of the Year title. He was just telling the truth and everything he said came true. When he came back, he said he wanted that title around his gorgeous waist and it had been, twice. He was not a jerk, he could be a jerk if he wanted, but he wasn't, he was just a truth-teller and if the fans didn't like that, if they thought that was jerk-like behavior, maybe they needed to look in the mirror.

Kelly Kelly caught up with Randy as he was walking backstage. She'd been looking all over for him and was so glad she'd found him. She grabbed him by the arm and he turned to her, an annoyed expression on her face. It stuck in her gut a little, that look. She tried not to appear hurt, but it stung. She asked him why he hadn't been returning her calls and was crushed when he said that she was nothing to him, that he used her, and that he was nothing more than a mere distraction in his world. He walked away, but she rushed away, embarrassed tears in her eyes. She couldn't believe she let him do that to her.

Britt had seen the whole thing and she ran to catch up with Randy. "Did you sleep with her to prove something to me?"

"Don't think so highly of yourself," Randy said.

He was lying though. It hadn't been to make Britt jealous, okay, so maybe that was part of it. But he had to get over that, had to move on from it. Stooping so low as to sleep with someone like this, it was beyond low actually. He felt like scum for the briefest of moments, but then realized himself. Kelly had been extremely willing to be with him so he shouldn't feel guilty for using her to get over a girl he never actually had in the first place. He had snuck out before the blonde had woken up and had been avoiding her ever since.

"Well then I'm glad you're moving on," Britt told him. "You didn't have to break her heart though."

"I've got way more important things to worry about than what she thinks of me," Randy said. "Why do you care anyways?"

"I don't know, just thought you might be using her to make me jealous."

"Would she have?"

"Oh, Randy," she said, patting him on the arm. "It's a valiant effort…you could've been nicer to her, you know."

"She needed the truth."

"Yeah, but when the truth is that harsh, maybe you should try and be nice. You know, being nice goes a long way. She likes you and she's pretty, stop being a coward and going after women who have boyfriends and maybe try going after one who doesn't and obviously cares about you enough to make sure you don't get your ass kicked by Kane. Maybe you should go after her."

"You're giving _me_ relationship advice?"

"Whatever gets you out of my hair," she winked as she left him alone again. What she said could be true, maybe he _could_ have something with Kelly Kelly, but this whole exchange just reinforced his need to get over Britt.

Chris wanted to win his match. That was the end of it. He wanted to win his match and get his title back. He could beat any of those guys in the ring. He had beaten two of them this past year and had nearly beaten Randy at the end of last year. He was going to go into his match and win. That Jerk of the Year thing had only amped him up even more and he was ready for a fight. He walked down the ramp, chomping at the bit to get his hands on someone and punch them for all he was worth.

Randy felt the same way. He was pissed that he'd have to settle for Kelly Kelly. Sure, he could have her and his little clique, the Legacy, but it wasn't what he wanted and he wanted to take that out on someone and that someone was going to be one of the men in this ring. He didn't care who it was as long as he got his hands on them. He had also found out that his little scene with Kelly had been broadcast for everyone to see and it irked him that his personal life had been on display like that. Plus, Kane was probably going to be on his tail now about the Kelly Kelly thing and that was the last thing he needed.

Chris was out of the match before he ever really got in his groove. This was not the way he wanted to end this year and go into the new one. He wanted to end the year knowing he had a title match in his back pocket and that he had the chance to be the World Heavyweight Champion once again.

This year had brought him a lot of great things. It was his first full year of wrestling since 2004 and he had become the World Champion not once, but twice. That was quite the feat. He had had memorable matches and had kicked Shawn's ass more times than he could count. He had been chosen as the Superstar of the Year and had gotten to be with his wife on-screen. This year had been great for him and he only wished for it to be better in the next year, better and greater and with longer title reigns to be exact.

His personal life had been just as great this year. At the beginning of the year, he had a little boy, his little boy, his son. Now, at the end of this year, he still had his little boy, but he also had a little girl as well. He had never expected to come out of this year with another child, but here he was with a daughter he adored more than anything else in the world save for her brother and his wife. He was content in his life and hopefully things could only look up for him. The road just got a little harder once he was eliminated.

He'd just have to win the Rumble.

Stephanie's year had started strangely. It was strange to be pregnant again and she and Chris had felt unprepared for the times ahead. She'd been pregnant most of the year and pretty miserable, but she got a beautiful, calm, little girl out of it so it was worth it. On par with that, Stephanie had gotten the GM position she had so coveted. She'd had to step over other people to get at it, including her own brother, but it was worth it just to have what she had right now, the freedom to run the show as she saw fit without any interference from some incompetent GM. She was going to make 2009 even better.

Trish and Christian started the year apart with no plans to ever date again. They had wanted to, of course, but the opportunity had passed them by like so many times before. They ended the year together and married, something they'd wanted for so long now. The year hadn't come with a pregnancy, but 2009 could be a great year to have a child. They would just have to keep trying until it happened. They hoped the new year would bring with it a new family they could enjoy and share and grow together.

All in all, the year had been kind to their group of friends, every person growing and changing. Marriages, babies, title reigns, it had all happened.

Hopefully the next year would be even better.


	217. So Working Together, January 5&12, 2009

A/N: So last week, we were spoiled and I kind of kept watching the scenes and ignoring the writing so I was just like, okay, I'll skip it and update it next week, so that's what I did. So this is two weeks again. I promise I'll get better it's just the scenes are so good they're distracting!

Tonight's scene was like the very best one yet, even if he was "fired." The chemistry, my God, was bursting through the screen. Did you see how close they were getting? I was just like, okay, kiss already, you two. I think there's something going on, I just do, gut feeling. Anyways, I'm not sure about this chapter, it's like, I really don't know where it is going, even though I can speculate so I'm kind of shooting into the dark and we'll see where it lands so bear with me, hopefully.

So I hope you enjoy and reviews are love, so leave one, even if it's declaring that Stephanie and Chris are awesome, which they are! :)

* * *

"So you actually think this could work?"

"Well, it was pretty much against the rules, don't you think?" Chris said to Randy.

"Well, yeah, it's supposed to be a free-for-all and they were obviously working together," Randy said, sucking at his teeth a little. Chris had called him and told him of a plan to file a complaint with the higher-ups about the match last week. At first he had wanted to hang up, but now he was intrigued by the idea of getting another match. He didn't think JBL deserved to have the title match over him. He didn't think Jericho deserved it either, but he could beat him if it came to that.

"Exactly. So we file the complaint and see where it goes."

"Why can't you just ask your wife?" Randy asked.

"I could, but I'm not going to," Chris said. "I mean, like that's not going look suspicious. I have to do it the right way. I'm not Hunter, I don't use Stephanie for that kind of thing. It's up to her sure, but I'm not going to just tell her to do this."

"Fine, fine, I get it," Randy said, "you're whipped, that's fine."

"Shut up, look, that's how it's going to go down and I'll be sending the formal complaint out tomorrow morning," Chris said. "I just wanted to make sure you wanted your name on it, which I'm guessing now that you do."

"Yes, I do, put my name on it."

"I'm also going to request time at the top of the show to make sure that Stephanie hears our message and that everyone else hears our message too."

"Can you at least get _that_ out of Stephanie or do you have to request time too?" Randy said with a growing smirk.

"She gives that to me if I want it. Just because I don't get the perks that some people would doesn't mean I couldn't have them if I wanted them," Chris told him edgily. "Look, I just think we should get a fair chance instead of Shawn Michaels acting like JBL's little bitch."

"I agree."

"Good, I was hoping you would," Chris said.

He was planning something. He wanted the title shot, obviously, but he wanted to make it fair. He needed Randy to be in on it as well. Randy was an integral part to his entire plan so he needed the younger man to be on board with this. It didn't make him look so whiny for one. He didn't want to be the only one to complain about the travesty that was last week's match. It wasn't supposed to be a handicap match, but that's what it had turned out to be.

"Okay, so what are we going to do?"

"Leave it to me, just show up at Raw and everything will be fine."

"Fine, is that it?"

"That's it," Chris told him.

The next day, the Jericho family was gathering their things from the rental. Stephanie was unhooking the straps from Flynn's car-seat as Chris was doing the same with Sawyer's. Chris was much faster since Sawyer had insisted on helping him and Stephanie couldn't help but notice the smile on his face. It wasn't an "I love my child" kind of smile, but decidedly more…well, she couldn't quite put her finger on it. She lifted Flynn from the seat and held the little girl close to her body as she continued to stare at her husband, who was now getting his things and Flynn's diaper bag and Sawyer's toy bag. They could come back for the other stuff later.

"What's with you?" she asked as they were walking inside.

"What do you mean what's with me?" he said, repeating her question.

"I don't know, you look different tonight, plus you're not mad. I figured you would be mad after last week, you know, with losing the Elimination Match and everything. Going out the way you did after Shawn hit you while you were putting--"

"Hey, thanks for bringing that up, I really appreciate it," Chris scoffed as they reached the door. Sawyer ran inside and Chris sighed. He feared that kid was just never going to stop running. One day he was just going to run and never stop.

"Sorry," she said sheepishly as she shifted Flynn in her arms, "I was just noticing that you seem different today, you know, happier. Well, not happy, but you're not upset and that's weird because I figured you would come storming in her with guns a-blazing and all of that."

"Well," he said, "we'll see."

"Okay," she said, "I have a really busy night on the docket, lots of things I need to take care of. You said you wanted time at the top of the show, right?"

"Yeah, I was hoping to get time to address what happened last week."

"Oh, so that's where you're going to get angry."

"I can separate my home life from my work life," Chris said, "I think I've done a pretty good job with that so far in this marriage, don't you think?"

"Sort of," she said.

"What kind of things do you have to do?"

"Well, first of all, I have to take care of the usual paperwork, get everything set for the show. Christian and Trish are here tonight. I'm giving Christian his new contract. He hasn't officially signed yet, but he's going to have his lawyers look over the contract and if everything is to his liking, he's signing."

"Wow, Trish sure has some influence over him."

"He just realized this is a better place to work," Stephanie said haughtily. "I mean, why wouldn't he want to come back? He has lots of friends here, he has family here. We're probably going to put him on SmackDown though, he wants to be around his brother. I guess he wants to be a calming influence for him or something, but this means that he can come to Raws if he wants because he'll be on the road."

"Do you think Trish will be with him?"

"Travelling you mean?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, that's what I mean."

"Yeah, I think she would. I just don't picture Trish as a typical WWE wife, you know, who doesn't travel with her husband. They don't have kids yet so I don't think it's a problem if she were to travel with him."

"Even if they did have kids, he could travel with her and them, we do."

"We're different. My job is a lot bigger, you know. Plus, neither one of us could just stay home, I run the show, you're a wrestler. It's a little different for us because we'd have to get a nanny to stay with them or your parents or something."

"Yeah, you're right. So anything else you have to do?"

"I'm sure something will pop up," Stephanie said as they reached her office for the evening. "It always does."

"I think it does," Chris said, kissing her cheek.

She let herself inside and saw it was empty. She kind of thought Christian and Trish would be there. No matter though. She waited for Chris to put down the play blanket and then set Flynn down on it. Chris put down her toys and sat down with her so they could play. Sawyer was grabbing through his things and taking out his toy cars that he wanted to bring. He started scooting them across the floor as Stephanie sat down to her paperwork. She pulled off the top sheet and read it.

"What's this?" she said aloud.

"What are you looking at?" Chris asked, glancing up at her before he went back to looking at Flynn. She was grinning at him and wanting to play. Chris and Stephanie had caught her trying to be mobile over the weekend, but she wasn't quite ready to start crawling yet.

"A filed complaint by one, Chris Jericho," she said, holding up the piece of paper and shaking it a little. "What is this, Chris?"

"Oh, I filed that this morning, I'm glad it got to you," he told her.

"Yes, but what is it?"

"Doesn't it say?"

"It says, but I'm a little confused as to why you didn't just come to me with this instead of filing a formal complaint. I'm pretty accessible, don't you think? I mean, I do sleep next to you every night so you'd think you'd find time to talk to me in between the copious amounts of sex."

"I did it because just saying, 'Stephanie, can you maybe reconsider the ending of the match from last week,' this just makes it look like we don't communicate. Someone is going to read into this," Stephanie told him.

"Read what into it?"

"Like we're having problems."

"Nobody's going to say that, nobody's going to think that," Chris said, "you really think people are going to see I filed something to you as our marriage crumbling?"

"Maybe, I don't know what people think."

"They probably wouldn't."

"So why did you do this then?"

"Because Steph, if I went to you and said, hey, change this match, I want another shot, then people are going to think that I can just automatically get my way. This is going to cause the peasants to be unhappy and revolt. We don't want a revolt, do we? That would just be playing into your brother's hands, wouldn't it?"

She was subdued, "Yeah, I guess."

"So if I go through the proper channels, it's not favoritism."

"You think of everything," Stephanie said with a smile. She was glad sometimes that Chris really didn't want the perks that came with being with her. She continued to read the file. "You got Randy in on this too?"

"Yeah, I called him yesterday and asked if he wanted in and he agreed. So yeah, he's on it. We just didn't think it was fair that Shawn and JBL were working together so obviously. It turned into a handicap match for both me and Randy. We're hoping that you'll overturn the decision and allow Randy and I to compete, with JBL if you want, for another shot at the title."

"I'll think about it."

"That's all I ask," Chris said. "It's not like I'm asking you to do it, I'm just giving you a complain in case you did want to change it, you know, if you had a kind bone in your body and wanted to give me, your loving husband and the father of your children, a chance to really be in the Royal Rumble main event."

"I'll try to find a loophole, but you know when I'm out there, I can't play favorites or show you favoritism, right?"

"Stephanie, I know this," he said, "Business and pleasure are separated here. It's a safe place."

She laughed, "As long as you understand."

"Yeah, I do, don't worry."

Stephanie went back to her work and then took a glance at her calendar, "Chris, are you aware that our anniversary is next week?"

"Oh really? You don't say," he told her. "I can't believe that, are you sure? I thought we were married in February."

"Shut up," she said good-naturedly. "So you did remember."

"Four years," he told her, winking in her direction.

"I know, four years we've been married. Have you gotten me anything?" she asked curiously.

"Yes, I have."

"Is it good?"

"You're going to love it, I hope anyways," Chris said, rubbing his chin a little. "Yeah, I definitely think you're going to like it. Hopefully, maybe."

"Just tell me then?"

"Not yet," he told her, "just not quite yet."

"Well, I'm sure I'll love whatever it is."

Christian and Trish were walking down the hallway. Everyone was used to seeing Christian backstage so it wasn't a big deal that he was here to them. To Christian, however, it was a huge deal. He was getting his contract today and in a few short days, he would probably be signing it and coming back here. It felt good to finally have that decision pretty much made for him. He thought about when he left, all those years ago. It hadn't been the right decision then, he knew that now, but it had helped his career. He had come to realize that he was worth something, that he could be someone's top guy.

He had left because he had been threatened. He hadn't wanted to leave because leaving the WWE meant he'd be leaving Trish. It had been one of the hardest decisions he'd ever had to make and so many times he'd question it. There were a lot of nights spent alone where he knew he didn't have to be sharing a bed with just air. He'd questioned it especially when he found out she was with Carlito and they were getting married. He'd hated himself for leaving, even if it was under duress.

Things were different now. He was coming in a changed man in many ways. He had gained confidence in TNA. He knew that he could make an immediate impact and that he could hang around with the big guns. He never felt like he was getting that fair chance when he had been here before. Now he did and he could go out tomorrow and wrestle Triple H if it came to that. He also had a wife now, a responsibility to her. They wanted to start a family and he was part of a twosome, a unit and it was with the only woman he'd ever wanted that with.

"You sure this is what _you_ want?" Trish asked as she leaned into his side.

"Yeah, it's what I want."

"You sure you're not doing this for me?" she wondered.

"Trishy, I'm doing this because I want to be back here. I have friends here and my brother is here. It's not like this isn't a new environment for me. I'll fit right back in."

"It's a lot more travelling."

"I know it is, but you're with me, so I'm good."

"But if the baby plan goes through, I'm not going to be able to travel with you. Do you still want a baby?"

He laughed, "Are you trying to throw every possible situation at me to see if it's really all me that wants to be here and not mostly you influencing me?"

"Well, that was the plan, yes," she told him. "I just don't want you to think I'm pressuring you into this. The last thing I'd want to be is that kind of nagging wife, you know. I don't want to nag you into coming back, do you think I'm nagging you? Is this nagging? I've never really been clear on the concept, would you consider this nagging?"

"I don't think you're nagging and this is definitely my decision and yes, you factor into my decision, but you aren't the reason behind it."

"Once you sign this, you can't get out of it."

"I'm not signing it right now, I'm going to take it home and get my lawyer to look at it and make sure that it's okay."

"I think Steph would give you a fair contract."

"I think she would too. I don't think she'd try to short change me, especially since I'm the best baby-sitter she's got."

"I help."

"You also freak out a lot," Christian laughed as he knocked on Stephanie's door.

"Come in!"

They walked inside and Stephanie's face lit up. She was really happy to sign Christian back to WWE. It felt like a little coup for her in her father's absence. She was running the company quite competently if she did say so herself. This was just going to be one of her big signings and she was going to make sure her father _and_ her brother knew that she was not running the show into the ground, but was in fact, doing a great job with what she had.

"Hey, you guys, I'm really glad you could come in, Christian."

"Don't try to butter me up, Steph, you know I'm going to sign it," Christian joked as Trish went to sit with Chris and play with the kids. "So just give it to me already and I can give it to my lawyer."

"No chit-chat first?"

"I think we're at the point where we can get right down to business."

"Hello, pretty girl," Trish said as she lifted Flynn and sat her in her lap. "You are awfully pretty tonight? Did you get your hair done?" Trish joked.

"She got a new barrette," Chris explained. "She's showing it off tonight, I don't know who she's trying to attract, but it worries me."

Trish cooed, "All the boys are going to love her, aren't they, Flynn?" Flynn babbled softly and looked at Trish with a smile, like she was trying to show off.

"Trish, can we entice _you_ back?" Stephanie asked and all eyes turned to her.

"What? Me?"

"Just asking."

"I don't know," Trish shrugged, "I mean, well, the thought has crossed my mind, I can't say it hasn't, but I don't think so, I mean, not right now, no, I just want to focus on what I've got going with Christian right now. If that's okay…"

"I was just asking, Trish, it's okay," Stephanie said with a laugh. "You didn't need to stutter."

"Sorry, I just felt kind of intimidated right there, like if I said no you were going to come bitch slap me or something."

"I would never…" Stephanie laughed, "well, unless you put the moves on my husband, but no worries there, right?"

"I should hope not," Christian said, looking at Trish. "Because if this was your way to getting Chris, you're evil."

"It's more to get Sawyer and Flynn," Trish said.

"Hey, you'll have to excuse me guys, but I have to go find Randy and discuss a little matter with him."

Chris excused himself and went to find Randy in his locker room. He was there and let Chris inside before going and sitting on the bench. Chris leaned back against the door. He didn't hate Randy, but he was a little wary of siding with him, but he needed him for what he wanted to do. If he went by himself, if this was solely his complaint it would look suspicious. He was going for inconspicuous right now, at least for right now.

"So what's going on with this thing?"

"Steph has it," Chris said. "She's going over it, she said she would let us know if she can find a loophole."

"Cool."

"So what's going on with you and Kelly Kelly?" Chris wondered. "Everyone's talking about and how Kane is probably going to kick your ass."

"I can beat him. It wasn't even anything, she was just a one-night thing, you know how it goes," Randy said, "well you did, not so much now."

"Just wondering, I'll see you out there."

Stephanie couldn't find anything in the contract for the first match that said there should be another. She went out there to inform her husband and Randy that they couldn't have another match. She told them, though, that they would both be entered into the Royal Rumble and they could win and go for the World Title. For some reason, Chris got really upset about this, nearly yelling at her. She was a little surprised, but then not so surprised when he said that Shawn shouldn't be allowed in the Rumble. She told her husband it wasn't his choice, gently reminding him that this was not backstage.

JBL cut in and told her that he was fine with that and Stephanie consented. Then she set up a match for later with Cena added into the mix. She was a little confused by Chris's behavior, but didn't have time to see him as tonight was a busy one for her. Trish and Christian had graciously taken her kids back to the hotel and were baby-sitting so she was able to focus on the show and good thing too. Everyone kept coming in and out of her office, wanting this, demanding that, asking for this, complaining about that.

It wasn't until far later in the show that her own husband came to see her. He was already in his trunks and she refused to even really look at them. She was still wondering why he had been so uptight earlier. She had told him she would only _look_ for a loophole to get him his rematch, but when she hadn't found one, he seemed genuinely mad. She didn't quite understand that one. Maybe he actually thought she was going to rig it so he did get a rematch, use her status to get him what he wanted.

She listened to him talk to her and ask if JBL paid him off. Was he actually mad about this? She scoffed and asked if he really thought she needed the cash. He would be the one person who knew exactly how much she had since they had a joint account and she had other accounts, which he knew about. Then he dropped the bombshell on her. Her father was coming back in two weeks and everything was going to get resolved. She was shocked at first and missed the huge grin on Chris's face.

It sunk in afterwards and she rushed out of the room and after her husband. "Chris!"

He was leaning right next to the door. "Hey, you."

"My father? But how, I mean, he wouldn't talk to you either when you called him wherever he's at. He kind of knows you're part of the family."

"I put Randy's name only on the complaint," Chris said.

"But then, how, with…how did you get the call?"

"I didn't, Randy did," Chris grinned. "He told me about it. Vince was more susceptible to him because he's not one of us. I honestly think none of the other wrestlers cared where your father was as long as the paychecks came in. The second someone showed interest, here he is, and who better than one of the biggest stars?"

"You're a genius."

"Yeah, so when I was mad earlier, I'm setting discourse."

"Discourse, you…want me to be mad at you?" she asked, confused.

"I'm thinking of making your father think he has an ally in me."

**January 12, 2008**

"So if you think you can get my father to believe you're on his side, what are you going to do?"

"What do you think I'm going to do?"

Stephanie kept holding Chris's hand over her head as they lay in bed together. She played with his fingers, toying with the wedding ring sitting on his finger. She would pull it off a little and then put it back on. Their wedding anniversary was in a few days and she was just looking at the ring she had slipped on his finger years ago. It still looked good on his hand, though it could probably use a good cleaning.

"I don't know," she told him.

"I'm going to find out what's up and then help you."

"Help me?"

"I'm going to assume here that your father is going to want to run the show and that's not what you want, right?"

"I don't know, I mean it's reasonable to assume that he'll want to take over, with him and the whole Adamle thing. Everyone thinks that I was the one that hired him when it wasn't me. It was him, trying to control everything, just like usual. So yeah, I think he is probably is trying to take over."

"Which is where I come in. Who do you trust more than me?"

"Nobody," she said immediately, and it was true. Chris was the one person in this world she could absolutely and would absolute trust with her life. Sometimes she didn't trust her family. She could just picture herself on a cliff, hanging on by the tips of her finger and a member of her family letting her fall into the abyss below. Chris would never do that. He would grab her for all she was worth.

"Exactly. This is an important job and we're going to infiltrate your father's domain, his inner sanctum if you will, we're going to have to come up with a plan, a very good plan I'd wager. And if I know anyone who is really good at making good plans, it's you."

"I do have a trick or two up my sleeve."

"What sleeve?" he said, lifting the covers and looking underneath. "You don't seem to have sleeves anywhere, in fact, I don't see much of anything anywhere."

"Shut up," she said, pulling the covers down over her again. "I shouldn't have even slept with you right now. I mean, how tasteless is it to have sex with our kids napping in the next room?"

"The door is closed," he pointed out.

"I know that, but still. Plus, we have to get to Raw in a few hours."

"So that only leaves us a few hours to plan something so evil, so devious that nobody expects it. We have to make sure that this is good."

"Why the sudden interest in scheming?" she wondered, turning on her side and looking at him. She kissed the palm of his hand and then rested his hand down in between them. He just looked at her, gazing at her really. He loved looking at her sometimes.

"I mean, it's our four year wedding anniversary coming up and I couldn't think of anything better to get you than your father back so you can hopefully pummel him for being gone for so long and not even bothering to meet his granddaughter."

"See, that gets me right there," Stephanie said. "I can understand not wanting to see me, if it was just met. But then to just turn his back on Flynn. It's like the Sawyer situation except I'm not the one withholding her from him. He hasn't come around. He doesn't even know her, he wouldn't be able to pick her out of a baby line-up."

Chris laughed, "A baby line-up, that is ridiculously hilarious."

"I'm just trying to prove a point. So this is your anniversary gift to me?"

"You have everything, baby. I can't get you material things anymore, you have everything so I don't know what to get you anymore."

"I say we just terminate presents unless we find something the other person will absolutely love and then it'll just be a 'just because' present, sound like an ideal plan to you?"

"I'm down with that," he told her. "Four years."

"Four years…" she repeated and grinned at him. "That's a while, I mean, nowadays, lasting four years might as well be lasting fourteen years, especially in the wrestling business. That's like forty years in the wrestling business."

"I know guys who are happily married, you're delusional."

"Let me have my wedded bliss moment," Stephanie told him, kissing his shoulder. "I just like where we're at, you know."

"Iowa?"

"Very funny," she deadpanned. "I mean, here, with you and our kids. I didn't think we'd have kids four years into our marriage. Well, I did, but I thought I'd be pregnant and not have two of them, not pregnant by the way. I just…it's good and now we get to scheme and make it even better, so what did you have in mind?"

"Well, we have to make it so you hate me."

"Hate you, yeah, I have to hate you. You have to hate me too though."

"I could hate your policies."

"You could, you could," she said, tapping her chin. "But it has to be deeper, there has to be unrest. We can't just have you hating my style of leadership because he knows that you're completely behind me. Something has to happen to make you not behind me anymore. Something has to happen to make you not want to be around me anymore."

"But what?"

"Chris, I just had a thought."

"What?" he asked eagerly.

"Sawyer and Flynn."

"What about them? Are they waking up?" Stephanie had a keener ear for their children. They could be in any part of the house and suddenly she'd perk up, hearing the kids doing something even if they were far away. He listened carefully, but didn't hear Sawyer's noisy yawning or Flynn's soft whimpering. If they were, they had to get out of bed and get dressed.

"No, but what about them? I mean, if we're hating each other, pretending to hate each other, what about them?"

"Oh yeah," Chris said, suddenly remembering he had two kids. Before they came along he and Stephanie could plan and scheme to their heart's content, but now they actually had two little people to think about. "Well, we just shield them from it."

"If we're going to hate each other, you can't live with me," Stephanie told him. "So what do we do then?"

"I just sneak into our house? I don't want to live at a hotel. I could just say I have a room at the hotel and everything. What do your parents know?"

"My dad would obviously have someone to spy on us. We'd have to go full-blown."

"Well, we'll share the kids. Like custody or something."

"You mean, like we're divorced?"

"Yeah, like we're divorced. If your dad has someone follow us, we act icy towards each other in public, then at night, when the moon is shining bright, you can call me and we can have some nice phone conversations to ease this time apart."

"You don't think that'll mess with our kids' heads?"

"Flynn is barely cognizant of her own feet, I hardly think she's of the mind where she can actively wonder why I'm not living there for a while."

"And our oldest, the one who does have some cognizance?"

"Well, we'll just say that I'm taking a vacation, but you're not so sometimes he has to come with me."

"You don't think he'll be upset?"

"I'll be around all the time. Baby, we're not _really_ getting divorced," he told her.

"I know, but it's just weird now. We're married and we have the whole package and it's just weird to be thinking about this. We've probably just spelled out our future doom. We've cursed ourselves and we're absolutely going to get divorced now."

Chris tapped his chin thoughtfully and didn't say anything for a few seconds, "Nope, still in love with you as of this moment, and this moment, and this one, and this one, and yup, this one too."

"Okay, I get it," she told him, "so back to the plan, what has to happen exactly?"

"You hating me, me hating you."

"Yeah, but how are we going to work that? I mean, what in the world could we do or you do or I do that would make you mad at me and we're talking divorce mad, it can't be half-way done, Chris. It has to be all the way or nothing. If my father is up to something, if he wants to take me down, if he wants to take Shane down, we've got to be ready. I'm sick and tired of him trying to dictate everything around here. He lied when he said Shane and I were in charge. He had his little minions doing his bidding and he obviously doesn't think I'm cut out for this."

"So what do we do?"

They each thought for a couple minutes, their brains working like clockwork. They pursed their lips and continued to think, wondering what it was when suddenly, the idea came to both of them. It was brilliant in its simplicity, but difficult in its repercussions. It was something they could do, but would they want to do it and how would they do it? How far would they go with it? But it was there, on the tip of their tongues and they looked at each other and knew, saying at the same moment, like they're brains were in sync.

"Cheating."

Edge drank his beer and ate another nacho, "Would you ever pose nude?"

"I almost had sex with you in the ring, I think I'm beyond embarrassed about my body," Lita told him.

"That's not what I mean. I meant pose nude for pictures and then let them get leaked. Would you ever pose for nude photos?"

"You never pose for nude photos and you never film yourself having sex," Lita told him. "Because what if you break up with the person or they get leaked somehow. I don't want my mom going on the internet one day and finding that."

"Yeah, I mean, I just…I hate this thing with Vickie."

"You care," Lita said and her voice cracked a little bit.

"Well, I mean, of course, you know, I'm not heartless, no matter what people think. I do care about her, I did love her," Edge said, glancing up at Lita, but she was just looking at him, listening to him. "Not as much as you or anything, but I did love her and now she's in a bind."

"You want to help her," Lita finished for him, saying what he wanted to say.

"I guess, I mean, I don't know," he told her, running his hand through his hair. "I just feel the compulsion to help her, but she has Big Show now or whatever. Maybe those two are dating. He did say he saw them, so he's seen her naked."

"If you want to be with her…"

"No, that's not it," he said quickly. "I just want to help her."

"So then help her," Lita said, "or don't help her. I know deep down you're a nice guy and I love that about you, Edge. If you feel like you have to help her or be around her, then you should do that. Do that for as long as you like."

"I'm not breaking up with you," he told her. "That's not what this is."

"I know it's not. Just kind of hard thinking about how she's still your wife. If you were to rectify that…"

"I'm trying, babe, I just…if Vick's with Big Show, then maybe I can get out of it without her hating me too much. I do have my career to preserve after all. I have to think about that, obviously."

"Obviously," she told him, but she frowned a little. She knew his career was important, but she was important too. She just wanted to be able to call Edge her boyfriend and not have to hide it because he was still married to Vickie. Vickie had nothing on her except power and right now, that was winning and it was frustrating. She didn't want to push Edge though. Pushing Edge could make him leave and she loved him and didn't want to lose him again.

"What's wrong, Li?"

"Nothing's wrong," she said, putting on a smile, "I just want what's best for you, but I don't want her to be hurt by this either. If you feel like you need to help her, then I really do think you should help her."

She was being something she never was with Edge in their previous relationship. She was being selfless. Edge needed to do this to make himself feel better so she wasn't going to interfere or say anything to him. She had to let him do this and in the end, maybe it meant she could finally have more with Edge. Maybe she could have a wedding where Kane didn't come up through the ring. Hell, maybe she could have a wedding that wasn't even in the ring.

"You sure."

"I want what's best for you, really, I can wait."

"I don't want to make you wait."

"I'm sure you don't."

"I really don't."

"I know, it's okay."

She really hoped it would be okay.

Britt sat stupefied as she looked at Chris and Stephanie. They were both grinning at her, but they were odd grins. She was feeling pretty odd at the moment. She looked between them and squirmed in her seat a little. She opened her mouth to say something, but then she closed it again. She looked to her left. Flynn was hooked into her bouncy seat and she was bouncing gaily while Sawyer zoomed cars across the floor, making various car-like noises.

"You want to _what_?"

"Kiss Chris," Stephanie nodded.

"Kiss Chris? As in that Chris?" she said, pointing at the man in question.

"Yeah, not making out or anything, but, well, actually, could you make out? Just for a few minutes?"

"You're _asking_ me to make out with your husband?"

"Yeah, I am," Stephanie said with a nod.

"Why again?"

"Because it's the only way my father is going to believe that I'm pissed at Chris so Chris can get on my father's good side and find out why he's been gone for so long and why he hid in the first place and what he wants to do with me next week."

"By kissing Chris?"

"Yes."

"I don't know, you guys," Britt said, "don't you think that's weird."

"Actors and actresses do it all the time," Stephanie pointed out. "You'd just be acting."

"I'm not an actress though."

"It's only a little kiss, we can call up Hunter and tell him and it'll all be fine."

"Except I'm kissing _Chris_, he's my boss, he's your husband, you're my friend, you both are, you have _kids_," Britt said, gesturing to Flynn, who was chewing on the stuffed animal in her hand. Chris went over and took it out of her mouth and she frowned at him.

"It's just a kiss," Chris said. "I'm very good at what I do."

"I just…why don't you just ask your dad?"

"Because nothing is ever that easy. You know he's been missing for months, hasn't even bothered to come see Flynn and he very much knows about her. He's just being a jackass like usual and I want to catch him at his own game."

"With me kissing Chirs?"

"We trust you not to rat out our plan to my father or anyone who would tell my father."

"Well, I mean, yeah, you can trust me, but kissing Chris? I just don't know," she said, "no offense to you, Chris."

"None taken."

"It's just…weird, don't you think?"

"No, I don't think it's weird."

"She's used to this kind of thing, married at a drive-thru and everything."

"Yeah, I remember that, well, I remember when Hunter showed it to me," Britt said. "It was a hell of a wedding video."

"It was," Stephanie said. "See what I've had to go through. Surely you can kiss Chris for a few seconds. Seriously, it's only long enough for me to catch you and the rumor to spread."

"What about the babies?"

"We've got them taken care of it, it'll be okay."

"Okay, but I mean, really, you want me to kiss Chris? This isn't like, some kind of test to make sure I'm not really after Chris?"

"It's not a test," Chris said, coming up next to her and making kissing noises. "Come on, pucker up, Britt, lay a big one on me."

"I hate you," she said, shoving him away. Chris laughed and went and sat in front of Flynn's bouncer. He bounced it a little and made faces at her until she started to grab for him. He leaned forward and kissed her nose. She slapped at his face and giggled when he looked indignant.

"So?"

"I can't believe I'm actually contemplating this."

"I'd do it in disguise, but it'd be kind of hard to catch myself kissing my husband," Stephanie said. "I really don't mind, as long as you don't suddenly want to steal him and go back with Hunter afterwards. I'm very open-minded. Chris has already kissed Trish before this and I've kissed Hunter, remember?"

"Oh yeah, that's right," Britt said. "I guess it is kind of no big deal. It's a one-time thing, right?"

"Right," Stephanie said.

"Fine," Britt said, then shook her head, "I can't believe I'm even doing this. I didn't sign up to make out with Chris when I got this job."

"Well, you never know what goes on around here."

Sawyer ran up to Chris and leaned his head on Chris's shoulder, "I kiss too."

"Were you listening to our conversation?" Chris asked him nicely.

"Uh huh, I kiss," Sawyer said, kissing Chris on the cheek.

"I don't think that's going to make Mommy jealous."

"It does, I'm jealous because I love getting kisses from my baby boy," Stephanie pouted.

"I kiss too," Sawyer said, running over to her.

"What are you going to do with them?" Britt asked.

Stephanie grabbed Sawyer and he kissed her cheek and then cuddled into his side. "They'll stay with me, but Chris will get them too. This isn't permanent. It's just until Chris gets some information."

"You two are crazy."

"Nah, we just want answers."

"You and your plans," Britt said. She'd been around here for nearly three years and it was craziest place she had ever worked. Where else could you work and have a couple so manipulative, a deranged psycho, and a man buying off another man like a slave? Being Stephanie's assistant was one of the most fun jobs, but it came with its craziness too and she was just about to kiss another woman's husband as part of a plan.

The plan was easy. She and Chris were going to be in a hallway, a seemingly deserted one, and they were going to be kissing. Stephanie was going to stumble on them, possibly with the kids and she was going to yell at Chris. Someone would see, maybe lots of people would see. Then the rumors would start and then the bombshell would be dropped. It was only then did she think that maybe people would see her as a homewrecker. Unless they didn't realize it was her. They were planning on doing it out in the open though.

"Hey, you guys," Britt said as she saw them later on, just before the show was starting. "Maybe it'd be better if you found Chris and I making out in your office and I can sneak out so it looks like I'm not a homewrecker and people don't hate me."

"That's not very public though."

"I know, but still, I mean, people are going to look down on me."

"We can do it where no one will see you," Stephanie said.

"Okay, I guess."

That's just what they did. Part of the backstage area was closed off because that's where part of the entrance was. The lights were off back there so the people in the arena couldn't see the backstage. Plus there was a place where Britt could sneak off. Chris pulled Britt into the dark and she was feeling uncomfortable with him so close to her.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm okay. You sure nobody can tell it's me?"

"Yeah, it's really dark back here. Did you call Hunter?"

"Yeah, he thinks it's hilarious and something Stephanie would absolutely do," she said. That conversation had made her feel more at ease with this entire thing. If Hunter didn't care then there was no reason why she should care. She just had to kiss Chris and get it over with.

They got their cue from Britt's walkie-talkie and with her back to the wall, Chris came in closer. There might have been a time or two, in the very beginning, where Britt had found Chris extremely attractive. Most women would feel the same thing looking at Chris Jericho. He had an intangible quality to him and that smile was amazing. She just tried to get her mind back there so she could let him kiss her. He leaned in and tilted his head, bringing his lips so close to hers.

Then he was kissing her and it was good, he was a very nice kisser and she could see where Stephanie would want this for the rest of her life, but it was Chris. It was goofy Chris and while she was actually liking his kiss, she didn't feel much in the chemistry department. She laced her arms around his neck and he pushed himself closer to her.

"What the hell is going on!" screamed Stephanie.

Chris pulled away and tried to look guilty. Britt obscured her face in the darkness as Chris stepped forward. There was already a small crowd and Chris whispered to Britt, "Get out of here now."

She slipped away undetected and nobody saw her face. She could've been anyone and she was thankful that this wouldn't reflect on her. Stephanie looked like she was fuming and the crowd grew larger. She had Flynn in her arms, the little girl staring up at Stephanie in wonder. She had never heard her mommy be this loud before and it almost caused her to drop her rattle. Sawyer was confused. What was his daddy doing in the dark?

"Steph…"

"Were you just making out with someone?" she demanded to know, winking at him and licking her lips since nobody could see her right now as she was facing Chris.

He was teasing her and Chris resisted the urge to laugh. "It was nothing, just…um, practicing."

"Practicing, for what? The Making Out Olympics?" she said sarcastically. "You bastard, how could you? How could you do this to me? That's it, we're over, I'm not putting up with this. No way, I'm not…you will _never_ see your kids again."

Stephanie stormed off and Chris tried to follow her, but she stopped, turned on a dime and as he tried to say, "Stephanie," she slapped the taste out of his mouth. She slapped him so hard his gum flew out of his mouth. Sawyer's jaw dropped as he saw the display. He had never seen his mommy do that and he wanted to see where his daddy's gum had landed. Before he could go investigate though, his mommy's hand was wrapped around his wrist and she was almost pulling him down the hallway.

"Mommy?" he asked, wondering what was going on.

"It's okay, baby, we'll see Daddy later, okay?" she whispered.

"Okay," he said, but he was very confused as he looked back at Chris, who was rubbing his cheek.

That slap had actually hurt. Stephanie had put some extra zip into it and he liked it. Maybe he could actually sneak into her hotel room or she could sneak into the hotel room he had gotten. Well, no, that'd be bad because she'd have to bring the kids with her. No, maybe he could sneak into hers. He just liked when she got all authoritative.

"Man, what was that all about?" Randy asked as he came up to Chris.

Chris rubbed his jaw, "Steph's pissed about something."

"Someone said they saw you making out with some chick."

"Don't worry about it."

"Wow, if that's true, Jericho, you just committed wrestling suicide."

That's exactly what Chris was banking on.

Stephanie went out there later to discuss her father coming back and acting like it was the best thing ever to happen in the history of the universe. She was so used to slipping on this false happy persona that it felt like an old shoe. She was about to extol her father's virtues when a familiar countdown came on over the loudspeakers.

It felt like old times to the two of them, with Stephanie talking in the ring and Chris coming out to interrupt her. Before, she never really anticipated it, he'd always just show up and she'd hate him for it. Tonight, however, she wanted it and she knew exactly what was going to happen. It was a risky plan, she knew, it might not work, she knew that too, but she was trying to get the one-up on her father once and for all. If he was never going to relinquish power, then she was going to forcibly snatch it out of his hands. If she had to play dirty to get it, then dirty it was.

Chris climbed into the ring and she could tell that the entire backstage was probably watching this exchange. She tried to keep the smile off her face as he came right up to her. The rumors/news had been flying around the backstage area. Wrestlers were such gossips. Everyone in everyone else's business. It was a wonder Stephanie and Chris were able to keep their relationship a secret. Not-so-secret now with his supposed infidelity being exposed to the wrestlers. She had heard one whispering of Sawyer walking in and catching Chris having sex with someone who wasn't his mommy. She didn't know where people came up with some of this stuff.

Chris was supposed to act angry too. He'd been seen stalking around backstage, muttering about how Stephanie was unreasonable and she wasn't going to take his kids. For all intents and purposes, this was going to be the fiery crash of their marriage. She had no doubt some stooge of her father's was already informing him that his daughter's marriage was in shambles and on the verge of breaking up.

Well it was time for the show.

Chris came in and told her, her days were numbered, that she was a liar, that she was a lame duck. The names kept flowing and she almost anticipated the first word, _filthy_, to be thrown in there somewhere, but she remembered he had evolved past the Y2J character. The insults kept flying, saying Vince was the right McMahon, that he would make things right. If she didn't love this man and didn't know he was completely acting with her, she might've burst into angry tears right now, slapped him silly, and left with flailing arms. She stood her ground on this night.

The tension was seemingly building between them and he was almost daring her to do something. The fire was in their eyes and the heat was palpable and the air was sticky and sweet and it was like every time they'd met up in this ring in the past was rushing to them and they were channeling it a hundred fold. When he asked her what she was doing to do about the situation, she very nearly hauled him to her and kissed, but she turned away to resist the urge.

Stephanie had long since known how to read Chris's eyes. His eyes were teasing right now, knowing he was getting a rise out of her. And unless Chris wanted baby #3, he better not do anything sexy right now. She turned to him and started listing things that she could take away from him. She could just see the backstage salivating over Chris's getting raked over the coals. If guys were actually buying this, she could see different men lined up outside her locker room asking her out. She could see it now and it made her want to laugh.

Chris told her he didn't give a damn with what she said anymore. Vince would seemingly rectify the situation. So she did what she planned to do, something she'd never thought she'd do, but it was probably going to be a little fun holding this over his head for a while. She turned to him and got right into his face and told him she was fired. Chris pulled away, acting shocked, like he couldn't believe she had pulled that on him. He hoped never to repeat this scene because most assuredly, it'd be for real.

He went backstage where Stephanie was standing with their kids and she waved goodbye to him, keeping on her persona. "Stephanie, you can't do this to me."

"Can and did, Jericho, can and did. That'll teach you to mess around on me, you hear me? And don't think for one second I'm giving up my kids without a fight. I'll see you in court for them, good luck trying to get them from me."

"Bye, Daddy, I see you later," Sawyer told his daddy, and Stephanie nudged him. He shrugged up at her.

"Damn you, Stephanie."

"Get out of my sight," she said, then turned to some men, "Security, please escort Mr. Jericho out of the arena. You can allow him to get his things, but other than that, he's to have no contact with anyone until he's off the premises."

"Yes ma'am."

Stephanie winked at Chris as he walked away. He went and got the things that were conveniently packed for him and then was escorted out of the building where the door slammed shut behind him loudly. It was snowy conditions tonight and he'd had Britt call a taxi to be waiting for him so Stephanie could have the car with the car-seats in it. He climbed inside and gave the man directions on where he needed to go. As soon as he was out of the parking lot, his phone was in his hands and he was dialing.

"Hello Vince, I think we need to talk."


	218. Thrown For a Loop, January 19, 2009

A/N: That wasn't quite what I was expecting lol. Nonetheless, still think something's going down, hopefully it's good! Anyways, thank you so much to everyone for all the reviews last week, they were awesome and I hope you equally enjoy this week's chapter. I also posted a one-shot based on tonight called "Evacuate," it's not in the HaK-universe, but definitely go check it out if you want.

So enjoy and review, thanks! :)

* * *

"You two are insane."

"Why?"

"Well, for one, you're both hanging out at our house because you guys are broken up to the rest of the world. Everyone thinks that Chris is a cheater and that you've fired him. How is this an ideal situation for you guys?" Trish asked.

"I'm going to have to agree with the wife here. Also, why didn't you ask Trish to do it, she would've."

"What?" Trish said, swiveling her head to look at her husband. "What do you mean I would've done it, I'm a married woman now. If I had kissed Chris then everyone would've thought I was a home-wrecker and an adulterer. I can't go around kissing guys."

"You've kissed me before," Chris said.

"Yeah, but I wasn't married. I don't want to kiss anyone else anymore, unless it's under special circumstances. But seriously you guys, you're nuts, everyone thinks you're broken up and Stephanie left you while you really just celebrated your 4 year anniversary."

"Yeah, we did," Stephanie said, looking over at Chris. "It was good too."

"Definitely," Chris said, kissing Stephanie. "But, Trish, if we'd kissed, it wouldn't have been that big a deal. We've kissed before and we'll probably at some point kiss again."

"No way," Trish said, squeezing herself closer to Christian. "I'm faithful to my man, thank you very much."

"You two are sickeningly cute," Stephanie said. "You haven't lost that newlywed glow yet. You're still in that lovey-dovey, cute phase. It's rather refreshing since I'm stuck in this rut of a marriage."

"Hey, I take offense to that, we're totally separated right now. I had to sneak into the house in case your father is tailing me. I had to come around back and it was all very uncomfortable while you just walked over like you were taking a stroll. I actually had to work to get to see my family, that's dedication right there."

"It is, sweetie, I apologize," Stephanie told him, giving him a peck on the cheek.

"Plus I missed my daughter crawling for the first time, do you know how much that hurts, Stephanie, do you know?"

"I missed it too, so don't feel so bad."

"But if I were at home, I would've had the opportunity to see her crawl, but I didn't even have that opportunity."

"How did you not see it, Steph?"

"I was on the phone and my back was turned and she was playing with Sawyer and then I felt something brush against my leg and there she was," Stephanie said. "Now she's a crawling machine."

"I thought babies didn't start crawling until later," Trish said. "At least that's what I've read."

"It depends, Sawyer didn't start crawling until he was a little older. I think that she just wants to go wherever Sawyer is so she was like, forget this sitting around stuff, I'm just going to start crawling and nobody's going to stop me."

"I didn't even encourage her or anything," Chris said. "I could've been like, 'crawl to Daddy,' but I didn't even have that opportunity."

"Sweetie, you'll be there for other firsts. I'm sure you'll see something, maybe her first steps or her first word or something. Crawling? Crawling is nothing, it's barely even movement, she's totally a slow crawler."

"Well she's new at it."

"Luckily our house is still baby-proofed because of the monster. Oh, here they come again."

Sawyer had been pushing his long train around the kitchen floor and into the living room of Trish and Christian's house. He was making choo-choo noises as he pushed it around. Trailing after him a few paces was Flynn. She was still getting the hang of all this crawling business, but she was really starting to pick it up. It was actually quite easy and she didn't know why she hadn't thought of this sooner. It was just hand, leg, hand, leg, leg, no wait, hand, leg, yes, that was it. She could've been hanging around Sawyer even sooner.

"Come on, Fwynn," Sawyer said as he kept pushing the train and she tried to keep up, but kept falling behind and whining so her brother would wait for her.

"All members of the Jericho family are mobile, it's a real stepping stone for us," Chris said. "Now if we could all just get on board with bringing Vince down or whatever it is we're doing. I kind of let the woman handle the dirty work."

"Speaking of dirty work, Christian, contract?"

"Still at the lawyer's. He's going over it with a fine-tooth comb, making sure it's all kosher. But you've got my agreement in voice so that should do you well enough for now. I'm really kind of considering going to SmackDown because Edge is there."

"Is he behind those things with Jeff?" Stephanie asked. "I don't run SmackDown, but I am a vice president and if you do know that your brother is pulling this stuff, I really think it's in your best interest to tell me."

"I honestly have no clue whether or not he is doing it, but I don't think he is," Christian said. "I know my brother."

"He's way too worried about this Lita thing. I don't know how he's keeping it from Vickie. Did you see the way he kissed her head last week? I mean, if that doesn't scream 'I'm only with you because it benefits my career' I don't know what does," Trish said. "I don't know why he just doesn't break it off. I think she's with Big Show anyways."

"Really? That'd be a trip," Stephanie said, her eyes aglow.

"Okay, well, the womenfolk want to talk so let's leave them to their gossip," Christian told Chris.

"We're just discussing our friends," Trish said, slapping Christian in the arm. "Besides, we deserve to be completely in the know here. Stephanie is one of management and she part-owns the company and I'm going to be traveling with the company again so we both have to be on top of things."

"Gossips, that's what you two are, you're gossips," Christian said, "don't worry, we love you anyways. Come on, man, let's get the food and hit up the barbeque. I love living in Florida."

"Do I have to? I've spent like, a total of five minutes with my wife outside this house and it hasn't been fun."

"You guys spent your anniversary together," Christian told him. "So come on."

"Fine, fine," Chris said, getting up and walking to the kitchen, stepping to avoid his kids who were still chugging along on the floor. "Watch where you're going Flynn, Sawyer, make sure you don't leave her behind okay, it's just going to upset her."

"Okay, Daddy, I not."

Flynn paused and then sneezed, her head twisting and then she giggled a little. Chris scooped her up, much to her dismay. She wanted to play with Sawyer. "I'll put you down in a second. All this crawling around the floor probably made you kick up dust in your face and now you're sneezing so let me wipe your gross snot so you look presentable. You _are_ my daughter after all."

Flynn giggled and reached for Chris. He made a face at her and took her to the bathroom to get a tissue and wipe her nose. It was as he was doing that, that he noticed she seemed a bit warm. He kissed her forehead and she was definitely warm. He studied her face and looked at her and she looked okay, but he wasn't sure and he kissed her forehead again. Flynn was loving all the attention and tried to grab for her daddy some more, but he was too busy throwing away her tissue, just as she sneezed again, her head thrown forward from the force. It was probably the cutest sneeze he had ever seen.

"Okay, what's up, flutterby?" he asked, wiping Flynn's nose again. "I'm not liking the sound of this. Were you okay this morning when Mommy woke you up? Is this your desperate attempt to get me back home because I haven't actually left. I'm just doing this because your mommy wants to find out what's going on with Grandpa. No, not that Grandpa, Grandpa Vince. No, you haven't met him."

Flynn smiled at him, but had no clue what he was saying. She reached for him and he cradled her against him. She didn't like it when her daddy wasn't there to sing to her at night. Her mommy just didn't do it the way her daddy did. She didn't like it when her daddy wasn't around at all. He always smelled nice too and he always wore really soft shirts that she could cuddle right into. Like right now. She was actually getting a little sleepy and she sniffled a little bit, her nose feeling different.

Her father had heard that though and he was about to say something to her when Sawyer showed up at the door, "Daddy, you done yet?"

"Yeah, Flynn was just having a sneezing attack."

Sawyer laughed, "She cwawl now."

"I know, it's very cool."

"Yup, I help Cwissy now!" Sawyer said, running away and Chris followed his son to make sure he didn't trip and fall over anything. When he was sure his son was safe with Christian, he turned to Stephanie, who was giggling with Trish.

"Hey, Steph, was Flynn okay when she got up this morning?"

"Huh?" Stephanie asked, looking at her husband, "what do you mean?"

"Was she okay?"

"Well, she woke up a little later than she usually does, but yeah, she seemed okay, why?"

"I don't know, she feels a little warm now and she sneezed again when we were in the bathroom and I heard a distinct sniffle when she was laying against me."

"Okay," Stephanie said, standing up from the floor she was sitting on and going over to Chris. "Well, she's asleep right now." Stephanie felt her forehead. "Yeah, she is a little warm. Trish, do you have a thermometer?"

"Yeah, we have the kind you stick in someone's ear. Christian's a little weird about the mouth ones, thinks they spread germs so we got the ear kind…don't ask me," she shrugged. "Hold on, I'll get it from upstairs."

Trish got up and disappeared out of the room as Stephanie continued to feel Flynn's forehead. "She's never been sick before," Stephanie said, looking up at Chris in worry. "I don't want her to be sick."

"Neither do I, but it happens."

"Here you go, guys," Trish said, returning with the thermometer.

"Thanks," Stephanie said as she took it and put it in Flynn's ear. She was woken up by the thing sticking in her ear, but only showed mild irritation at it. She wanted to take her nap. That was the most important thing on her mind right now. The three of them waited until the thing beeped and Stephanie checked it. "100.6, definite fever."

"Oh, the poor thing," Trish said, rubbing Flynn's back.

"Yeah, we can't bring her to Chicago like this. Or I can't bring her to Chicago like this. We have to both go too because my father is going to be there."

"Christian and I can take care of the kids."

"Can you just take Flynn? I don't want Sawyer to be exposed to her any more than he already has. I really don't want the both of them to be sick."

"Yeah, sure, we can take care of her."

"Baby, what about tonight?" Chris asked.

"Can you take the monster?" Stephanie asked.

"Here, why don't you and Sawyer stay here tonight and then Steph and Flynn can stay at your house so you can keep up this ruse but you'll be close by. Then tomorrow, Christian and I can just stay over at your house since we don't want to have to lug a crib over here and then you guys can go to Chicago…are you going separately?"

"I'm going a little earlier."

"Wow, when you guys commit to something, you really commit to something."

"I'm not sure I want her to be all the way here without me here," Stephanie said.

"I don't think it's a good idea for her to fly, baby."

"Yeah, you're right," Stephanie said. "Okay, she can stay here."

Later that evening, Stephanie was back at home. It was awfully quiet now that it was just her and Flynn. She was packing her things into her suitcase for her flight the next day. They were arriving in Chicago a day early in case the weather decided to really act up. They didn't want to be stuck. Flynn was already asleep. Her cold seemed to be a mild one, but it still wouldn't be a good idea for her to travel. It didn't seem like an ear infection so she was sure Trish and Christian could handle her.

Every once in a while Stephanie could hear a small cough over the baby monitor, but it wasn't really a lot of coughing, just the odd cough here and there. She was hoping the entire cold would be just like this, but if it had developed just today, the worst might be yet to come. She put another shirt into her suitcase and looked at the other side of the bed. Usually she and Chris would do their packing together when the kids went to sleep. His side of the bed was conspicuously absent and she missed him even though she had seen him earlier. It was strange pretending to hate him when she didn't really hate him at all.

She was tiring of seeing his side of the bed empty so she went to Sawyer's empty room and let that void wash over her. She grabbed the suitcase from his closet and set it down on his bed. It was a suitcase he could actually ride and be pulled along. He had gotten it for Christmas as one of his more practical presents and he loved it. She started packing his things when the doorbell rang. It was just nearly nine o'clock and dark outside. She smiled to herself, thinking that Chris had snuck over and had come to see her.

She raced downstairs, her hair flying behind her and she flung open the door, ready to throw her arms around her husband and rejoice at his surprise, but her face fell harder than an anchor in a pond. "Dad?"

"Hello, Stephanie," Vince said.

"What are you doing here? What are you doing here so late?"

"Well, my flight was delayed," Vince said, "I wanted to come talk to you."

"Oh, _now_ you want to talk. Never-mind the fact that I've been wanting to talk to you for months and months, now I've got to give in to _your_ schedule?"

"Stephanie…"

"Don't Stephanie me," she said. "You know I've been trying to get a hold of you. You know exactly what you've been doing to me and Shane and mom. I mean, maybe you were seeing Mom, I don't know, I don't even know where the hell you were."

"I was on retreat."

"Retreat? What the hell is that supposed to mean?" she demanded to know.

"I just had to get away for a while."

"Obviously," she muttered.

"I left the company in your and Shane's capable hands."

"Of course you did," she told him sarcastically, staring him straight in the eye. She didn't say she knew about Adamle, but she was looking at him like he should know that she absolutely knew what was going on.

"I did and I think you've done a fine job."

She was about to speak again when she could hear Flynn crying from upstairs. Flynn slept through the night so this must've been the affect of her cold. She didn't want to invite her father into her house, but she just couldn't leave him on the doorstep. "You can come in if you want."

"Thank you," Vince said as he stepped over the threshold.

"You know where the living room is." Stephanie went upstairs and into Flynn's nursery. She went over to the crib and Flynn was crying. She was probably uncomfortable and Stephanie picked her up and rubbed her back. "It's okay, baby girl. Are you feeling the tension from downstairs?"

Flynn sniffled a little bit, but Stephanie calmed her down to soft whimpers. She was wide awake now though as she sneezed and then seemed to wipe her nose against Stephanie's shirt. Stephanie made a face, but tried to put Flynn back in her crib. The little girl cried and didn't want to be left alone so Stephanie had no choice but to bring her downstairs. It was natural for her daughter to feel clingy while she was sick. She always felt clingy to her mother when she was sick as a child.

Stephanie walked into the living room and saw her father sitting on her couch. She was thankful the space was clean for the most part. "Sorry, she has a cold and I'm the only other person here."

"That's kind of what I wanted to talk to you about," Vince said. Stephanie didn't know where to sit so she ended up sitting on the opposite end of the couch. Vince looked like he was trying to speak, but he kept staring at Flynn.

"What?" Stephanie asked.

"That's Flynn?"

"No, she's a baby I stole, of course it's Flynn," Stephanie told him, rolling her eyes, "Oh wait, that's right, you've never met her despite the fact she's 5 months old and already crawling and getting her teeth in."

"May I?" Vince asked, holding his arms out.

"You want to hold her?"

"I would like to, yes."

Stephanie was apprehensive, but slowly relented. Flynn whined while being pulled away from Stephanie, but then she was in someone else's arms and they were different. She was passed around a lot, she knew that, but this was different. She looked up at this person and had no idea who this possibly was. It wasn't her daddy, that was for sure. Maybe this guy sang though. She just continued to stare up at him, studying him and trying to figure out if she had ever seen this person before.

"She's beautiful," Vince cooed at his granddaughter, his very first granddaughter. She had Stephanie's eyes and Stephanie's hair and Stephanie's chin and she was just the most precious thing Vince had ever seen. "She looks just like you."

Now most people would be awash with serenity or pleasure over this scene, but that was not the way Stephanie McMahon operated. No, she was calculating and manipulative and she realized right then that getting Chris on his side wasn't the way to go to bring her father down. No,_ this _right here was the way. Flynn was the key to all of this. _Flynn_ was what was going to bring her father down and make him confess to all the wrongdoing he'd committed with this bogus exile of his. She had to get on her father's good side.

Stephanie took a deep breath, "I know, Sawyer adores her, lets her follow him around everywhere. He's with Chris tonight though."

"Oh yes, I've been hearing rumors that he's been seeing someone else. Are you two separated?"

Well now she had to think quickly. She wasn't mad at Chris, but then her father thought she was, but what did her father know? "Did you talk to Chris?"

"He said you were being a bitch to him. I told him that he could appeal for his job on Monday."

"Oh, well, yeah, we're having a huge fight, things get blown out of proportion, I get…well, yeah, I'm mad at him, definitely," she said, trying to act like she was mad. "I mean, yeah, we just had this huge fight and he said…he said some things and I just can't deal with him right now and I don't want him on my show. He can stay fired for all I care."

"What did you fight about?"

"I just don't want to talk about it," Stephanie said, pretending to tear up. "I just…I can't."

"Oh, Princess, it'll be okay. I do think it was a rash decision though, but it's going to be up to you to bring him back if you want. I've been thinking and I want to run Raw _together_."

Stephanie bit the inside of her cheek to keep from spitting something out that tasted vile in her mouth. Run Raw _together_? That was the stupidest idea she'd ever heard in her entire life. She didn't want to run Raw with her father. No, she wanted to run it by herself. Her father would inevitably push her out of the picture and take over for himself. He'd tried to do that with Adamle. She took a breath and tried to keep herself calm.

"Wow, Dad, that is a wonderful idea, wonderful!"

She hated the idea.

She spent the next couple of hours talking to her father until she told him she really needed to get to sleep and she'd see him for his big return on Raw. As soon as the door was closed, she threw the nearest thing she could find against the wall. It was a set of keys and Flynn woke up from the noise. She brought the little girl upstairs and let her lie down on Stephanie's bed as Stephanie grabbed her phone and dialed Chris's cell phone number.

"Hello?" he asked groggily.

"Sweetie, it's me, were you sleeping?"

"Yes, I was."

"It's pretty early."

"I'm sorry I don't subscribe to your late hours, is something wrong with Flynn?" he asked, suddenly remembering that this was his wife calling him at night.

"No, she's okay, she's lying here with me, her cold isn't too bad. She's awake though, she was uncomfortable," Stephanie said quickly, "My _dad_ was just here though."

"That's nice," Chris said and she could tell he was falling asleep.

"Chris, did you hear what I said?"

"Of course I did, baby, I always hear what you say."

She groaned, "No, you don't. I bet if I were talking about how I was naked right now you'd wake up."

"Are you naked right now?"

"No."

"I'm going to sleep, I'll talk to you tomorrow, I love you, baby."

She sighed and shook her head, "I love you too, sweetie."

She didn't get a chance to talk to him next day either. Her father had insisted on taking the same flight as she was so he could spend time with Sawyer and when they had landed in Chicago, he had then insisted they spend the day catching up with one another. Every time Stephanie thought she could get a moment to herself, her father would come over and that was gone. She was just going to have to wait until tomorrow to talk to her husband about this.

The next morning she was going to go to Chris's hotel room, but when she went walking towards the elevator with Sawyer, they had run into her father again. Apparently he had wanted to take them to breakfast. Stephanie sighed and tried to keep the charade up, but it was getting very difficult and if there were no means to an end with this situation, she was going to go crazy on someone.

"Dad, why are you spending so much time with us?" she asked over breakfast, not being able to completely hold it in. She added a, "not that I don't want to spend time with you," for added sweetness.

"I just want to spend time with you and get your mind off of Chris."

"Oh, that's sweet, Dad, thank you," Stephanie said, but she resisted rolling her eyes as her father discussed just how he wanted to show up on Raw.

She was glad for the reprieve later that evening. Her father had opted to come on at the end of the show and maximize his impact. She was extremely happy to hear that as she needed to be away from the man for a couple of hours. She tried calling Chris's cell phone as soon as she was in her office, but it was turned off and she was about to chuck it into the toilet, but thought the better of it. She might need that phone.

"Hey, Steph, hey, cutie," Britt said, picking up Sawyer and giving him a kiss.

"Hi Bwitt, where Twip?"

"He's not here tonight, kiddo, sorry," Britt said as Sawyer pouted. "I know, I'm sad too, but if you're going to the Royal Rumble on Sunday, you'll get to see him and then you can play with him if you want."

"I do wanna play," he told his friend.

"Cool, he'll love to hear that and I'll tell him, now where is your baby?"

"She has sick," Sawyer told Britt. "She with Cwissy."

"Oh, she's sick and she's staying with Trish and Christian?"

"Uh huh, I miss her," Sawyer told her. "I call though."

"You called her?"

"Yup, yup, yup."

"Wow, you've been busy."

"I know," he said, "down pease."

"Okay, cutie," she said, putting him down so he could go play.

"Have you seen Chris?" Stephanie asked. "I've been wanting to really talk to him for two days, but I haven't totally been able to reach him because my father has kept me busy every second of every day."

"Your father?"

"He came to check up on me or something. I've figured out that I have to be nice to him and then maybe bring him down like the jackass he is," Stephanie said.

"So…I kissed Chris for nothing?" Britt asked.

"Well, no, you got to see what I get everyday, how was that by the way?"

She shrugged, "He's a good kisser."

"Better than Hunter, huh?" Stephanie said knowingly.

"Yeah, I'm not going to answer that," Britt said.

"Because you know Chris is a better kisser than Hunter," Stephanie responded.

"I haven't seen Chris," Britt said, changing the subject. "I don't know, I don't think he's even here yet. I think he's playing up that whole fired thing, you know."

"But then he's married to me so even if I did hate him and did fire him for real, our assets are shared and he could still technically show up if he wanted to," Stephanie explained, "we didn't have a pre-nup."

"You guys don't have a pre-nup?"

"No," Stephanie said. "I guess we just think we're going to last forever or something, crazy as that is. Besides, Chris isn't a gold-digger so I'm not worried. I just want him to be here so I can talk to him about what's going on."

"If I see him, I will let you know immediately."

"Thank you, please do," Stephanie said as a knock came to the door. "Well I know that's not him because he never knocks."

Britt opened the door to Manu and Sim Snuka. "Steph, it's Manu and Sim."

"Come on in, guys, what's up?"

"Well, it's about this whole Legacy thing. We just don't think it's fair to be kicked out and everything so we were hoping they could be out of the Royal Rumble."

"Sorry guys, they're in and really, it's not any of my affair who decides to align with who. I don't really care, frankly, who Randy decides gets to be in his boy's club. He could have my son in it if he consented since he's a 4th generation person."

"But…"

"No, don't care, see ya," she said, shooing them out of the room. She didn't have time for these things. She sat down at her desk as Britt left to go do some things before the show. She just wanted Chris around to joke with her and tell her how silly she was being, but he probably wasn't even here yet and she wondered where he could be. The show was starting and she barely cared. She missed him and it was silly because he was still very much her husband.

Her cell phone rang and she picked it up, not bothering to look at the display, "Hello?"

"Hey, it's me."

"Oh hey, Trish, what's up?"

"I was just wondering, Flynn isn't on solid foods yet, right?"

"No, she's not," Stephanie answered. "She's still on the bottle. How's she doing?"

Trish updated Stephanie on Flynn's condition. She still had a low-grade fever, but seemed in better spirits today and wasn't really having a problem with Christian or Trish taking care of her. Stephanie was just telling Trish to let Flynn know she loved her when Randy walked in and he looked pissed. She had no idea why he would be pissed with her, but it looked like she was about to find out.

Randy was pissed because of the rumors spreading that he was going to be fired. He knew it was probably because he had complained with Chris. Stephanie was pissed at Chris for sleeping with someone else or something and now that he was gone, Randy was the next person on her list. She was a vindictive bitch and to be fired just because he had signed a complaint with her estranged husband was unfair.

Stephanie had no clue as to where this rumor has started and she was growing more and more insulted as Randy continued to speak. She knew it was probably just his temper and she should try to be calming so he didn't go off the deep end, but now he was just out and out insulting her and calling her out for her position. People laughing at her? What the hell? Chris or Britt or someone would've told her if people were laughing at her behind her back.

Sawyer was watching this in fascination. He couldn't believe someone would talk to his mommy like that and he knew immediately it was a bad idea. His mommy could get _mad_ and it looked like she was getting madder by the second. Plus, she didn't back down from anything. He had seen his mommy and his daddy get in each other's faces like this and it always ended with his daddy looking away and his mommy getting the better of the situation. His jaw positively dropped when his mommy actually _hit_ him. That was the most shocking thing he'd ever seen. He just sat there stupefied and it looked like Randy was stupefied too.

Stephanie shook out her hand as Randy left, "Bastard."

"Mommy, you mean," Sawyer told her.

Stephanie had completely forgotten he was there, "Sorry you had to see that, baby boy, but that's why you don't mess with Mommy."

"I know," he said very seriously. He wasn't ever, _ever_ going to mess with his mommy. She was scary!

"I wouldn't hurt you though, you're cute."

"I give kiss!" he said, running over to her and trying to climb in her lap so he could give her a kiss. She lifted him into her lap and he kissed her on the cheek and she returned the kiss enthusiastically, making a big smacking sound on his cheek as he laughed. "Why he yell?"

"Because he's upset, but when we're upset, we don't yell, right? We talk about it."

"Uh huh, we talk," Sawyer said. "say sowwy too."

"Yup, we say we're sorry, but I'm not sorry about that."

"Okay," he said, then climbed off her lap to go back to his toys.

"I don't know where these rumors are coming from though."

"Someone's out to get you."

Stephanie looked and was relieved, "Do you know how long I've wanted to talk to you?"

"I don't know, my phone says like 2 times," Chris said as he closed the door behind him. "I had to sneak here, you know, sneak here. I heard Randy muttering something about you, what happened?"

"Just slapped the taste out of his mouth."

"Hi, Daddy!" Sawyer said, crashing into his legs. Chris lifted Sawyer by his pants and set him on his shoulder.

"Hey, you, long time no see."

"Uh huh, long time."

"I know, it sucks."

"I need to talk to you about that. _That's_ why I haven't been able to talk to you."

"I vaguely remember you mentioning your father to me."

"He came to see me on Saturday when I was packing. You were asleep, but I was trying to tell you that he came to the house and he was trying to butter me up and he wants to run Raw together, can you believe that? He wants to run it with me and him."

"That's weird."

"Yes, like this absence is nothing. He said he was on retreat," she snorted. "Anyways, he thinks we're on the outs, but he wants to bring you back, it's up to me."

"So obviously, I go out there, you says something, I beat him down, and we're done with it, right?"

"No, my father loves Flynn. If I'm nice to him, if I get in and then break him down, I've got everything I need to completely obliterate him. I need him not to suspect anything, so we've got to keep this thing going for a little while. If he knows that we're lying now, he's going to know something's up and I'll never be able to grab power from him."

"So we have to pretend to hate each other still?"

"Yes, don't you get it, he thinks we hate each other. He's been spending all this time with me because he thinks that I'm torn up over you. If I can play the sad, little Princess who got her heart broken by a man _again_, my dad is going to want to swoop in and fix things, he's already trying it with taking me out all this time so I can't even talk to you."

"Okay, so I have to hate you."

"Yes, you can do that, right?"

"Stephanie, look who you're talking to?"

"Okay, so you can hate me. Now we need to come up with some stuff to convince my dad…oh my God, what if I move back to Connecticut!"

"No, absolutely not."

"Okay," she relented. "But because he's all into me and taking care of me, I don't think he's having anyone follow me. I can check around and see if he is, but if he's not, you can just come back home and he wouldn't be the wiser because he's thousands of miles away."

"It's moments like these that really make me wonder if I had a concussion or two when I started dating you."

"You probably did, that's why you kissed me the second time," she commented idly, "so come on, let's think, Jericho."

"Yes, Sawyer Jericho, let's think!"

The plan was merely hate. When Stephanie "came back" to her office later and found Chris there, they played the feuding couple so well. Everyone, but especially her father, thought their perfect marriage was crumbling. Chris and Stephanie's marriage wasn't ever perfect. They were happy and in love, but they fought and they hated sometimes, but they also loved each other. To the world, though, they hated each other and when Chris said he was going to go out there and pretty much lay it all out there, he wanted to kiss the life out of his wife.

"I'm going to humiliate you," she said as they met in an empty locker room later that evening. Sawyer was already asleep and Britt was watching him so Chris and Steph could have a moment alone. They had ducked into an empty room and Chris's lips had been on hers immediately until she muttered that.

"What?"

"Chris, if we're on the verge of breaking up, don't you think I'm _going_ to humiliate you? My father has probably heard all the rumors and he's not going to think I'm going to come out and let you have your job back without making you jump through hoops."

"You're going to make me jump through hoops?" he asked, only marginally paying attention now as he nipped at her neck, letting his tongue lave across her collarbone.

"Not literally, you idiot," Stephanie said, even as she gasped at his attention. "I just have to make it seem like I'm really mad at you."

"You are mad at me," he told her, then ran his hands over her thighs, "when did you buy leather pants because my God, if I didn't love you before this, I love you now. If these had been vinyl, you'd be on the floor."

"Chris, focus."

"I haven't gotten to sleep in the same bed with you for the last like four days, give me a break here, Steph."

"I will, but I want to out…" She sighed as his hands reached under her shirt. "Chris, come on, seriously. I want this to go well."

"Steph, we just have to act like we're mad at each other. I can do that, I've _done_ that. I wasn't acting back in the day, but I can go back to that place, really I can."

"Are you sure?"

"You're a bitch, you're a filthy," one button, "dirty," two buttons, "disgusting," three buttons, "brutal," an open shirt, "bottom-feeding," a kiss on the shoulder, "trash-bag," her shirt falling to the floor, "ho," a kiss to the corner of her mouth. "See, I definitely know how to insult you. I hate you and your stupid rules and I hate how you dress like a two-dollar whore."

"Okay, I get it, geez, this is not the way to sweet-talk the wife."

"You asked me to!"

"Well…yeah," she said as she started to pull his tie off. "I'm going to make you beg for your job."

"Kinky, will it involve whips?"

"Maybe later," she told him as she switched their positions and started to unbutton his shirt. "Now come on, I haven't got much time nor have I gotten much you in the last few days and I swear to God I'm going to go crazy if I don't get some of you right now."

"So the jumping through hoops part has already started?" he said as she shoved him against the door."

Stephanie's hair was a little bit flustered as she walked down the hallway a little later that evening. She looked down again to make sure her buttons were lined up correctly. It was a little hard dressing in the dark. She felt satiated though and that was all that mattered. Chris was about ten feet behind her and she could feel his eyes directly on her hips so she added a little swing to them and could almost feel the heat of his gaze on her skin. It made her want him again and she'd have to make sure he snuck into her room later tonight.

Chris went out there to speak to Vince first and the first thing Vince told him was he was wearing a nice suit. Chris feared for a moment that he had forgotten to zip up his pants or if his shirt wasn't buttoned right and someone knew he had just had his wife in a deserted locker room. He looked down, but nothing seemed amiss so he just commented on Vince's suit. He had talked with Stephanie (yes, during the act) about acting contrite. It was all going according to plan when Stephanie came out. He smirked at seeing her, thinking about what he had just experienced with her. She was still glowing from their encounter and those leather pants, it was like she was intentionally trying to make him hot for her in the middle of the ring.

He was starting to think she had wanted to have sex with him before this to lessen the blow of what was actually about to happen. Chris didn't take well to public humiliation. He just didn't. He and Stephanie argued like the old, married couple they were and then he pretended to act aghast that she and her father were together on this one. Stephanie didn't want to share the power though, she wanted to horde it. He was just lucky that she liked hording things with him and would let him in on this little pow-wow of power. Not right now though. Vince was letting her decide, just like he said he would.

Stephanie knew her father wanted something to happen. Her father thought she hated her husband and wanted to see him look as low as possible, a mere employee now and not the golden boy of the McMahon family. Maybe she could entice Shane with promises of power and have Chris ally with him to make the ruse that much more believable. That'd be something indeed. She didn't like seeing Chris like this. He had nothing to apologize for except loving her and always going along with whatever cockamamie plan she had.

When she told him to apologize and he did it through gritted teeth, her heart swooned for him. He tried to act like he hated it and succeeded. If she had been pissed at him and he at her, this was exactly how he would've acted and she had to commend him for this. That play he did and those improve shows he did while he was taking a break from wrestling were really paying off now. The next part would be hard though, making him apologize to the fans. She didn't expect them to start chanting for him to get on his knees and she almost didn't want to, but she made him.

When he actually got on his knees to apologize, she had never loved him more in the entirety of their six year relationship, not when they had first said they loved each other, not when they were engaged, not when they were married, not when Sawyer was born, not when Flynn was born. No, this moment right here, it topped them. The lengths he was willing to go to for her, for something she so desperately wanted were incredible. He would never do this normally, never degrade himself, but to so readily give up his pride for something she wanted, a plan she essentially concocted, she wanted to get down on her knees next to him and kiss him and tell him how much she loved him, but it wasn't going to work that way, not right now. But boy was he going to get rewarded later and for every night for the foreseeable future.

Randy coming out was not planned. She didn't know why he was out here and she knew the show was running long. He proceeded to insult her again, calling her names and she'd had enough of this. She didn't want to fire him! And she certainly wasn't going to apologize. She nearly attacked him, but her father made her leave. She didn't want to take orders from the old man, but she left before she did something like kick Randy where it really hurt. Besides, she probably had a husband with a bruised ego that was in severe need of an uplifting. She'd uplift him alright.

She was just backstage and saw Sawyer in Chris's arms. She was going to walk over and say something under the guise of teasing him when her attention was drawn back to what was going on in the ring. Randy was looking defiant, but so was her father and neither was backing down. Vince demanded an apology and then Randy did something that surprised her. He kicked her father in the head. She was shocked. That was not something she had planned. No, well, yes, she wanted Chris to eventually attack Vince, but Randy? Tonight? No, that wasn't the plan! That wasn't the damn plan!

She could feel eyes on her and she realized everyone expected her out there and she rushed out there to her father's side, begging him to talk to her, crying. She did hope her father was alright of course, he was her father, but she was more pissed at Randy for ruining everything. Now she might never know what her father was up to with the Adamle thing, where he really was, if he was trying to get her off television. On the other hand, she was in charge again. But her father was hurt, she should focus on that. She knew it was callous of her, but there was so much on her mind.

Her father had to come first though because that was a serious kick to the head. Randy looked rightly horrified for what he had done and Stephanie kept pleading for her father. She ended up in the ambulance with him and then at the hospital. Her mother and Shane had called, but she didn't have any information yet. There would have to be tests and then analyzing of those same tests.

"Hey, baby."

"Hey," Stephanie said as she saw her husband. "You're not supposed to be here."

"I know."

"Where's the monster?"

"Britt has him. I thought I'd come sit with you," he said, taking her hand and holding it, kissing the back of it. "How is he?"

Stephanie stared at her unconscious father, "I don't know. They won't know for a while. You didn't have to come."

"Oh come on, we're not really broken up and he's out so what do we care?" he asked.

She laughed, "You're right. I'm so sorry for what happened out there. I love you so much, I never should've come up with this stupid plan."

"Hey, it's okay, I didn't mind doing it for you. You know I'd do anything for you. Getting on my knees, apologizing, that's nothing in the grand scheme of things and if it gets you what you want, I'd do it a million times."

"_This _ isn't what I wanted," she told him.

"I know it's not, but we'll figure out what's next and hey, you're in charge again. I did briefly think you were cavorting with Randy and you gave my part to him and I was a little disappointed."

"No, you're always my right-hand man, Jericho."

"I better be, McMahon, I better be."


	219. Oh Geez No, January 26, 2009

A/N: Thanks for the reviews everyone, I really appreciate them. :) Let's hope that whatever they're cooking for Chris doesn't suck too much, as it seems it might...but did you guys notice that he was like the first one who came out at the end last night, heh. ;)

* * *

For a moment, Randy thought Chris knew something he didn't.

It was longer than a moment, actually, it was all night. He had to think and he had to think fast. He had just thought that he would be reprimanded for it, but now he was worried that his job was at stake. Stephanie and Chris looked like they had patched up whatever was going on with them. They had arrived together and they were talking with each other and playing with their kids and being so sickeningly cute that he wanted to puke on their shoes. If Chris said that it was his last night, it very well could be. Maybe Stephanie had said something, maybe she'd had lawyers draw something up.

It made him paranoid and upped his plans for the Royal Rumble. Sure, he had wanted Legacy to be there for him, but now it was a necessity. If he didn't get that title match, if he wasn't _guaranteed_ a spot in the main event at WrestleMania, he was sure he was going to kiss his job goodbye and he wasn't going to end up jobless, it just wasn't going to happen. He had history on his side, he was a descendent of wrestlers and this was what he was bred to do and he was not going to have some bitch rip it out from underneath him.

He didn't really think Stephanie was useless or worthless. He thought she was fine until she called him…whatever she called him last week. His blood had been boiling so much it was hard for him to hear what she was saying over the roar of anger flushing in his ears. It was bad though and he'd snapped and she'd reacted because she was Stephanie McMahon and for her everything needed some kind of action. She was not the one to sit idly by as something happened around her. She would stand up to it and she had stood up to him last week. If he lost the Rumble, she would stand up to him again, that was for sure, she'd stand right up and wave him goodbye and probably not regret another word of it.

In other words, he thought Stephanie was pissed.

Pissed she was too, but not just for the fact that Randy had been an insolent ass, but for other factors as well. She and Chris had had a plan and now it was all dashed to pieces. Her father hadn't gone into hiding this time. He was around, he was playing with his granddaughter and damn it, Stephanie was softening to the old man. If she could've helped it, she would, but seeing her father look so frail…maybe that's why he went away for such a long time. Maybe he had looked like this. Maybe he had stopped looking invincible for a while and didn't want anyone to see him like that.

At some point she would have to realize her father wasn't going to be here forever. Well, she had realized that when she was trying to push him out of the company and taking it over for herself, but he was still around. There was going to be a time when he wasn't going to be around anymore and maybe she knew these moments had to be treasured. Or maybe she just really wanted her plan to work and it had been all shot to hell.

Then Chris had lost the Rumble, which put her in dour spirits. She had wanted him to win and get his title back at WrestleMania. Having him as the World Champion coming out of WrestleMania would make her look like she really had the ultimate power. She could've lived with her father being taken down again if Chris got that chance. But no, once again he was denied and while he had been mad, she was absolutely pissed off. She was already about to go off and kick Randy in the head, but to have Chris eliminated and Randy win, it was adding insult to injury. Thankfully she was having qualifying matches for the Elimination Chamber the next day at Raw and she was pitting Chris against CM Punk, who Chris had beaten time and time again to the point where Chris could probably beat Punk in his sleep.

"Hey, baby, come here!"

Stephanie went into the other room where Chris was on the couch feeding Flynn her bottle.

"What's up?" she asked. She had just tucked Sawyer into his bed. He had been asleep by the time the show had ended, but the drive back to the hotel had woken him up so he needed to be tucked in again. Flynn had woken up as well after Chris hit a pretty nasty pothole and she didn't seem all that tired even though it was late. She was hungry too, the greedy thing, and had whimpered until her daddy had been feeding her. She was being a Daddy's girl at the moment, looking up at her daddy adoringly.

"Look at this," Chris said.

"Look at what?" Stephanie said, her glance going immediately to Flynn, wondering if she had done something else outstanding. She was shaping up to be a pretty remarkable little girl.

"The television."

"Why?" she asked, looking to the television, but it was a commercial for some kind of ketchup. "Do we need…ketchup?"

"No, they're going to show something about that movie, _The Wrestler_, and it mentioned that at these awards or something tonight Mickey Rourke actually challenged a WWE wrestler. Do you know anything about this?"

"No, I have no idea," Stephanie said, sitting down next to Chris, tucking her leg underneath her as she cuddled into his side. She tickled Flynn's bare foot a moment, but she was having none of that and physically kicked Stephanie away with her foot as she kept one hand on her bottle. "Wow, you can share Daddy, Flynnie."

"I don't think she wants to. It's about time I got this kind of recognition around here," Chris laughed. "It's always Sawyer loving you, Flynn loving Sawyer, where is the Daddy love?"

"Well, I love you if that's any consolation. You'll have to settle for that right now because I'm not getting pregnant any time soon, believe you me."

"I didn't expect you to," he told her. "But it's nice to have someone love me the most every once in a while like my little flutterby is doing right now." He cooed at Flynn a little bit and she smiled around her bottle at him before her eyes fluttered around the room. She didn't feel tired at all.

"Okay, it's on," Stephanie said, daring to lean her head on Chris's shoulder.

They watched some boring story about Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt flying an insane distance to get to the Screen Actor's Guild Awards and Stephanie rolled her eyes. She was constantly traveling, it was not a big deal. Then came the segment they were waiting for. Mickey Rourke was being interviewed by whoever the blonde woman on this show was, neither Chris nor Stephanie had bothered to catch her name. They wanted to know what this was all about. Stephanie was not against bringing in celebrities because it brought a little recognition and press to the company, but if he was already angling for an in by challenging one of her wrestlers…

Or her husband.

Stephanie's head slowly rose from her husband's shoulder as he mentioned Chris and telling him he better watch his ass and that he was going to be tossed around the ring like tossed salad, which was just absurd. Had her father commissioned this when she wasn't looking? Was this something he had done to try and take power away from her? And why was this _actor_ going after her husband? She looked to Chris and his eyebrows were knitted together and he looked confused.

"What was _that_ about?" Chris asked confusedly.

"I don't even know," Stephanie said. "He said he's going to be at WrestleMania. He said he wanted to fight _you_ at WrestleMania. Did you say anything about him somewhere?"

"No, I didn't say anything, why would I say anything?"

"I don't know, but he's calling you out…at an awards show," Stephanie said, thinking about the preposterousness of this situation.

"I have no idea what that's about."

"My dad probably did this," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "Just when I think that maybe he's changing or something, willing to work with me, he does something like this and then you're blindsided, I'm blindsided and what are we supposed to do? Are you supposed to respond to that?"

"Well, he made me look like an idiot so yes, I think I'd like to respond to that," he said. He wasn't sure to feel offended or what. Here was this guy calling him out when he hadn't done anything. There were a lot of people who could probably call Chris Jericho out, but he wasn't sure Mickey Rourke was one of them. "He said he'd been talking to Ric Flair, maybe Flair was badmouthing me to him or something."

"Could be," she said, rubbing her temples. "As if I didn't have enough to worry about with the Randy situation for Raw and then you losing tonight, now this, whatever this is…do you think…wait, do you think this could be Shane's doing?"

"I guess, I don't know."

Stephanie sighed, "It probably was. Maybe he's thinking that because I somehow 'allowed' Dad to get kicked in the head last week so now is his time to take over because I've obviously let the show go to hell."

"Call him and ask."

"Now?"

"Yeah now, why not? I doubt he's in bed right now so you might as well see what's up. I want to know what the hell is going on too. I mean, seriously, this guy was calling me out and if he's actually going to be there, I'm going to kick his ass. He can play a wrestler, fine, but being one, just a little different."

"I know, you don't think I know."

"I know you know," he said, kissing her and then looking down at Flynn who had finished her bottle. Chris pulled it away gently and then lifted her up to burp her. "Did you hear that, flutterby, some guy was trying to one-up Daddy. Like anyone could do that. You are you going to experience your first WrestleMania with Daddy kicking ass."

"Oh my God, I forgot, it's her first WrestleMania," Stephanie said as she stood up to grab her cell phone out of her purse. She came back to the couch and tried to grab onto Flynn's foot again. "You are going to love it, baby girl. It's going to shock the hell out of you."

"Do you think she should be in the audience?"

"I don't know, Sawyer was almost a year old when WrestleMania happened, but he was a little aware of what was going on. Flynn will be younger, but I think she'd enjoy it. She's so laidback I don't think she would really care either way. She'll want you to win. I should make the World Title match a Triple Threat. That would work for me."

"For me too, but you're not going to do that."

"Always ruining my fun," Stephanie said as she dialed her brother's home phone.

"What is it, Stephanie?"

"How'd you know it was me?" Stephanie asked.

"Caller ID, remember."

"Oh yeah, okay, so tell me this, big brother," she said derisively. "Are you the one who negotiated some kind of deal or whatever with Mickey Rourke of all people?"

"How did you find out about that? I was trying to keep it a secret."

"So it was you," Stephanie groaned, then looked to Chris, "It was my idiot of a brother who was the one talking with him." She went back to the phone. "Shane, did you see what he did tonight at the Screen Actor's Guild Awards?"

"What do you mean?"

"You don't know then?"

"No, I don't know."

"He called out Chris."

"Chris as in your Chris?"

"No, Chris the mailman, of course my Chris. We were just watching it on one of those Hollywood gossipy type shows and they were talking with Mickey Rourke and he started calling out Chris--"

"Said he'd kick my ass!" Chris interjected.

"Yeah, said he'd kick Chris across the ring and you know, Shane, this is something you probably should have told me, but is this your subtle way of telling me that you've watching me crash and burn and now you're going to take over again?"

"Stephanie," Shane sighed, "look, that's part of my job to get in celebrities and what not and I reached out to the director of the movie and he said that Mickey expressed some interest so I wanted to see if that was true and had a conversation with him and he seemed genuinely interested in doing something with the show. I didn't deliberately suggest he go after Chris or anything, I didn't really even want him saying anything right now. I just thought it might be cool, a nice cross promotional thing."

"He's already calling out people!"

"Chris can handle himself. I'm pretty sure he can take on a non-wrestler in a match or whatever."

"You shouldn't interfere in my show."

"Stephanie, okay, look, it's your show, but can we put this behind us now? Dad was hurt again and I think that if we present a united front we'll look better. We both want Randy out, right, but we can't really do that with him having the guaranteed match, but we can make his life a living hell, right?"

"So you're suggesting that we join up again?"

"I would like it, yes, but it's up to you. I know that you're overprotective of the show and I will try not to get involved with your end of the deal, but I just think it would be better for both of us and everyone in general if there were no weaknesses in the McMahon family."

"So what do you want to do then?"

"I want to be at Raw tomorrow," Shane said. "I think that Randy has to pay for what he did to Dad."

"Chris can take care of that."

"Like you guys faked being apart."

"How did you know about that? I didn't tell you."

"You told my wife, who loves me, who tells me these things. She told me what you guys were up to and while it was a solid, if not weird, plan, things have changed and we need to get Randy now…better yet, I need to get Randy now."

"Like I said, I'll just have Chris take care of--"

"Stephanie, this is my dad, okay," Shane said slowly and emphasizing each word. No matter what Vince did to him, he would always be Shane's father. He couldn't change that and while he had some fierce battles with Vince and had seen to it that other people had beaten up on the man, this time was different. It was just way different and it needed to be handled in a different manner as well.

"He's my dad too."

"Yeah, so I need to be the one to take care of this, this time," he told her, "I appreciate that Chris would do it, but there are just some things a person has to take care of themselves, do you get what I'm saying."

She did so she told him, "Yes, I understand. So fly down here so you can be here tomorrow, okay, then we can handle Randy. But I want you to stay incognito until I meet with Randy because I _will_ meet with Randy, believe me. He's not going to come out of this unscathed."

"Okay, I can handle that, I can hang out in a limo for a couple hours so nobody sees me."

"Good, then it's settled, I guess we're back on the same side again."

"We're McMahons, it was bound to happen, Steph. We're the biggest bunch of flip-floppers this world has ever seen."

"I guess you're right, I'll see you tomorrow, Shane."

"Bye, little sis," he told her affectionately as she hung up the phone.

"So you and Shane are cool now, that's what I was getting from that conversation," Chris said as he tried to coax Flynn to sleep. Her eyelids were getting heavier and she was starting to quiet down, her breathing becoming a little more even with every breath. Her head was rested against Chris's shoulder-blade and he was so comfortable.

"Yeah, we've decided that we don't hate each other for now and the common enemy is now Randy Orton. Plus he thinks getting a celebrity for WrestleMania is a great idea. I don't know what's wrong with him, but that is his reasoning."

"So you're going to give me time on tomorrow's show, right?"

"Oh, you better believe I am."

Stephanie woke up the next day with a headache. She could tell it wasn't going to be a good day from that alone. Still, she was determined to make sure the end of the night went her way. Stephanie McMahon-Jericho didn't take things not going her way too kindly. She wanted ultimate power over everything and not having it last week was the most bone-crushing of annoyances.

Hunter looked out at the ring and the pyro crew setting up for the show later. He was still stewing from last night. He had been so close to winning only to have that prize snatched from him once again. It felt like the days of him being the champion were so long ago. He had come in 2nd last night, 2nd and that didn't sit well with him at all. He wasn't used to coming in 2nd place; it felt unnatural and he should be getting that title shot. With Vickie at the helm of his show, though, the chances of him getting a title shot were slim.

"What're you thinking about?" Britt asked from his side. She had her feet propped up against the seat in front of her and she was transcribing something for Stephanie. He looked over at her and pushed her hair out of her face. She looked up at him gratefully and went back to her writing.

"I'm thinking that I should've won."

"You were outnumbered."

"They were both gone. I had eliminated both of them and they were both gone."

"Babe, still, they had you distracted. If you hadn't been distracted, you absolutely would've won and you know it."

"I'm never going to get a title match now."

"Yes, you will."

"How?"

"I don't know, but I believe you will," she told him, giving him a winning smile. He had to smile back at her. She was really pretty when she smiled and she took the edge off his loss last night. If he didn't have her to calm him down, he was afraid of what might happen.

"I wish I was back on Raw," he admitted.

"Why?"

"Because Stephanie would give me a title shot."

"Would you ask her for one?"

"Yes."

"So you'd just use her because she has the power?"

"Yes."

"Definitely seeing why she left you," Britt joked then winked at him.

"What? She's my friend, I can ask her for a favor or two, right? We also used to be married so there's that familiarity there. I could've been the father of her children, I think she can give me a title shot."

"Well, thank goodness none of that happened, but I just find it funny that even now, years and _years_ after your divorce, you're still willing to go up to her and ask her for a favor like she's supposed to do something nice for you. Chris never asks her for that kind of stuff."

"Chris is a tool," Hunter said, "he doesn't know how to get what he wants."

"Sure he does," Britt responded.

"He's too good, he should use his power for something."

"You're a jerk, he's fine with where he's at. He lost too so you can go feel bad together."

"He probably has more on his mind."

"Well go find him and leave me alone then," she said, kissing his cheek. "You're really starting to bug me with this pouting thing you're doing right now. So you lost, you find another way to get into the title match. Sure, this was the easiest way, but it's not the _only_ way. So go find that other way and get to it."

Hunter kissed her temple, "It's times like these that remind me why I was attracted to you in the first place. Have you thought more about what I said last night, before that whole debacle of a match?"

"What, you mean about going out to dinner tonight with Chris and Stephanie?"

"No, that's a given, about moving in with me? Are you finally ready to move in with me? We've been together a long time, babe."

"I know," she told him, glancing away.

"I love you."

She looked at him, "I love you too."

"I'm not asking you to marry me, don't worry," Hunter told her and she seemed to visibly relax at that and took a deep breath. "Do you really think I would propose to you right now, in an empty arena before Raw while you're working?"

"Yes, because I really do picture you proposing to me in the ring or near the ring or at an arena because you know, you're so into wrestling and it's pretty much who you are and everything I figured that it would be around the ring. Maybe the ring would look like a wrestling ring or something."

He laughed at that and rubbed the back of his neck as he chuckled to himself, "You've thought about me asking you to marry me?"

"Well, we've been together for years now, what with our anniversary passing just a couple months ago and everything," she said, "so I figured that marriage was bound to come up at some point. I know you were married before and we've talked about that and I know that Stephanie, your ex-wife only took a few years after your divorce to get remarried and it's taken you longer, but yeah, I've thought about you asking me."

"Well, I've thought about asking you."

"I figured you might have."

"I'm just not at the place where I would feel comfortable getting married."

"I know."

"It's not because of Stephanie."

"No, I know," she said and she did know. It was deeper than that. Hunter had told her before. He just wanted to make absolute sure that the next marriage he entered into was the one he was going to stay into. Admittedly, he didn't think going into his marriage with Stephanie that it would last. He looked at it almost like a kidnapping and holding her ransom. He never figured she would be even more devious than he had been. When she had approached him about staying with him, he had been downright shocked, but it felt right in a way.

He had fallen completely in love with Stephanie and there was a point where he believed it was it for him and that his wife and the love of his life had come to him in the most unusual way. Didn't turn out like he had planned though so he was wary now. He had to make sure, make absolutely sure that it was the right thing. He loved Britt, he knew this, but still, every doubt had to be washed away, every single one and there were still many things up in the air.

She didn't want kids right now. She was still fairly young, in her upper 20's now, but kids were not on her horizon. Hunter hadn't thought about kids in a long time, but after spending time with Sawyer and now Flynn, he wanted kids. When he wanted them, he wasn't completely sure, but he wasn't getting any younger. The age gap could present a problem in the future too. He didn't like listening to his mom when it came to Britt, but maybe somewhere in there, there was a kernel of the truth.

"Do you…like the idea of me asking at some point?" he asked tentatively, testing the future waters, not going out to where the under-toe would grab him, but close enough to where he could start to feel the water getting deeper and deeper under his feet.

"I could entertain the thought, yes," she told him coyly.

"Okay, so moving in with me?"

"I'll get back to you on that one, okay, soon, I'll get back to you."

"Okay," he said, taking what she said as face value. She had her own things to work out and if they were ever going to work, he had to accept that. "I'm going to hang out with Chris, I'll see you in a while."

"You didn't really have to go."

"No, it's cool," he told her, kissing her lightly. "I'll see you later."

She licked her lips a little and nodded. Hunter walked backstage. Heaven help him if he ran into Legacy. What the hell kind of name was that anyways? It sounded stupid and like a knock-off of Evolution. Leave it to Randy to cull the name from something he'd built. He would kick all their asses if he saw them. Stephanie would probably reward him with a title match at WrestleMania just for doing that.

He ended up finding a quiet corner where he could cool down. He'd been asking Britt to live with him for a while now and he only hoped she would give in soon. She had a ton of clothes at his place. She spent most of her weekends there, it was just a matter of giving up that tiny New York apartment of hers and putting it in his house. He thought his house was accessible enough. He liked things neat, but he had learned to give in a little bit when she was around. It was still neat, but it was also lived in. His niece and nephew and Chris and Stephanie's kids could come into his house and they didn't have to live in fear of every step.

"Twip!"

Hunter didn't know how long he'd zoned out for, but nobody must have cared about him because when he heard Sawyer's voice, he could also hear the usual cacophony of a busy show. Had the show started without him even noticing? Had he been thinking about Britt that deeply? He saw Sawyer running up to him and then slapping him on the knees as he grinned up at him. He looked and expected to see Chris and Stephanie, but it was just Chris this time around.

"Hey man, what the hell are you doing?"

"Has the show started?"

"Nah, not for another like 15," Chris answered. Flynn was in his arms and looking down where her brother was. She didn't really recognize the person with her beloved brother.

"Hey there, cutie," Hunter said as he stood up, taking Sawyer in his arms. Sawyer grinned at him and was happy to be eye level with his sister now. "How are you doing?"

"Well, besides getting into everything now that she can crawl, the usual," Chris said.

"Where's the wife?"

"She found out that Randy has brought two lawyers and a _therapist_ tonight so she's in her office having a temper tantrum. I don't think there are going to be any survivors, poor room. It'll never be the same again."

"So you don't sound pissed about losing last night," Hunter observed.

"Well, I've got--"

"Hi, I know you!" Sawyer said over Hunter's shoulder. Chris looked to the side and saw Katie Lea walking with her brother and Chris looked appreciatively at her. When he was younger, he was all about blondes, but ever since Stephanie, he had such a thing for brunettes. Katie looked like she had dyed her hair even darker and it made her eyes pop and she was looking amazing tonight. Hunter looked over his shoulder and laughed.

"Dude, put your tongue back in your mouth."

"Shut up," Chris said good-naturedly.

Katie stopped and waved at Sawyer. "Well hello there, you. You remember me?"

"I do," Sawyer nodded. "I like you."

"Oh well, I do love to get attention, so thank you, you little cutie," Katie said, grabbing his hand.

"Who dat?" Sawyer asked, looking at the guy with her. Hunter realized that Sawyer may have a little crush on this woman and well, he had good taste if that was the case.

"This is my brother, Paul. I'm his sister," Katie explained nicely.

"I have dat," Sawyer told her. "My baby."

"Yes, that's right, she's _your_ sister, you're very smart."

"Oh, okay," Sawyer said.

"Your little boy is adorable," Katie told Chris with a genuine smile. There were never many kids around here and she really liked children.

"Thanks," Chris said, "he takes after me."

"All the girls better watch out then I'm sure," she winked. "Well, goodbye Sawyer, until we meet again, okay?"

"Okay," he said, "bye-bye!"

"Bye," she waved and then smiled at Chris again before walking away. Chris shook his head and looked at Hunter, who was smirking.

"You'd so hit that, wouldn't you?"

"If I were a single man, I'd be _all_ over that," Chris said, shaking his head. "She is gorgeous. Besides Stephanie, I think she's the prettiest woman I've ever seen."

"Good on you for adding the Stephanie part to that sentence."

I may find other women attractive, but let's face it, Trips, we both know exactly why Stephanie is beautiful and some of the…ways in which she absolutely surpasses any woman we've ever met."

"Wait, wait, are you actually initiating a discussion on how Stephanie is in the bedroom? I thought this was forbidden territory? You never want me to think of her naked. You never even want me to acknowledge that I've seen her naked."

"Well, for the purposes of being perverts, it was kind of necessary."

"What's dat, Daddy?" Sawyer asked.

"Nothing _you_ need to worry about," Chris told his son.

"So finish your thought from earlier," Hunter said.

"What thought?"

"You've got something, something, something?"

"Oh yeah, I've got bigger fish to fry. I don't know if you know, but Mickey Rourke called me out last night," Chris explained.

"The guy from _The Wrestler_?"

"That's the one."

"Why?"

"I don't know. Shane got him to make an appearance, but he's targeting me and I just don't know why so I'm going to call his butt out," he said, remembering not to swear in front of his kids after Sawyer had asked what a pervert was.

"Oh, weird, that's very weird…so Steph doesn't care that you think Katie Lea is attractive?"

"No, have you_ seen_ my wife lately, she's smoking hot," Chris said, "probably literally too, after what's been going on."

Stephanie was absolutely steamed later as she watched Randy in the ring come up with excuse after excuse after excuse as to his behavior the past week. A _therapist_ for God's sake? He had brought a therapist? She was going to find herself a PI and have this so-called therapist checked out to the fullest of her ability. And IED that she had triggered? Was that even a real thing? It sounded so fake coming from Randy's lips. Everything sounded so fake coming from Randy's lips.

Then what was this about suing? _He_ was going to sue _her_? Oh no, no, no. This was not going to happen. Stephanie had extremely powerful lawyers who would rush Randy's lawyers to a pulp. They would stand no chance so she didn't give a damn what his lawyers or his therapist said. She didn't even give a damn what Randy said from his stupid scripted, little apology he had written. She had a little surprise for him, but it'd have to wait.

One of the worst things though was that this made Ted totally unappealing. He just wasn't cute being a lackey to someone as heinous as Randy. She should talk to him and tell him that he was better than this, that he could be the leader of his own faction if he wanted. He definitely could to, with a little direction and a little more experience. Wouldn't that be the coup…wait, _wouldn't_ that be the coup.

"You don't have a kid."

Randy turned around and saw Britt standing there, looking at him. "What did you say?"

"Oh no, did I trigger your IED?" Britt said, pretending to shake in her spot. "You're a huge liar, Randy Orton. Too bad for you the world knows it. Newborn? Mental illness? Really? Is that how low you've stooped?"

"How do you know I don't have a kid?" he asked.

"Show me one picture of said child," Britt told him. "I'll follow you to your locker room so you can get your wallet even. Or do you have laptop with you, surely you have some sort of digital evidence. Or you know what, I've got my phone right here, why don't you call up this kid's mom and have them put the baby on the line? I'm sure it can coo or something, I know Sawyer and Flynn could, so surely your kind could--"

"Fine," he growled, "so there is no kid."

"Thought so, you're a slime, Randy Orton," she told him. "I just like to rub that in a little bit after you've tried everything you can to break up my relationship. Just a little taste of your own medicine."

Hunter had just arrived on the scene and saw Britt talking to Randy and wondered what that was about. When he heard what was being said a wry smile covered his lips, but it was short-lived. Maybe…what if Britt actually really liked Randy or was attracted to him and that was the reason for her not moving in with him? She didn't have to seek out Randy, but she had…just to mess with him? Seemed like a lot of effort and while Randy's face at the moment was certainly a payoff, it didn't seem like nearly enough of one.

Stephanie was pacing her office. Surely she shouldn't…Ted could go right back to Randy and tell him. Yes, it was too risky, but the rewards could be far greater. It would shock the hell out of him and she liked shocking the hell out of people. The door opened and Chris came in with Flynn, but with no Sawyer. She expected her son to be right behind him, but he was nowhere to be found.

"Sawyer?"

"With Trips," Chris explained. "I just came back to drop off this one. You gave me time, remember, to go out there…"

"Oh yeah, is that soon?"

"Fairly, enough to where I wanted to drop off the baby…what's with the pacing?"

"I had an idea."

"You know, you've had many ideas over the years and those words frighten me now."

"What if I can get Ted on our side?"

"What do you mean…our side?"

"Our side, the side of good, you know, the side wherein Shane is going to attack Randy at the end of the show tonight, that side, you know, Chris, keep up."

"Excuse me, not only do I have to confront some idiot who thinks he can wrestle me, but I also have a qualifying match for the Elimination Chamber, a match _you_ want me to win desperately so sorry if I didn't keep up."

"Okay, sorry, whatever," Stephanie said, "but if I can snatch up Ted, unknowingly, then maybe I could have the inside track here."

"I don't know if that guy's trustworthy, he turned on Manu and Sim, remember?"

She nodded, "But I could give him incentive."

"Like…naked time with you?" he asked.

"No."

"You wish that at least."

"No, but future things, future title shots. He can't live in Randy's shadow forever, he's too good. He'll eventually outgrow it, like Dave and Randy did with Evolution. They both outgrew the group. If we can get Ted on the ground floor, there's no telling what we can do."

"You're crazy, you've officially gone nuts."

"Or is it such a good idea you can't even handle it."

"No, no, I can handle it, you're nuts, that's it."

"I'm not!"

"You are."

"Just think about it for a moment."

"I am and I don't know, he could tell Randy and that would spell a world of trouble. He told about Manu and Sim's plans with him, how do you know he won't do the same with you?"

"Chris, look at me," she said, "I'm not some wrestler, I'm the boss. Who doesn't want to side with the boss?"

"Lots of people?" he shrugged. "Look, don't do anything stupid, just let tonight play out and then put some actual time into thinking about this Ted thing before going full barrel with this, okay?"

She was being a bit petulant and stood there for a good minute glaring at him, arms folded under her breasts and one foot jutted out in the ultimate attitudinal pose. Then she rolled her eyes and nodded, "Fine, fine, okay, I'll give it time."

"This is all I ask, baby," he said, putting Flynn into her playpen and grabbed his wife by the waist. "You look hot tonight by the way." He dipped her down a little to kiss her and she had to wrap her arms around his neck to hold on. He pulled them back and pulled away for air. "Damn you taste good too."

"What is with you?"

"Nothing," he said, "I'll see you later, okay?"

"Yeah, okay."

Chris went out there and started talking about what happened last night. If Rourke wanted him to respond, he would, but he would be making himself very clear with this one. While it was easy playing a wrestler, Chris was an actual wrestler, someone who trained and worked out every day of his life. He had an extensive gym in his home and constantly used it. Rourke was way out of his league and if he knew what was good for him, he would stay the hell out of Chris Jericho's way.

Stephanie gave a similar interview later that evening, except she had a different target. She wasn't just going to dish out anything backstage like a coward. She was going to meet Randy face-to-face and tell him what she thought. Besides, she had a great surprise for Randy and she wanted it to happen in front of everyone.

"Hey, sweetie, can you do me a favor?" Stephanie asked just before Chris's match.

"I'm kind of busy, baby, I have a match."

"I know, but well, I still need a favor."

He sighed, "What is it?"

"With you know who coming later, he's going to be outnumbered, if you could just gather some guys, any guys to come out, just in case, you know, just in case…"

"The things I do for you, baby," he said, but nodded and she smiled.

It took Chris less than 4 minutes to beat CM Punk. Stephanie was so right about that beating him in his sleep thing.

Then came time for the big confrontation.

Stephanie came out first, looking quite determined. Chris thought she looked sexy and had to stop a moment to take a deep breath and not start drooling on the floor. A lot of the guys hadn't listened to him when he tried to tell them they needed to stay so he had recruited Hunter into helping him. People seemed to respond better to his brute force and piercing gaze. He kind of hated Hunter a little for that, but it helped Stephanie so he was fine with it.

Stephanie told Randy in no uncertain terms that he was not off the hook just because he threatened her with lawsuits or because he ready some fake apology. He came out with the rest of his little group and Stephanie's mind was turning trying to figure out how to get Ted on her side. Randy came in the ring and told her that firing him would be a nightmare. She stood there and listened to him and wondered if her brother was already backstage.

Shane was hanging back. There was a large group of guys backstage. Hunter and Chris had managed to round up most, if not all, of the roster. They didn't want Randy ruining things for them so they had been willing to come. Britt pushed her way through the crowd. She had been watching the kids, but it turned out Marissa had made the trip with Shane and had been in the limo with him, since an appearance at Raw by her only would be suspicious. She had wanted to see them so Britt left for a few minutes.

"Hunter!" she called as she spotted him near the front. She pushed past Charlie Haas and got to him. "What's going on? Why is everyone here?"

"They're all going to play a part," Hunter said, "bodyguards kind of."

"Oh," she said, not understanding, "I've been thinking." She looked around and saw she was surrounded by people and felt a little uncomfortable at the moment. "Um, well, let I said, I've been thinking."

"Yeah, you mentioned that."

"I want to move in with you," she told him, grinning as she said it. "It's about time."

"Are you serious?" he asked, searching her eyes for the real answer. They were glowing almost, like she was some kind of ethereal being.

"Yes, I'm serious."

"Oh, hell yeah," Hunter said, taking her petite form into his arms and kissing her. He got some teasing "aww's" from the wrestlers, but at the moment he didn't care. And neither did she.

Stephanie was about to slap Randy _and_ his lawyer for insulting what Chris did last week. Chris apologized because she had asked him to before the show not because he was some weakling. She could get a nice kick to his crotch from this distance. She was rapidly starting to hate Randy Orton and his stupid games. Then he threatened to shut her company down, shut WrestleMania down and she was fuming. Then something somewhat unexpected happened.

She thought the roster would come out when Shane did, but there was Chris, right at the ramp, leading everyone out. She couldn't believe he would lead them out like this. She couldn't believe he had gotten so many. She thought he could round up a few, but that was almost everyone. God, she loved that man in the littlest ways. He sometimes just surprised her with the small ways he showed his love, like standing there, being the first one to protest what Randy was doing. He wouldn't come down here, she knew, but he was here nonetheless.

Chris knew this was Shane's business to take care of. He smirked when his wife got right in Randy's face as he begged her to fire him so he could take her down. She wasn't backing down and he loved that about her. She stood there, face-to-face, where lesser men would've already crumbled. She wasn't afraid of Randy Orton, not in the slightest and she stood her ground. His face was getting red from the frustration of it all, but she kept her cool and he felt his right foot itching to take a step and then another step and another until he was in the ring, spearing Randy to the mat and pummeling him, but no, Shane's job, it was Shane's job.

Stephanie told Randy it wasn't what _they_ wanted and Randy thought she meant Chris. He expected Chris to come charging down to the ring and hitting him, but then Shane of all people came out and stalked to the ring. Randy wasn't worried. Shane was one guy and he had two other guys with him. But one thing Randy hadn't yet learned was that for a McMahon getting revenge, numbers were obsolete. Shane charged at him and he was like a bull seeing red and the red was all Randy. He kept coming and kept coming at him and Randy couldn't believe it. He tried to leave, but Shane kept getting him. Finally he was being helped up the ramp, but it was short-lived.

The ramp had enemies, so many enemies and they had done nothing to help him and he had just denounced them all. Shane was after him again. Chris just watched, letting Shane fight his battle. Stephanie watched too, knowing her brother was getting all his aggression out and some of it was probably for her. Shane felt himself pulled away as Randy disappeared and he asked where that bastard was, but he was gone…for now. Shane looked towards Stephanie, who smirked. She looked towards Chris, who licked his lips. Chris looked towards Shane, who was panting from anger.

The worst for Randy Orton was surely yet to come.


	220. Glad It Wasn't Steph, February 2, 2009

A/N: Hey, thanks everyone for the reviews. I really appreciate them all and the other messages and PM's, thanks. :)

Anyways, I'm going to Raw next week, so I don't think I'm going to be updating next Monday with this one. I may, depending on what time I get home, but I'll probably be tired from all of that so I probably won't. If I don't, it'll be up next Tuesday night/Wednesday morning.

So enjoy and leave a review! :)

* * *

"Hey, Trishy?"

"Yeah?" Trish said, looking up from the book she was reading. "Did you need something?"

"No, I was just reading this interview you did and it seems like you're going to wrestle at WrestleMania or something, mentioning that one match with Beth. I was just wondering, I mean, are you going to start wrestling again?"

"Oh, that?" Trish said, putting her book down and turning her body so she was looking at her husband. "Well, I don't know, the idea crossed my mind, you know. I can't help it, sometimes I miss it. Look at you, you've only been off for a few months and you're already missing it, right?"

"I haven't retired though, I'm just waiting for the right time to step in," Christian pointed out. "You, very blatantly, retired."

"I know I retired," Trish said. "I had the entire send-off, I know what went on with that. I know I'm retired, but remember that one saying where it goes like, the first retirement in wrestling never sticks? Maybe it's not sticking."

"What about wanting a baby?"

"I still want a baby," Trish told him, "I do, I don't know, it's hard to take the wrestling out of you, I guess, but I'm still on board with the baby thing, it's just..." Trish sighed and looked down at her fingers, playing with them a little, "we haven't gotten pregnant yet…"

"We've only been trying for--"

"Almost six months," Trish said. "I know that sometimes it takes longer, but every time you see that negative it gets a little more frustrating. I'm not used to this whole waiting game. That's not how things work, you know. I've always been so used to knowing what I want and just grabbing it. I want the Women's Title, I fight for it and I win it, but it's not like I can say, hey eggs, stay in there until you get conceived so I can have a baby! It doesn't work that way and it's so frustrating."

"I know," he said, standing up and sitting down next to her. She looked away and he pulled her into his lap, tugging her shirt down as it rode up. He leaned his chin on her shoulder and just stared at her. "I know it's frustrating. I'm so ready to have kids with you, it's unbelievable. Every time we check, I'm hoping for a positive and it bums me out when it's not there. I get that, I don't know, I just would hope you'd talk to me if you wanted to get back into wrestling because we'd definitely have to put this baby thing on hold."

"I know, but it's just not happening right now and I start to worry that it's not going to happen. I mean, Chris practically touches Stephanie and she ends up pregnant. We're actually trying and nothing, nada, zip, we aren't getting anywhere, we're not any closer to a baby than we were months ago."

"You know what'll happen, right?"

"What?" she asked.

"The minute, the second that we stop actively trying to have a baby is when you're goin to get pregnant. That's what always happens in the movies."

"This isn't a movie," she pointed out.

"Still, that's how life works, it's always pulling stupid crap like that. When you want something it doesn't happen and when you don't want something to happen, that's when it happens."

"Maybe we should get checked out," Trish said to him, running her fingers across the back of his neck and then playing with his hairline, letting her fingers run over the short hairs.

"Checked out how?" he asked curiously.

"I mean, like, making sure all our equipment is working down there," Trish said, gesturing vaguely to their torsos. "You know how people get tested, like fertility tests."

"You want to go to a fertility expert?"

"Yeah."

"Don't you think that's jumping the gun a little bit?" he asked. "I mean, we've only been trying for a few months and maybe it's just not time yet to go to that extreme."

"My doctor said it doesn't hurt to get things checked out to make sure," Trish told him. "I don't think it would be too much trouble."

"Wouldn't you have to go through some sort of surgery to test out what's going on in there, you know? I thought I saw that on some show on Discovery Channel or something where they actually have to go inside of you and check."

"Well, maybe that's what we need," she said.

"I don't know, it just doesn't seem like something that should be so urgent yet. We've only been trying for a very short time in the long run of things." He just didn't want Trish to be jumping the gun and making them go through all of this when there was nothing wrong with them. He wanted a baby just as much as she did, but he probably wasn't willing to go to the lengths that she obviously was.

"Well, for you it would be easy. You just go and do your business in a cup and then they can see the results," Trish responded, poking him in the shoulder. "I think that's what we'll do. We can have you checked out, just to make sure. Maybe that's the problem here, there aren't enough great swimmers to help make the baby."

"Well that's just emasculated me, thanks," Christian groaned. "I love having my manhood questioned."

"I'm not questioning your manhood. I just want to make sure everything is okay in there and if that means that we have to look at what's going on with you and the boys, then that's what we'll do. I'll even set up an appointment for you."

"Trish, I don't know…"

"Come on, Chrissy, please? You don't have to if you absolutely don't want to, but it would give us a better picture of what's going on. Maybe we just aren't lucky right now or maybe there is something wrong and if there is, don't you want to address it as soon as possible?"

"Well, yeah, I do, but…"

"But what?"

"Nothing," he told her, "go ahead and set up the appointment."

"Great!" she exclaimed, giving him an enthusiastic peck on the lips before she leapt off his lap. Christian sighed and watched her leave the room and presumably go up to the office they had set up and call on that phone so she could leave a message with the machine at the doctor's office so they'd hear it first thing the next morning.

It wasn't that Christian didn't want to get checked out, he did. He wanted to know if there was something wrong with him. If there was, maybe they could think of other things to do, they'd at least know how to proceed. Still, what guy wanted to find out that kind of news? He'd always wanted kids with Trish. Even when they were apart, whenever he'd picture kids, they were always with Trish. He never really dreamed of kids with Tiffany, but with Trish, he could picture the little blond children with chocolate brown eyes. The feeling grew stronger whenever he was with Sawyer or Flynn.

But if he couldn't have children, their options changed dramatically. There was always a sperm donor if he was completely impotent, but he didn't like the idea of getting one of those. He feared he wouldn't feel attached to a child that wasn't his, but _was_ his wife's. The other option was adoption. Christian had nothing against adoption and if it came to that, they would welcome that child into their lives without question. Still, there was just something about seeing someone you love growing your child in you. He could see it in Chris's face when Stephanie was pregnant with Flynn. He had this look of amazement on his face whenever he looked at her when he thought she wasn't looking.

It was peaceful and calm and just…proud. He wanted that feeling. He wanted to feel a little person inside of Trish, moving around and acting crazy. He wanted the cravings and the late nights and all that came with knowing his wife was having his baby. He wanted that with Trish and yes, he was scared that it wouldn't come to fruition. There was a sense of safety in not knowing, though. If he could live in ignorance, it just felt safer than it would if he were living with the knowledge. Not that he thought anything was wrong right now, but there could be something wrong, that was the danger. There could be something wrong and he'd have to settle for other options while watching his best friends have multiple kids.

He needed to talk to someone, but nobody was coming to mind. Sure, he could call Edge, but Edge would have _no_ good advice in this situation. Edge would tell him that was a bummer or made some lewd joke about him and Christian would feel like punching him. Besides, Edge kept saying what a coup it was that Matt turned on Jeff. It seemed like his brother was determined to have other people bring down Jeff before he even had a crack at him. Made it easier for his brother, he guessed. Still, Edge didn't concern himself with these kinds of things. He didn't really even think Edge wanted kids. He'd never asked his brother, but he figured that was the case with Edge's lifestyle.

He could call any number of his friends, but this was a really personal matter. He was hesitant to call Chris because well, Chris had kids, Chris had kids he didn't plan for, Chris had kids he didn't plan for and hadn't even wanted at the times they were conceived. Chris would know nothing about this situation. He wouldn't know that waiting and wanting for a baby was hard work and impatience set in quite easily. If Chris and Stephanie actually planned for a kid, it would probably take them one month and Stephanie would be declaring she was pregnant again.

Still, Chris was his best friend and wasn't this a best friend matter? He should be able to talk to his best friend about subjects like this. Chris would be nice about it; he wouldn't act like the buffoon he knew Edge would. "Chrissy, I'm going to go pick-up the pizza I just ordered, do you want me to get some breadsticks too?"

"Yeah, sure, I'm hungry enough for them," Christian called out to her. "What kind of pizza did you get?"

"Mushrooms and olives," she answered, sticking her head in the door. "Is that cool?"

"Yeah, I'm starving," Christian answered, "do you want me to pick it up?"

"No, I'm going to stop at the store on the way back. I think we're out of dish soap so I needed to pick some up and I think we're running low on cereal so I wanted to pick that up as well. Did you need anything at the store?"

"No, nothing that I can think of."

"Okay, I love you, I'll see you in a bit…oh, and I called and left a message to set up an appointment for you. I'll let you know tomorrow when it is."

"Cool," he said flatly, but she was already whisking herself out the door and didn't catch his tone. Christian leaned his head back against the couch and thought more about what was going on. It wasn't that he didn't sign on for the hard parts of this marriage, but this was just a scary prospect. Okay, he just had to talk to someone about this. He picked up the phone on the end table next to him and dialed Chris's number. He was the only one he'd feel comfortable talking about this with.

Chris smiled as Stephanie's lips pressed against his neck. The kids were with Marissa right now, since Declan and Kenny were here and Stephanie was lavishing him with attention. Her left leg was thrown over his and her hand was deftly unbuttoning the middle buttons of his shirt so her hand could sneak inside and run across this smooth chest. She had started kissing his jaw and was now working his way down to his neck and after that, who knew. He didn't even know how far his wife wanted to go, but when her soft, moist lips were on his skin, there was no way in hell he'd turn her away.

"You look so hot tonight," she whispered in his ear, tugging on his earlobe for a moment before going back to his neck. "Have I told you that?"

"No, I appreciate that, though," he told her teasingly. He squirmed a little when her hand reached his stomach. Her nails tickled him slightly and she giggled against his skin, her breath making the hairs on his neck prickle like they were filled with electricity. The air was filled with the same electricity and he loved it when she got all hot and bothered at work. There was just this sense of risk to the entire thing that he loved. He never thought he'd be one of those guys that loved to fool around at work, but Stephanie made it so fun and hard to resist. Hell, _she_ was hard to resist anywhere. "You look hot too."

"I am hot, you just have no idea how hot I am," she said huskily and he shivered a little.

"Do you have any idea what you do to me?" he whispered.

"Of course I do, we've been together for nearly seven years," Stephanie told him and he could feel her smile against his neck. He loved when she'd kiss him and smile. It was like he knew how good things were between them when she was smiling. His phone rang and he groaned. "Don't answer it."

"What if it's Rissa?"

"Okay, at least check then," Stephanie said, but then she proceeded to pull the cell phone out of his inside jacket pocket and look at it. "It's Christian, yeah or nay?"

"God, I want to say nay…"

Stephanie took that as a yeah and answered the phone, "This is Chris Jericho's personal secretary, he's otherwise occupied at the moment, but if you'd like to tell me your problem I'll make sure he responds to you in a timely manner."

"Hey, Steph," Christian said. "Is Chris around?"

"Yeah, he's around, what did you need?"

"To talk to him," Christian said.

"You can't talk to me?"

"This is kind of guy stuff," Christian told Stephanie. Stephanie was one of the last people she would talk to. She was definitely in the top three. He could tell her and then she would tell Trish and he'd be embarrassed. Of course, he could just go to his wife and talk about this, but he was too scared at the moment.

"Oh, well excuse me," Stephanie said, then handed the phone to Chris. "It's _guy_ stuff and I don't qualify."

"Thank God for that," Chris said as he took the phone from his wife. Stephanie resumed what she was doing, kissing Chris lightly on his neck as the man in question put the phone up to his ear. "What's up, man, I'm kind of busy."

"You are, but the show hasn't started yet."

"Well, the wife put me into a very big match tonight--"

"Because you've earned a big match," Stephanie said, shifting over so she was straddling his left leg now. It gave her better access and she flipped her hair back and went back to Chris's neck. "I want you to show John Cena _and_ Randy Orton that it should be _you_ in the main even at WrestleMania. Maybe especially Randy Orton."

"Yes, yes, I get it, angry, hatred, blah blah blah."

"I do hate him for what he's done, ruining everything like he has."

"So this is a bad time then."

Stephanie pulled away and winked and nodded her head, but Chris was going to push forward. Stephanie took Chris's free hand and wrapped it around her waist and he took the initiative to pull her even closer. His tie was loosened and Stephanie was now working towards his collarbone. "It's not a bad time, what is it though?"

"Trish wants me to go get tested."

"For what, an STD? Did you give her something?" Chris laughed.

"Ha ha," Christian deadpanned, "not _that_ kind of test, like, a test where you go in a cup and well, to test sperm count and stuff like that."

"So a fertility test?" Chris asked. This piqued Stephanie's interest and she pulled away to look at Chris. Chris grabbed the back of her head and pushed her back down towards his chest. She tried to push away, but gave in when she did realize this was a private conversation.

"Yeah, one of those…to check, well, you know what they check," Christian said, obviously flustered by the discussion.

"Yeah, I know what they check," Chris said, trying to hold in his laugh. "So what's the problem, it probably doesn't hurt to get checked out. At least it would allay some of those fears, you know."

"I guess," Christian said, but he didn't sound very convincing. "It's just like, what if there is something wrong? What if I can't have kids?"

"There are other things you could do if you find out that you can't have kids," Chris pointed out. "At least you'll know instead of trying and trying and nothing coming from it."

"That's what Trish said."

"Well she's a smart gal," Chris joked. "What? Are you scared to get the tests done?"

"Yes! Of course I'm scared. What if it tells me I can't have kids with Trish? What if…what if she won't want me because of that?"

"I don't think Trish is that shallow," Chris said. "She loves you, man. If this is a problem, she's not going to leave you. That's not the kind of person Trish is. She married you, dude, and she really didn't have to because let's face it, you guys were kind of on the ropes for years. But she wanted you and chose you. If you can't have kids, I don't think that's going to be the deal-breaker."

"I'm just paranoid then?"

"More than likely," Chris said. "Let me ask Steph what she thinks."

"No, no, I don't want her to know about this."

"Dude, she's sitting right here."

"You didn't send her out of the room?"

"Um, no, I don't really make my wife leave when I'm talking with someone. It kind of raises her suspicions and I don't want her thinking I'm having an affair."

"I don't think you're having an affair with _Christian_," Stephanie laughed. "But maybe that's what I should be worrying about."

"No, I'm not cheating on you with Christian," Chris said, smacking her lightly on the butt. She nipped at his skin in retaliation and he bit back the moan that was on his lips. The sooner he got off the phone with Christian, the better. "Just get the test done."

"Easy for you to say, what if you had to go take this test?"

"I'd take it, no problem," Chris told him.

"Well, yeah, you can say that now because you have kids, so you know you're not infertile. You wouldn't need the test."

"Look, even if Stephanie and I had no kids, it's not a big deal to get a fertility test. I think you're blowing this way out of proportion, man. You just go to the place, you do your business, you give your business to them and they get the tests back to you. If it's bad news, it doesn't mean you guys can't have kids some way. Maybe they're just not great, but they're passable and you and Trish can do that whole in-vitro process. You could have twins or something."

"I didn't think of that."

"Because you're too busy being scared."

"Tell him there's nothing to be afraid of," Stephanie whispered to Chris.

"Steph says there's nothing to be scared of. Knowledge is power, man, knowledge is power."

"Can you please tell your wife not to tell my wife?"

"Wife, do not tell the wife of Christian about this conversation."

"Noted," Stephanie said.

"Okay, she won't, her lips are sealed."

Stephanie mumbled an agreement to that against Chris, then muttered, "Hang up now."

"Hey, I'm going to have to go, but you just stay cool, okay?"

"Thanks, I think."

"Yeah, later," Chris said, hanging up the phone and bringing his wife's face up to his eye level and leaned in to kiss her.

Stephanie responded eagerly. Tonight was going to be good. Shane was going to announce he was going to kick Randy's ass at No Way Out and Chris was going to beat Cena tonight, plus, she had some alone time with her husband, which came at a premium nowadays. With Flynn crawling now, Stephanie and Chris had to keep an eye on her all the time. She was adventurous and if you turned your eyes for even a moment, the little girl could be out of sight. She returned Chris's kisses with vigor and wanted more at the moment, so much more.

"Mommy!" a pounding at the door and a little shout brought her out of her reverie.

"They're back already?" Chris asked. "I was just getting ready for you."

Stephanie sighed, "We couldn't ask Marissa to just take them all night. That wouldn't have been nice to dump her with 4 kids."

"I know, but still," Chris sighed as Stephanie started to get off of him.

"Down, boy, we can start up where we left off later," she said, kissing his cheek as she started to button up his dress shirt.

"Mommy! I want in!" Sawyer yelled, wondering why his parents weren't letting him in. He banged his small fists on the door as Marissa tried to round up her boys while trying to hold Flynn in her arms. The little girl was shifting around in her arms, obviously wanting to go down so she could crawl around.

"And Christian wants _this_ of all things," Chris lamented. Stephanie just smiled and tightened his tie as she fully stood up.

"It comes with the territory," she shrugged. She went to the door and opened it, kneeling so Sawyer could run right into her arms, which he did. He gave a contented sigh as his arms wrapped around her neck. It was always fun being around his Aunt Marissa and his cousins, but there was just nothing like getting a hug from his mommy. She just gave the best, most wonderful hugs in the world.

"Hi, Mommy, I miss you," Sawyer told her.

"I missed you too," she told him, standing up and holding him in her arms. "Did you have fun with Auntie Rissa and D and Kenny?"

"Yup," Sawyer told her, then leaned against her. Chris stood up as the frazzled Marissa stood at the door.

"I'm never having any more kids, I can't handle it anymore," Marissa said. She handed Flynn over to Chris, who took her happily into his arms. She eyed the ground and started whining a little bit. Chris put her down and she happily started crawling over to her playpen. Chris lifted her up and put her inside and she sat down, grabbing one of her toys and putting it in her mouth to chew on.

"Thanks for watching them for a while."

"It wasn't too big a deal," Marissa said, "it's just so many kids. Sorry to bring them back so soon, but D and Kenny want to watch Shane in the ring. I thought we could go sit up near the gorilla, do you think that'd be okay?"

"Yeah, go right ahead," Stephanie said. "I'll probably join you guys in a bit, but yeah, enjoy the show."

"I think we will."

"Speaking of Shane," Chris said, "I've got to talk to him."

"You do?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, I do," Chris said, "do you want me to take him?"

"No, I can handle them both for now. What do you have to talk to Shane about?"

"Just what he's going to say to Randy. Is that a crime?" Chris asked.

"No, I just wanted to know," Stephanie said.

"You sure you can handle both the kids? Britt has the night off tonight so it's really just us taking care of them. I can handle one of them."

Stephanie looked to her kids. Sawyer was clinging to her and watching her and Chris talk. Flynn was sitting in her playpen, chewing on a toy and pounding her chubby hand on a picture book, probably silently demanding that it open for her and read itself to her. They weren't really doing anything and she could handle them. Shane was here tonight so he could take over some of the duties of running the show. She was actually being cooperative with her brother, even though she made it quite clear this was still her show to run.

"Yeah, I can handle them."

"Okay, cool."

Chris kissed her goodbye and went off in search of his brother-in-law. He found him pacing in a deserted hallway, muttering to himself. He looked pretty pissed off. Randy's lawyers had come up to Shane and told him that Randy wanted a match with him at No Way Out, a No Holds Barred match to be exact. Shane had jumped on the chance and he was going to make sure Randy wasn't going to make it to WrestleMania. Hell, he was going to make sure Randy didn't make it to freaking SummerSlam, or even next year's WrestleMania.

"Hey, Shane!" Chris called out, causing Shane to look up.

"What's up?" Shane asked, stopping in his tracks as Chris came over.

"You look pretty intense. Thinking about what you're going to say out there?"

"Yeah, pretty much," Shane said. "I just want to make sure he knows that he's going to get what's coming to him. I'm going to take him out of action if it's the last thing I do. I may not legally be able to strip him of his shot in the main event, but I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure he doesn't get there. Then Stephanie can put you in the title match or something."

Chris shook his head as he chuckled. He rubbed his goatee a little, "I do like the sound of that, just not so…hey, my wife put me into this match."

"Well, that's probably what's going to happen."

"I guess I could live with it as long as nobody called me out on it, then I'd have to kick their asses."

"You should just win in the Elimination Chamber. Let's face it, you don't really have stiff competition in that match, do you?"

"I can beat all of those guys, yeah."

"Yeah, so just win the title and you're in the clear," Shane said. "So what's up?"

"How did you know something was up?"

"Well, I'm not exactly in the most accessible of places here and usually you're with your wife or whatever."

"Well, I've heard rumblings."

"Rumblings? What's that supposed to mean?" Shane asked.

"I basically overheard Randy talking to Ted and Cody. They're going to ambush you while you're in the ring tonight. I wanted to warn you ahead of time so you can make sure that you're prepared for whatever they're going to dish out."

"I was preparing for Randy to attack me, nice to know that Ted and Cody are going to be out there as well."

Chris thought about Ted for a moment. Stephanie was still thinking of her crazy plan of trying to get Ted over on her side of the fence. He knew it went beyond the silly crush she had on him. She saw him as the weak link so to speak. It wasn't that he was the weakest member of Legacy, it was the fact that he had the most to gain from Randy's demise. Stephanie saw a charisma in him that she thought Cody lacked. If Randy were out of the picture, Ted would surely be able to rise the ranks and become even better than Randy could've dreamed. At least that was her point of view on the situation.

Chris didn't think this was the case though. Part of it was Stephanie seeing Ted through rose-colored glasses. She thought she could just bat her eyelashes and he would do her bidding, but Ted didn't seem to work that way. He was an enigma to Chris. It definitely bothered him that Ted was just so willing to do what Randy said. He hadn't tried to stop Randy from kicking Vince. It was like he didn't have any scruples either and that was the kind of person you couldn't trust. Ted looked like the kind of person who would leech off the best. At least that's what Chris saw.

Trying to bring Ted into the fold seemed like it would have disastrous results and he was not going to risk Stephanie like that. Luckily she didn't see a way to infiltrate Legacy just yet. Maybe Cody _was_ the one they should be targeting instead.

"Yeah, so just be aware that they're going to be lurking around."

"I will," Shane said, "thanks for the heads up, bro. It's nice to be on the same side again."

"Well, you know Stephanie. Her allegiances flip-flop to whatever is most convenient for her in the given moment."

"That's my sister for you," Shane said, 'it's a wonder she's stuck with you."

"I just change with her," Chris explained and it was true. Whatever Stephanie was, Chris was too. Sure, sometimes they were on opposite sides of the fence. The fans loved her right now, taking a stand like she was. They hated him, taking a different kind of stand as he was. Still though, they were the same, devious and calculating and willing to step over people to get what they wanted. If she changed, he did too and vice versa. "Just take care of yourself."

"I plan to."

Shane went out before the crowds started arriving and hid a kendo stick in the folds of the ring. He knew that he wasn't going to be able to take care of Legacy with his fists. It hadn't worked last week and it certainly wouldn't work this week since the Raw roster was not going to be out there with him. This was his best defense and gave Randy a taste of what was to come in their match.

He'd been surprised that Randy would want such a match, but thinking about it over the last week, it made sense. Randy was hoping to set up a situation where Shane would be on all fours, his head ready and waiting to get kicked. Randy wanted to put him out of commission too, just like his father. He didn't know what Randy was trying to accomplish by taking out the McMahon family, but he better start changing his mind. Shane could certainly take care of himself and so could Stephanie. And if it did get to be too much for Stephanie, she had a husband waiting in the wings who loved to kick ass and wouldn't even bat an eyelash before going full out on Randy.

Shane said his piece and then heard whatever Randy wanted to spout. He didn't care much for what Randy wanted or what Randy said. Randy cut his speaking and laid down his microphone. He teased Shane, making the older man weary of the attack he knew was coming. The waiting was the worst part. He didn't know from what angles Randy's lackeys would come so he had to remain on high alert. While he was facing Randy, they could come from behind. They could also come from the sides if they wanted, or they could all charge at him. He didn't know.

When the attack did happen, Shane scrambled for the kendo stick and grasped it in his slightly sweaty palms. He took a swing at Randy and missed, but Cody and Ted were there and he got them both, Ted more so than Cody. The three got out of the ring hastily, wanting to escape the attack. Shane wielded the kendo stick, swinging it around and showing his authority. He hadn't let Randy get the best of him this time and he wasn't going to get the best of him next time either.

"How did he have that there?" Stephanie asked.

"I told him the attack was coming."

"You _knew_?" Stephanie asked incredulously, "But how?"

"I have my ways," Chris said, "I'd make a good spy."

"You were spying?"

"Yeah, I was. You seem to think that Ted could be a mole for us, but I'm not so sure," Chris told her. "I'm just trying to scope the guy out, you know?"

"And? What do you think?"

"I think he's firmly on the Kissing Randy Orton's Butt Train, that's what I think," Chris said without mincing his words.

"You really think so?"

"Stephanie, trying to get him on your side is just going to spell trouble and I'm not going to have that happen. It'll make Randy madder and we don't want that going into such an important stretch. I, for one, don't want a cancelled WrestleMania."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. He does seem like he is kissing Randy's ass. You'd think he would have more sense, being as cute as he is."

"The two aren't synonymous, except with me."

"You're so full of yourself."

"Yes, thank you, I am."

You could say he was full of himself when he was talking about the Hall of Famers who just couldn't let go of the past. It was sad, really, these people trying to claim their past glory. He was glad Rourke wasn't going to wrestle him at WrestleMania. It would've been a foolhardy choice on Rourke's behalf. He had no idea what kind of punishment Chris could rain down on him. He didn't want to downgrade them too much, but he was one of the best in the entire business. He wasn't some rookie trying to make his way up or some has been falling all the way down. He was Chris Jericho and he was at the top of his game. Rourke would get no takes, no do-overs if he dared to step into the ring with Chris. Chris would not hold back so it was smart of Rourke to make this decision.

He had no respect for Flair either. He had been part of Flair's going away. He had been in the ring, given the man a hug, clapped for him, but now he was just pathetic. He couldn't walk away. The man was in his late 50's and he just couldn't step away from the ring. It was completely sad and even if the fans still loved him, they needed to see him for what he was…washed up.

Cena had something to say to this and Chris wondered when Cena had transformed into The Rock. He used the same inflections and intonations, but at least when he was done arguing with Rocky he felt like he was actually talking to someone worthy of him. Cena was hardly worthy of him and if Shane and Stephanie's plan worked, maybe he would be the one holding gold at the end of WrestleMania. Wouldn't that be quite the McMahon-Jericho coup if he were to hold the title at the biggest show of the year? Stephanie would be so proud.

Chris walked backstage and saw Stephanie there with the kids. "Can you take them?"

"Oh, uh, yeah," Chris said. It was so funny sometimes, this quick transition between wrestler and father. He didn't even have time to think about it at times as Stephanie thrust Flynn into her arms. She kissed his cheek.

"I've got to talk to Shane, he's going to leave soon. D and Kenny are exhausted so he's going to just go with them back to the hotel."

"Oh, okay, well, I've got these two," Chris said, as she walked off. He looked down at Sawyer, who was looking back up at him, blue eyes to blue eyes. "You tired?"

"No, Daddy, I no tired," Sawyer said, shaking his head.

"You tired?" he said, looking at Flynn. She just looked at him, the little night owl that she was. They could be put down soon. Stephanie wasn't expecting to do anything so she could sit with them while they slept and he had his match. "You want to watch this match?"

"Okay," Sawyer said, taking his daddy's free hand and going over to one of the production tables. Sawyer climbed on a chair and Chris sat next to him. "I see you, Daddy."

"Did you see me out there?"

"I like you," Sawyer said. It was fun seeing his daddy in his element. "I have toy."

"Oh, you mean Cena's toy?"

"Yeah, I have dat too."

"I know you do, it's awesome and I want to steal it."

"You can't!" Sawyer protested. That was his toy and his toy only, okay, maybe it was a little bit of Flynn's toy too, she liked to slap her hands on it. He felt compelled to give his sister a kiss in that moment so he stood on the chair and gave her a kiss. Flynn giggled and tried to grab for her brother. He was so silly sometimes.

"What did you do with Mommy?"

"Eat," Sawyer said. "I full."

"Good, you're a growing boy. Did Flynn eat?"

"Uh huh, from batta," Sawyer said, still not quite getting how to say bottle. "She ate."

"How much?"

"Lots, Daddy," Sawyer said very seriously, like his job was to tell his daddy what his sister and he had done while he wasn't around. "I play too."

"You played with your food?"

"No," Sawyer laughed. "With toys."

"Oh, okay, what did you do with the toys?"

Sawyer rambled on and on about the different toys he had played with while his daddy wasn't around. Sawyer finally finished and it had taken him a while because the tag match that had started between Mysterio and Kofi and Knox and Kane was well underway. Sawyer got sucked into the match, watching with fascinated eyes the actions in front of him. He delighted in the more high-flying moves. They captured his attention more than any mat-based wrestling, but Chris almost expected that. Sawyer's attention span was like 3 minutes.

After the match was over, Chris smiled as he saw Stephanie on the screen. She was telling her brother to be careful because No Way Out was a big deal. It was the final Pay-Per-View before WrestleMania so it had to count. She looked like she was about to say something else when she was suddenly slammed into a door. Chris's eyes widened as he watched this scene of horror flash before his eyes.

"Mommy!" Sawyer exclaimed, horrified because it looked like his mommy was hurt.

Chris immediately covered Sawyer's eyes and continued to watch. Randy and Legacy was attacking Shane. He could hear groaning from his wife in the background and he hoped she was okay. Couldn't they just show her? He couldn't leave because of the kids so he was forced to sit and watch in terror as Randy turned his attention from Shane to Stephanie. She was down and Randy was setting up to kick her. Shane moved in the way at the last moment and took the kick.

Chris was seeing red.

He stood up and grabbed the nearest person he saw. It happened to be Kelly Kelly. "Watch my kids," he said gruffly as he gave Flynn over to her. Kelly didn't question what he said and just kind of looked at the kids in front of her. She barely even knew them.

"Hi."

Stephanie had just been walking down the hallway and then her face bounced off a door and her brother's full weight slammed into her. She was groggy for a few moments, but started to get up slowly. She didn't know what was happening, but she looked over and saw Shane down and Legacy hovering near. She shook her head again, trying to get the cobwebs out and suddenly, she was down again as Shane rolled in the way and she realized she would've gotten kicked in the head.

"Shane, are you okay? Shane? Shane?" Stephanie said, alarmed at what unfolded before her.

"Don't worry, Steph, we're getting help," Dean Malenko told him.

"Oh my God, Shane!" Marissa said, running over to her husband. Declan and Kenny were standing back, scared of what was going on. Marissa knelt next to Stephanie, hovering over her brother. She could hear Marissa muttering things, but she was definitely shaken up…for the next few moments at least.

"You son of a bitch!" Chris yelled out of nowhere. Stephanie couldn't even tell where he was coming from.

All of a sudden, Randy was pitched forward. He wasn't expecting that and he fell to his knees. Chris felt blows from the other members of Legacy and he turned and punched them both square in the jaw, making them stagger back. He grabbed at Randy, tearing at him, punching him relentlessly. He was an uncontrolled beast at the moment, nothing could stop him. He could hear people yelling to get him off of Randy, but he didn't heed them. Every time someone tried to pull him away, he went at the younger man harder. He was going pay. Nobody attacked Stephanie! Nobody was even allowed to touch his wife!

Punches flew onto Randy's skin, marring it, bruising it, but it wasn't enough. It wouldn't be enough until Randy was a bloody pulp and that was still a ways away. Stephanie stood up on shaky legs and went quickly to Chris and grabbed at his shirt. He had taken off his jacket somewhere along the way. She tried to pull him and he felt her near him and he immediately stood and took her in his arms.

"Are you okay?" he whispered over and over again.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," Stephanie said, "I'll be fine, it's Shane."

They watched as Shane was helped onto a gurney. Marissa followed closely, grabbing a hand of each of her boys and going off to make sure her husband was alright. Randy, Cody, and Ted were long gone and she could only imagine this was going to be blamed on that disorder her thought he had. Chris held Stephanie to him tightly, never wanting to let go. Seeing her attacked like that was not a scene he ever wanted repeated.

"You're okay? You're sure? Do you need to go to the hospital too?"

"I'm fine, I'm just shaken up," Stephanie said as she clung to Chris.

"I'm going to kill him, I'm just going to kill him."

"No, you're not. You're not, Chris," she told him as he tensed at her words. "I'm not going to let you. I've got an idea."

"I want him next week, Stephanie, me and him, one-on-one."

"No, Chris, it's not going to happen. It's not. I'm not letting you get in the ring with him. You're too dangerous right now. I can't risk that you'll let things get out of hand."

"Oh, they'd get out of hand."

"See, I can't risk that. I can't, Chris. It can't be you."

"Stephanie," he sighed.

"Chris, it can't be you. I've got this handled…wait, where are the kids?"

"I gave them to Kelly Kelly…oh crap, our kids are with Kelly Kelly," he said, alarmed at the prospect of that. He didn't know anything about that girl. Did she even know how to hold a baby? He wasn't even sure of _that_.

"I've got to go talk to someone," Stephanie said, but she didn't pull away from Chris.

"What? I'm going with you."

"No, no, get the kids. Just get the kids. I swear, I'll watch them when you're out there."

"I've got to get dressed."

"Okay, I'll go get them, you just…well, you just get dressed for your match, okay?"

"Yeah, I can do that."

"Good, yeah, good," she said, but she was distracted.

"You sure you're okay? I can stay with you if you want me to. I don't need to warm up for this match," he told her, stroking her hair idly. He kept kissing the top of her head, reassuring himself that she was okay. If Shane hadn't thrown himself in the way, Randy could've kicked his wife in the head and the prospect of that was terrifying. She could've been seriously injured. He shuddered inwardly at the thought of his wife getting a swift kick to the head like that. He was going to have to owe Shane one.

"No, you've got a match," she said, but still, she didn't let go.

"Okay."

"Yeah, okay," she said, finally, finally letting him go. "I'll see you in a while."

"Yeah, you will," he said, kissing her deeply. She kissed him back, feeling better as she felt his lips on hers.

Her resolve was kicking in and she walked off in the opposite direction of her husband. Chris kept glancing back at her though. If he didn't have this now stupid match, he would take her back to the hotel and pamper the hell out of her. She'd almost been hurt. She could've been hurt. She was only a few seconds away from getting hurt and the thoughts pulsated in his mind like sound waves, bouncing off one surface and hitting another and another, reverberating as a dull buzz in his brain. Randy was going to pay, at some point, oh, Randy was going to pay dearly.

"Kane, I need to talk to you."

"What is it?" Kane asked ominously.

"I need a favor."

"A favor?" he asked, smirking in that evil way. Stephanie was a little intimidated. Normally she wouldn't be, but she was still on edge.

"Yes, a favor."

"What do I get out of it?"

She thought a moment, "I'll give you the last spot in the Elimination Chamber."

"What do you want from me?"

"I want you to get Undertaker to come next week. I want him to face Randy Orton."

"Why not your husband?"

"Too personal. He'll kill Randy. Taker is a legend in his own right and I think it's time for the Legend Killer to become the Legend Killed," Stephanie said, her face contorting into an almost evil grin.

"I'll see what I can do."

What he did was get the Undertaker for her and she was happy. Next week, Randy would get a dose of his own medicine. She was going to make sure that Randy was taken out and she was going to put Chris in. She wanted it more than ever now and as she watched the show with her sleeping children, she almost couldn't wait to see Taker take out Randy Orton. That was almost enough to help her get through what had happened with her and her brother.

Almost.

Chris was distracted for his match. Randy kept playing on his brain. He tried to motivate himself by imagining Cena as Randy, but it wasn't the same. Chris's heart wasn't into this. His heart was backstage, probably still a little shaken up. This match couldn't end soon enough for Chris and after he'd had his fill, he tapped out. He didn't care if Cena had gotten the upper-hand this time. He would just sit and wait until his moment came and he'd take the title. But the title was secondary on this night. Only his wife really mattered on this night. He'd seen what happened with Stephanie and Kane and he was glad she was handling this. If he couldn't take out Randy, Undertaker was the next best choice.

Now he'd just have to have a few words with the Deadman.


	221. The Time Is Now, February 9, 2009

A/N: Sorry this wasn't up, after Raw last week I got another cold so I've been sick and it really sucks. This is just last week's chapter. I'm going to update tomorrow with the updated chapter from tonight.

Raw was really fun and it was great seeing Chris and all of that. I included some stuff only seen by the live crowd, like a Cody/Ted promo before their match and Chris watching Stephanie up on the screen after his match.

So in other news, WWE is very bleh. But don't worry, I've got plans in motion and all of that so rest assured. Just read, relax, and leave a review, please. Enjoy. :)

Oh, and for some pimpage, go read StephanieIrvine's (Jodi) latest story, _If Only_, it's pretty amazing and go leave her a review too! :D

* * *

"Arms up."

"Okay, Mommy," Sawyer said as he lifted his arms up. Stephanie put his coat on and then went around front to button up his jacket. Sawyer pushed her hands away and went to button up his own buttons. "I do it."

"You can do it?"

"I can," he told her. "I do it me, Mommy."

"Okay, if you say so," Stephanie said, letting him button up his own coat. It was colder than she expected it to be in California, but she figured they were just in a cold spell. Still, it was cold enough to warrant putting the kids in coats. Flynn was crawling around the floor trying to evade Stephanie. She was cranky and didn't feel like leaving the hotel room, but she didn't have much choice. It wasn't like they could leave her here to her own devices. "Flynn, would you get over here!"

Flynn stopped and looked up at her mommy for a moment before she started scurrying away like a little kitten. Flynn had completely gotten the hang of crawling and was pretty quick on her hands and knees. She was a blur at home, crawling everywhere she wanted. One time Stephanie had even caught her looking past the baby fence and up the stairs, like she wanted to just go right on up. Like Sawyer, she was quick to navigate the two steps that led to the living room. She was an expert at getting down and an expert at following her big brother.

"Chris, could you help, please!" Stephanie yelled at her husband. She saw Sawyer was having a bit of trouble with his jacket and knelt in front of him, trying to help him again.

"Mommy, no!" Sawyer said, tears coming to his eyes out of frustration. He could do this himself!

"Baby boy, I know that you can do this yourself, but how about you just let me help you this one time, okay?" she said, trying to be diplomatic.

"No!" he yelled at her and she winced from his voice.

"Sawyer, please don't yell."

"I no yell," he told her angrily, pushing her away again. Stephanie felt Flynn slap her foot and then scurry off again, like she was just teasing Stephanie.

"Chris, seriously, can you help out here so we can go?"

"I'm just trying to think of what Flair would say," Chris said as he sat on the couch.

"That's all well and good, but you can certainly think about things while you're helping me get the kids ready. If you don't, you'll be sorry," she told him in no uncertain terms.

Chris sighed. The Flair thing had been weighing on his mind all week. He figured that Flair was going to contradict whatever he said, argue with him the entire time. He just wanted to make sure he had something to counter everything he said. The crowd would probably be behind Flair so he'd really have to sell the point he wanted to make and that was the fact that Flair had not retired with dignity, but instead was still whoring himself out. There was no respect there and the last thing Chris would ever do when he retired was lose his self-respect.

He got up and went to go help his beleaguered wife. She'd been on edge about this entire Randy Orton situation and he really couldn't blame her. He seemed determined to take them all out. If he was embroiled in his own thing, he'd help out his wife, but he had his own things to worry about, namely Ric Flair. Flynn was just crossing the threshold to the bedroom as he picked her up. She started crying almost immediately. She had been having fun crawling around on her own.

"Don't cry, flutterby, I'm just going to put your coat on," Chris said as he brought her into sitting area. He put her down on the couch as he went to grab her little, pink coat. She flopped onto her tummy and then rolled onto her back. She was determined not to go to Raw tonight. Maybe she was just sensing that things were going down. Or, more likely, she just didn't feel like going anywhere and wanted to stay in for the evening.

Chris got her coat and went back over to the couch to slip it on her. Stephanie had finished up with Sawyer and he was now running back to some of his toy trucks and pushing them around, although it was a bit difficult with his restricting coat. Stephanie went to gather up some of her documents as she glanced up every now and then to watch Chris.

"So, I was thinking about this Ted thing. I still think we can persuade him to our side."

"You're _still_ on this?" he wondered.

"I've really been thinking about it and I think he's the weak link in Legacy."

"Wow, you think your little boy toy is the weak link?" Chris asked, raising an eyebrow. "I figured you would call him the next WWE great or something, far surpassing everyone in ring ability, even me."

"No, that's not what I meant by weak link," Stephanie told him, shaking her head. "What I meant was that I think he'd be the one to crack first. No stable ever lasts in this business, no alliance ever stays forever, that's just the nature of the business. At some point, Legacy is going to crack. It's going to be too small for the three of them. One of them will want to branch out. Randy wouldn't because he likes having people beneath him, he likes the power. This is everything that Evolution wasn't for him. Evolution, he was on the bottom, he was the last guy they thought about. And who was the first one to break free? Randy Orton."

"So you think Ted is the bottom of the totem pole here?" Chris asked her as he started to button up Flynn's coat.

"Yes, I do. I mean, he was gone for a while, remember?"

"No, I don't remember these things. I'm sure you wrote it down in your diary though, counting down the days until he came back, writing little hearts with TD luvs SMJ written in them, which is insulting to me because you're using my initial and I'm your husband."

"Very funny, but Cody is the biggest butt-kisser there is. He's always extolling the virtues of Randy. He's Randy's little lackey. I just think that Ted is along for the ride, but once the opportunity arises, he's going to break free. So why don't we make that opportunity right now?"

"I think you're wrong."

"How can I be wrong?"

"Because Ted is a butt-kisser too."

"I agree, I just think he's not the biggest one. He's the weak link, sweetie, and we need to exploit this for everything we can," she said, her eyes dancing. She entertained thoughts of talking to Ted and convincing him to come over to her side. Then she really would have the power.

"I think you're wrong."

"I'm not wrong, I'm always right."

"You're not always right," Chris said. "To think such is pretty stupid of you. Now look, Flynn is dressed and her coat is on and she's ready. Sawyer is ready too. I say we go to the arena and I'll give you one night to convince me that Ted is indeed the weakest link in this group and then maybe, _maybe_ we can talk to him and start this little love triangle you so obviously want."

"I do not want a love triangle," she scoffed. "I'm not in love with Ted DiBiase. Sure, he's cute and he's got a great body and a cute face and he's great in the ring."

Chris pretended to gag, "You're making me sick here."

"I'm just saying, that's all," she told him. "So I get one night, huh?"

"One night," he told her as he picked up his daughter.

Stephanie spent the entire car ride over thinking of ways to convince Chris that they could use Ted to bring down Randy. She honestly believed that they could work with Ted here. She was the boss, she could give him some incentives to come work with her. Did he really want to be associated with someone like Randy? He was brash and only thought of himself. When did Randy ever come out during one of his matches? Surely that meant he could be infiltrated. If Stephanie was good at anything, it was persuasion.

"You're awfully quiet," Chris said as they pulled into the arena.

"I'm going to let Flair speak first on the show," she told him, looking over to gauge his reaction.

"Okay," he said, "that's fine with me."

"Good," she told him. "I want you to speak your mind to him."

"I'm pretty sure I always do that with everyone."

Stephanie had ulterior motives for putting Flair first. She knew Chris was going to interrupt and beat down Flair, either verbally or physically. That was fine with her. Flair could be beaten to a pulp for all she cared. In fact, she wouldn't mind seeing Flair getting beaten down. It would serve him right for putting stupid ideas into non-wrestlers' heads and making her husband out to look like a fool in front of the world. Chris _should _beat him within an inch of his life.

The other purpose was to make sure that Chris had most of the night off and couldn't worry about this Flair thing. If she only got one night to convince Chris that Ted could be on their side, she didn't want his mind preoccupied with thoughts of Flair and Mickey Rourke. There was a six-man tag match he was going to be in with the other competitors of the Elimination Chamber, but that was a tag match, you didn't really have to think about things in a tag match. You went in when you went in, you watched the match when you weren't in; it was very cut and dry.

When they got to the arena, Chris and Stephanie got the kids out and quickly into the arena. It was pretty cold, but they just wanted to get inside before the kids were seen. They went to Stephanie's office and got situated. Britt had been given the night off because she was moving in with Hunter this weekend and she had asked if she could have tonight off so she could get her stuff situated. Stephanie couldn't believe Hunter would even let Britt bring her stuff into his domain. That was a huge stepping stone for him. When she moved in with him, he barely let her put any of her old furniture in there. She should've known then it wasn't going to work out.

"Okay, we've got everything under control in here?" Stephanie said. Sawyer and Flynn were happily playing on the ground and Chris was happily watching them while thinking, his fingers tapping his chin. "Would you stop thinking about the Flair thing?"

"He's going to call me out, of course I'm going to think about it. You're constantly thinking about the thing with Randy and your brother."

"Well, yes, because that's actually important."

"Stephanie, do not tell me my thing is not as important," he told her. "That's not cool of you. Look, we all have our own little problems to worry about and think about, so you can focus on your thing and I'll focus on my thing."

"I'm not saying it's not, but this is important too."

"I've got my own problems, besides, I did beat up that jackass last week for what he did to you," Chris said, thinking about watching his wife crumple into a heap after Randy had viciously knocked Shane into her. Stephanie was smart in not letting Chris go after Randy. If Chris could get his hands on Randy, Randy would be dead, plain and simple. The rage that flowed through him as he thought back to last week was still pulsating in his blood, nearly choking him with its venom.

"Chris, please don't blow up again," Stephanie said. Chris had almost dented the wall the other night when he'd come across a rerun of Raw on their satellite. He had watched until Stephanie's attack and had gotten worked up again, punching the wall and bruising his knuckles. Stephanie wanted to bring down Randy, yes, but Chris was so beyond bringing down Randy. Shane was pissed about what Randy had done to Dad and that was just their father. Chris was super protective of her and had the means to do serious damage to Randy.

"I'm not going to, but heaven help me if I end up in an area alone with him…actually, heaven help _him_," Chris said, gnashing his teeth a bit.

"_This_ is why I'm not asking you to defend me," Stephanie said. "There's one reason why we should recruit Ted."

"What reason?" he asked.

"Because you can't. Ted doesn't have a personal stake in this beyond himself. It's just him, there are no wives or girlfriends or kids. It's just him. If it were you, you would do something really awful to Randy. But Ted would just look at it professionally."

"That's a stupid reason," he told her.

"But it's a reason, one for me, zero for you," Stephanie said, doing a little dance in her seat. It was so endearing Chris couldn't help but smile at her. Sometimes he just loved her so much. That was why he wanted to maim Randy should he ever come in contact with him.

"Okay, fine, you've got one point, that's it," he said as a knock sounded on the door. "Maybe he's planning an ambush."

"By knocking? That's a very polite ambush," Stephanie said, then called out, "Come in!"

The door opened and Trish stuck her head in, "Hey guys!"

"Trish, what are you doing here?" Stephanie asked in surprise. She got up as Christian followed Trish into the room. Stephanie extended her arms and hugged her best friend tightly, happy to see her.

"Hey, man, what's up?" Chris said, nodding towards Christian.

"Cwissy!" Sawyer said, waving and then reaching forward to make Flynn wave too. Flynn smiled at her brother, but otherwise had no idea what was going on. She just knew she wanted to play with her brother.

"Well, we have something for you," Trish said in a sing-song voice.

"Are you pregnant?" Stephanie asked, looking down at Trish's stomach for any signs of impending motherhood.

"Why would I say we have something for you if I were pregnant? Like I would just give you my baby?" she said.

"Yeah, that's right…so what is it?" Stephanie asked.

"Hey, I hate to cut this short, guys, but I've got someone I need to take care of," Chris said as he stood up. He went over and kissed Stephanie briefly and she pressed her hand briefly to his cheek. He smiled against her lips before pulling away and going over to ruffle Sawyer's hair and shake hands with Flynn. They were kind of like his good luck charms at this point. At the very least he went out there happier when he said goodbye to them.

"So what is it that you're here for?" Stephanie asked. "I don't think you'd fly all the way out to California just to see us."

"Wow, you underestimate our friendship," Trish joked. "But actually it's not just that. It goes back to the thing we have for you."

"What thing?"

"This!" Christian said, pulling his signed contract from behind his back and thrusting it in Stephanie's face. Stephanie's eyes widened as she saw the document she had had the lawyers draw up. She pulled it from Christian's grasp and flipped to the last page to see Christian's signature on the bottom.

"You signed!"

"I am officially back with the WWE," Christian and Stephanie's grin widened. "So there you go."

"Oh, this is so great," Stephanie exclaimed, sidestepping Trish and hugging Christian. "Welcome back!"

"Well, this is much better than when I signed with TNA in the first place," he said, hugging her back.

"Tell me you're coming to Raw, you _have_ to come to Raw. I mean, I'd understand if you went to SmackDown because your brother is there and everything, but think of how great it would be if you were to come to Raw and hang out with us."

"Well, actually I was thinking about joining ECW," Christian said.

Stephanie's brow furrowed, "ECW?"

"Christian figures it'd be the easiest title to win at this point and he wants to be in a title match come WrestleMania," Trish said. "I mean, sure, we'd love to come to Raw and everything, but Randy has the title shot and we both agreed that we want Christian to get a title shot."

"Oh, well, okay, I guess," Stephanie said. "I thought you could probably make a bigger impact than to be on ECW, but if that's what you want to do, I'm not going to stop you. I mean, we'd still get to hang out, right?"

"Well, doesn't ECW usually tape with Raw?" Trish asked.

"Yeah, or SmackDown, it's going to be live tomorrow," Stephanie said.

"So see, we'll be here, we're here tonight because we wanted you to be the first to know that Christian is back. We want everyone to be surprised," Trish said excitedly. She couldn't wait to get to traveling again. She missed not being on the road. Living at home each and every day didn't suit her, it didn't suit her at all. She liked to be out and about and traveling. Now that she wasn't wrestling, it gave her more time to actually explore the cities they went to. Like today, she and Christian had braved the cold weather and gone down to Union Street in San Francisco for some shopping. She'd seen some really cute boutiques and got a few cute items to add to her wardrobe. To top it off, she got to hang out with her best friend.

"She talks like it's going to be the both of us," Christian chuckled. He loved his wife's enthusiasm about this. Part of him believed that it wasn't just him coming back that excited her, but her being here again as well. If it made her happy to be here, he was happy for her too. He was also happy he wouldn't actually have to go without her while he was on the road. He was officially completely used to having Trish in his bed and couldn't imagine going night in and night out without her there.

"Well, Chrissy, your career is now our career, that's how it works in a marriage."

"Oh, I see."

"It's true," Stephanie said. "Chris does what I tell him."

Chris watched as Flair was speaking, but he'd had enough and couldn't take any more of this. He went out into the arena where, to his surprise, he got a fair amount of cheers. At least some people could see the truth of the matter, even if most people couldn't. He didn't want to hear any more of what Flair had to say. Flair could go on and on about how he wasn't selling out, but he'd already sold out. Flair had gotten an amazing retirement ceremony the year before. Not many people in this business got a send-off like that. Chris had respected him for ending it like that, but with the way Flair whored himself out afterwards, Chris lost his respect for him.

He was just a panderer to the crowds now, yelling his little chants and dancing his little dance. The crowds would eat it up, but he was just a puppet to them. It disgusted Chris that this is what people liked. Flair was willing to debase himself and look stupid just to please these people who would leave this arena and not care about him the next day. Someday, Chris would bow out gracefully from this business (actually Chris would die in this business) and would keep his dignity intact. He realized that this would be far, far into the future because, being married to Stephanie, he wasn't going anywhere for a very long time.

Still, he wasn't going around acting like an idiot like Flair was. Flair tried to tell him that he loved all of this, but at what expense, Chris thought. Guys in this business didn't know when to quit. They just kept going and going until their bodies faded and their minds went. That was the entire point of _The Wrestler_, wasn't it? It showed how wrestlers just never quit. It sickened Chris. When he had needed the time off when Stephanie was pregnant, he didn't go around whoring himself out like Flair did. He found new projects, projects separate from wrestling. He was doing improve, singing with his band, performing in plays, writing a book. He was doing something worthwhile and not wasting away like these so-called Hall of Famers.

He kept prodding Flair on, telling him to dance for the crowd. Flair had obviously had enough as he socked Chris. Chris fell in shock, but then rolled out of the ring, grabbing at his jaw. Fine, let him. Chris watched as Flair strut across the ring, just like Chris predicted he would. Leave it to Flair to prove Chris's point to a tee. Here he was, pandering again to these fans. Chris went backstage, thinking about how pathetic Flair was.

Stephanie had other things on her mind. She needed to think of other ways to convince Chris to let Ted in on the plan to bring down Randy. Christian and Trish were playing with her kids as she sat at her desk and watched the show. She'd seen what happened to Chris and figured he was going to need a few moments to collect himself before he came back to change into his wrestling trunks. She knew that she was over-thinking this so she got up and sat down with Trish and Christian and the kids and lifted Flynn into her lap. Flynn, who had been chewing on one of her teething toys looked up and smiled around the toy. Stephanie smiled down at her and played for a while until she heard Randy's voice.

She looked up and saw him on the screen, talking about last week and how he wouldn't hurt Stephanie and how he wanted her to see what he _could_ do to her. Stephanie didn't like the tone of his voice. She wasn't scared of much and she wasn't scared of a voice, but it still threatened to send shivers down her spine. He was out for blood it seemed. He didn't care what happened to her, he just wanted to get rid of the authority it seemed. She didn't quite know what to make of that, but the show cut to commercial before she could really analyze what he was saying.

As the show went to commercial, Cody and Ted got into the ring. Since she was hooked up to the closed circuit television, she could see what was going on in the ring during the commercial breaks. She saw Cody start talking about how Randy had been the one to really help them climb to the top. He went on and on and barely gave Ted a chance to talk. Stephanie bit her lip. "Hey, you guys, can you watch Sawyer, I'm just going to go find Chris really quick."

"Yeah, sure, what about Flynn?"

"I'll take her," Stephanie said. She left with Flynn in her arms and walked down the hallway looking for her husband. She spotted him leaning against a wall and walked up to him, holding Flynn in front of her. Flynn giggled when she got close to her daddy. She smacked her lips against Chris's cheek and that caused him to look up and over at them.

"Oh hey, that's a kiss I like to get," he said, "you know what other kind of kiss I like to get?"

Stephanie stepped over and kissed him softly. "Were you watching just now?" she asked as she pulled away.

"No, I've been standing here the entire time, I didn't hear anything, what happened? Did Randy do something to you? Did he do something to Flynn?" Chris's eyes flashed when he mentioned their daughter.

"No, he didn't do anything to me, that's not it at all…well, he did say that he wasn't planning to punt me in the head. He said he wants me to watch him destroy Shane, but that's beside the point. Cody and Ted were in the ring and guess who did most of the talking about how Randy is so great and so awesome and so wonderful?"

"Let me guess, not Ted?" Chris asked sarcastically.

"Exactly," Stephanie said. "So see, another reason why Ted is the weak link and we should go after him before it's too late. He could get sucked in or something."

"Stephanie…"

"One night, you gave me one night," Stephanie said. "So I'm telling you again, Cody is the butt-kisser. We can _get_ to Ted, I swear we can, if we plan it right. I know we can."

Chris looked at his wife like she was crazy. She was so into bringing down Randy it was starting to become almost comical. He knew Stephanie had it out for Randy after what happened with Shane last week. The lengths to which she was willing to go though were incredible. She wanted to not only beat him, but to make him pay for everything. She had been worried about her brother and there was no telling what Randy could do at this point. He had to admire her pluck.

He was still admiring her when he went out for his match later that evening. She was determined to get what she wanted and he was equally determined to get what he wanted on Sunday. Cena was vulnerable, he could beat him on Sunday and get his title back. There were four other guys in there, wanting to beat Cena as well and he'd use this to his advantage. He would get what was rightfully his and then he and Sawyer could have matching belts. That would obviously be the ideal.

He was pleasantly surprised during his match when a huge "Cena sucks" chant broke out. He was starting to like this Oakland crowd. They seemed to know the truth and weren't suckered in by the likes of someone like Cena. He was even happier when a pretty loud "Y2J" chant broke out. He didn't like to be referred to as Y2J anymore, but the thought was there. Yes, maybe they could wrestle here every night.

Meanwhile, Stephanie was dialing Hunter's home phone number in an attempt to contact Britt, "Hello?"

"Oh, hi, Hunter," Stephanie said, "how's the moving going?"

"Great, she's almost completely settled in," Hunter said and Stephanie could hear the smile in his voice.

"You're happy, huh?"

"Yeah, I am," Hunter said, "I'm really happy that she finally decided to move in with me. It feels right, you know, it feels like this is where I'm supposed to be."

"I'm really glad."

"Did you call for Britt?"

"Yeah, is she available?"

"She's in the shower right now, but she shouldn't be too long, she's been in there for a while, do you just want to stay on?"

"Yeah sure, I've got nothing better to do, I'm trying to convince Chris that we should try to get Ted in on our plan to bring down Randy."

"Bad idea."

"What?"

"I just don't think it's a good idea," he told her.

"Why not?"

"I don't know, too risky. I mean, you don't really know this guy, right?"

"I didn't really know Randy or Dave when I got them to come to my side against you," Stephanie told him, "I took a risk there and it paid off, I think that this could be the same kind of situation. I think I could have him here and then talk to him and convince him that he should join our side. It's only a matter of time before Randy turns on him anyways."

"I don't know, that kid seems to like being part of a group. It makes him feel superior. I don't think he'd want to give that up."

"He'd be giving it up for a better group, hello, I run the show."

"Stephanie, come on, you know Chris is right."

"No, he's not," Stephanie said. "He's not right, _I'm_ right."

"Just have him fight your battle for you. The guy's your husband, Steph, I _think_ he'd defend you, now that's just speculation, but I'm pretty sure the guy loves you and would protect you if it came to that."

"I know he would, but I don't want him involved in this. You know how Chris gets when he faces people who have wronged me. He goes off the deep end. Just let him deal with Flair and whoever, I've got this."

"By trying to convince him that it's okay to go after Ted?"

"Yes."

She was getting pretty tired of Hunter trying to tell her she didn't know what she was doing. She could handle Randy Orton if she wanted to and Hunter should worry about his own problems and not hers. It wasn't like she did provoke him in any way. She just became the GM of Raw, how was that provoking him in the slightest? If Randy had a problem with authority, that was his problem, not hers. She would handle it any way she knew how. She was pissed at Hunter now and hung up on him, not wanting to talk about this. She knew going after Ted would be a good idea, she just knew it would be.

Chris stopped abruptly on the ramp as he saw Stephanie talking to someone. He didn't know who she was talking to, but he was completely mesmerized for a moment seeing her up there. He smiled to himself as he thought about how all these guys were probably jealous that he got to sleep with that every night. Then he remembered himself and got backstage. He could actually just go see that beauty up close and personal, which was what he was going to do. It was more out of curiosity to see who she'd been talking to, but still, he got to see her as well.

"Who was on the phone?" Chris asked.

"Hunter," Stephanie said. "He was trying to tell me that going after Ted was a bad idea and that somehow I'm the one to blame for Randy going ballistic."

"Well, he's right about the Ted thing, but not so cool about the Randy thing, how could you make him go ballistic?"

"Apparently from just being the GM of the show."

"He doesn't know what he's talking about. You're doing a great job on the show and you should be proud of yourself," he said, taking her in his arms. "You're amazing."

"Thanks," she said.

"Where are Trish and Christian?"

"They left. They have to drive to Fresno and they didn't want to do it tomorrow so they're going tonight and so they left and I'm stuck here with the kids, not that I mind," Stephanie said, but then sighed. "I really think this Ted thing could work if you'd let me."

"I'll think about it," he told her and that was all he was conceding as Sawyer came up to him and lifted his arms. "Hey, kiddo."

"Mommy talk," Sawyer said, "I see you westle."

"Did you see me wrestle?"

"Uh huh, you won," Sawyer said, "Fwynn saw too!"

"Well, I'm glad you got to see that so you can see Daddy win on Sunday too and then I can get my belt back and we can have matching belts and we can pretend like we're the Tag champs, okay? I used to pretend that I would be the champ with Owen Hart."

"Who dat?" Sawyer asked, tilting his head to the side.

"Oh, kid, you've got so much to learn about wrestling history before you're going to be a true wrestling master," Chris said, kissing his head. "Owen Hart was one of my most favorite wrestlers growing up. Like how you love me as a wrestler, or Trips, that's how much I loved Owen."

"Dat lots," he said, "I love you, Daddy."

"Yeah, I know, I love you too, but I mean as a wrestler, the way you love me as a wrestler."

"I love dat too," he told him with a giggle and then hugged Chris tightly.

"Maybe we can use Sawyer to persuade Ted over. Who could resist that face?" Stephanie said, grinning at her little boy. He had such a propensity for cute. She would never use him for manipulation, but the thought was quite tempting. Surely Ted's heart wasn't so small that he didn't care about the likes of children. If that were the case then Stephanie would renege this entire idea. That was beside the point though. She would be the one to proposition him (not in that way).

"I don't know, I'd figure it'd be very hard to resist."

"I should definitely use him then," Stephanie said. "Hell, maybe he could persuade Randy to stop being a douchebag."

"He's not a miracle worker, he's just a little boy. And with the way Randy's been acting lately, he might kick our kid in the head."

"If that happened, Shane McMahon or _anyone_ on this roster would be no match for me," Stephanie said, her voice darkening. "If Randy ever dared hurt one of _my_ kids, I would take him out so fast and it would be extremely painful."

"Wow, that was scary," Chris said.

But it wasn't as scary was when the Undertaker entered the room a few moments later without even knocking. He was already in the door looking at Stephanie before she could even comprehend that the door was opening. She stood looking up at this intimidating man. Sawyer's eyes widened. This man was really scary-looking. He was completely dressed in black and had a hat covering his eyes and he just oozed menace.

Flynn, on the other hand, didn't care who the hell this was. She crawled over to this new person and slapped him on the leg. Undertaker looked down at her and it was almost like he seemed to growl in the presence of a baby, but she just looked up at him, not intimidated in the slightest. This man may have many feet on her, but she wasn't scared of him. She just continued to stare, her eyes narrowing like Stephanie's did.

"Taker, nice to see you here."

"I just arrived," he told her. "I'm going to take care of things."

"I appreciate you doing this."

"Some people need to be taught lessons," Taker bellowed. He turned to Chris, "I'm sure you're well aware of that, right, Chris?"

"I just call it like I see it," Chris said.

"Yes, but remember, I'm considered by many to be a legend as well," Taker told him and Chris gave him a fake smile. He didn't need to get into a fight with Undertaker right now. That could put him in a world of trouble and he didn't want to be Tombstoned in front of his kids if he could help it. Chris went back to whispering with Sawyer.

"Thank you again. I'm sure you'll teach him what he needs to be taught."

For the most part, Taker did. The match was a good one, but near the end, numbers got the better of the veteran. He was attacked by all of Legacy, but was quickly aided by Shane himself. Stephanie was surprised to see her brother here. She didn't even know he was in the area, let alone in the arena. It looked like he did have some element of surprise in him. She liked it. She liked when things went her way. Maybe this would mean Shane won on Sunday.

Shane went crazy on Legacy and with Taker's help, Ted was down for the count. He was set up in the corner and Shane got a garbage can out. Stephanie wanted to run out there and tell Shane not to do this. Oh God, this was going to ruin everything! It would look suspicious if she went out there and stopped him from hitting this move on Ted. He set the garbage can up against Ted and then climbed the ropes.

"What is your brother _doing_?" Chris asked, but he shouldn't have been surprised. Shane was crazy, like all the McMahons, he just did things like this to prove his craziness.

She winced as her brother hit Ted and then hung her head. "He's never going to join our side now, never."

"Like he was going to _before_ that happened," Chris scoffed.

"Well, I think he would have and now we're not any closer to bringing Randy down, I need a plan Chris, I need a plan."

"Well, sorry, baby, looks like you can't go running off with Ted now. You're stuck with me forever and ever," he said, kissing her cheek. "Your brother is crazy, you know. I can't believe he would do that before such a big match. Plus, he's getting up there, if he had missed, that would've been embarrassing--"

"That's it!"

"What's it?" Chris asked.

"I know what we have to do. I know who I'm going to have to use to get in with Randy. I know who now and it's perfect, fail-proof."

"What?"

"I know who has to get on Randy's good side," Stephanie said, staring hard at Chris.

"Who?"

"You," she said, her eyes aglow. "Oh my God, yes, yes, it has to be you. I can't trust anyone. You're already reviled by the fans, it'd make sense. Yes, I trust you, I would know what was going on, yes, it has to be _you_."

"Newsflash, we're married. Somehow I think Randy's going to know that and call out our charade."

"Not if we are convincing."

"Convincing with what?"

"We need to break up."

"No, we tried that, I didn't like it."

"It'd be different this time," Stephanie explained. "Randy's not going to trail us, he won't. You could stay at home, we'd still be married, just not in the public eye. We hid our relationship for 2 years, Chris, 2 years and we were damn good at it."

"Yeah, but we're married now and we have 2 kids. I'm not going down this road. It didn't work once, I'm not doing it again."

"_You_ could get on the inside. You wouldn't have to join Legacy or anything, but the fact of the matter is, if I were to do something to you, if I looked like the bad guy, then Randy would have sympathy for you and you would understand his aggression towards me because you'd be hating me too, it's brilliant!"

"No."

"Chris."

"No."

"Sweetie."

"No, Stephanie, I'm not going to do this. I don't even get what you want me to do. Do you want me to divorce you, is that it?"

"Yes, that's it exactly, not for real, but for fakes. You could get into Randy's confidence and then we have him where we want him, we can take him down."

"I won't be able to keep myself from hurting him."

"Yes, you could. Chris, this is a perfect plan."

"You're delusional."

"Chris?"

"Stephanie, I'm not going to."

"Please?"

"Where do you come up with this stuff?"

"I just know it'll work, I know you can do it."

"It'd take a lot to get him convinced that I actually hate you and want to divorce you. I've been with you for almost 7 years and we've been married for 4, what makes you think we'd even convince him? We've been through so much together and nothing's broken us yet. What in the world could possibly be so big as to come between us like that?"

"I've got just the thing."


	222. Pushing Forward, February 16, 2009

A/N: All caught up now. I hope you enjoy and please, please leave a review since things are definitely going to get a little bit hairy because of WWE's love of screwing over the Smoochy fanbase. :P

* * *

Christian didn't want anything extravagant for his return. Stephanie had offered, of course, to give him a huge return like Chris received, though she'd had nothing to do with Chris's return. She proposed weeks of videos and then a huge return worthy of a king. But that wasn't Christian's style. He didn't need that kind of pomp and circumstance for his return. He just wanted to get back into the swing of things. He felt like he'd been away from wrestling forever, though it had only been months.

It _had_ been a long time since he was in the WWE though. When he'd left it was a rash decision. He'd been worried about Mickie James. She'd proven herself all talk and no action since then, but it had been a bad and hasty decision to leave. He'd left Trish and that was one of his biggest regrets. Trish was his life and his world and the thought of leaving her now was too much for him to bear. If he just hadn't left her then, he could've had so much more time with her and he was lamenting it now.

He wondered how he should come back and how the fans would respond to him. He knew some people didn't watch TNA and were new viewers so they'd have no clue who he was. It was going to be weird trying to get the fans back on his side or introducing himself to the new fans. He was a likeable guy. If he could go out with Trish by his side, he knew everyone would love him because they loved her. He grabbed her left hand briefly before putting it back on the steering wheel.

"What was that for?" she asked. He had broken her from her reverie.

"I was just thinking how cool it would be if you were making your return with me," he told her.

"You'd love that," Trish laughed. "You would just want to show me off."

"Well, yeah, I mean, we are married now and you know, people really should know that. I also think it would make me look good," Christian told her, grabbing her hand again and kissing the back of it. "It would only do me good."

"Well, I don't know, maybe I should come back too and I'd take the big return."

"Like you did when you were wrestling a few weeks ago."

"That was different. John was in a bind and I helped him out. It's not like I went there with the intent to wrestle, you know," she told him haughtily. "If or when I do come back, I'm going to tell Stephanie to get me the biggest return ever."

"You would not."

"Oh, I so would," Trish nodded definitively. "How could I have it any other way? I'm the biggest women wrestler ever and if or when I return, I'm going to show those stupid other divas that they can't mess with me."

"You lost me at biggest women wrestler. The Trish I know and love would never exalt herself like that," Christian laughed.

"Yeah, you're right. I think I would keep it a surprise too. Are you sure you want to go to ECW though? I mean, you could go to Raw or even SmackDown, you know. Edge is there. He bugs me, but I guess I wouldn't mind too much."

"Now, I'm cool with this. Besides, I'll probably get traded anyways."

"You think you will?"

"With the draft coming up, I'd suspect it."

"Well, if you insist," Trish said. "I'd love it if you did go to Raw though. That would be the absolute best. Then we could hang out with Stephanie and Chris and the babies, especially the babies. I swear, when I'm around Flynn I feel myself getting fertile."

"I didn't know she had such magical powers."

"I want a little girl when we have a baby," Trish said. "I'm really happy you decided to go through with the test though. I just want to know what's going on. Then if nothing's wrong, we can just try to go on and get pregnant. Or I can get checked out as well and we can definitely see."

"Yeah, then we can have our baby."

"I think a little girl would be so awesome. She'd take after me with the wrestling thing."

"I'm a wrestler too, you know."

"Oh, I know," she told him. "And you're coming back tonight and you're going to kick Jack Swagger's ass. What kind of name is that anyways? I mean, Jack Swagger? He sounds like he should be doing porn or something. It's the silliest name I've ever heard."

"Have you watched him?'

"No, is he any good?"

"I don't know, I'd assume so if he's holding the belt. He did beat Matt, who is a formidable opponent. I would know, I've faced him before, many times."

"I'm well aware. We did work together once upon a time," Trish said, rolling her eyes. "Just focus on the task at hand, kicking complete and utter ass. I want you to have the belt and then you can move on to bigger challenges. You should challenge your brother for the WWE Title."

"I don't think so, not right now."

When Christian walked out there later that evening, with the crowd cheering, it felt like home. Stephanie was right when she said it would feel familiar to him. TNA had been fun and he'd done a great job there, but this felt like coming back to an old t-shirt. He walked down that familiar ramp to the familiar ring and though the opponent was new, not much else was. He'd tired of hearing Jack Swagger talk and especially his lisp.

He wanted this moment and he wanted to make it a good one. This wasn't just a moment for him either, it was a moment for all his fans. He was back where he belonged and this was only the beginning. He wouldn't be on ECW forever, that was for sure. He would move onto one of the bigger shows and he'd go for the titles there. He was starting out small, but he wasn't going to end it small. Christian was back and he was going to make it to the place he'd never been before.

He was going to be the WWE or World Champion.

Chris crawled next to Flynn. She kept looking at him and giggling her little head off. She didn't know why her daddy was crawling, but just the sight of him crawling with her was hilarious. He was so silly when he did stuff like this. She kept on crawling around, glancing at her daddy and giggling as he kept up with her. He was a pretty slow crawler; she was going way faster than he was.

"Babababadabadafa," Flynn said, then giggled and snorted a little.

"Oh really, that's very interesting," Chris said, "are you tired yet?"

"Badbada," Flynn said, then kept crawling.

Stephanie came down the stairs, "Sawyer is in bed and fast asleep."

"Good."

"How is she?" Stephanie asked.

"Not tired."

"Flynn, it is bedtime now," Stephanie told her daughter. Flynn ignored her and continued to crawl, going from the living room into the dining room and going under the table. Chris followed her and stuck his head under the table.

"Hey there, you, what are you doing under here? Are you aware that there could be spiders under here?" Flynn smiled at him. "What do you mean you aren't afraid? Wow, I knew you were tough, Flynn Jericho, but this is super tough of you."

"Flynn," Stephanie said, getting on her hands and knees at another part of the table. "Will you please get out from under there, it's dusty."

"I don't think she's going to come out from under there."

"Flynn, please get out from under there," Stephanie asked again. Flynn didn't move.

Chris lay down on his stomach and leaned his chin on his forearms as he watched Flynn. She had shifted so she was just sitting there, staring at her mommy and smiling. Stephanie looked at Chris, entreating him to help, but he just shrugged and stayed half under the table. Stephanie sighed and emulated Chris's position, just watching Flynn, who was having a blast sitting under the table.

"So about this plan…"

"Stephanie, I don't like this plan and I don't want to be a part of this plan. I don't want to 'infiltrate' Randy's camp, thanks."

"Well, you won't have to if you win on Sunday," Stephanie told him. They were lying diagonally from each other so Chris turned his head to the side and lay his cheek on his forearms now. "If you win, Randy's obviously going to challenge you for the title and then you can just protect me that way."

"What do you mean? You don't want me protecting you because I'll hurt Randy."

"Well, I'd have no choice if you won the title, you'd almost automatically be facing him at WrestleMania. I would hope you'd be on my side if that's the case."

"So you're putting a condition on me, like, win or else I'm going to have to break up with you?"

"Yes, because I'm going to do something horrible to you."

"You still haven't told me what horrible thing you'd do to me that would make me break up with you and turn into a bitter bachelor that never wants to marry again, let alone date. I'm anxious to see what this is."

"Don't mock me," she told him as Flynn decided she wanted to be like her mommy and daddy and she laid down too. Stephanie winced at this. She hadn't vacuumed under the table in a really long time and Flynn was probably getting dust in her lungs. On the other hand, it looked like Flynn was not long for the waking world. If they could get her to sleep now, that'd be excellent. Stephanie was shocked the little girl wasn't already tired, she'd spent the entire day playing around the house and throwing things around and being a headache, surely she should be worn out with all of that.

"I'm going to mock you all I want because you want us to break up."

"Not for real."

"As close as we can get," Chris said. "I could barely keep a straight face when we were fighting before and I was on the verge of cracking up when you were firing me. How in the hell am I supposed to want to _divorce _you? Tell me that, Steph?"

"We'd make it work and we'd still be living together."

"What if Randy decides he wants to come over and talk strategy?" Chris asked.

"We have another house," Stephanie said. "We can buy you a fake condo…oh wait, we can use your parent's condo! See, perfect. We use your parent's condo if that ever comes up. He wouldn't want to anyways."

"You don't know that. You also don't know if he could somehow follow us or anything. I don't think you thought this through as much as you would've hoped. I think this is really a stupid idea and I don't really want to be a part of it."

"Why not?"

"Oh, I'm not sure, I think it has something to do with the fact my wife wants to fake divorce me. Who _does_ that, Steph? I mean, seriously, who thinks these things up? I know you're scheming and I love that about you, but don't you think this is going too far?"

"This man has it out for my family, nothing is too far. Chris, you saw what he was willing to do to me. If you're getting in there and getting the information, you'd be helping me, helping your family. You love me, right?"

"Don't play the love card, Stephanie."

"Okay, I know you love me, I know you've loved me for a very long time, maybe even before you knew about it, before you could explain the feelings. The love doesn't change, it just means that you help me because you love me."

"Don't pull that, Stephanie. Don't tell me to do something because I love you. When I tell you I love you it's because I love you. It's not a bargaining chip," Chris told her. "Don't try and use that to get what you want."

"I'm sorry," Stephanie said sincerely. "I didn't mean to have it sound like that. You know I love you, Chris, more than anyone I've ever been with. That's why I'm married to you right now and nobody else. I just…you have to understand where I'm coming from."

"Baby, I do. I understand," Chris said, "despite what you think, the McMahon family is…well, they're my family too."

"That's the first time you've ever really said that," Stephanie smiled softly at his words. It warmed something inside of her. She knew Chris was a part of a larger picture now, with her family, but he always seemed to be a grudging part of it. To hear him say something like this was something else altogether and she liked it.

"Well, I don't admit it often," he chuckled, "but I care about your family. They're my family too. I want to help, I just don't think this is a great idea."

"Sweetie, I just think that we could do this and make it work. I want to bring Randy down. I don't want him hurting my family and he has it out for me. I don't know why. Hunter said I provoked him, but I don't think that's true."

"I don't know about this, Stephanie," Chris said.

"You don't have to do it. I guess it's just a thought I had," Stephanie said. She closed her eyes a moment. "I wouldn't force you to do it. This isn't a dictatorship after all. We work together on these things, I know that. I wouldn't force you too."

Chris sighed. He was going to give in to this, he knew it was only a matter of time. He couldn't say no to Stephanie. He gave in time and time again because he loved her. He'd hidden their relationship for nearly two years because of her. He would obviously do anything for her. It wasn't even that she was persuasive, he just loved her, that was all. He just loved her and always wanted to make her happy and if it was something stupid, he usually did that as well.

"I can't believe I'm saying this…but okay."

"What?"

"I hate you, Stephanie, but whatever, I'll give in."

"You will?" Stephanie asked, her smile widening a little.

"If you were any other person, the answer would be no and it would stay no. But you, Steph, I can't do it. I just can't do it. You're…you and I love you. If you think I can actually get on Randy's side, the least I can do is hear you out."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. But you owe me, McMahon, you owe me _big_."

Stephanie grinned, "I love you so much, I'll do whatever you want!"

"Well, first of all, you can put that to bed," Chris said, glancing at Flynn, who was now sleeping soundly, snuggled into the carpet.

"You got it, Jericho."

**Monday**

"I know it sounds crazy."

"You're damn right it sounds crazy."

"I know, it does. But I think it could work. Look, Chris and I were thinking of ways to break up. There's not a lot we can do to each other anymore that would lead to us breaking up for good. _This_ is the best way. It's also great because you're the champion now. Randy is either going for you or Edge. If you were to be on my side, that would just be perfect."

"You're going along with this, Chris?" Hunter asked over the phone.

"I've long since tried arguing against her," Chris shrugged. "What can I do, man?"

"You're telling me you can just be buddy-buddy with Randy even though he has it out for your wife?" Hunter asked.

"Yeah, I guess," Chris said dully. In truth, he didn't much like this plan because it was _exactly_ the one thing that would make him divorce Stephanie. It was hitting much to close to home. The _one_ thing he always feared was something he was going to have to see.

"Chris?" Stephanie said.

"Yeah, I can get buddy-buddy with him."

"See, he can."

"So you want _me_ to help you?"

"Not just help me, help me, but…I want you to _help_ me," Stephanie said. "If people think we're together, well, I mean, if they think there's a possibility of us together, it's going to piss Chris off. Then, maybe I reveal that I have feelings for you still and Chris gets word of it and he can't handle it and he dumps me."

"Wow, you've really thought hard about this, haven't you?" Hunter asked.

"She was up all night plotting it out. She said you winning was a great thing, the next best thing to me winning," Chris answered. Sawyer took the green crayon out of Chris's hand to use it on the picture he was drawing for his mommy. Chris sighed and grabbed another one to finish his doodling.

"It is," Stephanie said. "I definitely think I can get you over to Raw. I mean, maybe Vickie won't want to give you up or whatever, I don't care, I overrule her. We can get you back over here. You and Chris hated each other, you can totally hate each other again."

"Yeah, I mean, sure, I can hate you," Chris said.

"I just moved in with Britt though."

"It doesn't have to change that," Stephanie said. "At first, well, for tonight I guess, we'll make it seem like friendship. We can do something where we're hanging out and we're just friends, but we tease at more. Besides, I'm not asking you to move in with me or anything. I'd still live with Chris and you could live with Britt to your heart's content. At the shows, it'd be a different story."

"I don't know about this, Stephanie," Hunter said. "It sounds risky and downright weird."

"Weird?"

"We were married before, it didn't work out."

"But we've been friends for years now," Stephanie pointed out. "Maybe we start to feel something a little more."

Chris was gripping the crayon so hard it almost broke in half. He was lucky it didn't because Sawyer would be very mad at him and the last thing he needed was one of the better things in his life right now being mad at him. Flynn was taking a late nap so she was otherwise occupied. Chris didn't want to hear this conversation, but Stephanie was insisting they lay out the plans she wanted to do. She was sucking in Hunter as well.

He officially hated this idea. He was trying very hard to keep his cool about the whole thing, but he downright hated this whole idea. He'd spent a long time thinking back to Hunter and Stephanie's marriage and secretly worrying that she could treat him the same way. The fact remained that Hunter and Stephanie had been married and once upon a time, they had loved each other. What if they were playing around with this entire plan and they fell in love again?

Part of him knew this was irrational. Stephanie loved him and chose to marry him and they had been happily married for over four years now. She'd never once said she was unhappy with him. They had two beautiful children under their belt and who knew how many would spring up at inopportune moments in the future. Stephanie was everything to him. She was the entire source of his happiness, which was strange to think about, but it was true. Her family had gotten wrestling off the ground and made it into what it was today so there was his career right there. He'd married Stephanie so there was the love of his life and she had given him children. Everything he was, either indirectly or directly, was because of Stephanie.

The other part of him remembered and felt the Stephanie she was in the past. Part of him, a very tiny part that resided in his memory, still hated the bitch she had been for years. She had made his life a living hell and loved it. She could go back to that person. She could go back to being that person with Hunter. What if that happened? She'd take his kids away and he'd be damned if she tried that. He would fight her to the death for his kids? He wouldn't have someone else raising them, pretending to be their father.

"Chris!"

Chris looked up. He'd been in such a daze he hadn't seen Stephanie staring at him for a minute or so. She was staring sharply at him and he realized he was gripping Sawyer's crayon in his hand and it was about to break into a million pieces. He cleared his throat and put the crayon down. Stephanie's eyes softened as she took him in and he remembered himself. This woman loved him. She had chosen him. She wasn't the person she used to be, she wasn't the bitch he'd known so long ago. She'd changed.

"Yeah?" he asked.

"I had to go do some stuff for the show. I know Vickie wanted to meet with me because she wanted to discuss whether or not Edge's win is valid."

"Is it?" Chris asked. Maybe it wasn't going to be valid and Stephanie could make the belt vacant and she could put him in a match and he could win and he wouldn't have to go through with this plan.

"Unfortunately, yes," Stephanie said. "When I left with Shane last night, it technically put Vickie in charge and she made the decision to put Edge into it. I don't know why…I mean, I know why, but still, it's valid, stupid, but valid."

"Oh."

"But can you tell Hunter what I wanted to do tonight, if he'd get his ass here."

"Stephanie, I'm driving right now, okay, I didn't expect to come tonight to the show."

"But your girlfriend is here."

"Yes, and that's all well and good, but I've also got a job I need to do and now that we're living together I don't feel like I have to spend every moment I can with her. We can just go home and there she is and there I am. You better not screw that up with your stupid plan."

"I'm not screwing anything up. Do you _love_ me?"

"No," he said immediately. He hadn't loved Stephanie in a very long time. He loved her as a friend, but that was the extent of it.

"I don't love you either so there's nothing going to be screwed up." She looked at Chris as she said this, but he was looking down.

Stephanie wasn't stupid. She could see the insecurity in Chris's eyes and it upset her. Shouldn't he know by now that he was the only man she ever wanted in her life? Chris satisfied her in ways that none of her previous relationships had. What she had with Chris was so comfortable. When she was with him, she knew that everything was going to be alright, even if things felt like they were in shambles. She'd fallen in love with Chris in days. Once she saw how he really was, once he showed her his real self and not the jackass she thought she knew, she couldn't help but fall in love with him.

She wasn't out to hurt him. She was just trying to protect her family. This was how she'd grown up. This was how she was taught to act. If there was an obstacle in her way, she had to come up with some way to overcome it. Thanks to her father, the only way she knew how was through manipulation and scheming. He'd been the master for years, but now her father was incapacitated. She was supposed to claim the power and Randy had ruined that for her and now he had his eyes set on her entire family and she wasn't going to allow that to happen.

She wasn't making Chris get caught in the crossfire. Chris was a good man and she loved him and there was nothing he should worry about. "Well good," Hunter said. "Now that we've got that cleared up, I never really said that I would do this."

"Please?" Stephanie asked. "I'm asking you a favor."

"A _huge_ favor. Stephanie, we've been down this road before and I was the one that got burned."

"You can't get burned if we're not together."

"Well, you've got a point there," Hunter said. He sighed and relented. He, too, was a sucker for Stephanie. "I guess I can go along with it."

"Thank you!" Stephanie exclaimed. "Chris can explain what I wanted to do tonight, right, sweetie?"

"Yeah, sure, go talk to Vickie," Chris said as he stood up and walked over to the desk. Stephanie stood up as well and she slid her arms around Chris's neck and pulled him tightly to her. She pressed her lips against his, tilting her head slightly to the side so he could gain better access to her mouth and he used the opening. He pulled her closer by the waist and kissed her like he did when they were first dating, like it might be the last time, like she'd figure out he wasn't good enough for her and dump her.

Stephanie moaned lightly and licked her lips as she pulled away, "Mmm, you taste good."

"I'm still on the phone," Hunter deadpanned, "and I don't need to hear you guys moaning."

"Sawyer's awake in here, it's not like we're doing anything."

"Still, it's disgusting."

"I was just kissing my husband," Stephanie said as Chris kissed her jaw. She felt him smile against her skin when she said those words. That made her smile in return. They'd be fine.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I thought you had a meeting."

"Oh crap, I do," she said, gently pushing Chris away from her. She gave him a quick peck on the lips before she left to go talk to Vickie, though she could think of about a billion better things to do.

Once Stephanie was out, Chris picked up the phone and took Hunter off speakerphone. "So Steph thinks that maybe you guys could be hanging out and laughing and looking like you're flirting with one another. What we're going to do is I'm going to hand off the kids to her and I'm going to comment, loudly, that we don't really see each other so much since she's been GM and especially because I've gotten my own locker room lately."

"But you haven't…"

"Yeah, but nobody knows that. People can assume I have one just because I'm Stephanie's husband."

"Yeah, I guess, so you guys are going to be 'distant' then, with the quotes around distant," Hunter said.

"Pretty much, yeah. Then you guys seem closer…"

"Are you really okay with this, man?" Hunter asked. He'd gotten close with Chris over the past couple years, as improbable as that was. He felt like he could read Chris to a certain extent. It certainly wasn't at the level Stephanie could, but he thought he could read his friend reasonably well.

"No," Chris said, admitting the truth. What did he have to lose anyways? This was just Hunter after all. He didn't think the man had designs on his wife, considering Hunter knew how difficult it could be being married to Stephanie McMahon. They'd done their share of scheming when they were married. He knew because he was usually the one they were out to get.

"Oh."

"I'm sorry, just the thought of my wife even for one second pretending. Look, no offense to you, man, but you were married to her. You've had sex with my wife numerous times. It's a little awkward having you two getting together or whatever."

"Maybe getting together, apparently," Hunter said.

"Yeah, whatever," Chris said. "Look, it bothers me. It'd bother if you if it were Britt."

"That's true. I don't want Stephanie, Chris."

"I know, but you've been with her before. You _loved_ her before, doesn't that mean you can love her again?"

"No, it doesn't. I don't know what Stephanie's told you about our marriage, but--"

"She's told me enough."

"Look, I loved Stephanie, I really did, but I also came to realize that Stephanie and I just aren't right for each other. We're two of the same and we could never be compatible. I don't love Stephanie and I can't see myself loving her like that again. I have Britt and I love her, God, I love her," Hunter laughed at how mushy he was being. "I've never loved anyone like I've loved Britt. Stephanie isn't even a close second. Stephanie isn't even _second_."

"She's not."

"That would go to Chyna."

"Wow, really?" Chris asked. He was glad Hunter wasn't in front of him because he was making a face. He'd known Chyna pretty well, but wanting to date her? The thought _never_ crossed his mind, no matter how cool she was.

"Yeah, I loved her. I loved her more than Stephanie if we were honest. My marriage to Stephanie was one of convenience. Then we just grew into love. We tried to make it fit around us, but it wasn't going to work, it was never going to work."

"I'm still not assured."

"Trust me, man, I wouldn't do that to you, take me for my word."

Chris had no choice but to accept that. He still wasn't happy about this arrangement though. There was still a swirling cloud of uncertainty when he thought about it. Hunter had given him some insight and it eased his mind a little to think that Hunter loved other people more than he loved Stephanie. For Chris, he had never loved anyone like he loved Stephanie. To think that there could be someone out there he loved more than her was a silly thought because for all intents and purposes, Chris believed he had found his one true person.

Stephanie smiled as she talked to Vickie. "So yeah, Edge is the champion."

"Good, I knew it, but good," Vickie said as she glanced at Edge adoringly. Edge looked bored.

"Congratulations, Edge," Stephanie said politely, but she just couldn't figure Edge out. He wasn't a terrible guy, even though people thought him one. She just wished he would buy himself a clue and dump Vickie already. He was still seeing Lita on the side and it was starting to get to the point where Edge needed to make a decision because people were getting hurt by the second.

"I was hoping to get time at the top of the show to explain this," Vickie said, "only if that's okay with you, since this is your show."

Vickie felt like a viper to Stephanie, but she kept her feelings in check. Vickie was so obviously manipulative and it put a sour feeling in Stephanie's mouth. Stephanie did things covertly and controlled people like they were puppets. Vickie just went out there and didn't care what people thought and that's why people hated her so much.

"Of course you can," Stephanie said in a sickly sweet voice.

"Great, I'm just going to go make sure they have everything cued up. Oh, look at me, I'm just so used to running the show. I should let you handle it."

"You can handle it," Stephanie said.

"Okay," Vickie said, acting like Stephanie should've offered this much earlier. She kissed Edge on the cheek before she left, leaving Stephanie and Edge to their own devices.

"Don't give me that look," Edge said, looking down at his new belt.

"You're obviously back together."

"She thinks so."

"You didn't stop her from kissing you."

"Look, Steph, I'll get rid of her when the time is right. Maybe you can rig it so I come on Raw when you guys have the draft and the distance is just too much and we break up," Edge said, "then I'd be free to see Lita."

"What does she think of this entire thing?"

"She's…well, she doesn't like it," he frowned. "But she understands that my career is important to me. She was with me when I was the champion, she knows how I get. She knows that this is how it has to be for now."

"You're probably crushing that poor girl," Stephanie said.

"I know what I'm doing," Edge said. "Vickie isn't going to be around forever."

"So you're just going to wait for her to die? Because that could take a very long time, you know," Stephanie said sarcastically. "I'd hate for that to be your plan."

"It's not the plan. What I meant is that she'll move on at some point," Edge said. "I mean, I thought Big Show wanted her. I was kind of hoping they were having an affair with one another, but no such luck. I guess I just have to deal with what I've got for now. But don't worry, I will take care of things."

"I should hope so," Stephanie said, "for Lita's sake because she doesn't deserve what you're doing to her. And as much as I hate to say it, neither does Vickie."

"Thanks, Stephanie," Edge said forlornly and Stephanie felt bad for a moment, but she had plans and things to take care of tonight and she couldn't be sitting around here waxing poetic with Edge.

"Just saying," she winked and then left. She wanted to plan the kids exchange thing soon. The show was starting in five minutes and everyone would be around to see the exchange. She and Chris had practiced it so it would go perfectly. Now if only Hunter would get here so they could implement the other part of the plan.

Except a better opportunity came up.

Stephanie had only managed to see her brother's challenge by accident. She'd been walking to get some privacy so she could inquire as to Hunter's whereabouts when she passed a monitor and saw her brother. She stopped and could hear his voice ringing throughout the backstage. He was _challenging_ Randy. Was he crazy? This was absolutely nuts on his part. He had just been in the hospital the night before, weaving in and out of consciousness, and now he fancied himself an unsanctioned fight. Did he not see what Chris had come out looking like when he had his own unsanctioned match?

Stephanie had wanted to implement her plan, but now she had bigger fish to fry. She had no idea where her brother was so now she had to go find him. She searched the halls until she found him, having to ask around to see if anyone had seen her brother arrive. She got to his locker room and chewed him out for what he was doing. It was foolhardy and dangerous. Shane was not a wrestler, no matter how many times he wished he was. He needed to leave these things to the professionals. She was taking care of things and now her brother was coming her, fresh from the hospital, wanting a fight. She tried to reason with him, but he wouldn't have it.

Stephanie dialed her phone immediately afterwards, "Marissa, I'm killing your husband."

"Only after I get to him first," Marissa said. "He will not listen to me, I've tried to tell him this is a horrible idea, but he's being an ass about it."

"So you can't convince him otherwise?"

"Believe me, I tried. I even tried to get the doctors to make him stay another night, but they had no cause to, so they had to release him. I should've bribed them," she said.

Stephanie sighed. "I'll take care of it."

Stephanie had to change the plan. She dialed Hunter's number this time, "Where are you?"

"I'm on my way."

"What does that mean?"

"It means I'm on my way."

"My stupid brother is putting himself in a fight with Randy. I need you here."

"Chris is there."

"Hunter, this is the plan. I'm changing it. Look, you have to look out for me. That's what's going to happen."

Hunter groaned, "Why did I marry you way back when? My life was goo before I got involved with you. If I hadn't, right now, I'd be sitting on my bed, perhaps bugging my girlfriend over the phone. But no, instead I'm driving like a madman to protect a woman I don't love."

"Well, you love my kids, right? Think of this as protecting Sawyer and Flynn."

"Wow, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, that was low," Hunter told her.

"You've got to play dirty in this business, just get your ass here as soon as possible, Hunter."

"Okay, okay," he said, then hung up. He dialed Britt's number.

"Hello?"

"Hey babe, it's me."

"Hey, where are you?"

"On my way there?"

"To surprise me?" Britt asked.

"No, um, Stephanie and I are going to be together," Hunter said.

"Excuse me?"

"I mean, she's planning something. She's planning to have Chris get buddy-buddy with Randy so she can bring him down and in order to stage this to make it look like Chris has left her, I'm going to be…well, getting too close with Stephanie and this is going to blow up and make Chris want to divorce her."

"Oh my God, is this like one of her epic plans?" Britt asked.

"What?"

"You know, like where it's this huge plan, like when she got both Randy _and_ Dave to turn against you?" she asked. "And you had no idea?"

Hunter grumbled, "Well, yeah."

"Oh my God, I want in!" Britt said excitedly. "I want to be part of something huge, what can I do?"

"Well, we might have to pretend break up."

"Okay."

"You said that really quick."

"It's just pretend," Britt said. "I'm going to go talk to Stephanie and see what I can do!"

Stephanie was with the kids at the moment. Chris was out there talking and he was pissed. He was just pissed off in general. He didn't care about this crap with Flair. If he'd had his way, he would've won the night before and taken the title and defended his wife. Instead, he was thinking of ways to instead sidle right on up to Randy, a guy who had knocked his wife into a wall and then thought about kicking her in the head. So people would have to excuse him if he wasn't his chipper self.

Piper got the brunt of his anger. He didn't care about a word this man had to say. He owned this business and he could say whatever the hell he wanted to about all of them. They were all beneath him and Piper had the nerve to come out here and respond. Chris took quick care of him by knocking him down. He had no remorse either. Maybe if he wasn't losing his wife in oh, maybe twenty minutes, he'd care more about what these men had to say, but as it was, all of them could go shove sticks where the sun doesn't shine.

Britt burst into Stephanie's office. "Tell me what I can do!"

"Well, I don't have anything right now."

"No, with the plan. Hunter told me, not in detail, but I can get those later. I want to help. I want to be a part of this, it sounds so cool and bringing down Randy. I mean, what fun. So tell me what I can do."

"You don't care that I might have to pretend to be with Hunter?"

"Are you going to sleep with him?"

"Gross, no."

"Then what do I care?" Britt said, showing how much she didn't care with that statement.

"Oh, well, okay," Stephanie said, looking down. "You can spread rumors."

"Rumors, like what?"

"Well, just saying how Chris and I are really always fighting and how we don't see each other as much as people would think," Stephanie said, then the lightbulb went off. "Yeah, that'd be great if you could do that. You're my assistant so you would definitely see these things. You could just casually mention that things between Chris and I are going really rough right now. People would absolutely believe you and gossip spreads around here more than Kelly Kelly spreads her legs, if the rumors about her are true."

"I can do this. I will do this right now," Britt said. "This is just so cool. Hunter's told me all about your plans and so has Chris. Well, the big, big ones, way back when I first started. He told me about the Bischoff thing and all of that and Hunter told me about how you cajoled Randy _and_ Dave. It's just awesome and I so want in."

Stephanie laughed, "I never really thought of them as fun."

"Oh, it'll be cool. I'm going to go gossip," Britt grinned, then left the room.

Stephanie widened her eyes. She had planned to switch the kids off after Chris went out there to talk anyways. She had to make sure her brother didn't do something crazy like climb to the rafters and try a Swanton bomb or something. Sawyer and Flynn were both awake, Flynn wide awake since she'd had a late nap.

"Sawyer, we have to go meet Daddy," Stephanie said.

"Why?"

"Because I have to talk to Uncle Shane," she explained to him.

"I cowor, Mommy," he whined.

"I know you're coloring, but Daddy can color with you, okay?"

"Oh, okay!" Sawyer said.

"Gather up your crayons and your book." Sawyer obediently grabbed his crayons and shoved the large instruments into the box and folded up his coloring book, then standing up. Stephanie lifted Flynn into her arms and then led Sawyer out of the room. They walked down near the gorilla where the most traffic was. Chris was leaning against the wall, looking down at the floor.

"Daddy!" Sawyer said, rushing over to him.

"Hey, kid," Chris said, ruffling his hair. Stephanie came over and handed him Flynn. "Thanks, baby, I'm really, really sorry I couldn't be around earlier. I've just been so busy."

"Me too," Stephanie said, glancing around. "I feel like we haven't got any time for us anymore."

"Well, sorry, for that, but I've actually got to go. I've got a lot of things to do, you know," Chris shrugged.

"Oh, I was hoping we could talk," she said.

"Can't, sorry, come on kids, let's go," Chris said, leading Sawyer away.

Britt looked over at them and then at the makeup girl she was talking to, "You know, Chris and Stephanie are having problems."

"What? Are you serious? But they seem so happy," Larissa said.

"I know, you'd think so, but I'm around them a lot when they're in private and they are constantly at odds with each other. I mean constantly. I don't know, they hardly see each other either. She's so busy running the show and he's a wrestler and with two kids. I don't know, it's not looking good from what I hear."

"Wow, that is crazy. Do you know how many women around here would _love_ it if Chris Jericho were single?"

"I know, right," Britt said. "He's pretty hot."

"I know, wow, I've got people to tell."

Britt just smirked and let the gossips do their worst.

By the time Stephanie was calling Hunter to see where he was before the match, the news had spread and spread about Chris and Stephanie. There were wild rumors going around, some of them relating back to that huge fight they'd had the other week that was suspiciously swept under the rug. The rumor about that was they were trying to ignore it for the kids. That was another rumor, they were only staying together for their children and both of them wanted a divorce. Stephanie was getting looks left and right, some sympathetic, some not-so-sympathetic. It was all working perfectly.

Until Shane got hurt again.

Stephanie knew she probably shouldn't have gone out there. Hunter said he would take care of things, help her out. She could've stayed backstage and sent him out there. But her brother was hurt and she needed to be with him. Randy was still there and she got in his face and then, like in slow motion, she was being RKO'ed. She was shocked as she fell face-first to the mat and then it was nothingness.

Chris was nearly pulling out his hair and was resisting every urge in his body. He saw Hunter run out there and go straight for Stephanie, checking up on her and grabbing her hand and holding it. He looked absolutely pissed and Chris couldn't tell if it was real or fake. It looked real. He looked like Chris felt. Chris was shaking with anger and his feet ached to run out there and kill Randy. How could Stephanie expect him to sit here and not care about her? How could he be expected to _befriend _Randy after that? Plus, seeing Hunter dote over her was bringing those feelings back. He didn't like this one bit.

Stephanie opened her eyes and saw blue. She shrank back a little. It was just Chris's face hovering over hers. "Hey," he said, "Stephanie, this plan is stupid, you're hurt."

"I'm fine," she told him. "I mean, I am fine, right?"

"Yeah, just a little banged up."

"Where are my babies?"

"Britt and Hunter have them."

"Oh, good," Stephanie said, still a little hazy.

"I can't do this, Stephanie."

"What happened after he took me down?"

"Hunter was your knight in shining armor," Chris said derisively.

"And you?"

"Sat back like a damn coward. But don't worry, I didn't ruin your plan. I didn't go beat up Randy, even though, as your husband, I should've ripped him limb from limb and then grabbed his still beating heart from his chest."

"I'm okay, Chris," she interrupted, grabbing his hand and pulling him to the bed. He climbed in next to her and held her. "I'll be fine."

"I don't want to be away from you. I don't want to pretend to be away from you."

"It's just for a while."

"I can't handle it. I could barely handle it tonight. I can't do it, Steph."

"I'm okay. I'll be fine. It'll all be fine."

"I don't think it will be."

"We'll take him down and that'll be the end of it. Nothing will happen to us."

"How do you know that?" he implored.

"Because Chris Jericho, you're it for me. Even if time, distance, space, anything separates us, there is only you for me," she told him, pulling her closer as she started to drift off again.

She was asleep before he could respond so he kissed her cheek and let himself drift off as well. He had to trust her. He just wish he could tell her something too…

There was only her for him.


	223. So Fake, February 23, 2009

A/N: Sorry this is up so late, the site was having issues and all of that and I couldn't post it. Anyways, I hope this came out okay and everything. Kind of like wading around in the dark right now so leave a review and let me know what you think. Also there's some mild swearing, you've been warned. Enjoy! :)

Oh, and on another note, this whole H/Steph thing has kind of set a fire under me for writing so I'm probably going to start updating whenever I want to update so you have to be on your toes now because who knows when I'll update! :P

* * *

"Hunter and Stephanie are having an affair!"

Randy had not expected to hear that when he opened the door, but there was Britt, her hair falling in her face and her eyes red from crying. She was sniffling, which meant she had been crying very recently. Her clothes looked disheveled as well. Randy didn't quite know what to make of it or of what she'd just said. Stephanie and Hunter? Together? An affair? It was sending his mind reeling.

It would explain why it was Hunter that went out there on Monday. It would explain it a lot. He'd heard some things going around when he was at Raw, things about Chris and Stephanie. There were very serious rumors going around that their marriage was disintegrating. He had taken those as a grain of salt though. Chris and Stephanie never really seemed unhappy to him, but maybe they were when they weren't at the shows. Maybe they even put up a front for people so nobody would suspect their marriage was in shambles.

"Um, what?" he asked, still not comprehending what she was saying.

He just couldn't believe that Hunter and Stephanie would be together. It hadn't slipped his mind that they were actually married once upon a time, but he figured whatever feelings were there had no disappeared. Never-mind the fact he hadn't known either one of them when they were married to each other. Could it possibly be true? If not, why _was_ Hunter the one to come out after Stephanie and check on her? Why wasn't it Chris? It only made sense if it was really true that Chris and Stephanie's marriage was that bad.

"Hunter…Hunter…he and Stephanie are having an affair," Britt said, her bottom lip quivering. "I just…I didn't know…and they…I didn't know where else to go…"

"I mean, um, Chris's?" Randy said dumbly.

"No, he's so pissed off. He said he never wants to see Stephanie again and he hates her," Britt said. "He threw her out of the house…I think she's going back to Connecticut to be with Hunter or something, I don't even know!"

"What about your parents?" he asked.

"They don't live…they just, I couldn't face them and I have nowhere to go because I moved in with him, I'm so stupid!" Britt said. "All my friends told me not to, they said it was a bad idea and I'd feel so humiliated if I showed up at their doorsteps and they'd be right."

"So you came to me?"

"I didn't know where else to go," Britt said. "I didn't…I just…I'm so upset."

Randy nodded, his brain clearing a little bit more. Things were changing, something was going down and actually…in some ways, this was to his benefit. "Come in, you must be freezing," he told her, stepping onto his porch and putting his arm around her. "You shouldn't have to stand out here like that."

"Thanks," Britt said as Randy led her into his house. He took her coat off and threw it onto the table next to the door. He led her into his living room and she sat down on the couch in the room. She looked around, rubbing her arms and looking for all the world a broken woman. She sniffled a little and looked down and away, as if ashamed she had to resort to this.

"Did you want some coffee or something?" he asked.

"That would be great, thanks," she said, giving him the best smile she could muster at the moment, which wasn't much.

Randy went into the kitchen and busied himself with making a cup of instant coffee. His mind was reeling now. What did this mean for him? Hunter was a pretty angry guy generally. If he was with Stephanie, he was going to be pissed. Would he have to contend with Chris too? No, Britt had said Chris was pissed so he wouldn't be gunning after him. Chris had his own problems as it was. But Hunter was on SmackDown, yet, if he _was_ with Stephanie, she could just tell him he could go wherever he wanted. Hell, he could go to ECW if he wanted.

Randy got the coffee ready and handed a cup to Britt as he sat down next to her. Britt took a sip and looked at him, "Why did you kick her?"

"I'm not sure," he said, though he was sure. She had been getting on his nerves and something inside of him just snapped. "I just…lost it."

"Oh," she said, then laughed humorlessly, "I kind of want to do the same thing."

He tentatively reached out and rubbed her back. She didn't shy away from the contact so he just kept trying to comfort her. This was his in, finally! He was finally getting somewhere with her. All it took was Hunter screwing up. He should've known that Hunter would screw up somewhere down the line. He probably started messing around with Stephanie to get what he wanted. That was usually how Hunter worked.

"I don't blame you, how did you find out?" Randy asked curiously.

"I asked…I'm sorry," she said, covering her face, "I asked him about the entire thing with Stephanie. I asked why he looked so angry. He said they were friends, but I kept pushing and I kept pushing and he told me the truth. I called Chris and he didn't believe it at first, I guess he just didn't want to believe it, but then…he asked Stephanie and she confessed it too and he told her to leave…at least that's what I heard. He was so angry he could barely get the words out."

"Wow," Randy said. "I can't believe this."

"I can't either, I just…I'm so upset," she said, "I've never been cheated on before, I don't know how to feel. I want to kill him, but I'm just, it's like there's a rock in my stomach and I'm drowning."

"It'll be okay, you didn't need him anyways," Randy told her.

"I _just_ moved into his house, I don't have anywhere to go, I have nowhere to stay, I'm homeless!" she lamented. "I have no home."

"You can…well, I mean, you can stay here if you want to," he told her.

"I couldn't impose," she told him. "I don't even know why I'm here. I don't know why I just…I don't know, I just don't know what I'm doing anymore."

"You'll be fine. You're not imposing, I live here by myself. The McMahons are manipulative assholes anyways, I'm glad people are finally starting to see that."

"She was my friend and she's been with my boyfriend and…Chris, God, Chris, I just can't believe she'd do that to him. He's so angry. I tried to call him, but he wasn't having it. He just said to leave him the hell alone. I don't know how he's going to deal with this."

"It'll be okay," Randy just kept telling her. "It'll be okay."

"I wish I could believe you."

Stephanie opened the door with a smile, "Hunter, you made it. Did Britt get off okay?"

"Yeah, she should be at Randy's by now," he told her as he stepped inside her house. "She's really gung ho about this whole thing, kind of worries me."

Stephanie laughed, "She wants to be included, that's all."

"Yeah, she never has had the pleasure of being in on one of the patented huge McMahon plans. How are you doing after the RKO?"

"I'm fine," she answered, rubbing her neck. "I was sore yesterday, but I'm fine today. It was just an RKO, Shane got the gist of it. I'm going to play it up though, make it seem like I'm really hurt. It'll make me look more sympathetic in the fan's eyes. We want them on our side."

"Yeah, we have a lot to figure out here, I mean, I know what you're having Britt say and she knows, but well, where do we go from here is what I'm wondering…"

"That's why you're here," Stephanie said. "I scheduled an interview with JR for Friday so you can explain yourself."

"Oh, well, okay, I guess," Hunter said as he walked inside. He walked into the living room and saw Flynn wailing in her playpen.

"What's wrong with her?" Hunter asked.

"Sawyer and Chris are in the backyard and she wants to be out there too, but they're on the playground and she's too little. She wants to be around Sawyer and she's pissed that she has to sit in there. She hates the playpen."

"But she's got a ton of toys," Hunter said, observing the mountain of toys sitting next to the little girl.

Stephanie laughed, "Yeah, but she doesn't want to play with them. She doesn't like the playpen because we don't usually put her in it. We usually let her crawl around with Sawyer or she's in someone's arms or just on the play blanket, but she hates the playpen, she's not used to it."

"Oh, well, can't you take her out."

"Well, I was going to talk with you in my office."

"Chris isn't going to help?"

"He doesn't really want to, plus someone has to watch the kids," Stephanie said.

"We can stay in here," Hunter told her, "if that means Flynn will feel better."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, it's cool."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, going over and plucking Flynn out of the playpen and setting her down on the ground. "There you go, crazy, you're free."

Flynn started crawling towards the sliding door and she whined when she saw Sawyer and Chris running around and chasing each other. She sat her little butt down in front of the window and watched them, slamming her hands against the glass. Stephanie rolled her eyes as she saw the little handprints that were now on the glass. Flynn was being such a little drama queen. She kept looking back at Stephanie with those eyes, like she just _needed_ to go outside and be with her brother and daddy.

Stephanie turned to Hunter, who was sitting down in one of the chairs, "Thanks for doing this. Chris is hell-bent on bringing all the Hall of Famers down. I can only imagine what's going to happen when he gets inducted one day. Plus, this gives us the element of surprise."

"Yeah, it does," Hunter said as he looked at Flynn, who was making little whiny noises in addition to her hand slapping against the glass. "Aren't you going to get her away from the window?"

"Why?" Stephanie asked. "She's just looking outside."

"But she's making the glass dirty."

Stephanie laughed, "She's a baby, she makes everything dirty. I don't care about that. She just wants to watch Sawyer and Chris."

"If you say so," he said, "I would get her away from the glass so she doesn't make it so dirty."

"I know you would," Stephanie said. "So…you and I are having an affair."

"I guess we are, kind of weird though, having this affair when your husband is right there," Hunter joked, jerking his thumb towards the backyard where Chris's yelling could be heard as he chased after his son.

"Yeah, he's very open about these things," she joked back. She was about to start talking in earnest about the plan when they heard a high-pitched yell from outside. Flynn's mouth opened and she looked at Stephanie, wondering what the hell that was. She started going towards her mommy as the sliding door opened and Chris carried in a crying Sawyer. "What happened!"

"He fell, he's clumsy, I don't know where he gets that," Chris said, nodding to Hunter, "I'm going to get this cleaned up."

"Mommy, I hurt!" Sawyer yelled at her, like she couldn't see.

"Are you okay?"

"No, I not," he complained. "I fall down."

"Oh, that's horrible, baby boy," Stephanie pouted. "Let Daddy go clean that up and I'll kiss it better, okay?"

Sawyer sniffled, but he seemed okay with the arrangement and nodded. Chris took him upstairs and into his and Stephanie's bedroom. He saw Sawyer on the large bathroom counter and grabbed the Band-Aids from underneath the sink. He also grabbed the alcohol and set it on the counter. Sawyer knew that stuff stung and tried to be brave, but he was getting scared too. He looked pensively as Chris unscrewed the cap.

"It'll be okay, kid," Chris said as he dabbed some onto a cotton pad and then took Sawyer's hand and rubbed it on. Sawyer winced and tried to pull his hand away, but Chris didn't let him. "I'm almost done. You were bleeding and you could've gotten dirt in there, this will help."

"It hurt," Sawyer said, looking down at his hand, studying his wound.

"I know, I'm sorry, kid," Chris said, then grabbed one of his Spongebob Band-Aids and put it on Sawyer's hand, covering up the gash. He lifted Sawyer down and he ran out of the bathroom, seemingly fine now that he didn't actually have to see the cut. Chris followed him and caught him trying to climb over the baby fence on the stairs. "Hey, hey, hey, stop right there!"

Hunter looked up towards the yelling and he shook his head, "I don't know how you deal with two kids."

"It's not a big deal," Stephanie said. "You get used to it."

"I don't think I'll ever be used to that," Hunter said, "not that Britt and I have ever seriously discussed having kids. I mean, I know she wants them someday."

"You with kids…yeah, can't picture it."

"I could have kids if I wanted to."

"Well, you didn't give me any so that's still up in the air," Stephanie joked.

"I'm not like Chris where he can touch you and you end up pregnant," Hunter joked back.

"What's this about me getting someone pregnant?" Chris asked as he put Sawyer down. He ran right up to Stephanie and held out his hand. She took his wrist in her hand and kissed his palm.

"There, all better," Stephanie said and Sawyer grinned and then ran over to play with Flynn, who was delighted to see her brother. She had been waiting for him for a _long_ time. Sawyer kissed her head sweetly and then started throwing a soft ball at her. She couldn't catch it, but she tried to bat her hands on it when it was near her. Sawyer was only allowed to throw very soft things at her. He'd gotten in trouble when he tried to throw one of her rattles at her, but he thought she could get out of the way of it, but she couldn't, that's what his mommy told him. "Hunter was just making fun of our fertility."

"Our super fertility you mean," Chris said, crashing down onto the couch next to Stephanie. He wrapped his arm around her loosely as he propped his feet up on the coffee table. "What are you guys talking about?"

"We're trying to coordinate what we're going to do with this entire plan," Stephanie explained. "We've already got Britt at Randy's telling him that Hunter and I are having an affair. I also told her to say how you were absolutely pissed and you'd kicked me out. I'm not sure who's going to have the kids though."

"Well, if they're going to be in Florida the entire time," Chris said, "I think that we should say they're staying with me. I think that also really works with the whole affair thing."

"You're helping?" Stephanie asked, raising an eyebrow. She knew Chris was uncomfortable with this entire plan so she didn't want to ask for his help because he might feel put out by what was going on.

"Might as well," Chris shrugged. "If you guys are going to do this, you might as well have my evil genius mind thrown in the mix."

"You sure?" Stephanie whispered, her eyes softening as she addressed him quietly. Hunter felt like he was intruding on a moment here.

Chris nodded, "It's fine. I mean, I'm not happy about it, but if it makes you happy, it makes me happy that you're happy."

Stephanie smiled and kissed him on the cheek. "So you think that we should stay the kids are staying with me?"

"I think so, I mean, you can take them with you if you want," Chris said. "Do you think that would go better?"

"But I'm their mother, don't kids usually go with their mom? Especially when they're that young?"

"If I'm pissed off at you for cheating on me, with him of all people, don't you think I would kick you out and not let you take the kids?"

"That's a good point," Stephanie said.

"Plus," Hunter added, "if you ask Sawyer where he lives is he really going to be able to say that he's with you and not in Florida?"

"That's right," Stephanie said, "he's right. If someone asks Sawyer, he's not going to know to lie, he's just a baby. He won't know. I guess that means they'll be staying with you."

"Steph, baby, you know you still live here, right?" Chris chuckled.

"Oh yeah," she laughed, shaking her head. "Sorry, it was just like, I don't like thinking about that, it's weird. I don't like thinking that my kids would have to live with either one of us. Promise we'll never break up."

"Oh, the irony," Chris said drolly, "I'm married to you, you're kind of stuck with me anyways, so you know…I'm not going anywhere, even though we're kind of breaking up, for television and all that. Did you tell your parents and Shane what's going on?"

"Yeah, they all know. They're willing to go along with it if it brings Randy down. Even my mom is into it, I never really thought that would happen," Stephanie said. Her mother had actually been very for the plan. Stephanie figured that Linda seeing both her children felled in the span of a few minutes had incited a fire under her.

"Cool," Hunter said. "It's been a while since I've been this vindictive, kind of feels good."

"Yeah, now back to the plan at hand," Stephanie said. "Okay, so Hunter and I have been having an affair, how long do you think this affair should be going on? I mean, I did just have Flynnie, should it have been even before then?"

"It would make a bigger impact if it were longer," Hunter reasoned.

"Yeah," Stephanie said, then turned to Chris, "What do you think?"

He sighed, "Well, if you're going to be having an affair, the longer it has gone on, the more sense it makes to have had it go on longer. I mean, if we've been 'having problems' for a while, but hiding them, it makes the most sense that you'd go to Hunter."

"So like, a year? Two?" Stephanie said.

"Maybe a year and a half," Chris said. "Because you have to add in the fact you were pregnant with Flynn."

"Chris…"

"Yeah?" he asked, looking over at her.

"If Hunter and I have been having an affair for over a year and close to two years…I mean, do you think…um," Stephanie cleared her throat, "people are going to wonder about Flynn's paternity."

Chris hadn't thought about that. Flynn definitely looked more like Stephanie than she did him. He could see his own features in her, but they were still muddled because she was still an infant. He looked at Hunter for a moment. He didn't really think Flynn could be mistaken for his daughter. Sawyer couldn't pass for Hunter's kid. Sawyer looked exactly like Chris had as a child and those eyes couldn't be mistaken for anyone but Chris's. People could look at Flynn and maybe see Hunter if they squinted, but there just wasn't any of him in there to begin with so molding her to look like Hunter would take work.

"That's right," Hunter said, furrowing his brow.

"Well, look," Chris spoke up. "Here's what we can do…" Stephanie looked at him in surprise. She hadn't expected him to be the one to resolve this. She kind of expected him to stew about and she would've understood that. "The kids are mine, obviously, I mean, Sawyer completely and totally obviously. Flynn looks like you, Steph, and she does look like me, I don't think she could really pass as Hunter's kid."

"I agree," Stephanie interjected.

"So we absolutely say they're mine since…they're mine," he told her, "but what if we say that I've been away so much, by your standards, that Hunter _feels_ more like their father."

"I like that," Stephanie said, "I can live with that."

"Yeah, sounds fine to me," Hunter shrugged. "I'm just along for the ride here."

"That way my kids are mine, but it plays into whatever evil scheme you have going," Chris said, tapping her in the shoulder.

"So what are the means to an end here? Am I going to like, 'marry' Stephanie?" Hunter asked.

"Well, if we've been having an affair, I would think it'd be easy to say that we are in love--"

"Gag me," Chris interrupted and Stephanie laughed a little.

"I agree with the sentiment," Stephanie said, "but I think it'd be the easy route to say we've been together, Chris and I have been really drifting apart to the point of separation and I've been lonely so I went to Hunter. Since we're now 'out in the open,' Hunter and I are in love and want to get married and you, Chris, have filed for divorce. It makes you look sympathetic in Randy's eyes, but doesn't make you too much of a pansy."

"Why do I feel like you've thought out scenarios for how we're going to get divorced?" Chris asked playfully.

"Oh trust me, I've got millions," she winked.

**Friday**

Stephanie rolled over in bed and reached for Chris, but rolled over into nothing. The sheets were cool too and that woke her up. She opened her eyes and looked to her right. Her eyes were not adjusted to the dark, but she felt around and couldn't locate Chris anywhere on their bed. She blinked a few more times and let her eyes adjust. She looked around, but no Chris. She sat up and called out his name, but there was no answer.

She rolled her neck around, taking out the kinks that were still lingering from Randy's RKO and then got out of bed. Flynn slept through the night so she didn't think Chris would be in the nursery, but she went and checked anyways, peeking her head into the room. Stephanie could see Flynn sleeping soundly in her crib, the soft glow of the nightlight illuminating her angelic face. Stephanie watched her small chest rise and fall a few times before she closed the door again.

As long as she was up she figured she would check on Sawyer too. She opened his door all the way and took a few steps inside so she could see his bed. His covers were all down by his ankles and Stephanie smiled to herself before going over and pulling them up and over him. He sighed in his sleep, something Chris did too, and then rolled over and away from her. She brushed his hair away from his face, taking note that he needed a haircut soon. She smiled down at him and then left him to his dreams as she went in search of her husband.

She found him in the kitchen, sitting on one of the barstools a cup in front of him. It looked like tea, judging from the kettle on the stovetop. It was weird to see her husband drinking tea. She always had a supply of it because she liked to alternate between tea and coffee, but Chris would only drink tea when she was drinking it. He looked up as he heard her bare feet padding across the floor.

"Hey," she said quietly, though why she was so quiet she didn't know. The kids were upstairs and wouldn't hear them and it was just them down there. "What're you doing?"

"Getting some tea," he said, "I would've gotten a beer, but we didn't have any."

"Drinking alone is no good," she said, sitting next to him on another barstool. "Penny for your thoughts?"

"I was just thinking about earlier…on SmackDown, everything Hunter said. With him calling you his wife, you know, like he was going to marry you or something, like he was going to be yours and then saying you were the mother of his children, it was weird. I mean, I know we discussed it and everything and I _know_ it's not real, but it's still weird, you know," he said, taking another sip of his tea. It was starting to go a little cold, but he still drank it.

"It's just a plan."

"I know it's just a plan and I understand that and I'm okay with planning and everything, my mind just won't get off the fact that this is _Hunter_, this is the man you were married to before me and here he is, saying these things and I feel like the outsider. I feel like I'm the guy on the outside looking in again."

"Were you looking in when Hunter and I were married before?" Stephanie asked.

"Well, not really, I guess. I didn't want to be with you then, I just wanted to irk you then because I didn't like you, but I knew you were married, you know and I still antagonized you. It just feels like now we're apart again."

"We're not apart."

"You're going to kiss him, I can feel it," Chris said. "To go full-out at some point you're going to kiss him."

"I kissed him before, remember?" Stephanie reminded him.

"Thanks for reminding me of that," Chris said, glancing at her.

Stephanie linked her arms around his left arm and leaned her chin on his shoulder. "I didn't feel anything when I kissed him."

"Yeah?" he asked, though he knew she hadn't.

"No, it was like…it was like kissing for acting. This is all it is, acting," Stephanie told him, shrugging her shoulders a little. "It's a job for me, it's not for pleasure. When I kiss Hunter, none of that whatever we had back then is there. When I kiss you, on the other hand, it's so much different. It's…way better."

"I'm totally a better kisser than he is."

"You are," Stephanie told him immediately. "It was weird for me to hear it too, you know. I don't like the idea of him calling me his wife, but it was necessary. We just have to play up the fact he's under the impression that we're going to get married again."

"Yeah, but you aren't."

"Kind of can't since I'm already married to you," Stephanie told him.

"And don't you forget it, whatever you do."

"Yes, sir."

**Monday**

"Act pissed, remember that," Stephanie told him.

Chris rolled his eyes and was glad his wife couldn't see because if she could, she'd probably hit him. "I'm going to act pissed, trust me. Why would I act happy if the man I called a friend stole my wife right out from under me?"

"I don't know, because you forget to act pissed?"

He rolled his eyes again, "You're unbelievable, Steph. Sometimes I think I should just turn you over to him."

"Oh, now you joke about it, when you want me out of the picture, that's when you're like, 'wife for sale, I've got a wife for sale!' and you don't even care."

"Of course I care, I expect to be triply compensated for this plan, you know," he told her. "I'm serious too. I expect you to become like my sex slave. I want you to get naked for me whenever I want."

"If we can pull this off," Stephanie said, "I will grant you that."

"Are you serious?"

"Yes, I am serious," Stephanie said. "Whenever you want it, I'll give it."

"Well that made this all a little more interesting."

"So I pretty much have to give you my body and you're willing to do whatever for me, is that what you're saying here?" Stephanie asked.

"This is exactly what I'm saying," Chris told her. "Need I remind you that we have two kids so time is at a premium at our house? We're constantly taking care of them."

"But Flynn sleeps through the night now so we have that time."

"Yeah, until Sawyer wakes up and decides he wants some water or that he wants to sleep with us because he's scared. That's not fun when you're feeling up your wife and your son knocks on the door."

Stephanie laughed, "He's just a baby. He doesn't know any better and we get plenty of time with each other if you haven't forgotten. We had sex last night, more than once."

"Anomaly," Chris joked.

"I wish it were an anomaly," Stephanie said, "at this rate I'm going to get pregnant again."

"Great, then you'll have to say it's Hunter's."

"Oh God, that's right," she said, making a face. "Hold on, Sawyer wants to say hi."

Chris heard a shuffling on the phone and a little bit of arguing between Stephanie and Sawyer and then a loud, "Hi Daddy!"

Chris had to physically pull the phone away from his ear, "Hey, kid, what's up?"

"I eating," Sawyer told him.

"What are you eating? Did Mommy make you something?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer nodded, "kicken sammy and…Mommy, what dat?"

"Asparagus," Chris heard her say.

"Pagus," Sawyer answered.

"Wow, that sounds like a really good dinner," Chris told him, "I can't believe Mommy made you dinner. She never makes me dinner."

"I like you," Sawyer told him.

"Well thanks," Chris said, "I like you too. Could you put your mommy on the phone though?"

"Okay," Sawyer said. "Bye, Daddy, love you!"

"I love you too," Chris told him affectionately, then heard more shuffling on the phone and Sawyer handing it off to Stephanie.

"Hey again," Stephanie said.

"The kid gets chicken sandwiches and you just tell me to get my own food?"

"I like him," Stephanie said.

Chris was about to answer when he heard a knocking on his window. He looked over and saw Kelly Kelly and Mickie James standing outside his car. He looked confused, but rolled down the window and looked at them, "Um, did you guys need something?"

"We heard about what happened between you and Stephanie," Mickie explained, "then we saw you sitting out here in your car and we just wanted to come over and make sure you were okay. We heard what happened with her and Hunter and we're really sorry."

"Um, can you hold on just a second," Chris said, thinking quickly, "I'm on the phone with my dad right now, I might go stay with him…"

"Oh, oh, of course," Kelly Kelly said, "we wouldn't want to intrude." She pulled Mickie away from the car and Chris rolled up the window again.

"What's going on?" Stephanie said, only hearing muffled voices since Chris had brought the phone down to his lap. "Who were you talking to?"

"That was Mickie and Kelly Kelly," Chris said, "they heard what happened and they wanted to comfort me."

"Why do I get the feeling their idea of comfort is decidedly more hands-on than I'd like?"

"Because it probably is," Chris told her. "You don't have to worry about that though. You're the one having the affair, I have to play it off like I'm completely faithful. I guess it's time to actually go to work and act like I hate you and hate Hunter and hate the world."

"Brood, sweetie, brood like you've never brooded before."

"Seriously, you owe me with this one."

"I know, I know, naked, blah, blah, blah, lots of sex, I _get_ it."

"Just go take care of my children, okay, since I left them with you even though they are under my custody because their mother is a complete whore and ran off with her lover," Chris told her.

"You're sure you're okay with this?"

"I'm getting more okay with it," Chris told her honestly. "It hurts, I won't lie, but you want me to get on Randy's good side so that's what I'm set out to do. As long as my kids stay my kids, I think I'll be okay."

"They're your kids," she told him, "they will always be your kids."

"Great, so time to put on the show," Chris said, "I love you, tell Flynn I love her too, I already told the monster."

"Okay, I love you too…and thank you for doing this, sweetie, you're the best."

Chris hung up the phone and grabbed his things from the passenger seat. He got out of the car, beeping it to lock and then started walking over to the entrance. Mickie and Kelly Kelly were still standing there so he added a little trudge to his walk, dragging his feet a little and looking down about things, but also a little pissed. He figured that if Stephanie ever did cheat on him, he'd feel a mixture of sadness and anger. He didn't really know how to feel because Stephanie had never cheated on him, but he tried to think back to girlfriends he'd had in the past who had cheated on him and channel it here. If Stephanie ever left him like this, he believed he'd be inconsolable.

"How are you doing?" Kelly Kelly asked when he reached them. "We just want to make sure you're okay."

"I'm fine," he said, but acted like he was obviously lying.

"I can't believe Stephanie would do that to you," Mickie said in disgust. "I can't believe she would cheat on you with her ex-husband of all people."

"I don't really want to talk about it, you guys."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Mickie said. "I didn't mean to upset you or anything, I just think it's really despicable. And then what he said on SmackDown…"

Chris had heard what was said on SmackDown, he'd planned it with Hunter, well, Stephanie had planned it and he had helped, but he knew what was going to be said for sure. Still, maybe he should play it up like he hadn't. But then, he and Hunter were supposed to fight later tonight when he got to the show. Chris wanted to bring that stuff up in the fight so he had to have seen it.

"Don't talk to me about that," Chris said. "That stupid bastard goes around talking like he's _my_ kid's father, I don't even know what the hell _that's_ about and then he has the gall to act like Stephanie is his wife."

"I heard they want to get married," Kelly whispered to Mickie.

"Over my dead body," Chris snarled, then pushed past them and into the arena. He scrunched up his face in anger as he stalked through the halls. People were looking at him and when they did, they got out of his way without saying anything. Usually Chris could be seen with his kids, happily walking along, or in deep conversation with his wife, but now everyone was questioning whether that was a true depiction or if it had all been a show. With the "revelation" of Hunter and Stephanie, everyone figured that Chris and Stephanie had been pretending to be happy.

He threw open his locker room door and then let it slam. He smiled to himself. He had done a great job indeed. Now Mickie and Kelly Kelly could go spread whatever rumors around about what he'd said and this thing with Hunter and Stephanie could get amped up. That would make his job easier when it came time to be pissed at Hunter. It was going to be weird to actually come to fake blows with someone. He was a good enough actor when he wanted to be so he could pull it off well.

He lounged on the couch. He wanted to call Stephanie again and tell her what just happened and how great he'd been, but he couldn't risk calling her when someone could be listening. When he was here, they might as well have been on the verge of divorce because they had an image to maintain. He'd just talked to her anyways. There was a knock at the door and he gruffly told whomever it was to come in. Vickie walked in and tried looking sympathetic, but Chris knew she was just a viper.

"Chris, I just wanted to say I'm so sorry about what's happening to you. I was very mad when I caught Edge kissing that…woman," Vickie said, referring to the video of Edge kissing the wedding planner, "but I know you'll pull through. I don't know if you're in contact with the McMahon family, but I wanted to thank them for putting me in charge as the interim GM of Raw."

"I don't know anything about that and I don't want to hear the name McMahon said in my presence ever again," Chris grumbled. This was actually kind of fun. He did like making fun of Stephanie's family; it was just so easy.

"Oh, well, okay, I'm sorry then," Vickie said, then slunk out of the room. She would definitely go gossip, she was the type, so now more people would know about the downfall and it would look better for the plan.

Chris ended up just watching the show because he had nothing better to do. He saw Legacy arrive and wondered if Britt was even going to show up tonight. He figured she wouldn't to play up how embarrassed she was about the situation and having her boyfriend cheat on her. She'd called him the other night (because he was the only one she'd realistically call if Hunter were to cheat on her with Stephanie) and told him that Randy had completely fallen for it and she was already in his good graces. She didn't want to bring up Legacy and his plans so soon because it'd seem suspicious, but he was absolutely going to let him in. He was such a sucker.

It didn't take long for Randy to find Chris's locker room. It was like he almost made a beeline for it. There was a knock and Chris again yelled out for them to come in and he saw the members of Legacy, Randy in the front with his lackeys close behind. How could Stephanie have ever thought she would get Ted to renounce this? The guy was being Randy's bodyguard for goodness sakes.

"Hey, man," Randy said amicably as Cody closed the door. "Britt is with me."

"Yeah, she called me, I didn't want to talk to her though," he said, "I don't really want to talk to anyone here for that matter. I'm here to do my job and that's it. I shouldn't have even come tonight. The whole McMahon family can just go screw themselves."

Randy nodded, "I feel the exact same way."

"Whatever," Chris said noncommittally. He was actually very committed to what Randy was saying, but he had to appear aloof for now.

"They just butt in your business. I heard what Stephanie did to you, man, and I can't believe that bitch…no, actually I _can _believe that bitch would do that. I always knew she was a whore. Thinks she can run the show…run it into the ground, maybe. That bitch got what she deserved."

Chris stared straight ahead. Outwardly it appeared as if Chris was unaffected by Randy's words, but inside, he was fuming. His hands were clenched into fists and the nails were digging deep into his skin. He could almost feel the skin tearing where his nails were. He was trying not to just haul out and kick Randy's ass for calling his wife a whore. Only _he_ got to call his wife a whore and that was only in a joking kind of context. This man had dared to put his hands on Chris's wife and if he wasn't careful, he'd end up in a hospital bed. The plan wasn't feeling so good now.

"Yeah," was all he managed to get out through his gritted teeth.

"And with Hunter of all people, disgusting," Randy scoffed. "That asshole deserves what I'm going to give to him."

"Not if I get my hands on him first," Chris told him.

Randy smiled, "I think this is where we can be mutually beneficial, Chris. We've both been slighted by the McMahon family, you more so, but still. Now Hunter thinks he can take what's yours? I heard what he said on SmackDown, calling _your_ kids his. They are your kids, right?"

"Yes those are my damn kids!" Chris yelled. "Don't you even dare question that."

"Okay, okay, sorry," Randy said, holding his hands up in surrender. "But why would he call them your kids? I mean, that's so wrong, don't you think?"

"What the hell do you think I think about that?" Chris growled.

"Exactly, so maybe we can help. You can help me take down Hunter and I can take him down for good and exact some revenge for you since I have a WrestleMania title shot," Randy said.

"So what, you want me to kick Hunter's ass?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying."

"I didn't need your sorry ass to tell me to do that, I'm planning on it," Chris said.

"Good, but I think we can work something out here, Chris. I know you're hurting, I would be too if I were married and my wife cheated on me. I would be seeing red and then having to see her with her new man."

Chris got up and pulled Randy up by the collar. "Shut the hell up, Orton. If I have to tell you that again, I will slam you against this wall and you won't _make_ it to WrestleMania."

Damn, that felt good to Chris. He really did want to shove Randy up against a wall. Cody and Ted started to make a move for Chris, but Randy shook his head. "Look, I know you're hurting and I'm sorry. Britt's pretty torn up about this as well. I'm just saying we can help each other."

"Whatever," Chris said, shoving him away and sinking into his seat again. "Get the hell out of here."

"Okay," Randy said, practically snapping his fingers so Ted and Cody would follow him out. Chris wanted to laugh at them, but stayed brooding, just like Stephanie said.

When he went out there during Steamboat's interview, he didn't really care what was going on. But he was supposed to be pissed off and everyone backstage just thought he was blowing off steam. It was amazing how people started to care for you after you'd been slighted. He kind of wondered what the reception for Stephanie and Hunter would be. Everyone backstage saw them as the bad guy so they would probably not get a great reception, but on the other hand, Hunter was defending Stephanie from the big, bad Randy Orton. It was going to create an interesting dynamic, that was for sure.

When Hunter went out to attack Randy, this was Chris's time to act. He slowly made his way out there after Randy had run away. He walked slowly and was building up a crowd of the wrestlers that were still there. He walked out into the open arena where Hunter was looking after Randy's car. He could hear people behind him, but he wasn't supposed to care. He flexed his neck a little and cracked his knuckles.

"Helmsley!" Chris yelled.

Hunter turned around and looked across the parking lot. "Jericho."

"Your ass is dead," Chris said, shrugging off his suit coat and starting to roll up his sleeves. "You think you can steal my family? You think you can just screw my wife?"

"Can't help it if she needed a real man because you weren't there for her," Hunter said, "You're always running off, busy with your stupid band, busy writing a book, busy with this, busy with that, did you ever think about what it might do to Stephanie?"

"Stephanie was fine."

"She wasn't fine, you jackass," Hunter said. "So she found herself someone who could really take care of her. She loves me, man, she's _always_ loved me, you were nothing but a distraction for her."

"Yeah, a distraction for seven years."

"I've been with her for the last year and a half, so why don't we cut some time off of that."

"You want my whore of a wife, fine, take her, I don't care. She's a filthy, two-cent whore and if she's willing to spread her legs for the likes of _you_, good riddance," Chris spat. "That bitch can have you, I hope you two are very happy together. I can do better than her anyways."

"Watch what you say about her," Hunter told him.

"Why? Because she's your _wife_, that's what you said, right? You called her your wife, newsflash, asshole, you're not married to her!" Chris said, his voice rising.

"I will be once she finally dumps your ass. We're going to get remarried, we've been discussing it for a while. She wanted to let you down easy, but this way is better because it means I can rub it in your damn face that Stephanie is, was, and will always be mine."

"There are millions of women hotter than Stephanie who would be with me, I could grab two right now," Chris said, although to him, Stephanie was that hottest woman he'd ever known. "And stay the hell away from my kids! They are _not_ your kids! So stop saying that on TV like they're your goddamn kids because they're not!"

"They might as well be! I've spent more time with Flynn than you have," Hunter lied. Hunter could barely hold the squirmy infant without almost dropping her. Stephanie had told him that until he learned to properly hold her, he wasn't allowed to pick her up at all. "You're always off doing God knows what and I'm the one being a father to _your_ children. Maybe if you took an interest…"

"I do have interest and believe me, you will not be a father to my children. You will not _steal_ my family from me. Have that whore, I don't care, but the kids are mine and I will fight tooth and nail to make sure of that."

"We'll see. Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley, that always did sound better. Then maybe Sawyer will actually decide he wants _me_ to be his dad. Maybe he'd start calling me Dad."

"That's it you son of a bitch!"

Chris charged at Hunter, knocking him to the ground. Chris laid some punches into him. They went all out in the interest of authenticity, though Chris did pull a little back from the punches. Hunter rolled over and got some licks on Chris before Chris turned the tables again. It was just about then that they were pulled apart. Chris panted as he was pulled to his feet.

"Let me go!" Chris screamed, but they went unheeded. He was only held back firmer.

"You ass!" Hunter yelled at him.

"Stay away from _my_ kids!"

"You'd need to spend time with them before you can call them yours!" Hunter spat.

Chris tried to break free again, but was pulled away, despite his struggling. He shrugged off the guys holding him and went back to his locker room to grab his things. His adrenaline was pumping and he and Hunter had been awesome if he did say so himself. He'd have to commend the other man for a job well done. He had been really convincing.

Mission accomplished.


	224. From Bad to Worse, March 2, 2009

"I don't like not going to the show."

"Then come."

"But I'm supposed to be acting like I've been terribly injured by Randy and having Hunter avenge me and my entire family and Vickie is in charge," Stephanie said. She looked over at her husband who was staring in one of her compact mirrors. "Would you stop looking at your face for two seconds?"

"How could a six month old kid do this?" he asked, more to himself than to Stephanie.

"She didn't do it on purpose," Stephanie said, "she wouldn't do that. I don't think she's _quite_ smart enough to maliciously hurt you."

"She's never hurt Sawyer before," Chris pointed out, "why does she have to hurt me? I'm starting to think that little girl has it out for me."

"Yes, Chris, our daughter has it out for you."

"Or maybe she was targeting you because you're having an affair with another man," Chris told her. "She's just taking it out on me because she probably thinks I let this happen."

"Yeah, I let this happen. I'm the one who made Randy Orton go after my entire family," Stephanie said sarcastically.

"In essence, you kind of are," Chris said, then off of Stephanie's glare, "Well, you were the one that slapped him."

"He's the one who's coming up with this idiotic idea of IED or whatever it is he has. He's the one that actually kicked my father and my brother and he's the one who gave me an RKO, I'm only the person that slapped him, that is not the same."

"I guess," Chris said, then looked at his cut again. "I can't believe she would do this to me."

"Chris, she's a baby, she grabbed a toy, it had a sharp edge, she got you between the eyes."

"Have you seen this, Stephanie?" Chris asked, pointing at his forehead. "This is Flynn trying to get back at me for something. I don't know what it is yet, but it's something."

"You were trying to get the toy back from her because it was one of Sawyer's toys and not her toy," she pointed out.

"That's right, but I didn't want her hurting herself with it and look, she goes and hurts me with it," Chris said. "What is with my kids trying to hurt me? Remember when Sawyer made me sprain my shoulder?"

"Oh yeah," Stephanie laughed, "that was pretty funny."

"That was not funny."

Stephanie laughed as she thought about that. She kind of thought Chris looked cute with the little cut on his head. It was quite endearing. Flynn had been trying to grab at Sawyer's things and caught Chris's face as she was moving it around. As the blood trickled down his face, Flynn had been fascinated by it and tried to touch it, but Chris put her down so he could clean up the cut. It was healing nicely though and he was going to be fine, but he was complaining about it just like she was complaining about not going to the show.

She knew she had to make it look like she was actually injured, but it was proving more difficult than she thought. She hadn't really been away since after Flynn was born and being the GM and having on-screen duties had grown on her again. Now she was sitting here pretending that she was so injured she couldn't run the show. She, Chris, and the kids were actually staying at their house in Connecticut, but they had bought a hotel room here in Boston for the night so Stephanie could hang out in the city and not be seen. This way she could at least be around the show if not _at_ the show.

"We need to talk to Sawyer," Stephanie said. She pushed her glasses up on her nose.

"Oh yeah, I wasn't looking forward to that," Chris said, lips pursed as he thought about talking to Sawyer. The kid had just woken up from his nap and was lying quietly on the bed, just letting himself wake up.

"I can handle it," Stephanie said. She went into the bedroom and sat down on the bed Sawyer was laying on. Flynn was asleep in the portable playpen they'd brought so she made sure to be quiet. "Baby boy, Daddy and I need to talk to you, do you think you can come in the other room?"

Sawyer rolled onto his back, "Okay, Mommy."

He lifted his arms, wanting to be held and Stephanie picked him up. She still saw so much baby in Sawyer even though he was going to be 3 years old in May. She couldn't believe it'd been almost 3 years since she'd held him for the first time. She was going to be so sad when she didn't see baby in him anymore, but it was still there as he leaned his head against her collarbone, still trying to get over his sleep. She went into the other room and sat down on the couch. Sawyer smiled at Chris, but made no attempt to move from Stephanie's lap.

"Hey, kid," Chris said and this whole conversation was feeling weird and it hadn't even started yet. "Did you have a good nap?"

"Yup, I sleeped," Sawyer said, though his hair attested to that fact quite well. It was still sticking up in several places, even as Stephanie tried to push it down with her fingers.

"Awesome," Chris nodded, looking at Stephanie. This didn't feel right in the slightest. It felt all wrong, like an alternate universe he wasn't able to escape.

Chris cleared his throat and looked down at his son. He had no clue the kind of family he was born into. He tried to picture Sawyer without Stephanie's features and with some other woman's, any other woman's, features, but it was difficult. Sometimes he wondered what a normal life would be like. There were plenty of guys here who had wives back home, who kept the house, had jobs that didn't include wrestling, didn't travel, didn't this, didn't that. Would it be different? Yes, it would. Not having Vince McMahon for a father-in-law would be difference enough.

"What want, Mommy?" he asked, sensing Stephanie had something to say. Sometimes that kid was so astute.

"Well, Daddy and I wanted to talk to you about something, baby boy," Stephanie said, pulling him off her lap and setting him down between her and Chris. "Now, it's very serious, but we want you to be full aware of everything."

He looked between them, not really understanding what was going on. "Okay," he said, just because he didn't know what else to say.

"Mommy and Daddy love each other very much, right, Daddy?" Stephanie said, looking pointedly at Chris.

"Yeah, I love Mommy very, very much," Chris told Sawyer.

Now he was even more confused. "I love you," he said to them both. Was this what they wanted him for? To tell him that they loved each other? That was weird and now Sawyer felt like playing with his toys. He started scooting down the couch, but Stephanie stopped him.

"Remember when Mommy got hurt?"

Sawyer pursed his lips, just like Chris had been doing. He had to think back hard, but yes, yes he remembered something about his mommy getting hurt, "I do!"

"Yeah, well, that man was out to get Mommy and Uncle Shane and Grandpa. He's not a very nice man," Stephanie explained to him, "so what Mommy and Daddy are doing is coming up with a plan."

"What dat?" he asked.

"A plan is like…well, you know how I say that we'll be going to the park tomorrow or we're going to see Grandma and Grandpa next week?" she asked. He nodded. "That's what a plan is, it's when you set up something that you're going to do later."

"Oh, I plan den," he said, because he did plan things, like when he wanted to play with his toys, he would go over to his toys and play with them and that was planning according to his mommy.

"Yes, you do plan," she said, kissing his forehead. "Well, Daddy and I are planning a _huge_ plan and it's going to make sure that the man that hurt me is going to pay for what he did, that's called revenge."

"Bebenge," Sawyer repeated.

"Close enough," she said, "Daddy and I are very upset over what he did."

"I too," Sawyer said. He didn't like when his mommy got hurt, it just wasn't nice. He wasn't supposed to hit other people except for Chris because he was big and strong. That meant that nobody should hit his mommy because hitting was bad.

"Thank you," she said, "but what our plan is, is that Mommy and Daddy aren't going to talk when we're at the shows and we're going to yell at each other and pretend like we don't like each other, but we do like each other and we both love you."

"We're just going to pretend to not like each other," Chris told his son.

"Just like you pretend to be a lion," Stephanie added.

"I is a wion," Sawyer said. He _was _a lion, just like his daddy was a lion!

"Oh, of course, I'm sorry, I misspoke," Stephanie said. "You are a lion, but we are going to pretend we don't like each other, but we want you to know that we love you very, very much, okay?"

"I love you," he told his mommy.

"Okay and Daddy is also going to pretend to hate Hunter, so you have to go along with everything, okay?"

"I do," he told her. He didn't really, but it seemed like the right thing to say at the moment, so he did.

Stephanie looked up at Chris. They were actively bringing their son into this and it didn't really feel right to either of them, but they were doing what had to be done for the plan. It would've been so much easier if it were still just the two of them, but the fates had blessed them with two children so they were going to have to make do with what they had. Sawyer would just have to be involved in this and they just hoped that he wouldn't be traumatized by it in the end.

Christian shut the door and looked to the backseat of his car, "So tell me again why you aren't driving with your wife?"

"I had to get away from her, she's being completely smothering tonight, I don't know what's with her. She just won't leave me alone," Edge said.

"Maybe it's because she's your wife," Trish said, turning in the seat. "Besides, don't bug Christian, he has a match tonight."

"Oh yeah, I forgot you were taping beforehand. Well, I've got a match too, that's what Vickie said. She's putting me in a match against Cena tonight, to defend my title, can you believe that? What is _with_ her, seriously? I just don't get it, you know. She's acting strange. I don't know what it is."

"I don't know," Trish said. She ran her hand through Christian's hair, "I just want you to get one of the titles, I don't care which."

"Can you two cut it out, you're not newlyweds anymore."

"Yes we are, I think you're considered newlyweds the entire first year you're married," Trish told him. "Besides, we're also trying for a baby, so we're going to be lovey-dovey, if you can't deal with that, then maybe you should go ride with your _wife_."

"No thank you, I'd rather deal with your gross cuteness than deal with her right now. Besides, that means I can call Lita when we get there, I can stay near the car in the parking lot and call her."

"How is she not sick of you yet?" Christian asked. "I can't believe she's putting up with this."

"She loves me," Edge shrugged.

He honestly didn't know why Lita stayed with him though. He was putting her through the ringer and it actually upset him that he was doing this to her. Ever since he'd been on better terms with Vickie, it had not felt the same on either side. He was still not convinced she'd done nothing with Big Show and just wasn't telling him. It made it easier to be with Lita if he believed that. He knew he wasn't being fair to her and was possibly putting a strain on whatever it was they had, but he just couldn't let her go, not again.

The first time she'd left, she'd said it was because she was changing and she wasn't the person she once was and hadn't liked who she had become. That had stung him because he knew she was implying that he had changed her. Before they'd started sleeping around with each other she had been an upstanding person and everyone had liked her. When they'd been caught out by Matt, everything changed and she'd changed. It was his fault it had all gone downhill for her and she'd needed to escape and he let her.

Vickie was a distraction at first. She was nowhere near as gorgeous as Lita was, but she provided him with a distraction and her position in power helped tremendously. For that reason alone he was willing to give her a chance. When they'd really started getting hot and heavy, he found traits in Vickie that nobody else saw. She wasn't as shrill in private, she wasn't as domineering or bitchy. She was actually quite pleasant and after screwing up Lita so much that she needed to physically leave his presence and leave the company, being with someone pleasant, but who still had that evil side built in, was nice for him. He'd let things get too far though.

The only person he'd never cheated on was Lita. Edge didn't do relationships well. He liked women. He'd never made any impression that he didn't like women. He would have flings and one-night stands and be perfectly happy with his life. He just didn't think he was meant to be monogamous like Christian or Chris. He liked the variety. The thought of being with one woman for any extended amount of time scared the hell out of him.

Until Lita came along.

She was the only one he'd ever been truly satisfied with. Maybe that's why he had kissed his wedding planner. He was just looking for the scapegoat. Now he was in a whole mess of things and he didn't know which way was up. But he hid it for the most part, played it cool because he was Edge and that was how things went. He didn't show that emotion. That was all well and good for his brother, but not for him. Christian was always the one who wore his emotions on his sleeve, not Edge, never Edge.

"She deserves better, you know," Trish told him. "I'm not telling you what to do, but as your sister-in-law…"

Edge smiled at that, "I think that's the first time you've actually said that out loud."

"What? No way," Trish told him.

"I think it is," Edge said, "that's actually pretty cool, I've got a sister now. I never really wanted a sister, not when I had someone like Christian--"

"I'm _right_ here," Christian protested. "You don't have to insult me when I'm right here, okay?"

"Yeah, whatever, but go ahead, Trish."

"Well, as family, I'm just saying that she deserves to have someone who can devote his time to her and let's face it, that's not you right now."

"I'll handle it."

"You haven't been handling it very well or at all," Trish said. "I mean, if you were, I don't think you'd be with Vickie right now."

"Butt out," Edge said, folding his arms and sulking. "It's really hard, you guys just don't know. It's just really complicated."

"Like Trish and I weren't complicated, oh yeah, Trishy, do you remember how we happily dated for years before easily deciding to get married?" Christian asked.

"Oh yes, Chrissy, I remember it clearly. We had no obstacles in the way, we weren't engaged or nearly engaged to other people, nope, we've just been happy-go-lucky all this time and I bet the next time you touch me, I'll just end up pregnant and have lots of your babies!"

"Okay, I get it, you two didn't have it easy. But this is different."

"It's never different, it's always the same problems over and over again. You get yourself caught in situations like this and I don't know why you do," Christian said. "You know, he was with this girl in high school, she was pretty awesome, I hung out with her sometimes and she was great. Do you know why I hung out with her? Because Edge would have me stall with her while he would go make out with some other girl."

"Wow," Trish said.

"Yeah, so what, I was like 17," Edge scoffed.

"And now you're in your 30's and doing the exact same thing," Christian said.

"I said I was taking care of it," Edge said, then wanting to change the subject, "so what the hell is going on with Chris and Stephanie. I heard they were getting divorced, that he'd filed for divorce because he walked in on Hunter and Stephanie having sex while Flynn was crying her head off in the next room and they were ignoring her in favor of the sex."

Trish laughed, "Who did you hear that from?"

"I heard it from Maryse."

"Has Maryse ever even spoken to Chris _or_ Stephanie?"

"No, but she heard it from someone else, not sure who," Edge said, "so those two are breaking up? I figured they'd be in it for the long haul, you know. It's always the ones you think are going to stay together forever, you know."

"Yeah," Trish said, then snickered a little bit. She and Christian knew all about the plan they were concocting. Trish thought the two of them were absolute nutcases, but if they got what they wanted out of it, more power to them.

"I just can't believe Stephanie would do something like that to him. But then I heard they've been having problems for a while now and she's been sleeping with Hunter for over a year. I don't get how that's possible when I would see them together all the time. Like, they were fine, right? I don't know when she actually had time to have an affair."

"Uh huh," Trish said, "tragic."

"It's all anyone's been talking about. Things were so good when Chris was with Stephanie. Nobody ever felt like he was getting all the perks, but now some of the veterans are thinking about what it was like when Hunter was in charge and people are getting scared."

"Really? People are honestly talking about this that much?"

"Are you kidding me? What do you guys do while you're at the shows, make out all the time? _Everyone_ and their mother is talking about this. They don't have a prenuptial agreement, Chris can take her and the McMahons to the cleaners if he wanted to, especially because she was the one that cheated on him. Plus, the kids, I heard they're with Chris, is that true?"

"They were with Steph this week, but yeah, Chris has them the majority of the time," Christian supplied, thinking about what Chris and Stephanie had briefed him on.

"Poor Sawyer, I bet he doesn't even know what's going on," Edge said. "It just blows my mind."

Trish turned back around in her seat. She couldn't believe how well Chris and Stephanie were able to fool everyone. They spread one rumor around and it was constantly getting warped and twisted around for everyone. It was incredible how easily it had just gone from zero to this huge deal. Now people were worried about divorces and custody and everything. It was almost masterful the way they were manipulating everyone. When they came out with the truth, everyone was going to think them evil geniuses.

Randy sat with Britt, who was sitting curled up on the couch in her hotel room. His room was right next door, connected by a couple of doors, which were open. She had been pretty clingy since the entire Hunter and Stephanie thing came out and he couldn't say he was disappointed by this. In fact, he was pretty damn happy. Once she was over this silly crush she had on Hunter, he would be right there to swoop in. Right now he just had to be the nice guy and "be there" for her whenever she needed him.

"You don't have to come tonight, I don't think Stephanie is going to be there."

"I can't just keep skipping work. I don't think I can work for Stephanie anymore though. I think I'm just going to be Chris's personal assistant from now on," Britt told him. "I just don't think I can stand being around her after what she did to me. I was her friend and she betrayed me. I can't work for someone like that. Besides, I was originally hired to be Chris's assistant and that's what I should be now."

"If you want, Chris is cool."

"Yeah, he's a good guy. I can't believe someone…I can't believe _she_ would cheat on such a great guy like that," she told him. "I really don't want to go back, but I know I should. I took vacation days and I'm going to get fired if I don't and I don't want to be fired."

"I wouldn't let you get fired," Randy told her, giving her a hug.

"Thanks," she said, returning the hug. "I guess it's inevitable that I'm going to see him. Are you going to challenge him for the title?"

"No, I'm not," Randy said. "He thinks I'm just going to give in to his game, I've got a game of my own that I've been planning with Ted and Cody's help."

"What are you planning?"

"I'm not going to face Hunter at WrestleMania because I'm going to have him arrested."

"Arrested?" Britt said, looking up.

"Yeah, I'm going to press charges for what he did last week," Randy said brightly. "So you won't have to see him at all. He chased after us with a deadly weapon and tried to use that deadly weapon even after I let go of mine. I'm going to get him for that. He won't even get to WrestleMania."

"Wow, you have everything covered," she admired. "Well, that makes me feel better about going to Raw tonight, just so I can rub it in his face that he's going to jail. He should go to jail for what he's done to me."

Britt knew she was laying it on thick, but Randy seemed to eat it up. She'd seen him looking at her with predatory looks. Everything she wanted from this plan was happening. Randy had offered her a place to stay and he was doting over her every chance he got. She knew that the second, the very second she thought she was over Hunter, Randy would be all over her, asking her out, reminding her that he'd been the one to help her. Even so, this was exactly what she wanted. She just had to get to Raw so she could warn Hunter somehow of what Randy planned to do.

Hunter knocked on Chris's hotel room door. He kept looking back and forth making sure nobody was in the hallway. They were on the very top floor though and Stephanie had made sure to check to see where the other wrestlers were staying and none were on this floor. Still, he kept looking around to make sure nobody was following him or spying on him. He wouldn't put it past Randy to have him followed, but he was sure Britt would inform him if that was going on.

He missed her. He hadn't seen her since last week and it was hard being without her. Her stuff was still at his house and he had to stare at it and wait for her to get a free minute to call. Usually it would come when Randy was out. It was safer that way. She would tell him how much she missed him, but it just wasn't the same. He knew she was having fun being manipulative as it usually wasn't in her nature, but he still missed the hell out of her.

"Oh hey, Hunter," Stephanie said as she opened the door.

"Hey, are the kids ready?" Hunter asked.

"Sawyer is, Chris is just putting Flynn's shoes on," Stephanie answered as Hunter walked into the room further.

Chris was sitting on the couch, putting some pink sneakers on Flynn's feet. She already had her coat on and was wriggling around the couch like a little sausage. She kept trying to pull her foot away from her daddy, but she couldn't. Sawyer was running around in a circle like a little weirdo. Chris got Flynn's shoe on finally even as she pulled it closer to her so she could try and pull it off again. Before she could even give it a real effort, Chris had lifted her up and was putting her in her stroller. Hunter was still not allowed to hold her for any extended period of time so she was relegated to the stroller.

"Okay, so I'm going to take them to the arena and pretend like they've been with us and I'm returning them to Chris, right?" Hunter said, trying to confirm the story.

"Exactly," Stephanie said, then knelt down in front of Sawyer. "Okay, baby boy, you're going to go with Hunter to Raw, okay and you're going to meet Daddy there."

"Okay."

"When you see Daddy, I want you to run up to him and tell him you miss him, can you do that for me?" she asked.

"I can do," he told her. He always ran up to his daddy.

She kissed the tip of his nose. "I'll see you tonight, be good for Daddy, okay?"

"I will," he said, then grabbed Hunter's hand, which had been extended to him. "We go now, Twip?"

"Yeah, we're going in a second."

"You have the car-seat, right?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, Chris gave it to me last night after I left your house," Hunter said, "it's in my car right now all strapped in. And I promise that I will only lift Flynn from the stroller to her car-seat and from her car-seat to her stroller."

"Good, thanks, it sounds like you've got everything covered."

"I do, don't worry, it'll be fine."

Hunter took the kids to Raw and hung out with them for a little while to give Chris time to arrive. He took Sawyer and Flynn to his locker room. Everyone was looking at him with almost disgusted looks on their faces. It seemed Chris was popular backstage. He just hoped they supported his kicking Randy's ass. Being seen in a negative light didn't bother Hunter. This wouldn't be the first time that happened and it wouldn't be the last time. He was very comfortable with playing a bad guy to these people.

There was a knock on the door and he yelled for them to come in. The door opened and Britt entered, looking up, "Oh, it's you."

"Britt," Hunter said, putting on an act because there were people walking by.

"I was just told to get you and Chris for a meeting with Vickie," Britt said. She stared hard at Hunter and smiled, since her back was to the door. He just winked at her. "Well, that's all I had to say to you."

"Hi, Bwitt," Sawyer said, rushing up to her and giving her a hug around the legs.

"Hey kiddo," Britt said, kneeling down so she could hug him and give another meaningful look to Hunter.

He wanted her to stay. It was the first time he'd seen her in a while and he just wanted her to stay. She pulled a piece of paper off her clipboard and folded it once. She turned around, but as she was turning the piece of paper fell from the clipboard onto the floor. Hunter opened his mouth to speak, but Britt looked over her shoulder, giving him a hard look and then down at the paper. He realized it was a note for him and so he didn't move. Sawyer, on the other hand, did. He saw the paper fall and he ran over to get it and grabbed at it with his little hands.

"Can you give that to me, tough guy?" Hunter asked.

"Here," Sawyer said, giving the paper to Hunter. He unfolded it to read what was written.

_Hi babe, I really miss you and I hate staying with Randy. He's always around and it's really annoying. I'm surprised I don't find him watching me in his sleep. Anyways, that's not what this is about, but you needed to know that I really miss you. Onto business, Randy's going to press charges against you because you used the sledgehammer last week. I suggest you drop it this week. I know you'll figure out a way to get him to drop the charges. He also wants to face Edge at WrestleMania, so you have to get him to face you. I know you can do that too. I love you. Britt._

Hunter sighed and got a text message at the same time. He pulled out his phone and saw that Chris had just arrived. "Okay, you two, your dad is here so let's go meet him, do you remember what your mommy said, tough guy?"

"Um…say hi Daddy," Sawyer told him.

"And act like you've missed him lots and lots."

"Oh yeah, dat too," Sawyer nodded eagerly.

Chris walked down the hallway, looking out for Hunter. He was hoping they could meet in a very public place so everyone could see what was happening. He saw Britt walking towards him and she widened her eyes and quickened her pace as she got closer and closer to him. He stopped and waited for her since it looked like she was seeking him out.

"Hey, how are you doing?" Britt said, pretending to act uncomfortable.

"I've been better, you?"

"Yeah, me too," he said sullenly. He had nothing to be sullen about though. He and Stephanie had gotten some precious alone time and had used it to their full advantage. There was never anything wrong when he got to sleep with his wife.

"Vickie wants to see you and Hunter in her office. I already told Hunter."

"Great," Chris said, pretending to be angry. "As if seeing him once tonight wasn't going to be enough."

"Jericho!"

Britt turned and started to leave, "I've got to go, I don't want to talk to him."

Chris walked up to where Hunter was. There was a decent amount of people around, enough to get the rumor mill going again. Thank the Lord for wrestlers being huge gossips. Maybe…Chris just had a great idea. Sawyer was bouncing on his feet wanting to come over to Chris and he knew his son couldn't quite act yet, but he was doing a great job of looking like he hadn't seen Chris in a while. Luckily for them, Sawyer was just naturally boisterous.

"Stephanie didn't want to bring the kids herself?" Chris asked. "What? She can't even face me now?"

"She's still recovering," Hunter said. "Maybe if you had actually gone out there to help your wife…oh that's right, you're too busy thinking of yourself. Oh, Mickey Rourke made fun of me, now I have to make fun of everyone down-and-out wrestler in the world!"

"You think just because you slept with my wife you can talk like that to me?" Chris asked, "Look here, Helmsley, I'm not going to put up with your crap anymore."

"I'm not looking for another fight, Chris, though it looks like I did get you good last week," he said, pointing towards the cut on Chris's forehead. Chris was impressed, he was going to say the exact same thing about the cut. It sounded better that he had gotten it from another wrestler than from his six-month old daughter.

"Shut up," Chris said. "So when _is_ Stephanie going to face me? Huh? Or is she just going to act like a chicken this entire time? She has no problem being your whore, but she has a problem actually facing me?"

"Don't call her a whore!" Hunter said angrily.

"I'll call her whatever the hell I want to whenever the hell I want to, do you understand me?" Chris said.

"Look, I'm just bringing your kids to you," Hunter said, pushing Sawyer forward.

"Hi, Daddy, hi," Sawyer said, hugging Chris. Hunter pushed Flynn's stroller towards them.

"Now you can act like a father to them for a little while," Hunter said snidely. Chris almost wanted to laugh because Stephanie didn't even allow Hunter to hold Flynn for any amount of time. Flynn pressed her hands against the padded bar that was holding her in place and she grinned up at Chris, happy to see him. She didn't like being around strangers as much as Sawyer, but that's because she really only recognized her mommy and daddy and her very own Sawyer.

"Come on, kid, let's go."

Chris took the kids back to his locker room and took off their coats. Chris kissed Sawyer for doing such a great job out there and he took Flynn out of her constricting stroller. He figured now was as good a time as any to go see Vickie and he let Sawyer run ahead of him as he held Flynn. He arrived at Vickie's office only to find Hunter already there and looking both bored and pissed.

"It's about time you showed up, Chris," Vickie said in that voice of hers.

"Sorry, I had to take care of _my_ kids," he said, putting the emphasis on the fact they were his kids and not Hunter's.

"I want to talk to you both, please sit down," she told Chris. He took a seat next to Hunter as Sawyer cam over and tried to climb in his lap. Flynn was already there though so Sawyer went over to Hunter and tugged on his shirt sleeve. Hunter let the boy sit with him and it was like the kid had the instinct for scheming. Vickie would surely make note of this and tell Edge or Big Show, who would in turn tell other people. Hunter was so sure Stephanie had been planning Sawyer as a pawn since his birth, maybe even before his birth. No kid could truly be this naturally inclined to be a part of a plan.

Even Chris was impressed, but it was really more that Sawyer wanted attention too since Flynn was cuddling up to Chris. "What is it?" Chris asked. "I'm not liking the present company."

"That's what this is about. I heard about you two fighting last week and I've got to say, I don't like it. We're going into the biggest show and in case neither one of you noticed, you two are big stars and we need you at WrestleMania. I know you two have…real life issues going on right now, but I don't want you to take each other out. Therefore, you are not allowed to touch each other from now on, no fighting."

"What? You can't tell me what to do," Chris told her.

"Yes, I can, I'm the GM and you're my employee, therefore, I can tell you what to do."

"I'm your freaking boss," Chris said, "I'm part owner of this company."

"Not for long," Hunter muttered.

"Shut up, jackass, if I have my way, all of the McMahons will be answering to me."

"I'd like to see you try it."

"Oh, yeah, well I'm going to," Chris told him.

"Stop it!" Vickie yelled. "This is what I'm talking about."

"Stay out of this," Chris said. "This has nothing to do with you. This has everything to do with me and Hunter and my slutty soon-to-be ex-wife."

"How soon? Because I really want to marry her as soon as possible and get her back where she belongs, with me," Hunter said. "I think we'll just chalk up this little Chris and Stephanie experiment to a mere distraction. She's ready to come back to the man who really made her happy now."

"I'm outta here," Chris said, "come on, kid, let's go."

"Okay, Daddy, bye, Twip," Sawyer said, climbing off Hunter's lap and leaving.

Chris was walking angrily down the hallway when he saw Katie Lea walking toward him. He kind of slowed down and she looked up and saw him and smiled at him before walking up to him and stopping. She tilted her head a little in the cutest way and addressed him, "Chris, hello."

"Hey, Katie, how are you?"

"Oh, I'm doing well, thank you," she told him, then looked at his son, "Hello there, Sawyer, you are looking awfully handsome today."

"Thanks," he said, "I dwess me."

"You what?"

"He dressed himself," Chris supplied for her.

"Oh!" Katie said. "Well, I'm certainly impressed."

"If you're impressed by that, _I_ dressed myself too," Chris joked.

Katie laughed, "Well congratulations. How have you been doing though? I've heard that things aren't going so well for you."

"Oh," Chris said, putting on his front. He'd almost forgotten to act mad. "Yeah, it's been rough."

"I keep hearing things about what happened and I'm so sorry. I thought you were quite happy with your wife and it's very sad when these kinds of things happen." Chris cringed. It hurt to hear these things from people. He just had to remind himself that Stephanie loved him and only him. "Oh, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up, I'm so stupid sometimes."

"It's okay, it's just…it's hard, you know."

"Oh, I'm sure it is. I've never been married, but I just cannot imagine going through something like that," Katie told him sympathetically. "I really do hope things work out for you, sincerely."

"Thanks," he said. He knew there was a reason he liked this girl. He didn't see Ted being all nice to Stephanie…except that he was with Randy so he couldn't be sympathetic, but still, Katie really cared and he liked that about her. She was a lot nicer than she came across to people.

"As they say, there are plenty of fish in the sea, right?"

"That is what they say," he told her.

"Yes, so you'll be just fine and you've got an adorable little boy and girl out of the deal, so that's definitely a plus."

He laughed, "I did get that."

"So you're not coming out empty-handed and all that," she responded. "So you've landed in the plus column I'd say. You don't need Stephanie, though I'm sure she was a nice enough woman, but you probably don't need her."

"You don't think so."

"Of course not."

"Chris!" Chris closed his eyes a moment. He'd been getting calls from Mickie James all week long. He didn't even know how she'd gotten his number. Stephanie had become increasingly annoyed by it.

"Hey, Mickie," he said dully as she came up to them. Katie looked instantly uncomfortable.

"I just wanted to check up on you again and see if you needed help with your kids," Mickie said, cooing at Flynn. Flynn looked at this woman strangely. She was very weird and strange and Flynn did not like her.

"I'm fine, the kids are fine," Chris said. "I can handle them."

"Are you sure?"

"I think I'm going to go," Katie said. "It was very nice talking to you again, Chris."

"Oh yeah, thanks, it was great talking to you too," Chris said. He was starting to entertain some very interesting thoughts. If Stephanie got to pretend like she was with Hunter, why couldn't he pretend to be like someone? The downside though was bringing Katie in on the plan after the grief he'd given Stephanie about bringing Ted into the plan. She'd never go for this in a million years. She'd rather fire Katie than let Chris pretend to date her, though the though was definitely appealing to him if he could pretend to relive his glory days.

"Bye, Sawyer," Katie waved and Sawyer eagerly waved back.

"So are you sure you don't need help?" Mickie asked.

"I really don't need help," Chris said. "Britt is here tonight and she's going to help me with the kids."

"Oh, okay, how is she?"

"She's doing okay."

"Great, great, well, you know, if you need _anything_, and I mean _anything_ at all, you know how to reach me, right, because I should be on your phone, right?"

"You are!" Chris said, pretending to grin, but he really wanted her out of here. He got bad vibes from Mickie James and he couldn't quite put his finger on what that was. She was no sooner gone than a person he wanted to see even less came up to him.

"Chris, there you are," Randy said. "I've been looking everywhere for you."

"I've got to get my kids set up," Chris said, "I've got first on the card tonight."

"I just wanted to thank you for beating up Hunter last week, that was awesome. I've decided not to go after him for WrestleMania though, I'm going to face Edge."

"You're going to…what?" Chris asked. He did _not_ go through all of this to just have Randy up and change his mind now. He was pretending to divorce his wife and Randy was going to change his mind! Oh no, this was not going to happen. "But…you and Hunter."

"I'm sending him to jail."

"Jail?"

"Yeah, you should get in on the charges with me, say he practically attacked you when you guys fought. That'll get him even deeper with the authorities, it'll be perfect, like when we filed that complaint to that bitch."

Chris gritted his teeth, "Dude, I'm around her kids."

"Oh yeah, sorry," Randy said. "Anyways, thanks, but hopefully we'll be seeing each other soon."

"Are you sure you don't want to take Hunter out then have him sent to jail?" Chris called out.

"Nope, this way is better, this way he won't even _be_ at WrestleMania."

This pissed Chris off. He had put too much work into this to have it fall apart now. He would've gone after Randy, but he didn't have the time. His segment was the first of the night. He'd invited Jimmy Snuka to the show to "talk" about what happened with Piper the week before. He'd even got Piper's old set setup on the ramp. He'd gotten Stephanie's help with that. Even if they were not together in front of people, she could still pull strings for him.

Chris was no longer embroiled in what Rourke had said about him. Now it was just about creating a diversion. He was a pissed off man taking it out on older wrestlers. The guys backstage just saw this as a kind of retaliation for everything that was going on with him and Stephanie. Maybe Chris saw some of himself in these wrestlers and their broken lives and that's why he was lashing out. That's one of the things he'd heard anyways. He was taking out these Hall-of-Famers because he wanted to get away from the business, but it kept sucking him back in and now he was getting divorced.

Really, he didn't care. When he threw the set onto Jimmy Snuka, he didn't really care about why he was doing it. He was supposed to be angry. His wife had cheated on him and left him and hell yeah he was supposed to be mad and take it out on anyone who dared cross his path. He followed Piper's lead from long ago, but it wasn't Snuka he saw in his mind's eye, it was Randy Orton. When this was all over, he was going to take out that son of a bitch and have a smile on his face the entire time.

Hunter played his part beautifully. He was the angry lover, the knight in shining armor for his lady. Chris had to hand it to the guy, he knew how to play his part well. He watched the show from backstage as he sat with his kids. Flynn was refusing sleep and was sucking on a pacifier as Chris watched the segment between Randy and Hunter. Hunter must've known about what was going on because he just didn't look surprised. Britt must've found out and told him, it was the only logical explanation.

Hunter started to goad Randy into giving him what he wanted, striking a very sensitive nerve with the younger man. Hunter knew just which buttons to push and Chris admitted to himself that he would not have known all these buttons. It was actually really helpful that Hunter was the one in on this plan because he had worked closely with Randy and knew all the nuances to his character. Randy was getting riled up now and Chris knew Hunter was going to convince him to face him. It was not all for nothing.

Randy once again went too far when he started talking about Stephanie and how much he'd enjoyed giving her the RKO. This lit a fire under Chris. When Randy mentioned her scent, Chris just about lost it. He had to put Flynn down on the couch, much to her chagrin. He paced around as Randy talked about how soft her skin was. The anger was boiling inside of him. He got so angry he punched the wall and relished in the pain rushing through his knuckles and into his wrist. He would've broken Randy's face if he'd been there with him.

Instead he got to see Hunter angry and Chris hoped Hunter was channeling Chris's own anger, like it would transfer from Chris to Hunter somehow. The segment ended and Chris was still stewing. Randy was charged as he went to Chris's locker room and barged in, catching Chris off-guard. Chris had to suck at his teeth to keep from spearing Randy through the goddamn wall.

"Did you see that?" Randy said. "Don't worry, man, I'm going to make him pay for what he did to you. But if you want to help, you go right ahead."

"Yeah," Chris said. "Yeah, I will."

"Great," Randy said, needing all the help he could get. He rushed off again in search of Britt to tell of his adrenaline rush.

Chris turned his back, trying to catch his breath. He didn't know how, but somehow, Hunter snuck into his locker room. "Hey, man, you okay?"

Chris turned around, "I'm so not okay, man."

"Yeah, I figured as much after what Randy was saying about Stephanie. When I get my hands on him at WrestleMania, I'll make sure to get in some extra hard punches for you."

"Thanks," Chris said, but it was little consolation.

"When this it all over, I've got the rest of Legacy and you can take Randy, okay?" Hunter said.

"Yeah, I like that idea," Chris smirked. "The things he was saying."

"I know, it was even hard for _me_ to hear and I don't even love Stephanie like that anymore. He doesn't know what's coming to him though, that's for sure. Britt says he's completely oblivious. He's so hell-bent on being champion he's not seeing what's clearly around him."

"When he talked about her skin, I just about…" he couldn't even finish his sentence.

"Don't worry, man, he'll get what's coming to him and what he thinks is going to be _my _best isn't even going to be close to what else he's going to get."

"What's that?" Chris asked.

"_Your _best."


	225. Through the Window, March 9, 2009

A/N: This chapter kind of focuses on everyone else a little so hopefully you enjoy. :)

* * *

"Do you like that?"

Flynn giggled and babbled as she looked up at Chris. She clapped her hands as Chris made another face at her. She giggled even harder and Chris laughed at her. She had the world's most adorable laugh, he decided. It was so high-pitched and joyous. Chris was sitting on the couch with his legs up and Flynn was lying on his legs.

"I think you do," he said in a sing-song voice and she laughed again. He was glad to know all of this stuff with Stephanie and him wasn't affecting his children. They were both as happy and crazy as ever, not realizing there was an obviously different dynamic going on around the shows. Granted, Flynn was really young and Sawyer was really clueless, but still, things were different, but they were the same.

"Why don't you want to go outside, huh?" Chris asked her, "it's a really beautiful day outside and you could benefit from a little sun."

Flynn covered up her face with her hands like she was ashamed she didn't want to go outside, but she had thrown a fit when Chris tried to take her outside earlier. He figured it was because he had taken her into the pool yesterday and she'd had a fit when he was lowering her into the water. The funny thing was she didn't mind it when she got a bath, but the thought of all that water had scared her and she'd been screaming at him as Stephanie laughed from the other end of the pool while Sawyer doggie-paddled around with his huge arm-floaties. When he put her feet in, he thought she'd be better, but it only terrified her more. He'd had to take her out of the water and inside and now she didn't even want to go out there.

"You're still scared of the pool?" Chris asked. "But it's not scary. It's very not scary. I wouldn't take you in the pool again. We'd just sit outside."

Flynn looked at him and if she could shake her head no, she would. She just settled for looking Chris in the eye. Her eyes were decidedly less piercing, but they held that Stephanie charm in them and it was almost like his little girl was glaring at him right now. No, she was perfectly fine sitting right there with her daddy making faces at her so she could laugh and laugh and laugh. She didn't need to go out with that big thing of water that was scary.

"You didn't even want to go out with Mommy," Chris said. "I thought you'd at least want to go out with Mommy and Sawyer."

She smiled at him peacefully. Right now was Daddy-Flynn time and she was loving it. Sawyer had been such a Mama's boy when he was a baby. He'd always want Stephanie, he'd calm down when he heard her voice. Chris was just the other guy. Sure, Sawyer loved him, but if it came down to it, Stephanie was the one he wanted. Flynn didn't want him most, she always wanted Sawyer, but if it came down to Stephanie or him, he was the one she wanted more and he could live with that. She liked when they got time to themselves without Sawyer or Stephanie around and he enjoyed playing with his little girl.

There weren't many differences with raising their second child. They had to budget their time a bit better now they had another child, but it was the subtle differences that he noticed. Flynn was a little happier as a baby than Sawyer was. She was very content in life and while she cried, it w as significantly less than Sawyer. Flynn was more interested in laughing and smiling than crying. She wasn't as personable as Sawyer was, but Stephanie wasn't as personable as he was so they balanced each other out. There was a ringing of the doorbell and Flynn's eyes turned to the side. Chris's mouth widened like he was in surprise.

"Who could that be?" Chris asked, wondering if it was Stephanie and she had her hands full and was waiting for him to open the door. Or maybe it was Christian or Trish. "Do you want to come with me and see who it is? I think you want to come with me and see who it is. You can help open the door, okay?"

She smiled and Chris lifted her up and held her over his head for a moment as he shook her around a little. Again, Flynn wanted to laugh and laugh at her daddy. He brought her back down as he popped up from the couch. Flynn grabbed at his cross necklace as he tried to pull it away from her, but his little girl had a strong grip. He danced a little to the door so she could have a good time while she was with him and they reached the front door with a flourish. He peeked out the side window and saw his parents and smiled down at his daughter.

"It's Grandma and Grandpa!" Chris said happily. "They're back from their _long_ ski vacation and it's about time too, huh?" Flynn just kept trying to put Chris's necklace in her mouth. Chris opened the door and greeted his parents happily, "Hey you guys, you're finally back. I was starting to think you got caught in an avalanche or something."

"Where's Stephanie?" Loretta asked.

"She's not here. You guys have been gone for a month and Stephanie's the first person you ask about."

"Oh my God," Loretta said. "It's true! Ted, it's true!"

"What are you talking about?" Chris asked, adjusting Flynn in his arms. She just looked quizzically at her grandma. She was looking awfully crazy.

"You and Stephanie, she's been cheating on you. I came home, we were watching the show because we recorded it because we know you two have been on-screen together and we liked that and then he comes out and saves her and children, he said they were his children, is Flynn yours? Then I get around to asking around and people are saying she's been cheating on you for over a year, a _year_, and she's left you and she's with that…that man and she's left you and I can't believe this!"

"Mom, Mom, calm down and come inside, please," Chris said, putting his free hand on his mother's shoulders. "Come on, just come inside."

"I can't believe she'd do this. Maybe my original instincts about her were right, a year, Ted, a year!"

"I can't believe she'd do that to you," Ted said stoically. "I really thought you two would make it."

Why didn't he think to tell his parents? Now his mother thought he and Stephanie were getting a divorce. This was just great, now his mother was going to freak out and he wondered if she had already called his aunt to relay this horrible situation. He wouldn't be surprised if his mother had already lined up five women for him to potentially date and those women would of course have to love kids. There was another issue. He already saw his mom looking suspiciously at Flynn, probably looking to see if she could find any of Hunter's features, but he wouldn't' find any in there because Flynn was completely his. And surely Sawyer's paternity could never come into question.

"You guys can sit," Chris said. His mother was just standing in the middle of the living room, looking around. He wondered if she was looking around for signs of Stephanie. Her work wasn't around because it was in her office and the only other things around were Sawyer and Flynn's toys.

"You have the kids then?" Loretta asked. "Good, I'm glad you have the kids. That cheating whore doesn't deserve them."

Chris held in his laugh, "Mom…"

"No, Christopher, she should not get to see them, _ever_! She can stay with that man," she said, refusing to say Hunter's name at all. "Is…is Flynn yours?"

She looked so worried and Chris momentarily felt bad. He nodded, "Yes, Mom, Flynn is absolutely mine, you see--"

"Did you get tested?"

"No, you see--"

She cut him off again, "You should get the test done, that way, during the divorce you can make sure she's yours when you go for full custody, you _are_ going for full custody, right? You're not going to let that man…why would he say those kids are his? Why would he say that?"

"Well, if you'd let me explain, he's saying that because he feels like he's been more of a father to the kids than I have been, but that's just because--"

"How dare he!" Loretta boomed. Ted had to place a placating hand on her arm. She looked like she was going to punch a wall or something. "You've been a wonderful father to those kids, how dare that jackass take what's yours!"

Chris's jaw dropped. He'd never really heard his mother swear like that before so it was something of a shock to hear her say something like that. She was really mad about this. He had to warn Stephanie that if they ever really did break-up, it better be a mutual decision and she better not do anything to him or his mother would probably tear her hair out. Stephanie with bald patches wasn't an appealing picture. Flynn started to whimper from the tone of her grandma's voice and Loretta stood up and came over.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, sweetie," Loretta said, taking Flynn from Chris's arms. "You're my little girl, aren't you? Yes, you are, you're not anyone else's little girl, no, you're not."

"She's mine, Mom, trust me," Chris said, rolling his eyes a little. "She's absolutely mine."

"I just…I can't believe any of this," Loretta said, her voice choking up. "I can't believe she would ruin your marriage like this, I don't know what this girl is thinking quite frankly. I don't know why she would ruin this. You are a good man and you've provided for your family and this is how she repays you."

"Mom, will you please just let me get a word in edgewise, seriously?"

"You should let the boy talk, Retta," Ted intervened, seeing his son had something to say.

"What is there to say, Ted? The woman up and cheated on our son. He didn't deserve that, did he? What has Christopher ever done to warrant that kind of behavior? I had my misgivings about this girl in the beginning and she gained my trust and I thought she had changed. I guess I was right about her all along. That just shows that you should go along with motherly instincts."

"Mom, it's not what you think."

"What isn't what I think? I know what I saw. I saw it on the show, I saw him come out to help her and that interview, God, that interview…where's Sawyer?" Loretta asked. "I haven't seen him. Is he napping?"

"No, Mom, he's not napping."

"Is he upstairs in his room?" she asked.

"He's with Stephanie, now will you please…"

"Stephanie! You're allowing that adulterer to have the kids? Is she staying with him? Is Sawyer at his _house_?"

"Mom!" Chris yelled. "You've got to let me talk and explain, please, just let me talk and explain everything and then it will be clear what's going on. Look, I know what you saw on the show, I can't believe that was the first thing you did when you got home, but I know you saw it obviously."

"We know WrestleMania is big for you. Are you going to continue working there?"

"Of course I'm going to continue working there," he scoffed.

"But you'll be her employee, can you do that?"

The door to the garage opened. "Hey, we're home! Sawyer is a champion cyclist. He was speeding around the neighborhood."

"I was! I was!" Sawyer yelled.

"Is that Stephanie?"

"That's what I've been trying to tell you, Mom," Chris said. "Stephanie and I are fine."

"You took her back! Christopher, you can do so much better than a cheating hussy," Loretta said, shaking her head.

"She's not cheating on me," Chris laughed, "if you would let me talk, you'd know that. Steph, we're in here, my parents are here!"

"Oh, I thought that was their car out there," Stephanie said, "I was just going to ask that."

She walked into the room with Sawyer in tow. He ran ahead when he saw his grandma and grandpa. "Hi, hi, Gamma! Hi, Gampa!"

"Hey, there's my boy," Ted said, opening his arms. Sawyer ran to him and hugged him, clambering up into his lap. "So what's this I hear about you on a tricycle?"

"I did, I go wound wif Mommy," Sawyer nodded eagerly. "I go fast, Gampa."

"I'm so impressed," Ted said. "I bet you're going to be the fastest there is."

"I twy," Sawyer grinned.

"Hey, Ted, hey, Loretta, how was your trip? It must've been really good to get away for such a long while. One of these days Chris is going to convince me to go and take a month off so we can whisk away to some foreign land and not worry about wrestling," Stephanie said, coming over and sitting on the arm of Chris's chair.

"You're not broken up?" Loretta asked.

"My mom has watched the shows."

"Oh…oh!" Stephanie said, realizing what that meant. "Oh, you guys…it's fine, it's just a plan that we have, you see…well, yeah, it's just a plan. Chris and I are fine, I've not been cheating on him, we just need Randy to believe that because Chris is trying to get on his good side."

"So you two are okay, these are Chris's kids."

Stephanie laughed, "Yes, we're fine."

Britt closed and locked the door behind her. Randy had just taken her out to dinner and tried to convince her to play his wife tomorrow on the show. Randy was trying to make himself look good and trying to make Hunter look bad, like a violent man. Hunter came across as violent on the show sometimes, but the man was a sweetheart at home. He was always doing sweet stuff for her, but he would never let that show in the ring. He'd rather die than look like a big teddy bear in the ring.

Randy wanted her to pose as his wife to give him a more "tender" side as he put it. She didn't think Randy Orton had a tender bone in his body. She didn't want to be on-screen though. She wasn't an on-screen type of person and she didn't want to play Randy Orton's wife. She didn't want to sit there and be some trophy for him. Randy just wanted her sitting next to him so Hunter could see it and think the worst. Oh, what Randy Orton didn't know…

She took out her cell phone and sat against the far wall in the corner, behind the bed. This was the farther spot from the door and there were no vents or anything around for Randy to hear her. The windows were close and she felt safe here. One of these days she'd just get under the bed to talk to Hunter, but for now she would just sit here. She dialed Hunter's number, her phone on silent and prayed that Randy wouldn't come looking for her anytime soon. She'd feigned a headache to get up here.

"Hello," he said, but in a tone where she knew he knew it was her.

"Hey, sorry I'm calling so late."

"I hope you're calling late because something detained you and not because you've been doing something with Randy," he joked.

"I have been doing something with Randy," she said flirtatiously. "But I'm not going to tell you what that is right now."

"What have you been doing exactly?"

"He asked me to be his wife."

"He what?" Hunter asked and Britt giggled at the tone of his voice.

"Uh huh."

"He _what_?" Hunter asked again.

"Not in that way," she confessed. "What happened, or what is happening is this: Randy is going to get someone to play his wife. He wants to drum up sympathy for himself. He thinks if he shows that he has a wife, that he's actually a loving, caring man who is misunderstood and how he actually showed restraint last week."

"That's crap."

"I know that, but he thinks that it'll look good to people. He's just concerned about making you look like an idiot. But I'm trying to tell you that _you_ can make _him_ look like an idiot."

"How?"

"Well, I think Chris and Stephanie are rubbing off on me because I have a brilliant idea…if you're up for it that is."

"I'm up for anything you tell me to do," he told her.

"That sounds nice," she told him, then remembered herself. "There's no time for that. Here's what I think we should do. I think that Stephanie should call Vickie and have her schedule a match between you and like, Cody or whatever. Anyways, you're not going to be at Raw tomorrow night, you're going to be here in St. Louis."

"Britt…"

"You're starting to get it," Britt said deviously. "When Randy least expects it, here you are, ready to pounce and you can kick his ass."

"I like the way your mind works," he told her. "I think Chris and Stephanie _are_ rubbing off on you. I don't hear Stephanie coming up with brilliant plans like that. I think you can give her a run for her money."

"Well, my part of the plan is to get the information and I'm getting it in spades. I think Randy is just a sucker for a girl with nice legs and a pretty smile. I could get him wrapped around my finger in two seconds. I love having power."

"Okay, now you're just outright turning me on and I love it!"

"I want this to go off without a hitch. If Randy realizes that I was in on this the entire time, then he has to believe that I've never had feelings for him or never wanted him in the first place and he will be off my back and off your back and we can just be a normal couple like we were before he decided to interfere in our lives."

"Yeah, I like the sound of that. I really like the sound of that. I'm going to let Stephanie and Chris know about this and she can set the wheels in motion, okay?"

"Okay, great, I love you."

"I love you too, bye, babe."

"Bye."

Randy knocked on the door a few minutes later when she was taking off her makeup. She went to the door and opened it. "Hey."

"Hey, I was wondering if you wanted to watch a movie with me."

"Yeah, sure," she said. She had nothing better to do so she might as well. A movie was a rather innocuous event and she could use the time for quiet and thinking. Randy constantly wanted to talk to her and she was growing tired of his constant needling. She didn't ever feel actual warmth from Randy. He just seemed so cold and calculating all the time. Even his house was very cold, but that might be because he traveled so much and didn't actually live here all the time.

They went downstairs and he put in a movie. It was some comedy she'd never seen before and she settled in on the couch. He settled on the other side of it. The movie started and they watched quietly for a while, the dialogue from the movie only interrupted by intermittent laughter. It was a funny movie after all, so she should feel free to laugh. She and Hunter had instituted a movie night a while back. Every other week she'd get to pick a movie and he'd be forced to watch it and they would usually try to find the worst movie ever to make the other suffer.

"Do you think it's crazy that I'm going to get a fake wife?"

"Whatever you want to do," Britt said.

"I just…never mind."

"What were you going to say?" she asked, turning to him.

"Nothing, don't worry about it," he told her, smiling. "Did you enjoy dinner?"

"Yeah, but what were you going to say, Randy?" she asked. "Is there something you want to say?" She thought she could get more information out of him.

"No, it's just I don't…I don't know, maybe people won't believe what I say."

"Do _you_ believe what you say? I mean, what is the motivation behind this, really? The McMahons never did anything to you. If anyone should be mad, it's Chris because he's the one who's been cheated on, you know."

"I know, he's an asset, definitely. I'm just sick of the McMahon regime trying to bring me down."

"Have they brought you down?"

"Did you see that thing with Stephanie?"

"I don't know, I mean, I guess I can see where you would be angry, but I don't know, don't you think you're taking it a little too far sometimes. Don't you want to scale back at some point before people think you've lost it."

"They already think that."

"Well, I don't know, you should do what you feel comfortable with and if you feel comfortable faking a wife to get sympathy then you should go for that, I'm not going to argue with you because it's really none of my business."

"Do you want it to be your business?"

There was that hope again and she tried to ignore it. "I'm just going to watch the movie. Then maybe we can discuss how you can get people's sympathy."

The next day saw everyone either leaving or converging for Raw. Christian, Trish, and Chris drove to Raw together since Christian actually had a match on Raw that evening. Trish was just tagging along. Stephanie was of course hanging back because even if Randy wasn't there tonight, the rest of Legacy was, as was the roster and she was trying to play like she was injured. Sawyer was with Chris, but Flynn had stayed back with Stephanie. She could get some work done if Chris had Sawyer.

"I'm a little insulted you guys haven't asked me back for this WrestleMania divas match," Trish said. "I keep reading about how you're bringing back old divas and you've got people like Debra and Torrie and I'm sitting there thinking, 'where's my invite?'"

"I'm sorry," Chris said as they walked into the arena. Trish had one of Sawyer's hands and Chris had the other. They were occasionally swinging him between them as he lifted his legs into a tuck position. "That's something you should take up with the better half."

"I will, believe you me."

"I'm sure there's a standing invite for you. Maybe she thought it would interfere with your baby-making," Chris said. "How is that going?"

"Well, Christian got checked out and he's fine, sperm count is fine, motility is fine, all the other jargon they spewed at us is fine. He was really nervous about going--"

"Trish, do you _really_ think this is subject matter I want to hear about?" Chris asked.

"Sorry," Trish laughed. She realized that other people might not want to hear about how her husband had had to go to the fertility clinic to make sure his sperm count was up. "Anyways, everything is fine on his end so it's me next. I went in for my initial appointment and at least there, they didn't see anything wrong with me. They might want to dig a little further just to see, but so far so good, we're just not as fertile as I would like, but there doesn't seem to be a huge problem."

"That's good," Chris said. "I'm sure you'll get pregnant when the time is right, you know?"

"Yeah, until then, I can wrestle. I'm not pregnant so that's not going to be an obstacle and I don't think I'm going to be pregnant before WrestleMania comes and if you're bringing back divas, I mean, come one," she said, gesturing towards herself with her free hand.

"Are you being cocky?"

"Yes, I am," Trish said, "and I've earned it. Besides, it'll be really cool to compete at the 25th anniversary of WrestleMania and not only do so, but do so with my husband there as well. Christian is going to be in a match tomorrow to see if he can get in the Money in the Bank. Then he can win and be the World Champion or WWE Champion if he feels like it."

"I have a qualifying match tonight," Chris said.

"Well I hope you lose," she said good-naturedly.

Chris opened the door as he set Sawyer on the ground. "Well, it's time to be my angry, divorcing-my-wife self. Grr."

"Grr, Daddy," Sawyer told him, emulating Chris.

"Remember what we talked about?"

"You no like Mommy," Sawyer said, then shrugged and started stomping around.

"You just treat him like a trained seal, huh?" Trish joked.

"Yes, Trish, I just treat my son like a trained seal," Chris deadpanned. "What can I say, the kid is good. He takes after his mommy."

"I like Mommy," Sawyer said in his little voice. "She not hew."

"I know she's not here, I wouldn't want your mommy to be here because I don't like her anymore. I can't believe what she did to me," Chris said to Trish. "Now she's got Hunter flaunting around like he's the only one who's ever loved her. I did everything for her and this is how she repays me, but stealing away with her lover?"

"I dunno you say," Sawyer said, making a face. He didn't get _any_ of what his father just said.

Trish went into her own character. "You can do better than her, Chris, there are a million and one girls in this world who would love to be with you."

"Oh hey," he said as they walked into his locker room. Christian was catching up with Edge so it was just them. "What do you think about Katie Lea?"

"Burchill?"

"Do you know any other Katie Lea's?"

"No."

"Yes, Katie Lea Burchill. What do you think about her?"

"I don't know her that well. She's pretty, I guess."

"I think she's gorgeous. I want to date her."

"You are aware that you're _still_ married to Stephanie, right?" Trish told him. "I know you guys are pretending to be all mad and on the verge of a divorce, but you guys are still married and still in love the last time I checked."

"Yes, we're very much in love, but wouldn't it be an awesome part of the plan if I got to go out with someone, maybe people would think I was making Stephanie jealous or maybe they'd think I was moving on."

"If you date Katie Lea, you have to _date_ Katie Lea."

"I wouldn't, I would tell her what's going on. I would let her in on the plan and then we'd pretend to date. See, I'm asking you if you know anything about her because I don't know if she's trustworthy. I think she's really cool and she's really nice to Sawyer, but this is a different thing altogether."

"You got that right."

"So I don't know if she'd go spill it to everyone and ruin all the hard work we've put up so far. Poor Britt has to lock herself in her room so Randy doesn't try and go be Mr. Sensitive with her."

"That girl goes above and beyond."

"There are benefits for her too. I just think it would be realistic if I threw my name into the dating pool to make Stephanie jealous. It would have to be someone here to counter what she has going on with Hunter. I would be playing the hurt husband who is just doing this because he wants to make his cheating wife jealous."

"Have you told Stephanie about this plan?"

Chris cleared his throat, "Not yet."

"And what do you think her reaction would be?"

"Hell no," he said without hesitation. He set up some crayons for Sawyer as the coffee table in this room. Sawyer knelt next to the table and started to color in his coloring book, muttering the colors as he took them out of the big box. "But if she starts kissing Hunter, I'm going to get a girlfriend, it's only fair."

"Mommy kiss?" Sawyer asked.

"Not yet, but she might and I'm not going to stand for that," Chris said. "If that happens, then it's fair game and I won't take no for an answer. I just don't know if Katie is worthy of knowing. She's really cool though, really, really cool. Much cooler than any of the other women in this company."

"Really?"

"You should see some of them."

"What?"

"Nothing," Chris said.

"Okay, well, I've got to go, I want to go find my husband and make sure he's going to be ready tonight for his matches. He's got the ECW taping before having a match on Raw. He's pulling double duty tonight, what are you doing?"

"Pretending my wife cheated on me and I'm a devastated shell of my former self while trying to hold on so my son and daughter don't get affected by a divorce that isn't real while also pretending like I hate old people because my wife cheated on me with one of my friends, so…booked up pretty solid."

"You're the only one to blame for this entire situation."

"How do you figure that?"

"Come on, you came into the company and met Stephanie, you set yourself on the course, the path of destruction," she said, wiggling her fingers around like she was trying to be scary. "Man, can you imagine if Stephanie had married someone else, someone like…oh, I don't know…what if she had married Rocky, oh my God…I could see it happening, I mean, he's a great kisser."

"I'm an awesome kisser!"

"You've got your strong points," she shrugged. "Man, if she'd married Rocky, can you imagine him still here? Can you imagine him running things? Or God, what if she'd married RVD? It seemed like they had a thing going there for a while, remember?"

"They didn't have a thing, there was no thing."

"Yeah, you're right. That would be crazy though. But you married the woman and you knew her mind and you knew at some point she'd come completely unhinged," she said, slapping Chris on the shoulder.

"Like you're an angel."

"I never claimed to be," she winked. "And tell your wife that if she wants to ask me to be in her little WrestleMania show, she should ask me and extend a very formal invitation to me because I'm feeling very unloved."

"Okay, okay, I get it, someone wants to get in the match."

"Thank you," she said, kissing him on the cheek before leaving and trying to find her husband. She found Christian and Edge sitting and talking animatedly. Well, Edge was sitting, Christian was standing next to him. She came up and wrapped her arms around Christian's torso. "What are you boys talking about?"

"Edge is just still trying to figure out why Vickie made Big Show the number one contender. They're supposed to be on the same sides. Now there's this whole thing with John and what he said and Edge can't figure it all out."

"Oh, I haven't thought about it, but it has to be something big if Vickie is going to succumb to John Cena of all people. She hates him."

"I know, that's why it's so suspicious," Edge said. "I mean, what could he have said to her? What if he's like…what if it's something like she's going to strip me of the title, do you think she could strip me of the title. It could be because of that entire thing with Show saying she thought I was a lousy champion. God, I can't stand this wait. I just want to sign the contract and be done with it."

"You'll sign it, I've got a match," Christian said, kissing the top of Trish's head. "You going to come watch me, Trishy?"

"Yeah, I'll catch up with you though, I'm going to talk to my bro," Trish said affectionately. Edge smiled a little. He liked it when Trish referred to him as her brother. It was nice to have a little sister type person.

"Okay, but I'm going to need a good luck kiss before I go out there," Christian told her, "or I'm going to have no chance whatsoever."

"Oh, you'll win, don't worry, those other people don't stand a chance against you. They will be eating your boots in this match."

"You're the best," Christian said, leaning down to kiss her. She wrapped her arms around his neck, tilting her head a little to deepen the kiss. "I love you."

"I love you too," she echoed. "I'll be there in a little bit."

"You guys are still so gross. Kill me if I ever get like this. Seriously, just off me."

"I'll take care of that task," Christian said, giving Trish one more peck before walking off to warm up for his match for the ECW taping. Trish hopped up onto the trunk and sat next to Edge.

"So hey, have you thought more about that whole…Lita thing?"

"Yeah, I actually have," Edge said. "You're right, I can't keep doing this to her. I love her, but what I'm doing isn't fair."

"I'm glad you see the other side of it"

"I do," Edge nodded. "I've been thinking a lot about it and she deserves better. I'm still married to Vickie and Vickie wants to be together and she's my wife. I've got to try with her. I never tried with her and I do love her, regardless of what people think, a part of me loves her."

"I think you're doing the right thing," she told him. "I know it's hard, believe me, but if things are meant to work out with you and Lita, they'll work out and work out in such a way that you can be together freely."

"Like you and Christian?"

"Exactly like me and Christian. We're better for everything we've been through. If I've learned one thing from being apart from him for so long, it's to really enjoy the moments when we're together and doing something stupid like going out for ice cream. It's fun and I love being with him and if it's meant to be with you and Lita, it'll happen."

"There are plenty of other women too, I mean, you know, if it didn't work out with her…or Vickie."

Trish wrapped her arm around Edge, "You just never change, do you?"

"Where would the fun be in that?"

Chris let Sawyer stand on his feet as he walked down the hallway. "And the pig goes?"

"Oink, oink," Sawyer said.

"Yup, that's right, and the chicken goes?"

"Bawk, bawk," Sawyer answered.

"You're two for two, and then the frog goes?"

"Wibbit, wibbit."

"And the rabbit goes?"

Sawyer furrowed his brow, "I no know!"

"It doesn't really make a sound, it just wiggles its nose a lot, like this," Chris said, wiggling his nose and making Sawyer laugh. The little boy scrunched up his face as he kept walking on Chris's feet. His daddy's feet were a lot bigger than his so he could walk on them easily.

"Chris, hey."

Chris groaned inwardly. Would the women around here never cease! "Hey, Kelly, what's up?"

"I just couldn't help but notice you had your son here tonight."

"He's usually here every week."

"Yeah, but I just wanted to comment on how cute he is," Kelly said. "I heard him saying his animal sounds, he's really smart."

Chris wondered how many animal sounds Kelly would recognize. Maybe she would know the call of the elusive Go Away bird. He didn't want to deal with these vapid, shallow women coming up to him and thinking that just because he was potentially single that he was up for grabs in a raffle. Yes, he had a modicum of power, but didn't they realize they power lay with Stephanie was nowhere near him if he wasn't married to Stephanie. He had grasped this concept pretty quickly, but apparently these women hadn't.

"Yeah, I'm very proud of him."

"You should be, I bet he's proud of you too, for you know, dealing with everything you've been going through. I bet if the fans knew what you were going through, they'd be sympathetic to your cause."

"I don't care what they think," Chris said. "My life is my life and whatever happens out there is not my personal life, that's business."

"Of course, of course, I didn't meant to imply you should exploit what's going on, but just get it out there, you know, move on from it, if that's what you want," she said, her voice just lilting a little at the end as she tossed her hair over her shoulder. Did he really think that would make him drop his son to the ground and push her into a broom closet? A hair flip was supposed to entice him. This girl needed help.

"Trust me, I'm not going to be…getting anything out there, but thanks anyway."

When John Cena of all people told Edge that he loved Vickie, he didn't quite know how to react. It was like a mixture of shock and some other emotion he couldn't quite identify. There was definitely shock there though. What the hell was going on? How could _Cena_ love Vickie? How could she…he was the one that loved…well, maybe he didn't love Vickie after all. Maybe he should give her over to Cena. If it made her happy, it would make him happy too. But it just couldn't be true. No, it couldn't.

And it wasn't. Cena went on to confirm that, but then decided that he was going to show the real reason Vickie had let him sign on to the match. The footage was from last week. The shower was running and Vickie was there. Then the Big Show was there and they were talking. Edge felt suddenly odd, like the world was moving in slow motion, like the words on the video were muffled. Then it sped up as they started to kiss and flirt and…slap butts, why was there slapping butts on this video? Cena seemed very proud of himself on the ramp and Edge felt that same mixture of shock and that other emotion, but he could figure it out now, parse it from the other emotions, what was this, what was this feeling that warming him starting from his toes and undulating higher?

It was happiness.

Edge left the ring alone, leaving the two lovers in his wake. He walked up the ramp quickly and by the time he was backstage, he was in a full run. He was tearing through the hallways, muttering to himself, ignoring everyone else. A strong hand stopped him and he looked up at his brother. "Dude, what happened out there?"

"I'm free," Edge said quietly, weighing the words, looking at them as if they could float up from his mouth, then he said them louder, more firmly, "I'm free!"

"What?"

"I'm free, I'm…I'm free, dude, I'm free, I've got to go," he said, "I've just got to go."

The night was decidedly not as good for Chris. Chris knew he could beat Kofi Kingston. Sawyer was backstage with Trish, probably watching and he was going to give his son a show. Kofi was no match for his superior skills. They might as well have given him a free pass into the Money in the Bank. He knew Christian was going to be in it, but this was no time for friends, even if they just had returned to the company. The match started off with the two of them sparring against each other, but Kofi got the early offense in, but Chris was quick to take control of the match.

He was a little disappointed he wouldn't have a bigger match at WrestleMania, but this match had direct implications for the title so it wasn't all bad. He'd get into the Money match, then he'd win and maybe he'd challenge Hunter. He was sure Hunter would win against Randy. Randy was working on paranoid and Hunter was working on keeping his belt and supposedly protecting Stephanie. If he challenged Hunter, everyone backstage would think it was because of Stephanie. That would actually be a great trick to pull on everyone.

Because Chris's mind wasn't on the match, Kofi was able to get a cross body on Chris, but he kicked out of it. Kofi then tried to hit him with a kick, but Chris was one step ahead of him and tried to get the Walls. Kofi countered that, but Chris was able to get him with an enziguri. Chris had to get back in the match and quick. He tried for the Lionsault, but would soon incur Stephanie's wrath because he missed the move. She was going to complain to him. He bet it would be within 10 minutes of him getting home. Hell, maybe she was leaving a message on his machine right now.

Chris focused once again and got the Walls of Jericho on Kofi. He had him in the middle of the ring and he just needed to get this guy to tap. He was on the verge when suddenly Flair's music started up. Chris looked to the ramp and saw Flair walking out nonchalantly. Chris couldn't believe he'd have the nerve to show up and he became distracted by the man's presence. He let go of Kofi because the referee told him too. By the time he remembered he was in a match, it was too late and he'd lost his shot. He didn't much care about that, but more cared about the fact that Flair had the audacity to interfere in his match.

Chris was pissed and made no bones about it. He challenged Flair to a match next week. If he didn't want to, he was a coward and if he did, then Chris would crush him, it was really a win-win situation for Chris. That would show that old has-been to interfere in his matches. He could've left with dignity last year, but no, he decided to hang around for too long, trying to recapture his glory days. Well the glory days were over and Chris was going to be the one to give him a reality check.

"Are you sure you know what you're going to do, Hunter?" Stephanie asked.

"Yes, breaking and entering, vigilante justice, see my girlfriend."

"Yes, all of those things, please," Stephanie said. "Hold on, I'm getting another call and it's Chris." She switched over.

"Did you see what Flair did, I want time next week to challenge him to a match."

"You got it, and I did see and that wasn't cool of him. You had that in the bag, sweetie. Next time you'll get them and I will make sure you get to WrestleMania, so don't worry about that one."

"Oh, I'm going to make a moment alright."

"I love you, so does Flynn."

"Don't butter me up with love, I'm pissed."

"I'm just saying your girls love you."

"I need to keep a little bit of my dignity, thank you. I'm out of here, I'm getting my son and we are leaving."

"Wait, just stay and watch the end of Raw so you can see the plan act out, please?"

"Okay, let's see what's going down."

Britt waited with anticipation of Hunter's arrival. There were a ton of people just milling about the house, but she was just sitting on the top of the steps. She'd coached Randy earlier on what to say, trying to make it believable. Stephanie had tasked her with the real-life job of overseeing the interview to make sure it ran smoothly. She'd done her job and now she was taking a "break." In actuality, she was just sitting here so she could watch what was about to happen next. Randy thought Hunter was in Jacksonville to face Cody and Ted, but in fact, Hunter was on his way over now, if the text he'd just sent was accurate.

She could hear Randy go on a diatribe about how Hunter was letting everyone down by not showing up, but he was about to show up alright. The doorbell rang as Randy told Samantha, the actress, to answer it. Then he realized what a hideous mistake that would be and tried to make it to the door, but Hunter was bashing it in. She thought it was so hot when he entered the house. He didn't see her, but she saw him and she thought he looked great.

Hunter stalked through the house trying to look as intimidating as possible. He'd never broken into anyone's home quite like this so he was taking in every moment. This was like a demented game of hide-and-seek and he kept seeking people everywhere, but had no clue who they were. He came across the actress who pretended to be Randy's wife and she looked terrified, like she had no idea what the hell she'd gotten herself into. Hunter thought she was pretty, but hardly his type.

He walked back into the foyer and decided to try upstairs. He looked upstairs and saw Britt sitting on the top step. She waved at him and he started walking up further, obscuring himself with the wall a little bit. He grinned at Britt and it felt like the first time in ages he was actually grinning. He missed her so much.

"He's downstairs in the closet," Britt whispered to him. She pointed down and he looked at her and gave a slight nod. "I love you."

"I love you," he mouthed as he turned around and went back downstairs. He was expecting the attack so when it came, he overcame it fairly quickly. He took Randy and threw him out the window, knowing this was going to get him in trouble. He could see the flashing lights over his shoulder. That actress must've called them, not realizing this had nothing to do with the law.

He was taken away in handcuffs and booked downtown. Stephanie posted him bail and Britt had snuck away to be around him. He was fine, but just pissed off that the woman had called the police on him. He didn't want to go to court for this and try to explain that he was pretending to be his ex-wife's husband and this was personal. That probably wouldn't blow over too well.

Randy was completely pissed Hunter had broken through his defenses, not realizing he was consorting with the enemy.

Lita opened her door sleepily, "Edge?"

"I could only catch a flight from Jacksonville to Charleston. I rented a car and drove the 5 hours to see you."

"It's the middle of the night," she said, "what did you need?"

"Did you see Raw?"

"No, sorry, I was out on a gig. What happened?"

"I'm free."

"What?" she asked.

"Big Show and Vickie, they're together, I'm free, Li, I'm free!"

"You mean…you're breaking up with Vickie?"

"Yes! I'm free!"

Lita threw herself in his arms.


	226. Oh, the Horror, March 16, 2009

A/N: Thanks for the reviews everyone, I really appreciate them and I'm happy that you're liking the way I'm explaining things around this crazy company. Enjoy, it's a long one. :)

* * *

"What do you mean she called you?"

Edge looked at Lita and ran his hand through his hair. He pulled his hand away and let his hair fall into his face. "Babe, it's over, we both know this. She's just trying to hang on and if I tell her it's completely over when she has the power over both shows, it's going to be detrimental to my career."

"You said you were free," Lita told him. "You said that you were completely free."

"I am completely free, I wish…I wish I hadn't married her in the first place. She's my boss, what was I thinking? She has the power and she can change everything to favor her and what the hell was I thinking?"

"Well, at the time I'm thinking you kind of liked her," Lita said testily.

"Yeah, I guess, of course, I did make out with the wedding planner, but I didn't have sex with her," he complained. "Obviously Vickie was sleeping with Big Show, with _Big Show_, I mean, how does that really work? Do I want to know how that works?"

"I don't think you want to know how that works," Lita told him, rubbing his arm. "Look, maybe you'll get away from her after WrestleMania. Maybe Big Show has genuine feelings and he can steal her from you."

"I guess that could happen," he said. "I wouldn't bet on it though. With my luck, Vickie ends up pregnant with my kid and then I'm obligated to stay with her."

"Don't say that, please don't say that," Lita said with a shudder. The last thing she needed to complicate her already complicated life was to have Vickie pregnant with Edge's child. She always figured if she had a child, it would be with Edge. Well, no, that wasn't right. She'd entertained the idea when she was with Matt. They'd been together so long it was hard not to think of the future. But when she'd been with Edge, while she was _with_ Edge, she realized if ever there were kids in her life, they were going to have to be his kids too or she just wouldn't want them.

"I don't think she is, we're really careful about that kind of thing, plus, I mean, Vickie's not exactly old, but she's not exactly young so I'm not really sure how the equipment is doing," he said carefully.

"Do you just not talk to her at all?" Lita asked. She thought her relationship with Edge had been odd, but this was even worse. Lita spent a lot of time with Edge and she wondered where Vickie thought he was during this. Of course, on the other end, Vickie was with Big Show. Edge and Vickie had never even really lived together.

"We talk…just not a lot," he answered. "We talked a lot at first, but we're both very driven people and usually we're driven towards a specific goal. Now we're not, not really. I mean, I want the title match, this is what's driving me right now. Nothing else."

"So get your title shot," she told him. "I want you to get your title shot."

"I'm with you, once WrestleMania is over, I'm telling her it's completely over. As of right now, I'm not…I don't even care what happens to her. She has Show after all and I'm sure they'll be very happy together and we can be very happy together."

Lita hugged him tightly. It just wasn't fair that they couldn't be open about their relationship. If she had known Chris and Stephanie back when they were hiding their own relationship, she might equate this with that, but she didn't so there was no comparison to her. It almost felt like when she was sneaking around with Edge before, but for some reason, it felt worse now and she knew it was because Edge was _married_. He hadn't been married before and neither had she, but this was the worse offense and she just wanted it over. She just wanted to be with him, but it kept pulling just out of her reach.

"Do you want to come with tonight?" he asked. "You can come with Trish and Christian and me and Trish can say she brought you as a friend."

"No, it's okay, you go on without me, I'll just watch here, I'll be fine," she told him, putting on her bravest smile. "You're going to kick ass out there and I don't want to be a distraction for you."

"You're never a distraction."

Christian looked at his watch again. Then he looked at the elevators, but still, none of them were opening to reveal his older brother. What was the point of designating a time if nobody was going to pay attention to said time? He had told his wife and brother to be here at a specific time and were they here? No. Trish was off with Stephanie somewhere (she had decided enough was enough and she couldn't sit at home any longer) and Edge was nowhere to be found, but he was probably having phone sex with Lita or something.

"Hey, Chrissy," Trish said as she bounced on her tiptoes to press a kiss to her husband's cheek. "What are you doing?"

"Where have you been?" he asked.

"She's been with me," Stephanie said, coming over, Flynn in her arms. Sawyer was clinging to her leg and smiling up at Christian. "Sorry to have detained her, Christian."

"I'm just in a hurry, I want to get to the show."

"Oh, the show, the show is always very nice," Stephanie said wistfully. "I used to be on the show."

"Well you're faking a head injury so why don't you go wrap a bandage around your head and feign amnesia or something," Christian said.

"Wow, Trish, your husband is mean," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "Of course, my husband kicked me out of our house and only lets me see my children every once in a while, so I guess Christian is actually a model husband."

Trish rolled her eyes, "I don't see anyone around, Steph."

"You never know," she shrugged, glancing around. She might as well keep up the charade while she was here. She wanted everyone thinking that the tension was high with her and Chris. Maybe they could even stage an argument. Oh, or maybe she could have Hunter say that she was with _him_ tonight and that would set Chris on edge. She knew he had challenged Flair to a match tonight, but that was like asking a lion to wrestle with a kitten, Chris was going to crush Flair so he really had nothing on his plate tonight.

"You guys are just too much, I'm starting to feel like we're the only normal couple around here and that's really scary because Christian and I haven't had the most wonderful of stories."

"We're not too much, he was never there for me, never attentive. We might as well have lived in separate houses the time we spent together. Hunter was just always there for me and sweet to me and it's only Chris's own fault that he lost me. I mean, I didn't _want_ to cheat, but he practically drove me into Hunter's arms, what could I do?"

"Um, resist?"

"I tried, you have no idea, I really did try."

"Not hard enough it seems," Trish said. It was actually kind of funny trying to see Stephanie come up with plausible answers. She was being a little dramatic, Trish thought, but overall, she really did look like she was just answering honestly.

"I did, it's just, Chris and I, I think whatever we had, that fire, I think it just ran out. I don't want to say it was the kids, but we just grew apart after them, we were so busy with them, we didn't have time to keep up with each other. Then he has all these projects he does and he was never there, always somewhere else."

Of course, none of that was true. In fact, she probably saw Chris too much and _could_ use more time away from him just on principle. They lived together, they slept together, they drove places together, they worked together. They should probably relish this short break they were getting at the shows because it gave them things to talk about when they got home, not that they ever ran out. Chris and Stephanie were talkers and so was Sawyer. Their house was constantly filled with some kind of chatter.

"Do you know where Chris is? Weren't you supposed to give him one of the kids?"

"I was going to take Flynn, he was going to take Sawyer. It's just easier that way for Flynn's schedule," Stephanie said. "He lets me take care of her more since she's more clingy."

"That makes sense," Trish said, then turned to Christian, "oh, and we were late because Stephanie was asking me if I wanted to be in the divas match at WrestleMania."

"Oh, she finally did," Christian said, "what took you so long, Stephanie? My wife should've been the very first person on that list."

"I'm sorry, I thought it was kind of implied that she would be in the match."

"Except you forgot one big thing," Trish said, "I'm not under contract with you guys anymore so it's about time you start issuing me formal invitations to these kinds of things."

"Nobody got a formal invitation," she laughed, "what do you want me to do? You want a handwritten note wrapped in pink ribbon inviting you to the match?"

"Is that really too much to ask?" Trish joked back.

"So you accepted then?" Christian asked.

Trish looked up at him and nodded eagerly. "We're both going to be on the card. It's been so long since we've both been on the same show, it's really going to be kind of crazy. I mean, I know you've had married people on your shows before, I mean, you were one of said married people, but it'll be a first for us since the wedding and we're really excited."

"You guys are still so sickeningly cute, when is that going to wear off?"

"When did it wear off for you and Chris?" she asked.

"I don't think we ever had that newlywed thing, I've been questioning every moment of our relationship since our fallout."

"Okay, seriously, nobody's around, answer the question," Trish told her.

Stephanie glanced around again and then turned back towards her best friend, lowering her voice. "Probably around the time I found out I was pregnant and then you know, the whole life-changing thing happened, so that was what, eight months or so of just gross wedded bliss."

"Yeah, so you can't talk," Trish said. "Because that was a pretty long time."

"Touché," Stephanie said. "But you definitely are going to do WrestleMania, right? Because I'm counting on you to be there so you can't back out now, okay, because I don't know who we could possibly get to replace you. I don't think Lita's going to be in it, do you know?"

"I don't know, she might feel uncomfortable because of Vickie, you know…"

"Oh yeah, that's such a weird situation," Stephanie said.

"Anyways, I'll be there, the only reason I wouldn't be there is if I get pregnant between now and then, but I'm not going to count on that happening. I just don't think it's going to happen right now so I'm in. I mean, Christian's going to be there anyways so I'm going to be there anyways and it's more fun actually getting to wrestle than just watching my husband win a title shot in the Money in the Bank match."

"Well, I like watching my…Hunter," Stephanie said, trying to remember that. She was just so used to referring to Chris as her husband that she was trying to get used to saying Hunter this time. "That reminds me, he wanted me to drive him to the show so that people can see us."

"You know, I should've just been the one you were having an affair with, I think that would've distracted Randy," Trish said.

"Wow, do not put that image into my head," Christian said. "There are children around and…Stephanie, are you aware your son is asleep on your leg?"

Stephanie looked down and indeed, Sawyer's head was resting lightly against Stephanie's leg and his eyes were closed and his hands slacked at his sides. Stephanie laughed. Sawyer had skipped his nap today because they had been on the Riverwalk this afternoon. He was probably going to be so worn out he wouldn't even make it through the show.

"Sawyer, baby boy, time to wake up," Stephanie said gently, running her fingers through his hair.

"Here, let me," Trish said, picking him up. Sawyer rested his head against Trish's shoulder and went right back to sleep. "Poor guy, he was worn out." She turned to Christian, "He was running the entire length of the Riverwalk because he wanted to see where it led to."

"That explains it," Christian said. Christian looked at his watch again. "I can't believe my brother, this is the last time I let him ride with us. From now on, he's on his own."

"Lita's here, you know," Trish said. "Stephanie told me."

"Edge told me," Stephanie said, then off Christian's look. "What, I talk to Edge too, you know, you aren't the only one who has a premium on him or anything. I talked to him and he said she was here."

"Well no wonder, they're probably having a quickie in some bushes with her or something," Christian grumbled. "He could've told me she was here, then I would've told him to get his own ride."

"What are you going to be late for?" Stephanie asked. "I looked over and approved the schedule for tonight and you're just doing commentary and that isn't until the second hour so you've got time."

"I just want to be prepared," Christian said. "That's all."

"My man likes to be prepared," Trish said, all giggly-like. Stephanie gave a fake smile to the two of them, but seriously, if she and Chris were like this at one point, someone should've shot them with tranquilizers. She _knew_ she'd never been like this with Hunter. She was too busy being scared of him to be cooing over him. He had called her a delicate flower once, that was pretty mushy, but then Chris had said she'd lost her flower a long time ago and what had he known? He hadn't known if she had actually lost her virginity to Hunter or what. Sure, he knew now, but not then.

"Seems he does," Stephanie said. "I wonder where that ex of mine is."

"Hey, guys!" Edge said, running over and looking disheveled. Christian groaned in disgust at his appearance because he knew what his brother had probably just been doing and under no circumstances did he want to see his brother post-whatever it was that he had done with Lita. "Sorry, lost track of time."

"Sure you did," Christian said.

"What's that mean?" Edge asked.

"It means we all know what you were doing and whom you were doing it with, seeing as how your zipper is open," Trish told her brother-in-law, looking down at his open fly. She was just glad there was nothing to see in said open fly.

"Oh, sorry," he blushed, pulling up his zipper. "Oh hey again, Steph, I'm guessing you told them that Li was here."

"It may have slipped," Stephanie said. "You guys get going though. I have to wait for Chris so that he can take Sawyer with him. Then you know, later he's going to want Flynn. He's going to fly them home to Florida since he doesn't like them staying in Connecticut with me and Hunter."

"That's rough," Edge said, "how are you doing?"

"I'm fine," Stephanie said. Edge still didn't know. She would usually tell him, but he just got so comically sympathetic she didn't want to just to see how much longer he could keep that face up. "I mean, you know, I have Hunter, so it's alright, I guess, but you know, it's hard not being around my kids."

"I know," Edge said, "that has to be so bad."

"It is," Stephanie said as Edge's face drooped more and more. "I'll be fine though."

"Yeah, you're tough," Edge said, giving her a smile.

"Well, you guys should go before Christian's head explodes," Stephanie said as Trish put Sawyer down on the ground, prompting the little boy to wake up and go hug Stephanie's leg again. "Chris is going to be by soon, I'm sure."

"Hang in there, okay?" Edge said, squeezing her shoulder. Christian started to laugh in earnest, thinking it so funny his brother was so sympathetic to Stephanie. Trish shook her head and shoved him down the lobby where he continued laughing. His brother just came off so weird when he was actually being sincere.

"Thanks," Stephanie said, then watched as they left, leaving her there. She looked around the lobby a little bit and cuddled Flynn against her. The infant was babbling softly in Stephanie's ear, but of course, it didn't really mean anything. Flynn was fascinated with the collar of Stephanie's shirt and Sawyer was leaning sleepily against her again. Finally, she saw Chris walking up and he wasn't alone.

"Stephanie," he said curtly.

"Chris," she said, equally as curt. She turned to his companion. "Hello, Britt."

"Hello, bitch," Britt said derisively.

"Please don't swear around my children," Stephanie said with mock politeness.

"Please don't screw around with other people's boyfriends," Britt said back, then added, "oops, too late for that, huh? Oh well, at least you know that for when you screw someone over next time, maybe it'll make you think a little bit."

"I'm not here to fight, I'm just here to give Chris Sawyer per our agreement, I didn't know you'd be here." Stephanie did in fact know Britt was going to be with Chris because Chris was actually going to drive with Randy today. Randy had invited Chris along to discuss what was going on with Hunter and Britt had tagged along.

Stephanie had to admit the girl was good. She hadn't known Britt had it in her, but if she had known the skills Britt possessed, she would've brought her into plans all the time. The girl had a natural talent for manipulation and she had manipulated like a chess-master or a grand puppeteer. She had single-handedly gotten Randy to drop the charges against Hunter.

"_Are you okay?" Randy asked her the day after Hunter's attack. _

"_Yeah, I'm fine," Britt said. "I stayed upstairs, he didn't get anywhere near me."_

"_Well, it's over now," Randy said. "He's in jail and he's not going to see freedom for a long time. There's a whole list of charges against him, breaking and entering, assault with a deadly weapon…the list goes on and on. He's staying put."_

"_I think you should drop the charges," Britt told him._

"_What! Are you kidding me! No way," he said, "Britt, come on, I know that you're not over the guy, but this is ridiculous. He broke into my house, he terrorized people, you can't really stand for this, can you?"_

"_I don't care about Hunter," Britt said, much to Randy's surprise. "I'm really just thinking about you here." She added a flirty tone to her answer and this melted him quite nicely. He sat down across from her and just stared._

"_Me?"_

"_Of course," she told him. "Think about it this way, Randy, if you let the cops take care of him, that's the easy way out and you don't like the easy way out, right? I know you, you like to take care of business. I saw the way you handled all those legends you took out over the years, I saw the way you took out Vince, Shane, and then even Stephanie. You like to finish the job. Don't let the cops take that away from you, Randy. Take Hunter to WrestleMania and finish the job on him too. There's nothing I'd love to see more than you putting a dent into Hunter's head."_

"_You want to see that?" he asked, his voice getting low and rather dangerous. His look was starting to match, his eyes narrowing ever so slightly. She matched his look with one of her own, her lips turning up into a smirk and her eyes gleaming._

"_Absolutely."_

"_You got it then."_

Stephanie had to mentor this girl for sure. Chris cleared his throat, "So just give me Sawyer and be done with it then."

"Fine," Stephanie said. Chris picked up the sleepy boy and Britt picked up his bag and shouldered it. "I'll give you Flynn later, I'm driving with Hunter to the show, I won't be staying, but I'll be picking him up, just so you know. You can have her then."

"Fine," Chris told her. "You better be there."

"I said I wouldn't, didn't I?" Stephanie snapped at him.

"I'm just making sure," he said, "come on, Britt, we've got to go to the show."

"Okay," she said and they both turned around without saying goodbye to Stephanie. She pretended to glare after them and then she felt a strong arm around her shoulders. She was glad Chris wasn't here to see this. Hunter pressed a kiss to her cheek, thinking that was appropriate for the situation. She looked at him in surprise, then realized what he was really doing and smiled at him. "Hey, you."

"Hey, babe," he said, glancing around. They were constantly glancing around. "Hey, there, Flynn, you're looking beautiful today."

She looked up at him and frowned a little. She didn't know this guy too well, but she saw him around a lot. Whoever he was had bad breath. "She's quiet today, one of her introspective days. You ready to go?"

"Yeah, I'm ready, come on," he said as they walked towards the parking lot. "I already got the car-seat in there so she's going to be fine. I thought ahead because I know you like that kind of thing."

"Oh, I love you, Hunter," she said loudly as she passed by some of the divas and wrestlers who were milling around the lobby. "You're just the best."

"How's your head, are you sure you're up for driving me?"

"Yeah, I am, thanks for being so concerned," she told him, beaming up at him. "I know you're going to be great tonight, but I wonder why Randy decided to drop the charges, do you think he's going to explain?"

"I hope so, but don't worry, I'm going to decimate Cody in our match tonight and I know Randy's going to be out there," he said as they walked outside. "Okay, that was pretty intense."

"Warn me when you're going to kiss me, geez," Stephanie said, wiping her cheek with her hand. "I don't need Hunter cooties anymore, I swear to God, gross. The only kisses I want are from my husband and children."

"Speaking of your husband," Hunter said as they reached his gargantuan car. Flynn looked like a dwarf next to the thing. She opened the door and had to practically climb inside to get Flynn buckled up. The car ride was probably going to lull her to sleep, tonight was a very slow night for the Jericho children. They were both worn out from the warm day and all the excitement. They probably would be of no help to the plan tonight. "He gets to ride with my girl?"

"Yeah, he does," Stephanie said as they got in the car and closed themselves off to the world. "You know, I may hang around the show a bit, just to you know, be seen, have people look at me and point because they think I'm horrible for what I've done."

"You're not horrible."

"To them I am. Backstage, Chris is a nice guy, maybe not to the older guys, but he's right in calling them hypocrites and that Rourke thing, how dare he stir the pot of this whole thing. He doesn't know how to wrestle. He's not a wrestler and yet he's making threats to my husband. Those men need to learn their lesson."

"You do understand Ric is one of my best friends."

"Come on, Hunter, even you have to admit, he hasn't exactly stayed as retired as most people thought he was going to be."

"I'll concede that, but I don't know, Chris is going to _be_ one of those Hall of Famers one day and what happens if some other young guy tells him he's a hypocrite."

"Chris will own the company," Stephanie said. "One, he's going to have more problems to worry about than someone calling him names. I mean, he's obviously not going to hold the same position I'm going to hold or Shane's going to hold, but I think he will oversee the whole of talent, since he's one of the guys. And second, he's going to have guys calling him names all the time if he's the boss, I think he'll take it all in great strides."

"You seem pretty sure you guys will be together that long."

"Chris and I are in it for the long haul. I figure if a guy is willing to pretend to get divorced for me, nothing is going to come between us that we can't handle."

"We thought the same thing."

"_You_ may have, but I never did," Stephanie shrugged. "I knew we were living on borrowed time and you had to have known as well. We got married while I was drugged, I think that was a huge tip-off right there."

He chuckled, "Yeah, I guess you're right."

Chris turned to look at Sawyer, but he was out, then he turned to the seat next to him and to Randy. "I don't know why you would even let him out of jail. I would've let that son of a bitch rot in jail. I actually would have gone down there just to laugh in his face."

"Britt convinced me not to," Randy explained. "She's right though, I need to be the one to finish him off. It's a good idea for me to be the one to take him out. Then he can be out for a really long time, then his reign of terror is over and you can take care of him for me. You should really take care of him for me tonight. I'm thinking maybe you knock him down a few pegs and then I can go after him while he's having a match with Cody."

"I'm not supposed to touch him per Vickie's orders."

"Dude, you own the company."

"Not anymore because I'm not with Stephanie anymore. She decided that her precious Hunter is better. The only thing that he's got that I don't is a huge nose and I don't want that," Chris said distastefully.

"Well, maybe next week or something you can trip him up. I just wish I had known he was coming into my house last week, I would've been better prepared for him."

Britt leaned forward. "He won't be trying that again. You gave him a reprieve once, but you won't again. Next time, you'll be ready for him and he'll be the one going through a window. I'd pay money to see that."

"Me too," Chris said. "Thanks for taking him out for me, I appreciate it."

"Anything to knock his whole family down. None of them are worth any of my time so I should just get rid of them all…your kids not included of course," Randy added, not wanting to get on Chris's bad side. "You know, we have a lot in common, Jericho. I completely agree with your assessment of the Hall of Famers, they are a bunch of losers."

"I'm glad you agree, Randy," Chris said and he was glad because that meant Randy would be more willing to open up.

"I hope you kick Flair's ass tonight. That'll definitely thrown Hunter off his game since he's in love with Flair. I always got weird vibes between those two when we were in Evolution. Hunter is such a butt-kisser when it comes to Flair, but Flair is just as big a butt-kisser to him."

"That's enough butt-kissing for one night," Chris said, not wanting to think about that. That was just plain disgusting. He looked to Britt and she was making a face too and kind of shrugged at Chris. Sawyer was stirring so Britt rubbed his head and he fell back asleep.

"I'm going to take care of Hunter tonight. I'm sure Cody can take care of him or at least soften him up a little."

"So you and Ted are planning on being out there, then?"

"Yeah, we'll be out there and then Hunter won't know what hit him, trust me, he'll get some tonight."

Britt snickered, that just sounded wrong. The only one who should be getting some from Hunter was herself. They were going through a self-imposed dry spell right now. She thought to herself about Hunter and wondered if perhaps at some point she could get away from Randy and get some much-needed alone time with her boyfriend. She needed to be around him for just a few minutes so she could remind herself of why she loved him so much. Being around Randy was so tedious; she needed her Hunter.

"Oh yeah, he'll be getting some tonight," Britt said fiercely. Chris looked back at her again in shock and she winked at him and then he pretended to be choking on vomit thinking about what she actually meant by that. How the hell had he entered a car with the Peanut gallery?

Stephanie was definitely getting looks from people and it was a little disconcerting. She was pushing Flynn in her stroller and Hunter was beside her and everyone was staring and whispering, especially the women. Damn gossips, but in this occasion it worked in their favor. Hunter had wrapped his arm around her and for all the world they looked a couple, maybe even like a happy, little family, but this wasn't her family. It was missing two important members and Hunter was not her husband, nor did she want him to be her husband.

"What are you looking at?" Stephanie snapped at one of the makeup people.

"Nothing," she said timidly.

"Come on, babe," Hunter said, pulling her closer. "Let's just go to my locker room. Then we can have some alone time."

"That sounds nice," Stephanie said, gazing up at Hunter adoringly. She tried to put herself back in the position she was in eight years ago. Wow, had it been eight years already? It was hard for her to believe that she had loved this man so long ago and even more impressive, that she had been together with Chris for nearly seven years. It would be their seven-year anniversary in July. She wondered if this thing would have to go that long. How awkward it would be if she had to celebrate her anniversary by pretending to be with Hunter? Seven years was a huge milestone for her. She and Chris had surpassed her longest relationship by a lot, but each year was just something special.

When she'd started dating Chris, she almost didn't expect it to go past the first date. They were so combative in the past she figured it might extend to their personal lives as well. Their first date had been wonderful though, one of the best she'd ever had, if not _the_ best since she'd ended up marrying the guy. When she slept with him a few nights later, she thought that maybe this could be something more because she'd never been that impulsive. It took her a month to even let Hunter touch her intimately she'd been so wary of him. Chris she'd let do things to her that it had taken Hunter months to get to do.

Then it evolved and here they were, disjointed to the world, but a united front behind closed doors, happily married with two kids. Of course, it wasn't his arm around her right now, so that was kind of a downer. She wondered what he was doing right now. He was somewhere in the building, she knew he had to be because he'd more than likely left before her. She wondered if she could get some alone time with him. Probably not, but the thought was nice.

Chris sat next to Sawyer on the couch. Britt and Randy had wandered off, Randy following her like a puppy dog. That boy was either going to wear her down or end up in a body bag when this was all through. If Randy was scared of Hunter, he should be doubly afraid of Britt because she was proving herself to be a conniving genius. If he were several years younger and several people down, he would be all over Britt. Sawyer was still sleepy. It was nearing his bedtime as the show had already started. He wasn't on for a while so he could sit with his son.

Sawyer was just sitting there. He had no desire to run around or draw or play. He just wanted to sit there and look up at his daddy sleepy. "Hey kid," Chris said, "when are you going to go to bed?"

"No bed, Daddy," Sawyer said, just resting his head against the cushions.

"Okay, so how about I ask you some questions then?"

"Okay," Sawyer said. Chris and Stephanie had found out that if you asked him questions, he would get so tired having to think of the answers he'd just doze off. It had worked over the past few days so he was going to try it now.

"Okay, so…how old are you going to be in a couple months?"

"I be…fwee," Sawyer said after thinking for just a second. He held up his three fingers because that's how old he was going to be. His mommy had set up a countdown calendar for his birthday and it was currently at 46 days, but when they got home, it would be time to take down some more. Stephanie wanted Sawyer to be fully aware of when his birthday was going to be.

"You're going to be free?" Chris asked him.

Sawyer giggled, "No, Daddy, I be fwee!" Sawyer giggled. He was going to be three years old and his mommy said they were going to have a party and he couldn't wait.

"Are you sure you don't think you're going to be free?"

"Daddy," Sawyer laughed, pushing against Chris's leg. "I no say dat, I be fwee, see, fwee," he said, shoving his fingers into Chris's face.

"Oh! You're going to be three, I get it now, wow, that's really old, don't you think?"

"I not a baby," he told Chris, "Fwynn a baby, I not a baby."

"Flynn's a baby, how old is Flynn?"

"She nofing," Saywer said. "She not have a birfday."

"She hasn't had a birthday?"

"Uh uh, I do, I have one, Mommy say I have one," Sawyer told him. "You come, Daddy, you can."

"Thanks for the invite, but Flynn isn't nothing, she's seven months old."

"Seben," Sawyer said, then thought for a moment, "Daddy, Seben mow than fwee, but I bigger dan her."

"Well, she's only seven months, while you're almost three years, a year is more than a month, so she's only seven months."

"Seben month," Sawyer repeated. "Okay, where my baby?"

"Baby's with Mommy."

"I wanna see baby and Mommy!" Sawyer said, bouncing around a little.

"We're at the show, we can't see them."

"Daddy, I see baby," Sawyer whined, his voice reaching the pitch where only dogs can hear. Chris cringed and knew what was coming. Sawyer started to cry a little and Chris picked him up, being the enabler.

"Okay, I'll call Mommy and tell her to bring your baby over, okay?"

"Okay," Sawyer sniffled, putting on his pout face.

"Don't pout at me," Chris said, "I'm going to get your baby here, so don't worry."

"I'm going to go, Hunter," Stephanie said. "I'll pick you up later, just give me a call when you want to be picked up, okay?"

"Yeah, I'll call you. You sure you can handle that vehicle?"

"I'll be fine," she said. "I'll talk to you later."

"Okay, later," he said.

Stephanie pushed Flynn out of Hunter's locker room. She was walking down the hallway when her cell phone rang in her pocket. She got it and looked at it. It was Chris. She wondered what he wanted and answered the phone, "What do you want?" She still had to keep up appearances after all.

"Sawyer is crying for Flynn and you, can you come by and see him? We can pretend to have a fight or something for authenticity, but your son wants you and I think that's more important than your plan. At least I hope it would be."

"Of course it is," she said in a tone that meant she was mad but he could tell she was faking. "I'll be right there."

"Thanks." Chris hung up the phone and looked at Sawyer, "did you hear that, Mommy and Flynn will be here in a second and then you can say hi to your baby, okay?"

"Daddy, I like my baby, she cwal."

"I know she crawls."

"You say she stwong, I stwong?"

"You're strong too, but did you see the way Flynn was climbing the stairs the other night, that's pretty tough for a little baby. She's got huge baby muscles."

"I have muscle," he said, but he didn't know what muscles were. Well, he had a vague idea because he heard the word a lot, but he didn't have a clear definition of what this strange thing was.

"You do," he said as the door opened.

"What the hell do you want, Jericho! I told you I'd bring your daughter when I could!" Stephanie yelled so the people passing by could hear and she slammed the door. Thank God for sound-proof rooms or they really would have to fight. She'd checked with one of the arena staff before she'd come and all of the locker-rooms were sound-proof.

"Hey, baby," Chris said as Stephanie came over and kissed him. He bent down slightly to kiss her back. "Did you have a powdered donut?"

"Hunter had some in his car," Stephanie shrugged, then off Chris's look, "What, I was hungry and wanted a snack."

"Hi, Mommy," Sawyer said, extending his arms to her.

"Hey there, baby boy," she said, taking him from Chris. "So you know what you're going to do to Ric tonight?"

"Um, just kick his ass straight up," Chris said. "You know what you're doing tonight?"

"I'm just picking up Hunter. Do you want me to leave the kids here or what? You're supposed to have them since you know, you're all pissed, do you want me to leave them?"

"You should take them, they're both tired, Sawyer's cranky, Flynn is half-asleep, we'll just argue and I'll be like, 'fine, take the kids with you, but they're not going to Connecticut with _him_!' or something like that."

"Oh, that's good," she beamed as she sat down on the couch with Sawyer. He cuddled into her, using his mommy as a pillow. "Oh, baby boy, you're so sleepy."

"I wanna baby."

"What the hell did he say? He wants us to have another baby? Oh hell no, Sawyer," Chris joked. "Besides, if Mommy got pregnant now, we'd have to pretend it was Trips and not mine."

"Very funny," Stephanie said, "I think he meant that he wants his baby. Can you bring the baby over?"

"Yeah, sure," Chris said, going over to the stroller, "Hey there, flutterby. Come here, your buddy wants you."

Chris lifted Flynn out of her stroller. Flynn yawned and stretched, hitting Chris right in the eye. This girl just seemed so intent on injuring him it was crazy. He rubbed his eye and gave her a look, but she gave him a nearly toothless grin. She had a couple teeth just starting to peek out of her mouth. He went over and rested Flynn in Stephanie's free arm, letting the girl nestle there. Stephanie was weighed down with kids as Sawyer seemed contented.

"The kid just doesn't want me," Chris said, going to the other side of Flynn and kissing her forehead. "So, I've been thinking about something and I wanted your opinion on it."

"What's that?"

"Well, I think it's only fair…since you've got Hunter, if I get a lady. You know, a girlfriend."

"The only girl that knows about this plan is Trish…and my mother, are you saying you want to date Trish or my mother?"

"Your mom _is_ a really nice lady," Chris said, rubbing his chin. "But actually, I was thinking about bringing in a diva to the plan, maybe letting her in on it and help us out. Like have her help in making people think I'm trying to make you jealous or something. Or that I'm trying to move on."

"Why don't you just say it?" Stephanie told him, "You want to let Katie Lea in on the plans so you can fake date her because you think she's really beautiful and for one second you think it'd be cool to pretend you're a bachelor again with no kids?"

"I made no mention of Katie Lea."

"Then…who, Chris?"

"Well, like, I was thinking…Melina," Chris said.

"Melina? How many conversations have you had with Melina…"

"You don't know who I talk to when I'm not around you," he said defensively. "I'll have you know I talk to plenty of people that you don't know about."

"You tell me who you talk to when we're in bed because you never shut up," Stephanie said, adjusting Flynn in her arms. Sawyer was now watching his parents go at it. This was pretty interesting.

"So you get to be all with Hunter and I can't have anyone. That's not fair, Stephanie. If you really cheated on me, I'd need a rebound and you know it. You work with me! I would absolutely get a rebound to mess with your mind."

"I don't want you to tell Katie Lea."

"You just don't want me to pretend be with her."

"Yeah, that too, I just don't want my husband cavorting around with a girl like 10 years younger than he is."

"You're six years younger than I am."

"6 is respectable, 10 is a decade," she told him.

"Plus, I have to watch you _cavorting_ around with your _ex-husband_, I mean, this guy was married to you, _married_, this guy has seen you naked and had sex with you, however many times you guys went at it like rabbits in heat. Do you see me blowing a gasket?" he asked, "Hmm…no gaskets being blown, right, naked, Stephanie, he's seen you and touched you in places I don't even want to think about because I touch you in those--"

"I get it! He's touched me intimately, geez, would you just like to outline the entire process for our son?" Stephanie asked.

"He's asleep," Chris said and once again, Stephanie hadn't realized he was asleep. She must be losing her touch. Indeed, Sawyer was asleep against her, his hand resting on Flynn's foot. Flynn was fighting off sleep, but it was a losing battle.

"Oh, well, still, it might be invading his dreams because he's hearing it."

"He doesn't know what sex is," Chris scoffed. "We won't be having that talk for a while and when we do, maybe I'll send him to you…or Edge."

"You will not send my son to get a sex talk from _Edge_," Stephanie laughed, but then turned back to the matter at hand. "Chris, I don't know if we can trust her with this. We hardly know her."

"I know her."

"No you don't, you lust after her."

"I'm not lusting."

"If you were not married to me and had no kids, would you be sleeping with Katie Lea right now?" she asked.

"Not fair, because I could pose the same question to you in regards to Ted."

"I still think Ted is the one who's going to break free," she said wistfully.

"See, lusting."

"Okay, so if I didn't have you or the babies, I would be all over Ted like we were the last two people on earth and the next asteroid was coming, but that's beside the point, we've decided he's not trustworthy right now."

"Yeah, right now, but you're thinking he will at some point."

"He'd be an asset, Katie Lea only _has_ assets," she countered.

"That she does."

"Excuse me, _wife_ here."

"You're extremely liberal. You know that there are other women in the world and I will look at other women. But I always come home to you."

"Now you're being cheesy. Still, what do we really know about this girl? So she's been nice to our son and nice to you, what does that mean? Nothing, it means she treats kids with respect and I'd hope everyone around here is treating our kids with respect."

"I like her."

"Obviously," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes.

"I think we can trust her. Plus, she's the only freaking woman around here that hasn't practically thrown herself at me. All the others have."

"I know, you secrete like this Chris Jericho pheromone that is irresistible to womankind," Stephanie said sarcastically. "Can you please take Flynn, she's getting really heavy. What do we feed this kid?"

"Well, still pretty much whatever you can deliver," Chris said. "Plus, the Chris Jericho pheromone totally snatched you right up."

"It may have…had some effect on me," she said as Chris leaned closer to gather Flynn into his arms. Stephanie caught his lips in a kiss, then pulled away, "You know, if we got caught right now, everyone would think I was a total slut, going after two men."

"I believe there's a word for that…hmm, oh yeah, Vickie Guerrero," Chris joked and Stephanie laughed and kissed him again.

"I've got to go," Stephanie said. "I want to get the kids back to the hotel. Trish is coming back early and she's going to watch them while I pick up Hunter."

"Okay, if you must get to your other lover instead of being with me…"

"Yes, because we're having a fun, sexy time here, what with our son in my arms and our daughter in yours. Additionally, fun, sexy time usually leads to yucky labor time since I know for a fact we don't have any kind of protection here because for some reason, God said that I could get pregnant on birth control."

"Well, can we have fun, sexy, protected time later?"

"You still want Katie Lea?"

"Well, yeah, yeah I do," he told her.

"Then no."

"Don't be like that."

"Look, I'll think about it."

"Really?" he asked, wondering if she was being for real or if this was some sort of weird test for him. He looked at her suspiciously. "You'll think about it?"

"Yeah, I'll think about it," she said, giving him a peck on the lips, "besides, you know what they say, keep your friends close and your enemies closer. I will make sure this girl is trustworthy and if she crosses me, oh, then it's on."

"Would it be really bad if I wanted to just throw my daughter in her stroller right now?" Chris asked with a growl.

"Yeah, I think so," she said. Chris ended up putting Flynn back in her stroller nicely and Stephanie had to shift Sawyer to one arm so she could push Flynn with the other. Chris shoved Sawyer's bag with Flynn's under the seat of the stroller. "Okay, time to go to work."

Chris opened the door, "Fine, Stephanie, take the kids, but I swear, you are not taking them back to Connecticut to be with that jackass. I'm not letting them near him, do you hear me!"

"Oh shove it up where the sun don't shine, Jericho! I'm tired of you trying to boss me around. If I want to be around my kids, I'll do as I damn well please!"

"Get out of my sight!"

"Gladly!" Stephanie said, storming down the hallway as fast as she could with a kid on her hip and one in a bulky stroller. She added a little extra swing in her hip for her husband.

Chris wished it was that easy when he went out there to face Flair. He wanted his WrestleMania moment tonight. He wanted Flair to stop being a coward and face him like a man. He egged him on until Flair came out, but he was in a suit. Chris should've known that Flair would chicken out. And him saying he could beat Chris if he wanted? The mere fact that Flair wouldn't suit up and wrestle him spoke volumes. Chris would've decimated him and Flair would've been forced to see how far he had declined and why he should just give it a rest.

When his past wrongs came out to confront him in the form of Piper, Steamboat, and Snuka, he wasn't sure what was going to happen. In a one-on-one situation, Chris could've taken any of them out in minutes, seconds even if need be. They were all washed-up, out of their prime, while Chris was right smack dab in the middle of his prime. But 4-on-1 was never a great advantage and 4 ex-wrestlers certainly could at least try to get the better of him.

They cornered him in the ring, leaving him no place to hide and Chris tried to think of the best escape plan. He should go after Snuka first, that would be the easiest, Snuka looked to be in the worst shape. Steamboat looked pretty good and Chris knew he still worked out because he still worked for the company. Piper was strong, but not as strong and Flair was well, he was Flair, he'd fight dirty if he had to. So yeah, Snuka first, they'd he go after Piper, then Steamboat, then he'd save the best for last.

When they finally converged it was all at once. He couldn't get to them all, but they had lost a spring in their step and Chris was able to get away relatively unscathed, right until he walked into Flair and got popped one. It was decidedly more hurtful than Flynn's had been earlier. Chris stumbled down and then up the ramp. He stared down the four men in the ring and he sneered at them all before going backstage.

He was pissed when Grisham shoved a microphone in his face. Those men had stolen his WrestleMania moment, but they hadn't gotten the better of him, oh no. The numbers weren't in his favor, not by a long-shot. They were all just hypocrites, proving his point left and right. Then he came up with an idea. If they wanted him, he would give it to them, but not here and not next week, but at WrestleMania. They could all be there and he'd be prepared to beat all their asses and Flair could come and watch to see why he shouldn't have messed with Chris in the first place. Oh, and Rourke too for all he cared.

Hunter had been pissed off after his match. Randy was proving himself to be a coward and when he'd gone backstage, Britt was calming him down. That was a sight he hated to see. Britt had managed to get a few minutes for a small, but necessary make-out session, but now she was back around Randy. Hunter had called Stephanie to come pick him up because he couldn't stomach seeing them again.

"Hunter!"

He turned and saw Britt coming over. "What?"

"What the hell do you think you're doing with a sledgehammer? You leave Randy alone, do you hear me?"

"This is personal now, I don't care what you think."

"Start playing by the rules," she told him, poking him in the chest. "Before you do something you're going to seriously regret."

"What? Like date you?" he snapped.

Britt slapped him, not leaving anything back and his cheek was burning. Randy ran up behind Britt and grabbed her, "It's not worth it, Britt, come on. The man can't even defend himself without his precious sledgehammer. Do you sleep with it at night, Hunter? Does it go right between you guys?"

"Actually, maybe he uses it since he's not so great down there," Britt joked, making Randy laugh. In actuality, well…she was pretty satisfied.

"That's what I thought," Randy laughed. "So it's all to compensate?"

"You better believe it," Britt said with a laugh. "Come on, Randy. Let's go think of ways for you to kick Hunter's ass at WrestleMania. I've got plenty of tips."

"Just lead the way," Randy said gallantly, putting his arm around her waist boldly. If Hunter hadn't been seeing red before, he sure as hell was now. He was going to start charging him, when Flair grabbed him.

"Not worth it, Hunt, not worth it," Flair said calmly.

"You're right, thanks Ric," Hunter said, hugging the man. "I've got to go though, and get my things, Steph is picking me up."

"Do you think it's such a good idea to be with her again?"

"What?" Hunter asked.

"Well, I know you two were rather…unconventional."

"Ric, trust me, everything with me and Steph is fine."

"Well, if you insist…"

"I do."

When Hunter got in the car later, the cameras were on him. Stephanie had moved to the passenger side, letting Hunter drive the car. She just didn't feel like driving. She'd lain down with Sawyer while he slept and she'd fallen asleep too until Hunter called her so she was a little sleepy. Stephanie didn't expect to see anyone there and was surprised. She figured she'd show herself on camera so people would believe Hunter's words.

What she didn't expect was a kiss from Hunter. That was by surprise. Hunter didn't know what came over him. It was like when he'd kissed her cheek earlier. It seemed the natural, couple-like thing to do. When he greeted Britt, he'd kiss her, so if he were really to greet Stephanie, he'd kiss her too, right? He wanted to apologize, but thought better of it since the cameras were right there.

He sped out of the place and when they were out of the parking lot, he turned to her, "I am so sorry for that."

"Oh, don't worry about it, it was authentic," she shrugged. "Lots of people greet their significant others like that. The only problem would be if you suddenly realized you were still in love with me, any of that happen?"

"Not one, single bit. Kissing you now is like kissing…well, I don't know, I want to say sister, but I've never kissed my sister, so I wouldn't know."

Stephanie laughed. "No big deal. We're going for authenticity. Kissing is part of that. We'll just have to get used to it again and I have to make sure I don't grimace."

The first thing Chris said when he arrived back at the hotel (he'd gotten an adjoining room to Stephanie so they could travel back and forth, sight unseen) was, "Okay, if you're kissing Hunter now, I'm totally going to get with Katie Lea, tit for tat, baby, tit for tat!"

"I didn't want it," she said, pulling him down and over her as he fell into bed. He'd just discarded his shirt and pants and thrown them on the floor, but they were playing right now so they could stay there for a while. "He just did it."

"Great, now he wants you," he said, taking a tissue from the nightstand and wiping her mouth. "I don't need those cooties, thanks."

"I already washed my face," she told him, shoving his hand away. He rolled off her and laid on his side, looking at her. "He doesn't want me."

"This is the end of Phase 1 of his master plan," Chris said, "It's only taken him like five years to complete. Now that it's complete, he's on to Phase 2."

"What's Phase 2?"

"Getting me out of the picture for real!"

"That's pretty devious," Stephanie said, resting her hand on Chris's side. "Five years to get a plan to work, that's dedication, I admire it."

"If you were him, your first plan would've worked."

"You think too highly of me," she smiled, running her hand up and down his side. "I saw what happened to you. You can take all of them, easy."

"I plan to, WrestleMania is going to be mine. I'm not coming out a loser."

"Oh good, I wouldn't want to be married to a loser…although I'll be attached to Hunter at that point, but I'll be rooting for you secretly and it's Flynn's first WrestleMania and she's going to get to watch you out there so you better win. You didn't win at Sawyer's first and I think he lost a lot of respect for you that day."

"He has never looked at me quite the same," Chris said, pulling himself closer to Stephanie.

"Are you okay with me kissing Hunter occasionally?"

"Whatever," he told her. "I don't like it, but you've kissed him a million times before so you know what, what's a few more. As long as you really don't feel anything, but I know you don't so I'm not worried."

"Okay, good," she said, leaning forward to kissing him.

"Plus, this absolutely means I get to tell Katie Lea and potentially fake date her."

"No," she told him, giving him another kiss.

"I think it does."

"It does not," she said, shaking her head playfully.

"Oh, it so does, and I'm going to kiss the hell out of her!" he teased.

Stephanie's mouth opened, "No you're not, Christopher Keith Jericho. I'll tell your mom you're cheating on me and then she'll be cracking down on you like she was on me. I won't let you."

"I think we'll make-out on national TV," he mused.

"Oh hell no," she said, pulling him over her. "You're not going anywhere, you hear me, you are not making out with anyone except me."

"Yes! I do get happy, fun, sexy time," he said, licking his lips lasciviously as he ran his hand up and under her tank top. "Score one for Chris Jericho."

Just as he was about to go in for another round of making out with his wife, the phone rang. Chris looked up at it and Stephanie looked over at it and saw it was buzzing. She'd put it on silent because the kids were sleeping in the other room that Chris had booked for himself. Stephanie reached over for it and looked at it. She didn't recognize the number and gave Chris a look. He shrugged and rolled off of her again.

"I don't know who that is," Stephanie said.

"Maybe it's your lover-boy, Hunter, come to start his next phase, which is to phase me out. If I get fired within the next few days, I know he'll have succeeded."

"It could be work-related, hang on."

"Now Chris Jericho is sad."

"Yeah, sad as in pathetic," she said as she answered the phone, "Stephanie McMahon-J…I mean, Stephanie McMahon."

"You slipped up," Chris chortled, poking her in the side. She stuck her tongue out at him.

"Stephanie?"

"Kurt?" Stephanie said and this piqued Chris's interest. Was that really Kurt?

"I heard what happened with you and Chris."


	227. Uncalled For, March 23, 2009

A/N: Look for Kurt to pop up more closer to WrestleMania. Tonight was such a weird show, I don't know, I'm not feeling really any of the WM storylines at all, but how freaking hot was Chris in the beginning? I pretty much had to fan myself during that! ;) Enjoy and leave a review. :)

* * *

Trish leaned against her husband as they lounged in bed. They didn't need to leave for the show just yet so they were taking a few moments to just relax. They didn't have to meet up with anyone or talk to anyone. Edge was off with Lita or Vickie or whoever, Chris and Stephanie were off pretending to get divorced and they were just lying here and enjoying the silence. With Christian back in the WWE, their lives were hectic again with traveling and being around their friends all the time. They liked the hustle and bustle of it all, but they also enjoyed the quieter moments when they got to be together one-on-one.

"So you're okay with putting off the baby thing for a little while?" he asked her.

"Yeah, I mean, I came up with the idea," Trish laughed.

"Yeah, but I want to make sure that you're absolutely positive with this. I don't want this to be some sort of test to gauge how into this I am or something because I do love you and I want to have children with you if that's what you're trying to find out."

"No, that's not what I'm trying to find out," Trish said, shaking her head. "Don't you trust me more than that?"

"Of course I trust you more than that," Christian said, "you're my wife after all. I just want this to be a really final decision because it's a big one."

"We've been trying for months and nothing. I'm scheduled to really get thoroughly checked out at the beginning of next month, but so far, nothing wrong with me, nothing wrong with you, we're just not meant to be pregnant at this time. I'm not saying that we're going to give up, but we've been actively trying since September and it's just really hard to figure out when I'm ovulating, when we can have sex, and it's frustrating and we're really busy so I think it'll be okay if we take some time off."

"Those are all very good reasons," he told her. "I just don't want you to like look longingly at every kid that passes by or think of plots to kidnap Flynn from Chris and Stephanie."

She giggled, "Don't worry, I'm not planning to kidnap their kid or anything. I will continue to look at them longingly, but I'll try and keep it to only the really, really cute children and not any of the ugly ones."

"You know, my mom used to say that if you called a baby ugly that your own baby would then be ugly."

"Wow, I've never heard that, but that's a scary prospect because I've seen a lot of ugly babies," Trish said, "but I don't think we could make an ugly baby. I think our children would be beautiful."

"I tend to agree if they look like you," he said, kissing the top of her head. "Maybe they can just look like you completely and have none of my traits, then I'll consider that kid the luckiest kid of them all."

"Oh come on, you're very handsome," she told him, kissing his hand. "I'm very excited for WrestleMania though. I think we'll both come out of the show as champions. I'll be Miss WrestleMania and you'll be the Money in the Bank winner and then you can challenge whoever you want. Wouldn't that be great if you won and Edge retained his title and you challenged him?"

"Edge would freak out if I challenged him," Christian laughed. "He would try to guilt trip me into going after whoever wins in the Hunter and Randy match. He'd go on and on about how we're brothers and we're not supposed to do things like that and we're supposed to be on the same side."

"I know, that's why it would be so funny," Trish explained. "I just think it'd be really funny if you guys were to fight against each other. You two had a pretty fierce feud going on when we first started dating."

"How long ago was that? 27 years ago, was it?"

She slapped him on the chest, "Shut up, it was not that long ago. It was a considerable amount, yes, but we're together now and someday in the near future, we'll start trying for kids again, but what with me wrestling and traveling with you and you wrestling full-time again, maybe a baby isn't going to be in the cards for us."

"When we do have one though, I think we can handle it. Chris and Stephanie handle two and I'm sure we could handle one, especially since you won't be an active wrestler. You run your yoga place and that's cool, but that doesn't take you away as much as wrestling might."

"Yeah, you're right," she said.

They reverted back to their silence as Christian ran his hands through her dark hair. He had to admit, when she'd dyed it, he'd been surprised as it was a complete surprise. She had gone to the salon with Stephanie, something about a spa treatment or two and she had come home looking completely different, but completely amazing at the same time. He'd seen pictures of her as a brunette before, but he thought she looked amazing and he couldn't believe he got to show her off.

Trish played with the wedding ring on his hand, pushing it back and forth on his finger. She could wait to have kids with this man for a little while longer. They were a little family now, even if it was just the two of them. Someday, when the time was right, they'd get what they wanted and they'd have a baby, even if it meant looking into adoption or invitro fertilization or something like that. Someday they'd be a family.

Stephanie locked the door behind her and sat down on the couch. "Do you think it's weird that I have to talk to you on the phone while we're at the shows?"

"No, I don't think it's weird," Chris told her from his own locker room. Sawyer was trying to grab all the blankets to build a fort. He had pushed all the folding chairs in the room into a little area in the corner and was trying to grab the baby blankets from one of their bags. Chris watched him in fascination, wondering where Sawyer had even learned to build a fort. "We could talk on the phone if we were both busy and didn't know where the other was."

"I mean because we're pretending to be divorced, that's what I mean."

"Oh, okay, I didn't get that," he said sarcastically. "I didn't get that at all, what's this you speak of with fake divorces."

"Shut up," Stephanie told him. "I just think it's very covert and kind of fun to sneak around, don't you think? It's like this secret mission and it's really hot. Remember when we used to sneak around when we were first together and only like five people knew about us?"

"How could I forget? I had to hid my relationship from everyone and couldn't even flaunt you to Hunter, who hated me at the time. Do you realize the kind of leverage that would've given me? But no, I had to hide it because you wanted to bring Bischoff down, how did that go anyways?"

"Is he around now?" Stephanie asked smartly.

"Touché," he responded. "So tell me what the plan is tonight, who is taking you back to the hotel and how are we convincing people that we hate each other tonight?"

"I'm getting a ride back with Hunter, he drove me here so he'll take me back. He has the last match on the card so I'm going to be here for the whole show. Vickie is still the interim GM. I'm thinking about leaving it that way until after WrestleMania. I feel like if I'm the GM right now I'm going to have to come up with some sort of way to help Hunter and it's just going to get messy so I think I'll just leave her be."

"Wow, you're not jumping over everyone to do your job? Is this the kind of person Hunter makes you into because maybe I'll just let him keep you for a little while longer."

"No, this is not what I am now, it's just smart."

"You know what would be smart?"

"What?"

"If you let me talk to Katie Lea and have her be my fake girlfriend so we can fool people into thinking I'm trying to make you jealous," Chris told her slyly. Sawyer was having a difficult time trying to get the blankets over all the chairs so Chris got up and started to pull on the top blanket.

Sawyer whined, "Daddy, no, stop, I do it me."

"I'm just trying to help," Chris told him.

"What are you trying to help? This is a stupid idea and I don't want you talking to her," Stephanie told him.

"No, I wasn't talking to you, I was talking to the monster. He's building a fort and I was _trying_ to help him, but apparently Daddies aren't allowed to help," Chris said. Then he turned back to his son. "Here, I'll put this blanket on top and you can put the other blanket on the ground. Are you going to let Flynn in your fort?"

"Uh huh, her fort too," Sawyer nodded eagerly. "She stay wif me, Daddy."

"Thanks for watching her," Chris said, glancing back at Flynn who was crawling up and down the couch. She kept eyeing the edge like she wanted to climb down. "Don't you even think about that Flynn Murphy Jericho." Flynn looked up at the sound of her name and smiled at her daddy innocently, like there wasn't a sin in this world she could possibly commit. She was a wily one, that Flynn Jericho.

"You we'come," Sawyer told him as he tried to lay the blanket under this mess of chairs.

"What's going on over there?" Stephanie asked, sad that she was missing out on the fun. Damn Randy Orton and his need to buck authority. If he had just minded his place none of this would've happened. She could be with her family, laughing and helping Sawyer with his fort instead of stuck here in a locker room that belonged to her ex-husband who was off sneaking around with his girlfriend.

"Sawyer is allowing me to help with his fort," Chris explained. "Kid, where did you learn about forts anyways?"

"I see on Sessy Stweet when I go Fweddy."

"Oh, you saw it on Sesame Street when you went to Freddy's house?" Chris said, Freddy being a kid that lived in the neighborhood who was Sawyer's age and went to Sawyer's daycare when they were at home. Sawyer went to daycare three days a week right now since hew as still young. He traveled with his parents on the other two days. It was a great way to socialize him and help him learn. They wouldn't say that Sawyer was gifted, maybe he was, they didn't know, they just wanted him to gain friends and be happy and he was happy at daycare.

"Yup," Sawyer explained. "I done. I get Fwynn now."

"Hey, no, you are not allowed to lift her," Chris said, then to Stephanie, "why does our kid think that it's okay for him to lift his baby sister when we've told him repeatedly that it's not okay to lift his baby sister?"

"He has McMahon and Jericho genes running rampant in his blood," Stephanie chuckled. "You really expected him not to be stubborn and not listen to anything?"

"You've got a point there," Chris said, lifting Flynn off the couch with one arm and setting her down on the floor. She started crawling in the opposite direction of Sawyer's fort so he started to push her the other way. "Hey, stop pushing her so hard, Sawyer, give her a break, she's a baby."

"I want her to go to fort," he said angrily. Flynn stopped and looked at him and smiled at him. Sawyer pushed her butt towards the fort and she started going that way happily and Sawyer was happy and Chris was happy they weren't being a headache for him. As much as he loved his kids, they were annoying sometimes and tedious as well.

"So back on topic, you're just outright saying no to me talking to Katie?"

"Oh, so now she's Katie and not Katie _Lea_?" Stephanie asked.

"I love it when you're jealous."

"I'm not jealous."

"Stephanie, come on, I love you," Chris told her. "Have you ever, ever thought I would stray from you in the entirety of our relationship? We'll have been together for seven years this July, _seven_ years. Don't you trust me?"

"Don't bring trust into this, Chris, of course I trust you, I trust you with my life, with my children, everything, that's never been a problem. The problem is do I trust her? I don't know that, I don't know if I can."

"I think we can."

"Like I thought I could trust Ted, right?"

"Ted's different, that boy's lips are stuck permanently to Randy's ass and once you see that, my life will be easier."

"See, you don't like that I have a crush on Ted, well, _did_ have, or maybe I still do, just a little bit, but either way, you don't like it."

"I don't really care as long as you aren't sleeping with the guy, then I have a problem. Right now the only guy I might have to worry about is Hunter, but considering he's completely crazy about Britt, I think I'm safe."

"What if Katie Lea tries to kiss you or something?"

"I would respectfully tell her that I'm a married man who loves his wife and I don't want to do that with her, but I couldn't blame her if she did want to kiss me because I'm me and who wouldn't want to kiss me because I'm so hot."

"Get over yourself, there are hotter guys out there," she said, annoyed now.

It just bothered her, this thing with Chris being so adamant about wanting to fake date Katie and let her in on their secrets. When they'd first started dating, when people knew it was either _their _decision or somehow they found out on their own. Now he was trying to convince her to trust someone she just didn't know if they could trust. Plus, Katie Lea was really beautiful and had a really cool accent and she was really beautiful and a good wrestler and really beautiful.

Stephanie wasn't really one for insecurities, she was too much in control to have insecurities like that, but still, there was always the chance. She never pretended like she and Chris were absolutely, definitely, 100 percent going to stay together forever and ever. She'd been watching a show the other day, she forgot the premise, but there was a couple renewing their vows and they were saying how that was to reassure their children that they'd be together forever and Stephanie had scoffed at the notion. She knew things changed and she was not naïve enough to think that her and Chris could change.

So far so good though.

"Name one," Chris told her.

"Well, I can't think of any off the top of my head, okay, wait, Brad Pitt, there."

"You think Brad Pitt is hotter than I am."

"People do."

"Do _you_?" he asked.

"Well, no, but I could if I wanted," Stephanie said, "stop putting me on the spot here."

"I just asked you a question because you had told me something that I didn't quite believe. Do you think if I fake date Katie that she'll suddenly want me?"

"What if she wants you now and she's just thinking of a great way to pounce. What if you go out of your locker room right now and she finds you to ask you out? Huh? Then can you trust her if you _know_ she wants you?"

"This is ridiculous."

"Yes, you are being ridiculous."

"Don't put words in my mouth, McMahon."

"I'm not, Jericho."

"Look, I know that Flair has the first segment on the show and I know he and his little stooges are probably going to accept my challenge so I need to be out there first thing so I can't be arguing with you about this. If you don't want me talking, looking, or breathing near Katie, I won't."

"Really?"

"Baby, you know I love you and even though you're being a jealous, little child right now I'll do what you ask."

"I'm not being a jealous child," Stephanie said petulantly.

"Can you just come over and watch the kids while I'm out there. We can stage a fake fight or animosity or whatever, but I think Sawyer is really proud of this fort and I don't think he's going to want to leave so I think it best if you come over here."

"What are they doing?"

"They're both under there. Sawyer dragged the toys over so he's playing with some Lego and Flynn is rolling a ball back and forth. I bet that means she's going to be athletic."

"Yes, because of course what she's doing when she's seven months old is what she's going to be doing forever."

"I'm just calling it like I see it."

"I'll be right over."

Hunter pulled away from Britt's mouth and he was sure he had lipstick smeared all over his lips. He swiped at them, hoping that he didn't look worse for the wear. Britt smiled at what he was trying to do and she reached up and wiped the lipstick from his mouth, helping him get it all so it didn't look like he was into some freaky things.

"I hate sneaking around with you," Hunter said.

"Aww, come on," she said, pulling at the hem of his t-shirt a little. "You don't think it's the least bit fun? I think it's kind of fun, just sneaking around and being all secretive and like spies. We're like a couple of assassins or something meeting for a tryst."

"Some place to meet for a tryst," he said, looking around the loaded storage room. They were piled in here with boxes and boxes upon stuff and it was musty and stuffy, but he'd wanted a few moments with his girl and if it had to be in here than so be it.

"Come on, make the best of it, okay?" Britt told him, kissing the corner of his mouth. "I know it's not ideal, but it's fun nonetheless. You need to lighten up, honey, have some fun."

"Maybe I don't want to have fun. Maybe I just want to go and kick Randy's ass for hitting on you and trying to kiss you…"

"He didn't _really_ try to kiss me, I just _thought_ he was trying to kiss me," she explained. "I mean, he was leaning in and I thought he was and then I realized he was getting a piece of spinach off my chin and it was _nothing_. I just thought it was a funny story to tell you because I had _spinach_ on my chin."

"Yeah, I get it, you had spinach on your chin, but what if he really tries to kiss you, are you going to let him?"

"No, look, the whole built-in excuse is right there. I just tell him I'm not quite ready to go that far yet, see how that works. I'm not going to let him kiss me, you on the other hand, am I just one day going to see you and Stephanie making out, Mr. Kissy Face?"

"I was deprived," Hunter said, kissing her again for good measure. "I was so light-headed from the lack of kissing you that I kissed her."

"Uh huh, I should get to make out with Chris in retaliation."

"That's not retaliation, I just gave Steph a quick kiss and it meant nothing and if I recall correctly, you've already made out with Chris."

"But this time I'd make it real," she countered, forgetting that she actually had kissed Chris, that's how unmemorable it had been, she could barely even remember it at all. "Then we'd get back at you guys for kissing."

"No thanks, I like kissing you much better," Hunter said, kissing her again. "You are a much better kisser than Stephanie is."

"Wow, way to ruin the mood," Britt laughed and ran her hand down her face. "Do you have any idea what you're going to do for your match tonight? I mean, you're going into a handicap match and you know Cody is going to get involved somehow."

"I'm not sure, I've kind of been preoccupied with you," he told her, smiling softly at her. It was so hard trying to adjust to not having her around the house. He should invite Chris and Stephanie up just so he'd have company. Hell, maybe Shawn and Rebecca could come up, even though Shawn had problems of his own. It was really lonely in his home when Britt wasn't around. She really brightened up his house and when she wasn't there, it just wasn't the same and he didn't like it as much.

"Well get your head back where it belongs. I'll try and find out what Randy is going to do, if anything, but you know he's going to try something, that's just who he is. I just want you to be safe so I'll snoop around and see what I can find and I'll get back to you, okay?"

"You're the best," he told her. "I love you so much."

"Well that's always nice to hear," she said, leaning forward and pressing her lips to his. "I hate not having that in my life every day. I love you too."

"Don't leave me for Randy, okay?"

"Wasn't planning on it, but now that you mention it, he is pretty hot," she told him with a smirk. "I'll find out what's going on and I'll find a way to get to you and tell you if anything is going to go down."

"Okay, so I'll talk to you later?"

"Wild horses couldn't keep me away," she told him, kissing him before slipping out of the storage room. She gave a knock on the door to let him know the coast was clear.

Britt walked back to Randy's locker room. He was having some sort of planning session with Cody and Ted and she walked inside and he looked happy to see her. She felt like a double agent in that moment and if this were a movie she'd have perfect hair and the perfect expression, but she just kind of smiled and sat next to him, patting him on the knee.

"So what's going on here?" she asked. She knew that touching Randy would set him off and he'd forget that maybe he shouldn't just tell someone his plans. "What are you guys talking about?"

"We're discussing later in the ring," Randy said, "just what we want to do with Hunter. I was thinking of you while I was planning it, and Chris too, so I think you'll enjoy what he's going to have coming to him."

"What's he going to have coming to him?" Britt asked.

"I want it to be a surprise," he told her, his eyes gleaming with mischief. "Think of it as a little present from me to you."

"You beating up my ex-boyfriend is a present to you?" she laughed. "What happened to just chocolates and flowers?"

"I think you'll like this much better," Randy told her, daring to reach out and grab her hand. As long as it wasn't a kiss, Britt was fine with the contact. She was slowly letting Randy believe that he actually had a chance with her. He was definitely letting her in his secret circle if he thought he had a chance with her.

"What are you doing for Chris? Just beating up Hunter?"

"Yeah, sure," he said, but she wasn't convinced.

"Come on," she whined, "just tell me what you have planned. I hate surprises and I like to know what it is I should be anticipating."

"You'll just have to wait," Randy said. He looked to his lackeys, "but trust me, you are going to love it. We're going to get back at that cheating bastard and the whole McMahon family. That'll teach them to interfere in my business, in Legacy's business. I don't care what they think, I'm going to take them down."

"See, I like this plan, so please, please, please tell me," she pleaded. She wanted to know so she could warn Hunter. Whatever Randy was planning she could tell it was big. The way he was speaking, the way Cody and Ted _weren't_ speaking, it all just seemed off. It seemed like he was going to do something and it was going to be major and it scared her. She was scared for Hunter. She knew he could take care of himself, but damn it, he was her boyfriend and she loved him and she wanted him to be as safe as possible for as long as possible.

"Really, Britt, no worries, Hunter is just going to get what he's got coming to him. He thinks he can just get away with barging into my home, no, it doesn't work that way."

"A hint, really, just a hint?"

"I'm bringing the sledgehammer," he hinted. Britt didn't like the sound of this. Hunter could get seriously hurt if Randy decided to go sledgehammer-happy. Her top priority right now was his safety.

"Oh," she said, "and you don't think you're going to be too harsh with whatever you're going to do?"

"Too harsh," he scoffed, "nothing is going to be too harsh for this guy."

"Well, okay," she said, trying to pry the worry off her face.

Chris went into the production truck. He'd had the video people grab some clips that he wanted to show to Flair. He knew the legends would accept his match. There was too much pride on the line. He wasn't exactly looking forward to having three men in the ring against him, the numbers were not in his favor, but age certainly was. If he could get down a couple of them, and really, how hard could that be, he could pin one of them and be done with it. Then maybe he could get some licks on Flair and Rourke and call it a night. Well, he'd watch Hunter's match, but other than that, calling it a night.

When Flair accepted, as he knew he would, Chris interrupted as he usually did. He spoke about how he'd watched the legends in their prime and how impressed he'd been, but that was 25 years ago and things had changed. He had some more words for Flair, but he didn't want to look like he was a coward, hiding in the back, so he walked through the backstage area and out into the arena where he could get face-to-face with Flair.

These men couldn't stand to be out of the spotlight, Flair especially. When WrestleMania rolled around, he'd show them exactly why they were Hall of Famers and not wrestlers. They were old and they should know their time had come and gone. He would show Mickey Rourke what it really meant to be a wrestler. He would give them all a beatdown that would surely go on all the highlight reels of his career.

In his mind though, he'd rather be defending his wife, but Stephanie was so protective of their relationship and she wanted him to infiltrate Randy and he wasn't doing that and she didn't seem to care. It was probably because Britt ended up being so damn good at it. If he had his way, he'd be kicking Randy's teeth in for daring to lay his hands on Chris's wife. But this was what he had to settle for so he'd make the most out of it and he did want to show Rourke not to run his damn mouth.

When Flair started to insult him and call him a punk and insignificant, Chris had had enough of his whining. Flair was such a hypocrite and Chris was sick of it and wanted to shut his damn mouth. If Flair had been in his prime and some old man had hung around way past his prime, the Nature Boy would've done the exact same thing Chris was doing. Didn't Flair call himself the dirtiest player in the game? Surely he would've loved the beatdown Chris was going to give his sorry ass.

Chris punched Flair in the face and then started his assault. He wasn't satisfied with just taking out Flair with one punch, oh no. He'd had it with this stupid thing. If these guys wanted to gang up on him and call him out for what he was saying, which was the _truth_, he would fight back as dirty as Flair would've when he was still a good wrestler. He threw Flair out of the ring and took off his tie and untucked his shirt and then went after Flair, who was pretty much helpless. He literally beat him around the ring and then threw him into the area where Lillian sat.

He wasn't through though, continuing to pound him and hit him and humiliate him and damn did it feel good. He was right in this situation, these guys didn't know how to leave the spotlight. They didn't know how to be retired and stay retired. They kept coming back for more glory, more cheers, and it was never going to end and they were the ones being hypocrites not him. When he had Flair down on the ground, he observed him for a moment and then noticed the light bouncing off Flair's watch. Did he dare?

Chris was beyond caring at this point. He was still stung from what happened the week before. They thought he could be ambushed, well he'd show them. He grabbed Flair's watch and put it on the ring step. He lifted his foot and thought for a moment, should he really do this? It wasn't his property and would this be going too far? He knew how much it meant to Flair so should he? Before he could rationalize either way, his foot was coming down onto the watch and it was smashed. Oh well. He didn't care. It served Flair right for interfering again when he was supposed to be gone.

Chris had no regrets as he went backstage though he was getting looks. The good thing about the looks was that most people believed he was just taking his anger out on the legends because he was so pissed over this Hunter and Stephanie situation. They gave him a freaking pass because they thought his marriage was over. It was like the best of both worlds. Everyone absolved him while he acted like a complete asshole. If Hunter wasn't making out with his wife, he'd say this was the perfect situation.

"Chris, I saw what happened to you, I'm so sorry," Mickie said as she caught up with him.

"You're sorry for me?"

"I just…I know that everything with Stephanie has been so rough for you. I saw her arrive with Hunter," Mickie said, her voice low. "They just looked really happy together and I know it must be hard so what you're doing out there, it's totally justified, we all think so."

"Who is we all?" he asked.

"All the divas, well, my friends, you know, Kelly Kelly, Melina, we all believe that you're just trying to take your frustration out and we totally understand," she said, rubbing his back a little. He kind of shrugged her off. "Oh, I'm sorry, I'm just trying to offer you a shoulder or an ear."

"I think I'm fine."

"After what happened out there, it doesn't look like you're fine," Mickie said. "I mean, that was really rough and I can't help but think it was over this situation with Hunter and that's you're picturing him out there."

When the hell did this girl become a psychiatrist? "I think I'll be okay."

"Hey, Kelly!" Mickie called out.

"Oh hey, guys," Kelly said, then tilted her head, "How are you doing, Chris?"

"I'm fine," he told her, then turned to Mickie, "Fine, I'm just fine."

"I saw what happened, I'm so sorry you're so angry."

"I'm angry, yes, but I'm fine."

"Do you want to talk about it?" Kelly asked. "It helps to talk about things, especially in times like these, what with a divorce and everything."

What did this kid know about divorce? "Maybe I'll just keep it to myself."

"You really should talk about it," Mickie said and Kelly nodded. Chris had nothing to talk about though, not to them.

He was saved, or so he thought, a moment later when Stephanie was walking down the hallway with the kids in tow. Sawyer was skipping ahead of her while she carried Flynn in her arms. Flynn was just watching and observing the world. Sawyer saw Chris and raced towards him, running right into his legs. Chris lifted him up and gave him a hug.

"I got potty, Daddy," Sawyer informed him.

"That's awesome, kid," Chris told him, kissing him on the forehead.

"Chris," Stephanie said, eyeing the girls with him.

"Stephanie," he replied curtly.

"How could you do that to him, you whore?" Mickie said. "How could you cheat on your husband?"

"It's none of your business what I do and don't swear around my kids," Stephanie told the woman.

"Oh, that's rich coming from you," Kelly added. "You're willing to sleep around, but you don't want swearing around your kids."

"Shut up," Stephanie said, disgusted with this behavior. "Maybe if you looked at Chris a little more carefully you'd realize that he's not made of roses and gumdrops. Look, Chris, I wanted to know what you wanted to do with the kids."

"I'll take them, I'm going back to the hotel anyways and I can make sure they get to bed."

"Are you sure?" she asked.

"Am I sure I can put my own kids to bed? Hmm, let me think on that one for a moment. Oh yes, yes, I am their _father_ I think I can handle putting them to bed. Please remind Hunter that he is not their father no matter how many times he tries to brainwash my kid."

"He tries to get them to think he's their father?" Kelly asked. "That's horrible."

"I know," Chris said. "But yes, I'll take my kids so you can go chase after the love of your life or whatever guy you're spreading your legs for this week, I can never be too sure since you're so open to everyone, and I do mean _open_."

"Oh, very funny, a double entendre. Fine, take the kids, but I get to spend time with this them weekend, do you hear me?"

"Not if he's around."

"He's my boyfriend, he'll be around."

"Then no."

"They're my kids too and you cannot dictate what I do when I'm with them. If I want to be with Hunter and them, I will do as I damn well please."

"I hate you," Chris sneered.

"The feeling is mutual. So come get the kid's stuff so I won't have to look at your stupid ass face ever again."

Chris followed Stephanie, merciful that she has shown up so he could avoid having to be around those two bimbos who were practically throwing themselves at his feet. He was sickened by them and whatever they wanted with him. He followed Stephanie into his locker room and she locked the door and he noticed she looked perturbed. She furrowed her brow and then looked at him.

"What the hell was that?" she asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Those…those women, those bitches."

"Mommy, what a bitch?" Sawyer asked.

"Oh my…sweetie, that's a naughty word, Mommy shouldn't have used it, we don't use that kind of word, okay?"

"Oh," Sawyer said, but it sounded like a fun word, but if his mommy said it was bad, he wouldn't use it.

"I told you I was getting hit on left and right."

"Okay…I don't like that, I don't like that at all…" She stopped and looked up at the ceiling. "I can't believe I'm saying this but…look, I don't like these women all over you, not them…talk to Katie. If you can trust her, I mean really trust her, then fine, you can fake date her or whatever."

"Are you serious?"

"Better her than having to see Mickie James and Kelly Kelly hitting on you every week because _that_? I can't deal with that, I don't want to deal with that," Stephanie said. "Plus, while you were gone, Kurt called again."

"Again?" he sighed. "Did you hang up?"

"I didn't even answer. That was the mistake I made the first time, but I'm not going to make it again. I don't want to talk to him. I don't want to ever talk to him again. I've moved on with my life and I don't need him at all."

"Well good for you then," Chris said. "I'm going to take the kids back. Next week, I'm so talking to Katie and I will find out she is trustworthy and then I'm going to fake date her and you're going to have to play the jealous ex, right?"

"Yes, I'll play the jealous ex," she told him, coming over and kissing him, trying not to crush their kids between them.

"Mommy, you a bitch?" Sawyer asked.

Chris started to snicker as Stephanie's eyes widened. She looked to Chris to answer, but he just shrugged. What the hell do you really say to that anyways? "No, Sawyer, I mean, no, I'm not really, but stop saying that, we don't say that."

"You say that," he pointed out.

"It's a word only mommies and daddies can use, okay?"

"Okay. I no use."

"Thanks, sweetie," Stephanie said, giving Chris a look before she helped him get the things and get going.

It ended up being good that Chris had left early that evening because things took a grave turn for the worst later on. Britt had told Hunter of what she knew, but it wasn't much. She watched with nervousness backstage as this "surprise" played out. Like she thought, Hunter was attacked, but the handcuffs were a different thing entirely. She hadn't expected that and there was nowhere for Hunter to escape. He was a caged animal and he had nowhere to go and Randy and Legacy were brutalizing him. Randy called for Stephanie and Britt was afraid she was going to let him suffer because she was no match for Randy.

But Stephanie didn't back down. She ran out there, looking for all the world like a distressed wife. She climbed up on the apron and begged Randy to stop. If it had been Chris, she would've run in the ring and covered his body with hers. He would've shoved her away and told her to get out because she wasn't going to take the hit for him, but the intent would be there. Because it was Hunter and because she did care and didn't want him hurt, she pleaded for him, channeling how she might've felt years ago. It was surprisingly easy to go back to that place so she begged and pleaded, but Randy wasn't going to let Hunter go.

He wasn't going to let her go either.

She tried to leave, but Cody and Ted were there and it was then she realized Ted was actually an ugly person and though he was probably still going to be the one to break, she wasn't so sure she wanted to trust him. She was also wary that Chris wasn't here, but maybe that was for the best. He would be out here, running at her, kicking ass and while that'd be well and good, Stephanie was never one to have a plan go sour like that. She knew Randy was dangerous, but maybe if she could slip out, maybe just a little.

It wasn't to be as he grabbed her and held her. She tried to struggle against him, but he was much stronger and she felt herself off the ground and she could hear Hunter yelling, begging Randy not to hurt her and she was still trying to get away and then, blackness. Then nothing and she was nothing but a heap of clothes and perfume and brown hair and she was lying there, helpless and alone.

Hunter was terrified for Stephanie. It didn't matter if she wasn't his wife and he didn't love her like that. She was his friend and he considered Chris one of his best friends and he knew Chris was back at the hotel and he was supposed to _protect_ Stephanie and she was hurt and he couldn't reach, but he tried and he got her ankle and he tried to pull her over, but Randy wouldn't let him. Hunter felt desperation seeping into him and he struggled for her. That was his friend and he loved her and he wanted to help her. He didn't even realize he was crying.

Then Randy started to lean down towards her and he looked at Hunter and he tried to struggle, but he couldn't get to her, couldn't save her. Randy leaned down further and glanced over at Hunter and Hunter realized what he was going to do and he tried to get at her, but still, nothing, the ropes would not budge. Randy pressed his lips to the corner of her mouth, his eyes grazing over to Hunter and Hunter struggled, but still, no give. He was about to rip his arm off to get to her, but Randy was there again and he was helpless and he hated that feeling.

By the time it was over, they were two broken people in the ring and Randy left, satisfied. He walked backstage and Britt's face was blanched. It looked like she had no blood. "Did you like that?" he asked. "I got them for what they did to you, did you enjoy it?"

She couldn't break, she couldn't break. But later, she would cry in bed at having to watch that before her. Now though, was no time for the truth, "I loved it," she said in a monotone. She hated it.

Finally, someone helped Hunter and he crawled to Stephanie, but she was hurt and the stretcher was coming out to help her. He held her hand, not because he was putting on an act, but because he was worried about her. The landing on that DDT had been brutal and she'd had no protection. She was groggy, but awake so that was a good sign. They helped her onto the stretcher and he held her hand all the way up the ramp and to the awaiting ambulance so she could get checked out.

"Chris can't know about this," she whispered to him.

"What?" he asked. "But Steph…"

"He can't," she whispered. "He'll blow it all, he can't know."

"He's going to find out."

"I know, but not tonight, not this, he can't know it was this bad, okay, he can't know, you have to promise me," she said hazily, but she was serious. "Please?"

He hated doing it, but he knew how much work they'd put into this and how dedicated Stephanie was and how ballistic Chris would get. He might kill Randy for real if he knew what he had done to Stephanie. "Fine, okay."

"Thank you."

Chris let Flynn crawl around the bed as Sawyer slept in the other room. She crawled to the edge and he lay next to her. "What do you see, that's a long way down, huh? You don't want to go down there, you want to go to bed."

"Bwauf wer tob," Flynn said. She wasn't tired and she wanted her mommy. She crawled over to Chris and climbed on him, trying to navigate over his tummy to the other side.

"What are you doing?" he asked. "Are you being a silly girl?" She smiled as the door opened and Stephanie walked inside. She was stiff as hell, but trying not to show it. She gave a smile and a wave. "Hey, you, you're late, where've you been?"

"Oh, Britt and Hunter found each other a little time after the show and I had to wait there like an idiot," she lied. "Then we finally got going."

"Oh, how did the match go?"

"It went fine," she said, wincing a little as she moved her neck wrong.

Chris caught it though. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she lied and hated doing it, but Chris would kill Randy if he knew and she wanted time to pass and her to be fine before he found out. There was only so long she could hide it from him since he could see it in a myriad of different places. "Just tired."

"Poor thing, you work so hard," he joked. "Did Hunter win?"

"No, he didn't, but that's okay, he was outnumbered."

"Yeah, that's true. Well, at least the plan is going well and I get to talk to Katie and except for this fake divorce thing, everything's going great in the world, well, that and the fact Kurt keeps bugging you, but other than those things, life is good, huh?"

"Good, definitely."

What Chris didn't know wouldn't hurt him…yet.


	228. All Together Now, March 30, 2009

A/N: So we're close to WrestleMania. If everything goes according to plan, I'll try and have the WM chapter up Monday morning, so be on the look-out for that. If I don't, it'll be with the Raw chapter. Hope you enjoy this one and leave a review, please, they really help me, thanks. :)

* * *

She'd managed to hide it from him for four days.

Those were not an easy four days by any means. She'd had to be crafty and wily, all the while dealing with a soreness that lingered for a few days. She'd hidden it though and Chris was none the wiser. Well, no, he was wise because he called her out on it, but she just claimed that she was exhausted and tired from bending down to pick up all of Flynn and Sawyer's things. Those two kids were saviors right now because, even inadvertently as it was, they helped deter Chris for as long as possible.

That first day, the day they went home, she knew it would be sitting on their DVR. They recorded Raw every Monday night and they'd come home and review the show. Chris would want to go over his match (if he had one) and give a self-evaluation. He liked Stephanie to watch with him so she could give him input as to what looked good and what needed work. It was a nice, relaxing thing they did, but this week would not be good if he were to watch the show. Luckily for her, Flynn was a baby and therefore a pooping machine.

When they'd gotten home, the car was already smelling and since Chris and Stephanie knew they hadn't done anything and Sawyer was now fully potty-trained, it left Flynn as the culprit and she had thanked her daughter for having the wherewithal to go at that very moment.

"_Jesus Christ," Chris gagged, "what the hell are we feeding that kid?"_

_Stephanie rolled the window down. "I know."_

"_Mommy, it stinky," Sawyer said, plugging his nose._

"_I know, baby boy, we're almost home," Stephanie told him. Sawyer made a lot of funny faces as he looked over at his sister, who looked very self-satisfied. Chris raced home as fast as it was legal because Flynn had stunk up the entire car. It was amazing what could come out of such a little person. _

_They finally reached home and Chris pulled into the long driveway and parked quickly. "Chris, can you take her upstairs and change her?" Stephanie asked._

"_I'm on it!" he cried as he opened the door to the backseat and started taking the giggling Flynn out of her car-seat. Stephanie got out and helped Sawyer out of his. Sawyer could actually put his car-seat harness on, but he still had a little trouble taking it off. Stephanie unhooked him and he hopped out of the car of his own accord. They went inside and Sawyer immediately started running for the back door because he wanted to go play on his playground. Chris took the stinky Flynn upstairs._

_Stephanie watched as Sawyer bounced around the door, trying to get it open. Before that though, she had something to do. She grabbed the remote and turned on the television, getting to the menu and deleting Raw from the playlist. After that, she let Sawyer outside and walked after him. _

Chris had wanted to watch the show later that evening, but found the show had not recorded. He'd inquired Stephanie, but she'd feigned innocence, wondering if maybe the power had briefly gone out or some kind of glitch had made the show not tape. Chris had shrugged and let it go, he hadn't had a match and he'd seen footage of himself kicking Flair's ass so he didn't need to watch the rest of the show. She'd dodged a bullet with that one, but another bullet would come flying at her early the next morning.

Flynn had woken up early as she was wont to do and Stephanie took her downstairs for her morning meal. Just as Stephanie was spooning some applesauce into Flynn's mouth, Chris's phone buzzed from the counter. She'd set Flynn's food down and went over to look to see who was calling him this early. The display on his phone said it was Randy and she hadn't even thought of Randy calling Chris to brag about what happened. She panicked a moment. Chris would be down soon. She got up early to feed Flynn, but Chris would invariably discover the bed empty and he hated when the bed was empty.

She grabbed the phone and looked around. Where could she hide it? She would just hide it for now and then check every night to make sure that he wasn't missing important calls. She turned it off and then thought of places to hide it. She could hide it in the laundry room, maybe in one of the hampers, but Chris did laundry so it was out of the question. She could hide it in her office, but they kept company stuff in there and if he needed something company-related he could paw through her things and wonder why she was hiding his phone. She finally decided on the guest bedroom. Nobody went in there, Chris wouldn't go in there and it was perfect.

She had run upstairs and into the room. She could hear Chris in the bathroom in their room so time was of the essence. She slipped it into the nightstand and then ran back downstairs in time to have Chris come down a few minutes later. He hadn't even noticed it missing until that afternoon.

"_Baby, have you seen my phone?" he asked, looking around the kitchen. Sawyer had asked for an apple and Stephanie was slicing it for him. _

"_No, I haven't," Stephanie said as she slid a couple slices to Sawyer. He stood on his tiptoes to reach for them on the counter and grabbed one, crunching on it with his little teeth. _

"_I could've sworn I left it in here last night, but now I can't find it," Chris said, scratching his head. "Is Flynn napping?"_

"_Yeah, she is still. Sawyer woke up early from his nap and wanted a snack," Stephanie said, ruffling his hair. Sawyer grinned up at her._

"_I swear, I left it right here," he said, poking his finger on the counter. "I was talking with my mom last night, wondering if she could take care of the kids tomorrow so we could go shopping for a certain someone's b-i-r-t-h-d-a-y and after I talked to her, I put it right here."_

_He looked around again and Stephanie shrugged, "Did you check your office?"_

"_Yeah, I did. I checked everywhere after I came here to check first, I think you were upstairs folding laundry."_

"_Then did you check our room?"_

"_I checked our room," Chris said. "I even checked under the bed and nothing. I checked in my office, I checked in your office and I checked the living room and the car, just in case, but nothing, I couldn't find it."_

"_I bet Sawyer took it," Stephanie said._

"_What?" Chris asked. "Why would Sawyer take my phone?"_

"_Because I think he's getting in that phase where he likes to hide things. Ever since your dad taught him how to play hide-and-seek he's been wanting to hide things and then go seek them."_

_It was true that Ted had taught Sawyer the game, but Sawyer did not have a compulsion to hide things. Sawyer knew his mommy was talking about him and he chewed slowly as he looked up at her. What was she talking about with this hiding business? He didn't remember hiding anything. Stephanie looked down at him with a stern look and that just made him not want to talk at all. She looked kind of mean, kind of like she had when he had said that word she didn't like. Chris came over and knelt in front of his son._

"_Hey, kid, I'm goin to ask you something and I want you to tell me the truth, do you know what the truth is?"_

"_No," Sawyer answered, he didn't know what the truth was. That was a new concept for him._

"_It's when you say something that is real. Did you take my phone?"_

"_I dunno," Sawyer said. He didn't recall taking a phone. He had a phone upstairs that he liked to play with because he liked to push buttons, but he didn't remember taking a phone. Stephanie sighed in relief. She knew she was lying and using her son, but Sawyer would understand that this was bigger than he was._

"_Did you hide it somewhere?" Chris asked. Sawyer shrugged and leaned against his mommy._

"_He probably doesn't remember," Stephanie said. "I'm sure it'll turn up, don't worry."_

"_Steph, that's kind of like my lifeline, I'm going to get a little upset." He took a deep breath. "Kid, if you remember taking Daddy's phone, please remember where you left it."_

"_Okay," Sawyer said, not quite knowing what he was agreeing to._

"_I'm going to look some more," Chris said, wandering off. _

_Stephanie knelt down to Sawyer and kissed his cheek. "Thank you, baby boy."_

_Sawyer didn't know what he'd done, but he said anyways, "You we'come."_

She'd kept that phone hidden for two more days until SmackDown. Damn SmackDown. She'd kept him off the computer by taking him to go shopping with her and having sex with him if it came to that. Yes, she'd used her body to seduce her husband away from looking at anything that might even remotely let him know what'd happened. He hadn't complained, mind you, so she didn't feel bad about what she'd done. With Sawyer's birthday coming up, there was a lot to do so she'd kept him occupied.

He said he was putting Sawyer to bed so she figured he was putting Sawyer to bed. She was in her office finalizing some of the events surrounding WrestleMania. There were a lot of things happening. Chris was going to be in New York on Tuesday and she was wondering if she should go as well, but then she'd have the kids and it would be a big trip and then they'd have to fly back down to Houston for actual WrestleMania so she was thinking about just heading straight to Houston so she could start taking care of things for WrestleMania.

What Chris was actually doing was watching TV with Sawyer. Sawyer had been pretty hyper after dinner and he wanted to hang out with his daddy. Chris threw him onto the bed and Sawyer squealed at landing on the big, huge bed his parents had. It was always so comfy. Chris climbed on after him, settling himself against the pillows. Sawyer crawled quickly after him and laid against his daddy's side. He was nice and cozy now, lying there in his cute pajamas with drawings of boats all over them.

They'd been having a good time watching the show until…well until Chris saw it. Once he saw it, he couldn't unsee it. He tensed. Even Sawyer, in his exhausted state noticed his daddy had tensed up and he pulled away to look up at him in curiosity. He'd just seen his mommy on TV and it looked like she had been hurt, was his daddy upset? That was probably it. Chris bit the inside of his cheek when he saw Randy lean down and kiss Stephanie while she was out of it. He closed his eyes and counted to ten.

"_Hey kid," he said through gritted teeth. "Time for bed."_

"_I watch wif you, Daddy," Sawyer whined, but his voice was sleepy._

"_I know, but it's time for bed," Chris said, his voice controlled, but every now and then a hint of the pure rage coursing through his veins let itself show. _

"_Okay," Sawyer said. He was kind of tired and he guessed he could sleep._

_Chris picked him up and took him to his room, letting him climb in his small bed and get settled. Chris clenched his fists as the scene replayed and replayed in his mind. Sawyer reached up to him and Chris came down to give his son a kiss goodnight. Sawyer smiled and turned on his side to try and sleep. Chris turned on his nightlight for him and then left the room, closing the door a little behind him. He stood there, in the hallway, for a long minute, trying to take deep breaths and calm himself down. It wasn't working though. He looked down at his hands and saw he was shaking from anger. He tried to get them to stop, tried to get himself to stop, but it wasn't working. He was so angry. He tried to get his breathing under control, but that wasn't working either._

_His legs carried him downstairs and into Stephanie's office. She saw him in the doorway and smiled, pushing her glasses up off the end of her nose. "Did you get the monster down for the night?"_

"_Why did you lie to me?"_

"_What?" Stephanie asked. "Lie?"_

"_Stop it, Stephanie," he said. "You lied…you lied to me."_

"_Chris, I'm sorry…what are you talking about?" She was worried for a minute that he thought she and Hunter were together for real. But how could that be when she was with Chris most of the time except at the shows. It didn't even occur to her that he had found out. He had been tucking in Sawyer._

"_Sawyer and I were watching SmackDown," Chris told her stonily._

_Stephanie closed her eyes and leaned back in her chair. "What did you see?"_

"_All of it," Chris said. "I saw him DDT you, I saw him _kiss_ you, he _kissed _you while you were out and I saw…how could you not tell me!"_

"_Chris, please, the babies are upstairs sleeping," Stephanie said, standing from her desk. "I didn't want you to know. You weren't there, I didn't want you to know, I made Hunter promise. I just…I knew you'd get upset."_

"_Upset! Upset!" he yelled, not heeding Stephanie's words about the kids. "How could you keep something like that from me? How could you…what…you were hurt, you were _hurt_ and you didn't tell me! I'm your husband, Stephanie, I'm your goddamned husband and you don't have the courtesy to tell me when you're hurt. Plus he kissed you, he…I can't even think right now."_

"_Chris, I'm sorry, I didn't want you to worry."_

"_No!" he said. "You didn't want me to kill Randy because of your plan, your precious, little plan!"_

_Stephanie bit her lip, "Fine, yes, it's true, I wanted to continue so I took it, I'm sorry," she told him._

"_I can't believe you'd keep this from me!" he said, hurt beyond measure. "I love you, I love you and I care about you and your health and you don't even tell me when you take a move like that. You didn't even tell me and he kissed you, he put his filthy mouth on you, I'm going to kill him, he's dead, I'm going to kill him."_

"_Chris, please, don't."_

"_I don't care about your stupid plan. He hurt my wife, he hurt you, how dare he? I let it go once, that was enough, I let it happen once, I'm not…I'm going to kill him. Who the hell does he think he is putting his lips on you, I'm going to kill him, that's it, he's dead, I'm killing him. Right now, I'm going right now."_

"_He lives in Atlanta," Stephanie said._

"_I don't care," Chris said, almost on auto-pilot. He actually started to leave the room and go towards the door, grabbing his car keys along the way. Stephanie chased after him and grabbed him on the arm. "Don't touch me."_

"_Chris, please, stop, think about this, we're so close," Stephanie said, holding onto his arm. _

"_I don't care about this stupid plan!" he yelled. "I don't care anymore. I'm not going to sit around and watch you get hurt. I can't pretend that I don't love you, that I don't want to be with you. Do you know how hard it is? Do you know how hard it is to sick back and watch some other man, a man you used to love no less, protect you like I can't right now? Do you know how that feels?"_

"_No, I don't," she said softly._

"_I can't take it anymore," he told her. "Too much, it's too much."_

"_Chris, please, I'm pleading with you," Stephanie said. "I'm begging you, I am seriously begging you, please, don't do this."_

"_I can't believe you would ask me to ignore this," Chris scoffed. "I can't sit by and watch this happen."_

"_You'll get your moment, I promise, sweetie, I promise, you'll get your moment to kick his ass," Stephanie said. "Then you can do whatever you want to him, I promise."_

"_Not good enough, Steph," he said, "I'm out, I'm out of the plan. You, Hunter, Britt, you can do whatever the hell you want to do, I'm out. I'm not sitting there and pretending like I'm friends with that bastard. I'm not going to act like what he did to you was something I wanted to happen or something I enjoyed. I'm not doing it."_

"_Chris," Stephanie said, running her hands up and down his chest._

"_Don't try to pull that on me," he said, taking her hands off his chest. "I'm out."_

"_Sweetie," she said, trying to touch him again, but he pulled away from her and stormed upstairs._

He'd stayed in his office most of that night. When she went to bed he was still in there, but when she woke the next morning, he was lying next to her, his arm thrown possessively over her waist. At the very least he hadn't left their room to go sleep in the guest room. She'd returned his phone to him and he saw he had seven missed calls from Randy, but he ignored them all. If he talked to this man now, he would break him in two. Chris was a fighter, not just a wrestler and he could hold his own better than most of the guys in the company who were just wrestlers and not fighters.

He hadn't spoken much to Stephanie. He was still angry with her for lying to him. Whenever he looked at her he had to think about her keeping something like that from him. If she had been seriously hurt, would she have tried to lie and say that something else had happened? Would she blame it on anyone or anything except Randy? Yes, he and Stephanie were schemers and manipulators, but this was her health they were talking about and that came before anything else.

So now they were here in Dallas and Chris was getting ready to leave, but Stephanie had a meeting with Hunter and her father and brother. She'd been informed by Vickie that Randy was going to make some kind of address on the show tonight. Her father and brother had wanted to get involved with this since Stephanie had been felled by Randy the week before. They were disgusted by his behavior and wanted to do something about it.

"Are you sure you don't want to come with me?" Stephanie asked.

"And talk about how Hunter is going to defend you some more, I don't think so," Chris told her.

"Chris, I'm fine, see, I'm fine, it was just a DDT, I've taken worse."

"That's not the point," Chris said, shaking his head, "and if you don't understand that, I don't know how to make you understand."

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you, I've apologized so many times," Stephanie sighed. "I just didn't want you to worry or go off the deep end. We've worked hard on this, Chris, we really have and I know that it's hard for you, I know that and I'm sorry, but it'll all work out in the end."

"Yeah, tell me how, right now? Tell me how this is going to end?" he wondered. She looked down. "Yeah, that's what I thought."

"I'm sorry," she told him, looking up imploringly at him.

Chris looked down at her. God, he loved this woman and God help him for falling in love with this particular woman. She certainly kept him on his toes and he wouldn't trade her in for anything, but she made things so difficult sometimes. She wasn't broken down or innocent or helpless. She was strong and touch and he loved her for that. He couldn't picture his life with some meek wife who wanted to stay in the background. She was so infuriating though.

"I know you're sorry, baby," he told her, kissing her forehead. "Look, I just don't want to be included in this plan anymore. I'll still pretend at the shows for appearances sake, but I don't care to know what's going on, okay?"

"Okay," she nodded. "So you don't want any part?"

"None, only tell me the stuff I need to know," he said, then took her face in his hands. "And baby, anything that concerns you is stuff I need to know. You can't hide that kind of thing from me, do you get what I'm saying?"

She nodded, "I get it, I'm sorry. I really am."

"You make me so mad," he said, kissing her gently. "I could kick you sometimes. I wouldn't, but I could."

"I'd kick you back," she told him. "So does this mean you won't want to let in Katie Lea?"

"Oh, I'm totally going to let in Katie Lea, that's your punishment," he winked at her. "Heaven help me if I see Randy though."

"Please just try to keep your temper in check?"

"I make no promises," he said, kissing her again. "You're taking the kids, right?"

"Yeah, I've got them."

"Are you sure you don't want me to take them?"

"Don't worry, I've got them."

Chris left her for the show and she sighed. She hated fighting with Chris, even if they resolved it. She wanted him to be a part of this plan, but it was getting too hard for him and she had to understand where he was coming from and accept them. She gathered the kids' things and then gathered the kids so they could go up to her father's suite on the top floor. Stephanie carried Flynn as Sawyer stood by her side. Vince opened the door with gusto and she had to take a step back.

"Oh, you're here," Vince said, "give me that one."

He took Flynn from her and she rolled her eyes as Sawyer went in ahead of her. For a man who hadn't seen the first several months of his granddaughter's life, he sure was being protective of her. Funnily enough, Flynn seemed to sense that this man hadn't even wanted to see her and started crying. Sawyer jumped up and down to try and get her from his grandpa, but Stephanie took her back instead. Shane and Hunter were already there and she sat down.

"Hey, where's Chris?" Shane asked.

"He's no longer an active part of the plan," Stephanie explained. "He found out about what happened on Monday and he's not happy and he doesn't want to have anything to do with this. He'll go along with what he's already gone along with, but nothing more than that. He doesn't want to. It's fine though, we'll just move on and discuss what we need to discuss here."

"Obviously we should attack them," Shane said. "That's the only way, we have to attack them, show our unity and attack them."

"I agree," Vince said. "Randy hurt you last week and he has to pay for that."

"Well, I mean, that's a good plan and all," Stephanie said. "But isn't that a little blatant, I mean, I don't know, something stealthy might be better."

"No, I just want to kick his ass," Shane said, pounding his fist. "He thinks he can take over our show. I don't think so. I don't think we should stand for that."

Stephanie was a little dismayed that Shane had called it their show. It was actually her show, but everyone seemed to forget that she was actually the GM. Vickie was only doing her job for now, but this wasn't a permanent thing. She was in charge and things still ran through her, not through her brother or her father, but through her.

"I don't either," Vince said. "As the person who runs this show, I'm not going to let it happen."

Stephanie didn't like that either. What made them think it was their show? "Dad, Shane, I hate to say, but you guys aren't really running the show, I mean, I'm the GM, it's my show."

"Of course it is, Princess," Vince said patronizingly. "We just want to protect you and show Randy that what he did to you was unacceptable."

"I mean, Hunter could take care of things," Stephanie said, looking over at the silent man. He was cooing at Flynn right now. Sawyer was trying to understand the conversation everyone was having right now. "He's been taking care of things."

"No offense to you, Hunter," Vince said, "but I don't think you're doing a very good job at this. Stephanie, your plan is all well and good, but it needs some alterations. I think that with Shane and I on board it'll finally start to work."

Stephanie kept her mouth shut. She was sure her father and Shane had the best of intentions here, but she didn't like the way they were saying things. It made her feel like a child and this was her plan to begin with. Now her father and brother were trying to take over and it was so typical of them. They couldn't leave well enough alone or let her take over. It always had to include them until she forcefully pushed them out. This was starting to feel like when she had married Hunter just to spite them. They had tried to take over everything then and she had driven them away.

"I think the plan is going fine," Stephanie spoke up. "Randy isn't going to know what's hit him. Hunter isn't going to lose on Sunday."

"I'm not," Hunter interjected.

"Of course you're not, but we want to make sure. Taking Randy out now and…softening him up if you will, it'll make it easier for him, trust me," Vince said.

"Yeah, come on, Steph, we have to get back at him for what he did to you. You can't expect us to just sit there and allow it to happen."

"I guess not," she agreed. "I guess you guys can do what you want."

"I thought it would have a great impact if we came out one at a time," Vince said, "that way Randy knows we mean business."

"I agree," Shane said, "what do you think, Hunter?"

"Fine with me," Hunter said, glancing over at Stephanie. She looked little in that moment, like she was being dwarfed by her father and her brother. He knew the look well; it was a look she wore for the first couple months of their marriage. "Steph, you cool with this?"

"Yeah, I'm fine with it, I mean, you want to make an impact, have him running scared," Stephanie said. "I say go for it."

"Great, then that's what we'll do, it's settled," Vince said, clapping his hands together.

"Yeah, settled," Stephanie told them. "I'm going to go, Flynn's getting restless, I'll see you guys later."

"I'll head out with you," Hunter said quickly. Hunter helped her out by picking up Sawyer and their bags before he left the room with her. "So how not on board with that plan are you?"

"What?"

"Stephanie, we _were_ actually married, I remember how you used to react when they got too overbearing and I saw that look just now. Been a long time, but I saw it."

"They mean well," she said with a shrug.

"Stephanie?" he said in that knowing voice of his.

"Fine, I hate it, it's my plan and I hate it," she said, shaking her head. "Whatever though, they want to do this and fine, they can do whatever they want, I don't care. I'm just…they are constantly undermining me, trying to make it look like I don't know what I'm doing, but I absolutely know what I'm doing. The plan is to get Randy, why, _why_ would we want him to think he doesn't have the upper-hand going into this? We've wanted him to think he's had the upper-hand. Even when you invaded his home, he had the cops at his disposal, he had the control. The week before WrestleMania, why would we suddenly want Randy thinking he's weak?"

"That's a good point, you should've brought it up," Hunter told her.

"So what? They can say that they're just asserting their dominance, dominance that will continue to Sunday? That's what they'd say and that's not the way to get Randy. If you had given him the upper-hand, he thinks he's going to be invincible and then you lay the boom on him. But they don't see that. But whatever, fine, we'll do it their way and see what happens."

"Okay," Hunter said, then turned to Sawyer, who he was still carrying, "Hey there, tough guy, you going to the show tonight?"

"Uh huh, I see show all da time."

"You watch it all the time?"

"Wif Daddy, he show me. You mean, Twip."

"I'm what? What is your dad showing you?"

"He shows him old tapes," Stephanie explained.

"Oh, so you get to see me kick your dad's butt?"

"He can win you," Sawyer said. "He good."

"He is good, but he can't beat me," Hunter told Sawyer.

"Uh huh, I win you too. I kick," Sawyer said. This kid was destined for superstardom. He was already thinking of ways to kick butt.

"Well, I'd let you win," Hunter said. He turned back to Stephanie. "So are things with Chris okay?"

"Yeah, for the most part. He's just upset I didn't tell him. He's not mad at you if that's what you're thinking. He's just upset with the situation. He doesn't like to see me hurt and then not knowing. I should've told him, but hindsight is a bitch."

"You were just trying to protect him."

"I know, but he doesn't see it exactly that way. He thinks it's more that I was just trying to extend the plan and that was part of it, but the other part was because I didn't want him going ballistic all over Randy. Chris has a big match coming up and he doesn't need the added stress and it was wrong, but I was just thinking of him."

"It happens."

"I know, but we cleared the air between us."

Chris walked into catering. He was hungry and wanted food. He looked around to see what looked the best and saw Katie sitting by herself, eating. He smiled and went to grab a plate and load up with food. It was perfect that she was by herself because he wanted to talk to her. He might not be completely going with Stephanie's plan anymore, but that shouldn't stop him from talking to Katie. He was in line for the food when he saw dumb and dumber enter. That was almost enough for him to bolt out of there. Mickie said something to Kelly, then left and Chris hoped he could just dodge the blonde quickly.

"Chris, hey, no kids tonight?" Kelly asked.

Chris couldn't believe he'd been spotted so quickly. "Nope, not right now."

"You look good tonight," she told him.

"Thanks," he told her. He looked at her in her skimpy outfit, "You look…clothed."

"Oh, thanks," she said brightly and Chris couldn't believe she thought that was a compliment. He had nothing to say to this girl. Did she and Mickie think that just because he had been married to Stephanie he had some sort of sway? If he and Stephanie actually did break up, he'd be out on his ass and he'd have no power. He'd probably have negative power.

"Uh, you're welcome?"

"So you're eating?"

"That is what I'm doing with the food on my plate, yes."

"Cool, are you eating alone?" she asked.

"Actually, no, I'm not."

"Oh, maybe we can have a meal some other time."

"I'll be sure to look into that," he said quickly before darting away. That was a close one. He went over to Katie's table and sat down, "I know this is weird, but Kelly Kelly is after me, looking for a date so I need you to talk to me so she'll leave me alone."

Katie laughed and looked up to where Kelly was staring at her and Chris. "She's looking over here, you know."

"If we pretend she doesn't exist, maybe she'll disappear into thin air," Chris hissed.

"I doubt that will work," Katie said, "but you're welcome to sit here with me and finish your dinner. I always like the company, it beats having to eat alone."

"I know how that goes."

"Where are your kids?" she asked.

"They're with Stephanie."

"Oh, that sounds like a fair plan you've got going with her, then." Chris looked and wondered what she meant. Katie mistook his confused face and added, "I mean, you know, bringing the kids back and forth and that…so you can both see them."

"Oh, okay," he said, getting what she meant now. He thought she somehow knew about his plan.

"So no plans to get together again then?" she wondered. "Well, I mean she's with Hunter, I understand, but you know, people get back together."

"I don't know," Chris said, eating some of his food. "I guess it's a possibility."

"I always thought you two looked rather in love," Katie told him. "I mean, I know every relationship has their bumps, but you two seemed to be quite into each other. But I guess things like this happen."

"Yeah, now she's got this plan going with Hunter," Chris said subtly.

"It's really too bad," she said. "It's always quite sad when things break-up like that. Then you've got these girls going after you, I'm guessing from the way you were so eagerly getting away from Kelly, although I've spent time with the girl and she's an annoying one, that's for sure."

"I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks so," Chris chuckled. He liked talking to Katie Lea. She had this personality that was infectious. Whenever she smiled, he found himself smiling. She was just such a genuinely good person to him and he definitely wanted her as a friend. If he were really single, he'd want her as a girlfriend right this second.

"I just don't have much respect for girls like that, who latch onto whoever man is available, the more powerful the better, if powerful is the correct word. I'm well aware of how some divas become successful around here, but I don't want to go down that road."

"That's a really good position to have. You're talented though, I'm sure you'll get huge."

"Thank you," she said, smiling at him.

They continued talking until Chris was finished. She had finished well before him, but she actually stayed and talked to him. Chris found himself drawn to her. She was just so comfortable to talk to and that kept the conversation going. She wasn't dll or boring, but vivacious and humorous. She was everything that Mickie and Kelly Kelly weren't and for that he appreciated her company. He offered to walk her back to her locker room and she took him up on the offer.

As they were walking, Chris saw the last person he wanted to see run up to him, "Dude, Chris, I've been trying to get a hold of you for days!"

"Katie, I really have to talk to him, maybe we can talk later?"

"Of course, bye, Chris," she told him.

"Wow, are you two an item now or something?" Randy asked.

"None of your business," Chris said shortly.

"What the hell's your problem? I just wanted to ask if you saw Raw last week. I heard you left early, but you _had_ to have seen what I did to Stephanie. Not like she didn't have it coming or anything." Chris was clenching his fists so tightly he could feel his nails digging into his skin and his skin about to give in and draw first blood. "She totally had it coming and I thought you'd want to see it."

"I saw it."

"After what that bitch did to you, it had to feel good," Randy chuckled. "I wanted to get your reaction on it."

"You want my reaction?" Chris asked, his glare getting sharper and sharper. He was like a lion right now, his teeth baring in his mouth, his eyes narrowing in anger. If Randy wasn't careful and didn't step back, Chris was going to eat him like Randy was a little lamb.

"Yeah, I knew you'd want to see it."

Chris had enough and he grabbed Randy by his t-shirt and threw him up against the wall. Randy was taller than Chris, but he was taken off guard. Randy struggled and tried to pry Chris's hands away from him, but Chris had a strong grip and wasn't budging. He looked at Chris in confusion. They were supposed to be friends, they had a common enemy in the McMahon family. Chris tried to keep his cool, but in the face of this asshole, he couldn't do it and now he had to explain his actions while still covering up for his wife.

"What the hell, man!" Randy said, "Get off me!"

"Look, I don't care what you do in your spare time, I don't care if you have IED or you don't. Stephanie may not want me, she may want Hunter for all eternity but she's the mother of my children. My son had to watch what you did, my _2 year old_ son had to watch that. How do you think he reacted, huh? He didn't know what to think except his mother was getting hurt. No matter what Stephanie does, she is the mother of my children and as such, I don't want you kicking her or punching her or DDT'ing her, do I make myself clear?"

"Yeah," Randy said, struggling for breath. During Chris's rant, he'd progressively pushed his hands further against Randy's throat, constricting his airways a little bit.

"Tell me you understand."

"I understand," Randy said and Chris let go. "Look, I didn't think of that and--"

"Yeah, you didn't, consider that a warning," Chris tossed over his shoulder as he stalked away. Randy had gotten off lucky right then. If he didn't love Stephanie like he did, if he didn't understand her like he did, he would've beaten Randy into a pulp. Hunter would take care of him on Sunday though, give him a little appetizer of what was to come. Then Chris would come and take Randy down peg by peg until he was a screaming little boy in the middle of the ring or in the middle of the backstage, whichever he preferred.

He took out all his anger during his match later on. King had to pay for what Randy had done. On Sunday, Steamboat, Piper, and Snuka were going to have to atone for Randy Orton's sins. This was no longer about old guys and their legacies, this had everything to do with the fact Chris wanted to kick Randy's ass and couldn't. Whatever happened between him and the legends didn't matter. He was going to be picturing Randy the entire time so they better watch out.

Each blow to Lawler was one for Randy. When Lawler was in the Walls of Jericho, Chris pictured Randy in the same position, tapping out like the sissy he was. What kind of man would do that to a woman? What kind of man would just kiss her like that? He didn't think he'd even go so low and he was pretending to divorce his wife. He told Lawler and the world he was going to win on Sunday and win he would. Lawler punched him, but he was not deterred. Lawler was baiting him, trying to make Chris look weak, but it wasn't going to work. Chris was so pumped as he walked up the ramp he could've beaten all three right there, but Sunday would be here soon enough.

It was going to be memorable for many reasons, the first of which was the fact it was Flynn's first show. She'd be sitting near the front with her brother and grandparents and they would all watch him beat those damn legends. Then they would see Hunter avenge their mother. It was going to be a magical evening when he showed the legends whom they were truly dealing with.

Stephanie watched the video package for Randy and Hunter's fight. She couldn't believe the footage they'd gotten. Vince must've given it to them. They showed a picture of the small, real wedding she and Hunter had had after they'd gotten married at the drive-thru in Vegas. Her parents, once they accepted her marriage had wanted another wedding, one they could show off to their friends. It hadn't been all that fun for her to prance around in a wedding dress and pretend like it was her wedding all over again. She hadn't yet fallen in love with Hunter at that point so she was forced to look happy.

She wasn't happy later either when her father and Shane went out there. She'd feigned happiness with the plan but she was starting to feel like a third wheel in her own plan. This was what _she_ wanted and she'd only informed her family because she didn't want them thinking she was divorcing Chris. Now, slowly, but surely, they were once again inserting themselves in her affairs. Their intentions were probably good, but it was annoying when they implied she was incompetent. She was hardly incompetent. She'd been planning and scheming for years now and she knew what she was doing.

The three of them did cut an imposing image though, but the entire thing was so counterproductive. Randy should have confidence going into his match and now he was getting beat up and he was going to know that it was going to be a hard fight and he'd have to be on his game. She wanted him to go in thinking Hunter stood little to no chance and then lower the boom on him at WrestleMania. Why her father and brother couldn't see that, she didn't know, but there they went, beating up security guards to get to Legacy. It was silly. Her plan was much better.

Yes, her plan was much better.


	229. So Close, WrestleMania, April 5, 2009

A/N: Okay, so I was working on the WrestleMania chapter and it got really long and since last year's chapter was way too long, I didn't want to make that same mistake again so I'm keeping the WrestleMania chapter and the Raw chapter separate. This is the WrestleMania chapter, it starts on Tuesday and goes until Sunday. It's long so buckle in.

And who saw the Hall of Fame on Saturday? I've noticed a lot of people noticed that Chris and Steph were totally close to one another, which was cool. Anyways, please leave a review, even a short one, but like if you don't review, I don't know if I'm doing things right or not so it'd help if you left one, thanks. I really hope you enjoy! :)

* * *

"Can you believe how defensive he got?"

Britt looked up from the magazine she'd been perusing and then over at Randy. He was sitting in their hotel room, well, his hotel room, she was not sharing a room with him. Her room was down the hall. She could barely stand the sight of him if she was going to be honest with herself. She still found it hard to be around him after what he'd done to Stephanie. It just created a bad image in her mind and a sour taste in her mouth. She knew Stephanie was okay, she'd talked to the woman, but still, it didn't make what Randy did okay in any way.

"Can you blame him?" Britt asked.

"What do you mean?" Randy asked. "I thought you hated Stephanie. I mean, she did take your man away and now she's like, strolling around with him on her arm and everything, you can't tell me that doesn't hurt to see."

"Of course it hurts to see that," Britt told him, acting convincingly. "But still, the man has got a good reason to take issue with it."

"Do you think he's still in love with her?"

"You don't just fall out of love," Britt said, rolling her eyes as she looked down. "They've been together for what, seven years? You can't expect to get over in weeks what you had for seven years. It's just not possible."

"You've got a point, but some part of him had to enjoy that. She betrayed him. She's dating and thinking about marrying that jackass, Hunter. He had to like seeing her get her comeuppance a little bit."

"Okay, riddle me this then, while Chris was watching you beat up his soon-to-be ex-wife, where do you think his children were?" Britt asked. She knew that Sawyer and Flynn had been with Chris at the time. Sawyer hadn't been traumatized or anything, but he knew something bad had happened. You couldn't overlook anything around him now because he was picking up things left and right.

"I didn't think of that," Randy said. He rubbed his chin. "I don't want them to see that or anything, it doesn't involve them."

"Except you have made them involved," Britt said. "I mean, yeah, everyone is gossiping about how Chris is a bad father and how Hunter is around the kids more now and how he's like their second dad or whatever, I can't believe that bastard is actually taking care of them when he wouldn't even discuss kids with me, but that's beside the point…"

"You _wanted_ kids with that bastard?" Randy said, shuddering. "Lucky you got out when you did, Britt, because there's no way you should be saddled down with his kids. Lord knows they'd probably look like him, all nose, no personality."

Britt frowned at that, holding up the magazine in front of her face to cover her expression. That sentiment stung a little bit. She loved Hunter and yes, she wanted to eventually have kids with him. She hadn't a lot of relationships, but she knew when she had a good thing and her relationship with Hunter was a good thing. They were definitely in this for the long-term as they'd already been dating for a couple of years. Was she saying that kids were in the near future? No, but she could picture them and nothing she pictured ever looked like a kid with a beak. She didn't even see the big deal about Hunter's nose, it was certainly nothing anybody needed to point out.

"You're right," Britt said, pulling the magazine down and putting on her most neutral of faces. "I don't know what I was thinking."

"You can do so much better," he said, coming over and sitting next to her. "You're gorgeous, you don't need that guy. Luckily you guys hadn't even been dating that long, am I right?"

"No, not that long," she said, wondering just how long Randy thought they were together. If he knew the full time, was he just being a jerk and trying to discredit her relationship with Hunter? Probably, knowing Randy as she had come to know him. Deep down, she knew he wasn't a bad guy, but sometimes he was just so frustrating.

"Back to the subject at hand, you'd think Chris would've liked it a little."

"Back to the real subject at hand, you have mentioned his kids and you know how protective Stephanie and Chris are of their kids and you keep bringing them up, no wonder he got pissed at you, you haven't been acting like the friend you claim him to be."

"I guess you're right," Randy said and he actually sounded thoughtful, "that still doesn't mean he has to throw me against the wall, we're on the same side here. I hate the McMahons, he hates Hunter and partly Stephanie, it should all be kosher between us."

"You'd think," she said sarcastically, but he was so deep in thought he didn't take note of it. That was another quality Randy had, he was so oblivious to things around him. He was so wrapped up in getting at people he never took the time to look around.

"It doesn't matter, he'll be happy when I win the title on Sunday. It shouldn't be around Hunter's waist anyways, it should be around mine," Randy nodded, thinking aloud to himself now. Britt went back to her magazine and let him have his delusions of grandeur. Just like his mind, though, her mind started to wander as well.

What if Randy _did_ win on Sunday? What would that mean for the plan? Would it go on? She knew she could take it, but it seemed like the plan was driving Chris crazy and she couldn't really blame him for feeling that way. She missed Hunter terribly right now, but Chris and Stephanie were married and it had to be hard for him to pretend like they weren't anything right now. He'd seen what happened to Stephanie so he knew and he couldn't go out there. How much had he wanted to go out there when he saw it even though it had taken place in the past?

Hunter was stronger, better than Randy, but Randy had age on his side. He also had Legacy and no matter how pissed Vince and Shane were, they were not wrestlers, not trained anyways, and though they'd gotten the upper-hand yesterday with Cody and Ted, they couldn't hope for lighting to strike twice. Cody and Ted were young and talented and could handle Vince and Shane if it came to it. Would Stephanie be out there? Britt didn't know, but knowing Stephanie, she definitely would be. Chris would not be pleased, but he'd let it go, reluctantly, because he usually gave in to Stephanie's whims.

She wanted to go back with Hunter. She just missed him. Everyone thought he was this horrible guy who was controlling and a jackass, but he wasn't. He made her laugh and she missed him. At times, Randy was a blast to be around, but then other times, she couldn't stand the sight of him. He thought he had the entire world figured out and he couldn't even see that people were plotting right in front of his face. She studied him a moment. He looked so intense sitting there and she couldn't deny he was a handsome man, but he wasn't her man and that was the problem.

"Maybe I'll go talk to Chris," Randy said.

"He's at a press conference in New York."

Chris had sat on Vince's private jet pretending to hate Hunter the entire time. He would've acted like nothing was going on, but Edge and Big Show were on the plane and they didn't know that Chris and Hunter were just pretending to hate each other and Hunter hadn't touched Chris's wife in over seven years. Chris sat on one end of the plane while Hunter sat uncomfortably with Shane and Vince up front. They'd made chit-chat for a while, but Hunter still felt very uncomfortable around his former family. They really had nothing to discuss right now so they just sat there.

Edge plopped down in the seat next to Chris, "Hey, so this must be awkward for you, huh?"

"What do you mean?" Chris asked.

"Being on the same plane as Vince and Shane, who are going to be your _former_ in-laws and then them sitting with Hunter, who totally stole your wife," Edge said. Chris wanted to laugh. He couldn't remember why they hadn't decided to tell Edge, but at least it made for a good laugh every once in a while.

"I don't care about any of them," Chris said disdainfully. "I'm just going to sit here."

"Cool, cool, I know what you mean," Edge said, lowering his voice. "It's a little hard sitting here when you know that giant ass is on the plane." He looked surreptitiously at Big Show, who was drinking a beer. "Not that I really care what he did with Vickie because it totally means I can be with Li without any interruptions, but seriously, it's a little weird."

"Well, the dude slept with your wife," Chris said, finding that he had simulated the same situation with his own wife. How Vickie of all people got two guys to sleep with her, he'd never figure out. There were bound to be tons of men who wanted to sleep with Stephanie though. He just had to keep them at bay.

"I know, seriously, what's up with that?" Edge said. "You'd think she could keep her hands to herself when she has me."

"She doesn't really have you though."

"But _she_ doesn't know that," Edge said. "Maybe she knows though, about me and Li. I thought we were pretty careful, but maybe this is revenge for that."

"Wouldn't this _actually_ be revenge for kissing your wedding planner?" Chris said, bringing up another of Edge's indiscretions. Edge should just call his entire life a wash and start over. Chris couldn't figure out why he would get married in the first place when he was still chasing skirts wherever he could. If there was one guy not suited for marriage it was Edge. Look how it turned out. He cheats on his wife right before the wedding, they're married but separated for months, he starts a relationship with an ex-girlfriend (whom he already had a volatile relationship with), then he seemingly gets back together with his ex-wife, but only because she's in a position of power, then she sleeps with another guy, and it creates this whole convoluted situation.

"Nah, she's over that, I think," Edge said. "Hell, maybe she isn't, but seriously, Big Show? I don't know, I'd be scared to get in bed with _that_."

"I don't know Vickie's motives," Chris said dully.

"Yeah, you probably have to figure out Stephanie's motives," Edge said, patting his shoulder sympathetically. "Thank God I have Li to fall back on, you should get out there, start dating again."

When Edge said it like that, it sounded nearly lecherous to date so soon after "breaking up" with his wife. Yes, he liked Katie and thought she'd make a great fake girlfriend, but if he actually broke up with Stephanie, would he start dating this soon after the breakup? No, he'd most definitely be stuck in his boxers, eating beans from a can, crying all the time, having not showered, not showing up to work, and looking generally like a mess.

He was still incredibly pissed about the situation with Randy. He'd promised Stephanie he wasn't going to go ballistic on Sunday, but this year was shaping up to be as bad as last year was. Well, not completely. Last year he had been in a huge fight with Stephanie and they weren't even speaking and it was the most awkward time he'd ever had in his marriage with Stephanie. He couldn't say relationship with Stephanie because it had been pretty weird those first few years. Still, other than Stephanie still talking to him and being with him and this being Flynn's first WrestleMania, things were not looking up for Chris.

First, he was stuck wrestling a bunch of old men. That was not the match he wanted. Then he was going to have to watch his wife probably accompany another man, which was horrible because he wanted her to escort _him_. She'd escorted him once, but she only had a crush on him then, they weren't dating, despite what people thought. On top of that, he had to go to the Hall of Fame ceremony and probably mingle with Austin, whom he hated. Despite Stephanie thinking it dumb, he still held a grudge against Austin for what he'd done to Stephanie. The man could've hurt his kid and you don't ever, ever forget something like that.

Lastly, he didn't get to kick Randy's ass. Stephanie said he'd get his time but when? If everything went according to plan tonight, she'd probably let him take him out to the parking lot and ram his head into the concrete. He could picture a Randy-sized dent in one of the production trucks and he smirked at that. But things were still up in the air because there was a very real chance Randy could win tonight and the plan could go forward and Chris wanted to get his hands against Randy's scrawny neck and press the breath from his body.

He took a deep breath to calm his nerves and Edge believed he was just feeling the tension of seeing Hunter. "Dude, don't worry, man, things will be okay. I mean, you'll get over Stephanie."

"Oh, yeah, yeah, I'm sure I will," Chris said unconvincingly because there was nothing to get over. She was still his wife. She'd sent him off with a hug and a kiss this morning. Albeit, it was in their hotel room, but it was a send-off all the same.

"It'll be okay, Chris, it'll be okay, man," Edge said, getting up and going back to his own seat.

Chris leaned back against the seat and closed his eyes. They were still a little bit from landing, but he wanted to get some shut eye. Flynn had woken up extra early this morning and his wife had shoved him out of bed. It was convenient because he had to go, but still, it was very early. They'd had to catch a very early flight to get to New York for this press conference and the hours were catching up to him. He felt someone sit next to him and he opened his eyes to look over at his brother-in-law.

"Hey," Shane said, talking quietly.

"What's up?"

"I'm bored," Shane shrugged. "There's only so many things you can talk to my dad about."

"So you left Hunter over there to suffer?"

"Yeah, pretty much," Shane chuckled, looking at Hunter and Vince. Vince was catching up on some paperwork and Hunter was doing a crossword puzzle, which Chris found hilarious for some reason. He looked like such an old man with his little pen and paper. "What's up?"

"Sure it's safe to talk to me?" Chris asked.

"Well, dude, considering _I'm_ not married to you, yeah, I think it's safe," Shane told him. "I think it's very plan-like for you to sit in the absolute last seat though, genius.

"Well, I kind of wanted to be alone."

"Oh," Shane said, "well, if you want me to leave…"

"It's fine," Chris said.

"You still pissed about the Randy thing?" Shane said, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Uh, yeah, Rissa's never been in that situation, but think about how you'd feel if she took something like that, then hid it from you for days, using your kids to hide it."

"Well, the kids thing, that's Stephanie and you know it," Shane said, "but I can see where you're coming from, but she _was_ trying to protect you, you know. She knew you'd be angry and she just didn't want you to lose focus."

"I have plenty of focus. She just should've told me," Chris said, "that's not something you keep to yourself."

"You know Stephanie wants to take care of everything herself. I don't know why she wouldn't include me and Dad into her plan more. We have great ideas, you know, the thing yesterday, that was completely our idea and it took a lot out of Randy. There's so much we could've done to him, I don't know why Stephanie has to undertake everything by herself. I mean, first with the show and then with this. It's like she's actively trying to push us out of everything when we have good ideas, sometimes better ideas than she does."

Chris didn't want to get into it with his brother-in-law, but it seems at least some of Stephanie's concerns were well-founded. Stephanie was starting to feel like her brother and her father were trying to take over for her. Stephanie was a one-woman gang. She worked alone most of the time, but she would include people in her plans. He was usually on the ground floor of plans and saw them from start to finish, but she also had plans that were completely her own and he respected that. As long as it didn't hurt their kids or their marriage, he was fine with whatever she wanted to do. She was smart and capable and he trusted her.

Shane and Vince obviously didn't get that, but part of Chris couldn't blame them. They'd been around Stephanie since birth, they knew her as a little girl. He could never see Stephanie as innocent and angelic, it just wasn't _her_, but Vince and Shane had. Shane was a good chunk of years older than her so he'd taken the role of protector from an early age and that's all this was, protection. Unfortunately, the woman they were dealing with here hardly ever needed protection.

Except last Monday, last Monday she'd needed protection and didn't have it.

Did he regret not being there? No, he didn't regret it. He'd been with his kids so it wasn't like he was off clubbing or something while Stephanie needed help. Even if he had been there, how could he have gone out there? Nobody knew about them, everyone thought they hated each other. Sure, he could have covered it under the guise that she was the mother of his children, but would that have been enough? Oh well, what was done was done and there was no changing it now. One day he'd get his hands on Randy and he'd make that bastard pay, one day.

"Yeah, I'm sure you do have good ideas," Chris indulged him. Shane nodded.

"Okay, well, I'll leave you alone," Shane said, getting up and mercifully leaving Chris to take a nap.

Chris fell asleep until the plane landed in New York and he was woken up by Edge shaking his shoulder. He startled himself awake and opened his eyes. Everyone was getting up and stretching and he did the same. They were walking out of the plane when Big Show tripped and fell down the stairs to the tarmac. Chris held in his laughter, but Edge couldn't and guffawed loudly, commenting about how there was an earthquake. Chris rolled his eyes and got in the waiting limo, making sure to take the seat farthest from Hunter.

They arrived at the Hard Rock Café and Chris got out, following the others inside. He groaned when he saw Kelly Kelly, who then saw him and her eyes lit up. There was nobody here to save him now and he'd have to face the onslaught of the blonde alone because Mickie wasn't here. He had forgotten that Kelly and Eve had taken a different flight and were going to be here. If he had to sit next to Kelly, he was going to hit his head against the wall.

"Hey Vince, what's the seating arrangement for this thing?" Chris asked as they stood around waiting to be introduced.

"You're in the very front," Vince told him in a very business-like voice. Now was time for business and not personal relationships. "Here."

Chris took the sheet of paper from him and studied it. He was in the front, to the left of the podium, next to Eve. He was going to be going out first and that was just fine with him. It was also great because he didn't have to sit next to Kelly, of whom he was suspecting the bleach had seeped into her brain and caused her to think that he was actually interested in her. He was not interested in anyone except for his wife, the woman he'd married, loved, blah blah blah. Sure they were "broken up" but give him some mourning time!

"Hey, Chris, I forgot you would be here!" Kelly said brightly.

Chris closed his eyes and he didn't even attempt to put on a civil look, "Well, I'm here."

"That's so cool, are you staying?"

"What do you mean, staying?" he asked. He kind of had a match this Sunday that was kind of a big deal.

"I'm staying until tonight then I'm taking the last flight back to Houston," she explained. "I just thought it'd be cool to stay in the city for as long as I can. I love it here, did you know I have an apartment here."

"Nope, didn't know that."

"I do, it's really nice, you should come see it. I decorated it myself and I think it looks really cool," she told him and was she actually suggesting he come over to her apartment? "I mean, you know, it's nice in Houston, but Houston is nothing like New York, right?"

"Well, considering their locations, no, they're not alike," he said, taking a step away and hoping she would get the point. She didn't as she sidled closer to him. He sighed. Between him and Mickie he was going to have a nervous breakdown. Where was Stephanie with her bitch slap when he needed it? She would absolutely step into Kelly's face and slap the hell out of it. He smirked at the image. When Stephanie got mad like that, she looked so hot.

"You're right, so are you staying?" she asked. "We could go out to dinner or something, as friends of course."

Chris bit his tongue for a second, but it was too much, "I think, _Kelly_, we'd need to _be_ friends in order to go out as friends."

"Oh, well yeah, you're right, but you know, since you and Stephanie broke up, it's like, well, maybe you need some company or something. I just don't think you should have to go through all this alone, plus you have to work with Hunter and Stephanie and well…"

"Well what?"

"You should show them it hasn't affected you!" she told him.

"Kelly, have you ever been married?" he asked, knowing she hadn't.

"No, I haven't, though in the future I want to."

"Then you don't know what it's like to get over a marriage so like, needing company, no, I don't need company. I would just like to deal with this in my own way, that's it," Chris said. "And no, I'm not staying in New York, I've got things to do and I have children that need me, so no, I'm not going to go painting the town red or whatever."

"Okay," she said, "I understand, you're upset."

Chris wanted to throw his hands up in the air. What would it take to get her to understand he just wasn't interested? He was about to say something nasty when Shane came up to him to tell him it was almost time for him to be introduced. Chris looked gratefully at his brother-in-law and Shane gave him a look like he knew exactly why he had come over at that exact moment. Chris stepped away from Kelly, thankfully, and got ready for his press conference, wondering what Stephanie was doing at that exact moment.

Sawyer climbed on the couch next to Stephanie. Flynn was crying because her teeth were growing in and she was uncomfortable. She kept sniffling and then crying in bursts and then looking at Stephanie in agony and then reaching towards Sawyer, who had been playing on the floor with some little handheld electronic word games he had received as an early birthday present from one of Chris's cousins. They had brought a lot of toys this week because they weren't going home and the kids were bound to get restless. Luckily the weather was nice here so they weren't cooped up the entire time, but still, it was a long time away from the comforts of home.

"Baby, quiet," Sawyer told his little sister. She had been crying and crying so he wanted to see if she was okay or if his mommy needed help. He was a very good helper, that's what his mommy was always telling him so he was inclined to believe it.

"You want to hold her?" Stephanie asked.

"No, you howd, I help," Sawyer said, standing against the back of the couch and leaning against it on his side. He rubbed his hand over Flynn's head, her hair downy soft and just the tiniest bit curly. "You okay, Fwynn?"

"She'll be okay."

"What wong, Mommy? She cwying."

"Well, you know how you have teeth?"

"I do, lots," he said, showing them off for her. He bared all his teeth and then did a little growl, getting in Flynn's face. She looked at her brother strangely, then gave a little giggle. She just couldn't be upset when she saw her brother being so silly! How could she not laugh at him when he was making funny faces at her, her very favorite thing in the entire world?

"Well, she has some coming in and it hurts her because she's never had teeth before," she explained.

Sawyer got right in Flynn's face and tried to look into her mouth. He could see a little white, "It huwt me?"

"Yeah, it hurt you too, you cried a lot too," Stephanie told him. "Once they all come in though, they feel better for her, she's just uncomfortable now, that's why she doesn't feel like playing right now, but I bet she will in a while."

"Okay," Sawyer said, "where Daddy?"

"Daddy had that press conference today, remember? He's going to go talk to people about his match on Sunday."

"Daddy win!" Sawyer said, raising his arms up. Chris had been telling him for weeks now that he was going to win the match so he just _knew_ that his daddy was going to win his match because his daddy was the best and he was his favorite. He had seven action figures of his daddy. Flynn liked to chew on it though, that wasn't so nice of her.

"He is going to win," she said. "And what are you going to be doing while Daddy has his match?"

Sawyer pursed his lips, what was he doing again? His mommy had told him what they were going to be doing, but he had forgotten what that was. She had mentioned it, but his mind was drawing a blank right now. "I no know, Mommy, what I do?"

"You're going to watch…"

"Daddy!" Sawyer said. "I see Daddy when he westle."

"I know, I'm jealous, I wish I could be out there to see Daddy when he wrestles. Who are you going to watch Daddy with?"

"Gamma and Gampa," he answered, looking around like they were there right now. "Gamma wif Daddy?"

"No, they're coming here, they'll be here soon actually," Stephanie said. "You're going to spend the day with them while Mommy does some stuff because you're a little kid and you need to do little kid stuff and I think that Grandma and Grandpa are going to take you somewhere fun."

"Where?" he asked.

"I don't know where, but I'm going to guess it's somewhere fun," Stephanie told him. "They should be here in a few minutes, actually any minute now so maybe we better get you ready, huh?"

"Okay, I go weady," Sawyer said, jumping off the couch before Stephanie could tell him not to. He would just go leaping out into the air like a little flying squirrel and Stephanie would always be mid-scream when he landed squarely on his feet and took off running like nothing was the matter. He must have Chris's sense of balance because nothing seemed to phase him and he was scared of nothing. Stephanie stood up and went into the bedroom. Sawyer was already dressed for the day and he was pulling on his shoes at the moment.

They were just some sandals with Velcro, but he was really getting the hang of dressing himself and it really helped her since she had Flynn now. Flynn was still in her pajamas since she wasn't feeling well, but Stephanie wanted to get her dressed for the day. She grabbed some purple overalls and a white t-shirt, putting them on Flynn. She grabbed some sandals and slipped those on her as well, making her a very pretty little girl. Just as she was finishing that up, there was a knock on the suite door. Sawyer took off again and someday that kid was just going to run out of gas.

When she walked to the door, she saw Sawyer trying to reach up and grab it and open it, but the lock was on so he couldn't get it. Stephanie looked through the peephole and saw it was Chris's parents and she opened it for them with a smile. "Hey, Ted, hey Loretta."

"Hello, dear," Loretta said, hugging Stephanie and kissing her cheek. "Where's Chris?"

"New York, press conference so it was just me today," she said. "Thank you so much for taking the kids. I've got so much to do with WrestleMania this weekend and I know the kids are going to get stir-crazy. I'm so glad you could come down early like this. Thank you so much."

"Stephanie, you don't have to thank us," Ted said, "we're glad to do it."

"These are our grandkids," Loretta said, taking Flynn from Stephanie. "Oh, look at my darling, little girl. You've gotten so big since I last saw you."

"You saw them last week."

"She's a growing girl," Loretta said, kissing Flynn's cheek. "Aren't you, sweetheart?"

Flynn smiled a little, but her teeth were still bothering her. Stephanie went and grabbed the diaper bag, then knelt next to Sawyer, "You be good for Grandma and Grandpa today, okay, and make sure you watch out for Flynn, got it?"

"Got it," Sawyer said, then attempted to take the diaper bag from Stephanie. Ted intervened and took it for him and then held Sawyer's hand as Stephanie gave him a big, smacking kiss on the cheek. He returned it with a big, smacking kiss on her cheek. She smiled and stood up and gave the same treatment to Flynn, but she punctuated it with a funny face, which made Flynn squeal with laughter. For some reason, funny faces never failed to crack her up and get a very girly giggle from her.

"Okay, bye you guys," Stephanie said as she watched them walk out the door. "Love you."

She closed the door, now she had work to do.

"I can't believe this."

Trish looked down at her foot, which was now encased in a cast and not one of those soft casts, but an actual hard cast. She had been practicing with Christian for the match on Sunday and she'd landed wrong on her foot and had to be taken to the emergency room. Christian was lounging in a chair next to the examination chamber as the plaster dried on her foot.

"You'll be fine."

"I was looking forward to the match though," she said. "I mean, I do like to wrestle occasionally now. I was going to kick all their asses."

"I know you were," he said, patting her knee. "There can be other matches if you want."

"No, it just would've been fun, you know, wrestling in the same show and everything. I just wanted to do that as a married couple, you know," Trish sighed, "but now look at me. My body is out of conditioning, I've landed that move a million times and I've never broken my foot, now I try it and look at me, cast."

"You'll be fine and you're not out of conditioning, you work out everyday. People get injured, it happens, Trishy," Christian told his wife, who looked bummed out. She had really been looking forward to this match on Sunday and to have to pull out was upsetting to her.

"What is Stephanie going to do now?" Trish asked. "She knew I was going to be in the match, who is she going to find on such short notice?"

"Well, there's always Santino," Christian joked and later on, those words would come back to haunt him.

"Oh yeah, that's a great replacement, you have a guy who wants to be in a girl's match because he know he's so bad he can't beat any of the guys, yeah, that's exactly who I want replacing me," Trish said and her anger was so pressurized that it threatened to make the cast burst right off her body.

"Trishy," Christian said, coming forward and resting his hands on her knees. He bent down a little to meet her eye-to-eye. "It'll be fine, she'll be able to replace you, don't worry."

"Okay, fine, I guess you're right," Trish said as the doctor came in again.

"Okay…Ms. Stratus," the doctor said, checking her file to see the name on it. "We've got you a set of crutches and you should be able to be on your way."

"Thanks," Trish said at the doctor.

"We're going to forward this to your general practitioner and you'll have that foot out of that in about three weeks," he told her.

She was upset by this, but what could she do? She had wanted to go into the match and show that she was better than every other diva on the roster. She could still go, she knew this, because she was still the best. This would've been the perfect opportunity to show her dominance over every diva on the roster. Now she couldn't even be in the match a little bit because this cast was huge. The doctor left after some more words to her and she looked down at the stupid cast on her.

"Hey, babe, think of it this way," Christian said, "you don't have to worry about beating up 25 women when you have a cold."

"It's not really a cold," Trish said. "Just a general feeling of grossness."

"You said you had a sore throat," he pointed out.

"Yeah, but it comes and goes," Trish said.

"So see, you shouldn't have to

**Saturday**

"Mommy, what doing?" Sawyer asked as he sat on his parent's bed. He was sitting cross-legged on the bed watching as Stephanie looked in the mirror in the bathroom, which he could see from the bed. They had been in this hotel an awful long time.

"I'm putting on makeup," Stephanie told him.

"Why?" he asked.

"Because Mommy and Daddy are going to a big thing tonight and we have to look nice," Stephanie answered patiently.

"I go too?" Sawyer asked.

"No, you're not going to go, you're going to stay with Flynn and Grandma and Grandpa."

"Why I not go?" he asked.

"Because you're too little."

"Mommy," he whined, "I not little, I not a baby."

"I know you're not a baby, you're a big boy, but this is going to be lots of talking and it's going to be very boring for you so you're not even going to want to go anyways. It's going to be a lot of old people talking, do you want to see a lot of old people talking?"

"Who talk?" he asked.

"Um, Koko B. Ware, the Von Erichs, Flair is talking, Ricky Steamboat, under normal circumstances, Daddy loves him, Austin, Grandpa Vince is going to talk for him," Stephanie mentioned, knowing most of the names would go over her son's head.

"I watch Gampa talk," Sawyer said eagerly. He didn't mind seeing his grandpa talk.

"I know, but you'll be very bored, you'll have a lot more fun staying here, okay? I'm not even going to have fun because you won't be there so you don't have to worry about it being fun," she told him indulgently. She liked going to this, it was always a nice chance to see everyone and at the after-party it was great seeing some of the older names from her youth. Plus, she wasn't pregnant this year so she could drink if she wanted to, a huge plus.

"I wanna go," he whined.

"No, you don't, trust me."

"Mommy, I do," he told her again. "I be good."

"You're never good," Stephanie reminded him. Sawyer frowned at that. Was his mommy telling him he was a bad boy? He wasn't a bad boy! He was a very good boy if he did say so himself. He helped his mommy a lot and he was a good boy.

"I am, Mommy, no say dat," Sawyer said.

"I'm sorry," Stephanie told him, "you're a very good boy and I'm very glad I had you." That perked Sawyer right up. Stephanie stepped out of the bathroom and held her arms out. "How do I look?"

Sawyer appraised her for a moment, then nodded heartily, "You look good, Mommy."

"Why thank you," she told him, ruffling his hair. She would've kissed him, but she didn't want to get lipstick on his cheek. "I thought I looked good too."

"Hey, Steph!"

"Yeah?" Stephanie called out. Chris had been in the adjoining room getting ready in the other bathroom so he wouldn't bother Stephanie and her primping process.

"Did you look at our tickets?"

"No, why, should I look at them?"

"We're sitting next to each other."

"So the problem…"

"We're kind of on the outs, remember? If you can't remember this plan at all, why do we have to continue it again?" he asked good-naturedly.

"I just didn't think about this ceremony," Stephanie said. "You'll just have to switch your seat with Hunter. That way he and I are coming in together and you can come in whenever you want."

"Whenever I want, you say?"

"You have to be there, don't think you're ducking out of this."

"I wasn't thinking that," Chris said. "When did you get these tickets? You'd think that you would've thought of something like this for your stupid, little plan."

"It's not stupid. Hunter is going to take out Randy tonight and it's going to be wonderful," Stephanie told him. Chris was still in the other room doing God knows what, but Stephanie was sitting on the bed, pulling on her shoes. Sawyer had crawled over to her and was now standing and playing with her hair, running his fingers through it like he was trying to style it.

"I could've done that, you know. I could've kicked his ass."

"Just concentrate on your own match, which you're absolutely going to win," Stephanie said. "Those guys are old and you're in your prime, you've got this in the bag."

"You'd think that," he said, but his voice had the slightest quiver of nerves. It wasn't so much that he thought he was going to lose. He knew, individually, he could beat any of those men in a heartbeat, but the fact remained they would all be there. Then, with Flair at ringside and Rourke in the crowd, the odds became more stacked against him. If it were strictly a one-on-one match, it'd be an easy win (and he deserved one after the monumental WrestleMania losing streak he was on), but he had a feeling he'd get ganged up on.

"Oh, come on, Chris, even if they did gang up on you, you could just run away, which one of them is going to keep up with you, huh?" she said and he loved that she could read him so easily. It made conversations a lot easier, that was for sure.

"Yeah, you're right."

"Of course I am, but changing the subject, what do you really think of my father and Shane horning in on my plan?"

"I don't care about your plan, baby, you know that."

"Well, care for a few minutes, please," she said, then turned to Sawyer, "are you trying to do my hair, baby boy?"

"Yup," he said, continuing to play with it and muss it up a bit. Stephanie didn't care. Sawyer was being quiet and she didn't have to chase after him in her dress so this was an ideal situation for her.

"Look, what do you think they're up to because you obviously think they're up to something," Chris said. "You just want me to think they're up to something as well, right?"

"Well, I'd just like your opinion on it, that's all," Stephanie told him. "I do have my own opinion. I don't know, it's just like, okay, it was mine at first, but now they're horning in on it. And it's fine if they want to input, but it was _my_ plan and now they're trying to take over and it's just…no, _exactly_ like what they were both trying to do with Raw."

"They're just looking out for you."

"No, it goes beyond looking out sometimes. I can handle myself."

"Well, they obviously didn't think that after what happened to you with Randy and I can't really blame them for that," Chris said bitterly. "If I could, I would've been out there with them, if you'd let me."

"I know you would," she said, ignoring what he was really saying. She could hear it in his voice, yes, but she didn't care. Chris wanted no part of her plan anymore so she was not going to worry about what he thought beyond his husbandly thoughts.

"I'd give them a break."

"But it feels like they're taking over and shoving me in the background again," she whined and she sounded a little like Sawyer to Chris's ears.

"I don't think that's what they're doing."

"What if they are?"

"Then what are you going to do, baby? Are you going to turn against them for the millionth time? Are you going to turn against me?"

"I would never turn against you, you're my husband, I love you," she told him.

"I love you too," he quickly added. "But what you're telling me is that you would be willing to turn against your father and brother if you believed that they were actually trying to take over again and take the power away from you."

"It's taken me a long time to get back to being the GM of Raw. I was pregnant with Sawyer and then I was pregnant with Flynn and I couldn't be the GM because I was pregnant, but now I'm not pregnant and I want to be the GM and they're horning in on me again."

"You're overreacting. If you did go against them, who are you going to join? Randy?" There was silence. Then Chris scoffed. "Stephanie, you've got to be kidding me here!"

"Well!"

"Are you crazy!" he said. "You're crazy, my wife is officially insane."

"I could join _you_."

"I work alone, thanks," he joked.

"It's just a thought, I'm not saying I'm going to go throw myself at Randy's mercy right now," she told him. "Are you almost ready?"

"What does it matter to you, we can't go together."

"Oh yeah, I keep forgetting. I guess I'll call Hunter and tell him to come pick me up. We were supposed to go with my family, minus Dad since he's actually part of the ceremony tonight, but I guess now you're going by yourself, will you be able to get a ride?"

"No, Stephanie, there's nobody here who would give me a ride."

"Don't be a smartass."

"I'll hitch with Christian, Trish isn't even going."

"Why not?"

"Because of her foot. She said it's too unwieldy or something like that. I think she's just embarrassed because she got hurt. She's coming to the after party though, does this mean that I have to keep away from you then as well?"

"Yes," she told him. "We can't be seen together, we have an image to keep up."

"Okay, fine," he said. Stephanie got up and started walking to the phone to ring Hunter's room when Chris walked in from the adjoining door. "Wow."

"What?" Stephanie asked, looking up at him staring back at her.

He gave her another once over and he said again, "Wow."

"What?" she asked again, wondering what he was going on about. She looked behind her, wondering if Sawyer had thrown something or was drawing on the wall or something, but he was back to sitting and watching his mommy and daddy.

"You…you look incredible," Chris told her. "How in the hell am I supposed to keep my hands off you tonight?"

"I really don't know," she said coyly, giving him a little twirl.

"Don't do that because that dress is going to come off in two seconds. You look hot, baby."

"You look good too," she told him, but he was always wearing suits so this was nothing new for him. "You really think I look good, I saw the dress and I was like, can I really pull it off and I thought, yeah, I guess I could, but I didn't know if I could, you know."

Chris walked up to her and circled his arms around her waist. He licked his lips and leaned in to kiss her chastely on the neck, "You look so beautiful, how is anyone going to be able to keep their eyes on the stage?"

"Wow, that was cheesy," she told him.

"I can't help it, you bring it out of me," Chris said, kissing her neck some more. Stephanie knew he was going for her neck because he didn't want to wreck her makeup, but he was also going for her neck because he knew that got her going. "You just look amazing tonight."

"So I don't look amazing every night?"

"Well, not like this," he told her, pulling her closer.

"Daddy, stop!" Sawyer said and Chris remembered where he was and pulled away.

"Why do I have to stop?' he asked his son.

"My mommy," Sawyer said sadly, standing up and holding his arms to her. Stephanie picked him up and held him. "I wanna go wif."

"You can't, baby boy," Stephanie said, "but we'll see you in the morning, okay?"

"No," he whined, "pease."

"You'll be very bored."

Chris kissed Sawyer's cheek and then grabbed the hotel phone and rung Hunter's room. He answered with a gruff, "Hello?"

"Hey, you have to come pick up your wife, she's been hanging around my room and really cramping my style. I've been trying to get Katie Lea in bed for _days_."

"Shut up," Stephanie told him.

"Why do I have to come get Stephanie?"

"Geez, am I the only one who thinks of things, which is sad because I'm the one that hates this plan the most, you and Stephanie should be together for the Hall of Fame ceremony, come on, man, keep up."

"Oh yeah, I forgot, where are you going to be?"

"We'll just switch tickets, problem solved, now get your ass up here."

"I'm coming, I'm coming."

Chris hung up, "Your boyfriend is on the way."

"You're not going to get a ride with Katie, are you?" she asked. "I don't think I like the idea of you going out with her because she _doesn't_ know about this plan and if you go together, she might get the wrong idea and think you're actually available."

"I wasn't planning on it, but now that you mention it," Chris said, rubbing his chin. "That's not a bad idea. I mean, I show up with her, you give me that look of jealousy, I think I like that. I think I like that a lot."

"No, you're not."

"Why, you worried?" he teased.

"Why would I be worried?"

"Because you think I would leave you for Katie," Chris laughed, looking at her face, which showed indignation. "You really think I'd leave you for Katie. That's the most hilarious thing I've heard in my life."

"How is that hilarious? You're an attractive man, she's an attractive woman."

"She's not you, please," he said. "Okay, I'm going to go find Christian, are you going to stay here until my parents pick up the monster?"

"Yeah, I'll see you?" she asked.

"You always see me," he said, giving her a kiss.

Chris left through his side of the room and then went downstairs to Christian's room. He knocked on the door and Christian answered, "What's up, man?"

"Can I get a ride to the ceremony?"

"Yeah, sure, you're not going with you-know-who because of the you-know-what?"

"Yeah, at least someone remembers," Chris said, entering the room. "How's my girl doing?"

"She and Trish are just hanging," Christian said. Trish looked up from where she was sitting on the couch, her leg propped up on some pillows. She was holding Flynn over her head and Flynn was trying to reach for her.

"Thanks for taking care of her tonight," Chris said, "my parents are taking Sawyer to some fun dinner place and it's just easier when you don't have a baby."

"It's fine, I'd much rather spend my night with Flynn than spend it alone." Flynn heard her daddy's voice and she craned her neck to look at her daddy and she grinned at him. She started whining and trying to reach for him. Chris came over and took her in his arms.

"Hey, flutterby, you having fun with Trish?" Flynn cuddled in close to her daddy. He kissed her forehead and she gave a soft sigh. He hesitated to give her back to Trish, but he and Christian had to go. He handed her back reluctantly and Flynn had actually grabbed fistfuls of his jacket so she was literally clinging to him and whimpered when she finally let go. Trish held her against her.

"She'll be in good hands."

Britt looked over her dress. She wanted to look nice tonight because she'd be seeing Hunter and she wanted to look good for him. She was wearing a short, black dress, simple, but completely her style. Her hair was partially pulled, but part was still hanging down, creating a casual elegance. Randy came in and saw her and his jaw nearly dropped.

"You look incredible."

"Thanks," she told him with no emotion.

"Hey, before we go, can we talk?"

"What?" she asked, grabbing her clutch. "Are Cody and Ted coming or what?"

"They're getting their own ride," Randy said, "It's just us. I think Ted is going with his dad and Cody with his, you know."

"What about your dad?"

"Couldn't make it," Randy said, "anyways, about what I wanted to talk about…"

"We're leaving soon, yeah?" she asked.

"Yeah," he took a step closer to her and she was suddenly feeling trapped. "Anyways, you've had some time away from Hunter, you know, and you've been staying with me and everything and I really like it. It's like, I never really had a woman living with me, but I like being roommates with you."

"Okay," she said, looking through her clutch to make sure she had everything with her. Lipstick, check, tissues, check, some money, check, protection (if she and Hunter got a little bit of alone time sometime during the evening she wanted to be prepared), check.

"I really like spending time with you."

"That's nice," she said, still not paying attention and thinking of how she'd pull Hunter into a dark, deserted corner and throw him up against the wall. He loved when she was the aggressor because he was so much the aggressor in his regular life.

"You're really just, I think you're just what I've needed."

"Sure," she said. "That's good."

"You think so?"

"Whatever," she said, then she looked up and just as she did, Randy's lips were on her. So stunned was she that she didn't respond for a long moment. In fact, she didn't much respond at all, but Randy was pulling her closer and trying to get her to kiss him and he just held her there, kissing her. In her shock, her mouth had opened slightly and he took full advantage. Should she kiss him back? It'd be part of the plan after all, just part of the plan.

So she kissed him back, pressing her hand against his chest, lightly not too hard. And he kissed her back, but when he started to back her up towards the bedroom, she pulled away. He looked at her, then at the bedroom and then back at her and did he honestly think she would just sleep with him right now? She was disgusted by the thought and pulled away even further. He was panting for breath and she was frantically looking for a mirror so she could check her lipstick.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself," he said. "I mean, with you not with Hunter anymore and me single too, you know, I just couldn't help myself."

"It's fine, let's go," Britt said, checking her lipstick and wiping some of it off her bottom lip. She walked quickly to the door and Randy ran the back of his hand against his mouth as he walked behind her. He smiled, he could feel her kissing back after a short while. She actually kissed him back!

Britt felt disgusted with herself. Yes, it could be part of the plan, but she didn't want Randy kissing her. After everything he'd done with Stephanie and Hunter, she wanted nothing to do with him. Randy was an attractive guy on the outside, but he was so ugly on the inside it seemed to almost seep out of his skin. She felt lecherous and dirty in that moment and longed for nothing more than a hot shower, a _burning_ hot shower where she could scrub herself raw.

Randy tried to take her hand, but she pretended to fix her hair when he got about an inch away from her. She couldn't stand it. She couldn't stand being around him and it was getting to be very hard to just look at him and now he was trying to put his lips on her and she just couldn't stand it. She closed her eyes as the elevator door dinged close and hoped that Hunter could beat Randy tomorrow and be done with it all. She was starting to lose it.

Everyone arrived around the same time and it was a mess of people. Christian and Chris had arrived and Chris saw Stephanie on Hunter's arm ahead of her. Everyone was walking inside and finding their seats. Once they were found they mingled with each other before the ceremony started. Chris gave Stephanie her space so it would look like he didn't want to be around her. He didn't think many people wanted to be around him though. He kept getting dirty looks from various Hall of Famers, which was expected since he'd been talking them down for weeks now.

"I'm going to find my seat, man," Chris said, "I'll catch up with you at the after party."

"Sure," Christian said, "I really hope I'm not near my brother."

"You like your brother."

"He's obsessed with winning, I don't want to be around my brother."

Chris laughed and slapped him on the shoulder, "You and Trish are coming for breakfast tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah, we are, so count on us."

"Great," Chris said, then started to look for his seat. He walked down the aisle and saw he was in the second row and started walking down and then looked up. Instead of sitting next to Stephanie, he was now three seats over from her. "You've got to be kidding me."

Stephanie looked up and at him, "What are you doing here?"

"This is my seat," Chris said, pointing to the seat right next to Marissa.

"What?" she asked, then turned to give a look to Hunter. Hunter shrugged. He didn't know where he'd be sitting and had no clue that it would be so close to Stephanie. "I don't want you sitting here," she said, trying to put on appearances.

"Well, sorry, lady, this is my seat," he said, plopping himself down next to his sister-in-law.

"This is just great," Stephanie huffed.

Chris folded his arms and sat low in his seat. Marissa leaned over, "You two are hilarious."

"Shut up," he said, trying to hold in his laughter. He loved Marissa. She was the only person who knew what he was going through being part of the McMahon family, but not being a McMahon. They related well to each other and he liked her a lot.

"It just looks so fake to me," she told him, settling herself down low in her seat so she could talk to her brother-in-law. "I wonder if it looks that way to everyone."

"I hope not, Stephanie would throw a fit."

"Rissa, don't talk to him, he's an asshole," Stephanie sneered at Chris.

Chris sat up as the ceremony started and he had to admit, he kept glancing over at Stephanie. Occasionally she would uncross and then cross them again and he had to think it was just for his benefit because it was driving him nuts. She just looked so incredible in her dress. He hardly got to see her so dressed up. They had two kids, there weren't many occasions where they could get so dressed up. Last year she'd been pregnant so she'd dressed more conservatively, but tonight, she could wear whatever and she was looking delicious.

When Steamboat came out to talk, Chris gritted his teeth. When he was called out, he stood up and stared the man down. He could feel all eyes on him and he didn't care. He wasn't going to get called out here, tonight, and not take it. Did Steamboat think he would just roll over and laugh and think it coy that he was being told he would lose tomorrow, that he would be beat tomorrow? He wasn't going to sit there and take that.

Stephanie tried to remain neutral when Chris stood up. She tried to keep the smile off her face, but with the corners of her mouth tugging up, she found it hard. She didn't want Chris to look like a loser tonight. People were booing him, yes, but he wasn't sitting there and letting Steamboat roll over him. He was putting up a fight in a way he could. He wasn't trying to upstage the man, but he was sending him a silent warning, telling Steamboat that tomorrow was going to come and it was going to come soon and as heavy as Steamboat's words were now, Chris's fists would be heavier tomorrow.

The after party was in full swing when Hunter got his first glimpse of Britt. She was standing next to Randy looking bored. He was talking with Cody and Ted, which was no surprise. They were holed up in a corner, glancing around every so often, probably on the lookout for anything suspicious. Randy was not looking at Britt, at least not right now. He looked at her every once in a while, Hunter noticed, with a strange expression on his face, like he wanted to make sure she was still there. Britt looked to have an alcoholic drink in her hand and was sipping at it furiously, the level of the liquid going down rapidly.

"Hey, I'll be back," Hunter whispered to Stephanie, who was drinking a mineral water next to him. She needed her head clear for tomorrow so no drinks for her tonight.

"Okay," Stephanie said, keeping an eye out for her own husband. Last year they hadn't gotten to enjoy the evening and this year they weren't getting to enjoy the evening either.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

Stephanie looked over at her best friend, leaning there on her crutches, "Hey, you look good."

"I tried to match the cast," Trish said, flopping her foot around. "What are you doing?"

"Sitting here, looking for Chris," she said quietly. "Where's Christian?"

"Either running away from Edge or talking with Chris," Trish said, hoisting herself onto the stool next to Stephanie. She leaned her crutches against the bar and leaned back against it. "So how are the plans for WrestleMania going?"

"I wouldn't know," Stephanie said, "I mean, I do, of course, but if you ask my brother and my father, it's all about them."

"So you're mad at them again?"

"I don't know, I don't know what I am," Stephanie said. "I just know something doesn't feel right about any of this, I don't feel like anything is right. I guess I just don't feel good."

"Like physically?"

"Well, I've been tired, but it's WrestleMania week, I'm always tired. I don't know, though, I just feel like my father and my brother are using this as an opportunity to take over again. I'm competent, right, I mean, you see me, you don't think I'm an incompetent idiot, right?"

"I've never thought that, no," Trish told her.

"I feel like that's how they think of me," she shrugged. "How's your foot?"

"It's fine, I'm really sorry I had to pull out of the match tomorrow."

"It's not your fault, you wanted to go and I appreciate it, I've got someone lined up, so don't worry about it," Stephanie told her. "I think I've caught your bug or whatever it was though. I did have a sore throat yesterday, but it's gone today."

"Good, you don't want to be sick for WrestleMania of all things," Trish said.

Stephanie answered, "God, that would be the worst."

Except the worst was right in front of her eyes. Chris had been talking with Edge and Christian when Mickie James had come up to him and put her hand on his shoulder. He'd looked at her and said something, but she was tugging on his hand and trying to pull him away, talking to him and being flirtatious. Stephanie could hear Trish say something, but Stephanie was leaning forward and her hand was setting her drink down at the bar. She looked at what Mickie was doing and she felt herself standing up and then Trish's hand brought her back to reality.

"Stephanie, you can't," Trish said, being the voice of reason here.

Stephanie took a deep breath, but kept watching.

Meanwhile, Hunter was looking for the perfect opportunity to whisk Britt away. Randy was still right there. He'd been waiting for at least seven minutes. He was just about to give up when Britt told Randy something, pointing at her drink and then started to walk away. Hunter was in the crowd like lightning and he grabbed Britt's petite hand in his massive one and started pulling her towards the bathrooms. There was a little alcove there with an old-fashioned phone booth they could sneak into and close the door. He pulled her and she almost didn't know what to do so she just followed. He shoved her in the phone booth and then closed it. He was so big that he covered her completely and he looked like he was in there alone.

"Hey," he whispered huskily.

"You scared the crap out of me," she told him, her breath heaving. She'd been so surprised and he'd pretty much dragged her in here.

"You look so hot," he told her, kissing her on the forehead before going down and leaning in to kiss her mouth. Britt felt terrible guilt rise up in her and she pulled away a little and he looked at her in confusion, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, I just want to see you and talk to you," she lied. "I missed you."

"I missed you too," he told her, giving her a hug or as much of a hug as he could give her in the confined quarters. "You look great."

"Thanks, I wanted to look nice for you," she told him, brushing her hand against his face. "I…you look really hot too."

"Glad you noticed," he said, leaning down to kiss her, but she pulled away again.

"We're going to get caught," she told him.

"We're not," he told her, smirking, "nobody even knows we're here and it's secluded and Randy is probably still hanging around with his little boys. We've got time."

"Yeah, but he'll notice and we could blow everything," Britt said, trying to duck under Hunter's arm. She wasn't feeling comfortable right now.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

"No, nothing's wrong," she said quickly, maybe too quickly.

He looked at her, "You sure?"

"I'm positive," she said, "I just don't feel comfortable doing this here, you know, with everyone and well, maybe if I can sneak out tonight or something."

"Yeah, okay," he said, but he wasn't convinced. Britt kissed him briefly and then ducked under his arm and snuck out of the phone booth. Hunter looked at her go and wondered what was really wrong with her. He knew her and he could tell that something was wrong, but he couldn't put his nose on it.

"Come on, Chris, dance with me!"

She must've been intoxicated was all that was going through Chris's mind. He couldn't get one second to himself. He wondered if Mickie and Kelly argued about who would get him when he wasn't around. He hadn't had girls fight over him like this since he was in his mid-20's. In a very small way it was flattering, but in a very big way, it was also annoying because he couldn't stand either of those two. Mickie kept tugging at him insistently.

"Come on," she kept saying.

"I'm talking," he responded pointedly, hoping she'd get the message.

"Just one dance, please," she slurred.

Chris had had the misfortune of seeing the youtube video of Mickie on the _Jenny Jones Show_ so his opinion of her had been marred for a while now. There was just something about Mickie that rubbed him the wrong way. It was like she tried to be all perky, but deep down, she was kind of crazy. He didn't want to dance with crazy.

"No, thanks."

She would not let go of him, going so far as to wrap her entire arm around Chris's arm. Stephanie was fuming over this. If Trish looked closely, she could see smoke coming out of Stephanie's ears. Her breath was coming quick and Trish was about to pull her back again when Stephanie broke free from her grasp and stalked up to Mickie and Chris, shoving Mickie away from her husband.

"What the hell do you think you're doing!" Stephanie screamed, causing most everyone to look over in their direction.

"Stephanie," Chris said warningly. Hunter had just come back and was trying to see what everyone was looking at. He pushed his way to the front and saw Stephanie standing in front of Chris, glaring down at Mickie James and if her looks could imitate lightning, Mickie would be a pile of pure ash.

"What is your problem?" Mickie asked.

"Stay away from my husband is what's the matter!" Stephanie said and in that moment, there was no plan, there was just a woman who had touched her husband way too many times. Stephanie scanned the crowd and found Kelly Kelly and pointed at her, "And you too, yeah, I'm looking at you, you slut! You keep your hands off him too!"

Chris closed his eyes. God, but he loved this woman, but this was neither the time nor the place and Randy was looking at them suspiciously so they had to act. "You have no right to barge into my business, Stephanie."

Stephanie turned to him, her eyes flashing. She was so angry she didn't know what he meant, but she saw his eyes widen and she looked around at all the faces and realized she had blown her own plan unless she thought quickly. "It is my business."

"No, it's not, the moment you let…_him_," Chris pointed at Hunter, whom he'd seen out of the corner of his eye, "into your life, I'm out of it. I'm not going to play second best to Hunter, not ever so take yourself and get out of my sight. What I do with my life is now none of your business. The minute you spread your legs for him was the minute you forfeited that."

"Well if you were a better husband, I wouldn't have had to," she said, trying to get into her character now. It was very hard because many thoughts of slapping Mickie until her cheeks were red were going through her mind at the moment and she wanted to haul her hand back and slap the hell out of her.

"I was the best damn husband you could ask for," Chris told her and they had drawn a crowd and everyone was watching. Their eyes were flaring and everyone felt like they were seeing the end of a relationship.

"No you weren't, no you weren't! You were horrible to me, always leaving me behind. I needed more from you, Chris. Yes, you can pretend to be my husband at the shows, put on the façade, but I was unhappy, of course I'd go running to someone who loves me, who loves my children."

"They're _my_ children too and if I ever hear you refer to them as his children, I will make sure you don't ever see them. And as for you calling anyone a slut, maybe you should look in the damn mirror first before calling names."

"I hate you!" Stephanie said, slapping him hard across the face. Chris's head slapped to the side. She really actually hit him. Damn, that was hot. "I hate you and I hope I never have to be in your presence again and I wish _my_ kids were Hunter's because he would be a better father than you ever could be!"

Chris looked aghast at her and he looked like he was going to smack her across the face, that was how mad he looked. If you knew them though, as Christian, Trish, Hunter, Britt, Shane, and Marissa did, they looked like they were going to go at it like rabbits in about…oh, two seconds. They had this fiery passion about them, even when they were fighting. Stephanie looked him in the eye and she stood toe-to-toe with him until Hunter came up and wrapped his arm around her waist, "Come on, Stephanie, let's go."

"I hate you," she spat again at Chris before Hunter led her through the crowd and out the door.

"Holy…what _was_ that?" Hunter asked. That was the display to end all displays right there.

"Mickie had her hands all over him, I couldn't stand it, I messed up, I couldn't…I could kick her ass right now, then Kelly's, that stupid, blonde, I'd love to rip that hair right from her head," Stephanie got a glazed over look in her eyes.

"Okay, I'm taking you back to the hotel and putting Sawyer right in your arms to calm you down."

"But Chris…"

"Chris will handle himself."

Chris stood there, everyone watching him, some sympathetic, some not so sympathetic. He turned to the crowd, "What the hell are you all looking at? Mind your own damn business!"

Christian and Trish came up to him and looked at him curiously. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, I think I just need to take a cab back to the hotel," he said. "I just don't want to be here anymore." In actuality, he wanted to rip that dress right off Stephanie. That had been the hottest thing he'd ever seen. When she called out Kelly Kelly like that, he had wanted to disrobe her right then and there.

"You sure?" Christian asked.

"I'm sure, thanks though," he said, pushing through the crowd and going outside. Stephanie and Hunter were already gone and Chris asked the valet to get him a cab. He was standing there waiting when the door open and Katie stepped out. He looked over at her and smiled, "Hey, Katie."

"Oh, Chris, I didn't expect you to still be here after…what happened," she said.

"Oh, I'm leaving, what about you?"

"I needed some air, it was stifling in there," she said, standing next to him. "I'm sorry you were so embarrassed in there. I can't believe your wife…ex…would do that to you, act like you were still hers. It was quite embarrassing, don't you think?"

"Yeah, I don't know what got into her."

"Yes, that it quite the shameful display after what she's put you through," Katie told him. "How are you?"

"I'm fine, don't worry about me," Chris told her. "Thanks for asking though."

"I admit, part of me wanted to follow you out here to see how you were doing. I know we're not friends, but I've taken a liking to you, I mean, I've taken an interest in you because I think that people misunderstand your intentions with things. Plus, your little boy is the most adorable, little thing I've ever seen, I think."

"He'd love to hear that," Chris laughed, Sawyer loved the praise.

"I'll be sure to tell him, is he here?"

"Yeah, he's here, he's with my parents right now," Chris said, "he's going to watch WrestleMania from the crowd. I'll tell him to root for you."

"Oh, lovely, I think he'll be the only one," Katie said, "I've got the feeling there are other divas that people want to win."

"I'll root for you," he told her. "As long as you'll root for me."

"Oh, I was already planning on it."

"Good, and I like to think we could be friends," he told her.

"Well, lovely, nobody can ever have too many friends," she told him as a cab pulled up. "Is that for you?"

"Yeah, it is," he said, "I'll see you tomorrow, Katie."

"Goodnight, Chris," she told him and waved as he got in the cab. Chris waved back.

He had a date with his wife.

**Sunday**

Stephanie sighed in Chris's arms. Last night had been so good. As soon as Chris walked in the door he was all over her. "So is this our new tradition?" he asked sleepily.

"What's that?" she asked, running her hand across his stomach. Flynn would be up soon, but they were taking advantage of the few quiet moments they were afforded.

"Sex the night before WrestleMania."

"I don't know, there's just something about the show that makes me want you," she told him, kissing his shoulder. "In fact, why don't we make the morning _of_ WrestleMania a tradition as well?"

Chris growled as he pulled her on top of him. She laughed and kissed him. "I can't believe what you did last night."

"She was all over you and then Kelly with her, 'I have an apartment here, want to come see how I decorated it,'" Stephanie repeated mockingly, "who the hell do they think they are? And I am, did you see how Mickie talked to me last night? I swear, I was about to rip her one."

"Good thing you didn't, that would've blown your little plan and I would've ended up facing Randy tonight because _I'm_ actually your husband and I'm not sure the fans are ready for _that_ kind of swerve."

"I'll tell you what I can swerve," she said suggestively.

"Wow, why can't it be WrestleMania every day?" he asked, flipping them over so he was hovering over her. "And I think I need to come up with a plan where women are hanging off me at all times or at least all times where you can see me."

"I was just mad," she told, pulling him down on top of her. They were making out when from the door in Chris's room, where Sawyer and Flynn were sleeping, a rapping noise started. "That's for you."

"If it's Mickie or Kelly, can you beat them up?"

"Consider it done," she said, pushing on his chest. Chris hopped out of bed and grabbed some boxers, slipping them on and going to the adjoining door. He closed Stephanie's door and then his door to conceal the fact they were together.

He opened the door and saw Randy on the other side, "Hey, man. Look, can we talk?"

"I don't think we have anything to discuss."

"Look, I saw what happened last night and it was awesome. You seriously put Stephanie in her place, now everyone thinks she's a slut. It's great," Randy said.

"Yeah, thanks," Chris said, "now what do you want, my kids are still sleeping."

"Oh sorry, I just wanted to know if maybe…if Stephanie were to interfere tonight, you could come out and restrain her or, you know, take her out, I see you don't have a problem with that now. I know you were pissed about what happened with her and me, so maybe if you're in control…"

Chris looked at him. He wanted him to take out Stephanie if she interfered tonight? "Did nothing I said on Monday get through to you?"

"What are you talking about?" Randy asked. "I thought you'd like this arrangement."

"My…" Well, if Stephanie did…he could convince her to…"You know what Randy, sure, if Stephanie interferes, I'll take her out, just for you, okay?"

"Awesome," Randy said, extending his hand. Chris did not shake it. "I just want to have all my bases covered. I know she's still your kids' mother so I thought you should be the one to take care of her."

"Oh, I'll take care of her alright," Chris said.

"Good, thanks, man, thanks a lot," Randy said, "I'm going to kick Hunter's ass, don't worry? I'm going to be the champion and hey, maybe we can tag against him or something, maybe a handicap."

"Yeah, maybe," Chris said.

"Okay, well, I wanted to get a workout in this morning so I'll see you, thanks again."

"No, Randy, thank _you_," Chris said. Chris slammed the door shut, then turned and hoped he hadn't waken up the kids, but they were both still soundly sleeping. He went back into the other room and climbed in bed. Stephanie started to kiss his chest, but he was thinking.

"Who was that?" she asked.

"Randy."

Stephanie lifted her head. "What did he want?"

"He said if you were to interfere, he wants me to take you out."

"What?"

"He wants me on his side, can you believe that?"

"Wow, interesting," she said. "I think he just wants you out there, regardless if I'm out there. He's nervous. But you're not going to show because you're on my side, right?"

"Well, maybe, depends on how well Hunter is doing out there."

"I think I know a way to change your mind," Stephanie said, starting to kiss Chris.

Sawyer had just left his mommy backstage and he was walking out into this huge place. Flynn was sucking on a pacifier in their grandpa's arms and she was looking around in utter fascination. She'd never seen anything like this before and it blew her mind away. It was so big and she had never seen anything like this before. There was a flash and she looked over and saw her grandma taking a picture of her. She pointed her finger towards the camera as Sawyer raced ahead a few feet.

"Ted, tell him to come back here," Loretta said.

"Sawyer, come here," Ted called out to the boy.

Sawyer was too busy taking everything in. There were lots of people streaming in and the stage was so big and bright and it was definitely going to be a huge party tonight. He could see the ring and everything. It was so cool. It was really the first year that Sawyer was truly cognizant enough to know what was going on. He knew this was a big deal and he knew his daddy had a match and so did Christian and so did Hunter and it was going to be a great time and Flynn was here too! He was so excited.

After taking another picture, Loretta took Sawyer's hand and led them to their seats. They were in the third row at ringside. They were close enough to see everything, but far enough away that Sawyer wouldn't interfere with the match. If he were in the front row, the little boy could probably climb over the barrier and try to help his daddy. They sat down and Sawyer stood on his seat, trying to get a better look as everyone filled the place up. Flynn was looking around in wonder as her grandma put some earmuffs on her so the noise wouldn't bother her so much. She did not like this headgear and tried to pull it off, but her hands were constantly grabbed and taken away.

Sawyer was completely in awe when the show started and then started clapping and cheering along with everyone. The first match began and he saw Christian coming down and his jaw dropped and he clapped on his grandpa's shoulders. "Chissy, Gamps, that Chissy!"

"I know," Ted said good-naturedly as he held Sawyer as Christian came out.

Christian walked down the long ramp, looking out at the crowd and relishing in it. TNA had nothing on WrestleMania. There was just an atmosphere to the show. He looked to his left and saw Sawyer and winked at him and smiled and Sawyer waved at him. Flynn didn't recognize him but that was to be expected. Christian climbed in the ring and prepared for the match of his life.

"I'm so nervous for him," Trish said backstage as she sat with Stephanie. "I hope he'll be okay, I hope he wins."

"I hope so too," Stephanie said as the match began in earnest. "I hope Sawyer's having fun."

Sawyer loved seeing his friend wrestle. Christian was doing really well. He had grabbed a ladder with another guy and they were bashing people's heads in. That looked so cool, but he didn't think his mommy would let him bash anyone's head in like that. He probably couldn't even pick up the ladder anyways. That was too bad because it looked fun. All the guys were using ladders and climbing them and one guy had jumped onto a whole crowd of other guys and people were yelling words he didn't know. He'd have to ask his mommy what shit meant later because an awful lot of people were chanting it.

"Gamps, what doing?" he asked when they were climbing.

"You see that briefcase at the top of the ladder there?" he said, pointing it out.

"Uh huh, I see it, it bwack," Sawyer told him. He knew his colors.

"Yes, well, they're all trying to grab it because if they do they can go after the title."

"Oh, okay," Sawyer said. They just wanted to grab that, that's all his grandpa had to tell him. "It high, Gamps, Daddy do dat befow."

"He did that?"

"Yeah," Sawyer said. He remembered his daddy had climbed something and it was cool.

"He's very good, huh?"

"Yes, vewy good. Go Chissy!" Sawyer said when he saw Christian climbing the ladder. "He do it!"

Christian was climbing the ladder. He could see it. He could see the case in his hands, then the title, he could see the title in his hands. He just needed to take it down, but Shelton was there. Shelton wanted it too, but Christian had to have it first, it meant so much. He'd never been the World or WWE Champion and he wanted the chance. He wanted the chance to go for it. He'd gotten so much over the last year. He'd come back here and he'd married the love of his life. This could complete it, if he could just get it.

Unfortunately, the momentum knocked them over, but Christian maintained his balance and tried to put the ladder back up so he could get it. He managed to, but Kane chokeslammed him and he was done for. He heard Punk's music going off and he closed his eyes. Damn it, he had been so close. He could feel it, he could see it in his eyes, he could almost hear his music in his ears as he celebrated, but it wasn't to be so he laid there a moment and wished it was him. When he went backstage, there was Trish on her crutches with her pink cast and he embraced her and she kissed him and he'd be okay because in the past year, he'd gotten Trish and that meant more than a title.

"We'll get that belt," she told him with conviction. "You will be champion."

And he believed her.

"Chissy no win," Sawyer said sadly, pouting. Out next were all the girls, but he didn't really know any of them except Katie, who he liked. He didn't understand Santina as a woman or anything so this match was very boring for him and he just leaned back against his grandpa and ate some of the cereal they had brought for him in Flynn's diaper bag. He wondered when his daddy was getting out there.

Stephanie looked at Chris as he warmed up for his match. He was jumping in place, trying not to look at the legends. She wanted to wish him good luck, but she couldn't. He glanced over at her more than once and she managed to mouth a good luck to him. He nodded a little, but kept it imperceptible as a bevy of divas came backstage after being eliminated in the diva match. Katie saw him and walked over.

"Hey, sorry you didn't win," Chris said.

"Oh well, you win, you lose, it happens," Katie said, "I just wanted to wish you good luck and I do hope you win."

"Thanks, but I will," he said determinedly.

"I have little doubt," she told him, smiling at him and walking away. "Oh, and I saw your little boy out there, he was adorable."

"Thanks," Chris said and he turned back and caught Stephanie's eye and she pretended to gag and he rolled his eyes at her. He was loose and ready to go.

Sawyer clapped his hands when they showed clips of his daddy. His daddy was coming! His daddy was coming! Then Chris's music started and Sawyer was practically climbing all over his grandpa because his daddy was coming and he wanted to see his daddy very much! Ted stood up like everyone else and held Sawyer aloft so he could see. Flynn could see that Sawyer was very excited, but she didn't know about what. This was all just so overwhelming for her and her grandma kept taking pictures of her face.

Chris came down to the ring looking very determined. He saw Sawyer and Flynn out of the corner of his eye and tried to maintain his intensity. Flynn saw him and she smiled around her pacifier, squirming in her grandma's arms because she thought her daddy was coming to get her and she wanted to go with him. She started to whimper a little as he didn't come even close to her and she looked at Sawyer to fix this, but he was clapping and he looked happy. How could he be happy when Daddy was ignoring them?

"Daddy!" Sawyer yelled, but his little voice was drowned out by the tens of thousands around him. Chris looked at Sawyer and Sawyer waved excitedly. That was his daddy!

He was enraptured while Chris fought. While Chris didn't care about these legends, he cared about winning. It had been too long since a WrestleMania win and it was time to start his winning ways again. He also wanted to win because his son was in the audience, probably cheering him on and he wanted to put on the best show for him. He was going to win this match if it was the last thing he did.

"That Daddy," Sawyer said in awe as Chris took on Piper. "He win."

"He hasn't won yet," Ted whispered.

"Oh," Sawyer said, screwing his face up as those other guys beat up his daddy. "I help him! I help him!"

Ted laughed and hugged his grandson. "He doesn't need your help right now, but you know when he will need your help?"

"When?" Sawyer asked.

"After the show because then he could probably use a really big hug from you and that would be a really big help."

"Okay, I see af'er show," Sawyer said. "I give hug and Fwynn too."

"Good, he'll like that."

Chris was fighting for survival against these three guys. He had to get three pins while they only had to get one. He fought hard and before long, he'd eliminated Jimmy Snuka. One down, two to go. He was surprised Flair hadn't gotten involved. It seemed Piper was the one with the more ire, but Steamboat was the one with the most skill. Chris had to admit, it was really kind of cool fighting against one of his idols. He'd really looked up to Steamboat when he was younger and fighting against him was pretty awesome, if he were to have a fan moment. But this was no time for that and he was not a fan. He was a guy who had to win.

Piper was out next and Chris just had Steamboat to deal with. He was surprised because Steamboat looked good out here and he hadn't expected it. The crowd was pretty much not behind him, but he had two fans, one nearly three and the other eight months young who loved him and cared about him and every once in a while, he'd get a glimpse of Sawyer, who was clapping and cheering for him or else talking to Chris's dad and being very animated. Flynn, ever the cool, little girl, was watching him, but looked more peeved that he hadn't come over and even given her a hug or a kiss.

He drew his strength from them and got the upper-hand on Steamboat. He tried for a Lionsault, but failed (Stephanie would tell him about that later), then Steamboat got him, but only for a 2 count. Chris tried for the Walls, but it was countered. Finally, he got the Codebreaker and the 1-2-3 and his WrestleMania losing streak was broken. He celebrated his win, but seems Flair couldn't take the realization that Chris was right and had always been right. Seems once again he was the honest man.

Flair knocked him down and tried to get his licks, but Chris was better than he was and got the Codebreaker. He motioned for the microphone once Flair was disposed of. He looked at Sawyer, who looked so happy because he knew his daddy has won. Chris talked about how he was the best in the world and how he'd done what he set out to do. Maybe in hindsight he wouldn't have called out Mickey Rourke, but what choice did he have? The man insulted him.

Sawyer watched as his daddy and some other man went at it in the ring with punches. His daddy wasn't landing anything and then suddenly his daddy was hit and he didn't like that much. "Who dat, Gampa?"

"That's Mickey Rourke."

"I no like, I beat," Sawyer said, stomping on his grandpa's thighs. "I a wion, I beat."

Sawyer growled at the guy as he walked past, but then his daddy was walking past and looking and he waved at him and Chris smiled. He walked backstage and there was Stephanie and God, he wanted to talk to her, but he couldn't. She smiled at him, but he was forced to walk past. Stephanie waited a few minutes and then followed to Chris's locker room. Everyone was so into what they were doing, nobody noticed her slip inside. She jumped Chris and started making out with him.

"You won, I'm so proud, did you see the monster and the other one?" she asked.

"Yeah, they did, I think Sawyer was having fun, but that ending, with Rourke?"

"Who cares, you won!" she said, then quieted down. "You know what I do with winners?"

"What do you do, McMahon?"

"I reward them," she said, pushing him down to the couch.

"I really hope this isn't the way you're going to reward Hunter if he wins," Chris said, looking up at her.

"No, only Taker," she said as she leaned down to kiss him.

By the time of the last match, Sawyer was going on his last legs. He was tired and didn't see anyone he liked and was leaning against his grandpa. Flynn was now wide awake, still watching. She'd dozed during the Hardys' match and the Intercontinental match and now she was back. The earmuffs really must've blocked out all the sound. Sawyer was pretty tired until he saw Hunter and he smiled.

"Dat Twip," he said with a sigh. He sat up a little to watch this match because he liked Hunter, he was a good friend.

Hunter went into this match for Stephanie. She'd wished him luck, but he didn't need it. Stephanie was his friend and he loved her and he was going to kick Randy's ass for her. The match started and he fought with an intensity he hadn't in a very long time. He tried to channel his anger for this man into his match. It was actually pretty easy to do once he got the hang of it. He was surprised Stephanie didn't interfere in the match, but she must be preoccupied with other things like working and she probably didn't want another DDT or else Chris would come out here and take over the beating for Randy Orton himself and that'd be way against the plan.

He could picture Chris backstage, pacing or something, fists clenched. He tried to use Chris's obvious anger to fuel his own. At one point, Randy tried to punt him in the head, but Hunter caught it and dumped him over the top rope. He wasn't going to get his head bashed in. Not tonight. He also wanted to keep his title so he fought hard for that as well. There were a lot of things he was fighting for. When this was all over, he could grab Britt, bring her home and make love to her until the sun rose. That was a nice thought so he wanted to get this over with as soon as possible.

His perfect opportunity came when the referee went down. Orton helped him out when he brought out the sledgehammer. Hunter got a hold of it and used it on Orton. The referee didn't see it so it was legal and Hunter got Randy good and then got the Pedigree and then kept his belt. He celebrated while Randy went backstage. By the time he got backstage, Sawyer and Flynn were there, Sawyer asleep in Stephanie's arms.

"So Randy," Hunter said as Randy walked away. "You learned your lesson?"

"No, I haven't," Randy said, turning to him and there was fire in the room right now. "You may have Stephanie and that's all well and good, I heard she's looser than a fat man's pair of pants, but you know what I have?'

"Nothing?" Hunter said.

Randy came up to him and Hunter got defensive, but Randy just leaned into his ear.

"I've had Britt…and she's that…damn…good."


	230. It Was Her Show, April 6, 2009

A/N: Sorry this wasn't up sooner, real life stuff. Anyways, the next chapter will be up hopefully Wednesday morning. I have a lot to write about. I know Chris is on SD now, which I'm not happy about, but whatever, WWE screws us again. I really wanted an epic H/Chris feud, I'm so craving one of those.

As for updating, it'll remain the same, I'll just condense the previous SD into the Raw chapter so you'll get both shows in one chapter on the normal day. Hope you like this chapter, I kind of struggled with it, but I hope it's okay. Reviews are seriously appreciated, please leave them, even just a small one is awesome, thanks. :)

* * *

"Do you think she slept with him?"

"I don't think so," Chris said as he watched one of his best friends pace back and forth in front of him. He was getting really tired of people pacing in front of him, it was giving him a crick in his neck.

"Why did you say you didn't _think_ so, why did you say think?" Hunter asked. "Is that because you believe they really did and you just don't want to say it?"

"I didn't say that."

"Were you thinking it? Was he thinking it?" Hunter said, turning to face Stephanie. She looked at Hunter and shrugged as she spooned some more applesauce into Flynn's waiting mouth. When Stephanie wasn't quick enough with her feeding, she started babbling at her mommy and Stephanie turned back to her, giving her another spoonful to smack on as Sawyer at the grilled chicken Stephanie had cut up for him.

"I don't know what he's thinking, we may be married, but I can't look inside his brain," Stephanie told her ex-husband.

"What do you think?" Hunter asked, turning his attention to her. Chris gave a silent laugh that the questioning that gone back around to Stephanie. "Do you think that they actually slept together? I mean, he said he had her, that's what he said, he said he had her, what do you think that means?"

Stephanie looked at Hunter. He was obviously in turmoil. After the show last night, he'd been in such a daze, one like she had never seen before. Even after the bombshell about her fake pregnancy had been dropped, he hadn't been this dazed. She'd had to drive back to the hotel and she'd invited him up to her room and he'd accepted and ended up sleeping on the couch. Chris was quite surprised when he'd walked into the room only to see Hunter lying on the couch in his boxers staring up at the ceiling. That had been an awkward conversation. Stephanie had heard it all.

_Chris just wanted to get some balm he had in his bag. His elbow was pretty roughed up and he wanted to put some ointment on it so it would ease the achiness. Stephanie was seemingly asleep when he got back. He'd gone out for a drink with Christian and Trish (with Stephanie's permission). Stephanie hadn't actually been asleep, but she was trying to get to sleep. Chris walked out into the sitting area and saw a dark lump on the couch._

"_What the hell?" Chris gasped, scared that there might be an intruder, but why would an intruder be on his couch?_

"_She won't answer her phone."_

_Chris recognized the voice, "What are you talking about?"_

"_Britt, she won't answer her phone," Hunter responded. "I've been trying to call her for hours now and she's not answering."_

"_I saw her with Maria and…God, who was that?"_

"_Randy, was it Randy?" Hunter said dully._

"_No, it was another diva, I can't remember their names," Chris said. "If I knew you wanted to talk to her, I would've told her to call you. She looked pretty unhappy being there as it was so I think they dragged her and--"_

"_I think she slept with Randy," Hunter cut him off._

_Chris stared at this dark mass. His eyes were adjusting to the light and the moon shining in helped. Hunter was lying in his boxers, which was weird, but it shouldn't feel weird since Hunter wrestled in briefs, but boxers was weird. He looked to his bedroom and then to the couch and back to his bedroom._

"_Does Stephanie know you're here?"_

"_She said I could stay."_

_Well there went any plans he might have had for him and Stephanie, "Oh, um, and she knows your…dressing situation?"_

"_She's seen me naked, so what?" _

"_Well I haven't, so let's keep it that way, shall we?"_

"_You're trying to take my mind off of what I just said."_

"_I just think it's preposterous is all. Last I checked, Britt was very much in love with _you_, which makes me feel better about the fact that people think you're doing my wife. You being in here in your boxers with my wife, who appears to be in a pretty skimpy tank top and no pants, in the next room doesn't make me feel quite at ease. So I'm going to think that Britt is totally in love with you."_

"_Probably not."_

"_Um, why do you think this in the first place?"_

"_Randy said he'd had a piece of her, he said she was good. He just…he said…"_

"_And you believe him? This is the guy who's been trying to get under your skin. Dude, he's been trying to get under _my_ skin. I'm about two seconds away from breaking his face. What makes you think that he wasn't joking?"_

"_You've got a point," he said. He hadn't thought about that._

"_Dude, just forget about it and get to sleep…you can stay if you want. Actually, you can stay in the other bedroom if you want, I'd feel uncomfortable touching my wife with you in the vicinity."_

"_What about Sawyer?"_

"_He can sleep with me and Stephanie, it's not a big deal. And we can push Flynn's crib in our room too so she doesn't bug you. I mean, she sleeps through the night, but you might not like her breathing or something."_

"_I don't want to impose," Hunter said._

"_You're lying on the couch in your boxers, consider yourself already imposing, come on," Chris said, nodding his head towards the bedroom._

_They walked through the bedroom and Hunter tried to raise his spirits, thinking about how Chris was probably right and Randy was just trying to get to him. She wouldn't cheat on him, she loved him. She told him enough. But then…at the Hall of Fame party, she hadn't wanted to make out with him, she really hadn't wanted to do anything with him. Maybe she had slept with Randy earlier and that's why she didn't want to talk to him. No, no, no, he didn't want to think of that now._

"_Nice broad you got there," Hunter said, gesturing to Stephanie, who was facing the other way and seemingly sleeping._

"_Stop staring at my wife," Chris said as he led Hunter into the other room, ready to gather up his little boy as Hunter pushed the crib into the other room. "Don't worry, I'm sure Britt will get back to you soon."_

"Well?" Hunter asked.

"I don't know," Stephanie said. "How am I supposed to know? I'm not with her, but I don't think she would."

"Then why isn't she answering her phone? Why won't she return any of my calls, I've left her like fifteen messages?"

"What if Randy's hanging around her and she can't?" Stephanie said. "Did you think of that?"

"Well…no, I guess that makes sense."

"See," Stephanie said. "I'm sure you're just overreacting, nothing to worry about at all.

Meanwhile, Trish was trying to work the kinks out of Christian's shoulders. He was incredibly sore from his match the night before. Nothing could ever prepare you for ladder matches. Trish ran her hands up and down his back and he was so thankful he had her at this moment. He loved her and everything, but there was just no substitute for having someone who was willing to give you a massage when you really needed it.

"You know, I'm glad I wasn't in the match yesterday," Trish said. "If Santino was going to win, I'm just glad that I wasn't in it. I mean, I could've won, but if I hadn't and I had been in the match and he'd won, I'd be so embarrassed. I'm glad I had nothing to do with the match."

"So if you couldn't win, you wouldn't want to be in it."

"That's right. Did you see how it was anyways? I could wrestle circles around any of them. I'm ashamed at their ineptitude."

"Does this have anything with you and Stephanie going all girl-bashing on them after what happened on Saturday? I noticed you two were gossiping pretty harshly about the divas, a lot of it really kind of mean."

"It's not like we're spreading rumors, we were just talking and don't eavesdrop. You have a big mouth."

"I do not," Christian said. "I think you would've won if you'd been in it. Who could possibly stop you? Even Santino wouldn't have been able to contain you, you just would've gone crazy on his ass and you'd be Miss WrestleMania."

"Unfortunately, my leg said otherwise," Trish sighed. "Plus, I'm still not feeling well and how much would it suck if I wrestled with a cold? I wouldn't have been at the top of my game and I definitely wouldn't win and losing to that man…there are just no words for how wrong that would be. I'm the best diva."

"Wow, cocky much?"

"I'm just saying is all," Trish said, coughing a little. "Damn it, I need to go home and be in my own house. I think all this being in hotels is really getting to me. Maybe I should take a week or two off and you can just travel by yourself."

"By myself, you would let me travel by myself?"

"Why? Are you too chicken to travel by yourself?" she teased.

"No, I just like having you with me," he told her, twisting his head so he could throw her a smile. "Don't you worry that some woman is going to come up to me and hit on me and try to get me in bed like Mickie and Kelly are trying to do with Chris? I mean, what if everyone's fair game? What if Maryse comes up to me and says she wants me? Or Maria? Huh? What will happen then if I don't have you?"

"You can say no."

"It might be too hard to resist."

"I have a cast on my foot that can do real damage," she said, lightly slapping him on the back. "I don't think that I have to worry about this though. I mean, who, besides me, actually wants you anyways? It's not like you're so desirable."

"Whoa, excuse me?"

"Tell me, Chrissy, who wanted you while you weren't with me besides Tiffany, who you didn't even meet yourself, you were set up. So it wasn't like you actually met anyone while I was out of the picture because only I want you," she said haughtily.

"Please, I could have anyone I want, I'm a chick magnet," he told her.

"Yeah, sure you are."

"Do you really want to stay at home?"

"At least until the foot gets a little better, it's hard maneuvering with this thing," Trish said, flopping onto the bed next to him. "It hurts and it's bulky and I can barely bathe."

"I could help you with the bathing," he said lecherously as he kissed up her arm. "I am your husband after all."

"Well then take care of your husbandly duties," Trish said, pulling him over her. He was about to kiss her when she turned her head. "Just admit that you are not a chick magnet."

"Never," Christian scoffed, "I totally am."

"You are not," she giggled.

"Okay, I'm not, I'm just…awkward, now will you kiss me?"

"Your wish is my command," she said, leaning up to give him a kiss.

Randy slammed his fist on the table. Everyone jumped except for Britt. She just sat there and watched his fist pound the table. She wondered if the impact had bent the wood in imperceptible ways. Force does that, even if you can't see it, it does. Ted and Cody were hanging on Randy's every word like they usually did. She knew Stephanie found Ted attractive so she stared at him a while, wondering if deep down, he really did want to break free from this group. He could probably do it so easily.

"Britt?"

She looked up dreamily at Randy, still somewhat lost in her thoughts, "What?"

"Were you listening?"

"What?"

"We want you to pretend to go back to Hunter or fight for him to throw him off his game. I'm going to demand a rematch. I get one because it's in the contract and I want my rematch. If we can throw him off his game by making him have to choose between you and Stephanie--"

"No," Britt said.

"What are you talking about, let me finish," he told her.

"No, I don't want to be part of any plan, I don't," she said. "You kissed me."

Ted and Cody looked at Randy and smirked. "What about it?" Randy said, giving her a smile. She didn't want to look at that smile. She didn't want to be a part of this. She didn't want Randy's filthy lips on hers. She didn't want any of it.

"I didn't want it, I didn't and you kissed me," Britt said, shaking her head.

"I thought you were over Hunter, I thought things were progressing between us," Randy said, "maybe we can continue this conversation when we're alone, what do you say?"

"I don't want to continue this conversation, I don't…I don't…I didn't want that kiss. You should've warned me, you should've…you shouldn't have just kissed me like you owned me," she told him, her mouth turning down into a frown. "I wasn't…I didn't want you to kiss me."

"I'm sorry, it won't happen again, I mean, until you want it to happen."

"I've got to go," Britt said.

"Wait, where are you going?"

"I don't know, I've just got to go," she said, leaving the room abruptly. She walked to her own room across the hall and opened the door with her keycard and threw it open. She quickly packed her things and then went over to the nightstand and sat down on the bed and leaned over the nightstand, hotel pen in her hand, poised over hotel paper. She thought for a moment and then scrawled something on the sheet of paper. When she was finished, she ripped it off with no regard for tearing and folded it, writing on top of it as well. Then she wrote another note and wrote something that one as well.

When she was through with her task, she stood up and grabbed her things and left. She went to two different rooms and slipped the note under the door and then went downstairs to check herself out. She just couldn't be here anymore. The guilt of kissing Randy was swallowing her whole and even if she didn't want it, she felt like a slut for kissing him at all. Hunter would be so upset and she couldn't bear to make him upset. He was such a good man and she loved him and she didn't want to crush him.

Stephanie was grabbing Sawyer's shoes by the door when she noticed a piece of paper with _Chris or Stephanie_ written on the top. She was a little confused and as she picked up Sawyer's shoes, she picked up the note as well. "Hey, I got a weird note under the door," Stephanie said as she walked further into the room. "Well, me or Chris, I don't know."

Hunter looked up from where he was helping Flynn stand on his legs. "A note?"

"Where's Chris?"

"Can't you hear the shower?"

"Oh, he went in already," Stephanie said as she sat down. Sawyer came running up to her.

"Mommy, where shoe?" he asked. Stephanie handed them over and Sawyer took them, then looked at the paper. "What dat, Mommy?"

"A note," she said, unfolding it.

"I look at it?" he asked.

"You can when I'm finished," she told him as she looked down to read.

_Stephanie or Chris,_

_I needed to take some time off, I'm really sorry, I hope you don't fire me, but I understand if you do. I just needed time to get away, __alone,__ I know that I'm putting you in a lurch and I'm so sorry. I do have some sick days to take so I'm going to take those. I just needed to get away. I'm sorry about the plan, I really am, but I just couldn't stay. I'm going home for a while if you need to contact me. Thanks._

_Britt_

"What does it say?" Hunter asked, "who's it from?"

Stephanie tried to clear her throat to prolong what she knew was coming. She looked at Hunter and he was bouncing Flynn up and down on his legs. He was much better with her now that she was when she was a newborn. Flynn was starting to really gain a personality of her own. Stephanie felt like taking her from Hunter's arms first though so she grabbed the girl around the waist and pulled her into her body, kissing her head.

"Steph, who was it from?" he repeated.

"It was from Britt," she said slowly. "She's going to take some time off, some…indefinite time off it seems."

"Indefinite? What does that mean?"

"Well, she didn't specify a date of return so I'm guessing that it's indefinite," Stephanie said.

"She left, but I mean, she's just going…I mean, taking the night off, right?"

"I'm not sure…"

"How are you not sure, you're her boss!" Hunter boomed, startling both Sawyer and Flynn.

"Hunter, please…"

"She slept with him, she slept with him, I know it."

Stephanie felt awful. This was all her fault and the fact that Hunter wasn't accusing her made her feel all the worse. If she hadn't asked him to play her boyfriend, fake break-up with Britt, none of this would've happened. He should be blaming her and hating her. She deserved it. Chris hated this plan too, maybe it was just time to finish it. Yes, that's what she'd do, she'd finish it. It was over anyways, Hunter had won, put Randy in his place. It was over. She'd tell everyone.

"I'm sure she didn't," Stephanie said, "Hunter, I'm so sor--"

"I've got to go," he said, "I've got to go."

Before she could get another word in, he was out the door. Sawyer watched him and then looked over at his mommy, "Mommy, what wong wif Twips?"

"Grown-up stuff, baby boy, grown-up stuff."

Hunter went back to his hotel room and sure enough, there was a note waiting for him:

_Sweets,_

_I don't want to hurt you, I never would. I just need time to think, that's all, you understand, right? I love you with all my heart, I know the words are cheesy, but they're the best I've got right now. I love you and I want to be with you and right now I just feel like I don't deserve you and so I'm going away for a while, but I'll keep in touch, hopefully, I love you._

_Love, _

_Britt_

He crumpled up the note and threw it on the ground.

By the time he arrived at the show, Randy's anger had reached a pitch point. His anger wasn't the only one that reached a pitch point though. Hunter was equally pissed. If they clashed tonight, one of them might be going home in a body bag. It was over the same essential reason though, well, reasons. The belt was a reason, defending or putting down the McMahons was a reason, but most importantly, Britt was a reason.

Hunter was convinced that something had happened. From the way she wrote the note, something had happened. He didn't want to believe it was mutual. He wanted to believe that Randy coerced her or got her drunk. Chris had seen her having a drink, maybe he bribed the divas with her to give her too much to drink so he could take advantage. Then he could swoop in and be the knight-in-shining-armor to her damsel-in-distress. If she had consented though, he thinks his heart might just break. More than it had with anyone else, maybe even more than it had with Joanie and before this, he had to admit, his healthiest relationship had been with her.

He loved Britt, he saw a future with her, one he didn't ever really see with Stephanie. Britt was something else entirely. She could keep up with him and she let him be himself and not something he wasn't. He was a manipulative, controlling jackass and around everyone else, she let him be that, but he'd be remiss to say that he had complete control in the relationship. She was his first committed relationship after his marriage and he really believed she was it, but if she wanted Randy, where did that leave him?

Randy had figured out that Britt was gone. She'd checked out of the hotel and he didn't know where she'd gone. He thought they were going somewhere and now she was gone. He'd kissed her and he thought it was a great kiss, _amazing_ kiss, but then she bolts and what he was supposed to think? She didn't want him? But she had kissed him? She had been hanging around him for months, had spent time with him, watched bad movies with him, she'd eaten with him, what was that? Was it all for giggles to her? She'd needed someone and he'd been there and now she was just going to leave? Without so much as a goodbye? This infuriated him.

Maybe it wasn't the best idea to go out there and demand a rematch. But that wasn't his biggest folly. His biggest folly, and he believed that he only made it because his mind was so focused on Britt, was bringing up the McMahon grandchildren. He knew as he said it, it was over the line. Chris had threatened him about it and yet, why would he say maybe it was time for him to meet the McMahon grandchildren? He had seen them all at some point, though he didn't really remember Kenyon or Declan. Sawyer and Flynn, on the other hand, were constantly around and he saw them all the time and even he had to admit they were adorable children. He had crossed the line, but now that it was crossed, it was crossed.

Backstage, Chris was fuming. He was absolutely fuming. When Randy had the audacity to mention his children in that context, when he had threatened them like that, he'd lost it. He'd jumped from his seat and it was lucky neither Flynn nor Sawyer was on it or they would've tumbled to the ground. Flynn was in Stephanie's lap and she'd had to set Flynn down on the couch so she could grab her husband's arm. He'd snuck in here a while ago to watch the show and to hear Stephanie tell him she was going to end the plan tonight. He'd been ecstatic, but the mood had soured.

"I'm going to kill him," Chris said through gritted teeth.

"No you're not."

"Yes, I am, I'm killing him, he's a dead man, a _dead_ man. How dare he, how dare he mention our kids like that! How dare he bring them up like that, like he wants to hurt them? If he lays on hand on either of my kids, I'm skinning him alive."

"Chris, calm down, please," Stephanie said. "There's no use in doing that, okay, baby, no use."

"No, he went too far, he went to goddamn far," Chris said, prying his arm from Stephanie's, "He's dead."

He started for the door but Stephanie grabbed him and pulled him. He came crashing into her body and she kissed him fervently. His mind lost most of its anger the minute her lips touched his. Her arms wrapped around him and his around her, pulling her closer. It was inappropriate and wrong to kiss after their kids had been threatened, but she needed some way to calm him down and this was really the only sure fire way. They continued to make out until Stephanie heard her father's voice and she and Chris pulled away to watch what he was saying.

Vince was pissed, that much was clear. Randy could see it as clear as day and though he wasn't afraid, he didn't know who could be lurking. He was about to jump the old man when he said he wouldn't be getting a title match at Backlash. It was in his contract, he'd get the match. Instead though, Vince made a six-man tag match at Backlash, including Hunter. Stephanie's eyes widened. She hadn't discussed this with her father. He hadn't discussed this with her at all. She couldn't believe he would do this without asking her.

"I've got to talk to my dad immediately, can you watch the kids?"

"Don't forget I've got a match though," Chris said, "I can't stay with them all night."

"I know, I'll be quick, I promise," she told him, giving him a quick kiss.

Stephanie walked down the hallway. She only then realized her kissing had calmed Chris down and she congratulated herself on a job well done. But this wasn't what she needed to be thinking about. There were other, more important things, to talk about. Stephanie stood by the gorilla, waiting for her father. Randy came backstage first and Stephanie took a few steps towards him, wondering if she should take the high road or if she should get in his face. Guess which one won?

"Randy."

Randy turned and looked at her, "What do you want? Another DDT?"

"No, I want you to stop mentioning my kids. You're lucky it's just me because I'm sure if Chris saw that, he's going to be after you."

"I'd like to see him try," Randy said.

"Don't bring up my kids," Stephanie said, "or I will find a way to fire your ass and make it look legit so you can't do a damn thing about it."

"Oh, I could do a lot about it."

"Try me," Stephanie challenged, "I dare you to try me."

"Stephanie," Vince said, pulling her away from Randy, "come on, let's not get into fights with him here." They walked out of earshot and her father chastised, "What were you thinking?"

Stephanie didn't want to talk here. She saw some of the divas avoiding eye contact with her and she figured these girls had figured out that she was still protective of Chris and if she was willing to call out Mickie and Kelly, she wouldn't hesitate to call anyone else out. She hoped that Chris had significantly less attention tonight than he did last week as well. They walked into her father's office and he stared at her, waiting for answers.

"He threatened my kids, I don't take that lightly."

"Neither do I," he said.

"You had no right to make that match without telling me," Stephanie said. "I wanted to end the plan. Look, Hunter did what I wanted, he kicked Randy's ass, I want to leave it at that. This plan is getting out of control and I want to end it."

"Now, you can't now, I've made the match, it's already practically done," Vince said. "This way, me and Shane can get our licks in as well. We deserve to get our hands on him for what he's done to us and to you, especially to you."

"Dad, I don't want to do this anymore. It's hurting people, it's hurting Chris and I love him, he's my husband."

Vince wasn't going to be deterred though and he patted her on the shoulder, "It's fine, honey, everything is going to turn out just fine. I promise. We just want to make sure we take him out for good, like he tried to do with us. You can't blame us for that, can you?"

"I guess not," she sighed. "But please tell me next time something like this happens. I've got to go back, Chris needs someone to sit with the kids during his match and since Britt isn't here tonight, it's all on me, which is fine, but I've got to go."

"Bye, Princess."

Hunter wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone, so when Shane asked him to talk to Vince he was indifferent at first. His girlfriend had left him for wherever and she had probably slept with his enemy or done something with his enemy and he didn't want to talk to a man he had no ties with whatsoever. He didn't want to talk to anyone. He didn't even want to be in this building. He'd rather be seeking out Britt and trying to find out what was wrong. But the more he thought about that the more depressed he felt so he might as well go see Vince and try and talk to him about tonight, but did he really care if Vince and Randy fought? No, did he want to fight Randy? Hell yes.

For Chris, being in the tag match let him take his aggression out on someone. He didn't care who it was because in his mind, they were always Randy. Once he truly got his hands on Randy, that day would be the best day. When he was delivering punches or kicks, he imagined Randy's face on the receiving end. He wanted more than a match, he wanted to fight Randy Orton. Chris could fight and he'd give it all he got to teach Randy how to shut his damn mouth about things. Talking about his kids? Hell no.

Maybe all this thinking got him off his game because his team lost, but who gave a damn about that? Who gave a damn about Steamboat still having it? In another world, another dimension he would've been thrilled. He loved Ricky Steamboat, idolized him as a kid, but he was a grown man now, a grown man whose children had been brought up on national television, something he had not ever wanted for them. The tone in Randy's voice when he said it was time to meet them made his blood boil. He wanted to see blood pouring from Randy's nose. This would bring him his only satisfaction.

He walked backstage with a purpose. He wanted to find Randy Orton and pulverize him. He didn't care about anything else. He was lucky that Stephanie had put her foot down the other night because Mickie and Kelly had been completely ignoring him. They probably didn't like being called a slut in public, but if it got them of his back, he'd call them sluts right now. He was stalking around when he heard a voice behind him.

"Chris?"

He turned and saw Katie and she was smiling at him. He smiled, or tried to, he was very angry, "Hey, Katie."

"You look angry about something, is everything alright?"

"I just want to find Randy Orton."

"Orton, really?" she asked.

"Yeah, why?"

"Oh, I don't know, I just didn't expect you to be looking for him when you probably have legends to get rid of or something," she joked, then groaned. "I'm really sorry, that was terrible."

He laughed and felt calmer, "No, it wasn't. I'm just pissed at what he said."

"Said? I'm sorry, I didn't catch anything he said earlier, what did he say?"

"He made a veiled threat about my kids."

"Oh my," Katie said, "Why would he do that?"

"I don't know, but I'm angry and I want to find him and I want to pound his face in."

"I don't blame you," she said, "I would actually help you if I thought I could take him."

"I really appreciate that."

"Well, get along then," Katie said, "give him an extra punch for me because your little boy is adorable and threatening children, that's just completely insane."

"I will, bye, Katie."

He stalked off again and down the hallway, trying to find Randy Orton. He was walking down, minding his own business when coming down the other way was Stephanie. Her eyes were blazing in a way Chris hadn't seen in a long time. She was beyond angry, to a dark place where he hated to see her go. He thought for a moment it would be directed at him and he'd have to play "jilted ex-husband #2." She wasn't looking at him though. Sawyer was running trying to keep up and Flynn was clinging to Stephanie's shirt.

He was about to ask her what was wrong when she saw him. She barely stopped when she thrust Flynn into his arms. The little girl was terrified of what was going on. Her mother had never shaken like that while she was being held. Even Chris could visibly see her shaking. Sawyer ran up and grabbed Chris's leg, sweaty though it was.

"Take this," Stephanie said, referring to their daughter.

"Steph, what's wrong?" he asked, but she was already gone and he was watching her back.

Stephanie threw open the door to her father's office, the thing practically coming off the hinges, "What in the hell?" Vince said.

"HOW DARE YOU!" Stephanie screamed and Vince was sure the entire building had heard her.

"What are you talking about?"

Then her voice was deathly quiet, "You had the board of directors tell Vickie she could choose to be GM of either show. She chose Raw, Raw is my show, damn it, my show!"

"Stephanie, you've been injured and unable."

"Shut up!" Stephanie said, slamming her hands on the desk.

"Young lady," Vince warned.

"I'm not a young lady and I have my own shares in this company so you will hear me out and you will hear me out now. This is my show. I came back to run it, I took it from Shane and believe me, I would've taken it from you too," she told him, her eyes boring into his. "This was my show and you gave it to her, you _gave_ it to her."

"I was trying to protect you, Randy's been--"

"No you haven't, you've taken over again. This isn't about protection, it's about controlling and you trying to control me. You think you know what's best for me, but you don't, you never have, you _never_ have! This was my show and you took it from me, _my_ show!"

Stephanie stormed out of the office and stomped down the hallway. Chris was back in their locker room and sitting with Flynn. Sawyer was just looking at his mommy in fear. There was something very scary about her right now. Chris set Flynn down on the ground and she crawled over to Sawyer and started playing with him. She was getting sleepy though. Chris knelt next to her.

"Steph, what is it?"

"My father…he gave Vickie a choice, she's the new GM of Raw."

"What?"

"Yeah, she's the new GM," Stephanie said. "He never even gave me a chance. He didn't tell me, he didn't talk to me about it. He didn't…he didn't do anything. He said it was to protect me from Randy, like I couldn't handle myself. He never thinks I can handle myself, I'm so frustrated. This is my show and he took it from me, he just snatched it from right under me. I was fine when he said he wanted to run it together, I was going to take it and now, now he's done this."

"We'll figure something out."

"I'm so mad," she said, tears of anger and frustration rolling down her cheeks. Chris reached up to wipe them away.

"Baby, it's okay, don't cry, please," he said, feeling her pain as his own. Even Sawyer could feel it. He came over to his mommy and looked at her.

"Mommy, you sad?"

"Yeah, a little, baby boy," she told him.

"I give hug," Sawyer said, holding his arms to her. She lifted him into her lap and gave her a great big hug, the best hug he had ever given by far. Then he started to act like his mommy, "It okay, Mommy, you be okay. It okay."

"Thank you, baby," she said, kissing his head.

"Love Mommy," he told her. "You be okay."

"I guess I will," Stephanie said, but things were sizzling in her mind right now. Things were turning, processing and Chris could see it. He could see them turning and he just wondered where the roller coaster of his life and love with Stephanie would take him this time. Maybe now he'd have to play a woman in drag.

"What are you thinking?"

"I wish I were someone else's daughter instead of the one man who doesn't believe in any of my abilities. If it were Shane, I bet he'd be in charge and Vickie wouldn't be here. _Vickie_, Chris, this woman is an incompetent buffoon who the fans despise. I can't even stand her voice, I can't stand her and she thinks she's great. You should've seen her acting all high and mighty out there, but she can't run a show, she can't run it like I can."

"I know, believe me, I know," he said. "It'll be fine though, you'll figure out some way to get back at your father, you always do."

"Constantly, I think he gives me the reins, but he reels it back in. He did it with Adamle being his lackey. Then when I come back, suddenly, there he is because God forbid I run things by myself. I don't think he's ever gotten over when I married Hunter and drove him away. I think he thinks I'm going to do it again, run the entire company, but I just want my show. I don't want to be that person, I'm _not_ that person anymore. God, I'm being whiny, but I'm sorry…I'm sorry, I don't want to be this way."

"It's okay," Chris said with a sigh, forgetting all about his anger for Randy and focusing completely on his wife. Flynn wanted in on it too as she crawled over. "Your family is just messed up."

"You're telling me."

She tried to calm down, but then her dad brought back Batista, another thing she hadn't known about and it hurt her to think her brother and father wouldn't include her in any decisions. She wasn't a shrinking violet, some girl who needed to be constantly watched over. Yes, she'd taken some blows, but she'd always stood right back up again. She wasn't saying she wanted to go out and have a match with Randy, but her father constantly did this to her and she sometimes really believed it was revenge for all the horrible things she'd done to him. It was a two-way street, but that was her family. They hurt each other, they loved each other, they hurt each other, they loved each other. Now she was hurting and her father thought he was doing the right thing, but where was he when Flynn was born? Where was he those first few months? Why did he give her and Shane the power and then send in a lackey to act as his go-between? Her father didn't trust her and that hurt. But what could she do?

What could she do?


	231. The Final Raw Act, April 20, 2009

A/N: Computer problems and writer's block are not a good combo. I was watching the draft and nothing really struck me so I'm pretty much skipping last week and just updating this week. Thanks so much for all the reviews, I really appreciate them. Hope you enjoy the chapter and please leave a review. :)

KJ, I don't really have anything against most of the people I write as antagonists, I just kind of go with what works. I don't really have anything totally against Mickie. :)  


* * *

"Hunter?"

Hunter sat up quickly from where he'd been sitting on the couch. Stephanie looked over from her desk. Since Britt had left, Hunter was being pretty clingy with her and Chris. She could tell it was because he didn't want to be left alone because the loneliness of not having Britt was starting to set in. She let it go because she felt guilty for instigating this entire plan and causing Britt to leave him in the first place. If she could get out of this plan, she would in a heartbeat and it wasn't just for Hunter.

She didn't feel right not being around Chris. He was going to SmackDown and where did that leave her? Was she expected to stay at home with their children? Surely she couldn't just show up on SmackDown for no reason. Sure, she was boss and she could do and go where she pleased, but what would be the reason? Why would she go to SmackDown? To torment her "soon to be ex-husband"? Still, she didn't want him going to SmackDown by himself. Plus, she still had to come to Raw, her brother was fighting for her, everyone thought she was in love with Hunter. This whole situation had gotten sticky last week with that damn draft.

_His picture flashed on the screen._

_She hadn't been expecting it. How could she have? She thought his spot was secure. Why did she think that? Why did she think he wasn't going to get drafted? She couldn't rig the system, he would've never let her. It was random, it could choose anyone. She just figured it would never choose Chris. Now he was going to SmackDown? She couldn't go with him, everyone thought they hated each other. She had to stay here. What were they going to do?_

"_Wow," Hunter said from beside her. He'd been watching too. He'd been drafted to Raw earlier and he looked forward to working with Chris again. Maybe they could even have a feud and settle whatever still needed to be settled between them. They could turn on the hatred in a second. And even if they couldn't, they could each picture the other as Randy and kick each other's ass that way._

"_Why did you say that?" she asked harshly._

"_Just wasn't expecting that one," Hunter shrugged._

"_How do I undo this?"_

"_I don't know."_

_She wanted to undo this._

Of course, Chris wouldn't let her. He saw it as an opportunity. He could rule over there now. Never mind the fact he hadn't even regularly been on SmackDown since 2002. She had regularly been on SmackDown more recently than he had. But no, he saw it as an opportunity. Sometimes she really wished to hate him, but she couldn't. If he saw something good from this, then she would see something good from this too. The only good she was seeing right now was that it got him away from the likes of Kelly Kelly and Mickie, but who the hell was over on SmackDown? She was sure there would be some woman who wanted her claws in her husband and if they thought she'd allow that to happen, they better think again. But if she wasn't there, who would protect him? Well, he could protect himself, but they would just come on stronger. This was so frustrating!

"Who is it?" Stephanie finally asked.

"Britt," Hunter mouthed, "Hey babe, where are you?" His voice was hoarse and barely above a whisper, like if he said more or talked louder, she would disappear.

"I'm okay," she told him. "I just missed you."

"I miss you," he said, "where _are_ you?"

"I'm staying with friends, I can't talk long, I'm using her phone and I don't want to waste her minutes," Britt said. "I'm an idiot who forgot her charger."

"So you can't talk?" he asked, disappointed. Stephanie had become intrigued by this conversation and was now leaning over her desk a little so she could listen to what Hunter was saying. Britt hadn't called him since she'd left and it was really upsetting him and now she was calling and she hoped that meant Britt was coming back. She missed her friend too, but not to the depths that Hunter missed his girlfriend.

"Not for long," she said lamentably. "I just…I just needed to hear your voice was all."

"Babe, just come home, please," Hunter pleaded. Now Stephanie felt like she was intruding on a moment.

"Hunter, I'm just going to step out for a moment," Stephanie told him. Hunter just nodded and Stephanie nodded back before she walked out of the office, leaving Hunter behind. Even though the draft had happened last week and everyone had their new brands, many of the SmackDown guys were here tonight, including her husband. She wished she could go hang out with him now, but she couldn't so she just kind of leaned against the wall and observed everyone else as they passed by and did whatever they needed to do.

It was a strange feeling for her not to be wanted as she'd felt last week. With her father letting Vickie be the Raw GM, there was almost no room for Stephanie, not that she'd want to deal with Vickie anyways. That woman was a shrew. She made Stephanie look like a goddess or something. Stephanie had _never_ incited the kind of vitriol Vickie did and she was kind of glad that the people had someone to hate more than her.

Vickie wasn't here tonight so Stephanie was actually running a lot of the show, but it wouldn't be the same next week when Vickie was here. Stephanie was being pushed out by her own family. They saw her as the weak link when she had always seen herself as the strongest. She had worked hard to gain her position. Most people thought she fell into her job, that just because she was Vince's daughter she would automatically had a job, but those people didn't know her father. Her father wouldn't hire incompetence just because of namesake. If that were the case her uncle would probably be working for the company. She was a learned woman who had great ideas and wonderful business skills, but because of one moment of weakness, one moment where she wasn't in control, she was paying for it with her job.

She'd been doing a great job with Raw. Hardly anyone had any real complaints until Randy had decided the McMahon family was enemy #1. Then all hell broke loose and it resulted in her getting ousted from Raw. Maybe once things settled down, she could go with Chris to SmackDown and she could control the show over there. She didn't want to be without him and it'd been a long time since she'd been in control of SmackDown. Like Chris thought going there was a new opportunity, maybe it could be an opportunity for her as well. That thought actually excited her a little.

Chris laughed as Flynn spit up some of her chipped beef. She didn't seem to like the flavor. "Sorry, flutterby, it's what we packed for you tonight," Chris told her and she made another face, one that said she was not pleased with this information. "Don't worry, I'll make note of the fact you don't like it."

"I try it, Daddy?" Sawyer asked, even though he was enjoying his own dinner at the moment. "I might like."

"I don't think you'd like baby food, kid. You barely liked it when you were a little baby."

"Why she so messy when eats?" Sawyer asked.

"Because she's not used to eating yet. She's only used to having bottles so now that she's finally getting food it's a completely crazy concept for her and she can't eat it all because her tummy is really little. You were the exact same way when you were a baby. You got food all over the place and Mommy didn't know exactly what to expect with you so it freaked her out."

"I no freak out," Sawyer said sweetly.

Katie laughed and shook her head, "You're amazing with them, you know."

"Thanks," Chris said. "It gets easier after you've had one, you know what to expect."

"But you've never had two before," she said as she ate her own dinner. So it must be a little bit different."

"You adapt," Chris said as he spooned some mashed up carrots into Flynn's open mouth. She'd been anticipating that bit of food and she was much happier with the carrots than that gross beef. Even though the same amount of carrots fell out of her mouth to her cute, dimple chin. She grinned at her daddy though for trying to help her out. "You've got to chew some of that or you're going to lose weight and you're just a baby, you shouldn't be losing weight."

Flynn just cooed and Katie leaned her chin in her hand. "She's so cute, she makes my insides ache."

"Man, I know my daughter is cute, but she seems to incite this action with everyone she meets," Chris said, running a hand over Flynn's soft hair. He was enjoying spending some time with Katie. She kept the other women at bay and she was really cool to hang out with. He'd found out they had a lot in common, they both like metal music for one and he respected anyone who could keep up with him on that front.

"Well, she just has that cute babyness to her, not that you're shabby either, you," Katie said to Sawyer, who looked up quizzically at her. He'd been concentrating on getting this broccoli shoved down his throat because he wasn't much for a fan. He liked Katie though, she was very pretty and nothing like his mommy.

"Okay," Sawyer said before going back to his food.

"When's his birthday?" Katie asked. "I know you mentioned it was coming up, but I'm afraid I don't know it."

"May 2nd," Chris said proudly. "Sawyer, how old are you going to be?"

"Free," he said, holding up his three fingers.

"Smart too, just what I like in a guy," Katie winked at him and his face lit up. "It's really too bad you're going to SmackDown, I have been having so much fun hanging out with you."

"Well, since I'm still technically married to Stephanie, I can go where I please and doesn't ECW tape with SmackDown again anyways?"

"Actually, you know, that's right," Katie said. "Well that eases my mind a great deal."

"Glad I could help," Chris said. "So we're still on to go to that concert on Wednesday, right? I've never really explored London, but I've heard great things about the music scene and I'm anxious to get a listen."

"Oh, we are absolutely on…does Stephanie mind though, I mean…she still seems pretty protective of you," Katie said uneasily. She didn't want to be on the receiving end of Stephanie's wrath. This certainly wasn't a date, but she didn't know what Stephanie would think and she was her boss so she had to straddle the fence here.

"She's fine with it," Chris said and she was. Up until a couple of days ago, Chris was going to be dragging Stephanie with him to this obscure little club to hear this obscure metal band and she was going to protest the entire time. In finding someone like Katie, he had someone to enjoy it with. He'd told Stephanie and Stephanie practically wanted to kiss Katie's feet for making it so Stephanie didn't have to attend.

"Oh really, so you've talked to her?"

"Well, someone needs to take care of the kids and since she's their mother," Chris chuckled, "kind of fell to her."

"Yes, of course," Katie said, "I just don't want her to be upset. It's not a date or anything, but with the way she yelled at Kelly and Mickie, she's quite frightening."

Katie gave a nervous laugh, but Chris's mind was elsewhere for the moment. All he could think about was how Stephanie had nearly bitch-slapped Kelly and Mickie into oblivion. That had been one of the single hottest things he had ever witnessed. It almost made him want to seek the girls out and let them flirt around with him while Stephanie watched so she could go absolutely ballistic again. There was just something about his wife when she was angry that made him want her all the more. He figured it was just the residual hatred he felt for her from those years of hating her.

"Chris, are you okay?" Katie asked. He was looking a little flushed and Flynn was waiting for her next bite, her mouth open and imploring for her father.

"Oh yeah, sorry, sorry," Chris said, realizing he was in a far-off place where his wife was doing very bad things to him. He quickly spooned some carrots into his daughters mouth.

"Thought I lost you there for a moment," she laughed.

He laughed too, "I think you did."

"Oh, well glad I brought you back then."

"Thanks," he said. "I was just thinking about things."

"What kind of things?"

"SmackDown," he lied. "I mean, at first I was really upset that I'd been drafted over there. It's been such a long time since I've been there and I didn't want to be away from…Raw. But then I guess I saw it as a good opportunity to start new things."

"And get away from Stephanie?"

"Huh?" he asked.

"Getting away from Stephanie, you know, not having to see her around with Hunter. I imagine that would be a good thing for you."

"Oh, oh yeah, yeah it would," he said, though that just made him think about that particular situation. Stephanie couldn't just show up on SmackDown with him. Once this stupid plan ended, sure she could come with him and probably would come with him, but for now, he was probably going to make the trip alone.

"Yeah, I really sympathize with you there," Katie said genuinely. Chris was finding that she was genuinely a good person and he liked her a lot. He didn't have any burning flames of love for her, but as far as female friends went, she was a pretty cool one. Trish was more Stephanie's friend anyways so he should get to have a female friend independently of his wife, it was only fair, really. He didn't even think about making her his fake girlfriend anymore, he just wanted to be her friend.

"Thanks," Chris said. "We'll have fun at the concert though, I promise."

"Oh, I don't doubt we will. So are you doing anything tonight? I mean, you are here and there is a show."

"I've got time at the top of the show," Chris said. "Vickie's not here tonight, but I pulled some strings with Shane and he got me time at the top of the show. I'm going to be giving my last farewell to the fans."

"That should be something."

"Chris, hey man!" Edge said, slapping him on the shoulder and then sitting next to Sawyer. Edge had been completely stoked to find that Chris was coming over to SmackDown. It wasn't the same as his brother coming over, but he and Chris had been friends for years. "What's up?"

"Nothing, I was just talking with Katie."

"Oh," Edge said, nodding knowingly. "I get what you mean. I just saw that you have time tonight, what the hell are you doing on this show? You're SmackDown now man, you've got to stay loyal, plus, I wanted to know if you wanted to go clubbing tomorrow night. I know a great place and I can totally play wingman for you."

"Wow, no thanks," Chris said. "I've got to take care of my kids and as for having time tonight, I'm giving a farewell address."

Edge chuckled, "Only you, dude, only you would give something like that. But if you don't want to go clubbing, let's go out for drinks. I'm sure your ex can take care of your kids."

"I'm sure she could, but I want to spend time with them so thanks, but no thanks."

"Suit yourself, man," Edge said, ruffling Sawyer's hair before getting up.

"He's a bit of a womanizer, isn't he?" Katie asked, not really knowing Edge.

"He'll chase after anything in a skirt, yes," Chris said. "Nice guy, just a little eccentric, that's all."

Edge was actually very happy. With Vickie taking over Raw and him staying on SmackDown, it felt like this was the separation needed for him to finally move on with Lita. Vickie was no longer controlling the show and controlling what he did. He felt free for the first time in a while. His career had been so intrinsically intertwined with his personal life, but now the two were starting to drift apart. With the distance between him and Vickie and the lack of help she could really give him, it probably meant that he and Vickie would eventually drift apart as well.

Big Show was on Raw too, so maybe she'd strike up that affair again and they'd really be able to break it off. He couldn't wait for the moment when he could stop pretending he wasn't in love with Lita and actually bring her around for everyone to see. Was that a sappy request? Of course it was, but it was what he wanted most, even more than the World Title. To him, Lita was worth more than that and he'd put her through enough crap and he wanted it to end. He just wanted it to end with him and her together and not apart.

"Are you okay?" Hunter asked. There'd been a long pause of silence between them and he'd been afraid she hung up. She was still there though and he was glad for that. He just wanted to hear her voice and talk to her a little and reassure himself that she was safe.

"Yeah, I'm okay," she said, "I'm sorry I ran away like I did. I just needed to clear my head."

"I understand, though I wish you'd given me better notice."

She laughed softly at that, "I won't do that again, trust me."

"I just want you here."

"I know," she said, but gave no indication she would be there soon.

"When are you coming back?" he asked, prompting her to give that indication.

"I don't know, I won't be gone too long."

They were avoiding the issue and he knew it, but he didn't want to press. He felt like if he pressed too hard, she would run away. "Okay."

"I'm sorry I couldn't be there, you know how I love to be in England. I get to visit my grandparents, but maybe next time."

"Next time," he echoed. He'd only met her grandparents once. He hoped there would be a next time. He was terrified that this time away was making her mulling some decision like choosing Randy over him. He didn't dare ask her what happened. He didn't know if that was because he didn't want to know or because he was too scared to know. If it confirmed his worst suspicions, he didn't know what he was going to do, cry probably.

"Yeah," she said, her voice almost getting infinitely softer.

"Babe, what happened?"

"I just needed time away," she told him, avoiding what was really going on. "I just…I needed time by myself. The plan was getting to be too much for me. I'm not cut out for it." She gave a pathetic laugh. "I'm a failure."

"You're not a failure, you're just not used to our crazy lives here."

"I've been there for nearly three years," Britt pointed out, "I don't think that I'm not used to it. Maybe I'm too used to it. You know, I just joined because I needed the job. I was just going to be Chris's assistant. Vince explained that his daughter had just had a baby and her husband had taken over her position and would need the help. I just thought, okay, this is just another job. I was so wrong about that. You get sucked in. Then you're never able to get back out."

"I know, wrestling is an addiction."

"You can say that again," she said.

"Britt, what happened with Randy? Did he touch you or try to do something to do? Cause if he did…" That he could deal with. If Randy had been inappropriate in any way, he could deal with that, he could go out there and he could kick Randy's teeth down to his stomach and then pull them out of his ass.

"No, he didn't touch me or anything," she told him. "It wasn't anything like that."

"Then what was it like?"

"Just…I don't know. I…I don't know."

"You can talk to me, when have you ever not been able to talk to me?"

"Never," she told him. "That's what I love about you. You've always been so easy to talk to, ever since that first time we talked, like really talked. Who would've figured you for one to put me at ease?"

"Hey, I can be easy to talk to."

"No, you're not, not to everyone. That's why Chris is more popular than you are."

"I resent that."

"It's why Shawn is too."

"Again, I resent that," he chuckled.

"He kissed me," she blurted out. "He kissed me and I didn't stop it immediately. I don't know what I was thinking and I'm so sorry. I don't know what came over me. I should've stopped it immediately and I didn't and I'm so sorry."

"Is that it?" he asked. A kiss? She'd left over a kiss?

"Well…yeah, it is," she said.

"I'm so relieved," he told her.

"Relieved? You're…relieved?"

"With you leaving, I thought it was going to be a lot worse. I thought you'd slept with him or something. I mean, he implied--"

"He implied _what_?" she interrupted.

"He implied that you'd slept together."

"He implied that we'd slept together!" Now she was incensed. "I never slept with him. Oh my God, no, no, no. I've never even, oh my God, that ass! I'm going to kill him."

"You left over a kiss?"

"I felt so guilty. I mean, when I kissed Chris, that was planned, you know. That was part of something. When Randy kissed me, I didn't know what to do, I just didn't think. I didn't, I was ashamed."

"Don't, it's not a big deal."

"Really?" she asked.

"I'm serious, I don't care."

"I love you," she said, "I have to go."

"Okay, will you call later?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'll call you later when you're not at a show," she said, "I love you."

"I love you too."

Hunter felt a lot better after this. Randy had been lying to him and he was so relieved. It didn't seem like Britt had enjoyed the kiss and that was another relief. If it was just a kiss, it was no big deal and he felt better now. Plus, now he knew exactly for what he wanted to kick Randy's ass. The fire was fueling inside of him and he was grateful for it. He'd been pretty down in the dumps and now he had a purpose and that purpose was to make sure Randy was beaten and bloody when he left Backlash this Sunday.

"I better get the kids back to Stephanie," Chris said as he wiped Flynn's mouth with a napkin. She fussed and tried to move her face away from her daddy. This was not fun at all. "Flynn, come on, flutterby, can you just stay still for a second."

Flynn tried to push his hands away and Katie laughed, "She's a little rebel already."

"God help me if she's a rebellious teenager," Chris said. "Though I don't think that'll happen with Stephanie as her mother."

"Is she strict?" Katie asked.

"Nah, well, okay, she is a little bit. I definitely think out of the two of us, she's the stricter parent and I'm the more laidback one. It doesn't matter though, we're a team and we both do whatever is best for them."

"Daddy, I finish," Sawyer said, pushing his empty plate away.

"Great job, kid," Chris told him.

"It's good that you and Stephanie can still be a team for them," Katie told him. "I think it's awful when parents screw up their children because of their own pettiness. It's always quite tragic."

"Yeah, I agree," he said and the more time he spent with Katie, the worse he felt about outright lying to her. With Edge not knowing it was funny because it was Edge and he was prone to say and do ridiculous things. Plus, the fact he _hadn't_ figured things out yet despite living so close by also made it funny.

With Katie it felt like he was starting a friendship off on a very bad foot and that didn't sit right with him. It was like he was deliberately not being a very good friend and he really did enjoy her company. She was funny and bright and didn't appear to have designs on him like other divas had shown over the last month or so he'd been "separated" from Stephanie. She was just a really cool person that he wanted to get to know better.

"Do you want me to walk you guys?" she asked.

"You don't have to," Chris said. "But maybe we can talk later?"

"Absolutely," she said, "I'm sure you'll find me around."

"I'm sure I will," he told her as he picked up Flynn, shouldering her bag and then grabbing Sawyer's hand, "Bye."

"Bye," she told him, "bye Flynn, bye Sawyer."

"Bye-bye," Sawyer said before skipping off with his daddy. They walked to his mommy's office and then inside. Hunter was the only one in there and he seemed to be concentrating awfully hard. "Hi, Twip!"

"Hey," Hunter nodded as Sawyer came over to pat his knee in greeting.

"How you?"

"I'm okay."

"You sure, man, you don't look so okay," Chris pointed out. "You kind of look like you've got something on your mind. Are you missing Britt?"

"She called me."

"Oh wow, how did that go?"

"Randy kissed her, that's it. She didn't even want it, but he ended up kissing her. So I'm going to kick his ass."

"Sounds like a plan," Chris said, setting Flynn down in her playpen. Man, tonight was not a good night for her. First she had to eat that gross chipped beef thing and now she was stuck in here? Could her life get any worse? She crawled to the edge, smashing her face against the side and then grabbed at the webbing, pulling herself to her feet so she could stand and watch her brother. He was pushing some trucks around and she whined and tried to reach out to him. He stood up and came over to her and kissed her on the cheek and then started playing again. Her bottom lip quivered as she felt tears prick her eyes.

"I think so."

"Where's my wife?"

"She let me have some private time with my woman," Hunter said. "I don't know exactly where she went, but I bet she's doing something purposeful."

"Can you watch my kids for a while then?"

"Yeah, sure, I'm not doing anything until later."

"Thanks, I've got to say my goodbyes," Chris laughed as he left.

That second, almost that very exact second, Flynn started to cry. Actually, it was more like a bawling and big tears rolled from her blue-gray eyes. She looked imploring towards Sawyer, who looked up as soon as he heard her. He went over to her and he tried to give her a hug, but she wanted out of this prison. Sawyer couldn't pick her up though, he was too little. She cried even more about that. Hunter came over and knelt next to Sawyer and in front of Flynn.

"Hey there, cutie," he said in his gruff voice. Flynn was old enough to know who this guy was, but he was still kind of scary. He ran his hand over her hair and she recoiled from that. She was not a very touchy-feely person except with her immediate family. She was definitely Stephanie's daughter. "Come on, it's just me, what's wrong?"

"She wanna play," Sawyer said offhandedly. He could read his baby like a book.

"Is that true, do you want to play with your brother?" Hunter asked.

Flynn just sniffled so Sawyer played the ambassador. "She do. She play wif me all time, Twip."

"Oh okay," Hunter said, standing up and then leaning over to pick Flynn out of her playpen. "I guess your dad didn't think I could handle you, huh? We'll show him." Hunter bounced her around a little and rubbed her back. He was getting very used to being around a baby. Not that he wanted any right now, he was just used to it. Flynn stopped crying and he set her down and she happily went over to her brother's trucks. "Don't you guys want to watch your daddy, he's going to be on soon."

"Mmm, okay," Sawyer said, climbing on the couch. Flynn was flabbergasted. First, her brother had been playing with his toys and now he was going to sit on the couch, everyone was getting on her nerves today. Hunter picked her up and put her next to Sawyer. This was more like it. She crawled to him and sat with him, falling against him as he wrapped his arm around his little sister, as if to protect her while they were watching their daddy.

Chris wasn't expecting to get the ovation he did when he went out there. Leave it to the Londoners to not find him such a jackass. That'd change though. He didn't need these fans any more than he needed American fans and he would tell them so. He was almost glad to be off Raw. Being on SmackDown was going to give him different opportunities and bring different and new elements to his life and he was looking forward to that.

The fans just didn't understand him. They would rather cheer for the liars and the guys who held on too long. He was the only one willing to speak the truth. Someday, far in the future, when he decided to retire, he wouldn't act like these fools did nowadays. He wouldn't be wrestling into his 60's. He had dignity and a respect for his career. He wasn't going to sully his name by throwing himself around far after his body could take it. He respected himself and would respect his legacy, unlike the men he'd faced at WrestleMania.

He was done with Raw after tonight, but they wouldn't be done with him. People would miss him. It was inevitable. Chris was one of the best in the company and they were going to miss his presence. Who was supposed to replace him? Big Show? That man was such a buffoon and Chris could wrestle circles around the man. MVP? Please, no chance. Hunter? Hunter was good, but he wasn't Chris levels of good. There was simply nobody here who cold possibly replace him and they would be begging for his return and he would not come back because these people were not appreciative of him. Not that he expected the people over on SmackDown to be any more appreciative. You can't just switch shows and expect the fans to be switched as well, it didn't work that way.

He was about to leave when Steamboat's music played. Chris couldn't believe the audacity this man had. Just because he was still able to go for a few minutes in the ring didn't meant he had the right to interrupt in Chris's farewell. This was his moment, not Steamboat's. Steamboat had had a plethora of moments and it was time for him to fade into the background again and remember his place was no longer in front of the cameras. He came down to the ring and Chris sneered. What did this man want now?

Then Steamboat actually thanked him, thanked him for the match and Chris, somewhere deep, deep inside, where that young man still resided, was leaping up and down, excited that Ricky "the Dragon" Steamboat was thanking _him_. For that young man, the one who still lived in Chris and came out with great frequency when he was being silly, this was a dream come true. But he had to suppress that because the adult in him knew what Steamboat was doing. He was trying to prolong his minutes far beyond the moment when they'd run out.

Nobody cared about him, not really and he said so. The guys he had faced at WrestleMania hadn't shown their faces and Steamboat was sure to join the bunch. Some of the wrestling fans out in the audience didn't even really know who Ricky Steamboat was. They just cheered him because they heard the term "Hall of Famer" and they saw the video clips of times gone by and acted like he was the second coming. For that reason alone he would've demanded the match, but he wanted to show Steamboat that his place was no longer in the ring. He could extend this until Sunday and then he would move on to bigger and better things over on SmackDown.

Chris was going to leave _again_ when Cena's music hit. Chris was silently pleased by the boos that rained down on the World Champion. These Londoners just might be alright after all. Cena came into the ring and Chris could already predict what he was going to say. All he had to do was take one of Rock's own speeches circa 2001 and replace the names, hell, sometimes he probably didn't even have to replace the names since a lot of Rocky's promos were about Chris.

Chris cut off Cena and told him to stop. He could save those useless words for someone else. He was going to walk out on Cena and not even listen to him. He started to walk backstage and Steamboat accepted his match. Chris smiled and started backstage again, but leave it to Cena to interrupt again and tell him they were going to have a match. Chris stopped, but then thought about it and he could deal with having a match, yes, it would be good for his final act on Raw to be taking out John Cena.

"He's incredible," Stephanie mused, but then turned back to her brother, "do you get what I'm saying here?"

"We're just trying to protect you, plus, Randy mentioned _my_ kids in that little spiel too. In case you've forgotten they're McMahon grandchildren too."

"I know," she said. "I get that you want to protect Declan and Kenny, but seriously, you could've talked to me and the Vickie thing, I'm so mad about that."

"That's not on me, sis," Shane said. "That's completely Dad."

"I don't want to talk to him," Stephanie said, thinking about her blow up with her dad. "He is completely against me, _again_."

"So what are you going to do?"

"I don't know," she said, standing up, "but believe me, something is going to be done."

Chris took over for Hunter, who had his own match to worry about later. Flynn was starting to fall asleep against Sawyer so Chris took her in his arms and changed her diaper and then put her in her footie pajamas. He turned down the lights, only leaving the television on. He rocked Flynn until she was asleep and then set her down in her playpen, which was serving as her temporary cot. Sawyer was watching the show and Chris sat with him, letting Sawyer cuddle up to his side.

Stephanie walked in and smiled at the picture in front of her. "Hey, you two."

"Hey," Chris said as Stephanie sat down with them and kissed Chris in greeting, "where've you been?"

"Talking with Shane," she said with a sigh. Chris could easily tell it hadn't gone too well. "We were just talking about the match on Sunday and my dad."

"Sounds like a rousing good time."

"Oh, you'd be surprised at how much it wasn't a rousing good time," Stephanie said. "Did you get the kids fed? I'm guessing you did since I don't seem to have cranky kids."

"I did get them fed. I ate with Katie."

"Did you iron out your plans for Wednesday?"

"Sort of, I'll talk to her about it tomorrow and we'll get the details set," Chris said. "I'm really excited to see this band."

"I'm just glad I don't have to go," Stephanie smiled. "It seems Katie is good for something."

"She's better than Mickie or Kelly," Chris pointed out.

"Can I just say how happy I am that you're getting away from the likes of those two? I mean, with them hanging off you all the time, I was ready to fight dirty and I can't because I can't be with you right now, unfortunately. But when this plan is over…"

"When do you think that will be because I'd like it if my family could be on the show that I am currently on."

"God willing, Sunday," Stephanie said, rubbing his shoulder a little and looking down at Sawyer, who was still watching the television and not even paying attention to them. "So the plan for tomorrow is to leave S-a-w-y-e-r with Christian so we can go shopping for his b-i-r-t-h-d-a-y p-r-e-s-e-n-t-s."

"That is the plan," Chris said. "It's getting down to crunch time."

"Three, God, we're getting old."

"Speak for yourself lady, look at this face," Chris said, moving his face around. "This is the face of a sexy beast. I'm secretly trying to wean myself off of you and onto Katie, I think we're a better match."

Stephanie placed her hand on Chris's chin and brought his face towards her, "Don't you even think about it."

"But…but I want a newer model," he told her with a funny pout.

She leaned forward and kissed him, "Stuck with me."

"One of these days, baby, one of these days."

"Nope," she told him. "I want his day to be good since it'll be his first with Flynn. I want her to do something special for him."

"A soft-shoe number perhaps?"

"No, like a finger painting or just something he can show to people and say that this is his sister."

"Mommy, are you talk about me?" Sawyer asked.

"Geez, nosy," Stephanie said, poking him in the nose.

"Hey, so I wanted to discuss something with you," Chris said and Stephanie could tell he was serious now. She turned to him.

"Lay it on me, Jericho."

"I want to tell Katie what's going on."

"Oh," she said. "Why?"

"Because I'm getting to be friends with her and I feel bad that I'm lying to her face about everything. I think she can handle it and I think we can trust her."

"Are you sure she's not friends with you because she wants in your pants. Since you started wearing those hideous trunks, everyone can see what business is going on down there and they could be like, 'Damn, that's what Stephanie gets, I want me a piece of that!'"

"I don't think anyone says it quite like that," Chris laughed, kissing her for her silliness. "I don't think she wants in my pants either."

"Is she single?"

"Yes."

"Then she wants in your pants," Stephanie said.

"How do you know that?"

"Have you ever met a girl who didn't want in your pants?"

"Well now you're just trying to stroke my ego," Chris joked. "But yes, I don't think Chyna wanted in my pants and we were partners."

"Well, let's face it there," Stephanie said suggestively. "But name someone else."

"Trish."

"She's with Christian, she doesn't count."

"There are plenty of women who don't want me."

"Still, how do you know she's telling the truth?"

"Because I know. I've been hanging with her, we're going to a concert together. We have a lot in common. I just feel bad lying to her."

"What if at the concert, she tries to kiss you? What then?"

"Then I will politely tell her not to or back away. Just because someone is leaning in for a kiss doesn't mean I'm going to lean in too. Why do people think that? I'm married, I love you, I've loved you since like a month after we started dating, why would I suddenly forget all that because some chick is leaning in? I like to think I could lean away from that."

"I trust you," she said, "if I didn't trust you, I wouldn't be letting you go to this concert."

"I thought that was because you didn't want to go."

"Partly," she said, leaning in.

Chris leaned away and looked at her, "What do you think you're doing?"

"Oh, very funny."

"We're separated, McMahon, you can't just be kissing me whenever you want."

Stephanie grabbed the back of his hand and pulled him towards her, kissing him deeply, slithering her tongue into his mouth like a greedy serpent. Chris wanted to shift, but Sawyer was still sitting there watching the television. He was watching Santino acting like a fool. If he had looked up he would've seen his mother and father acting like teenagers and setting themselves up for what could end up being baby #3.

"Oh crap," Chris said, "I've got my match soon."

"Oh God, yes, you do," Stephanie said.

"Kid, you've got to get up because Daddy is going to be wrestling soon."

"Okay," Sawyer said, crawling across Chris's lap and into his mommy's. She was comfier and more cuddly anyways. His daddy wasn't as cuddly as his mommy was.

"He likes me better," Stephanie shrugged.

Chris flipped her off as Stephanie gasped and covered Sawyer's eyes playfully. Chris went to his duffel and rooted around through all of his kids' stuff for his wrestling trunks, which were considerably smaller nowadays. He grabbed a pair and changed in the bathroom He came back out barefoot and sat down to put his boots on as he looked at the divas match happening right now.

"You can tell her," Stephanie told him.

The laces dropped from his hands and he peered over at her, "What?"

"You can tell her," Stephanie shrugged. "She seems cool to me so go ahead."

"You're the best," Chris told her. The way he was looking at her made her roll her eyes outwardly, but inwardly, he fell a little bit more in love with her. It was the small things at this point. He loved that she didn't try to control him.

"I try."

Chris kissed her again, "I love you."

"You better," she told him, "but I love you too."

Chris got up and walked down the hall for his match. It was going to be a nice swan song to his time on Raw to kick Cena's ass. If only the title were at stake. The match started and once again, Cena was getting boos. He kind of liked it though, it made him think that at least for one moment, the fans actually did appreciate him and that meant a lot to him, even if they were now chanting for Cena You couldn't have everything you wanted, he supposed.

The match went on for a while, with both men getting the advantage every now and then. Chris had nothing personally against Cena, but the guy rubbed him the wrong way so he'd take pleasure in kicking his ass. Cena seemed to want to do the same thing to him. Chris tried to picture him as Randy and that worked for while and he thought he might get the win, but then Edge was out there and attacking Cena. He should've expected that with them fighting each other on Sunday. He rolled out of the ring and out of sight. He wasn't needed anymore and better to go out now than with a loss.

Hunter was glad he was facing Randy tonight. It would save him stewing for days and days until he could seriously injure Randy at Backlash. Tonight's match was even a No DQ match so it afforded Hunter being as brutal as he wanted to be and he was in a brutal mood. Randy had tried to make him believe that he'd slept with Britt and now that Hunter knew he hadn't, revenge was playing in his mind and revenge he would get. Sure, Sunday, Batista and Shane would be in his corner, but if they even for a moment believed they'd be getting the pin, they were wrong. Hunter was out for blood.

At the end of the match, Hunter had Randy right where he wanted him. He had a chair around his ankle and he was going to make it so Randy could barely walk for their match on Sunday. Unfortunately, his plans were curbed as Ted and Cody ran out from the back. It turned to chaos as the guys on his team ran out as well. No matter though, come Sunday, Randy would pay and hopefully he'd have Britt back on his side.

"Hey, Katie, wait up!"

Katie stopped and turned, waiting for Chris. "Hello again."

"Hey, are you busy?" he asked.

"No, not at the moment, no, I was just leaving. Why, did you need something?"

"I was hoping we could talk."

"Oh, yes, sure, is this about Wednesday?"

"No, it's not, it's about…well, things, God, it's really hard to explain," Chris said, rubbing the back of his neck. "We're getting to be friends, right?"

"Yes, I think so, do you not think we're friends?" she asked, a little concerned. She thought she was making a good impression with him and she liked him and his tastes.

"I think we are, which is why I needed to talk. You see, things around here aren't what they seem."

"I don't know what you're talking about. Are you…are you trying to ask me out?"

Chris tried to hold in his laughter, "No, I'm sorry, that's not the impression I'm trying to set here. Actually, it's me and Stephanie…we're not broken up. We're not even separated, we're not even living in separate houses or beds for that matter. When I go back to my hotel, I plan on getting in bed with my wife."

"What? But…Hunter and her and you've fought…I don't understand."

"It's a plan. It's a plan to get at Randy for what he did, the entire thing, we planned it. You're my friend and I hated lying to you, I wanted to get our friendship off to the best start it could. I love Stephanie, she's the best, she's my wife and I love her and I wanted you to know that because we're friends."

"Are we still going out Wednesday?"

"Yeah, of course, she really doesn't want to go," Chris said. "She encouraged me."

"So it's a plan?"

"Yeah, I mean, I can explain it later, we both can. Or I can, whichever," he said. "I just wanted to be honest with you."

"Well, I appreciate honesty." She still looked a little bit shell-shocked, like her mind was trying to process how this could all be part of a plan. She had seen the fights and the arguments. She'd seen Hunter and Stephanie together. But then it kind of started to make sense, especially that entire scene at the after-party during WrestleMania weekend. Stephanie had gone nuts because she was very much in love with her husband. It did make sense. Everything was starting to make more sense.

"So…can I trust you to keep our secret?"


	232. What to Do? April 27, 2009

A/N: I'm going through a terrible bout of writer's block, so hopefully this isn't too terrible. Please leave a review. :)

* * *

"Well I must say it is a little strange."

"What's strange?" Chris asked as he and Katie walked down the street. Chris was pushing Flynn's stroller. They were just walking around Greenwich for a while. Stephanie had already made her way to Bridgeport for Raw that evening. Chris was probably going to head up later, he wasn't sure yet. He had no real explanation for being there, but Stephanie and Sawyer were there.

After telling her entire truth the week before, Katie had been surprisingly wonderful about the entire thing. She'd accepted an invitation to have dinner with Chris and Stephanie and even Stephanie was starting to come around to liking her. Of course, Stephanie would never admit it to Chris's face, but they were both grateful that Katie was trustworthy. Now she and Chris were hanging out and taking Flynn for a walk.

"This entire thing with you and Stephanie," she said, "I mean, after last night, what are you going to do with this plan? I mean, Hunter's injured, do you have Stephanie defend him or something on television?"

"We're not too sure, actually, Hunter getting beat like that wasn't exactly in the game plan."

"Is he angry with you?" she asked.

"Why?" Chris asked, wondering why Hunter would be mad at him. He had visited Hunter this morning at the hospital but the other man had been asleep so it was a short visit. The doctors were calling it a concussion and advised him to take some time off to make sure it healed properly. If he went back too soon it could mean another concussion.

"Because you and Stephanie came up with this plan…"

"Hold up, no, Stephanie came up with this plan," he said, leaning down to adjust the hat on Flynn's head, which had come down over her eyes. She leaned back and smiled up at her daddy in thanks. "I just go along with the ride."

"Is that how it usually is?" she asked. "I mean, you 'going along for the ride' as you put it?"

"Well, yeah," Chris said.

"Oh," Katie said, nodding as she thought to herself, "so Stephanie's like that a lot of the time?"

"Like what?"

"Like she's the boss all the time?" she asked.

Chris laughed, "I wouldn't say she's the boss _all_ the time. I mean, in our personal lives, I would say that it's very 50-50 with the both of us. Sometimes though, she wants to do something and I love her so I do and sometimes I want to do something and she loves me so she does whatever I ask."

"Oh, okay, I just don't know her very well. She always comes off a little bit…overbearing whenever I've seen her."

"She likes to be intimidating."

"Well, she's got that down, that's for sure," Katie said. There was something about Stephanie that could be downright scary. She could get this look in her eye that would wither plants. She was a very stern person and Katie had never really had much contact with her so she could only base her opinion on what she knew. "But Hunter isn't mad at you then?"

"No, he hasn't said he's mad at us. Besides, he agreed to the plan and Randy wanted his title anyways so he had to defend it anyways. I don't think he was anticipating getting kicked in the head, but maybe he could use the time off."

"Yeah, I suppose. It just seems like it would very much hurt to get kicked in the head, I might get mad at people."

"You don't seem the type to have a temper."

"Oh, I do."

"Well, I think Hunter is going to be fine."

_Stephanie rushed to Hunter's side as soon as he was wheeled backstage. This wasn't an act either, she was genuinely concerned for her friend. Britt couldn't be there with him so she had to be the next best thing. Chris was with the kids in the back and she was watching from the gorilla. She really thought Hunter would have it, she really thought he'd retain. She liked Ted, sure, but Hunter had Batista on his team. She had not expected this for Hunter and she was worried. She'd never been kicked in the head, but she didn't need a rocket scientist to tell her it hurt._

"_Hunter?"_

"_Stephanie, we need to get him to the hospital?"_

"_Is he going to be okay?"_

"_We don't know yet, it looks like a bad concussion, we need to get him checked out, make sure there's nothing more serious going on."_

"_Can I come with you?" she asked, grabbing onto Hunter's hand. It should be Britt grabbing onto his hand, but Stephanie would have to be the substitute for now. _

"_Yeah, of course," the paramedic said, seeing the concern in Stephanie's eyes. _

"_Thanks," she told him as she followed diligently, her hand still clasped with Hunter's. He hadn't even stirred since he'd come through the curtain and that's what was causing a knot to form in her stomach. She knew that regardless of the situation with her and Hunter and Chris and Britt, Randy would've gone after the title, but she still felt responsible for this. If she'd just put her foot down, if she'd tried to wrestle against her father and brother, maybe she wouldn't be in this situation right now._

_She was running her hands through her hair as she watched them attend to Hunter. She pulled out her cell phone and after asking if it was alright to use, she first dialed Britt's number, seeing as how Britt had left her 5 messages already. _

"_Stephanie!" Britt said on the first ring._

"_Hey," Stephanie said, her voice downtrodden._

"_Is he okay? Where is he? What are they doing with him?" she asked, her voice panicked and her words slurring together._

"_I'm with him right now," she explained. "We're in the ambulance and we're on our way to the hospital. I'll call you as soon as I find out anything."_

"_What hospital?"_

"_What hospital are we going to?" Stephanie asked the paramedic checking Hunter's pulse._

"_Butler."_

"_Butler Hospital," Stephanie said to Britt._

"_I'm on my way, I'll let his parents know, I'm not even sure they were watching tonight, they don't really like to watch him, but I'll tell them anyways…do you think I should?"_

"_Yeah, better to err on the side of caution," Stephanie said. "I'll see you in a bit, are you close enough to get here?"_

"_Yeah, I'm within driving distance, I mean, I'm not in Rhode Island, but I can get there in a few hours, I'll be there, I'm actually in the car already, I know the show's in Providence, I just needed to know where."_

"_I'll see you soon then."_

"_Thanks for calling me back," Britt said, then hung up hastily. Stephanie started to make another call._

"_Steph?"_

"_Hey," Stephanie said, turning away a little so she could get a little bit of privacy._

"_Where are you? I heard you went with Hunter?"_

"_I couldn't let him go alone," she said, looking at her ex-husband. They were trying to find some smelling salts to run under his nose to wake him up. _

"_I understand, I've got the kids, your brother said he would take them for the night," Chris said. "I'm going to come to the hospital."_

"_Do you think that's safe? What if Randy is lurking around?" Stephanie asked._

"_He's not going to come to the hospital. I know this because he came to me gloating about what he did and he said he and Cody and your boy toy were going to go out and celebrate his win. I expect him to get extremely drunk and then end up sleeping with some ring rat."_

"_Oh, good," Stephanie said, though under normal circumstances, that was really kind of gross. "He was gloating."_

"_You should've heard him," Chris said with disgust. "He was going on and on about how good it felt and how he just pictured Britt watching and appreciating it. He honestly thinks that this will bring her right into his arms, can you believe that? If I kicked your ex in the head…oh wait…"_

"_Very funny," she said, rolling her eyes._

"_I didn't make the connection, honest," he said, "I'll go back even further…what was the name of that guy you dated in college?"_

"_None of your business. I called her and she said that she was coming down to check on him."_

"_Oh yeah? I thought they were on the outs."_

"_If you weren't so busy getting buddy-buddy with Katie, you would've heard that they were talking again."_

"_I should've realized this when Hunter didn't show up on our couch half-naked, my bad. I'm going to come be with you. Shane and Rissa can handle the kids for one night. Sawyer is a breeze, he just sleeps and Flynn just needs a diaper change and she's good to go for the night. They don't have to deal with anyone waking up."_

"_You don't have to, I'm okay by myself."_

"_I don't care, you're my wife and I don't want to know you're sitting there all night while I'm in our nice, comfortable bed."_

"_Thanks," she said, "I'll see you in a bit."_

"_Bye, love you."_

"_Me too, bye."_

_Stephanie hung up just as Hunter was starting to slowly wake up from his unconsciousness. He turned his head a little and groaned. She took hold of his hand again and rubbed the back of it with her fingers. He used to like this gesture back in the day, maybe it still held true for today. He couldn't really tilt his head to the side so he tried to move his eyes to the side. Stephanie, recognizing what he was trying to do, scoot closer and hovered her face over his._

"_Hey, you're awake," she said softly._

"_Hey," he said hoarsely._

"_Don't try to talk."_

"_What's wrong with me?" he asked. His mind felt so hazy right now. It was like he was stepping through clouds. Even Stephanie was starting to look fuzzy to him, like she had an ethereal glow around her. Strange, that. He blinked his eyes to try and get rid of it, but there it still was._

"_You probably have a concussion, you'll be okay," she told him._

_He nodded, believing her. He had no reason not to believe her. She just looked so nice sitting there. "Okay."_

"_Yeah, it'll be just fine."_

_When he was admitted and checked over they declared it a grade 4 concussion. They'd barely needed a CT scan to make that assumption, the loss of consciousness had pretty much done that. Because he'd been unconsciousness for more than a minute, they'd immediately set about to admitting him. Luckily for Stephanie she knew most of his information and she was still listed as the next of kin even though they'd been divorced for seven years. Thank goodness for Hunter's forgetfulness._

_Still, he did need to get his head examined and by the time he got to his room, Chris had joined Stephanie. Hunter was on the verge of sleep, but did acknowledge Chris was there. Chris smiled and patted him on the shoulder as the doctor spoke with Stephanie._

"_How are you feeling?" Chris asked him._

"_Been better," he said with a very slight shrug. His eyes were still glassy._

_Stephanie walked over, "Well, he has a grade 4 concussion, which is the worst you can have."_

_Chris nodded, "I know the concussion grades, believe me, I've had enough concussions to know that."_

_She looked at him, her eyes narrowing. "I don't like to hear that, you know."_

"_What? It's true."_

"_I still don't like to hear that, it worries me that you've had so many concussions, you know that," she told him._

"_Steph, can we get back to the issue at hand here," Chris said, gesturing towards Hunter, who was struggling to stay awake. _

"_Oh yeah, sorry, so he has a grade 4 concussion and they're going to keep him a couple days for observation, but then he should be able to go home. They said he could be out for more than a month."_

"_Wow, that long?" Chris asked._

"_Yeah, I know," she shrugged. She turned to Hunter and brushed some hair out of his face, "How you doing?"_

"_Okay."_

"_Yeah, right," Chris muttered, but Stephanie shot him a look saying this was neither the time nor the place for his little snide comments. "Sorry."_

"_You're going to be fine, they just want to keep you here for a while. Britt is on her way, okay?"_

"_Britt," he said with a smile. "I like her."_

"_I know you do," Stephanie said, trying to hold in her laugh. Chris caught her trying not to laugh and he poked her in the side. She shoved his hand away. Stephanie looked at her watch. "If she didn't run into traffic, I think she'll be here soon, you were in the CT scan and your consultation for a while so she should be here soon."_

"_Soon, good, soon, I like soon," Hunter babbled to himself._

"_He's like Sawyer," Chris said._

"_Stop!" Stephanie hissed._

"_I can't poke a little fun at the guy?"_

"_No, he's our friend and he's hurt and it's our fault," she said, biting her lip and turning back to Hunter, but his eyes were closed and his breath was starting to even out._

"_Our fault? I didn't kick him in the head."_

"_I mean this plan, it's our fault…_my_ fault. Now he's in a hospital bed because of me and when he's coherent, he's going to be so angry that he's going to miss so much time. He hates being out of action and he's been out of action for so long before. It's all my fault."_

"_Stephanie, Randy is unhinged most of the time," Chris told her, wrapping his arm around her waist and gently pulling her into his body. She wasn't crying nor was she on the verge of it, but he could tell she was upset. He held her gently by the waist and then placed his other hand on the back of her neck, rubbing soothingly. She rested her cheek against his shoulder and banded her arms around his waist. "It'll be okay."_

"_When did you get so good at comforting?"_

"_I've got a three year old and an eight month old, where the hell do you think I got so good at it? All I do is comfort people," he told her, kissing her head. "Look, Randy, as much as he wanted to hurt the McMahons, also wanted the belt. Hunter had the belt. Therefore regardless of this entire thing, he would've wanted to get the belt. He loves kicking people in the head. Hunter would've been kicked in the head under any circumstance."_

"_You think so?"_

"_Yeah, trust me, he's like a rogue…wrestler or something. I don't know why Cody and Ted put up with that," Chris shook his head. "But look, it's not your fault. Plus, he agreed to this, so stop beating yourself up about it."_

"_Okay, I guess," she said, pulling away and kissing him. "Thank you."_

"_It's what I'm here for," Chris said. "What we have to figure out is how we go from here."_

"_What do you mean? I don't understand."_

"_Stephanie, the man is out for a while, do we go on pretending like we're hating each other and not married and completely separated until he comes back?"_

"_I didn't even think about that, can we think about it later, right now I just want to make sure Hunter's okay."_

_He kissed her again, "Yeah, we can do that."_

Britt flipped through the pages of her magazine. She'd been up for a few hours, but the same couldn't be said for Hunter. He'd been out since she arrived last night. They said it was pretty normal for someone with a concussion to sleep this much. Every once in a while a nurse would come in and wake him up and he would, but then he'd quickly go back to sleep. Normal, they called it, but she wanted to see him and she was getting impatient.

Chris and Stephanie had stayed with her for a couple of hours, but they had children and lives and they couldn't stay forever. She'd called Hunter's parents, but they weren't there and she'd left a message. They hadn't called her back so they probably hadn't seen what happened with Hunter. Either that or they were downright ignoring her and she could almost believe that. Hunter's mother still had issues with their age difference. Thankfully they hardly ever watched him so they didn't know this whole thing with Stephanie. His mother would probably blow a gasket if she knew about that, given the fact she couldn't stand Stephanie.

"Britt?"

Britt looked up and saw Hunter with his head turned toward her. She lit up and stood up quickly, abandoning her magazine and grabbing Hunter's hand. "Hey, you, do you know how long I've been waiting to see you wake up?"

He gave a soft laugh, "Long?"

"Yes, I got here last night," she said, "but they did warn me you'd be out for a while."

"Did you eat?" he asked her.

"Yeah, don't worry, I've been keeping myself from starving," she told him. "Are you hungry?"

"A little, what time is it?"

"It's around noon," she told him.

"Can I go to Raw tonight?"

"Oh babe, no, you have to stay one more night for observation, but they said you can go home tomorrow. You can't go to the show tonight."

"Next week?"

"No, you're going to be out for a while," she told him slowly.

"What?"

"You're going to be out for a while, it's not too long, but you'll be okay," she told him. "I promise. You have a grade 4 concussion, it's the worst you can have, but you'll be okay. I'm sorry."

"For what?" he asked.

"Not being here when you needed me, for you having to be out, I don't know," she said, leaning down and kissing his cheek. "Did you miss me?"

"Yes," he said. "A lot."

"I missed you too. I called your parents, I don't think they were home, but I left a message, they should be here soon, I hope," she told him.

"Just sit with me, okay?"

"Okay," she nodded, "I can do that."

"When did you get here?"

"Last night, I saw and left immediately," she explained. "Chris and Stephanie stayed for a while, but I told them to go home, since you know, they have Flynn and Sawyer. They hope you feel better though."

"Is Stephanie okay?"

"Why wouldn't she be okay?"

"I don't know, with Randy, I don't know, he might have hurt her."

"No, he didn't hurt her, she's okay," Britt said, "just worry about yourself, okay?"

"Okay."

Stephanie looked up from the paperwork she was doing. Vickie walked into the room. She'd never understand why that woman insisted on being wheeled everywhere while she was perfectly capable of walking. Stephanie looked down and rolled her eyes at the "holier-than-thou" look Vickie was sporting. She hoped to God she never looked like that and if she did, she needed to change her ways now.

"Stephanie, hello!"

Nails on a chalkboard, "What can I do for you, Vickie?"

"I wasn't expecting you to be here tonight," Vickie said, "especially with the unfortunate happenings of the night before. I mean, what Hunter went through, it must've been so terrible for you."

"I'm fine," Stephanie told her.

"Good, good," Vickie nodded, "I just wanted to make sure you understood that this is my show now and didn't try to…you know, interfere with the way I run it. I understand that you were the interim GM, but you should just let me handle things now. I planned the show accordingly."

Stephanie sucked at her teeth a little and then looked at the paperwork in front of her. She could bite her tongue and take the high road, yes, she could do that, but what would the fun be in that? Instead she stood up and placed her hands flat on the surface in front of her. Vickie was giving her a smug smile and Stephanie gave her one right back.

"Well, Vickie, I hope _you_ remember that I am in charge of…well, everyone. I know you're the GM and that's all well and good, but in case you've forgotten, my title is Executive Vice President and well, I think that trumps your title _just_ a little. So yes, run the show, do what you need to do, but I'm just over your shoulder, Vickie, just over it and I'm watching everything you do and trust me, I will have no hesitation firing anyone I find…unsatisfactory. You're dismissed."

The smile dropped from Vickie's face and was replaced by a dour look, though Vickie was trying desperately not to show it. She nodded slightly and said nothing more as she left the room. Stephanie rolled her eyes again. Maybe going to SmackDown with Chris was a better option than staying at this hole of a show. She'd seen the schedule and she could've done a much better job. She admired Vickie for being a strong woman, but she was just a vile person in general. Maybe Teddy was a little easier to get along with, he seemed so.

She picked up her cell phone and was about to dial when the door opened again. If it was Vickie, Stephanie was going to have more than harsh words for her. But it wasn't, it was Shane. "Hey, sis."

"Oh hey," she said, putting her phone down. "What are you doing here? I thought you weren't coming tonight."

"Nobody knows I'm here. I snuck in," he told him. "Made sure not to announce my presence."

"Why so incognito?" she asked.

"I want a little revenge on Randy."

"For what he did to Hunter?" Stephanie asked. "I didn't know you cared so much."

"I don't, I mean, I do, I don't want to see the guy hurt like that, but this is more because he couldn't get the job done."

"Because he lost?"

"Because I don't feel like we've gotten the revenge we deserve for everything he's done."

"Shane, please don't do anything stupid," Stephanie said with a sigh. "I don't need you ending up in a hospital too."

"I'm not going to, believe me, I've got everything planned and then some," Shane said. "Why do you think I snuck in here tonight? Randy is never going to see me coming. I want him to pay for what he's done and he will. If nobody else is willing to do it and Chris _can't_ since he's on SmackDown now, then I'm going to do it."

"Shane, how can you not think this is stupid? You are not a wrestler, you are one guy and Legacy is three guys."

"Don't worry about it, I've got it covered, okay?"

"What are you planning?"

"Nothing you need to worry about, you just sit back and watch and learn," he winked at her. "I just wanted you to be prepared to see it."

"I'm not in charge of the show, Vickie made that pretty clear to me."

"Who cares about Vickie, we run the joint, we can do whatever the hell we want," Shane shrugged. "And yes, that did come across as arrogant as I wanted it to. I'm sick of Randy and his stupid little group and it's about time I did something about it."

"Didn't you try that already and get a kick to the head?"

"Well, I wasn't as prepared then as I am now."

"How do you know you're _so_ prepared?"

"I just am, will you stop trying to talk me out of this."

"Geez, sorry, not trying to talk you out of it anymore. Go out there and be the crazy Shane I know and love."

"This is all I ask," Shane laughed.

"Were the kids good for you?"

"Yeah, they were…speaking of…where the hell is Sawyer?" Shane asked, looking around and not seeing the little blond-haired boy anywhere."

"He's with Christian."

"What's Christian doing here?"

"He's hanging out with Edge, who is also here. I think Vickie insisted he come."

"When is he going to drop her like a bad habit?"

"I don't know, soon? Anyways, Christian is here hanging out with him. Did you see them last night? Edge was acting like a crazy man."

"Well, how is he now with the title back?"

Stephanie nodded, "Equally as crazy."

_Christian walked backstage and wasn't greeted by the one person he wanted to be greeted by. Sure, Finlay and Dreamer and Evan were cool enough, but they weren't his wife and he wanted to talk to her immediately. She was going to be so proud of him. He let himself get caught up in the congratulations until he saw his brother standing off to the side. He walked over to him and Edge started in on a diatribe. Christian didn't think he was better than him and asked Edge why he was being such an ass. _

_Edge attributed it all to Cena, but somewhere deep down, Christian believed that Edge was more upset with this entire Vickie and Lita thing and was trying not to let it show. He sympathized with his brother, but he had other things he had to deal with. He watched as Edge walked away and then suddenly he was thrown forward when a body hit him from behind._

"_Oh my God, you were amazing out there!"_

_Christian grinned and turned and greeted his wife with a heated kiss, "Hey, Trishy."_

"_You were great! Great!" she told him, taking his belt off his shoulder. She stared down at it. "This thing is _huge_! I'm so proud of you! I was rooting for you the entire time, of course, I mean, I wasn't going to root for Jack Swagger, what a name, am I right? Oh, I'm thrilled, _thrilled_ over this!"_

"_I can tell," he said, hugging her._

_Trish tried to jump up and wrapped her arms around his neck, a very awkward gesture seeing as how she still had the belt in her arms and her leg in a cast. Christian hoisted her up so she could get at his mouth properly, the belt starting to fall over and would soon clatter to the ground. She wrapped her legs around his waist and started making out with him and everyone was just kind of staring uncomfortably and trying to look away from the obvious public display of affection._

"_Oh quit, you two," Stephanie said as she walked by. Trish flipped her off._

"_You're the champion," Trish whispered against his lips._

"_I am."_

"It nice, Chissy," Sawyer said, running his hands over the belt again and again. His daddy didn't have anything like this anymore. He'd never seen one like Christian's before, it was all gray and didn't look like his daddy's had, but he liked it, it was pretty. "I have one too."

"You have one?" Christian asked.

"It look like dat," Sawyer said, pointing to the belt that was hanging off Edge's shoulder. "I see dat too, pease, Ed."

"My name isn't Ed," Edge sighed and put the belt on the table so Sawyer could look at it.

"What is name den?" he asked.

"Edge, _Edge_," Edge said, sounding it out for him. Sawyer thought for a moment and shrugged, looking at Edge's belt.

"I have one, Mommy and Daddy got it," Sawyer told him. "It just mine, not Daddy's."

"You know, I wouldn't be surprised if Sawyer had the real one and Stephanie had a replica made for everyone else," Christian chuckled.

Edge looked at his belt and tried to study the jewels in it. "You know, I wouldn't put it past her either. I should get this checked out."

"I was joking," Christian said. "So what did you want to discuss with me."

"Next week, I think I'm going to tell Vickie I want out."

"Seriously, _finally_?" Christian asked.

"Yeah, I know, don't rub it in. But now that the draft is official, now that I'm totally on Smackdown and she's totally on Raw, I think that it's time we went our separate ways, so yeah, I'm going to ask for a divorce. Besides, she can just rebound with Big Show."

"You don't seem to care about that."

"Why would I? All the more power to her for getting a guy."

"Okay," Christian said, looking at Sawyer. "Which one do you like better, Sawyer?"

"Mine," Sawyer said, "I like yours. It nice and shiny."

"Thanks," Christian said, patting his belt. "I'm sure your daddy will get one soon."

"Hey!" Edge said. "I'm the one holding the belt on our brand, he'd have to beat me."

"I'm trying to make the kid happy," Christian said. "Hey, speak of the devil."

"Edge, baby, hi," Vickie said, coming over and kissing him on the cheek. Edge noticeably flinched. "I just wanted to tell you again how proud I am of you and how proud I am to be your wife. We're going to rule both brands, I swear!"

Edge cringed and then nodded, "Yup."

"Oh, this is going to be a great night, I can just feel it," she said, squeezing him. She didn't notice Sawyer had put his hands over his ears to try and drown her out. He thought his mommy's voice was screechy sometimes, but this was practically unbearable!

"Uh huh."

"I'll see you later, baby," she said, kissing him on the cheek. "I've got lots of work to do."

"Yeah," he said as she walked away.

"How do you put up with that?" Christian asked.

"It's getting harder and harder everyday."

"She loud," Sawyer said as he uncovered his ears. "Who was dat?"

"That's Edge's wife," Christian answered.

"Wife?" Sawyer asked, not understanding that word.

"It means they're married, like your mommy and daddy are and like me and Trish are," Christian said. He looked over at his brother and smirked. He was going to have a laugh at his brother's expense because Edge was so obviously uncomfortable with this entire thing. It wasn't often Christian got to have the upper-hand in his relationship with his brother, so he was enjoying the moment.

"It's not funny, do you see her? She's hovering now."

"You only think that because you're in love with someone else."

"What if she takes this horribly and tries to get me fired?"

"How is she going to do that? She doesn't have that authority. Besides, you're on SmackDown, only Teddy could fire you, I guess, does he have the power?"

"I don't know," Edge said.

"Plus, you're friends with Stephanie, she'd never let you get fired," Christian told him.

"Oh yeah, I am friends with her," Edge said, starting to feel better. "Yeah, that's right and she wouldn't let me get fired…unless…wait, no, she's not with Chris anymore, right?"

Christian laughed, "Yeah, right."

"You talk about my mommy and daddy," Sawyer said, looking at Edge.

"Yeah, I am, sorry, I didn't mean to talk about them, I don't want to make it more difficult for you than it already is."

"Yeah, man, because he's three and so emotionally invested in his parents."

"Hey, you know, he's a kid, divorce affects the children," Edge said somberly. "Where's the little one anyways?"

"With Chris."

Chris let Flynn try a spoonful of ice cream. She tasted it and her eyes widened and then her eyes scrunched together because it was so cold and her mouth wasn't ready for that. Chris laughed at her face. Katie had had to leave a little while ago, her brother had wanted to meet her for something so it was just him and his #1a girl. His #1b girl was working right now.

"You didn't like that, huh, flutterby?" Chris asked. "Or did you?"

"Chris?"

Chris turned around and laughed, "Rissa?"

"Hey," she laughed, leading Kenyon and Declan over to the small table where Chris was sitting. "You wanted to get out in the sun too?"

"Yeah, I went on a walk with Flynn and Katie, but Katie had to leave."

"Katie…Lea?" Marissa asked as she helped Kenny into a seat. Declan had already taken a seat and was smiling at his cousin. She'd spent the night last night and she remembered these guys this morning.

"Yeah," Chris said.

"You two are getting close," she observed.

"I wouldn't say close, she's cool."

"Uh huh," Marissa said.

"Oh God, did Stephanie get in your brain too?"

"No," she said, "but she did tell me that you had a little bit of a crush on her and now she knows your secret. You think she's pretty?"

"Yes, I do think she's pretty, so what? I think you're pretty."

She laughed, "I'm also your sister-in-law, completely off-limits."

"Katie's off-limits too," Chris said, holding up his hand and showing her his wedding ring.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Marissa said. "I'm just watching out for my sister-in-law, like you would watch out for Shane."

"Where is your husband?"

"Raw," Marissa said. "He's going to attack Randy. He has some whole plan with MVP of all people."

"MVP?"

"Yeah, he's having him come out there because you know Randy is going to come out and gloat. Then he's hoping that Vickie will make a match. If she doesn't, he said he'll get Edge to make her have one and then during the match, he's attacking Randy."

"Your husband is nuts."

"You're telling me," Marissa said, then looked over at Kenyon trying to give Flynn some ice cream. "Kenny, stop that, she can't have ice cream."

"Sorry," Kenyon said, taking it back and quietly eating his ice cream.

"Why can't she have ice cream?" Declan asked.

"She's still too young to eat a lot of it," Chris responded. "I gave her a little bit and she liked it, but she can't have too much because she can't really digest it that well."

"Oh," Declan said. "Uncle Chris, where's Sawyer?"

"Yeah," Kenyon piped up.

"He's with Stephanie at Raw."

"Oh, okay," Declan said, going back to his ice cream.

"So did Stephanie know you were on a _walk_ with Katie?"

"Yes, she did," Chris said, making a face. "She usually knows where I am at all times. I like to think she has a private investigator follow me all the time."

"Oh, she does not."

"But I wouldn't be surprised if she did," Chris joked.

"Okay, yeah, I believe that," Marissa said as she ate her ice cream. "It's nice to have you guys around though. You're always in Florida, it's hard to get together like this."

"Well this was a coincidence."

"You know what I mean. Are you going to Raw tonight?"

"No, I think me and the little one were just going to hang out for the rest of the day."

"Why don't you spend the day with us, we're not doing anything," Marissa said. "We're going to watch Raw when it comes on tonight, but other than that, you can just have dinner at our house if you didn't have plans or anything."

"No, we didn't," Chris said. "Sounds cool."

"Great," Marissa said.

"Are you going to drill me about Katie more?"

"I'm not drilling you about her," she told him.

"Guys and girls can be just friends without anything cropping up between them. Look at me and Trish, we're friends, there's no sexual tension there."

"She's married."

"She's a newlywed."

"Okay, but she was involved with Christian for a long time," Marissa said, not mentioning the fact Trish had kissed her husband though it popped into her mind pretty much every time she thought of Trish. That was a long time in the past though so she usually pushed it out of her mind.

"I'm friends with you."

"We're related," Marissa said.

"So, you're still my friend, we're usually the only people around here who aren't crazy."

"Uh, you're crazy," she said, "I'm the only one who doesn't come up with plans and stuff, maybe Linda."

"You're supposed to be on my side here, Rissa."

"Sorry."

"All I'm saying is there's nothing but friendship between me and Katie, nor will there ever be anything more. Stupid plan notwithstanding, I'm very happy with Stephanie and I love her very much."

"Just making sure," Marissa said, "because you do know if you hurt her, there will be so many people on your ass ready to take you down."

"Believe me, I know."

Stephanie had had an endless parade of people come into her office. She would usually be annoyed, but everyone thought she was still in charge and kept coming to her to ask for time and what not and it made her feel happy to think that nobody actually took Vickie seriously. The only one who'd really stayed away was Randy and that was a good thing because she didn't know what she'd say to him. Maybe he didn't even think she were here.

She spoke too soon though as Ted walked in the door, Cody on his heels. "We need to talk to you."

For a moment, she hoped they were jumping ship, but the looks on their faces told otherwise, "What is it?"

"Randy wants time at the top of the show," Cody said.

"Not my job, go to Vickie," Stephanie said and for once, she didn't mind saying that. There was so much potential in this room, but they were letting Randy cloud their judgment.

"Oh, fine," Cody said, leaving.

"I thought you were in charge," Ted said, staying a bit.

"Nope, so go ahead, go," Stephanie said, shooing him out the door.

"Yeah, okay," Ted said, leaving. Stephanie just hoped those boys would see they could be so much better than lackeys. Maybe one day she'd see them turn. She finally got a free moment and she realized the show was actually starting within the hour. How had she let time get by her that quickly? She hadn't even eaten anything and now that she thought about it, her stomach had been grumbling for a while, but she'd ignored it.

She also realized she hadn't seen her son for hours and she hoped he was okay. Well, he was with Christian, of course he was okay, Christian was a good babysitter. He probably needed the company anyways since Trish's leg had been bothering her this morning and she was resting back at the hotel. She dialed her husband's number and waited for him to pick up.

"Hey, baby, what's up?"

"Where are you?" Stephanie asked as she heard a mix of voices in the background, but couldn't really make any of them out. "Are you still with Katie?"

"Nah, she left a while ago," Chris said. "I'm at Shane's house. I ran into Rissa when I went to get ice cream with Flynn--"

"Did you give her ice cream!"

"I gave her a bite, she thought it was too cold, I think she got a head rush," Chris laughed.

"Oh, that was probably adorable."

"Yeah, it was," Chris told her. "Anyways, we ran into them and she invited us for dinner so we're here and I'm staying for Raw."

"Oh, so I'm sure she told you about Shane."

"She did."

"Oh, before I forget, there's going to be a scramble match at SmackDown this week and you're in it to determine the #1 contender, so get ready for that."

"Thanks for letting me know. Tell your brother not to be an idiot…or too much of an idiot."

"I'll try, he's thick-headed."

"Like someone I know."

"I love you," she said in a sing-song voice.

"I love you too," he said, "I'm going to let you go and do whatever it is you do over there."

"According to Vickie, a whole lot of nothing," Stephanie said. "But no matter, I think I'm going to try and conquer SmackDown, what do you think about that?"

"I have no problem with it."

Stephanie wished her brother luck before he left to go beat up Randy. He had a kendo stick in hand and she knew those hurt. Randy was in for it and he was blindsided by her brother. She was slightly proud of him for what he was doing and Randy didn't expect it. When a match was announced for them next week, she became a bit worried. Her brother might not make it through that match, but he was probably going to give it his all anyways. She hadn't planned on being at Raw next week, but with her brother in a match, she had to be.

Someone had to have his back.


	233. Three, May 1 to 4, 2009

This was strange and different and not what he was used to. It wasn't like he'd not been on SmackDown in the past God, how many years since he'd last been a regular here? The last time he'd regularly been on SmackDown was…oh yeah, it was 2002. He remembered now. He'd been drafted there after a disastrous match against Hunter and Stephanie. He hadn't been eligible to be drafted that evening because he had been vying for the Undisputed Title. It left him exempt and he'd been planning to win that match and become the champion again.

He'd had a plan all worked out, _they'd _had a plan all worked out. He remembered plotting with her, planning with her and telling her that he wouldn't let her down, he wouldn't let her scum of an ex-husband get her kicked out of the company she loved so much. He'd tried his best, but the match had degenerated from something somewhat normal to a chaotic mess. She'd lost and she'd had to go away and rather than admit there was something more between them, he let them pass and he let her pass as someone he used to know.

Little did he know that seven years later, they'd be married with two kids.

But after that match, he'd settled in on SmackDown and he'd been having fun and then suddenly, there she was again and this time, he couldn't ignore the feelings. He couldn't ignore the hurt he felt when she wouldn't hug him. He couldn't help the annoyance that rose in him. When they'd started dating, when he'd taken her out that first time, he thought (minus the past unpleasantness of their seemingly everlasting hatred of each other) they could have a normal relationship. He'd take her out, they'd see where it was going, they'd have fun and if it lasted, cool, if it didn't, there were plenty of fish in the sea.

He hadn't expected her to ask him a week later to defect to Raw. Out went normal and in came more chaos. That was the last time he'd regularly been on SmackDown. He'd defected to Raw and that was that. He'd stayed there until he left in 2005 because of Stephanie's pregnancy and it was where he returned in 2007. So yes, this was different and strange to him and he barely knew anyone here. He knew Edge and Katie traveled around with SmackDown because ECW sometimes taped with them, but other than that, who else was there?

Undertaker was here, but Stephanie was friendlier with the man than Chris was. Most of the people on the show were new or didn't like him so it didn't foster a very happy working environment. He could make new friends he supposed, but it wasn't the same. He and Stephanie were still doing the "divorce on the horizon" thing so she wasn't here with him tonight and he felt very alone. For the first time in a very long time, Chris felt completely alone.

It wasn't a good feeling though. Where, in the past, Chris hadn't minded being alone, now it just felt too lonely. He was used to talking with his friends or with Stephanie. He usually chased after Sawyer somewhere, but nobody was here with him. His wife and kids were back in Connecticut, his friends were on Raw, and he was stuck here, by himself unless Edge deemed him with his presence, but he'd passed by his friend in the hallway and Edge had just given him a look of consternation that puzzled him.

Edge paced back and forth and then sat down on the couch. "Vickie, it's over…Vickie, I'm sorry, it's over…Vickie, look, we had a good run, but it's over…how do those sound?"

Trish sighed over the phone, "Those all sound fine, but if you repeat it like that, it might be overkill."

"Ha ha, but you know what I mean, did those sound okay? Which one sounded best?"

"They all sounded fine," Trish said as she examined a particular nasty hangnail on her finger.

"You're not helping, you're supposed to be my sister," Edge complained.

"I'm not _actually_ your sister," she pointed out. "I'm your sister-in-law, I think there's a big difference."

"You should be like my sister. Christian is no help at all, he never really listens to what I have to say. You're different, you listen and I need help with this. Look, I know Lita is getting impatient, hell, she's stuck with me longer than I would stick with me, that's for sure. She deserves better than I'm giving her and I hate that I'm putting her through this. I hate it."

"Okay, okay, look, I think you should go with the soft approach with Vickie," Trish said. "It's going to be hard any way you say it, but at least this way you'll soften the blow even a slight bit. The fact that she slept around on _you_ helps your cause because you can just cite that as one of the reasons for you guys not working."

"That's right, I can use that," Edge said, like the idea had just popped into his mind. "She did screw around on me."

"Yes, which just goes to show how you two are not right for each other. You can tell her that you two were good, but you've drifted apart or something. Just make sure you mention that, I think that I'd want to hear that if Christian ever dumped me."

"You and Christian are different."

"Well of course we are, we didn't jump into a marriage."

"Vickie and I didn't jump into our marriage."

"Of course you did. Edge, you made out with someone the _night_ before your wedding. You tried to keep it a secret and you would've too if you hadn't been caught red-handed. That should've tipped you off that this was not going to end well."

"Well, you were the one who suggested I bring Lita as a date to your wedding."

"I felt bad for you and thought she could cheer you up."

"You practically pushed me into her arms again!"

"So you're saying that this entire thing is my fault?" Trish asked.

"Well, yes, yes, I do blame you," he said. If it hadn't been for that date, he probably wouldn't have seen Lita ever. When they'd broken up, it'd been fiery and passionate and they'd ended up having sex right before she'd left him. He'd never truly gotten over her and maybe Vickie had just been a very long rebound.

"Fine, blame me, just tell Vickie it's over. You don't have to see her and she has no sway over your relationship."

"Fine, fine, I'll do that then, fine."

He'd just have to break it to her quick and easy.

Stephanie entered the arena. Flynn was trying to grab at things from her stroller as she sucked intently on her pacifier. Every time Stephanie tried to steer her away from some other fascinating item, Flynn would look up at her and smile around her pacifier, trying to look the innocent part. Stephanie wasn't buying it for a second. There was a mischievous look behind those dark blue eyes with a touch of gray. That look was starting to emerge more and more lately and Stephanie feared having another little troublemaker on her hands.

"Stop touching things, Flynnie," Stephanie told her little girl, but Flynn obviously didn't heed her warning as she tried to grab, of all things, the leaf off a plant by the entranceway. "What were you going to do with a leaf?" Flynn just smiled again.

Sawyer went up to the nearest person he saw and tugged on their jeans. The man looked down at him and smiled, he knew who this was. It didn't take a rocket scientist to realize this was Sawyer Jericho, part of the McMahon family, the family that signed the checks. "I'm gonna be three," Sawyer said, holding up three of his fingers.

"Sawyer come back here," Stephanie said, grabbing him by the sleeve of his shirt as she walked by him and started to lead him down the hallway.

"Mommy, I just tell I gonna be three," Sawyer said with a pout and a slight lisp.

"I know, baby boy, and everyone is excited for you, but remember, we're here to surprise Daddy, so we can't talk to people," she said, bending down a little and whispering to him. "Remember, we're going to keep it a secret?"

"I keep secwet," Sawyer said, pressing his finger to his lips, "but Mommy, I gonna be three."

"I know, you're going to be a very big boy, I don't know where my little baby went, he grew up to be a big, strong boy."

"Like Daddy," Sawyer said matter-of-factly. He knew his daddy was very strong. He watched him sometimes when he was lifting things and when Sawyer had tried to lift the things, they were very, very heavy and he couldn't even do it, which meant his daddy was the best and most awesome.

"Yes, exactly like Daddy, now let's go so we can hide and surprise Daddy."

"Stephanie McMahon!"

Stephanie groaned and looked up, "Hello, Teddy."

"To what do I owe the immense pleasure of seeing you," he said, sucking up to her, "and may I say you are looking beautiful and your kids look very well."

"Thanks," she said, hating the bravado some people showed around her. She was not going to suddenly change an opinion on someone because she sucked up to her. She'd much rather just assess someone on the way they normally acted, not the way they acted around her to suck up to them. "I'm just here to drop off my kids with Chris."

"Oh yes, the divorce, I heard about that. Let me extend my sincerest condolences to that. I thought you two would make it, I think everyone did."

"Yeah, I guess," she said, though she'd been thinking about something and she was anxious to speak to Chris about what she'd been thinking of. That could wait for another time though, tonight was about Chris's first night on SmackDown. "Yes, I was hoping to have somewhere I could sit with my kids so I could watch them until Chris was ready to come get them. He doesn't exactly know I'm here and I'd rather avoid a confrontation on camera."

"Of course, of course, I know just the place," he said, "let me take you there and make sure you feel comfortable."

"Thank you," she said, following him. He found her a clean, quiet dressing room that was unoccupied and she thanked him, taking Flynn from her stroller and setting her down on the couch with some toys she could play with and things she could chew on. Sawyer was occupying himself with some cars and she was going to watch the show and watch Chris. She hoped he fared well on this show.

She kind of felt like she was abandoning him in a way, since she wasn't really here with him tonight as she usually was. Under normal circumstances, she'd walk right in the doors with him and assert her dominance. Teddy seemed very willing to suck up to her so maybe she should take advantage of that and tell her father she was going to take over SmackDown operations. Hell, maybe she could take over Raw _and_ SmackDown operations and have Vickie and Teddy Long answering to her. Then she'd see how far her father wanted to extend his power.

She rather liked the idea though. She'd be at Raw on Monday because her brother had a big, important match, but maybe she could somehow manipulate Vickie into giving Stephanie the power and the reins. It'd be hard, Vickie was insufferably controlling, but if anyone could outmatch someone like Vickie, it was someone like Stephanie. She'd just need to strategize. That could come later though, because Monday she was going to focus solely on her brother's match. She was worried for him and how he'd fare against Randy. Randy had Legacy, but who did Shane have?

No matter, the show was starting soon and Flynn was getting sleepy. She'd crawled over to Stephanie's lap and Stephanie took her in her arms. "I'll put you to bed in a second, Flynnie, I think Daddy is going to open the show and I want to see him."

The show started and a familiar music started up. Flynn happened to be looking in that direction and she saw her daddy on the television and she whined and pointed, looking up at Stephanie. Stephanie nodded and Sawyer looked too. "It's Daddy."

"He's on SmackDown now so we get to watch him and go with him on Fridays and not Mondays."

"Why he here?" Sawyer asked.

"He was drafted here," Stephanie said as Flynn continued to try to get Stephanie's attention. "Yes, Flynnie, it's Daddy, I know, I see him. He's going to go to the ring and talk."

"What dwaft, Mommy?" Sawyer asked.

"Well, in this instance, it's when guys switch between Raw, where Daddy used to be, and SmackDown, where Daddy is now. It's going to take some getting used to, but don't worry, we'll figure out a new routine."

"Okay," Sawyer said, trusting his mommy. She'd never steered him wrong before. Sawyer went and climbed on the couch to watch his daddy talk. He liked doing that. Now Flynn was whining for Sawyer and Stephanie set her down in between herself and Sawyer and Flynn leaned against Sawyer as he watched.

Chris came down the ring to introduce him to the SmackDown crowd. They were no different than the Raw one. They all hated him and that was fine. He wasn't here to gain the crowd's acceptance. He was here to win the title and make this his show. Look who was on it though, nobody who even compared to him, except maybe Undertaker, but he had been nowhere to be found since WrestleMania. He was the Superstar of the Year last year and just like how he'd conquered Raw, he was going to conquer SmackDown.

He hadn't expected Edge to show up and disagree with him. Sure, Edge was on the show and he thought of it as his own, but surely he couldn't honestly believe that he was better than Chris. They were friends too so the whole appearance of someone he considered a friend was odd to him. Edge was actually insulting him now and that was completely unexpected. He'd gone out for beers with Edge on Wednesday when Edge was having one of his "I don't think I can break Vickie's heart" days. He'd been having those a lot lately.

Then Punk had to show up and he really had no business there. Oh, he was Mr. Money in the Bank, whoop-de-doo. Chris should've told him this time was only for multiple championship winners and then Punk would have to leave. Having a briefcase meant nothing except you got a shot. Beyond that, it wasn't a title and it didn't guarantee you a title. It was just a shot and if you blew it, you'd be as big a nobody as when you started this little quest.

Punk wasn't even good enough to be in his presence and Chris was tired of being disrespected so he left. He hung around backstage though because he wanted to speak with Edge. When Edge and Punk were finally done, Edge entered the backstage area and completely ignored Chris. Chris jogged after him and grabbed his arm, stopping him in his tracks. Edge turned to him and stuck out his chin defiantly.

"What the hell was that out there?" Chris asked.

"Don't talk to me."

"What? What the hell is your problem, man?" Chris asked.

"I'm not talking to you," Edge said petulantly. He reminded Chris of Sawyer.

"Why not?"

"You _know_ why," Edge told him.

"Actually, no, I don't, I wouldn't have asked if I didn't know why," Chris told him. "That's generally why you ask someone something."

"Oh, like you don't know what's going on," Edge told him. "You know exactly what's going on and that's the problem because you didn't tell me exactly what's going on and you _know_ what's going on."

"Wow, that could not have made any less sense," Chris said, but Edge was walking away again. Chris could not think of one thing he had done to make Edge angry, but he was going to find out. He ran to catch up to him again and then fell in step beside the other man. "Okay, is this about what just happened? Because I said this was going to be my show. Cause look, we can share if it means that much to you, but I was just trying to incite the crowd, you know, put everyone on notice. I meant to put you on notice too because I do want your belt, but I figured it'd be like a gentlemen's fight when we do, where we respect each other, but we both want something."

"Oh it has nothing to do with that, but believe me, it's _my_ show and not yours."

"Okay, no," Chris said, but he didn't want to argue about that right now when something else was obviously bugging Edge. "What is it? Come on, stop being a baby and tell me. I have enough babies in my life, I don't need to deal with you when you're in one of your moods."

"I'm not having a mood," Edge frowned.

"Just tell me," Chris said, exasperated now. He didn't have time to deal with this. He had a big Fatal 4-way match to deal with.

"I don't want to talk about it!"

"Fine, fine," Chris said, "I have to get dressed anyways."

He had to hurry because his match was actually coming up quickly. Plus, he wanted to have a talk with Teddy Long about the way he'd been treated thus far. He'd been interrupted during his moment and he should automatically be the #1 contender anyways, he shouldn't have to put up with this match. He was _again_ interrupted, but this time it was by someone much larger than him and so he tried to avoid that confrontation. He had a match to get to and a one to win if he wanted the title around his gorgeous waist. He was getting jealous of his son's belt, that's how bad he wanted his title back.

Unfortunately for him, he was a cheater and he got caught. He grumbled his way backstage. Stupid Mysterio. He shouldn't have even needed to be in that match and the mere fact he was showed a great disrespect. He was the best thing they had going and he truly believed that. He went backstage and once again sought out Edge. But he couldn't find him anywhere so he went to the next person on his list to talk to, Teddy Long.

He hated how that match had went and he was going to get what he wanted or die trying. Maria was in his office instead and this just pissed him off more. When Stephanie had been the GM over on Raw, she'd always been around when he needed her. Never-mind the fact he was married to her so he knew where she was all the time, she was just there when he needed to complain or talk about something. He didn't want to hear about Maria's stupid clothing line and he hated that these stupid divas were always around. If they weren't being inept like Maria, they were being useless like Kelly Kelly or Mickie. He hated this place sometimes!

Just as he was leaving, of course, there was Edge. He waited outside the room until Edge came back out. Chris grabbed him by the arm and threw him into the next room. "Okay, tell me why you're mad at me."

"No," Edge said.

"Come on," Chris said, folding his arms in front of him. "Tell me."

"No."

"Something's bothering you, tell me."

"Just leave me alone."

"I'm not leaving you alone until you tell me what I did to bug you," Chris said. "Look, I'm already not having a great night. I just lost my match on a damn technicality--"

"You tried to cheat!" Edge interjected.

"You cheat too, get over it," Chris said. "Then Long is nowhere to be found and Maria is standing in there acting like an idiot."

"I know, right, what was with that?" Edge said.

"Back on track here, but yeah, total ditz," Chris added, "so just tell me what's wrong."

"You and Stephanie are still together!" Edge yelled at him, frowning deeply and glaring at his friend. "You two are still together and you didn't tell me, but apparently everyone freaking knew!"

"Everyone does not know," Chris sighed, running his hands through his hair.

"Shane knows, her parents know I'm sure, Christian and Trish know, I'm sure Hunter knows, and Britt probably knows too," Edge said, ticking everyone off on his fingers, "is that right, anyone else I'm missing?"

"Katie Lea," Chris mumbled.

Edge's jaw dropped, "Katie Lea knows! Katie freaking Lea knows and I didn't know! What was with that, why didn't you trust me?"

"Because we just didn't know how to tell you and you weren't involved in the plan and you didn't need to know."

"But Katie did? I had to find out because I heard a message from your _wife_ inviting Christian and Trish over for dinner. She didn't know they weren't home, but I was there, I was there because I didn't have cereal and I heard it all and I came to the conclusion you were in a plan, you were in a plan and didn't include me and I'm mad."

"I'm sorry."

"Shove your sorrys in a sack," Edge said, storming out.

Chris closed his eyes. It looked like SmackDown was going to have a whole new set of problems. He couldn't deal with this right now. He'd just have to talk to Edge later. He didn't think he'd be so offended by not knowing, but he and Stephanie should've known better. Beneath the gruff exterior, Edge was really a very sensitive guy. He often got really ornery if his feelings got hurt. Christian dealt with him the best, but Chris should've known better. He should've known that Edge would get super sensitive about this kind of thing.

When he got home, he'd talk to Stephanie about doing something for Edge to make him feel better. He didn't want to lose Edge as a friend. He was a good guy under all his drama. He and Stephanie would figure out some way to make it up to him. Maybe they could help him tell Vickie about Edge leaving him. Okay, that probably wasn't such a great idea. Vickie was probably going to go ballistic and throw things. He wouldn't want to be around when she found out the news.

He went back to his locker room and walked inside. He was surprised to see his wife and his children, one awake child and one sleeping child in his little girl. He went to Stephanie and tried to take Flynn from her, but she shook her head, "You're still all sweaty."

"What are you doing here?" Chris asked. "I thought you guys would still be in Connecticut."

"I know you thought that, but you thought I would let you come here on your first night and be alone? Come on, who do you think I am?" she asked, rubbing his chest. "What was with that match? That was so unfair. You should be the #1 contender. You are the best."

"I knew there was a reason I loved you," Chris said, leaning in to kiss her. He was careful to not wake up his daughter. "You understand me so well."

"I try," Stephanie said. "You should go and tell Teddy that you need to be respected and if you aren't respected you're going to quit."

"Quit? Are you pregnant again?" he asked playfully.

Her eyes widened, "Be quiet what you say around here. Knowing us, you just asking me that will somehow make you impregnate me."

"I don't think that's possible. We haven't done the fun stuff that usually leads to this stuff," Chris winked.

"Not tonight, you know what tonight is and what tomorrow is," Stephanie said. "I will not have sex on my son's birthday, you know the rules on that one. I just feel weird and icky thinking about having sex on the very day that my son, my first-born was born. In fact, it was three years ago right now that I was in labor with him."

"I remember."

"Yes, but anyways, you should tell him you quit. Because you're married to me and even if we were separated, I could still use my power to give you what you wanted and what you want is to quit and I can get you on Raw."

"I don't think that'd work," Chris said. "I signed the contract."

"Stupid contract," Stephanie said. "But you part own this company, which means you should be able to do what you want. Besides, it'll be a bluff and he won't call you on it so you'll get the respect you deserve. Do people here not know who you are? I mean, really. Everyone on Raw knew you weren't a bad guy. It's not like this place isn't part of the same company, doesn't word travel?"

"Maybe the wrong word traveled."

"Well, we'll fix that, trust me."

Chris ended up heeding Stephanie's advice and sought out Teddy Long once again. He cornered him in the hallway and started in on him about how unprofessional things were around here. He couldn't help but want Stephanie back as his GM. It wasn't that she favored him, she didn't, it was more that she was completely competent. That was all he was asking. He just wanted someone competent to be the GM, someone who could appreciate his natural talents. If he wasn't going to get that respect, what was he doing here? He fake threatened to quit and he would've gotten what he wanted if John Morrison of all people hadn't walked up to him.

This kid was a punk. How dare he have the gall to say something like he did to Chris? He was going to pay for that at some point. Chris wasn't against the young guys. The company was constantly changing, but this was just another thing where the respect was lacking. Morrison wasn't fit to wipe his boots. Maybe he thought that because Chris had "broken up" with Stephanie he was just another wrestler again and could be spoken to in any manner, but that wasn't true. Chris wasn't going to put up with the insolence and he slapped Morrison across the face. It was barely a tap, but then Morrison attacked him.

Chris tried to get his licks in, but he was shoved against a door. When he finally started to retaliate, he was being pulled back and held against his will. He tried to struggle, but he couldn't break from the men holding him. He struggled some more, trying to squirm out of their arms, but they held fast. He spit words at Morrison, that idiot. He could whip that boy in five minutes blindfolded with one hand tied behind his back.

"What's going on here?" Stephanie yelled as she happened upon the scene. He noticed she didn't have either of their kids and he wondered where they could be.

"That ass slapped me," Morrison said.

"You probably deserved it," Stephanie spat, then turned to Teddy. "Is this how you run your show? Is this how you let your wrestlers behave? I'm sorry, but this is pretty unacceptable if you ask me."

"Stephanie, I've got everything under control," Teddy said, going over to Morrison and having a word with him. Stephanie's eyes watched the scene. Teddy was trying to save face, but she was mentally filing away this incident so her father would hear and let her take over overall operations of the show.

"Where are the kids?" Chris asked quietly.

"I asked Jeff to watch them for a minute. I just heard there was a fight and then your name and I had to come over and see what was going on."

"You mean you had to see how Teddy would handle this."

"I _am_ his boss and it never hurts to observe."

"What are you observing?" Chris asked.

"That SmackDown may need a McMahon stamp of approval."

**Saturday**

"He's three, Chris," Stephanie said as she watched her little boy eating his cake. He was shoveling it in his mouth as fast as he could because they'd told him he could open his presents after he finished. Because they were in Connecticut and not Florida, the party was small and consisted of only immediate family and a few friends: Christian and Trish, Hunter and Britt, Katie Lea. They'd invited Edge, but he was still mad at them and had declined. Sawyer was going to have a party with his friends the following week when they were back in Florida. Sawyer thought it was awesome he was going to get two parties.

"I know," Chris said as he wrapped his arms around Stephanie's waist tighter. "I can't believe how old he is."

"I still remember," Stephanie said as she looked down, picturing that little boy still in her stomach. "I remember holding him for the first time and how strange it felt, how right it felt, but strange too."

"Like you couldn't believe he was yours?"

"Exactly," Stephanie said with a nod. "And then came the fear. The fear that I would absolutely screw him up beyond belief and he'd be in therapy by the time he was 12."

"I don't think he's down that path."

"He's happy, right, you think he's happy?"

"I think he's ecstatic," Chris said, "the other one though, I don't think she's so happy."

Flynn sat in her highchair, watching her brother eating something that looked good and she only had a bottle. She sucked on it a little, but then went back to staring at her brother and little droplets of formula fell down her chin and down to her bib. She didn't know what was going on or what part her brother played in all this, but it looked extremely fun and everyone kept going up to Sawyer and hugging him and wishing him something and she wanted to be in on the joke too.

"I think she wants cake," Stephanie said with a laugh. "But she's not getting any, not until her own birthday. She's too young."

"Too young, got it," Chris said, kissing her neck. "Man, three years old. Where did the time go?"

"I don't even know," Stephanie said. "I can barely remember a time in my life where he wasn't there. I mean, I do, but it never seems vibrant any more. It's like everything before him was dull, but then he came along and everything took on this whole new, cooler meaning, do I make any sense?"

"Perfect sense."

"Hey, you two," Britt said, her arm looped through Hunter's. "Great party. He looks so adorable and we really hope he likes our present."

"What did you get him?" Stephanie asked.

"We got him the cutest little drum set," Britt said. "Actually, Hunter picked it out. He said that Sawyer would make the world's cutest drummer."

"I thought he could join your band," Hunter said with a smirk to Chris.

"So you hate me, is that it?" Stephanie asked. "This is your revenge for getting you involved in the plan and getting you that concussion, isn't it?"

"What?" Hunter asked.

"A drum set? A three year old boy with a drum set? Sawyer is going to pound on those all the time and drive me nuts. I can see it now."

"Maybe that was the evil plan all along," Hunter said.

"I bet it was," Stephanie said.

"You know, Sawyer as my drummer, not a bad idea. It worked for Little Ricky on _I Love Lucy_ and if it worked for that show, I definitely think that it could work for my band. He'd be awesome. I could spike his hair up, we could find kiddie-sized leather pants. Sunglasses."

"Oh my God, no," Stephanie said, "you're not corrupting my little boy."

"I wasn't corrupting, just thinking good business."

Flynn started crying and Stephanie excused herself to get Flynn, but before she could, Loretta went and scooped her up. Stephanie smiled and went over to Sawyer instead, kneeling next to him. "Hey there, birthday boy. Are you having a good time?"

"Uh huh, I had cake and I took out all candles."

"I know, in one big breath. You're like the big, bad wolf and you blew all the candles out like they were the pig's house," Stephanie said, kissing his cheek.

"My cake had Daddy on it," Sawyer said with a laugh. He thought it was funny to see his daddy on a cake. He wanted his face on a cake.

It was true, they'd gotten Sawyer a WWE-themed cake and there were a ton of superstars all over his cake. "I know you did, I was the one that ate Daddy's face, chomp, chomp, chomp," Stephanie said, pretending to eat Sawyer's arm. He giggled and tried to pull it away.

"You're silly, Mommy," he laughed, kissing her cheek and getting some cake crumbs on it. "I open pwesent now?"

"Yeah, you can open them," she said, then stood up. "Everyone, Sawyer's going to open his presents now!"

Everyone gathered around to watch him open all the presents laid out before him. There were tons of gifts and his eyes widened as his grandpa kept handing him present after present. He'd rip open the paper and yell in delight over whatever it was and it didn't matter what half the stuff was, he loved it. He'd gotten a t-shirt from the Bahamas from someone and he'd said how cool it was, even though he couldn't read. He was taking in quite the haul.

When he was through, he started grabbing all the presents and tried to carry them all to play. Declan and Kenny were looking through his things too and they all decided they wanted to play with everything that was there. They each started trying to tear open different packages and things. Their parents had to help them get the wrappers and boxes off of some things and then they let the three little boys go at it.

"Thank you!" Sawyer yelled as he played with a set of cars that would smash up on impact. He smashed two cars together and laughed when they broke apart. "Kenny, look, look!" His cousin came over and he demonstrated with two more and they both laughed in unison and then tried to put the cars back together again, which was easier said than done as they tried to figure out what went where.

Flynn was more fascinated by the wrapping paper and she grabbed some as she reached from her grandma's arms and started tearing it, which delighted her and made her laugh and smile. This stuff was fun. She liked tearing things like this. She was so incredibly easy to please and so laidback. All she needed was some paper and she was happy and bubbly for hours. This was a strange, little girl.

"He's walking and talking," Stephanie said as she sat in Chris's lap, watching Sawyer play with all his new toys. "He's like a real human. He has emotions and he tells me about them and he can use the potty and I miss my baby. I miss the way he felt in my arms. I still hear that little gurgling sound he used to do or the babbling I'd hear over the baby monitor."

"You sure that isn't Flynn you're thinking of?" he asked playfully, rubbing her stomach as he talked.

"I'm sure. I just…he's my first little one and now he's getting so big and he still feels like that baby I knew. He still feels like a baby to me, but he's not. He's a person and he's got his own things that he likes to do and I can just carry him and cradle him to sleep. I miss that."

"What are you saying? You don't want another one, do you?"

"God no, I just miss my baby."

"Okay, why don't we try changing the subject then," he suggested. "That way we don't have to think about how our son went from 3 to 30."

"Oh, there is something I want to discuss with you, something I want to discuss with you and Hunter and Britt…"

"Sounds ominous."

"No, actually, it'll sound really, really good."

**Monday**

Shane was crazy. Shane was crazy and going to jump onto the announcer's table or more specifically jump onto Randy, who was on the announcer's table. But then Randy moved and it was all downhill from there. First there was a chair to his leg, then there was the ring steps. Then there was Shane, clutching his leg in pain and howling in agony. Chris had to watch this and his jaw set tight. His contract with SmackDown meant he couldn't be on Raw television, so he stood and watched silently as a man he considered his brother went down with what looked like a serious injury. But no matter, that wasn't what was at hand. He had more pressing matters. He waited, his breath forced and labored.

5…4…3…2…

"Did you see that out there, I rocked!" Randy said as he walked back with the rest of Legacy, unawares of what was going to happen.

1…

Chris charged at Randy, spearing him out of nowhere and sending the WWE champion flying backwards and landing on his back on the cold cement. Nobody had time to react, the spear had come so fast that there seemed to be no sound as Randy hit the floor, everyone was that in shock. Then noises from Chris, grunting, as he laid punch after punch into the man. Ted and Cody tried to grab him, but Chris elbowed them both in the jaw. He wished he'd elbowed them so hard their teeth fell out, but it stunned them for a bit more. Randy was starting to gain his bearings and he tried to throw off Chris. Chris landed on his side, but went in for more, landing punches anywhere there was flesh on Randy's body.

"You stupid, son of a bitch," Chris snarled. "Thought you'd walk away scot-free, thought you'd get away with what you did, thought you could kiss my _wife_. I don't think so, who's tough now, Randy, who's tough now!"

"What the hell?" Randy yelled as he tried to get away from Chris, but the anger was unbridled and fierce, like rain pounding on a window in a storm. Chris was a blur to Randy, coming from every direction, a hurricane of punches. Chris was pulled away by three guys, but as he was dragged away from Randy's body, he landed a kick to Randy's jaw, leaving a red mark as soon as his foot moved away. "What is your damn problem?"

"She's my wife," Chris said. "We wanted to annihilate you, but Hunter couldn't do it, Shane couldn't do it, and Dave probably won't do it. I've never been away from Stephanie so when you kissed her that night, she was _mine_ and believe me, Randy Orton, you're going to pay."

"Ha, not a chance," Randy sneered. "You're SmackDown now, you can't touch me." Inwardly, he couldn't believe he'd been duped. He tried not to show it in his face. He wouldn't give them the satisfaction. He'd just try to make it like he knew or something, like he'd always suspected. Just be cool. He couldn't believe they…wait, if that meant Hunter and Stephanie weren't together…Britt. Britt had never been his. He'd never stood a chance. He deflated a little at that.

"Oh yeah, I can't touch you on-screen, Randy," Chris said, his voice low and controlled. There was something sizzling inside of him, a snake uncoiling and rattling and shaking his body. "But backstage, this here, this is my domain. I go where I want, I talk to who I want. I have the power and if you ever so much as mention my wife again, you will pay, Randy Orton. What I would've done to you on-screen would've been bad, but off-screen, where no cameras can film, where no people can judge, Randy, you have no idea what I'm capable of."

The look on his face actually took Randy aback. He'd known Chris a while, but this face, he'd never seen it. He thought Hunter's face had been bad when he'd done things to Stephanie, said things about her, but now he knew it was acting. This was not an act. Chris's look was killer. He never backed down from anything though and now that he knew he'd been tricked, he was going full force ahead and nobody, not even Chris Jericho would stop him.

"What's going on here!" Vickie screamed, Edge on her heels.

"Nothing," Chris said. "Nothing at all, right, Randy?"

"Right," Randy said, wiping blood from his lip. Chris would pay for that. Hell, he'd make Hunter pay too, whenever that sorry ass got back.

"Didn't think so."

"What are you even doing here?" Vickie asked. "You're SmackDown."

"I go where I please," Chris said, waving his wedding ring. "Stephanie and I are fine and I go where I please."

"Fine, but I don't understand--"

"I can't stand it anymore!" Edge blurted out, causing all eyes to go on him.

"Edge? What's wrong?" Vickie asked with concern, whether it was mock or real, nobody could tell. He hadn't meant to do it this way, but her voice, the way she acted, the situation, everything, it screamed at him until the noise got louder and louder until he nearly burst…

"I want a divorce!"


	234. Uneasy Denial, May 8 to 11, 2009

A/N: I'm still trying to get into the groove of writing about SD, so the chapters are feeling a little awkward, so hopefully it turned out okay. Please leave a review if you can, thanks. :)

On a side note, I started a new story, "Under the Watchful Eye" if you want to read something else of mine. :P

* * *

"What do you mean she doesn't accept it?"

Edge looked miserably over at his brother. "She doesn't accept it."

"Like she told you no?"

"No, like she doesn't think it's happening, she thinks I'm just acting out because she's on Raw and I'm on SmackDown now. She thinks I'm doing this for attention."

"She thinks you're doing it for _attention_?" Christian scoffed. He had never really questioned Vickie's intelligence or sanity, but right now he was questioning both. He hadn't been there to see the scene his brother had created last week, but he'd heard accounts from Chris and Edge about what exactly happened.

After Edge had blurted it out, he'd practically run away. It wasn't out of cowardice, but more out of embarrassment. He'd wanted to let Vickie down gently. He couldn't even work up the courage to talk to her for a few days and had quietly retreated to Lita's house to spend some time, turning off his phone and leaving all his communication towards the woman he truly loved. Lita had spent nearly every moment with him. Edge could tell she was happy that he had told Vickie what he wanted. Sure, she didn't want him running away after that, but at least the words had been said.

That was until the conversation he'd had with her when he got back.

_Edge picked up the phone and tentatively dialed Vickie's number. He had expected a million calls from her when he turned his phone back on, but to his surprise there had been only one. A short one at that, asking him simply to call her back, so he was doing as she asked and calling her back. He felt better now. Being with Lita had eased his embarrassment and he felt like he could talk to her now, civilly and like the adults they were._

"_Edge, honey, is that you?"_

_The "honey" should have tipped him off. God, it should've been a huge red flag waving in his face, but he was so nervous about her reaction that he didn't even see it. "Yeah, it's Edge."_

"_I've been worried sick!" she told him. "Where have you been?"_

"_Look, I wanted to talk about what I said last Monday."_

"_Oh, honey, don't worry about it," Vickie told him nonchalantly._

_Edge was surprised, pulling the phone away for a moment and staring down at it. Had he called the right number? Was this the right Vickie? It didn't really feel like her in the slightest. "Don't worry about it?" he asked as he brought the phone back up to his ear. "But I said I wanted a divorce…"_

"_Yeah, I heard what you said and I understand what you're really saying."_

"_Wow," he said in awe. He hadn't expected her to take this well at all. He thought she'd be throwing stuff or having Big Show hunt him down and tear him limb from limb. "You're okay with it?"_

"_Of course I am, I know you don't want a divorce."_

"_What? No, no, I want the divorce," he said hastily. _

"_Sweetheart, I know what you're doing," she cooed._

"_Huh?" Now he was confused. He had said divorced, right? Those were the words coming out of his mouth. His lips had formed them, his voice had said them. She said she heard him, how could she not understand the concept of divorce?_

"_You miss me and want attention."_

"_I…what?" he asked._

"_I get what you want, baby," she said, using every silly, stupid pet name in the book, like that was going to make him fall in love with her again or something. It wasn't, in fact, the more she said it, the more irritated he was becoming. This was not what he had planned. He was longing for the cold words and anger that she should be giving him. He shouldn't be called "baby" or "sweetheart."_

"_I don't think you do."_

"_I do, now that I'm on Raw, we hardly get to spend any time together, plus I'm on the show with Big Show, so you're jealous and you're trying to act out and get my attention, I know what you're doing."_

"_No, no, no, that's not what I'm doing," he told her, "trust me, that's not what I'm doing at all. In fact, that's the opposite of what I'm doing."_

"_Edge, baby," okay, she really needed to stop doing that, "I don't want to fight with you. I know things are strange right now, but we'll get our schedules in sync and then everything will be just as good as before, okay?"_

"_No, Vickie, I don't think you understood me, I want a divorce, I want to be away from you, I don't want to be married to you anymore," he told her emphatically. How could he make this any more clear? He was telling her outright that he didn't want to be married to her and she was and she was trying to reconcile things._

"_Edge, come on, we both know you don't want that. How about I try to get you on Raw, would that make you happier? I could get you over her maybe and then we can be together again and all your worries will be forgotten."_

"_No, I don't want to be on Raw. Listen to me, Vickie, I don't want to be with you," he said slowly. "I want a divorce."_

"_Edge, stop, this isn't funny anymore. I don't know what you want from me. I will try and get you over here, but nothing is stopping you from coming on Mondays, you know that. We can spend our time together and I will tell Teddy to take it easy on you, okay, how does that sound?"_

"_I'm with Lita," Edge told her, getting so frustrated he didn't even care what he said anymore. He knew he shouldn't tell Vickie about Lita, but he couldn't think of any other way to get through to her. Maybe if he told her he was with another woman that might trigger whatever needed to be triggered in Vickie's head because something was obviously not firing correctly._

"_What?"_

"_Yes," he said, thinking he was finally getting through to her. "Yes, Lita and I, we're back together. I started seeing her when we were separated. I thought you wouldn't want to be with me anymore…you were with Big Show anyways, so I was with Lita and we hit it off again and I love her and want to be with her and I don't want to be with you, do you understand?"_

"_Baby, now you're just trying to make me jealous. I don't believe you."_

"_I' m with her!" he said petulantly. "I am and I love her."_

"_No you don't, you've told me you didn't love her, that you never had."_

"_Yes, I did say it, but I didn't mean it, I've always loved her and when she left me, I was devastated, but I was never going to let that show so lied and said she meant nothing to me, but she means everything to me."_

"_Edge, I'm not buying this. Come to Raw on Monday and we can arrange our schedules so we can see each other more often."_

"_Vickie…"_

"_I love you."_

"_Vickie…"_

_Before he could speak any more she'd hung up on him. He closed his eyes and sighed. She didn't get it or she was blocking it out of her mind, it was one or the other. Maybe he'd embarrassed her so much last week that she'd blocked the incident out of her mind or come up with some silly explanation so she wouldn't have to deal with the truth. The truth was coming though. He had a meeting with his lawyer next week to start drawing up the divorce papers and his lawyer would be in contact with hers._

"You can't possibly be going to Raw."

"I'm not planning on it," Edge said. "I don't want to be there. I mean, yeah, I could go, but I don't want to get her hopes up."

"You should bring Lita."

"What?" Edge asked, glaring over at Christian, who shrugged. "Why would you even suggest something like that? You want everyone to look down on her like they did when she was with me, I'm not going to put her through that."

"Nobody hates her anymore," Christian said. "Besides, if you had her on your arm, think about what it would do to Vickie. She would see that you weren't lying and then maybe it would get through her thick skull that you want a divorce, a real-life one, not an imaginary one or something."

"You know, that's actually not half-bad, but I really don't think Li would go for it…do you think she'd go for it?"

"Ask her, if she says no, you'll have to figure out another way to get Vickie to accept that you're relationship is over. You'd think she would, what with the fact she slept with Big Show." Christian shuddered, "Just the thought of that makes me shiver."

"I don't even care anymore," Edge said. "All I care about is the fact that I'm soon to be free."

"Then go for it. I'd much rather be related to Lita than Vickie, she'd be such a step up, at least I can tolerate Lita for more than five minutes and that's being generous to Vickie. I don't think I could stand it if she was my GM, her coming out with that screechy voice of hers, yelling 'excuse me' like she owns the place. Stephanie should slap the taste out of her mouth."

"Don't talk to me about her."

"Who? Stephanie?"

"I'm officially mad at her and Chris."

"Why?" Christian asked. This was news to him.

"Because they didn't tell me they were still together. We're friends, at least I thought we were friends and they don't even tell me but they tell someone like _Katie Lea_. What the hell does she have that I don't?"

"Breasts, for one," Christian pointed out.

"Oh, shut up, I have the title," Edge countered.

"Yeah, not quite the same," Christian shook his head. "She and Chris are friends now, I think she kind of helped to deflect some of the girls away from him while he was pretending to hate Stephanie."

"That plan may have been Stephanie's worst. I mean, nothing panned out the way she thought it would. Look at what happened to poor Shane. I don't think that's something Stephanie would have in mind when she made a plan like this."

"Yeah, I think she underestimated Randy. She was friends with him for a while, we all kind of were, before he let power get to his head and completely went off the deep end," Christian shook his head. "Well, actually, no, I didn't ever really like him, but that's because he had designs on my girl so he was always the competition, but I could see where they thought he was a good guy, but I think he's a lot like Hunter was, you know, when he married Stephanie except instead of Stephanie, Randy has the belt and he lets that go to his head, you know what I mean?"

"No clue nor do I really care," Edge said. "This isn't about Randy anyways. He's not so bad though, I mean, yeah, he's got the power thing going, but you kind of have to be that way when you're the champion."

"I'm a champion and I'm not like that."

"Well, little bro, you're different," Edge said, "You just like being the nice guy and that's fine. But still, so what happens now to Stephanie's plan? Do you know?"

"Awfully curious for someone who doesn't want to be friends with them anymore."

"I didn't say that I didn't want to be friends with them anymore. I'm just mad at them, once their punishment is up, I will start talking to them again. You know, if I didn't have Lita, Katie Lea would definitely be on the list of WWE divas I'd like to hit like the fist of God."

"You still keep that stupid list?" Christian asked.

"Um, yes," Edge said, referring to a list of the divas and their ratings of "awesomeness" and "hoticity." He and Christian used to keep one when they were tag team partners. Edge was always the one checking names off the list. It was never really in Christian's style to hit and run so to speak. "New divas are showing up all the time."

"You're a pig," Christian said, shaking his head at his brother. Sometimes Edge was so immature and he felt like the older brother instead of the other way around. It also helped that he went by his name whereas his brother had insisted on being called Edge since he was fourteen years old and declared that the name Adam reeked of lameness.

"You had the list too, it was your list too way back when and you're the only one who got to check off Trish Stratus, major coup, my brother, major coup," Edge nodded, "but then, I'm the one who crossed off Lita, so major coup self, major coup."

"Yeah and you're not checking off Trish any time soon, that's for damn sure," Christian told him. "You really still keep the list?"

"Hell yeah I do," Edge nodded. "I love Lita, but you know, it never really hurts to keep your prospects open."

"Okay, so who's first on the list?"

"Stephanie McMahon."

"You're joking, right?" Christian asked.

"Of course I'm joking!" Edge told him, indignant that Christian even had to ask. "I'd never want to do Stephanie. She's taken…anyways, number one is…drum-roll, please…"

"I'm not doing a drum-roll," Christian deadpanned, refusing to play into this stupid game.

"Fine, anyways, #1 totally Eve," Edge nodded. "But Katie Lea, definitely top 5 for me, maybe even top 3 if I'm feeling it that day. I can't really blame Chris for wanting to be her friend, but he's my friend too and he should've told me."

"Get over it."

"You should've seen him beat up Randy on Monday though, I think it was the most angry I've ever seen him."

"I don't blame him, after everything he's done, Randy didn't deserve any less than what he got."

"What's Chris got planned now?"

"You know, I really don't know," Christian said.

Trish made a funny face at Flynn as she bounced the little girl on her knees. Flynn was laughing at Trish. She just loved when people made funny faces, it was the best thing to make her laugh. There was just something about seeing people acting so funny that cracked her up every time. She was such a happy little girl, which let Stephanie and Chris know they were doing something right with her or more likely, Sawyer was doing something right with raising her.

"You should show Trish what you can do, Flynn," Stephanie said from the desk. Flynn craned her neck to the side to look at her mommy as she said her name. She wanted to know what her mommy meant.

"What can you do, cutie?" Trish asked.

"I know," Sawyer piped up. "I know cause I see it."

"You saw it?" Trish asked.

"Uh huh," Sawyer nodded, coming over and leaning his body over the cushions of the couch. He turned his head and looked up at Trish. "Mommy say she do good baby."

"She said what?"

"She do good."

"I said that she is very smart and talented," Stephanie said, speaking in baby talk to her little girl, who was still trying to look at her properly, but Trish had her firmly around her little waist. "Tell Trish what Flynn did, baby boy."

"Okay," Sawyer said, twisting himself so he was lying on his back, but then he got distracted and said, "You at my pawty, Twish."

"I was at your party, both of them," Trish said kindly. "I loved celebrating your third birthday so much I wanted to celebrate with you twice."

"I am fwee," he said, holding his fingers up and then studying them.

"Sawyer, what did Flynn do that was really cool?" Stephanie asked, trying to get him back on track.

"Oh yeah, I 'member," Sawyer said. "She pull up her body."

"She pulled up her body."

"Uh huh, I saw. I watch it. She sit and den she go up," Sawyer shrugged, trying to explain it to the best of his ability. "That what she do, tank you."

He raced back over to play with his new toys. He had gotten a remote control race car for little kids from his Uncle Shane and Auntie Marissa and he was playing around with that. He couldn't understand how he could turn the dial and the car would do the exact same thing. It was probably the coolest thing ever and his cousin Kenyon had the exact same one and they had been playing together with their cars and had made them crash, which made him laugh a lot.

"Uh, you're welcome," Trish laughed as she watched Sawyer for a moment. "I can't believe it was only three years ago that little boy was barely coherent and didn't do anything but eat, sleep, and poop."

"That's still really all he does, add in playing and you've got him in a nutshell," Stephanie said, looking over at Sawyer. It amazed her too how much had changed in what seemed a short while. Sawyer could communicate now and communicate well, hell, Flynn was babbling more and more each day.

"So she stood up on her own is what I'm gathering here," Trish said.

"Yeah, she did, she was sitting on the floor, she saw Sawyer get up and leave the room, so then she crawled over to Chris, who was standing and putting some DVD's away and she grabbed a hold of his jeans and pulled herself up."

"Wow, aren't you the little beast," Trish said to Flynn. Flynn just smiled. She didn't realize what she'd done was an accomplishment, but she smiled anyways. "I'm so jealous of you. Christian and I, we decided to take a step back from the baby-making and see if it happens naturally, but I still really want it."

"It'll happen, don't worry."

"I'm scared it won't," Trish sighed. "I mean, in that event, we have other avenues, but I really want it to happen."

"It will," Stephanie insisted. "You just can't put so much pressure on yourself. I hear that stressing out makes you less likely to get pregnant. I swear I read that somewhere."

"Where were you reading on how to get pregnant?" Trish asked, raising an eyebrow. "If you and Chris wanted another kid right now, I bet you could have a quickie in the bathroom and bam, there you go, kid #3."

"Wow, you think way too fertile for us. I don't want to get pregnant any time soon," Stephanie asserted. The thought of being pregnant again made her queasy. Flynn wasn't a year old yet and she'd be damned if she got pregnant again right now. There was a knock on the door and she called out, "Come in."

Teddy Long walked in and nodded to Trish before coming over to Stephanie. "Stephanie, you wanted to see me."

"Yeah, Teddy, I did, thanks for coming."

"No problem, so what did you need?"

"Well, I was talking with my father and since my husband is on this show, we agreed that I could be like a special consultant on it, well, that's not really what I'm doing. I'm going to be acting as your superior, which means that if I wanted a match or something done, I could order it or if I didn't, I could order that too. You have all the decisions on the show and I'm not going to interfere too much on your behalf, I just wanted to let you know that I'll in essence be running the backstage things of the show, the stuff that doesn't pertain to the wrestlers."

"So you'd be on the production side of things?"

"Yes, that's right," Stephanie said. "I don't plan to change whatever you decide to do, but more on the end of do we have time for it, is there space for it, things like that. You have the say on the show."

"I think I can live with that," Teddy said.

"Great," Stephanie said, standing up. "I really look forward to working with you. It's been a while since I've worked with a GM that I actually get along with so I hope the two of us can coexist peacefully."

"Well I won't have a problem if you won't. But I'm going to come right out and say it, you're husband is a huge jerk."

Stephanie bit her lip, trying to hold in her chuckle. "Yes, I'm well aware that he gets that critique, but I do hope that he won't cause you too much trouble."

"I think I can handle him if he does, he doesn't seem too scary, probably a big softie at heart."

Stephanie laughed, she couldn't help it, "I think we'll get along just fine. I just wanted to let you know. The show for tonight looks fine and we do have space at the end of the show in case something happens, but if not, feel free to do whatever you feel you need to do."

"I will, thanks, Stephanie."

"No, thank you," Stephanie said. As Teddy left, she sat down again. "Well, I can already tell he's a lot easier to deal with than some of the other people I've dealt with in the past."

"Bischoff?" Trish asked.

"Him, but I was talking about Adamle."

"Oh," Trish nodded. "I didn't know you were going to take over your old job that you had on Raw over here on SmackDown."

"Well, since I can't be a GM like I wanted because my father and brother are jerks and think they can control me, I had to settle for the next best thing and it's this. I do have the power to do what I want so that's always a plus and Chris is here and I want to be here with him."

"What about Raw?"

"Well, I'm going to have to persuade my father to give me control of Raw too."

"So you really just secretly want to take all the power out of his hands?"

"Am I that predictable?" Stephanie asked.

"Well, when there's power to be snatched, yeah, I think that you're that predictable. Anyways, I read it in some article at my Sawyer's doctor's office when I took him in for his check-up. They had it in some magazine about babies and how to make them I guess."

"Everything's okay, I hope?" Trish asked, regarding Sawyer.

"Yeah, just the routine check-up," Stephanie said. "Got her checked out too, they're both in tip-top shape."

"Good to hear," Trish said, "I hope that once I let go of the stress, I can get pregnant."

"I'm sure it'll happen for you at some point," Stephanie nodded definitively. "You'll get that chance. Just try not to stress out about it."

"Speaking of stressing out, where's your husband?"

"Oh God, who knows."

Chris paced back and forth in the little space he had. He'd needed a little quiet time to himself. Having a three year old, a nine month old, and a thirty-two year old. It had felt so good to get his hands on Randy last Monday, but now he was at SmackDown and he had to focus on what he wanted and that was a chance at the title. He didn't care how he got it, he'd go through Mysterio, Kane, and Jeff again if he had to. That stupid Mysterio, getting in his way, getting him disqualified. He wasn't going to stand for this.

But then his mind kept going back to Monday and what he'd done to Randy. Feeling Randy's skin under his fists had been just what he'd wanted for months now. The blood that streamed from a cut inside Randy's mouth had been his reward and he'd loved every second of it. He'd told Randy to watch his back and he wasn't joking. Chris was dangerous. He didn't have to contain himself to the ring. Randy had to watch out for real because Chris could come at him at any time…and Monday would be no exception.

He'd been on the phone with Batista all week. He could hardly remember a time now that he'd been cool with Randy. It seemed so long ago they'd been friends. Everything had changed now. He wouldn't be on Randy's case if Randy hadn't attacked his wife's family. Hell, if he had just stuck with Shane and Vince, Chris probably wouldn't have cared so much. Those two could handle themselves; sure, he cared about them, they were his family after all, but they weren't the person he loved. When Randy had dragged Stephanie into this it had become personal, very personal.

He'd talked to Batista about Raw. Batista wasn't allowed to touch Randy before their match, but Chris could get at Randy if he wanted and that's what he was planning. All he had to do was get through tonight and then the weekend and then he'd be at Raw and he could get his fists clenched and go to town on Randy again. He longed to kick his ass one more time, just to finish the job. But would he ever really finish the job? Chris could hold a grudge like nobody's business and when someone hurt his wife, that grudge was going to stick around.

He found it hard to concentrate on SmackDown that night. Of course, the rumors of what had happened with Randy had circulated. Everyone seemed to know what had happened (or at least had some variation of it, though he hoped those who got that variation weren't told something completely exaggerated like he had swooped in on a rope and kicked Randy in the head as he swung over him) so when he'd walked into the arena with Stephanie, nobody gasped or anything, but they did get looks.

He wondered what people thought. There was a little bit more respect ringing through the air tonight. Maybe he'd proven his point last week or maybe everyone realized that he was still very much a part of the McMahon family and wanted to steer clear of the loose cannon. No matter though, he thought as he jumped in place, there were more important things to worry about than stupid gossip. Everyone would find some other thing to think about some other day and they'd be forgotten.

He had to do something with himself, but he didn't know what. The show was starting so he figured he'd go see what was going on. Stephanie was getting back in the groove of things so he left her alone and went to the gorilla to watch. When he saw Rey Mysterio of all people out there, he groaned. _He_ thought he deserved a real shot at the title. Rey was what, a one-time champion? If anyone deserved another shot it was Chris, a five-time champion. Rey couldn't hold Chris's jockstrap and it was very disrespectful not to be given the first shot.

So he went out there, demanding that he get it. Was he a petulant child asking for it, sure, probably, but sometimes that's how you had to act when you wanted to get something. He just wanted another chance. He didn't think a pipsqueak like Rey deserved it. Rey didn't seem to like being called that and he pushed Chris. What was this little man thinking? Chris could squash him like a bug, in fact, he'd done that before and he sure as hell could do it again.

Then the ever righteous Jeff Hardy had to show his face. Chris had nothing against Jeff, but this was none of his business. But this was Jeff so he took up the cause for the side of good and called Chris names. Chris wasn't going to take either one of them seriously. They were nobodies compared to him. When were people going to learn that he was a step above them? He considered himself one of the top guys in this company, if not _the_ top guy and he didn't want to deal with these two right now.

Jeff offered him a match later though and if he won, he'd be in the match at Judgment Day. He was intrigued by the offer, in fact, he was more than intrigued, he wanted the match. He would get in the match and then he'd beat Edge for the title and then he'd be champion again. He'd feel slightly bad for taking the title from Edge, but that was only because Edge was mad at him right now and he'd probably be madder if he took his belt away too. Still, he really wanted that belt back so Edge would have to deal.

He went backstage and to Stephanie's office. He pushed open the door and got a car right into his foot, "Oww, damn, that hurt."

"Language," Stephanie said, not even looking up.

"Watch where you drive that, kid," Chris told Sawyer, "especially around Flynn."

"I know, but she on couch," Sawyer said, pointing to the couch, where Flynn was sitting with Trish.

"Oh, hey, Trish."

"Hey, we saw you out there, you looked really mad."

"I'm a little distracted."

"By your match later?" Trish asked. "I think it was really nice of Jeff to come up with that match. Offering that to you, he's a good guy."

"Yeah, right," Chris said, scowling at her.

"What? I think he is," Trish shrugged. "I can't help it if I'm friends with him. He's just a really nice guy. I think it was cool of him to give you that offer."

"It shouldn't be up to him. Teddy really should have stepped in and just said that I could be in the match on Sunday, don't you think, Steph?"

"If you're trying to get me to change something, I'm not."

"I'm not," he told her. "I'm just saying that he should recognize the talent he has and use me to his best ability, I mean, really, I'm the best he has and he doesn't put me in the title match, how stupid is that?"

"It's very stupid," Stephanie said, but she was distracted.

"Are you even listening to me?"

"Yes, I'm listening to you, you're mad, you're distracted."

"You're damn right I am," Chris said. "But I'm actually distracted by the thing with Randy."

"Why?" Trish asked.

"Because! I'm mad at him, you know, beat him up last week, have you been keeping up?" he asked, irritated with how everyone was acting right now.

"Yeah, you're right, Steph, he's definitely acting like a little boy."

"What?" Chris asked, swiveling around to look at Stephanie. "You called me a little boy?"

"I was just saying that you're really thinking about what you did to Randy on Monday," Stephanie told him. He frowned. "Chris, come on, ease up, okay. You need to calm down, you look so tense."

"I am tense in case you couldn't tell. I've got this Randy thing, then I've got this match later, which I _need_ to win. I want to be in the title match," Chris said, pounding his fist against his hand. "I want the title back."

"Wow, you do need to calm down," Trish said, standing up and bringing Flynn over. "Here, you take this, I have a feeling she can calm you down."

Chris did visibly calm as he took Flynn into his arms. She was happy and content too. She hadn't seen her daddy in a while and she'd wondered where he was, but now he was here and she didn't need to worry anymore. "Hey, flutterby, you're the best," Chris told her, kissing her head.

Christian walked into the room, "Oh hey man, I saw what went down out there, rough."

"Thank you!" Chris exclaimed.

"What? What did I do?"

"You recognize that I should've gotten the match upfront, right?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, sure," Christian told him, "you should have just gotten it."

"See, I told you," Chris said to Stephanie. "I should just get in the match without having to jump through hoops first."

"Jeff is reasonable!" Trish told him.

"You think Jeff is reasonable?" Christian asked, looking down at his wife as he wrapped an arm around her waist. "Since when is he reasonable?"

"You get so cute when you're jealous," Trish said, pinching Christian's cheek.

"I'm not jealous, I know you're friends with him, I don't care that you're friends with him, I'm jut saying," Christian said quickly, then changed the subject, "Hey Chris, where's Katie Lea tonight, is she here?"

"Not sure actually, I haven't seen her," Chris shrugged, "haven't really looked though, why?"

"Just wondering, you know, Edge said that he would totally sleep with her if he was available."

"Edge would sleep with anything," Stephanie said in disgust.

"Vickie's not accepting the divorce," Christian informed them all.

"What do you mean she's not accepting the divorce."

"Like I said, she's not accepting it," Christian said, confusing all the others as he went into the explanation.

Chris shouldn't have let everything get to him when he had his match later that night, but sometimes it was hard not to. He admitted that a huge part of him was too focused on Randy. Maybe if he'd focused less on that, he could've spent a little more focus in the ring. For the most part, he was all there for his match, but the distractions of Edge and Mysterio got to him and usually he didn't let any distractions get to him, instead focusing solely on his match. He could hear Edge cheering Jeff on and while he knew part of it was because he didn't want the Triple Threat, another was because he was mad at Chris. Chris tried not to care, but it did sting a little. But he'd make up with Edge later.

Right now, Edge had bigger problems.

**Monday**

As if Chris's week couldn't get any worse after his heinous loss on SmackDown, now he was facing down Vickie as he tried to get into the arena. "No, you're not allowed back here. You are not a Raw superstar so you can't be here, I'm banning you after what you did last week."

"You can't do that."

"I'm the GM, I can and I will."

Stephanie stepped up next to Chris, just getting there after getting Flynn and her things from the car, "Well, I'm Stephanie McMahon and I say he can."

Vickie backed down at that. She knew Stephanie had more authority than she did. Stephanie was going to take so much pleasure in slowly taking over this show and SmackDown and then maybe ECW for the kicks of it. Yes, ultimate power sounded so wonderfully delicious. Vickie didn't have a clue as to what she was dealing with. Stephanie had run Raw, not SmackDown so Vickie didn't really get to see firsthand what Stephanie was all about, but she'd see, oh yes, she'd see.

"Fine, but you can't touch Randy again, do you hear me?" Vickie said. "I still run this show and I don't want _my_ wrestlers to be injured by someone on another brand."

"Fine," Chris said, "I won't touch him."

If everything went as planned, he wouldn't need to.

Some time later, Edge walked into the arena with Lita next to him. She looked around apprehensively. She'd agreed to come, but she didn't know what to expect. When they walked down the hall towards Vickie's office, she could see some people surprised to see her. She clung to Edge's hand and then saw Matt. She paused for a moment and tried to give him a smile, but he had turned away. Maybe he didn't want to see her and Edge together. She could use a familiar face though, any familiar face.

"It's okay, I'm here," Edge said with tenderness in his voice he reserved for only her. If Christian could hear him now, he probably wouldn't think his brother such a pig.

"I know," she said, kissing him lightly on the cheek.

Then the door loomed in front of them, like the entrance to some dark, abandoned castle or a haunted house. They didn't know what to expect on the other side of that door and it was probably more terrifying to think about than the worst horror movie. Lita didn't want a worse reputation than she already had. She just wanted to live quietly and retired. She wanted her band and Edge; that was all. But if she wanted Edge, she was going to have to do this.

"Okay, you ready?" Edge asked.

"Lead the way," she told him, squeezing his hand for support.

They walked inside and there was Vickie. "Edge!" she said as she looked up, then she looked over at the person next to him, "Lita?"

"Hello, Vickie."

"What's going on here?" Vickie asked.

"I told you I was with Lita, Vickie," Edge said, "and here, I'm with her. I'm with her and I want a divorce from you. If you needed proof, here it is."

Vickie looked at them for a long moment and the two of them stood there, side-by-side, solid like a fence. They were together in this; they were staying together in this. Lita had been hidden away too long and Edge wanted to have her come with him to work. He just wanted to have a girlfriend who he didn't have to hide away. Vickie looked like she was thinking and her brow was knitted together.

Then she laughed.

"Oh, Edge, I can't believe you would go to such lengths, silly," Vickie said. "Bringing Lita here to prove a point, I get it. I'm not spending enough time with you."

"No," Edge said, shaking his head, "Vickie, look, I'm with her, I'm _with_ her."

"Sure you are," she said, pretending to play along. "You're still mad about the Big Show thing, aren't you? This is you trying to get back at me, isn't it?"

"No, it's not, it's me moving on," Edge said.

"Sweetie, stop this, okay, we've got to move on."

"No," Edge said, grabbing Lita and kissing her. She didn't want it to be like this, but she fell into his kiss like she always did. She couldn't help it, Edge was such an expert with his lips. She figured it was because of the vast number of women he'd kissed so he had a lot of practice in this area. After a long moment and a slight sweep of his tongue against hers, he pulled away and looked at Vickie. "I want a divorce, see."

"No," Vickie said, "you want to be mad at me, fine, but we will work this out. Using Lita as a pawn, fine, but I'm not going to let you act stupidly just to get me to pay attention to you. I will talk to you later. Lita, I'll kindly ask you to stay away from my husband. I get that he wanted to use you, but you've served your purpose. I don't want you near him."

She left them and Edge groaned and sank down on the couch, "How much clearer could I have been, Li? I kissed you in front of her, I showed her, I asked her, why won't she just let me go?"

"Maybe she's clinging too hard to something she really wanted," Lita said, sitting next to him and looping her arm through his, leaning her chin on his shoulder. She watched as the blond strands of his hair fell in his face and the way his muscles flexed, slightly changing one of his tattoos. "Maybe she doesn't want to see it because she doesn't want to fail. I mean…she has already lost a husband, I guess I could sympathize with her if she's trying to protect herself from losing another."

"That's really sad, but I want out, I don't like sneaking around with you. I don't like making you feel like you're nothing."

"Well, you'll get the papers drawn up and she'll have to see then, right? She'll have to see then."

"You're right, she will have to acknowledge it."

"Yes, she will."

Chris was so happy when Vickie said that Batista and Randy could kick each other's asses. It made his job so much easier. He hadn't expected this wonderful turn of events and he pulled Stephanie into his lap and kissed her. He tilted his head slightly to the side as he held her around the waist. Flynn was in her arms at the moment and was looking up at her parents in confusion. What were they doing and why weren't they paying attention to her?

"Okay, that was unexpected," Stephanie said breathlessly as she pulled away. Her cheeks were flushed from the suddenness of the kiss and she licked her lips and pressed a quick peck to his lips, but he pulled her back for more.

"Eww," Sawyer said from where he was sitting, "yucky."

"I'm going to ask you if this is yucky in like 20 years," Chris said to his son. Then he turned to his wife. "Do I tell you enough that I love you?"

"What kind of question is that?"

"Just one that's easily answerable."

"You tell me a lot," she told him. "You tell me everyday and for that I'm eternally grateful to you…or something. It's just nice to hear that someone loves you."

"I do, so much."

"Did you do something?"

"Why do you always ask that?" he chuckled as Flynn grabbed for his necklace. She examined it with a keen eye.

"Because I know you too well."

"I didn't do anything…yet."

"That's ominous," she pointed out.

"No, it's not."

"What are you planning?" she asked him.

"Probably better you don't know."

Because when Chris was hitting Ted DiBiase in the back of the head with a chair, he believed Stephanie would rather not know that it was him that did the deed. If he couldn't touch Randy Orton, he'd do the next best thing. He didn't like Ted to begin with so hitting him with a chair was great. Batista laughed as he watched and when Randy found Ted laid out and muttering the name of the only man he'd seen, Randy was left to believe that Batista had been the only instigator.

He'd soon learn how wrong he was.


	235. Conspiracies, May 15, 2009

A/N: Thanks for the reviews to those who reviewed. I really appreciate them, especially for this story so if you haven't reviewed or don't review, reviews always really help and are really appreciated.

This is just SmackDown from last week. I think I might do a separate chapter from Judgment Day and Raw.

On a side note, I'm going to send some love over to StephanieIrvine's story, "Blind," which is an incredible, incredible story and everyone should really go read it like immediately. :)

* * *

"Do you think there's a conspiracy against me?"

Stephanie looked up from what she was doing and stared at Chris for a long moment. He shrugged his shoulders at her, waiting for an answer. She tapped her pen against her chin and thought about it for a moment, squinting her eyes as if studying him. He sighed and looked at her, waiting for an answer.

"I think I'd get an answer faster from Flynn," Chris told her.

"I'm thinking!" she told him.

"It's either you do or you don't," Chris told her. "You either think there is or there isn't."

"What is with you and conspiracies?" Stephanie asked. "Didn't you think there was one against you in WCW?"

"There was," Chris said. "They all had it out for me there, every single one of them had it out for me."

"Okay, you go on believing that," she told him, widening her eyes as she looked back down at the paper in front of her. "you can believe anything that you want."

"You don't believe me," he stated rather than asked. He looked at his little girl and sighed. "Do you think there's a conspiracy against me?"

Flynn looked at her daddy and pursed her lips together a little, making a bit of a face at him. She smiled at him serenely though, not really knowing what he was going on about. She didn't know what the hell a conspiracy was. She just knew she was in holding hands with her daddy and she liked that. She liked being around her daddy, especially because Sawyer wasn't around. She twisted her head, where the heck was he?

"She's looking for Sawyer," Stephanie said. "He's behind the couch, Flynnie."

Behind the couch, where was that? She looked around again. Chris leaned his head back, "Hey, you behind the couch, someone wants to see you."

Sawyer's ears perked up. He had been playing with his remote control car again. It was his new favorite toy. He loved it more than anything right now, except for maybe his belt, but that stayed at home because it was too heavy to take around. His car wasn't too heavy to carry around. That was why he got to take it with him. But someone wanted him and he figured it was Flynn. That was okay, he liked Flynn more than he liked his car. He crouched around the couch and then jumped out.

"Grr!" Sawyer said, baring his hands like claws and making a very fierce face at his little sister.

Flynn's mouth went wide with surprise and she looked at her brother with shock. Where had he come from! She laughed and laughed at his sneaky surprise and bounced up and down on her daddy's tummy. Chris wheezed every time she did her little jump because she wasn't that light any more and she could pack a jump.

"My stomach, flutterby, please spare the stomach," Chris told her.

She looked back to her daddy, but then went back to looking at Sawyer happily. She was so glad he was here, where had he been? Sawyer went up to her and grinned, "I scare you!"

Flynn just babbled and tried to let go of Chris. "Hey, wait a second," Chris said, not wanting her to fall on him or worse, fall off the couch. Chris sat up and kissed her on the forehead. Flynn pulled one hand away from him and wiped at where he'd kissed her. "You are much too young to be embarrassed about being kissed by me."

She just smiled at him and tugged at the hand she was grasping. Chris sighed and put her down on the ground. She stood for a moment, but then flopped down to her butt. Sawyer got down on his hands and knees and she emulated him and he started crawling away. Flynn, eager to follow him, started crawling as well. Chris swung his legs over the couch when he was sure he wouldn't accidentally kick one of his children.

"So come on, conspiracy?" he said.

"Okay, who do you think has a conspiracy against you?" Stephanie asked, putting her pen down. "I want names."

"Teddy, for one, everyone on the roster, pretty much everyone here actually. I think they heard I was coming and just decided to all treat me like--"

"Watch it," Stephanie said, seeing the serpent of bad taste in Chris's eyes.

"Crap. Treat me like crap," Chris said.

"If _everyone_ is conspiring against you that works on this show, wouldn't that mean _I_ was conspiring against you too since I'm the one in charge over here?" she pointed out. Chris hadn't thought of that. He looked at Stephanie for a second as if suspicious and she scoffed, "Don't tell me you're actually entertaining the thought that I'm conspiring against you somehow."

"I don't know, you were awfully snippy to me this week."

"I was not snippy to you."

"I think it has to do with the fact I hit your precious Ted with a chair."

"I think it's more the fact that you were with Dave. I mean, there's nothing wrong with the guy, but I don't know, I don't trust him, not after what he did with Hunter in that match they had. He just doesn't seem on the up and up."

"And we are?" he asked. "Stephanie, in the entire time we've been together, I don't think we've ever been on the up and up as you would say."

"Of course we have," Stephanie said. "There have been points in our relationship where neither one of us was trying to plan something or hiding something."

"Name one," he challenged her.

She thought for a moment, a _long_ moment. Chris tapped his watch and she flipped him off. "Okay, so I can't really name a time, but we've been together for almost seven years, that's a long time to remember."

"You have a great memory."

"I don't," she told him.

The door flew open and Chris and Stephanie's head turned to see who was there. It was Edge, belt over his shoulder and holding hands with Lita. "I just wanted to say I was here and I'm with Lita, yes, I'm with Lita in that sense and we're here together. It's not really any of your business because we are not friends, but I'm just letting everyone know."

"Does this have to do with Vickie not believing you guys are divorced?" Stephanie asked.

"I shouldn't even answer that because you are not…hey, wait a second, how did you know about that? Are people talking?"

"Christian told us," Chris said.

"He…I told him not to tell you! You are not my friends!" Edge said, nearly stomping his foot. Even Flynn was looking at him like he was being a big baby and she would know because she _was_ a baby, but she never acted like that. Flynn was too cool a baby to act like that.

"Well, he did tell us," Stephanie said. "Besides, even if he hadn't, I had the displeasure of talking with Vickie because she is the Raw GM and Teddy, Tiffany, and I had a meeting with her about Judgment Day on Wednesday and she was talking about you as if you guys were still together."

"Damn it," Edge said.

"Can you watch the language, please?" Stephanie asked, nodding towards her kids, who were watching this exchange. Sawyer thought Edge was being really funny.

"Sorry," Edge mumbled, actually acting like he was chagrined. "Anyways, we're not together, she's just refusing to see what's in front of her face, but I don't care anymore. Do you hear that, Li, I don't care anymore! I'm going to go out with my girlfriend if I want to. And when the divorce papers are done, she'll know, I mean, Vickie, not Lita, because you already know, right, babe?"

"I do know."

"Hi, Lita," Stephanie said, finally getting a chance to say hello to her.

"Don't talk to her," Edge hissed, but everyone could hear. "She's the enemy."

"Hey, Stephanie," Lita said sweetly, throwing a look to Edge. He threw his hands up in the air, a sign of defeat, and then left, grumbling to himself. "He's just on edge…oh God, sometimes I say it and I don't mean to…but he's just kind of wired right now because of his match on Sunday and because of the thing with Vickie."

"We understand, don't we, Chris?" Stephanie said.

"Well, he could be consp--"

Cutting him off, Stephanie said, "We understand."

Lita leaned in the doorway. "Yeah, plus, he was hurt that you didn't tell him. I mean, I understand why you didn't, the less people know the better, right, but he was still hurt, especially because you told Katie Lea."

"Well, she helped you know, get the girls away from me."

"Way to sound vain, Chris," Lita joked and Chris laughed. "He'll get over it though, he likes you guys, you know he does. He's just got so much going on and you know he's never really taken to stress very well."

"We know," Stephanie said, giving Chris a look not to say anything about conspiracies or secret meetings or other stuff like that.

"Yeah, but I have to admit, it's really good being here with him, you know, out in the open and everything."

Lita wasn't lying either. Ever since she and Edge had started seeing each other again, they'd really had to be in secret. He was a married man and the last thing she wanted was to be looked at like a slut again. It had been bad enough the last time when she had been dating Matt and cheated on him with Edge. There was just something so alluring about him, something that had existed between them for so long, even before she'd ever become attracted to him.

She'd loved Matt, she had, and some parts of her still loved him dearly. They'd reached a point now where they could be civil, but it would never truly be the same again. She'd broken his heart and she had to live with that, but would she trade that back after being with Edge? She didn't think she would. Sometimes, what doesn't seem right is actually what you've needed all along and Edge made her happy.

"I know how you feel," Stephanie told her. "I felt the same way the first night Chris and I showed up at Raw and could be together in public."

"Oh yeah, I forgot you two had hidden your relationship too."

"Yeah," Stephanie said. "Looking back it was so odd. I mean, I know why we did, but just the thought of still being in hiding is strange."

"I think it'd be hard though," Chris said, "considering we have two kids together. One day Stephanie pops out a kid and nobody knows whose it is, that'd just be strange."

Lita shook her head, "I'll see you guys later, I'm going to find my guy and make sure that he's okay."

Chris and Stephanie said their goodbyes and Lita headed down the hallway. Edge could be anywhere by now, but she hoped he hadn't gone far. Some of the backstage workers were saying hello to her, but she was trying to remain focused on finding her boyfriend. He was probably getting himself psyched up for SmackDown. She knew he didn't have a match, or at least he didn't yet, but Jeff might and he would definitely want to be there for that.

She found him sitting on a trunk just outside the main entrance. She hefted herself up next to him and dangled her legs off the side a moment. "Hey, what's up?"

"Christian isn't here tonight. He decided not to come. He and Trish wanted to chill at home."

"Oh," Lita said. "You wanted to talk to him?"

"Yeah," Edge shrugged, "I don't know…"

"He's your brother, of course you'd want to talk to him."

"I guess," Edge said. "Jeff has a match tonight against Ricky Ortiz."

"Are you going to interrupt?" Lita asked, resting her hand on his leg.

"No, I don't think so. I think I'll make him think I am and then I won't show up at all."

"Good plan, you'll psyche him out that way. Better to do that than to attack him."

"You're still friends with him," Edge pointed out.

"But I love _you_," Lita said, resting her chin on his shoulder. "Besides, he wants your belt, I can't be his friend right now. In fact, he's enemy #1 in my eyes and nothing is going to change that until he loses to you and then we can go back to being friends."

"You're the best," he said and he couldn't help the smile that landed on his face. She just had this knack for making him smile and he was so grateful to her. His life, though it shouldn't, felt in shambles right now. Sure, he was the title holder and that was all well and good and he _loved_ that he was the champion, but his personal life sucked. He was mad at his friends (though deep down inside, he wasn't) and his wife wouldn't accept the fact he didn't want to be with her anymore.

"I try to be," she told him.

"This feels nice," he told her.

"What does?"

"Just being with you and not caring. Not thinking about someone maybe telling Vickie. I just don't care anymore. Does that make me a bad person?"

"Well, people don't really like you anyways," she joked.

"Not funny, people are just jealous of me," Edge said.

"I don't think it makes you a bad person. You laid it all out there for her and if she doesn't choose to accept that now, you're taking the necessary steps in order to make sure she understands it in the very near future. The both of you…I mean, I don't know the inner-workings of your relationship before I came along, but I saw some of it and--"

"You saw?"

"Edge, come on, you guys were all over television, of course I saw."

"But you told me that you didn't watch wrestling while you were away."

"I lied, sue me," she told me. "Of course I watched. I just kind of stopped watching when you and Vickie were getting hot and heavy, that was a little hard to watch."

Edge watched her for a moment and sighed, kissing her temple, "I'm sorry."

"Nothing to be sorry for, we were broken up. You could've dated whoever you wanted. Of course, you went with one hell of a rebound, but it's not like I can fault you for who you wanted to see."

"I know, but she was just…I don't know what I was thinking now. I mean, she's not bad or anything."

"You've made sure to make that clear in everything you've said," she told him, "it's very sweet."

"Thanks," he said. "I just hope that she gets what I'm trying to do."

Chris walked up and down the hallway. Stephanie had taken the kids on a short walk to try and get Sawyer tired so he would go to bed. So Chris was left alone and he kept thinking about this conspiracy idea. He had been conspired against in WCW, he just knew he had. He'd been way too talented and everyone was trying to hold him down. They were trying to repress his natural talent. He'd gotten out of there before it was too late, but how the hell could he get out of this situation? He'd been drafted to SmackDown and he couldn't just switch over. Well, he could, but that'd be a blatant abuse of power.

Then there was getting out in general, which wasn't going to work either. He was married to Stephanie McMahon. Man, sometimes, that choice just seemed so out there. If he'd just been with someone normal, someone he met off the street, he could just leave, take his ball and go home. But he had to stay here and be disrespected and conspired against. Yes, he was being treated poorly because of everything he'd done over on Raw. Didn't people believe in a clean slate? Chris was a good, honest man and he kept to his word, yet he was being lambasted by wrestlers, Teddy, the audience, everyone!

He couldn't stand it anymore. He was going to go out there, planned time or not. Stephanie could accommodate him, he was sure. He just had to find her. He walked around and around, knowing the show was starting and time was ticking down on when he could speak. He finally located his wife back in her office and he cursed under his breath that she had been here all along. Sawyer was lying on the couch, getting sleepier and sleepier by the second. Flynn was sitting with Stephanie, trying to grab some of the papers on the desk to crumple. Stephanie had given her a small piece of paper and Flynn was grabbing it in her little hands and tearing it up.

"I've been looking everywhere for you."

"I've been here," she told him.

"I want time, like right now."

"Right now?" she asked. "Chris, I don't know, it's such short notice, I'd have to move things around…"

"Stephanie, I don't ask you for much, but I want time right now," he told her.

"Oh, well, if you really--"

"I really want it."

"Of all times to ask for a favor," she told him. "Okay." She grabbed her phone and dialed Teddy's number. "Hi, Teddy, it's Steph. Change of plans. Chris wanted time as soon as possible and I think that we can move the Jeff/Ricky match to after because we've got time at the end of the show to make it under."

"Yeah, we can do that. Or we can hold it off until the end of the show, we left space open."

"Hold on," she said, then turned to Chris. "Do you think you can wait until the end of the show?"

"No."

Stephanie rolled her eyes. "Teddy, that's not going to work. Chris wants time now and he's being extremely irritable. So do you think we could push the match back?"

"Yeah, we do have the time to push it back so we should be able to," Teddy said. "Can you handle taking care of that or shall I tell production?"

"I'll let them know, thanks, Teddy."

"Not a problem, bye."

"Bye." Stephanie hung up. "I like him."

"He's conspiring against me!"

"I think you're blowing this out of proportion."

"Maybe you _are_ conspiring against me too. Maybe this is one of your plans. Maybe it was your plan all along to get me over here."

"Yes, Chris, this entire thing is a plan. In fact, the reason I'm with you in the first plan? Plan. The reason I had two kids with you? Conspiracy! It's all my long-winded attempt at taking you down. See, I could've sent guy after guy after you and hoped they beat you, but why settle for that when I can break you down slowly over years by loving you and bearing your children?"

"You're not funny, you know."

"I think I am, Sawyer thinks I am, Flynnie thinks I am, right, Flynnie?" Stephanie asked, peering down at her daughter. Stephanie sighed as she saw Flynn trying to eat the paper she'd given her. She pulled the paper out of Flynn's mouth and the little girl whimpered a little, but didn't cry. She was so above crying, that one was.

"Well, you're not. You should believe me when I say everyone is against me."

"I don't, sorry," she told him.

"And I pretended to want a divorce from you and you can't even agree with me on this," he said, folding her arms over his chest in a display of his indignation. "You know, a lot of wives would help out a guy and say they were right."

"So get one of those wives," Stephanie told him. "Sawyer, Flynnie, and I will be just fine."

"I hate you, I really do. I'm going to keep my eye on you, just in case you start displaying any suspicious behavior."

"I'll give you suspicious behavior," she teased, sticking her tongue out. Flynn saw her do this and wanted to emulate her so she stuck her tongue out as well. Stephanie looked down and saw her little copycat and chuckled. "I guess that goes doubly for her."

"Et tu, Flynn?" Chris asked morosely, giving her a pout. "Fine, I'm going out there. I will talk to you later."

He got up and went around Stephanie's desk to give Flynn a kiss. She tilted her head up towards him to get her kiss. Then Stephanie gave a little hopeful look and he leaned down and kissed her too. She used her free hand to run it across his cheek. He pulled away and gave her another small peck on the lips before he went over to Sawyer and gave him a kiss, but the boy was asleep and didn't feel it.

Chris walked out there with a purpose. He didn't care what anyone thought, everyone was conspiring against him. He was the #1 guy on this show. He was a huge star and the reigning Superstar of the Year, but nobody was treating him with any respect. He was sick and tired of it. He was going to start rectifying this situation immediately. He'd start with Rey Mysterio on Sunday. He didn't particularly care about the IC Title, but he just wanted to get rid of that little pipsqueak while he could. He had cost him a chance at the World Title. Becoming a 9 time Intercontinental Champion would be something, but it wasn't the belt he desired most.

He told them all Rey was not going to hit his signature 619 on him that Sunday. He wasn't going to leave himself up to that lame move. Oh, look at me, I'm flying through the ropes, lame, he had a million better moves than that lame one. He was the one at the helm here, he was the one with the power, the leader of the locker room. He didn't necessarily think it was because of Stephanie, but she sure helped. He commanded Rey to come out here now for a pre-match confrontation.

He was not that surprised when Edge came out. Edge would not leave him alone and Chris knew it was because of Edge's hurt. Edge was so mad that he wasn't told about the plan Chris was starting to think he should just come up with some plan and include Edge just so he would feel better about the entire thing. Edge came into the ring and said what he'd been saying for weeks now, that it was his show. He didn't have to include the 9-time World Champion though, that one stung a little bit. Chris was a formidable 5-time World/WWE/Undisputed Champion and that was nothing to sneeze at.

Was it more than 9? No, it wasn't, but he was a multiple-time champion all the same. Yes, he was going to be a 9-time IC Title holder after Sunday, but Rey held the title already. It wasn't like Chris was challenging for the title because he actually wanted it. He just wanted some revenge on Shorty. But now Edge had to come barging down and make this about him.

Edge wasn't going to let Chris off the hook so easily. They were friends! Friends tell other friends things. That's just what you do when you're someone's friend. It seems Chris and Stephanie had lost their manual on how to be a good friend. So he was going to do what he could to Chris and this was one way, to marginalize him. He knew Chris didn't really, truly care about the belt as much as he did, but he wouldn't bring up Chris's family or anything like that. He did like Sawyer and Flynn, despite the fact Sawyer still called him Ed. Edge believed the little boy knew his name, but just like to make fun of him. Typical Chris.

The two of them got into an argument, both calling out their opponents on Sunday. They were staring at each other angrily, trying to one-up the other, when Teddy Long came out. Oh great, conspiracy time! Chris expected when he was put into a match with Edge for later that evening. Edge looked at him smugly and they walked backstage.

"That's what you get."

"Oh, come on, Edge, it's not like I insulted your mom."

"Maybe you did _that_ behind my back too."

"I happen to like your mom."

"She is very cool," Edge nodded. "But why Katie Lea? Why did she get to know? I mean, yeah, she's got a great rack, but you didn't go telling like…Eve, who also has a great rack."

"Who's Eve?'

"You don't keep up and you call yourself a leader. She's a diva here," Edge gestured spastically. He looked like he was some sort of leaf flailing in the wind, going every which way. "Brunette…oh forget it. Katie has boobs, I get that, I _get_ that, but why did she get to know?"

"You probably would have let it leak…"

"You know I wouldn't have."

"Okay, fine, we just needed authenticity, you know. If we let all our friends know, the reactions wouldn't have bee the same."

"Well you should've told me. I'm going to kick your ass later," Edge told him.

Great, now he had two guys gunning after him.

When he got back to Stephanie's office, both his kids were asleep and tucked away in their appropriate spots, Sawyer on his official WWE air mattress and Flynn in the portable crib. They were both breathing quietly, their breaths coming rhythmically and little chests rising and falling in a sweet beat. They were calming when they were awake, but almost even more so when they were asleep. Their faces were soft and, he didn't like to think angelic, but they were just so calm and serene and peaceful. They had nothing in their lives that troubled them.

He envied his kids sometimes. They were innocent of so many things and didn't hold the knowledge that he did or Stephanie did. He watched them for a while, sitting there, just looking at his children sleep. Stephanie came up behind him on the couch and rubbed his shoulders for a few moments before she wrapped her arms around his neck from behind and leaned her chin on his shoulder, watching him watching their kids.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked him.

"Them," Chris said, jerking his thumb towards his children. They were only illuminated by the soft light coming from the television near Stephanie's desk, the sound of which was turned so low that it sounded like a dull hum reverberating across the room, bouncing off the harsh walls, tumbling against itself.

"What about them?" Stephanie asked. "The fact they're so much easier to deal with when they're asleep?"

"Well, yes, there's that, but just how sweet they look when they're asleep."

"I agree with you there," Stephanie said, looking at her children. "They don't have a care in the world."

"I envy that," he sighed. "I envy that so much."

"You want to be a kid again?" she asked.

"No, God, no…well, no, no, being a kid was fun, but I don't know, I like things now, for the most part, well, I like what's in this room at least," he told her and she smiled and kissed his neck. "Although I did see you when I was a teenager. I think I wanted to buy a WWF t-shirt just because of that picture."

"Creep," she told him. "Can you imagine, looking at me in those dumb catalogs and thinking, that's the girl I'm going to marry."

"I did not think that, no," Chris told her.

"Well, I bet not, but once you found out I was the boss's daughter in those, you probably would've been like, 'She's my in!'"

"In to what? A lifetime of planning and scheming."

"You like when I plan and scheme."

"No, I really don't," he teased. "I do remember those catalogs though, not really you, but I remember the catalogs."

"That's something I would never, ever, ever make Sawyer or Flynn do. It was so embarrassing, having to pose for the catalogs, where t-shirts and stuff of people I didn't even like or who didn't like me."

"Who doesn't like you?"

"Millions of people, trust me," she told him. "When you came into the company and first met me, did you think you'd marry me?"

"Stephanie, until I actually got the ring thrown at my head, I didn't think I'd marry you," he told her. "When you found the ring, whole different story."

"If I hadn't found it, would you have proposed?" she wondered.

"I don't know," he told her honestly. "You were about to leave me and I felt like it was a lost cause, so now, I probably wouldn't have at that time or any time soon after that, but eventually. We'd probably end up like Christian and Trish, circling around each other for years before ever doing anything about it."

"That's true, but you thought I was pretty the first time we met, right?" She liked hearing his side of things. Plus, she knew talking like this was calming him down for his match later _and_ having the great affect of taking his mind off silly conspiracies.

She really didn't think anyone had it out for Chris in such a specific manner. Sure, maybe he wasn't well-liked here, not that he was totally well-liked at Raw, but he was definitely more liked than here. But the people over at Raw knew he was a good guy backstage. Everything that went on in front of the cameras wasn't the guy that was around all the time. Chris picked his grudges and picked his fights. He was a good man and the legends had bothered him and he definitely had cause to dislike Shawn Michaels. The same went for Rey Mysterio. Chris had a legitimate reason for his dislike. Mysterio had cost him the chance at the title.

If people looked past all that stuff, Chris was one of the best guys. "I thought you were gorgeous actually."

"Oh come on, stop."

He laughed, a welcome sound even to his ears. It felt good to take his mind off of wrestling for a moment. "Okay, so I didn't think that highly of you, but you have to remember, when I debuted, you were in the thralls of your sweater-set period."

"Oh yes, that period," she said, thinking back fondly to her ex-fiancé, God rest his soul. It was strange to think someone you'd loved was no longer here.

"I thought you were cute," he told her as she nuzzled herself against him. He sighed contentedly at the contact. "I mean, you had such pretty qualities, you know, you looked so young and fresh-faced and you always wore your hair straight and little makeup. You were just a cute kid."

"So it wasn't until I turned sex kitten that you were attracted to me."

"When the hell were you ever a sex kitten and can I get some videotape?"

"Well, I dressed more provocatively."

"Oh, you mean when you were a filthy, dirty, disgusting," Stephanie clamped her hand over Chris's mouth and he could only mumbled the rest.

"Don't you dare, we are so far beyond that, Chris Jericho," Stephanie told him. I'll kick you out of bed if you say it."

She pulled her hand away slowly, "Ho, the magic word is…ho!"

"I hate you," she said, shoving him slightly. "You didn't find me attractive at all?"

"You were a skank, no way," he said, shaking his head, "gross."

"Speaking of that time period, have you heard from Hunter? He hasn't even called me, I don't even know where he is or who he's with or anything. Have you talked to him at all? I'm wondering when he can get back into action."

"How are we going to explain this whole thing with us not being broken up?" he asked before answering her question.

"I don't know, we kind of have to keep going with the whole Hunter and I are together thing, at least in front of the cameras, not behind since everyone knows we're okay and if we were to stage another fight nobody is going to believe us. We just have to pretend on-screen."

"I can live with that," he said, "as long as it's understood backstage that we're together."

"So, have you heard from him?"

"Oh, oh yeah, yeah, I have, I talked to him a couple of days ago. He and Britt are together and they're happy right now. He's glad for the break. He doesn't know when he'll be back though so don't plan anything."

"Damn."

"Too bad he's not here, he could tell me exactly where you got that hideous wardrobe you always wore with him or he can tell me how you got that rat's nest hairdo you were so fond of back then."

"Oh get off it," she told him. "I love you."

"I love you too," Chris said, then went back to looking at his children. "It's amazing how just watching them changes my mood. I want to win tonight though. I want to show Edge. I want to beat him."

"That won't help in getting him to talk to you."

"Yeah, I know, but still, I want the momentum and then come Sunday, I'm going to take the IC Title because it's up on the line and I'm not going to say I'd like the match without the belt, that'd be stupid."

"It would be," she agreed.

"Yeah, then I'll beat him and be the champion and show that I'm just as worthy of calling this my show. I don't know where Edge comes off thinking that we hate him because we didn't tell him. We don't hate him, he's one of our friends."

"Like Lita said, he's just hurt."

Edge jumped up and down, "I'm going to kick his ass, Li."

"Just take it easy on him," Lita told him.

"What? No, I'm not taking it easy on him at all. He's going to feel my wrath."

"Your wrath?" she asked sarcastically.

"Go with me here," he said, "I'm trying to appear tough."

"Oh you appear something alright," Lita said.

"You are not helping."

"Sorry."

"I just want to beat him and make him pay for not including me. I'm going to punish him."

Chris wouldn't say the match was necessarily a punishment. It was just a match, like any other he'd been in. The only difference was he really considered Edge a friend. He was sad that Edge was so upset, but the best thing to do would be to ride this wave until Edge's anger ebbed. He didn't think it would take too long really.

Until his match. Edge was ready for a fight and Chris was slightly surprised that Edge was as into this as he was. He had a huge match coming up on Sunday against Jeff so he needed his health for Sunday. Still, Edge went at him hard and this just showed how much Edge was hurt by being kept out of the loop. Chris wanted to tell him that next time (as there was _always_ a next time) he would be included from the beginning. Right now though, there was a match afoot.

The two men went back and forth a couple of times, each locking in a move and then a counter and sometimes a 2-count, but neither one was pulling enough win the match. They were so evenly matched with one another that whatever they did, whatever offensive move was taken, there was a defensive counter of said move. It eventually started to dissolve as both of them were more than willing to play dirty. They were much too alike in the rings and neither on was winning and neither did win because the match was called off.

For a few minutes, Chris tried to help Jeff, just to show Edge he was on his side, but Edge didn't seem to care. Chris walked up the ramp smugly. Everyone was involved in some sort of fight. There was Edge/Jeff and Umaga/Punk and he was standing there, laughing at them all. Then Rey came and the laughter turned to defense, but he'd been ambushed and the little troll had gotten the better of him. That was fine. He'd take care of him

If not Sunday, then soon, very soon.


	236. Walk On, May 22, 2009

A/N: I'm a horrible updater. Sorry for the lateness, this is the one that was supposed to be last week, I'll get this week up soon. Sorry, but enjoy anyways, hopefully, and reviews always make my day. :)

* * *

"Do you think not going to Raw was the right decision?"

"Yeah, because that way you keep Randy thinking that another attack can happen at any given moment, it's the only way to go."

"You're much too devious for me, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho," Chris said as he looked at his wife. They were all huddled in Stephanie's office right now. He was lounging on the couch while Sawyer and Flynn played on the floor. The office wasn't built for so many people, but if they wanted to spend time with Stephanie, they all had to crowd in here.

"Did you see Vickie on Monday though?" Stephanie asked.

"Wrestling?"

"Well, yeah, that, which I'm better at, right? Like if I were in a match with her, I'd win, don't you think?"

"Yes, I think you'd win," Chris nodded and he was being truthful.

"But no, I just mean, I think even Chavo can see that things between her and Edge are less than great and she still refuses to believe it. It's really kind of pathetic, don't you think?"

"Maybe she's just trying to save her marriage to him. I mean, come on, the woman is kind of crazy as it is, it's not out of the realm of possibility that she just wants to hold onto something that gave her some happiness."

"Are you…defending Vickie?" Stephanie asked.

"No…"

"You are!" Stephanie gasped, her mouth widening, "You were defending Vickie Guerrero! Oh my God, if I only had a camera so I could capture this moment because I think it is the most unlikely thing ever."

"Okay, you can stop it now."

"No, I mean, what if it's not Katie Lea that I had to worry about, what if you've had designs on Vickie this entire time? What if she's the one I need to worry about in this whole scheme? I mean, it makes sense, you try to detract me away from thinking it's her by becoming buddy-buddy with Katie Lea. Brilliant plan, Chris, brilliant plan. And maybe you were the one who sent Big Show to seduce her or whatever the hell happened there so _you_ could be the one to ultimately pick up the pieces."

"Shoot me if I ever want Vickie Guerrero over you," he told her. "Just take me out back and end it."

"I don't think so, I'd want to torment you much too much to just let you go out like that," Stephanie said, then went back to the papers on her desk. "Remind me again why you're in here?"

"Because I want to be."

"Not a good enough answer, we have an entire house at your disposal and yet you and our kids are all crowded in here when every inch of space is already taken up when you know I have work to do because we are flying very early to Cincinnati tomorrow and I have two kids to get ready."

"Hey, what I am, chopped liver? You act like I don't help get the kids ready in the morning when I do diaper duty for the pooper over there," Chris said, pointing towards his daughter. "You get to take care of the one that's potty-trained, how is that even fair?"

"Because Sawyer wants to dress himself and tries to grab things out of his drawers, Flynn just lets you dress her however you want, with you, usually some band shirt or one of your own shirts and then some jeans."

"Can I help it if my daughter is a fan of metal music?" he asked.

"She's not, trust me," Stephanie said. "So what are you going to do tomorrow, you're not going to let this thing with Rey go, I mean, even though he was better than you on Sunday and actually got the 619 on you, even though you said he wasn't going to hit the move."

"Did you just say he was better than me?" Chris asked. "Did you dare say that he was better than me?"

"Well, he wasn't, wasn't he?" Stephanie said. "I mean, he did beat you and did hit the move that you promised he wasn't going to hit. I guess that means you didn't exactly keep your word, would that make you like the hypocrites that you're trying to rail against?"

"Oh, that's it, McMahon," Chris said, "first you say that I somehow like Vickie, now _you_ are the one defending Rey Mysterio of all people, that's it, I'm done taking your abuse."

"Like I'm scared," she scoffed as Chris stalked closer. He came at her slowly and she started to laugh, "Don't you dare come near me, Jericho, I swear to God, don't you dare come near me!"

"Or what, you're going to fire me?" he asked sardonically, rolling his eyes.

"I have work to do, you better leave!" she said as Chris came over and started to tickle her a little and then sat down gingerly in her lap as she gave a grunt under his weight. "You're going to crush me."

"I'll be innocent in any court of law after the abuse you've laid on me," he said, not moving from sitting on her.

"This is not how this is supposed to go," Stephanie said as she looked up at her husband, "If anyone is going to be in laps, it should be me in yours."

"Oh, is _that_ how it's supposed to go," he said, getting off of her and then pulling her up and sitting down, pulling her down in his lap as he leaned back in his chair, "better?"

"Much," she said, giving him a kiss, "so really, what are you going to do about Rey, you really can't let this go. What do you want to do to him?"

"You know what I really want to do," he told her a gleam in his eyes. He had something up his sleeve and she couldn't wait to hear it. Of course she had to try and remain objective when it came to the show, after all, she was in charge and she couldn't play favorites, that just wouldn't work, everyone would call her on it, but she could hear what her husband had planned and quietly cheer him on.

"Hmm…make out with me?" she kidded.

"Well, always," he said, kissing her lightly, then smiling against her lips, "I love you."

"I love you too, so tell me what it is you want from Rey," Stephanie said. "I mean, besides the IC Title, even though I really do think you should go after the World Title, but one thing at a time I guess. Although now would be a good time since Edge is mad at you so you guys have something to get this going, like besides the belt, you can hash out your anger issues…or his anger issues."

"And going after Edge is going to make him my friend again that much faster, right?"

"Who needs friends when you have the title?"

"You _are_ ruthless."

"You still haven't told me what you want from Rey," she said.

"I want his mask."

Stephanie's eyebrow raised and the left side of her mouth turned up just the tiniest bit as she regarded her husband. Rey's mask? That was like the very definition of Rey Mysterio. Whenever anyone thought of Rey, his mask was in the image. His fans, all those kids, they all wore Rey masks so they could bump heads with him, so they could show how much they idolized him and her husband wanted the mask. Taking away something so…iconic was big indeed. Very big indeed.

"You want his mask?"

"Uh huh," Chris nodded. "He thinks that he can make fun of me, belittle me. Sawyer's taller than him and he thinks that he can dominate me, I don't think so. He wants to make fun of me, whatever, beat me, whatever, I will take the one thing that makes him, him."

"Have you ever seen him without it?" Stephanie asked. "I can barely remember what he looks like under there."

"There's a reason he wears the mask and it's mainly because he doesn't have a mug like this," Chris said, turning his face from side to side. "I mean, I'm a sexy beast and I've got nothing to hide, unlike Rey."

Stephanie nodded, "Well yeah, you've been doing a good job of showing that you've got nothing to hide."

"Stephanie, I'm still not switching back to my old ring attire."

"A girl can dream," she said with a pout. "I do like the idea of you stealing away his mask though. How devious that would be of you. It'd be like stealing his entire identity, that's so sexy."

"You're very strange, McMahon," Chris told her, but then started kissing her, "but I think that's why I like you."

Meanwhile, Christian sat with Trish and Edge, eating lunch, a quiet lunch. In fact, it was almost too quiet. Trish was silently munching on her salad, her left hand gently rubbing up and down Christian's leg as Edge sat across from them, his eyes in the distance. She cleared her throat and both men looked at her at almost the same moment and it was almost eerie how in sync they acted sometimes. The shared look on their faces really showed off their brotherliness.

"I was just clearing my throat," Trish shrugged, feeling a little silly now. "Edge, did you see how Chris handled Burchill on ECW this week?"

"Yeah, I did, I watched," Edge said, then frowned, "What does Katie have that I don't?"

"Oh my God, are we on this again?" Christian groaned. "Why do we go out with this guy, Trish, please tell me?"

"He makes me seem good by comparison?" she asked kiddingly, but Edge glared at her. "Oh, come on, Edge, everything in your life is such drama. Do you see me and Christian going through so much drama," she saw him raise an eyebrow at her and she added, "anymore, since we've been together and married?"

"Well, there's the baby thing."

Trish frowned, the baby thing that hadn't happened yet. It wasn't like they didn't want a kid, it just wasn't happening right now so they were taking a step back. "That's a moot point, there's no drama there, it's just us wanting children. But you don't see me going around creating drama or Christian."

"What about the thing with Swagger and what kind of name is Jack Swagger while we're on the subject," Edge said not realizing that well, his name was Edge so there was a bit of hypocrisy in his words.

"I'm not sure," Trish said, "I think Swagger in gibberish means douchebag because that's what he is."

"See, this is why she's _my_ girl," Christian said, wrapping his arm around her. "She defends me. You know, if Swagger had any kind of girlfriend or any kind of female that liked him whatsoever--"

"Which seems impossible to me because I don't know what self-respecting woman would want to be with someone who will _never_ love anyone more than himself," Trish interjected.

"The best, I tell you, the best," Christian said, taking a moment to kiss Trish's temple. "But if he had a girl, I would want you to fight her, Trish, and then we'd see what's what. I bet you could beat whomever you wanted."

"What if he was dating Beth Phoenix?"

"Oh please, you could take her in ten seconds," Christian waved it off. "I would like to see that actually."

"Katie was in your match the other night, wasn't she?" Edge said, trying to get the conversation back to his drama where it belonged. He was constantly drawing for the center of attention, that's why he was the face of SmackDown, because he needed to be that center of attention and not just because Chris was trying to make it all about him and Edge was mad at him.

"Yeah, she was, since Paul is her brother."

"Do you like her?"

"I haven't really gotten to hang out with her," Christian said, "I'm sure she's fine once you get to know her, but I think that's true of all people."

"I bet she's a loser," Edge frowned. "And ignorant too, and maybe she pads her bra, I bet you she pads her bra, Lita doesn't pad her bra."

"I'll file that information away, thank," Christian told his brother.

"Do you pad your bra, Trish?" Edge asked.

"What?" she asked indignantly.

"You can't ask my wife that!" Christian protested.

"Why not, she's my sister-in-law now," Edge pointed out.

"You still can't ask that."

"I don't pad my bra," Trish said, rolling her eyes at him. Leave it to Edge to want to know about her bra. You could make him commit to one woman, but the man's eyes wandered around quicker than a person could snap their fingers.

"I was just asking. I don't get the appeal of her beside the looks thing, but fine, if Chris and Stephanie want her as a friend over me, so be it."

"I don't think that was the point," Christian said, then decided to change the subject, "so you didn't go see Vickie on Monday."

"No, I didn't, I took Lita out to a nice place and we had fun," Edge explained. "If I want to distance myself from Vickie, I'm going to have to start now. She's on Raw now and I'm on SmackDown, I don't have to see if her if I don't want to and even though she won't respond to my calls or my lawyer's calls, it'll happen."

"Can't she protest it?"

"Yeah, but hopefully she doesn't realize that. My lawyer said that is the last thing that we want to happen because then it could delay the divorce for a while and I want it to be over quickly. We never really bought a house together, we kept our separate houses and just visited each other and stayed with each other and we don't have kids or anything joint, like accounts or anything. So really it'd just be a pretty clean break…if she would agree to it that is. If she doesn't, it'll drag out and I don't want that."

"Who would?" Christian asked. "But you know she probably will."

"I'm trying to think positively and that maybe somewhere inside there she does get that this is what I want and it isn't a joke and that part of her will get bigger until she realizes it's the rational part of her."

"We're talking about the woman who still comes out in a wheelchair on a whim."

"Please don't remind me."

"Well I've got my own problems," Christian said, "so I can't really worry about what to say or what not to say around you."

"Oh yeah, this Jack Swagger thing. Jack Swagger, I swear."

"I think it's supposed to portray that he's cocky or something," Trish said, "all I know is that he thinks he's so high and mighty for someone who's never really been tested, not like my Chrissy. He's been around everywhere and he knows all the ins and outs. He could wrestle circles around Jack.

"I'm sure he could, but like, he just doesn't like you?" Edge questioned. "Or is there some sort of incident that happened between you two?"

"Incident," Christian started. "He was the first person I targeted when I came back because he was a champion. So yeah, I don't think he's going to have any love lost for me, if the way he's been treating me is any indication, but that's just a hunch, you know, I don't want to get too presumptuous."

"Very funny, I get it, watch the show so I can see what's going on with my younger brother," Edge droned, "do you watch my show?"

"Yes, I do, so return the favor, jackass."

"Fine, I'll start watching your little show if that'll make you happy."

"You can watch Chrissy beat Jack Swagger down," Trish said with conviction. "That kid thinks he can match himself with a veteran like my husband. He doesn't look like Dreamer or Finlay or whoever the hell he's faced, that's why he can't beat him."

"I love this girl," Christian said, pulling Trish closer and kissing her hair. "She always believes in me."

"Odds are pretty good when you're facing someone named Jack Swagger."

Going farther north, Britt brought the popcorn into the living room where Hunter was waiting. His concussion had subsided, but Stephanie had advised him to hold off for a little while until he felt strong enough to return. While he'd been recovering from his concussion, he hadn't been able to work out at all and he felt incredibly rusty. Britt, and Stephanie for that matter, didn't want him returning until he could return fulltime.

Whenever he did return fulltime, he was going to have one goal on his mind and that was to destroy Randy Orton. Randy thought he had gotten the better of him, but he hadn't. The truth was out again and Stephanie and Chris were fine and Randy knew, he knew that Britt had never been truthful to him and had never wanted him. Hunter also knew that Britt and Randy had kissed and he was way beyond that. So yes, he was going to destroy Randy Orton the first chance he got.

"You look constipated," Britt said as she sunk down into the couch next to him.

"Thanks," he responded sarcastically, "that's just what I need to hear."

"If I hear one more time that you are thinking about Randy Orton, I think I'm going to scream," Britt said. "Today is supposed to be a Randy Orton free day and you are breaking the one cardinal rule of that day and that is to not think or talk about Randy Orton."

"It's hard," Hunter said.

"No, it's really not. I mean, think about this, you've got this beautiful house that you've actually been able to stay in for more than a few days, you've got a big bowl of popcorn and what I'm sure is going to be a good movie, and most importantly you've got me, a girl that isn't too shabby, or at least I hope that's the case."

"You aren't shabby at all."

"Good."

"I just want to get back so I can pound his face in."

Britt groaned and flopped back onto the couch, throwing her hands up in the air and closing her eyes, "You are horrible! I can't believe you are letting this get to you this much. Were you this way in the past or is this something new? Because how did _anyone_ put up with you if this was the case?"

"I have always been like this, thank you very much."

"Then how have _I_ put up with this for so long?" Britt wondered. "You have got to let this go. Nobody is hurt…I mean, you're hurt, but you're better. Chris and Stephanie are happy and together and we're happy and together, drop it."

"I don't want to drop it."

"You _have_ to drop it. You're still not good to go and I don't want to spend the rest of my vacation or leave of absence trying to get you to pay attention to anything other than Randy Orton. I'm going to start thinking you really have a secret crush on him if this keeps up."

"Yeah, secret crush, sure."

"You weren't supposed to take me literally," she said, opening her eyes and looking up at him. "Hunter, I love you."

"I know this."

"Wow, normally a guy would say he loves the girl back," she said, kicking him a little in the leg, "but not my guy, he just tells me he knows."

Hunter smirked, "I love you too."

"Thank you, now I may continue, I love you, but this, this entire stewing thing, gotta say, it's really annoying and very unappealing," she told him. He turned to her and she stared him straight in the eye. "I'm not joking either. Look, I love that you are very intense and you want to protect everyone and save everyone, but come on, this is going overboard and you know it. You've spent weeks, _weeks_ thinking about this when you could be having a good time at home. You never get to be home."

"I miss the show," he told her.

"I know, but come on, you can have a little fun away from it. I know you've been injured before, having to be away longer than this, so what did you do then, like when you first hurt your leg, what did you do?"

"I trained to get back to the ring."

"That's it?" she asked, looking at him disbelief. "You didn't like take a vacation or just hang out with friends or anything like that?"

"I did rehab, that's what I did. I stayed in Atlanta and I did rehab."

"You were married to Stephanie at this time, right, didn't she like, take you out or anything, make you go on a vacation?"

"She was busy with the Alliance, busy tormenting Jericho," Hunter said.

"But surely she took some time away."

"Do you see us married still?" he said. "That's what drove us apart. I had to rehab and that's all I wanted to focus on and she was busy with her company."

"Well that's just downright sad," Britt said. "I don't want that happening this time."

"I can assure you I won't be divorcing Stephanie this time."

"That was a joke! I got a joke!" she said, throwing her hands up in victory, "Britt wins, Britt wins!"

"Shut up," he told her, shoving her in the foot as she tried to kick him again. "I don't need vacation, I need to start training again so I can get back."

She closed her eyes again, "You and work, I swear, you should just get married to your work if it's that important to you."

"I think there are laws against that."

"Do you want to marry me?" she asked instead.

"Don't joke."

"I'm just saying, lighten up," Britt said. She wanted Hunter to loosen up and at least kind of enjoy the time away. She knew wrestling had a strong hold over him, but it couldn't be his life. Sure, he didn't have many attachments outside the business, most of his friends were in the business (a fact she found kind of sad) and she was in the business, and he worked all the time, but what about when wrestling was over. Did he turn into a pumpkin when the clock struck retirement? Would he ever retire or would he be like Flair, trying to recapture his glory? "You know, Chris was right."

"Right about what?"

"Flair, Ric Flair," she clarified, like Hunter didn't know who she was talking about. "He couldn't stay away, he just couldn't and now here he is and you can tell he wants to wrestle and Chris was right."

"I know," Hunter sighed, "I really wish he'd just stay retired instead of trying to come back again.

"Hunter, I don't want that to be you," she told him, getting up on her knees next to him and resting both her hands on his shoulder.

"What?"

"I don't want you to be an old man who feels like he has to keep coming back because he doesn't have anything else outside of this world."

"Who said I would be?"

"I don't know, I guess I just worry."

"Well don't," he said, grabbing her by the waist and pulling her on top of him so she was straddling his legs. "Don't worry at all."

Britt leaned down to kiss him and they got caught up in their ministrations, but then Britt pulled away slightly, just slightly so her lips were still brushing tantalizingly against his, making his nerves stand on end. "I thought I came in here for a movie."

"That's the good thing about movies, they can wait, I can't."

Sawyer looked over at his parents as they made out in his mommy's chair. They were very weird, his parents. They were always kissing like that and it was very boring. He didn't ever get kisses like that from his mommy, so his daddy must be pretty special to get them. But still, it was very boring and he was very bored playing with his trains in here. Flynn was watching him very closely, every so often trying to take one of his trains and put it in her mouth. He was very tired of his trains.

He stood up and walked over to his mommy and daddy, patting his mommy on the knee, three light taps, but she barely seemed to notice. Sawyer spoke anyways, "Mommy, I go play in dere." He pointed to the hallway and the living room as the "dere" he wanted to go. He couldn't go up to his room because they had the baby screen thing that prevented his ascent to his room. He was very capable of climbing the stairs, but his baby couldn't climb the stairs yet because she could fall, that's what his mommy said and he had fallen before and it was no fun and he didn't want his baby to fall.

Oh well, his mommy hadn't seemed to hear him because she was kissing his daddy so he would just go in there and play. He had a bit mat in there and there were a lot of books in there. His mommy or his daddy read him a book every night and he was starting to really like them. They always had cool pictures and his daddy would do voices for all the characters and they made him laugh. His mommy didn't do voices, but she talked in a nice voice and it would make him fall asleep.

In the other room, Flynn, after chewing a little on one of Sawyer's trains, noticed she was alone, or seemingly alone. She set the train down and looked around. Her daddy had been on the couch before and she hadn't been paying attention when he went to go see her mommy so she crawled over to the couch and hefted herself up. Oh, from this vantage point she could see her mommy. Where was her…oh, there was her daddy. What were they doing? Where was Sawyer?

She looked around, just standing there, holding onto the couch. Sawyer came running in a moment later to grab a book he had left in there and saw Flynn standing on the couch. "Hi, Fwynn, bye Fwynn," he said, rushing out again.

Flynn whined a little bit as she saw her brother take off again. She wanted to go play with him and it wasn't fair that he got to go wherever he wanted. Everyone around her seemed to be able to come and go as they pleased and she was very sick of it. She was always having to go where everyone else went and she wanted to go where she wanted. She watched her brother leave out the door and she wanted to go play with him. She pulled away from the couch and started going towards the door.

She didn't even realize she'd let go of the couch until she was a few steps away from it, then she just stood there in the middle of the room and looked around. She was not holding onto anything. She was not holding onto anything! This was not good. She whimpered a little bit because she didn't know what she'd done, but she'd gone a few steps without knowing it, maybe if she went a little bit farther she could reach Sawyer. The door was right there, she could make it, couldn't she?

She took a few more steps and Stephanie had heard her whimpering and took a moment to catch her breath from Chris's mouth and looked over to where she heard Flynn. It was getting close to lunchtime so the greedy one was probably hungry and demanding sustenance. She saw Flynn standing in the middle of the room and her eyebrows knitted together. "Flynnie, did Sawyer just leave you there?"

Flynn heard her mommy speaking and she looked over and her mommy _and_ daddy were looking at her. Well it was about time. Maybe they could help her get to Sawyer, but this forward motion thing on two feet was actually pretty easy. Well, not easy per se, because she felt herself teetering a little. Oh no, she was going to fall! Wait, if she kept moving forward, she wouldn't fall so that's what she'd do, a few more of these things, she could do it. She took a few more steps towards the door and then when she heard a squeal behind her, she lost all focus and landed right on her butt. She'd been doing so well! She started to tear up because now she would never get to Sawyer.

Then she was scooped up into someone's arms and she saw her daddy and she pouted for him, "Flutterby, you just walked!"

Was that what it was? "Oh my God, Flynnie, you just walked, baby girl," Stephanie said, kissing her cheek over and over. "Oh my God, my daughter just walked, my daughter just walked, Chris!"

"Our daughter," he laughed, "wow, she's only 9 months, Sawyer was over a year when he started walking, wasn't he?"

"Something like that, he didn't like walking by himself. Oh my God, she walked, she's so young, she's still just a baby and she walked."

"That was the cutest walk I've ever seen," Chris said. "Our daughter, my little girl has the cutest walk ever. She beats everyone."

Flynn had no idea what the fuss was about.

But the next day, when she was holding onto her mommy's hand and walking (very slowly and tentatively) into the next arena with her mommy, everyone seemed to think this was a huge deal. Sawyer kept looking at her and he kept trying to take her hand, but her mommy wouldn't let him. She got tired of walking after a few steps and her mommy lifted her up and she was happy.

"My baby walk," Sawyer said to his daddy as he ran over to walk next to him. "Did you see, Daddy?"

"Yeah, I saw, I'm proud of her."

"Me too," he added. "I pwoud. I walk too though." He had to add that because as big as an accomplishment as his parents were making it out to be, he could walk by himself and run and Flynn couldn't do that so he kind of had the one-up on her.

"I know, but she walked way earlier than you did."

Sawyer frowned, "No. I walk."

"Yeah, you walk now, but you're a klutz," Chris told him.

"Daddy, I not," he said indignantly. He didn't know what a klutz was, but it did not sound good, whatever it was and he didn't want his daddy making fun of him. It didn't matter though because he saw someone he knew up ahead. "Chissy!"

"Hey there, kiddo," Christian said as Sawyer ran to him. "Long time no see."

"I know," Sawyer said.

"Two whole days, not cool."

"Hi, Twish," Sawyer said as he saw Trish next to Christian. Sawyer had more of a bond with Christian than he did with Trish.

"Hey, cutie," Trish said, patting his back.

"My baby walk."

"What?" Trish asked as she looked over at the approaching Stephanie and Chris. "What does he mean?"

"Well, look," Stephanie said, putting down Flynn. Flynn didn't feel like walking, but it looked like she was going to have to. She looked at her mommy with a little bit of contempt and then took a few steps as if on cue. Stephanie scooped her up again and she was happy, but she didn't want to walk anymore so she reached over to her daddy, hoping for amnesty. He took her and held her close and she buried her face in his neck like she could hide that way.

"Did she just walk?" Trish asked in shock.

"She just walked," Stephanie said.

"When did she start that!"

"Yesterday," Stephanie gushed, "she's only 9 months old and she's walking, can you believe that?"

"Wow, that is impressive, Flynn, I'm very impressed."

"Wait until you see what I can do," Chris said and nobody paid attention to him because nobody really cared about what he did. "Oh well," he said to Flynn, "you care, don't you, flutterby?"

Chris carried her to Stephanie's office and his locker room. Trish and Christian followed even though if Edge had caught them he'd be very upset that his brother was consorting with the enemy. Christian and Chris were talking about how he'd faced Paul Burchill, but how Christian and Katie had talked after the match (Edge didn't know) and how she had actually been a good conversation and very funny, much to Chris's surprise. Trish had even joined in and found Katie a lot nicer than she'd ever envisioned.

Trish and Stephanie brought up the rear as Stephanie talked about Flynn walking and how it was pretty early for her to be walking, but how she'd just gone for it and only started crying after she'd fallen and probably only because she was in shock. She'd taken more steps as the night wore on, but seemed to tire of it easily, much like her mother tired of things easily as well. But Trish just took it all in, gushing about how the baby could walk now and how it seemed like Flynn had just been born.

"Well, I've got to meet with Teddy," Stephanie said upon arrival, "I'll talk to you later."

Later on, when everyone had dispersed and the show was in full swing, Teddy came back to Stephanie's office, changing the meeting place from his office to hers. Stephanie looked up and smiled as Teddy walked in, "Hello, Stephanie."

"Hey, what can I do for you?"

"Actually, someone wanted to talk to us."

Stephanie looked behind him and only then noticed Rey Mysterio. Stephanie put her best face forward. She didn't want to seem unapproachable. She had to draw a line between personal and business and this would be a good test for her. Though her husband was the one who wanted a piece of that little pipsqueak who probably still got carded for alcohol, she had to remain a neutral party for the business' sake.

"Oh, okay, hello, Rey."

"Stephanie," Rey said, looking over at her children, _Chris's_ children. Rey was all about the kids so she knew that he would probably try and refrain from saying something nasty about Chris right now. That was nice of him, but Sawyer and Flynn didn't care what was said, they'd still love their daddy immensely even if he was the biggest jerk on the planet.

"He wanted to propose a match," Teddy said, "go ahead, we're listening."

"I want Jericho."

"So do I, but I can't have him right now," Stephanie joked.

Rey actually chuckled at that, "I walked into that one, I know."

"You did, just a little," she said and she could already picture Chris tearing his mask off of him. She wondered what her husband might say about a match like that. If Rey weren't here, she could watch her husband, who was on-screen right now, wrestling CM Punk. She didn't worry about him though, he'd beaten Punk plenty of times. "So you want a match with Chris?"

"Yes, I want one for Extreme Rules. I don't think this thing is over between us, do you guys?"

"I don't think so," Teddy said, "Stephanie?"

"I don't think so either," she said, furthering Chris's cause. So she was helping him along a little, it wasn't like she was demanding the match, just not going against it at this particular time. If Rey wanted the match, she would give him the match. "But you do know, Rey, that this Pay-Per-View is called _Extreme Rules_ so every match much have extreme rules to it."

"I thought about like…a ladder match for the title."

Chris would whip him in a ladder match, sure, but would it be brutal enough, "How about something a little bit more…I don't know, something better, something dramatic…"

"Like what?" Teddy asked, "Like a No Holds Barred?"

"That's a wonderful idea," Stephanie gushed. "I really like that, would you be game, Rey?"

Stephanie looked at him like she was honestly interested. In fact, she wanted the match so Chris could bash Rey's brains in with chairs, tables, ring bells, title belts, trash cans, kendo sticks, really, whatever he wanted. Then when Rey was down, Chris could take off that precious mask, hold it aloft and know that he took the true prize. Chris had been telling her that it was so stupid to hide behind a mask and it was true. Even know, just sitting here, she was looking at a guy in a mask. She understood the luchador tradition, but she also understood her husband so she tended to side with him.

"Yeah," he said with a nod, "yeah, I would be game."

"Great," Teddy said, "let's go iron out some details for this."

"Awesome," Rey said.

"Bye," Stephanie told them as they left. She went over and sat with her kids. "And that's how you get someone to do something you want without even trying."

"What did you do?" Sawyer asked and it almost sounded accusing, like he knew his parents were up to no good. But when were they ever up to good in the first place?

"I'm just helping Daddy with something," she said, ruffling her hair as she watched them play. "Just helping Daddy."

Chris didn't care that Umaga had come in the ring and interrupted the match. So he was in a match with Punk because they'd had a match for Superstars, whatever, he didn't care. It wasn't Punk he was after. It was Rey and after suffering humiliation at the hands of that other man at Judgment Day was what spurned him on. Punk could go have his problems with Umaga, Chris had bigger problems and bigger aspirations. He was going to de-mask Rey Mysterio. Kane had attempted it in the past, tried to break Rey's spirit or whatever cockamamie story he had, but Chris was going to succeed where Kane had failed.

He went straight to Teddy Long's office after his match. He met up with Edge there and they exchanged a few words, but Edge was still mad at him. He was going to come up with something soon that would assuage that, he really was. Chris considered Edge a friend and he didn't want to lose that over something as stupid as not telling him about a plan. Hell, Edge didn't know about his plan to get Rey's mask. Wait, that was it! He cold tell Edge about it so Edge would be in the know. That made Chris feel a little better.

He demanded a match with Rey, but much to his surprise, the match had been made and a No Holds Barred match at that. Finally, things were going his way. He wondered if Stephanie had anything to do with this. No matter though, he was going to take Rey's mask and humiliate him like Rey had humiliated Chris. This time it wasn't just a promise not to take the 619, this was a promise to take the very essence of Rey Mysterio. He was just a hypocrite like the rest of them.

He'd been watching Raw and he saw Flair come back and he just couldn't believe this guy. He was doing everything Chris had called him out for, but everyone still cheered him and they were all hypocrites. Flair made a whole to-do about his retirement, saying he wasn't going to ever come back and here he was, pandering to the fans again, basking in the glow and how long until he wrestled? He was so predictable, just like the other "retirees" and "legends" who always came back for just a little tidbit of the glory they used to have.

With Rey, it was hiding. He was hiding behind the mask and Chris was going to take care of that. Everyone had to be exposed some time. Look at Kane, masked for years and then his mask was taken. It would be like that. Chris would show Rey Mysterio to the world, show them a coward who hid behind a mask. He would show them all.

And once again, he'd be right.


	237. Surprise Attacks, May 29, 2009

A/N: At some point, I will catch up with this story. Hopefully this week, I'm really, really going to try and hopefully it'll be easy since WWE has given me a lot to work with, especially regarding Edge and Vickie, so enjoy the chapter and please leave a review, they totally help the writing process more than you know. :)

* * *

"Daddy, I hungry."

Chris looked up from the book he was reading on the couch and over at Sawyer standing next to the couch. Chris's eyebrows knitted and he looked at his son, "You want to have lunch?"

"Yes, pease," Sawyer nodded, leaning over the couch and resting his chin against his father. "I hungry."

"What do you want to eat?" Chris asked, making a face at him.

"I dunno," Sawyer said kindly. "You pick."

"I pick?" Chris asked for clarification.

"Uh huh and I eat," Sawyer told him, pulling away and grinning at his daddy and then slamming his hands right on Chris's stomach. Chris grunted and Sawyer laughed, "I wrestle you, Daddy!"

"Okay, we'll wrestle then," Chris said, sitting up quickly and grabbing his son and throwing him up in the air as Sawyer screamed in surprise. Chris grabbed him in his arms and then threw himself on the floor so Sawyer would land on top of him. Chris growled as Sawyer started to pound his small fists into Chris's chest as Chris pretended to sell the blows.

"I get you!" Sawyer yelled as he slapped his hands against Chris.

"I don't think so!" Chris said, turning the tables on his son and lifting Sawyer above him and holding him aloft.

"Daddy! Down!" Sawyer giggled.

"Oh, okay then," Chris said, pulling him back down and then tickling him. Sawyer started gasping for breath as he laughed and laughed. He tried to squirm away from Chris, but he wasn't strong enough. "I'm gonna get you!"

"Stop!" Sawyer said as he laughed. "Daddy!"

Chris stood up and held Sawyer by the back of his pants. He swung him back and forth as he walked into the kitchen. "What do you think about having a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on toast?"

"Wif milk?" Sawyer asked.

"Do you think you can really eat peanut butter without the milk?" Chris asked, pretending to be aghast at the mere suggestion that you could eat it that way. Sawyer giggled and climbed into a chair at the kitchen table.

"Where Mommy?" Sawyer asked.

"You know where Mommy is," Chris told him.

"I dunno, I forget," Sawyer said.

"She's at Raw tonight," Chris explained, "so it's just you, me, and Flynn tonight and Mommy is in Kentucky at the show."

Sawyer frowned, "Why we no go?"

"Because I'm not really doing anything on the show. Mommy is just working so she had to go, but what would we do while we were there? Not much because we wouldn't have anything to do, so Mommy and I thought it would be better if we stayed home while she was working."

"Why she work?" Sawyer asked and Chris sighed. This could lead to like a half hour of just sheer "Why" questions from his son. Sawyer could get on quite a roll when he wanted to.

"Because she wants to take over Raw and she thinks this is the first step and because we love Mommy, we have to support her, right?"

"Uh huh, I love Mommy," Sawyer told his daddy very seriously. Sawyer didn't want him to think that he didn't love his mommy when he loved her very, very much.

"I know you do, she loves you too," Chris said as he plucked the toast out of the toaster and started spreading peanut butter on them. His trick with peanut butter and jelly sandwiches was to sprinkle a little cinnamon on the peanut butter to give it that extra yummy flavor and Sawyer gobbled them up.

"I know," Sawyer said, "Daddy, you done yet?"

"Hold on, you can wait one minute while I make your sandwich," Chris told him good-naturedly.

It wasn't often that he was the one at home with the kids without Stephanie. It wasn't like he was a guy who _couldn't_ stay home with his kids because he always had to be out there doing manly things while the little wifey stayed at home, it was just they usually traveled together as a family. Stephanie had been right though, traveling with her would have been a stupid move. He didn't have to be at Raw (although the thought of a secret ambush on Randy was appealing) so he wasn't going to be there. He'd protested a little, saying that Stephanie wasn't safe there with Randy and Legacy on the loose, but Stephanie had waved off his concerns and assured him she'd be fine.

Chris slapped the two pieces of bread together and cut it in quarters before he put it in front of Sawyer. He grabbed a glass of milk and put it in front of his son too. "Thanks."

"You're welcome."

"You eat too?" Sawyer asked.

"Nah, I'll eat later," Chris said. It was kind of early for him to be eating lunch and he wasn't that hungry because he'd had an apple earlier.

"You eat now," Sawyer said.

Chris laughed, "You're going to force me to eat?"

"Yes," Sawyer said, holding his sandwich out to Chris as he chewed on his latest bite, the peanut butter sticking to the top of his mouth as he tried futilely to get it unstuck. Chris took a bite of his son's sandwich to appease him and Sawyer grinned before putting his sandwich down so he could get some milk to help with this peanut butter. "It good, Daddy?"

"Yes, I make a great sandwich."

"You do, more than Mommy," Sawyer replied.

"We'll just keep that our secret," Chris winked. He heard a crying from upstairs and wondered what was up. Flynn was supposed to be asleep for probably another two hours. "Eat your lunch, kid, I'm going to go see what's up with your sister."

"Okay," Sawyer said, continuing to eat his sandwich.

Chris went upstairs and into Flynn's room. She was standing up in the crib and crying, tears streaming from her dark blue eyes. She turned when the door opened and sniffled when she saw Chris, her cries turning to sobs. Chris came over and lifted her from her crib and started rubbing her back as she cried. She buried her face in his shirt and cried in earnest, soaking his shirt right through.

"What happened, flutterby?" he whispered, kissing the side of her head, her downy hair getting a little mussed. "Did you have a bad dream?"

Flynn just continued to cry and whimper. Chris rocked her a little bit and then tried to put her back in her crib, but she wasn't having it right now. He sat down in the rocking chair and rocked back and forth until Flynn went back to sleep and then he put her back in her crib slowly so as not to wake her. She went down again and Chris went back downstairs to see Sawyer finishing off what was left of his sandwich.

"You ate that whole thing!" Chris asked.

"I hungry," Sawyer tried to justify himself.

"You were," Chris said as he grabbed the plate and pushed the milk towards his son. Sawyer grabbed it with both hands and then tipped it back and drank the rest of it. He dribbled a little down his chin and Chris wiped it up with a paper towel before he went to the sink.

"Mommy on the TV?" Sawyer asked.

"No, she's not going to be on the TV, she's just going to be working on the show. We can still watch it if you want, but she won't be on it."

"Oh," Sawyer said, not knowing why his mommy just didn't go on the TV because she had to know that he liked watching her. "She talk to me on phone?"

"Of course she'll talk to you on the phone," Chris told him, "It's _me_ she never wants to talk to on the phone, you're the one that she always wants to talk to, I'm just a guy who lives around here."

"No, you Daddy," Sawyer giggled.

"I'm not some guy?"

"No, you my Daddy."

"Really, because sometimes I don't know if Mommy was telling me the truth about that," Chris joked, lifting Sawyer out of his seat and tousling the boy's hair. Never mind the fact Sawyer looked exactly like he did when he was that age.

"I know Mommy."

"You know Mommy?"

"Uh huh, she good."

"Well, if you say so, I don't think you would lie to me."

"We go play now," Sawyer directed and Chris shook his head. He was completely at the mercy of his son. He took the little boy outside and let him run towards the playground, Chris following behind him.

Stephanie was completely at the mercy of Vickie Guerrero or at least that's what Stephanie wanted her to believe. She'd told Vickie in advance that she would be here to observe the show and to see how Vickie was doing as the General Manager. Then she'd told her father about it, letting him know that she just wanted to go visit the different shows and see how things were run. She would go to ECW at some point, but she didn't know too much about Tiffany or ECW, but she was sure at some point she'd go there, but first things first.

"So, Vickie, do you think you're being fair here?" Stephanie asked.

"Of course I am, I'm being completely fair," Vickie said haughtily. Stephanie nodded her head.

"Well, if you say so," Stephanie said. "Just think of this as an evaluation of how you're doing. I mean, you were the one who chose to be the GM of Raw, right, since you were the interim when I had my…unfortunate incident. I'm just making sure that someone competent and someone _for_ the wrestlers is the General Manager."

Stephanie had been super competent and there was no chance that Vickie would even reach her level of expertise. Once she found Vickie's weakness, she would expose it and then take over once again. She wanted to be the GM, yes, but if she couldn't be, well, she was going to control both shows any way that she could. That was just how she liked to work. Conquer it all and then leave everyone in her wake. Her father and brother would wake up one morning and find that she had taken over. She wanted it to be that day right now, but patience was a virtue.

"I am competent," Vickie responded indignantly. "I've been doing a great job here."

"I just want to make sure," Stephanie said. "So don't think about me, don't even notice me. I'm just going to observe, that's all."

Vickie didn't like the sound of that. "Well, if this is part of the job…"

"People do get evaluated, Vickie," Stephanie said, then started jotting something down.

"What are you writing?" Vickie asked, trying to peek over at what Stephanie was writing.

"Can't tell you, sorry," Stephanie shrugged. "It wouldn't be a great evaluation if I was telling you all the negative or positive things you were doing, right?"

"Negative, what did you write that was negative?"

"Who said I wrote anything negative?"

"Well you just said…"

"I said negative _or_ positive, see, so it could be both, you know," Stephanie posited. "Oh, by the way, I'm so sorry to hear about you and Edge."

"What about me and Edge?"

"Well, the divorce, I know how hard it is to go through one. I mean, when Hunter dumped me, it was one of the worst feelings," Stephanie said, going for the jugular. She knew that Vickie was refusing to believe this divorce and was she being a little cruel, yes, but hell, she _had_ been through this before and the only sympathetic people had been her family, Kurt Angle, and Chris. If she wanted to repay the kindness, she was going to.

"We're not getting divorced," Vickie asserted rather firmly. "We're fine."

"Oh, well, I mean, him with Lita."

"He's just trying to rile me up, probably to help him in his matches since I am a GM, but I'm not the SmackDown GM and he's probably trying to get me to leave my post here and go back to SmackDown so he can have it again," she tried to explain it off.

"Interesting," Stephanie said. "I didn't really see it like that, but if that's how _you_ see it. I was just talking from one woman who has been dumped to another."

"Edge hasn't dumped me."

"Okay, I've just seen him with Lita and…but if you think that's the case, I guess I got some bad information."

"You did, now if you'll excuse me, I have work to do," Vickie said, getting up and storming out of the room. She'd been like that once upon a time. It was going to feel all the worse when Edge got what he wanted and served her with divorce papers.

Stephanie leaned back in her chair for a moment, but then picked up her clipboard and went to go watch Vickie. It wouldn't be much of an evaluation if she didn't watch the person she was evaluating. She left the office and turned left, figuring that Vickie might actually be doing some work and in that case, she was probably near the gorilla. She was walking down when her phone rang. She plucked it from her pocket and looked at the number.

"Hey?" she answered brightly.

"Hi, Mommy!" Sawyer yelled at her so loudly that she had to pull the phone away from her ear.

She put it back a second later and smiled, "Who _is_ this?"

"It me," Sawyer responded.

"Who's me?"

"It Sawyer," he clarified.

"Oh! Sawyer, yes, yes, I remember you, what's up, little boy?" she asked.

"I talk to you, Daddy help me," Sawyer explained.

"He did?" Stephanie asked. "Well that was very nice of him. Where's your sister?"

"Fwynn wif Daddy," Sawyer said. "He laugh at her."

"He's laughing at her, why's he laughing at her?" she asked.

"Cause she fall on her butt," Sawyer said, then laughed for about a minute. Stephanie had to laugh as well, she couldn't help it; it was contagious. "It was funny, Mommy."

"I bet it was."

"How show?"

"The show's okay," Stephanie said.

"What doing? Daddy say you not on the TV," Sawyer told her.

"I won't be, I'm just doing an evaluation of someone that works here. That means that I'm going to go and watch her and make sure she does a good job because if she doesn't do a good job then Mommy could find just cause to fire her and then take over her job and make Raw a great show again like Grandpa should have let me in the first place, but no, I'm just a little girl to him instead of someone who has been working for this company for over a decade now, who is also married and has two children."

"Mommy, you talk a lot," Sawyer told her, "here Daddy."

There was some shuffling and then she heard, "Why did my kid not want to talk to you?"

"I talk too much apparently," Stephanie said.

"So how's it going?"

"I've got her on edge, it's great, too bad she can't really be on Edge like she wants," Stephanie joked and she heard Chris laugh. "I just want to make her feel uncomfortable. Oh, would you look at this, I see my two favorite people up ahead."

"Um, Ted and…more Ted?" Chris wondered jokingly.

"Ha ha, no," she said drolly. "The Wonder Twins, Kelly Kelly and Mickie James."

"Stephanie, please don't embarrass me."

"Embarrass you, I never would," she told him.

"Oh yeah, I believe that for less than a second," he told her. "Stephanie, don't try and stir up trouble just because they wanted me when they thought I was single. I mean, I'm a sexy beast, right, when girls think that I'm unattached, of course they're going to hit on me. Hell, women hit on me now and they know I'm married."

"Not everyone, we don't flaunt it and you know, I never actually went onscreen and said that I _wasn't_ married to Hunter, so now people really do think you're unattached."

"Yeah, like I'm going to whisk away with someone. If I wanted to, don't you think that's where I would be instead of taking care of our kids, which, hold on," Chris said, then pulled the phone away from his mouth. "Sawyer, can you please make sure she doesn't touch anything…Flynn, seriously, stop touching that!" Chris came back to the phone, "Sorry about that."

"What was going on?" Stephanie asked.

"She wants to pull all the DVD's off the shelf. This is probably why she decided to start walking, forget wanting to be around Sawyer, she just wants to cause destruction around the house…Flynn, put that down! Sawyer, take that out of her mouth."

"Was she chewing on a DVD case?"

"Yes, I think it was _Finding Nemo_, I'm guessing she doesn't like fish," Chris said.

"So you were saying that if you wanted to be with some other woman, you could...and just where would our children be at that point?" she asked.

"With my parents of course," Chris said as Stephanie started to hear crying in the background. "Oh great, Sawyer just took the DVD and now she's crying because she's mad. This is your fault you know."

"How is that my fault?"

"You have a temper, she has a temper, this is your fault," Chris said.

"Oh okay, Mr. Everyone is a Hypocrite, like you aren't temper-filled."

"Not like you," he argued.

"In that case, since I'm so mean and horrible," Stephanie said, then looked up, "Hey, Mickie, Kelly, yeah, you know who this is on the phone with me, this is my _husband_, Chris, yeah, Chris Jericho, the one that you were so shamelessly hitting on when you thought we were apart. Well, you know what, we laughed at you when he told me about you guys hitting on him, yeah, laughed and laughed."

"We didn't know," Kelly said sheepishly.

"Yeah, I know, but even in that case, hitting on a guy who _just_ got out of a seven year relationship, that's really awesome of you guys, totally," Stephanie said. "But if I hear that you hit on my husband now, you will both find yourselves far, far away from any title or good match. Later."

Stephanie turned around and walked away and she could hear Chris chuckling on the other end, "You're horrible."

"I'm truthful," Stephanie said. "Who the hell pounces on someone as fast as they did after you supposedly broke up with me? We've been together almost seven years, that's the better part of a decade and what, after a week you'd be over me?"

"I like to think that it'd be more like three days."

"Then what, you go after your precious Katie?"

"Hey, she's not my precious anything, just a friend."

"If we broke up for real, I think you'd be inconsolable," Stephanie told him. She really did think that too. She knew how she would be if she ever broke up with Chris. She didn't really like to think about it, but the both of them knew that love could be very fickle and they were lucky enough to have made it this far without one of them ending up in a body bag. Still, there was that possibility that always hung in the air, lingering above them.

She knew she would be inconsolable. She had believed for quite some time that Chris was the only one for her. If they weren't going to work out or didn't work out, she would be completely lost because then who was supposed to be that one person if not Chris. They just meshed together so well and if they were to be apart, really apart, she wouldn't be able to handle it and that was a scary thought for a McMahon. She was supposed to face anything and everything head-on, not back down from anything and yet, there she was, a weakness hanging out for everyone to see and mock.

"I would be," he told her. "Now go evaluate Vickie and intimidate her into submission!"

"You got it," Stephanie said, "I'll call in a bit to say goodnight to the kids, love you."

"I love you too," he said and that phrase still sometimes sent shivers up her spine.

Chris hung up the phone and went to his daughter, who was trying to wipe the tears off her cheeks. "Come here, you," he told her, picking her up and swiping at her cheeks with his thumb, gently brushing away the cheeks that marred her pretty face. She was being a bit of a hothead today, her temper getting the better of her. Chris kissed her wet cheek and then made a funny face at her and it did the trick, she started laughing a little. "Thank God for a funny face."

Sawyer made one too and Chris showed it to Flynn and that got her in an even better mood. Chris was able to relax a little bit now that they were both calm and he thought about Stephanie at Raw. Only she could get away with threatening two women and come across as completely sexy. He only wished he could have seen her speaking to Kelly and Mickie, her teeth gritted and that look in her eyes that made him want to do very bad things to her, things that led to the two children they surprisingly had. Now she would be going after Vickie and it only upped her appeal to him. Was there anything that woman couldn't do?

Another super woman was lying in bed, her head buried in a pillow. Christian came into the room and sat next to her, rubbing her back. She turned over and looked at him. "Hey, how are you feeling?" he asked.

"Like crap," she told him, her face flushed. "I don't feel good, Chrissy."

"I know you don't," he said, rubbing her cheek with his hand. "I don't want to leave you alone."

"I'll be okay," she said. "You have to go and do ECW, you can't cater to me, that's your job, I'll be fine."

"But you're sick," he protested.

"I can have someone look in on me."

"Who? Who's around to look in on you?" he asked. He, Edge, Chris, and Stephanie would all be on the road working so who the hell could come in and look at her. She'd come down with a sudden illness over the weekend. At first it was just a cold, but now it seemed to be progressing. Her temperature was high and it looked like the flu.

"I can ask Chris's mom or dad," she said. "They live down here now, right?"

"Yeah, they're down here, I guess they could, if they have the time."

"Chris, they're retired, I think they'd have the time," she told him then coughed a little.

"I just worry about you," he said, kissing her forehead. It was warm on his lips. He knew he was a little overprotective of her, but she was his wife, he was allowed to now. He didn't have to sit on the sidelines and watch anymore. He was in the game now.

"I know, but I'm an adult, I'll be fine, I'm just sick," she said, snuggling up in bed. "Besides, you've got bigger things to worry about, like Extreme Rules. You've got to defend your belt. You're the champion, everyone is gunning for you."

"That's strange to say, me as the champion, it's a good feeling."

"Which is why you need to go out there and protect it, don't worry about me, I'll be fine," she said. She sat up and rubbed her hand up and down his arm. "Look, see, I'm feeling better already."

"I just hate thinking that you're sitting here at home and I'm out there, doing my thing and not being here for you."

"You're so cute," she said, pulling him down onto the bed with her, "but trust me, I'll be fine, it's just a little bug I have, nothing more. I'll probably be a 100 percent by this time next week and then I'll fly to the show with you and I'll be your backup."

"Oh, you're going to be my backup?" he scoffed. "Like my bodyguard."

Trish snuggled up to him, laying her head on his strong chest. She loved moments like these now. Just lying here with him, nothing really wrong in the world, at least for right now, this was the life. There were times in the years prior where her life had been such a rollercoaster that the calm moments never seemed to come. She'd wait and wait for them, just a quiet moment, one she could have and memorize, but it was always something. So many breakups with Christian, a brief (yet wonderful) relationship with Carlito, her retirement, Mickie James, all of it, a rollercoaster, so these moments were even more special to her because she could have them whenever she wanted now.

"Yes, exactly. I'll dress all in black and wear sunglasses and if someone goes to touch you, I'll just step in front of them and tell them not to touch the talent."

"You can touch my talent," he said lecherously, pulling up the collar of her shirt a little to look down at what was inside. "I would like to touch your talents right now if at all possible."

Trish swatted his hand away. "I'm sick, I'm a sick person who has not been feeling well and all you can think about is making love with me?"

"Yes?" he said impishly, giving her a cheesy grin. She laughed and hugged him around the waist. "Can you blame me? I need to get while the getting's good."

"Getting's good, what's that supposed to mean? That someday I'm going to get _ugly_?" she asked, glaring at him.

"You? Ugly? I don't think that's possible. Me on the other hand, I think I'm going to be a hideous old person. Actually, I don't know, I mean, I haven't seen my dad in forever so I don't know what he looks like, maybe he's a very handsome old guy who just has no brain in his head for abandoning my mom and me and my brother."

"I think you'll be dashing."

"I think Edge will be dashing."

"Edge will be one of those old guys who wears a robe everywhere and an ascot like Hugh Heffner with girls half his age or younger fawning all over him because he was Edge the wrestler."

"I don't know, maybe he'll settle down with Lita," Christian said quietly, then started laughing, "Okay, no, I'm sorry, I just don't see that happening, your vision is probably way more accurate. Oh geez, Edge with an ascot and walking around in slippers all the time, I love it."

Trish laughed, "You know that'll be it, unless for some reason Vickie still won't let him get a divorce."

"Hell, I think he'll still be that way."

By the time SmackDown rolled around, Edge wasn't in an ascot or anything, but he was prepared for a match against Jeff and Rey that evening. Unfortunately for him, his tag partner was Chris and he was not in the mood to tag with him. The match had been set though and it felt like Stephanie had insisted on it just so they could talk again, but he was through being friends with Chris and Stephanie, through!

"I would rather be teaming with Jeff, that's how much I don't want to tag with him," Edge told Lita.

"You're a baby, seriously," Lita said. "How many times over the years have you had to team with someone you _actually_ didn't like, huh? You're still _married_ to someone you don't like and _this_ is what you choose to obsess over?"

"Uh, yes, they betrayed me!" Edge said. "While Vickie is annoying, she hasn't totally betrayed me. I mean, there was the Big Show thing, but I mean, come on, I don't care about that. I'm over that and over her. And yes, I have tagged with people I didn't like and I did complain."

"If it's such a big deal, just don't talk to him and wrestle, easy at that."

"Am I annoying you?" he asked.

"What tipped you off?" Lita asked, "the tone, the words, what?

"Everything," he said. "Sorry, I'm just being bitter, I know that."

"Focus on Jeff, okay?"

"I guess," Edge sighed. "I'm going to beat him at Extreme Rules. I'm just telling you ahead of time because I know he's your friend and I want you to be prepared for when I leave him lying in a bloody heap, possibly with three or four ladders on top of him."

"You have a warped mind."

"Yet you love me," he said, leaning in and giving her a kiss. She smiled against his lips. She couldn't help it, even though Edge could be crazy and childish and obnoxious some of the time (or a lot of the time) he still made her smile and laugh and feel good about herself, something that had been missing while they were apart, well, maybe not the feeling good part, she did like herself a lot, but she definitely didn't smile or laugh as much when they were apart.

"I do, lucky me," she deadpanned. She was lucky though, very lucky.

"I still don't want to team with Chris. But you're right, I need to focus on Jeff now. I have the match against _him_ and not against Chris. But what if I did get a match against him soon? Yeah…then we could really fight it out. Like for real…in a really big match, like at SummerSlam and it could be like a Hell in a Cell, Ladder, Last Man Standing match, that would be awesome and I'd really kick his ass!"

"You are too much," she said, walking away from him, "much too much."

Chris didn't have Edge on his mind that evening. Instead, his focus was where it should've been, on Rey Mysterio. That was who he had a match against and Chris was on a quest for his mask. When he was at home, he was a different Chris, very nice and all about his family and having a good time with them, but they were his family, the people he loved to be around the most. When he was at work, he transformed into a different man, a man who wanted to show the fans the error of their ways.

They cheered for this man who had been hiding behind a mask the entire time he had been in this company. What did Mysterio have to hide except for that ugly mug? Cowards hid, criminals hid, they tried to assume different identities and that was what Rey had been doing since the moment he entered this company. He had been a coward from the very start and nobody had called him out on that. They thought it was fine that he hid behind his mask, in fact, they thought it more than fine. Kids wore his masks like a badge of honor, these parents were teaching their children to hide themselves away.

If he ever caught Sawyer in a Rey Mysterio mask, he might pull his hair out. He wanted his son to be anything but a coward. Those kids in the audience, they were following the wrong role model. He was the one who spoke the truth; he was the one who had been right about Ric Flair and his insatiable need for the spotlight. Flair couldn't even stay away for a year, that's how much he needed to come back. He had been right in that case and he was right in this case as well.

This was the mentality he used when he went out there while Rey was talking. He even got a few shots in on Mickey Rourke. Chris didn't need to stoop to his level, to either of their levels. He wasn't a coward. He was an honest man and he told the truth and yet he was the one lambasted by the fans? It wasn't fair, but he understood life wasn't fair. So he just tried to save everyone from liking the wrong people, starting with Rey Mysterio. He had a plan for later, a wonderfully devious plan.

"You want to what?" Stephanie asked.

"I need you to get me a Rey mask and a Rey t-shirt," Chris said.

"You want to attack him from the crowd?"

"I want to pose as a fan and attack him," Chris explained.

"Do what to who?" Sawyer asked.

"Rey Mysterio," Chris answered. "I can't very well go get them by myself."

"And me getting them is not going to look super suspicious to anyone?" Stephanie asked. "I think people are going to think something's up if suddenly I'm looking for one of Rey's masks and a t-shirt."

"Nobody would know, you're in charge, you should have them lying around."

"Oh yeah, I have shirts and stuff lying around," Stephanie rolled her eyes. "How are you even going to get out there? People will notice."

"I'll act nonchalant and I'll be under the mask, it'll be brilliant, I swear."

"I don't know, it sounds kind of dumb."

"Can you get me the shirt and mask?"

"How will I do that?" she asked. "People will know, I'm your wife, you hate Rey, yet I'm getting his merchandise, what the hell, Chris, I'm going to look guilty!"

"Okay, there has to be an explanation." They both sat there, then Chris realized, "Say it's for Sawyer."

"What?" Stephanie said.

"What?" Sawyer said.

"That was weird," Chris said. "It's perfect. He's a kid, he sees something he likes, he wants it."

"An adult-sized shirt?"

"Just grab one, 'not realizing' that it's in fact, an adult one and not a kid one. Let the kid hold onto the mask while you walk back and nobody is the wiser and I can sneak out there unseen. I mean, you can totally help with that part, just be my lookout."

"So I'm your patsy now?"

"Stephanie…I let you go to Raw to harass Vickie."

"There was nothing of the sort," Stephanie protested. "Fine, come on, Sawyer, let's go get you some new stuff so that your father can get mobbed as soon as people realize Chris Jericho is right next to them."

"Nobody is going to know!"

"Yeah, right. Are you just going to sit here and let me do your dirty work?"

"No, I've got someone to talk to."

"Take Flynn with you, then," she said, gesturing to Flynn, who was watching this, wondering what was going on exactly. Chris picked her up, much to her delight because she loved her daddy and he walked around, looking for someone, then spotted him and called, "Edge, we need to talk."

"No, we don't," Edge said.

"Yes, we do," Chris said, grabbing him by the shirt and dragging him to a deserted area. "Look, I get that you're mad at me for not letting you in on the big plan and I'm sorry for that, but I'm putting on a plan tonight and I'm telling you now."

"Probably because you need my help."

"Actually, no, not really, but I just want you to know anyways."

"Really?" Edge asked. "Who else knows?"

"Just Stephanie."

"Oh awesome," Edge said, "this is great, what's the plan?"

Chris outlined the plan for him and Edge loved it. It was such a cool and simple plan. His only job was to look upset that Chris wasn't showing up for the match and to look on with trepidation when Rey walked down the ramp. Then he got to watch as Chris pulled off this awesome plan. He was glad to be in on something again and it did a lot to wash away the anger he'd been feeling towards his friend. Things were getting back on track and they were going to be okay.

Which was more than they could say for Rey Mysterio. Stephanie and Sawyer had gotten the merchandise. Stephanie had grabbed a shirt and a mask and shrugged at the vendor, saying Sawyer wanted them, giving the guy some money even though technically, she owned whatever was there and could have it for free. She handed Sawyer the mask and he took it in his as they walked away. Sawyer kept looking at it and it looked like a garbage bag or something.

"Mommy, what dis?" he asked, looking at it again.

"It's a mask."

"For me?"

"For Daddy…why, do you want one? You put it over your head."

He didn't want to put anything over his head, "No, I dunno want."

"I didn't think so."

She gave the mask to Chris, who did want it and the shirt. Chris tried to dress up as inconspicuously as possible, putting on a black long-sleeved shirt on under the Rey shirt and then putting on some black sweatpants he had in his bag from when he'd been at the gym earlier. He asked Stephanie for her opinion, but she was in no mood to go along with this. He didn't care though, this was going to be great. He could already feel the shock that Rey would be facing.

With only a few minutes before the match, Stephanie got the security guys to leave for a minute so Chris could sneak out without anyone backstage noticing and telling Rey. Chris walked slowly to the railing, trying to act like he just wanted to see Rey. He got the entrance where there were a bunch of kids in their little Rey masks, blinding following their coward of a leader. Chris crouched down, trying to appear child-like and he hid his hands. Then he waited.

When his music hit, he could hear murmuring, but because of his plan with Edge, everyone just thought he didn't want to partner with the man and that was perfect. Edge played his part to a tee and then Rey came out and Chris waited with anticipation. He saw Rey on the other side and then come over to his side and then right up to him. They bumped heads and Chris whispered, "Surprise" before he grabbed Rey by the back of the head and slammed him into the metal grating.

The crowd was stunned as he jumped the barrier and went to town on Rey. He ripped his mask off and the crowd realized who it had been all along. He continued to throw the little pipsqueak around and then threw him down, grabbing his mask and pulling. He almost had it completely off, almost exposing the coward beneath, but then Jeff came running down and ruined it. Chris ran to the other side of the ring where it was safe. He was grinning like a madman as Rey was checked out and then taken backstage. Chris hadn't gotten the mask tonight, but he'd done damage to it.

He'd get the mask at Extreme Rules, you could count on that.


	238. Seize the Mask, June 5 to 12, 2009

A/N: So on Monday I was working on this story only to have the file get corrupted and then my computer crashed and when I got it back up, the file had been deleted so I lost the chapter. I had to start over and so I'm really sorry this is so late. I wanted to catch up, but it was so late I just stopped with last week's SD, I'll just include Raw in the next update and get all caught up. So I hope you enjoy this chapter since I tried to write it from memory and please leave a review because I've been through hell trying to get it on here, thanks. :)

* * *

"So you're definitely cheering for me, right?"

Lita looked at Edge. It seemed as if everyday he asked her the same question. She wondered if he really believed that she _wouldn't_ cheer for him on Sunday. "Why do you keep asking me that?"

"Well, you're friends with Jeff."

"Yes, but I'm _your_ girlfriend," she pointed out, pushing her dark hair out of her face. Edge liked her better with the darker hair so she tried to keep it that way. "So why would I root against you, especially when the title is on the line?"

"I'm just asking," he said, pulling her into his lap. "Hey, did you ever sleep with Jeff?"

Lita's eyes went wide and she turned to him, "Excuse me?"

"With Jeff, I mean, did you ever sleep with him?"

"Jeff Hardy?"

"Yeah, Jeff Hardy."

"What?" she asked, not exactly getting where this was coming from until she thought about it for a moment. If she had slept with Jeff then Edge could have something to hold over Jeff while they had their match. "We were friends."

"Just friends. I mean, you and Matt were together for a long time and it never really just…you know, one night, you and Jeff, alone and Matt's away and whatever girl Jeff is with is away--"

"Her name's Beth."

"Beth, whatever, I don't care," Edge said, "but you never got a little…carried away with him?"

"No, never, not once, so you cannot hold that over his head," Lita said.

"How did you know?" Edge asked.

"I know you," she told him, cupping his face in her hands. Even after their time apart, she could read him. She'd been with Matt a long time, yes, but sometimes there were still times when she couldn't read the face he had. Edge, on the other hand, was so simple to read and she couldn't decide if it was because he was less complex or because she loved him more than she'd loved Matt, a sobering thought.

When Edge had been out of her life, she'd felt different. She'd dated and she knew he had his…thing with Vickie, but Edge was always in the back of her mind. They'd ended so abruptly, without warning. One minute she was in the company and with him and the next moment, she was out of the company and he was out of her life. When Trish had made the offer to her to come to her wedding with Edge, she wouldn't say she had jumped on it, but she had been very willing to. There was something about him that drew her in and heaven help her, she was still drawn in.

"I just want a little something other than what I have," he told her.

"And what exactly do you have?"

"Well, I mean, okay, let's look at this situation," Edge said, "the guy wants to compete in a ladder match and I am like the undisputed king of the ladder match, so I obviously have that for me, but what if we're both on ladders and the belt is swinging there and we both have a hand on it and we're just about to both fall and I blurt out to him, just so he can hear, 'I know you slept with Lita,' and then, in shock, he lets go, falls, and I am declared the winner. How is that not a great thing?"

"Well, I hate to disappoint you, but I didn't sleep with Jeff."

"Not even when Matt was being a jerk, remember that? God, when was that?"

"Not even then."

"But he was all defending you and comforting you."

"I think he had a thing for Trish then."

"Oh, do you think he still does?" Edge asked, his eyes wide, "hey, maybe that's why he holds a grudge for me."

"You don't think it's like, the constant feud you guys have been on, which, seriously, you would think that you'd let it go by now," Lita informed him, thinking back over the…had it really been a decade. "What do you two even have against each other?"

"Hello, you of all people should know that Jeff and I have no love lost between the both of us," Edge said. "We never have, I don't even think we've been on the same side before, like ever, how about that, never, everyone's always either friends or enemies around here, but I have never been on the side of Jeff Hardy."

"Sure you have, Invasion, remember?"

"That totally doesn't count," Edge shook his head. "During Invasion, it was bigger than the both of us. I couldn't help _but_ be on his side during that. We both worked for the WWF, we couldn't just hate each other when there were a lot more people to hate."

"But still, you wanted a time when the two of you were on the same side and I gave it to you."

"Maybe he's also mad that we're together again, you know, since the incident with Matt," Edge said, "there's another reason why he probably hates me."

"Oh yes, definitely," Lita said, rolling her eyes. "Jeff learned long ago not to care about anyone else's business. He said the thing between us and Matt was between us and Matt and nobody else. So you're out of luck there."

"Then maybe he hates me because he really _is_ still in love with Trish and he hates me because she's part of my family now."

"Yeah, but don't you think if that were the case he would hate Christian because I don't think he really hates Christian."

"Why are you ruining my theories?" he asked, kissing her lightly.

"Because they're stupid theories," she told him. "Hey, aren't you supposed to go out there and talk soon, you know, Cutting Edge, you're the host, having Jeff…"

"Oh yeah, I do, do you see what you do to me?"

"Yes, go out there, do me proud. I still don't get why you two have such a grudge against each other, but whatever."

"Well, it's like this, Li, Jeff and I we're both a little…childish…"

"No!" Lita gasped like this was shocking news to her. She'd known Edge for ages, of course she knew he could act childish.

"Okay, I'm leaving, get away from me," he told her good-naturedly, pushing her off of him and dumping her unceremoniously onto the couch. He got playful with her and starting crawling over her. She held her hands up in surrender and he leaned down to kiss her, his body covering hers.

"You have work to do," she told him, pushing him up and away from her.

"Work to do on you?"

"No, actual work, get off," she said.

"Fine, fine, you sure you haven't slept with Jeff?"

"I would think I'd remember that."

"You could've been drunk," he said, drawing it out as she shook her head. His smile fell. "Li, what good are you to me if you can't help me?"

She leaned up and whispered in his ear and then pulled away and licked her lips. He glanced down at her body and winked at her. He finally got off her, realizing he really _did_ have to get to work or else Stephanie was liable to fire him or suspend him or something. He walked down the hallway and then to the gorilla, waiting for the show to start. He had the first segment on the show and he was looking forward to putting Jeff in his place again.

It was really quite sad that Jeff thought he could actually contend with him. Edge was a 9-time champion and one of the best that had ever been. Jeff was just a painted-up freak who the fans liked because he did flips in the air. He could flip in the air if he wanted to, but he didn't need to. He was better than that; he didn't need to pander to the fans like that, to garner their attention. His music finally hit and he walked out onto the ramp. He was actually surprised by the number of ladders that were around the ring. They had certainly made it very clear what kind of match he was going to have on Sunday.

Jeff didn't know what was going to be coming to him on Sunday. Edge was awesome at ladder matches. He'd won a number of them. Sure, Jeff could jump off them and that was all well and good, but that wasn't the point of the ladder match. The point of the ladder match was to get the belt that was actually currently being suspended from the rafters. He eyed his belt and then got in the ring. He introduced Jeff as his guest and the man in question came out. He made a point of going under the ladders and Edge rolled his eyes. Yes, he got it, Jeff wasn't superstitious, did he want congratulations?

Then a short time later, Jeff had to try and show him up again by getting on top of the ladder. He said he felt at home there, but still, Edge was the king of this match. He slowly made his way up the ladder until they were face to face, sitting there on their two ladders. Edge didn't know what Jeff was expecting, but he had a feeling he didn't expect what actually came next. Jeff was trying so hard to intimidate Edge, but Edge was far from intimidated by someone he felt was beneath him. He grabbed the belt and hit Jeff in the face, then hit him again as Jeff tried to swat him away like he was an annoying, little mosquito.

Jeff probably really didn't expect for Edge to grab his ladder and then push him down. Edge sat there on his ladder and watched as Jeff went down, down, down into the ropes and then onto the floor. That had been great. That would be all Jeff would do on Sunday, fall down while Edge grabbed his title back and retained. He didn't need any gimmicks, he just went out and won.

Meanwhile, Chris was trying to gather up his children because he had a match and his wife had to watch the kids. He couldn't very well go out there with one little girl and one little boy. Flynn had just fallen on her butt and she was a little upset, trying not to cry from landing hard on her diaper-covered bottom. She crawled over to the nearest object she could and hefted herself up. Chris was just wrapping up his wrists when he felt a little pressure on his calf. He looked down and saw Flynn clinging to his leg with one hand, holding herself in a standing position.

He was in his trunks so she had to cling to his leg and not his pant leg like usual. Chris threw the wrist tape onto the couch and then lifted up Flynn, holding her above his head as he threw her a little. Her face looked surprised as she was airborne and he grabbed her and brought her down, kissing the tip of her nose. "Hey, there, flutterby, let's go find mommy because I have a match soon. I think your mommy forgot about said match, even though she's the one in charge around here."

Flynn just babbled and smiled at him. He kissed her cheek again. "Come on, Sawyer, let's go find Mommy."

Sawyer hopped over to Chris, "Daddy, I a kangwoo."

"Okay, then come on, Kangaroo, we have to go find Mommy."

"No, I wanna be a kangwoo," he said, hopping around.

"Is the kangaroo from Mommy's side?" Chris asked.

"No," Sawyer said.

"My side? I'm not sure I ever had a kangaroo in my family, maybe a second cousin was a kangaroo or something."

"I a kangwoo," Sawyer said, still hopping around.

"Let's go show Mommy how big a kangaroo you are, maybe she'll tell you if she has a kangaroo in the family," Chris said, going to the door. "You can hop there."

"I do hop a lot," Sawyer said, jumping up and down towards the door with his hands in front of him. Chris laughed as he hopped through the door. This was a great way to relax before his match, even though he didn't think it would be a challenge of a match.

He knew it was one of Stephanie's little favors, but she had given him a match with R-Truth as kind of warm-up for Extreme Rules on Sunday. On the flip side, she'd put Rey in a match with Edge. The disparity was more than a little noticeable, but Stephanie was could do things so subtly that nobody realized that it was actually her doing. She'd just talked with Teddy and he'd actually proposed the matches and took the heat off her for obviously favoring her husband.

R-Truth was just no match for Chris. In fact, he didn't think he'd ever even faced him before. Maybe he had during his first stint with WWE, but not recently. Even so, Chris didn't think of him as matching up to Chris's level. He was much better than R-Truth and he'd take care of him readily and be even more prepared to take Rey's mask and title from him on Sunday. That was the goal, the mask and the belt and he was sure he'd get both.

Flynn broke him out of his reverie as she squirmed and whined. She'd been watching her brother up ahead of her, hopping down the hallway towards wherever they would find his mommy and Flynn was jealous. She wanted to follow her brother. Chris looked at her and put her down. She took a few steps, but saw her brother was not taking steps, he was hopping on his two feet. She wanted to do that too! She tried to hop, bending her knees and then going up, but she had just mastered walking and hopping was out of the question. She bounced up and down on her chubby legs, but didn't actually get off the ground.

"Okay, flutterby, let's go before your brother hops right out of the building," Chris said, picking her up again. Flynn whined and started to cry. She wanted to hop like her brother, but her daddy wasn't letting her. She buried her face in the crook of Chris's neck and he grabbed a binky out of his pocket and wiped it off on his shirt before he offered it to her. Flynn took it in her little hand and then he helped her put it in her mouth. There was little that calmed Flynn down like her binky.

By the time they got to Stephanie's office, she was just sniffling and sucking on her binky while smiling around it as she watched Sawyer. "I come bearing a sad baby and a kangaroo."

Stephanie looked up from her desk where she was doing work and looked confused. "Sad baby? _Kangaroo_?"

"I a kangwoo, Mommy," Sawyer explained to her, jumping up and down and over to Stephanie.

"Oh, wow, I didn't know you were a kangaroo, when did this happen?"

"Uh, now," Sawyer said.

"He's a kangaroo today, are you going to be a kangaroo tomorrow?" Chris asked.

"No, I a dwagon," Sawyer answered.

Well, that, at least, was going to be easier for Flynn to imitate. Stephanie took Flynn from Chris's arms, "Okay, so why do we have a sad baby?"

"Well, she wanted to hop like a kangaroo because a certain someone she adores was being a kangaroo and well, let's just say the girl's got no jump," Chris said, running his fingers down his daughter's arm. Flynn was leaning her head against Stephanie's collarbone, her soft, wispy brown hair curling around her forehead. She was looking at him serenely. "Okay, I've got a match to get to."

"You'll win," she told him.

"Please, like I needed to hear that," he said, leaning forward and kissing his wife. Flynn didn't seem to like seeing anyone kissing her daddy because she started to whine. Chris deigned her with a kiss and she was much happier. He tousled Sawyer's hair on the way out and then he was going the same way Edge had treaded a short time before.

He went out to the ring, microphone in hand, ready to speak to these hypocrites and failures. He didn't see the need to pander to them. Once you were free of constantly worrying what the fans thought, you became great. Edge realized it and that's what made him great and Chris realized it. He wasn't going to let Mysterio get the 619 this time and he was going to stick with that. R-Truth came out and told Chris to shut up or something. Chris didn't really pay attention though, this man was not worth his time and the only reason he had to face him was because his wife was being nice.

Like he thought, R-Truth just wasn't a match for Chris. The match went back and forth for a short while, but the best always rise to the top. Chris nailed R-Truth with a wicked Codebreaker and he knew as soon as he connected it that R-Truth was not going to get up for the 1-2-3. He got the win and celebrated for a moment, but the opponent had beneath his league so no huge celebration was needed. He walked back up the ramp, his back to it and that was his mistake. He didn't see Rey until it was too late. He was just turning to walk to the back when he saw Rey rush out at him and knock him down. He fell down to the ramp and Rey was attacking him in earnest. He should've expected this, how could he have left himself vulnerable like this?

The referees eventually broke Rey away from him and he got back up again. Instead of going up the ramp, he went the side way, walking along as he saw Rey going up the ramp out of the corner of his eye. Again, he should have had his receptors up because Rey launched himself off the ramp and right onto Chris. Chris's back smacked against the ground and he could feel the sting of it against his bare skin. He was going to wake up sore tomorrow. Rey was attacking him again and he was trying to dodge the blows.

As this was happening, as he tried to fight back, the same thought was going through his head. He was going to win on Sunday. No matter what, he was going to win on Sunday. He wouldn't attack Rey before then, no, he would just lay low and then explode from the gate and kick Rey's teeth in. Then he would grab his mask off and set him free. The Intercontinental belt was just an afterthought, he was after something much more personal than just that belt.

He fulfilled his promise as he walked backstage with the mask in one hand and the Intercontinental Title in the other. He'd been anticipating this match for a while and it had gone better than he ever expected. He almost thought Rey would glue the mask to his face and make it impossible for Chris to take it off, but that had not been the case. The first thing he did when he got backstage was go over to his beaming family, who were waiting there, ready to congratulate him…or so he thought.

"Look at what I got, kid," Chris said, showing Sawyer his belt.

Sawyer studied it for a moment, yawned (he was tired, it was late) and then looked up at his daddy, "Mine bigger."

He had to laugh at that. Here he was, a 9-time Intercontinental champion, breaking his own record and his son wasn't even impressed. Maybe if this was the first time Chris had won he would've gotten Sawyer's approval, but apparently Chris was a winner too much for his young son and the little one had gotten used to it. He couldn't even live up to his son's expectations, getting shot down.

"I know, but don't you like it?" Chris said. "Remember, this was your toy a while ago."

"I have a toy, it bigger," Sawyer said, then to add insult to injury, "and more bright."

"More bright?"

"Yes," Sawyer said, then pointed to Chris's other hand, "What dat, Daddy?"

"This is Rey's mask," Chris said. "Remember him, the scary man?"

Sawyer had been watching over some tapes with Chris in Chris's preparation for the match. He'd just been studying some of Rey's moves from the past several shows. Sawyer had wandered into the room, a cup of juice handled precariously in his hands. He'd seen what Chris was watching and wanted to watch too. Chris had lifted him onto the couch and after Sawyer had offered him a sip of his juice, they were watching and Chris was explaining what moves were. Sawyer had decided that he didn't like Rey because he looked scary with the mask. Chris laughed as he thought about going out to the ring and instead of saying that Rey was a coward and a hypocrite saying that he was scary-looking with his mask on.

If Sawyer thought Rey was scary with his mask, he didn't want to know how Sawyer would react if he'd seen Kane when he used to wear a mask. Chris could picture his son screaming in terror while running away with his hands flailing around him. "I do 'member," Sawyer told him.

"I took his mask off."

"Oh yeah," Sawyer said, remembering that he had _just_ seen that with his mommy. "Dat good, Daddy. No more scary."

"Nope, no more scary," he said, ruffling Sawyer's hair as he stood up. "So, what did you think? I'm now a 9-time Intercontinental champion."

"I think you should go after the World Title," she told him first and foremost.

Man, his family had such a one track mind. He was celebrating history and they were harping on him. Of course his wife would want him to go and get the bigger, shinier belt (according to Sawyer). Never-mind all he'd accomplished just this second, no, his wife had bigger and better plans for him. Still, she leaned forward and kissed him in congratulations, showing him that even though it wasn't what she wanted necessarily, she was still proud of him.

"I got his mask," Chris said, his eyes lighting up. "I've exposed him for what he really is, the coward that he is. Did you see how I did it?"

"I was very impressed she told him. You were amazing out there."

"I know, I was," Chris said, thinking about how he had planned that 619, how he'd been thinking about the dynamics of it and how easy it would be to fake and then grab Rey's mask. He'd put a lot of time and effort into it and it had paid in dividends. "Did you see how he was trying to cover his face immediately after I did it, like he was ashamed?"

Stephanie looked at him and she couldn't help the smile on her face. Right now, Chris was acting very much like one of their children. He reminded her of when Sawyer did something that he wanted Stephanie to see and he was impatient for her attention. She just nodded her head at Chris and he looked gleeful in his win and she was proud of him. He had won tonight and she was hoping to win in her own fight for control of all the shows, control, which, if her father didn't give to her, she would take herself.

The next day at Raw though, she didn't worry about. She would lay low for Monday. However, there were two other people on edge for Raw that evening, both of them pacing in their respective locker rooms while their girlfriends looked on. One of them was Hunter Hearst Helmsley, who was pacing back and forth. Britt watched him go from one end of the room to the other end of the room. She'd seen this scene so many times over the past several weeks that she thought she would scream, but Hunter would just still keep pacing.

"Would you quit it?" she asked him.

"I'm sorry, I'm just filled with adrenaline," he said and he probably couldn't calm down if he tried.

He'd been waiting for this moment. He knew that Britt saw their time off as some sort of vacation, but this wasn't a vacation for him; it had been torture. Yes, he loved spending time with Britt, but he was not the kind of guy who could just sit on the sidelines. It was not in his nature to let so much time pass without getting revenge on those who had wronged him and Randy Orton had wronged him. Not just him either, Hunter felt like he had to avenge more people than just himself. There was Britt and Stephanie and Chris and Flair and just so many people that he was pacing for.

The other times he'd been out of action, he could preoccupy himself with rehab. This time, there was no rehab. Before, he could focus on getting strength back, getting the rust off, but here, the injury was to his brain and it wasn't like he could rehab his brain (there'd have to be stuff in there to rehab). So he'd just sit around and thought and thought about what was going on at the show without him. Then he'd watched and see Randy trying to take over and it just got his blood pumping even more.

"Okay, seriously, stop," Britt said, grabbing his arm and getting him to stop.

He was waiting for the right moment to get Randy. "I just need that opening. That one spot where he lets his weakness down, then I've got him."

"You know, I can't believe that you've spent the last several weeks on this. I took time off to take care of you and we actually had time off together and how did we spend it? With you thinking of ways to get revenge on Randy and me watching you try to find ways to get revenge on Randy."

"It wasn't a vacation, Britt."

"Oh, believe me, I know."

"I just need to get him tonight, I need to get him in the ring or backstage. He has no clue that we're here, you know. So I can get him whenever and it'll be a surprise attack," Hunter said and he was almost crazed in the way he was speaking. His eyes seemed to glow with anticipation.

"Hunter…"

He looked over at her, "What?"

"I don't think you should attack him."

"What? Are you kidding me? After everything that he's done, you don't want me to attack him?"

"I would rather you let him go," Britt said. "Go after Dave, go after the title, remember, that's what you really love, you really love the title and what better thing to do as soon as you get back then go after the title, right?"

Sure, he loved the title, but this was bigger than the title and he told her so. "I can go for the title any time. I have to get back at Randy for what he did, for taking me out like that, for kissing you like he did when you didn't want it."

Britt sighed, "No, I didn't want it, but I'm over it."

"Over it?"

"Yes, _over it_," she told him. "It wasn't like he ravished me or whatever. He kissed me and yes, I didn't want it, but whatever, it's over now, water under the bridge. Look, I get that you're all like Mr. Intense and everything, but I am asking you to please, _please_ let this go."

"You know the way I work, Britt, you've known since you've met me."

"Yes, I get all that. You and your obsessive need for revenge or whatever. I mean, come on, Hunter, seriously, do you have to get back at every person who ever wronged you? Is that how you want to operate your life? Did you get back at Stephanie for ignoring you?"

"You know I did, I took her and Chris out, I cut her car in half, I dumped her at the altar."

"Okay, bad example," she admitted. "It's just not worth it, Randy's not worth it."

"Oh, it'd be worth it to me," Hunter told her, "believe me, it'd be worth it to me."

"But I'm involved and I'm over it, why can't you be?"

"Britt, you know how I work, you know this is how I am. If you don't like it, nobody is telling you to stay, you can leave if you want. I want to get back at Randy for what he did to me, it's only fair. Eye for an eye."

Britt stood up and looked at him. She was not nor had she ever been intimidated by this man. Where so many wrestlers would cower in fear at him, tremble if they met him, Britt was not impressed. Oh, he was a big wrestler guy, she didn't care. When she looked at him, she saw the guy who put socks on her feet when she had a cold. She wasn't going to back down with this. She thought he was being ridiculous. Hunter had a huge problem with letting go of things.

"You can't get revenge on everything. I mean, you let some things go, right? When Chris and Stephanie were together, you saw her with another guy, you moved on, right?"

"No, I didn't move on, I pretended to move on while plotting to break them up."

"You wanted to break…you wanted to get revenge in that way, when she was happy?"

"Yes, I almost did too, but they love each other."

"You're unbelievable," she yelled at him. "God, I love you, but you are the most difficult man in the universe. I don't care about Randy. I really don't. You shouldn't either. It's over now. He's moved on."

"Well, I haven't."

"You should, try, please _try_," she pleaded with him.

"I can't do it."

"Yes, you can," she told him, grabbing both of his hands.

"Do you know how hard it is to change, Britt? This is the guy I've always been. It's the guy I'm always going to be. I've worked hard to work up my reputation around here. When someone crosses me, they know it's not the end of it."

Britt sighed and took his face in her small hands. He looked at her, her wild, dark eyes framed by even darker hair. Her petite form, small, yet strong. She looked at him, stared into his eyes and he was a lucky man. "Let it go, for me, please."

She looked so sincere he had to take her in his arms. He felt like he could engulf her most of the time, like his body would just swallow hers right up. But she always matched his hugs. If he'd hug her tight, she'd hug him tighter. "I'll try, but I can't make you any promises. I can't…I don't think I can change who I am."

He couldn't, not really. He'd prove that later on. When Dave had been taken out of action, he'd seen his opening and he had to take it. He knew Britt would be disappointed in him, but he couldn't change who he was overnight. He'd spent too long waiting for this moment. The match declared for later and the ultimatum set out to Dave was just waiting for him to interfere, calling to him. He had to take that call and not even Britt could stop him. She'd learn that it was for her. He was not a guy who let things go. They would dwell in his stomach and coil and unfurl and he would be forced to purge it from his body with his fists.

The ambulance was the perfect set-up and he'd been waiting weeks for the conclusion. Randy waited in that ring, thinking nobody would show up. Hunter only wished he could see Randy's face when he showed up on the screen. He imagined it to be a look of fear and horror. Or rather, no, no, he wanted Randy to look confident. He wanted Randy to think he had the whole situation in control, like Hunter was just a blip on the radar of his life and he would float right out of it again. Because then, when Hunter did strike, it would be even worse for Randy.

Randy likened himself to a viper, but Hunter was like a hawk, swooping in to carry him away as prey or drop him from the highest heights. He stalked backstage, his eyes intent on the prize. When he got to Randy, it was like Hunter completely snapped and became an entirely different person. It almost felt like he was hovering above himself, watching himself lay into Randy like he was a piñata. Every blow to the former WWE champion was a blow for someone else. This one was for Britt, that one for Stephanie, this one for Chris.

This man had been a vile human being. He'd kissed Britt against her will, for that he had to pay. He'd knocked out Stephanie with an RKO and dared kiss her, for that he had to pay more. It all piled up until Randy was nothing more than a broken man. Only then was Hunter, who was panting with adrenaline and exertion, satiated and only for now. He knew the rage would rise up in him again and he would need to do this again. This was personal now. This was for all the wrong he'd done. It didn't matter if there were titles involved, this was beyond any title. This was for himself and the people he loved. He would beat Randy to within an inch of his life because he wanted to.

The other person pacing earlier that evening had been Edge. His reasons were two-fold. The reasons were: 1. he had lost his precious title last night and 2. he'd gotten the divorce papers that morning. Tonight, he was going to go to Vickie and hand her the papers. She could ignore his pleas for a divorce, but now she couldn't, he had the paper evidence, the _written_ evidence that he would be filing and she would be complying. He didn't want her anymore and she would just have to come to terms with that.

"She can't ignore this," Edge said, tapping his finger against the stack of papers sitting on the table in front of him. "She could ignore me, but she can't ignore _this_. This is legal and biding in a court of law."

"I know," Lita said.

"I mean, I've tried, right, I've tried to be nice about this, right?"

"Well, I heard you just kind of yelled it at her…"

"That was an accident, a mistake," Edge told her. "I didn't really mean to blurt it out like that. I was just on edge…and you can just hold your snickering, okay?"

Lita tried, but she couldn't, "I'm sorry, this is serious, I know. I understand how big a night this is for you. Are you sure you're ready?"

"I'm ready," Edge said. "She can't ignore these, Li."

"No, she can't."

Edge wanted this to be discreet. He really didn't want to make a scene. He'd been trying for weeks to get Vickie to understand that he wanted out of this marriage, if it could really be called that. They had never really lived together and right now, it was just a sham. He'd cared about Vickie in the past, but it didn't really go beyond that. Did he love her? He loved her in a way, but was it the way he loved Lita? Absolutely not and he couldn't continue to live a life with someone who would never be first best. He deserved better and so did Vickie.

"I just…we're not right, you know? I didn't, I'm sorry, you don't want to hear this."

Lita always found it weird when Edge wasn't himself. She liked that childish, silly, somewhat crazy guy. Then sometimes, he'd turn into this _adult_ and she never quite knew how to handle that. "It's okay," she told him. "I mean, I've been with you, God, almost a year now, right, this September, I know that you and Vickie have been drifting apart."

"It should've been you, all of this, it should've been you."

"You cared for her," Lita said.

"I know, I just…I didn't love her, you know."

"Yeah, and you're trying your best. She's just trying to hold onto you and I don't blame her. I would do the same thing if I were in her shoes. She knows when she's got a good thing and she just doesn't want to give that up. I want her to, yeah, but I understand as a human being."

"God, when did we get feelings?" Edge joked.

"How are you feeling about last night?"

"Oh, I'm getting my rematch, believe me," Edge told her, but he didn't want to think about it. He just wanted to be done with Vickie, once and for all.

When he saw her quit, he'd been surprised. He knew she'd had it rough on Raw, but now she was quitting. While he saw this, something popped out in his head, an idea if you will. Vickie refused to believe in this divorce. She would rebuff him when he called, ignore him when he mentioned divorce, but if they were in front of everyone, if he said what he needed to say in front of everyone, then she'd have to accept it. He felt a little weird going out there to discuss something so personal, but their relationship had been very impersonal from the start.

As he walked out there, he had every intention of being nice and gentle. He still had this intention when he got into the ring. Somewhere though, somewhere between looking at her and bringing the microphone to her lips, he lost that part of him. All he saw when he looked at her in that moment was frustration. It all came bubbling to the surface and before he could stop himself, he was talking and the words coming from his mouth came from somewhere deep in his brain and the rational part of his brain kept telling him to shut the hell up, this was all wrong, he was going about this all _wrong_, but he couldn't stop it.

Later on, he would watch what he said, watch it over and some of the things he said, he honestly couldn't remember saying. It was like he wasn't in control of himself as he was out there. He started in on her, telling her that when they went out, people thought she was his mother. It only got worse from there, saying that he was a gorgeous man and she was a beast. Where had his head gone? What was he doing? His brain was trying to go in reverse, but it seemed like reverse was stuck and he was barreling over any sense of decorum. This was worse than when he'd yelled out he wanted a divorce backstage. Then, only a dozen or so people had heard, here, he was humiliating her in front of millions of people. Frustration, all frustration.

He hadn't just married her for the power. He said he did, but he didn't, his brain told him. He did care for her, but now he was just acting like an asshole and he would regret it later. He'd go backstage and he would regret it. At the end, he told her he wanted a divorce and she cried after him, falling to her knees and he didn't look back. When he got backstage, he got some dirty looks, not from everyone, but from quite a few people. They didn't like Vickie, but they didn't think she'd deserved _that_.

When he finally got back to his locker room, he realized what he'd done. Lita was sitting there, the divorce papers in her lap and she was just looking at him, trying not to feel aghast at what he'd done. Edge was already taking care of that emotion though. He leaned back against the door and just stared at his hands. "What the hell did I just do out there?"

"You just…I'm sure you didn't mean it," Lita told him.

"I went out there and I was going to be nice," he said, shaking his head. Lita thought to earlier when she'd been thinking of how adult Edge was being. If he was an adult then, she didn't know what he was right now. She'd never seen him so subdued before, so absolutely sober. She could see the self-loathing washing off of him like waves from a beach.

"I know you were, you told me," she nodded.

"Was it horrible?" he asked, looking up at her. There was already regret settling in his sorrowful eyes.

"It wasn't that bad," she lied. He'd see it later, she was sure, but she wanted to give him a few moments where he didn't think himself the biggest asshole in the universe.

"I just wanted the divorce," he told her, still stunned by what had just transpired.

"I know you did," she told him. "You've been very nice about asking her ever since the other incident."

Now there was more than one incident. He was a jackass, a complete jackass. "I don't even know what I was saying. I just, I started talking and I kept telling myself to shut up, I was like, 'Adam, _shut up_,' but I didn't, I just kept going and going."

Lita knew it was serious when Edge brought up his real name. He hardly ever used it, nobody did, not eve his mother, who called him Adam only when she was especially pissed at him. "It wasn't that bad," she repeated.

"It was, I know it was, I'm an ass, I'm a complete ass," he said, shaking his head. "God, you should just leave me."

"Okay, now this is where I draw the line," Lita told him, putting the papers down and going over to him. "Look at me…Edge, look at me…"

He looked up at her and she smiled sweetly at him. "Look, I'm not leaving you. What happened out there, it wasn't good," she leveled with him, "but you're not a bad person. You just let your frustrations out and you were upset and you aren't that good at keeping your emotions hidden, let's face it. But I'm not going to leave you over this."

"I'd leave me over this."

"Well, too bad, look, she'll get over it, she will."

The question was: would he?

Chris stood near the edge of the pool. Sawyer was already in the water, kicking around the water, staying afloat with the arm floaties he was wearing. Flynn was sitting on the edge. Chris had already tried twice to get her in the water, but she had thrown a fit both times. He sighed and lifted her up again, holding her above the water as he went farther and farther away from the edge. Flynn kept looking back and she was starting to cry a little. She didn't like this place? Why was her daddy torturing her!

"Flutterby, it's okay, I've got you," Chris told her. "It's just water, look at Sawyer, he likes it."

"I swim, Daddy," Sawyer said, kicking his little legs around the shallow end.

"I see that, I'm so proud," Chris told him, then turned his attention back to his daughter. "I'm going to put you in the water, I promise it's not going to be so bad, okay?

He started lowering her a little and she started to squirm and cry more as he got closer. She obviously hated this, but she had to get over this fear at some point. Sawyer wanted to go swimming and Stephanie was busy at the moment so Flynn had to come with him. He wanted her to get over this fear of the water. Sawyer had been a little fish from the very beginning, loving the water and not having a problem at all. Flynn, on the other hand, she was a land animal, preferring to be on dry land.

Chris put her legs under the water and she started thrashing her legs about, kicking up water and splashing Chris in the face. "You don't have to be mean, flutterby," Chris joked as she tried to get away. She was moving her legs like she could walk away from her daddy, but he had a firm grip on her and she wasn't going anywhere. Chris lifted her out of the water again and she felt a little better, though she still had tears rolling down her face.

"Daddy, she no like swim," Sawyer told him as he passed by his sister. She looked very mad and upset. Flynn turned her head to look at Sawyer swimming away and reach for him (anything to get away from her mean daddy). While she was doing that though, her daddy was being very sneaky and he dunked her all the way to her waist and she screamed in surprised as she looked at Chris with her mouth open. He made a funny face at her though and no matter how much she wanted to cry right now, she couldn't help but laugh. Her family knew her weakness!

She did have the best family in the world though, they were always making her laugh and she loved that. Chris brought her over to a little inflatable baby rider in the shape of a boat. He started to lower her into it and she started to scream at him. She didn't want to go in there. It looked scary. Chris put her in anyways, putting her legs through the two little leg holes that let them dangle in the water. She sniffled as she sat there, Chris holding onto the side. Chris got her attention and then he went under water and popped right back up and made a funny face.

Flynn smiled wildly and clapped her hands, laughing at her daddy. He was so funny sometimes. Chris saw how he was getting her to ease up and so he dunked himself under the water again. Flynn was expecting him to pop right back up again, but he didn't. She craned her neck to peer over the edge of her little boat and see if she could see her daddy. When she looked though, he popped up again with _another_ funny face and Flynn's jaw dropped. How did he do that? She couldn't help but laugh even more. Her daddy was the most wonderful daddy in the entire universe, she was convinced of this and she reached her arms to him. He made a face and then dunked himself under the water again.

Flynn knew this time to look for her daddy. She craned her neck again to look under the water for her daddy, cautiously because he might jump out at any moment, but she didn't see his shape under the water. She looked again, but nothing. Then suddenly from behind her, she heard a growling, "I'm going to get you, flutterby!"

She felt two hands grab at her and she turned around quickly and squealed as her daddy leaned in and kissed her, getting her cheek all wet. He stuck his tongue out at her and she was so surprised. How had he done that? How did he get behind her without her seeing? She didn't care. She was so delighted to see him. She looked at Chris adoringly and he loved when he got looks like those from his little girl. She looked so much like Stephanie, those same eyes with just a hint of his blue and her light brown curls, but there was a look that Flynn gave him that Stephanie never had, a look like unconditional love and he loved that from her.

Chris looked over to check on Sawyer and saw he was in the deep end. "Sawyer!" Chris yelled, then sighed, "Come on, flutterby, let's go get your brother."

Chris swam over to where Sawyer was kicking around, moving his arm floats around like he was paddling with them. He dragged Flynn and her boat behind him. "Sawyer, what have I told you about coming over here?" Chris asked.

"I dunno," Sawyer told him, trying to play innocent.

"You're not supposed to come into the deep end, you're supposed to stay in the shallow end, you know the rules, kid," Chris told him. "What if your arm floaties came off and you sank like a rock. Mommy would kill me!"

"Oh no," Sawyer said and Chris had to laugh at that.

"Do you know what I do with naughty boys who come into the deep end?" Chris asked ominously.

"What?" Sawyer asked with trepidation.

Chris grabbed his son and lifted him up, "This!" Then he threw Sawyer into the air towards the shallow end. Sawyer screamed as he flew through the air and then landed with a bob at the other end of the pool. He kicked around, "treading" water as Chris swam over.

"Again, Daddy!" Sawyer said. That was so much fun!

"Again?" Chris asked.

"Uh huh!"

Stephanie was sitting inside in her office as her family had fun by the pool. Ever since Vickie had quit on Monday she'd wanted to take over the GM position. She was perfect for the job. Now she just had to convince her father to give her the job. She figured that he would give it to her though. She was the most qualified for the job and he had to see what a good job she was doing with SmackDown and if he saw that, how could he not offer her the position? She really should just take it, but this time, she thought going through the proper channels might work better so her father would see her in a good light and not snatch her job away from her.

"So Dad," she said sweetly. "I really think that I would be the best for the job."

"I don't know, Stephanie."

"Dad, if you'll recall, before Vickie was the GM of Raw, I was the GM and only stepped away because of what happened to me and because you made decisions on my behalf," she said, making sure to stick it to him a little. "Anyways, because of that, I think it only fair the job be relinquished back to me because I never really officially resigned as the GM."

"But Chris is on SmackDown now."

"Your point?" she wondered. "Yes, Chris is on SmackDown, but that doesn't mean that I can't be at Raw."

"But then the kids, I mean, don't you think they travel enough as it is, now you want to add that extra day."

"Dad, Sawyer is an old pro at flying and Flynn usually sleeps on the plane anyways so they never affect her at all. They don't mind, they're kids, they find all that stuff fascinating," Stephanie told him. "The kids are a non-issue and so is Chris. We know what we're doing with them. Dad, you know I'm the best for this job, you just know I am. And why take on an outside hire. I know the way the show works, inside and out, I'm the best for the job and you know it."

"I don't dispute that you're good for the job--"

"So let me have it."

"I just hesitate to let you have it in light of your personal life and family," he finished his thought.

She was getting frustrated now, "Okay, look, Dad, why don't you let me handle Raw on Monday, okay? It's a three hour show so it's a good test. I'll take over the show, I mean, I'll run the show and then if I do a good job, you give me the job, okay?"

"I suppose…yes, that's fine."

"Thanks, Dad!" Stephanie said. "Love you, tell Mom, I love her too!"

She was off the phone in a flash. Raw was hers! She had no doubt in her mind that she could handle running the show on Monday. Once she proved to her father that she was competent, he would have no choice but to give her the show. Then she would have Raw _and_ SmackDown and that would only leave ECW left. She could just pluck that show right now if she wanted, but first things first. She ran through her house and out to the backyard.

Chris was just tossing Sawyer into the air when he saw Stephanie running out. She headed straight for the pool and dove right in. Chris and Sawyer both watched her and wondered what she was doing. Stephanie smoothly swam over to Chris and then jumped on him. Chris, wondering what this was about but having an inkling that he knew, wrapped his free arm around her while holding onto Flynn's boat with his other hand. Stephanie pulled away and then kissed him, pressing her lips against his. Chris eagerly returned the kiss, never one to turn away Stephanie's kisses.

"It's mine, Chris, Raw is mine!"

Now all they had to do was get through SmackDown, which would be easy enough. Stephanie felt like she was floating as she walked into the arena and it was only fitting that today Sawyer had decided he was a bird. He squawked as he raised his arms out and "flew" around. Chris was happy because he was the title holder and had Rey's mask and Flynn was just a happy baby. They walked inside and Stephanie went to go tell Teddy that tonight was all his because she had to focus on the upcoming Raw.

Chris took the kids to Stephanie's office, letting Sawyer fly in ahead of him, "I a bird," Sawyer told him as he jumped on the couch.

"Did you just land?"

"Yup," Sawyer said, lying across the couch.

In another locker room, Edge was still feeling pretty low after what happened on Monday. Nevertheless, he was trying to focus on tonight and that didn't help his mood. He was going to get his rematch clause into effect. He had lost on Sunday and therefore, he got a rematch and he wanted one as soon as possible because he wanted his title back. He still felt horrible about the Vickie situation and she'd refused to talk to him this week, but the divorce seemed to be going through and for that he was grateful, he just wished he hadn't had to do what he did to get through to her.

His night went from bad to worse when Jeff started claiming that he wanted a rematch as well. Edge went out there and the two other men tried to dismiss him like they didn't know who he was. He was a 9-time champion. They were both, what, 2-time champions and barely that. Jeff had one ridiculous reign and then Sunday he'd held the belt, for what, 5 seconds before handing it right over to Punk? It was like he was the messenger, simply holding the belt to give right back to Punk.

Then there was Punk. Now Edge had nothing against using nefarious means to get what you wanted, but he had held the belt so many times they couldn't all be flukes, which was more than he could say about Punk. Punk hadn't really, truly earned the belts. He let someone do all the work while he swooped him thinking he was some kind of awesome mastermind or something, when he was just a mooch. He took other's people's hard work and claimed it for himself. It was funny. He remembered when Chris had won the Championship Scramble, everyone was saying how he was a rat for sneaking in at the very end. Double standards. Now he didn't even get his match outright, he had to fight for it. Oh well, he wasn't a 9-time champion for nothing.

"So then, I was going to…Stephanie, are you listening to me?"

"What, yeah?"

"What are you doing?"

"Stuff for Raw. I'm putting time for you," she told him. "Just so you know."

"Fine," he said, "but did you hear what I said? I wanted…you're not listening."

"I am listening," she said again, but didn't look up. "I'm just thinking of things for Raw, that's all."

"Okay, fine," Chris said, then watched her as she went back to work, not looking over at him or acknowledging him in the slightest. "So then I'm thinking that I'll take time on Monday to go out to the ring with Mickie and Kelly Kelly and make out with them at the same time."

"Whatever, sure, great," she told him.

"And then I was going to take Katie Lea out and then we could go back to her hotel room and have some fun, is that okay with you?"

"Just fine," she told him.

"Do you hear this, flutterby, she's not even listening to me," Chris said, shaking his head.

"I heard everything you said."

"Oh yeah, then tell me what I said, huh?" he challenged.

"Well, let's just say if you even so much as entertain the idea of making out with those two or heading anywhere near Katie's hotel room, you'll be missing one very important appendage that you like very, very much."

"You _do_ love me!" he exclaimed. "Also, you really like that appendage too."

"Yeah, so don't mess that up for me."

"Yes ma'am."

Chris was brimming with confidence when he walked to the ring later that evening. He had Rey's mask in his hand and as he climbed in the ring, he looked out at everyone in the crowd, knowing he was better than them. He'd stripped Rey of what was most important to him and set him free from his cowardice. Rey hadn't even shown up tonight, that's how shaken he was from his defeat. Chris had driven him away. He loved the thought of making someone so humiliated they couldn't even show their face, but that had been Rey's problem since he entered the company. He never showed his face, instead choosing to hide under the mask and what kind of message did that send? It was okay to hide away in shame? Chris never hid; he was an honest man and lived by that idea.

And if Rey didn't understand that, Chris would make him understand.

Stephanie, on the other hand, had someone else she needed to make understand. It was time for her father to stop treating her like a little girl and more like the woman she was. He needed to stop making decisions for her, pulling her away from what she loved because he thought he knew best. It was getting old now and she would show him on Monday that she needed to be the new GM. She would show everyone how Raw was her show and she'd bring it back to prominence once again. She'd start with Monday.

Then she'd take over.


	239. All Caught Up, June 15 to 22, 2009

A/N: So I glossed over last Monday to get all caught up, which I am, yay! :D Anyways, please read and review, reviews are like, really important, so please leave one, even if it's like just short.

I also started a new story, "When Nothing Leads to Something," if you want to go check it out. :)

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Chris reached up with both hands and tucked the hair away from Stephanie's face. She smiled down at him from her perch above his body. Her arms were on either side of him and her hair had fallen around her face, a brunette shroud, covering her face in fetching shadows, giving her a softness. Sometimes she was so beautiful she took his breath away. He let his fingers linger around the lobes of her ears, tugging on them a little bit.

"If this is how you take out your frustrations all the time, I'm all for it," he told her, his voice still heavy from their prior activities. "In fact, if you want to air them out even more, I'm here for you, baby."

Stephanie laughed, her chest heaving slightly at the airy sound. He found himself drawn to her. Sometimes he took for granted how beautiful his wife really was. She had such a strong personality that her beauty tended to get lost in there, muddled in with other traits that she possessed that he found more amazing, but she was still as beautiful as the day he realized he could have more than passing feelings for this woman, a revelation that had stuck him to his spot on the floor.

Stephanie came down the, pecking him on the lips and then pulling away to lie down on his chest, her face sticking to his body from the sweat that was covering him in a thin sheen. He reached his hand up and stroked her hair, glad for the quiet moments. After the rage that Stephanie had displayed for the past couple days, this was a welcome change. She'd been so angry on Monday and he feared that she would just do something drastic, but instead, she seemed to go in the opposite direction, becoming very quiet, which, impressively, only served to worry Chris more.

"_Stephanie, your dad wants to talk to you as soon as you get a chance," Britt told Stephanie, relaying the words Vince had told her when they'd come across each other in the hallway._

"_I bet this is about him announcing me as GM," Stephanie said excitedly. "I'm going to see him now."_

_Stephanie practically flew down the hallway. Nothing was going to take her down tonight. Vickie was gone and she was going to be the new GM. She would go out there, tastefully and graciously accept the position and then get to work making this the best show ever. Her father would see what she could do and everything would work out perfectly. She'd be in control in no time and her father had just handed it over to her like it was nothing._

"_Dad, you wanted to see me?" Stephanie said as she walked in unannounced._

_Vince was sitting in a chair and he looked at her, smiling, but it was a fake smile. She'd seen enough of them to spot them on sight. "What is it?"_

"_I just have my announcement coming up soon," he said and she tilted her head to look at him, studying his face._

"_And me as GM, right?" Stephanie said. "Because you said that I could have the job, Dad. You said that it was mine."_

"_Stephanie, something...well, something came up."_

"_What do you mean something came up?" Stephanie asked, glaring at her father. Her arms rose slightly to fold, her stance becoming possessive. If he had passed her over again, she was going to go ballistic. She was going to rage until her father gave her, her job back. Why was he constantly doing this to her? She'd been his (mostly) loyal employee for years now. She deserved this position. Oh man, if it was Shane, she was going to kill the both of them. _

"_I just...that's what my announcement is about."_

"_Your announcement is supposed to be about me being the new GM. Dad, that's what your announcement is _going_ to be, right?"_

"_Stephanie, something came up..."_

"_You already said that," she pointed out. "You already said that and I don't want to hear it again. If you say it again...I will scream. Dad, you promised me the job, you _promised _it_ _to me. I had the lawyers draw up the contract for me to sign and everything. Dad, this is _my_ job."_

"_I _was _going to give it to you..."_

"_No, no, no, don't say was, Dad, you can't do this to me again," Stephanie said, realizing that she sounded whiny right now, but she was not going to let this opportunity slip away from her again._

"_It's not a matter of the GM. For all I know, you _could_ be the GM, but I've decided," here he paused and looked strange, almost sad, wistful. "I've decided to sell Raw."_

_Stephanie wasn't sure she heard him correctly at first and had the urge to stick her finger in her ear and make sure there wasn't some weird sort of wax buildup that made her hear nonsensical things. She had to clarify what her father was saying, "Did you...can you repeat that?"_

"_I've decided to sell Raw."_

"_You sold the company?" Stephanie asked, alarmed. "You couldn't have, you could _not _have. You would have to run that by the board and the other shareholders, of which I am one, no way, you didn't...you sold the company!"_

"_I didn't sell the company, I franchised Raw."_

"_Franchised, I don't understand...I don't...to who?"_

"_That's my announcement."_

"_How could you do this! How could you sell Raw! Did you even discuss this with the board, did you discuss it with_ Mom_! I can't believe you did this. I can't believe...Raw is my show, it's...I can't believe this!" The tears in her eyes were betraying her, but she wouldn't let them fall. "You were supposed to give me the position and you go and sell it, I can't believe you would do this without consulting with anyone."_

"_I'm sorry, Stephanie."_

_She really didn't think her father was sorry at all._

"The kids will be up from their nap soon," Chris said, but she just continued to lie there on top of him, her head neatly tucked under his chin. His fingers were running up and down her back, tickling her spine. "I don't think I want Sawyer to come in and ask why we're not wearing clothes."

She breathed a laugh and he smiled. She hadn't really laughed since Monday. He'd been having his match when she was arguing with his father, but as soon as he came backstage and saw her devastated look he knew she wasn't getting the GM position. When she'd whispered, "I want to go home," he had a good mind to go kick Vince's teeth in. He'd been shocked to learn that Vince had sold Raw of all things. And then to learn it was to Donald Trump; after that, he was thankful he was drafted to SmackDown because he didn't even want to deal with that mess.

"We can tell him we're napping," Stephanie said, glancing at the closed door that lead to the adjoining room where Sawyer and Flynn were both napping. After they woke up they would all head down to the arena for SmackDown that evening. Stephanie still had the pleasure of running this show so it wasn't like she had lost out on everything. "Do you think he'd buy it?"

"No way, then he'd want to come nap with us, creating a very awkward situation," Chris said, kissing the top of her head. "We better get up before he opens that door."

"I don't want to get up," she told him. "I just want to stay here with you forever, is that so wrong?"

"No, it's not, I wish I could stay here with you."

"I don't want to go to SmackDown, I don't want to go to Raw on Monday either."

"I have to be there though, you know that. They asked that we all be there, well, your dad insisted and since he is still president, he said he wanted all brands there to witness his farewell address. Chris thought it was so Vince to want everyone to give him this huge send-off, like he deserved it or something. He wished he could show solidarity with his wife and not show up, but he was under contract and had to show up when mandated to.

"I guess I'll be there too," Stephanie said.

"You don't have to, I can handle it by myself," Chris said, absently caressing her shoulder now. "I know you don't want to be there in protest to your father and in that case, you shouldn't be there. You can stay at home and I will go to Vince and be very angry and stick up for you because I love you."

"You're my hero," she said cheekily. "How mean are we talking here?"

"Extremely mean, I'm talking pounding desks, yelling, angry looks, gritted teeth, the whole nine yards. I'll have your father cowering in fear," Chris said.

"I like that idea, I like the thought of him cowering in fear," she said. "You sure you wouldn't mind me not being there?"

"No, of course not. Stephanie, I know you may find this hard to believe, but I did live a pretty long life without you and where I traveled by myself without a wife and two children. I think I might be able to survive."

"I was just asking," she told him. "No need to get flip."

"After you and Sawyer and Flynn, it might be nice to get a little time to myself," he joked and got a slap to his thigh for his efforts. "Hey, be careful with me. I've got a match tonight and I can't go out there with a bruise to my thigh."

"Oh, I forgot, you can see pretty much everywhere on your body now. It's like, hey there, ladies, check _me_ out, that's what you're doing, you know, you're just giving them all an eyeful and they're all plotting to steal you from me," she teased.

"Well, I'd like to see them try," he told her. Then he gently placed his hands on her shoulders and pushed her off. "Now seriously, unless you want to have a very stunted and awkward conversation with our son, I suggest that you get dressed."

"Will you stay naked?" she asked.

"I will not," Chris said. She reluctantly pulled away from him and went to get dressed for the show. She knew that drowning herself in Chris was only a temporary fix, but she was trying to avoid thinking about what her father had done. Judging from the stock going down the next day, her father's little ploy had been as stupid to everyone else as it seemed to her. That made her feel better, a little at least. Her father looked like the idiot he was and she took an amount of satisfaction in that fact.

Edge looked over at Lita as they ate a late lunch. "Do you think I'm whiny?"

"Yes," she told him, dipping her french fry into her ketchup. "I think you're extremely whiny."

"Really? Or are you just messing with me?"

"I really do think you're whiny, sorry," she said when she saw his face fall. "It's just how you operate. I mean, I've heard you whine all week about this title match thing so I'm going to go with whiny."

"You realize I'm getting a divorce for _you, _right?" he pointed out.

"Yeah, because that was all me," she told him. "Has she gotten back to you yet by the way?"

Lita was always hesitant to bring up the divorce, but if he was bringing it up first than she felt like it would be safe to talk about. She just didn't want Edge to feel bad about what had happened with Vickie. It still stung him, she knew. She also knew that some of the things he said, a lot of it actually, he didn't really mean at all and had just said in the heat of the moment. It didn't bother her that he actually cared for Vickie, it just bothered her that he was still feeling bad about this. But Edge, underneath the many, many vapid and strange layers, was a decent guy with decent guy feelings.

"No, not yet, but Chavo, I talked to him, and he said that he would talk to her for me. I kind of didn't expect that."

"I guess he's a good guy and just wants what's best," Lita said for lack of anything better to say.

"I just wish it could've gone more civilly, but I think I ruined any chance of that happening," Edge said with a pathetic shrug, "what with me acting like a jackass and now you think I'm whiny."

"Well, that's just who you are," she said, patting him on the hand. "I find it endearing when you whine. You just look so cute and I can't help myself when you do it."

"Now you're just flattering me," he told her, but he would take it. Whenever she made him feel good, he would take it in a heartbeat.

Later that evening, Stephanie was back in the full swing of things. She knew she couldn't just sit back and languish and waste away because she felt bad that she wasn't the Raw GM. She still had SmackDown and she and Teddy made a great team. She let him do a lot of the show-planning while she took a lot of the production aspects on. Of course, when something suited her pleasure, she would casually bring it up so she could get her way. Her way usually included some kind of advantage for Chris. She wasn't up to meddling tonight though so she just let the show play out as it happened.

Chris's match with Jeff was early in the night. She sat with Sawyer and Flynn to watch it. Well, she watched it and Sawyer watched it, Flynn just kind of sat there and banged her hands against a picture book she had in her lap. "Isn't Daddy good?" Stephanie asked as she watched.

"No," Sawyer told her.

"You don't think Daddy's good?"

"No, I no like."

"What don't you like?" she wondered.

"Wefwing," he told her defiantly.

"You don't like wrestling?" she asked, eyes wide. "But I thought you loved wrestling. You loved watching Daddy on Monday, why don't you like wrestling now?"

"You mad at Gampa, he mean," Sawyer told her. "I no like."

It seems her anger had transferred to her son and that's why he was sitting there, looking an awful lot like she did when she was angry, arms folded a scowl on his face. He had seemed very reluctant to come to the arena, but she just figured that he was still cranky from his nap. She'd spent a lot of time complaining to Chris about her father and Sawyer and Flynn were always around so it wasn't out of the question that he would pick up on her anger. He was a kid, yes, but he was still a person and he saw things. She didn't want him caught in the crossfire though.

"Oh, baby boy, no," she told him, running her hand through his blond hair. "You misunderstood what was going on."

"You no like Gampa," he said, which was pretty much right. God, how she was going to have to censor her now. Sawyer could talk now and have conversations and think and he could very well tell people what they talked about. She watched Chris's match a little bit more, keeping her eye on her husband.

"Can we talk after Daddy's match?" Stephanie asked him.

"Okay, Mommy," he told her, his eyes going over to the television. She had a very strong feeling—probably because Sawyer was a little boy—that he was just pretending that he didn't like wrestling because she didn't appear to like it very much right now either. She ended up watching Sawyer for a few moments and the way the kid's eyes lit up whenever Chris hit a move was just too obvious to deny. The little boy loved it and he was just trying to be like her. She really would have to watch how she acted now that he could really pick up on it. Wait until Chris heard this.

But he wouldn't hear it right now because he was fighting with Jeff. Jeff was a good wrestler, Chris knew. They'd known each other for a very long time and there were even times where they had tagged together so they were very familiar with each other and their styles tended to mesh well when they were partners. The drawback of that now as that they knew each other's moves and knew them well, creating a dynamic back and forth between them, where Chris was having trouble getting the upper-hand enough to win.

He tried for the Lionsault, but Jeff moved out of the way and once again, his attempt at the move failed, which would only bring criticism from his harshest critic, his wife. He could picture her now, yelling at him that one day he was going to really hurt himself. Thinking about Stephanie right now was a very bad idea as it allowed Jeff to catch him off guard and get him with a facebuster. Jeff went up to the top, but Chris moved out of the way just in time. Jeff, being the daring one always, went to jump at Chris on the outside. Chris wasn't thinking about Stephanie right now and moved out of the way, letting Jeff hit the guard on the side of the ring and then fell to the mat below. Chris stood up and held his elbow for a moment, making sure it was okay.

He went over to Jeff and grabbed him, throwing him into another barrier on the other side. Then he did it again, going to the other side. Jeff was too weak to resist and Chris grabbed him one more time and threw him in the ring. He was about to climb in and looked back for a moment only to see someone standing on top of the barrier. For a moment he thought an overzealous fan was going to attack him and he went into fight mode, but then the person hit him with a hurricanrana and he flew into the ringpost. He knew it was Mysterio, but for a moment, he was seriously shocked. He rolled around on the ground a little bit, hearing the referee counting, but he was out of it. He tried to get up in time, but he was counted out.

He looked around in disbelief, he couldn't believe he'd lost because of a count-out. The referee hadn't seen Mysterio attack him and Chris tried to tell him that was Rey Mysterio, but he only saw three guys in Mysterio masks. He cursed Rey for being so short he looked like a kid. He threatened to punch Chioda out, but it was no use. Then, to add insult to injury, Jeff grabbed him and hit him with a Twist of Fate. When Chris was trying to get his bearings back, Jeff then hit him with a Swanton. He just could not win and he was lying there, pissed off beyond belief.

Stephanie was up in arms. She was already thinking of ways for Chris to get back at Rey for what he did when she saw Sawyer, still sitting there looking angry. She needed to deal with this first. "Okay, you, let's talk."

"Okay," Sawyer said, turning so he was facing his mommy. He gave her a sweet smile. Flynn, not wanting to be left out, crawled across Sawyer and into her mommy's lap, laying her head against Stephanie's stomach.

"Okay," she said, wrapping her arms around. "So I know that you probably heard me talking about how I was mad at Grandpa, huh?"

"Yes, I did," Sawyer told her.

"Well, your grandpa, he just..he really makes me mad sometimes," Stephanie explained to him. "I love him because he's my daddy, but he just makes me really mad some of the time because of the things he does."

"You yelled," Sawyer told her.

"I know, I did yell," she said, thinking about her yelling to Chris what had happened that night in their hotel room. "I'm sorry you had to hear that. You weren't supposed to hear me yelling and I'm sorry you did."

"You no like Gampa."

"It's just...well, he promised me something and then he took back his promise. It'd be like...you know when Daddy tells you he'll take you somewhere and then he doesn't take you even though he said he would. You don't like that, do you?"

"No," Sawyer answered. He didn't like when his daddy did that at all.

"Well, Grandpa did that with me and it made me very upset and I know that I said I didn't like the wrestling business, but I didn't really mean what I said. Sometimes people say things that they don't mean because they're mad. Remember when Flynn accidentally knocked over your Lego tower that you made the other day?"

Sawyer frowned and nodded. "She push it."

"Yeah, but she was trying to get a grip on something before she fell on her butt and she grabbed at your tower and she accidentally knocked it down, then you got mad at her and started crying and came looking for me because you were upset. But do you still love Flynn?"

"She my baby," Sawyer responded.

"Yes, she is and you love her because she's your baby," Stephanie said, "even though she did something you didn't like. It's the same way with me right now. I love Grandpa, but he did something that made me angry."

"What he do?"

"I was supposed to be the GM of Raw, but he sold it to Donald Trump," Stephanie said bitterly.

"Who that?"

"A very rich man," Stephanie said as Chris walked into the room. He looked pissed off and she couldn't blame him. "Hey, we watched your match."

"I like wefwing again, Daddy," Sawyer told him.

"When didn't you like wrestling?" Chris asked, preoccupied with his son now and not thinking about his disaster of a match and Mysterio's hiding in the crowd. When he'd attacked Mysterio, he had taken off the mask and revealed his true identity, but Rey couldn't even do that. He still hid behind his mask and not only that, he had brought along some friends to help him with his impersonation.

"Cause of Gampa," Sawyer told him.

"Man, does that guy ruin _everything _or what?" Chris asked. He came over and sat on the other side of Sawyer. "So you're back to liking wrestling, what did you say to get him to change his mind?"

"I just told him that I was mad at Grandpa, but that I still love him," Stephanie said. "And that I have to be careful what I say around certain people because certain people are old enough to know what is being said and that could be a very bad thing."

"Well, certain people think that certain idea is certainly good."

"I hate you," Stephanie said, but then looked at Sawyer, "but I'm just joking with Daddy, I really love him a lot, that's why we're married and have you and Flynn."

Sawyer just looked at her, "Okay, I go play now."

"Okay, you go play now," Stephanie said as Sawyer climbed off the couch now that his daddy was back here and not on the television. Stephanie scooted closer to Chris and he leaned down to kiss Flynn's head. She smiled up at him and raised her hands, babbling a little bit to him. He took her in his arms, even though his was sweaty. She didn't seem to care. "Okay, so what was with Rey out there, that sneaky, little bastard. You have to retaliate in some way."

"Oh, I plan to. Do you think that I could go out there for the main event?"

"Of course you can, why couldn't you?"

"Well, I don't know, I know you put Teddy in charge tonight and I was just hoping that he would let me, but I know that you could get me out there."

"I want you out there. Eye for an eye. When you attacked him, you took off the mask, you presented yourself. He has to hide behind the mask and hide behind the other people with him. If Chioda had a brain in his head, he would've realized that something had to have happened to make you writhing around on the ground in pain. What the hell did he think happened between the time you threw Jeff into the ring until you were on the outside and unable to climb in the ring, you just decided to go for a leisurely stroll and then throw yourself into the ringpost so you would lose the match? The incompetence around here sometimes, I swear. This is why I should've been the Raw GM, but no, my father turns it around and gives it to a guy who has no business running a wrestling show. Is this what it felt like to work under Ted Turner? I mean, how can you have someone who doesn't know a thing about running a wrestling business actually running one. No wonder WCW tanked, I mean, among other things of course. Now Trump is going to do the same thing, run it into the ground and I have to sit by and _watch_?"

"Are you done with that?" Chris asked. She looked like she could go on for another hour, but he was trying to curb it.

"Yeah, sorry, I'm just so angry about it...but I don't hate Grandpa," she said loudly, though Sawyer looked preoccupied with his toys and not listening to his mother rant on and on.

"I agree with you about the referee thing," Chris said, shaking his head. "I mean, come on, he had to know something was happening. He probably doesn't like me."

"He's paid to be impartial."

"Oh, like you can trust anyone around here, they're probably all out to get me anyways," he said. "I don't know what their problem is. I'm the best wrestler, they should all be looking up to me. I mean, I know I'm not the World Champion, but I am a champion, you know."

"I know, I agree," she told him, kissing him lightly. "You just go out there and do what you have to do.

When the time came, he did go out there. He wasn't going to let Rey have all the fun tonight and he wasn't just going to let this be a little one-off where he'd come to the ring, talk to Rey and then be done with it until they met up again. He was going to stay out there. Stephanie had told Teddy that Chris was going to commentate on the main event match and Teddy had thought it a great idea. Chris was charismatic enough so he'd gone out there.

There was a purpose for going out there though and while Teddy didn't know what it was, Stephanie certainly did. She watched with great anticipation as Chris sat at the table and commentated. He was waiting for the perfect moment, she could tell. He would get one, he had to. Rey was going to feel Chris's wrath and Chris was going to do it out in the open, not like the coward that Rey was. She didn't know when she'd gotten sucked into Chris's mentality, but once you messed with her husband, you were messing with her and she wasn't going to stand for that in the slightest. She was Stephanie McMahon and at the very least, this was her show and she was going to give benefits to her husband where she thought fit. Hell, if he would let her, she would give him all the titles right now, that's how much she would skew the show in his favor.

Chris was on the lookout for when he could feasibly attack Rey. Once he was alone on the side of the ring and the referee was occupied, he left his seat quickly and then ran to Rey and drove _him _into the ringpost. Served that bastard right and Chris loved to hear the smack of human against metal. He ran back to his position at the announcer's table and put the headphones on again quickly, appearing innocent at least to the inept referee, who just tried to count Rey out. Chris shouted for Rey to stay down, to not get back up like he did. He wanted him to be counted out like he had been earlier that evening, but Rey got back in just in time. JR was questioning his motives, but they were obvious, Rey had tried to attack him earlier so he was going to attack him back, that's how things went.

He was glad when Rey was hit with the GTS by Punk and lost the match. But this thing between him and Rey wasn't over, not by a long shot. He'd gotten Rey to agree to a match for his mask. He didn't care about the IC Title, he'd held it 9 times already, but getting Rey's mask, now that would be something special. He could already see himself holding it aloft while exposing Rey's face to the masses. The humiliation underneath that match would be reward enough. He smirked at the satisfaction he would receive from removing something so near and dear to Rey's heart.

But first, there were other things to focus on.

"Britt."

Britt looked up. She wasn't working tonight, but she was here for moral support of Hunter in his title match later this evening against Randy, who was standing in front of her right now. "Randy."

"I plan on beating Hunter to within an inch of his life later on."

"I think he plans to do the same with you," she told him, smirking a little. "He's good in these matches."

"Well, I'm better than he is, quicker, faster, probably better in bed too, but you blew that chance."

"Oh, I'm going to go cry into my pillow now, boo-hoo," Britt said, rolling her eyes. "Like that's supposed to make me drop to my knees and worship you or something."

"Just saying, on those unsatisfying nights, you should think to what you could've had," Randy said, gesturing towards himself.

"Not seeing anything I want, sorry," she shrugged, then pushed past him, even taking the time to bump him rudely. "Oh, and I'd watch out if I were you. Hunter is on the rampage and you're the obstacle he has to get past and in my years of being with him, he doesn't like obstacles, usually just plows them over."

Britt couldn't believe the nerve of that guy. If anyone could have a bigger ego, she'd like to know because the hubris that Randy demonstrated was such a turnoff. Stephanie had told her that Randy used to be a really great guy, nice and caring and willing to help those in trouble. That guy she could've liked, very easily in fact. But this guy, never. He was just too into himself, too...too Randy Orton for his own good. He acted like he was the gift to the world and she found that insufferable. Hunter wasn't like that...at least not much. She knew he had his slip-ups, but for the most part, she knew what was what with her boyfriend, even if he infuriated him with his intensity.

"So man, you ready for your match?" Chris asked as he, Christian, and Hunter sat around catering.

"I'm itching for it," Hunter said, cracking his knuckles. "I want to beat him so bad."

"You'll get him," Chris said. "I've got my own problems with Vince and this entire selling Raw thing. He really hurt Stephanie, you know, plus, it hurt Sawyer too because he saw that Stephanie was mad and he got really sensitive about it. He's mad at Vince too."

"And you do not want that kid mad at you," Christian joked.

"Hey, the kid can kick you now, right in the ankle," Chris said. "I've been kicked by him, it's no fun. Once, he was wearing shoes and he kicked me so hard it left a bruise."

"Kids," Hunter said.

"Oh yeah, what do you know about kids?" Chris asked with a scoff. "How many have you raised?"

"I know about kids."

"Yeah and that's why my wife banned you from holding our daughter until you can do it right," Chris said. "I'm going to have Sawyer kick you."

"Go ahead, I'm tougher than you are, that's for sure."

"I could kick your ass right now. Soften you up for Randy."

"I'll soften you up for Rey."

"Okay, you two, seriously, do I have to put you in time-out or something."

"Where's your woman, man?" Hunter asked.

"She's back at home, I think she's hanging out with Steph tonight," Christian said, turning to Chris. "She's still not feeling well. She just can't seem to shake this bug she's got. I keep telling her to get some medicine, but she wants to stick it out, I think she's crazy. She just hates putting stuff in her body."

"Well, some people are stubborn," Chris said, looking at Hunter.

"What is _that_ supposed to mean?" Hunter asked or demanded rather.

"Well, I was talking to your woman and she said that she's asked you repeatedly to let this thing go with Randy, but that you won't. I mean, I know tonight is for the title, but she says that the title isn't actually what you want at all. You honestly want to break him."

"So what? The belt is good, yeah, but the man took me out of action. He treated my girlfriend like meat, he hurt your wife, remember?"

"I got my payback for that and I'm fine with it," Chris said. "I have other things I need to worry about before I have Randy Orton of all things on my list. Am I happy he hurt my wife and then kissed her? Hell no, but what's the use of fixating on it. I could go beat him up right now, but I'm not going to. I don't care anymore, Steph's fine, I'm fine, everyone's fine except Trish who has a bug of some kind."

"Yeah, I really don't know what it is."

"Well congratulations for being able to get over it," Hunter said. "That's not how I work, you of all people should know that."

"Why?"

"Because we fought all the time," Hunter told him. "All the time and did I ever let it go then?"

"Yes, you did, you let it go and moved on."

"Well...maybe Britt means more to me than Stephanie so this time, I have to make sure I get the job done. With Stephanie, at the time, it seemed like I was doing everything for her, but when I think back to how I was when I saw Kurt kissing her, I mean, it wasn't like it was now."

"Someone's in _love_," Chris teased.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, aren't you the one going to see Vince because of your precious, little wifey," Hunter mocked.

"Yeah, because this a major decision, back me up, Christian."

"Well, I don't know much about the situation," Christian shrugged. "You guys are lucky though, you have matches. I'm only here to see Vince's farewell address or something. I don't know why he insisted that all rosters be here tonight. Now I get to sit around and watch you clowns fight with each other while I could be at home with my wife."

"I could be at home with my wife," Chris said. "But I have a match when I'm not even on Raw."

"Well, Britt's here so I don't have that problem, I guess she loves me more than your wives love you," Hunter shrugged, which earned him looks from the other two guys. "Sorry, you know it's true. Your wives don't even care about you, I bet."

"Dude, my wife cares and then some," Chris said. "That's why I have two kids and you have zero with the same woman too. You will never win this argument, man, never. I will always beat you because you, my friend, suck at being a husband. I know because my wife, your ex-wife told me."

"If only you'd be married before, I would've swooped in and stolen her and then we'd see what's what."

"Too bad, for now, I get the upper-hand."

"Yeah, right, I'm going to win the title tonight and then I'll have the upper-hand back."

"Oh my God," Christian said, "I'm going to call my wife, you two can swing those things around for a little while longer."

"I'm not sure I liked what he was implying," Chris said. "I'm just saying I'm far superior simply based on the fact, I married your ex-wife."

"I practically handed her over."

"She came over willingly."

"You wish," Hunter said. "I'm going to go warm-up, I want to be loose. I _need_ to be loose. Remember our Last Man Standing match?"

"How could I forget?"

"You know what I did to loosen up before that match? I had sex with Stephanie," Hunter said smugly, watching Chris's face turn a little bit red. "Yeah, it was really good too. Took my time with her."

Chris covered his ears, "I'm not listening, I'm not listening."

Hunter chuckled. "You are way too easy, man, way too easy."

"Oh sorry, I guess I'm the only guy in the universe who doesn't like to have a guy who has seen his wife naked to go on discussing it."

"You know, I always loved that cute, little freckle she has--"

"I'm having her have that removed," Chris said, "go loosen up, you freak."

Hunter laughed all the way out of the room. Chris had his own things to worry about. He was going to go see Vince as soon as he arrived. He wasn't here yet and that was weird. Oh well, he'd have time to talk to him whenever the opportunity arose. He wondered though, why Vince wouldn't be here right now. He was usually here by now when there was something big going on. He decided to call Stephanie in the meantime and see if she was carrying out his demands.

"Thanks for having me over, Steph," Trish said. "I just keep getting headaches and it sucks and I just feel sick all the time. I don't know why I can't get over this stupid bug."

"It's fine, I don't think you're contagious," Stephanie said as she pulled a blanket over Trish's small frame. "You can spend the night too, you shouldn't be alone if you're sick."

"Thanks," she said again as Sawyer came over to her. "Hey, there."

"Hi, you sick, Twish?" he asked.

"Yeah, I don't feel well," Trish said.

Sawyer ran his hand over her head like his mommy did with him when he felt sick. "It all better, it all better."

"Oh my God, I love you," Trish said, brushing her hand against his cheek. "If you were 25 years older, kid, you would be such trouble for so many women."

"Don't make me think about when my son is 28," Stephanie shuddered. "He's still my baby."

"I watch Daddy," Sawyer told her, "You can watch too."

"Thanks, I want to watch him," Trish said.

"Me too," Sawyer told her. "I like wefwing now."

"You didn't before."

"Uh uh, I didn't," he said morosely, but then brightened up when Stephanie pulled Flynn from her highchair in the kitchen and let her walk into the room. "Fwynn, we watch Daddy!"

"I told him that we got to see lots of Daddy tonight," Stephanie told Trish. "He misses him when he's not around. It's strange for him."

"I know how that goes, I'm used to traveling with Christian now," Trish said. "I just don't feel well and he's not actually doing anything on the show so what's the point?"

"You sure you don't have a temperature?" Stephanie said, feeling Trish's forehead for any warmth. "You do feel a little warm."

"I've had a heightened temperature, but it's not a fever, just generally uncomfortable. It started off like a flu, but it's tapered off to this and it's making me miserable. It just makes me feel tired all the time and I feel bad because Christian is doing everything for me. Maybe I have mono."

"I don't think you have mono," Stephanie said.

"I could."

"Then get out of my house," Stephanie laughed. "I'm kidding, just rest, okay, if the kids are bothering you, we can watch upstairs."

"How could they ever bother me, look at them," Trish said, watching them as they played. Her cell phone rang and she answered it. "Christian?"

"Are you at Stephanie's?"

"Yes, yes, I'm here and I'm spending the night too so you don't have to worry."

"Great, because I was. I'm catching the flight home with Chris tomorrow so Stephanie can pick me up, you don't have to worry. I changed my flight so we had the same one."

"Smart," Trish said. "I miss you."

While this was happening, the phone rang and Stephanie went to go answer it. "Hello?"

"Hey baby, it's me."

"Who's me?"

"Oh, give it up, are you recording it?"

"It's not on yet," she pointed out.

"But are you going to record it, is it programmed?"

"Yes, it's programmed. Sawyer and I are going to watch it together. He'll love it I'm sure since it's kind of kid-like, right?" Stephanie asked, referring to Chris's guest spot on the Disney XD show. He'd asked her to record it so he could see the finished product when he got home since he hadn't seen it.

"It's more like, older boys."

"Sawyer will eventually be an older boy."

"You've got me there, but you remembered, right?"

"Chris, yes, I remembered, it will record, you will watch yourself tomorrow and gloat over how great you are, blah blah blah," Stephanie said, "so what's it like there, different, weird, is my father there, is Trump there yet? I mean, what's going on?"

"It does feel a little different," Chris said. "Production is going crazy making sure everything is perfect because they can't really cut away to commercial to set anything up, you know. Everyone is just like, anxious I think, maybe to impress Trump, I don't know, it is different though."

"I knew it would be, I just knew it," Stephanie said with a sigh. "If I were there, I would be running things perfectly. I mean, Trump doesn't know what he's doing. I know what I'm doing."

"I know you do."

"Well, I'll just let you go, we'll watch you, okay?"

"Okay," Chris said. "I love you, tell the kids I love them too."

"I will, love you too, bye," Stephanie said.

She hated that Raw was without her. But she wasn't going to let her father think this was a good idea. Her mother had been furious at her father for not telling her, ranting at Stephanie while Stephanie ranted back. Shane just sighed and said this was something dad would do. Well, yeah, but they should've been able to prevent this from happening. Her father was out of control sometimes and this was definitely one of those times. He was so foolhardy with his decisions sometimes and she couldn't understand why he took such chances. Now her family had to deal with Donald Trump all the time.

She would just drown herself in the acting ability of her husband. She went into the living room and sat down with her kids and Trish. Trish took up the loveseat while she sat on the couch flanked by Sawyer and Flynn, ready to watch Chris. Flynn was starting to nod off and Stephanie left her on the couch to get her a bottle. When she returned, warm bottle in hand, the show was already starting. It was strange actively not watching Raw, but she had her reasons. She handed Flynn her bottle and the little girl took it gratefully, putting it in her mouth and drinking away happily.

Chris's show started and Sawyer watched and then looked at the screen again, "Mommy, that Daddy!"

"I know, he's on this show tonight."

"Oh," Sawyer said, then kept watching, "he not like Daddy."

"Well that's because he's playing someone named Billy Cobb right now. He's a fighter, just like daddy is a wrestler. That's his job on this."

Sawyer thought his daddy's job was just a wrestler, not what his mommy was saying. Why was his daddy wearing funny clothes and fighting people he'd never seen before? He didn't really get the concept of acting. Whenever he saw his daddy on TV, he was still his daddy and he just went out there to talk to people that he knew or wrestler people that he knew. He didn't know any of those people with his daddy or why his daddy didn't have his name. He furrowed his brow as he tried to follow along, but it was hard. Why was his daddy being so strange?

Stephanie flipped to a Raw during a commercial and saw that it was Chris's match. She left it on to watch him walk down the ramp and then she switched back to _Aaron Stone_ to watch the rest of Chris's guest appearance. He just looked so cute trying to play this sensitive, smart fighter. He was truly adorable and he did have some acting chops, she found. She should've known though, sometimes they liked to act things out when they were alone.

"Mommy?" Sawyer said, tugging at Stephanie's shirt.

"Yes, baby boy?"

"How he do dat?" Sawyer asked.

"How'd who do what?"

"How daddy do dat," Sawyer said. "He dere."

"Yeah, he's right there," Stephanie said, pointing out Chris on the screen.

"On wefwing."

"Yes, he's wrestling," she said, flipping to Raw, where Chris was just getting started in the ring. Well, waiting to be tagged in to be more exact.

"How he do dat?" Sawyer asked. "How he on two?"

"Oh, how's he on two shows at once?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, he dere," Sawyer said, pointing at Chris.

"That is so cute," Trish piped in.

"He taped this show before, remember when Daddy had to go away for a few days a few weeks ago?" Stephanie told him. "He was filming this so they could show it tonight. But when we watch him wrestling, he's really wrestling, so that's where he is right now, wrestling."

"Oh," Sawyer said. "He dere?"

"Yes, did you like Daddy on the show?" Stephanie asked.

"No, he not Daddy," Sawyer shook his head, convinced that his father could not be two places at once so that must've just been someone that looked remarkably like his father. There just wasn't any way his daddy could be on TV at two places at once, he just didn't believe that could really happen.

"He's not?"

"No, he," Sawyer struggled for a way to express himself, but then just resolved himself to," not Daddy."

"Okay, well, we'll only tell real daddies we love them, right?"

"Right, let's watch Daddy!"

Stephanie turned it onto the real daddy just in time to see him in the ring with The Great Khali. Stephanie wasn't worried about it, Chris was much faster than Khali ever would be so he would be able to take care of himself. Well, unless he gets a clothesline over the rope, that wasn't so good. It ended up Chris and Rey in the match and Stephanie, Sawyer, Trish, and a very sleep Flynn cheered on Chris against his nemesis.

"That'll be a good match on Sunday," Trish said. "I hope Chris wins. You know, I don't even remember seeing Rey without his mask. He must just take it off at home."

"I think so," Stephanie said. "He's very committed to it. It'll make it that much sweeter when Chris takes it away from him.

In the end, the weak link that Chris and Edge had worried about manifested itself in Dolph. Chris went backstage, ignoring the kid's apologies. He could stuff them in a sack where they belonged. Chris walked backstage and caught some wrestlers snickering. He thought it was at him and he went over to belittle them back, but found out they were snickering at Vince's office being a bathroom stall. Chris wandered into the locker room where the younger and not as high-up guys stayed when they weren't good enough to get their own locker room. There he found Vince.

"What are you doing here?" Chris asked.

"Losing my dignity, where's Stephanie?"

"She didn't want to come tonight, you really hurt her."

"I didn't mean to."

"Now you're regretting it, aren't you?" Chris asked. "You want Raw back."

"I don't like what he's doing, he's ridiculous. I mean, look at this, look at me, this isn't where I belong," Vince said in disgust. "I should have my own private office like I usually do. I am still the president."

"You are," Chris stated. "You know, maybe you should try and get the show back if you're not happy with it and don't ever take a job away from my wife again. She busts her ass for this company day in and day out and you need to start rewarding her for that loyalty instead of questioning it at every turn. You may not be able to fix everything you've ever done to her, but seriously, Vince, you can fix this and you can fix it tonight. That's all I'll say in the manner, I've got to get back to my _private_ dressing room."

There was no sense in not rubbing a little salt in his wounds.

Vince took that little bit of speech out with him when he met with Trump. Vince knew he was making a bad deal, buying for way more than he'd sold, but it was like claiming his dignity back and he hoped his daughter back. Stephanie, for her part, was surprised at how quickly it was over. But the damage had been done and her father probably wouldn't even consider her for the job anymore. He'd probably pick Shane or Flair or something she'd be overlooked again. Story of her life.

Hunter, while angry after his match against Randy, felt cathartic at the moment. He had Randy up against a car, dazed and he told him things were not over between them. Nobody else may hold a grudge, but he did and with every other person saying they didn't care, it made him care just that much more. Sunday would be hell for Randy Orton and he was going to fry. Hunter would watch his downfall with glee.

Stephanie glanced at Trish, "You know, Trish, I was thinking."

"About how you can get Raw?" Trish asked.

"Yes, but I'm always thinking that. I guess I'll have to talk to my father," she said, "but no, I was thinking about you."

"What about me?"

"Well, just...well, about me, actually. I was thinking about this one time I was really sick and I felt terrible and I felt like I couldn't shake this stupid bug I had. It was so terrible. I kept just feeling tired and it was like a continuous cold."

"Oh my God, so you know what I'm going through," Trish said in relief. "I've been feeling like such a loner with this flu bug or whatever, how did you get rid of it, do you remember because at this point, I'm willing to take any kind of advice I can get to get over this cold. So how did it go away? How long did it take, a while, what kind of medicine did you take? Because at this point, I'm willing to give in and take anything to get over this. So what did you have?"

"It took a while to get rid of," Stephanie told her.

"How long?" Trish asked. Stephanie looked down at Sawyer, who was falling asleep in her lap. She pointed down as Trish's eyes followed Stephanie's finger as her eyes widened impossibly large.

"About nine months."


	240. Reign of Awesome, June 26 to 29, 2009

_Trish shook her head repeatedly._

"_What?" Stephanie asked._

"_There's just no way," Trish told her. "There's just no way that's even possible."_

"_Why not?" Stephanie wondered, tilting her head to look at Stephanie._

"_I don't know, I mean, Christian and I have been trying and nothing. I just don't think I am," Trish told her. Truth be told, that hadn't even crossed her mind when she'd gotten sick. She and Christian had failed so miserably in their attempts at a child she didn't think that it was going to come up until they were ready for another try and she didn't even know when that was going to be._

"_Do you use protection?" Stephanie asked._

"_Wow, getting a little personal, aren't we?" Trish said._

"_Chris and I do," Stephanie responded. "I don't care if you know that. After two kids, you better believe we're protected. I'm not too keen on the idea of having three right now."_

"_Wasn't Flynn conceived while you were supposedly _protected_?"_

"_Besides the point. I'm just saying that you could be pregnant."_

"_But I haven't had morning sickness," Trish reasoned._

"_So? I didn't have morning sickness when I was pregnant with Flynn. That really helped when I was trying to hide the fact that I was pregnant, but I didn't get sick when I was pregnant with her so it's entirely possible that you won't get morning sickness if you are or it just hasn't hit you yet or something. With Sawyer I was really tired, just like you are now."_

"_But were you sick because I'm sick."_

"_I didn't feel well if that's what you mean. I'm just saying that it's something to look into. Have you missed any periods?"_

"_I've always been erratic because of being an athlete, so it's kind of never on time per se."_

"_Keep an eye out, you never know."_

Trish was thinking about her conversation with Stephanie again. It had been replaying in her brain over and over again. She just couldn't be pregnant. The thought was just so far out there. It was something she wanted so badly, but if it wasn't true, if she took that test and it came out negative, she'd feel that devastation she felt before when she'd taken those tests only to find that stupid minus sign on them. Was it so bad to want that positive just once? She also hadn't told Christian about any of this because she didn't want to get his hopes up either, but she kept touching her stomach wondering if there was something in there. She knew she should probably tell Christian or at least get a pregnancy test and take it, but she was just so damned scared.

"Hey, what's up?" Christian asked as he sank down into the couch next to Trish, throwing his arm over her shoulder. "You're looking a little pale, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm just fine," Trish said, giving him a weak smile.

"You've been acting strangely, want to tell me if I should watch out for anything?" he asked jokingly. She laughed softly, but there was no actual joy or humor behind it. She just laughed for the sake of doing _something_ to throw off his scent.

"Nothing's wrong, I guess I'm just worried about your match on Sunday. I mean, it's easy with you know, one person, or not...well, not easy, I guess. But you're going to be in there against four other guys at the same time," she finished. She was worried about Christian, but she was more worried about what the hell might be going on with her body.

"Don't worry about me," Christian said. "I'll be fine. I'll worry about the match and you just worry about...I don't know, your yoga studio. We should take a trip up to Toronto to check up on it. You know, doing the yoga thing might make you get back to normal with your normal energy level and all that. Then we can have wrestling matches."

She looked at him, wondering if he meant have sex with her, but when she did, it honestly looked like he wanted to have a match with her. If she was pregnant, and that was still a big _if_, she wasn't going to be wrestling any time soon. In fact, she'd be running over to Stephanie's house to ask her what it was like to be pregnant. Or calling up her sister and asking her the same exact question because she would be freaking out. Christian would probably be going ballistic, telling everyone...you know, she liked that thought a little.

"There's a smile, got one," Christian said, pointing at her face, thinking he was the reason for the huge smile on her face. "See, everything's going to be okay. You're going to beat this bug, I'm going to beat those four other guys. Edge is going to...well, he doesn't have a match, but he can root me on during my match."

"How is your brother doing with the whole no match thing?"

"You know, I don't think it's going very well."

Edge glared at Teddy Long for a few more seconds. "So you're telling me that even though I've been on the shows and I've been telling you I want a match and you've been putting me in matches, I won't be having one on Sunday."

"Sorry, player, ain't going to happen," Teddy said.

"I should _be_ in the World Title match," Edge said, pounding his fist against Teddy's desk. "Do you know who I am, I mean seriously, do you know? Do you know how many times I've been champion, tell me how many times."

"I know how many times you've been champion, but frankly, I don't care, you're not going to get the match on Sunday, it's a done deal."

"So change it!" Edge told him. "Isn't that your job? You're supposed to be the GM around here. You can make the decisions, you can put me in the match if you wanted. So go do it. Do you want the people to be happy?"

"I don't think it would make most people happy to see you in the match, if the boos you get every week are any indication."

"They just don't get me," Edge said, waving his hand in thin air like he was shooing away the bothersome fans. "What do they know anyways? They don't know anything. I should be in that match and you know it. You just have some sort of personal vendetta against me and that's why you won't put me in the match."

"The match is signed off."

"You can change it!" Edge yelled.

"Not changing it."

"This isn't over, Teddy Long," Edge said. "You are dealing with a 9-time champion here and I can get what I want."

"No, you can't," Teddy told him. Edge just scowled and left the room. He stomped down the hallway. If Lita were here to see him, she would just roll her eyes and tell him to stop being such a baby. He was allowed to be a baby though. The Bash was this Sunday and he wasn't even on the card. He was the Rated R Superstar, one of the best wrestlers in this entire company and he didn't have a match? He was pissed off and even if Lita were here, he would be very mad and she wouldn't make it much better.

"Stephanie!" Edge whined as he pushed open the door.

Stephanie looked up from the floor where she'd been playing with Flynn. "Yes, Edge?"

"Teddy won't give me a match on Sunday. You have to put me in the World Title match," Edge said, coming over and sitting next to her. "Please."

"Edge, I can't do that."

"Why?" he asked, placing his head on her shoulder and wrapping his arm around her. "You're one of my very best friends and best friends do stuff like this for each other, don't they? I mean, I babysit your kids, don't I?"

"No, you don't, Christian and Trish do."

"Yes, but sometimes, when they're babysitting your kids, I go over there and they're there and I sit with them and play with them, right, Flynn?" Edge said, looking over at Flynn hopefully. She just stared at him. His hair was very nice. She walked over and tugged on it a little. She liked that.

"Edge, you yell at my kid when he calls you Ed," Stephanie pointed out.

"Well, it's annoying," Edge told her. "My name isn't Ed, it's Edge."

"Your name isn't even Edge."

"Well it's what I prefer."

"Look, Teddy isn't going to go for this idea and we're a partnership so I can't just go around demanding things. He'll know you put me up to this and we can't change something this close. I mean, you did lose when you had the chance."

"It wasn't fair!"

"How would it be any more fair on Sunday?"

"It's a well-known fact that people perform better under pressure or at least some people, talented people, awesome people and who reeks of awesomeness more than I do? Nobody, that's who and I should get the match."

"I can't do it, I'm sorry," she said, pulling Flynn away from Edge's hair. "I've got bigger things to worry about."

"I bet if Chris wanted it, you would do it."

"You know he'd never ask that."

"But if he did."

"I wouldn't," Stephanie said. "It would look way too suspicious."

"It wouldn't look suspicious with us, I promise. I'll even yell at you or call you a name so nobody would suspect a thing. I can make us look like enemies. I can call you a whore or something. Yeah, that'd work, right?"

"Edge..."

"Stephanie..."

"Look, I can't promise you anything--"

"That means you'll do it!" he exclaimed victoriously.

"I just said I can't promise you anything," she told him sharply.

"But that means you're going to try."

"I don't think it's going to work."

"But it _could_ work?"

"I'm not saying that I can get you a match, in fact, I probably can't."

"That's not a winning attitude."

"You're just being annoying and I'm trying to get you out of my hair."

"Look, that show _needs_ me, I'm Edge. It needs me."

"So never-mind all the other wrestlers on it, including the man I love and two very close friends, they can just go to hell is what you're saying?"

"Well, hell seems a little harsh, purgatory maybe?" he said cheekily.

Stephanie laughed at him and shoved him in the shoulder. "You're a whiny, little brat and I don't know how Lita puts up with you, I really don't. She deserves the sainthood for putting up with your crap all the time. I don't think I can get you in the World Title match."

"But you can try and that's something and I'll take it at this point," he told her. "I just don't think it's fair that I'm not on the show when I've been a huge influence. If The Miz can have a match, I can have a match."

"Well, he's generally been a nuisance to Cena."

"Well everyone's a nuisance to me!" Edge said.

"You're being a nuisance to me."

"I just want a match."

"I told you, I'll see what I can do, but no promises."

Sawyer happily walked down the hallway with his juice box in hand. He was sipping happily on the juice he had just received in catering. It was an apple juice and it came with its own straw and everything and he had been really thirsty. Chris was walking beside him, making sure Sawyer didn't run into anything since he was so concentrated on drinking as much juice as he could in one long sip. Chris was afraid he was going to start choking on his juice from drinking it too fast.

"Are you enjoying your juice, kid?" Chris asked as he rested his hand on top of Sawyer's head.

Sawyer looked up at him and grinned, "Slurp, slurp, Daddy." He demonstrated just what a slurp slurp was by taking a big gulp of his juice, swallowing it proudly. Then he held the juice over his head and looked at Chris expectantly.

"You want me to take a sip of your juice?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, holding it up for him still, "sip, Daddy. It juice!"

Chris took the juice from him and slurped up some for himself. He rubbed his tummy. "Yum, good, very apple-y."

Sawyer giggled as Chris gave him the juice back and they continued on down the hallway. Chris looked up towards the entrance just as it was opening and was surprised to find, of all people, his father-in-law walking through. Maybe walking was too generous a word, skulking in was a better one. He couldn't imagine why Vince would be there. Sure, he owned the company, but he hardly ever came to SmackDown, preferring to leave that to his daughter or at least that was the impression that he usually gave.

"Vince?" Chris spoke up, almost startling Vince, but then Vince straightened and walked over to him.

"Chris, hello," Vince said, appearing jovial.

"What are you doing here?" Chris asked.

"Hi Gampa," Sawyer said, then remembered that his mommy was mad at his grandpa and he wasn't supposed to like him, sure, he could love him because he was his grandpa, but he was mean to Sawyer's mommy over something so he shouldn't like him. "I no like you."

Vince looked down at the little boy, "You don't like me?"

Chris chuckled. "That's Stephanie's work."

"You mean," Sawyer spoke up again, resisting the urge to hit Vince in the leg for being mean to his mommy. Unfortunately, he got in trouble when he hit anyone that wasn't his daddy. If he'd only known that Stephanie would not care if he hit Vince, but he didn't so he kept his hand to himself, but if his grandpa was mean any more to his mommy, his grandpa would be feeling the wrath of Sawyer Jericho.

"I'm not mean," Vince told him.

"You are," Sawyer said and that was that. He leaned his head against Chris's leg and went back to his apple juice.

"Where is Stephanie?" Vince asked, changing the subject.

"Um, her office," Chris said like it should be obvious that she might be working. "She's with Flynn. Sawyer I just went to get some juice. Once again though, what are you doing here?"

"Oh, well, I just wanted to check up on things. You know, I _am_ the owner of SmackDown."

Chris looked him up and down. Yes, he knew he was the owner of SmackDown, how could Chris ever forget? Sometimes Chris believed that Vince just plum forgot that Chris was a part of his family and was privy to the financial situation that surrounded the McMahons. Maybe Vince would just go temporarily insane at moments and not think there was anyone else in the world but him. Chris was well aware of what Vince owned and what he didn't. But Vince being here tonight probably had nothing to do with finances or being bought out or anything.

This couldn't be good. It was bad enough that Vince had taken Stephanie's job away from her and had not even offered it back now that he was the owner of Raw again. But now he was showing up on SmackDown, the safe haven where he wasn't supposed to go. The place that was supposed to be all hers. This was not going to end well. He could already see the fire flashing in Stephanie's eyes and the vitriol in her voice.

"What do you want to see Stephanie for?"

"I just need to talk to her."

"Vince..."

"I just need to talk to her," he repeated.

"Well, we're going that way anyways so I guess you're free to follow," Chris shrugged. Chris walked down the hallway, glancing over at Vince every once in a while. He couldn't understand why the man had sold Raw in the first place only to buy it back for the double the price the next week. Still, there were a lot of things he didn't understand about Vince. Well, he didn't exactly _try_ to understand most things about Vince. The only good thing Vince had ever done, as far as Chris was concerned, was make Stephanie (and the whole buying WWE and truly building it up thing, but that was a given) and even that he called into question at times when Stephanie was bugging the hell out of him.

They eventually reached her office and stepped inside, Sawyer immediately running to Stephanie and making her take a sip of his juice. "Ooh, apple juice, I...Dad?" Stephanie said, looking up at her father as he stood in the doorway next to her husband. He was a most unwelcome sight and if he was here to take this show away from her, she was going to do something extremely rash. She didn't know what that might be at the moment, but if her father uttered the words he had uttered to her when he'd taken away Raw, she would not be held accountable for her actions.

"What are you doing here, Dad?"

"I just wanted to see how the show was doing, evaluate," he answered, trying to appear like he was casual, but her father hadn't been casual a day in his life and he wasn't going to start now.

"Are you going to try to take SmackDown away from me?" she asked bluntly, "Because this is _my_ show, Dad. I may not be the General Manager, but I run it, just as hard as Theodore Long."

"I'm not here to take it away, I'm just here to evaluate."

She should've known better. When she saw him go out there, down the ramp, like he did something around here, like he actually helped make this show what it was, it burned her blood. And then, he had the audacity to put Teddy Long on probation when he _knew_ she was the one in charge here, she couldn't have been more angry. If anyone should be putting him on probation, it should be her and she wouldn't because she thought he was doing fine. Her father was probably just trying to be authoritative because of what had happened at Raw and now he was here and she was flustered and mad.

"You okay?" Chris asked.

"No," Stephanie told him. Chris thrust Flynn at her and Stephanie didn't even smile. The corners of her lips only twitched and Chris looked at Flynn and made a funny face. Flynn giggled and threw her arms around Chris's neck when he pulled her in close.

"Out of protest, I will not go talk to your dad tonight," Chris told her, "what about you, flutterby, are you going to talk to Grandpa?"

Chris held Flynn forward a little and then said in a high-pitched voice. "I wouldn't talk to Grandpa if you paid me."

"Wow, did you hear that?" Chris said "She's tough."

"You're an idiot," Stephanie told him.

Chris grinned, "Sawyer, are you mad at Grandpa?"

"Yes!" Sawyer said angrily, growling as he frowned at his mommy.

"See, we're all with you here," he told her. "All of us, together because...we are family...I've got all my children with me...you see what I did there, because I don't have sisters so I said kids."

"Why does he do this to me?"

"Because he likes to torture you?"

"He's never going to give up his grip on the show. I'm not surprised he had to snatch Raw back so quickly. He has to have control over everything, _everyone_, and he never gives it up. He is going to live and die in the ring because he'll never be able to give it up. Only then will I get anything I want."

"We'll make sure you get it before then," Chris told her, coming over and kissing her head. "We can start on Sunday by taking Rey's mask."

Chris kept true to his word by not going to see Vince. He knew that Vince was hanging around and everyone was complaining to him. He wasn't going to go see him though because why would he? Stephanie was the one in charge of the show and if he wanted something, he would go to her. Everyone else seemed to be going in there though, which only served to piss her off more. It was like she was completely invisible. Her father had struck again.

Chris was surprised later that evening at the proficiency that he worked with Edge. The two of them were friends, sure, but they'd never really been a team before. Sure, they'd had the odd tag match over the years, he was sure, but it wasn't like they were a team like Edge was with his brother. Still, they worked surprisingly well together in the cage. Jeff and Rey did work well together as well, but Chris didn't think the two of them had been friends for years like Chris and Edge had and maybe it was that friendship that helped them in the ring together. Being in a cage match could be very claustrophobic. You were stuck in there, on display like animals at the zoo. There was a frantic nature to it and a brutal one as well and nobody was better at being brutal than Chris. Well, maybe Edge.

After Chris lost that Sunday at The Bash, he'd asked Stephanie to leave him alone for a little while. He'd just gotten back from Teddy's office and he wasn't getting a rematch for the Intercontinental Title tonight. He had argued that it was unfair that Rey had worn two masks. The match was a mask vs. title match not a _masks_ vs. title match. Rey was supposed to wear one mask, not two masks and he had broken the rules. He should've been instantly disqualified for that and Chris should've kept his title _and_ gotten the mask as that was part of the deal. But here he was, with no title and no mask and just a bundle of angry nerves sizzling all over his body. If Teddy wasn't careful, he would have Stephanie fire him.

Stephanie had told him she could give him the rematch tonight, but that would be taking advantage of Stephanie and that was rule #1 in Chris's book of things not to do. He'd made a vow to himself to never take advantage of what Stephanie could do and although it was so tempting for him to ask her to give him that match and make it another mask vs. title match with only _one_ mask, he couldn't go against his principles. He just couldn't and it pained him that he couldn't be that guy. Just once, why couldn't he be Hunter? Not that he wanted to be Hunter per se, just bold enough to ask Stephanie to give him what he wanted.

Stephanie had taken the kids for a walk to leave him alone, but not without kissing his cheek before leaving. He'd barely felt it though. He just wanted to sit there and stew in his anger for a while. This didn't last long though because before he could start thinking of ways to avenge his loss, Edge was bursting through the door and sitting next to him. Chris scowled and then scowled even more when he saw Edge just grinning at him, sitting there, looking like an idiot.

"What do you want?" Chris snapped at him.

"Look, Teddy Long said that I could have a match tonight, he finally gave him after I gave him a talking to earlier and good thing too, because I would've gone to Vince or Stephanie and demanded a match. It's still not for the World Title though, can you believe that? I have been a 9-time World Champ--"

"Yes, yes, I get it, 9-time World Champion," Chris said, not in the mood to hear this. "You don't hear me harping about how many times _I've_ been World Champion."

"Yeah, all you harp about is how you beat Stone Cold and The Rock in one night, anyone could've done that," Edge told him blithely, which wasn't a good start in trying to persuade Chris in what he wanted to do.

"What do you want?" Chris asked again. "I am in no mood to talk about anything right now. In fact, if you are not my wife or my kids, I want you out."

"Look man, I've got a proposition for you. Teddy said I could be in the Unified Tag Team Championship match. Now, I need a partner."

"Go ask Christian," Chris said immediately.

"I can't ask Christian."

"Why can't you ask Christian?"

"Because he's not on my show."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Chris asked. "Besides he's your brother and you know he'd be a great tag partner because you guys were partners for years. You can even do your conchairto if you want to."

"We could rule everything around here," Edge said enticingly. "Don't you want that? To rule? We are the _best_ thing this company has to offer, Chris, and it's about time people started recognizing that. If we're the Tag Team Champions, the _unified_ Tag Team Champions, we can be on _any _show."

This caused Chris to pause for a moment. Any show? Well, first and foremost he thought of Stephanie. If he was allowed on any show that meant she could be there at any show without looking suspicious and he could see her infiltrating, wiggling her way in, just like she liked. The other point was that he did think he was the best, better than Edge even, but he wasn't going to say that right now. To be able to have that kind of freedom to show up on Raw, SmackDown, ECW, Superstars, wherever he wanted, _whenever_ he wanted, well, it had a certain appeal to it.

He looked up at Edge. "Any show."

"Yup, any show," Edge said, his smirk growing wider.

"And we'd be facing..."

"Carlito and Primo and Legacy," Edge told him and Chris could tell by the tone that Edge thought they were both so far beneath their level. This made it even more enticing to Chris. Beating up on Ted DiBiase, that was just the extra, little good part of the deal. Not that he hated the guy, but his wife had a tiny crush on him so yes, beating up on him was good.

"I'm in."

"I thought you would be. Come on, the match is up next and I already told Teddy that I was coming to get you."

"Wait, so you already told him I would be your partner."

"I may have mentioned your name, yes," Edge said. "I mean, I saw you complaining about the thing with Rey, which was totally unfair, so I knew you'd be perfect for it. Come on, I don't want to be late for the match."

"And we're going to win, right?"

"Dude, we're _so_ going to win against those sucktastic dorks," Edge said. "We're going to rule!"

"Yes, rule," Chris said with a sigh.

By the time he went out for the match though, his confidence had skyrocketed and he knew he could be the champion of something tonight. He walked out on stage next to Edge and they smirked at each other. It was fun seeing the two teams in the ring flopping around angrily, like fish wanting to get back in their tank. They thought this was unfair, but it was perfectly fair. It couldn't be helped that Edge and Chris made an awesome team. They walked down the ramp slowly, but purposefully. They were in no rush, they knew they'd win, they didn't need to run to the ring to figure that out.

Chris walked up to the Colons while Edge walked up to Legacy. Chris trash-talked them, which was a little strange because he did still consider Carlito a good acquaintance, but this was just business and his business was to win the title belts. These two hadn't taken advantage of what the belts had to offer and Chris would. Then he got double-teamed and was thrown out of the ring. Not a great way to start the match. They eventually all got to their corners and little to their surprise, it wasn't either of them starting the match off. Oh well, let the other two teams soften each other up. He was still smarting a little from his own match, but Edge was fresh and strong so he wasn't too worried about the stamina issue and he was running on a lot of adrenaline from his earlier match and the anger afterwards. He should be fine.

The two other teams were deliberately not tagging them in and Chris and Edge rolled their eyes at each other. Petty jealousy, that's all it was. When Ted got close to their corner, Chris hit him in the back and tagged himself in. He got in the ring against Primo, but was dumped quickly and Cody tagged in and he was out again, though he tried to protest. He went back to his corner and he would stay there for a while. He couldn't really blame them deep down, if he were one of the other teams and he saw Edge and Chris Jericho together, he'd be afraid to tag one of them in too.

Meanwhile, backstage, Stephanie and the kids were walking around, unaware that Chris was even in a match right now. Stephanie had left her walkie-talkie in her office and they were in the indoor parking lot. They were on the West Coast so it wasn't even that late and the kids were pumped. They'd just gone outside for a moment and now they were walking inside when Vince caught up with Stephanie. She scowled at him once again. She hadn't spoken to him after Friday, but it looked like he was cornering her now.

"What?" she asked.

"Did you see what I just did?" he asked.

"What did you do?"

"I was going to take Teddy off probation, but I decided not to because of what Chris said to him and what he said back so he's still on probation. I was helping Chris."

"Congratulations," Stephanie said, pushing past him and going inside.

The more seconds that passed that they weren't tagged in were that many more seconds that Edge and Chris became pissed off. The cowardice of the other two teams was wearing thin at this point and if either one of them got the chance, they were going to burst from their corner and go on a rampage that would send both teams reeling. They were spectators when they should've been participants and this would not stand if they could help it. They tried to tag in whenever someone got close, but the person would pull away before they could get the tag.

Edge finally got a tag in and tried to go for the spear but he missed and was tagged back out by Ted. Edge cursed and got out of the ring. This was not going how he planned. It was supposed to be easy and it would be if they got the chance to get in the goddamned ring! It went on and on like this, to the point where Chris started talking to people in the crowd he was so bored. Edge was no better as they stood there like freaking statues. Finally, Chris had had enough and went in the ring, tagged in or not and got a Codebreaker on Primo, sending him out of the ring. Carlito caught him and threw him out of the ring, but this actually helped because it meant that Carlito and Rhodes were alone. Carlito threw Cody into Edge's corner and as Cody was pulling away, Edge tagged his hand.

Carlito had no idea this was going on though and Edge lied in wait, waiting for Carlito to turn around. The referee signaled that Cody wasn't the legal man and Carlito stood up to argue and turned around, where Edge was waiting with a spear just for him. It took him down and Edge got the pin. Chris slid into the ring and was handed his two belts. He threw them over his shoulder and had his hand held up in victory. He walked around the carnage of the ring and then met up with Edge. He went to slap five, but Edge hugged him and hugged him back. It was pretty cool being champions with one of his best friends. It'd been a while since that happened.

Chris walked backstage as Edge followed, "What did I tell you, man, what did I tell you?"

"You were right, man," Chris said, hugging his friend again. "And you know, them not tagging us in, it just made us even more ready to kick their asses."

"You are so right," Edge said, "now aren't you glad you let me in on that plan."

"You're a dork," Chris said, slapping him on the shoulder. "I've got to show the woman these pretty ladies. I think this might actually impress Sawyer."

"I'm going to go celebrate with Lita. See you, partner."

"Bye, man," Chris said, laughing at Edge's enthusiasm. He went back to Stephanie's office and opened the door.

"How did that happen?" she asked, looking at his belts.

"Well, Edge came by and Teddy wanted to do something for him and he thought of me and here I am."

"I don't know whether I'm proud of you or not considering you did next to nothing in that match. I guess I can be proud of you though," she said, hugging him.

He hugged her back and then turned to Sawyer, "Hey kid, guess what?"

"What?" Sawyer asked. He hadn't even looked up from his piece of paper where he was drawing something that looked like a big potato with hair growing out of it that he would claim was a dog or something.

"I got two belts."

Sawyer looked up and saw his daddy with _two_ belts. "You get those?"

"Yeah, I got them, two of them, how many do you have, huh?"

"I wanna see, I no know those," Sawyer said, standing up and coming over to him to inspect these things. He'd never seen these ones before, but they were pretty cool-looking. He tried to pull at one to see and Chris knelt down so he could.

"Did you just rub it in the face of your son?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, so, he wasn't impressed when I had one because his was better, well now I have two."

"You're pathetic," Stephanie said. "I'm going to take Flynn to get her bottle warmed up a little. We'll be back, don't like smash his face with the belts trying to show him how much better you are, okay?"

"I wasn't going to do that," Chris said. "I'm just showing him that I'm great and he's not because he only has one belt."

"Seriously pathetic."

Stephanie walked to catering and heated Flynn's bottle for her before giving the bottle to the little girl. She took it and drank from it as they walked. Stephanie saw Trish up ahead and called out her name. Trish turned and smiled and waved, waiting for Stephanie to catch up with her. Stephanie came over and Trish ran her hand over Flynn's head in greeting.

"How's the little mother?" Stephanie teased.

"Shh," Trish said, looking around, "keep your voice down."

"Why?" Stephanie asked.

"Because nobody knows that I might even suspect I'm...you know what," she said, "which I don't even think I am."

"You haven't checked?" Stephanie asked.

"Don't lecture me, Stephanie, I know how long it took you to come out with Flynn's pregnancy," Trish said, actually sounding mad.

"Okay, you've got me there. You haven't told Christian or anything?" Stephanie wondered. "I mean, of all people, you have told him."

"I'm not getting his hopes up," Trish said. "I just want to know definitely before I take a test."

"That makes no sense," Stephanie told her.

"Well sorry," Trish said. "I just, like, I would like some sort of pregnancy signal before I take a test that could come back negative."

"I think the fatigue is a pretty good indicator," Stephanie told her.

"But it might not be," Trish said. She closed her eyes. "Stephanie...you just don't know what it's like for that disappointment to wash over you like that. I know Christian and I didn't try for very long, not like some couples who try for years, but it's still so frustrating getting that pregnancy test and not seeing that you're pregnant. It's different with you, you weren't expecting it. You weren't anticipating it and then you didn't have it happen. You were pregnant with Sawyer after not trying at all and the same with Flynn."

"I don't know, but Trish, isn't knowing better than not knowing?"

Trish looked up at her friend. "You know, I'm not so sure."

The next night, Trish still hadn't told Christian about what she might suspect. She just didn't want to hurt him or get his hopes up, but her hopes were starting to get higher. She hadn't gotten morning sickness or anything like that, but what Stephanie said was right. Knowing was better than not knowing and maybe she could just take the test by herself so if it was negative, she and Stephanie would be the only ones who knew. That would take the sting off a little bit and Stephanie could surely help her get through it if the test were negative. Yes, that's what she'd do.

"I love being here," Stephanie said, looking around. "I know I hated it last week, but now that I'm here and you have a place here, I feel the power too."

"I knew you would," Chris said, tapping his fingers against her shoulder. "I figure that you'll be running the place in no time."

"My dad has Batista running things tonight, it's like he's rubbing it in my face," Stephanie lamented.

"Trust me, it's temporary, you'll be running things, you will," he told her again. He wanted her to believe that so she could stop moping and start taking action, like he had. "Now that we can go anywhere we want, we're going to rule. So we're going to take over Raw first, then ECW? Because we've already got SmackDown."

"You're letting this go to your head," she said, tapping on his noggin.

"Yes, I am. I'm in a really unique spot," he told her. "I can go anywhere I want to. It's like old times when I could be on every show, you know, before the draft. Edge and I, we're like...officially above everyone else because of those belts. Can Randy go between both shows? Uh, no. Can Cena? Nope. Can Hunter? Uh uh, I don't think so and God I need to rub _that _in his face later, remind me to do that."

"Remind you to rub something in someone's face?" she scoffed.

"Yes, please. You didn't hear the way he was talking about you last week," Chris said with a shudder.

"What did he say?" she asked.

"He was talking about how you...warmed up for our Last Man Standing match, back in 2000."

"What? That I watched him jump up and down to loosen up while trying to figure out who the hell sent me a million flowers, which turned out to be you because you were trying to psych me out and yet now that we're married you _never_ buy me flowers."

"Yeah, well, we've been together nearly seven years, the flower days are over, baby. We are now comfortably set in the old married couple section of the relationship. It's a nice place to be, familiar, warm, soft, and cuddly, like me," he said, bear hugging her into submission as she tried to squirm away.

"We haven't been _married_ for seven years, we've only been married for four years, so it should still be in the newer phase."

"But we've been together way longer so we're old and frail and have children, see, _children_, as in more than one. We're settled down like two old oak trees, just gently leaning in the wind, but very rooted to the ground," Chris told her with a nod.

"Sweetie, you may be an oak tree, but I'm not," she told him and he growled and kissed her. She squealed in protest against her lips before he pushed them so she was on her back and he was kissing her happily.

"Don't you love that I can be on any show?"

"It does have a certain appeal," she said against his lips. "So how are _you_ going to help me take over this show, huh?"

"Well, I'll start tonight by kicking some Colon ass and keeping the titles," Chris said. "It's just fitting, isn't it, that Edge and I are so above the rest. I mean, you can make the case for him, but it's about time I am looked at as better than everyone. I am the reigning Superstar of the Year, you know."

"I gave you the award."

"Oh yeah," he said, "I'd forgotten, I guess I was just so happy to accept it I forgot who gave it to me."

"I'm your wife."

"Yeah, well, I see you everyday, excuse me for having you blend in the background sometimes when I'm working."

"I shouldn't blend in anywhere."

"Well, you do," Chris said, then pulled away. "And...wait, did you say that you watched Trips jump up and down to loosen up for his match?"

"Yeah, I did."

"You didn't have sex with him to loosen up?"

"Hunter, have sex before a match and possibly sap any of his energy, no way."

"That bastard set me up!" Chris said. "Oh, I've got to go."

"We were in the middle of something," she pointed out. Chris kissed her quickly.

"I'll finish this later."

Stephanie sighed and sat up. Trish burst into the room. "I'm going to buy a test, come with me."

"What?"

"Come with me, I don't want to go alone, just come with me, please?"

"Um, okay."

"Where are the kids?"

"With your husband. Sawyer is in a Christian mood today, he wants to hang out with him and where Sawyer is, Flynn wants to be so I'm free."

"So come with me," Trish said, tugging on her hand. "Please?"

"Okay, okay, let's go. Let me just call Chris. I'll just say we're getting fast food or something," she said, picking up her phone and calling Chris to let him know.

Chris had found Hunter relatively quickly and after his brief phone call with Stephanie, he said, "That was Stephanie, my wife, you know, the one you didn't have sex with before our Last Man Standing match."

"You actually asked her about it."

"It came up in conversation," Chris told him. "I just wanted to come over and say you were wrong about that."

"Yes, I was. But I still did have sex with her because she was legally my wife. You know, in the eyes of God, I think the first marriage is the most important, maybe we're still married up there."

"No, I don't think so," Chris told him. "Also, I just wanted to gloat about the fact I can go to whatever show I want to and you're stuck here, but I can be on any show."

"Like I care, I think I care more about getting the WWE title."

"Yeah, the one that keeps you planted right here on Raw instead of _wherever_ you want to go."

"You're a very petty, little man, aren't you?" Hunter asked.

"Oh, I try to be," Chris said. "Sorry about your match last night though, you were really close."

"Close isn't good enough. Tonight, I'll get the chance again and next time, I'm not letting it slip through my fingers."

"Well, I'm not losing tonight either, believe me, I like the fact I can go wherever I want to. If I want to fight on Raw, here I am, SmackDown, there I am, ECW, sure, why not, right? Everyone gets to see my gorgeous mug."

"I'll start watching other things then."

"Jealousy is so unbecoming, Trips, so very unbecoming."

"Like hell I'd be jealous of you."

"Uh huh, I know it hurts," he said, pressing his hand to his heart, "right here."

"Get out of here," Hunter shoved him. Chris chuckled and left. Hunter was just really easy to rile up. Hopefully that would help him with his match later. He could harness that anger into winning. Chris was glad Steph had left before she could find out her father was bringing in someone new every week to host Raw. That would not sit well with her when he'd promised her the GM job and then reneged on it. In no time, she'd have Raw anyways.

When he and Edge went out there later that evening, they let everyone know they were free to go where they wanted to. Edge kind of took all the credit for bringing Chris in, but Chris let him have that because it was true. He hadn't wanted in, but having this kind of power felt incredible. He couldn't help but feel they were above all the other wrestlers. These belts were a pass. They let him go between shows, a luxury not afforded to many, if anyone unless the circumstances were pressing. It didn't matter to him any longer. He was not SmackDown or Raw, he was Chris Jericho and he didn't have to succumb to one roster, but could be a part of any roster on a whim.

So while Stephanie could take over backstage, Chris could take over in the ring. They really did make the perfect team those two.

Trish, Christian, Stephanie, Chris, Lita, and Edge were hanging out later that evening in Stephanie and Chris's suite since the kids were both asleep in the other room. They had a movie on and Lita and Edge were curled up in one love-seat while Chris sat on the couch and Stephanie had her head in his lap, his fingers tracing her scalp. Christian was sitting on the floor in front of the chair that Trish was sitting on. Trish tried to get Stephanie's attention and finally caught her eye. She'd been too nervous to take the test, but she wanted to take it now.

Stephanie nodded and Trish stood up, excusing herself. She went to the bathroom and didn't even have to check the directions she'd taken these tests so many times. She did her business quickly and then put the test on the counter. She didn't know if she wanted to sit there and wait or go back out there and then come back, but surely that would rise suspicion if she kept disappearing. She decided to wait there and sat on the edge of the tub, tapping her fingers. Three minutes until she knew for sure, just three minutes. Stephanie had said she felt the same way she felt now, no morning sickness, just an overall feeling of blah. Stephanie knew these things, she had to, she had two kids, she'd been through this twice. Two times was way more than her zero so maybe she knew.

Was time really going this slowly. She checked her watch again, licking her lips. She looked at the test, sitting there, maybe changing color already. Maybe it was that dreaded minus sign or the awesome plus sign. She kept tapping, the only sound being her fingernails against the porcelain of the tub. The sound was rhythmic and she could get lost in it if it weren't for that test sitting there. Seconds ticked by, but she wanted minutes to tick by. Minutes, not seconds.

Finally, the time ran out and went over and picked up the test, looking down on it. She took a deep breath, set the test back down on the counter and left the bathroom. She walked down the hallway, trying to be quiet so she wouldn't wake the kids. She walked into the sitting area, her head down. Stephanie sat up to look at her, prompting everyone else to look at her as well.

"Trish?" Stephanie asked expectantly. She'd been on pins and needles the entire time Trish was in the bathroom. Trish looked up at her, but her face was expressionless. She looked at everyone in the room and then at Christian.

"Chrissy, I'm pregnant."


	241. Domination, July 3, 2009

A/N: This is just SmackDown from last week. I know Edge is injured, but I'm going to hold off on that until WWE does something, but I am sad he's out for so long. :( Anyways, I do hope you enjoy the chapter anyways and reviews are awesome. :)

* * *

Christian blinked.

At least he thought he was blinking. The room got dark for a moment and then lit up again. So that had to be blinking, right? Yes, he was blinking, but that was all he could do. The rest of his body felt paralyzed. He couldn't feel his feet, there was tingling, yes, but feeling, no he couldn't feel anything. Everything was just numb. His fingers were frozen; he tried to look down at them, but it was like his head wouldn't move either. He just kept staring at his wife, who was staring back at him.

"Oh my God!" Stephanie exclaimed excitedly, clapping her hands together and jumping off the couch to embrace her friend. "I knew it, I knew it!"

Apparently Stephanie had magical powers because Christian didn't know it. How come he didn't know it? What the hell was going on? He still couldn't move or tear his eyes away from Trish's face. He'd just been watching a movie with his brother and his girlfriend and his best friends. His wife had gone to the bathroom, come out and said she was pregnant. His head could not make linear thought. It kept bouncing back and forth. Pregnant, have a match next week, pregnant, what about Night of Champions, pregnant, he was kind of hungry, pregnant, he had to book plane tickets for next month, pregnant...pregnant..._pregnant_...PREGNANT!

"Pregnant?" Christian said, finding his voice floating around somewhere in that body he still couldn't feel.

"It's positive, the test, I just took it, it came out positive," Trish said, her face just...glowing.

"I'm so happy for you," Stephanie gushed and her grin was almost as big as Trish's...almost.

"Trish, I didn't even know you thought you were pregnant," Chris said, standing up and standing behind his wife, wrapping his arms around her neck and leaning against her. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't know it either, your wife is the one who knew," Trish said, pointing at Stephanie accusingly, like she blamed Stephanie for getting her pregnant in the first place. Like somehow Stephanie just saying the idea had made it a reality.

"You knew?" Chris asked, tilting his head so he could look at his wife.

"Well, I have been pregnant before," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "I've learned to see the signs and when she was always tired, but wasn't getting any better, but didn't seem really sick, it just kind of all clicked to me so I told her to take the test and see if she was and well, surprise! Turns out that she was pregnant."

"Wow, I'm going to be an uncle, cool," Edge said, holding his hand up. Trish laughed as she slapped hands with her. "This is going to reek of awesomeness."

"Congratulations, Trish," Lita said, hugging her. Trish returned the hug and then five sets of eyes looked at Christian. He was still sitting there and hadn't found his enough to tell her he couldn't move. He could barely think, maybe his body was shutting down one piece by one piece and his body had been first and now his voice had just shut down and his brain would be next. Pregnant? His wife, pregnant? But they hadn't. They hadn't been trying. They'd taken a break from trying since they weren't getting pregnant and now...pregnant?

"Chrissy?" Trish asked tentatively. He hadn't moved since she'd come out there and looked over at her. She was starting to get a little worried about him. She could tell he wasn't mad or anything and why would he be, this was something they both wanted more than anything. He just looked completely shocked, like he wasn't living his life or something. "You okay?"

"Pregnant?" he repeated.

Chris chuckled and leaned into Stephanie's ear. "Did I look like that when you told me you were pregnant?"

"No," she whispered back. "You were shocked, yes, but you weren't that shocked. You'd think he might have expected this could happen at some point."

"You really would think," Chris said, watching as Christian seemed to grip the chair even tighter, his knuckles turning white from the solid grip.

"Chrissy, are you okay?" Trish said, now becoming concerned about her husband. He looked like he was going to faint.

"You're pregnant," Christian said, letting the words roll off his tongue. He still thought they felt foreign on his lips and on his tongue and through his vocal chords.

"Well, I mean, I have to go to the doctor to make sure, but the test said it was positive so I think that it is, I can take another one to make sure," Trish said. "You can go look at the other one, make sure my eyes weren't seeing things that I wanted to see or something."

"You're pregnant."

Trish laughed and nodded. "I sure as hell hope so or else I've gotten very excited for nothing. A baby, Chrissy, like, a real, live baby, just ours, nobody else's."

"I should hope it's nobody else's," Edge whispered to Lita as she hit him in the stomach with her elbow. He grunted. "Hey!"

"Shut up, you're ruining a nice moment," she hissed at him.

"He hasn't even moved," Edge responded. "I think he's going into shock. I'm so not driving him to the hospital if he faints or something."

"He's not going to faint. He's just in happy shock. You wouldn't know, nobody's ever told you they were pregnant."

"How do _you_ know?" Edge scoffed and then thought about what he'd just said. "Wait, no, I don't...that's not what I meant. Nobody's told me that."

"Now I'm going to think you've gotten someone pregnant and you have kids floating around out there without their father."

"I practice safe sex, thank you very much. There are not going to be any little Edge's running around here for a very long time. I like other people's kids, but as for me, I don't want any right now."

"You say that now, but you are going to spoil the hell out of your niece or nephew and then you're going to come running home to me and demand that I bear you a child and when that day comes I'm going to tell you no because I don't want a kid for one and for two, I don't think you would ever be ready for a kid."

"I could take care of a kid," Edge told her.

"You can barely take care of yourself," Lita told and Edge had nothing to say to that because it was pretty much true. It wasn't that he didn't take good care of himself, but taking care of a crying, screaming thing _all_ of the time, he wouldn't be able to do it without driving himself crazy and giving his kid away to the highest bidder.

"Chrissy, I was hoping for a little better reaction than this," Trish laughed. He just looked so stricken it was starting to verge on funny. She glanced back at her friends, who were shrugging, not knowing what to do to make Christian believe this...or move, they'd settle for move.

His mind wasn't right there at the moment, though, it was on times in the future. It was seeing a kid that he could call his own, run around with them like Chris did with Sawyer, laughing and picking him or her up and throwing them up in the air. He could see him and Trish cooing over something and God, he was getting completely sappy. But the pictures in his head were so nice and so...they were going to be his! Oh God, they were going to be his!

"Oh my God, we're having a baby!" Christian exclaimed, jumping out of his seat and enveloping Trish into the biggest hug she'd ever had in her life. So startled as she that she hung limply there for a moment. Then she returned the hug fiercely, wrapping her legs around his torso as he hoisted her up to level with his mouth. He pressed his palm against the back of her head as his lips crushed hers in a kiss. His other hand was banded around her waist, holding her petite form against her as they kissed right in the middle of the room.

"You never reacted like _that_ with me," Stephanie said, turning her head to look at her husband.

"I was too in shock the first time and the second time just came at the worst possible moment. Our kids just don't have good timing, they never made us wait, they just kind of showed up. If we'd had to go through all this to get them, then yeah, I'd probably be like that," Chris told her.

"I'm going to check on the kids, make sure Christian didn't wake them up," Stephanie said, disengaging her arms from Chris and heading into the other room to see if the kids were asleep. Sawyer probably was because he was a heavy sleeper, but Flynn could've woken up.

"You're sure?" Christian asked as he pulled away.

"It was positive. I have to go to the doctor, but it was positive," Trish said, grinning as she pulled away to look at Christian's face. "You happy?"

"Am I happy!"

He let Trish down and she grabbed both his hands, not wanting to lose contact just yet. "We're going to have a baby."

"Oh my God, we're having a baby, we are having...I just...I never...baby, we're having a baby! Did you guys hear that, we're having a baby!" Christian yelled, not remembering that there were kids in the suite who he could be waking up.

"Yeah we did," Lita said happily.

"I'm having a baby," Christian shook his head. This was all so surreal. He ran over to Lita and hugged her, picking her up off the ground then kissing her. He was in so much of a tizzy, he grabbed his brother too and lifted him off the ground then kissing him. Edge just looked at him strangely. Stephanie was just coming out of the bedroom and Christian grabbed her too and lifted her off the ground.

"Oh wow, hug time," Stephanie said as Christian kissed her too. Trish was just laughing. Christian was just going around the room. He went up to Chris and hugged him and lifted him as well, giving him a big smack on the lips.

"Dude, what the hell," Chris laughed as he pulled away.

"I'm having a baby, dude!" Christian said.

"Did you just kiss my husband?" Stephanie laughed.

"Okay, I think this boy has had too much for one day," Trish said, grabbing Christian back. "I'm going to need him back, don't think you're stealing him away from me, any of you."

"Now they can't make fun of us for our non-making out," Stephanie laughed.

"True," Trish said.

"We're having a baby!" Christian said, drunk on happiness obviously. Trish laughed and looped her arm through his. "I'm going to be a dad. Dude, someone is going to call me Dad, this reeks of awesomeness!"

"Totally rockalicious," Edge said, giving Christian a righteous nod.

"Tell me again why they don't team?" Stephanie asked.

"Babies rule," Christian said.

"Okay, I think I need to take this one away before he starts playing on a kazoo," Trish said, going over and hugging everyone.

"I'm so happy for you, Trish," Stephanie said, "If you ever need any pregnancy advice, you know where to find me."

"You are going to be my pregnancy guru," Trish told her. "I'm going to like shadow you for the next nine months or however long I have left. I swear, you will be so sick of me by the time this is over and then you'll have to tell me how to be a mom too."

"It comes naturally," she said.

Trish went over and hugged Edge and Lita and then grabbed Christian. "We'll see you guys later."

"Later guys," Christian said, sweeping Trish off her feet as soon as they were out the door and he ran to the elevator towards their own hotel room. When they were inside, he laid her down on the bed and they lay next to her. "You're really pregnant?"

"Like I said, I need to get it confirmed, but the test came out positive, so I'm pretty sure that I am pregnant."

"I can't believe this," he said, running his hand over her stomach. It was still flat and didn't feel like there was anything in there. But there was something in there, a very little something, but something nonetheless. "I guess there really wasn't anything wrong with either of us, the time just wasn't right."

"Yeah, we were just being so impatient, trying to plan it out and I guess it just wasn't supposed to work out that way."

"I like this way better because we're actually here and I can't even put into words what I'm feeling right now. It's like, excitement with fear and fireworks going off inside my entire body. That's what it really feels like, fireworks and then I keep picturing Sawyer and Flynn and superimposing our looks onto them and trying to see what our kid would be like."

"If we get a kid like either Sawyer or Flynn, I will be extremely pleased. Hell, I pray I get a kid as good as those two are."

"Me too. I can see them already," he said. "I just, I'm in disbelief."

"Hey, one thing, before we get too loopy about this," she started, reaching up to tilt his face so it was looking at hers. He had a difficult time concentrating on her though. His mind was racing with possibility and the future. "Chrissy, listen to me, pay attention."

Christian tried to, he really did, "Yeah, Trishy? I'm listening."

"Look, I'm definitely in my first trimester and I know that Chris and Stephanie and your brother and Lita all know, but I want to keep it from everyone else for now, okay, just until the second trimester. I know from Stephanie that miscarriages happen the most in the first trimester and I just...if something is bad or goes wrong, I don't want everyone to know. Do you agree?"

"I agree," he said, "now back to the baby..."

"You're insane," she told him, pulling him down for a kiss.

He pulled away again, "Do you want a boy or a girl?"

"I don't really care...I kind of want a boy though," Trish admitted. "I mean, I really don't care what we have as long as they're healthy, but I think a little boy would be adorable and they'd look like you and you're adorable so I can't see where I'd even run into a problem."

"I want a girl," Christian admitted. "I just...Flynn is so freaking adorable."

"She is," Trish said. "But let's not get ahead our ourselves. I'm sure whatever it is will be great."

"You're having a baby," Christian said, shaking his head again. "You know, there was a time, a long time where I didn't think I would have you? Where the idea of this, what we have here was like, totally impossible."

"It was never impossible."

"I was going to marry Tiff, you were going to marry Carlito. It would've been different, so different. I mean, I know you were happy with him so it very easily could've ended up that you would've married him and been with him and had his kids and I was happy with Tiffany and I could've married her and...you were always the one though, Trishy. You were always the one."

"I remember you using Chris to see if I would like you," she told him, thinking back to his pathetic attempt to win her over. "You had him act like a jerk to me so you would look better by comparison even though he was dating Stephanie at the time."

"They're a very tolerant couple," Christian joked. "I just thought you would rather go for someone like Jeff."

"I love Jeff to pieces," Trish admitted, "but just as a friend. I think I've gotten more mature while Jeff has gotten more eccentric and it just never would've worked between us. We're better off as friends, I've known that for a long while."

"Yeah, when he kissed you though, I didn't realize that would be the beginning of the craziest relationship I've ever been in."

"That is now settled."

"Yeah, settled. We're going to have a family, like the real thing, like a real family."

"I know," Trish said. "I know."

When Friday rolled around, Chris and Edge were all business. They were the Tag Team Champions now and they had great responsibility that came along with that title. Carlito and Primo had been bringing no prestige to the title. While Chris had no problems with either of the men, they were not up to his and Edge's caliber. Between the two of them, Chris and Edge had 14 World/WWE title reigns under their belt and Chris was the first Undisputed Champion while also being a Grand Slam Champion, in fact, he was the most Grandest of champions because he had won nearly every belt there was to be won except the now defunct Light Heavyweight Championship. He'd held more titles than even Hunter...hey, there was _another_ thing to toss in Hunter's face next time he saw him, which would be Raw because he could be on Raw if he wanted to be.

Stephanie and Lita could talk about it though since they weren't as focused as their significant others were. Chris and Edge had it on their minds though as they walked into the arena. "I can't believe I'm going to be an uncle," Edge grinned. "Do you think they'd let me babysit?"

"No," Chris said. "We don't let you babysit our kids."

"You do sometimes."

"If we're absolutely desperate and there are no other possibilities whatsoever and usually only if you have Lita with you. I don't really trust you with my kids, sorry."

"I'm great with kids."

"You get pissed at my kid for calling you Ed."

"Well, he's three years old, by now you'd think that he would get that my name is _Edge_," Edge said testily.

"I'm going to get him to start calling you Adam," Chris laughed.

"Don't you dare!" Edge said. "You know I hate that name. I can't believe my mother saddled me with the name Adam. I mean, seriously, there are no great Adams out there, but she saw fit to give me a name like Adam."

"Adam's not a bad name. You're saying you would've wanted your mother to name you Edge?"

"Yes, it's cool, it's got that cool factor to it."

"You're so weird," Chris said. "Now I want to reconsider being tag champs with you."

"I'm the one that came to you, if anyone could kick anyone out of this team, it would be me kicking you out."

"You're not kicking me out, you need me."

"I'll get my brother to join me."

"He wouldn't."

"He so would."

"He's too preoccupied with his kid. That is seriously all he's willing to discuss right now. Forget anything about wrestling-related, he just wants to talk about his kid. I was never this insufferable with either of my kids."

"You probably just don't like them," Edge shrugged.

"I think it's hilarious that he calls you Ed," Chris countered.

"It's not my name!" Edge said. "He can say Edge, you know he can, he just doesn't because he's like you, he likes to antagonize people."

"So you're saying that my son, my _three_ year old is capable of deliberating antagonizing you because he doesn't like you or something?"

"Sounds about right," Edge nodded.

"Yeah, because that's what Sawyer does when we're not looking, he plots his next evil move on you and just you. Never mind the fact that he likes to play with his toys or color or start to learn to read, no, he just plots his next move against you of all people."

"That's probably exactly what he does."

Not at the moment though. Stephanie was walking into the arena with Lita. The boys had gone on ahead a little and Lita had hung back with her as they discussed Trish's pregnancy and Edge's divorce, which seemed to be coming along pretty smoothly. After the humiliation Vickie had suffered in front of everyone, she'd come, very quickly, to terms with her impending divorce and since she and Edge had never officially lived together or combined their funds, there really wasn't much to do but sign the papers and move on with their lives.

Sawyer was a couple steps ahead of them, trying to push Flynn's stroller all by himself. Flynn kept trying to go around the side and watch her brother push her. She knew he was back there, she just couldn't see him so she kept trying to see him. Sawyer couldn't see over the stroller though and that was creating a problem as he couldn't see where he was actually pushing his little sister. Stephanie kept coming up behind him and directing him in the right direction and then letting him push her along.

"So is your dad going to be here tonight?" Lita asked.

"He better not be. I chewed him out for what he did last week. He never trusts me with anything. I told him that if there was a situation with Teddy then he should let me handle it."

"What did he say?"

"That he was just trying to help, but that's probably a pile of crap," she scoffed. "My dad is probably just trying to make sure everyone knows that he's the one in charge and he's the one that owns the place. Never-mind the fact that I'm perfectly capable and his daughter."

"So did you talk to Teddy?"

"I just told him to run the show as he sees fit and if I have something I want to do that we can compromise on it or something, but that he shouldn't fear too much for his job because I can't see him being fired."

"What if your dad were to offer you the SmackDown GM job?"

"Oh, then Teddy is long gone," Stephanie laughed.

"You sure are willing to push whoever out of the way of what you want," Lita pointed out. Stephanie went up and adjusted Sawyer and Flynn again before turning to Lita.

"I guess I'm too much like my father in some ways."

"Just a little," Lita said, holding up her thumb and forefinger, leaving a little space between them. "I guess the only one who wouldn't have to watch out is Chris."

"Oh, I'd step over him no problem," Stephanie said.

Lita laughed, "Why do I feel like I should be more surprised by that."

"You shouldn't, Chris knows I would step all over him to get what I want, within reason of course. He told me that him being the Tag champ really helps me too because now I have a valid and sneaky reason for being on Raw."

"That is true. Do they plan on being there on Monday, I haven't spoken to Edge about it."

"Yeah, they're going to have another match against Carlito and Primo. They wanted a rematch after last week and our guys are just so kind and caring that they were willing to give them another match. I guess those two just want to be beat up twice in the span of a week."

"Well, they'll soon learn why our guys are Tag Champs. I better go catch up with mine though before he leaves me in the dust. If I catch him shining his belt one more time..."

Stephanie laughed, "Talk to you later."

"Bye," Lita waved, ruffling Sawyer's hair as she passed him to catch up with Edge.

"Left," Stephanie told her son. Sawyer stopped for a moment, trying to remember which way was left and which was right. He looked to the left and then back to his mommy and she nodded her head and he turned the stroller left, almost ramming Flynn's legs into the wall. Stephanie winced and caught up, taking over the reins for Sawyer.

"Mommy, I push her!" Sawyer protested, not letting his hands off the stroller.

"You almost made her go into the wall though," she told him.

"No," he protested. "I not do that."

"Yes, you did, I saw it," she told him. He tried to wrench the stroller away from her. "Sawyer, stop it."

"I was do it!" he told her, trying desperately to take it back from her, but she was so much stronger than she was that he was having a very difficult time of it. Still, he wasn't going to let this stand. His mommy said that he could push Flynn's stroller and that's what he was going to do. He was very much like Stephanie at that moment, not wanting to give up something that had been designated her job. Yet, if someone told that to Stephanie right then, she probably would've slapped them.

"I know you were and you were doing a good job, but it's my turn now," she said, trying to play the sharing angle.

Sawyer was having none of it though, "Mommy, I push it!"

"Sawyer, you are not going to push it."

"I do," he said, stomping his foot.

"Sawyer McMahon Jericho, you are going to behave right this instant or you are never going to push Flynn's stroller again, do you understand?" she asked him sternly.

"I push it," he said defiantly, looking up at her.

"Fine," Stephanie said. She lifted him up, kicking and screaming and turned Flynn's stroller around. "We're going to Daddy and you can stay with him and throw fits and you won't even get to be around Flynn, how's that?"

"Mommy," he whimpered, trying to get back in her good graces.

"No, I'm not going to let you throw a tantrum," she told him, seeing Chris in the distance. "Chris!"

Chris turned around and saw Stephanie with Sawyer in her right arm while her left was pushing their daughter. Chris jogged to catch up to them, which wasn't easy considering he had the belts with him. He came over to them and Stephanie nearly shoved Sawyer into his arms. He took Sawyer just in time and then looked at Stephanie quizzically. She looked pissed and Sawyer looked upset so obviously something was up.

"Take him and I will take her and we will see each other later," she told him shortly.

"What happened?"

"He was throwing a tantrum and I'm not going to be dealing with him, this is his punishment," Stephanie said. She normally didn't blow such a gasket, but she needed to focus on work because she felt like she was under scrutiny now. Her father had called out Teddy, yes, but in essence, he'd called out her too and she just wanted to make the show the best she could.

"Okay," Chris said, but he was confused. "I guess I'll take him."

"Thank you," she said, turning on her heel and taking off for her office.

"What did you do?" Chris asked.

Sawyer started to cry. He had been looking forward to playing with Flynn and now he wasn't going to get to because he was in trouble and he hated being in trouble. Chris held him close and wondered what had happened, but he had to deal with Sawyer right now. Chris rubbed his back comfortingly, whispering soothing words in his ear as Sawyer cried in earnest, his big, salty tears wetting Chris's t-shirt. Sawyer banded his arms around Chris's neck so he could sob and Chris shifted him so he was more comfortable, but Sawyer just kept crying. Chris started walking with him, hoping to coax out of him what was the matter.

"Hey man, what's with the crying kid?" Edge asked, looking down at Sawyer.

"I don't know, Stephanie was pissed at him," Chris explained. "She dropped him off then she left and he started crying."

"Hey there, kiddo," Edge said, but Sawyer didn't look up at him, "well, I tried my best."

"Oh, gee, thanks," Chris said, taking a seat on the nearest trunk. Edge hopped up next to him and watched Sawyer cry for a few minutes.

"That kid's got some lungs and stamina," Edge commented.

Chris just kept rubbing Sawyer's back. "Shh, kid, shh, tell me what happened with Mommy and then maybe we can get this all sorted out. So what happened? Why was Mommy mad at you?"

"Mommy mean, I no like it."

"Wow, it's about time you caught up with the rest of us," Chris said, kissing the side of his head. "Why was Mommy mean?"

"She yell and she take Fwynn."

"She took Flynn, how did she take Flynn?"

"I push and then Mommy," he took a deep breath and thought for a moment. "Took it, she tooken it."

"She took it from you?" Chris asked.

"Uh huh," Sawyer sniffled. "I do it, Daddy."

"Okay, well, I'm sure Mommy had a good reason for taking it from you. Maybe she just wanted to push Flynn too. I know she's your baby, but you can share her, right?"

"Mommy mean," Sawyer pouted. "She mean."

"I don't think Mommy meant to be mean," Chris told him. "I bet she'll feel bad about it later and then she'll say sorry and then you can say you're sorry for throwing a tantrum because we don't like it when people throw tantrums, that's when I have to call them out, right?"

"I no say sowwy," Sawyer shook his head, "she mean."

"I think if you both say sorry you'll feel better, you love Mommy, right?"

"No."

"Yes, you do."

"No," Sawyer contested. He didn't like his mommy at all right now. She was mean and she yelled and she took Flynn away from him. How could he like someone like that? How could she be so mean to him when all he wanted was Flynn?

"Who always gives you hugs in the morning when you wake up?" Chris asked.

"Mommy," Sawyer answered grudgingly.

"And who always colors with you when I can't?"

"Mommy," he answered again.

"Do you have fun with Mommy?" he asked. Sawyer paused, then nodded with a slight pout still on his face, his bottom lip protruding just a little bit. "I thought so, so we'll just say sorry later."

"Okay," Sawyer gave in, then started to cuddle against Chris.

"Dude, I can't even imagine my brother doing that," Edge said, gesturing towards Sawyer. "You handled that like it was nothing."

"You get used to it," Chris said. "Christian'll get used to it too. You don't start off with a three year old, you get to work your way up so that when you have others, you know what you're doing. That's why taking care of Flynn is like a cinch. Sawyer in the one who's trouble."

"I just can't imagine Christian with a baby, it's going to be so weird seeing him with his own kid. It's going to make me feel old. But I do get to be cool Uncle Edge. Trish only has sisters so I'll be the only cool uncle, well, Trish's sister's husband, but that's beside the point, cool Uncle Edge."

"Yeah, cool Uncle Edge," Chris said.

"You Ed," Sawyer told him plainly.

"Fine, if I'm Ed, you're Saw, how do you like that?" Edge said back.

"I like it," Sawyer told him. Chris smirked at his tag partner.

"You do not reek of awesomeness, Sawyer, you so do not reek of awesomeness."

"Speaking of reeking," Chris said, nodding towards the guys who were to be their opponents later. "How do you think those two are going to fare against us?"

"Please, no contest," Edge said, then called out. "Hey, losers, you ready to lose to us later because I know I'm ready to kick your ass."

"Not going to happen," Jeff told him, shaking his head.

"Oh yeah, you guys can't even get along and the eye thing, Punk, seriously, that's how you want to play this out, that you have a bad eye, what do you think of that, Chris?"

"Coward's way out," Chris piped up, finding it fun to antagonize people. "Even if I got poked in the eye for real, I wouldn't go about it like you are, man. If you really are hurt in the eye, that remains to be seen, but I guess we'll see later, right?"

"My eye really is hurt," Punk spat at them.

"Yeah right," Jeff muttered.

"See, you guys can't even get along right now, whereas we're friends and we get along, right, Edge?" Chris said.

"Yeah, that's right. You guys are probably going to be fighting the entire time while we just wait around for you to finish up your little cat fight," Edge told them. "You guys are so concerned about each other, but in case you haven't noticed, Chris and I rule around here. We're like, way better than you are."

"Well, I'm the champ," Punk said.

"Even though you shouldn't be and I should be the champ," Jeff said.

"Hey, I just cashed in the briefcase when I felt it most appropriate, that's all. I was completely allowed to cash it in when I wanted," Punk said. "I can't help it if it was at your expense."

"You didn't even do anything to earn a shot," Jeff told him.

"Such a shame, really, this lack of concentration is going to catch up with them later," Chris told Edge loudly so they other two would hear.

"Shut up," they both said in unison.

"Look, it doesn't matter who wins because that's not what's going on tonight. Tonight, you're facing the best tag team ever," Edge said. "We've been World or WWE champion a combined 14 times compared to your measly 3. You guys can't even talk without fighting."

"This doesn't involve you."

"It should, I never got a proper rematch so I should be entitled to one more," Edge said. "Unfortunately, I can't right now, I'm too busy being awesome."

"Yeah, so Punk, seriously, what's up with the eye? Why does it always hurt when it's convenient for you?" Chris asked.

"I'm legit injured."

"Yeah and I'm legit Queen of England," Chris said.

"Do you want to start something?" Punk asked. Everyone had noticed he'd gained an edge to him over the last few weeks. He was turning downright devilish, but whatever scheme he was playing at was lame. Faking an eye injury of all things? The sadder part was that people were buying it, well, not all people, but enough. Pathetic, he thought, both of Punk and that malleable pile of goo that was the audience at large.

"We'll start something later, trust me," Edge said.

"Yeah and if you're not satisfied with that, well, you can meet us again on Monday at Raw," Chris said, then shook his head, "oh yeah, that's right, you can't go on Raw, my bad."

"Good one," Edge said, slapping five with him.

"I'm the champ, I don't care."

"Of course you don't because you can't go on Raw or ECW like we can," Edge said. "We can go wherever we want and beat up whoever we want. We'll just start with you tonight and then work our way from there."

"Yeah and next week, I have my rematch against Rey so I'll be IC champ and Tag champ."

"Then I'll go for the World and we can hold all the belts except for the Women's championship. How would Stephanie feel about wrestling?" Edge asked.

"You're better off getting Lita back," Chris said.

"Good idea," Edge said. "We'll see you boys later in the ring."

"Pathetic," Chris said as they walked away. "They'll never work as a team like we will."

"I know," Edge said.

"You know, I don't think enough people know that, I'm going to tell Stephanie to give me time so we can announce that to the world."

"I'm all for that."

Chris nodded and then set off with Sawyer towards Stephanie's office. Sawyer had remained pretty quiet, but it was probably because he was upset with what happened with Stephanie, which he still didn't have a clear picture on. He walked into Stephanie's office and she looked up and saw them and saw Sawyer clinging to Chris. It was obvious to Stephanie that he had cried and she felt bad for it, going over and taking Sawyer in her arms.

"Oh, baby boy, were you crying?" she asked.

"What did you do to him exactly to get him so upset?" Chris asked.

"He almost ran Flynn into the wall," she explained. "But I did say that he could push her and I should've just helped him instead of trying to just take it from him. I know how he can be. It's okay, baby boy, I still love you."

"Love you, Mommy," he said, hugging her back.

"Oh, let's never fight again," she said, squeezing him hard as he hugged her back tightly. While this had been going on, Flynn had walked over to Chris from her play blanket and he'd picked her up and put her on his lap.

"Look at those two saps," Chris said to his daughter. "Losers."

"Shut it," she said, "so what's up?"

"I want interview time," he told her.

"You do?"

"Yeah, I do, as soon as possible," he told her, going over to where she was sitting to look at the schedule for the evening to see if there were any open spots. He looked down the list and saw an empty spot. "There, I want that time right there."

"You sure?' she asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure."

"Okay," Stephanie said. She grabbed her walkie-talkie. "Hey, Britt, can you let Teddy know that Chris has interview time in the middle of the second hour, right before the commercial before the Hart match."

"Sure," Britt said.

"Well, there you go," Stephanie told him. "What are you going to talk about?"

"Oh, just a few things."

He and Edge ended up talking about how they were the dominant force in the WWE and it was true. There was just no way around that because they had been elevated to a level that nobody else had. Carlito and Primo hadn't used the belts to their advantage. Chris and Edge planned to. They were going to be on every show they could be on and it didn't matter who came in their way, they were confident they could beat whoever dared to challenge them.

It also helped that they were friends in real life, which added to the lack of tension between them. When they were facing Punk and Jeff later that evening, they could feel the tension coming off the two of them in waves. The match wasn't necessarily easier because they were both adequate wrestlers (though nowhere near Chris or Edge's level of excellence), but it certainly helped that they lacked focus. In fact, one could almost say they were disrespecting the people they were facing off against in the ring. That just made Chris angrier. Tonight was about him and Edge becoming the dominant WWE force, with Stephanie just behind the scenes.

It was evident the amount of teamwork they had during the end of their match. When Chris had been in the ring with Punk, Punk had almost gotten the GTS on him, but Edge almost knew it was going to happen and made the blind tag, putting himself in the match without Punk's knowledge. Even though Punk did land the move, Chris wasn't the legal guy so Edge waited, his position ready and he got the spear on Punk, getting the win.

Their friendship also shone through after the match when Jeff hit Edge with a Twist of Fate and then was going to try for a Swanton Bomb. Just as he was climbing the ropes, Chris pulled Edge out of the ring and, putting his arm around him, dragged him up the ramp and to safety. Chris didn't think Jeff would do that for Punk, but Edge was his friend and his co-title holder. These were just some of the things that made them a great team. People might just think they were thrown together at the last moment and while it did have that element to it, Edge and Chris had been friends for so long it was just going out there and being friends in the ring and working together. It was their key to success and they would take all challengers to their belt and they would defeat every one. They were the elite, they were the best, they were the top of the heap...

They were the dominant force of the WWE.


	242. Alone at the Top, July 10 to 13, 2009

A/N: Look for a lot of updates next week. Hope you enjoy this chapter and please, please, please leave a review. :)

* * *

"That should do it."

Trish sat up. She had kind of been expecting heartbeat machines and ultrasounds and everything, but it had been a very mundane check-up. Christian hadn't accompanied her because he was away wrestling so she had come by herself, but promised to let him know everything that'd happened with the appointment. She was kind of glad nothing had been spectacular so Christian could really experience it next time they came.

"So is everything okay?" Trish asked.

"Everything is looking great," Dr. Sheldon said with a smile. "You're about seven weeks along and you're right on schedule. I want you to get some prenatal vitamins and start taking those as soon as possible.

"Thank you so much," Trish said. She'd been seeing Dr. Sheldon for a while now based on Stephanie's recommendation. "So when should I schedule my next appointment."

"Fairly soon. I want to schedule an ultrasound, strictly procedure, for a couple weeks from now. We could do one now, but since you're not a high-risk pregnancy and everything seems normal, I think we can hold off a little until the fetus is a little older. It'll give us a better idea of what's going on in there."

"Great, I think my husband would love to be here for that, I'll be sure to schedule it so he can come."

"That'd be fine," the doctor said amicably. "I'll let you go ahead and get dressed. Your file will be up front so when you're done changing, just head on out there."

"Thank you," Trish said, shaking her doctor's hand.

"Congratulations again."

"Thanks," Trish said. It was the first bit of congratulations she'd gotten since she'd told Christian and her friends that she was having a baby. Nobody else knew and that was just the way she wanted it. She didn't want anyone to know until she was a little farther along. She'd already started reading the books though. She couldn't help raiding the pregnancy section at the local bookstore. She had a stack of them next to her bedside table before she realized that Stephanie might actually have some of the books herself.

She had been reading up on prenatal vitamins and how important they were. She'd also been reading about how with a first baby, you might not show for a while. She was pretty petite though and thin, so she might start showing even before she wanted everyone to know. She'd cross that bridge when she came to it, but by the time she started to show, she didn't think she'd want to be hiding her pregnancy. She pressed her hand to her stomach as she got dressed and then made her next appointment.

Stephanie had never told her about the true wonder it was carrying a kid. It was like a weird feeling mixed with absolute joy. The weird feeling just came from the thought that there was something inside of her that was soon going to be its own independent living thing. She was going to have a baby and it would be hers to love and care for, that's where the absolute joy came into her. She wasn't scared of motherhood yet, so there was no fear, but she knew that would come.

She figured every first time mother had that same kind of fear, like they didn't know exactly how they would be as a mother. She knew her sister had gone through it with her first child and she knew Stephanie had gone through it when she was pregnant with Sawyer. Stephanie had thought she was going to make a horrible mother who would scar her kids senseless, but it hadn't happened. Stephanie was a great mother and it gave her hope that she could do the same.

She sat in her car a moment, letting the air conditioning cool it down before she picked up her cell phone and dialed her husband. "Hey."

"Hey, Chrissy," she said over the line.

"Is your appointment over?" he asked.

"Yeah, it's all done."

"And? Do not keep me in the dark here, how did it go? How's the little Cage doing?"

Trish rolled her eyes. "He or she is fine. I just got the normal check-up. She scheduled me for an ultrasound in a couple of weeks where she'll be able to tell us more about what's going on in there. We'll probably be able to hear the heartbeat as well."

"Seriously?" he asked.

"Well, generally babies do have heartbeats," she told him jokingly.

"Shut up," he responded. "I'm still just excited. I'm practically about to burst with the news over here. I think my brother or Chris is going to have to clamp my mouth shut or something because seriously, I'm about to just announce it to everyone."

"Then tape it shut."

"I think people will wonder why I have tape over my mouth."

"Wrestlers, Chrissy, we deal with wrestlers, nobody is going to bat an eyelash if you walk around with tape on your mouth. They'll just think it's part of something you're doing with the show to intimidate someone."

"That is true," he contemplated. "But everything is seriously okay?"

"Everything is fine and she confirmed it and everything so there's definitely something going on in there. When they do the ultrasound it better be a baby and not like a ball of gas or something they think is a baby."

"Well that's gross. You going to be okay there by yourself?"

"I'm pregnant, not invalid," she said. "Just because everyone has left me behind to go to the West Coast and I had to come home so I could go to my doctor's appointment is no big deal. I mean, why should I care, right? I shouldn't care that I'm alone."

"You're killing me here, sweetheart," he laughed.

"I'm fine, me and your kid will be just fine."

"My kid, wow, my _kid_," Christian said. "You are not making this any easier with the not telling anyone anything."

"I know, I love to torture you," she told him. "I'm going to go now because I'm sitting in the car and it's getting hot in here so I want to go home and just spend time alone."

"You make it sound like spending time with me is a chore," he said, acting like this was the ultimate insult to him.

"It is," she told him, "Love you."

"I love you too and that thing growing inside of you, I love them too, tell them that, okay, on the hour every hour actually, just so it really knows. I don't want it coming out and thinking I don't like it or something."

"I don't think they'd think that."

"You never know."

"Goodbye..."

"Bye, love you."

Christian hung up the phone and looked at Chris. "You are so whipped."

"Excuse me?" Christian said.

"Did you hear yourself, man?" Chris told him. "You are so whipped it's crazy."

"If I were really whipped I'd be at home right now and not here with you," Christian told him. "But since I have things to do, people to wrestle, more things to do, I'm stuck here. I was just talking to my wife and if anyone is whipped, it's _you_."

"Oh yeah, I know," Chris shrugged. "How could I not be with Ms. Domineering constantly running my life."

"She does try to do that, doesn't she?"

"Yeah, she does," Chris said. He stopped talking for a long moment, leaning back in his chair and staring off into space.

"I've lost you, Chris, come in, Chris."

"Sorry," Chris said, "I was just visualizing my match with Rey later."

"And what did you see?"

"Me with the Intercontinental Title, although, you know, I just hate that Rey wears the mask, that's why I'm challenging him. I really should be going after Punk and getting the World Title. It's much nicer a title and it would cement myself as the best in the company...in the world even."

"You know, you're not endearing yourself to me every time you go out there and declare yourself the best person in the company. It's like, I'm your friend, but you're making fun of me."

"I'm not making fun of you," Chris said. "Look, I am _one_ of the best, is that better?"

"Not really, but whatever," Christian said. "I'm not going to argue with you, I'm in _way_ too good a mood to argue with anyone, you know, I mean, my wife is having a kid! Oh crap." He looked around, but their section of catering was empty, everyone else on the far side. It was like Chris had some kind of aura that repelled people. He whispered, "I'm having a kid, how can anything get me down?"

"Wait until you're ankle deep in poop, then we'll see what gets you down," Chris told him.

"Not even that image can bring me down."

"Oh it will, trust me," Chris said. "I don't want anymore kids until Flynn is potty-trained, it is terrible having to change diapers for two kids, it's the worst part of parenting, I'm telling you. I'll take crying all night over a really gross diaper. It's like, what the hell did this kid eat and it never stops."

"Seriously, you are not helping me here," Christian said.

"I'm giving you the real side of parenthood. Not the fluffy, 'I have a baby now and I'm going to love it all the time and take care of it and spoil it and it'll be the best kid ever' stuff you usually hear. It's not easy having a kid."

"You make it look easy."

"Oh yeah, because having two kids on the road and them living out of hotels is just how I always envisioned raising my kids," Chris said sarcastically.

"How did you picture it?" Christian asked curiously.

"I always figured by the time I wanted the family and everything, I'd be out of wrestling, you know. I figured I would retire sometime before I was 40 and then I'd settle down with a woman that I fall in love with and then we'd do the kid thing. I never really cared about being an older father, it didn't bug me to start late in life with the kids thing despite my mom's constant hounding for me to settle down. I just wanted all of the wrestling out of my system until I settled down. That way I could devote all my time to my kids."

"And then you met Stephanie..."

"And then I met Stephanie," Chris repeated. "It's weird, falling in love, the whole business of it. You meet someone and you think, I'm never going to fall for this person, I hate them, and then you do and you're like, what the hell, Life, thanks for throwing me this crazy screwball. Then you're having these kids and you're hardly settled and they just come whether you like it or not and it's life changing. Those kids, they've changed my life, but I never did want to raise them on the road. Yet, here we are and I swear, my kid has seen more arenas than a basketball player."

"Speak of the devils," Christian said, glancing over Chris's shoulder.

"Daddy!" Sawyer said, barreling through catering, ignoring people and chairs in his way. He was like the kid Incredible Hulk, hulking through the place, not letting an obstacle stand in his way. He wove his way around everything and then crashed into Chris's side.

"Hey, kid, you act as if I haven't seen you in weeks, I just saw you like twenty minutes ago," Chris said, hefting Sawyer up into his lap. "What's up?"

"Fwynn say my name," Sawyer told him.

"What!" Chris said, looking over Stephanie, who was right behind Flynn. Flynn had tried to run like Sawyer, but she could only toddle over at a much slower pace, which seemed to frustrate her immensely. She wanted to run like her brother, what did he have that she didn't have? Where did he get his speed?

"Uh huh," Sawyer told him.

Chris looked over at Stephanie, "Did she say her first word? Did I miss it?"

"Well, she said, 'sawa' and I think that she's trying to say Sawyer, so I wouldn't say she exactly said her first coherent word, but clearly, Sawa is pretty much Sawyer."

"And yet, no Dada," Chris said like this was a ludicrous crime against humanity. He'd been trying to coax the words out of Flynn's mouth, but she had yet to say her first full word, like she was saving it up for a big occasion or something. She'd babble a lot, but nothing coherent, but sawa, that did kind of sound like Sawyer.

"She hates you," Stephanie said, lifting Flynn off the ground and into her arms. "Hey, Christian, heard from Trish?"

"Yeah, everything went well," Christian beamed.

"Good to hear," Stephanie said, taking a seat next to Chris. "What were you guys discussing?"

"Chris was telling me how he didn't picture himself raising his kids on the road."

"Who does?"

"I'm going to go," Christian said. "I want to let Edge know how things went."

"Tell him to meet up with me later. I want to discuss my match with him in case I need some back-up."

"You mean cheat?"

"It's not cheating if the referee doesn't see."

"I shouldn't be party to this," Christian told him.

"Just tell your brother, goody-two-shoes," Chris said as Christian flipped him off as he walked away, forgetting that Chris had impressionable children with him. Luckily, Sawyer had been looking at Flynn intently. "What are you doing, kid?"

"She say my name," Sawyer said.

"Thanks for rubbing it in," Chris scowled. "She's going to say Daddy first though because that's a lot easier to say than Sawyer is, you know."

"I'm easy," Sawyer told his daddy.

"Like mother like son," Chris joked and Stephanie glared at him. He laughed and leaned over to kiss her, but she pulled away at the last moment. Chris grabbed the back of her neck and held her in place as he leaned in to kiss her. "So to what do I owe the pleasure of your company? I thought you were busy planning the show with Teddy and banished me."

"We finished planning. The show is going to be great, as usual, which is more than I can say for Raw. My father has _still_ not invited me to be the guest host of Raw even though he _must_ know that I really want to be the host of Raw. I could just spend the night doing whatever I wanted and making things right and then he'd see how good I was and offer me the job for good."

"Is it nice in your brain?" he wondered.

"Please, you keep plotting how you're going to snatch Rey's mask, you have no room to talk at this point in time," she told him. "Besides, there was another matter which is of the utmost importance and one that I needed to speak with you about."

"Now what would that be?" he asked.

"Do you know what a week from tomorrow is?"

"No, I don't," he told her, though he actually did know what the day was. He just liked to push Stephanie's buttons so he was pretending that he had no idea that next Saturday was their seven year anniversary.

"Chris!"

"What? Do we have to go somewhere or something?" he asked.

"Don't do that."

"Don't do what?" he wondered.

"You know what I mean," she told him. "You know what it is and you're just being a jerk about it. Can you believe we've been together for almost seven years."

"You know, seven years ago, right now, my life was burden-free. I was a bachelor, living on my own, wrestling for myself, didn't need to share with anyone. Man, that was the life. Tell me why I decided to date you again?"

"I wouldn't hug you."

"Damn it, if you'd just hugged me, I could go out drinking with the guys next Saturday night," he said, even as he leaned over to kiss her sweetly.

"Seven years, Chris!" she told him as she pulled away from his mouth. "Seven years is a huge deal for me, it's my longest relationship ever and it's the better half a decade that we've been together, can you believe it?"

"I cannot imagine being with you for a decade," he said, shaking his head. Ten years with the same woman. Hell, at least the same woman he was dealing with was one that always kept him alert in every possible way. She was never dull, that was for sure.

"Shut up," she told him.

"See, abuse, right there, and you expect me to stay with you for the rest of our lives. At this rate we won't make it to seven years."

"We're definitely going to make it," she told him. "What are you planning? Not a party I hope..."

"No, I'm just taking you out while Christian and Trish watch the kids. Edge offered, but I fear that when we come back, Sawyer will be sleeping outside because he keeps calling Edge Ed. Is that to your liking?"

"As long as I'm with you."

"Now you're being sappy, I can never win with you," Chris said, shaking his head. "What did you get me?"

"I'm not telling you," she told him. "Okay, baby boy, let's go get dinner. Chris, can you feed the other one?"

"Will do, let's switch," Chris said, taking Flynn and holding her over his head and in the air as Stephanie plucked Sawyer out of Chris's lap. Chris brought Flynn down and kissed her on the nose before bringing her up in the air again. Chris made a face at her and Flynn giggled as she reached down towards her daddy. Chris brought her down again and kissed her on the nose again. "Dada, come on, Flynn, Dada. You can't possibly want to say Sawyer first, come on. Sawyer said Mommy's name first so it's only fair that you say my name first, do you see how that goes?"

"Sawa," Flynn said in her high-pitched voice.

"Flutterby," Chris whined. "You are supposed to be my little girl, not his. Come on, you have to say my name first."

"Sawa," Flynn said again, like she had to tell him again that he wasn't her favorite.

"Oh well," Chris said, shaking her a little in the air and then bringing her down to kiss her forehead. She bumped her lips against his cheek in her own version of a kiss. "Thanks." He held Flynn to him as he rooted through her bag to grab some of her food. She was starting to eat solid foods now, but they usually stuck with what she liked. She loved Cheerios the best though. She would chomp on those as a snack. Chris grabbed the food and took it and Flynn over to the microwaves to heat it up before he gave it to her.

"Did you know Mommy and I will have been together for seven years next Saturday?" Chris told her. "I don't think you'd know since you haven't even been around a year, but that's a long time for me and Mommy. That's even older than Sawyer."

"Sawa," Flynn said happily.

Chris grumbled, "Anyways, it's a big deal for me and Mommy." Flynn didn't answer and he brought her back to the table.

"You can go work on your match tonight," Stephanie told him. "You don't have to stick around, I can take care of the kids."

He looked at her, this woman who he'd loved for so long. He shook his head. There were some moments when family came first and this was one of them. "Nah," he told her. "I think I'll stay right where I am. The match can wait."

The match did wait for him. Stephanie had made sure he wasn't to be bothered by anyone before the match. He didn't have to go out there and talk, he didn't have to give interviews. The only thing he had to focus on was the match. When he went out there, he was determined to win that belt and there were no other thoughts in his mind, not his wife, not his kids, nothing. He had one single goal in mind and that was to get that belt. The mask would just be a bonus. When he stepped into the ring, he grabbed the microphone and only gave a brief address to the crowd, stating that he would reach legendary status tonight. He briefly laughed inwardly as he thought maybe if he reached that legendary status he'd have to kick his own ass.

Rey came out next and came to the ring. They were introduced, but Chris's eyes never left Rey's. He was eager for the match to begin. The bell finally rang and they circled each other once before locking up with one another. Chris got him in a headlock and then hit him with a shoulder block. Chris looked down at Rey and then started to run the ropes, but Rey countered that. Chris got the early upper-hand, taking Rey down and talking trash to him. He grabbed Rey and tried to throw him out of the ring, but Rey just landed on his feet like it was nothing. Chris guessed that was one of the advantages of being a pipsqueak.

Chris tried to roll out after him, but Rey climbed in the ring and when Chris went to get in too, Rey kicked him and then launched himself at Chris. Chris landed on the ground and was thrown into the ring. Rey tried to land a move on him, but Chris, the king of counters, countered it into a backbreaker. Chris stomped at him and talked more trash to him. There was some more scuffle between them before Chris threw Rey into the ringpost and out of the ring. Chris was satisfied with his work, but there was still much work left to be done.

Chris threw him back in the ring and then took a knee to Rey, but only got a 2 count. Chris locked him into a submission move and kept asking the referee to ask Rey if he quit. Rey powered out of it despite Chris's best efforts and managed to then get an enziguri on Chris. Rey, thinking he could get a 619 on Chris, ran for him, but Chris was not fooled. He got up and grabbed Rey, lifted him into the perfect counter, a spinning torture rack, but he only got a 2 count on it. Chris yelled at the referee, but it wouldn't work.

Chris yelled again, asking where the 619 was. He was taunting Rey and that would probably prove a bad idea later on, but for now, it was the right thing to do to him. Chris got Rey in a chinlock, but again Rey powered through. Rey eventually got a springboard cross body, but Chris got out of it. Rey then got the upper-hand on Chris, but Chris wasn't about to give up. He got another pin after a Powerbomb, but it still wasn't enough. The crowd was chanting 619, but he wasn't about to let them see that. Not on him.

Rey appeared to go for the hurricanrana, but Chris caught him and countered it into the Walls of Jericho. If anyone ever needed lessons on countering moves, Chris could teach a masters class in it. More than half the roster could probably use that class too. Rey reached for the ropes, but Chris pulled him away. Rey tried to get out of it, but Chris reversed his reverse and pinned him, but Chris was able to counter again. They broke apart and Rey got him in position for another 619 attempt. Again, Chris was prepared and as Rey grabbed the ropes, Chris pulled them down, causing Rey to fall to the floor below. No 619 for him.

Chris got Rey in another submission move, trying to weaken him. He needed to stop though because Rey kept getting out of the move. Chris was taking over again, giving no relief to Rey. Rey got fired up and tried to go after Chris, but Chris was ready and whipped Rey into the corner. He put Rey on the ringpost and then hefted him up for a modified spinning neckbreaker. If this didn't convince people he was the best in the world, he didn't know what would. The pin didn't work though, unfortunately and Chris was getting frustrated and sometimes when he got frustrated he started to lose concentration.

They fought for a bit and Rey tried for a springboard moonsault, but this was Chris and if he had a counter for one thing, he had a counter for everything he caught Rey in midair and then put him into the Tree of Woe in the corner. He went for a spear, but Rey got out of the way and he went into the metal ringpost. This allowed Rey to gain the upper-hand and a pin attempt, but Chris kicked out. Chris got it back with another brilliant counter and he hit the running bulldog on Rey and then went for the Lionsault. Rey got out of the way and Chris landed on his feet and it always hurt his knee when he did that and it hurt his ears too when Stephanie got a hold of him. She always had the uncanny knack for remembering every move of all his matches, like she took notes in her mind.

Chris countered another move into the Walls of Jericho and hoped this would be it. Rey pulled himself to the ropes. Chris was seriously frustrated now and made the mistake of trying to get at Rey, who moved so Chris moved out of the ring. They both ended up on the ground and Chris was thrown in the ring. Rey got in and was going for a splash when Chris hit the Codebreaker in midair. Chris knew this had to be it, but unbelievably Rey kicked out and Chris was about to just beat this guy up. He yelled at Rey to stay down and started kicking at him.

Chris had lost focus and that's where he lost the match. He let himself get hit with the 619 and then by the splash and he was pinned for the loss. He was so pissed off in that moment. He shouldn't have let his frustrations get to him. He'd had the match won a number of times and he could've won this time as well, but he lost focus of the match. He showed vulnerability and that pissed him off.

Luckily for him he had an awesome partner and Edge ran to the ring. Chris, with a slight change of heart, had told Edge to stay back for the duration of the match, he'd wanted to win this one on his own, to really prove himself the best. Edge, seeing the match was over, decided to come out and chase Rey off...right into the waiting arms of Dolph Ziggler. Edge watched as Dolph attacked Rey and threw him back in the ring so Edge could get a spear on Rey. Chris got in the ring again and Edge lifted Rey up so Chris could get a Codebreaker on him in retaliation. This tag team thing wasn't half bad at all. He and Edge were showing how dominating they could be to everyone in the arena and at home and most importantly the other wrestlers.

Both Edge and Chris looked at Dolph and Edge gestured to Dolph that he was free to take care of Rey. Chris also gestured towards him and he and Edge slipped out of the ring as Dolph's attack continued. Chris smirked. It was only what Rey deserved. Chris and Edge walked up the ramp slowly, watching Dolph's handiwork. Chris hadn't expected him out there, but it seemed like Edge wasn't surprised. When they got backstage, Chris asked him about it.

"He looks up to us," Edge said, "and who wouldn't, really. He's got potential so I said he could have Rey after we finished up with him. He's eager to impress us. I think he wants to associate with us."

"Well, he's got a good look," Chris said as they stood there. Dolph showed up a moment later, "Nice job out there, man."

"Thanks," Dolph said coolly. "Just finishing the work you started."

Edge looked at Chris knowingly. "You know, you're not half bad," Edge took the time to say.

"I know," Dolph said before walking away.

"I like him," Edge said. "When we start ruling the WWE, we'll be nice to him."

Unfortunately, the ruling body would be split apart soon enough.

Chris was lying in bed. They'd had a late night because Flynn had had a nightmare and she wouldn't go back to sleep unless she was with Chris and Stephanie. They'd laid her in the middle of their bed until she fell asleep and then carefully put her back in her room and own crib. They'd sat at the foot of her crib until they knew she wouldn't wake up and then trudged back to their bed. Stephanie's leg was in between his and her foot was locked around his ankle. His right arm was stuck straight out and she had her head lying in the crook of his armpit and her hand had come to rest on his forehead, a very awkward position indeed.

It was under these conditions the phone rang. Chris opened his eyes only to have a thumb nearly poke his eye out. He tried to move his face, but her hand was covering most of it. He took his left hand and grabbed Stephanie's right hand, placing it on his chest. His right arm was asleep and he couldn't move it anyways since Stephanie's head was on it. He reached with his left hand to his nightstand, moving a bottle out of the way before he found the phone. Stephanie stirred a little, but just kept drooling on his arm.

"Hello?" he asked hoarsely as he answered the phone.

"I'm done for, man."

It took Chris a moment to realize who this was. "Edge?"

"It's over, our reign of awesomeness is over," Edge said, his tone regretful and sad. Chris looked at the clock. It was coming up on 7 am. His kids were late sleepers so he could get a couple more hours sleep before their silent bliss was interrupted by Sawyer's constant yelling and Flynn yelling because she wanted to be around Sawyer and Stephanie just yelling because she could. He wanted more time in his bed and Edge was interrupting him with whatever he was talking about.

"What? Dude, it's too early for this crap."

"Dude, I'm hurt," Edge explained.

"What? Hurt? What?" Chris asked, suddenly awake and interested in the conversation at hand. He sat up and that caused Stephanie to roll right off his chest and smack her face into her pillow. The abrupt movement startled her and she opened her eyes.

"Sweetie, what's going on?" she mumbled.

"Edge is saying something about hurt."

It was like Stephanie had a switch. A wrestler hurt? This was her business. She sat right up, not a hint of sleepiness in her eyes and she rested her hands on Chris's shoulder and leaned over. "Put it on speaker," she told Chris, reaching out herself to push the button. "Edge, what's this about being hurt?"

"Oh, hey, Steph."

"You're hurt?" she prompted.

"It happened last night. Um...well, I seem to have maybe torn my Achilles tendon."

"You _what_?" Stephanie exclaimed, nearly pushing Chris off the bed in order to grab the phone. Chris just stared at her. "Edge, tell me this is one of your stupid jokes."

"It's not, I'm...I'm really sorry," he said and he was. He'd never wanted to be injured. He and Chris were supposed to be the best tag team since E&C. He was so excited about this title reign and now he wasn't even going to be able to finish it out.

"Edge, what happened?"

Edge cleared his throat, "Um, just an accident, really stupid actually."

"Edge, if we're going to announce this on Monday, I'm going to need to know how this happened," she told him.

"Um, well, last night, you see...Lita and I...well, we were...doing stuff and it got..."

"Okay, stop right there," Chris started, trying not to laugh, "are you trying to tell me you tore your Achilles tendon while you were having sex with Lita?"

"In a way..."

"In a way, what's in a way?" Chris asked, needing to know how someone could get so injured. What the hell did he and Lita do in the bedroom that caused such injuries? Maybe Chris didn't want to know now that he thought about it.

"I'm not telling you!"

"Where are you, Edge?" Stephanie asked, shoving Chris in the side. Here he was, trying to find out about Edge's sex life when there were bigger things at stake.

"Hospital. They want to prep me for surgery as soon as possible to get this fixed, I'm actually going into surgery in a few hours."

"You're going into surgery now!" Stephanie exclaimed. "But...you're one half of the Tag champions, how long, oh my God, why aren't you more careful, what were you doing with her?"

"Stuff, geez, like you two have never had any sex that wasn't a little crazy."

"Chris has never got injured."

"Maybe we're not doing it right," Chris said, still trying to stifle laughter. Stephanie sent him a glare and he quickly shut his mouth, pretending to lock it with a key. He couldn't help it, it was funny.

"This is a nightmare," Stephanie said, "how are you feeling?"

"In pain, but I told them they could cut me up so that I can start rehabbing immediately."

"And how long is rehabbing going to take?" Stephanie asked fearfully. But she knew. Stephanie had been around this business far too long not to know how long things like this usually took. Chris could read it on her face. She knew.

"I could be out until next January."

Stephanie closed her eyes and Chris thought she might just spontaneously combust right then and there. He reached out and rubbed her back soothingly, or he hoped it was soothing since Stephanie had yet to open her eyes. "Okay," was all she said.

"Chris, I'm sorry, man."

"We'll figure something out, I guess," Chris said.

"Okay, here's what we're going to do," Stephanie said. "Edge, we cannot go on television and tell everyone that you tore your Achilles tendon because you were engaged in the sexual equivalent of the Ice Capades. We'll just tell them you hurt it wrestling, that is the story, okay, you hurt it wrestling, nobody will be the wiser."

"I can do that, I guess," Edge said. "But what about the tag titles. Won't they strip Chris of them?"

"Not if I can help it," Stephanie said. "You just leave that to me."

Chris was worried for his tag titles come Monday. He didn't want to be stripped of his titles, but precedent seemed to be that he would have to give them up or put them on the line in some sort of tournament. He had no partner and he certainly couldn't compete for the Tag Championship alone. While he was definitely the best in the business, odds were still against him when it came to tag matches. He couldn't go against two guys.

Meanwhile, Stephanie was still trying to think of ways for Chris to keep the title. Technically, he should be able to keep them, but with people as guest hosts, they could change it on a whim and she had to face it, her husband could be pretty standoffish to a lot of people, downright rude and if he rubbed whoever was the guest host tonight the wrong way, he could be in for a world of trouble. It would do him no good to act like a jerk to whomever was in charge, but making Chris silent was impossible.

"Hey, Steph!"

Stephanie looked up and saw Hunter and someone else standing next to him. She wished she could say she knew who the guy was, but she didn't. "Hey, Hunter," Stephanie said, smiling warmly at him as she came over.

"Hey, have you met Seth yet, he's the host for tonight," Hunter said.

Stephanie turned to the other man, "Hi, it's nice to meet you, I'm--"

"Stephanie McMahon," Seth said. "I think everyone who knows wrestling knows who you are."

"Stephanie McMahon-Jericho to be exact," Hunter said, smirking at her as she rolled her eyes.

"Wait, I thought you guys were like married," Seth said, looking between them. "You're married to Chris _Jericho_, didn't you like hate him?"

"Yeah, a long time ago," Stephanie said. "Hunter and I were just pretending to be married. So you're the guest host tonight?"

"Yeah, I'm super excited. I love wrestling and I can't wait to be the host, I've got some things planned, definitely."

"Like what?" Stephanie said, then added, "just asking out of curiosity of course. I don't really run the show."

Hunter looked at her suspiciously. She was up to something. He'd known her far too long for something like this to slip by him. She was probably wondering what Seth was up to so she could plan some kind of counterattack in order to prove to her father that she was ready and willing to take over this job personally. He didn't know that it was mainly for Chris. Yes, she was able to put aside her own agenda on occasion when it involved someone she loved.

"Oh, just stuff, don't worry, not going to try to buy the company from you," Seth joked, but Stephanie didn't laugh.

"Well, that's good," was all she said, but she wanted more information. She probably wouldn't get any because he probably didn't really have anything planned. "Anything regarding my husband so I can let him know."

Seth shook his head, "Nope, can't say that I have anything planned for him."

"Well, okay, I've got to run, but it was nice meeting you," she said, giving him a smile and another handshake before leaving.

"Is she always that intense?" Seth asked Hunter as Stephanie walked away.

"She's much better when there's not a show going on. Shows make her tense, which make her...well, like you see her on TV."

"Oh, I get it."

Britt walked down the hallway and was then flanked by Randy and the rest of Legacy. "Seems like your boyfriend is trying to cozy up to that stupid guest host."

"Jealous?"

"What? Me? Jealous of someone like _that_? I don't think so. What's Hunter doing? Is he trying to get some kind of stipulation for the match?" Randy asked her, leaning down to try and intimidate her.

"Like he needs one and paranoid much?" she scoffed. "He's just trying to make the guy feel welcome. Unlike you, Randy, some people are nice even though they don't have to be. You're only nice when you want something."

"So? It's gotten me this far, why change?"

"Because people think you're an awful person?"

"Who cares what people think?" he told her. "So your little boyfriend isn't planning anything?"

"I don't watch him every second of every day," she told him. "What he does on his time is what he does on his time. Though, you know what, I'd be very afraid come Night of Champions. You're not a big, tough guy without that belt, Randy Orton and I think it would look much hotter around Hunter's waist than yours."

"He wishes," Randy said, leaning even closer. "You know I'm hot with the belt around my waist."

She reached up and patted him on the cheek. "Only in your own mind, sweetheart...and maybe Cody's."

Randy pulled away and stormed off, his lackeys tagging along after him. He was so predictable. He loved to come up to her and try and tell her all of Hunter's shortcomings. He was trying to get under Hunter's skin by getting under hers, like she would go complain to Hunter about Randy's behavior and that would throw Hunter off his game. It wasn't going to work though because she didn't tell Hunter and he wasn't going to lose focus because this was beyond her at this point. Hunter wanted the belt and whatever Hunter wanted, Hunter got.

"So then I'm telling this guy to try and hang on because there's bound to be a bathroom somewhere," Chris said as Katie laughed. "I swear, I would've jumped out the window if I'd had to stay any longer."

"That is so funny," Katie said. "I can't believe you went through that."

"Life of a wrestler, at least back in the day," Chris said. "Thanks for hanging out with me, I'm trying not to think of the whole Tag Team debacle."

"How is Edge, I heard that he got hurt last week during SmackDown, but the injury got worse the next day when he got up, like he tweaked it worse and went to the doctor."

Chris had to hand it to his wife, the story she'd come up with was being bought like water before a hurricane. "Yeah, it's a real bummer. The surgery went well though, so he's starting rehab."

"Are you going to get a new partner or are you going to carry four belts to the ring?" she asked cheekily. She turned to smile at Sawyer, who was just watching her talk while pushing a truck around the table. He really liked her. She was really pretty.

"I would completely do that too," he laughed.

"I know you would, it's why I suggested it," Katie told him.

"I'm not entirely sure. I don't want to just give up the belts, you know, but I won them with Edge so I'm not sure the protocol. I can still compete, but he can't."

"That is a sticky situation," Katie nodded.

"Sawa," Flynn said, looking straight at Katie like she was scrutinizing her and pondering why this woman was talking to her father.

"That's her word for Sawyer," Chris explained as Flynn slapped her hands on the table. She was standing up on one of Chris's legs, leaning over the table as far as she could. Chris kept his hand on her back to help her balance. "Stephanie's helping me out trying to figure out how to keep the belts."

"I don't think you'd get stripped of them, do you?"

"I'm just not sure. I'm sure everyone would love that."

"Oh, but they don't like Legacy any more than they like you," she said, then covered her mouth. "Oh, I'm sorry, not to imply that they don't like you or anything."

"Katie, come on, nobody out there likes me, they wouldn't care if I were stripped of the titles, but you do have a point in that they wouldn't be happy with Legacy having them either," Chris said. "Maybe they'd put other teams in."

"Perhaps."

"I just like being able to travel with the shows, you know?"

"You like the power, you mean?"

"Yeah, I guess I do."

"You know, your wife being who she is, you could probably have a lot more power than you do have already if you let yourself have it," Katie said, not knowing that this was something Chris had resolved never to do. He could remember the promise to himself. He'd made it the first night he'd slept with Stephanie. Their relationship had changed that night and he had vowed never to use Stephanie. He had mostly kept up that promise. He was with Stephanie because he loved Stephanie, not because he loved her last name, God, sometimes he wished she had any other last name than the one she had.

"Nah, I'll never go down that route."

"Oh no?"

"She's my gal, I don't want anything more from her. It was not my intention to marry my boss's daughter so why would I want anything from her but her?"

"Are you absolutely positive you don't have brothers?" she asked.

"Sorry, broke the mold," Chris said, gesturing to himself.

"Bollocks," Katie said.

Stephanie came up and sank into chair next to Chris, leaning her head on his shoulder. "An actor, Chris, an actor."

"Who? What actor? You're leaving me days before our seventh anniversary?"

"You two have been together for seven years?" Katie asked in wonder.

"Yeah," Chris beamed. "Seven years ago this Saturday, this woman was not able to resist my unbelievable charms and consented to go on a date with me where she instantly fell in love with me and decided right then and there that she must have me for all time and already started planning our wedding and children."

"I did not," Stephanie told him. "Don't listen to him, Katie. He's trying to make himself sound good. I wouldn't hug him and he came storming into my office demanding to know why like a spoiled child who didn't get a piece of candy at the store."

"Ahh, now that makes more sense," Katie laughed. "That's quite an accomplishment though, a long time, especially around here."

"She can't get enough of me," Chris said, kissing her head. "So what actor?"

"Seth Green, you know, from Buffy, he's the guest host tonight and it's not me and when will my dad _see_ _me_?"

"I'm sorry, baby," Chris said, grabbing her hand with his free one. "Is there anything I can do?"

Katie felt like she was intruding on a moment here. The two of them looked so at ease with one another. Flynn was patting Stephanie on the head and Chris was rubbing her hand absently. He probably wasn't aware he was doing it, but that only made it sweeter...and it made her jealous. She wanted someone like that, someone who cared about her like that and just instinctively knew how to make it better. Alas, she didn't have someone like that.

"You guys, I'm going to head off now," Katie said.

"You didn't have to leave," Stephanie told her.

"It's fine, you two look just adorable together and I didn't want to intrude."

"You're not intruding," Chris insisted.

"It's okay, good luck, I hope you find a way out of this whole thing," she told him, smiling and ruffling Sawyer's hair, which made him grin.

"Look at that," Chris said, nodding his head towards Sawyer. Stephanie looked at the boy and laughed. He was watching Katie leave. "That is so my son. I'm telling you, so my son."

"Chris, you were a complete dork when you were younger, didn't you like not even have a girlfriend in high school?"

"I had girlfriends in high school," he said defensively. "They just took a backseat to wrestling, not much has changed actually. Most everything still does take a backseat to wrestling since I'm here and never leaving."

"Anyways, an actor, I can't believe my father is doing this to me, but he did say he had no plans for you. So you're off the hook there, just don't go do something dumb, sweetie, as I know you sometimes do because you're you and you just love to antagonize people."

"I do not, I speak the truth, I do not antagonize people."

"You antagonized me for two years!"

"You were different, you were my future wife at that point, it was only natural that I antagonize you because how else would you notice me?"

"By talking to me like a civil human being and not calling me a slut or roadkill or a filthy, dirty, disgusting, brutal, bottom-feeding, trash-bag ho, that might've helped."

"But you wouldn't have noticed me, I just would've been some guy."

"Yeah, right, you, someguy, sure," she scoffed. "Just don't be stupid."

"I'm not stupid!"

Chris was stupid.

He knew he shouldn't have gone into Seth's office for the evening, he really did. Stephanie had warned him about fifty times not to stir the waters until she found something to make sure he couldn't be stripped of his titles by an overzealous fan who only got the chance to be on the show because he was famous. She'd warned him, but he went ahead and went inside the office anyways. He was not impressed by celebrity. In fact, he found celebrity had little to no place here. Actors were awkward here, they didn't get the wrestling world and he didn't like it.

Seth was just part of the pandering fans and Chris despised that. He was a glorified fan and now he was putting himself into wrestling matches. Chris had trained endlessly, had spent years being broke, had put his body through so much and yet here was this guy inserting himself into main events just because he could. Yes, this definitely rubbed Chris the wrong way and he couldn't just let this guy get away with it. He knew he shouldn't have gone in there. Seth had almost had him thrown out of the building, but Chris said that wasn't going to happen and Seth didn't dispute it probably because of what Stephanie had told him about Chris being her husband. She was one of the owners, which made him one of the owners and he didn't have to leave if he didn't want to.

Chris was just walking back from his act of stupidity when Stephanie came running up to him and nearly jumped on his back. "Stephanie, the back, watch the back."

"Sorry," she told him. "I found something."

"You did, where?" he asked.

"The first place we should've looked, your contract for Night of Champions. There's a clause in it that says if Edge were to get injured, you could choose any partner of your liking to become co-champion and defend them with you so you're in the clear and not only that, but you can choose whoever you want."

"Wow, that's awesome, you're the best," he said, picking her up and kissing her right there in the hallway. "I knew I was keeping you around for some reason...and where are our kids?"

"With Britt and Hunter," Stephanie said, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Do you still love me?"

"Love you, you found the clause, you're amazing, I love you, of course I do."

"Good," she said. "I was thinking though..."

"Oh no, what were you thinking."

"Well, I was talking with Edge..."

To corroborate Edge's story about getting injured while wrestling, Chris brought it up in his speech to the crowd. He kind of drug Edge's name through the mud, but in order to really weed out the undesirables for the coveted position next to him. If he was so willing to talk smack about his former partner, saying he was the weak link, then not just anyone would come out, only the most thick-skinned. Chris talked about Edge in a comparison to Achilles. They both seemed tough, but they had been felled by their weakness. In Achilles's defense though, his heel had been susceptible as it was the only place he wasn't dipped as a child and he had known all along that he was going to die young. Edge didn't know he was susceptible there and he certainly didn't predict his own injury.

He brought up the clause Stephanie had found, assuring everyone that Seth would have no bearing on his status as Tag champs. He stated that he was going to look for his new partner and Mark Henry came out. Chris had never really liked the guy. Stephanie had told of the outrageous contract they'd given him and Chris didn't think he was worth it. But he was big and that was a good thing. Mark started to suck up to him, obviously wanting to be his partner. Chris should've seen it coming though, what with Henry's recent reversal on Randy when he'd had to face him. Mark Henry was a two-face. God, he was stupid _again_.

Henry got him good and ripped his shirt off, which Chris didn't really see the point in after it happened. Was ripping his shirt off supposed to be intimidating? It was an expensive shirt so it hurt his wallet more than it hurt him. Chris fell out of the ring and got up slowly, taking off his tattered shirt. Really, what was the point in ripping his shirt? Chris was left in his tie and started to go up the ramp. But there was a match so he started going down the ramp again, pulling off his tie and throwing it to the side.

He teased getting in the ring and finally got inside. It was a mistake though because he hadn't been prepared to fight and certainly not against Mark Henry of all people. It was nearly over before it started and Chris hightailed it out of there. He wasn't obligated to wrestle here. Technically he was still SmackDown so he didn't even have to be here tonight. What mattered was finding a new tag team partner. That's what he had to focus on. He would need to find one quick. There had to be someone out there he could partner with, had to be someone he could work with.

But who?


	243. Seven Years, July 17 to 20, 2009

A/N: I really hope Chris wins on Sunday, I really love having him on all the shows, it's so awesome. Anyways, 7 years ago, I started this insane story and well, here we are, 7 years later, still working this story out and still having so much to tell even just with Trish and Christian alone. I didn't make the chapter too special, but it's got it's fluffy moments.

Anyways, as a kind of thing for the 7 years thing, I'm updating all my works in progress. I'll be updating them all over the next few days. I thought about updating them all at once, but that might be a little scary, so I'm doing it day by day. So that's that and I hope you enjoy the chapter and leave a review detailing how insane I am to be writing this 7 years after a supposed one-shot, reviews are awesome, thanks. :)

* * *

Chris held Flynn aloft and then pointed towards the doorbell. The little girl looked back at her father in question and he pointed to it again, holding her a little closer. She pressed the button this time, her face lighting up as she realized that she had made that loud sound she was hearing. She clapped her hands at her accomplishment and Chris put her back down on the ground. The door opened a second later and Lita smiled as she saw the family.

"Hey, you guys, thanks for coming," she said as she ushered them inside. "Edge will be glad for the company for a little while."

"We just wanted to come in and check on him."

"Heard about your guys' little accident," Chris snickered as Lita turned pretty red.

"Shut up," Lita said, trying to hold in her laugh. "It's not very funny, you know, the man got injured because of it."

"I still don't know what the hell you guys were doing to cause such an injury, you're dangerous to men, Li, you should just sequester yourself off before you injure anyone else," Chris joked. Lita shoved him in the shoulder as they walked into the living room where Edge had his foot up in its bandages, his crutches to the side of him. He smiled as he saw them enter. Sawyer was immediately drawn to the thing on Edge's leg and he went over and stared at it.

"Sawyer, be careful," Stephanie warned him.

Sawyer ran his hands over Edge's leg, "What is dis?"

Edge kind of laughed at the wonder on Sawyer's face. Only a little kid could be so fascinated by a cast. "I got hurt."

"You hurt bad?" Sawyer asked him, running his hand up and down Edge's leg now, like he was trying to soothe it. "It look bad."

"Thanks," Edge said. "It is bad."

"You be okay?" Sawyer asked, inspecting the bandages now. He'd never seen anyone this injured before. It looked like a big boo-boo. He'd never _ever_ had a boo-boo this big. One time he did have a little boo-boo on his hand that had to have bandages, but this was his _whole _leg. That was really big because he had a big leg.

"Eventually, I hope," Edge told him.

"So really," Stephanie said, sitting next to him, "what's the prognosis?"

Edge sighed and looked at his leg. He knew he was in for a lengthy recovery and he was really upset about the entire thing. He hadn't meant to get injured, but who really meant to get injured? Nobody set out to get injured unless they were one of those people who thrived off of pain and even then why would they want this for themselves? It wasn't like he and Lita were doing anything particularly strenuous. He had just had her in his arms and he'd been walking and he'd planted his foot wrong and down they'd gone. She'd landed on him as well so that just added insult to injury.

"The doctor said there's a good chance for full recovery, but there's also a chance...this could end my career."

"Are you serious?" Chris asked as he swatted away Flynn's hand, which was going towards his mouth. She reached again and he pretended to bite at her hand. "It's that serious?"

"Well, it's a tricky injury," Edge said, watching as Sawyer continued to look at his cast in fascination. "While it can heal and be perfectly fine, there's always the chance it won't and I might not be able to wrestle."

Lita came up behind Edge and started rubbing his shoulders. He looked up at her gratefully. She'd been the best thing through all of this. He couldn't imagine Vickie doing the same thing. She'd probably not even care that much, but Lita was there for him. She leaned down and wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek and he smiled.

"He's going to come back, mark my words," Lita said. "Nothing is going to keep this guy down and seriously not a stupid injury. He's going to bounce back and be better than ever."

"I hope so," he said, patting her arm.

"Did you guys want anything to drink?" Lita asked.

"I'm fine," Chris said.

"Me too," Stephanie answered.

"Sawyer, did you want anything to drink?" Lita asked.

"You have juice?" he asked.

"We have apple juice, do you want some?" she asked nicely.

"Yes," he said, then Stephanie cleared her throat and he looked at her and she gave him a look back, expecting something more. Then it dawned on him, "Pease?"

"Of course," Lita said, disappearing into the kitchen.

"She's been great," Edge said, looking fondly after his girlfriend. "She really does think that I'm going to be perfectly fine. I've let the doubt seep in unfortunately. I just don't want this to be the end of my career, you know, I mean, what a way to go out, without even trying."

"I'm sure you'll come back," Stephanie said.

"Even if I do, people are going to forget about me, probably," he said. He really had let the doubt in. He was feeling pretty low nowadays. He'd been riding high being the Unified Tag Champions with Chris. They were going to rule the WWE and everyone was going to fear them and now he was going to be stuck at home for months rehabbing his leg and it was always frustrating to be on the sidelines when you wanted to be in the game.

Chris couldn't understand. He'd never really been injured. The only significant amount of time he'd missed was because he'd chosen to take time off when Stephanie was pregnant with Sawyer and he wanted to pursue some other things. He'd never know what it was like to sit there and watch people wrestling and _wanting_ to be out there with them, but stuck, just plain stuck. It wasn't like he wished his friend injured or anything, but he just couldn't understand this point of view and thank goodness for that because it was a seriously sucktastic one.

His brother couldn't understand either. He couldn't remember a time when his brother had been seriously injured. Besides, even if Christian did get injured, his wife was having a baby so it wasn't like he didn't have things to do. He would have something to do, unlike Edge, who was just going to rehab and sit around and get rusty and everyone would forget about him. Yes, he was feeling especially low right now. In a rut even.

"Nobody's going to forget about you," Stephanie scoffed. "You're one of the top guys, nobody is going to forget about you, trust me."

"How do you know?" he asked miserably.

"Because I've been around...shut up, Chris," Stephanie said as Chris opened his mouth to make a snide remark, "and I've seen guys with injuries, hell, my own husband was injured and it was just as bad as what you've got now...again, shut up, Chris, I'm not talking about you. So yes, I've seen it and people were happy to see him back."

"You never let me have fun," Chris said as Lita came back out with Sawyer's juice. He took it from her gratefully and took a big sip, holding onto the glass with both hands. "Be careful with that, kid, we don't want to spill."

"It's okay," Edge said as Lita came over and sat next to him, "I spill all the time."

Stephanie smiled. "Here, how about this? You can be on SmackDown tomorrow night, we can set up an interview and you can talk to the fans and maybe just because you're rehabbing doesn't mean you can't make the occasional appearance, if you're really, really worried that everyone is going to forget you."

"You know what we should do," Chris said. "Make it look like we're fighting because you got injured and I'm mad at you."

"Why would we do that?" Edge asked. "I mean, we're friends."

"Exactly, but nobody else has to know that. If they think I'm pissed at you then when you _do_ come back, everyone will be like, oh, they're going to fight or something, and then we don't fight, tag again and beat up everyone like we're supposed to."

"Why does your brain work like that?" Lita asked.

"I'm afraid that's my fault," Stephanie said sheepishly. "He gets that deviousness from me, I've trained him quite well. And actually, that's a really good tactic, divide and conquer really. Edge makes everyone think he's the good guy in this situation and Chris makes himself look worse than he already does to people and then when you get back, Edge, everyone has been lulled by your seeming kindness and then you guys just take over like you were going to."

"I like it," Lita inputted. "Sounds good to me."

"I do kind of like that, it's a plan and it's just ours," Edge said, suddenly feeling a little bit better about this entire thing. He still hated the fact he was injured, but if he had to be at home while injured, at least he could be planning something for the moment he stepped back in the ring...if he stepped back in the ring. There was that nagging voice again, telling him that this was going to be it, that he'd have to hang it up. He wasn't ready to hang it up yet, but it loomed over his head like a dark cloud. "It'd be cool...you know, if I come back."

"You're going to come back."

"You go away, Ed?" Sawyer said, patting Edge's leg softly. Edge didn't even have the energy to correct the kid about his name. Maybe he'd actually resigned himself to being called Ed by Sawyer for the rest of his days...or at least until he could say it right.

"Well, I don't want to go away, but I don't know."

"Oh, you wefle with Daddy," Sawyer said.

"I can't for a while."

"Why? Cause you have boo-boo?"

"Yeah."

"It get better," Sawyer told him with a nod.

"Thanks, kid."

"So you want to be on the show tomorrow?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, put me on."

They arrived at the arena the next day and Stephanie was glad it was such a short flight. Her and Chris's anniversary was the next day and she didn't want to have to spend most of it flying. They would finish up with the show tonight, then catch the first plane tomorrow morning for Tampa and then tomorrow night she and Chris would be celebrating their seven year anniversary. She didn't usually like to get starry-eyed over her relationship, but she was allowing herself to be a little bit with this one. Seven years was, by far, her longest relationship. She and Chris were happy, their kids were happy and healthy and he was wrestling and while she didn't have the job she necessarily wanted, she was still with the company and working to the best of her ability.

"What's with the smile?" Chris asked as his head popped up over her shoulder.

"I was just thinking about you."

"Oh really, what about me? How I'm going to kick ass later tonight against Jeff and Rey and probably win the match single-handedly because of the inferiority of my tag team partner?" Chris asked cockily.

Stephanie turned to him and kissed the corner of his mouth. "Actually, I was thinking about tomorrow."

"Oh, so you were thinking about how lucky you are to be married to such a handsome man who has given you such amazing and gifted children and a life that you only dreamed of, is that it?" he asked.

"One of your gifted children is about to run away," Stephanie said, looking at Sawyer who was running down the hallway.

"Damn it," Chris said, chasing after him. Chris scooped him up and then brought Sawyer up to his face, "You know, kid, I'm trying to set an example around here as a tough guy and you're not helping the image if I have to chase after you all the time. I can't look tough if I'm running in a suit after my kid. Do you get what I'm saying?"

"I love you," Sawyer told him and gave him a kiss on his cheek.

"This is ruining my credibility too," Chris said, but then smiled and kissed Sawyer back, "I love you too."

"You better," he said, repeating what his mommy sometimes said when she told his daddy that she loved him.

"Stephanie, you're influencing our son again," Chris called back.

"What are you talking about?" she asked as she and Flynn caught up with them. Flynn was leaning as far as she could out of her stroller. She hated this stupid thing, but her mother insisted she sit in it and be pushed around when she could walk and Sawyer was walking and why couldn't she walk too? She contented herself with reaching for everything in sight, which seemed to make her mommy quite angry and it served her right for putting her in this thing.

"I just told the kid I loved him and you know what he said to me?"

"What?" she asked, honestly not knowing what Sawyer had said. At this age anything could come out of Sawyer's mouth. That's why they really had to watch what they said around him now because whatever they said, he could repeat back and they didn't want to get caught in any awkward situations.

"You better, sound familiar," Chris said.

Stephanie laughed, "You are too much like Mommy, baby boy." She kissed Sawyer's head. "Okay, I've got to go talk to Teddy about the match, you have the kids, right?"

"Yeah, my match isn't until the very end of the show. Are you going to tell Teddy about Edge?"

"Yeah, I'm planning on it," Stephanie told him. She kissed Chris on the lips. "See you later, you."

"When you're being all lovey-dovey, it really scares me, you know," Chris told her. "Makes me think that you're plotting against me or something. _Are_ you plotting against me? Because I've always felt that if you were going to leave me, you were going to do it on one of our anniversaries, just to add a little pop to it. Are you planning on leaving me tomorrow? Or maybe you're going to tell me you've been cheating on me with Ted!" Chris gasped. "Oh my God, that's it, isn't it, you and Ted!"

"If I were with Ted, you'd know it because I wouldn't hide it," she said, sticking her tongue out at him. They both could hear Flynn giggle beneath them. She really did love her funny faces. "It _would_ be very mean of me though, you know, since you're going to be fighting with him in a little over a week. It would completely throw you off your game. In fact, it would assure that you would lose and make Ted win."

"Okay, you're thinking this way too thoroughly for me, away with you," Chris said, pushing her a little. "I can take over from here with the kids...if they're my kids."

"Look at Sawyer and tell me that's not your kid."

"Could've been any blond-haired, blue-eyed, handsome, most gorgeous man," Chris shrugged.

"Goodbye," she said, dragging the word out. She walked down the hallway thinking back over her relationship with Chris. Seven years ago right now, she was anticipating her return to the company. Her father had called her and asked her if she wanted to be the GM. Apparently back then her father trusted her more than he did now. She wasn't exactly sure how that worked, but that seemed to be the case. She wasn't even thinking about Chris before her return. She was so happy to be back, to have a job she loved again and Chris had been the farthest thing from her mind.

But there he was that night, barging into her dressing room, angling for a hug she just couldn't give. She'd wanted to of course, she'd almost hugged him, very nearly did, but couldn't. Her heart held her back. She'd remembered that last night they'd spent, their disaster of a match and their bittersweet goodbye complete with his apology for not protecting her like he should have even though she certainly hadn't made it easy on him. Did she ever make things easy for him? All she'd brought into the marriage was drama and plans and deviousness beyond measure. How the hell did he put up with her?

"Teddy, sorry I'm late."

"It's not a problem, Stephanie."

"Our flight left late, it was a whole ordeal," she explained. "Anyways, first things first, I've got Edge hooked up by satellite to give an interview tonight. He'd like to address the fans and I think that it would be a good opportunity for him if he did get that time."

"I'm completely fine with that," Teddy said. "I think he should get the chance to address his fans since the injury didn't happen on camera."

"I was hoping you would say that."

Chris walked down the hallway with his kids, popping wheelies every now and then to make Flynn laugh and squeal. Sawyer was actually slowing down for once, holding onto Chris's pocket as they walked down the hallway. He'd have to meet with Dolph Ziggler to talk about their match later on. He didn't really trust the kid, but after he'd taken out Rey Mysterio, he at least could respect him a little bit. Maybe he'd make a good partner for Night of Champions, he could wait and see.

It was pretty cool to have the power to choose who he wanted to be tag partners with. It gave him a modicum of power that he'd not gotten just from being Stephanie's husband. A lot of the privileges he did get came from Stephanie, but this was all his own. He could assess and pick and choose whoever he wanted to be partners with. That's why he hesitated settling for Dolph Ziggler. The guy was still a rookie and didn't have much experience in a tag match.

Not that Cody and Ted were exactly veterans, but they had the added advantage of being familiar with each other. They'd tagged for a while now so they knew the others strengths and weaknesses. While Chris had held the Tag Titles before, most of his partners were gone. Rocky was off being a movie star and calling Chris to gloat about what he was doing now, Benoit was gone (that thought still pricked his heart), Edge was injured, but that did leave Christian. Christian had a match that night too so he probably wasn't up for having another one, though he could certainly ask if Christian would be up for it.

He wouldn't mind being Tag Champs with Christian once again. If Hunter...wait, no, everyone loved Hunter right now so he couldn't ask him, he would think his reputation would go downhill if that were the case. Though having Hunter as his partner would certainly help him and they'd probably wipe the floor with Cody and Ted. There were just so many possibilities. Would Big Show be up for it? But he had a match this Sunday as well. God, everyone who was worthy anything already had a match. How was he going to find a decent partner in time? He didn't want to lose the Tag Titles on such a technicality. Even if he had to take Hornswoggle (which he hoped he didn't), he would give it his all.

"Daddy?"

Chris looked down at Sawyer. "What?"

"Where we go?" he asked, looking ahead of him. Chris looked up and realized he'd walked himself and his kids straight into a dead end.

Chris had to laugh at that, "I'm sorry, kid, I just have a lot on my mind."

"What?" Sawyer asked.

"Just my match coming up. I don't want to lose my belts."

"Oh," Sawyer said, that was serious business. He didn't want his daddy to lose his belts either. When his daddy had them, he could play with them when he didn't have his with him. His daddy had a lot more belts at home, but they were all in frames and boxes and stuff and he was never allowed to play with those even though they were shiny and very cool.

"Yeah."

"Do you even have a partner, Jericho?"

Chris turned around and saw Rey smirking at him. Chris just stared at him a moment, "What's it to you, Mysterio? You want to be my partner, is that it, because if anyone is unworthy to be my partner, it's you."

"Yeah, right, me, be your partner, you wish," Rey told him. "Face it, nobody's going to want to tag with you because you're an asshole and nobody likes you except maybe your wife and from what I hear, that's debatable."

Chris wasn't going to fall for that, but had to inquire anyways, "Oh, from what you hear and enlighten me, Rey, what exactly do you hear?"

"Nothing much, just that she has a wandering eye, just that she's been eyeing someone, trying to make them husband number three," Rey said smugly and Chris was actually tickled by this assessment. Was Stephanie's crush on Ted actually becoming backstage gossip. Oh, she was going to love this. He was going to get to make fun of her mercilessly for this and that made him grin.

"Oh, that's too bad," Chris said. "And here I thought I'd actually last with her, I guess I was dead wrong and nobody liking me? Harsh, that's so harsh. I guess I'm just going to have to go crawl in a hole or something because nobody likes me, everybody hates me, guess I'll go eat some worms."

"No eat worms," Sawyer muttered to Chris. That was gross, nobody should want to eat worms."

"Oh look, someone who likes me, what do you know?" Chris said, then looked at Flynn. "Oh man, there's another one who likes me! Look, Rey, just because I've called you out and exposed you for the coward that you are doesn't mean that you have to be so snippy about it. It's okay though, I remember what you look like under there, I understand that you have to wear the mask in order to hide that ugly mug of yours, but we'd all be better off if you stopped hiding like a little baby and showed your face."

"At least I'm a hero to a lot of people."

"Fans are worthless, they don't help me, their boos only spur me on," Chris said. "Come on, kid, let's get away from the scary guy in the mask."

"You scary," Sawyer told him as they walked past.

"Don't you love kids?" Chris said cheekily as he and the kids walked away. Well that was satisfying. He turned to Sawyer and held up his right hand, "Give me five, kid."

"Okay!" Sawyer said, slapping Chris's hand as hard as he could.

"Good one," Chris said. "You were great back there, Mommy and I have taught you well. We don't like that guy back there, huh?"

"No, he mean," Sawyer said.

"Yes, and we don't repeat what he said, right?"

"Right, he mean," Sawyer said again. He didn't like to be around mean people. "You wefle him?"

"Yeah, I'm going to wrestle him later tonight with someone named Dolph Ziggler, I don't think you've met him yet, even though he's introduced himself to nearly everyone on the entire roster. I'm actually surprised he hasn't introduced himself to you simply for the suck-up factor."

"What dat?"

"When you want to impress someone who has more power than you do so you act like you adore them or something. You have power."

"I do?" Sawyer asked, his eyebrows crinkling together. He had power? What exactly was power? Was it good? "What pow'r?"

"Power is when you have control. You know how Mommy tells everyone she's ever met what to do? And then the person goes and does it? That's power."

"I have dat?"

"Well, you will because Mommy and Grandpa Vince and Grandma Linda, and Uncle Shane all own everything here and someday, it's going to be all yours, all of this, the wrestlers, the rings, the sets, everything. You may even be _my_ boss," Chris said, making a face, which Flynn laughed at.

"No, Daddy, I no do dat," he said, but he didn't really know what he wasn't going to do. They finally reached the locker room and Sawyer ran inside, waving his arms in the air, but there were no toys or anything to play with. Where was everything? His daddy helped out though by getting all the toys of out of the bag and setting them up. Flynn was now whining and trying to figure out how to unbuckle herself from her stroller. Chris knelt in front of her and helped her out.

"Let me get that, flutterby," Chris said, kissing her forehead as she smiled at him. She knew she liked this guy. He let Flynn out and she toddled over happily to Sawyer and sat down as they played with some of the toys. There was a knock on the door and Chris went over and opened it. "Oh, hey, Dolph, Maria."

"Hey, I hope you don't mind that I tagged along, I just can't get enough of this guy," Maria said, beaming at Dolph. Chris had seen this little thing they had going with each other and he didn't know what to make of it, so he didn't. Hell, he and Stephanie had been known to engage in a little broom closet fun so who was he to impede on someone else's fun?

"It's not a problem, come on in. You here to talk about the match later?"

"Yeah, I was, I want to win and since you're such a fantastic wrestler, I thought you would give me some pointers."

Well, at least the kid got something right. "Absolutely, we really should talk strategy. I want to win tonight too."

"Oh, your kids are here!" Maria exclaimed loudly, making Sawyer and Flynn both turn their heads towards this new voice. "Do you mind if I play with them?"

Even though Maria had gotten a little bit smarter since she'd first entered the company, there were still remnants of that old Maria still lingering around. "Yeah, sure, go ahead."

"Awesome," she giggled as she went and sat down next to Sawyer. "Hi, I'm Maria."

"Hi," Sawyer said, looking at her a little distrustfully. He didn't really know who this woman was. It wasn't his mommy and it wasn't Trish, not Britt or his Aunt Marissa, and certainly not Katie, or even Lita, no, he didn't really know who this woman was.

"Can I play with you guys?"

Sawyer took pause and then handed Maria one of the trucks he'd been playing with, tentatively pulling his hand away from his truck. He hoped she didn't steal it. He'd have to watch her and make sure that she didn't take any of his toys. Maria made little truck noises and that warmed him up to her a little bit more. Chris invited Dolph to sit down at the desk with him. Chris took the seat behind the desk as Dolph sat in front of it.

Chris and Dolph talked about how they wanted to approach the match. Dolph didn't know as much as he did obviously, so Chris took charge of the conversation. Chris was the one with the experience so he took it upon himself to let the rookie know how things went around here. Dolph was pretty receptive to what he was saying and Chris was starting to rethink his prior hesitation at having Dolph as his partner. The rookie listened to him and he had to admit, he kind of liked the idea of a lackey. He hadn't had one since Lance Cade and that had been a while ago.

"Thanks for talking with me," Dolph said. "I know that we can win tonight. You're the best wrestler here, I have to admit. Nobody knows what they're talking about when they say you're not the face of SmackDown."

"Thanks, man," Chris said, his ego inflating a little. He didn't even care that he knew Dolph was saying this because he was a brown-noser. He just liked hearing it, no matter who the source was.

"I really look forward to being your partner and you know, if you're still in need of a partner for Night of Champions, don't hesitate to ask me, but you probably already have a partner, I mean, who wouldn't want to tag with you, right?"

"I'm actually still weighing my options," Chris told him.

"Oh, well in that case, if you really do need someone, I would love to tag with you and I wouldn't let you down at all."

"Yeah, we'll see what happens."

"Cool, cool," Dolph said eagerly. "Okay, well, I'll let you go, or I'll go, I'll go, come on, Maria, let's go."

"Okay," Maria said, then turned to Sawyer, "bye, it was fun playing with you."

"Thank you," Sawyer said, not really knowing how to respond to that so he went with the most polite thing that he knew and that was to say thank you. Maria stood up and went over to Dolph, smiling flirtily at him as they walked out of the room. He really kind of didn't see what Maria saw in him, but that wasn't his problem, his problem was his match tonight and finding a partner for Night of Champions. That's what he had to focus on, that and making sure what went down with Edge tonight went perfectly.

Edge was nervous, but also kind of giddy about the plan tonight. He'd been a part of many plans, but the timing for this had to be perfect. He couldn't break character now. Stephanie was on the phone with him, telling him how long it would be until he was on and being recorded. He went over with her what he was going to say and she approved heartily. Finally, it was time for him to be recorded for his interview. The camera light turned red and he looked at the camera, trying to look especially pathetic. It wasn't hard, he found that he was feeling down a lot lately.

The first part of the interview was just him stating the truth. He talked about how his injury could be career-threatening and it hurt him to have to say those words and mean it. He wished that part of the interview was something he'd fabricated. Still, Lita reassured him time and time again that he was going to come out of this fine and he'd be better than ever. He couldn't figure out exactly how he'd be better than ever, but he loved her all the more for trying with him. It was something he really needed right now and he was really grateful she was so supportive.

When he started talking about Chris's comments about him, he knew Chris was going to show up soon and Chris didn't disappoint. Edge pretended to act like seeing Chris was the last thing he wanted to do. It wasn't that hard, he just thought back to when he was mad at him for not including him in the huge plan with him and Stephanie pretending to split up. But now they had a new plan and he was one of the main players. He wasn't even sure Christian knew about this so it was really big.

Chris came out and started talking about how Edge had let him down and how Edge wasn't here to defend the titles. He really laid it on thick, but Edge had known what to expect so nothing came at him out of the blue. Chris talked about how Edge's titles came from politicking while his had been earned. That was crap though because Edge hadn't politicked his way into all his titles and Chris hadn't earned all _his_ titles. Edge nearly laughed at that because it was such an over-the-top Chris thing to say. He held it together though as Chris went on to talk about how he'd never been injured.

Chris knew he was lucky to have never been injured and he hoped he wasn't jinxing himself before his match. He didn't know why he was so tough. Maybe it was because his dad was a hockey player and hockey players were notoriously tough. He didn't know, but he knew he was lucky. He called Edge frail, but injuries were so prevalent in this business that he was the exception to the rule rather than the rule. Edge was coming off looking great too. The crowd was really behind him and he was already garnering sympathy. Their plan was working to perfection and they'd be ruling again in no time.

In the meantime though, he had to partner with Dolph Ziggler. Chris tried to spend the match observing what kind of partner Dolph would be. He didn't seem bad necessarily, at least not at first. He wasn't a great partner though and he certainly didn't have his back at the end of the match when Punk was grabbing him and throwing him right into Jeff Hardy. He didn't appreciate that and made sure to send a glare Punk's way. It was so cute of him to think that he could really be a bad guy around here, that he could break free of that mold of the little straight edge good guy.

Nobody was in Chris's league and to prove that, he pushed Jeff back into the ring and hit the Codebreaker on him. Then Chris locked in the Walls of Jericho. It was partly in retaliation for losing to Jeff and Rey, but it was also partly to send a message to Punk. Just because Chris was occupied with the Tag Titles didn't mean that he didn't still have his eye on the World Title. Punk was certainly not worthy to hold the belts and once Chris had his partner and his tag belts, he'd set his eyes on Punk and see if he couldn't carry around three belts instead of just two. Punk's problem was that he didn't focus on everyone. He was so into Jeff right now, he didn't see the people lurking behind his back.

He forgot all about that the next day though. It was his anniversary and even though most of the time he and Stephanie were thinking about the business, today was not that day. He sat in the living room reading a guitar magazine as he waited for Stephanie to get ready. She was upstairs and had been upstairs for hours now getting ready. He'd just showered, combed his hair, put the gel in it, styled it, put on his suit, got the right cufflinks, put on some cologne and been ready (to him, this was nothing). Stephanie, on the other hand, was doing God knows what.

Flynn screamed and Chris put his magazine down. "Sawyer, what are you doing with your sister?"

"I not do anyfing," Sawyer said, but he looked guilty of something.

Flynn was trying to grab the ball out of Sawyer's hand. "Did you take her ball?"

"It mine before," Sawyer told him.

"Was she playing with it?"

"But I did too."

"Was she playing with it?" he asked again.

"Yes," Sawyer said, sighing, knowing what was coming next. He loved his baby very much, but sometimes he wanted to play with his toys and she had them and he couldn't have them because she had them first even though they were _his_ to begin with so she should've had to ask him to play with them in the very first place.

"Then please give it back and when she's done with it, then you can play with it."

"Fine," Sawyer said, shoving the ball at Flynn. She took it happily and let it roll away before she walked after it.

"Stephanie! Are you done yet!"

"Almost!" she yelled back.

"Where you go?" Sawyer asked.

"I'm taking Mommy out for our anniversary."

"Oh, okay," Sawyer said, then remembered, "What annibesy?"

"It's when you celebrate a date where something big happened. Like a birthday, but it's not anyone's birthday. Like today we're celebrating how Mommy and I have been together for seven years. You weren't even there when that happened."

"I was," Sawyer said. He was always around.

"No you weren't, I think I'd remember Mommy having you there if you were. Besides, me and your mommy hadn't even been together enough to have a baby, let alone you. So sorry, kid, you weren't there."

"I am, Daddy," Sawyer told him.

"No, you weren't."

"I am," Sawyer whined as his ball rolled past him and Flynn started chasing after it again. She couldn't throw it, but she just kind of let it drop and then it would roll away and she'd go after it. "I am."

"Okay, okay, you were there in spirit, telling me and Mommy to get together because you _needed_ to be born," Chris gave in.

"I'm ready."

Chris looked up and his breath was snatched away from him. Stephanie looked absolutely gorgeous. They hardly ever got to dress up anymore since they always had the kids with them and they were not conducive to dresses and high society events. Her hair was down and wavy, just the way he liked and she was wearing a black dress that really complimented all her assets and she just looked impeccable. He shook his head, not even knowing that to say.

Luckily, Sawyer did. "Mommy, you pwetty."

"Thank you," she said, kneeling next to Sawyer and kissing the top of his head.

"You w'come," he told her before he went back to the picture book he was trying to navigate his way through. Stephanie and Chris had noticed that he had a burgeoning interest in reading lately and wondered if that meant he would actually start to read soon, which would be quite the accomplishment and meant Stephanie could put him to work if she wanted to.

"Chris?" she asked, giving him an expecting smile.

"Wow, I'm going to have to second that pretty thing because you look incredible," he said, standing up and walking over to her, giving her a hug. "Wow, seriously, you just...wow..."

"So after seven years, I can still get that kind of reaction, you rock, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho," she said, pumping her fist a little.

"You're getting more than just that kind of reaction," he told her, winking at her.

She pushed him a little in the chest. "You look great too."

The doorbell rang and Stephanie and Chris went to answer it. Christian and Trish were on the other side and Trish immediately hugged Stephanie, "Congratulations, you two, I'm so happy for you guys, seven years, that's amazing."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, hugging her back. "So you ready to take on the terrible twosome."

"Yes, we need all the practice we can get now since we're going to be having a kid on February 24th of next years, that's the due date in case you didn't know," Christian said.

"We know," Chris and Stephanie said in unison. They'd only heard it a million times. By the time this pregnancy was over, Christian was going to be downright intolerable. It was one thing to be excited, but it was quite the other to repeat everything a million times until you felt like it was a drill going right into your soul.

"Sorry, I was just reminding you," Christian said.

"Don't mind him, I will, at some point, get him to contain this excitement and point it towards something useful, like winning the ECW Championship at Night of Champions."

"I can't help it if I'm excited about my child, isn't that what being a good father is all about? Help me out here, Chris!"

"I don't get excited when I have to change diapers," Chris said, "or when I have to let my kid sleep in my bed because he has a nightmare."

"Seriously, you two, get out of here, Christian and I have everything covered. Go, have a great time, you deserve it, you guys are our model couple...you know, minus the lying and egotism and scheming and everything."

"Wow, you make us sound so perfect," Chris said, his voice dripping with false admiration.

"Out!" Trish said, pushing them out the door. She and Christian walked into the living room and Sawyer's eyes lit up when he saw them, running straight for his buddy Christian. They decided to split up and Christian took Sawyer to the kitchen to work on an art project that he and Trish had cooked up for tonight. They thought it might be nice if they made a big, huge card for Chris and Stephanie from Sawyer and Flynn. Sawyer was really into art projects now so it was something right up his alley.

After working on it for a while, Trish and Flynn came in to see the progress. Flynn was playing with Trish's necklace as Trish held her against her hip. They walked over to the table and saw Sawyer trying to get the hang of his kiddie scissors, cutting shapes out of it and then having Christian help him paste the shapes onto a big piece of posterboard they'd folded in half. Sawyer was telling Christian where to put all the shapes to make a beautiful collage.

"Sawyer, that looks great," Trish complimented as she sat next to him on the other side. Trish handed Flynn over to Christian so she could help Sawyer for a while. "You're doing a great job."

"Thank you," he said, concentrating on his cutting techniques.

"I wish you would make me a card like this," she told him.

"Why you want one?" he asked.

"Well, maybe you can make me one when I have my baby," she told him.

This piqued Sawyer's interest to the highest degree and he put down the paper and scissors and turned towards Trish. "You have baby!"

"Well, I'm going to have a baby," Trish told him. "I'm going to have a baby next February. My baby is still inside of me."

"Oh, in tummy," he said, patting his own stomach. "Dat where Fwynn was."

"Yes, that's exactly right, I have a baby right where Flynn was."

"I have baby, my Fwynn," Sawyer said, pointing at his little sister who was running her hand over the card. She liked the feel of the paper and it was a lot of pretty colors. She wanted to help with it because she liked it.

"I know, she's a great baby. I'm very excited to have a baby of my own."

"My baby too?"

Christian laughed. "If he takes claim over our kid too, I don't know what we're going to do."

"Well, of course it can be partly your baby, you guys will definitely be friends and you know all about babies because you take care of Flynn, huh?"

"I do, I do," he said excitedly.

"Then my little one can be yours too, how does that sound? I can share him or her."

"I have more baby!" Sawyer said, reaching out to pat Trish's stomach. "No big tummy. My Mommy have tummy."

"I know, but that's because I'm not very far along, so you'll have to keep this a secret, okay, but then we can tell everyone about the baby and you can brag about it, you and Christian will be like two peas in a pod, both bragging about babies."

"Okay," Sawyer said, still patting Trish's stomach. "Hi baby, I Sawyer."

Trish smiled over Christian's head. "Too cute for words. Now come on, kiddo, let's get to making that card for Mommy and Daddy, shall we?"

Chris never did tell Stephanie exactly where he was taking her. Stephanie kept thinking they were going really out of the way and she wondered if Chris had another party planned. He better not because she was not in the mood for a party like the one he had sprung on her for their five year anniversary. They finally arrived at the beach and Chris parked the car. She looked around but didn't see any restaurants very close by. There wasn't much of anything.

"Come on," Chris said, "Let's go."

"Where are we going?" she asked.

"Dinner."

"If I hadn't been with you for seven years, I'd be slightly worried," she said, stepping out of the car and taking Chris's hand. "Where are you taking me?"

"I'm going to drown you," he said sardonically, "what do you think I'm going to do, I'm taking you to dinner, come on."

"Okay."

Chris led her over to a set of stairs and he helped her walk down them. She was so concentrated on not falling that she kept her head down to look at each step, making sure she got her whole foot on and didn't make a tumble down the stairs and get hurt on her anniversary. They finally reached the bottom and she looked up slowly to see a trail on the beach. It was just a white tarp thing with rocks on the side holding it down. She looked at Chris and he smiled at her. She looked up and a little ways down the beach there was a table set up with twinkly lights all around, obviously on a portable battery because where the hell else would he have gotten lights on the beach.

"What is this?"

"Dinner," he explained as they walked down the pathway. "You know, it's amazing what people are willing to do for you when you're rich. I never knew how many doors it could open, but it did take a little bit of planning."

"You know what this reminds me of?"

"What?"

"The anniversary we spent in that garden, remember? I think it was the first one after we'd had Sawyer."

"Oh, yeah, I remember that. I guess I just like seeing you amidst pretty things." She rolled her eyes as they reached the table and he helped her to her seat.

"So are you serving us?"

"Everything should've been left here."

"How did it get here?"

"I called in favors, don't worry about it, everything will be returned and we won't have to do a thing. The food should be here too so we just eat and do what we want and oh! I almost forgot," he said, going over to a portable stereo and putting on a CD. "A little mood music."

"You're very cheesy when you're in love."

"I know," he joked, then sat down with her. The food could wait for a little while. "So...another year down, assess me."

"Well, in the past year, you have given me a daughter, who is every bit as lovable as her brother and sweet and funny and smart as a whip and who can walk and will probably be a cinch to potty train. Plus, you've had a very good year wrestling, which I commend you for and you went in on a plan where I pretended to divorce you, which puts you over the top for an A, you get an A-plus this year, definitely a great year, so come on, me?"

"Well, crushes on Ted aside, you've asked me to fake divorce you, that gets a solid D, I mean, really, but then you were the one that actually gave birth to Flynn, so that's like an A-triple plus, so I'd give you a solid A."

"So this time next year?"

"I love you," he told her.

"What was going through your mind when you first kissed me?" she wondered.

"I think it was something like, 'Oh my God, I'm kissing Stephanie McMahon.' I wasn't really thinking when I kissed you, I just knew I needed to kiss you."

"What were you thinking the first time we slept together?" she asked.

"Oh, you know what I was thinking then," he joked, "but honestly, I thought I could get used to this, but that I should savor every moment in case I never got to do that with you again. Who knew I wouldn't get to do it with anyone else since then."

"I love you too, by the way."

"Oh, by the way, that's nice," he said, stroking her hand. "Are you happy?"

"I am," she told him, "are you happy?"

"More than you know...well, not really about wrestling, but us, yes, very happy," he added. "Very, very happy."

Chris started off Monday pretty happily. He and Stephanie were going great, his kids had presented him with an awesome card that he wanted to show up, and ZZ Top was going to be on Raw tonight and he'd get to meet them. He was a fan of their music and he'd never met them before so tonight would be a great opportunity for him to meet them. Maybe...and this was a big maybe, they'd let him jam with them. If he could play with them, that would be incredibly awesome.

"Do you think they're here yet?" Chris asked.

"I don't know," Stephanie said, amused by her husband's eagerness.

"Do you think it'd be weird if I went and introduced myself...that'd be weird, right? Yeah, that'd be weird. They just seem like cool guys, you know, laid-back, easy going. I bet they are."

"Why don't you go find them and introduce yourself?"

"Should I? I don't know, I don't want to seem weird."

"Chris, you own part of the company, you can just introduce yourself to them and say that you're glad their here, that you own part of the company and just talk to them."

"Oh yeah, I own part of the company," he said. Sometimes it slipped his mind that he wasn't just a wrestler here, that he actually co-owned part of the company and, if he wanted, could do whatever he wanted, within reason and what Stephanie would let him do anyways. "Okay, I think I will go talk to them, yeah, I will."

"Good for you!" Stephanie said, slugging him in the shoulder. "You're awfully cute when you get excited about meeting someone famous."

"How come you never get excited about meeting anyone famous, isn't there anyone famous that you would go to pieces meeting, I mean, for me, I think meeting someone like Paul McCartney would be the pinnacle of my life. I would have to separate it into two parts, before Paul and after Paul. Don't you have anyone like that? You've never mentioned it."

"I don't have anyone."

"That's very sad."

"Okay, maybe John Cusack, but I certainly wouldn't separate my life into before John and after John."

"This is Paul McCartney we're talking about here, Steph, not just some Joe Schmo off the street. This is one-quarter of The Beatles, do you get that, the Beatles."

"I know who he is and I know you love him, now go, go talk to guys you admire, I'm encouraging you to go."

"Okay," he said giddily as he walked out of the locker room. He was walking around when he ran into Hunter, who was all alone. "Hey, man."

"Hey, you're here."

"Of course I'm here, I'm allowed here."

"I just figured you might not show with Edge being gone."

"Okay, weird thought, where's Britt?"

"Didn't make the trip this week, her mom is having surgery, nothing major, just an appendectomy, but she wanted to be there for her and I encouraged it. It takes her away from Randy, who has been harassing her again. I swear, I don't even care if John wins at Night of Champions, I just want Randy to lose. He's taking things too far again and I don't want Britt caught in the crossfire this time."

"You not caring if someone else wins the title, what has this girl done to you?"

"I have no idea, where are you going, though?"

"I was going to go meet ZZ Top. I'm a fan," Chris said. "I didn't know if I should go over there, you know, didn't want to seem like a weirdo or something, but Stephanie was right, I own part of the company, I can just go in there and tell them I'm part of the ownership of Raw and wanted to make sure everything was to their liking." Hunter laughed. "What's so funny?"

"You sound like a kid trying to explain something."

"I do not," he said, then realized he probably sounded like a kid right then. "Not that much anyways."

"So you and Steph, seven years, huh?"

"Did she just get a bullhorn and announce it to everyone?"

"She may have mentioned it when we talked. I think she was trying to rub it in my face that you two have been together more than twice as long as we were together."

"Well, she didn't like the quality you were giving her, so she upgraded and she's very happy with the upgrade."

"Okay, ZZ Top fanboy."

"You take that back!" Chris said.

"You take back the crack about Stephanie," he bargained.

"I can't take back what is true, man, I just can't take back what is true," Chris said, shaking his head. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have ZZ Top to meet with. And I won't make a fool out of myself or anything, just you wait and see, they'll probably even invite me to play with them, which I will accept gracefully."

"You've thought too much about this, did you hear who's coming on next week?"

"Who?" Chris asked.

"Shaquille O'Neal."

"The basketball player?"

"Do you know any other Shaquille O'Neal's that are famous enough to be a host of Raw?"

"No...you know, Steph is kind of insulted that she hasn't been asked by her father. I mean, yeah, she was _just_ the GM and everything at the beginning of this year, but she was looking forward to her father asking after he reneged on his word to her that she could be the permanent GM."

"I don't blame her. I mean, these guys are all cool and everything, but I don't know, it feels weird letting these guys run the show. We're here day in and day out and they're not and yet they get to decide on what we do, it's not very fair."

"That's my way of thinking. It's great that these guys are wrestling fans, all the more power to them, but they don't know what we do."

"Yeah, I know what you mean."

"Thank God I'm not the only one. And I'm not even on this show officially."

"Well, it's a Vince idea, you don't have to be on this show to be mad about something Vince has done."

"True, very true," Chris said. "See you later, good luck with your match tonight."

"Thanks," Hunter said. Chris went off in search of where ZZ Top was and found it pretty quickly, but he found himself kind of nervous to go in. Santino ended up getting in there before him so he waited outside so as not to seem too eager or anything. He waited and waited, but Santino wasn't coming out. He figured he might have gone out another way so he straightened his back and then turned to walk inside, but he stopped. Okay, calm, collected, he went inside.

He was excited at first to see them, mentioning his own band, Fozzy, which was going to be coming out with a new CD very soon. But they didn't seem to know of the band or maybe they were joking with him and they actually knew his bad and were just being really funny with him. Funny turned to not funny when they told him he had a match against Mark Henry. Chris asked them how that was possible, how was he going to wrestle Mark Henry. Santino got in on the act, trying to make this funny, but it was not funny at all.

He was fuming mad actually. How could they do this to him? He'd been so anxious to meet them and then they turn out to be jerks to the highest degree. He shouldn't have to put up with this, but he was obligated to because under the contract of the Tag Titles was the clause that he could be on all shows, but would have to obey the rules of said show. He was regretting that stupid contract now. He didn't want to wrestle against Mark Henry. He was always so sweaty and disgusting and he wasn't even a great wrestler, he was just big.

"Well that was a downer," Chris said as he got back to his loccker room.

"What was?" Stephanie asked, looking up from some itineraries for the Night of Champions. She had to make sure everyone arrived on time. "You mean the thing with Kendrick?"

"No, I mean ZZ Top being unfair, what thing with Kendrick?"

"He said you and him should be partners."

Chris scoffed, "Yeah, right, like I'd choose him, I like to think I have better taste than someone who dances to the ring like he does."

"I know, but you're not really giving people anything to work with. You need to pick a partner so you can get in sync with each other. You don't want to chance that and then lose the belts, do you?"

"That wasn't in the plan."

"Then you have to choose someone!"

He had other things to worry about first, like his match with Mark Henry. When he got into the ring later that evening with the man, he was coming to hate ZZ Top. Mark Henry treated him like a doll at points, throwing him around without abandon. It was not a good place to be or a nice thing to feel. Henry was an oaf to be sure, but Chris had not been mentally or physically prepared for this match, so he was not as sharp as he usually was. One only need to watch his match against Rey on SmackDown to see how good he was. But wrestling Henry was like wrestling with a brick wall, it wasn't going to budge.

Chris decided to end the match by any means and when he got the opportunity he took the chair and whacked Henry with it, disqualifying himself, but without any regret. He was not going to fight this match that was so erroneously given to him. He didn't care if the people wanted to see more of him getting beat up. He put his foot down on this one. After the match, he tried for the Codebreaker, but Henry caught him and slammed him. Chris was getting the hell out of here. He was pissed for being put in a match on such short notice by two people who were not used to running a show.

He told Stephanie they were leaving so she got her things ready and the kid's things ready while Chris changed and showered. They were gone when he left and he grabbed his things and started for the car when he ran into Ted and Cody, who were there to talk crap to him. They said they wouldn't attack him because they wanted to see his partner for Sunday. God, what did Stephanie see in Ted, he was such a jackass. Then they called out his father, which was over-the-line, if they so much as dared mention his mom, he would not be able to hold back.

He just retaliated with the truth, that he'd held more titles than Cody and his father combined. He was a champion among champions, a Grand Slam champion even, neither one of them could say that. And sure, he was egotistical, but he wasn't a loser and he wasn't going to lose on Sunday. He was going to get a partner. There were plenty of people who wanted to be his partner, he just had to pick whomever was the right person. They started talking about how Randy would come and kick him in the head after the match and Chris just smirked. He loved laying seeds of thought. He told them that Randy could be his partner. He hadn't talked to Randy, but he might not be opposed to the idea. He just had to get a partner.

But who would he choose?

"You know, I have a right mind to slap Ted for what he said," Stephanie said as they rode back to the hotel.

"You not liking Ted, I'm shocked, _shocked_."

"He insulted you, I'm not going to stand for it. Count me in."

"Count you in for what," he said, grabbing her hand and kissing her palm.

"I'm going to help you find a partner."


	244. Such Disrespect, July 24 to 27, 2009

A/N: I'm a lazy updater, I know, I'm sorry. This is from Night of Champions and last week's Raw, more to come, don't worry, I'll catch up. If you want, leave a review. Enjoy. :)

* * *

"Are you sure you want him as your partner?"

"Yes, why are you trying to talk me out of it now?" he asked, glancing over at her as they drove to the arena. "I already talked to him, we already decided that he'd be my partner, I've informed the proper management officials of what was going on, that would be where you come in and you are letting him have the belts when we have our match. And then I will announce him and we'll beat Legacy."

"You sound so sure of yourself."

"Have you seen the guy?" Chris asked. "Of course I'm going to sound sure of myself."

"Are you sure that you want him as your partner though?" Stephanie asked. "I mean, you have the entire roster at your disposal, anyone, _anyone_. You can choose whoever you want, why Big Show?"

"Why not Big Show, what's wrong with him?"

"He terrifies our son for one."

"He does not, Sawyer is over that," Chris told her, then peeked into the backseat at Sawyer, who was watching out the window at the scenery passing by. He was so interested in all the sights zooming past the window that he'd not heard his name being mentioned. "Hey, kid."

Sawyer turned his head slowly, like he'd miss something if he did, "Yes?"

"Are you scared of Big Show?" Chris wondered.

"I no scared," Sawyer told him.

"See?" Chris said, giving Stephanie a knowing look, like he'd won this huge argument or something. She just rolled her eyes at him and looked out the window.

"Yes, because he really knows what or whom you're talking about," Stephanie said. "I'm just saying, I think you could've found a better partner. I mean, you didn't ask for my input on this at all..."

"And _there's_ the problem," Chris said, raising his finger up like he'd just had a brilliant revelation. "That's what's bothering you, I should've known it wasn't actually about having Big Show as a partner, but rather because you want me to go to you with every decision I ever make."

"I'm just saying that you didn't come to me and you usually do."

"Well, I'm sorry that I didn't come to you with my decision, pardon me, Madam, I didn't realize that I had to come to you for everything under the sun," Chris said, shaking his head. "You know, Stephanie, I don't have to come to you with wrestling decisions regarding _my _career. I didn't rely on you before our marriage, I don't need to rely on you now."

"I would've just made suggestions, it's not like I would've given you a name and expected you to stick with that name and not go be with anyone else."

"I'm just saying there are things that I don't need you for, not even for suggestions."

"Well fine, maybe I'll never suggest anything to you again," she said, "maybe I'll just let you roam around in the dark like an idiot or something. Maybe I just won't give you a schedule or anything, just let you go out whenever."

"I could get a schedule from someone else," he said blithely.

"Well then you really, really don't need me at all, do you?" she snapped.

"Oh come on, don't get your panties in a bunch," he told her. "Don't act like I insulted your mom or something I just said that sometimes there are going to be things that I don't need you for."

"And yet there are tons of things that you need me for, isn't there, Jericho?" she wondered, glaring at him.

"Oh, a sex comment, brilliant," he said, clapping his right hand over his left as his left held onto the steering wheel. "You're on top of your game there, Steph, you really are. Threatening me by taking away the sex, which you know I could never live without."

"You haven't for the past seven years, have you?"

"Well, it would've been more like six if you'd kept it to yourself for a little while longer instead of just handing it out like candy, huh?" he said rudely and her mouth dropped at what he said. He did regret it a little as it came out of his mouth. It wasn't like they'd known each other a few days and slept together, they'd known each other for years and slept together. Plus, they'd gotten married so it was really a moot point.

"How dare you say that to me," Stephanie said. "I'm not talking to you."

"Fine," he said. "It'll make it easier to win if I don't have you hovering over my shoulder telling me what to do. 'Oh Chris, you shouldn't have Big Show as your partner, you should only choose a partner that I approve of, here, have Ted DiBiase so I can fawn all over him because he's so gorgeous and I love him and of _course_ he'd be friends with us because I know he wants to get away from Randy.'"

Stephanie sucked at her teeth a little. He was baiting her and it was working. She damned him to hell for knowing all her buttons. She was predictable to him. She glanced to the backseat and neither of their kids was paying attention to them. Sawyer was back to looking out the window, ignoring everyone else in the car except Flynn, who he looked at occasionally to see if she was watching the scenery too, but Flynn had just fallen asleep. The rhythmic rocking of the car had lulled her to sleep.

"You are so _hilarious_, Chris," Stephanie said sarcastically. "Is that what you're going to trot out every time we have a fight, huh? Oh, Stephanie loves Ted, she wants to be with Ted. Believe me, if I wanted to be with Ted, I would be with Ted, no problem, buddy, because do you think he would turn me down? I don't think so."

"So go be with him then," Chris shrugged. "Maybe he'll let you make all the decisions. That's what you want, right, maybe he can even be your little errand boy like I was...hell, like I still am, you can condition him into the perfect man."

"Well, he'd be a lot better than the one I'm looking at right now," she told him. "And you would _love_ that, wouldn't you? 'Oh man, now that Stephanie is gone, I can go after Katie Lea, just like I've always wanted to. I've harbored a secret crush on her for ages and I wanted to let her in on the plan so we'd have a little secret."

"You know full well that you like Katie," Chris told her. "You told me yourself."

"I just said that," Stephanie lied, she actually did like Katie, but like hell she would give Chris that impression while they were having a fight. "I'm just keeping my eye on her, that's all, because if I take my eyes off of her, you'd probably be all over her."

"Oh yes, of course, definitely, I'm thinking it right now, oh, look, Katie naked in my brain, she looks really nice, wow, look at that, I think those are natural," Chris said, pretending to think about it. "What I'd like to do to her..."

Stephanie punched him in the arm, "You're a huge jerk, you know that. You probably are thinking of her, aren't you?"

"Oh, now you want to control my _thoughts_?" he asked, though he hadn't been thinking of Katie, he was thinking about throwing Stephanie out of the car, not about Katie naked, though that wasn't an unpleasant thought right about now.

"No, I don't want to control your thoughts. I just wanted to have some input on something that was important."

"Important to _me_, not to you. I don't go around telling you how to do your job, do I?"

"Totally different, I do different things than you do."

"Oh and so you wrestle and don't even come at me with those few times you wrestled or, God, when we wrestled together, that was one of the worst matches of my career, I was downright embarrassed by that match. I could've won too if it hadn't been for that bitch who kept trying to distract me and who had the audacity to slap me and jump on my back like an animal."

"Yeah, weren't you supposed to actually help me that night so I wouldn't get kicked out of the company?" she countered.

"Maybe it was my plan all along to make you lose," Chris told her, not even knowing where this stuff was coming from. He'd made the decision to ask Big Show and the man had accepted. He thought it was a sound choice. He'd thought of Kane, but Kane was unpredictable. He never what Kane was going to show up, plus there'd been that coffee incident way back when and Chris was weary of tagging with him lest he remember that incident and get some weird flashback and try to turn on him. Big Show was easier to manipulate. You acted like he was the most amazing person to be around and he was on your side quicker than you could say wrestle.

He hadn't anticipated Stephanie being mad about his decision. He thought she'd be happy because picking the biggest guy in the company (well, there was Khali, but that guy had a big problem and he couldn't wrestle and while Chris knew he would carry the team he had right now, he wouldn't have to carry it as much as he would've if Khali had been his partner), but she was unhappy with him and he didn't get it. Who did she want him to tag with? That might've been a nice, rational question to ask her, now that he thought about it.

"Oh really?" she asked, folding her arms in front of her and staring out the car window. When the hell were they going to get to the arena? This car was getting pretty cramped right about now and she didn't really want to take her chances rolling out of it at 70 miles per hour.

"Yeah, you know, now that I think back, those four months when you were gone, best months of my life," he said, giving her a little "ha" as an addendum to his statement.

"Okay, that's why you came to see me on the night I came back and got mad when I wouldn't hug you, makes _perfect_ sense, Jericho."

"I was throwing you a bone, McMahon," he said, which was obviously not true since he'd married her.

"Well, fine, then I guess I've been throwing you bones for the last seven years," she huffed. "But don't take my opinion on things, just go about doing what you're doing since you're the boss and I get no say."

"No, you don't get say because you don't go out there with me."

"I was just going to make suggestions!"

"Mommy," Sawyer said with a sigh, "Fwynn is sleep."

"Oh, sorry," Stephanie said, throwing a remorseful look to her little boy. "I'll try and be quiet, okay?"

"Tanks," Sawyer said, giving her a disapproving look.

"Yeah, be quiet," Chris said to her, just to be an ass.

"Go on and make all your decisions then, just fine with me, just fine, whatever," she said, muttering under her breath, "go sleep with whatever you want, whomever you want, doesn't matter to me, I don't care."

"Stop it, you're annoying."

"You're annoying," she told him and then the car went silent. Stephanie stewed in her seat and Chris just kept thinking about her and rolling his eyes. He couldn't believe she was so mad over Big Show. This was ridiculous, but he wasn't going to be the one to cave first, no way. If anyone was going to cave, it was going to be her because he wasn't going to give in when he was right.

Christian was sitting with Trish in his lap. This was how he stayed calm before his matches. He just liked having her there with him to reassure him and motivate him. Now he had a little extra motivation in his kid. He and Trish had gone to get the first ultrasound done yesterday and it was an experience he would never forget. He had to admit, when he first went in with her he was nervous for a number of reasons. First, he had never been to an appointment like this before so he had no idea what to expect when he went in there.

Second, he was anxious to see his kid. He couldn't wait to see what his baby looked like. He knew it probably wouldn't look very baby-like and he would probably be unable to tell just where on the screen the baby was exactly, but he'd be seeing whatever it was that would turn into his kid. Trish had told him that they probably wouldn't be able to hear the heartbeat yet as it would probably take a couple more weeks for that, but that they'd be able to see it and he could not wait to see that for himself.

He also was nervous because he wanted everything to be okay. He almost dreaded the appointment a little because things still seemed way too good to be true. He was still trying to wrap his mind around having a baby in the first place and now he was going to actually see his kid, it was just nerve-wracking. But then, when they'd put that little wand thing on his wife's stomach and the screen had come up, every worry seemed to melt away. He was right in that he couldn't see anything that screamed "baby!" at him, but after the doctor had kindly pointed it out to him, he'd beamed like never before.

Trish had looked at him and laughed, partly because of her excitement and partly because of the look on Christian's face. It was a mixture of delight, horror, worry, happiness and probably everything in between. They'd gotten a couple pictures and they'd brought them tonight to show Chris and Stephanie, who had already flown to Philadelphia so they couldn't show them immediately. Christian was probably going to wave the sonogram in Chris's face like the guy hadn't ever seen a sonogram. Trish wanted to talk to Stephanie too. Their excitement was barely concealed.

"Thanks for calming me down," Christian said, glancing up at Trish. "I wouldn't want to go out there for my match acting like a spaz."

"Oh, you'll go out there and act like a spaz, that's just who you are, Chrissy," Trish said, giggling as he glared at her.

"I'm not a spaz."

"You are totally a spaz, you and Edge are so alike in that way, well, he's more of a spaz," Trish said. "You're like Spaz Light."

"That is so rude," Christian told her. "Now I'm going to go out there and lose."

"There's no way that you're going to lose. You have to do it for your unborn child. You have to go out there and win for your child, you have that as a motivation."

"I do, but I'm pretty sure Dreamer has kids too."

"Yeah, he does, but none that unborn and his first or anything. You're going to be a new dad, you should use that to motivate you in your match. Then, you can hold onto the belt until I have the baby and then when he or she is born, they can see that their dad is a champion."

"That's a really long time to hold a belt...there's a lot of competition."

"You're better than the competition," Trish said, pushing him in the shoulder. "You're the best, right?"

"I guess so."

"Chrissy, come on, you're the best, right?"

"Yeah, I'm the best," he said dully.

"I can't hear you," she told him, sticking out her tongue.

"I'm the best!" he said, mostly to appease her, but he wasn't going to argue against the kiss she gave him as a reward. He did feel a little more motivated now though.

"You are," she told him. "You're coming out of tonight a champion."

"I love that you have the confidence in me."

"I always will," she told him. "You're my husband, kind of part of the job. At least I think that's how it goes. I wish I could go out there with you to cheer you on."

"No way in hell would I let you out there," Christian told her firmly. "I would not even let you get within fifty feet of that ring. Not even close to it, I wouldn't let you even walk around it."

"Oh great, you're going to be one of those paranoid fathers that is going to be so overprotective of me, aren't you?"

"Yes, and I'll be damn proud of it," he said.

Stephanie stormed out of the car as soon as Chris parked it. If they didn't have the kids, she would've gone right into the arena. She wasn't afforded that option though because they did have the kids with them and so she had to go and get Sawyer from his car-seat and let him hop out of the car. He held her hand as he jumped and she could see Chris gently taking Flynn out of her car-seat. She took a hold of Sawyer's hand and walked inside with him. She considered dumping both kids off with Chris, but he had a match that night, the first match and she couldn't do that to him.

"You can give me Flynn," Stephanie said, "I'll take them."

"Fine, I've got to go talk to _my_ partner."

"Yeah, fine, sure, whatever, like I care what you do. You can go out there and face whomever you want to, I don't care, you're an asshole."

"You're a bitch," he said, shoving Flynn's stroller at her.

"Don't shove our daughter," Stephanie told him.

"I didn't shove her," Chris said, "you're delusional."

"You just shoved her stroller at me like you didn't want to be around her."

"I'd much rather be around her than around you right now, trust me on this one," Chris said.

"Now is that your sole decision or can I weigh in on it, I wouldn't want to overstep my boundaries as your wife. Seeing as how I'm not really allowed to _suggest_ anything to you. I wouldn't want to make you feel uncomfortable or anything. Am I, Chris? Just let me know."

"Okay, what is going on _here_?" Hunter asked as he walked up with Britt. "You guys are having a fight?"

"Yes, we're having a fight," the two of them said at the same time and then glared at one another for daring to speak the same thing at the same time. Britt looked up at Hunter and shrugged at him, not knowing what this was about.

"What are you two fighting about this time?"

"Well, I chose my partner for tonight and didn't consult Stephanie about who my partner would be and this has angered her because she feels like she can just constantly tell me what to do. I mean, it's _my_ title and I should get to choose who I want as a partner."

"I just wanted to suggest some people but he didn't even consult with me, not even telling me until this morning when he was like, 'Oh by the way, Big Show is my partner tonight.'"

"Big Show's your partner?" Hunter asked.

"Yeah, I figured, well, come on, I think it's pretty obvious why I decided to pick him," Chris said, looking up as a gesture that Big Show was rather...well, big. "I thought it was a great choice until spoilsport over here decided that it was not a great choice, but in fact a lousy choice. Who knew, right?"

"Why is it a lousy choice?" Hunter asked. "I mean, despite the fact that I didn't get an invitation to be your partner and I certainly could've been a great partner for you."

"No, the day I partner with you without being forced into it is the day that I walk away from this business forever. I'm not partnering with you just so you can try and steal my spotlight because you think that you're better than me. Not going to happen, dude, so not going to happen."

"Well if you'd picked me, there's no doubt we would've dominated the entire company," Hunter said, shaking his head. "Don't you think so, babe?"

"Definitely, domination," Britt said, rolling her eyes. "So, you two are definitely going to come out with us tomorrow night, right?"

"What's tomorrow night?" Chris asked.

"Don't, Britt, come on," Hunter hissed at her, but she just beamed and placed her hand on his stomach as she leaned forward, as if to tell a secret.

"It's my honey's 40th birthday," Britt said proudly. "I'm inviting everyone and I mean everyone to a bar after the show tomorrow night and you guys have to be there because you're our friends and I don't care if you two are fighting, you have to come."

"But we have the kids," Stephanie said.

"Twip, it you birfday?" Sawyer asked, looking up at his friend.

"Not right now, tough guy," Hunter explained to him. "Tomorrow is my birthday."

"Oh, okay," Sawyer said sweetly. "How old you be?"

"I'm going to be 29," Hunter said.

Chris leaned down, "That's code for 40."

Sawyer's eyes widened. 40 sounded like a lot, very old. He was only three. He looked at his fingers and counted them because he could count all his fingers and his toes like his mommy had taught him. He was 3 fingers old, but his fingers only went up to 10 and 10 was not 40 and that sounded very old. He looked up from his fingers and studied Hunter. He did look old, much older than his daddy and his daddy was very, very old, that's what his mommy said a lot and she said that she was young.

Sawyer looked at Hunter and said, "You very old."

Chris had to bit his lip to keep from laughing and Stephanie actually let out a cough that sounded very much like a laugh. She had to turn away so she could clear her throat. Chris found his composure first and turned to Sawyer. "Kid, that's not very nice."

"Oh," Sawyer said, looking at Hunter still, "Okay, you not old."

Britt laughed this time and knelt down next to Sawyer, "We have to be careful, he's a little bit sensitive about his age."

"I am not!" Hunter said indignantly. "There's nothing wrong with turning 40, you know, I mean, Chris is going to be there pretty soon."

"I've got over a year man, you've got less than 24 hours, once again, I beat you because I'm younger," Chris said.

"I hate you," Hunter said.

"That makes two of us," Stephanie chirped, looking over at Chris.

"Oh, you just had to get the dig in, didn't you? You just _had_ to get that in, right?" Chris said. "Could you be more childish?"

"I'm not being childish, you are," she told him, acting well, childish was a good word for it.

"You two, seriously," Britt said, standing up. "Are you guys coming to Hunter's thing because you definitely need to be there, okay, both of you, if you can't find anyone for the kids..."

"It's okay," Stephanie told her. "I can let my mom and dad take care of them tomorrow night since we'll be staying in Greenwich for the week. It's easier to stay up here because the shows are here. Plus, this way, we can stay until Flynn's birthday and have a celebration with the family."

"So you guys will come then?"

"I'll be there," Stephanie said, "I don't know about this guy. I would say he would come, but apparently I'm no longer allowed to make any decisions where he is concerned."

"Oh would you get off it," Chris said. "I'll be there. With bells on even."

"Okay," Hunter said, "well, I've got a very big match to prepare for so we're going to head out and you two can continue to fight, good luck with your match, man. I know you'll win though, I mean, Legacy is good, I guess, but you've got Big Show."

"See," Chris said, "see how even Hunter realizes this is a good match?"

"Shut up," Stephanie said, grabbing Sawyer's hand and walking away from Chris and to wherever she was going. Chris groaned and shook Hunter's hand before he went off in search of Big Show. He found his locker room and knocked on the door. Most people, he'd probably walk right in, but Big Show, yeah, he deserved a knock. The bigger man's booming voice came from behind the door and Chris opened it.

"Oh, hey, Chris."

"Hey, man," Chris said, walking in further. "I just wanted to make sure you were ready for our match tonight."

"I'm ready, don't worry," Big Show said. "Thanks again for asking me."

"As far as I'm concerned, there was no other choice," Chris said, buttering him up a little while taking a dig at the wife that wasn't even here. Yes, he was being a little petty even when she wasn't around, but she deserved it. She didn't get to control every aspect of him, that's just not how it worked and it wasn't how it should work in a relationship.

"Well, I'm not going to let you down, I'll tell you that."

"I don't expect you to," Chris told him. "You're everything that Edge isn't right now and you don't get injured often and that's really something I should be focusing on because I don't want another injury to my tag team partner."

"I do the injuring," Big Show replied and Chris nodded seriously.

"I'm very glad to hear that, very glad," Chris told him firmly. It wasn't that he hated Edge for getting injured. It had actually put Chris in a very interesting position. It wasn't very often that you got to choose a champion. Sure, Vince had done it a couple times, but that was Vince and not him. He didn't get a lot of luxuries like that. "Well, I just wanted to come in here and plot out a little of what I wanted to do tonight, you up for that?"

"Well, I was planning on just going to the ring and giving Legacy a pounding, but we can do it your way," Big Show shrugged. "Sit down."

Chris took a seat and they started to plot out what they were going to do.

"Hey there, best friend!" Trish said as Stephanie walked into her office.

"Trish, have you been sitting there by yourself, waiting for me?"

"Yeah, I was, I wanted to talk to you, I also threw up a little," Trish said sheepishly.

"Well that's not something I needed to know."

"Sorry," Trish said, "it was just better in here because if I were in the public bathroom someone could've walked in and I do not need a 'Trish Stratus is bulimic' rumor to spread around here because then I'd have to explain about the baby and everything...it'd be a whole to-do."

"I get that," Stephanie said.

"Twish have a baby, Mommy," Sawyer told Stephanie.

"I know, isn't that exciting?"

"It be my baby too," Sawyer told her.

"You're giving my son your child? Well, I guess I can see that. He's very good with Flynn. I would let him take care of her by himself if he wasn't you know, three..."

"It my baby," Sawyer said, running over to Trish and touching her stomach. "It my baby."

"I figured he could have a little claim to it," Trish told her with a laugh as Sawyer pet her stomach. "Between him and Christian, they're going to rub the skin right off my stomach."

"He doesn't stop either...Sawyer that is, I can't speak for Christian," Stephanie joked as she lifted Flynn out of her stroller. She was still asleep and Stephanie held the little girl to her body as she breathed quietly in Stephanie's ear. "He thinks it's fascinating when someone's pregnant."

"I can tell," Trish said as Sawyer stared at her stomach.

"It not big your tummy," Sawyer told her, looking up at her questioningly.

"It'll get big," Trish said, then looked at Stephanie. "I'm going to be huge, aren't I?"

"I don't know, you're pretty petite," Stephanie told her. "So where's Christian?"

"Warming up," Trish answered. "He's got the second match on the card, but more importantly, he was bugging me so much I pretty much told him to get away from me. He's turning into one of those crazed expecting dads that you see in the movies, the one that is going to freak out when I go into labor and end up breaking their leg trying to rush me to the hospital. I'm fearing that he is going to just smother me."

"He's just excited," Stephanie said kindly. She knew Christian though, he got very involved in the things he did and this was one of the biggest. "You can't blame him for that."

"Still, he's going to get to the point where I'm just going to shove him out of the car. I'm not even three months pregnant and he's already going crazy."

"It's sweet."

"Because it's not happening to you," Trish said. "I do not remember Chris being this overprotective of you when you were pregnant."

"Chris still has not forgiven Austin for what he did regarding Sawyer and kicking me in the stomach. Every time he sees Austin, he glares at him and will not let it go and has no plans to let it go. If Steve and Chris got in a ring together, Steve would be leaving on a stretcher."

"But he didn't hover around you. When you were pregnant with Sawyer, he left for a few months to go on tour so it's not like he had to know what you were doing every second of every day."

"True."

"And with Flynn, he'd been through the whole routine so it wasn't like he was all over you."

"True again."

"So you've had it relatively easy."

"Oh yeah, I have it so easy with my jerk of a husband."

"Uh oh," Trish said with a sigh. "Okay, so what's wrong now? What are you two fighting about this time?"

"We're not fighting per se..."

"You guys are totally fighting, don't try to hide it."

"Well, he's using Big Show as his partner tonight," Stephanie started.

"Big Show? Why didn't he ask Christian? Christian would've loved to have partnered with him, remember when they were partners before and I came between the both of them, supposedly and you thought that Chris and I were together, but we weren't really together at all and then you confessed that you were in love with Chris and you guys were free to be together?"

"Vaguely," she laughed. "I was not happy thinking you two were together, let me tell you that. But I don't know why he didn't ask Christian? Maybe because Christian has a huge match too?"

"That's true," Trish said, "but he could've done both."

"I guess, anyways," she said, getting on with what was really troubling her. "He didn't consult me about the person he was going to pair with and I had some ideas about who he could partner with, Christian being one of them incidentally and he said he didn't care about my opinion on the matter. Now, normally, I'd be a little more accepting, but he was acting like a jerk when he said it so I couldn't just forgive it."

"Well, sometimes it isn't your business, it is his decision," Trish said.

"I can make suggestions though, right?"

"Yeah, you can make suggestions," Trish said.

"That's all I was asking for."

"Okay, now that we've established you two are fighting, do you want to see my baby?"

"You have pictures?" Stephanie asked, her face brightening considerably.

"Yeah!" Trish said excitedly. She looked down at Sawyer. "Excuse me, sweetie."

"Sawyer, go play with your toys," Stephanie told him. "I brought your action figures since that's what you wanted to bring along."

"And Daddy too."

"Yes, and Daddy too," Stephanie said, pointing to a bag that had been stuffed under Flynn's stroller. Sawyer grabbed it and dragged it to he couch, taking each figure out carefully and putting them on the couch as he banged and smashed them together. "So come on, let me see!"

Trish laughed and came over, standing next to Stephanie's chair as she held out the pictures she'd been holding onto since Stephanie had come in here. Stephanie shifted Flynn a little, causing the little girl to snuffle and shift in Stephanie's arms. Trish smiled at that. She'd be getting that soon, but it couldn't come soon enough. Right now, her baby was a dot on the radar, but pretty soon, it was going to look like a real baby and she couldn't wait to hold her child. Stephanie took the first one and stared at it.

"You know, the first time I looked at Sawyer _and_ Flynn's ultrasounds, I had no idea where they were," Stephanie laughed, "did you know?"

"No," Trish chuckled. "I had no idea, I was all nodding along like I knew until Christian finally asked where the baby was because he couldn't see it. I was silently thanking him for asking, that's why the baby is circled in the pictures, so we don't forget and start pointing out blobs that are nothing."

"It's hard to tell," Stephanie said, looking at it. "You've got a beautiful blob."

"Thank you, I love my blob too."

"Are you and Christian going to find out if it's a boy or a girl?"

"We've been talking about it, we're not sure. I think we want to keep it a surprise, but you know Christian, he's never going to want to keep it a secret from himself. That's like asking...I don't know, but it's impossible. He's going to want to know."

"We found out. We were going to keep Flynn a surprise, but it is tough," Stephanie said as Flynn started to wake up, whining slightly against Stephanie and stretching. "Besides, it'll help you plan better for the arrival, with the nursery and everything. I'd let you have the crib, but we kind of still need it."

"I can see that," Trish said, running her hand over Flynn's head. "I'm really scared."

"Don't be, you'll be a great mom," Stephanie told her.

"You really think so? I mean, I see you and you are just the best mom ever and--"

"Trish, I thought I'd be a horrible mother and look at me now, people besides my husband and family think I'm a good mom. If I can be a good mom, you're going to be an incredible mom."

"Sawa?" Flynn whispered in Stephanie's ear.

Stephanie pulled Flynn away so she was standing on Stephanie's legs and she looked at her daughter, pouting just a little bit. "Your Sawyer is over there, you want to go play with him?" Flynn babbled happily, grabbing Stephanie's face in her hands and Stephanie leaned forward and gave Flynn a kiss before she set her daughter on the ground and watched her as she walked over to where Sawyer was. Sawyer smiled at her as she grinned happily at him, a still sleepy smile, but a delighted one as well.

"Mommy, I give toy?"

"Yeah, you can give her one, she can't choke on that," Stephanie told him.

Sawyer took one of his figures and handed it to Flynn. "Here, Fywnn, you Daddy."

Flynn immediately stuck it in her mouth and Stephanie sighed and stood up, going over and taking the figure out of Flynn's mouth, "Flynnie, we don't eat toys, do we?"

"No, Mommy, we no eat toys," Sawyer chimed in, then turned to Flynn. "We no eat toys."

"Okay, you can play now," Stephanie said, kissing them both on the head.

"Oh my God, see, this is why you're a great mom."

Stephanie laughed. "You'll get used to it, trust me."

Stephanie saw neither hide nor hair of Chris until she saw him coming out for his match. He was really sticking to his guns with this. He'd had his bag when they'd come into the arena so he must've changed in some other place, maybe Big Show's locker room since they were such buddies now. That thought made her eyes roll. She was going to suggest Undertaker to him, not that he cared to know. Undertaker was always willing to do her a favor and she thought he'd be a good partner for Chris, but her opinion was moot to him.

She barely even wanted to watch his match, but Sawyer had seen Chris on the screen and had insisted they watch and when Stephanie had turned the TV towards them, Sawyer had asked her why she wasn't watching Daddy and when she told him she'd had work to do, he had not taken that answer. He was getting sleepy so she thought he might fall asleep even before the show started, but once Chris was on the screen, he was awake and alert and wanted her. Flynn, who'd napped in the car was wide awake and kept lifting her arms towards Stephanie and whining. Stephanie finally gave in and picked Flynn up, sitting her in her lap as Sawyer cuddled up to her.

She watched as he came out as the champion and Lillian was about to announce his partner, but Chris took over on the microphone and showed Edge's footage from the previous week. She wondered when he'd had time to get that cued up. Seems he was just on top of his game and didn't need her at all. He announced Big Show and she rolled her eyes at it. It wasn't that he was a horrible partner, she just felt like he could've done better.

It didn't help her cause when Chris and Big Show won. Now Chris was going to come gloat about having found a wonderful partner and she was going to have to sit here and take it. She knew it was coming because she knew her husband. She was the same way. When something went her way, she was quick to gloat to him, so what would make the difference now? Then it certainly, certainly didn't help with his little interview.

He showed up a few minutes later, sans the big lug that he was currently carrying to titles. Sawyer hopped off the couch and ran up to him. "I saw you win!"

"Really?" Chris said, kneeling down so Sawyer could give him a hug. "Did you watch my whole match?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer nodded eagerly. "You winned!"

"I did, because I had a great partner, huh?"

"Oh God, now you're manipulating our kids," Stephanie said disgustedly.

"Just telling the truth."

"You are so predictable."

"Oh, I am, am I?"

"Yes, you are, coming in here to gloat, just like I knew you would."

"Okay, so then maybe I just won't talk to you."

"Fine, I won't talk to you then."

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

Their silence managed to leak into the next day. They each slept on their sides of the beds, trying not to touch the other, facing the other way. They employed the power of the silent treatment towards one another for the duration of the morning. It was easy because Chris had decided to take Sawyer on a walk while Stephanie and Flynn lounged by the pool. Flynn still had no desire to be in the water, but she had no problem sitting by the pool in her cute floppy hat and little yellow bathing suit.

The car ride had been silent and chilly and they barely even looked at each other. When they'd arrived at the arena, they'd gone their separate ways. The kids were back in Connecticut with their parents so they had no need to even converse. Stephanie was feeling especially mean at the moment and in her haste to be mean and spiteful, she sought out Shaquille O'Neal, the guest host for the evening. Britt had text messaged her to let her know he was here.

She found his room for the evening and knocked on the door. He answered a moment later. "Hello," he said and his voice was so loud, so booming.

"Hi," Stephanie said cheerfully. "I'm Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, Vince's daughter."

"Yeah, I know you," he told her. "Jericho...wait a second, are you married to that punkass Chris Jericho?"

Stephanie cringed a little. Even though she thought Chris was being a punkass right now, she didn't really want other people calling him that, especially people who didn't know him. It was funny though, because she was in here because she wanted to get a little bit of revenge on Chris, but she didn't want him talking like that about her husband. She did love him after all, she just wanted to rough him up a little bit.

"Yes, I am," Stephanie said.

"Really?" Shaq asked.

"Yes, really."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm pretty sure I am married to him, yes."

"Didn't you guys hate each other?"

"A long time ago, we did," Stephanie said, the same old story all the time.

"You mean to tell me, he owns part of this company?"

"Yes, he does, anyways, we're having a fight right now--"

"Don't blame you, he's a pansy, huh?"

"Well, no, he's not a pansy at all, he's just stubborn and I'm mad about his stubbornness, that's all," Stephanie said, wondering if she would grow to regret coming in here just to mess with her husband with someone who clearly didn't like her husband to begin with. "He's a good man. People just don't see that part of him, but he's a good man."

"Sure he is," Shaq said, unconvinced.

"Okay, well, anyways, I just...well...are you going to mess with him tonight?"

"I wasn't planning on it unless he provokes me," Shaq said.

"He's a good guy, you know," she said, defending him now.

"Yeah, right. So what did you want me to do exactly?"

"Well, I was just going to suggest you mess around with him a little, but you know what, scratch that, I'll just--"

"No, no, no, I like that idea. I like that idea a lot."

"Oh," she said, knowing she was going to be in a world of trouble over this. If Chris found out she'd planted these seeds in Shaq's head, Chris was going to yell at her and be mad at her and he probably wouldn't talk to her for a week. She had to prepare herself for the ultimate silence.

"You've given me some great ideas, thank you, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho," Shaq said, patting her on the shoulder.

"Okay," she said, "I think we're going to go."

"Okay," Shaq said and Stephanie wished she had never gone in there, but what could she do now except wait and see what was going to happen.

Britt kept grinning at Hunter. "Stop grinning at me, I've got a big match to prepare for. I want to face Randy at SummerSlam and I have to focus on that."

"My honey is 40 today," Britt said in a sing-song voice. "I can't believe you're the big 4-0."

"Would you quit bringing it up?" Hunter said good-naturedly. He wasn't afraid of getting old and he was genuinely amused by Britt, but he knew she was getting a kick out of his birthday since it was a big one. He knew that 40 was a huge milestone and he hadn't necessarily been looking forward to it, but it wasn't as scary as he thought it would be. It helped that his girlfriend was in her 20's.

"Nope, because I get to say it's your birthday all I want today because it is," she said, kissing his cheek. "Isn't the tradition you get a kiss for every one of your birthdays?"

"I thought it was a slap."

"Well, if you want that, I can have it arranged."

He grabbed her and held her close to him as he kissed the top of her head. She wasn't that tall so she always had to lean up to kiss him so he kissed the top of her head a lot. She wrapped her arms around his waist and smiled, hugging herself to him. She loved him and she was so happy to be the one getting to throw him such a big birthday party. He deserved it though and she only hoped he won tonight so that there'd be no damper on his birthday party later. She'd put a lot of thought and careful planning into it. She wanted him to remember this birthday.

"I think I'm going to get slapped around enough in my match against Cody later."

"You're going to beat him, he's nothing compared to you, he's a no-time champion where you have over 10 wins with the championship, nobody can touch you."

"He'll probably have Ted there."

"Whatever, you can take him too," she told him, kissing his cheek. "It's your birthday, good things have to happen on your birthday, it's like the law. You have to win and then you are going to go onto SummerSlam and show Randy Orton who's boss."

"I would like that, yes."

"You love the title more than you love me so of course you're going to do everything in your power to get it back."

"Where did you get that idea?" he asked her, squeezing her a little tighter. "Why would you ever think that the title was more important that you?"

Britt laughed, "Because it is."

"No, it's not."

"Hunter, I think you'd sell your own mother to get that title," she told him playfully, getting it across that she probably didn't believe that she meant less to him than the title.

"Oh yes, I would, definitely," he said, playing along. "It wouldn't be so bad tonight if I didn't know that Ted is going to be out there to try and ruin it for me."

"He won't ruin it for you, he couldn't ruin it for you, birthday, Hunter, birthday."

"Okay, yes, yes, birthday."

Chris went out there after Shaq had introduced himself to the crowd. He had some choice words for the man, starting with a dig towards him regarding Kobe. For however much he said he was over the Kobe feud, there was probably still that lingering bitterness, especially with the Lakers winning a title without him, that had to sting. Apparently Shaq had really taken Stephanie's words to heart as he called Chris "Christina" (like he'd never _ever_ been called that in his entire life, it was extremely lame), but then when Shaq kissed him, like he was some little kid or something, that put a burning pit in Chris's stomach. It was just downright disrespectful.

Stephanie cringed when it happened. She wished she hadn't turned Shaq's attention to Chris and she couldn't even say anything because it would make her even madder than he was at her. She felt awful though because she hated to see people treat Chris badly and this was the worst treatment he'd received in a long while. She just hoped Shaq didn't make mention of this to Chris or she was in for a world of trouble. But how dare that man go out there and treat her husband so poorly? To kiss him like that? It was an awful display, a rude display. Now she could understand why other teams' fans didn't like this man.

Chris wasn't alone though. Even though he and Big Show weren't friends, they made a formidable team and when Big Show came out there, Chris felt like the scales had tipped towards him again, figuratively and probably literally. Big Show was not intimidated by Shaq's size because he was the same height. Nobody intimidated Big Show and Chris watched from the sidelines as the two big men went at each other with verbal spars. He was content to take a backseat for now, letting them duke it out while he played the puppet-master role. It was one he was good at.

Unfortunately it backfired when he was forced to be in a match against Cryme Tyme later that evening. Now while the prospect of facing Cryme Tyme was not a daunting one by any means, there was the added distraction of having Shaq as the special enforcer, which meant that everything was going to go Cryme Tyme's way. Chris could handle it though. He'd been in much tougher situations and he could handle this too and it wasn't a handicap match, not really because he did have Big Show on his team and he should count for two men by himself.

He was speaking with Big Show about the match when Shaq came backstage and, in passing, said, "Tell your wife thanks for the idea."

"What are you talking about?" Chris asked.

"Just that she gave me the idea, that's all."

Chris excused himself from Big Show and went to Stephanie's office. Here he didn't bother to knock, "What the hell did Shaq mean when he said that you gave him the idea for tonight?"

"What? I don't know why he would say that," Stephanie said, but Chris could read her and she knew it and he knew and she was going to blow it, she was going to blow it because she couldn't keep things hidden from Chris.

"Did you _tell_ him to do that to me? Christina? The kiss, all of that, did you tell him to do that because you were mad at me? I can't believe you, Stephanie, I can't believe you would do something like that to me because I didn't want to listen to your suggestions! Do you see me going up to...I don't know, Kelly Kelly and telling her to call you Steph-fat-nie or something?"

"Did you just call me _fat_?" Stephanie asked, her jaw dropping.

"You know what I was doing, what the hell else can I do with Stephanie except that?"

"Seems you've been holding onto that one for a while though," Stephanie said, pursing her lips. "Been waiting to use it on me, your _fat_ wife? Is that the problem here, you don't find my attractive?"

Chris groaned, "Stephanie, there's nothing else that goes with your name!"

"Sure there is, you could always call me the old staple, I believe it started with filthy, dirty, disgusting...but no, you go right for the weight thing, huh? Never-mind the fact that I'm not as thin as I used to be because I got pregnant with _your_ kids."

"I don't care about that, I was using it as an example!" Chris told her. "Because Christina,_ Christina_, you know, a play on Christopher, which is my name! I couldn't say filthy, dirty, disgusting...blah blah blah because that is not a play on Stephanie."

"But you still think I'm fat then," she said. She was a little hurt that he had come up with that so quickly, but she knew...or hoped that he didn't really mean it. He probably didn't. Chris had never said anything negative about her weight ever that wasn't in jest and he always told her he loved her curves so he was probably really just saying it as an example. Plus, it had the added bonus of deflecting away from her.

"I don't think you're fat, look at you, you're gorgeous and you know it and stop! You got Shaq to say all those things to me."

"I did not...not...not directly," Stephanie said.

"So what did he mean then?"

"Well, I went in there because I did want him to mess with you, but he was already going to mess with you and I didn't really stop him or anything, but I didn't tell him to call you Christina or anything?"

"I can't believe you would stoop that low because I wouldn't listen to you over something that had nothing to do with you."

"Everything you do is something to do with me!"

"Not this!"

"Of course it is!"

"Let me have one thing, Stephanie, one thing."

"I wasn't trying to take over!"

"Of course you were, you always do."

"Fine, whatever, I don't care, maybe I _should_ have told him to call you Christina. Christina, Christina, Christina," Stephanie said mockingly, sticking her tongue out.

"Well maybe you are fat!" And the moment it left his mouth, the second, the nanosecond it did, he knew he shouldn't have said it and he knew he didn't mean it. She made him so frustrated sometimes that he couldn't even think and this was one of those times. "Steph, I'm--"

He never got the words out because Stephanie's hand was rearing back and slapping the hell out of him. He was sure that his face had a red mark on it from her hand. He deserved it though. He'd gone out of line and his damn mouth, getting him into trouble all the time. He just didn't know when to shut it, but neither did Stephanie most of the time. That's what made them perfect for each other. He rubbed the side of his face with his hand.

"Steph..."

"Get out, go find some stick for all I care," she told him, glaring at him so hard that he left because that stare was just burning a hole inside of him.

Well that put a damper on his mood and he didn't think that he was going to have a good match later because of it. Hunter, on the other hand, went into his match thinking positive. He was going to beat Cody, get a great time and go right on through to SummerSlam. Britt had been sending him such good birthday vibes that he couldn't help but believe he could do anything tonight. If he'd been asked to lift a car, he might be able to do it just because she'd put so much faith in him.

So when he lost, he felt deflated. It wasn't that he'd actually lost, but the time had run out on him and that was just as good as losing. He might not have been pinned, but what use was it to win a match and still lose because you were a couple seconds past the end of the clock. It was mere moments and he'd lost out on the biggest prize at SummerSlam. He wasn't going to go for the title so what good was he for? What the hell could he do? His birthday had been ruined.

Somebody was going to have to pay.

"I'm sorry," Britt said.

"It's fine," he said shortly.

"It's not fine, but I swear, your party later is going to be great, I promise," she told him. "I really do."

"Sure it is...you know what, I don't even want a party."

"Hunter, no, come on, it's your birthday, you _have_ to celebrate."

"I don't want to celebrate," he said, storming off towards his locker room so he could get a shower and go home and just forget about this. Maybe he did love the title more than anything else. Maybe that's why he was so upset and Britt had been right, even in her joking.

Britt stopped him in his tracks, coming around to face him. She took his face in her hands and leaned up her chin to kiss him softly. "Hunter, please, for me."

It was blatant manipulation and she didn't care. He sighed. "Fine, for you."

If only things were so easy for Chris. He didn't dare go back to Stephanie's office during the show. She would probably skin him alive if he did so, so he kept a wide berth of the office. He changed in Big Show's locker room and tried to focus on his match, but it was even harder tonight than it was last night. Usually, he could beat both members of Cryme Tyme in his sleep, but when you'd just inadvertently called your beautiful wife fat.

Luckily for Chris, he did have a tag partner who could pick up some of the slack and being in the ring tended to make him forget about things for a short while. There was something about beating up another guy that took his mind off of his problems. Or maybe his problems dissipated every time he got to punch someone. It was probably that. Either way, being in the ring did help him forget about Stephanie for a short while because he had JTG and Shad to deal with in addition to Shaq, who was hovering around the outside.

They were unfairly disqualified though and Chris got out of the way as Big Show went after Shaq. He wasn't going to interfere in this one, Big Show could hold his own. Instead he went backstage and got ready for Hunter's birthday party. A few drinks could certainly take his mind off of Stephanie. Not that he necessarily wanted his mind off her, he just felt horrible for what he said. Stephanie was beautiful, he'd always thought so, well, okay, not so much when she was Hunter's wife, but there was a very specific reason for that. He loved her now and loved any body type she had. He didn't want a rail thin woman, he'd never been a fan. He liked her curves, her proved that pretty much every night.

He found himself sitting at the bar, not drinking, just watching as Stephanie hung out with Trish and Christian. Trish was complaining that she couldn't drink anything and everyone around her was drinking and Stephanie was showing her solidarity by only having a soda. She was laughing and he hoped she wasn't too hurt by what he'd said. He wanted to slap his forehead. Hunter came over and sat next to him.

"Hey, man, you and Steph still on the outs?"

"I'm an idiot."

"What'd you do?"

Chris didn't even want to say. "I kind of called her fat."

"Ouch," Hunter said. "You didn't mean that though, right?"

"Have you seen my wife, she's hot," Chris said. "We got in an argument, she was calling me Christina and I said what if I called you Steph-fat-nie and well, I'm an idiot."

"Steph-fat-nie. Where were you when I was divorcing her? I could've used that line," Hunter said, trying to joke, but Chris was too miserable to joke around. "Go talk to her, she's your wife. You love her, you've been married for what, almost five years, you've been together for seven. You can talk to her."

"She's pissed at me."

"She loves you, go..."

"So what, you turn 40 and you're suddenly a wise, old man?" Chris asked.

"Okay, go over there before I shove you over there," Hunter said, but Chris could tell he was joking.

"If you weren't my friend, man..."

"And she is to thank for that, see how integral she is to you, you'd otherwise be staring in the window, wishing you were invited to a party so cool," Hunter said.

"Or you'd be partying alone because you'd have no friends and certainly no Britt."

"Damn it, Jericho, why do you _always_ have one-up on me."

"I've made it my living," Chris shrugged as he walked backwards. He turned around again and walked up to the table where Stephanie was sitting. It was like fate because a slow song had just come up and he stood next to his wife.

"Hey, Steph...I was wondering if I could have this dance?"


	245. Warfare, July 31 to August 3, 2009

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, I'm going to try to catch up ASAP. I hope you like the chapter because I really enjoyed writing it. :)

* * *

"No."

"What?" Chris asked, looking at his wife confusedly.

"No, I don't want to dance with you," Stephanie said, glaring up at him. She craned her neck a little to look over his shoulder. "Oh, look, there are a ton of divas over there, I'm sure you can have your fill with one of them. Go ask them to dance."

Chris sighed and closed his eyes for a moment. She was not going to make this easy. But then, did she ever really make things easy for him? That was half the fun with Stephanie, she never made anything easy on him. "Please, Stephanie."

"I don't want to dance with you, I wouldn't want to embarrass someone as good-looking as you by being the ugly wife you have to drag everywhere. Look, Kelly Kelly is eyeing you right now and so is Jillian. You like blondes, right, than they'll be right up your alley."

"Stephanie, come on, you know I didn't mean to say that about you," he said, sliding into the booth next to his wife. She just barely scooted over in time for him to sit down. She was intent on not moving, but when a 220-pound man was about to sit on you, you move. Christian and Trish felt a little uncomfortable sitting there with them, but knowing that if they left, it'd be obvious why, they just stuck around and engaged in their own private conversation, trying to give the other married couple as much privacy as they could in a loud bar.

"Yeah, well you did say it," she told him, folding her arms in front of her. You did say it and you can't take it back because you can't go back in time, now can you?" she told him. "And if you can, maybe you'd just want to go back seven years and not be with me."

"You're being ridiculous," he told her, leaning in a little. "Stephanie, you can't be mad at me--"

"Oh, now I can't be mad at you," she said testily.

Chris rolled his eyes. "I don't think you're fat, I think you're beautiful. Do you hear me, I think you're beautiful."

"I don't care what you think," Stephanie told him. "Go ahead, go find some floozy to sleep with. Eve is looking good. You should go out with her or maybe one of the ring rats that's always hanging around outside, you'd have the pick of the litter."

"You're insufferable, you know," Chris said, running his hand over his face.

"Thank you," she said, sipping on her soda.

"What's it going to take for you to forgive me?" Chris wondered, point blank. He didn't have time to figure out what Stephanie wanted and they had been together so long he figured that they were also beyond silly romantic gestures. Once upon a time he could give her a grand experience or something ultimately romantic, but for them, now, romantic was just getting a night off from the kids.

"Go away and leave me alone," she said, staring down at her soda. She wished she'd gotten something alcoholic, but she'd felt bad that Trish couldn't drink so she didn't drink either, but right now, something with vodka sounded very appealing. She was just hurt by Chris's words and looking at him right now made her so upset and mad. She knew he probably didn't mean it, but the fact that he'd said that, just even said it put doubts in her mind.

She knew they shouldn't be there, knew that they were stupid for being there. Chris had never once strayed or even thought about straying in their seven years together. He'd never had the desire for another woman, never wanted a separation, hell, they spent most of their time together and he still wasn't totally sick of her…unless he was sick of her. She looked at Chris, who was staring at her, partly annoyed, partly bemused, partly upset.

"I'm not leaving you alone," he told her.

He was persistent, she'd give him that, but she'd always known he was persistent. She was having a hard time staying mad at him, but she wanted to stay mad at him for a while. She just couldn't give in and forgive him, that would be the easy way out and Stephanie never did anything that was the easy way out. He deserved to stew for a little while. That was the least he deserved. First with not even listening to her suggestions, then when he accused her of being the sole factor in Shaq mocking him, and then calling her fat.

"You want to dance?" she said, sipping the last of her Coke.

"Yes, I would like to dance," he told her.

"Okay," she said, pushing him on the shoulder. He took a last sip of his drink before he stood up and went on the dance floor. Stephanie followed him and grabbed his hand, pulling him to what he thought was the dance floor. Instead she pulled a left and for a moment he thought she was going to drag him to a small corner and make out with him. He smiled at that possibility. Any chance that he got to make out with his wife without their kids interrupting was a great thing.

Instead though, they stopped and he looked at her questioningly. Well this wasn't exactly a private place, "Stephanie," he started, but he didn't get to finish as he looked in front of him and saw Kelly Kelly sipping what looked to be a very girly drink. Figured.

"Kelly, hey, I'm really not in the mood for dancing with Chris right now, but I think he really, _really_ wants to dance and well, I figured, you weren't dancing, so you wouldn't mind dancing with him, right? I think that would really make him happy."

"Seriously?" Kelly asked, looking at Stephanie with an extremely petrified expression on her face. She had not forgotten Stephanie's warning to her not to even look at her husband. She didn't want to be fired and maybe this was a trick.

"Oh yeah, seriously," Stephanie, then patted Chris on the shoulder, "have a great time, you two."

"Wow, awesome," Kelly said, putting her drink down and pulling Chris into her even though he hadn't even been looking at her. He'd been staring at Stephanie, who just gave him a smug look and mouthed to him that Kelly was just his type. Chris glared at her, giving her a look of utter contempt. Kelly was already pressing her body up against his, but he couldn't even tell because his eyes were on Stephanie. She seemed rather unaffected by it all. "Chris, dance with me!"

Chris turned to the young blonde girl. "I'm sorry, but I really was just hoping to dance with my wife."

"But she said it's okay so we can dance now," Kelly said, clinging a little harder, obviously taking Stephanie up on this rare opportunity. Chris had so much power in this company it was crazy, the hotness on top of that was just icing on the cake. "So, are you having fun?"

Chris tried to hide his sneer. Kelly really hadn't done anything. And hell, maybe if he did dance with her, Stephanie would think that she actually started something between them and then she'd get mad and jealous and _then_ she would yell at him and he could just apologize and she could apologize for sticking him with this…girl and then…making out. He really just wanted to make out with his wife.

"Um, yeah, sure," Chris said, searching for Stephanie. She seemed to have disappeared, but he could still feels his eyes on her so she must be around here somewhere. But then maybe she wasn't close. He just had a knack for knowing when she was watching him.

"I'm having a great time. It was really, super nice of Hunter to invite all the cool people, not like Randy Orton, not that I thought that Hunter would invite Randy because well, you know, they don't get along too well and it probably wouldn't be a good idea for him to be here, but anyways, he's a jerk, did you know that?"

"You mean, have I even remotely watched any part of the show for the better part of a few years?" he asked.

"I guess, has he really been mean for that long?"

"Yes, he's really been mean for that long," Chris said, rolling his eyes as Kelly tried to get even closer to him. He felt like he could crush her in his arms with just one snap. He just didn't care for girls this thin. She didn't smell like Stephanie either…oh man, was he really this whipped. Here he had, by many standards, a beautiful woman in his arms, willingly, wanting him probably, and all he could think about was his wife? Shouldn't he be fantasizing about someone else, was he so hard up he had fantasies about his own wife?

Still, she didn't smell like Stephanie. Stephanie always smelled faintly of strawberries and baby lotion, which was the case because she used baby lotion on both their babies. The strawberries were from her shampoo. He had his own special shampoo that she didn't touch under punishment of banishment. Kelly smelled like perfume, a lot of perfume. It was probably to mask the smell after her match, but still, it was like she showered in the stuff. Stephanie didn't wear perfume, it irritated Sawyer. The kid had a very sensitive sense of smell, what could he say?

"Did you know that we slept together?"

Chris wasn't sure where _this_ line of conversation was going. "Um, well, I mean, it was kind of displayed on TV, wasn't it?"

"Can you believe that? I mean, talk about embarrassing, am I right? Like I needed the world to know what went on in my bedroom. I mean, yeah, he was actually really good, but still, they didn't have to broadcast it," Kelly said and Chris couldn't believe he was talking to her about her having sex with another guy. "I really thought we had something going there for a while, but he just like, totally blew me off. I think he has a thing for Hunter's girlfriend, I mean, what the hell does she have that I don't, you know?"

Chris could rattle off a long list of reasons right that second, but instead opted to just say, "You know, she's my friend, right?"

"Yeah, I mean, she's fine," Kelly said, kind of backtracking, but probably not even realize she was doing so. "But still, Randy is like, obsessed with her or something. I just don't know why. I thought we had something, I really did."

Chris was beginning to see why Randy had only allowed this to be a one-night stand. If she talked half as much as she was right now about dumb topics, he would've cut it off before it even got to sex. "That's too bad."

"I know, but it's okay, did you hear that Jeremy Piven was hosting Raw next week. Of course you did, you're like totally an owner so you probably knew, right?"

"I did know, yes, even if I hadn't, they showed it during the show."

"Oh yeah," she giggled. "He's hot, don't you think?"

"Not really," Chris said as the song mercifully ended. "Hey, thanks for the dance, I'm getting out of here, though."

"No," she whined. "Stay for another dance."

"I really can't."

"Please, pretty please, pretty, pretty please with a huge cherry on top," she begged him.

"I really should go."

"You're staying!" she insisted, practically throwing herself at him and hugging herself around the neck. He was going to make his wife's life a living hell for this.

Stephanie laughed as she saw Kelly practically throwing herself at Chris. Served him right for what he'd done to her. Now he was suffering the consequences. She took a sip of the rum and coke she'd gotten from the bar as she saw someone sitting down across from her out of the corner of her eye. She turned and saw it was Hunter's sister, Lynn. Stephanie didn't even know she'd come, seeing as how New Hampshire wasn't exactly close.

"Hey, Stephanie," Lynn said.

"Lynn, hey, wow, long time no see, it's been what, like eight or so years?" Stephanie said.

"Yeah, it's been a while."

"How have you been?"

"I've been doing well, the kids are keeping me busy, that's for sure," Lynn told her with a smile. "Just here for my little brother's birthday since it's a big one. He's happy with Britt, right?"

"Insanely so," Stephanie said as she looked to Hunter. He and Britt had been dancing to the last three songs as if they had all been slow ones, even though that wasn't the case. Their foreheads were leaned against one another's, Hunter having to stoop down a little to reach hers, and they were talking quietly to each other.

"I thought so," she said, "I hardly get to see him and keep tabs on him. It was easier when he was younger, before wrestling. I think I was too overprotective a sister to him."

"Sounds like my brother," Stephanie said with a laugh.

"So you and my brother, you're like friends now?" Lynn asked, trying to understand the dynamic.

"Yeah, we are, great friends," Stephanie said with a friendly affection towards Hunter. "I think we're better off as friends, we probably should've just been friends all the time, not bothered with the whole marriage business."

"I think my mom would agree," Lynn laughed.

"Yeah, she's…she's not a fan of me."

"Right after the divorce, you should've heard her rant on and on about you."

"I can just imagine."

"How are you doing now?"

"I'm great, actually," she told her former sister-in-law. She'd never really wanted a sister growing up, but she'd liked Lynn the times she saw her when she was married to Hunter. Chris had no siblings so he was a lone wolf, so it was a definite loss when she'd divorced Hunter. "Well, I would be better if I could have the GM job on Raw, but other than that I'm not complaining."

"You're…married, right?"

"Yeah, I'm married, it'll be five years this January," Stephanie beamed, then she pointed at her husband, who was staring at the ceiling as Kelly held onto his neck. Chris didn't even have his arms around her, she was just dancing and talking. "That's him right there."

"Chris Jericho?"

"Yeah, that's the one."

"You're okay with him dancing with another woman?"

"Oh yeah, I told him to," Stephanie said with a smile.

"Okay," Lynn said, not really understanding, but not trying to, "do you have kids? I think I remember Hunter mentioning that you had a son."

"Yeah, we do, we actually have two kids, my husband and I. Our son, Sawyer, is three and our daughter, Flynn is going to be a year old on the 7th of next month."

"Oh wow, that sounds so cool, I wish my kids were still babies sometimes," she said wistfully.

"Yeah, I can't believe my baby is going to be a whole year old, it's pretty crazy whenever I think about it," Stephanie said, thinking about her daughter and what she would be doing right now. Asleep was the best bet since it was late. She loved that little girl though and couldn't wait to see her tomorrow.

"It is," Lynn said, then looked to the doorway. "Oh, they're bringing in the cake, better go watch."

Stephanie stood up with her as Britt pushed the cake into the room, candles blazing all over it. Stephanie wasn't sure if there were 40, but there were certainly a great deal of them on the cake. The lights dimmed and everyone started singing "Happy Birthday" to Hunter as he stood there, kind of glaring as some people (Chris) altered the words of the song to make him sound old. Everyone stopped singing as Chris yelled, "Here's to 70 more years, Trips!"

"Shut up, jackass!" Hunter yelled as he attempted to blow out all the candles, but there were so many it took him a few tries as everyone clapped for him. He started to cut the cake as Stephanie saw Chris edging towards her. She tried to move, but it was pretty densely packed and she was stuck where she was.

"You are an evil, evil woman," Chris whispered to her.

"I just want my cake and then I want to go," she said.

"Fine," he told her. "Maybe you should just find your own ride home."

"Christian and Trish are staying with us, I'm sure they'd be glad to give me a ride."

"I can't believe you would make me dance with Kelly Kelly."

"I figured she was your type, very petite, just like you like them," Stephanie told him.

Chris groaned. "You're being a bitch."

"Well, you're an ass."

He rubbed his mouth with his hand. "Why do you insist on being this way? I slipped up, yes, but I apologized. You know that's not how I view you, you know that's not how I see you when I look at you and you certainly know that Kelly Kelly is not my type."

"Who knows what you're type is, I'm sure it's something really, really skinny, super skinny and that's not me."

Chris wanted to smack his head against a wall over and over again. It would be more productive at this point. "You _know_ I didn't mean that, why will you not let it go? Seriously, Stephanie, I didn't mean it, what is it going to take for you to believe that?"

"I'm getting cake," she said, starting to walk away from him.

"Fine, I'm leaving!"

"Okay, bye," Stephanie said.

Chris nearly screamed in frustration, but he wasn't going to stay around any longer. Kelly had been eyeing him since their song had ended and he could see her skulking through the crowd with two plates of cake. He was not eating cake with her. He was going to say his goodbyes to Britt and Hunter and then make the drive home. Stephanie said she was getting a ride with Christian and Trish so he wasn't going to worry about her. If she wanted to stay and be mad at him, then fine, he wasn't going to worry about her.

"Hey, man, I just wanted to say I was taking off," Chris said as he went up to Hunter. Britt was busy feeding him some cake and laughing as she got some icing on his cheek.

"You're going already?" Hunter asked and Chris could tell he was well on his way to being buzzed.

"Yeah, I'm going to head out, I don't really feel well," Chris said.

"Okay, well, I'll see you at Raw next week, right?" Hunter said as Britt tried to shove another piece of cake into his mouth. He was laughing at her and trying to push the fork away.

"Yeah, you will, happy birthday, man," Chris said, shaking his hand and giving him a very manly hug.

"Yeah, you too," Hunter said and Chris just laughed as he kissed Britt's cheek goodbye. He went around and said his goodbyes, then looked pointedly at Stephanie before he left.

He got home a few hours later and the house was so quiet. They didn't stay here often since they mainly lived in Florida so the house had that kind of spooky, empty feeling to it. Though they'd decorated it beautifully and they had all the amenities they had down in Florida, but it just wasn't the same. The kids weren't here so it felt even emptier. There weren't many nights where he went without his children. There was no Sawyer coming to ask for a glass of water or him checking up on Flynn to make sure she was okay in her crib. Stephanie wasn't even here and the house took on a near oppressive feeling that he tried to push down.

He headed upstairs and got ready for bed. It was the middle of the night at this point, but he wasn't that tired and a part of him, the bigger part, wanted to wait until Stephanie got home, just to make sure that she got back safely. He hoped she wasn't lying when she said that she was going with Trish and Christian and not just saying that because she was mad at him and didn't ask them for a ride. He turned the television on and tried to find some mind-numbing television on this late. It was difficult, but he settled for an old episode of Married with Children.

Sometime into the second episode he dozed off and only woke up later when he heard voices downstairs. He could make out Trish and Christian's, but he didn't hear Stephanie's and his heart beat a little faster. What if she hadn't gotten a ride with them? But surely she would've found a ride with someone and it wasn't like Stephanie wasn't self-sufficient. If she was stuck there she could just get a hotel room. Still, he didn't like her out there by herself. He worried about her; she was his wife after all.

His concerns were alleviated a few moments later as Stephanie walked into the room and closed the door behind her after calling out goodnight to Christian and Trish. She turned to Chris and saw he was awake and gave him a slight nod before she went into her closet to get ready for bed. She emerged a few minutes later wearing a tank top and her underwear. It was warm outside, but cool indoors, but still, Stephanie like to wear little clothing to bed, that was just what she was most comfortable in. She went into the bathroom and took care of business before she came back out and climbed in bed.

"Are you going to watch TV?" she asked.

"No," he said, turning the light off and blanketing them in darkness. "Goodnight."

"Night," Stephanie said as she turned to face away from him. He stared up at the ceiling, his eyes adjusting to the lack of light in the room and he could faintly make out the objects in the room from the scarce moonlight streaming in through the window.

"You know, you suck for making me dance with Kelly," he told her.

"That was the plan," she told him.

"She would not let go of me."

"Good, you deserve each other."

"I didn't deserve punishment like that."

"Punishment? That wasn't punishment, I'm just helping you look for Mrs. Jericho #2, the skinnier, younger version. I felt like Kelly Kelly fit the requirements quite well. Is her last name Kelly, I don't remember. Because then she could be Kelly Kelly-Jericho, or maybe she'll just be Kelly Jericho, either way, I'm sure you two will be very happy together."

"Do you just love to make my life a living hell?"

"I'm not doing anything," Stephanie told him. "Nothing at all."

"I don't want another wife or a different wife or…" He grunted in frustration. "I don't want any of that, I want _you_. God, get that through your thick skull."

"No, I don't think so."

"Why are you making this difficult?"

"I'm going to bed."

"Haven't you hear the saying, you shouldn't go to bed mad, people who have been married a long time take that approach."

"Well, we haven't been married a long time and looks like you're already straying."

"That's it," Chris said, rolling over and pulling Stephanie's waist until she was facing him. He could barely make her out, but she had a glare on her face. "Stop it, okay, just stop it, I don't want to fight with you, I don't like it, do you hear me, I don't like it. I love _you_, do you understand that."

"Chris, I'm tired, I'm going to bed." Chris didn't care, he leaned forward and kissed her. Stephanie, despite herself, kissed him back, actually rolling him onto his back as she leaned on top of him. Chris held her tightly around the waist, clinging to her. Stephanie remembered herself and pulled away. "You are a dirty player, Jericho."

"Come on, McMahon…"

"Bed, I'm going to it," she said, rolling off him, knowing exactly what she was doing. She was leaving him high and dry and she already knew she was getting a rise out of him. Sure, now she was just being vindictive, but better to keep him stewing for a bit. That would get him back for calling her fat and then she would have the upper-hand.

Chris clenched his fists and turned on his side. Fine, he thought, if she wanted to be mad, he could be mad too.

Friday rolled around and Chris and Stephanie were still fighting, except it wasn't so much fighting now as it was trying to get under each other's skin. They both knew that they were being stupid and childish, but sometimes you had to be stupid and childish instead of serious all the time. It was just one of their typical fights that seemed to last a little longer than usual. They usually fought about stupid stuff, it was when they started fighting about really big stuff when there would be a problem.

"Stephanie, a word?"

"Hi Daddy, where you go?" Sawyer asked.

Chris looked at his son. "I was talking with Big Show."

"He big," Sawyer said nodding, agreeing with his father's sentiment. He was a giant man, much, much bigger than he was. "What talk?"

"We were just discussing a match for tonight against Cryme Tyme and The Hart Dynasty, whoever wins is going to face me and Big Show at SummerSlam," Chris explained to him. "It's a very important match because then we'll know who wins."

"Oh," Sawyer said, tilting his head a little as he thought for a moment. Stephanie did the same thing when she was looking questioningly at someone. "You eat now."

Chris laughed. Leave it to his kid to put everything into perspective for him. "Okay, I guess I can eat, unless I'm not welcome to sit here."

"It's a free country," Stephanie told him blandly as she tried to wipe Flynn's face. She was having none of it though because the carrots she was eating were delicious and she kept trying to grab around Stephanie's hand for her food.

"I had no idea," Chris said blandly as he went to get himself some food. He ended up with spaghetti and meatballs and some garlic bread. He sat down in between Flynn and Sawyer and as soon as Flynn saw what her daddy had on his plate, she wanted some. She leaned over and tried to grab some of his spaghetti with her dirty hands. Chris pushed it away. "Be a little civilized, flutterby, we don't go around trying to grab other people's food."

"Hahaha," Flynn said, which was her newest favorite thing. She apparently liked the sound of other people laughing so she would emulate it, but not as a real laugh, as like a word. They didn't really get it, but it was cute so they didn't correct her.

"Here," Chris said, swirling some spaghetti around his fork and holding it up to Flynn. She knew what a utensil near her mouth looked like and she opened wide as Chris made train sounds before putting the spaghetti in her mouth. She got an absolutely euphoric look on her face and chewed slowly. "Someone likes spaghetti."

"Daddy, I want spisketti," Sawyer piped in.

"What the heck is that?" Chris asked, pointing to Sawyer's plate, which was conveniently filled with spaghetti.

"No, you spisketti."

"Okay, I guess my spaghetti is special," he said, doing the same thing for Sawyer as he did for Flynn, realizing it wasn't so much the spaghetti that he wanted, but he wanted to be treated like Flynn was being treated. Chris indulged him on this and gave him the spaghetti. "Good?"

"Uh huh."

"I think your daughter wants more," Stephanie said as she ate her grilled chicken. "Be careful, Flynnie, Daddy might want to replace you with a cute, younger, thinner baby pretty soon if you keep eating like that."

"Nah, she's a keeper," Chris said, giving Flynn a little more of his food before eating some for himself. "Unlike some people around here."

"Here that, Sawyer, Daddy's replacing you, better go do a few laps around the ring."

"Daddy?" Sawyer asked curiously, not understanding what his mother was getting at.

"Don't worry, kid, I'm not getting rid of you, I like _you_," he said, staring at Stephanie, who shrugged and continued to eat.

"Do you approve of my meal?" Stephanie asked. "Or is chicken breast too fattening?"

"You should've just opted for the cardboard boxes the stuff was delivered in," he said as he ate. "Now, I came here to ask you something, why am I not on the schedule for tonight?"

"Oh, you wanted to be on the schedule, this is news to me. You know the rules, Chris, you should alert me at least three hours before the show starts if you want to be included on the schedule."

"That is not a rule."

"Did you not get that memo?" she wondered, tilting her head like Sawyer had done earlier. "That's not my fault. I could've sworn I sent you one."

"I want time on the show."

"Not going to happen, we're all booked, I already had my meeting with Teddy and it's finalized, sorry," Stephanie told him, but she wasn't sorry so he told her so.

"You're not sorry," he said, trying not to get angry. That's what she wanted. She wanted to make him angry, but he wasn't going to fall for it, no, he wasn't going to fall for it at all. He would not give her the satisfaction of knowing she was pissing him off. He'd already done that the other night and she knew it and used it against him, smugly looking at him when she thought he wasn't looking.

"Well, it does give other guys more time on the show, stop being a show-hog, Chris, I mean, is it really necessary you be everywhere when everyone hates you so much?" she said.

"I don't care if people hate me," he told her nonchalantly.

"Of course you don't," she told him, eating very properly, cutting her chicken into perfect squares, which, for some reason, was driving him absolutely nuts. "If you wanted, I guess you could beg for some time on the show, would you be willing to beg, Chris?"

"No, I would not," he said.

"Too bad, you might get what you want," she said. "Well, no, you'd have to shave off that hideous thing you've got growing on your face first."

"Oh, my goatee you mean, I thought you would like it," Chris said, running his hand over his growing facial hair. He knew Stephanie hated it when he grew facial hair so he had done it with the express purpose of pissing her off. She said she hated kissing a guy with facial hair and because of that, for the most part, he kept clean shaven, but if she was mad at him, by all means, he was going to grow it. "I've been thinking about growing a full beard, been a while since I've grown one of those, maybe Mike Knox long actually."

Stephanie wanted to tell him not to dare do that, but she knew he was baiting him and in this little game, she was not going to just let him win. She'd slipped up, letting him know she hated it, but she wasn't going to make that mistake again. "Actually, you know what, the goatee looks _fabulous_ on you, very dignified. A full beard would just compliment you so well."

"Oh, thank you, then maybe I will grow it, thank you so much for your opinion," he told her, giving her a very false grin, which she returned.

"You weird," Sawyer said from his spot. He'd just been watching his parents and they were acting very strangely around each other. He was used to them working as a cohesive unit, not as these weird people.

"What?" Stephanie asked. "Are you talking to Daddy being weird because I'd love to hear you elaborate."

"Or was it Mommy you were talking about, because I'm sure we'd all love to know the reasons," Chris said, glancing at Stephanie out of the corner of his eye.

"Both," he said, looking at the two of them and shaking his head. His parents were just very strange.

"Oh," Stephanie said, "well, just finish up your dinner so you can go off with Daddy, be careful though, he wants to grow a full beard, you might not recognize him, he could look like a big, bad stranger and if that's the case, you need to kick strangers in the leg."

"Facilitating violence, you should be ashamed," Chris said.

"Oh, I am, Chris, I certainly am," she said, standing up. "I'm leaving, I've got work to do and seeing as how you're…not working, you can take care of the kids until it's time to go home, right? Man, that works out perfectly, I should've thought of this not putting you on the show thing a long time ago."

"Hey, you still pay me, so why not?" he said, though inside he was fuming about it. She had more power than he did and that gave her an advantage. He watched as Stephanie gave Flynn a kiss on the crown her of her head and then kissed Sawyer before she walked away. He sucked at his teeth a little before he started shoveling food in his mouth angrily.

"You mad, Daddy?" Sawyer asked.

"A little, yeah," Chris told him, not sugarcoating it, he was mad, Sawyer could handle that.

"Why?" Sawyer asked.

"Never get married, kid, okay, just…just never get married, but if you do, if you find the absolute need to get married, make sure it's not to someone who is like, you're exact double and knows how to get under your skin and not someone you work with, though if you're a wrestler, that might be hard to avoid because it's so easy to fall for someone in this business, but if you do go into some other business, try not to date someone there because then you will compete for power and sometimes the woman wins and will make your life a living hell."

"You talk a lot…like Mommy," Sawyer told him.

"Sawa!" Flynn giggled, like she was agreeing with Sawyer.

"You two be quiet," Chris said with a laugh at his kids as they both made silly faces at him, "you two are half the probably anyways, you just _had_ to come along, huh?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, he always came along to the shows with his mommy and daddy, his daddy should know that, he was just being silly, Sawyer guessed.

Chris laughed some more. "If it weren't for you two, I think your mom and I would've ripped each other to shreds before now."

"No," Sawyer laughed, that was funny, you couldn't rip people!

"Okay, so before we leave this table, we've got to find a way to get Daddy on tonight's show."

It actually wasn't hard. While Chris may not have the power that Stephanie had in the company, his name did carry some weight around here and he was grateful for that weight. If he wanted to go out there and talk, nobody was going to stop him because they knew who he was married to. So he exercised that power after the Cryme Tyme/Hart Dynasty match. Either way, whoever won, Chris and Show knew they could beat them. Both teams were young, inexperienced and hardly held the same cache that he and Show carried.

Chris went out there with his tag team partner to confront the number one contenders to their title. Cryme Tyme was feeling on top of the world right now, but that feeling was going to quickly change. They weren't going to be a match for him and Show. Chris didn't show any fear of these two because there was nothing to fear. When he went out there, he knew, 100 percent knew, that he was the better wrestler. He could probably take Shad or JTG out with one hand tied behind his back. They made their jokes, their lame jokes, like he was Han Solo, but he was a hero so it wasn't even a good comeback.

They were jokes, is what they were, they hid behind someone who got the better of them for about a minute on one show, but they couldn't hide being Shaquille O'Neal now. This was going to be for all the marbles and it was going to be one-on-one and they were going to have nowhere to hide. Big Show took over speaking and put over how Chris was the best in the business. He hadn't even told him to say that, but it was nice to know that Show knew what was really going on around here. He was the best at what he did and he was the best in the business.

He walked backstage, satisfied with what he'd done and he looked at Stephanie, who was sitting there watching the show with their kids. "Thanks for having my back out there, man," Chris said, patting Show on the shoulder, making sure Stephanie heard every word.

"No problem," he said, "those punks need to learn their place."

"They will, all in due time," Chris said with a nod. "All in due time. You don't think they actually stand a chance against us at SummerSlam. There's no way."

"I know," Show chuckled.

"I'll meet up with you later, I've got a little business to take care of here," Chris told him. Big Show glanced up and over Chris's head and saw Stephanie and figured what kind of "business" Chris had to take care of. He nodded and wandered off. Chris walked over to his wife. "Well, would you look at that, somehow made it onto the show, what do you know, I guess I didn't need to be scheduled."

"Maybe I should just dock your pay then," she said.

"And take money away that can be spent on your children, for your little boy and girl, wow, Stephanie, that's pretty cold," Chris said, shaking his head. "I use my money to provide for our family and you want to dock my pay?"

"I think they'll be okay, just this once, but don't worry, Chris, I've got better things to do with my time than dock your pay, plenty of things."

He wasn't sure he liked the tone of that.

And as Monday rolled around, he would realize just how true that was. "So you guys aren't fighting, but you _are_ fighting? Is that what you're trying to tell me?"

"Yeah, I mean, we're fighting, but we're not fighting, fighting," Chris told Hunter. "It's more like…psychological warfare."

"Psychological warfare?" Hunter repeated slowly. "Sorry, man, I'm definitely not following you here."

"Well, I mean, I think she knows, or at least I hope she knows that I wasn't serious when I called her fat. I mean, it was just one of those stupid, stupid things to say, you know and I know I shouldn't have said it and I know I didn't mean it because, okay, I'm giving you permission right now, but _only_ for right now, to think about how Stephanie is gorgeous when she's not wearing anything."

"Oh, naked, you mean," Hunter interjected.

"Don't say naked, just don't, just…no, I already have a huge problem with the fact you've _seen_ her naked, but I don't need to hear you say it."

"You _do_ know that I didn't just _see_ her naked, right?"

"Why do you torture me, what did I ever do to you?" Chris asked.

"Well, you stole my wife--"

"No, I didn't," Chris interrupted. "Your marriage was done when I started dating Stephanie."

"You stole her."

"I did not steal her."

"I think you stole her."

"I did not steal her."

"Don't you love when she's on to--"

"Oh my God, horrible mental images," Chris said with an enormous shudder. "Okay, back to the topic at hand, she's gorgeous, we both have…intimate knowledge of this, me more so because I've been married to her for 4 and a half years, almost 5 and you were only married to her for a little over two, but she's gorgeous, why would I want any other woman, she knows that, I mean, our sex life--"

"And you can just stop right there," Hunter said, "don't need to know about that."

"Why not?"

"Because I _did_ used to be married to her, lingering feelings of love, pangs in the stomach, plus, and a _big_ plus, I really don't want to hear about it," Hunter said.

"Fine, but it's good," Chris said quickly as Hunter groaned, "but it's beyond that now. We're trying to break each other because neither one of us wants to give the other the upper-hand. She thinks I don't know what she's doing, but I know, I definitely know what she's doing and I'm not going to let it happen, but she's playing dirty now."

"What'd she do?"

"I think the question should be what _didn't_ she do," Chris said irritably. "She's a fierce competitor, I will give her that, she is a fierce competitor and with a lesser man, like her former husband--"

"Cheap shot."

"You're just too easy," Chris said, "anyways, with a lesser man, they would've crumbled by now, given in, but she didn't marry a lesser man this time around--"

"Seriously, dude, you're not garnering my sympathy here."

"I will once you hear what she's done."

"Okay, lay it on me then. What did she do?"

"Well, the lesser of the two crimes was yesterday, I happened to become the number one trending topic on Twitter, so more people were talking about me than anything else in the entire world, that's the world, Trips, this whole world from Connecticut to California to Cambodia to--"

"I know what the world means," he deadpanned. "How in the hell did that happen?"

"Because people like me, you've never even cracked…well, any list whatsoever."

"Okay, so you were the number one topic of discussion, so what?"

"Well, Stephanie came up with a fake Twitter account just to write mean things about me, like she didn't know I would know it was her, because I was skimming and I know her nicknames that she likes to use for things. I've been with the woman for 7 years, does she not think I'd know it was her name?"

"So she wrote things about you, big deal."

"Big deal, they were mean and spiteful, but she doesn't know that I know her secret password to things. But I do so I went in and deleted them."

"That doesn't sound so bad."

"That's not the bad thing, the bad thing is she gave Kelly Kelly my phone number and told Kelly that I really enjoyed talking and dancing with her at your party and Kelly has been trying to call me all weekend long. I'm starting to think she thinks that Stephanie is giving her permission to date me!"

"Well that's unexpected."

"Then Stephanie snuck into my Twitter account and followed Kelly Kelly even though I took her off because she has the most inane posts I've ever seen, I couldn't take it, so I took her off, but then Stephanie put her on and then I got a phone message from Kelly gushing about how we can talk to each other on Twitter like best friends and Hunter, I do not want to be her best friend."

Hunter tried to hold in his laugh, "Stephanie's…wow, she is winning, man."

"I can't get rid of that blonde girl," Chris said. "I'm nearly at the end of my rope, but the good thing about being Tag Champions is that I can be on Raw."

"Strange, you'd think the best thing about being the Tag Champions would be…being the Tag Champions," Hunter joked.

"Nope, it's the Raw thing, you see, I've got something planned for Mrs. Stephanie McMahon-Jericho."

"What do your kids think about this?"

"Sawyer thinks we're weird, he told us so, he's been giving us disapproving looks. I'm expecting him to sit us down and tell us that we're being childish. He's probably planning the presentation as we speak. Flynn is as chill as ever."

"You know, instead of focusing on destroying each other and the world, maybe you should be focusing on something more productive, like your daughter's birthday, which is coming up, right?"

"My baby girl is turning one on the 7th," Chris beamed. He couldn't believe his daughter was going to be a whole year old. It felt like they'd had Flynn for so much longer, but it'd only been a year. A great year though. He didn't like thinking of a world where Flynn didn't exist. She may have been another accident, but damn, what an awesome accident. "Stephanie and I are all set for the party though so there's no need to deviate from what we're doing. Flynn is all taken care of."

"Okay," Hunter said, "so how will you know when someone gives in."

"Oh, I'll know when she gives in, alright, I'll know."

Trish came upon Stephanie at the gorilla. She wasn't actually working on the show, though she could and should, but she was there in case Piven needed some direction for tonight. He was not experienced with the wrestling world and she'd offered to help in case he needed any pointers since she was great at what she did. If only her father would see that and just give her the job she wanted instead of the job she had.

"Hey, so how is Operation Break Chris?" Trish asked as she sat down.

"Wonderful," Stephanie said as she shifted Flynn in her arms, "Isn't it going wonderfully, Flynnie?"

"Hi," Flynn said to Trish.

"Oh my God, she said hi! Stephanie, she said hi!" Trish said, grabbing Flynn's hands.

"I didn't tell you, she started saying it on Saturday," Stephanie told her. "We're treating Sawyer as her first word though because Sawa is definitely Sawyer. Chris is a little hurt he wasn't her first word, but can't say I'm sorry about that."

"I'm sure the next one you guys have will say his name first."

"I just shouldn't have any more, that'll teach him."

"Wow, you a _really_ willing to do whatever it takes to win."

"You don't win without dedication," Stephanie joked.

"Where's Sawyer?" Trish asked, looking around and not seeing the usually excitable little boy.

"With your husband, where have you been, I thought you'd have been with him," Stephanie said.

"Oh, about that…"

"What about that? I'm not sensing something good here. Don't tell me you and Christian are fighting or something."

"We're not you and Chris."

"Chris and I aren't fighting, it's psychological warfare," she explained. "We're just trying to figure out who wins this time and neither is giving in, I know I'm not, but I'm winning anyways. You should see him whenever Kelly calls him. It's hilarious because she wants to be Chris's best friend or something. All she wants to do is gossip about other people, that's all she wants to do. Then when I started following her on Twitter under Chris's name, oh my God, I saved the message she left on Chris's phone when he wasn't looking, you'll have to hear it, it is the funniest thing you will ever hear."

"You guys are too much. Christian and I would never do this."

"He'd crack under the pressure," Stephanie said, "so what about what you were saying?"

"Well, I was just talking to your dad," Trish said slowly.

"What?" Stephanie asked, genuinely confused.

"Well, he…he wants me to be a guest host for Raw at an upcoming show."

"You've got to be kidding me, tell me you're kidding me," Stephanie said.

"I'm not, I'm sorry, I told him I'd think about it, not just for you, but I mean, yeah, for you, partly, but the other part is this," Trish said, patting her stomach. "I want to do it, I'd love a one-night only thing, you know, see the fans again. I'm not showing so it wouldn't be like, 'Oh my God, look at fat Trish Stratus,' but you know how Christian's been."

"A little crazy…"

"Yeah, so I have to think about it, talk it over with him. I think I can do it, but I'll talk with him."

"Talk to Dr. Sheldon too, she can give you all you need to know."

"Good idea," Trish said. "I'm sorry though, I know you want the job."

Stephanie grinned and bore it. "My dad is just going to overlook me until he's used up all avenues and then, I can swoop in, I'm patient, here for the long haul."

"You're being very mature."

"I've got so many other things on my plate right now, Flynn's birthday is coming up very soon, then it's my birthday, then Chris's birthday, plus running SmackDown, plus crushing Chris like a little bug under my shoe, very full."

"I wonder what Chris is doing now."

Chris was trying to get away from the girl who thought they were now best friends, "So then, I was like, Mickie, you are wearing way too much eyeshadow and she was like, 'no, I'm not, you are,' but I wasn't because I wasn't wearing a lot. I don't like my eyes, I think they're too narrow, do you like them?"

"I don't know, I've never looked."

"Well, look now!" Kelly said. "Because if you agree, I think that I should get them fixed, can you get eyes fixed, I'll look into it, do you have a match tonight, by the way?"

"No, I'm just doing commentary."

"Oh, commentary, I don't think I've ever done that," she said, tapping her chin. "Maybe I have, but I really don't remember, oh well, I don't think I'd be good at it, though I do like to think I'm good at talking, do you think I'm good at talking?"

"Well, you don't let me get a word in edgewise."

"Oops," she giggled, "sorry, I guess I'm just rambling, but you are _such_ a good listener, has anyone ever told you that?"

"Not really."

"They should," she said. "So then, Mickie was like, 'we are double trouble, you know,' and I thought that was so cool, like a cool nickname, Double Trouble, Mickie James, Kelly Kelly, Double Trouble."

"Yeah, very nice," Chris said, "Look, Kelly, I've got to go do something…"

"Oh," she said, disappointed.

"Yeah, sorry, bye," he said, walking away quickly. He turned the corner and nearly ran into his son, who was right there. "Oh, hey, kid, what are you doing?"

"Hi, Daddy, my baby say hi too," Sawyer told him.

"I know she did, I was there," he said, picking him up. "Thanks for watching him, Christian, I can take him from here."

"Okay," Christian said. "Where you going?"

"Somewhere," he said, "later."

Chris walked with Sawyer down the hallway and then knocked on Legacy's door. It opened a moment later and it was Cody who answered. He scowled a little at Chris. "Hey, is Ted in there?"

"Why do you want to know?" Cody asked.

"I need to talk to him," Chris told him.

"Why?"

"Dude, just get him for me."

"Fine," Cody said, disappearing for a second before Ted came to the door.

"Chris?" Ted said.

"Hey, man, I was wondering if you could do me a favor," Chris said, "you see, Steph is busy, but she's been really wanting to talk to you about some work-related thing and she didn't have the time to come find you, but she needs to talk to you."

"Okay, about what?"

"Just follow me, I'll take her to you."

"Um, okay," Ted said, shrugging at Cody and walking with Chris to wherever Stephanie was.

"Hi," Sawyer said, "who are you?"

Ted laughed, "I'm Ted DiBiase."

"You wewfle?"

"I do wrestle."

"My daddy wewfle," Sawyer told him, patting Chris's shoulder.

"I know," Ted said nicely.

"He beat you," Sawyer said, having the ultimate confidence in his daddy.

"Well, I mean, we weren't ready for him or anything," Ted said, then tried to rationalize why he was arguing with a 3 year old. "This better be good, Jericho."

"Oh, don't worry, it will be," he said, smirking to himself. He found Stephanie right where he wanted her and walked up with Ted. "Stephanie, I found Ted for you, there was something that you wanted to tell him. Something you told me the other night."

They'd been "discussing" things the other night and Stephanie said she might as well go off with Ted and be with him because he was probably better than Chris. Stephanie looked stricken at Ted standing there, waiting for her to speak. She looked at Chris who had a Chesire cat grin on his face, like he'd just spit up the biggest ball of "what are you going to do now?" to Stephanie. She cleared her throat and looked at Ted.

"Um, nothing, I forgot."

"I don't think you did," Chris said, "but if you did, I certainly remember what it was."

"No, no, no, you don't," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "Ted, I'm sorry, I don't…it was probably something related to your match tonight or something or to discuss, um, travel arrangements with you."

"No, I'm sure that wasn't it," Chris said, tapping his chin. "I'm sure it was…"

"Sawyer, did you have to go to the bathroom or anything, Daddy can take you if you do," Stephanie interrupted. She was starting to blush and get flustered and Chris loved every moment of it. Served her right for making him listen to Kelly Kelly talk about how she and Mickie were Double Trouble.

"I no go, Mommy," he said with a huff. He knew when he had to go potty.

"See, he doesn't have to go, now let me see, Stephanie was saying something about you the other night, something about how she thought you were--"

"Um, too good for Legacy," Stephanie cut Chris off. "I just, you're really talented and I know they're your friends, but you're better, just so you know."

"Thanks," Ted said, looking between Chris and Stephanie, very confused by what was going on. He wasn't friends with either of them, so he had no idea of the war between them, the war Chris was currently winning. He was winning big.

"No, Stephanie, not that, we all knew that," Chris said, "it was about how you thought he was…what was it…"

Stephanie flew out of her chair, Flynn in her arms and she nearly threw herself at Chris, leaning up and pressing her lips against his. It was not a kiss of love, but a kiss of "shut your mouth." Chris took the opportunity to kiss her back. He'd like to say that she'd been withholding from him, but they'd actually slept together a couple nights before, both of them trying to win at _that_ game too. When they said psychological warfare, they _meant_ psychological warfare. Ted looked at them a little disgustingly and decided that he was not going to stick around and watch this like some weird voyeur. Stephanie saw him leave out of the corner of her eye and she pulled away from Chris.

"You are awful, I can't believe you just did that," Stephanie told him.

"Tit for tat, you stuck me with Kelly Kelly, one-half of Double Trouble," Chris said sarcastically.

"Double Trouble?"

"Her evil team with Mickie James or something, I wasn't paying attention!"

"But you went too far, I don't feel for Ted!"

"Like I feel for Kelly Kelly?"

"No, but…you frustrate me!"

"Say it, Stephanie," Chris said, hovering his lips near hers. "Just say it, you know you want to. You know that I've got you, right? I can take a little Kelly Kelly, but if Ted knew about your little crush, what would he think? How would you act around him?"

"I'm not giving in," she said firmly.

He pulled away, "Fine, suit yourself, if that's the way you want to play it, fine."

"It'll be over soon, Jericho, just you wait," Stephanie said, staring him straight in the eye and it was her turn to hover her lips over his. She added a little brush of hers against his, not quite a kiss, but almost there. "I'm going to have you right where I want you."

"Not a chance, McMahon."

"Watch me."

Chris didn't think she was going to do anything that could top what he'd done with Ted. He was going to win and Lord it over her head for all eternity. He was going to gloat and crow and maybe do a little victory dance. In other words, he was going to shame Stephanie into a hole in the ground that she wouldn't want to come out of until Flynn's birthday. He was on top of the world as he walked down the ramp with Big Show. He was going to be on commentary that evening and that would turn out to be the biggest mistake of the war. He had won many a battle, but he was about to lose the war.

He started talking and making conversation when her voice came over his headphones, "Hey, sweetie, remember the other night when you were taking off my clothes, kissing me slowly over every part of skin you exposed, trying to torture me?"

Chris gulped a little and tried to keep talking, but he was hoping that he was the only one hearing this.

"I want to do that to you right now, right there. I want to take off your tie first and then unbutton every button and kiss your skin as I do. I'd straddle your lap right there. Then, when I have you all nice and undressed, maybe I could get…"

Chris tried to block her out, but he was listening very intently to Stephanie detail the things she would do to him and implore him to look under the desk to see if there was enough room for her. He tried to power through, oh how he tried, but then she started talking about what they could do in the ring in front of everyone and he nearly lost it completely. This woman was going to be the death of him. He was getting awfully hot right now and he wanted this match to end. When it was over, Chris threw the headphones off. He couldn't listen to it anymore. She'd been talking about what would happen if he tied her up to the ropes of the ring and well, it was too much. He ended up yelling at Kofi just to get his mind off of her.

The moment he was backstage though, she was standing there, looking all innocent and he rushed her, taking her in his arms and kissing the breath right out of her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed back. "Admit it, Chris…admit it," she teased.

"I'm admitting nothing except that I love you," he told you. "I'm not giving in, this is me saying it's time for a truce."

"Truce?" she said, then tapped her chin. "I don't know if I like truces."

"I'll do what you described around the time Big Show had the Camel Clutch on Kofi," Chris told her.

Stephanie's eyes widened. "Really?"

"Yes, really," he smirked, kissing the spot just below her ear. "Just the way you like it."

"Well then, Mr. Jericho, I guess we can call a truce…for now…"


	246. 2nd Time For 1sts, August 7 to 10, 2009

A/N: Again, last week, I'm really going to try to write the rest tomorrow, like really, really going to try. Thank you so much to those who reviewed, you guys are the best. Hope you enjoy. :)

* * *

"A whole year with her."

"It's weird, don't you think, how you go so long without anyone that you love so unconditionally and then, bam, there they are and you just can't imagine a life without them in it?" Stephanie said, looking down at their daughter as she slept peacefully. It was a little bit past midnight and Chris and Stephanie couldn't resist sneaking into Flynn's bedroom and looking at her sleep.

"Yeah, it is," Chris said, wrapping his arm around his wife's waist. He turned and kissed her neck. "I love you."

"No you don't, you just think I'm a fat wife now," she teased and he slapped her on the butt for it. She laughed and turned to him, giving him a peck on the lips. "Okay, why don't we leave this little one alone because tomorrow is her very first birthday party and I don't want her to be a cranky girl for it."

"When has Flynn ever been cranky?"

"She _has_ been, it's just those moments are very few and far between."

Flynn was probably the most chill baby on Earth, Chris had decided and voiced to Stephanie. She had her moments where she would have a tantrum or cry and be upset, but for the most part, she was the happiest kid either one of them had ever seen. Granted, they didn't have a ton of experience with children before their own, but Stephanie had Declan and Chris had some godkids and cousins, so it wasn't like they weren't ever around children. Flynn just seemed to be so much more calm and happy and serene in her life than any child they'd ever met.

They got in bed and Stephanie cuddled up to Chris. "And you're going to get the cake tomorrow?"

"I'm getting the cake tomorrow, don't worry," Chris said, rolling his eyes. "I'm not a little kid who can't take directions, you know. I think that I can handle picking up my daughter's birthday cake when I have my wife nagging me about it all the time."

"I'm not nagging, I just want to make sure you know what you have to do tomorrow, it's such a busy day," she said and it was. They were going to have Flynn's birthday party in the early afternoon and then they were going to drive the hour and a half to SmackDown because Chris had a match. Stephanie had left SmackDown to Teddy this week and he'd scheduled a match between Chris and JTG that he had called to tell Chris about yesterday. Stephanie had requested that Chris have a match in the second hour of the show because they would be late. It was their daughter's birthday and that took precedent. Teddy wasn't going to argue because he was still on probation from her father, who just happened to be Flynn's grandfather.

"I know, believe me, you're not even the one wrestling tomorrow."

"You'll win, you'll win just because it's Flynn's birthday and you'll be filled with birthday joy."

"Birthday joy?" Chris smirked.

"You're not already filled with it?" Stephanie said, rubbing her hand against his chest lazily. "Flynnie is turning a year old, you should be filled with joy. Except she's not really a baby anymore, she's a toddler, our baby is a toddler."

Chris kissed the top of her head. "Before we know it, she's going to be talking and sassing back, just like you."

"I think Flynn is going to be as far from me as possible," Stephanie said. "Not that I mind, but I just think that she's going to be like you, laidback, goes with the flow most of the time, but mischievous as well. She's like you already."

"And yet her first word is Sawyer."

"Well, she's Sawyer's baby after all," Stephanie yawned. "Okay, I'm going to bed now because tomorrow is a big day, will you join me, Mr. Jericho?"

"Join you in bed? Hell yeah, I will," Chris said, rolling over so he was on top of Stephanie and started playfully kissing her.

Stephanie squealed and pushed him off her. "Chris, this is not the time for this!"

"Man," Chris said, rolling off her, "I thought I was getting lucky tonight."

"Not on our daughter's birthday," she said, yawning again. She threw one of her legs over his and then snuggled up to his side as he wrapped his arm around her. "Night."

"Night, love you."

"Uh huh."

"Don't you love me too?"

"I will when I get thin again, goodnight," she said, brushing a kiss against his chest.

"Fine, I renege my love, I hate you," he told her. She just mumbled something as she drifted off to sleep. Chris wasn't far behind.

The next morning, they were going to wake up early anyways to get ready for Flynn's birthday. But, in true fashion, someone was getting up even earlier. The sun was barely even out when Chris and Stephanie's door squeaked open. They kept it open during the night anyways in case Sawyer needed them and indeed he did. Well, he didn't so much _need_ them as he wanted them. He scampered over to the side of the bed and saw his Mommy's face. He poked her in the nose very gently as he stood there.

"Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, Mommy," he repeated over and over again. "Wake up, Mommy."

"Huh?" Stephanie said, not even fully cognizant of anything. She wasn't even sure that someone was actually talking to her or if she was still dreaming.

"Mommy," Sawyer said a little louder. "Mommy, it wake-up time."

"What?" Stephanie said, opening one of her eyes to see Sawyer with his face a few inches from hers. "Sawyer, what are you doing?"

"It wake up time, Mommy," Sawyer said. "It my baby birfday."

"I know it's your baby's birthday, but it's very early," she said, glancing at the clock and seeing it was 5:43 in the morning. "How are you even up? You went to bed late last night, you crazy, little boy."

"I wake up cause baby birfday," he explained. His parents had been telling him his little sister was going to have a party all week and he just couldn't wait. They said there would be presents and cake and fun, lots of fun and how could he really be expected to sleep when he was going to go to a party? It was completely out of the question to stay calm.

"But nobody is up right now," Stephanie said. "The party is later."

"Oh," Sawyer said. "But…but it my baby birfday…"

"Yeah, but just because it's Flynn's birthday doesn't mean we're going to get up at the crack of dawn to celebrate. We have to wait for the actual party," she said and he looked so disappointed that the party wasn't going to start at this exact second. "Don't worry, we're going to have lots of fun when the party starts, but for right now, little boys need more sleep so they can grow up to be big like Daddy is."

"Oh," he said again, still disappointed.

"You want to sleep with me and Daddy?" Stephanie asked.

Sawyer's eyes lit up. It wasn't often that he got to sleep with his mommy and daddy. Most of the time, if he asked, they said they would go sleep in his bed with him and then they wouldn't be there in the morning, which meant they must leave him at night, which didn't seem part of the deal when they said it was okay and they would sleep with him. So getting to sleep in his mommy and daddy's big, comfy bed was great.

"Okay!" he said eagerly. Stephanie helped him up and he crawled over her and right into the middle of the bed, accidentally hitting Chris in the process, causing him to roll over and see what was going on.

"What the hell?"

"I sleep here, Daddy," Sawyer said excitedly as he hunkered down, cuddling up to his mommy and sharing her pillow with her.

"What are you doing up?" Chris asked.

"He was so excited for Flynn's birthday, he couldn't sleep," Stephanie explained.

"It Fwynn's birday, Daddy, did you know?"

"I was there, I know."

"I dere too," he said and he was.

"I know you were, do you think I have like the world's worst memory or something?"

"Uh huh," he said, smiling from his perch on the bed.

Chris laughed, "Thanks, I appreciate that, now can we please get some sleep, some of us have to wrestle tomorrow night and I know some of us have birthday parties to attend."

Sawyer smiled as he closed his eyes and Stephanie shook her head a little as they all settled down to get a few more hours sleep. By the time they woke up again, they were much more refreshed and ready for the day. Sawyer woke up first again and was just so excited that he woke up Chris and Stephanie. Since it was futile to try and go back to sleep, they just got up and went downstairs, where Chris started breakfast. Sawyer was bouncing all over the place, grabbing onto Chris's leg, than hugging Stephanie's.

His grandparents entered the kitchen a short while later and Sawyer could hardly contain his exuberance, "Gampa, Gampa, guess what?"

"What?" Ted asked, picking up his grandson so they could look at each other face-to-face.

"It my baby birfday!"

"I know! That's why I'm here," Ted said nicely.

"Oh, okay, Gamma, it my baby birfday!"

"Come here, you," Loretta said, taking her grandson from her husband. "So you're excited for your baby's birthday party I take it? You've been a big help with the party."

"I know, Fwynn be one," Sawyer said, holding up a finger for his grandma to see, just in case she forgot how old Flynn was going to be.

"A whole year, how old are you though?"

"I'm twee," he said, holding up three fingers. "Dat bigger den one."

"Cause you're a big boy."

"I know, but it Fwynn birfday, not me."

"Do you know when your birthday is?" Loretta asked him.

Sawyer pursed his lips and scrunched his eyebrows together and thought about it for a long moment. "Um…"

"You know this one, kid," Chris said from where he was standing.

"I do," he told his daddy, effectively telling him to shut up without actually saying the words. "Um…May two!"

"That's right!" Loretta said, hugging him closer. "Is he not the smartest little boy you've ever seen in your entire life?"

Stephanie laughed, "I don't know about that."

"I eat now," Sawyer said, wiggling in his grandma's arms. He was put down and he ran over to his chair, climbing up on and onto it. That was short-lived, however, when Christian and Trish came down for breakfast and Sawyer repeated his words of excitement for them, reminding them that it was Flynn's birthday. He finally settled down when Chris set his food in front of him and he dug right in, without regard for anyone or anything.

While he was eating, Stephanie snuck upstairs and into Flynn's room. The little girl was already awake and seemed to know that someone was coming for her because she was standing up and leaning against the top of her crib. Stephanie grinned as Flynn saw her and grinned herself, bouncing up and down on her chubby legs. Flynn reached her arms out for her mommy, her light brown hair falling in her face.

"Hey there, birthday girl," Stephanie said as she went over and picked up her daughter.

"Hi!" Flynn said brightly. Where most kids might be cranky after they'd just woken up (like Sawyer sometimes) Flynn was just as boisterous as she usually was.

"It's your birthday today, did you know that?"

"Sawa?" Flynn asked.

"Okay, yes, yes, I'll bring you to your Sawyer," Stephanie said, checking Flynn's diaper first and finding it wet, she quickly changed her diaper and put her in a very cute purple shirt that said, "Birthday Girl" (courtesy of her grandparents) and a pair of jeans. She brought her downstairs and into the kitchen where Sawyer was just finishing his breakfast. He nearly squealed when Flynn showed up.

"Fwynn!" he did yell as some eggs flew out of his mouth and onto the table. Chris looked at it in disgust before wiping it up. "It your birfday!"

"Sawa," Flynn said when she saw him, finally seeing her big brother and reaching her arms towards him.

"It's like we don't even exist most of the time," Chris said as he was completely ignored in favor of his son. "She only wants Sawyer to take care of her, she could care less about the two people who actually take care of her."

"Are you jealous of your three year old son?" Trish asked teasingly.

"Yes! Mama was Sawyer's first word, Sawyer was Flynn's first word, if we have another kid, Flynn will probably be its first word, I'm never going to be someone's first word," he pouted, folding his arms.

Trish laughed, "I wonder if I'll be our baby's first word."

"I don't care," Christian said.

"Oh you will," Chris said, "determines the hierarchy."

"Chris, are you going to get the cake any time soon?"

"See what I mean," Chris said, "she thinks she's the boss of everyone."

"I just want to get ready for the party early so we're not rushing around. I know the cake place opens at 8:30 so it's already open so I thought you could go down there and pick it up so that we're not rushing at the place right before the party starts. I want it here."

"Okay, okay, I'm going."

"Thank you," Stephanie said as Chris stood up. She kissed him as he passed by. "I love you."

He kissed her back, "If it weren't for my little girl, I would do nothing for you."

"I highly doubt that," Stephanie told him sweetly, even as Flynn was still trying to reach Sawyer. Sawyer, for his part, had finished his breakfast and was now standing in between Chris and Stephanie, trying to jump up and reach his sister.

Chris pinched her side, "With all this fat, I definitely wouldn't do anything for you."

"Oh get out of here, you ass," Stephanie said, kissing him again as she smiled against her lips.

"You do realize there are other people here, don't you?" Christian said. "Some who are on the verge of gagging."

"Payback, my friend, payback," Chris said as he pulled away. "Okay, I'm off to make sure that my daughter has the best first birthday ever."

Sawyer was doing his part in making sure Flynn had a great birthday. Whenever the guests arrived, he made sure he was at the front door and whenever each person entered, he said, "Dis is my house."

When Britt came in with Hunter, she picked him up. "Are we allowed in your house?"

"Uh huh, it my baby birfday," Sawyer explained, then looked at Hunter. "Hi, Twip, dat pwesent for Fwynn?"

"It is," Hunter said, but then held up another present. "We also got one for you too."

"I get pwesent?" Sawyer asked, astonished that someone had gotten him a present.

"We thought it'd be nice," Hunter said. "Are you excited for your sister's birthday?"

"Uh huh, it her birfday, she one," Sawyer said, holding up his finger. "Dat still little. She still little."

"I love your shirt," Britt told him, "it's very cute, do you know what it says?"

"Yes," Sawyer said, "It say, 'Birfday Girl Big Bwudder.' My gamma give it me."

"Well, I like it a lot," Britt said.

"I be help for Fwynn wif pwesent," he told him proudly. That's what his parents had asked him to do for Flynn's birthday. That's how he was going to help. Flynn was still little so she probably couldn't get her presents open, but he was going to help her get her presents open and then she could play with them and maybe he could play with them too!

"Where is everyone?" Britt asked.

"Dey in back," he said, pointing to where everyone was.

"So let's get back there," Britt said, making a face at Sawyer, to which he giggled at.

They went out back and most everyone was there already. Being a year old, Flynn didn't really have too many friends to invite so it was mostly friends and close family. Stephanie had some old friends who had brought their kids and Christian and Trish were obviously there and Hunter was surprised to see that Katie Lea had been invited. Edge and Lita had even made the trip up for the party. Stephanie came over to them, Flynn in her arms as she smiled and gave them both hugs.

"Hey, guys, thanks for coming," Stephanie said.

"Happy Birthday, Flynn!" Britt and Hunter said.

"Hi," she said to the both of them with a smile. Everyone kept coming up to her and telling her things and she didn't really understand, but everyone was extremely happy to see her so she just went with the flow. Maybe it was something regarding Sawyer. Maybe Sawyer was having a party. She didn't really think this was all for her, but everyone seemed to want to speak with her.

"I go down now," Sawyer said. "I go pway."

"Okay," Britt said, kissing his cheek and putting him down.

"Here, you can go with Sawyer, okay," Stephanie told Flynn, putting her down on the ground. Sawyer took her hand and they walked away to where Declan and Kenny were playing. Sawyer made sure to only go as fast as Flynn could go so she wouldn't fall flat on her face.

"Thanks for coming, you guys," Stephanie said, hugging them both.

"Here, we brought a present for Flynn and Sawyer."

"Apparently everyone had the same idea," Stephanie said as she pointed to two piles of presents. "I don't think anyone realized that Sawyer doesn't really care about getting gifts, he's just really excited to help Flynn open hers."

"Well, hopefully he'll like it anyways."

"I'm sure he will, so come on, go mingle or whatever."

As the party was in full swing, Chris came up behind Stephanie and hugged her around the waist. "Hey there, fatso," he told her, kissing her on the neck.

"Hey, jerk," she responded, making him hold her tighter. "You having fun?"

"I am, thank you," he said. "You feeling old?"

"Why would I feel old?" she asked.

"Because our baby isn't a baby, she's a whole year older and isn't having kids supposed to make you an adult or something?"

"I suppose," she said. "I'm happy, you happy?"

"I'm happy, look at that little girl," Chris said, nodding towards Flynn, who was trying desperately to run, but could only manage a fast walk. Her cousins and brothers were playing tag with a couple other kids and Flynn wanted to join in, but she was too little. She managed to find a friend in one of Stephanie's friend's younger children and the little boy had come over to play with her and she was now toddling off with him. "She's happy so I'm happy."

"Good."

"I don't know how I'm going to focus on the show tonight when all I want to do is be around her," Chris said.

"You're going to be fine, plus you have Big Show, who has your back, I guess," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "I'm sure someone else could've had your back, but nope, you wanted Big Show."

"I think we're doing just fine, thanks."

"If you say so, but if he goes down, can I pick your next partner?" she asked sweetly, turning her head to look at his profile.

Chris turned his head too and kissed her on the cheek. "I'll tell you what, if he goes down, I will partner with whomever you want me to partner with, no questions asked, okay, will that appease you, oh mighty one?"

"Yes, it would," she said, kissing the corner of his mouth. "So now that Flynn is one, when are we going to have the next one, got any ideas?"

"Like you want to be pregnant again," he snorted. "Just live vicariously through Trish, okay? We can wait a little while before we have another one."

"Okay, if you say so."

"Geez, how many kids do you want?" he asked.

"Seven," she said, "I'm lowballing that."

"You're nuts," he said, but he kissed her, "absolutely nuts."

Trish watched as Flynn was pushing around some toys with her new friend. "A year and a half from now, this is going to be us," she said in disbelief to Christian. She wasn't even showing yet, but still, she could picture a baby having a first birthday. She really wanted to know if she was having a girl or a boy so that picture could be complete in her mind.

"Maybe not so crazy though," Christian said. "Something low-key."

"With us, I don't think so."

"You guys going low-key, I can't see it," Edge said.

"That's _you_," Trish said. "You guys, if you ever had a kid, my God, that baby is going to be the craziest kid ever."

"Dude, my kid would rock," Edge said. "It would be the best kid ever, in fact, they would probably just be the most rocking kid ever. With me as its father and Li as its mother, are you kidding me? Awesomeness would ooze from their every pore."

Christian laughed, "Yeah, right, you two with a kid, it'd probably end up as a complete nerd just to rebel from its crazy parents."

"Very funny," Edge said as he sipped his beer. "Remember when it was just us, like nobody else knew about Chris and Stephanie except you guys, me, Shane, and Kurt?"

"That seems like forever ago," Christian said. "It's hard to believe that they hid their relationship at all. Now look at them, two kids under their belt, coming up on their five-year anniversary."

"It was kind of cool back then though," Edge said.

"Was it?" Lita asked.

"Yeah," Edge said. "Sneaking around, just hanging out, you know, I think everyone was closer back then because we were like, I don't know, we didn't have responsibilities. I mean, look at these two right here. Sure, they were together back then, for the most part, but now they're married and having a kid. You're all domesticated."

"We had to grow up sometime," Trish said.

"Yeah, sure, then look at Kurt, he's doing God knows what over there in TNA," Edge said. "We don't even talk to him anymore, do you guys talk to him?"

"No," Christian said. "He was a jerk over there, we didn't have much in common or anything."

"Yeah, I know Chris and Stephanie don't talk to him. And Shane is married with kids too and then you look at Chris and Stephanie and they're married and they have two kids. Everyone is getting married and having kids except me, really. But it's so different, I mean, those two used to _hide_ their relationship and now it's their second child's first birthday."

"Somehow," Trish said, "I don't think they mind."

They all looked over to where Chris was chasing after Flynn and picking her up from behind as she squealed in surprise and giddiness. Chris lifted her over his head and then brought her down again, pressing kisses against her cheek and tickling her as she tried to get away from him and his tickle assault. Chris laughed and brought her against him as he made a funny face. Flynn absolutely cracked up and covered her face. Her daddy was just hilarious.

After everyone had eaten and much mingling had gone on, Stephanie announced that it was cake and singing time. Everyone gathered around Flynn's high chair. Sawyer was literally grabbing onto the legs and looking up at his little sister. Stephanie came over and held him so he was closer to level with her. Chris came out with the cake a second later. They'd gotten it professionally done and it was a little zoo scene with animals made out of modeling chocolate. They put it down in front of Flynn and she just looked at it in amazement.

Everyone was gathering around her and they were all looking at her. She had no idea why. Now they were all starting to sing. She looked around and it seemed they were looking at her. Was all this really for her? She'd had no idea. Well this was quite exciting. She'd never had anything like this before, but she rather liked it. She reached for her cake, but her mommy pulled her hand away at the last second. She turned her head to look at her mommy, but she was singing along with everyone else. It wasn't the most pleasing sound in the world though and she turned to the other side and Sawyer was singing too and so was her daddy. Everyone was singing! What a strange, strange thing this was.

When it was all over, they clapped so she clapped too, she might as well since everyone else was doing it. Sawyer stuck his tongue out and laughed, "You no clap."

She didn't understand what he was saying. She looked back and saw her mommy was taking the cake away from her. What the heck, that was hers, wasn't it? She gave a look to her mommy, but she delivered a few moments later with a big piece of cake. Sawyer was screaming in her ear and she was startled, but he was getting a piece of cake too and he seemed very happy about that fact. She smashed her hand in the cake and it squished down and she loved it. She giggled and grabbed some and ate it. It was delicious! She grabbed some more and shoved it in her mouth, not even caring if she was getting it all over her face.

"Happy Birthday, baby," Chris and Stephanie said as they both kissed her on the head.

Chris was in no mood to leave the party and wrestle that evening. The party had somehow extended to the evening hours and he'd had to leave to go wrestle at SmackDown, which he didn't really feel like doing. Since everyone was still at the party, he'd had to drive by himself and he had to admit it that it always kind of depressed him when he had to go alone. He wasn't used to alone anymore, not that he didn't welcome it some of the time. Sometimes, he was around his family too much and needed to get away from them. Still, he'd had this same routine since he'd come back and whenever he deviated from that routine, he always felt a little lonely.

Plus, he didn't want to leave the party at all. Everyone had been having a blast and he didn't want to leave the festivities. Vince was actually coming to SmackDown tonight and had offered to drive with Chris, but Chris was not going to have any of that. He'd take loneliness over a couple hours stuck in a car with just Vince. He hated to admit, but whenever Vince wanted to do things with him, he always got the feeling that Vince was trying to test him. He didn't know why, he'd been with Stephanie for seven years now, but he still got the feeling that Vince didn't trust him at all even though Vince was the one who shouldn't be trusted.

He went into SmackDown with an attitude of not wanting to be there and it showed in his wrestling. Couple that with his lack of concern for Cryme Tyme in general and it led to a bad match. He'd admit it, he'd had a bad match. On a normal day, he could beat both members of Cryme Tyme with one hand tied behind his back. But today wasn't a normal day, today was his daughter's first birthday and he had to work. How did guys in normal jobs do it? They had to leave every day and go do something away from their family and he just couldn't even handle being away from his daughter for a few hours to do something he also loved, but not as much as his family. Wrestling had been number two for a while now.

His match hadn't even last seven minutes. It was over before it started and he got pinned in the stupidest way. He was above getting caught for the small package and the win. He was a 5-time World and WWE champion and he didn't get caught in situations like this. It was completely insane to think that he'd been caught out like that. But his mind just hadn't been in the ring. It had been in Greenwich with his family, with his daughter. On most nights, he could separate work from personal life, but this was his daughter's birthday he was missing and he wanted to spend every moment of it with his family.

He was beyond upset at losing though. Cryme Tyme had no business thinking that they were the better team when it was clear that they weren't. They'd never even held the Tag Titles before and he'd held them way before these guys were even thinking about being wrestlers. He was a much better wrestler than JTG and to get caught in a small package was embarrassing to him. He was going to splatter those guys on the floor when he got them at SummerSlam. Big Show was his partner and they were a dominant team and they weren't going to let these little pissants get the better of them.

He stalked backstage, Big Show following close after him. When he got backstage, he knocked his waiting water bottle onto the floor, causing a scene. Yeah, he was pissed, but he didn't care. He just wanted to win and go home and now he was pissed. He reminded himself that it was Flynn's birthday and it was one day in the year he did not want to be angry. He wasn't going to be mad on his daughter's birthday. He took a couple deep breaths and managed to calm himself down, until Cryme Tyme came in. These guys just saw Chris for what they thought they saw, an evil, horrible guy. Most people didn't see Chris like that. When he wasn't in front of the fans who were so quick to turn on him the second he told the truth about Shawn Michael, he was a decent guy. But the fans had taken their side and he had been left out in the cold, but among friends, he was a good guy. Cryme Tyme were just glorified fans who had the privilege to wrestle against him.

"Oh, poor Christina, couldn't beat me, guess you _aren't_ the best in the world like you claim to be," JTG said as he went backstage.

"Yeah, Christina, you just got your butt whooped," Shad added.

Chris turned to them, fire in his eyes and in his belly. He was about to unleash a fury on them, but then he pictured Flynn and just couldn't do it. "Whatever, think what you want, we'll prove who's better at SummerSlam."

"And we'll still beat you, Christina."

"Okay, you keep thinking that, but when we're standing over your prone bodies, I want you to remember what you said here and think about how lame the both of you sound and how you won't be getting another title shot because you suck and can't beat us."

"Oh, we'll beat you and little Miss Big Show," JTG said.

"Sure you will," Big Show said. "Have you seen me? I can crush you right now."

"Where were you for your little girlfriend, Christina?" Shad mocked.

"The _only_ reason I'm not going to beat you senseless right now, to the point where you won't _make_ SummerSlam, and I mean the _only_ reason is because today is my daughter's first birthday, first one she's ever had and I'm not going to stoop down to your level of bitching and whining because she deserves better than that. So go ahead, call me Christina, but always remember this guys, and I do think people tend to forget this, funny how that works, my wife, _wife_, as in the woman I married, the mother of my children, who stand to inherit all of this, owns your asses and if the need came, I think she'd listen to me over you, just a hunch. See you fellas later."

Chris walked away and Big Show fell in step with him. "Man, that was awesome. Do you pull that often?"

"No," Chris laughed. "Only when I'm really pissed. I've never told Stephanie to honestly fire anyone, jokingly told her to fire someone, sure, but never told her to really fire someone. I probably could get her to though."

"Isn't it cool to have all that power?"

"Stephanie's the one with all the power, I just ride the coattails, but I think I got my message across to the two of them. It should keep them at bay for at least a week, I think. I'm sure they'll start up with the Christina crap. I can't believe they can't come up with something else. I heard that crap when I was in the third grade."

Big Show laughed, "They've got nothing else because we're great."

"Yeah, you're right," Chris said. "At least I know I can threaten them with Stephanie when I have to. You going to be at Raw on Monday, right?"

"Yeah, I'm going to be there," Big Show said.

"Good, because I'm thinking I need to prove a point."

"What point would that be?"

"Chris Jericho is the best."

Stephanie looked at Hunter as they drank coffee a couple blocks from their hotel. Britt was shopping, but Stephanie hadn't felt like shopping so she'd hung back at the hotel. Hunter had come to her room, bored, so they had decided to get a cup of coffee. Chris was out with a bunch of his friends from Calgary since he had lived here while training and it had become a second home to him. She had told him to go have a good time, but not _too_ good a time since she wasn't going to come along.

"So I want to get Shawn back."

Stephanie wasn't one for spitting up coffee so she just gulped some more of it. "You're…what? Haven't I been nice to you? Haven't I been a good friend? This is how you repay me, by bringing that guy back."

"Look, he didn't want to return my calls and I've been calling him so I'm going to go down to Texas tomorrow and--"

"Tomorrow is Raw, Hunter," Stephanie said, "You're going to miss Raw because you want to go find your little friend? Why don't you just get yourself a new partner?"

"Because I want my old partner. We work well together. I know you don't like him, Steph, but he's my friend too. Just because you're my friend doesn't mean that I have to stop being his friend too, you know."

"I know, but you should, just for everything he's said about me, everything he's said about them," she said, gesturing towards Sawyer and Flynn. Flynn was sitting in her stroller, taking in some sun under her floppy green hat while Sawyer was eating a pastry Stephanie had let him have as a snack.

"I know, he's been a jerk, but maybe he's changed now, you know. I need a partner and I want him as my partner. I talked to Britt, I talked to your dad, I even called freaking Sergeant Slaughter to tell him I wasn't going to be there."

"What did my dad say?" Stephanie asked, wondering how her father would react to not having one of the biggest stars on Raw. Even if Vince didn't like Hunter, he knew that Hunter drew people in and people might want to see him.

"He said I have to bring a camera."

"Typical dad," Stephanie said. "Are you sure you want him as a partner? There are some guys I could suggest to you who would make great partners."

"Don't try to pawn off Chris's rejects to me, I'm going tomorrow and you can't do anything about it, sorry."

"Now I know why I divorced you," Stephanie said.

"Mommy, what is diborce?" Sawyer asked. Just because he'd been eating didn't mean he wasn't listening. He could hear very well.

"Divorce is when two people who are married decide that they don't want to be together anymore and so they get a divorce and they go their separate ways. Hunter and I are divorced. We used to be married, like I am with Daddy, but then I decided that Hunter was not good enough for me--"

"And I decided that your mother was lying to me," Hunter added as a counter. Stephanie just glared at him.

"Only because he was changing and treating me differently and I was trying to salvage what was left of our relationship."

"You lied to me about having a baby."

"I didn't know how else to keep you."

"I mean, we could've had a Sawyer seven years ago."

"But it wouldn't be like Sawyer because Sawyer is so obviously Chris, in looks anyways," Stephanie said. "I only lied because you were drifting from me and I didn't know how to make you stay. Just me wasn't working, that was obvious, so I did the only thing I could do."

"Well, you could've talked to me."

"Oh, you never listened to me anyways."

"Mommy, you no like Twip?"

"I didn't then, I like him now. But back then, we just weren't right for each other. But then I started going out with Daddy and it was a much better fit and we decided to get married and then we had you so it all worked out, right?"

"You and Daddy get a diborce?" he asked innocently, not really understanding what divorce was.

"Daddy and I aren't getting a divorce, no," Stephanie said, kissing his head. "I'll let you in on a little secret, I love Daddy very much."

"Me too," Sawyer said, like this a surprise to hear from his mother.

"Do you like Shawn Michaels, the man who wanted to hurt Daddy?"

"No! He mean!" Sawyer said.

"I rest my case," Stephanie said, sitting up. "Flynnie, would you like to see Hunter get back together with Shawn after he insulted you?"

"Hi!" Flynn waved at Hunter.

"That's code for 'no, I don't want you to get back with Shawn.'"

"Pretty elaborate code."

"I know, she's a pretty elaborate kid."

"I'm going to bring him back."

"Fine, hurt me, it's okay, you can just continue to hurt me after all these years."

"We're not even together anymore," he pointed out. "And Britt, though she doesn't like him, doesn't have a problem with it so I'm going to go ahead and do it. I think a DX reunion is in order."

"You guys have those like three times a year, you know, it's not exactly like a novel idea or anything groundbreaking."

"I think it is."

"I don't think so," Stephanie said. "That's why a new partner would be even better for you, because then you would have something new and fresh and nobody would say, 'oh, here's Hunter and Shawn again, DX again.'"

"I think DX is great."

"Yeah, but don't you think it's a little stale?"

"No way, people still love DX, didn't you hear them last week?"

"Sure, because some people are dumb."

"Now you're getting to be like your husband."

"We _are_ married."

"I'm not budging."

"God, you and Chris are so alike sometimes."

The next night, Chris was trying to get his way too. He made sure to go to the room Stephanie had set up for Slaughter to speak to the man. He knocked on the door before sticking his head in. "Sergeant Slaughter, may I have a word?"

"Sure, Chris," he said in that gruff voice of his.

"Thanks, first of all, on behalf of my family, thanks for being here tonight," Chris said, shaking the man's hand. "We appreciate that you could host the show tonight."

"You're very welcome."

"Yeah, well, I also came in here because I wanted to speak to you about a match I wanted to propose later."

"What kind of match?"

"Well, you know how Cena likes to give in to the fans all the time?"

"Yeah, he's al little suck-up is what he is."

Chris smirked. Seemed that he was going to have someone on his side tonight, for once, and he liked that. "I definitely agree, that's why I wanted to challenge him to a match."

"You got it."

Chris was surprised. That hadn't taken much at all. He thought he'd have to come in here and smooth talk Slaughter into giving him the match, but he barely had to speak with him to get the match. Well this worked into his plan perfectly. He was going to beat Cena for the first time tonight and show just why he was the best in the business. It would also send a message to Cryme Tyme. He wanted them not only to realize how low on the totem pole they really were, but to show them that Chris was used to this kind of match. When had they ever wrestled anyone worthwhile? Chris was at the top of his game and his opponents reflected that. He was really doing a favor to them letting Cryme Tyme fight someone like him.

"How'd it go?" Stephanie asked as he went back to his locker room.

"Gave it to me, barely had to ask."

"That's great," Stephanie said, smiling.

"What are you doing?"

"My dad wants me to schedule the hosts. Shane is doing the main recruiting along with the PR department and Media Relations, but my dad wants me to actually schedule them. I don't think he realizes this is a slap in the face."

Chris lifted up Sawyer and sat him on his shoulder before he flipped him down and held him upside down, swinging from his legs. "Your dad actually be self aware of something, I don't think so."

"I agree," she said, looking up. "Stop that, put him right-side up."

"He likes it," Chris said, "You like to hang upside down, don't you, kid?"

"Uh huh."

"Chris, all the blood is going to rush to his head, please stop."

"Fine, fine," Chris said, holding Sawyer by one leg before he lifted him up and brought his other arm under the little boy, pulling him against his body. "So you have to schedule everyone, anyone good."

"Yeah, there are some familiar names and some weird ones, I don't know what my brother is doing," Stephanie said. "Conspicuously absent is my name. Now I know I'm not going to be an exciting host, but I like to think that I'd be a better host, you know, I mean, I did run the show. I _should _be running the show right now, but I'm not so this is my job, let other people run it."

"You'll get your moment in the sun," he said, walking over to her and smoothing down her hair, leaning down to kiss her on the head. Sawyer saw Chris do that and wanted to emulate him so he kissed Stephanie on the head as well.

"Thanks, you guys, I guess I just can't handle not even being asked and having my father torture me like this."

"He's been doing it since I met you."

"I know, do I have to stand another surprise wedding to break free?"

"Please don't, that would leave me kind of in the dust."

"Well, at least you get to go out there and do your thing."

And do his thing he did. He met up with Big Show as Randy and John started spouting off at each other again. The two were like little boys trying to fight and all that happened was a babyish little slap fight. They were nothing, especially Cena, but people inexplicably liked the guy. When he went out there though, his fellow Canadians seemed to understand him, seemed to like him and he was a little surprised with the cheers he was getting. They were rivaling even Cena's and he had to smirk at that because how deliciously wonderful to trump Cena in this way. Not everyone liked his childish, Roc-wannabe ways.

Big Show talked about intimidation first and it was true, the man had the market on intimidation. He certainly wasn't afraid of anyone and that came in handy when Chris was in situations like this. He spoke to Cena and informed him they had a match tonight and surprisingly, or unsurprisingly if you wanted to look at it that way, the crowd seemed behind him. Well that would create an interesting dynamic when they fought later on. He was here to prove a point though and that point was that he was the best and he was going to prove it by beating the person who the fans thought best.

The best relaxer he could've gotten was Hunter searching for Shawn in Texas. "Steph, is it just me or is Hunter acting very couple-like with Shawn? I mean, he said that those weren't the chaps he was used to seeing him in, what does that _mean_?"

Stephanie laughed, "I don't know, that he wears a lot of chaps."

"But who _says_ that?"

"People, Hunter, Hunter says that."

"Those two would make a cute couple, Hunter's big, Shawn's little, they balance each other perfectly and then when they get together, I can leave you for Britt since she's so much thinner and God knows I love a stick."

"He was just saying…"

"But come on, these skits, they're obviously mocking material, right? I can totally mock Hunter for this for a while, right?"

"If you want."

"Stephanie I need your official opinion on this."

"That Twip," Sawyer said to Flynn as Hunter appeared on the television in front of them. "Daddy, where he be?"

"He's in Texas looking for Shawn even though we don't really want Shawn to be found because he's a bad guy. We don't like bad guys, huh?"

"I no like bad guy," Sawyer repeated earnestly. He wasn't going to like someone who was bad. He liked his daddy (he didn't really know people thought Chris was a bad guy and he wouldn't understand anyways because his daddy was a really, really good guy).

"Good, we don't like him either," Stephanie said. "Nor do we like Cena."

"I'm going to kick his ass tonight. I hope Cryme Tyme is watching. You know, it'll just be taking care of two things at once. I'll prove that I'm better than Cena and that I'm the best and it'll be my first time really beating him. Plus, it'll show that stupid, little tag team who they're messing with."

"Both good, strong purposes."

"What's the matter?" he asked, coming over and sitting on the arm of her chair. "Something's up."

"I'm just looking at all these hosts and trying to fit them in where they can do it and it's like, I can be here every week and I am here since I'm with you and yet, the show couldn't be farther away from my grasp. It's just, what do I really have to do around here to get what I need? What do I have to do? What am I doing wrong?"

"You're not doing anything wrong," Chris said, rubbing her shoulder. "You're doing everything right. One day, you are going to get what you deserve. You're going to get the entire company and then you can rule over everything and if you want to be on-screen then you could just go on-screen."

"I want that to happen now."

"Well be patient I can't predict the future."

If Chris could, he probably wouldn't have gone out there later that night. His match had been going well, he'd been getting the upper-hand and while Cena proved as formidable an opponent as the last time they'd met, Chris was holding his own. But then Randy had run down to the ring and the incompetent referee had called for the bell. Randy hadn't even touched either of them, but apparently just being in the ring was grounds for calling the bell for some sort of interference. It was a crap call and Chris knew it. Probably thought that they had planned this or something when they obviously hadn't.

Chris did get what he thought would be the last laugh when he got the Codebreaker on Cena. Unfortunately, it would not be the last laugh as eventually Cena got him into position for the Attitude Adjustment. To add insult to injury, however, Randy gave him an RKO and Cena had not dropped, which caused Chris to land nearly on the top of his head, causing his neck to twist at a weird angle. He lay there in the ring, his neck burning and already starting to ache from being strained.

Stephanie was more angry than she'd been in a while. The kids were asleep in her office and she'd left them with Katie, who was here tonight. Despite what Stephanie thought of her, she did trust her. Stephanie stalked down the hallway just in time to see Randy and John walking backstage, eyeing each other suspiciously. It was this distraction that allowed Stephanie to go right up to John Cena and slap the taste right out of his mouth. She'd slapped him so hard his gum flew out of his mouth and laughed with a soft plop to the ground a few feet away. Randy thought he could escape punishment but she slapped him just as hard.

"How dare you two idiots pull what you just pulled!" she yelled at them. "You have no idea who you're messing with here."

"Chris has got you fighting his battles?" Cena said.

Stephanie stepped up to him, not intimidated by this man in front of her. It was hard to be intimidated by guy who was wearing jean shorts. "Chris can fight his own battles, believe me," she started, her voice somehow getting deeper and huskier by the second. "But John, let me tell you something. You know the saying behind every great man is an even great woman. Well, I like to take that to heart, you know and behind Chris is a woman who is not afraid to get in a man's face and call him a stupid prick for doing what he just did," she said, getting in his face more and more as she said every word. "Don't you dare take another step, Orton!" she yelled without even looking over at him.

"Do not forget your place here, John," Stephanie said dangerously. "Do not forget the person who signs your checks. And yes, while I may not be able to do anything to you in front of those cameras, remember that back here, I run things and back here, I am ruthless. If you think for one second you should be afraid of my father's wrath, you have not seen wrath until you've seen me, I said do not move another step, Orton!" Stephanie said, still not looking over at Randy. "Do I make myself clear, John?"

"Yes," he said, almost meekly. This woman looked like she could eat him.

"Next week, my husband is going to take you out," she said, shoving him aside as she went up to Randy. "As for you, you like to just interfere and go where you like, huh? You just like to think you run the show because you hold that belt, huh?"

"Yes," Randy said, not intimidated by her or at least acting like it. "This gives me all the power."

"No, no it doesn't. What I said to John applies to you too. I used to like you, Randy, I'll admit it. You were a nice guy. Somewhere along the line you turned into what I see in front of me now, a sniveling, little coward who hides behind guys better than him, guys who _should_ leave him. Yeah, I said it, Randy, Ted _and_ Cody are better than you and you know it. That's why you keep them close, that's why you have them on your side because you _know_ they could beat you both and you are just that much of a little coward that you won't face them."

Randy gulped, feeling like he was being called out.

"You think I don't see, you think I don't know what goes on around here with everyone? Oh, I see because I'm always here, Randy and there's no getting rid of me, there's no discarding me like you did with Kelly Kelly. Uh uh, because I'm here to stay, I'm always going to be here. And if you ever act so carelessly with my husband again, you will regret it, Randy Orton."

"And what are you going to do?" he said, showing a bit of bravado.

Stephanie sucked at her teeth a little. She could see Chris being helped backstage now by Show and a couple other guys. She wanted to be with him right now, but first things first. She had to take care of Randy. "You know, sometimes people are good at keeping secrets and then sometimes, people aren't so good. You revealed some stuff to Britt, didn't you? You were trying to play sensitive Randy Orton with her while she was staying with you, weren't you? Except she didn't like you and because of that, because you're a huge jerk, she told me _everything_ you told her, that's right, _everything_."

Randy's gulp was nearly audible this time.

"So unless you want everyone to know all your secrets, I suggest that you make sure you never try anything like that on my husband ever, ever again."

"I'm wrestling him next week."

"Oh, I know, go ahead and wrestle him, but when you start trying to intentionally hurt him, then we have a problem, do you get me?"

"You can't prove anything she said is true."

"Oh Randy, Randy, Randy, how long have you known me?" Stephanie said with a smile as she patted his cheek. "I never do anything half-assed, not a single thing. I've got it all on tape, so believe me, you won't be hurting my husband from now on."

"You bitch," he hissed at her.

She smiled, "Nailed it right on the head."

She sauntered away pompously from him as she went over to Chris, kneeling next to him as he sat down, the trainers checking on him. "Sweetie, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," he said, giving her a small smile. "My neck is just killing me, I'm going to need a massage tonight."

"Oh, you're getting one," she said, kissing the hand she was now holding.

"What were you doing over there with Randy?" Chris asked, giving her a look that said he knew, but just wanted to hear her say what she was doing.

"Proving a point."

"What point is that?" he said as the trainer shone a light in his eye, or attempted to as Chris insisted he was fine.

"That Raw may have guests hosts…but me, _I_ run the show."


	247. Three Perspectives, August 14, 2009

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, guys, really appreciate it. This is solely a SD chapter, still trying desperately to catch up. :(

* * *

"You know I've been around here for ten years."

"I've been around for thirty-two, what's your point, Jericho?" Stephanie asked. She looked up at him as he gave her a look. She looked at him and gave him a smile. "You're trying to one-up me?"

"No, I was just commenting," he said as Flynn slapped him on the cheek. She was sucking on her pacifier and watching his face. He'd asked if she wanted to play, but she just seemed to want to sit with him and watch him and occasionally watch Sawyer as he pushed a train he had around. "I mean, I realized it last week when it was the actual date, but I don't think I mentioned it to you and you didn't remember so…"

"So you're saying I should've thrown you a party? Two days after our daughter's birthday?" Stephanie wondered.

"No, an acknowledgement would've been nice."

"But you weren't exactly an active wrestler for those ten years, now were you?"

"That doesn't matter, it's still been ten years, besides, while I was gone, I was still working for the company because you dragged me into it," Chris told her.

"Because I was having your child," she countered, "the least you could do was to take over for me."

"I got it," Chris said, rolling his eyes at his daughter. Flynn scrunched up her face at him. "Flutterby, don't give me that face, we're in Canada, this is the homeland, you should be happy to be here. Tomorrow I'm going to show you all the places that I used to hang around in and everything."

"Yeah, because she's going to really understand that," Stephanie said sarcastically.

"I just want to show her who I used to be before she came along," Chris said.

"You've subjected everyone to the Chris Jericho tour of life," she teased. "I think I've seen the tour like five different times. Will Sawyer and I have to accompany you on this journey of yours?"

"I prefer to call it a trek," Chris told her, "makes it sound more arduous and it was, did you read my book, did you see everything that I went through to get where I am today? I mean, I wasn't embellishing any of that, I went through hell to get here whereas you were born and in."

"So we took different treks," Stephanie said, winking at him, "doesn't mean that you are better than I am. I think I do more than my share of work around here. Just because I'm not going out there and putting my body on the line doesn't mean I don't do a lot. Besides, this body carries your children and I don't think that you would want anything to happen to that, now would you?"

"You've got a point there. Did you read my book by the way?"

"What kind of question is that? Of course I read your book, but I knew like 95% of it beforehand, maybe except for the part about losing your virginity, I mean, I knew who it was to, but I didn't know you weren't very…up to task, I guess."

"Hey, I'm much, much better about that now, thank you very much."

"Or maybe I just make you think that you're better," Stephanie told him.

"Ouch," Chris said, then looked at Flynn, "do you hear the way she talks to me, flutterby, do you hear that? It's like she doesn't even love me or something and she should love me after everything I've done for her, like give her you."

"Which wasn't even planned," Stephanie added.

"When my kids want to be born, they'll be born, damn it," Chris said.

"Daddy, what damn it?" Sawyer asked.

"See, look what you've done," Stephanie said, gesturing towards Sawyer. "I think I'll let you handle that one since you're the one who shows no decorum around our kids. They're going to be unruly and they're going to start swearing and you're going to embarrass us as a family."

"Damn is a word we really shouldn't say," Chris explained.

"But you say it," Sawyer pointed out.

"Why do you have to be so smart?" Chris asked.

"Daddy said it because Daddy's a big loser who just says things without thinking," Stephanie piped in.

"Daddy no loser, he win," Sawyer told his mommy, shaking his head. He was always watching his daddy win because his daddy was the best wrestler ever. That's what his daddy said anyways, but he hadn't been watching for that long, that's what his mommy told him. That's why he watched tapes with his mommy and daddy and he watched his daddy wrestle and his daddy had long hair and it was very strange to see his daddy with long hair like that. His daddy has short hair now. Sometimes he even saw his mommy, but she looked pretty much the same.

"See, I win," Chris said with a casual shrug. "The kid knows what's going on."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, nice to see you here tonight by the way, I was starting to think that you had left me and your kids," Stephanie told him, just the right tone of bitterness in her voice to get him to feel guilty for leaving her with the kids so much. Of course, she was failing to realize this was Chris and he pretty much knew all her tactics by now.

"I'm not going to feel guilty, Stephanie."

"But you've been out every night and you haven't taken me," she pouted. "Or your kids, your sweet, loving babies."

"I've been spending time with my friends and I never said that you couldn't join us," Chris explained to her. "You know that Trish would've gladly taken care of the kids if you wanted to come out with me."

"You always make it so you don't actually want me there. You invite me, sure, but you don't really want me there and I can tell. You probably just don't want anyone to know you're with a fat wife."

Chris chuckled. "I do not make it seem like you are not allowed to come."

"Yes you do, you go on and on about things you guys used to do or how much fun you had when you were younger and well, it's just talk that doesn't seem like you want a wife to be there with you, if I'm going to try and interpret what you're saying. I mean, I understand why you don't want me around--"

"Baby, I always want you around," he interjected.

"That's not true," she laughed.

"Okay, so it's not _completely true_," he allowed. "But that's only because we spend so much time together as it is.

"And you didn't want me around when you were with your friends, it's fine, it's perfectly fine that I probably haven't even met some of these people and that I have to go onto Twitter of all places to find out what my husband is doing," Stephanie said with a depressed sigh.

"You _can_ call me, you know, last time I checked, you had my phone number and I haven't changed it since you became my annoying, fat wife so you can always call and ask what I'm doing."

"So you can scream in my ear?"

"I don't scream in your ear."

"Yes you do because wherever you go is loud and then you come back to the room and it's obvious you've been drinking."

"Are you saying that you are not happy with me, is this what it's about?" Chris asked.

Stephanie came over and picked up Flynn from Chris's arms. Flynn was a little nonplussed by this, but was okay after Stephanie cuddled her against her body. Stephanie sat down in Chris's lap and he just stared at her, wondering what she was up to. She just smiled at him and leaned forward, pressing her lips against his. He kissed her back eagerly. There was never a time when he could get enough of his wife. He could picture him being 90 years old and still not being tired of her at all. It was kind of cool to think that you'd met that one person for whom all others just paled in comparison. He'd do anything for this woman.

"I'm always happy with you."

"Well that's not true either," he said, repeating what she'd said earlier about him wanting to be around her all the time.

"Okay, sometimes I'm not," she said, running her free hand through his hair. Flynn was just cuddled between them and she was in heaven. She had both her mommy and daddy and they were hugging her and even though sometimes she liked to be by herself, sometimes she just loved being around her mommy and daddy and this was one of those times.

"You weren't when I called you fat."

"Well, you didn't mean it, I know that know, I knew it then too, but I kind of like to punish you," she said, kissing him again. "I don't care that you go out with your friends. As long as you are being safe and responsible and not cheating on me, then you can go out with your friends. It's so rare that we get to come to Canada and I know that you've got a bunch of friends up here and when we're in Connecticut I go out with my old friends so you should be able to do the same when we're in Canada."

"Have I ever told you that you're the best wife ever?"

"You mention it from time to time."

"I love you," he told her.

"I love you too," she said.

"I'd never cheat on you though, so you know, just throwing it out there."

"Yeah, okay," she laughed, "so let me ask you this, though, why are you not scheduled at all during the show? I was looking over the schedule and I didn't see the words Chris or Jericho on anything. As the biggest superstar, according to you, shouldn't you be on the show?"

"Oh, I'll be on the show."

"You are?" she asked incredulously.

"Yeah, I will, hey, kid, am I going to be on the show?" Chris said, turning towards Sawyer.

"I dunno," he said, not really caring what his parents were doing at the moment. They were always being cutesy like that and he pretty much just left them alone when they got like that. He didn't understand why they were always kissing. Sure, he loved to kiss his mommy and daddy, but not all the time like his parents did.

"I told you I was going to be on the show when we went out today, don't you remember?"

"Uh huh," he said, still not paying attention, instead being very focused on trying to get his wrestling action figure to stay on the top of his train. It kept falling and it was frustrating him right now.

"See, he remembers, probably," Chris said. "I'll be out there, don't worry. I'm not wrestling though because I'm still a little sore from Monday. Not too bad or anything," he said quickly because he knew she would get worried instantly if he didn't say that.

"Are you sure you're okay?" she still asked, trying to find any strain. "Should I get off you?"

"Well, you could always get--"

"Language," Stephanie warned him.

"I meant to say that maybe you should get off me because you're a huge tub?" Chris said, changing what he was going to say, but still grinning lecherously at Stephanie, knowing she knew what he was originally going to say.

Stephanie pinched his side, "And what do you call that?"

"Baby fat," Chris said. "Because you see, for every kid I have, it adds an inch to my waist just like it adds five to yours."

"Oh yes, I know," she told him. "So what are you doing on the show tonight?"

"I'm not telling you."

"Why not?"

"Because I know you."

"You know me so you won't tell me?"

"That's right."

"That makes no sense at all."

"Sorry, ma'am, can't tell you," Chris shrugged at her. "Although, if I don't, you might beat me up or something. There are rumors going around that you're threatening guys or something, I don't think I would want to be on the receiving end of that wrath."

"They deserved it after what they did to you," Stephanie said darkly, thinking back to last Monday. Chris had been fine after the move he'd gotten from Randy and John, but it still looked horrible and could have seriously injured him. They were lucky that didn't happen because if it had, Stephanie would've fired them on the spot, main-eventers be damned. Her father would probably hire them back anyways, but she would get her point across. She'd watched the move again and it didn't look any better on repeat viewing. It was a credit to Chris that he hadn't been injured at all. He was amazing like that.

"You've been around long enough to know stuff like that happens."

"Yeah, I know, but it doesn't happen to you."

He laughed at that. Sometimes he thought Stephanie thought he was really seriously like some sort of wrestling deity or something, above all the wrestlers. He thought himself the best in a different sense, but Stephanie seemed to think he should just be impervious from everything. It was cute in a way, but also kind of annoying because he wasn't going to just not get hurt because she said so. She didn't have _that_ much power, although if she did, that'd be kind of cool.

"It could."

"It won't."

"But it could."

"But it won't," she told him, like she was telling his body right now that it better not get injured. "You're the star."

"Well…yeah," Chris said cockily, "but still…"

"No still. I've issued my warnings to them, they better listen and stay the hell away from you."

"You're so sexy when you get mad. I should just have you be my tag partner, I think you'd intimidate any man right out of the ring."

"Oh, I don't think you could handle me as a partner," she said, leaning in closer to him, brushing her lips against his. "You couldn't handle me at all."

"Is that a challenge?" Chris asked, his breath mingling with hers. "Because if that is a challenge, I'm willing to take you up on it any time, anywhere."

"Oh, it's a challenge," she told him, grinning against his lips, "it's a pretty damn good challenge."

"Well then I am going to love conquering that one."

"What are you going to do on the show?" she asked him as her lips brushed against his.

"So this is a ploy?"

"I just want to know."

"I'm not going to tell you, it's not even that big a deal, I just don't want you to know what I'm doing because I know you and I know what you would do and I don't want you to do what I know you would do."

"Again, you make no sense. I'll find out soon enough anyways and then whatever it is you think I'm going to do I'm going to do just because you think that I'm going to do whatever it is you think I'm going to do."

"I was going to do commentary," Chris said, giving in because Stephanie's lips were really getting to him. "Big Show has a match against JTG, which I'm sure you know and well, wherever JTG is, Shad is going to be close by so I'm going to be there to just make sure that everything is on the up and up, you know, no cheating or interfering or trying to take Big Show out so I have to put you as my partner."

"Nobody would want to fight us if I were your partner. What guy is going to hit the person that signs their checks? Nobody. We'll make it a family affair and Sawyer and Flynn can be our valets. It'd work because they can both walk and I can do Flynn's makeup and wardrobe no problem."

"My daughter isn't wearing makeup."

"She's eventually going to wear makeup."

"Eventually…when I'm dead, she can wear makeup when I'm dead."

"So you just want her to have the au natural look then?"

"I want to keep her locked up in a tower when she's 13 and then not let her out until she's at least 40, but since I know she can do that, I can ban makeup."

"Boys will eventually like her, you know," Stephanie pointed out, though she thought it was sweet when Chris got into overprotective dad mode. He didn't really act this way towards Sawyer, but Flynn was his little girl and she could be a Daddy's Girl when she really wanted to be so Chris would get overly protective and she was only a year old.

"No, they're not, nobody is, nobody is going to like her because they will have to answer to me."

Stephanie tried to picture Chris as that imposing dad and feared for any of Flynn's future boyfriends (or girlfriends if that's what Flynn ended up preferring). She could picture the poor soul coming up to the door, nervous as hell, sweating from their palms and thinking that if she just answers the door they'll be home free and the date can go well. Of course, they wouldn't know who her father was and then Chris would answer the door and all hell would break loose.

Her father was the same way with her boyfriends when she was a teenager. He was never that strict with Shane (her father said that he let other fathers take care of that with Shane), but any guy that came over to the house, even just guy friends, would get some sort of third degree. If they were just friends, Vince would point blank ask them why they didn't want to go out with her because she was a beautiful girl and they should only be so lucky to have someone like her. It got to the point where she didn't like to bring anyone home because of her father.

She hoped Chris wouldn't be so harsh. Stephanie hadn't had a real steady boyfriend until college and she attributed that to her father. "And what are you going to do, beat up a teenager?"

"I don't need to beat them up, I'll just intimidate the hell out of them and so will Sawyer, you think that Sawyer is not going to be protective of his little sister? He's going to be standing right next to me and since he looks like me, he's going to be intimidating too."

"Did you hear that, Flynnie, Daddy is going to hold you hostage until he thinks you're old enough to date."

"Hi," Flynn said as she looked up at her mommy.

"Yeah, you're all 'hi' now, but you won't be saying hi to anyone unless they're approved by me," Chris said, leaning forward to kiss her head.

"You do realize that if _my_ father had gone under that same stricture, I wouldn't be married to you because he sure as hell wouldn't have approved of you…or Hunter for that matter, I know for a fact that he didn't approve of Hunter."

"Yeah, well, Hunter is an idiot."

"He's also your friend."

"My friend, the idiot," Chris added. "But I don't blame your dad for not liking him, I mean, Hunter didn't do anything right, not a thing, I mean, the guy didn't ask you out for a date, he didn't like, take you to meet his parents, he didn't date you for a while, or propose, or plan a wedding, well, he planned a wedding, but let's face it, that was just to get back at your dad, he didn't do a thing right. It's a wonder your dad didn't hit him over the head with a shovel."

"So you're saying that he should've liked you immediately because you did things the right way."

"I damn sure did."

"Daddy, you say damn 'gain," Sawyer said.

"Chris, would you watch your language."

"Sorry, kid," Chris said, then turned to Stephanie, "sorry."

"This is why my father probably wouldn't have liked you…besides, we hid our relationship, how is that doing things the right way?"

"_You_ wanted me to hide our relationship. If it had been up to me, I would've announced it from the get-go."

"Okay, okay, so you're going to be on commentary tonight then."

"Yes, I'm going to be on commentary, don't you dare pull what you pulled the other week."

"What did I pull?" she asked, feigning innocence, batting her eyelashes at him in an almost comical way.

"What you were saying over the headphones, now _that's_ some stuff that I won't repeat in front of my kids because that was extremely dirty."

"I didn't say anything, it must've been someone else trying to mess around with you," she told him. "Maybe I'll start an investigation to find out who it was because really, nobody should be talking dirty to you while you're trying to do commentary."

"I think I'm looking at the culprit," Chris said.

"Well Flynn can't talk, so you can't possibly mean _me_," she said, acting shocked. "Did you hear that, Flynnie, Daddy is accusing me of doing something to disrupt him while he was working!"

"You always distract me while I'm working, you being my wife is a distraction to me."

"But would you rather have a wife that sits at home and takes care of the kids while you're away? I mean, really, doesn't that just open yourself up to being cheated on? That's why I don't think I could be a stay-at-home mom. I don't know what we're going to do when Sawyer starts Kindergarten. I'm not the kind of person that can just stay at home."

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. And I like having you as a wife, for the record. Just don't go on the headphones tonight, okay, seriously, I was getting aroused and the last thing I need is to have a replay of being an awkward teenager with a boner that I have to hide except this wouldn't be in front of like twenty people, this would've been in front of millions."

"The thought of getting you aroused when you really shouldn't be is actually kind of turning me on."

"Oh shut up and get off me," he said, shoving her away and stealing her baby from her and cuddling with her again. "I've got the only girl that I want right here."

"So you're throwing me out into the cold."

"Yup, it'll just be me and Flynn from now on, isn't that right, flutterby?" Chris said, kissing her cheeks and causing the little girl to squeal and try to pull away from him, but he had a steadfast hold on her.

"Oh, for that, I'm totally getting on the headphones," she told him, sticking her tongue out at him.

Trish stood in front of the mirror. She'd been wearing a tank top, but it was now bunched up under her breasts as she studied herself in the floor-length mirror they had in their bedroom. She turned to her left and checked her profile, running her hands over her stomach. Then she turned to her right and did the same thing. Then she faced forward and studied herself in the mirror some more.

"Are you going to watch SmackDown?" Christian asked.

"Yeah, tell me when either Jeff or Chris come on."

"Why Jeff?"

"Because Jeff is my friend," she said, rolling her eyes.

"Does he have to be?"

"Please, you're definitely not jealous of Jeff Hardy of all people," Trish said, rolling her eyes. "You just act jealous because you can. Don't be the jealous husband type, that's totally not you at all."

"Well, I could go to SmackDown and challenge him for his title and then what, huh, you going to root for him then?" Christian asked.

"You're the ECW champion, you have everything to be proud of."

"What if I lose it?"

"You're not going to lose the title. Regal is just…he's such a pansy, you could take him out in a minute if you wanted to, actually you could take him out in less than a minute if you really, really wanted to. In fact, it would take you a nanosecond."

"He's bitter, very bitter."

"Because he's not as good as you and he knows it," Trish said. "Do you think I look any different?"

"Your boobs are getting bigger," Christian said appreciatively.

"That's not what I meant," Trish said, shaking her head at him. "I mean, my stomach, do you think it looks any different, do you think it's grown any?"

"A little I guess," Christian said, but he wasn't even looking at her.

"Chrissy, I'm trying to discuss our child here and you are not paying attention to me," she whined.

Trish had been having a pretty good pregnancy so far. Her morning sickness usually did strike in the morning, but it was starting to peter out as the pregnancy grew farther along. There were certain foods that repulsed her, but she knew what those were by now and avoided them. As Christian said, her breasts were getting larger, which meant they were getting to be about the size they'd been before she'd gotten her breasts reduced a while back. Luckily she'd still had bras that would fit.

Still, she wanted more of a physical change to go along with her pregnancy, one that wasn't happening yet. She'd read that with your first child it might take longer for her to "pop" so to speak. Stephanie hadn't really started showing with Sawyer until her fifth month or so, but Stephanie wasn't as petite as Trish so she almost expected it to happen any day. They were getting to the point where they could announce it to people without fear of them losing the baby and she wanted physical proof to go along with her words.

That's why she was standing here in front of the mirror with her belly sticking out as far as she could make it go. Even while doing that she didn't notice any real differences. Maybe she was a little more rounded, but that was it and it wasn't enough. She wanted to look pregnant because then it would almost make it seem more real. Sure, the symptoms were very real, but they were still just symptoms. She couldn't see the differences that were happening to her and she wanted to share it with everyone.

"Trishy, there's nothing to see right now. The doctor said that you might not show for a while yet and looking for things that aren't there are going to make you crazy," Christian said. He was trying not to be the crazy father he'd been after finding out she was pregnant. It was a stretch for him, yes, but he was really trying.

Chris had told him that he was smothering Trish, a tidbit of information he'd gathered from Stephanie. He didn't want to make her pregnancy uncomfortable so he was making a concerted effort not to be a jackass and hover around her like a helicopter. But it was hard being more nonchalant. He wanted to study her stomach right along with her and be that crazy expectant father. That's just how he felt and he couldn't help it. He didn't know how Chris had been so calm when Stephanie was pregnant with Sawyer.

"Will you come look?"

"Trish, come on and watch the show, please?"

"But I'm looking at my stomach, come look with me."

Christian got up off the bed and walked over to Trish and lifted her into his arms, blowing a raspberry on her stomach as he lifted her up nearly to eye level. "Hello there, young Cage, your mother is asking me to see if there are any differences with her stomach, but I really don't see any, do you see anything in there?"

"He probably doesn't even have eyes yet."

"Well then, hey, you in there, grow eyes soon, okay, scope out the joint," Christian said to her stomach again as Trish giggled. She was confident that Christian was going to make an amazing father. He was just silly and kind and a big kid.

"You're adorable," she said, wrapping her arms around him.

"Yes, I know, I'm well aware of my adorableness. It's what got me through the many years of being known as Edge's younger brother."

"Oh, I see," she said as he deposited her on the bed. "So you're just getting by on that cute face of yours."

"It's gotten me this far, why stop now?" he asked.

She cuddled up into his side as they settled down to watch SmackDown together, looking forward to seeing their friends. She liked these moments where they could be at home and be normal. It'd been a while since she retired, but she usually kept busy and now she was busy with this. It felt like a kid was a new adventure, like wrestling had been an adventure. She wondered if her kid would want to wrestle. She wouldn't pressure them to wrestle, of course, but it'd be kind of cool if they were interested in it.

"Do you think our kid would want to wrestle?"

"Well, maybe, if they want, not like we'll push them into it," Christian said. "But it'd be cool."

"You're so the man for me because I was thinking the same thing."

"It would be cool to have a son and have him wrestle. He could be Christian too."

"Yeah, I guess," she said, her thoughts traveling to her kid again. It was going to dominate her mind for the next 190 or so days of this pregnancy.

Britt looked over Hunter at the other person beside him. Shawn had been staying with them for the past couple days so they could all travel together to St. Louis for Raw. She had been okay with Shawn staying over, they were friends, he could stay over, but this was getting ridiculous. She barely got to spend any time with Hunter because Shawn was taking up every second of his time. This is what irritated her, it was like Shawn was shoving her to the background so he could have Hunter all to himself.

"Hey, babe, why don't we go watch this in our bedroom?" she asked him, adding a touch of seduction to her voice.

"Let's just all watch in here," Shawn said, "we have popcorn and everything."

"Yeah, but don't you want to watch in bed, Hunter?" Britt said enticingly, running her hand up and down his thigh, just out of sight of Shawn.

"Well, you know, that does sound good," Hunter said slowly, his breath coming out a little quicker now.

"I thought so," Britt said. "Surely you don't mind having the night to yourself, do you, Shawn?"

"Nah, no problem," Shawn said. Britt smiled sweetly at him, but there was venom in her eyes. She didn't know why Shawn always wanted to play bachelor whenever he and Hunter were together. She was very much aware that Shawn was married and had kids and maybe he just wanted to escape that every once in a while, but that didn't mean he had to kidnap her boyfriend.

Britt grabbed Hunter's hand and pulled him into the bedroom, locking the door behind her in case Shawn had some tactic to get Hunter to go out again tonight. She huffed over to the closet and walked inside. Hunter, who had thought he was going to get lucky, followed her inside as she tried to look for something clean to wear to bed.

"What's your problem?"

"Your boyfriend is my problem."

"My…what?" he asked, confused.

"Shawn has been hogging you all week and it's like I don't exist."

"What? You exist."

"No, I don't, I really don't. You just hang around him all the damn time and leave me in the dust and I'm like, I don't even know! I'm just mad. You just forget about me when he's around and it's so frustrating."

"I don't forget about you," he said, wrapping his arms around her. "Britt, I don't forget about you. Yeah, it's fun when he's around and we like to hang out, but I don't forget about you."

"Well he doesn't like me, isn't it obvious to you that he hates my guts."

"He doesn't hate your guts."

"Why do you refuse to see what's right in front of you?" Britt asked. "He doesn't like me and he's always attempting to get you away from me. Tell me this, when you go out, does he encourage you to go talk to other girls?"

"Well, yeah, but that's just to mess around," Hunter said, trying to defend his friend.

"Or is it because he wants me out of the picture. You're his friend that is supposed to stay unmarried so he can come hang out with you and be a bachelor again when having the wife and kids gets too hard. Did he like Stephanie?"

"No, but that's because he tried to ask her out and she shot him down and ruined his ego."

"Still, did he try the same things then?"

"He's just having fun."

"Oh yeah, having fun, sure, he just wants you to be single so you can always be _that_ friend. God forbid we ever get married or else he's probably going to kidnap you so you won't marry me. I wouldn't put it past him."

"He's my best friend, Britt."

"Yeah, one that doesn't want you to be with anyone," she grumbled as she changed. "He's been giving me dirty looks ever since he got there, he barely talks to me, he orders me around to get him stuff like I'm his _maid_ and he steals you at every possible moment. He acts more like a jealous lover than a friend."

Hunter had to laugh at that and it was the worst possible thing he could've done. Britt glared at him. "Sorry," he said, trying to cover his laughter with coughing.

"Do you find this funny?" she asked. "You find it funny that your best friend wants to steal you away from me?"

"He's not trying to steal me."

"Yeah, sure," she said, brushing past him as she went into the bathroom. "Fine, if you think I'm just blowing a lot of hot air, just go then, go hang out with your buddy."

"Okay…"

"I can't believe you!" she said, brushing her teeth quickly. She climbed into bed and turned on SmackDown, pouting now. Hunter sighed and climbed onto the bed, lying next to her.

"I'm sorry."

"No you're not, you're a liar."

"I am, I didn't realize it was bugging you so much."

"Well it is, was, is, whatever," she said, watching the television. SmackDown had already started.

"I'll try to be better."

"It's fine," she said, though it obviously wasn't.

"Britt…"

"No, I'm fine."

"You're not fine."

"Just go off with Shawn."

"I don't want to go off with Shawn, I want to be here with you. I came in here expecting something and I want it."

"No, you're not, go do it with Shawn," she told him.

He laughed and ducked his head, "No thanks, we're close, but not _that_ close."

He nudged his head against her. "Stop it."

"I love you."

"You do not, you love Shawn."

"In a very different way than I love you."

"I want to watch SmackDown."

"SmackDown can wait."

Chris walked out with Show, trying not to draw attention to himself (a first for him). Everyone was cheering him and he couldn't help it that his homeland loved him. Too bad for Cryme Tyme because they were going to side with Chris. He went over to the announcer's table and sat down, tentatively putting the headphones on, expecting Stephanie at any moment. She wasn't there when he put the headphones on and he thought he was home free.

"Hello, Chris, it's your secret admirer," Stephanie said over the headphones and he knew he was in for some trouble. That woman was beyond words. She knew he was working and yet she still did this. He tried to drown out her voice as he watched the match, making sure Shad didn't interfere. He got in his licks every now and then as Stephanie told him where she wanted to put her lips and geez, she was saying some stuff right now and he hoped nobody was around her right now with that filthy mouth of hers.

He saw Shad in front of him and weighed his options. He could listen to his wife talk dirty or he could go beat on Shad. It was a tough decision, but work came first and he chanced getting out from the table to go knock out Shad. He was happy that he didn't embarrass himself in front of everyone, but instead showed how ruthless he could really be. The crowd still cheered though because they loved him and everything that he did.

After Big Show won by taking JTG completely out, Chris went into the ring and stood in front of Big Show, looking around the crowd. He could feel Big Show's presence behind him and it was a large one. He felt so dominant in that moment, so much in charge and he liked it. He liked this taste of power he was getting. It felt good, it felt familiar, it was a good fit. He was just now really starting to get the scope of what being the Unified Tag Champ meant. Sure, he knew that it meant he could be on both shows, but he was starting to see how his presence was really everywhere. He was everywhere, he had the power to do what he wanted and in that moment, it was surging through him and he decided right then and there that he was going to hold onto these belts for a long, long time. With these belts, he really was the most powerful guy in the company because everyone was at his disposal.

Everyone was fair game.


	248. SummerFest, SSlam and August 24, 2009

A/N: I am SO sorry for the lack of updates for this one. If you haven't been keeping up, I've had terrible computer problems the last few weeks. I'm still not on my own laptop, but have access to the one I'm on so I'm using it for now until my laptop can be fixed. Didn't lose my stories, thank God, but I am behind. I'm really trying to claw my way out because I really want to be caught up and I am going to try so hard to do so, so look out for updates for this one whenever I feel like it until I can catch up.

In other news, I've been updating on non-HaK days, so in case you read this and didn't know, I've updated some other stories and started a new story, All That we Needed, which is a Trish/Christian story, so if you love them in this one, go check them out in that one. Please leave a review for this, even if you just want to say that you are mad that I haven't updated. Sorry again, but I hope you enjoy. Oh, and this is just SummerSlam and the August 24th Raw (yeah, that's how far behind I am :( ). Still, enjoy and reviews are love! :)

* * *

"Are you excited for your day out with Daddy?"

Flynn babbled a little and then answered her mommy to the best of her abilities, "No."

Stephanie laughed and looked at her daughter in surprise. "I thought that you would be happy to be going out with Daddy today. You're always around me or Sawyer when you're with Daddy so this is going to be a very special day with only you and Daddy. Sawyer and I are going to have a Mommy and son day today too and then we're all going to meet up for dinner, how does that sound?"

"No."

"That doesn't sound good to you?"

"No," Flynn told her, but it was with a smile so she didn't realize that no was a negative word. Stephanie just kissed her forehead and snapped her jeans on. "There you go, my, you look beautiful, you are going to sweep Daddy off his feet."

Flynn smiled at that even more and Stephanie picked her up and then took her downstairs. They were in their rarely used Los Angeles house at the moment, right on the beach and though she loved the view and the house itself they really should try and rent it out or something because they came here so rarely. Chris used it more than she did. He usually stayed here when he had to come to LA for some non-wrestling related thing.

"Sawyer!" Stephanie looked around. She knew he was upstairs because she'd told him to go change and the baby gate was up because of Flynn so he had to be on the second story. There was no answer and she yelled out again, "Sawyer!"

"I hiding!" he yelled and the voice was obviously coming from her and Chris's room. She laughed and rolled her eyes.

"Well come out now because Daddy and Flynnie are leaving and if you want to say goodbye you better come out now or forever hold your peace," Stephanie told him.

"I hide, Mommy, you find!" he said. Hide and seek was his new favorite game. Christian had taught him how to play and she was going to have to kill Christian the next time she saw him because the kid kept hiding without telling them he was actually hiding them. Stephanie had gotten quite the shock when she'd opened the pantry and Sawyer had yelled out at her for finding him. It had turned out he'd been in there for ten minutes and Chris had been trying to find him.

"Sawyer…" she sighed to herself. Then she turned towards the stairs and yelled, "Chris, will you please get up here, your son is hiding again!"

"Sawyer, come out from wherever you're hiding!" Chris yelled upstairs. He was busy downstairs getting Flynn's diaper bag ready for their little outing.

"No, you find!" Sawyer yelled.

"Chris!" Stephanie yelled.

"Stephanie!" Chris yelled back, irritated with her yelling at him like he was her lap dog.

"Chris, will you please find him, I don't want to find him this time."

"Fine, fine, fine," Chris said, coming up the stairs, "where is he?"

"Somewhere in our room," Stephanie said.

"I swear, I'm going to hurt Christian next time I see him, which will be tomorrow. He better watch out for me because while I appreciate a good game of hide and seek, I kind of like to know when I'm playing the game and not finding my son sitting in the bathtub while I go in there to use the bathroom."

Stephanie laughed. Yesterday, Chris had gone into the bathroom and as he was walking past the shower, he saw a small shape in the bathtub. His first reaction was not to think, 'oh, this may be my son,' but instead, 'this could be a wild animal in the bathtub!' and he'd screamed and hightailed it out of the bathroom thinking that whatever it was, was dangerous. He'd gone to Stephanie and told him to get the kids out of the house while he called the exterminator. He'd gone back into the bathroom to assess what it was he was seeing only to see his son was sitting in the bathtub.

"I can't believe you thought he was a raccoon or something," Stephanie giggled. "Plus, you screamed like a girl. My only regret is that I didn't get it on videotape to show everyone."

"You would not."

"I would absolutely, if I'm going to be your fat wife than you're going to be my sissy husband."

"You're a cruel and harsh mistress," he told her as he went into the bedroom. "Okay, Sawyer, I'm coming to get you…I wonder where he could be."

Chris heard a giggling coming from the closet and he laughed. Even though his son loved to play the game didn't mean that he was any good at the game. Sawyer would constantly giggle or talk so it was such a shock to know that he had remained pretty silent when he'd been in the bathtub.

"Oh, well, I'm going to look under the bed," he said loudly, causing another round of giggles to emanate from the closet. "Here I am, looking under the bed…nope, no Sawyer there. Hmm…I wonder if he's in the bathroom again."

More giggling.

"Nope, not in there, I better leave, I don't think Sawyer is in here," he said to himself. Then he said, "Oh wait, the closet, I wonder if my kid is in there."

Chris threw open the door to the closet and Sawyer could be heard laughing from behind some of Stephanie's clothes. He laughed at the image. There were some of Stephanie's clothes hanging there and underneath a part of shorts with legs. Chris walked over slowly as Sawyer tried to quiet down. Chris came over to the clothes and wondered aloud if Sawyer could possibly be behind these clothes. Chris suddenly ripped apart the clothes and Sawyer screamed in delight over his daddy finding him. Chris scooped up his little boy and held him aloft before bringing him down and covering his face in smacking kisses.

"Daddy!" Sawyer screamed, trying to squirm away.

"Not so fast, you little hider, you can't go around hiding from me or Mommy it makes us worried."

"I play," Sawyer told him, trying to explain himself.

"Yes, I know, but still, this is an official order of business," Chris said sternly, making a very serious face at Sawyer. Sawyer just giggled and hugged Chris around the neck. "Oh, don't try to play coy with me, you."

Chris left the room and went downstairs, where Stephanie and Flynn were waiting. Chris set Sawyer down and he went over to Flynn and hugged her. "Bye, Flynn, you go now."

"No," Flynn said.

"Daddy, she no wanna go."

"She's not really saying no," Chris explained. "She just doesn't really know any more words. She's still just learning to talk so when she learns a new word she's going to repeat it a lot so she can remember it."

"Oh," Sawyer said, like he understood. "Where you go?"

"Flynn and I are going to an aquarium and you and Mommy are going to the zoo."

"Oh, I like zoos."

"I know you do, that's why you're going to one," Chris said. "Now let go of my date."

"Date? What dat?"

"It means I get the privilege of taking out that lovely lady," Chris said, going over to pick up Flynn. "Okay, we're going, you two have fun on your day, okay?"

"We will, love you," Stephanie said, kissing Chris quickly before Flynn could grab her and make her stay.

"Me too, me too!" Sawyer yelled, jumping up and down.

Chris knelt down and kissed him, "I love you too."

"Love you."

"Now when you're with Mommy at the zoo, absolutely no hiding, okay, or else you're going to get a time-out and you won't get to help put Flynn to bed, okay?"

He loved helping put Flynn to bed so he definitely did not want to incur this penalty. "Okay."

"Okay, good," Chris said, kissing him again. Stephanie kissed Flynn when he stood up and then they went their separate ways. Chris helped Flynn into her car-seat and then climbed into the driver's seat of his rental. "I'm glad we get to spend the day together, flutterby, you're going to be my hot date for the day."

"Dada," Flynn giggled.

Chris nearly slammed on the brakes as he pulled out of the driveway. "What did you say, Flynn?"

"Dada," Flynn repeated. Chris turned to Stephanie's car next to him, but she'd already left. Damn it, Stephanie should hear this and at least realize this time around, she was only third best. "Dada, Dada, Dada."

"You rock, flutterby," Chris said, turning on his metal music. "We're going to have a great day."

Taking this day had more than one benefit for Chris. On the one hand, he got to spend some alone time with his daughter, which was the number one priority and something he'd been looking forward to for a while. He and Stephanie were usually parenting in tandem or with both of them; they never got to just have a day where they could take one of the kids out or both of the kids out and just have a good time and take them somewhere fun and kid-friendly. Arenas all the time weren't really conducive to children.

Another thing that made this day good for him is it relaxed him before his big match tomorrow. He and Big Show were going to go against Cryme Tyme for the Tag Titles. While Chris had no doubt they were going to win, there was a lot to be said for going into a match feeling refreshed and relaxed. If he cleared his mind before his match, it would help with his concentration during the match. He didn't see Cryme Tyme as a real threat, but if he went into the match distracted or tense, there was potential for a screw-up and he wasn't about to screw up and lose his title and become just one of the masses again.

If there was one thing he learned about his day it was that Flynn liked fish. She kept pointing at everything she saw and couldn't seem to get enough of anything. He didn't think she was going to be a marine biologist (not when she was destined to be a wrestler, a very covered wrestler), but he'd chosen the right place to take her. He could see women checking him out and he hoped it was because he looked like a good father and not because they just thought he was hot. Normally, he'd be absolutely basking in it and taking note of it to tell Stephanie later or more like brag at Stephanie later if he was being honest, but today was not about that, today was about Flynn and making her happy.

There were a few people who dared come up to him and ask him for an autograph. One kid actually said he was really mean. Chris tried to look mean when the kid said that, but Flynn was giggling and he found it hard to stifle his laughter. Some of the people even asked for pictures, which Chris was hesitant to do because he had Flynn with him and Stephanie would not want anyone taking pictures of her. Stephanie, and to an extent himself, liked to keep the kids private. They weren't huge stars and they knew it, but the wrestling community was a rabid one and they didn't want their kids to be exploited or have pictures of them put up on the internet without their permission.

When their time at the aquarium was finished, Chris and Flynn drove to the restaurant where they were meeting Stephanie and Sawyer for dinner. They arrived at the restaurant first and were seated. Chris slipped Flynn into the high chair they provided and grabbed a sippy cup for her. He ordered himself a beer and Flynn some apple juice. When it came he put the juice in her sippy cup and handed it to her. She smiled and took it in her little hands, tipping it up and drinking on it. It was through her eyes that he knew Stephanie and Sawyer had arrived because her eyes widened and she smiled around her sippy cup.

"Hi!" she exclaimed, pulling the cup out of her mouth so quickly apple juice dripped out of her mouth and Chris had to wipe her face free from the apple juice.

"Hey guys," Stephanie said as she lifted Stephanie into the booster chair next to Chris. Chris leaned over and gave Sawyer a kiss and Sawyer hugged his daddy. "How was your day?"

"Flynn, tell Mommy who I am."

"Dada," Flynn said with a grin, then added, "Sawa!"

"Hi Fwynn," he said with a wave before grabbing the crayons provided for him and going to town on his placemat, which was kid-friendly.

""He's still better than you," Britt said and it felt dirty to say that. She really disliked Shawn so paying him any kind of compliment was tough on her.

"Yeah, I think Shawn thinks so too, but more than that, I think he thinks that Hunter is too good for you and I'm starting to see that Hunter agrees with him."

"What are you babbling about now?" Britt said, though a second later she regretted asking. That's exactly what he wanted her to do. He wanted her to ask him what was up so he could probably come up with some line for her.

"Oh, I just saw him and Shawn getting cozy with a couple girls earlier, that's all."

"No, you didn't."

"I did though, with my own two eyes," Randy said, pointing to his eyes. "Yeah, they were looking very happy the both of them. I might want to tell Shawn's wife this as well, you know, give her a heads up to what kind of guy she's with. Just thought I should do the same with you."

"You're a liar, I can't believe you," Britt said, tossing her hair over her shoulder as if preparing for a fight. "I can't believe you would lie."

Randy leaned in closer to her, having to stoop down a bit since Britt was rather petite. "Who's lying?"

Britt had had enough and she was starting to get extremely flustered. She sidestepped Randy and started walking away. She didn't want to deal with him. Her break was over and she hadn't even seen Hunter, which upset her even more. Why did Shawn dislike her so much? She couldn't figure out his motive, but it was like he wanted her completely out of Hunter's life. Was he jealous of her? Because if he was, that was an incredibly lame reason to treat her like he was. She took a deep breath and tried to calm herself. She didn't need this right now. Randy was lying. Hunter wasn't off with someone, he just wasn't.

"Britt?"

Britt screamed, having been startled out of her thoughts and she'd nearly jumped out of her skin. She turned around and put her hand over her heart. "Chris, you scared me."

"Sorry, I was just heading to the ring for my match and saw you standing there, kind of zoned out, you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, just…have you seen Hunter?"

"Yeah, I talked to him earlier, but he was with Shawn and Shawn and I don't really get along so it was rather uncomfortab_le."_

"Oh, thanks, I'm going to find him."

"You sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine once I see him, good luck with your match, not that you need it, but whatever, I'm going, I'll see you later."

Chris watched her walk away and shrugged. He wasn't going to try to figure out his friend's problems when he had a match he had to get to. He'd already gotten his good luck kisses from Flynn , Sawyer, and Stephanie so he felt ready to get out there. Big Show was already waiting for him at the gorilla and Chris sauntered up to him. They'd discussed tactics over breakfast this morning where Big Show threatened to eat the entire stock of food in the restaurant. Sawyer had been with Chris and he'd been absolutely amazed at Big Show's appetite. He'd actually stopped eating just to watch the giant man eat.

He and Show went out first as Chris wanted to address the fans. He wanted to remind them that he was the biggest celebrity here tonight, he was better than any of the hosts they'd had and he was the best superstar in the business. Big Show wanted to get his point across too, but was cut short by their opponents. Chris felt loose as they walked to the ring and he was ready for a fight. He'd come prepared tonight and he knew what he was doing. Cryme Tyme might have been a team longer, but he was Chris Jericho and he'd been wrestling while those two were probably still getting fed by their mothers.

Chris started off against JTG. He got the upper-hand first, but it didn't last long as JTG got him for a two count, but he was Chris Jericho and wasn't going to be felled mere seconds into a match. He hadn't been properly squashed since he was a rookie and had no experience whatsoever. Chris started going after him with more vengeance, but JTG was probably a little tougher than Chris gave him credit for, not much tougher, but tougher nonetheless. Chris ended up tagging in Show and watching go to work on JTG, making him look like a child's plaything.

Chris got in the action when Shad entered the ring. Sometimes you just had to play dirty to get what you wanted. Chris chopped Shad as Big Show held him, but when he tried for another move, Shad got him and he went down. He noticed JTG was trying to interfere so he knocked him off the apron and to the floor. He tagged Show in and Show got his moves in and then tagged in Chris again, but Chris missed an elbow drop and got a powerslam for his troubles. Shad tried for the tag, but Chris grabbed him and pout him in the sleeper instead.

He didn't take Shad out with this move and he got JTG back in the match. JTG, who was obviously the better of the two, managed to gain the upper-hand against Chris, which angered him. He was better than this guy and he would handle his business accordingly. They went at it for a while, both Shad and Big Show getting involved in their own ways, but then Shad took Big Show out so it was just him and JTG. He put JTG in the Walls of Jericho, thinking this would be it, but the guy managed to get to the ropes. Luckily for him, Big Show had his back and one punch from Big Show and Chris got the pin for the win.

It was a relatively hard fought victory so he was glad when it was over. Cryme Tyme was obviously not of his caliber, but they were better than he gave them credit for, not that he would ever, ever tell them. He walked backstage and was greeted warmly by his family, especially an eager Sawyer and he lifted the little boy in his arms, happy that he at least had the rest of the night off.

"So, you ready for your match?" Trish asked.

"Yup," Christian said, obviously in the zone.

"Well, while we're talking about the show, I wanted to ask you something."

"Okay, what is it? Can you make it quick though, I'm practicing staying calm, you know, that yoga technique you taught me, remember?"

"Oh yeah," she said with a smile. She couldn't help but love it when he took an interest in the things she loved. She loved yoga and she'd actually been looking into adding some pregnancy yoga classes to her place in Toronto, feeling inspired by her own pregnancy. "How is it working?'

"I'll let you know when I get that whole complete silence thing down."

She laughed and hugged him around the shoulders, "So Stephanie wants me to be a guest host next month and I told her that I wanted to do it, but I was going to run it by your first, but I really want to say yes, so I just wanted you to know that I'm going to guest host. I mean, I know you can lodge a protest, but I really want to do this, so what do you think?"

"Guest host?"

"I know that we have the baby and everything and I'm very well aware of that, before you ask me anything, okay. Anyways, Stephanie was pregnant when she came ba_ck,_ remember, back when she was just pregnant with Sawyer and she came back."

"And when she got kicked in the stomach…"

"That was a fluke thing and Sawyer is fine, you know that," Trish said.

"The guest host really don't do anything," Christian reasoned.

"I just wanted your input because you are the father of my child."

"It's not like you're going to go out there and start doing flips off the ropes or something," Christian said. "I mean, you aren't thinking about doing that, right?"

"Well now I'm not," she joked. "I just think it would be fun. It'd be even more fun if you were on the show and I could talk to you and everything. How great would that be, getting to be on the same show and interacting?"

"It would be pretty great, not that I can really just go on Raw since I'm not a Raw guy."

"I know, but still…so I'm going to do it, is that okay with you? I don't want to do anything involving our child without consulting you first."

"If you want to, I say go for it."

"I knew there was a reason I loved you," Trish said, giving him a hug. "Not to mention the fact that you're a champion, which just makes you that much more desirable. So if you don't keep the title tonight, I might want to leave you, just a forewarning."

"At least you've let me know in advance. I'll make sure I win."

And boy did he. Christian's match could barely even qualify as a match. Trish had found Stephanie and decided to watch the match with her. Stephanie had been thrilled to hear that Trish was going to be the guest host and she was sure her father would be happy as well, believing Trish would bring in ratings. Trish smiled when Christian came out and she turned to Stephanie to speak when the match started. She was barely turning her head when it was over. Christian had won, wait, what? He'd won?

"Um, did the match just start?" Trish asked.

"Actually, I think it just ended."

"But it just started."

"That was insane, he barely touched him."

"I mean, I knew my husband was remarkable, but that was remarkable."

‡_ˆ__

_

_€_˜_™_‹_Œ_

He and Show went out first as Chris wanted to address the fans. He wanted to remind them that he was the biggest celebrity here tonight, he was better than any of the hosts they'd had and he was the best superstar in the business. Big Show wanted to get his point across too, but was cut short by their opponents. Chris felt loose as they walked to the ring and he was ready for a fight. He'd come prepared tonight and he knew what he was doing. Cryme Tyme might have been a team longer, but he was Chris Jericho and he'd been wrestling while those two were probably still getting fed by their mothers.

Chris started off against JTG. He got the upper-hand first, but it didn't last long as JTG got him for a two count, but he was Chris Jericho and wasn't going to be felled mere seconds into a match. He hadn't been properly squashed since he was a rookie and had no experience whatsoever. Chris started going after him with more vengeance, but JTG was probably a little tougher than Chris gave him credit for, not _much_ tougher, but tougher nonetheless. Chris ended up tagging in Show and watching go to work on JTG, making him look like a child's plaything.

Chris got in the action when Shad entered the ring. Sometimes you just had to play dirty to get what you wanted. Chris chopped Shad as Big Show held him, but when he tried for another move, Shad got him and he went down. He noticed JTG was trying to interfere so he knocked him off the apron and to the floor. He tagged Show in and Show got his moves in and then tagged in Chris again, but Chris missed an elbow drop and got a powerslam for his troubles. Shad tried for the tag, but Chris grabbed him and pout him in the sleeper instead.

He didn't take Shad out with this move and he got JTG back in the match. JTG, who was obviously the better of the two, managed to gain the upper-hand against Chris, which angered him. He was better than this guy and he would handle his business accordingly. They went at it for a while, both Shad and Big Show getting involved in their own ways, but then Shad took Big Show out so it was just him and JTG. He put JTG in the Walls of Jericho, thinking this would be it, but the guy managed to get to the ropes. Luckily for him, Big Show had his back and one punch from Big Show and Chris got the pin for the win.

It was a relatively hard fought victory so he was glad when it was over. Cryme Tyme was obviously not of his caliber, but they were better than he gave them credit for, not that he would ever, _ever_ tell them. He walked backstage and was greeted warmly by his family, especially an eager Sawyer and he lifted the little boy in his arms, happy that he at least had the rest of the night off.

"So, you ready for your match?" Trish asked.

"Yup," Christian said, obviously in the zone.

"Well, while we're talking about the show, I wanted to ask you something."

"Okay, what is it? Can you make it quick though, I'm practicing staying calm, you know, that yoga technique you taught me, remember?"

"Oh yeah," she said with a smile. She couldn't help but love it when he took an interest in the things she loved. She loved yoga and she'd actually been looking into adding some pregnancy yoga classes to her place in Toronto, feeling inspired by her own pregnancy. "How is it working?'

"I'll let you know when I get that whole complete silence thing down."

She laughed and hugged him around the shoulders, "So Stephanie wants me to be a guest host next month and I told her that I wanted to do it, but I was going to run it by your first, but I really want to say yes, so I just wanted you to know that I'm going to guest host. I mean, I know you can lodge a protest, but I really want to do this, so what do you think?"

"Guest host?"

"I know that we have the baby and everything and I'm very well aware of that, before you ask me anything, okay. Anyways, Stephanie was pregnant when she came back, remember, back when she was just pregnant with Sawyer and she came back."

"And when she got kicked in the stomach…"

"That was a fluke thing and Sawyer is fine, you know that," Trish said.

"The guest host really don't _do_ anything," Christian reasoned.

"I just wanted your input because you are the father of my child."

"It's not like you're going to go out there and start doing flips off the ropes or something," Christian said. "I mean, you aren't thinking about doing that, right?"

"Well _now_ I'm not," she joked. "I just think it would be fun. It'd be even more fun if you were on the show and I could talk to you and everything. How great would that be, getting to be on the same show and interacting?"

"It would be pretty great, not that I can really just go on Raw since I'm not a Raw guy."

"I know, but still…so I'm going to do it, is that okay with you? I don't want to do anything involving our child without consulting you first."

"If you want to, I say go for it."

"I knew there was a reason I loved you," Trish said, giving him a hug. "Not to mention the fact that you're a champion, which just makes you that much more desirable. So if you don't keep the title tonight, I might want to leave you, just a forewarning."

"At least you've let me know in advance. I'll make sure I win."

And boy did he. Christian's match could barely even qualify as a match. Trish had found Stephanie and decided to watch the match with her. Stephanie had been thrilled to hear that Trish was going to be the guest host and she was sure her father would be happy as well, believing Trish would bring in ratings. Trish smiled when Christian came out and she turned to Stephanie to speak when the match started. She was barely turning her head when it was over. Christian had won, wait, what? He'd won?

"Um, did the match just start?" Trish asked.

"Actually, I think it just ended."

"But it just started."

"That was insane, he barely touched him."

"I mean, I knew my husband was remarkable, but that was remarkable…or really bad on Regal's part."

"I'm going to go with a little of both."

"I didn't even see it," Trish laughed in stunned disbelief. "I wasn't even watching when my husband won. I didn't even see it."

"That was just bizarre," Stephanie said, then cringed as Christian started to get beat up.

"Oh come on!" Trish exclaimed. "That's unfair! I'm going to go meet him, I'll talk to you later, sorry I couldn't stay longer, but I guess I thought my husband would have some actual competition, but I guess he didn't. Maybe he's just so good he doesn't even need to wrestle people anymore…"

"Okay, and I thought I was bad with Chris," Stephanie said.

"Well, when was the last time Chris beat anyone in eight seconds?"

"You've got me there," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, so my guy is the best," Trish shrugged, sticking her tongue out.

Britt walked into Stephanie's office just as Trish was walking out. Britt smiled at Trish and she nodded back and Britt sat down where Trish had just been. "Have you seen Hunter?"

"I haven't, why?" Stephanie asked. "I've pretty much been in here watching the show. Couldn't you find him after his match?"

"I thought I'd be able to, but it's like he disappeared off the face of the Earth," Britt sighed. "I don't know what's going on with him. Ever since Shawn has come back, it's been the two of them hanging out and going places and leaving me behind. I respect Hunter's need for space and time with his friends, but this is getting to be a little on the weird side."

"What do you think is going on?"

"I don't know," Britt replied. "If I knew I'd be doing something about it. It's like, whenever he gets together with Shawn, he's this little boy again. Yeah, Shawn is his little playmate, but I'm still here."

"Those two just…I know how you feel."

"Oh yeah, you guys were married, sometimes I forget, especially when I'm mad at the big ass," Britt said, folding her arms.

"They just get like this. It's like, I don't know, they revert back to their stupid Kliq ways. I had it even worse, they still hung out with Kevin Nash and Scott Hall and freaking X-Pac when I was married to him. If you thought him and Shawn were bad, you have not even seen bad because those guys were horrible. They'd sit around and drink and talk crap about everyone and Hall actually expected _me_ to clean up after them and I wanted to just pour a bottle of beer over his head. I almost did once, but Hunter pulled the beer out of my hand."

"Well thank God it's not like that because I would've poured beer over their head, in fact, I want to pour something over Shawn's head right now." Britt's phone buzzed and she picked it up out of her pocket. "Oh, great, look at this."

Stephanie looked at the phone and saw it was a text from Hunter, _Going out with Shawn tonight,, don't wait up, will drive to Vegas with him, hope you don't mind, love you._ "Ouch."

"So now he's going to go party in Vegas, wonderful, just wonderful," Britt said, turning off her phone. "I'm going, bye."

"Britt, wait, do you have a ride back?"

"Yeah, I have the car keys so Hunter wouldn't have been able to leave if I didn't go with him, but I guess I'm on my own tonight and then on my own driving to Vegas. Can you believe him? I can't…it wasn't this bad before. I don't know why this time is so bad. I'm just going to go, I have work to do."

"You can have the rest of the night off if you want. There aren't very many matches left."

"It's fine, don't worry about it," Britt said, trying to act nonchalant, but she was obviously hurting. Stephanie didn't want to keep her so she just let the girl leave and sat there. She sighed and looked to the side where her kids were sleeping.

"Okay, let's just wait for Daddy then," she whispered to herself.

Britt stomped around the building for the rest of the night. As soon as the last match was finished and she had done all the tasks asked of her, she hightailed it out of the arena and back to the hotel. She was so pissed off she didn't want to talk to anyone. When she got to her hotel room, she saw that Hunter had actually been there and grabbed his suitcase. The nerve of him! She was so angry she wanted to throw her own suitcase out the window. She was lucky that it didn't open or she just might have. She thought about breaking open the mini-bar, but why spend ten dollars on a mini bottle of vodka when she could just go downstairs and get a drink. Heaven help her if anyone bothered her.

She wouldn't have minded this so much if it were the first time or if Hunter hadn't been out with Shawn in a while. She didn't want to isolate him from his friends, but she felt ditched, like she was told to wait somewhere for her friends, but they never showed. She and Hunter didn't have big plans, okay, but did that mean he had to just leave her like he was? She went down to the bar and ordered herself a drink, staking out a corner of the bar. She just wanted a drink and then she'd go to bed, wake up alone and go to Vegas. She saw Randy walk by the bar and ducked her head, hoping he wouldn't see her and he didn't, thank God for small miracles. The last thing she needed was to see Randy right now because the alcohol was fueling something wicked inside her, it was making her think, maybe think too much…

She was starting to wonder if Randy Orton was right.

**Monday, August 24**

"Happy Birfday, Gampa!" Sawyer said as he ran into his grandparents' suite. He had his arms raised and he ran around and around as Vince looked down at him. Sawyer jumped to a stop in front of his grandpa and held his arms up. Vince bent down and picked him up. "It your birfday."

"I know," Vince said.

"How old you be, Gampa?" Sawyer asked.

"I'll be 40," Vince told him.

"No," Sawyer told him, shaking his head. "Mommy say you be old."

"Stephanie!"

"Dad, what, I'm just telling the truth," Stephanie said with a laugh, hugging her father and then kissing him on the cheek. "Happy Birthday, Dad. We just wanted to come by and wish you a happy birthday before we went out."

"Where are you going?"

"We're taking the kids to some of the attractions around here. Flynn may be a little too young to appreciate some of the stuff, but Sawyer will have a good time."

"I go see things," Sawyer told his grandpa. "Do you have cake?"

"I don't have a cake," Vince answered. "I didn't want a cake."

Sawyer was surprised by this revelation. How could someone not want cake? Cake was delicious. "I like cake. You have one."

"Maybe later, where are Flynn and Chris?" Vince asked.

"Flynn wants nothing to do with anyone carrying her right now, she's insisting on walking everywhere, but she doesn't walk as fast. She'll be here in a second when she catches up. She's in one of her moods where she just wants to be left alone."

"Here we are," Chris said as they finally made it into the room. "Hey, Vince, Happy Birthday, how old are you now, 94?"

"Very funny, Chris."

"I thought so," Chris chuckled. "What did we want to say to Grandpa, Flutterby?"

"Hi!" Flynn yelled.

"Close enough," Chris said, attempting to pick her up, but Flynn instantly started to whine and cry so Chris put her down. "Well, you'll just have to kneel if you want to see her."

"Gampa, you vewy old?"

"I'm not _very_ old."

"He is," Chris stage-whispered to Sawyer. "He's super-duper old, like the oldest thing you will ever see in your entire life. He's older than old actually. He's older than trees!"

"Stop that," Vince said drolly as Sawyer's jaw dropped. Older than trees?! Chris snickered at him.

"Vince, honestly, I'm very glad you were born and that you are alive today."

"You are?" Vince asked suspiciously. It wasn't that Chris was never complimentary towards him, but it wasn't a usual occurrence so Vince looked at him with an obvious air of suspicion. He could almost feel an insult coming from somewhere.

"Seriously," Chris said, trying to be serious, "I owe you more than probably anyone else who works for you, considering that all of this," here he gestured towards his family, "kind of wouldn't have happened if it weren't for you."

"He hates admitting that," Stephanie said, rubbing Chris's back. "I think he would much rather I just sprung up from the ocean on a clam shell or something rather than tell you that he's grateful that you are in his life because he has me."

"I would've found someone else even if she had never been born because I wouldn't have known her, you know, I mean, she wouldn't have existed, but I'm glad she exists."

"So here's your gift," Stephanie said, pulling something out of her bag. "We wanted to give it to you early."

"I make it," Sawyer told him.

"Sawyer! You're not supposed to tell what it is," Stephanie chided him gently.

"I no tell," Sawyer said. He hadn't said what it was, just that he'd made it, but he really did make it. He and his mommy and daddy and Flynn had gone and they'd made something for his grandpa and it was really nice if he did say so himself.

"Thank you," Vince said, hugging Sawyer. "I'm sure I'll love it."

"You open it," Sawyer said with a nod.

"Okay, if you insist," Vince said, putting Sawyer down. Sawyer started bouncing on the balls of his feet. He wanted to see his grandpa open his present. Flynn, seeing that Sawyer was excited, started to try and emulate him and she gave off a cute little squeal of happiness that made Chris and Stephanie look at her like she was crazy. Vince took the gift from Stephanie and he started to tear the paper. It was a plaque with Flynn and Sawyer's handprints and was hand-painted.

"That my hand," Sawyer said, pulling on Vince's pant leg, making Vince kneel down next him. "That my hand, that Fwynn's hand."

"I see that, it's very nice, I'll hang it in my office."

"I paint it too," Sawyer explained. "That you."

Vince laughed at the crudely drawn person on the top of it. It was one of the best presents he'd ever gotten. There was something to be said about a gift that was made for him over a gift that was bought. "I love it. Thank you very much."

"You welcome, wight Fwynn."

"Yes," Flynn said, but she didn't really know what she was saying yes too, but it seemed the appropriate thing to say (of her limited vocabulary).

"Thanks for thinking of me," Vince said to Chris and Stephanie.

"Well, this isn't just a birthday call, unfortunately," Stephanie said, the change in her tone becoming obvious. "We've got an issue with tonight. As you know, Floyd ran into a little trouble with the law and his agent said that while he is going to be here tonight, he may not be there on time, definitely not early, but maybe not even on-time. So we've got a lot of space to fill with empty time that we'd set aside for him. So I'm going to have to fill that time…or you know, whoever's in charge."

She tried not to sound like she was hinting at something, except she was absolutely hinting that she should be in charge of both shows. Plus, maybe she was hinting that she should be one of the guest hosts, or maybe a permanent guest host. Additionally, there was the matter of Teddy Long still being on probation. What did her father have in store for Teddy? Could he be thinking about making her in charge of SmackDown with complete power, her running the show and being the GM? She liked that idea because it meant she could work with Chris.

"I'll take care of it, don't worry."

"You will?" Stephanie asked.

"I am the head of this company, right?"

"Yes, of course."

"Then I'll handle the extra time."

"Okay, if you say so."

"I do say so."

Stephanie knew when to back off, so she did. She figured that this wasn't just a matter of him being the head of the company, but a birthday thing. Her father, like it or not, was getting older and every year brought him closer to his retirement (though sometimes she doubted he would ever retire). He probably wanted to assert his power over everyone and remind them that even though he was getting older, he was still in charge around this place and that wasn't going to change any time soon.

"Okay," Stephanie said, "well, we're going to get going because we want, you know, time with the kids, we had plans. See you at the show, Dad, and Happy Birthday."

"Thank you," Vince said as Chris gathered up the kids, picking up Flynn even though she protested and hit him with her little fists. They were outside when Chris started laughing.

"What's so funny?"

"Your dad, trying to be like, 'ooh, look at me, me not old, me young, me control everything,'" Chris said in a caveman voice. "He's just so over-the-top sometimes. Then I'm reminded that I'm family with him. Don't you wonder sometimes what it would be like to have a normal family?"

"I _do_ have a normal family, right here," Stephanie said as her cell phone rang. "Is that you or me?"

"Well, considering that it's not a metal ringtone, I'm guessing you."

"Oh yeah, I forgot, you like to burst our children's eardrums with your music," she said, throwing him a sidelong glance before she plucked her phone out of her pocket, "Stephanie McMahon-Jericho."

"Hey, Steph, it's Hunter."

"Oh hey," she said, "what's up?"

"Well, I just remembered that today is your dad's birthday and well, what would his birthday be if we didn't have a little fun with him."

"Hunter, what are you thinking?"

"I was thinking about having a little birthday celebration for your dad. The idea came to me last night when Shawn and I were catching a show with some showgirls, we thought it would be funny if we brought some of them to the show tonight for your dad. We also had some other ideas. You game for letting us do it?"

"Yeah, sure, go right ahead. He actually has time at the beginning of the show if you want to do it then."

"Great, this is going to be hilarious," Hunter said.

"Hey, before you go, what's up with you and Britt? Did you go see her last night or what?"

"No, I told her that I was going to Vegas with Shawn, why?"

"Well, I'm just saying, not trying to intrude or be nosy or whatever, but she was pretty upset last night."

"She was? Why?"

"With the time you've been spending with Shawn. She's just feeling a little left out."

"I spend plenty of time with her."

"Okay, if you say so, I'm just trying to help you out."

"Thanks, Steph, but I've got this covered."

"If you're sure."

"I'm sure."

Maybe Hunter thought he had things covered, but he was the farthest thing from covered. Britt hadn't gotten drunk the night before, but she'd gotten awfully close. She'd stumbled her way to her hotel room and barely woke up that morning. The drive to Vegas was a lonely one and it gave her a lot of time to think. By the time she'd arrived in Vegas, she was even angrier with Hunter. She was glad he had friends, but he was ignoring her and she felt like she'd come second to Shawn and though she knew he'd known Shawn longer, it hurt her that she was just thrown by the wayside. She knew she probably sounded whiny and people would side with Hunter, but she felt what she felt and couldn't change it.

When Raw started that night, she had the intention of not paying any attention to Hunter at all. He probably wouldn't even seek her out so she just had to avoid seeing him. She knew she would when he did whatever he was doing on the show, but maybe if he spent all this time away form her he might remember she existed. Either that or he wouldn't give a damn, she was prepared for that as well.

Hunter was too preoccupied though, setting up his little "party" for Vince. He and Shawn had come up with some outrageous ideas and he was looking forward to executing them as soon as the show started, which would be a few minutes from now. Vince wouldn't suspect a thing. It wasn't like he was doing this because he cared about Vince or anything like that, but because he wanted to get a laugh out of the whole thing. He and Shawn loved to pull crap like this and this time, they might have actually topped themselves.

Vince was surprised when they went out there, but not as surprised as he was when they brought out all the acts they did for him. Everyone was having a great time in the arena, laughing along with them, taking part in Vince's birthday, except for one person. Britt was not amused by Hunter's antics. Usually she would be, but it wasn't usually. This was what he chose to spend his time on? This was what was so important he had spent the entire day not talking with her? He hadn't even sent her a text to let her know he'd arrived in Vegas safely. Not that she'd asked for one, but it would've been nice to know if he'd gotten there okay.

Stephanie, on the other hand, was cracking up backstage. Since her father was being made fun of out there, she was back here taking control of the show. Chris was off with the kids somewhere so she didn't have him to laugh with, but she wished he was because he was absolutely going to be laughing at this as much as she was. And he was, Chris was laughing as Flynn sat in his lap looking at a picture book. She was too involved in her book to enjoy her grandpa getting humiliated.

"Flutterby, you should be watching this," Chris said as guys from Cirque de Soleil came out to dance for Vince. "You'll like it."

"Dada," she said, like he shouldn't be bugging her while she was trying to read.

"Oh, I'm sorry, are you engrossed in your book?" he asked her. She tilted her head back and grinned at him, reaching one of her arms up towards his head. He leaned down and kissed her forehead. "Kid, you watching Grandpa?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"No wanna," Sawyer shrugged as he shaped something with his Play-Doh. He'd already seen his grandpa today, he didn't need to watch this.

Chris was laughing though. He only wished everyone didn't hate him or he would go out there and join in with DX, not that Vince would appreciate that at all. He was still laughing when Big Show knocked on the door and asked if he could come in. Chris told him he could and the large man entered the room. Flynn looked up from her book to see this large man in front of her and her eyes widened a little. He looked even more intimidating when she was seating and looking up at him than when she was just standing near him. Flynn didn't even reach up to his knee. Still, he didn't frighten her; he was just a very big man.

"You can sit," Chris said, scooting over a little (or a lot, given the man next to him).

"Thanks."

"So what's up?"

Sawyer, interested in the new person, turned and looked at Big Show, scrutinizing him. "You have big hands."

Chris laughed and Big Show stared down at him, his brows knitting. "Well, I'm very tall, usually people who are tall will also have big hands."

"You have big head too," Sawyer told him. "It very big."

"Oh, well, thanks, I think."

"Your hand bigger dan Fwynn," Sawyer said, grabbing Big Show's hand for comparison. "She littler than me is."

"I know," Big Show said.

Chris just laughed, "Sorry, he's just very impressed by you."

"Most people tend to be, of course, most people wouldn't just grab my hand."

"He thinks he's the boss around here already. So really, what's up?"

"You wewfle wif my daddy," Sawyer wanted to dictate the conversation now.

"Sawyer, I'm talking with him," Chris told him, "why don't you go play?"

"But Daddy, you do wewfle wif him," Sawyer said. It wasn't like he was lying, which was frowned down upon.

"I know that I wrestle with him, we're the tag champions, which is why we're here on Raw tonight and not at home."

"You have belts."

"We're the Tag champions," Big Show said.

"I know," Sawyer told him, of course he knew.

"Just ignore him, so what's going on?"

"Hi," Flynn said, looking up at Big Show.

"Welcome to my life," Chris said.

Big Show smirked. "Well, I have some unfinished business with Mayweather so I'm watching for his arrival. I think we have some things we need to hash out between the two of us and I was wondering if you had my back."

"Dude, you know I've got your back out there. Whenever he shows up, we'll go take care of what you need to take care of."

"Thanks, man. I just did not like how things ended at WrestleMania and since I have the opportunity to see him again, I think that I want to finish what I started."

"I'm all for that. Just let me know whenever he gets here and we'll go meet him."

"Great, thanks," Big Show said, pushing himself off the couch.

"Hi," Flynn said again, smiling at him. Big Show waved cordially and Chris got back to watching the last bit with Vince and DX. A triple threat match, Vince and Hunter working together? Wow, Vince really _did_ want to prove that he wasn't that old.

Hunter slapped Shawn's shoulder as they got backstage, "That was great. You ready for our match later, Vince."

"Yeah, I'm sure I'll be ready, first though, I have business I really should take care of."

"Oh, yeah, sure, but be ready for later."

"I will be."

"Dude, we need to get him fired up," Shawn said.

"I agree, I think I have just the way to do it too." Hunter saw Britt out of the corner of his eye and thought back to what Stephanie had said to him over the phone earlier. He excused himself from Shawn and went after her. "Britt!"

Britt stopped for just a moment and then kept walking. Hunter furrowed his brow and said again. "Britt!"

"What!" Britt said, turning around so fast she could've caused a cyclone.

"I was just trying to catch up to you."

"Well here I am," she said, outstretching her arms. "What do you want?"

"I wanted to talk to you, you know, see you, since you're my girlfriend and all that. I missed you last night."

"Yeah, I'm sure you did," she told him, giving him a look that said she didn't think he was being truthful at all. And who knew if he was? He hadn't contacted her at all last night or today actually. He pretty much ignored her just like he'd been ignoring her since Shawn had come back into his life. She wished he'd stayed at that cafeteria and burned his eyebrows off with that grill.

"I did."

"Is that why you didn't even have the courtesy to let me know that you'd arrived in Vegas safely. What if you'd gotten into an accident, huh? Would you have even told me? I didn't even know where you were staying, who you were with."

"I was with Shawn, I told you."

"Oh yeah, that's nice and vague. Look, I'm not one for making someone choose between their best friend and their girlfriend, that's not me, it's never _been_ me, so I will just leave right now and you can spend the rest of your night with Shawn."

"Britt, come on, don't be mad, I'm sorry I didn't…I'm sorry I didn't text you or call you. I know I should have."

"Yeah, you should have, but it's more than that and if you can't see that it's more than that, oh well," she said, storming off. He looked at her and wondered what it was that he had done. He didn't think he'd been doing anything. It was probably just that time of the month for her and she was having a mood swing.

Big Show ended up getting impatient and just wanted to go to the ring and call Mayweather out. Chris wasn't about to argue with him and he had Stephanie give him some time, one of the perks of her. When Mayweather finally did come out, he made a match with MVP and a partner of his choice. Chris rolled his eyes. When were they going to get a guest host that would favor him? If Stephanie ever got to be the guest host, he hoped she, at least, would favor him. MVP then brought in Mark Henry as his partner and Chris was suddenly very, _very_ glad he'd chosen Big Show as his partner. If there was anyone that could take on Mark Henry, it was MVP.

What really bugged him, once the match was over and he had lost and he and Big Show would be facing MVP and Mark Henry, was the fact that they had cheated. He had felt the cold metal pounding against his face, he knew the fans had seen, hell everyone had seen it except the referee who should've had his eyes on them at all times. He hadn't cheated, not that blatantly. He touched his cheekbone and could already feel it bruising. He just knew, he just _knew_ that they were going to still side with MVP. He couldn't catch a break, but who cared about the fans. Now he had new opponents for the next show and he had to focus on that.

Stephanie had to focus on keeping her temper. When Chris had come backstage in Show's arms (talk about humiliating) Stephanie had been all over him. He'd opened his eyes a moment later as Show helped him stand up. He shook the cobwebs out and looked at Stephanie. She was looking over his shoulder and he glanced back to see MVP and Mark Henry celebrating their win with Mayweather. They were probably crowing about how they were going to win the Tag Titles, well it wasn't going to happen because he wasn't going to let it happen. He went back to Stephanie's face and it was one he'd seen many times before.

Her jaw was set and he could tell she was gritting her teeth because her jaw was twitching ever so slightly. Her eyes were blazing too and staring daggers into MVP, Mark, and especially Mayweather. She was so defensive of him. He wanted to hate it, didn't want to look like the guy whose wife fought his battles for him, but there was something so endearing and so _sexy_ about Stephanie when she was domineering like this. She really took that saying dominant female to perfection. But this was neither the time nor the place and even though Mayweather had proven himself as big a douchebag as Show had expected, Stephanie couldn't go off the rail with him.

"Steph," he said gently. "Let it go."

"Let it go?" she asked incredulously, turning to face him. Her cheeks were actually red from anger. "Did you see what he did to you?"

"I sure as hell felt it."

"That's cheating, that is _not_ what we brought him here for. If he thinks he can get away with such blatant cheating. I'm going to overturn the decision right now. You're not going to face them at Breaking Point, no way, no how. That match is not going to happen because they cheated in order to win."

"I know, but I'm going to let my wrestling do the talking, okay?" Chris said, rubbing Stephanie's cheek in an action meant to calm her down. "You're not supposed to be bringing ill will between you and the guest hosts. You have to put up a nice front."

"Not with him, not after what he pulled," she said, taking a step closer to them.

"Stephanie, no, I'm serious, I don't want you to interfere with this."

"But why not?'

"Because I'm really confident that we're going to beat Mark Henry and MVP anyways. So they wanted to cheat right now. They can't cheat when they face us for the belts. They will surely be caught out there. We can handle them. Let us handle them."

"Okay, well, I guess so, I mean, you've got a point about the whole guest host thing. I don't want anyone to be deterred because they heard that I was a raving lunatic that liked to take charge of everything and took offense to everything."

"So if they knew your real personality."

"Stop it," she said, shoving him in the side.

"Geez, man hurt here," Chris said.

"Your eye is hurt."

"So is my heart because you broke it."

"Oh, I hate you," Stephanie said, hugging Chris. "I can take over from here, Show, thanks for taking care of him. I think I've got you all wrong, you're not that bad a guy and I guess if my husband was going to pick a partner without consulting me first and then decide to call me fat as a retaliation, I'm glad it was you because you've really got his back. Truce?"

"I wasn't aware we were fighting," Show said, shaking Stephanie's hand, impressed with her grip.

"We weren't, but I was harboring ill will in thought form towards you for some time now, but I think that's over."

"Okay, you're really strange."

"He makes me strange," Stephanie said as Show walked away. "I don't think he likes me very much."

"I don't think he likes people very much. Sometimes I think he just wants to pick someone up and eat them or something, better keep him away from the kids," Chris said. "Are they sleeping?"

"They are. They're with my mom."

"Oh good, I'm glad--"

"You guys, Britt is definitely mad at me," Hunter said, coming up to the two of them.

"What tipped you off, the fact that she's been pissed for days?" Stephanie said.

"Or the fact that you totally ignored her?" Chris added and Stephanie smiled at him. She liked when they double-teamed someone and worked completely in sync. They were such a great team. "Come on, man, I'm not the sharpest tool in the drawer when it comes to women, but even I could see that she was pissed at you."

"But why?"

"Maybe because you've been ignoring her," Chris said. "She feels left out."

"I don't get why."

"Are you kidding me?" Stephanie said. "Look, I'm not going to point it out to you. If you can't figure it out yourself, you're a lot dumber than I took you for."

"Chris?"

"You expect me to go against _her_?" Chris asked, pointing to Stephanie. "She was about to beat up Floyd Mayweather! She'll give me another shiner. No way am I telling you what you're doing wrong. I'll have my own woman problems if I do and she's scary."

"I am, you know," Stephanie said.

"Come on, you guys, you're like my best friends."

"I don't think we are and I think that you should go look for that real best friend and maybe then you'll see what's really going on," Stephanie said, grabbing Chris's hand and walking away with him.

Hunter still hadn't figured it out by the time the show ended, but he'd been busy wrestling so it didn't give him many moments to think of what was going on with this girlfriend. After the show was over, Hunter and Shawn kept Vince in the ring. Shane had asked them to have Vince stay there so they could come out and sing Happy Birthday to him. Shane and Stephanie walked out and Stephanie walked up to her father, giving him a hug and a kiss as Shane hugged him too. They also had Linda come out to join the festivities.

Hunter went over to Stephanie and greeted her. "Are you sure you won't tell me exactly why she's so pissed about me and Shawn?"

"No, I'm not telling you."

"Where are the kids and Chris?" he then asked.

"I'm not bringing my kids out here, are you crazy?" she said, shaking her head and walking away from him. His obliviousness was getting on her nerves now. This was a problem that stretched as far back as she could remember. Hunter got so lost in his friends, living like he was a teenager. She often wondered what Hunter's twenties had been like, what his teenage years had been like. Despite being married to him, they didn't talk about his past much, which was probably a reason they never made it, but she just couldn't picture Hunter as a young man. It was strange, but in her brain, he was just always Hunter. That's it. She wouldn't have been surprised if he'd been born just being the Hunter she knew right now. Maybe he didn't get a chance to sow those wild oats in the past and when he was with his friends, he thought it was the opportunity to do so.

She didn't have much more time to think of that because they were singing for her dad, or rather one person was singing for her father, but Hunter wanted her to join in so she did, coming over and singing a line from "My Way" by Frank Sinatra and hoping she didn't sound too horrible. She was not the singer in the family, Chris was. Chris was the one who was the lead in a band, who had an album coming out soon. She'd heard all the songs on it already, even got the acoustic versions straight from Chris and if her kids could sing, all that talent would be from her husband.

When she finished singing, she immediately went away from Hunter's embrace. She didn't want him asking more questions of her. When she went backstage, she didn't even wait for him. It was like she herself was mad at him, but she was just helping Britt out by being angry with Hunter too. She hoped he figured it out, figured out how to balance the life and times he loved with Shawn to the life he had with Britt. Hunter was happier than he'd ever been with Britt, Stephanie believed that with all her heart. It would be awful for Hunter to lose something that made him into such a better man, but if he didn't fix this, he would lose her. She didn't think Hunter could handle losing her. She pictured Hunter marrying Britt, but if he didn't change, if he decided that Shawn was more important than anyone else, he was going to be alone because Shawn had a wife, he had kids.

She long suspected that Shawn was living vicariously through Hunter. Shawn was the born again Christian, the one who had found religion. Hunter couldn't find religion if it bit him on the ass. Hunter had been the one to sleep around and have one-night stands. He was the one who went out partying with Dave and Randy and Flair. He was the one who was always out doing something while Shawn lived this new life he'd cultivated for himself. But what if Shawn wasn't content? He couldn't very well change _again¸_ abandon something he held dear. So he turned to Hunter to live the life he used to. He made Hunter into what he wanted to be. This was just her opinion, but she wouldn't put it past Shawn. She saw past that goody-two-shoes façade. He shouldn't have been the one wearing white at WrestleMania, that was for sure. She hoped Hunter could figure out a balance between Shawn and Britt before he lost her.

She hoped he could fix this.


	249. Trish is Back, September 14, 2009

A/N: So I'm trying to claw my way back into this thing and so I'm skipping a few shows. This is last week's show with Trish as the guest host. I want to catch up so bad so I might do an update if I have time this week, I'm just so busy I have like no time to write and it makes me mad because I love writing this story and I'm constantly getting ideas for it. Blah, I will catch up! Anyways, hope you leave a review because reviews are very nice and I know there are a lot for this story, but still, reviews help me know what people like and don't like so please leave one letting me know if I'm doing okay, thanks. :)

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"_Chris, sweetie, can you come here for a second?"_

"_What is it?" Chris said, coming into the bathroom. "Do you want to get it on in the bathroom or something?"_

"_Not quite," she said as he walked inside. "Though you are looking delicious in those red tights."_

"_I thought you didn't like me in these," Chris said._

"_I don't think they're better than the pants," Stephanie said, tugging on the top of his tights, pulling him closer to her. She smirked at him and he couldn't help but smirk back. He loved when she got that smirk on her face, it usually meant he was going to get some, but since he had a match, maybe she wouldn't let him get all the way, but she would give him a little something as a good luck charm for his match. "I just think you look amazing in red."_

"_Well then I'm going to have to make everything I wear red," Chris said, raising an eyebrow at her._

"_I don't think I'd have a problem with that," she told him, licking her lips. "I just don't like the briefs because it gives away practically everything away and I don't like other women knowing what I have. They could try to make their moves on you and steal you away from me."_

"_Nobody would steal me, nobody would want to deal with me," Chris said._

"_Oh, you know that's a lie," Stephanie said, "there would be a line miles long to get a chance at you."_

"_Miles, you say?" Chris said, looking off over her shoulder. "Miles…"_

_Stephanie slapped him on the shoulder to get his attention, "Hey, no way are you dumping me."_

"_I didn't say I'd dump you," he joked. "So why exactly are we hanging out in the bathroom. The whole toilet right over there thing kind of ruins the mood, not to mention the fact that our kids are playing in the next room and I can hear Sawyer bossing around Flynn."_

"_He's not bossing her around, she's at the door and he's telling her to come back," Stephanie said, peeking around Chris's shoulder. Chris turned slightly to look over his shoulder. Flynn was holding onto the doorway and watching them very intently as she bit her bottom lip a little, which was something she got from Stephanie. _

_She toddled over to Chris and held onto his leg. She pulled her hand away a little and stared at it, why was her daddy's leg all gross and oily? She looked up at him in question, "Dada?"_

"_She thinks you're too oily, like a greased pig," Stephanie said with a smile._

"_Shut up," Chris said. "Flutterby, go play with your brother, Mommy and Daddy are talking big grown-up stuff and we can't have a little baby around when we're talking big grown-up stuff."_

_Flynn tilted her head, but didn't seem to understand. She just put her hand back on her daddy's leg and curled it around his calf, standing close to him. "Looks like you got yourself a valet, Mr. Jericho."_

"_Hell, if she could be my valet, she _would_ be my valet, are you kidding me? She is prettier than all the divas combined and multiplied by a million," Chris said proudly, looking down at his daughter, who he loved with everything in him. That was his baby girl right there and everyone better recognize._

"_Yeah, I can picture it now, her toddling down behind you, falling, then rolling all the way down the ramp."_

"_Sawyer would love to roll down the ramp, he's crazy," Chris said. "So really, what are we doing in here? Are we in a scenario where I really do want to get rid of that little person hanging onto my leg right now?"_

"_Remember when you called me fat and hurt my feelings and I never really got comeuppance for it?"_

"_What do you mean you didn't get comeuppance for it? I apologized, probably five million times, I bought you your favorite chocolates. I contemplated buying you flowers, but you think that's cheesy. Plus, you set me up with Kelly Kelly of all people…wow, that sounds weird, my wife tried to set me up with Kelly Kelly…that in and of itself is probably the worst punishment you could dole out to me, unless you forced me to watch you make out with someone, that'd be worse."_

"_Yeah, but that didn't much…_feel_ like revenge, you know what I mean?"_

"_No, I really don't. I didn't mean to call you fat, you know that. I would never call you fat intentionally, I mean, it was heat of the moment type stuff and I'm really sorry that you thought differently. You know I'm sorry about that…why are we even on this again? I thought we moved past this."_

"_Sweetie, darling, love of my life, I'm a McMahon, when do we _ever_ let things go before we can get all we can out of it?"_

"_What have you done?" Chris said, finally gleaning onto the fact that Stephanie was probably going to humiliate him in some way. He looked around the bathroom like something or someone was going to jump out at him. Had she rigged something over the door to pour on him, is that why she wanted Flynn away because she didn't want their daughter hit? Oh God, what if it was like the slop she had covered Trish in?_

_Stephanie finally plucked something that had been sitting next to the sink that he hadn't taken notice of and slapped it on his chest. Chris looked down and saw it was a nametag that said "Chris" on it. But it wasn't just any nametag. Any kid who had stayed at home over the past thirty or so years knew what kind of nametag this was. This was the tag associated with The Price is Right and considering Bob Barker was the host tonight…oh no._

"_Stephanie?" he said, glaring at her._

"_You're going to be on The Price is Right, so come on down, Chris!"_

_This was something she would pull when they hated each other and she ran the company. This was definitely something she would pull when she was in charge and could do whatever she wanted with him. This was different now though, they were married now and she didn't have as much say over what he did. He was not going to go out there and be humiliated, that much was for sure. He could only imagine what they'd cooked up for Bob Barker of all people._

"_I'm not going out there."_

"_Oh yes, you are, it's already been planned and everything."_

"_Stephanie McMahon-Jericho…"_

"_I'm your boss, you have to do it," she told him._

"_Then I'm going to take Flynn out there and the entire world will get to see her, how would you like that? I'll bring Sawyer too, I'm sure people would love to get pictures of the next generation of McMahons."_

"_Not going to happen," she said. "I wouldn't let you, but you are going out there and you're going to be on Contestant's Row! Remember, if the other bids all seem really high, then you should bid one dollar because then you've got everything else covered, okay?"_

"_Why are you so full of vengeance?"_

"_It's what I do," she said, "now get on out there, tiger."_

"_No, I'm not going."_

"_You are, we already said and planned it. I pulled some strings, you'd be surprised how easy it is to get your way around here when you own the joint," Stephanie giggled. "I already met with Bob and everything, that was pretty cool, I felt like I should have a shirt or something that said,_

'_I've waited 32 years to meet Bob Barker.' That would be great."_

"_You're an evil, evil woman."_

"_I know, so good luck out there!"_

"You know, I wish he had won that trip to Hawaii," Stephanie said, "I have to admit, I got really excited about it. I mean, I didn't think my dad would actually shell out for prizes or anything, but he really went all out. Can you imagine if Chris had won?"

"He probably would've given away the trip out of spite for you putting him in that position, did you see his face?" Trish asked.

"I know, that was the funniest thing I've seen in a while. He refused to talk to me for the rest of the night. It wasn't until a few days later that he told me that once he got past all the anger, he was really secretly kind of giddy to get to do that because he loved _The Price is Right_ as a kid and had always wanted to go on. Of course, he said that he would've rather played the mountain climber game than have to wrestle, but still…"

"At least he was a good sport about it after the fact," Trish said.

"Yeah, after the fact, but he was such a baby before the fact. When he went out there with his little nametag, he was so adorable. He looked like he just needed a hug."

"You're crazy. I can't imagine anyone else doing that to their husband."

"Tons of women would love to humiliate their husbands like I did with Chris, believe me."

"I wouldn't want to do that to Christian."

"Well then you're a saint…oh wait, you haven't even been married a year yet, you can't say anything."

"Of course I can, I'm a married woman, right?"

"You're still a newlywed, whereas, Chris and I will have been married five years this January."

"Oh my God, _five_ years, has it really been that long?"

"Yeah, can you believe it? I almost can't. I know in the grand scheme of life, it's not that big a span of time, but for us, it's a huge, _huge_ milestone," Stephanie said.

Trish looked in the mirror. "Do you think I look pregnant?"

"You do have a little bit of a stomach, why?"

"Well, I'm daring to wear a midriff, but I don't want it to be completely obvious, you know, like, oh man, she's really gained a lot of weight around the middle, oh wow, what if she's pregnant? Then it gets around to everyone and then everyone is in our business."

"Trish, I don't know how you think pregnancy goes, but eventually, your stomach is going to be pretty obvious to people that you're pregnant. Just saying that you're not keeping that figure the way it is with a baby on the way."

"I know that," Trish said blithely, sticking her tongue out at Stephanie. Flynn came over to Stephanie and whined a little at her.

"Up," Flynn said, holding her arms up.

"Okay, you," Stephanie said, pulling her into her lap. Flynn cuddled up against Stephanie and just watched Trish look at herself in the mirror in her office for the evening. "You miss your Sawyer, huh?"

"Yes," Flynn said. She'd heard Sawyer's name and she missed him.

"He's just with Daddy, he'll be back in a while. We just have to help Trish because she's going to be hosting Raw tonight. You don't remember because you weren't born yet, or even a thought on the horizon, but Trish was a wrestler here."

"Yeah, I wrestled," Trish said. "So do you think it's noticeable or should I go put a shirt on?"

"You look fine, yeah, there's a very slight, _very_ slight bump where there is a baby growing, but otherwise, you look fantastic, you haven't 'popped' yet, so to speak."

"I want to pop," Trish said. "I swear, if I didn't know better or hadn't seen the ultrasound, I wouldn't think I was pregnant at all. But I guess I just have to be patient to be able to tell I'm pregnant."

"So what are you going to do on tonight's show, any ideas, do you need any help with any ideas?" Stephanie asked eagerly.

"So what you're saying is you want to run this show from the background and make it look like I'm running the show, but you'd really be running it? Like you'd be the puppetmaster."

"Well, I would just come up with some ideas for you, just to spur you along, you know, oh, but one request, please do make fun of Chris for last week. I know he's over it, but I kind of like to bring it back to him so he remembers that I can control him when I want. I like a certain amount of power in our relationship."

"I'll do that then, so what do you think I should do with the show then, oh wise Stephanie, what kinds of things should I do?" Trish asked. She felt bad for Stephanie. Unlike the other guest hosts, Trish knew that Stephanie had been in line for the position of General Manager and had been extremely hurt when her father had reneged on the deal altogether and come up with the guest host concept. Stephanie had been a damn good GM when she had run the show last year and Stephanie was her best friend and this was really the least she could do.

"You're really asking me what I think?" Stephanie asked, almost incredulous. She'd worked with a few of the guest hosts and while they treated her cordially because she was one of the owners, but when she would suggest things to them, they would hardly listen to her despite the fact she knew what she was talking about and what matches would work the best. Unfortunately, this went in one ear and out the other with most of them.

"Yeah, you're my friend, you're around here all the time--"

"So are you because of your husband…"

"Yeah, sometimes on Raw," Trish said, "though Christian said that he's not going to watch me tonight."

"Why not?"

"Because he's mad that he's on ECW and can't be on Raw and therefore can't be around me and show me off and make out with me or some junk like that so he is going out to dinner with his brother and Lita tonight."

"Edge is in town?"

"He figured that he'd pay a visit since everyone is here, you know, plus he wanted to go home and see his mommy so she would make his boo-boos all better, never-mind the fact that Judy doesn't even know how he really got injured. He just corroborated the story about him getting injured wrestling."

"Well, would you want to tell your mom that you got injured having sex?"

"I would think Edge would wear _that_ badge with pride," Trish giggled. "I can't believe I'm related to him now and I'm going to be related to him by blood."

"Don't forget he's going to be your kid's uncle," Stephanie said.

"Oh my God, that's right, oh great, now my kid is going to go around telling people that he or she reeks of awesomeness," Trish groaned, slapping her hand to her forehead.

"It could be worse."

"How?"

"Well…you could be related to someone worse who would have even worse things to teach your kid," Stephanie said lamely.

"Yeah, right, so come on, lay it on me, what do you have in mind?" Trish asked. Before Stephanie could even open her mouth, there was a knock on the door. "Come in!"

"Trish?"

Stephanie was surprised to see Batista there and it looked like Trish was surprised as well. Stephanie looked to Trish, but Trish shrugged a little bit, "Dave, hey, come on in. I wasn't really expecting to talk to you, not that I wouldn't want to, but you have time tonight, right, I made sure you did."

"Yeah, I do."

"What's your announcement?" Stephanie asked, playing with Flynn's soft, downy hair as she spoke. Flynn had one of her picture books that Stephanie had just handed to her.

"Well, I know everyone thinks that I'm retiring," Batista said, "but actually, I'm ready to come back. You know, this is really something I should discuss with you, now that I'm at it."

"With me?" Stephanie said.

"Yeah, I want to switch brands, I'm ready to come back and I want to switch over to SmackDown."

Stephanie's first thought was that this guy would want to hurt her husband. She didn't necessarily _hate _Batista, but she didn't like the way that he was around Chris. But then again, she didn't like how anyone was around Chris. She loved that Chris wrestled, she just worried about his health and well-being and surely, being as big as Chris was, Batista was going to want to go after her husband. But how could she tell him that he couldn't switch brands because her husband was on the other show and she didn't want him wrestling her husband.

"Well, you're really on Raw," she said, trying to settle it that way. She didn't necessarily have to bring up Chris. "You were drafted to Raw and you are officially part of the Raw brand."

"But I haven't been on the brand in a while and I wanted to transfer over to SmackDown, I thought there would be better opportunities over there."

"Oh, did you now?" she asked, yeah, opportunities like her husband.

"Yeah, so is that okay?"

She wanted to say that it wasn't okay, that she didn't want him over there, but that would be obvious favoritism and if Chris got word of that, he'd be so angry with her and that was the last thing she needed right now. "You'll have to run it by my dad, but I guess that it would be okay. We could probably use more people, what with the injuries, suspensions, and other circumstances that have caused people to leave."

"Great, now for you," Batista said, "welcome back, for one."

"Thanks," Trish said, running her hand self-consciously over her stomach. "What did you need?"

"I wanted a farewell match with Randy tonight," Batista said. "He's the one that injured me in the first place and I think that it's time for him to pay. I was hoping for some kind of stipulation match, I wasn't sure what kind though, do you have any ideas?"

"Um, well, I'm not sure, how about…help me out here, Steph?" Trish said. "Wait, no, I've got it, I've got it, how about a No Holds Barred match with him tonight? Does that sound okay?"

"That sounds more than okay," Batista said, "that sounds absolutely perfect, can I have your word on the match, like can we get it signed off because I really want this match now. I need to make Randy pay for what he did to me, trying to take me out of action, trying to end my career. He's going to pay."

"Yeah, I'll get it signed off," Trish said, "I'll just ask for Stephanie's help."

"Great, thanks you guys, I really appreciate it," Batista said before he left.

"Wonderful, now he's going to be on SmackDown and who do you think he's going to go after, my husband," Stephanie sighed.

"Did you hear about Britt and Hunter though, I heard Randy had something to do with this whole fight thing they're having. Everyone's talking about it. Hunter has been trying to act all nonchalant about it, but you can tell that he's really pissed. Do you know what actually happened between them because I saw Britt and she looks absolutely pissed!"

"Yeah, I have an inkling of what happened, though I don't know all the details."

Trish flopped herself down on the couch next to Stephanie, "Okay, come on, now you have to tell."

"_So now you're mad at me?"_

"_Nice little infomercial you had their with Dusty and your bestest buddy in the entire world."_

"_Would you just talk to me?" he asked, nearly pleading with her. She'd spent the weekend fuming around him, ignoring him and stepping around him at home. He guessed he should be thankful that she was still _at_ their home, even if she continued to ignore his very existence. Little did he know she was just doing what he had been doing to her since Shawn had come back into their lives._

"_Okay, we're talking right now, what did you want to say?" Britt asked._

"_Well, I know you've been mad at me…and don't say anything about how that was pretty obvious or how I'm so smart for picking that up, I don't really need the sarcasm right now," Hunter told her._

"_Okay, I'll spare you then, but I'm thinking it, believe me."_

"_Yeah, I know," he said, "I just hate when you're mad at me like you are. I want to fix this, I really do."_

"_Hunter, my man, where did you run off to!" Shawn said, catching up to Hunter and nearly jumping on his back in greeting. "I thought we were going to go to catering and get some food. So let's go…oh hey, Britt."_

"_Shawn," Britt said, her voice sticky with distaste. It was almost so much she wanted to spit it out like a spoiled piece of fruit. _

"_So come on, man, let's go."_

"_I was actually going to talk with Britt."_

"_No, you should go, I've got work to do anyways and it's pretty obvious that you'd love to go to catering with Shawn and engage in all your little shenanigans. You going to start a food fight in there?"_

"_Hey, not a bad idea," Shawn said, giving her a look that said everything she needed to know about him. He thought he was _so_ funny and _so_ cool and she was made to feel like the stuffy girlfriend and it was so frustrating that Hunter either refused to see it or just didn't see it at all. She didn't want him to stop being friends with Shawn (though that would be nice), but she couldn't figure out how to get them to spend a little time apart._

"_Britt, can we just talk later?" Hunter asked._

"_Yeah, sure, later, always later," she grumbled._

_Randy, ever the opportunist, ever the low snake, slithering against the cold ground, picking up that iciness, slid over to where they were, inserting himself into a conversation he had no business being in, in the first place. This was too good though, Britt and Hunter fighting, Britt dumping Hunter, him getting Britt. He couldn't help it, he still wanted a piece of this girl. She was just so cute and petite, her long, dark hair framing decidedly pale skin, which must have come from her father, who was a rather pale Englishman. Even if it was just to bed her and then dump her, he wanted a taste of her._

"_Hunter, man, I know we've had our differences but--"_

"_Get the hell out of here, ass," Hunter snapped at him. The last thing he needed while he was trying to talk to his girlfriend was for this stooge to come barging over._

"_I will, I will, don't worry, I just had a question."_

"_I don't care about your damn questions," Hunter said. All he wanted was for everyone to disappear so he could talk with his girlfriend. It wasn't often he wanted Shawn to drop off the face of the earth, but right now, he wanted a black hole to suck up Shawn and make him go away for good. As for Randy, well, a black hole was somehow too good for him._

"_Well, I'm still going to ask."_

"_Go away," Britt said._

"_I am, just…who were those girls you were with the other week, you know, the ones you were talking up, from what I saw anyways. You guys were getting close, I just thought they were really gorgeous and considering the both of you are seemingly taken, maybe you'd give me their numbers."_

"_What are you talking about, Orton?" Hunter asked._

"_Don't tell me you forgot, two blondes, kind of tall, definitely leggy and built, if you know what I mean."_

_Britt just watched Hunter's face. It dawned on him a moment later and she saw the recognition in his eyes. There was _truth_ to what Randy was saying? There was honest-to-God truth? "What's with the look, Hunter? Are you telling me that Randy is _right_?"_

"_No, I mean, there were girls, but it didn't mean anything, we were just talking with them."_

"_They were hot," Randy said, "so do you have their numbers?"_

"_Oh, this is not what this is about," Britt said. "I can't believe you came over here just to do that."_

"_I can't either," Hunter said._

"_You, as for you, you can shut up. What were these girls, huh? Were you hitting on them? Is that what you were doing?"_

"_They were hitting on us," Hunter said. "They were the ones trying to talk _us_ up."_

"_Did you walk away?"_

"_That would be rude," Shawn added._

"_Shut up," Britt said. "I know you would want to do them."_

"_Hey! I resent that."_

"_Shawn, neither the time nor the place here," Hunter said._

"_Come on, you know you weren't hitting on them, but it seems pretty clear someone is willing to believe whatever they hear, am I right, Britt? You just want to believe everything even though he just told you that he wasn't."_

"_What's it to you?"_

"_Nothing, I'm just saying, my buddy's got a point."_

"_Point to what? You were obviously chatting for a while with these girls, right?"_

"_It wasn't awhile."_

"_I saw them for ten minutes at least, probably more," Randy said._

"_You're not helping," Britt said._

"_I thought I was, you know, exposing him for the fraud that he is. You deserve someone better."_

"_Would you just go away?" she demanded._

"_Yeah, sure," Randy shrugged, "but seriously, if you have those numbers, hook me up, I can show them a better time than either of you could've showed them."_

"_Not a chance!" Shawn yelled after him._

"_Shawn, seriously, come on!"_

"_It wasn't anything," Shawn shrugged. "It wasn't anything, Britt, I can pinkie-swear you on it if you want. You can take my word for it."_

"_You know what, no, I don't care. If you want to shmooze around with your buddy here, be my guest, in fact, why don't you go out with him every night this week and while your out there, maybe you'll find a better girlfriend than me…or just make Shawn your girlfriend since you two are joined at the hip and share a brain!"_

"So now she won't talk to me at all. Before she'd at least say one word or two words, but now we're down to complete silence."

"You don't need her."

"I'm pretty sure I do," Hunter said to Shawn.

"Man, no, you don't. You should be free. I mean, after that disaster of a marriage with Stephanie, I would've thought that you would've given up relationships altogether. I'm lucky I found Rebecca when I did, of course, but other than her, man, if it weren't for her, I'd still be out there."

"Yeah, I know you would be," Hunter said.

"All I'm saying is that if Britt doesn't want to talk to you, don't talk to her, it's as easy as that."

Hunter didn't think it was actually as easy as that. He loved Britt and he just waned to talk to her about what was going on in their relationship. He didn't think they were beyond fixing, in fact, he thought one good talk would do the trick and they would get back on track. All he needed were those few minutes to talk to her. Unfortunately, since she was phasing him out and not even saying word one to him, he couldn't get that one conversation to fix things. He was running out of ideas on how to try too.

"Yeah, I guess," Hunter shrugged, but it was a very lost and despondent shrug. He felt off-kilter when he and Britt were fighting. It was like they were kismet and when something was off, he could feel it and it was a terrible feeling to feel like he wasn't whole. Britt had really dug herself deep into his skin, that was for sure. Even Chyna had never been this deep and Hunter admitted now that he'd loved Chyna more than he'd loved Stephanie. Stephanie was like an experience you had to have in order to appreciate things. It took him a very long time to figure that one out.

"Come on, we'll go out tonight, after the show, you, me, drinks, it'll be great." For someone who claimed to be religious, he sure did love to go out and party. Hunter was starting to think that Shawn felt trapped in his personal life, like maybe the old Shawn was trying to break free, but the new Shawn couldn't let go.

"Yeah, sure," Hunter said, but his heart wasn't in it. He could go in front of cameras and act like the world made sense, but you couldn't make him do the same thing backstage. When the cameras weren't on, he was just a bitter, jaded man who was starting to feel like he was losing the one good thing in his life that wasn't an inanimate object made of gold.

"Daddy, are you going to be on a show again?" Sawyer asked his daddy as they walked down the hallway.

"Like what show?"

"Like the show where you win," Sawyer told him.

"Oh, like last week?"

"Uh huh, you won dat," Sawyer told him.

"Yeah, I'm not going to be on anything like that again. Not tonight. Trish is the guest host tonight and I would think that she would take it easy on me," Chris said to Sawyer, hoping that was the case.

"Daddy, Twish is on show tonight?"

"Yeah, she's going to be on the show."

"Is she going to wefle?" Sawyer asked.

"No, because she has the baby in her stomach, so it probably wouldn't be a good idea to have her wrestle."

"Are you wefling?"

"I don't think so," Chris said, then lifted Sawyer up and threw him up into the air. "Okay, you, why don't we go watch what Trish has to say in front of the crowd and we can tell her how good she was, okay?"

"Where're we going, Daddy?" Sawyer asked.

"I was thinking that we go to the gorilla, why, do you not want to go to the gorilla. That's where we can wait for Trish to come backstage."

"I wanna go see Fwynn," Sawyer told his daddy, looking him straight in the eye. "Can we go see Fywnn? I wanna see her."

"Okay, okay, you've persuaded me with these rock-hard arguments, we'll go see your baby, okay?"

"Yes!" Sawyer said, pumping his fist. "Daddy, can I wefle too?"

"You want to wrestle too?" Chris asked and he started to well up with pride. Was Sawyer really showing an interest in wrestling? Yeah, he was only three years old, but still, this was something Sawyer had never _really_ asked before so it took Chris a little by surprise.

"Yes, I do. I wanna wefle you, Daddy."

"What! You want to wrestle me?"

"Yes, I wanna wefle you and I beat you because…"

"Because why?" Chris asked as they walked to his locker room.

"I good."

"I'm good too."

"I gooder than you," Sawyer explained to him. "I beat you."

"I know a ton more moves than you do…on the other hand, I can't hit you, so you've got me there, I guess you probably would win."

"I told you," Sawyer said, giving his daddy a look as they walked inside. Sawyer scanned the room for Flynn, who was chewing on the edge of a large, stuffed dice that Flynn had seen in Vegas and absolutely had to have, if the temper tantrum were any indication. "Fwynn!"

"Sawa!" Flynn yelled, dropping the dice from her mouth. Chris set Sawyer down and he ran over to his sister and gave her a hug, which was adorable and made Chris and Stephanie wish they had their cameras with them.

"We're just chopped liver around here," Stephanie said, hugging Chris around the waist. "We're unloved, uncared about, nobody is going to want to be around us when they see our kids banding together to form la resistance, ready to charge the Bastille!"

"You're crazy and I want to watch Trish."

"I was just going to turn her on."

Trish felt like she was home again. There was a certain energy that came with a live crowd that a person could feed off of and use to fuel themselves. It'd been about a year since her last appearance, if she calculated that correctly, and even with al the time that had passed, this place still fit like a worn-out, old sneaker that fit you just right. She loved being here and hearing the crowd cheering for her made her grin like never before. She wondered if her baby could hear and wonder what the hell was going on out there. She just looked around at the crowd, some people were bowing and she just laughed and waited for it to die down a little bit.

She knew Christian was bummed that he wasn't on the show tonight, but she hoped he was watching, but he probably wasn't. He'd watch when they got home though and he could see how well she did. She told everyone she was glad to be home and that was including the WWE. Then she got a little hubristic and said that she thought she'd make a great host, which she thought she would. She'd already made the match between Batista and Orton later on and that promised to be an entertaining match. She then remembered that Stephanie had asked her to make fun of Chris so she brought up how Bob Barker had made Chris almost cry.

"Hey!" Chris protested from his seat next to Stephanie, "I did not almost cry! I did _not_ almost cry! Bob Barker almost cried, _that's_ who almost cried, not me, why would I cry!"

"I don't know," Stephanie said, trying to hold in her laugh.

"You put her up to this, didn't you?"

"Who me?" Stephanie asked innocently as she quickly turned her head back to the television to watch her friend.

Trish said that it wasn't going to be Price is Raw this week, but she knew Raw. This had been her home for seven years. She'd been through so many ups and downs those seven years. She'd started off as a nobody, a valet who could barely hold her own. She'd clawed her way up to where she was today, had fought and learned and there were bad decisions along the way (VINCE), but in the end, she'd been a winner and she regret nothing from her time spent here. She then made the rematch between Cena and Orton at the next Pay-Per-View, which was actually Stephanie's idea, but they'd collaborated.

She didn't want to take up too much time so she introduced the next match and decided to go back to her office to watch the proceedings. Chris watched and scowled. He hadn't almost cried. "Oh, Chris, don't tell me that you're mad."

"I'm not mad, I'm just surprised she would stoop so low. You know, though," he said, turning to her. "The last time that we interacted, I think was way back in 2004 or something."

"I don't remember when it was," Stephanie responded.

"I wasn't asking. But I hated her back then, I mean, I pretended to hate her, when I didn't really hate her, I just kind of play-hated her. Remember how you thought we were together and I thought you and Christian were together? Man, can you believe the stuff we went through? I wanted to propose to you, but I didn't think you wanted me."

"And I thought you were with Trish, oh my God, I was so happy when you weren't."

"Trish and I are just friends, there could never be anything between us. I don't find her attractive."

"You're part of the 0.0000000002 percent that don't," she told him.

"I love you."

"Very cheesy."

"I think I should pay Trish a visit, I should remind her of those days, I should make fun of her like she made fun of me!"

"And you say I'm strange."

"You made me play _The Price is Right_," he contested.

"You liked it."

"After the fact."

"Still, you liked it."

"I'm going to see Trish."

"You go do that," Stephanie said, patting his shoulder. Stephanie licked her lips a little bit because they were chapped, but Chris took this as a sign that she wanted him to stay. He sat back down. "What?"

"I can stay for a few minutes," he told her, leaning forward and kissing her.

"What was that for?"

"For being the only woman I want."

"I'm not the _only_ woman you want, there are other women, if given the chance, you would sleep with."

"Yeah, but I'd always come back to you," he winked at her.

"Dada!" Flynn yelled from where she was sitting.

Chris looked over at her, "Okay, okay, I won't cheat on Mommy, God, you are such a stickler for the rules, Flynn Jericho. Let's just hope you stick to those rules when you're a teenager and want to sneak out of the house or something."

"Please, you'll have bars on her window and barbed wire set up around the perimeter. Flynn would have to dig her way out."

"You know, that's not such a bad idea."

"No, you're not imprisoning our daughter."

"I prefer to call it, preserving her innocence," Chris said with a grin. "That way, she can just stay my little girl forever. I don't want her to grow up, ever."

"She's already growing up, I mean, she's saying words, walking…"

"Although she has not said a certain someone's name who is not me or Sawyer."

"She'll say it in time, I'm impatient like some people," Stephanie said, implying that Chris was impatient and he was. She almost thought he had snuck into Flynn's nursery at night just to repeat "Dada" over to her a million times to assure that she would say it first.

"Well then! I really don't have to take this. I'm going to go see if Trish wants me back!"

"I hope she takes you, tell her you're half off."

"You want me half-naked, okay, bathroom, five minutes, we'll ditch those two so we can have some fun time in there."

"No, I want it all on, thanks."

"You're no fun."

"I'm not doing it with my kids in the next…"

"Ha! You were going to say kids in the next room, completely forgetting that you and I have had sex in the hotels when the kids were in the room next door."

"Fine, I was, but I'm not doing it here."

"Spoilsport, I'm going to find Trish, maybe she'll do it with me in the bathroom."

"Yeah, right, so Christian can kick your ass?"

"He wouldn't know, bye," he said, kissing her, then going over and kissing the kids.

Trish was lighting some candles in her office when Beth walked inside. She started to complain about how she wasn't included in the divas contender match. Trish was going to answer her when Beth interrupted her again. Trish tried to get a word in, but before she could a new voice entered the fray. She looked up and saw Chris and from the look on his face, she knew he was going to play it mean with her. He _must_ know the ribbing was from Stephanie, but even if he knew it was Stephanie, Chris wasn't going to be easy on her, she knew.

Chris and Trish smiled at each other and it was one of those smiles where you're both friends, but you're going to act silly and snark with each other and throw barbs, but it was all in good fun. Chris started it with telling Beth not to let Trish talk about herself since it was only a 2 hours show. Then he mentioned how she was talking about him earlier and from what Trish could see, Chris knew that Stephanie had put her up to it. Chris upped the ante by saying that Trish couldn't stop thinking about him and that she'd been madly in love with him but he'd sent her packing.

Trish tried not to laugh because she remembered those days. God, they seemed so long ago now. So much had happened since then. She and Christian were married and expecting a baby, Chris and Stephanie were married and had two kids. It was fun those days though, pretending to be in love with Chris, trying not to laugh when he'd act incredibly cheesy around her. That was also the time she thought Stephanie might be with Christian and that was a disgusting thought, but those two had admitted that there was nothing but friendship between the two of them.

She told him if he wanted to believe that, it was fine. She added the long, lonely nights part for added effect though she knew that his nights were hardly lonely at all, sometimes he even had two little kids in his bed because they were scared. Then she said maybe that was the reason why he was angry all the time, because he was lonely, and that's why he had all this tension in his face, he was just a very angry man. This was actually really fun and she was enjoying herself. Chris was her friend and they were both on the verge of laughing at each other for their overdramatic barbs.

Chris nearly burst into laughter when she called Big Show his soulmate. That was a good one, he was going to have to tell her that later. He was sure Stephanie was laughing at them right now, maybe even pointing out to the kids why this was so funny since they wouldn't understand. Obviously Beth didn't understand either because she started to defend Chris tooth and nail, saying that he didn't retire when new competition came along and he wrestled every night while she had her yoga studio. Did Beth not know that she was friends with Chris, was best friends with Chris's wife? Was Beth blind?

Trish, in a moment of insanity, clearly, said she would take on Beth. It was the principle of the thing at that moment. She was a wrestler, even though she was retired, she was still a wrestler. She still had that competitive fire burning inside her and she couldn't just let this go so she said she would have a match later, not even thinking about what this would mean. She would take on Beth and Chris and she'd find a partner. She was just so mad at Beth, so filled with fury for someone who didn't respect her though she'd done everything in her power to make the divas what they were. She couldn't help the reaction that came out.

Chris left, but then remembered himself and came back inside, "Trish, you can't wrestle!"

"Oh, I'm wrestling," she said, taking another swig of her drink.

"Trish, hello!"

"Hey," Trish said. In all that anger, she'd forgotten a very important thing.

"Trish, you're pregnant!" Chris said, gesturing towards her stomach.

"What…oh my God…I just made a match!"

"Yeah, you did and Beth is not going to let you get out of this," Chris said.

"I forgot," Trish said, "I mean, I didn't forget _forget_, I wouldn't forget my own child. I just got caught up in the moment. She was just making me so angry with her crowing and her saying that I left because of new competition when I can take her."

"You can't take her now."

"Trish!" Stephanie was storming into her office, Sawyer running alongside his mommy and a sleeping Flynn in Stephanie's arms. "Chris, why did you let her do that?"

"I just wasn't thinking."

"Trish, you can't possibly go out there."

"I have to, I made it, I can't tell Beth the truth."

"Yes, you can and you have to," Stephanie said.

"I'll just go out there and I won't do anything, I'll get…I'll get MVP as a partner. He wants to beat you up, Chris, so he'll want you in the ring more, that'll mean Beth and I won't be in the match, then I won't have to do anything."

'

"You honestly think that will work?" Stephanie asked.

"It's going to have to."

She was a little nervous as she walked down the ramp. Normally, it'd just be the nerves of climbing into the ring and knowing she'd have to wrestle. But now she had something of much bigger consequence to worry and fret about. Still, she remembered that story she'd read a while ago, about the woman in the Olympics who had done either the skeleton or the luge while pregnant. Surely, if she could do that while pregnant, she could do this. She would hardly even be in the match, maybe to only to get the cover and nothing else. That would be easy enough.

Chris said he'd try to watch out for her, but he couldn't outright say that he was helping her. Still, he'd be there, just in case something happened, but she didn't anticipate anything would. The match would be quick. Damn it, why hasn't she just asked Chris to take the fall so they could get out of there without incident. While Trish was in the ring, she dominated Beth, giving a lot of moves and not taking many. Chris kind of paced he ring apron, hoping Trish would just end it. If Christian knew about this…

Oh, but Christian did know. He'd been watching Raw after asking the bartender if he could turn at least one of the televisions to Monday Night Raw. He'd seen her on the screen and he'd told the patron next to him that she was his wife. The guy told him to get lost. Edge had left with Lita, but he'd wanted to stay and watch the rest of the show. He hadn't been able to hear what was being said because it was loud where he was, but when she came out to the ring and started to wait for someone, he got nervous. Then Chris and Beth came out and there was an obvious match coming up.

Christian had never driven so fast in his life.

Trish tried to end it, but she couldn't. Chris, who still wanted to win, shoved her a little bit, but not very hard at all. MVP knocked him out of the ring and then he got knocked into the wall. Trish got at Beth again, but Big Show showed up. Trish didn't want it to end like this so she continued the match to include Mark Henry and Big Show. She had no clue what she was doing at this point, but she was so caught up in the show she felt compelled to action, hence her being in this match. She just hoped she didn't learn to regret this.

Chris tried to keep Trish out of the ring. Even when Beth came in, she wanted to fight MVP, but it was against the rules so Trish came out again. Beth was knocked down so Trish had an easy go of it, just dropping down. She was still feeling okay. The slightest feeling of unease and she would quit. As she stood in the ring to watch MVP fly over Chris, Big Show grabbed her foot and yanked. She was able to break her fall, but it didn't do much good.

Trish was left with Beth again and Trish got the upper-hand and she knew she had to end this. She got Beth in a handstand rana and then got the Stratusfaction to end the match. She still felt okay and she hadn't really taken a lot of hits or bumps so she was probably okay. She'd watched out for herself and it was a one time thing so she wouldn't be worrying about wrestling next week. She just hoped nobody told Christian. She'd asked Chris and Stephanie not to say anything and she planned to pretend like the DVR at home hadn't recorded properly and she'd just tell him how it went.

"How are you?" Chris asked as she was backstage.

"I feel okay, I really didn't do much," Trish said. "I'm going to be a little sore tomorrow, but overall, I'm okay, I feel fine."

"What the hell was that!"

Trish turned and her eyes widened, "Chrissy…"

"Don't Chrissy me," he told her. "How could you do that? How could you have so little regard for our kid, for _me_? You went out there and _wrestled_ while you're pregnant!" Trish looked around. Everyone was listening, now everyone knew and the whispers were starting and her cheeks were darkening. "How could you!"

"I just got caught up, I'm sorry," Trish said. "I just got caught up in the moment and I made the match and I knew Beth wouldn't let me live it down--"

"So you tell her you're pregnant and you don't put our child at risk, how is that for what to do?"

"I know, I was stupid, I'm sorry, but I feel fine, I really do. I have an appointment a couple days from now, we can check."

"Yeah, _after_ the fact. After you wrestled while pregnant, yeah, we can go get checked _now_. That makes perfect sense."

"I know I should've done something to stop it, I'm sorry, but I'm fine, I feel fine."

"Yeah, do you know how it's like in there for him or her?"

"I would imagine it's okay."

"Yeah, and taking back bumps really helped," Christian said to her, then turned to Chris and Stephanie. "And you guys didn't even try to stop it, hell, Chris, you were one of the people fighting against her.

"I tried to protect her, look out for her, but it's a hostile environment."

"Why didn't either one of you try to stop her, are you idiots?"

"We did, but it was set."

"So you lock her in a room somewhere or _something¸_ what if I made Stephanie go out there to wrestle when she was pregnant with Flynn?"

"I'd be mad," Chris admitted.

"I can't even stand to look at any of you. You all sicken me. Don't follow me, Trish, I don't want to talk to you right now." Christian stormed off and Trish watched his back, at a loss for words as to what to say. She really didn't have an excuse at all. She'd been so stupid.

"I'm sorry, Christian."


	250. One Man Left, September 18 to 21, 2009

A/N: Slowly working my way back. If you want, leave a review, if you don't, well, I hope you liked the story anyways, thanks, enjoy. :)

Also, if you're a Chris/Steph fan, check out cenadiva2031's youtube channel for a bunch of awesome Chris/Steph videos that will make you a fan all over again. She does awesome thing with video clips so check her out. :)

* * *

"Why do you do things like that?"

"Things like what?" Chris asked.

"Like what you just did."

"What did I just do?" he asked again, knowing he was being a jerk right now. It took him a few minutes to get out of jerk mode once he was being an absolute jerk to someone or anyone really. He didn't think of it as jerk mode, but it's what everyone else thought so he ran with it. Usually, if he saw his kids, he could be out of jerk mode in seconds, but they appeared not to be in the immediate area, though his wife was right there, as per usual.

"Oh, you know what you just did."

"What? I just went out and spoke with Batista, what's wrong with that?"

"Oh, yeah, what's wrong with that," Stephanie said, shaking her head. He was so stubborn sometimes that she could almost feel herself going back to the time when she hated him and wanted to punch him in the face all the time, "Chris, why do you do these things? Why do you have to go out and antagonize everyone you see?"

"Because I'm a wrestler and that's what I do…"

"I know you're a wrestler."

"Well, as long as we've got my job established, then I think we're going to be okay, don't you think?" he said.

"That's not what this is about, don't try to skirt around the subject."

"I'm skirting around the subject because I'm saying that I'm a wrestler?"

"Yes!"

"What has got you so angry, baby?" Chris wondered, taking her in his arms. She tried to break free from him, but he had a good grip on her and he lifted her a little off the ground. "I think you need to lighten up, both figuratively and literally."

"You're going to give me a complex," she said, looking down at him. He had his arms wrapped right underneath her butt and so she definitely had leverage on him at the moment. He smiled up at her and she tried not to get lost in that smile because it was so easy to just get lost in it and then give in to anything he said and that usually led her down one path and probably led to the two kids she had.

"What kind of complex?"

"A fat complex," she pouted, pressing her forehead down on his, "just because I wanted you to play _The Price is Right_ because I thought you would like it."

"You know full well that's not why you had me do that because you told me as much."

"Well stop calling me fat then."

"Oh, you're getting so heavy, I can barely lift you, I think you're breaking my arms, I'm tipping over," he joked and she slapped him on the shoulder. "You are very abusive to me, you know. I think I should call the authorities on you."

"And tell them that your wife is beating you up, then they'd take one look at you and one look at me and laugh in your face…hey, wait a second, you did it again!"

"Did what again?" he said, putting her down in front of him. She kept her hands on his shoulders as she stared at him, in disbelief that he could so easily get her off track with what she'd wanted to chew him out for.

"You tricked me."

"I did no such thing, I'm just talking to you because I love you, that's all. Is it a crime for a man to speak with the woman he loves and then tell her of his love, which is as endless as eternity and as boundless as the deepest sea?"

"You are getting me off track with your poetic words and double talk," she told him, frowning.

"Where are our children?" he asked, looking around. "Don't tell me Sawyer grabbed Flynn's hand and made a run for it…I suppose we _could _start over, I mean, you didn't even want to be pregnant until we were both really settled and considering it'll be our five-year wedding anniversary in January, I consider us settled so we should probably start on those kids…see how I've already forgotten about our first two?"

"I see, you're very good at that, but our children are having a very good time with Trish right now."

"Oh, Mrs. Cage is here tonight, is she?" Chris said. "When did she show up?"

"Right about when you decided that your number one goal for this evening was to get yourself into trouble," Stephanie said, "which brings us right around back to the point of which I'm mad at you about."

"Mad at me? You aren't mad at me, you love me."

"Stop twisting my words!"

"I'm not twisting anything, but if there is something that you'd like me to twist, well, I'm open to suggestions if you want to make them."

"No, I want to talk about why you always have to be antagonizing everyone at every turn. You're going to get beat up, you know, you're going to get beat up and then I'm going to tell you that I told you so."

"For one, you always tell me that, for another, I always get beat up, I'm a wrestler, it's part of the job."

"But you're just setting yourself up for disaster."

"I can beat him up."

"I know that under normal circumstances, you can beat him up because I think that you're the best at what you do," she said, leaning in to kiss his cheek. "But Batista has been so out action for so long, don't you think he has a lot of pent-up anger, a lot of pent-up anger that he didn't get to fully take out on Randy Monday, so what do you think is going to happen to you?"

"I'll be okay, I will take care of business and then I will come backstage and kiss you and the kids and go back to the hotel and all will be well in the McMahon-Jericho family."

"You say that now…"

"I do say that now, so drop it."

"You never let me be a part of your career," she told him. "You always want to exclude me from it."

"I don't exclude you from it, I just know that you want to manipulate it for me. That's one of the caveats of being married to you. Believe me, I love being married to you, it is my favorite thing in the world, seriously, being married to you is the best thing I've ever done with my life, but seriously, I don't want the favoritism."

"I know, I'm just saying, I wasn't going to rig your match."

"Okay, you better not," Chris said, hugging her to him. "So Trish is here…"

"Well, Toronto is only forty minutes away, it wasn't much of a drive for her."

"She's still upset?"

"You mean is _he_ still upset and that answer would be yes," Stephanie answered. "It's only been a few days so I can see where he would be angry still. It's not like it happened over three years ago and he's still holding a grudge against someone even though things turned out alright in the end."

"Shot against me put into the vault," Chris said. "And Stone Cold can still shove it."

"At least I didn't go wrestle."

"It was a heat of the moment thing, she couldn't back down."

"Chris…"

"Okay, she should've backed down."

"This has the added effect that everyone knows she's pregnant now so cue whispering, it's got her on edge and she feels like she has nobody to turn to because Christian is giving her the cold shoulder."

"She's not the only one he's pissed at," Chris said with a sigh. He'd been trying to call Christian since Monday, but it either went straight to voicemail or it'd go to voicemail after ringing and ringing. So the only conclusion was that Christian was ignoring his calls.

"I know," Stephanie said, rubbing the side of Chris's neck. "He'll be okay though, I know he will."

"Yeah, he may never forgive us though."

"He'll forgive us, I know he will and he'll forgive Trish too."

Trish sat on the floor across from Flynn. She was pushing a ball in Flynn's direction and Flynn was grabbing it with her small hands and trying to throw it back, but it would end up dribbling its way towards Trish. Sawyer was pushing a train along the ground, pretending like the furniture was obstacles his train had to get around. Flynn tried to throw the ball towards Trish and it rolled slowly towards her and she grabbed it. Flynn clapped for Trish's accomplishment and Trish smiled a little.

"You know, if I had someone like you right now, I think that Christian wouldn't be so mad at me," Trish told Flynn. Flynn just tilted her head at Trish's words. She didn't care about Trish's problem (she was one, give her a break), she only cared about playing with her toys and waiting for her mommy or daddy to get back.

Sawyer heard the word Christian and mad and he crawled over with his train, running it right into Flynn's legs. Flynn giggled because anything Sawyer did made her laugh hysterically. "Twish, Chissy mad?"

"He's mad at me, yeah," Trish said.

"Why he mad at you?" Sawyer wondered. Chrissy was one of his best friends and he couldn't imagine him being mad at anyone, but why was he mad at Trish? They were always together so they shouldn't be mad at each other.

"I did something that I wasn't supposed to do."

"I do dat sometimes," Sawyer nodded in solidarity, "like when I hide and I no tell Mommy. She get mad."

"Yeah, I did something like that."

"What did you do?"

"Well, you know how I have a baby in my tummy?"

"Uh huh, you have a baby like Mommy have baby and that Fwynn!" Sawyer said, remembering when Flynn had been in his mommy's tummy and then she had come out so they could play and they played a lot now.

"Yeah, well, remember how I was on television on Monday? I was in front of everyone and I even went out with your daddy?"

"I did see you wif Daddy, he westles, you know."

"I know," Trish said, "well, because I have a baby in my tummy, I'm not really supposed to wrestle, it's not very good for my baby so I really shouldn't do it, but on Monday, Beth Phoenix made me very, very mad so I said I would wrestler her even though I knew that I shouldn't, but then I did wrestle and Christian got very mad."

"Because you not supposed to, right?"

"Yeah, because I wasn't supposed to," Trish said. "It could have hurt my baby and since my baby's daddy is Christian, he gets a say in stuff too, like how your daddy gets a say in stuff, right?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer answered.

"Well, he's mad at me about that and I really should have listened to him because he was right, I should've been more careful because I wouldn't want anything to happen to my baby like I didn't want anything to happen to you when your mommy had you in her tummy. Or when Flynn was in your mommy's tummy."

"Are you okay now?" Sawyer asked, looking at her stomach.

"Yeah, I'm fine and my baby is fine too," Trish told him, "but sometimes, even when things turn out okay, the other person is going to be mad at you."

"Did you say sowwy?" Sawyer asked. Whenever he did something that hurt Flynn's feelings and she cried, his mommy made him tell Flynn he was sorry and then everything was better again because sorry was one of the magic words.

"Yeah, I've said sorry a million, bajillion, trillion times," Trish said with a pout.

"Then he should not be mad anymore," Sawyer said.

"I wish it worked like that, sweetie," Trish said.

"I give hug," Sawyer said, walking over to Trish and giving her a hug, banding his arms around her neck. "Hugging is good, it make you better."

"Hugging is great," Trish said, hugging Sawyer back. "You give the best hugs in the world, did you know that?"

"That was my mommy say," he laughed. That was just like his mommy.

Chris and Stephanie walked into the room then, "Trish, are you trying to convince our son to come live with you?"

"If only," Trish said as Sawyer pulled away and ran over to Chris, who threw his belts on the couch before hefting up Sawyer, who clung to him. Flynn, not wanting to miss out on the party pushed herself up and toddled over to Stephanie, who picked her up. Trish stood up as well. "Hey guys, thanks for putting up with me."

"It's not a problem," Chris said.

"Of course it's not a problem for him since he just went out and told Batista he was an injury-prone loser and then got a spinebuster and then decided to go chew out Big Show for not being there, so of course it's not a problem for him to put up with anyone because I'm having a hard time putting up with him myself."

"You are just a bitter, bitter woman," Chris told her.

"Now he's going to fight Batista later and I told him that he was going to get pounded because Batista has all this pent-up anger and then I was thinking, well, maybe Big Show will help him out since they're partners and then you go and alienate him so he's not going to come out and help you now."

"I don't need his help. He should've been helping me earlier, but no, he didn't, so I don't need his help later."

"Batista has months worth of anger that he is going to take out on _you_."

"Well, I'm kind of amassing a little bit of anger now myself."

"Oh, so you're just going to picture my face on Batista, is that it, so you can beat me up with actually beating me up."

"Don't make me picture Batista with your face, that's disgusting and I still do have to sleep with you at night."

"You guys, can you not fight, please?" Trish asked. "I've had enough fighting to last me a lifetime. That's why I had to get away for the evening. Not that it really matters since Christian ran to his mother's house and I'm not welcome there so I'm stuck at home with my parents who are none to happy with me either even though I did take it easy and I know I made a huge mistake and he doesn't have to make me pay so much."

"I shouldn't have been so stupid either," Chris said, "I should've stopped you. I mean, if it were Stephanie, I would've barred her from the ring."

"You did try," Stephanie said.

"He _kicked_ you right in the stomach!"

"It was like four years ago!" Stephanie said. "Sawyer is fine!"

"I'm fine, Daddy," Sawyer nodded. "I no have a cold."

Chris laughed and kissed Sawyer's temple. "I know you don't have a cold."

"He has every right to be mad at me, I'm mad at me, it's just, I wish he would talk to me instead of phasing me out. I know I made a mistake, I'm really, really sorry for it, but he won't even accept my contriteness."

"Then you have to make him accept it."

"But how?" Trish asked.

"Yeah, I don't know," Stephanie said. "I wish this guy would accept the fact that he was stupid to go out there and provoke a sleeping giant!"

"Sleeping giant my ass," Chris said. "You know what bugs me about Batista--"

"You used to be friends with him," Stephanie pointed out.

"Well, sort of, but not really, that was more you, he was more your friend than anything else. Is he still your friend?"

"I bear no ill will towards him if that's what you're saying, but enlighten us, Chris, tell us why you hate him so much."

"I hate him because he thinks he can come and go as he pleases. He thinks that he can come to SmackDown just because he wants to, like he's above the rules. He was drafted to Raw, he was supposed to be on that show, but no, it's too good for him and so he decides that he's just going to switch shows like that. So if I get injured--"

"Don't you dare even say that!" Stephanie exclaimed, knocking on the wooden table next to her. Flynn wanted to knock on it too and she leaned over a little to slap her hand against it. "Why would you try and jinx yourself like that?"

"I'm just saying," Chris said, "if you would let me finish, so if I get injured," Stephanie cringed at this, "then I come back, I get to just choose where I want to be? Is that fair?"

"Well, to be fair, Chris," Trish said, "you could probably switch shows any time you wanted considering you're one of the owners, you know."

"Yeah, but I don't go around yelling that from the rooftops, I'm not out there saying I don't want to accept someone's challenge because I own the place and I can do as I please, I don't treat myself like that, but Batista can just waltz in and say he wants to go somewhere. And this one gives into his requests and then gets mad when I challenge them."

"What was I going to say, no?"

"Yeah, no is an option, you certainly say it enough so I know that you know the meaning of it."

"Very funny. Look, if I said no to him, then he's going to say that it's because I didn't want him on the same brand as you and it becomes a whole thing and then everyone is looking at me and you and saying that you're getting favoritism."

"Or you could just say that this is where he was drafted so too bad, so sad, he's got to stay where he is going to stay."

"Well, I'm sorry, next time I'll be childish."

"So when Edge comes back, you going to tell him that he can go anywhere he wants to go?"

"No."

"Yeah, right," Chris said.

Trish rubbed her temples, "Seriously, you guys, you just need to stop fighting, your fight is really stupid anyways. Chris is a wrestler, Steph, let him take care of himself, you know that he can. Chris, understand that Stephanie has a job to do and don't interfere with that when you don't have her interfere with yours. _My_ problem is an actual problem. The father of my child _hates_ me."

"He doesn't hate you," Stephanie said. "He'll forgive you, he's just hurt right now, but he'll get over it or at least he'll get over it enough to not be so angry with you all the time."

"I really hope so," Trish said, sinking down into the couch. "Is it bad that I'm really lonely when he's not around?"

"Is that why you're really here?" Chris asked, sitting at Stephanie's desk and grabbing Sawyer's crayons and coloring books so Sawyer could color.

"Daddy, you color too," Sawyer said, pushing one of his coloring books over to Chris. Chris grabbed one of Sawyer's 64 colors, looking at the colors he had. "Daddy, what color you using?"

"Laser lemon," Chris told him.

"What color I use?" he said, holding up his crayon for Chris to tell him the color.

"You have Outer Space."

"Cool," Sawyer said, going to town on the picture in front of him. Chris started in on his own picture as Stephanie sat next to Trish.

"I guess it's a little bit of why I'm here. It's weird being at home when you've moved out and lived on your own. It's like my parents are breathing down my throat and I could tell they were really upset with me and I don't really blame them. Now everyone here is giving me the same looks since everyone now knows I'm pregnant."

"It'll be okay," Stephanie said, patting Trish's shoulder. "You'll be okay."

"I just want Christian to forgive me, that's all."

Later that evening, Chris was getting ready for his match. Trish was with the kids again. He and Stephanie had just put them to sleep so they were off into dreamland and Stephanie was walking down the hallway, her hand in Chris's as she leaned into him a little. She had called a truce with him during this match, but she was inwardly angry at him. Still, she had to put up a nice front in front of the kids and she could kick his butt later in bed. That was the good thing about being married to Chris, if he did something she didn't like, she could just wait to yell at him when they were in bed. When they had been enemies, she didn't have the access to him that she did now.

"I know you're still mad at me," Chris said.

"What? I said I wasn't."

"After seven years, I know when you're mad at me, not to mention, you're gripping my hand so tight I think I'm going to lose feeling in it and I really don't want to go into my match with my hand flopping around like a fish."

"Sorry," she said, loosening her grip after she looked down to see his fingers were white from the lack of blood they were getting. There were probably also little crescent moon shapes on his palm from her hand digging into his.

"Don't be mad," he told her, kissing her cheek as they walked.

"I'm not mad, I'm just worried that you're going to get hurt, but I worry about you every match you're in, I've been worrying about you in every match you've been in since we became business partners."

"Even the ones I had when you were gone from the company, when you were kicked out?"

"Yes, because you were going against Hunter and you were in a Hell in a Cell, of course I was going to worry about you," Stephanie said. "I just worry about you when you're out there, that's all."

"Wer eyou worried about me before you liked me?" he wondered coyly, looking over at her. She pursed her lips together and thought for a moment, did she? She didn't think she had cared, but maybe she had, she didn't know.

"I don't know."

"I think you did, I remember some distinctly concerned looks when I had my Last Man Standing against him."

"Oh please, you did not."

"I think I did. I think you were concerned about me just as much as you were concerned about Hunter."

"I slapped you during that match."

"Could that have been to cover the fact that you were worried that I would hurt myself?" he asked her.

"No, because I hated you."

"I don't think you did, I think you had a crush on me and you were scared to admit it because I had a girlfriend at the time and you were married to Big Nose and you were scared to branch out from him even though you secretly didn't love him and you really wanted to be with me."

"What girlfriend, you were single."

"I wasn't single, I was dating…um, what's her face?"

"I don't know, I didn't keep myself abreast of your romantic liaisons."

"Abreast," he laughed, "oh, I think you were keeping abreast of something."

She rolled her eyes at his childishness. "I don't know who you were dating because I didn't care that you were dating anyone, I also think you weren't actually dating anyone and you're purposely trying to get me mad over something else so I won't be mad that you are an antagonizer. Do you want our son to be like that? Do you want him to go around and taunt people and then have someone beat him up?"

"Nobody is beating up our kid," Chris chuckled. "Not going to happen."

"Oh, why is that?"

"Our kid is tough as nails, I'm not saying he's going to be a bully, but if any kid were to mess with him, he would kick their ass and do you know why?"

"Because he's half Jericho and you're _amazing_ and you _always_ win at everything, you're a life winner."

"No, I was going to say because he's half McMahon and that means he's part evil genius so he'll just think of some way to exact revenge on the kid."

"That is partly true, one time, Shane…never-mind, suffice to say he made a kid cry without even laying a finger on him. It was brilliant. Still, I don't want him going around antagonizing people."

"He's not, we're the ones who antagonize people and you do it too, Stephanie, so don't act all queen bee around me, you've done some serious poking the giant in your day."

"I have not."

"Lies," he said as they finally reached the gorilla, "blatant lies."

"I had reasons."

"Okay, tell me what the reason was for having me put through a SmackDown set, go ahead, tell me the reason."

"You were annoying and insulting to me."

"Oh, well, that's a great reason to have me put through a _set_ by someone named Rhyno."

"I should get a hold him, maybe he can put you through a wall this time and it'll give you a reality check," Stephanie said.

"I'm going tout for my match now, McMahon."

"Good luck, Jericho," she said derisively.

"Will you be here when I get back or will you be plotting your master revenge against me?"

"Sweetie, don't you know by now that I already have the master revenge in my back pocket at any time, it starts with a D and ends with ivorce, that would just be the ultimate revenge, taking away myself and the great sex and the kids and everything, pure devastation."

"Don't even joke, don't…don't even joke," he said, shaking his head.

"See, you would be devastated."

"I'd just go find the hottest chick I could find and have sex with her in our bed."

"No, you wouldn't."

"Yes, I would."

"No, you wouldn't."

"I would."

"Chris, you're up," one of the production people said.

"Okay, thanks," Chris said. "I would."

"You wouldn't," she said, pushing him towards the curtain."

"So would!"

"Wouldn't!"

Chris put up a valiant effort, holding his own for a while, but like Stephanie had predicted, Batista was chomping at the bit to get some wrestling action and victim #1 was Chris, just like she'd said. He'd been so close to getting the Codebreaker and if he'd just hit that move, he knew he would've won. It just came down to one move, but didn't so many wrestling matches come down to that one move, that one turn of momentum. He'd had it and he didn't take advantage of it fast enough. He could've had that match, but it had went Batista's way and that made Chris even angrier. He was like that pitbull you couldn't hold down, they just wanted to keep going after the other person. Chris, if nothing else, was persistent.

Stephanie was backstage waiting for him, tapping her foot against the ground, her arms folded and that look on her face. "Not one word, McMahon, not one word."

"I told you so!"

"I'm going to make you sleep in the bathtub."

"I'm going to make you sleep on balcony."

"You wouldn't dare."

"I would dare!"

"Come here," he said, lifting her over his shoulder. "I'm dumping you in the trash because you're a trashbag ho!"

Christian leaned his head back on the couch. He'd been watching SmackDown and now it was over and he had nothing to do for the rest of the night. "Yeah, Li, I miss you too, babe, I love you. Yeah, of course, you're totally what I picture when I'm doing that. No, I'm not doing that right now. Yeah, your voice is sexy, but I'm on the couch and Christian is here. Yeah, I would if he weren't here…hey, bro, do you mind if I ask you to leave for a little while."

"I'm not leaving," Christian said.

"He's not leaving, babe, sorry," Edge said. "Don't worry, I'll be home soon. Yeah, you keep it warm for me, just like I like it."

Christian groaned, "Will you shut up?"

"Okay, babe, love you," Edge said, "bye." He hung up the phone. "You know, I'm trying to talk to my girlfriend and you keep interrupting me and it's really annoying."

"Sorry that I'm interrupting your time."

"You should be…would you just get over what happened."

"No, I'm not going to get over what happened. My wife had blatant disregard for me and went out there and wrestled and my best friends didn't even _try_ and stop her. She's pregnant, do you understand that."

"That's when a baby comes out, right?" Edge said in a "duh" voice. "Of course I know, but seriously, dude, she made a mistake, but you've already made her pay for it, why don't you give her a break?"

"Because I'm mad! She wrestled and she is pregnant with our baby and she didn't even tell me, she wasn't even _going_ to tell me, she admitted it. She was just going to erase it from everything so I'd never see. How am I supposed to get over that? What am I supposed to think?"

"Look, Trish knew it was a calculated risk, but she took it, she made a mistake, but what, you going to divorce her over it, after you've spent how many years just getting her to agree to be your wife? She wants that kid just as much as you, it's not like she was trying to get rid of it or anything."

"I know, but still, it's the principle of the thing."

"The principle of the thing is that you need to stop being a jerk to her. It's doing her more harm than good. Do you think that she needs to have her husband mad at her while she's pregnant. Face it, either way, you're getting a kid out of this and you're going to be stuck together. You love her, suck it up!"

"What if the baby isn't okay?" Christian asked.

"She got checked out, she's fine and she knows she's made a mistake, from what I heard from Chris and Stephanie, everyone is pretty much punishing her. Actually, I didn't hear that from Chris and Stephanie, Chris and Stephanie were talking to Lita and then Lita talked to Trish tonight and then Lita told me, but yeah, everyone's pretty much punishing her. Lita said that Trish told her that even her parents have chewed her out about it and what she did, her _parents_, man. Everyone's on your side as it is, well, pretty much everyone, I think you're being an ass and I bet Chris and Stephanie do too, but other than us, everyone is treating her like crap and she's probably really upset and this is the woman you love, you know."

"I know I love her, you don't have to tell me I love her."

"And what are you going to do, ignore her?"

"No, I have to go to work on Monday and she's flying home to Florida so I won't have to see her until at least Wednesday, I'm filming for Superstars on Monday so I don't have to go home on Monday."

"So you're going to ignore her and then upset her, great plan, bro, totally reeks of awesomeness."

"Shut up, Edge, I don't need your input, you don't know anything, you're not even married, you don't even have any kids."

"Dude, trust me, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that one out."

"Chrissy, it's me, I just, uh, wanted to tell you that I was back at home, me and the baby made it here safely, I hope you're okay, call me if you want, please."

Christian ended his voicemail without deleting his messages. He looked up and around, like he expected Trish to be there. He could feel some eyes on him after his outburst last week, but mostly people were staying out of his way. His plan for the evening was to have his match and then to get the hell out of here and go lie in bed for the rest of the night. It was just because he knew he was going to be tired and sore, the added bonus was that he'd be by himself.

"Hey, man."

Christian looked up and saw Hunter, "Hey, how are you?"

"Not great," Hunter said and Christian could tell that he was putting up a façade. He knew because he was pretty sure he was putting up the same show of bravado. "So what's up with you?"

"Who the hell knows," Hunter shrugged. "You happen to see Shawn around here?"

"No, haven't really been paying attention."

"What's up with you? Heard about you and Trish, I mean, everyone did."

"Yeah, I know," Christian said. "Kind of didn't take the low voice mode with that."

"No, you did not."

"People would've found out anyways, not like you can hide a pregnancy, I guess you can, but with Trish, her being so petite, I don't think she can hide it all the time."

"Yeah," Hunter said.

"Well if it isn't the loser's club," Chris said, walking up with Sawyer.

"Loser's club," Sawyer laughed and imitated his father. "Loser's club."

"My son thinks you're such losers that he had to say it twice," Chris said, patting Sawyer on the head. "That's how big a bunch of losers I'm surrounded by."

"Shut up, Chris," Christian said. "I'm not talking to you."

"Yeah, yeah, I know, I'm just hear to tell you that you're both being idiots. I was going to tell you each individually, but it's like fate that I saw both of you at the same time and I was like, 'wow, they're both here and I can talk to them at the same time and tell them they're both being idiots.'"

"I'm not an idiot," Christian argued.

"I'm not either," Hunter said.

"Okay, here's the deal, I've been with my woman for seven years, we've been married for almost five, you guys have your relationships, Christian, you and Trish have been dancing around each other for almost as long as Stephanie and I have been together and you've been married almost a year. Hunter, you and Britt have been together for like, what 2 years? Now let's look at who's happy out of the three of us. Christian, you're ignoring your wife, Hunter, your girlfriend is ignoring you, me, I had sex this morning with my wife so I'm going into tonight feeling damn good, can I say the same for you guys, no, so you should probably listen to the one guy who's happy."

"I am happy too," Sawyer added.

"See, even my kid is happy."

"We don't need advice," Hunter said.

"Yeah, so how is Britt again?"

"You're a jerk," Hunter said.

"Stephanie seems to think so, I don't know, as for you, do you even know how Trish is?"

"She's at home, she got their safely."

"Oh, she left you a voicemail too?" Chris said smugly. Christian looked down. "The both of you need to get your heads out of your asses and fix your problems or you will both lose big. You," he said, to Hunter, "are so on the verge of losing the best thing to ever happen to you. And you," Chris said, "are missing time with your pregnant wife. You know, women are only pregnant for a certain amount of time and with your first, it's all really kind of exciting and I don't think you'd want to miss that. So like I said, heads out of asses."

"Heads out of--" Sawyer started, but Chris, lifted him up and put his hand over Sawyer's mouth.

"None of you saw that or heard that," Chris said, "we're going." They started to walk away. "Sawyer, we don't repeat that to Mommy, do you understand."

Sawyer nodded. Hunter shrugged to Christian. "I don't know what his problem is."

"I know, right, he doesn't know what he's talking about."

"Definitely doesn't know what he's talking about," Christian said.

Still, both guys were thinking about the woman they were separated from. For Hunter, Britt had been giving him the cold shoulder. He knew that she didn't like him spending so much time with Shawn, but Shawn was his best friend and he couldn't just ditch him when Hunter was pretty much the only reason he'd come back in the first place. He felt like he'd be abandoning his friend and he didn't want to do that. Britt just didn't understand what kind of friendship he and Shawn had. They'd been through some really rough times together and Hunter felt obligated to be loyal to his friend, come hell or high-water and Britt had to understand that. If she didn't, maybe _he_ didn't want to be around _her_. Okay, so he missed her desperately, but he was a proud man and he wasn't going to budge.

"I've got a match, later."

"Bye," Christian said, finding himself alone again, with only Chris's words to keep him company. Sure, he was probably being a jerk to Trish, but he had every reason to be a jerk to Trish. She had hurt him, deeply. You know, in fact, he wasn't going to let Chris get away with that either. He went off in the direction Chris had gone in and tried to think of where Chris might be going. It wasn't hard for him to find Chris because he had Sawyer with him and Sawyer wasn't _that_ fast on his feet. "Chris!"

Chris turned around just as he was opening the door to the outside for Sawyer. He did open the door and Sawyer slipped through the door, forcing Chris to go after him. Christian jogged after the both of them and found them outside. Christian only now noticed that Sawyer had been holding a toy car and Chris was handing him a remote for the car. It was one of those remote-controlled cars they had for little kids where if you crashed it into something it just flipped over and you could keep driving it.

"What?" Chris asked as he sat down on the step behind Sawyer, who was watching his car race around the large open area of the back garage.

"You have no room to talk about me acting like an ass," he said. "No room at all."

"Okay," Chris said nonchalantly, "if that's how you feel."

Christian was surprised he was making it that easy. "It is how I feel."

"Oh before you go on the rampage against me that I can feel you about to go on, your match for Superstars is cancelled, I think they went with another match, sorry you had to show up, but you're probably okay with that because it gets you away from Trish."

"Well, just add another thing to my already lousy week," Christian said, "and you know what, how dare you come at me and call me an ass when you're still not over what Stone Cold did to Stephanie. You of all people should know how I feel because you've been through something similar. Stephanie went out there against your wishes and she got kicked in the stomach. You were worried, weren't you?"

"Yeah, I was worried, yeah, I was mad, still am actually. If I got Stone Cold in a ring right now, if I could face him, I would, are you kidding me, he'd be a dead man, but Stephanie constantly tells me that Sawyer is fine, that he's completely normal, completely on-track, he's barely even had colds or ear infections and you know, at the base, she's right and most of the hatred is just because I don't want to give in to what she's saying, but look for yourself," Chris said, gesturing at Sawyer, who was making car noises as he drove his car around. The best part was when it crashed into something and flipped around.

"Yeah, so he's a normal kid."

"A normal _awesome_ kid," Chris added.

"He is awesome, but still, you're still pissed about it."

"Yeah, at _Stone Cold_, not at Stephanie. She knows she shouldn't have gone out there. She knew it that night and you know when I forgave her? That night. Then I dropped it with her. Because it's petty and dumb. You're having a _baby_, man, focus on how awesome that is and not on how much you're angry with her."

"I just can't…I can't stop thinking about what might have happened. I mean, you thought about what might have happened to Sawyer, right?"

"I did until Stephanie got checked out, Trish got checked out and she's fine," Chris said. "Everything is going well they said. She's looking great, they said. Accept it. I'm sure your baby is going to come out and be really cute and funny like newborns tend to be. Also they sleep and poop and cry a lot, but other than that, total fun."

"Daddy?" Sawyer said, coming over, his face sad.

"What is it, kid?" Chris asked.

"My car go under the other car," Sawyer said, pointing to a car and Chris could see that Sawyer's toy car was right up against the tire and had wedged itself underneath it a little. "I can't get it out, Daddy."

"Okay, let's get it out then," Chris said, getting up and going over to the car and getting on his hands and knees as he plucked the car out from under the tire. "How did you get it so stuck in there anyways?"

"I just drive it around," Sawyer told him.

"I see," Chris said, going back over to Christian as Sawyer continued to play with his car, happy that it was out from under the tire.

"I just want to be a good dad," Christian said quietly, his chin in his hand as he watched Sawyer running around after his car and making car noises at it.

"Hell, if I can be a good dad, you can be a good dad," Chris told him.

Stephanie walked up to Britt, who was standing in front of a monitor, watching it closely. "So, did you get that work done for me?"

"What?" Britt said, then looked over at Stephanie. "Oh, hey, Stephanie, what did you say?"

"I asked if you got that work I asked for, you know, the list of potential Raw guest hosts and the itinerary for the shows so I can set up who would be best with what city."

"Oh yeah, sorry," Britt said, "I've got it right here."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, looking over it. "Um, Britt, were you distracted when you were doing this?"

"No, why?" Britt asked.

"Because your writing is going right off the page," Stephanie showed her and indeed, her writing just went right off the page, she looked down to her papers and there was the rest of the writing.

"Oops, sorry," Britt said, taking it back. "I'll redo it and have it done by the end of the night."

"Worried about Hunter?"

"No, I know they can take on Legacy, no problem, I know he can take out Cody no problem. I just wanted to watch I guess."

"Yeah, I know how you feel."

"You miss Hunter?"

"Not quite," Stephanie said. "I just know how you feel to be mad at someone, but it's very hard to stay mad at them."

"I just don't want to get lost in the shuffle whenever Shawn is around. I feel like a forgotten toy whenever Shawn, the new and shiny toy, comes around. It's lonely and weird and I have a feeling that Shawn is not going anywhere until I'm out of the picture and Hunter is by himself again."

"Wouldn't put it past Shawn, he's like that, he's sneaky. He'll do stuff behind Hunter's back and then Hunter is none the wiser and left wondering why something happened."

"Oh, the match is over, I'm going to go, I don't want to see him."

"Well, bye," Stephanie said, then looked down at Flynn. "Seems me and Daddy are the only happy ones out of our friends, huh? Besides Lita and Edge, right?"

"Yeah," Flynn said, being sympathetic with her mommy. She looked and saw Ted coming backstage and she smiled at him briefly.

"Hi, Ted," she said, not able to parse out hatred for him even though he was feuding with her friend.

"Hey, Stephanie, hey little one," Ted said, bending down a little to Flynn. Flynn looked up at him and didn't know who he was at all, but he seemed friendly so she smiled back at him. He took her hand and gave it a little shake.

"Hi," Flynn said, smiling at the man. She liked him.

"Come on, Ted, Randy probably wants us," Cody said.

Ted straightened up and waved to Stephanie, "Bye, Stephanie, bye Flynn."

"Bye," Flynn repeated.

"Oh great, so now my daughter has a crush on that guy too?" Chris said as he came up on his wife and daughter.

"She just thinks he's cute."

"Wonderful," Chris said. "Now I have to contend with him with her too."

"Chris," Ted said, coming back over.

"Great, do you want my son too?" Chris asked.

"What?" Ted asked confusedly, looking at him and Stephanie, wondering what was going on.

"Don't listen to him, Ted," Stephanie said sweetly. "He's just being a jerk to me is all, it's an inside joke between the two of us. What did you need?"

"Randy wanted to talk with Chris," Ted said.

"What for?" Chris asked suspiciously. He didn't necessarily trust Ted, even though Stephanie seemed to think he was the only good guy out of that entire group. He especially didn't trust Randy though. He had no reason to trust Randy after what he'd done to Stephanie and what Chris had done in retaliation to that.

"He just wants to talk to you."

"Is this an ambush?" he asked, knowing that even if it was Ted wouldn't let him know it was an ambush.

"Completely on the up and up, you have my word," Ted said, raising his hand like he was a Boy Scout.

"He gave his word, Chris," Stephanie said.

"Like that's supposed to make me feel at ease," Chris said. "I'm getting Show, we'll meet you in Randy's locker room, if he's going to have back-up, so am I. Steph, can you watch the kids?"

"Yeah, I can watch them," she said. "Be careful, okay."

"Okay," Chris said. He went to gather up Show and they went to Randy's locker room, Chris knocking on the door, Show creating a scary and menacing presence behind him.

"Hey, you're here," Randy said as he opened the door, "come on inside."

"What is this about?" Chris asked, cutting straight to the point of this little meeting. He felt more assured now that Show was here.

"I need your help."

"I don't like you, Randy, you attacked my wife and then kissed her while she was down."

"I thought you had gotten enough revenge over that for it to be water under the bridge," Randy said calmly.

"Yeah, I'm just going to forgive that because I managed to get one over on you, that's exactly how it works."

"This is business, Jericho, not personal and once upon a time we were friends, I want you to remember that, not what I did to Stephanie. I did what I had to do with regards to Hunter. I had to punish him and that was the way I knew how. But it's over now, my boys are taking care of Hunter and his lackey."

"That's funny that you call Shawn that considering," he said, pointing to Cody and Ted, who had been standing slightly behind Randy, the perfect portrait of lackeys. They realized what Chris was implying and took a step back so as not to appear so…lackey-ish.

"Whatever, I want your help tonight."

"What's in it for us?"

"If you want money, we'll get you money."

"I have enough money, thanks, Show, you good?"

"I'm damn good, thanks," Show said.

"Fine, at some point, I'll return the favor, okay, but I need someone or _someones_ to take out Cena tonight."

"You have those guys, you don't need us."

"Look, they've got their own problems, you guys don't really have any problems because you take care of your problems," Randy said, appealing to their egos. "You are both really good at what you do and besides, Cena is going to be expecting Ted and Cody and I want the element of surprise."

"Again, what's in it for us?"

"You don't like Cena, right? I mean, he panders to those parasites, as you like to call them, so think of this as the perfect opportunity to be getting back at the fans, those parasites, by taking out their leader."

"That's not good enough."

"Chris, I'm appealing to you as a former friend," Randy said. "You know you'd love to take him out. Remember when he insulted your kids."

"Fine," Chris said, knowing Randy was going for the jugular. You mention Chris's kids, he pretty much gave in. "Tell us what we have to do."

Hunter caught up with Britt, "Did you see me out there?"

"Yeah, some of it," Britt said, "I'm busy though, I'll talk to you later."

"Britt, babe, I'm sorry, will you please, please forgive me."

"Hunter, you don't even really know what you're apologizing for. I appreciate you want to make up, I do, but I'm just not ready yet. I don't think you are either because you don't really know what's upsetting me, well, you do, since I told you, but I don't think you get why I'm angry over the things I'm angry about."

"I get that you're mad about Shawn."

"Yeah, I am, but you just don't get why I'm so angry with him and you won't get it until you really see him, I mean, _really_ see him for what he is. I really do have work I need to get done, I'll see you later," she said, leaning up to press a kiss to his cheek. "Bye, Hunter."

Hunter just watched her walk away, still frustrated that he couldn't figure out this mystery reason for why she was so pissed.

"Hey, Hunter, I was just looking for you, I think we are done for the night, that means to the bar we go!" Shawn said, grabbing Hunter's arm and dragging him away.

Stephanie, in her locker room, with Flynn in her lap wearing the same expression said, "I don't trust him."

"Neither do I," Chris said. "I need something, something to let him know I'm not so easily swayed into his circle. I just want him to make sure he knows I've not forgiven him for what he did to you and that even though I'm doing him a favor, it is not square between us."

"So do something to him."

"But what?" he looked at the clock. "Damn it, I've got to go attack Cena now."

"Good luck!"

"Luck, Daddy!" Sawyer echoed.

"Thanks."

He went out there and attacked Cena just like Randy wanted. Randy had acted like he was giving Legacy the night off to throw Cena off his scent. He felt kind of like a stooge in that moment. He didn't want to be one of those guys that just followed someone else. Most of his career he'd been a lone wolf. He didn't work well in teams it seemed and now he was what? Randy Orton's lackey? He was doing business for Randy and he was better than that and he couldn't believe he was helping that ass who had hurt his wife. Something or someone had really done a number on Randy. He used to be such a good person, a really nice, normal guy. Now he fancied himself some sort of viper, poisoning the rest of the guys. It was such a change from the guy who'd attended his wedding.

"Chris," Stephanie said breathlessly as he came backstage after the attack. She saw Randy behind him and pulled him out of earshot.

"What is it? Why are you so frantic, where are the kids? Are they okay?"

"They're fine, Britt is watching them for a second, come on, I've got to talk to you."

"What is the matter?" Chris asked as Stephanie dragged him all the way back to his locker room. Stephanie was acting very strange and it was worrying him unnecessarily.

"I just have to talk to you, I've come up with something."

"What are you talking about?"

"Just come on," she said, tugging on his arm.

"Stephanie, I'm going to need this arm for my match later," he said, trying to pull from her grasp, but Stephanie had a strong grip when she wanted to have one and he found himself not able to break from her.

"I know, we're almost there," she said, bursting into his locker room. "Thanks, Britt, we've got it covered."

"Okay," Britt said, "later."

"Later," Stephanie said.

"Now can I know what you want?" Chris asked.

"Okay, it's like this," Stephanie said. "I just came up with the perfect, perfect thing for you to get back at Randy with. I mean, just to show him that you aren't forgiving him so easily."

"_That's_ what you dragged me here for? That's what you _needed_ to tell me so urgently?"

"Gauntlet match."

"What?"

"You go to the guest host, go to Cedric and ask him for a gauntlet match for whoever loses. Then if Randy loses, he has to go through a gauntlet and he'll have to face three guys in a row and you'll have manipulated it all yourself."

Chris thought for a moment, "That's…that's actually brilliant, why didn't I think of that?"

"You're not a McMahon," she said, "this is what we do."

"You are getting so much wiser in your old age."

"Shut up, Jericho," Stephanie said. She'd banned him from mentioning her birthday to her. She was not looking forward to getting a year older. It just meant that things were going to change again. She was going to be 33 and she wasn't even really used to being in her 30's. She'd started dating Chris when she was 25 and she couldn't believe how much time had passed, how much had changed and still had yet to change.

"What? I can't even mention my wife's birthday, what a world we live in."

"Do you like my idea?"

"Yes, I think it's brilliant."

"Then I think you need to find Cedric and let him know about it. Uh, after his match, I guess," Stephanie said, remembering that he was going to have a match. "I hate this guest host thing, even when it's our friend, it's trouble."

"Don't worry, maybe your dad will take pity on you since you're an old lady and give you the gig," he said, pushing her hair out of her face.

"Oh just stop."

"I'm not saying anything," Chris said. "Oh, the old lady thing, hey, it could be worse, you could be an old maid, you know. Or a cat-lady, but no, you're a well-adjusted adult with two beautiful kids and the world's most gorgeous man as your husband."

"You mean the man with the most hubris."

"That'd be your ex-husband," Chris said, "but however shall we pass the time until his match is over?"

"Not the way you want it."

"We'll see."

When Cedric got a free moment, or at least as free as he could get when speaking to Kelly Kelly, Chris went to his office with Stephanie close behind. Show was there too and they made a formidable team. Britt was sitting with the sleeping kids so Stephanie could be with them. She stood in the doorway as she watched Kelly flirt with yet another guest host. She'd seen the pictures of her with Piven. The girl apparently had no shame when it came to these celebrity guest hosts. That must have been so awkward when Trish had been host, Kelly didn't have anyone to sidle up to. Stephanie scowled as the girl eyed Chris in that predatory manner of hers. If that girl even thought for one second she could have Chris, Stephanie would rip that fake hair right out of her head.

Chris wasn't able to get Cedric's attention at first, but once Show stepped in, he was certainly willing to hear them out. It was when Cedric gave in that Stephanie took a small step forward and said, "Kelly, this is business, I suggest you leave."

Kelly, understanding for once, left quickly. "What can I do for you fellas?" Cedric asked as he cleared his throat, intimidated by Show.

"I wanted to add a stipulation to the match we're having. The loser has to be put in a gauntlet match next week."

"What's a gauntlet match?" he asked.

"It's where one guy wrestles 3 different guys one after the other, trying to beat them all."

"Oh, well, that doesn't sound fair, would you be the guy in the gauntlet?"

"No, it would be Randy and Cena, whoever loses has to face the three guys on the winning team, don't you think that's fair?"

"Not really," Cedric said, "I mean, they're not here to agree with this."

"They don't need to be," Stephanie said, stepping forward, looking for all the world like a shark, seeing this chum floating in the ocean. Chris smirked as he watched her go to business. This woman could charm the sugar out of a piece of candy. "I don't believe we've spoken tonight, I'm Stephanie McMahon--"

"Vince's daughter, that's right, I've heard of you," he interrupted. "You kind of own all this."

"I _do_ own all this," Stephanie corrected, "and you didn't let me finish my introduction. I'm Stephanie McMahon…Jericho."

"Jericho…" It took a second for it to click. "You're married to him?"

"That would be right, five years in January, but enough with the small talk and chit-chat. The other guy doesn't need to be here, it just needs your stamp of approval. You see, it's all well and good to have a three-man tag, but really, does that give either Cena or Randy the piece of mind that they are the superior? No, I don't think so. Therefore, setting up a gauntlet match would really make them feel like they can go into our next big show, no pun intended, feeling like the winner and going in with momentum. Our business is all about momentum Mr." She almost said Mr. the Entertainer, but remembered his name from her list, "Mr. Kyles."

"Well, if that's the case, I guess it would be okay."

"You are really doing a great job as host," Stephanie said. "My dad will be so pleased with that and I hope you've had a great time."

"Yeah, it's been a blast," he said.

"Great," she smiled. "You are definitely going to make an impact with your decision."

"Really?"

"Absolutely, one of the best moves a guest host has made yet, some of them, let's admit it, have been pretty lame ducks, but you've set some real wheels in motion and good for you."

"Thanks!"

"No, thank you," Stephanie said. "Shall we?"

"Yeah, let's go," Chris said, wrapping his arm around her waist as they left. "Damn, sometimes I have to commend myself for making the decision to marry you."

"You're good, Stephanie," Show added.

"I just know how to work it and use that to work people," she said, "like I did with Chris. He really doesn't know that I manipulated him into marriage and getting me pregnant."

"What!"

"Oh yeah, all me," she joked as she kissed him. "Now go out there and shock the hell out of Randy."

And shock Randy it did, but it was just a little warning a little taste. He ended up winning the match so it was a moot point anyways, but it got his point across. Randy knew that Chris didn't trust him and now Randy knew that he couldn't trust Chris. Stephanie was right, it was all about momentum and Chris had the momentum, even if it was against someone he wasn't fighting again. It was the upper-hand and Chris wanted the upper-hand over everyone. Tonight it was Randy Orton, Friday, it might be Batista again. All he knew was that he wanted to come out on top and nobody was going to stop him. He liked being on both shows. It felt like the entire company bowed down to him.

And you know what, he liked that…a lot.


	251. 33 Years, September 25 to 28, 2009

A/N: Whew, another couple shows down. I love having Chris on both shows, but it's making for a lot of extra writing lol. Anyways, I might find myself super inspired to catch up because if there's anything I love more than Smoochy it's a good H/Jericho confrontation. Isn't that tension between them just so raw and real? I seriously want to write that for HaK so I might just totally go for it if I have the time. I hope you like this chapter though and that it will tide you over until I do get to that awesome Chris/H stuff. Reviews are very much loved and appreciated and tell me what I need to work on and what works, so please leave one, thanks, enjoy. :)

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Stephanie opened her eyes as she turned on her back, taking a deep breath that only came when one was just awake. She looked to her right and saw that it was that the sky was just starting to turn light, but she wouldn't call it morning. She had to go to the bathroom so she gently got out of bed and went to the bathroom before she headed out into the hallway to check on the kids since she was up anyways. Then she would head back into bed.

She went to Sawyer's room first since it was closer and opened the door slowly so it wouldn't squeak and wake him up. She peeked her head inside and saw Sawyer lost in the covers of his big boy bed. His hand was hanging off the edge and he was facing away from her. She walked in further and untangled him a little from his blanket and brushed his hair out of his face softly. She left him then and went to Flynn's room. She walked up to Flynn's crib and watched Flynn's chest rise and fall slowly as she lay on her back, her head tilted off to one side and a line of drool falling from her mouth to a little wet spot on the crib liner below. Stephanie laughed softly and let the girl sleep before she went back to her room.

She climbed back into bed and as if sensing her presence was back, Chris moved his hand so it was laying on her stomach. He was on his stomach, his head facing away from her and she grabbed his hand and started playing with his fingers, pushing one up and then the other and generally just messing around with them as he slept. She glanced over at him every now and then to see if she was bothering him, but the rhythmic breathing reassured her that this wasn't even registering with him right now. She let his hand rest on her stomach as she ran her fingers up and down his hand to his wrist and then back up again as she stared up at the ceiling as the light started to get a little brighter, minute by minute.

"I can feel you, you know," Chris mumbled to her.

"Sorry," Stephanie said, but she didn't move.

"You know, both our kids sleep through the night so you don't have to be up this early."

"I know, I'm just thinking," she told him.

"What are you thinking about?"

"I'm going to be 33 tomorrow," she told him.

"I know," he told her, "now go back to sleep."

"Chris, I'm going to be 33, do you get how big that is? I'm getting older. 33 isn't young anymore, I'm approaching my mid-30's."

"I'm 38 so don't worry about it," Chris said, even though he still wasn't facing her.

"It's like, when did I get here? How did I get here?"

"You know, it's a little early for the mid-life crisis, I'm the one who should be going out and getting my ears pierced and buying ridiculously expensive cars and leaving my family to date a woman 20 years younger than me."

"Your ears are pierced, you do have one ridiculously expensive car in the garage that you _never_ drive and you wouldn't leave me."

"Okay, so I can't have a midlife crisis, got it," he said, "neither should you, go to sleep."

"I'm just trying to think about how I got here, with you, with the kids, how did I end up with 2 kids in the first place, you know? I mean, I know how they came to be, but when I pictured myself at 33, I don't know, I mean, not that I pictured myself specifically at 33 or anything, but I guess when I was younger, I didn't picture myself with kids, is that bad?"

"No, that's not bad, some people don't."

"I remember once, I was at the store and there was this woman in front of me and she had twins and the little boy was pushing the cart. He couldn't have been much younger than Sawyer was. The little boy made this face and all these women around me were laughing and cooing over it because it was supposedly adorable. I just stood there thinking that _this_ was something they thought was cute, it wasn't even cute."

"It wasn't your kid, now you think everything that Sawyer does is cute or Flynn does."

"I know, I just don't know when I changed," she said. "I don't know where the time went. I mean, I sometimes feel like I lost my 20's."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Just, I didn't do the things normal 20-something's do. I spent some of it at school and then when I was done with that, I came immediately to the company and then, lost years."

Chris chuckled, his laughs still laced with sleep, "Steph, they weren't lost years."

"Yes, they were, what are your 20's like, Chris? You have to tell me."

"Stephanie, I spent my twenties working my ass off trying to get to the WWF only to end up here, talking to my wife at God knows what hour about her supposed lost years."

"I'm just saying I never really got to experience my 20's like most people, I bet yours were more normal than mine were."

"Yeah, I'm so sure," he said, adjusting his head into his pillow. "I'm so sure that I was more normal, what with my not even really having a home and living from country to country while you were actually experiencing college life."

"Yeah, college life, where I studied all the time so I could graduate on time so I could join the company."

"The company that you love."

"Do you think I wasted my time doing that?"

"No, because you love what you do."

"I know, but there has to be more to life than this, right? I mean, just working and everything, there has to be more to it and maybe I missed that more when I didn't get to _live_. I know people talk about sowing their wild oats, what if I didn't do that? When I came into the company, I jumped into a relationship with Andrew and then I ended up married to Hunter and then I divorced him and started dating you and there went my twenties and I've been with you for the past seven years and I've never really had that time to just be a single, twenty-something girl who gets to go out."

"So you want me to invent a time machine so you can go back?"

"No, very funny," she said, continuing to play with his fingers.

"Then you're saying you want to leave us and go date Ted?"

"Yes, Chris, I'm going to leave you to go date a guy that you work with that you have access to, who you would beat within an inch of his life," Stephanie said.

"I'm just clarifying whose ass I'm going to have to kick around here."

"I'm just thinking about getting older, will you indulge me, please?"

"Okay, I'm indulging you, but when I turn 39 in November, I'm going to do the same thing to you and keep you up while _you're_ trying to sleep, is that fair?"

"Yes, it's fair," she said. "I just, I'm just thinking, I'm allowed to think, you know."

"No, really, I thought you had a microchip in your brain that told you when you could think."

She slapped his hand and then started tugging on his arm. Chris groaned and turned on his side facing her and then scooted himself over so she'd stop pulling on his arm until she pulled it right off his body. He put his arm around her waist and curled it so it was underneath her body as he pulled her tighter against him, meeting her in the middle of the bed where it ceased to be her side or his side, but just their bed. He rested his head against her chest as she rubbed his upper back. He kissed the spot where her neck met her chest and then closed his eyes.

"I just hate getting older."

"Everyone does, except teenagers, they like getting older because they think it'll be easier and then aren't they in for a big surprise," he laughed softly.

"I just feel like time has gone by so fast and then when I think about where it's gone, al I see is this blur of work and relationships I didn't really want and then tried to get out of by stupid means, I mean, with Andrew, I married Hunter on a whim, then with Hunter, I faked a pregnancy, then with you, I'm planning to set you up to where I'd find you in a compromising situation with her and then I'll divorce you, all the while making you look like the bad guy."

"Good plan, but I'm a _little_ more faithful than that, thanks," he told her, his voice starting to slow down a little bit. "And time isn't going by too fast."

"Flynn is already a year old and talking and walking and everything," she pointed out. "It feels like yesterday she was just a newborn and she didn't do anything."

"Well, that I'll agree with."

"Chris, will you promise me something?"

"What do you want me to promise?" he asked because then maybe he would finally be able to get some sleep and not have his wife talk his ear off while he tried to rest in bed. The room was starting to get light too and pretty soon he wouldn't be able to fall back asleep.

"Can we just let my birthday pass with nothing, like, I don't want you to do anything, please? I don't want to go out to dinner, I don't want a cake or cupcakes or a birthday kiss or anything. I just want it to pass by quietly like any other day, please?"

"Well, I can't promise that because of the kids, but I won't do anything for you, okay?"

"Thank you," she said, kissing his forehead before she settled back into bed, letting herself get used to Chris's weight on her. "I love you."

"I love you too."

"Thank you for listening to me even when I know I sound stupid and act like I haven't had the best life when I obviously have a great life. Don't mistake me being all weird for not being happy with what I have."

"Mmhmm," he said, already halfway back to sleep.

"I love my life with you."

"Yeah," he mumbled, sleep coming faster and faster upon him and it would slowly start to slither its way up to her.

"Chris?"

"Hmm?"

"Never get old, okay, just…never get old," she whispered to him as sleep started to reclaim her as well.

"Okay," his voice rang out to the empty room as he made a promise he couldn't keep to the woman he would do anything for.

Stephanie proudly showed off the macaroni necklace Sawyer had made for her and given her for her birthday at SmackDown on Friday night. She didn't care about the looks she was getting. Sawyer had lovingly painted each piece of macaroni in her favorite colors and then strung them together for her and the look on his face when he saw she was wearing it was more than enough to make up for a million weird looks. He just looked so happy and proud that she liked it.

"I make that for my mommy," Sawyer told Teddy when he'd come up to Stephanie after he'd been released from Undertaker's coffin.

"Stephanie, did you see what happened to me?" Teddy said.

"I saw, I don't know what to say," she said, even as she was snickering. She couldn't help it, it was just so ridiculous what had happened with Teddy the week before. The look on his face when he'd found out that Undertaker had been in the limo was priceless. She wasn't going to be mean and emulate it, but she and Chris had a great laugh over it when they'd watched it over. Then to have Teddy just show up in a coffin, it was icing on the cake.

"I don't even know what's been going on, I feel like I've been in a daze."

"Being kidnapped by Taker will do that," she said, speaking from experience, there was _another_ strange thing from her twenties, nearly being married to Taker in some demented black wedding. She looked down to Sawyer, trying to picture him with long, black hair covering his face and a little leather jacket. She laughed at that picture.

"I can't believe that happened, but I have to go along with what he wants, I have to!" Teddy said, obviously still shaken up from his experience.

"It was my mommy's birfday and I gave her pweasent," Sawyer said, jumping up and down trying to get Teddy's attention.

"I just…the things I think I saw, have you ever been trapped in a _coffin_?" Teddy said, shaking his hands and shivering.

"She had no cake, but she gave me cookie," Sawyer said, still trying to get a conversation out of this man. The least he could do was acknowledge that he had given his mommy a very beautiful necklace that she was wearing right now. He hadn't even told her to wear it! She'd said that it was so pretty she would feel very honored to wear it and that made him very happy.

"Baby boy, I don't think Teddy is in the mood to talk about my birthday," Stephanie told her son gently. She looked down and saw that familiar furrowed brow look of incredulity, like everyone should want to hear about what he had to say. This kid was going to command some attention in the ring in his time, that was for sure.

"But why?" Sawyer asked, looking at Teddy, "why you no hear about Mommy?"

"Look, I'm just a little shaken up here," Teddy said, trying to remain calm, but he was looking around like Taker was going to pop out of the wall next to him and knowing Taker, he might just do that.

"I don't think he's going to come after you right now," Stephanie told Teddy. "I don't think he would be stupid enough to go at you in broad daylight like this. Besides, you gave in to his demands, he doesn't really have more use for you until he wants something else."

"I highly doubt that he would do something like this to you."

"Well, after he kidnapped me and wanted me to be his black bride, we sort of came to an understanding of sorts. He's more of an ally now than anything else. That really stems from the fact that I've done him favors, have you ever really done him a favor, maybe if you did then he would be grateful towards you."

"Well that's an interesting idea," Teddy said.

"You should listen," Sawyer said, angry now that he was being ignored.

"Sawyer, we will go and tell everyone else about what you got me, okay?" she told him, looking down at him and ruffling his hair a little.

"Okay," Sawyer said, glaring at Teddy.

"Why don't you go get yourself cleaned up or something, you look like hell," Stephanie said, then covered her mouth and her smile. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean that, I mean, you do look a little worse for the wear, but I guess I shouldn't have said it in quite that way, I mean, it's not like he actually _took_ you to hell or something, Taker just likes to intimidate people."

"You call that intimidation?" Teddy asked in surprise. "You think that he's just out there to intimidate people? No, no, he wanted me to go insane, he wanted to drive me insane so he could brainwash me or something. I think that's what he wanted me to do, to be brainwashed so he could control the show."

"After you get cleaned up, maybe a nice nap is in order, a very long nap, like, away from here, from the arena, from Taker."

"He can get you wherever you want. He can come at you wherever you are," Teddy said, looking around again. "You're not safe anywhere, Stephanie, not anymore, you're not safe anywhere."

"Teddy, would you like us to escort you to your locker room?" Stephanie asked, talking to him like she talked to her kids when they didn't want to do something, but she wanted them to do that something.

"No, no, I'm fine," Teddy said, but he was still acting scared.

"I'll call security and they can escort you."

"They could be working for _him_, they could be his druids!" Teddy said.

Stephanie pursed her lips together and looked at Sawyer, widening her eyes and making a little bit of a funny face. Sawyer laughed at her. "I don't think they'd be druids, here, I'll call them." She took up her walkie-talkie and called for a couple security guards to her location and waiting there until they arrived to assure Teddy that they were not druids and were not going to kidnap him again.

When he was gone, Stephanie shook her head and laughed at Sawyer, "Baby boy, sometimes I just don't what kind of people I work with. But you know what would be good?"

"What?" Sawyer asked, not knowing what would be good at all. He didn't even have a guess.

"If Teddy went crazy and then Grandpa would have no choice but to put me in charge of the show."

"Is that what you're doing?"

Stephanie turned around and saw her father standing there. She looked around, like he was a mirage or something. She shouldn't have been surprised though, her father had been hanging around ever since he'd put Teddy on observation. She'd chalked this up to him snooping around to see what kind of state the show was in and to see what kind of work she was doing. If that was the case, maybe she did have a chance to be the General Manager. Chris would love that, she thought. Not that he'd want her to do anything for him, he just liked that he could antagonize her without fear of reproach because she would never reveal their relationship in front of the cameras.

Still, she was surprised that he was right there, talking to her. Despite him being on the show, he never seemed to actually come up and talk to her. He did on occasion, mostly when Sawyer saw him and wanted to say hi or when Vince wanted to see Flynn, but he never came up and spoke business to her. He probably just wanted to observe her and see how she was doing, but she'd at least figured that he would come up to her and tell her what she was doing wrong (he'd never held back in the past), but nothing so this talking to her was a surprise.

"What?" she asked.

"Are you in cohorts with Taker to drive Teddy crazy so I'll fire him and hire you?" Vince asked, coming over to them.

"While that would be a brilliant plan on my part, no, I have nothing to do with that. I don't hate Teddy and I don't think he does a horrible job so I don't plan to have him ousted, I'm just saying if it should happen since you seem to want it to happen, that it would be beneficial towards me."

"Would it?"

"Well, considering I was _supposed_ to have the General Manager position of Raw before you so unceremoniously sold the show to Trump then bought it back, yes, it would be beneficial to me. I already run most of the technical aspect of it, I might as well run everything."

"I see, I see," Vince said.

"Gampa, I gave Mommy that," Sawyer said, pointing to his mommy's neck.

Vince looked at her neck, "It's beautiful."

"I think so," Stephanie said, running her fingers along her macaroni necklace, "he made it himself."

"I did," Sawyer said. "I made it wif school."

"I'm impressed," Vince said, then hugged his daughter, "Happy Birthday, Princess. I tried calling you yesterday, but nobody was answering."

"I didn't want to celebrate my birthday so I only got presents from the kids. Otherwise, I just let the day go by without any kind of fanfare, that was how I wanted it to be, but thank you for the sentiment, I appreciate that you and Mom thought about me."

"You're our daughter, we think about you."

She doubted that sometimes, but she didn't say anything lest she ruin this very special moment with her father, where neither one wanted to kill the other…at least not very much, there was always going to be a bit of animosity in this family. It was just how it was and how it always would be and you know what, she wouldn't change that. Sometimes, people were meant to argue, especially families. She'd never wanted to have one of those families like the Waltons or the Ingalls. She thrived on competition and fire and that's what her family gave her.

"Well, thank you, is there anything else you needed? I mean, I'm glad you remembered my birthday and--"

"Got you something," Vince said, handing Stephanie a small box.

"Dad, you didn't need to get me anything, really, I don't _need_ anything."

"It's just a little something, would you take it, it's from your mother and I. She wanted to be here, but she's busy working with some campaign manager or some other crap that has to do with her election."

"Dad, do you really want to call it crap when it means something to your mother?"

"I just don't see why she had to give up her position for something that might not even come to fruition."

"You did the same thing when you took the company, you saw something and you made it what it is, let her have this. If she doesn't win, then she can come back to her position and take over where she left off."

"I suppose you're right. Anyways, she'll be here for the Hell in a Cell show, so you can thank her in person then. I think she's just coming so she can see the grandkids, where's Flynn?"

"She's having a bad night, she's with Chris for now, he's trying to calm her down and so he took her out of the arena, thinking maybe she just needs to be alone."

"Oh, I'd love to see her," Vince commented, more a mumble to himself than anything. "Open your gift."

"I can pretty much tell it's jewelry," she said, shaking the box a little bit.

"Open pweasant, Mommy!" Sawyer said, jumping up and down. He wanted to know what was inside. He loved getting presents, they were best thing in the world because you never knew what you were going to get.

"Here, you can open it for me," she said, giving it to him.

"Weally?" Sawyer asked. He took it in his hands and he quickly ripped off the little bit of paper and threw it on the ground. Stephanie bent over and picked it up after him, not wanting him to litter. He opened it and it was something boring. "I no like it, Mommy."

Stephanie took the box and saw it was a bracelet. "Thanks, Dad."

"I know it doesn't compare to the necklace Sawyer gave you, but I thought you might like it."

"Thank you," she said, hugging her father. "I'll like it better when Flynn won't try to eat it."

Vince laughed, "That brings me back around to business."

"And I should've known this wasn't purely a social call."

"I've scheduled time for myself right before Big Show's match against Dave."

"I did see that and was wondering what it was for. You don't usually appear on SmackDown so it must be important."

"I've signed a guy and I want to introduce him. You might remember him, Drew McIntyre. I thought a formal introduction would be appropriate for someone of his caliber."

Stephanie raised an eyebrow. "I don't think I ever remember you introducing a guy. He must be something."

"He is, a future World Champion, that's how much confidence I have in him."

"Wow, well, okay," Stephanie said. "I won't go against you."

"Thatta girl," Vince said, patting her on the shoulder. "I'll see you later, I'm going to have a chat with him."

"Yeah, okay," she said, watching her father walk away. She wondered if this guy could really deliver. Knowing her father's penchant for not picking the greatest guys sometimes, she would believe it when she saw it.

Flynn wasn't feeling well. She'd gotten a cold and she felt miserable and she didn't want anyone touching her. She kept crying because nobody would just leave her alone. She was in a car with her daddy right now and they were just sitting in there, not going anywhere. Still, she was upset and didn't want to stop crying. Chris was sitting in the front seat trying to figure out a way to get his daughter to stop crying and fall asleep. If she was asleep, she'd be okay, but she was being very stubborn and not sleeping at all, not even attempting it. He'd already driven around twice, trying to le the car's rocking lull her to sleep, but it was to no avail. She'd nod off for a moment, but then she would start crying again and he'd have to drive back to the arena. He'd made sure to note when Big Show's match would be so he wasn't late.

"Flynn, please stop crying," Chris said, closing his eyes as he leaned his head back against the headrest, please. Her crying was starting to get to him too. It hurt him to hear her in such agony. Her face was red from all her crying and was still scrunched up and her tears had dried to her cheeks, making her a very pitiful picture indeed.

"Dada!" she wailed, then added, "Sawa!" Her cries were hitting him in the gut and he could feel tears form in his own eyes, partly out of frustration, but mostly because it hurt him to hear his daughter like this, in such a way that nothing could comfort her and her Sawyer wasn't even here.

"Sawyer's inside with Mommy, flutterby," he told her. "He was around earlier and you didn't want him touching you so he went with Mommy."

"Sawa," she whimpered, not knowing where her brother was. "Dada!"

Chris turned on the car again and then thought that maybe her music would soothe her. He grabbed the CD case he always brought with him and flipped through his own metal CD's to get to the ones set aside for his kids. He grabbed Flynn's favorite ones, a CD of nursery rhymes updated to sound like rock songs (she was a girl after his own heart) and stuck it in the CD player, turning it on. Then he got out of the car and climbed into the backseat to sit next to her. She reached her arms towards him, struggling against her car-seat.

"Now you want me to hold you?" he said and he grabbed her, taking her in his arms and she grabbed fistfuls of his t-shirt. He got back out of the car and went into the front seat, sitting in the passenger seat as he let her lean against him. He rubbed her back as she listened to the CD, which she loved. He was also desperate so he grabbed Flynn's bag and got her a pacifier. She only ever used these every once in a while when she was really cranky, otherwise, she hated the things and hadn't liked them since she was about four months old whereas Sawyer had not wanted to give up the pacifier for a while.

"Shh," Chris said, just rubbing her back and murmuring words into her ear to try and calm her down. The music did the trick and she was asleep in about ten minutes and he sighed. He barely moved for another ten minutes, just sitting there rubbing her back just in case she woke up and had stored up more energy to wail and cry. She didn't move though, just kept sleeping and he was grateful for that because he only had another 12 minutes before Show's match against Dave.

He grabbed his cell phone and with one hand managed to text Stephanie that Flynn had fallen asleep and could she come get her. Stephanie showed up about three minutes later, Sawyer running ahead of her and jumping at the car, slapping his hands against the window, leaving the imprint of two little hands on the glass. "Daddy, Daddy! I tol' all people about my pweasant!" he yelled through the glass, standing on his tiptoes to try to look into the car.

"Shh," Chris said, pressing his free hand to his lips as Stephanie opened the door.

"What finally got her?" Stephanie whispered.

"I put her CD on for her and then she wanted me, well, me and Sawyer."

"Typical," Stephanie said as Stephanie reached over him and turned off the car and took the key out. Chris carefully got out of the car and stood up, stretching his legs a little. "Let me take her."

"Careful, I don't want her waking up."

"She's probably down for the count," Stephanie said, "I wouldn't be surprised if she cried herself tired more than anything else."

"Probably," Chris said as Stephanie lifted the girl into her arms, pressing Flynn against her chest.

"Get going, Show's match is soon," she told him.

"I'm going," Chris said, pecking Stephanie on the lips and lifting up Sawyer to kiss him before going back into the arena.

"I'm going to crush your little friend, Chris," Dave said.

"You know, you used to be so cool, what the hell happened?" Chris asked of him.

"_You're_ asking _me_ that? I think it should be the other way around, what the hell happened to _you_? You used to be a cool guy. I know that we were friends, through your wife or whatever, but still, you use to be a lot cooler than you are now. Now you're just a jackass. But I really should thank you, now that you've given up on your fans, they've become _my_ fans."

"Yeah right," Chris said. "They still like me better, even though I don't need any of those parasites."

"Oh, okay, sure, let that keep you warm at night."

"It will," Chris said, "this jealousy you have over me, it's really very unbecoming, Dave, I know that you really want to be like me, you wish you could be as bold as I am, giving up on those peons who cheer for you, but you don't have the guts, you don't have the guts to do what I've done and that's why you want to fight me, because you're jealous of me."

"Ha! I don't think so."

"I think so, that's okay, nobody can be me," Chris said, "so don't even try, see you out there."

Chris hated it when he didn't get the last word. The only person who could get the last word with him and get away with it was Stephanie and that was only because he loved her more than any other person in the world save his kids. Otherwise, because he loved to mouth off at people, he wanted the upper-hand at the end of every conversation. It was just in his nature. So when Dave got him in that ankle-lock after Show's match with Dave, Chris was pissed. He was pissed because he'd tapped like a little fool, like a fool and he didn't like looking like a fool.

He shouldn't have gotten into that predicament in the first place. He could break free from a damn ankle-lock, he'd done it for years when he'd faced Kurt. But instead he'd been a stupid idiot and he was kicking himself for it now. He was better than that and better than Dave and by acting like a little bitch, he'd let Dave get the last word and that's what really killed him. Now Dave was going to think he was definitely better than Chris.

That manifested itself when Dave said he was going to challenge Chris and Show to a match at the Hell in a Cell show and apparently he was bringing along Rey as his partner, as if to add insult to injury. He and Rey had no love lost between the both of them so it was just perfect that Dave would pick him to be his partner. Now that Dave believed that he was better than Chris, he thought he was going to take the tag titles too. No, just no. Chris may have looked like the fool once, but he never looked like the fool twice.

"What's up with you tonight?" Chris asked.

"Huh, what?" Stephanie asked, looking over at him.

"You've been distracted all day, I mean, I know that you're allowed, but it's Raw tonight and I thought that maybe you would be interested in the show like you usually are."

"I'm interested," Stephanie said with a nod. "Believe me, I'm interested."

"Yeah, but you're acting all distracted like you're a million miles away. I'm kind of anxious to see and meet Al Sharpton. I mean, he's one of those people that you always hear about and see on TV, but you never really think they can actually exist."

"That makes no sense."

"I don't know, he just seems like he'd have a lot of great stories to tell, you know."

"Yeah," Stephanie said.

"Seriously, what is up with you…oh my God, you're pregnant again, aren't you? Oh God, when did you find out? Have you been keeping it from me again? How far along are you? Oh my God, another kid, you're going to kill me, aren't you?"

"Settle down, Jericho, I'm not pregnant," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "At least not that I'm aware of, so don't worry about another little bundle of joy creeping up on us just yet."

"So what is it then?"

"I'm not distracted, you're crazy."

"You're crazy, Daddy," Sawyer said, emulating his mommy.

"You know, I'm really getting annoyed with your repeating act," Chris said good-naturedly at his son. "You sure you're okay? Anything you want to tell me? Or is this just like a 33-year-old thing?"

"It's not a 33-year-old thing so you can just shut up," she said. "I'm just sitting here."

"Yeah, looking distracted."

"Guys, I've popped, look!" Trish said, bursting into the room, Christian following close behind her. Things were still a little bit on the icy side, but Christian was trying to work through it the best he could. Chris's words had been haunting him and ultimately, Chris was right.

"_Trish!" Christian called out into the house._

_Trish walked into the foyer from the kitchen. "Chrissy? You're home."_

"_Hey," he said, taking a few steps towards her and then stopping. "I was hoping you'd be here."_

"_Well, you probably saw my car in the driveway, how could you think I wasn't home?"_

"_I don't know, thought you might be out with Lita or something, maybe Stephanie."_

"_They're not here right now," Trish said. "I'm really glad you're back."_

_Christian noticed that she hadn't made any steps towards him and that she seemed hesitant to even take one more step so he came a few steps closer and tried to give her a smile, but he feared it came off more like a grimace. "I'm really glad I'm back too, how have you been?"_

"_I've been good," Trish said. "I had an appointment with Dr. Sheldon, just to double check with everything. You know, make sure that everything was going well…or okay, or whatever."_

"_And are they?"_

"_Yeah, the baby is just fine and I'm fine and she gave me a bit of a lecture about it, but she said that a lot of people underestimate how much padding and stuff there really is so that I was going to be fine and I should come in next week for the scheduled ultrasound, she said we'll be able to find out the sex of the baby."_

"_Wow, that'll be crazy, I mean, I know we're not sure if we want to know, but just the fact that we _can _know, that it's either a boy or a girl…wait, I mean, you know what I mean."_

"_I do," she said, still not moving closer to him. "Did you want to be there?"_

"_Absolutely, I absolutely want to be there," he told her with a nod. "Trish, I'm really sorry about the way I've been acting. I'm still mad over what you did, that you took that risk and it's going to take me some time to get over that, but I _will_ get over it, I promise you that. I'll get over it and then things will be okay, but I'm just not over it yet."_

"_I'm really sorry."_

"_I just want things to go back to normal. I was talking with Chris, well, he was lecturing at me, but we were talking and he basically said that I'm missing out on this time and it's really special and it's our first kid and I shouldn't spend your pregnancy away from you and he's right. I see that he's right and I shouldn't let my feelings get in the way of being around when I _do_ want to be around."_

_  
"I missed you," she told him._

_Christian took her in his arms and hugged her tightly, "I missed you too."_

"You've popped?" Chris asked. "So you exploded and Christian put you back together?"

"Very funny," Trish said, "but I'm actually starting to show!"

"That's great," Stephanie said, "show it off!"

Trish turned to her side and indeed, you could tell that she was definitely pregnant and not just putting on a few pounds. She ran her hand over her stomach to showcase it even more and it was definitely protruding out. "See, can you see?"

"I can see," Chris said, "It's very nice, you've got a very nice, pregnant body."

"It's like it's really real," Trish said, biting her lip. "I can't believe it, I mean, you know it's real, but then you see this and it's like, wow, this is _really_ real and I'm so excited, Stephanie, you didn't tell me how exciting this is!"

"It's exciting!" Stephanie said with a laugh. "And make it last too, because you only ever get to be pregnant for a first time once, after that, you're used to it and it's just like, oh man, am I pregnant _again_, what a bummer?"

"I think Flynn resents that," Chris said, but Flynn was still a little bit sick and lying on the couch, a pacifier in her mouth and her head on her Sleeping Beauty pillowcase with a quilt over her. She was content to just watch what everyone was doing and as long as Sawyer came by to say hi every so often, she was fine.

"She's too sick to resent anything," Stephanie said. "Chris just thought I was pregnant."

"What? You're pregnant?" Trish said. "Our kids can be best friends!"

"I'm not pregnant, he thought I was distracted and started saying that I was pregnant, I'm not, at least as far as I know," she added. "But now you can go around getting sympathy from every woman for being pregnant."

"I felt the baby too! Did I tell you?"

"No!" Stephanie said, standing up now. "Oh my God, you felt it."

"Yeah, it was like this weird flutter, like butterflies in the stomach, but different, it was crazy. I didn't know what it was, but then I was like, I've never felt anything like it before and then I felt like this very light tapping against my abdomen and I freaked out, Chrissy, didn't I freak out?"

"She might have jumped up and screamed, yes," Christian said.

"Oh man, I remember the first time I felt Sawyer, it was something else, I immediately wanted Chris to feel even though he really couldn't feel it."

"Yeah, Christian tried, but he couldn't."

"With Flynn, feeling her moving around for the first time just really helped that bond between us."

"Oh, me too, I know what you mean."

"Okay, I've got to get out of here," Chris said, "the estrogen streaming through here is making me crazy. I might start growing boobs or something."

"That would actually be very convenient," Stephanie said, "because then you wouldn't come looking to me to cop a feel."

"That is true, I'm out, ladies, you coming with me, Christian?"

"Nah, I think I'll stay and risk the boob growing."

"Suit yourself," Chris said, slapping him on the back. "Sawyer, you want to come with me for a walk?"

"No," Sawyer said, standing next to Flynn, who was looking up at him as she lay there on the couch. He'd come over to say hi to her and was brushing her hair out of her face like his mommy did when he wasn't feeling well. "I help take care of Fwynn."

"Oh, I'm sorry, Dr. Jericho, I'll let you get back to the patient," Chris told him.

"Don't put doctor thoughts in his head," Stephanie said. "He's going to be a wrestler."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Chris said, "the best of the best."

"You're pretty calm for someone in a gauntlet match later," Trish pointed out.

"I'm not the one going through the gauntlet," Chris shrugged, "my only job is to kick the ever loving shi…shnike out of Cena."

"Good save," Stephanie said.

"I know, later," he said, leaving the room and going for a walk. The show was starting soon and he thought about meeting up with Randy and Show to talk strategy. Since Randy wasn't the one going through the gauntlet this week, he'd been trying to be buddy-buddy with Chris. He could be such a suck-up. Like Chris was just going to completely forget the fact that Randy had kissed his wife while unconscious. Still, it would be a good idea to talk strategy with the two of them so they could coordinate who was going first, second and last and just how much they wanted to beat on Cena, which he figured would basically be a free-for-all.

"Jericho, just the man I wanted to see."

Chris turned around, "You wanted to see me, Trips?"

"Well, you, your wife, whoever," Hunter said.

"You seem to be in good spirits, did you get back together with Britt or what?"

"No, if she wants to act like a baby, fine, let her act like a baby. I'm having a great time with Shawn back so I'm going to enjoy that and if she doesn't like it, then so what, she can do what she wants, she already is."

Chris slapped his forehead. "I can't believe what I'm surrounded by."

"I'm not going to let her dictate what happens, I'm just not."

"Fine, if that's how you want to live your life, if you'd like to be _alone_, then by all means, be alone."

"Shut up, you don't know what it's like anymore, you've been out of the dating scene for a really long time, if she wants to leave, fine, all she has to do is move her stuff out of my place."

"What happened?" Chris asked, knowing something had prompted this.

"Nothing," Hunter said defensively. "Look, I don't want to talk about it and it's not any of your business anyways. I can talk to Shawn about it."

"Yeah, because that guy will have all the best advice for you and won't try to skew you in any way towards letting Britt dump you so he can live vicariously through you," Chris said, rolling his eyes.

"I'm not discussing it, I want to discuss business."

"You've come to the wrong Jericho."

"I know, believe me, but the other Jericho tends to be a bit of a bitch and I don't think I want to deal with her berating me because of the choices I make. It makes me feel like we're back to being married and she's nagging my ass off."

"My wife doesn't nag."

"Oh come on, man, she nags the hell out of you and you know it."

"Whatever, maybe you should bring it up with one of the other Jerichos, Flynn isn't feeling well so she might scream your ear off if you bug her, Sawyer though, he's in a good mood, he's been helping with Flynn, so you might want to go to him. Vince is here, but Vince doesn't like you."

"Yeah, so I'm going to stick with you," Hunter said. "I needed the keys for one of the boxes."

"What boxes, like those boxes?" Chris asked, pointing to some boxes behind Hunter.

"No, not _those _kind of boxes, the luxury boxes, you know, between the lower level and the upper level."

"Why do you want one of those?" Chris asked suspiciously.

"Legacy has an in-ring promo and Shawn and I have a little surprise for them?"

"What are you going to dump a bunch of crap on them?"

"No," Hunter scoffed. "I just need the keys."

"Again, not up to me, go to the wife."

"Damn, you're just going to make this hard on me, aren't you?"

"I live for that, don't you know it by now?" Chris said, "Good luck with her. I actually think she's in a good mood right now, so you might luck out and not get smacked down by her and her steel hand."

"I hate you, I really do."

"Good," Chris said. "I've got to go find Show and talk to him about tonight."

Their talking end up being them walking out to greet MVP and Mark Henry in the ring. As much as he was praising Al Sharpton, a lot of that had to do with one-upping MVP. It wasn't like Chris thought Sharpton was a bad man or anything like that, Chris was honestly curious about the man, but it went back to him having the upper-hand in things. He just wanted to show up Mark Henry and MVP. Plus, MVP had this stupid MVP Lounge or whatever he called it, which was obviously just a cheap imitation of the Highlight Reel.

He didn't expect to be put in a match, but he had no choice but to face MVP and Henry for his tag team titles. He was a little worried about wrestling two matches in one night. In his younger days, this would be no problem, he could probably wrestle all day, but he was getting older now and it was getting harder to have multiple matches in a couple days, let alone in one night, within a couple hours of each other. He was going to be so sore tomorrow. He'd have to have Stephanie give him a massage tonight.

He didn't have much choice than to go through with the match. He was just thankful that it was a tag team match and not a one-on-one so he could get some intermittent breaks in between wrestling. It was funny how sought after he and Show were now. It was like everyone wanted to go through them, wanted to test them, see if they were real deal and every time, they came out on top and Chris couldn't see anyone beating them. Everyone wanted the privilege of being on both shows, that's why they wanted a crack at him, but with Show at his side, they could take any and all takers.

And that's why they won the match.

"Stephanie?"

"Oh hey, idiot."

"Idiot," Sawyer mimicked from where he was sitting with Flynn, who smiled at Hunter around her pacifier. "That Twip, Fywnn."

"Hi," Flynn mumbled around her pacifier.

"Chris is right, you need to stop repeating things, Sawyer, don't say idiot around Daddy, he'll know it was me."

"Okay," Sawyer said.

"So, Hunter," Stephanie said, "what are you doing here?"

"I don't want a lecture, I just want the keys for the luxury boxes, I have something planned for Legacy."

"For Ted?"

"For _Legacy_. I am facing them this Sunday."

"I know," Stephanie said. "Are you going to dump something on them?"

"What? Do you and Chris have telepathy or something, no, we're not dumping anything on them, I can't believe you think we'd be so childish."

"I don't usually think you are, but Shawn, yeah, I think he's just the right smidge of childish to do it."

"I have him in check."

"I'm sure it's the other way around," she muttered as she grabbed at the keys she had on her belt. "You're lucky I have these tonight and not my dad, he's not too fond of you."

"So I've heard," Hunter said as Stephanie handed him the keys. She didn't let him get them at first and he tugged at them a little.

"Don't be stupid, Hunter," she told him, then let go of the keys.

"Believe me, I'm not going to be."

"You already are."

"Stephanie…"

"Sorry, no lecture, but you are."

When Chris got Cena into the ring later that evening, it was like he was making up for everything he'd been through in the last week, especially with Dave. He had no grudges against Cena right now, other than Cena being the usual pandering jerk that he was. No, he pictured Dave in the ring against him and he used what Dave had done to him on Friday as motivation for his match, not like he needed much, but still, it helped to have that little extra boost. He'd spoken briefly with Randy before the match, but all the other man said was to make it hurt, so Chris interpreted that in his own way.

Chris had no love lost for Cena in general so making it hurt was easy for him. Cena was like a fly, he kept buzzing around Chris, testing him, knowing he could get away and Chris couldn't swat him fast enough. He'd never beaten Cena in a big match (not that he'd had many chances) so this was also a little retribution for him. Maybe that's why he didn't break the hold. He didn't really care what Randy wanted out of this match or what Randy wanted to do to Cena on Sunday. Randy said to make it hurt and that was fine, but Chris had his reasons for the aggression he showed Cena. It felt good to put him in that hold and just not let go. It felt ruthless, like he used to be, when he was just a bundle of raw talent and anger at being held back. When you were constantly at the top, some of that hunger dissipated. Sure, you hungered for the world title, sought it, coveted it, but there was a certain grittiness to being in the lower ranks, wanting to claw your way higher. That's what this felt like and damn did he like it.

"Trish, can you watch the kids for me?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, sure, where are you going?"

"I just had to get something from Hunter," Stephanie said.

"Okay, they're in good hands."

"Thanks," Stephanie said.

She walked down the hall, passing by the monitor to see Randy going out there for his match and she smiled. Chris had done well with his part of the gauntlet and he was probably acting all superior right now and bragging about it to anyone who'd listen. Maybe she'd feign sleep tonight so she wouldn't have to be one of the ones that heard it. She got to her destination and looked both ways, seeing who was around. When the only other person in the hallway at the moment turned a corner, she knocked on the door, waiting for it to open.

"You alone?"

"Yeah," Stephanie said. "Sorry I'm late."

"It's okay, I've been waiting for you."

Stephanie, "Well, I did give you a time to meet."

"You did, I thought you of all people would come on time, I mean, you seem to be on time for most things."

"Oh, I usually am, but I had to watch Chris's match."

"Yeah, I understand, so come on in."

"Why, Ted, I thought you'd never ask."


	252. The Confrontation, October 2 to 5, 2009

A/N: Thank you so much for the reviews! :D They make me so happy. Anyways, I totally love me a good H/Chris feud and it seems like we're kind of getting a mini-one right now, which, yay! I'm such a sucker for their feuds because the tension feels so real (I wonder why there's tension, heh) and since it looks like this is going to be building into something, this is kind of a build-up chapter. Hopefully you like it, leave a review if you do. Enjoy. :)

* * *

"Britt?"

Britt looked up and took a deep breath, "Oh hey, Christian, what are you doing here?"

"Well, it's the 10th anniversary thing for SmackDown and you know how there's that whole party going on and everyone is invited and everything so here I am, ready to party," he said, but his voice wasn't exactly the most jubilant.

"Where's Trish?"

"She's talking with some of the divas," Christian said. "They're all going crazy nuts over the baby."

"I thought you were crazy nuts over the baby," Britt said, trying to deflect attention away from her and why she was sitting outside the arena by herself, crying.

"I am crazy nuts," Christian said. "I'm just trying to give Trish a little bit of space. I tend to get a little…smothering for her and I know I haven't exactly been letting up since the incident with the baby, you know. I've kind of been watching her and I think that is freaking her out a little bit."

Britt laughed and looked down, "Yeah, that could get a little bit freaky."

"So what are you doing out here?" Christian asked her.

"Just getting some fresh air, there's so many people here tonight it's a little stifling," Britt told him, staring out into the darkness just beyond the parking lights. "It's just peaceful out here, away from everyone."

"Also cold," Christian said.

"What are you doing out here anyways?" Britt asked.

"Trish isn't feeling very well, just baby stuff, heartburn actually so she asked me to go to the store and pick up some antacids for her and since she's carrying my kid, I felt obligated to get her what she needed."

"That's nice of you."

"Well, she's my wife," Christian said, taking a seat next to Britt, "but I've got a few minutes before she calls me and asks me where the hell I am so if you wanted to talk, I've got the time. We are friends, right?"

"Yeah, we're friends," she said, nudging her shoulder against his. He laughed and nudged her back. "I really am okay, don't worry."

"That's why you're out here by yourself, all alone, where's Hunter?"

"I don't know," Britt said with a shrug, but it wasn't the kind of shrug that was careless or nonchalant, it was the kind of shrug that marked a kind of desolation and sadness. "I guess he's somewhere with Shawn."

"Again? Those guys spend more time together than any guys I've ever met."

"Believe me, I know," Britt said with a sarcastic laugh.

"Is that why you're out here?" he asked.

"Sort of, but I really just wanted to get away from everything for a while."

"But it's partly because of that?"

"I just feel so isolated, you know. Everyone and their mother is crooning over the return of DX and I'm the only one that's like, I want it to end, right now, this second so I can have _my_ Hunter back. The guy he is right now, that's not my boyfriend, not the guy I love, he's a two year old, it's really frustrating that he's two different guys when he gets around Shawn.

"I'm sorry."

"You have nothing to be sorry for, Christian, you're not him. Thanks for listening to me, I think I'll get back inside and you better get that to Trish before she gets mad."

"You sure you're okay?"

"I'm sure, I promise, but thanks for being a friend."

"You know it," he shrugged, then got up and left her alone, even though he didn't really want to leave her by herself. He could take a hint though, she would rather be alone right now and he didn't want to make her uncomfortable. He walked inside the arena and followed the sounds of the party to find his wife.

The party was already in full swing when he got there. Everyone from all the rosters were there and even some people who weren't on the show anymore had shown up. Edge had even made the trip up tonight with Lita, which was great for Edge because he'd been going kind of stir crazy in Florida without wrestling. Lita was being driven crazy by him too so it would be good for her. He scanned the room and thought he saw Vickie, but he couldn't be sure and hoped if that was her he'd just seen he didn't meet up with Edge because that could get pretty ugly.

He finally saw his wife in the corner talking to Maria. He walked over and wrapped his arm around her, kissing her cheek. "Hey, Maria."

"Hey, Christian, I was just congratulating Trish on the baby," Maria said with a smile. Everyone had pretty much dropped what happened with Trish when she was the guest host when they saw things were okay with her and Christian. Now the only thing left was excitement over a baby. "Congratulations to you too!"

"Thanks," Christian beamed. He never got tired of hearing things like that. He didn't think he was ever going to get tired of people talking about his kid. He and Trish were going to find out what the baby was next Wednesday. They'd had to push the appointment back a bit because of a yoga emergency at Trish's studio in Toronto. She'd needed to fly up there to check something so now he had to wait until next Wednesday to find out what his baby was going to be.

He didn't really care if it was a boy or a girl at this point. Maybe if he knew what his opinion might change, but right now he just wanted a healthy, cute baby. That was all he needed to be happy. He knew when Stephanie was pregnant with Sawyer, Chris had insisted that the baby was a boy and he only really, truly wanted a boy, but he just wasn't taking that mind-set. If it was a boy, great, if it was a girl, great. He could picture himself easily with both.

The baby's kicking and moving around had intensified according to Trish, but he was still having trouble feeling it. She would take his hand and press it to her stomach where the baby was supposedly moving, but the most he'd ever felt was very slight pressure against his hand. The baby wasn't terribly large at this point so it wasn't out of the ordinary for him not to feel the baby, but that didn't mean he didn't desperately want to feel it. Trish had confessed to him that it almost didn't seem real until the baby had started moving and though the pregnancy was very real to him, he could only imagine how much more real it would feel when he got to feel at least a little of what she was feeling.

"He's very excited," Trish said with a grin, cupping his cheek and moving it around a little. "He's been really sweet with all my pregnancy crap, like getting me stuff or holding my hair back when I was puking."

"That's so cute," Maria said and only in that instance could puking be cute.

"Did you get my stomach stuff?" Trish asked him.

"Right here," he said, holding up the bag.

"Okay, well, I'll talk to you later, Maria, I've been having heartburn all night, damn baby," Trish joked, "I don't want to be all weird taking this at everyone party so I'm going to go hide out for a while."

"Bye, Trish, it was great seeing you again," Maria said, giving Trish a really friendly hug. "Bye, Christian."

"Later," Christian said, his arm still around Trish's waist as they started to navigate their way through the mass of people partying and dancing around them, drinks in hand.

"Hey, bro, come over!" Edge said once Christian and Trish got to the hallway. Edge and Lita were sitting on top of a trunk . Chris and Sawyer were there too, Chris leaning against the wall as he held Sawyer in his arms, though Stephanie was conspicuously absent.

"Hey, guys," Christian said as they swung by where his brother and friends were at. "What's up?"

"I talk with Ed," Sawyer explained. "He is hurt in his leg."

"I know," Christian said, making a pouty face.

"He can't wewfle," Sawyer said.

"It's really too bad."

"Sawyer, my name is not Ed, God," Edge said. "Chris, would you start telling your kid to pronounce people's names correctly because it's pretty disrespectful of him to call me Ed."

"I like you," Sawyer told him with a smile.

"You try correcting that," Chris said. "He likes you, how can you hate that?"

"You make it very hard for people to not like you, do you know that?" Edge said to him.

"How did you get hurt?" Sawyer asked him.

Chris snickered, "Yeah, Edge, explain to my kid how you got hurt."

"Oh, so you just want _me_ to be the one to give your kid the sex talk, I see how it is now," Edge said.

"Edge!" Lita said, smacking him on the arm. "You shouldn't say that word around him, he's just a little boy."

"He's heard the word sex before I'm sure, what with his parents," Edge said.

"Dude, I'm sitting _right here_," Chris said with a scoff. "And what are you implying here with saying that Sawyer has probably heard that word before?"

"That you and Stephanie are like rabbits, constantly going at it, you're going to end up like that couple who has like 18 kids."

"I would rather get run over by a train than have 18 kids, I think Stephanie would bury me alive, for real, if I made her pregnant that many times. And Li's right, don't say that around my kid, he repeats everything nowadays."

"Fine, fine, I won't ruin his impressionable mind," Edge said. "I got it hurt when I was wrestling."

"My daddy no get hurt," Sawyer explained to him.

"Now he's bragging," Edge said, shaking his head. "You're a bragger, Sawyer Jericho. You're just like your dad."

"He is my daddy," Sawyer said, patting Chris on the chest.

"Hey, so like, what the hell is the deal with Hunter?" Christian asked.

"What do you mean?" Chris asked as Sawyer tried to drink some of the champagne that Chris had in his free hand. Sawyer had tried to tip Chris's glass back to try the drink. "What do you think you're doing?"

"I firsty," Sawyer told him.

"Well, this isn't a kid drink, it's a grown-up drink," Chris explained to him. "So what did you mean, Christian?"

"What you mean?" Sawyer echoed, Chris's own little mini-me.

"I just saw Britt sitting outside by herself and she'd obviously been crying and she said it was partly because of Hunter that she was sitting out there so I was wondering what the hell was up with him?"

"Who the hell knows anymore," Chris said, rolling his eyes. "He never has time for anyone except for Shawn. If you didn't know any better you would think that they were a couple or something, but he's been completely ignoring Britt. On top of that, he's acting like he has no clue as to why Britt is so upset."

"Dude, he's ignoring her?" Edge asked.

"Pretty much. He's always going out with Shawn and leaving Britt behind and then he doesn't even bother to tell her if he's going or anything, it's pretty crappy of him to do."

"She seems like she's breaking up over it."

"I think she is," Chris said with a sigh. "Whenever I talk to Hunter, he has no clue what's going on. Or he just acts like it…or he just doesn't know how to break up with Britt and so he's chickening out and not taking the hint."

"Dude, if I were single, I'd be all over her, she's like gorgeous," Edge said. "I would snatch up that ass so fast, you have no idea."

"Dude," Chris said, gesturing towards his son.

"Sorry."

"And dude," Lita said, looking over at him sternly.

"I said _if_ I was single," Edge told her. "So see, I'm not saying that I would do her right now, I like to think I have a little more propriety than that. Besides, I'm completely in love with you so you shouldn't worry when I say that I want to nail another girl."

"Which is all the damn time," Lita said.

"They're just words, I don't actually go around and nail them."

"Why do you nail people?" Sawyer asked. His daddy had said that nails were something that you made walls with and he couldn't understand why you would want to make a wall out of people?

"Would you just like to corrupt my kid any more, man?" Chris asked.

"Oh, Saw, you have no idea what you are in for in this world."

"So what's going to happen with Hunter?"

"He's going to lose her and right now, it'd probably give him a good kick in the ass," Chris said. "She's too good for him right now and if he wants to go off and act like a jerk to her, then so be it, let him do that and act like that."

"I guess, I just feel bad for her," Christian said.

"And we hate to cut this short," Trish said, "but my heartburn is killing me and my feet are swelling as we speak and so we're going to go."

"Sorry, guys," Christian said, being tugged away. "Later."

"You should talk to Hunter," Edge said. "You know, just so he isn't such a big jerk anymore."

"Dude, if he wants to be a jerk, me telling him not to be a jerk isn't going to stop him from being a jerk. We may be friends, but I don't think he's going to like that I'm calling him out for being a jerk. Would you want me to tell you when you're being a huge jerk?"

"You already do and if you don't, Christian does and if he doesn't, Li will definitely tell me if I'm being a jerk. Maybe we should all go tell Hunter he's being a huge jerk and just needs to cut all this crap."

"Yeah, he'll be like, 'grr, leave me alone, grr,'" Chris said, making Sawyer giggle at his daddy's imitation. Chris kissed him on the head.

"Not if he hears it from five different people, it could be like an intervention or something, we tell him he's being a jerk in a nice, safe environment."

"Of course Hunter will respond well to an intervention," Chris scoffed.

"Katie, Daddy, it Katie!" Sawyer said, pointing to the side where Katie had just left the party, probably needing a breather. "Katie!"

Katie turned and saw Sawyer waving at her frantically and she smiled and started to saunter over. "So the kid can't say Edge if his life depended on it, but Katie he gets on the first try."

"Dude, grow a body like that and a face like that and the monster will remember your name," Chris said, setting Sawyer down so he could run towards Katie. "I'm surprised he's not checking his hair out or anything, he did just get a haircut, we had a Dad/son haircut day."

"Congratulations," Edge said drolly, not quite getting the significance of father/son time. Growing up it had been his mom and grandma who raised him and his brother and his dad had been a huge deadbeat so he never had that time with his father. Maybe _that_ was why his hair was so long.

"Hi, Katie!" Sawyer said as Katie scooped him up in her arms as he approached. "You look pwetty."

"Well thank you, you know you are the _first_ person to tell me that tonight, I think that means you are going to be my number one guy for the evening," Katie said, then gave him a kiss on the cheek, "Thank you for being the sweetest boy here."

"Dude, he's practically getting to first base," Edge said, throwing up his hand for Chris to slap.

Chris just looked at him in bewilderment. "You're the weirdest guy I've ever known," Chris told him, then smiled as Katie came over with Sawyer. "Hey Kates, what's up?" he said, using the nickname she had told him to use since most of her friends called her that.

"Nothing, just needed out of the party for a while, getting a little crazy in there," she said. "Have you been in there?"

"Nah," Chris said, "Stephanie was, she got me something to drink, but I didn't really want to make an appearance. Not sure I'd really be welcome in there."

"Have you guys?" Katie asked Edge and Lita.

"Word has it there's a person in there that I'm not sure I want to see right now," Edge said. "Not looking forward to _that_ conversation, hoping it never happens."

"Stephanie said she brought someone," Chris said.

Edge's head snapped up. "Brought someone?"

"A new boyfriend or something."

"Boyfriend, she has a boyfriend?"

"Dude, you're not married to her anymore, what do you care?"

"I don't care," Edge said, "I really don't care. Where's your wife, by the way?"

"Around, I'm really not too sure."

Flynn had tired of playing with the one toy her mommy had brought with them and she walked over to where her mommy was sitting and laid herself out over her mommy's legs to show her boredom. She wanted to go back to her mommy's office where all her toys were and maybe Sawyer was there too and she missed her brother. Why were her parents always taking her away from her Sawyer?

"Mama," Flynn whined, staring pleadingly up at Stephanie.

"Oh, Flynnie," Stephanie said, "we're almost done here, I promise, then we can go back to your toys, okay?"

"Sawa?"

"I think Sawyer will be there too and if he isn't, we'll track him down and find him, okay?" Stephanie told her calmly. Flynn let out a little keening whine, not liking that they weren't going to go right this second to find her Sawyer. What if he was playing with someone else and she wasn't getting to play with him? How as that going to be fair? He could be with her toys and she wasn't there!

"Sawa," Flynn whined in her squeaky, little voice.

"She's a real charmer," Ted drawled and Stephanie laughed and rolled her eyes.

"She's not usually like this, she's actually the most calm baby you'll ever meet. She just wants her brother right now and since he's not here, she's bored. I guarantee if he were here, she wouldn't care about toys or anything, she'd be perfectly fine."

"So she's just into her big brother?"

"Yeah, he loves her, she loves him, we could pretty much tell him to raise her and he'd kick me out of the house so I wouldn't interfere," Stephanie laughed.

"Is he a pushy little kid?"

"Yes, yes he is," Stephanie joked. "I think that's a victim of environment really…or you know, me and Chris being kind of pushy, him more so though, I'm not too pushy, he's pushy, definitely pushy."

"Sawa!" Flynn yelled all of a sudden causing both Stephanie and Ted to jump.

"Wow, she's got some lungs," Ted said, "May I?"

"Um, yeah, sure," Stephanie said.

Ted got up and knelt down next to Flynn. "Hey there, remember me?"

Flynn looked at him suspiciously. No she didn't remember him. All she knew was that her mommy had come in here and set her down with her one pathetic toy and then she'd been talking with this guy whom she didn't know and didn't really care to know because he was not her Sawyer. What the heck did he want with her anyways? He was smiling though so that was a good sign, she liked people who smiled? She had very low standards, she knew.

"No," she told him plainly.

"I see you like to tell it like it is," Ted nodded. "I like people like that. I definitely like people like that."

"Okay," Flynn told him, not really understanding what this guy was saying, but agreeing nonetheless.

"I know your brother's not here, but I'm a nice guy, I think we can get along, what do you think about that?" Ted said, extending his hand to her. She slapped it five like she did with Sawyer a lot. She did like doing that.

"You're a charmer yourself," Stephanie said, smiling at the picture in front of her. She couldn't help it, Ted was such a nice guy, she was absolutely right about him. She knew she was right about him. Even if Chris didn't think that Ted was a good guy, she _knew_ he was. Now she could go to Chris and tell him that everything she thought was correct, of course, that would require her to tell him that she'd been secretly meeting with Ted DiBiase and that might not go over too well. Damn it, now she would have to keep it to herself.

"Yeah right," Ted said with a laugh. He didn't think he was all that charming at all, so to hear it from someone else was a little jarring. Most of the time he got that he was a cocky asshole so when you heard someone telling you that you were charming, it was a little strange.

"So did you like what I had to offer?" Stephanie said. "Now that you've had time to think about it?"

"I do like what you have to offer," Ted told her, nodding to himself. "I like you, Stephanie, you're kind of awesome."

She blushed, she couldn't help it, she blushed. "Thanks, I'm glad you can see it from my side of things."

"It's a lot easier to think when you don't have Cody or Randy around, don't get me wrong, Cody is great, he's like my best friend, you know, but he just kisses Randy's ass so much. When Randy tells him to jump, Cody doesn't even ask how high, he just starts jumping. It's a little annoying."

"And Randy?"

"Would not be where he is without us and he knows it," Ted said.

"I completely agree. I see something in you, Ted, I just want you to see the same thing I do."

"I have seen it, but Randy is a great stepping stone."

"But that's all he is, a stepping stone. You're the real deal, Ted. You could be a champion in this company. I believe you _will_ be a champion in this company sooner rather than later. Good thing you're on Raw though because if my husband were the champion and he were facing you, I think you know where my loyalties would lie."

"You'd side with me and hope for the best?" Ted joked.

She laughed, he was funny too, oh man, if she were only a few years younger and a husband and two kids slimmer. "Yeah, totally, I'd root for you," she said, knowing that Ted probably knew how Stephanie got with the people Chris was facing.

He proved it a moment later. "I don't think I'd want to face Chris, I've heard some pretty nasty stories about this person that's always rooting for him and kind of gets pissed when he gets hurt."

"So word gets around?"

"Randy told us about that time when you pretty much threatened him."

"I'm just very into what I do," she confessed.

"Apparently," Ted said. "I've been wanting to take out Randy for a while now, but I just don't feel like the time is right, you know? I know he's a stepping stone for me being greater than what I am now. I know that I can defeat him. He's a great competitor, but I'm just getting into my prime, you know?"

Well, she wouldn't call it _exactly_ his prime. A few more years and then she would really call it his prime, but who decided prime anyways? She still felt like Chris was in his prime and he was going to turn 39 next month. It probably helped that he had never suffered a serious injury, but Chris could absolutely go toe-to-toe with anyone in this company and kick their asses. He was just that good.

"Yeah, I know, I just want to throw it out there that I can help you get to where you want to go, when _you're_ ready, I'm not trying to push you. I just see potential and when I see potential I like to pounce on it."

"You sound like a cougar or something."

"Wow, how old do you think I am, Ted?"

"I didn't mean like that, geez, sorry," he apologized, "I guess I should've used something like a tiger, does that work better, you're like a tiger. I mean, I knew you went out and got what you wanted, but you're pretty bold."

"So everyone tells me."

Chris wandered around looking for his wife. She was not anywhere to be found and Sawyer was starting to get cranky because he was bored. Even walking around with Katie was not helping matters any. He kept laying his head down on Chris's shoulder, trying to verbally signal that he was bored. "You didn't have to walk with me," Chris told Katie.

"It's okay, I needed to get away from that party anyways, too many people and too many of those stupid, stupid divas going around and drinking and acting like little twits."

"Wow, someone doesn't like their coworkers," Chris chuckled.

"I'm sorry, I don't mean to be rude or anything I just feel like I'm better than they are, but just because they're prettier than I am, they get to be in all the matches and they're not even that good," Katie said bitterly. "And I just realized that I probably shouldn't have been saying that to someone who owns the company and can fire me."

"I can't fire you so you're safe on that front," Chris told her. "I've never allowed Stephanie to give me hiring or firing powers, I mean, I did before, when I was filling in for her and helping her out, but as a wrestler, I'd want to fire about half the guys here."

"Well then I can continue to rant."

"You're one of the prettiest divas I've ever seen," Chris interjected before she could start to speak again. "Hell, you're one of the prettiest women I've ever seen in my life and I've seen some pretty girls."

"Oh you are just saying that, I'm so awkward and lanky."

"Gorgeous," Chris told her. "You're beautiful, Katie, way more so than any of these other girls that call themselves divas, seriously, you're the prettiest diva in my opinion."

"You're too nice for your own good, Chris, you shouldn't flatter me so much, you're liable to make me blush like I'm still a schoolgirl."

Chris laughed, "You make everything sound so nice."

"Oh stop it," Katie said.

"Seriously, you are pretty!" he said loudly, causing a few people to turn their heads and look at them. "Uh oh, I may have just started up the rumor mill. Now everyone is going to start talking about how you and I are secretly dating each other behind Stephanie's back."

"I don't want to be on the bad side of Stephanie, pretty much ever," Katie said.

"You? Dude, the most she can do to you is fight you and then fire you, me, I'll be wearing cement shoes on the bottom of the ocean. If only I could find her so this one will not be whiny and annoyed at me."

"Do you want me to take him back to Stephanie's office for you so you can look for her. I can look after him for you."

"Would you?"

"Of course," Katie said.

"Thanks so much, Kates," Chris said, handing Sawyer over. To say that Sawyer liked being in Katie's arms more than Chris's was probably understating it a little. Sawyer looked thrilled to be away from his father for a while. "I probably won't be long, I've got my Stephanie beacon on and I should find her soon."

"It's not a problem, good luck with your search."

Chris ended up coming across the Big Show first and Big Show offered to help him look for Stephanie and Flynn, who both seemed to have disappeared off the planet. He checked his phone at least three times to see if she'd called and told him she was taking Flynn back to the hotel or something, but there were no messages at all. They ended up having to enter the party that Chris had no desire to be at, but he felt like he'd searched everywhere else. He tried getting everyone's attention to ask if they'd seen Stephanie when he noticed the camera was on and filming. Just his luck, he wanted to ask where his wife was and he couldn't because it would disrupt the delicate balance she'd created between their personal life and their work life. Technically, according to the show, she was with Hunter and had kids with him.

Big Show finally got everyone's attention and Chris had to come up with something and fast. He couldn't think of anything so he just started talking about how it was the 10th anniversary of SmackDown and how he and Big Show had been there for the very first show, which was true. Stephanie had been there too, God, where was that woman? He didn't really think he should be the guest of honor because he didn't want to be a part of this party. He just wanted to find his wife. Still, everyone could show him a little respect by telling him if they'd seen his wife. As he was speaking though, he heard a retching beneath him and looked down just in time to see Michael Cole vomiting on his shoes.

Chris nearly threw up himself at the sight of what appeared to be shrimp. He tried to hold in his gagging, which was difficult because it smelled retched. Big Show looked over at Chris's shoes and he started to throw up. Chris didn't want to move because he could feel his pants sticking to his leg by vomit. He was so grossed out. It wasn't the first time he'd been thrown up on, but this was absolutely disgusting. Flynn and Sawyer would spit up on him all the time and Sawyer, while sick had thrown up on Chris, but it was different when it was your kid, this person you loved and someone you could barely tolerate.

Chris was mortified as he had to walk down the hallways quickly with pukey shoes on and he made to Stephanie's office in record time, almost crashing through the door to get to the bathroom. Katie and Sawyer only saw a blur going into the bathroom as Chris kicked off his shoes and took off his socks and pants and stepped into the shower to wash off his feet. He scrubbed his feet down with soap to get the smell out before going out into the main room in only his boxers and his dress shirt, sleeves rolled up so he could scrub them. There were flecks of water dotting his shirt.

"Nice look for you there," Katie said and Chris looked completely embarrassed.

"I forgot you were in here," he said, "I'm sorry."

"You wear less to the ring," she shrugged. "Why did you run into the bathroom? Or is that something I don't want to know?"

"Michael Cole just puked on me," Chris shuddered. "It was disgusting and I just had to clean up."

"That's awful, why did he throw up on you?"

"I think he'd been drinking too much and on top of that, I have not found my wife," he said, grabbing a change of clothes. He always brought one because he did not eat with his kids without bringing a t-shirt because his kids were messy. "Do you mind if I change?"

"No, go ahead, I won't even look," she winked.

"Well, like you said, I wear less in the ring," Chris said, pulling a pair of jeans. "Do I look ridiculous with jeans and this shirt?"

"No, you don't," she said.

"Okay, then you don't get to see me topless."

"Damn," she said, snapping her fingers.

"Play wif me, Katie," Sawyer said, tapping her knee.

"Oh of course, Sawyer, I apologize."

"I'm going to look for her again, you okay here?"

"Perfect, thanks."

"Thanks again, don't go in the bathroom, it probably smells, I need to get a bag to put my clothes in."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Chris left again in search of his wayward wife, wondering where in the world she could be. He came across Hunter and he was going to walk past him, but he just couldn't do that. It wasn't in his nature so he walked up to Hunter, who was predictably with Shawn and Chris gave Shawn the once over as Shawn did the same. Things were probably never going to be kosher between them again. Chris was okay with that; it had been a long time ago that Chris had idolized him and he certainly didn't idolize him anymore.

"Hunter, a word."

"What, man?"

"Can we talk?"

"Sure, go ahead."

"Without the sponge over here," Chris said, gesturing towards Shawn.

"Just saw you get thrown up on, Chris, I must confess that's the way I feel every time I see you too."

"Yeah, well I'm about to puke on you right now so why don't you get out of here before I do," Chris said, pretending to gag.

"It's cool, man, give me a minute," Hunter said as Shawn slowly walked away. Hunter turned to Chris, "What is it?"

"I don't want to keep doing this so it's going to be the last time, dude, you're breaking Britt's heart."

Hunter sighed, "I'm through with her."

"You're…what?"

"Shawn made me see some things and he was right."

"_Shawn?_" Chris groaned. "Please don't tell me you're taking advice from that guy."

"I'm not taking his advice."

"Then what are you doing?" Chris asked. "You dumped Britt?"

"I just talked to her," Hunter shrugged. "I just said that I was going to be friends with Shawn whether she liked it or not and if she didn't like it, she could go because Shawn was here first and he's my best friend."

"Dude, listen to yourself, do you _hear_ yourself. You are making the biggest mistake of your life, do you really think there are going to be a million women who are going to love you like she does? Huh? I mean, you've already been married once and that didn't pan out, you only get so many chances in this life and you are _blowing _it."

"I don't need your advice, Jericho."

"Yet you're willing to take Shawn's advice and probably do whatever he tells you, like he's your master or something."

"I do not," Hunter snapped at him. "I've been friends with him way longer than I've been friends with you and _he_ didn't steal my wife."

Chris threw his hands up in the air. "I did _not_ steal your wife! But fine, you know what, you've left Britt crying and upset and alone too many times. She's my friend, she was there to help me after Stephanie had Sawyer. So you know, go off with Shawn, blow the best thing in your life, see if I care!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!" Chris yelled back.

"What is going on here?" Stephanie asked, coming over to them. Flynn was falling asleep in her arms.

"There you are, geez, I've been looking everywhere for you, where the hell have you been?"

"I was at the party."

"I was there, I didn't see you."

"Didn't you get puked on?" Stephanie asked.

Chris grumbled, "Whatever."

"Why are you two fighting?"

"This guy is a jackass and I'm not going to have him hurting my friend, go kiss your buddy's ass, Hunter, I'm sure you're already good at it. Britt's too good for you, later."

Chris grabbed Stephanie's arm and started walking away from her. "What was that all about?"

"The man is ruining his life."

Chris propped his feet up on the table in his locker room the next Monday as he stared at Stephanie. "I don't think you were at the party last week."

"What?" Stephanie asked, looking up at him, wondering if someone had told him anything about where she had been or whose locker room she'd come out of. She didn't want Chris to know she'd been meeting with Ted. It wasn't because she was doing anything illicit (although maybe she should let Chris think something was going on and see his reaction. She'd never seen Chris when he was really threatened by another man, might be fun), but because of two reasons: Chris would not agree with what she was doing and Chris would mercilessly tease her for what she was doing. She wanted neither of those things.

"I didn't see you there, I looked, not thoroughly since I was getting puked on, but I didn't see you there so where were you?"

"I was there."

"With Flynn? Around drunk people? Around loud music like that? And drunk people? With Flynn? I don't think so."

"Well I was," Stephanie said, "briefly, then we were walking around because she was getting tired, then I took her to the car to see if her blanket was in there, but it wasn't so we came in and saw you."

"Okay," he said, narrowing his eyes at her. "If you say so."

"I was!" she told him.

"Okay, I said I believed you. So what do we know about Ben Roethlisberger?" Chris asked. "Do you think he would actually be on my side or what? Probably not right, he has fans and has to keep up the image, am I right?"

"Yeah, probably," Stephanie said.

"Daddy!" Sawyer said, trying a jumping sneak attack on Chris from the side of the couch.

"Dada!" Flynn copied, trying to launch herself, but she didn't go anywhere and instead kind of just bounced in her spot until she went over to Chris and tried to emulate Sawyer, who was climbing over Chris, who had fallen over as Sawyer crawled on him.

"Remind me again why we had kids?" Chris asked as Flynn was trying to climb onto the couch.

"Because we had no choice?" Stephanie said.

"Yeah, I guess," Chris said, grabbing Flynn and hoisting her onto him. "Hey, flutterby, why are you attacking me?"

"I'm a monster, Daddy!" Sawyer said, growling and pawing at Chris. "I be a monster, right?"

"You _are_ a monster, what are you talking about being a monster?" Chris asked. "It comes naturally to you."

"I be a monster wif my dressing."

"Oh, for Halloween, right?"

"Yup yup," Sawyer nodded eagerly. He and his mommy and daddy had gone to find costumes to wear and he was going to be a monster and dress up and look scary and then he was going to scare everyone, but not Flynn because he didn't want her to get scared. "What Fwynn be?"

"She's going to be a butterfly," Chris explained. "Because she's my flutterby and you're my monster."

"Grr," Sawyer said, collapsing on top of Chris again as Flynn giggled.

"Stephanie, save me!"

"No."

"I had a grueling match last night. I had to go fight and win for my titles and you can't even save me when I'm being bombarded with kids over here. It's like I'm a playground or something over here. And you can't even take _one_ of them?"

"No, because they were doing the same thing to me last night."

"They were not," Chris said.

"What do you think was going on during your match, huh?" Stephanie said. "I had Flynn pulling my hair and Sawyer talking my ear off. I blame you for it all though."

"I blame you for not just hugging me."

"Too late for that," Stephanie said. The door opened and Britt walked inside and Stephanie smiled at her. "Hey, Britt, thanks for being so prompt, I just needed you to take this schedule over to Ben and his guys, just so they know what's going on and where I've given them opportunities to speak or whatever. Tell him if he wants any changes he can come speak to me personally."

"I will, but um, before I go do that, I just wanted to…give you my two weeks notice," Britt told Stephanie, scuffing her feet against the ground a tiny bit, not looking up into Stephanie's blue eyes.

"Excuse me?" Stephanie said. Even Chris was stunned and sat up, even though that knocked Sawyer to the couch next to him and made Flynn have to move as well. "What did you say?"

"I'm quitting, I just wanted to give you notice so you can find a replacement, I think it's just time for me to move on. I've really had fun here, you guys, believe me. You guys have become like such a family to me and I wasn't expecting it. I had no idea what to expect when I came here, when your dad hired me. He just said that his daughter had just had a baby and her husband was filling in her position and needed an assistant and you guys have been some of the best friends I've ever had, but…I just think it's time to move on."

"This is about Hunter, isn't it?" Chris asked, his voice eerily quiet. Britt had never heard that tone from him before, it was more than a little frightening. "This is about how he's been treating you, isn't it?"

"Not completely," Britt said, but that was a lie, it was completely the reason. "It'd just be too hard being around him. I just…it's too close, you know, just…it's too close, I won't be able to handle it."

"What happened?" Stephanie asked. Chris was already about to go hunt down Hunter because he'd never seen Britt so broken before and if she didn't have anyone to defend her, he damn well would.

"Nothing, I just need out."

"You don't just quit over nothing," Stephanie said. "You don't just wake up one day and think that this is the day you're going to quit."

"Maybe for you, Stephanie, but you would never quit anything in your life, but sometimes other people need to walk away."

"What did he do?" Chris asked.

Britt looked over her shoulder at him. "Nothing, don't worry about it, okay, we're just…we're over, that's all, we're over and that's that. I don't want to be around him."

Chris put Flynn down on the couch and he stood up, cracking his knuckles. "Britt, what did Hunter do?"

"Nothing," she said emphatically.

"I don't believe that," Chris said.

"I don't either," Stephanie added.

"Me neither!" Sawyer chimed in, wanting to be part of the conversation.

"Okay!" Flynn yelled, not even really knowing what was going on, but everyone was saying stuff so she wanted to say stuff too, she _could_ talk you know.

"I'll kick his ass and beat him to a pulp," Chris said.

"I beat too!" Sawyer said.

"See, now we're a posse," Chris told her. "What did he do, Britt? Sawyer and I will see to it that he gets what's coming to him."

"You guys, I really appreciate the concern, but whatever is going on is between me and Hunter and I'd rather not talk about it if it's all the same."

"Don't let him drive you out of here, Britt," Stephanie said. "I literally let him drive me out of the company, putting myself in a stupid match against him that if I lost, I'd leave the company. I mean, I had a partner, but I couldn't rely on him the entire time to keep me safe, even if he'd promised to."

"Stephanie, I'm right here," Chris said.

"I know," she responded, "but even with a great partner, Hunter drove me out of my own company and I was miserable. I'm not saying that you would be miserable too, but if you like it here, _in spite _of him, then please stay."

"I don't want to look at him."

"How about you work on SmackDowns exclusively? You know that I don't really do much on Mondays except facilitate and I can handle that on my own. You're the best assistant I've ever had--"

"You're the _only_ assistant _I've_ ever had," Chris chimed in.

"and a friend to boot," Stephanie added. "I would love for you to stay. SmackDown is the show in which I have more control, so I do more work there."

"I'll think about it, okay?" Britt said. She did need to think about it. It might be too hard just _being_ in the same company as Hunter was, she wasn't sure yet. She just knew that wherever she went she hoped that Hunter was not there. "He chose Shawn, by the way, I mean, the thing he did. He chose Shawn. He told me that if I couldn't accept his friendship full stop then he didn't want me around anymore. So he told me to get my stuff and leave. I tried to tell him I didn't care that he was friends with Shawn, just that Shawn demanded _all_ of his time and it made him forget about me, but he was having none of it. I don't know why the change has been so bad this time. I guess it's just how into this DX thing they are this time and how he's so involved with it. I mean, he wears the outfits all the time, he and Shawn are planning their next moves all the time. It's just he kept forgetting about me. The last straw was when he said he'd take me out to dinner and he brought Shawn along and then forgot about me."

"What?" Stephanie asked, her jaw dropping slightly.

"Yeah, he forgot about me. He and Shawn went to the bar while we were waiting for the table, but then Shawn got some call about some party one of their old friends in town was having and they cut out of there, leaving me to wait for a table that, when called, I was the only one who went up there and when I went to the bar, he was nowhere to be found. Then I called him and he said I completely slipped his mind. Then he didn't offer to come pick me up or anything, just said a cab would take me home, right? So I took a cab home and I grabbed everything I could carry of mine, stuffed them in a couple of suitcases and went to a friend's house in New York. I've been staying there since and he only bothered to call me once to ask if I was staying at a friend's house and if I knew where his spray-on deodorant was."

"He left you at a restaurant and didn't seem to care?"

"That's how it seemed," Britt said, sucking her teeth a little to keep from crying. "Ever since Shawn came back in his life, it's like he's turned into this 12 year old who only cares about playing dumb pranks with his friends. I don't want him to stop being friends with Shawn, I've never said that, but he seems to think it's one or the other."

"I can't believe he left you at a restaurant, if Chris ever did that to me, he'd be a dead man."

"I would be," Chris said. "But I'd never just leave my wife somewhere and then not care."

"Like I said, he's changed," Britt said. She took the documents Stephanie had talked about earlier. "I'm going to go give these to Ben. I'll talk to you guys later."

"Britt…I'm sorry he's being such a jerk."

"It's not your fault," Britt said as she walked out the door.

"You know whose fault it is?" Chris said, glancing over at Stephanie.

"Oh, I know exactly whose," Stephanie responded, the same fire in Chris's eyes reflecting in her own. Britt was her friend and she'd helped them so much with so many different things and to have her heartbroken because of this, they were not going to stand for it. "Can you get someone to watch the kids? Is there anyone here tonight that can watch them?"

Chris wracked his brain. "Well, Show could possibly watch them, oh wait, Katie is here tonight, she can watch them."

"How convenient for you," Stephanie said, raising an eyebrow.

"Hey, I did not leave you at a restaurant."

"That's true, you're just lusting after another brunette, got it," she said. "Well give your girlfriend a call so we can both go do what I know we're both thinking."

Chris called up Katie and asked if she would come watch the kids for a moment as they were going to be doing something together that the kids would only be a distraction for. She agreed and came over shortly thereafter. After Stephanie had to shove Chris out the door, they walked down the hallway hand-in-hand. They'd been going about this the wrong way. They'd both been trying to talk to Hunter, to get him to see what was going on, but they had made a mistake in doing that. They needed to go to the head of the beast.

Chris knocked on the door. Shawn answered a second later and said, "What do you two want?"

"Michaels, what the hell kind of game are you playing at?" Chris asked him point blank.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Shawn said, but there was a smirk on his face.

"Why the hell are you trying to push Britt out of Hunter's life?" Stephanie said, getting aggressive as she pressed one of her fingers into his chest, making Shawn step backward into the room. Chris followed behind her and locked the door. "You better have an answer."

"I'm not doing anything that he didn't already want done."

"What if Hunter went to your house and started pushing Rebecca out of the picture, huh? What would you do then? You wouldn't let him, but you don't get to live vicariously through Hunter anymore, am I right?" Stephanie said.

"You can't handle that you may have to see him get married again," Chris started in on him. "Because then it means you have to go back to being strait-laced Shawn Michaels. But if Hunter is single, you can go out and just say that it's with your single friend and not feel bad for probably ogling all the women and dancing with them. I've seen it before. You want Hunter all to yourself because if you don't have him, you have to be boring again and that kills you. You're exactly what I thought about you, Michaels. You say you've changed, but you're still the same guy. Religion is not some kind of balm you can put over yourself and suddenly turn a piece of dog crap into a diamond."

"You're way off base."

"Shawn, I know you sabotaged my marriage to Hunter," Stephanie said, fully admitting it for the first time. It even caught Chris off-guard.

"What?" Chris asked.

"Oh, you think I didn't know what was going on during rehab?" Stephanie asked. "I knew, I knew all along. You wanted Hunter to rehab in Atlanta because you could get over there more easily. Never-mind the fact I said that it might be better for him to rehab in Connecticut where he _lives_, he listened to you and stayed down there. And then you would go and visit him and take him out to bars and nightclubs to garner sympathy for your poor, injured friend, right? I know that Hunter tried to stay faithful to me, but he wasn't completely faithful, was he? All because you goaded him into it and now you're doing it again. Why don't you want Hunter to be happy? You just want him all to yourself so you can be a jerk and hide behind him. I know you, I've known you were a weasel since the day you hit on me and I turned you down. That's the best decision I've ever made."

"Butt out of Hunter's life," Chris said.

"I think you two should butt out of his life, besides, you're way off, both of you, you have no clue what you're talking about. Hunter knows what he wants, he just doesn't understand what he wants, I help him understand, that's all. That's it."

"Yeah, right."

"Believe what you want, I'm going to find Hunter."

"What an ass," Chris muttered after Shawn had left, then he turned to Stephanie. "Shawn sabotaged your relationship? I didn't know that."

"I didn't really either, not until this started happening with Britt and I remembered that most of the time I called when Hunter was in rehab, he mentioned Shawn had take him out and then it clicked that it was the same thing he was doing with me. I just said I knew all along so he would think I was on to him and confess."

"Well, in that instance, I'm glad he interfered or else we wouldn't be married," he said, kissing her on the forhead.

"And that would truly be tragic."

Everything reached a head later on in the show. Chris and Show had interrupted Ben Roethlisberger because they could. Chris was already pissed off about the entire Hunter situation so he thought to take it out on another guest host who so clearly thought they were better than him or put him in stupid matches. Of course, Shawn and Hunter had to come out to argue with them and Chris could only figure it was really Shawn's idea to come out there and try to humiliate Chris. Chris glared more at Shawn than he did Hunter, but it went both ways for both of them. He never took Hunter for such a follower, but Shawn was threatened when Hunter had a serious relationship with a woman. It was incredibly selfish of Shawn to keep Hunter down like that, to make him miserable so Shawn could feel better about his life.

Shawn just wanted to be the old Shawn, not this "new" Shawn that was not so improved. He was still that guy who'd put his tag partner through a window way back when. He was absolutely still that guy but he hid behind this "goody two shoes" persona he'd adopted and so few people saw past that to the real, horrible guy that was underneath. Stephanie had called him out from the very beginning. She'd know from the second he'd hit on her that this guy was a bad one and she didn't need that. Grudges held fast for Shawn and he'd had his contribution to the end of Stephanie's marriage (still that was a plus for Chris).

When he got backstage, he lingered for a moment to wait for Hunter, but when Hunter did come back there, he was the one that went up to Chris. "What the hell were you doing out there?"

"What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean."

"You were the one insulting me."

"Because you went and were threatening to Shawn, that's what he told me, that you were being a jerk and calling him out or some crap like that over me, what the hell, man?"

"Don't you see what's going on here, Trips, seriously, don't you see?"

"You don't know what you're talking about, you're pulling stuff out of your ass."

"How do you think Britt felt when you forgot about her, huh? Or when you didn't even realize that she had actually left then you call her to ask her where your crap is? How can you be so damn cruel?"

"I don't need her," Hunter said.

"And do you have any reason why?" Chris snapped at him. "Because of that guy over there! Because he wants to hold you down. If you have a suckier life than he does, he gets to feel like he hasn't wasted his life."

"He loves his wife and kids, he loves his life."

"Yeah, that's why he wants you to be single and sleep with every girl you meet, right? Tell me, who gets more numbers when you're out, huh?" He didn't even know if they got girls' numbers, but it sounded good in his head so he'd said it.

"What? We just go out," Hunter said, but Chris could tell that he felt caught out. Seems his intuition had been right. He could picture Shawn "picking up" girls and then giving the numbers to Hunter because he was such a faithful and virtuous guy. Why didn't anyone listen to him when he'd called Shawn out for being a liar! He'd been right all along, but nobody had listened to him when he said this was Shawn's game and a game he played very well if judging by Hunter at the moment.

"Yeah right. Shawn's using you because he can't handle his life like this anymore. I can see it in his eyes, he wants to go back to being that Shawn he was before, but he's got responsibilities, you don't. So he gets to live through you. Sound familiar, Shawn?"

"I don't know what is wrong with this guy," Shawn said, denying any responsibility.

"Of course you don't," Chris said with a wry laugh. "Of course you don't."

"Look, I loved Britt, but I've come to see there's no future there and I'm not getting any younger and I think single life is the kind of life I want to live. It was fun while it lasted, but Shawn was right. I did the marriage thing once and it didn't work out so why should I put myself through that trouble again. He found Becca and he's happy and that's great, he doesn't want me to have a bad life, he's happy with his life," Hunter said, Shawn nodding next to him, "but I don't want to go down that path and Britt just isn't in my future."

"You're a jackass, I can't believe I considered you a friend," Chris said. "You've broken her heart and you did it in such a cowardly way. To break up with someone for a legit reason is one thing, but to slowly just ignore and push her out of your life, then just forget about her like she's nothing, dude, I thought you were better than that. But you're no better than the guy who tried to stop my wedding. I hope you're happy when you're alone and Shawn decides it's time to go hide his head in the sand again. You're going to be very alone and you'll deserve every moment of it."

Chris walked away and he was absolutely pissed off at both Shawn and Hunter, Shawn for his manipulative behavior and Hunter for going along with it and believing whatever tripe Shawn spewed at him. It was like Hunter didn't even have a brain to think for himself. He'd just severed a really great friendship too and that hurt. Hunter had come to be a great friend to him over the past few years, his kids liked him and treated him like an uncle and he knew it would hurt Sawyer if he were to be told he couldn't be around Trips, but if Hunter kept acting this way, he wasn't going to let his kid around that man. Sawyer would just have to learn.

There had to be some way to fix this though, some way to get Hunter to see the light or at least see that Shawn was not always right. Hunter had been happy with Britt and Shawn had brainwashed him and it was just plain sad. What kind of person wanted their friends to be unhappy just to make their own lives look better. He shook his head in disgust. He'd get his chance at the both of them later, he guessed Ben Roethlisberger had helped him out after all. Maybe he could knock some sense into Hunter.

Or maybe he could just knock Shawn out.


	253. Shane What? October 9 to 12, 2009

A/N: Thank you so much for the reviews, they totally make my day. I have a nasty head cold right now that is kind of making me feel a little loopy so this is not my best effort, but hopefully it passes inspection. So enjoy and leave a review if you want, I'd love it if you did, thanks. :)

* * *

"Hey, you guys, welcome, welcome."

"Hey, Rissa," Stephanie said, kissing her sister-in-law on the cheek. "This is such a nice surprise. I have to admit, Chris and I were wondering why you would invite us to dinner just out of the blue like this."

"We're family, there shouldn't have to be an excuse to see you," Marissa said as she helped Sawyer off with his coat. "Besides, with the show being in New Jersey tomorrow, you guys are here anyways."

"Where be D and Kenny?" Sawyer asked.

"They're in the playroom, do you want me to take you there?" Marissa asked.

"Yes," he said, then remembered, "pease."

"God, how is your kid so polite and my kids can't even get that down?"

"Look who you're talking to, Rissa," Stephanie said, gesturing towards herself. She set Flynn down on the ground and helped the little girl off with her fluffy pink coat with the sunny sunflower on the pocket. Flynn had picked it out herself when she'd gone shopping with her mommy.

"Yeah, I guess when you have you as a mother, you're bound to be polite just out of fear," Marissa joked as she took Sawyer's hand. "I'll be right back, make yourselves at home of course. Shane is just finishing up with a phone call."

"Okay," Stephanie said as Marissa led Sawyer out of the room. Stephanie turned to Chris, who was hanging up their coats on the rack that Shane and Marissa had by the door. "I still think something is up."

"Why do you always think something is up?" he asked her as she stood back up. Flynn started to wander into the house a little and her parents followed. She wondered where her brother had gone. She didn't like to be away from him. She looked up to her parents like they would just give her the answer, but they were talking with each other and not paying a bit of attention to her so she just kept walking.

"Because with my family something _is_ usually up," Stephanie told him, lacing her arm through his. "We always have motives."

"Maybe we've been traveling so much that your brother and his wife thought it would be nice to get together when we're in the same area. In case you've forgotten, we don't exactly live up here, we spend most of our down time in Florida."

"Still, just inviting us out of the blue?"

"Oh my God, I never win with you, do I?"

"No and you never will," she told him. "I just feel like something's up, that's all. If it's just a friendly family dinner then you can tell me you told me so, is that fair?"

"Nothing's fair with you," he told her. "Because just my luck, this dinner does have ulterior motives and it's something like your brother and Marissa are getting divorced because Marissa is in love with you and not Shane and…actually, that's not a bad thing at all. Marissa is gorgeous."

"God, you're so gross," Stephanie said, going into the living room where Flynn was trying to play with the magazines on the table. Since Shane and Marissa had small children too there wasn't anything breakable within Flynn's reach. Still, Stephanie went over to where Flynn had knocked some of magazines over and picked them up. "Flynn, we don't throw magazines on the ground, okay?"

Marissa dropped Sawyer off in the playroom, leading the little boy inside. "Hi!" Sawyer called out to his cousins.

"Hey, Sawyer," Declan said from where he was playing some handheld video game on the couch. He liked his cousin, but he was just a little bit young for him, like his own brother.

"Hi!" Kenny said enthusiastically. He loved it when his cousin came over because they were the same age and they liked to play with the same things. He got up from where he was sitting and ran over to Sawyer. "Do you wanna play trucks?"

"I do!" Sawyer said, rushing back over to where Kenny had been playing and plopping himself down across from his cousin and grabbing one of the trucks.

"D, can I count on you to keep an eye on your brother and Sawyer?" Marissa asked. "We're just going to be in the living room, but just make sure they don't do anything dumb or leave the room on their own, okay?"

"Okay, Mommy," Declan said, not paying a lot of attention because he was trying to beat the game.

"Thank you," she said before she left and then went a little farther down the hall to Shane's office. "Shane, Chris and Steph are here whenever you're done with your call."

"I'm done," Shane said, turning around in his chair. "I'm just thinking, I'll be out in a second."

Marissa went further into the room and then over to where Shane was. She leaned across the back of his chair and then leaned down to give him a peck on the lips. "You know, this isn't something you have to do, you know."

"I know, I just feel like the timing is right," Shane said with a shrug. "You know I've been thinking about it for a while. I just think that now is the time. I'm not going to be any younger, I'm going to be forty in January and I just think it's time."

"I understand," she said, giving him another kiss. "Well, whenever you're ready, okay?"

"Yeah, I'm trying to decide whether I should do it now or after dinner."

"If you do it after dinner, there's a better chance that, one, you won't get food thrown at you, and two, that it won't be a completely icy dinner," Marissa said, letting him weigh his options.

"You've got a point, I guess I'll wait until after dinner is over," Shane said. "You're best, you know that."

"I know," she said. "Okay, we've got people waiting, I'll see you in a bit."

Marissa walked back out to the living room. "Shane will be in, in a second. Sawyer is with Declan and Kenny so he's fine. Hey there, Flynn, you get more and more beautiful every time I see you. Have I told you, Stephanie, how much seeing her makes me want to have a little girl?"

"You say that pretty much every time I see you," Stephanie joked. "You should try for one."

"Yeah, right, as if I didn't have my hands full with two boys, I need to add being pregnant to the mix, that'll really work," Marissa said, picking up Flynn. "I'll just have to live vicariously through you. I bet you have tons of fun just dressing her up in cute outfits."

"Well, a little, yeah," Stephanie said, "but Chris helps to dress her too and he likes to put her in his kind of stuff, which are not cute outfits."

"But she probably looks cute in them."

"Hey, everyone," Shane said as he walked in the room. "Hey, Steph, Chris."

"Hey," Stephanie said, standing up to hug her brother as Chris shook his hand. "So how have you been and what's going on?"

Shane laughed, "You know, Stephanie, you don't always have to have an agenda with everything."

"I always have an agenda," Stephanie shrugged.

"Well, speaking of," Shane said, trying to deflect attention away from him because he was fairly sure that his sister would sniff out what he was going to tell her. She was like some sort of hound dog when he came when it came to information. She was already eyeing him suspiciously, which was making him uncomfortable. "What has been up with Dad lately on SmackDown? I mean, I get that he's not happy with Teddy, but hasn't the guy been on probation for like a year or something, when is he going to make a move and do something? What the hell are his plans?"

"Stephanie hopes the plan eventually involves her getting to be the General Manager and then somehow parlaying that into becoming the General Manager of Raw."

"The guest host thing was a nice gimmick, but it's stupid, I'm the one who takes care of everything anyways and tells them what to do and sometimes you get these egos and I do not like dealing with egos."

"Yet you married Chris Jericho," Shane said.

"Dude, what is that supposed to mean?" Chris asked.

"Well, let's face it, man, you kind of have an ego."

"You do," Stephanie told him smugly.

"Hell, you do too," Chris told her.

"I never denied it."

"Uncle Chris!" Declan said, rushing into the room in front of Kenny and Sawyer, who were behind him, pushing their trucks along the ground. "I just beat my game!"

"Wow, awesome," Chris said, holding his hand up and Declan slapped it five. "You probably beat it way fast, huh?"

"I did," Declan said, climbing onto the couch in between Chris and Stephanie, practically pushing her out of the way. Stephanie just looked at him. But Declan only had eyes for his cool Uncle Chris. "In school, we were playing kickball and I kicked way far, it was so cool, Uncle Chris."

"I used to play kickball too."

"Really, I bet you were the best!" Declan said.

"Well, I wasn't too shabby," Chris told him. "I could only kick balls into the stratosphere."

"No way!" Declan said, his jaw dropping. "That's so far!"

"I know, I was good," Chris shrugged. "That's when I knew that I had to become a wrestler because what else could I do with this strength I have?"

"You're really strong, Uncle Chris," Declan said, impressed with him. "I watch you wrestle and you're really good. Did you know that my daddy wrestled and he went through a window!"

"I know, he's crazy, your dad likes to do a lot of crazy wrestling stuff, I bet you like watching him, huh?"

"I do," Declan said. "And he climbed up a very tall thing and then jumped."

"Seems like someone has been trying to show himself off," Chris said, glancing at his brother-in-law knowingly. He understood. He showed Sawyer tapes of his old matches all the time. He'd started with some of the real old stuff, from his time in Mexico and Japan. When he'd first showed it to Sawyer, Sawyer hadn't believed it was him, saying that it was someone else. Chris had had to show him pictures of himself to prove that it was him, but even then, Sawyer had had a hard time thinking it was his daddy. Sawyer wasn't used to Chris's long hair anymore, for one, but other than that, Chris looked a lot younger and was a wife and two kids less stressed.

"He wanted to see," Shane shrugged. "So dinner is almost ready, Ris?"

"Let me go check."

Dinner was a nice affair. They spoke about the business in general and Marissa and Stephanie discussed the little milestones Kenny and Sawyer were going through at the same time, comparing notes. Chris told Shane about everything that was happening with Hunter and how Shawn was letting him take over his life. Chris didn't want to sit back and watch his friend lose everything or be controlled by Shawn, but Hunter refused to even listen to him so what was the point. Chris was right in this situation, but if Hunter didn't want to see it, what could he do?

"So then Britt said she was giving her two week's notice, but she reneged and said that she'll stay, but she's only going to work SmackDowns and Pay-Per-Views, she won't be helping me out with Raw, which is okay because I pretty much just give the guest hosts what they need for the evening. I do most of that work over the weekend."

"So she's not quitting?"

"No, but it's still hard on her," Stephanie said, "and Hunter's being a jerk about it too. He's just…I don't even know. I think that when he came up in the business, he looked up to Shawn so much that he just doesn't want to listen to anyone else because Shawn is like his idol."

"Shawn was my idol, but you don't see me listening to a damn thing he says," Chris scoffed. Then looked around the table, "Sorry, didn't mean to swear. But Shawn _was_ my inspiration and I completely modeled my career after him…early on, and you don't see me acting like his…like he's the best thing since sliced bread."

"Well, you grew up," Stephanie said.

"That's good she's not quitting," Shane said, mostly because losing Britt and him might send Stephanie into a topsy-turvy. He couldn't even really picture how his sister was going to take his news. "I guess that's as good a segue as I'm going to get."

"What do you mean?" Stephanie said, taking a sip of her coffee.

"Well, I didn't just call you here to have you over for dinner. I mean, I love having you guys over for dinner and the kids love seeing Sawyer, but it wasn't the only reason we brought you here."

"I knew it!" Stephanie exclaimed, turning to her husband. "What did I tell you, sweetie, I knew that there was some reason that we had the dinner tonight. A McMahon just doesn't have a dinner to have a dinner, so what is it? Wait, wait, Rissa, are you pregnant? Is that why you were fawning all over Flynn?"

"No, I fawn all over her because she's adorable," Marissa said, squeezing Shane's hand under the table.

"It's not that at all," Shane said. He looked down and took a deep breath. "Can you promise not to freak out on me?"

"What?" she said. "Why would I freak out on you?"

"Because I know you," he answered. "Just let me explain and then you can chime in with your opinion because I know you're going to have an opinion."

"You're taking over SmackDown, oh my God, Dad told you to have me over to dinner because he wants you to take over SmackDown and he thought it would be easier to take from you because I don't dislike you as much! Oh, that's it, that is it! I am not putting up with this anymore! I cannot believe him!"

"Steph, calm down," Chris said, trying to calm her down, putting his hand on her arm. "Come on, baby, I'm sure that we can talk about this rationally without freaking out our children."

"Stephanie, Dad is not giving me SmackDown," Shane told her.

"What?" Stephanie said, "oh."

Chris laughed, "See, look, baby, you got all worked up for nothing and now you look like an idiot, congratulations."

"So what is it?" Stephanie asked.

"Next week I'm handing in my resignation from the company," Shane told her, figuring any reaction had to be less acidic than the one he'd just gotten.

Stephanie shook her head as her eyes turned to slits, "I'm sorry, what?"

"I'm resigning as VP, I'm leaving the company."

"I don't…I don't understand, I don't get what you're saying here," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "I don't know what you're saying, I don't understand what you mean."

"I'm leaving the company, I'm quitting."

"Quitting, what? I don't get it."

"You have to understand, Shane," Chris said, "that Stephanie doesn't understand the words 'resign' and 'the company.' This is the woman who, in both pregnancies, worked until her ninth month and came back as soon as she was able. She doesn't get the whole leaving the company thing."

"Leaving the company? Shane, what?" Stephanie said. Her brain could not wrap around this at all. How could Shane leave the company? That didn't make any sense. Shane owned part of the company. He was going to inherit it too when her father finally retired. He was born into this company. How could he just leave? How could he just go away? It wasn't like when Chris went away because Chris didn't breathe the company from the day he was born. She and Shane, their grandfather had started this and then their dad and now them and sometime in the future, it was going to go to Declan, Kenny, Sawyer, and Flynn. Leave the company? No.

"I've decided that it's time to move on."

"This isn't just any company, Shane, this is _our_ company."

Shane sighed, "Stephanie, I love you, but let's face it, you have more passion for this than I do."

"Not true."

"Steph, you have more passion for this than anyone except for Dad," Shane told her.

"Again, not true, there are plenty of wrestlers who are as passionate."

"Yeah, but none of them have been here as long as you have. I've been in this business for 20 years pretty much, from being a referee to a VP and everything in between and where do I go from here, you know?"

"You go on to be the CEO, co-CEO," she added because like hell she'd let her brother have the full title. "When Dad retires, it's ours."

"And you're going to love that day," Shane told her, "but I'm nearing 40 and I just feel burnt out with this business so next week I'm going to talk to Dad and give him my resignation, effective at the beginning of next year."

"Burnt out?"

"I don't love my job like I used to and I want to find something that I'll love."

"Don't love…you don't love wrestling?"

"I love wrestling, believe me, but I want other things at this point in my life."

"But why!" Stephanie said, shaking her head. "This just doesn't make sense!"

"Stephy, baby, come on, give the guy a break, I understand where he's coming from," Chris said, obviously the more sympathetic of the two."

"You _do_?" Stephanie asked, her head turning towards Chris's. "How could he abandon the company?"

"Because he wants something else, it's not out of the realm of possibility," Chris told her, grabbing her hand. "I know you love the business, but not everyone is going to be as huge a fan of it as you are."

"But you're a McMahon!" Stephanie said, turning towards her brother. "You are a McMahon, Shane."

"I know what I am, Steph," he chuckled. "I just want this right now."

"I don't understand, I don't get wanting to leave."

"Baby, instead of being very combative, how about we be supportive of your brother?" Chris said gently, leaning in and kissing her temple, trying to get her to calm down before she blew a gasket or something. Stephanie sighed, taking a deep breath. "Shane, bro, if that's what you want to do, then I definitely think it's something you should do. You know, I bet there are going to be tons of opportunities out there for you. I did the same thing when I left wrestling, you know, looked for other stuff."

"That was different," Stephanie said. "You didn't just leave, you were still here even though you did other things."

"Your brother hasn't died, Steph," Chris laughed. "It's not like he's giving up his shares, you're not giving up your shares, are you, Shane, because _then_ I would have to agree with my wife because that'd be stupid."

"No, I'm not forfeiting my shares or anything, just my day-to-day position and thanks for understanding, bro," Shane said, giving him a smile of solidarity. It was reassuring to know that his sister had married someone who wasn't completely crazy and irrational.

"Well, I know how sometimes you have to get away and see what's out there and dude, if you want to come back, I'm sure your dad would find a place for you."

"Yeah, I'm sure of that too," Shane said, looking at his sister, who looked ticked off. "Stephanie, would you please _try_ and understand where I'm coming from, please? I'm not asking you to agree with my decision, just support me on it."

"Have you told Dad?" Stephanie asked.

"I have not, I kind of wanted to get a feel for what Dad would be like by going to you," Shane said. Chris snickered. Yeah, Vince and Stephanie's reactions would be on par, he was sure. "If you could keep this to yourselves for a few more days. I just want to prep myself for telling Dad that I'm leaving."

"He's going to be upset," Stephanie said, folding her arms. "He's going to think you don't love the WWE. That's what he's going to think."

"Yeah, I pretty much know, look, Steph, come on."

"Fine, it's your life, what are you going to do now? Have you even thought that far ahead into the future or have you just gone barreling your way out of the company without a future plan?"

"There may be some ventures that I want to pursue, first and foremost though, I want to have a wedding," Shane said, glancing at Marissa, who smiled sweetly back at him, squeezing his hand again.

"Wedding?" Stephanie asked as if all brain matter had left her since her brother's revelation.

"As you know, Rissa and I didn't actually _get_ a wedding. I found out that she was pregnant with Kenny and that D was my kid and we got married spur of the moment. I always regretted that. She deserved better and I'm going to spend the time right after I resign giving her the wedding she deserves."

"That's cool, you guys will have a great wedding," Chris said.

"Yeah, that'll be nice," Stephanie said, trying to be involved in the conversation, but she was out of it by now. She'd completely checked out of the conversation. Her brain still couldn't wrap around the idea that her brother had grown tired of the company. What if _she_ grew tired of it? No, that would never happen; she loved working and loved being in charge and she was nothing like Shane. Shane had always been the mellower of the two and she'd always been the driven one. It wasn't that Shane wasn't driven, he just didn't have Stephanie's drive. She was definitely her father's daughter in that respect.

She didn't really engage in conversation for the rest of the evening, only interjecting when necessary. They finally got up to leave, Stephanie with Flynn in her arms and Chris holding Sawyer's hand. When they were in the car, Chris adjusted the heater for a moment while letting the car warm up. He put in the copy of his Fozzy CD that he'd been listening to almost incessantly since it had been sent to him to listen over. Stephanie groaned and Chris looked over at her.

"What?"

"Do we have to listen to your songs again?" she asked and it wasn't that she really minded, she was just feeling rather tense at the moment and not wanting Chris's music blaring.

"Come on, Steph," Chris said, glancing in the backseat. "Do you guys want to hear Daddy's music?"

"Yeah!" Sawyer yelled. "I like it, Daddy, you sing good."

"The kid's got taste."

"Yeah!" Flynn yelled too. Flynn loved rock music. She never fell asleep to any kind of lullabies or soft music, instead, she really enjoyed rock music. Stephanie blamed it on her being around the shows during her pregnancy so all Flynn heard in utero was entrance themes and then Chris's metal music.

"3 against 1," Chris said, turning on his music.

"Why is my brother leaving?" Stephanie asked on the way home, "I just don't get it."

"He wants to live his life, let him," Chris told her. "Just let him live it."

"I guess you're right, it's not my decision to make, right?"

"Exactly, it's his life. It's not like he's asking you to resign too."

She scoffed loudly, "Like I would do that in a million years, yeah right. I just don't understand why this is coming now of all times. Like, why didn't it come after the Invasion, when we were kicked out, why didn't he decide then, 'hey, this isn't it for me.'"

"Maybe because back then he didn't have a wife and two children and wasn't knocking on the door of 40."

"Well you're not leaving and you'll be 40 next year," Stephanie pointed out.

"Thanks for reminding me."

"I'm just saying, you're not leaving…unless you're leaving, oh God, are you going to leave too, is that what guys do at 40, except for the ones that bug me like Shawn and Hunter?"

"I'm not going anywhere, calm down," he said, patting her hand as he continued to drive. "It doesn't necessarily have to be a midlife crisis and weren't you the one who was going on and on about getting older when you were having your birthday last month, huh?"

"Yeah, but I was just talking," she said. She sighed and looked out the window into the darkness. Then a thought occurred to her and she pursed her lips a little bit. "Chris?"

"Yeah, baby?"

"If Shane is leaving, doesn't that mean I get more power?"

"Well, I don't know, your brother was the VP of Media, right? That's not really--"

"Chris, this means I'll have more power, right?" she interrupted.

"Again, probably not because you deal with the show and--"

"_Chris_, this means I'll have more power, _right_?"

Chris finally gleaned onto what she was doing, he shook his head. Only his wife would find solace in more power, "Yes, baby, this means that you'll have more power."

"I thought so."

Stephanie was feeling a little better by the time Monday rolled around. Chris had only had a match on Friday so she and the kids had stayed at home. A good thing too because her father had been there and she wasn't sure she could hold in Shane's news for him. Not that she wanted to spill the beans or anything, but this was such huge news she might let it slip in conversation and blow her brother's plans. Hearing it from her would not be the ideal way for her father to find out Shane's news.

But she was safe on Monday because her father was not there and she was overseeing things. Right now she was overseeing Hunter sitting across from her and next to Chris. Hunter looked peeved to be there. "I'm not going to listen to you guys, whatever you have to say, what's done is done, it happened, end of story."

"That's not why you're here," Stephanie said, "besides, I don't care what you do with your life, if you want to ruin it, go right ahead, you won't hear anything from me."

Hunter rolled his eyes. Stephanie never let up, that was probably the biggest reason he cut her loose (yes, _he_ cut _her_ loose and not the other way around). He didn't need her constant nagging, especially about this. Shawn had been right, what the hell was he doing with a girl like Britt? So she was funny and sweet and kind and beautiful…no, she was just trying to get his money, that's what she was doing or what he'd convinced himself she was doing. She'd just been an assistant hired to help Chris, so that's what she should be, just an assistant. No attachments, he didn't need attachments. Marriage had failed him once, he wasn't going to let it fail again.

"I'm not ruining anything."

"I'm not arguing with you," she said.

"I'll argue with you," Chris said. "I can't believe you're listening to Shawn of all people. This is the guy who insulted my children."

"You did hit his wife," Hunter pointed out.

"On accident! You think I meant to do that? God, how brainwashed does he have you?" Chris asked. "Are you even in your own brain anymore or is it just being completely controlled by Shawn, does he have a remote control that just controls you, is that it?"

"No, I'm making my own decisions."

"Yeah, I'm so sure," Chris said.

"Stop!" Sawyer said, coming over and scolding his dad and Trips. "No fighting! We no fight!"

"Sorry," they both mumbled.

"Good, no yelling," Sawyer told him. His mommy and daddy both told him that yelling and fighting were no ways to solve anything. When he got mad and wanted to yell, his mommy said that wasn't very good so they should be fighting or yelling either.

"Thank you, Sawyer," Stephanie said. "What I called you in here for, _both _of you, is because as you know, there is the huge inter-brand tag match at Bragging Rights between Raw and SmackDown."

"Yeah, what about it?" Hunter asked.

"You are both captains of your respective teams," Stephanie said. "So I'm letting you know so you can start to assemble your teams together, the ones you want to represent each brand and remember that you _are_ representing the brands so choose wisely."

"Surprise, surprise, your husband is the captain of his team," Hunter said, then coughed audibly, "Favoritism!"

"How mature of you, Hunter," Stephanie told him. "It's not favoritism, he's one-half of the Unified Tag Team champions, this is a _tag_ match, Chris is not in the World Title match at Bragging Rights, so it seems the only leap of logic to make him the captain of the SmackDown team and how does this smack of favoritism if I've made _you_ the other captain?"

Hunter bit his tongue as Chris sniggered to himself. He loved it when Stephanie chewed people out, especially when they deserved it. "I'd be happy to be the head of the SmackDown team, thank you, Stephanie for giving me the opportunity."

"You're welcome," she said, "now, I _do_ want you to absolutely destroy the Raw team, you know that, right, especially one hard-headed man on the other team."

"Oh, very funny," Hunter said. "Stop trying to control my life, okay, I made my decision."

"Wow, did you hear that, baby? He wants _us_ to stop controlling his life, us! Wow, that is really interesting considering we're trying to be friends, unlike that guy you _call_ a friend who is really not acting like one."

"He's been my best friend forever," Hunter said, defending him. "He knows me better than anyone."

"I had sex with you," Stephanie said "How is that not knowing you? Huh, unless there's something more to you and Shawn that you're not saying."

"Stephanie, please don't bring up the fact you've slept with this idiot," Chris said, then turned to Sawyer who was opening his mouth. "Do not repeat what I'm saying, kid, do you hear me?" Sawyer, chagrined, nodded his head briskly as he went back to his toys. "I don't need to think about that."

"I'm just proving a point."

"Well, Shawn's been there from the beginning."

"Yeah and how has his life changed from then until now and how many times has he told you he misses his old life, huh?" Stephanie asked. "Because all I'm seeing right now is a guy in his 40's trying to get another guy in his 40's single so he can live vicariously through him."

"That's not true, Shawn loves his family."

"I'm sure he does, I don't doubt that, I just doubt that this is how he pictured his life at this point. It is kind of a huge contrast from that other Shawn you used to know, isn't it?" Stephanie said.

"Stop trying to confuse me," Hunter said. "Look, I'm the captain of the Raw team, great, now butt out of my business because it's not your business."

"It's not Shawn's business either!" Stephanie said.

"I know that, he stays out of it," Hunter said, storming out of the locker room. After he was gone, Sawyer came up and climbed onto the chair that Hunter had been sitting on. Flynn was taking a nap right now and he was tired of playing with his toys.

"Why are you mad?" Sawyer asked, settling himself in the chair, his small legs dangling just barely over the edge and he leaned against the back, putting his arms up on the armrests. "You were fighting wif Trips."

"He's being a jerk," Stephanie muttered.

"What is a jerk?"

"A mean person."

"But Trips is not mean, he nice, he my friend," Sawyer said, not understanding why his parents thought Hunter was mean. He was a very nice man and he always played with him and took him place.

"Yeah, he likes you, but this is adult stuff," Chris explained.

"Like what?" Sawyer asked curiously, trying to get to the bottom of this mystery.

"Well, you know how Hunter likes Britt?" Chris said.

"Are you actually going to try to explain this to a 3 year old?" Stephanie asked. Sawyer was a very curious boy, but shouldn't there be limits? She was just glad Sawyer hadn't asked where babies came from because she just didn't see herself as the type of mom who would give some crap answer about storks and cabbage patches and what not.

"He has a right to know," Chris said.

"Hunter like Bwitt, she pwetty."

"Yes, she's pretty," Chris said. "I agree."

"As long as you've got these two, I've got to go do a little work, just dropping off schedules to Nancy and Maria."

"You know, I don't even know what they look like," Chris said. "With my luck, I'm going to mistake them for ring rats or something."

"Chris, Nancy did announcing stuff for WrestleMania," Stephanie told him.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Chris said, "I guess I wasn't paying attention due to the fact that I had a match and I was pretending to get divorced from my wife, that must've _just_ slipped my mind to remember some random woman whose show I don't watch because I don't have time."

"Look, one is blonde, one is brunette."

"Oh, gee, thanks, that eliminates all redheads and colored hair, thanks, I'm sure I'll recognize them on sight now," he said.

"I've got to go," she said, kissing him goodbye and then kissing Sawyer goodbye. Flynn was out like a light so Stephanie didn't bother her.

"Where was I?" Chris asked. "Oh yeah, well, see, Shawn, you know, the bad man, well, he decided that his life was boring because he was now in his 40's and found himself saddled with a wife and kids."

"I your kid, you my daddy," Sawyer told him.

"Yeah, but I'm not in my 40's, plus, big plus, I really like my life," Chris said, "I know that your mommy can be annoying sometimes and I know that we fight sometimes, me and Mommy, not me and you because we're cool, but in general I'm very happy with my life, you know. Anyways, sometimes people have these points in their life where they aren't happy."

"I'm happy," Sawyer said.

"I'm happy too," Chris said, ruffling his hair. "Anyways, Trips was happy, but Shawn isn't happy, so he wants to be happy through Trips."

"Oh," Sawyer said. "He no happy."

"I don't think Trips is too happy right now, but he doesn't want to listen to anyone because he's stubborn, like Mommy and you."

"I not that," he said.

"You are, but that's why we're mad at Trips, because he's not making himself happy because he's listening too much to what other people are saying and not listening to what he's thinking."

"Oh," Sawyer said again. "Okay!"

Chris knew Sawyer had absorbed none of that.

Stephanie snuck into Ted's locker room. She'd started to give each member of Legacy their own locker room so that she could get to Ted without the other two being there. She had her own special knock and everything. Once Ted had said the coast was clear, she slipped inside and smiled at him. He smiled back and she really loved his smile, his genuine one, not the one he got after he dismantled some opponent in a match. She just liked his smile.

"Hey, Stephanie."

"Hey, Ted, this isn't really a social call, more of a business one," she said, handing him a schedule. "You're going to face John and Cody in a match tonight to qualify for the Bragging Rights tag match. You're not supposed to know about the match, I was going to have Maria announce it, but I figured I'd give you a heads-up."

"I'm facing Cody?"

"Yeah, is that a problem?"

"No, not a problem," Ted said, "You know, I'll bet he'll focus so much on trying to beat up Cena that he won't even notice that I want to win and get in that match."

"Good, you deserve to be in it," Stephanie said. "I hope you win."

"I hope so too, you give the matches to the guest hosts?" he wondered.

"Yeah, I pretty much coordinate the shows so they don't look dumb out there."

"Wow, I had no idea."

"I do a lot of stuff you don't know about," she winked. "Just good luck with your match."

"Don't need it, but thanks, Stephanie."

"You're welcome, I better go, I've got to deliver these to Nancy and Maria, but if I don't talk to you, good luck with your match."

"Thanks," Ted nodded, watching her leave. He'd been skeptical when Stephanie had asked to talk to him a couple weeks ago. He didn't know if she was going to fire him or what, but he was pleasantly surprised to find that she had the same ideas he had. He was getting might sick and tired of Randy's games and he was just about at the end of his rope with his "fearless leader." Cody was perfectly content having his nose up Randy's ass, but not Ted. It was nice to have someone who thought the same thing.

Stephanie was actually a lot cooler than he ever gave her credit for. He usually saw her as the boss, this untouchable entity that stalked the hallways and was better than everyone. She didn't necessarily _act_ better than anyone, but she just _was_ better than everyone. He'd never really gotten to know her or anything, but as he was slowly getting to know her now, the more he was starting to really like her. She had a wicked wit and she was never afraid to speak her mind and he respected that about her. He could see now what Chris saw in her.

He didn't like to speculate, but it always kind of seemed to him that Chris had been with Stephanie because she was the boss's daughter, kind of like the motives behind Hunter marrying Stephanie, but this proved to be very wrong. Whenever Stephanie talked about Chris, she just lit up. If she was unattached, he could definitely see himself attracted to her, but she was very much off-limits and he did not want an irate Chris Jericho on his back.

What was important here, though, was that she believed in him and he wanted to prove that she'd believed in the right person.

He needed out from under Randy's thumb.

Chris started off the show talking about while he could be on both shows, he was officially on the SmackDown roster and was declared the captain of the team, which was apt because he was the best guy on that show…or any show for that matter. He was then so rudely interrupted by someone, who turned out to be Nancy O'Dell, the guest host for the evening, who was telling him they were not going to start with him, but with DX. She even had the audacity to touch him.

"Do you know who I am?" Chris asked.

"Yes, I know who you are, but I'm the guest host on _Raw_ and I wanted to start with Raw guys, I figured that was only fair. If you want time, you can ask like the rest of the wrestlers. I'm sure you'll find time."

"No, I mean, do you _know_ who I am?" Chris asked. He hated being cut off when he'd specifically gotten time at the top of the show from his wife. Stephanie had allowed him to start the show with a brief promo.

"Yes, you're Chris Jericho."

"Yeah and do you know who the owner of this company is?"

"Vince McMahon."

"Do you know his daughter?"

"Yes, I've met Stephanie."

"That's my wife, yeah, you heard me, wife," Chris said, pulling the wife card. Stephanie wouldn't care, she was always telling him to pull the card anyways. "Now, she is kind of the boss around here and said I could have time, hell, I can go wherever I want around here because I kind of own the joint, so next time, don't interrupt me and don't touch me and if I want to go out there, I'm going out there, you got it?"

"Sure," she said, gritting her teeth at his rudeness. Now she knew what people meant when they said he thought he was better than everyone else.

"Hey, Show," Chris called out, spotting Big Show easily in the crowd. "You up for interrupting DX?"

"Always," Big Show said, coming over and taking his spot next to his tag partner.

They headed out there and Chris acted his cocky self because he was going to invite Big Show onto his team and he was sure his partner would accept. Hunter glared at him and it was a glare of real loathing. He half-expected Chris to come out here and tell him to go back to Britt right this instant or else. But then he remembered that was a personal matter and if Chris even so much as brought it up, Hunter would come out with guns blazing and start talking about him and Stephanie.

The two exchanged barbed words that ran far deeper than a stupid match. Chris felt dumb for thinking Hunter was one of his best friends. Best friends didn't always take your advice, sure, but to so blatantly dismiss his thoughts like he had in favor of Shawn? It really showed how little Hunter valued Chris's opinions. The blows kept on coming for Chris when Hunter invited Show to be on the Raw team if he beat an opponent, which was him. How the hell had Hunter cleared _that_?

He was in no shape to have a match right now and tried to think of quick ways to get out of the match or tricky ways to win. He came up with the idea of getting Show out of the ring and then having him counted out as Chris got into the ring. He tried to execute the plan, but Show was a lot nimbler than he had previously thought and he ended up getting counted out and losing, which cemented Show and Team Raw. Well that was going to create a rather interesting partnership.

"I had to do what I had to do," Show said backstage.

"I offered to let you be on _my_ team!" Chris told him.

"Well, I'm on Raw so I should be on Team Raw. It's only temporary anyways, I'm still your tag partner."

"Yeah, sure, don't talk to me until after Bragging Rights, _partner_," Chris sneered as he walked away.

Chris wasn't the only one having problems that evening. Ted found himself on the brink. After losing his match with Cody, he was pissed. He was just so sick and tired of feeling like he came in 3rd because Cody was Randy's little lap dog. Somewhere along the way, Cody had lost himself to Randy and it annoyed Ted to no end. He was reaching his breaking point. He could feel his nerves sizzling and when he was scheduled for a match later that evening, an impromptu one against Randy, he was not going to hold back. At least he hoped he wasn't going to hold back.

He was just so tired of this and maybe that's why he pinned Randy, but above all else, it felt damn good to do it. For that moment, he was better than Randy was and the adrenaline surging through his veins felt incredible. He'd finally given Randy a taste of his own medicine. He knew there'd be consequences, but he didn't care about them right now. He'd pinned Randy and he was glad to do it. He was taking charge of his own destiny. He just had to follow through. He could follow through, couldn't he? He wouldn't chicken out, no, he couldn't chicken out.

"Yes," Stephanie cheered to herself.

"What?" Chris asked, looking up at Stephanie as she watched the end of the show. "What did you say?"

"Nothing," Stephanie smiled. "I'm just glad the show is almost over, I'm tired and want to get home."

"Me too," Chris said. "How'd you're little boy do?"

"What?" she asked sharply.

"Ted, you know, your crush, how'd he do?" Chris said. He'd been busy packing up the kids' things to watch the end of the show.

"Oh, he pinned Randy."

"Wow, I never thought that would happen. Maybe he's not such a turd after all."

"Maybe not."

And so it was beginning.


	254. Almost There, October 16 to 19, 2009

A/N: Thanks for the reviews guys. :) This is another kind of set-up chapter, you can probably tell from the stuff that happens, but hopefully it's enjoyable too. Reviews are loved and appreciated. :)

* * *

"Dada, Dada, Dada."

"Flynn, Flynn, Flynn," Chris said as he looked down at the little person tugging on his pants. She was too cute for words, looking up at him with those dark blue eyes, her hair falling in her face, a smudge of something on her cheek as she wore her mini-sized KISS t-shirt and pants, a sippy cup dangling from one hand and her other curled around his pants.

"Hi," she said sweetly, just looking up at him adoringly. It was always nice when he had his kids around to keep him grounded and more importantly, reminding him that not everyone in this world hated him. Far from it in fact, if he could have the two cutest kids in the world love him. He was pretty convinced they were the cutest kids in the world too. He'd seen a lot of kids and he had to admit, his kids blew all of them out of the water.

"What's up?" Chris asked, kneeling down to her level. "Not only that, but why are you wandering the hallways by yourself?" He'd only just realized that he had not had Flynn with him while he was walking down this hallway and hadn't had Flynn for the last thirty or so minutes.

"Mama," Flynn told him. She'd been with her mommy, but her mommy had been very angry so Flynn wanted to take a step back from that volatile situation. It just didn't go in tune with her laidback attitude. She didn't see the need to get mad at people. What was there to really get mad about anyways?

"Well I've established that you were with Mommy," Chris said, "but that I already knew seeing as how I left you with her, so I'm just kind of wondering why I'm seeing _you_, but I don't see your mommy anywhere. Wow, maybe this means that I can finally have something to hold over her head. I should act like she completely lost you and then when she freaks out I'll just go, 'Oh, Flynn, yeah, I have her, because you _let_ her wander around."

"Dada," Flynn giggled, throwing her arms around his neck and not letting go.

"Yeah, I know you want to be independent and everything, but this is bad, flutterby," Chris said, picking her up. Flynn offered him some of her juice, but he shook his head, "You keep that juice, okay?"

"Okay," Flynn told him.

"You want to go look for Mommy and Sawyer?" Chris asked.

"Okay," Flynn said again, laying her head on Chris's shoulder. Chris started walking down the hallway, wondering how far Flynn had managed to wander by herself. He almost expected it to be really far and that Flynn had just walked around the joint like she owned the place. Chris could picture her with her sippy cup, looking disapprovingly at any workers that were just standing around, maybe wagging a finger at them.

Chris turned the first corner and a little ways down was Stephanie. So it turned out Flynn hadn't gone that far. She'd probably just wandered down the hall, peeked her head around the corner, saw him, then had to come see him because he was her daddy. They got a little bit farther down the hallway and Chris figured out why Stephanie had not noticed that Flynn was gone. She was currently arguing with Teddy about something. Sawyer was standing there, watching them, looking annoyed. The kid was such a peacemaker sometimes. He just hated to see everyone fighting.

"I told you, I _told_ you that Chris was the team captain for SmackDown, that was what was agreed upon. That was something that I decided and that my father supported me on."

"If I did not make a move, your father would have said something."

"I had my father's approval in placing Chris as the captain of his team. He is the most prominent SmackDown superstar and an excellent representative for the SmackDown team. He and Hunter have history together, they are friends…or were, whatever. Anyways, they are the perfect counterparts in this match and then you go and usurp me?"

"Have you thought, maybe for one second, that you were playing favorites with this?" Teddy asked and Chris shook his head, knowing that was the last thing that he should've said to Stephanie.

"If I were playing favorites with Chris, don't you think he'd be holding every damn belt in the entire company?" Stephanie asked sarcastically.

"Mommy, no say damn," Sawyer said, but at this point, she was ignoring him. This led Chris to believe Sawyer had probably been trying to tell Stephanie that Flynn was walking away, but Stephanie had probably ignored him because she was angry. She did get passionate about things.

"Sawyer, not now. Chris doesn't get favoritism because he doesn't want favoritism. He has worked his way up this ladder well before he even met me, then before he even dated me he became the Undisputed Champion. He was elected the Superstar of the Year last year, give me one good reason why he shouldn't be the team captain?"

"I just think that it would be better if he were not just the sole captain."

"I think you're wrong," Stephanie said. "Hunter is the sole captain of Raw's team."

"But he's obviously sharing those duties with Shawn."

"Just because he's freaking in love with Shawn does not mean that he's a co-captain."

"He probably will be," Teddy said, trying to be rational in the face of Stephanie's very irrational. "Stephanie, I'm looking out for the show that I am in charge of. Your dad wants to see versatility from me and adaptation to situations and that's what I'm doing here. So I'm sorry, but what I say stands."

"Fine!" Stephanie said, throwing her hands up in the air. "Fine, do whatever you want!"

"Mommy, pease no yell," Sawyer said, but Stephanie was fuming. She grabbed Sawyer's hand and started stomping angrily down the hallway, so angrily in fact she didn't even notice Chris or Flynn as she walked.

"Come on, Sawyer, we're leaving," Stephanie said.

"Stephanie?" Chris said, but Stephanie was already past him and not even registering him in her brain. Sawyer looked back at Chris like he was being dragged off to hell. Sawyer tried to break free from Stephanie's hand so he could go with his calmer parent, but Stephanie had a tight grip on his hand and an iron will to go to her office. Chris turned around to look at Teddy, "Don't mind her, she's been a bit on edge since Shane resigned."

"I understand," Teddy said, though he mostly said it to avoid a fight with Chris. He'd never insulted Stephanie in front of Chris, but he figured that if he did, Chris would go farther off the rails than Stephanie did. "I wanted to talk to you about later, I don't know how much you heard."

"Look, I really just need to speak to my wife right now, I don't really care what you had to say, sorry, that's not meant as a slight against you, it just is what it is."

Chris walked away. He would find out what they were really arguing about soon enough. The show was starting soon anyways, that's why he hadn't had the kids. He had to get to Stephanie's office, drop off Flynn, then go out for his promo. He was pretty pissed at Hunter after last week and it felt like this friendship they had established was crumbling. If Hunter wanted to be a jerk and act like they hadn't been friends at all, Chris could play that game. He could play it and win. He knew he was going to win anyways because one day, Shawn was going to decide that his family life was definitely for him and then leave Hunter in his wake. On that day, Hunter was going to wake up to an empty bed and an empty life and that's when he'd realize what an absolute idiot he had been.

By then, it might be too late. Britt may have moved on and who could really blame her. She had no obligation to Hunter any longer and if she wanted to date someone else, that was well within her right. Hunter had practically shoved her out of their house and she was staying with a friend right now so why should she stay loyal to a man who was treating her like crap? She shouldn't, that was the long and short of it. If he'd treated Stephanie the way Hunter was treating Britt, Stephanie would've had him on his ass weeks ago and he'd probably be shivering in a box right now because she'd probably freeze their accounts and then put him on suspension without pay and when he'd go to his parents, she'd already have relayed what he did and they wouldn't let him stay there.

Chris was very close to Stephanie's office when Stephanie flew out of the room, "Flynn!"

"Looking for this?" Chris said, holding Flynn aloft to show that he had her.

"Oh my God, Chris, you're a lifesaver," Stephanie said, kissing him.

"Wow, would that be how you'd greet anyone that happened to have our daughter?" Chris wondered.

"Yes, yes it would've been, where was she?"

"While you were yelling at Teddy Long like he was a petulant child, Flynn was going on a magical adventure around the corner where she spotted her 2nd favorite person in the entire world, me and came over. After leaving her and forgetting about her like you did, I think you are now her 29397th favorite person in the world."

"Wow, I dropped that far?" Stephanie said, taking Flynn from Chris and kissing her repeatedly on the cheek, maybe Flynn laugh and try to squirm away.

"Mama!" Flynn giggled.

"I'm so glad you're okay, Flynnie, I'm sorry I left you."

"I try to tell you, Mommy," Sawyer said, peeking his head out from behind his mommy. "I tell you she go."

"Well at least I know my daughter is in at least one pair of capable hands. From now on I'm going to leave Flynn in Sawyer's care, he at least watches her."

"Okay, I get it, I'm a horrible mother, thank you for having her."

"You're welcome, she's my daughter, I wouldn't have just let her walk past me like she worked here," Chris laughed. "Why do you act like she's not my daughter and I just returned her because I happened to find her?"

"I'm not saying that," she said, "I'm sorry, I'm just pissed right now. I don't want to talk about it, so don't ask."

"Are you upset about Shane? I know that it all really went down today, I was looking over your shoulder when you were checking out the site so I saw everything that you were looking at, isn't that convenient? I saw the official statement and everything and I'm wondering if that it what has caused your uproar?"

"Yes, it is," she said. "I'm incredibly angry about it. I know that I came to terms with it before, but then my dad found out and he is pissed off and upset and I've never seen him like this before. I mean, I know my father is prone to outbursts, I am too, so shut up, I wasn't going to act like I wasn't the same way, but he was pissed and I'm pissed because he's pissed."

"I haven't talked to your brother, how exactly _did_ your dad take it?"

"If you had spent over 20 years trying to build up a company, expecting Sawyer to take over for you and then he says that he doesn't want to, instead he's resigning and going off to do something else, how would you feel?" Stephanie asked him.

"I like to think I'd be more supportive than your dad, that's for sure," Chris chuckled and Stephanie glared at him, sucking at her teeth a little, seriously not amused. "Okay, okay, I would be upset," he said, giving the proper answer to her.

"Exactly. He thinks he did something wrong. That's the impression I got when I spoke to him. He thinks he did something to drive Shane away."

"Did he?"

"I don't know, I don't really deal with whatever my brother does with the company," she said flippantly.

"Yet, you suddenly think that you're going to have more power since he's resigning."

"Let me have that, Chris," she said. "Anyways, I don't think it's necessarily anything that my dad did. It's maybe just…maybe Shane is just burnt out."

"Wow, those sound _exactly_ like what I said on the same subject, but you dismissed me. What a day for revelations, don't you think?" he asked, smirking at her.

"Just get out of here," she said, glancing at her watch as Flynn grabbed her wrist and started looking at her watch too. "You've got your thing at the top of the show. Do you know what you're going to say out there?"

"Baby, I always know what I'm going to say out there."

She rolled her eyes as he turned to go out to the ring. As the team captain, it was his job to make sure that this match was at the forefront and that Hunter and Shawn knew who they were dealing with. He knew Hunter had told him pretty much to stay out of his life, but somewhere in their seven year relationship, Chris had probably picked up on Stephanie's ability to never let anything go and that was going to work to his advantage right now. If he was ever going to get through to Hunter, he was going to have to start in the place that Hunter loved most, the ring.

First a little business though. He wanted to make it clear that he would not welcome John Cena back on his show. SmackDown was his show right now, he was the face of it and the most prominent roster member so Cena could just stay on that suck-fest they called Raw (minus the parts that featured him, those were the best parts obviously). Onto more important things, his job right now was to assemble the best team possible for SmackDown. He wanted guys who would not only represent the show well, but would listen to him. He was a seasoned veteran, one of the guys who had been here the longest. There were only a handful of guys who had been here longer so he needed guys who knew their place. That's where his wife came in.

Stephanie looked around the room filled with wrestlers. She knew she didn't look intimidating because Flynn was on her hip right now, but she gave them a serious look anyways, hoping that the little girl who was playing with her necklace wasn't making her lose major intimidation points. It didn't help that Flynn kept dropping the necklace every few moments and turned to the guys, smiling at them all like she was happy to see them. Sawyer was in Stephanie's chair, trying to focus on coloring, but he was so curious as to what his mother was doing that he kept glancing up, looking suspicious.

"Okay, well, I called you all here on Chris's behalf because obviously, he's my husband," Stephanie said, not totally needing to tell everyone that, but it sounded good. "As you know, he is a captain for Team SmackDown and getting on this team will be a great opportunity for some of you, not all, which is why I'm here with you right now. Chris and I were discussing who we thought would make the best team and we've narrowed it down to you men here. Now, we obviously can't just decide without seeing who is actually better, so, you will all have matches tonight to qualify for the SmackDown team. Put your best foot forward if you want to be on it and seeing as how my husband is the captain and I'm an owner, it will be very good for you if you're on the team."

Chris knew Stephanie was taking care of the matches so he could come out here and denigrate Hunter and Shawn. He started with their book, which Shawn probably read over and over again to remind him of the good days and the life he was currently stuck with. Shawn probably read it to Hunter as they were driving to shows, reminding Hunter of how much fun they had and how much fun they could still have together if only he'd get rid of that dead weight called Britt. Britt deserved better than that, but Shawn had no feelings of remorse. Chris had seen him for what he was so long ago; if only people could see the real side of Shawn Michaels. They'd be horrified.

He was going to show the fans what he thought of DX and he took that book and started ripping the pages, throwing them on the ground and literally kicking them away. He hoped Shawn and Hunter were watching, hoped that Hunter stung a little bit over it, just a little bit to see someone he called a friend do something so disrespectful, maybe then he'd catch a clue as to how Britt had felt when she had been left in a restaurant by herself. Chris was fiercely loyal to his friends, but if you crossed him, he was not easy to forgive.

He kept talking and was startled out of his speech when Kane's music hit along with his trademark fire. Okay, this was not good. Chris had forgotten what he'd heard earlier with Teddy and could only think that Kane was willing to stand beside him for the greater good of SmackDown. Kane said they needed to talk and when Kane said he needed to talk, the best idea was to listen to what he said. Kane told him he was now co-captain and he remembered earlier with Stephanie and Teddy and this must have been what she was angry about. He wondered if she'd dare get so annoyed if Kane were standing beside Teddy at the time of argument.

Chris wasn't stupid. He knew this team needed to be united in order for him…them to win at Bragging Rights. And if that meant that he would have to be co-captain with Kane, then so be it. It was a stupid fool who denied anything to Kane and Chris was never quite sure what would set Kane off. The guy _had_ gotten irrationally angry at him the _one_ time he'd spilled coffee on him, coffee that wasn't even hot. He didn't want a repeat of that situation. Better to just let him be a co-captain. He lied and said that it was what he was thinking all along, but really what he was trying to say was that he'd known all along because he'd overheard the conversation between Teddy and Stephanie regarding the situation. Chris was glad he had this guy on his side and not the other side.

He went backstage and back to his locker room/Stephanie's office. "Did you take care of the matches?"

"Yes, everyone knows where they're supposed to be and against whom and what's at stake. I know that this is the best way to formulate the team, not that it really matters though, I think it's going to come down to you and Hunter."

"You do?"

"With all the real life animosity going on, yeah, I really do think that it's going to end up being the two of you and when that happens, I think you're going to show Hunter truly and completely what an ass he's being."

"You just want to see me kick his ass."

"There has never been a time I didn't want to see you kicking his ass, except when I was married to him and everything."

"Mommy, you marry Twips?" Sawyer asked.

"Yes, I was married to Trips, I've told you that a million times."

"Oh," he said, trying to remember at least one of those million, but none of them were coming to his brain right now so he dropped it and just continued to play with his Play-Doh.

"Even then, I think you wanted me to kick his ass," Chris shrugged. "Come on, though, I want to watch the qualifying matches, see what I'm going to have to team with, not that any of them are even going to be in my league, it was pretty slim pickings if you ask me. I wish we could bring in other guys, ECW guys, I'd love to have Christian on my team."

"You should go to ECW, see if you can scout anyone. It's not a Raw vs. SmackDown vs. ECW match, right? Why can't you use them, they'd be like free agents."

"You're right," he said with a nod. "I think I'll do that, actually, Sawyer and I can go to ECW next week."

"Why Sawyer and you, why not Sawyer, you, me, and Flynn?"

"Well, I didn't think you'd be interested in going to ECW."

"I'm kidding, go, I don't care, but why do you want Sawyer, that's what I want to know."

"Well, Katie Lea is on that show and our son just happens to think she hangs the moon in the sky so if he gets the chance to see her, I think he would be one happy kid and one happy kid means a very happy and stress-free week for his parents."

"_Oh_, I like that idea, then yes, bring him along. It'll also give you the chance to be around Katie and fawn all over her and be like, 'Oh, Katie, you're so gorgeous, you're so pretty, you don't even know how pretty you are, you are the most gorgeous of all divas.'"

"Normally, those would be fighting words and I would put you in a headlock right now," Chris said as Flynn came over and handed Chris a book. He lifted her into his lap and started helping her through the pages, "but the fact of the matter is that I do tell her all those things."

"You do?"

"Yeah, they're true."

"You think that she's the most gorgeous of _all_ divas?"

"I do," he shrugged. "And don't get offended, you're not a diva, you're goddamn Stephanie McMahon. You're so far above the divas, they can't even see the bottoms of your feet."

Stephanie suppressed a smile and pecked him on the lips. "I don't know what you see in her. If I weren't in the picture, would you date her?"

"Well, I wouldn't have an in because Sawyer is really our biggest talking point, but yeah, I definitely think I would pursue that. I mean, she's totally beautiful, have you seen her? She's just got this dark look about her that I really love, kind of like how you have that dark look sometimes, I love it. But I would definitely think about dating her if you weren't in the picture or if we had broken up at some point in our relationship."

"You mean other than the two times that we were broken up?"

"Those don't count."

"You dated Molly Holly during one of those periods," she pointed out.

"She was a rebound, that was it. I only was with her because she was the opposite of you."

"Could you imagine marrying Molly?"

"I think my life would be a lot quieter and my kids a lot more well-behaved and she probably wouldn't have made me miss the first qualifying match," Chris said, glancing at the television to see the first team member for Team SmackDown was Dolph Ziggler. He could live with that. Dolph was really an up-and-comer and he wouldn't mind having him on the team.

"You know what you should do?"

"I feel a plan coming on," he said in a sing-song voice as he turned some pages for Flynn.

"No, not a plan. It's just, well, you're the co-captain and you want SmackDown to be the superior brand, right?"

"That is what I'm aiming for, yes," Chris nodded.

"Well, I think that you should make sure that all SmackDown people win their matches, like the divas for one, that way, you can really, _really_ brag because I know you and I know that you want to brag more than anything else. You are kind of cocky."

"You know, that's not a half bad idea," he said. "I'm going to go look for Michelle and tell her she better win that match at Bragging Rights. Morrison is a wildcard, not sure if he's going to win his match with The Miz, which is sad because The Miz is a jerk."

"You just don't like him because he takes his time on Twitter to insult you."

"And then copies me, I mean, the trunk change, really? Did he expect that I was not going to notice that he was suddenly emulating me?"

"Yeah, that was all because he wants to be like you."

"And what are you doing on my Twitter anyways, do you go on and check to see what I'm doing?" he asked.

"Yeah, I do, especially when I don't know where you are or what you're doing, especially with the kids, it's convenient. Then sometimes, I go under your name and post stuff."

"I hate when you do that," he groaned.

"I only put up what other people are saying to you. You like when I do that because it saves you the trouble."

"Yeah, until people say I only put stuff up to promote myself, little do they know it's my wife hacking into my account to do that."

"Hack into your account? Chris, you use the same exact password for everything, a password you've given to me and made me memorize in case anything were to ever happen to you and it's an incredibly lame password at that."

"How is using our wedding anniversary lame?"

"Because it's so obvious."

"To you, most people would think I'd used one of the kids' birthdays."

"Yeah right, no they wouldn't. Besides, what is so wrong with promoting things about you, I just like to remind people that you are on shows and things, that's all. If someone thinks you're just self-promoting, tell them it's your wife."

"That'll make me look cool."

She rolled her eyes, "It's not a big deal."

"Then I know you like to read what people have asked me and then sometimes you answer!"

"Chris, I know you! When I know the answer to some of the questions, yes, I answer them for you, it's not a huge deal. I figure that people will never know it's me anyways because the answers are yours. What do they care if it's me or you that answers?"

"Because they get excited when I answer them."

"Well, wouldn't they get equally excited if they knew Stephanie McMahon was answering them?"

"No."

"You should see some of the stuff people ask you, do you read it?"

"Sometimes," he admitted.

"Well I read it when you're not and sometimes people are so over the line with you."

"You're just protective."

"That may be so, but I'm just looking out for you," Stephanie said, "now go, go be the captain and show SmackDown _and_ Raw who's really in charge."

He eventually found Michelle in Teddy's office and he went to speak with her, making sure she knew that it was important for her to win the match if they wanted SmackDown to come out the ultimate winner at Bragging Rights. She seemed receptive until Mickie James walked in. Chris didn't like Mickie. When he'd been fake divorcing Stephanie, Mickie had been one of the ones that had been all over him. He couldn't help but think there was still a flirtatious tone to her voice even now. That just irked him. She couldn't take a hint, which was annoying and she was just not appealing to him in the slightest. He was quite glad that she wasn't on Team SmackDown.

Because even thought it went deeper than just the matches, Chris was a competitor and more than anything else; he just wanted to win.

"Hi Twip!" Sawyer said, first thing when he saw Hunter walking down the hallway. His voice was jovial, but his words were not so jovial. "You not my fwiend anymore."

"What?" Hunter asked, looking down at him.

"I no like you, you are mean," Sawyer told him.

"What did you tell him?" Hunter asked Chris.

"I told him the situation, but any and all opinions are solely those of Sawyer's. He has his own brain and he can formulate his own opinions."

"Yeah, so your 3 year old son came to this conclusion all on his own."

"Look, I explained the situation to him. I told that you and Britt had been having problems and that Shawn was working you over like a puppetmaster and that you were listening to his every word and being an absolute jerk about it. I just told him the facts and he decided what he wanted to think."

"Oh, that doesn't sound biased at all."

"I just call it like I see it and so does Sawyer. He knows what a jerk you've been, not just to me, but to everyone ever since your little buddy Shawn came back. It's really quite amazing the hold he has on you. I've never figured you for a pushover, but you certainly are one right now."

"I'm not a pushover," he growled. He hated it that Chris could get under his skin. He'd given him too much information, too much power in this relationship. He never should've shown that kind of weakness.

"You cannot come to my house," Sawyer told Hunter. "You not allowed."

"Yeah, we don't want you," Chris said. "Not until you realize that you're being duped, which I think is going to take you extra long this time. But that's okay, Britt is doing just fine without you, don't worry."

"What do you mean by that?" Hunter asked, the curiosity getting the better of him and not realizing that Chris was obviously baiting him. Whatever came out of Chris's mouth was probably going to be a lie, but what Chris was saying was piquing his interest.

"I'm just saying she's not waiting around for you and good on her, you know. You're obviously not waiting around on her, so why should she just sit around wallowing or whatever."

"What do you mean not waiting around, she's dating someone?"

"I don't want to say dating, but she's definitely dipping her toe in the water, if you get what I'm saying. But you don't care about that, of course. You're done with her, you didn't even care about her by the end, right? So why would you care now? I'm just relaying information, making conversation, but you're happier now with Shawn, with your…whatever it is the two of you do."

"I see Bwitt on the show," Sawyer told Hunter nodding. "She was dere 'cause she work wif my mommy."

"Yeah, she doesn't work on Raw anymore, in case you didn't know. She only works SmackDowns and with Stephanie when she does corporate work so you won't even ever have to see her again."

"Never, evvvver," Sawyer laughed, pretending like he was his daddy when he watched videos of his daddy. His daddy was really funny when he was making fun of people. He had called Grandpa Vince, Grandpa Vance!

"Whatever, it's not my concern anymore," Hunter said, walking away without saying goodbye.

Britt was dating? That didn't sit well in his stomach, but she was his ex at this point so what did it matter? It didn't, is what it was. Britt could date whomever she so desired. It wasn't like he was sitting on a couch somewhere and eating ice cream and crying. He and Shawn had been out almost every night this week and the week before that. He'd been having fun and although he hadn't taken any girls home yet, he had gotten plenty of numbers and he'd follow up on them, that was for sure. Girls knowing his name really opened up a whole new world for him, that was for sure.

All he had to do was say he was Triple H and desperate floozies were willing to flock towards him. They all sought the same thing, a night with him, and maybe, possibly, hopefully a future. They wanted to be kept women. He was okay with them thinking that. If it got them to want him all that much more, than so be it. He just had to be choosy. He didn't want just anyone, he wanted the best one and he hadn't found her yet, but she was out there. Shawn was an awesome wing-man, always finding him the best women in whatever place they were at for the evening.

He bumped into someone and looked up to see who it was and was surprised to see it was the woman he'd just been talking about. "Sorry," she mumbled. She wasn't in her work clothes, but rather she was in a hoodie and some cotton pants.

"Britt," he breathed out.

"I said sorry," she said. "I just needed to drop something off to Stephanie, that was all. It was urgent."

"Oh."

"Can you move out of my way, please?"

"Oh, yeah, sure, sorry," he said, feeling a little hoarse for some reason.

"Later," she said flippantly.

"Are you dating someone?"

She scoffed and turned. "Are you kidding me with this? You're asking me if I'm dating anyone? You have no right to ask me that anymore. Why does it even matter to you? You don't care about me so you shouldn't give a damn about who I'm seeing."

"Chris said you're going out."

Britt smirked. Leave it to Chris to try and give her the upper-hand. "What if I am?"

"Nothing."

"Good, because it's none of your business, later," she said, wandering away from him.

Hunter watched her leave until she was out of eyesight. "She's so pretty."

Hunter turned his head and scowled. "Shut up, Cody."

"No, I don't have to," Cody told him. "But you know what. I think I'm going to shut up, but not because of you or anything. I think I want to go find Britt. She's single now, right? You broke up? Because I would love to tap that ass. She's just my type, petite, thin, a firecracker. Thanks for giving her up."

Cody started to walk away and Hunter grabbed his arm, flipping him around and nearly throwing him into the wall. "You stay away from her," he growled.

"You can't tell me that, she ain't yours," Cody said, shaking himself free and wandering down the hallway.

Hunter's breath was short and he went to his locker room. Shawn was already in there and nearly jumped when Hunter entered. "Hunter, my man, have I got an idea for tonight! I was thinking, we run down the entire Team SmackDown and just rip on them. I figured that we can come up with some great stuff for the nobodies on their team."

"Yeah, sure, that sounds fine," Hunter said, distracted and thinking and wondering if Cody had actually caught up with Britt. He hoped not. Cody was not Britt's type at all.

"What's up with you, man?"

"Nothing," Hunter said, but decided to bring up the subject because what did he have to lose? "Do you think I was right to dump Britt?"

"Hell yeah, you don't need her. She was holding you back," Shawn said.

"But why?"

"Because you're so focused on your career, you don't need a steady girlfriend right now. You're the kind of guy who works better alone, you know. The kind of guy who has a girl for a little while, but then needs to cut loose before they interrupt your career. I mean, look at you, when was the last time you seriously went after the title, like seriously went after it?"

"I don't know, it was pretty recent."

"You can't even remember. See, you need to start focusing back on your career. That's what's important to you, don't you remember? Don't you remember when you were going after the title and everything and focused on that? When you were with Stephanie, you started to lose that, you know. You became so focused on her and fighting her battles. That's what that thing with Chris was, remember, when he was antagonizing her and then he kissed her and you had to go all weirdo about it and challenge him, remember that?"

"Yeah."

"You lost your title then, you were so focused on Stephanie and everything, you lost what you really came to this company for. That was happening again with Britt. Now you've got time to focus back on getting the title or us getting the Tag Titles so both shows can have DX on it, how great would that be?"

"Great," Hunter nodded. Maybe Shawn was right. He needed to focus on getting the title, getting back into the hunt instead of on a relationship and doing stuff just for her. What had that gotten him when he'd faced Randy? Nothing, nothing at all. Now was his time to shine and perhaps that meant that he did have to be alone and only find solace in random women.

"Britt!"

Britt turned around and furrowed her brow. "Cody?"

"Hey, yeah, glad I caught up with you," Cody said, taking a deep breath. "I haven't seen you around."

"I only work SmackDowns now," she told him blandly, "if you're here because of Randy, I swear to God, I'm going to puke on your shirt."

He laughed, "No, not with Randy. I heard about you and Hunter breaking up and I know it may be too soon, but I've always been kind of interested and was wondering if you would want to go out to dinner with me."

Her first instinct was to say no, but then her second was to say yes, just to spite Hunter, but she wasn't that kind of person. That was just petty and dumb, so she went back to her first instinct, but then again, Hunter had pretty much been saying that he could do better, that he could have a girl every night, so what would he care if she were to go out with someone. Cody wasn't a horrible looking guy even if he wasn't her type of guy. Sure, he acted like a jerk on the shows, but Hunter acted like a great guy on the shows and he was turning into one of the biggest jerks she'd ever seen.

"Did Randy send you?"

"No."

"Either way, no, bye," she said, turning on her heel. The last thing she wanted to date right now was a wrestler, the absolute _last_ thing.

Stephanie laughed at something Ted said. "So what are you going to do tonight? Not that I'm suggesting you do anything, but…well, I'm curious to know what you're going to do tonight."

Ted laughed. She was just so enthusiastic about things. "I don't know. I know that I want to like, beat him up, just because, but then, I don't know, I still feel apprehensive. I'm pissed about what happened last week and he's told me in no uncertain terms that I am not to repeat last week with what happens this week."

"Well, I think you're ready to be a breakout star right now if you chose to. If you were to turn on Randy tonight, I don't think he would see it coming in the slightest. He expects you to lay down because you're part of Legacy and I suspect he thinks that's all your good for, but if he knew better, he would see that you want out of there and then he'd be worried."

"Are you this supportive with Chris?" Ted asked.

"He doesn't need much of my support, he loves to do things on his own," Stephanie said, "he's used to that, you know, getting to do things on his own. People have to remember, Chris was a wrestler for over 10 years before we started dating, he doesn't need me."

"He seems to like you though."

"I would hope so," Stephanie laughed, "I support him with most of the things he wants to do."

"Most?"

"Well, sometimes I hate it when he does particular things, we fight a lot."

"Oh yeah?"

"Don't mistake that for us having problems in our marriage or anything," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "Chris and I are happily married."

"It's still just so weird to me," he admitted. "I used to watch you guys hate on each other all the time."

"It was masking his love for me," she winked at him.

"Did you guys actually hate each other, I mean, what you did to each other was pretty nasty, but then he kissed you."

"We hated each other, everything that happened was because we hated each other."

"Wow," Ted drawled, "that's pretty crazy then. I guess it's just weird because I don't know, I guess I kind of thought, I know this is going to sound stupid, but it always kind of seemed that Chris was kind of taking advantage of you, I don't know why I thought that, but that maybe he was using you or something."

Stephanie laughed, "God no. One of the first things Chris established when we started dating was that I was not to help him in any way, shape, or form with his work. He doesn't let me interfere with anything."

"So like when he won Superstar of the Year, you didn't just rig that?"

"No, I didn't."

"So you just let him do his own thing?"

"Yeah, I do. That's what he wants and I respect that. Believe me, if I had my way and _could_ rig it, I'd make him champion right now. I'd strip it right off of Undertaker and give it right to Chris, no questions asked."

"I think I like having you on my side, you're pretty great, Stephanie," Ted said with admiration. The more he was getting to know Stephanie, the more he talked with her, he just liked her more and more. She was just really personable and not at all stuffy and stuck up like she sometimes seemed when he saw her down the hall or with her husband or working. She was incredibly different from how he first perceived her and almost wished he could've known her sooner.

Stephanie fought the urge to blush but she could feel her ears getting hot. "Thank you, Ted, that means a lot to hear."

"Chris doesn't say it often enough?" Ted asked and he didn't know where that came from, but Stephanie didn't seem to mind the question.

"In between calling me a slut or a ho, yeah, he does," she said and then off Ted's horrified look, "I'm kidding, Ted, Chris jokes around with me because that's what he used to call me, he doesn't think I'm a slut now or anything. He tells me he loves me all the time, it's never been in doubt or anything."

"Yeah, of course, sorry," Ted said, "I don't know why I asked, not that I want to pry into your relationship or anything. I just don't know Chris and I'm only starting to get to know you and well, you are keeping this a secret from Chris, which…I mean, do you normally keep secrets from your husband?"

"Absolutely," she told him nonchalantly. "See, for us, that whole 'don't keep secrets' thing doesn't work. He has his plans, I have my plans and eventually we find out. This is my little project right now and he doesn't need to know about it, trust me." The trust me part was because Chris would just tease her mercilessly and she would never hear the end of it.

"Oh well, as long as you're sure."

"Believe me, I'm sure, besides, Chris is very busy himself these days, what with Bragging Rights coming up."

Chris was with his troops. They were here tonight because they were going to invade Raw when he had his match with Shawn later. He wasn't really going to have a match, but instead, they were going to beat up Team Raw and show them who was the most dominant brand around here. Since it would've been quite obvious sneaking them all in, Chris was standing in the parking lot, Kane next to him and his cavalry in front of him.

"You are big," Sawyer said to Kane.

"Yeah, I am, kid, what of it?" Kane said to him.

"You smell," Sawyer said and Chris grabbed Sawyer by the back of the head and gently guided him away from Kane.

"We don't tell people they smell, kid," Chris whispered to him as he knelt down to put Flynn on the ground. She immediately went over to Sawyer and he grabbed her hand to make sure she didn't wander off like she had before. His mommy hadn't even noticed.

"But he smells," Sawyer said, eyeing him.

"I know, but if we are being polite, like Mommy always wants us to be, then we don't point out when someone smells."

"But it bad, Daddy," Sawyer said. This man smelled awful. He'd come around to the other side of his daddy and he could still smell him, he was that stinky.

"Kid, believe me when I tell you this, that guy is not one you want to mess with, okay?" Chris said. "Now I have to talk for a minute, so just stay quiet."

"Okay."

"Okay," Flynn said too, wanting to be in on it.

Chris smiled and stood up. "Okay, you guys, here's the plan. I have the match, I come out, say there isn't going to be a match, then a couple of guys should come out there--"

"We'll do it," Cryme Tyme said.

"Okay, you two," Chris said, "then Kane, I think you should come out with the rest of the guys. I'm sure by then, the rest of the Raw crew will be out there and then we'll just kick their asses, sound good?"

"Yeah," everyone said in unison.

"Great, I think that'll be good. I know they're probably expecting us, Hunter and Shawn aren't stupid, to a point at least, so they're going to have their receptors up so for that little bit more added bit of surprise, I think you guys should come out of the crowd, that way we're not blindsided backstage for any reason."

"Smart," Kane drolled.

"Thanks," Chris said. "Does everyone agree?"

"Yeah," they said again.

"Okay, then that's the plan."

"That's the plan!" Sawyer yelled, jumping up and down.

"You heard him, he thinks it's the best plan of attack."

"I do," Sawyer said definitively.

Stephanie only wished Ted could be that definitive. Now was his chance to break from Randy and he wasn't taking it. He was just taking the beating and she was a little frustrated with him. Had she been wrong about him? Was he really more cowardly than she'd thought he was? She thought he was brave, but he was just taking what Randy had to offer and he seemingly agreed to Randy's insistence that he not fight. There was something brewing in Ted, she could see it, but would he let it out?

Ted desperately did want to let it out. He was reaching his breaking point, he could feel it. If Randy continued on, he might lose it and then take Randy out. He wanted to, Stephanie wanted him too and he found he didn't want to let her down, but could he really just turn his back on what he knew? When he'd first entered the company, he had a bit of a safety net with Cody. That safety net grew when they aligned with Randy and he wasn't sure he was ready to strike out on his own yet. Once he left that safety net, what then? What would he do?

But Randy was pushing him to the brink and one push was too much and he shoved Randy back, which felt so satisfying. Backstage, Stephanie thought he was going to do it, she was waiting on baited breath when she felt lips on her neck and a hand on her waist. "God, could you be any more obvious?" Chris said in her ear.

"Huh?"

"You want your boy toy to turn on Randy so you can jump on him and be friends or more than friends if that's what you desire."

"Shut up," she said, elbowing him in the side as she felt Flynn bury her face into her leg.

"I'm just telling the truth, I'm preparing myself for when you leave me for a younger man," Chris told her.

"Yeah, like I'd do that."

"I believe you would," he said. "Oh look, he's laying down for Randy, too bad, your secret love will have to wait for another day."

Stephanie sighed as she watched. She'd been hoping that Ted would break free, but apparently he wasn't ready yet. Ted didn't know why he gave up like he did. He hated being Randy's little lackey, but he'd just given in and he couldn't figure out why. He felt like he'd not only let himself down, but Stephanie down as well. How could she see anything in him if he couldn't even stand for himself? He was nearly seething with disgust for himself at this point and really just wanted to crawl in a hole and hibernate, but he knew he couldn't. Randy would probably expect him to do some other thing for him tonight. God, he hated himself right now.

"I just don't understand why he couldn't turn on Randy," Stephanie said to Chris.

"Because he's a coward?"

"He is not."

"Seems like he is."

"You wouldn't know, you've never been part of a group."

"What does it have to do with me?"

"You just don't understand what it takes to be in a group."

"And you do?"

"I do," she said.

"Please," Chris scoffed. "If Ted really wanted out, he'd be out by now. Who would put up with Randy?"

"Did you know Cody asked Britt out tonight? She had to drop something off and she told me."

"Oh God, I hope she doesn't get mixed up with that group."

"She said no."

"Good, she should watch later, I've got a trick up my sleeve."

"I know the trick."

"Yeah, well act like you don't."

"Oh my God, Chris, what could it be!" she said, rolling her eyes and getting back to some paperwork she was looking over.

"Well, you'll see," he said, playing along with her.

Everyone saw later when he came down to the ring and said he wasn't going to face Shawn that evening. He had better plans and then Cryme Tyme showed up. By the time everyone was out there, Chris had to admit it almost felt like he and Hunter were the only ones in the ring. There was something always so tension-filled when they stepped in the ring, even when they weren't mad at each other. It was like old feelings suddenly came back when they were in the ring together and the fact they'd both had Stephanie made things that much more hate-filled. Chris felt like ripping Hunter's throat out and they were just standing there.

Hunter had to insult him, though he figured the actual insult came from Shawn and Hunter was just telling it to him in some sort of weird coercion by Shawn. Yeah, nobody liked him, boo hoo, like he cared. This was not just about guys that liked him. If it was, Big Show would definitely be on his side right now, not Raw's side. This was about what show was best and both sides wanted it to be their side. They didn't want to be looked at as the inferior men. Neither side was going to back down and as Hunter took another step forward and Chris jutted his chin in defiance, that competitive adrenaline was starting to flow.

Then all hell broke loose.

Chris was a little nonplussed by how his team had handled it and as he lay in bed later that evening, Stephanie cradled against him, breathing softly, he came to realize, standing face-to-face with Raw's team, his team was far inferior. This was unacceptable and he had to definitely go to ECW like Stephanie had said. In fact, he thought maybe revamping the entire team save for him and Kane would be the most ideal. He'd bring it up with Kane and Stephanie tomorrow, but he wasn't liking the talent he had now. There had to be better guys out there.

And he was going to find them.


	255. Superior, October 20 to 26, 2009

A/N: Thanks again for the reviews, hope you're still enjoying the story. I really get inspired a lot by Chris's tweets so stuff that he tweets about, I try to incorporate in here and I hope it works. Anyways, I decided that every day this week and into next, I'm going to update at least one story a day until all my works in progress are updated, so keep on the lookout for my stuff. Enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

Sawyer laughed as the wind blew through his hair at this high speed. He wasn't used to driving with the top down, but his daddy was driving with it down right now. It was really fun driving like this. He could look up and the sky was _right there_! There was nothing hindering his view and he could see all the birds flying overhead and he could see all the buildings very clearly because there wasn't any glass between them. He didn't even know cars could do this so when the roof started to peel back, he had watched in complete absurd wonder. Then his daddy had started driving and it was crazy!

"You like this, kid?" Chris asked from the driver's seat, peeking into the backseat at his son, who looked like he was having the time of his life. He figured it would be cool for the kid to have a little fun since it was only him and Sawyer for the day. Stephanie and Flynn had flown home this morning on the short flight from Jacksonville to Tampa. Chris and Sawyer, on the other hand, had decided to drive to Columbia in a rental car and Chris had decided to splurge a little and get the convertible. It was him and his son, they were going to be cool today.

He couldn't drive with the top down with Flynn in the car, it would just be too much for her and make her cranky. It would make Stephanie cranky too when her hair would fly out of the ponytail he'd make her put on and then she'd yell at him to put the top up. It's what she did to his sports-car at home sitting in the garage collecting dust. He only got to drive that when he was alone. But since it was just him and Sawyer, there was nothing to say that he couldn't drive with the top down and it was obviously exhilarating his son.

"You want some tune, Sawyer!" Chris yelled over the roar of the wind.

"Yeah! Play the music, Daddy!" Sawyer yelled.

"You got it, kid," Chris said as he put some of his music into the CD player they were provided with and turning up the volume so Sawyer could hear it. Chris started singing along as he was driving, occasionally looking back at Sawyer, who appeared to be dancing in his car-seat. Chris laughed at him, he was not smooth in the slightest, but he was trying and Chris had to give him credit for that. They ended up driving for a few hours before Chris could start to see Sawyer getting restless and decided it was time for a pit stop. He pulled into the next town and found a decent restaurant and parked, helping Sawyer out of the car so he could stretch his legs.

"Are you hungry?" Chris asked his son.

"Yes, can we have lunch?" Sawyer asked, looking up at Chris.

"No, I'm going to starve you and make sure you never have food again," Chris said sarcastically. "Of course we can have lunch, I don't know about you, but my tummy is growling."

Sawyer patted his own tummy, "My tummy grow too."

"Well, it is growing," Chris laughed as they walked into the diner-type place. It was one of those places that isn't terribly old, but is made to look like an old 50's diner. Chris pushed open the door and let Sawyer walk inside before they were seated at a table, Sawyer nestled in his booster seat as he tried to read the menu. Sawyer had taken a much bigger interest in reading lately and Stephanie was convinced he was going to start reading soon.

"Daddy, what dat?" Sawyer asked, pointing to something on his kiddie menu.

"Cheeseburger, do you want that?"

"No, what dat?" he asked, pointing to another thing, but then realized there were little pictures next to it that probably explained what it was. "It a hot dog, Daddy."

Chris laughed, "Yeah, see, you can read the menu on your own, do you know what you want?"

"I want gwilled cheese," Sawyer said, pointing to the picture of the cheesy sandwich. "What you having, Daddy?"

"I'm going to get a cheeseburger," Chris told him very seriously as the waitress came up to ask them if they wanted anything to drink. Chris got a soda for himself and a milk for Sawyer before she took the rest of their order. Before Chris could get into talking with Sawyer, a kid from another table came over and tentatively stepped up to Chris, like the man was absolutely terrifying.

"Are you Chris Jericho?" the boy asked.

"That is my daddy," Sawyer said, not knowing who this kid was or what he wanted.

Chris held in his laugh. "Yeah, I'm Chris Jericho."

"Can I have your autograph?" the boy asked, looking deathly afraid that Chris would call him a parasite or a gelatinous ignoramus. Chris might not agree with his fans, sometimes he downright hated them because they couldn't see he was a truthful man and the people they loved were hypocrites and jerks, but he wasn't a kid hater. He had his own kids and he certainly didn't hate them so he felt bad that this kid was so obviously terrified to speak to him. He put on his best smile for him while Sawyer watched on suspiciously. Whenever they went out, someone would come up to his daddy and he had no idea who they were and it bugged Sawyer.

"Of course you can," Chris said, showing that he did have a nice side to him. "What's your name?"

"Logan."

"Cool name," Chris said nicely, taking the kid's pen and scribbling on a piece of paper his autograph and a little personal note for him. "There you go. Do you like wrestling?"

The kid nodded, but didn't say anything to him. Sawyer just kept looking at him. He didn't seem like a mean person, but he didn't know who this kid was. He finally gave up looking at him because he wasn't _doing_ anything so he went back to the crayons the waitress had given him when he sat down and was going to color his grilled cheese sandwich that he had ordered while his dad talked to whoever this kid was. He just wasn't going to bother with it.

"Do you watch it every week?"

"I watch it with my big brother," Logan said. "He thinks you're mean though, that's why he's still sitting over there, he doesn't want you to yell at him."

"I wouldn't yell at him," Chris said. Sawyer might yell at him to stop if that was the case.

"Really? But you yell in the ring?"

"Well, when I'm in the ring, I'm only thinking about wrestling and a lot of people really don't like me there so I guess it's just easy to not like them back, but when I'm eating lunch, I'm just a nice guy," Chris explained as best he could. What people saw onscreen was not who he was. That was who he projected himself to be. When he was in the ring, he didn't need those fans because they booed him and hated him, but if a kid was willing to come up to him to talk, he wasn't going to act like an asshole.

"Oh, okay," he said. "I like Triple H, do you know him?"

"I do know him," Chris said. "He's a nice guy."

"He's funny," Logan laughed.

"I'll tell him you thought so."

"Really?" he asked in wonderment.

"Sure," Chris said. "It's not everyday that he gets to hear that people like him."

"Cool, thanks," Logan said, looking like he wanted to climb in the booth with them and just talk with Chris. A woman who Chris presume to be his mother came over to them and gently put her hands on Logan's shoulders.

"I'm sorry he's bothering you, he just loves wrestling and when he saw you walk in here, I think he kind of freaked out," she said apologetically.

"It's fine, don't worry about it," Chris said. "If my kid saw someone he liked, like one of the Wiggles or something, he'd freak out too, I understand."

She laughed, "Thank you so much."

"It's really not a problem," Chris said before she led Logan back to his table. After that, people were a little less afraid to come up to him and even people who obviously didn't know who he was (just that he must be someone famous) were coming up to ask for his autograph. He took care of everyone, making sure to tally how many autographs he was signing so he could brag to Stephanie about it later. That was the best part of giving autographs, he got to tell Stephanie how many he had and gloat about how many she didn't get. When his food came, people were respectful enough to leave him be and that gave him some time to talk with his son, who had been woefully ignored because of al the people coming up to Chris.

"You excited to go to ECW, kid?"

"Uh huh, I get to see wefling, are you wefling?" Sawyer asked as he took a big bite of his grilled cheese and giggled as some of the cheese came out with it. Chris reached forward and cut off the cheese so Sawyer could actually eat his bite without all the cheese coming out of the sandwich.

"No, I'm not going to be wrestling because I'm not on ECW…although, you know, I guess I _could_ wrestle because my Undisputed Tag Title means that I can be on any show so I suppose I _could_, but I'm not going to because I'm going there just to see if there's anyone there I would want on my team."

"Why? You have a team, I saw them," Sawyer said as Chris poured some ketchup for his fries, but Sawyer ended up dipping his sandwich in it and eating it, which kind of grossed Chris out, but Sawyer seemed to like it so he let him.

"I know I have a team, but they're not necessarily the team I want going into Sunday, a lot of them had their butts kicked by guys on the Raw team when we were up against them. If I want to win on Sunday, I'm going to need a better team."

"Oh, so you go look?"

"Yeah, I'm going to look, observe, maybe Christian can be on my team even."

"Are we see Cwissy?" Sawyer asked excitedly. He hadn't seen his friend in a while and he was very happy to be able to see him.

"Yeah, we'll see him and Trish will probably be there too. You know who else is going to be there?"

"Who, Daddy?"

"Katie."

Sawyer's mouth opened a little, "I like her!"

"Believe me, I know," Chris winked at him. Sawyer didn't know what that meant. "If I were a little younger, I think I would like her too, if you know what I mean, but I don't think you do because you're three years old and you probably shouldn't know what I'm talking about because if you do, you've definitely been around Edge too much."

"She nice and she pwetty."

"I think so too. I think Mommy is pretty too, what do you think?"

"Mommy very, very, very pwetty," Sawyer told him, chomping on his sandwich.

"I know, so we're going to go see Katie at ECW and then tomorrow you're going to fly home with Trish and Christian since Flynn can't stand to be without you for more than a day."

"Why are you not coming?" Sawyer asked.

"Because SmackDown is going to be here on Friday so I'm going to stay here and you're going to go home since you don't want to stay here and Flynn and Mommy don't want you to stay. Then, I'm going to fly home right after SmackDown so I can come be with you guys until Sunday when we fly to Pittsburgh for Bragging Rights."

"What is Bwagging Wights?" Sawyer asked.

"Don't let Mommy hear you say that, it's the big show on Sunday, remember, I'm the team captain of my team?"

"Oh yeah, I know now," Sawyer said.

"Yeah, so we've got a busy week ahead of us and then next week is Halloween and I think this is really the first year where you're going to understand what's going on. Flynn probably won't understand because she's still little, but I think you'll have fun and you'll get lots of candy."

"I like candy," Sawyer nodded, "I'm gonna be monster."

"I know. What's Flynn going to be?"

"Um, budderfly," Sawyer said.

"What am I going to be?"

Sawyer had no idea so he threw an idea out there, "Daddy?"

"Well, yeah I'm kind of always going to be your daddy, but I think I'll be a rock star because that's really what I am."

"Oh okay, what Mommy be?"

"A witch," Chris said with a chuckle.

"Oh," Sawyer said, focusing on his sandwich. After they finished, they were back on the road and headed for Columbia and ECW.

Stephanie lifted Flynn out of her crib and set her down on the ground. Flynn stretched like a little kitten and then grinned up at Stephanie. Flynn seemed to love waking up from naps. She'd always sported this luminous smile after her naps, like she was super refreshed and ready to take on the world for the rest of the day. Stephanie picked her up again after she'd stretched and changed her diaper before she let her walk ahead of her and down the hallway. Stephanie helped her down the steps and then to Stephanie's office, where one of her many play blankets was set up. Every room in their house had a play blanket where the kids could play and Stephanie's office was absolutely no exception.

"I just have to look over a couple things, Flynnie, then we can go play in another room or watch a video or something," Stephanie said.

Flynn plopped her butt down onto her play blanket and picked up a toy, rattling it around a little before she grew tired of it. She looked around and could see her mommy looking intently at something so she was busy. She looked around again, wondering where Sawyer was. He usually took a nap too and then when she woke up, there he'd be too and he would play with her, but he wasn't around. Flynn pushed herself up and then went to the door and looked out of it.

"Sawa?" she said, looking around the hallway, but not seeing him anywhere.

Stephanie looked up from where she was sitting and saw Flynn peeking her head around the corner. "Fl--" She opened her mouth to speak, but Flynn was already walking out the door so Stephanie followed her into the hallway as she went to the living room, again peeking around the corner.

"Sawa?" she asked the empty room, wondering if he was there. Stephanie followed her again into the kitchen, where again, Flynn asked the empty room, "Sawa?"

Stephanie, seeing how pitiful a display this was and feeling bad for her daughter picked her up and kissed her cheek, "Flynnie, Sawyer's not here right now, he and Daddy are going to be on ECW tonight, but don't worry, we can watch Daddy and then before you know it, Sawyer will be back tomorrow and you can play."

"No?"

"No, no, Sawyer." Flynn's lip quivered a little bit and she started to tear up.

"Oh, Flynnie, it's okay, come on, we can call Sawyer and see how he's doing, okay?"

"Okay," Flynn repeated as Stephanie kissed her cheek and went back to her office.

Sawyer was running around saying hi to everyone and telling them he didn't know them, "I no know you!" he yelled at one of the wrestlers he didn't know. "My daddy wefles," he told other people, like people didn't know exactly whose son he was. Even if Stephanie and Chris never showed up on ECW, everyone knew who this kid was. Chris was just walking after him, glad that Sawyer was getting his energy out now. He'd taken a brief nap on the second leg of their car ride, but it wasn't a full nap like he was used to. So now Chris had to let him be his hyper little kid self so he'd go to sleep tonight.

"I know you!" he said when he saw Trish and ran up and hugged her legs.

"I know you too!" Trish said, leaning down to pick up Sawyer.

"Hey, pregnant lady, do you think you should be picking up that lump of a kid?" Chris asked as he came over.

"I think I can still handle him, at least for a few minutes," Trish said, kissing Sawyer as he kissed her back, then leaned down and patted her tummy.

"You have a baby in there," Sawyer told her.

"I know, it's getting bigger and bigger, pretty soon you're going to get to feel it kick," Trish said, "Do you want to feel it kick?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer nodded eagerly.

"I thought you might."

"So are you guys sure you aren't finding out the sex of the baby?" Chris wondered.

"Yes, Christian and I discussed it and we just think that in life there was so few genuine surprises and this is one of them and so we want it. We want to wait until the baby comes out to see for ourselves. It's not like we can't buy baby clothes or decorate or anything, the kid isn't going to know anything about what we've bought."

"Good strategy, if Stephanie and I have more kids, I figure at one point we're just going to keep it a surprise."

"You just said you and Stephanie with more kids, you know she's completely just been impregnated, just by you saying that."

"I hope not," Chris said. "So give me the rundown on this show, anyone worth putting on my team, Christian notwithstanding because I know you'll suggest him and I know how good he is."

"Is that why you're here? Stephanie was very unclear about it, she just told me to…what was it…oh yeah, make sure that you and Katie didn't start making out behind her back."

"Oh, very funny of her," Chris deadpanned. "I'm scouting talent. I don't like the way my team looked last night on Raw. I think I need to make some changes and since ECW is like uncharted territory since they don't have a team in the match, I figure that I can come on here and see if anyone wants on my team."

"You do have a lot of rookies on your team."

"I know, so maybe them getting on the team was more a fluke thing than anything else."

"Have you cleared it with Tiffany to be here?" she asked, handing Sawyer over to Chris because he was getting heavy. Chris put Sawyer down and he went over to Trish's stomach and started touching her clearly pregnant belly.

"Who's Tiffany?"

Trish laughed, "For someone who does own part of the company, you sure don't know a lot about what goes on, do you?"

"My wife owns part of the company, I just tag along."

"Tiffany is the GM of ECW."

"There's a GM?"

"Yes, there is. I don't think you've ever met her and you probably don't want to because when you do, you're going to realize that she's pretty much an idiot and then you're going to think about how Stephanie _isn't_ a GM and this girl is and it will incite rage in you."

"Well, now I have to meet her."

"Daddy, Twish has a baby in her tummy."

"I know she does."

"Does Mommy have baby in her tummy?"

"What? No, don't even say that," Chris said. He shook his head as Christian walked up to them, nodded to Chris and then pecked Trish on the lips. "Hey man, what's up?"

"Nothing, what are you doing here?"

"Scouting talent for my team."

"He thinks his team isn't as good as the Raw team," Trish supplied.

"Oh, well I could've told you that," Christian said, then looked down at Sawyer who was still rubbing Trish's stomach. "What's he doing?"

"He's feeling the baby."

"It be my fwend," Sawyer said of Trish's baby.

"Aww," Trish cooed. "Is my baby going to be your friend, Sawyer?"

"Uh huh, I be it fwend," Sawyer told her.

"I want your son," Trish said, ruffling his hair.

"You can have him, I've got a spare at home," Chris said, "but maybe you could watch him just for a second while I go look for this Tiffany person, what does she look like?"

"She's blonde, she's probably in her office," Trish said. "Don't worry about Sawyer, we'll watch him for you."

"Thanks," Chris said as he bent down to kiss Sawyer and then went off in search of this Tiffany girl. He didn't know how it had slipped his mind that ECW actually had a GM. How did he miss that? It wasn't like he didn't know what was going on in the company, but he hadn't even thought to ask. Not that he needed to because he _did_ have a lot of sway around here and his name carried a lot of weight.

He finally got to an office that said Tiffany on the front. He walked inside and she was there, standing there and informed her of his purpose for the evening. She told him since he didn't tell her that he was going to be there or even asked permission, he couldn't have any of the wrestlers for his team. He was flabbergasted by her decision and he was incredulous over it. He also got what Trish was saying about Tiffany being far inferior to Stephanie. If this girl was given a position like this, what the hell did Stephanie have to do to get back her much-wanted position?

"Do you know who I am?" Chris asked her.

"I know you're Chris Jericho, a person who didn't ask me if they could scout my talent so you can just go away," Tiffany said. "Yu are not wanted here."

"You can't do that to me."

"Yes, I can, you can just get your butt out."

Chris made a face. "No."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes!"

"Do you know who I am?" he repeated.

"I don't care."

"Fine," Chris shrugged, but he wasn't going to listen to her. He just left and decided to go scout people on his own. The first people he came up to were Regal and his little cronies and Regal had been wrestling for a while so he definitely had the experience and his cronies were big and strong and they would be formidable teammates. He was speaking with them, when that blonde ditz happened upon them again and got mad at him. He tried to protest with her, but she cut him off, telling him if he wanted to be there, she would put him in a match against Christian later that evening. He just stared at her, not believing this woman at all.

"Seriously, do you know the power I hold in this company?" Chris asked.

"I don't care how big you think you are," she said defiantly.

"I'm married to Stephanie McMahon, you know, management, my father-in-law is Vince McMahon, president, one of the people who can certainly fire you and you're telling me I can't come onto a show that I technically _own_ and look for wrestlers?"

Tiffany gave pause, "I know who you are, but I don't care, you can just wrestle Christian later."

Well, he had to give her credit for her tenacity, that was for sure. He sighed and went to go find Christian and discuss this match they had and whether Christian would be willing to just lie down and let him pin him to avoid an actual match. He knew Christian would never in a million years actually _do_ that, but it would be worth a shot. He wasn't in the mood to have a match. He at least had his stuff here, but he hadn't come tonight with the express purpose of wrestling. He wasn't mentally prepared at all and he had less than an hour to get ready.

"Chris!"

Chris turned around and saw Katie walking quickly towards him. "Hey, Kates!"

"What are you doing here?" she said, hugging him briefly. "I can't suppose to hope that you're actually here to see me," she joked playfully, hitting him in the shoulder.

"Of course I was," he joked back, "actually I was coming to see if I could get some wrestlers for my Bragging Rights team, but Tiffany said I couldn't and now I have to wrestle Christian in a little bit."

"Well that's a bit of a downer," Katie said, "and Tiffany is quite the idiot if you ask me, not even a proper choice for a General Manager if you ask me. She just seems a little loose in the head if you know what I mean."

"You should go talk to my wife, she'd love to hear you say that."

"She doesn't like Tiffany?"

"She just thinks she should be a GM."

"Oh, that'd be brilliant," Katie said. "Why isn't she one anyways, I mean, I know that Raw doesn't have one at the moment, but is that why Teddy Long is on probation, because Stephanie is going to be taking over?"

"She wishes. Her dad just likes to toy with people. She should've been the Raw GM, but her dad took it away from her."

"Oh, that is awful, is she hear tonight then?" Katie said, walking next to Chris.

"No, it's just me and Sawyer, Stephanie and Flynn flew home this morning and Sawyer and I drove here. He's going home tomorrow and I'm staying until SmackDown."

"Won't you be lonely?"

"Nah, I'm used to being alone."

"Yes, you were then I'm sure, but now you won't have your family."

"It'll be a break from that, a return to bachelorhood."

"You are horrible," she laughed. "I don't think Stephanie would want you to go completely down that path."

"She can get boring."

"I don't think you think that at all," she told him. "You should see your face when you talk about her, I don't know everything about your history together, but I know a man who adores his wife when I see one, it's why I've never tried to have an affair with you."

"Please, you don't even like me," Chris joked around.

"You know who I have taken a rather strange liking to?" Katie said to him, looking around conspiratorially, but she was actually making sure her brother wasn't around.

"Who?" Chris wondered.

"You can't say a thing, do you promise?"

"Who am I going to tell, except Stephanie probably?"

"Hurricane Helms, Shane, Hurricane, him, I just think there's something rather…intriguing about him."

"Isn't that the guy your brother is intent on beating up?"

"Yes, but it can't go anywhere anyways, I just rather like him, that's all. It couldn't go anywhere and I think he likes someone else anyways so it wouldn't be anything, but I don't know, he's funny, you know, I like that."

"Well, maybe if your brother would let up."

"I wish, but I don't think so," she said, then changed the subject. "Where is Sawyer?"

"With Trish and Christian."

"Katie!"

Katie looked behind her and saw her brother was marching towards them. "Damn it, I've got to go, my brother has decided to call out Hurricane for some reason or another. I've got to go with him."

"Maybe Hurricane will come and sweep you off your feet," he teased.

"You're awful, Chris Jericho," she said, "but don't leave without me getting to see that adorable little boy of yours, okay? I think he's the only one around here that actually likes me."

"You have no idea how much he likes you."

"Are you saying that he's taken to having a crush on me?" Katie asked.

"If three year olds can have crushes, then my son has got the hugest one on you."

"I'm quite flattered," she said, pressing her hand to her chest. "If only he were about 30 years older, but I'm quite flattered. He's just the most darling little boy I've ever seen and if I actually wanted children, I think I'd want one like that."

"People are always telling me that, I think I should get him cloned or something."

"I will place an order for one of him then," she said as Paul came up to them. Katie rolled her eyes a little.

"Katie, we've got to go."

"Yes, Paul, I'll see you after, Chris."

"Bye, Kates," Chris waved as she walked off with her brother.

"What are your plans with him then?" Paul asked as they were walking. "Are you planning something?"

Katie sighed, "No, Paul, I'm not planning anything with him. Chris is simply a friend, I don't know why you think I have a plan going."

"Because you should take advantage of that."

"I'm not going to."

Chris met up with Trish and Christian, "Dude, were you watching?" Chris asked.

"You mean did I hear that I get to kick your ass later tonight, hell yeah, I heard that," Christian said with a nod. "I'm going to like getting the chance to beat you up again, it should be fun."

"I'm not bringing my 100 percent," Chris told him upfront. "I've got a huge match on Sunday and I don't even know what I'm going to be doing on SmackDown so I'll come out at like 75 percent, which is still better than most people's 100."

"Damn, you're cocky, just for that, I'm going to beat up on you double what I was. I was going to go easy on you, but no more."

"I'll beat you up," Chris said good-naturedly.

"Daddy, are you fight Cwissy?" Sawyer asked as he leaned against Christian's legs.

"Yeah, we're going to wrestle."

"Daddy gonna beat you," Sawyer said, tilting his head back to look up at Christian. "He my Daddy."

"Is Sawyer your promoter?"

"He's my number one fan."

"More like only fan."

"Wow, that one was a zinger," Chris said, clutching his chest. "Just you wait until you have your kid. They'll be your number one fan and always encourage you and you'll be better for it. I'm not necessarily better because Sawyer loves the hell out of me, but it can't hurt, you know."

"I just want my kid to _like_ wrestling. Can you imagine if they didn't? Like if Flynn grew up and decided that wrestling was stupid."

"That would never happen."

"It could though."

"It wouldn't."

"But it could."

"She already loves it."

"How do you know?"

"Because when Sawyer is watching it, she'll wander into the room and just stare and watch, her blankie hanging out of her mouth, she likes to chew on it, I don't know," Chris said when he saw Christian's disgusted look. "And you better get used to these things, like, when your kid slobbers all over themselves and you're supposed to clean them up and the poop and pee and all of that. It gets disgusting."

"Thanks for the fatherly advice."

"Hello, hello," Katie said, coming over again.

"Katie, hi!" Sawyer said, stepping forward and waving at her. She picked him up and hugged him. "I'm here!"

"I know you're here, it's quite the surprise," Katie said. "Have you been having fun?"

"Yes, I was playing with Cwissy."

"That sounds like a lot of fun."

"I can stay wif you now."

"Oh, well, if your dad says it's okay, of course we can hang out together."

"That'd be great actually, since Christian and I have a match, where's your wife, man?"

"In my locker room, she's not feeling great right now."

"Sorry to hear that," Chris said, "so you could, Katie?"

"Absolutely."

Chris didn't really feel like wrestling that evening. He certainly hadn't come to the show to wrestle, but what could he really do at this point? He was under obligation since Tiffany technically ran the show and Stephanie wasn't here to say that was ridiculous and he wouldn't do it. So he had to go out there. He and Christian were competitors though and they weren't going to just slag off because they were going against a friend. So they tried their best, not to beat each other necessarily, but to put on a show and put on a show they did. The two were very familiar with each other's styles, having been tag partners for so long so there was a definite flow to the match. Christian ended up winning, but Chris wasn't too bitter over it, Christian knew the circumstances under which Chris was under. It was a good match and they both went backstage feeling good about themselves.

Trish was back there, waiting with Katie and Sawyer. "You were great," Trish said, reaching up to hug her husband. "I knew you could beat that good-for-nothing."

"You know, I would definitely invite you on my team, but unfortunately, you can't be on it because your boss is a hag," Chris said, using creative language so Sawyer wouldn't start repeating what he really wanted to call Tiffany around Stephanie. Stephanie might think Sawyer was talking about her.

"It's cool, it was nice to face off against you again."

"Yeah and Trish didn't come out and turn on me this time," Chris joked.

"I'm not allowed within 100 feet of the ring," Trish said, rubbing her stomach. "Or else the anklet Christian makes me wear will go off and I'll get a mild electric shock for my troubles."

"Daddy, I have fun," Sawyer said, from where he was leaning on Katie, looking like the cat who ate the canary. If Chris didn't know better, he would think that Sawyer was trying to rub it in that he was in the arms of a beautiful woman. He had never been more proud of his son if that was the case.

"I'm glad," Chris said, letting Katie hand over his son, though Sawyer looked reluctant. If he had any doubt before that this was his kid, it was erased now. "But it's time to go back to the hotel because you've got an early day tomorrow."

"I fly with you," he said, pointing to Trish and Christian.

"That's right, you're so smart," Trish told him and Sawyer beamed.

"We'll see you guys tomorrow," Chris said. "We're going to head out so this guy can get some sleep."

"I not tired though," Sawyer clarified.

"Well I am, so you can just indulge me," Chris said.

"Okay," Sawyer said, before they said their goodnights and left.

Chris was actually enjoying the freedom he had the next few days until SmackDown. He could go to sleep when he wanted, wake up when he wanted and there was none of that extra work that came along with having kids. It really was like he was on his own again and he knew he needed days like these to rejuvenate himself. It also made him realize that if he needed it, Stephanie needed it as well because she was with the kids just as much as he was and she had as many responsibilities as he did. She may not get too physical with her work, but it was mentally taxing and he needed to be mindful of that.

"Hey," Stephanie said when he called her Friday afternoon to check up on her. "What's up?"

"You sound busy," he said, hearing noises in the background.

"It's just the kids, they're a little stir crazy right now. We're out in the backyard and Sawyer is yelling at Flynn because he's a pirate and she's a shark."

"I'm sorry."

"What for?" Stephanie asked.

"Well, leaving you with them I guess."

"You had work, speaking of, what are you doing tonight?" Stephanie asked. "I let Teddy handle it since I'm not there, but what does he have in store for you, that way if there's something you don't like I can call him up and tell him to quit it."

"Just a tag match, Kane and I will win, it's no big deal. Plus I was going to propose something out there."

"What?"

"Well, I don't like my team, I think we've established this."

"We have," Stephanie concurred.

"So I'm going to set up a match with the guys currently on the team against the guys who lost last week and whichever team wins gets to join Kane and I at Bragging Rights. I think it's fair, what are your thoughts?"

"I love it," Stephanie said. "I love when you take charge like this, especially when you start making matches because it means you're embracing the fact that you are who you are. You should start to make more matches."

"I'm just making this one because I want to win on Sunday."

"You _are_ going to win on Sunday. Hunter and Shawn will be too busy congratulating each other for being so great that they'll ignore you and then the rest of the guys are nobodies and you'll easily beat them."

"You have much too much faith in me."

"Comes with being your wife."

"Just looking to find the best team, that's all."

"And you will."

He did too. Just like he thought, his team had been weak and now they were stronger with the reassignment of his minor players. He went into Sunday feeling pretty good about his team. Did he think it was the greatest assembly of guys he'd ever seen in his life? No, he didn't, but they would certainly suffice. And they did suffice for the most part, but it wasn't them that won the match, it was him…with a little assist by Big Show.

He should've known his tag partner wouldn't abandon him like that. No, in fact, Big Show had probably always been on his side but had wanted to keep it a secret so it didn't leak to the rest of his team. He knew he could count on his partner. He never should've doubted him. They were partners and even if they were on different shows, he should've known that Big Show had his back. As he clutched the trophy, holding on for dear life, he knew he'd have to thank his partner for the assist, but for right now, he just wanted the trophy.

He tried looking for Big Show, but it seemed he'd cut out of there quickly, probably to get away from the team he betrayed.

Chris ended up getting the trophy. Stephanie was kind of suspicious that rather than actually having been given the trophy he had commandeered the trophy. She didn't say anything as he put it in the backseat in between Flynn and Sawyer's car-seats, like the trophy was one of their children. She didn't say anything when he made a sleepy Sawyer walk into the hotel while he held the trophy and she didn't say anything when he let Sawyer look at it as he fell asleep.

"It very big," Sawyer said sleepily as he looked on the trophy. "You won it for all of them, Daddy."

"I know I did, I was the one that got the pin, that means that everyone on SmackDown owes me now."

"They do," Sawyer agreed. "They not win if you not win."

"They wouldn't have because I was clearly the best on the team."

"I think so too."

"I'm glad we're on the same page," Chris said. "More than anything though, I think what makes this so great is that I got to beat Trips, right?"

"Yeah, he fall down so he no win."

"Yeah, fell down," Chris said, kissing Sawyer's head, "now go to sleep okay, we have Raw tomorrow and we get to show off the trophy to everyone."

"Okay," Saywer yawned as Chris got up and left the room, heading back to his room in the suite. Stephanie was sitting on the bed, a book in hand and Flynn laying on her legs. Flynn was sucking back on a bottle, something she had occasionally to help her sleep. She had cried when they tried to put her in her crib so Stephanie was letting her fall asleep on their bed.

"You're not sleeping with that in between us."

"We're not sleeping with _that_ in between us," Chris said, pointing at Flynn.

"I'd rather sleep with her than with that dirty thing," Stephanie said.

"I'm just going to put it over here so I can look at it," Chris said, putting it on the dresser. "That way I can see it while I'm sitting on the bed. Or maybe I can put it on the nightstand, that way it's the first thing I see when I wake up."

"So you'd rather look at that than at me?"

"You bet," Chris said. "It's a lot prettier in the morning I'd think." He threw himself down on the bed as Flynn giggled at her daddy's silliness. Chris scooted himself down so he was facing Flynn. "Why aren't you in bed? You don't have to cry just because it's bedtime, sleep time is fun."

"No," she said around her bottle.

"Yes it is," Chris said, running his finger on her foot, making her laugh some more. "I thought you were little Miss Independent. What happened with that?"

"No," she said again.

"Stephanie, your daughter is being a nuisance to me on my big night."

"She's a year old, give her a break."

"Why is my girl a sourpuss?" Chris asked jokingly, scooting back up the bed so he was lying next to Stephanie. Since Flynn was on Stephanie, there was a gap between them. Chris grabbed Flynn and laid her on his chest so he could get to his wife. "What's up with you?"

"Nothing's up," she said, glancing over at him. "Nothing is up, Chris."

"Something's up, I can feel it."

"Nothing, geez," she said, leaning over to peck him on the lips. "It's just you're awfully excited about that trophy which essentially means nothing."

"It means we're the superior brand."

"Yeah, but it's not what I want for you."

"What do you want for me?"

"The World Title," Stephanie said. She looked off a little bit. "I just want you back on the top of the mountain."

"Well, with the tag titles, it's been kind of hard to focus all my attention solely on the World Title. I have a lot to do, being on both shows like I am. I'll get back to it, you know I will. I love that you're so concerned though."

"Yeah, concerned."

"What is your problem?"

"I'm fine," she said, shaking it off, "Come on, Flynn's asleep and we should get to sleep too so you're prepared for Raw."

"Yeah, okay."

When Chris went out with the trophy the next evening, he had the highest hopes and he was ready to brag about his win last night, hoping all of Team Raw was watching. He had to go out there and thank Big Show for what he'd done and to show solidarity with his tag partner. He knew Big Show had been on his side the entire time and had probably just been playing the Raw side and he was just glad he had someone like that as his partner. He'd made the right choice going with Big Show, he knew that now.

Then Big Show dropped the bombshell on him.

Then he understood what Stephanie had meant the night before.

"You knew about this," he said as he got backstage after his match, the trophy no longer important. It didn't even matter that he'd just lost to Kofi Johnson of all people. Hell, he'd been much too distracted to even consider that he had a match. He'd just been thrown into it by those incompetent hosts. Stephanie _had _to start getting better hosts for this show. When was he going to get some hosts that recognized how important he was to this show?

"What?" she said, trying to feign innocence.

"Stephanie, don't play me, you knew Big Show got a title shot in exchange for helping out SmackDown, how could you not tell me?"

"Because what would you have done? Nothing. There was nothing. Teddy decided it, he thought it would make an impact on my dad. I only knew about it _after_ it happened. When Big Show turned on his own team at first I thought it might be because you guys were partners, but if that were the case, what did Big Show gain except enemies, so I confronted Teddy and he told me the truth."

"And that's why you mentioned the World Title."

"Yes! If Big Show is getting a shot, you should get one too. You're better than Big Show and he's not even _on_ SmackDown. You need to get in that match, I know you won't let me put you in, but I want you in it, I know you can be."

"You should've told me what was going on instead of keeping me in the dark and making me look like a fool out there," Chris told her.

Ted walked up and saw them arguing and felt compelled to step in, despite the fact Cody was right there with him. "Everything okay over here?"

"What's it to _you_?" Chris asked, glaring over at him. "I'm talking with my wife."

"Just seemed like you were fighting," Ted said. "And you probably shouldn't fight around your kids."

Chris glanced at Sawyer and Flynn who were paying no attention to them whatsoever. Flynn was fascinated with the curtains and Sawyer was watching her being fascinated by the curtains. What the hell were his kids doing? "They're not even looking over here and we take them to _wrestling_ every week, I think they've seen arguing. And I'm talking with my wife."

"It didn't look like talking."

"Ted, it's fine," Stephanie said. "Chris and I are just talking."

"You sure?"

"I'm sure," she said with a nod.

"Well, okay," Ted said.

"Come on, man," Cody said, leading him away.

"What the hell was _that_?" Chris asked, watching Ted walk away. "Why was he defending you? That came out of nowhere."

"He probably thought we were fighting and was trying to be nice."

"Well, he needs to mind his own business," Chris said, irritated by the intrusion because now his anger had dissipated.

"So are you going to go after the title?" she asked, trying to deflect away from the fact that Ted had just tried to come to her rescue when she didn't need rescuing. She'd have to talk to him about that. She and Chris were just arguers sometimes. There was only one clear way to answer that question. Chris wasn't a guy who took a backseat to anyone, least of all his tag partner.

"Yes, I'm going after the title."


	256. Mark Out, October 30 to November 2, 2009

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and favoriting, I'm really grateful and hope you enjoy the next chapter. :)

* * *

Chris came up behind Stephanie, who was sitting in her office, and hugged her from behind. He squeezed and made a very content sound as he kissed her on the cheek. Stephanie stopped what she was doing and turned herself a little to look at him. She hadn't expected him to come in here and bother her, but she had a good idea why he was in here. She was just waiting for the words she'd been hearing over the last few days.

"Have I told you lately how much I love you and how you are the most awesome wife that ever was?" Chris said with that dreamy voice. He kissed Stephanie on the neck and she laughed and pressed her palm against his cheek.

"And why do you love me so much?"

"Because you got Ozzy Osbourne to come be the host of Raw and you know how much I love him and he's going to be there," he said, his voice taking on this very giddy tone that she kept smiling at. He was so jazzed about having Ozzy on the show that he kept telling her how much he loved her and while he said it all the time as it was, she just found it endearing that he kept saying it to her.

"He's been around before."

"But I wasn't _there_," he said and now he's going to be there and in less than a week I get to meet him and maybe shake his hand. I hope he likes me, he probably won't, I bet Hunter will get to him first and tell him crap about me and then he'll hate me and I'll look stupid. Hunter is going to make me look stupid."

"Hunter won't make you look stupid, with how much you're going to be marking out, I'm sure you'll accomplish that feat all on your own," Stephanie said, grinning as Chris scowled at her.

"I'm not going to be stupid, oh God, I probably will be huh? Maybe I'll bring Sawyer and Flynn with me, you know, like a buffer or something. I mean, they're really cute and everything and nobody can hate me when they're there, you know. They're like the instant happy-makers."

"Oh, is that what that is?" Stephanie asked. "The instant happy makers."

"Nobody can possibly hate me when I have the kids with me, it's like an impossibility. Do you think Ozzy likes kids? Do you think Sharon likes them?" Chris wondered aloud.

"I'm not sure, I mean, they have kids, so I guess they would like them, you know," Chris said, "so maybe if they act super cute I'll have an in. Or you know, you're going to be introducing yourself to them, right?"

"Well, I've met them before," Stephanie said, rubbing it in a little as Chris made a sound. "Chris, come on, don't be jealous."

"I'm not jealous!" Chris protested. "I'm not jealous of you at all because I'm going to meet him on Monday. So you're going to be introducing yourself…wait, you're going to be saying hello and welcoming him, right?"

"That is what I usually do, have you noticed that my dad is on SmackDown more and hardly on Raw, why do you think that is?" she asked, changing the subject when he wanted to be talking about their plan for him to meet Ozzy Osbourne!

"I don't know, I don't pay attention."

"How do you not pay attention?" Stephanie asked. "You're there every week. How can you not notice when my dad is there, his presence is so overpowering that you can't help but notice him. How do you not notice? Why do you think he's there? It's like he's watching over me again. Now, with Shane resigning he's probably going to be watching over me even more closely because now I'm going to be the only one taking over the company…wow, I never said that before, I'm going to be the one taking over the company."

Chris could hear that tone in her voice. "Stephanie, can we get back on track here?"

"Let me have my moment, okay?" I'm just trying to think about this for a moment. I'm going to be taking over. I know Shane is going to own shares, but he doesn't want to have anything to do with the running of the company, more like a silent owner or something, but now I'm going to be running the entire company, _me_."

"Okay, baby, getting a little scary with power here," Chris told her, "and can we start to get back on track?"

"Oh yeah, back on track, why do you think my father is coming around more? Doesn't he know by now that I've got things under control? I'm 33 years old, you would think my father would trust me. He didn't do this when Shane was 33, I'll tell you that."

"Stephanie," he whined. "The kids only take naps for a few hours and if you don't stop talking they are going to wake up and we are not going to have a plan for Ozzy Osbourne and do you want me not to meet someone so instrumental to my life? I mean, I named my band Fozzy as a tribute to that, _tribute_, so if you would please focus here."

"Why can't we focus on my father for a second?"

"Because we are _always_ focusing on your father. It's your father this and your father that and I don't want to talk about him right now. Look, either way you figure it, your dad is going to be in your business, in _our_ business, which is why I'm not telling him of my plans tomorrow night to tell Teddy that I belong in the title picture because you know your father is going to be all gung ho about that and then he'll definitely put me in it and you know how I hate that."

"Yes, because you didn't marry me to get the benefits," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes.

"Did you just roll your eyes at me?" Chris asked.

"Yes, because that's the entire point of being married."

"To whom?" Chris asked. "Anyways, stop focusing on your father because the day that you get complete control is the day that your father dies and not a day sooner than that."

"Okay, I get it, you want to talk about Ozzy Osbourne, so yes, I will be talking to him and welcoming him. I think it's just good that someone from the family is there to say that we appreciate him being there and taking time out of his schedule to join us."

"I agree, so when you go do that, I'll be with you and you can introduce me as your husband."

"You are my husband," Stephanie told him.

"I know that, but that's how you'll introduce me."

"Okay, so is that the plan then?" Stephanie asked. "Because you could've just said, 'Stephanie, when you go to meet Ozzy, I'm going to come so you can introduce us.' Is that so hard to come tell me?"

"I just wanted to make sure you had it down, that's all."

"I think I can handle, 'Hello, Sharon, Ozzy, this is my husband, Chris Jericho,' doesn't seem too far out of my range," Stephanie said.

"Would you just humor me, I would do the same thing for you if I knew someone that you really admired, but you don't have anyone like that. I don't know why you don't. You're like the only person in the world who doesn't have someone they look up to."

"I don't need anyone to look up to," she said.

"Yeah, well…Stephanie, what the hell are you doing on my Twitter again?" Chris asked, pulling Stephanie's hands away from the keyboard. "Why are you constantly on there? I swear, you are on it more than I am. You better not be saying anything to make me look stupid."

"I wasn't," Stephanie said. "I just like to see what people say to you, is that a crime?"

"Well it should be, it's fraud," Chris said. "That is _my_ property, you can't go on it, I don't go on your stuff. I'm going to make a Twitter for you and it's going to be like, 'StupidStephanie" or something like that. Then we'll see what's what. Then I'm going to tweet all the dumb things you do."

"Name one dumb thing, Mr. Jericho."

"When you fell into the wall yesterday."

"You tripped me!"

"Sawyer was calling for me, he needed me for something, I had to push you out of the way," Chris explained.

"He wanted you to watch him jump off the couch."

"And didn't he jump really well?"

"Yes, until Flynn wanted to do the same thing and nearly fell."

"I guess she takes after you then."

"Get out of here!" Stephanie said, pushing him away.

"Get off my Twitter," he said back as he left. He stuck his head back inside the room. "Hey, are you even coming to SmackDown tomorrow?"

"Why wouldn't I?" she asked.

"I don't know, I thought you might fly home with the kids because Halloween is on Saturday and you might not want to fly the day of Halloween back to Florida with the kids because you know how they can get cranky if they don't get their usual naps or anything."

"I didn't think of that, should we fly home tomorrow?" Stephanie asked.

"I'm just asking, you can decide what you want."

"Okay, I mean, but Sawyer knows it's Halloween and so he'll be excited to get dressed up and if Flynn gets cranky we can just carry her. I don't want to miss two SmackDowns in a row, what would--"

"I get it, I get it, what would your father think?" Chris finished for her. "Then come, I'm not saying you couldn't, just asking if you were."

"Then we're coming."

Stephanie was right to come. She didn't want her father to think she couldn't juggle her family and her work at the same time because it was enough to supplant her from her supposed position on Raw, but she wasn't going to have him declare that she should spend more time with her family and then take her off of SmackDown as well. If her father was going to be there, she needed to be there. Sawyer and Flynn would be alright. Sawyer was already bouncing off the walls in anticipation of Halloween.

She was excited for him though. She didn't want to be one of those stuffy mothers that didn't want her kids to have fun or experience any of those kid things. She could remember when she was younger, dressing up for Halloween and going around with her friends to get candy. Her mother had pictures of her dressed up in her little outfits, a dancer one year, a hippie the next, one year a ghost. She wanted those for Sawyer and Flynn too and she delighted in the fact that her son was excited about this entire thing.

"Mommy, we going tick or teating, right?"

"Yes, we're going tomorrow."

"And Fwynn too, right?"

"Yes, Flynn is coming too."

"And Daddy?"

"Daddy is going too, maybe we can even get Daddy to dress up."

"Are you going to dwess up?"

"I don't know, we'll see what we can scrounge up for me," Stephanie said, kissing his cheek. "But before that, Mommy has to take care of business because it's an important night tonight. Daddy is going to be going after the title so she wants to make sure that he gets his chance."

"He has belts, Mommy."

"Yes, but he doesn't have that really big, shiny belt that you have, right?"

"No, that mine, not Daddy's," Sawyer said.

"Well he's going to try and get one for himself so that you two can be belt buddies and then you can go around. You know, maybe next year for Halloween, you can be Daddy. You look like him already and I know it would make Daddy so happy if you were to go as him. He'd probably be all happy and call you his mini-me. We can spike your hair up and then put _pants _on you like Daddy used to wear because I wouldn't send you out there in your underwear like Daddy goes out there and you can have your belt and Daddy would _love _that."

"Okay, but I monster now," Sawyer said.

"I know and I'm going to make you the scariest monster ever," Stephanie told him.

"Good, I wanna do that," Sawyer said, then went over to his toys and starting playing a make believe game as Flynn sat around contemplating life. She was seriously just staring at the wall and looking at it like the most beautiful piece of art was on it.

"Flynnie, what are you doing?" Stephanie asked.

Flynn turned her head and gave Stephanie the most radiant smile, "Hi."

"Hi, what were you looking at?" Stephanie asked.

"Mama."

Stephanie laughed and left her to her own devices as she went about looking at the show. Teddy needed time at the top of the show and she wanted to talk to Chris about that. She picked up her phone and dialed Chris's number. "Jericho here, who is speaking?"

"So, I was thinking, you go out there when Teddy is on the beginning of the show and you ask for the title shot, do you think you could do that?" Stephanie asked.

"I can do that."

"Do you have that ridiculous trophy with you?" Stephanie asked.

"It's not ridiculous, it is an awesome trophy. Maybe we should put it over the mantle in the house, you know, place of prominence."

"No, all our pictures are on the mantle, you're not putting that dumb trophy on our mantle where we keep pictures of our wedding and our children, not going to happen, especially not for that hideous thing."

"It's not hideous, you're just jealous."

"Chris, in the history of the world, I've never been jealous of anything that you've done ever, okay," Stephanie said. "I'm perfectly happy with what I have and what I'm doing. You can keep your dumb trophy in your office, but you know what, I was talking with Teddy before the show and he's not too happy that you have commandeered that thing and I don't think many of your teammates are happy either from what I gathered with him. Teddy said he wants to take it back."

"He's not taking it back, _I _won it. I won it for the team, they all owe me. Not to mention more than half of those guys were on the team because I decided to give them the chance," Chris replied. "They wouldn't have even been on the team, let alone the show if it weren't for me. I should get the trophy."

"What if Kane wanted it?"

"Well, he can have it for a week, I think that's fair. Besides, what would he want with it? He's probably lives in a dirty shack or something, why would he want a trophy?"

"You think he lives in a dirty shack?"

"Do _you_ picture Kane in a house?" Chris asked.

"Okay, so you've got a point," Stephanie told him. "But I don't picture him in a dirty shack."

"Either way, he could have it for a week, but Teddy is not getting it and that's final."

"You get the final say?"

"On this matter, yes," Chris said. "I'm not giving it away. I'm the best thing to ever happen to this show and they better recognize that."

"Okay, Chris, good luck with that, really, good luck."

"I don't need luck."

Chris was feeling pretty fired up after his conversation with Stephanie. Teddy take his hard-earned trophy away? He didn't think so. He was the one who got the pin, he was the one who should have the trophy and that was that. He didn't see it any other way. It was going to be his way on this one. If it weren't for him, Teddy wouldn't even have this trophy and neither would Kane. So what stake did they have in his trophy?

"Congratulations on the win," Beth Phoenix said as she came up to Chris.

"Yeah, thanks," Chris said, nodding at the somber blonde. He figured if anyone could match his intensity over on the diva side of the show, it was Beth Phoenix.

"So I have something to ask you."

"Okay," Chris said, not knowing exactly what she wanted.

"Who the hell is this Jenny Brooks girl I'm supposed to be facing. I've never heard of her, who is she?"

"Why do you expect me to know?" Chris asked.

"Aren't you married to Stephanie McMahon?"

"Just because I am doesn't mean that I know everything she does. I'm not in her brain, maybe you should go ask her."

"I guess, doesn't really matter though since I'm going to crush her. That's the good thing about coming over here, fresh meat."

There was something very scary about Beth Phoenix, but Chris had the utmost respect for her. She was someone who knew what she wanted, just like him, and didn't stop until she got it, just like him. But more importantly, she didn't give a damn what the fans thought about it and for that, she definitely had his respect. She understood that fans were overrated and that was an important lesson that every wrestler should learn. It was certainly a freeing experience for him, that was for sure.

"I like the cut of your jib," Chris said.

"Well good, but I work alone," Beth said to him.

"That wasn't a proposition."

"Good, because I wouldn't have taken it."

"How does that explain Santino then?"

"Tagalong," Beth shrugged. "if you happy to see this _Jenny Brooks_ girl, tell her I'll see her in the ring and I'm not going to be nice."

"When are you ever nice?"

"Exactly," Beth said, walking away.

Chris decided if he ever did want to get a posse together, Beth Phoenix was going to be the first and only girl on that list. Not only was she intense, she could honestly crush every diva on every show, maybe not Katie Lea though. He kind of wished Katie were on SmackDown though because then he could make Stephanie give her matches. She was being wasted just following around her brother. Katie could probably take Beth down a few pegs. No, no, now that he thought about it, Katie would be the first and only diva on his posse. She got the edge because they were friends and she was prettier and most importantly, Sawyer loved the hell out of her.

By the time he'd forced himself out of these thoughts, Teddy was already out there talking and Chris had to hustle to get to the gorilla so he could head out there. When he was out there though, he was more than a little nonplussed when Teddy did make him give the trophy to him. Chris was reluctant because it wasn't his and he didn't know what Teddy was going to do with it. Was he going to travel with it? He'd have to ask Stephanie to tell Teddy that she should take it because she ran the show. Yes, he'd have his trophy back.

But more important things first, Chris had a title match to worm his way into. One of the things that Hunter had actually done right for him in the past few weeks was to be put in a Triple Threat Match for the title at Survivor Series. Because Raw was having that type of match, it made it make sense for SmackDown to take suit, since they _were_ the superior brand after all. So that would make a compelling argument for him against Teddy.

What he didn't bank on was Kane actually coming out and declaring that he too should have a shot at the title. What right did he have? Chris tried to say that he was the better one. Kane would've been nowhere if it weren't for him, didn't he get that? Chris was the one who got the pin. Where was Kane in all of this? Where was Kane to put the finishing touches on the win? He was nowhere to be found. Chris was the one who'd won. He was the one who the trophy belonged to so he should get the shot. What stake did Kane have in all this? He didn't deserve a shot.

But of course, Teddy, being the _innovative_ GM that he pretended to be (so he could suck up some more to Vince) made a match between him and Kane for the title later that night. Luckily he was the best at what he did or he wouldn't have been prepared for it at all. But he was Chris Jericho and if he wanted in the title picture, he was going to get in the title picture. He was going to be a World Champion for the 6th time, he could feel it. And it would be about time as well. Had it really been a year since he'd held the title or nearly so?

Of course, having Kane's hand wrapped around his throat kind of made him a little wary for the match later on. He struggled for breath as Kane tightened his grip and Chris kind of believed that this was a lot of years of pent-up frustration with Kane manifesting itself in the hand gripping him. Kane, for all his size and the fear instilled by him, had the worst time with World or WWE championships. Maybe Kane's string of bad luck would continue tonight. Chris was starting to lose a bit of feeling in his whole body when Teddy finally got him to let go and Chris gasped for breath. Hopefully that had killed all of Kane's energy and adrenaline for later…he could only hope that was the case.

Kane was going to be a fierce opponent though and Stephanie was none too happy when he got backstage, but it wasn't for the reasons Chris would've thought. "Did you see Teddy do that without even really consulting me?"

"What?" Chris said, rubbing his throat because it was sore. Sawyer was looking on in concern so at least one person was focusing on what the real problem was here. Sawyer had seen his daddy being choked and he looked so bad. He'd gotten a little scared, but tried to put on a brave face because that's what his mommy and daddy always told him to do whenever he was scared or hurt.

"He had to have known Kane was going to want a shot. He was probably planning it that way so that he could have a match between you two because he thinks that will impress my dad," Stephanie said, the wheels turning in a complete opposite direction of Chris.

"Stephanie," Chris croaked. "Can we put things into perspective here?"

"I'm just saying, he's trying to undermine me to look good in front of my father," Stephanie said. "This is his way of keeping his job and I wouldn't be surprised if my dad came in here and told me that Teddy was doing a great job and what the hell was _I_ doing to keep up?"

"Stephanie!" Chris exclaimed, making Stephanie look at him.

"What?"

"Did you kind of notice that I was being _choked_ out there by Kane, you know, gasping for breath, seeing stars, the works?"

"Oh," Stephanie said. "I saw that, I'm sorry. How are you?"

"I'm okay, thanks for asking, I could've been unconscious and you would've been thinking about Teddy."

"I wouldn't have been," she said, reaching out and starting to massage his neck. "I'm sorry, I should be more focused on you and how you were doing after that vicious attack."

"If you're just going to be condescending, don't talk to me," he said. "I don't need you distracting me before a big match later that will put me into the title picture."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I am," she said, leaning forward to kiss him. He was extremely tense, she could tell and so she deepened the kiss, pressing herself against him and pulling him closer. Damn her, he thought, as he pulled her closer. He deepened the kiss even further, pushing his tongue against her lips. She opened them willingly and Sawyer decided they were fine and turned away to go back to his toys. "Now really, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"You'll win later, don't worry."

"Such faith."

"Well, you're you and Kane's Kane."

Turned out that Stephanie was right. Kane's bad luck increased and Chris won. It wasn't as simple as that, obviously, but it was what it boiled down to. He had won and he would be in the Triple Threat match. He'd be going in with a rare disadvantage too. He'd been in the company for a long time, but he'd never had a run-in with Undertaker in the ring. Sure, they might not have any love lost between them (even though Stephanie had this weird friendship with him), but they'd never fought each other on this level before. He didn't know Taker's style, well, he knew his style, but he'd never really been in the ring enough with the man to know how to counteract everything like he did with other people. It was going to be difficult to get that in such a short amount of time. But he had time to figure Taker out. Maybe he'd watch old tapes. It was too bad he was mad at Hunter or else he would ask for some pointers, but that was obviously out of the question at this point in time.

Still, he had time to study Taker's every move and find that one weakness, the one that he could exploit for the World Heavyweight Title.

"Daddy, Mommy's making me a monster!" Sawyer squealed as he ran past Chris in the hallway to his parent's room. His mommy was going to make his face up like a monster and it was going to be great! He couldn't wait to go around and get candy. It's pretty safe to say that at this age, the chance to get tons of candy was probably the most appealing thing in the world.

Flynn, who had been playing with Sawyer in the upstairs playroom came into the hallway too and, wanting to be like Sawyer, gave her own high-pitched squeal and toddled as quickly as she could down the hallway towards the bedroom. Chris scooped her up halfway there and she protested by throwing her little fists against him.

"Hey, where are you going?"

"Sawa!" Flynn yelled, raising her arms. Chris laughed and took her into the bedroom where Stephanie had sat Sawyer down on the bed. Chris tossed Flynn onto the bed and she crawled over to watch what her mommy was doing to her Sawyer.

Stephanie had gotten a face painting kit for Halloween and was painting Sawyer's face green with yellow pock marks all over to make him look scary, but not too scary. He had a little dinosaur-looking monster outfit, like Godzilla so he had to have a face to match. Flynn watched, enraptured by what Stephanie was doing, and Stephanie had to keep swatting her small hand away when Flynn kept wanting to touch Sawyer's face, which was changing color right before her very eyes.

"Wow, you look scary," Chris told his son from where he was watching, leaning against the dresser. "You are going to scare the pants off everyone."

"I know!" Sawyer said excitedly as Stephanie completely the look with black gashes all around his face. She was tempted to buy fake blood, but Sawyer was three and he'd probably try to eat the stuff as it dripped down his face.

"All done," Stephanie said.

"How do I look?" he asked and Stephanie lifted him up to the mirror and his eyes widened and jaw slacked a little as he looked at himself. "I'm scary, Mommy."

"I know you are, now I'm going to help Flynn into her butterfly costume first, then we're going to put you into your monster costume, okay. Don't touch your face so you don't smudge your face paint, okay?"

"Okay," he nodded as Stephanie set him back down on the bed and then replaced Sawyer with Flynn.

"Come on, Flynnie, we're going to make you beautiful," Stephanie said, kissing Flynn's nose.

"Daddy, you dress up too," Sawyer told his daddy.

"You want me to dress up too?"

"Uh huh, you have paint too," Sawyer said, dancing a little in his seat.

"You want to put face paint on me?" Chris asked goodnaturedly and Sawyer eagerly nodded. Chris thought, what the hell, and knelt down in front of his son. It was Halloween, if he son wanted him to dress up, he would. "What can I be though?"

"I dunno, what do you have?"

"Well, I have vampire fangs, a cape, an Elvis wig, and Elvis glasses, that's about it, I think, unless I steal Mommy's witch costume, but Mommy has big boobs so I don't think I'd fit in it."

"What are boobs?" Sawyer asked.

"A wondrous, wondrous thing that you will discover when you get older," he explained. "So what should I wear? The vampire fangs and cape or the Elvis stuff."

"Yes, you wear all of it."

"All of it," Chris said as Sawyer started to slather white face paint all over his face with his right hand smearing across Chris's skin. "But what can I be with all of that?"

"Daddy."

"Or I can be a dead Elvis," Chris said in a scary voice that made Sawyer giggle. He smiled as Sawyer put the face paint all over his face, every which way, not caring if it was all even like Stephanie had done with Sawyer's face. "Why don't you put some black under my eyes, you know what color is black, right?"

"This one," Sawyer said, pointing to the right color.

"Perfect," Chris said, "but here, let me wipe your hands." He grabbed the cloth Stephanie had been using to wipe her hands and wiped Sawyer's hands clean before letting him get to the black. "Okay so I said put them under my eyes, where are my eyes?"

"Right there, Daddy, that's easy," Sawyer told him, pointing to Chris's eyes.

"Just making sure, I want a smarty-pants for a kid," Chris told him as Sawyer carefully put the stuff under his eyes. "Awesome, now I just need one more things, some _blood_," he said ominously as he did that himself. He looked at himself in the mirror and for a three year old, Sawyer hadn't done a bad job. "You did great, kid."

"Thank you," Sawyer said as Stephanie and Flynn walked back inside, Flynn walking this time. She kept extending her arms to show off her wings. They had so many pretty colors she just kept flapping her arms like a real butterfly.

"Sawyer did my makeup, you like?" Chris asked, turning around.

"Oh my God, what are you supposed to be?"

"Dead Elvis or vampire Elvis, either way."

Flynn looked up at her Daddy's voice and when she looked up, that was not her daddy! She screamed and started crying and trying to run out of the room, only succeeding in tripping and crying even harder. Chris started towards her, ready to pick her up but she started screaming even harder and trying to get away. Stephanie picked her up and Flynn was having a fit of some sorts and crying, her eyes leaking tears and then she just started sobbing outright.

"Chris, you're scaring her," Stephanie said, pressing Flynn's face against her so she wouldn't have to see Chris.

"Flutterby," Chris said gently and tried to step closer. Flynn, again, looked because she could hear her daddy, but then she looked at him and started wailing trying to squirm her way out of Stephanie's arms to get away from him.

"Chris!"

"What? Flynn is the chillest baby ever, I didn't think this would scare her."

"Well it obviously is."

"Flutterby, it's me," Chris said, talking where he could see her. "I'm just wearing makeup."

"It Daddy, Fwynn," Sawyer said, shaking his head. "You no afwaid of Daddy, he silly Daddy."

"Yeah, I'm silly Daddy," Chris told her. Flynn peeked her head out and though she was still crying, maybe this wasn't that scary and it _seemed_ to be her Daddy talking to her. She whimpered a little, but calmed down. Maybe it was her daddy and he _was_ being silly. Maybe.

"Come on, Sawyer, let's get you dressed," Stephanie said, "and you might want to get dressed in a way that won't terrify your daughter."

Of course, what was the fun in that? Chris got the fangs and the cape and the wig and the glasses and he thought he looked so ridiculous that Flynn would laugh, but when she saw him, it only seemed to scare her more. He made Stephanie take a picture of him for his Twitter to show how funny he looked to the rest of the population that didn't include his daughter, who refused to even look at him. Stephanie, for her part, put on a witch's hat as they started down the street in order to get candy. The kids' costumes went over like gangbusters and pretty soon they were in front of Trish and Christian's house. Stephanie rang the doorbell and set Flynn down.

Trish opened the door in a short wig and a Christian t-shirt and a pair of Christian's tights, obviously fastened in the back, but not by much since her stomach was protruding pretty far these days. "Tickerteat!" Sawyer yelled.

"Tick, tick, tick," Flynn said, spreading her wings again.

"Oh, my two favorite kids," Trish said, laughing as she handed them each a huge handful of candy. "Sawyer, you are very scary."

"I know, thank you," Sawyer said, taking the compliment much better than either of his parents would have. They both would've gloated.

"You look pretty, Flynn," Trish said.

"Tank."

Trish stood up, "Chris, you look like a freak."

"All Sawyer's doing," Chris said. "What are you supposed to be?"

"I'm Christian," she said proudly, then turned towards her house. "Chrissy, Chris and Steph and the kids are here!"

"Coming," Christian said, coming to the door and causing Stephanie and Chris to both start snickering and laughing. Christian was wearing a long blonde wig and a bra stuffed to look huge was under a midriff shirt that said "Stratusfaction" on it and leather pants, with a Women's title belt hooked around his waist.

"Let me guess, you're Trish," Stephanie said.

"Bingo, oh, I'm so pretty and I'm the best," Christian said, flipping his hair.

"I do not act like that."

"This is my interpretation of you," Christian said. "You can't fault me for interpretation. Oh, I'm going to beat up on all the divas because I'm the Babe of the Year."

"Don't say it, Chris," Trish said as Chris opened his mouth. "So where are you guys headed now?"

"Around the block, we'll hit Edge's and then we're going to Chris's parents neighborhood so they can see the kids."

"They both look so cute."

"I know, right, next year, you'll be getting to dress up a baby for Halloween."

"I know," Trish said, rubbing her stomach. I really can't wait. It seems like the next four months are going to take forever. I'm about ready to see this kid, but I know it's way too soon, but I'm getting anxious already."

"I can't wait either," Christian said.

"Mommy, more candy," Sawyer said, trying to move this along.

"Well, you heard the kid," Stephanie shrugged, "we'll see you later."

"Bye, guys," Trish and Christian waved as they left and started back down the street. They ended up at Edge's house, where Edge was invariably annoyed by Sawyer calling him Ed again. Then they went back home and drove to the community where Chris's parents lived, parking in front of their house as Chris helped Sawyer out since Flynn wanted nothing to do with him. Sawyer ran up to the door and knocked, but Chris was right behind him to ring the doorbell as Stephanie set Flynn down near the door.

"Tickerteat!" Sawyer yelled as his grandma opened the door.

"There are my darling babies," Loretta said, smiling as she gave them a ton of candy each, much to Chris and Stephanie's chagrin. They were going to have to hide all this candy from Sawyer and then eat it themselves or bring some to work to hand out to other people. "You both look adorable."

"I scary, Gamma," Sawyer said, making a growling noise.

"Oh, excuse me, you're very scary," she amended herself as Flynn flapped her wings some more and said hello a million times. "And you are beautiful as a little butterfly and Chris, what are you doing?"

"Getting in the spirit, Mom," Chris said as Ted came to the door.

"There they are, we've been waiting for you, giving candy to all these ugly children."

"Ted," Stephanie laughed.

"I can't help it if my grandkids are the cutest," he said, giving them more candy. Neither Stephanie nor Chris stepped in, feeling like his parents would feel bad if they were to be told not to give candy. "Do you want to come in?"

"No!" Sawyer yelled, "I want candy!"

"We'll come back when we're done here, Loretta," Stephanie said. "He'll be T-I-R-E-D by then."

"I understand," Loretta said. "I used to do the same thing with Chris."

"We'll be back then," Stephanie said as they went on their quest for more candy.

By the time they were at Raw on Monday, Sawyer had about three bags full of candy and they'd had to bring a whole bag to Raw with them, asking everyone (well Stephanie asked everyone, if Chris asked, they might think he was trying to poison everyone) if they wanted some candy. Chris was too giddy anyways to really care about anything. He wanted to go meet Ozzy this second and he was bouncing off the walls more than Sawyer usually was. He just wanted to meet the man and Stephanie had been told when they arrived that he was in the building.

"Can we go now?" Chris asked.

"Can you be patient?"

"No, not tonight," Chris said, walking on the balls of his feet as he bounced down the hallway. Flynn thought he was being silly and decided to try and walk the same way as she bounced down the hallway too.

"Chris, you'll meet him," Stephanie laughed.

"I know I will, but I want to meet him now. I just, I want to meet him now! Can we go meet him? Please, with a cherry on top," he said, clasping his hands together.

"Wow, you have _got _to maintain some cool, seriously, this is just really sad now."

"It's not sad. I mean, I've met a lot of my idols, you know."

"I know and you act like a dork every time you meet one."

"I do not, you're wrong," Chris said as Britt came up to them, which surprised them both. "Britt, what are you doing here? You do know we're at Raw, right?"

"I know," Britt said. "But I'm not going to let Hunter dictate where I can and can't go, I've turned a corner. I'm a new woman."

"Okay, great," Chris said. "Can we go now, Steph?"

"He wants to go meet Ozzy."

"Oh, I met him, great guy, really funny," Britt said.

"Okay, you seem bubbly today, what's going on?" Stephanie asked.

"Nothing," Britt said, but she was smiling so it was a dead giveaway that something was going on. "Okay, maybe a little something, but just a very little something, nothing really, not anything totally, I guess."

"That sounds like something."

"Would you two just be out with it so I can go meet Ozzy freaking Osbourne already!" Chris exclaimed. "You two are going to beat around the bush and would you just say it already?"

"Geez, what is his problem?" Britt asked.

"He's impatient, so how was your Halloween?"

"Great," Britt said. "That's what I was talking about. So I went out with some friends to a party in New York on Halloween. I was looking especially great as a zombie Barbie doll. My friend has a friend who is a professional makeup artist so she was able to do my makeup really well and I seriously looked amazing, I'll have to show you a picture. Anyways, my friend Angie is the one I was with and we go to her friend, Salome's apartment for the party. It's this great loft space, a lot of room, balcony, beautiful. Anyways, you would not guess who was there."

"I don't know," Chris said, trying to move this along.

"Evan."

"As in Bourne?" Stephanie asked.

"One in the same," Britt answered, "and we found it so funny that we had these mutual friends because I mean, of all the people in the world, we end up at the same party. He said he was there because you know, the shows have been up here and he was crashing at a friend's place since he doesn't live here, but lives in St. Louis, so we just got to talking and he's such a nice guy, oh my God, I couldn't believe it. I mean, when I was with Hunter, I guess I just stayed in my own little cocoon, but I'm glad I found Evan, he's awesome."

"So now you like him?"

"I don't know, I just, he was such a breath of fresh air, you know," Britt said. "We've already met up tonight, we're going to hang out during the show since I'm not officially working, though I think I'll definitely be coming to Raw for a while, if only to hang out with Evan or whatever. I mean, I'm not committing to anything, but he's so nice."

"I'm glad for you," Stephanie said, giving her a hug.

"I'm glad for me too, I mean, seriously, it's not anything yet and it might not be anything ever, but the possibility is there and it's exciting, you know," Britt said. "I better get back, I just said I was going to get some water and be back."

"Okay, talk to you later?"

"Definitely, we have much to discuss," Britt said, leaning down to hug Sawyer because he'd been holding his arms open for nearly the entire conversation. "And I expect to see pictures of you as a monster, cutie."

"I was scary," Sawyer told her.

"I know you were," she winked as she got up and nearly skipped down the hallway.

While she was very excited over whatever this was with Evan, a part of her knew this was just to get back at Hunter. While that was a lousy reason to see someone, it was a valid one after the way he'd treated her. She just wanted to move on, let her life take her in a different direction and this was the first step. She was happy too, really happy and she wanted to revel in that and not focus on the way her relationship with Hunter had ended.

"Britt."

She closed her eyes because she knew that voice. She turned and scowled. "Shawn."

"I didn't expect you around here."

"Well I'm here, do you have a problem with that?"

"No, none at all, sorry to hear about your breakup though."

"I'm sure you are," Britt said dourly, knowing that Shawn didn't care. "You won, you got your little playmate back."

"He's in our locker room right now with a couple girls we met earlier. They just flock to us and to think, he let you get in the way of that. He's much happier now, sorry you had to take one for the team, but this is the way it should be."

"I don't care," Britt shrugged, "I'm happy, you go and you tell Hunter that, right now, little boy, go and run along and tell your playmate that I don't really care what he does anymore because I'm through with him."

"I'll tell him."

"I hope you do."

Shawn watched her walk away and he went straight to his locker room. He walked inside where Hunter was talking to a couple girls they picked up earlier, well, he'd picked up and given to Hunter. Hunter could have fun with them. That's the kind of friend he was. "Hey man, ran into your ex."

"Britt's here," Hunter said, perking up a little bit, "did you talk to her?"

"Yeah, she told me to tell you that she's through with you, so you, my friend, are totally in the clear."

"She said that?"

"Pretty much her exact words."

"Really?" Hunter asked.

"Yeah, she said she was happy."

"I'm going to go talk to her," Hunter said, standing up and leaving the two girls on the couch. Shawn came over and put his hands on Hunter's shoulders.

"Dude, don't be a killjoy. Obviously the girl has moved on, that's what you wanted, remember. So maybe you just take that and then run with what you've got," he said, gesturing subtly with his head to the girls.

"I'm just going to talk with her," Hunter said. "I'll be back. It's just that I have to tell her that she left some stuff in my house and to come pick it up."

"Oh, okay, cool, see you in a bit then," Shawn said.

Hunter rushed out of the room and down the hallway, trying to blindly find Britt. He hoped to find her before the show started because he and Shawn liked to watch the shows and insert some DX wherever they felt it warranted. But right now the time was devoted to finding Britt. He turned a corner and didn't see them, turned another corner and didn't see them, then went left and finally saw her back. He'd recognize it anywhere. He walked closer and saw she was talking with Evan Bourne. He'd just have to pull her away from that conversation.

"No, when the guy dressed as port o' potty got knocked over and then he couldn't get back up, that was hilarious."

"Or when that other guy, the pirate got so drunk that he thought the port o' potty guy was an actual toilet and kept trying to look for the door," Evan said.

"Oh my God, I remember that," Britt laughed. "That was just too funny. I can't imagine being that drunk."

"I've been drunk before, but I've never mistaken a person for being a toilet."

"Well that's a good thing, I think," Britt said. "I enjoyed our breakfast the next day. It was just the right amount of greasy after a party like the one we were at."

"You're welcome, you'll just have to return the favor sometime."

"I plan to," she told him, sticking her tongue out a little.

"Uh," Evan pointed behind her and she looked over her shoulder to see Hunter standing there.

"Can we help you?" Britt asked.

"Can we talk?" Hunter asked gruffly.

"Well, I was in the middle of a conversation," Britt told him, hoping he'd just go away and not make things difficult for her.

"Britt, it's cool, we'll catch up later, okay?" Evan said, touching her arm in a way that Hunter didn't like.

"Okay," she nodded, then turned to Hunter. "Thanks a lot for that."

"What the hell was that?"

"Me…talking…to another human being," she responded shortly. "What do you want, Hunter?"

"What are you doing?"

"None of your goddamn business."

"You can't go out with Evan."

"I can do as I please," she told him. "It's of no concern to you any longer, do you hear me? None of your concern. If I want to date someone, I'm going to date them, if I don't want to, I won't. You get no say and don't pull the jealous act on me, it's not going to work."

"I'm not jealous."

"Oh please, you're acting like I'm slighting you or something, get over yourself, Hunter."

Britt stormed off, not looking back. "Britt."

"No, Hunter, goodbye!"

Chris was pissed. Stephanie and Sawyer and Flynn had gotten so distracted by other things that he hadn't gotten the chance to meet Ozzy before he went out there for the beginning of Raw. Stephanie had gone separately to meet him, but Sawyer had needed to use the potty so he couldn't go with her. He was now angry that he hadn't yet met one of his heroes. This was ridiculous and now Show was out there with them. His own tag team partner. Then to add insult to injury, Hunter was out there too and he was the only one who was not out there and he was probably the biggest fan of them all.

Until he made a match with John Cena versus Big Show versus himself. Just once, just one time, he would like to have one guest host recognize his immense talents. Was that too much to ask? Every host was against him in some way and now Ozzy Osboune of all people was doing this to him? He thought the Prince of Darkness would at least understand Chris's side, but the years had obviously softened him. Maybe the old Ozzy wouldn't have let anyone get away with this, but the new one was doing a poor job. Listening to DX? Anyone who did that in any kind of seriousness deserved to be written off.

"Can you believe he listened to them?" Chris asked Flynn. Stephanie was off somewhere with Sawyer, probably the bathroom again. "Why doesn't anyone listen to me?"

"Dada."

"Do you listen to me?" Chris asked and Flynn smiled. "Thanks, flutterby, that makes me feel a little better. I think I'll have to have a talk with Mr. Ozzy Osbourne."

When he finally did meet the man, the hot anger coursing through his veins took away any nervousness he might have had. He was just upset because nobody could clearly see his talent and this man had listened to DX of all things. DX had it out for him, especially Shawn. Chris had been a threat to Shawn's friendship with Hunter so he'd sought out to destroy it. If only the people could see them for the people they were when they weren't in the ring.

He told Ozzy about how he'd loved him growing up, how he was someone he looked up to, but that really did nothing and he was still stuck with his match later on. Leave it to DX to give him a completely unfair match. To top it off, they were going to do commentary, Stephanie had told him. He insulted Ozzy and the fans in general and he was done with it. That wasn't the impression he wanted to make on the man, but oh well, sometimes, a lot of the time you didn't get what you wanted and though Chris had dreams of grandeur and becoming Ozzy's friend and hearing all about his many adventures had been shattered completely.

The night was not a total lost though. Chris got the pin on Cena, a stunning victory he couldn't have predicted, but then, DX felt the need to show up and try to help out Cena, like this was the amazing Montessori School and everyone had to get along or else. He wasn't going to just get along with his opponents. Show and him beating up Cena was a benefit for Hunter and Shawn. But of course, they had to play the heroes, surprise, surprise.

Chris had had enough with DX butting into everyone's business and acting like they owned the place. He was tired of Shawn being Hunter's little guardian devil on his shoulder. He was tired of Hunter's obvious pining for Britt, but stubbornness that prevented him from saying anything. He was tired of Hunter's attitude when he was around Shawn. They were like two little boys and Chris was tired of that too. It was all manifesting himself, this compound anger for the double standard that existed around here. DX had been around a million years and they'd insult what they didn't like, only for a little while later to act the way they said they hated. They were hypocrites and Chris hated hypocrites.

That must've been why it felt so good to smash Hunter's face.


	257. Happy Birthday, November 6 to 9, 2009

A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews guys, you are the best, seriously, the best for keeping up with this story. This is kind of a long chapter so I hope you enjoy it and reviews are love. :)

* * *

"So pretty much you've just gone foolhardy in your old age, is that it?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You and the Undertaker," Christian said. "I mean, seriously, man, what you're telling me you're going to do, it doesn't seem like a very good idea."

"When is anything I do a good idea?" Chris asked. "But I'm Chris Jericho and I have to make a stand. I mean, if you were in my position, knowing you're going into a match with a guy you've never faced, someone most people consider a legend, do you want to go in looking small, like a kid coming to play with the big boys."

"I think Undertaker understands that he can't take you lightly, you're what, a 4-time heavyweight champion."

"Five," Chris corrected him. If someone was going to mention his title wins, he wanted them to get it correctly.

"Okay, then five, I don't think that Taker is going to take you lightly when you've got 5 and he's only has like two more title wins than you. Hell, Hunter, who has like 7 more than you do wouldn't take you lightly."

"Have you _seen_ him lately?"

"He's just acting like that because he's upset over Britt. I know that because he's me circa 2005. He knows he made a stupid decision and now, because you told him it was a stupid decision, he's getting mad at you. Plus, didn't you say he just goes along with whatever Shawn says?"

"Yeah, which is my biggest point of contention with him. Shawn has proven to him that he's not a trustworthy friend and I've at least, for the most part, been upfront with the guy, never really disguised my feelings for him or anything so you'd think he would trust what I'm saying when I'm telling him that Shawn just wants to use him."

"You've got to let the guy figured it out on his own. Hopefully Shawn will act like a total jackass in their match and then he'll see."

"Dude, I cannot see how they're going to come out of that match being all buddy-buddy. I mean, if they go into it being all 'I respect you,' and crap like that, they're going to be in for a rude awakening. I don't think either of them realizes how competitive the other one is, which you'd think they would know at this point in their friendship."

"You would," Christian nodded. "But back to you and Taker. I don't like this idea at all. I mean, not only are you calling him out, which, I can see you doing because you always have to be that jackass who calls everyone out. But telling him that you're the new phenom and that he isn't, don't you think you're pushing it? The guy is very…protective of his status."

"I don't think I'm going far enough," Chris told him. "I mean, I've been in this company how long? Ten years and I've never faced the guy. Don't you think that makes me look like I've been _afraid_ of him or something?"

"No," Christian told him.

"Seriously? Look at who we are, I'm Chris Jericho, the best at what I do--"

"You know, I'm not trying to be mean here, really, I'm not, but that line is getting a little old, don't you think? Also, it's kind of an insult to the rest of us. I think I'm the best at what I do, but you don't hear me saying it."

"Well then say it, just switch up the line a little bit so you don't look like the poor man's Chris Jericho," Chris told him.

"The poor man's…what?"

"Not that you are," Chris said, "but you really don't think it feels like I've been avoiding Taker, I mean, from the outside perspective, not from my perspective because I haven't been avoiding him, like I'm scared of him or something because I'm not, believe me."

"I never said you were."

"I just never had beef with him and then with the brand split we weren't on the same show, but I don't want people thinking I'm scared of the guy."

"People probably think that regardless of whether or not you've faced him," Christian joked, then laughed and took a swig of his beer. "Dude, I'm kidding, lighten up. You're going to need to be pretty lightened and maybe pretty drunk when you actually call him out. Have you noticed that Big Show hasn't called him out?"

"Big Show, Shmig Show," Chris scoffed. "I don't know what his problem is, actually going behind my back. Whatever, he's my partner, that's it, we both understood that we probably weren't going to be instant friends."

"Speaking of friends, isn't your wife friends with Taker?"

"Stephanie has got a _weird_ relationship with the guy. I don't really know nor do I speculate, but whenever she needs something from him, he's willing to do it, no questions asked. It's just one of those things I don't ask her about. There are some things in a marriage you just don't need to know."

"Wouldn't it be crazy if that whole Black Wedding thing actually happened, but it happened where nobody actually saw and all this time Stephanie's been married to the Undertaker and that's why he does whatever she says because she's his wife and he has to listen to her?"

Chris's face dropped into a scowl as he stared at Christian, "Dude, _I'm_ her husband!"

"I was just commenting on how it would be weird if she were actually married to the Undertaker and what if they were having an affair and you were just a pawn in the entire thing and then somewhere down the line, they revealed it and how they screwed you over and how Sawyer and Flynn were actually Undertaker's kids, wow, that would be crazy."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Chris said. "That would not happen. Stephanie and Undertaker just have this weird camaraderie because he saved her and she was grateful and I don't know, Taker hates her father so he's always been more receptive to her, that's _it_. And Sawyer and Flynn are _mine_."

"I know, I'm just saying."

"No, no just saying, you don't just say that," Chris said, folding his arms. "Taker and Stephanie secretly married, Trish needs to take you to get checked up or something."

"Wow, someone's a little touchy," Christian said, raising his eyebrows a little. "I was just trying to make a comment."

"Yeah, a stupid one. Sawyer and Flynn are my kids."

"I know that, I never said they weren't."

"What if I was like, 'Hey, remember how Trish and I were pretending to be together, well, we've really been having an affair this entire time and her kid is mine not yours, so ha!' Do you think that you'd be like, well that's just a joke, whatever?"

"Okay, you've made your point," Christian said. "And you better not be having an affair with Trish or I will be forced to kill you and then take your tag titles away from you."

"Like I'd want your wife."

"What's wrong with my wife?" Christian asked. "She's amazing."

"I've got one of my own, don't need another one, trust me."

"It's okay, she's probably married to the Undertaker anyways."

"I'm going to kick your ass," Chris warned him.

"Like you did when we fought a few weeks ago?" Christian said smugly, reminding Chris that he had beaten him in their last match against each other so Chris's claims of being the best in the company were a little stymied.

"I was not at the top of my game, okay?" Chris said, adjusting his baseball cap to keep his hands occupied. "You can't get me on such a technicality like that. I wasn't even prepared to wrestle, I was just there to look at talent."

"So what. You're a wrestler, aren't you? You're supposed to be able to go at any given moment and you weren't ready. What if Taker challenges you to a match tomorrow, are you going to be prepared for that?"

"Yes, I'm going to be prepared for that, but he's not going to," Chris said. "He's not going to challenge me to a fight because he's old and he'll probably need a week just to get ready to face me. I've got agility on him, tons of it. I could run around the ring and he wouldn't be able to catch me and then I'd chop block him to get him down and that'd be that.'

"You make it sound so easy, obviously the hallmark of someone who has never actually fought against him."

"When was the last time _you_ ever fought against him, huh?"

"I'm just saying, dude."

"I'll be fine and what I say will be fine."

"And if worse comes to worse, you can get Taker's secret wife to make him go easy on you."

"I'm kicking you out of my house. You're no longer welcome to stay so you better find yourself a hotel tonight. Yeah, that's right, out of my house. Your wife is welcome to stay, but you are no longer welcome."

"It's not even your house, it's probably Taker's house," Christian countered.

Chris glared at him, but Christian was saved by Stephanie and Trish coming up to the table and it was about time too. They'd been waiting for an hour for their wives to show up from wherever they were shopping. Trish leaned down and kissed Christian on the cheek as Stephanie slid into the booth next to Chris, immediately grabbing his beer and taking a sip of it before leaning over to kiss him and then pull his baseball hat over his face. He fixed it and gave her a mini-glare before he turned and smiled at Trish, winking at her, which confused Trish, but Christian just narrowed his eyes at him.

"Where have you guys been?" Chris asked.

"We had a lot of things to buy," Stephanie said.

"Were you getting my birthday present?" Chris asked eagerly, rubbing his hands together. "Were you taking so long because you were trying to find the perfect present for me, is that what you were doing?"

"No, because I've already got your present," she told him smugly. "I've had your tickets for a while now. So you'll just have to wait a little while longer for what that is."

"Are you sure you weren't buying me another present?" he asked.

"I'm pretty positive," Stephanie said, looking through her bags, "yeah, nothing in here for you. Things for me, things for Sawyer, things for Flynn, but nothing for Mr. Jericho."

"You're cruel."

"Anyways, we were taking so long because Trish found this adorable baby boutique and insisted we go in and she was going to buy the entire store before I reined her in," Stephanie laughed as Trish blushed.

"I can't help it," Trish said, "everything was so adorable, Chrissy. They had all these outfits, it almost made me want to find out the sex of the baby so I could buy accordingly."

"You should've seen her, when we were in the boy section, she started talking about how she hopes it's a boy, then when we got to the girl's section, she changed her mind and decided that she wanted a girl," Stephanie laughed.

"I ended up buying some unisex stuff for newborns," Trish said. "I figured it was about time I start buying things for the baby, since we're starting on the nursery soon. I don't want to have nothing for the baby once it arrives."

"I think we've got time," Christian said as Trish laced her arm through his and leaned her head on his shoulder. "Did you have fun though?"

"Yeah, even though it's getting harder to walk around. It's not impossible, but I can't go long distances, which is weird because I've always been so fit and now I'm carrying this person around and I get so tired easily and my feet are killing me."

"I'll massage them when we get back to Chris and Steph's, okay?"

"My feet hurt too," Stephanie told Chris coyly.

"So?" Chris said. "My entire body aches, you can massage me if you want."

"I hate you," she said, but she leaned against him and took another sip of his beer.

"So your husband is going for career suicide tomorrow, did he tell you?"

"Tell me what, what are you doing?" Stephanie asked and Chris looked at Christian like he wasn't supposed to tell. "Chris, you didn't ask for time or anything on tomorrow's show, unless you asked Teddy and not me, what's going on?"

"But you remember who _did_ ask for time, right, Steph?" Christian said, playing devil's advocate. Chris felt like pounding him. He didn't want Stephanie to know because she always had a problem when he did things like that. She got the whole wrestling side of the business and she understood it, but when personal feelings mixed in with everything, she tended to get deluded in her thinking and she would start to get defensive when he could take care of himself.

"What, I mean, I know who wanted time on the show…Undertaker…Chris, what are you planning on doing?' Stephanie asked, pulling away from him a little.

"Thanks for being a rat, man," Chris told Christian.

"What are you planning, Christopher?"

"I'm just going to talk to Taker, is that a crime?"

Stephanie rubbed at her temples. "No, it's not, but when most people say they're going to talk, they talk and do things, but you are like a stick, you keep poking and prodding until someone snaps the stick in half and that someone is going to be Undertaker."

"Stephanie, don't get into this with me again."

"Okay, I'm keeping my mouth shut."

"Wait, just like that?" Chris asked, looking at her.

"Just like that," she said. "I'm not going to argue with you. I'm going to let you suffer the consequences on your own."

"Secretwife," Christian coughed and Chris licked his lips to keep from saying something.

"Did you say something, Christian?" Stephanie asked.

"Nope, nothing at all," Christian shrugged.

"So how are things over on ECW?" Stephanie asked. "Chris told me that Tiffany is the worst GM and that I am fifty times the GM she is."

"Fifty-thousand times the GM," Chris told her, kissing her temple. He was proud of her for giving him the go-ahead to do what he needed to do with regards to Taker. Sometimes, even if he was beat down, you needed to take it and show that you weren't afraid. Chris facing Taker was a huge deal. Chris had never been in a one-on-one situation with the man and though Big Show was going to be there as well, it was still a match which featured Chris and Taker.

"Maybe I should take over ECW then?"

"That'd be great," Trish said. "If Christian weren't already the champion and had been defending it very well, I would say that you could help him get it. But Chrissy is the champion and hopefully Chris you will be too. I know I'll be rooting for you."

"She's getting all motherly," Christian joked.

"I would've cheered for him either way," Trish said. "You're my friend, you're one of my best friends, you've always been there for me, when everything was falling apart, you even invited me into your home…oh, I'm sorry, I'm crying." Trish buried her head into Christian's chest and as she laughed while still crying. "I'm sorry, I'm so emotional sometimes."

"Hormones," Christian explained.

"Two kids," Chris said, pointing to Stephanie. "I've been through this twice, though Stephanie's emotions were more on the side of anger rather than crying and being emotional."

"That is true," Stephanie nodded. "Just not in my nature to cry."

"I know I'm going to cry when I give birth," Trish said. "I'm going to be bawling in the delivery room and when I see my baby, I'm going to burst into tears, I can just see it. Did you cry, Stephanie?"

"No."

"She didn't cry with either, she cries at the weirdest things," Chris said.

"It's just not in me," Stephanie said.

"I just _know_ I'm going to be a mess."

"Well, you won't care because things get pretty messy when you're in labor," Stephanie told her. "So good luck."

Chris needed luck the next night when he went out to confront Taker. He'd never had to be in this position before so he didn't know what to expect from Taker. Sure, Chris could watch tapes, study them, but this wasn't football, there was no code to decipher, no plays to memorize. These were just raw emotions and bitterness. So Chris just had to go out there and try to do what he always did and that was be the bigger man, the stronger man, the tougher man. When you're facing down Undertaker though, it's hard to see yourself fitting into those adjectives like a neat little box.

Taker cut an intimidating figure. Despite never facing off against him like he was going to at Survivor Series, Chris had _teamed_ with Taker a couple of times, most notably during the Invasion that his wife and brother-in-law had so erroneously initiated and then at a Survivor Series in the past to save his job, although maybe he just could've slept with the boss if the Alliance had won. Still, he knew somewhat what Taker was about and so he wasn't too worried going into this match. Plus, Chris really believed he was the best at what he did. So what? The Undertaker was the champion, he was still just a man and Chris could beat him like he could beat anyone else.

Taker tried to intimidate him, he really did, what with his little speech about wanting to fight his brother Kane and Chris had taken that opportunity away from him. Taker then said that he was going to have Chris's soul at Survivor Series. Chris wasn't even sure what that meant. Was Taker going to try and kiss him and suck his soul out of his mouth or something? How exactly did one get his soul taken anyhow? Was there a ritual? Was Chris going to go through his own Black Wedding?

So he went out there, still with a little trepidation, but he went out there nonetheless. He had to show Taker that he wasn't afraid of him, that he wasn't afraid of anyone. His words were going to be harsh, but they needed to be said so he could establish himself as a real threat to Taker. He went ahead and went with his game plan, going for the jugular. He might live to regret this and if Taker did suck his soul out of his body and leave him a lifeless shell at Survivor Series than Chris would eat his words, but until then, he had to establish his position in this match. Big Show seemed content to just go into the fight, but Chris was never satisfied with just settling.

So calling himself the new phenom, in hindsight, probably wasn't the _best_ idea he'd ever had, but it wasn't one he regretted. Even though he eventually got the beat-down, he'd just shown Taker that he wasn't afraid of him and he figured that was worth a lot when it came to the Undertaker. The man had been around for nearly 20 years and he'd been using intimidation as his main weapon. Taker was a decent wrestler in his prime, but he was past that prime so his presence was what he relied on to get by and Chris had shown that Taker's presence meant nothing to him, not a thing.

"You're not going to say you told me so?" Chris asked when he saw Stephanie next. She shook her head. "Why not?"

"I'm just not going to. I want you to win the title and if you think this is going to help you win the title, then I'm going to let you do it."

"But you don't think it's going to help?"

"I don't know, Taker is different from anyone you've ever faced before. You'd think that he was like Kane, but that's just on the surface. In reality, he's nothing like the man. You have no idea what you're getting into with Taker, but if you want to be the one to try and take him down, who am I to stop you?"

"I really like this side of you," Chris told her, kissing her gently. "I think you should be like this all the time. It's like you finally get that I'm a wrestler and that you can't control what I do because _I _control…wait a second, what are you planning? Did you go to Taker or something?"

"What? What the hell are you accusing me of, Chris?" Stephanie asked. "Do you think that I'm lying to you right now?"

"It would fall right in line with what you like to do," Chris told her. "Are you, what have you done?"

"_Nothing_. I swear to you, I haven't done anything, I just want you to realize that this understanding that I have right now for you is the same kind of understanding that I want you to have for me if I ever do something that you might not like."

"See, now you say that and I'm forced to believe that you've done something."

"I haven't done anything, but you know that I'm a planner and that I might do something in the future that you won't like. Like if I got pregnant again and accidentally got kicked in the stomach again, I would want your understanding in that situation, that's all I'm saying."

She really didn't have anything planned with him and Taker. She was actually going to let Chris do what he wanted. He was going to be 39 on Monday and it was about time she didn't tether him by the balls. He should think of this as a birthday present for him. She was going to stay out of his business and let him get what was coming to him, whether that was a World Championship or an ass-kicking the likes of which he'd never seen before (because he'd never actually faced Taker so it really _would_ be an ass-kicking he'd never seen before).

"You sure you didn't do anything?"

"I'm positive."

"Shane, your dad is on the phone," Marissa said as she walked into the playroom. Shane had been sitting with Declan and Kenny watching a movie. He looked to his wife and she shrugged, not knowing what it was about. She only knew her father-in-law had called and wanted to speak with him.

"Hold on," Shane said, disentangling himself from his sons and stepping up and grabbing the phone. "Do you know what he wants?"

"Not a clue."

"Okay," Shane said. He walked a little ways down the hallway and pulled the phone to his ear, "Hey, Dad, what is it, did you need something because I was kind of watching a movie with the boys and I was having a good time with them."

"Whatever anyone is offering you, I will double that," Vince said.

"What are you talking about, Dad?"

"I've been hearing things that you've been meeting with other companies and whatever they're willing to pay, I'll pay double. You want some other title, you've got it, except for Stephanie's, you can't have Stephanie's."

"Well, first of all, I wouldn't want Stephanie's job and if I did want Stephanie's job, she would fight me to the death to keep it. Second of all, who told you that I had meetings with other companies?"

"Shane, this is a cutthroat world, I've got contacts, they tell me things, they said that people have been sending out feelers. I want to know who has been sending out feelers to you. How dare they think they can just grab you?"

"Dad, we've been over this, I'm leaving the company, I'm not going to change my mind, I'm sorry if you think I am. I don't want your double salary, I've got enough assets as it is. I just want to pursue something that I _love_."

"I thought you loved wrestling," Vince said. "Your sister loves wrestling."

"I'm not Stephanie."

"Your mother loves wrestling."

"And look what Mom is doing right now, she's running for political office so she stepped away from it."

"So are you going to be running for political office then?" Vince asked. "Because if that's the case, then I guess I can overlook this, but if you're not, what is it going to take?"

"Dad, I love wrestling, I do, but after being in the business for the last 39 years, I'm going to need something different for my life. I want to do something that makes me happy and wrestling made me happy for a very long time, but it's not making me happy anymore so you've got to understand where I'm coming from."

"But I don't."

"Dad, you've still got Stephanie and Chris, they're still there and you love them both, they will take over and run the company and everything will be great. Then you're guaranteed to have at least a couple grandchildren who want to be in the business, probably three because Declan is fascinated with wrestling and gobbles up tapes like nothing else. And Lord knows Stephanie and Chris are already grooming Sawyer and Flynn, so you've got a ton of people."

"But you are my son."

"Dad, I know what I am. But what if I had wanted to be a doctor when I was younger and had never even thought about entering the wrestling business, would you have disowned me then if I had wanted to work outside the business?"

"No."

"So what's the difference now?"

"Because you've been here and we need you."

"Dad, you really don't need me and I'm doing this, I'm sorry if you disagree with my decision, but please stop calling telling me that I have to come back or not resign. Just please understand, okay, and you still have Stephanie and you know, just to say it, you should give Stephanie the GM job she wants, that girl does as much work as 5 people and she deserves to be rewarded for that."

"Now you're telling me how to do my job."

"No, I'm telling you to look to your daughter who busts her ass for you," Shane said. "And Dad, I'm not changing my mind, I'm serious about that, dead serious, so stop."

"But--"

"Dad."

"Shane."

"Dad, I'm hanging up now."

"Shane!"

"Hanging up."

Shane sighed as he finally hung up the phone. Marissa came up and wrapped her arms around him. Shane pulled her closer and rested his chin on her head. She rubbed his back, knowing that Vince kept bugging him about this. Linda had too and he'd almost cracked when she'd asked him back. Almost. Stephanie hadn't, but that was probably more Chris's influence than anything else. He just wanted to live his life without his family whispering into his ear. He never knew that breaking away would be this difficult.

"You okay?" Marissa asked.

"Yeah, I will be."

"Once you're out, your dad will lay off," she told him.

Shane laughed, "Rissa, do you honestly believe that?" She laughed gently too as she started to lead him back to the playroom.

"No."

Chris snuffled and woke up. He had been jetlagged from flying into England yesterday and the time difference was still getting to him a little bit, causing him to wake up at this odd hour of the night. Having two cranky kids hadn't helped either. Sawyer had been cranky because Flynn had been cranky and that made for a rough day for them after they'd arrived in the country. They were both sleeping now, but he wouldn't be surprised if they slept in late from the time difference.

He stretched a little, his muscles sore still from his encounter with Taker. It was odd, he hadn't really gotten beat by Taker, but there was still something in it that made him extra sore. He refused to believe it was Taker's supernatural powers that had done it. It was just that Taker was bigger than he was, that was the only reason. The sole reason for his pain at the moment. He lay there thinking for a few minutes, then remembered a favor he had to return.

"Stephanie," he said, turning on his side, pushing her shoulder a little. "Steph."

"What? Is it the kids?" she mumbled, still more asleep than awake.

"My birthday is technically right now and I'm having a midlife crisis."

"Chris, stop it," she said, pushing blindly at him.

"I can't, I'm worried, I can feel it creeping up on me." Chris flipped Stephanie onto her back and hopped on top of her and straddled her hips. "Stephanie, I'm in a crisis right now, I'm going 39. 39 is just one year away from being 40, do you understand how scary that is, I'm going to be 40 in one year from today. That's a huge birthday and I'm going into crisis."

"No you're not, you're being an asshole."

"No, Stephanie, I've been noticing lately that I've been looking at other women a lot more than usual and young ones too. Ones that are like 15 years younger than me, as young as 18, _18_, Stephanie. I'm becoming a dirty, old man, right before your eyes. I'm going to have an affair and then I'm going to get a toupee and get a sportscar. Aren't you worried?"

"I'm not worried, maybe for your mental health."

"Stephanie, I'm getting older now, where did the time go, I feel like I wasted my 30's, what are your 30's like?" he asked, going down so he was lying on top of her, but careful not to crush her under his weight. He laid his head on her chest. "I've wasted my 30's, Steph. What have I even done worth note in my 30's. Other people, they go out and they party and all I did was work and get married and have two kids, but I didn't get to party."

"Except for the fact that we didn't even start dating until you were 32."

"God, have I been with you that long?"

"Technically 31."

"No way, that's not true, that cannot be true. 31? We've been together since I was 31?"

"Yes."

"Damn it, I really _did_ waste my 30's, I'm getting older, Stephanie, pretty soon I'm going to just leave wrestling altogether and when I do that I'll have no choice but to leave you because you're wrestling too. Do you get that? Stephanie, I'm going to leave you!"

"Why are you bugging me?"

"Because I'm worried about getting older. I don't want to get older at all. Maybe I need to go sow some wild oats," Chris told her.

Stephanie groaned and started running her hands through Chris's hair. "You don't care about getting older, you think that you're in your prime."

"That's not true, I think I saw a gray hair the other day."

"You did not."

"Oh, I wasn't talking about me, I was talking about you," he said, his voice muffled by her chest. She didn't see Chris making any attempt to move and so she slapped him on the shoulder. "Hey, what was that for?"

"I do not have gray hair."

"I thought I saw one."

"You did not."

"I think I did."

"Stop," she told him. "You're being such a jerk to me."

"Like you were to me when it was your birthday with your talk about getting older and how 33 was _so_ old. And how you woke me up in the middle of the night, it's the least you can do to listen to me whine about being 39."

"But I'm tired."

"And I wasn't."

"So what girls have you been looking at?" she asked him. "Any good ones to replace me?"

"I've seen a few," Chris said, "lots of women think I'm hot so I think I would have a good sampling of women to choose from. I could line them up and then evaluate them, make sure they knew what they were getting into. They'd have to like kids because of the babies. They'd have to like metal music so they could come with me to concerts. They'd have to like wrestling because I'm a wrestler. They would have to be really, really tough because you would probably put out a hit for them. And pretty."

"Those are pretty lofty."

"But necessary," Chris said. "Very necessary."

"Can we go to sleep now, you have Raw tonight and knowing you, you're going to get yourself into some kind of trouble."

"You know me so well," Chris sighed, snuggling into her. "At least Taker's not there so I can't get into more trouble with him."

"Seriously, not getting involved with it."

"Wow, this is just not you _at_ all."

"I know, I'm turning over a new leaf."

"I like this leaf," he told her. Then a pause and, "Hey, Steph?"

"What?"

"I've really loved my 30's," he told her and she could feel him smiling against her skin. "I think they've been my best decade by far."

"I'm really glad to hear that."

"Hey, Steph?"

"Yeah?" Stephanie said.

"Since it _is_ technically my birthday, do you think I can get one present right now?" he asked her. "I mean, you know, we're both up and I'm already on top of you and everything and I'm right near your breasts so it really wouldn't take too much effort."

"You can wait until tonight, I'm not keeping you up when you have Raw."

"But it's my birthday!"

"I know, but you can wait, got it."

"This is not a good start to my birthday," he pouted, but lightly kissed her skin. "I love you anyways though."

"Good."

"Hey, Steph?" he said, voice lacing his sleep now as he settled himself partly over Stephanie's body, shifting a little so she could breathe a little easier and not have him crush her.

"Hmm?" she asked, feeling sleep coming back to her as well.

"You're not secretly married to the Undertaker are you?"

"What?"

But Chris was already asleep.

When he woke up again, the bed was empty, but Stephanie hadn't gone back to her secret husband. She'd let Chris sleep in when the kids had woken up. It was hard getting Sawyer to not bum rush Chris the moment he woke up. Sawyer knew it was Chris's birthday and he wanted to tell his daddy it was his birthday, like Chris didn't know. Stephanie had had to scoop him up as he entered the doorway and told him that it was breakfast time and they needed to eat before they woke up daddy. Flynn had been fine with this because she was hungry, but Sawyer kept looking to the door where his daddy was sleeping to see when he'd come out.

"Sawyer, what do you want for breakfast?"

"Is Daddy eating too?"

"Yeah, Daddy is going to be eating, I'm going to order him breakfast, but since it's his birthday, we're going to let him sleep in," she explained.

"Why does he need to sleep?" Sawyer asked.

"Because Daddy is a wrestler and he works very hard and he's going to work very hard tonight too so we want him to rest."

"But it's his birfday and you no sleep in on your birfday," Sawyer tried to explain.

"Why not?"

"Because there's cake and pwesents," Sawyer said, like he wanted his mother to get with the program. "See."

"I see, but it's too early for cake so what to do you want for breakfast, I'm going to order you some scrambled eggs, fruit, and what, pancakes or waffles?"

"Pancakes, pease, no fwuit."

"You're eating fruit, don't think you're getting out of that one," she told him. "Watch Flynn for a minute while I go ask Daddy what he wants for breakfast."

"Okay," Sawyer said.

Stephanie went into the bedroom and where Chris was flailed across the bed. She went over and started massaging his shoulders, leaning down to kiss the top of his spine. "Sweetie, what do you want for breakfast?"

"Coffee," he mumbled.

"I mean to eat," she said.

"Get me steak and eggs, or bangers and mash, whatever they have here, meat, I want meat," he told her. "What time is it?"

"9:00."

"You're letting me sleep in," he said with a smile.

"It's your birthday," Stephanie said, laying her body across his and hugging his sideways. "I love you, happy birthday and I'm glad you were born. Remind me to thank your mother for having you."

"She'll like that."

"I know she will," she said. "I'm very proud of you."

"Daddy, it's your birfday!" Sawyer said, running into the room and jumping on the bed.

"Sawyer, what did I tell you?"

"You're talking to Daddy, I can talk to him too," Sawyer told her, glaring at her and surprising her with his look. It was almost like she was looking into a mirror, if her image was that of a three and a half year old boy with blond hair and blue, blue, blue eyes.

"I told you to watch Flynn."

"She's in your eating chair. She no get out there," Sawyer said and Stephanie cursed him for being so smart. Sawyer crawled to where he was lying right next to Chris and could look him in the face. "Hi, Daddy, Happy Birfday to you."

"Thanks, kid," Chris smiled at him.

"We have cake for you?"

"I don't know, Mommy, do we have cake?"

"We have cake," Stephanie said, "but not right now, right now is breakfast. I'm going to order it and make sure that our daughter is okay and that she isn't wondering why her family abandoned her in her high chair. You be good, Sawyer."

"I always good."

Chris laughed, "He's definitely his mother's son."

Stephanie went into the other room, leaving Sawyer with Chris. "Daddy, how old you be today?"

"Old."

"How old?" Sawyer asked, very curious.

"I'm 39."

Sawyer looked at his fingers. "That is old, Daddy, why are you so old?"

"Because I was born a long time ago, very much before you were born."

"I know, I only fwee," he said, holding up his three fingers. "And a half!"

"Yeah, you gotta remember that half, it's very important when you're three."

"I know, I be old too."

"You're a very big boy."

"Dada!" Flynn yelled as Stephanie threw her onto the bed. "Dada, Dada! Hi, hi, hi!"

"Hey, you," Chris said, grabbing Flynn and hugging her. "Are you hear to wish me a happy birthday too?"

"Yes, westle!"

"I love that is one of her first words," Chris said, "great birthday present."

Stephanie snuggled up behind Sawyer. "Are you ready for your gift, Mr. Jericho?"

"I get it already?"

"You do at that," she said, grabbing something from behind her back and handed him a large envelope. "Now this is from Sawyer, Flynn, _and_ me. We decided that we wanted to pool our resources and our strengths and give you an amazing birthday present and we all very much hope you like it, right, guys?"

"Right, Mommy."

"Yes," Flynn echoed.

Chris sat up and took the envelope, opening it up. He pulled out a couple sheets of paper. He pulled the first one open and all it was, was a bunch of scribbles of different colors. Even though it was a bunch of scribbles, it was from Flynn and that made it better than most presents he'd received over his life. He opened the second paper and a smaller envelope fell out, but before he got to that he looked at Sawyer's drawing, which was a stick figure with yellow hair and a smiley face.

"That's you, Daddy," Sawyer said, pointing to the picture, "and that me." He pointed to a much smaller stick figure and another crooked smile and yellow hair. "We are together."

"This is great. I love it," Chris said, kissing Sawyer first and then Flynn.

"Well, that was from them, but they had a very instrumental part in this," Stephanie said. "Because I was having trouble finding out what I want to get for you because we have everything, nearly literally, so I couldn't think of what you might want at all. Anyways, I was on your computer, _not checking your Twitter_, because Flynn and Sawyer had been watching _Sesame Street_ and they wanted to go see it on the computer and I didn't want to go get mine so we went to the one in your office and I was pulling it up when I noticed that you had been looking at a certain site--"

"I swear to go, the porn just pops up," Chris joked.

"Very funny, I don't care if you look at porn," Stephanie said, "but I saw something that caught my eye and well, because I was on there because of the kids, they helped so you can open your envelope now."

Chris tore open the envelope and his eyes widened, "Steph, you got me Metallica tickets."

"Those are for you," Stephanie said, "and you are not obligated to go with me, go with a friend, go with a girlfriend, go with your lover, I don't care, just go and have fun and those are great seats, I pulled some strings for you, not that you needed them pulled, but yeah, got you the tickets."

He looked at them and then up at his wife and then down at the tickets, "Steph, I can't go to this."

"What? Yes you can," she insisted. "Chris, I'm telling you, you don't need to take me, I don't have to go and I kind of don't want to go either."

"No, it's not that, these are for the 15th, we're still going to be here in Europe on the 15th, well, we're going to be on a plane on the 15th, there's no way that I can make it there in time to get to the show."

"See, now that's where you're wrong. We are leaving on the 13th and you do not have to do any of the European shows on those days, you're off the hook," Stephanie told him.

"How?" he asked.

"Chris, look who you're talking to, I'm management, I can do what I want and it's your birthday present and I want you to go, so I made an executive decision and I dare anyone to defy my orders," she told him.

"You really _are_ the best wife ever!" he exclaimed tackling her and Sawyer to the bed.

Chris's day was going wonderfully by the time he entered the arena. He'd been having a great birthday thus far and he only hoped it would extend into the evening. He knew that Ricky Hatton as the guest host was going to be a wildcard. He didn't know if he would be on his side or not. He figured that he would be against him as 99% of the guest hosts had been against him. He just had to get used to the fact that DX was going to get in every Raw hosts' ear and get their own way. Shawn Michaels was a wily, manipulative bastard and until he was gone, so many people would be affected.

"Hey, Kofi, what's up, man?" Evan said.

"Hey, nothing much, just watching my back, you know," Kofi joked, "Never know what could be lurking around ready to attack you."

"Legacy?" Evan asked.

"Yeah, I'm not too sure I'm their favorite person right now, not that I can blame them or anything," Kofi laughed. "Hey, Britt, right?"

"Hi," Britt said.

"Hey, you had problems with Randy, didn't you?" Evan said. "I mean, not that I was completely paying attention to you or stalking you or anything. I wasn't."

"I didn't think you were and I think everyone knew that Randy was bugging me," Britt said. "It was pretty much common knowledge at the time, I think."

"Yeah, it kind of was, not that it was a bad thing or people were saying bad things about you," Evan said.

"It's fine."

"But yeah, I know you had trouble with him. Kofi, how about you go extra crazy on Randy for my…um, Britt," Evan finished lamely. He'd almost said his girlfriend, but he didn't want to be presumptuous. He and Britt had been hanging out a lot lately, grabbing meals, getting coffee, going on walks, but there was nothing official and they'd never kissed or anything, but he could feel that coming.

"You got it," Kofi nodded. "Not that I was going to go easy on him anyways, but I can always add a little punch to my dealings with Mr. Orton."

"You guys too sweet," Britt said to both of them, but then turned to Evan. "You didn't have to say that."

"It's nothing," Evan said. "I just know that he was being a jerk to you and it's not like I get to be the one to go out there and fight him or anything, although if you were to swing it so I could, I don't' think I would be against that."

"You think you could handle him?"

"I know I could," Evan winked at her and she laughed.

"I'm sure you could," she said, bumping her shoulder with his and as she pulled away, he leaned forward and pressed his lips against hers. Britt pulled back in surprise and stared at him. "What was that?"

"Should I not have done that? I'm sorry, I was just getting the vibe, not from right now, I mean, yeah, from right now too, but from our days, hanging out and everything that you might not be against me kissing you, but I obviously caught you off-guard. I'm really sorry."

"It's okay, I was just surprised. Try it again," Britt told him.

"Really? Are you going to pull away again because my ego won't be able to take that," he told her.

"I think your ego is going to be just fine," she said as she started to lean in towards him and met him halfway.

She didn't want to do it, she really didn't, but she compared it with Hunter's. She couldn't help it. Hunter had been the last guy she'd kissed and she'd kissed only him for a good long while so to have this other guy kissing her, with completely different technique, she almost _had_ to compare it. Hunter always kissed her with force, not like grabbing her and forcing a kiss on her, but there was a power behind his kiss, like he wanted her to really _feel_ it. Evan's was gentler, nicer and she figured it just had to do with personalities. Hunter had that overbearing personality while Evan didn't. Evan was just a really nice guy.

Britt pulled away. "That was nice," she told him and it was.

"I agree," he told her, then went in for more.

Chris nudged Stephanie as they walked past Britt kissing Evan. Stephanie's jaw dropped and she looked at Chris, who was holding in laughter. Sawyer was about to open his mouth and yell at Britt that it was his daddy's birthday, but Stephanie covered his mouth as the scurried past. Sawyer was very confused. Why wasn't he allowed to talk to Britt? Well that was very strange. When they got to their locker room, Stephanie squealed and Chris laughed at her.

"Did you see that!"

"I did, if you weren't there, I don't think I would have," Chris said. "Do we tell Hunter?'

"No, absolutely not," Stephanie said. "He doesn't get that privilege anymore."

"Wow, that was crazy," Chris said. "Britt and Evan, I mean, I know they've been hanging out, she said as much to you at SmackDown, but I don't know, there's something there now. Is it wrong that I'm really excited to see how Hunter handles this?"

"Why the hell do you think I'm so excited, I want to get the popcorn ready!" Stephanie told him, her voice giddy with anticipation.

"It's like our own personal soap opera, this is going to be awesome."

"What's awesome?" Sawyer asked.

"Well, you see, sometimes in people's lives they have drama, which is like when crazy stuff happens, like if you got to eat cake before dinner, but this involves Britt and Trips and Mommy and I want to watch what happens because it's exciting."

"Very," Stephanie added.

"Bewwy," Flynn said, copying her mommy. Stephanie blew her a kiss.

"I want to see dwama," Sawyer said. "I like popcorn and cake."

"I know you do, and we like to see all of this fun right before our eyes."

When Chris had to go out later to meet the new guest host, he told Stephanie to keep on the lookout for anything Britt or Hunter related. He didn't want to miss any of the fireworks. He was tempted to tell Hunter himself that Britt had been kissing Evan, just to see the reaction up close, but he figured that if Hunter found out on his own, the explosion might be epic. He wanted to see epic because maybe it would finally knock some of the sense back into Hunter and that could never be a bad thing.

Stephanie, though, was not looking for Hunter or Britt, but was instead meeting with Christian and Trish. "Okay, you guys, so I ordered the cake and it's at the restaurant and they'll have it ready. Everyone has directions to the place so that's set. Are you sure you guys don't mind handling the decorations?"

"Not at all," Trish said.

"I want to help!" Sawyer said, waving his hand around and jumping up and down.

"Sawyer, you have to stay here."

"He doesn't have to, we can take him," Christian said. "That way he can help and then he can tell Chris that he helped, it'll make him feel good."

"You wouldn't mind?" Stephanie asked.

"Not at all," Christian said. "Come on, kiddo, let's go help decorate for your daddy's surprise party."

"I'm gonna help," Sawyer said proudly.

"I wish I could've recorded that so I could play it for him when he's a teenager and wants to do nothing to help," Stephanie said.

Trish laughed, "Do you want us to take Flynn too?"

"No, Flynnie can stay with me, but thanks," she said, "for everything."

"Not a problem, we'll see you after the show."

"Thanks, bye," Stephanie said, she turned around to watch Chris out there and saw Ted was standing right there. "Hey, Ted, how goes it?"

"It's fine," he shrugged.

Stephanie pulled a little closer, "What's wrong?"

Ted looked a little down. "Nothing, I don't know, I just feel like I've taken a step backwards. I was a coward the other week and you didn't even talk to me last week and I felt like I'd done something wrong…"

"No, not at all, I was just busy, the plan is still on and I'm still in your corner, believe me, I'm not going anywhere and you're not getting rid of me," she said lowly so nobody else would hear.

"Your husband seems to like to get in trouble," Ted said, glancing towards the television where Chris was arguing with Ricky Hatton.

She sighed and watched as Chris started going at it with Hatton, a guy who could probably knock him out. She trusted Chris's instincts though and if anyone could get out of a jam, it would be Chris. She had made a promise to him that she wouldn't interfere and this was her keeping her promise. Hell, if Hatton punched Chris, she wasn't even going to yell at him. Maybe she'd glare at him and _want_ to yell at him, but she was going to refrain. It was the best birthday present she could think of to give Chris and he better like the pains she was going through to give it to him.

"He's like that, he's a jackass," Stephanie told him.

"Seems like it," Ted said tentatively, like he was weighing his words.

"He just likes to poke people as I've said to him time and time again. It's in his nature or something," Stephanie said. That was just Chris and she didn't try to define him. "He's trying to gain momentum going into his big match."

"Yeah, I could've been having a big match, but I was a coward, unlike Kofi who just went for it. Why couldn't I have just gone for it?"

"You'll find out you can in time, you just have to wait for the right moment. You want to make sure you can beat him, it's perfectly normal."

"I guess," Ted shrugged. "Your husband really likes to talk, huh?"

Chris was talking to Show right now, telling him how he was on the roll of his career. He felt like this was a great time for his career and it helped that it was his birthday and the promise of sex in the very near future had him feeling pretty damn good about himself. He'd also beaten Cena and he was going to be Taker at Survivor Series and be the champion. He was the best he'd ever been. He felt good about himself, he felt good being a wrestler and he knew Stephanie would be happy to hear that because there was always that fear for her that he was going to leave again (she was smiling softly backstage).

This did not sit well with Big Show and the Napoleon crack was really unnecessary, especially since there had been reports that the entire "Napoleon was a midget" theory had been pretty much debunked and Napoleon was actually of average height and Chris was actually above average height as well, he just didn't look it standing next to a 7 foot giant of a man. Big Show had to gall to tell him his ego was out of check, but he was just telling the truth. Did Show expect him to just lay down and say that he was probably going to be beaten by Taker on Friday and then beaten at Survivor Series? No self-respecting wrestler would do that.

This all became a moot point a few moments later when Hatton announced that he wanted to see Chris and Show against DX. This was just great. It was like he couldn't escape Hunter or Shawn. Though, on the bright side, this meant he wouldn't miss the inevitable fallout from the Evan/Britt coupling. He _really_ wanted to see that. After the way Hunter had treated Britt and then ignored the very good advice he'd gotten, Chris really wanted to see the comeuppance up close and personal.

Then to add insult to injury, DX had to show their faces again with their tired old spiel. Maybe DX was like Hunter's security blanket, but Hunter was better than that, Chris knew. If only he'd asked Hunter to be his tag partner, they could've been ruling the joint and this animosity that he felt from Hunter would be nonexistent. Chris wasn't going to get into it now though, neither was Show, at least that they could agree upon. They may look cowardly to DX, but they weren't going to let themselves be vulnerable when they now had a match. Chris walked up the ramp with Show and as soon as the curtains fluttered close, he was a different person. It was his birthday and his daughter and son were there and he wasn't going to let them see him be mad on his birthday.

He rushed towards Stephanie and hugged her, lifting her up. "Hey there, pretty lady."

"Hey, troublemaking birthday boy."

"Not too much trouble," Chris told her, kissing her cheek. "Where's Sawyer?"

"Playing with Trish and Christian," Stephanie said. "So it's just your girls for the evening. Oh, and before you say anything else, I told Shane to tell the website to put up a story on that Fozzy Survival Pack thing you're doing and he had them put up an article on it, and I didn't bug him about resigning, and so there's an article and I went on your Twitter to tell everyone about it and I posted a link to the article."

"Okay, it's my birthday, you are giving me sex later so I will forgive the fact you posted under my name in the name of fraud! But seriously, you need to stay away from that, apparently, your dad is scared that we're going to say bad stuff and we have a curfew now."

"You don't have one, you're married to me, you can do whatever the hell you want around here," she told him, kissing him. "Aren't you lucky?"

"Very," he said, kissing her again. "But he's right, who knows, one night I could just be half asleep and then I'll tweet something like, 'Stephanie has a zit on her face the size of Mt. Vesuvius' and then people will be aghast that I'm tweeting about you in the middle of the night and they might realize we're still married and you're not with Hunter, shocking, I know!"

"You would _never_ put something like that up there, I would do very bad things to you in your sleep."

"Tying me up, kinky, Steph," Chris said, giving her the once over before noticing that Ted DiBiase was within earshot and looking uncomfortable. "Yeah, you heard me, I have sex with this woman."

"Chris," Stephanie said, blushing.

"What? He's listening in on our conversation and looking like it's scandalous that I have sex with you, she's my _wife_," Chris said, scowling at him.

"Don't mind him, it's his birthday," Stephanie apologized, though why it being Chris's birthday was a valid excuse escaped her.

"It was my birthday yesterday," Ted said.

"Oh, Happy Birthday," Stephanie said. "That's really cool."

"Not as cool as mine though," Chris added. "Come on, Steph, we've got to keep an eye out on the you-know-what so we can watch the you-know-what going down. We don't want to miss the you-know-what."

"That's right, I wouldn't want to miss that. Bye, Ted," she said, then mouthed that she'd see him later as Chris wrapped his arm around Stephanie and leaned into her. "You didn't have to be rude to him, you know."

"He was listening to our conversation and your little boy-toy was the one being rude. He shouldn't listen in on our conversation."

"I don't think he was, you big jerk," Stephanie. "Your 39 years old, you should not be acting so immature."

"Me? Immature? I don't think so, woman who thinks I would actually put up that you have a huge zit, you're the one who's immature."

"Face it, Jericho, you would totally put that up if you were mad at me."

"No, if I were mad at you, I would tell everyone you have a fat ass, _that's _what I would tell everyone, just so everyone could sympathize with me having a fat wife," Chris told her cheekily. "I'm only getting away with that one because it's my birthday, right?"

"That's right and on your birthday you can get away with stuff that on any other day of the year will get you a kick to the baby-maker," she told him sweetly. "Now, let's make a bet, do you think Hunter finds out before our match or after?"

"For your health's sake, I'm going to say after."

"But realistically?"

"Oh, he's finding out before, I don't see how he can't," she told him. "And if that's the case, let's go find him."

"Do you think we're cruel because we're going to laugh and watch what is essentially the demise of a man?" Chris asked.

"Sweetie, we were already hell bound as it was, Maybe with a few more kids we'll make it to the fluffy cloud place, but as it is, we're already going to the fire so we might as well enjoy the ride."

"God, I love you."

Hunter was simply walking with Shawn when he saw it. Just walking. One foot in front of the other in a forward motion, left foot, right foot, left foot, right foot. So simple a task, so simple a motion and then, then he saw it. Evan and Britt were walking in the adjacent hallway, paying no attention to anyone. They were holding hands and Evan was just the right height for Britt to lean her chin against his as they walked and talked. Hunter had always been too tall so she'd tuck herself under his arm. Evan seemed just the right size. Then, she'd leaned up and kissed his cheek, just casually, just like it was nothing, like she'd been doing it for some time now.

Shawn didn't seem to notice and Hunter didn't notice that Stephanie and Chris had just happened to be walking down the hallway past where Hunter was facing him as he saw. Stephanie and Chris froze, like they were at a movie and the climax was about to happen. Oh, this was _perfect_. They had to chalk this up to birthday magic on Chris's part. No way could this have been set up more perfectly. It just _had _to be a great birthday wish for Chris.

"Hey, man, there's Chris, maybe we should--" Shawn started, but he didn't finish as he saw Hunter's face going dark. "What's up with you?"

Hunter was far too mad and far too gone. He started stalking down the hallway and towards Evan Bourne, his mind on one track and one track only. He had his sights set on the man and when he reached him, he grabbed him by the shoulder and wrenched him around to face him, startling both him and Britt. Britt's face darkened as she saw who it was and she couldn't believe him, stepping in front of Evan.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Oh my God, I could not pay enough money for this," Chris whispered to Stephanie.

"I know," she whispered back as Flynn sucked on her pacifier, unaware of what was going on.

"What are _you_ doing?" Hunter asked her, staring at her as if nobody else in the building existed. "What is going on?"

"I'm walking with someone," Britt said.

"That was _not_ walking."

"Then what was it, skipping? Hopping? Hustling? Hula-hooping?"

"You were kissing him, you were _kissing_ him!"

"That's what I do with people I like, haven't you gathered that from those kisses I _haven't _been giving you," she told him. "Plus, we've been apart for like a month, I don't need to explain my actions to you at all. If I want to see someone or hang out with someone, that's _my_ choice. You can go hang with anyone you want too, seems you're having a blast with Shawn."

"That was a burn," Stephanie said. "I wonder what he'll say to that."

"You can't go around kissing other guys!"

"Wrong answer," Chris said, shaking his head. "He's going to get it now."

"Oh, so what, because I used to date you, you get to dictate who I'm with in the future, is that how it goes? Hunter, face it, you don't love me, if you loved me, you wouldn't have let me leave like you did, you wouldn't have ignored me the way that you did, hell, you wouldn't have become Shawn's sidekick if you did. So I'm moving on, you should try it, it's actually pretty nice."

"Fine, I don't care!" Hunter said, but it was a lie, he cared.

"I know you don't care and I'm not caring either and please, do not lay your hands on my…guy," she didn't know what to call him yet, "unless you're in the ring because this, what we have going, is none of your business."

"It is my--"

"No, it's really not," Britt said. "Now I think you should apologize to Evan…now."

"Wow, bold, I like that," Chris said to Stephanie.

"He's not going to."

"No," Hunter said shortly. "Come on, Shawn, let's go, I want to get some tail tonight, I'm sure London is full of girls who want a little taste of The Game."

Britt rolled her eyes and turned to Evan. "I'm really sorry about that, obviously he cannot take a hint."

"It's okay, I knew you used to date him, I knew there could be an altercation. That went a lot better than I thought, actually. I figured he'd pick me up and throw me into a wall. This was not getting thrown into a wall."

"I'm not too sure he wouldn't do that," Britt said, "but I'm not going to let him, he has to understand we're over. Come on, you were telling me all about your first match."

"Now that was good, but I want more," Chris said as everyone left.

"Me too," Stephanie said. "There will be more, you can tell. If just seeing them walking and a kiss on the cheek made Hunter act like that, imagine when he sees them actually kissing, I'm thinking gaskets blown. Remember how he reacted to me when he saw the tape about the fake pregnancy?"

"Remember how _you_ reacted? That was the scariest face I've ever seen," Chris said. "That would put our kids in therapy."

"Not about me, about him and his utter jealousy. It's going to bite him in the ass one day very soon, just bite him right in the ass."

Tonight though, it was Chris's turn to be bitten by Hunter's wrath. Hunter came out positively fuming. He tried to hide it beneath the usual DX shtick, but Chris could see the anger plainly on his face. Whereas he would usually be acting more goofball, his face was very serious and he was going through the motions of caring. His mind was on Britt and what he'd seen and if she and Evan were dating now. She wasn't his to care about anymore, though that didn't stop him. Maybe listening to Shawn had been wrong because this feeling welling up inside him did not feel good.

It felt a lot like jealousy.

It felt a lot like the pain of missing someone.


	258. Get a Clue, November 13 to 16, 2009

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, hope you enjoy the chapter and reviews are always appreciated. :)

* * *

"Why do you like the Undertaker?"

"Because he's helped me out in the past," Stephanie said, pressing her finger to Flynn's nose and getting some paint on it. Flynn reached up and touched her nose and then brought down her hand to look at it and she saw yellow paint and giggled before smashing her hand against the piece of paper in front of her. Her mommy was helping her fingerpaint. She wanted to make something like Sawyer's, but it wasn't working out so well.

"Helped you…how?" Chris asked, gazing at her suspiciously. He had a huge match with Taker tonight, one-on-one for the first time and he was trying to cull as much information as he could before the match. He'd grilled Christian and Edge about him, then grilled Hunter (which was difficult because Hunter had been in a perpetual bad mood), then he'd asked Trish because Trish had had some friendship or whatever with Kane and she figured, Kane, Undertaker, tomato, tom_ato_. Now he'd moved onto his wife.

"Well, he saved me, for one, and he's gotten me out of jams every once in a while, remember how I called him to help me out earlier this year?"

"Yeah, you asked him to help you instead of me."

"We had a plan going," Stephanie said. She'd forgotten Chris's sleepy question about her being secretly married to the Undertaker so she had no idea why he was questioning her like he was. "I couldn't have asked you."

"Well, sure you _could_ have. I mean, you could've come up with some excuse."

"It was just easier to call him."

"Why was it easier to call him?" Chris asked and she was getting pretty sick of the questions.

"Who are you talking about?" Sawyer asked as he wiped his fingers on the towel Stephanie had provided him and then went in for some green. He had to draw in the grass after all and grass was green, not purple, nobody had ever heard of purple grass.

"Undertaker," Stephanie told him.

"Who is he?"

"You know who the Undertaker is, he's the guy who has the big, shiny belt like yours, the one who wears the jacket and the hat."

"The really mean, scary guy," Chris chimed in. "The one who I want to beat, but he wants to beat me up, kid, just take me and beat me up."

"I don't want you beat up, Daddy," Sawyer said.

"Neither do I, which is why I'm asking Mommy some questions so she'll help me out with my match later."

"I thought you wanted me to stay out of your matches," Stephanie pointed out. "You wanted to do everything by yourself so this would be letting you do things by yourself, would it not? So you can figure it out."

"Mommy, that's not nice. If you ask for help, you help, right?"

"The kid's gotta point," Chris told her and she looked over at him and he shrugged coyly.

"You know, instead of sitting over there, you _could_ be helping with your children, or would that be too much for you?" she asked.

"You've got things covered, not to mention, did you not hear me when I said I have a big match tonight. I'm going against an opponent I've never faced before, not really anyways, who knows how this will turn out. There's nobody out there except me and him, him and me, you're rooting for me, right?"

"Why do you ask that?"

"Oh nothing," Chris told her, studying her and trying to see if she really was rooting for him or if she was just indifferent or even worse, rooting for the Undertaker to win. But surely she wouldn't be cheering for him. "Do you think he's into…black magic or anything? I mean, you did spend time with him, right, did you see him do anything?"

"Well, for once, that was what, 10 years ago? Do you think I'm really going to remember all that much from that long ago? And second of all, black magic? You think that he goes around doing magic tricks.'

"Not magic tricks, but you know, the dark arts," Chris hissed.

Stephanie started laughing. "Do you think he's going to put a curse on you during your match? What's he going to do, put a spell on your hands so they stick like glue to any surface and then you grab the ropes and you're stuck? Or better yet, a balancing spell so whenever you stand up, you fall back down on your butt? Or a dizzy spell where you just go around in circles?"

Chris folded his arms and pouted. "I hardly see how this is funny, Stephanie."

"Because you're paranoid about nothing."

"You don't know that he's not some crazy man who carries around shrunken heads or something. I mean, he could do any kind of spell, like, spells that will make me cross-eyed or forget how to wrestle or spells that can make someone forget that they're secretly married or paralyze me during the match so I'm frozen like a block of stone."

"What was that middle one?" she asked, wiping off Flynn's hand before Flynn dug into the red.

"Making me forget how to wrestle."

"After that."

"Paralyzing me."

"No, before that, in between those two and don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about."

Chris cleared his throat, "That he has spells that make someone forget that they're secretly married."

"You think Taker has secretly married you?" Stephanie said, snickering as she looked down to Flynn's portrait, which was just handprints and squiggly lines. Her body was convulsing as she tried to hold in her laughter, but she'd been fighting a losing battle from the start and she started to laugh. "Chris, do you think that Taker married you?"

"No! That's not what I'm saying, forget it, I was just listing off potential spells or stuff that he could do," Chris said, frowning and staring down at the hem of his shirt. It was a little bit frayed and he might have to get rid of it. He got up and went over to Sawyer, hovering over his shoulder. Sawyer looked up at him and smiled and then pressed his hand to Chris's cheek, which got fingerpaint all over it. "Sawyer!"

"You pretty now," Sawyer nodded eagerly as he went back to his painting.

Stephanie laughed. "Comes with the territory of having kids." Chris grabbed the towel and wiped off his face. He could get the rest later. "So tell me more about these supposed spells that Undertaker does. I'm really anxious to know more."

"I don't know, maybe you know more."

"Yeah, I saw him stirring a cauldron while he held me. I think he put eye of newt into it."

Chris pressed his lips together, his mouth forming a straight line of non-amusement. "Do you see me laughing here, Stephanie. You can see that I'm being completely serious and yet you continue to joke."

"Are you nervous about your match?"

"Hardly," Chris said. "I just want to make sure I go in there knowing what I'm doing. It's not like I'm facing some rookie that I know I can beat even though I've never faced them, you know, this is the Undertaker, he's been wrestling longer than I have, do you know how rare that is for me to say nowadays?"

"Yeah, I know, because you're such an old man at 39."

"I'm not a young man anymore."

"You know you're at your peak," she pointed out. "You're the reigning Superstar of the Year and you're the Tag Team champion. You've held the World Title belt within the last year. You're doing very well for yourself, Chris. Since you've come back, you've become a different, more refined wrestler."

"You think so?" he asked, lifting Sawyer up and then sitting down, plunking Sawyer down on his lap as the little boy just continued to paint, pushing his masterpiece away and then grabbing a fresh sheet of paper. He would make this one for Christian and Trish and they could give it to their baby or something, when it came out that is.

"Yeah, I do."

"Really?"

"What do you think I'm doing, lying here?" Stephanie asked. "Of course I do and I have the authority to say so because I know wrestling."

"Do you think I'm better than the Undertaker? For real, not just to pander to me because I'm your husband, I want to know for real."

"I do, of course I do, I'm married to you."

"That's right, yeah, definitely we're definitely married," he said.

"Yes, we're definitely married, you were there, I was there, we exchanged rings and said vows, they weren't there," she said, pointing to the children, "but our friends and family were."

"I know. I just, you're friends with Taker, not that I pry into that relationship because I understand that you need to have friends that are not my friends. I mean, I have friends that are not your friends, like the friend I'm going to the concert with on Sunday, he's my friend, not your friend. But he's a really nice, cool guy who shares my type of music so I thought it would be cool to bring him since we're going to hang out with the band and how many opportunities to people really get to do that?"

"Interesting," Stephanie said sarcastically. "Okay, Flynnie, I think you've had enough painting for today, you're starting to get it on the table." She grabbed the towels and wiped off Flynn's hands and then set her down so Flynn could go over to her activity blanket and play with her toys. Sawyer was very into his painting, his tongue sticking out a little as he tried to make it perfect.

"Hi," Flynn said to her daddy as she walked by, patting him on the knee.

"She's so genial," Chris remarked, "is Taker genial to you?"

"Yes, he's nice to me, so what?" Stephanie asked. "Do you have a problem with that?"

"No, none at all, I was just wondering if he was a nice guy to you, if that's why you were friends with him?"

"I thought I laid this out for you, he helped me out and he continues to help me out."

"Why just you?" he asked. "Why is it he's always willing to help you, but with everyone else, he just doesn't give a damn…a crap…he doesn't care about anyone else, is what I'm saying, what makes you so special?"

"Wow, we're only a couple months removed from our fifth wedding anniversary and you haven't found anything special about me, that hurts, Chris, right here, right here in the heart," she said, pressing both her hands against her chest. "What do I have to do to change your mind? Bear you another child?"

"I know you're special, I could list a million reasons why you're special so don't even make me, but why does _he_ think you're so special."

"Maybe _I'm _the one who has the dark magic skills and I've put him under my bidding," Stephanie said, hunching over and pretending to be spooky. "Why do you think I have the witch's outfit, huh, Chris? When you're not around, I put it on and get out my broomstick and I go meet with my other witch friends, Harry and Hermione."

"You are not funny," Chris told her, but Sawyer was giggling at his mommy's impression. She was so silly sometimes. "Kid, for once can you just take my side."

"Nope," Sawyer said, dipping one delicate finger into the yellow so he could make a very nice sun for the horse he was drawing.

"And I have you under a spell too. You see, you actually really still hate me, your feelings never changed, but when we were business partners and I made you go get the lotion I liked, it was really a spell I cast against you to make you do my bidding and fall in love with me. If I chose to do so, I could uncast the spell and you would be free, but I don't think I'll do that today."

"This is why I never ask you for anything, you make such a huge deal out of it."

Stephanie laughed and shook her head, "You're entirely too wound up, sweetie. Lighten up."

"I've never faced Undertaker before."

"Chris, Undertaker is just a man, like any other man," Stephanie told him. "He's nothing special, he's not a wizard or a warlock or whatever. He's just a man who knows that he's intimidating and knows how to work that to his advantage. Look at what he's doing to you right now."

"This is only because he's been wrestling for so long. It's not because I'm intimidated."

"Yeah, okay," she nodded, but didn't believe a word of that and it showed. "Chris, seriously, just a man, with flaws. He just knows how to scare people."

"Fine, give me nothing!"

"Oh my God, you're annoying," Stephanie said. "Go after his knees, that's going to be your best bet. He's older now and he's big and that's tough on the knees. I know as well as you do if you'd screw your head on straight, that the knees tend to go first and I know that his hurt him, so just do that and you can take him down. Given his size advantage, you'll want to do that."

"See, now this is why I love you."

"I was starting to doubt you did," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes.

"I do love you," he told her, leaning his chin on Sawyer's head.

"I love you too, for the record, even though you're being very odd about this whole Taker thing, I really am starting to think he put a spell on you," she winked.

Chris just gave her a weak smile. It wasn't that he was bothered by her friendship with Taker, it was perfectly fine for her to have friends, but why did it have to be that guy? Why not any other guy in the entire universe, why this one? He and Taker had never crossed paths before so it'd never come up, but now that he was facing Taker, his wife's long friendship with him was a little off-putting. Still, if Stephanie didn't mind, then he really shouldn't mind, right?

"Tiff, hey!"

"Christian, oh my God, it's so good to see you," Tiffany said, hugging Christian tightly before pulling away and grinning. "I always love it when you guys come to England because then I get to see you."

"So you already met up with Stephanie?"

"I went to dinner with her and Chris last night, they brought the kids, I cannot believe how big Sawyer is and Flynn is gorgeous," Tiffany said, shaking her head. "I miss all you guys. And oh my God, I'm so sorry, Trish, hey."

"Hey, Tiffany," Trish said politely as Tiffany went ahead and hugged her. There was always going to be a little weirdness here for Trish since this was a woman her husband had loved and wanted to marry. She understood that it was water under the bride and they were all different people now, but if one thing had been different, just one thing.

"Christian has been telling me about your pregnancy, congratulations," Tiffany said as they all sat down. "I bet that you're super excited."

"I know I am," Christian said, wrapping his arm around Trish. "I think she's starting to get sick of me."

"I think sometimes he wants to carry me up the stairs like I can't make it," Trish kidded.

"I'm overprotective, what can I say?" Christian said. "It's not like I try to be or anything, I just want everything to be okay."

"Is everything going okay?" Tiffany asked.

"Yeah, everything is going along just fine," Trish said, rubbing her stomach a little. "He or she is starting to move more and more, but it's not the frenzy I thought it would be. They're taking it easy on me."

"So you've decided not to know what you're having?"

"We want to have it be a surprise," Trish explained, finding herself more at ease now that they were talking about the baby. Or maybe she was actually warming up to Tiffany. She did have a very nice personality and she could always see why Christian had fallen for her. It was just the fact that Christian _had _fallen for her. What if Tiffany had been the one pregnant and she'd been on the outskirts? God, she didn't even want to imagine that.

"I've always thought that there is a lack of surprise in this world, so this can be one of the few," Tiffany laughed. "So, Christian, what is the deal with you and Regal? Seriously, what does this guy have against you?"

"I'm the champion, I don't think a guy like Regal needs more of an answer than that," Christian joked. "He just wants the belt and I have it so he's going to try and do everything in his power to get it from me. So you still watch?"

"Every week, sometimes, okay, most of the times, I have to record it for later since it comes on here so late, but I definitely watch you, are you kidding me? I have to keep up with you and with Chris because I talk with Stephanie and inevitably the conversation heads right on over to Chris. You look good out there, I have to say, you look really good."

Trish thought about that for a moment, what was she saying? But she surmised that Tiffany must have meant that she thought he was a good wrestler. "Thanks, that's why I'm champion."

"True," Tiffany nodded. "Do you miss wrestling, Trish?"

"Sometimes, yeah, but I know I've got something important coming up," she said pointing down to her stomach, "so I'm really just focusing on making it for the next 15 or so weeks. We're on a countdown."

"Yeah, I bet," Tiffany laughed.

"So what's been going on with you?" Christian wondered.

Tiffany bit her lip and then let out a little squeal, "Actually, I'm getting married." She held out her left hand, which was adorned with a diamond ring, a beautiful one at that. "I met this guy, Wynt and he proposed about a month ago. We've been keeping it pretty low-profile for now, but we're going to really start planning in earnest when the spring comes."

"Wow, I can't believe you're getting married, congratulations," Christian said, grabbing her hand. "He's got good taste."

"I think so," Tiffany said, "he did choose me after all."

"How did you meet him?"

"He was actually a guest lecturer I went to see and I went up to him after the lecture and we got to talking and then he invited me out for a drink and I guess it just blew up from there because the next thing I know I'm moving into his house. He has this lovely small estate house with stables and horses. It's really beautiful. Next time you come up or maybe we could just have you as guests, but either way, you'll have to come visit. It's great. I'm really happy."

"I'm so happy for you," Christian said. "Although you know, it would've been nice had you said yes to my proposal."

"I don't think so, we're both better off," Tiffany laughed and Trish cleared her throat. "See, your wife agrees."

"Oh, I'd leave her in a heartbeat if you wanted me back."

Tiffany laughed and shook her head. "You're the same old Christian."

Trish hadn't liked the comment. Even if it was joking, she didn't like that Christian had said that and it just offended her slightly that he would say something like that in front of her or say something like that at all. Christian and Tiffany had dominated the conversation, talking about places they'd been together or how things were so different now. She felt completely out of the loop and how else was she supposed to feel when her husband was ignoring her in favor of his ex-girlfriend.

When they were walking out the restaurant later, Christian finally noticed her silence. "You were quiet at dinner."

"I didn't want to interrupt the love fest."

"What love fest?" Christian asked.

"Oh you know," she sneered.

"I don't really know what you're talking about. Me and Tiffany, you know that we're over, I mean, come on, I think it would be a pretty hard affair to carry on if she's here in the UK and I'm back in the States."

"Yeah, sure."

"Sure? What are you talking about?"

"You know what I'm talking about and if you don't, I don't want to talk to you, come on, I want to go back to the hotel, my feet are killing me and so is my back and I just want to go to sleep."

"Do you want a massage?"

"From you, no way."

"Seriously, Trishy, I don't know what I did wrong here," Christian said, grabbing her arm, but she twisted it away. "Trishy, please, can you just explain it to me so that I can fix it, whatever it is, please, can't you just tell me."

"If you don't know, oh, I'm so mad at you, I want to go," she said, climbing into the car after he'd beeped it unlocked and she slipped inside (as best she could with this damn stomach bumping into everything). Christian was confused, but he didn't press the issue. He figured this was just one of those mood swings that came with the pregnancy. So he just got in the car and started to drive her back to the hotel, hoping that she would either explain or calm down.

Chris was not calm in the slightest when he was getting ready for his match against Taker. Stephanie had taken the kids away because their loud yelling and talking and throwing things around was distracting him. She'd ushered them out of the room and to parts unknown. He just needed some time to clear his head a little, get really in the game and Sawyer and Flynn were the complete opposite of getting in the game. They took him out of the game and then beat him up.

It didn't help that Josh Matthews had just been in here asking him questions about his match. Didn't anyone know that he didn't want to be asked? Did he need to carry around a walkie-talkie like Stephanie did to get his point across? Josh asked, predictably, about Taker and their huge, never-before-seen match later that evening. Chris did not look like a man who wanted to talk so what gave this dipshit to put that camera in his face.

Chris stole a few lines from Stephanie and said that Undertaker was just a man. Chris had been thinking about what she'd said and it made a lot of sense. He told that to Josh, who looked a little surprise. Chris could be walking into his death trap here, but he had to say what he thought and that's what he thought. He was better than him in every way. Everyone expected the match to be good later and he agreed. There was something in the air tonight. Something electric and he figured it was because of the hype surrounding the match. There was an element of surprise, seeing as nobody had ever seen this match-up before. He just wanted to beat Taker, just to show he could, to get in on the act, feel important, like a 5 year old trying something for the first time so they could feel like a big kid.

So he had to believe that Taker was just a man because if he wasn't just a man, what was he? A wizard, a demon? No, he was still just a man and he made his mistakes. Chris was the best in the world, the best in this business and he had so much more quickness and agility than Taker. Taker was good, yeah, he'd been good for a very long time, but he didn't even have that many more title reigns than Chris did. They were almost dead even so it was preposterous for people to think that he wasn't in Taker's league, not that anyone had said to his face, but he wasn't stupid. He knew when people were whispering about him and talking about him.

But that didn't phase him when he went into the ring that night. He walked purposefully and determined, showing no sign of weakness when he climbed in the ring and why should he? He wasn't afraid of Taker. Maybe other men were, but not him. He had nothing to be afraid of and he was going to show it, so Taker be damned. Chris waited for Taker's entrance to start and made sure not to wince or cringe or show any sign that he was not in control. For him, Taker's entrance was just long and drawn out, nothing special and certainly nothing scary.

When Taker was _finally_ done with his spiel, Chris was feeling pretty fired up. There was something exciting being in a match that you'd never been in before. He could remember his first match in the company and how everything felt so different, like it was this new adventure. He had a semblance of that feeling right now. This was certainly going to be an adventure and as long as Taker didn't tell him that Stephanie was his black bride or something like that. Not that he really believed she was, she gave no indication she had ever been romantically involved with Taker, but would she tell him if she had been? Of course she would, what was he thinking, if she could marry Hunter and walk around with him in public, she'd tell him about Taker.

The match started of in typical fashion, punches, throwing someone around and Chris's adrenaline rose up when it truly was revealed to him that Taker was just a wrestler who had a shtick where he intimidated people by making them think he was some scary wizard or something. But Taker was not Voldemort. Taker had the upper-hand first, sending Chris over the top rope, but Chris quickly recovered and was back in the ring. Taker went at him again, but Chris managed to avoid a pin (it couldn't end this early, he refused to have it end this early) and managed to get Taker down.

Now it was Chris's turn with the upper-hand and he hoped he didn't waste the opportunity to have one-up on Taker and take him down. He got Taker into the corner and started punching him and managed to get a missile drop kick, but it wasn't enough and he knew it wouldn't be. It would take a lot more to take down a man of this size who had been a wrestler for as long as Taker had been a wrestler.

It was a good back and forth battle with one another and Chris felt like he was going to win. He really felt it, but then Taker locked in his submission move and Chris, though he _knew_ he didn't want to tap, ended up tapping anyways. It was very strange, but he'd lost and that pissed him off. Big Show came down to the ring and helped Chris to exact a little revenge on Taker right then and there. After that, Kane came in so they backed off, not wanting a confrontation.

The screen changed and then went to Vince making a match between Chris and Big Show against Kane and Undertaker next week. Chris sighed, sometimes he didn't know how he could possibly deserve someone like Vince as his father-in-law when he did things like this.

"Dad, stop trying to take over the show!" Stephanie yelled at him not moments after he was off the phone with Teddy.

"I'm not," he defended.

"You are, this is _my_ territory, stop trying to be in charge."

"I am in charge," he said.

"No, I am, don't make me pull a Shane, Dad," Stephanie said and for once, she really did have the power because Vince's face nearly turned a fetching shade of ash.

"You wouldn't dare."

"Stop trying to run my show," she said, before storming off to find Chris. When would her dad learn?

Hunter tapped his fingers on the couch of his locker room. "Do you think she's here tonight? Do you think she's already here?"

"Who?" Shawn asked.

"Britt, that's who."

"Oh my God, are we _still_ on her? I thought we had agreed to stop talking about her for the day since all I've had to hear about is that girl for the past week. Dude, she's over you, whatever, you were over her first."

"Why does she have to hang around with that shrimp? I mean, I get it, she's moved on, but couldn't she find someone I didn't have to work with."

"Since when do you work with Evan Bourne?" Shawn scoffed. "He is so far beneath our level, like that little jerk, Hornswoggle. What the hell is with him trying to be like us? Dude needs a reality check that he's not a part of DX."

"Yeah, sure, whatever, but Evan Bourne?"

"Forget about it, forget about her. Dude, we are in _New York City_, tonight, you and me, we are going to find you a good lay, okay," Shawn said, patting him on the shoulder. "You'll be forgetting that Britt even exists."

"I can't forget she exists, she's here and walking around with that douchebag and you just know that he is, he'll probably be telling me all this crap about how he has her. He's going to rub it in my face!" Hunter didn't know this because he'd never really interacted with Evan Bourne, but he was thinking quite irrationally at the moment. Britt and Evan? Evan and Britt? That did not roll off the tongue, it felt like sandpaper on his tongue, rough and terrible and scratchy and disgusting!

"Who cares, you'll find someone hotter and it'll all be okay."

"She's hot, Shawn, have you looked at her?"

"She's not much to look at," Shawn shrugged. Sure, she was a pretty girl, but she was also a very nosy girl and didn't know her place.

"Are you kidding me? Are you freaking kidding me! She's gorgeous."

"She's your ex, get over it already, will you?"

"What?" Hunter said, shocked a little that Shawn would say something like that in that tone of voice.

"Nothing, I just hate seeing you be all mopey, Hunter Hearst Helmsley doesn't mope around! You're Triple H, when have you been sad, huh, you're one of the best in the goddamned business, come on, act like it. We've got a huge match tonight, we're going against Jerishow and Taker and Cena, I wonder what their name would be Tena or Caker, ha, we should call them Caker."

"Yeah, whatever," Hunter said. He refused to not be mopey. He was upset with this new development. "You know what, I've got to talk to her."

"What! Hunter, come on!"

"I have to, I'll be back," he said, standing up.

"No, come on, you don't want to talk to her. She's out of your life, remember, out of your life. You're better off without her."

"I just want to warn her about that guy."

"Warn her, there's probably nothing wrong with him."

"You don't know that, she doesn't know that, I've got to tell her to be careful, just in case. You know she's friends with Chris and Stephanie, what if he's only with her because she's friends with them and he's trying to find an in, you know?"

"I don't think that's the case."

"But you don't _know_, so I've got to tell her, just so she recognizes that this can happen, you know, just so she has an idea, keep her eyes out."

"I'm telling you, man, she's probably okay and you're just setting yourself up for trouble."

"I don't care, I'm going to find her," Hunter said, ignoring Shawn's pleas to stay. Shawn scowled when Hunter left. He was supposed to be moving on from that broad. He couldn't believe Hunter was still so hung up on her. He needed to get Hunter a good lay and fast, get his mind off that stupid bitch who tried to steal his best friend away from him.

Hunter walked around, not even knowing if Britt was there, but he would search the entire night if he needed to. She had to be coming. She lived in New York (or so he thought, he didn't really know and there was _another_ thing that bothered him completely) so she had to be here tonight. She had to be around here. He probably looked like a hulking mass of anger at the moment, but he didn't care. He just had to make sure she was safe. Maybe Evan was a gropy asshole and Hunter would have to neutralize him.

"Trips, what the hell is up with you?" Chris asked as Chris and Stephanie walked down the hallway. Flynn was in her stroller, passed out asleep, her head nearly falling off the edge and Sawyer was in Chris's arms, leaning his head against his neck.

"Are you still mean, Trips?" Sawyer asked him.

"I'm busy right now," Hunter said, glancing around even as he was speaking. She had to be around here somewhere. "And I'm not mean."

"Okay, but you look mean," Sawyer told him, not sugar coating it. He was breathing very heavily and his shoulders kept going up and down.

"Well, don't let us keep you then," Chris said, glancing at Stephanie and wondering what was up. She shrugged surreptitiously, not knowing what was going on or why Hunter looked like he'd swallowed a grenade and his body was about to explode at any given moment. "Wherever you're going."

Chris and Stephanie started to walk away and Hunter threw over his shoulder, "I'm going to find Britt."

Chris and Stephanie looked at one another and immediately changed direction following Hunter. "Finding Britt, you say," Chris said, looking over at Stephanie conspiratorially.

"I'm not even supposed to be talking to you, we're fighting later."

"But that's later, this is now," Chris said. "Why are you looking for Britt?"

"I need to talk to her."

"About what?" Stephanie asked, nearly jogging to keep up with Hunter's pace, but it would be totally worth it to see another of Hunter's blow ups at Britt. They were horrible human beings, but when you saw the same people day in and day out and did the same thing day in and day out, the drama was what kept you going. Also, this was actually a good sign that Hunter was maybe finding out the truth about Shawn and he'd return to normal sometime soon.

"Evan."

"Score," Chris hissed at Stephanie as they continued to follow Hunter as he stormed around. "What about him?"

"What do you know about him?" Hunter asked.

"Not much, seems like a nice guy," Stephanie said.

This caused Hunter to spin around and look at her. "How do you _know_ this though?"

"Um, I don't know, because I've never seen him do anything that would warrant me to think he's a _bad_ guy," she answered, not sure where this line of questioning was going. What was with men in her life asking really odd questions.

"But you don't know for sure."

"You look very mad, Trips, are you mad?"

"Yes, because we don't know what kind of guy this guy is. He could be something very bad. Maybe he forces himself on her or something, what if he does, or manhandles her or something."

"I think she would say something," Chris said.

"She would," Sawyer echoed, wanting to be in on the conversation as well. It was kind of funny looking at Hunter. He was making a very funny face right now. It made Sawyer want to laugh, but he knew that it probably wouldn't be a good idea right now.

"Maybe not, maybe he tells her not to."

"Hunter, I think you're being irrational."

"Oh, am I, Stephanie, _am I_? What the hell was going on with you and Kurt during our marriage, huh? Was that just innocent?"

"What does that even have to do with anything and you know it was innocent, you know that Kurt was just my friend at the time and seriously, what does that have to do with anything?"

"You wouldn't have told me about that whole kissing thing if it hadn't been shown on live television, would you?"

"Well, no, probably not, I mean, I didn't think there was much to it, Kurt just had a slight crush on me, but it was nothing really."

"Then with this guy," Hunter said, pointing at Chris.

"Who, me?" Chris said, pointing at himself. "Trust me, I did not want your wife…I mean, I did after she was your wife, I do want you, baby, you know that."

"You didn't tell me about what he was doing to you during the Invasion, you kept it from me that he was being a jerk to you. I had to see it on the shows in glimpses and you never told me."

"Our marriage was falling apart at that point, we hardly talked at all and really, what could you have done, you were rehabbing at the time."

"I could've flown in for a night to punch the sh…crap out of him," Hunter said, correcting himself in front of Sawyer. "I mean, after the crap he was pulling, you didn't tell me, then you go get other guys to try and do the job, but did any of them succeed--"

"Not a single one," Chris said, self-congratulating himself until he said similar glares from both Stephanie and Hunter. He was starting to see what they had in common.

"None of them did, but I was your husband, you should have come to me."

"I was handling it," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, like you weren't upset when he pointed out your breast implants, come on, I could see it on your face that you were so embarrassed," Hunter said, "but did you call to tell me, to talk about it, to say that you were upset by it, not even a phone call."

"Were you really upset?" Chris asked.

"A little," she admitted. "But that's in the past."

"Yeah," he said, feeling a little nonplussed by that. He should make it up to her even though she didn't care.

"So, maybe Britt isn't saying anything because she _thinks_ that she can handle it herself."

"I don't think that's the case," Stephanie said.

"Well I'm finding her."

"Okay," Stephanie said, the four of them still following Hunter. Flynn was still asleep though so she was missing all the fun. They ended up walking around, but Britt was nowhere to be found so Hunter ended up going back to his locker room and Chris and Stephanie went to theirs, anticipating more entertainment later that evening.

"Trish won't tell me what's bugging her," Christian whined to his brother over the phone. Everyone had to be at Madison Square Garden tonight since it was a special show. This would be the second week in a row he'd be at Raw and he'd be there next week too because it was a 3-hour show. Trish had not felt like flying so she was back home, leaving Christian alone and lonely. Trish had also been having a mood lately.

"So keep pestering her."

"That just makes her madder."

"Then I don't know what to do, dude."

"What do you do when Lita is in a bad mood."

"I sleep with her."

"What?"

"That gets rid of all bad moods, trust me," Edge said smarmily. "I just turn on the charm and bam, she is not in a bad mood any longer."

"I don't think that's going to work for me, got any more advice?"

"Sorry, bro, I'm tapped out."

"Well, gee, thanks for nothing then," Christian said. Little did he know that he was just being the typical guy and had said something he wasn't aware of that had hurt Trish's feelings. He obviously needed to recruit Stephanie. He just had to go find her.

Stephanie had caught up with Ted, who was happy to see her. He'd kind of been waiting to talk to her because he hadn't really gotten the opportunity last week. She'd been with Chris and it had been his birthday and everything and Chris didn't seem to like him very much, but then it seemed Chris didn't like anyone very much, at least that was the vibe he got, but then, it might be skewed and biased of him.

"Tell me you're on the show tonight," Stephanie said.

"I don't have any plans to be."

"Ted," Stephanie whined and he found that he was not irritated by that whine. "You need to start stepping up. Look at Kofi, he's really stepping up."

"Yeah, I just should've done it while I had the chance."

"You still have the chance," Stephanie said, patting his knee. "You just need to make it right for you and ambush Randy. He'll never expect it because you seem so content. It's a good strategy."

"Thanks for not thinking I'm a loser because I keep hanging back."

"Some guys just need to wait for the right moment, calculating. I like that, it means that you're a thinker and thinkers are good."

"Is Chris a thinker?"

"Chris is a doer. Chris just flies out there, against most opposition, and just does it, but that works for him, that's why he's the best at what he does," she said proudly.

"You sound like him."

"Oh God, I do, well, when you have to hear that fifty-thousand times a day, I guess it just imprints on your brain. But seriously, see if you can find somewhere to fit in on the show. It'll be good for you, get that exposure so the fans will eventually get behind you. I've got to go though, I'm sorry."

"Chris want you or something?"

"Oh no, Chris and I are just horrible human beings who like to watch people fight."

"What?" Ted asked, confused.

"Nothing, don't worry about it, I just can't miss something, we'll talk later, night, Ted."

"Night, Stephanie," he said, a slight downtrodden tone to his voice.

"Stephanie?"

Stephanie looked up and her eyes widened. She hadn't been paying attention. "Hey, Christian, what's up?"

"Were you in Ted DiBiase's dressing room?"

"Yeah, business type stuff," she said, rolling her eyes. "You know how it goes. I was talking to him about the promotions we're going to be doing for his new movie, you know, the sequel to Cena's movie. We're going to start running promos for it on the show soon, just informing him."

Damn she was good.

"Oh, that's cool," Christian said. "Can you do me a favor?"

"What?"

"When we get home, do you think you can talk to Trish and see what's wrong with her?"

"What's wrong with her?"

"She's mad at me, but I don't know why, she won't tell me."

"Did you do something?"

"I don't think I did," Christian said, "but do you think you could talk to her for me."

"Well, of course, I would be more than happy to--"

"Stephanie, Britt is here, I played devil's advocate and told her that Hunter was looking for her, come _on_," Chris said, walking by quickly, pushing Flynn with one hand (she was awake now and squealing since she thought this was some sort of fun game her daddy was pulling) and dragging along Sawyer with the other.

"Christian, I will talk to her as soon as we get home, we'll have a girl's night out and you can hang out with Chris. But I have _got_ to go right now, bye!"

Stephanie scooped up Sawyer and started walking with Chris. "I know I shouldn't have said anything to her, but I couldn't help it. She was with Evan at the time, but she told him she'd take care of this and now she's going to his dressing room."

"We're evil."

"We just want Hunter back, the real Hunter, that's my story and I'm sticking to it."

They finally caught up to Hunter's dressing room as Britt was pounding on the door. Shawn, predictably, was the one who answered. "What do you want?"

"Don't talk to me, you pissant, little troll," Britt said and Chris would have to keep that one in mind. "Where's Hunter?"

"Britt?"

"You wanted to talk to me," Britt said and Hunter nearly pushed Shawn out of the way. "What is it, Hunter?" Her tone had changed considerably.

"I'm just worried about you," Hunter said, his voice low.

"What? You're worried about me? Why?" she asked.

"Because of Evan."

Britt's face darkened. "What about him?"

"What do you really know about him? I wanted to warn you, he could be a really bad guy, you know, someone that could hit you or something. I don't want you to be hurt by him. I don't want you hurt at all and what if he's not what you think."

"_That's_ what you want to talk to me about, something that is none of your business."

"But I'm just looking out for you."

"Oh yeah, were you looking out for me when you ditched me in favor of going someplace for Shawn? What if someone had come up to me and drugged my drink or something, huh? Were you there for me then?"

"Look…"

"No, no, look," Britt said, and it was amazing that someone so petite could make Hunter look so incredibly small. "No look. You were the dirtbag, Hunter, you can't take that back. You chose Shawn over me and I hope you're happy with that decision, but you in no way get to say that you're looking out for me now, that you're worried about me, you hear me?"

"But he could be a bad guy."

"The bad guy is right behind you, but I bet when you turn around, he's going to shrug his shoulders and give you that innocent look, but trust me on this one, Hunter, he's going to turn on you, he will, you'll see, yeah, I'm talking about you, Shawn Michaels," she sneered. "You are not my boyfriend, so stop 'looking out' for me. I've got someone to do that for me."

"Evan is probably a douchebag that's using you," he hissed and for that hiss, he got a slap. She may be small, but she could pack one in there. Hunter looked shocked.

"You are the douchebag, own up to it, Hunter," she told him. "Now leave me the hell alone, do you hear me, alone!"

She stormed off and Chris and Stephanie looked at each other. Hunter was in for it now. Britt was like a little blur of fierceness. Stephanie had been impressed. Britt had just totally taken control of that situation and Stephanie approved. Stephanie approved heartily. Chris had just thought it was hot. He loved women taking charge of situations. There was just something so primal and hot about it. Hunter, on the other hand, had hated that.

"What's her problem?" Shawn said, making that stupid joke like Britt had said he would. "She's way off-base, am I right or am I right?"

"Whatever, I want to go destroy something, right now, I want to destroy someone."

"You know, Hornswoggle has been creating a problem for us."

Hunter was in a blind rage for the rest of the evening. If you had asked him, even for the most broad details, like what had Vince said about him on the show, he wouldn't have known. He thought at some point, Chris and Stephanie had been talking around him, but he couldn't have been sure that it even happened (it had) or if he had said anything (he hadn't). It was like he was in a catatonic state.

"Why did your dad just say that Trips was his son-in-law, why did he did he say that?" Chris had asked.

"Chris, remember, to the audience, who doesn't know that we're schemers, we are not together and remember how I said that from now on, we'd probably have to pretend like Hunter and I were married, my dad was just playing into that, right, Hunter?"

"I don't think he's okay," Chris had said, waving his hand in front of Hunter's face, but there was nothing there.

Yes, the night passed in a blur for Hunter. He'd fought in a tag match, that much he knew, but it was like he was on autopilot and it wouldn't have surprised him if he'd beat on Shawn just out of the sheer fact that he had no recollection of doing anything in the match. Britt's slap stung far more than any move he received that evening. He kept thinking to her words and how harsh they had been, how little she seemed to care. They were like barbs sticking to his skin and anything Big Show, Undertaker, Cena, or Chris could do to him was nothing compared to that. Just her words. Just her words.

What if she was actually _right_ about Shawn?


	259. Almost There, November 20 to 23, 2009

A/N: Thanks for the reviews guys, hope you like this chapter and I seriously need to catch up because there's so much I want to write about, soon I hope, when my schedule thins out a bit, but in the meantime, enjoy, review if you want. :)

* * *

"Tell me that did not just happen."

Chris wanted to keep his mouth shut, he really did. Nothing good would come from him opening his mouth. If he'd learned anything over the past seven and a half years he'd been with Stephanie it was knowing when to keep his mouth shut. Now, did he _always_ keep his mouth shut when he should? Of course not, he was Chris Jericho and he spoke his mind most of the time, but he at least knew which battles to pick and when it would be slightly appropriate to say something. This was one of those times that he should absolutely not push her buttons. Pushing her buttons right now would probably result in a Chris Jericho-shaped hole in the wall after Stephanie mustered up super-human strength and threw him through it.

"I don't know what you want me to say here…"

"Just tell me I did not witness what I just thought I witnessed," Stephanie said.

"Hey, kid, come over here," Chris said to Sawyer.

Sawyer hopped up from where sitting and reading (he could recognize words now, even if he couldn't exactly "read" them) and he ran over to Chris, jumping in his spot. "What is it?"

"Is that how you talk to me now, like you own me or something? Are you my boss?" Chris asked.

"Daddy, no," he said, throwing himself over Chris's legs. Chris picked him up and sat him down on his lap, kissing the top of his blond head.

"Yes, Stephanie," Chris said, pushing Sawyer forward a little bit, using him as a human shield. Surely he wouldn't get the brunt of her anger if he was holding their son. "I did see what you saw and I think that it did happen."

"Oh," Stephanie said, her voice eerily calm, like the air before a storm. It was sticky and wet and dripping with rain, but nothing had actually happened yet. Nothing was happening with Stephanie as of yet, but he could feel that storm brewing on the horizon and it was just a tiny bit scary. Maybe he needed to grab Flynn too, put her on his lap to further protect him from Hurricane Stephanie.

"Steph, you okay?"

"Yes, perfectly fine," she said, looking at the television screen. In actuality, she wasn't exactly sure she knew how to feel. Was her vision supposed to be this blurry? She wasn't sure, but it was. They weren't tears, she knew what the beginning of tears felt like, that pricking feeling that started in the corner and then a burning sensation before that first tear broke the levee and started the torrent. This wasn't like that. It was like she was fading or something, but not really. She couldn't describe it really, it just was this suspended sense of being.

She'd just had to watch her father appoint Vickie as a special consultant to Teddy Long. Vickie hadn't even done anything, hadn't worked at anything and she'd been given an on-air role, pretty much cementing the fact that if Teddy were to be fired at any point, Vickie would be the replacement. That had been the job she was angling for, for the better part of a year. She'd been promised job after job and all that came of it was sitting at a desk running the show and never getting any credit for it. Did her father expect her to be happy with this? How could he not _listen_ to her when she talked? She'd said very clearly what she wanted and every time was shot down.

"Steph, if you want to yell, I can bring the kids outside or something, maybe the next county so they won't hear it," Chris offered, giving her a lame joke to hopefully lighten the mood.

"No, no, don't worry about it," Stephanie said, giving him her best smile (a pathetic one by smile standards) and then stood up and went to her desk. "I've got Survivor Series stuff to take care of. My dad…well, he asked me to plan out the show so I'm trying to figure out the match order."

"Put me last," he said tentatively breaching the subject. He couldn't really read her right now.

"I was thinking of putting you fourth so that we could leave early if the kids are tired, you know, take them back to the hotel so they can sleep."

"I can live with that," Chris nodded, not wanting to disagree with her right now. The room had suddenly filled with eggshells and he was deathly afraid of stepping on one.

"Okay, then I'll pencil you in for then. I do hope you win."

"Thanks, I hope I win too, it'll be cool having three belts, I won't know what to do with them all. I'll have to wear one around my neck like Taker did when he had the Tag belts, at least I think they were the Tag belts, I'm not sure anymore, but I remember him wearing some belt around his neck, maybe I should do that."

"I don't think you'd be able to see," Stephanie told him.

"Well then one around my chest I guess," he said, trying to joke around, elicit any kind of reaction out of her because right now he was getting nothing.

"Just wear one around your waist and the other two on your shoulder."

"See, that's why I love you," Chris said, "you always come up with the logical solution, you're the best that way."

"Thanks," she told him, then started writing something down on the piece of paper. Chris let Sawyer down and he went back to his book. He was really getting interested in reading now and it had become one of his favorite activities to do. Flynn, though, could care less and when she saw Sawyer was reading _again_ she decided she'd seek some fun with someone else in the room. She went first to her daddy, walking over to him and lifting her arms.

"Up," she mumbled around her pacifier. She'd found one in the bag when she was going through it and wouldn't give it to anyone she'd decided. It was like a little game for her, playing keep away with the pacifier.

Chris lifted her up and over his head, making a face at her, hoping it would get her to drop the pacifier that she didn't need. She just giggled with her teeth clenched around the familiar object. She wasn't going to fall for her daddy's tricks. Chris brought her down again and kissed her nose as she reached her arms for him, giving him a big hug around the neck. Chris kissed her cheek. She was definitely in one of her affectionate moods and not her "stay the hell away from me" mood.

"I thin you should go give Mommy a hug," Chris whispered to her. Flynn looked to her mommy and then looked back to her daddy and then back again. She shrugged her shoulders and let herself fall against Chris's chest, snuggling closely to him. "Come on, Flutterby, let's go help Mommy out."

Chris lifted her up and went over to Stephanie's desk. He lifted her up by the back of her pants and dangled her in front of Stephanie's desk. Flynn liked this and extended out her arms like she was flying, nearly hitting Stephanie in the face. Chris swung her in close to Stephanie and Flynn reached out for her and Stephanie looked up, smiled, and let Flynn swing right into her arms.

"Hey there, beautiful girl," Stephanie said, trying to take the pacifier out of Flynn's mouth, but Flynn clamped down on it. "You know that's going to ruin your teeth, right? Do you want those beautiful teeth to be ruined, Flynnie?"

"Yes," Flynn said around the pacifier and Stephanie tried to grab it from her as she spoke, but Flynn put her hand over her mouth, stopping Stephanie again. She was a wily girl, already doing what she wanted and not caring what anyone else said. "Down." Flynn knew they were going to keep trying to steal her binky and she wasn't going to let them. Stephanie set her down and she went toddling away quickly because she didn't want them to catch her.

Chris was watching Flynn when he first heard it. It was quiet, not meant to be heard by him, but she couldn't help it. Chris looked down at his wife and her hands were covering her face. Chris knelt down quickly and turned her chair towards him, pulling her into his arms. He knew she would break in some way, but he'd expected it to be out of anger and not like this. This was worse. Anger was Stephanie's MO, but crying, it hurt him when she cried like that. He wrapped her up and she fell against his shoulder, burying her face in his neck.

"It's okay," Chris whispered to her. "It's okay."

"No, it's not," she told him. "I'm just tired, Chris, I'm so tired of this. I have to face the fact that my dad just doesn't see me as a leader. He sees me as someone who sits behind a desk and just runs things there."

"You're not that, you know that, you're amazing."

"Not to him. He gives me a taste, lets me have it, then he does something like selling the show to Trump and then instating this guest host thing, which, in and of itself is not a bad idea, but why did it have to be at my expense. Then, he gives Vickie a position for what? Complaining? She just says something and he's like, 'Here you go, have this,' and I'm supposed to be okay with this? There's nothing I can do, I've done everything and I'm just out of ideas."

Chris ran his hands through her hair. "You are the best at what you do."

"Now you're just using your own lines on me," Stephanie laughed through her tears. Chris could feel them wetting his shirt and luckily he didn't have a promo or any time on the show or else he'd have to go out there with a damp shirt. Not that he would've cared when his wife was so upset. He hated when stuff disrupted the happiness his family usually had. They were supposed to be past the drama, but leave it to the McMahons to keep bringing it full force, especially Vince.

"It's true though, you are the best at what you do, you're the best at everything you do, including me," he said, being just a touch of lecherous. She laughed against his skin and hugging him tighter, kissing the side of his neck. "Now this is what I'm talking about, I like this."

"Chris," she said, laughter penetrating the tears and Chris pulled away and kissed her gently. "I love you."

"I love you too, and you know what? You're going to get this company someday and you are going to run everything and you can make yourself GM of everything and do whatever you want. Granted, I think your father is literally going to die in the ring rather than retire, but still, one day, this will all be yours."

"Yeah, it'll probably end up that my dad lives to be 130 and I'll be way too old to run it and it'll go straight to Sawyer or something and I never get my day in the sun," Stephanie said mirthlessly. "But I guess I just have to deal."

"You're being very mature about this, I'm really impressed."

"I'm just resigned to it, like how you are with the entire DVD situation," Stephanie said, running her fingers through Chris's hair.

"Yes, I've resigned myself to getting a DVD after the retrospective of Funaki's career, or at this rate, I'll even have to wait until Sheamus gets one, I mean, he is getting a title shot, right, so he's already got highlights of his career."

"I can assure you that it will be before Sheamus, but I can't make any promises for it being before Funaki's, he's been here longer than you, so you know…"

"Has Batista been here longer than me, Mysterio?"

"I don't control that part of the company," Stephanie said, "You'll have to bring that up with one of the media guys, apparently there is just no interest in a DVD about you."

"I find that hard to believe, who the hell is holding me down in the media department?"

"Everyone is jealous of you, apparently," Stephanie said.

Chris reached up and dried the tears off her cheeks. "They should be jealous of me since I got someone as hot as you are to marry me. Everyone wishes that they could be me because I get to have you in my bed each and every night."

"You're so cheesy."

"I'm just so in love with you," he said, leaning forward to kiss her again. "If I could, I'd beat your dad's ass for you. I probably could, but he apparently doesn't want to wrestle anymore so maybe we just give him the cold shoulder?"

"I can live with that," she told him. "Now I have work to do since nobody around here will do the stuff I do, so I guess I am important."

"Do you know how important you are to us?" Chris said, pointing to himself the kids.

"It's nice to feel needed."

"And boy do we need you," Chris said, winking at her and then kissing her forehead. "I love you."

"I love you too."

"I'm going to go meet with Show for a while, I think we have some things we need to discuss before our match later on. I want to make sure that we're on the same page going into the tag match. I don't need to get injured right before a big show like Survivor Series, that would just give Big Show better odds."

"Okay," Stephanie said, kissing him again. "Just be careful that Big Show doesn't get a head-start on Survivor Series with you. I want you to win on Sunday and I can't have you laid-up before the show even happens or after it happens actually."

"Got it, no getting beat up before it's time for me to be beat up. Do I have that right?"

She nodded and he kissed her one more time before he left. Now, he _would_ go see Big Show, but their match wasn't until the very end of the show and he didn't necessarily _have _to go talk to him right now and he wasn't. He knew who he wanted to talk to. He said he'd give Vince the cold shoulder, but Chris couldn't just not say anything. It was a rare pleasure that he could go to Vince and tell him what he was thinking and not get reprimanded for it. Plus, this was about Stephanie and he was her husband and he had to defend her when he could and this was one of those times. Didn't Stephanie go after every guy that went after him? Yes, she did and now it was time for him to return the favor, it just seemed like whenever he returned this particular favor it was always to Vince.

"Vince," Chris said, walking into his office without knocking, another small pleasure.

"Chris, hello, where are the kids?"

"With Stephanie, the woman you just crushed."

"Crushed, I don't understand, what are you going on about?" Vince asked.

"The thing you just did with Vickie, giving her that position after he'd done absolutely nothing, how could you do that to her again, Vince? This same scene has played out so many time, how many times does Stephanie have to be disappointed like this?"

"What are you talking about, Vickie was good for this show, she shook things up, she really took charge…"

"And Stephanie didn't or hasn't? That woman has gone to toe for you so many times, I mean, let's face it here, Vince, she's pretty much the only ally you've got left at this point. Shane is gone, he's not coming back and Linda is running for the Senate, you've _only_ got Stephanie. Do you want to lose her too? I mean, if she wanted, I bet she could cash out her stock, start her own wrestling company, get a ton of guys to come with her, then beat you in the ratings and buy your company right out from under you, all with a smile on her face. Hell, I think that's a dream of hers."

"I didn't think she'd care."

"Do you not know Stephanie, have you never met her?" Chris asked. "Stephanie wants nothing more than to be in charge, to be on TV and running everyone. That's what she wants to do around here, not sit behind a desk. Vince, she's resigned herself to never getting this, but I'm entreating you, if there ever is a position consider Stephanie and even if you don't think she's right for it, talk to her about it first, just…try, please?"

"Okay, I really didn't think she would care."

"Well, I'm just saying, thanks for listening."

Chris was not buying what Vince was trying to sell. Chris didn't buy for a second that Vince didn't know this would bother Stephanie. The man knew his daughter and Stephanie had certainly displayed her displeasure with her father's managerial moves over the years. Vince knew that it was going to bother her, what the hell was he trying to pull saying he didn't? He just didn't want to take responsibility for the fact that he was trying to control everything like usual. It was the usual Vince behavior and Chris wasn't surprised by it anymore.

Instead of getting caught up in the anger he was feeling for his father-in-law, he focused on things that mattered to him in the ring. He met up with Big Show to talk about their match later on. Chris wanted to make sure they would be on the same page. The last thing he needed tonight was to have Big Show turn on him mid-match. He already had a size disadvantage against his opponents, he didn't need his tag partner joining in on the fun. He'd already had to see his wife crying so his night was ruined as it was, he didn't need this on his plate.

While he was speaking with Big Show, he was reminded why they weren't exactly friends. Big Show as trying to needle him, telling him that he was going to be the champion coming out of Survivor Series, but that was on Sunday and tonight was tonight. Then there was the whole being afraid of Taker thing, which had no basis whatsoever. The only thing that worried him about Taker was if he was secretly married to Stephanie, but since he didn't think that was true, he had no reason to be scared of that man. Taker was just a man and any man could be beaten. He'd see Taker's weaknesses and exploit them. His ultimate plan was to let Big Show and Taker take each other out, then hope that one of them was down long enough for him to just go head-to-head with one of them.

He'd only been against Taker very recently, but he had been in the ring against and had won against Big Show so he knew he could overcome the fact that Show was a giant and could beat him even with those odds. Taker, he could take him because he could take on anyone when the title was on the line. Big show wasn't scaring him with this crap. Chris was standing there smugly when the lights went out. Chris froze. Was this one of his tricks? Was Taker going to come get him? Damn it, he didn't want to suffer and ambush right before Survivor Series. Big Show turned the lights back on and showed that he was joking and Chris could've killed the man right then if they hadn't been partners. That was absolutely not funny and he just knew those idiot fans were laughing at him. Well, wait until Sunday, he thought, he'd get that title and then he'd see who was laughing.

Britt sat with Evan after his match was over. She'd consoled him for a while after being eliminated, but he'd been thankful just to be on the show at all and to be on a team that he liked. That was a new one for Britt. Hunter was always on the shows, always having a match so he'd never been thankful, more like entitled. She would just put that in the negative column against Hunter. That side of the list was certainly piling up. She was getting sick of his little outbursts, like the one he'd had last week. She couldn't believe him, telling her to watch out for Evan, insinuating that he was less than a gentleman.

"Chris just lost," Evan said, knowing that she'd been interested in the match, but when he'd looked over, she was distracted.

"Oh, that's too bad," Britt said, "I was hoping he'd win. He deserves it."

"Is he really that nice a guy?" Evan asked.

"Yeah, he just acts like a jerk because he doesn't think that people take him seriously. When you take him out of this setting, he's one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet. He's a great husband to Stephanie and he adores those kids. We should all go out to dinner sometime, I think that would be fun."

"Anywhere with you is fun."

She smiled and snuggled into his side a little more. Their relationship (she was calling it that now) was still in that honeymoon phase, when everything was new and even the cheesiest things sounded just perfect. If she'd been with Hunter and he'd said that, she would have slugged him in the arm and told him to cut with the crap, but hearing it from Evan, it just felt right. She really did need to stop comparing the two of them, but it was difficult when she saw the previous man in her life all the time.

"I agree," she told him, kissing his cheek. "I'm sure Stephanie is consoling Chris right now. He'll be fine, he always bounces back and he's still the tag title holder and he really likes being able to be on both shows."

"Well, I'm glad he'll be okay…so…we watching Triple H's match?" he asked slowly, hoping she didn't get mad. He'd heard, from others, about the confrontation she'd had with Hunter. He was very impressed with her gumption.

"Yeah, why not, I can hope that Cena will win and beat both of those losers. Maybe he can do that move where he puts both of them on his back and then slams them. I would really like to see that."

"You're ruthless, you ever thought about becoming a diva?"

"Me? A diva, Ev, I don't think I could do that, go out there, wear the stuff they wear," she said, shaking her head and blushing. "Just not me, not me at all."

"Really, because right now, I could definitely see you going out there and kicking butt."

"I'm tiny for one, they'd all tower over me and I'm not much of a fighter and I would just really be uncomfortable in the clothing. I'd make a horrible diva, a seriously horrible diva," Britt said, shaking her head.

"Yeah, you're right, you're prettier than all of them anyways, you'd steal the spotlight."

She laughed and blushed at him. "Stop!"

"What?"

"You're being too nice, way too sweet."

"I'm completely honest, I'm not a liar, trust me," he told her, leaning forward to kiss her. She kissed him back and pressed her hand to his neck. She pulled away a moment later though because they were in a public area and she wasn't too keen on the public displays of affection right now, not when Hunter could be lurking around, ready to pounce again and tell her something stupid like Evan was kissing her wrong. Evan didn't get his own locker room like some of the higher-up guys did so they didn't have anywhere to go at the moment. They were sitting in catering where there were some TV's around showing the show.

She put on her brave face when Hunter came on and reminded herself that she didn't care what happened in his match and in fact, she wanted him to lose. She'd be _happy_ to see him lose. The last thing he deserved right now was to be the WWE champion, it would be like rewarding him for being a complete jerk to everyone. Yes, she wanted to see him lose and she wasn't the least bit worried about him even though it was a Triple Threat match. Besides, he'd have his little buddy in the ring with him.

When Shawn gave Hunter the Sweet Chin Music right off the bat, surprising everyone (including Hunter), a pitter-patter of hope fluttered in her chest, pounding with her heart, very tiny though, just the smallest of beatings, but it was there. Maybe, maybe he _finally_ got it. Maybe now Hunter could finally see what kind of man Shawn was. He was an opportunistic jackass who didn't care about anyone except himself. He would always look out for himself and step over everyone to get what he wanted. She just hoped…she hoped…

Hunter was shocked by what Shawn had done. Yeah, they'd agreed to go out there every man for himself, but to be blindsided like that, yes he'd been shocked. But he had to quickly get over that if he was going to have any shot at winning this match. He'd talk to Shawn about it later and see what was going on, but he wasn't going to worry himself with it. Besides, Shawn was his friend and he wouldn't do anything to really betray him, it was just the match.

"Now what do you make of that?" Trish asked as she looked around the room.

"I think that's just Shawn's true nature showing through," Stephanie said. "He's friends to your face, but the moment that he wants something, he'll do whatever it takes to get it. I bet you anything that the plan going into this was to double team Cena and then the two of them would go at it. Looks like Shawn had other plans."

"I've never really seen him be as horrible as you make him out to be," Trish said with a shrug.

"Trust me, he's been this way for years, before, he could say that it was his fast-paced lifestyle or whatever he was into, loose women, whatever, but now he hides it and tries to appear like he's a nice guy and he's not, trust me, very bad, very, very bad," Stephanie said.

"Well, I guess I'll take your word for it."

The Sweet Chin Music he'd gotten ended up not being a big deal in the long run since they'd both lost anyways. Hunter confronted Shawn as soon as they were backstage though, "So, man, what was that?"

"What was what?" Shawn asked. "You know, Becca wanted me to call right after the match and I've got to go."

Hunter watched him walk away and didn't go after him. He had a lot to think about. It wasn't so much that Shawn had kicked him, but the fact he had done it right off the bat, without warning when the match had just started. They had agreed that it _was_ every man for himself, but also, if they could, to double team Cena and take him out of the match. Instead, Shawn had turned around and tried to eliminate _him_ from the match before it had even started. It rubbed him the wrong way just a little bit, but Shawn was still his friend, through thick and thin, right?

Right?

The next night, Chris sought out Hunter to see if he'd changed his tune about Shawn. He was eager to find out. Sawyer was with him and was running ahead of him. "Daddy, I can spell my name!"

"I know, dude, you're even better than I am, do you know how long it took me to spell Christopher."

"Who's Christopher?"

"I'm Christopher," he laughed.

"You're Daddy," Sawyer said, shaking his head.

"But what's my name?"

"Chris, right?"

"Yeah, which is short for Christopher," Chris told him. "Okay, so spell me your name."

"S-A…W…Y-E-R, Sawyer!" he yelled, jumping up and down.

"You are the smartest kid I've ever seen," Chris told him, shaking his head. "Do you want to become my personal assistant."

"Daddy, I'm a kid," Sawyer told him, sticking his tongue out.

"Mommy doesn't have a problem with that," Chris told him. "So I think that you should."

"No!" he shook his head, his hair falling every which way.

"I don't see why not."

"Daddy, I'm too little to work," Sawyer told him. And he was, he was just a kid and kids didn't do work like that. His mommy told him his job was to be a kid and then when he was older he could work for her and be the best at…something, he forgot what she had said he would be the best at. His daddy always said he was the best at something too.

"I'll carry you around."

"I'm still too little."

"Well then can I get Flynn to work for me, do you think?"

"Flynn is littler than me!" Sawyer explained. "She no work either, she is little and she only plays and she uses a binky and that's what little babies do."

"She is pretty little and she can't spell her name like some people I know…"

"Me!" Sawyer said, then spotted Hunter. "Trips, I spell my name!"

"You can spell your name?" Hunter asked him.

"Uh huh, S-A-W…Y…E-R! Sawyer! That's my name," Sawyer told him.

"Wow, that's actually really impressive," Hunter said. "Dude, is your kid like a genius or something?"

"No, even though Steph wants him to be one, he's just a normal kid. He's starting to read, recognize letters, you know, he's in that stage, reading will probably be around the corner, but he's not yet, he writes a little, but it's very rudimentary."

"That's awesome," Hunter said, "I'm proud of you, tough guy, give me a low five."

Hunter held out his hand and Sawyer jumped up to slap at it. "I'm a big kid."

"I know, I remember you when you were just a little kid."

"That was a long time ago."

"Yeah, you couldn't even talk, a whole three years, so long," Hunter laughed, knowing that three years was not long at all, but to a three year old who was just starting to feel like a big kid, it had to feel like the world was finally something he could conquer. "So…sorry about your loss last night."

"I'm still the tag champ, it's cool," Chris responded. "So that was pretty harsh what Shawn did to you last night?"

"The kick you mean?"

"Yeah, I mean that came out of nowhere, Show didn't even blindside me like that and we're not even friends," Chris said, trying to get information from him.

"It was a match, right?" Hunter said.

"Yeah, but to do that, try to get you out that early and just, well, I mean, I don't know, seems kind of bush league to me, just saying, not trying to judge, maybe you guys had that planned or something to fake out Cena."

"We didn't," Hunter said, "but it's a match, stuff happens, it happened, we're friends, best friends, he's my best friend and he has my back."

"Except for when he's kicking your face in," Chris pointed out.

"If I were in the ring with you, I wouldn't hold back the punches. I'd try to do the same thing to you," he said defensively. "Shawn and I had an agreement and you know, I would've Pedigreed him anyways."

"Off the bat like that?"

"Sure," Hunter told him, "why not?"

"I don't know, I still say it's kind of you know, but whatever. It's not like you had a strategy where you were going to take on Cena as a team and then split up and go at it just the two of you or anything, right?"

"Right," Hunter said, "we didn't have a plan like that at all. We had it so whatever happened, happened, you know, if he knocked me out, fine, if I knocked him out, fine, you know and he just got to me first, that's all, nothing more."

"Yeah, I guess, it's a sound strategy, really," Chris nodded. "Well, Sawyer looks like he's getting bored and I think he wants to go back and spell out his name some more or something like that."

"Hey, before you go, how's Britt?"

Chris couldn't believe this guy. Britt told him time and time again that Shawn was bad news, he sees it for himself the night before, ignores it _again_, and then asks how Britt was. "She's actually doing really good. I think you're little act last week drove her even deeper into Evan's arms. They're very happy together."

"Oh, I see," Hunter said, "well good for her then."

"Yes, very good for her," Chris nodded, "come on, kid, let's go."

"Okay, bye, Trips," Sawyer said, waving. "Daddy, can we go see my baby?"

"Which baby?"

"Flynn," he said, hopping from spot to spot.

"Yeah, we'll see if we can find her."

Stephanie tried to wrangle in Flynn, but she was being very exploratory right now and she wanted to see what Ted DiBiase had in his bag. Stephanie tried to scoop her up, but Ted cut in, "I don't really have anything in there that she can break or whatever. I took everything out and put it over there," he said, pointing to the bathroom.

"Still, she shouldn't go in your stuff."

"It's okay, I really don't mind," Ted told her. "So you guys are playing my trailer for my movie tonight, do you think you'll go see it?"

"I'm sure I'll be at the premiere and if I'm not, then I can drag Chris to see it, we don't get to go to the movies that often so he won't care what we see as long as it gets us out of the house and away from the terrors we call our kids."

"That'd be really great if you could be at the premiere," Ted told her. "I would save a seat for you."

She laughed, "That'd be really nice. I'll see what we can do about that. I haven't seen the preview yet, how do you think it turned out?"

"Well, I'm not exactly an actor, so I just hope that I don't look as stupid as Cena does when he does his movies, that's actually my goal, not to look as dumb as Cena."

"So you've set the bar low then?"

Ted laughed, "Ouch, what did he ever do to you?"

"He's just a jerk, at least from my point of view, but what do I know, I pretty much like everyone my husband likes and dislike everyone he dislikes."

"So he controls your thinking?" Ted asked.

Stephanie laughed loudly. "God no, if anything, I control his thinking, I'm just saying that when someone hurts hi, I get mad. Anyways, what I really wanted to say was that you are going to be put in a tournament tonight."

"For what?"

"Well, I was talking with Jesse, he didn't want to speak with my father at all, so he only dealt with me and we were going over plans he has for the show and he wants you, not just you actually, but he has a plan he wants to implement and I'm behind it because it's going to tick off my dad and anything that ticks him off is worth doing in my book."

"What's he doing?"

"He's going to have a Battle Royal with guys who have never gotten a title, a major one, the World or WWE titles. So you're going against," Stephanie looked down at her clipboard, "Cryme Tyme with Cody, if you guys win, you're in."

"So…Randy's not in it?"

"Nope, nobody who has won a title is in it, not even Chris and you know how I usually pull for him," she said, not noting the off look he gave her. "So chances are good that you will get in because you could beat Cryme Tyme in your sleep. Anyways, you can win this entire thing and then you will have the shot against Cena."

"Randy will want it though."

"You cannot give it to him, Ted, seriously, don't let him control you anymore. If you get this title shot, then take it, run with it, beat Cena and be the champion. You don't need to be tethered to Randy and this is the _perfect_ opportunity to not only showcase your skills without him, but to get a shot at something that every guy in this company wants, every guy, hell, even my son wanted the belt so bad I had to buy him a replica."

"Replete with diamonds?"

"I did not go that far," Stephanie said.

"Mama," Flynn said, coming over and pouting. She was bored.

"That's my signal to go, but think about what I said, Ted, and good luck."

"Steph?"

"Yeah?"

"If you could've gotten Chris in the tournament, would you have gotten him in?"

"Of course I would," she said. "If I could, Chris would be in every title match until he won and then I'd just declare him the life champion."

"You really love him, huh?"

"It's why I married him, theoretically, it was also because he was hot and he actually loved me back despite my many, many faults."

"I don't see any faults," Ted told her.

"You obviously aren't looking hard enough, look harder, they're all around you," Stephanie said. "For one, and I'll leave you with this, I'm constantly pissed off at someone or something, constantly."

"Who are you pissed off with or what are you pissed off at right now?"

"That my father gave Vickie Guerrero a consulting position on SmackDown. I'm barely managing to keep my cool, but under the surface, sizzling, like bacon on a griddle," Stephanie said, ushering Flynn out of the room, "bye, Ted."

"Bye, Stephanie," he said, though he wished she could stay longer. He liked talking to her. She was so different from any woman he'd ever met. He figured it was because she was one of the few straight girls he'd ever met who didn't want in his pants at all. It created a different dynamic with her, there just no tension at all. It was strange, but good at the same time.

Stephanie went back to her office, hoping _not_ to run into her father. She was giving him the cold shoulder and if she ran into him, she would be forced to just walk by him and not say anything in protest to what had happened to her on SmackDown. But then her father would wonder what was going on and because she was a predictable fool, she'd blow up at her dad and once again, months would go by before they spoke again. Maybe not months this time though because her father didn't have Shane anymore and he wouldn't want to alienate the only child remaining in the company.

Stephanie was just giving Flynn a bag of Cheerios to snack on when Chris came in. Sawyer grinned and went over to Flynn, hugging her and Flynn giggled and ran away like they were playing a game. She sat her butt down on her activity blanket and started going at her Cheerios as Sawyer brought out a book and started explaining the pictures inside of it. Chris came over and bent Stephanie down over the couch so he was on top of her and hovering over her.

"Guess what?"

"You were crowed King of the World?"

"Been there, done that, got the t-shirt, literally too since you guys actually did make me a t-shirt that said King of the World on it."

"I don't remember this."

"Inconsequential," he said, leaning down to kiss her. She deepened the kiss and they made out in earnest for a few moments before Chris pulled away, a cheesy smile on his face. "Why don't I ever get sick of your kisses?"

"Because I practice on my hand while you're wrestling," she joked.

"Well keep doing that and if you need to graduate up to something more, like…Trish, I'd be all for that too."

"Sure, I'm going to go cheat on you with my pregnant friend," Stephanie said. "What could be hotter than that?"

"I have to say though, Trish is a really hot pregnant woman. Pregnancy seems to suit her, she looks really beautiful."

"And what are you saying about me while I was pregnant with Sawyer and Flynn, that I looked like a fat cow?"

"Mommy, are we having another baby?" Sawyer asked.

"No, we're not," Chris and Stephanie said at the same time. Then Chris added, "when you were pregnant, you were so hot, I couldn't even keep my hands off you, I know for a fact, because Christian told me, that he and Trish have very nearly stopped up…operations, if you know what I mean."

"Really?" Stephanie said.

"Trish just isn't feeling it," Chris shrugged, "I mean, it's different for everyone. You were absolutely insatiable both times, you wanted it all the time and I for one had no problem with that, none at all."

"Get off me," she said, glaring at him.

"It's the truth, but hear me out, I'm not done yet, I am on top of you because I am excited because I have a plan, a scheme even!"

"You do, what is this plan?" she asked. She had one of her own that she wasn't sharing with her husband, but he didn't have to know about it. She just didn't want to tell him because he would make fun of her, like she had when she had wanted him to help that Daniel guy that she'd liked. Ted was definitely sticking around and he would tease her and then make her feel uncomfortable.

"I'm going to break up a couple."

"You are, why? Who? Us?"

"Yeah, I'm intentionally telling you that I'm going to break us up, so let me continue, Stephanie, I would like to break up and initiate a divorce. I'm going to cite that you abuse me verbally and it has affected my mental health."

"I'll affect your mental health alright," Stephanie told him, slapping him gently on the head. "So who?"

"Raw's #1 couple of course, Triple H and Shawn Michaels, better known as DX."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because I'm tired of seeing my friend following some guy around like a sheep."

"Your friend? Hunter, wow, I never thought I'd hear you so protective of him, especially considering he's my ex-husband and had seen me naked multiple times and has been nearly everywhere you have been."

"Stop it," he shuddered, "horrible mental images, but nonetheless, Hunter _is_ my friend and friends don't let friends be friends with douchebags and don't call _me _a douchebag because we both know I'm not."

"I wasn't, I think it's admirable, so where do I come into this whole plan because I know that look, you want to include me."

"I want you to set up a match for me."

"A match?"

"Yeah, just get Jesse to set it up or something, you can sell anything to anyone, you're amazing. I want to face Hunter and Shawn at TLC, with Big Show of course, tag titles, I don't care, I want the match."

"Chris, you could lose," Stephanie said, "I'm not sure this is the best idea."

"I know what I'm doing," Chris said.

"I fail to see how this gets them apart."

"I'm going to work on the both of them, mostly Shawn, so that he thinks Hunter is betraying him, but he won't be, then Shawn will turn on Hunter at the Pay-Per-View and Hunter will finally see what a jerk he's friends with."

"That seems so broad, I mean, you can't be sure any of this will actually happen. And if you lose, you're off Raw."

"I just have to trust that it'll work, please, Steph, do this for me, I want my friend back. It may be too late for him and Britt, but I…actually enjoy being friends with Hunter. We get each other, in a weird, hateful kind of way. Shawn is corrupting him, please."

She sighed, "Okay."

"You're the best," he said, kissing her neck. "I swear to God, you're not going to regret this, we're going to end it, once and for all. We're going to take down Shawn and get the old Hunter back, the better Hunter back. Finally."

She wasn't so sure, but like he said, they had to try.


	260. Better Late, November 27 to 30, 2009

A/N: SO sorry for the lack of updates. I got really sick a couple weeks ago and didn't feel like doing anything. I finally went to the doctor this past week and I'm starting to get better. I'm going to try to spend this week catching up with this story for real, so wish me luck. I'm trying to get back into the groove of writing so I'm not sure this chapter is okay. If you want, leave a review, thanks. :)

* * *

"So how was your Thanksgiving?"

Chris looked up at Britt, "Well, it was…interesting."

"Interesting how?" Britt wondered. "Mine was pretty boring. Had dinner with my family and then just hung out with Evan over the weekend."

"You and Evan are getting pretty chummy," Chris pointed out and it didn't go unnoticed that Britt's face nearly lit up at the mention of the man. It was good to see that on her face though because after everything that had happened with Hunter, she deserved the smile.

"Yeah, we are," she nodded thoughtfully. "I really like him, Chris. I thought after Hunter that any guy would just be a rebound, but it doesn't feel like that at all, it feels better. I just feel better when I'm with Evan, you know. I guess part of that is that he is a rebound and I feel very empowered when I'm with him, but it's mostly just because I really happen to like him and he's really just a great guy."

"He really does seem nice," Chris told her. "I've never really interacted with the guy, but I haven't heard any complaints regarding him and Steph would tell me if there were since she loves to complain to me whenever she gets the chance."

Britt laughed, "Good to know. I know it already, but still, it's good to know that nobody has any problems with my boyfriend."

"Boyfriend? Strong word."

"I know, I'm trying it on for size. I really like it, suits what he is to me, besides, what do you mean strong word. You've been married for almost five years, boyfriend is out of your vernacular."

"Hey, not to the women I keep on the side."

"Oh yes, I'm sure that you keep women on the side," she rolled her eyes. "When would you even have the time?"

"I have time! I get about five minutes alone time per day."

"So what you're saying is that you don't even last five minutes, wow, poor Stephanie," Britt said, laughing and shaking her head. "She must have to find other means to…satisfy herself."

"Hey! I resent that," Chris said, pressing his hand to his heart. "I'll have you know that I'm great in bed, hell, I'll prove it to you right now if you want. I bet I'll be better than Evan, that's for damn sure."

"Well, I wouldn't know seeing as how I haven't slept with him yet and don't give me that look, Chris. Sometimes people don't sleep together after what was it, four days?"

"Less," Chris said. "And I wasn't going to say anything, but when is the guy going to get lucky? We really think about these things, you know, like, how long do we realistically have to wait to get some. Guys pretty much are always thinking about sex so you know, he's already thinking about how he can broach the subject."

"The subject will be broached when I'm ready for it to be broached."

"Still feel like that part of you is Hunter's?" Chris asked. It was a serious question so he followed it with a serious tone. He didn't want to make her uncomfortable, but he'd been friends with Britt for a few years now and he saw her with Hunter. She'd really loved the man and honestly, he thought that Hunter would propose to Britt. Well, he thought that until Shawn stepped back into the picture and made it quite clear that he was going to be Hunter's one and only. At this point, Hunter didn't deserve Britt.

That wasn't Chris's goal in what he was doing, what he was planning. He just really wanted his friend back, that was all. If that meant that Hunter and Britt had a chance, he wouldn't be against that in the slightest, but the bottom line was that he'd become great friends with Hunter in the previous few years and he didn't really want to go into the next decade one friend down. He'd already lost Kurt in this accursed decade and that wound had not yet healed. Kurt had tried to make amends, but Stephanie was having none of it. She'd been burned and you only burned Stephanie McMahon once.

"I don't know," Britt said, wringing her hands a little. "My brain and my heart both know and agree that being away from Hunter is a good thing. He wasn't treating me in any way resembling a girlfriend, let alone someone he claimed to love. It was all about Shawn, being what Shawn wanted and I was left by the wayside. I've come to terms with that, but it's still raw so I have to tread with caution. I want to trust Evan, really trust him before I do anything like that with him, not that it's far off, mind you, just not right this second. I'm not going to go find him and rip his clothes off."

"Well, good, that might be a little awkward if he were in catering or something."

"Just slightly, though it would serve Hunter right if he saw me like that…not that I'm out for revenge or anything."

"Oh no, of course not," Chris laughed.

"So back to the subject at hand, why was Thanksgiving interesting?"

"Well, it was fine at first, but well, it kind of got ugly during the meal."

"Ugly how?"

_The table was quiet. Every once in a while someone would ask something and there would be mumbled answers from certain people before real answers by other people. Chris was helping Flynn with her dinner, trying to help her get her peas _into _her mouth rather than around her mouth or down into her lap. Stephanie was next to him, cutting up pieces of turkey for Sawyer and pouring some gravy over them. Shane was sitting across from them, cutting his own turkey as Marissa helped Kenny with getting some more stuffing. Vince and Linda were at the ends of the table and Christian and Trish were sitting next to each other on the other side of Declan. Their families, being Canadian, didn't celebrate Thanksgiving and since the shows had been close by, Stephanie had invited them to Thanksgiving dinner. On Sawyer's other side were Chris's parents, who had flown up from Florida to spend the holiday, though they too were Canadian, with their family._

"_The turkey is delicious, Linda," Chris complimented her as he went back to his own meal, satisfied with Flynn eating her mashed potatoes._

"_Thank you, Chris," Linda said. "Are you nervous for your match with Undertaker?"_

"_Nah, not really. I'm getting used to being in the ring with him and I think that I can exploit some of his weaknesses, particularly his knees. I mean, he is getting up there and they are starting to go."_

"_Well, I do hope you win," Linda said. "I can't help that I'm biased for you."_

"_And if I lived in Connecticut, I would definitely be voting for you," Chris said, "Oh, you know, my mom just bought this new toy for Flynn, it's really cool, you like color on it and it plays music, she loves it. I think she's going to be a musician like me."_

"_It's good to get them started early," Loretta said. "I want our grandkids to be spectacular."_

"_I couldn't agree more," Linda said. "Don't you agree, Vince."_

"_Yeah, I agree," he grumbled, going back to his green beans, stabbing his fork with them._

"_I know you want to say something to me, Dad," Shane said, "so why don't you go ahead and say it."_

"_I have nothing to say," Vince said testily._

"_Vince, Shane, let's not do this here," Linda implored them._

"_Why not? I'm sick and tired of Dad giving me dirty looks when he thinks I don't notice. I _do_ notice them, Dad, so come on, out with it. What about me leaving to do you want to comment on now?"_

"_I don't understand why you're leaving, that's all. All of a sudden, out of the blue you want to leave and abandon your family, our business, the business your mother and I built up for you, spent _years_ building so you and Stephanie could have security and success. Stephanie isn't leaving, Stephanie is staying with the company and perfectly happy to follow in our footsteps."_

_Stephanie's fork clattered as she dropped it, glaring at her father. "You think I'm happy! Are you kidding me! I'm anything but happy!"_

_Chris placed his hand on Stephanie's. "Steph, baby, it's Thanksgiving, you know, time for giving thanks and not starting arguments in front of everyone."_

"_No, I'm not going to sit here and let him think that I'm happy, I'm not happy," she said, turning to her father, "and the fact that you think I am speaks to how little you know about me right now. Do you think I'm actually content with what I'm doing right now?"_

"_Of course you are," Vince said. "Why wouldn't you?"_

"_Because you gave Vickie Guerrero a consulting job on SmackDown. You pretty much told her she was the GM, but what about me? I've been there every week, planning the show with Teddy, making sure everything goes off without a hitch and nothing, I get nothing, as usual."_

"_Nothing, you run the shows!"_

"_Barely, I have to listen to incompetent fools like Teddy and Vickie and then, as if to add insult to injury, you put me in charge of Raw as a handler for the guest hosts, most of whom are incapable of reading something I've given them. I'm the one that plans all those matches and I let them take the credit, but do you ever give _me_ credit for that, no, you just expect it of me. You don't appreciate me, you don't appreciate Shane, that's probably why he's leaving."_

"_Is that true?" Vince asked._

"_Look Dad, I just want to explore something new."_

"_I don't understand why you just won't stay with us. You know how we operate."_

"_Yes, I do, but it's not what I want anymore, why can't you understand that!"_

"_Because it makes no sense."_

_Suddenly there was a whistle from Marissa of all people. "Okay, look, I know that everyone has their issues, but we're a family, damn it, okay, we're a family and this is not the place to be hatching out your issues. The bottom line is we're all stuck together, except for you guys," she said to Christian and Trish, "you thankfully aren't a part of this, but the rest of us, we_ are _a family and we need to start acting like one. Vince, Shane is leaving, it's not to slight you, it's not to throw everything you've done for him back in the face, it's because he feels like he's accomplished everything he can accomplish. And contrary to popular belief, there is life outside of wrestling and Shane wants to find it, end of story. As for Stephanie, seriously, Vince, look at your daughter every once in a while. She carries that company on her back, day in and day out she is the one that is running things. You may think that it's you, but it's not, it's her. So why don't you actually acknowledge that and reward that instead of being so 'what have you done for me lately?' because Stephanie is amazing at what she does. Bottom line though, we're a family and we need to stop this incessant bickering. I don't want to suffer through Christmas hearing you guys argue while I'm trying to watch my kids open presents, it's bad enough they had to hear this."_

"_I'm with Rissa," Chris said. "This is neither the time nor the place for this. We're all supposed to be happy and giving thanks, that's what this holiday is all about, right? Well act like it."_

"_Exactly," Marissa said, locking eyes with Chris in agreement. Sometimes they really were the only sane ones in this family, but it was mostly because they hadn't grown up in it, thankfully._

"Wow, so Marissa blew up?"

"Yeah, she did, she's awesome. If she wasn't my sister-in-law…"

"Yeah right."

"I'm kidding."

"Daddy, I'm done," Sawyer piped in. He held up the picture he'd been creating. It was clearly a person with some grass underneath and a sun in the sky. "Do you like it?"

"That's freaking awesome, kid," Chris told him, giving him a thumbs up.

"Can we go give it to Chrissy now?" Sawyer asked. "Cause Daddy it's his birthday and I wanna give him the picture for a present."

"Yeah, sure, we can go find him right now and give it to him. I think it's going to be his best birthday present that he gets," Chris told him.

"I think so too," Sawyer said, climbing down off the chair he was kneeling on. "I can make you a picture too, Britt, if you want one."

"I would love one," Britt said. "I cannot think of anything I would want to put on my fridge more than a patented Sawyer Jericho work of art. I would tell all my friends that one of my favorite boys drew it for me."

"Really?"

"Definitely," Britt nodded, picking him up. "What are you going to draw me?"

"I can draw a cat! I saw Declan and Kenny's kitty when I went to their house and we played with it and its name is Bart, I like that name, it's silly."

"It is silly and I would love a picture of a cat."

"Okay!" he said. "But I have to give Chrissy his present first."

"I'll just go with you guys," Britt said. "I'm going to find Evan anyways, after I drop off some stuff with Verne. Stephanie wanted me to give him a list of what's going on with the show tonight so you know how that goes."

"Yeah, where is she anyways, I haven't seen her since we got here."

"Well, it makes sense to me now, but when I saw her, she seemed frantic and distracted, but after that story you told me, I bet she's trying to make a good impression on her father by overworking herself."

"You've certainly got my wife figured out."

"Well, sometimes she's really easy to read."

"I know," Chris said. "Flutterby, we're going to go find Christian so you've got to give up the video, is that okay with you?"

Flynn looked over at him from her spot on the couch. Chris had put in a video for her since she hadn't really had a nap today. They had spent the day driving and while Flynn had fallen asleep in her car-seat, it wasn't really consider a regular nap because she'd been sitting up and wasn't comfortable. So when they'd arrived at the arena Chris had set her up on the couch with her blankie, a pillow, and her pacifier and put in a video. She had stubbornly refused to fall asleep so she was just laying there, her eyes fixed on the TV until Chris had addressed her.

"Dada," Flynn mumbled. Chris came over and lifted her up gently. She clung to her small green blanket and Chris wrapped it around her as she laid her head on his shoulder. She was going to fall asleep early tonight.

"I know, but it's Christian's birthday and Sawyer wants to give him a picture he drew. Then we can go back to lying down and maybe falling asleep."

"Okay," Flynn said, one of her newest words and one that she loved to say.

"And we're off then, we've got a birthday boy to find."

Christian pointed to Trish's stomach. "I mean, would you look at her, I mean, seriously, look at this, this is my kid. You should feel it kicking, it's amazing. It's like, dude, that's my kid in there, you know."

"That does sound cool."

"I'm really sorry you got caught up in this, Gail," Trish laughed. "He just gets so giddy when he can talk to someone new about the baby. He tells everyone, especially now that the baby is kicking and he gets to feel it."

"It's still pretty soft, but I can already tell we've got an active little thing in there. Not sure what it is yet, we're going to wait, but whatever it is, they're a great kicker. Wrestler material I'd think."

"Christian, seriously, calm down," Trish said, placing her hand on his arm. "So how are you doing, Gail?"

"I'm well, we miss you around here though, I mean, we obviously couldn't have you coming back right now, but after the baby is born, maybe you should think about getting into ring shape?" Gail suggested playfully.

"I think running after a baby would do the trick," Trish said, rubbing her stomach. "I've seen my sister do it and Stephanie do it and that's probably all the work out I really need."

"Are you excited?"

"I think Christian is excited for the both of us, but yeah, definitely. This is something I've wanted for a really long time so I think it's going to be great. I can't wait to have the baby in my arms, you know, it's just like that moment where you realize, holy crap, I'm a mother. It's probably the best feeling."

"I bet," Gail said. "Well, I have to go, but congratulations again, I'm really happy for you."

"Thanks," Trish said, maneuvering so she could give Gail a hug. It'd been a long time since she'd been able to talk to the woman. Her stomach was getting in the way of things though. She found herself being incredibly clumsy now that her center of gravity was strange, what with the baby inside of her. She was constantly knocking things over with it and bumping into things. She was getting so big and with her petite frame it just made her stomach that much more prominent. Thankfully Stephanie had tipped her off to a really cute maternity wear store so even though she felt like she was a co, she didn't look like one. "You just love to brag, don't you?"

"Yes, I do," Christian said. "I'm allowed to, it's my birthday."

"I know it's your birthday, but that doesn't give you free reign to act like a dork," she joked, pulling him down by the collar and kissing him. "Did I take care of you well this morning?"

"I should say so, that was quite the birthday surprise," Christian said, kissing her again.

"Well, it's the least I can do, almost literally," Trish laughed. "Seeing as how I've got this thing inside of me making me huge."

"Beautifully huge."

"Chrissy!"

Christian looked to his left and saw Sawyer running up to him with a paper flapping beside him. "Hey there, kid, what's up?"

"I have a present for you!" Sawyer said, jumping up and down. Chris and Britt walked up behind him, Flynn resting in Chris's arms as she looked down at her brother, wondering why he was getting all worked up. She was very tired so she wasn't getting worked up at all. She could live vicariously through her brother.

"You do?"

"It's your birthday!" Sawyer exclaimed, like Christian had forgotten or something.

"I know, so what do I get from you, I haven't gotten anything from your parents yet, it's like we're not even friends or whatever," Christian said, glancing at Chris.

"You'll get it when we go out to dinner after ECW tomorrow," Chris told him. "Stephanie has it somewhere, she's in charge of things like that. Anyways, Sawyer is very excited to show you what he made for you."

"I am," Sawyer said, thrusting the picture at Christian. Christian knelt down and took the picture from him. "It's you! I draw you for you."

Christian laughed, "Wow, thanks a lot, I love it. Where am I in this?"

"You at the park when you go with me and Fwynn to the park and we play and I play with you," Sawyer said. "And you push me on the swings and you get Fwynn when she go down slide."

"I do do all those things," Christian said, which caused a laughing fit in Sawyer. "What?"

"You said doodoo," Sawyer laughed.

"That's my son, already lovin the toilet humor," Chris said.

"Never too early to start," Christian said, giving Sawyer a hug. "Thank you so much for this gift, it's probably the best one I'm going to get."

"Really?" Trish asked.

"The kid drew me a picture, what the hell have you done for me?" Christian joked and Sawyer beamed. He was so pleased that his gift had been such a success. He'd been thinking of what to do for his friend when his mommy had explained that it was Christian's birthday. He knew all about birthdays. His birthday was May 2nd and Flynn's birthday was…well, he forgot when her birthday was, but it was still very important.

"How old are you?" Sawyer asked.

"Very old."

"Older than Daddy?"

"Kid, not the time to bring me up," Chris shook his head.

"No, not older than your daddy, your daddy is very, very old. Like older than dirt."

"Than dirt?" Sawyer asked. "Wow…"

"Shut up, man," Chris said, frowning at Christian, who just shrugged cheekily.

"I'm still pretty young compared to you, I don't even have any kids officially yet, not like an old married man like you with two kids."

"Yeah, pretty soon you'll be just like me," Chris told him.

"Dada," Flynn whined. She wanted to go back and watch her video.

"What, you?" he asked, lifting her up and pressing his lips to her stomach, blowing raspberries on her and making her giggle and laugh. She clung to her daddy and just giggled. She loved her daddy so much, he was by far the best daddy in the entire world. "Don't worry, flutterby, we'll get back to your precious video."

"Oh, were you watching a video, sweetie?" Trish asked, running her hand over Flynn's soft brown hair.

"Yeah," Flynn answered, glancing over at Trish and smiling

"What was she watching?"

"Me winning the Undisputed Championship," Chris answered. Trish looked at him strangely. "What? She actually really enjoys watching that. Her favorite thing to watch though is the King of the Ring match where I kissed Stephanie. She always gets all happy when she sees us kiss, I guess she's just a lover of romance."

"Or she's just really glad you kissed her because if you hadn't, she probably wouldn't exist."

"You know, that's a good point, the girl knows what's up, gotta hand it to her, she's definitely the most awesome baby girl in the entire world," Chris said, kissing her again. Flynn tried to hide her face in her blankets so she wouldn't get kissed anymore. Chris laughed and she peeked her face out at him before hiding herself again.

"Dada," she said, her voice muffled as Chris tried to smoke her out of her blanket, but she kept herself covered.

"Okay, okay, we're going," Chris said. "By the way, have you seen Stephanie anywhere? I can't seem to find her and I have top of the show and it'd be kind of good to find her."

"Sorry, haven't seen her, I've just been talking and catching up with some people that I haven't talked to in a while. We're not usually here at Raw, you know so it's kind of a treat."

"Oh yeah, I forget that you guys hardly come to Raw."

"Yeah, it's been nice though," Trish said, "a lot calmer than being with your family over Thanksgiving."

"Shut up, we apologized," Chris told her. "I knew that it would devolve into fighting, sorry you had to see my dysfunctional family holidays. It really is that bad usually."

"Well that's what you get for marrying Stephanie," Christian pointed out.

"Daddy, let's go, I want to draw for Britt," Sawyer said, tugging on Chris's pants. "Come on, come on, come on."

"You know, I think I liked you better when you couldn't talk and boss me around," Chris said as Sawyer started making faces at him, like he was very impatient. "Why do you want to go draw a picture for Britt right now, there's plenty of time to do it while the show is going on?"

"Because she might want it now."

"I think she's off with her boyfriend."

"What's a boyfriend again, Daddy?"

"It's when a girl or a gay man has another guy that they like and want to go out with all the time," Chris explained to him. "Remember, Mommy answered that for you the other day when you were watching Mommy on the show and she mentioned a boyfriend."

"Oh yeah," Sawyer said. "I remember. Mommy doesn't have a boyfriend."

"She better not have a boyfriend," Chris said. "That would be very bad."

"Why?"

"Because I'm Mommy's _husband_ and that's bigger than just a boyfriend because that means Mommy and I are married."

"I know," he said, thinking his daddy was talking too much and taking up his precious coloring time. "Who is Britt's boyfriend?"

"Evan Bourne, you know who he is, he wrestles," Chris told him.

"I'll make him a picture too," Sawyer decided. He didn't want anyone to be left out. "Bye-bye, Chrissy and Trish and baby!" Sawyer patted Trish's stomach. "Your tummy is getting big like my Mommy's was."

"I know," Trish said. "I'm going to be huge."

"But that's because you have a baby in there," Sawyer said. "I know all about babies because Fwynn is a baby and she was in my Mommy's tummy and I was there when she got tooken out. When is your baby tooken?"

"Not until February."

"When is that?" Sawyer asked.

"A couple months," Trish said. "I'm getting very nervous, you'll have to tell me everything you know about babies so that I can be a good mommy to my baby."

"I will," Sawyer said. "And Chrissy, you are baby's daddy?"

"Yup, I am."

"I like my Daddy," Sawyer said. "He's a good daddy."

"Thanks," Chris laughed. "I'll take any compliments I can get nowadays."

Sawyer beamed at him, "Okay, I'm going now, let's go, Daddy."

"Okay," Chris said, grabbing Sawyer's hand with his free one. "If you guys see Stephanie, can you tell her that we're waiting for her? She might appear as a brunette blur around here if you do see her."

"Sure, bye guys, bye Flynn."

"Bye," Flynn said, peeking her head out from her blanket. "Go."

"Geez, I'm going, I'm going," Chris said, walking towards the locker room. "Okay, you guys, Sawyer, you can get back to coloring and Flynn, you can get back to being a lazy bum. But where is your Mommy?"

"I dunno, Daddy," Sawyer said, "maybe she's invisible."

"I don't think Mommy has that power."

Stephanie was very much like a blur. After Thanksgiving, she was throwing herself headfirst into her work. She didn't know if this was necessarily to make her father notice her more or if she just wanted to prove to herself that she was the best person for the job, but nonetheless, she was running around the arena, making sure people had schedules, knew when their matches were and who they were facing, coordinating travel schedules, especially for those going to the Middle East for the Tribute to the Troops, which included her husband. She was also planning on sitting in for the show and calling it on the headphones, something she didn't normally do on Raw. So maybe she _was_ trying to get her father to notice her.

He was just so set in his thinking her a little girl. She'd proven that she wasn't, but he never believed her and she was at the end of her rope. Maybe she had to quit like Shane did to make her father realize how valuable she really was and how the show couldn't run without her. But even then, her father would probably not notice her absence at all. She didn't think that her father would be as angry with her leaving as he was with Shane leaving, but that was probably just the anger talking.

"Stephanie."

Stephanie looked around but didn't hear anything. She looked around again and then looked down and saw Verne. "Oh, I'm sorry, hello Mr. Troyer."

"Verne," he said.

"Of course, Verne," Stephanie said, shaking his hand as she bent over. "Thank you so much for coming tonight, we're very happy to have you."

"Thanks," he said politely.

"I actually had my assistant looking for you to give you the schedule for the night, but here you go," she said, handing him a couple sheets of paper. "You should still get the schedule from her, I wrote some notes down on it, just points and stuff that'll help you be a better host."

"Thanks a lot," he said.

"Oh, it's really no problem," Stephanie smiled at him.

"Mommy, hi," Sawyer said, running up to Stephanie and grabbing onto her leg. He looked over at this other person with his mommy and he stared at him. "Are you a kid? Cause you have no hair."

Stephanie stifled her laugh and picked Sawyer up. "Sawyer, this is Mr. Troyer, he's going to be the guest host tonight. I'm sorry, Verne, this is my son, Sawyer. He's three and at three there are no filters on them."

"Mommy, he's really little," Sawyer whispered in Stephanie's ear.

"I know, baby boy," Stephanie whispered back.

"It's okay, Stephanie, I get that all the time, kids are just curious."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, "where's Daddy?"

"He's over there," Stephanie said, pointing to where Chris was talking with Big Show. "They're talking about later."

"Oh, I see, well, Verne, I hope that you enjoy the show tonight and if you have any trouble with anyone, just let me know and I'll have it taken care of or if you need any clarification on anything show related, just let me know."

"I will, thanks," Verne said.

Stephanie shook his hand again with her free one and then walked over to where Chris was still talking with Big Show. "Hey, you."

"Oh, there you are, finally," Chris said, "I've been looking everywhere for you."

"I didn't know I was so loved, hey, Show, what's going on?"

"Was just discussing some stuff with your husband about what we want to say when we go out there. We expect DX to show up, want to be prepared for them if they do."

"Yeah," Chris said, "I want to be prepared."

Stephanie kissed him. "Good."

"So what have you been doing?"

"Daddy, that man is short," Sawyer told him.

Chris looked over his shoulder. "He's a little person, it's something that someone is born with that makes them stay at a small size."

"I'm little," Sawyer said, was he never going to grow?

"Yeah, but you're not a little person like that," Chris said.

"Okay, let's go draw now because Daddy I want to go and you just want to talk."

"I'll take him," Stephanie said.

"I was just finishing up here," Chris said. "Show, I'll see you in a bit, I'm just going to bring my daughter back to the locker room."

"Okay, I'll meet up with you soon then."

"Cool, until later, man," Chris nodded.

"Why is Flynn in her blanket?" Stephanie asked as they were walking.

"Because she wants to go watch her video," Chris said, "and she didn't feel like getting dressed up for the occasion and come on, like you wouldn't walk around with your blanket around you if you could, I know for a fact you hate getting out of bed in the morning."

"You've got a point there, so what are you going to say tonight, anything about your stupid little plan or something? Which I still think is going to fail."

"I just want to see if it's possible to get Hunter away from that asshole, that's all, it doesn't seem like an unreasonable request. If it doesn't work, it doesn't work. I bet Hunter is being poisoned by Shawn right this second about me. He's probably been working Hunter over for a while now about it, saying how I'm a bad friend, how I probably told Britt to leave him or something and how it's now all my fault so getting the belts is the only retribution."

"Speaking of the belts, what happens if you lose, have you thought about that?"

"I'm not going to lose."

"But what if you do?"

"You think I'm going to lose?" he asked as he set Flynn back down on the couch. She settled herself against the pillow that was waiting for her and pulled the covers around her as Chris turned on her video for her. Her daddy was fighting with someone she didn't know, but she liked it anyways.

"Did I say that?"

"No, but you're implying it."

"I'm not implying anything," Stephanie told him. "I would just like to know what your plans would be if it did happen, you know. It _could _happen and it's not because I think Hunter and Shawn are better than you, just because it's a real possibility with a ladder match. You go down and they can scramble up the ladder and grab the belts."

"Have you ever seen Hunter scramble to do anything?"

"You don't want the answer to that question, Chris."

Chris thought on that for a moment and then made a face, "Oh gross. Disgusting."

"Will you just answer the question."

"Let me just erase that image from my head and…okay, if I lose, I'm not going anywhere."

"How will that work exactly, Chris? You're a SmackDown guy."

"Well, yeah, but above that, I'm a WWE guy."

"Yes, but how would that allow you to be on both shows? Why would you get the distinction, what makes you stand out so much that you would be on both shows over any other guy that's on one of the other rosters, like Christian, he stays on ECW because that's where he was drafted, what would make you special, have you thought about that?"

"Well," Chris said, gesturing around. "I do have all this. If I wanted, couldn't I just use my pull."

"Sure, but what would you tell the people out there, the ones who don't know about us or don't think we're married anymore, what would you do about those people?"

"If it comes to that, I'll think of something, why do you care anyways?"

"Because I like working on Raw, but I'm here under the pretense that _you're_ here and if you're not here, then I really don't have a reason to be here, not really, not without looking like I'm fishing for a job or something or being desperate and I don't want to look desperate."

"Look, I will think of a way to make everyone win, okay?" Chris said, placing his hands on her shoulders. "I swear to God, if I didn't love you so much I'd shove you out a window."

"Then I'm lucky, so what are you doing with Hunter tonight?"

"Nothing on TV, I'm going to needle him backstage though. I'll probably get some help from Britt since Evan is now officially her boyfriend. I figure if I show that to Hunter, tell it to him if need be, he'll really start to get aggravated and I can work that to my advantage. Show him how being with Shawn _all_ the time is negatively affecting him. You know, it's really annoying, when those two are together, they act like 12 year olds."

"Welcome to my life for two years," Stephanie said. "I know what that's like, Shawn is insufferable. I do hope your plan works though, I'd like to have Hunter back too, he is a great friend when he wants to be."

"I know, how strange is that?"

"Very strange."

"Besides, don't worry, I've got some plans for later."

Chris's plans consisted of getting into a fight with Hunter. It was funny, when they were out there in the ring, it didn't matter who else was there, it always seemed that Hunter was addressing him and him alone. It was like he was trying defend himself in front of Chris, defending his choice to be with Shawn. It was rather pathetic. The only thing Hunter could hit him with was that Chris would be off Raw if he lost, but what Hunter didn't know was that he wasn't going anywhere. It wasn't even a matter of being with Stephanie meant he could go anywhere he wanted, it was that he wasn't going to allow Shawn to get him kicked off a show.

He hadn't expected Hunter to challenge him to a match, but he decided to up the ante. If he won, then Hunter would have to be in a handicap match and if he lost then he would have to be in a handicap match against DX. He figured he'd win since he had Big Show and if he won, then he could plan something for next week. He'd have to talk it over with Stephanie, but he knew she would be supportive of what he wanted to do. Hunter never backed down from any kind of bet so he took the match and Chris knew as much. Being friends with Hunter had its perks when he was going to face him.

"Why did you put that stipulation on your match next week?" Stephanie asked him later.

"Because Show is going to obviously help me win and then when I do win, I'm going to need your help."

Stephanie narrowed her eyes, "What do you mean, need my help? You want me to like accompany you to the ring or something? Or rig something for you?"

"No, nothing like that. See, when I win, it'll be me and Show against Hunter next week. What I'm going to want you to do is distract Shawn somehow while we're in that match. Hunter is going to expect Shawn to come down with him, help him so we won't trample him or whatever, but if Shawn doesn't show up, Hunter thinks, 'Hey, wait a second, first this guys superkicks me during a match when I'm not suspecting it, then he doesn't help me when I'm in a huge handicap match, what a friend,' and it lays the seeds."

"I have to admit, that's a good plan."

"You think you're the only one capable of having a great plan around here," he said, kneeling next to her and hugging her. "I'll have you know I was scheming way before I met you, conspiracy theories anyone?"

"I thought that was to get yourself noticed."

"And did it work?" he asked. "Who's a five-time World champion and Grand Slam champion and married to Vince McMahon's daughter? Oh yeah, me, and you know why, because I knew how to scheme to get to the top. I used WCW as my stepping stone and then came to the WWF with every intention of getting everything I wanted, total schemer."

"Okay, I got it, but first you have to worry about your match tonight. If you want to win and assure that you're going to win, here's what I suggest, since you probably didn't think of it, but that's okay since you really are just a novice. Make sure that Hunter sees Britt and Evan now so that he gets all angry and flustered and distracted for his own match and then he's easily beaten.

"I can do that."

"I know you can, now off with you, I've got work to do," she told him. "Christian and Trish took the kids by the way. They're back at the hotel, probably off to sleep, in case you were wondering where they were."

"I wasn't, is that bad?"

"Just don't tell Sawyer."

"I won't, that kid is mean," Chris said, shaking his head.

Then he was off and looking for Britt and Evan. They had to be around here somewhere. He ran into Hunter first and conveniently, he was alone, no Shawn skulking around any corners. Chris walked up to him and Hunter gave him a slightly distrustful look. He had every right to give him that look though because Chris was pulling something over on him right now. He just had to act nonchalant about it though, very nonchalant, like nothing at all was going on.

"Hey, you know, I forgot to tell you the other week, but Sawyer and I had stopped by this diner and this kid came up to us and he was a fan of yours and I promised that I would tell you that he was a really huge fan of yours and I feel bad because he was a kid so I just wanted to relay the message."

"Oh," Hunter said, easing up a little bit. Chris could see his body relax a little. Did Hunter really think he was going to attack him in the middle of the hallway? "Well, cool, it's always nice to hear from fans."

"Yeah, I thought you might like that, know how much you like kids, other people's kids anyways," Chris said, trying to drive that dagger in a little bit deeper. "So yeah, did my good deed for the day, gotta go find Britt, she's probably with Evan though…oh, sorry, I didn't mean for that to slip out."

"They're…still, seeing each other, huh?" Now it was Hunter trying to act nonchalant.

"You don't want to hear about that."

"Are they like seriously dating or something?"

"Well, she says he's her boyfriend, so you can interpret that the way you want to," Chris said. "But you know, maybe they're not too serious or anything, who knows?"

"Yeah, who knows, right?"

"Dude, why are you even caring at this point? You two have been broken up for a while so what's it matter if Britt is dating Evan? Besides, she's happy and I know you're not a huge enough asshole to not want her to be happy because that seriously wouldn't be cool if you wanted her to just be miserable."

"I don't want that for her, of course I don't want that for her or anything," Hunter scoffed. "I was just wondering if she was actually dating that shrimp."

"Geez, touchy, huh?"

"I'm not touchy, the guy is short, it's just the truth, right, just the truth, nothing more," Hunter muttered, walking away without even saying goodbye. He could just picture Britt and Evan in his head and it made his forehead wrinkle. He didn't want the thoughts invading his head, but there they were and he hated it. He hated that she had to move on with someone he knew. Maybe it would be easier if she was with someone he didn't know. Then he wouldn't have to check around every corner to make sure he didn't see Britt making out with some guy that wasn't him.

Chris followed Hunter. "You know, you wouldn't be in this situation if you had treated her a little better, right? I mean, you do realize that, don't you? That you brought this on yourself?"

"Shut up, Jericho," Hunter said.

"Okay, I'm wrong then, maybe Shawn had something to do with it. The guy did kick you in the head after all, so why wouldn't he want you to break up with your girlfriend that you'd been with for years? Just saying, that's all, it's really food for thought."

"You don't know Shawn."

Chris shook his head, "I don't really think you do either."

"Are you going to tell me he's a bad guy again?"

"No, I'm just saying that you can never really know someone, I don't even feel like I completely know Stephanie and we've been together over seven years. She probably feels the same way so I'm just saying that maybe you don't know Shawn as well as you thought you did."

"I know him plenty well enough. You're not psyching me out for our match later."

"Not what I was doing, just talking with you, man, that's all."

"Yeah, right, just talking, I'm so sure."

"Think what you want, you seem to think I have some underlying plan, who's to say that Shawn doesn't."

"He doesn't."

"Okay, if you believe that," Chris told him. "Anyways, I'm going to go find Britt and Evan, but they're probably making out somewhere or something, crazy kids."

"Shut up, man."

"Hey, don't be jealous, you could've had it all, man, think about that, you could've had it all. Sure makes sticking with Shawn pretty pathetic, don't you think?"

Chris walked away with a smile on his face. Things were going splendidly.


	261. Chugging Along, December 4 to 7, 2009

A/N: Thanks for the reviews. Still behind. I've just been really sick and out of it and writing has been the last thing on my mind. I managed to get this done and hope to get more done soon. Sorry if it feels incomplete. I hope you enjoy anyways, thanks. :)

* * *

"Daddy, we missed you!"

Chris knelt down as Sawyer came running towards him. Chris scooped him up and gave him a big kiss on the cheek. Sawyer returned the favor by giving Chris a big kiss on the cheek. Chris laughed and hugged him. Being overseas with the soldiers really gave him a lot of perspective on his own life and how lucky he was to see his kids and wife as often as he did. Sometimes he hated the fact that he spent nearly every waking moment with his wife. There was very little privacy or alone time, but then he thought about how he might have to spend so much time away from them and not see his kids grow up and that sobered him right up.

He spotted Stephanie coming through the crowd, obviously looking annoyed that Sawyer had run ahead of her. Flynn was in her stroller, leaning forward like she was trying to propel herself out of it and into her daddy's arms. Said arms were leaning forward too, trying to grasp at him. Stephanie steered them through the people around baggage claim and came up to Chris. He wrapped his free arm around her as she wrapped her left arm around his neck and leaned up a little to kiss him. He put a lot of vigor into the kiss and when she pulled away she raised an eyebrow at him.

"God, I missed you guys," he told them all.

"You were only gone for like four days," she pointed out.

"What? You're saying that if I'm gone for four whole days, you don't miss me at all?" Chris asked. "What kind of family is this?"

"We had fun, Daddy, we went shopping and I boughted a present for you," Sawyer grinned.

"Sawyer!" Stephanie hissed. "You aren't supposed to tell Daddy that you bought him a present," Stephanie told him. "That's for Christmas."

"But I did, Mommy, I boughted him one. Daddy, I took my piggy bank and I give it to Mommy and she help me," Sawyer explained.

"Oh, presents, I like where this is going," Chris said, grinning. "What did you get me?"

"See, this is why we don't tell Daddy that we shopped for him," Stephanie said. "Because he acts like he's two years old and wants to know what he got well before Christmas."

"I no tell you, Daddy, cause you have to wait," Sawyer told him with a smile.

"Well that's no fun," Chris said, tickling his son. He saw his bag start to rotate around and he lifted it up. "Okay, this was all I had, we can go home now. I can't wait to get home and get a hot shower."

"You are a bit smelly," Stephanie said, "I thought it might be Flynn, but makes more sense that it's you."

"Very funny, McMahon," Chris glared at her as she winked at him. They walked to the short-term parking and got in the car, Chris in the driver's seat as Stephanie took her place in the passenger side. Before he started the car, he took her hand and gave it a light squeeze.

"How was it?"

"It's always an experience. I'm just sorry that I didn't get to go sooner than I did because it really is a life-changing experience. It just feels like you're in this other, strange world and to be away from you guys, it sucks. But then these guys go so long without seeing their family. I could never do what they do."

"Not to compare, but like, when you were traveling when you were younger, before you got your big break, I couldn't imagine you having a family at that time."

"God no, for one, I wasn't ready for the commitment and for two, I didn't even have a residence, I pretty much lived out of my car when I was in North America, driving from place to place, living out of hotels. I couldn't do that. I couldn't stand being away for so long. But it was a great trip, we met some amazing people there."

"Who were you grouped with, I mean, who did you go tour around with?"

"Punk, mainly," Chris told her. "Kind of floated around. When you're over there, it's like, they don't care who you are, if you're nice and you're there, they like you, very different atmosphere, they're just so appreciative so it was nice. I also hung out with your dad a lot, well, your dad hung out with me a lot, that's a better way of putting it. He seems to think that because we're family, we're friends too."

"I can't believe he would hang out with you after everything he's done to me."

"You know how your dad is, out of sight, out of mind," Chris said. "Besides, who else would actually tolerate him?"

"Everyone?" Stephanie said. "He's the boss, after all, if you don't want to lose your job, I bet that if he wanted to hang out with someone, they would let him in fear that he'd take away their job."

"Damn it, why didn't I think of that?"

"Because you've only been related to my dad for five years," Stephanie told him, reaching out to rub his shoulder. "You must be exhausted."

"Yeah, I'm pretty tired, thank God we pre-taped SmackDown because the last thing I'd want to do tonight is go to work. I'm ready to collapse in bed."

"I'll keep the kids out of your hair tonight and you can relax," she said, rubbing his shoulder a little deeper. "That's a ton of traveling you've done, my poor sweetie."

"And then you make me drive home," he joked and she pushed his head a little. "And right back to the abuse."

"Oh shut it," she told him as she continued to rub his shoulder. She did this all the way home and as soon as they were in the door, he was hugging her again, just because. She leaned up to kiss him. "I'm going to get the kids their lunches, you hungry?"

"Yeah, I can eat," he told her.

"Then I'll get you something too," she said, "you want me to get the kids out of your hair?"

"Nah, I can take care of them," he said, giving her another kiss for good measure. "Thanks."

"No problem," Stephanie said as she disappeared down the hallway towards the kitchen.

"Okay, you two, how are you doing?" Chris asked, lifting both his children, one in each arm. Flynn squealed and threw her arms around Chris. She'd missed him very much and even though her mommy had told her he'd be back, she didn't know if she could trust her mommy. Sawyer was happy to see his daddy as well. "Did you miss me a lot?"

"Yeah," Flynn said and Chris had a feeling that she would've said yeah to whatever he would've asked.

"We missed you lots and lots," Sawyer said, answering for the both of them. Chris took them into the living room and collapsed on the couch. Sawyer laughed and punched his dad on the arm. He was allowed to punch Chris and other wrestlers, but not his sister or anyone else. That was the rule. "Mommy took care of us."

"I know, did she take good care of you?"

"Uh huh, we had dinner with Chrissy and Trish," Sawyer said. "We went to a place and it was fun because Chrissy was there."

"He is fun, definitely," Chris told him. "That's why he's my best friend."

"He's my best friend too," Sawyer said.

"Wow, you should tell him that, I think that he would really love to hear that," Chris said and he knew Christian would. Once you were around Sawyer, you couldn't help but like the kid. He had this infectious personality and even if Sawyer hadn't been his kid, Chris would have still liked the kid. Where he and Stephanie were sometimes cantankerous, Sawyer was just all smiles and happiness and neither one knew where exactly he'd gotten that from.

"Okay, I'll tell him," Sawyer said. "Daddy, we're gonna watch you tonight."

"On SmackDown, right?"

"Yup, on SmackDown. What did you do there, Daddy?"

"What did I do where?" he asked as Flynn shifted his arm so he could snuggle into his side. Chris put his arm around her and pulled her into his body as she leaned her head near his hip. She was turning into such a cuddler, which was a stark contrast from when she'd been an infant because then she would hate to be cuddled. Now she loved to cuddle with anyone who wanted to cuddle with her.

"On SmackDown?" he asked.

"Well, I'm in a match with Big Show and we're going against Cryme Tyme."

"Do you win, Daddy?" Sawyer asked.

"Do you _really_ want me to tell you or do you want to wait until you see it and then you can find out by watching it and then you can be surprised by it?" Chris asked.

"Um, I wait," Sawyer answered. "Where did you go, Daddy?"

"I went overseas."

"Where is overseas?"

"I went to a place called the Middle East."

"Why I not go with you? I go to show with you before," he asked. He went everywhere with his parents and he thought it was fun. He got to go on big airplanes all the time and he could see clouds from right outside his window. It was like he was a bird, that's what his mommy likened it to. She said that flying was like being a bird.

"Because this place was a lot different than you're used to. We went to a lot of places where little boys weren't allowed."

"But why?" Sawyer asked. He was definitely in that inquisitive phase where everything needed a question attached to the end of it.

"Well, for one, it wasn't in an arena like you're used to so you wouldn't have liked it very much. Plus, it just wasn't a place for little boys."

"I'm a big boy," he argued.

"Or for big boys, only daddies are allowed to go, that's why Mommy stayed with you because it wasn't really a place where she should be either, not that your mommy necessarily needs to stay at home, you know how tough Mommy is, but it just wasn't a place where I think she would have a good time, you know."

"Okay," Sawyer said, seeming to accept that answer. "Are you going to be good on SmackDown?"

"Am I always good?"

"You're the best," Sawyer told him with a nod.

"Well thanks."

"Okay, best guys ever, lunch is ready," Stephanie said, leaning in the doorway. "He was very curious about where you had gone. He didn't understand why you were going somewhere to wrestle and none of us were coming with you."

"He's used to me going places without you guys."

"But none of those things have to do with wrestling. When you're doing a show or whatever, that's separate and he gets that, but wrestling, that's his domain."

"And your domain," Chris said, kissing her as he passed.

"Supposedly," she said as they sat down to have sandwiches Stephanie had prepared. "I've been thinking that I need to do something spectacular. I mean, I don't know what yet, but I've just been thinking that I need to do something that will definitely get my father's attention."

"As opposed to the fifty million times you've tried to get his attention in the past," Chris said. She nodded and took a thoughtful bite of her sandwich. "I'm sure you'll think of something. For as long as I've known you, extending back to that very first night, you've always had something up your sleeve."

"You say that like it's a bad thing."

"Considering I was probably one of your schemes."

"You were anything but a scheme."

"I beg to differ."

"Differ all you want, you weren't part of the equation," she told him. "I just need something that my dad can't ignore, something that he'll have to notice me for. That's all, but I can't think of anything to do."

"You'll think of something, trust me, that brain of yours is a lethal weapon. It's too bad you weren't a lawyer because I can imagine you being one of those high-powered, expensive lawyer to celebrities who always gets them off for crimes like murder," Chris told her with a laugh. Stephanie laughed too and made a face. "I love when you laugh."

"What?" she asked.

He shrugged, "I just do, I don't know, you just…you're beautiful when you laugh, just thought I'd mention that."

"Thank you," she told him, tilting her head and giving him a look. "That was a little out of the blue."

"I don't know, being overseas, you just kind of appreciate what you have, I think. This here, this right here, I think I take it for granted a lot of the time and I just wanted you to know how great I think our life is."

"So the government did some sort of weird probing test on you over there, didn't they, a personality switch or something, right? Because although my husband is a very sweet, kind man, he's never been quite the sap," she told him with a smirk, but it faded a bit when she could tell he was being serious. "Sorry, just not used to you saying that sitting around the kitchen table eating sandwiches, or in Flynn's case, taking apart a sandwich and eating it in parts."

"Felt the need to say it," he told her.

"Well, I love when you laugh too," she told him, her eyes softening as she looked at him.

"Are you going to kiss?" Sawyer asked as he chomped on his sandwich. A little bit of food flew from his mouth and Chris gave him a disgusted look.

"And what if I was?" Chris asked.

"Kissing's okay."

"Do you want to kiss a girl?" Chris asked.

"No!" Sawyer exclaimed. "I only kiss my mommy, daddy, and baby and Grandma and Grandpa and Gamma and Gampa and Trish and Chrissy and Trips and Ed and Lita and Britt and Uncle Shane and Auntie Rissa and Declan and Kenny and…that's it!"

"That's a lot of people," Stephanie said.

"I like a lot of people," Sawyer explained.

"Oh, well in that case, kiss away," Chris laughed as they continued their lunch.

After he finished up with that, it was upstairs and into a nice, hot shower. Stephanie helped the kids to their naps and then slipped into the shower to surprise Chris with a little afternoon fun, which Chris did not turn down in the slightest. By the time SmackDown rolled around, he was relaxed and ready to watch himself. He tried to make it a habit of watching his matches when he got home, see how he looked, assessed his performance and try to gain leverage on an opponent. Flynn and Sawyer loved to watch with him and he usually encouraged it. When they were at the shows, they often didn't get to see his matches so when they were at home, they could watch to their heart's content and Chris could pause and explain any and all questions Sawyer had.

"Daddy, why are you talking?" Sawyer asked as he leaned his hands on Chris's shoulder. Chris had done an interview backstage to talk about the TLC match he had coming up with DX.

"Because I'm trying to make sure that Trips and Shawn know that Show and I are going to mean business when we fight at the next big show. They want to take my belts away from me, but I don't want them to."

"So you're mad?"

"I am pretty mad there," Chris said. "Because Trips and Shawn act like I'm not a threat at all, but I like to think I've been doing a great job as the Tag Team champion, do you think I've been doing a good job?"

"You do a great job," Sawyer told him.

"Yeah!" Flynn said from where she was lying against Stephanie. "Dada!" she screamed while pointing to the screen.

"Yeah, that's me," Chris told her.

"Mommy, why don't you talk with Daddy?" Sawyer asked.

"Because I'm too busy working backstage to make sure that Daddy has time to talk on-screen and that Daddy gets matches."

"Oh, I want to do that."

"You will someday if she has anything to do with it," Chris said, ruffling Sawyer's hair. Sawyer shook his hair out and it got in his eyes, but he grinned it off. "Daddy, when is your match on, I want to see it!"

"We have to wait for it to come on," he explained.

"But why? You put it forward when we always watch because you said you don't like anybody but you and Mommy, but Mommy is not on there," Sawyer said. He didn't want to watch all this boring stuff with people he didn't know that well. He knew who everyone was though, he was very smart about that.

"Because this isn't on the Tivo, this is airing so we have to wait, just like when you have to wait during commercials, so you should be patient," Chris told him.

He was getting a little impatient as well. He wanted to watch the match against Cryme Tyme so he could go to bed and focus on much bigger things. Cryme Tyme wasn't even a speed bump, they were more like a mere distraction in his quest to embarrass Hunter and Shawn and try and get his friend back. He really hoped that Shawn turned on Hunter during their match. It would be the easiest plan he'd ever dreamed up if that would happen. Maybe he needed more reinforcements though, some outside help…

"So let me get this straight," Christian said as he and Chris drank their morning coffee on Monday morning. "You dragged me out here because you needed a favor?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

"Stephanie told me I was needed for Raw," Christian said.

"Yeah, you see, Stephanie and I are married and I asked her to do me a favor and because she's my wife and she loves me, she did it."

"Dude, you know my wife is sitting at home pregnant with my first child, right? I mean, I think you do seeing as how we have dinner together like once a week when we're at home. And I get precious few moments with her as it is and I would like to spend my home time with my pregnant wife."

"Dude, it's one day, you probably would've flown out to Houston today anyways."

"Still," Christian said. "You tore me away from my wife for what reason?"

"Besides," Chris said, ignoring his question, "Trish just started not traveling this week and it's not like if pressed she can't travel."

"Trish isn't like Stephanie. She doesn't have anywhere to _be_. She runs her yoga business from home and does conference calls and what not so she doesn't need to go into work anywhere and her work is not this stress-filled pit. Plus, even if it were, I don't think Trish has the same workaholic drive that Stephanie does who goes on pregnancy leave when she's absolutely forced to."

"You've got a point."

"So really, what do you want?"

"Well, I was hoping that you would help me with my plan to get Hunter away from Shawn. I think the guy is throwing away his life for his stupid antics. It's like he's regressed into being a 12 year old and not the 40 year old that he is."

"Have you ever thought that he's having his midlife crisis?" Christian asked. That seemed the most logical explanation to him. Isn't that what happened in midlife, you suddenly realized that so much time had passed and you tried desperately to hang onto your youth?

"What?"

"Midlife crisis. He's acting like he's back in the first incarnation of DX because he was young then, he didn't have to think about marriage and kids and what he was doing with his life."

"I'm a year younger than him and I'm not having any crisis," Chris said, shaking his head, not wanting to believe Christian.

"Think about it though, look at what you've accomplished. You're an amazing wrestler who has the Tag belts and gets to go on every show he wants to, you've got a 4th record coming out in a month with your band, you've had a radio show, you've done television shows galore, you've written a best-selling book, you've got a gorgeous wife who happens to be your boss's daughter, which gives you the in of a lifetime, plus she's worth hundreds of millions of dollars, then to top it off, you've got two of the most adorable kids in the world, which gotta say, you don't really deserve that level of awesome in your kids. Saints deserve that level of awesome in their kids."

"My kids are downright awesome," Chris agreed.

"So why would you have the crisis? You do everything that you love, you've fulfilled everything you wanted to do. You wanted to be a rockstar, done, you studied journalism and liked to write, you wrote a book, kudos to you, you wanted to be a wrestler in the WWE and win the World Title, well you've done that, _five_ times. You probably wanted to be banging a hot chick, done and done. What's there to even be pining for?"

"Okay, point taken on my life."

"Then look at Hunter's, what's he got? Sure, he's the proclaimed King of Kings, but what is he beyond a wrestler, that is his _whole_ identity and you know what, in the long run, that's kind of pathetic. I thought I'd end up like that and it was terrifying. When I was over in TNA, far, far away from Trish and I thought she was going to marry Carlito and before I dated Tiffany, I was so scared of ending up alone. Hunter has what, a failed marriage under his belt. Then he has to look at his ex-wife, who is crazy happy--"

"Stephanie's not crazy happy," Chris interjected.

"I mean with life, not with work."

"Oh okay, proceed."

"So he has to see Steph, who is much better off in her new life and now she's got this husband and kids and he's got…nothing."

"But he _had_ Britt," Chris pointed out.

"Who he probably thought was too good for him."

"No excuse for treating her the way he did."

"Well that's where Shawn comes in. Shawn probably questioned his life and told Hunter not to waste his the way he might have so Hunter falls into the trap, but now he's just a sad and pathetic guy who lives off his past glory."

"That does sound like him."

"Yeah, so total midlife crisis."

"Thanks for the analysis, Dr. Christian."

"I think you need to just let this run its course," Christian told him. "I don't think there's anything you can do for him. He's going to follow Shawn because Shawn is his guiding light of whatever crap Shawn is spewing. He'll eventually see the light."

"It's the eventually part I don't like."

"He'll come around."

"I just feel like he's wasting his time. It's not even this ridiculous feud he's trying to stir up, which I have no doubt is all Shawn's idea, it's more that I think he and Britt were really good together and happy and could have had that marriage, kids, whatever thing you were talking about that gave me such a great life. I just hate that he threw that away for what? Acting like a child, reliving his glory days. The DX he knew and loved is not the DX you see today, not by a long-shot, it's like a bastardized version of it."

"And maybe you should let him figure this out on his own, just saying," Christian repeated. "Look, I know you're friends with him and he's not such a bad guy when he's not being a complete douche, but sometimes, staying out of someone's business isn't going to kill you."

"You do know who I am, right?"

"Yeah, you're the guy who likes to plan stuff, but this time, I think Hunter needs to hit rock bottom before he can climb his way back out. If you help him now, he'll resent you because he thinks Shawn is the be all, end all."

"When did you get so…like this?" Chris said, gesturing towards Christian.

"Like what?"

"Filled with common sense," Chris answered. Christian was usually the guy that you never went to because he would blab it all over the place or he would give you some stupid answer. It used to be that you only went to Christian if the only other option was Edge.

"I guess the being a dad thing is kicking in," Christian said proudly. "I'm starting to find my dad groove. I guess I'll be the dad that has really good advice."

"That wouldn't be a bad thing, I'm the dad that is crazy."

"That's for sure, but your kids still love you anyways. I can't wait until I get that," Christian said, his eyes looking off, probably towards the child that was coming in February. February felt so close and yet it was still so far away. "What was it like holding Sawyer for the first time? What was that feeling like?"

"Weird," Chris admitted. "Weird knowing that this kid was yours and you were going to have to protect it and raise it and not screw it up. I mean, look at Stephanie and I, we're not what you would call parent material when you look at us and though she tried not to show it, Stephanie was terrified of screwing up her kid like her father had screwed up her and Shane. But then you look at your kid and it's just like, wow, this is _my_ kid and somehow, you just know what you're going to do. At least that was the feeling for me. It could be totally different for you. Al I know is from the second I saw that kid, I knew I loved the hell out of him."

"Sawyer is awesome."

"Sawyer's the best, except when he gets in the way of my alone time with Stephanie, then I wish I could ship him off to Siberia."

"That's the one thing I'm going to miss once the kid comes, I don't get Trish all to myself anymore."

"That's for damn sure, I'm lucky if I see Stephanie without a kid attached to my hip or a kid attached to hers or each of us having a kid. Definitely puts a damper on the sex life. Definitely."

"Except you wouldn't trade them for the world and you know it."

"Hell no, those kids made me grow up. Before them, I was like a little kid running around. Well, before I got with Stephanie anyways, she kind of grounds me too, not like the kids do, but she does as well."

"So are you going to do anything with Hunter tonight then or are you going to drop it?"

"You're right, can't believe I'm saying that and meaning it, but you're absolutely right. I need to let Hunter figure this out on his own. I can't baby him through life like Shawn is doing. He'll figure it out, I mean, it's inevitable that one of them is going to break free, probably Hunter when he realizes that he's wasting so much time being a dumbass and not spending enough time focusing on his real true love, the WWE Title."

"See, now aren't you feeling guilty that you drug me all the way here for no reason when I could've been home with Trish."

"Oh get over it, dude, you would've only gotten a few extra hours with her anyways and you're planning on spending the rest of your life with her so I fail to see how a few hours are significant in any way," Chris told him. "I don't whine nearly as much when I'm not around Stephanie."

"Excuse me!" Christian protested, "Need I remind you of when you two were broken up and all you did was pine away for her. Trish told me about how freaked you were when you thought Steph and I were together, you're so whipped for her."

"Big difference between being whipped for her and lamenting over the fact that I can't spend a few extra hours with her," Chris said, "besides, that wasn't pining, I wasn't pining for her, I don't pine for Stephanie and I never have and I never will."

"Crap," Christian muttered.

"That is not crap," Chris told him. "I don't pine. I just missed her, besides, we don't even really count those times as being broken up anyways, they were just lapses in our judgment and total moot points now that we're married and ridiculously happy as you put it."

"Yeah, you are ridiculously happy."

"Well, I am, Stephanie…not so much right now."

Stephanie spent the rest of the day trying to figure out a way to blow her father away, but for the first time in her life, she just couldn't think of anything. There was no way she could resign like Shane. She was a little envious of him, not for the quitting part, but the part where Shane shocked Vince right out of his socks. That part she liked. She wanted that kind of impact on her father, but she was loath to think of anything that would shock him like that, save for _her_ resigning from the company or divorcing Chris or something and she'd already tried the divorce trick once before.

"What if I wanted to divorce you?" Stephanie asked, looking up at Chris who was playing with his kids.

"Hey, not sure if you noticed, but I have a handicap match tonight that I'd like to stay loose for her and this isn't exactly helping," Chris pointed out, giving her a look that meant cut it out.

"Oh please, like Big Show isn't going to have your back since you two are the bestest of friends now. I expect you to go make a clubhouse any minute with a big 'No Girls or Non-great people allowed!" written in the front."

"He's my friend. You can't be tag partners with someone and not be their friend."

"You and the Rock, 2001 I believe it was," Stephanie told him, smirking because she knew she had him caught out. There was no love lost between Chris and Rocky back then even though they'd moved past their differences and were friends now.

"Okay, fine, one time, you've got one time where that wasn't true, but Rocky was a glory hog, still is if you ask me."

"Go tell him that. Big Show will obviously help you tonight and even if he didn't, I think you could defeat DX on your own."

"No you don't."

"Well, I didn't say it would be easy or anything, I'm just saying that you could definitely beat them if you were crafty and managed to eliminate one early, Shawn because he's more fragile than Hunter, maybe slam him through the table, then just go after Hunter and I know that you can beat him."

"You've never actually wrestled so I'm not going to take advice from you at this moment," Chris said, "why are you always suggesting we divorce, I'm really starting to get a complex here. Pretty soon I'm going to start thinking these are not joking comments but subtle hints that you are, in fact, trying to divorce me. Are you trying to divorce me?"

"No, I'm just thinking about what would shock my father out of his pants at this moment."

"I don't want to see your dad out of pants, thanks," Chris laughed and Sawyer laughed too.

"You know what I mean. I need something on par with my brother resigning for my dad to see me, to notice me again. Maybe last time I didn't make a big enough impression. I mean, I had the falling out with Shane, but Shane and I are brother and sister and we're bound to fight. Then there was the stuff with us divorcing, but I think it was pretty clear after a while that we were just faking--"

"Probably had something to do with the fact we said we were faking," Chris jokingly interjected. "Sorry."

"So that didn't do anything. I mean, firing you, that wasn't even that big a deal because my dad would obviously hire you back because he wouldn't want you going to TNA."

"Never would go there."

"Well _obviously_, because that would be stabbing me in the back, I don't think you would go there even if we _did_ divorce someday."

"Why'd you have to put someday in there? That makes it seem like it's inevitable."

She ignored him and continued. "I should've made a bigger impact. I should've done something more large-scale. Then I would still be in charge on the show and my father wouldn't have completely overlooked me. That's what Vickie did. She did something, she inserted herself and look what happened, she's now practically running the show and stealing it right out from under Teddy's nose."

"So what are you going to do?"

"I have no idea and therein lies the problem. I'm all out of ideas. So basically, I just continue what I'm doing. What are you doing with Hunter? Decided on what you're having Christian do?"

"I'm giving up."

"You're what? Why?"

"Christian brought up a good point. Sometimes you have to let someone hit rock bottom before they'll want help. So Hunter can have at it, he can ruin his own life and I have no doubt that he is."

"So you're just letting it go?"

"Just letting it go, poof into the air," Chris said, making little poof hand gestures into the air. "I've got bigger things to worry about."

"So what are you going focus on now that you're not mad at him or getting him back on our side?"

"Just keeping my tag titles, something I _should_ have been focusing on all along. I mean, that is my job, I'm a wrestler and instead, I've been too busy being focused on things that have nothing to do with wrestling."

"Well that's not true because Hunter is a wrestler after all," Stephanie told him.

"Stephanie, you know what I mean," Chris said, looking at her with that look of his that meant that he was being serious right now and he didn't need her to act like what he said was his usual goofball stuff. "I should focus on winning the match tonight, doing what I have to do on SmackDown then winning on Sunday."

"I'm not going to put you into anything that is going to be a challenge," Stephanie told him. "I wouldn't do that to you days before you have a big match so don't even worry about SmackDown."

"Well thanks," he said, "still, I have a big match tonight, I want to get some momentum going into the match this Sunday."

"Okay, so focus on that, nobody said you had to focus on Hunter or repairing whatever damage has been done. Besides, I think Britt is happy with Evan."

"It's not even so much that I want them together or anything, just want Hunter to stop being such a douchebag."

"Chris," she said, gesturing to Sawyer, who was listening intently.

"Sorry," Chris said to his kid. "Anyways, that's my story and I'm sticking to it."

"Well fine, sorry I even asked," she laughed as she thumbed through some papers. "Do you have anything that I could do to my father?"

"Did you not hear the whole spiel about being focused on wrestling?"

"Sorry, sorry, I'm definitely on my own with this one then, aren't I?" she said.

"Definitely, we'll just agree to go our own separate ways with this one, I think," he said. "That way you can do whatever it is you're going to do with your father and I can make sure that I have the titles so I can continue to dominate around here and let you come around."

"If you don't win on Sunday, I don't think I'll have a reason to be around here," she admitted. She didn't want to assume that when Chris wasn't here her father or whoever would just let her come around and control everything. Well, maybe her father wouldn't care, but she could also see him as thinking that she wasn't needed. It would be right on par with what he thought about her anyways. She would like to stay on, especially since she was the one who dealt with the guest hosts and who tried to make them not seem as ignorant as most of them were. It was really difficult dealing with people who had no idea what wrestling was really about. It was like a baptism by fire for them, throwing them into something and she was the one who had to pull them through.

"I think you will. I don't think that you would let me losing get in the way of whatever you have going here."

"I just don't want my father thinking that I'm stepping on anyone's toes."

"He won't," Chris said. "Like I'm not worrying about Hunter, you should not worry about what your father thinks. You have shares in the company, a ton of them, plus, he's still hung up on the fact that Shane is leaving so what would he care?"

"Do you think that he would care if I left like that?"

"Are you kidding me? Your father would be banging down our door everyday, holding protests, he might even beg…hey, what do you say we both go to him and tell him that we're both quitting!" Chris said, like he was having a "Eureka!" moment.

"Wow, I think he would definitely just keel over if that were to happen."

"I say we do it, if for nothing else than to see his reaction," Chris said. "Then we can tell him we're going to do something outrageous like open up a holistic health store or something in Colorado. That would freak him out."

Stephanie laughed, then shook her head. "He'd wonder where he went wrong."

"Then you can tell him that it was all his fault."

"If only," Stephanie said. Chris thought for a moment and then he looked up at Stephanie. "What's with the look on your face?"

"I think I may have an idea."


	262. Slam This, December 11 to 14, 2009

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, guys, slowly working my way back into this one. Hope you enjoy the chapter, I enjoyed writing it and if you want to leave a review, that'd be cool, thanks. :)

* * *

"If I lie down like this, I almost can't see over my stomach."

"Trish, look at me!" Christian cried. "I look hideous, this reeks of heinosity. My eye looks awful and stitches, thank God our kid isn't coming until February because I would hate for it to have to see me right now, looking like this. I'd probably scare it so much that it would go right back inside you."

"How you look? You're complaining about how _you_ look?" Trish said, then gestured towards her stomach. "Excuse me, Christian, you have _no _room to complain. In fact, from here until the end of my pregnancy, I don't want to hear you complain once because whatever you have going for you, your little facial issue is nothing compared to what this kid is doing not only to me, but to my insides."

"Well, I mean, I'm just saying that what I have sucks, I'm not trying to make light of your situation," he said, "but you don't have stitches."

"You don't have a _baby_ inside of you," she complained. "One that will not stay still for two seconds. I blame that on you by the way. Plus, there's the issue of my swollen ankles and my aching back because, for one, I used to be a wrestler so I had chronic back pain issues to begin with, and for two, my body frame is probably not a great one to carry a baby since I'm pretty small as it is. Your kid is probably going to weigh fifteen pounds when they're out of here."

"I really don't think that," he mumbled to himself.

"Then there's the gas, which I'm sure you've heard and I'm embarrassed that you've heard because I'm one of those girls that doesn't like farting in front of people. Plus the heartburn and indigestion, do you think this is fun for me?"

"Well, I mean, a little, right?"

"Yeah, a little, very little, God, you had to want a kid."

"Well you wanted one too," he pointed out slowly, knowing he was treading on very thin ice right now. "I'm just saying that my match last night against Shelton was pretty brutal and I came out looking a little worse for the wear, that's all. I mean, I'm not trying to downgrade what you're going through, but I _did_ get stitches."

"Oh my God, yeah, go on about the stitches, please," Trish said, rolling her eyes. She pushed herself up. "I'm going to go see Stephanie."

"You know, you really didn't have to come," Christian said. "I mean, you didn't really feel up to traveling and I didn't force you."

"I didn't want to stay home and sit around alone, got it?" Trish said and Christian looked sheepish and just a little peeved. He'd probably thought that he'd get a few days off from Trish. She knew she was starting to become unbearable, but she had no idea that pregnancy would be so…hard. She should've probably known from seeing her sister and Stephanie when they were pregnant, but she had no idea how much it actually wreaked havoc on your body. The worst part was not being used to having such a huge stomach. Her center of balance was completely off and sometimes she'd almost lose her balance because he wasn't used to being so front heavy (except for maybe her chest area). Then, as if to add insult to injury, she kept knocking things over with her stomach. She couldn't go anywhere without looking like an idiot.

She was about ready to rip this kid out of her stomach some days. Other days, she had that mom-to-be sheen about her, but other days, she felt like hell on wheels. It was better to get away from the source of her annoyance (Christian) than to stick around. She walked to the elevator and wondered why she'd come and traveled in her seventh month. It was true that she got lonely at home when everyone was gone. Edge was starting to train again to get back to the ring so he was always tied up doing that and Lita usually went with him so even if they had the time to hang out, it would only be at night and she was usually exhausted by 10:00 and Edge and Lita were nightowls.

She knocked on Stephanie and Chris's door, hoping they were there. Stephanie answered the door a few minutes later and smiled at Trish. "Hey, Trish, what's up?"

"Other than the fact that I wouldn't blame Christian for divorcing me any second now, nothing," she answered, walking inside as Stephanie moved out of the way.

"Did you guys have a fight?"

"No, I just blew up at him, again, I don't know what's going on with me, but just the sight of him is enough to piss me off sometimes. Like, I don't want to look at him."

"Probably because he's the one that got you pregnant."

"Did you go through that with Chris?"

"I pretty much never want to see Chris, I just tolerate him most of the time because I married him."

Trish laughed, she needed that. "So essentially you're just going through the motions?" she joked.

"Oh definitely," Stephanie said, pretending to be serious. We're closing in on the decade mark for our relationship and let me tell you, the spark, she's gone, completely and utterly gone, we're really just together for the kids."

"And not because Chris is an extremely good-looking man who probably gets hit on more times than even he can count and then brag about to you later," Trish said.

"Oh, you wouldn't believe how many people on Twitter talk about him. I go on his Twitter a lot, I post stuff for him, even though he hates it, but you should see some of the stuff on there. It's like a Jericho love fest."

"And you don't join in?"

"Me?" Stephanie balked. "Of course not, I'm above that. When you've see Chris Jericho puking into a toilet because he ate bad shrimp or seen some of the things I've seen him go through, the man loses his mystique…fast."

"Where is he?"

"Shower."

"Is he okay after losing last night?"

"Well, he was pouting for a while, but I think he's better now."

"Is he going to be on Raw tonight?"

"Everyone is going to be at Raw, besides, he's up for some Slammies so he'll definitely be there. He's not going to be happy though. I can only be around him so much and I think his mood hinges on how close I am or how close the kids are."

"Are they napping?"

"Yeah, they're getting an early nap today since it's going to be a long show later and I don't know how awake they'll be and I don't like it when they have to nap at the arena so they're asleep right now."

"Hey, Trish," Chris said, coming out of the bathroom, a pair of loose shorts on. "I didn't know you were here."

"Just got here, sorry about last night."

"I'm using the rematch clause tonight so I'll be getting my titles back soon enough, don't worry about that," he said, "besides, you know what the best thing about having a wife is?"

"I'm not sure since I've never had one," Trish said with a laugh.

"They're there for you when you need some pick-me-up sex."

"Oh, so _that's_ why you're not in a bad mood, I get it," Trish said, looking knowingly at Stephanie. She shrugged. She couldn't help it if she and Chris were like insatiable teenagers most of the time. Chris came over and kissed Stephanie on the head.

"So, I'm going to head down to the gym for a while."

"Even after last night, I mean, your arm," she said, running her hand over the bandage securely tied around his arm. "Are you sure you're okay."

"I'll be fine. Don't worry about that, it's only a gash and yeah, I'm sore, but not anymore sore than I would've been otherwise. I know how to protect myself out there and I did that last night, per your request, my dear."

"I know," she said, "well then, have fun I guess. We'll meet up in an hour so we can leave for the show, right? And you promise to tell me what your plan is, right? I mean, you've been holding out on me, dangling it over me like a steak or something and I'm a starving dog."

"I know, I've just been setting things in motion, but don't worry about it, what I do have planned is going to knock your socks off, yours too, Trish," Chris told her, raising his eyebrows. "I'll see you later girls, if you talk about me, please only use glowing words."

"We always do, Snookums," Stephanie said sarcastically as Chris flipped her off than left.

"What plan?"

"Well, I've been trying to think of some way to shock my dad like Shane shocked him by resigning--"

"So you're going to resign."

"I want to _shock_ my dad, not kill him," Stephanie laughed. "Anyways, Chris has been saying he has a plan, something that will shock my dad and knock him out, figuratively speaking…I think…I hope Chris isn't planning on really knocking him out, that might get a little awkward. But whatever it is, he said he had to pull some major strings and so I'm just sitting around waiting."

"What do you think it is?" Trish asked.

"I have absolutely no clue, I've been looking at things, snooping, but he keeps his phone around him all the time so I can't check on that. He always has it on him. I've looked on his laptop, but there's nothing there that can give any indication."

"You say that he does his Twitter thing a lot, I don't do my own, but like, I kind of have one, maybe he's been direct messaging people, have you checked?"

"You know, I haven't! That's a great idea!" Stephanie said, pushing herself up quickly (much to the envy of Trish, who felt like she had to be airlifted out of a sitting position) and grabbing Chris's laptop, which was sitting on the table. "He doesn't get online a lot so I don't think there'd be much lurking around his internet and he does more work on his home computer, which is password-protected and he won't even let tell me the password."

"You know it though, don't you?" Trish asked.

"Of course, I can read Chris like a book. There's nothing on there I need to worry about, no second wives lurking around or anything. Just a bunch of paperwork dealing with his non-WWE stuff. He lets me take care of his WWE stuff."

"So you're almost like his personal secretary."

"Sure," Stephanie said, lifting up the screen and turning it on. They waited for it to load up, Trish aww'ing at the picture of Flynn and Sawyer that was his wallpaper. The two of them were both looking at the camera, but it looked as if the picture had been an ambush as both of them looked completely surprised and shocked they were being photographed. Stephanie started up the internet and went to Chris's Twitter page, logging on. "Okay, what should we be looking for here?"

"Just anything that could give any indication to what he's up to. Maybe he spoke about it with someone, one of his friends, maybe someone had something he needed to execute whatever it is that he's doing," Trish answered, leaning over so she could see as well. "Wow, he has a lot of followers."

"He's popular, you know, it's funny, but I guess he's more accessible off-air. People hate him to his face, but then he's on here and it's like, oh my God, it's Chris Jericho, I love him, people are so fickle," Stephanie said, searching through his direct messages. "These are all about Fozzy and about heavy metal."

"Well, he does need an outlet since you never talk to him about it."

"I don't know enough to talk to him about it. I like some metal, but then when I start talking about it, he corrects me every five seconds because he's the self-proclaimed expert on the genre and I'm just a lowly nobody who's supposed to be in awe of him."

"Except you've never really been in awe of him."

"I might if whatever he's planning is as good as he says it is," she kidded. "But any conversation we try to have about metal ends with me yelling at him and storming out."

"As most of your conversations tend to do."

"I resent that," she said, going down the list for the last week. "Nothing, there's nothing on here that gives any indication to what he's planning."

"What about this one?" Trish said. "Gotta go, Steph is here, don't want her to catch me."

"Oh, I know what that was about," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "He was giving Flynn some candy after I specifically told him not to give her any sugar because I don't want her teeth to get rotten before she can fully appreciate them, but she gave him a little 'Daddy, don't you love me?' and he caved and gave her some. When I walked in, he had his hand in her mouth, trying to grab the piece of chocolate from her so I wouldn't see."

"Remind me not to let Christian do anything like that."

"Good idea, get him disciplined early."

"Hey, Stephanie, I forgot my…what are you two doing on my laptop?" Chris asked as he walked inside.

Stephanie's eyes widened momentarily and then she tried to play it smooth. "Nothing, not at all, sweetie, what did you forget?"

"I forgot my headphones," he said slowly, "what are you looking at?"

"Nothing," she said. "I was just showing Trish this great online baby store where she can get some gear for the baby, you know, breast pumps, slings, the works."

"Turn the computer towards me and don't press a single button."

"You don't trust me?"

"I've never trusted you, turn the computer towards me," Chris told her, folding his arms in front of his chest. He knew what she was probably doing. She was probably trying to snoop and figure out what he was planning for her father. She wouldn't find it on there though, everything that dealt with that deal was happening on his phone. He knew Stephanie like he knew himself and she was not one who liked to be on the outside looking in.

"Chris," she whined.

"Stephanie," he said and she took a deep, sulking breath before she started to turn the computer towards him slowly. He looked at it and it was just as he thought. She was, once again, on his Twitter. That woman spent more time on that damn thing than he did. Luckily, he'd planned a little something a few days ago and had been waiting for _just_ the right moment to lay it on her. "You're unbelievable, McMahon. You can't wait a little while to get something really good, can you?"

"No, I can't. You've known me for over ten years and you're just now figuring out that I like to know things? Where have you been, Jericho?"

"I guess I had my head in the sand," he said, rolling his eyes. "Get off there now."

"And if I don't?"

"Then I'll make you get off there."

"I'd like to see you try," she told him, squinting her eyes in challenge.

"Were you going to comment to anyone?"

"I was just going to promote some of the stuff you're doing, that's it, you know that's all I do…most of the time."

"Most of the time?" Trish asked.

"Sometimes she honestly pretends to be me," Chris explained. "She will go on there, because she has it hooked up to _my_ account on her phone and answer things on my behalf, questions about what I like."

"Because I know what you like!" Stephanie said. "Am I supposed to just forget everything I've learned about you?"

"What do you do, keep my life on notecards?"

"I sleep next to you every night, I wake up next to you every morning, I've had two of your kids, I think I know what songs you like, dumbass," Stephanie said. "I wasn't going to comment on anything, I was just trying to find out what you were doing."

"Like that makes it any better," Chris scoffed, "but whatever, I'll have my day, Stephanie McMahon, I've set up an account on there, just for you, in fact, like you pretend to be me, _I'm_ pretending to be you!"

"What! No you're not," she said, scowling at him.

"Oh yes, I am, and I dare you to go ahead and find it. _Dare_ you," he said, sticking his tongue out like a child. "I'll give you a hint, you're following me."

"That is _no_ help!" Stephanie said.

"Well, I'm sorry, maybe that will teach you to keep out of my business."

"But I am your business," she told him. "Everything you do is my business, you signed away that privilege when you signed the marriage license."

"I love you too, Steph," he said, spotting his headphone sticking out of his backpack and grabbing them, winking at her before he left.

"He just does that to get on my nerves," Stephanie said. "I bet he doesn't even have a Twitter thing set up for me. He's probably just trying to bait me into something. Look for it or whatever. He's lying I'm sure."

"You're totally going to go looking for it, aren't you?"

Chris whistled as he walked down the hallway to the elevator. That would get Stephanie off his back for a while and with good reason. He really wanted to surprise her with what he was doing and it was taking a little bit longer than he'd anticipated for it to happen. He didn't want to jump the gun and tell Stephanie and then not be able to pull it off. It was all for her though, much like everything he did, it was all for her. God, he was such a sap for her.

He got down to the gym and couldn't believe the other person in there. He jammed his headphones in his ears and headed over to a treadmill, ready to drown himself in some meaningless running. Shawn smirked at him as he passed. "Hey, loser."

"Oh wow, is that your best insult for me?" Chris asked, glancing at him. "After all the years of being a wrestler, that's the best you can do."

"I'm just giving an accurate description of you," Shawn smirked.

"Yeah, you're oh so accurate, I'm not a loser though, the only loser around here is you. Plus, you're pathetic to boot so you've got a double whammy going for you, congratulations."

"At least I'm the tag champion."

"So?" Chris asked. "It's not like you'll hold it forever and if that's what you think you have over me, whatever, don't forget that essentially, I own you, Shawn. Sure, I may not want or use the power, but it's there. But whatever, no matter, you're not worth my time, you aren't and Hunter certainly isn't."

"You're just completely burned that I took your supposed friend from you, aren't you?"

"No, I'm not, if Hunter wants to hang around a self-righteous hypocrite like yourself, he can go right ahead. You know the people I talk about out there, the parasites, the hypocrites, the troglodytes, I'm pretty much describing you on a good day, Shawn. You talk all about loving God and what not, being a new person, a _family_ man, if you will, but it's all just a lie. You take and take and take and that's what you did with Hunter. He's a good guy and he had something going, but you can't handle that. You need to feel better than someone and Hunter's an easy target because of everything you've done for him. You took him under your wing, became his best friend, developed this little DX group with him that launched him into superstardom so he feels obligated to be your friend now, to follow you blindly into the dark, am I getting this 95 percent right or 100 percent right? I'm leaning more towards the 100."

"You seriously need to get a grip on reality."

"I have one, do you? Because one day, maybe not even too far off, Hunter will find out what a douchebag you really are. I hope I'm there to see that day, see you, Shawn," Chris said, turning on his music very purposefully as he stepped on the treadmill. He could care less what Hunter and Shawn did. He was taking Christian's advice and staying the hell out of it. Let Hunter do whatever he wanted.

Hunter had been trying to enjoy a late lunch, but had not been able to enjoy anything the moment he saw Britt and Evan walk in for their own meal. He knew he shouldn't have eaten at the hotel. He should've waited until he got to catering at the arena, but then he might have to see them there. It wasn't so much that he and Britt were no longer an item, he liked to think he was over her (he wasn't), but the fact that she seemed so _happy_ in her new relationship. Maybe part of it was that new relationship honeymoon period where everything was great, but Britt had been seeing Evan for a little while now and they were still acting like two drunk college kids. They were sitting across from each other and Evan was holding her hand and he kept leaning across the table to kiss her and Hunter was about to throw up on the rug if he had to see this anymore. He stared straight ahead as he continued to eat, willing himself not to look over again.

Besides, his career was what was important now. He'd won the tag titles the night before and that was a huge deal. Now _he_ could go to any show that he wanted. He was the one with the leverage. He knew he should feel better about this recent acquisition of power, but somehow, it felt a little empty, like he had nobody to share it with. It wasn't true of course, the entire point of being a tag champ was that you had someone to share the titles with, but he didn't have anyone but Shawn to share it with. He'd won the belt off the only other guy around here he'd actually considered a friend and he couldn't imagine that Chris was too happy with him after beating him last night. Shawn would make him feel better though, he'd remind him that they were champions now and he had gold around his waist, even if it wasn't necessarily the gold he wanted.

"StupidStephy!" Stephanie said, slamming her hands down on the desk in front of Chris, who looked up, startled. He'd just been reading over the schedule for this evening, Flynn sitting in his lap and trying to read it as well, if the way she was pulling down the paper was any indication, when Stephanie had come barging into the room to slam her hands down on the desk. Flynn looked startled as Chris started laughing.

"You honestly went and looked, didn't you?"

"Well, you practically forced my hand," Stephanie said.

"So you went through 70,000 people?" he asked.

"Well I was looking at first, skimming really, but then I thought, you have your phone hooked up to your own account so you'd probably use your computer for something to make fun of me so I just looked up your history and you had it on there and…StupidStephy!" Stephanie exclaimed, her face pursed up, all of it, not just her lips.

"I have no idea who this person is," Chris shrugged.

"Oh please, I know it's you because there's a picture and it's all about self-service to you and I'll have you know that I fell down those stairs because Sawyer left a toy on the stairs and I didn't see it because I was carrying laundry!"

"It was still pretty funny, I mean, it wouldn't have been if it was the whole staircase, but as it was just the bottom few steps, I think it was great."

"I hate you," she seethed. "Nobody better know about that, do you understand me?"

"What, you mean you don't want me to respond to you with funny little quips about how you always get eye gunk in the mornings or how you fell out of bed the other night because you thought you heard Sawyer calling for you, but it was really in your dream that he was calling for you. Or how about how you particularly like it when I hit a particular spot on you when I'm going--"

"You will not say any of that, in fact, delete it."

"No, I don't think so."

"I'll delete it then."

"Come on, nobody sees it, it's not like people are looking it up and thinking it's you anyways, I think most people believe you're too busy for that kind of idleness."

"You're an ass, you know that."

"Mommy, we don't say bad words," Sawyer piped in.

"We do when Daddy is being a meanie-butt," Stephanie said, toning it down for Sawyer.

Sawyer laughed, "Daddy, are you a meanie-butt?"

"According to your mother, I am," Chris said, tilting his head. "Stephanie, lighten up, it's just a little bit of fun that only I know about, nobody else knows about it so it's okay, okay, lighten up."

"_You_ lighten up," Stephanie said, but just then Sawyer came over to her and started hugging her legs. She looked down at him and he looked up at her with his smile and his blue eyes and she rolled her eyes. Chris probably trained him to do this. She leaned down and picked him up. "What do you want?"

"Hug time!" Sawyer said, hugging Stephanie around the neck and she hugged him back. "Mommy, are you doing 'wards tonight?"

"Yeah, how did you know?" she asked.

"I saw the 'wards," Sawyer told her, "when I with Daddy and we were walking and I saw them and they are shiny. Are you having one?"

"I'm not going to have one, but I know your dad will get one."

"Daddy, you get one?"

"Yeah, probably," Chris said, not knowing for sure, but he had a good feeling. It would be just poetic if it was for the best tag team seeing as how they lost last night. God, it would probably be rigged by Shawn just to humiliate him more. "You can have it though."

"Mommy, I can have it!" Sawyer said, excited about that. He had a lot of wrestling stuff in his room and he loved all of it. He loved that his daddy was a wrestler. He thought it was the most coolest thing ever and he was going to be just like his daddy when he grew up.

"I know, I just heard him too," Stephanie said kindly, kissing his cheek. "You're going to be the coolest kid on the block with all your stuff. Everyone is going to be jealous of you."

"So hey, did you talk to Dennis Miller yet?"

"I'm not talking to you, so you can just leave me alone."

"Stephanie, come on, it's a joke, you know what those are, right?"

"I know what they are, but I don't appreciate you putting our private business out into the world like that."

"Private business? Seriously, Steph? There's no private business on there nor will there ever be. I know what to keep private and what not to keep private, okay?"

"Whatever, I've got things to do and yes, I have talked to Miller, he's here, I've given him everything he needs to do for the show so it's all there. You will be getting your rematch tonight, I already set that up."

"Great, thanks," Chris said, then stood up, hefting up Flynn with him. "I've got to go meet…with Big Show, so should we split up?"

"Yeah, you take her, I take him?"

"Sounds good," he said, leaning forward to kiss her. "Oh, and the secret, the big secret plan I've been coming up with, you'll find out about it later tonight, okay?"

"Really?" she asked, her eyes lighting up at the thought of a new and super-secret plan.

"Yeah, just you wait, McMahon, it's going to knock your socks off."

He kissed her again and then left with Flynn. He had to go meet with Dennis Miller before the show began. He knew the guy probably didn't like him, but he could use his position to get what he wanted, at least this time. He couldn't wait until Stephanie found out what he had planned. It was going to blow her away and she'd be grateful and after the kids went to bed, she would show him just how grateful he was. He smirked at that. Yes, she would be extremely grateful. He knocked on Miller's door and the man himself answered a moment later.

"Hello, Mr. Miller, I'm Chris Jericho and I just wanted to talk to you for a moment. You already spoke to my wife, Stephanie McMahon," Chris said, he always mentioned that fact because otherwise, with his on-screen demeanor not matching his off-screen persona, people were hesitant to talk to him. When he mentioned he was part of the ownership, however, doors open and Miller's door was opening right this second.

Stephanie made her way to Ted's locker room, knocking on it and waiting for him to answer. When he did, she slipped in quietly. "Hey, Ted."

"Hey, Steph, did you get a copy of my movie?" he asked. "I totally have a copy handy if you need one."

"Thanks," she said, taking it from him. "This is really cool, I'm sure you're great in it."

"I like to think so, I hope people like it. I hope they don't think I'm such a huge jackass they don't buy it or see it, I'm really proud of it."

"You know, now would be a great time to break off from Legacy. People would like you and want to see your movie. I think it could really work for you. Just a suggestion of course."

"What kind of movie is this?" Sawyer asked, looking at the DVD Stephanie had handed to him. "That's you!" Sawyer said, pointing to the box and then looking up at Ted.

"Yeah, I was in a movie, probably not for kids like you though, might be a little scary."

"Oh," Sawyer said, looking at the box now with trepidation. "I don't want scary things."

"I understand, I was the same way," Ted told him nicely and Stephanie thought the interaction between her son and Ted incredibly sweet.

"You know, Ted, I think people should get to know this side of you. I think, when you decide that Randy is not worth your time, if you have people already liking you, it'll make the transition even better and then the crowd will be completely behind you."

"How do you think I should do that though?"

"Well, I can think of one way, it's the way my husband connects with his fans and proves he's not a complete scumbag."

"Okay and what's that."

"I think you need a Twitter account, God help me, I can't believe I just said that," she said, shaking her head. "But honestly, I think it'll do wonders, think about it?"

"Okay, I'll think about it."

Chris did end up winning best tag team and he was kind of bitter about it. Except he knew he could have his rematch and he'd spoken with Miller about it during their conversation so it was definitely going to happen tonight. He'd made it iron-clad when he'd spoken with the man. Not that he didn't believe in his wife's power when she made the schedule, but with a guest host, sometimes they were unpredictable and he wanted to make sure that everything he did was going to happen. He was going to win this match tonight and gain his rightful place.

"You do know even if you lose tonight that you don't have to go anywhere, right?" Stephanie said as they waited for his match later. "I mean, obviously, Hunter and Shawn will try to keep you off I'm sure, which will probably be all Shawn, but you don't have to listen to that."

"But you're not officially in charge, the guest host is."

"So what? You own this company, you know, own it."

"I don't like to flaunt that, I would rather legitimately get it and have a right to be here."

"But you _do_ have a right to be here," she told him. "You _own_ the company. What part of that don't you understand?"

"No, _you_ own the company, you and your family."

"Newsflash, genius, you're part of this family."

"Yeah, but it's not mine like _mine_, it's yours and I married into it. I'll do this my own way, like I've done everything in my career my own way."

"You're a weirdo, you know that."

"Sorry for not using my wife, geez," he said, shaking his head. "You're very combatant lately, you're not pregnant, are you?"

"No, I'm not pregnant," she said, "just anxious to know what it is that you have up your sleeve."

"Patience, baby, it's all about patience," he told her. "I know you usually have none, but seriously, it'll be okay and you'll be happy and your dad won't be happy and isn't that what we both want as the end game?"

"Yeah, that would be nice. You're going to let me take all the credit?"

"Well, can I get billed as a supporting character?" he asked.

"You always are," she told him, smiling at him before leaning her head against his shoulder. "You're really sure that my dad will be shocked."

"Oh, I think he will be," Chris said, "once you find out what it is, you'll understand why."

"I cannot imagine what you've done," Stephanie said. "But I know it'll be good. I trust you, that you wouldn't tell me something and then have it be a complete bust. Was it really difficult to set up, whatever it is that you've set up?"

"You would not believe how hard it was. I jumped through hoops to get this thing done and settled, but I think it's going to be worth it, in fact, I know it is."

"Can't you just tell me now!" she said, fidgeting in her seat.

"No, I can't, it would ruin it. It would just ruin the entire thing."

"There are so many reason why I _shouldn't_ love you and yet I continue to do so," she told him and he grinned at her. "Don't look at me like that. You know I hate when you look at me like that."

"I'm just trying to distract from the fact that Hunter is on the screen with his little buddy, Gilligan."

Stephanie groaned. "Just the people I _don't_ want to see. Be sure to get some stiff hits on them for your match later."

"Speaking of that, I need to talk to Miller soon, just for kicks and giggles of course," Chris said.

"Of course," she said, but she was suspicious. Was he going to talk about whatever was going to be his big plan? She wanted to ask, but kept it to herself. She did kind of want to be surprised.

When Chris did leave, Stephanie got anxious. When would it happen, what would it be? Chris was feeling pretty good about himself right about now. Stephanie was going to know soon enough if everything went according to plan. Miller was going to pretend to hate him, just to throw Vince off track of who had brought up what was going to come up, and he was going to win the tag titles back and officially be invited to Raw every week. Life was looking good.

He watched Miller's promo from backstage and smiled at the execution of his plan, well, the beginning of the execution of his plan. The rest would have to come at a later date. Once Stephanie was in on it, she was the one who could really get the ball rolling. He met with Miller again, acting like a jackass and Miller did the same for him. Vince would have no idea he was the instigator. Stephanie was going to get all the credit and he'd get to sit back and watch Vince squirm. He knew he should love his father-in-law, they were family after all, but even after all these years, even after being part of the McMahon family for nearly five years, the rebel in him liked sticking it to the man. Vince would always be Vance to him.

His match sucked.

There was no other way around it. His match, wait, he couldn't even call it that, sucked. That was not a rematch and as he stood there in disbelief, he couldn't believe that they were going to get away with this. Hunter was a jackass when he was around Shawn, but this was low. To eliminate your competition in this manner, the old Hunter wouldn't have done this, no matter how much of a goon he was. The old Hunter would have fought it out and crushed his opponent, not relied on some juvenile prank to get out of a match. Hunter and Shawn were scared, that was all. They were scared to have Chris on Raw all the time.

Then to add humiliation to the plate, they had guys, other wrestlers drag him out of the building, Christian among them, which shocked the hell out of him. When he was backstage, he shrugged himself free of them and turned to Christian, who was taking off his DX shirt. "What the hell, man, why the hell are you siding with that asshole?"

"Look, man, I know you can be on Raw if you want to, you're married to Stephanie, besides, Trish won't talk to me, so if she sees me in the DX shirt, at least she'll yell at me and I can talk to her."

"That's the stupidest reason ever."

"A guy's gotta do what a guy's gotta do. Besides, I thought it would be funny," Christian said. "Come on, man, you can stay on Raw, you're a McMahon!"

"I'm _not_ a McMahon," Chris clarified sharply, "and you know that's not how I work."

"Well then come back next week, you can at least use your power to be here, right? Then work on getting back to Raw full-time."

"You make too much sense." Chris saw Stephanie running down the hallway and then stop in front of him. "Where are the kids?"

"Trish is watching them," she said, panting for breath. "It took me a few minutes to figure it out, but you didn't, did you?"

"Didn't what?" he smirked, trying to hold in his smile of triumph.

"Oh my God, Chris, you didn't? How did…oh my God…"

Chris couldn't help it, he smiled. "I have no idea what you're talking about, Stephanie, I'm completely lost here."

"Glad I'm not the only one," Christian muttered.

"You…are you serious? You must be, I mean, you…"

"Spit it out, Stephanie," Chris told her.

"You got Bret Hart."


	263. Ho, Ho, Ho, December 18 to 21, 2009

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, hope you enjoy the chapter and leave a review if you want. :)

* * *

"Are you serious?"

"I'm not kidding," Stephanie said, poking some more salad on her fork. "I'm not even close to joking. I'm being completely serious."

"How in God's name did Chris get _Bret_ _Hart_ to agree to be on Raw again?" Shane asked. He was almost too shocked to eat. His tenure with WWE was coming to a close, but this news almost made him want to get right back on that horse. Because he was so close to being done, he and Stephanie had managed to patch things up considerably between them. If he was leaving, she didn't want to fight with him. It was easy to fight with him knowing she'd see him at work, but if he wasn't working, would they drift apart? She didn't want that to happen and neither did he so they worked on it like normal people.

"He hasn't told me how he did it, only that he called in some favors. I don't even know how he managed it, what he did?"

"Maybe he had to have sex with someone to be able to meet up with Bret," Shane laughed. Stephanie looked at him with a stony expression. "Steph, I'm kidding! I don't think Chris had to exchange sex for meetings, that's only something you would do."

"You're the worst big brother."

"I'm sorry, you know I'm kidding," he said, patting her hand. "I'm just shocked that this is happening. I never thought anything or anyone could get Bret to come back to TV. I mean, the Hall of Fame was hard enough. That took every ounce of Dad's effort to get him to do that. Then your husband swoops in and he's agreeing to host Raw."

"Not only that," Stephanie said. "Chris said that he was willing to sign a short-term contract."

Shane's food almost fell out of his mouth. It was one thing to have Bret come back for a one-time appearance to throw their father off-track, but a contract, an actual contract that meant an extended period of time. "Is Chris a wizard?"

"I'm seriously starting to think he might be," Stephanie laughed. "He's amazing. I don't know how he did it. I have no idea how he managed to pull this off, but he did. I'm meeting up with Bret this Saturday. Me! I'm going to be meeting with him and with Chris and we're going to draw up his contract and have him sign. Can you even believe that?"

"Man, now I wish I wasn't going to be leaving the company. You have got to make sure to tell me when he's going to be hosting because I need to be there to see Dad's face. I need to have a camera on Dad's face. Wait, are you going to tell him beforehand?"

"Yeah, I'm going to tell him beforehand. I'm going to tell him on the 28th. I've been looking over the schedule and I'm going to propose that Bret host Raw on the 4th of January, so the first Raw of the new decade. Figured that'd be a huge deal, big impact. So I'm going to tell Dad a week ahead of time, give it time to sink in, marinate, figured it's the least I can do."

"You're evil."

"He forced my hand," Stephanie said. "And it just so happens that I have the most amazing husband in the entire universe who is able to do amazing things for me."

"I'm still in awe that he was able to do this. Hunter never would've been able to do this," Shane said.

"Shane, come on, Hunter was in on the entire thing," Stephanie said. "Of course he wouldn't have been able to bring Bret back. Bret would probably rather spit in his face than ever let that man talk to him. Hell, right now, _I_ want to spit in Hunter's face a little bit."

"He's not that big a jerk, is he?"

"He's just oblivious. So stubborn. I look at him now and I think about what I ever saw in him in the first place."

"Well of course you do, your husband got Bret freaking Hart to come back to the WWE for _you_. And he's letting you take all the credit too?"

"Yeah, for the most part, I don't think that Dad is necessarily going to believe that I was able to pull this one off on my own. Luckily for us Chris is married to me so it's not like he can suffer any great repercussions. Not that my father won't try, I'm sure, but I think he'll have his hands full with Bret Hart and Chris will just fade beautifully in the background. I think he's entering the Rumble and then he'll win and challenge…Sheamus probably, since he wants to be on Raw so bad, thinks theirs a conspiracy against him, not sure what that's about."

"Where is he?"

"It's Friday, he's at SmackDown, the kids and I didn't make the trip down with him. It would be pointless to fly from here to Texas and then right back again. So we just stayed behind, besides all you guys are here since Christmas is next week and it wouldn't feel right to leave you guys while we go to the show. It's not a big deal. I don't even think Chris has a match, not that I would know since Vickie came back. That bitch is trying to steal _my_ job too. She just used that Escobar kid to get back on the show. She used Edge the same way. Thank God he got out from under that bitch."

"Steph, your own bitch is showing."

"Sorry, can you tell I can't stand her. Plus, Dad just gives her the job because she's there and so you know what, I think this will be part of a lesson. I just won't have anything to do with the show and we'll see how it fares."

"Wow, you and Chris are just full of ideas, aren't you?"

"Don't mock me, Shane, it's not becoming on you," she said as she continued to eat. "In fact it's downright ugly."

"I'm sorry, it's just funny to see you so frazzled."

"Well you were able to get out of this company and go do your own thing so of course I'm going to look frazzled since you're practically in early retirement."

"You know how easy it is, Steph? All you have to do is resign, tell Dad that you quit and you're taking your husband with you. Dad would have a conniption fit if not only you left, but you took one of his top stars with you."

"Not a chance."

"See, you love the business."

"I do love the business. The business and Dad are not mutually exclusive. I love wrestling and I love the ring and the crowds and the wrestlers and the atmosphere. Wrestling has given me things that nothing else ever could."

"Name some things that wrestling gave you that you couldn't have gotten elsewhere?" Shane asked her. "Because I'm fairly sure there is life _after_ wrestling and I intend to go find out what that life is."

"Well, see, you met Marissa when you guys were kids, but I met Chris through wrestling and don't feed me some crap line about how if we were soulmates we would've found one another anyways, I don't believe in that crap. It's also given me confidence, drive. If I were still that girl that just graduated college, I'd be working on my sixth kid with a husband who I tolerated, but didn't truly love, and just generally miserable. I love this business, Shane, I could never leave it behind."

"Then that's where we differ," Shane shrugged.

"Besides, with you gone, who the hell do you think is getting it all when Dad retires?" Stephanie asked smugly.

"You."

"Exactly so I just have to wait it out."

"While making Dad's life completely miserable in the process," he pointed out.

"Where's the fun in complete family accord?"

"Like I said, evil."

Despite feeling very put out after what happened to him on Raw, Chris still went into SmackDown feeling like he was the big boss. Even if he wasn't on Raw right now legally (well, according to the whole draft scenario, but as owner he could tread where he pleased), he was still the face of SmackDown and it could still be used as his soapbox. Whereas on Raw he supposedly wasn't even allowed to talk, on SmackDown, he was. He went to Vickie's office to ask for time, hoping she would be in a foul mood and he could argue with her. It would look better for Stephanie if Chris had to fight his way for something. He'd casually mention it when he saw Vince, seeing as how him and Linda were staying in his home, much to his dismay (he didn't like Vince hovering around his personal space; it was too weird).

Unfortunately for him, Vickie wasn't stupid and, recognizing that he was Vince's son-in-law, let him have all the time he needed. So it was entirely too easy for him to go out there and plead his case. He was starting to believe all this conspiracy talk. While before he just thought it was Hunter and Shawn being the jerks they were, perhaps it was more than that. Stephanie and Vince were in one of their epic tug-of-wars for power so maybe Vince was angling to get back at Stephanie through him. It would be just the kind of thing that Vince would pull, especially if he suspected that he and Stephanie were up to something, which they were, boy, were they.

Nobody except Chris, Stephanie, and Christian (and now Shane, but he didn't know that) knew about the deal with Bret. He had sworn Christian to secrecy and if he only told Trish that'd be okay, but he better not have told anyone else. This was going to rock Vince's boat and he didn't want it getting out there. Unless Bret himself were to tell Vince there was no way the man was going to know what hit him and that excited Chris. He was still a rebel and knowing that there was not just bad blood between Vince and Bret but epic bad blood between them was enough to tide him over for a while.

Still, maybe Vince knew something was up and he was plotting against him, especially with that bogus match the week before. Vince surely could have overturned it, but he hadn't. He'd just let it happen and now everything was starting to make a strange kind of sense. God, damn that man if he got wind of what he was doing. Maybe this really _was_ a conspiracy and the conspirators were none other than Vince, Hunter, and Shawn. Would Vince really? Vince would align with the devil if it would give him exactly what he wanted the way he wanted. He wouldn't put it past Vince to team up with those guys!

Well, he wasn't going anywhere. If he wanted to be on Raw, he'd be on Raw and he wouldn't even use Stephanie to get there. No, he'd get there by his own means and he would get it, in writing, that he could be there whenever he wanted. He always kind of overlooked the fact that he _could_ be there any time he wanted, but he was angry now and there was no time for logical thinking, just time for calling his wife and complaining! As soon as he was done speaking with this crowd of parasites and hypocrites, he would go back to his hotel and talk to his wife about the travesty that was this conspiracy that her own father was probably perpetrating on him.

"You think what?" Stephanie asked later that evening. Sawyer was in bed, but Flynn was being her usual night owl self. She kept the same hours as Stephanie, which was funny to Chris because he thought she was very much like Stephanie. Flynn was lying on Stephanie's leg, making faces and drinking some juice.

"I think your dad is teaming up with Hunter and Shawn against me," Chris said.

"I think you're crazy," Stephanie told him. "What's in the water over there?"

"Nothing, it just hit me tonight that this is exactly what they're doing. Your dad is probably mad at me because he's kind of mad at you, right, which is strange because he's in our house right now…you don't think he'd bug the place, do you?"

"What?" Stephanie asked, making a funny face at Flynn, who started cracking up and rolling around on the bed in laughter. To her, her mommy was a comedienne.

"Fun!" Flynn yelled, which she said every time someone did something that she found extremely hilarious. Stephanie laughed at her and made another face, sending her into another fit of giggles as she turned towards the TV, where her mommy had put in a wrestling tape for her. She loved it, all the colors and movements. Where other kids might be calmed by _Sesame Street_, the thing that calmed Flynn Jericho down the most was something like _Tables, Ladders, and Chairs_ or _Royal Rumble_.

"It is fun," Stephanie said, then went back to her conversation. "You think my dad would bug my home?"

"Stranger things have happened, right?"

"My dad wouldn't bug my home, that would be over the line, plus, do you think my dad is into espionage or something, where would he find bugs, when would he find time to install them?"

"He's Vince McMahon, he could pay spies to break into our home while we're asleep and plant them," Chris reasoned.

Stephanie hissed at him, "Did you smoke something?"

"What? No," he said vehemently. "I'm just thinking about why your dad hasn't even been helping me when it's so obvious that I did not get my rematch. You would think, as my father-in-law, the man who gave him two grandchildren, including his first granddaughter, that he would overturn a decision like that. He did when you were married to Hunter, he gave him special crap all the time."

"Because Hunter was a whiner."

"Well I'm whining now."

"Chris, my dad probably doesn't do anything for you because he knows your stance on that. You didn't want to change when you were with me, remember one of the first conversations we ever had after our first date, like the next day?"

"I'm going to go with selective amnesia in this case," Chris told her, "and since it was, what over seven years ago, I don't remember that far back."

"You absolutely remember that far back."

"Fine, we talked about how I didn't want our relationship to change who I was as a wrestler, but then you made me hide our relationship for a very long time so I don't think I should listen to that right now."

"Look, nobody is conspiring against you except Hunter and Shawn. They're just getting the guest hosts to not like you. I bet they tell them lies about you and that's why none of them like you. I guess you would need to get to them first. Anyways, remember our plan, please, we are lulling my dad into a false sense of ease so when the bomb drops, it makes a harder impact, got it?"

"Fine, but if I find out your dad really is conspiring against me, I'm going to get you."

"Get me what? A nice bouquet of flowers? A wonderful anniversary present since our fifth wedding anniversary is coming up next month?"

"I think Bret Hart covers that."

"Actually, you're probably right," Stephanie said. "I think that does really cover it. Tell me again what you did?"

"I pulled some strings, called some old friends and acquaintances and I got Bret Hart to agree to a short-term contract with the WWE."

Stephanie sighed dreamily, "Hearing that just never gets old."

"You're insane. Let me talk to my daughter."

"Fine, fine, fine." Stephanie looked over at Flynn. "Hey, you with the hair, your daddy wants to talk to you because he likes you better than me."

Flynn held her hands out and Stephanie handed her the phone. She brought it up to her ear and said, "Dada?"

"Hey there, why aren't you asleep?"

"Westle!"

"You're watching wrestling, typical, am I at least on the screen?"

"No no," Flynn said, then giggled, "Dada."

"You better go to sleep now, okay?"

"Okay," Flynn said, then gave the phone back to Stephanie.

"Is she going to sleep?"

"No, she's back to watching her video," Stephanie said. "You know that girl works on her own. She's little miss independent."

"Sounds like someone I know."

"Just get your ass back home, Jericho, got it?"

"Fine, watch out for your dad until I do, just you know, make sure he's not doing anything suspicious. And that he doesn't go into our room at all, the last place I want him to see is the place where we sleep and…do other things. With our luck, he'd walk in there and, I don't know, see a condom or your birth control pills lying around or something."

"I think my parents know we're having sex, just a hunch."

"I don't want them thinking that."

"You want them to think we sleep in twin beds and give each other a chaste kiss goodnight?"

"That is what I'm hoping they think."

"You're cute, get some sleep, Jericho."

"Night, McMahon, love you."

"Love you too, conspiracy victim."

When Chris flew back home, Stephanie was nearly bursting at the seams. It wasn't even from seeing her husband since she saw him all the time. No, it was because as soon as she picked up Chris from the airport they were going for their big meeting with Bret. Stephanie was on pins and needles and she could barely sleep the night before. This was beyond anything she'd ever attempted before and the fact that she knew this was one thing her father would _never_ expect made it such an adrenaline rush. The kids were with their grandmothers for a day out so she had not a worry in the world as Chris pulled the door open to her car and climbed in, leaning over to kiss her. She gave him a kiss back with gusto and he pulled away and looked at her.

"Did you want to like have sex right now or something, but that kiss was hot," he said.

"I'm just excited. We're going straight to the meeting, right? Because I brought the contract with me, I had our regular lawyer draw it up so none of the suits would figure it out and squeal to my dad."

"Yeah, we're going right now, you know where to go."

"I do," she said, squeezing his hand. "Have I thanked you for this lately?"

"No, you haven't."

"Thank you," Stephanie said. "This is going to make my dad freak out. I don't even know how he'll react. I want to hold the contract up and then he'll read it and show it to his lawyers and see it's ironclad and there'll be nothing he could do about it at that point and _then_ we'll see who has the power."

"You'll have the power."

"Damn right I will," she said, her breath coming out in short, anticipatory puffs.

"You are, and it goes without saying really, extremely sexy when you want all the power. It's probably why I give you such free reign in our relationship and don't rein you in as much as I probably should since I'm the man in the relationship."

"Oh yeah, because I'm so easily controlled," she rolled her eyes. "So you still think you're a victim?"

"Yeah, but I've got something planned for Monday."

"You do?"

"Stephanie, I'm not letting Shawn of all people tell me where I can or cannot go so they'll just have to deal. I may make a fool out of myself, but Show and I have discussed it and we know what we're doing."

"You're planning with Show now? I thought that I was your planning partner. I guess I'm getting replaced."

"When you gain--"

"Watch where you go with that sentence, Christopher Jericho," Stephanie said, holding a finger up.

"When you gain 499 pounds," Chris said and Stephanie snickered. "And then you grow like a foot and half, then we can talk about planning again, deal?"

"So long as it's not with some other lady that you're planning with, I think we'll be fine."

"Like I'd have the time," he said as they got to the place. They were meeting Bret at his hotel because it was just safer that way. They didn't know where their families were right now and they were not going to risk going to a place where Vince might walk in. Chris had procured the room number for Bret so they headed straight to the bank of elevators and hit the floor that Bret was on. "You know we're paying for this room."

"I wouldn't have it any other way, whatever Bret wants, he's going to get. If he doesn't even want me in the room, I'm fine with that."

"He knows you had nothing to do with the screwjob," Chris said. "You were still in college then, not in the loop, so to speak. He doesn't have anything against you. If he did, I don't think he would agree in principle to this contract, hell, I don't think he'd even have agreed to meet with me."

"Does he know we're married though? Some people still think we're divorced or separated and that I'm with that jackass, Hunter. I really should correct that, but that would take way too much work."

"Because saying, 'Hey, I'm really still married to Chris Jericho' is just _so_ hard to say," Chris told her, giving her a look that spelled out that she was just absolutely pathetic right now. She shoved him a little. "Hey, lady, we don't shove in elevators, you could be disrupting the delicate balance."

"Delicate balance my ass."

"He knows we're married, when we spoke I used words like, 'my wife, Stephanie,' so I'm guessing that he gleaned onto the fact that we're married. Oh no, unless he thinks that I'm married to some other random Stephanie! Wait, no, I did mention, 'my wife, Stephanie McMahon,' so I think we're good."

"I'm just covering my bases!"

"You're cute."

Stephanie grabbed his hand as the doors opened and they walked into the hallway, reading the signs leading them to the right direction. One right turn and then another and they were set. Chris knocked on the door and Stephanie almost pulled away, just in case Bret would start yelling at her for her maiden name. Maybe for today, and today only, she could just go by Stephanie Jericho, as terrible as that sounded. Bret opened the door a second later and Stephanie put on her best smile, which probably looked like a fake smile, but she was trying.

"Hey, Bret," Chris said, sticking out his hand and shaking it firmly. "Thanks for meeting with us."

"Hey, Chris, Stephanie," Bret said, sticking his hand out. Stephanie shook it quickly and realized this was like any other meeting she had ever attended.

"Hello, Bret, like Chris said, thanks for meeting with us."

"Come on inside," he said, stepping out of the way and allowing Chris and Stephanie entrance into his room. He had a nice sitting area and he sat down at the table and Chris pulled a seat out for Stephanie before he sat down. "I heard about all the hoops you went through to get to me. I thought you had my number, Chris."

"I did back in the day, but you just lose touch and everything. I know that we were kind of kosher in WCW, but it was hard to trust anyone there."

"I know what you mean," Bret nodded. "Still, you went through a lot of trouble."

"I know I did," Chris said. "It's worth it though. If we can pull this off. I really appreciate that you're doing this. I know at times you said that you would never step foot in a WWF/E ring ever again and I don't blame you for that. Sometimes I wish I could walk away, but I'm probably never getting out…that was a joke, Steph."

Stephanie had been glaring at him and he hadn't even looked over to see it, he just knew. "I hope you know, Bret, that I had nothing to do with what happened nor did I have any knowledge of what my father was planning."

"I understand," Bret said, "I've never held it against you."

"Thank you, that actually means a lot," Stephanie said.

"So why exactly are you doing this? Chris, you mentioned that it was for a plan, for Stephanie, but I didn't get what exactly it was for."

"Well, I should probably explain," Stephanie started, "I don't know if you've been watching the shows, but obviously you know of the guest host premise. Well, before this all happened, my father had given me the job of Raw GM, but then he took it back and has not offered me the position I wanted ever since. In fact, most of the time, it feels like he's been pushing me out. I work very hard, Bret…"

"Harder than anyone in the company," Chris interrupted, just wanting Bret to know that this was the case.

"What he said," Stephanie said. "But my father…he just never seems to see that. It's really very frustrating. I just want him to see that I'm competent and to have trust in me and not undermine me whenever I'm almost there. Then my brother resigned and my father was all about him and getting him to stay and how important he was and it was like, hey, you know, I'm still here and working my ass off for you and you don't even care and I'm sick and tired of it. So I need something to knock him off his feet. I had no idea how to accomplish this and then…you happened and Chris somehow got you to agree and here we are."

"Wow, so Vince doesn't even treat his own family well, I mean, I know what I see on TV, but even behind the scenes. Not so surprising."

"I know," Stephanie said. "It'd probably freak out a few other people too, like Shawn Michaels."

"I think I'm over Shawn," Bret said. "Your father, not so much, but Shawn, that's water under the bridge, he was under directive. Now for that little ass, Hunter, I hate that guy and…I can't stand him."

"We can't either right now," Chris said.

"I divorced him," Stephanie said, "so well, that proves I don't really…like him…"

"It's okay, baby," Chris said, patting her knee. "We get what you mean."

"Sorry," she said, "but what we want initially is for you to guest host on January 4th and then we're thinking a 6 month contract, maybe? Is that okay with you?"

"That sounds fine, where do I sign?" Bret asked.

"Right here," Stephanie said, pushing the contract forward. "I've tabbed it where you can sign it."

Bret took the contract and signed it and Stephanie smiled as he handed it back. "Thanks, man," Chris said. "We'll keep in touch with you and make your travel arrangements for you and have an agenda and itinerary set for you."

"Sounds good, guys, thanks for stopping by and getting this taken care of. I actually am looking forward to being in front of the fans again. I think it'll be good to get in the ring again. It's been a long while."

"Thanks again," Chris said, "I'm sure you're going to get a huge reaction from the fans. They've been waiting a long time for this."

"I hope I don't disappoint."

"You wouldn't," Stephanie said. "Thank you so much."

"Enjoy the rest of your stay in Tampa," Chris finished lamely as Bret escorted them to the door. "We'll get this contract to our lawyers immediately. We'll talk more later as well since this was such a brief meeting. It's just if we were gone too long, people would probably start to wonder why it took so long for us to get home."

"I understand."

They said their goodbyes and started walking down the hallway. Stephanie cursed and then turned to Chris. "I forgot my pen, go down to the car, I'll be right back."

"I'll just wait at the elevators."

"Just go to the car and warm it up then," Stephanie said.

"Fine," he said, getting on the elevator as it opened up. Stephanie walked quickly back to the hotel room and knocked. Bret answered again and looked surprised to see her.

"Stephanie, what can I do for you?"

"I'm sorry, Bret, but just the way you signed the contract so easily, it just boggles my mind. What exactly did my husband say to you to get you so into this idea? Did he say that you could absolutely humiliate my dad, are you guys planning something? Are you going to drop something on my dad? Kick him, hit him? I just…I don't understand why you would agree so easily."

"He just reasoned with me," Bret answered.

"But you've been off WWE television for over 10 years. You said you would never come back. You hated us all, but Chris comes in and he talks to you and suddenly, you're completely on board. I just don't understand."

"Look, Stephanie, I'll just say one thing for him because our meeting was completely confidential. The man really loves you."

"Well I know that. Give me something I can work with here, Bret…oh wait, that _was_ the something I'm supposed to work with, isn't it?"

"Yeah, that's right."

"Well, thanks," Stephanie said. "Sorry to bug you."

"It's alright, I'll see you later."

"You will," Stephanie said. "You most definitely will."

By the time Monday rolled around, Stephanie had given up on finding out what Chris had said to get Bret to come back. She figured he'd appealed to his human side and spoke about his love for her or something. Chris did love her and she knew it and she had to be content with that. Now it was Monday and it was in Tampa so she and Chris had a good reason for being here. Chris had said he was just here with Stephanie, who was still working the show. It was one excuse he was using for being there, but he needed an explanation for being on the show that wouldn't get him kicked off. Stephanie was just doing her job and first job was meeting with Johnny Damon. She and Chris were planting more seeds for Bret's reveal and she needed to talk with the guest host.

Stephanie found him in his office and asked him to mention Bret during the telecast at some point. She gave him the schedule and he complied with her request. While she was walking back she ran into Britt, who had been handing out schedules and helping Chris with his plan, whatever that was. He refused to tell her right now, but said she'd figure it out sooner rather than later, or was that later rather than sooner. Either way, she was going to see it so she figured it was something visual.

"So you're not going to let me in on what Chris is doing?"

"No, I'm not going to tell you," Britt said. "Believe me, you have to see it for yourself. It'll be worth it."

"What is with everyone keeping me in the dark about things around here?"

"Like you're keeping Ted DiBiase secret?" Britt said and Stephanie turned sharply towards her.

"What are you talking about?"

"Stephanie, I'm your assistant, I'm not blind," Britt scoffed. "I figure that you are trying to convince him to leave Legacy so you can have him on your side."

"I can't help it, I see so much potential in him. Don't tell Chris, he'll mock me until the end of time if he knew."

"Is that the only reason you don't want him to know?" Britt asked.

"Not following you here, Britt." Stephanie said, shaking her head.

"I don't know if you know, but have you seen the kind of looks that Ted gives you. I mean, I don't see you guys together or anything, but sometimes, when you're at the station or with Sawyer and Flynn, he looks at you with definite…longing…"

"You're insane," Stephanie said. "He doesn't look at me like that."

"I don't know, Steph, it looks like he might have a crush."

"Ridiculous," Stephanie said, "and look, speaking of ridiculous things, here are the two most ridiculous things on the entire show."

"Stephanie, Britt," Hunter said, nodding to the both of them.

"Are you ready for your Little People's Court?" Stephanie asked mockingly. "I hope you have a whole lot of fun there."

"Whatever," Shawn muttered, walking away. He was already irritated by Stephanie and didn't need to talk to her anymore.

"Well, I've got better things to do than talk to you," Stephanie said derisively, "but for the record, you know what you did to Chris last week was bush league. I really thought you were better than that. For someone who gets all bent out of shape over titles and matches and your spot in the company, it's awfully hypocritical of you to pull something like that."

"He doesn't belong on Raw anymore, he lost."

"He should get a rematch. No matter though, he'll get what he wants, he'll see to that," Stephanie said, brushing past him and deliberately pushing him. Hunter watched her go.

"I better go," Britt said and as she was walking, Hunter's hand shot out and caught hers.

"Wait, Britt, can we talk?"

"I have nothing to say to you," Britt said.

"I know that and I understand that," Hunter said. "Look, I know that things between are…strained."

"I thought they were more like…over," Britt said, tilting her head to look at him. "Correct me if I'm wrong though, feel free."

"Okay, they're over. We're over. I get that, I know you're with Evan now and I hope you're happy. I'm happy so you should be too."

She didn't believe he was happy, but she wasn't going to argue with him right now. It'd be pointless and it was already awkward enough just standing here with him. She'd rather just get this conversation over with and then go find Evan and make out with him or something. That always did make her feel better. She was completely over Hunter. Their relationship was deader than a fly stuck in a windowsill.

"I'm quite happy, thank you."

"Okay," he said, looking down. "I just…well, I actually have a Christmas present for you."

"You bought me…what are you thinking? Do you think you're going to win me back or something?"

"No, not at all. I bought it for you a while ago actually. It was something you'd mentioned that you liked and I went back and bought it for you," Hunter said. "I just…it's in my bag if you want it. I can't return it because I bought it a while ago and it was meant for you and if you want it, you can have it."

"I'm not sure that's a great idea."

"Okay, that's fine, sure, I get that."

"Good, I'll see you around," Britt said before walking off. She couldn't be accepting gifts from Hunter anymore no matter how long it had been since he had bought it. It just wasn't something you did. He was her ex-boyfriend and she didn't want anything to remind herself of him. So that was that. Actually, it felt kind of good to know that she could just walk away.

Though it didn't stop her from looking back.

"Daddy, are you Santa?" Sawyer asked as Chris adjusted his beard.

"No, I'm not Santa."

"But you dress like him?" Sawyer said, watching in fascination. If his daddy was Santa, what did that mean? Did his dad go around giving presents to everyone in the world? His mommy had said, though, that Santa lived in snow, but they didn't have snow at home. "Daddy, why are you dress like him?"

"Because I'm going to get back on Raw," Chris explained. This suit was really uncomfortable.

"By being Santa?"

"Well, see, Santa is going to grant a wish and this wish is going to the Big Show and he's going to wish me back to Raw and then I'm going to get to come back."

"But you not Santa so you can't do it."

"I'm one of Santa's helpers," Chris said. "So I'll send the wish straight to Santa and he'll grant it for me and then I'll be able to be on Raw and I won't even have to ask Mommy for her help. It'll all work out perfectly."

"You're a helper?"

"Yeah."

"Do you have his phone number?"

"I do actually," Chris said. "But it's a super secret number that only parents get. How do you think Santa knows if you've been bad or good? He's a very busy man and he can't watch every kid all the time so he relies on parents for progress reports. If we call him and tell him that our kids have been good, they get really great presents, but if they've been really bad, they get coal and they'd have to wait millions of years for that to turn into anything worthwhile like diamonds."

"Daddy, what you say 'bout me?" Sawyer asked. He hoped his daddy said good!

"I said you were a great kid."

"Really?"

"Well, you haven't been a bad kid, so I couldn't lie to Santa, I want presents too, kid."

"I'm gonna have presents, but what about Baby?" he asked, using his pet name for Flynn. He looked worriedly over at the sleeping Flynn, her binky hanging half out of her mouth. He couldn't be happy if he got presents and his baby got absolutely nothing.

"Dude, she's awesome too, you're both going to get a ton of presents, trust me, Santa said you were both golden and getting a lot of stuff."

Sawyer brightened up. "Can you call him now?"

"No, he's pretty busy, it's his busy time of year."

"Oh," Sawyer said. "Is he nice?"

"Definitely nice, nicest guy I've ever met. He said to remember to put out milk and cookies for him on Christmas Eve."

"I will," Sawyer said seriously.

Flynn started to make noises and she stirred a little before she started to wake up completely. She looked up and instead of her daddy hovering around her to pick her up and kiss her awake, she saw a crazy man with a white beard. Stephanie and Chris had decided that Flynn was too young to see Santa and not wanting to traumatize her, they'd refrained from actually bringing her to meet him. Still, Flynn did not like it when Chris dressed up as someone who wasn't himself and, terrified, she started to scream.

"Flynn, it's just Daddy," Sawyer said, going over to her. Flynn tried to hide behind Sawyer and Chris pulled the beard down.

"Flutterby, it really is just me."

Flynn started to whimper as Stephanie walked in and just stood there. "I'm sorry, I've walked into another dimension…I'll be backing out of the room slowly now…"

"Stephanie, shut up."

"Wow, Santa's mean," she said, trying to hold in her laughter.

"Daddy isn't Santa," Sawyer explained. "He's a helper, but he has Santa's number and he tells him if we're good or bad, but Daddy said that I was good so I'm good and I'm not bad and I get presents."

"What?" Stephanie asked, not really getting that.

"You know, how we have Santa's phone number," he said, giving her a look.

"Oh! Yeah, we do have it," Stephanie said with a nod. "Definitely, but that still doesn't explain why you're in that ridiculous costume and why I'm about two seconds away from cracking up and laughing my ass off at you."

"I have plans," Chris said, pulling on his beard, making Flynn scream again. Chris pulled it down again and she seemed to be okay. "Will you help me with the wig?"

"Sure, Santa," she said, coming over and adjusting the wig so it was on straight. She leaned forward and kissed him. "I just had to get that in there so that the kids could see Mommy kissing Santa Claus."

"Oh, very funny."

"The lengths you go through," she laughed, snickering even more at him. "When really, all you need to do is say, 'I'm Stephanie McMahon's husband and I can go where I please, dipwads'…or is dipwads too below you. Insipid dolts? I don't know why, this once, you don't use that."

"Because I'm not!"

"Okay, so Santa it is then."

And Santa it was. He and Show had planned this out. Show was going to wish for him on Raw and since the gimmick tonight was wrestlers getting their wishes, it was going to work. It worked at first until that little weirdo Hornswoggle came out of the ring with all those little people from the little people court. He'd seen Hunter and Shawn muttering about how they'd found themselves in this weird little people world. The idiots were too stupid to realize that there was a trap door under the ring because the arena had one and that weird, magical place had been the basement. So all these little people came up from the basement to attack him and he felt, for the first time, what it must really feel like to be Big Show. No wonder he thought he was better than everyone. It took a bit, but he managed to shake these little guys off, all the while managing to keep these oversized pants on. So kudos to him.

Then DX had to show up. The conspiracy thoughts were bursting in his brain again. No matter, he'd think of another way to get back on the show and hopefully one that didn't humiliate him on national television like this. Besides, he had something in his back pocket that nobody would see coming. It was only two weeks until Bret Hart showed up and then everyone would be looking at him and Stephanie differently, at least backstage, and then he'd get his comeuppance on that bastard Shawn. Hunter was just a lackey at this point so he could come along for the ride. He knew he had the upper-hand.

He just had to wait until everyone else knew.


	264. The Principle, December 25 to 28, 2009

A/N: Thanks for the reviews. Kind of glad Chris hasn't been on Raw the past two weeks because it'll make it easier for me to eventually catch up. Hope you enjoy and reviews are always awesome, thanks. :)

* * *

"Grandma?"

"Yes?" Loretta said as Sawyer climbed on the couch to stand next to her. He leaned against the back of the couch and Loretta reached out to brush his hair out of his face. The little boy needed a haircut, but Stephanie and Chris let him choose when he needed a haircut and he didn't want one right now. It had flopped into his face as he climbed onto the couch.

"I'm going to watch Daddy on TV, are you going to watch him too?" Sawyer asked. "He's going to be on the show, but I wasn't there with him."

"I am going to watch because I'm going to stick around for a while before Grandpa and I go back home."

"Oh, okay," Sawyer said. "I like to watch Daddy even though he's mean, but he's not really mean. He say that everyone is bad."

"Well, I think he believes that because he's not getting his way right now," Loretta answered. She kind of thought her son was being childish, but she wasn't going to say anything about it. It wouldn't do any good to mention it. Chris was so bull-headed sometimes that he wouldn't give anything up and then he would just go on and on about it. She'd lived with it for 18 years, she didn't need to hear it anymore. It was Stephanie's problem now.

"I like him," Sawyer nodded.

"I should hope so."

"Grandma, did you get presents?"

"I did," Loretta said. "I know you got a lot of presents too, huh?"

"Yes!" Sawyer exclaimed. Santa had been very good to him this year. He was glad he'd had that discussion with his daddy about Santa. His daddy must have put in a last good word before Christmas because he'd gotten quite the haul. When he'd come down this morning, there had been presents as far as the eye could see. Some of them were for Flynn, Declan, and Kenyon, but a lot were for him as well.

"So you must have been a good boy."

"I think so," Sawyer said diplomatically. He felt someone sink into the couch behind him and then he got pulled towards them. He craned his neck and saw it was his daddy and he cuddled into him. "Daddy, I tell Grandma that I got lots of presents."

"I think she can see that for herself," he said, kissing his son's cheek. "You have a lot of new stuff to play with now, don't you?"

"Yes," Sawyer said with a nod. "I can play for a long time and I can take them with me when go away."

"Yeah, you can take some of them when we go on the road, but not all of them, you'll have to choose your favorites because Mommy and I only have so many hands to carry all your stuff and we have to carry Flynn's stuff too because she's too little to carry anything."

"I can carry stuff, I have a backpack, Grandma," he explained to his grandma. He always brought one when he went away with his parents. He could put all his toys and books in there and he got to carry it himself and nobody even helped him at all. He was strong like his daddy was when he was wrestling. Speaking of that, "Daddy, when you be on?"

They'd had the channel for SmackDown on in the background. Nobody had really been paying attention to it though, which was strange considering that the people who ran the company were in the house. Still, it was Christmas and not a time to think solely about wrestling. Oh sure, it was still on their minds of course, Stephanie kept sending glances over to her dad with little looks of triumph on them. They could get along for tonight, but come Monday, they were going to drop the bomb on Vince. Christmas wasn't the place for it because Stephanie knew it would probably erupt in a fight and the last thing she wanted was for the holiday to degenerate into a fight, especially with the kids around.

They'd all agreed to be civil with one another and it was working out for the most point. Chris looked at his watch. It'd been a few days since he'd even taped SmackDown. They'd done it early this year so that everyone could have the holiday off and spend time with their families. It was a much needed break for both the wrestlers and the crew. Chris didn't get to spend a lot of time at home these days. When he wasn't wrestling, he was getting ready for his new CD to come out and he had interviews and magazine covers and was just generally busy. He was really excited about his CD coming out next month and he been promoting the hell out of it. He thought it was going to be the best Fozzy CD yet and judging from his kids' positive reaction to it, he thought everyone would like it too.

"It's going to be a little while," Chris said, "do you think you'll be able to stay up. You've had a pretty busy day and you woke up early because you wanted presents."

"I can do it," Sawyer said confidently. "I wanna see you on the TV."

"You see me on TV all the time though," Chris joked. "You don't think you can take one night off?"

"No, Daddy 'cause I wanna see you wrestling."

"Okay, okay, I get it, you think I'm so great you have to see me all the time," Chris said, hugging him closer. "Well, at least my kid loves me, right, Mom?"

"Yes, that's usually what you want to happen," Loretta said, ruffling Sawyer's hair a little.

Sawyer was barely awake when Chris _did_ come on. The excitement of the day was starting to wear off on him and the adrenaline of getting presents was starting to come down and that was making Sawyer sleepy. Flynn had already fallen asleep and was in her crib, sleeping the night away. Kenyon was with her and Declan was in the same state Sawyer was in. Sawyer was lying with his head on Chris's lap, his eyelids slowly shutting for a little bit before they groggily opened up to see if his daddy was on. When he did come on, he barely lifted his head, just shifting himself a little to see his daddy.

"Daddy, why is Trips mad?" Sawyer asked quietly as Chris rubbed his back.

"Because he's starting to realize he's all alone and the only way he can feel good about himself is to chop down other people. He just follows what Shawn wants to do and he doesn't have a brain of his own anymore."

"He has no brain?" Sawyer asked.

"Not one of his own, no. He likes it when Shawn tells him what to do, then he can go around being a jerk to everyone, like me. He doesn't like me right now because I don't like Shawn, so that's why he's following me around and that's why he doesn't want me on Raw, but I'm going to be on Raw, right?"

"Okay, Daddy," Sawyer said, snuggling in closer and closing his eyes. "Daddy, you should tell him to stop being mean."

"Believe me, kid, I've tried."

He watched himself on the screen in front of him. He'd told Stephanie what happened that night, about Hunter and his words, about the way he was acting. He hadn't tried again to convince her that Vince was conspiring against him, but that it just really kind of hurt that he was getting the shaft from someone he'd considered his friend. It was like Hunter's mission to humiliate Chris now and he could only put the blame on one person for that. Shawn had gotten even deeper into Hunter's brain. At this point, after that night, it was almost like Chris just wanted to be back on Raw for the principle of the thing. He didn't want to give Shawn the satisfaction of knowing he'd driven Chris away. It would be a victory for Shawn and he didn't want Shawn to be victorious in anything he did.

The Hart Dynasty's part in the whole thing he could care less about. They'd taken advantage of him and that was it. In any other situation, he would've handled all of them and they never would've been able to take him out like they did. It was just another thing to blame on DX. They had distracted him enough to let the Hart Dynasty get one over on him, but it would be the last time. He was better than those rookies and everyone knew it. That's why they had to take advantage of him while he was distracted, because full on, Chris would've crushed them.

"Don't be so tense," Stephanie said as she sat next to Chris. She'd been cleaning up in the kitchen, but found herself a moment to come sit with her husband. She rubbed his shoulder. "You're angry about something that happened days ago."

"That people are only seeing right now," he pointed out.

She shrugged. "It's Christmas, I bet nobody is watching anyways."

"That's not good for you though."

"It's a major holiday for a lot of people, of course I don't really care about the ratings in this instance. I would much rather have people spending time with their families. Like I'm spending time with my family."

"Watching wrestling," he pointed out.

"Well, it is my business after all," she said, leaning her head on his shoulder. "Don't worry, if you want back on Raw, I have faith that you'll get back on Raw. If only you had some sort of in though, some way that you could get on Raw by side-stepping a lot of the work to get there, too bad you don't have anything like that, right?"

"Nope, not a thing," he said, looking at her pointedly.

"Well, then just stage a protest or something," she said in jest, kissing his cheek and standing up to go finish up some more dishes in the kitchen. There were only so many dishes the dishwasher would take and since Chris cooked the dinner, she was stuck with dish duty. But as she was leaving, Chris's brow furrowed and he smirked a little. Maybe she was on to something.

Chris set up the table outside with his sign and megaphone. Stephanie and the kids watched him, Stephanie looking down to Sawyer and rolling her eyes. She couldn't believe the lengths her husband was going through to get his point across. Seriously, he could just ask her to reinstate him to Raw and have him be on any show, but he insisted on putting on this ridiculous display. When she'd mentioned a protest the other night, she'd been joking around, but now he was actually going through with it.

"Chris, this is stupid," she told him.

"It's not stupid, it's brilliant."

"And so you're going to have people sign a petition and what? You're going to give it to management, Chris, that's _me_. In essence, you'd just be asking _me_ to let you come onto Raw, so you just ask me!"

"But this way it'll prove to Hunter and Shawn that people want me on Raw."

"People don't like you that much though, I mean, you have your fans, you always will, but you haven't exactly been endearing yourself to the casual fans. In fact, you've been calling them horrible, horrible names."

"Still, they'll want to see me."

"Didn't you do this in WCW to the same results?" Stephanie asked. "You thought there was some sort of conspiracy against you then and well, we all saw how that panned out, didn't we? Well, not these two. When Daddy was in WCW, he did this same thing."

"What's WCW?" Sawyer asked.

"It was another company that's now out of business, your daddy was in it for a few years, that's where he really got his big break, then he cam here and met me and fell in love with me."

"Not at first," Chris muttered.

"Chris, do you really think our son needs to know that we hated each other and tried to one-up each other?" Stephanie asked.

"I'm just saying," he said. "Okay, I think I've got everything that I need."

"I think you're being an idiot," Stephanie told him.

"I don't need that."

"I thought you might need an opinion, a real opinion, not a skewed one like the one you have right now," she told him. "I mean, come on, Chris, do you really think this is going to do anything to you except make you look like a fool? You're going to be sitting out here, all by yourself, most likely, while we're inside, nice and warm."

"I don't need you out here."

"I should hope not. Chris, would you just ask me to put you back on Raw!" she yelled, drawing attention to herself. Thankfully, Stephanie had blocked off this part of the arena while Chris set up so they wouldn't get mobbed.

"No!" he told her.

"Why not!"

"I can handle this myself!"

"This is not handling it!"

"Stop yelling!" Sawyer huffed. "You yell too much, yelling is not good, it's mean."

"Sorry," Chris and Stephanie mumbled, chastised properly by their three year old son. "We didn't mean to yell."

"Good, we don't use yelly voices," he told him, pursing his lips and shaking his head. Sometimes he just had to control the situation around here.

"Well, at least let the security guard watch your stuff for now so we can go inside and tell my father about our plan, okay?"

"Okay, that I can do."

Britt walked into Stephanie's office and saw something laying on top of her bag. She looked around, but there was nobody around, predictably. She half-expected someone to jump out from behind the couch, but nothing. She walked over to her bag and picked up the box. She looked around again and then opened it. She sighed when she saw it. It was a book she'd seen in a city she'd forgotten and it was a first edition of one of her favorite books, _Little Women_. She opened the cover and there was an envelope with her name on it.

She put the book down gently and opened the envelope:

_Britt,_

_You loved the book and I went back and bought it for you. I have no use for this book and nobody I know likes it, so just keep it okay, please. It means nothing other than the fact I don't want it lying around when it could mean something to someone who actually likes this. That's all. Merry Christmas._

_Hunter_

She sighed and grabbed the book, putting it back in the box and walking out of the room. She turned left and another and then knocked on DX's door. Shawn answered and she pushed past him without saying a word. He looked a little put out, but Hunter was in there and put a hand up and then out to make Shawn leave. He didn't want to, but Hunter looked at him pointedly and he grudgingly left the room. Britt put the box on the table and then envelope on top of it. He looked down at it for a long moment before looking up at her.

"No thank you," she told him, turning to leave, but he grabbed her arm and turned her around gently.

"Why won't you just take it?" he asked.

"Because I don't want anything that comes from you," she told him.

"Britt, would you just take it."

"No, I don't want it," she told him, though she really did. She loved the book and when she'd seen it in the window of that antique bookshop, she thought she might faint. The price tag had made her faint as well, but she'd never expected to actually have the book and she didn't want them under these circumstances. "Look, I appreciate that you thought of me _then_, but this is now and we aren't together and I can't accept gifts like this from you anymore. We're not even friends!"

"Could we be friends?" he asked pathetically, a little hope sparking in his eyes.

"No!" she told him in no uncertain terms. "You still don't have any idea how much you hurt me. You like refuse to see how much you did to make me hurt. You broke my heart, Hunter! I loved you, I wanted to spend forever with you! I know we didn't talk about marriage, didn't really want it, but I would've stayed and been with you and God, I wanted _kids_ with you. Seeing Flynn as a baby, my God, it made me think about what kind of kids we might have and I didn't even care if they got that nose of yours or not! But you blew it and I don't want anything to do with you anymore!"

"Britt, I just want you to have the book."

"I don't want it!" she told him. "I don't want anything from you anymore except to leave me alone! Can you please get that through your thick skull, _please_?"

"Fine," he said, looking down. "Fine, I understand. I'm sorry. I thought you would like it. I mean, when you saw it, you were so happy and excited and you wanted to look at it and the way you were looking at it…well, I thought even after all this, you'd want it."

"Not from you," she told him quietly and the words stung more than he'd anticipated. Prickles along his skin, traveling upwards and burrowing themselves into her heart. "I could've loved you forever, Hunter. You could've been the one great love of my life, you know, the cliché you always hear. Soulmates, destiny, fate, all of that, but you chose Shawn over me. I never asked you to make a choice, even though I didn't like him, I let him into our life, let his family in, but you made a choice and you didn't even tell me you were choosing. And you made your choice and I hope you're happy with it."

"Britt, I'm sorry," he said.

"Thanks for that," she said, "but it doesn't mean much anymore, unfortunately. Just go on with your life, that's all. Thank you for thinking of me, I do appreciate it."

She turned and left then, though part of her wanted to stay back, wanted to see if he would make some last grand gesture to her. But she walked out that door and closed it behind her. She took a deep breath and started down the hallway. She just needed to see Evan right now. She made a beeline for his locker room and pushed open the door blindly. He shared with a few other guys, but she was too upset to care if they were even there. Nobody ended up being there though and she sat down on a bench and started to sob. It wasn't long before Evan and Kofi Kingston walked in. Evan saw his girlfriend crying and he looked to Kofi, who nodded, grabbed a couple of things he'd needed and left immediately. Evan went and sat down next to Britt and wrapped his arm around her. She immediately rose up and started to hug him.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he asked.

"I'm sorry, I'm just emotional right now," she said, burying her face in his neck so he could feel her tears drying on his skin.

"What happened?" he asked quietly.

"It just sucks having to work with your ex, that's all," Britt said, looking up at him and wiping her eyes. "Sometimes you just have encounters with them and it's not fun at all. I was just speaking with Hunter and it got intense and he just makes me so angry."

"I'm sorry you had to go through that," he said, stroking her hair. "You want me to hang around with you the rest of the night and make sure that he doesn't bother you?"

"I think he got it through his thick skull that I don't want anything more to do with him," she laughed tearily. "At least I hope so. I don't think I want to keep pounding it in his head. I just want to stop thinking about him altogether, but kind of hard when he's all over the place."

"Well, he's one of the faces of the company, unfortunately, you'd think they could find a better face, don't you think?"

She laughed, "Definitely."

Evan kissed her. "Cheer up, okay, I'll make sure he doesn't bother you again."

She hugged him tightly and sighed, "What would I do without you?"

"I like to think you'd be just fine."

Stephanie gleefully dropped her kids off with her mother. The show being in Hartford meant that her parents were there and that her mother was there as well. This was perfect because she was going to meet her father in, oh, about five minutes. Then, from there, everything would be out in the open and her father would not know what was going to hit him. She'd given him time for the show to address these Bret Hart "rumors," and he had told her was going to go out there and tell them there had been no talks with Bret so this was ridiculous with guest hosts suggesting he come back.

Chris was next to her, his hand clasped in hers as they searched for her father. He was thinking about his protest later, but mostly, right now about the fireworks he was going to get to see. He'd worked hard to give this to Stephanie and honestly, he was kind of stoked to see Bret Hart come back. Granted, back in the day he'd been a bigger fan of Owen, but just to work with the Harts now, not just be a lackey in the system that they owned. He never even saw them while he trained there. That had been a bummer. He'd gone in this wide-eyed kid, thinking he was going to be trained by them and everything, but it had never come to fruition. Now here he was, the boss's daughter, dragging him towards Vince McMahon, the man he dreamed of working for that day twenty years ago when he'd stepped into that first session.

"Chris, come on, what are you _staring_ at?" Stephanie asked.

"Nothing," he said. "I was just thinking how awesome it's going to be when you-know-who is going to be here next week. I mean, he's back, you know! He's going to be back!"

Stephanie stopped for a moment, turning to face Chris. She leaned forward and pressed her lips to his. "You're excited, huh?"

"Yeah, I am. I don't know, you know how you anticipate something happening so much, but you know it probably won't happen?"

"Like when you had a crush on me, but I was married to Hunter so you thought you would never get a chance with me so you decided instead that you would rather insult me and treat me like a whore?"

"No, nothing like that at all actually. I just never expected Bret to come back ever. Things were so bad, so…just bad that I never thought it would happen, but look at us now, _we_ brought him back. We're like heroes, except nobody will know, but still, heroes!"

"I'll call you my hero tonight," she winked, kissing him again. His eyes widened in delight. "But only if you call off this silly protest you have going."

"I knew there had to be a catch," he said, shaking his head. "Why can't we just have sex because we obviously like to have sex? What is so wrong with that, I ask you. What is so wrong with just getting down and dirty because we want to?"

"I never said I didn't like to," Stephanie shrugged. "You're putting words in my mouth. It's just with two kids, it's a little harder to find time to do it when we're not both exhausted from work _and_ from having children. We're not those free people we were when we first started dating."

"Wasn't that glorious though?" Chris said, pressing his forehead against hers. "Where we could just do what we wanted all the time? We felt like traveling, we'd just take off and go wherever we wanted to, now we have to think about toys and diapers and all the junk a little kid needs. And our house wasn't a constant mess…"

"And our lives held no direction," Stephanie added, "and we didn't feel better just by hearing one of our kids laugh or when Sawyer tells us a silly story that makes absolutely no sense."

"I'm not saying our life is _bad_," he told her. "It's not bad at all, but sometimes, man, I wish I can go back to when everything was simple and nobody knew we were together so we could just make out and pretend to hate each other when everyone was looking and having sex all night long just because we wanted to."

"So how about tomorrow night, we let the kids stay with my mom and dad, since he won't be mad at them, and we do just that?"

"Are you serious?"

"Sure," she told him with a smirk. "I think I'm going to be on such a high that I'll do just about anything with you, no questions asked."

"No catches?"

"No catches either."

"Oh hell yeah, let's go tell your dad then!" Chris said, now being the one to drag her to wherever Vince was. They figured he'd still be in his office since the show hadn't started yet and wouldn't start for a good half hour. They went to the office, but he wasn't there and Stephanie looked around, trying to think of where her father could be hiding. They decided to head to catering, but he wasn't there either and they tried the production truck, but no luck. They eventually spotted him near the gorilla, walking innocuously down the hallway. Stephanie perked up when she saw him.

"Dad, a word!" she called out, causing him to look up.

"Stephanie, Chris, what did you need?" Vince asked, looking at them curiously.

"Dad, as you know, I've been shafted over and over again regarding jobs around here. Time after time, I'm overlooked or pushed aside. I was supposed to be the permanent GM of Raw, instead, you instate this guest host idea, which borders on idiotic. You have a mixture of people who may want to be here to people who are obviously here to shill something. Only one or two of them know something about this business and what they know is outdated. I'm here every week, busting my ass off, making this the best show possible and making sure these guest hosts don't make fools out of themselves, but still, overlooked. Then I work on SmackDown, hard, I may add, to make Teddy look good to the fans and what happens, you hire Vickie on the spot, no reason. You just let her have that job, the one that gives her control and pushes me out again. Still, I come to work, every week, busting my butt for you, for this company. Then my brother leaves and suddenly he's absolutely invaluable to the company while I stand here, looking like the kid left out in the cold when I do far more work than Shane does. I'm not saying that Shane doesn't do anything, but for you to not even appreciate what I do is an insult to me."

"You're lucky she doesn't leave to," Chris said, "and if she left, I would go with her. You think I need this job, I don't need this job at all. I'm damn successful without it. I've got a CD coming out and I'm writing my second book because my first one was a best-seller _and _I can include this in there if we left."

"Okay, thank you, sweetie," Stephanie said.

"Sorry," Chris said, getting caught up in the moment. He hated when his wife was overlooked like that. It stuck in his stomach and he wanted to be the protector in that situation. It was instinct.

"Well, okay, I don't want you to leave."

"Of course you don't, you wouldn't have your workhorse anymore," Stephanie said. "But since I do like to think I can do good around here and because I've been thinking and thinking about how I can make an impact that you'll notice, I was proactive, Dad. I went out and took care of business like you haven't been able to do in oh…twelve years."

"What are you talking about?" Vince asked, narrowing his eyes at her.

"I've booked Raw's guest host for next week," she said, producing the envelope in her hand. "In fact, I've booked someone for the next few months because I didn't feel that one week was enough. I think you know the guy, goes by…Bret Hart."

"You _what_!" Vince exclaimed.

"Well, I was able to procure Bret's services for guest host next week and he was happy to sign and then on top of that, I've been able to sign him for a short-term contract. So when you go out there tonight, instead of disappointing the fans, I figure you can tell them the _great_ news. Bret Hart is going to be back on WWE television, isn't that exciting?"

"You're lying," Vince said, shaking her head. "You're trying to get me to notice you more."

"Oh no, I'm not lying, am I lying, Chris?"

"She's not lying, I was there when the man signed the contract. He is in fact back to the company. Can you believe that?"

Vince's face had turned as white as a sheet. He couldn't believe he'd been blindsided like this by his own daughter. Stephanie was smiling at him and holding out what he assumed to be the contract. Bret Hart back? He'd vowed never to have that man back on his show. After what had happened, Bret had never wanted to come back. He didn't want the man back with his lies and the fans on his side, always on his side.

"This is the contract," Stephanie said, pushing it forward a little more. "You can have your lawyers go over it if you want. I had my own lawyers draw it up, but seeing as how they are some of the best lawyers around, it's pretty ironclad."

"I can…I can refute this, you know."

"No, you really can't, have a clause in there," she said as Vince numbly took the envelope. "It'd cost you quite the pretty penny to pull out now."

"Stephanie…"

"Dad," she said, "now maybe you'll realize that when you deal with me, you aren't just dealing with that little girl anymore, you're dealing with someone who can be just as wily as you can be. I'm not ignorant and like I said, I can get things done. If you had been on my side, maybe you would've seen me in action, but you forced my hand. I hope that Bret crushes you next week, later, Dad."

"Stephanie, we are not through here."

"Oh, I've got a lot of work to do, have to make sure Timbaland knows what we're doing this evening."

"And I've got protesting to get to," Chris added and Stephanie groaned inwardly. They walked away, leaving Vince an ashen mess. When they were out of earshot and eyesight, Stephanie squealed and launched herself at Chris. He grabbed her and spun her around, hugging her and she kissed him deeply, pressing her hand to the back of his neck. "That was great, baby."

"Did you see the look on his face? He didn't even have words. I thought he might get mad, but he didn't even have anything to say. There was nothing he _could_ say. He was at a loss for words, he's almost never at a loss for words!"

"It was priceless," Chris laughed. "Oh man, I can't wait to see him _next_ week when Bret is actually here."

"Oh, it'll be the best show since I was on," she told him, kissing his cheek.

"So we should go our separate ways now, I've got to get to my protest."

"Are you still going through with that?" she told him. "Come on, seriously, will you just ask me to be on Raw, I will grant you permission, we can make it all very official-like, I won't even look at you like I want to rip your clothes off."

"Stephanie, principle of the thing," he reminded her. "You go do your work and I'll go do mine."

"Fine, but I'm telling you, you're wasting your time."

"That may be, but that's the way it has to go."

Chris ended up feeling like a fool while he was out there. It took him back to his WCW days, that was for sure. He felt like an idiot and Stephanie was right. He _should_ just ask her, but that felt like the cheap way to do things. He didn't want to take the cheap way. He was very strict about his vow not to use Stephanie, even if it meant he was out here, slightly cold, sitting all by himself while everyone was inside watching the show. He could go inside too, but if he went inside now, Stephanie would tell him that she told him it was stupid and he didn't want to give her the satisfaction. So now it was about pride more than anything else.

Stephanie was walking around with a big grin on her face. She hadn't seen her father since she'd given him the contract, but she figured he'd immediately called his lawyers and they would be getting the contract shortly. She mentally dared them to find a loophole because there wasn't one. She'd had no less than five lawyers from the firm she was a client at look over it to make sure there wasn't any. It was with this grin that Ted ran by her and grabbed her hand, placing a note on it as he passed. She looked to him and then opened the note. It told her to meet him in her office in five minutes. That was odd, but she complied and went to her office to wait. He must have seen that Chris was outside or he wouldn't dare suggest her office.

He walked in and was almost giddy, "I think Randy wants to break up soon."

"Really?"

"Didn't you just see what happened?"

"Sorry, no, I was peeking out at Chris to see if he was still out there."

"Oh," he said, a little disappointed, but pushed on. "Well, anyways, Randy said it might be time to break up because he thinks we're not worthy and we suck; if we lose our matches tonight, we're out. So all I have to do is lose my match and I'm out."

"That's not the way you want to do this," Stephanie told him.

"What do you mean? I want out, this is the _perfect_ way to do this."

"Ted, no it's not. You want to make an impact, right? You want Randy to know that you're better than him, right?"

"Well, yeah, I want to be the best, better than Randy," Ted nodded, not seeing where she was going with this. "If I want that, I can't be in Legacy anymore."

"Yeah, but if you lose tonight, that's just going to confirm what Randy thinks, that you're inferior. When you break free from Legacy, you've got to do it on your _own_ terms, not his. Only then will you feel good about yourself."

"You're right," Ted said, "yeah, you're absolutely right. I want to make an impact and letting Randy kick me out of Legacy is hardly making an impact, huh?"

"That's what I'm saying. I mean, look at Chris. He wants to be back on Raw, right? All he has to do is ask me and I'll reinstate him. Hell, I'll tell him he can go anywhere he wants to go, but he won't let me. He wants to do everything on his own because even though it'd be easy to just let me do it for him, it wouldn't be satisfying to him to use me as his way back in."

"But you still don't want him to do it, do you?" Ted asked, starting to know Stephanie better now.

"No, I wish he would just let me do it, but sometimes, no matter how much you want to help and just step in and do things, you kind of have to let someone do their own thing, unfortunately. I really just wish he would let me, but to him it's the principle of thing."

"He loves you," Ted shrugged. "Hey, where are your kids?"

"My mom is here tonight and she's with them."

"Oh cool, I just really like your kids, they're cool."

"Thanks, Sawyer's ego will get even bigger now," Stephanie laughed.

"Thanks for talking me out of this. I think it will be good when it's on my own terms. I think I need to start sowing the seeds of doubt in Randy's mind."

"Ahh, now you're thinking straight," she said, tapping her forehead. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to check up on my husband again."

Stephanie left him then and went back to the door to the outside. She'd been peeking in and out on him all night, making sure he wasn't being harassed or anything. He was alternately walking around with a sign and sitting there waiting for signatures that just weren't coming. Since he was alone and no camera was on him at the moment, she walked over and leaned on him, kissing his cheek.

"Any luck?"

"A couple, your signature and some other girl who thought I was hot."

"You should play up the hot factor," Stephanie told him. "Start stripping for signatures, I'm sure that would bring in a great number of them."

Chris smiled and shook his head. "Something tells me that you wouldn't want me to do that. Besides, it's pretty cold out here and with cold and the goodies that you so enjoy, it wouldn't be a great combination."

"That's true, too bad, I think I was really onto something there," she said. "Won't you come in now? It's obvious this is not going to work and you can at least be _in_ the building, you know? A banishment is just from TV, not from backstage or else a lot of people wouldn't be able to show up. Besides, my dad is going to be out there soon and it'll be no fun watching him without you."

"Sorry, baby, I have to stay out here. I can watch your dad when we get home on the DVR, but right now, I just have to do this."

"Okay, if you must," she sighed, kissing his cheek again. "Do you at least want the kids to keep you company?"

"I don't want them out in the cold."

"Okay, but please come in soon."

"I'll be fine," he told her firmly.

She sighed and left him again, walking back into the arena, wondering if she should bring him a coat. She wanted to see her father's promo in the ring though so she wanted to go back to her office. She went back in there only to see her mother and her kids sitting there. Her mother's look told her all she needed to know and she went over and picked up Flynn, kissing her on the cheek. Flynn threw her arms around Stephanie and kissed her back.

"Mama!" Flynn exclaimed and Stephanie loved the sound of joy in her voice.

"Hey there, you," Stephanie said, sitting behind her desk.

"Grandpa's mad at you," Sawyer told her.

"Oh, I see," Stephanie said, looking at her mother.

"Where's Daddy?" Sawyer asked.

"He's protesting outside."

"Stephanie, what are you doing?" Linda asked. "Bret Hart?"

"Mom, this is between Dad and me, okay? It's just something that I felt I had to do. I'm tired of being overlooked in favor of everyone else."

"So you hurt him?"

"He's not hurt, Mom. Dad isn't hurt by this, he just doesn't want to confront Bret because it'll remind him of things he doesn't want to think about, that's not my problem. Besides, this move is great for business. People have been waiting for Bret and I'm giving him to them. This will be good going into WrestleMania."

"I hope you know what you're doing, Stephanie."

"I know what I'm doing, Mom, trust me. I'm making a business move, if Dad doesn't like it, he should've been man enough to talk to Bret before this or he shouldn't have instigated this grudge in the first place. You reap what you sow."

"I don't like this, you know, first Shane is leaving and now you are doing this. Sometimes we don't even feel like a family anymore."

"Mom, when there are family things, yes, they can degenerate into something bad, but otherwise, we do try to separate them. Christmas was fine, wasn't it?"

"I suppose."

"I'm telling you, Mom, I just want Dad to recognize what I do around here."

"He does, you know," she told him. "He might not tell you, but I see him a lot more than you do and he talks about the job you do and how well you do it. He _is_ proud of you, Stephanie, he really is."

"I'm sure he is, but it's frustrating when I'm not given the position that I was promised or I'm overlooked when I want something so bad and he knows it. I'm sorry, Mom, but I did what I had to do."

"Well, like I said, I hope you know what you're doing."

"I do."

Seeing her father speak after that was a bit of a letdown after talking with her mother. She did want to hurt him, but she didn't want to hurt her mother. Still, hearing her father stumble his way through his speech was pretty good to the old spirit. Then Shawn had to come out and ruin it all with just being there. Her father had no choice but to have Bret on next week so him saying that he wasn't going to have him on was just her father trying to show his control. He probably thought his lawyers would come up with something before then, but they wouldn't. He had no choice. She didn't care what business Bret and Shawn had, as long as her father was uncomfortable, she was fine.

Chris was uncomfortable outside and was seriously contemplating giving up when Big Show came along. They spoke for a moment and he thought that Show was really giving up on the partnership. When the cameras stopped rolling, however, Show gave him an envelope and walked away. He looked inside and saw a front row ticket for the show. That brilliant bastard had thought of something Chris hadn't. So Chris _would_ be on Raw after all. That just reaffirmed that he'd made the right choice in a tag team partner.

He didn't try to interfere in the match, he didn't think he'd have to. Sitting in the audience was a strange experience and he could feel the woman next to him staring at him throughout the match and it was a little creepy. Hunter and Shawn were rattled to see him there though and Hunter looked extra pissed off, but Chris had no idea why. It didn't matter to him anyways. Show lost and Chris got pissed, jumping the fan barrier and getting angry. Hunter and Shawn decided on another rematch next week and Chris had to be content with that for now. He had to plan for next week to get back on the show. He wasn't going to give up without a fight.

That wasn't how he did things.


	265. Thrown for a Loop, January 4, 2010

A/N: Thanks for the reviews. I really appreciate them. Was thrown for a loop this week with something in the chapter, hope it's not too put on when you read it! Hope you enjoy and reviews are welcome and appreciated. :)

* * *

Chris found it hard to concentrate on SmackDown when he was trying to get back on Raw. It was just the nature of the beast. He wanted to be back on Raw, to show Hunter and Shawn that they couldn't dictate where he went. Because of that, his performances on SmackDown suffered. He just didn't care what happened on that show. He wished he could focus on both shows, but it was just so time-consuming. So what ended up happening was he showed up for SmackDown, had a match or talked a little and then he would just go on his way. SmackDown became just a job for him really, while Raw was something that was working for. Chris liked to have goals, something to achieve. It was one of the things he had in common with Stephanie.

Stephanie had let SmackDown slide a little bit. Partly that was because of the plans she had on Raw, partly because Vickie and Teddy were running things and they never discussed anything with her because they were trying to one-up each other, and partly because her father wouldn't care either way. She had been there and done that and so she had let it lag a little bit. Like Chris, she was just showing up to SmackDown, making sure that neither Vickie nor Teddy had gone completely overboard and then she went home. She was extremely anxious for Raw this coming Monday because it would spell Bret's return.

Her father had spent the entire week trying to find some sort of loophole in the contract she'd had Bret sign. Unfortunately for her father and fortunately for her, there hadn't been one. She knew her lawyers were some of the best and they'd proved that to her by making sure there was not one way her father could avoid having Bret Hart come back. Her father had been leaving angry messages with her all week, but she'd ignored them for the most part. Well, no, not ignored them per se. She'd opted not to call her father back, but she had replayed the messages for anyone that would listen, including Edge, Lita, Trish, Christian, Sawyer, Flynn, Loretta, Ted, and of course, Chris. In fact, Chris had to hear them the most and while he always loved to watch Vince squirm, it was getting a little tiresome hearing it over and over and over again.

"So I'm so close to returning, man, you better watch out."

Chris rolled his eyes, but was glad that Edge couldn't see them. "Dude, do you think I care?"

"When I come back, whose ass do you think I'm going after first?" Edge countered.

"Well, let me see, you're still with Li, so I'm going to go ahead and rule out all the divas, unless there's one that you especially want to bang…"

"No way, man, I'm completely faithful to my woman," Edge told him, "I think I proved that when I didn't dump her for making me get injured in the first place."

"Like it was her fault," Chris scoffed.

"It was!" Edge said. "She is too hot for me to resist so there was no way I could've avoided doing her that night. This was just the consequence, luckily she has been spending these months helping me to 'rehab,' if you know what I mean."

"Edge, when you say stuff like that, I always get what you mean because you're always talking about sex. Always."

"Like you don't think about it. You know, I heard that a guy thinks about sex like every ten seconds. Ten_ seconds_, dude. That's like the majority of our lives just devoted to sex. So of course I think that you think about it, all the time. Although, you would probably think about it more if you had a whole buffet of women to choose from instead of just one."

"This coming from the guy that says he's devoted to one woman."

"I am, but you know, we spice things up."

"And how do you know that Stephanie and I don't spice things up?"

"I just picture you having very boring sex."

"Do me a favor, man, don't ever picture me and Stephanie having sex, just keep that image out of your brain as much as possible."

"Sorry, I wasn't implying that I've been spying on you or anything," Edge laughed. "But hey, if you ever want someone to--"

"For the love of God, do not finish that sentence. How is it that your brother is so completely normal while you are completely out there? I mean, I can go to Christian with a problem and he will give me a straight answer, you know. He gives me advice. I go to you with a problem and your first solution is to sleep with my wife to get my mind off it."

"Tell me this, though," Edge said knowingly, "doesn't that usually take your mind off things when you do just sleep with your wife?'

"That's beside the point."

"Ha! Knew it! It does help."

"I'm just saying that you're the older brother to Christian's younger brother and yet, he's the more mature one."

"That's because he decided to be Mr. Family Man. Is it just me or is he _all_ about the baby right now? Have you seen him around Trish? That poor woman is getting smothered, I wouldn't be surprised if she smothered him sometime soon."

Chris nodded even though Edge couldn't see it. "Yeah, he is being all about the baby, but you have to give the guy a break, it's his first and there's always something about the first that makes you a little crazy."

"You were not this crazy when you and Stephanie were having Sawyer. You were _not_ this protective of her. You let her come to the shows until two weeks before Sawyer was born or something. You were not all over her like Christian is all over Trish. He's like maniacal about it. You weren't."

"I _left_ the company when Stephanie was pregnant with Sawyer, just so she could have a normal pregnancy."

"Dude, your wife is part of the company and you took over her job so you weren't leaving the company, you were helping her out. You were definitely not this crazy. You were so much cooler, unlike my brother, who said he is going to draft a set of rules for when I'm around my niece or nephew, _rules_."

"That's not a bad idea," Chris told him. "Hell, I wish I'd given you a set of rules on how to behave around my kids."

"Wow, that is harsh, man, just harsh. I am awesome and you know it."

"Yeah, sure, you are. That's why you get so mad at my kid when he calls you Ed."

"Because that is not my name!" Edge told him. "I'm adding that to the list of why I'm gunning for your ass when I get back. It'll be sooner than you think, Chris, I'm telling you, it's going to be sooner than you think. One day, you're going to be standing around and then bam! I'm going to be right there waiting for you and you won't know what hit you."

"Well I've got bigger things to worry about than you standing behind me."

"I could be standing behind you right now."

"You're not standing behind me right now."

"I could be."

"You're not."

"But I could be."

"You're in Florida."

"I might be right behind you," Edge told him.

"I know you're not, why do you even want to fight me anyways? We're friends last time I checked. We _are_ friends, right?"

"Chris, Chris, Chris, man, this is not friendship we're talking about here, this is something bigger than friendship, this is wrestling and in wrestling, there are no friends, even dudes on the same tag team aren't friends, you're not friends with Big Show, are you?"

"I'd call us friends."

"Chris, he's just biding his time right now," Edge said. "He'll turn on you so fast your head will spin. That's why factions always break up. Even Edge and I broke up and we're brothers so what hope does a tag team have. This is why I'm going to annihilate your ass when I come back."

"Yeah, I'd like to see you try."

"Chris, he's here, he's here, he's here," Stephanie said, skipping into locker room. She grinned at him and then sat on his lap. Chris grunted at her weight and then looked up at her face, which still had that grin plastered on it. He laughed at her and hugged her around the waist with his free hand.

"Hey, man, it's been good talking to you, but my wife is here and she looks like she needs some Chris right now so I'm going to have to let you go."

"Oh, I get it," Edge said knowingly, "someone is going to get some, I got it."

"Shut your mouth."

"I'll shut yours up when I come back," Edge said before they both hung up the phone.

"So where is Bret?" Chris asked as he hung up the phone. Stephanie wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned in to kiss him.

"I have his sequestered in a dressing room as we speak," Stephanie said. "Well, my dad knows he's here so I guess it's not too sequestered, but it's private enough for him. My dad can't seek him out and throw him out of the building or anything."

"Did you speak with him?" Chris wondered.

"Yeah, I did," Stephanie said. "He actually seemed excited to be here tonight and we're really glad to have him. Well, I'm really glad to have him, I do so love the face on my father as we speak. He seemed so incredibly mad, but trying to control it, you know how he gets that face where he's obviously angry but trying not to show it?"

"Oh yeah, I know that face," Chris laughed. "I like to put that face on him when I can, just proves that I can still rile up the old man even though we're in the same family."

"I wonder what Bret is going to do tonight?" Stephanie wondered. "I hope it's something good. He did say that he wanted to clear the air with Shawn, which kind of disappointed me, but you know, what can you do? I guess I can't get _everything _I want. But as long as my father feels put out, then I think my work here is done."

"You're very good at what you do," Chris said, leaning forward. "Do you think that 2010 is going to be our year?"

"Well, it's the start of a new decade, a decade where we're going to be together for the duration. The 2000's were very good to us, I'd say," Stephanie nodded, then gave him a wink, "but if we're starting off 2010 with pissing off my dad, I can't think of a better way to do that. Hey, you know what, I spent the beginning of 2000 pissing off my dad, life really _is_ cyclical."

"I guess it is," Chris told her.

"Daddy, who is Bret?" Sawyer asked, having walked over and listened in on his parents' conversation. He climbed on the couch next to his dad and Flynn, seeing that she was now all alone on her play blanket, got up and walked over to the couch as well. She wanted to be in on this family meeting too. She tried to climb onto the couch, lifting her leg and getting about a quarter of the way on before she got stuck. Stephanie laughed and leaned over to heft her up onto the couch. She settled in next to Sawyer, leaning against him.

"He used to be a wrestler, a very popular one actually, and lots and lots of people really loved him. I actually trained under parts of his family so he was an idol of mine growing up, him and his brother, Owen. I wanted to be the tag champion with Owen when I was younger, just a little older than you," Chris explained.

"Did you be with him?" Sawyer asked.

"No, unfortunately not," Chris pouted, "he died before I could get to be tag champions with him. But anyways, Bret was really loved by a lot of people and he was the champion like I was, but a long, long time ago, before you were even a thought in my mind, before you were even a thought in mommy's mind too."

"Well, I always thought about having kids," Stephanie interrupted.

"You know what I mean," Chris rolled his eyes, "but Bret was the champion and then Grandpa did something very mean to him."

"Gampa is mean sometimes," Sawyer agreed. If he knew anything it was that sometimes his grandpa could be mean. His grandpa was an odd fellow. He was very nice to Sawyer and Flynn, but he suspected that it was because he was their grandpa and not because of anything else. He'd seen his grandpa yell at other people before and it was even worse than when his mommy yelled, at least volume-wise, his mommy had the screeching title held easily.

"Yeah, he is, well, he schemed with that mean Shawn Michaels to take Bret's belt away from him and Bret was very upset and never wanted to be here again, but then we brought him back for the night so everyone could be happy."

"Are you happy?" he asked.

"Very."

"Are you happy, Mommy?" Sawyer asked.

"You have no idea," Stephanie said.

Sawyer nodded, then turned to Flynn, "Are you happy, Flynnie?"

"Okay," Flynn giggled.

Hunter looked over at Shawn, "Are you actually going out there?"

"Yeah, why shouldn't I?"

"I mean, this is Bret we're talking about, we both know what happened that night in Montreal because we were both there and we both knew what was going to happen." Yes, Hunter had his part in the whole Montreal fiasco, he'd just come out of it pretty clean, save for the fact that Bret Hart hated his guts. He could live with that though as he had no occasion to ever see Bret or interact with him. He couldn't understand why Shawn would put himself under the gun like that.

"Yeah, we both know what happened, but it's been years since it happened. It's a new year and it's time to put the past in the past, don't you think?" Shawn asked. "I need closure with the entire thing. Maybe then I won't get those stupid 'You screwed Bret' chants that I always seem to get when we're in Montreal."

"Doubtful," Hunter told him.

"A guy's gotta try. I'm sick and tired of it hanging over my head as my one blotch left. I'm a different man now from what I was then. I didn't care back then, I didn't care about anyone. I cared about myself and that was it. That's why I went along with what Vince wanted me to do. I didn't have a care in the world and why should I have, I was on top of the world at the time."

"But now?" Hunter said, giving him the necessary prompting for another diatribe about his transformation as a man. Or what Shawn perceived was a transformation. Hunter still saw a lot of the old Shawn left in his friend. Shawn thought he had changed so much, been "saved" as he put it, but you can't changes a leopard's spots. You're always going to be, at least in part, the person you were in the past. Even Shawn, saved as he was, couldn't escape that.

"Now I'm different, I'm settled down, you know that. I have my wife and my kids and I have a _life_, one built outside of wrestling that I can be proud of and I am proud of myself, I'm damn proud of myself. This Shawn wouldn't screw over someone else."

Hunter knew a few people who would refuse to believe that, but he kept his mouth shut. Better to keep the status quo. "So you just want closure?"

"I want it behind me. I betrayed the man, I get that and now I want to make amends."

"Make amends, sounds nice," Hunter said.

He couldn't help but think of Britt. His mind wandered to her a lot lately. It was probably because of the book that was still sitting in his bag. He hadn't the heart to put it anywhere else and now it was just sitting there, still partially folded in its wrapping paper, hidden among common items like wrist tape and jock straps. Plus, with New Year's just behind them, it felt strange thinking of this indeterminable amount of time ahead of him where she wasn't going to be.

Then she was around with Evan and things were looking pretty serious between the two of them, which drew Hunter's ire. He didn't begrudge her for going out and being happy, but did it have to be with a guy in the company? He knew that her seeing anyone would sting, it was just the nature of the beast, but it was just some guy she'd met at a bar or a coffee shop or a bookstore, then Hunter wouldn't have to see him. He could picture some ugly guy with warts and a comb-over. It was much harder to do that when he was staring that guy in the face all the time and other than being a shrimp, Evan wasn't a hideous monster. Just a guy that he had to see his ex-girlfriend be happy with all the time.

And why was he wallowing in the first place? He'd dumped her after all. It was a question he knew the answer to but refused to answer. He knew in his heart and in his mind what he was doing, why he was effectively pining after this girl, but there was such a thing called denial and he was riding it pretty heavy right now. That was the way it had to be and there was no changing that now and he should just stop this pining, but God help him, he couldn't.

"Are you even listening to me?" Shawn asked.

Hunter realized he hadn't. "Sorry, I was just thinking about our match later, we have to get Chris out of here," Hunter lied. He missed Chris if he were being honest. Chris was like that one friend who knows how to put you in your place. Whenever Hunter had a problem, Chris could put it into perspective pretty easily. He really needed that right now.

"Hunter, my man, don't worry about it, he's as good as on his way out, we'll get him gone good," Shawn said and Hunter just cringed in reply.

"Yeah we will," Hunter said. "I'll be back, Shawn, I'm just going to…get some water."

"Okay, I'll probably head down to the gorilla soon, I want to make sure that I'm there when Bret comes out. I want in before Vince, who I imagine is going to be there waiting to kick Bret's ass or something."

"Nice," Hunter said.

He left and started walking randomly down the hallways. He found Chris and Stephanie's and knocked on the door. Stephanie called for him to come in and so he did. Stephanie looked up at him and raised an eyebrow. She was sitting on the couch, one kid on either side of her as she read them a small book. Or at least at first he thought it was a book. It turned out to be the insert from Chris's newest CD.

"What are you reading to them?"

"I'm showing them Chris's songs and reading them the lyrics," Stephanie said, like this was something normal and not something weird.

"I see," Hunter said.

"Trips!" Sawyer yelled, jumping up onto the couch and holding out his arms. "I haven't seen you!"

Hunter smiled, as much as he missed his friends in Chris and Stephanie, he might just have missed Sawyer that much more. Hunter walked over and Sawyer jumped into his arms. "Hey, tough guy, long time no see."

"I see you," Sawyer said, not getting that it was an expression. "You wrestle and you are mad at my Daddy."

"I'm not really mad at him…"

"Could have fooled me," Stephanie said, looking up at him. "What are you doing here?"

"Just needed to talk to someone, I was hoping it could be Chris, but since he's not around, I guess you'll have to do."

"Oh, gee, thanks, first you ignore me and choose Shawn over my friendship with you and now I'm not even your first choice when you want to talk to someone, you'll just settle for me."

"For precisely this reason, when I talk to Chris, he stays calm whereas you, you get a little bit defensive over every little thing, just like you're doing right now," Hunter told her and she gave him a defensive and apprehensive look, which was quit the feat. "Look, I was just talking with Shawn and I was thinking and I just needed some advice."

"Okay, well, I'm all ears right now. I've got all my work done until the show starts so you're in luck."

"I want to make amends with Britt."

"How many times do you have to be told that she is with Evan now, really, Hunter, I think it's time to give it up."

"No, not that, I mean, I just mean that I want to be friends with her again, like we're friends. I understand that I blew it and everything and I'm not asking for her back, I just want to be friends with her again, that's all."

"That's a pretty tall order," Stephanie said. "Especially after everything that happened between you."

"So you don't think it's possible."

"No, I don't, but I'm not Britt and you're right in the fact that we're friends now so it does work in some instances. I'm just not sure it'd work with you guys considering what you did to Britt to drive her away and let's not make a mistake here, you _did_ drive her away."

"I'm well aware of what I did."

"Are you?" she asked. "Are you really, Hunter? Because I don't think you understand the magnitude of what you did to her."

"I think I do."

"Okay, sure, maybe you do," Stephanie said. "I just think you need to leave her alone and let her live your life and go live your life the way that you chose to live your life and that is being Shawn's little buddy."

"Do we have to bring him into this?"

"Yeah because you chose him instead of your girlfriend," Stephanie said. "That's on you."

"Yeah, that's on you," Sawyer mimicked.

"Oh be quiet you, I didn't ask for your opinion," Hunter said, looking down at Sawyer, who just gave him Chris's grin that hinted at mischief.

"Are you mad at someone?" Sawyer asked.

"Myself mostly."

"Then you should say sorry and then be not mad," Sawyer told him. "I'm gonna be 4 in May."

"Wow, that's pretty impressive, 4 is a great age."

"Uh huh and I not mad at anyone. Not even Flynn when she knocks over my toys that I builded. She can't say sorry, but she learn it later," Sawyer said. "So you not be mad at anyone either even though you are old."

"He's very good with advice," Stephanie said. "If I were you, I would just take his."

"Thanks," Hunter said. "I don't know, Sawyer, I really want to talk to Britt and try to be friends with her, but I don't think she'd want to be my friend because I wasn't very nice to her when I was her boyfriend and I don't think she likes me anymore because I wasn't nice to her."

"So you be nice now and then she'll like you again," Sawyer told him. This advice stuff was easy peasy, lemon squeezy. He should do this for a living. "Because people like nice people. That's what my teacher say. She say that everyone is nice to everyone and then we get along."

"He is good," Hunter said, looking over at Stephanie. She shrugged.

"I told you."

Chris was walking back from Big Show's locker room. They were discussing strategy for their match later on. This was his last chance to get back on Raw and he had to capitalize it. Normally, he'd be hanging out with his kids or trying to grope his wife, but on this night, he was focused. He had taken his leave from them and had gone to Big Show. Now he was going to find a secluded corner and he was going to think about his match and warm up. He knew he'd probably miss Bret, but he'd come to realize if he didn't take this match seriously, he was out of chances and he might have to stoop to asking Stephanie and that thought pained him, nearly literally.

"Chris!"

He didn't have time for distractions, but turned around anyways and saw Shane and Marissa, which surprised him. The boys weren't with them and he wondered if they'd been left with Linda. "Hey, guys, what are you doing here?" Chris asked.

"We couldn't miss Bret," Shane said, "Not a chance in hell am I missing this."

"You are aware that you are no longer part of his company and therefore shouldn't care," Chris teased. "Did you get visitor's passes?"

"Very funny, bro," Shane said. "And this is beyond wrestling stuff, this is family stuff and any time someone gets to stick it to my dad, I want to be close by so I can watch. And this? This one is pretty damn epic of you. Still can't believe you were able to pull it off."

"I'm the master. Stephanie's lucky she has me, the man never would've agreed to this if it had been Hunter."

"That's for damn sure," Shane said. "Plus, we're here because Rissa and I have some news for you and Stephanie."

"You have news for me and Stephanie, what news? Are you starting your own wrestling business and you want to build the entire company around me? Because if that is the case, I'll need a little while to think about it and you might be a little leery because Stephanie _will_ try and take over and usurp your power."

"No, the last thing I want to start is a wrestling business. This part of my life is over and I'm moving onto a new part and this new part I think is going to be really great and exciting."

"Once you figure out what the hell you're doing," Chris pointed out, "besides bum around your house in sweatpants lamenting over the fact that you have nothing to do."

"Jealous?"

"Me, hell no, you know that I love to be constantly doing something. I've got my album coming out soon and I've got to get started on my second book, I am so far behind on that it's not even funny, but with two kids and wrestling, I have little time to sit down and write. When I try to, Sawyer or Flynn run in and want to play and they're more important than a book or Stephanie needs something and it's just, I like being busy, I thrive on it and I know you do too, which is why I have no idea how you'll be able to sit around."

"Well, I won't be," Shane said with a sly smirk.

"What do you mean?"

"Should I?" Shane asked, looking at Rissa.

"Go ahead, even though I wanted to tell him and Stephanie together."

"Tell me what?" Chris asked, "seriously you guys, just spill."

"One of the reasons that I was so eager to leave is that…Rissa is pregnant again," Shane said, beaming.

"What!" Chris exclaimed, looking at his sister-in-law. She was wearing a baggy sweatshirt and he thought back and recalled that she was always wearing something loose or baggy over the holidays when they'd been with them. It all made sense now and his jaw dropped. "Oh my God, you guys, you're pregnant?"

"Yeah, another little boy," Marissa said, pouting a little. "I was hoping for a girl like Flynn, but my husband only likes to give me boys."

"How far along are you?" Chris asked, hugging her tightly and then shaking Shane's hand.

"About five months."

"What! How could you not tell anyone! How did we not know?"

"Well, we didn't want Vince thinking that Shane was leaving just because I was pregnant. You know how Vince is with his jumping to conclusions all the time. Shane has been wanting to leave, for real, for a while now and for the right reasons, being burnt out on the business, having other interests. If Vince believed that it was because of the baby, it just would've stressed me out because you know Vince would make me feel guilty."

"He does have that knack, even with family."

"Yeah, even with family, anyways, it's getting too hard to hide now and my parents know and have known for a while and Linda knew. We're sorry we didn't tell you, but well, Stephanie isn't exactly…she can't…"

"What she's trying to say is when my sister gets angry, she will yell anything that comes to her mind to defend her point or argue someone else's point. And since she's been at odds with your dad, well, we were afraid if we told, she'd blurt it out to him and then he would use that against us and it's a whole thing."

"You don't have to explain it to me, look who you're talking to, I'm a part of this family too," Chris pointed out. "And not to mention, hid my relationship with Stephanie for like two years so I definitely get it."

"So you do," Marissa said. "We're so happy though. This is a blessing and we're just happy."

"I'm happy for you, but I have to say, you guys cannot say anything to me and Stephanie anymore about being fertile because you guys have three kids now and we only have two, so you cannot hold it against us any longer."

"But we have more space between our kids," Shane pointed out.

"Regardless, you have more so by proxy, you two are the ones who touch and get pregnant," he said, then laughed, "go tell my wife, she'll be so happy for you, hey, with Trish being due next month, your kids will be really similar in age and if she has a girl and with you having a boy…arranged marriage!"

Marissa laughed, "I think we'll maybe just plot out his first few weeks before moving on to his first 23 or so years. But yeah, we're going to head off to see Stephanie and tell her the news."

"Congratulations again, you guys, it'll be nice to have even more new blood in the family, though I'm sure Flynn is going to get all haughty because she's the only girl."

"Stephanie's daughter, haughty? Oh I don't think so," Shane said sarcastically. "Now you guys have to have one to keep up."

"Do not even suggest that, okay, do not even," Chris said, shaking his head as Shane and Marissa laughed as they walked away to presumably find Stephanie. Chris eventually found his secluded corner and did some warm-ups, keeping his muscles loose and warm for his match later. When the show started he couldn't help himself and found himself gravitating toward the gorilla. He had to see Bret. It was such a monumental moment that he almost felt it his duty to go watch. He was standing at the gorilla when Stephanie walked up with Shane and Marissa in tow.

"Chris, did you hear the news?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, Shane and Rissa told me."

"I want a baby now," Stephanie said with a pout, looking at him.

Chris looked past her to where Sawyer was watching the television screen as Raw started and Flynn was lying her head on Stephanie's shoulder as she gently sucked her thumb. "What do you call those little things?"

"Kids, not babies."

"Stephanie," he said slowly and calmly. "If you got pregnant, you would have to take time off work and your father would take over."

"Okay, I do_ not_ want a baby," Stephanie said, reneging her original idea.

She was going to speak more when Bret walked behind them and out to the ring. The cheers were loud, they didn't need the television sets to monitor that. Stephanie looked behind her and saw her father scowling as he sat at table and watched on one of the smaller sets. Stephanie nudged Chris with her shoulder and he turned around to look at what she was looking at. Chris chuckled at the sight. Vince was trying to appear aloof, but it wasn't working. It wasn't working at all.

When Shawn went out there, Chris kind of hoped that Bret would not accept his apology and then put Shawn in a sharpshooter. It wasn't to be though. Both men were willing to bury the hatchet with one another though they didn't see eye to eye. It was a lesson hard-learned by most people, but it was the truth that they were different men now, or so they saw themselves like that and better to leave old grudges behind them.

Hunter was watching this from backstage and he sighed. He had to try, for trying's sake. He found her reading a magazine, something about celebrities and gossiping and nothing he was interested in. He sat next to her and she looked over and kind of winced when she saw who it was. He hated that he made her wince. There was a time, it felt so long now, where her eyes lit up instead, where there wasn't the hint of annoyance in any part of her body.

"Look, I know I have no right to ask this and I wouldn't if I didn't really want this. I care about you, Britt. That's the bottom line. I care about you and I was hoping that maybe we could be friends. Just friends, no ulterior motives, but I hate passing you in the hall and not even getting acknowledgement. I just want to reach a common, friendly ground, so please, can we please be friends?"

She sat there a long moment and the longer she was silent, the thinner the piece of rope that Hunter was figuratively clinging to. She stood up and walked away, but then turned once she was a few paces behind. "We'll see."

He had to take it.

When Chris lost his match, he was beside himself, just absolutely beside himself. He couldn't believe they'd lost again. How could they have lost again? Things had been going along fine, or so he thought. One second, he was trying for the Walls of Jericho and the next, he was flat on his back after a Sweet Chin Music. He wasn't surprised it had been Shawn who had ultimately done the damage. Shawn hated him just enough to do this to him. Hunter might actually want him here under normal circumstances, but fighting like this was not normal circumstances.

When he left, he knew he wasn't really leaving. He had more tricks up his sleeve; he just had to figure them out. He wasn't going to resort to asking Stephanie. There had to be a way in. There had to be. What Chris wasn't realizing was that because he was trying so hard to get back on Raw, he was getting more time _on_ Raw. His quest had made him a Raw mainstay and it was what he wanted and didn't even realize he was doing what he set out to do.

He was here because he could be. There was really nothing holding him back, it was just the challenge of it all. He wanted a challenge and maybe he got that here and not on SmackDown. What did he even have planned for this week? There'd been mention from his wife of a tag match where he paired with the Hart Dynasty, which was so not even worth his time thinking about. Right now, there was more work to be done and he had to figure out a way to get back on Raw, just figure out one way.

Stephanie would've been more sympathetic had she not been waiting for her father and Bret to confront each other. The most she could muster up was massaging Chris's shoulders, though it was doing wonders for him. He'd just gotten out of the shower after his disaster of a match and was glad he wasn't escorted from the building like times before. Stephanie would've put her foot down anyways, but the last thing he needed after his defeat was to add insult to injury. So he sat there, in his locker room, his daughter asleep in her traveling playpen and his son asleep in his inflatable bed. Stephanie kissed the top of his head and he leaned back. She was still smiling, God love her, and even in his defeat, something good could still come of this night.

When her father kicked Bret, she saw it coming a mile away. She knew when her father was being false. She always knew. She'd seen that look since she was a child. Some wrestler would come over for dinner and Vince would give the fake smile, the one he put on when he thought nobody noticed, but Stephanie had a knack for noticing. She could read people, she always could read people. Bret was too trusting. Time had dulled his senses to the wrestling business it seemed. You never took face value. Never. Face value was nothing but a charade designed to make a person weak.

Wrestling was all about power and Vince wasn't going to let Bret take the high road. He wasn't going to give him the power. He was going to assert himself as boss and the moment they faced off against each other, Stephanie knew her father was waiting for the right moment. He was like an owl searching for prey. He could sit silently and then pounce like that. Bret was a sitting duck right and Vince would take advantage, somehow, Vince always took advantage. He'd waited over ten years to get his hands on Bret Hart, for tarnishing part of Vince's image with that incident. Bret had lost some of that edge and probably just didn't see it coming. But now that he knew it was coming, Stephanie had a feeling he wouldn't leave it at that.

Bret wasn't going to back down.


	266. Perspective, January 8 to 11, 2010

A/N: Thanks to those who read the story faithfully and thanks even more to those who review because they help immensely, more than you can ever know. Anyways, hope you enjoy the chapter and if you like Chris/Stephanie videos, I've actually added a couple vintage Chris/Steph vids on my site, the link of which is in my profile if you feel so inclined to watch. :)

* * *

Sawyer knew he was different from other three year olds.

He knew that he traveled a lot with his mommy and daddy, but he didn't mind. He was used to it by now and it was actually fun. They were always going somewhere different and every place was exciting. His parents made sure of that. They liked to take him and his sister around to different places and they were always fun. One time, they'd gone to a museum and they could touch everything and things were really cool. They even had this machine that made his hair stand up. He laughed a lot when it made his mommy's hair stand up. His daddy had laughed a lot too and made fun of her. He did that a lot, Sawyer noticed, but that was okay because his daddy said he loved his mommy.

His parents loved him a lot too. There was not a moment that passed when Sawyer did not know he was loved. He always knew because his parents told him all the time that they loved him and that made him feel good. When they were at the shows, they were very busy, but they always made sure that one of them was there to tuck him in when he got onto his WWE inflatable bed. He was just used to this way of life because he didn't know anything else. The only thing he knew was this life, same with his sister. Flynn didn't know anything either because it's just how it was and they understood that, well, Sawyer understood that more than his sister. She was still a little girl and she didn't understand as much.

He looked around. He'd forgotten where his mommy had said they were going tonight. He looked up at her. She was checking something on her phone with her left hand. Her right hand was occupied because he was holding it right that second. He always had to hold someone's hand when they were outside because it was dangerous and his parents didn't want him to get hurt. It was okay, he liked holding hands with his mommy. He looked behind him and his daddy was just pushing Flynn's stroller inside. She was asleep because she was little and needed longer naps than he did. She always fell asleep in the car. His daddy said it was because she liked being in motion, but Sawyer didn't understand why that would put someone to sleep. While he was in the car, he liked to look out the window at everything. Flynn always missed out.

Flynn's pacifier was falling out of her mouth right now and her head was nodded off to the side. His father was pushing it slowly and quietly so he didn't wake her up. Sometimes Flynn was very crabby when she woke up from her naps. Daddy said that was because she was just like Mommy, which he could understand. His mother groaned above him and he turned to look up at her. She looked frazzled, but that's how she always looked when she was at the show. She had a lot of stuff to do so he always tried to stay out of her way.

"What's wrong?" he asked, feeling compelled to ask. He didn't like to see his mommy upset or angry.

"Nothing, baby boy," she told him, smiling down at him. "I just know that I'm not going to have any say in what goes on tonight and it's very frustrating, like when you try to tie your shoes, but you can't quite get it."

Tying shoes was a very frustrating task indeed. There were a lot of steps to remember and his mother's song about a rabbit didn't help at all. His daddy was more straightforward with him, just telling him out to do it, but then, his daddy sometimes showed him how to do it on his wrestling boots and those things were huge and that didn't help him at all. He looked down at his shoes. They were Velcro tonight and he could definitely work Velcro. That was easy, you just pulled it and it came right off. This was no time for taking off shoes though.

"Oh, that's good," Sawyer said. Stephanie looked down at him scrunched her nose. She was about to say something when someone else walked up to them.

"Well look who decided to show up." This voice was even screechier than his mommy's could get.

"What do you want, Vickie?" Stephanie asked, exasperation in her tone. Sawyer stepped a little bit closer to her leg. Just for the added protection. "I've got a lot of work to do."

"So you've decided to work, have you?"

"Look," Stephanie said and Sawyer could tell that her voice was getting angrier. He'd heard that tone sometimes, especially when he accidentally got paint or marker on something he wasn't supposed to. She'd have that controlled anger voice, then she'd go and yell at his daddy for letting him have stuff like that in the first place. It wasn't a pleasant voice and he wanted to bury his face into her pant leg right now. "The fact is that you and Teddy box me out and decide to do whatever the hell you want. I'm not going to take responsibility for that. If you want to ruin this show, then you can, but I do have work around here."

"We're not ruining the show, you two show up, you do your business like you don't care. Well we care."

"Who the hell are you to tell me how to do my job?" Stephanie snapped.

"Your father put me in charge."

His mother's face tightened. "Well, I'm here tonight so--"

"So you'll do nothing," Vickie said and his mother's grip on his hand tightened. It wasn't too the point of hurting, but it was definitely tightening to the point where he wanted to pull his hand away. "Chris, as you know, you have a match teaming with the Hart Dynasty. That's all we have time for so I'm sorry, you will not have any time on the show."

"Fine, I don't _need_ time on the show," Chris said. His daddy sounded mad too and Sawyer scrunched his face a little. He didn't much like this woman and it seemed like his parents didn't either. Everyone was tense, he could sense it, but his mother just kept his grip on her hand and Vickie walked away. He looked up to his mother and she was looking at his father and so he turned his gaze too, but his daddy wasn't looking at him at all, just staring at the woman who'd just left. They continued walking until they reached their room for the evening. His mommy opened the door, more like pushed it forcibly open and they went inside. He went and climbed on the couch when his mommy let go of his hand and she went over to their things and grabbed their play blanket out. She put it on the ground and he just watched as his daddy pushed Flynn's stroller close to him, but didn't take her out.

"You know this is all my father, don't you?" his mother said to presumably his father.

"What do you mean?" Chris asked.

"This entire thing, Vickie telling us she was in charge, this was obviously my dad trying to assert his power after what happened on Monday. He's upset so he's trying to strip me of my power here. This is his way of getting back at me."

"That does sound like your dad."

"Are you talking about Grandpa?" Sawyer asked. Whenever his mommy was mad, it seemed like it was something that her grandpa did…sometimes it was something his daddy did, but most of those times she'd be yelling at his daddy.

"Yeah, we're talking about grandpa and how _horrible_ he is!" she exclaimed. Sawyer's eyes widened. Yup, she was definitely angry now. Defintely, definitely angry. He better just keep his mouth shut tonight and not really say anything to her unless he wanted to get yelled at, which he didn't want at all.

"Do you really want to badmouth him to our children?" Chris asked her. He looked at Sawyer and made a face and Sawyer grinned at him. His daddy was always like that. It was like he didn't want anyone to be mad and for everyone to get along. That wasn't how he was when he was wrestling though. When his daddy was wrestling, he was very mean. His daddy said that was for all the fans and that the person he was out there was not the person he was when he was at home. When they were at home his daddy was the best. He'd always play with him, whatever he wanted to and he would play his music and sometimes he would let him use his instruments, which were very big, but very cool.

"I don't care, he wants to fight fire with fire, like this is going to deter me, it's only going to spur me on more. I'm going to call Bret and he's going to come _back_ to Raw and he'll confront my dad and…kick his ass or something!"

"I could kick his ass."

"Me too!" Sawyer added. He didn't know what kicking ass was, but if his daddy was doing it, he could probably do it too.

"Thanks to you both," Stephanie said, winking at Sawyer, "but I don't want you stuck fighting my dad at WrestleMania over me, it could end up a disaster like last year when I had to pretend to divorce you."

"You love Daddy," Sawyer added.

"That's right, she does," his daddy said with a big nod. "Otherwise, I think your mommy would've kicked me out on my butt a long time ago."

Sawyer giggled. "Daddy, you live with us!"

"I do, thanks for the reminder that I'm stuck in a nuthouse with a bunch of crazies like Mommy."

"Mommy's not crazy," he told his daddy.

"Oh, kid, you have so much to learn."

"Don't encourage him," Stephanie said. "I can't believe my father usurped my power and gave it to that _woman_ and I use the term extremely loosely because I think she's more like a witch or something. That's the only reason I can see for my father rehiring her. She does nothing for this company and to suggest, even for a moment, that she is better than me, _than me_, I won't have it! If you didn't have a match, I would just boycott the show."

"Wouldn't that be giving in to your dad?"

"No, it would be defying him."

"Not quite sure I get that," Chris said slowly.

Sawyer had tired of this argument. His mommy just needed to cool off and he didn't have any part of this. He climbed off the couch, checked on Flynn just to see if she was still sleeping and she was, then went over to the blanket and grabbed his backpack. He fumbled for the zipper and, getting it open, he started taking out his toys and books. He'd brought his cars tonight and he put them down in a jumbled pile, grabbing his favorite one, a police car and started driving it around the blanket, making car noises because how could you play with a car and not make car noises.

"Because I'd be blowing off work, I wouldn't be saying, 'you won, Dad,' I'd be saying, 'You haven't won, Dad!' See the difference?" He could still hear them, even if he was playing. It wasn't like he could just stop hearing. He wasn't sure it worked that way.

"I really don't see the difference, besides, I've got a match tonight and I have to be in that match."

"You don't _have_ to," his mommy said, but Sawyer was pretty sure his daddy had to wrestle. That was his job. When they'd had job day at his pre-school they'd all been tasked in asking what their parents did and then reporting back to class. He had said that his daddy's job was to wrestle and his mommy's job was to be the boss. It wasn't exactly easy for a little kid to say that his mother was the Executive Vice President of Creative Development and Operations at a Multi-Million Dollar Company that she would take over as President and CEO of in the future. It was just easier on him to say that she was the boss, even though his teacher had laughed at him, but she was the boss, she was the boss of _everyone_.

"Stephanie, I may have a lionshare of the company's shares in my joint possession and I may be married to the ruling family, but I'm still a wrestler."

"Why do you always bring that up?" Stephanie asked. "I know what you are, but you should be on my side in this and walk, just _walk_."

"I'm always on your side, you know this, but I have a job to do and you do as well and you know full well that you're going to do that job to the best of your ability because that's who you are. You're not the type of person to slack off. Okay?"

"I have nothing to do though."

"You have plenty to do for Monday, Mike Tyson is going to need a lot of stuff written up for him. I'm not sure he's a great on-your-feet thinker," Chris said.

"Hey, I heard you were talking with him, what's up with that?" Sawyer continued to push his cars around, going off the blanket and around the room. He was just crawling near his mother's legs and she moved them out of the way so he could pass. Even when she was busy, she was always aware of where he was.

"I just have a plan on Monday."

"A plan?" His parents were always throwing that word around. They said a plan was like when you decided to do something before you were going to do it and then you put all the pieces into place so that when the time came to execute the plan, it would go smoothly. He likened it to a puzzle, you had to put all the pieces together before you could see what you were looking at. His parents obviously liked puzzles. He wondered if his daddy knew that his mommy kept saying plan with that Ted guy.

"I talked to him because I want to pair with him on Monday against DX."

"Excuse me?"

Sawyer rammed his car into his daddy's foot and his daddy glared down at him. "Watch where you're going, kid, I'm not a toy."

"You're a tree," Sawyer told him. He rammed the car into his daddy's foot again and Chris leaned down and grabbed him by the back of his pants, lifting him up so he was eye level. Sawyer laughed as his daddy gave him a look.

"I'm not a tree."

"You're a tree, Daddy," Sawyer said again and Chris pulled him close and started tickling him. Oh no, he'd done it now! He started laughing and once he started laughing he couldn't stop and his daddy wasn't stopping and now he was kissing him and Sawyer tried to push him away, but he couldn't do it and now he was gasping for breath. Too much laughing.

"I'm not a tree, you!" he said, then pulled him even closer and hugged him. Sawyer cuddled into his daddy's body. He was the best and funniest daddy in the entire world.

"Okay, now that the tickle fest is over," she was trying to sound stern, but she was more amused than anything else because Sawyer could see the smirk coming on her face, just a little bit, "what is this about you pairing with Tyson."

"It's a done deal. I'm going to team with him and if we win, I'm going to be allowed on Raw."

"Oh." Now his mommy didn't look so amused, which confused both Chris and Sawyer.

"Why the oh? I thought you would be happy about this."

"I don't know, Chris."

"Don't know what?"

"I don't trust Tyson."

"Doesn't he have bad blood with DX?"

"I don't know, they could've patched things up, they probably did. I just don't like the idea of you relying on such a wildcard."

"He's a former heavyweight champion of the world," his daddy explained and Sawyer wondered if this Tyson guy was a wrestler or something because hadn't his daddy been that before, champion? He didn't understand that this Tyson was coming from the boxing world and not from the wrestling world. Nobody had explained it to him so how was he supposed to know?

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean his allegiances lie with you," she pointed out.

"Well, I have to take that chance if I'm going to get back on Raw by myself. I've decided though, if by some chance it doesn't work out that I'm going to stop trying. It just won't be worth it anymore and I've been spending so much time focused on that, I've let other things lag. Plus, with my CD coming out, I'm going to be busy anyways, so that's what I've decided."

"How mature of you."

"I'm just trying to prioritize here. I've kind of lost myself on SmackDown. I'm supposed to be the face of this brand and what have I been doing over here? Losing matches left and right because I don't really care. I want to go into the Royal Rumble and win and then challenge Undertaker for the belt."

"Wouldn't you want to challenge Sheamus? Then you _could_ be on Raw."

"I think that a showdown between me and Taker has been a long time coming. Sheamus is still a rookie--"

"And therefore easier to beat," she told him.

"I want Taker."

"Oh gee, Taker at WrestleMania, where he's only _never_ lost, I wonder how you'll fare."

"Streaks are meant to be broken, baby."

"And you think you're the one to do it?"

"Sawyer, do you think I can beat Undertaker?" Sawyer looked up at his father. His father could beat anyone. He believed that his daddy was the best wrestler there was. Sure, he was biased, but this was his reality. His father was the best ever and that was that.

"Uh huh, Daddy, you can," Sawyer told him.

"See? He believes in me."

"Might be the only one," Stephanie muttered.

"Mommy's in a bad mood because she thinks I'm going to lose," his daddy pouted at him. "Come on, let's go talk strategy with the team I'm teaming with tonight."

"Okay," Sawyer said. "What 'bout Flynn?"

He watched as his father looked towards Flynn, who was still down for the count in her stroller. How could she sleep when there were things to do around here! Sawyer didn't understand it, not remembering when he took just as many naps as his little sister did. But he was three now, almost four, _four_, and he didn't take as many naps. He just wasn't that tired all the time like his sister seemed to be. Babies, they just needed more sleep.

"I think she's still sleeping, we'll leave her be for a while. She and Mommy can stay together."

"Okay, bye Mommy!" he said.

"Bye, baby boy, I love you."

"Love you too."

His daddy carried him out of the room and he was content to just stay in his arms. He was still little so he still liked to be carried even if he was a great walker and an even better runner. He'd just gotten new shoes and they made him super-fast. But he didn't want to go super-fast right now. He still had his car in his hand and studied it as his father went somewhere else. They came upon another room and his daddy knocked and a girl answered. She had pink in her hair, which was strange because he didn't think people could _have_ pink hair, but he guessed they could.

"Hey, Chris," she said to Sawyer's daddy. "Here to talk about the match?"

"Yeah, I am."

"Who are you?" Sawyer asked.

"I'm Nat," she told him, shaking his hand.

He was bored almost instantly because his daddy was talking about matches and stuff like that, which he didn't really understand. He only knew his daddy's big moves, like the Lionsault or the Walls of Jericho or the Codebreaker. He didn't know the smaller moves even though his daddy had been trying to help him remember. That's all they were talking about though, smaller moves. So he just sat on the couch and pushed his car around. The lady with the pink hair, Nat, he remembered, came over and sat with him.

"Hi," she told him, leaning over a little. "Whatcha got there?"

"It's my car," he told her, holding it up for her to see.

"Cool, I used to play with cars when I was younger. I had a lot of boys in my family so I didn't like a lot of girly things like dolls or dresses."

"My baby plays with dolls," Sawyer explained. Flynn liked dolls, but she mostly liked to chew on their hair. That was pretty funny actually.

"Oh, but you like cars?"

"And trains and boats and trains!" he answered, he liked trains so much he said it twice.

"So any kind of locomotion," she laughed. "Well that's a really cool car, is that your favorite one?"

"It is," Sawyer answered her. "It's pretty."

"It is pretty, you should tell your mommy and daddy to get you a real car like that when you turn 16, but that's not for a while, huh? How old are you?"

"I'm three, but I gonna be four soon," he told her.

"Wow, you're getting to be so old."

"How old are you?" he asked, returning the favor.

"Way, way older than four."

"Oh, I see," he nodded. That was the usual response from grown-ups, they never wanted to tell their age. Maybe it was something you had to do when you were older, like you just couldn't tell people how old you really were.

"Hey, kid, you ready to go?"

Sawyer looked up at his daddy and hadn't even realized he'd still been talking to the other guys. He had liked talking to this pink-haired lady. She was nice. "Yes, I'm ready."

"Okay, I'll come talk to you guys right before the match, we'll iron out some of the last details."

"Okay, Chris," one of them said.

"You have funny hair," Sawyer felt compelled to say to the guy.

"Sawyer," his daddy hissed and Sawyer looked at him, wondering what he'd said wrong. The guy's hair _was_ weird. It was all shaved, but there was a little hair in the front sticking up. Why would you want your hair like that? He liked his hair, it was yellow like his daddy's. His mommy had brown hair and so did Flynn.

"What?" Sawyer asked, wondering what he'd done wrong, he leaned in closer to Chris, "he does."

"Sorry, you guys, he's a kid, they don't really know what they're saying," his daddy apologized.

"It's okay, the guy with the funny hair said and they were quick to get out of there.

"Kid, we can't just say what we think all the time," Chris told him.

"But his hair was funny."

"I understand that it was funny, but sometimes we can't say what we really think because it could hurt someone else's feelings. The general rule of thumb is that if you don't have anything nice to say than don't say anything at all."

"But Daddy, you say mean things all the time," Sawyer pointed out.

"Well, that's in front of the fans and they don't like me."

"But then you shouldn't say anything if you aren't nice."

"Well, it's different for me."

"Why?"

"Because when you're a wrestler, you have to be intimidating or you aren't going to win anything. You have to scare the other people and if you don't scare the other people than they won't think that you're going to be tough in the ring and if you're not tough in the ring, then everyone will just walk all over you. Do you want me to lose all the time?"

"No," Sawyer told him and he didn't. He liked it when his father won.

"Then I have to be mean sometimes."

He didn't really understand, but he nodded his head anyways. They went back to where his mommy was and when they opened the door, Flynn was awake! The pacifier was gone and replaced with a sippy cup, which looked like it was filled with apple juice. Lucky! He wanted some apple juice. Flynn's eyes lit up when she saw them and she still looked a little tired so she'd probably just woken up. Still, she was awake so he had someone to play with. Chris set Sawyer down and Flynn toddled over to them, hugging her Daddy's leg with her free hand and looking up at him.

"Man, I'm popular tonight," he said, lifting Flynn into the air and throwing her. Luckily Flynn had a strong grip or that sippy cup would have went flying. "Hey there, flutterby, you finally decided to join the waking world?"

Sawyer hung around his dad, waiting for him to put down Flynn so they could play. His daddy threw Flynn a few more times and, growing bored, Sawyer went over to his mommy, laying his chin on her leg, but she was busy and only lifted him into her lap, not saying anything as she continued to type something on her computer. This was what ended up happening most nights. He wasn't necessarily bored because there was a lot to do around here, but his parents had to work and he just kind of tagged along. Pretty soon, either his mommy or daddy or both of them would take them to where the food was and he'd get to choose what he wanted.

The best part of the evening was always when he got to see his daddy wrestle. His daddy changed when he was in the ring. He'd been in the ring before and he didn't think it was very different from anywhere else, but there was something different to his father when he was in one. Maybe he'd understand when he got older or something, but again, he seemed to think that he'd understand a lot more about everything when he was a grown-up like his parents. He just didn't know when that was. Wasn't four very grown up? His parents were always telling him he was a big boy and he kind of equated that to being a grown up, but who knew?

Anyways, his daddy was different when he was wrestling. For one, and the most obvious, he seemed to like to wear his underwear out there. His mommy _hated_ it when he ran around the house in his underwear, yet his daddy was allowed to go in front of lots and lots of people in nothing but his underwear. He wanted underwear like his daddy's though because they said Jericho on them and that was his last name! His underwear had cartoons on them, but not his name. Also, his daddy was very mean when he was out there, but that's what wrestling was, it was very mean.

You were supposed to hit and punch people or kick them even, but when you wrestled, you were allowed to. Sawyer wanted to wrestle whenever he turned into a grown up and the he could punch and kick whenever he wanted to and that thought appealed to him. Sometimes his daddy let him punch him, but that was different; he was his daddy. He was wrestling with two different people tonight, including the guy with the funny hair. The pink-haired lady was there too and she was cheering for them and that made him happy because he liked the pink-haired lady.

His daddy was going against someone now and he was doing the punching and kicking thing. "Daddy!" Sawyer yelled and Stephanie stared at him.

"Sawyer, geez, I think Daddy heard you from all the way back here."

"I'm not that loud," he said, chuckling and nodding his head like he was listening to music. He just wanted his daddy to win. "What's he doing, Mommy?"

"That was a dropkick and now Daddy is going for the pin, but now he's complaining that it was a slow count."

"What's a slow count?"

"It's when the referee is counting to three too slowly instead of the normal way. Daddy thinks that should have won, but now he's whining because Daddy can be a big baby sometimes."

"Flynn's a baby."

"Okay, okay, you're right. Daddy's not a baby," she said, kissing his head.

"What's he doing now?" Sawyer asked, watching as his daddy continued to wrestle.

"He just tagged someone else in so he could get a breather, but he'll probably want to go back in so he can win the match. You see, in this business, you kind of have to earn your way to the top unless you're very, very good, like you will be. Once you get to the top, you're better than everyone else and that's where Daddy is at right now, but his partners are all more on the rookie side of things so Daddy will probably win the match."

His mommy must be psychic because that was _exactly_ what happened. His daddy tagged back in (that was the right word for it) and then he did some stuff and then Walls of Jericho! Sawyer knew that move and he started jumping up and down on the couch screaming it out as Stephanie grabbed him and pulled him to her, kissing him on the cheek and then pressing her hand against his mouth.

"Sawyer, your sister is asleep, no yelling, okay?"

"Okwhre," he mumbled and she pulled her hand away. "Daddy won! He wins!"

"He did win because the other guy tapped out, but I think that move is called the Liontamer."

"What's that?"

"A much more painful Walls of Jericho."

Either way, his daddy had won, he was just the absolute best!

**January 11, 2010**

She had a bad feeling about this. She didn't exactly know what kind of a bad feeling it was, but she just had a bad feeling about the entire night. There was something hanging in the air and she wasn't sure she liked it. She wasn't sure she liked it at all. Still, there was work to be done and her father to humiliate, though Bret wasn't able to be here tonight. That would be a bit of a letdown, but she would just have to go on without him here. Her father would think he had the upper-hand anyways, what with the goings-on of SmackDown and the end of Raw the week before.

"Stephanie?"

Stephanie looked up and was surprised to see Ted there. He never really came to her, it was always the other way around, but since she was alone right now, the kids off and eating dinner with Chris and then apparently meeting with Tyson, it was okay for Ted to be here right now. She gestured towards the chair in front of her.

"Hey, Ted, what's up?" she asked.

"Nothing, just wanted to come by and say hi. I have a match tonight with Cody, but you probably already knew that, right?"

"Yeah, I did," she laughed. "I kind of make the schedule, are you unhappy with your match or something? Because it's a little too late to change it considering the show starts in about five minutes. I really hate when I have to change the show on the fly."

"No, nothing like that. I'm fine with the match, just feel like…I just feel like Legacy is ending and it's weird. I don't really know what to make of it. I get that I couldn't use the safety net forever, but just being a singles wrestler, it's a little weird."

"But it'll be better for your career. It's rare that a guy is the champion for very long when he's in a group, only some guys thrive in situations like that, like Hunter. For some reason, he works in a group. He works out of a group as well, but he also likes to have guys around him, guys who can prop him up. But then like, you look at Chris and he's never really been one for a group. He's always been better when he's been alone."

"Why do you love him?" Ted asked and Stephanie looked at him and it was clear that he hadn't meant to ask that, but out it had come.

"Because I do," she answered, saving them both the embarrassment of answering that question. "I know it'll be good for you to get out on your own. You'll find that you have a lot more freedom and you'll be able to go out and get the belt like you want and you won't have to do Randy's bidding all the time, that right there is already a plus, right?"

He laughed, it was a nice laugh, she'd admit, "Yeah, that's definitely a plus. I just don't know. You see all these guys who are doing things on their own, but they're getting nowhere and with Legacy, being associated with someone established like Randy, it's helped."

"But it could only help you for so long and the time is running out. You're too good for Randy now and we both know that. You're too good to just be his lackey. When Legacy breaks up, you'll be great."

"I really want to be, I really want to win the Royal Rumble too, even though I know you probably don't want me to, you probably want Chris to win, huh?"

"I'd be happy with either one of you winning." She'd gleaned onto the fact that Ted had developed a little crush on her and she didn't want to crush the poor guy's heart. It was completely understood that she was married and completely off-limits, but she knew you couldn't always control your feelings.

"Really?"

"Yeah, sure, if he doesn't win, he can always go and challenge Taker if someone on Raw wins and he wins, then great, I'll be thrilled for him."

"Thanks, it's nice to know that someone outside my family supports me. I think Randy would flip his lid if I won the Rumble though, that kind of makes me want it even more."

Stephanie laughed, "Then go and get it, Ted!"

"Thanks for listening, Steph," he said, pushing himself up. "Sometimes you just need someone who will listen."

"No problem, Ted, good luck with your match tonight."

"Thanks," he said before he left. Stephanie went back to her computer, sitting there for a moment before the door opened. She smiled, thinking it was Chris and the kids, but then her smile turned to a frown when she saw it was her father. What horribleness would he bring to her today? If he tried to kick her out, she was going to punch him, just right in the mouth, just a clean shot. Then she'd get Chris to punch him.

"What do you want?" she asked.

"Just wondering if Bret was here tonight," Vince said. "I figure if anyone would know, it'd be you."

"He's not here tonight," Stephanie told him, "but it's not because he's afraid of you."

"Of course he is, did you see what I did to him? He better be afraid of me if he knows what's good for him," Vince said. "If Bret really wants to let bygones be bygones he won't be back. Hell, he won't come back again. I put him in his place last week."

"That's what you think, Dad, but it's not what is," Stephanie said, placing her hands flat on her desk. "You may think that you have it all figured out, that everyone is afraid of the big, bad boss because if you cross him, he'll fire you, but I'm not afraid, Dad. I don't even care that you've tried to take away my power at SmackDown because you _know_ I'm invaluable to this company, but fine, Dad, fine, whatever, you continue to be you and I'll continue to be me and Bret will be back and we'll see what's what."

"I don't understand this rancor that you have for me."

"Of course you don't because you never open your eyes and you never realize what you've done wrong because to you, you've never done anything wrong, not a damn thing, right?"

"I don't think I have."

"That's why Shane left then, I'm sure, right, because you did nothing wrong."

"That has nothing to do with this."

"Except it has everything to do with this."

"Bret won't be back, you'll see, he's had enough of me. You will see, Stephanie."

"No, _you_ will see, don't try to play your mind games on me of all people. I'm not falling for them, I'm not 10 anymore. When will you get it through your head, when I take the company from you again?"

"I'd like to see you try."

"Don't try me, Dad," Stephanie said through gritted teeth. "You may have pushed Shane out of this company, but I'm not budging."

"He's not coming back, Stephanie, I win."

Her father left and she grabbed one of Flynn's stuffed animals and threw it at the wall. She took a few deep breaths and let them out slowly. She couldn't let her father know that he got to her. She couldn't show weakness. McMahons weren't weak, McMahons were strong and though there was an added Jericho to her name now, the McMahon ran thick in her. She was never going to completely get along with her father, she understood that now. Even at the best of times, there'd be a tenuousness within their relationship. There was never a time when things were 100% good and they never would and she had to accept that. She loved her family, but they were difficult, even her, they were all so difficult.

The door opened again and this time it _was_ the people she wanted to see. "Hey," she said, smiling as Flynn walked inside, dancing around like a weirdo. Even Sawyer was looking at her strangely, like he wasn't really related to this girl who was acting like a dork. "Why is she so happy?"

"They had risotto in catering and this kid goes crazy for her risotto," Chris joked or at least she thought he was joking, maybe their daughter really did like risotto. Chris presented a plate to her, setting it on the desk. "We brought you dinner."

"I picked it out," her son said, standing on his tiptoes. "I pick chicken and peas and rice, do you like it, Mommy?"

"I love it, you picked all my favorites," she told him. "Thank you guys, all of you, even you, you weird, little dancing girl."

"Mama!" Flynn said, shaking her head from left to right and dancing around. She was such a happy, little kid. It was the opposite of how Stephanie felt at the moment, but as long as nothing bad hurt her children, she could deal with it. They brought a light into her world that nobody else could bring. She couldn't wait until Trish and Christian got to experience it and Shane and Marissa were about to appreciate it at all over again.

She looked at her little boy, who was still looking at the plate of food, probably wondering if he could steal a bite, growing boy that he was. She couldn't believe he was going to be four in May. It didn't seem possible that he was going to be so old. She could still remember holding him for the first time, his small, squirming body pressed against hers, his skin still pink from birth, not used to being in the outside world. Now he was almost four years old and he was talking and having conversations and his sentences were long and drawn out and not the little two word sentences that he used to have.

"Hey, before you eat," Chris said, "do you think we could talk?"

"Sure," she said, "Oh, how was your meeting with Tyson?"

"Went well, we're going to surprise DX with the match, it's going to be awesome," Chris said. "I'm going to tell him to aim exclusively for Shawn though, just a little revenge for you and Britt. I thought it appropriate. One punch from Tyson and I'm going anywhere I want."

"Well, I hope that works out for you." She didn't tell him about her bad feeling, even though it was creeping back into her stomach again. She tried to push it down. "So what did you want to talk about?"

"Can you come here," he said, sitting down on the couch. "It's kind of serious."

His voice _had_ taken on that serious tone, the one he used when he didn't want to joke around and so she knew that he meant business. Sawyer was reading a book, he knew a few words here and there and Flynn was looking over his shoulder, slapping her hand against the back of his head. Sawyer must have the patience of a saint. She walked over and was about to sit next to Chris when he leaned forward and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her into his lap. She sat there, getting comfortable and smiled as she looked down at him, but his lips were forming a thin line and she frowned a bit at it.

"Okay, so what's the matter?" she asked, wrapping her arms around his neck and looking at him. "Though I'm liking the position right now. Usually I have to contend for this spot with those two monsters over there so it's not often that I get a chance to see the view from here."

"And you're liking the view?"

"I always do," she winked. "So really, why the voice, what's up?"

"I've been thinking about us, the two of us."

"Good, I'd be a little worried if you were only thinking of yourself all the time."

"Yeah, well, I haven't been. I've been thinking about our relationship recently. I'm going to be busy with my Fozzy stuff, as you know since you work my schedule for me."

"I do, your manager gets you the gigs, but I let her know when you are available so that you still have time to spend with us."

"Yeah, well, I've been doing a lot of Fozzy stuff and I've been starting to work on my book, again, you know this, you've seen me."

"I keep the kids from bugging you…Chris, are you leaving wrestling again?"

"No, God no," he told her and she was relieved. She wouldn't be able to handle that right now. "But I've just been thinking about how focused I am on some things and how focus you've been on other things and how we haven't exactly, we're not on the same path anymore, I don't think we want the same things right now. I think we're just on two different paths taking us in two different directions. I think we're drifting apart."

"What are you trying to say, Chris?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at him. What was he even suggesting? She was starting to worry a little bit about this. Two different paths? Drifting apart? Was he…did he want something that was not what she wanted? Her mouth ran dry. "I don't…I don't understand, what are you saying here?"

"I'm saying that I've been trying to get back on Raw and now I'll be focusing on winning the Rumble and going to WrestleMania vying for the title and you, my love," he said, pulling her chin down with his thumb and forefinger, "have been plotting a plan with Ted DiBiase."

Her eyes widened, "What? I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Stephanie," he said and he was smirking as he leaned up press a kiss to her lips. "You've been planning something. I've been suspicious for a while, but then I saw Ted leaving your office earlier and that man has no reason to be in here if you weren't planning something, so fess up."

"What, no…we're not planning anything."

"Stephanie Marie McMahon-Jericho…"

"Stop it, don't use my full name," she pouted. Damn it for having figured it out. Now she was never going to live it down, not ever. Chris was going to rub it in her face and then he would tease her and tell all their friends and he'd mock her and he was already starting it with worrying her over nothing.

"What are you planning with him? I'm curious. If you're not planning with him and you don't tell me the truth, I'll have no choice but to believe that you are having an affair with him."

"You know that's not the case," she said, shoving him a little bit. "Chris," she whined.

"What's it going to be, Steph?"

"Okay, fine, he wanted to leave Legacy and he just needed encouragement and when he does break free, I want him to be on our side because he's going to be something great," she told him, folding her arms, angry that he'd gotten her to admit it.

"Oh so you've finally got your boy toy, I've been wondering why he was so rebellious against the hand that fed him, seems he's got someone else now. So tell me, how long until you two become a happy couple?"

"I knew you were going to do this. This is why I didn't tell you, I knew you'd make fun of me."

"I'm not making fun of you, I'll be happy to share you with him, he can have Monday Wednesday Friday, and I'll get Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday, I figure I can get Sunday because we're actually married. This'll really help me because you're insatiable in bed. I can barely keep up so having Ted around will help considerably. And hell, when I'm on the road doing Fozzy stuff, he can even help around the house."

"Stop!" she said, falling against him and hugging him. "Don't tease me, you're so mean to me. First I have to deal with my father and now I have to deal with you."

"I'm sorry, I find it hilarious," he said, running his hands through her hair. "So is he really looking to leave Legacy?"

"Yeah, he wants out, can't you tell."

"Yeah, I can tell," Chris said. "So was that _all_ him or did you have a little bit of influence over him?"

"I may have said something…"

"That's what I thought, I don't think Ted would leave on his own."

"He wants to now. He's tired of living under Randy's thumb and he shouldn't have to. He's just as good, if not better than Randy is and he deserves the chance to shine. It should be his time now, not his time to back up Randy in every tiny, little endeavor."

"What about me, is it my time?"

"Well, I don't know, I'm wary about this Tyson thing, I've got a bad feeling about it, Chris. I just don't think you can trust the guy."

"Stephanie…"

"I guess this is what you mean about different paths," she told him, running her hand down his face as she watched her children play. "Just be careful out there, okay?"

"I will, don't worry."

She was right, but then, she usually was. When the match, if she could really call it that, had started, she had a bad feeling about everything. Nothing really felt right at all. It just felt wrong and she knew something was going to happen. She suspected that Shawn had gotten to Tyson. It would be just like him. She didn't want to say that Hunter knew because maybe he didn't, but if he did know, she was extremely disappointed that he would do that to someone he considered a friend, someone who he probably still wanted to consider a friend.

You just couldn't trust people you didn't know. DX probably got to Tyson first, probably baited Chris and now he was almost definitely going to be sporting a shiner after that one. It was just all too perfect for Chris that it was inevitably going to get screwed up. She wished better for him, but she guessed that now things were going to be changing. He'd said this would be his last time on Raw if he lost. He had other things to worry about.

When he finally got backstage, she sighed and he looked at her. "Don't say a word."

"I'm not saying anything," she said. "Can I look at your face?"

He tried to resist, but she was stronger in this moment and it was already bruising. "You'll be okay."

"I'm going to shower, then we can go," he said. She nodded and watched him walk away. She waiting until Hunter came back and then pulled him aside. Shawn looked at her, but she didn't give a damn what he thought.

"I honestly thought you were better than trickery," Stephanie told him. "I guess I shouldn't have, knowing your track record, but since my husband lost his tag title belts, you haven't really given him a fair shake at those belts. You set him up, you humiliate him, but you're afraid of him, you don't want to look like the dumb one."

"I'm not doing anything, just wrestling."

"Oh yeah, just wrestling, that's why you pull crap like you've been pulling. Why are you so threatened? Or should I ask why Shawn is so threatened? I'm telling you, Hunter, right now, Shawn is up to no good and it's going to take you falling down to the bottom to see that, but you'll see it. I hope you're okay with alienating everyone else in your life to learn that lesson."

She walked away, just disappointed in him. Rather than be a great wrestler, he wanted to be one-half of a comedy act. If that's what he wanted fine. That's what he wanted. She didn't have time for it anymore. After Chris had taken his shower, they went back to their hotel for the evening, climbing into bed after they'd put the kids away. Stephanie snuggled into his side and they didn't speak for a few minutes.

"So no more Raw for you?" Stephanie asked.

"No, I've got other things I really should focus on now. I have SmackDown and that should be enough. I have a lot to do with Fozzy and I'm trying to make myself feel better, aren't I?"

"No, you really do have a lot to do," she told him, kissing his chest. "You could do me if you felt so inclined."

"I'm exhausted from tonight, but ask me again in the morning before the kids wake up," he told her, running his fingers through her hair. "You do like my CD though, right?"

"I love it," she told him. "It's your best one yet and I'm not just saying that because I'm your wife. Everyone is going to love it, I don't see how they can't."

"Thanks, hey, so do you want to write my book for me?" he asked. "You've got time, what with your father kicking you off SmackDown?"

"Don't tempt me because I would write it, but I don't think you'd find it too favorable?"

"What do you mean? You love me, you'd write me glowingly."

"I'd write about how mean you were to me because you were madly in love with me and you were pining away for me and you couldn't eat and you couldn't sleep because you wanted me so much and the second that I was single, you snatched me up because you couldn't possibly live without me."

"Okay, so I'm going to handle my book writing."

"I thought you might say that."

"I'll still talk nicely about you, but only because you're my wife and I do love you."

"Why do you love me?"

"What kind of question is that?" he asked.

"Ted asked me why I loved you earlier, he kind of has a crush on me."

"Oh, that's just great," Chris said, "are you sure he does or is this just your fantasy to have him like you?"

"No, he really does, I can tell," Stephanie said. "It's only because I've been interacting with him. He wrestles with a bunch of guys, he teams and travels with a bunch of guys, I'm one of the only women he interacts with that doesn't want him solely to get in his pants or take his money away, it's not surprising that he would want me a little. It's just one of those, hey, she's convenient type things."

"And that kills you, doesn't it?"

"It does not!"

"Okay, so he asked why you loved me and how did you answer?"

"Well, he didn't mean to ask so I didn't want to embarrass him and just said that it was because you're my husband."

"Oh, thanks for making it sound like you're only obligated to love me because we're married."

"You know that's not what that meant. So I'm asking you now, why do you love me? I love you because you're you and you're just…you."

"That's not vague at all."

"Just answer the question!"

"I love you because you have stupid plans that you try to hide at me, because you yell at your father whenever you get the chance, and because you go up to guys who have beaten me and threaten them and tell them that they will hit rock bottom and have nobody."

"You heard me talking to Hunter."

"I went back to ask you something and I overheard you. Those are the reasons I love you, because you're insane."

"I'm not that insane…"

"Oh go share a bed with Ted."


	267. New, February 6, 2010

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, first and foremost. Anyways, I'm freaking sick of being behind in this so I decided to skip some shows. I'm fast forwarding to February 6th so I can at least be a little more caught up. I don't think I really missed anything and I doubt you'll miss anything from the shows I skipped. I just really want to catch up and with such a full schedule, it's really hard to find time to write. Anyways, I'm on my way to catch up.

So on that note, by my count, which isn't very good because I know I've combined chapters and what not, but apparently, this is the 500th chapter of this story. To everyone who has followed this story, I want to thank you and then ask if you're nuts or something? Because the only thing more nuts about someone who reads a 500 chapter story is the person who actually _writes_ a 500 chapter story lol. But yeah, I guess this is 500 and thank you to everyone who has ever reviewed this story and the original story. So, in honor of such a momentous occasion (work with me here), I'm giving you a special chapter.

Enjoy and hell, leave me a review solely for the fact that I'm a crazy person who wrote this much. :P

* * *

"Dude, he _warned_ you that he was going to do that."

"Yeah, well, he could've been a little nicer about it," Chris said, taking a swig of the beer he was having with his lunch. Trish had called Stephanie and asked her to ask Chris to take Christian out for lunch because she was getting sick of him. Trish had grown fond of Christian leaving because it meant he wasn't hovering around her all the time. She was a couple weeks removed of her due date of the 24th and it could not come soon enough for her as she was tired of being pregnant and tired of the constant attention that Christian was lavishing on her. She just needed him to leave her alone some of the time. She hoped once her baby was born that he would focus on their son or daughter and not so much on her.

"A little bit nicer? We're _wrestlers_, Chris, and didn't Edge actually call you and tell you that he was going to kick your ass when he came back?" Christian asked. "I mean, most guys don't even get that, but he actually told you."

"But it was the _Royal Rumble_!" Chris told him. "That is like…it's like the one accomplishment I haven't had, you know. It's the one that's always eluded me, I've been in so many Rumbles and I've never had the privilege to win one and I thought that this would be my year."

"Can't you be satisfied that you're a 5-time World and WWE champion in your career?" Christian asked. "Some guys, namely me, have barely even got the opportunity for that, let alone have the title five different times. You should be grateful for that?"

"But now I don't get to be in the main event at WrestleMania," Chris pouted. "Edge gets to choose who he wants to face. I could've chosen, I probably would've chosen Sheamus because he'd be easier to beat. Or I might go after Taker--"

"Because he's Stephanie's secret husband and you have to avenge that?"

"Shut up, this isn't funny," Chris told him. "My life is not funny to you."

"It's a little funny to me. If I couldn't win the Rumble, I'm glad my brother did," Christian shrugged and then off Chris's incredulous look, "yes, Chris, I am aware that we're best friends and everything, but the guy is my brother and he was coming off a horrific injury, you at least have to be a little happy for the guy, right?"

"I'm not happy for him at all," Chris said, "why would I be happy for him when he took my win. I was going to win the Rumble and then go on to WrestleMania in the main event."

"You are aware you still can do that, what with the Elimination Chamber show that's coming up, you know, the one that you're in, the one you beat Matt Hardy to get in."

"Oh yeah and I've had the best luck in Elimination Chambers."

"You have a great shot at winning that. I mean, look at your competition, R-Truth, John Morrison, you could beat those guys in your sleep. Rey and Punk are going to be a little harder, but Punk seems more distracted with his little society than he is actually competing for the belts. Rey is tiny and you can overpower him."

"And Undertaker?"

"Is old. Let's face it, some of the mystique is gone. He goes a lot on reputation alone, but his knees are shot, I know this. So you out-endure him. You're in your prime still, Chris, you're one of the best there is. Do I really need to be giving you a pep talk here, are you still _that_ upset over losing the Rumble? You've been in how many Chamber matches?"

"Like five or six."

"Yeah, so the thing doesn't intimidate you. Plus, you're an iron man, how much time off have you taken for injury in your WWE career?"

"Never more than a couple weeks."

"Exactly, you just outlast Taker and then you've got the belt and then my brother is definitely going to pick you to face at WrestleMania and then he can win the belt off you like he wants to because that's what the fans want. My brother wants everyone to like him now, I think it's because he wants to distance himself from Vickie as much as possible. While she's still a shrew, he wants to appear like the great guy so that she doesn't get any ideas."

"Does she want him back?"

"I'm not sure but my brother seems to think she does and he doesn't want Lita to get the wrong impression like he wants to be with Vickie again. Why he was ever with Vickie, plan or not, I don't understand, but he wants the fans to like him and who better to target than the guy that's been talking crap about him and the guy that everyone hates and not even loves to hate, but just hate."

"He could've done it outside the Rumble."

"If you were out on injury and you could come back in the Rumble, wouldn't you eliminate me and Edge even though we're your friends?"

"Fine, true enough."

"See, I'm always right."

"No, you've just got the dad mojo working for you right now. I don't expect this to last once you're only getting a few hours sleep a night, you ready for the big day?" Chris asked. "Plus, you do know that your wife was the one who made me invite you to lunch, right?"

"I know," Christian sighed. "I guess I am laying it on a little thick."

It wasn't that he meant to, not really. It was just the fact that his wife was having his baby soon! Dr. Sheldon said that everything was going along beautifully and their child was in the right position and everything was looking healthy and normal. It was the best news he could get at this point and time. He just wanted everything to go according to plan and he felt like if he spent one second away from Trish that something would go wrong and he didn't want anything to go wrong.

He was so ready to meet this child, the one that was sending Trish into false contractions and making her ankles swell and the one that kicked against his hand so hard that it felt like they would burst right through Trish's stomach. Every night, he'd find his leg jostling in a strange rhythmic beat as if his child could hear and understand that he was waiting anxiously. Trish would just stare at his leg until he noticed and stopped. Every little thing he did seemed to annoy her, but he just chalked that up to her pregnancy and tried to do what she asked.

He knew it was bothering her for him to try and be around constantly. That's why he had gone out with Chris today and let Stephanie and Trish have a day to themselves. Chris had dropped off his kids with his parents at their condo before he and Chris had ended up at this place for lunch, this place that didn't have his wife even though he was worried about her. But she was with Stephanie and he was sure that she was in good hands.

"So I'm going to be at Raw Monday."

"You are?" Chris asked, sitting up a little straighter.

"Yeah, Stephanie said that the guys from ECW are going to be free agents now and we can sign with whatever brand we want to and I want to see what it's like on Raw."

"Dude, why not just come to SmackDown?"

"Oh, I don't know, probably because it has these two big egos, one I call my brother and one I call my friend," Christian said. "I would just get lost in the shuffle and you two would probably fight over me or something and I want to shine on my own."

"So you're going to raw to what, test out the waters?"

"Yeah, that's exactly why I'm going," Christian said. "I want to see what Raw has to offer that SmackDown won't. Stephanie already said that I could. She cleared it for me to be there. I'm really grateful for that. She's doing a great job on there."

"Which surprises you?"

"Well, with your dad and Bret Hart going at it like they are and Stephanie and you being the ones to bring him in, I imagine things are pretty icy in the McMahon family."

"They are, but Stephanie isn't letting that interfere with her work. Except on SmackDown because her dad has effectively banished her from it. She isn't allowed to do anything, well, she is and she isn't. She still officially should run it, but whenever she tries to come up with a schedule, Vickie runs it to Vince and he changes it to whatever Vickie wants and it's impossible for Stephanie to do anything productive."

"And that's why you've been in matches against people that aren't exactly up to your league?"

"Yeah, I'm getting the residual effects from it," Chris shrugged. "But I just go out there and do my job. I still get time when I want it because I _am_ Chris Jericho and my father-in-law can't really not give me _any_ time without raising suspicion and I'm one of the faces of the company so he can't hold me down."

"Do you ever wonder what would've happened if Stephanie had married someone like…I don't know, that guy she dated, remember the guy from the Mean St. Posse, what was his name, Rodney, he was the one she dated, right?"

"I have no recollection of this."

"But you know who the Mean St. Posse is, right? I'm pretty sure Stephanie dated one of them. They were friends of Shane. I think it was him that she dated, I remember. What if she had married someone like that, do you think they would have been in the same position you are."

"What is with you and your obsession with my wife being with other people? Is this your suppressed fantasy of having my wife married to _you_?"

"No, I'm just saying that she likes to align herself with guys who are pretty well-established to be great wrestlers. It's almost like she chooses you deliberately because she knows that you have the potential to be champion. When she started dating you, you'd been champion a few times already and when she married Hunter, it was the same thing, but I can't imagine her dating or marrying someone like Chris Masters who's never held anything."

"So you're saying that my wife fell in love with me solely because I'm a good wrestler."

Christian laughed at Chris's angry face, "I'm not saying anything like that, I'm just saying it seems she's attracted to the powerful guys rather than losers."

"She has good taste is all."

"I heard from Trish that she was with Ted or something…"

"They're friends, she's friends with him," Chris rolled his eyes. "It provides me with a lot of cannon fodder. If you talk with her about it, it's really very funny. She gets all flustered about it and she's just…she's funny…"

"So you don't care?"

"No, should I?"

"No, just wondering."

"She's not sleeping with the dude. He has a crush on her, but she's not sleeping with him or anything," Chris said. He wasn't sure how he felt about the guy having a crush on his wife. Stephanie had told Ted that Chris knew about them and whenever Chris passed Ted in the hallway the other man seemed to avert his eyes. He didn't know if Stephanie had told him she knew about his crush or if she'd even brought it up with him at all. Still, Ted looked away and Chris just wanted to laugh about it. It was like he was intimidated just looking at Chris and he kind of liked having the kind of power over the kid.

"He has a crush on her?"

"She seems to think so, it's not a big deal."

"Not a big deal?"

"No, why, you think I should be worried that Stephanie is going to see that he's a champion-caliber wrestler and because she only goes for high-profile guys that she's going to leave me in the dust?"

"I'm not saying that."

"Why would you want to go to Raw anyways? Everyone would have more fun on SmackDown. Edge and Lita are there and we're there and when Trish is cleared to travel she'll--"

"Be staying at home," Christian said.

"Trish isn't going to travel?"

"No. Look, Chris, Trish isn't like Stephanie. She doesn't _need_ to go back to work or anything like that. She's retired. She runs her yoga studio from the house and she's thinking about opening one in Tampa as well and she loves doing that. I know she likes traveling with us and everything and that's great, but it's not her life. Stephanie loves the wrestling business and it's her work so of course your kids are going to be there, but Trish doesn't need to come back."

"I understand, I just…you know, you see all these guys who have wives and kids at home and I always kind of feel bad for them. They don't get to see their kids a lot and when they do, they've missed stuff, maybe just little stuff, but they've still missed stuff. I go away for a few days every once in a while when I'm doing Fozzy stuff or book stuff and I hate being away from my kids. I can't imagine traveling the way that I do and not being there for my kids, not having them with me. I love those kids more than I've ever loved anything in my life and not having them with me, I can't imagine it."

"Well when you put it like that."

"I'm just saying that's me, man, but you know, Trish wouldn't even be able to travel for a while with a newborn in the house so you've got plenty of time to think about it. I'm not saying that you should or shouldn't just be prepared to miss stuff, especially with a newborn. It seems like everything changes all the damn time."

"I know. But Trish and I understand that. Trish was a wrestler for a long time and she knew going into this that I wasn't going to be able to be around all the time. I know she'll manage and she'll have people around, Lita can stay with her sometimes and maybe Stephanie…"

"Maybe…I know she'll want to help. Hell, she's helping her right now by not having you anywhere near her."

Trish sipped at her milkshake. It tasted so good as it slipped down her throat. She'd developed a penchant for cookies and cream milkshakes. It was her one true craving throughout these last few weeks of her pregnancy. For the most part, she was gaining weight as she should, not too much, but right on target with what her doctor had prescribed for her. She indulged in these milkshakes every once in a while just to let herself have that one sweet treat. And when she did indulge, God did it taste incredible. She loved the frothiness of it and the small chunks of Oreos that glided up the straw.

Pregnancy was hard, harder than she'd expected. Stephanie made it look easy, but maybe she was just misremembering the entire thing and Stephanie had had it just as hard as she did. She was uncomfortable now, so uncomfortable and she felt huge, expanded, like a balloon filling rapidly with air and not deflating at all, just getting bigger and bigger and bigger and she was pretty sure that she was wearing two different pairs of socks. Well, no, that wasn't true, Christian had helped her with the socks and there was no way he would do that to her, make her look so unkempt. Still, she felt like something was off, like she was frumpy somehow. It was difficult to find maternity clothes that look good on her and when she did, it still felt like she was wearing plastic bag over her, everything felt so large.

Then she was worried she'd never lose the weight. She'd never weighed this much in her life and while she knew that it was because she was pregnant, she just didn't understand how much she would lose once she had this baby. She still very much wanted this baby, but it was just so tedious, this waiting and waiting for this day that you weren't even sure when it would come. Every day just started and made you think, is today the day, is it? Is it the next one, which one? And it could be _any_ day! Sawyer had been born a few days late, Flynn a few weeks early. Her due date was a couple weeks away and now it was getting so close and she was feeling queasy.

Every day that passed, but especially today, she felt this horrible feeling in her stomach. Indigestion was the culprit most of the time, but she'd woken up today feeling especially indigestive. She really just wanted her mom to come down from Toronto, rush her up to bed and bring her some chicken soup and a cookies and cream milkshake. Not that being with Stephanie wasn't fun, but she wanted her mother, who was coming down in about a week to stay with her while Christian had to travel, just in case.

"You look exhausted," Stephanie said.

"It's getting harder to sleep."

"Been there, done that, twice. I'm actually really glad I'm not pregnant right now," Stephanie said. "I'm way too stressed. So I get to be the best friend and the aunt right now to soon-to-be newborns."

"How is Rissa doing?"

"She's doing great, Shane is really helping her out by being around all the time now, it gives him something to focus on. He's apparently doing the nursery all by himself. My brother building something, he hasn't done that since he was back on stage crew way back in the day."

"That's great, I'm really happy for them. All our kids can hang out together," Trish said. "I know our kids are going to hang out, at least Flynn will, Sawyer might be a little too old for that since he's almost 4."

"Don't remind me that my baby is going to be turning 4 in 3 months," Stephanie said, exaggerating her pout. "I don't want to think about him being that old. He's still that little newborn I got to hold and wonder what the hell I was doing."

"I'm wondering what the hell I'm doing right now," Trish said, rubbing her stomach. "I'm scared, Steph."

"It's always scary."

"I'm really scared. I don't think you were this scared."

"Are you kidding me, of course I was scared. When I had Sawyer, I was terrified. Still am, actually, every day it's like, a new obstacle, then you always have to wonder about Chris and me and where we'll be in ten years or whatever."

"You guys aren't having any problems though."

"No, we're not, but when you have kids, sometimes your relationship gets a little lost in the shuffle, you fall into this rut and Chris and I have to work hard not to fall into that rut. I don't want another divorce under my belt."

"You two are solid."

"Because we work at it. You'll be a great mom, Trish, because I know you and I know how you work. You're a good person and you're mature and you know what you're doing most of the time, unlike me, who runs around all the time, trying to do different things, juggling a million things. You get to be at home and you'll take care of your baby and everything will be fine."

"I just…you know, every now and then I think about Christian and myself, you know, like, how we were before and how we are now. I know, it's silly, but I'm a pregnant woman, I think I have every right to be a little silly."

Stephanie laughed, "You're only going to get away with that for about two weeks more, then you won't have the excuse."

"Of course I will, new mother, I can act crazy and flighty and I can chalk it up to my kid," Trish said. "Don't you do that with your kids?"

"I do not!" Stephanie joked, then laughed, "I do a little. They're great excuses. Speaking of great excuses, Sawyer is very excited about your baby. He came up to us last night and said, oh what was it, oh yeah, he was like, 'did you know Chrissy and Trish are having a baby?' and we both nodded and then he said, 'I just wanted you to know,' then ran out of the room. I think he'd deliver your baby if he could."

"Not sure I want him to do that," Trish laughed.

"Hey, he was a great coach for me when I was having Flynn, he was the only one there for me."

"I'm sorry for that," Trish said, sticking her tongue out. She grimaced and Stephanie studied her for a moment.

"Everything okay, Trish?"

"I don't think so," Trish said, setting the French fry in her hand down. "I think…I think I'm having some contractions…and not the kind that's fake because this was definitely painful."

"Okay, is it gone yet?" Stephanie asked, remaining calm. She knew that labor could take a very long time and that neither one needed to panic.

"Yeah, it's gone," Trish said, looking up, her eyes widen and frightened, like a doe spotting a human for the first time and not knowing this creature in front of her, this unknown future. "Stephanie, I think I'm in labor."

Stephanie, who had been looking at her watch, reached across the table and grabbed Trish's hand. "It'll be okay, Trish, I'm here for you and I've been through this twice before so you're not alone, okay. So I'm already timing it, so let me know when the next one comes, okay?"

"Shouldn't we go to the hospital right now?" Trish said, ready to get out of the booth she was sitting in. She was shaking. This was labor, this was labor! Was it? Oh, she didn't even know. How could she not know? This was her own body. How could she not know if she was having a baby? Wasn't it supposed to suddenly be tons of sharp pains coming every second, every minute, water breaking, pain everywhere? She almost felt okay right now, like nothing was wrong with her. Was this how it was supposed to be?

"We'll go in a bit, if they're really far apart, you're going to have a lot of time most likely, so we don't have to rush. Why don't we finish our lunch and then we can go to the hospital, okay?"

"Okay," she said, but she was almost too nervous to eat. In fact, she was too nervous to eat. "You just finish your lunch and I'll just wait for you."

Stephanie could tell that Trish would feel more comfortable at the hospital and she asked the waiter to come over and get their food to go and then she paid the check before leading Trish to her car. She was helping Trish inside the car when Trish had another contraction. She gripped the door, bending over, the pain sharp and biting against her abdomen and traveling lower and then spreading like brush fire over her stomach and through her back and finally signaling her brain that something very big was happening. She groaned in misery, the contraction seeming to last forever, but it must have only been a few seconds before it was over and Stephanie was helping her sit down.

"About twelve minutes," Stephanie said. "You're doing just fine, Trish."

"Okay," Trish said, sitting down and rubbing her stomach. This kid wanted out and it wanted out today or tonight or oh no, what if she went through that whole 36 hours of labor thing that some people went through? She didn't think she'd last 36 hours!

Stephanie put the food in the backseat and then climbed in the car. She didn't start going and Trish looked at her in horror as she brought out her phone. Stephanie looked over at Trish and saw her face. "Don't worry, it won't take long, I just figured that you would want your husband to know what's going on."

"Oh my God, that's right, Christian!" Trish said. How could she forget about him? How could she forget her husband altogether at a time like this! "Oh, my mom, I want my mom, she's supposed to be here!"

"Okay, I'm going to call Christian right now and maybe you can call your mom and then we can head out." Stephanie's voice was so soothing, so calm. How could she be so calm at a time like this? Trish was going to have to push a baby out of her? She was too small, maybe the baby wouldn't want to come out? Stephanie was taller and it was so easy for her it seemed. Stephanie had told her how easy it was, not that it wasn't without pain, but that it didn't take that long. Sawyer had been birthed in what, 6 or 7 hours, Flynn in even less time than that. What if she was in there for days upon days?

Stephanie scrolled through her list to Christian's number and dialed it. "Hello?"

"Christian, hey, it's Steph."

"Hey, Steph." There was a pause and then Stephanie heard Christian, "Yes, _that_ Stephanie."

"Hi, baby!" Stephanie heard Chris say loudly from the other end.

"Yeah, hi," Stephanie said, thinking she was on speakerphone now.

"What's up, Steph?" Christian asked.

"I just wanted to let you know, please don't freak out, but Trish is in labor and--"

"What! Oh my God, I'm not there, I _knew_ I wasn't going to be there, oh my God, what, is she having the baby right now!"

"Christian, calm down," Stephanie laughed. "It's not coming out or anything. The contractions are about twelve minutes apart so you're really not missing anything. Trish just feels more comfortable being at the hospital right now so that's where we're headed. You might want to call Dr. Sheldon so she can be aware of the situation. Trish is calling her mom and everything is going to be okay, just breathe and meet us there."

There was no immediate response and she heard a shuffling and then her husband's voice. "Hey, baby, yeah, I think Christian has hit a catatonic state right now and he's really just kind of staring off into space so I'm going to take him to the hospital now. We'll meet you there."

"Okay, thanks, sweetie, I'll see you guys soon, bye."

"Bye."

Stephanie hung up the phone and turned to Trish, "Did you call your mom?"

"Yeah, she's going to try to get a flight out tonight, but if she can't, she's going to try first thing tomorrow morning. I really wish she was here though."

"I didn't want my mom anywhere near the hospital when I was giving birth to my kids."

"I don't understand why you wouldn't want your mom there," Trish said as Stephanie started up the car. "I mean, I just feel like I want my mom right now, like even more than Christian."

"I don't know, I just felt weird and exposed while I was giving birth and I only wanted Chris there. I mean, birth isn't pretty, you do things on the table that aren't pretty. You're exposed and I just didn't want my mom there."

"I hope my mom can come, I really think I could use the support, I'm really nervous," Trish said, another contraction coming over her. Stephanie reached her hand over and Trish grabbed it, holding onto it.

"It's okay, Trish, you're going to be fine."

Trish wanted to believe her words. She was glad Stephanie was with her, Stephanie, who was so calm and her voice so gentle. Where had Stephanie even gotten this voice? She'd never really heard it, maybe it was the voice she used at home, reserved only for the ones she absolutely loved. She should have expected this from her friend though. Stephanie could coordinate shows with precision, rule over everyone and reign in even the unruliest wrestler. She had even Undertaker completely under her thumb. Of course she'd be perfect in a situation like this, here for her, but not hovering like Christian did. Trish kept her hand in Stephanie's the entire way to the hospital, squeezing it tightly whenever a contraction hit her. Stephanie didn't even flinch.

When they arrived, Stephanie did the checking in while Trish was helped into a wheelchair, hospital policy. Stephanie seemed to know all of the information about her, save for some of the insurance information. She talked in firm tones, finagling it so Trish got the best birthing room in the hospital. Trish wasn't even aware there were better birthing rooms than others. But the room she did get was airy and filled with natural light, not that dingy fluorescent light you saw in so many hospitals. The walls were a light green, very soothing and the bed double the size of a normal bed. She'd have to send Stephanie a huge thank you present for this.

Stephanie even helped Trish get into her gown, feeling suddenly modest around these nurses. Stephanie smirked. There was going to be no room for modesty later when things really started to get going. Some of the nurses helped her into bed and she guess she had to hunker down as they put her on some machines to track the baby's heartbeat, her blood pressure, and her contractions. So many machines, she felt uncomfortable. She looked over though, when she got hooked up, looking at that steady rhythm, the one the nurse said sounded very good. Stephanie sat by her and held her hand again.

"When do you think the guys are going to get here?" Trish asked.

"I'm sure they'll be here soon."

"I just really want Christian here with me."

"He'll be here, don't worry. Chris was a little late coming into Flynn's delivery, but he made it in time and he was in a different state. Christian will definitely make it."

"You're right, I'm just nervous," Trish said, another contraction hitting. They didn't seem to be getting any closer together and she kind of expected that things would progress quickly, or was that wishful thinking. Yes, that was probably wishful thinking.

"You'll be fine, I promise," Stephanie repeated, like a mantra.

"Fine, fine, fine," Trish muttered to herself. Dr. Sheldon came in a short while later to check up on her. She was about 4 cm dilated so she still had quite a way to go before she could even attempt to push. Dr. Sheldon told her to hunker down for the long haul and Trish nodded before Dr. Sheldon left the two women alone again. "I'm fine."

"Yes, you're fine."

"I'm scared."

"I know."

"Where is Christian?" Trish asked again.

She hoped he would show up just then, like he knew she was calling for him, but when she looked to the door, nothing. She sighed and stared down at her stomach. She wasn't even sure what was in there. Should she have found out? The nursery at home was a hodge-podge. They'd wanted some sort of theme, some fairy tale or scene or object to decorate the nursery with, but they couldn't agree on anything. She'd thought that teddy bears would be a cute theme, but he thought it was too corny. He'd wanted something medieval, castles and everything, but she told him that sounded too masculine and they weren't sure what they were having. So the room was painted in a very pale teal, almost seafoam in color and they'd just picked out things they liked.

The lamp was blue with lambs on the shade, jumping over little fences. Their baby bumper was an ocean scene, little dolphins jumping out of the water amidst sailboats. The clothes they'd bought were all different colors, mostly onesies, pink, blue, purple, green. They'd figured their baby wouldn't care what the color was so why should they? Now though, maybe they should've planned this out more. If they knew if it was a boy or a girl, they could have gotten girl-themed things or boy-themed things. Why hadn't they thought of that? Stephanie had found out with both Sawyer and Flynn, her sisters had found out about their babies. Why did she have to be the dissenter, the rebel, waiting for some kind of surprise? She knew it would boil down to one or the other, girl or boy. The ultrasound technician had assured her of that.

She wasn't ready. Could she just keep it in? If she closed her legs extra tight, would this baby give her the additional two weeks she was supposed to have? It was a possibility, should she try it? No, this baby was probably coming out whether she liked it or not. She just wasn't sure whether she liked or not. Shouldn't she have some say in this? It was her body that was going through this, shouldn't she be able to say STOP! I'm not ready, I'm going to need a little more time to adjust to this idea of being a mother.

"Hey! We're here!" Chris announced, leading before Christian, who was looking a little stars-struck. He kind of wandered in, like this was a museum and he'd just been admiring some amazing artwork. Stephanie stood up, going over to Chris and kissing him lightly. "How's it going, Trish?"

"It's going," she told him, smiling bravely at him.

"I know you probably wanted Christian here sooner, but I figured we should detour to your house so we could get your bag," Chris said, holding it up. "I thought you might want your things."

"I did, thank you," she said, holding out her hands. "I have some stuff in here to pass the time."

"Hey, Trishy," Christian said, his voice low and almost reverent as he came up to her and kissed her forehead, like she was a porcelain doll, the cracks showing through so he had to kiss extra gently. She pulled him down and kissed him properly. "I missed you."

"I should've been there," he told her.

"Chrissy, nothing's happening," she told him, feeling so much better now that he was here. "I'm only 4 cm dilated, there's still a while to go." She winced and he grabbed her hand, whispering soothing words into her ear. "See, nothing."

"That doesn't look like nothing," he told her, hating to see even the slightest grimace of pain on her face, which was strange because he never hated to see her wrestle and in pain, which had happened numerous times. But this pain, he felt like the cause of it and in a way, a big way, he was.

"Hey, Trish, we're going to go, okay," Stephanie said, wanting the couple to have some time alone together.

"No, please don't go," she said, turning to them, "not yet, can you stay? I just…I know this could take a while and I want my friends with me, at least for right now, will you stay for a while? I mean, unless you have to pick up the kids?"

Stephanie looked at Chris and he shrugged. They had time before they had to pick up the kids. "We can stay," Stephanie said, coming over and sitting in the other chair. Trish smiled and looked more encouraged. She wanted everyone's support. She didn't want to do this by herself and the more people here to pass the time, maybe it would go faster.

"I brought some cards, we could play poker or something," Trish said, rooting through the bag.

"Yeah, sure, let's play," Stephanie said.

They ended up playing for two hours. Trish had only dilated one more centimeter. She was in this for the long haul it seemed. Chris and Stephanie eventually had to go and get the kids, saving them from his parents. They were going to take them out to dinner and Trish and Christian bid goodbye to them. Christian turned on the TV for a while as Trish put her ipod in and listened to some music, hoping to calm herself down. The contractions were down to about eight minutes now, still quite far apart, but the intensity was rising like boiling water, creeping harder and harder to the surface.

Christian played the dutiful husband, getting her ice chips whenever she started to feel hot, holding her hand when she had a contraction, stroking her hand back when she got frustrated with everything. She would curse under her brother and want to cry. She was stuck there, it felt like she was drowning slowly in quicksand. The burn up to this birth was too slow, she wanted it over with but it felt like she was standing on this precipice. She knew the pain was going to come and it was going to be hard and she was terrified of when it would come because she didn't know when it would. She was already sweaty and tired and the hours were dragging on and nothing was happening. After six hours, she'd only dilated two centimeters, rounding her total up to a whopping six centimeters. Dr. Sheldon kept telling her that this was normal, that the first birth was usually, but not always, the longest and the hardest. This did nothing to ease her unease. It just made her more anxious and her body tingled.

She tried to take a nap, just something to pass the time, but it was fitful at best. She tossed her head around and then she'd open her eyes and Christian's sympathetic ones would meet her. "You know, I wouldn't be able to do this," he said to her after she'd been in labor for eight hours and was now stuck at seven centimeters. Just three more to go, but those three were being stubborn. It was now nine o'clock in the evening and there was no more natural light filtering in from the windows, only subtle moonlight. They'd dimmed the lights for her, hoping that she could rest, but how could she rest when she was in labor?

"Stop it," she said, her hair matted to her forehead. She felt aged, like the years were piling on. She felt hot and uncomfortable too, kicking away at the blankets. Christian got up and got her some more ice chips, handing her a cup. She took it and crunched on one. "You wrestle every week."

"Still don't think it compares."

"I'm sure on some mornings, you feel like it does," she told him, looking at him through weary eyes. "I always thought labor would be more…exciting, quicker, lots of blood and gore."

Christian laughed, "I kind of pictured it that way too. Like I would arrive and a short time later, you'd be pushing and yelling obscenities at me as you pushed. Not a whole lot of sitting around and doing nothing and watching you in pain."

Another contraction and she closed her eyes and tried to breathe through it. Christian was at her side and looking at the contraction monitor. He told her when it was done and she opened her eyes and took a deep breath. "That keeps getting harder to breathe through."

"You're amazing," Christian told her, sitting down again, "but then again, I've always known you were amazing."

"Liar," she told him good-naturedly. "There's no way in hell you thought I was amazing when I first came into the company, when I was with T&A and then with Val. There's no way in hell that you thought I was amazing when I was sleeping with Vince."

Christian winced. It still hurt to hear that, even after all these years. Having to know that your wife slept with the father of one of your best friend's and your boss was something he'd never get over. Trish felt bad for bringing it up and squeezed his hand for a changed. "I don't know, you were probably amazing, but nobody noticed. I wish I had."

"You did eventually."

"Then I screwed it up, time and time again I screwed it up, drove you away, ran away, treated you like crap."

"You can't treat me any worse than Hunter has treated Britt, so count yourself lucky."

"You still took me back though," he continued, almost as if he hadn't heard her. "You always took me back, even when I didn't deserve it. I probably don't deserve any of this, not really, you know."

"Of course you do."

"Do I? Or should someone else? Should Carlito be enjoying this and not me?" he wondered.

"No, because I love you, more than Lito, more than _anyone_. Don't you get it by now, Chrissy? Don't you understand why I took you back all those times? It was because I loved you and wanted _you_. You're here because we both wanted to be here."

"Yeah, I guess."

"Knock, knock."

Trish and Christian looked over and saw Stephanie and Chris again, but this time they had the kids with them. Flynn was nodding off on Chris's shoulder, her head tucked neatly against her collarbone. She was sucking on a pacifier, her eyes drooping and then popping open again like she was being surprised every few seconds. Sawyer was holding onto Stephanie's hand, looking around tentatively. He remembered a place like this with Flynn. It was kind of scary now that he thought about it.

"Hey, guys!" Trish said, happy to see them all.

"We just thought we'd check up on you. We ran into Dr. Sheldon in the hall and she said the magic hadn't happened yet. How are you doing?"

"Seven centimeters," Trish answered. "So still a way to go. We've just been sitting here. Thank you guys for coming to visit, it makes the time pass a little quicker. Hey there, cutie, how are you?"

"Are you having your baby, Trish?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah, I am."

"Wow," Sawyer told her, mightily impressed. Stephanie hoisted him up and let him sit on Trish's bed. He crawled over and cuddled into her side. "Hi, Trish."

"Hey there, handsome," she said, kissing his head. "Thanks for coming to visit me, I was really, really bored until you showed up."

"But you have Chrissy," Sawyer pointed out, grinning at his friend. Christian winked at him as Trish had another contraction. "I hold your hand." He took her hand in his, he remembered this with his mommy and Trish was able to breathe through this one. "Mommy, I helped."

"I see that," Stephanie said, brushing his blond hair back and then brushing Trish's hair back. Trish smiled gratefully at her. "We won't stay long, but Sawyer asked why we were so late, smartass kid has concept of time thanks to someone."

"He's a smart kid," Chris shrugged, coming closer to the bed. "You still look good, Trish. Second most beautiful woman in labor I've ever seen."

"I'm probably _only_ the second woman in labor you've ever seen."

"True, but 2nd is not half bad," Chris told her.

"You guys should stay as long as you like, I need the company," Trish said. "There's just nothing to do. I should have listened to you, Steph and just stayed to eat my lunch, then I should've gone shopping, then to dinner and _then_ maybe I would've been ready to come to the hospital."

"Sometimes things start progressing really fast," Stephanie told her. "You might be seven cm right now, but who knows, in an hour, you could be ready to push."

"Doubt it," she scoffed. She was becoming skeptical. "Maybe I'm not even in labor."

"I think you are," Christian added.

"I can check," Chris said.

"I'll check you out," Christian told him.

"Okay, okay, just offering. Word to the wise, man, I'm telling you, don't look down there, whatever you do, just…just don't look down there."

"I want to see my child coming out," Christian said.

"You'll regret that, my man, you are so going to regret that," Chris told him.

"What is your baby?" Sawyer asked.

"We don't know yet," Trish answered, "it's going to be a surprise."

"Do you want a baby like Flynn?"

"A baby like Flynn would be pretty cool."

"But you can't have a big boy like me because I'm almost 4," Sawyer said, holding up his fingers, "how old is your baby?"

"My baby is not even a day or an hour or a minute or a second old, not until it comes out will I know how old it is."

"It's not even anything old?" Sawyer asked incredulously.

"Nope, not even anything old."

"Wow," Sawyer said. "Cause I'm going to be 4."

"I know, that's so old!"

"I know," Sawyer agreed.

"Sawyer, stop talking about being 4, you know how it upsets Mommy," she pouted and he laughed and crawled back over to her, hugging her around the neck. His mommy was silly, it was like she didn't want him to get old, but he was going to get old anyways.

Trish smiled at the picture. Hours, mere hours (though how many she didn't know) separated her from _that_. By this time at least by next week (God she hoped) she'd have something like that. A little kid to love her, something for her to love and look at the way that Stephanie looked at Sawyer and Flynn. She looked at the way that Chris was holding his daughter, the way he cradled her in his arms, the way that he ran his and up and down her back and how, when Flynn sleepily offered him her pacifier, he gently turned her down, and helped her put it back in her mouth.

That was going to her so soon. So soon she could barely adjust. Another contraction and Stephanie stood up. "We're going to get going, Trish."

"Are you sure?"

"We'd stay, but Flynn is falling asleep and she likes to be in her bed." It was true, Flynn was just about asleep in Chris's arms and she couldn't ask them to stay when they had kids they needed to worry about and she had a kid she needed to worry about. "We'll come see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Please do," Trish said, "maybe by then there will be something to actually show."

Stephanie laughed as Sawyer waved. "Have a nice baby!"

"Where did you learn that?" Stephanie asked.

"Because you say have a nice day and so I say have a nice baby," Sawyer said, grinning a toothy grin. So have a nice baby!"

Stephanie laughed and kissed her friend's cheek and then hugged Christian. Chris did the same before they left, leaving the couple alone again. They tried to settle down again. Trish hadn't progressed any more when Dr. Sheldon came in to check on her twice more. She was stuck at 7, which was quickly becoming her most unlucky number. When midnight rolled around, she was getting desperately tired and she tried to sleep, but then the contractions would hit and she'd snap awake so her sleep came in small intervals, which didn't satisfy her in the slightest.

At around one, she'd hit the 12 hour mark of labor and she was progressing to a full 8 centimeters. Slowly, but surely, this was going to happen. It was also around this time that Edge and Lita snuck in. "How did you guys get in here?" Christian whispered as Trish had gone down for her few minutes of sleep.

"The chick at the desk was a fan, gave her an autograph," Edge said, "and hey, thanks for telling your _brother_ that his sister-in-law is in labor."

"Sorry, everything has slipped my mind…Mom! I didn't tell Mom!" he hissed.

"I called her, she's coming tomorrow," Edge said.

"How did you hear?"

"I called Chris to trash talk him a little--"

"You trash talk him outside wrestling?"

"Friendly taunting is what I like to call it," Edge said. "He said that you were at the hospital and she was in labor."

"How is she?" Lita asked. Nothing seemed to be going on, Trish was asleep even.

"She's eight centimeters, they're coming quicker and harder, she's been asleep for about two minutes, but it's going to be about one more," and before he could say anymore, she was jolted awake with a groan and a contraction. Christian stood up and held her hand as her body bent forward, almost going into a fetal position (oh the irony) and lasting for a while before her body came to rest again. She looked at Christian desperately. She wasn't going to be able to get any rest anymore. They were coming too fast and too hard and when they stopped, there was still pain ringing through her body, though that was probably from pure exhaustion.

"Hey, Trish" Lita said sympathetically, coming over and grabbing her hand.

"Hey, Li," Trish said, a ghost of a smile on her tired face. She looked completely drained and Lita wondered how in the world Trish was going to push. She barely looked capable of keeping her eyes open.

"How are you feeling?"

"I'm tired," she said and you could hear it in her voice.

"Hey, sis," Edge said, coming over and smiling that smile at her. She felt a little better seeing that. "You look great."

"You're a damn liar, Edge," she told him.

"No, you really look good, hot even."

"Kill him for me, Christian," Trish said, turning her head towards her husband. "Kill him dead."

"You heard the lady," Christian said, "at this point, I'm willing to do just about anything."

"How long have you been in labor?" Lita asked.

"Chrissy," Trish said. She couldn't even tell time right now, all of it was blurring together. It could've been days since she'd started, she wouldn't have known.

"She's going on twelve hours at this point," Christian said and the strain could be heard in his voice. He didn't like seeing his wife like this. She was miserable and tired. She was hardly complaining, but he knew that it was taking a massive toll on her. But she was a wrestler and if there was anything a wrestler could do well, it was put on a mask to hide the pain. How many mornings did he wake up, sore as hell and still put a smile on his face? Or Edge, how hard had physical therapy been for him, the threat of an ended career looming over his head, but he'd pushed through, acting like it was nothing when it was probably painful. Or Chris, how difficult was it when he had to play with his kids when he could barely walk after a hard match, but he would throw them up in the air and run around with them because he loved them. Trish was hiding that pain right now and it hurt him to think of how much she was holding inside. She barely whimpered when a contraction hit.

"Wow," Edge said under his breath. He looked at his sister-in-law again and saw how despondent she almost was. It nearly tore him into shreds, but he kept that face on.

"You guys better go. If her doctor catches you in here, she might have you thrown out."

"Okay," Edge nodded. He wasn't sure he could take seeing Trish like this anymore. It was effecting him. Lita hugged Trish and Edge did the same before they slipped back out.

"That was nice of them," Trish said, another contraction hitting and hitting her hard. She let out a keening whine, but no screams of torment or cursing or anything. When it was over, she turned to him, expecting a response.

"Yeah, it was," he nodded. "Everyone wants to see you."

"I'm loved," she told him, that ghost of a smile turning up just a little more.

It was another hour before she'd see nine centimeters and then, when she'd almost given up hope, Dr. Sheldon came in, checked her and said that it was very nearly time. The contractions were almost on top of one another at this point, becoming one long span of pain, just heaps of it, like it was piling on top of her stomach. Trish, exhausted and beaten down, searched blindly for Christian's hand. He gave it to her readily as Dr. Sheldon left briefly to get a couple nurses ready and the incubator and to wash up for the delivery.

"Chrissy, I'm scared, I can't do it," she told him. She was panicking and panicking badly. She tried to sit up. She looked to the exit, maybe if she left. She felt delirious, like her body wasn't even her own anymore. Then a cool washcloth on her forehead and everything got a little more clear and a little less fuzzy, but she still didn't think she had it in her. But then the urge to push was stronger than ever and she wanted to. "Chrissy, I can't."

"Of course you can, Trishy, you're the best, okay, you're going to be just fine." He wasn't sure if that was the truth, but it had to be. Dr. Sheldon and the rest of the crew came back in, turning on the lights, pulling everything away and apart and going to their positions and being at the ready. Dr. Sheldon helped Trish move down the birthing bed until she was just on the edge, her legs in stirrups and feeling very uncomfortable. Christian was right beside her.

"Okay, Trish, do you feel that urge to push?"

"Uh huh," Trish grunted.

"Okay, when you feel that urge, I want you to push, okay?"

"I can't, I'm too tired," she told her. "I just can't do it."

"Of course you can," Christian told her.

"You can do it, Trish, you're stronger than you know."

She wasn't sure of that, but then the urge to push came over her, so she bore down, her toes curling over the stirrups as she started to push. She pushed until her body couldn't anymore and she leaned back and Christian was there. He kissed her cheek, then pressed his own cheek against hers. She breathed. She couldn't do anymore, who did they think she was? She'd been here forever and she just couldn't do it! But then that urge came over her again and her doctor was telling her to push, but she already knew to push so she did.

"You're doing it, Trishy, you're doing it," Christian told her and she didn't want to smack him and wondered why women wanted to smack their husbands. All she wanted was Christian to hold her and tell her it would all be okay. Again, she sank against him.

And again, she didn't think she could do anymore, but when the time came, she pushed on, pushed forward and bore down again, pushing. This time was different because she could feel it. She could feel her child and it was strange and gross and weird and crazy and all these other things. "Christian, your baby is crowning, would you two like to see?"

"Yeah, we'd love to," Christian said and Dr. Sheldon brought a mirror down and Trish looked down and her eyes widened and she shook her head. It didn't feel like this was her body. _That_ was what was going on down there? _That _was her? That wasn't possible. How the hell was she doing this? How the hell was her body doing _that_?

Christian was amazed at what he was seeing, that was the top of his kid's head and…and God, Chris was right. That was possibly the grossest and most amazing thing he would ever see. Dr. Sheldon pulled the mirror away when Trish needed to push again and Christian was grateful. "Come on, Trish, two more pushes and you're done."

Did this count as one? She hoped so. As she was done, she pushed back against Christian again and then it was just too much. _Now _she was really spent. When she felt the urge to push, she almost tried to suppress it. How could she do anymore? How could she push when everything was aching and sore and in pain? How did women _do_ this? How had women done this for thousands upon thousands of years? At some point, didn't they just say _enough_! The human race will just have to die out because this absolutely sucks!

"You can do it," Christian whispered to her and from somewhere inside her, she mustered up the strength to do it. Maybe just once more. That was it, just once more. So she pushed and she pushed and then suddenly, everything kind of stopped and then there was noise and loudness and _crying_? Was that her? Was she crying? She thought she was screaming, but crying? Who was that? Was that…she suddenly didn't feel full and she fell back against Christian. She was so tired. She closed her eyes, sleep, she wanted sleep.

Christian was startled. One second Trish was pushing and the next second, this little squirmy thing was in the doctor's arms and he stared mesmerized and could barely hear as Dr. Sheldon congratulated them with a, "Congratulations, you two, it's a girl!"

A girl.

Christian had a little girl, a daughter.

Trish was a mother.

Trish was the mother to his child.

He had a child.

His child, his _daughter_ was being placed on Trish's stomach and somehow, he took up a pair of scissors and cut the umbilical cord. He wasn't sure how he got around Trish, but he was sure he set her down gently while he watched them clean off his…daughter. His _daughter_. He couldn't believe it. He had a daughter! He looked back to Trish where they were taking care of the afterbirth and Trish had a daughter. They had a daughter. She was beautiful and _loud_. Her pink face was contorted in screams and it kind of reminded him of her Uncle Edge, always screaming about something. They wrapped her up tightly and it seemed to subdue her a little bit. Then a little pink hat, just to identify her as a little girl.

He didn't exactly know what to do with himself, wondering if he should check on Trish, watch his daughter (daughter!) or something else. Trish was now asleep, just completely out. Dr. Sheldon told him that she was probably going to be out for a while since she'd been in labor for so long. Christian went over to her, kissing her forehead. She smiled in her sleep, but didn't really wake up. He almost wished she would so she could see their daughter, but she had been in labor for over 13 hours and that had to take its toll on anyone.

"We're taking your daughter to the NICU," the nurse said. "She's a couple weeks early so it's just a small precaution, but once she's checked out, we can bring her back to you."

"Okay," Christian said, already feeling very much in a daze. He watched as they took his daughter away from him and he wanted her back so he could hold her, but he understood that she needed to be checked out first and then he could have her.

He wasn't sure when he dozed off, but when he woke up, the sun was almost in full effect. He turned his neck to the side, hearing it crack. He looked over at Trish and saw she was still asleep. Today was a good day. Yes, February 7th was now the best day of the year to him. He looked at his watch. He'd been asleep for five hours. His daughter had been in this world for five hours and he hadn't yet gotten to hold her. They must have seen the two of them asleep and let them be for a while.

He stretched his arms over his head and stood up, feeling stiff, but not caring a single bit. He went over to Trish and kissed her. She opened her eyes slightly and then closed them again. "Let me sleep, Chrissy."

"Trish, we have a daughter."

This woke her up and she opened her eyes slowly and they contained a glitter in them he'd never seen before. "We have a daughter."

"We have a little girl."

"Where is she?"

"I'm going to ask to see her now. They took her to the NICU to have her checked out because she was a couple weeks early. I think they mentioned wanting to make sure her lungs were okay, but from the way she was crying, I'm saying they're just fine."

Trish laughed softly. "I want to see her."

"Okay, okay, already a pushy mother," he said, kissing her forehead.

Trish watched him walk out and she closed her eyes again, wanting just a few more minutes of blissful sleep. But it was interrupted when she could hear the squeaky wheels pushing into her room. She sat up or tried to, before Christian came over and helped her up. He put some pillows behind her and they wheeled her daughter right up beside her. This was the first good look Trish had gotten of her daughter and she was the most beautiful thing Trish had ever seen. She looked like a newborn, no distinguishing features she could discern just yet. The nurse lifted her up easily and then slid her into Trish's arms. She mentioned something about coming by a bit later with a lactation specialist who could help her start with breastfeeding if that's what she wanted and she nodded vaguely, but her eyes were on the little girl in front of her.

Trish looked down at her, this beautiful thing. This was her baby. This was what had been kicking and moving around inside of her for so many weeks, growing and being agitated and sleepy and whatever else she was in there. Now she was here and she did not look altogether too happy to be in this world. She looked up at Trish and her eyes were blue, but she knew that a lot of babies were born with blue eyes and she could see them turning a hazel color. That would be beautiful. She took off the little pink hat and she had a sparse dusting of light-colored hair. She might turn out to be a blonde like Christian. She situated the hat back on her head.

"Hey there, you," Trish said, smiling down at her. "You're gorgeous."

"She is," Christian said, finally knowing how Chris felt about Flynn. There was something about having a daughter that was just so…profound. He wanted to protect her and just love her with everything he had. He loved this girl so much. "She's so beautiful."

"We're parents," Trish laughed, looking at Christian. "Chrissy, we're parents!"

"I know," he laughed back, "do you think I could hold her? I haven't yet."

"Oh God, of course," she said, handing the little girl over and Christian's breath was stunted as he held her.

"Wow, this is so…wow."

"I know, right," Trish said, biting her lip. Every moment of those 13 excruciating hours was worth it.

"I don't even know what to say," Christian said. "I don't even know what to say…"

"Daddy?" she told him.

"Yeah," he laughed, "hey there, beautiful, I'm your daddy. God, I'm someone's daddy." The baby looked up at him, yawning just a little bit. "You're so pretty and you're going to be so loved, you have no idea. You have two grandmas and a grandpa who are going to love the hell out of you. You have two aunts who are pretty cool and an uncle who you are going to think is crazy, but that's okay because everyone does. Plus, we have these best friends and they have two kids and one of them is only about a year older than you are so you two are probably going to be the best of friends. Everyone is going to love you."

"So…does she look like the name we picked out?" Trish said, leaning over her husband and looking at their daughter. She needed her name, the name she'd carry with her. "Should we officially give this little girl her name?"

"I think it suits her," Christian said. "I think it definitely suits her, what do you think, baby girl, will you allow us to give you a name?" The baby just looked up at him, her mouth this perfect little oval, her lips red. Her hands came forward and up as if reaching towards him, her perfect little fingers tiny mirrors of his own strong ones. "I think she'll like it."

"Then I guess we're in agreement because I think she looks like it too."

"Then welcome to the world, Tilden Abigail Cage."


	268. Tide is Turning, February 8, 2010

A/N: Thanks for the reviews everyone and for all the people who read this, thank you for reading it and story alerting it and favoriting it and everything. Hope you enjoy and if you feel inclined to review, that'd be great, thanks. :)

* * *

"So are you ready to come home?"

"I'm so ready to just take a bath," Trish said as they pushed her out of the hospital. Tilden was in her arms, nestled quietly. She was sleeping right now, her eyes closed shut as her head turned in towards Trish, protecting her face from the sunlight on the outside of the hospital. This would be her first time breathing in fresh air. Trish stared down at her and smiled. She'd been awake when they brought her into the room, but she'd fallen asleep as they were wheeling Trish downstairs. She liked to think that Tilden really just liked her arms.

"I'll draw you a bath when we get home," Christian told her. He wanted to make sure that everything was perfect for her arrival. He'd spent most of last night just cleaning the entire house. He'd been too excited to sleep. Whenever he closed his eyes he could just picture Tilden coming home and putting her in her nursery and then he couldn't possibly sleep because every second was one second closer to him heading for the hospital to pick up his wife and daughter.

He grinned again at that word. He'd been testing it, saying it over and over again. He'd called every person he possibly could to announce the arrival of his daughter. Then he'd called everyone Trish knew to announce the arrival of his daughter. He just loved saying his daughter. It was the perfect word. Was there a more perfect word in the entire world than that one? He loved the way that it rolled off his tongue, like he was always meant to say it. Daughter, daughter, daughter, this was his daughter, Tilden. Tilden was his daughter. He loved his daughter, Tilden. He never would get enough of saying it.

His mother and Trish's parents had flown down yesterday, but they'd all agreed to let Trish and Christian have the day alone. Trish, however, didn't want it to be that way. She didn't want to hoard her daughter and this was a time for celebration. There would be days upon days of seeing her daughter and being with her so she wanted to see her parents and she wanted her parents to be around Tilden in a non-hospital setting. They'd all been by to visit her in the hospital, but it wasn't the same.

They reached Christian's car, which was sitting in front of the hotel in the pickup/drop-off only zone and he opened the backseat where the rear-facing car-seat was for Tilden. He let Trish do the honors of putting her inside and strapping her in. She didn't even flinch as Trish did so. Christian helped Trish in the car as she thanked the candy-striper who'd helped her downstairs and the nurse who'd accompanied them. Christian threw Trish's bag in the trunk and then got into the driver's side of the car.

"I can't believe you're actually making me leave you tonight," Christian said as soon as they were in the car. "You just had Tilden yesterday and already you want me out of the picture so you can hog her."

Trish laughed and pressing her hand into his thigh. "Chrissy, you already made this commitment, you have to go to Raw tonight. It's not that long. You were able to pick me up this morning and you'll be able to see me and Tilden get settled and then you'll be home on Wednesday after ECW."

"How am I supposed to focus on work when all I can think about is the two of you?" Christian asked. "It's your first day home, it's her first day home, I should be here to spend it with the both of you, you know, a quiet day and night, just the three of us where I can hold her and we can just sit together and watch Raw."

"I like that image, I really do, but you already said you were going to be at Raw."

"But then we had Tilden. We didn't expect her to come early like this. If I had known she was going to show up when she did, I wouldn't have planned to go to Raw," he told her, frustrated with his lack of foresight. He shouldn't have planned anything he didn't need to go to when they were on baby watch. He should have known better than to book himself for Raw when Tilden could've shown up at any moment.

"We didn't know she was going to show up. If I knew she was going to show up when she did, I think I would've held off on going to the hospital. I would have just stayed at home for a while before I went to the hospital," Trish laughed. She was able to laugh about it now that she was a day removed from the awful wait of labor. She'd expected it to be so quick, but it had been a painfully slow process, one she didn't know if she'd want to repeat anytime soon.

"It's just not fair that I have to go."

"The same thing happened with Chris and Flynn," Trish pointed out, hoping that it would ease Christian's anger if he knew he wasn't in the same boat. "And look at some of the other wrestlers, they _miss_ their wives giving birth. You're fortunate you weren't in that situation, right?"

"I guess you've got a point," Christian sighed. "I just wished I didn't _have_ to go."

"Tilde and I will be in good hands," Trish said. "My parents are here, your mom is here. Stephanie offered to stay with me, but I told her to go ahead, so _you_ won't be alone. You'll have Chris and Stephanie and Sawyer and Flynn with you to pass the time."

"Yeah, but then I'll have to look at Flynn and think of Tilde."

"Tilden and Flynn are not even close to being the same age," Trish pointed out.

"But she's a little girl and Chris's daughter and he's going to treat her like a daughter--"

"Well, I would hope he treated her like a daughter and not like some freak outcast," Trish joked and Christian frowned and looked at her. She laughed a little and then frowned and pretended to put on a very serious face since Christian was in a very serious mood. "I'm sorry, sir, continue."

"He's going to treat her like his daughter and I'll want my daughter, who I've only had for a couple days, not even that, a day, barely," Christian told her.

Trish smiled and leaned over to kiss his cheek. "You're adorable when you're in love with your daughter."

Christian grinned, "She's my daughter."

"Well, yes, let's hope so," Trish told him and he frowned again. "What? I'm kidding! It's not like I slept with Edge or anything."

"Oh great, so now you're joking like you slept with my brother, thanks a lot, why don't you just stab me in the heart, right here," he said, pointing at his chest.

"Chrissy, stop, it's only a couple nights. You're going to have everyday for the rest of your life to be around her if you want and continuously for at least the next 18 years, so it's really not a huge deal."

"Do you think we should take her on the road? I was thinking about that ever since I went out to lunch with Chris on Saturday, before our daughter was born. He just said that he couldn't imagine not having Sawyer and Flynn with him while he traveled and I think he's got a really good point. I mean, he said that he doesn't want to miss any of their moments growing up and that he felt if he was gone for so long, he was missing something, do you think that's going to happen if I'm not with Tilden all the time?"

"It's up to you…and me, I guess," Trish said. "I never had a problem traveling with you because I enjoy it and it was such a big part of my life for so long that I couldn't imagine not doing it. It's different now. I'm okay with staying at home and running my business from there."

"I just don't want to miss the big things, like her first smile or when she starts crawling or when she starts walking or talking. I don't want to miss those moments. I know wrestlers who miss so many of their kids' moments that they start to feel like they're outcasts in their own family, like they don't belong because they're there for a few days and then it's off to work for them and then you have the overseas tours and you're gone for such a long time. I don't want to come home one day and find my daughter to be a teenager and I've missed every important moment and she doesn't know who I am."

"I don't think that's going to happen," Trish told him. "I wouldn't let it happen and you wouldn't either. Do you really think that you would let your daughter forget about you or that _I_ would let your daughter forget?"

"No, but it's not the same as being there. I don't want to quit wrestling, I don't think I'm done yet, not by a long-shot, but it's just, I don't want to miss out on _her_. I want to be a dad, a real one, like Chris is to his kids."

"So then we bring her on the road," Trish said. "If Chris and Stephanie can do it, we can too. I don't think there's anything wrong with it, I think we would both agree that Sawyer and Flynn are both happy, well-adjusted children, don't you think?"

"They're both awesome," Christian said and they were. Chris had told him the other day that Sawyer considered Christian one of his best friends. Christian couldn't remember a time he had been more touched than to be so high in that little boy's esteem.

"Yes, they are and they aren't little weirdos, sure, they have some odd sleeping habits because they keep odd hours, but otherwise, they are sweet, kind children and if you really don't want to miss anything about Tilden, then we can travel with you, but I want that to be okay with you too. I don't have a problem with it."

"I would really like that," Christian told her. "I would really, really like that."

"Okay, so when it's safe for Tilden to travel then I guess we'll be back on the road with you."

"I guess you will," he said, feeling better about the entire thing. "Okay, so we're almost home, Tilde, and you are going to have such a blast."

Stephanie raised an eyebrow as she looked at Chris. He was currently buttering up some bread for Sawyer, who was sitting sleepily at the table. Stephanie poured herself a cup of coffee as she stared at Chris, who was staring at her. Sawyer was staring at the both of them, hoping he could get his toast sometime before he turned old enough to qualify for the AARP. Flynn had some Cheerios on the table in front of her and she was picking them up one by one, not caring what the hell the rest of her family was doing. She had Cheerios so what did she even need family for?

"What do you mean you don't want to come to Raw tonight?" she asked.

"Look, baby, I said that I wouldn't come to Raw again and I'm not going there after I lost."

"Are you _embarrassed_?" she asked.

"Hell no, I'm not embarrassed," he told her, honestly indignant that she would even suggest that. Chris Jericho didn't get embarrassed, not by this stuff anyways. There were other things that could embarrass him, but not this. "I just want to stick to my guns."

"But I have work tonight, I _have_ to be there. I've no hope for the guest host tonight so I've got to be there to make sure everything goes according to plan, you understand that and now you're telling me that you don't want to go! Chris, this is my job here."

"I never said _you_ couldn't go."

"So you're sending me off by myself?" Stephanie asked.

"You're not a kid going to camp, Steph," Chris told her, kissing her forehead, to which she got out of the way of, but Chris's lips were quicker and found her warm skin, the vein popping out just slightly with anger at him. "You're an adult and you can fly by yourself. You won't even be by yourself, Christian is going too."

"Oh yeah," she said, muttering under her breath, "but still, that's not the same, Chris."

"Stephanie, I'm not going. I said that I wasn't going to be back and I'm not going to be back, that's it, that's all. I'm not going there and then having Hunter and that idiot, Shawn, embarrass me again. After what happened with Tyson, I'm not going to deal with that crap anymore."

"Daddy, can I have my toast please?" Sawyer asked, interrupting their conversation.

Chris looked down at the piece of toast and noticed he'd been buttering so hard he'd put a hole in it. Luckily it wasn't too big and he put it on a plate and put some fruit on it that he'd chopped up and put it in front of Sawyer, "Here you go, kid."

"Thank you," Sawyer said as he grabbed a piece of orange and put it in his mouth as he continued to watch his parents go at it. Flynn, looking up when she'd heard the clatter of a plate tried to grab at his fruit, leaning half way across the table as she tried to lift herself out of her high chair so she could grab what Sawyer was eating. "Daddy, Flynn is trying to take my food!"

"Flynn, sit down," Chris told her, grabbing another orange and starting to peel it for her. "I'll get you one of your own if you would just sit down and sit tight, okay?"

"Okay," Flynn said, obeying her father and sitting down in her high chair, remembering there were Cheerios still waiting to be eaten. She picked one up between her forefinger and thumb and ate it.

"So you're not coming?"

"No, I'm not."

"I don't understand you."

"I'm trying to focus on SmackDown now. I said I was going to be the face of the show, but what have I been trying to do? I've been trying to get back on the show I'm not on. Now, for the past couple weeks, I've had Fozzy stuff to do on Mondays so I couldn't be at Raw and I've thought long and hard about this and I just don't want to be on that show, do you understand?"

"No, I don't understand," she defied him. "So make me understand, please, I'm begging you to make me understand."

He sighed. He hated when she was in a mood like this. "Stephanie, I was drafted to SmackDown, that is the show that I'm on. I was embarrassed at Raw and vowed that I would not return. What's it going to look like if I come back? I don't want to look like that whiny guy that I was being."

Stephanie shook her head and rolled her eyes. "You weren't a whiny guy."

"I felt like I was, now will you just drop it. I will stay here with the kids and you will go to work like usual and we will all be better off for it, got it?" Chris told her.

"You're so stubborn."

"What?" Chris scoffed. "Stephanie, please, you are just as stubborn as I am, maybe even more so. You want me there just because you want me there, not because I can do anything on the show, you just want me there so you can control me or whatever."

"Control you? What? You're delusional, I don't control you."

Chris set down the orange on one of Flynn's _Sesame Street_plates and put it in front of her. She grabbed a slice immediately and started eating it, getting orange juice everywhere. "Would you chew your food, flutterby?" Chris said, leaning down to kiss the crown of her head. She lifted her head up and offered him some orange and he took a small bite before he headed back to grab himself a cup of coffee. Lord knew he was going to need one to get over the headache his wife was giving him. "Stephanie, you control all of us," he said calmly, just to let her know that he was joking.

She frowned and rolled her eyes, setting her coffee down on the counter so she could hug him around the waist. He took a sip of the black gold in his mug and then hugged her back with his free hand. "Why can't I hate you?"

"Because you've been married to me for five years so you know how I operate?" he asked.

"Are you sure you don't want to come tonight? We could have fun messing around with Hunter? I'm sure there's some kind of practical joke that we could come up with to pull one over on him."

"Practical jokes? I thought we were above that," he told her. She shook her head and he laughed and hugged her a little closer. "You should be thankful, you won't have anyone to distract you from doing your work and showing you up. Plus, I'm sure you have something planned after what happened with Bret and your dad."

"Yes, I do," she said, looking up at him and kissing his chin, "which is just another reason why you should be there tonight. My dad thinks Bret isn't going to be there, but Bret _is_ going to be there tonight and he's going to get revenge on my dad. My dad is going to address Bret at the end of the show, he already told me this before I scheduled anything so I'm going to have Bret there to attack him."

"Now where did your dad get the idea that Bret wasn't going to be there tonight?" Chris asked, looking down at her slyly. She just shrugged and gave him a coy look. "Like you don't know, Ms. McMahon."

"That's Mrs. McMahon-Jericho to you," she told him, kissing him again. "You sure you don't want to be there to see that? It's probably going to be amazing and you're going to miss it. I mean, I don't know anyone who doesn't like my dad and would want to miss seeing him get one-upped by a legend."

"Stephanie, I don't want to go."

"Fine!" she told him, pulling away.

"Where aren't we going, Daddy?" Sawyer asked. Yes, he'd been eavesdropping, but he didn't know he wasn't supposed to. He always figured if his parents were talking that he could talk with them as well. They were a family after all.

"I'm not going to wrestling tonight because I won't have anything to do, but your Mommy has to go because she's going to be working."

"We're not going?" Sawyer asked. He really liked it when they went to the shows.

"Do you want to go, baby boy?" Stephanie asked, looking over at him.

"I do want to go, I like wrestling," Sawyer said. He didn't want to pass up on the chance to watch the show. He liked to be there because he liked to watch everything going on. That was what he did most Mondays. "Can I go?"

"Sure, you can go, we can go together," Stephanie said kindly. "So are you going to stay here with the other one then?"

"Yeah, Flynn and I will stay behind, we'll have fun," Chris nodded, glancing over at his daughter. "It'll be a good chance for us to have some father/daughter time. We don't get a lot of chances for that. She can choose everything we want to do tonight."

"She can barely talk, you know."

"But she can certainly point. We'll have a blast," Chris said, "now, can we please eat our breakfast because you have a flight to catch and we have to go pick up Christian so I can drive you two to the airport."

Stephanie and Chris ate their breakfasts, as did the kids, and then Chris helped Sawyer pack some things while Stephanie packed her own things. When they were done, they loaded up into the car and drove the short distance to Christian and Trish's house. Chris helped the kids out and Sawyer ran to the front door, jumping up and down and trying to reach the doorbell. Chris came over and lifted him up a little and he rang the doorbell, then Flynn had to do the same thing so he lifted her a little to ring the doorbell. Trish's mother, Alice, answered the door.

"Chris, Stephanie, it's so nice to see you again," she said, obviously beaming because she was a grandmother again. "Christian and Trish have been expecting you."

"I know," Stephanie laughed a little as she helped Flynn get over the step into the house. "We can't stay long, Christian and I have to catch our flight. Where are they?"

"Living room, with Tilden," Alice said. She closed the door behind them and the family went into the living room where Christian was holding a baby in his arms. Sawyer's jaw dropped and he ran over, practically splaying himself over Trish's legs.

"Trish, is that your baby?" he asked eagerly.

"Yup, this is Tilden," Trish told him, lifting him up so he could sit on her lap. "You can say hi to her."

"Hi, Tilden, I'm Sawyer," Sawyer told him. "She's little. Mommy, I think she littler than Flynn when Flynn was little."

"I think she is," Stephanie said, coming over and sitting next to Trish, giving her a one-armed hug and a congratulations. "But Tilden was born just a little bit earlier than Flynn was so she is going to be smaller. Do you think that she's pretty though?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, reaching out a little and running his hand over Tilden's hand. "You're a baby."

"Dat?" Flynn asked, walking over with Chris. She stood on her tiptoes and tried to look over everyone at what they were looking at. She couldn't really see so she tried to stand a little more on her toes. She finally saw something that looked like one of her dolls. She looked to Chris and asked again, "Dat?"

"What's she asking?" Trish wondered.

"She's asking what that is, that's how she asks," Chris explained. He picked up Flynn and held her over Tilden. "That's a baby. Her name is Tilden and she was just born a couple days ago. She's a very small baby, while you're a little bit bigger baby."

"Baby," Flynn echoed. "Hi!"

Tilden looked up and was overwhelmed by the myriad of faces above her, most of which she didn't know. Her face scrunched up, her nose first, little wrinkles bunching on the side of the bridge and then her eyes welled up with tears and her mouth turned down into a frown. Then she opened said mouth and let out a wail. Flynn, not used to hear this, started to cry too because she didn't like this sound of crying. Her wails were much louder and lower-pitched and she turned to Chris, opening her arms and wanting to be held. Chris laughed and held her to him as she buried her face into his shirt. Sawyer looked between the two of them, not knowing why either one of them would start crying.

"Shh, it's okay," Christian said, bringing Tilden's small body into his own and caressing her back much in the same way that Chris was doing with Flynn, whose sobs were starting to seceded.

"He's a natural," Trish whispered to Stephanie, who smiled, she could tell. Fatherhood really seemed to suit Christian.

"How are you doing?" Stephanie asked.

"I'm okay, a little worn out, but nothing a few days of relaxing won't help and I know I'm not going to be relaxing too much with a newborn in the house, but they sleep a lot of the time, right, so I'll be able to at least get a little rest, right?"

"You'll see," Stephanie said knowingly.

"I'd ask if either one of you want to hold her," Christian said, "but if I'm going to be away from her for a couple days, I'm going to be sure to hold her all I can, just so she won't forget me or anything, I don't know how long a newborn's memory will last."

"I think she knows you're her father," Stephanie said. "She seems really at ease with you, kind of like she's known you forever."

"You think so?" Christian asked.

"You definitely have something special," Stephanie nodded and Christian smiled and bit his lip. "We have to go though, if we're going to make our flight."

"I never should've agreed to do this Raw thing. I can't believe I was so stupid," Christian said, then reluctantly gave up his daughter to his wife. "I swear, when I get back, I'm going to hold her for two days straight just to make up for the lost time. I can't believe I have to leave my daughter on the day she comes home."

"You made a commitment," Trish reminded him, "you just can't go back on that. Now you better get going so you don't miss your flight."

"Hey, Trish, Flynn and I are staying behind if you wanted some company tonight or anything, you can always call us. I don't know if your parents are going to be here or whatever, but the offer is out there."

"I appreciate that," Trish said. "I think they were going out with Christian's mother tonight for a little grandparent's meeting. I think they want to discuss what they're going to have Tilden call them, which I think is nice, but I am going to be alone this evening if you do want to hang out, but why aren't you going to Raw?"

"Because he wants to hold onto his principles," Stephanie groaned.

"You say that like it's a crime."

"When it means you're not with me, then it is a crime," Stephanie told him. "I'm taking Sawyer with me because he wants to see the show, unlike some people who think that just because they said they would never come back meant they would _never_ come back. But you're coming with me next week, Chris Jericho, you better know that."

"I'd like to see you try," he told her, almost challenging her to come up with some way to make him be at the show.

"Okay, you guys, come on, not around my kid. We have to ease her into the lives our friends. She had to know that you two argue a lot, but that you don't really hate each other, but in fact, love each other very much," Christian said. He leaned over and gave Tilden a kiss on the head. Then he gave her another. "I needed one more for the road. Okay, I'm really ready to go now."

"Okay," Trish said, kissing Christian. "We'll miss you."

"God, you have no idea how much I'm going to miss the two of you."

Stephanie, for the entire flight, either had to listen to a nearly four year old chatter away about inane things like what he liked to color and why he chose to color certain things the way that he did or she had to listen to Christian alternately gush about his daughter and then get angry that he had to leave his daughter. She understood where he was coming from and felt bad that he had to leave his daughter so soon after her birth, but Chris had had to do the same thing after Flynn's birth and she hoped he wasn't as cranky as Christian was being. Well, she couldn't really blame the guy after all. He was just in love with his daughter and there was nothing wrong with that.

They went their separate ways after they got their rental cars. Stephanie and Sawyer had their own since they were only staying the night. Christian had his own because he was going to the ECW show the next day. Stephanie helped Sawyer into the car, putting him in his booster seat before she got in the car as well. "Mommy, Christian really likes his baby, huh?"

Stephanie laughed, "I thought you just spent all your time coloring?"

"He talked a lot," Sawyer told his mother. It wasn't that he minded that Christian talked a lot, it's just that he was talking _a lot_.

"He's just really excited that his baby is here, just like you were really excited when your baby came along."

"Did I talk that much?" Sawyer asked.

"No, you weren't quite the big boy that you are now," she explained. "But you definitely liked to be around your baby all the time and he just wants to be around _his_ baby all the time, but he has to work so he can't."

"Oh," Sawyer said, "that's okay though because his baby is just at home."

"I know that and you know that, but he's a little anxious right now."

Why did he have to come and "scope" out Raw? He knew what was on Raw? He knew who was there? He'd been to the shows before, he'd wrestled here before. Why had he decided on this night of all nights to come here? Sure, he didn't know that his daughter was going to be born over the weekend, but he should've known better or something. He should've felt the fact that his daughter was going to be born. If only he wouldn't have, he would've just worked on Tuesday night and then he'd be home for the rest of the week. But nope, he'd wanted to come to Raw and now he had to spend an extra day away from Tilden.

He thought of that beautiful, little face, the one that looked up at him in bewilderment. He loved her so much already. Her face, her tiny hands and the wisps of light hair. Her eyes had already started to change a little bit. When she was born, her eyes had seemed a brilliant blue, but they were starting to darken up a little, just slightly, but with the amount that he just stared at her, he'd started to notice. She felt so light in his arms. He was so used to lifting weight and bench pressing enormous amounts of weight that when he held his daughter, she felt as light as a feather in his arms, like something so breakable and fragile. He loved her dearly and he wanted nothing more than to be nestled in bed with her and Trish, the mother of his child.

How many nights had he dreamed of her having that moniker? How many nights had he dreamed it and Trish not been in the bed next to him? Some night, when she was with Carlito, he'd close his eyes and try to picture what their children would look like, just so he could block out the image of what Trish's kids with Carlito would look like. He'd never dreamed he'd actually _have_ kids with Trish and now he had this perfect, little girl with her. He'd never seen toes or fingers so tiny and her nails were like little dots. He couldn't stop thinking about her. He just could not stop thinking about how perfect she was.

That was probably why he was so anxious later to just get his work done with. He would go out there, scope around, decide, then he could go back to his hotel room and call Trish and have her update him on every little thing that Tilden was doing. That sounded like the most ideal evening he could imagine. Maybe Trish could even put Tilden on the phone and he could listen to her breathing and that little snuffly noise he'd heard her make a couple of times. Then he could talk to her just so she wouldn't forget his voice. But she wouldn't forget his voice, he hoped, he'd only be gone a couple days, she couldn't forget it, could she?

Sheamus was the first person out on Raw. If Christian were smart, he might have stayed away from that pale behemoth of a man, but his thoughts were just on Tilden, getting to Tilden, hearing Tilden, talking to Tilden. He just wanted Tilden. So it only made sense that he would go out there right when the show started, whoever it was be damned. It could have been John Cena, Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Big Show, Edge, Chris, CM Punk. Rey Mysterio, Batista, Undertaker, hell, it could've been all of them out there at once and he _still_ would have gone out without really thinking at all. He was a horse and he had his blinders on and the only thing he could see was his daughter. So he went out there and talked to Sheamus.

Was he insulted, truly, that Edge wasn't thinking about facing him? No, no he wasn't. What Edge really wanted was Chris Jericho and Edge might even forgo his title shot to get his hands on Chris. There was no bad blood there or anything, outside of the ring they were friends, but Edge felt like the fans still didn't trust them and he wanted to be good to the fans, he wanted their support. It had been so long since they supported him. He wanted to distance himself from Vickie and her behavior and actions so he had to go the complete opposite direction; he had to be someone the fans could cheer for and love. It only made sense to go after the guy that everyone hated and that guy was Chris Jericho. Edge was merely using him as a stepping stone to something bigger.

So it didn't exactly bother him that Edge wasn't fighting him, but it sounded good. Sheamus was all over him and somehow, without Christian really thinking about it, he ended up in a match. A match? He wasn't mentally prepared for a match and it showed. Where he could usually give up a great match and take out the win, especially against a glorified rookie, tonight was different. His mind was just elsewhere and nobody, if they knew the circumstances, could really blame him, could they? He'd just become a father for the _first_ time a couple days ago. His first child, his first daughter had been born this weekend and he hadn't yet spent nearly enough time with her, so you'd have to forgive him for not being into the match.

It was almost a relief when he lost because he knew where he'd be going. He was going to his hotel room and he was calling his wife and he was going to talk to his daughter. Sheamus did him a favor. He came to Raw, he "scoped" it out, he fought a guy, and then there was nothing left. He could go and his night was done. He took the congratulations backstage from everyone with a graciousness that only he could have, but he needed to go. His daughter was waiting for him and he didn't want to keep her waiting.

The seeds had been planted in Hunter's head. It was there now, every day it was sprouting a little more. Maybe this started before the Royal Rumble, but he knew that it grew in his imagination after that, after what Shawn did to him. He understood Shawn's motives of course; Shawn wanted to face the Undertaker and this was the only way. He _got_ that. But to be so blatant, how could he do that to Hunter? They could have teamed up in the Rumble, leaving them the last two guys and then they could've fought and Shawn would have had a good chance to win. That's not how it went though. Shawn had just thrown him out, carelessly, like a piece of trash stuck to his shoe.

Now the seed was in there, planted and Hunter was feeling a little vulnerable. He didn't much feel like talking to Shawn this evening. Hell, he didn't much feel like talking to Shawn period. Maybe Chris and Stephanie had been right, maybe Britt had been right. If they had though, if Shawn _had_ duped him, how did he pick up those pieces? How could he pick them up? He'd feel embarrassed and slighted by the man he considered like a brother to him. Hunter had never had a brother growing up and Shawn had come as close as that could ever be. He didn't want to believe that Shawn would act like that deliberately, but hadn't he blindsided him at Royal Rumble?

He couldn't abandon Shawn. Even if he was being duped, even if he was being played, he couldn't leave Shawn. He couldn't let the other be right. He could ride this sinking ship. He had done it before with his marriage to Stephanie. He'd gutted that out far longer than he should have. He knew she was lost forever while he was rehabbing. She'd become bored by him, all his exercising and physical therapy. She'd come and spend time with him and he'd just talk about how many reps he was doing, what kind of stretches the physical therapist was having him do. In those months before she left to take over the bastardized ECW, the only physical contact they had was when she helped him with his stretches in between therapy. When she left him, when she went back to the show after Shane had called, he knew he'd lost her. Whatever good feelings they'd had when they ran and ruled the company had disappeared.

Still, he'd hung on. He wasn't sure what for, maybe over the fact that they'd been such horrible people and he wanted to cling to a failing marriage because he didn't want to accept failure, didn't want to see himself fail at something. It eventually happened though. He eventually lost because she divorced him. She'd had the courage to do what he couldn't. She'd set up the fake pregnancy, set it all up to get away when he should have been man enough to pull away, but Hunter clung to dying ships and perhaps that's what this was with Shawn, a dying ship he was clinging to.

He was happy he'd qualified for the chamber, but now Shawn was all about DX and he just couldn't do that. When Shawn accused him of thinking only about himself, the seed grew a little. Yes, it grew and still, he kept on with the dying ship. He didn't want to be that failure again, the one who failed to see things his friends and girlfriend had tried to convince him of so long ago. It was funny, how long he'd actually been away from Britt, yet his house still smelled like her, oddly enough. Or maybe it was all in his head, her scent having faded away long ago, but her smell lingered in his brain and the traces he smelled were really from his memory and memory alone.

He caught up with Stephanie, willing to swallow his pride a little to her, but only her because she'd once been the sinking ship. "Stephanie, what do you think of the situation with Shawn right now, between me and him?"

"I think it's the same as it has been the last what, four or five months, more? I think he's using you to make himself feel better," she told him. He nodded, it was as he expected. It was just bad that he was actually starting to think that too, after he'd lost everything.

"Are you talking about the bad man?" Sawyer asked from next to Stephanie's leg.

"The bad man?" Hunter asked.

"Yes, the bad man who was mean to my mommy and who I do not like," Sawyer explained. Stephanie patted him on the head as she looked at something in her hands, a stack of papers. Sawyer smiled. "I don't like people who aren't nice to Mommy."

"You've trained him well," Hunter said. He looked at Sawyer. It was funny that people still asked him if he thought that Sawyer should be his. It was like they didn't get it. He and Stephanie were over for much longer than just when she lied and said she was pregnant. Sawyer or any child was never really a thought in their minds. When they said they were trying for kids, they were really trying to save something that was floundering from the very beginning. So no, he never felt like Sawyer should be his and why should he? If Sawyer were his, he'd be totally different in ways that Hunter couldn't even fathom.

"He loves me," she shrugged and Sawyer hugged her leg at that.

"Why are you friends with people who are mean to my mommy?" Sawyer asked innocently, wondering why anyone would want that.

"I don't know, tough guy, I really don't know," Hunter said and Stephanie looked up at him in question. "Yes, Stephanie, I'm starting to wonder about things myself."

"It's about time."

"Yeah, it's about time," Sawyer repeated in the same tone his mother was using.

"I don't need to hear it twice, tough guy," Hunter said. "I don't know, everything's strange now, like we're breaking apart and I'm starting to think you were right, that Chris was right. I'm starting to think that Britt was right, that Shawn deliberately did this so I would just hang out with him all the time. I mean, you saw how he just used me at the Rumble. He and I got rid of every guy in the ring and then he turned on me and the match wasn't even over. He got what he wanted out of me and then discarded and me and just now, he said I was all about myself. But I just won a match, that's it, I want a chance at getting the WWE Title."

Stephanie tilted her head and looked at him. "Hunter, I know it's hard to accept that someone you consider your best friend might not be what you thought he was, but that's the case here. He's never liked me and that's because I rejected him when I was barely out of my teen years and God forbid someone not want to be with him back then. He didn't like Britt because she took you away from him. He doesn't like Chris because he's married to me and because he was taking you away from Shawn. Hell, I'm surprised he doesn't hate Sawyer for you liking him too. He's not a good guy, no matter what these people think."

"Yeah, you may be right," Hunter said. "I'll think about it."

He was going to cling to the sinking ship.

Stephanie couldn't worry about that though. For tonight was her night. Seeing her father going out there, bragging, talking about how he screwed Bret was really meant for her. Oh sure, he meant it for Bret as well, but part of it was definitely directed at her. Paying off Batista was a counterpoint to what she'd done with Bret. Her father was throwing money around trying to get the one-up on her and it actually felt good that her father was taking this seriously, taking what she'd done seriously. She had him on the ropes. Now if only she could figure out a way to have him forced to give her, her job back. This guest host nonsense had to stop some time, right, and why not have her at the helm at the end?

Just when her father's hubris was its peak, Bret showed up and in a way, it was her showing up as well. Sawyer cheered when appropriate, thinking it cool that someone could just wail on his grandpa like that. In Florida, Chris was smirking, knowing that Stephanie was thrilled. She was thrilled too. Her father had been mistaken again. She had the upper-hand back, she had everything and her father had nothing and oh, was it so satisfying.

Now how could she truly use all of this to her advantage?


	269. Geez, Another One, February 12, 2010

A/N: Thank you for all the reviews, PMs, and what not, I really appreciate them, they always make my day, especially for this story, it's like my labor of love lol. Anyways, yes, I've heard the news about Stephanie (damn it, Chris, keep your hands to yourself!) and yes, I know what that means for this beauty of a story. So hopefully this doesn't feel too shoe-horned in, I'm just working with what I've got! Anyways, this chapter mostly deals with that, hope you enjoy my crazy explaining and leave a review if you dare! :)

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"You're starting to show."

"Well thank you, Captain Obvious," Stephanie said as she stared at herself in the mirror. She wasn't wearing a shirt at the moment and was studying her stomach intently. She was only a little more than 14 weeks along so it wasn't like she was very far into her pregnancy. She hadn't even started showing with Sawyer until she was around 17 or 18 weeks and maybe around 15 weeks with Flynn. There wasn't really a huge change in her stomach right now other than a little roundness that only she and Chris could see, but then again, they were the only ones looking.

"Now is Captain Obvious related to Captain Charisma?" Chris joked as he lounged on their bed. Stephanie was trying to pack for SmackDown the next day and she was having a hard go of it because she was deliberately choosing clothes that hid her figure. It was starting to become more and more obvious that she was pregnant.

"Stop it," she said, turning to him, "look at this." She ran her hand over her stomach. "Chris, I'm getting more and more pregnant by the day."

"This is a good thing," Chris told her, "although isn't it like getting wet, once you're wet, you're wet so once you're pregnant, you're pregnant, you can't be _more_ pregnant because there is no such condition, unless it's one of those rare times where your body releases an egg _after_ another one has already been implanted so you essentially have twins, but they're at different stages in their gestation."

"Just like my luck, this will actually happen," Stephanie muttered to herself. "Besides, that isn't the point, the point is that it's getting harder and harder to hide. I'm going to have to start wearing maternity clothes soon and I think someone is going to notice."

"Okay, so we start telling people."

"I don't want to tell anyone yet," she told him. "I mean, I know we should, but I still feel the same way."

"Stephanie, we can't hide this kid forever, I mean, what are you going to do, just show up with this mystery baby one day and everyone asks where the hell that came from? Everyone is going to think that you belong on that show, remember, the one we watched that one time, _I Didn't Know I was Pregnant_, which is ridiculous because how can you just not know. We can't just show up with a kid."

"I know," she said, looking down at her stomach. "You know, I love you, kiddo, but your timing is horrendous, just like your brother and sister."

"Yeah, our kids aren't really good at that whole timing thing. They really like to pop up at the most inopportune times."

"The last two, being due in August like they are or were indicate only one thing, that I give you too much sex on your birthday and we run out of condoms and you get me pregnant," Stephanie told him, folding her arms under her bra and looking at Chris, who held up his hands in protest.

"That doesn't account for Sawyer, so ha!"

"Sawyer was conceived, what, seven months into our marriage? We were still newlyweds, we were having sex all the time, not thinking about the consequences until they decided to show up in that little boy."

"He's going to be so excited when we tell him," Chris mused. "He's going to get another baby, he's going to think this is the best news ever."

"That may be, but our son also has the biggest mouth on the planet so until we want _everyone_ to know, we can't let him know because he'll just go around blurting that he gets a new baby. We've really got to get a muzzle for that thing."

"Did you hear that, new baby? Your mother refers to your big brother as a thing, something that needs a muzzle even, are you sure you even want to come out of there?" Chris called out to her stomach. She frowned and turned back to the mirror.

"I'm getting too round and I'm surprised nobody has noticed my boobs have gotten bigger."

Chris raised his hand, "I've noticed!"

"Shut up," she said in disgust.

"I'm just commenting, God, you get so vicious when you're pregnant. You need to take some pointers from Trish because I don't think she was quite so mean while she was pregnant. Maybe you should use her as an example."

"This was her first, not her third." Stephanie groaned. "I'm not ever going to get used to saying that, you know, this is my _third_ pregnancy. Besides, Trish tried for Tilden for months on end, you and I weren't even trying. Wasn't number three supposed to be the one we planned for? We were going to wait for Flynn to be at least three years old and Sawyer to be in school and then we were going to try for the new baby. Then, like we often do, we get pregnant and have a child we planned for. But no! That's not how it happens at all. Just like last time, Flynn isn't even two years old and I find myself pregnant again."

"Well, we should know by now that nothing goes as planned."

"Apparently," she sighed. "Okay, I'm going to try on some more of my blouses and see which ones don't make me look pregnant."

"Hurry up because the kids will be up soon and we promised Trish and Christian we would go over there and see the baby because we haven't really gotten to see her because we've been so busy."

"Yeah, being pregnant and trying to avoid babies because it keeps my mind off the tater tot I'm cooking right now."

"So are you saying you eventually want to eat the baby? How Swift of you," Chris told her.

She stuck her head out of the closet. "Did you just throw down a _Modest Proposal_ reference on me?" she asked.

"You better believe it, baby," he said, tapping his forehead. "You have no idea what I have crammed up here."

"Hey, you know what you can cram in there now, the idea of always making sure we have enough protection so this," she pointed down at her stomach, "doesn't happen again without my permission."

"Yes, ma'am," he said as she disappeared into the closet again. He loved getting her riled up like that. It was always fun and when she was pregnant it was even more fun. Despite their grumblings, they were both excited for their new baby. It was a new adventure and secretly, they were both anxious to see how they would handle three kids and their jobs. Stephanie didn't plan on quitting and neither did Chris so it would just be a work in progress like the last two. They were a little worried about how their other kids would fare. It was easy for one parent to devote time to one of the kids and vice versa, but there would be one more to handle. Still, this child was already loved and when Sawyer found out, it was going to be triply loved.

He was going to be a father again and there was no more exciting feeling than that. He hadn't lied to Christian all those times he said that being a father changed a man. His kids had changed him in a lot of ways, some very overt and others very subtly. But with time and changes in your life came change. It was just the inevitability of life. This new kid would change him as well. Hell, it had already changed him…

"_What is _this_?" Stephanie slapped something down onto the desk in front of Chris. His eyes flitted first from what he'd been looking at (a magazine) to his wife (she looked pissed) and then down to whatever it was she had just slammed onto his desk. _

_When he noticed what it was, then took a moment to really let it sink in, he gulped and gulped hard. It felt like a peach pit was sliding down his throat, that was how dry it was at the moment. In fact, could he even swallow at all right now? His throat now felt like it had been sanded dry and his face pinched as he tried to swallow again. He looked down at it again and, much to his dismay, it was still there. It looked harmless, oh yes, it looked harmless, but it was anything but. It was just a little white stick, no bigger than a highlighter. And on it was just a plus sign. It was odd they chose the plus sign, as if to say, "Surprise, you have a new addition!" like some sort of party and why couldn't it be a subtraction sign?_

"_It's a pregnancy test."_

"_Yes, it's a pregnancy test and do you see what it says?" Stephanie said, tapping the little panel that was showing that damned plus sign. "Do you see this?" she asked as if his eyes had just popped right back into his skull and retreated down to somewhere safer, like his stomach or liver. _

"_I see it."_

"_Chris, do you _see_ this?" she asked, her voice becoming a little more frantic, harried even. "How did this happen?"_

"_I mean…you know…it's like…"_

"_I did not want to get pregnant again!" she yelled, not really thinking at the moment about anything. But could you blame her? This would be her third child in the last four or so years. She was going to have three children under the age of five. She felt like a baby-making machine and it was overwhelming. She did okay with Sawyer and Flynn, but another one? Now she'd have to stay away _again_ and she was just starting to think of things to get back at her father about._

"_I know," he said sheepishly._

"_I cannot believe this, I cannot believe this. One of us should have had more sense than to not use any protection, what were we thinking! What was I thinking, letting you, when you were in…I can't believe I'm so stupid and you, you for not stopping!"_

"_Well, it's kind of hard to stop when you're in the middle of it," he said and she glared at him. He stood up and put his arms on her shoulders. "Stephanie…"_

"_Don't touch me, God, don't touch me, every time you touch me I seem to end up pregnant!" she said, pushing away from him._

"_Oh come on, Steph…"_

"_No, leave me alone!" she said, slapping him on the face and he looked actually taken aback by that and she looked mortified that she'd done that. She sighed and pressed her hands to her face, her ring a little sliver of coolness against her hot skin, hot from the anger that had been seeping through her. She took a deep breath and then looked up. Chris had sat back down, his hand on his cheek, like he couldn't believe what was happening._

"_It had to be that one weekend, remember, the kids, they were…" He stopped there because he'd said kids and that brought him to the test in front of him. He tried swallowing again and that lump had grown into a golf ball. "They were…staying at my parents and we wanted to just spend the day in bed and we didn't have any condoms, but we decided it was okay, you said, I tried to, but you said…I guess it had to be then…"_

"_Why is this happening again?" she asked, slinking down into his lap, the nearest place to sit in Chris's office. The kids were taking their nap right now. She hadn't felt well the past few weeks. It had started off small, just feeling exhausted, then the tell-tale signs started popping up against her will. She'd already been pregnant twice so she knew the signs, she knew her body. After the exhaustion, which she'd attributed to stress, her breasts had started aching. She thought, hoped probably, that maybe since Flynn was completely weaned from any and all breast milk that some was still in there and sore, but she'd tried pumping and nothing. Then, food smells started to get to her, things that hadn't been disgusting were now like a nasal assault on her. _

_So she'd stopped ignoring what was becoming obvious and she went to the store and picked up the test she'd taken twice before and the ones that he come out positive twice before. She'd taken it while everything was quiet in the house, Chris reading, the kids sleeping, and her brain going a million miles a second as she waited for the seconds to tick off and tell her, her fate. It was exactly the fate she didn't want when she saw what was on that stick. Then the anger set in as she thought about what was going on with her body and the part Chris played in it. So she'd stormed in there, every part of her bitch side showing and she'd slammed it down in front of him. Now she was just defeated._

"_I'm sorry," Chris said, his Canadian accent peeking through like it did from time to time. He was apologizing like it was all his fault._

_She started rubbing his cheek, where the skin was turning a light pink, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have slapped you."_

"_Would've been nice if you'd slapped some sense into me before this," he said, chuckling mirthlessly. He picked up the pregnancy test and looked at it, hoping that the plus had just been a joke and that subtraction would pop up instead, testing him. "Nope, still pregnant."_

_She laughed and looked at him. "Between my brother and Rissa and Trish and Christian, I feel like we're trying desperately to make sure there are wrestlers for the next generation."_

_Chris laughed and kissed her temple. "We'll be okay, so we add one more…three kids…oh Jesus Christ, we're going to have three kids. We're crazy, we're obviously crazy. We've lost it. We can't…I can't…"_

"_Don't leave again," she told him, turning her face towards him._

"_I'm not going anywhere, I've got things I want to do," he told her. "I'm not leaving."_

"_We're going to be okay," she said slowly, nodding her head to herself. "Chris, I really love you, but you have just got to stop touching me, I keep ending up pregnant, even Shane and Rissa, who are working on #3 have spaced it out more than we have."_

"_I can't make that promise," Chris told her, leaning forward to press his lips on hers. "I love you too much not to touch you for any extended period of time."_

"_Well you better love me, this is the third child I'm bearing for you. It must be you. Just being around you, my eggs must just really want to be fertilized because you keep getting me pregnant and Hunter couldn't."_

"_Did you ever think to get him a test to check his sperm count?"_

"_No."_

"_So who knows, maybe he can't have them."_

"_That's true," Stephanie said, leaning her head against him again and then kissing his neck. "What do you want?"_

"_Another little boy."_

"_Well that was fast, you didn't even think about that for two seconds, you could've given it a little more thought, you know," she told him. "What is wrong with having another daughter?"_

"_Do you see how hard that little girl has me wrapped around her finger?" Chris asked. "I mean, you see how she just looks at me and I completely melt and am at her whim, right? I don't think I could handle another one of those. Two girls, both with me at their beckon call, yeah, I want another boy."_

"_Like you don't do everything Sawyer asks," she told him smartly, twisting her lips to one side and raising her eyebrows. "Because it seems to me he has you wrapped around his fingers as well."_

"_Not true, that kid and I argue all the time. He's very contradictory with me," Chris said._

_Stephanie rolled her eyes, "Yeah, right. I don't care what it is, unlike you."_

"_I'm sorry, my heart can't take another girl," he said, pressing his hand against her stomach. "You're pregnant."_

"_We're having a baby," she laughed, shaking her head. "Chris, we're having a baby. This is going to be our third baby. I never even imagined…I mean, sometimes I didn't even think that I would have kids at all. Now, in less than five years, I'm going to have 3 little kids running around looking like me."_

"_Or me," Chris said, "right, they _will_ look like me, right?"_

"_Very funny," she said. _

"_Mommy, I want my snack," Sawyer said, sleepily walking into his daddy's office. He'd woken up a few minutes ago and his tummy was growling and he wanted his snack. He'd gotten up to see where his parents had gone and heard voices coming from his daddy's office._

"_What do we say?" Stephanie asked._

_Sawyer pursed his lips like a duck and then smiled, "Please."_

"_Okay, can you go see if your sister is still asleep? If she is, tell her I'll be right in there and then come tell me. If she's asleep, do not touch her or talk to her or wake her up, okay? She needs her sleep too."_

"_Okay, Mommy," Sawyer grinned, running down the hallway._

"_And do _not_ run upstairs!" Stephanie yelled at him._

"_Okay!" Sawyer yelled._

"_I tell him time and time again and he never listens," she sighed, "now we're adding another one of those to our family. We're now going to be outnumbered, we won't be able to split off evenly, me with one, you with one, now one of us is going to have two and that someone will probably be me because you have work and I'm going to turn into a housewife."_

"_I doubt you're going to turn into a housewife," he said, secretly finding it sweet when she went off the rails like this. She would take something and then just escalate it and escalate it until she was freaking out and wondering if they should move to Wyoming or something._

"_I could though, just popping out your babies every year, I could end up like that woman with 19 children, I don't want 19 children!" she said, looking at him frantically. He reached forward and brushed his hand down her face, running his thumb across her chin and then leaning in and kissing her softly. _

"_We're not going to have 19 children. So we have one more, so one of us gets two and the other gets one, we know what we're doing, okay, it won't change much, I promise it won't. We'll just get this other kid who we get to love and who will love us."_

"_Yeah, you're right," Stephanie said as Sawyer walked into the room. "Hey, baby boy, what's the verdict?"_

"_What's a verdict?" he asked curiously._

"_It means what happened, was Flynnie awake?"_

_Sawyer shook his head, "She was sleeping and I didn't wake her up 'cause you told me to leave her alone so I did."_

"_Good, thank you," she told him. "I really appreciate you doing that for me, what do you want for a snack?"_

"_Can I have apples and yogurt?" he wondered. _

"_Of course you can," she told him, getting off Chris's lap. She bent down to kiss him as Sawyer bounded over._

"_You come have a snack too, Daddy?" Sawyer asked. "Apples and yogurt are yummy."_

"_Okay, I guess I could go for some," he said, standing up and lifting up Sawyer, throwing him into the air and then catching him as he giggled. "Are you going to let me have some of your yogurt?"_

"_No!" he exclaimed. "You get your own."_

"_Wow, thanks a lot," he said, shaking his head. "I thought that you would share since I'm your daddy."_

"_We have lots of yogurt," he reasoned as they went downstairs. Chris plopped Sawyer down on one of the chairs in the kitchen as Stephanie started cutting up an apple for him. Chris went to the fridge and Sawyer stood on his chair. "I want lemon, Daddy, please!"_

"_Okay, lemon it is," Chris said, grabbing one of the containers and pulling it out of the fridge. He brought it over to Sawyer, opening up the lid and placing it down in front of him with a spoon. Sawyer thanked him and started digging into it. Chris turned back and Stephanie was placing the apples on a plate for him before she set it down in front of Sawyer. He thanked her and Stephanie came back to the kitchen, leaning her arms on the counter behind her as she faced Chris._

"_I don't want to tell anyone," she said, her voice low enough so Sawyer didn't hear. He was too engrossed in his snack anyways, but she didn't want him to hear because he was a blabbermouth._

"_What?" Chris asked. "You know that's going to kind of be hard to hide that, right?"_

"_I'm just talking about for now," Stephanie said and Chris opened his mouth to speak out his protest, "Hear me out, okay? I do have a point with all of this."_

"_Okay, so what is this point?"_

"_Trish and Christian are on the verge of their first baby. They are _so_ excited about it and I just think…I don't know, they should get that time in the spotlight before I swoop in and announce that I'm pregnant again. It won't be for that long, she's due in a couple months and everything. I just don't want to steal her spotlight from her first baby."_

_Chris rubbed his chin. "Yeah, I wouldn't want them to feel like we're in some kind of competition."_

"_So you understand where I'm coming from?"_

"_Yeah, I understand," Chris nodded, coming forward to kiss her. "We can keep it to ourselves for a while."_

"_Thank you," she said, kissing him back._

Still, as of now, the only other people who knew besides him and Stephanie were Dr. Sheldon (who had promised not to mention it to Trish at any appointments) and Flynn because she couldn't talk and give the secret away. It was kind of exciting to have this little secret. It felt like Sawyer all over again. Everyone was going to freak out when they found out though. Stephanie came back out in a rather loose blouse that covered up anything that might be construed as a pregnant stomach. She twirled and he gave her a thumbs up in approval.

After the kids had woken up and gotten their afternoon snack they headed over to Trish and Christian's. Christian eagerly answered the door and ushered them in. "You guys are in luck, she's awake right now. When Edge and Lita came over earlier, she was asleep, Edge was really disappointed because he wanted to get her on his side of this fight you two are having before you could get a chance to corrupt her. He even brought her a t-shirt that says, 'I love Uncle Edge' on it."

"Man, that guy is desperate," Chris told him. They walked inside and Sawyer and Flynn ran ahead, Sawyer outrunning Flynn, but she was trying to keep up, whining a little as she couldn't go as fast as her big brother. Stephanie and Chris followed and Trish was sitting in front of Tilden, who was sitting in her baby carrier. She was indeed awake, her eyes squinted open as she looked from side to side. "There she is, would you look at her, is that not the cutest almost one week old baby you've ever seen in your entire life?"

"Well, no," Chris said, "I like to think my babies were that cute."

"I'm sorry, Chris, but my daughter is gorgeous," Christian said, readying himself to argue this point.

"Well, do you see my daughter right there, look at her, now that is a gorgeous child," Chris told him, pointing at Flynn, who was holding her arms up to Stephanie. Stephanie bent over and picked her up so she could get a better look at Tilden as Stephanie sat down on the couch. Sawyer was standing in front of the carrier, looking at this tiny, little baby. He didn't remember when Flynn was this little and he could never imagine himself being that little either. It just wasn't possible.

"She's cute, yes, but look at my daughter, look at her, she's the most perfect baby that ever existed," Christian gushed about his child. There was nothing he didn't like about her. Even when she started crying in the middle of the night, he was happy to go get her and spend time with her. He'd never been so happy to be so tired in his entire life.

"I don't think so," Chris told him.

"Okay, you guys, how about we just say that all our kids are completely adorable in their own ways," Trish said, rolling her eyes at Stephanie, who just laughed. "Kids are all really cool and Tilden is beautiful because she is and Flynn is beautiful because she is and Sawyer is handsome because he is."

"Thank you," Sawyer said, then went back to looking at the baby. "Your baby is still little."

"I know she is, she's probably going to stay little for a while, but she's getting bigger everyday," Trish said, leaning forward so she could be right next to Sawyer. "I remember when you were this little before, you were an awfully cute, little guy."

"I wasn't this little," Sawyer said, shaking his head.

"You were," Trish nodded. "I even held you in my arms. Tilden seems to like you though, she keeps looking at you. She's probably thinking, who is this really cute guy right here? I think I might have a crush on him."

"What's a crush?" Sawyer asked.

"It's when someone likes someone else that isn't part of their family, but they really like them."

"Mommy, do you have a crush?" Sawyer asked.

"Mommy has a crush on Ted DiBiase Jr. That's who Mommy has a crush on," Chris told his son."

"Don't listen to him," Stephanie said.

"Trish, can I hold your baby?" Sawyer asked. "I can holded Flynn."

"I'm not sure that's a great idea," Christian said, interjecting. He was just being an overprotective dad right now and the thought of a four-year-old holding his daughter worried him beyond reason. Hell, the thought of his 36 year old brother holding his daughter worried him. He watched Edge like a hawk when he was with his daughter, like Edge would whisk her away to a concert or something. "Maybe when she's a little older."

"Oh," Sawyer said, pouting a little bit, "but I holded Flynn."

"Of course you can hold her," Trish said, looking at Christian. "Chrissy, people besides you and me are allowed to hold Tilde, okay?"

"He's just so young."

"We're all right here," Trish said. "Sometimes I don't even think you want _me_ holding her."

"That's not true," Christian argued.

Trish ignored him. "Okay, kiddo, why don't you climb onto the couch and you can hold her, okay?"

"Okay!" Sawyer said, pushing his mother's legs out of the way so he could climb on the couch. Stephanie gave him an incredulous look and he settled himself against the back of the couch. He held his arms out and watched as Trish lifted Tilden from her carrier, the baby fussing slightly, but then found herself in a pair of small arms.

"Okay, put your arm under her head," Trish instructed him.

"Are you sure you should let him?" Christian asked with trepidation. He could just imagine Sawyer dropping his daughter or something, even though he knew Sawyer was a great kid, you couldn't really control these kinds of things sometimes.

"Christian, lighten up," Trish said as Sawyer adjusted his arms. "There you go, look, you've got her."

"No!" Flynn said, not liking that her brother was holding some other kid. "Sawa!"

"It okay, Flynn," he told her. "I right here!"

"Sawa!" Flynn said, tears coming to her eyes.

"It's okay, Flynnie," Stephanie said, kissing her head. "Sawyer's just going to hold her for a second, okay? That's a new friend for you to play with. Her name is Tilden and you guys can play all the time if you want to when Tilden gets older."

"No!" Flynn said, shaking her head and glaring at this baby that was trying to take her brother away. She didn't want that baby around her brother! "No!"

"Flynnie," Stephanie said, using her stern voice with her daughter. Flynn looked at her, her chin jutted out in defiance, blue meeting blue and angry meeting stern. Flynn actually seemed to growl a little at Stephanie, which surprised everyone. "Flynnie, that's not our baby, okay, plus, we like babies."

Stephanie was now worried about what Flynn would think about a new baby. Sure, she "knew" about the baby, but she couldn't really comprehend it. What if when the new baby came, Flynn hated it? She didn't want the added stress of that. She knew introducing a new baby was a delicate thing, but if Flynn outright refused to have a new baby in their lives, what would they do? They couldn't just give the new baby away. Still, Flynn wasn't even two yet so of course she was going to have jealousy issues.

"No," Flynn said and this time it was definitely just to defy what Stephanie was saying.

"Take this," Stephanie said, holding her daughter out to Chris, who took her into her arms.

"Hey there, Flutterby, you're a cranky Sue," he told her, kissing her cheek.

"I'm holding your baby," Sawyer said with a laugh. "She's pretty, Trish."

"Thank you," Trish said. "It must be true if you say it."

"Do you think I could hold her?" Stephanie asked Sawyer.

"Okay, Mommy," Sawyer said congenially as Stephanie took the baby in her arms. She tested the weight a little and pictured her own child, new and fresh like Tilden was and she smiled. "You're so lucky, Trish."

"I know," Trish said, glancing down at her daughter. She was one of the most beautiful children she'd ever seen and the love she felt for her daughter rivaled nothing else. The months of trying and trying for a child had been worth it, the pregnancy and everything that came with that, worth it, the 13 hours of labor, worth it. Tilden changed her life and she wasn't even a week old. Every day was something new to behold and she didn't even miss traveling or going out or anything as long as she had that soft, tiny body to cuddle with.

Stephanie, Chris, and the kids stayed for a little while longer before they headed out and back to their house for dinner. They had an early night that night and flew to Baton Rouge the next day for SmackDown. The first person they saw happened to be Edge and he sauntered over with Lita trailing behind him. "Well, well, well, if it isn't my archnemesis, Sawyer, Jericho."

"Hi, Ed," Sawyer said casually.

"One of these days kid, I'm going to spear you," Edge said, getting down to his level so he could look him in the eye.

"Bring it on," Sawyer told him and Edge scoffed.

"Did your son just accept my challenge?" Edge asked.

"That's what my daddy said when I watch him when he has long hair, but he doesn't have long hair anymore because he says he likes to be different and do different so he cut his hair, but you still have long hair."

"Your kid just told me to bring it," Edge laughed. "Wow, so the entire Jericho family wants a piece of me, is that it?"

"Pretty sure Flynn doesn't," Stephanie said, looking down at Flynn whose head was flipped all the way back so she could look up at the ceiling.

"Still, the rest of you do, especially you, Jericho."

"Dude, you're so delusional to want to fight me, Li, do you ever just tell him to quit it."

"All the time, but you try to get him to listen to you," Lita said and Edge glared at her.

"Lita, you are supposed to be on _my_ side, you're _my _girlfriend."

"Talk to me with that tone again and we'll see if I'm still your girlfriend," she told him. "Did you guys go spend some time with Tilden? Is she not just completely adorable?"

"Yeah, we went yesterday, she was awake when we were there, she's so cute," Stephanie said. "Holding her reminded me of the first time I got to hold Sawyer and Flynn, I'd forgotten just how light babies are."

"Seeing her made me want to get pregnant."

"Don't even," Edge said.

"He's terrified of the thought."

"Christian is the one that terrifies me, he's like Mr. Super Dad or something. He didn't even want me holding Tilden. He said that I was going to be a bad influence on her, can you believe that, _me_, a bad influence? I'm going to be cool Uncle Edge, you know, the one that always has candy for her or takes her to places her parents won't let her. That's going to be my job. Christian is going to be the strict dad that she sneaks away from."

"You better not mention that when she's a teenager she might sneak out. He'll put bars on her windows."

Edge laughed, "That's the truth…wait, don't try to trick me, I'm supposed to hate you!"

"Dude, you don't hate me, you just want the fans to love you and you're using me as the way to get you there. If you weren't going against me, if you were going against Taker or something or HBK or whatever, you would be absolutely hated, but because I'm good at what I do and the fans hate me for it, they like you."

"That's called using your brain, my friend. I'm just using my brain to get what I want. That's it."

"Yeah, doing it the lame, pandering way."

"Don't be jealous. But hell, maybe your wife can get you on Raw this Monday."

"I won't be there so it'll be hard for him to get time," Stephanie said, then realized she shouldn't have said that because the reason she wasn't going was because she had a doctor's appointment and Dr. Sheldon was going on vacation for a couple weeks so she'd had to go Monday or else have to wait for another two weeks, which she didn't want to do and she didn't want to see another doctor. She trusted her own doctor.

"You're not going to be on Raw?" he asked. "Wow, why not? You're always there. Who's the guest host, do you even trust them to do anything?"

"I didn't say I wasn't working on the show," Stephanie said. "I'm going to have everything ready. I'm just not going to be there. My dad…is going to be in charge."

"Your dad?" Edge said. "Wow, I didn't even realize you were on speaking terms with the man."

"It's a little…terse right now," she admitted. It was a very tricky situation. Once she announced her pregnancy though, maybe he would change. Hell, maybe her father would see this baby while it was still only days old rather than his first two grandchildren who he didn't get to see at all. "But I have to trust that he won't screw up for one night. Besides, he knows that I've got the upper-hand right now with Bret on my side so he's not going to screw with me."

"Why aren't you going though? I mean, you never miss a show if you can help it?"

"Oh, um, well, you know, something else came up."

"Something else? Yeah, I'm not buying it."

"Sawyer and Flynn have their annual check-up," Chris said. "We take them to this really exclusive pediatrician. There are literally waiting lists for this guy and we have to get in while we can so Monday it is. Our kids come first, always."

"Oh, well that's understandable. Oh no, Vickie spotted," Edge said, "we've got to go. I'll see you later."

"Yeah, you will," Chris said ominously.

Edge grabbed Lita's hand and they went the other way. They weren't familiar with the arena though and ended up right in front of Vickie. Well this was awkward. Edge had managed to avoid her since he'd made his return. It hadn't been easy and he'd had to duck in and out of places sometimes, but it had been worth it not having to confront her. He'd been watching the show since he was away and saw her with that guy, Eric or something. He'd been happy for her, but now it seemed she was alone again and looking to feel included with some of the other divas around here.

"Edge," Vickie said, then derisively added, "Lita."

"Vickie," Edge said and Lita echoed that.

"Long time, no see."

"Not since the divorce was finalized," Edge said, looking around. "You look…good."

"I feel good," she told him, sticking her chin up at him. "I have my job back and I'm running things."

"I know, you must be so happy."

"Yes, nowadays I don't let men use me."

"I didn't…no, you know what, it's okay, I'm glad you're happy. I hope you continue to be happy," Edge said. "I just don't want any trouble, but you know, as long as we keep away from each other, I think we'll be okay."

"Yes, okay," Vickie said.

"Let's go, Li," Edge said as he grabbed Lita's hand and walked away.

"God, how desperate did you have to be to get with her and stay with her for so long. That is the most epically bad rebound relationship ever. I just pretty much ruined you for women, didn't I? You had to settle for _that_ after me."

"Shut up," he grumbled. "She wasn't so bad."

"Wasn't so bad, your relationship was terrible, it was a wonder you guys even ended up married. Wow, I am just the best."

"Shut up," he said, grabbing her, "you are not the best."

"I think I am, for you to go from me to that, I mean, talk about your step down. Then to actually marry her."

"I would've married you, Li, a million times over. I would have," he told her, leaning down to kiss her.

"I don't believe it. We would've ended up like you and Vickie, living in separate places, you chasing after some young girl, completely ignoring me. I don't think that you're the marriage type, Edge."

"I could be," he told her, kissing her softly. "I love you and I would still marry you, if marriage wasn't this completely terrifying concept that is. You're the only girl for me, Li, you should know that by now. I don't even look at other girls now."

"That's why I caught you staring down the shirt of that woman bartender at the place we went to the other night."

"Okay, so I _see_ them, but I have no interest in anyone but you."

"Yeah, we'll see, Edge," she said, pulling him into the nearest empty locker room. "We'll see."

Stephanie picked up her phone as Britt walked into her office with her agenda for the evening. "Hello?"

"Hey, Steph, it's me."

"Hunter, what's up?" Stephanie asked. Britt looked up from what she'd been doing to stare at Stephanie on the phone.

"Do you really think Shawn doesn't care about me?"

"I didn't say he didn't care, why are you asking?"

"Well, I asked if he'd be in my corner on Monday night, you know, I have that match against Cena and everything. I just wanted to know if he had my back and he said he wasn't going to Raw because he wanted to rest up. I don't know if I buy it."

"Well then he was probably lying," Stephanie told him. "If you think Shawn is lying to you, call him out for God's sakes. Stop acting like him slighting you is out of the question. But then, maybe he has something to do on Monday."

"I don't know," Hunter said. "Now I can't stop thinking about whether or not he's actually playing me. I don't know, do you think he is?"

"I've thought it from day one and that day one is the first day I married you. I don't like the guy and if you'd open your eyes you wouldn't like the guy too. Hunter, would you please just think clearly for a moment and then decide. I can't take your wavering on this subject anymore. You either cut him loose or you stay with him, your choice."

"Okay, I guess I'll think about it. Steph?"

"Yeah?"

"If I…if we aren't friends anymore, me and him, do you think…do you think things could get back to the way they used to be?" She knew he was talking about Britt. Britt, who was still standing there, staring. Stephanie looked up at her and she quickly went back to what she was doing, trying not to listen in on the conversation, trying not to figure out what was being said even though she was desperate to hear.

"I think they could."

Chris was a little insulted that Edge didn't seem to think he'd win the Elimination Chamber. He was well aware of what the Chamber was like. He'd been in numerous Chamber matches, including the very first one. He'd been there from the beginning. Sure, he'd never won it in all those matches, but this time he had a good feeling going into the match. There were only three guys he was going to watch out for: Undertaker, Rey, and Punk. They were his main competitors, if he could outlast them, he'd be the champion. He knew if this occurred, then Edge would be gunning for him because he had the Rumble win and the title shot and why would he go after the Raw guy when he would be ripe for the picking. Still, if he won, he would defend it with everything he had, friend or no friend.

If the audience didn't know, he and Edge were under friendly fire. They played it up for the crowds, but when it came down to it, they were still friends and this was more a friendly rivalry than anything else. They were having fun with it. Chris didn't care what the fans thought about him, but Edge did and Chris played that up. If anything, his mind was more focused on his match with Undertaker. He'd fought the man a few times now, but it was like you never really got used to wrestling the Undertaker. He was such an enigma of a man. He was strange, that was for sure, but there was this blurry line of who he was and who he projected himself to be. There was no way he could be some mystical superhero, yet, there was something so mysterious about him, like you could actually let yourself believe he was controlled by an urn. Then he would turn around and be at Stephanie's bidding. It was all so strange so you never quite knew what you were going to get with him.

The match as a no disqualification match, which meant anything went and that was frightening. What if he could really conjure up lighting and hit Chris with it? Nah, that wasn't possible. Still, Taker was a tough match and he had a considerable height advantage on Chris, which made some of Chris's moves harder to land just by virtue of Taker's bulk. The man was also relentless, having an inhuman amount of strength. The agility was waning a little bit and Chris could out-quick him, but that didn't give him the advantage he really wanted.

The match went down to the gauntlet until Edge came in and speared Taker so Chris could get the win. He didn't know why Edge had done that. Maybe it was to give him the momentum going into the Elimination Chamber next week or maybe it was because they were friends. Still, it extended this little rivalry they had going and that was the most important thing. While Stephanie dealt with her father, Chris could deal with Edge.

But first things first, he had to win the title.


	270. In With the In Crowd, February 19, 2010

A/N: Thanks to everyone who reads this story, hope you're enjoying it. Anyways, I got to meet Chris Jericho on Sunday and we talked about Stephanie, which was a lot of fun and it'll probably be appearing in this story soon (though I might change out myself from it lol). Hope this chapter is okay though. Leave a review if you want, I don't demand them, though they make me happy so really think long and hard and click the button. ;) But enjoy! :)

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"I'm not sure I want him around you."

"What? Why?" Stephanie asked as she looked up at Chris. He was staring down at her, a look of concentration on his face, obviously assessing the situation in front of him. He frowned and crossed his arms.

"Because he's sick and you're not and you're pregnant and I don't want you getting sick," Chris said, looking down at Sawyer. He'd caught a cold and today he'd woken up sniffling and with a low-grade fever. Unfortunately, they'd already traveled to Missouri so he couldn't go stay with Chris's parents or anything and had to stay sick on the road. Sawyer was extremely pitiful when he was sick. It was like night and day when he was sick. As boisterous and outgoing as he was when he was well, he was downright shy and introverted when he was sick, always clinging to his parents, in this case, Stephanie.

"Chris, he just has a little cold, I'm not going to get sick."

"You don't know that and what if you do? Kid #3 is still in that fragile developmental stage and how do I know, because this is our third child and I've read so many damn pregnancy books that I could _write_ one at this point and rule number one, never look at your kid crowning because that is just the worst."

"That _really_ traumatized you, didn't it?" Stephanie snickered. "Luckily for me I never had to see it, just had to feel the excruciating pain of children coming out of my body through a hole that is not supposed to stretch that large."

"Believe me, I know," Chris scoffed, then shuddered. "I just don't want you getting sick and then it develops into pneumonia and you lose the rugrat…we really need a better name, what can we call it?"

"The baby?"

"Baby?" Sawyer asked breathlessly, sniffling loudly and looking up at his daddy. "What baby?"

"Oh yeah, someone doesn't know about something and we're talking about it," Chris said, looking at Sawyer. He was covered with a blanket and it was pulled up to his chin and his head was on Stephanie's leg and she was running her fingers through his blond hair. He liked it when his mommy did that, it always made him feel better and he didn't feel good right now. His mommy had said he caught something at pre-school, but he didn't remember bringing anything home with him.

"Where is my baby?" Sawyer asked, referring to Flynn. He had no idea that his head was mere inches away from another little baby that he would be getting. They were still hiding it. They'd decided to wait, again until they were a bit past the first trimester to make sure everything was going well with the baby before they decided to tell everyone. Stephanie was also pretty apprehensive about Flynn's reaction after seeing how she'd reacted to seeing Tilden and how she kept reacting to her.

They'd gone a couple times to see Trish's baby, especially when they were at home and when Trish needed some adult company. Stephanie would bring Sawyer and Flynn over sometimes, when they were nicely clean and germ-free and Sawyer was fascinated with the new baby. He never really wanted to play with her, but was happy just to watch her or talk to her while she was in her carrier. This made Flynn furious. Chris and Stephanie couldn't say exactly whose temper she had, but she had someone's temper. She was green with jealousy whenever Sawyer paid attention to Tilden more than her. She would go over there and start tugging at him and when he dismissed her, she would glare at him and then she would start screaming and Stephanie would have to intervene.

It was the same way whenever one of her parents held Tilden. She did _not_ know who this baby was, but whoever it was, she hated them. She just _hated_ them. She didn't want this baby to be around anyone she loved. It was just her Sawyer, her mommy, and her daddy. Stephanie and Chris didn't know how she was going to react to a new baby. It was still months away so she could grow out of this, but she might not and in that case, they didn't know quite how to handle it. They just hoped that because the baby would be theirs and not some baby that popped up every now and then.

"She's with Edge because you're sick and you don't want to get her sick, do you?"

"Yes, I do."

"You want your kid to be miserable?" Chris asked. "Wow, that's low, Sawyer Jericho, that is _low_."

"Oh, I not want her to be sick," Sawyer said, then sighed because _he_ was sick. He burrowed deeper against Stephanie's leg. "Is Tilden sick?"

"No, Tilden's not sick," Stephanie said. "She's back in Florida with her mommy and daddy and they're making sure she doesn't get sick because it's not good for babies like that to get sick. It could really hurt them."

"What about me?" Sawyer asked.

"Well, you're older so while you get sick, it's a little easier to take care of you," Stephanie told him. Sawyer nodded. He was older. He was almost four years old and that was _really_ old, but not as old as his mommy or daddy or anything. He was getting sleepier though, he thought as he lied there. His mommy's hand was feeling so nice as it massaged his scalp. He closed his eyes and drifted away pretty quickly to dreamland.

"The kid is asleep," Chris observed as he folded his arms. "Why don't you let me have him and we'll get out of your hair tonight. I'm sure we could get someone to watch over him. There has to be someone around here compassionate enough to watch over a sick, little boy."

"You think there is?"

"Of course there is, there must be, or you know, we could give him to Lita to watch and Edge could just have Flynn or we could have Flynn, maybe."

"Chris, I'm fine, okay, the blob is fine too, we're all fine," Stephanie said. "So let him rest. Besides, you have a lot to do tonight. You are starting the show and I want you to make an impact, show them that none of those other guys are going to beat you in the Elimination Chamber. You have a great shot to win this and I want you to win."

"You don't want Undertaker to retain?" Chris asked, staring at her. She stared back at him. Why was he always bringing up issues with the Undertaker? He always got that suspicious look on his face too whenever he brought up Taker.

"Why would I want him to retain instead of you winning?" she asked. "That makes no sense to me."

"I didn't say you…I mean, I was just wondering," he shrugged. It wasn't that he thought they were together or anything, but damn that Christian had put that nagging voice in the back of his head and it always kind of creeped up whenever he thought of the Undertaker. What if they'd had some secret relationship at some point before he and Stephanie had started dating? She could've been intimate with him and he _still_ wasn't over Stephanie having sex with Hunter, how in God's name would he get over her having sex with Undertaker?

"Why wouldn't I want my husband to win?"

"I know you want me to win, I was just saying."

"You were thinking that I'd want Taker to win over you, why is that, Chris?"

"No reason," he said, shaking his head. Then he blurted out, "Have you ever had sex with Taker?"

Stephanie nearly jumped up and knocked poor Sawyer right out of her lap. As it was, her jaw dropped and her eyes widened as she stared at Chris for a long moment. She shook her head a little and then stared at him again, wondering if he was serious. He appeared to be and she shook her head again, as if rattling her brain a little would make his question a little more clear, but it didn't; yeah, it was still a pretty hazy thing. She thought back to every time she brought up Taker and it became clear this was actually something Chris thought about.

"Chris, do you think I had a relationship with Mark?"

Chris was surprised she'd used his real name. Nobody called him Mark. He _hated_ the name Mark, said that his parents, the ones he hated, had given him that name and from now until the end of time, he would be the Undertaker. He was shocked Stephanie had used it so casually. "You called him Mark."

"I sometimes do," she said.

"Nobody ever calls him that, nobody is _allowed_ to call him that."

"I am." Okay, now she knew she was really just messing with him. While Taker _had_ told her she could call him Mark, she hardly ever did. When he'd saved her, those times with him, yes, they'd forged a friendship, but more than that? She was not attracted to the man. She'd known of him since she was a teenager and he was just not her type.

"Why? Oh my God…are you married to him?"

"What!" Stephanie asked, laughing now. Okay, what did her husband _think_ behind her back? "You…you cannot be serious?"

"I don't know, I mean, black weddings ring any bells for you?" he asked and yes, he was being completely irrational, but she was the one inciting it in him! It was all her fault for putting these thoughts into his head. Damn it, he was going to face Taker in the Elimination Chamber and all he was going to think about was his wife moaning that man's name, oh, he was going to be sick. Now he was going to definitely lose that match.

"Chris, do white weddings in Hawaii ring any bell for _you_?" she asked with a laugh. "Do you think I would've agreed to marry you if I knew I was married to another man? And stayed with you for five years of marriage? And had three of your children?"

"Maybe they're his."

Stephanie pointed down to Sawyer, "Look at this little boy, look at him long and hard, does this little boy look like anyone besides you?"

"No…"

"Chris, I'm not secretly married to Taker, I've never had a relationship with him, and I've certainly never had sex with him, okay? So you can ease your mind of this nonsense and focus on what you have to do tonight, which is intimidate _all_ of those guys so they know you mean business in this chamber and you're walking out the winner."

"You promise you've never been with Taker?"

"Where did you get this crazy idea?" she asked.

"Christian may have brought it up," he said bashfully.

"Then Christian better kiss Tilden goodbye because I'm going to kill him for suggesting that I had some sort of liaison with Undertaker of all people. Chris, the only man in this company right now that I have slept with is Hunter, okay, and you knew that and you have known every other guy I've ever been with."

"What did you mean by in this company _right now_? You may have said you've told me everyone, but is that everyone?"

"Yes, oh my God, stop being Mr. Overprotective Husband, I don't like that hat on you, it's not you. You've never been jealous of anyone…well, you were of Christian when you thought I was sleeping with him, which is odd," Stephanie said, "because of all the guys I've been friends with, why Christian?"

"You guys were pretending you were sleeping together!" Chris said, throwing his hands up in the air.

"Oh yeah, God, you know, I'm sorry, but Christian was not a great kisser, maybe he's better with Trish, but--"

"Now you're just baiting me on purpose," Chris told her and she smiled and winked at him. Her phone rang and she tried to grab for it on the coffee table in front of her, but she couldn't reach it because of Sawyer. Chris reached for it for her and looked at it. He rolled his eyes, "Since your little boy toy knows that he's not longer a secret, he gets to call his crushy-wushy."

"Now _this _is the Chris Jericho I know and mildly tolerate because we have three children."

"Nope, not used to it yet," Chris said, then answered the phone. "Hello, this is Stephanie McMahon's phone, she is currently sitting with _our_ son right now, who is ill, may I take a message for her?"

"Oh, hi, Chris," Ted said, "is Stephanie really busy then or are you joking?"

Chris rolled his eyes, "Hold on." He thrust the phone at Stephanie and she grabbed it.

"Hey, Ted, what's up?"

"Cody and I have a plan."

"You do?"

"Yeah, we're going to execute it at the Pay-Per-View. I'm going to eliminate Randy, send a message to him. It's really going to happen, Stephanie."

"It's about time," she laughed and Chris groaned and picked up Sawyer. Sawyer whined until he realized he was in his daddy's arms now and he snuggled up to Chris. Chris wrapped the blanket around him and sat down next to his wife, cradling Sawyer in his arms. He would put Sawyer into his portable bed, but he would just cry out for them if he did. He could just hold him until he had to go out for the show. Who knew that when he started working out and getting muscular that it would one day aid him because he'd have to carry his children for hours on end.

"I know, I know," he laughed. "I just wanted you to know before Sunday so you were in on it. I can't _fully_ trust Cody yet, so he doesn't know we're in a plan and you've been helping me out, but hopefully I can trust him, he's a good guy too."

"That's great, well, I'm really glad you're going to branch out on your own. You deserve success, I've been trying to tell you that for months now and I'm glad you're finally taking the initiative to get out of Randy's shadow and make a name for yourself. It's all fun and games when you're new. It's good to have someone who's established help you out, push you, but after some point, you have to get out of there and do your own thing and you need to do that now while you're in your prime."

"Thanks, Stephanie, I really appreciate your friendship, you have no idea."

"I'm glad we're friends too," she said.

"I'll let you go, I imagine Chris gets kind of bugged by me."

"He doesn't care," Stephanie said, glancing at Chris, who mouthed he did care and she turned away from him again.

"No, I really better go, but it was good talking to you, hopefully we can talk on Sunday, maybe celebrate after the match, I mean, not like _celebrate_, but go out, not just us, but with Chris and maybe Cody too, you know, and your friends, I mean, because I'm your friend and I'm rambling and I'm an idiot."

"Ted, Ted, it's okay, I'd like that and Chris wouldn't mind, he likes any place where they serve beer or Grey Goose." Chris tapped her on the shoulder and nodded eagerly. She flipped him off, probably because she couldn't drink anymore because of the new baby.

"He drinks a lot."

"Not really," she laughed. "It'll be good, hopefully we'll have two champions in our group that night, okay?"

"Okay, bye Steph."

"Bye." She hung up the call and then looked to Chris. "We're going with Ted after the show on Sunday and you're going to be nice to him."

"Yeah, while he's hitting on you and you're falling for him and I'm left in the dust with three children," he sighed. "Why do you not want me, Stephanie? What have I ever done to you? Why do you want a younger guy? Have I gotten too old for you, have my looks diminished, do I not satisfy you in bed?"

"Oh, you satisfy me just fine," she told him, leaning over and kissing him deeply. One of the things he loved about Stephanie being pregnant (aside from the kid that came at the end of it) was the fact that it made her incredibly horny. She wanted sex all the time, morning, check, afternoon, check, evening, check, waking him up in the middle of the night by pushing his boxers down, check. The girl was insatiable and he was all too happy to help her out. He kisser her back, pressing his free hand into her waist. They couldn't do too much with Sawyer right there, but that didn't stop them from making out like teenagers. Her hand started wandering down to the front of his pants and she started pressing her hand against his crotch.

He pulled away abruptly, "Oh hey there, Mrs. Jericho, we can't do that right now."

"I know, my hand just needed somewhere to rest," she told him.

"You're gross," Chris said, but kissed her again. "So tell me now, was this kiss because you want me or was it because you were thinking again about what you did on Monday?"

"You tell me."

_She and Bret were brilliant. She'd come up with the idea and somehow, he'd convinced John Cena to be in on it. John didn't like her, she knew this. It had to do with Chris, but he didn't like her much either. She didn't really care as long as he could help. She'd overheard her father say that the only way he'd wrestle Bret was if Bret was injured so he could beat him up some more. Her father was always doing that. He postured all the time about how he could beat everyone up, but then when it came time to do so, he only wanted to beat up someone who was injured._

_Then she'd had an idea. A very good idea. One of her best, really. She'd called up Bret and proposed it to him, told him what her father had said and Bret was very intrigued. She kind of thought he'd be a stand-up guy, wanted to just go out there, declare what he had to and bow out gracefully. She'd never really taken him for a schemer, at least not in the same way she was a schemer, but it turned out that he was and then some. Stephanie had arranged all the hard things, the ambulance at the ready, the woman who would hit him, the limo driver. Bret just needed himself and John Cena. He'd talked to John and convinced him to help. _

_The execution had been nothing short of an Oscar-worthy performance, at least by Bret. If she cared enough, she would've told John to not quit his day job and that his acting is probably what made _The Marine _and _12 Rounds_ do so poorly in the box office. All he had to do was pretend like Bret was injured, but he had to go and over-act, blaming everyone, yelling, screaming, asking the woman if she knew how to drive, if she'd seen the car. There was such a concept called subtlety, but John obviously had never heard of it. Stephanie had pretended to separate from her husband and have everyone in the company and the world believe it and John couldn't convince anyone that this was real. He was the weak link._

_Still, it had worked. Her father's eyes had gleamed when he saw. She'd made sure to be there. Now she waited. Now her father would come out of his hiding, declare a match and he knew Bret, with his pride, would accept. Then her father would gloat and brag and tell the world he'd win and then, Bret would reveal he had no injury and her father would be humiliated. Oh, how she loved to humiliate him. _

"Hi, hi, hi, hi," Flynn laughed and then rested her head against Edge's shoulder. "Hi!"

"Why does she keep saying that?" Edge asked Lita, who was cooing at the little girl.

"I'm going to go out on a limb here and say it's because she only knows about 15-20 words," Lita said. "So she's expressing her excitement by saying one she knows."

"Excitement at what, we're walking down the hallway," Edge said.

"Oh God, I never want to have kids with you."

"What? I just don't get why she's so excited when we're just walking. I've seen her walk with Chris and Stephanie and she's never excited."

"Well, we're not her parents so this is an adventure. If only the fans could see you now," Lita laughed. "They'd be wondering why you, Chris Jericho's biggest rival, was carrying around his daughter and baby-sitting her."

"Yeah, well, it's not like _I_ volunteered for it. I wanted to look tough and fierce, like a warrior and here I am carrying around a little girl dressed in purple overalls with heart-shaped buttons and pink sneakers with a bow-shaped barrette clipping her hair back. Does this look tough to you?"

"I think you look very handsome," she said, leaning up to kiss his cheek. "She likes you."

"If she starts calling me Ed, we are through," Edge said, then turned to Flynn. "If you call me Ed, I'm dropping you off with the nearest bus driver, you got that, Flynn?"

"Okay," she told him, leaning forward to give him a kiss on the cheek. She liked this guy. He had nice hair, it was yellow like her daddy's was. Where was that guy? Edge didn't want to admit it, but he nearly melted.

"Hey," Lita said. "You better get your hands off my man, you, or else I might have to take you on in a wrestling match."

"Westle, westle," Flynn clapped her hands.

"Wow, two girls fighting over me, life is _good_," Edge said. "Now, Flynn, because you don't really have any wrestling training, although, maybe you're really your father's daughter and it'll just come naturally to you, I'm going to suggest going for Lita's knees, do you know where your knees are?" Flynn reached down and tapped her knees. She was very good about knowing her body parts. "Oh wow, dude, I really didn't think she knew that, Lita, she's going to annihilate you."

"I think I can take her," Lita said, taking Flynn from Edge and lifting her over her head and then bringing her back down, giving her a kiss on the forehead. "You're going to go down, Flynn Jericho. You can't have my man."

"Hi," Flynn said, clapping her hands and giggling at Lita. "Westle?"

"I used to wrestle," Lita said, bringing Flynn against her. "But I don't anymore, I'm retired, but I travel with Edge because he's my boyfriend. Someday you'll have a boyfriend and you'll know all about that or a girlfriend if that's what you prefer, I don't know."

Edge laughed, "Yeah, teach her about that right now."

"I'm just saying," Lita said as Flynn laid her head against Lita's shoulder. "Oh no, I'm going to want one of her soon. I really can't take it, between Sawyer, Flynn, and Tilden, I'm just surrounded by kids. This is why I'm glad I'm an only child. If I had any nieces or nephews, I'd really be a goner."

"You don't want kids."

"I didn't think I wanted kids until I'm around them and they're adorable. We only see the adorable. We take care of Tilden for what, two hours so Trish can get out of the house for a little while with Christian? She sleeps most of the time. We take care of Flynn and Sawyer for an evening, they're generally good kids, then I suddenly want kids. It's a vicious cycle I tell you."

"We're not going to have any," Edge said. "I just…do you want them?"

Lita shrugged, "I don't know."

"That right there is why we don't have kids," Edge said. "We can't just shrug. We'll stick to babysitting. Hey, Flynn, if your daddy wins at the Elimination Chamber and I challenge him, who are you going to cheer for at WrestleMania?"

All Flynn heard was daddy and so she repeated it, "Daddy!"

"What? No, we've got to work on you, you should be cheering for me because I'm going to get your daddy and I'm going to beat him up. It's really the principle of the thing, do you understand? See, we were supposed to be tag partners, but I got injured--"

"How about you spare us the spiel?" Lita wondered.

"I should have the both of you thrown out."

Lita and Edge looked over and saw Vickie. Behind her were Layla and Michelle McCool, looking like the smug, little bitches they were. Lita pulled Flynn a little closer, like she was protecting her and then stuck her chin out defiantly. At one time, she was afraid of Vickie, simply because she had Edge, but now that she and Edge were out in the open, she wasn't afraid of her. Hell, she could take her if she wanted. Vickie looked Lita up and down, giving her that sneer that she was so famous for. Layla and Michelle were doing the same thing.

"You can't throw us out," Edge said, stepping a bit in front of Lita, but she sidestepped him. She wasn't intimidated.

"You should just throw them out of the show," Layla said with a nod.

"Shut up," Lita said.

"Oh, those are big words coming from someone who got chicken and had to retire," Michelle said.

"I could tear you up like a piece of paper," Lita told her, gritting her teeth. "You don't want _any_ of me, McCool."

"Please, with the ring rust I'm sure you're carrying around, girl, you would be at my mercy."

"Leave us alone, Vickie," Edge said. "We have no more business with you. We're divorced, I don't even have to talk to you so you can just shut your mouth and keep walking before I start to get angry."

"I'd like to see you try," Vickie said, "in case you haven't been watching, _Edge_, I'm the special consultant around here and I can pretty much do whatever I want and if I wanted you out the building, I would just call up security and have you escorted out. So you better be on my good side or you'll be out on your ass and then I'll make sure you're out of work."

"Oh really?" Edge asked. "You really think that?"

"You were with me for the power, weren't you," she sniveled, "so you should know just how much power I wield around here."

"I'm not one to generally use this," Edge said, "but do you see this little girl here, the one my _girlfriend_ is holding? This is Flynn _Jericho_, but you may know her better as Vince McMahon's granddaughter. Now, I don't know about you, but I think that a McMahon trumps your power."

"What, is the kid going to start running things?" Michelle scoffed.

"No, but her mother runs things," Lita said.

"Her father is pissed off at her about the entire Bret thing so he doesn't give a damn what she thinks or says," Vickie pointed out.

"Do you really think that Vince wouldn't side with her if it came down to it?" Edge said. "Do you really want to test that loyalty, especially when his grandchildren are involved in everything?"

Vickie didn't have an answer for that, but she went up to Edge and sneered, "You're lucky you have an excuse tonight, but don't think I'll be so nice next time."

"Of course you will, Vickie, this power you think you have, it's just in your head. Bye, ladies," Edge said, grabbing Lita's free hand and turning around to walk off with her.

"Dat?" Flynn asked. Edge and Lita babysat her enough to know what she meant.

"That was Vickie," Edge explained. "I used to be married to her, but it was one of the worst decisions of my life. Now she hates me and she wants to make me miserable, but I'm not going to let her ruin my buzz. I'm the Royal Rumble winner so I have a lot of my own power right now, she's just bitter because she knows that I don't need her."

"Oh," Flynn said, screwing up her face a little. That made no sense to her.

"I think she's confused…or pooping."

"No, I think that's confused," Edge nodded.

"Hey, you guys," Britt said, walking up to them. "You can bring Flynn back to Stephanie, she set Chris and Sawyer up in another locker room so Sawyer can get some sleep. I'm going to sit with him in a little bit."

"Okay, thanks," Edge said. "Hey, so with all this turmoil crap going down between Hunter and Shawn, what are your feelings on it?"

"Why does it matter?" Britt asked.

"Because you were totally in love with the guy, Hunter that is, not Shawn," Edge replied.

"I'm not going back to Hunter. Why does everyone just automatically assume that the moment Hunter and Shawn aren't the best of friends anymore that I'm going to go running right back into Hunter's arms."

"You two were pretty in love," Lita said gently.

"Yeah, well he broke my heart," Britt told them. "Plus, I'm still with Evan, do people not get that? I am with him, have been for months now. Why would I want Hunter again? I'm perfectly happy with Evan."

"Okay, we get it, you like Evan," Edge nodded.

"Yes," Britt said, "anyways, yeah, you can bring Flynn back."

"Thanks," Lita said as they parted ways. "Wow, girl is still hung up on Hunter."

"What, she just said, pretty emphatically I might add, that she was _not_ interested in Hunter and pretty much didn't care about what happened to him. Or were we not listening to the same conversation just now?"

"It was in her voice, that defensive tone, like she was trying to convince herself that she wasn't in love with Hunter still. Poor girl, she just wants him back, but Shawn won't release his chokehold on that relationship. Hopefully Hunter wises up so she can be with him."

"She's with Evan."

"For now, but I have a feeling when Hunter is free, she suddenly will be too. Then she can show Shawn that in the end, she won. She's probably just biding her time."

"I don't get your species. Why doesn't she just go get her man?"

"Because Hunter is stubborn, I seem to remember a guy who got _married_ on the rebound because he wouldn't own up to the fact that he didn't love her and loved another girl that he wouldn't just go after and tell that he loved her."

"I wasn't stubborn."

"Look at how long you stayed with Vickie."

"Touché."

They reached Stephanie's office and knocked on the door. Stephanie called for them to come in and they entered. Stephanie looked up and grinned as she saw her daughter. Flynn, who'd been away from her parents for hours, leaned over and reached out for Stephanie. Stephanie stood up and took Flynn in her arms. Flynn hugged her mommy around the neck and breathed a sigh of happiness at seeing her. Stephanie turned and kissed the side of her head and Flynn giggled and held her tighter. Now where the heck was her daddy and her Sawyer? She hadn't seen Sawyer in what seemed like _forever_? And wait, wasn't there something else, someone else. Her parents had explained it to her, they'd said something, she recognized the word because Sawyer called her the word all the time. What was it? Where was it?

Oh yeah! Her mommy had just been telling her about it this morning. She reached down and patted her mommy's tummy, "Baby," she said, because that's what her mother had said was in there. Stephanie looked down at Flynn, her eyes widening as Flynn looked up at her and smiled. She'd remembered.

"Did Flynn just say baby?" Edge asked, almost accusingly.

"She just…remembered that Trish had the baby there and she's been spending time with Tilden and I was trying to explain that's where the baby came from, from Trish and that it was her baby."

"Flynn hates Tilden though," Edge said suspiciously.

"We're trying to get it so that she doesn't hate Tilden because her temper tantrums are annoying. She shouldn't be starting the terrible twos before she's actually two."

"You've been looking a little rounder lately," Lita pointed out.

"Yeah, I thought it was because you were getting fat," Edge said.

"Allow me," Lita said, slapping Edge's head. "Stephanie, are you…pregnant again?"

"What? That's silly," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "I mean, don't you think that I would've said something or something. Really, it's just Tilden and Flynn and that whole situation. I don't think Flynn understands that Tilden isn't ours and isn't trying to take her place."

"You're pregnant, aren't you?" Edge said, jaw dropping and looking at Stephanie's stomach. "That's why your clothes are always baggy nowadays. I thought there was something fishy when you weren't showing off your boobs as much."

"I'm right here," Lita said.

"I'm sorry, Stephanie has a very nice rack since she got some of her implants taken out."

"How do you know that?" Stephanie asked. "Chris and I never told…did Chris tell you that I had some of my implants removed?"

"No, Stephanie, come on, look at me, I know my way around a woman's breast, am I right, Flynn, or am I right?" he said, holding up his hand for a high five. Flynn, knowing what that was, slapped him five. "That's what I'm talking about."

"Again, allow me," Lita said, slapping Edge's head.

"Oww, stop, I'm sorry that I notice other women's breasts, it's just a way of life," Edge said. "But you have been wearing baggy clothes, come on, fess up, Stephanie, are you having another baby, are you and Chris having another kid?"

Stephanie sighed, "This does _not_ leave this room, do you hear me? But yes, Chris and I are expecting another child."

"Oh my God, congratulations," Lita said, stepping forward and hugging Stephanie. "But wait, why the secrecy? I mean, it's not like you two don't have kids and it's not like you guys aren't married or anything, why the secret?"

"We just didn't want to steal Trish and Christian's thunder, not just yet. They just had Tilden and she's not even a month old and we want them to get the attention, to enjoy this time and have everyone dote over Tilde. We just felt like announcing our pregnancy would shift the focus and every new parent should feel special and unique. We'll tell people soon, but we just want to wait."

"Wow, that is so sweet of you," Lita gushed.

"Dude, so this means I'm in on a secret, yes! Finally, _I'm_ the one who knows before everyone else. Score! Who reeks of awesomeness, Edge reeks of awesomeness!"

"I'm telling you right now, not a word!"

"I won't, my lips are sealed," Lita said.

"I'll keep it to myself for however long you want it to be. Hell, I can keep the secret until the kid is in college if need be," Edge said, stoked to just be a part of a secret plan for once. You'd think that he was the one that did the impregnating.

"I don't think we can keep it for that long."

"But dude, thanks on behalf of my brother, he does deserve the spotlight for a while," Edge nodded. "Great, now how the hell am I going to kick your husband's ass _now_?"

That was his general thought later on. While his rivalry with Chris was ramping up and he was anxious to see what they could do in the ring against one another, it was tempered with happiness for his friends. Stephanie had said they couldn't believe they were expecting a third child and he couldn't either. Chris and Stephanie, above all else, were good parents. Sawyer and Flynn were as loved as any two kids could be. They accommodated for them, worked their schedules around them, and they were very happy and great parents. So now he had to shift focus and try to beat up a guy who'd just found out a short while back that he was going to be a father again? This was a hard task.

Chris made it relatively easy though when he went out there to espouse how great he was _again_. He said the same things over and over again and it was no wonder the crowd hated him not to mention the name-calling. Edge just had to separate what was turning into this great rivalry and the personal things he'd learned earlier. If anyone could do it, he could. And when he speared Chris after the weird energy surge, he knew that he could definitely separate them. He just had to remind himself to congratulate Chris later.

He'd gone out there with a relatively easy thought in mind, tell these pissants that he was going to win the Elimination Chamber. It was easy enough, he dumbed his speech down so they would understand. Maybe it went in one ear out the other, but the principle remained the same, he was going to win. He was the best at what he did and if they didn't recognize that, he would show them how wrong they were. When Edge came out, he'd expected it. The man loved to interrupt him. There was something different to him though, something…weird. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but when Edge was talking to him, telling him he was tired of him and all that rigmarole, it didn't have that same intensity and he swore he caught Edge smiling at him at some points, but why would he be smiling at him? It didn't stop him from getting speared, but that's what the fans wanted to see and since Edge was all fans all the time now, it was expected.

"What's up with you?" Chris asked as they got backstage. He was rubbing his back a little. Even though Chris had endured worse spears (Rhyno's gore through a set was probably the benchmark), it was still sore.

"I _know_," Edge said, winking at Chris.

"Um, I don't know what you know," Chris said, shaking his head.

"About the you-know-what," Edge winked again.

"Do you have something in your eye?" Chris asked.

"About…the you know, the," then he started singing softly, "Rock-a-bye baby, in the treetop, when the wind blows, the cradle will rock.

"What?"

"Wait, you know, right, I mean, about," now his voice was nearly a whisper, "Stephanie and the baby."

"She told you?"

"Well, Flynn kind of did, but man, congratulations," Edge said, hugging Chris. "I'm so happy for you."

"Thanks," Chris said, hugging him back. "Flynn?"

"She patted Steph's stomach and said baby and well…Lita and I aren't idiots."

"Oh, I see, well, thanks."

"And don't worry, man, your secret is so totally safe with me."


	271. Champion, Elimination Chamber PPV

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, favorites, and alerts for this guys, I really appreciate it. So this chapter is just the Elimination Chamber PPV. Felt like it could use its own chapter. Hope it's okay and leave a review if you want, thanks. :)

* * *

"Daddy, do I need ties?"

"Why would you need ties?" Chris asked as he picked one up and held it up to his chest so Sawyer could see. Sawyer didn't like it and he shook his head and Chris put it back. He picked up another one and this one Sawyer liked and Chris held onto it. He didn't bother looking at the price tag because he knew he'd think it ridiculous and put the tie back, but sometimes you needed to spend to look good and it wasn't like he was hurting for cash. He made more than enough with his job and well, his wife, was worth hundreds of millions. Still, he'd always been pretty frugal so he tried to avoid overanalyzing prices.

"Because you wear them and maybe I wear them too sometimes," Sawyer said, losing his train of thought mid-sentence.

"I do wear suits all the time," Chris said, "but you're a little kid, so you don't really wear suits a lot, only when it's a special occasion. I just like to look good, that's why we're shopping today, plus it means we get to spend time together. Don't you like spending time with your old man?"

"My old man?" Sawyer asked, confused by the phrase.

"It's just another way to say your father, which would be me," Chris said, pointing to himself.

"I know who you are," Sawyer said, rolling his eyes.

"Don't roll your eyes at me, I get too much of that from your mom. If you roll your eyes too much they'll roll right out of your head."

Sawyer's eyes widened and his jaw dropped slightly. "Out of your head?" he asked in all seriousness. Nobody had told him if he rolled his eyes that his eyes would fall out. But then, his mommy rolled her eyes a lot and her eyes never fell out so maybe his daddy was lying. "No, they don't, Mommy's don't?"

"Mommy tapes them to the inside of her eyeballs because they fell out years ago because she's rolling her eyes so much. She's got a very certain technique on her eye-rolling nowadays so they don't fall out again," Chris told him very seriously. He almost started laughing at the look on Sawyer's face as he thought about how his mother had to _tape_ her eyeballs in.

"That's scary, Daddy."

"Mommy's pretty scary, she's very lucky that I fell in love with her. Nobody else wanted her," he told his son. "I was the only one and lucky for you, I was because if not for me, you wouldn't exist."

"Yes, I would," Sawyer told him.

"No, you wouldn't, because I'm your dad and I half-made you so if I didn't get with your mom, you wouldn't be here, that's the long and short of it, so sorry, you're not right on this one," Chris told him.

"I am right, I would," Sawyer said defiantly.

"You are so your mother's son," Chris said. The kid may look a lot like him, but he was Stephanie's son through and through. And when he wasn't being Stephanie's son, he was being his own person. Sawyer definitely had a personality that was unique to himself. Stephanie and Chris loved seeing more and more of his personality emerge as he got older. The same went for Flynn. She was growing up and changing right before their eyes and they were trying to enjoy it before another little invader came and demanded more of their attention.

"Daddy, why are we shopping? Aren't you wrestling tonight?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah, but I needed to just go do something where I could relax," Chris said. "It'll help me for my match later. Are you excited to watch it? I don't think you've seen me in the Elimination Chamber before."

"I don't know, I don't 'member," Sawyer shrugged. "Maybe."

"I don't think you have, I don't think your mom wanted you to see it before, but since you're older, we figure that it'll be okay for you to see it."

"What about Flynn?"

"I don't know why your mom is letting her watch. I guess Mommy thinks that because Flynn is tough or something she can handle the match. I hope she can, it's going to be pretty tough and you might get scared. If that happens, just ask Grandma or Grandpa to take you backstage, okay?"

"I won't be scared," Sawyer told him. He didn't get scared.

"I don't think you will, but there are a lot of things in this match that could be scary. The ring is going to have a lot of chains around it and I'm going to be locked in a chamber. Plus, I'm going to be wrestling so I won't be able to pay attention to you. If Flynn gets fussy, you'll have to take care of her, okay?"

"I will," he said, he'd been taking care of her since the day she was born so this would be a piece of cake. Didn't his parents understand already that he was the one who took care of Flynn the most? Sometimes he let his parents help, but not all the time. They were pretty good at what they did, but he was better. "Who are you going against again?"

"How many times do I have to tell you? This just proves you don't listen to me when I talk to you," Chris told him, shaking his head good-naturedly as he looked at some cuff links. Sawyer was walking beside him, holding onto his pants as Chris put his hand on Sawyer's head as they walked.

"I listen," Sawyer protested.

"Not hard enough it seems," Chris said, grabbing both of Sawyer's hands and lifting him up, swinging him for a moment before they got to the counter so he could pay. Sawyer tried jumping up and down to see over the counter and Chris put his hand on his head again to stop him. He paid for the ties and then grabbed the bag before he lifted Sawyer into his arms so they could walk faster. "I'm going to be wrestling John Morrison, R-Truth, CM Punk, Undertaker, and Rey Mysterio."

"Oh, you can beat them," Sawyer nodded.

"I know I can, what the hell do you think I'm going to do tomorrow, just let them beat me?" Chris scoffed. "I'm definitely going to beat them and do you know what I get if I win the match?"

"You get the big, gold belt like I have!" Sawyer announced, clapping his hands. He thought it would be cool for his daddy and him to have the belts together, it would be like they were both champions and that would be the coolest.

"Yeah, I do, except mine will be better than yours."

"No," Sawyer said, shaking his head, "Mommy gave me mine."

"I know she did, because she loves you more than she loves me. She'd never give me anything like that. She only loves you and Flynn, that's all, she doesn't love me at all. In fact, I think Mommy kind of secretly hates me," Chris said with an exaggerated pout.

"No! Mommy loves you, I heard her," Sawyer told his daddy.

"Oh really, does Mommy tell you she loves me when I'm not around? You have to keep note of these things because I like to hear about them. So _does_ Mommy say anything about me when I'm not around?"

"She yells because you don't put things away," Sawyer said and Chris laughed. Of course the first thing Sawyer would remember is something negative that Stephanie had to say about him.

"No, I meant, does she say anything about loving me when I'm not around? How about when Ted is around, does she say anything about me when he's around, you know who Ted is, right? He's the guy that Mommy has a crush on."

"Mommy says that you are good."

"Good at what?"

"Um, I don't know, Daddy."

"Come on, you know, kid," Chris told him, trying to coax it out of him. He tended to stay out of Stephanie's business with Ted. It was her plan, her little scheme and he didn't involve himself in most of her schemes. He didn't think she was cheating and he didn't think she was returning Ted's feelings for her, but he was curious as to what they said about him while they were alone. Sawyer was there with them a lot, surely he had to know something.

"I don't know," Sawyer said in exasperation.

"Does she say she loves me?"

"Yes."

"How much?"

"Lots and lots."

"More than say…anyone else in the world that isn't you or Flynn?"

"I don't know, Daddy, I don't remember everything that everyone says," Sawyer told him.

"Why do I have you then? You don't do anything except play all the time and eat my food and sleep in my house. You don't earn your keep and you don't have a job to help pay for the bills, you don't pay me rent, what good are you for?"

"Daddy, you're my Daddy, you have to take care of me."

"I do, who said?"

"The world!"

"The world, huh," he said as they arrived at the food court. "So if the world said I could leave you on Grandpa's doorstep or Christian's doorstep, would that be okay?"

"No! You can't do that!" Sawyer laughed.

"Oh, okay, well, I guess I'm forced to keep you then. So what do you want to eat? I need to have something to keep my strength up if I'm going to win tonight. We need to have a manly meal so we can be strong."

"You're strong."

"Okay, _stronger_," Chris said, kissing his forehead.

"What about Mommy and Flynn?"

"I think Mommy and Flynn are doing okay by themselves."

Stephanie groaned as she collapsed onto the bed. She'd just emptied her stomach of the contents of breakfast and her early lunch. The morning sickness had been near nonexistent with this pregnancy. It seemed with every pregnancy she had, the morning (or afternoon or evening) sickness dissipated just a little bit more. If she had something like five kids, morning sickness wouldn't even be an issue. She'd thought it was pretty bad with Sawyer, with Flynn, it wasn't as bad and with this new baby, it hadn't been bad at all, but still, every now and again, she did get a bout of the sickness and as she was throwing up her food, she cursed this being pregnant business.

She closed her eyes, bringing her arm up and laying it across her face to block out the light. Her other hand was on her stomach, which she could feel protruding now. It was a wonder nobody had figured it out yet. Sure, she didn't get seen by the public, but there were so many people roaming around backstage who talked to wrestling sites (even though this pissed her off) that she was sure a rumor would get out. Hell, they'd known about Flynn even before her husband had known about Flynn and she was farther along this time. Maybe it was that she'd been deliberately disguising it this time. Still, her stomach was definitely getting that pregnancy look to it and pretty soon, everyone was going to know.

She wasn't upset at the prospect, she just wanted to give her friends a little longer to get the spotlight. Tilden was a beautiful baby and Christian was the doting father, bringing new pictures to shows every week, showing off his daughter to everyone who would stop and listen for a moment. She didn't want to swoop in and cry out, "Hey, Christian, I know you're happy and everyone is interested in your new baby, but guess what, I'm pregnant again, so suck it! I'm the new baby queen in town!" That just didn't seem like the appropriate response. So they could keep it in just a little while longer. And it truly would be just a little while longer because a pregnancy, especially in something high-profile, was difficult to keep.

It was no sooner than two seconds later that Flynn started calling out her name. Stephanie moaned softly. She was still feeling a little bit queasy, but Flynn wouldn't stop until she was taken out of the crib they had for her. She got up, walking slowly into the other room and she couldn't help but smile as she saw Flynn smiling back at her, that cute, adorable face creased with sleep. Stephanie padded over to her as Flynn lifted her arms into the air. Stephanie took her in her arms and kissed her awake as Flynn played with the ends of Stephanie's hair.

"I'm not feeling well, baby girl, so I'm just going to lie down, but I'll put the TV on for you, okay?" Stephanie said and Flynn just nodded. She was never very talkative after she woke up from her nap. It was like her brain needed a little bit more time to wake up. They went back into the other bedroom and Stephanie laid down on the bed and turned on the TV for Flynn. She watched for a little while as Stephanie rested her hands on her stomach, but then lost interest and instead looked to Stephanie's stomach. "Do you know what's in there?"

"Baby," Flynn said. Stephanie tried to take time out of everyday to talk about the baby with Flynn, help her understand what was going on.

"That's right," Stephanie said, lifting her shirt up. Flynn ran her hands over Stephanie's smooth stomach. "There's a baby in there and it's going to be your little brother or sister. You're going to be a big sister, just like Sawyer is your big brother."

"Sawa," Flynn said adoringly.

"Yeah, you get to be the big one this time and you can love it and everything."

"Dere," Flynn said, patting Stephanie's stomach.

"Yup, right in there," Stephanie said, pointing into her belly button. "The baby is growing and growing and pretty soon it'll come out and you can have fun with him or her, well, after a reasonable time you can."

"Baby?" Flynn didn't understand. She just understood that there was something in her mother's stomach, but for all she knew, it could've been some kind of alien. But there was something in there. That's what her mother kept saying.

"Yeah, a baby. You were in there too," Stephanie said, poking Flynn in the stomach. "When you were just a tiny little thing, you were inside of me too and you grew right in there. That's where Sawyer was too because he's your big brother, you both came from the same place, like this new baby. You were right in there too."

"No!" Flynn said, utterly confused. She'd been _in_ her mother's tummy? That just wasn't possible. She was very big and you couldn't be inside another person, that just didn't make sense. She didn't understand this baby business. People growing inside of other people, that was just preposterous! Her mother was trying to tell her that _she_ was inside her mommy's tummy! No way!

"Yes, you were, you were right in there," Stephanie said, making a funny face.

Flynn laughed and toppled over onto her side. "No!" She giggled and giggled. Her mommy was so silly with her faces and her wild stories of being inside her mommy's tummy. She sat up and laid herself across Stephanie's stomach. Nope, she would not fit in there, not by a long shot.

"You're lying on the baby," Stephanie told her with a nod.

"Mama," Flynn stuck her tongue out. "No."

"Oh yes, yes, you are, you sweet girl," Stephanie said. "Are you going to watch Daddy tonight?"

"Dada!" Flynn growled. Apparently she was going to watch her daddy wrestle. She was very excited. She liked watching her daddy on the videos and now she was going to see him and she would cheer for him because that's what Sawyer said she had to do, even if she didn't exactly know what cheering was. She would just look to Sawyer for guidance. He was the smartest person she knew so he probably knew what cheering was.

"Yes, we're going to see Daddy, well, you are, I'll be working, but that's okay. We're going to have a great time, aren't we, Flynn Jericho? Yes, I think tonight is going to be the best night ever, well, not ever, ever, but I think it'll be a great night just the same."

"I can't believe I'm not going to be in the match tonight," Shawn scoffed. "I should be in it."

"I know, it sucks that you aren't."

"Then I could be champion again, man, how cool would that be?"

"Well, I want to go in there and be champion," Hunter said.

"I know, but man, you've still got years left on your career, but for me, it would be like a last hurrah, you know. I could hold the belt and it would be like that victory lap. I mean, we could've fought together and then when it was the two of us, maybe you could've given me the victory."

Hunter had never, in his entire career, given the victory to anyone. He could've still be married to Stephanie and forced into a match with her and he _still_ wouldn't have given her the victory. He could be in the ring against his mother and it would be a "Sorry, Mom, but I have to do what I have to do" situation. He didn't just _give_ up the victory. He didn't know what was with him lately. It was like he was getting more and more irritated by Shawn. Maybe it was the awareness he had now that Shawn might not be what he seemed, but something had changed in him.

Maybe it was missing Britt. He knew now that she was totally over him or at least she appeared that way and some part of him hurt. It had been _months_ since their breakup and he still wasn't completely over it. He could admit, if only to himself at this point, that he'd screwed up. He'd treated her so badly towards the end; he couldn't really blame her for her reaction to him. He would've dumped himself in the same situation. He'd let Shawn dictate everything. He'd just gone blindly, like he didn't have a mind of his own. Shawn was his best friend and he trusted him, but he was feeling he'd been lead down the wrong path.

He felt used and he'd only ever felt that a few times in his life. He didn't like the feeling. It was so foreign to him, like this growth on his skin that grew and grew and he'd stare at it and wonder about it, but it wouldn't go away. Seeing Britt and Evan, just walking down the hallway engrossed in conversation or God forbid, sitting somewhere and kissing almost always set him off. He wanted to grab that shrimp and rip him away from her, toss him aside and berate him for trying to kiss his girlfriend. Except Britt wasn't his girlfriend. She was just an ex, a ghost in his subconscious. She truly was like a ghost because she lingered beside him all the time, a shadow of a presence.

Sometimes, in the early morning, he'd think he'd woken up to find her there, in the room somewhere, maybe in the closet, deciding on what outfit to wear today, should she go girly or should she go comfortable? Her voice, echoes of it, asking him through the door would still waft to his ears like lingering perfume of a dead lover. Except Britt was still very real and tangible and in front of him all the time, working, ignoring him, pretending like they hadn't shared something.

He could've married her. Hell, he'd been thinking about it, seriously contemplating it. After Stephanie and that disaster of a marriage and that sticky divorce, he hadn't wanted to marry anyone. There hadn't been anyone worth marrying anyways, but the thought of loving someone, being everything to them and then getting burned like he had was so unappealing to him. Sometimes he'd envied Stephanie's ability to just move on. He hadn't known at first, but he knew now that it had only taken her a few months to move on. She'd move on right to Chris, which just dug the arrow a little deeper because she'd married the guy and had two (three, but he didn't know this) kids with him. Still, marriage had just not been a prospect he'd wanted to mine again.

Until her, until Britt. She'd changed his mind about everything. He'd love her like he hadn't loved anyone since Chyna. The love he felt for Stephanie, again hindsight was his best friend, was that of infatuation. He'd loved her, yes, but it wasn't _love_, the kind that makes you dewy and fresh. With Britt, he felt that. He felt like every day with her was some new adventure and that the rest of his life could be like this, perfect and fresh and maybe…God, what was he thinking, with kids. Kids! Kids had never been a real prospect before, but with Britt, he felt like anything was possible. Now she'd have little short kids who would never be champion at anything, but only middle of the road.

"Hunter?"

He broke from his trance, broke from _her_ and looked to Shawn. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"I'm just focused on my match. I want to win."

"Well of course you do, I hope you do, though I should really be in the match myself."

Hunter really wanted to tell him that he should've qualified for the match then if he wanted to win so badly, but he refrained. Better to keep the status quo for now. "Yeah, that's too bad, but I really have to focus on my match."

"I have to go somewhere, I'll be back," Shawn said vaguely and Hunter nodded with the same vagueness. He was actually glad to be rid of Shawn for a while, it gave him time to think. So he sat there and tried to mentally prepare for his match later on. He could beat Sheamus, that much he knew, Ted and Kofi, they'd be pretty easy. It was Randy and John that posed the biggest threats to him winning. Both were formidable opponents and they could easily win. He'd just have to have the mental sharpness…

A scream broke his reverie and he knew that voice. He ran out into the hallway and saw Britt in front of him, sitting on the ground, grabbing her ankle. He rushed over to her and knelt down next to her, "Britt, what's wrong?"

She looked at him with trepidation, almost like she would rather just sit there, hurt, than have him take care of her. That hurt, but he pushed it aside. It was neither here nor there what she thought. She finally relented. "I slipped on some water." He looked around and saw a careless puddle of water on the ground. He'd kill whoever did that. "I think it's my ankle."

He looked at it and it was starting to swell. It didn't look broken, just twisted. He lifted her up easily and brought her into his locker room, since it was the closest. Britt wrapped her arms gently around his and for the briefest of moments, he thought back to times at their house where she'd fallen asleep downstairs and he'd gingerly carried her upstairs. It was those times he was reminded that Britt was this petite woman. She had such a commanding actual presence that you forgot she was only 5'2. He put her down on the couch and grabbed his duffel bag, sticking it under her foot.

"Where's Shawn? I figured he would protest me entering the sanctuary," she told him sarcastically.

"I don't know, he went off somewhere."

"And left you alone to your own devices, shocking," she told him and he rolled his eyes.

"I'm going to get you some ice, just sit here, okay?"

"I was thinking about hopping away, thanks."

"Britt," he said, his tone weary and she recognized it immediately. At least she could still read him, that was a small comfort in a sea of uncertainty that was their relationship. They couldn't be friends, she'd decided that and they weren't together so he had to settle for the scraps she sent his way every now and again. But she could still read him and that had to count for something.

"Okay, I'll sit here like a good little girl."

He just shook his head and left, heading straight for catering. If anyone talked to him, he didn't pay attention. He cold just chalk it up to being focused on his match, which was first on the card, but instead, it was because Britt needed him. She needed him and he didn't want to let her down, prove to her that he wasn't the kind of guy who let someone down. Yes, he'd done it to her in the past, so many times, but he understood now, he knew that he was wrong now. She had to understand that he was wrong. He grabbed the ice, putting it into a cup. It didn't even occur to him to go to the trainer and get an ice pack. It was like his instincts just kicked in, the most base ones and that was to protect his woman. Yes, his brain was still believing she was his woman.

He got back to the room and she was just sitting there, fiddling with her phone, probably playing a game on it. That's what she did. She didn't do work, she didn't check her e-mail, she'd play games that she downloaded. He grabbed a towel he had and glanced at her. Yup, she was playing Scrabble on her phone at the moment. He poured the ice into the towel and wrapped it up, grabbing one of his hair ties and cinching it closed before putting it gently on her ankle. She winced a little at the cold, but was used to it after a few seconds.

"You probably just got a light sprain," he told her, sitting on the little part of the couch she wasn't occupying. He was facing her and she stopped playing her game and looked up at him.

"Thanks," she said. "I'm just clumsy."

"No, you're not," he protested because he knew.

"Well, then someone around here is careless."

"If I knew who it was…"

"You'd what?" she asked with a slight laugh. "Throw them up against the wall and yell at them for daring to spill water on the floor?"

"Something like that."

"Yeah, because it's such a big offense," she laughed. "You're too headstrong. You get mad over the stupidest things sometimes. Your temper gets you in trouble, Hunter. It gets you into way too much trouble."

"It does not. Look, someone should be more careful when carrying enough water to make a puddle. That's just common sense. People could slip. What if it had been one of the wrestlers who had slipped, someone like John Morrison or Kofi Kingston, then they're out of the match and Stephanie is screwed."

"So it's okay that it was me because I'm not on the show. Man, Shawn _does_ have you trained well."

"You know what I mean Britt," he told her. "You know that I don't want you hurt, but just that people should be more careful. How's your ankle?"

"It's sore," she said, looking down at it. "But I think I'll live. I probably won't be able to walk on it, will I?"

"Probably not," he told her, "but you should be okay in a couple of days, at least to where it won't hurt so much, might want to keep off it if you can."

"Thank you for helping me," she told him genuinely. "I'm grateful for your help. I know I haven't been the nicest person to you over the past few months…"

"I deserved it."

"What?"

"Everything, I deserved it," he told her. "I was a jerk to you, plain and simple and yeah, Shawn was the one who was telling me to go out, coercing me to do this and that, but I made the choice to listen to him. It falls on me, everything that went wrong with our relationship is on me. You were the best girlfriend I could've ever hoped for and I blew it. You have every right to be pissed at me."

"Oh," she said, she hadn't been prepared to hear that. "Don't beat yourself up. We all have that one friend, you know, I mean, I shouldn't have made you choose, I think I made you choose."

"You didn't make me choose, you tried to coexist with him and it didn't work out."

"I guess," she shrugged. "I probably could've been nicer about the entire thing."

"I ditched you at a restaurant, you didn't have to be nice to me at all, hell, you should probably just hate my guts."

"You know I don't." He was actually a little bit surprised by this and it showed in his face. "Oh come on, Hunter, do you really think that I could ever truly hate your guts? I may say it, I may even try to think it every now and then, but I could never hate you, not truly. I just couldn't do it."

"Thank you," he told her. "I don't deserve it, but thank you."

She smiled at him. It was the first smile she'd given him in so long and he felt compelled to lean forward and kiss her. In fact, he was kind of leaning towards her. He wasn't sure if she was aware of the movement. If she was, she wasn't moving, which he took as a good sign. She wasn't moving back and she didn't have a repulsed look on her face. In fact, she looked like she might welcome it. Her eyes were on his lips, like they were two missiles seeking their target. She even tilted her head a little bit to the side as if welcoming and accepting his lips as they would crash into hers any second.

"Britt, are you okay?"

The spell was broken and Hunter pulled away like he'd been caught by his mother and he was a horny teenager trying to score with his girlfriend. Britt looked up at Evan and smiled. She turned to Hunter, who was looking confused. "I texted Evan while you were getting me ice."

"Oh," he said dumbly. He stood up numbly as Evan came over, his fingers probing around her ankle.

"I'll be fine," Britt said. "It's not swelling as bad as I thought it was. It'll be fine in no time at all."

"Come on, let's go back to our locker room, you can rest in there," Evan said and he turned to Hunter, "Thanks for taking care of her."

"Yes, thank you, Hunter," Britt said and her words were a million times more meaningful to him. "I really appreciate it."

Hunter watched as Evan helped her up. He didn't even lift her, probably _couldn't_ even lift her, the scrawny chump. He wrapped his arm around her waist and she around his shoulder and he helped her gingerly limp towards the door. She sent him a parting glance before she crossed over the threshold and he wanted to say that the look held some sort of regret, like she really _would_ have let him kiss her. It encouraged him. Maybe she still felt for him, maybe she wasn't as over him as he thought she was. Maybe if Shawn were just out of the picture…

Maybe…

"Okay, you two, here are the rules," Stephanie said as she knelt down in front of her son and daughter. "You are _not_ to wander off from Grandma and Grandpa. You are to stay with them at all times. You are not to climb over the barrier and get anywhere near the ring. You are going to see Trips and you're going to see Daddy, but under no circumstances are you to try and climb over the barrier and go see them. You can certainly cheer for the both of them and yell at them and whatever, but you are not to climb over anything or go near the ring. Now, if you want, you can tell Grandma and Grandpa that you want to come backstage, okay?"

"Okay, Mommy," Sawyer said, nodding his head.

"Flynn?"

"Yes," she said, more a statement than a question.

"Okay, last rule, I want you two to have fun out there."

"We will," Sawyer said. She leaned forward and kissed them both before standing up. "Okay, Loretta, I think these two are ready to watch the show."

"Okay," she said, taking one little hand in both of hers. "You're looking different lately, Stephanie, are you…is there something different about you?"

"You think there's something different?"

"I can't quite put my finger on it, but yes, there's definitely something different about you," Loretta said, her eyes roaming over Stephanie. "I don't know, it's just something I've noticed lately. Have you been working too much, getting enough sleep?"

"I think so," Stephanie said, knowing exactly what the change was. Yes, she was getting to be too pregnant to hide it. She'd have to come clean soon.

"Eating right?"

"As much as I can."

"I don't know, there's just something."

Stephanie figured Chris wouldn't mind if he wasn't there when she told his mother. This was their third child, it wasn't like the announcement would be the news of the century. That news had been Sawyer. He was the first grandchild, the first one to give Ted and Loretta the monikers they'd wanted and waited for, for so long. Even with Flynn, there was a sense of exhilaration, but she guessed a number three was starting to feel like an old hat. And tonight of all nights, with Chris in such a huge match, he probably wouldn't care.

"I'm pregnant," Stephanie said bluntly, not beating around the bush any longer.

"What?" Loretta asked, stunned by the out-of-nowhere declaration.

"Chris and I are expecting again," she told her mother-in-law. "I'm due in August again, so you'll be getting #3 pretty soon."

"You're…pregnant again," her eyes swept over Stephanie and yes, yes, there it was. How did she not notice? How could she not have noticed? And August, that wasn't too far away, not too far away at all.

"Yes, for real, no joke."

"But…"

"Because we wanted to give Trish and Christian some time to feel special. We're not trying to hide it, just give them their time in the sun with Tilden before we announce that we're expecting again."

"Oh, Stephanie!" Loretta said, letting go of Sawyer and Flynn's hands before she went over and hugged Stephanie. "I'm so happy for you and for Chris. Oh my God, three, I can't believe, three. I never even though I'd get one and now in less than five years I have three! This is a dream come true! Are you happy? You are happy, right? Is Chris happy?"

Stephanie laughed. "We're very happy, Loretta, I promise you that. We're over the moon about it." And she was, it wasn't a lie. She loved her children, all of them, and she couldn't wait to see this newest one, see which features they'd have and what kind of personality they would develop. She was excited for this new baby.

"Good, good," she said. "Okay, well, do you want me to keep it a secret?"

"You can tell Ted, otherwise, we're just waiting one more week before we spill the beans so to speak."

"Oh, you can count on me, don't worry," Loretta said. "Okay, come on, kids, let's go watch."

Flynn knew what cheering was now. She watched as Sawyer cheered on Trips and had decided she would just randomly cheer whenever the mood suited her. That's why she ended up cheering for Drew McIntyre and Kane at different intervals. She was sitting on her grandpa's lap and he was in his grandma's.

"Are you excited for the new baby?" his grandma asked him and he looked at her. What was she talking about? They didn't have a baby, Flynn was his baby.

"I don't know, what baby? Flynn?" he asked.

"No, your Mommy and Daddy's new baby, the one growing in her tummy."

Sawyer was taken aback. Was there a baby? Was _he_ getting another baby? Well this was news! He looked back to his grandma and just stared at her for a moment. She didn't seem to be joking. Was he getting another baby for real! "Baby?"

Loretta only then realized Sawyer probably didn't know because he was only almost 4 and probably couldn't keep his mouth shut. "Oh look, there's your friend, Edge."

"Ed!" Sawyer yelled, instantly forgetting about any baby as he saw his friend. Loretta thanked God for short attention spans.

Edge knew Sawyer and Flynn were in the audience watching the show. That's probably why he kept hearing Sawyer's small voice yelling "Ed." It was like he was mocking him without even trying, out here, in front of everyone. Chris probably had them out here for the sole reason of bugging him, not even stopping to think that Chris wouldn't have known he'd be coming out here in the first place. He could only hear Sawyer's voice because it was one he recognized. Yes, Chris probably had planned this, at least a little bit.

"Okay, so you promise not to get hurt?" Stephanie asked.

"I can't promise that, but okay."

"You won't do anything stupid like climb on top of a chamber and jump, right?"

"I wasn't planning on it, no."

"You're not going to be thrown through a chamber, right?"

"I hope not."

"You're going to win, right?"

"Hell yeah, I'm going to win."

"Okay," she said, leaning up to kiss him. "I love you and please be safe, okay. Don't do anything stupid. I need you. You have two children and one on the way who need their father to be completely healthy. So please, if something comes up where it requires you to be a daredevil or stupid, just don't do it. Three kids, Chris."

"I got it," he said, then leaned down to kiss her stomach. "Wish me luck, new kiddo."

He was glad he'd be starting off in a chamber. It would give him a bit of time to scout out the match. Seeing the other guys, however many there would be, would give him a good idea of the flow of the match. He was enough of a veteran where he could read a match and figure out what style was needed. Taker could do it too and so could Rey. Punk maybe, but the other two, probably not. But he would judge and calculate and win.

"Daddy, Daddy!" Sawyer yelled, his voice lost amid the boos that rained down.

"Dada!" Flynn yelled, bouncing on the balls of her feet as she watched her daddy walking down. He didn't pay attention to her, but that was okay, she knew that he wrestled. It was probably the very _first_ thing she knew about her daddy. He was a wrestler and he was funny, those two things. Though he didn't look funny right now.

Chris walked down to the ring with a sense of trepidation. This was no easy match, it never had been. He been in this chamber six times now and he knew the punishment you went through. He knew how he would wake up the next morning and he didn't look forward to that. The only way he'd look forward to tomorrow was if he had the big, gold belt in his room tonight. Hell, if he won, maybe he'd get lucky with his wife while _wearing_ the belt. He was a champion in the bedroom too, might as well show it.

"That's Daddy," Sawyer said matter-of-factly to his grandma.

"I know, he's going to go into one of those chambers."

Through luck or maybe because he picked it deliberately, Chris ended up in the chamber nearest to his children. After inspecting the chamber, testing the chains, feeling their cool, no nonsense steel behind his fingers, he turned to where they were sitting, watching him. Sawyer chanced a small wave as Undertaker's music hit and through the dim lights, Sawyer saw that his daddy gave him a very small wave back. It made him feel better. Even though his daddy was wrestling, he was still very much his daddy.

The chambers were oppressive. Even though the back was just chains, it still felt hard to breathe while you were inside. It was probably the anticipation of being in the match. Punk and R-Truth started the match and he ceased to be Daddy and was solely Chris Jericho. He watched the match and observed the other guys in the chamber, sizing them up, mentally goring through their strengths and weaknesses. He pressed his hands against the chamber, drowning out the crowd, focused, cerebral. Luckily for him, Punk eliminated R-Truth before anyone could even exit one of the chambers. That was one less guy he'd have to worry about so he had to give it up to Punk for eliminating him.

Him and the other four guys just watched Punk as he grabbed a microphone and started talking as he waited. Chris knew this would be a death knell. You didn't get cocky, you just didn't, not in here, not with how many guys you had to beat. Beating one guy was nothing, you had to beat them all. He'd been in this position, well, he'd never started talking in the middle of a match, but he'd been in the position where he'd eliminated a couple of guys and felt like he was on top of the world, then it had come crashing down when he got too cocky. Punk would regret that.

Funnily enough, Punk didn't go after him in his little sermon. He guessed he wasn't good enough, although it could have been that Chris was in a position of power and Punk didn't want to chance it. Still, he was the easiest target. The time finally ran out and he paced like a cage animal at the ready just in case he'd be next out. The light spun and landed on Mysterio and his adrenaline dropped a little as the match went on. He glanced back at his kids for a moment, hoping they were doing okay. Sawyer was enraptured with the match, his eyes focused on the action between Punk and Mysterio. Flynn's eyes were on him, just on him, like she didn't care about the match because he was out there. It calmed him down immensely. Even if the entire world was watching those two in the ring, fighting it out, his Flynn was looking at him. She must have noticed because she smiled at him, one of her radiant ones, the ones that touched her whole face. He felt energized, filled anew with confidence and he went back to focusing on the match. He could do this. He _would_ do this. His kids were watching and he'd win for them.

Mysterio managed to pin Punk and eliminate him, which, again, benefited Chris. There was another superstar he didn't have to beat and Punk was a pretty good wrestler so it was definitely an advantage. Three guys, that was all. He could get through three guys. Almost immediately, the countdown started again. When it came down to zero, the lights flashed again and this time he was bathed in the light and it was his time to shine. It was his time to get in there and win this thing. He'd beaten Rey, he could do it again. He had five minutes where it would be one on one, he had to capitalize on it.

Stephanie bit her lip as she watched Chris exit that chamber. There was a certain amount of safety when she knew he was locked away from the match, but now he was exposed, exposed to all those chains and those metal grates and the vengeance of other wrestlers. They wanted what Chris wanted, the title, and they would hurt him to get to it. And in something like the Elimination Chamber, hurt was a very real thing, almost its own entity, wrestling around with the wrestlers themselves and she worried for him and she worried for her kids, what they would see. What had she been thinking letting them watch this?

Sawyer and Flynn cheered (Sawyer lead, Flynn followed) when Chris ran out of the chamber. Now he could watch his daddy and he loved watching his daddy wrestle. Flynn was just happy to see her daddy and she liked wrestling as well so this was all fun and games for her. Her daddy almost didn't look like he knew what he was doing, but then hit the other guy and she was satisfied. She liked seeing her daddy beat people up. It's what made Flynn Jericho Flynn Jericho.

Chris tried to use those five minutes wisely, but it didn't work. Morrison was let out next, leaving Taker for last and now he had to contend with both of them, two guys who hated him. But it was every man for himself so they didn't work together to beat him. He was grateful for that. They fought together for a while, Morrison interjecting himself every once in a while, but was easily dispatched. Rey tried to go for a move, but Chris countered it into a backbreaker. When would people learn that he had a counter for everything? Chris tried for another move, but Morrison kicked him in the face and he was down. Down, but not out.

Eventually Morrison eliminated Mysterio and that was one less guy to worry about. Now it was just Morrison, him, and Taker. He was more worried about what Taker could do to him. Hell, the guy had probably been secretly married to his wife so what wouldn't he do to him? He and Morrison worked together against Taker, an alliance of convenience that would only last as long as they were both benefiting from it, which meant it didn't last long at all. They were, after all, foes, and there were no real alliances in these types of matches, especially not with the main event of WrestleMania and the World Championship on the line.

He didn't know when he got the gash on his cheek, but he could feel the soft flow of blood down his cheek. He couldn't worry about that now though, he had to fight. He glanced at his kids again and they were two identical statues, eyes darting back and forth, but otherwise motionless. Good, they weren't scared for him. They were spurring him on. Maybe that's why he decided to just casually slap at the Undertaker. Or maybe that was a "You better not be secretly married or have had sex with my wife" type of slap. Maybe he should give Ted DiBiase one, just as a warning. That's when Taker stood up and looked at him, as if to say, "You have made the biggest mistake of your life. We're locked in a chamber, where do you think you can go?"

Remembering a long ago Royal Rumble and a strategy that X-Pac employed, he tried to pull an X-Pac, hiding out so he wouldn't have to deal with Taker. Unfortunately, Taker's knees weren't _that_ bad and he couldn't close the chamber door before Taker got to him and pummeled him in this small space, right in front of his children. He hoped they were still okay, he thought, as he the blows rained down on him. He was down and he just decided to lay low for a little bit. It'd worked for him before, when he'd won the title last time. He eventually _had_ to get back in the match and he did, only to see Morrison eliminated.

Now it was just him and Taker. Should he use the Stephanie thing as motivation, he thought? No, no, just use the title as motivation, use his kids, and Stephanie as well, but not in that way, not in the Undertaker way. They fought and Chris put every last bit of effort into the match. He didn't fear Taker. Like his wife had told him, Undertaker was just a man. He was just a guy named Mark who liked to intimidate. They were both down on the mat now and he was trying to pull himself up, use everything he had, but he was tired and Taker, for once, was faster than he was. He could see him out of the corner of his eye, standing there, waiting. Then the throat slash. That was never a good sign.

But then cheers, cheers and Shawn? Shawn was there and then Taker was down and Chris looked confused, his eyes darting from Taker to Shawn and back to Taker. He only took a few moments and then 1-2-3 and he…was champion! He scrambled out of the ring. He could hear his children cheering for him, their voices always rose above everyone else's. The belt was handed to him and he looked around for a moment, soaking it all up. Would he have to actually _thank_ Shawn for this? He hoped not because it wasn't going to happen.

He dropped to his knees as he stumbled up the ramp, clutching as his belt. He couldn't believe it. He looked to Sawyer and Flynn and they were cheering and happy and he was happy, beyond happy. "Daddy won, Daddy won!" Sawyer yelled, hugging his grandma.

"I know, let's go backstage so we can say how proud we are."

"Okay!" Sawyer said enthusiastically. His daddy has been right, he'd won!

Chris walked backstage, tired, but exhilarated. A moment later and her body was crashing into his. Then her lips were on his and her legs around his waist and he didn't realize it at first, but he was holding onto her with his free arm. He was sweaty and gross, but she'd never cared before and she didn't care now. Her tongue brushed against his lips and he eagerly welcomed her into his mouth as he backed himself against the wall, his skin sticking because of the sweat. Her hands threaded through his wet hair as she didn't stop kissing him. The belt was hanging limply at his side, but if she wasn't careful something else was not going to be limp for much longer. She mumbled unintelligible words against his mouth and he couldn't quite understand them, but he thought he heard winner, love, and great in there. It felt good. Last time he'd won, she couldn't be there, but now, she was here, pregnant with his child, his two other children proud of him and life was good, life was so damn good.

If Chris could bottle up a memory, he'd have to choose this one.


	272. Spear, February 22, 2010

A/N: Thanks for the reviews. I'm not going to lie, this is a long chapter and I've put a ton of work into it, so if you'd like to leave a review, even a small one, I'd really appreciate it because I worked hard on this one. So yeah, it's long, but I hope it's okay and that all you readers enjoy it and it's a little choppy, I know, sorry about that, but yeah, hope you enjoy anyways. :)

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**February 21, 2010**

Sawyer wanted to see his daddy's big, gold belt. He'd watched the entire match and it was _so_ cool. He'd never seen that thing up close, but his daddy had been in it and he'd won even though it had been a pretty scary match and someone (the mean man who didn't like his mommy) had come out of the _floor_. How had he even done that? He didn't know, but it was one of the coolest things he'd ever seen and could remember. His grandma and grandpa were pushing through the crowd to get backstage. When they got there, Loretta put Sawyer down and started looking through her purse for their backstage passes.

"I do it, Grandma," Sawyer told her. He turned to the security guard and looked up at him. "Hi, I'm Sawyer Jericho. My daddy just won the big, gold belt. We go back now and see him, okay?"

The security guard, one of WWE's own, recognized Sawyer on sight. It wasn't difficult to recognize him. Not many children traveled with the company and it was hard not to see Sawyer around and wonder who the kid was. Then, when you found out he was part of the McMahon family, you kind of remembered the face. The guy, Craig, smiled and opened the curtain for them, winking at Loretta, who smiled and silently thanked him. Sawyer felt very self-important at the moment and that was all Craig was trying to do, make him feel like somebody.

"I did it," Sawyer laughed as they walked backstage, Loretta taking up his hand.

"I know," Loretta said, "I didn't realize you had so much power around here."

"I don't," Sawyer told her, "but Mommy is the boss of everyone so she can tell everyone what to do. Daddy said that he is whipped, but I don't know what that means, what does that mean?"

Loretta laughed. Sometimes she wondered if her son and daughter-in-law had a filter on their mouths. At least she didn't hear Sawyer saying any swear words and asking what they meant. She looked down at her grandson, disbelieving that she was going to have another little grandchild to dote on and answered, "It just means that your daddy loves your mommy, very, very much and he's willing to do just about anything for her."

"Oh, okay," he said as they walked backstage. They directed themselves towards the gorilla, where Stephanie was looking at the belt as Chris stood next to her, grinning like a fool. She kept looking up at him, something akin to adoration on her face. It was plain to see even from this far away. She also kept leaning forward to kiss him, just brief kisses, pecks, really, but she would always let her mouth linger on his for just a moment too long. "Daddy!"

Chris looked to the side and if possible, his smile got wider. Flynn squirmed in Ted's arms and he put her down. Sawyer was already off and running and Chris knelt down, not caring that he was still sweaty and rumpled from his match, and received his son into his arms. Sawyer hugged him tightly and Flynn followed a few moments later. Chris grin grew and he stood up, one kid in each arm as they both hugged him. God, it was nice to have a family. He thought back to WCW, hell, he thought back to his first heavyweight title win, the WCW championship in 2001 and wondered, straining for the memory, how he had even celebrated. He could barely remember.

He must've gone out, he must have. Maybe he went out drinking. He hadn't been seeing anyone at the time so he knew he hadn't gone out with a girl, maybe picked one up, but hadn't gone out with her. Or had he just been alone? Gone back to his dressing room and sat there, staring at the belt and then back to his hotel room to celebrate alone? Whatever it was, however he celebrated, it wasn't like this. It wasn't having his wife beaming at him like he'd just cured cancer, it wasn't his kids hugging him and his son talking a mile a minute about how cool everything had been. It wasn't like this and it could never compare.

"Daddy, you won and I saw it and you were really good and the mean guy came out of the _floor_!" Sawyer said, pulling away so he could look at Chris. Chris kissed his cheek and then kissed Flynn's cheek. She was just patting him on the face, like she couldn't believe he was here after she'd seen him in the ring. "Then you won and you got the belt! I saw you win!"

"Yeah, I know," Chris said, looking at his son, whose eyes were shining like _he'd_ just won the title and he might as well have. While holding it was nice and he loved having it, Sawyer loved it a million times more and that's why Chris let him play with it most of the time they were at home. "Did you have fun watching it?"

"Yes!" Sawyer yelled as Chris winced at the volume of his voice. "I did and it was _cool_, Daddy. You were in a big cage, it was big and scary."

"Try being inside of it," Chris told him, pretending to be scared.

"But you were in it and you won, just like you said you would!"

"I told you I was going to, don't tell me that you didn't believe I was going to win it."

"No, no, I believed it," Sawyer told him. "But then you won!"

Chris laughed and held him tighter before he turned his attention to his daughter. "Hey there, flutterby, are you proud of your daddy or what?"

"No," she said.

Chris laughed, "What? You're not proud of me? Well this comes as a shock, who did you want to win then? R-Truth?"

"No," she said, shaking her head, but then she leaned forward and pressed a kiss to Chris's jaw. "Dada!"

"Okay, well, I'm going to take that for a positive thing," Chris said, giving her a kiss on the cheek before he put them both down. "I'll put you down for now because I'm really dirty and gross right now so I don't want you to be dirty and gross although you guys will be taking baths before bed, but you don't need to smell like me."

"I don't care," Sawyer shrugged and Chris ruffled his hair. "Can I have your belt, Daddy?"

"I don't know, you might have to pry it away from Mommy," Chris told him, the two of them glancing up at Stephanie, who was still running her hand on it. She'd already contacted the proper people to replace the plaque with "Chris Jericho" on it. "I think she wanted it more than you did."

"No way!" he told them, shaking his head. "Mommy, can I see it?"

Stephanie finally tore her eyes away from her husband's belt and new status as the World Champion. She knelt down to where Sawyer and Flynn were and showed them the belt so they could see it. Chris stood up and cracked his neck and his back. He looked to his parents and sidestepped his family before his mother hugged him. She pulled away and looked a little dewy-eyed and he thought that strange because she'd never been so emotional after one of his wins before. Hell, he was lucky if he got a call from her for anything other than to berate him for anything dangerous he'd done during the match. He was about to ask her when his dad hugged him as well and that was strange too. He awkwardly patted his father on the back before pulling away, feeling like he was very much not a part of this joke.

"Okay, that was weird, what's going on with you guys?" Chris asked, staring at them. "I mean, not that I don't appreciate you congratulating me or anything, but well, you've never done it before so it's a little strange."

"Stephanie told me," Loretta said, biting her lip and holding back the tears of joy.

"Told you what?" Chris asked, not understanding what was told.

"She _told_ me," Loretta said. "Then I told your father and we are so happy for you, sweetheart. Oh, Christopher, we're so happy."

"You were out there watching the match, were you not paying attention, how did Stephanie tell you I was going to win?" he asked, still confused. Stephanie had not said word one about telling his parents about their new addition so he was left standing here, wondering if his parents had gotten a hold of anything illegal.

"Not that," Loretta said, shaking her head. "She told me about the new thing that is going to be coming into your lives in August."

"What?" Chris asked, looking down at Stephanie. Flynn was running her hands over the belt face. She liked all the etching in it, it felt really cool. Stephanie looked up at him and shrugged.

"I figured they could know."

He turned back to his parents. "So you guys know then?"

"We know and we're really happy for you," Ted told him. "We're a little surprised too, but we're happy."

"Very," Loretta added.

"We weren't planning it, but thanks, you guys," he said, giving his parents both a brief hug. "I bet you were excited, huh, Mom?"

"Excited, I'm ecstatic," Loretta told him. "I'm absolutely ecstatic. I love having more of them to show off to all my friends and your aunts and everything. I didn't think I'd have as many grandkids because you're an only child, but you and Stephanie seem quite content in giving me as many as possible."

Chris laughed. "It's not like we planned this, but we're both really happy about it."

"I know," she said, hugging him again. "Do you want us to take the kids now? I know you and Stephanie were going to go out to dinner after this?"

"Yeah, let's go get their things and I'm going to get cleaned up," Chris said as he turned back to his family. Sawyer was trying to hold the belt now, but it was still a little hard for him to carry.

The six of them went back to Chris's locker room and Chris grabbed his things for the shower and headed in there while Stephanie gathered up the kids' things. Ted and Loretta tried to shrug her off, doing things for her, but she told them that she was still perfectly capable of picking things up. By the time she had found all their little toys and things scattered around, Chris was out of the shower. They said goodbye to the kids and then headed for their own rental. They drove to the agreed meeting place and Chris wrapped his arm around Stephanie as they looked around spotting Ted sitting in a booth, alone.

"I thought you were bringing Cody?" Stephanie asked as they slipped into the booth.

"Oh, he didn't really feel like coming, it's okay though, I don't mind. We have a plan for tomorrow though, maybe I could go over it with you," Ted asked expectantly.

"Of course," she told him brightly. "We're just waiting on Edge and Christian and Lita, they're going to come too."

"Cool," Ted said, looking over at Chris, "Hi, Chris."

"So we finally meet up now that I know about your little liaisons with my wife, I hope you've been enjoying her as much as I enjoy her," Chris joked, but Ted's eyes widened.

"I don't, we don't…I mean, she's not…"

"Chris," she said, elbowing him. "He's joking, Ted, he's just joking."

Ted chuckled nervously, "Oh, okay, yeah, I got that, oh, congratulations on your win tonight, that was really cool, where's your belt, did you bring it?"

"No," Chris said, "Sawyer has it, he likes it better than I do, he'll probably sleep with it on the nightstand or something. He always gets really excited whenever I win."

"I'd probably sleep with it too if I ever got it."

"You'll get it," Stephanie said, reaching forward to pat his hand. "Don't worry, someday, you're going to be the WWE or World Champion, don't you think so, Chris?"

"You've got talent," Chris said. He loved that he was intimidating the hell out of this kid. It wasn't even because he knew that Ted had a crush on his wife, but more because it was just hilarious to see him so on edge. He acted so cool in Legacy, but now, out of his element, he was nothing.

"Hey, you guys!" Edge said, pulling Lita over to the table, Christian hanging back because he was on the phone. "Sorry we're late, Christian was afraid he'd get no bars in the car and had to call Trish before we left, but then he thought he'd chance it and ended up talking the entire car ride and whenever I tried to talk to Lita, he would shush me and now he's still talking to her."

"It's sweet," Lita said. "He just misses his little girl and his wife."

"If I have to hear about Tilden one more time…"

"Hey everyone, you would not believe what Tilden did today!"

"I'm getting alcohol, beers for everyone," Edge said, then winked at Stephanie, letting her know that her secret was safe with him. He mouthed that he wouldn't get her a beer. She nodded her head and he went to the bar as Christian slid in next to Chris, making him need to scoot over and press Stephanie against the wall. Lita slid in next to Ted, who slid over to give her room. He looked a little out of place, but Stephanie hoped he wouldn't always feel that way.

"You did a great job tonight," Stephanie told him.

Lita, who could sense what Stephanie was doing, looked to Ted, "Hey Ted, Lita, not sure we've really met before, but you're a great wrestler."

He shook her hand, "Thanks."

"Okay, you guys, can I please finish, you will not believe what Tilden did today. She really, officially smiled and Trish sent me a picture and you have _got_ to see it!" He grabbed his camera and started showing everyone at the table. They all responded appropriately, but this had been the fifth time that Christian "officially" thought that Tilden had smiled.

"Let's never be like this with our kids," Chris whispered in Stephanie's ear and she laughed.

"She's adorable, Christian," Stephanie told him kindly. Tilden was a beautiful little girl. She had Trish's eyes, but there was something very Christian-like about her face. She was bubbly while awake, but when she was cranky, watch out, she turned into a little devil child, but Christian and Trish hardly cared. "So Ted, what is this plan for tomorrow?"

"Well, it's part of the reason Cody isn't here. We're going to make it look like he's still on Randy's side, but that I'm not and then they're going to have a match together, I think, if you can swing that--"

"I can swing that," Stephanie nodded.

"Then I'm going to run in and we're going to attack Randy, kind of let him know that last night was no fluke and that we're sick of him and we don't need him. I think it's going to send the message alright when he's lying on his back in the middle of the ring," Ted said, finishing off harshly, like he had months and months of pent-up aggression for his former, or soon-to-be former, partner-in-crime.

"Wow, how far has my wife got her claws into you?" Chris asked. "Because seriously, plan much?"

"I didn't think it was too bad…"

"It's not, it's a great plan, I approve," Chris said, trying to make him feel at ease. Stephanie had done the same for Katie and it was the least he could do. It wasn't that he hated Ted, he didn't, he just found it endlessly amusing that the man had a crush on his wife.

"Okay, drinks for all!" Edge said, spreading the drinks around the table. "Here you go, Steph, I got you a soda."

"Not drinking, Steph?" Christian asked. "I figured you'd want to celebrate the most."

"I'm celebrating, but have you had to take care of two kids with a hangover? It's not fun when you've got a throbbing head and then two screaming children and I know this guy isn't going to not celebrate, so it's all me."

"I see," Christian said, giving her a smile and Stephanie took a deep breath. They'd have to come out with it soon because pretty soon, everyone would be able to tell.

"So, man, you know I'm gunning after your ass tomorrow, right?" Edge said to Chris. "Because you've just upped your status around here."

"Oh yeah, what are you going to do?" Chris told him. "I'm not afraid of you."

"You should be, Jericho," Edge said, winking at Stephanie, "you should be."

**February 22, 2010**

Chris was far too ecstatic to care about what Edge was doing that night. He was the World Champion and that was the only thing that mattered. Stephanie, like he thought she would, had given him…well, her, all night and he'd woken up with a new appreciation for being the World Champion. It never got old with her and he didn't think it ever would. She'd scheduled time for him at the top of the show. She wanted him to be the first thing everyone saw.

Chris got into the ring and you couldn't keep the smile off her face. He announced that he'd be going to WrestleMania, which he was and he would be going as the World Champion. Besides a few people chanting his name, everyone was saying he sucked. He didn't care though because he was going to WrestleMania. He hadn't headlined a WrestleMania since 2002 and he'd lost that evening. He'd lost more than the belt that evening too. He'd lost Stephanie. He could still remember that night, saying goodbye to her, thinking that he might never see her again, that he'd never feel that feeling he had inside, the one he was trying to squelch, but kept coming up time and time again.

He talked about how he said he would never come to Raw again after what happened with Tyson, but it was a special occasion tonight. He was the World Champion and he could go where he wanted. He'd beaten 5 guys last night and this was his crowning victory. How many guys could say that they'd beat the Undertaker twice in a row? Not many, but he could because he had actually done it. He was going to WrestleMania and he was going to win whoever he faced. He held the title aloft and that's when Edge showed up to spear him.

Then Chris knew what Edge had meant the night before.

**February 26, 2010**

Spear.

**February 28, 2010**

Sawyer yelled as he threw Flynn's stuffed animal across the room. Flynn, aghast at Sawyer's act, dropped her mouth open. She screamed and ran after it. Sawyer laughed at her as she went after it. She laughed too and pushed him out of the way. He didn't push her back because she was littler than him and he shouldn't push things that were littler than he was. He was just playing with her. He ran around the room and Stephanie came in and she looked at them huffily.

"Okay, you two, stop it now, look at this room," Stephanie said. "This isn't a playroom, this is a pigsty. We're going to clean this up right now."

"Okay, Mommy," Sawyer said, knowing that look. Stephanie helped them start to clean up the room and Chris came home a short time later and helped out too until the room started to look better.

"Baby boy, we have to have a talk with you, okay?" Stephanie said. Sawyer looked up at her and wondered what this was about. He hoped he wasn't in trouble. He'd picked up his toys so why would he be in trouble? He hadn't pushed Flynn, he knew better than to do that.

"Are we doing this now?" Chris asked.

"No time like the present," Stephanie said as she picked up Flynn and sat down on the couch they had in the room. Chris picked up Sawyer and sat him down on the couch and then sat behind him. He really wondered what was going on. What had he done?"

"I'm sorry, Mommy," Sawyer said, going into defensive mode. If he'd done something bad, he might as well just apologize right now and not even find out what it was.

"Sawyer, you're not in trouble, baby boy," Stephanie told him. "Daddy and I just want to tell you something and it's very important, okay? So you'll have to listen, okay?"

"Okay, I listen," he told her, biting his bottom lip like Chris did often. She leaned forward and kissed his forehead.

"Well, you know how you loved having Flynn because she was a new baby you could play with and how you really, really liked babies?" Stephanie said.

"I do like Flynn, she's my baby." Sawyer danced around in his seat a little. He just loved talking about his baby. He grinned at Flynn, who was busy looking at her mother's fingernails. She looked up at the sound of her name and smiled at Sawyer before going back to looking at her mommy's fingernails. "I like babies. I like Tilden, but I don't think Flynn does."

"I know," Stephanie said, pouting a little, but then she smiled. "But…we have news too. I'm going to have another baby."

Sawyer thought for a moment. Another baby? Wait, another _baby_? Like Flynn? "Baby…"

"Yes, I'm going to have another baby," Stephanie said, laughing at Sawyer's shocked face. Chris leaned forward and to the side to look at Sawyer too and laughed. He was just so surprised. A baby!

"Really? Like Flynn?"

"Yup, like Flynn was when she was a little baby."

"Mommy! I didn't know!"

"Well, I know, baby boy, that's why I'm telling you right now," she told him. "You want to feel my tummy?"

"Yes, I want to see baby!" he said, so excited his voice was going up about an octave. Stephanie and Chris laughed and Stephanie lifted Flynn off her lap and handed her in the air to Chris. He took her as Sawyer crawled across the couch to Stephanie, who lifted her shirt a little. Sawyer reached out and touched his mommy's tummy and it _did_ feel different! There was a baby in there. "Baby! Hi, I'm Sawyer!"

"This baby is going to love the hell out of you, you know that, right?"

"I love the baby too!" he said. He was going to have more people to play with, this was the coolest!

**March 1, 2010**

It was a slow build that led him to this point. He was there, almost, he could feel it. Shawn was still his friend, he knew he'd be Shawn's friend forever. Their bond was just that strong and he'd always loved Shawn like a brother, but sometimes, you had to see your friend's flaws. Shawn wanted him all to himself, that was his problem. Hunter was tired of it. He'd helped Britt a few weeks ago and she'd thanked him and that was it. He didn't _want_ that to be it. He wanted her back, but it would be hard and it would be a long road, maybe an impossible road to navigate, but he had to try.

When Shawn went out there to talk about the match at WrestleMania, his career on the line, Hunter felt the innate need to do something for his friend. Whatever his feelings for Shawn, brotherhood was always going to be present. He'd asked Stephanie for a match for them, a rematch against Show and Mize and they would win tonight and it would be great and Shawn would win at WrestleMania. He didn't want Shawn's career to end anywhere but on his own terms. He knew Shawn wasn't a good guy anymore, but he was still Shawn and he still had to help his friend. He just hoped that people would understand that.

"Hey, Britt."

"Hunter," she smiled slightly and he could feel the ice beginning to thaw. "That was nice of you out there."

"You really think so?" he wondered.

"Yeah, I mean, I hate the guy, but I get what you were doing. It's better to go into WrestleMania thinking you have a chance, especially when you're facing a guy that hasn't lost in 17 years. It was a nice thing _you_ did, not that Shawn actually deserves it."

"He probably doesn't," Hunter told her and she raised an eyebrow. "What? You didn't think I knew what was going on? Okay, so I didn't for a long time, but I know what happened, I know that he said stuff to you, I know that he said stuff to Chris and Stephanie."

"Yet you still stick with him after that, wow, I wish you'd demonstrated the same loyalty to me," she said, then shook her head, "wow, that was an incredibly bitchy thing for me to say. I never begrudged your friendship with him, I'm glad you have a friend that you're that tight with, I just…wish it hadn't come at the expense of us."

"I wish it hadn't either."

"But you're sticking with him?"

"He's my friend and you…you have Evan, right?"

"Right," she said with a nod. "I admire your loyalty to him, but…don't let it hit you in the ass, Hunter. I don't want you hurt. I especially don't want you hurt if he loses. Do you really think he could win? You've been in the ring with Taker at WrestleMania, do you think he has a shot?"

"Every guy has a shot. It's like football, any given Sunday, right? Any given day I wrestle, I have the potential to lose, even if it's against the greenest rookie because hell, I could be having an off-day, I could be hurting, I could have just had a fight with my mother, I could be…missing someone so much I can't think about anything else, so yeah, I think that Shawn, one of the greatest wrestlers ever, has a shot against Taker, do you think he doesn't?"

"I don't know, I suppose he does, but I'm not betting on him."

"Would you if you liked him?"

She laughed, "Probably not." She turned serious again. "But if he does leave, you'll be alone, Hunter, are you ready for _that_?"

"I've got friends." She tilted her head at him, her lip jutting out just a little and she folded her arms over her chest. He laughed and wanted to hug her. He just wanted to hug her and not let go. He always felt like he was her shield when he hugged her. He was so much bigger than her that he just engulfed her much of the time. How could someone so slight be so much stronger than he was though? She was like this little spitfire of a woman and she could dominate him in most ways and he missed that she was so strong while he was so weak. Sure, he projected the strength to the world, but she was the real strong one. "I do!"

"Name _one_," she demanded.

"Sawyer."

Britt couldn't help it, she laughed. Hunter started laughing too and she hit him in the shoulder. "Okay, you've got me there. I don't really think that kid is capable of holding a grudge so yeah, he's your friend, I'll give you that, but I don't think you can take him out for a beer or anything, I think Chris and Stephanie might have something to say about that."

"Yeah, you're probably right, but he's still my friend."

"I'm sure once Shawn is gone you'll find that you have more friends than you thought."

"Don't you think they're not really my friends if they stopped being my friend because I was friends with Shawn?"

"They didn't stop, you pulled away," she told him and once again, she was right. He sighed and looked at her.

"What about you?"

"What about me?"

"If Shawn leaves…what then?"

She shrugged and smiled at him, turning and walking away, leaving him thinking things, bad things, well, they weren't so bad. Now he was suddenly wondering if it would be such a bad thing. He smiled himself and turned around, walking to his next destination. Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad thing for Shawn to lose. Shawn could spend more time with his wife, with his kids and Hunter, well, maybe it was time for him to have a wife and kids. That thought sounded nice. He could have it all with them.

After the match, when he tried to help Shawn and Shawn rebuffed him, everything changed. Sure, he knew that Shawn was just mad and would probably call him later to apologize, but it was almost like he felt free. For the first time in a very long time, he felt almost…free. It was a good feeling. He loved Shawn, don't get him wrong, he loved him. The man had been with him through thick and thin, he'd been there after the break-up with Joanie, the divorce with Stephanie and through everything in between. He couldn't abandon him even if he wanted to, but things were different now.

He walked backstage and saw Britt standing there, staring at him. Yes, he thought, maybe things could be different now."

**March 2, 2010**

"Hey, guys," Stephanie said, stepping out of the doorway. "Glad you could come."

"It is so nice to be out of the house. I never valued my freedom more now that I barely get to leave the house because I have an infant at home," Trish said as Christian carried Tilden inside the house. Flynn was standing next to her mother's leg and saw that accursed baby that kept coming around. When would that thing just _leave_ and get out of her sight? She hated it because Sawyer was always looking at it and so were her parents.

"No!" Flynn said, pointing at the carrier. "No!"

"Flynn, stop it," Stephanie said, taking her head and turning her around. "Go play in the playroom with Sawyer."

"Mommy! Who's there?" Sawyer asked, running into the foyer. "Chrissy! Hi, did you bring Tilden?"

"She's right here," Christian said, flipping the carrier around so he could see Tilden. "I think she wanted to see you."

"Really, cool," Sawyer said. "Hi, Tilden!"

"No! Sawa!" Flynn said, smacking her brother's hand down when he tried to wave at Tilden.

"Flynn, go play," Stephanie told her. "Sawyer, can you take your sister and go play in the playroom, please?"

"I will," Sawyer said, "Chrissy, guess what?"

"What?" Christian asked, indulging his little best friend.

"I'm going to have another baby," Sawyer said very matter-of-factly, like he was just sharing the weather with his friend and not letting out a secret. Stephanie closed her eyes and looked up at her best friends. Trish's head had turned towards her and now Christian's head was lifting.

"Hey, guys, what's going on?" Chris asked, coming into the foyer, "why are we all standing around? What's going on?"

"Stephanie, are you pregnant?" Trish asked, glancing at Stephanie's shirt, which was one of Chris's shirts, which was decidedly baggy on her, a perfect shirt to hide a pregnancy under. "Are you having another baby?"

"Mommy's going to have a baby and I'm going to help with it like I help with Flynn."

"You're pregnant," Trish said, now in disbelief. "Sawyer's not joking, is he?"

"Sawyer's not joking," Stephanie said.

"When are you due?"

"August."

"August!" Trish said, rushing up and hugging Stephanie. "Oh my God, I can even feel your stomach just hugging you. Oh my God, our babies are going to be the best of friends. They'll only be months apart, oh my God, this is fantastic, but why didn't you tell us?"

"Well, we just wanted you to have your moment in the sun with Tilden. We didn't want you to think we were stealing your thunder."

"Stealing our thunder? Oh, Steph, you could never, this is _wonderful_ news."

"Congratulations, you guys, I'm going to take a wild stab in the dark and guess this wasn't planned," Christian joked and Chris rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Dude, seriously, does she just get pregnant whenever you look at her. You guys are going to have three kids under what, five years? You're insane."

"We are," Chris said, "but you try staying away from this one."

Trish laughed. "Thank you guys for thinking of us, but seriously, you didn't have to do that. You guys are having a baby and this means we have to celebrate. Tonight is about celebrating all the babies and good things…except for Flynn, she seems to not like babies of any kind."

"That's what I'm worried about," Stephanie said.

"Come on," Trish said, pulling Stephanie out of the room, "we can leave the kids with the husbands while we discuss baby stuff, later, boys."

Christian turned to Chris and casually said, "Congratulations, man, I'm happy for you."

"Thanks," Chris said, "now let me show you how it's _really_ done being an expectant father."

"Yeah, you're going to show me?"

"Watch and learn."

**March 5, 2010**

Spear.

Spear.

Chris was really starting to hate that goddamn word.

**March 12, 2010**

"Well it's official, everyone knows I'm pregnant."

"What did it?" Chris asked jokingly. "Was it the fact that you _are_ pregnant?"

"Pictures from my mom's campaign, people saw them, said, oh my God, Stephanie is pregnant! Then they went all over their little internets and yup, out there and my mom has confirmed it on her Senate Twitter account, would you like to confirm it on yours, maybe say that you've knocked me up?" she asked, annoyed. It wasn't that she cared that everyone knew, she was just in one of those moods.

"No, you know I try to keep mostly personal stuff out of there," he said. "Besides if your mom confirmed it, what good would me confirming it do?"

"I don't know," she said, slumping down in her seat. "Don't you have your stupid Highlight Reel tonight?"

"Ouch, what's got you in such a bad mood?"

"Probably the thing invading my body, but you never have to worry about that, do you? No, you just sit back and watch as I have to go through this time and time again," Stephanie said. "Oh, I can't even look at you, God, I wish we were at Raw so I could talk to Ted."

"Ted?"

"He listens to me, you sit there, doing other things," she told him, scowling at him.

Chris looked down. "I'm…reading a story with Flynn."

"Yeah, well…Vickie it horrible. All she wants it to be popular like we're in high school or something. This is _not_ high school, this is work and she should be treating it as such, but no, she would rather hang out like a teenage girl. Then Teddy Long is usually nowhere to be found and when he is found, all he says is stuff to agree with me. I don't need a yes man and even if I could convince my father to fire these people, he wouldn't put me in charge because I'm pregnant and I'm oh so delicate."

"Stephanie, baby, why don't you just calm down…"

"Calm down, I'm perfectly calm," she snapped. "God, I wish I was at Raw."

"So you could talk to Ted?"

"Didn't I _just_ say that? I mean, the guy doesn't have kids, he hasn't inflicted this kind of annoyance on his wife or girlfriend or whatever he has, I don't know, maybe he has nobody, maybe he's gay and that would just be great because then he wouldn't get a woman pregnant and she wouldn't have to watch her body go through freakish changes!"

Chris put Flynn next to him and went over to Stephanie, taking her in his arms. She tried to squirm away, but he held her firm. Damn him for being a wrestler and stronger than her! "Why don't you call Ted and talk to him? I'm sure that he would love to talk to you--"

"If you even so much as insinuate I have a crush on him, I will rip that part of you that did _this_ to me and you will never be able to use it again," she warned him and his eyes widened. That sounded terrifying.

"Well, I still think he'd like to talk to you and then you could just…calm down, maybe," he said, kissing her neck.

"Don't kiss me, I'm not in the mood for kisses right now, especially not yours."

"What about Sawyer's or Flynn's, you wouldn't deny _them_ a kiss, right?"

"No, but not from you," she told him. "I don't want you around me right now."

"I love you too," he said in a sing-song voice.

She threw up her hands in disgust and turned to leave when there came a knock at the door. "If that's anyone I hate, I'm going to throw a toy at their head."

"Come in," Chris said and his protégé, Wade Barrett, walked in, looking especially dapper this evening. Stephanie couldn't stand the guy. He was such a suck-up. Chris had told him that he should come to SmackDown and hang out and see how it really was around here. She'd been skeptical since this show concept had been announced and she couldn't help but think the worst of this guy.

Some of the other guys were suck-ups, but it seemed Wade took the cake and it was probably because Chris was the World Champion. So this guy was obviously going to try and mooch off Chris's success. Of all the professionals, Chris was by far the most decorated. He'd held every title imaginable and then there was the personal factor. These guys were trying to get contracts, trying to move up into the big times and what did Chris have going for him that none of the other rookies had, well, that was easy, he had the family. She had never questioned Chris's intentions when it came to her. They'd had that talk.

Chris had never given her the impression that he wanted to use her. He'd told her he never would and God knows she had tried over the past seven years to get him to use her influence and he'd refuse time and time again. But this guy, well, it was awfully convenient of him to be so complimentary to Chris when Wade knew that Chris had it in with the McMahon family and not just an in, but _the_ in.

"Wade, what's up?" Chris said, letting go of Stephanie and walking over, shaking his hand. Stephanie turned around and watched them. She just didn't trust this guy. What he really wanted was a call-up to the main roster, not to be friends with Chris. Chris was too trusting. "You remember my wife."

"Of course," Wade said, nodding politely to her. She nodded back. "And your kids of course."

"Yes, of course," Chris said. "I'm glad you could make it."

"Well, you had the Highlight Reel tonight and I just did not want to miss it. I used to watch it when you had it before and thought it brilliant and I had to see it up close. I hope you don't mind."

"Mind, of course I don't. I think it'll really help with your talking skills. You'll never get anywhere if you can't tell a guy off well. Although I don't really hate Edge, although I'm starting to with all the spearing he's been doing to me. It's kind of getting embarrassing," he laughed. Wade laughed as well. Stephanie didn't. She just glared. Calling Ted was sounding better and better, but she didn't want to disturb him. It was Friday night, he was probably out or something and he didn't need a pregnant lady venting at him.

"I'm sure he won't be getting you tonight," Wade said, "and before I forget, might I just say congratulations to you and your wife, I heard that she was having another baby."

"Yes, she is," Chris beamed, glancing at Stephanie, who just glared at him. He made a face at her, then turned back to Wade.

"That's pretty exciting, no?"

"Oh yes, it is, so much," Stephanie said drolly, hoping this guy would just leave. She was not in the mood for suck-ups. She was not in the mood for anyone right now and God help her, she wanted a bowl of chili.

"She means that we're both excited for the new baby, we think it'll be a fun adventure."

"It will I'm sure,"

"It's a good baby," Sawyer piped in momentarily before dropping out of the conversation again.

"Why don't you stay in here while I do the Highlight Reel?"

"Really?"

"Yeah, sure, I don't think Stephanie would mind, would you, Steph?" Chris asked. He was antagonizing her and knew it and she was looking at him like he would pay. He knew she wouldn't make him pay because he actually saw a lot of himself in Wade, if that was the truth. He'd worked pretty hard to get to the WWE. Had it been as hard as Chris had worked, probably not, but not many guys had taken the circuitous path Chris had taken. The wrestling business was different these days. The least he could do though, was really take this kid under his wing and try to make him better. It was time now to start training these younger guys so they could carry this company when he was running it with Stephanie.

"No," she said through gritted teeth and suddenly she knew why Chris was already getting mad about having to see Steve Austin on Monday.

"Great, well, I will see you two later then, I've got a Highlight Reel."

Stephanie decided to just be nice to the guy because Chris would want that. She was going to prove that she was the better person. He would probably throw Ted out if she'd done the same thing. Then she thought about it; Chris was really trying hard to include Ted in things. While Chris would occasionally make snide remarks about the poor guy, for the most part he tried to include him, so the least she could do was return the favor.

"You can sit down and watch with us," Stephanie said, sitting on the couch. Flynn crawled over and sat next to Stephanie. Sawyer was still playing. Wade tentatively walked over. "So, are you happy to be working with Chris?"

"I know without a shadow of a doubt that I got the best professional."

"Damn straight you did," Stephanie said, then turned to him more. "Chris is not lying when he says he's the best at what he does. He's not the World Champion for nothing, you know."

"Trust me, I know. I'm actually learning a lot from him. He has experiences that I never could've dreamed. I've actually read his book."

"Well good," Stephanie said. "You know, he's not going to let you use me."

"Use your for what?" Wade asked, looking at her.

"To get farther in the company," Stephanie said. "I know you know who I am, Wade, let's not be stupid. Yes, you got the best professional because Chris is the champion, but how convenient that he's married to me, a McMahon, someone who runs the company."

"Stephanie, I'd just like to say that Chris made it quite clear to me that you were off-limits."

"What?" she asked, honestly surprised.

"That was really the first thing he told me. He said he would mentor me and make me better and a champion, but that under no circumstances was I to think that I could use him to get to you and that if I so much as thought that I could, he would set me straight, which I believe he can do. I've heard the rumors about him beating up Goldberg."

"He said that?"

"Made it quite clear, I knew he wasn't kidding."

"So you're listening to him?"

"I believe I can learn from your husband, that's all."

"Okay," she said. "But don't think for a second that you can manipulate either one of us."

Wade kind of thought this woman was loopy. "I won't, I just wanted to see the Highlight Reel."

It was nostalgic for Chris to host the Highlight Reel again. He knew he had put this behind him, but there was just something so familiar about going back to his roots. He could remember putting Shawn through the television and wondered if he could pull that on Edge tonight. That would be quite the stunner for his friend.

This feud was mostly fun for them. They had agreed, of course, that this would be no holds barred and neither one would hold back, but when it was all said and done that they would still be friends. What happened in the ring was going to stay in the ring and that was that. They could separate their personal life and their ring life just fine. Of course, they never wanted to deliberately hurt the other so maybe putting him through a TV wouldn't be in anyone's best interest. Still, he could definitely get some kind of one-up on him. It was getting a little frustrating to be speared every single week. It was like he hadn't honed his senses on Edge yet and kept letting his guard down and Edge was taking advantage of it.

Chris introduced Edge, who came out and they started bantering back and forth. The two were on top of their games that evening and traded insults back and forth. Chris had to admit that Edge had gotten a burn on him with the Big Show comment. He thought he'd gotten a good one when he said the best times for Edge had been when he was with Vickie Guerrero, but then when Edge said his old girlfriend was Big Show, he had to give Edge some props for that one. He thought that Edge was going to say Stephanie, that Chris was still living that old girlfriend that you regret having. If that were the case, then Chris might forgo the friendly feud they were having and not only slam Edge's face into that television, but then smash it to bits over his head. But Big Show, he had to give him that one.

Edge had to give credit with the Vickie comment. He said he regretted her, which was just another burn to her. It didn't matter though, Vickie was the one who had made things difficult, not the other way around. He was with Lita now and he was happy so what did it matter if he insulted Vickie? In fact, if he could come out and insult her every week he would do so, just to make her uncomfortable, like she was trying to constantly do with Lita.

It eventually escalated again and Edge was going to try for the spear again, but Chris was smarter this time than any time he had been before and this time, he got the upper-hand. He hit Edge and brought him down and laid him out. Then he grabbed the microphone and repeated the word Edge had been repeating incessantly since he had decided that would be the basis of their feud. He would not get his spear tonight, instead, tonight, Chris would get his revenge, just like he would at WrestleMania.

**March 14-15, 2010**

"Mommy?"

"Hmm?" Stephanie said as she flipped through the channels. There was never anything on Sunday nights.

"Can I see the baby again?" he asked.

Stephanie laughed and lifted her shirt up. "There's the baby. You can talk to her if you want to talk to her, but you don't have to."

"I just want to kiss the baby," he said, pressing his lips to her stomach. "Hi baby, I'm watching TV with Mommy and you have to stay in there because you're little. Mommy, is the baby as little as Flynn?"

"The baby is smaller than Flynn, it's even smaller than Tilden."

Sawyer was surprised, Tilden was very, very small. "Even smaller than that?"

"It's about the size of a lemon right now."

"The baby is a lemon?" he asked, his voice dropping.

Stephanie laughed and ran her fingers through his hair. "No, baby boy, the baby is not a lemon. The baby is the _size_ of a lemon. It just hasn't gotten bigger yet, but it will get bigger and bigger and then when she or he comes out, then it'll be as small as Tilden was when you first met her."

"That's really small," Sawyer said, "is it going to be a boy like me?"

"I don't know, Daddy and I are probably going to wait until it comes out so it can be a surprise. We still have things from when you were a baby and we still have things from when Flynnie was a baby so we're pretty well-prepared when it comes to clothes and things. Plus, Flynnie is going to be moving out of her crib soon anyways and the new baby can just have it."

"Mommy, how come you have a lot of babies?" Sawyer asked innocently. Stephanie closed her eyes. She loved her son. Only he could get away with a question like that. "Auntie Rissa too because she has D and Kenny and now she's has another baby and you do too, but Trish only has Tilden. Why do you have so many?"

Stephanie opened her eyes and pulled Sawyer up and kissed him on the cheek. "I love you, baby boy, do you know how much I love you?"

"I love you lots," he told her.

"Well, see, what happens is that your daddy and I love each other so much, we can't help but have a lot of babies. We just loved you _so_ much when you came out we had to have more because we wanted them all to be just like you."

Sawyer grinned. His mommy wanted his new baby to be just like him? He felt especially proud at that moment. He liked himself, but his mommy liked him _so_ much that she wanted more of him and now he was going to have _two_ babies. But, he had to remind himself, he couldn't just ignore Flynn because he was getting a new baby. There had to be a balance between everything, that's what his mommy said. He didn't think that much would change though, he'd just get another baby to play with!

"How do you get a baby?" he asked.

"What?"

"How do you get one?"

"That's something you'll learn when you're older," she told him, not wanting to give him a sex talk at nearly four years old. That was just something he would have to wait to learn.

"Why?"

"Because you're just a little boy and you really don't have any interest in finding out where babies come from, okay?"

"No, I do wanna know."

"Well, when a mommy and a daddy love each other, they do something together and you get a baby out of it," she said, trying to be vague. "Now I'm sure there's a cartoon somewhere that we can watch, but if there isn't, you can go choose a DVD if you want."

"What do you do when you get a baby out of it?"

"You do a lot of kissing."

"Oh, okay," he said, "I see. But does a baby come from kissing?"

Her phone rang and she was grateful, this was just something she didn't want to discuss with her son. He was still so much a baby that she didn't want him to be asking such serious questions. She'd rather he ask simple things, like why the sky is blue. She looked at the display and grinned. "It's Daddy!"

"I want to talk to Daddy!" Sawyer exclaimed, making a grab for the phone. Stephanie answered the call and handed the phone to Sawyer, "Hi, Daddy, it's me!"

"Hey, kiddo," Chris said happily, "what are you doing?"

"I'm watching TV with Mommy. We ate dinner, we had noodles with veggies and chicken and it was good. Flynn's asleep though because she was tired because she played a lot, but I'm not tired yet, so I'm watching TV with Mommy."

"Sounds like you've had a busy day. Have you been taking good care of Mommy, Flynn, and the baby while I've been gone, because you're officially the man of the house while I'm not there."

"Daddy, we're not at home."

"I know, but are you the man of the hotel until I get there tomorrow to be with you guys. You have to protect our girls."

"Mommy is bigger."

"I know, but she has a baby in her tummy, so you've got to protect her."

"Okay, do you want to talk to her?"

"I sure do," Chris told him. Sawyer handed the phone over to Stephanie and she smiled as she took it. Sawyer laid down on her legs as she found something for him to watch on the TV. "Stephanie?" Chris asked as he heard the phone shuffle.

"Hey, sweetie."

"Flynn's already asleep, it's pretty early."

"I know, it's only 8, but she was really exhausted today," Stephanie said. "I don't blame her, I'm pretty exhausted myself. How's San Francisco?"

"It's pretty cool," he said. "I miss you guys though, can't wait to get down there tomorrow morning. You know I hate being away from you, but speaking of you--"

"We were speaking of me?" she joked.

"We are now," he told her. "But someone brought you up at the signing I did today. It kind of took me off guard. I mean, everyone was talking about the album and how they loved it and I was really happy because that's what I'm promoting and I'm really proud of this album, as you know."

"I own about five copies, so yeah, I realize you're proud of it," she told him and she could almost hear him scowling at her joke. "I love the album, sweetie, I love knowing that I could inspire you in so many different ways, although the whole healing your broken soul thing, I wasn't aware it was broken."

"Shut up," he said, "it will be broken tomorrow when I actually have to be around that bastard, Stone Cold Steve Austin. I know everyone and their mother is looking forward to seeing him, but I'm not. Hell, I could go the rest of my life without seeing him and I'd be perfectly happy."

"Chris, it was more than four _years_ ago. How long are you holding this grudge, seriously?"

"Forever," Chris told her immediately, no hesitation to his voice. "I will hold that grudge forever and if he gets near you tomorrow, he's a dead man."

"Christopher Keith Jericho," Stephanie said. "I don't want to hear one more word about him, okay?"

"Whatever."

"So come on, tell me more about this girl."

"Well, anyways, so I'm just signing all the albums, hearing the same thing over and over, but taking it in because I love hearing about the album. But then, this girl comes up, forgot her name, think it started with an N or something, maybe a J, I don't remember, I signed something for her friend too. Anyways, she says she loved the album and that's great, she said her favorite song was Broken Soul, again, great, then she said she was a fan of my wrestling, which, of course she was, I'm the best in the world, my belt proves that, but then she said she had to tell me something and said she was a fan of you and me."

"What do you mean, like a fan of our marriage?"

"Well, she didn't say that, but probably, I guess," Chris said thoughtfully. "She said she loved us together and that we had a lot of chemistry and that firing scene we did was amazing. She must know that you are not in fact married to Hunter or with him and are in fact with me."

"Loved us together, huh?"

"Those were her words."

"Well, we are a great couple."

"I've been thinking that for years, I'm glad we have that out in the open now. I…may have started talking about you…"

"Oh God, what did you do, you didn't tell her that I leave dirty clothes around or something embarrassing, did you?" she asked, wondering what Chris would say about her.

"No, I didn't reveal our personal life, don't worry," he said. "I just…well, when someone is talking about you nicely, I like to get involved and so I talked nicely about you as well, for maybe too long. That poor girl was probably like, 'Why is he rambling on and on about her.'"

"If she loved us together then I don't think she cared," Stephanie pointed out, "but you were rambling about me?"

Chris chuckled a little to cover his embarrassment. "Yes, I kind of went on about you, joked how I had to like you because you were my boss."

"Oh, so_ that's_ what it is that keeps you with me?" she kidded.

"Well, that and the fact we have three kids together."

"So she brought up the baby then?"

"No, I know everyone knows, but some people, it's just they know it's a private matter. I just thought you would get a kick out of someone thinking that we were great together. I know that a lot of people aren't really too aware of our relationship, especially after what happened last year with Hunter, but I just thought you'd like to know that we, together, have fans."

"Now we just need to get Sawyer and Flynn some fans and we'll be the most popular family on the block," she told him.

"Well, we'll see what we can do about that tomorrow."

There was just something about Austin that Chris could not get over. He knew that Sawyer was okay, knew there was no damage. Sawyer was extremely bright for his age. His language skills were above average for his age and thought he couldn't really read yet, he could recognize words by the dozen. He had a great memory and he was helpful and funny and kind and a great kid all-around. Still, there was that incident and even if Sawyer was perfect, which he was, he'd never get over it.

So no, he didn't want to be here that evening and have to comply with whatever decisions Austin made. Stephanie slipped her hand into the back pocket of Chris's jeans. Sawyer was walking ahead of them and Flynn was in her stroller. She leaned up and kissed his jaw, causing him to glance at her. "Stop being so tense, nothing is going to happen if you don't let it happen."

"The mere fact we're in the same building as him…"

"Chris," she sighed, pursing her lips together. She realized this was a futile fight so she just shut her mouth as they kept walking, each of them looking to the doors to see what room Chris would be occupying for the evening. "Can you please just…look, WrestleMania is coming soon and that's our most exciting time and I want you to be excited too and not upset."

"I'm not upset."

"So you say," she muttered. "Never-mind."

They stayed silent for a while before they turned a corner and there Steve was, just walking casually down the hall like he'd never left in the first place. Stephanie felt Chris's entire body go rigid. She brought her hand out of his back pocket and slipped it past his shirt until her hand was against his bare skin. It was warm and taut and she rubbed it gently, trying to get him to relax. He wasn't relaxing, even though her touch was so comforting and usually, that touch could lull him to sleep even when he was at his most hyper, but not tonight.

"Chris," she whispered, "let it go."

"I'm not doing anything," Chris said, his jaw trembling a little bit from how clenched his teeth were.

"Mommy, Daddy, hurry up," Sawyer said, stopping and looking back at his parents. He was already really far ahead of them.

Austin stopped in his tracks too, like this was some kind of showdown, except he was far more at ease than Chris was. Stephanie knew she'd have to take this on herself. She and Chris pressed forward until Austin was right in front of them. Chris made no move to speak so she spoke up for him. "Hi, Steve, it's nice to have you back."

"Hello, Stephanie," he said gruffly, "Jericho."

"Austin," Chris said, his voice a hiss, a dangerous hiss like that of a snake before it bit, a warning hiss.

"How have you been?" Stephanie asked, trying to ease the tension that was reaching a fever pitch. She almost thought Chris was just going rear back and punch Austin in the face. She moved her hand from his back to his arm, holding onto it. It felt heavy, like he was about to punch Austin.

"I've been okay, good actually. Got that movie coming out and it's been good, I see you have been busy," Austin said, looking at her and then looking around him. Stephanie didn't think he'd ever seen Flynn before. She was looking up at him, wondering who he was, but otherwise disinterested in what was going on with her parents and this bald man.

"Yeah," she nodded. "We have been, even have another one on the way."

"Congratulations," Austin said, directing it towards both of them, but Chris didn't say word one to him. He just stood there, glaring at him, burning holes into the man's skull.

"Who are you?" Sawyer asked. "Wait, I know, my daddy beat you. Right, Daddy, you beat him and you had _two_ belts."

"That's right," Austin said, "Your daddy did beat me, I'm Stone Cold Steve Austin."

"I'm Sawyer Jericho," Sawyer told him. Austin stuck his hand out and Sawyer reached out to shake it. Stephanie could feel Chris starting to pull towards Austin. Chris wanted that man away from his son. He wanted him to get the fuck away from him and if he didn't stop shaking his son's hand within the next three seconds, he was a dead man.

"Nice to meet you," Austin said.

"You too," Sawyer said, "that's what my mommy says when she is with people."

"I see," Austin said, smiling down at him. Stephanie could tell he was looking and observing Sawyer.

"We better go," Stephanie said. There was only so much she could do to hold Chris back. "Have a great time tonight, Steve, I'll be in touch with you shortly about what you want to do tonight. In fact, I would like to discuss some things tonight with you." She had to speak on the Bret situation with him, inform him that she and Bret had been setting up Vince and tonight they'd reveal what they knew. "Actually, Chris, why don't you go ahead and go find the locker room while I talk with Steve."

"Fine," Chris said, still speaking through clenched teeth. He took Sawyer's hand and they disappeared, but not without another warning glance by Chris directed at Austin.

"He still hates me," Austin said, not a question, but a statement.

"He's still mad," Stephanie nodded, "but don't worry, Sawyer is _fine_. He's better than fine, he's the best kid I could've ever imagined having, really. I love him to death. He's great, please don't worry about him."

"Okay," Steve nodded. "So what did you need to speak about?"

"I think you're really going to like this," she smiled. "Well, you see, Bret and I have set up my dad…"

"Oh yes, I think I'm going to like this."

Chris sat there, head in hands, when Stephanie came back. He was trying to calm himself down, but it was difficult. All he wanted to do was pummel Austin. He just kept thinking it, pummel him, go out there and pummel him. The crowd already hated him, his fans had turned on him, what did it matter if he kicked Austin's ass, they'd still hate him, but he would feel good. He just wanted to wring that man's neck. Sawyer, seeing is daddy was angry or upset about something, climbed on the couch and draped himself over Chris's back.

"Why are you mad?"

"I'm not mad," Chris told him, leaning back and taking Sawyer in his arms.

"Is it 'cause Mommy's not here?"

"No, I'm just upset over something, but nothing to do with you, at least not directly," Chris said, kissing his cheek. Stephanie walked in just then and looked at him. "Don't give me that look, Stephanie, okay?"

"Chris, tonight, I'm serious, I want you to go to Austin and I want you to be friendly to him, do you understand me?"

"What? You're out of your mind, McMahon. There is _no_ way I'm doing that."

"I'm sick and tired of you acting the way you do around him when everything is fine now. Sawyer is _fine_."

"I'm not sick," he piped up.

"I know," Stephanie smiled at him. "You're doing it, Chris, or you will not be doing anything else for a very, very long time because I can certainly last until August without doing anything, can you?"

He looked up at her and she was dead serious. "You cannot expect me to go up to that man…"

"I expect it."

It was only because he'd been ordered to that he went to see Austin. Of course as he was in there, Shawn was there as well. Chris scoffed about that, two of his least favorite people in the world. The things he did to get laid. This has to be by far the worst. He should have counter-attacked. There was no way Stephanie could last until August without having sex, especially because she was always so horny during her pregnancies. Hell, he should have said he would find sustenance elsewhere then he could go find Katie and hang around her. That would've done the trick.

But nope, he was here, with two of his least favorite people and he had to try and yuk it up with these two assholes. Shawn mercifully left and it left him with Austin. He tried not to be a jerk, with great effort her tried. But Austin must have thought he was trying to suck up to him, which he wasn't. He'd been trying to do his wife's bidding, get in her good graces. When Austin sent him out, that was it, grudge back on. He hated that guy and it would just never change.

"I tried," he told her as he went back to the locker room to warm-up before his match. "Did you see, I tried."

"I saw," she said, "I guess he thought you were just trying to be a suck-up, still, you tried and I'm proud of you, do you feel better?"

"No, I don't feel better."

She sighed. "Okay, if that's how you feel."

"It is," he said, "I've got a match."

"Chris," she said, pulling him back towards her and kissing him. "Don't be mad, okay, please, I don't want you to go out there and be mad. You shouldn't be mad for your matches."

"Are you serious?" he laughed. "Steph, I'm usually mad when I'm in my matches."

She laughed too, "Well then, just be mad at Shawn. Let this whole thing go, please." She did a dirty trick when she took his hand and placed it on his stomach, raising her eyebrow at him. Well this was just downright dirty. He leaned in and kissed her and then pulled away, giving her stomach a small rub before he went out there to tune up for his match.

He knew it'd be a tough match, but half-way through, he just grew tired of it and lost by count out. He wasn't in the mood tonight, the encounter with Austin taking it out of him. He wouldn't classify himself as a quitter, just…he had other things on his mind, bigger things, more important things. What he didn't expect was Edge. The two of them had mutually decided that anything went and this was definitely anything. He was brought back down to the ring after a short beat-down and speared again. He was getting pretty tired of this damn spear. It was like Edge couldn't come up with something better for their feud, but then again, what really _was_ there to feud about. He and Edge were still friends, but the title was between them and it would be silly for Edge _not_ to go after his title because he was more familiar with Chris than Batista, who had his own little grudge with Cena. Still, over a spear? It was wearing a little thing on him.

He'd just have to make sure there was no spear at WrestleMania…just had to make sure of that…

**March 26, 2010**

She loved watching him perform. It could be something as simple as reading Flynn and Sawyer a bedtime story or wrestling on the grandest stage of them all, WrestleMania, but there was something she loved when she watched him perform. Tonight was no exception. It'd been a long time since she'd seen Fozzy perform, hell it had been a long time since they _had_ performed. Still, Chris was in his element. She remembered a show long, long ago where she'd gotten a vinyl outfit just for him. When was the last time she'd even worn vinyl? Nowadays it was back to support hose and maternity clothes. She wondered if Chris still found vinyl clothes hot. She'd have to keep that in mind after she had the baby. She leaned against the wall some more and watched as he thrashed around stage.

He was really in his element on this stage, really on any stage, but there was something intimate about playing with his bad, something more creative. While she thought Chris an artist in the ring, his real art was here. He sang these wonderful, often beautiful in their own way, songs and people loved them and sang with them. She'd never tried to write a song, but she saw him writing them and they were not easy. They were a labor of love, each of them, and she hoped the patrons tonight realized that and cheered and loved them as much as she loved the man writing them.

He ran backstage and kissed her. "Did you see us out there? Did you?"

"I saw," she said. "The baby has been jumping around, I think she's dancing in there. She's getting ready for her stripper career."

"Shut up," he said, kissing her again, the adrenaline flowing from him to her. "We were good, right?"

"Better than good, spectacular," she told him, "I'm so proud of you. You deserved this, Chris and you have wrestlers here to see you, you're not as universally hated as you thought. Listen to those cheers. They want more songs."

"We'll do our encore in a second, but I just had to tell you I loved you," he said, kissing her again before running out on stage.

She was glad he had his passions. She wished, okay, she'd admit it, that he would give a little more credit to wrestling for giving him the opportunity to pursue this musical dream of his. He wouldn't have been able to do this so readily if he wasn't a wrestler. He probably wouldn't have found the band. But that was beside the point. She _was_ proud of him. She knew he was proud of her for her accomplishments and she wanted to make it well known that she was proud of him for his. He started singing again and she leaned against the wall again, taking in her husband. That was _her_ husband. She was so lucky.

**March 27, 2010**

"You look beautiful," Chris told her.

"Thanks," she said, pulling her dress down a little bit more. Sawyer and Flynn were both sitting cross-legged on the bed, staring up at their mommy, taking her in. She kind of felt like she was on display though, three sets of eyes on her. She looked around at them again and laughed. "Okay, you three, stop staring at me."

"I think they think you're just the prettiest mommy that ever was," Chris said, almost dreamily.

"Have you started drinking already?" she asked. "Because that's just not fair, Jericho, since I can't drink at all."

"I'm only drinking in your beauty," he replied cheesily, giving her a wide grin to let her know that he hadn't actually _meant_ the words, but was trying to make her laugh, which she did readily a moment after. She rubbed her dress that was over her stomach, feeling the baby moving inside of her. Even though she'd been through two pregnancies and it had been about two weeks since she'd felt this one for about three weeks, she never got tired of feeling that feeling inside of her.

"I don't think Baby appreciated that. She's moving around in there like a little acrobat."

"You know I hate when you call him 'she.' You only say that to annoy me because you know that another little girl is just going to kill my heart," he pouted. "I can't wait to show you off tonight. Nobody has really seen you since you've started to really show and I've got to show off my handiwork. We really should bring the kids and then I can be like, 'Yeah, see what I've done,' look at all the cuteness in this family, all me.'"

"Just because Sawyer looks exactly like you and unfortunately Flynn's hair is lightening up too and starting to be more blonde than brunette does not mean I didn't do my part," Stephanie told him. "Besides, why would you want to show me off?"

"Because you look hot."

"You're hot, Mommy?" Sawyer asked.

"Your mommy is the hottest mommy in the history of mommies," Chris explained to him.

Stephanie rolled her eyes, but Chris could see a tinge of red in her face. He never understood why she didn't think herself beautiful while pregnant. When he looked at her, she just glowed and it wasn't even that pregnancy glow, it was something deeper, like, she didn't get her own beauty so that made her even more beautiful. He loved that about her. Hell, he really just loved her and the fact she carried his children, had carried two and was now carrying another one. It seemed like a simple gesture, but for Chris, it held such a profound meaning.

Maybe that was love, like in its purest form, for him. He loved Stephanie, he had loved her for a very long time. He'd first told her at their first month anniversary. He chuckled inwardly at that thought, one month, one month anniversary. Now their anniversaries were different, no longer counted into months, but into years. Back then, a month as an accomplishment. He'd know he loved her maybe from that first date. It had just seemed so natural, this loving her business. He'd told her, he remembered, surprising her. There was still so much to learn then. They hadn't yet lived together, he knew nothing of her habits. There were no personal pictures, nothing, but he'd loved her. He'd loved her for everything he'd seen in that first month and all the months he could see afterwards.

Still, when he first loved her, it had been different from this love he felt right now. It was, he wouldn't say superficial, but it wasn't deep like it was now. At this point in his life, he couldn't imagine another woman. Stephanie and he were very realistic about their relationship, they always knew it was a possibility that they could wake up the next morning and things would be different or they could fall out of love with each other or something could happen, but deep down they both knew that this was forever. He looked at other women, sure, even flirted with some, but he knew and she _better_ know that this was forever. He couldn't picture himself with another woman.

His love now was settled, deeper, richer. They weren't just married, which had been a change all by itself, but it was their children. She'd carried his children. She didn't have to do that, he'd always given her the choice of whether or not she wanted to remain pregnant. Did he actually ever believe she'd take him up on the offer? No, but it was out there, something for her, an escape route so to speak. Still, he had two incredible kids and one on the way and he was their _father_. It was still incredible that he held that title. You go more than thirty years just being Chris Jericho and then suddenly you're _Daddy_. How could he not love her for giving him all of this?

She gave him a life.

"Well thank you," Stephanie said, making eye contact with all of them. "What do you think about my dress, Flynnie, do you think it's pretty?"

"Uh huh," Flynn nodded. Her mommy did look very beautiful.

"Mommy, is Baby going to like going with you?"

"I don't think Baby has much of a choice," Stephanie laughed. There was a knock at the door and Chris went to answer it. "I think that's Grandma and Grandpa. They're going to take care of you tonight. Mommy and Daddy have to go to the Hall of Fame ceremony and then we'll come back here, okay?"

"You're going to a party?"

"Well, the ceremony is like a party, but Daddy and I aren't going to the party afterwards. I don't think that I'll feel up to going to a party because of Baby."

"Oh, that's too bad 'cause parties are fun," Sawyer said.

"It's okay, I don't need a party," she said.

"Hello, hello," Loretta said as she came into the room. "There are my two, little ones. Are you ready to go, Grandpa and I are going to take you out to dinner and I think we're going to have a lot of fun tonight. We're going to see a movie too, how does that sound?"

"We are?" Sawyer asked excitedly.

"Yes, I thought that would be a fun time, is it okay if they go to the movies, Stephanie?"

"Of course," she said, "as long as you're not taking them to see a rated R movie or something, just stick with G."

"We'll find something age appropriate," Loretta said, going over to pick up Flynn as Sawyer hopped off the bed. "Is Flynn's diaper bag in the other room?"

"Yeah, it's there, it's all packed and ready to go. You guys be good and have fun, okay?" Stephanie told them. They nodded and left the room. Stephanie went to the vanity and started to put on some makeup. She saw Chris come back inside and over to her, slipping his arms around her waist. He let his hands rest on the top of her stomach right over the beginning of her curved stomach. He leaned his chin on her shoulder and just watched as she applied some eyeshadow.

"I'm so lucky."

"And why is that?"

"Because for the first time in _years_, I get to sit next to you at this ceremony. I can just sit there and hold your hand and watch the show and have a good time and just be there with you and my baby." He kissed her just under her earlobe and she closed her eyes for a moment before she opened them again and saw the way he was looking at her.

"You just want to sit next to me."

"Yes. This year there are no plans, schemes, whatever we're involved in that requires us to be apart. I'm not mad at you, you're not mad at me, we're perfectly happy, we're having a baby, yes, we're mad at your dad, but we're always mad at him, and we can just be our normal couple selves. It'll be perfect."

"You really hate when we can't be together, don't you?"

"Don't _you_?" he asked.

She turned and kissed him briefly before she put her lip gloss on. "Of course I like being around you. You're my third, soon to be forth favorite person in the entire world, of course I like being around you."

"How easily we get replaced," he said, shaking his head and then kissing her neck. "I love you."

"I love you too," she told him. "I can't believe Shane isn't going to be here tonight. It's just…it's not going to be the same without him here and with my mom not coming. It's just strange. It's like it's not really a ceremony without them. I don't understand why Shane couldn't come. I know he's not a part of the company, but it's almost like he's turning his back on us."

"Well, Rissa is really pregnant right now and you know she's due any day…"

"Why do you have to be logical?" she wondered. "Why do you always have to be logical, just this once, can't you join in my outrage?"

"I'm sorry," he said, kissing her neck again, "Why isn't Shane going to be here, who does he think he is not showing up? Doesn't he know that this is still his family's business? I can't believe he wouldn't come tonight."

"Thank you. I just hate that he won't be here," she sighed. "Okay, well, I'm ready to get this show on the road, you ready?"

"I've _been_ ready," he said, pulling away from her and stepping back so he could spin around in a circle. She rolled her eyes at him and grabbed the lapel of his jacket so she could pull him out of the room. "We're not riding with my dad, but I would like to be on time."

"You're so pushy," he told her, but followed her out of the room. They went down to the lobby where their limo was arriving. They had originally planned to go with Christian, but he was going with Edge and it wouldn't look good if he rode with Edge so he and Stephanie were riding alone. The limo pulled up and whisked them away to the ceremony. When they arrived, the wrestlers were milling about. Chris wrapped his arm around Stephanie proudly, his hand resting on the side of her waist. She was talking with some of Stu Hart's relatives and he was just kind of zoned out, looking around, marveling at all the people who wanted to attend the ceremony. He felt honored to take a part.

"Chris, you have got to help me," Britt said, rushing up to him and tugging on his arm.

"What's the matter? What's wrong?" Chris asked, wondering if she was in trouble. She looked beautiful tonight, he noted. She was wearing a purplish-gray dress, knee-length, with a keyhole cutout in the front with a frill around it. It was tasteful and just beautiful, with her hair pulled up into a complicated up-do. Britt always looked pretty, but she definitely cleaned up well. "Is there something wrong?"

"The seating arrangements," she said, her eyes widening and Chris looked at her in confusion. "Chris, this is serious."

"I'm sorry, Britt, but I don't know what you're talking about," he glanced at Stephanie after he spoke, but she was still involved in her conversation.

"They put me next to _Hunter_. I can't sit next to him," she said, her eyes pleading. "Chris, I _cannot_ sit next to him."

"Is this because you fear that he'll slide his hand over and grab yours and then you'll fall into his arms and make out during the entire ceremony?" Chris asked smugly, the corner of his mouth twitching with the urgency to smile.

"Stop it, Chris, this is not funny," she pouted. "Look, I know that Hunter and I have said that we're friends now and we are, we really are, I guess, I just, I don't think I can stand to sit next to him for all this time. Plus, they didn't seat me near Evan. Who did this seating chart?"

"I think Vince took care of this one, he probably thinks you and Hunter are still together."

"Will you switch seats with him?" Britt asked and Chris started shaking his head almost immediately.

"I'm not switching seats. This is the first year where I can sit with my wife and I want to sit with her. If she sits with Hunter, everyone is going to think they're still married and then if everyone thinks they're still married or together or whatever they were from last year, then they are going to think _my_ baby is _his_ baby."

"Nobody will think that."

"Yes, they will, I'm not moving, not this time."

"Chris, _please_, I'm begging you, you _owe_ me."

"I do not," he told her.

"Yes, you do."

"From when?"

"The time you got stinking drunk and I helped you back to your room," she told him. "You probably would've ended up wandering the streets if it hadn't been for me, you owe me for that. I'll call it even if you do this for me."

"What's going on, you two?" Stephanie asked.

"Britt wants me to switch seats with Hunter because _she_ can't sit next to him."

"So switch," Stephanie said with a careless shrug and he looked at her, his jaw dropping. "What?"

"Did you not hear my entire spiel about wanting to sit next to you after _years_ of not being able to? Do you realize the closest I've ever come to sitting with you is three people away? I had to have Linda, Shane, and Rissa between you and me and that's the closest I got to you."

"You get a lot closer to me in other situations."

"But not public ones," he pointed out.

"We're in public right now and I'm about to do this to you," she said, pulling him closer and kissing him deeply. He fell into the kiss a little bit, pressing his hand to her neck, tilting his head ever so slightly. She pulled away before they could get carried away and Britt rolled her eyes at them. "There, now I think everyone in this entire theater has sufficient evidence that I'm your woman and what's this?" She looked down. "Why, wouldn't you know it, I'm pregnant, now _everyone_ can see that you've had your way with me."

"It's not funny. I _never_ get to sit with you."

"Chris, do her a favor. I don't mind sitting with Hunter, he's actually gotten a lot better since Shawn has been focused so much on the entire Undertaker thing. I really do hope Taker wins so Shawn is gone and we get the real Hunter back."

"Me too," Britt said wistfully, then caught herself. "So will you switch with him, Chris?"

"Why don't _you_ sit next to Stephanie?" he asked.

"Because, I don't want to be on camera if I can help it."

"I don't get you, you're gorgeous, you _should_ be on camera. You could be one of the divas if you wanted, hell, you could be the hottest of all the divas if you really wanted to be," Chris told her. She laughed lightly, blushing a little bit.

"I'm right here, Chris," Stephanie said, slugging him in the arm.

"I'm just saying."

"Will you do it for me?" Britt asked hopefully.

"Where the hell is he?" Chris said grudgingly. He wasn't going to say no. If he said no, Stephanie would scold him and he'd feel guilty. He tried to put himself in her position. If he and Stephanie broke up and he still loved her, as he figured would be the case, there's no way he'd want to sit next to her.

"He's over there," Britt said, pointing at Hunter, who was talking with Ricky Steamboat. Chris sighed and made his way over there.

He tapped Hunter on the shoulder and he turned, looking at Chris. "What's up, man?"

Chris grabbed the ticket from Hunter's hand and handed over his own. "Here, you're in the front row, right next to Stephanie, enjoy the show," he grumbled, his lips turned down into a frown. Hunter looked down at the ticket in confusion. "Britt and you were put together, probably because my father-in-law thinks he knows everyone's business, but he's really months behind. So you are now sitting next to _my_ wife, congratulations."

"What?"

"Britt doesn't want to sit next to you, probably because she's still crazy in love with you and won't admit it to herself, but here, go, sit, be happy with my wife," Chris said. He turned to leave, but Hunter grabbed his arm.

"You think she's still in love with me?" he asked hopefully, glancing over to her where she was speaking with John Morrison of all people. But then, he guessed, with her boyfriend being Evan, she was consorting with all those midcarders.

"Think, know, it's all relative, right? Now will you just go sit with my wife before I take this ticket back?"

"Okay, well, thanks," Hunter said, walking past Britt to Stephanie and giving her a meaningful glance.

"Hey, Chris."

Chris turned around to see Evan. "Hey, what's up?"

"Yeah, do you think I could switch tickets with you so I could sit next to Britt? I know that she had you switch tickets with Hunter and well, we were sitting apart so do you think that I could have your ticket so that we could sit together."

"Oh for God's sakes," Chris said. People were already sitting down. Hunter and Stephanie were already sitting down and he'd feel weird making Hunter get up now to switch seats with him. He gave Evan his ticket and then grabbed the ticket from Evan's hand and headed over to an usher who escorted him to his seat. He was about a row behind and a little to the left of Stephanie and he could see her, but they were still much to far apart. How did he get stuck here, in the aisle, away from his pregnant wife.

He tried to sit still through the ceremony, but he was especially antsy this evening. He wanted to sit next to Stephanie and not here, by himself, where he could see her, but not touch her. He couldn't exactly see her face, but she didn't look particularly happy, probably because he wasn't sitting there next to her. He should be there. Sometimes Hunter would lean over to say something to her and she'd nod, but then she would look over at him and send him a small smile. He found himself constantly staring at her direction, but then he'd catch himself and go back to watching the ceremony.

As soon as it ended though, he was out of his seat. He didn't want to appear like he was rushing towards his wife, but he purposefully went over there to speak to her, dodging people to get to her. She was just standing around, Hunter talking to someone next to her, but not including her. He made his way over to her and she smiled at him. He smiled too. "What did you think of the ceremony?" she asked.

"I couldn't stop looking at you," he told her. Then he pointed at her stomach. "How did you and the little one like it?"

"We missed you, she barely moved at all in there, I think she wanted her daddy sitting next to her."

"Well, little kid, I would have if your mommy and daddy's friends were so crazy," he said and they both laughed. "Come on, let's go. My back is getting sore and I want to go back to the room and just rest."

"You sure you don't want to go to the party?"

"I'm sure," she said, looping her arm through his. "Besides, I think that the both of us could have a party. I won't wear you out though, I want to make sure you have your energy up for the show tomorrow. I wouldn't want Edge winning and beating you. This WrestleMania I want you to come out the winner, no ifs, ands, or buts about it. You're winning."

"You believe in me too much," he said, kissing her forehead.

"It comes with being your wife. This is what I was thinking about the entire time that you weren't sitting next to me, how you were going to steal the show tomorrow. Sawyer is going to love it. Maybe he should get to watch all the Pay-Per-Views from the crowd. I think he really enjoys it and it'll make him want to be a wrestler even more."

"That's all you really care about, huh?" he asked. "Everything is just leading towards Sawyer being a wrestler."

"I think so," she said, "then Flynn if she wants, then this little kid can be a wrestler too if she wants to be."

"He, how many times do I have to tell you that I want the baby to be a he?"

Stephanie leaned up and kissed his cheek. "We'll see, sweetie, we'll see."

**March 28, 2010**

"Of course I think you'll win."

"Really?" Christian said. "There's more guys in it this year. I can't be sure that I'm going to win…I have nine other guys, _nine_."

"And it's about time you caught a break. I know you were the ECW Champ and that's well and good, but that title is no longer in existence. It's time for you to move on and get one of the bigger championships. If you win, you'll have that chance. You can face your brother or Chris. You can beat both of them, especially your brother. You'd just insult his mom and he'd be thrown for a loop and you'd pin him."

Christian laughed, "I wouldn't insult his mom because she's my mom too, I wouldn't insult her."

"I was joking. Just go out there and win it."

"Are you guys watching?"

"Yes, we're both watching, Tilden is enjoying a very nice meal right now and she's awake and we're both going to watch you. If you get really in need of some support though, remember that Sawyer and Flynn are in the crowd and that Sawyer loves you and will be cheering you on for me and for Tilden too. I asked him before he left if he could cheer for all three of us and that kid is the most helpful kid on the planet. Remind me to ask Chris and Stephanie if he wasn't switched at birth."

"You asked him to do that?"

"Yes, so when you see him cheering you on, then you know we're cheering you on."

"Thanks, Trishy, I love you and Tilde so much, you have no idea."

"I have some idea," Trish said. "Now go get that case and make your wife and daughter proud, okay?"

"I'm going to try my damnedest. I love you."

"I love you too, above all else, be safe, okay?"

"I will, love you guys."

"Good luck, Chrissy," Trish said.

Christian hung up and threw his phone onto his bag. He left, wringing his hands and walking to the gorilla. Most of his opponents were already there and they all stared at each other furtively. They were enemies tonight, even if they had been friends the night before. On this night, they were enemies. Christian jumped in place a little bit. This was a huge match. If he won, he'd have a guaranteed shot at the title, any time, anywhere. He saw Britt with Evan, but everyone else was by themselves, occupied only by their thoughts of glory. The entrances started and as the numbers dwindled the pressure grew. He was the last one out there and so everyone was staring him down.

Christian spied the ladders and then put his game face on. He could see Sawyer cheering for him ringside and he thought about his daughter and he smiled as he approached the ring. He climbed inside eagerly and then the bell rang and he was almost immediately thrown out by MVP. He fought back and MVP tried to bring a ladder in the ring, but he stopped him from getting in the ring. He was laid out again and it took him a few moments to get his bearings before he got back in the match.

Evan tried to grab the briefcase, but he didn't get close. Christian got up and saw Swagger and Matt on the ladder, but Kofi took them out. Christian got in the ring and started to beat Kofi and then Matt, throwing Matt into Swagger. He took a ladder and then threw it at the two men. Kofi came at him again and he flipped him into a ladder. He put up a ladder and then tried to climb it as quickly as he could. But Dolph was there and knocked him off and his back hit hard on the mat. He knew Trish would worry about him, but he needed another moment to recuperate.

He wished he could see Sawyer from here, to remind him of Tilden and Trish cheering, but he couldn't so he'd just have to use his own willpower. He thought of his daughter, how proud she would be of him to know he won this. His back was aching already, but he had to try to get back in this match. He got up and got a ladder as he saw Evan jumped at Swagger. He climbed in the ring while some of the others were fighting and he pulled a fresh ladder into the ring.

He saw Matt doing the same thing and he caught the other's man's eyes. It seemed that Matt knew what to do, but then he figured he would. The two of them were veterans to ladder matches, both of them having been in some of the fiercest ladder matches to date. They both slammed their ladders through the rungs and smashed Swagger between them a few times. The ladders stayed in place and Christian tried climbing, but Matt was climbing too and suddenly Evan came out of nowhere, like a frog, hopping up onto the ladder where you shouldn't have been able to hop.

Matt was dropped first, the ladder giving way beneath him and clattering to the ground, just like Matt's body. Christian grabbed at Evan and tried to get the Killswitch on him, but Evan caught him in the face and he fell down and then Evan was landing on him. Christian rolled out of the ring, clutching his middle and coughing for breath. He tried to regain his breath, but Evan had really knocked the air right out of him. He lay there, trying to regulate his breathing, but he was still gasping for air.

You never got used to a ladder match, it was always something different, every one. You thought you knew, but you really had no idea how any ladder match would go. Christian stayed down when he saw Kane with a ladder and it was smart of him as he didn't get hit. It took him a while to actually get back into the match, but when he did, it was to get Matt the hell off the ladder and away from _his_ briefcase. Kane had been trying to set up the ladder, but Christian capitalized and got on it instead as Kane leaned it towards Matt, Christian tried to push him off the ladder.

Kane climbed up the other side, but he and Matt were able to knock him down. They started to work on one another and it eventually ended up with a Twist of Fate on top of the ladder, but Matt took the brunt of it. Christian, seeing an opportunity, clambored up the ladder. Swagger tried to knock him down, but he climbed up the other one and he had the briefcase, it was in his hand. He just needed to unhook it and it would be his. He'd get his shot. He'd get his shot at the title, at the top of the ladder, where his brother had been and where he looked up to.

He could feel the hook, but Swagger was there and he tried to keep him at bay, but he wouldn't just drop down. It was his, he hand it in his hand and then it was slipping away and he was falling away and he could see it, swinging as his back hit the mat and his eyes closed out of instinct and they stayed closed and then he heard Swagger's music and he had been _so_ close. So very close and now the title, everything seemed so far out of reach. He just lay there, unable to move, the opportunity slipping away, slipping so far away…

Hunter turned away from the television. He liked Christian, he was a good guy and had hoped he would win, but that was not what tonight was about. His match was next and he wanted to beat that little puissant, Sheamus. This rookie thought he could come in here and cost him titles and then call him out? He would take care of him tonight and remind him who was the big boss around here. He was the top of the heap and Sheamus's head had gotten too big for the company and needed to be taken down a notch.

He exited his locker room and walked down the hall. He came across Britt, who was helping Evan back to his locker room from the brutal ladder match. "Good luck," she whispered as he passed. That was all the incentive he needed. If he was going to beat Sheamus before, he was going to annihilate him now.

They locked up at first and Sheamus tried to intimidate him. He told Hunter he was the future and he should see it. Hunter locked up with him and then slapped the hell out of this idiot. The future? Yeah, right. Hunter started hitting him, then tried for the Pedigree, but Sheamus got out of the way. Hunter wanted to destroy him, maybe picture he was that shrimp Evan who had his girlfriend right now. They circled each other before locking up again. Sheamus got at him, throwing him into the corner, but Hunter countered with a clothesline. He delivered a knee to his midsection and Sheamus rolled out of the ring, but Hunter was right behind him, slamming his head into the barricade before throwing him into the ring again.

Hunter took out his knee and then got a Figure-Four leglock on Sheamus. He got to the ropes pretty easily and Hunter was forced to break the hold. Sheamus left the ring again and Hunter was nonplussed by this kid. He couldn't even face him full-on. Sheamus then surprised him by throwing him into the ring steps. He wasn't expecting that. He pushed away at the pain, but before he could, Sheamus was back and slamming him into the barricade. Turnabout was fairplay. Sheamus was getting one over on him now, but it wouldn't be for long.

This was not some rookie in his first WrestleMania. This was not a new place for Hunter and he would prevail. He punched at Sheamus, but again, Sheamus got to him. But this was not a sprint. This was a marathon and he would win. Sheamus stomped at him and he looked to his left and he hadn't even realized that Sawyer and Flynn were out there. He could hear Sawyer cheering him on and he smiled in the general direction. He remembered Britt wishing him luck and he got up, starting to spar with Sheamus. Sheamus got a clothesline, but that wouldn't take Hunter down.

Sheamus was trying to wear him down. Hunter knew he was getting older, but surely he wasn't that old that he couldn't kick this kid's teeth in. Sheamus got him in a hold and Hunter had a hard time breaking out of it, but he managed. Then Sheamus got cocky and Hunter got a DDT and he wouldn't back down again. They traded blows and Sheamus thought he'd get the upper-hand, but he got a knee on Sheamus and then a facebuster on him, but couldn't get the pin. He tried for the Pedigree, but Sheamus got a counter, but Hunter then got a neckbreaker and another close count.

This match was actually not going anything like he'd planned. Whenever he thought he had the upper-hand on Sheamus, the man would counter and he'd be kicked in the face. He needed to win now before he lost his concentration and just lost the match. He'd been in harder matches, much harder matches and hadn't lost. He couldn't lose to _this_ guy, this pasty man. He had to fight for it. He had to fight for this win, harder than he thought he had to fight. But he would fight. He would try and he would win. Nothing seemed to keep him down though and he didn't know if it was age or talent that kept Sheamus in this match.

He summoned every bit of his strength and surprised Sheamus with a Pedigree and got the pin. He grinned, then covered his mouth. He struggled to his feet and then hit his signature pose. He saw Sawyer yelling and cheering for him and he grinned at him before posing again. He'd won. It hadn't gone the way he wanted, not at all, but he'd won and that was the important thing. He'd won and that rookie hadn't gotten to him.

When Stephanie saw the Harts turn on her father, she was satisfied. She'd had nothing to do with it, but she was satisfied. Her father hadn't stood a chance and even if it was only for a short period of a longer show of a day of a week of a month of a year, for those moments, her father knew, physically, how beaten down he often made her feel. Bret deserved this, the Harts deserved this and she was glad she could give it to them. She was happy Chris had pulled strings and happy that they'd brought Bret back so he could get a modicum of revenge and peace of mind. It helped her too and she was happy for it. But her mind had different worries, bigger ones.

"Are you ready?" Stephanie asked, wrapping Chris's wrists with the black tape he had often used.

"Yeah, I am."

"You and Edge…"

"Me and Edge…"

"You guys aren't holding back, are you?"

"No, we're not. We told each other we weren't and we're not. I'm going out there and I'm defending my title and he's trying to win it from me, whatever happens, happens."

"Be careful, okay?"

"I will," Chris said, kissing her deeply. She wrapped her arms around his neck, giving him a small taste of what she'd given him last night as kind of a pre-WrestleMania warm-up match.

"You better bring that belt back, do you understand me? I'm not going to have you hold it for a month and that's it. I expect it to be back in my hands when this night is over and not because I asked Edge to look at it."

"I will try."

"You will _do_," she told him. "Now make me and your unborn child and your two born children proud of you."

"I always do."

He went out first, the belt shining around his waist. He walked cockily down the walkway, glancing every so often to some sycophant in the crowd and smirking at his own superiority. He got to the ring and climbed in as Edge's music started. He leaned back against the ropes as he searched for his kids. They were sitting near the front, cheering their cute butts off. Then he climbed out of the ring.

"Daddy! Daddy!" Sawyer yelled, waving his arms around as Flynn bounced around, sitting on her grandfather's shoulders. He smirked and winked at them as they cheered and stepped out of the ring. Edge came into the ring and stared him down, but Chris wasn't intimidated. Edge was his goofy friend and even when Edge did try to intimidate, Chris couldn't see him as a real threat. He just hoped that didn't bite him in the ass.

"Daddy's going to win," Sawyer told his grandma as they sat down.

"You think so?"

"Uh huh, he's a winner," Sawyer said, watching as the match started. His daddy was introduced and then his daddy gave his belt away.

They locked up for their match and Edge grabbed him, but he countered and grabbed him back. He got him in a headlock and then he ran the ropes, hitting Edge and then standing over him, holding his arm up, like he was already victorious. They both ran the ropes and then Edge took him down, but it wasn't for long as Chris got Edge by the hair and took him to the corner to lay some blows on him. The referee was telling him to get out of the corner and so he did, but it wasn't a good idea as Edge took him down. Edge was trying for the spear, but Chris got out of the ring and Edge followed and grabbed Chris, taking him and throwing him in the ring.

"They are friends," Sawyer explained to his grandma. "But they are fighting because my daddy is a winner."

"I see, so they'll be friends afterwards?"

"Uh huh, always, because Ed is nice." If Edge were here to hear that, he might have stiffed Chris a little more.

As it was, Edge was receiving a baseball slide to the outside of the ring. Chris held his hand up again, the crowd booing. Chris waited for Edge to show up, taunting him, asking where the spear was. When Edge came back in, Chris kicked him and then catapulted him into the ropes. Chris got him in another submission move and Chris continued to taunt him. He was being an asshole, but it was Edge and Chris was enjoying the match thus far.

Chris was dominating the match. There were no other words to describe it. Except he spoke too soon as his shoulder hit the ring post as Edge moved out of the way. Edge started punching him and then took Chris down, but Chris grabbed him and dropped him on the ropes. He was going to go for a flying dropkick, but Edge moved. Chris, being cat-like, landed on the edge of the ring, but Edge had momentum and knocked him back, off, and into the announcer's table. He landed with a grunt against it.

He stood up and Edge clotheslined him onto the mat outside the ring. He was thrown into the ring and Edge climbed up on the ropes, but Chris was quicker and got up there to stop him. Edge grabbed him and gave him a front suplex. Chris grabbed at his face as Edge tried for a pin, but he was far from out of it and kicked out of it. They both got up and Chris went for the Walls, but Edge kicked him away. Edge ran towards him as he leaned on the turnbuckles and then lifted himself up as he moved out of the way. Edge knew though and pulled Chris down for a faceplant.

"Ed! Ed!"

Edge could hear Sawyer yelling. He knew Sawyer's voice for one and he was the only one who ever called him Ed. It was like the kid was trying to make him lose, but he remained focused. Edge got a cross body, but Chris flipped him and turned it into a pin, but only got a 2-count. Chris went for the Walls again, but again, he didn't get it. Edge got up and waited for Chris. Then a sunset flip and a couple of counters for pins, but then Chris got him down.

Chris rested for a moment. He beckoned Edge to get up from his prone position, glancing over at his kids again before he went for the Codebreaker, but Edge counter and Chris hit his head. Edge was waiting again for the spear, but Chris knew it was coming and Chris countered and then tried the Walls again. He got them this time and pulled back with all his might. He could hear Edge screaming and he kept the hold.

Edge flipped around and tried to counter, but Chris kicked out. They both stood up and Chris got an elbow to the face and then tried for the Lionsault, but Edge moved and Chris landed on his feet, thinking about how Stephanie would hate him for trying that when Edge wasn't really down. Edge slammed him into the mat for a 2-count, but they both got up before Chris got an enzugiri on Edge. He crawled over for a cover, but wasn't able to get it this time either.

This was a hard fought match for both of them and they didn't feel much like friends right now. It was like their friendship was fading as the match went on. When they went backstage, it could be there, but now, they were two warriors, facing off in battle and each one wanted the gold prize and Chris was not going to give it up and Edge was not going to let his want of the gold die. They were at a crossroads.

Chris wickedly had a thought. He saw Edge in the corner and tried to get a spear, waiting for it, waiting for Edge. But Edge kicked him instead. Yeah, that might not have been the best idea. He could hear the crowd chanting spear and he was prepared and hit the Codebreaker. Chris was down though and he knew he needed to go for the pin, but he was tired and sore and he crawled over, but only got the 2-count. He couldn't believe it! How had that not won him the match! He was getting angry now. He argued with the referee and now, now Edge was an enemy. Now it was time for Chris to turn it on.

He yelled at Edge, going after his leg. He got Edge into the Walls of Jericho again and held it hard. He bent Edge back as best he could and then pulled Edge to the center of the ring when he got close to the Edge. He let go of Edge's right leg and turned the Walls into a single-leg crab, making sure to bend his ankle back as far as he could make it go. He didn't even care if he injured Edge right now. It was a match, he couldn't go easy on him. The second you went easy on someone is when they took advantage of you and he'd be damned if Edge took advantage of him.

Edge pulled and pulled and managed to get the ropes and Chris was forced to let go. Edge countered, but Chris got out of the pin and then they were both sent to the outside by Edge. Chris, knowing his chances were dwindling, grabbed his title. Edge grabbed him and threw him in the ring. Chris still had the belt, though the referee told him he'd be DQ'ed if he used it. Edge got into a scuffle with him and accidentally knocked the referee down. Chris seized the moment and hit Edge with the belt. Chris went for the pin, but again, Edge kicked out. He could not believe it. This was unbelievable! Chris was at the end of his rope. This match had been going on for a while now and it had to end now. He yelled for Edge to get up and when he did, Chris got the Codebreaker again and now he got the three count and the win.

"Daddy, yay! Daddy won!" Sawyer yelled, his cheers drowned out by the noise around him. He had seen his daddy win _twice_ now.

Chris held the belt above his head in victory, smiling at his children as he held the back of his head. He was still the champion. Unlike 2002, he had come out of WrestleMania still the champion. So this was what it felt like. It felt good knowing you walked out of the biggest show of the year with your title still intact. Feeling vindictive, he went to try and hurt Edge some more, but Edge was not to be denied this time.

Something came over Edge. He wasn't sure what it was, but it was like his brain was fried. He had wanted the belt and it didn't matter that Chris was one of his best friends. He'd wanted the belt and to lose it like he had, he snapped. He just completely snapped and started clearing the announcers' tables. Chris stood up, unaware of what was going to happen. Then he was flying through the air and into the barricade and he was speared.

Flynn yelled as she saw what happened and Ted shielded her eyes. Sawyer turned to Loretta and whimpered. "Why did Ed do that?"

"It's okay, sweetie, I'm sure your daddy is okay."

They rushed backstage, where Stephanie was pacing back and forth. Edge came back first and Stephanie went up to him. "Edge, what the hell was that?"

"I should've won," Edge said, his breath coming in spurts.

"You don't do dangerous things like that!"

"I don't care."

"Edge, I agree with her," Lita said. "That was really uncalled for."

"Whatever, let's go, Li."

"Fine," she said, "but I'm going to talk to you."

Stephanie waited for Chris next. He came back of his own volition and as she ran to him, he waved her off. "I'm fine, I don't even need to go to the trainer's, I'm fine. I promise you that."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm just tired."

"Too tired to celebrate like we planned. I mean, you know, they're having a whole party with everyone there, even the losers. I think it'll be good, we'll get to see who ends up fighting."

"I don't think Edge and I are friends anymore," Chris said.

"Of course you are, you guys were just in a match, that's all," she said, then grabbed the belt. "I'm proud of you though, you retained at WrestleMania, you can check that off the list of things to do. Now if we could just get you a Royal Rumble win."

He laughed and hugged her. "I love you."

"I love you too."

Later that evening, they were all celebrating, even Sawyer and Flynn were there, although it was entirely too late for them to be out. They were only staying for a little while, just to celebrate with their dad, who was now laughing it up with Christian. Christian, who was still upset over his loss, was starting to feel better now that he was surrounded by friends. Edge hadn't shown up, but Lita had called Stephanie to say his ankle had been bothering him so they were staying in tonight. Ted was sitting next to Stephanie, lamenting over his loss and glaring over at Randy every now and again. When they said everyone was invited, _everyone_ was invited.

"You'll get him next time, Ted," Stephanie said as Sawyer leaned against her. He was starting to fall asleep and he'd want to leave soon. But he just wanted everyone to know his daddy had won. He'd been sleepily telling everyone who came to their table that his daddy was the best winner ever.

"I hope so," Ted drawled. "Really thought we could get him this time."

"There's always tomorrow and the week after that and so forth and so on. You'll get your chance. Trust me, you will."

"Chris, Stephanie, Christian."

The three of them looked up and Stephanie's eyes widened. When they said _everyone_ was invited, she hadn't been expecting this. "Kurt Angle…" Sawyer looked to his mommy and then to this man. He did not work here because he had never seen him before. He looked familiar, but he couldn't remember from where he looked familiar (family pictures around the house would be the answer to that.) Still, he had no clue who this man was and why his mommy looked like she did. She'd gotten very pale. Maybe it was the baby so she rubbed her stomach, but then he looked at his daddy, who was looking pretty mad and even Christian looked mad and he'd never even seen Christian mad before! He just had to know, had to ask, so he stood up next to his mommy and stared this man down.

"Who are you?"

* * *

And with that, ladies and gentlemen, I am all caught up (I know Raw was tonight, but there was no Chris)! :P


	273. And Then It's Gone, April 2, 2010

A/N: Darn this having priorities straight thing and not being able to update. I also think a part of me didn't want to write Chris losing the title. :( I was going to add on last week's SD to this chapter, but it would've felt rushed. I just didn't want to rush and I wanted to touch on some of the other characters. Anyways, here's a sad chapter because Chris lost. If you want to review, I wouldn't turn you away. :P

* * *

"I'm Kurt."

"I don't know you," Sawyer said, taking over the conversation because his parents and his Chrissy didn't seem to want to talk and the Ted man was just looking weird and down at his drink. Flynn was sleepy and she couldn't talk so it was only him. Maybe if Trish were here or even Ed or Lita, they could talk, but they weren't here!

"I knew you a long time ago, when you were a baby," Kurt said.

"Oh," Sawyer said, then furrowed his brow. Then it dawned on him. "Wait, I know you! My daddy beat you." For Sawyer, any wrestler he saw, regardless if they had ever beaten Chris, was just another guy his father had beaten. His daddy was the best at everything so of course he'd beat everyone.

"Yeah, your dad has beat me in the past," Kurt said, glancing around the table. He was actually a little surprised that Sawyer was the one talking to him. He hadn't seen Sawyer since he was barely out of infanthood. He certainly hadn't been this smiling, blond-haired boy who was looking at him critically and able to hold a conversation.

He glanced around the table. He'd heard through the grapevine that Stephanie was pregnant again and when he'd heard, he had to laugh over the situation. He could still remember, clear as the day, when Stephanie had told him she was pregnant. It had been a surprise to them then and he wondered if it was a surprise now. He remembered Stephanie telling him, time and time again, that she and Chris wanted to wait a few years before they started in on the kids thing. Now they were going to have three in under five years. How times had changed and how people had changed.

He could tell Stephanie was pregnant. Her stomach was round and growing, still in that stage where they didn't look completely, ankles-swollen pregnant, but just rounded and glowing. Chris looked older, but still pretty much the same, though he was in a dress shirt, sleeves rolled up and dress pants. Christian's hair was lighter, but it had been far shorter a time than the last he'd seen Christian. This other guy, he knew him as Ted DiBiase was there too and he was just sitting there. Sawyer was older, looking more like Chris everyday and a real, true-to-life little human being. When he had last seen Sawyer, when he'd last had the chance to meaningfully interact with the child, Sawyer had been barely out of infanthood and not even yet a toddler. He'd still been a baby and not this kid in front him.

It was so different, everything was different. He didn't know what had compelled him to be here this evening, but something had. Maybe it was Stephanie being pregnant again. When he'd heard she was working on her third pregnancy, there was just something that ached inside of him. He didn't know her anymore. He'd been the first one to find out about Sawyer and now he felt like the last to know. Plus, three kids? How had the time flown so fast that Stephanie and Chris could be working on their third child? So much had happened with him as well. He'd been married, then divorced, then he'd had a girlfriend who accused him of stalking him and so many matches and feuds and their lives had separated them.

Sometimes though, when he wasn't thinking about it, he missed his best friends. He'd been Chris's best man, Stephanie's best friend and knowing they were getting by without him had been a blow. They were a happy family. Kurt could see that when they walked in the place. He'd been keeping a low profile, trying not to draw attention to himself, watching everyone in his old company celebrate or lament over WrestleMania. He'd put on some shows at WrestleMania, that was for sure, but that time was long past. Then, the people he'd been waiting for had walked inside.

Stephanie first, her smile illuminating the room, it must have been because Chris had retained. Sawyer was holding onto her hand and he'd been saying something as his mouth was moving and Stephanie kept looking down at him to nod. Chris had been behind her and Kurt had noticed the look Stephanie gave Chris as she turned to him. Her eyes softened considerably and even after all this time, Kurt knew she was worried about the hit Chris had taken through the barricade. Chris was ushering her forward, pressing his hand to her lower back as his other carried their daughter, Flynn. Kurt had never seen her that up close before. She was a beautiful child. She had Stephanie's hair and eyes, but she had some of Chris's features too. Her arms had been clasped around Chris's neck as she looked furtively around the room.

He'd stayed away as long as he could, but then the urge had risen in him and he'd needed to do what he'd come here to do. "He beats everyone," Sawyer said, breaking him out of his reverie.

"Yeah, so I've heard," Kurt said.

"What are you doing here?" Chris asked when he regained his voice. Chris looked to Stephanie, whose eyes were downcast as she stared at the floor. She didn't want to look up at Kurt. She still remembered the hurt and the failed attempts at reconciliation. "Aren't you supposed to be in Florida? Isn't Impact live on Mondays now?"

"Yeah, but, I'm flying back tomorrow so it's not a big deal. I just, well, it's just," Kurt found himself stumbling over his words. "I didn't know if I should come, but I figured that I would try, you know."

"No, I don't know," Chris said.

"Dude, what the hell are you doing here?" Everyone turned their heads to see Edge and Lita, who had showed up. "Don't you think you're not wanted here, you should get the hell out." It seemed that Edge's anger over losing was now being transferred over to Kurt.

"I'm not going, I just want to talk to you guys," Kurt said, "you included."

"No, like hell I'm going to let you talk to me and to my friends and my brother," Edge said and Lita pulled on his arm, "No, Li, don't, okay, no. This guy has been out of our lives for how long has it been now, Kurt, huh, 5 years? You betrayed us, you hurt everyone, especially Stephanie and now you just want to waltz back in, well, no, I'm not standing for it."

"Edge, sweetie," Lita said, trying to talk in calm tones. "Why don't we go get a drink?"

"I don't want anything to drink," Edge snapped at her, then shook his head and said lowly, "I'm sorry, Li."

"Edge is right," Chris said, "You should go, you're not wanted here and you're not with the company so I don't even know how the hell you got in here. We don't want to see you, so you can take your ass out of here and go back to wherever the hell you came from."

"Chris," Lita said, not wanting to facilitate this fight. "You guys, come on, everyone is here and we're all trying to have a good time. It's one of the only times everyone in this company can come together and hang out and be civil to one another before everyone's egos get in the way again, please, don't fight here."

"Then he should leave," Edge said.

"Dude, I think you need to go," Christian said. Poor Ted had no idea what the hell was going on. This was all before his time. Ted instinctively grabbed Stephanie's hand, not because he wanted her or anything, but she just looked upset and like she could use a friend right then. She stared down at his hand and he gave her an encouraging squeeze. She looked up at him and gave him a wary smile, like years of pent-up frustration were bubbling to the surface like a brook. She squeezed back, thanking him without words for being a good friend.

"You guys, stop," Stephanie said, really speaking up for the first time. "Kurt came all this way and the least we can do is hear him out."

"What?" Edge asked, turning sharply to look at her. "Stephanie, don't give in to him again. You're better than that."

"Yeah, maybe I am, maybe I'm not," she said. She looked over at Chris and his eyebrows were furrowed as he tried to study her expression. He wanted to know what she was up to, maybe she was going to humiliate Kurt or something. "I think we should at least hear him out."

She let go of Ted's hand and he was sorry for the loss of warmth, but then he too, spoke up, "Look, I don't really know what all happened between you guys, but I don't know, I would probably let the guy speak."

"Oh nobody asked you, rookie," Edge said and Lita slapped him on the arm as Ted started to turn red.

"Don't listen to him," Lita said apologetically.

"Dude, I thought your ankle was hurting," Christian said to his older brother. "Oh wait, were you trying to get out of hearing about Tilden again? Because seriously, she's your niece, you should _want_ to hear about her."

"It wasn't because of Tilden and I like hearing about her for the record, just not _all_ the time with the same information. There isn't much a six-week old baby can do, sorry, man. And my ankle was hurting, but because it's a party, I didn't want to just sit around my hotel room and sulk, even though someone owes me an apology," Edge looked pointedly at Chris.

"_Me_?" Chris asked. "How do I owe you an apology?"

"Because you hit me with your belt in order to retain the title, that's why," Edge answered.

"I did what I had to do to win," Chris shrugged.

"You know, you're still my friend, but you are going to pay," Edge told him, narrowing his eyes at him. "So come on, then, Angle, what is it you have to say? I'm really eager to hear how you can explain the last _five_ years."

"Ed, don't be mad," Sawyer said, leaning across the table and grinning at his friend.

Edge took a step closer and leaned down to look Sawyer in the eye, "The fact that you love your dad's belt is the _only_ reason I'm not pounding him right now."

Sawyer crinkled his nose and laughed at Edge. "You're the funniest. You're my friend, Ed."

"Of course I am, I put up with you, don't I?" Edge said. Sawyer just stuck his tongue out.

"But you shouldn't be mad, my teacher says it's not good to be mad."

"I'm not mad," Edge said, taking a deep breath, "so out with it, Angle."

"Well," Kurt said, feeling like he was being put on the spot. "It's like this. I found out that Stephanie was pregnant about a week ago. I don't know how it took so long to get to me, maybe it was just that nobody thought to tell me or maybe it didn't infiltrate the TNA locker room or maybe nobody cared--"

"Chris and I kept it to ourselves for a while because Christian and Trish were having a baby and we didn't want to steal their thunder or make them think we got pregnant to upstage them, this was completely a surprise," Stephanie said as Chris nodded.

"Oh, well then maybe that's why I didn't hear about it, anyways, I was at a meeting with the higher-ups in TNA, you know, the bosses and they were talking about you," Kurt said and he could almost feel Chris tense. Kurt knew that if they'd been saying anything bad about Stephanie that Chris would fly there, with no regard for anyone and kick ass. "It wasn't like that, they were just saying that she was pregnant again, they weren't saying anything bad."

"Yeah, okay," Chris said, calming down.

"It's just, I realized that you guys were going to have three kids and so much time has passed and it's just frustrating, I don't know, I miss you guys and I know I've said that in the past, but I'm really hoping this time can be different, that we can go back to what we were or at least be friends. I understand that I hurt you, but…I just want a chance, please?"

Stephanie looked at everyone around the table and she almost didn't agree, but then, didn't everyone deserve a _real_ chance, not just a half-assed chance at something. If she were in the same situation, she would want that chance as well. "Okay, Kurt, okay…"

Chris's jaw set tightly.

Even a few days later, Chris shook his head as he stared at Stephanie. "Stop looking at me like that, Chris."

"I just still can't believe you're letting that asshole back into our lives," Chris told her. "I just cannot believe you believed that bull that he was trying to sell us. I thought you were smarter than that."

"Chris, I _am_ smart," she told him. "The fact is that I do miss him sometimes and all the friends in the world can't replace someone that you considered your best friend. It's been five years since it happened and it seems like he's changed. Plus, if I were in the same position, I would hope that someone would take the same position and give me a second chance, like I did when you were arrested."

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, I very well could have said that I am divorcing you because you humiliated me by getting drunk and arrested," Stephanie said, grabbing onto Chris's tie and pulling him down so his face was hovering around her own.

"That was months ago," he told her, his breath brushing some of her hair back. "You said it wasn't a big deal, which it wasn't because I was being responsible and not drinking and driving and it's not my fault that I was out with some of the guys."

"Yeah, guys who don't even really care about you, obviously," Stephanie said, pulling him a little closer. "Christian had to be the one to go pick you up from the police station and then I get a call from my father of all people saying that he doesn't want you associating with our children anymore because you now have a police record."

"You wouldn't divorce me over that," he told her, brushing his lips softly against hers. "Why would you?"

"The embarrassment? Having to see your mugshot all over the place, plastered on every website and thinking about how that's my husband? I'm a professional, Chris," she saw his eyes and quickly added, "Not _that_ kind of professional. I am a businesswoman and I, and my family, do not need that kind of bad publicity. Isn't it bad enough that my mother's campaign was getting flogged because my dad insists on naming his yacht _The Sexy Bitch_?"

"That name is just _so_ Vince," Chris chuckled. "The thing blew over though, I addressed it with several outlets and the fine was under 30 dollars. It wasn't that big a deal."

"Yes, but did you address it with _me_?"

"Yes, I think I had a sufficient punishment," he told her and she leaned up to kiss him. "You weren't even that mad."

"Yes, I was."

"Not really, I excepted to come home and find my clothes on the front lawn," he told her, sitting next to her and pulling her into his arms. She cuddled into his side. "So, now that we have a quiet moment to ourselves, while our children are sitting and behaving quietly like little angels, how do you feel now that you've gone a few days with a Shawn Michaels-free existence?"

"I feel pretty darn good. I think we're finally going to get the real Hunter back, if he's not already back and it just feels like the air is clearer."

"You think Hunter is back after the display on Monday?" Chris scoffed. "I get that they're best friends and have been through a lot together, but God, I think Hunter is _way_ too attached to the guy. I think he just looked up to him for so long that he just can't bear the thought of actually having to do this completely alone, you know. Like before, he always knew that Shawn was probably going to come back. Last time, when he convinced him to come back to DX, he _knew_ he was going to get Shawn back. I don't think he's going to do it this time. I think he's going to be feeling a little lost for a while."

"It's not like they're going to stop being friends," she pointed out.

"But it's like when your friend moves away. I'm sure, over the course of your life, one of your friends has move away. Wait, did you _have_ friends?" he teased and she slugged him in the gut with her elbow. "Why are you always abusing me, this is why I went out and got drunk and arrested, I was hoping to spend the night away from this abuse."

"Oh, I'm sure you were, good excuse," she said, rolling her eyes.

"But you have to admit this, I had _the_ hottest mugshot photo you've ever seen, right? I mean, that could've been framed, you know, minus the whole being a mugshot thing."

"Yes, I'd like to frame you looking drunk so our children can see it."

"Good point."

"Daddy, what's drunk?" Sawyer asked.

"It's one of the past tenses of drink, look it up, genius," Chris told him. "And what is with you eavesdropping on our conversation? When you're hanging out with your little friends, do I come over and start listening in on your conversation?"

"No…"

"So don't listen when I'm talking with Mommy, geez, have manners," he told his son, winking at him and sticking his tongue out. Sawyer understood now that his daddy was just joking and so he laughed. "Anyways, the abuse has got to stop, what kind of example are you setting for our children? I mean, Flynn already hits Sawyer and Sawyer hits me, it's an ongoing cycle of hate that you're facilitating."

"Says the wrestler whose job is to beat people up," she told him.

"Says the woman who owns the company that employs the wrestler whose job is to beat people up."

"Touché, Jericho" she said, kissing him on the cheek. "So tell me, you've been Shawn Michaels-free for a few days now, how do _you_ feel? You must be glad to have him out of your hair."

"You know, it's strange, but I kind of miss him," Chris told her and then looked at her to find a surprised look on her face. "I'm as surprised as you are, but I'm finding it true, especially after seeing the show on Monday. I don't know, you know, it's like, somewhere inside of me is that teenager who was watching Shawn Michaels and thinking, 'I can do that,' and then decided to really go after this dream. Then when I was moving through the different promotions, everyone said I reminded them of Shawn and it was such a compliment because he was kind of a hero, you know, the not-so-huge guy who still managed to get to the top. That kid is still in me and seeing those old clips, he's inside me thinking I can still do that."

"Well, you are the World Champion."

"I know that," Chris told her, "but that kid didn't know that. I mean, when I started out, wrestlers seemed larger-than-life and here I was, this skinny ass kid. The WWF seemed so far away, this impossible dream that I didn't think I'd get to touch. Shawn made it seem a little closer, like I could reach it. Steph, I love you with everything I am, but you don't understand the journey, hell, the younger guys coming into the company, half of them don't understand the journey. It was rougher back then. I mean, you read my book or at least skimmed it--"

"Chris, I read your book," she interrupted.

"So you know how hard it was for me. Then getting to actually work with him, this guy, it was surreal when I actually got here. The guy I'd tried to model my career off of was _here_ and so was I. You'll never understand how it felt making it here. It's just something you can't understand."

"And now you're here and you're the champion and you've been the champion 6 times and the Intercontinental champion what is it, 9 times, you're doing very well for yourself, I'd say," she told him, running her hand down his cheek. "I understand what you're saying. You looked up to Shawn because he was a guy that was like you who made it to the big time and seeing him leave it's kind of like a part of what made you want to be a wrestler is gone too."

"You do understand," he smiled, kissing her lightly. "I just wanted to get here so bad. When I first met with your dad, I swear to God, my palms were sweating more than they did before my first kiss. I mean, of all places at his house, I mean, talk about nerves."

"Well, you obviously did well enough that my father hired you, probably because he really wanted to steal you away from WCW."

"Or the hellhole as I like to call it," he said, a twinge of bitterness still in his voice. "By the end, I was starting to really hate wrestling, which has never happened to me before, but they were making me hate it. I feel for the guys dealing with the egos that are Hogan and Bischoff over there in TNA."

"But you got out and that's all that matters and you had a tremendous debut and achieved your dream of being just like Shawn Michaels and then you surpassed him."

"I don't know about the surpassed."

"Oh, I think so…so when you first met my dad, first impressions?"

"It was more like, 'Oh my God, this is _Vince McMahon_, the man, the man of wrestling, the guy with the name, the guy who was the head of the WWF and I'm in his house! It was the craziest feeling."

"Now look at you, he's your father-in-law," she laughed, "because you married his gorgeous, smart, and witty daughter and had three children with her."

"I got more out of this company than I ever thought I would," he told her tenderly. "But now said gorgeous, smart, and witty daughter is acting ugly, stupid, and dim-witted because she is accepting a douchebag back into her life."

"The guy was your best man at our wedding," she pointed out.

"A fact I would like to remedy."

"How? With your time machine?"

"Yes, I would go back to July 18, 2002 and I would tell myself, just before I go back into that locker room to really _think_ about what I'm doing, to really understand what is about to happen. I'll explain how you will be stuck with this one woman for the rest of your life and is that something he really wants?"

"Yes, yes it is," Stephanie said, then got off the couch. "So you've got your time at the beginning of the show. I had to wrestle with Vickie for it--"

"Hey, I wasn't done talking about Kurt," Chris told her.

"We _are_ done talking about Kurt," Stephanie told him, going over to her desk to look over the schedule she had for the evening, her neat penmanship scribbled all over the page in a way that only Stephanie could possibly figure out.

"No, we're really not, Stephanie," Chris said. "I don't want you going to lunch with him next week."

"You'll be in L.A. doing your awards show so you won't have to come or anything."

"I don't care where I am, I don't want _you_ going to see him. Stephanie, he hurt you and broke your heart and I don't forget things like that."

"Obviously, look at the way you still treat Austin."

"Don't get me started on that," Chris said sternly, standing up to look at her. She put her hands on her hips as she glared at him.

"Are you honestly going to try and put your foot down and tell me that I cannot go out to lunch with someone? That's honestly how you're going to let this play out? You think you can control who I see and who I don't see? You'll have to inform me when you think you received the power to do that."

"You're not going."

"You cannot tell me what to do," Stephanie told him. "I'm going to lunch with Kurt and there's nothing you can do about it because you won't be here and even if you were here, what would you do? Lock me up in a tower so I'd have to grow my hair out and then Kurt would have to climb it?"

"This isn't funny, Stephanie. I don't want him around my children."

"And now you're pulling the 'my children' card. Chris, stop it, okay, you don't get as much say as you think you do. I will compromise and ask your mom if she can baby-sit the kids, but there's no way you can tell me what to do."

"And if I did?"

"I'd defy you because you aren't the boss of me and nobody has been the boss of me ever, not even my parents because they weren't around enough to be the boss of me," she said, stepping closer to him. "You do not tell me what to do."

"I'm telling you this time."

"Too bad," she told him, "it's not happening."

"Daddy, what's going on?" Sawyer asked.

"Sawyer, stay out of it," Chris snapped and Sawyer shrank back a little. His daddy was _mad_. He'd only seen the face he was wearing when his daddy was in the ring and something happened that he didn't like. He didn't usually see the face when he was talking with his mommy.

"Oh great, now you're yelling at our children," Stephanie said, throwing her hands up in the air. "You are certainly carving a niche out for yourself."

Chris controlled his breathing or he feared he would lose his temper. He didn't want to do that in front of his kids and didn't want Stephanie to have the satisfaction of knowing that she'd gotten him riled up. He ran his hand over his face and took another deep breath. He looked at Stephanie and she had that self-satisfied look on his face, like she knew she was winning and that almost made him want to lose his temper, but he didn't. He stayed calm.

"I just don't trust him," Chris said slowly.

"Do you think I'm not going to be cautious?" she wondered. "Chris, how long have we known each other, not even how long have we been together, how long have we known each other?"

"A decade or so, why?"

"Have you ever known me not to be cautious?"

"Well, you kind of married Hunter without thinking it through…"

"Okay, so I'm not always cautious, but I will be with this. But tell me, sweetie, don't you miss him sometimes? I mean, we were best friends with the man, he was our goofy friend Kurt, who we loved and hung out with and then yes, things changed, and we're different people, all of us, we're _all_ different people, Chris. Maybe, just maybe, these people we are now can get along."

"I hate when you do that," he said, folding his arms. Flynn had come up to him and she was tugging on his pants. He looked down at her and she smiled up at him.

"Up, Dada," she told him, lifting her arms up. He took her into his arms and she hugged him while staring at Stephanie.

"Do what?" she wondered.

"Where you make so much sense and look so cute and honest that I can't even argue with you," he told her. "I swear to God, you're the only woman in the world who I would cave to, Stephanie McMahon."

"The only one?"

"Well, Flynn's not a woman," Chris explained.

"What about this one?" she asked, pointing to her stomach playfully.

"And _that_ is a boy, not a girl," he said. "And I will believe that until the day comes and whatever it is decides to make its grand entrance."

"And speaking of grand entrances, I believe you have one very soon."

Chris had never retained any kind of world title after WrestleMania, not that he'd had many opportunities to do so. This was only the second time he'd ever had a match that was for the title at the biggest show of the year and the last time it'd happened, he'd walked out empty-handed, his two beautiful titles on the arms of a big-nosed asshole. He did get Stephanie out of the whole deal, but was that really worth it? So this feeling, coming out of WrestleMania was a good one for him. He felt special in a way, like he was suddenly part of a long line of true champions.

He'd felt important, as he'd demonstrated that week on NXT. They'd wanted to do a Pros wrestling match, he guessed to show the younger guys what wrestling was all about, show off their skills. Chris was too beat up for it so he'd said Wade, his protégé, in his place for him. He believed, because he was champion, that he was entitled to do so. Plus, Stephanie was his wife so if worse came to worse than he could just say he owned the damn company and could do whatever he wanted.

Wade had done an admirable job and had even won the match for the SmackDown team. Sure, he'd gotten a little assistance from Chris when he'd grabbed Christian's leg, but Christian knew how the game was played and when they'd spoken after the match, both of them understood that within the ring, they were not necessarily friends. It was an important lesson for Wade to learn as well. Sometimes even the best of friends had to step into the ring and transform themselves into enemies. It was the nature of the business.

So now here he was, ready to tell those pandering idiots the what for. He'd been right. He'd said all along that he was going to retain at WrestleMania and unlike the liars out in the audience, at home, backstage, he was a truth-teller. He walked a little stiffly down to the ring and his movements were sore and jerky. The morning after the big show, his bruises had been angry-looking. He'd been shaving and Sawyer had come running past the bathroom and had stopped abruptly to watch Chris and his eyes had widened when he saw the bruises criss-crossing over his father's back. He'd wondered about them and Chris told the truth. Sawyer was very scared and yet very impressed.

He spoke about the genetic issue, how he'd come out on top and he had to admit, it was nice to have one over on Edge. They were still friends, they still hung out, but now Chris could lord this over his head. He played it up to the fans, asking what he'd really done to deserve that spear and saying he had been internally He expected Edge to show up, he wouldn't be Edge if he didn't and he didn't disappoint. Edge came out and spear-headed (no pun intended) the fans with their stupid chants and stupid cheering. If they only knew what really went on backstage, boy they'd be in for a surprise.

But it was Chris who got the biggest surprise of all. What happened next all happened so quickly that he didn't process it all very quickly or really at all. He was suddenly down, another spear and he was going to punch Edge when he got backstage because that _hurt_. He wasn't yet fully recovered from that spear at WrestleMania and his back still had the lingering bruises to prove that. But before another thought entered his mind, before he could gain his bearings at all, there was another body, and another match and then a three-count and before he knew it, it was all over.

Stephanie had been sitting backstage, watching on the monitor. Flynn was sitting in the chair next to her, running one of Sawyer's cars back and forth, making little sounds. Sawyer, who had left the car there, was watching his father and Ed talk. He'd seen a man rushing by him after Edge had speared his dad and then the man hit his friend with the briefcase and then pin his daddy and win, taking _his_ belt and holding it over his daddy. He was confused. Why did that man have his daddy's belt? It wasn't his, he couldn't take it because that would be stealing and stealing was bad.

He looked towards his mommy, but her jaw was dropped and her eyes were glassy, with what, he didn't know. He almost didn't want to talk because she looked upset, but he didn't know what was going on. "Mommy, why does he have Daddy's belt?"

Stephanie almost didn't know what to say. She felt like she should be angry right now and it almost felt like that bubbling in her stomach (though it could be gas from the baby). But more than that, she felt sad. She was just sad that someone had to use such cheap tricks in order to get the belt. She knew that some people accused Chris of using cheap tactics to get the belts, but for the most part, he had been in those matches and had earned and worked for it. She didn't feel like Swagger had earned or worked for this. Now she had to explain to her little boy what had happened and deal with a husband who was quite obviously shell-shocked and upset himself, but in a different way.

"Baby boy, Daddy lost his belt," she said to him slowly.

"But…it's his," Sawyer said. "That's Daddy's belt."

When he saw the man who had taken his daddy's belt walk backstage, looking proud and satisfied, Sawyer had jumped from his mommy's lap and gone over to the man. He stopped in front of him and gave him his meanest look. "You give that back!"

"What?" Swagger asked.

"That's my daddy's belt and you give it back!" Sawyer yelled at him.

"Sorry kid, it ain't his anymore," Swagger scoffed.

"You're mean!" Sawyer said, going so far as to kick Swagger in the leg.

"What the hell!" Swagger yelped. "Do you think you could control your kid, huh?"

"I'm sorry," Stephanie said, coming over and bending down to Sawyer's level. "Sawyer, we don't kick people even when they've acted in a cheap way and pretty much tainted their title win by going after a man who was already down." She stood up. "Instead, we do this."

She reached back and slapped him across the face. He should've expected it really; she was Stephanie McMahon-Jericho and she gave the hardest slaps in the entirety of the WWE. Swagger really should've seen it coming. "What the hell is going on around here?"

"I'm just showing what the Jerichos do to cheap winners. Just you wait, Swagger, your days with that belt are numbered," she threatened.

"Get away from me," Swagger said, showing his stupidity in ignoring who he was speaking with. He took his belt and walked away. Stephanie looked down to Sawyer and saw that he was starting to cry a little. She looked to Flynn, who could care less about belts and matches and titles, and then, even though it was getting harder for her to do so, she picked up Sawyer and held him as he cried.

"That was Daddy's," Sawyer sobbed. "He won it, Mommy!"

"I know, baby boy, I know," she said, running her fingers through his hair. "I know, but don't worry, he'll get it back. You know, I bet Daddy is pretty upset that he lost the title, do you think that maybe you could give him one of those great Sawyer hugs that you give. I think that would really make him feel better."

"Really?" he asked.

"Oh definitely. I think those hugs could cure all the diseases in the world if they could harness the power behind that hug," she said, giving him a big hug. That was the difference this time, she realized. It wasn't just her and Chris who was mad. Sawyer understood now. He was growing by the day and starting to really understand the world around him. Flynn still thought the world revolved around her and if it didn't directly affect her, she could really care less about it. But Sawyer knew and could sense the feelings and actions of others and now she had to tend to him as well. He was still crying softly when Chris came back, Edge next to him.

"I can't believe he did that, jerk and what the hell was with spearing me!" Chris yelled. Sawyer covered his ears and buried his face into Stephanie's neck.

"Dude, that's my thing, I spear you!" Edge said. "I didn't know he was going to do that, I swear to God. Like I would plan that out of all things when I want to beat you, when that's what we agreed upon."

"Damn it!" Chris said, grabbing the nearest chair and flinging it across the area, watching as it arced its way into a wall with a loud crash, clanking to the ground with a metallic thud. This startled Flynn from her car pushing and _now_ she knew something was up. But what? Why was her daddy looking so mad? She tried to push some of her hair out of her face, as if that would hold the answer, but it didn't as he just grabbed another chair and threw it.

"Chris!" Stephanie said sharply. Sawyer, knowing this was very bad had started to cry again, clinging to Stephanie.

Chris turned towards her and his dark eyes turned lighter when they fell on his distraught son. He forced himself to be composed and Edge did as well. "Look, I'm sorry, man, I didn't want for it to go down like that," Edge said quietly as if the moment he saw Sawyer, he decided to use his indoor voice.

"I know," Chris said. "I'm going to talk with Teddy, he's the one who can really sign off on it."

"I think I should get a rematch too though."

"What!" Chris said, then rubbed his temples, look, whatever, we'll deal with this later," he said, wanting to comfort his little boy. It wasn't about him anymore, he had to remind himself. Back in the day, sure, he could rage and go drink into oblivion, but his son was upset and he had to help with that.

"Sorry again," Edge said sheepishly before disappearing backstage and to the awaiting arms of Lita.

Chris walked over to Sawyer, who was still crying and he took the kid from Stephanie, who had been getting tired of holding him anyways. Sawyer was almost four and not that baby anymore that she remembered. She rubbed her stomach a little at that thought. One of her babies was starting to really become a big boy, his own, independent person while another one was going to be completely dependent on her again. The more things changed, the more they stayed the same.

"Hey there, kiddo, it's okay," Chris said, even though it wasn't. He was so angry, but he couldn't let Sawyer see that. His kid was still very much a baby and he didn't want to frighten him. "It'll be okay, I'm going to try my hardest to get that belt back."

Sawyer sniffled and looked up at Chris. "He took it, Daddy and it wasn't his!"

"I know," Chris said, kissing his head. "But it happens, sometimes we win and sometimes we lose, but the important thing is that we get back up and try. It'll be fine, you still have your belt so at least one of us is still a champion."

"Daddy, you could have my belt if you want it," Sawyer told him. "That way you can have it and he can't take it."

Chris blinked back tears at his son's gesture. He was very upset about losing the title, but it wasn't important (okay, it was, he was just trying not to make it worse) and this was. "That's really nice of you, kid, but you keep that okay, I wouldn't want to take it from you."

"Okay, Daddy, are you going to get your belt back?"

"You're damn right I'm getting it back."

It didn't exactly work out as planned. Instead of getting his rematch like he wanted and giving Swagger and even shorter title reign than Kane had back in the day, Teddy had decided to give him a match against Edge for the #1 contendership. It was a load of crap, is what it was, but he didn't want to go to Stephanie. He hated pulling rank, _hated_ it and if this was the outcome, so be it. He knew that Edge would bring it the next week and so would he.

He was going to get his rematch. He was going to be the #1 contender and he was going to get his title back.

Now if only he could get Stephanie from going out with Kurt…


	274. Try, Try Again, April 9, 2010

A/N: Thanks for the reviews everyone, I really, really appreciate them, it's good to get some feedback. I was short on time this week so it was either catch up with HaK or work on another story and the other story won, but I still hope you like the chapter and if you'd like, leave a review. And if you're so inclined, you can go check out my new story. Enjoy. :)

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Stephanie and Chris had come to a compromise. It was a huge step in their relationship. Usually, one of them would get mad and the other would do whatever it was just to defy them. With two personalities as strong as theirs was, it was easy for them to get into fights that left them fuming. It was what made them…well, them. But this week they'd actually talked and come to a compromise and they both felt okay with the outcome, although, if pressed, Chris would feel like he was the loser in the situation, but that's what happened when you were with Stephanie McMahon, you often felt like the loser in any argument. He wouldn't say he was whipped (he was), but it was very hard to say no to her when she was so pretty and persuasive and pregnant with their third child. It was really the third child thing that had him pretty much catering to her every whim.

He still didn't really want her to go out to lunch with Kurt; he'd stayed adamant about that, but she wanted to and she wasn't going to budge and like usual, she expected him to and he had. She was only taking Flynn though. Sawyer had come with Chris to LA as he hosted the Golden God awards. Then he and Sawyer would be flying to Chicago for SmackDown, where Stephanie and Flynn were currently and then after SmackDown, Stephanie and the kids would be flying home and he would be flying on to Europe for a tour they were doing over there. It was going to be a hectic couple of weeks, but his entire life was hectic and this would be no different.

Stephanie pushed the stroller into the restaurant, looking around. She spotted Kurt sitting in the back and she gave a friendly smile as she walked over. He looked to be tearing a napkin as he waited and then looked up and saw her. He stood immediately, his posture erect and stiff. He was nervous and so was she. Flynn wasn't nervous. She was just trying to grab at everything. She always did when she was in her stroller. She had her hands free to just grab at whatever she wanted.

"Hey," Kurt said as she approached. He kind of wanted to go in for a hug, but found it inappropriate at this juncture.

"Feel like we've been here before," she said quietly as she helped Flynn into her high chair. "Thanks for getting a high chair for her."

"I thought ahead," he said, watching as Flynn settled in and then made a grab for the crayons waiting for her on the table.

"Daw, Mama," Flynn said happily.

"Yeah, you can use those to draw, but try to stay on the paper, okay?" Stephanie said, pointing to the kid's menu in front of Flynn.

Flynn looked around, usually when she was drawing, Sawyer would come around too and he would draw with her. He was much better at it than she was. "Sawa?"

"Sawyer's with Daddy, remember," Stephanie said, leaning over and making a pouty face that Flynn copied. "But they're going to be coming back Friday morning and we're going to go to SmackDown and Daddy is going to win his match and get his title back because you like his title too, huh, because it's big and shiny, right?"

"Yes," Flynn said seriously.

"Exactly," Stephanie winked. "Now I'm going to get you…some macaroni and cheese, you'll like that, right?"

"Yes," Flynn said again.

"I thought so," Stephanie told her, sticking her tongue out and making a funny face that sent Flynn into a torrent of giggles, making her cover her face with her hands to hide her amusement. "So, hi, Kurt."

"You're great with her," he told her, nodding his head a little as he watched Flynn attack the paper with her crayons, scribbles going everywhere. "You're _amazing _with her."

"Well, she is my daughter so I would hope so," Stephanie joked, but she almost felt like she'd forced it.

"Sorry, it's just, when we were last…I mean, _before_, you know, Sawyer was still so young and you were getting the hang of it and still worrying about whether you'd make a good mother and everything and now you're working on your third child and you're used to it."

"Yeah, I figure since my kids are both healthy and happy for the most part that I'm doing an okay job with this. When they start going to therapy as adults is when I'll worry about what they're saying about me," she laughed.

"I'm surprised Chris let you come, he didn't seem too happy seeing me, not that I blame him or anything, but I just thought you guys would not come or call or whatever. I know I really messed things up all those years ago, but I finally feel like I'm in a place where we can try again and I won't disappoint you."

"Chris didn't want me to come today, but we're adults and he can't tell me what to do so I decided to come, but he knows, we compromised and everything and he gave in, probably because I'm pregnant. If I wasn't, we'd probably still be fighting about it."

"Yeah, congratulations again, that's really great," Kurt said. "Did you plan this one?"

"We didn't plan Sawyer, Flynn, _or_ this one," Stephanie said, patting her stomach a little. The baby kicked around inside of her, knowing she was being talked about. "Our children really just like to surprise us, but we're really happy to have this one, just like Flynn and Sawyer before them."

"Do you know what it is?" he asked. "The baby I mean."

"No, this time, Chris and I are going to remain surprised. We tried to do it with Flynn, but we wanted to find out because we couldn't wait anymore, but this time, I think we definitely want to keep this one a surprise."

"That's cool, I understand that. Flynn is beautiful, by the way. She's just absolutely gorgeous. She looks like you, but you can see Chris in her." Flynn felt like she was being talked about and looked up, but then looked back down.

"Thank you."

"Sawyer too, I mean, talk about getting a mini-Jericho. He looks like a great kid from what I saw. I was surprised when he took over the conversation. I knew he was getting older, but there's such a difference between hearing about it and then seeing it. He was like a real person."

"Don't remind me that he's getting older," Stephanie groaned. "I want to keep him my baby for as long as possible and 4 feels way too old."

"Sorry," Kurt laughed, shaking his head. "I just can't believe how different he is. I can't believe how much older he is and talking and having conversations and he just looks so much like Chris it's crazy. Does he act like Chris?"

"Sawyer is absolutely the best parts of me and Chris. He's nothing like us and is everything like us at the same time. Where we're irrational and prone to temper tantrums, he's like the nicest kid in the universe. He's usually the adult when we're fighting, telling us to stop. He's the most amazing kid."

Kurt could see how much Stephanie loved Sawyer. This was a far cry from the woman he'd once known, the one who worried about corrupting her little boy. She was a mother through and through now. It was in the way she casually leaned over and brushed some of Flynn's hair out of her face and the way she scrunched up her nose when Flynn looked up at her. It was in the way she gently rested her hand on her pronounced middle as if to calm the baby inside of her that was on its way in a few months. She was different and yet so much the same.

"Are you with anyone right now?" she asked.

"Yeah, she's a great girl, a little younger than me, but you know I like younger women--"

"Typical," she said with a smirk and he looked down and laughed. "But I'm glad you have someone, you deserve to be happy, everyone does. I'm happy so I like everyone else to be happy as well."

"Are you and Chris happy?" he wondered. "I'm not trying to be rude here or anything, I'm just asking because I haven't seen you guys in a while and I'm assuming that you are, but you know, small talk, it's been…a while…"

"I know," she said, ducking her head. Her cell phone vibrated right then and she grabbed her phone. "I'm sorry, it's Chris, I just have to take this, real quick."

"Oh no, go ahead, please."

"Thanks," she said, answering the call. "Hey sweetie, what's up?"

"Hi, Mommy!"

"Oh, hey baby boy," Stephanie said, her smile widening. "What are you doing?'

"Daddy and I were eating and now we're going to go to the beach, is that it, Daddy?" Stephanie could hear Chris's muffled voice. "We ate at a retorant and I had eggs and bacon and it was good and Daddy let me have some of his food and it was yummy too because he got…um…potatoes. And there were doggies when we were walking and I petted them and they licked my hand, Mommy, it was silly." He giggled.

"Wow, it sounds like you've had a busy morning and now going to the beach, are you going to show off your muscles?"

"I don't have any," Sawyer laughed. "Daddy is the one that does have them. But I don't."

"Yeah, you're right, you have to watch out for Daddy and make sure that no cute girls go up to him and try to steal him away. I don't want him to leave me for some other lady."

"He will not leave." There was a pause. "Daddy wants to talk to you. How is my baby and how is my Flynnie?"

"Flynn is good, she's about to have some lunch and she's coloring and she was wondering where you were because you know she loves to color with you very much. She wanted to color with you here."

"I would if I were there," Sawyer said.

"And the baby is good too, it's kicking me right now so it must know that I'm on the phone with you."

"Really?" he asked proudly.

"Oh most really."

"Stop hogging the phone," she could hear Chris say.

"I go now, Mommy, I love you, I love Flynn, I love baby!" he said as she could imagine Chris wrenching the phone away from his playfully.

"Hey there, wife."

"Why are you stealing the phone from my baby?" she asked.

"Because I wanted to know what's this about getting my son to spy on me? You want him to follow me around and take notes?"

"Could he, just have him use the hotel notepaper to write everything down. Or draw it, I think I could decipher his hieroglyphs. I just want to make sure everything is on the up and up over there and with you at the beach and your shirt off and the sun and the waves and the swooning women, you never know."

"Oh yes, of course, how are my girls?"

"All three of them are okay."

"I'm going to hate you until that kid is born, I swear to God, Stephanie, my heart cannot handle another girl, so if it is a girl, you better tell her to change her mind right now so she can switch back over to being a boy."

"No can do, she's all set," Stephanie joked. "You're going to be miserable."

"I bet I am. Anyways, are you out on your date?"

"Yes, I am."

"Is he behaving?"

"So far, yes."

"Good, he better stay that way," Chris said. "I can't believe I agreed to let you go out with him. I should've put my foot down."

"You act like you're the boss of me when we both know that's not true at all, now is it?"

"No," he said sadly. "Okay, the kid is practically tugging at my shirt and I don't want him to rip it in half, no muscles my butt, he's like Superman kid over here, ready to rip me into shreds. So go have fun or whatever and we'll see you Friday."

"Okay, have a good time at your awards taping tonight. And you've worked out everything with Sawyer being taken care of, right? You're not just leaving him in the hotel room with room service and a movie, right?"

"I've got it covered, I actually got Rob's wife to watch him for me."

"Rob…Zombie?" Stephanie asked tentatively.

Chris guffawed and then started laughing. "Oh, baby, I love you. No, Rob as in Rob Van Dam. He lives down here, remember. Well, I gave her a call and she said she could watch Sawyer for the evening and so it's all worked out."

"He doesn't know her though."

"Stephanie, Sawyer is the most personable kid that walked the earth. Now if it was Miss Snooty-Pie Flynn Murphy Jericho, then yeah, I'd be hesitant, but this is Sawyer, he'll be fine."

"I'll be fine!" she heard Sawyer yell.

"Okay, well, have a good time, you two, I love you both," she told him.

"I love you too. Um, can you tell Kurt I said hi," Chris said sheepishly. Stephanie smiled. She knew he wanted Kurt back too, but was probably too afraid to actually say it. He was trying to be the manly tough guy and didn't want to let his guard down.

"Okay, I will, bye, sweetie."

"Bye, baby."

Stephanie hung up, "I'm sorry, Sawyer wanted to talk to me and tell me all about his morning. He's really excited to be somewhere with just him and Chris. As much as he loves us, I think it's good that he gets time with his dad."

"I understand."

"So as to your question, I would answer ridiculously. You remember how I was so nervous to marry Chris, like I knew I loved him, but I thought I'd screw him up somehow, like I'd taint him?"

"Yeah, I remember talking you down a lot."

"It's nothing like that, nothing like that at all. Chris and I have been together for nearly eight years and we've been married for five and I'm happy, Kurt. I'm so damn happy with Chris and the kids that sometimes I really wonder what I did to deserve it. Then I go to work and my dad acts like an ass and takes away my power and then the whole balance of life thing happens."

"So you and your dad are still…"

"My dad and I will never see completely eye-to-eye, we're too much alike for it. But one day I'll be in charge and then I can do whatever I want. What's starting to happen now is he's using my pregnancy as an excuse for his behavior. Still, he can't touch my family life, which is good. I love my husband, I love my kids, what more could a girl want?"

"I'm really glad you're happy. I always knew you and Chris would make it."

"Well, it's only been eight years, ask me again in forty and we'll see what's what," Stephanie kidded. "Oh, Chris says hi."

"Really?"

"Yeah, he wants you back too, he missed you, I mean, it's not like he pined for you or anything, but he definitely missed you, we all did. He's just trying to act like Mr. Tough Guy. You know how Chris is."

"I don't know how he is now. I mean, he's changed a lot, I don't know, at least outwardly. With the short hair and the new trunks and the suits. That was just never him, you know, not before."

"That's a persona. I mean, he likes to dress better now because he wanted to project an image when he was working backstage and was corporate and he just got used to it and liked it, but that's not who he is. He's still a goofball, just with shorter hair and horribly small trunks."

Kurt laughed, "Really?"

"Kurt, let me tell you, the more things change…the more they stay the same."

Chris dumped his bags off on the ground. Sawyer ran from room to room, but nobody was here. "Daddy, Mommy's not even here!"

"I wonder where she could be," Chris said, grabbing his phone. He dialed Stephanie's number, but she wasn't answering. He looked around and saw a note on the table and he picked it up. "Hey, kid, Mommy and Flynn are down at the pool, you want to go join them?"

"Yeah!" Sawyer screamed, jumping around. Chris hoped being in the pool would make him quiet for later.

With everything he'd had to do this week and all the traveling, he'd been able to focus on something else and not the fact he'd lost the title. It still hurt and he still wanted it back, but because he was busy, he didn't have time to dwell on it, which was best for him. It was the cheapest victory he'd ever seen. He'd been hurt from the spear that Edge gave him at WrestleMania and he'd just suffered another spear at the hands of Edge when Swagger swooped in and pinned him. There was no glory in that win, none at all.

He sucked at his teeth a little and forced it out of his mind. He wanted his mind clear for his match against Edge later on. It was his ticket to getting back what he so desperately wanted. It was his ticket back to the World Title and the glory that came along with it and happy smiles from his wife and proud ones from his son. He needed to win the match tonight. He and Edge had patched things up and he didn't blame Edge for wanting the title and he didn't blame Edge for him losing the title. Edge couldn't have known Swagger was going to come out there and take the title and there was no use in being mad at him over it. Still, he could definitely be mad at the entire situation.

He'd put his all into the match later and hopefully, he would come out with the win and the #1 contendership would be his and then he'd gain his title back. He helped Sawyer into his swimsuit and then went down to the indoor pool in the hotel. They walked inside and saw Stephanie and Flynn in the shallow end of the pool. Flynn had gotten over her fear of the water and was now content when she was there. Flynn pointed over Stephanie's shoulder and she looked and saw the two of them. She smiled and climbed out of the pool.

Chris wasn't sure how she did it, but she managed to look completely hot even while she was pregnant. Chris walked over with Sawyer and leaned in to kiss her. She kissed him in greeting and then handed over Flynn so Chris could say hell to her and then she said hello to Sawyer. After that, they all got in the pool, Sawyer kicking around with his arm floaties on as Chris trailed after him. Stephanie stayed in the shallow end with Flynn as she watched enviously at Sawyer, who could go wherever he wanted. They eventually navigated their way back over.

"So have you seen Kurt again?"

"No, I haven't," she told him. "He had to go back to Pittsburgh, but it was nice to see him, next time, maybe you can come."

Chris shrugged. "I don't want to think about it right now, I just want to think about the match I have later on for the title, that's all."

"I get it, you're focused," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "I'm sure you have it in the bag."

"Don't have so much confidence in me, okay? I just don't need you to have so much confidence in me because then when I lose I feel like I've let you down and it's this whole self-esteem issue with you."

She kissed him to shut him up. "You know you're better than Edge and you absolutely know you're better than Swagger. Once you get past Edge it's going to be a cakewalk. The All-American American my ass. He can't hold a candle to you, the All-Canadian Canadian who was born in the Untied States."

He laughed, "You believe in me way too much, have I ever told you that?"

"You've mentioned it, but look at me, I'm creating your own cheering section," she said as Chris dipped his hand underwater and placed it against her stomach. "You'll have people cheering for you again in no time at all."

"You're pretty," he said cheesily.

"You don't honestly believe that, do you? I figured you'd be off with Katie Lea right now or something, boning her al fresco style," she teased him, running her wet hand down the side of his face.

"The only one I want to see al fresco is you," he told her huskily. She bit her lip. She was pretty insatiable these days. It always happened around this time in her pregnancy, but her sex drive just kicked into overdrive. She and Chris had always been fairly passionate people, often finding themselves entangled in some way. When she was pregnant, though, she wanted it pretty much all the time and Chris was only too happy to oblige most of the time.

"Not here, Jericho," she told him, brushing her lips against his. "But later…"

"Daddy, I want swimming," Sawyer said, starting to kick away to the deep end again. He was tired of just floating there.

"Well, my parental duties await," Chris said, starting to swim next to Chris. Stephanie noticed Britt walk in a magazine in her hand as she chose a lounge seat around the pool. Stephanie walked over and set Flynn down on the deck.

"Britt!"

Britt looked up and saw her boss. She smiled and walked over, dipping her feet into the pool as she sat on the ledge next to Flynn, who slapped Britt's thigh in greeting. Britt was just wearing a tank top and shorts as she sat there. "Hey, so what's up?"

"Just relaxing with the kids, but now that we have a moment alone and Evan isn't hanging around you, I can ask, what the hell is going on with you and Hunter?" Stephanie wondered. She'd been wondering it for the last couple weeks, but it seemed that whenever she saw Britt, Evan was pretty close by and she didn't want to ask in front of him.

"What are you talking about?"

"Well now that Shawn is out of the picture, he has to look a little more appealing, right?"

"Stephanie, don't get me started. Hunter and I are nothing, I'm with Evan."

"Yeah, but for how long?"

"We've been together for months and months now, you've got to give up this idea of Hunter and I, I have," she said, but she shifted uncomfortably as she said it, which tipped Stephanie off to something. "Just because Shawn is gone doesn't mean that he's changed. He's still the same exact guy, you know, he's not changed at all."

"You don't know that," Stephanie said. "Shawn was a bad influence on him and you know it. Also, I don't think you're quite so over Hunter."

Britt sighed and looked off. "I was planning a future with him. It's just hard to let go of that, but I'm working on it. I'm happy with Evan and I'm not going to screw that up and go back to Hunter of all people. I mean, what happens when Shawn comes back because he will, they're friends, he'll always come back and then I'm left in the cold and what if I marry him and it happens, what if we have _kids_. Think of it this way, who is Chris's best friend, like someone he's been friends with _forever_."

"Lance Storm," Stephanie answered immediately with a shrug. "They met when they were both training to be wrestlers and kind of grew up together in this business. So I'd say it was Lance."

"Okay, so say that tomorrow, Lance came back and was trying to persuade Chris to go out and do stuff, you'd feel like crap."

"Well, have you ever met Lance?"

"No, I'm not even really sure who he is," Britt laughed.

"Think of the most serious person you've ever met in your entire life and then quadruple that and you have Lance. It's amazing the disparity between him and Chris. It really exemplifies that whole opposites attract thing, but they're great friends. He's just duller than a piece of toast."

Britt laughed. "Yeah, well, imagine him making Chris boring."

"Chris boring?"

"Stephanie, work with me here," Britt laughed.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry, I understand where you're coming from, but I don't know, I guess, like you said, you were planning a future with him and I'd never seen him so happy as when he was with you and I know that's cliché to say and maybe it is, but it's the truth. I was _married_ to the guy and he wasn't that happy with me."

"Now you're just lying."

"I'm not, but then again, ours wasn't the ideal marriage, which is why it barely lasted two years and no children to speak of and once I found the right guy," she glanced over at Chris, who was tossing Sawyer around the pool, "I've been married for five and have three kids."

"I don't need the lecture."

"Don't be afraid to be burned again, you don't know that it will happen."

"You don't know that it won't," she counter-pointed.

"_You look like you just lost your best friend," then Britt closed her eyes. "I'm sorry, I was just using a turn of phrase and I didn't think…I'm sorry…"_

"_It's okay," he told her. "I do miss him. It's just not the same knowing he's not coming back. I mean, before I always figured I could talk him into coming back, but the guy honestly wants to retire and spend time with his kids and who am I to tell him to come back because I miss him?"_

"_A good friend," Britt said._

"_What are you doing here? Chris and Stephanie aren't here and you work for them."_

"_I do, but Evan is here and I date him so I come to the show," Britt said. "So that's why I'm here. Just hanging out…with my boyfriend."_

"_I know who he is, Britt," Hunter said bitterly. "You don't have to keep reminding me."_

"_Sorry again, I don't know, I'm just in a weird mood today, I guess," Britt said, not knowing why she was so flustered. _

"_You know, I understand that Shawn was pretty much using me, too little, too late, huh?" He wanted her and she knew it. She held _all_ the power in this relationship and it was tempting, oh, how it was tempting. It was like dangling a carrot of possibility in front of her face, but she feared that if she tried to grab it, it would be pulled a little farther, a little out of her reach and then she'd keep pursuing something she would never get. She didn't necessarily want to get married, but she wanted someone to share a life with, share everything with. Was it Evan? Maybe. Was it Hunter? She'd certainly thought so once upon a time._

"_Yeah, I guess," she told him. "I mean, what do you want me to say to that, Hunter? Do you want me to say that yes, it's too little too late because you finally understand what I was going through seeing you slip right through my fingers? I don't want to think about it or talk about it anymore, it's done with."_

"_Are _we_ done with?" There was such gravitas in his voice that she almost felt her breath being sucked into her body like a vacuum. It was like the final question, the final inquiry. She was nearly free and if she just answered this one last question, she'd be paroled and she would never have to be pursued or even think about Hunter Hearst Helmsley again. It was there, right in front of her, the trophy for her to grab._

_She ran away instead._

"You _ran_ away?"

"I just turned tail and ran, like full-out jogging run," Britt said, covering her face with her hands. "I've been making Evan come to SmackDown with me because I don't want to go to Raw. I'm so mortified over it. I should have just said, 'yes, we're done with, goodbye' and walked away and instead I ran like I was five and I had just peed my pants."

"Even Sawyer didn't run when he peed his pants," Stephanie said.

"Great, thanks for that, Stephanie," Britt said, her voice muffled through her hands. "Life should not be this hard. It just shouldn't. People break up all the time, it happens every day probably thousands of millions of break-ups and those people just move on and are happy with someone else, but nope, I'm stuck."

"You guys work in the same company, it's hard."

"I know, but it's more than that, it's _us_. I like Evan so much…"

"Do you love him? Have you told him you loved him?"

"How long did it take you before you told Chris you loved him?" she asked.

"About a month."

"I haven't told Evan. He thinks it's because I've been burned by Hunter. I like to think it's that, but I'm not so sure anymore."

"Britt," Stephanie said. "If you don't feel it with Evan, you don't and if you feel it with Hunter, for God's sakes, stop torturing yourself."

"Thanks, Stephanie, but I'll figure it out, somehow, some way."

"What are you two talking about?" Chris asked, wandering over with Sawyer in front of him, kicking his legs like a little frog. "Are you talking about how hot I look in my bathing suit and the water glistening down my tanned chest?"

"You were less out to the ring, there's little left to the imagination, Chris," Britt told him sarcastically.

"Do you want some, with the little woman pregnant again, I've got to find some alternatives and if you're interested, I can show you a good time or would your shrimp of a boyfriend oppose that?" Chris asked.

"Shut up, he's not a shrimp," she said, splashing Chris with water. "I was just talking to Stephanie about something."

"Let me guess, boy troubles?" Chris said. He placed his hands on Britt's knees. "Britt, put the poor guy out of his misery and just get back with him already. I don't get this whole drama thing. I just don't, first Trish and Christian and now you and Hunter. Look, if you find that person, you grab them and you hold on and whatever life throws at you, you deal with it. I have three kids and you know why? Because I didn't give up on this woman--"

"He didn't," Stephanie added.

"So just suck it up and be with him."

"Oh you guys, if only it were that simple."

Simple was not a word that really existed in Chris and Stephanie's vocabulary, not now at least. With Stephanie pregnant, Vince, who had already pretty much stripped her of any power she had, had decided that she didn't need to work anymore. So he'd directed all her work to Vickie and Teddy. Stephanie had called her father to tell him to butt out and she was perfectly fine to work for months yet. Her father feigned that it was for her well-being, but he'd allowed her to work much farther into her pregnancies before this one and this one was actually easier than her two previous ones. This baby, though extremely active had barely given her any morning sickness and aside from some exhaustion and the occasional aching back, this baby was very easy-going, must take after Chris.

Her father was still smarting from the loss to Bret and the humiliation that ensued. He was especially angry at her for being the instigator, so he took it out on her in any way he could, which included taking away her work. He was just being petty. And would she trade that beating her father took in for anything? Nope, she wouldn't. It was far too satisfying to see to want to reverse it just because she had her work taken away. Besides, she'd grabbed all that work back so making the schedule was back to her jurisdiction, much to Vickie's disdain. But that just made it the cherry on top; anything that irked Vickie was a win in her book.

Simple was not Chris's match either. He knew Edge would be a tough competitor and though Chris had said all that stuff about Edge being genetically inferior, he knew they were pretty evenly matched. They were both at the top of their game and that was going to make for a hard match. They both knew that Swagger would be easily beatable so this shot was like getting handed the title. Once again, it was understood that the moment they stepped in that ring, they would no longer be friends. So when Chris did step in and when Edge was there as well, they knew that this was going to be it, just them, just a winner and it couldn't be both of them.

"It's weird seeing them wrestle, don't you think?" Lita asked, watching the two of the m as they locked up.

"A little, knowing they don't hate each other."

"Yeah, too bad Chris is going to lose," Lita said slyly, glancing at Stephanie out of the corner of her eye.

"Oh you think so?"

"I'm willing to bet 50 bucks, is your husband worth that kind of cash?"

"No," Stephanie said, "He's worth more, double it to a hundred or is that too much for Edge?"

"Ouch, burn," Lita said. "Fine, a hundred it is."

Chris and Edge had no idea they were wrestling for money while they were out there. They were wrestling for the glory and the honor. Being the champion meant being on top and both of them agreed that Swagger did not deserve to be on top of the company. So they were both determined to be the best and to be the champion again. They fought back and forth, neither one really getting the true advantage because neither one had pinned the other for the win. But they tried and struggled for it, both of them pulling out all the stops in order to win.

And then it ended in a double count-out. Edge had been waiting to spear Chris, wanting to hit him again in those taped-up ribs. There was something about the ring that brought out the animal in him. It was like he was a madman and the spear was the only remedy. He waited, like a hawk to its prey for Chris to get up and turn around. It took a while, but Chris got up and then turned around and Edge was already coming for him. Chris was too quick however and instead, he leap-frogged over Edge and out of the ring.

Edge baseball-slid into Chris, knocking him to the outside and then taking him into the crowd. Chris was pissed, they were going to get counted out, but Edge didn't seem to care! This was for a shot at the title and Edge had blown it. Now he _could_ blame Edge. He'd wanted to get back to the ring, but it was too late and now neither one of them would get the shot and this sent Chris over the ledge. He wanted his title back, damn it, and Edge had taken away the chance with a count out! He managed to get Edge back into to the ring and now he was the madman.

There were no friends in the ring, no friends in the ring, no friends…Chris grabbed the chair thinking no friends…but instead, he got speared. Well that was just adding insult to injury. First he'd lost the shot and now he'd been speared. This was not his night, but Edge had nobody to blame but himself. He could have thrown Chris into the ring and he didn't. He was pissed at himself, Chris was pissed at him. They were pissed at each other.

This was not going to end well.


	275. The Draft, Part 1, April 27, 2010

A/N: So it's like the title says, this is the first part of the draft. The chapter was getting a bit long and I was getting tired so I ended it right before the show, to be resumed in the next chapter. I skipped some stuff, but it's all good, those shows were kind of blah anyways, right? ;) So I'm kind of glad Chris is back on Raw because it makes my life easier for this story, which is very good. Anyways, hope you enjoy, reviews are good and sorry for what essentially amounts to a set-up chapter for Chris coming back to Raw. :)

* * *

The bad thing with a friendly feud was that it never stayed completely friendly.

Chris and Edge had tried to maintain their friendly relationship backstage while feuding onstage. The lure of the belt was too strong, however, and they were both blinded by gold. The fact that neither one would touch that gold set a fire under them that lead them to this cage. Inside of it, they would be warriors, mortal enemies on some ancient battleground of sorts. One of them would come out victorious and the other a loser. It was just the nature of the game and no, not the one Hunter seemed to constantly play, but another, more basic game, survival of the fittest.

"You know, cages are dangerous," Stephanie told Chris, "and you have a wife and three, count them, _three_ children who all rely on you."

"I think you could rely on yourselves if it came to that," he told her. "Besides, I'm not Jeff Hardy so I wouldn't just go crazy and then jump off the top of the cage or something. I would think that if given the chance, I would exit the cage."

"See, you say that now, but then when you're in there, I know the lure of wanting to decimate your opponent sinks in."

"What do you know about it, when was the last cage match _you_ were in?" he asked her blithely, raising an eyebrow at her. One that he promptly put down when she glared at him. "I really shouldn't say things like that while you're pregnant, should I?"

"No, you really shouldn't because I'm carrying your child and that makes me very irate and since I'm not going to yell at the baby and I'm not going to yell at our other children, that leaves one man to yell at…"

"Your father?"

Stephanie laughed, she couldn't help it, she'd set herself up for that one. She leaned across the couch and kissed him on the lips. "Okay, you got me there, I _could_ take it out on my father, but instead, I think I would much rather take it out on you."

"That doesn't sound promising," he told her, one side of his mouth lifting into a smirk. "So tell me more about this whole carrying my child business?"

"Well, I'm carrying your child and so you should be careful in your cage match tonight because I don't need you to get hurt and then make me stressed and then I could do something rash like go into early labor and do you really want that on your head?"

Chris pressed his hand to her stomach, feeling a little fluttering against his hand. The baby was constantly moving according to Stephanie. She said that it felt like the baby could not find a comfortable position and therefore just kept moving around and moving around, much to Stephanie's chagrin. She told him that neither Sawyer nor Flynn moved around as much as this one was and that it was getting uncomfortable for her as well. Sometimes she would wake up at night to the kid kicking around in there, like a little wrestler already.

"No, I really don't want that on my head…but speaking of putting something on someone's head, I've been meaning to ask you, why was Katie put on the chopping block? Did you have something to do with that? Were you getting jealous of our relationship?"

Stephanie sighed dramatically, "Oh, you know me, Chris. I was _so_ jealous of you and Katie that I _had_ to fire her. You know that wasn't on my head. Although I do have firing and hiring powers, so does my father and he made the final call. If I had my way, there would be other people being fired and though the name would start with a K, it wouldn't be Katie."

"I just really liked her, she was stunning," Chris sighed.

"Pregnant wife here who is very sensitive about her looks at the moment," Stephanie said, pointing to her stomach.

"I didn't say anything about you," Chris told her. "I'll be careful tonight, okay?"

"I'm holding you to that," Stephanie said. "So tell me, what can I do to help you calm down before your match?"

"That sounds promising."

"Remember that your kids are right there," Stephanie said, pointing to the kids sitting on the play blanket. Sawyer was "reading" a book to Flynn. He was describing all the pictures to her and coming up with his own story as Flynn listened attentively, leaning her head against Sawyer's shoulder so she could get a better look at what he was reading to her.

"How did we manage to have such adorable children?" Chris asked her. "I'm not talking looks-wise because I'm a sexy beast and probably the hottest guy on the planet so I was bound to have gorgeous children, but where did they get this sweetness from?"

"I want to say their mother."

"And I want to say you're delusional," Chris countered and laughed when Stephanie shoved him in the shoulder. "Sorry, sorry, sorry, you are the most delicate rose who never has a bad word to say about someone else and has not concocted numerous plans in an attempt to bring down your own family members."

"I don't need my life story," Stephanie said. "I think they're just good kids. I don't know how we got so lucky with them, but what, did you think we'd have little manipulative hellions for kids?"

"Yes," he told her, "well, maybe if I pictured having kids with you back in the day. Nowadays, I think all our kids will end up pretty awesome, however many decide to make their way into the world, planned or not."

"Usually unplanned."

"Can I get a massage?" he asked. "That would calm me down."

"Your wish is my command."

Britt was sitting with Evan when it happened. They were in catering and sitting on a bench situated against the wall. He was leaning back against the wall and she was leaning her back against his shoulder. There were monitors everywhere showing the Pay-Per-View on the screens. They were just casually watching them when Hunter came out for his match. Britt couldn't believe…no wait, she _could_ believe he would go out there and wrestle. Hunter was fearless and something that fearlessness led to recklessness.

"What is he doing out there?" she muttered to herself.

"What did you say?" Evan asked. He was looking at plan for Raw the next night. The draft matches were already out and passed around. He was going to have a match against CM Punk, which he knew was going to be a difficult one, especially if Luke and Serena were by his side. Then there was that mystery person from earlier that nobody knew about.

"Nothing," Britt said, her eyes fixed to the television.

She hadn't spoken or even seen Hunter since she ran away from him a couple weeks ago. She was mortified and couldn't bear seeing him. Plus, she wouldn't know what to say about it anyways. She didn't know why she'd run away. She was happy with Evan, happy with where their relationship was headed so why did she just run instead of standing her ground and telling Hunter those words, those separating words that would leave him alone and leave her alone? If she saw him again, she would just be horrified at her behavior and she'd be liable to run away again.

"Okay," Evan said, more interested in coming up with ways to beat Punk. Maybe he could recruit someone to come to his side. He knew the draft was important and getting a pick for his side would be pretty sweet. He might even be considered a hero of sorts. But then what if _he_ was drafted? It was okay because Britt worked on SmackDown as it was, but it would kind of suck to leave his friends at Raw. "Do you think I'll get drafted?"

"I don't know, it's completely arbitrary," Britt said blankly as she stared at the screen. Hunter looked okay some of the time, but she knew that arm had to be killing him. Damn him for his stubbornness. If she was with him, she would have made him stay put. She wasn't with him though and hadn't been for a very long time. She shouldn't start thinking things like that. She would've put her foot down, told him he was being stupid, and he would have listened to her, he always did. He was going to hurt himself further in this match, she could feel it and there was nothing she could do about it.

"Hey, I thought he was injured," Evan said, glancing at the screen. "What's he doing out there?"

"Being an idiot, that's what," Britt said, pushing herself away from Evan. "I better get back to work."

"I thought Chris and Stephanie weren't having you do anything tonight?" Evan said, confused, his eyebrows knitting together as he regarded her.

"They aren't, but I want to catch up on some stuff. Tomorrow is a busy day. I mean, Stephanie's not really working the show, I mean, not officially, but she's helping out. She's going to get contracts for the superstars switching brands and I'm going to help her deliver those. She's pregnant, you know, harder for her to do things…don't tell her I said that!" Britt said quickly, losing her cool. She _never _lost her cool, but it was flying out the window now, a bird on the horizon.

"Okay, we'll catch up later?"

"Definitely, we'll catch up," she nodded.

In actuality, she just wanted to watch the match in peace. She found a pretty remote place where there was a monitor set up. She figured it was one of the last and the technician had just put it anywhere and not cared because they had other, more important things to do. It afforded her a private viewing though. Hunter was still fighting with everything he had, but it wasn't looking good. That bastard was hurt. She clutched at her sides as she watched and waited for the outcome. It would end with Sheamus winning and she looked down at her feet. She couldn't bear to watch him looking like that. He never should have been out there. There was no shame in pulling out of a match because you were hurt, but that was the way _she_ saw the world, not the way he did.

She had not been there live to see Hunter pull his quad that first time. Hell, she barely even acknowledged wrestling's existence. It was this low-brow sport that only losers and slobs watched. She liked other things, better things and she could laugh at the people who actually found entertainment in that dreck. So she hadn't seen that match with him and Austin and Chris and Benoit. She hadn't seen the way he'd ripped his quad and kept going, even when Chris, _Chris_ who hated his guts told him to stop.

She'd watched it years later, horrified that he would continue with the match even when he knew something was seriously wrong. She couldn't believe someone could be so foolhardy. He'd taken months off his career with that stupid move, but that was him, that was Hunter. He didn't let things like that stop him. He didn't quit and sometimes it made you pay and made you lose matches and though Hunter may be proud, he was probably still pissed that he had lost. Except he really only had a few minutes to be pissed off.

As he was helped up the ramp, Sheamus came at him again and took him down and took him out. Yes, took him right out and now they were bringing stretchers out there. She was gone before she could even think, her feet thinking for her, pushing her forward and towards the gorilla. She got there just as they did and rushed to Hunter's side. As fast as she'd run away from him a short while before, now she was running towards him. She pushed her way through some of the referees around him and grabbed his hand. Still, she wasn't thinking, just reacting, but that's life, one huge reaction to something or another.

"Hunter?"

He opened his eyes briefly, squinting really, like the light was hurting him. "Hey, you."

"You're an idiot," she told him.

"I know," he said, "but I'm a damn good idiot."

"Still an idiot," she laughed. She looked up at the paramedics. "Is he going to be okay?"

"Looks like he's got a pretty bad concussion. We're going to take him in."

"I'm going with him," Britt said, not even knowing where that came from, but she couldn't say she wouldn't now. Besides, he couldn't be by himself while he was being looked after. Nobody deserved to be alone while they were in the hospital, that was just incredibly sad. "Is that okay?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Okay," Britt said, she squeezed Hunter's hand and he looked at her again, just as brief as the first time, and then closed them again. "Hunter, I'm going to the hospital with you, okay?"

"Okay, Britt," he said, his voice low and hoarse.

"I'm just going to call Stephanie and tell her what happened," she said, trying to make him let go over her hand. He wouldn't let it go though and she thought it a little cliché of him, but sometimes, all Hunter worked with were clichés. It was something she loved about him. It was like he wanted to live his life in a romantic movie and so he would do all these romantic and cliché things, but it would make her laugh because he was trying. Then everything got shot to hell with Shawn. "Hunter, I'm going to need this hand back really quick."

"No, you don't, I need you," he said, his voice firmer than it had been a moment later. She wondered, just for a nanosecond, if he was faking this as some elaborate plan to get her back. A plan worth of Stephanie and Chris, maybe they helped. But no, she couldn't believe that he would go to _this_ much trouble for her.

"I know, I'm coming with you, but I need to tell Stephanie," she told him.

"Okay," he said, but didn't let go of her hand. She rolled her eyes a little, stubborn to the end, this one was. She crossed her free hand in front of her and grabbed her phone from her pocket, scrolling through it with one hand and landing on Stephanie's number. She waited for her boss to pick up.

"You're with Hunter, aren't you?" Stephanie asked as she answered the phone.

"How did you know?"

"Women's intuition," Stephanie said smugly.

"We're standing right over here!" Chris called out and Britt turned her head to see Stephanie and Chris with the kids just off to the side. Sawyer was waving with Chris and Stephanie was trying to shove Chris's arm down, but he was glaring over at them.

Britt hung up her phone, her cheeks turning a deep red. She forcibly pulled Hunter's hand away from her own. "Hunter, I'll be right back." She pushed through the paramedics at over to Chris and Stephanie, who were wearing identical faces. She guessed it was true that married couples started to look like one another after a while. "Okay, I don't need the spiel, this is just a friend thing."

"Wasn't very friendly of you to run away from him a couple weeks ago," Stephanie told her friend.

"Shut up, he just needs someone. I'm sure if Shawn were here, Hunter would want him over me so I'm just the convenient pick."

"Oh please," Chris scoffed. "That's like saying that if I were injured, I'm really want Christian. He wants _you_, own up to it, Britt, the man is crazy about you, you're crazy about the man and the both of you should be locked in a padded room until you get back together."

"We're broken up and I'm perfectly happy with that, I just want to be there for him as kind of a…payback for what he did for me," Britt said. "Wait, no, that came out wrong. I just want to be there for him to make up for me running away. He didn't deserve that. I just should have told him it was completely over."

"Yet here you are and I'm assuming you're going to the hospital with him," Stephanie said.

"He needs someone, you wouldn't want Chris to be alone and worrying in a hospital bed, would you?"

"Huge difference," Stephanie told her.

"How is that a huge difference?" Britt challenged.

"Because Chris is my _husband_, we're married, which means that I am legally tied to him for the rest of my life. We had a wedding, we signed a license and a certificate, I changed my name from McMahon to McMahon-Jericho. It's all legit."

"Totally, I made sure of that because I eventually want the inheritance," Chris added. "Plus, I didn't want bastards for children."

"I'm not a bastard!" Sawyer said.

"See," Chris said with a shrug, snickering at the fact that Sawyer had said bastard.

"Whatever, I've got to go," Britt said. "I'll see you guys tomorrow. Good luck, Chris, I know you can win."

Then she was gone, a flourish of perfume and jet black hair. Stephanie turned to Chris. "I just hope she remembers to let Evan know she's leaving."

Chris laughed. "The drama never ends around here."

"Speaking of drama. I believe you were warming up for a match."

Warrior: a person engaged or experienced in warfare; soldier. Chris looked up at the cage. This time, being locked in this structure, his kids would not be watching from the crowd. It wasn't because he thought this would be any less brutal than the Elimination Chamber, Chris just didn't want a single distraction from this match. He and Edge were on the precipice of something dangerous and he wasn't sure how far things would go in this cage and best if he didn't think about how his kids were enjoying the match. They would have just a good a time watching him from backstage. When he'd left them, Flynn was sitting on Stephanie's lap and Sawyer was on Lita's. It was kind of funny that Lita and Stephanie were sitting together, but they had no beef with one another.

The only real beef Chris had with Edge was the loss of what should have been his #1 contendership. But stepping into that cage, it was as if the air-thickened. He hoped a claustrophobic never climbed into this cage. They would feel like a lab rat, being watched and observed, but no way out. Just as you reached the top, you'd be pulled back down, such is the nature of the cage and why it was one of the more violent of matches. He was reluctant to get in the cage. Edge had those crazy eyes of his. He grabbed a chair and hit the cage, but this seemed to incite Edge and in the blink of an eye, he was in the cage and the door was shutting behind him. He barely had time to gain his bearings, but knew that he needed to take every opportunity he could take to get to the top of that cage and so he started climbing, but Edge was alert and ready and brought him back down.

They jostled for a little bit before Chris tried to climb again, but again Edge got him. He knew he wasn't thinking right at the moment. He needed to calm down and get in the match, but all he could think about was _get out_. He and Edge were friends, yes, but friends only got you so far when you were wrestling. He knew he'd be hypocritical in thinking this because of his recent dalliance with Big Show, but wrestling, at the core, was a singular business. You thought of yourself and you only thought of yourself if you were a good wrestler. He could look to Hunter as an example. For as good as Hunter was with a group, he always came around to think of himself. That was the business, it had to be autonomous or you would get eaten alive.

Chris was in a unique situation in that he had a wife in the business so he was never _truly_ alone, but wrestling-wise, he'd always looked after himself first. Even when he'd aligned with people (Stephanie excluded) it had always been him first and everyone else second. So he and Edge, though friends, were enemies now, working towards the same prize, that W at the end of the match. They both fought like it was their last match. Just when Chris would think he had Edge finally and could pin him, Edge would kick out or grab him or prevent him from winning. The same went for Edge. Whenever he thought he had Chris down, the man would get back up and fight some more. They were familiar with each other so the match was more even than some of their previous matches with other opponents. For everything Chris could do, Edge could do as well.

It was probably his ankle being slammed in the door that really got to him. He didn't think Edge would go to that level. After that, his mental game suffered. Now he was thinking about how they could possibly move past this when it had gone beyond wrestling to actually injuring someone. Chris hadn't even intentionally injured Edge. He'd stomped on his ankle, sure, but never slammed it into a cage with the intent to hurt. The original injury, the one that really took out Edge had not been his own fault, but Edge and Lita's fault. So this was pretty uncalled for. It was soon after that that Edge got his damn spear, a word that Chris was really starting to despise, and then he got the three count.

Chris trudged backstage to see Edge hugging Lita. He walked up to Edge and tapped him on the shoulder. Edge flinched as he turned around, ready to be punched in the face or something akin to that. He remembered what Chris had done to Goldberg. "This has to end, man," Chris said.

Sawyer stomped up to Edge. "Ed!"

Edge and Chris looked down at him. Sawyer was looking like Stephanie right now, his hands on his hips as he stared up at his friend or the man who he _thought_ was his friend. He didn't seem very friendly right now. "You are very mean, you beat my daddy. I'm going to beat you up!"

Edge's head went back a little. "You're going to beat me up?"

"Yes!" he said, baring his teeth a little bit. "You don't beat my daddy up!"

Chris snickered. "Kid, come on…"

"No, Daddy, when you get beated, I have to help because you're my daddy," Sawyer said with a nod, the logic perfect in his head. He turned back to Edge. "I kick you!"

"Your kid is mean," Edge said, shaking his head.

"I watch my daddy wrestle and he's better than you," Sawyer said. "And I'm gonna be 4 and I can beat you up, Ed."

"Maybe once you get my name right," Edge said to him smugly. Lita looked at her boyfriend arguing with a 4 year old, well, this was quite the sight, but it made her question her boyfriend's maturity level a little bit.

"I know your name," Sawyer taunted. Chris coughed a little at his son's audacity. When the hell had he raised the most awesomely badass kid ever. "Okay, kid, I think it's time I step in, you're not going to fight Edge tonight. Daddy is very tired from his match and so we're going to go back to the locker room and I'm going to take a shower and you're going to get your toys and we're going back to the hotel to sleep."

"I can beat you, Ed!" Sawyer said as Chris led him away.

"Thanks for defending me, kid," Chris said as Stephanie took his hand. Chris went back over to Edge and extended his hand. "It's got to stop, man, it just has to stop. We're going to both end up in hospital beds…well, _you're_ going to end up in a hospital bed and I'm going to look like a bad guy more than I already do and look at my kid, he's flying off the handle because he's so enraged at all of this. So friends and that's all?"

Edge shook his hand. "Friends."

"Aww, the boys are making up," Lita said, making a face at Stephanie.

"Aww, they're adorable, like two little boys who had a fight," Stephanie said, joining in the teasing.

"Dada!" Flynn exclaimed, just for the hell of it and because everyone seemed to be talking but her and she didn't want anyone to forget she was there.

"Okay, good, so we're done with this," Chris said. "We'll see you tomorrow for Raw."

"You bet your ass you will."

Chris walked back over to his family and scooped up Sawyer into his arms. He kissed the boy's cheek and Sawyer laughed and patted his father's hands. "So, kid, do you really know his name? I mean, you do call him Ed, do you really know his name?"

Sawyer turned to Chris and smiled, very Stephanie-like, "Edge."

"Oh my God, you _are_ the most awesome kid ever."

Britt flipped through the eight contracts that had been sitting on Stephanie's desk. Stephanie had just handed them over and Britt was just counting them and making sure they were all in order. She put them back on Stephanie's desk and then took out the schedule again, trying to figure out just when they'd be needed. Neither one had spoken beyond Stephanie instructing Britt on what to do. Other than that, the silence had reigned over them.

"He's out indefinitely," Britt told Stephanie.

"I know," Stephanie responded. "The hospital contacted me. Hunter's an idiot and _still_ hasn't changed his contact information on his insurance forms. I'm still the one they contact whenever he gets hurt. I think he did that on purpose though since if he's hurt it does still affect me. Anyways, I know. How is he?"

"Pissed about it, like you know he would be, but he's trying to be strong about it, but it's coming off as stubborn more than anything else."

Stephanie nodded. "That's Hunter to a tee. He just does what he wants. I'm glad he doesn't have the medical clearance this time. How are you doing? Did you spend the entire night with him or anything?"

"Wow, way to be straightforward there, Stephanie," Britt said, rolling her eyes and thumbing through the contracts again to give her hands something to do other than twiddle in her lap. "I stayed for a few hours and then I left and went back to my hotel room. Then I called Evan and told him I was back and then I went to bed and that was it. There was no concussion sex or anything like that, if that's what you were thinking. He was sick, I stayed with him, that's what a good friend does."

"Good friends don't run away from other good friends."

"I was just awkward," Britt said. "It was nothing more than being a little awkward, I see that now. I can separate the Britt that loved Hunter and the Britt I am now. He's just a guy I cared about and loved once upon a time and--"

"Britt, seriously, I've known you for years now, since Sawyer was a newborn, cut with the crap. Stop fooling yourself into thinking that you are in love with Evan--"

"I never said I was in love with him."

"Well, you're acting like you are or that you're at least trying to fall in love with him even though you probably aren't and you know it. You think if you can convince yourself you're in love than you actually _will_ be in love. Look, I think Evan is a nice guy, more than nice, really, he's a great guy, but you're kidding yourself if you think you're over Hunter. You guys never had closure, it was like, one second he's there, you're there, the next second, you're both gone."

"That was _not_ my fault."

"I'm not ascribing fault to anyone, I'm just saying, stop denying what you _know_. If I'd spent the last eight years denying that I'm in love with Chris, I wouldn't be where I am right now. There's only so far denial can take you."

"I'm_ not_ in denial, God, I wish people would stop saying that," Britt said. "You don't know what I'm thinking! You don't know how it feels to walk out of a bathroom and find out that your boyfriend and his best friend have _ditched_ you."

"Do not go toe-to-toe with me on bad relationships with Hunter," Stephanie told her, her voice rising. It was a good thing Chris had the kids with him because this was getting a little bit ugly. "Because I have some doozies, but the guy makes mistakes. We eventually forgave each other. I eventually became friends with him…see where I'm going with this."

"Yes, and that's what I'm leaving," Britt said. "I'll come back when the draftees become drafted, until then you can keep your opinions to yourself. I don't need your input. What do you even know about dating? You've been married for five years, you're settled. You don't have to worry!"

"Because I'm married means that I've forgotten all about the horrors of dating? Even Chris and I weren't always smooth sailing. Now it's great, but it was rough too."

"Stephanie," she said, rubbing her temples. "Look, I can run my life, I promise I can."

"Okay, if you say so."

"I do say so, now if you'll excuse me." She went to the door and opened it, jumping back a little as she saw Ted about to knock on the door. "Oh, hey, Ted, here to see Stephanie?"

"Yeah, just wanted to say hi," Ted said, peeking in, "Hey, Stephanie."

"Come on in, Ted," Stephanie told him, gesturing for him to sit down. Ted's eyes settled on her stomach a little. She seemed to be getting bigger every time he saw her, but then she was pregnant so of course she was getting bigger. She was still really beautiful though. He sat. "What's going on?"

"Nothing, just glad to see you on Raw. Are you hoping Chris gets drafted here?"

"Well, it would get me away from one of my biggest sources of stress, which is Vickie and it would mean that I could hang out with Trish when she comes around so…I guess I am kind of rooting for him to come back to Raw."

"That's cool, we could hang out."

"We could…are you okay, Ted, you look a little…I don't know, gaunt," Stephanie said, giving him the once over. "Are you sick?"

"Just got over food poisoning," he said.

"Oh, you poor boy," Stephanie said, standing up and hugging him. With their positions being the way they were, his head rested against her stomach and very near her breasts. "Are you feeling better?"

Well he certainly was now. "Yeah, I'm okay, it took a few days to clear up, but I'm good. I'll be fine."

"Are you going to be able to wrestle tonight?" she asked him, patting him on the head like he was a little boy. She had been a mother for too long, now she was trying to baby a grown man who wasn't feeling well. "We can take you out of that battle royal match that we're having. There are a ton of guys we can put in your place."

"No, no, no, I'll wrestle."

She finally pulled away. "Good, I'm glad to hear that, but if you start to feel worse then just let me know. We can absolutely replace you. I'm kind of in charge tonight. I don't want to say that I just took over without permission, but…I just took over without permission."

Ted laughed. "Why do I figure that's typical behavior for you?"

"I resent that," she told him with a fake pout.

Chris walked in and saw the two of them, "Am I interrupting your illicit affair? Because if I am, I can give you some tips on positions Stephanie likes to use…"

"Chris!" Stephanie said, her jaw dropping, but no blush coming to her cheeks. Ted admired her self-confidence. "Shut your mouth."

"I'm just asking, I want to pass on my wisdom to the new recruit," Chris joked. "I just came in here to get Flynn's sippy cup. We're eating dinner in catering and she wants some juice, but they only have the one's with the wide mouth and unless you want a little girl that is covered in apple juice, you'll find that cup."

"It's in her bag, side pocket," Stephanie said.

Chris went and grabbed it. "Thanks, I'll just be going back to eating now. You know, the thing that takes a while, such a while that you two could do whatever you want. Have fun, kiddies, don't do anything I wouldn't do!"

Chris walked back out and Stephanie shook her head and folded her arms over her stomach. "I swear to God, if I wasn't carrying that man's child, I would kick him right now." She looked over to Ted who was a nice shade of crimson. She giggled a little, quietly, "Ted, are you okay?"

"Yeah, sure, he's just, I mean, he doesn't really…"

"Think we're having an affair?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, I mean, how can he joke about that, you know? I mean, I get how, but he doesn't care? That came out wrong, I just didn't realize how…I don't know what I'm saying," he told her, words failing him miserably. "I'm sorry, it was just a little embarrassing thinking that he might think…"

"He would never think," Stephanie said, "that's why it's so funny to him. He just acts like a goofball like that. I swear, it's not a big deal. He's just joking around, he does that_ a lot_ with everyone, especially me. He loves to tease me."

"And you're okay with that?"

"Would I have this," she said, pointing down to her stomach, "if I wasn't. He's just messing around and even though he's being a jerk about it, he's just joking with us. So are you sure you're fit to wrestle tonight?"

He thought about the way her hug felt, but as her sentence ended, he broke himself free from the thought. "Yeah, I'm definitely ready."

Chris came back with Flynn's cup, unscrewing the top and filling it up with juice before handing it over to her. "Tank tank, Dada!"

"You're welcome, Flynnie!" Chris told her just as enthusiastically.

"I don't need a baby cup," Sawyer declared proudly, grabbing his glass between both of his hands and then taking a sip. "I'm 4 and I can drink from a cup."

"Well congratulations," Edge said sarcastically and Sawyer just glared at him. They were having a showdown today and Edge was determined to win against the kid. He was going to be no match for Edge.

"Dude, isn't it awesome all being on the same show," Christian said. "I really hope we're all on the same show. Think of how much we could rock Raw."

"I'll rock wherever I go," Chris said. "And maybe _you'll_ be on SmackDown."

"I could, I could, but just think, we'd finally get to be on the same show again and we can all hang out like old times…hey, is Stephanie still talking with Kurt or did that thing already blow up?" Christian asked.

"Still friends, still chugging along," Chris said. "We'll see where that goes. I'm just letting her do her own thing, but if he hurts her in any way, he's a dead man, guaranteed."

"I'll help," Edge said. "So if we're on the same show, are we going to be like, a faction or something?"

"E&C back together again," Christian said, doing his secret handshake with his brother.

"You two are on your own if we're on the same show. I don't want anything to do with you two weirdoes. I'll be afraid that you'll follow me around with kazoos and ten gallon hats and Elvis costumes and trust me, Flynn freaks out if she sees me in anything Elvis-related, a childhood trauma for her."

"Dude, you'd have to join in."

"No, I wouldn't," Chris said.

"You so would," Edge said. "Because we rule!"

"Like sodas rule!" Christian said as he high-fived Edge.

"Sodas rule!" Sawyer chimed in.

"Hell yeah," Christian and Edge said, both holding up a hand and Sawyer slapped them five. "Never mind," Edge said. "We'll just take Sawyer under our wing and he'll be the next generation of E&C. He has the blond hair going for him. He'll fit right in with us."

"Okay, you can have him. I need the space since I'm having another."

"Dude, I've got Tilde, the cutest baby on the planet so Edge can have him."

"I have Lita, the hottest woman on the planet."

"No way!" Chris and Christian said at the same time and laughed. "Yeah, that's not true," Chris said. "Stephanie is hotter."

"Trish is," Christian said. "You two are both delusional if you don't think Trish is the hottest woman in the world."

"Then I'm delusional, have you _seen_ my wife?" Chris said. "I mean, she's got everything, beauty, brains, sense of humor, money, good birthing hips, everything you could ask for in a woman."

"Steph is pretty, yes, but Lita, Stephanie's got nothing on Lita."

"My mommy is pretty," Sawyer said.

"See, 2-1 on both ends," Chris said.

"Not fair, not fair, you have a kid that can talk," Christian said.

"Mama!" Flynn added.

"You've got _two_ kids who can talk," Christian amended his first statement. "That's just not fair because if Tilden could talk, she would tell you that Trish is hotter."

"What, no way, you guys can't use your kids in this, that's just not fair because Li and I don't have any and Chris has like fifty and Christian has Tilde and it's not fair!" Edge protested.

"I can't help it that I decided to settle down before you two asses," Chris said. "So it's completely on the up and up. 3-1 and 3-2, either way, my wife is the hottest thing to come out of the Connecticut upper-class. Plus, why do you think she keeps getting pregnant? Because she's so hot I can't stay away."

"My wife was the Babe of the Year…and shut up, Chris," Christian said.

"Dude, Li, well, the whole world wanted to see us having sex," Edge said.

"I didn't," Christian replied. "I was grossed out."

"You don't count."

"So is this what I have to look forward to?" Chris asked.

"Well, I guess we'll see where we end up," Edge said.

"The way the cookie crumbles," Christian said.

"The roll of the dice."

"The cards we're dealt."

"The way the stars align."

"Oh my God, I'm getting away from you two," Chris said, covering his ears. "Why don't you guys be on Raw and I'll just be on SmackDown, how does that sound?"

"No way, you have to join us, you're Canadian too."

"If ever there was a time to claim my American roots."

"One of us, one of us," Christian laughed. "Come on, it won't be so bad. Hopefully we end up on the same show."

"I guess we'll find out soon…"


	276. Raw Again, Part 2, April 27, 2010

A/N: Thanks to everyone who reads this, I hope you're enjoying the story. Glad Chris is on Raw again, just kind of hoping they use him right, but I guess that remains to be seen. Hope you enjoy the second part of last week's chapter and if you want to, review because it really helps me know where everyone wants the story to go and if I don't know where you want to go, then I'm forced to make all the decisions by myself and that's never good! ;)

* * *

"Hey, Stephanie."

"Kurt, I'm so glad you could make it," Stephanie said, standing up and pushing herself away from her desk.

Kurt's eyes widened, "Wow, are you like twice the size you were when I last saw you or something because you look huge."

"Wow, that's _exactly_ what you want to say to a pregnant woman," Stephanie laughed. "I so love hearing that I look a stuffed turkey or something akin to that…and yes, Chris did refer to me as a stuffed turkey. It just goes to show how much he truly loves me."

Kurt laughed and hugged her. "he shouldn't call you those things if he knows what's good for him. I can imagine you punching him in the face while giving labor."

"The previous two times I've been too involved, but seeing as how this is my third child, I'm thinking it'll slide right out," she kidded.

"How are you even due in August?" Kurt asked. She looked way too big to be due in August. It looked like she could pop at any moment really.

"Oh, I didn't tell you, yeah, they were a bit off. I thought I'd told you. We found out a little while ago. I have…issues with some things and it's sometimes hard at the beginning, but I could've sworn that I told you that I'm due in July. They bumped me up."

"Well congratulations," Kurt said. It felt so nice to be able to talk with Stephanie like this again. He'd missed just being around her and seeing her smile and laugh and joke around with him. He knew that she had been having fun and doing great things since they were last friends and he had too, but there was still the familiarity there. "Is Chris ready to be a father for the third time?"

"At this point we just feel like it's adding onto the pile we already have so we're not really nervous. I mean, it's a little crazy that we're going to have so many little kids. We really wanted to space this out better. I mean, I've always wanted a large family, I don't know, I know I started kind of late with the whole kid thing and so did Chris, even later, but I just foresaw us having a larger family, but I didn't think they would all come in a rush."

Kurt laughed. "Well, I think that just goes to show that your relationship with Chris hasn't…uh, lost steam in the past seven years."

"Almost eight," Stephanie said proudly. "I kind of want this little one to come on July 18th so that it'll share an anniversary with us. It can be born on the eight year anniversary of its parents. I think that would be perfect."

"Still holding fast on not finding out what it is?"

"Yeah, Chris and I are really committed this time. We just think it'll be easier this time around because we have boy stuff from Sawyer and girl stuff from Flynn so either way we've got things covered. The hard part is getting Flynn out of her crib. She's one of those people who gets really attached to things and she doesn't like change _at all_."

"Don't you think that's going to kind of be a bad thing once the baby comes along?"

Stephanie rubbed her stomach. "We're trying to ease her into it. Sawyer really likes talking to the baby, he's fascinated with pregnancies…I hope that doesn't mean he's going to be a doctor when he gets older."

Kurt chuckled, "Only you, Stephanie."

"He has to carry on the legacy," she argued. "He loves the idea of a new baby though. To him, they're just smaller playmates. I can't wait until he's older and realizes that siblings can be a pain in the ass. Those will be fun times for me and Chris."

"So he talks to your stomach?"

"Yeah, every night he talks to the baby. I swear, these kids come out and Sawyer is the first thing they know because he's a chatterbox. He doesn't let me and Chris get a word in edgewise. This baby is going to think we're strangers. But since he talks to the baby, Flynn wants to talk to the baby, which is usually a pretty short conversation since she doesn't know too many words. I think she knows more, she's just not much of a talker, she's more a listener."

"So you're trying to get her used to the baby?"

"Yeah, we're trying. We show her pictures of herself and Sawyer as a baby and talk about how much fun it is to have a baby and how she'll get someone new to play with. We try and take her over to see Tilden when we're at home. She's not crazy about that though. She doesn't like her very much because Sawyer dotes on her a little bit and she hates to have the attention away from her."

"Sounds like someone I know."

"Oh Kurt, you have a lot to learn about me now."

"I don't think I do. I bet Chris would beg to differ."

"Okay, so I do like the attention on me," she confessed. "Still, we're trying with her and everything."

"Where are the kids?"

"They're in catering right now eating dinner. I ate earlier with Britt so I'm not there and I think they're with Edge and Christian as well. Maybe Lita, no wait, Lita had a gig tonight with her band so it's just the boys and the kids."

"Do they know I'm here?"

Stephanie looked down sheepishly and shook her head before looking back up at Kurt. "No, they don't know that I invited you. Hell, I didn't really let anyone know. I know that you work for the competition and it might cause a bit of a stir if everyone knew you were here."

"I guess that's true. You could probably never visit me when I return to TNA."

"Yeah, they'd think I was spying or something."

"Wouldn't you be?"

"I would just be visiting my friend," Stephanie said. "Of course, I'd bug the place, maybe drop some in Dixie's bag. I'd like to meet her though, I don't know, just to meet her I guess, see what the competition is like."

"You would," Kurt said. "Do you think Chris is going to be mad that I'm here?"

"No, he's too busy with the kids for one, plus he has a match this evening against," Stephanie looked at her sheet. "Oh, it's against Christian. I wonder if they know about this. It's going to be for a draft pick."

"Do you want Chris to stay on SmackDown?"

"To be honest, no," Stephanie said. "It's crowded over there with Teddy and now Vickie, who hates my guts, which is fine because I hate hers too. She's an annoying, whiny shrew of a woman. I don't know how Edge could stand her for as long as he did. Hell, I don't know how he could stand her period!"

"Okay, since you're pregnant, it's probably not a great idea to get so worked up, don't you think?" Kurt told her. "Just a thought."

"Sorry, I just hate it over there. My father gave her power just so he could usurp my power because he was angry with me. I hardly think that's fair. He just wants to hurt me. I don't understand him."

"Wait, did you…did you get Bret to come back?" Kurt asked. He'd seen Bret's return and he couldn't believe it. There were some things you never thought you'd see on WWE television and the return of Bret Hart had been one of them. When he saw him, he thought hell might have frozen over.

"I have the best husband in the entire world," Stephanie beamed.

"You mean _Chris_ got him to come back?" Kurt asked incredulously. "I didn't know that he knew Bret or anything."

"He pulled some strings. He refuses to tell me how he did it and I even asked Bret, but he just said that my husband obviously loves me, which I knew. I think he pulled a lot of strings and called in a lot of favors for it and he must have been persuasive as hell to get Bret to agree. Then again, he did persuade me to fall in love with him so I guess anything is possible."

"Wow, that's crazy. I just kind of thought Bret wanted to stick it to your dad, I didn't know that you were in on it, I'm impressed."

"Like there was ever any doubt that I had something to do with my dad getting his ass kicked, oh Kurt, you're silly if you thought I wasn't involved."

"Well then I guess I'm silly," Kurt said. "You know, maybe you should tell your husband that I'm here, just so he doesn't get really mad at you or anything."

"Chris is nothing to worry about, Kurt, trust me."

Chris grabbed a schedule. "I guess I better see what I've got tonight. They couldn't possibly keep the best at what he does off the show."

"That line is so tired," Edge said, pretending to yawn. "I don't think you're even close to the best at this. If you're looking at the true best wrestler, then you need to turn your head slightly to the left because then you'd be looking at him."

"My daddy is the best!" Sawyer told his friend. "He's the best, best, best."

"Why do I imagine that you make your kid watch hours and hours of your matches when you're at home, like you lock him in a room and just keep him in there watching your matches?" Edge said.

Chris glared at him. "I resent that. The kid just has the right idea. He knows who's good around here. Besides, Flynn is the one who is obsessed with my matches. She can't get enough of watching me. I had to start at the very beginning because she was demanding more and more of me. Right now we're watching some of my stuff from Japan. She loves all the masks and everything."

"Your kids are nuts."

"Ed, I know my daddy is good because he beat you."

"What! He doesn't beat me!" Edge said. "I speared him."

"Uh uh," Sawyer said, shaking his head. "I saw it because I was there and I saw you and I saw you lose because you're a loser!"

"Your kid is the worst," Edge said, sulking and folding his arms in front of him. "Haven't you ever taught him manners, like not to insult people. Aren't kids supposed to be taught to be nice and stuff, but your kid is just downright mean!"

"He saw it with his own eyes, how can you dispute that?"

"At least you're better than that guy?" Edge said, pointing at his brother who was standing a little ways off and on the phone. "He makes Trish give him like 10 minute updates on Tilden. He's the most obsessive father I've ever seen in my entire life! I don't know why he's so crazy."

"Because it's his first kid," Chris said. "Give him a break."

"You were _not_ like this with Sawyer, I remember, it wasn't that long ago that he was born."

"I'm going to be four!" Sawyer said, holding up his fingers to Edge. "I'm going to be four on May 2nd because that's my birthday and that is when my mommy had me in the hospital."

"Yeah, I know, I remember," Edge told him. "I know how old you're going to be because I'm invited to your party."

"You know, it doesn't reflect well on you when you argue with a four-year-old."

"No, no, Daddy, I not four yet, I not four until May 2nd."

"I'm sorry," Chris said, bowing a little bit. "It doesn't reflect well on you when you argue with a _three-year-old_."

"Well, if you'd raised one with manners, I wouldn't have to argue with him," Edge, well, argued. "I know how old you are, Sawyer."

"Are you coming to my party?"

"Yes, I'm coming to your party," Edge told him.

"Are you going to get me a present?" Sawyer asked eagerly. He was at that age where he pretty much knew what birthdays were about and they were about cake and presents, two things he loved a lot, but didn't get enough of. Sure, his parents got him a lot of things, but they didn't always get him everything he wanted. Chris and Stephanie were against spoiling their children. They didn't want for much, but they weren't going to get them everything they set their eyes on. It had set off some tantrums, but Stephanie and Chris were firm on their stance and if it meant their kids whined and cried, that's what it meant. She wasn't going to raise spoiled brats like she'd grown up around.

"I don't know why I should," Edge said, "because you're mean to me, but yes, I bought you a present."

"Did Lita buy me one?"

"We're sharing because we're boyfriend and girlfriend."

"Oh, I have a girlfriend," Sawyer told Edge.

"What!" Edge said, glancing up at Chris. "You do not."

"Uh huh," Sawyer nodded very seriously.

"You do not, you're too young to have a girlfriend."

"I'm almost four, Ed."

"You still don't have a girlfriend," Edge taunted him.

Sawyer nodded. "I do."

"He does not," Edge said, looking at Chris.

"Actually, he does," Chris said. "As much as a four-year-old can have a girlfriend. She's this cute little girl in his preschool, what's her name, Sawyer?"

"Her name is Matilda and she likes me, Ed and she's nice and she said that she would bring me a cupcake for my birthday that her mommy made and she's coming to my party and all my friends from preschool are coming to my party too and we're going to have fun, right, Daddy?"

"Hell yeah we're going to have fun, we're going to have a damn blast!"

"Blast!" Sawyer repeated.

"I can't believe your kid has a girlfriend, what is the world coming to?" Edge said. "Also, did you schedule it so that Raw next week was in Florida so that you wouldn't have to travel far?"

"Yeah, actually we did. When they were setting up the venues a while ago. We're trying to at least be close enough to where we can spend their birthdays at home. Don't know yet how it's going to work out for Flynn's. I mean, Stephanie will be at home anyways because the new baby should be around by then so it's just me."

"How is that going to work? I mean, are you going to leave her with three children on her own because I'm thinking about Stephanie having to deal with a newborn and two little kids and that's not a pretty sight."

"I'm going to be taking the kids with me. Once in a while, maybe one will stay, but while Stephanie is at home with the new one, I'll at least have one of them with me when I travel so that she's not overwhelmed. I don't want her to feel like I'm just dumping the kids on her while I get to go out and do my thing. I don't really want to come home to Stephanie's wrath if that's the case."

"I wouldn't either, man, I wouldn't either."

"Oh man, this is going to be epic," Chris said, looking down at the schedule. "Check this out."

"What?" Edge asked, looking down at the piece of paper. He scanned the page until he came to Chris's name. He looked to see who Chris was facing and he started laughing. "Wow, are you kidding me? You and Christian are going to wrestle, wait until he finds out about this. Yo, bro, why don't you get off the damn phone for a second?"

"I'm talking to Tilde!" Christian yelled at them.

"She's two months old, dude, I don't think she even knows what the hell you're saying. To her it's probably like some weird, foreign language and so everything you say just goes in one ear and out the other," Edge yelled back at him.

"You shouldn't yell," Sawyer said. "It's not nice."

"He can't hear me otherwise because he's too busy talking to something that doesn't understand."

"Why don't you give the guy a break?" Chris asked. "He's just being a dad."

"What do you call this you're doing here?" Edge asked, gesturing towards Sawyer who was standing next to Chris and Flynn who was sucking a pacifier and watching the proceedings, proving Stephanie's point that Flynn was more of a listener than a talker. "Being a pal?"

"He's new at it."

"Christian, get off the phone, she can't understand you!"

"It's crucial for her to hear my voice. She needs to hear my voice so that she knows who I am."

"I'm sure she hears your voice when you're at home!" Edge called at him.

"She's just a baby, you don't know that she doesn't forget!" Christian yelled back.

"God, just because he reads a book he thinks he's the expert. He's getting to be really annoying with all of this. I get that he's a father now, but he doesn't have to be so annoying with the facts and figures and the books. That's all he reads, you know, baby books and stuff about babies. I don't know how Trish puts up with him quite frankly. I would've thrown him out on his ass."

"Why don't you be a little more sensitive? You don't get it because you're not a dad. If you ever become one, then you'll understand better, I think. The guy just loves his daughter, that's all. Plus, she's still really new and they're still trying to get the hang of it. Stephanie and I are seasoned veterans."

"You were never like this. I can't even be around him. Whenever I go over to see Tilden, he tries to tell me everything I need to do. He sits there and watches me like a hawk, like I'm going to do something wrong and if I so much as shift her the wrong way or she even whimpers, he gets all over me."

"Give him time."

Christian finally meandered over. "Don't interrupt me when I'm talking to Trish and Tilden."

"You're becoming a real jackass, you know that," Edge grumbled.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me," Edge said. "The only thing that you are right now is a dad, you're nothing else. You don't do anything else, you don't talk about anything else, everything you do is Tilden this, Tilden that."

"I'm her _father_."

"Wow, really, I didn't know that from the _million_ times you've told me," Edge snapped at him. "I'm going to go call Lita, later, Chris, bye Sawyer, bye Flynn." He purposefully ignored Christian and stomped off.

"What the hell is his problem?" Christian wondered.

"I think he's jealous of Tilden," Chris answered.

"What?" Christian asked, looking at Chris in bewilderment. "You think my brother, who is in his 30's, is jealous of my 2 month old daughter? You're going to have to explain that one to me, man."

"Let's face it, Christian, right now, you're kind of all about Tilden, right?"

"She's my daughter."

"Yeah, I get that, I mean, I have one," Chris said, hefting up Flynn a little bit. She giggled because she thought it was some sort of game. "Plus, I've also got a son." Chris pointed down to Sawyer, who had actually wandered off to watch the beginning of the show. He was just a few feet away looking at the monitor where the Hart Dynasty was facing off against Big Show and Miz for the titles. "In addition to that, I've got another one currently residing in my wife's uterus. I know all about being a dad."

"So why do you think Edge is jealous then?"

"Because you're his brother and have been his best friend for years."

"We weren't really friends growing up. He was always annoyed by me because I was younger. It wasn't until Edge was in the sixth grade that he would really even consider me his friend in any sort of fashion."

"Don't need the E&C history lesson, Christian," Chris said. "All I'm saying is that all your time is focused on Tilden and when was the last time you went out with Edge?"

"I don't know."

"I'm willing to be that it was before Tilden was born."

"I've been busy with her. She takes up a lot of my time."

"You know, it's okay to not spend every waking moment with her."

"Not fair, your kids travel with you," Christian said. "You don't know what it's like."

"I do right after Stephanie has a baby and I know it's hard, but you will learn that a little time spent away from your kids can be a good thing," Chris said, thinking about the times that he and Stephanie get a bit of a break. They were going to need even more breaks soon when chaos burst into their lives in the form of a new baby. He was just happy that this little one was much easier on Stephanie. Either that or Stephanie was becoming so used to being pregnant that she wasn't complaining as much. "Anyways, we've got a match tonight."

"We what?" Christian asked.

Flynn pulled out her pacifier and spoke up, "Match." Then she put the pacifier back in her mouth.

"What she said," Chris said.

"Why?"

"In case you've forgotten, man, we have a draft tonight and it's for a draft pick and for pride," Chris told him. "So you better get your daughter off your mind because I'm going to kick your ass. Not only that, but I'm going to demand that your pissant, little rookie from NXT apologize to me for what happened."

"Why should he?"

"Because he made me lose my focus and everything and he's a cheap."

"Whatever," Christian said. "I'm going to go put my ring stuff on and then call Trish again. I was so rudely interrupted last time and I want to make sure that Tilden knows I'm not angry at her, but at her Uncle Edge. You know, I'm going to teach her to say Uncle Adam, just to piss him off."

"I'll see you later then," Chris said, watching Christian walk away. "Yeah, that's one bitter man, Flutterby. I'm going to kick his butt later though."

"Daddy, come watch!" Sawyer exclaimed, running over and jumping up to grab Chris's free hand.

"Okay, okay, I'm coming."

Stephanie laughed as Kurt told her a funny story about something that happened backstage at TNA. There was a knock on the door and Stephanie called for them to come in and saw Ted. She grinned and looked at him, "Hey, Ted, come on in, what's up?"

"I was just walking around, talking to some people, thought I'd say hi," he drawled, then noticed the other person in the room. "Kurt Angle, right?"

"You know who he is," Stephanie joked.

"Yeah, nice to see you again," Ted said, extending his hand and shaking it.

"That's quite the belt you have there," Kurt said, gesturing towards the million dollar belt that Ted had slung over his shoulder.

"Oh yeah, thanks," Ted said, glancing over at Stephanie. "How are you feeling today?"

"A little more swollen in places that shouldn't swell," Stephanie said, then pointed towards the seat. "You should sit down for a second. Kurt and I were just talking, but you're free to join in the conversation."

Ted sat down. "I can't stay long. I'm actually going around looking for someone to join up with me, you know, an associate of sorts, now that I'm on my own, really, I thought that it would be wise to have someone by my side."

"What happened to Cody?"

"Well, I think we decided it best if we part ways. We were only holding each other back and now that we're out from under Randy's thumb, I think it would be better for the both of us to branch out and see what else we can do and who else we can destroy in the company."

"If Chris comes to Raw, why don't you join up with him?" Stephanie asked. Kurt kind of wondered who the hell this kid thought he was? It wasn't that he immediately disliked Ted, but he could see that Stephanie especially liked him and he was failing to see what she saw in him. He seemed like a smart-mouthed kid who believed he was entitled to things he wasn't entitled to.

"Well, I don't think that's necessarily the kind of associate that I was looking for. I was thinking more along the lines of…well, what Virgil was for my father," Ted explained.

Stephanie raised an eyebrow. "So like a butler?"

"If that's how you want to phrase it."

"Oh Ted," Stephanie laughed, "Good luck with that. I don't think there's one guy in this entire company that is just going to agree to that. But I mean, maybe there is someone around here that will, but I wouldn't hold my breath on that one."

"I would pay them handsomely."

"You know, money _doesn't_ buy you everything, I'm sure that's a lesson that you were never taught so I'm saying it now."

"I guess you're right," Ted said, "but it could buy you most things and I'm sure it would be enough to buy someone around here."

Yeah, Kurt definitely didn't like this guy. He just rubbed him the wrong way somehow. Stephanie rolled her eyes. "Ted, you have so much to learn about the way the world works, but don't worry, you will."

The door opened and Chris walked in with Flynn and Sawyer. He had Flynn still in his arms so she was blocking his sight of Kurt and he only saw Ted and Stephanie sitting there. "Oh hello lovebirds, what are you doing in here? Planning where your next tryst will be?"

Chris always took delight in the way Ted reddened whenever he teased him and Stephanie. He had grown amused of the other man. He wouldn't call them friends by any means, but whenever Chris could make the other man blush or feel embarrassed, he considered it a minor victory. One day the kid might actually answer back and zing Chris back. Right now though, he just got embarrassed and looked like he wanted to slink out of there with his tail between his legs. If Ted only knew that Chris knew that Ted had a crush on Stephanie, which was weird given the fact she was very pregnant at the moment.

"Chris, stop," Stephanie said good-naturedly, rolling her eyes.

"What? I told Ted repeatedly that I'm willing to share. But don't worry about getting her pregnant, Ted, I already took care of that myself," Chris winked at him, which made Ted go even redder.

"Chris, seriously, stop it, you're going to torture the poor man," Stephanie said, shaking her head and giving him a look to cut it out. Chris just smirked at her and she glared at him a little, having a conversation with their eyes.

"Um, I better go," Ted said.

"Hey, you know, I'm actually going to be going overseas for some Fozzy stuff soon and New York," Chris said, "On Friday, actually, so you know, if you want to take Stephanie away for a few days."

"Chris!"

"Ted, dude, I'm sorry," Chris said, laughing at him. He set Flynn down, who immediately went over to Stephanie and lifted her arms. Stephanie lifted Flynn into her arms and tried to take Flynn's pacifier away, but she bit down on it and wouldn't let it go. Chris stood up and saw Kurt there and his eyes widened slightly.

"Angle," Chris said curtly. "I didn't see you there."

"My cue to leave," Ted said, quickly getting up and making a quick getaway.

"Hey, Chris," Kurt said, standing up and extending a hand to Chris. Chris looked down at it and Kurt put it away. "Um, Stephanie invited me tonight. I'm on leave from TNA, injury issues and some other stuff and didn't have anything to do."

"I see," Chris said, sucking at his teeth a little.

Sawyer, who'd been watching the show again looked over, "It's you again!"

"Hey, Sawyer," Kurt said.

"Hi," Sawyer said, "I'm watching wrestling, bye!" He flopped himself on the couch, then remembered himself and jumped off, running over to Stephanie and kissing her stomach and saying, "Hi, baby!"

Flynn, who wanted to be everything Sawyer was, took her pacifier out again and said, "Hi baby," just like her brother had. Sawyer ran back to the couch and jumped on it again, watching the screen and the show because that was more fun than watching his parents.

"I invited him, Chris," Stephanie said.

Chris adjusted his tie a little. "Yeah, I get it. It's fine, you know, whatever."

"Look, Chris," Kurt started, but Chris put a hand up to stop him, but Kurt didn't. "Look, I know that you and Stephanie are different people, but she accepted me back into her life and I'd love for you to do the same. We were friends, best friends, too and I want to get that back."

"After you treated my wife the way you did, treated me the way you did. You hurt her and betrayed us. Dude, I have held a grudge for over four years because Austin kicked my wife in the stomach, what makes you think I would ever stop holding a grudge for you."

"Chris, stop it," Stephanie said seriously. "Look, we're all different people now, maybe if you learn about the Kurt that's here now, we can all move past this entire ugly past thing. Remember what part Kurt played in our lives."

"I'm going to go see if Wade is around, see if he took care of those travel issues he was having," Chris said, rolling up his sleeves and walking out.

"Well that didn't go well," Kurt mumbled.

"Give him time, Kurt, you know how Chris is, he's obstinate, but he'll come around, I know he will."

Edge wandered around backstage, trying to figure out something to do. This wasn't his usual show so he didn't really have anything to do. He'd jus gotten off the phone with Lita and that had taken some time. He had been watching the draft diligently, just in case he was drafted, but so far only Kelly Kelly and Big Show had been drafted over to SmackDown. Big Show being on the show could propose a problem for Edge if he crossed paths with him. Big Show's right hook was not something to be messed with. That fist was the size of a dinner ham and having that slam into your face was not fun. Kelly Kelly, well, if he were not devoted to his girlfriend, he might take that girl for a ride (he'd heard she was very easy to get into), but because he loved Lita, he'd stay away from her.

There was a battle royal type match coming up where the winning team would get 3 draft picks. He'd definitely have to watch that one. "Edge!"

Edge turned around and saw his brother standing there. "What do you want?" Edge asked as he watched Christian walk up to him.

"What the hell was your problem earlier?"

"I didn't have a problem earlier."

"That's bull and you know it. What the hell was wrong with you? I was trying to talk to my daughter and you come in and act like a jackass and I want to know why."

"I just think you're taking this thing overboard."

"I'm her dad, I love her."

"I know that, I love her too, she's my niece, but you act like the sun rises and sets on her poops!"

"I do not!"

"You do too!"

"Do not!"

"Do too!"

"You're a jackass," Christian spat at him. "Don't talk to me for the rest of the night!"

"I don't even want to see your ugly face!"

"Oh real mature, _Adam_," Christian taunted him.

"That's it, I'm calling Mom," Edge said, "and there's nothing you can do about it!"

"You are not calling Mom, I didn't do anything, besides, she'll take my side anyways because she knows what it's like to be a parent and want to be around your kid so she'd understand that you should act like an ass!"

"I was not!"

"You were too!"

"I was not!"

"You were too!"

"Cut it out," Edge yelled at him.

"No!" Christian yelled back. "You're an idiot!"

"You're the idiot."

"I'm not talking to you and you're not going to see Tilden again!"

"Fine!" Edge screamed.

"Fine!" Christian said.

"What was that about?" Carlito asked.

"I have no idea," Regal said.

Understandably, Edge was kind of pissed that he'd been drafted to Raw. Now he was going to have to be around his ungrateful brother every week. It was bad enough he had to hear Christian talk about Tilden all the time at home, now he'd have to walk around and see Christian showing everyone and their mother pictures of his daughter. It was becoming tiresome. He loved Tilden to death, but wasn't there a line that crossed from doting father to annoying father. He believed that Christian had crossed that line about a month after Trish found out she was pregnant. What could he do though? He'd just have to endure.

When Chris went back to his locker room, Stephanie and Kurt were talking. He didn't say a word to them as he grabbed his duffel bag and went into the bathroom to change into his ring tights. He didn't want to think about Kurt being there. Chris had been hurt by Kurt's actions too and he was just wary of accepting him back into their lives. It wasn't just them anymore. Sawyer got attached to people and so did Flynn. It would be nice to have Kurt as a friend again, sure, but he just couldn't risk that the man wouldn't just up and run again.

He left to go for his match, still nothing from Chris. He'd kissed Stephanie, Flynn, and Sawyer before he went out there, but barely sent a glance at Kurt. "So, uh, why the change in ring tights?" Kurt asked, trying to break the awkwardness once Chris was gone.

"Your guess is as good as mine," Stephanie replied.

Chris and Christian were both distracted for different reasons during their match. Chris was thinking about Kurt and also that jackass rookie of Chrisitian's, Heath Slater, who thought he could just mess around with Chris because he'd beat him once on a fluke. The kid was going to learn his place soon enough. Christian was distracted with this thing with Edge. Could it be possible that Edge _was_ jealous of Tilden?

Despite their distractions, they put on a good match, although Chris thought he did better than Christian and vice versa. Everyone would probably tell them they were better at some point. It was kind of a running joke with them, having someone tell them they were better than the other and then they would brag. Tonight didn't feel much like a night for joking though. Chris eventually won the match and the draft pick and got a measure of revenge on Heath Slater. That would put the rookie back in his place.

Chris was soon put back in his place though when Kofi was the draft pick chosen for SmackDown. He came down to the ring and started pounding on Chris, which was grossly unfair. The only reason he'd gotten away with it was because Chris had just had a grueling match and couldn't be bothered with defending himself against an unmitigated attack. What was with people catching him off-guard nowadays? It was just unfair and it made him look weak when he wasn't. It was cheap. The entire damn roster was cheap, he decided.

When Christian got drafted, he was a little relieved. He would get a shot now, he believed, a shot at the title he so coveted. Swagger was an easy opponent and he could finally achieve his dream, the dream his brother had achieved almost ten times. It was his turn now and he hoped he got it on SmackDown. Plus, it would get him away from his brother, with whom he had decided not to speak at all. If Edge wanted to be some bitter asshole and say nasty things about his love for his daughter, well then, he didn't have to talk to him. Oh, but he would be calling their mother to talk about this. Yes, he would and she would side with him, she usually did. Christian had always been the sensible one while Edge was the wild child. Although their Grandma Edna, who was now in her mid-80's and still as spry as ever, still liked Edge better. Every time Edge got a title run, she'd call him up and ask why he hadn't won it yet even though he tried to explain he'd held the title in TNA she'd said that title was rubbish compared to Edge. Who even said rubbish anymore?

When Chris went back after his match, Kurt was gone and Stephanie had explained that he'd had to go. He nodded and she told him that she had to go down to the gorilla to grab some of the draftees and talk about their new contracts. He nodded again and she sighed, knowing he was in a mood. She grabbed him by the arm before he could go in the bathroom and she just looked at him.

"Chris, I love you, you know that, I've proved it over the past eight years almost, I've married you, had two of your kids, and one on the way, but you are being ridiculous. Give Kurt a break, please?"

"Stephanie, he can be your friend, but he's no friend of mine," he told her. She leaned up and kissed him. He returned the kiss eagerly. Even if he was cursing her out, hating her, whatever, when she kissed him, it all seemed to thaw for him. Everything just thawed away and left him with this warm feeling of knowing that this woman was his. "I'm not giving in."

"I know, I just hate when you're angry," she told him, grabbing his chin a little. "Sweetie, I'm just going to ask nicely that you give him a chance. It's up to you what you want to do."

"Okay," he said. "I've got to shower now."

"Okay," she told him.

He went and showered and when he was through he went to go find Stephanie and the kids. They were at the gorilla like Stephanie said. She was speaking with Kelly Kelly and she looked a little frustrated. He walked over and sidled up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist as far as he could reach, letting his hands fall on her rounded stomach. He wondered if the baby was kicking around in there or if it was asleep. Stephanie said that it had a pretty good sleeping pattern, just another sign that this kid was a mild one and would probably be the most awesome of all their kids.

"No, Kelly, this doesn't mean that you can go back and forth every once in a while, you will be on SmackDown, that's it."

"Oh, okay, well why didn't you just say so?"

"I just did…five times."

"But I didn't get what you meant, I'm sorry."

"Yeah, well, okay, just make sure you look over the contract with the lawyers and then sign it and you're on your way to SmackDown."

"Okie dokie!" she said brightly. "I'll see you over there, Chris."

"Why does she like you?" Stephanie asked as Kelly literally skipped away.

"Why does anyone like me? Because I'm Chris Jericho and I'm hot. That's how I managed to snare you."

"Oh yeah, that's right, we're married," Stephanie said. "Slipped my mind. And she'll see you there? Yeah, right, she's not getting within fifty feet of you."

"How would you know? You'll be gone for six weeks after you have the rugrat."

"You have taste in women, you married me after all."

"_Now_ you remember we're married."

"Only when it's convenient."

"Dolph Ziggler versus Hornswoggle?" Chris said, glancing at the screen. "Could that be a more loaded match? Score one for SmackDown."

They watched and saw that Chris's prediction had been wrong and that Hornswoggle and therefore Raw had won the match. Dolph was pissed off and rightfully so. Chris may have lost to a rookie, but he hadn't lost to a little person who he wasn't even sure could really talk. That was kind of embarrassing. And apparently Hornswoggle was the only one who didn't know that DX had broken up like a month ago and that stuff he was wearing was pretty outdated.

"Last pick of the night," Stephanie muttered to herself. "I wonder who it's going to be."

"Me too," Chris said, resting his cheek on Stephanie's shoulder while the pictures of SmackDown superstars spun before them. He rather liked the picture that they used of him. Then _his_ picture came up as being drafted to Raw and Stephanie looked at him in surprise.

"Daddy, that's you!" Sawyer said, pointing to the screen.

"Yeah, it is," he said as his music started up.

"Dada!" Flynn yelled.

"I think I have to get out there," he said, pulling away from Stephanie and heading out onto the ramp. He stood there and looked around. So this was going to be his home again. He'd only been there for a year and he'd been on Raw a number of times since leaving, had even been kicked off and tried to come back. Now he was back again and there were a lot of people here who didn't know he was the best. He smirked and looked out at the crowd. Yes, Raw was Jericho again.

And he had plans, big plans…


	277. By the Number Four, April 30May 3, 2010

A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews, glad you liked the chapter. Sorry this is late, just been busy and didn't have time to write, hope this makes up for it. Enjoy and reviews are loved and welcomed. :)

* * *

"Only _you_ would have to have a farewell."

"Stephanie, I was the face of this show, of course I needed to come and say good riddance to all these parasites," Chris said. "They never appreciated me. They never realized that I was the best at what I do. Besides, Edge is here too so you can't say that I'm the only one who is here to say their goodbyes, if I'm going to hear crap from you then you should go give crap to Edge."

"Edge isn't my husband."

"Well…he's your friend," Chris reasoned. "And you're kind of in charge around here, right?"

"Oh, very funny, thank you for joking around with me when you obviously know that I wield no power because one, my father hates me and two, my father thinks I'm incapable of running anything because as soon as _this_," she pointed down at her stomach, "happens, I turn into some sort of idiot."

"I don't think you're an idiot if that's any consolation to you," Chris shrugged. "_Is_ that a consolation to you?"

"Why would that be a consolation to me?" she wondered. "You're my husband, you're not supposed to think I'm an idiot, you're supposed to support me and be there for me. Whatever, I'll be glad to get the hell out of here and then I can do what I can over at Raw where I think I'll be appreciated more. I pretty much book things for the guest hosts as it is so I might as well be over there until I can't travel anymore anyways."

"Yeah, that's true, you do, do a lot over there," Chris nodded. "Plus, you won't have to deal with Vickie anymore, I know how much she stresses you out and you know how much I hate when you're stressed out, especially now that you're pregnant. With both Sawyer and Flynn we had hospital scares and I'd like for this pregnancy to go without that."

"So far so good," Stephanie said, rubbing her stomach as Chris reached out to joining his hand on her rounded middle. "I think this is going to be our mild-mannered child. I'm thinking that it will be the one that doesn't like to scheme or plan and is going to be the straight arrow of the family."

"Just because they don't bug you as much as the others?"

"Well, she kicks, but it's never anything like Sawyer with his soccer games in there or Flynn, who was so uniquely Flynn even in the womb. This one sleeps when I do, is awake when I am and so far hasn't found any part of my ribs to kick in yet."

"What a good kid," Chris said, leaning down to her stomach. "You're such a good kid and if you haven't quite decided yet if you could just come out a boy, that would be great. I really want you to be a boy because Daddy can't handle another girl."

"You know, if Sawyer were here he'd be mad at you for hogging my stomach," Stephanie said as Chris stood up.

"Then I'm lucky he's still in Florida with my parents," Chris said. "It's not fair that he gets to spend more time with your stomach than I do. I come in, I try to talk to the new baby and he comes in and pushes me out of the way because it's 'his' turn, but what about _my_ turn?"

"You get plenty of turns."

"Not as many as he does. I'm a little mad about that. I can't even get around my kid and then when Sawyer's done because Sawyer was talking to your stomach that means Miss Flynn Murphy Jericho gets to go next because she's a little princess."

"Never refer to my daughter as a princess again," Stephanie told him. "Just…I don't want her to think she's a princess. I want her to be not the spoiled brat that I was."

"You weren't spoiled."

"Okay, I just don't really like the name Princess. I hated it when everyone called me that and I hate it for my daughter."

"You hated when I called you Princess?"

"You did it in a mocking, horrible, mean, way," Stephanie said, "then with the Billion Dollar Princess crap, I hated it. I know I held partial responsibility for it, but it really just got out of hand and really started to bother me."

"Only you would be so bothered by something like that," Chris said. "Lots of girls want to be princesses."

"Mine won't, either one of them."

Chris groaned, "It's a boy, boy, boy!"

"You don't know that," she said, grabbing his hand and kissing it before letting it fall between the two of them. "You should at least try and prepare yourself for another girl. You shouldn't hinge all your bets on it being a boy because there's only a 50% chance of that happening."

"I know," Chris said, "but two little girls, God, if they both look like you, heaven help Sawyer and I because we are going to be a couple of suckers."

"That's what we're planning," Stephanie winked, then groaned.

"What's wrong?" Chris asked concernedly, hearing the groan come from her lips. He was always a little more on edge when she was pregnant. It was such a transitional time and it always felt like at any moment something catastrophic could happen.

"Vickie," Stephanie said, nodding her head forward to the woman in question, who was walking with Layla and Michelle. "Great…"

"Just think though, baby," Chris told her, kissing her temple, "that tonight is our farewell and we're going to be on Raw, far, far away from Vickie, where she won't be able to upend anything that you do."

"That's right," Stephanie said, a small grin on her face. Now she felt a little better about having to face Vickie.

"Oh, look, if it isn't the 'power' couple," Vickie said snidely. "We're _so_ going to miss you here on SmackDown, Stephanie, it'll be so sad to see you go."

"Oh, I know," Stephanie said in the same manner. "I mean, I won't get to see you and hear that voice of yours screeching in my ear, I'm so upset over it. I think I might even cry myself to sleep tonight."

"You're fat," Layla told her with a scoff.

"I'm pregnant, you idiot," Stephanie said.

"So what, you're still fat," Layla said with a shrug. "No wonder your dad doesn't want you to be on TV when you look like you should be washing up on a beach."

"Hey!" Chris said, sticking up for his wife, but Stephanie squeezed his hand.

"Listen, _Layla_, as much as I love hearing your lame attempts at insults, I mean, beached whale, I haven't heard that in _years_ from anywhere so you know, you're _so_ edgy, but keep this in mind. My married name may be Jericho, but I'm a _McMahon_ and despite anything and everything my father may think of me, I still have firing powers," Stephanie said, giving a coy little look. "And I would not hesitate to fire someone over harassment and I think insults fall under that, especially on a poor, pregnant woman."

Layla turned a little pale. "Your father would just rehire her," Vickie said, trying to step toe-to-toe with Stephanie, which would only end badly for Vickie.

"Oh, see, you'd think so," Stephanie said, "but as much as my father may be mad at me, fact is, I'm having his sixth grandchild, another child to ensure that the business will eventually endure. So what I'm saying is the man is easily manipulated so I suggest you leave, all of you."

"Your father and I are friends," Vickie said.

"My father and I are related," Stephanie countered. "Whatever you think you have, I have one better so get out of my face. I'm glad to be leaving this hellhole anyways. I'll love seeing you running it into the ground."

"Oh, you'd love that, but you'll see, we are going to prosper without you and your lousy husband taking up so much time."

"I'm the face of this show!" Chris said. "You'd be nothing without me."

"Oh yeah, that's why we all did so terribly those years you were gone," Vickie said and Chris was fuming.

"Not worth it, Chris," Stephanie said. "Look, _Vickie_, you can continue to run your little show, but it won't last, trust me. But then, I guess since you're single since you divorced Edge and nobody wants you and I have well…this," she pointed to Chris, "you were bound to be jealous and you just threw yourself into the show."

Vickie's eyes widened and she grunted and turned on her heel. Chris laughed, "You're amazing, you know that?"

"I know that," she told him. "Thank you for standing right there, not a single one of them could dispute that you are very hot so they had to go walking because they can't stand up to me."

"You are so hot right now."

Edge walked around backstage. It was going to be kind of weird leaving the place. He felt like he'd been SmackDown forever. He'd have to get used to new people, a new schedule. It was all hitting him fast. But to be honest, it was time for a change. It was time for him to move on and he was glad to be going onto Raw. He didn't have to let everyone here know that though. He would give them a pretty speech and then they'd be fine and then he would kick ass on Raw. That was the plan.

"What are you doing here?"

Edge looked over at his brother. "I'm here to say goodbye to the show, is that a problem?"

"Just surprised, I guess," Christian said.

"You know what I'm surprised about? I'm surprised that your phone isn't attached to your ear so you could hear Tilden breathing…oh wait, I'm sorry, I bet Tilde's breathing is the best breathing in the entire world, right?"

"And if she does?" Christian asked.

Edge threw his hands up in the air, "I give up, I just give up."

"You know, she's your niece, you think you'd be a little more sympathetic," Christian said. "She's part of our family."

"I love my niece," Edge told him. "Don't you dare question my love for her, but I'm not going around being obsessed about it. Don't ever for a moment think I don't love that little girl because I do!"

"Do you really? Or would you just discard her when you don't need her, like you did with Vickie!"

"That's not fair!" Edge yelled. "You know what my relationship was like with you, you know that it wasn't a good thing, you know that it was hard and weird and you _know_ that!"

"I know you then humiliated her on national television, which just shows you have little regard for people that you love. I think you've come to show that over the last little while. Instead of letting me love my daughter, you harp on it every chance you get and act like a baby!"

"I do not!"

"Yes you do, grow up, Edge, grow up and be a man for a change instead of a skirt-chasing dick!"

Edge didn't want to hear anymore and stormed away. It hurt to hear his brother talk to him like that. Having little regard for anyone? That wasn't true. He loved his girlfriend; Lita was the best thing he had going in his life right now. She was always there for him, without question and he loved her. And despite what Christian thought, he loved his niece as well. Tilden was beautiful and awesome and he understood Christian's love for her, he just…he just missed his brother was all.

He just missed his brother.

When Chris went out there, he was kind of glad to be rid of SmackDown. Being here had caused more problems than good things for him, despite holding the World Title, that was pretty damn good. So okay, it wasn't so bad being here. He'd asked for a match with Kofi to get back at him for what Kofi had done to him after he'd been drafted. It seemed a popular thing to attack Chris when he was tired from a match.

But before he was going to wrestle, he had a few things to say. He had been the face of SmackDown (and what a face that is) and he had put on great matches, but it was time to move on. Raw was going to be Jericho again and he would once again be the face of that show. It was just an inevitability really. He was who he was and people came to see him put on a show, that was the truth. Now they could just watch him on Raw. There would be that empty hole on Fridays. Sure, they yelled he sucked, but he didn't care what they really thought. He'd always have his fans. It was time for the ones who hated him to move on.

It didn't matter that he lost, he was leaving the show anyways and when he and Stephanie walked out of that arena, they were glad to be rid of it. It was time to dazzle on Raw now. The power couple was going back where they belonged.

Christian didn't know what possessed him to go out there when his brother was out there. He believed it to be anger. He was angry at his brother and he knew Edge was lying. He'd known Edge since the day he was born, being the younger brother that he was. He knew everything about Edge and he knew when he was lying. Maybe it was to get back at him for the things he'd said earlier, for the things he'd said about Tilden. Christian loved his daughter. He loved her so much because there had been a very real chance he never would have had her. When he and Trish were apart, when he thought he'd lost her, he'd picture children that he'd never have. They were never as beautiful as Tilden though so the reality of her was something so special.

Edge didn't actually know what Christian was out here to say, but he doubted it was going to be anything about Trish or Tilden. Like Stephanie and Chris, kids were off-limits right now. Delaying the inevitable fight he could see brewing from a mile away, Edge deferred for a moment and brought up the fact that they were together in one ring again. It was him and Christian, Edge and Christian, E&C. It was nostalgic. They were brothers and they were here together, in front of everyone again. Christian had to smile at that, smile at the memories. Edge told Christian he was his best friend and it was the truth, absolute truth. Edge and Christian weren't just brothers, they were best friends and he did wish his brother luck on the show.

Christian was just pissed at his brother. He went back to the best friends thing and explained how they'd known each other their whole lives (obviously) though they'd really grown close in the 6th grade. Christian had skipped a grade that year and being only a year apart as they were, Christian was then in Edge's grade and because of that, they'd seemed to grow closer, all the way through high school and their shared dreams of making it to the WWF (much to their mother's chagrin). So he called his brother out on what he'd said. He called him out because he knew his brother was a liar. Maybe there was more to the statement, the underlying argument they were having, but it needed to be said.

Edge was surprised. He had meant what he said, but his brother didn't think so? He just wanted to get back at him for what he'd said about Tilden. His brother was mad at him and he was mad as well. He didn't have to stand for this. He didn't have to look his brother in the eye and hear that he was a liar. He wasn't saying he was a liar for what he'd said out here, Edge knew that, but what Christian was really saying was that he was a liar about Tilden. Was Christian honestly questioning his love for his niece in front of the entire world? Did he really come out here to intonate that?

Edge was pissed off now because Christian was bringing their personal life to the ring. It was a low blow. Christian started ranting and ranting at him and Edge could read between the lines. Then Christian said he wanted to fight him? Fight him! Edge wasn't going to stand for that and so he did the one thing he could do, he laid his brother out. He didn't care what anyone thought about this and he was sure their mom would hate it, but he wasn't going to let Christian act the way he was acting and get away with it. He just wasn't.

If his brother wanted to call him out, well he'd show him…

"Mommy, I'm four, I'm four!" Sawyer yelled as he ran into his parents' bedroom. Stephanie had been getting dressed and was just pulling down her shirt. Flynn, who had been lying on the bed watching TV, lifted her head up when she heard Sawyer yelling. Then she put her head back onto the bed. She pulled the comforter around her more.

"I know, I know!" she told him. "You've told me a whole bunch today."

"Because I am four," he said, holding up his four fingers. "I'm this old today, Mommy. Flynn, I'm four today."

"Four," Flynn mimicked.

"No, you're not four, you're only one, but I'm four and Mommy is four hundred," Sawyer said.

Chris entered the doorway, snickering. "How old is Mommy, kid?"

"Four hundred," Sawyer repeated.

"Wow," Chris said, "damn, baby, you look great for being that old."

"Sawyer, that's not very nice to say," Stephanie said. "I'm not four hundred. I'm not even one hundred. I'm only in my thirties."

"Oh, I'm sorry, Mommy, I didn't know," Sawyer said. "But I'm four today and Daddy and I got more snacks for my party because everyone is going to come to my party and have fun! And I'm going to get presents! Presents!"

"I think the baby heard you from all the way over here," Stephanie said, patting her stomach.

"The baby is nothing years old," Sawyer said, hopping on the bed.

"Hey, hey, hey, no shoes on the bed," Stephanie told him. She turned to Chris. "So you got everything we needed for later, I take it. Did you also pick up the cake?"

"Yeah, I got everything," Chris said.

"And you made sure that he didn't see it? I don't want him to see his cake before he gets to eat it."

"I made sure," he said, coming over and kissing her cheek. "You look beautiful by the way. I think I'm going to tell you that everyday from now until you have the baby. But you won't know when I'm going to say it, it'll be a surprise so you'll have to wait for whenever it happens and then you'll be surprised."

She rolled her eyes, "You're so kind."

"I don't want the romance to fade from our relationship," he told her with a cheesy grin. "At your last doctor's appointment I was reading this article about how having kids can make the romance fade and then you just fall into a routine and _that_ leads to divorce and I didn't get married just to get divorced. Maybe that's okay for some people, but not for me. So I'm making sure the romance stays alive."

"Chris, we have s-e-x three or four times a week," she told him. "I think the romance is fine."

"Yeah, but that doesn't make a good, strong marriage."

"Did the article just freak you out?"

"It was very strongly worded," he nodded.

She laughed and pulled the hem of his t-shirt. He stepped as close to her as he could, her stomach pressing into his abdomen. "I think that the romance and the love and the everything is just fine between us if I do say so myself." She leaned up a little to kiss him. "The three kids is a pretty good indication."

"No, that just says we've slept together at least three times."

"Now _that_ would be a bad marriage," she laughed.

"No kissing on my birthday!" Sawyer said as he threw his shoes down on the ground next to the bed. "You can't kiss on my birthday!"

"We can't? You wouldn't be here if we didn't kiss," Chris told him.

"No, it's my birthday! You can't kiss!"

"Okay, okay," Chris said, holding up his hands guiltily. "I won't kiss Mommy while you're around, what about Flynn, can I kiss Flynn?"

Sawyer tapped his chin, "Okay, you can kiss her because she's Flynn."

"Thank you, can I kiss you?" Chris asked, coming closer and closer to the bed, like a lion looking at his prey. Sawyer didn't suspect a thing, but Stephanie folded her arms, watching, knowing what was coming next.

"Yes."

Chris came a little bit closer, step by step, closer and closer. "Can I…tickle you!" He grabbed Sawyer and started tickling him and Sawyer started laughing and trying to pull away, but trying to pull away from his daddy was like trying to get gum off your shoe, it was impossible! He started laughing and laughing and then started coughing because he was laughing so much! Chris started kissing him on the cheek.

"Daddy!" Sawyer yelled. "Stop!"

"I don't think so!" Chris growled, tickling him even more.

"Mommy, help!"

"I don't think so, you didn't want me to kiss Daddy so you're going to have to suffer the consequences," Stephanie said from her vantage point.

Finally, when Sawyer was nearly gasping for breath, his father let him go and dumped him on the bed. He laughed some more before he gained his breath and glared at his parents. "That's not nice."

"I heard you laughing, didn't you hear him laughing?" Chris asked Stephanie. She nodded. "See, Mommy heard you laughing. Flynn, was Sawyer laughing?"

"Yes," she told her daddy.

"Looks like you're outnumbered," Chris laughed and then leaned down to kiss him. "Are you just going to sit around here all day and act like a bump on a log or are you going to get ready to party!"

"I want to party!"

"Already a kid after my own heart," Chris said, glancing at Stephanie. "This kid is going to conquer the world, I can feel it. What about you, Flutterby, are you just going to sit there all day and watch…" He glanced at the television and saw she was watching one of his old matches from Mexico. "Me all day? Which one is this?"

"I don't know, she pointed to it in your office and now she's watching it," Stephanie said. "I can't understand because I don't speak Spanish, but she likes it."

"You," Flynn said, pointing to the television and then looking at her daddy. "Hair."

"Yes, my hair was long," Chris said. He picked up Sawyer and then looked at Stephanie. "We're going to go downstairs and wait for people to get here, which is going to happen soon. Are you excited, kid?"

"I'm going to have a party!" Sawyer said, grinning.

Stephanie watched as Chris and Sawyer left the room. She was very excited for her son's birthday, but there was also something kind of sad about it. She knew that four was by no means old, but it felt old. He was already in preschool three days a week and he was going to be starting Kindergarten next year and she was not prepared for that. She couldn't believe four years had passed since she'd first held that tiny, little boy who came three days late. Now she had another child and a baby on the way, but some days it was like she could still smell that new baby smell and feel the fear creep up into her.

"Mama," Flynn said, pointing to the video. "No more."

"Oh, the video's over," she said, looking to the blue screen. "Okay, well, your brother's party is starting soon so let's go downstairs so we can have some fun, okay?"

"Okay," Flynn said, standing up on the bed and holding her arms out.

Stephanie came over and picked her up. Flynn wrapped her legs around Stephanie, resting them over Stephanie's stomach, which was a little uncomfortable for her, but her mommy's tummy was very big and she couldn't hug her like she used to be able to. "You're getting too big for me to do this, Flynnie," Stephanie told her. "Pretty soon I'm going to have Daddy carry you."

"No."

"Yes, it's going to happen," Stephanie said. "I'm going to be having a baby so I won't be able to lift your heavy, little butt."

"Mama," Flynn pouted.

"Well, talk to your father, it's his fault," she said as she walked out of the bedroom. She walked down the stairs to the kitchen, which was the epicenter of the party. Chris came over and grabbed Flynn from Stephanie so she wouldn't have to bend over to set her down. Chris threw Flynn up in the air and then put her down on the ground as he started to bring some of the food outside, kissing Stephanie on the way out. She sighed and watched her family go about getting ready for the party. She rubbed her stomach. "Well, at least I get to do it all over again with you, baby whatever."

Shortly thereafter the party started to get into full-swing. Sawyer had invited everyone from his pre-school, which was only about fifteen kids from his class and Stephanie and Chris had invited their parents to come and enjoy the day as well. They hadn't gone crazy for Sawyer's birthday, but had a fair theme going on. There were several small games set up around the yard and they'd gotten a moon bounce for the kids to play inside. Chris was also barbequing so there was a lot to do and mingle around with. They'd also invited a number of their friends. Trish and Christian were there and had brought Tilden, who was wearing a very cute yellow sundress and matching hat. Edge and Lita were there, staying far away from Christian at Edge's behest. Britt and Evan had come along and Hunter was there and _he_ was keeping away from Britt or the other way around, Chris and Stephanie weren't sure. Kurt had even flown down and Ted had been able to make it as well.

"I'm so glad you guys brought Tilden," Stephanie said as she made her way over to Trish and Christian, who were sitting by the pool. Tilden seemed a little overwhelmed by all the sights and sounds around her. Trish and Christian took her on walks and outings, but never anywhere with so many people before and the little girl was fascinated, her eyes turning every which way. "It looks like she's having a blast."

"She's not used to everyone around here," Trish said, glancing over at her daughter. "She's probably wondering who all these people are." Christian kissed her cheek and Tilden gave a gummy smile. "Does my daughter have the cutest smile or what?"

"My kids have cute smiles," Stephanie said, looking over at a little bean bag tossing game that Sawyer was trying right now, Matilda, his girlfriend, watching and clapping for him.

"Who was that woman you were talking to?" Trish asked.

"Oh, that was Amaya, she's Matilda's mother. Matilda is Sawyer's little girlfriend from preschool, the one currently hanging off him right now," Stephanie said, pointing to a little girl with brown hair in pigtailed braids. "We think it's adorable that they like each other so much. My son has already got the girls hanging off of him and he's only…four."

"Had to choke that one out, didn't you?" Christian laughed.

"You have no room to talk," Stephanie said. "Your child is only a few months old, hardly anything, still very new, not holding conversations and having opinions and learning stuff and acting out."

"Mama," came a small voice from her side. Stephanie looked and saw Flynn standing there. Stephanie pulled her into her lap and Flynn cuddled up to her. "Boo-boo."

"You got a boo-boo, where?" Stephanie asked.

Flynn held up her hand which had a little scrape on it. Stephanie pouted at her and Flynn pouted back, "Boo-boo."

"Where did you get the boo-boo? Did you fall?"

"Uh huh," Flynn told her. "Hurt."

"You got hurt when you fell, well, do you want me to go clean this up with you?" Stephanie asked and Flynn nodded a little. "Okay, can you wait a few minutes because I was talking with Trish and Christian?"

"You can go, Steph," Trish said.

"It's okay, it's barely anything."

"No, go!" Flynn said, pointing at Tilden. She hated that baby! She started shaking her head and Stephanie sighed. Flynn still hated this whole baby thing and as her due date fast approached she was afraid Flynn was going to hate her brother or sister with a vengeance. God forbid Flynn see that the baby was going to get her beloved crib. That might send her into a toddler rage.

"Okay, we're going, we're going," Stephanie said.

Chris was standing near the grill when Edge wandered over. "Look at my brother, sitting over there, looking like he owns the whole world."

"He's just talking with Evan Bourne," Chris said, glancing over at Christian, who was indeed just talking with Evan. "Do you mean because he has Tilden in arms or something?" Chris was a little confused. He'd seen what happened on SmackDown and their little argument, but he hadn't seen what happened backstage between the two of them.

"No, just being all smug over there, thinking he's better than me, probably because he has a wife and kid and suddenly that makes him a better man than I am, do you know what he told me on Friday?"

"No," Chris said as he flipped some burgers. He wished he could slink away, but it didn't look like that was going to be a real possibility since he was cooking. Maybe Edge would talk so much he wouldn't even notice that Chris was there or not. He could always use his children as an excuse because what was the point of having kids if you couldn't use them as an excuse?

"Well, he said that I'm just a jackass and that I will never be able to settle down and that I just use women, can you believe that? He talked about how I treated Vickie, like she didn't treat me like crap too."

"Okay," Chris said, looking around, trying to spot one of his children, surely they had to be around here somewhere. God, they were always hanging around when he was trying to be with his wife, but then when he actually wanted them around, they were nowhere to be found.

"So you know what I did? Now, please don't tell Stephanie because she'll probably kill me and I think Lita would be unhappy with that, though Christian might not care--"

"He's your brother, he cares," Chris interjected.

"You'd think he should, but he definitely doesn't, not since Tilden came along. He probably doesn't even pay attention to Trish when Tilden is around. He probably ignores her like he ignores everyone else. You shouldn't let a baby rule your life."

"Dude, come on, seriously? She's only a few months old if there's a time when your baby rules your life it's right around that point. When Stephanie has the new baby, we're going to be pretty up to our ears in kids so we might be just like Christian and Trish, are you going to get all huffy with us too?"

"You're not going to act like he is," Edge said. "It'll be your third kid, you're used to it, you don't go overboard and have your wife document every single moment you miss. Do you know he does that? He has Trish record Tilden some of the day and then he watches them when he gets home? Who _does_ that? Do you have Stephanie do that?"

"No, I don't, I just talk to the kid every night, that's what I did with Sawyer and Flynn," Chris answered.

"So see, he's going overboard."

"He loves his daughter, I'm not going to begrudge him that. When or if you have a daughter sometime in the future, you will know how it feels, man, and it's like, I don't know, your kids are just…you just love your kids and sometimes you go overboard."

"Whatever," Edge grumbled.

"So what did you do that I'm not supposed to tell Stephanie about?"

"Well, I kind of…went over her head with something?"

"Went over my head with what?" Stephanie asked, walking over with Flynn on her hip. Flynn tapped Stephanie's shoulder and pointed down to the ground. Chris grabbed her and put her down on the ground and she made a beeline for Sawyer, who himself was making a beeline for the moon bounce, a couple of his friend and his cousin, Kenny, in tow.

"Yeah, over her head with what?" Chris asked.

Edge's eyes widened. "Stephanie, hey…"

"What are you guys talking about?" Stephanie asked as she started to rub Chris's back for no real reason. Not that he was complaining about it. Her hand went underneath his t-shirt and her nails ran up and down his back.

"Apparently, Edge hates his brother because his brother loves his daughter."

"You're so jealous," Stephanie laughed at Edge, rolling her eyes. "He's your brother, be nice to him. He just loves his daughter."

"You two are becoming that old married couple who say the same things, it's really annoying," Edge said. "I'm just going to go and talk with my girlfriend."

"Oh, no, no, no," Stephanie said, grabbing his shirt. "You're not going to get away that easily. What did you do that would make me mad?"

"Nothing…" Edge tried to dodge the question. He knew that Stephanie would be upset with him and he didn't want to be thrown out of a four-year-old's birthday party, even if that four-year-old couldn't even get his name right. How hard was it to say Edge really? "I didn't do anything."

"Pretty sure he did, baby," Chris said, turning to Stephanie as he started to put burgers on buns. "So what did you do that will make my pregnant wife angry?"

"Yes," Stephanie prodded.

"You two suck," Edge pouted. "Look, Stephanie, this has nothing to do with anything that you do. It has nothing to do with anything that you've ever done. It's just, my brother is such an asshole and he's always trying to be better, I guess I do it too, but he said things he shouldn't have said, especially with his past with Trish. Like he has room to talk when those two broke up like four times and she was engaged to another man and he was about to propose to another woman."

"What does this have to do with anything?" Stephanie asked.

"I got Vickie in as the permanent GM on Raw," Edge said quickly, "um, starting next week…not tomorrow."

Chris's back straightened as Stephanie's nails suddenly dug into his skin. He looked around again for his kids, but they were in the moon bounce (which was being supervised by the people they rented it from). Why did they have to be in there when he needed them and God, Stephanie was probably going to draw blood at this rate, but then Edge shouldn't have been so stupid as to do something like that to Stephanie.

"You…you'll have to repeat that," Stephanie told him, her voice containing a very dangerous tone to it. Even though she was pregnant and it was her son's birthday, Edge could picture her gaining superhuman strength, lifting him up and throwing him over the fence. Then his brain started to conjure up the memory of Stephanie when Hunter had dumped her and that face she'd given her. Surely motherhood had mellowed her out, right? Oh God, she was probably going to eat his still beating heart.

"Well, I mean, you don't like the guest hosts, right?"

"No, I don't," Stephanie said through gritted teeth.

"Well, I mean, on the bright side, you won't really have to deal with them anymore as your dad said that we could strip the power from them so they really don't get any say, which helps you out, right, because they bug you."

"They do…"

"Yeah, so your dad said that maybe Raw needed a new GM, someone a little more permanent, you know, someone to take over matches and everything and I suggested Vickie for the job. Your dad was on board with that and I called her to kind of let things blow over, you know, say that we should let bygones be bygones…you know if it were under any other circumstances I would've absolutely picked you and told your dad that, but Christian was saying that I treated her like crap and so I'm proving him wrong. Plus, you're pregnant so you'd have to take maternity leave soon anyways."

"I was going back to Raw and I was going to do a damn good job and you took that away from me," Stephanie said, her nostrils flaring in a disturbing way.

"Steph, your hands," Chris said, his voice kind of squeaking as she dug her nails his skin a little harder. "Can you please spare the skin? I have to wrestle tomorrow, remember, you made the match for me. I don't want to go out there with huge, gaping holes in my back."

Stephanie didn't move her hands and Chris was moments away from falling to his knees from her just digging her nails deeper into his skin. He tried to pull away, but she had some weird grip on him, oh wait, her hands were under his shirt. He grabbed her hand and pulled it away from him, sighing from having her finally release her hold of him.

"I was going to get away from that wench."

"Stephanie, he forced my hand."

"You did this because you can't stand that your brother loves his daughter," she said, taking a step closer to him. Edge backed up a little bit and looked behind him, seeing if there was anything or anyone that could save him. There wasn't.

"It's more than that, he insulted me," Edge said. "He was mean!"

"Oh, so because he was mean you do something that hurts _me_."

"Stephanie, you're going to have a baby soon, remember," he said, pointing to her stomach.

"That only keeps me away for a couple months and then what, huh, Edge, then what?"

"Well, um, I guess you just…take over…" He really didn't know.

Stephanie pressing her finger into his chest as she glared at him. "You are _so_ lucky that it's my son's birthday right now because if it wasn't, I would throw you, personally, out of my house. You don't mess with me, Edge, you don't _mess_ with me."

"Mommy, come watch me on the bouncy," Sawyer said, running over, his hair ruffled and his clothes all crumpled from jumping around.

"Okay, baby boy," she said to him, her tone changing completely.

"Ed, you look scared, are you scared of the bouncy?" Sawyer asked.

"Um, no, no, nothing like that," Edge said quickly, finally glad to have the kid around to save him. Stephanie turned to Edge and glared at him before she let Sawyer lead her by the hand and away towards the moon bounce. Edge turned to Chris, "She's going to kill me, isn't she?"

"Your only hope is running in the other direction whenever you see her, she can't run with the stomach," Chris said.

"I only did what I had to do to show my brother I'm not like he thought I was."

"Look, Stephanie will get over it, she usually does because she usually gets her way. Plus, like you said, she has the new baby to think about so don't worry about it, okay, I'll take care of it."

Chris already had a plan in mind. If Vickie was the new GM, well, he was going to make her first night back especially memorable. He'd have to talk to a few people who probably didn't like him, but that was a price to pay for making his wife happy and he'd make her happy. He was going to make sure that Vickie didn't last on Raw. And as an added bonus, it would probably piss Vince off in the process and any time he got to piss Vince off was a good time to him.

"Thanks for understanding, man," Edge said, patting his shoulder, not knowing of the thoughts running through Chris's mind. "I'm going to lay low for a while, stay away from Stephanie's wrath, catch you later."

"Later," Chris said as he went to put more food out on the buffet. He turned to go find Flynn and saw Kurt walking up to him.

"Hey, Chris."

"Kurt," Chris said shortly, looking over the other man's shoulder to see where his daughter was. She was probably playing with Sawyer or around someone she liked. She was not so much the social butterfly that Sawyer was, but she had her favorites. As long as she didn't get her hands on Tilden, she'd be fine.

"Thanks for inviting me," he said.

"That was all Stephanie, not me."

"Oh," Kurt said, clearing his throat. "Anyways, I'm glad you allowed her to invite me then. I know that you don't trust me or you don't like me, I'm not sure which it is."

"Both," Chris said. "Look, I won't get into now, but I don't trust your intentions when it pertains to my wife. I know that she's letting you back into her life and for whatever reason, she wants to be your friend again. That's fine, I don't nor have I ever tried to control who Stephanie talks to because she's her own person, but I don't trust you."

"Will you ever?" Kurt asked quietly. It hurt to think that he could never, no matter what he did, repair his friendship with Chris. He had been the best man at Chris's wedding and now Chris was looking at him coldly, with little to no emotion in his eyes.

"I don't know," Chris told him and he was telling the truth. Whenever he looked at the man, anger surged inside him like electrical wires overheating. He wasn't sure he'd ever get past that feeling, but for now it was there and he couldn't change that.

"Okay," Kurt said. "Well, I hope you do. Look, Chris, my intentions are good here, I promise you that. I know I hurt Stephanie, I know I hurt you and Trish and Christian and Edge and everyone around here, but I'm trying very hard to make amends and Stephanie has seen fit to accept that and I hope that someday you can too."

Flynn found him first, "Daddy, up, up, up!"

Chris picked her up and she hugged him around the neck. "Hey there, Flutterby, were you just playing with Sawyer?"

"Yup, yup, yup," she said brightly as she thought back to how she had been jumping around with Sawyer. He had been holding her hand so she didn't fall over, but she still fell! But it didn't hurt because it was so bouncy.

"Fun!" Chris told her, kissing her cheek.

"She's adorable," Kurt said. He'd said it to Stephanie before, numerous times, but he just wanted to let Chris know that he thought his children were beautiful. He hoped that Chris also got the message that Kurt was sorry that he hadn't been here for them, for the children, to see them. Once, he'd been around Sawyer all the time, but that Sawyer had barely been out of the womb and now he was a completely different kid. Flynn hadn't even been a thought on the horizon.

"I know," Chris said, gazing down at his daughter.

"You're going to have three, that's pretty crazy, huh?" Kurt said, trying to at least ease into some sort of conversation with Chris. He figured if he was going to get anywhere with Chris that his kids would be the way to do it. He could tell it was at least working slightly by the way Chris's face lit up when he thought about his children.

"Yeah, but Stephanie and I are looking forward to having another one."

"Even if it wasn't planned?"

"The best things in life are surprises, right?" Chris said, though he wasn't really sure that was true, but it sounded nice. "Stephanie and I are excited about the new baby."

"Yeah, she really sounded excited about it. That's really great though, I'm sure you guys are great parents, your kids obviously adore you," he said, gesturing towards Flynn, who was playing with Chris's necklace at the moment. "It doesn't take a genius to see that they love you."

Chris glanced at Flynn. "Yeah, they're great."

"Well, you know, just thought you should know," Kurt said, nodding his head a little. "You're really lucky."

"Thanks, I know," Chris said quietly as Kurt walked away. He still didn't trust that man, but he was being worn down a little. His kids were his weak spot.

Stephanie sat near the moon bounce, which was open air and waved every time Sawyer's head popped out the top. He kept looking for her and yelling to watch how high he could bounce. She clapped for him and acted very impressed with the height he was achieving. She patted her stomach when she felt the baby kicking and then glanced over when Hunter sat next to her. She nodded her head at him.

"How are you feeling?" Stephanie asked.

"Been better," Hunter said. "They said the effects would last for a while, but I wasn't prepared for the vertigo I've seemed to develop. It's rough. They won't clear me to wrestle for a while."

"Let me know when they do."

"I guess I should say if they let me wrestle."

"Don't start going down _that_ path," she told him, patting his arm. "I'm glad you could make it, I know that Sawyer is really happy that you're here."

"Yeah, I know, he actually wanted me to go in that thing with him," Hunter said, jerking his thumb towards the moon bounce. "I had to convince him that I would pop it if I went in there. He made me promise to watch him though, hence me hanging around the thing."

"He's very proud of his skills at jumping," Stephanie said, smiling at Sawyer, who was still waving.

"How are you doing with all of this?" he asked, waving his hand around.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that your son is turning four. I know how you get Stephanie. You don't act like you're emotional, but you're pretty sentimental when you want to be so are you okay with the whole thing?"

"Do I really have a choice?" she wondered. "I mean, either way, he's going to grow up. I can't control time, I can't stop time from happening. Every day passes and that's just how it goes. One day he's going to be big enough to move out, become a wrestler, live on his own, wherever he wants and I can't stop it. I'm happy he's happy, that's all I want for him."

"He's very happy, he's a happy kid," Hunter told her, patting her hand. "He's a great kid."

"Thank you."

"You're doing a great job with him. You should be proud of yourself. You know, I don't think I got to officially congratulate you on the new baby."

Stephanie laughed, "You're a little late with that."

"Yeah, well, I guess I was caught up with stuff," Hunter said, spinning his finger around his ear. "Went a little crazy for a while there."

"I don't begrudge you for your friendship with Shawn, just hated that we lost you for a while there."

"Thanks, I wish the same could be said of her," Hunter said, looking over at Britt, who was laughing with Lita over something as they drank some beers. Stephanie was a little envious of the alcohol consumption while Hunter was jealous that Lita was over there talking to Britt.

"What's going on with you two?"

"Nothing," Hunter said with a sigh, "nothing at all. I blew it with her, Steph, that's the long and short of it. She was nice to me when I first got my concussion because that's her nature to be nice, but she doesn't want me anymore, she wants that shrimp."

"I see."

"Yeah, whatever though, you know, we probably just weren't meant to be."

"Maybe," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, maybe."

Despite the drama bounding around the yard that afternoon, Sawyer managed to have a very good birthday. He blew out the candles with nobody's help and ate cake and opened presents and he got tons of really cool gifts from everyone. He had a great day and he couldn't complain the next day either because he got to go to Raw and nothing was better than seeing his daddy wrestle. At least he hoped his daddy was going to wrestle. Sometimes his daddy just did a lot of talking.

But not tonight!

"You've got a match with Cena," Stephanie told him as she breezed a few hours before the show. "Just decided. It's a Beat the Clock thing. Batista will be facing…Miz, I believe is what we decided on. I'm so glad we're back on Raw, I feel like order has been restored to the universe and once again I'm in charge."

"What about Wayne Brady?"

"What about him?" Stephanie said. "He certainly didn't book the show. He'll just do his dancing and singing or hosting or whatever he wants to do in the time allotted for him and that's that. Anything other than that is something that I've come up with. Oh, it's so good to be back. I think my dad is letting me have control because he knows that I'll have to leave soon. Little does he know I plan to stay as long as possible."

"He probably knows," Chris pointed out. "I mean, you've done the same thing with both of our other children so it's not much of a surprise I have to say."

"Shut up, let me have my moment," she said, pecking him on the lips. "I'm just so glad to be away from Vickie and all those problems, Raw seems like heaven compared to that mess."

"Um, baby," Chris said, running his fingers through her hair. "You did hear Edge when he said he got Vickie as the GM starting next week, right? I mean, you didn't block that out, right, because I don't want you to come next week and flip out."

"Oh, I know she's coming, but I'm not worried," Stephanie said, running her hand down the side of his face. "I know that you're cooking something up or at least thinking of something to cook up, but I have something up my sleeve as well so I wouldn't worry about whatever you have up your sleeve."

"So we're just emptying our sleeves?" he asked.

"I'm saying I have a plan and that Vickie's stay at Raw next week will be her last," Stephanie told Chris, an evil smirk coming to her face. "I don't think she's going to like it very much because this is _my_ territory. She had SmackDown and that's fine, but Raw is mine and if that woman thinks she's going to take it over for me, she's got another thing coming to you."

Chris growled a little before responding, "If you weren't already pregnant, you would've had to watch out because you're hot right now."

She shoved him away. "I've got work to do, I'm on the headsets tonight. God, it feels good to say that. So I've got things I need to take care of, want to go meet with production and then check in on Wayne before the show starts."

She started to leave and Chris grabbed her arm, "Hey, before you go, can I just say something?"

"Sure," she said, turning to him, but then looking down at her watch, "but can you make it fast because I've got a lot of things I need to take care of before the show. Want to make sure it's the best show they've have in a while now that you're here."

He smiled and kissed her forehead. "I'm glad that you think that and I'm glad you're having fun, but I just want to remind you that you are pregnant and pretty far along at that so maybe you can tone it down a little, just start slowing down so that you aren't too stressed."

"I'm fine," she insisted.

"I know that, but please?"

Her eyes softened. "Okay, I'll try not to take on too much…but this doesn't mean you want to take care of the Vickie thing, right? Because I will take great pleasure in taking her down a few pegs."

"No, no, that's all you, baby."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, kissing him on the lips. "I'll take the kids with me so you don't have to worry about them. Just focus on your match."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure, you deserve a kid-free night since you did most of the stuff yesterday at Sawyer's party since I have this thing," she said, pointing down to her stomach. "So I'll take care of them."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure."

"Mommy, are we going with you?" Sawyer asked. "I'm four now I can go work with you."

"You think that because you're four you can work with me now?" Stephanie asked with a laugh.

"Yup because I know lots of stuff," he said, "and I can talk in the thingy with the voice thing and you talk too."

"Well that made no sense," Stephanie laughed. "But grab a couple toys and your crayons. Flynnie, you can grab a couple toys too." Flynn started to grab at all her toys. "Just a couple, Flynnie, not all of them."

"No, Mama," Flynn said, wanting to have them all.

"Flynn," Stephanie said in that warning voice she had, which meant she meant business and Flynn should listen to what Stephanie was saying. Flynn reluctantly let some of the toys go and just grabbed a couple like her mommy said to. "Yeah, that's what I thought. Okay, Sawyer, can you put your toys and Flynn's toys into your backpack?"

"Okay, Mommy," Sawyer said, shoving the toys and things inside before he put it on dutifully. He liked his backpack, it had his daddy's face on it and when he took it to school he could tell people that was his daddy.

Stephanie took a hand in each of hers and the three of them walked out of the room, leaving Chris to his own devices. It was a little weird, not even having one of the kids to take care of and Stephanie not in her office. It was a large expanse of time that he had to fill and he wasn't quite sure how to fill it. His life was so inundated with children nowadays that they consumed him. He kind of felt bad now that he left them with Stephanie. He was going on a mini-tour with his band in the UK next week and Stephanie would be with the kids, alone. Granted, his parents lived nearby now and Trish and Christian would be around and so would Edge and Lita so it wasn't like she'd be completely alone, but most of the time she might be. Maybe he should go get the kids?

He didn't though, knowing Stephanie would promptly tell him to go away and go about his business. So he kind of just sat around and waited for the show to begin. When it did, he watched the Batista match and it gave him a good idea. He wouldn't have to wrestle tonight. He could just use Wade in his place. It would give the kid a lot of experience and it would get him out of the match, two very enticing prospects. He had to hand it to Miz, he was a clever guy…and if he was a clever guy, maybe he had been the strong link in the tag team he'd had with Big Show. Well, that gave him even more ideas.

"You want to what?" Stephanie asked when Chris went to see her and explain his thinking.

"I was just thinking, Miz and I have a lot in common--"

"Like what, you both have Twitter accounts, wow, you two are soulmates."

Chris rolled his eyes, "You know that's not what I meant by that. I'm saying that he reminds me a lot of myself about 10 years ago."

"Do _not_ say that again or even believe it. You have _it_, Chris Jericho, the factor that makes you the best, that gives you your powers. The Miz does not stack up. He is not as good as you at any point in your career except maybe when you were just starting out."

"Okay so he doesn't, but he has a good vibe about him and I think we should team together, join forces."

"You're crazy," she told him.

"Why?"

"Because this is crazy. What are you going to do? How are you going to get revenge? How do you even know that he will care?"

"The guy looks up to me. That's why he tries to act like me."

"Is that what he's doing?"

"I'm going for it and you can't tell me what to do."

He eventually did meet up with Miz, after he sent Wade into his match. He told Miz he admired what he'd done and expressed that they could make a good team because they had been the strong links in the tag team and if they were to team together, it would be a force to be reckoned with. Miz ate it up hook, line, and sinker. It was just too easy. Chris would get his shot at gold again and all he had to do was step on the middle guy. Right now he wasn't going after the WWE title, but maybe if he won the tag team belts he could set his eye on that. It would be cool to have three belts at once. Fitting, really, since he was the best. The tag belts may have been a little below him, but gold was gold.

And he always wanted gold wrapped around that gorgeous waist.


	278. Driven Away, May 10 to 17, 2010

A/N: Don't really like this chapter, oh well, hope you enjoy anyways. Done with school now so I should be able to catch up again. Thanks for reading, reviews are very welcome. Enjoy. :)

Also, I posted a new one-shot co-written with the awesome, awesome StephanieIrvine (Jodi) so go check that out! :)

* * *

"So could you fire Evan?"

Stephanie looked up from her paperwork, "Excuse me?"

"Well, since Vickie was hired and quit last week, I figured you were in charge, yes?" Hunter asked as he closed the door behind him.

Stephanie smiled as she thought back to last week…

"_Randy, I need to talk to you."_

_Randy turned around and raised an eyebrow at her. Then he looked around suspiciously, wondering if Chris was around. He'd pretty much stayed out of their way since the whole debacle last year. It didn't feel good to be on the receiving end of one of their plots and knowing the full scope of what they were willing to do was a wake-up call. When it came down to it, regardless of family or children, Chris and Stephanie were willing to do anything to come out on top._

"_Where's Chris?"_

"_This doesn't concern Chris," Stephanie told him. _

"_But where is he?" _

"_He's around," she answered._

"_Where is around?" he asked, still looking around him like Chris was going to pop out of some room or drop down from the ceiling._

"_He's with our children," Stephanie finally told him, folding her arms over her stomach. Surely she wouldn't try anything because she was pregnant, she wouldn't do something to him now, would she? He actually wouldn't put it past her to just kick him in the crotch right now if she wanted. "They're not here, this is between you and me, that's all, no tricks."_

"_Are you sure?"_

"_Am I sure that I'm not tricking you?" she said, pausing for a moment and then said, "Yes, I'm sure that I'm not tricking you."_

"_What is it then?"_

"_It's like this, there's going to be a new GM tonight, that new GM is going to be Vickie Guerrero. I do not want a new GM that is Vickie Guerrero. She is a thorn in my side and I will not have her polluting _my_ show."_

"_Your show?" he questioned._

"_Randy, do you _want_ to mess with me right now?" Stephanie asked. "I'm about two months away from having a third noisy child invade my life when neither of my current children has reached the age of five. Plus I have another child kicking my organs around like they're soccer balls. Want to question me some more?"_

"_No," Randy said sheepishly. "What do you want though, I mean, from me, we're not exactly friends anymore."_

"_Yes, but I know you like to intimidate people."_

"_I do," he said. _

"_I know you like to torment them…"_

"_I do," he repeated._

"_Well, that's what I need you to do tonight with Vickie. I want her gone. You can make it happen."_

"_And what will I get out of it?" Randy asked. _

"_Well," Stephanie said, looking around her to see if anyone was around. Because it was before the show and most everyone was in catering, there were only a few people milling about down the hallway. She stepped closer to Randy. "Well, John Cena told me earlier that he is going to make the match for the title an I Quit match."_

"_Like I Quit the company?"_

"_Perhaps, that remains to be seen, either way, you do this for me and I will make you a contender next month at the Fatal 4-way show."_

"_You will, but you usually try to do stuff for your husband," Randy said, not believing that she would put him over Chris. She was _always_ trying to do things for Chris, whether he took them or not was another story._

"_It's a Fatal _Four_ Way," Stephanie said, "Chris could still have a spot, but I will pretty much guarantee you a spot."_

"_Guarantee? How are you going to do that?"_

"_I know how to get what I want, don't I?"_

"_Okay, I'll give you that, so you _guarantee_ that I'll get one because you know I deserve a shot at the title."_

"_That remains to be seen," Stephanie mumbled, but in such a way that Randy heard every word. She was just biased though, her husband was a wrestler so she had to cheer him on. "If you do this for me, if you can get Vickie to quit tonight, then you're in."_

"_Okay then, you've got yourself a deal," Randy said, sticking his hand out. "Don't screw me over, McMahon."_

"_I won't if you won't," Stephanie told him, looking him straight in the eye._

"I am in charge, yes," Stephanie told Hunter, her grin wide and Hunter could only imagine why she was smiling like that. "We're going to have another General Manager though-"

"Let me guess, you?" Hunter said, rolling his eyes at his ex-wife's thirst for power. If there was power to be had, she was always trying to grab at it. She was never satisfied, but then, he was never satisfied either.

"No, I can't because of the baby," she said calmly. Hunter was a little surprised she was so calm. With Sawyer and Flynn, she was always so mad that she had to go away and couldn't be around and be what she wanted to be, which was always the GM of one of the shows.

"You seem rather calm about what's going to happen."

"It's not ideal, no," she told him, "Would I like to instate myself? Of course I would because I know I'm the best for the job, but I know that I can't because I'm having a baby, nothing is going to change that at this point so I just have to accept that I'm once again going to have to take a backseat."

"I see," Hunter said, "so your dad is choosing someone?"

"My dad is too busy right now, he's been helping my mom and everything, being the good, supportive husband so I'm in charge and I get to choose and I have someone in mind."

"Someone that you can manipulate?"

"That's for me to know and everyone to find out," Stephanie said smugly. "Not this week because Vickie apparently still thinks she's the GM, but she has another thing coming to her if she thinks that she's actually in any position of power on this show. Next week I'll reveal who is the actual winner of the coveted title."

"I'm sure you're going to pick someone that your dad hates, just to get back at him."

"Sometimes I forget that you know me entirely too well," Stephanie told him.

"So tell me how did you get Vickie to quit? I mean, not that it took much, really. Is she coming back?"

"No, she thinks she's coming back. Chris told me that she said she would be here tonight, but she already uttered the words and in my eyes, words are binding contracts and if you don't have your word then you have nothing and I have more than enough witnesses who saw her say that she resigned so I'm in the clear."

"You really are a cold-hearted bitch, aren't you?"

"You brought it out in me, aren't you proud?" she told him and he just smirked.

"Sometimes, I absolutely still see what I saw in you then, except now you're a little more overt with it when you used to hide it behind that little girl façade that you loved to wear. Sweater-sets my ass. So come on, what did you do?"

"I just made a little deal with Randy, that's all," Stephanie said with a careless shrug.

"A little deal? That sounds ominous."

"It shouldn't," Stephanie said. "It wasn't all that difficult and it was a business deal. I give him something that he wants and he gives me what I want. What I wanted was for him to get Vickie the hell out of the company and he did his job very well. I set it up so Randy and Edge were facing each other and then I just let Randy do his thing. Vickie can't take the intimidation. I knew she would crack and so it went just as planned."

"And if she didn't crack?"

"I knew she would."

"But how did you know?" Hunter asked her. "I mean, how could you predict that she would just quit on the spot."

"Because, the woman doesn't stand up to things. She doesn't face down things. She uses others to do it. She had Edge, she has Michelle and Layla right now. She thinks she's in charge, but when it comes down to the nitty-gritty, she's not doing anything. I, on the other hand, stare everything down."

"That's what gets you kicked in the stomach, RKO'ed, put in the Walls of Jericho, Pedigreed."

"Yes, it is, but I'm still here, aren't I?" she said, turning her hands out. "I'm still going and going, right? I mean, sure, I have to take breaks every now and again because my husband can't keep his hands off me, but for the most part, I'm always here."

"I guess you're right," he nodded. "So about this Evan thing…"

"Before we get to that, what are _you_ doing here? I was under the impression that you were seriously injured," Stephanie pointed out. "In fact, the doctors have told me that you are not cleared to wrestle so I don't know what you're doing here."

"I can come visit, I'm not that bad off. I hate that everyone is fawning all over me, it bugs the hell out of me."

"Oh, God forbid someone actually care about your sorry ass."

"It's not that, I just…I just don't like it."

He wasn't sure what he didn't like exactly, maybe everything. Maybe everything in his life was just one big mess that he didn't like. Sometimes it certainly felt that way. Right now, being at home, alone, knowing that it didn't have to be so alone, it was a slap in the face. When he was traveling, it wasn't so noticeable, but being injured and forced to stay at home, all he could think about was how lonely it felt in that house without anyone there and how he had alienated almost everyone in his life.

"So you came to the show?"

"Everyone is talking about how my career may be over, it's a bunch of crap. I could wrestle if I wanted to."

"No, you can't, you had a serious head and neck injury, don't be an idiot."

"This is coming from the woman who travels against her doctor's orders until…how long is it, Stephanie that you travel before your baby comes?" Hunter asked glibly.

She glared at him. "My doctor says that it's fine to travel as long as I do and it's not like my baby is about to pop out any second, I've still got months before this little one is scheduled to pop out so don't go berating me for doing something perfectly healthy."

"Yeah, whatever."

"You're testy and now you want Evan fired and pray tell, Hunter, why would you want that?"

"He's not good for the company."

"The company or for Britt?" she inquired.

"What the hell does he have?" Hunter asked. "What the hell does that shrimp have that I don't have? I can't believe she's still with him. They've been together since like November, that's practically your entire pregnancy, it's disgusting."

"Or she's happy?"

"She's not happy with him, there's no way that she could possibly be happy with that guy. I refuse to believe it."

"It could be true, you know," Stephanie said. "I can't speak on her behalf, but she seems pretty happy to be around him. All the times I've seen them they've seemed perfectly happy, I think the person with the problem is you. You gave her up, Hunter, you broke her heart and now you want her back? Come on, grow up and move on."

"I love her, Stephanie," Hunter said. "I love her more than I've ever loved anyone, present company included."

"But you blew it. You blew it, face the facts."

"You know, aren't you supposed to be motherly?"

"You want a traditional mother, go find one cause I ain't it," she told him. "I think you were stupid and an ass to her and you got what you deserved. I'm not suddenly going to side with you when I think you were in the wrong."

"Fine," Hunter huffed. "Whatever. You should still fire him, he's not a good wrestler, lots of people say so."

"Lots of people say you're a bad wrestler, should I fire you too?"

"Who says that?" he demanded to know.

"Plenty of people, believe me," Stephanie told him. "But the fact remains you don't have the say to who stays in the company and who doesn't. So what I'm suggesting to you is that you go back home and just rest."

"I can't rest. I want her back, I'm getting her back."

"Fine, then go do that and leave me alone. There are no commercials tonight, everything has to be perfect and I cannot afford even a single mistake. There are no do-overs. If something is wrong during the show, there's no way to mask it so I'm a little stressed."

"Don't you think you should be taking on less at this point?" Hunter asked. "I mean, you know, you're kind of getting pretty pregnant and you'd think that you would take it a bit easier right now all things considered."

"I'll take it easy when I'm lying in a hospital bed, but for now, I've got things to do, so get out," she told him, not a hint of politeness in her voice. "Hunter, I'm going to say this once. I'm tired of your drama. I'm tired of you whining about Britt. You want her, get her, you don't want her, leave her alone. Make up your mind, I'm sick of it. Some of us have other things to worry about than your love life, believe me."

"Okay," he said, trying not to feel a little bit hurt. "I thought I could talk to you is all."

"You can, but your whining is unbearable," she told him and he wondered if this was one of her pregnancy mood swings.

"Okay, sorry," he said, slipping out of the room.

Stephanie looked down at her stomach and rubbed it a little bit. "Baby, you sure did dodge a bullet. That man could've been your father and I don't think that either one of us wants that, huh? You got a pretty cool daddy instead. In fact, I think you've got the coolest daddy in the entire world and you are going to love the hell out of him."

"Daddy!" Sawyer yelled, barreling into Chris's legs. Chris pretended to sway and sway but then picked up Sawyer and kissed him on the cheek.

"You're excited because we're in Canada, huh?" Chris asked him.

"I'm a Canada," Sawyer said, pointing to himself.

"You're a _Canadian_," Chris corrected him. "You're Canadian because _I'm_ Canadian. I grew up in Winnipeg, which isn't here, but it's still in Canada."

"I said I Canada," Sawyer said, hating to be corrected.

"No, _Canadian_."

Sawyer sighed, "That's what I said!"

"Okay, geez, you don't have to be mean about it," Chris told him. "You know, I could just put you down right here and abandon you. You know I could do that, don't you? I'll just leave you here and you would have to fend for yourself and you don't even have any money."

"You can't do that, Daddy," Sawyer told him.

"And what makes you think that I can't?"

"Because you're my daddy and you can't leave and because Mommy would be mad at you because I would tell on you."

"What? You would tell on me?"

"I would tell."

"Snitch."

"What's a snitch?"

"It's someone who tattles on someone else and you would be a snitch to Mommy because then she would think you were the best and she would think that I stink and she would make me sleep in the backyard."

"You could sleep in the pool!" Sawyer laughed.

"Oh, I see how it goes now, you just don't even care about me."

"You're silly, Daddy," Sawyer said, shaking his head. "I know what I am."

"Just making sure."

"Flynn is Canada too."

"She is at that," Chris said.

"Flynn, you're Canada," Sawyer told his little sister. She leaned her head back from her stroller and grinned up at him and he waved down at her. "Daddy, I'm lots and lots older than Flynn now, huh? Because she's only one and I'm four."

"I know you're four now, you've told us…a lot," Chris said and indeed, Sawyer had seen fit to update everyone on the status of his age. "We're all very happy that you're four. It's quite the accomplishment. Next year you're going to go to big kid school and it'll be a lot of fun."

"Uh huh," Sawyer said. "I am a big kid."

"Yeah, that's why your butt is heavy."

"_Your_ butt is heavy."

"I have a very nice butt, thank you very much," Chris told him indignantly. "Do you know how many people like to look at my butt?"

"You're crazy, nobody likes to look at butts!" Sawyer said, throwing his head back in laughter.

"Wait until you get older, kid," Chris said, kissing his head again.

"Who do you think Randy chose for me?" Edge asked, coming up next to Chris and startling him in the process.

"What are you talking about?" Chris asked.

"The match, the whole choosing your opponent thing, I'm trying to narrow it down to who Randy would choose for me, but I'm drawing a blank. Not many people actually _like_ Randy. I mean, sure, the fans do, but nobody back here really. He hates me though, probably even more so after last week, he has it out for me."

"You do know that Stephanie did what happened last week, right?"

"She _what_?" Edge exclaimed. "That was _her_?"

"You thought she would just let Vickie be the General Manager. Of course that was Stephanie. She asked Randy to do that to Vickie in exchange for something she won't tell me, but I'm not prying. But yes, that was all Stephanie."

"God, I should have known. I was hoping Vickie could stay because we'd kind of formed this…I don't know, agreement, I guess you could say," Edge said. "It was nice not to have that animosity there."

"_You can't be serious. Friends? You want to be friends?" Vickie said as Edge met her at her limo for the evening._

"_I would like to be, yes."_

"_Look, I don't know what you want, preferential treatment maybe, but we're over and we're never getting back together again. I don't even know why you got me this job."_

"_I'm trying to correct past wrongs," Edge said, a slight bitterness in his voice. His brother's words still stung. Edge didn't purport himself to be the smartest guy in the world or someone with upstanding morals. He was what he was and he liked who he was, but his brother's words had hurt him. He hated that Christian thought of him as some goof-off who had nothing better to do than chase tail and act like an asshole. He wanted to prove Christian wrong._

"_And I should feel flattered?"_

"_I don't care what you feel," Edge said. "This isn't necessarily for you. I'm trying to heal myself up, so if that includes you, it includes you, that's all. I just…do a good job around here."_

"_I plan to."_

"I'm sorry, but when my wife has her mind set on something, she has it set on something and she did not want Vickie here. Can't blame her though, I really don't know what you saw in her. She's like a million times more screechy than Stephanie. How could you even put up with that?"

"I just did," he snapped. "So do you have no idea who it could be?"

"Could be me," Chris shrugged.

"Don't even go there, man," Edge said.

"I can wrestle you, Ed," Sawyer said.

"Your kid has a bit mouth," Edge said, then muttered, "like father like son."

"What is _that_ supposed to mean?" Chris asked.

"Just that you both talk a lot. I'm going to go, I want to try and figure out who this person is. Maybe if I ask around someone will fess up to it."

"Good luck with that," Chris said, then started walking again. "Okay, so in order to leave Mommy alone, what should we do?"

"Play!" Sawyer yelled in Chris's ear. That was pretty much his answer for everything, but then, the kid was four, what else did he do but play. That was the only thing in his repertoire at this age.

"I guess we could play."

"Pay!" Flynn copied her brother, lifting her arms because she wanted out of this stroller. But Chris couldn't handle both of them running around. He could picture his next baby and how swamped they were going to be. What were he and Stephanie thinking having another one? Speaking of, Stephanie turned the corner ahead of them and her eyes lit up when she saw them. Flynn saw her too and she reached her hands for her now, maybe her mommy would come and pick her up.

"Hey, I was looking for you, I need you to do me a favor," Stephanie said, leaning up to give Chris a quick kiss and then plant on Sawyer before taking him in her arms briefly. Chris, wondering what was doing took Sawyer back in his arms. Sawyer was way too heavy for Stephanie to be carrying.

"What do you need?"

"Okay, so you know how I'm going to set up Bret as the GM next week, right?"

"Yes, we discussed it with him. He really wants to do it and I think it'll be a good fit for him to be on the show to bug the hell out of your dad and be a good leader."

"Yeah, I think so too, but I need you to be a jackass to him, starting, well, in about ten minutes when the show starts. I'll just take the kids with me until you come back. I don't have you scheduled for a match, do I?"

"Hold up, can we go back to the jackass part?"

"What's a jackass?" Sawyer asked.

"It's a donkey."

"Mommy, you want Daddy to be a donkey?" Sawyer asked.

"Yes, I want him to be a donkey," Stephanie said. "Look, my dad is not going to like me hiring Bret for that position, but if he thinks that there's some new animosity there, especially with you, he won't be so mad about it. He might actually think it's a good thing, you know, that Bret doesn't have us on his side, that we're throwing him to the wolves."

"You think your dad will buy that?"

"My dad, though he thinks that nothing can be pulled over his eyes, is remarkably gullible and I think that it will work. So I need you to head on out there, do whatever you do and then come back here and just be with me, I guess."

"Why do you give me like ten minutes notice?"

"Because I'm pregnant and forgetful?"

"What do those two have to do with anything about this?" he wondered, raising an eyebrow.

"They don't, but I'm pregnant and because I'm in such a difficult position here, what with the aching and pains and gas and all those things, you'd think that you would want to help me out when you can, right?"

"Stephanie, sometimes, you just amaze me," he said, setting Sawyer down. "Kid, take care of your mom and your sister while I go take care of some business."

Chris went out there, not really knowing what he was going to be doing with Bret. Bret had said that he made the match with Miz. Chris, who had been talking and getting to know the Miz, saw an opening. He could come out in the guise that he was going to be Miz's partner for the time being and he had to defend him in some odd way. He didn't really know what he was doing, but he was a quick-thinker. There was a lot of ammo with Bret anyways, a lot he could use to speak with him about.

Stephanie must have talked with Bret before about all of this because he seemed so nonplussed by Chris's appearance. He knew Bret had been crafty in his day, but it always amazed him how his wife could get just about anybody to do her bidding. It couldn't just be because she was the boss. She was charming, like a snake-charmer. She would play up her strengths and have men eating out of the palm of her hand. She'd done that with nearly everyone she came across and it got her very far into this company.

He called Bret out for coming back and trying to have a match, being one of _those_ guys, the ones who never left. Bret, in turn, called him a phony, even bringing up his time at The Dungeon. Bret was good at what he did. Chris had never been in the ring like this with him before. When he was in WCW, Bret had been untouchable. Chris had probably never gotten within five feet of him, being the wrestling deity that he was. So this was a first for him and actually, quite the privilege to be in the same ring with Bret, to be _insulted_ by him.

But Chris could take it and he could dish it and when it was all said and done, Bret had a No DQ match with Miz later on for the title. That had to make Vince think that they were no longer on the same side as Bret. Maybe Vince would just leave the choice alone now and not make a big fuss as he was wont to do over the little things. He went backstage, congratulating himself and shaking Bret's hand and discussing what they would do later.

"Well, if Stephanie wants to go for authentic, then you really need to attack me during the match. I'm going to have my family out there, you know, to support me, but I think you should definitely come out there."

"I will then," he said, "I hadn't been planning on it, but you're right, it looks better, both to the Miz and this thing with Vince. You know, I'm surprised Stephanie was able to talk you into saying."

"She's persuasive as hell, Chris," Bret said. "No wonder you married her after she did all those things to you."

"You saw that?" Chris asked stupidly. For some reason, he never pictured Bret just sitting down to watch the WWE. His brain just thought that after the screwjob, Bret never watched WWF/E again, but he was obviously wrong.

"Yeah, I saw all of that, two schoolchildren the two of you were. Not that I thought that you would get married or anything, but after seeing how you were like to one another, I'm not really surprised with how things turned out."

"Yeah, nobody really is. But I'll see you for the match later," Chris said, shaking his hand again.

"I'll be seeing you."

Edge was out in the ring, waiting for his opponent. It could be anyone. And anyone it was. It shocked him when he heard his brother's music start blaring through the speakers. Christian was already walking down the ramp when Edge fully processed what was going on. His brother? Christian had agreed to do something like this after talking to _Randy_? He couldn't believe the betrayal he felt welling in him like a sore that wasn't going to heal. It hurt to think his brother could be so easily manipulated. This felt like the Invasion thing all over again.

Christian had an intense look on his face that Edge didn't like. He wasn't ready for this match. Anyone else, even Chris, and he would have been ready, but against his brother? Was Trish watching this, did she approve? What about their mother? She could not like that this was going on with them. She was sensitive and didn't need this. Yet, it wasn't like Edge was going to necessarily back down or anything. He was still a competitor and he wasn't going to back down from anyone, least of all his brother.

They got into the match and though they had wrestled before, it had been a while and Edge had to admit that it felt strange. He and Christian knew each other so well that the match wasn't really full of any surprises. Their joint dream had been to be wrestlers and that dream had started when they were in middle school. They'd nearly broken their mother's heart when they both decided to forgo college and go straight into wrestling school. She wasn't disappointed in them now, but they could remember when she watched them drive away. She'd been scared for them. Now they were fighting, both in the ring and off and both of them felt they were right and not willing to budge.

That's why the match too so long, probably. They just knew each other too well and when you know people too well, it just happens that you go back and forth and back and forth. It was frustrating when one would go for a move, but the other knew they were going for it so they dodged it. Edge finally, after a long bout, managed to get the spear on Christian and take the win. Edge was so relieved that it was over when Randy came on the screen to inform him that Christian wasn't his opponent.

Edge snapped his eyes to his brother. If Randy hadn't sent him, what had? Had Christian's own hatred towards him fueled him out here to take care of some business? He was now even more hurt that Christian would come out here, knowing Edge had a match and _still_ decided to wrestle with him. Edge adored Tilden. While Christian was out with Stephanie this weekend (Chris had been away) helping her get some furniture, Edge had gone over to see Tilden and spend some time with her. He loved the hell out of that little girl, who was smiling now and being a bit more of baby and not just a lump. Not that he hadn't loved her in her lump stage, he loved her in any way, shape, or form.

_Trish handed Tilden over to Edge. "There you go, Uncle Edge. That's Uncle Edge, sweetie, his real name is Adam, but we all call him Edge so you better get used to it."_

"_I'm going to be the cool uncle," Edge said, letting Tilden rest in the crook of his arm. He ran his hand over her head in a calming matter, something that he had looked up on the internet before she was born. He wanted to know everything there was to know about babies and while he didn't, he believed he had above-average knowledge._

"_I know you will," she said._

"_Thanks for letting me see her."_

"_Well, I think Christian is being ridiculous," Trish told her. "I've told him a million times, but he won't listen and you can't make someone listen. I mean, you can, but they can choose not to pay attention and that's what he would do if I brought it up. I don't want you out of Tilde's life though. If Christian doesn't like it, oh well."_

"_He's really protective of her…"_

"_If he had a giant bubble, she'd be living in there right now," Trish told her brother-in-law. "He means well though and he'll come around."_

"_I hope that day comes soon. I didn't mean it like I didn't love this little girl," Edge said, running his finger down the bridge of Tilden's nose. She tried to follow with her eyes, but she wasn't having much luck with it._

"_I know you love her, it's pretty obvious to me," Trish said. "But Christian, he'll get better about the whole thing, I promise."_

"_Don't make promises, Trish, they so rarely often come true."_

Now the Undertaker was coming out and you had to be kidding him. Had Christian been working with Taker? He couldn't handle another match, especially knowing his brother might have tainted these matches. He couldn't wrestle again so he let himself be counted out and he was relieved. It was short-lived though when Christian threw him into the ring, where Taker gave him a chokeslam. But the chokeslam was nothing to his brother's part in all of this.

He wanted his brother back, not this crazy man who couldn't get enough of his daughter. He hoped Christian would settle down, but from that little display, it seemed that he was as overprotective as ever and he was the one trying to break into the nest. It wasn't too much to ask. Where had it all gone wrong? He wanted to make it right, but he had no idea how to go about making this right, not with how hurt he was feeling right now. He would rather take a million chair-shots than have his brother betray him like this twice. How could they ever get the past back?

It seemed futile now, especially with Christian pretty much turning his back on Edge out there. He sulked his way backstage, not wanting to speak with anyone, though he saw Stephanie with questions nearly written all over her face. He trudged his way to his locker room. He'd be better later, he just needed to calm down and clear his head. As for Christian, he didn't know what he could do to relax about that situation. That might time some more time. Hell, it could take _all_ the time.

Chris ended up interfering on Miz's behalf, but Bret obviously didn't tell the Harts about the plan as he was attacked and taken out of the match. Bret ended up winning and he couldn't say that he thought it was a bad thing. He was only partners with Miz out of convenience and a shared loathing of Big Show. So Bret holding a title like the old days, well, he wasn't going to complain, well, he would complain, but that would only be for show. Only could Stephanie have him acting like an ass to someone he admired.

"You were perfect out there," she told him. "My father is going to think that Bret and us are on bad terms and I bet you he's going to approve it and then he won't know what hit him. Bret said that while I'm gone he is going to personally call me and let me schedule the shows. My dad won't know of course, which makes me the schemer and makes Bret look like a genius, which will completely annoy him. Then with you not acting like your on Bret's side, but you are. I love pulling stuff on my dad when he doesn't give me what I want."

"You are pregnant, you know that, right?"

"I mean in general, not specific to this, I understand that I have to leave, but I won't really be leaving, you get me, but my dad won't know. So I'll have the power and he won't have a clue that I have the power and so therefore he can't take it away from me."

"You have some screwed up logic."

"Just trust me on this one, okay? I'm just trying to tell you that no matter what happens, I'm in charge and this is my show."

"So essentially you've planned it so that this new baby will not hinder you like our other two kids, those adorable, loveable kids right there," he pointed to their kids, who were both sitting quietly watching the show. They were always mercifully quiet when they watched wrestling on the TV, in person, they were loud, but now, they were just soaking it all in. Chris and Stephanie had quickly found that now that they were older and could sit still for a while, wrestling was something they loved. It sparked interest in their brains and kept them enraptured.

"That's exactly what I'm saying. This new one isn't stopping me."

"Stopping you from what?"

"The power."


	279. Catching Up, May 31, 2010

A/N: Thanks for reading to those who are reading. I'm trying desperately to catch up and I will, I know I will! Anyways, enjoy the chapter, hope you leave a review. :)

* * *

"So that tag team you had with Miz, that lasted what, a week or two?"

"Shut up," Chris said, looking over at his wife while she read her magazine. "I don't need to hear any lip from you."

"I'm just saying that it was quite short-lived," Stephanie smirked.

"Daddy, you shouldn't say mean words like shut up to people," Sawyer told Chris as he pushed Flynn around on her little buggy ride thing that their grandfather had brought for them tonight. He had brought Sawyer a bunch of new wrestling action figures and he'd even brought stuffed animals for the new baby that was still in his mommy's tummy.

"Well, you should tell your mommy that she shouldn't be mean to me," Chris told his son.

"How exactly am I being mean to you?" Stephanie asked. "I was simply stating a fact. You and Miz went on and on about how you both carried the Big Show in all your matches and how clearly superior you both were and then, well, that fizzled out quick, didn't it?"

"See, there you go doing it again," Chris told her.

"What am I doing?" she laughed.

"Mommy funny," Flynn giggled and smushed her face against the steering wheel of her toy. She kept laughing as Sawyer pushed her around and crashed her into the desk.

"Don't make your sister crash," Stephanie told Sawyer.

"I wanna go play outside," Sawyer said, leaning his head on the desk. "Can we go play?"

"Who, you and Flynn?"

"Yeah."

"By yourselves?"

"I'll watch her," Sawyer said.

"Oh yeah, like I'm going to let my four year old watch my one year old, sure, Sawyer, that sounds like a great plan," Stephanie told him.

"You're using the tone again," Chris pointed out. "You can't even help but use it on our son. You're acting completely smug tonight because your dad is here and you know there's nothing he can do about Bret being the GM. Even though, you know, I got him here and he hasn't been very complimentary to me."

"_You_ haven't been very nice to him. Plus, he has an image to keep up. Sweetie, face it, nobody likes you right now and they haven't for a really long time. If Bret wants to keep the fans on his side and it's really the only shot he has because the minute things start to go sour my dad is going to call him incompetent and find a way to get him fired so there's no way that he can like you right now. Me, on the other hand, nobody sees me because the only time I make any appearances is with my mom on the campaign trail and you know what she told me the other day?"

"What did she tell you?" Chris asked.

"She said that she was happy we were having a baby because it gave her an even more wholesome image and what with Marissa and her baby she can play up that entire family issue. I swear, my family does not see me for who I am but what I can do for them. With this campaign my mom has almost become worse than my dad."

"Aren't all politicians a bit on the…rough side?" Chris said.

"Yeah, watch out though, if you get that show that you are hosting or whatever, she'll probably use that too. 'Look at my son-in-law, he's on a major network, he has expanded his horizons beyond wrestling and he's so great,'" Stephanie said, a definite show of her hormones being a bit out of whack. She was always prone to mood swings, but nowadays, they seemed to come fast and furious.

"Well, I am great. Do _you_ hope I get the gig?"

"Oh of course I do because that'll mean that you go away _again_ and you know it's getting harder for me to fly and I will have to leave soon and you'll probably leave me with both kids so you can what…what's the concept again, throw people off a building?"

"There's a conveyor belt," he explained.

"Oh, excuse me, so you can convey people off the side of a building. I swear to God, the game shows they come up with these days. I saw one the other day where someone had to make ping pong balls into a glass of water, what the hell is with TV these days."

"Says the woman who runs a wrestling company."

"Says the man who wrestles in said company."

"Sawyer can come with me to LA if I get it."

"Oh sure, take the easy one," Stephanie grumbled.

"I'm easy?" Sawyer asked confusedly.

"Yeah, I'm going to have to agree with that, he's easy?" Chris wondered. He liked seeing Stephanie like this, he thought it was funny, really. She got so irritated over little things and she was even worse at home, but he understood why she was this way. This was their third pregnancy after all so there weren't many surprises this time around, more like, an old friend visiting.

"Yes, compared to Flynn. Flynn can't talk in sentences, she can't run or jump or help me, she can't even go to the bathroom by herself, she still needs to be changed," Stephanie said.

"Well, it's nice to know you think our daughter is a burden," Chris laughed, "Did you hear that Flutterby, your mommy wishes that you were better than you are. That's not very nice of you to say, baby, you shouldn't downgrade our kids like that."

"I'm just saying that Sawyer understands things now. If I need something done, he's my little helper."

"Okay, okay, fine, if the show is picked up then I will take Flynn with me to LA when we film and you can have Sawyer, who can be your little helper."

"I am a big help," Sawyer nodded. He couldn't disagree with that statement.

"Fine," Stephanie relented. The baby pushed against her stomach and she pushed back against it, letting the baby know that she knew that they were in there. It seemed they really wanted to make their presence known lately, like they were getting lost in the shuffle or something, which could hardly be the case since they were waiting on the arrival for this little bundle of terror. She loved joking with Chris that the baby would be a girl, but there was something telling her that there was a good chance it would be a boy. She wasn't sure what that feeling was, maybe mother's intuition but she felt this could be a little boy.

"Don't you want me to get the show though, wouldn't that be cool?"

"It would be great exposure for you and the company," she answered.

"And you say your mother has an agenda. All I am to you is a walking, talking billboard, aren't I?" Chris asked. "I mean, it's always what I can do for the company."

"Chris, I'm sorry, but you're a very recognizable face for our brand and a very handsome one as well so you're a good spokesperson for us."

"Is that why it took you ten years to give me a DVD set."

"Perfection takes time, Chris," she told him with a wink. "You probably would have learned that if you'd stayed with the Miz."

"Don't talk to me about that jerk. Just because your plan is going so smoothly and your father is up in arms about Bret being the GM and not being able to do anything about it doesn't mean that you've got to go and rub it in," he told her, thinking back to that disaster of a match they'd had at the last Pay-Per-View.

"I'm not rubbing it in, I'm just wondering why you guys decided to call it quits."

"_So what is Stephanie like in bed?"_

_Chris snapped his head over to look at the Miz, his face contorting in barely concealed disgust. "Excuse me?"_

"_What is she like in bed? I mean, you hear the rumors of course, guys talk around here, but now that we're tag team partners and invariably the best things on this show, I thought I could just ask you directly about her."_

"_We lost last night," Chris pointed out._

"_Yes, but that was just a minor blip on the radar. We're not cohesive yet, you know. We have to get in that groove, like we were with Big Show, you know, before he decided to get all righteous or whatever he is now. So come on, you guys have been together for a while, she's hot in bed, right, all those business-types are crazy in bed, right? Man, how the hell did you manage to get the _boss's_ daughter? And that boss being Vince McMahon. I mean, I'm awesome, but that's bold. I would've made a play her though, you're lucky I didn't come into the company before you two got together or I'd have given you a run for your money."_

_Stephanie would have eaten him alive. It took a very unique man to be with Stephanie, a man who could keep up with her, but also be patient with her. Miz thought he could attract any woman he wanted, but Stephanie wasn't like that, Stephanie was so different. Even though he loved her, he would love to see some other man try to deal with her. He could just imagine her dragging around some poor guy by the balls. Maybe he should divorce her and see what she did. First though, he was going to have to deal with Miz._

"_Yeah, I don't want to team with you anymore."_

"I'm better as the lone wolf," Chris told her. "I just work better when I know I'm the only one I have to worry about. It's when you start worrying about other guys that you get in trouble."

"So what do you call the little mentor relationship you have with Wade?"

"We were forced together. You signed me up for that NXT show, Stephanie, you know you did so it wasn't my doing that I'm on the show. Although I like Wade, he's the future winner of the show, he's got it in the bag. Him being #2 for a while was just a fluke."

"You don't know that he'll win."

"He's going to win, I'm mentoring him and look at the other mentors on the show, I mean, seriously, do you think that someone mentored by Matt Hardy is going to make a difference in this company? I mean, I've listened to that kid try to talk to a crowd and let me tell you, I've heard Sawyer give better speeches-"

"Hey!"

"Sorry, kid, Wade has it all though, he's got it in the bag and with me guiding him, how can he lose?"

"I don't know, the other pros don't like him as much."

"I'm persuasive," he said suggestively as Sawyer pushed Flynn right into him. Flynn lifted her arms to him and he took her and kissed her cheek before sitting her in his lap. She slapped her hands off his legs as Sawyer ran to go play with his new action figures. Stephanie had already taken them out of the boxes for him so they were primed and ready to be played with and he was going to play the hell out of them.

"What do you mean you're persuasive? Also, that kind of sounded dirty and weird."

"Stephanie, Stephanie, Stephanie, just because I don't use the power for my own personal gain doesn't mean that I don't use the power for _other's_ personal gain."

Stephanie raised an eyebrow and rubbed her stomach, though the two gestures were not conducive to one another. The baby was just moving around again. "So you won't let me put you into title matches, but you'll use your influence over others to get Wade a contract?"

"It's about time that the younger guys started stepping up. Look at what we have right now, Stephanie. Look, you and me, we're going to run this company someday, am I correct in thinking that?"

"Sometimes I think my father sold his soul to the devil for immortality, but in the event he is mortal, then yes, you and I will be in charge of the company barring any sticky divorces in the interim, what's your point?"

"We can't subsist solely on the guys we have now, that's not how it's going to work. We need the younger guys to step up and very few are doing that right now. Let's face it, the same guys are winning the title all the time."

"You've won the title 6 times."

"I'm exempt because I'm the best in the world at what I do."

"Ted is up and coming, he's going to be something someday."

"Yeah, when he stops living in Daddy's shadow. I don't know what you see in that guy. I don't know what he sees in you to be quite frank."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked.

"It just means that you're obviously pregnant, _obviously_, and yet when I come in here and he's here, he's still drooling all over you like you're a piece of meat and he's a starving dog. It's really getting pathetic, do you have any single friends that you can set him up with, hey, better yet, why don't you get him with Britt. That'll totally piss Hunter off…and Evan too while we're at it."

"He just has a crush, that's all. He spends way too much time with guys, he does need a girlfriend, but I'm at a loss for anyone to set him up with so that's a no go."

"Damn, but still, what I'm saying is that we need younger guys to start stepping up. I believe in Wade, I think that he's going places, that he's one of the best guys I've seen in a while. I'm pretty good at spotting talent I think and of the guys on the show, he's easily got the most, though I'll give a bit up to that Daniel Bryan, Bryan Danielson, whatever his name is, he's got moxie that one, but he's got nothing on Wade."

"So you're thinking for the company's future."

"One day, baby, I'm _going_ to retire, no matter how much you hate hearing that, it's going to happen."

"Even if I cover my ears and start singing?" she asked.

"Yes, even after that and I will still be here of course, but I'm trying to think ahead for the future, I'm not getting any younger, I'm going to be 40 this year and we have three children that are in need of some raising, right, Flutterby, you want to be raised up right, right?"

"Yeah, Daddy," Flynn nodded and nodded and then nodded some more.

"She's very enthusiastic about the entire thing."

"Can't you just stay until Sawyer becomes a wrestler?"

"Oh yeah, sure, I'll stay for another 16 or so years, what are you crazy, baby? That's not happening."

"What about this gig?" she asked, slightly worried about this hosting thing he wanted to do. He'd been pitched a show and he'd really liked the idea and they'd needed a host. He'd flown out to LA to help pitch the idea to the ABC higher-ups, an audition of sorts, and he was waiting to see if they were going to pick up the show. "I mean, that's going to maybe lead to other stuff."

"Stephanie, in my life, there have been two things I've wanted to do, just two, be a rock star and be a wrestler. Wrestling is who I am, it's who I'll always be. You've got to stop worrying about this. Trust me, besides our family, wrestling comes first in my life. I may get other offers, but nothing can replace wrestling for me."

"If you say so," she sighed, hoping that he was right. She just didn't want him to go and pull a Rocky on her, say that they were devoted to wrestling and then at the first chance he got, he jumped right out of the company that gave him everything, all the fame that he now had. Without the WWE, Rocky would've been nothing.

"Besides, it'll be cool hosting another show, especially with this concept."

"I think you take on too much," she told him.

"Excuse me, this coming from the woman that is currently how many weeks pregnant and still on the road and running the show and who hasn't even given me a date as to when she's going to stop traveling."

"I'll decide when I decide," she snapped at him. "You can't make me do anything that I don't want to do, you know?"

"I wasn't suggesting that," he told her. "I'm just saying that you take on just as much as me and it's ridiculous of you to think otherwise."

"You take on way more than I do. You're constantly traveling for signings and wrestling and Fozzy and TV shows and hosting things and all of this and I just don't want you to take on too much because Chris, I love you, but if I have to raise these three kids by myself, I will rip part of your anatomy right off."

"You're vicious and I love you," he said, standing up with Flynn and going over to kiss her. "We'll get out of your hair now so you can resist the urge to eat us like a praying mantis, that is the bug that eats the male, right? Or will you just eat your young like a hamster or rabbit or something?"

"Disgusting, get out of here," she said. "You have an early match tonight, don't forget."

"Yeah, against R-Truth, trust me, I have that one in the bag."

Lita rubbed Edge's shoulders…hard. She was not taking any prisoners right now and he was actually wincing from her touch. He was a bit scared to tell her to lay off so he just endured her fingers squeezing into his skin. "You're so irritable," Lita told him.

"_Me?_ You're the one digging your fingers into my skin," he said, not able to keep his mouth shut.

"You _and_ Christian are being babies. I was talking to Trish over the weekend and we both agree that the two of you need to work out whatever weird aggression thing you have going on before it costs you both."

"Costs us what?" he challenged and then winced when she dug into his skin a bit more. "Okay, enough of that," he told her, pulling her hands away from him and turning to her. "What do you think it's going to cost us?"

"Hello, you two are _brothers_. It's not like your two friends, like…God, who were friends…oh yeah, Miz and Morrison, remember when they were a team and now they hate each other?"

"That's a pretty weird comparison."

"Work with me here, Edge," Lita said as his eyes wandered down to her top. She grabbed him by the chin and made him face her. "You and Christian are brothers, you will be brothers for life and you are both being silly. You two are better than this. You're not 12 anymore, you're 36, almost 37 and you should be above this."

"I'll be above it when he starts acting like the Christian he used to be."

"He's _never_ going to be that Christian again. He's a father now, why don't you just respect that?"

"Because he's not just a father, he spends every waking second of every day just talking about her incessantly. Until he stops acting like she's the best thing that ever happened in the universe than I'm not going to talk to him."

"You do realize that is never going to happen?"

"NO, not like that, I know she _is_ the best thing to ever happen to him, I just don't need to hear about it all the time," Edge said with a sigh.

He might even be denying it from himself, but he was jealous of Tilden. It wasn't like Christian doted on Edge when he didn't have Tilden, but it just felt…odd. He wanted his brother back, but everything was about Tilden now. He couldn't have a conversation with his brother that didn't include Tilden, permeating every second of the conversation. He loved his niece dearly and she was adorable, but his brother was just so…not Christian. The only other children Edge was ever really around were Chris and Stephanie's. He didn't have a lot of friends who had children and he and Lita certainly didn't have any children so he had no real exposure to them at all, but from what he saw in Chris and Stephanie, they were capable of having conversations that didn't revolve around their children. He went out with Chris a bunch of times just to grab a beer and hang out and most of the time, Chris's kids were spoken of in passing. Hell, Chris could even appreciate a nice ass or set of breasts when they walked in. So where did Christian go?

"He'll change when she's older," Lita said sympathetically, like she could read his mind and he hated her for it. Lita knew too much, she was just too much for him sometimes, understanding him better than he'd ever been understood. He thought he'd lived by the music, "you think you know me…" He thought that'd been part of his persona, that people thought they knew but they had no idea what went on in his brain. Except Lita, she knew, she knew too well.

"You don't know that, he could be one of those weird stage fathers, like on _Glee_ with Rachel's dads and how they were always putting her…oh God, you see what you've done to me, Li, you've got me making comparisons to teen shows!"

"It's a good show and you've made a relevant point. Trish is trying to keep him in check though. They're all going to be here next week so you better start getting prepared now."

"All?"

"Yeah, Christian and Trish are bringing Tilden to the show, her very first one because it's in Florida and so it's not too far for them to travel by plane and Trish wants to show her off and well, Christian…"

"Wants to brag about her to anyone who will listen?" Edge scoffed. "God, I cannot stand what fatherhood has done to him!"

"Aren't you being a little bit selfish?"

"Me, selfish, I don't think so, you know what, no, I'm not being selfish, _he's_ being selfish, not me!"

"I think it's you."

"No, damn it, Li, he's the one who's acting like an idiot!"

Edge was so mad that he walked away. He just didn't want to deal with anything relating to his brother right now. It was bad enough he had to contend with a niece that he loved, now he had to see them all together and they would be fawning all over Tilden and he'd want to see her, but then he'd have to see his brother. Hell, he thought it'd be adorable for Tilden to watch wrestling and squeal and laugh, but not at the expense of his brother nailing it into his head that Tilden was the bee's knees. He needed to take it out on someone.

That someone would end up being Randy Orton. It was convenient for him though because he was to be facing Randy and taking the man out of action was something that would be beneficial towards him gaining the WWE title. Randy was vulnerable right now and all the anger he had pent up inside for Christian came pouring out in his attack of Randy. He didn't want to say he was picturing his brother because he didn't necessarily want to kick his brother's ass this much, but he did want to get it across to his brother that he didn't like the way he was acting and he wanted his brother back.

He couldn't help it that his brother was out of mind with fatherhood. He couldn't help it that Randy needed to be taken care of. It only made him feel slightly better when he beat up Randy, only slightly better when it left Cena without a partner later that evening, until he saw Evan Bourne, that scrawny excuse for a wrestler. Everything was making him mad these days. He didn't much like the feeling, but his brother was invading everything and it was frustrating to let his own brother have that kind of control on him. He didn't want Christian to have that kind of power, but he did. They were brothers after all and if he didn't have his brother, who did he really have in this world? Brothers were supposed to be forever, not when it was convenient so why did becoming a father mean that Christian had to ignore all the other aspects of his life?

Stephanie loved to watch her father try to work his way out of situations. While he was out there talking, she was watching him intently. Though he'd been very cordial with the grandchildren today, even buying something for the new baby, the tension was palpable. He was mad at her for getting Bret a long-term gig on the show and undermining his guest host idea. She was tired of creating agendas for the guest hosts and at least Bret was familiar with the company. She didn't care if he was mad at her and she found it sad that he was trying to save face now by saying he'd ok'ed the deal when she had sprung it on him after meeting with the board. It was amazing the things a pregnant woman could get away with. You just bat a few eyelashes, rub your stomach, talk about how it would mean so much to you while you were away after having a baby and you got what you wanted.

Now she was reaping the benefits of seeing her father explain her actions while trying to act like he'd had any control of the situation. She loved it when she got one over on him, it was so satisfying to see and watch, much better than seeing Chris lose to R-Truth earlier that evening. He'd been in complete shock and when he'd come back to her office, he'd simply grabbed his clothes, went into the bathroom, took a shower, changed, came back out and took the children and left. He'd been shell-shocked and she was too. Losing to R-Truth was pretty unacceptable and Chris must be reeling right now. But he would get back into the groove next week, she was sure of it. This was probably a fluke.

What wasn't a fluke was her being in control of her father for once. Now he was actually wishing Bret luck. She wondered if that vein in his head was going to pop from holding in the anger that was just wishing to flow free. She imagined that if she didn't have two children and one on the way that her father would be chewing her out right about now and firing her or suspending her since he couldn't logistically fire her with all her holdings in the company. She'd cripple him if she took all the shares she had and sold them to someone else or even…bought out Shane's shares. Now _there_ was an idea. She would double her shareholdings and have even more power. She might have to discuss that with him.

"Stephanie, oh my God!" Chris said, bursting into the dressing room. Sawyer was running with him and laughing because he thought it was a game and Flynn was laughing too because she'd thought it fun.

"More, Daddy, more!" Flynn exclaimed, clapping her hands.

"Chris, what's wrong?" she asked, thinking it was something with a wrestler. It couldn't be the kids because they were right there and they both looked fine and happy.

"Evan, just…saw him, oh my God!"

"Evan? Evan Bourne? Britt's Evan Bourne?" she asked.

"Yeah, I just saw him and he was just with another girl, making out with her. John…he was like, oh my God, that was _not_ Britt."

"Are you serious?" Stephanie asked, standing up. "Chris, you better have your facts straight here. Are you _sure_ you saw what you saw?"

"Stephanie, I'm positive."

_He felt pretty low right now. Losing to R-Truth, that loser? It was so beneath him and he just couldn't believe that he'd lost focus for even that one moment to let himself lose like that. He was better than that, he was the best in the world. He was now evaluating that though because he couldn't take thinking that he wasn't the best. He prided himself on that. He knew it was just one loss, but it felt different, he felt different and he didn't like that feeling. He needed to just stick to himself from now on. Wade was going to win NXT, he was sure of it and then he'd be done with that, though he'd help the kid if he needed it. The Miz stuff was stupid on his part, he and the Miz clashed too much. He didn't need a partner any longer, just himself and he had to focus on his wrestling._

"_Daddy, down," Flynn asked, tapping him on the shoulder to get his attention. He was hoping a walk would tire them and then they could go to sleep. Sawyer was already running ahead and then waiting and then running ahead and then waiting and Flynn thought it looked like fun._

"_Daddy, when is the baby coming?" Sawyer asked when they'd caught up with him._

"_When it comes," he answered smartly._

"_When's that?"_

"_I don't know, your mommy has a due date, but it could come at any time it feels like it."_

"_And then it will be a boy or a girl?"_

"_Yeah, it'll be one of those," Chris said._

"_What baby?" Flynn asked, looking up at her father. She was always being called a baby._

"_A new baby, one that you're going to have to get along with whether you like it or not, Miss Flynn," Chris told her._

"_Okay," she answered as Sawyer ran ahead again and she toddled after him. Chris followed after her, making sure Flynn didn't fall on her butt or hurt herself. If one of their kids got hurt now, while Stephanie was pregnant and angry, yeah, not a good thing. He went back to thinking about his match and how next week he would have to do better. He'd have to forget about tonight and just focus on winning. Maybe he was distracted because he was waiting on the news about the new show that he might be doing. He hadn't told Stephanie how long the filming would take and he just hoped she wouldn't be angry about that. He was going to be gone a bit, but he would make time for her, he always did and with the new baby, he'd have to help, but he would. Still, he hated thinking he'd have to leave her, but opportunity was knocking and he had to answer._

"_Daddy, I'm happy that we're having another baby, I'm going to like it," Sawyer said when Chris caught up to him again. "I like babies and I'm going to help like I helped with Flynn."_

"_I know, you're a big help, but maybe it'll just be me and Mommy this time, okay, kid?"_

"_But why, I helped," Sawyer explained._

"_I know, but it's just easier on us, but right after the baby is born, you can come see him or her and then they'll love you because you talk to Mommy's tummy all the time and so the baby is going to know your voice more than anyone's."_

"_You talk to it too," Sawyer pointed out._

"_Yeah, but you talk even more!" he exclaimed._

_Sawyer giggled, "I do and Flynn does too."_

"_Yeah, but Flynn is all mad about the baby."_

"_I don't know why because babies are cool and you can play with them," Sawyer sad, "like I play with Flynn!"_

"_I know, she'll learn though," Chris said as Sawyer took off around a corner. "Hey, kid, that's the parking lot…Flutterby, your brother, I swear, he's going to make my hair gray and then I'll lose all my hotness and the girls won't love me anymore."_

"_Love you," Flynn said with that gloriously toothy smile of hers. Chris grabbed her and tossed her in the air as she screamed and then turned the corner to see Sawyer out in the parking lot, waiting for him. He jogged ahead and then stopped when he heard voices. He turned, seeing John Cena talking with Evan, but they weren't alone._

"_So this is Cecilia and this is Alexandra, they're…friends of mine."_

"_Nice to meet you."_

"_Look man, if you want to make it big and I can take you there, you've got to dump that frumpy girl and you've got to live like you're on top."_

"_I don't know about that…"_

"_Trust me," one of the girls said. "Come on."_

_Chris watched curiously as the girl took him a few feet away and started whispering something to Evan and then her lips were on his and he was not pulling away. Chris grabbed Sawyer's hand and they slowly started backing out of the garage until they were back in the hallway. Cena was a jerk and Evan…he couldn't believe Evan would give in like that. What? Did he think that was _really_ how to be a main-eventer, make out with random girls you didn't know? Or was Evan just reading the writing on the wall with Britt and Hunter (if there was any writing, but Chris believed there was). Either way, he should have pulled away from that woman and he hadn't. He had to tell Britt…no, he couldn't do that to her right now. He couldn't tell her like this…no, he had to think, to think…yes, he had to tell Stephanie._

_He took off in a dead run and made it to her office with all of them intact and burst the door open._

"He might have pulled away right after. He doesn't seem like the type. Maybe you were just mistaken," she reasoned.

"I don't think that I am, Stephanie, I saw what I saw, we have to tell Britt."

"Okay, but this is a delicate situation. We have to go about this in the proper way. She's not here tonight because she has the week off, but next week, I guess we'll have to tell her, won't we?"

"I guess," he told her, "I really don't want to."

"Okay, first things first though, I think we have to catch Evan in the act."

"Why?" he asked, confused, they should just tell Britt and let her deal with it.

"Evidence."


	280. Slammed, June 7, 2010

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, guys and the favorites and what not, appreciate it. Hope you like the chapter, I had a lot of fun writing it so I hope you have fun reading it. :)

* * *

"Do you think it smells different here?"

"Yeah, I think it smells like sweat and jockstraps," Christian told his wife. She made a face and then shook her head at him, pretending to be exasperated. "What?"

"Must you be so disgusting, Chrissy?" Trish asked. "It's just there's something different while you're here. I mean, I'm happy with what I'm doing now, running my yoga studio and possibly expanding it into Tampa and being a Mommy on top of all that, but you know, it's like, I miss this sometimes too."

"I don't blame you for that," Christian said, switching the hand he was holding Tilden's carrier with and grabbing Trish's hand in his own. She smiled up at him and then tugged on his hand to pull him down to her level. Sometimes it as a little awkward having a husband so much taller than her, but then, when he folded her against his body, she always felt very safe and very loved. She loved that feeling. "You can always come back, you know. You look fantastic."

She looked down at herself. For the most part, all the baby weight was gone, save for a couple pounds. The yoga she did really helped and she felt good about her body and herself now. There was always going to be a different feeling to her body after she had Tilden. Maybe it was a mental change, maybe there were tiny physical changes that were too imperceptible for her to see, but there was something different. Could she come back and wrestle though? Yeah, she believed that she could, but the time wasn't right and she wasn't going to pressure herself to come back.

"I know," she said, "but I like what I'm doing right now and I think it's time to let other women shine."

"Like who, like the Bella twins. I'm surprised they know how to put their own shoes on."

"You know there have always been divas who have been kept around simply for the eye candy factor and then you have the divas that can actually wrestle. It's just how it's always been," Trish explained, "and I know this because I wasn't hired for my wrestling skills, which were absolutely non-existent when I came into the company."

"Yeah, but then you took the time to learn and become the greatest diva of all time," Christian told her.

"Don't you think you're exaggerating a little bit?" Trish asked with a laugh. It wasn't that she thought she was bad or anything, but those were really strong words, though she knew Christian was going to be biased.

"No, I don't think they are and I bet if you were to ask anyone here, they would tell you the exact same thing."

"Even Lita?" Trish wondered.

"I don't want to talk about her."

"Oh, so because you're mad at Edge, we can't talk about Lita either, is that it?" Trish asked him, the anger creeping up into her voice.

She thought this fight between Edge and Christian was pointless and stupid. She couldn't believe they were fighting over a little girl. The other thing she couldn't believe that if held up at gunpoint, she'd probably take Edge's side in all of this. She loved Christian, she really did. He was a perfect husband and he was an incredible father to Tilden. Whenever he came home, he'd make a beeline for that little girl and she would look at him with her brown eyes and smile and want to be held by him and he was amazing.

He also tended to forget about the rest of the world.

She understood it was hard for him to leave Tilden even for a moment, sometimes she felt the same way, like if she turned her back for even a moment, Tilden would do something amazing and she would miss it. But she also knew that she had a lifetime with her daughter and even if she wasn't always going to be this little baby, there would be other special, important moments they would get to share in and she couldn't wait for those. Then sometimes, she wanted away from Tilden, a night off, a nice dinner that didn't include breast feeding. Christian could never understand why she'd want to even spend one moment away from Tilden, but she got tired of her only company being an infant. She was sort of looking forward to Stephanie's maternity leave because it would mean she'd have a companion with her some of the time.

Still, Christian was one of those overbearing fathers right now and she didn't know how to snap him out of it. Tilden would be there when he got home, she'd always be there and waiting and happy to see him and even if he missed one thing, there were a million other things he wasn't going to miss. Edge just wanted his brother back and she kind of wanted her husband back. Most of their discussions centered around Tilden, which was why she was so happy to be here tonight, maybe it would revolve around something else for a little bit.

"I just don't know why she stays with him. He's a complete jerk."

"Well, you know," she never did know how to breach the subject of Edge up to Christian. It was such a fine line and she didn't want Christian mad at her too. "He's only reacting because of how he feels."

"Which is a selfish feeling."

"He loves you."

"Well he can kiss my ass," Christian told her, "and so can Lita for all I care because she's with him and I don't know why!"

"Don't drag her into this," Trish warned him. "I swear to God, Christian, you are…" She stopped herself and took a deep breath. "Never-mind."

"No, what were you going to say?" he asked. "Obviously you have something on your mind."

"I'm not doing this here," she hissed. "Look, I don't get a lot of nights where I can hang around with my friends and catch up with different people so you are not going to rob me of that, do you hear me, Christian Cage."

"Fine," he told her.

"Thank you," she said with a sigh. Tilden, seeming to sense the tension between her parents started to whimper quietly. "See what you did, now she's upset."

"Me? You're the one getting mad."

"You're the one who _is_ mad," Trish told him. "Do you think she can't sense the tension between you and Edge? She's not a doll, Christian, she's still a human being and being unable to talk probably makes it even more difficult for her to comprehend."

"I thought we weren't doing this here," he snapped at her.

"Fine, fine, give me Tilden and we will get out of your hair."

"Why are you taking her?" he asked, pulling the carrier a little closer to him. "I'll take her."

"You might have something to do on the show," Trish reasoned. "So I'll just take her and you can go do whatever it is you do on the shows now. I want to take her and go see some of my friends who haven't seen her. I know Gail would love to see her and so would Randy."

"You're not taking my daughter around Randy," Christian told her.

"Our daughter," she corrected him, "and why not? Do you think he's going to punt her in the head or something?"

"He could."

She laughed at the ridiculousness of his statement. "Are you serious? You think that he's going to punt our 4 month old daughter in the head? Like he's just going to use her for his own personal football?"

"You don't know that he won't," Christian reasoned.

"I'm _pretty_ sure that he won't, if it's all the same to you," Trish said. "Now give her to me."

"I don't want to let her go, maybe _I_ want to show her off to some people, did you ever think of that?"

"Like who?" she questioned him. "Tell me just who exactly you want to show her off to and you can't say everyone because that's not a good answer. I have specific people that I want to show her to."

"Yeah, people who might hurt her."

"Not everyone is out for the blood of a baby!" Trish said, shivering like she was supposed to feel spooked. She laughed, but Christian was not laughing. She tilted her head at him, her dark hair falling a little bit onto her shoulders as she looked at him. "Chrissy, you need to lighten up, seriously. Now, I'm taking the baby and you will go do whatever it is you do at the shows when we're not here."

"But-"

"I'm taking the baby," Trish told him.

"Trish…"

"Christian, I'm taking the baby," she told him, reaching over and grabbing Tilden's carrier. For her part, Tilden was looking up at the both of them, wondering what was going on and where she was. This wasn't home or any place she'd ever been and the lights were a little too bright for her liking. Trish grabbed the carrier and pulled on it, Christian's hand going with it. She raised an eyebrow at him and then pulled a little harder and he finally relinquished his hold of it and she smiled and started walking away while he scowled. Trish breathed a sigh of relief. She needed a break from Christian right now.

The car ride had been long enough dealing with him. She just found herself more and more frustrated with him and it wasn't just the car ride from the airport. It wasn't just the flight. It was everything. It was like she was just an extension of Tilden to her. She didn't feel like her own person around Christian anymore. Then there was their…relationship, or lack thereof really. They hadn't been intimate with each other since before Tilden had been born. It was well past the six weeks that were usually needed to recover fully from delivery and still, nothing. She'd tried to instigate some things, but again, nothing. It was frustrating and she was ashamed.

Normally she might talk to Stephanie about it, since she had two kids and had had to ease back into a sex life with Chris after both of the children. But she knew that Stephanie and Chris were always ripping each other's clothes off or some such nonsense that she felt like she couldn't go to Stephanie with something like this. She could probably talk to her sister, but they weren't close enough to feel comfortable talking about things like this. She was ashamed at the thought that Christian might not find her desirable now.

"Hey, kiddo, you want to go meet some of Mommy's friends?" Trish asked her little girl, smiling down at the one thing that made sense in her world. Tilden looked up at her and seemed to give her, her cutest face ever and she appreciated that. "At least I have you, kiddo, at least I have you."

"Me and Big Show…what are the choices again?" Chris asked.

"Well, it's an Over-the-Top challenge?"

"Oh, like I have a shot at that," Chris whined. "Who thought up these stipulations again?"

"My father. I knew that whole hating on Bret thing wouldn't work. My father now has it out for you," Stephanie shrugged.

"Why am I always caught in the middle of the McMahon mess?" he asked. "I'm always the one who suffers."

"I'm having your baby in a matter of weeks, Chris Jericho, and you're talking to me about always being the one that suffers?" Stephanie asked, standing up. She was a picture right now, her stomach growing larger by the moment it seemed. She had gained more weight in this pregnancy than she had during her pregnancy with Flynn so she was looking particularly rotund nowadays, not that she looked bad because Chris firmly believed that Stephanie could never look bad. It just wasn't in her genetic makeup (though that genetic material came from Vince, which, you'd think he'd have kind of ugly children, but Stephanie was gorgeous so it was an anomaly to Chris).

"I mean in the business."

"Again, I'm going to have to refute that," Stephanie said.

"I still get caught in the middle though."

"Oh yes, that's my fault because I married a wrestler, all my fault," she told him.

"I'm glad we agree on something," Chris said with a shrug.

"It's your fault for being irresistible," Stephanie said, crossing her arms over her stomach. "As far as I'm concerned, it's all your fault because you had to be so sweet and nice to me when we were business partners and you took advantage of me when I was still vulnerable after the disintegration of my first marriage. You swooped in."

"And marked my territory," he said, reaching forward and patting her on the stomach. "Why do you think I keep getting you pregnant, it's so I can tell all the guys around here that you're mine. In fact, I've been working a little on a sign for you to just stick to your stomach that says, "Property of Chris Jericho." I'm thinking they'll just think the baby, but I'm just going to go ahead and claim the entire uterus and well, for the hell of it, your entire reproductive thing down there."

"Oh, so does that mean, _that_," she pointed down to his crotch, "is property of Stephanie McMahon?"

"No, because I share it with others," Chris told her.

"You better not be sharing it with anyone, especially when you go down to LA to film your little show," she told him, but she had a smile on her face. She was so proud of him for getting the show. She liked seeing him out of the WWE element, gaining momentum and being independent. It gave her a little thrill watching the rest of the world fall to their knees in awe of her amazing husband.

"Little show?"

"We already have a Big Show, who you'll be facing," she told him as he leaned forward to capture her lips in a kiss. His stomach bumped against hers and he laughed against her lips. He loved the feel of her stomach pressing into his own. It reminded him of what would be here very soon. He rested his hand against the side of her stomach.

"So which of the kids will you be sending with me to spy on me while I film the show."

Stephanie pulled away and tapped her chin, glancing off to her children who were being nice and quiet this evening. She felt like it was the quiet before the storm though, like they were nice now, but any moment, the wild children in them would spring free and hit her square in the face. "Well, Flynn is cute so she can infiltrate any women you might meet down there who probably walk around in g-strings and tank tops."

"You have a very skewed view of LA, let me just tell you that to start off with," Chris told her, poking her in her adorable chin dimple, which his new child would probably have as well. There was really no escaping that particular McMahon trait.

"On the other hand," she said, ignoring his words, "Sawyer can talk and observe so I think I'm going to go with…Sawyer."

"What did I do?" Sawyer asked, his eyes widening, thinking he was in trouble. He'd just been sitting here, looking over some books!

"Nothing, you're going to go with Daddy to LA and watch him film a game show and Chris Jericho, if you let my son anywhere near a conveyor belt and the side of a building, you will find yourself over that building with no cords."

"You're scary," Chris said, "so come on, lay it on me, over-the-top and…"

"Submission."

"Should I start tweeting right now for people to please vote that one?"

"No, because we're revealing it on the show!" Stephanie said. "Why must you tweet about everything?"

"I do not, I don't tweet about you."

"Thank goodness for that," she mumbled, "and the third choice is…Body Slam Challenge."

"Are you kidding me? So your father was just setting me up for this one, huh?"

"He's old and ornery," Stephanie said. "He hates Bret as the GM and he's pretending to be okay with it, but then he comes up with this passive aggressive way to get back at me because he knows he can't do anything _to_ me because I'm pregnant and he knows he _can_ do stuff to you because you're my husband."

Chris rubbed his temples. "Okay, well, I hope the fans don't hate me too much and give me the Submission match."

"Daddy, are you wrestling tonight?"

"Weffle, waffle!" Flynn growled, making her hands into tiny fists. She was obsessed with Chris's wrestling. Chris had had to dig out some _old_ tapes for her to watch because she couldn't get enough of him wrestling. She loved seeing him with long hair. He could just imagine her trying to eat his hair if he still had it. "Daddy!"

"She's scary too," Chris said, "maybe you should send her with me so she'll just scare off the other girls."

"She would do that, she's quite scary," Stephanie nodded.

"I am wrestling tonight, kid," Chris told his son. "But maybe you want to take my place?"

Sawyer laughed, "I don't wrestle, Daddy, I have to learn that."

"Well, look at you," Chris said. He looked at Stephanie. "Well, congratulations, baby, you've already done it. Four years old and already he's going to start wrestling training. I wonder who his pro could be, if he joins NXT that is, but maybe he'll get called up to the main roster since he _is_ our son. Kid, what's your wrestling name going to be?"

"My name's Sawyer Jericho," he answered.

"Sawyer Jericho, brilliant," Chris said. "The kid is brilliant, he's going to work off the Jericho name and why shouldn't he when his father is the best in the world at what he does. Sawyer can be the second best in the world at what he does."

"Maybe he can fill in for you if you're taking time off for the show," she told him.

"He does look like me, put him in some briefs and we're good to go. What about McMahon, kid? Are you going to use that name when you wrestle?"

"No, because that's not my name, that's…" He thought for a moment, "That's Grandpa's name, his name is Vince McMahon and he is old."

Stephanie laughed, "That's right, he is old."

"Okay, so onto other business, my love," Chris said, running his hand down her cheek. "We have to discuss what I saw last week and what we're going to do about what we saw last week. I mean, that little scum…what do we do about it?"

"I think we should just keep it to ourselves and stay out of it," Stephanie said. Then she looked at Chris and they both laughed. "Of course we have to come up with a plan, but I think this plan involves you kick his ass at every opportunity while we try to start a plan going to catch him in the act. Until then, we don't tell Britt."

"So we let her stay with that jerk?" Chris asked. "Yeah, not liking this plan…"

"Chris, we can't just be like, 'hey, saw your boyfriend making out with another chick,' and be done with it."

"If someone saw you making out with another guy, I'd want to be made aware of it immediately, I wouldn't want to love you and be around you and kiss you and other things with you and then find out it was all a farce," he said, his brow furrowing, like he'd thought of this scenario before. I wouldn't want to be kept in the dark."

"Tell me this, though," she started, "if someone, say…I don't know, Edge came up to you and said that he saw me making out with…Ted, for instance-"

"Why did you use Ted's name?"

"Because he's hot," she shrugged. "If Edge said he saw that, would you believe him?"

"You can't used Ted."

"Why not?"

"Because I know Ted and he wouldn't do that. The guy is completely afraid of me. This Million Dollar Man 2: Electric Boogaloo act is just that, an act. He doesn't live it, own up to it. He hides behind his father's façade. No way would he even try and challenge me for your affections. He's not man enough."

"Well what if I said we _have_ made out?" Stephanie said defiantly.

"I would laugh in your face."

"Who would make out with me while I look like this anyways?" Stephanie said, gesturing towards herself. "It's just like you've said, you've slapped a big, old, 'Property of Chris Jericho' sign all over me and no guy is going to make out with a pregnant woman."

"Except me, really, I'll make out with you."

"But okay, say Edge came up to you and said that he saw me making out with some random guy that you'd never seen before, that I'd never told you about, would you believe him just because he was telling you this stuff?"

"Edge is a good friend to us, we're good friends to Britt."

"Chris, think about it, would you believe anything that bad about me? After everything, would you take Edge's word over the things you know about me, everything that you know about me?"

He growled and then answered, "No, I wouldn't believe him because I know you and I know you wouldn't do something like that to me so I'd probably tell him to go to hell and not talk to me again and if he spread rumors about my wife again, I would crush him."

"See, so if we go to Britt now, even if we're friends, she loves Evan, so we have to catch him like a fly in a spider trap. And we're the spiders."

"You definitely have some black widow qualities about you," Chris told her.

"Not funny," she told him.

"I think you're funny," Chris told her, kissing her softly. "I think you're funny and pretty and perhaps the love of my life."

"Big words," she mumbled as she tried to pull herself closer to him. "You sure you mean those?"

"Absolutely," he told her, rubbing her stomach. "Is the kid moving around in there?"

"This kid _never_ stops moving when they're awake. I think this one is going to be a high flyer as opposed to a mat-based wrestler. She's doing somersaults in there."

"He."

"She."

"Sawyer, do you want a little brother or a little sister?" Chris asked.

Sawyer looked over and said, "I don't care, I like babies!"

"Okay, he's no help, Flynn, do you want a little brother or sister?" Chris asked.

"No baby," Flynn answered.

"Our kids are worthless, let's get rid of them. We'll pawn them off on some poor soul."

Stephanie laughed, "Okay, so, you go try and figure out a way to body slam and/or throw Show off the top rope while I try to figure out a way to bring Evan down like the little shrimp that he is. I should just bump him with my belly and send him flying."

Chris chuckled. "Okay, that image is pretty hilarious. You want I should bring one of the kids with me."

"Nah, they're playing quietly tonight, I can handle them," Stephanie said and Chris nodded before he left to go think about the show and hope the fans were voting in a way that benefited him, though there were no real benefits in any of the matches that he was potentially slated to be in. His mind then wandered to Britt and what he'd seen.

He didn't want to be glad that he'd seen Evan doing what he'd done because he didn't want Britt to be hurt for a second time, but part of him was a little hopeful that she would get together with Hunter again. Hunter was lonely, by his own account. He'd talked with the man a few times since he'd been on the mend from his injuries at the hands of Sheamus and Hunter would tell him how lonely it was in the big house all by himself. He and Stephanie were already planning on visiting him when they had a show in Connecticut in a few weeks. The least they could do was keep him company.

Maybe by then he and Stephanie would out Evan for the douchebag that he was (though a very good wrestler, but that didn't account for his douchebaggery) and maybe Britt would find solace with Hunter. He wasn't sure Britt would take Hunter back though. He'd stung her pretty bad and he wouldn't blame Britt if she never looked back at the man again, but maybe she'd give him another chance. It'd happened with Christian and Trish and with Edge and Lita. He and Stephanie had even kind of broken up a couple times, though they didn't really count those times because they'd never managed to really stay apart, despite him briefly dating Molly Holly, but that was just to forget Stephanie and it was a moot point now because he was married to Stephanie and they had three children.

But if Britt and Hunter could be together and happy then he'd be happy because his friends would be happy. The only thing that could make him happier would be the WWE title around his gorgeous waist, but after this thing with the Big Show tonight, he had his own brand of getting a little comeuppance with Evan Bourne. He was going to show Evan that he was the best and that he could beat him any time he wanted. Then after that he could go for the WWE title, if time permitted because he did have a lot on his plate, what with the new show he was going to be on and hosting. And on top of everything else, he was going to have a new baby! How crazy was that?

"Chris!"

Chris looked behind him and saw the wife he'd just left, trying very hard to walk very fast, but her very fast nowadays was, in actuality, very slow. Even slower because she had Flynn toddling next to her; the only one with any kind of agility was Sawyer, who was a few feet in front of his girls and running towards him as fast as he little blue Converse would take him.

"Daddy, Daddy, guess what!"

"Stephanie, are you in labor!" he exclaimed, rushing over to his wife. It was early, she wasn't full term yet and he grabbed for her stomach.

"What? No," she said, shaking her head and he breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't need a scare like that.

"Then what's with the running…or very fast walking?"

"It's a good thing," Sawyer said, jumping up and down and waving his arms. Chris picked him up and looked at him. "Mommy, Mommy, are you going to tell him?"

"You can tell him if you want, baby boy," she told him affectionately, seeing how excited he was about the entire thing.

"Mommy got a call and it was from Grandpa and he was saying stuff, but I don't know what stuff, what stuff, Mommy?" Sawyer said.

"Well, he said he started to think about my condition and how doing stuff to you was not helping me and he felt bad and I don't know, I think he was full of BS, but-"

"What's BS?" Sawyer asked abruptly, looking at his mother for the answer.

"It means Big Stupid," she said seamlessly and Chris was almost wondering if she'd been waiting to use that line for a while. "I think your grandfather was lying. I think he saw an opportunity and he's seizing it."

"What is he seizing?" Chris asked, feeling like he wasn't getting the full scope of what was going on here. "You sure you're not in labor, Steph?"

"I'm not in labor, go ahead and tell Daddy what he's getting, baby boy."

"TP!" Flynn yelled.

Chris looked down at her, "I'm getting…toilet paper?"

"No, Daddy, you're getting a DVD, right, that's right, right, Mommy? A DVD?"

"Yup, that's right and I suspect that's what Flynnie was trying to say," Stephanie said. "You're getting a deluxe 3-disc DVD set all about _you_."

"Are you kidding me? Don't joke around with me on this one? Are you sure? Because The Great Khali hasn't gotten his yet so how in God's name do I get one?"

She shrugged. "Just be grateful you are, it should be released in September and I'm looking to score a starring role in it."

"No."

"What?"

"Only if you talk about our storylines and not something like…how I burp in my sleep."

"I think it's adorable that you burp in your sleep," she said, kissing his cheek. "You excited?"

"It's just about damn time is what it is. It's just about damn time."

Edge looked around and saw Trish sitting with Gail Kim and talking. Tilden was sitting in Gail's arms as they sat talking and Gail kept glancing down at the little girl and smiling at her. Tilden didn't know this lady, but she was a pretty easygoing kid and didn't mind being handled. Besides, she could see her mommy right in front of her so everything was okay. Edge pulled Lita's hand and they went over to sit with his sister-in-law and niece.

"Hey guys," Edge said jovially.

"Hey, Edge, hey, Li," Trish said happily. "How are you guys?"

"Good, now that I can see that cute face," Edge said.

"Well thanks, you have a cute face too," Trish joked.

Edge laughed, "I was talking about my niece, but you can be included in that as well. Where's her dictator father?"

"I told him to go and do whatever it is he does at the shows. Now whether he's doing that or not, I don't know. He may be spying on me right now. Let's check that out, you want to try and hold Tilden, see if he swoops in."

"Do you mind, Gail?" Edge asked.

"Of course not, here you go," she said, lifting the little girl and placing her in Edge's arms. Edge took his niece and held her to him. He looked around and his brother wasn't in sight, which let him relax a little bit.

He looked down at his niece. She was absolutely gorgeous according to him. Her hair was darkening up a little bit, becoming more of a brown color and her eyes were mostly brown, but with a tinge of green in them. She was an enchanting and happy baby and he loved her very much and though he could understand Christian loving his daughter very much, he couldn't understand the change in him, this huge change that made him be such a jerk. Tilden knew this guy. She smiled up at him and he held her close.

"There's my Tilde-bang," he told her softly, pulling her away so he could make a face at her and blow a raspberry on her cheek, much to her infantile delight. She smiled her gummy smile at him and he made his crazy eyes for her again. "You are just the sweetest thing, aren't you?"

"Don't you love seeing a guy go completely ga-ga over another girl," Lita teased.

"Hey, she's my family, my flesh and blood," Edge said, cradling her again. "I'm allowed to go ga-ga over her."

"Of course he is," Trish said in a baby voice as she rubbed her hand over Tilden's head. "She loves her Uncle Edge, don't you, sweetie pie?"

"I'm her cool Uncle Edge."

"What the hell is he doing holding her?" Christian asked, storming into the area.

"I guess he was spying," Trish said. "Christian, will you calm down? Edge just wants to see his niece and he's allowed to as far as I'm concerned."

"No, I don't think so. He wants to be mad at me, fine, then he can't see her," Christian said, glaring at his brother.

"Christian, yes he can see her if he wants to," Trish said.

"No, he's a jackass and I don't want my daughter around someone who is probably cheating on his girlfriend because he'll chase anything in a skirt."

"Hey!" Edge said, standing up and facing his brother. "Don't you even dare, don't you _even_ dare!"

"You've cheated before and you know what they say, once a cheater, always a cheater," Christian told him.

"That's enough!" Trish yelled. "Christian, stop it now! I can't even believe you…I just…" She didn't have any more words and she grabbed Tilden from Edge's arms, put her in her carrier and stormed off. Christian had just embarrassed her beyond reason right now. She'd wanted this to be a good night, a night where she could show off her daughter and have a good time with her friends and other adults and not a baby and Christian's childish behavior had to ruin that.

Edge was pissed. He was pissed at his brother and he was pissed when he went out there and had the stupid stipulations put on his match. He was distracted now, his brother's harsh words bouncing around in his brain. He couldn't shake them, couldn't shake the hatred behind the words, the utter contempt his brother had shown him. He almost wanted to sever all contact with his brother, but it would be impossible now; they worked together, they lived near each other. But right then, Edge wished his brother had never existed.

Chris's match fared no better than anything Edge had just been put through. The fans hated him, obviously, if they voted for the Body Slam Challenge. How in the hell was Chris supposed to body slam Big Show? Chris was strong, but he was not that strong! So he had no chance and it was not fair to go into a match knowing you pretty much had no match. The fans were at fault and so was Vince and if it wasn't for all the good news in his personal life, he might have been more angry. Well, until Big Show decided that, just for the hell of it, he would give the fans all three of the stipulations, adding insult to injury on Chris. So not only was he humiliated, it was like he was drawn and quartered on top of that.

He sat there, outside the ring, thinking about all of this. Maybe he had to change his ways to avoid situations like this. Maybe it was time to be the guy he used to be, the one that the fans loved, the one that smiled genuinely and basked in their cheers. He still got cheers, he still had his fans, the loyal ones, the ones who didn't turn at the drop of a hat, but maybe he needed to win them all over, be something different, regain their trust.

Or maybe they could all just go screw themselves.

Trish found the only sanctuary she could think of: Stephanie's office. She needed her best friend. It didn't matter if their situations were different, she needed someone who could understand her and Stephanie had been there for her since the moment she'd run down Chris's stairs, asking where her tank top was. She knocked on the door and Stephanie, in her best authoritative voice, called out to come in. She walked in and Stephanie smiled.

"Hey, there you are, I was beginning to think you lied about coming tonight," Stephanie joked.

"Baby!" Sawyer yelled, running over. "Hi, Tilden!"

Tilden smiled, she recognized that voice alright. "She loves you, Sawyer," Trish said as she set Tilden down on the couch, where Sawyer immediately climbed up and grabbed her hand, shaking it.

"I'm going to have a baby soon and it's going to be little," Sawyer informed Trish for the thousandth time.

"I know," Trish winked at him, kindly. Being a mom now had given her more patience than she thought she could ever have.

"Go 'way!" Flynn yelled at Tilden, who looked over at this other voice.

Stephanie sighed and rolled her eyes. "Flynn, how many times do I have to tell you not to yell around the baby?"

Flynn ran (toddled) over to Stephanie and buried her face into Stephanie's stomach. "Mama, make go!"

"Flynnie, you should like the baby." Flynn continued to whimper and Stephanie did her best to pull Flynn up and Flynn tried to melt into Stephanie's body, despite the huge bump her mother was sporting these days. They all kept saying baby, but surely they weren't going to have one of those stupid little, squirmy baby things that Sawyer would pay attention to? Sawyer was _her_ brother, not anyone else's.

"No, go, Mama," Flynn said, her voice muffled by Stephanie's shirt. Stephanie just rubbed her back and let her sulk. Hopefully Flynn would be in love with her own brother or sister or else they were in for a world of trouble.

Sawyer, sensing that Flynn was jealous, hopped off the couch, ran over and kissed Flynn's hand before running back and sitting on the couch. "You're adorable," Trish told him and he smiled like he knew it and was milking it to his every advantage, like a true McMahon-Jericho hybrid.

"So, how is it being back for the evening?" Stephanie asked.

"Miserable," Trish told her and Stephanie's face dropped.

"What's wrong?"

"Christian, me, everything," Trish said. "He embarrassed me a little while ago, was yelling at Edge because he was holding Tilden. Told Lita that Edge was probably going to cheat on her. He was making a spectacle of himself and I couldn't stand there, I had to get away and I came here."

"I'm sorry," Stephanie said for lack of any more comforting words.

"I don't know what's going on with him or with us. It's different now and I know that having a kid was bound to change things, but not like this."

"What do you mean?" Stephanie asked. She'd suspected something was amiss with her friends, but didn't want to be presumptuous and just ask Trish about it. It wasn't her place to step into their marriage and assess what was wrong.

"He's just. I feel like I'm not with him anymore, like I'm just Tilden's caretaker. I don't feel like his wife, really, except for a few moments here and there where it's like he's back, you know. Like earlier, he was saying I could come back and wrestle and it felt normal, but now that I'm sitting here, I'm thinking, well, maybe it wasn't because he wants _me_ here, maybe he just wants Tilden here and I come along with that package. I don't feel like he keeps up with me."

"Maybe you're reading too much into it?"

"I don't think I am, I kind of…sympathize with Edge. I feel like I've lost Christian. Almost like he was just using me to get the kid and now that I've outlasted my usefulness, he can just kick me to the curb."

"You know that's not true, he fought to have you, hard."

"I know, which is why this is all so weird," she told Stephanie. "I thought that we'd be this great parenting team, feeding off each other, but instead, we're like, two separate things and we hardly ever talk about anything not relating to Tilde. It's frustrating. What were you and Chris like after you had Sawyer? Did he go through this?"

"No," Stephanie said because it was the truth. "I mean, he loves his kids, he _loves_ them and adores them to death, but he has other interests and we both know that the kids are our number one interests, but that we have a lot of other things we love to do. We're still parents at the end of the day."

"Yeah, see, I think Christian is like, I don't even know anymore. He's a great dad, I'm not knocking his parenting. I just feel this disconnect from him now and I don't like it. I miss him. I'm starting to see what Edge is seeing. I want Christian back. I want him to take me out and be that goofball that he is. I've been out with him a couple times since Tilden was born and every five minutes he wants to call in the babysitter and then when he's not calling, he's wondering if the babysitter is taking care of her properly."

"Wait, we're usually your babysitter," Stephanie said slowly.

"I know! This is what I'm saying."

"He wonders if we're taking care of her properly?" Stephanie asked. "I mean, he does know we have two children we're raising that are both older than Tilden, right?"

"He says Tilden has a different, more precise schedule than Sawyer and Flynn."

"Wow."

"Yeah, it's all about her and nothing about anyone else. You know, we haven't even…been together in that way since I was about six months pregnant, so I've gone without for about…what, seven months now…and I'm about to crack."

"Geez, seven months," Stephanie shuddered. She and Chris could barely go seven hours, let alone seven months. Oh, that was probably why they had three kids, now she knew.

Trish blushed. "It's like he doesn't want me."

"And who wouldn't want you?"

"I don't know, my husband," she pouted. "I try to get intimate and he says that we might get too caught up and not hear Tilden if she needs us, like we're that loud."

"I don't know what to say, Trish."

"I don't know, I just needed to vent, thank you for listening."

"I'm sure things will get better."

"I hope they do because right now…"

"What are you thinking, Trish?'

"Right now, we're just not working."


	281. Losing Streak, June 14, 2010

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and all that good lovin' stuff. Hope you enjoy the chapter, it's kind of a set up chapter I think, I've got plans, oh yes, I've got plans. ;) Also, I'm probably going to put up a poll on my profile page and ask some questions about what people want to see, just curious as I'm open to suggestions on where the readers want this to go. Anyways, enjoy the chapter, leave a review if you feel so inclined. :)

* * *

"_Hey, Chrissy."_

"_Hey, what's up?" Christian asked, glancing over at his wife. He then glanced right back to whatever he was watching on the TV as he lounged on their bed._

"_Well, I was thinking, Tilden is asleep, at least for the next few hours or so and well, we're not doing anything and neither one of us has any place to be tomorrow so we're both ridiculously free and we haven't…done anything even remotely romantic in months and I thought…"_

_She left the rest up for his imagination, trying to appear as seductive as she possibly could. Despite any photoshoots she had done to the contrary in the past, Trish was not one for lingerie or looking sexy. Right now she was just wearing a very low-cut tank top and her panties, hoping that created as enticing a picture as she wanted to create. She wasn't _dying_ to be with her husband, but it had been months and months and since she'd been back with Christian, it was the longest she'd gone without in years. It was starting to get to her a little. There was only so much you could do with yourself and she needed her husband._

_She was starting to think there was just something wrong with her now. She felt…curvier or something. Sure, she'd lost most of the weight, but there was just something that felt more womanly to her and she'd hoped it was the good kind that made her husband want her even more, but it appeared to be the bad kind that sent her husband away to other women. She knew there were no other women in his life, but how long could and should she possibly hold out before she shook him to death wondering why he wouldn't touch her or kiss her in that way that made her knees weak._

"_Huh?" he asked, looking over at her. _

"_You're not busy, right?"_

"_No, I'm just watching TV."_

"_What are you watching?"_

"_Some show on Nick at Nite or something," he said absently, "do you think those _Your Baby Can Read_ things really work? I mean, if they really do work, I'd consider getting some for Tilden. I really think she's smarter that for her age, she's ahead of the curve, don't you think so? I mean, I've seen other babies around her age-"_

"_Are you talking about Sawyer and Flynn?"_

"_No, I mean, around her age now, you know, like when we took her to the pediatrician or that play place thing for babies, what was that?"_

"_Infant play group," she answered, leaning harder against the doorway._

"_Yeah, but I mean, Tilde was _way_ more alert than most of those babies there and she seemed light years ahead of them, so if this thing works, well, I mean, she'd be reading ahead of schedule and I'd really like for Tilden to have a love of books. I really liked to read when I was a kid and I skipped a grade so you know, head start and all that."_

"_I don't think they really work," she shook her head. "I just don't know, I mean, it's an infomercial, you really shouldn't believe anything that comes from an infomercial."_

"_You're right," he told her. "I guess I just wanted to really get her started with her education."_

"_We're already doing all we can, we've got her on the same waiting list that Stephanie has Flynn on in terms of pre-school. Sawyer loves it there so we know it's great. We're doing everything that we can do for her in terms of education. She's four months old, there's only so much you can do."_

"_I guess that's true, I just want her to have the best of everything."_

"_She already does, have you seen her nursery?" Trish joked a little, stepping closer and sitting on the edge of the bed. She reached out and started rubbing Christians' bare leg a little bit. "I mean, that place is like a kid's paradise. I bet if we let Flynn in there to play while Tilden was in there, they'd be instant friends."_

"_What's up with that anyways? I don't get why Flynn doesn't like Tilden, she's adorable," Christian wondered, which just meant he was oblivious to everything that was going on around him, which included his wife's ministrations on his skin. _

"_It's because Sawyer likes Tilden because Sawyer likes babies and is very excited to be getting another one of his own very soon," Trish explained. "Flynn isn't used to having to share her attention from Sawyer and she's not happy about it. Stephanie and Chris are already worried about when the new baby comes and how Flynn is going to react to it. I'm sure it'll work out though."_

"_Yeah, I'm sure it will," Christian said. "Her nursery is very nice though, but maybe I should touch up the paint, let you and her go out for the day. I'm afraid it's fading a little where the sun hits it during the day, I don't want it to be a different color than the rest of the room."_

"_It's fine," she reassured him, moving her hand farther and farther up his leg so now it was above the knee and rising. "So come on, Tilde's in bed and we have nothing to do and obviously our four-month-old daughter is not going to be reading any time soon and whatever your watching can be Tivo'ed if you want to watch it later."_

"_What?" he asked._

"_Chrissy," she whined, "can you not take a hint? I want _you_."_

"_I'm right here," he told her and she groaned. "What, you said you wanted me."_

"_I mean, I _want_ you," she said seductively, licking her lips as she bent down to kiss where her hands had just been. "Do you get what I'm saying?"_

"_Oh," he said, then gulped a little bit, "oh…"_

"_Are you up for it?" she asked, raising an eyebrow as she looked up at him, "because I could make you up for it…"_

_He smirked at her and grabbed her by the arm and she sighed in relief. She recognized the look on his face and it was one she wanted to see. He wanted her. Finally, after seven months, he wanted her and she wanted him just as much. She kissed him as he pulled her up, moaning against his mouth, pressing her body against his, desperately wanting him. He rolled them over so she was on her back and he was over her, her hands twisting in his short hair as she rose her hips to bump against him. He was just moving down to her neck when Tilden started crying over the baby monitor. Trish closed her eyes and could already feel Christian pulling away._

"_I'll get her," Christian said. "I'll be right back."_

"And you know what happened next?"

"I have no idea," Stephanie said, though she did have _some_ idea, but she was busy looking over all the damages from last week. She'd thought someone had taken care of this, but apparently it had passed hands until it was slapped down on her desk. The NXT crew had really done a number on the set last week. She was just lucky they hadn't taken out all the cameras because those were expensive. The ring and the tables and the monitors could be replaced, but the HD cameras were harder to replace.

"I fell asleep."

"Oh, Trish, that sucks," Stephanie said sympathetically, knowing how long Trish had been waiting to do _anything_ with her husband. Hell, she wasn't looking forward to her six-week layoff in a matter of weeks. It was hard to look at someone like Chris Jericho and not get the urge to be all over him all the time. How had she managed those first few years of not being with him? How had she not looked at him in WCW and wanted to jump him? She'd never know.

"And I fell asleep because he was gone for 3 hours!" Trish exclaimed.

"Three hours?" Stephanie said, glad that Trish couldn't see the shock on her face after hearing about how long it had taken Christian to come back. Christian couldn't possibly be avoiding Trish for some reason, could he?

"He fell asleep in the rocking chair in the room," Trish said. "I woke up and looked at the clock and saw that I was still on top of the sheets, the TV was still on, and the other side of the bed was completely empty. I went to go check on everything and he was asleep with her in the crib. He was watching her and he just fell asleep. So after that, we were both so exhausted, we didn't end up doing anything and is there something _wrong_ with me?"

"I don't think so," Stephanie said, "if it's any consolation, I would have sex with you if I were a guy and I'm sure a little part of me would have sex with you right now."

"Thanks," Trish said sullenly, not even phased by the comment, "at least _someone_ does."

"Well, come on, you know there are a lot and Christian, well, okay, so this week, Chris is going to LA to film his game show and he's taking Sawyer with him so it'll just be me and Flynn for a few days. Why don't I take Tilden for those few days and you and Christian can go away for a few days, do something romantic, get everything kindled again."

"Thank you for the offer," Trish sighed, "but I can't ask you to do that, Steph. You're so pregnant right now and making you take care of an infant and a toddler at the same time, God, what kind of friend would I be if I did that?"

"Trish, it really isn't a problem, Chris's parents are nearby and if need be, I can have his mom stay with me for a few days to help out. She loves helping with the kids and we have the extra space. Flynn is all but transitioned to her big girl bed. I don't think she liked the crib much. It was difficult at first because she would get up in the middle of the night and try to play with her toys and freak me the hell out. There is no reason you should be hearing toys playing at night, but since I had a talk with her about it and told her that Sawyer would move away if she didn't stop it, she's been good about it. The crib is already in the nursery and so we have it sitting there."

"It would be nice to get away. We wouldn't even have to go far, we could just stay somewhere in Florida, maybe Orlando or Miami again, that was fun or somewhere near where SmackDown will be and then he won't have to travel far. I spend so much time with Tilden while he's away, this could be good for us."

"I'm sure it would be," Stephanie said, flipping over the page and widening her eyes that there were even more things the NXT guys had destroyed. She was going to have to talk to her husband about what the man might have said to Wade to incite this kind of thing.

"Wait, no, it can't happen," Trish said sorrowfully.

"What, why not?" Stephanie asked.

"Because Christian? Spend days away from Tilden when he could be with her? I don't think he's going to go for that," Trish explained. "He won't want to spend time away from her, even if it is to get away with me."

"Where is this week's SmackDown?" she asked.

"I'm not sure, don't you have a schedule considering you kind of run the company somewhat?" Trish asked.

"Hold on," she said, shuffling some papers around and looking for the updated schedule. Finding the schedule for the month, she skimmed down past the crossed out dates to the current week. "Raleigh. There are tons of great little places in Raleigh to have a romantic tryst."

"Still, he's not going to leave early," Trish said.

"Trish, you're forgetting who I am," Stephanie said. "You just said I run the place and unlike Chris, I'm willing to use my power. I'll have it arranged so Christian has to come early."

"How would you do that?" Trish asked, intrigued now by Stephanie's plan. At this point, she was willing to go to great lengths to remind her husband that she was still very much a woman and that she was not just a baby-making machine.

"I can set up an autograph session, have it so he has to be there. It'll be good for the fans and it'll be good for you and he'll be forced to go. I can set it up through media relations and Christian wouldn't even have to know it was me who set it up, he'll just think it's the bad luck of the draw. Then, when you 'hear' about this, you tell him that maybe you can come too, just to get away for a few days. After his inevitable freaking out about leaving Tilden, you can suggest my name, saying that I have raised two infants before and that both are well-adjusted and not at all crazy and so I can handle it and he'll finally give in and then you can get some because it's sad that I'm as pregnant as I am and got some this morning and you have gone months when your body looks like it does."

"You have no idea how much I appreciate this, Stephanie," Trish said. "I knew I picked the right chick as my best friend…hey, you know what I was thinking?"

"What?"

"I still feel bad saddling you with a baby when you're already so close. What if I just _say_ that I'm going to leave Tilden with you, but instead, I let Edge and Lita take care of her? I know Edge is really upset about what Christian said and maybe, if I let Edge take care of her and Christian sees how much Edge cares about Tilden, he'll stop being an ass to him."

"Wow, now don't you think you're really kind of pushing it?" Stephanie said. This was a bold plan that Trish was trying to instigate. "I mean, you heard Christian last week, everyone has heard about it, believe me. If you secretly let Edge take care of his daughter and he finds out…what if he calls here and wants to talk to her?"

"You just don't answer the phone, you have caller ID, hell you have like Fort Knox on a phone, you just wouldn't have to answer."

"That would just make him madder."

"I know, but I can calm him down, I know I can," Trish said. "Edge deserves to see his niece and I know that he would take good care of her. For everything that Edge is that's less than…stellar and there are a lot of things that he's a little over-the-top with, he's a good guy underneath it all and I would trust him with my daughter, though I know Christian wouldn't."

"I trust Edge completely, I let him and Lita, sometimes even just him, baby-sit for both Sawyer and Flynn. Sawyer thinks Edge is hilarious to mess around with and Flynn is easygoing so she doesn't care who the hell is taking care of her. He's great at it."

"See," Trish said. "I know this could work."

"I guess it could work."

Chris pushed open the door, letting Sawyer and Flynn walk in ahead of him. Sawyer was flying a little airplane and Flynn was looking very proud of herself with a big barbeque stain down the front of her shirt. Flynn walked right over to Stephanie and pulled her shirt up so Stephanie could see. "Look, Mama. I eat."

"Yeah, you ate. Did you use your shirt as a napkin," she said, reaching down to poke Flynn in her exposed tummy. Flynn giggled like the Pillsbury dough boy and then ran off to show Sawyer her stain again. She thought it was funny. She'd been eating a piece of chicken and it had just fallen!

"What could work?" Chris asked, walking closer to Stephanie, leaning his palms on the table in some of the empty spots and looking at the phone.

"A plan with Trish."

"What kind of plan?"

"I'll tell you in a second," Stephanie responded.

"What do I have tonight?"

"Match against Evan," she told him, then went back to her conversation. "I'll set the plan in motion immediately, have Christian expect the call in the morning."

"Thank you so much, Stephanie!" Trish said.

Stephanie felt good for helping a friend, accomplished almost and she shined with pride as she went back to the paperwork in front of her. She'd have to approve all the expenses and replacements for the damage the NXT guys had done last week. She couldn't believe nobody else could do this menial task, but that's what she was relegated to these days, especially with her impending labor. Chris came over and sat on the edge of the desk as he watched her, occasionally tucking some hair behind her ear.

"So why do you look like the cat who ate the canary and what were you saying was going to work with Trish and what are you setting into motion tomorrow?" he fired question after question at her.

"First, can you answer why my daughter looks like she murdered someone?"

"Flynn likes her barbeque," Chris said, shaking his head. "She attacked that poor chicken like her life depended on it, it didn't stand a chance."

"It's going to be hell getting that out of her shirt," Stephanie said. "Second of all, do you have anything to do with the NXT thing?"

"What, why would you suggest that?" he asked defensively.

"Well, because your rookie is the winner of the entire thing, not surprisingly of course, but he's also the leader. What exactly did you say to him to get him to go off the handle like this? I spoke with Brett earlier and we decided that we were not going to give in to whatever they're doing, but it's a little disconcerting to think they're going around beating people up, what did you say to him?"

"I told him to make an impact, he's doing that."

"Will I be targeted?"

"No."

"So you _do_ have something to do with it," she reasoned, "since I'm the one in charge and they are obviously against anyone in charge, therefore, you must have gotten me special immunity."

"Yeah, it was called getting you pregnant," Chris said. "Stephanie, I'm just going to go out on a limb here and think that despite what they've done, they're not going to go after a pregnant woman, besides, Wade and I are cool."

"Oh, you're cool?"

"Yes, we are, so don't worry about it." It was suspicious, but she decided to drop it. "So come on, plan, what's going on?"

"Well, okay, I didn't want to embarrass Trish, but since you're my husband and she probably already thinks I told you…Christian and Trish haven't been intimate in like seven months, since before Tilden was born."

"You're kidding me, right?" Chris snorted, trying to hold in his laughter. "They haven't?"

"No, Christian is…he's really taking this father thing overboard and this is according to Trish. She says that it's really getting to her and she's starting to think that there's something wrong with her and I don't want her thinking that because there isn't."

"There's only one thing to do in this situation," Chris said solemnly and Stephanie leaned forward to listen to him.

"What?" she asked, eager to have a solution.

"I will take one for the team and sleep with Trish," he told her, trying to keep his voice serious. She groaned and hit him in the knee. "I'm just offering my services. You haven't complained once in the last eight years so I think Trish will be quite happy with the services."

"Don't be a jerk," Stephanie told him, "and please do not bring this up with Trish or Christian, these kinds of things are sensitive."

"_Seven_ months," Chris cringed. "How in God's name is Christian going without _that_ for seven months? That's one of the good things about getting married, you have access to someone for that and he is denying his gorgeous wife access, I should beat him up. I should call him and chew him out."

"Don't, everything will be fine."

"You know, I love my kids, but I don't think I could abstain for seven months voluntarily for any one of them, including the one in there," Chris pointed to his stomach. "Because the moment it's out, I'll be counting down until I can get a little bit of you again."

"What are you talking about?" Sawyer asked, coming over and furrowing his brow. "I want to watch the wrestling, Daddy, can we go watch?"

"When's my match?" Chris asked.

"Early."

"Ask your mother," Chris told his son.

"Mommy, can we?"

"Yeah, we can, we'll go out with Daddy and we'll watch wrestling, okay, we can sit at the table."

"Yes!" Sawyer said, pumping his fist in the air and then going over to tell Flynn the good news.

Chris turned back to Stephanie, "Thank God for short attention spans. I still can't believe how serious Christian is taking this father thing."

"It's weird."

"It's not weird, I mean it is weird, but I'm pretty sure I know the reason why he's doing it or at least I have a very good guess," Chris told her.

"You do? Since when are you all enlightened?"

"It's not a matter of being enlightened, but just look at Christian and Trish's relationship, not now, but I'm talking from the beginning. They're together, they're happy, then all of a sudden, they're broken up, then they're together, then he gets blackmailed to leave, then she's with Carlito and on the verge of marriage, then he's with Tiffany and on the verge of marriage, then they think they should be together, but both of them won't do anything about it, then finally, they get their acts together. The guy is terrified."

"Terrified?" she asked skeptically. "He has a gorgeous, amazing wife, a beautiful daughter and a great career, what the hell is there to be terrified about?"

"Look at the track record," Chris shook his head a little bit. "It's not the best one you're going to find around."

"We broke up twice," she pointed out.

"Mommy, can we go yet?" Sawyer asked, coming back around. He could hear music throughout the arena and he wanted to watch everything and not miss anything.

"In a second, baby boy," she said, then turned back to Chris. "Like I was saying, we broke up twice, are you terrified?"

"What's broke up?" Sawyer asked, leaning his head against Stephanie's stomach. He looked up to Stephanie and Chris for the answer.

"It's when two people who are going out, like Edge and Lita, and then they decide that they don't really want to see each other anymore and go out on dates and kiss each other. So they break up and then they can go out with other people."

"You and Daddy broke up?" he asked.

"Yes, Daddy and I broke up two times, one time because your daddy was a big dummy-head and the other time because your daddy thought that I wanted an elaborate proposal even though I really didn't need one."

"You were a dummy-head, Daddy?" Sawyer asked.

"He was a huge dummy-head," Stephanie said. "He even went out and kissed another girl!"

"That wasn't you, Mommy!" Sawyer asked, dropping his jaw in surprise. His daddy was _always_ kissing his mommy so he couldn't ever imagine that his daddy would want to kiss anyone else in the entire universe!

"Nope, her name was Molly."

"Oh, I see," he nodded seriously.

"I was a big dummy-head," Chris added, "but I quickly got back together with Mommy and married and lucky for you I did or you might be someone else's kid. And no, Stephanie, I'm not terrified because our break-ups were stupid and we've been together much longer than those two have. Sure, they may have loved each other all the time they were apart, but they both did a lot of stuff when they weren't together. So yeah, I bet Christian is just waiting for the other shoe to drop and that's why he's acting like he is."

"Because if the shoe does drop, then he loses more than just Trish…" It was starting to become clear to her too.

"You've got it."

"Well now it all does make sense. He feels like if he does something, _anything _wrong, then he's going to lose it all. That's why he's gone ballistic on Edge, he doesn't want Edge to do something wrong and have Trish blame him or something."

"He's covering all his bases," Chris shrugged.

"Still, he has to realize at some point this is for keeps."

"Chrissy's scared?" Sawyer asked, taking only that from the conversation his parents were having above his head. "Of the dark?"

"No, he's scared that things will go wrong in his life," Stephanie said, running her fingers through Sawyer's blond hair. "So, what I was proposing to Trish is that I set it up so Christian has to go to Raleigh early for an autograph session. Trish will go along with him and they can have a good time together and Edge is going to take care of Tilden, but Christian will say that I'm taking care of Tilden so Christian doesn't freak out."

"Are we going to have Tilden have a slumber party?" Sawyer asked.

"Not really," Stephanie said, kissing his head. "But we can visit with her, okay?"

"Flynn doesn't like Tilden," Sawyer whispered to his mommy.

"I know," Stephanie whispered back.

"I don't know why," Sawyer said with a shrug.

"I think she's a little jealous," Stephanie said seriously.

"Oh, but she doesn't need to be that," Sawyer responded to her. "I should tell her that she doesn't have to be jealous of a baby. It's not even our baby, it's Chrissy and Trish's baby. We're getting our own baby, right, Mommy?"

"Right," Stephanie said. "I don't know, Daddy just likes to give me babies."

"Daddy, I like babies," Sawyer said funnily.

"Good thing because we're just going to let you raise this one."

"Okay, I'll do that," Sawyer told him.

"Wow, okay, well thanks, I'm set," Chris shrugged. "Are you ready to go to LA tomorrow, kid? I think we're going to have a blast."

"You're going to jump off a building," Sawyer told him. "Can I push you?"

Stephanie started laughing, "Wow, I didn't know you held such contempt for your father, Sawyer, but I can't say that I haven't wanted to push Daddy off a building sometimes."

"I'm not going off a building, I'll be throwing stuff off a building," Chris said. "You'll see."

"But you're still a wrestler, right?"

"As far as I know, I mean, I'm wrestling tonight so I think I'm a wrestler," Chris told him.

"Oh good," Sawyer said, hugging his mommy even tighter, just because he wanted to.

"So what do you think of the plan? Good, bad?"

"Well, if it works, then it's good," Chris told her. "And hell, if I were Trish, I'd come up with something like this too, seven months is insane. Don't ever do that to me or I _will_ find pleasure elsewhere."

"Sure you would," she rolled her eyes, knowing he wouldn't and wasn't even thinking about it, "you better get ready for your match though because it's coming up really soon and you don't want to be stiff for it."

"I'm going to be stiff with Evan, believe me," Chris said, his jaw setting. "I just wish that we could catch him in the act already so I could really pound his brain in. I can't stand that little piece of crap."

"Chris, we'll get him, believe me," Stephanie said, placing her hand on his arm. "Believe me. Now you get ready for your match. I have some things to take care of and I'm taking the kids so you don't have to worry about them, we'll see you at the gorilla."

"Are we going now?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah, we're going now, get your sister," Stephanie told him and he ran to get Flynn.

"What do you have to do?"

"Things," she answered obliquely and he just let it go because he was running out of time to get ready. He kissed her briefly before they went their separate ways. Sawyer walked with his hand in Flynn's and Stephanie walked behind them. She bade them turn a little ways and came upon Ted's locker room.

She wasn't lying when she said she had things to do, it was just they didn't much have to do with wrestling. She knew that Ted's crush on her was…awkward. It was awkward for her and it was awkward for him because she was very obviously with someone else. She figured it was because he didn't have a lot of female friends on the roster, being in Legacy had kind of taken precedence over hanging out. She was determined to find him someone and he had just that someone in mind. She knocked on the door, Sawyer and Flynn beside her and Virgil answered a moment later.

"Hello, Stephanie."

"Hey, Virgil, is Ted here?"

"I'm here," Ted said, almost pushing Virgil out of the way. "Hey, Stephanie."

"Hey," she said, smiling brightly.

"You look really beautiful today. You know, I never really believed that pregnant women glow, but you've definitely got some glow factor going on," he told her.

"Thanks," she told him politely. "So, I have to make this quick, the kids want to watch wrestling, but I've been hearing some rumors that Maryse is really into you and well, I just thought you might want to pursue that, she's really gorgeous."

"Maryse?"

"Yeah, just thought you should know," she winked. In actuality, she'd gone to Maryse and told her the exact same thing about Ted. Maryse seemed right up Ted's alley. She was really pretty and devious like him. It was a match made in heaven and it would get Ted off her back and save the poor boy from more taunting by Chris.

"Wow," Ted said, looking down as if thinking it over. "She _is_ really pretty."

"I know."

"Mama, go!" Flynn said impatiently. She'd been promised some wrestling and she wanted to _see_ some wrestling.

"Can't ignore that cry," Stephanie said, patting Ted's hand. "Think about it. You might even want to ask her out, she'd probably say yes since you're really handsome."

"You think I'm handsome?" he asked delightfully.

"Ted, really, do you even need me to answer that," she told him. He gave her one of those crooked smiles and she winked at him before she took a hand in each of hers and walked off to the gorilla, leaving Ted to think about maybe asking out the beautiful French-Canadian. What could it hurt, really? He liked Stephanie, sure, but that was going nowhere and he knew it. She was married with two kids and she was pregnant, there was no chance there, so why not go after Maryse? The worst she could say was no and he could take a no.

Stephanie and the kids settled in at the gorilla and Sawyer was finally happy that he was going to get to watch wrestling. They got there in time for the end of the Miz's match, where he won the US title again. Stephanie rolled her eyes. Miz reminded her of a poor man's Chris. He tried too hard to be like her husband and she couldn't respect a guy like that, especially when he did it so terribly. His "I'm awesome" catchphrase grated on her nerves because he was not awesome in her eyes. She made a face at Flynn and she giggled happily.

Chris came into the area and his kids' faces lit up as they saw him. He was stretching his neck a little and jumping in place before he casually walked over to them. "Hey guys, you ready to see me in action?"

"I like!" Flynn said with a nod. She loves watching her daddy wrestle, it was one of her most favorite things in the world. He used to have long hair and he looked really different but it was still her daddy. He was really funny back then too. He would get really mad at the people who were holding stuff and then he would rip it up and he would blow kisses and she would blow kisses back because he was her daddy and she loved him a lot.

"Good," Chris said, making a very fierce face for his little girl. She tried to make one back, but she just ended up looking cuter than she normally did.

Chris went out there ready to fight that little idiot, Evan. He had been waiting for this for a while now, ever since he'd seen what he'd seen. Britt was still in the dark about it so to her, this match had no personal business behind it, but Chris knew that wasn't the case at all. This match was _all_ personal business. Britt was his friend and he was going to defend her like any friend would and in this case, it was going to be Evan's ass kicked all over the ring.

The bell couldn't ring soon enough for him. As soon as it did, he was all over Bourne, punching him and throwing him into the turnbuckle. Evan came back at him though, getting a dropkick for a two count. He got the upper-hand again, grabbing at Chris and choking him on the ropes and then getting him in a chokehold. Evan broke out of it and Chris was taunting him, telling him to come on, but Evan once again got back at him, kicking Chris and knocking him down. Evan tried to get a sunset flip on him, but Chris was able to counter the move by rolling out of it. He tried to flip Evan into the Walls, but Evan kicked and sent him flying.

Chris was getting aggravated now. He couldn't focus because his brain kept thinking about seeing Evan cheating on one of his very good friends. When he had been a suit, working for Stephanie, not wrestling, he'd felt a little lost. Vince had been kind enough to hire him an assistant and he remembered meeting Britt for the first time. She'd been a little timid, unsure of what she was really getting herself into. She'd never really paid attention to wrestling before and now she was thrust into unknown territory, like he had been. She'd become his friend and he wasn't going to see her hurt like that. He turned, incensed, towards his opponent again.

Evan tried to pin him, but wasn't able to do so and Chris got the Codebreaker on him, taking satisfaction in bouncing Evan's face off his knees. He pulled Evan towards him and went for the pin. To his dismay, Evan kicked out of it. Chris was shocked that he'd done so and something snapped inside him. He wasn't sure what it was that snapped, but his concentration was broken and he didn't want to win this match any longer, he wanted to decimate Evan. He wanted to make him hurt.

He stood up and then kneeled again to grab Evan and started punching him. He didn't care about the match anymore. This was not about the match anymore. The referee tried to stop him, claiming that Evan was on the ropes so he had to let go, but he didn't care. He started kicking at Evan, nearly growling with anger as his face contorted into the fierceness that gave him the name Lionheart. The referee threatened him again and Chris intimidated him into backing off, but then the bell was ringing and he was disqualified, but it was so much more than that at this point. He tried to argue with the referee, but it was a moot point and Chris went back over to Evan, grabbing him and slapping him across the face. Evan, who wasn't one to be trifled with, actually kicked at him and then got his Air Bourne on him.

Britt walked up to Stephanie backstage, "What the hell is wrong with Chris?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why did he do that to Evan?"

"They were in a match," Stephanie answered rationally, though she was pissed now because Evan had left with the upper-hand.

"Not that kind of match," Britt said, shaking her head. "Not that kind at all. He didn't have to go all postal on him. What the hell, Stephanie?"

Stephanie shrugged carelessly, wishing she could tell her friend the truth, "He was just doing his job."

"That was _not_ his job," Britt told her. Evan came backstage first and she went to him, hugging him. He hugged her back and Stephanie glared at Evan. He looked over at her, but had no idea why Stephanie was looking at him like that. Britt walked off with him, making sure he was okay as Stephanie saw Chris walk backstage.

"He got me this time," Chris said in a low whisper as he approached her. "It won't happen again."

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"This Sunday, I'm challenging him, this Sunday, we're bringing him down."


	282. Fatal Four Way, June 20, 2010

A/N: So this chapter has really no rhyme or reason, it's just I guess to set up some stuff, maybe, I'm not really sure, anyways, here it is, if you want to review, cool, if you don't want to review, cool too I guess, but if you could go vote in the poll on my profile page, that would be a great help. It's a lot easier than leaving a review, all you gotta do is push the button, thanks, enjoy. :)

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"Mommy, can't you and Flynn come too?"

"It's a little far to fly to California, baby boy," Stephanie said as Chris lifted Sawyer so he could stand on a chair and face Stephanie better since she couldn't kneel. "I have the baby and it's getting harder for me to travel and Flynn sometimes gets cranky on long flights so we're just going to head home while you and Daddy head to Los Angeles."

"But you could stay there and then we could stay there," he pointed out.

"Yeah, but it's just better this way," Stephanie said, kissing his forehead. "You and Daddy will have a great time and Flynnie and I will have a great time, won't we, Flynnie?"

"Yup, yup, yup," Flynn said, grinning up at Stephanie, though she wasn't really sure what she was yup'ing to.

"See, and it'll only be a few days and then you guys will be home," Stephanie said as Sawyer opened his arms out to her. She stepped into them and let him hug her tightly around the neck. She wrapped her arms around his small frame and squeezed. "Now, you better be good for Daddy, okay, I don't want any bad reports and you will do what he tells you to, okay?"

"I can handle him," Chris said, "maybe I should tell you the same thing about your daughter."

"I can handle her," Stephanie countered.

"Are you sure?" he asked softly, kissing her cheek and then nuzzling his nose against her skin. "Are you sure you don't want to make the trip. We could probably exchange your tickets and get you on the next flight, or if we're really persuasive and I unbutton my shirt a little and you unbutton your blouse a little, we can all get on the same flight."

"I'm sure," she said, kissing him and then talking against his mouth, "You go have fun and do your thing and then I'll go in totally blind when I watch your game show, okay?"

"But I'd like it better if you were there and you could watch and be all proud of me and everything," he told her. He liked it when Stephanie was proud of him. He knew she was always proud of him, but the way she looked at him while he was doing something, he didn't know, it motivated him to be even better.

"I have a feeling you'd just want to send me over the side of a building," she told him, eyeing him with mock suspicion.

"Maybe your father, but never you," he said.

"Mommy, I'm hungry," Sawyer whined and Stephanie rolled her eyes. "Flynn's hungry too and the baby is hungry too."

"How would you know if the baby was hungry?" she asked.

"Because I _know_," he said, looking up at her.

Chris shrugged. "You have to give the boy some credit, he has been inside your uterus and maybe he left some notes in there for the next ones, you know, scratched it into there so they'd be prepared and everything, a few tips."

"That's a disgusting image," Stephanie said. She looked down to Sawyer. "Okay, I will get you two some food, you stay here with Daddy."

Stephanie went off to get them some food as they waited for their flights. Stephanie and Flynn were leaving about forty-five minutes earlier than were Sawyer and Chris so the boys were waiting for them to leave before they'd move down to their gate. She was waiting in the line when her phone rang and she looked down to see it was Trish and she answered it eagerly.

"Hey, Trish, what's going on, did you get him to bite?" she asked.

"Yes, but believe me, it was not easy," Trish said. "I pretty much had to beg him to let me come along. He was extremely apprehensive to letting me come with him and by apprehensive, I mean he was pretty much telling me that I wasn't going to go because he didn't want to leave Tilden with anyone but him."

"But you convinced him?"

"I did, I told him I needed a break from the baby and because he _has_ to leave he really had no other choice. I told him that Tilden can stay with you and so we are dropping her off at Chris's parents house and I told him that they will give her to you, but Lita is going to come pick her up from there and they will be taking care of her."

"So it seems that everything has been working out so far," Stephanie commented as she moved a little closer to the front of the line.

"Yeah, so far so good, I just hope he doesn't get wind that Edge is the one who will be taking care of Tilden. I'm in the bathroom right now so he can't hear me, he's downstairs. He would kill me if he knew, but right now, I don't really care. I'm just going to be glad to get some time off. I need it so much and I think Christian needs it too."

"Hey, Trish, so Chris and I have been talking, hold on, can I call you back in a few? I'm getting food at the airport right now and I'm next."

"Yeah, call me back," Trish said as they hung up.

Stephanie got a couple of sandwiches, one for Flynn and Sawyer to share and one for her and Chris and a couple of juices for the kids and some water for her and Chris. She brought it back over to the gate where they were waiting and set the food down on one of the seats, dividing the sandwich up and then breaking it into smaller pieces for the kids and handing Chris his half. He smiled at her and began eating as she grabbed her phone again.

"Hey," Trish said as she picked up, "so what have you and Chris been talking about. I figure that it's about me and Christian judging from your tone and I figure he knows about our…dry spell?"

"Well, yeah, he does."

"And how much did he make fun of us for it?" Trish asked. "Because I know your husband all too well and I know that this is grounds for some serious mocking."

"He's more incredulous that you guys have been able to abstain for that long," Stephanie said, glancing over at Chris, who was watching her intently in between people coming up to him for autographs every so often. He mouthed "seven months" to her while shaking his head and she rolled her eyes at him. "Though he did mention that he would take one for the team and be with you."

"At this point, I'm just about willing to take him up on that offer," Trish laughed. "So what is it about me and Christian?"

"Well, Chris thinks he knows why Christian is behaving like he is."

"He does, well, please, tell me what he thinks because I'm at the end of my rope with him. I don't know what's going on and it's frustrating to me to try and figure it out in addition to taking care of a four month old baby whose father thinks I'm doing everything wrong."

"Well, and this is only a guess, a suggestion really, but I think Chris has a good point in his view," Stephanie started.

"Steph, I can only stay in here so long before Christian starts to think I'm dying or something," Trish said. "Besides, we're leaving in about half an hour so you really need to get on with whatever it is you're getting on about."

"Okay, sorry," Stephanie told her, "well, Chris thinks that Christian is scared more than he is overprotective or angry at Edge."

"Scared? I don't get it, what does Christian have to be afraid of? I mean, yeah, there are those parental concerns, which you really should have warned me about. I think I'm getting gray hairs thinking about what Tilden will do in the future and she's not even able to do anything yet but smile and poop and laugh."

"Scared that he'll lose you."

"Lose me? You've lost me, Stephanie," Trish told her. "How could he possibly lose me?"

"He's scared that he's going to screw up again with you. Your history with him has been pretty spotty when you think about it," Stephanie explained. "He's lost you over stupid decisions. Chris thinks, and I'm thinking as well, that more than anything, he's just really afraid that he's going to screw it up with you again and he's going to lose you, but this time is different, this time it'll be a worse screw-up because you guys have Tilden now and he doesn't want to lose his daughter.

"Oh," Trish said.

Trish was starting to see what Stephanie was talking about now. It was no secret that the path to true love in her case had been filled with dangerous chasms and steep peaks. There had never been anything easy in her relationship with Christian. It was a struggle most of the way, from him asking her out and Jeff being in the way to their trying to get pregnant and failing time and time again. She'd had to work and he'd had to work to get what they had and it made it better, but she could start to see where the fear might have set in with him. If he was afraid though, she wished he would just express those fears to her instead of trying to overcompensate.

And that's where it _really_ started to become clear to her. "He doesn't want to screw up anything for Tilden so he's going all out to be the most perfect father in the universe.," she muttered to herself, but being on the phone, Stephanie heard her as well.

"Trish?" Stephanie said, noting the tone in her friend's voice.

"He's trying to be the perfect father because he thinks if he makes even the slightest mistake that I'll hold it against him," Trish said, her voice relaying the dawning of her mind. "Oh my _God_, it all makes sense now…wait, except for why he's so mad at Edge. Why would he be so mad at Edge?"

"Chris thinks because Edge is his brother so if Edge does something wrong, it reflects on him," Stephanie said. "I don't know how true that is, but take it for what it's worth."

"That sounds reasonable to me," Trish sighed. "God, I can't believe I didn't see it. It all makes so much sense now."

"Well, how could you," Stephanie said. "You've got a baby to take care of that you're focused on, it doesn't leave much time for thinking."

"I'm going to talk to him about this soon," Trish said. "Thanks for everything, Steph."

"You're welcome."

"And tell Chris that if nothing happens while Christian and I are away that I'm going to take him up on that offer," Trish joked.

"Yeah, not going to happen," Stephanie told her.

"Damn and he's so hot too," Trish said. "Oh well, then I might just have to continue on this drought I've got going. Maybe I should look into that website that helps married people cheat. At this point, I'm willing to try anything!"

"Goodbye, Trish," Stephanie said lightly.

"Bye, Steph, wish me luck!"

"Good luck."

"What does she need luck for, Mommy?" Sawyer asked around his sandwich, a glob of mustard on his cheek. She grabbed a napkin and wiped it off his face.

"She just wants to have a good time with Christian while they're away, that's all," she told him. "Now just eat your sandwich."

"What did she think of my theory?" Chris asked Stephanie.

"She thought it was sound," Stephanie shrugged. "I don't know, hopefully now that she has some knowledge of what's going on she and Christian and can work through it. I don't want them to fall apart because of something as ridiculous as this. And it _is_ ridiculous. If you were treating me like he's treating Trish, I'd have kicked you out by now."

"Thank goodness I don't even really like my kids then," Chris kidded.

"You don't like me, Daddy?" Sawyer asked, looking at his daddy. Well that was just a shock to his small system.

"No, I love you, there's a difference, I'm pretty much obligated to love you," Chris told him, winking at him, but Sawyer just shrugged and made a grab for his fruit punch, drinking some to help wash down the sandwich.

Before they knew it, Stephanie and Flynn were boarding their plane. In a flurry of a goodbyes, they managed to get on before Chris and Sawyer headed to their own gate to wait for the flight. Chris sat them near the big window so Sawyer could look at the planes and so he might enjoy a few moments where he wasn't being approached by fans, not that he detested the ones that did come up to him, but some of them were a little rude, calling him out for his hypocrite stuff and that was just stuff he didn't need his son to hear.

The flight to LA was long, but Sawyer slept most of it away, his head leaning against Chris's hip. Chris, for his part, was looking over a script they'd sent him for his show. Maybe script wasn't the right word for it, it was more like a dossier, going over the rules of the game and laying out how they wanted him to relay these rules to the viewing audience. It also included some information on the contestants so he could get to know a little bit about them before they went on the air.

"Daddy?"

Chris looked down and saw that Sawyer was looking up at him, though his head was still on Chris's legs. "Yeah, kid?"

"What are you looking at?" he asked.

"Stuff for my show," Chris told him. Sawyer sat up and cuddled into Chris's side and looked over the papers. "See, this is all the stuff on the people who are going to play the game."

"What will they have to do?" Sawyer asked.

"They have to answer questions and then when they get them right they get to win different prizes and money, but if they don't get the questions right then everything is going to fall off a building and crash against the ground."

"But Daddy, people can use stuff if it doesn't fall on the ground," Sawyer said, thinking over what he just said and realizing it might not have made sense. "You shouldn't throw stuff or break stuff because you don't like when I break stuff."

"Well, all of this is fake stuff," Chris said. "You wouldn't be able to use it anyways."

"Oh," Sawyer said, then screwed up his face, "well that's okay then. Daddy, are you going to be on TV?"

"Yeah, this will be on TV."

"When wrestling is on too?"

"I'll be wrestling too," Chris explained, "but I'm going to film six episodes over the next few days and then I'll be done by the time that we go to Fatal Four-Way this Sunday. We'll even get to go home and spend time at home with Mommy and Flynn before we have to go on Sunday."

"What will you do on wrestling?"

"I don't know yet, what do you think I should do?" he asked.

"I think you should wrestle Evan again," Sawyer told him. "He beat you, Daddy, and you know what we have to do with people who beat you? We have to beat them up too. You beat up everyone, Daddy just because!"

"Well no, I usually have a reason."

"No!" Sawyer giggled. "You are the best in the world and that's why you beat people up because you are the best and everyone else smells like in the song where everyone smells and you played it for me and it was smelly."

"The Oscar the Grouch song?"

"He smells!" Sawyer laughed, busting up laughing.

"You think I should fight Evan then?"

"Yes, I think you should fight Evan!" Sawyer growled.

"Well, okay, kid, then Evan it is."

Christian was angry that he had to leave so early for some stupid autograph session. Though he appreciated seeing all his fans, he appreciated seeing his daughter even more. Then Trish had insisted on coming with him, leaving Tilden _overnight_, which they'd never both done before. He worried that Tilden would see Stephanie and not recognize her and throw a fit and cry the entire time they were gone. He looked over at Trish and she didn't seemed too concerned. No, she was sleeping just fine next to him, she even had a smile on her face. How could she sleep at a time like this?

"Trish?" he asked, bumping her in the shoulder.

"Huh, what, is it the baby? I'll go get her," Trish said, mechanically getting up until Christian pulled at her arm and she remembered herself. She fell back onto the pillow and then looked over at him. "What time is it?"

"Ten," he answered.

"God, I must have been exhausted," she said. It was the first night she was getting a really good sleep and didn't need to wake up early in the morning for Tilden's morning feeding. "What is it?"

"Do you think it'd be weird to call Stephanie and see how Tilden is?"

"No!" Trish said, a little too quickly and Christian looked at her. "Chrissy, we agreed, this is going to be a kid-free few days."

"I don't see how that is possible," he said. "I'm going to worry about her every second."

Trish cleared her throat, "Stephanie knows what she's doing."

"But she also has Flynn so she can't devote all her attention to Tilden and Tilden is just an infant so she's going to need a lot of attention," Christian said and Trish impulsively leaned forward and pressed her lips to his, laying on top of him as she ran her hands up and over his shoulders before flipping them over so he was on top of her. "Trish, what are you doing?" he asked between kisses.

"Can't you tell?" she asked, rubbing her leg against his as she leaned up to kiss him again. "I want you, Chrissy."

"Maybe I should call Steph first, just to check in…"

"No," she told him, pulling him down further until his weight was very nearly on her. She didn't mind it. It'd been so long since she felt his familiar body over hers and she couldn't stand it anymore. It was going to happen tonight or she was going to throw herself off a balcony from the sheer frustration of being without Christian for this long. "Christian, tonight is just about us, it's not about Tilden."

"How can you say that? She's our daughter," he said indignantly, though his body was betraying him as she kept arching her hips up into his in such a delightfully sinful way.

"I know she's our daughter, but you're my husband and I'm your wife and we also haven't been together and we're still people, you know, just because we're parents doesn't mean we're not who we were before we had Tilden," she said, kissing his neck and making his close his eyes. He tried to keep his wits about him though.

He pulled away, "We should really just check up on Tilden. I didn't get a chance to at the autograph thing so it's been a while. It's not too late, I'm sure Stephanie is still up and we can just check in for a moment."

Trish thought back to what Stephanie had said and gently raised her hands to cup his face, bringing him in close so that his eyes were hovering right above hers, so their gazes could lock and she could speak to him and know that he heard her. "Chrissy?"

"Yes?" he asked.

"I'm not going to leave you," she told him quietly.

"Huh?" he asked, looking at her confusedly. "You were thinking about leaving me?"

"No, I've not thought about it since we decided that we needed to be together again. I've not thought about leaving you or being with someone else, I want you, just you, _you_," Trish emphasized, hoping her eyes could say everything that her mouth couldn't find the words to express. "I don't want anyone else, nobody else has even hit my radar because I am so deliriously happy with you…well, not lately, but usually."

"Not lately?" he asked, stricken, now pulling away from her sitting on the bed. "You aren't happy…with me?"

"That didn't come out the way it was meant to," she said, sitting up and cuddling in next to him. He didn't refuse her touch. "Chrissy, sweetie, I love you so much, you know this, right? You _know_ this?"

"Yeah," he said, but she could detect a tinge of something, just on the edges, trying to hide from her observant ears.

"Christian," she sighed, "there's nothing to be scared of."

"What do you mean?"

"You're going overboard with Tilden and I have a feeling it's because you're scared that you're going to screw up somehow and that you'll lose me again, that you'll lose Tilde, but it's not going to happen. We're new to this whole parenting thing, I'm not going to begrudge you any mistakes because I know we're both going to make mistakes. We're allowed."

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said, but she knew he did.

"You're afraid, aren't you?"

"I'm not afraid."

"You're afraid you'll screw up and I'll hold it against you or something," she told him, "but please, don't be. I want my husband back, not this weirdo who obsesses over everything having to do with our daughter. She's a very happy baby, Christian, we're doing fine. We don't need you to act like you have to monitor everything Tilden does every second of every day. Right now, for instance, I am sure she's in bed, happily sleeping."

"Yeah, I guess."

"You're a great dad," Trish told him, rubbing his stomach a little. "Tilden adores you. I adore you, but please, be the Christian I know you are. I mean, we haven't even made love in seven months, you're killing me here, Chrissy."

"I just don't want to screw it up, it's too perfect right now, I feel like I'm going to mess it all up," he said quietly.

"Believe me," Trish said. "You're not going to screw anything up."

Sawyer wasn't the only one impressed when they got to the set for the first day of filming. The entire thing was pretty cool-looking. He was pretty impressed by it and he didn't really get impressed all that often. He was used to seeing things for wrestling but this was different, this was for his own show where he'd be the host. He met up with the producers and directors and they had one of the pages show him around the set.

The director came up to them and introduced himself. Chris shook his hand and introduced himself and Sawyer as well.

"We're going to have to hook you up for the show too as you'll be close to the edge," Russell, the director told him, "I don't know if we mentioned that, just a precaution. Did you go over the script we sent you?"

"Yeah, I did," Chris nodded, smiling down at Sawyer.

"Great, we're going to do a couple test runs with some of the interns posing as contestants and then tonight we'll start the actual filming. We should be able to work out the last kinks before we actually start filming the episodes. The actual contestants should be arriving soon if you want to acquaint yourselves with them a little more. Might be good to get a little info, just so you feel more comfortable with them on-air."

"Okay, thanks," Chris said with a nod.

"Oh, and we've also got you an assistant," Russell said. "She'll be helping you where you need it. She should be over any moment…there she is, Phoebe, can you come over here?"

A girl of about twenty hustled over and smiled, "You must be Chris, it's nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you," he said, shaking her hand.

"I'll leave you two to get to know each other," Russell said. "She pretty much knows everything that's going on so if you have questions, you can ask her, but feel free to ask me or the producers if you want."

"Thanks," Chris nodded.

"Who's this little guy?" Phoebe asked.

"This is my son, Sawyer."

"Hi, Sawyer," she told him, holding her hand out. Sawyer shook her hand. "You have a strong grip."

"I'm four," Sawyer said, of course he had a strong grip, he was a big kid. "I have a mommy."

She laughed, "Do you? Is she here?"

"No, she's at home because she's having a baby and my sister is there too, I have a sister, her name is Flynn and she's very nice and very little because she's littler than me. I'm four and she's two and the baby is nothing."

"Don't mind him, my wife sent him as a spy so he's probably been trained to give the spiel to any female I meet," Chris joked around with her. "My wife is at home, she's almost nine months pregnant right now and she's with our other child, my daughter."

"Oh wow, so you're going to have three kids, what does your wife do?" she asked, making small talk. "I mean, I'm sorry, that's rude of me to ask."

"It's okay, she's the Executive Vice President of Creative Development and Operations of World Wrestling Entertainment. But besides that huge long title, she actually works backstage coordinating all our shows."

"Oh yeah, you're a wrestler, right?"

"He's the best wrestler at what he does," Sawyer chimed in. He was an expert on his daddy's wrestling.

"Wow," Phoebe said. "So let me show you around the backstage area. We can get you familiar with the makeup and wardrobe team."

Chris lifted Sawyer as they were shown around the backstage. In a lot of ways it was just like Raw, but in a lot of ways it wasn't. There was more coordination around here, a script he had to follow. They were walking through when another woman came up to them, introducing herself as Jamie, one of the prize girls. She was pretty and Chris could almost see Sawyer as a little Stephanie, taking inventory of things around them. When it came time for the run-throughs, Phoebe graciously offered to watch Sawyer and let him sit in one of the director chairs just offstage to watch the show from there.

By the time they were through with the filming and everything, Sawyer had fallen asleep and Chris had to carry him to the car and then into the hotel, where he didn't even stir. He was energized though and called Stephanie to gush to her about how cool it all was and how much fun it was. She made him give her all the details of the show and the rules until they were both just about dead on the phone. He only hoped it came off as well as it felt. The next few days were much of the same and then it was home for a short while before going to the Pay-Per-View on Sunday.

Per Sawyer's request, he challenged Evan to an impromptu match. It didn't only serve the purpose of pleasing his son, it also served his own need to get some revenge on Evan for beating him the last Monday. Well, it would have served as a modicum of revenge had he actually _won_ the match, but to his eternal dismay and infinite anger, he _lost_ the match. He was so stunned and angry, he didn't quite know what to do with himself. When he got backstage, he was almost to the boiling point.

Stephanie, who had the kids with her, could sense that Chris wanted to be alone, so, despite the fact that Sawyer and Flynn wanted to go up to him and give him hugs for his match, she told them that Daddy probably needed a little alone time. He didn't speak for the rest of the night and she was worried about him the next morning. He still hadn't said a word to her and she knew him. He had been on a little bit of a losing streak lately and she could tell it was getting to him. She turned over on her side and started rubbing his arm. She knew he was awake because his eyes were open, despite no words coming from his mouth.

"You know, I think it was a fluke that he won."

"A _fluke_?" Chris finally spoke. "He beat me twice, Stephanie, and then with Big Show. I lost, I'm a loser."

"No you're not," she told him, her rubbing intensifying. "You're anything but a loser. You are a 6-time World Champion, a 9-time Intercontinental Champion. You've won pretty much every title you could ever possibly hope to win. You're a Grand Slam champion. You were the _first_ Undisputed Champion. You're one of the greatest of all-time."

"Yeah, if that were true, I would've been able to beat that shrimp."

"I think it's because you're too invested in it. You're letting your real emotions get in the way of your wrestling with this one. The Big Show thing, that was just a set-up by my father, did I tell you he's going to be here tonight to address your boy Wade and his little gang? Which means I'll have to deal with him stomping his way all over the show, even more so now that I'm pregnant. 'Oh Stephanie, you are so fat and pregnant, there's no way that you could possibly run anything!' I bet that's what he'll say."

"You're not fat."

"I feel fat."

"You feel pregnant."

"I feel bigger with this one than the other two, I don't know, maybe it's because it's still so close after Flynn's birth that I wasn't completely back to where I was, but I don't know, it just feels like I'm bigger this time around."

"You're still beautiful," he said, though his voice still held that annoyed tone, though she knew it wasn't directed at him, but more directed towards things in general. "Maybe I'm just losing it. I'm going to be 40 this year, you know-"

"Well aware, well aware," she told him, knowing in her mind she was already planning something huge and great for his birthday.

"So I'm definitely on the decline, I guess."

"What? No, no, you're not," she told him, shaking her head profusely. "Are you kidding me with this? Chris, you have just given interviews saying that you feel like you're at a peak in your career, that you've reached the point where your wrestling is mature, so to speak. No way are you on the decline."

"I should be able to beat people like Evan!" he said with frustration. "I'm losing a step, that's all. I've got so much on my mind that wrestling takes a backseat and because of that, I'm losing what advantage I may have had. I mean, I've got Fozzy and my new game show to contend with wrestling and on top of that, I have you and the kids and then on top of _that_, we have the new baby."

"So you're saying that you want to eliminate me from the equation," she joked.

"Would you?" he said, but pulled her closer. "It's not going to be long before people are going to need to wait to see the next generation of Jericho. Here's hoping it looks better than this generation of DiBiase."

"Shut up," she said, kissing his chest. "Besides, I deflected the crush."

"You did, how did you manage that and I thought you liked him fawning all over you."

"It was sweet, but it wasn't going anywhere and he shouldn't be hung up on a pregnant, married woman with two kids anyways, so I told him Maryse had a crush on him and I told Maryse Ted liked her and so I think they're going to go out."

"You're such a meddler," he said, kissing the top of her head.

"I know, but it's for the greater good," she told him. "So you know what day is fast approaching, don't you?"

"I don't know, what day?" he asked, though he was lying and he knew what day.

"Well, on this particular day, many, many years ago, eight if we're going to be exact, a woman by the name of Stephanie McMahon had gotten a call from her father asking if she had wanted to be the GM to SmackDown. Now, this was before her father deemed her an incompetent idiot so he trusted her with the show. She eagerly accepted the job because she'd spent months idly standing around, doing nothing and feeling sorry for herself. On this night, there was a particular guy who this particular girl had been business partners with. They met briefly, him to congratulate her and extort her for a title match, but she, ever too smart for said guy, put him in a cage match, which he did not like. But apparently there was more he didn't like, like the girl refusing his hug and so, in his anger, he demanded an explanation and upon receiving it, he hugged the girl, then kissed her and then asked her out on a date."

"Whatever happened to the two of them?"

"I heard they turned out to be blissfully happy," she told him.

"Oh really?"

"Yes, because they've been together for eight years and they are still going strong and I think they have two children and one on the way," she told him.

"Wow, what a lucky guy, does he know how lucky he is?"

"I would hope he does."

"And the lady, what does she think, does she think she's lucky?"

"She _knows_ it," she told him.

"Oh good, I would hate for her to not to think it, especially when the guy knows that he's pretty damn lucky. I mean, he has to be lucky since the girl is filthy rich."

"Are you feeling better?"

"I don't know, Steph," he told her, pulling her closer to him. "I mean, it's just, this losing thing is throwing me for a loop. Evan just makes me so mad. Maybe you're right. Maybe it is the whole Britt thing getting in the way of everything. If you weren't pregnant, we could just use you as the decoy or something, but I guess we'll have to find someone else to do the dirty work here. Do you think Kelly Kelly is available?"

"According to my sources, she's _always_ available."

"I don't feel right doing this though," he told her, running his fingers through her hair. "It just doesn't have the right feel to it. I don't think we should set him up, but then, when I get in the ring with him, all I can think about is tearing his face off and throwing it into the crowd. I just don't understand how someone could do that to someone else, especially someone as cool as Britt is. Do people not understand how amazing she is? I mean, first Hunter, now Evan. She never should've taken this job."

"She likes it here now. She just needs to find someone right for her."

"Yeah, I thought that guy was Hunter, how wrong we were, huh?"

"Well, I should've figured, being married to him as I was. The divorce thing should've tipped me off. He did the same thing to me. There was something better that came along so he had no time for me. That time it was the Undisputed Championship, this time it was Shawn. He's so easily influenced, which you wouldn't think for a guy that looks like him, but it's true."

"This is about Evan though. What a scumbag and as a former scumbag, I know one when I see one."

"A former one?"

"I'm reformed, you've reformed me."

"Oh yes, because calling everyone gelatinous tapeworms isn't a scumbag move at all."

"I mean in my personal life. I'd never cheat on you, the thought has never crossed my mind and I had to work with some pretty hot chicks this week and I saw a lot of hot chicks in LA."

"Sawyer said that you kept talking to everyone about me," Stephanie said, giving him a smug look, "and talking about how you had a beautiful daughter at home as well and a baby on the way."

"Sawyer has no clue about anything, the kid still has his baby teeth. When he gets his adult teeth, then we can talk," Chris said, blushing a little as Stephanie leaned up to kiss him softly. She liked these moments, where they were by themselves and talking and just together. She didn't need romance anymore, just him and some peace and quiet before their days took them wherever they were going.

"You were talking about me," she told him, her tongue sticking out a little. "Sawyer even told me that you were bragging about me."

"I don't brag about you, I brag about _me_," Chris said. "That's who I brag about."

"You love me," she told him in a sing-song voice.

"I've loved you for eight years, what's your point?"

"You brag about me."

"I do not."

"Do you bring me up at any point during your show?" she asked sweetly.

"No," he said, "but during an interview I was asked who I would bring to put on the belt and I said that if I chose you I would never hear the end of it, so I said I'd put your mom on there, but really, I'd put your dad."

"Because you love me so much," she told him and he started to blush, which was exactly what she wanted out of him. "You love me and your kids the most in the world and that's why…"

"Why what?" he asked. Her face turned serious and almost scary to him.

"That's why you are never leaving wrestling."

"Okay, that sounded like a threat," he told her. She raised an eyebrow.

"It was supposed to."


	283. End of the Road? June 21, 2010

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, I liked writing this chapter, hope you liked reading it and if you want to review, go ahead. Don't forget to vote in my poll on my profile page. Thanks to everyone who has so far, the results have been surprising and with this chapter, I tried to take the top vote-getter into consideration, enjoy. :)

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"I thought you were going to stop sulking."

"I'm not sulking. Sulking is for children. Sawyer and Flynn sulk, I do _not_ sulk," Chris told her, his arm covering his eyes as he sat there. "I'm not sulking."

"I think that you are sulking," Stephanie told him. "Would you just stop? It's really annoying, you know."

"Then leave," he snapped at her.

"Don't be mad," Sawyer said from next to Chris. He was leaning against Chris as he sat "reading" his book. He'd had it pretty memorized for a while now so he could almost recite the entire thing. He was able to recognize words though and his mommy was very proud of that so he wanted to do better and better and then he'd help Flynn so their mommy could be proud of her too.

"I'm not mad," Chris told him, looking down at him and watching as Sawyer just shook his head. "Why are you shaking your head at me like that?"

"Because," Sawyer said, "you're mad because you were not saying a nice thing."

"I say lots of not nice things," Chris told him.

"Daddy, you were funny when you were on the show and we're gonna watch it, right?"

"Yes, when it airs."

"Mommy, Daddy was funny and girls touched his butt," Sawyer said with a laugh.

Stephanie cocked her head to the side, "Excuse me?"

"Yeah, excuse me?" Chris asked, staring down at Sawyer. He loved his kids. They were always there to make him laugh and get him out of his bad moods. They were at that age, well, Sawyer was at that age and Flynn was getting very close to that age where what they said was usually funny and very out there and he was wondering where his son was going with this one.

"Yup, yup, on the game show that Daddy was doing the girls touched his butt."

"The girls touched his butt you say," Stephanie said, trying to hold in her laughter as she looked at Chris's wide eyes.

"What are you even talking about, kid?" Chris asked. Stephanie was grateful that this was at least keeping Chris out of that stupid funk that he was in this morning and just a few minutes ago. He seemed to be okay when he was around them, but left to his own devices and he started spouting off about how he was just lying to himself and had never really done anything noteworthy in his career.

"On the show," Sawyer said, drawing out the last syllable. "They were touching your butt and it was funny! You were funny."

"Well, I'm glad you thought I was funny, but who was touching my butt?"

"The girls were."

"What girls?"

"The girls that were your girls and your friends," Sawyer answered, trying to articulate himself. He thought back to all he had seen when he'd been on his daddy's set. There were some crazy people on his daddy's show, but it was really fun to see all the things drop off the edge and smash. His daddy had even let him throw something over the edge, but he had to be very careful about it because it was very far down.

"Chris, is there something you would like to tell me about the time you spent in LA?" Stephanie said, trying to act stern and suspicious, but she had been around her son long enough to know that he was probably getting confused as to who was whom and just trying to get his point across without actually saying words needed to explain. "I mean, I told you that I would use your son as a spy and it seems that he had dug up some rather interesting information for me."

"I would like to know what my son saw as well," Chris said, trying to hold in his own laughter. "Why were the girls touching my butt?"

"Because you had to have thing, Daddy, or else you would fall over the building and you would smash," Sawyer said.

"Oh," Chris laughed, "he means when the girls would hook me up to the cable because I was really close to the edge."

"Oh, that's _so _much more comforting," Stephanie said, "knowing that my husband was so close to the edge of a building and falling to his death that he had to be strapped in. I can't _wait_ to see this show."

"I was completely safe and the girls weren't actually touching my butt, Sawyer, they were just putting the hook on, there was no butt-touching, I'll have you know. You're just trying to get me in trouble with Mommy so she doesn't get mad at you if you do something bad."

Sawyer gave a winning smile and then went back to his book as Stephanie went back to her paperwork and Flynn, who had not even been paying attention continued to color _way_ outside the lines of her coloring book, kept doing her own thing and Chris went back to sulking, sighing every few minutes, much to Stephanie's annoyance. Whenever he would sigh, he would glance over at her slightly, just to see her reaction and every time, she would steel her shoulders and deliberately not look up at him, but he new he was wearing her down. He sighed again and he heard her pen hit the table and he looked over at her, putting on his best morose face.

"Would you stop doing that? I'm trying to get a lot of things squared away before I have to make my grand exit out of here. I was hoping to get this stupid Raw guest host thing out before I had to leave and I'm so on the verge of it."

"What about your dad's thing with the GM?"

"Oh, this anonymous crap," Stephanie said, running her hands through her hair. "He knows me too well. After what happened with Bret…he doesn't want me to know so that I can't influence them. He says it's because the GM wants to remain anonymous, but I have the feeling that as soon as I'm out of here, he's going to reveal them to the world because I won't be here."

"So you can't influence them with your charms," he finished for her blithely.

"Yes, although it'd be difficult if it were someone that hated me. It'd be so like my father to have it be Shawn, you know, just to toy with me."

"You'd think that he would be nice and not do this to you while you were pregnant," Chris said.

"You'd think that, but you'd be wrong," Stephanie said, her mouth tight now. At least the guest host thing is getting scaled back, I've been successful in at least one area that I wanted to correct. So stop sighing because it's bugging me…why are you sighing?"

"I'm just thinking."

"Bull," she told him, leaving off the expletive at the end of that. "You want to complain to me some more about how you lost last night, how Evan is so much better than you and how you're such a loser and I say get off it!"

"Get off what?" Sawyer asked.

"Your father thinks he's a loser."

"You're not a loser," Sawyer told him. "You're a winner."

"Thanks, but I'm on a losing streak," he told Sawyer, then told Stephanie. "That's what it is, Stephanie, I'm on a losing streak. Maybe I'm just not the guy I once was. I was going to have to lose it eventually. It's just too bad that it had to happen so abruptly."

"Are you going to start crying soon?" she asked him.

"Stephanie, this is serious," Chris told her. "Respect my career and what it's become, okay?"

"Overdramatic much?" she told him, rolling her eyes, "I swear, sometimes I feel like I have four children. You've lost, what, three time, oh my God, call the presses! Tell me, how many times did you lose in WCW?"

"I wasn't the same guy in WCW," he told her, "I was younger, I was less experienced. I'd never held a major title before. And even if that was the case, I still could've beaten Evan, hell, I could have knocked him out back then. I'm a shell."

"Are you going to go start writing in your journal and listening to sad music?" she told him. "Go and challenge him again if you must, show the world that those were just flukes, that you are Chris Jericho and you can do anything you want and beat anyone you want."

"Yeah!" Sawyer said enthusiastically. He agreed with his mommy, his daddy was the best in the world!

"I don't know," Chris said. "If this thing with ABC pans out, it could lead to more work and if it leads to more work-"

"Do not, I repeat do _not_ even finish that sentence unless it means that you will be wrestling on ABC for something," she told him. "Because I will not hear of this talk anymore tonight, do you understand me? You are not having a losing streak and you are freaking out over nothing!"

"I'm going to be 40 in November, Stephanie," he reminded her.

"So? You're like a 30 year old," she told him. "You could go well into your 40's if you wanted to. Hell, you get more attractive by the year."

Chris smirked at her. "You think I get more attractive as I get older?"

"Don't you know," she smirked back at him, that same look of mischievousness he'd loved so soon after kissing her that first real time on her face, "half the reason I married you is because I knew you were going to be a really good-looking older man."

"I do think I'm a step up from Hunter," Chris told her with a wink.

"You're more handsome now, if it's possible," she told him, leaning her chin on her hand and musing over him. Why was it so easy to forget his problems when he was talking with her or talking with his kids? They always seemed to make everything else fade into oblivion. He could be on a hundred match losing streak, but if he spoke to them, it was like wrestling faded from his consciousness.

"You really think so?"

"Well, I met you when you were, what, 31?"

"Earlier than that, I believe I was 29."

"Really, I've known you that long?" she asked.

"I'm insulted you don't know how long you've known me," he teased.

"Well, I knew of you before of course, I used to watch you on television when you were in WCW since I had to scope out the competition."

"You make it sound like you really just wanted to see me."

"What are you talking about?" Sawyer asked and this time around, Flynn didn't want to feel left out. She walked over and held her arms up to Chris and he took her in his arms and set her in his lap where she leaned against his chest, burrowing her head in his t-shirt.

"We're talking about how old we were when we first met," Chris answered.

"I'm four," Sawyer said.

"Well, I know that, I was there when you were born, but were _you_ there when _I_ was born?" Chris asked.

"No," Sawyer giggled. "You're too old and I'm too little to see you there. I wasn't there."

"Yeah, you haven't been around for a while."

"I didn't just want to see you," Stephanie said. "I wanted to see everything. You guys were in a very heated race with us over ratings and we had to make sure that we could beat you."

"You weren't even in the company at the time."

"I was too, well, I was in a way. I was studying to be in the company, but I used to watch you over there, acting like everyone was conspiring against you and then when you weren't acting like that, you were acting like you were everyone's party host, but I know that you were just acting like that because you were trying to get them to notice you, you were trying to gain credibility, I could see that you were unhappy."

"You could not," Chris argued. "You only say that now because you know that I was unhappy because I've told you about my time there."

"It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure things out. You were barely getting a shot. You wanted to play in the big leagues, but that's not your style."

"See, you don't even think that I'm in the big leagues anymore."

"That's not what I meant," Stephanie told him. "What I mean was that everything in WCW started to become a faction. You were in the nWo or you were in the Wolf-Pac or you were in the Four Horsemen and so on and so forth and that's not you, you don't conform, you never really have. You work alone and because of that, you never even got the chance that you deserved. I could tell."

"You can tell now."

"I could tell then."

"You didn't even know me."

"You didn't know Mommy?" Sawyer asked with confusion. He'd just always assumed that his parents had known each other for a long, long, long time, maybe even forever. There was a time they didn't know each other?"

"Well, we knew _of_ each other," Stephanie said. "I knew who your daddy was because I saw him on TV, but he worked for another company."

"TNA?" Sawyer asked.

"How did you know about that?" Stephanie asked him.

"That's what you and Kurt talked about," Sawyer replied innocently. Was that a bad word?

"Oh, that's right," she said, putting an end to her worry that her son was thinking about jumping ship. "No, this was called WCW, they were another company that eventually folded and your Uncle Shane bought them, but that's another story for another time. I just used to watch Daddy on there, but I'd never formally met him."

"You'd never informally met me either."

"That too," she said.

"Daddy, did you know Mommy?"

"I'd known of Mommy for years," Chris said, ruffling Sawyer's hair and letting Flynn play with his hand. She was toying with his wedding ring. "Because Mommy used to be a model." He looked over at his wife and she was turning a deep crimson color. She was adorable when she blushed, which didn't happen often. Stephanie was not a blusher. She never had been.

"You were a model?" Sawyer asked.

"Just for grandpa," Stephanie said. "Grandpa used to make me model some of the t-shirts and stuff that we would sell for wrestlers. I was just a little older than you, around nine."

"I used to read those magazines," Chris told Sawyer. "So I'd see your Mommy in these t-shirts and I thought she was very cute, but I never thought I would marry her."

"When I met Daddy for the first time I thought he was very handsome, but he was also very annoying," Stephanie said. "It made him lose some of the attractiveness. You were very handsome, but you just, I don't know, didn't ooze the sex appeal you do now."

"I didn't?" he asked incredulously. "Tell that to the thousands of women who were practically throwing themselves at me."

"Oh, I'm sure there were tons of women who loved you, but I don't know, the bleached hair, the shiny clothes, you weren't my style."

"So you're saying it wasn't until I completely changed that you even remotely found me attractive?"

"No, I loved the long hair," she said, thinking back to how she'd love to run her fingers through it while they had sex or how she would play with it when she was bored, treating it like a girlfriend's hair and not his hair, doing it up in pretty styles, almost testing them out to see if they'd look good on her. Chris looked at her affectionately, watching the play of emotions on her face. "Not that I don't love it now. I just, I don't know, you were different when we were together as business partners. You were…colder."

"Oh, that's a nice way to describe me."

"No, not with me, with other people, more calculating, you weren't that party host rock-star guy anymore and I fell for it hook, line, and sinker. You were just…charming…"

"And your slave," Chris told her with a snicker, "which, funnily enough, eight years later, I'm _still_ your slave pretty much. How did I get suckered into this job?"

"I just think you are as handsome now as you were then, more so really," she told him. "So just quit with all this ridiculous talk of losing whatever spark you think you've lost. All I see when I look in front of me is a man who is, as he says, the best in the world at what he does. Plus, look at what you've done with Wade. You've made him a contender. He's rallied all those guys and formed a cohesive team that is making a name for themselves."

"I do what I can," he said cockily. Sawyer stood up and cupped his hands around Chris's ear and whispered to him.

"What? Mommies can't know secrets anymore?" Stephanie asked, pretending to be insulted.

"Oh, we have to make a trip to the little boy's room," Chris said. "No private bathroom for us tonight."

"Sorry," Stephanie said. "I tried, but there weren't many."

"It's okay, we're just going to go the bathroom."

"I go too," Flynn said.

"You have to go too?" Chris asked, looking at Stephanie. "You have to go potty?"

"Yes," Flynn nodded.

"Well, okay," Chris said. "I guess we can start with the potty training. That would be great, two out of diapers and only one in them, unless you suddenly lose control of your bowels."

"Very funny," Stephanie said as Chris stood up and came over to kiss her.

"For the record," he said, leaning down and pressing his lips against hers, "and please don't hold this against me, baby, but I think that you get more beautiful every time I see you too, so pretty much every morning, I'm constantly surprised that I get to wake up next to you."

Stephanie smiled against his lips and then pushed him away. "Get out of here, you."

"Trust me, I'm leaving, I don't want our kids to pee their pants," Chris said as she watched the three of them leave. Heaven help her, they kept her from her work and bugged her sometimes, but she loved the hell out of them. She went back to her paperwork, immersing herself in what she was doing, outlining things that needed to be done while she was away on maternity leave. She had to make sure that travel arrangements were made and confirmed, that trucks would be able to get from venue to venue on time, and that arenas were actually booked months in advance so they wouldn't be left high and dry. The door opened, but she didn't look up, assuming that it was Chris bringing the children back.

"Did Flynn actually have to go pee?" she asked absently.

"Well that's not a question I think I know how to answer."

She looked up, startled at the voice, though she recognized it immediately. "Dad," more of a statement than a question.

"Stephanie," he nodded. "You look good."

"I do?"

"You look like you're about ready to pop."

"Ahh, just what a pregnant lady always wants to hear," she said dreamily. "What do you want, Dad?"

"I was wondering how your work was coming along. I know that we're not going to have you for a while and I wanted to make sure things will run smoothly in your absence."

"Don't worry, Dad," she told him, "everything is going to work out just fine while I'm gone, why, you're even hiring a new GM _just_ when I have to leave, which, it's just so convenient, don't you think?"

"It had nothing to do with you," he told her.

"Of course not," she said, though she didn't believe it for a second. Her father was probably glad to be rid of her. Her father, for his part, didn't know when she had become so obstinate to him. It was probably around the time the Alliance fell apart. Ever since then, their relationship had been so full of ups and downs. Vince suspected it had been the freedom she'd had when she was running the Alliance. She'd gotten the taste of full power. Sure, she had Shane there and Heyman as well, but it was hers, all hers, not Hunter's, not Vince's, hers and she reveled in it. She was as shrewd as he was, he would give her that, but as long as he was living, he would put up a fight against her. It would only strengthen her.

He knew, eventually, it would all be hers. He wasn't worried about the company under her tutelage. She was a competent and vicious businesswoman, which contrasted with her personal life, where she was soft and warm with her family. It was something he'd never been able to do. Sure, he hadn't been the most horrible father, but there had been a certain detachment from youth with his children, which was probably one of the reasons Shane had needed an out. Now Stephanie was the only one here and the person he would give the company to and he knew her greedy, little hands would be waiting.

She wanted it all and that was how it had to be to want to thrive in this business. It was cutthroat in a way that other businesses weren't and she was ready for it, he just wasn't ready to give it up just yet, though she kept trying to yank it from him. Chris would be good for the company as well. He loved this company as much as Stephanie had. He wasn't a fool, he knew how hard Chris had worked to get here, had reviewed tapes upon tapes of him before he'd even considered bringing him into the fold. When Stephanie had married Hunter, he'd been less than pleased, but had eventually relented and let his daughter make her own decisions and just when he had been content to let Hunter in on everything, she'd decided to divorce him.

Then years after the fact, he found out about Chris Jericho invading his daughter's life and it had taken him a bit of time to trust the man's affections for his daughter. He'd let her choose her own course, learning from his mistakes with Hunter, though, if he were honest, though he could always see some sort of attraction between his daughter and her husband, he also believed that it wouldn't last, though his daughter was content to prove him wrong again.

Now, though, he knew Chris was in this for the long haul, that like him or not (Vince liked him, he had the same fire and tenacity that he admired in his daughter) and he knew that Chris would work just as hard as Vince himself to make this company a success. He just couldn't let his daughter get complacent and he wouldn't be who he was if he just let himself sit back and not hold onto his company until the last. Stephanie's time would come, but his time wasn't over yet.

"You think I did this deliberately to hurt you?" he inquired.

"I just think that the timing is awfully convenient," she said, leaning back in her chair so the full extent of her pregnancy could be seen. It still stirred him a little that she was working on her third child. Gone were the days when she'd look up at him adoringly, her daddy who spoiled her rotten as if love could be bought. She and Chris raised their children different from most, but Sawyer and Flynn both had a happiness and jubilance in them he'd never seen in Shane or Stephanie. It came from having two very involved parents, the one thing he and Linda couldn't give their children. Now he had five grandchildren and one more on the way very soon and his kids were wonderful parents.

"Well, I don't think I quite knew that you were pregnant and I've had this in mind for a while…"

"No you haven't, you've been booking guest hosts for the past year," she responded. "I haven't been pregnant for a year, Dad. So of course you could have."

"It wouldn't have mattered, you would've gotten pregnant and had to leave anyways," he argued.

"You don't know that," she said, though she hated that he had a point. Even if her father had declared her the new GM, she probably would have still gotten pregnant and it would've been a boot point. "So who's the new GM?"

"They choose to remain anonymous, I told you this already."

"I should know who it is."

"You won't, it's between me and the GM."

"This is ridiculous," she told him. "I run this show, I should know-"

"Everything has been set up for his e-mails. He will be watching the show and sending his e-mails."

"To me?"

"No, I'll be having Michael Cole read them aloud so everyone can hear."

"I should be able to screen them."

"I'm sure they'll be fine."

"It's a he then, you said, you said it was a he," she said, latching onto the only piece of real information she'd been given.

"Stephanie, if you can root out who it is with just knowing that it is a male, then I will gladly hand you over the entire company, no questions asked," Vince told her and she scowled at him, but didn't want him to know that he was probably right. Instead she just looked at him defiantly.

"Dad, have you ever known me not to find something out?" she asked him.

He just nodded his head as the door opened behind him. "I trust you will try."

"Hi Grandpa," Sawyer said as he bounded into the room. Flynn followed shortly, her hand clasped with Sawyer's. Chris came in after them, juggling two trays of food. "What are you doing here?"

"Hey there," Vince said, kneeling so both his grandchildren could give him a hug. "I was just talking to your mother."

"About what?" Sawyer asked curiously and Chris looked over at Stephanie, who rolled her eyes, which was all the answer Chris needed about the subject.

"Just about work," Vince said, "nothing you need to worry about."

"We got dinner and we brought it back so we could eat with Mommy and the baby because the baby needs to eat lots and lots and that's why Mommy's tummy is so big because she eats a lot," Sawyer rambled.

"Wow, you sure know a lot about babies."

"I know," Sawyer said.

"Well, I'll let you four eat, good to see you, Chris."

"You too, Vince," Chris nodded as he set the trays down on Stephanie's desk. Once Vince was gone, Chris asked, "What was that about?"

"Just my father being my father. I think he had a point coming here, to see how I was doing with getting all this done before the baby came, but yeah, you know how it gets between us."

"Yes, so drown yourself in food."

"We wanted to eat with you, Mommy!" Sawyer exclaimed while trying to push a chair over to her desk. Chris helped him by pushing the chair closer and Sawyer climbed on it, grabbing at his food before Chris could push it over to him. He happily started eating as Stephanie pushed some papers away.

"Well thank you, I feel loved," Stephanie said with a smile. Chris pulled Flynn into his lap and put her plate within her reach as he helped her eat. "So, did Flynn go pee by herself?" Stephanie asked, stating the same question she'd asked earlier.

"Actually, she did, well, not completely alone, I didn't want her to fall in," Chris joked. "I don't think that would've been very nice."

"No, it wouldn't have been, but look at you go, Flynnie, pretty soon you'll be a pro at going to the bathroom," Stephanie said, then cringed. "Did I really just say that?"

Chris laughed, "Yes, yes you did. Then she can join the professional league of bathroom goers."

Stephanie shoved him in the arm a little as she took a bite of her rice pilaf, "Shut up, you know what I meant."

"Oh, did I?" he laughed at her.

"Yes, you did."

The door opened again and Ted walked in. He looked around and then blushed, "Oh, I'm sorry, you guys, I didn't mean to just barge in here. I'll just come back later."

"Did you want my wife alone?" Chris teased and still loved that it sent Ted into blushes. He was a grown man for God's sakes, he shouldn't blush like that.

"Um, no, I mean, not that we couldn't be, I mean, no, no, I don't," he said, getting flustered again under Chris's scrutiny. He'd never met a man so freaking secure in his life. It just made Ted flustered to think that Chris could joke and that he was the butt of his jokes.

"Out with it," Stephanie prompted him.

"I just wanted to thank you…I mean, for letting me know about Maryse, not…not anything else," he said, darting a glance to Chris, who was not paying attention, but helping Flynn by cutting up her broccoli into smaller pieces. "She's…amazing."

"I know she is," Stephanie said with a bright smile, "and there's no need to thank me."

"Well, you just told me about her and well, she's great, so, um, thanks," he said and she could tell that there were still some lingering effects of his crush.

"You're welcome," she said as he backed out of the room.

"He still wants you so bad," Chris chuckled.

"Let him have his crush."

"Of course you're going to say that when _you're_ the object of his affection."

"Tell me, Mr. Chris Jericho, do I so much as bat an eyelash when you have women falling all over you all the time? There are millions of women who have crushes on you, but I don't care."

"Yeah, but none of them walk into my dressing room without knocking," he told her.

"KellyKelly," Stephanie coughed.

"Yeah, like I want the blonde bimbo," he said as they returned to their meal.

In doing so, they missed Vince's announcement about the new GM, but they already knew so it didn't concern them. Chris had decided, maybe against his better judgment, that he needed to face Evan Bourne again. While he was walking down the hallway, that old despondency settled over him again as he went over the other matches with Evan in his mind. He was trying to find a weakness to that guy, going over what he'd done wrong in his other matches and time and time again, he believed that he was losing a step.

He wasn't getting any younger, though more handsome apparently, but not any younger or agile. He wasn't someone who could high fly like he did when he was 24 or even 30. He was pushing on 40's door very hard and it was starting to crack and maybe it was just time to hang it up. Maybe he needed to face facts and let the new guard in. He'd done a great job with Wade and maybe that should be his swan song.

He couldn't believe what he was contemplating as he walked to the ring. He couldn't believe what he was about to say, but maybe it was time. He brought the microphone up to his lips and told the world, told everyone, including his pregnant wife (oh God, what if she went into labor from the shock?) that if he lost this match, it was over. His career would end tonight if he lost. He was not going to be humiliated any longer. If he had lost the step, then it was time for him to hang it up.

"Is Daddy leaving?" Sawyer asked innocently and Stephanie had not felt this nauseous since she'd first found out she was pregnant for the third time. She was going to kill him dead if he lost this match. If he lost, he better just walk right out of that arena, right out of her life and right into the nearest body of water because he was going to get the mother of all slaps if he so much as walked back here having ended his career in the first hour of a random Monday Night Raw. Oh, he was going to pay.

Chris put what he had into the match, but felt defeated as well. He fought hard because he didn't want to leave, but not hard enough that it really felt like his best match ever. There was a little bit of resignation in his moves, even as he wrestled to the best of his abilities, giving in to the fact he had wrestled _very_ hard the night before. He didn't want to give up, but maybe his body just wasn't as willing anymore.

Except he thought back to Stephanie's words. She believed in him, she always had, well, not always, not when she hated him with a passion, though she recognized his ability, sending wrestler after wrestler at him like they were baseballs trying to hit him in the head. She never succeeded though she tried mightily. She knew he was good. Then, when they'd been business partners, she easily could have left him for Kurt, declared that he was the better wrestler and joined his side, but she'd stuck with him. Hell, she'd put herself on the line because she believed in his abilities.

Then, when they started dating, she believed in him without question. If Stephanie believed it so ardently, he needed to believe it as hard as she did. That's when the tides changed and the fight came back to Chris. So what, he was about to be 40, he was still the best at what he did and like hell he was going to let Evan freaking Borne retire him before he was ready. He played the lame duck for a while, let Evan think he could actually win this. That was the kid's biggest mistake. Chris may not have the same quickness, but his mind was sharp. Evan thought he had him, yes, _thought_ he had him and then…snap, like a whip, Chris had won.

"I could kill you," were Stephanie's first words as she saw him walk triumphantly backstage. "Were you _trying_ to send me into early labor?"

"I…may have been a bit foolish."

"_May_?" she asked with a scoff. "What were you thinking? What if you had lost?"

"Well, I would've called a mulligan?" he told her with a charming smile. "Or I would've taken my cute ass out of the company?"

"You can't leave," she told him and he started laughing, "what?"

"I'm sorry, you just sounded really scary right then, telling me I couldn't leave, like I'm chained here forever, I'm not chained here forever, am I?"

"If you pull a stunt like that again, I'll chain you somewhere alright," she threatened.

"Our bed?"

"Jerk," she said, "You are _so_ not getting any tonight."

"What?" Chris said, "Damn it, Stephanie, you promised after we were interrupted this morning by the Jericho brigade."

"Well this," she said, gesturing towards her body, "is closing up shop for the season!"

"You cannot be serious," he said as he trailed after her. It was easy to catch up to her because her walking was slower nowadays with the extra weight.

"Go away," she said, "you make me so mad, I don't even want to talk to you."

She would talk to him though as she watched later on that night as her father was beaten in the ring by the members of this NXT faction. She wasn't sure if she was horrified or kind of glad they had done that, but she tended to side with horrified, it looked better on her given the occasion. When it happened, she was sitting in the dark with her children in their little beds, waiting to be picked up and taken to the car back to the hotel. She'd turned to Chris, who was sitting on the floor rubbing Flynn's back when he looked at her.

"Did you?" she asked simply.

His face sobered for a moment then he said, "No."

She wasn't sure she believed him.


	284. Eight Years Strong, July 18, 2010

A/N: Had a touch of the stomach flu last week. Anyways, this doesn't really pertain to any show per se, but I'll catch up soon. Be on the look out.

Anyways, so last week was like, 8 years after I'd started writing this crazy long, crazy in general story. Thanks for everyone who still reads it, to all those who have reviewed, e-mailed me, PM'ed me, favorited this, alerted this and all the rest. You guys keep me writing this insane story and why I continue to tell the story of these two lovebirds and why I feel like I still have so much story to tell, so thank you from the bottom of my heart. :) Hope you enjoy and reviews, as always, are welcome, after all, 8 years, that deserves something, right? ;)

* * *

Stephanie stretched. Sleeping was getting uncomfortable again and if she hadn't already gone through this twice before, she would've been cursing Chris out. She slept fitfully, not finding any comfortable position in her advanced pregnant state. She rolled onto her side and found the bed empty. That was curious. Usually, when they were at home, they would stay in bed until the last possible moment. It got old sleeping in hotel beds all the time and so when they were in their own bed, they would try to stay in it as long as possible because it was form-fitted to their bodies. She sat up and looked around, but Chris must have gotten up.

She shrugged and stretched a little, pulling his pillow to her and hugging it as she closed her eyes, inhaling his scent on it. It smelled like him, like such a guy pillow, but she loved it. She opened her eyes again moments later because she was one of those people, who, once they were up, they were pretty much up. She sat up and stretched again, hearing a satisfying pop in her back and then swung her legs over the bed. She felt so weighted down now, but it would soon be over and she would soon have another baby. She had an anticipation running through her she hadn't had with her other two children and she knew it was because whatever was inside of her was a surprise. She just didn't know if it was a boy or a girl and she anticipated finding out.

She slipped her feet into a pair of flip-flops and went out into the hallway, intending to check on the kids, but she heard them downstairs chattering away, well, Sawyer was chattering and Flynn was yelling about something. She liked the sound of little voices in her house. It made it seem filled. When she'd been married to Hunter, it had been too quiet. It was never quiet with Chris though because they'd had friends traipsing through here all the time, but it was different when it was your children. She went downstairs, expecting to see Chris making breakfast for the kids and was surprised to see Loretta down there with them.

"Loretta?" Stephanie asked. "Hi, I wasn't expecting you this morning, should I have been?"

"We're going to spend the next couple days with Gamma and Gramps," Sawyer informed her.

"You are?" she asked.

"Yup, that's what Daddy said. He said we can see you guys later," Sawyer said.

"I had no idea," Stephanie said. "Where is Chris?"

"He's out," Loretta said, smiling at her slyly. "Sit down, you look like you could eat, am I right? Even if I'm not, you're going to have something to eat because you're having my grandchild very soon and you need to keep your energy up."

"Thanks, Loretta," Stephanie said, sitting in between her two children. "What are you guys having?"

"Gamma made eggs and sausages and bread," Sawyer said with a nod.

"Sounds delicious," Stephanie said, helping Flynn get her eggs in her mouth. She was having a little trouble with her spoon. Flynn smiled gratefully at her and Stephanie leaned over to kiss her forehead.

"So did he give a reason why he was giving you the kids?" she asked. "Or did he say when he'd be back?"

"Well, I'm taking the kids because I feel like you two need a break," Loretta started.

"And this has nothing to do with the fact that our 8 year anniversary is on Sunday?" Stephanie asked. Loretta smiled knowingly. "What does he have planned?"

"I'm not at liberty to say, I'm only supposed to tell you that he will be giving you a call sometime today."

"Okay," Stephanie said suspiciously, making a face at Flynn and making her giggle. "Do you know what your daddy is up to, Flynnie?"

"No!" Flynn said, shaking her head and then going back to spooning eggs into her mouth and chewing noisily.

"How about you, little boy?"

"I don't know, Mommy," Sawyer told her. "Daddy told me that I have a big mouth and he wasn't going to tell me because I would tell you."

"Well, he does know you well," Stephanie said, leaning over to kiss his blond head. "Are you sure you can't tell me anything, Loretta? I mean, does he have something huge planned or what?"

"I told you what I could tell you," she said.

"You owe me," Stephanie tried to reason as Loretta set Stephanie's plate down and then her own plate as she sat with her daughter-in-law and grandchildren. "I'm giving you another grandchild in less than a month's time, surely this gives me some leeway, right?"

"I'm under strict orders," Loretta shrugged and Stephanie sighed. "Besides, I don't know everything he has planned, just a few things. The kids and I will go after breakfast."

"We're going to the acarian," Sawyer told her.

"Aquarium?" Stephanie asked.

"That's what I said," Sawyer told her.

Stephanie let herself enjoy breakfast and then helped Loretta gather things for the kids before she saw them off with a kiss and a hug and a warning to behave. She really didn't have anything to do today so she occupied herself with getting some work done for Money in the Bank on Sunday and Raw on Monday. She was working when the house phone rang. She picked up the line in the office, pressing the button for the house line and answered the phone.

"Hello?" she said, not bothering to check the Caller ID.

"Hey, Stephanie, this is Chris."

"I recognize your voice," she told him with a laugh. "Where are you and what is going on? I wake up, you're not here and your mother is taking away our kids for the weekend? Are we going somewhere because you know traveling is like, minimum for me at this point. Dr. Sheldon said that twice a week is my limit for the next two weeks and then I'm done and I'm not wasting this week's."

"So, um, hey," he said again.

"Hey," she said, wondering why his voice sounded nervous.

"So, you know, I was just wondering, I know this is kind of short notice and you can say no if you want to, but are you free on Saturday?"

"You know I'm free," Stephanie said. "You know my schedule, Chris."

"Well, I thought it might have changed. Anyways, are you free for sure?"

"Yes, I'm free," she told him, confused, "why?"

"I was going to take you out on a date, if that's okay."

"It's okay by me," she told him. "Where are you taking me?"

"That's a surprise," he said. "I just, I'm glad…well, you know, I'll pick you up on Saturday."

"You'll pick me up?"

"Is that okay with you?"

"Yes, it's okay with me," she told him, "but what, are you going to do, walk out of the house and then knock on the door? Chris, what is going _on_?" She was laughing now, wondering what the hell he was up to.

"I'll pick you up on Saturday then, be ready at 7 and dress casual, nothing fancy, no heels, no dresses, just casual," he told her.

"Okay," she said, knowing full well that he knew she couldn't wear heels and dresses, unless they were loose, looked pretty snug on her right now. "What time are you coming home?"

"I can't wait for Saturday, bye Stephanie," he said.

"Um, bye," she said as he hung up the phone. She stared at it for a moment and then put it down. That was strange, but she put it out of her mind and mused about where he could take her on Saturday. She was glad that it didn't require her to dress up. She had a hard enough time maneuvering around without having to look fancy while doing it. Plus, all the dresses she had made her look terrible anyways and she only wore them for comfort. This was their anniversary and a big one and the second one she'd been pregnant for.

Eight years. She could hardly believe it. She'd never been with anyone for eight _years_ before. They were closing in on ten years together, an entire decade and she grinned to herself and looked down at her stomach. Not only had they been together for eight years, but they had wedding rings and three kids to show for it. She was perhaps prouder of this accomplishment than any that had come before. They were still together, still happy, and still a family and isn't that what anyone should aspire to? She sighed in happiness as she stared down at her wedding ring. She wasn't usually so mushy, but she always got this way around their anniversary and it didn't help that she was pregnant and fueled with emotions.

She got back into her work, stopping for lunch and lounging in front of the TV to catch up on some of the shows she had saved to watch later. She found herself comfortable and decided not to do any more work for the rest of the day. This was her weekend to relax anyways. The kids were with Chris's parents so she didn't need to worry about them and her paperwork could wait. She was winding down anyways because she was going to stop traveling in the next couple weeks. That was one of the hardest things about pregnancy. She constantly felt like it was setting her back. She could take two steps forward, but then she'd get pregnant and it'd be one more step back. At least the kids were worth it because she loved those kooky, little things.

It started to get late and Chris still wasn't home, but she figured he was out doing whatever had to be done for their anniversary. She had a feeling he was planning something, but she was too pregnant to try and figure out what that something was, so she went about making dinner, which really just consisted of heating up some of the things Loretta had brought over. Stephanie, to this day, was not much of a cook, something which Chris excelled at after living alone for so many years. Loretta had been supplying them with food though, knowing they were bogged down with work and the kids and not really having enough time for home-cooked meals. She ate her dinner in front of the TV and then went upstairs to take a bath before she would climb into bed and wait for Chris.

The hours went by and it was now closing in on midnight and Chris still wasn't at home. She'd tried is cell phone, but it kept going to voicemail. This wasn't like him and she started to worry a little bit. If he was going to stay out late, he always, _always_ told her about it. He would text her or call and she was now checking her phone every two minutes to see if he'd contacted her, which he hadn't. She decided to call Lita and see if he was out with Edge. She figured he wouldn't be with Christian because, even though he was lightening up a little bit on the Tilden front, he still liked to spend most of his time at home. She dialed the number anxiously, hoping that nothing had happened to Chris. She banished thoughts of him lying by the side of the road somewhere or in a hospital and dialed Lita's number.

"Hello?" Lita said, still very much wide awake. "What's up, Steph?"

"Hey, Li, I was just wondering if you had any idea where Chris was, he hasn't been home all day and he still isn't home and I'm worried about him."

"Sorry, Steph, he was here a few hours ago, but he left," Lita said. "He said something about having to get back to the hotel."

"Hotel?" Stephanie asked, confused. "What hotel?"

"Um, I'm not sure, I thought you were there too," Lita said, "I assumed you guys were taking a little break and staying at a hotel or something, like for your anniversary."

"Well, I'm not," she said, anger now creeping into her voice to replace the worry. Why was he at a hotel? If he was doing something…well, she wouldn't think about that, but if he was, he wouldn't outright tell Lita and Edge about it. "Why was he there?"

"He needed to borrow something from Edge, I don't know what, they went off and talked by themselves and he wouldn't let me listen."

"Damn it," Stephanie muttered, "Does Edge know what hotel?"

"Let me ask him," Lita said and Stephanie could hear her pull the phone away from her mouth and ask Edge the question of the hour. She came back a few moments later. "The Hilton here in Tampa."

"Okay, thank you," Stephanie said.

"Sorry, Steph, if I'd known you didn't know where he was, I would've let you know sooner."

"Not your fault," Stephanie said. "Bye, Li."

"Bye, Steph."

She was going to kill her husband. She got out of bed and went to her closet to change. She didn't want to go out in the middle of the night and he was forcing her to and what the hell was he doing at a hotel anyways? They had a perfectly good house all around them. She went downstairs and to the garage and to her car, setting the Hilton up on her GPS since she'd never had to stay at a hotel in the city in which she lived in. She was seething by the time she pulled into their parking lot and walked up to the reception. It was easy to get the hotel room since she shared a name with Chris and had brought her ID. She got the room number and nearly marched upstairs and to his room, pounding on the door.

It opened a moment later and Chris was already in his boxers and looked like he'd been asleep. "Steph?" he asked.

She pushed her way past him and into the bedroom. She looked around, but it was empty. "Is there someone here with you?"

"No," he said, "what are you doing here?"

"Oh, I don't know, looking for my _husband_, what the hell do you _think_ I'm doing here!" she asked him shoving him in the chest, making him stumble back.

"Oww," she said, rubbing the spot where she'd hit him the hardest. "What was that for?"

"What are you doing here, why are you in a hotel?" she asked. "Are you waiting for someone? Huh? Days before our anniversary?"

"Steph, didn't my mom tell you that I wasn't going to be spending the next couple days at home?"

"What? No."

"Oh Mom," he muttered. "I told her to tell you this morning."

"Why aren't you staying at home?"

"I can't tell you that."

"Well you're going to tell me that or else," she threatened.

"Stephanie, I promise you, it's on the up and up, so just go home and go to sleep, you've probably been working all day, am I right?" he asked.

"Shows what you know," she told him, "I _wasn't _working all day."

"Okay, well go home because I'm tired."

"I'm going to stay with you," she said, pulling her light cardigan off. "If you're here, that means I can stay too and the kids aren't at home."

"You can't stay here," he told her.

"Why not? Are you expecting someone?"

"No."

"Then I can stay," she said.

"Stephanie, I'm planning something for our anniversary and it kind of requires me to not be at home, so would you please go," he told her, trying to push her to the door, but she wasn't budging.

"Why are you at a hotel? What does _that_ have to do with our anniversary?" she asked him.

"I can't tell you that."

"You _will_ tell me that," she told him, trying to set her feet into the ground so that he couldn't move her. She wasn't going anywhere until he told her why he was in a hotel room, by himself (so he said), when he had a perfectly good _house_ not thirty minutes away.

"Stephanie, just go home."

"No, if you're not going to tell me or let me stay, then I'm going straight downstairs and getting a room and I will get the room next door and I will sit here all night and listen at your door and then tomorrow morning I will be waiting outside your door for you and I will follow you all day long," she told him. "I'm not too pregnant to follow you."

Chris laughed, then kissed her forehead, or tried to, but she pulled away at the last moment and turned away. He moved to get in front of her and kissed her forehead. "Okay, you can stay, but you have to promise me that tomorrow night you will stay at home, please?"

"Why?"

"Because I'm doing something, okay?" he told her.

"I want to know," she whined.

"You sound like Flynn, now it's late and you interrupted my gorgeous sleep so do you want to join me or do you want to stand there in a huff all night? Do you promise for tomorrow?"

She sighed, "It better be a _good_ surprise."

He grinned at her. "I think you will like it, yes."

"I don't see why it has to be a secret or why you have to not be at home," she said as she started to take her cardigan off, revealing her tank top. She was wearing some sweats that she took off as well, leaving her in a tank top and some underwear.

"Because sometimes I have things to do or get that you should not see," he told her, pulling her to him and kissing her neck. "Well, as long as you're here and the kids are nowhere to be seen and I've had to spend _all_ day without you…"

"So after you worry the hell out of me all day and ignore me and then try to throw me out of your hotel room, you want me?" she asked him, but she was leaning back into his body. "Is that what you're trying to say?"

"I'm trying to say that we're here and alone," he told her, kissing her shoulder.

"You're insatiable," she told him.

"I know I am."

Stephanie complied with his wishes and left him alone the next day. She wondered what he was up to, but she did trust him not to be an idiot about things. It was hard to focus on her work though because she kept thinking to what Chris was planning and why it meant he had to be away from her for one night and two days. She'd called the kids earlier and she'd tried to root something, anything out of Sawyer, but the kid honestly didn't know what was going on and if her friends knew, they weren't telling. She ended up bored most of the time and cleaning, which she hated to do. As organized as she was in her business affairs, she was not organized at home, but now the house looked better than it had since Sawyer was born.

She was thankful when Saturday rolled around because preparing for whatever Chris had planned. He said casual, but casual didn't mean ugly. She showered and did her hair the way he liked it and picked out her best outfit, the one that didn't make her look like a fat cow. Then she did her makeup and by the time she was done, Chris was ringing the doorbell. She pushed herself up and downstairs, holding onto the banister tightly as she slowly made her way down. She went to the door and could see Chris through the frosted glass. She grinned and opened up the door and then burst out laughing.

"Oh my God," she gasped, giggling and covering her mouth.

"Hey, Steph, um, you ready?" he asked sheepishly.

She gave him the once over, her giggles coming in torrents as she took in her husband. "Chris!"

"I'm really excited to be going out with you," he told her, thrusting a flower at her.

She knew what he was doing so she took the flower in her hand. "A lily, how did you know?"

"I remembered one time you mentioned they were your favorite flower and how your grandma had them planted all around her house," he told her, giving her a crooked smile. "You look beautiful by the way."

"Have you always been such a charmer?" she asked. "Because I can remember some times you called me, what was it? I think you said I had a rat's nest of a hairdo and that I lost my flower a long time ago, what you were implying there I have no idea."

"Well, I do think you lost your flower a long time ago."

"This is not the way to start off a date with me, Jericho," she told him.

"You're just too easy, McMahon," he told her, holding his hand out.

"And what am I supposed to do with that?" she asked, playing along with him.

"Um, hold it, like a normal person would," he told her. She reached out and grabbed it.

"This feels weird."

"I'm hoping for a good weird here," he told her. "Because if it's a bad weird, then we are not starting out on the right foot and I've got big plans.'

"You've got big plans?"

"Yes," he teased, "I'm thinking that we're going to date for a couple of years before I even work up the courage to propose to you, then we're going to get married in Hawaii, at sunset, because we're dramatic like that."

"That's planning way ahead of time, Mr. Jericho," Stephanie said, letting Chris help her down the steps. "I don't usually go into a relationship talking about marriage right off the bat. I at least let a guy schmooze me first."

"And how much schmoozing did Hunter do before he snuck off and married you?"

"That schmoozing came after the wedding," she told him as they stopped in front of his car. "You better not expect me to put out tonight. I'm not a slut like you use to think I am, Jericho. So if you're thinking that you're going to end up in my bed tomorrow morning, you've got another thing coming to you."

"I would never dream of taking advantage of you," he winked, rubbing his hand over her stomach. "I think you've already been taken advantage of."

"Jerk," she laughed, then dropped the pretense and leaned forward to kiss him.

"Wow, we're out for five minutes and I already get tongue, awesome," Chris told her, brushing some of her hair out of her face. "I'm so getting laid tonight at this rate."

"Where are you taking me?"

"Why bowling, my dear Stephanie," Chris said, kissing her again. "Although it looks like you're bringing your own bowling ball, but why did you have to hide it in your shirt?"

"Don't worry, Chris, since this is our first date, you don't have to worry about this being yours," she said, then tugged on his hair. "Oh my God, this is real? I thought it was a wig."

"Darling, for you, for _one_ night only," Chris told her, kissing her nose. "I'm the Chris Jericho of old."

"So does this mean I get to play with your hair tonight?" she asked giddily.

"You can do a lot more than play with my hair tonight," he winked at her and she shoved him away.

"Chris Jericho, I will have you know, I'm a _lady_," she emphasized.

Chris nuzzled her neck, "Stephanie McMahon, I'm going to prove by the end of tonight that you are anything _but_ a lady."

He took her to a bowling alley that he had rented for the evening. She couldn't believe he was trying to recreate their first date, hair extensions and all. He was even wearing the leather pants he'd worn on their first date, which she had called grossly impractical for bowling, but he'd insisted that he looked cool in them on that first date. She was obviously _not_ wearing what she'd worn on their first date because even if she could remember what she was wearing, she wouldn't be able to fit into it anyways.

She thought she might have some trouble actually bowling since she was pregnant and holding a huge bowling ball was a little unwieldy, but Chris had thought of everything. They had a stand kind of thing she could just roll the ball down. She suspected Chris had done it so that he would win this time, but she ended winning again, much to his chagrin. She only rubbed it in a little bit before sitting down for a bit next to him, her feet aching. She sat next to Chris and he rubbed her stomach as he wrapped his arm around her. The only people there were the employees and besides the pictures they had taken with the two of them, they left them alone for the most part. Stephanie had been snacking all evening and was stuffed to the brim with nachos and chicken fingers, no fancy food hitting her stomach tonight.

"So…eight years on Sunday," she said, playing with his hair. She missed the long hair sometimes and she couldn't believe he would go to such lengths to do this for her. "Eight years, you and me…"

"That is a long time, yes," he told her, kissing her temple.

"You still love me?" she asked playfully, turning her head so she could watch his profile. She loved that profile, every line, every tiny wrinkle, every imperfection, every part of it that _did_ spell perfection. The way his eyes were always turning red because of his hay fever that he refused to acknowledge because somehow Chris Jericho having allergies was unacceptable. She blinked slowly and could feel the baby moving around inside of her, like it was awaiting his answer too.

"You know, I think I might," he told her, turning towards her a little. "It's strange though."

"What's strange?"

"Taking inventory," he answered.

"Inventory of what?" she asked, wondering what he met.

"It's just…you know how when people come into your lives, they give you something, whether it's good or bad, they give you something. It doesn't have to be something tangible or gifts or whatever, like, okay, so take for instance, Hunter. I used to think he was a complete jackass. All he gave me was headaches and sometimes literal headaches because he would hit me in the head with shit. Now he's my friend and he's given me friendship and all that. Or Ted, he's given me a guy to rag on because he's got a crush on my wife."

"So is there a lot of inventory from me?"

"You've given me a refrigerator so covered in drawings I cannot for the life of me find the damn ice machine sometimes," he told her as she laughed. "You've given me more stubbed toes than I know what to do with when you throw clothes on the ground while you're looking for something and I trip on it."

"Can we focus on the positives here?" she said, continuing to laugh.

"Eight years ago, right this moment, I had no idea what I was in for. I was traveling to wherever the show was, having no clue you were even coming back, but wondering what surprise was in store for us after Bischoff had been named the GM of Raw-"

"Bastard," Stephanie muttered and Chris chuckled and kissed her cheek. "Did you think that I would be the GM?"

"I really had no idea. I figured that it would be someone surprising, but I guess I didn't think of you being the GM. I mean, after the match…everything that happened, I didn't even know what you were doing at the time, for all I knew you were dating some idiot off the block and working on some desk job."

"Yeah, I was doing neither of those things."

"I just didn't know who it was going to be, I didn't know what was going to be in store for me. Isn't that weird how you look back at how oblivious you were? Like you think back to that moment and you're like, 'I had no idea my life was going to turn out this way.'"

"Well, _I_ knew I was going to be the GM at that point so it wasn't too much of a surprise to me," she pointed out.

"How did you feel?"

"I felt good, I wanted to be back and I was coming back and I felt good. The only thing I didn't feel good about was you. The way we left things, I mean, I know you came and apologized and I appreciated that, but well, we both know that there were a lot of things unsaid that night and a lot of things that could have happened."

"Because you were so hot for me," he said in a dead serious voice.

"I was not _hot_ for you."

"You were absolutely hot for me. You wanted my bod."

"I believe you were the one that said that for the record, my breasts were very nice," she told him.

"I still stand firm by that belief," Chris nodded. "And let the record show that you said that if you ever saw me naked, you would return the compliment."

"Okay, so after seeing you naked thousands of times, yes, you are very nice," she said, returning the favor. "I just didn't want to see you. I just…I don't know, maybe I thought you'd have found someone, I mean, you weren't dating anyone when we were business partners and a man like you gets snatched up pretty quickly, you know."

"A man like me? Because I'm so hot and sexy and gorgeous?"

"A man with money," she told him, sticking her tongue out.

"Bitch," he told her, leaning forward to kiss her. "You thought someone was going to snatch me up? Like who? Who did you think was going to do it? Torrie? Stacy? Trish? Lita?"

"Anyone!" she told him. "It could have been anyone. I don't know, you could go into a bar one night, some blonde catches your eye, she smiles at you, you smile at her and send over a drink, she comes over to thank you and then she's buying you breakfast the next morning."

"Baby, do you _not_ know me at all? I would never make her pay for breakfast the next morning," Chris told her. "Hell, who even said she'd be there the next morning."

"I'm painting you a picture here, you could've easily found someone while I was gone, you know, out of sight, out of mind and you could've been taken when I came back and then you could have come to me, thought I was a bitch for the match I gave you and that would be the end of it."

"No," he said, shaking his head. "That wouldn't have been the end of it."

"It wouldn't have? What, you would've chewed me out the next week?"

"Stephy, baby, we've been together for eight years, that _means_ something. Hell, it means everything as far as I'm concerned. You're not with someone for this long and you don't plan a future with someone who you think is just a piece to fit into some hole that's left empty in your life. If I were meant to be with some chick I met in a bar, I'd be with some chick I met in a bar, hell, maybe I'd have three kids with her and live some charmed life where she lets me travel and do my thing and stays home and takes care of our kids, but if that were what I was meant for, it'd happen that way. No way, Steph, what was meant to happen, happened. I was supposed to charge into that dressing room, was supposed to hug you, kiss you, ask you out, marry you, and then have three children pop up out of nowhere."

She smiled at him and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I love you."

"I love you too," he said before leaning in to kiss her. "There's nobody I'd want to be with anyways. I mean, come on, how would any other woman challenge me like you do? I'd be completely, deadly bored with some other woman."

"You would not, you'd probably love to have a little wifey who just does what you want all the time," she taunted him.

"So I wouldn't get to pretend to divorce you? Oh come now, Mrs. McMahon-Jericho, what's a life if you can't pretend to be cheating on your wife?" he said as a song came over the loudspeakers. "Why, what's this? Could it be our song?"

She listened to "And I love Her" by the Beatles start to play over the loudspeaker and she smiled. "When you first told me you loved me."

"The lady remembers," he said, standing up and extending his hand to her. "Now come on because we've only got tonight because Sunday, I'm going to need to focus on getting a ridiculously ostentatious briefcase."

"Which you will get."

"That's one of the things I love about you, McMahon, your unwavering belief in me."

"Well, I know you're the best in the world at what you do," she told him, "and _who_ you do…"

"You're lucky you're pregnant because that's the kind of statement that is going to make me have you all night long and has led to three children."

"Children, why Chris, I didn't realize you were thinking that far ahead," she told him, going back to playing like it was their first date. "Believe me, I only see kids in my very distant future. Now about that dance…"

Chris grabbed her hand tightly and twirled her around so her back was to him and so he could hold her closely without her stomach creating space between them. He rested his chin on her shoulder and sang the words in her ear as she smiled, enjoying the time spent alone with him. Very soon, there'd be another voice added to the cacophony of her life. So many voices since they'd been together, new friends, children, family, but through it all, one constant for the past eight years (more if you counted the years he detested her), one voice that was always there to comfort her, laugh with her, soothe her, conspire with her. His voice, as familiar to her ears as her own. His hands were rubbing her stomach now and she gently grabbed it, moving to where the kicking was the hardest. She could almost hear him smile.

"Hey there, kiddo," Chris said gently to the little person rumbling around inside her. "You know, I _really_ wanted to be alone with your mommy tonight, but you just _couldn't _make your appearance early, could you?"

"Our kids are as stubborn as we are," she told him. "You want to know a secret?"

"Always? Is this how you and Ted are secretly plotting to kill me so that you are free to be together and this thing with Maryse is just a cover-up and Ted is really the shoe guy in disguise and you're planning an ambush?"

"Yes, that's my secret."

"I knew it." He turned serious then or as serious as he could get. "Okay, what's the secret?"

"I think it's a boy," she told him.

He grinned.

Unfortunately, anniversaries have to end and lives have to go on. Chris got the extensions taken out before Flynn could see them. She was always terrified whenever someone dressed up. It was going to make Christmas and Halloween very awkward for her if she didn't get over this fear. Then they were all flying to Kansas City for the Money in the Bank Pay-Per-View and their one night of quiet was once again filled with chattering little voices and tugs on their shirt sleeves and sloppy kisses on their cheeks and "Mommy!" and "Daddy!" every five seconds.

"Daddy, don't you get scared if you have to climb up high?" Sawyer asked Chris as they made their way to the arena.

"Why would I get scared?"

"Because it's high," Sawyer told him.

"I know it's high, but I'm not scared."

"I would be, but that's because I'm little and I don't climb high except to go on the slide."

"You will someday," Chris told him.

"Are there going to be a lot of people there?"

"Of course there is, everyone wants to see me."

"Really?"

"Your daddy is what we like to call…vain," Stephanie said, making a face as Sawyer and winking at him, then checking on the sleeping Flynn in her car-seat. "Or arrogant, but I figure vain is easier for you to say."

"What's vain?"

"It means that your daddy really loves himself."

"I love him too," Sawyer shrugged.

Stephanie laughed, "Sawyer Jericho, you are much too good to really be ours."

"You're silly, Mommy," he said, swinging his legs back and forth as he went to look out the window as they drove to the arena.

"Isn't it great that we get to spend the day working on our anniversary?" Chris asked, laughing over at Stephanie.

"Well, we spent our first day together working so what's the difference. Hell, we didn't even get a honeymoon because we were working, this is just par for the course for us. I fully expect to spend our 50th anniversary working in some capacity."

"God help me, I hope I'm not working at that point."

"Knowing you like I know you, you'll always be working at something."

"At that age it'll probably be trying not to go pee in my pants."

"Well, we'll see what happens on our 50th anniversary then."

"Do I have an anniversary, Mommy?" Sawyer asked.

"No, because you're not married, you're just a little boy, but Daddy and I have one because we've been together for eight years."

"Wow, I'm only four."

"Yeah, we've kind of known each other for a long time," Stephanie nodded and Sawyer nodded back.

"I know," he said. Stephanie smiled at him and they continued to drive.

Lita wrapped her arm around Edge's. "Calm down, it's not like you two will even have to interact with each other. You might not even see him."

"I'll see him alright and I don't want to because I want to win my match. I've won this match before and it always spells me becoming the champion."

"I know, I've seen it with these two eyes," Lita joked and seeing that her boyfriend was not joking, she started rubbing his thigh. He looked at her expectantly and she rolled her eyes, "Don't get any ideas, lover boy. I don't want to injure you again before a big match. I'm just trying to support you here. It's not going to be so bad, I promise, even if you do see him."

"I'll know where he is, he's my brother, you know," Edge said. "I'm just glad he didn't find out that it was us who took care of Tilden. He'd probably be punching me in the face right now."

"How adorable was that little girl though?" Lita gushed. "Oh man, Edge, I swear, we'll have to have one of those one day in the future, not now, but in the future."

"Maybe," he said, kissing her, "but she is one awesome baby."

Edge and Lita had had a blast spending time with his niece. She was just about to that age where she was starting to learn new things. She could sit up and laugh and she liked to grab things. She had downy blonde hair and she was starting to look more like her father everyday, though there was a lot of Trish in her. She had Christian's personality too, she was a little goofy, but then had a very serious side when she'd just watch you do whatever you were doing as if studying and saving it for later use. He loved her so much and was so fortunate that at least Trish trusted him with his niece.

"I know," Lita said. "I hope we get to spend more time with her. I feel like an Aunt Lita."

"You pretty much are. I mean, I know we're not married or engaged, but you do know I'm in this for the long haul, right?"

"Right," she nodded, "me too." Lita could see Christian coming over and she cleared her throat a little. "Christian, two o'clock."

Edge looked up and then straightened. Christian came over, hands shoved in pockets, a classic "I've been an asshole" look, one Edge knew to distraction. Christian stopped in front of him, then looked up. "Hey, I was looking for you."

"Can't say I was doing the same," Edge told him.

"Yeah, figured you weren't," Christian said. "Look, so I'm working on some things, you know, life stuff. Trish has informed me of the way I was acting and…I was scared and acting like an asshole. It's just, you ever had so much to lose that you're constantly waiting for the other shoe to drop?"

"No," Edge said. "I mean, I kind of know, I guess."

"Okay, well, whatever," Christian muttered, "I just…I have so much now, good job, having fun here, got a good opportunity tonight, then I've got this amazing wife, who loves _me_ when she can have any guy she wants and then this little girl, who, I've heard, really loves the hell out of her Uncle Edge and it's all so much, you know, that I'm wondering how I got all of this. Then it's like, I become this weird hoarder who doesn't want to let anything out of my sight and I was becoming a bit of a weirdo."

"Understatement," Edge coughed.

"Yeah, very funny, douchebag," Christian said in an easy tone.

"Anyways, I know now how I was acting and I'm working on it and it would be easier to do so knowing my brother doesn't have to sneak around to see his niece and that he doesn't hate my guts."

"I never hated your guts," Edge said, standing up and throwing his arms around Christian. "I could never hate your guts, even when you're doing completely stupid things, you're still my brother and I still love you."

Christian hugged him back tightly. Lita aww'ed and they quickly pulled away, both scuffling their feet in the same way. "You two are so cute," she cooed.

"We're not cute," Edge said, "ridiculous."

"So I heard that Tilde loved being around the two of."

"We're cool Uncle Edge and Aunt Lita, of course she loved being around the both of us," Edge said, glad that he could talk openly about it now. "She's one of the most adorable babies I've ever seen. She's even cute when she's spitting up, which I have to learn so Lita will actually help me when I get drunk and throw up."

"Yeah, I don't think that'll ever happen," Lita said, happy to see both boys happy once again. "So now are you both going to go out there and kick ass?"

"You know we are," Edge smirked.

And before any of them knew it, it was showtime.


	285. Beat Up and Teamed Up, July 19, 2010

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews last week, glad you liked my cheesy chapter of loving goodness. Hope you enjoy this chapter, getting back on wrestling track. Review if you care to. :)

* * *

"I can't believe I lost to The Miz. On our eighth anniversary, I lose to _The Miz_. It sounds like some stupid reference to _The Wiz_."

Stephanie laughed and wrapped Chris's arm around her tighter. "Well, you weren't the only one so you shouldn't feel too ashamed. I mean, Randy and Edge were in that match as well and Ted too and they're all very good."

"As good as me?" he asked.

"Well no, but then, nobody is, according to you," she told him. She stared out into the darkness of their bedroom. "I'm glad you at least let it slide while we were having sex. I don't think I could've handled it if you were yelling out, 'Damn it, I lost to the Miz!' while you were doing things to me like what you were doing."

"I at least know when to keep my mouth shut," he laughed, kissing her bare shoulder. "You're lucky that tank top you're wearing is still in one piece. I don't know why we had to get dressed again. I like it when we can just lay here, naked, well, I like when you lay here naked."

"Looking like the fat cow that I am."

"You are neither a cow nor are you fat," Chris said, "You are beautifully rotund."

"Besides, we are dressed because we have a four year old and an almost two year old who don't know boundaries yet and with Flynn sleeping in a real bed now, she can climb out and navigate her way in her and wonder what the hell Mommy and Daddy are doing to each other."

"I would just politely tell her to leave."

"Yes, I'm sure you would let that little girl, who you _adore_, your little flutterby go off into the big, dark night," Stephanie said.

"And that is why this one," he tapped her stomach, "_needs_ to be a boy because I can't deny that little girl anything and it's just going to get worse as she gets older and then she's going to be a spoiled, little brat like her mother and I cannot handle two of you, I can barely handle the one."

"Nice thing to say on our anniversary," she told him.

"Nope, after midnight, not our anniversary anymore, now we're just a regular old dating couple, back then, not now, now we're just a boring, old married couple. We have nothing to look forward to," he pretended to sigh.

"Save for our daughter's second birthday and the birth of our third child," she told him.

"Miz, damn it, _Miz_, don't you find it horrible that I'm the one that came up with the Money in the Bank concept, I'm the one who went to your father with it, this entire show we had was based around _my_ idea and I've yet to win one of these damn matches?"

"You're not a ladder kind of guy."

"Excuse me?" he asked. "I know you've seen some of the classic ladder matches I've had so how can you say that."

"You weren't one tonight, okay, there," she said. "Besides, I've already got it covered."

"What do you mean you've already got it covered?" he asked suspiciously. Suspicion was a state of mind he was usually in when around Stephanie. She always had something up her sleeve and while he loved her for it, he was also wary of it from time to time because there really was no telling what she could be up to at any given moment. She was wily and manipulative and completely gorgeous when she was planning something.

"As you know, tomorrow is my swan song," she told him turning in his arms and pouting at him. "Because you couldn't keep your hands to yourself, I'm being forced to retreat back to Florida in shame to wait for the birth of my third child in just over four years, which…is not how I pictured things going, but because of that-"

"I can't and won't apologize for getting you pregnant," he interrupted.

She laughed and kissed him, "What I'm saying is that I have made a match for tomorrow that I think you will be satisfied with."

"What match?" he asked cautiously. He could just imagine, since she was going away on maternity leave after tomorrow's show, that she put him in a WWE title match where Sheamus would have to wrestle with both hands tied behind his back while wearing a blindfold or something ridiculously biased in his favor just to make sure the last thing she did before she left was something that would piss her father off to no end.

"Well, it's a fair match so stop thinking that I skewed it for you," she told him, knowing him far too well and his brow furrowed at that thought.

"So what is it then?"

"It's going to be you versus Edge versus Randy and the winner of the match will get to face Sheamus at SummerSlam, so see, it's not exactly in your favor, but I know that you can beat the both of them and I think they are both deserving of a shot for the contendership so it's completely fair and my father can't call me out on it."

"What about the other guys in the match that lost, Truth, Morrison, your beloved Theodore? They lost too."

"Ted, I love him, he's not in your league, sweetie. The others, well, they aren't as deserving as you guys are."

"Funny how all three guys have been your friends."

"One of the guys isn't my friend."

"Who?"

"You, you're not my friend," she answered, "you're my husband, big difference, I wouldn't be friends with you now, knowing everything I do about you, so don't worry about that. Besides, Randy and Edge are both multiple time title winners so there you go, I can just say that you have had to win a WWE or World title in order to be put in the match, problem solved."

"Oh yeah, problem solved," he said, shaking his head. "Well, at least I get the shot, right?"

"Right, see, it's perfect," she said, yawning.

"Okay, Mrs. Jericho-"

"McMahon-Jericho," she told him.

"Yes, that, I think it's time we hit the sheets," he told her, pulling her closer again. "I love you, happy real anniversary."

"Happy real anniversary to you too."

Britt stopped by Stephanie's office, bringing in some flowers for her boss. She set them down on the desk and Stephanie looked at them. "What are these?"

"Flowers for you," Britt answered.

"Oh, Britt, I didn't know you had such feelings for me," Stephanie joked as she picked up the flowers. They were beautiful, lilies, her favorite and she initially thought they were from Chris, probably some "Happy 8th anniversary and one day" nonsense. That would be so like him to do something silly like that. She took the card out and was pleasantly surprised to find the note said, "Just wishing you the best on your last day –Hunter." She smiled and felt one of the flowers between her fingertips.

"I've always secretly harbored a crush for you," Britt kidded. "I just wanted to tell you to run away with me before you had your third child!" She laughed. "So are they from Chris? Because if they are, that is so sweet."

"Chris is sweet, but they aren't from him," Stephanie said.

"Ted?"

Stephanie laughed, "Yeah, I think Ted would be too afraid to send me flowers because that would just give Chris way too much ammo for the next time they see each other. Besides, I think Ted is slowly being weaned of his crush for me with Maryse and well he should be. She's very pretty and around his age and just better for him than a pregnant lady with two small children."

"The heart wants what it wants," Britt told her and Stephanie studied her for a moment, but decided not to bring the subject any further just yet. "So really, who are they from then, your dad? Shane?"

"My dad would not send me flowers, you have to remember, this is the man that, during my first child's birth, was flirting with a woman not my mother. He would not send me flowers, Shane, might, but they're not from him."

"Okay, you're killing me here, who are they from then?"

"They're from Hunter," she said, holding up the card so Britt could read it. "Chris must have told him that it was my last day tonight and he wanted to send these along. I can't believe that he remembers what my favorite flower was. I'll never know what is stored in that brain of his."

"He has a knack for that," Britt said quietly, so quietly that Stephanie didn't hear what she said.

"What?"

"I just said he has a knack for remembering things like that," Britt said. "It's a talent of his, remembering dates and things you like or whatever."

This was the opening Stephanie had been waiting for and she figured she would seize it while she had the chance. Chris was with the kids watching the pyros get set up and the set get put up in the arena before the show and so it would just be them, uninterrupted, unless some wrestler came to find her, but she doubted that would happen. She leaned forward a little and thought about how to phrase this without sounding like she was trying to get information. Oh hell, who was she kidding, she wasn't exactly the subtlest person on the planet.

"Are you missing him?"

"What?" Britt shook her head, "No…"

"Britt, sit down," Stephanie said, gesturing towards the two chairs she had in front of her desk.

"Stephanie, I'm not in the mood to discuss a man that I pretty much broke up with a year ago. Hunter and I are through. I can't go back there, I won't. Even if he says he's changed. Hell, he's probably hanging out with Shawn right now, now that they're both out. Probably laughing it up."

"Britt, it's not about Hunter…not really anyways," Stephanie said with a sigh.

"Oh, sorry, I just thought with you asking," Britt blushed, her cheeks turning a fetching shade of crimson. "I didn't mean to start acting like a weirdo or anything."

"It's about Evan."

"Evan, my Evan, Evan Bourne?"

"Yes, that would be the Evan that I'm speaking of as I know no other Evans," Stephanie said.

"What about him?"

"He's…nice to you, right?"

"He's great," Britt said, wondering where this could possibly be going. Evan was the perfect boyfriend really. He always did everything for her and he was always there for her when she needed him. He was a gentleman and he was the opposite of everything Hunter when comparing him to the Hunter of the end of their relationship, not that she compared because it wouldn't be fair. "I love him."

"With conviction?"

"Well, I guess," Britt said. "I don't know what that means exactly, do you love Chris with conviction?"

"I'm married to him, so yes, but what I mean is…okay, so if you're in love with him, you take everything, the good, the bad, it doesn't matter because you love them. It doesn't include cheating or anything, that's when all bets are off, but I just mean, you love them so much you just, it's ingrained in you."

"Well, you and Chris have been together so long and Evan and I haven't, it's not the same thing," Britt said. "I mean, I love him, but I don't know if he's the one, I don't even know if I believe in the one, I just think that…I don't know, maybe I do love him with conviction."

"Chris saw something, about a month back," Stephanie said. "It was Evan…we didn't want to tell you because it's really not our business, but I just, it's hard not telling you and seeing you happy with him and…"

"Is this about that girl kissing him?" Britt asked.

"Excuse me?" Stephanie said, looking at Britt. "You actually…you knew about that?"

Britt laughed, "Yeah, he told me and I'm guessing Chris only saw the kiss?"

"Yeah, he came to tell me."

"Then he missed the part where he pushed the girl away and then came and immediately told me what happened and then he went to go tell John to not ever do anything like that again and the whole thing was resolved…you guys have been keeping that in for months, God, that had to be killing you."

"You have no idea," Stephanie said, a little shocked that Britt knew about it. If another guy had kissed her, she might hesitate to tell Chris because Chris would surely pound the guy's face into a pulp.

"We trust each other, I trust him and he trusts me and yeah, he told me and we laughed it off after I got pissed off, in the end, it was not a big deal," Britt said. "So is that all?"

"If Hunter wanted you back and proved that he'd changed, would you be with him again?"

"That'd be like revisiting a very painful time in my life," Britt said. "I imagined everything with Hunter. I imagined kids, a life and then it was taken from me and for what? Petty jealousy? Shawn not being able to handle the fact that his friend might have found happiness? What kind of man lets that happen to him? When I think about it, it just disgusts me."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to open old wounds, I don't know, I just…I guess I wanted so bad for Hunter to be happy and find someone. I guess it's something like survivor's guilt. I know by the end of our marriage we weren't happy and more than anything there was resentment in our marriage, but I guess…sometimes I guess I feel a little guilty that I got the better end of the deal."

"How do you mean?"

"I mean, okay, what does Hunter have right now? He's sitting at home, unable to wrestle or _do_ anything really and when he is here, the only thing he has to look forward when he does come back is the title. That's all, then I have all this…I have a great husband, two beautiful children and one on the way…I don't know, survivor's guilt…"

Britt had loved Hunter to distraction. She hated to admit that when Stephanie asked if she loved Evan with conviction, she thought of Hunter first. He was her first love in a lot of ways. Yes, she had been in love with men before Hunter came into her life, but the love she felt for him was different and still felt different. She couldn't explain it, but when she'd been with Hunter, everything about love felt new. Everything about the way they touched, the way they kissed had felt different. But the time for that was over now and she had to move on or get sucked right back into the situation where she might end up heartbroken again. Call her cynical, but she just wasn't going down that path again if she could help it.

"That's his problem for not allowing himself to love," Britt responded. "You shouldn't feel guilty that he's alone. He's alone because he chose to be alone. That's it, that's all."

"You're right," Stephanie nodded.

"It was nice of him to send the flowers though," Britt said, standing up. "Is there anything you needed me to do on your last night here before the baby?"

"Not right now, thanks though," she smiled. "Sorry if I bothered you."

"You didn't," Britt told her. "Now you can just go tell Chris he doesn't have to hurt Evan anymore, okay…wait, is _that_ why he was fighting with Evan?"

"It was, yes."

"Well, damn," Britt said, then smiled, "it's kind of nice to have a friend who is willing to go that extra mile and beat someone up…although it would've been bad had he left the company over it. Oh well, I'll come back in a bit, you know how to reach me."

"Yeah, I do," Stephanie said. "I'm sure Evan is a great guy."

"He is," Britt nodded. "He really is."

Sawyer leaned against the chair in front of him and then ran down the aisle and into the barrier, trying to climb over it, but it was too high for him to climb over. Flynn was cuddling with her daddy, watching as they played all the videos on the screen. Chris was leaning back, looking up at the ceiling and composing himself for his match later on. He was running his hand over Flynn's soft waves, which had a very nice calming effect for him.

"Dada, I be twos," Flynn whispered to him as she stood up on his leg and leaned over to she was close to his ear.

Chris smiled and opened his eyes to look down at her. "You are?" he asked, pretending to be surprised.

"Yes, I be twos," she nodded vigorously.

"Well, this is a surprise!" Chris told her, making a funny face and causing her usual fit of giggles. This kid was a sucker for a funny face. Even if she was crying her eyes out, if you made a funny face at her, she had to start giggling as if you were the funniest person on earth. "When are you going to be two, do you remember?"

Flynn scrunched up her face, "Uh…I dunno!"

"You're going to be two on the 7th of August, which is coming up pretty fast, do you know what we're going to do for your birthday?"

"Westle!" Flynn exclaimed, clapping her hands together.

"You can watch me wrestle tonight, you wrestling freak," Chris told her. "We're going to have a party for you."

"Daddy, I want a party!" Sawyer yelled as he ran back to where his daddy was sitting. "I want one too!"

"You had one, don't be greedy," Chris told him as Sawyer climbed next to him.

"I boughted you a present, Flynnie," Sawyer told his little sister. "I went with Mommy and we boughted you a present, but I can't tell you what it is, but I bet you'll like it."

"What did you get her?" Chris asked.

"Daddy, you know!" Sawyer told him. "I show it to you when I gotted it."

"Oh yeah, I remember," Chris winked.

"Like, like, like," Flynn told Sawyer.

"You're going to be two, Flynnie," Sawyer said.

"I bes two!" Flynn agreed.

"Daddy, are you going to wrestle tonight?"

"Yup, I am going to wrestle."

"Because you didn't get the box last night that said that you would win?" Sawyer wondered. He'd been cheering on his daddy very, very much, but his daddy didn't get the case thing that he was supposed to.

"Yeah, so your mom gave me a match tonight to try and go for the title at SummerSlam."

"When's that?"

"Next month," Chris told him.

"Is Mommy going to have the baby by then?"

"I should hope so!" Chris told him. "I think Mommy is going to have the baby pretty soon and then you're going to have to help us with it, are you up for that?"

"Daddy, I like babies and I helped with Flynn. She's my sister and I helped. How will I help this time? I can feed the baby because I can feed myself and I help Flynnie when she drops food or gets food on her face and then forgets it."

"You are a big helper," Chris agreed. "We'll probably need help watching over Flynnie while we take care of the baby, so you can help by playing with Flynnie and making sure that she feels like she isn't being ignored. Plus, Flynnie might not like the baby at first."

"Flynnie, why don't like babies?" Sawyer asked. He knew that Flynn didn't like Tilden and he couldn't understand why, babies were very nice, Flynn was still very much a baby anyways so she really should like babies. "You don't like Tilden."

"No baby," Flynn shook her head. She could not understand what all this fuss was about with regards to a new baby. Why did her parents keep talking about a baby and why was her mother's stomach continuing to get bigger and bigger? Flynn was convinced that it was really a balloon, but whenever her mommy showed her tummy, it was very big and Flynn would have to pat her own stomach to make sure she wasn't suffering from the same condition as her mommy was, which looked to be very uncomfortable. She hoped her mommy didn't float away.

"We're going to have a new baby," Sawyer said, dancing around in his seat. "What are we going to name it, Daddy?"

"That's for me and Mommy to know and you to find out."

"No fair," he said, folding his arms and pouting. "I'm the big brother, I should get to know!"

"Well you're not," Chris said.

Sawyer was about to answer when he saw Lita walking down the ramp. "Lita!"

"Lita hopped over the barrier and came over to them. Flynn lifted her arms to Lita and she took her in her arms. Flynn had been suffering from the cuddle bug lately, especially because Stephanie was having a lot of trouble carrying her now that she had her big belly. She leaned against Lita, hugging her tightly.

"Hi, hi, I be twos," Flynn told her.

"I know," Lita said, kissing Flynn's head.

"Hi, Lita, where's Ed?" Sawyer asked.

"He's backstage," Lita said, sitting next to Chris. "He actually wanted me to come find you and tell you that he's going to whoop your ass tonight and that you two are no longer friends because you had to fight against each other."

"He sent you all the way out here to tell me that?"

"He's upset about losing last night," Lita said, "as I'm sure you are, but you know how he gets all crazy-eyed and everything. It's better for his psyche if I let him think that he's right instead of shooting him down and telling him he's a whack job."

"Seems like that is on the safe side, but would you be mad if I won?"

"No, because you're my friend," she said, leaning her head on his shoulder, "but for the official record, I would have to say that I was super pissed at you for denying my boyfriend a chance at the title. But off the record, I wouldn't hate it if you won, would Stephanie hate it if Edge won?"

"Yes, she'd probably slap him and curse him out for making me lose," Chris said.

"Sounds like Stephanie, is she okay about leaving?"

"She's okay with it, as okay with it as Stephanie can be of course," Chris mused. "With Sawyer, she hated it, she was so mad when she had to leave. With Flynn, the pregnancy was a little more stressful, so she was actually pretty glad to leave. This one has been uneventful, but she's resigned to leaving. It gets easier with every pregnancy."

"And just how many more times are you planning on doing this?" Lita asked.

Chris laughed, "I don't know and I probably don't want to know because I have a strange feeling the one she's having soon is not going to be our last."

"Heaven help you, Chris Jericho," Lita said. "Did you ever really picture yourself with kids?"

"I don't know, yes, I guess," Chris said, glancing down at his kids, Sawyer, who was sitting in the front row and watching as they adjusted the ring ropes and Flynn, who was playing with some of Lita's necklaces.

"You're nuts."

"Lita," Sawyer said, running back over, "I saw you wrestling when I was watching tapes with Flynn. She likes wrestling and we saw you."

"I used to wrestle."

"How come you don't anymore?"

"I retired."

"How old are you? Daddy told me that retire means when you stop doing stuff because you're too old and you can't do anything anymore. My mommy said that my daddy is never allowed to retire and that he has to die in the ring."

"You two sure have a…unique way of raising your kids, don't you?" Lita laughed. "Die in the ring?"

"I think Stephanie plans to have me buried right under the ring," Chris said, rolling his eyes.

"I'm not as old as your dad," Lita told him, "but I'm a year older than your mom. I decided to retire because it just wasn't as fun for me anymore and I wanted to play with my band I couldn't do that if I was still wrestling."

"Daddy has a band and he still wrestles," Sawyer pointed out.

"You're too smart for your own good, Sawyer," Lita said. "I just thought that it would be better if I retired from wrestling in order to do other things. What did you think of me as a wrestler though, did you like it?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer nodded. "I like watching wrestling because I know everyone, except for the people that don't work here anymore or that died."

"Well, you're really very smart then."

"I know," Sawyer said.

"Li! I come out here and you're fraternizing with the enemy!" Edge shouted from the ramp. "Get away from them!"

"I can talk to my friend if I want!" Lita yelled back.

"Hi Ed!" Sawyer waved.

"I'm going to punch your father because you said that!" Edge yelled at him.

"He can punch you!" Sawyer said.

Edge grumbled. "Li, come on, I need you to help me with my stretches before the match since it's the first on the card."

"You should say please!" Sawyer told him sternly.

"I agree with the kid," Lita said. "I think you should say please before I even consider helping you with anything. Where are your manners, Edge?"

"Yeah, where are your manners?" Sawyer asked.

If Edge didn't like Sawyer so much and think he was really one of the coolest kids to ever exist, he might get mad at him for constantly getting the upper-hand in their relationship. As it was, Sawyer was simply a little Chris, in looks and in attitude, thrown in with a little Stephanie McMahon. Edge smirked and shook his head. It was hard to focus on beating up Chris when he had two of the most adorable kids on the planet save for his adorable niece, whom he'd gotten to see over the weekend and hang out with.

"I'm sorry, Lita, will you please come and help me with my stretches."

"I'm kind of wondering what kind of stretching you offer to do with him," Chris said slyly and Lita glared at him. "None that will get him injured again, I hope."

"Shut up," Lita said, standing up and setting Flynn down on the chair. "I better go, good luck tonight."

"Are you wishing him _luck_?" Edge asked.

"No, I'm telling him he sucks," Lita told him and then winked at Chris.

"Good!" Edge said before heading backstage. Sawyer and Flynn both waved goodbye.

"Okay you two, if I'm going to win tonight, we better get backstage," he said, scooping one of them up in each arm. "Let's go bug your mom for a while."

After the loss last night, Chris was glad to be getting the opportunity to wrestle tonight for a shot at SummerSlam. He tried to think back and he didn't think he'd ever been in a SummerSlam main event. It wasn't as high profile as any title match at WrestleMania, but SummerSlam was arguably the second biggest show of the year so it would be great to go for the title and win it. Randy and Edge, however, were formidable opponents and he couldn't either one of them. They were much too good for that. He went into the match with his same swagger because he knew he _could_ beat them both, but it was a matter of beating them at their own games. The two of them were as unscrupulous as he was and so his guard was up.

The bell rang and they all eyed each other, sizing each other up, none of them wanting to make the de facto first move. He and Edge looked at each other and with the slightest of nods, they both went after Randy. He'd been expecting it though and got at the both of them first. They managed to take Orton down a bit though and Chris started in on him, Edge joining him a moment later. They were able to get Orton down for a little while, but he was too good to let it happen to him, to let him be the fall guy. Orton eventually got a double DDT after countering a double backdrop on the both of them and tried to pin Edge, but it wasn't enough, not nearly enough for the caliber of wrestlers in the ring right now.

As Orton was working on Edge, Chris tried to swoop in and get the early win by hitting the Codebreaker after Edge pushed Randy away while he was trying to get the RKO. He only got the two count before Edge pulled Chris away. He cursed Edge and they brawled and somehow ended up outside the ring before he knew what was happening. They brawled for awhile before Chris hit Edge on the barrier and then got back in the ring. It was absolutely every man for themselves now, none of them gaining any clear advantage. Such was the nature of a Triple Threat. If two guys were fighting, it left one to gain their bearings and lather, rinse, repeat and you got a lot of near-falls and no wins.

Edge was waiting to spear Orton when Chris knocked him down right in the middle of his run. Orton tried to go for a pin, but didn't succeed. They all tried to clothesline each other, which ended up benefiting nobody and it was like the match was at a stalemate. Chris was trying to power through and come out on top, but like he'd thought before the match, these guys were good and they weren't going to go down that easily. The finish eventually came when Randy RKO'ed Chris and then Edge, pinning the latter to win the match. Chris could not have been more pissed if he tried to be, more at himself than at Edge for getting pinned. He stormed backstage and he was about to take Flynn away from Stephanie when he heard Edge yelling at him.

Chris was confused as he went out there, wondering what the hell was going on with Edge, but then Chris figured that he was just mad about losing the match and walked down the ramp. Edge was still yelling at him as he circled the ring. Edge was ranting about 11 years at each other's throats and Chris had to give him a strange look at that. For a lot of that time they'd been on the same side. Injuries? When had Edge ever injured him or vice versa? Edge just seemed to be yelling to find a scapegoat. Well, Chris was not going to be that scapegoat.

He grabbed a mic and said that they agreed, it would end tonight. He was playing along with Edge now, but somehow the conversation ended up with the Nexus. Chris told the truth. He'd spoken to Wade the week before and he'd all but admitted that the Nexus was because of the superb job that he'd done mentoring Wade. He had no problems with Nexus, hell, he was practically their leader. They argued a bit before Nexus came out.

Stephanie had a bad feeling about this as soon as she saw Nexus walk out there. She'd taken the kids back to the locker room so they could get ready for bed and she could set them down for the night until they went back to their hotel. As soon as she saw them, she wanted to go out there and tell Chris to get the hell out of there. She could see the look in their eyes and it wasn't a pretty one. When they went after Edge, she was slightly relieved…until they started to circle Chris. She stood up and she turned off the TV.

"Mommy, why'd you turn it off?" Sawyer asked sleepily.

"Because it's almost time to sleep, baby boy," Stephanie said. "I'm just going to get…hold on." She opened the door and spotted Jillian standing around. "Jillian."

"Yes?" she asked, turning around.

"Can you watch my kids for a few minutes?" Stephanie asked. "They're about to go to bed, so you just kind of have to sit there for a while."

"I can sing them to sleep!" Jillian said.

Stephanie's eyes widened. If she sang, they might stay up all night in fear. Stephanie herself didn't even sing for her kids, Chris did the singing around their house. "No, they don't need singing, they like silence, complete silence."

"Oh, that's too bad," Jillian said, deflated.

"Yeah, it is," Stephanie said, then rushed off, "Thanks."

She couldn't run with all this weight, but she walked as quickly as she could to the gorilla, where the beating was _still_ going on. She cringed as she saw what they were doing to Chris. When Nexus was satisfied with what they'd done, they left and headed backstage, where the _last_ person they wanted to see was waiting for them. Stephanie, never intimidated by anything, stomped up to them. She hated doing this all the time, but this time, she felt absolutely justified.

"Look," she said, staring down all of them. "And don't give me that look like you're going to _do_ anything to me like you did to my father because you are _so_ against authority. I'm your superior and unlike my father who prances around like a fool, I'm not a fool and I don't tolerate this kind of behavior. _I_ run things around here."

"Not according to the anonymous GM," Wade said smugly.

"The anonymous GM can go shove it," she told him. "Everyone knows I run things around here and I think that the seven of you should remember that when you have your little meetings. As for you, Wade…Wade, Wade, Wade…you would be _nothing_ without my husband and you know it. He mentored you, he took you under his wing and if you for one second think that you won that show because you deserved it and not because my husband pulled strings for you, you're an even bigger idiot than I think you are right now for beating up the one man who can control everything you do. Don't forget, Wade, hell, all of you, my husband is married into the McMahon family, the controlling family of this company. He _owns_ you, almost quite literally and if any of you want a future career in the business, you might want to remember who butters your bread and it's not whatever higher power you guys appear to be working for."

"We're just making our mark."

"If you ever try anything like that on my husband again, I'll make _my_ mark…all over your face and then all over your walking papers, food for thought," Stephanie said, patting Wade's arm.

She walked away, but not before hearing one of Wade's cronies saying, "She's kind of scary, dude."

"She's very scary," Wade muttered and Stephanie smirked to herself as she waited for Chris to come backstage.

"I'm fine," he said, shoving her away as soon as she saw him. Lita was a few feet away helping Edge. "Nothing is hurt but my pride."

She laughed and kissed his cheek. "You should have known."

"I know, I feel stupid for not knowing," he said, shaking his head.

"I know, I wanted to tell you to get out of there the moment they entered."

"I was pissed that Edge was using me for a scapegoat," Chris said. "Hey, Edge, what the hell was that out there, man?"

"I was just pissed that I lost," Edge said as he and Lita walked away.

"Come on, I left the kids with Jillian and I don't want her rupturing their eardrums. We can just get you cleaned up and get out of here for the evening," she said, hooking her arms through his as they walked back to his locker room/her office, his legs a little shaky from the beat-down. "Though I will say how sexy you look all rumpled like this."

"Only you," he told her.

Chris was just about ready to get in the shower when there was a knock on their door. Stephanie was sitting with Flynn, rubbing her back so she'd fall asleep so Chris went to answer the door. It was Cena. "What the hell do you want?" Chris asked, thinking back to all the times Cena had been a nuisance to him. Then he thought about the thing with Evan, which Stephanie had explained earlier that Evan had told Britt.

"I want to talk about Nexus."

"I don't want to talk about them, I have nothing to do with them, obviously."

"I know, that's what I want to talk about. They beat you up tonight, welcome to the club."

"Not a club I wanted to join."

"Me neither, which is why I want to take them down."

This piqued Chris's interest. He looked over at Stephanie and she shrugged. "Come in," Chris said, opening the door wider. Cena walked in and saw Stephanie sitting on the couch with their daughter and Sawyer already asleep on an inflatable bed.

"Hey, Stephanie."

"Cena," she said shortly.

"Look, I know we don't like each other, I know we've had our problems, but this is bigger than us, man. I'm assembling a team. I've got a few guys on board already-"

"Who?" Chris asked, leaning back against Stephanie's desk.

"Well, everyone except you. I've got Edge, Morrison, Truth, Khali, and Bret Hart."

"Wow," Chris said, nodding his head. "Save for a few of those names, that's a pretty formidable team. So you want to beat Nexus next week?"

"SummerSlam. You had your problems with them and I know you'd want revenge because I want it and we want you on the team. You'd be a great addition, for all our differences, I know you can wrestle, so come on."

"Edge is in?"

"He's in."

"Fine, you've got me in too," Chris said.

"Awesome, we're going to meet up at the end of the show, show Nexus our team and how we're going to beat them," he said, sticking his hand out. Chris rolled his eyes and shook his hand, letting Cena out before he turned to Stephanie.

"I can't believe I'm getting myself caught up in this crap."

"You brought it on yourself, I'm mad though."

"What? Why are you mad? Because I teamed with him and we hate him?" Chris asked.

"No."

"Then what."

"I have to leave just as things are starting to get interesting."


	286. Implosion, July 26, 2010

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, I really appreciate them. I'm pretty happy with this chapter, hope you like it too and review if you want. :)

* * *

"Are you sure you can handle the both of them?"

"What do you want me to do now, it's too late to give one of them back," Chris laughed. "It's not like I can throw one of them from San Antonio all the way back to Florida."

"I know, it's just, you have wrestling tonight and I probably wasn't fair in asking you to take both the kids," Stephanie told him, twirling her hair around her finger, something she did when she was extremely bored.

"Ask? What is this about asking? I distinctly remember you _ordering_ me to take both the kids because our newest kid is punching you in the kidneys or the stomach and dancing on your bladder," Chris told her smartly. "Oh wait, wait, wait, are you lonely?"

"I am _not_ lonely," she said indignantly.

"Yeah, right," Chris said, not believing her for a second. He felt the same way when he was without his family. You get so used to people that when they're not around, everything feels kind of empty and quiet, too quiet. "Why don't you invite over Trish and Tilden. You guys should go have fun."

"I don't feel like walking," she said and he could hear her pout.

"Okay, then why don't you stay in then, you guys can order pizza and have a girl's night and watching the girly movies that I don't watch with you. That way you don't have to go out, you're near a bathroom and you won't be lonely."

"I miss you guys though," she admitted. "With Flynn, Sawyer stayed home with me, why did I let you take both of the kids with you? I should have kept Sawyer."

"The kid wouldn't have let you," Chris told her, "you know how much he loves watching wrestling and being here. He probably would have left anyways, you could've had Flynn."

"I can barely even lift her and she certainly isn't as self-sufficient as Sawyer is, you know, in terms of things like, he can grab stuff that he needs when he uses his step-stool and he can use the bathroom by himself and brush his teeth and what not. Besides, Flynn loves to watch you wrestle perhaps more than anyone else in the world."

"I am her hero, aren't I?" he asked smugly.

"She's not even two, her view of the world is very narrow," she told him and he scowled. "You sure you can't throw one from there to here? I know you've got pretty big arms."

"I'm pretty sure I can't throw them that far, you want to talk to them?" he asked.

"Yes, please," she told him anxiously.

"Hey kid, come here, Mommy wants to talk to you," Chris said, holding the phone out for Sawyer. He stood up and ran over to him, grabbing the phone and held it up to his ear.

"Hi, Mommy, what are you doing?" Sawyer asked.

"I'm just sitting here and waiting for Raw to start so that I can see Daddy on it, what are you doing?"

"I was playing with my trains," Sawyer said. "Daddy said that they have new wrestling toys and that I can have some if I'm a good boy so I'm going to be a good boy, Mommy."

"So Daddy has taken to bribing you, I see," she laughed.

"What's bribing?" he asked. Chris looked at him strangely.

"It's when you get something in exchange for doing something," she told him. "Well, I'm glad that you're going to be a good boy. I miss you though, I wish you were here with me because I'm lonely and I miss you and Flynn and Daddy."

"But you have the baby, Mommy!" he exclaimed. "So you're not _really_ alone."

"I guess you're right, it's just the baby isn't here yet so I'm not able to hold it or talk to it or anything and it can't watching wrestling with me like you and Flynn can."

"I know, but it's okay, Mommy, we're coming home soon and then we can all watch wrestling because Flynn only likes to watch Daddy wrestle. She doesn't even like Phineas and Ferb, Mommy, because she likes to watch wrestling _so_ much."

"I know, what's with that crazy girl?" Stephanie laughed.

"I don't know, but I love her because she's my sister and she's silly," Sawyer laughed. "She's going to be two soon, right, Mommy? It's almost her birthday."

"It is almost her birthday, sounds like you're more excited for it than she is."

"Because she's still little," Sawyer said. "Do you want to talk to her?"

"Would you?"

"Okay, I love you," Sawyer said, bouncing where he stood.

"I love you too."

"Flynnie!" Sawyer yelled as loud as he could. Flynn nearly jumped out of her skin and she looked up from her coloring book to Sawyer. Flynn was extremely meticulous for a two-year-old when it came to her coloring books. She wasn't always completely in the lines, but she seemed to know that you had to keep the colors in them and she would try her hardest to do so. Stephanie and Chris had no idea if that meant she was going to be artistic or if she was going to be very careful, but whatever it was right now, it was cute.

"Yes?" she asked, smiling at her brother.

"Mommy wants to talk to you," he told her.

"Mama?" Flynn asked, looking around. "Whe?"

"She's not here," Sawyer said as Chris watched their exchange. They had some of the cutest conversations he'd ever heard. Even though Flynn's vocabulary was considerably smaller than her older brother's, Sawyer always seemed to know what she was saying. He figured it was a sibling thing. Growing up an only child hadn't offered him the knowledge of how brothers and sisters really got along. So he only really know what he saw from his own children. "She's at home because of the baby and she's too big to go anywhere, but she's on the phone and she wants to talk to you."

"Okay," Flynn nodded. Sawyer handed her the phone and helped her hold it up to her ear. "Mama?"

"Hey there, Flynnie," Stephanie said brightly.

"Hi, Mama!" Flynn said excitedly.

"I miss you."

"I mi you," Flynn repeated.

"Thank you," Stephanie said. "Are you being a good girl for Daddy and Sawyer?"

Flynn knew what being a good girl was. She tried to be a good girl whenever her parents asked her to be. Sometimes it was hard, sometimes they didn't want her yelling, but she just felt like it so she had to yell, but only sometimes and she hadn't yelled or run or anything all day. "I good."

"Good, I'm glad, I love you."

"Love you, Mama," Flynn said sweetly.

"Can you give the phone back to Daddy so I can talk to him again."

"Uh huh," Flynn said, standing up and running over to her Daddy, splaying herself over his legs. Chris looked down at her and she grinned up at him, "Mama talk."

"Mommy wants to talk to me?" he asked. Flynn nodded and dropped the phone in his hands before she started dancing back to her coloring books, doing a little butt wiggling dance as she happily toddled over. Sawyer was laughing at her and Chris couldn't help but laugh too. Why were his kids always so happy when he and his wife were always unhappy with something? Which just segued into what he wanted to talk to his wife about. "Hey again. You should see Flynn right now, she's dancing."

"Don't remind me I'm not there," she whined.

"Sorry, sorry, we're all somberly sitting here, lamenting your absence," he told her, making his voice a monotone.

"Better," she told him. "They both sound good."

"Stephanie, you saw them last night."

"But I didn't see them this morning, were they good for you, did they sleep okay? Flynn didn't fall out of bed or anything, right?"

"They slept fine, I got a single room suite this time so they were in the bed right next to me and I put pillows surrounding Flynn to protect her from falling off and to protect Sawyer from getting kicked in the stomach from her constant moving. I was right there in case anything happened and will be again tonight."

"What about breakfast, did they both eat?"

"Like horses," Chris told her. "Sawyer had a couple pancakes, some sausage, some scrambled eggs and toast with an orange juice chaser and Flynn had a half a pancake, some scrambled eggs and a piece of bacon. They both had some cantaloupe too."

"Okay, so it sounds like they've been fed as well. Were they any trouble getting to the arena?"

"No, they like going for drives, they're like dogs, they either sleep, in Flynn's case or watch what's going on outside, in Sawyer's case. You know, I was thinking, with the new baby, we're going to have to get some sort of van or something. We've become one of those couples. We can't just have cars since Sawyer is still too little to not have a booster seat."

"I know," she said. "I'll go look for a van tomorrow."

"Without me, shouldn't I have a say in this?"

"No, because I'll probably be the one driving it, I'm the one who drives the car, I mean, you drive that stupid muscle car, look at me, my penis is _so_ huge car, but you also have the SUV which can seat all the kids. I'm the one who has the car and so I should get it."

"Fine," he told her.

"It'll give me something to do," she told him. "I've got to fill in my time somehow between now and whenever this kid decides to make its triumphant entrance into the world."

"You have Flynn's birthday," he reminded her.

"Like I could forget. So what do you have on tap tonight for the show, anything. Did the person I left in charge have everything sorted out?"

"Yes, yes, yes," Chris said, "Britt is very much on top of everything, though I think she's a little overwhelmed by all the responsibility you've put on her."

"She's been working here for over four years, since Sawyer was born," Stephanie said, "she knows what I do better than anyone save for you. And since you are wrestling this time around and because you have all those Fozzy commitments, it didn't make sense having you be the one to take over for me this time. I'm confident that she's going to do a great job."

"She's doing fine," Chris said, "which is more than I can say for me."

"And there it is, what is the trouble, Mr. Jericho?" Stephanie asked, knowing it was coming. She could tell that something was on Chris's mind and though she hadn't actively rooted it out yet, once there was a lull in their conversation, she'd planned to ask him what the matter was because he had that tone of voice.

"Cena."

"Did he do something?"

"No, I'm just starting to question my decision to join his rag-tag team against Nexus," Chris told her. "I don't like being a follower."

"I gathered that from the way you were still ripping on him on Twitter," Stephanie told him.

"I just don't like that he's the leader. If he were a _real_ leader, he would be more leader-like, he would've assembled a team a long time ago. Now he has one and it's only because he freaking begged around to people. He hasn't even called us for any kind of meeting. Remember during the Invasion days, when Rocky and I called a meeting of all the WWF people?"

"No, because I kind of had my own thing going on, you know, it was called the Alliance," she told him. "So I was trying to kind of coordinate that whole thing."

"Okay, well, we called a meeting and it was showing leadership, where's the leadership with him. I should be the leader of the group. I know what it's like to go against something like this. Cena wasn't around for the Alliance, Bret was off doing whatever the hell he did for all that time, Khali, R-Truth, Morrison, nowhere to be found, and Edge was middling around with his brother. I'm the _only_ one who knows what it was like. They have no idea."

"So make them have an idea," Stephanie said. "Did Cena declare himself the leader of the team?"

"I don't think so, I mean, I guess it was kind of implied."

"Implied my ass," Stephanie told him. "If it's only implied then you need to un-imply it and make it a fact that _you_ are the leader of the group. And if Cena has a problem with that, then you should just make it clear that you're better than him, which you are. You're better than him in every way and you're got seniority, the only one who has more than you is Edge."

"Not Bret?"

"He's been gone for too long, besides, he's probably one of Cena's lackeys right now and I have no use for lackeys," Stephanie said.

"You act like _you're _in the match," he chuckled.

"You're in the match so by proxy I'm in the match as well."

"Do you think Bret's wife or Lita or all the other significant others in the group think the same thing?" he asked.

"I don't care what they think," Stephanie said. "So go out there and claim the team as your own. If he says no, you'll just beat him up."

"You make things so simple except they never turn out that way."

"Where will the kids be while you're wrestling?"

"Li's here tonight," Chris explained. "She said she'd be happy to watch the kids. Even if she wasn't, I'm sure I could rope some diva to do it. And if worse comes to absolute worse, I'm sure that Ted would have no problem watching the kids for me. I could either scare him into it or I could just say that it would be a huge favor for you and he'd jump at the chance."

"Shut up," she said good-naturedly.

"I'd just tell him it was practice for when you two get married and my kids become his step-children. Do you want him in the delivery room when we have the baby? He could probably hold onto your left hand while I take care of your right?"

"Why must you tease me like this?" she pouted.

"Because I love you and after eight years, I have earned the right to make fun of you whenever I want to," he told her. "I can develop a crush on one of the divas for you to make fun of me, who would it make the most sense for me to have a crush on?"

"None of them."

"Well that's no fun, should I go for a ring rat then?"

"No."

"Then who am I going to go for?"

"Your wife."

"Well _that's _just boring," Chris told her. "How come you're allowed to have a crush and I'm not allowed to?"

"Because I'm the wife and I control you," she told him. "So you just better not even try and do anything with anyone if you know anything about what's good for you. You're not allowed to have any crushes anymore."

"Is this because you're sitting at home pregnant and not here wreaking havoc on everyone? Because if I recall correctly, every time we've had sex, you were there, writhing underneath me, begging me for more, then screaming my name…you know, I did make that promise to you that I'd make you scream and I feel like I've lived up to that promise."

"You don't make me scream."

"I beg to differ."

"Beg to differ all you want, I speak loudly, but I don't scream."

"So you think…" There was a knock on the door. "Kid, can you get the door?"

"You're sending our child to get the door?" Stephanie asked. "What if it's someone coming to kidnap him?"

"Then they're the nicest kidnapper in the free world because why would they knock if they're going to take our kid? It's probably someone who wants to talk to me if that's so hard to believe."

"Who would want to talk to you, everyone hates you."

Sawyer walked to the door and grabbed the handle, opening it and seeing Edge and Lita. He grinned at them and Lita lifted Sawyer up to kiss his cheek and he kissed hers before putting her down. Edge pretended to look mad about it and Sawyer stuck his tongue out at him. Edge laughed. There was something about this kid that was just hilarious to him. Chris nodded and waved them inside and they came in, Lita going over to sit with Flynn while Edge lifted up Sawyer and then flipped him so he was dangling him by his ankles.

"So, Saw, how's it hanging?" Edge asked.

"Upside down!" Sawyer joked and Edge laughed.

"Okay, baby, I'm going to let you go, the peanuts gallery is here," Chris said. "I'll talk to you later and we'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay, I love you, tell the kids I love them and make sure they call me before they go to bed so I can say goodnight."

"Yes, I understand, bye."

"Bye," Stephanie said before they hung up.

"Okay, so any reason why you're dangling my kid in the air?" Chris asked as Edge swung Sawyer over to Chris and let him take his son. "Hey there, kid, you okay?"

"Yeah," Sawyer giggled as he fell to a heap next to Chris. "You're funny, Ed."

"I aim to please," Edge said, plopping down on the couch next to Chris on the other side from Sawyer. "Okay, so dude, we are _actually_ teaming up with Cena? Can you believe that, we're teaming up with that blowhard!"

"I know, I don't get it either," Chris said. "I don't know, maybe if he had asked last week and given me a week to think about it, I wouldn't have done it this way, I would've said no, I don't know how I'm going to coexist with him."

"What about the rest of our team?" Edge cried. "The Great Khali, I mean, seriously? What is he any good at, stepping over the ropes without having to push them down? Walking slowly because yeah, if that's going to allow us to beat Nexus then we've got this in the bag."

Chris shook his head. "It makes me wonder if Cena spun around in a circle whomever he was pointing at when he opened his eyes made their way onto the team. I mean, dude, you know I respect the hell out of Bret, but he is _way_ out of his element right now."

"I know!" Edge exclaimed. "Nexus is a bunch of young guys and we've got a guy who's been retired for _years_ on our team. I think you're right about Cena and pointing. He could not have picked a worse team. I'm not going to let it stand. I think Ted should be on our team, you should convince him to be on it and I'll get Khali off of it."

"Why do I have to convince Ted?"

"Because your wife is like doing him," Edge said, shrugging his shoulders. "So he owes you…wait, can Stephanie still…you know, I mean, in the bedroom and everything. She's pretty big right now, like really, really big, she looks bigger than she has with any of the other two, what's with that?"

"Nothing, she looks fine," Chris said, "and yes, she can still do stuff in the bedroom."

"I thought you weren't supposed to, I mean, Christian made it seem like it's taboo," Edge said.

"Christian also turned temporarily into a creepy weirdo, so I wouldn't put too much stake into what he said. He treated Trish like she was a porcelain doll while she was pregnant while I treat Stephanie like she's…well, Stephanie."

"Which means you've boned her recently," Edge nodded smarmily.

"Dude," Chris said, gesturing towards Sawyer who was listening in on their conversation very alertly. "If my kid…I swear. Anyways, I'm not going to ask Ted."

"But you scare the guy."

"I know, but I've got bigger things to take care of."

"Like what?"

"Like stuff," Chris said. He didn't want to tell Edge that he was going to be challenging for the leadership position on this little team they'd assembled. Edge was a friend, but he was also a wrestler and if Edge were the leader and they were to win, all the credit would go to him. But if Chris were the leader and they were to win, then he'd get all the credit for saving Raw from the Nexus and he would get all the praise. He was selfish like that and he didn't want to have to compete with his friend over the position of power on the team. He'd rather do it against someone he hated.

"Chris, have the kids eaten?" Lita asked.

"Yeah, they're all fed and taken care of," Chris told her. "Thanks for watching them."

"It's no problem, I love them," Lita said, smiling over at Flynn, "besides, it gives me something to do other than hang off Edge's arm and play his girlfriend all evening."

"Hey, when we go to one of your concerts, I hang off your arm and play trophy wrestling boyfriend. I don't have anything to do there."

"That's true," Lita said.

"You can always come back you know, you'd probably smoke most of the divas anyways," Chris told her.

"Sorry, wrestling days are _over_," she told him.

"Too bad, Stephanie would probably love to have you _and_ Trish back," Chris shrugged. "If you've got the kids, I've got some things I need to do. You know when they go to bed and everything, right?"

"Chris, I've babysat your kids far too many times to count, I think I can handle myself. Do you think I can handle myself with you, Flynnie?"

"Uh huh, Li-Li," Flynn said.

"See," Lita said smugly.

"Edge is rubbing off on you too much," Chris said. He leaned down to kiss Sawyer's head. "Be good for Lita, okay and help her watch your sister."

"I will," Sawyer agreed.

Chris stood up and went over to kiss Flynn on the head as well. "You be good, little miss and I want you to listen to Lita and be good to your brother, okay?"

"Yes, yes, yes!" Flynn said, all the while shaking her head.

Chris laughed, "Okay, I think you're going to be good, but then you shake your head. Don't be like Mommy, okay?"

"Love Mommy," Flynn nodded and bounced around a little.

"Heaven help me," Chris said, kissing Flynn's head again. "Thanks again, Li."

"Stop, you act like this is a hassle, I love these kids, I spend enough time with them," she said, shooing him out of the room. "Go, work, spy on people for Stephanie like she probably asked you to do!"

"Fine, fine, I'm leaving!"

Britt sat at her desk (it was weird having an actual desk) and looked over the paperwork. She did so much for Stephanie that it wasn't a big deal taking over her position while she was on maternity leave. She knew how everything worked and Stephanie was still taking care of the bookings and everything related to travel and the arena. She was just taking over the day-to-day Raw preparations. It wasn't anything she couldn't handle, but she couldn't keep her eyes focused on the page. They kept drifting to one name.

_Hunter Helmsley- slated return: October_

_worst case scenario: December _

It was just one of those sheets of paper that accounted for different things for different wrestlers. Under Chris's name, there was a space that said that he would be off the shows in parts of October and November due to a tour with Fozzy. Other's like Melina, had dates for their return or how their rehab was going. It was just a way to keep them updated on the status of their roster, but his name kept demanding her focus, being larger than life like he was. She kept trying to look away, but then she kept picturing him being back, seeing him everyday again.

With him gone like he was, it was just easier to keep the thoughts of him at bay. Out of sight, out of mind as they say and it was truly that way for her. She had no reason to think of him if he wasn't here, except sometimes she did think of him, she would wonder where he would be right now, if he would kicking Sheamus's ass all around the arena or if he would've joined Chris in the fight against Nexus. She tried to figure out where he would fit and shouldn't be trying to figure that out beyond what her job entailed.

She hadn't been lying to Stephanie the week before when she'd said that she wasn't mad about what happened with Evan and some faceless girl. She knew the temptations, she knew that people got carried away, it was a way of life. He'd broken the kiss and it had all been fine. The reason it had been fine was because she didn't feel anything when he'd told her. She wasn't angry or indignant or upset, she just…was. She didn't know why she felt this way, well, she did, but…she didn't want to go back there.

She knew, on some level, she was deluding herself and it wasn't intentional, it was merely self-preservation. Hunter had hurt her, he'd hurt her and discarded her like she was nothing when they'd been dating for years. It wasn't even a clean break. It was like she was clutching him and he was constantly pulling from her grasp and no matter how tight she thought she was holding on, she could feel him slipping farther and farther away. But how much longer was she willing to torture herself? How much more of this was she going to put herself through before she finally got a clue?

She decided she'd call Hunter up, just to see how he was. She could disguise it as a business call very easily and that's just what she would do. She dialed his number by heart (she'd deleted it out of spite, but there was no deleting it from her brain) and waited. "Hello?" His voice, it still did something to her, they weren't shivers, they were more like spikes, little tiny spikes that ran along her skin.

"Hello?" he said again and she snapped herself out of it.

"Hunter?"

"Britt?" he asked, surprised. "What…what are you doing calling me? Not that I don't appreciate it!" He breathed the words so fast that she almost couldn't understand them.

She cleared her throat, trying to put on her best professional voice. "Yes, it's me, hey, so I'm taking over for Stephanie while she's away on maternity leave-"

"Wow, you are?"

"Yes, I am," she told him. "She trusts me to do a good job for her while she's gone and I want to do the best I can for her anyways. It's a lot of work, but I'm up for the challenge of it all."

"That's great, I'm sure you'll do a great job," he told her and he knew she would. "How's everyone? I haven't talked to Chris or Stephanie for a couple of weeks, has she had the baby?"

"I think they would let you know if she had. No baby yet," Britt told him. "Chris has the kids here tonight, Stephanie is at home alone. They're both great, Flynn is talking a lot more now, are you traveling down to Florida for her birthday?"

"Yeah, I was planning on it, were you going to be there?"

"Yeah, definitely, wouldn't miss it. Anyways, this wasn't purely a social call…"

"Oh," he said and he sounded disappointed, but she pushed that out of her mind. "So what is this about then?"

"Well, I was just looking over the roster report I was given and your name was on it with your project return and I just wanted to call and check in and see how you're doing with your rehabbing and everything. So how are you feeling? Are you on track for the October return?"

"Yeah, I should be able to be there. My physical therapist says I'm doing really well so I should be on track to return then."

"Great, great, well, that's about all I needed," and it was about all she could stand talking to him.

"So I guess I'll see you at Flynn's birthday then," he said.

"I guess you will," she told him. "Bye Hunter, take care of yourself."

"You too, Britt." She hung up the phone and sighed.

It was time for her to face some truths.

Chris didn't know at first if he would go out there. He contemplated not and setting Cena up for failure. It would be gratifying to see that asshole get his comeuppance, but in the end, his own ego won out and he went out there to talk to the man. He sauntered down to the ring, staring down Cena the entire time. Cena was trying to drum up applause for him and it irked him. He didn't need the approval of these slobs and he certainly didn't need or want Cena's help. He was wrestling and succeeding while Cena was still using zit cream and trying to get to first base with any girl. He didn't need him and he would tell him.

Chris started talking now, saying he was just waiting for Cena to refer to it as "his" team, John Cena's team. Cena shook his head, but Chris was onto him. There was a vibe he got from Cena that he didn't like. The vibe was falsehood. While Chris was willing to tell the truth, tell the honest truth to everyone, he got the feeling that Cena was not the same way. He felt like Cena would be nice to your face and a jerk behind your back. And that maybe he was one of those guys who only did good deeds so people would recognize his "goodness" and heap praises on him. Everything about this man was off-putting to Chris. He just wasn't afraid to say what so many were thinking.

He was making it perfectly clear right now that he was not friends with Cena, they were not bosom buddies or even really on the same page. They were two guys who happened to be fighting on the same side. He had no outside affiliation with Cena nor did he want any. He had enough friends, thank you very much. He was in this because he wanted to take down Nexus and the ungrateful Wade Barrett. He'd helped Wade and he'd made him itnot he superstar that he was right now and he was an ungrateful pissant. He knew Nexus and it should be his team.

He wasn't prepared for Cena assenting so quickly and he looked at him suspiciously. It wasn't like Cena to give up power like this, but then Cena had to one-up him again by going on his little diatribe about names. Sure, Cena could have been saying it to get him off his back, but it was the way he said things, the joking, yet insulting manner he said things like, "The Liontamers" or "The Fozzyathon," which didn't even make sense. He said he didn't care, but there he went with his, "I'm selfless, _love me_" act that Chris was not fond of nor was he fond of how Cena was acting now. He called him out on it too. He wasn't going to tolerate Cena patronizing him.

Cena needed to learn his place around here and it was below Chris. They were _all_ below Chris. Chris started ranting at Cena, saying that it was his team and he was going to run it as _his_ team. Cena dared to knock the microphone out of his hand and Chris nearly lost it right then and there. It took all of his composure not to hit him with a closed fist. Cena went on to say it wasn't about him or about Cena, but about this entire company. Chris wanted to laugh in his face, what the hell did Cena think this was for?

Chris _owned_ the damn company so yes, he was privy to things that Cena couldn't even imagine. If Chris wanted, right now he could call headquarters and get all the information he wanted because he was Stephanie's husband. He was part of the damn McMahon family, hell, even if he and Stephanie were divorced, they had three kids that would tie him to this company _forever_. How dare Cena suggest that he didn't know that this about the company! Of which his wife did a _damn_ good job running and if Cena even so much as suggested that Stephanie had no control, he would quit the team and then kill Cena with his bare hands.

Cena went onto say that Nexus had been getting at everyone (not true, they hadn't gotten to Stephanie. Whatever that woman was, she could hold her own against anyone) and that they were going to take over and Chris obviously loved the business or he wouldn't be here. Was Cena just trying to bait him into being all huggy and frou-frou with him? It was like he was challenging his love for this business, which in essence was Cena questioning his love for his wife. If this guy didn't quit right now, Chris would not be held responsible for his actions. Cena was actually trying to use his wife to get him on board, the dirty bastard.

Chris went over and grabbed the microphone, warning Cena not to knock it out of his hand ever again. Secondly, he knew he was essential. If you looked at the team it was clearer than a bright blue sky that they needed him. This was not the team of old, where it was him, Rocky (friend, he should call him sometime), Austin (bastard), Kurt Angle (current bastard, former best friend, current friend of his wife which he _hated_), Undertaker (possible secret husband to his wife), and Kane (very sensitive to coffee spills). This was not a power team, this was essentially him and Edge and a bunch of other guys. And as long as they were laying everything on the line right now, he might as well say what he really thought, that Cena was just as big a plague on this company as Nexus was. It felt good to get that out there. He didn't like Cena, didn't like what he was about and he might as well say it now and he was surprised when Cena didn't interrupt him with some more yelling in his face. On a sidenote, Cena could use a breath mint.

And these drones actually believed him. He was like a puppet and even did a little dance to illustrate it (he could almost hear Stephanie laughing at him right now). So when he was done with Nexus, he was going to get rid of Cena too, just for good measure. Maybe he should make Cena think that he had gained firing powers and that his ass was on the line. That'd be a good prank. Cena said to take his best shot and Chris was going to when the anonymous GM rang and Chris turned to Cole. The elimination match news was fine, he'd been in those kinds of matches, the Nexus match he didn't care about, but teaming with Cena? Yeah, that didn't sit well with him. That didn't sit well with him at all.

He went backstage and was going to find Edge and see how he was doing with the replacing Khali thing. Now that he was the de facto leader, he wanted a replacement, someone who could actually wrestle. Then he'd tackle the issue of Bret and whether or not he was ready for a match of this caliber. He was just about to go find him when his phone buzzed in his jacket pocket. He fished it out and saw it was Lita.

"Li, what's up?" he asked.

"It's Flynnie, she had a nightmare and she doesn't want to go back to sleep, she's crying and I thought she could really use her daddy right about now."

"Yeah, of course," Chris told her, "I'll be right there."

Chris walked quickly back to his locker room, shedding his suit jacket along the way and, upon arriving at his locker room, pushed open the door. Sawyer was just drifting off to sleep, but Flynn was wide awake and crying, tears pouring out of her small eyes. He walked straight to Lita and took her from her arms. "She couldn't really articulate what the nightmare was about, but it spooked her pretty bad and then when she didn't see you or Stephanie around, she started to cry."

"Thanks for calling, do you think you could go get a juice from catering, that should help settle her down."

"Of course," Lita said, kissing Flynn's head.

"Hey there, Flutterby," Chris said, sitting on the couch and then lying back so she was lying on his chest. "I'm right here, were you scared when you woke up and we weren't around first?"

"Dada," she whined pitifully, sniffling and burying her face into his dress shirt. Luckily he only had his match later or else he'd have to go out there with toddler snot all over him and he couldn't imagine that striking fear into anyone. Chris rubbed her back and cooed at her as she continued to cry a little.

"I know, shh," he told her, "I know that nightmares can be scary. But tomorrow we'll go home and guess what we'll do?"

"Wha?"

"We'll watch wrestling all day, how does that sound? What are we up to now? I think we can watch some of my matches from Japan. I won't show you the one where I wear the mask though because I know you don't like to see me dressed up as anything. Then we can start with some of my ECW stuff, how does that sound?"

"Okay," she told him.

"Yeah, so now you just have to go to sleep so it'll be tomorrow already and then you can see Mommy and the baby."

"No baby," Flynn whispered.

"Okay, no baby, Flutterby," he told her, continuing the soothing motions. "You want me to sing to you?"

"Yes," she told him, already drifting off.

"Well good thing I'm the one that's here and not Mommy so you don't have to listen to her try and sing," he said, then started humming a little tune to get himself going, "There lived a young boy named Rocky Raccoon…"

He proceeded to sing the song to her as he calmed her down enough to sleep. She relaxed against his chest as Lita arrived with the juice. Chris pressed his fingers to his lips and pointed at Flynn. Lita nodded as Chris held her for a while. Then gently, he set her down on her air mattress and pulled the covers over her. Thank God for soundproof rooms he said and thank God for his wife who insisted on making sure every arena had one. Lita sat down on the couch with a book and he sat next to her, intending to stay there until his match in case one of the kids woke up and needed him nearby.

"What are you reading?" Chris asked.

"Oh, just this stupid romance novel," Lita said, holding it up. "They're my guilty pleasure. Thanks for coming so quick, I didn't want her to wake Sawyer."

"She's my daughter, of course I would come if she needed me," Chris said, looking over at his kids. "Hell, even if I had a match and they needed me, I would've come I think. In fact, I probably would just to get away from Cena."

"He can't be _that_ bad," Lita joked.

"I think he is and more," he said, plucking the book from her hands, "no reading, you get to talk to me. We never really get to talk with just the two of us. It's always you and Edge and me or you, me, and Stephanie, or us and Edge and Stephanie or us-"

"I get it, I get it," she laughed, "everyone hangs out together and we never get time alone."

"Exactly, so how's your band?"

"We're good, not as good as Fozzy or anything," she nudged him, "but we can't all be the super multi-talented Chris Jericho. How do you do it?"

"Do what?"

"All of this?" she asked, gesturing around her. "I mean, I know Stephanie does a lot, but seriously, how do you do it all? Sometimes Edge and I are completely off schedule or we forget something and we do one thing each, he wrestles, I have my band and that's it. But you, you have a book coming, a CD you just dropped, signings, interviews, game shows of all things, you have all this stuff, how in the hell do you do it? Then on top of it, you're going to have _three_ kids under the age of 5."

"Speed," he joked. "I love what I do, all of what I do."

"You're amazing," Lita said. "I've never met anyone like you."

"I think I'll take that as a compliment."

"You should, so are you excited for the new baby?"

"Yeah, I am, we are…well, Flynn isn't, we still think she's the wildcard. She's very possessive of Sawyer. She could care less what me and Stephanie do, but the moment Sawyer gets involved, it's her business. I'm kind of hoping when she sees the new baby she'll feel a sense of camaraderie, you know like, welcome to this crazy family or hey, we shared the same uterus, does it look the same since the last time I saw it?"

Lita started laughing, but quickly covered her mouth until she could speak again. "I'm sure she'll grow to love it if she doesn't love it immediately. So really, you guys don't know what you're having?"

"Nope, not a clue," Chris said. "We thought since this is the 3rd time and we have both boy and girl stuff, it should be a surprise."

"And you want a boy," she said slowly.

"Did you see her just now, having me at her beckon call, yeah, two would just stab me through the heart, so I'm rooting for a boy. But we'll see."

"I'm sure whatever it is will be beautiful."

What wasn't beautiful was his match with Cena against Miz and Sheamus. He and Cena were just not going to get along and he wasn't going to pretend like things were just going to be fine. Cena's words from earlier still smacked around his brain. Cena had called him out and Chris wasn't able to do anything. Well, maybe he would do something now. When Cena just about had the match won, he turned the man around and gave him the Codebreaker, costing him the win. He wasn't done with Cena either, after the match, he went to put him in the Walls. Eventually, this erupted into a huge argument among the entire team. There was no cohesion here and Chris wasn't sure there would ever be any.

The next day, he and the kids flew home and as the door opened, Stephanie was already waiting with open arms. Chris got to her first and growled as he gave her a big hug and started kissing her neck as Sawyer and Flynn caught up, arms binding around her waist and legs. She laughed and tried to hug them all that the same time as Chris declared to his children to back off because Mommy was his. He leaned down and kissed her stomach before giving her a proper kiss.

"I missed you guys too," Stephanie said, spreading kisses around to her three favorite people. "So I saw what you did last night to Cena. He had it coming. But what about your team for SummerSlam, you kind of want to go into it feeling like a team, right?"

"I don't know," Chris said, resuming the feathery kisses on her neck as the kids ran to the playroom and all their toys they'd been missing because they forgot to bring them. She tried to pull him away, but he was intent on kissing her and so she brought his face up and kissed him properly.

"So what are you thinking?" she asked him, running her hand down his cheek.

"I'm thinking I should quit."


	287. 2nd Birthday, August 9, 2010

A/N: Thanks for the reviews everyone, I hope you enjoy the chapter. Kind of skipped around a little, but enjoy and if you want, review. :)

* * *

"Flynn, where is your blankie?"

"Dunno," Flynn said as she ran by Chris towards the playroom. He took one step forward and scooped her up, making her squeal in the process. He kissed her cheek and she grinned at him. "Daddy!"

"Yes, I'm very aware of who I am, where's your blankie?"

"I dunno!" she told him sternly, scrunching her face like Stephanie.

"I think you do know and you're just not telling me because you want to be a big meanie-head." Her small jaw dropped and she looked at him incredulously. Being called a meanie-head was the equivalent of being called a bitch to the little girl. Her lip trembled a little and tears came to her eyes as she stared up at her daddy with those dark blue-gray eyes of hers. Chris quickly dropped a kiss to her forehead. "I'm just kidding, flutterby, you're not a meanie-head."

She sniffled and nodded, hugging her daddy to show that she was over it. "I go down."

"Okay, you can go down," Chris said, setting her down as she ran back towards the playroom. He spotted Stephanie walking downstairs and he leaned on the railing and looked down at her. "Hey, you down there, the big one."

Stephanie looked up. "What? I thought you guys were leaving."

"We _are_ leaving as soon as I find my daughter's blanket, the one that she _has_ to have," Chris said, "because you taught her to have dependency on a piece of cotton. I blame this entirely on you."

"On me?" she asked, folding her arms over her stomach and looking up at him. "I'm not the one who lets her have whatever she wants because I'm not a sucker like some people are."

"I'm not a sucker," he said good-naturedly.

"If you don't get her things and out the door in the next," she looked at her watch, "fifteen minutes, you're going to be late for your play date."

"This isn't going to work, you know," Chris told her. "This is going to backfire and I'm going to be the one stuck with an angry toddler. Why don't you and Sawyer come? I don't understand why you can't come, especially you because you're the one that's pregnant."

"Chris, it's going to be Christian and Christian and I have nothing to talk about."

"That's crap and you know it," he told her. "You just don't want to go because you know how she's going to react."

"Sawyer can't be there because Flynn is going to get jealous if she sees Sawyer anywhere near Tilden. So that's out of the question. If I go, then, well, Sawyer wanted to go to the movies with me so that's that."

"I can see a movie, you know, I have eyes," he told her.

"I wasn't aware you did, are those what those impossibly blue things in the middle of your face are?" she asked him. "Look, Sawyer wanted to go out with me and I think it's nice that we can have some mother/son time and you and Flynn can have some daddy/daughter time. Don't you love your little flutterby?"

"Don't you use that stuff against me," he grumbled.

"I'm not," she told him smugly.

"You get so mean when you're pregnant," he glowered down at her.

She turned and smacked her ass up at him. "Well you can kiss that, Mr. Jericho."

He growled at her and she winked up at him before she disappeared from his sight. He was going to kiss that later, she could be sure of that. He walked to the playroom where Flynn was playing with her little fake kitchen in the corner, carefully taking items out of the fridge and putting them in the oven. Chris went over to her and knelt down by the little counter. Flynn looked up and smiled at him sweetly before she bent over and put another item, some plastic carrots into the oven.

"Are you baking me some carrots?" he asked.

"Uh huh."

"Wow, so that's very healthy of you. Are you trying to get me to eat healthier or something? Because I think I eat pretty well when I want to. Or do you just want me to live a long time?"

"I do," she told him, pulling out the carrots and handing them to Chris. "You go."

"Thanks," he said, having gotten a peek in the little oven. "Oh…I think I saw you cooking something else, do you mind if I see what you're cooking? Don't worry, I don't think you smell like what the Rock is cooking." She giggled as he winked at her and then opened the oven door. "Well would you look at this, it seems someone has left their blankie in the oven to warm up. I didn't know you liked your blankets toasty."

"Make you."

"You were making me blanket stew, flutterby, well thanks," Chris said. "You knew I was looking for this."

"Uh uh, Daddy," she told him.

"You do." She shook her head. "Okay, well, you knew where it was so you are culpable for its disappearance and then lying to me, but I won't hold it against you because you're only almost two, but next time, I won't take too kindly and you know what I'll do?"

"Wha?" she asked, her eyes wide.

"I'll put you in the Liontamer!" he told her, pulling her to him and tickling her, making her shriek in laughter as she tried to squirm away from him. He lifted her up and then held her upside down for a moment like he was really going to put her into the Liontamer.

"No tamer, no tamer!" she yelled at him.

"Okay, okay," he told her, turning her right side up before he held her. "We've got to go or your mommy is going to be mad at us for being late, even though we're only going to go see Christian, who's our friend, right? Not like there are going to be any babies there or anything, that'd be silly and preposterous."

"Chris, are you leaving or what!" Stephanie yelled from downstairs.

"God, don't get your maternity hose in a bunch," he said, grabbing Flynn's bag from where he'd dropped it in the hallway. "Why are you in such a rush to get us out of the house? Are you having your loverboy over or something? Is Ted hiding in the hall closet? Ted DiBiase, get your ass out here!"

"Chris," she hissed. "No, if you would remember when I talk to you, you would know that the painters are coming by today and they are going to do the baby's room so that we can move in the furniture so it doesn't look so much like this 3rd child was unwanted."

"Weren't they?" he asked.

"Don't listen to Daddy, baby," she said, rubbing her stomach. Chris opened the baby cage as he liked to call it and went down the stairs, stepping over the baby cage at the bottom of the stairs.

"One day, we're going to live in a house that isn't separated off into sections," he said, leaning in to kiss her. She kissed him back, pressing her hand into his neck. Even though they argued and bantered back and forth, they still loved each other so much that one kiss could calm their nerves. Most of the time this worked for them, the consistency of being with each other for the past eight years was in the way they handled each other nowadays. "Do you know when that day will be?"

"Not any time soon," Stephanie told him, smirking at him and wiping her thumb over his bottom lip. "Let me know how it goes, okay? I'm really hoping that if she's out of the house, not in Tilden's territory and not in her own territory and with you and Christian and without Sawyer that she'll warm up to the baby a little bit. I really don't want her to hate her brother or sister. It would just be too awkward and I don't want to have to referee while I'm breastfeeding."

"We could have our own division of the WWE, baby wrestling. Sawyer would obviously be the champ, he has the belt already, we'd make a fortune," Chris told her and she hit him in the shoulder. "Fine, you don't like the idea, you don't have to hit me to get your point across. Come on, flutterby, we don't have to take this!"

"No!" Flynn said with a nod as Chris kissed Stephanie again and Stephanie kissed Flynn before they left and she heard the car running.

Stephanie turned and went into the living room where Sawyer was draped across the couch watching some cartoons on the television. "Sawyer, we're going to the movies in a while, do you want to get dressed?"

"No, I want to watch Daddy again."

"But we already watched Daddy the other night on the show because it was taped."

"I want to watch again."

"But Daddy lost."

"He was still good, Mommy," Sawyer reminded her.

"Okay, I'll concede that to you, he was still good," she agreed.

"He's the best at what he do, Mommy."

"You're too smart for your own good," Stephanie said, kissing his forehead. "Come on, your grandpa is going to come over so he can make sure the painters are doing their job so we have to get out of here before they all come."

"Why do we have to go?"

"Because the paint smells and it's not good for me or the baby or for you so it's better if we just leave the house for a while and then come back when it doesn't smell as much."

"Oh okay, I'll get dressed," he said, letting Stephanie help him with the stairs.

Chris looked at Flynn in the rearview mirror. He hoped she didn't give him one of those death glares she was so good at. Flynn just didn't like babies. When they were out at the park, she would glare at them, at the store, glare at them, everywhere, she'd just glare at them. She hated them. She especially hated when they were around Sawyer. She liked that her brother loved her so much. He was her hero after all and she wanted to be just like him so when he was paying attention to some other baby, it made her so angry. It also made her angry when her parents doted over another baby as well. They kept talking about some baby and she didn't want to hear about any babies.

"I think we'll have fun today. I brought your blankie," Chris said. He knew that Flynn only really liked her blankie when she was upset. They kept it with them for emergencies, but otherwise, she could really care less about it. It was just a yellow blanket with ducklings all over it in a cute, cartoony pattern. He had a feeling she might need it today.

She just continued to stare out the window and he knew that she would fall asleep if they didn't get there quickly and if she fell asleep then she would be even crankier and surely this whole thing wouldn't work. He hated to do it, but he put a CD in the player and started playing it loudly, not enough to blow out her eardrums, but loud enough that it kept her awake. All was fair in war, he thought to himself, and this was war indeed. He chuckled at the thought of going to war with a two-year-old, but that's how it had to be.

"We're here!" Chris said brightly. Flynn tried to sit up further to see just where "here" was. She couldn't see anything but trees. Chris got out of the car and then opened her door, grabbing the diaper bag at her feet before unhooking her and lifting her out and setting her on the ground. She stretched a little before she searched for her daddy's hands above her. Chris offered his right hand as he closed the door with his left, locking it automatically.

They walked together until she saw Christian and she toddled over to him happily, holding tightly onto Chris's hand for the extra balance. They got closer and closer and her eyes started to narrow further and further as she saw what was sitting in front of Christian, or rather _who_ was sitting in front of Christian. She looked up at her father traitorously and tried to stop, but Chris was pushing forward and if she didn't want to fall flat on her face, she had to keep moving. But she certainly didn't _want_ to get closer to that…that thing! They finally reached Christian and Tilden and she whined.

"Daddy, no!" she told him, trying to walk away but Chris was pushing her forward.

"We're here to play," he told her gently. "Don't you want to play?"

"No, no baby," she said through clenched teeth.

"Hey, Flynn," Christian said brightly. "We've been waiting for you. Tilden has been looking forward to seeing you, haven't you, Tilde?" Tilden looked over and gave a gummy smile to the new people there. Tilden was starting to look more and more like Trish everyday and she could always spare a smile.

"No," Flynn said, looking up at her daddy, partly in resistance and partly in disgust. Was this why they had come to the park? That was just a low-down, dirty trick. She couldn't believe her daddy would pull this. Chris tried to pull her closer to Tilden, but Flynn was digging her heels into the ground and didn't want to budge.

"Flynnie, come on, we're just going to play with Tilden, that's all."

"No!" Flynn screamed. She broke free from Chris's grasp and landed on her butt from the force. Chris picked her up but she started yelling and crying.

Chris looked around, people were starting to stare at them and it was embarrassing. "Terrible twos," he said sheepishly as some women stared at him while shaking their heads. Chris turned to Flynn. "Come on, flutterby, I know you're not _that_ mean. How about we just sit next to Christian and Tilden and then we'll just sit for a while together? Okay?"

"NO!" Flynn screamed, right in Chris's ear and he winced at her volume. She had her mother's lungs, that was for sure.

"Flutterby, please?" Chris asked, jutting his lip out to look as pathetic as possible. If it worked for Sawyer and Flynn, maybe it would work for him. "I promise, you don't have to talk to the baby or hold the baby, we'll just sit next to the baby. Just sit next to it, okay?"

Flynn started to sniffle and she was bringing out the big guns. Her eyes started to water and Chris quickly kissed her head. "Flynnie, I love you to death, but I know when you're trying to make me feel bad." He took her and he sat down with her next to Christian, letting Flynn sit in his lap. "She won't even look at Tilden," Christian mused.

Chris laughed as he looked down at Flynn, who was staring off to her right and away from the other baby. "My daughter doesn't play well with others."

Christian laughed, "What are you going to do about day care?"

"Well, she's okay with kids around her age, but babies, she really just hates them. I knew today wasn't going to be a good idea, but Stephanie insisted that we try to get her to like babies so that she doesn't try and push this new kid down the stairs."

"Being part McMahon, I'd believe she'd do it too," Christian joked. "So what's this about you and my brother quitting Team Raw for SummerSlam? I thought you guys were totally on board with the whole beating Nexus thing."

"I was blinded," Chris said. "Edge and I had just been beaten up and I was thinking about beating them up, but I just didn't want to be on that damn team anymore. The more I thought about it, the more impractical it got. Look at the team. You've got Khali, who for some reason, Nexus wants, which just shows their immaturity because Khali isn't scary. He's got three moves and he can barely move in the ring, he's nothing special. Then there's R-Truth and Morrison, both of whom are unproven. Then there's Bret and love or hate the guy, he's too old in the ring, especially against guys half his age. Then there's Cena, the egotistical bastard. So logically, Edge and I had no choice but to get the hell off the team. I'm just sorry it took Edge to make me see what was happening."

"But I mean, Nexus _did_ beat you up. If they win, you're still going to be a target," Christian pointed out.

"Yeah, but Edge and I can fend them off. We're too good to be on that team and if there is going to be a team, then I should be the leader as I have the best credentials."

"I wish I could argue with you, but you're married to Stephanie and that kind of trumps everything else."

"See," Chris said. "We don't need the team, the team _needs_ us. I'm glad that your brother convinced me what was right. I'll look forward to the team going down and then they'll know they should have catered more to me and Edge."

"Or you could be a team player for once in your life," Christian said.

"I've been a team player, it's not my style," Chris said, "I've never needed anyone to tell me what to do with regards to my career. I've only needed myself. I think the fact that I've never used Stephanie for anything just goes to prove that. I do things on my own when I want to do them."

"Which is why you're sitting in a park on one of your days off trying to get your daughter to _look_ at another baby without contempt even though she hasn't moved her head since you sat down?"

Chris looked down and saw Flynn was still looking away. "She got a lot of the stubborn genes from me and Stephanie. I don't know, I think she's just jealous of the attention that babies get, which really isn't going to bode well when we have the baby. Stephanie can have the baby pretty much any day now so you know, the clocks ticking."

"I know, are you excited?" Christian asked as Tilden pushed herself down to her hands and knees and started crawling over to Chris, wanting to see who this other person was. She smiled up at Chris as she stopped and he smiled at her and made a funny face, which made Tilden smile. It wasn't the guffawing that Flynn usually did, but she seemed to like it.

Chris observed the two while answering, "Yeah, like you wouldn't believe. I don't know how you did it with Tilden, not knowing what she was. I'm going crazy wanting to know if we're having a girl or a boy. I shouldn't feel this crazy about it because I already have a girl _and_ a boy so it's not like it'll be a new experience gender-wise, but you know, I want to know what my kid is!"

"You still want a boy?"

"I would prefer one, yes, I just, daughters, man, am I right?"

Christian laughed and then blushed a little, "Yeah, I got a little crazy with mine."

"I noticed," Chris laughed, "but I also notice she's got a little scab under her eye, I'm surprised I didn't hear about this."

"Oh yeah, she was crawling and she was on the wood floor and she kind of slipped and it her face against the edge of a chair. I didn't freak out as much as you think I would. I got a little mad about it, but you know…"

"Hey, my kid has broken his finger and he's just four and Flynn is always covered in bruises and scrapes. Stephanie and I have discovered that not only does she love to watch wrestling, but she has learned to love imitating wrestling as much as she possibly can. Stephanie caught her climbing on the couch and getting ready to jump onto Sawyer while Sawyer was pushing a car around the ground. Stephanie had had to walk over as fast as she could, which wasn't very fast and even when she had a hold of Flynn, she tried to jump out of her arms. She claimed she was doing the fly, which means she was trying to fly like me."

"Wow, you've got a daredevil," Christian said.

"I think I have," Chris said as Tilden stopped in front of Flynn and Chris. Flynn still wasn't looking over at her. Tilden shifted so she was sitting on her butt and she tapped Flynn's leg. Flynn looked over with hatred in her eyes and practically growled at Tilden. Tilden started to whimper, which quickly led to crying and Flynn looked awfully smug for a two year old. "Okay, yeah, I don't think this is going to work."

"You think?" Christian said, grabbing Tilden and bringing her up so he could kiss her forehead. "Maybe we shouldn't bring Tilde to Flynn's birthday party."

"Oh come on, you can't do that," Chris said. "That's ridiculous. You are all invited…though maybe you'll want to keep Tilden away from Flynn."

"Your kids are crazy."

"You just wait, Christian. Your daughter is six months old, that is far too young to really do anything. Before you know it, she's going to be a two year old who loves to jump off furniture onto her brother. The other day, I caught her trying to grab Sawyer's ankle, I think she was trying to put him in the Walls of Jericho, but I'm not entirely sure. Sawyer just kept kicking her off."

Christian started laughing. "We better separate them now before my daughter starts freaking out and then you're going to get us stared at again because of your unruly, little hellion."

"She's a daughter after my own heart," Chris said, lifting Flynn and kissing her cheek. "I'll see you on Saturday then?"

"Yeah, you'll see the whole Stratus-Cage gang," Christian said.

Chris stood up and said his goodbyes while running with Flynn towards the playground. Flynn, glad to be away from that horrible child, squealed with delight. Now this was what she had thought was going to happen today; she would get to spend the whole day with her daddy just playing around. This was way more fun than spending time with stupid babies.

**Saturday**

"I can't believe my baby is two," Stephanie said, covering her mouth with her hand. She was leaning in the doorway as Flynn wandered around her party, taking everything in. Their entire backyard was covered with balloons and they'd gotten a huge inflatable wrestling ring for the kids to play on. All the balloons had pictures of wrestlers on them (Chris being the most of course, not that he'd planned it that way or anything…he had). They'd just brought Flynn out there while everyone had gathered in the backyard and she'd been so shocked at seeing everyone she almost fell on her butt, but now she was running around, being led by Sawyer as he told her everything there was to do. Stephanie was leaning in the doorway with Chris right next to her.

"Well, we do have another baby who isn't two…or one…or anything," he said, reaching out to rub her stomach. She was especially emotional these days so he didn't make comment on her being near tears.

"When did she get so old? Why are our children so _old_?" Stephanie said, leaning into Chris as he wrapped his arms around her. He kissed the top of her head as she sniffled.

"Our kids are four and two, baby," he told her gently. "I hardly think they're going to go off and get married or move away any time soon."

"They can both walk and talk and they don't need me anymore!"

Chris held in his laugh. "Baby, you know they need you. They need you all the time. Flynn isn't even fully potty-trained yet."

"But she's getting there. She's almost there, she pretty much only wears the diapers at night and she hasn't had an accident in months and she doesn't even need me and look at her, she's already in the bouncy thing and she got in there without my help."

"Well, you wouldn't have been able to help her anyways with the baby, right?" he said, trying to ease her nerves.

"I guess," Stephanie said, burying her face in Chris's neck. "I just feel like I took her home though. I mean, how has it been two years since she was born? She was so beautiful, wasn't she? She was so beautiful and tiny."

"She was gorgeous," Chris agreed.

"Now look at her. She's happy and running and she's not a baby anymore."

"She's only two, baby, it'll be fine, okay," he said, rubbing her back.

"I know I'm being silly and emotional," she said, kissing his neck and sighing as Chris hit a particularly tender spot in her back. "I just, I don't know, my kids are growing up and it's hard for me because it's like they almost don't need me, but I know that they do need me."

"Mommy!" Sawyer said, running over to her and grabbing her hand. "Mommy, you have to come see Flynnie, she's jumping really high, but I can jump higher."

"You want to show me?" she asked, looking down at her boy.

"Uh huh," he said, nodding anxiously. "Come on, Mommy, you can come too, Daddy, but I want to show Mommy how high I can jump, you already know."

"I do?" Chris asked with a laugh, "since when I do know how high you can jump?"

"Because I told you!" Sawyer said, which Chris let slide because he was very confused as to when Sawyer could possibly have told him he was a high jumper. "Let's go, Mommy."

Chris looked at Stephanie, "I thought you weren't needed."

"Oh shut up," she said as she let Sawyer pull her towards the inflatable ring, Chris trailing behind her.

Britt went into the kitchen to grab another platter of veggies and ranch dressing. She'd noticed that they were running low and since Stephanie was pregnant, very much so, she figured she could help a bit and grab another platter that Stephanie had said was in there. She set the platter down on the counter, grabbing a carrot on her way to get the ranch dressing from the fridge. She closed the door and nearly gasped as she saw Hunter leaning in the doorway, watching her.

"Goddammit, Hunter, don't do that," she said, pressing her hand to her chest.

"Sorry, I thought you heard me, you know, how you're always like, 'You stomp everywhere, Hunter.'"

"Well you do stomp everywhere," she said with a short laugh and then she turned away and back to the platter. "What are you doing in here, the party is outside."

"I noticed you come inside."

"I'm helping out Stephanie, just getting some more food. I didn't want her to have to walk around. She looks about ready to pop right now and I wouldn't want her to go into labor because she was getting a veggie platter out of her fridge," Britt laughed. "Everyone looks like they're having fun though, I'm really glad. Flynn looks adorable."

"She does," Hunter said. "She's a crazy kid. Did Chris tell you how she has started wrestling?"

"Oh, I've seen it with my own eyes. She tried to climb onto my desk chair to I guess do a head butt off of it, but she couldn't get on top of it."

Hunter laughed. "She's more Chris and Stephanie than Sawyer is. Sawyer is so not like his parents, if he didn't look exactly like Chris, I'd start to think he was someone else's kid. Flynn is more what I pictured when I pictured them having kids."

"Well, she's certainly a spitfire," Britt said, looking out the window as Flynn was trying to charge into Kurt Angle's legs. Britt wondered briefly if Chris put her up to that, seeing as how Chris had carefully avoided Kurt the entire day.

"I didn't see Evan around, could he not make it?" Hunter asked, trying to appear casual, but he'd been watching Britt all day.

"Hey, how's your arm?" Britt asked. "I meant to ask you about that. I know I should have called, but it slipped my mind and I kind of need to know your progress and everything."

"I'm getting better, it's getting stronger," Hunter told her, very aware that she had changed the subject, but she might have just been genuinely curious about his arm. "I've been going to rehab and I should be on schedule, but I might not be, I can certainly give you the updates."

"Oh, I wish you would. I'm trying to be as efficient as Stephanie is when she does her job, but the woman is like Wonder Woman. She's so on top of things and with two kids and now three, I don't know how she does it."

"I'm sure you're doing a great job," Hunter told her with a small smile as he started wandering closer to her. "I'm sure that Stephanie will come back and find that you've exceeded her wildest expectations."

Britt just looked at him, her lips quirked up a little bit, "You're trying to charm me."

"I might be," he told her. "Is it working at all?"

"I don't know," she said.

"So why isn't Evan here?"

"Because Evan and I broke up," Britt told him, leaning against the counter, her hands behind her, gripping the marble. "I realized we weren't really going anywhere and I decided to end things. I loved him, but I just didn't see a future with him."

She saw the hope flair in his eyes and she turned away from them. She didn't want him thinking this was necessarily because of him. Sure, he was a part of it, but he wasn't a big part of it. She knew when a relationship wasn't going anywhere and rather than string Evan along, she had decided to end it. It was the right decision to make and he had been okay with it. He'd always been a very understanding guy. She really wanted to swear off wrestlers though, maybe for good, but at least for now. She just couldn't take them anymore.

"This had nothing to do with you," she blurted out.

He nodded, but continued to come closer to her, "I'm sorry you broke up."

"It wasn't about you, I swear," she told him, shaking her head. He just smiled at her and stepped even closer. "I'm telling you right now, Hunter, it wasn't over you and I'm telling you the truth. So you might as well just stand back right over there. I've got to get the food out there."

"I'm sure you do," he said, leaning into her. "So you're unattached, I'm unattached…"

"It doesn't change anything," she told him, his breath right on hers, like she was breathing him in. "We…you treated me poorly, Hunter."

"I know I did," he said remorsefully, his voice barely above a whisper.

"You ditched me," she told him, shaking her head.

"I'm sorry," he told her.

"You _hurt_ me," she said, allowing herself to go back as her eyes teared up a little. "You hurt me and it's been over a year and you shouldn't expect me to-"

He kissed her then and she didn't respond immediately. Her brain was getting fuzzier and fuzzier though as his arms pulled her away from the counter. She just stood there as his lips pressed against hers, not pushing her to deepen it, but she angled her head and he took that as a sign and pulled her tighter against him as he grabbed her arms and wrapped them around him. She didn't break exactly, but she became more involved until she remembered herself and pulled her head away, just turning it to the side, not breaking contact with him.

"You can't just do that, Hunter. You can't just kiss me and expect me to fall into your arms again."

"I know, but I had to do that, it's been far too long," he told her.

"You guys, we're about to cut the cake for Flynn," Chris said, appearing in the doorway. "Might want to stop making out so you can celebrate my daughter's birthday."

"Sorry," Britt said quickly, pulling away as she grabbed the platter of food and went outside.

"I'm going to kill Chris," Hunter muttered.

By the time Monday rolled around, Flynn was a charismatic, official two year old and was eager to get back to the action of Raw. Sawyer was staying home with Stephanie this week because she couldn't bear being alone right now. Flynn, being the younger one, came with Chris, but she loved it here so she didn't mind. Chris threw her up in the air as they entered and then brought her down to face level, peppering her face with kisses. She hugged him around his neck as they continued to walk.

"So this is your birthday present too, you get to come to Raw with Daddy!" Chris said, kissing her cheek.

"No," she said, "I go here."

"I know you come here every week, but it's special this week because you are now two so you can roam the hallways by yourself," he told her.

"Daddy, I no do," Flynn laughed. She wasn't allowed to go anywhere by herself.

"Oh that's right, Mommy wouldn't like that, oh well, I guess you can stay with me then," Chris said. "But you can't come out with me, okay? Because I don't think I'm ready to have you out-wrestle me in a match, you little Jericho."

"I Flynn," Flynn said, tilting her head to the side.

"God, you're already a charmer," Chris said. "Oh, look, there's Britt. I think we need to get some information out of her. Hey, Britt!"

"Oh no," Britt muttered under her breath. "Chris, I'm really busy right now so you know, if it concerns the show then I'll gladly hear it, but if it doesn't, I've got to go and get some stuff finished. Your wife wouldn't want me to fail at this."

"I think you're just avoiding me talking about how I caught you making out with your ex-ex-boyfriend. That's two exes right, since your ex is Evan now and your ex-ex would be Hunter."

"We weren't making out."

"Britt, I have made out with plenty, plenty of women in my day, tons, hundreds maybe," Chris said, "and I've made out with Stephanie thousands of times, I think I know what making out entails and what you two were doing was making out."

"He kissed me is all," Britt said.

"Didn't look like all, let me tell you, Flynnie, Britt was all up in Hunter's grill," Chris said and Britt rolled her eyes.

"It was not like that. I'm not getting back together with him."

"I never mentioned getting back together, but it's interesting that you did," Chris said knowingly. "You know, if Stephanie and I broke up, got divorced, I'd probably find my way back to her as well, probably because not many women would want to date a guy with three kids and not many guys would want to date a woman with three kids, not to mention that no guy would compare to me, but still, you know, I can see you guys getting back together."

"He hurt me, Chris," Britt said. "You don't just forget about that."

"But you can certainly move past it, can't you? If it means that you can be something resembling happy?" Chris asked. He held up Flynn a little. "Think about this, Britt, while you're trying to decide what direction you want your life to go in. I _hated_ Stephanie. And when I say I hated her, I meant I would have gladly danced on her grave. She was annoying and self-entitled, condescending, and just an all-around bitch. I despised her and she made my life a living hell. She hurt me too, most often physically by sending wrestler after wrestler at me for years. Things changed and I fell in love with her and I wouldn't have this thing right here without her or the one sitting at home, probably excited as hell to watch wrestling or the one swimming around in Stephanie's uterus. Things change, people change, if you have the chance to be happy take it, right Flutterby?"

"Right!" Flynn said.

"Think on it, Britt, stop wasting time and get to the whole living thing," Chris said, patting her on the shoulder as he passed. He and Flynn got to his dressing room and he started setting things up for the evening. He'd brought some of the new toys that Flynn had received for her birthday. Flynn was extremely excited about the Play-Doh she'd gotten and a couple of puzzles as well. Chris set them out on her play blanket and let her go to town as he sat and thought about his match later on. He would have to plan this carefully and go forward with caution.

He spent the rest of the afternoon and early evening thinking about the match and mentally preparing himself. Eventually, Lita came by to sit with Flynn in case he wanted to go meet with Edge. Chris had every intention of going to see Edge and talking about their match later on, but he never got the chance. Bret was out in the ring, talking about the match and how it was all crumbling and falling apart. He wanted Chris and Edge back on the team and had vouched for them. Chris was insulted. He didn't need to be "vouched" for. He was Chris Jericho, first Undisputed Champion. He didn't need someone to stick up for him.

Incensed, he went out to the ring, intending to talk to Bret. If Bret wanted to call him out, he would answer. Bret tried to appeal to him, tried to get him to see this side of "good," or whatever crap Cena was trying to spew. Chris thought it was ridiculous that they kept comparing this to a war. It wasn't a war, it was a bunch of rookies who didn't know their place. What was it to him if Cena and the others got beat? It didn't matter to him. He and Edge could hold their own against anyone. They'd been taken off guard that night when they'd been beaten up, but it wouldn't happen again. He and Edge had far too much experience.

Bret was just like the rest of them and it pained him to think it. He had thought Bret would be cool, but anyone who could so vehemently side with Cena wasn't someone Chris wanted to be around. His answer was still no. Edge came out and Chris thought he was going to say the same thing, but Edge started admonishing him. There was a slight wink from Edge, but Chris picked up on it and knew what Edge was doing. He was trying to set up Bret. He had to hand it to Edge. He was a sly one. Chris pretended to vacillate between staying or going, opting to go just as Edge tried to kick Bret. Bret was still too sharp for him and caught Edge's foot. Before Bret could put Edge in the sharpshooter, Chris got back into the ring and hit Bret in the eye so he and Edge could get away.

"Thanks," Edge said as they got backstage.

"Consider it payment for your girlfriend watching my daughter," Chris said. "We have got to come up with some kind of plan though, man. We're getting it from both sides now."

"Look, let's get ready for our match and then we'll talk, okay?" Edge said.

"Yeah, okay," Chris agreed.

He went back to his locker room where Lita and Flynn were trying to piece together a large puzzle that took up a big chunk of the floor. "Hey, thanks for saving the boyfriend. He tends to bite off more than he can chew sometimes."

"That's for sure. We're going to talk right after this."

"What about?"

"I want to discuss the Nexus thing, something that was said about us," Chris said. "Do you think it's stupid that we quit?"

"I think you did what you had to do."

"You're no help, you're Edge's girlfriend."

"That may be true, but still, you weren't happy being on the team so don't be on the team, you know what I mean?"

"Yeah, I guess."

He still had his reservations when he caught up with Edge. It was the fact that if Nexus did win then the Raw roster would essentially hate them for allowing this reign of terror to continue. The thing was, if Nexus _didn't_ win, wouldn't they just get angrier? Edge reminded him that he had beaten everyone in this business, everyone who'd wanted a piece of Chris Jericho had never gotten it. He even brought up the Alliance and Chris liked to think he won there too, since he'd convinced one of the heads of the Alliance to marry him. Chris started to think, if Nexus won, they could be screwed, if Nexus lost, they could still be screwed.

He came up with a brilliant idea. If there were _no _match, then nobody would ostracize them. Edge seemed to be in agreement that they would just have to destroy Cena and Bret so the match would be cancelled and then they wouldn't look like the bad guys for quitting the team. It was perfect. He didn't care if he had a match at SummerSlam or not. What he cared about was continuing to wrestle and if Nexus was out there, they were a threat to him and wrestling. It was better to nip this in the bud now.

Apparently, Nexus seemed to agree because they acted like they were on his and Edge's side, not beating on them when they were thrown out of the ring. Not until he'd accidentally run into Wade Barrett. Then all hell broke loose as Nexus started beating on him. Edge tried to help, but it was too much for them. When they'd been dispatched, Chris could see them start to focus on Bret and Cena. They weren't going to be so lucky. Chris and Edge started to gain their bearings and stood up just as R-Truth and Morrison ran down to the ring to help their team. Chris motioned for Edge to join him on the ramp.

Then it was decision time. Chris was not a bad guy. He didn't live a bad life. He was completely faithful to his wife, he had two beautiful children and one on the way. He was a good man. He just hated playing the monkey to get fans. He beat his own drum, but this was bigger than that. Was it the war that Cena and all of them kept saying it was? No, it wasn't and even if it was, if worse came to absolute worse, he could have them all fired. Still…he knew he could help this team. Edge was looking at him imploringly, feeling the same feelings he did. They looked at each other. Chris sighed and then they ran back towards the ring. If he could do it against the Alliance, he could sure as hell do it against Nexus.

The only difference this time was he wouldn't get the satisfaction of annoying the hell out of Stephanie.


	288. Coming Attractions, August 16, 2010

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, I really appreciate them and for all the people I know read and don't review, I do appreciate that you read and I do hope you're enjoying the story and I'm trying to give more Chris and Stephanie. So heads up warning, a big chapter is on its way because a certain lady has given birth, so be on the lookout for that chapter very, very soon. Hope you enjoy this one though, it's obviously setting up some stuff, but hope you enjoy anyways and reviews are loved and appreciated. :)

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"I don't begrudge you going out with friends or even having a good time with your friends, but Chris, when the kids ask you to call them before you go to bed, the least you can do is call."

"I'm sorry," Chris said groggily. "Things just got a little hectic after the show and well, LA is really hopping at night…"

"Hopping at night, who the hell says hopping at night?" Stephanie groaned. "Chris, you do realize that you left me here with _both _kids while I'm due in two weeks, when I can go into labor at any moment, right?"

"My mom is there with you."

"Chris, we're not going to see you for over a week, the kids miss you terribly. Sawyer knows what's going on so he's not as bad, but Flynn just knows that Daddy is not here and she wants you so bad. You could have called last night."

"I was preparing for my match, it was a huge match, it was SummerSlam, Stephanie, you know how big a show that is," he said. She was deliberately trying to make him feel bad. His kids, more specifically Sawyer, had asked him to call before they went to bed and he had agreed to, but last night he'd forgotten and Stephanie was getting on his case. She had every reason to, but he was berating himself.

"Of course I know, don't tell me I don't know what a big show is, that's _my_ company after all and I would _be_ there if I wasn't so goddamned pregnant that I can't even get comfortable in bed," she snapped at him.

"Stephanie," he sighed, a defeated note creeping into his voice. "I apologized, what more can I do? I can't fly home, we're flying to Hawaii in the morning and I can't miss the tour, I've already been advertised."

"Well I hope the baby comes while you're gone then!"

"You don't mean that."

"All your kids wanted was to say goodnight to you, that's it and you couldn't even do that. I know that you're with your little posse, but you could have called." Chris tried to hold in his laugh, but it ended up coming out like a snort. "Are you laughing, Chris Jericho? Do not tell me that you're laughing."

"I'm sorry, baby, but 'posse,' what do you think we're doing out here, ganging up and shooting up saloons?" he laughed.

"Chris, this isn't funny."

"Steph, I'm sorry, okay, but you don't have to shout at me, I'm nursing a hangover right now and-"

"I will yell at you if I want!" she yelled right in his ear.

"Damn it," Chris muttered. "Stephanie…"

"Don't you Stephanie me, I don't want to hear it and you know who else doesn't want to hear it, your kids. Sawyer doesn't want to talk to you, you know, he said that you are a promise breaker."

"He did not," Chris said.

"Sawyer," Stephanie said, holding up the phone. "Do you want to talk to Daddy?"

"No!" Sawyer yelled and Chris realized he was on speaker phone right now. "I don't want to talk to him. He didn't call last night and he's mean! I don't want to watch him either, Mommy."

"See?" Stephanie said, as she took back the phone. "See what I mean."

He sighed. He hadn't meant to upset his kids. "I got carried away. I don't often get time with just my friends. I'm usually with the kids or I'm with you and I'm just not on my own much anymore, you know."

"So now we're a burden."

"Don't you dare do that," he warned her.

"While I sit at home with your child kicking at me and bumping into my insides. I think it thinks that my kidneys are soccer balls just there for its enjoyment. I could go into labor at any moment and I have a 4 year old and a 2 year old who thinks she's a wrestler. You know, she tried to clothesline Sawyer yesterday. Luckily she's tiny so she just bumped off of him and landed on her butt, but I couldn't get over fast enough to stop it."

"Stephanie, the tour is your company thing. If I could have skipped it, you know I would have."

"Oh please, you've been excited to go to Japan again and you've been raving about going to China and how it's going to be exciting because you've never been there before."

"You know my mom and dad are there to help, that's part of the reason they moved down there, because they wanted to see the kids more."

"Don't tell me what to do!" she told him.

"Stephanie, I'm sorry, okay, there's not much more I can do. I'm sorry that I'm having fun with my friends. You guys aren't a burden, you know I love you more than I love myself, which is an awful lot. You guys are my world most of the time, I'm just here without you and it's different yes, but I can only apologize and try to make it up to you."

"Why don't you just go find some girl, go knock her up and leave me alone!" she told him.

Chris groaned and let his head fall back against the pillow. Stephanie was normally a hot-headed person, but make her very pregnant and her anger seemed to ratchet up a lot. He didn't want to tread so far down the wrong path that he came home to his clothes in boxes in his driveway, but she was also being a little ridiculous and he didn't want to get in any further arguments. He was still nursing a hangover from his weekend of debauchery with his friends and he had had a hard match the night before and Lord only knew what tonight would bring him.

He didn't have time to add Stephanie being mad at him to the list. He didn't like fighting with her to begin with, but add in his kids being upset and it just made him feel lousy. He glanced at the bandage on his arm and wondered if Stephanie would even wonder how he was after last night. Hell, he didn't even know if she'd _watched_ last night. Well, no of course she'd watched last night. She wasn't just a wrestling wife, this was her business. There was a lot of history…wait…

"Baby, do you remember eight years ago at SummerSlam," he mused, hoping to turn her mood around with a little romanticism.

"Yes, what about it?"

"Wasn't that a memorable night."

"You got a concussion so how can you really remember anything from that night?" she asked him.

"I remember certain things, important things, like how it was the second time I ever kissed you," Chris told her. "I remember seeing you standing there, trying to interfere in my match again and how mad I was at you. You'd kept throwing guy after guy at me and I'd beaten them all and I could see how frustrated you were with me, especially after the weeks and weeks of teasing. You were wearing that cute, little vinyl number with the knee-high boots-"

"And because of you I will never fit into that ever again," Stephanie interjected, still obviously peeved.

He ignored her comment and continued. "You were so hot that night, not just in the looks department, but you were just so angry and that made your eyes shine so bright that night. I remember thinking I had Rhyno and there you were, interfering and I thought to myself, 'that bitch, she's going to cost me another match,' and I nearly lost it, hell, I did lose it. I went over there to pie-face you to the ground to but the hell out of my match. Or I was thinking about putting you in the Walls to get you to shut up, but when I saw your face, I don't even know what came over me, I had to kiss you, I just _had_ to."

"That's crap," she told him.

"It's not, you were so beautiful. You're so beautiful when you're mad, you know that. It's like when the real Stephanie comes out."

"The real Stephanie?"

It was working, she was getting distracted by his words and he was going to milk it until she stopped being mad at him. "Yeah, the real Stephanie. I mean, I know how you are now, with the kids, you're nice and you care about us all and you've evened out those rough edges, sanded them down, but then you get mad and it's like the fire is still in you, that fire you had when you absolutely hated me. It made you so attractive. That was probably why I continued to do it, you know. I just wanted to see you like that. You were gorgeous then, you're gorgeous now too. SummerSlam will always hold that memory for me.

"Chris," she said, "you're so sweet."

He had her and he smirked to himself. God, his mouth could get him out of any situation, although with his wife, his mouth could get him _into_ some other situations. "I love you," he told her.

"I love you too, but if you ever and I mean ever break a promise to my children again, you will find your house completely empty as well as your bank account," she told him and damn it, she was always onto him. "You think I'm going to let you manipulate me into forgetting that you broke a promise to your _children_? Really, you think I was going to let you get away with that?"

"No," he said sheepishly, "but I was hoping to."

"I certainly remember the kiss, your gross, sweaty lips on my mouth, violating me. It was completely unwanted."

"That's why your tongue was on the verge of slipping down my throat."

"It was not," she told him.

"I don't know why you were so eager, I mean, with doing half the Alliance, you'd figure that your tongue would be worn out."

"You're not endearing me to you any more right now, you know that, right?"

"Where are my kids?"

"Hating you, starting to look into good therapists for when they have to tell about the time their father opted to go drinking instead of calling them. I figure it's going to lead to a breakthrough for them, an epiphany of sorts, where they realize that you are the reason they are so screwed up. Then this new baby, God, let's hope it knows its father from the pizza delivery guy. I mean, what with me going into labor tomorrow."

"Don't even joke about that," he said. "You can joke about the kids, but don't even suggest that I'm not going to be there for the birth of my child. Wherever in the world I am, I will be there for that baby's birth, I don't care if they have to stick a plug in you, I'm going to be there."

"Sure you will, maybe I'll have myself induced."

"Okay, stop it, put my kid on the phone, whichever one is closest."

"No, you don't get that privilege."

"I do get the privilege because I'm their father."

"Maybe to Sawyer, but who's to say you're Flynn's father?"

"Now you're just being mean, come on, Stephanie, I love you and I'm sorry. I know that if you weren't pregnant you would be here and working and the kids would be here and I wouldn't be leaving you high and dry for a week. I know that's part of it, I know that you're nervous about going into labor and I know that taking care of the kids without me there is hard for you right now, though if you weren't pregnant, I know it would be a piece of cake. That's why my parents are there though, to help you if you need it. Baby, you know I have to work, you _encourage_ me to work so I don't know what you want me to do now."

"You're right," she sighed, finally feeling like the Stephanie he knew and loved and not the angry viper she was acting like a few minutes ago. "Chris, I'm not sure I can do this."

Those were the last words he ever expected his wife to say and the last he ever expected to hear. Stephanie was an incredibly capable woman so to hear her say something like that actually made him take pause. He cleared his throat and stared at the ceiling a moment, "What can't you do? If it's our marriage, thanks for telling me over the phone right before I go halfway across the world," he told her, trying to lighten her mood. He knew it wasn't about their marriage so he felt comfortable saying that, unless it was, in which case, what the hell had gone on the few days he'd been gone?

"I figured that after eight years, a phone dump would still be okay, was it not?" she teased.

"Well, at least I can go out tonight and not feel guilty."

"That sounds like you have something to be guilty about now, is it safe to assume your bed is not empty?"

He looked to his side. "Oh yes, there's a really hot chick right next to me. Redhead, tiny figure, has a bit of a horse face though."

"Are you sleeping with Flynn's horse stuff animal?"

"She told me I had to, I believe her words were, 'you sleep!' very forcefully and she's kind of scary. One day I really think I'm going to be walking down the hallway and she's going to drop down from a ceiling light or something."

"You're sleeping with her horse," Stephanie said again.

"It's just next to me on the bed," Chris told her, "I wasn't hugging it all night or anything."

"Still," Stephanie said, "how can you go from being a forgetful jerk to a sweet man in such a short amount of time?"

"Pure talent," he responded, "so what can't you do, I've come to believe the only things you couldn't do were cook and sing, but are we going to add something to the list because I'm just not sure I can handle you not being able to do _three_ things. You're my super woman wife, this is what I tell people, this is what I tell women who hit on me, I tell them that my wife is a superhero with super human powers and they better take a step back."

She laughed softly. "I'm just…I don't think I can take care of all the kids by myself."

"We still only have two right now."

"I know that, but then I'm thinking and we're going to have a newborn and two children under the age of five and at times, you're going to _have_ to go away. We're giving you time off this winter to travel all over and do your tour. I know you've had this planned pretty much before the baby was conceived, but I know there's no way that you can take one of the kids or both of the kids with you to Europe or Australia and so I'm going to be here with three kids and Chris, I can do a lot of things, but they all need attention. Sawyer maybe not so much, he helps me all the time and he's such a good boy, but God, Flynn hates babies and I have a bad feeling with this one that she's not going to be happy and Flynn is a very aggressive, little girl, which I blame on all the wrestling she watches. She thinks she's a wrestler. Then you're going to be gone wrestling and touring and it's scary."

"Maybe we should…hire a nanny?" He hated to suggest that. It wasn't that he thought nannies were bad or people were bad for having them, he just didn't see himself as a nanny kind of guy. He wanted to be a hands-on parent and that had always been his philosophy, Stephanie was the same way. She'd had nannies and she just didn't want to rely on someone else to raise her kids.

"I don't want a nanny," Stephanie said firmly. "I refuse to have a nanny."

"Okay," he said. "So what do you want to do here, baby? I mean, after six weeks, you'll be traveling with me again, I assume."

"There's another thing, traveling with all of them, that's going to be crazy. We're crazy for having three kids this close together, Chris, we're nuts, people are going to think we're crazy, they probably already do."

"Yeah, they do," he agreed, "but we've been able to do this with two and we'll do it with three."

"But with your touring and everything and being gone and I can't ask you to take both of them while I sit at home with the baby," she said. "Chris, I'm going to suggest something to you and I know it's not going to sound like me, okay, I know what you're going to think and I know how you're going to think I'm crazy and that I've been kidnapped and someone is holding a gun to my head, I know this, okay, so just bear with me."

"Okay, bearing now."

"What if you were…to take a break…from wrestling?" she told him.

"Yeah, okay, who's got you, what's the ransom?" he asked.

"Chris, I told you to bear with me," she whined.

"Stephanie, when I came back from my hiatus, we pretty much created Flynn," Chris laughed, "that's how happy you were. You hate me even thinking about taking time off, this isn't like you. Wait a second, you had a doctor's appointment on Friday, I completely forgot about it when my posse and I fought at the OK Corral, is everything okay with the baby, Stephanie?"

"I'm fine," Stephanie assured him. "I know this doesn't sound like something I would condone and normally it wouldn't, but I've been thinking. We're going to have three children, _three_, that's a lot. When Flynn was born, it was easier for me to either let Sawyer go with you or keep him at home, with Sawyer and Flynn, I'm not sure I can. I know you'll still tour and during those times I can certainly have your mother and father help me out, but for the rest of the time, maybe, as a family, we could really use the time to kind of get in the groove. I think that we're underestimating how much three children are going to be different. Before, we could each take one and now we have this spare one and if we could have some time to really integrate the new baby into our lives…I don't think you should retire, you do and you should just divorce me now, but maybe a short break, a few months, maybe six months tops?"

"Wow, that's asking a lot, baby."

"I know it is, believe me," she told him. "I wouldn't normally ask and you know, maybe I can handle this, I'm just worried that I can't."

"Can I have time to think about this?"

"No, Chris," she said sarcastically, "I'm going to need an answer right now."

"It's a big thing, we'll discuss it when I get home?"

"Okay," she told him. "I miss you."

"I miss you guys too, why do you think I slept with a stuffed animal last night?" he joked.

"Because you were drunk and needed something to cuddle since I'm not there?"

"Well, there was that too," he told her. "Please don't go into labor though, seriously, I'm so scared you're going to have the baby while I'm in China or Japan, where it will take so long to get home to you."

"I will try to hang on, I've been telling the baby that it has to hang on until you get back."

"Can I please talk to the kids now?" he asked.

"I'm serious about Sawyer being mad at you," she said, "he really doesn't want to talk to you, but Flynn will probably talk to you. Hold on."

"Okay, I'll try calling later when Sawyer has had a chance to calm down, maybe after Raw. I have a feeling I know how things are going to go."

"What do you mean?"

"I think that we're going to have rematches against Nexus, seems inevitable."

"Do you know who the GM is and you're not telling me?"

"No, but they've become a little predictable, you'd think every once in a while Cole would throw in something funny that the GM didn't say," Chris said. "Now _that_ would be interesting. Anyways, I believe I was promised a chat with my favorite lady in the world."

"Hey!"

"Sorry, baby, you've been supplanted and you might be supplanted again if the world is conspiring against me and giving me another girl."

"If it is another girl it will be nobody's fault but your own Mr. X or Y chromosome."

"Wow, you just threw down some high school biology on me, I've been schooled."

"And served," she said, leaning down a little to grab Flynn as she walked by. "Hey, you there, little Miss Flynnie, your daddy wants to talk to his flutterby."

"Okay," Flynn said as Stephanie handed her the phone and helped guide it to her ear. "Hi, hi," she said to whomever was on the phone.

"Hey, there's my Flutterby," Chris said brightly, his hangover disappearing for a second. "I'm really sorry I didn't call to say goodnight to you last night, Flynnie, but I just got busy and forgot, I hope that you'll forgive me."

"Um…okay!" Flynn told him brightly. "Whe you?"

"I'm in California right now and then I'm going to fly to Hawaii and then Japan and then China, all very far away places and I'm missing you and Mommy and Sawyer _so_ much, do you miss me too?"

"Uh huh," Flynn said. "Come back, Daddy?"

"I'll be back next week and then you'll have me all to yourself, okay?"

"Okay," she told him.

"Are you taking care of Mommy?"

"No, she me," Flynn said.

"I don't know what that means, but okay," he told her, "I love you."

"Love you, Daddy," she said sweetly, smacking her lips against the phone, "Kiss!"

"Okay, kiss to you too," Chris said, kissing the phone. "Bye, Flutterby."

"Bye bye!" she exclaimed before thrusting the phone at her mommy again.

"She has just run off, no doubt to try and master the running bulldog, after which she'll start on trying to learn the Lionsault."

"I don't like the idea of my daughter flipping through the air," he said, "are you sure that Sawyer doesn't want to talk to me?"

"Sawyer, are you sure you don't want to talk to Daddy?" Stephanie asked him as he sat at the kitchen table with some colored pencils and a sketchpad that her mother had given him on Flynn's birthday so he wouldn't feel left out.

"No, I don't want to, Mommy, I'm busy."

"He's busy," Stephanie said.

"How is a 4 year old busy? Busy doing what? I'm busy, you're busy, what does _he _have to be busy about?"

"He's using his colored pencils that my mom gave him. He's probably drawing a masterpiece," she said, then turned away from Sawyer. "Just give him until tonight, you're the same way, Chris, hell, I am too, we like to stew, give him his stewing time, we all give it to you when you're in a bad mood."

"But I'm his dad."

"Yeah, do you think I give _my_ dad the time of day half the time?"

"That's different, I'm better than your dad."

"You hurt his feelings, call tonight after you do whatever you do on Raw, okay, he'll be so excited after seeing you that he'll want to talk to you, I promise, and if he doesn't, I'll make him, I'm his mother, he's obligated to listen to me."

"Thanks."

"I love you, be safe okay and don't go too crazy with your stupid GG, which isn't even the best vodka there is out there."

"Baby…"

"I'm just saying, if you're going to call your drink at least call something better," she told him, "I don't even remember the taste of alcohol anymore, you know, in the last five years, I've spent 115 weeks of them pregnant, that's like, what…52 times 5, 260, divide that, that's like, I've spent almost half of the last five years being pregnant."

"I'm sorry?"

"Just drink something high class for me."

"Okay, I'll buy the most expensive vodka and drink one for my lady, how's that?"

"Be safe," she told him seriously. "We have three children and they need you all in one piece."

"I will come home in no more than two pieces."

"One piece," she warned him. "I love you."

"I love you too, bye."

Stephanie was hoping that Sawyer would be buttered up to the idea of talking to Chris by the time Raw started, but it wasn't the case. Sawyer was mad and he did have every right to be. Stephanie had let him stay up for the call and he'd sat there for a long time, just wondering where Chris was and when they'd tried calling him, he hadn't answered, probably because he couldn't hear wherever he was. He'd eventually called Stephanie and she could hear that he was at a bar or something and she'd kept the conversation brief because she didn't want to yell at him while he would forget everything the next day.

They were all sitting on the couch about to watch Raw. Flynn had at first wanted to sit on the floor right in front of the TV so she'd be close to the action, but Stephanie had talked her back to the couch. She wasn't quite sure when her daughter had taken on this new personality, but she encouraged and fostered their individual personalities and Flynn's was shaping up to be a perfect storm of her and Chris whereas Sawyer was more adult than all of them. Now Flynn was jumping on the couch to her right, her hands on the back of the couch as she jumped along to the music intro to the show. Sawyer was cuddled up to Stephanie on her left side, his head resting against her stomach as he rubbed it almost conspiratorially.

"What are you saying to the baby?" Stephanie asked.

"I told it that it should come out so that we can play," Sawyer said, "but not when it comes out because it will be little, but when it's like Flynn, then we can play."

"Not a baby!" Flynn yelled as she plunked down on her butt to watch the show.

"No, this baby," he said, patting Stephanie's stomach.

"No baby!" Flynn said, before climbing off the couch and going to sit down in another chair that was closer to the TV.

"How come she doesn't like babies?" Sawyer asked, tilting his head up to look at his mother.

"I think she doesn't like that you or me or Daddy pay attention to anyone else, but hopefully when it's her own baby brother or sister she won't feel that way, she'll just know that this is partly her baby too and that everything will be okay."

"I hope so because babies are nice to have, we have lots!" Sawyer said.

Stephanie laughed, "I guess we do…are you excited to see Daddy tonight after we watched him and his team win last night?"

"No, I don't want to see Daddy, I'll just watch Ed."

"But I know Daddy would want you to see him and cheer for him," she explained.

"He didn't call like he said he would," Sawyer pouted. "So I don't want to see him, why didn't he call, Mommy?"

"Well, you see, Daddy and I, before we had you and Flynn and the new baby, we had lives that didn't include children. Now you may think this is the same life, but it's not, it's different because we have to think about you guys a lot and we love you so we don't really mind. But sometimes we want to have fun without you and Daddy went this weekend to LA to wrestle, but he also met up with a couple of his friends to hang out and have fun."

"But aren't we fun?" Sawyer asked pitifully.

"Are you fun? Are you kidding me, you're the most fun kid in the world!" Stephanie said, pulling him closer so she could kiss the crown of his blond head. "You're so much fun, but sometimes we need grown-up fun and that's what Daddy is having right now."

"Oh, but he forgot about me."

"He might have for two seconds, but that doesn't mean anything, sometimes you forget things, don't you? Like you forget when you tell Flynn that you were going to play with her and then you don't and she cries."

"I feel bad when I do that."

"I know and Daddy feels _so_ bad about forgetting last night. He was really upset about it this morning when I was talking about him. He would never want to hurt you, baby boy, you know that he wouldn't. He loves you so much."

"I love Daddy," Sawyer admitted.

"I've got an idea, how about we call Daddy right now and tell him to do a good job at Raw?" Stephanie said. "Do you think that would be a good idea?"

"Okay."

"Okay, let me grab the phone," she said, pushing herself off the couch.

Chris sat with his head in his hands, trying to get in the game. He was dressed and ready for a match if the opportunity arose, but he was thinking about what Stephanie had said earlier and also about how Sawyer was mad at him. Sure, he'd had his kids mad at him for other things, any kids of his and Stephanie were bound to be a bit temperamental, but this time, he'd really done something he wasn't proud of and he'd hurt his son's feelings and that just didn't gel well with him.

Then there was the thing that Stephanie asked of him. Unless she was honestly scared, she never would've suggested he take a break. He thought about a potential break. He'd been back since 2007 and he'd been pretty much going nonstop since then. Add into that his CD and the signing tour interspersed with different mini-tours, then his new book that he'd been working on and then Downfall and he'd been overworked to the bone. But if it were only a break, could he really just say, "hey, my wife just had our third child and she's going to need some help, but I'll be back!" He and his wife didn't even speak of their marriage onscreen. She played a prominent part in his book, but he was mainly keeping it professional. He'd have to think of something else…that is if he was honestly thinking about taking it.

Stephanie wouldn't joke about this though. She knew what he meant to the business because she was the business. Wait, did this mean _she_ wanted to take a break too? Well that would just be weird, Stephanie wanted to come back to work immediately, would this be like last time where he took a break and she said she was going to take a break and then changed her mind not two weeks later? They'd tried that normal couple thing and it just wasn't for them, but were they honestly going to try for it this time? He'd have to speak with her about that. Still if she did come back, she worked strictly backstage, but if he were there, why not just be on the show? Yes, he and his wife had to have a serious talk about all of this.

On the other hand, a break sounded good. He'd get more time with his kids and with the new baby coming along, time was at a premium and instead of taking time off from the shows for his touring, he could concentrate on the tour and not have to worry about scheduling and Vince being pissed off at him. He tried to weigh the pros and cons in his mind, but before he could get another thought out, his phone rang. He looked at the number and saw it was from home.

"Hey," he said, answering immediately.

"Hi, Daddy."

Chris smiled and it was wider than any he'd had for days with his friends. "Kid, I missed you!" he said. "I'm so, so, so sorry I didn't call you last night, I lost track of the time and it's completely my fault, I'm so sorry."

"It's okay, Daddy, I still love you," Sawyer said.

Chris felt so relieved, "I love you too."

"Are you going to wrestle tonight?"

"I think so, are you going to watch me?"

"I always do," he said. "Oh, Daddy, Mommy just said that if she ever catches you smoking around us that she will hit you in the face, that's what you said, right, Mommy?"

"Yes, hit him in the face," Stephanie said as she looked at her laptop, which she'd just turned on.

"Tell your mom it was a one-time thing."

"Daddy said it was a one-time thing," Sawyer told her.

"Tell him I don't care, it's disgusting and if he comes home smelling like smoke I'm going to hose him down in the backyard."

"Mommy said that she doesn't care and it's yucky and if you come home and smell like smoke she's going to put a hose on you in the backyard."

"Tell your mother not to spy," Chris said.

"Mommy, you shouldn't spy."

"Tell Daddy that if it's on the internet, it's not spying," Stephanie said.

"Mommy said it's not spying if it's on the innernet," Sawyer said, wondering why he had to be the go-between.

"She's got a point, but tell her not to go on my Twitter or else."

"Or else what?" Sawyer said.

"Just or else," Chris said ominously.

"Daddy said not to go on his Titter or else and or else sounds bad, Mommy," Sawyer said with wide eyes.

"Well tell your dad that he has a match coming up next since I'm sure he's not paying attention."

"Dadd, you have a match next and you weren't paying attention."

Chris looked up at the screen and saw that he did have a match next against Wade, what the hell? When did that happen? "Okay, well, tell Mommy and Flynn and the baby I love them and tell Mommy that I need to talk with her when I get home and I love you too."

"I love you too, Daddy," Sawyer said, "I'll cheer for you."

"Thanks," Chris said.

Chris ended the call and left quickly to get to his match. He hadn't expected to be first. He must be facing Wade because he was his mentor. Ungrateful little twerp though. Chris had taught him everything he knew, had shown him the ropes and the way he'd repaid him was to beat him up and then try to take him out. He had to give the guy credit though, for using Chris's own tactics against him. It took guts to do that and while it was using his own moves against him. He got in the ring and could hear the crowd chanting for him. Sheep, he thought to himself. Just because they hated Wade more they were willing to cheer him on. They really were parasites.

He adjusted his elbow bandage and then got to work. He was able to get the early upper-hand, hitting Wade with an elbow. He managed to keep him in control with some kicks before hitting a suplex. Wade tried to get at him, but Chris was able to land a dropkick, sending Wade to the ground. Chris went over to him and started to hit at him before getting him back in the ring. He wasn't so much into this match as he wanted to get this match over with. Even now, he was a little proud that Wade had taken such initiative. He didn't see any of the other Nexus members doing the same and it was probably because of the lousy pros they had, who weren't as established as he was.

He started to climb the ropes to land a move, but Wade got to him first and now he was the one who fell to the mat outside the ring. Wade and him traded some moves before Chris tried to go for the Codebreaker, felling the bigger man, but he must have been more distracted than he thought because suddenly he was being pinned. He couldn't believe it, but chalked it up to his distraction with Stephanie asking him to leave all this. Could he leave all this right now? He wasn't sure if it felt right, but he couldn't shake the thought that Stephanie was _very_ serious about this. Under no other circumstances would she ask him to take a break.

"You didn't look like yourself out there," Edge said as he got backstage.

"I wasn't," Chris said. "I've got stuff on my mind."

"Like what?"

"Stephanie wants me to take a break from wrestling, which, I'm not sure I want to do."

"A break, like a break how?" Edge asked.

"Like a break like taking a few months off, I guess until the baby is really old enough to sleep through the night. That would help with the traveling I guess if the baby could sleep through the night. But I'm not sure if she means that she's going to take time off too, I just don't know what she means, but I have time to talk about it after we get back."

"So are you nervous she might have the kid while we're gone?"

"Don't jinx it, man," Chris said.

"You know, whatever you choose to do, I'll support it."

"What does it matter to you?" Chris asked confusedly. "Are we dating and I just don't know it because I gotta tell you, I'm married and quite faithful."

"No, because we're like a team again, stupid," Edge said. "So if you go we won't really be a team anymore, but I'm going to be totally supportive of what you choose to do."

"Gee thanks because _your_ opinion was the one I was most worried about."

"She's probably just overwhelmed with the thought of having so many kids. I mean, three in under five years is a lot of kids, you know. It's like, you two are baby-making machines or something. When does this crazy ride stop, seven kids, eight?"

"Stephanie will make me get the snip-snip before that happens," Chris said. "Hell, I'd volunteer before that happens. She's just scared, but I guess it's something to think about, you know. As if I didn't have enough to worry about with Nexus breathing down our necks."

"At the end of the day, they're still rookies and we're still awesome. At least I am, I don't know about you."

"I'm the best in the world at what I do."

"Yeah, you've said that," Edge said, rolling his eyes. "Don't worry about Nexus, dude, they are nobodies and we can stamp them down at any time, we just need the competition so we haven't yet killed them, but we will, they'll go running back to FCW with their tail between their legs."

"You seem so sure of yourself."

"I _am_ sure of myself. I'm sure as hell not losing in my match," Edge said, slapping Chris on the back. "But don't worry, by the time I get tired of making fun of you for everything, you'll be long gone."

Maybe he would be.


	289. The Feature Film, August 23, 2010

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, faves, alerts, and reads, everyone. Anyways, this is a super long chapter and I figure you all kind of know what's coming so yes, be prepared for something more in this one. So take a seat, get comfy, and hope you enjoy the ride. If you want to review, that'd be great, tell me what you like or what you don't, I want to hear from you! :P Enjoy! :)

* * *

"But Daddy, you've been gone _forever_."

"I know, kid, I know," Chris said sympathetically. "I miss you guys so much. Are you taking good care of Mommy and Flynnie?"

"Yes, I help Mommy when she needs help because she said she can't bend over. Grandma is over a lot and she helps Mommy too, but we miss you, Daddy, can't you come home right now?" Sawyer asked pathetically. It had been over a week since he'd seen his father and it was probably the longest he'd ever had to go without seeing his father and it was starting to wear on him. He missed his father and wanted him _here_ with them.

"I'm sorry, kid, I'm in China right now, but I'll be home in a couple days, I promise. I'm going to leave tonight and fly home so I can be with you."

"Are you bringing Chinese food?" Sawyer asked innocently. Sometimes they would have Chinese food and maybe that's where his daddy was.

"No, I'm not bringing Chinese food," Chris laughed, "but I did bring some stuff for you, Flynnie, and the baby, so you can wait and get a couple presents, okay? I think you would like it here, it's really cool. Maybe someday we'll go together, okay, how does that sound?"

"I want to do that!" Sawyer said enthusiastically. "We're going to watch you tonight. Are you going to anything on the show because then I can watch it and cheer for you, do you win?"

"You don't even know if I have a match," Chris laughed.

"Well do you?"

"I do have a match against Khali," Chris told him.

Sawyer's jaw dropped a little bit, "Daddy, he's _big_, he's bigger than anything I've ever seen in my life, but then Big Show is big too…they're both _big_! You're not as big, you're just Daddy."

"I don't know whether to take that as an insult or not," Chris laughed. "But don't worry, I think you'll like seeing me tonight. I'm going to go for the belt at the Night of Champions so you'll have to cheer for me tonight when I'm on, are you going to do that?"

"I always do because you're my favorite wrestler, but I don't even like you as much as Flynnie because she _likes_ you a lot, like a lot, a lot, a lot, she makes Mommy play you _all_ the time. I didn't know you knew monkeys, Daddy!"

"Oh, I think I know what Mommy showed you, when I threw the pie in her face, right?" Chris asked. He would've loved to have been there when Sawyer saw that, he probably cracked up and then acted aghast at the fact he threw a pie into his beloved Mommy's face. Hell, if he'd been alive during that time (awkward though that would be if he had a kid with her and hated her) then he'd probably kick Chris for doing that to his mother.

"That wasn't nice, but it was funny," Sawyer giggled. "You didn't like Mommy, huh?"

"No, I thought she was very mean to me and I didn't like her at all. She would make other wrestlers try to beat me up and take me out so it wasn't very nice on her part. She thought that I was mean, but I wasn't, I just told the truth," Chris explained, leaving some of the more dirty details out of the story.

"But you like Mommy now, right?" Sawyer asked. What if his daddy still didn't like his mommy? Would they get mad at each other and not like each other anymore? He didn't really want that to happen.

"No, I still hate her," Chris laughed, "I love Mommy, don't worry, kid, we're not those people anymore, we love each other now and we've loved each other for a while, besides, Mommy loves pie, doesn't she? I was just thinking of her and what she likes."

Sawyer laughed, "It was still funny."

"I know it was," Chris said. "Is Flynnie still up so I can talk to her?"

"She's sad, Daddy, she cried earlier."

"She's sad, why?" Chris asked. He hated to think that his little flutterby was crying or sad. He liked when she was his fierce, little warrior baby.

"Because she misses you," Sawyer answered. "She keeps asking Mommy where you are and then gets sad when you're not here and she doesn't even get very, very happy when she watches you wrestling and you know she likes that."

That tore at Chris's heart more than he thought it would. It was difficult being away from his family to begin with, but to hear that his daughter was crying because he wasn't there hurt him even more. His words went back to what Stephanie said, taking a break, focusing on one thing instead of a billion things. With him traveling all over the country without Stephanie, without the kids, they were sitting at home missing him. Flynn didn't understand not going anywhere with her parents. Sawyer did, or at least remembered a little from when Stephanie had Flynn, but Flynn just didn't get why she was stuck at home like she was. He never wanted to be the cause of his kids' hurt. He never wanted to be _that_ guy.

"Can you put her on the phone, kid?"

"Okay, Daddy," Sawyer said. Sawyer handed the phone off to Flynn who was sitting next to him, beside Stephanie. Flynn took the phone and Stephanie guided it to her ear.

"Hi," came her small voice over the line and Chris could swear he heard every one of those 11,000 miles separating them right now.

"Hey, Flutterby," he said softly, trying not to let the emotion seep into his voice. He didn't want Flynn to hear how upset he actually was right now so he tried to sound as bright as he possibly could.

"Daddy!" she screamed and he didn't even mind that she possibly blew out her eardrum. Chris grinned, hearing the delight in her voice. "I mi you!"

"I miss you too," Chris said, "but don't you worry, okay, I'm going to be home late tomorrow night and I will come to your room and give you the biggest, hugest, Daddiest kiss in the entire world and I'll tell you what, you can sleep in my bed with me and Mommy and Sawyer can sleep in there too, how does that sound?"

"Okay," Flynn said, "you be here."

"I will definitely be there," he told her, "so don't cry, okay, that just makes Daddy upset and do you want me to cry too?"

"No cry," Flynn said, shaking her head.

"So the both of us won't cry until I get home, is that a deal?" he asked her.

"Uh huh," Flynn said, "I westle."

"You're wrestling, who are you wrestling with? Undertaker? Hunter? Your teddy bears? I don't want to hear that you're wrestling with Sawyer."

"No," Flynn said. "I good."

"I bet you are, you're my daughter," Chris told her. "Are you going to watch me wrestle on the show tonight."

"I do," Flynn told him. She couldn't wait, Mondays were her favorite days because those were the days that she got to see her daddy wrestle and then pick up the moves that her daddy did. "I like you."

"I like you too, how about that?" Chris said. "In fact, I'm sure that I _love_ you."

"Love you," Flynn told him.

"Do you think I can talk to your mommy?"

"Okay," Flynn said, "bye bye!"

"Bye, Flutterby, I love you so much."

"Love!" Flynn yelled, then handed the phone over to Stephanie.

"Hey there, World Traveler," Stephanie said as she finally got the phone. "How are you?"

"I'm doing okay," Chris said, "It's beautiful here, like, it's always so weird and cool going someplace you've never been before. Like, I want to go everywhere and sightsee, but I'm so ready to come home. I haven't been home in over a week and I want nothing more than to kiss my kids, climb into bed and hold you. We still just have two kids, right?"

"Still just have two kids," she told him. "I think this little one is holding on for you, which is not very nice for me since my due date was yesterday. They know not to make their appearance before Daddy gets home."

"I just hope they can hold on until at the very least tomorrow night."

"You won't even be able to stand if I went into labor tomorrow night."

"I wouldn't care," he told her. "Jet lag or not, I would be right there with you. I miss you guys so much. I heard that Flynn was crying."

"She just doesn't understand why she can't come with you, that's all," Stephanie said, rubbing her stomach where the baby was kicking her vigorously. "But you'll be back tomorrow night and then you have until Monday off and I'm sure the baby will come before then and if it doesn't, I'm sure that I can talk Dr. Sheldon into inducing me so that you can be around."

"I just wanted to be there, I don't want to miss the birth of my child, especially when we don't know what it is."

"Chris, everything is going to be fine," she told him.

"I know, so has Flynn learned any new moves?" he asked.

"No, she's not really up to wrestling right now, she's been a little clingy since you're not here," she said gently, not trying to hurt Chris's feelings, but she didn't feel right lying to him either.

"Damn it," Chris muttered. "I hate that she's so upset because I'm not there. She's not even doing her wrestling moves, which is her favorite thing in the world."

"Well, she has been trying to jump off her bed. I had to put her rail back up so she wouldn't attempt to do a header right into the dresser. The kids have had fun with me going to get some baby toys though. Flynn was a little bit more difficult than Sawyer because she thought all the toys were for her so she kept balking at the toys I was picking out."

"Did you cave in and get her something?"

"She saw you at the store and she wanted your action figure," Stephanie told him. "She kept yelling, 'it Daddy!', 'it Daddy!' and tugging on my hand."

"So you bought her an action figure that you could give her for free?" Chris said.

"Yes, but she wanted it and it made her so happy and then she got home and she played with it with Sawyer, he was Edge and you'll be glad to know that you won this epic battle, but I have a sneaking suspicion that Edge let you win."

"Like he'd ever really do that for me," Chris joked. "Sawyer said my parents have been by a lot, are they helping you out?"

"They've been a big help," Stephanie said. She was grateful they had moved so much closer to them so they could be around when Chris wasn't. She didn't like to dump her kids off with anyone, but it was nice every once in a while to let Ted and Loretta take them around so she could have a moment's piece. "I've actually had time to relax and I think I've needed that. The baby's room is nearly complete, Ted helped move the glider in there from the garage and your mother finished that beautiful quilt she made for the baby."

"Good, I'm glad. Well, I better get going because I have to pack and make sure that I make it on the flight this afternoon, I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yes, you will. You're going home with Edge, right? Lita's picking you guys up?" Stephanie confirmed.

"Yeah so don't worry about it, okay? I'll see you tomorrow. I love you guys, don't have the baby without me!"

"I wouldn't dream of it, we love you too."

Stephanie hung up the phone and turned brightly to her kids, "Who had fun talking with Daddy?"

"Me, me!" Sawyer said, raising his hand and waving it around madly.

Flynn copied him and yelled too," Me too!"

"Me three," Stephanie said in an almost conspiratorial voice. "But now that we've _talked_ to Daddy, what do you say we _watch_ Daddy?"

"Yes!" Sawyer said as Stephanie turned on Raw. "He's going to win because he's the best in the world, right?"

"Right," Stephanie said, patting him on the head as they turned towards the show that was taped last week.

_It was always strange when they taped like this. It felt rushed, as if the emotions from the first show just didn't translate to those of the second show. He had no time to calm down from the last show and now they were forced into this contrived situation, where everything that had just happened was something still real and tangible in his mind. Tonight they were going to find out who was going to be in the championship match at Night of Champions. It'd already been decided that Sheamus was going to pick his next opponent while sitting on a throne of all things._

_Chris could not get a read on this General Manager. A small part of him, on account of the GM being so anonymous, believed it was Stephanie, from the sheer fact that they would not show their face. Stephanie couldn't and _wouldn't_ be on-screen right now. She always went back to thinking about how she'd looked that one time while pregnant with Sawyer, the ugly debacle of her sweater and how it allegedly 'made her look like a huge marshmallow.' He thought she was beautiful, but what did he know, he was only her husband. But then sometimes they were so biased against him that he figured it couldn't be her unless she was trying to throw him off._

_If it was Stephanie, he wouldn't be mad at her, not at all. He'd learned long ago that he and Stephanie were just the type of people who liked to scheme and as such they kept things from each other. As long as the things they kept from one another were not big things, like cheating or sickness or something, he was fine with not knowing. His gut told him that this wasn't Stephanie though. He thought about it being Hunter, which made a lot of sense, but Hunter, he would hope, wouldn't be so cruel towards him, but then, it was Hunter so Chris could never figure out which direction he might go in._

_"Britt, do you think Hunter is the GM?" he asked as she walked by._

_"Why would I know? Because you think I love Hunter or something?"_

_"Um, wow, no, I wasn't even thinking about that," Chris said, giving her a look. "Though that's a pretty incriminating thing to say; do you love Hunter?"_

_"No, of course not," she said, rolling her eyes and shaking her head a little too quickly. "I don't love him at all, not at all, I'm just thinking about his well-being when he comes back and as for the GM, Vince won't tell me, he says that he respects this person's privacy so he won't tell me."_

_"Would you suspect Hunter?"_

_"He's capable of anything."_

_"Including winning back your heart?" Chris wondered, folding his arms in front of him. "When are you going to stop denying what we both know you feel?"_

_"Love is not that easy, Chris, I really wish it was, but it isn't," Britt said. _

_"But if you don't open up to it, don't let it in…"_

_"You find someone else," she shrugged. "I liked Evan, but he wasn't the one, but I'm sure the one is out there somewhere, just waiting for me and it doesn't necessarily have to be Hunter. It could be someone else, anyone else."_

_"But me and Stephanie…"_

_"Are two different people from me and Hunter and I very highly doubt you ditched her somewhere without a way to get home and completely forgot about her."_

_"Well, no."_

_"Yeah, so you don't know."_

_"She put me through a set."_

_"You didn't love her back then, tell me, since you've loved her, what's the worst thing she's ever done to you?"_

_"I can't remember, I'm sure it was something I forgave her for though."_

_"Chris, I love you, you're my friend," she said, placing her hand on his shoulder, "but you have to let me figure some things out for myself or else I'll never get where I want to be."_

_"Just…think about it," he told her, "think about what you _really_ want."_

_"I am," she said simply, leaning up to kiss his cheek. "You're facing Khali tonight. I don't think it's fair that you don't know."_

_"Thanks."_

_She walked away and not two minutes later, before he could even think, Edge was slapping him on the back. "Won my match, Sheamus is totally going to pick me so you probably don't even have to try out there because I…have got this in the bag," Edge said haughtily and Chris suspected if Edge had a collar to pop that he'd be popping it right now._

_"Everyone and their mother can beat R-Truth, I have to go against Khali and when I beat his ass, Sheamus is going to see I'm clearly the better choice."_

_"You and Khali, yeah right, you're going down so hard, he'll probably lift you ten feet in the air and drop you," Edge cajoled him. "Hey, so have you thought more about that whole leaving thing? I mean, you don't really want to leave right now, do you? You've got tons of stuff you have left to do, this Nexus thing isn't even over yet."_

_"I haven't really had the time," Chris said. "But I'll assess and it's not like I'll be completely gone even if I do. The wrestling business is in my blood, you know, it'll always be in my blood."_

_"And in your pocket since you make money off of me, how is that even fair?" Edge said, shaking his head. "How is even fair that all the work I do puts money into your pocket and gives your kids toys. Sawyer doesn't deserve any toys because he can't even say my name right. In fact, you should just take away all his toys."_

_"You're one of his favorites though."_

_"Really?" Edge beamed. He did love that little, crazy kid. He was the only one in the world who got away with calling him Ed, okay, maybe Flynn too, but she was a freaking adorable little girl so he couldn't get mad at her._

_"I have no clue why."_

_"So even if you left, you'd still be around?"_

_"Yeah, I would, but again, I need to assess."_

_"I'm sure you'll have plenty of time to do that when we're on a plane for thirteen hours or however long the flight is."_

_"It won't be that bad, I've got a match to go win," Chris said, "and I have to show _you_ up."_

_"I'd like to see you try, Jericho."_

_Chris opened his arms and gestured towards himself, "Look at this, Edge, my man, all talent."_

_Chris went out there a little more intimidated than he let on. Khali was not a great wrestler by any means, if this were based on pure skill, Chris would win without much of a fight, but the problem was Khali's size. Chris wrestled against men of all sizes, but Khali was in a league of his own. He was large and bulky, but Big Show, the one guy with maybe a comparable height and girth, was certainly more lithe than Khali was. Chris would have to be strategic in this match and not just rely on his skill. _

_Chris's only real strategy was to go for Khali's knees. He knew the man had bad knees and by getting him down to that level, it evened the playing field so to speak. Khali was able to get whatever feeble offense he couldn't, but he was just overall too slow. He was able to counter Chris's moves due to his size, but Chris's equalizer for the match was his Walls of Jericho. It was a purely mat-based move and it was something he could put on Khali. With Khali's bad legs and knees, putting him into it would cause him extra agony, an angle that Chris had to exploit. When he finally locked it in, Khali had no choice but to tap because of the pain that overwhelmed him. He'd just beaten a giant._

_He climbed on the turnbuckle with a microphone in hand, telling Sheamus he'd hoped he had seen that and that he hoped that he wasn't thinking about what Edge said to him. Chris was the first Undisputed Champion, not Edge, and Chris had just beaten Khali. He was the obvious choice for getting the chance at the title. In another universe, he might have brought up the fact that he owned the company, but that was not his angle. He deserved the shot and Sheamus better give it to him. He could hear that crowd's murmuring going in a different direction and he glanced over his shoulder to see Khali right there. He knew what was coming and tried to not move so quickly so he could get away, but Khali got in a chop that knocked him to the ground first. No matter, he'd taken worse and he'd still won the match so Sheamus still had to pick him, he just had to._

_By the time the show was over, Chris _was_ in the title match, only it was with five other guys, including his protégé. He'd won in matches like this before. The key was to know your spot. The other guys didn't know this strategy, they didn't appreciate it and that's why they weren't going to win. He was going to walk out of Night of Champions the ultimate champion and he'd just like to see everyone stop him._

_Unless the one thing that would stop him was himself…_

**Tuesday**

"Mommy, is Daddy home yet?" Sawyer asked sleepily as he burrowed himself deeper into the pillow on his parent's bed. His mommy had said that he and Flynn could sleep there tonight since their daddy was coming home.

"Not yet, baby boy," Stephanie said, brushing his hair back. She'd just slipped in to check on them before heading back downstairs to wait for Chris. He should be home very soon and she couldn't wait to see him. It was almost 11:30 so he could come any minute. "He'll be here soon though, just try and sleep."

"Okay," Sawyer mumbled as he closed his eyes again. Flynn cuddled up to her brother a little more, her head turned away from Stephanie and facing the window on the other side of the room. Stephanie gingerly stood up before leaving the room again. She could hear the door open and she hurried as fast as she could to the stairs.

"Chris!" she hissed and Chris turned to look up and he grinned, dropping his bags, hopping over their baby cage and taking the steps two at a time, hurdling over the other baby cage and going over to her, hugging her fiercely as he peppered her face with kisses before finding her lips.

"God, I missed you," he mumbled against her lips. He looked down and grinned. "Still in there."

"They were waiting for you," she said as he leaned down to kiss her stomach where her skin was just peeking out from her tank top.

"Hey there, kiddo, you are free to come any moment now," Chris said, kissing her stomach again. He stood up again and kissed Stephanie. "I'm not really tired right now since to me it's like the afternoon right now, but I want to get in bed with you right now."

"No can do, you promised the kids they could sleep with us and they want to see you _so_ bad," she said, leading him towards the bedroom. Chris entered the room and saw his two kids sleeping in the middle of his big bed, Flynn curled against Sawyer. Chris sighed in happiness at seeing his kids. He went over and brushed Flynn's hair out of her face, causing her to stir a little and kick Sawyer in the shin, which caused him to wake up.

"Hey there, kid," Chris said softly so only he would hear.

"Daddy?" Sawyer asked sleepily, then, seeing it _was_ Chris, he sat up quickly and yelled, "Daddy!"

This definitely caused Flynn to wake up and even in her half-sleepy state, she was still a menace, kicking and throwing her small fists everywhere as she stretched. Chris laughed and tried to pull her away from Sawyer lest she hit him in the face. Flynn opened her eyes and saw who was holding her and she gave him the most happy, surprised face her sleep-muddled brain could muster. "Daddy!" she yelled too and threw her arms around him as she buried her face into his chest. Chris hugged her back fiercely, opening his other arm to embrace Sawyer as well.

"I missed you, Daddy," Sawyer said happily, falling against his father.

"I mi you too!" Flynn yelled, though muffled in his shirt. Chris smiled as Stephanie walked over and rubbed his back, leaning her chin on his shoulder as her stomach pressed against him, a constant reminder that their family was _very_ close to becoming one person larger.

This was truly the life.

**Wednesday**

"Chris, can you please keep it down or take them outside or something?"

Chris looked up at Stephanie, who was standing in the doorway or more like leaning in it. She had been trying to take a nap because her back had been aching and she had a headache. He'd taken the kids downstairs where they were playing in the living room, but when you had two small kids, they were bound to make noise and they had become progressively louder and though their house was huge, noise always carried.

"Sorry, baby," he said sheepishly, standing up and walking over to her, wrapping her up in his arms. She had to stand sideways so he could hold her properly. "I'll take the kids outside, okay. Do you want to stay down here or I can help you upstairs?"

"I think I'm going to go into my office and lay down on the couch in there," Stephanie said. "It's quiet and soundproof so I won't have to hear anyone."

"Baby, you look exhausted, are you okay?" he asked, brushing her hair away from her face.

"Yeah, it was just taking care of the kids while you were over in Asia. It's been really hard work," Stephanie told him. "I know your parents were here and they took the kids some of the time, but you know how it goes, they're both very clingy sometimes and with you gone, they thought I was going to abandon them too. I'm three days overdue and I just want this baby out of me, but Dr. Sheldon won't induce me until at least a week overdue and I'm just…everything is weighing down on me."

"I understand," he said, kissing her forehead. "And it probably just doesn't help that you have two very noisy children."

"No, it doesn't, not that I don't love them," Stephanie said, glancing over at her children. "Chris, why do we have three children under the age of five? Weren't we supposed to space them out, have at least three years between them all? What happened to _that_ plan?"

"Out the window," Chris said, "totally out the window."

"I know," she said. "Okay, well, I'm going to take a nap."

"Do you want some water or something?" he asked. "Something to eat maybe?"

"No," she told him. "Do you want to quickly come have sex with me though?"

Chris raised an eyebrow and looked at her, "Now you know I would never, ever, _ever_ object to having sex with you under any circumstances, but it's the middle of the afternoon and our kids are right there."

"I know, but I've tried everything else to try and induce labor. We went on the walk this morning with the kids, I ate that incredibly spicy chili last night-"

"Believe me, I remember the chili," Chris interjected with a short laugh. Stephanie glared at him. "What? I'm not allowed to joke about it? Come on, Steph, it was pretty funny, I mean, it was gross."

"Men are so disgusting," Stephanie said. "I was trying to eat spicy because they said that spicy food can help, but nope. Why couldn't this kid have been like Flynn and come early? Why does it have to be like Sawyer and come late?"

"Maybe that's a sign that it's a boy," Chris said excitedly, rubbing his hand over her stomach and feeling a rather large bump against his hand. "See, he just moved, so he knows that I've been right and he's trying to tell me."

"Yeah, no, he's just hunkering down in there, it's a battle of wills now," she said. "We can just have a quickie, I promise. I know we tried last night, but it didn't work last night and you probably thought you were having sex with a whale."

"I never think that and you know it," he let her know, kissing her cheek as she continued to speak.

"You probably want to go out and find some young thing," she said, obviously joking with him, "like Kelly Kelly or Layla or the Bella twins."

"Yeah, it's true," he said, pushing her up against the doorway. "So you want me right now so you can go into labor?"

"Yes, I would like that very much."

"It probably won't work, you know," he told her. "I think the baby is going to come out when it wants to come out."

"It wouldn't hurt to try though," she said in a sing-song voice. "Come on, this will probably be the last time you can have me for the next six weeks or more if you decide to become like Christian, but I'm telling you now, Chris Jericho, if you make me wait seven months, then I might have to go find some young thing like Kelly Kelly."

"Believe me, I'll be chomping at the bit," he told her, then turned towards the living room. "Hey, you two, come on, I want you guys in the playroom, now!"

"But Daddy, we're playing in here," Sawyer told him.

"I know, you won't have to stay in there long, Mommy and I just have to do something really quick and I don't trust you two to watch yourselves so I would rather have you guys in the playroom where you won't get into anything."

"But Daddy," Sawyer whined.

"It'll take like twenty minutes, kid," Chris said, going over and plucking Flynn off the ground. "I promise, then we will go outside and we'll play around for a while, while Mommy takes a nap."

"Mommies don't need naps," Sawyer answered, feeling a little mad now.

"They do when they have babies," Chris said, "come on."

"I don't want to!" Sawyer said, standing his ground.

"Sawyer, please," Stephanie said, pouting her lips. Sawyer knew that he couldn't trust his mommy with that look, but she just looked so sad. He never wanted his mommy to be _sad_. He stood up and started going towards the playroom, stopping to hug Stephanie's legs.

"I don't want you to be sad, Mommy, or the baby," Sawyer told her.

"I know, baby boy, I know," she said, ruffling his hand and blowing him a kiss since she couldn't bend down quickly enough to kiss him.

"I'll meet you in your office," Chris winked at her as he led the kids to the playroom. Stephanie smiled and kissed him briefly on the cheek before she walked into her office. She looked down at herself. She was in sweatpants and one of Chris's t-shirts, which even now was stretching across her stomach. She felt very unsexy, but she was willing to try anything at this point to go into labor. It was partly because pregnancy was really sucking the life out of her right now and partly because she was so anxious to know what this baby was. She kept wavering between boy and girl, though she kept up the boy thing with Chris. Truthfully, she would love to see Chris with another little girl. Deciding to just go as is, she took off her shirt, leaving her in her bra and the sweatpants and wondered if she should just shed the sweatpants as well. Chris walked in as she was trying to slip them off and he grinned at her.

"Hubba hubba, what a sexy picture," Chris told her and she glared at him. He sat down next to her and started to kiss her neck, "You're beautiful, you know it, I know it, and I've never had much of a problem wanting to be with you."

"I'm not beautiful."

"You get more beautiful by the day."

"You're humoring me," she said as he started kissing her collarbone.

He hummed against her skin, "Nope, it's quite the anomaly, you only seem to get more beautiful as you get older. I think it might have something to do with just…you. Just how you are, you're so damn amazing in every way."

"Chris…"

"And then you know, having _three_ of my kids. I thought I'd be lucky to have one, somewhere far away down the line and you are so beautiful."

Chris was a charmer. She'd known that from the first moment she met him. He'd charmed her that morning as well, though she hadn't been so receptive to it. Andrew had been constantly on her mind, she was enamored with him and couldn't spare many glances in Chris's direction. He had been handsome, but cocky and she hadn't liked that so much about him, but damn if he wasn't charming. Even now, his words could slice through any insecurity she felt and when he said she was beautiful, she had to believe him. He pulled her into his lap and she turned to start kissing him.

Sawyer sat on the couch, watching the movie that his daddy had put on for him. Flynn was in the corner, playing with the chalkboard they had, drawing scribbly things across it. When she was tired of that, she walked over to Sawyer and showed him her hands with chalk on them. Sawyer laughed and pushed them out of his face as she giggled as well before she tried to climb on the couch. Sawyer got off and pushed her up on the couch.

"Tank you," she said sweetly as she tried to wipe her hands on the back of the couch. Sawyer climbed back on and sat next to her.

"You're welcome," Sawyer said as Flynn sidled up to him. "Don't push me, Flynnie, we're not wrestlers."

"I westle."

"No, you don't, Daddy wrestles."

"Whe Daddy?" Flynn asked.

"He had to help Mommy because she's very big because she has a baby in her tummy and it's going to be a baby because you were in there too and then you came out and you were a baby," Sawyer explained.

"No baby."

"We're gonna have one," Sawyer told her.

"No," Flynn shook her head.

"Uh huh," he argued, "it's going to be like Tilden and it's going to be little and you should like babies because they're nice and you are a baby."

"I no baby!" Flynn said, folding her arms in front of herself.

"I'm older than you," Sawyer told her and she pushed at him, but he didn't move much. "You'll like the baby though, it'll be really small and you'll like it and then we can be big brothers and you are a big sister."

"I not."

"Uh huh," Sawyer nodded.

Flynn pouted and sat down against the couch. She was not a baby! She loved her Sawyer, but she wasn't a baby. She didn't like babies. Babies were dumb and she didn't like them. Linda had tried to give her a baby doll for her birthday a few weeks ago, but she had thrown it around so much that Chris and Stephanie had had to confiscate it after she threw it at Sawyer's head. They weren't sure if this was the terrible two's for Flynn or if Flynn was really just a product of Chris and Stephanie themselves. She was certainly more like them than Sawyer was.

"I not baby," she told her brother, glaring at him.

"Well you're my baby," Sawyer told her.

"Okay," she told him, but only because he was her brother and she loved him very much. She smiled at him and leaned her head on his shoulder so she could watch whatever Sawyer was watching.

Chris leaned back against the couch as Stephanie rolled off him, sitting next to him as his head stared at up at the ceiling. Stephanie leaned over and kissed his neck, wrapping her arms around his waist. He turned his head and kissed her forehead, brushing away some of her hair that had fallen loose from her ponytail. His fingers trailed down the side of her face and came to rest on her chin, tilting it up so he could kiss her again. They stayed silent in their intimacy and afterglow, snuggling against one another as Chris's arm found her waist and his hand brushed against her stomach. She rubbed his stomach a little bit, calming them both down before she leaned her chin on his shoulder.

"So would now be the best time to tell you that I've been in labor for the past few hours?" Stephanie whispered to him.

Chris laughed, "So this was?"

"I thought I'd give you one more for the road, especially since we didn't get a moment's peace last night with the kids in bed with us," she told him. "They're not close together, about twenty minutes apart right now and they only last for about 35 seconds. I was timing myself upstairs. We've still got a while to go before we head to the hospital. My water hasn't broken, though it seems like you were trying to make it break."

"That would've been awkward," Chris told her. "You could have told me you know."

"And ruin my fun?" she said coyly, then paused and closed her eyes, taking a few deep breaths. Chris held her a little tighter and kissed her until she opened her eyes.

"Just have one?"

"Yeah," she told him. "It's not so bad right now. I figure at this point, I could probably have the kid right here and deliver it myself."

He laughed, "As long as I don't have to look down there, I'm fine with this."

"I know you won't be looking, you chicken," she told him. "I feel very calm with this one. I know he's overdue, but I don't know, I just feel like this is very…it's different this time. It's not our first, so I'm not scared, you're here with me so I know I'm not going to be alone with Sawyer, it's just, this one feels different, but good different."

"Good," he said. He mused for a second, "This is our third child, you know?"

"I know," she told him, pressing her hand over his on her stomach. "Did you really hate me?"

"Yes," he said without hesitation.

"I hated you too," she told him, glancing over at him. "You were so mean to me, calling me a whore and ho and saying that I was always on my back and had slept with half the locker room and wanting to take me to Hooters."

"Hey, I _did_ take you to Hooters," Chris told her, "I have pictures to prove it."

She laughed, thinking about the pictures of her in one of the Hooters shirts and with the other waitresses. Chris had convinced her to take it when they went there one night for dinner. "How did we build a life?"

"Through wild sex and not enough protection," he answered her.

"No," she told him, squeezing his hand lightly, "I mean, all of this, I hate to use words like this because you know I'm hardly as religious as you tend to be, but we really are blessed. I don't have any other words of it, but we're definitely blessed. I'm blessed. When I was a little girl…I always wanted a lot of kids, you know, Shane was seven years older than me and always interested in different things than I was. He was out of the house before I was even a teenager. I was very lonely as a kid-"

"I know the feeling," he interrupted.

"I guess, when I was with Hunter, I thought that I would settle down and I'd have a family and I was always saying I would try, you know, like when I took the time off so we could have the baby, after that accident with him."

"Yeah, I remember, I think I puked that night thinking about your spawn," Chris joked and she rolled her eyes.

"You are aware you share multiple children with me right now, right?"

"Oh, I'm aware, yes."

"Anyways, it never happened with me and Hunter for whatever reason, I mean, we probably didn't try hard enough or whatever, but it was like, after that, the kids…they became this distant thing again, something I might never have and I tried not to let it get to me…I guess it just shows how meant to be we are that we have three kids without even trying."

"I have super sperm," he shrugged and she shook her head. "I love you. I cannot picture ever having kids with any other person in this entire world but you. I wouldn't want to."

She nodded. "I know."

"DADDY! Let us out!" Sawyer yelled.

"And thank you for _that_," Chris told her as they both laughed at their son, who was probably shaking the baby cage they had on the door to the playroom. "Do you need some help putting your underwear and pants on?"

"Yes, thank you," she told him. Chris stood up, pulling his boxers and pants back up as he gathered Stephanie's underwear and sweatpants, helping her into them as she pulled her t-shirt back over her head.

"Do you want me to take the kids to my parents now or do you want to wait until you have to go to the hospital?" Chris asked as he helped her off the couch. "Do you want me to carry you upstairs to rest for a while?"

"We can wait on the kids, maybe call your parents to make sure that they're around because if not we'll have to get someone else, maybe Edge and Lita or…well, no, I don't think it'd be a good idea to leave Flynn with Tilden. Not after how she behaved the other day with her at the park."

"Yeah, probably not the best idea," Chris said. "I'll call them."

"I'll take the kids outside," Stephanie said. "I think getting some air will help."

"You sure?" he asked. "They're going to be noisy, you know that, right?"

"Chris, my kids are noisy, there's no way I'm taking a nap because of the contractions, if you'll get me a glass of water, I should be all set."

"Okay, your wish is my command," Chris told her. He kissed Stephanie and then leaned down to kiss her stomach, "If you're a girl, can you just magically change into a boy, thanks, kiddo."

Stephanie laughed and walked out of her office. She made a quick stop in the bathroom to clean up before heading down the hallway and turning right before turning left down another hallway. She came up to the playroom door and saw two little people staring back at her. Sawyer had his cheesy, "I'm the son of Chris Jericho" smile on his face and Flynn's face was squished up against the grate. Stephanie laughed as she looked at her two little people. She reached down and opened the gate and let them both through.

"Did Daddy help you, Mommy?" Sawyer asked.

"Uh huh, Daddy is a big help."

"Good," Sawyer said.

"You guys want to go outside?"

"Okay!' Sawyer said enthusiastically.

"Yes!" Flynn screamed, then growled. Stephanie laughed at her. Flynn had taken after some of the promos she watched, often acting like she was very mean and tough, which was hilarious because she was so adorable with her light brown hair and smoky blue eyes.

"Well okay," Stephanie said as she ushered them out towards the back.

Chris, meanwhile, was tapping his foot and waiting for his dad to answer. "Hello?"

"Hey, Dad, it's me," Chris said, "are you and Mom at home right now or are you out?"

"We just left the house, we're heading to the supermarket, why?" Ted said, then he heard his mother's muffled voice. "It's Chris, keep your eyes on the road," he could hear his dad say. "So what's going on?"

"Well, Stephanie's in labor right now and we're going to need someone to watch the kids later."

"Aren't you…going to the hospital?" Ted asked.

"Not right now, the contractions are so far apart, it could be hours before we'll even have to go to the hospital," Chris explained. "I just wanted to give you the heads up and to find out if you were going to be home or if we would have to make other arrangements for the kids."

"We'll be home, we're just going to the store. Tell Stephanie we're thinking of her," Ted said. "We can't wait to meet this new one."

"Neither can we," Chris said with a proud grin on his face. "I'll talk to you later, Dad, tell Mom I said hi."

"Will do, we'll see you in a little bit, wait, do you want us to come over there or do you want to drop off the kids here?"

"I guess it would be better if we dropped them off, but you have our house key so you can bring the kids back if you want, it might be easier if they're in the house and not over there wrecking your place. We obviously don't know when the baby is going to come exactly and I might stay the night so if you want to bring them over here so they can stay in their beds, that would be fine."

"Okay, we'll discuss it, I'll let you get back to Stephanie and your mother is about to swerve off the road trying to listen in on this conversation so it's probably best I get off the phone now."

"Okay, bye Dad," Chris said, a giddiness in his voice that Ted hadn't heard in a long while. Chris hung up the phone and grabbed a glass from the cabinet before filling it with bottled water and taking it outside where Stephanie was trying to gather Flynn in, though the girl was trying to break away so she could go play on the playground. "Here you go, Steph," he said, placing the glass on their patio table. "What are you trying to do?"

"I wanted to talk, but Flynn wants to play," Stephanie said, breathing through her mouth as she gripped the table.

"Mommy, are you okay?" Sawyer asked concernedly, his eyebrows knitting together. "Daddy, what's wrong with Mommy?"

Chris went over and plucked Flynn off the ground, holding her close to him as he came over and knelt next to Sawyer, letting Stephanie grip his arm when her contraction was finished as she eased herself into the patio chair next to them. "Okay, so we wanted to tell you right now that Mommy is going to have the baby today or tomorrow, depending on how long it takes," Chris said. "Right now, Mommy is going to rest over here and we're not going to bother her, we're going to go over and play until your mommy has to go to the hospital."

"Mommy, you're having the baby?" Sawyer asked as Flynn frowned. Why was _everyone_ constantly talking about this baby? What baby? That stupid baby that she'd had to see the other day? She did not want that baby around here again. Her parents better not be discussing that stupid baby again.

"Well, not right this second," Stephanie said, rubbing the back of Sawyer's neck reassuringly. "I'm having what is called contractions, it's when the baby is telling me it's time to come out, but it can take a while for it to happen."

"Am I going to the hospital too?" Sawyer asked sweetly.

"No, you're going to stay with Grandma and Grandpa, right, Chris?" Stephanie asked and he nodded. "You're going to stay with Grandma and Grandpa, I'm going to probably have to spend the night in the hospital, but if I have the baby early enough, Grandma and Grandpa can come and you can visit with us."

"Okay," Sawyer said with a nod. "I'll do that."

"Good," she said, leaning down to kiss him. "Now why don't you go play with Daddy while I'll watch."

"Okay," Sawyer said and as soon as Chris put Flynn down, she was off and running with Chris chasing after her to make sure she didn't fall on the way to or _on_ the playground. Sawyer looked a little reluctant to leave Stephanie by herself, but she _seemed_ okay so he turned and ran towards the playground as well. Stephanie sat there, rubbing her stomach and drinking the water Chris gave her as she watched her family in front of her. The contractions were coming about every fifteen minutes now and the intensity of them was slowly increasing. They were still very uncomfortable, but she was able to breathe through them for the most part.

Chris kept glancing over her way and raising his eyebrows and she would give him a thumbs up and then display how far apart they were using her fingers. He would nod and then go back to the kids, watching them play and giving Flynn a boost wherever she needed one. She heard the doorbell ring and she looked over her shoulder. She looked back to Chris and pushed herself up off her chair. "Chris, the doorbell just rang, I'm going to get it!" she called to him.

"Let me get it, you just sit!" he said, starting to jog over, but she put a hand in the air.

"I can still walk and you need to watch the kids, I can handle going to the door, it doesn't take me fifteen minutes," she told him as she made her way inside. She slowly walked her way to the door and could see Ted and Loretta through the window. She opened it and smiled at them. "Hey, you guys, I thought Chris said we'd call when we were leaving to drop off the kids."

"Shouldn't you be at the hospital!" Loretta said, storming past Ted and over to Stephanie, grabbing her hand and putting her arm around her waist. "Why aren't you at the hospital right now, young lady!"

Stephanie laughed, "Loretta, I'm fine, I promise. I'm only in the early stages of labor, we don't need to rush."

"Don't need to rush? The first sign of contractions and I was at the hospital."

"Well, that was forty years ago," Stephanie reminded her, "they didn't know as much then and this is my third child, I know how my body works and if I go to the hospital now I'm just going to end up sitting there for hours and hours on end with nothing to do."

"Well what were you doing now?" Ted asked.

"I was just sitting on the patio drinking some water and watching Chris play with the kids."

"Shouldn't you be…resting or lying down?" Ted asked, not really well-nuanced with this labor thing. Chris's had been during hockey season and he hadn't been able to attend so he didn't know how these things usually went.

"I was, I was sitting down and just watching," Stephanie explained again as Loretta started to help her outdoors. "Loretta, I can walk, really, I walked all the way to the door without anyone's help."

"My son should've gotten the door or help you, what is wrong with him?" Loretta said. Stephanie knew they meant well, but this was precisely why she didn't want anyone but Chris around when she was giving birth. Chris always knew what she wanted, which was someone to be there for her, but not someone to tell her what to do. Chris knew when to shut up and let her listen and when to take the brunt of her anger. He knew what to do because he was so much like her. Everyone else wanted to smother her. And then, of all times to have a contraction; she had to stop walking as she bent over a little bit. "Oh Stephanie, why won't you go to the hospital?" Loretta asked as soon as it had passed.

"I'm fine, Loretta, I swear, they're still only about fifteen minutes apart and my water hasn't yet broken so I'm fine," Stephanie said, wanting to extricate herself from Loretta's hold, but she didn't want to be rude. Besides, it was only a few more feet to the door. They walked outside and Chris saw his parents and jogged over.

"Mom, Dad, what are you doing here?"

"Your mother insisted that we come over here as soon as she heard that Stephanie was in labor," Ted explained.

"I thought you had to go to the store."

"You think I could go to the store at a time like this?" Loretta scoffed. "My grandchild is being born and you think that I'm going to the store."

"Well, she wasn't going to have it within the like 30 minutes it would've taken you at the store," Chris said, helping Stephanie back into her chair. "You guys really didn't have to come, we're just hanging out for a while."

"Which I don't understand," Loretta said, sitting down next to Stephanie. "Do you want a pillow for your back or anything, Stephanie?"

"I'm fine, Loretta," Stephanie said. "I promise."

"Daddy!" Flynn yelled. She was stuck on the top of slide and she needed her daddy to catch her at the bottom.

"I'm coming," Chris said, running back over. Sawyer was already down the slide and seeing his grandparents, he started running over to them.

"Hi, Grandma, hi Grandpa, guess what?" He didn't wait for them to answer, "Mommy is having the baby!"

"I heard," Ted said, patting Sawyer on the head.

"I'm going back to playing," Sawyer said, running back towards the playground.

"Stephanie, are you sure we can't do anything for you?" Loretta asked. She wanted to help in some way and she just was shocked that Stephanie wouldn't go to the hospital. She was nervous for her daughter-in-law, who in turn, seemed as calm as anything. She was sitting there, just sipping water and chatting with Ted about the baby's room and how they'd done it in a light teal and had just moved the last of the clothes from their storage room into the drawers. There were some decidedly boyish pieces and some decidedly girly pieces, but being a baby, it wouldn't care She felt anxious for her daughter-in-law, though Stephanie seemed unfazed by it all.

Loretta gave a small chuckle and Stephanie looked over at her, "What's so funny?"

"I was just thinking about how much I hated you when you first showed up on my doorstep. I was so ready to hate you and I wanted you and Chris to break up immediately."

Stephanie laughed as well, "I thought you were going to close the door in my face and make me freeze out in the cold."

"And now look at us," Loretta said, patting Stephanie's hand. "We're waiting on our third grandchild."

Stephanie smiled at her, "Well, I guess you couldn't resist my charms."

Once Loretta and Ted saw that the baby wasn't going to spontaneously burst from Stephanie's stomach, they calmed down enough to where Stephanie felt at ease and not on display like some caged animal at the zoo. Sawyer and Flynn eventually got tired of playing on the playground and moved to their bikes, though Flynn was new to this whole bike thing so Chris mostly pushed her around. When the time wound down, Stephanie knew it was time to start heading to the hospital. Chris seemed to know as he let his father take over with the kids.

"You want to go?" Stephanie nodded through a contraction as Loretta rubbed her back. It was actually kind of comforting. "Okay, I'm going to grab your stuff and stick in the car and then we'll go."

"I'll help you out to the car," Loretta said.

"Thanks," Stephanie said, though she didn't really need help. "Thank you for taking care of the kids."

"They're our grandchildren, of course we would," Loretta said. "Sawyer, Flynn come and say bye to Mommy, she's going to go to the hospital now."

Sawyer eagerly hopped off his bike and ran over to his mother. "Mommy, you're really going now?"

"Uh huh," she told him. "I'll see you soon though, okay, and the new baby probably just can't wait to meet you. I know that they are going to love the hell out of you."

"I'll love the hell out of them too," he grinned. She laughed and kissed his forehead. "Will we see you later, Mommy?"

"Yeah, you will see me later," she said, kissing him again.

Ted brought over Flynn and Stephanie smiled at her little girl. "Hey there, crazy girl," Stephanie said, making a funny face for her daughter. Flynn giggled and buried her face in Ted's shoulder. Stephanie tilted Flynn's chin towards her. "Flynnie, Mommy is going to go have a baby, I know you don't like babies and you think that they're going to steal Sawyer away from you, but I promise, that isn't going to happen, okay?"

"Okay," Flynn said quietly.

"I love you and I'll see you later," Stephanie told her.

"Love you," Flynn said and Stephanie kissed her nose.

"Okay, let's get you to the hospital," Loretta said, ushering Stephanie towards the front door. "I know you're going to be fine and you're going to give birth to the most beautiful baby in the entire world."

"Thank you, Loretta."

"Thank _me_, thank _you_," she said, kissing Stephanie's cheek. "You have no idea how happy you make my son, you know that right? You make him _so_ happy."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, "what is bringing this on now?"

"I just…I'm so happy for you is all," Loretta said, tears coming to her eyes. "I don't know, I just, when you have to watch your son leave you at 19 and then watch him try so hard to make his dream come true, but neglects all the other things that can make him happy, you think to yourself, is this all there is for him? So many times I'd sit up at night, worrying about him, wondering where he was traveling to this time. Europe, Mexico, Japan, he was everywhere and oftentimes he'd get some breakthrough in his career only to get knocked down again."

They had to stop while Stephanie had another contraction.

"He just didn't have time for anything else. You've seen Chris, you know how driven he is towards a goal. He wanted to be a wrestler and come hell or high water he was going to do it. He wanted to be a rockstar, by God, he was going to be a rockstar. My son is always on the move and I think every mother, hopefully, wants their children to be happy. I know he was happy with the wrestling, despite the setbacks because it was what he loved, but I'd be lying if I didn't think the big picture, the wife, the house, the kids and I started to see it fade from memory, being replaced with hopes he would get a title or that he would get to be in the main event at some big wrestling show. I started to think that this was the happiness I would have to have for him, just that. I didn't want him to be old and alone though. I didn't want him to be some old man still plowing through woman after woman culling a little comfort from each one, but nothing more. I didn't want that for him."

"I wouldn't think you would," Stephanie said as Loretta helped her down the steps. Chris was tossing stuff into the backseat.

"I thought maybe there just isn't anyone out there that will make him that kind of happy, the settled kind of happy. I certainly didn't think it was you when I first saw you and my son interact with each other." They both laughed. "But when I look at him with you now, I see that 19 year old boy who has the whole world in front of him and wants it all. I just think he has it all with you."

"Thank you," Stephanie said, hugging her mother-in-law. "But believe me, he _does_ tell me all the time."

"Then I raised him right."

"Steph, you ready," Chris said, suddenly showing up at her side. "I think I can take it from here, Mom."

"I'm sure you can," Loretta said, leaning up to kiss him on the cheek. "Good luck you two, we'll be waiting on the news, I think I'll probably just sit by the phone."

Chris laughed. "We're taking my car, it doesn't have the car-seats in it so if you take the kids out tonight you can just take our SUV because it has Flynn's car-seat and Sawyer's booster seat. I'll call you as soon as everything has gone down and hopefully you guys can come visit. I know they're pretty lenient with family, especially with siblings so we'll see."

"Bye," Loretta said as Chris helped Stephanie into the low seat of the car. They both waved at her before Chris pealed out of the driveway and headed towards the hospital.

They went through the usual hospital procedure of checking Stephanie in and getting her into a birthing room. She felt like this was her second home at this point. The room was newly decorated though. Instead of the light purple walls they used to have, the walls were now a cheery blue color with what appeared to be a border of irises. It was certainly a cheerful room and very calm and cool, probably to help new mothers who were stressed. Stephanie put on the gown they gave her and Chris helped her into the big bed. He grabbed the pillows and situated them for her as the nurses hooked her up to the fetal monitor to track the baby.

"I can't believe we're about to know what's going on in there," Stephanie said, pointing down to her stomach as she settled back against the pillows. Chris sat next to her on the bed and wrapped his arm around her. "I just want to know what it is so badly."

"We're going to find out soon," Chris said and he could hardly contain his giddiness. Stephanie glanced over at him and he had that smile on his face where he was obviously trying not to out-and-out grin so he would bit his bottom lip. "God, please, please be a boy."

"Like you would hate it if it were a girl," Stephanie said smartly.

"I would love her too," he said, thinking of his little flutterby at home, his aggressive, feisty, hot-tempered little girl. Flynn, for all her quietude in the early months of her life, was flaring into a amalgamation of him and Stephanie right before their eyes.

"I should hope…" Her voice trailed off as she took a deep breath. Chris just rubbed her back as she closed her eyes and breathed through her mouth. When it passed, she smiled at him. "I should hope so."

"Stephanie!" Dr. Sheldon said brightly as she walked into the birthing room. "I heard that the little one was ready to meet the family, I'm glad that they decided to make their appearance so we don't have to induce you."

"Me too," Stephanie said.

Dr. Sheldon picked up her chart. "Okay, so it says here that your water hasn't broken yet. Let's check to see how far you're dilated before deciding if we should break it right now."

"Okay," Stephanie said, putting her feet up in the stirrups provided at the edge of the bed. Dr. Sheldon checked on her, feeling around and checking on her progress.

"Well, Stephanie, you're dilated about 6 cm right now, which is pretty good," she said, "and you say you've been in labor since about what time?"

"Around 11," Stephanie answered.

"Okay, so it's rounding out 4 right now, you're doing fine for now. If your water hasn't broken by the time you get to 9 cm then we'll manually break it like we did with Sawyer. We'll probably wait until then to break it manually if needed because the contractions tend to get intense, as you know-"

"All too well," Stephanie laughed.

"I'll be back to check on you in a little bit, if you need anything, you know which button to press," Dr. Sheldon said, patting her knee and leaving them be for the time being. Stephanie sighed and turned to her husband and sighed.

"I'm glad I didn't go into labor yesterday, can you imagine my dad's..." She paused for a contraction. Chris rubbed her lower back. She took a breath and continued, "hubris if the baby was born on his birthday? Oh my God, as if he isn't bad enough with all his 'I have six grandchildren' talk, to have one of them born on his birthday would absolutely make him think he was the king of the universe."

Chris laughed. "As if your dad doesn't think that already."

"You're right," she said, leaning a little bit against him and back against the pillows. "So have you thought anymore about what we haven't talked about since I mentioned it? I know that I told you I would give you time to think, but all I have right now is time until I start pushing this baby out and well, it's kind of crunch time here, Chris."

Chris brushed Stephanie's hair back. "Well, I've been wanting to ask you about that since you brought it up. If I were to take a break, what would happen with your job? Would we still be traveling and you're working and I'm sitting backstage taking care of three kids while I could ostensibly be wrestling?"

"I do want to continue to work," she said.

"Well, if that's the case, why do I take a break?" he asked.

"I'm…not sure actually…I guess maybe I just wanted you to take a six week break until the baby was ready to travel," she said.

"That's reasonable, but then I got to thinking," he told her. "I've been pretty much going at full speed the last couple years, right? I mean, first there was me coming back and my book, then there was Flynn, then the new album and then the show and the touring and on top of that the wrestling."

"I don't know how you found time to knock me up again," she told him and he kissed her cheek playfully. "You do so much, Chris."

"I know and I do all these things because I love them, because I love you and us and wrestling and all of it, but you know, I got to thinking that a break sounds nice. I can't necessarily take a break from my music right now, the rest of the guys want to promote the album, the label wants another tour because of how well the first one did and wants to expand-"

"I know all this," she told him.

"Well, wrestling is really the one thing I _can_ control. I can't just turn off being a husband or father, that's _me_, that's who I am now, you say Chris Jericho and the words husband and father are right there, but the band is not just me, it's other guys too, other guys who want to do this and be that. Wrestling, let's face it, I own the company and I can control what I do."

She rubbed his cheek as she breathed through another contraction. "I love when you actually acknowledge that you do _own_ this business."

"Well, it's probably the one I can most easily take a break from and I like the idea of letting my body kind of focus on one less thing."

"I understand," she said and his eyes widened. "Chris, I'm your wife, I know how hard you work, not just with wrestling, but with everything. We have taken on a huge challenge raising three children with our schedules and without nannies. We're pushed thin a lot and you do more than I do." Chris started to open his mouth and Stephanie shook her head to shush him, "Don't act like I do more, I work for _one_ company, you work for the world."

"Stephanie, not the same, baby," he said, "if people knew how hard you worked."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, they would see that I don't deserve the harsh criticism," she said, rolling her eyes. "I support you wanting to take a break and you can absolutely still travel with me and I wouldn't dump all three kids on you. I just don't think you should go out and say to the crowd, 'Hey, I'm taking a break!' and I certainly don't want you to go out and say, 'I have three kids with my wife, Stephanie.'"

"So what are you suggesting I do?"

"I don't know, you hate everyone so pretend to give them an ultimatum, tell them you're going to quit if you don't win the WWE title or something and then take a dive."

"You want me to take a dive?" he asked.

"Well, yeah, if that's what you want to do, I mean, it gives you a reason to leave and still hate the fans and then when you come back, you can be like, 'I've reformed!'"

He shook his head. "I'll think about it. It'll be nice to actually get to spend time focusing on one thing."

She kissed him and then pulled away for another contraction. "I know," she said, after she was through. "I think you deserve it, to be honest. You work harder than anyone around there and I know it's to set a precedent because of me."

"Who said it had anything to do with you?" he told her. "I'm just trying to impress Flynn."

"She's going to be so disappointed, so is Sawyer," she said suddenly. "They love watching you so much."

"It won't be forever and we can watch tapes or we can send Flynn in your place, I'm sure she'd love that, though she should probably be able to talk in full sentences before she goes out and cuts a promo," Chris joked. "But you know, maybe they can come to one of my concerts, we can just put earplugs in for them to dull the sound and they can watch from the side-stage or the VIP section."

"They'd probably like that," she said with a sigh. "I want you to be happy."

"Believe me I am," he said, kissing her temple.

"That's what your mom said."

"Oh great, what did she say now?" Chris asked. He could only imagine what his mother had said to his wife.

"She just said that I make you very happy and she hopes that you tell me all the time, it was very nice," she said, breathing through another contraction. "I like that she's happy for us. I'm glad that I could give her what she wanted, which was the grandkids."

"And you've worked overtime on that one. Why don't you lay back and try and relax," Chris said. "Do you want some ice chips or anything?"

"That'd be nice," she said, trying to get comfy. "Do you think while you're out there you could call my parents and Shane?

"Absolutely," he said, kissing her forehead, "don't have the baby while I'm gone."

"Wouldn't even think of it," she winked at him.

Chris walked out of her room and down the hall to the cell phone area. The last thing he wanted to happen right now was for him to get kicked out of the hospital. He took a seat in one of the chairs and dialed his in-laws number, but then remembered that because there'd been the overseas tour and there was a few days off for everyone (his wife had impeccable timing with kids) they were campaigning around Connecticut. He ended the call and then called Linda's cell phone, not wanting to talk to Vince right now.

"Chris, hello, is this important, I'm about to have a bit of a meet and greet here," Linda said.

"Sorry," Chris told her, "Stephanie's in labor, I just wanted to let you know, right now, she's about 6 centimeters dilated and it's just a waiting game until she can push. The baby should be out by tonight though so if you want to fly down, you don't have to right now though, you know how Stephanie is."

"Yes, she wants us as far away as possible," Linda said. "Let us know how she's doing, I'll tell Vince, he's going to be very disappointed the baby didn't come yesterday, but babies come when they want to come. Absolutely call us when she delivers, I don't care where we are."

"I'll let you know, Linda," Chris said.

"And congratulations to you, Chris, to the both of you."

"Thanks," he beamed. He hung up the phone and called his brother-in-law. "Shane?"

"Hey bro, what's up?" Shane said.

"Just letting you know that there's another McMahon on the way."

Shane laughed, "Steph's in labor?"

"Yeah, I just thought you would want to know."

"Thanks, Chris, I'll let Rissa know, tell us when she has the baby."

"Will do."

"Congrats."

"Thanks," Chris said, hanging up again and then going back to Stephanie's room, stopping along the way for her ice chips. Their friends could be told later, right now he wanted to be with his wife. She had turned on the TV and was watching it, her hands resting on her stomach. She looked over at him and smiled before she looked back at the TV. He glanced at it and saw she was just watching some random old _I Love Lucy_ episode, laughing quietly along with whatever plan Lucy was getting herself into this time. Chris slid into the bed next to her and handed her the ice chips. "I called your mom and your brother."

"What did they say?"

"Call when it's all over."

"Of course," Stephanie said, crunching on an ice chip. "What about everyone else?"

"We can call when you've given birth," he told her, brushing her hair back as she went through another contraction. "How are you doing?"

"They're starting to get more intense," she confessed.

"Do you want me to get Dr. Sheldon?" Chris asked. "Has your water broken on its own yet?"

"No, it hasn't and you probably don't need to get Dr. Sheldon. I'm doing okay, it's just getting more intense is all, but that's what happens, you know that. As soon as she breaks my water then it's going to probably get more painful," she said with a slight shrug. "I'm not looking forward to that."

"You can always have the drugs," he told her.

"I know, I don't really need them," she told him and he knew she was tough. He kissed her forehead and she smiled at him. "I just can't wait until I get to push, that's all. Doesn't it feel like we were _just_ here?"

"Well, we kind of were, in the grand scheme of time, I guess," he told her. He chuckled to himself, "Three kids…five years ago we were just by ourselves, three kids…"

She laughed a little and then concentrated on another concussion. Chris sat with her and rubbed her arm while she had the contractions. Dr. Sheldon came in periodically to check on them and when she found Stephanie at 8 centimeters, she decided that it would probably be a good idea now to break her water manually. Chris sat with her as Dr. Sheldon placed some extra water-resistant sheets underneath Stephanie before she went ahead and broke her water. Stephanie felt like something had been popped and then the uncomfortable gushing of water. She hated feeling like she had peed herself.

"Okay, Stephanie, so you know the drill from here on out, we're going to get you to 10 centimeters and then when you feel it's time to push, we're going to get this kid out of you and you are going to finally find out what I know," Dr. Sheldon said.

"Thank you for keeping the secret," Stephanie said, even though she was still uncomfortable from the water-breaking. This was part of the reason she was glad it was only Chris here with her. There were a lot of things involved with labor that she would just rather nobody see. Maybe it was her keeping up that immaculate, dominant female persona, but she just didn't like people seeing her like this. It was a wonder she even let people see her in the hospital.

"Once you're done with the leaking, we'll get a nurse to get these sheets out, okay," Dr. Sheldon said, patting her leg. "I'll be back in soon to check on you because I think it's going to go a lot faster now."

Dr. Sheldon left and Stephanie turned to Chris. "I don't know how Trish stayed in here so long, I've not even had the baby and I want to go home."

"Well, just stay the course, okay."

"No, Chris I'm thinking about packing up and going home," she said, rolling her eyes. "I'm sitting here, my ass is wet because I had to have someone shove something resembling knitting needles up my hoo-ha and you're telling me to stay the course?"

"Okay, well, don't stay the course?" he said with a sardonic grin.

"You're a jerk," she said, pushing the button for the nurse to take away these sheets for her.

Not twenty minutes later, the contractions were really starting to hurt and Stephanie was definitely feeling the strain. She was a bit stuck at 9 centimeters so she couldn't push yet, but it felt like this baby wanted to come out regardless of how far along she was. She didn't want to tear though, something she'd been very lucky with during her first two kids. She was getting sweaty and uncomfortable and the contractions were nearly on top of each other and she wanted to writhe around in bed, but she refrained as Chris held her hand.

"Why did I let you do this to me _three_ times?" she asked him, glaring at him. "Once would've been fine with me, twice, okay, _three_ times, I must have been crazy, right?"

"You said you wanted a large family," he said sheepishly.

"Yeah, I also said I wanted to wait like three years before having our first child and 7 months after we're married, I'm knocked up," she told him.

"You love Sawyer," Chris told her.

"Of course I do, are you questioning my love for my son?" she asked him, squeezing his hand as she had another contraction. "God, I want to push, I want to push, I want to push, Chris tell them to let me push, please, tell them that I can do this, that I just need to do this right now, please tell them?"

"Steph, it's okay," he said, kissing her forehead. "You'll be able to push soon."

"Tell them to take it out then, just tell them," she said. This time felt more painful than Flynn, but that's probably because her water had broken early and everything had gone so quickly that she had barely registered anything. This time, she was stuck like this for a while and she wanted to just pull the kid out herself.

"I'm sure Dr. Sheldon will be in here soon."

Stephanie grabbed Chris's shirt and pulled him close. "Chris, I _need_ to push, get her _now_."

Chris grabbed the call button and pressed it a few times before a nurse showed up in the doorway. "Hey, um, I think my wife needs to push so if you could get Dr. Sheldon, that would be great."

"Okay," the nurse said quickly.

Dr. Sheldon came a few moments later and checked on Stephanie. Mercifully, Stephanie was declared ready. Chris helped her towards the edge of the bed where she got in a more comfortable position, Chris sitting behind her. She knew that if she just concentrated all her energy, she could get this kid out of her in record time. She braced her legs where they needed to be and Chris was pulling her hair back and kissing the back of her neck, letting his lips linger there.

"Steph, I know I don't have to tell you what to do, so let's do this and get this kid into this world, okay?" her doctor told her. Stephanie nodded. All she wanted to do at this point was push. That's it, just push this out of her and have her baby in her arms. "Are you ready?"

"Yes," Stephanie breathed as Chris's arms came around and she grabbed onto them.

"Okay, come on, Steph."

"You can do it, baby," Chris said, kissing her neck again as he whispered in her ear. "Let's finally see the little menace, and just keep muttering boy to yourself okay? Just as a precaution."

Stephanie laughed, "Shut up." She started to push down, gritting her teeth as she let out a keening whine, nearly a squeak. She pushed until she couldn't any longer and she leaned back against Chris.

"Think of how excited Sawyer is going to be for his new baby," Chris said, trying to get her mind off things. "Think of how he's going to be an even bigger help now that he's older."

"Flynn will probably want to punch it," Stephanie told him.

"We'll get the baby some boxing gloves so they can protect themselves," Chris joked and she laughed before she had to push again. She started bearing down again, pushing with all her might. She felt like she had more energy this time around than she had the last two times. She was exhausted, yes, but it was like she was getting a second wind and this second wind was a Godsend at this point.

"You're doing great, Stephanie, I think we're only going to need a couple more pushes and this baby is out," Dr. Sheldon told her.

"Well, after the first two, this one can probably walk out," Stephanie told her and everyone laughed. "Oh God."

Stephanie had to push again and she bore down even more, practically screaming from the strain as she crushed Chris's hand in the vice grip she was holding him too. Chris cringed as his fingers felt like they were being pulverized into dust, but he said nothing because he didn't have a child coming out of him at the moment like his wife did. Stephanie yelled when she was done and collapsed back against Chris and he whispered soothing words into her ear about how great she was doing.

"I'm starting to see the head."

"Yikes," Chris said to Stephanie and she couldn't help but laugh at his ridiculousness over that particular aspect of labor when she was nearly on the verge of using the bathroom all over the place.

"You're such a baby."

"I just like to preserve the image of your lady parts the way they usually are, not like this," he told her. "Just shows how much I love that particular part of you, besides, if you've seen one tope of your kid's head, you've seen them all. I can't tell what the baby is from the top of its head.

Stephanie would have answered, but she had to push again and Dr. Sheldon nodded for her to continue so she pushed again as hard as she could, her face scrunching up as she tried to breathe through her mouth as much as possible. Chris was being a trooper behind her and she could feel herself straining and trying to get this kid out of her. She bit down her lip as she tried to do it all in one push, but she just couldn't do it.

"Stephanie, you're there, you are so right there, we're just going to need one more big push whenever you're ready and your baby is going to be in your arms."

"Okay," she croaked out. "I can do this."

"Of course you can, baby, you are so awesome," Chris told her. "We're going to have three kids in probably a few minutes and you know, thanks to those first two kids, they probably loosened some things up down there for this one to come out."

Stephanie turned her head to look at him and he shrugged. "Are you saying I'm loose?"

"Never," Chris told her, "just that prior experiences in labor have helped…somewhat…"

"I'm ready to push again," Stephanie breathed.

She started pushing again and she thought this would have to be a big one, she maybe even over-pushed, but before she could even think about putting everything into this push, she felt that familiar rush and then silence for a moment from everyone in the room and then, like a rush of sound, the high-pitched cry of a baby and Stephanie gasped for air as Chris was staring down at the little baby, facedown in Dr. Sheldon's arms. She glanced at Chris and his mouth was open a little before the grin appeared, the grin of seeing something so beautiful for the first time.

"Congratulations you two, I hope you're ready for another little girl," Dr. Sheldon said, putting the baby on Stephanie's chest.

"Chris?" Stephanie said, looking at him again, expecting to see disappointment, but all she could see was pure emotion and happiness, his eyes tearing up a little.

"Dad, I think you can take it from here," Dr. Sheldon said, handing Chris the scissors. Chris took them and cut the umbilical cord before they whisked the child away to get her cleaned up as they prepped Stephanie for the afterbirth. After the baby was cleaned and taken care of and Stephanie was cleaned up, they moved her into another private room. She was exhausted from labor and Chris just sat next to her as he brushed her hair back, looking at her adoringly.

"You're beautiful," he told her and she looked at him through drowsy eyes.

"You're just saying that,'' she told him.

"No, I'm not, you're beautiful," he told her, leaning forward to kiss her forehead. "Was that easier than the other two?"

"The pushing was, even though I tore a little this time and I'm not stitched up like Frankenstein," Stephanie kidded and then took a deep breath. "I want to see her, are they bringing her?"

"Yeah, they're bringing her," Chris said, squeezing her hand. "We now officially have three children together, who'd have thunk it, huh?"

"I did…"

"When?"

"When we got together."

"And before that?"

"I would have killed myself before I had children with you…or killed you," she joked.

He laughed, "I called my parents while they were wheeling you in here, they're going to bring Sawyer and Flynn by after dinner."

"Okay," Stephanie said.

"Why don't you rest?"

"I want to see her," Stephanie said, "how much does she weigh again?"

"She's a hearty 8 pounds, 12 ounces. She weighs more than Sawyer did. She's a big lady, Flynn is going to have to fight her off, she could end up bigger than Flynn."

"If Flynn doesn't send her to Antarctica first."

"Hey, we have someone for you," a nurse said, wheeling a carrier into the room. "She's been very anxious to see her mommy and daddy! She's probably hungry so we brought you a bottle since your milk probably hasn't come in yet. This is your…"

"Third," Stephanie answered.

"Okay, so you know how this goes. Just buzz us when you want her to go back to the nursery as you're not keeping her in-room, right?"

"No, we're not," she said.

"Okay, then, enjoy and congratulations."

Stephanie just smiled. The nurse lifted the baby out of the carrier and handed her over to Stephanie. Stephanie sat up and suddenly felt more refreshed as she held her daughter in her arms. Chris came over and sat on the bed as the nurse left them alone. Stephanie looked down at her daughter, her _new_ daughter and she took off her little hat so she could get a good look at her. She had downy hair just barely covering her scalp, not a lot of hair at all, but it was a very dark blonde, nearly brunette. She had her lips and appeared to have her nose and when she opened her eyes, they were absolutely Chris's.

"What's this, no chin dimple?" Chris said, poking his daughter in the chin.

"Just you wait, she'll have one," Stephanie said, running her hand over the baby's head, over and over again. "Hey there, you beautiful, little girl. You're absolutely gorgeous, aren't you?" The baby gurgled a little and blinked. "Yes, you are. I know you heard a lot in there about being a boy, but we're glad that you're you and that's all that matters."

"Here, let me help you with your hat," Chris said, pushing the little pink hat over her head. "There, now the look is complete, pink looks very nice on you."

"I'm your mommy," Stephanie said. "You can call me Mommy or Mom, either one is fine. And this is Daddy, you'll learn to love him if you don't love him already. You are a very, very lucky girl because you get to have the best big brother in the entire world. His name is Sawyer and he is going to be very, very excited to see you. He's been waiting on you for a very long time and he doesn't like to be kept waiting. Now, you also have a big sister, her name is Flynn. Flynn's a little bit of a daredevil and she's feisty. She's not too keen on babies right now, but we're going to try to get her used to the idea before she tries to give you a Tombstone, okay?"

"Can I hold her?" Chris asked.

"Of course," Stephanie said, handing the baby over and glowing as Chris cradled the baby in his arms. She leaned her head on his shoulder. "So what are you feeling right now?"

"That Sawyer and I are going to have our work cut out for us." Chris let the baby grab onto his finger and he shook it around a little. "I know I've been saying I wanted a boy this entire time, but I love you very much and you already have my heart, Kensy-bug. See, I already had a nickname for you and everything, just in case. She's perfect, Stephanie, she's absolutely perfect."

"I know," Stephanie said, "we make beautiful children."

"We do," he said, leaning down to kiss his daughter's forehead. "Kensy-bug, you have been born into a very strange, very crazy family, but we're going to love you so much. You are getting a bunch of crazy characters, but I think you're going to fit right in, I bet that you're definitely going to fit right in and you'll be a schemer like me and Mommy huh?"

She scrunched up her nose and Stephanie ran her finger over her cheek. "I love her so much, even though I didn't know what she as or anything, just seeing her, feeling her, she's perfect and I love her so much."

"I love her too," Chris said, kissing Stephanie's temple. "I don't want to give her up."

"You will when the brigade gets here."

"Well, for them, I will, maybe not Flynn though."

They held their baby for a while before Stephanie fed her. She was a hungry baby, drinking a good few ounces of formula on her first go around. A sweet-sounding burp later and the baby was happily sated and starting to drift off in her mommy's arms. She'd had a rough day too and was very tired, as was Stephanie. Just as she was drifting off herself, she could hear her children's voices in the hallway and then a knock on her door.

"Knock knock," Loretta said. "We brought a couple kids who are very curious as to where their mother has gone."

"Mommy, did you have the baby?" Sawyer asked. Ted helped him up onto the bed and Sawyer crawled over to Stephanie and peered into her arms. He clapped his hands and bounced around a little. "Mommy, you had a baby, you had a baby!"

Flynn went over to Chris and tugged on his foot dangling over the edge of the bed. Chris picked up Flynn, who buried her head in his neck, not seeing what was in Stephanie's arms. "I did," Stephanie said.

"Grandma said it was a girl so it's like Flynnie, right?"

"Uh huh, it's a girl like Flynnie."

"That's okay, I like her so I can like this baby too," he nodded.

"Do you remember what named we chose for a girl because Grandma and Grandpa probably want to know the name."

"You bet we do," Ted and Loretta said, coming over and kissing Stephanie before looking down at their new granddaughter. "She's gorgeous," Loretta gushed. "Oh my God, I have another little baby to brag to all my friends in the bridge club about."

Stephanie laughed, "What is her name, Sawyer?"

"Kensington!" Sawyer exclaimed. "Her name is Kensington Jericho."

"That's right," Stephanie said. "Do you want to hold her?"

"I do, I do, I do," he said enthusiastically, sitting right next to his mommy. "I'm bigger now, Mommy so I can hold her all the time if I want."

"Well, I don't know about that," Stephanie said, handing the baby over to Sawyer. "Remember to hold her head, okay, baby boy?"

"I know," he said, holding the baby as Loretta got out her camera to capture the moment. "She's a little heavy, Mommy."

"I know, she's bigger than even you were," she said, kissing Sawyer's head and then Kensington's head. "She is really super-excited to see you though and be able to play with you, I can tell because she can't stop staring at you."

"I like her," Sawyer breathed, looking up at his mommy in excitement. "She's pretty."

"Wow, I think she already thinks you're the best older brother ever," Stephanie said.

"Have you called your parents yet, Stephanie?" Ted asked.

"No, I haven't had the chance."

"We'll go do that for you," Ted said, grabbing Loretta's hand.

"I want to stay here," Loretta said.

"Come on, Retta, you can call Shane and let him know, I'm sure they're anxious to know, plus it'll give them time alone with the kids," Ted said, nearly pulling Loretta out of the room. Stephanie and Chris focused back on Sawyer and his little sister. He was pulling faces at her, which only caused Kensington to stare even more at her brother.

"She doesn't like funny faces like Flynnie," Sawyer lamented.

"She will when she gets a bit older," Stephanie said. "Right now, she really is just going to like sleeping and eating and pooping."

"Pooping," Sawyer giggled. "That's funny. When can she come home?"

"Probably tomorrow afternoon or the morning after tomorrow, it depends on how she's doing and how I'm doing," Stephanie told him. "But we'll be home soon, I know that and then you can help me with the baby or you can go with Daddy to Raw."

"Baby!" Sawyer exclaimed.

"Thank you," she crooned to him, then turned to the little girl who was still burying her face in Chris's neck. "Hey, Flynnie. You have a baby sister now."

"No baby!" Flynn said through gritted teeth.

"Don't you want to see the baby?" Chris asked. "She really wants to meet you too, don't you think you'd want to see her? Why don't you just look at her, I bet you'll like her. For me, Flutterby, please?"

Flynn slowly pulled her head away from Chris and looked down at a detestable baby in _her_ Sawyer's arms. "No! No, no, no, no, no baby! Sawyer, no!" She started to scream and try to pull at her father and get to Sawyer to rip that stupid baby from his arms. Where the _heck _ had this baby come from! It wasn't that other baby that Sawyer associated with! So now she had a _new_ one to contend with, well this was just great!

"Okay, shh, shh," Chris said, turning her away from the baby and rubbing her back as she cried. "It's okay, it's okay."

Stephanie looked at Chris helplessly. This really complicated things. Flynn was not going to be happy about the new baby, especially with the attention both Stephanie and Chris knew Sawyer would lavish on the new baby. Flynn would get jealous and she was a child who would retaliate. It was ingrained in her so now it seemed like they'd have to ease Flynn into this or keep her and Kensington apart. This was going to be a tricky situation.

Welcome to the world, Kensington Jericho.


	290. Ultimatum, August 30, 2010

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, glad you guys liked the last chapter and all the baby-ness, which will continue with this chapter. Hope you enjoy and review if you want. :)

* * *

"We get to bring the baby home! We get to bring the baby home!"

Sawyer hopped from foot to foot as Chris helped Flynn out of her car-seat. She'd been clingy since Stephanie had given birth so she was forcing him to carry her. She held onto his neck and laid her head on his shoulder. She had not been happy about the baby, not one single bit. Chris and Stephanie hadn't forced her to come back to the hospital, but since Stephanie and Kensington were coming home today, they thought it would be nice for the entire family to be there. With Stephanie recovering in the hospital and Chris shuttling back and forth between there and home and trying to take care of his other two children, they hadn't really gotten to sit down and talk about what they were going to do between Flynn and Kensington.

Flynn very clearly did not like babies and they could not possibly wait until Flynn was old enough to understand the concept of babies and how they weren't going to make anyone in Flynn's life love her less or for Kensington to grow up enough for Flynn not to outright despise her. They had to find some way to make Flynn at least tolerate Kensington. There was no way they could keep the two totally separated. Sawyer was already looking forward to helping out with the new baby and wherever Sawyer was, Flynn was not far behind. So if Sawyer was helping with the baby, Flynn would be his shadow and her jealousy would probably grow exponentially.

The other problem was that Flynn was an aggressive toddler. She watched maybe too much wrestling for her age, but she and Chris had never shielded her from Chris's matches. There were some ECW matches she'd never seen and some of the more violent matches Chris had had they hadn't let her watch, like when he'd choked JBL with the cord or when he'd hit Hunter with the barbed wire 2x4. Still, Flynn wanted desperately to be a wrestler and though both Chris and Stephanie loved the idea of her being in the business _someday_, it made her a very feisty two-year-old. On top of that, she was very much developing a personality akin to her mother and father, hot-tempered and wanting things her way. If this were the case, then certainly, she and Chris were in trouble because Flynn probably didn't understand not to harm the baby and they didn't want her around the baby if that were going to happen.

So they had to tread this line finely. They had to make sure that Flynn and Kensington interacted somehow without Flynn wanting to punch her sister in the face. They almost thought it would be better if Kensington had been a boy just because Flynn felt like she might be competing with another girl. Certainly Sawyer had not been ignoring Flynn in the slightest, but he was also very excited about the new baby and they couldn't ask him to curb his excitement over the new baby. Flynn could sense something was awry and she'd been acting upset and not like her usual self the past day and a half since the baby was born.

"Yeah, we do," Chris said, letting Sawyer give him a high five before he took his son's hand and headed into the hospital. They went straight for the elevators up the fifth floor maternity ward. Sawyer knew exactly where his mommy's room was and bounced over there, seeing his mommy sitting on the bed with Kensington waiting for them.

"Hey guys," Stephanie said, grinning at Flynn especially. "Hey there, Flynnie!"

"Hi, Mama," Flynn said quietly from where she was resting her head under Chris's chin.

"Where's Kensy, Mommy?" Sawyer asked, jumping up and down and trying to see the bed.

"She's coming in a second," Stephanie said, moving to get off the bed. She had her bag in her hand and was so ready to leave this place. Everyone had been super nice, but she hated sleeping in hospitals with all the noises and other people milling about. She was ready for her home and her bed and everything that came with it.

The nurse with Kensington came in a moment later and wheeled the baby over to Stephanie, allowing Stephanie to take the baby from her carrier and into her arms. She gazed down at her new daughter in adoration. Even though she'd been through this twice before, Kensington was her own person and did things that Stephanie delighted in. Kensington was rather stoic for a newborn. Sure, she'd cried and everything, but there was a certain poise in her that Stephanie couldn't quite place. It was probably because she was a newborn and they didn't do much, but there was something about her. Not to mention she was so beautiful. Every mother thought their children were the most beautiful, but with a husband like Chris, it was hard not to think that their kids were going to be gorgeous and if Sawyer and Flynn were any indication, Kensington was going to be a gorgeous little girl.

"Hi, Kensy!" Sawyer said to his little sister. Stephanie laughed and knelt down a little so Sawyer could hold Kensington's hand and he took it and smiled at her. "You get to come home today and we have a lot of toys at home."

"I bet she's very ready to come home," Stephanie said, kissing Sawyer's cheek.

She stood up again as the orderly came in with the wheelchair. Hospital policy said she had to use one while leaving the hospital. She held Kensington in her arms as Chris grabbed her bag and Sawyer walked next to the wheelchair while Chris brought up the rear. They went down to where the car was parked and they let Stephanie out before the family was finally left to themselves. Chris had brought their new van. Sawyer and Flynn were situated in the back while Kensington was in the middle. Chris didn't think it would be a good idea to have Flynn ride next to the new baby.

"Okay, so are we all accounted for?" Stephanie asked as she climbed gingerly into the passenger seat.

Chris did a short head count, "Yes, we've got 2 girls in their car-seats and one in his booster seat. I think we're ready to go home."

"Okay," she said as Chris closed the door and climbed in the front seat. "I bet you're ready to get home."

"Like you would not believe. Is anyone there?" she asked.

"Nah, my parents are out for the day with some friends they met through some hockey charity thing my dad did and your parents are coming in tomorrow," Chris said. "I thought it might be nice to just have time for ourselves. Also, we might work on the Flynn/Kensy situation."

Stephanie looked behind her as Chris started to drive home. Flynn was chattering away with Sawyer, who was talking with her animatedly while trying to look over the seat in front of him at Kensington. Stephanie couldn't see Kensington in the rear-facing seat, but she wasn't crying so she figured that the baby was either sleeping or just staring around at wherever it was they were. The ride home was relatively quiet, Stephanie and Chris chatting about Flynn and Kensington and wondering how to deal with the situation. Their children's small, but strong voices in the very back, talking about something only they understood, it felt good. Everything felt so good and right.

"It's nice to see my feet again," Stephanie said as she got out of the car. "Nice to feel like I don't have to be careful of hitting stuff with my stomach and it'll be especially nice to hold my children again."

Chris laughed, "Do you want the baby or the other baby or the other baby?"

"I'll take Flynn," she said, "I think she needs a little Mommy time. Don't think I haven't noticed that you have become the default 'hold me' parent. She goes right up to you when she wants to be held and cuddled because I couldn't."

"I think she would come to me regardless if you could hold her or not," Chris joked.

"Oh, well look at you," Stephanie said, "the man has two daughters now and he thinks he rules the universe."

"I'm sorry, but I can't help it. Should I call them my two princesses, take after your father?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"How about just your two little girls, we don't need to be princesses."

"Seemed to work for you."

She flipped him off and got out of the passenger seat. She opened the sliding door while Chris opened the one on the other side. Chris first helped Sawyer out of his seat, Sawyer jumping out of the car with gusto, gone the days of having to lift him out of the car. He was already out of his own accord, barreling towards the door screaming about how the baby was home now. Stephanie was helping Flynn out and she started to go towards Chris so he could carry her, but Stephanie took her in her arms and lifted her out of the car, letting her hold onto Stephanie. Flynn held fiercely onto her mother, grabbing her and sighing deeply as she could wrap her legs around her mommy.

Chris was the last one there as Stephanie and Flynn started for the door. He gazed down at his daughter, whose head was slightly nodded off to one side. The car ride had put her to sleep apparently. Chris slowly detached the carrier from the car-seat and tried not to wake his daughter up. He couldn't help but stare down at her though. She looked dwarfed by her car-seat, this little, beautiful thing. He carried her slowly to the door. Stephanie had already unlocked it and Sawyer was already inside, but Flynn was just lying against Stephanie, looking very content against her mommy. Chris kissed her as they walked inside, careful not to let Flynn see the baby, at least not right now.

"Mommy, I'm sitting down, can I hold Kensy now!" Sawyer yelled from the family room.

Stephanie laughed and shook her head. "Why does our son keep trying to steal our children?"

"He wants to be king of the house," Chris said as they walked in there. Sawyer was indeed on the couch, his arms sticking out and waiting for his baby sister. "I swear, who runs things around here?"

"Chris, we've obviously lost control," Stephanie told him. "We're outnumbered to begin with. We've got a son who thinks he can take control everything, a daughter who thinks she's a wrestler and a newborn. We have no power here any longer."

Chris laughed and sat down next to Sawyer, setting Kensington in between them. "She's sleeping right now, kid, do you think you can wait until she wakes up?"

"Daddy, she's awake," Sawyer said, pointing down to his little sister.

Chris looked down and Kensington _was_ awake. He chuckled and looked at Sawyer, "Well, she loves you already, she wakes up just for you."

Sawyer grinned. He had a new sister to play with, this was going to be great. "Can I hold her now since she's awake?"

Stephanie took a seat a little ways away from the action. Flynn's face was still pressed against her, using her breasts as a pillow. Stephanie could sense the tension coming from her daughter and so she just sat there, rubbing Flynn's back, not trying to make it seem like anyone was more important than her. Her daughter needed validation right now that things were not going to change so drastically that she would get lost in the shuffle. The bad thing for Flynn was she was now the dreaded "middle child." But Chris and Stephanie were determined to make sure none of their kids ever thought they were unwanted or unloved.

"I love you, Flynnie," she whispered to her daughter.

"Love you, Mama," Flynn said as she refused to look in the other direction. She knew that _baby_ had come home with them and it worried her. Why was it here? Where did it come from? She realized her mommy's tummy had gotten a lot smaller and she could be with her mommy, but other than that, she didn't understand what had really changed. Yes, they kept saying baby this and baby that, but she didn't know that had meant there was a baby _with_ them! At least her mommy could hold her now.

She watched as Chris lifted Kensington out of her carrier and set her carefully into Sawyer's arms. At this point, they didn't need to tell Sawyer how to hold Kensington, he was already a seasoned pro at it. He held Kensington in his arms and then beamed at Chris and Stephanie. Chris sent a look over at Stephanie and she winked at him, loving the picture put in front of them. They didn't know how many kids they would end up having, but their family was always this complete picture for a few moments. The moment was broken up again when Kensington started to whimper.

"Shh, it's okay, Kensy," Sawyer said to her. "You don't gotta cry, you're my sister, you don't gotta cry."

Stephanie laughed a little, but wasn't surprised when Kensington did calm down. Sawyer just had that power. He was probably going to have girls falling off him when he was older with how charming he was, entirely too much like his father, the flirt. Sawyer was extremely proud that he'd gotten his sister to calm down.

"You're a natural," Chris told him, kissing his son's head. "She loves you already."

"I know," Sawyer nodded. "Do you wanna hold her, Flynnie?"

"I don't think Flynn wants to hold her," Stephanie said. "I think she's fine over here."

"But Mommy, she should because we're sisters, no, wait, they're sisters, they're my sisters, right?" he said, confusing even himself.

"Flynnie is a little shy around the baby," Stephanie tried to explain.

"She doesn't like babies."

"No babies," Flynn mumbled against Stephanie.

"I know, no babies," Stephanie said, nuzzling her cheek against the top of Flynn's head. "Maybe she'll want to hold her later." They could probably try when Flynn was getting a little bit sleepier. She tended to be a bit more compliant when she was sleepy and maybe they could just start off with her actually looking at the baby since she didn't even seem to want to do that.

"Flynnie, why don't you like babies?" Sawyer asked, very confused.

"She just doesn't like sharing you with anyone, that's how much she loves you," Chris said.

"I still love you, Flynnie," Sawyer said, like that should be the most obvious thing in the world. Of course he still loved his Flynn, they had lots of fun together.

"We'll just give her some time to get used to the idea," Chris said. "Do you think I could hold Kensy now?"

"Okay, I'm going to go play," Sawyer said, "is that okay?"

"Are you going to the playroom?" Stephanie asked and Sawyer nodded. "Then that's okay."

"Flynnie, you wanna come play with me?" Sawyer asked, tapping his sister on the back. She looked at him and nodded a little. Sawyer smiled at her and Stephanie put her down. Sawyer grabbed her hand and she smiled at him. Stephanie stood up and followed them into the hallway to go towards the playroom as Chris sat against the back of the couch and cradled Kensington in his arms, just staring down at her.

Stephanie led the kids into the playroom and Flynn immediately went for her xylophone , grabbing the stick and banging on it loudly. Sawyer went over to her and pretended to be listening to her like she was in a concert. Flynn beamed as she played her hardest as Sawyer listened diligently. It still amazed her how Sawyer had turned out. He could read other people's moods so well and seemed to alleviate them without even trying that hard. Right now, for instance, it was like he could feel that Flynn felt like she was getting lost in the shuffle and so he was giving her his undivided attention. He was an amazing kid and she wasn't sure she and Chris deserved a kid as good and kind as he was. It was like God literally took the best parts of Chris and Stephanie and put them into him.

"Mommy, you should come listen to Flynnie because she's good," Sawyer said and if she didn't know her son didn't know the concept of implications, she would think he was saying to come help him make sure that Flynn knew she was loved. Stephanie came over and sat next to Sawyer, letting him lean against her side, watching as Flynn pretended to be a concert xylophonist.

Meanwhile, Chris was holding Kensington in his arms, cradling her gently. She was just staring at him and he was staring at back at her. "Welcome home," Chris told her softly, rubbing her cheek a little with his knuckle. "I know I said that a boy would be cool, but it was only because I knew another little girl would have me wrapped around her finger and you already do. You're my little girl and I love you. Our family is a little bit on the crazy side, but you'll get used to us, you _are_ part of us after all. You got lucky by having the _best_ big brother in the world. And once Flynn gets over the fact there's a baby, she'll probably try to teach you how to wrestle. And your mommy, wow, you are one lucky little girl to have someone like that to look up to, let me tell you. She's beautiful and smart and she takes care of all of us."

Chris ran his hand over Kensington's hair as she scrunched up her nose and snuffled a little bit. Her hands came free from her blanket and she stretched them towards Chris a little bit. She shifted around and Chris shifted her in his arms, then turned so he was leaning against the side of the couch and lifted his knees, setting Kensington against his legs. She settled against him and she looked like she was smiling, though he knew it wasn't a real smile, but still, she was adorable and chubby, bigger than Sawyer and definitely bigger than Flynn had been.

"So I'm a wrestler, but I think I might take some time off to be with you, we haven't decided yet, but it'd be nice to spend time with you."

"Oh and what am I?" Stephanie asked as she walked in the room. "Nothing?"

"Not anymore," he told her as she sat down on the small space next to him, facing Kensington. She leaned over and kissed her daughter's head. "So I'm guessing we're not going to have one of those picture-perfect moments where we all cuddle up in our bed, one happy family?"

Stephanie laughed and leaned her head against Chris's head. "Well, maybe if we put Flynn in a straitjacket that dream can still come true."

"What are we going to do with her, Steph?" Chris asked, his eyes not leaving his daughter, who seemed to be nodding off again.

"With Kensy?"

"No, I think we've got Kensy pretty under control," Chris said, playing with her foot. "I mean our other little girl, the one with the complex."

"We threaten her," Stephanie joked. "We tell her that she can't watch any of your wrestling videos unless she likes her baby sister. That way she knows we mean business."

"If only Flynn got the concept of blackmail and bribery," Chris said, shaking his head. "Kensy, do you get blackmail and bribery?"

"I'd be worried if she did," Stephanie said. "I'm hoping by the end of the night to have Flynn at least look at Kensy. She doesn't even want to _look_ at her. She doesn't like sharing Sawyer, I don't even think she cares about us, just Sawyer."

"She cares about us."

"I'm thinking that Sawyer is helping," Stephanie said. This time, Chris did look over at her. "I know, big surprise there, Sawyer knows exactly what to do. But he's in there, spending time with her, playing the games she wants to play. I think he knows that she needs that. I mean, I know we discussed with him how Flynn doesn't really like babies and why and I think he really understood that. He's playing Play-Doh with her right now because she wanted to do the one with the hair thing, you know the one. I think he knows she needs that and then maybe he can ease her into the baby thing."

"So we're going to rely on our 4 year old son to get her to love her sister?" Chris asked, laughing at the situation. There wasn't really anything he could do for his daughter, but his son could fix any problem. "Seriously, you haven't hired him in the company because?"

"Damn child labor laws," she laughed. "I think he can break her down if he sees that she still very much has her Sawyer and in turn, still has us. We have to make sure that she gets a lot of attention too or this whole thing is going to fall apart. Sawyer doesn't even care…how did we get so lucky with that kid, Chris? How in the hell did we get him?"

"I'm not sure, maybe it's a karma thing," he said, then looked at his daughter. "You know, we're pretty damn lucky. Crazy families, insane business aside, we're so damn lucky. I mean, look at us. We've been together for the better part of a decade-"

"Yes, our longest relationship for the both of us, something to be proud of for sure," she told him.

"And we have three great kids, well, two great kids and we're still feeling this one out," Chris said. "Thank you."

"Oh, here come the thanks," Stephanie said, wrapping her arm around Chris's neck and kissing his cheek. "You know, a lot of guys buy their wives presents after they give birth, but I don't think I've gotten anything since Sawyer."

"What do you give the woman who has everything?"

"I don't know, so heap on the praise, sweetie," she told him.

"Thank you for going through 40 plus weeks of this again, for the third time-"

"In less than five years," Stephanie interjected.

"Yes, in less than five years and giving me the children I'd always dreamed of, but could never really see in my head," he told her. "You always get his hazy picture of what your kids might look like and as a guy, I guess I never really thought of it that much. But I knew it was something I wanted. I knew that I wanted those kids and-"

"But you were so busy being a wrestler," Stephanie said. "And you'd flit from girl to girl and never could find the right one."

"Okay, you're making me sound like a man whore now," he joked.

"Because no girl could ever compare to the girl you married, who is just amazing and smart and funny and beautiful and clever and-"

"Scheming, malicious, hot-tempered," he added.

"Yet you love all those features," Stephanie continued, "and you just cannot imagine having kids with anyone else but those kids just wouldn't be a perfect as the children I've given you."

"You think awfully highly of yourself," he told her.

"I've got stitches where there really shouldn't be stitches," Stephanie told him, "so yes, I'm going to think highly of myself. You should be thinking highly of me too."

"Oh, I am, I am," he assured her, leaning up to kiss her. She deepened the kiss until Kensington started to whimper and then cry.

"Here, let me have her," Stephanie said, taking Kensington gently in her arms. Stephanie patted her diaper and could tell it needed a change. "Okay, well I'm going to take this beauty to get changed and then I'm going to treat her to a nice meal and maybe she'll get a little nap in."

"If you must," he said, kissing Kensington's head. "Oh, before you go do that, what's this burning in my pocket?"

"What?" Stephanie said as Chris shifted and pulled something out of his pocket. He brought it up to her face and it was a small jewelry box.

"Well would you look at this, now wasn't someone saying that they hadn't gotten any kind of gift from the birth of their last two children?"

"What did you do?" she asked.

He opened it up for her and she saw a pair of earrings, a green stone set in a platinum small hoop. "Earrings set with a peridot stone because those are our daughters' birthstones and since we have two of those, I figured earrings would represent each one."

"When did you get these?"

"A couple weeks ago, if it had been a boy, it still would've held since they were both going to be born in August anyways," he shrugged. "I do think of you occasionally, Stephanie, it's not _all_ about the kids."

"I didn't think it was," she said, kissing him again, "thank you."

"You're welcome," he told her, "I'm going to go check on the kids and you can take care of that one."

"We're working efficiently already," she laughed as she stood up and started to take Kensington upstairs. Chris got off the couch as well and went to the playroom.

The rest of the day they all fell into a routine. With the baby sleeping most of the time, Flynn thought the coast was clear and that she wouldn't have to see that baby ever again. Unfortunately at dinner, the baby was there again. She just focused on her food, not even looking up when the baby started to cry. What a cry-baby it was. She hardly ever cried because she was a big girl, that's why she had a big girl bed as her parents put it. Her mommy held that baby the entire time she ate and Flynn glared at her mommy every chance she got.

It had even been in the room while they were watching a movie after dinner. She had been sitting with her daddy and her mommy was _still_ holding that baby. And it kept making noises too, ones that sounded like crying, but not like any cry she ever heard, which just reinforced that this baby was not something she would like. She couldn't even hear the TV when this baby was crying and then her mommy would leave and come back and it was _still _with her. She couldn't deal with this baby and she just hoped that when she woke up in the morning it'd be gone and that this would all be some sort of weird dream.

"I think it's time for bed," Stephanie whispered to Chris as she saw Flynn starting to get drowsy. "Maybe we should try with the b-a-b-y?"

"Okay, we'll do it upstairs, somewhere cozy. I'll get her ready for bed," Chris said, picking up Flynn. "Sawyer, come on, you need to start getting ready for bed too."

Chris took Sawyer and Flynn upstairs to get them ready while Stephanie closed up shop downstairs, turning off the TV and making sure everything was locked before turning the alarm on and going upstairs with Kensington. She almost didn't want to ever put her down. She loved the small weight in her arms. For all the surprises and the closeness in age between her children, she loved having them all. She'd always wanted a big family and she had everything she wanted right now. She went back upstairs and into her bedroom. They'd set up a bassinet for the nighttime so they wouldn't have to go far to get Kensington. They'd start using her crib in a few days, but they just wanted to get used to her schedule first.

Stephanie climbed into bed and Chris came in about twenty minutes later with two clean kids in their pajamas. He dumped Sawyer on the bed amidst giggles. Flynn, who by now was almost falling asleep, he carried into bed, letting her snuggle against him. He looked to Kensington and saw that she was nodding off as well. Everyone had had a long day so Chris and Stephanie both expected everyone to get a good night's sleep except for them, as they would be on baby duty. Chris adjusted Flynn in his arms as Stephanie scooted closer. Sawyer laid on his stomach and just watched what everyone was doing. He was tired, but not _that_ tired.

"Hey, Flutterby?" Chris said quietly to his older daughter. It was weird thinking of his little flutterby as being the older of his children when she'd been his baby for so long.

"Mmm?" she mumbled, turning her face into his t-shirt.

"Hey," Chris said as she tilted her head back to look at him. It was weird trying to pick and choose features in his kids because they were all so different, but Flynn looked like Stephanie. "So do you want to see Kensington maybe before you go to bed?"

"Enginton," Flynn said softly, her eyes drooping further and further. Chris shifted her in his arms so she was facing Kensington. Stephanie scooted even closer so that they were right next to each other. Flynn was tired so she had no idea what anyone was doing. She just wanted to fall asleep. Stephanie lifted Kensington into Flynn's eye-line and Flynn started to whine a little, but was too tired to pull away.

"Shh," Chris said, rubbing her back. "See, the baby is nice, Flutterby. She's just lying there in Mommy's arms, but you're in my arms, right?"

"Yeah," Flynn said. The baby really _was_ just lying there. "Sawa?"

"I'm right here," Sawyer told her from where he was lying on the bed.

Flynn looked over at him and she smiled sleepily and reached her hand towards Sawyer. He smiled at her and she was happy that he was right there. "Sawa," she sighed contentedly.

"Sawyer likes the baby," Stephanie said.

"I do," Sawyer nodded. "It's a nice baby."

"Okay," Flynn said, too sleepy to argue right now.

"Here why don't you hold her hand?" Stephanie said, putting Kensington right next to Flynn. Chris reached for Flynn's hand and let her hold onto Kensington's hand. Kensington gripped her fingers very tightly and Flynn looked over at the baby. It really wasn't _doing_ anything. It was just sitting there, looking at her and holding her hand. "See, the baby really likes you. She's probably going to look up to you a lot."

"Oh," Flynn said, her eyelids failing her and starting to close. "Sleep-sleep time."

"Okay," Chris said, cradling her closer as her grip loosened on Kensington. "Well, that was probably the best we could have hoped for, isn't it?

"I think so," Stephanie said as she brought back Kensington to her as their baby started to fall asleep herself. Even Sawyer was starting to nod off something fierce, his mouth opening in a wide yawn. "Well, it's not that perfect picture, but it's something alright?"

Chris looked at everything he had in that moment. "You know, I think it _is_ pretty perfect."

Chris felt bad leaving Stephanie at home on Monday, not because she couldn't handle the baby, but because he really wanted to spend time with Kensington. The little girl was already a personality. She was definitely a crier, but she was a really active baby, constantly moving and squirming around. They were still trying to ease Flynn into having Kensington into the family, but she at least hadn't tried to hit Kensington or anything. She still barely looked at her while wide awake, but she wasn't throwing tantrums.

Chris had both Flynn and Sawyer with him tonight. Sawyer had wanted to come so he could show Kensington's pictures to everyone and tell everyone that he had a new baby. Flynn had come because Stephanie didn't think she could handle Flynn and Kensington alone, especially not if she had to focus her attention on Kensington, which would just foster her jealousy towards her little sister. Plus, it meant that Stephanie could get rest when she had the time without having two other kids to worry about.

"Daddy, did you remember the pictures?" Chris asked as they walked into the arena. "You didn't leave them in the car, right?"

"No, I didn't leave them in the car," Chris said. "I have them with me." Sawyer was walking beside him as Chris pushed Flynn in her stroller.

"Okay, good, I want to show Britt my baby," Sawyer said, hopping from foot to foot. "She's really pretty, huh, Daddy?"

"I think so, I think that Flynn is really pretty too," Chris said, winking down at his daughter, who was looking up at him at the mention of her name. She grinned up at him and then went back to watching where she was being pushed.

"I think so too," Sawyer added.

They got to the door and Chris held it open for Sawyer, then pushed Flynn through it quickly. "Daddy, I get to show Kensy's pictures, right? Because I want to show everyone her picture so they can see my new sister!"

"Yeah, you can show them, I won't show anyone or even tell them, you can tell everyone you see," Chris said good-naturedly. He couldn't help it, he was in a good mood tonight. His daughter had just been born and she was beautiful and perfect, how could he not be happy about that?

"I have a sister!" Sawyer said to the first person they cam across, a production crew member. He smiled at Sawyer as Chris gave him a kind smile as they walked past. Every time they came upon someone, Sawyer had to announce that he had a sister, though he figured word had already spread about Kensington.

They got to Chris's locker room for the evening and Chris set everything up for the rest of their night before picking Flynn out of her stroller and setting her on the ground for a moment while he got the pictures out for Sawyer. He retrieved them from his bag and handed them to Sawyer. Sawyer flipped through them, grinning. He liked the picture where he was holding Kensington the best.

"Daddy, I'm gonna show this one," he said, holding up that particular picture. "That's my Kensy!"

"I know," Chris said, picking up Flynn. "Come on, let's go get a schedule and talk to Britt to see what's going on with her, okay?"

"Okay," Sawyer said, walking aimlessly towards the door. He would have run into it if Chris hadn't opened it for him in time. "Are you going to wrestle tonight, Daddy?"

"Yeah, I'm going to be in a 5 on 5 match," Chris answered.

"Oh, that's good," Sawyer said as Chris kept having to steer him down the hallway. They came upon Britt's office and Chris let Flynn knock on the door. She called that it was open and they walked inside.

Britt's face lit up, "Chris!"

"Hey, Britt," he said as she came over and hugged him.

"Look at you!" she said, pulling away. "You're a new daddy again and you have a little girl and she's going to steal your heart away, I just know it."

"She already has," Chris chuckled. "She's beautiful."

"And how is Stephanie doing?"

"She's doing great."

"I'm so glad," Britt sighed. She felt a tugging on her hand and she looked down to see Sawyer was the culprit. "Hey there, big brother, I heard that you got another new baby last week."

"I did, I did," he said, "look, this is a picture I had with her and I'm holding her and she's my Kensy!"

Britt knelt next to him and looked at the picture he was thrusting in her direction. "Oh wow, she's very beautiful," Britt said, grinning at Sawyer. "And look at you holding her, you look like you do this everyday, I bet you help a lot, don't you?"

"I help all the time. Mommy and Daddy don't know what to do," Sawyer said and Britt laughed and kissed his head.

"I resent that, kid," Chris said to his son.

"She really is gorgeous," Britt said, "She looks like both you and Stephanie."

"So we've been told. We just came in her to show off the new baby and get a schedule for tonight…"

"You're on last," Britt said, standing up to give him a schedule. "Your father-in-law didn't really seem to want to do anything for the 900th episode, he said that it was a big deal, but not a _huge _deal so he didn't want any past people or anything, but we do have guys from SmackDown on it so I guess it's kind of special in a way."

"Sounds good," he told her. "There was something else I wanted to discuss with you. Normally I would just go to Stephanie, but since you're in charge until she gets back I think it only fair that I discuss it with you as well."

"This doesn't have anything to do with Hunter, does it? You're not going to disguise something business-related into a metaphor for why I should be with him or anything because I told you before…"

"It's not about that, it's about me," Chris said, taking a seat as Britt went back behind her desk. He kept Flynn in his lap and Sawyer seemed content to look at the picture of Kensington, but Britt handed him a WWE magazine just in case he wanted one of those as well.

"What about you?"

"Well, a few weeks ago now, Stephanie asked me if I would consider taking some time off, not forever, not retire, but to take some time off, probably three to six months, depending-"

"But why? Is Stephanie okay because the Stephanie I'm familiar with would never ask you to take time off for any reason."

"She's fine, she's just a little overwhelmed with the idea of having three kids and at their ages. She doesn't think she can handle them all at the same time if the time came, which I think was just her doubting herself when I know she could, but then it became something more than that."

"Something more than just for Stephanie?"

"Yeah, she got me thinking about how I take on so many things at one time. I mean, I did the game show and everything over the summer and I've been doing Fozzy stuff since the new album and I've got my book coming out next February so I've done a lot, I'm the kind of guy who does like to keep busy, have something on their plate, I've just always been like that. I don't know how else to be. The thing is that I now have three children who are all young, who all need me and who I love to be around so Stephanie said I should maybe take one thing out of the equation and-"

"The wrestling," Britt finished for him.

Chris nodded, "The wrestling. It's really the only thing I have any kind of control over. I can't get rid of my kids, the band is not just me, it's other guys, guys who want to put food on their families' tables and the book is going to need publicity. The wrestling is the most demanding and it's also the one I can control. Thanks to being married to Stephanie, I can come and go as I please."

"I understand," Britt said, "so what are you planning?"

"I'm planning an out. I decided to say that if I don't win at Night of Champions that I'm going to leave the WWE. I don't really want to go out there and say that I'm leaving because my wife just had a baby and that wife is Stephanie McMahon."

"She'd kill you."

"Exactly, so I think this stipulation is sound. If I decide in the interim that I don't want to do it or don't want to leave, I can think of a way out if it, if that damn new GM didn't so obvious hate me, but it's not like I can be fired," Chris said. "Either way, you know, I think it'll be good."

"Will Stephanie be doing the same, taking more than the allotted time for the baby off?"

"No, she'll be back when Kensy is ready to travel and I'll probably be here with her, I just feel like I need to step back, take a little bit of a break and recollect myself, that's all, nothing is going to be too different around here…unless you decide to give a guy another chance."

Her eyes narrowed at him, "I thought this wasn't going to be about that situation."

"He sent Stephanie this huge bouquet of flowers," Chris mused. "It was really nice of him. I think he knows who he is now, better than he did before. I think he knows who's really there for him and who isn't. You know, now that Shawn is retired, Hunter barely speaks to him. Apparently Shawn is spending so much time with his family he doesn't have time for the guy who he manipulated, funny how that works out."

"Stop giving me the hard sell!" she told him, but she was also playful in her tone.

"I will once you give me reason not to," he said, "Come on, Sawyer, I bet there's a ton of other people who want to see pictures of Kensy."

"Then I'll have to show them!" he said.

"Hey, before you go, any progress on getting a certain little lady to like her new baby sister?" Britt wondered.

"It's a slow process, but we have her acknowledging the baby's presence, looking at the baby, and holding her hand when she's extremely sleepy."

"That's…something."

"It's better than where we started, which was her not acknowledging Kensy's presence and basically not looking at her at all."

"Oh, then that's really something," she said. "I'm sure she'll come around."

"And if not, we've got a built-in steel cage match fight," Chris shrugged. "We'll get to the point where I think Flynn with actually maybe like Kensy, we can hope, right, Flutterby?"

"No!" Flynn exclaimed and Chris's eyes widened as Britt was laughing.

He walked into the hallway with the kids again and saw Ted up ahead, Maryse hanging onto his arm. It was nice to see Ted with someone and Maryse was very pretty and she was actually kind of funny. He had to hand it to his wife, she was pretty good with setting people up. Ted and Maryse seemed pretty happy together and they made a striking couple, though he believed anyone would be striking when paired with Maryse. It also kept Ted out of his hair, into that he didn't love ribbing the guy, but it got a little old when you had someone obviously lusting after your wife.

"Ted, Ted," Sawyer said and Chris was a little dismayed that Sawyer knew who Ted was enough to go up to him without hesitation. "My mommy had a baby, I have a baby sister named Kensy!"

"Hey," Ted said nicely to him, smiling down at him. "That's really great, I bet she's pretty, huh?"

"Yup, here, see," Sawyer said, holding up his picture.

"Wow," Chris heard Ted murmur. Ted looked up and was almost startled to see Chris there. "Oh, hey, Chris, I heard about Stephanie, that's really cool that she had the baby, how's she doing?"

"She's doing great actually," Chris said and saw Ted's cheeks blush just the smallest bit. It seemed that though Ted had a pretty smoking hot girlfriend right now that that old crush on Stephanie still held some ground in his mind.

"That's good, great, very good, I'll have to give her a call and tell her congratulations, to you both," he added hastily, "since it's your kid too."

"That's what we're going with, but I don't know, do you think the baby, how's she doing?"

"She's doing great actually," Chris said and saw Ted's cheeks blush just the smallest bit. It seemed that though Ted had a pretty smoking hot girlfriend right now that that old crush on Stephanie still held some ground in his mind.

"That's good, great, very good, I'll have to give her a call and tell her congratulations, to you both," he added hastily, "since it's your kid too."

"That's what we're going with, but I don't know, do you think _you_ could be the father?" Chris wondered, knowing that it was going to make the other man uncomfortable and it seemed to work because Ted was blushing even more now, much to the dismay of Maryse.

"What are you talking about?"

"I don't know," Chris shrugged, "just saying, but hey if you call her, keep the phone sex to a minimum, she has to spend _some_ time with Kensy."

"Let's go Maryse," Ted mumbled, obviously mortified. Chris laughed as they walked away, Maryse saying something to him in French, which Ted probably didn't understand. He turned back around and saw Sawyer rushing down the hallway towards Edge and Lita.

"Ed, Ed, look!" Sawyer said, waving the picture around. "It's Kensy!"

"I've already seen those pictures," Edge dismissed him, "come up with new material, _Sawyer_."

"No, you!" Sawyer said as Lita knelt down next to Sawyer. "Hi, Li."

"Hey there," Lita said, "you want to show me your pictures?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, showing the pictures. "It's me and Kensy and then Mommy and Kensy and then I'm with Kensy again."

"She's so pretty."

"You came and saw her too, with Ed, did you like her?"

"I did like her, she made me want a baby just like her," Lita said, almost conspiratorially.

"Yeah, not happening," Edge said from above her.

"Did you like her, Ed?" Sawyer asked.

"I liked her a lot more than I like you," Edge said, sticking his tongue out. "He doesn't call me Ed."

"She can't talk, she's only a baby!"

"That's why I like her."

"Why are you always trying to one-up a four year old?" Lita asked. "If we ever had kids, would this be how you acted around them?"

Edge never really thought that far ahead with Lita. He loved her and wanted to be with her forever, but kids just seemed like a huge responsibility that he wasn't ready to handle. Sure, he could baby-sit Tilden or Sawyer and Flynn (and possibly now Kensington), but that was temporary. Him with a kid, all the time? He just didn't think that he would make a good father, cool uncle was probably about as far as he could take this parenting thing.

"They would call me Dad, not Ed."

"But you _are_ Ed," Sawyer reasoned.

"No, I'm not," Edge grumbled folding his arms. He turned to Chris, "Hopefully Kensy is better than this one you've got here."

"Only time will tell," Chris said.

"So have you thought more about that…break thing?"

"Yeah, I have, but you'll have to wait until tonight to hear what I have to say."

"Oh come on, dude, we're best friends, I came to the hospital to visit your wife and daughter, don't you think that entitles me to know what's going on in your life and to know if you're going to be taking a break and leaving me here to the wolves."

"Dude," Chris returned, "even if I took the break, Stephanie would still be working so I'd be here and what wolves?"

"Still, you should tell me."

"You'll find out."

The world found out when he announced that he would be leaving if he didn't win at Night of Champions. Because he was pretty firmly in the 'I'm taking the time off" camp, he would simply throw the match at Night of Champions. He would put his effort into it of course because he wasn't one of the guys who half-assed things, but he wasn't going to push it to the next level. Just his luck he'd accidentally become the champion again. But he figured that there were enough guys in the match that the odds were already low, which was in his favor. He would just not put his all into the match.

He could also start to not care tonight. Why should he help anyone on his team when none of them liked him? It would serve them right for him to just up and leave so he did. He walked right out of the ring and up the ramp, pausing for dramatic effect, but then leaving altogether. He didn't need anyone on his team, hell, he didn't need a team. Let Nexus have at them. It would serve them right. They didn't acknowledge his greatness so they could fend for themselves. While backstage, he saw Edge take his lead and when the other man came backstage, he was looking for a high five.

"Dude, we so rocked it out there, saying a huge f-you to the rest of the team, jackasses," Edge said with a nod as Chris did slap him five. "I'm going to miss you when you go, I assume that you'll be losing at Night of Champions."

"I think I will, yes."

"Well, if that's what you want to do…" Chris thought of his family and all the outside commitments he had coming up.

"I think it's what I want to do."


	291. Falls Apart, September 6, 2010

A/N: Sorry for the delay, got really sick last week, but hope you enjoy the chapter nonetheless. Review if you want to and enjoy the chapter! :)

* * *

"Oh, there's boobage."

Stephanie looked up and rolled her eyes, "Very funny."

"I'm sorry, I walk into my home after being away and I get greeted with boobs, _best_ homecoming ever, well, no, that's not true, back before we had the kids, I remember the times you used to wait up for me wearing nothing but a smile and holding a glass of champagne, good times, good times."

"These boobs are not for you in case you don't notice the little person currently eating."

"I'm sorry, I was so distracted by the humongous boobs that totally dwarf our daughter," Chris told her, his eyebrows wagging nearly lewdly. "So when I'm gone you just don't wear a top, is that what happens?"

"I'm not wearing a top because I wasn't expecting you home this early, what are you doing home this early?" she asked. "Wait, before you answer that, where are our kids?"

"That's why I came up here," Chris said. "They're both asleep in the car, I was hoping you would come with me to get them and put them to bed, but I see you're occupied with that one."

"Hold on," Stephanie said, gently pulling Kensington away from her. Kensington started to whimper, but Chris came over and gently took her from Stephanie's arms and cradled her for a moment while Stephanie pulled a robe on. Chris kissed Kensington's head and nuzzled her a little.

"Hey there, Kensy-bug, I missed you," he whispered to her. "Let me just get your brother and sister to bed and then we'll have a heart-to-heart talk and you can tell me all about what you and Mommy did while we were gone, okay?"

Kensington yawned a little and Chris set her down in her bassinet as Stephanie waited for him in the doorway. He walked over to her and she slipped her hand in his. "So really, what are you guys doing home early? I wasn't expecting for you to be home until later?"

"Well, I found out there was a direct flight to Tampa instead of having a layover in South Carolina so I had our tickets changed for the direct flight because two cranky kids for a couple hours in the middle of the night waiting for a plane, not my idea of fun so we got in early and I got home," Chris said as he pulled her closer. "Besides, I couldn't wait to get home to the rest of my girls."

"You're sweet," she said, leaning up to kiss him, "we missed you."

"How could you tell Kensy missed me?"

"I can just tell," Stephanie said. "She just has that 'where's my Daddy?' look on her face and she wants you because she knows that she has you wrapped around her teeny-tiny finger already."

"I hate that she does, but she does," Chris said, trying to hold in the grin when he thought of his younger daughter. She was completely perfect to him. Sure, she was a crier and she could cry loudly and she usually did, a lot, waking them up all the time for the littlest infraction. She was a light sleeper so if there was any noise louder than a whisper, she was usually up, but damn it if he didn't love that little girl with all his heart.

"It's adorable," Stephanie said as they walked outside. The doors to their van were open and Stephanie looked at it. "Great, why don't you just put a sign that says 'kidnap my children!' on it."

"Don't worry, I scoped out the neighborhood," he said. "I was only upstairs for a moment, I didn't grab a bite to eat before I came to get you. I'll take the big one, you take the smaller one?"

"That sounds like a deal," she said, starting to unstrap Flynn from her car-seat.

Chris was trying to get Sawyer from his booster seat, but the little boy kept pushing his hands away and Chris had to keep from laughing. Sawyer had a scowl on his face in his sleep and it was just funny to see him try to resist and sleep at the same time. He finally got him unhooked and he lifted Sawyer carefully out of the car. Sawyer instinctively wrapped his legs around Chris's waist before hugging his father tightly and mumbling something incoherent to him. He checked on Stephanie, who already had the dead asleep Flynn cradled in her arms, whispering sweet nothings to their daughter.

"They're already in their pajamas," Chris said. "So we can just put them straight to bed."

"Okay," Stephanie whispered as she shut the door. "Did they have fun?"

"Of course they had fun," Chris said. "They both love wrestling so of course they had fun. The two of them are like little wrestling demons. Flynn tried to trip him and then she tried to jump on his back. I think she was trying to go for a submission move before I grabbed her and told her if she didn't stop she'd get a time-out."

"She really is an aggressive little girl," Stephanie said, looking down at her daughter, who looked so angelic right now and nothing like the terror she could be while she was awake. It was a stark contrast between the two. "Are you okay after what happened tonight?"

"We'll talk about it when we get these kids down, okay?" he told her and she nodded. They took their kids upstairs and went into their respective kids' rooms. Stephanie laid Flynn down on her bed, taking off the light jacket she'd been wearing before tucking her under the covers, kissing her forehead and whispering that she loved her. She got up and turned on the nightlight before closing the door partially and heading into Sawyer's room.

Chris was just untangling Sawyer from his arms as he seemed to be clinging to Chris pretty tightly. Sawyer kept whining and not wanting to let Chris go. Chris gently pulled Sawyer's arms away from his neck and Stephanie pulled back the covers as Chris took Sawyer's jacket off. Chris maneuvered Sawyer under the covers and both he and Stephanie gave him a goodnight kiss as Sawyer tried to hug both of them, but was so tired, his arms kind of flopped over their shoulders. Stephanie laughed and gave him an extra kiss before they started to hear Kensington cry from their room. They walked back into their bedroom and Chris took Kensington into his arms.

"I think she's still hungry, we didn't get to finish dinner," Stephanie said, taking Kensington back in her arms and undoing her robe. Chris whistled and she glared at him. "Chris, why must you make something that's not disgusting, lewd? All I'm trying to do is feed our daughter and you have to make it perverted."

Chris walked into the closet and a few minutes later emerged in his boxers. He hopped lightly on the bed and grinned at her as he lay on his stomach next to her so he could look up at her face and at Kensington. "Because you make me perverted and since we can't have sex, I have to let out all this sexual tension somehow and this is just the way to do it. I like having a close-up."

"You're disgusting," Stephanie shook her head as Kensington latched on. Chris ran his finger up and down Kensington's sock-covered foot as she ate. "I'm just trying to feed our daughter and you're talking about sex."

"I love my daughter too," Chris said, glancing at his little girl. "She's already a beauty and I love her and everything, but I'm sorry, your boobs are out and those have to take precedence in this situation."

"It's not like we can really do anything, not that I'd want to, it's extremely late as it is, you're lucky I was up at all."

"Kensy has a schedule so I figured you might be up, if you hadn't been, I just would've taken the kids one-by-one, but you were up and now you're up still and so I can talk to you and talk about your boobs."

"Stop it with the boob talk," she laughed. "We have more serious things to discuss here."

"We do? Because I'm pretty sure that your boobs should be our number one topic of discussion at all possible times," he told her, ogling her and making her avoid his eyes. If she was honest though, she did kind of love the attention he gave her, but that was only because it made her feel desirable and sometimes she just never felt as desirable as Chris made her feel, especially right now, after having a baby and handling a newborn and two other small children.

"I want to talk about what happened tonight at Raw?"

"It's getting late and this may take away."

"Kensy looks like she's going to be up for a little while so I think that we can talk. Tonight was…interesting. Very interesting in fact, especially that scene you had with Morrison, you know, the one where you seemed to be in a catatonic state," Stephanie said. "What's going on inside your head, Chris? What happened tonight?"

_"Dude, you're really leaving?" Edge said, bummed out. "Also, why is your daughter trying to slap me?" Edge looked over at Flynn, who he kept pushing away gently before she could smack him again in the face. The first time she'd done it, he hadn't been expecting it so he'd been shocked when her small palm smacked him across the face._

_"She was watching a match of mine where I slapped my opponent."_

_"God, what is with your children?" Edge said as he dodged Flynn again. "I can't believe you're leaving."_

_"It's for a bunch of reasons, man," Chris said. "It's not personal or anything and it's not because of that idiotic GM who seems to be out to get us-"_

_"Do you know who it is?"_

_"No clue, Vince is keeping it under wraps and like hell he'd tell me because he knows if he told me, I'd tell Stephanie and she's really the one he doesn't want to tell. He thinks Stephanie will somehow oust the person and take over their job. I guess he has more reason to be concerned now that she's had Kensy."_

_"What if it's Stephanie? I mean, you don't see her right now, she could very well be at your house doing them."_

_"You think it's Stephanie?"_

_"I wouldn't put it past her to be the one. You two keep secrets from each other, especially when it comes to plans. There are so many plans you didn't know about, right, am I right?"_

_"Yeah, but this is a _huge_ thing, not to mention the GM has been a jackass to the both of us so why would it be Stephanie if they were being a jackass to us? She loves me and I'm pretty sure she tolerates you."_

_"But wouldn't that be the genius of it all?" Edge asked. "If she were the GM and she treated us like crap, _nobody_ would believe it was her because there's no way she would treat us like crap. It would deflect away from her."_

"Wait, wait, wait," Stephanie interrupted. "Edge thinks that _I'm_ the GM and I'm just not saying anything so what, I can be an even bigger surprise if I were to make my return?"

"That's his theory and he said that he's not going to believe anything else until the GM shows up. I think he might try to smoke you out now, but don't quote me on that. I figure if he thinks that you're the one behind all this, he's going t try to prove it…you aren't the one behind all this, are you?"

"Do you really think I have the time to pull off being the GM when I have a four, two, and two week old? I mean, that would be a lot of work and I have a lot of things to do otherwise hence me asking you to take time off. So do you really think that I'm some mystery GM?"

"Maybe," he admitted slowly, "but only because I think you're superwoman and capable of anything that you want to do."

"Believe me, if I were the GM I think you would know it and even if I was and trying the ridiculous plan to make it seem like I don't like you, I wouldn't play it off that way," she told him. "So it's not me, go on with your story."

"Okay, well, I'll skip over that part of the conversation, now where was I?" he said, thinking for a moment.

_"So what are you going to do, I mean, about the show?" Edge asked. "Are you just going to say that you have three kids and you have other obligations and then you're going to leave? I mean, what kind of break is that?"_

_"No, because Stephanie and I don't bring up the kids while we're on TV."_

_"Yes you have, I remember you talking about kids."_

_"We make that stuff up. Have you ever heard me bring up Sawyer or Flynn or Kensy, well, not Kensy because she's so new, but Sawyer or Flynn, have you ever heard me say anything about them?"_

_"No, but that doesn't mean that you can't now," Edge told him. "Everyone would understand if you said that you were just going to spend more time with your kids."_

_"I don't want anyone's sympathy and Stephanie and I don't want our children brought up on TV. It's just not how he want to go with it. Look, as of right now, people are still only speculating that Kensy is even a girl, they thought we had a boy even. I bet a lot of people still think that Sawyer is a girl and Flynn, well, I don't know, people probably don't even talk about poor Flynnie, but that's how we like it. We want our kids to grow up out of the spotlight. Stephanie and I both know how it was for us. My dad was always traveling, I didn't feel like I had a relationship with him until I was in my teens and Stephanie was forced to pose for magazines and what not before her breasts even grew in."_

"What _is_ it with you and my breasts?" Stephanie asked. "They're not even as large as they were once I got some of the implants taken out."

"They're really great breasts," Chris shrugged. Stephanie burped Kensington and then let her lay down next to Chris, who proceeded to pepper her cheek with kisses. "And I recognize how lucky I am that I really like your breasts because they're probably going to be the last ones I ever get to look at."

"Probably?" she asked with a smirk.

"Well, you know, I might end up going to a bachelor party and see some or one of the divas' tops fall off as they are wont to do sometimes, but I mean, your breasts are definitely the ones I will see on a regular basis for the rest of my life so I'm glad they are quite up to par."

"You're disgusting, so after you talked about my amazing breasts…then what?"

_"I just don't get your secrecy about your kids."_

_"Dude, have you ever seen our fans, some of them can get really crazy and I don't want my kids' pictures splashed all over the internet. So basically, I have this stipulation in place for Night of Champions to be my out from the company for a while. I think it's pretty brilliant if I do say so myself."_

_"Yeah, you only look like a coward while doing it," Edge said as Flynn tried to cover his mouth. He pulled her hand away. "Where is your brother, Flynnie, can't you go play with him for a while?"_

_"He with Li-Li," Flynn answered._

_"Oh yeah, I forgot that your brother is trying to steal my girlfriend, that is _so_ Sawyer of him."_

_"I can't help that my son is as charming as me," Chris said. "And I don't think it'll make me look like a coward."_

_"Are you kidding me?" Edge said. "You think that you won't look like a coward if you're just going to what, lay down in a match? Are you even going to try or are you just going to lay down like a little bitch?"_

_"It wouldn't be acting like a little bitch."_

_"Dude, you fought some of the toughest guys in this business, you scraped and clawed your way to the top and you want to take a break by lying down in a match? That's a bitch move."_

_"Can you please stop saying that word around my two year old daughter who likes to repeat things?" Chris asked, gesturing towards Flynn. "And I didn't say that I would necessarily lie down."_

_"You want to throw the match."_

_"Throwing the match is not the same as lying down."_

_"How is it different?" Edge asked. "Either way, you will deliberately be losing just so you can take a break. I'm serious, man, that's the lamest thing I've ever heard of. You have a chance at Night of Champions to come out the WWE Champion and instead, you're going to lie down."_

_"I want to spend time with my wife and children, Edge," Chris told him. "I want to spend time with my band."_

_Chris was already lining up things for when he was away. He'd already had part of his tour in place, but there was going to be some traveling he'd be doing, most notably to Australia. He might even be able to convince Stephanie to come along with him, if she felt okay leaving Kensington behind, the other kids would understand, but Kensington still needed their attention. Either way, he was excited to be going out there with his band. For a long time, he'd had to balance the two together and now he could really focus on his band and it was going to be awesome._

_He loved performing on stage and singing. With wrestling, it was always on such a large scale, thousands and thousands of people watching him and cheering for him, but with his band, it felt more intimate. The venues were usually much, much smaller and the crowd was almost on top of him while he sang and he loved it. He loved looking out and seeing the individual faces singing along to his songs. He loved that they could separate his wrestling persona from him band persona. He was excited for this tour, for the opportunity to explore something else he loved._

_He also loved that Stephanie was behind him 100 percent. When he'd first come to her with this extended tour, he thought she might shoot him down, tell him he was crazy and that she wouldn't support him. He thought it might even lead to one of their patented fights, but it hadn't. She'd smiled at him and told him that she was glad he was getting to go out there and do his music. He'd been bracing for a fight so when she'd said that, he'd stared at her for a long moment before he kissed the hell out of her. _

_"You don't have to lie down to do it though," Edge said._

_"So what do you suggest I do?"_

_"I don't know!" Edge said. "I just don't think you should lie down or throw the match or whatever because that's not you, that's not Chris Jericho. Chris Jericho would never do that."_

_"Whatever man, can you just watch Flynn for me, I've got a match," he told Edge._

_The match was against John Morrison. Chris was ready for it, though he knew that Morrison was a formidable opponent. The kid was getting better and better with every match so Chris knew this was not going to be a pushover. As he was walking down the ramp, the anonymous GM rang in and said that if he lost tonight, he would be out of the match at Night of Champions. For a brief, very brief, moment, he thought that Edge might be the mystery GM and was just screwing with him so he wouldn't be able to lie down during the match at Night of Champions. But that didn't make any sense._

_Whoever this GM was, they were trying to screw with his brain. So focused was he on the fact that if he failed in this match he wouldn't have his exit plan for Night of Champions that he wasn't able to focus at the task at hand, which was beating John Morrison. When Chris espoused that he was the best in the world at what he did, he wasn't trying to be cocky and he wasn't trying to be arrogant. The words out of his mouth were words that he believed, words that he lived by. If he didn't think he was the best in the world at what he did, he wouldn't go out there every week and try to be the best wrestler he could be. Sure, he wrestled for his fans (however many he still had left) and he wrestled for his kids and his wife, but most of all, he wrestled for himself. He wrestled because inside of him, there was a young boy, just fresh off watching a show with his grandma who was living the dream he'd had for so long, the dream that made him draw pictures of himself with Owen Hart._

_The GM had his head in a jumble though. He thought his head was in the match, but when John won and he was out of the Night of Champions match, he realized how he'd allowed the GM to get exactly what they wanted. They didn't want him in that match. They didn't want him to succeed…unless…unless they didn't want him to leave. Could this be some kind of reverse psychology they were trying to pull on him? Could they be just acting like they hated him?_

"What do you mean?" Stephanie asked. "They practically threw you out of that match. How could this possibly be something _good_, I don't understand."

Chris sat up and took Kensington into his arms. She was starting to get sleepy and he held her close to him, letting her rest his head against her chest and he leaned back against the pillows. Stephanie reached over him and turned off the light and then turned off her own light, leaving the muted TV as the only light bouncing off the walls, creating a blue glow surrounding them. Stephanie leaned her head against Chris's shoulder as she watched him rub Kensington's back, lulling the baby to sleep gently.

"I'm starting to think they don't want me to go anywhere."

"So you think they like you?" she asked quietly, playing with Kensington's foot.

"It's a distinct possibility. I mean, this GM wants to be liked, I guess, though why they associate themselves with Cole is the real mystery of it all, but if they want to be liked, of course they're going to rag on the proverbial bad guy, which would be me and Edge, but what if it's their backwards way of getting me to stay."

"But they don't know that you're set on leaving and that you were going to throw the match."

"But what if they do?" Chris asked and that caused Stephanie to pull away and stare at him.

"Do you know who this person is?" she asked suspiciously. "I know you've been wondering who it is and wanting to find out, did you find out who it was and didn't tell me?"

"No, no, I don't know who it is, but I mean, I don't know _definitively_ who it is at least, but I guess I have my suspicions."

"You have suspicions and you didn't tell me about them? Chris, we're married, if you think you know who the anonymous GM is, then you should really tell your wife."

"Wow and here I thought I was only supposed to tell you about women hitting on me or things like that, but I guess it was all about anonymous GMs," he told her and she rolled her eyes and laid her head back on his shoulder. "I wasn't aware this was a huge thing for you. I mean, wait, yes, I was, of course I was, but I thought-"

"Thought what exactly?" she asked.

"Nothing, nothing at all."

"So who do you think it might be?"

"Well, think about it, someone who doesn't want me to leave, which means it should be someone that knows I'm going to leave or at the very least seriously considering it. Someone who isn't on the show because I can't see it being someone who has to work and they'd get caught, so it'd have to be someone who isn't there…do you see where I'm going with this?"

"Shane?" Stephanie asked. "I don't think it's Shane, he just started that new job, plus he has the three boys and everything…"

"Hunter, Stephanie, I think it might be Hunter."

"Hunter? Are you serious?"

"It adds up, I spoke to him about leaving so he knows about it."

_"You can't be serious," Hunter said. "If you could see me now, you would see me rolling my eyes."_

_"Why is everyone so against this idea?"_

_"I'm not against you doing your tour, man, but I mean, come on, are you injured at all?"_

_"No," Chris said. "You know I'm kind of like Ironman over here."_

_"Yeah, thanks for bragging. Chris, I've been out for months, it is _killing_ me to be away-"_

_"From the business or from Britt?" Chris joked._

_"Not funny, man."_

_"She's going to cave, I really think she's on the verge of caving. I think if you're just persistent, she'll definitely want you back."_

_"Really?" Hunter asked, then stopped. "No, it's not about me and Britt or whatever's going on with us. We're not part of this story, not right now. It's killing me to be away from the business. I love wrestling, Chris, I thought you loved it too."_

_"I _do_ love it, but I need some time away. Hunter, man, I'm not like you. I have a lot of interests and a lot of things that I want to do. You know how I am, I always like to have some sort of project. That's just how I like to do things."_

_"What about the project of wrestling?"_

_"Dude, come on, I'm not leaving forever."_

_"Dude, wrestling is what you are, Stephanie McMahon is your wife."_

_"You don't say!" Chris gasped. "Stephanie is fine with it, in fact, she supports me and thinks it'll be good to get my music out there. In fact, she was the one who actually suggested I take some time off, granted it was to help with the kids, but I'm turning it into a chance to focus on something else for once instead of constantly focusing on a ton of things."_

_"I think you're making a mistake."_

_"How can I be making a mistake? It's not like I'm retiring or anything. I think you're just upset that you're still out of action…"_

_"Of course I'm upset!" Hunter said angrily. "I would kill for what you have, man!"_

_"You mean, Stephanie and the kids because if that's the case, this conversation just took a turn for the awkward because you kind of had her and then discarded her so that's nobody's fault but your own and the kid thing, I mean, you tried with Stephanie and it just didn't work out, man."_

_"You know that's not what I'm talking about, I'm talking about your track record."_

_"The women I slept with before Stephanie?" Chris asked, knowing what he was doing and knowing how much it was bugging Hunter. "Well, dude, if you must know about that, the first girl I slept with was a disaster, just a disaster, I barely lasted-"_

_"Shut up, Chris," Hunter said as Chris laughed, "I would kill to not be so injured all the time. I have wires in my knees, Chris, I have had more surgeries than I care to remember. I wake up so creaky sometimes, I feel like someone should oil me. But here you are and how many serious injuries have you had and how much time did you have to miss, huh? If I recall correctly it was once, when you broke your arm."_

_"I still wake up pretty creaky some mornings," Chris countered. "Add that to the fact that I now have three children, _three_ children under the age of five, all of whom need attention."_

_"You're not injured though, you don't have to go to surgery, hear someone tell you that you won't be able to do something you love. I just don't get you."_

_"Wrestling is not the only thing in my life, Hunter, I know it might be in yours, but it's not in mine. I'm sorry you're out and you miss it, I do, but I'm not sorry that Stephanie thought it would be a good idea for me to get away for a while."_

_"Whatever, man, fine, take the easy way out."_

"So that makes you think it's him?"

"He's pissed that I'm taking time away. He thinks I'm lucky-"

"You are though, Chris," Stephanie said. "I know what he went through when he tore his quad that first time. He was in agony over it."

"I thought you two were on the outs or something, I mean, that's how you've always come across, that you guys were so apart at that point in time, drifting in your own directions."

"We were, but I was there at the beginning, when he had the surgery and right after and my God…I mean, you saw me come back when I bought ECW, if I had not bought that company and come back, I think Hunter and I would have ripped each other's heads off or at the very least argued every second of every day. He hated being injured, it took away what he loved most."

"I'm guessing that wasn't you."

"No, of course not, it was the wrestling, he desperately missed it, hell, I'm willing to bet that all the guys who get injured do. I mean, at first, after they get settled they think they're going to have fun, going to get to do a lot of things they didn't have time for before or even get to relax, but then the boredom sets in. Wrestlers choose this lifestyle, they crave it and when it's wrenched away from them, they miss it and they want it. You're just…you've never really experienced that."

"I was gone for those two years," he pointed out.

"Yeah, gone from the ring, but not gone from the business, you could have come back at any time, totally different, sweetie and now with you leaving again, it's not because you're injured, it's because you want to get away. Hunter's just jealous that you get that choice, that you can be in a position where you aren't being forced away from something you love."

"Well, then that brings me back to him as the GM. If it is Hunter and he wants me to stay…he would have gotten me out of that match. He would want me out of that match so that stipulation I put on the match is now null and void. Even if I get back in the match, he's not going to sign off on that condition."

"I can talk to him."

"He's not going to admit to you that he's the GM," Chris said, hearing Kensington whimper again. He started rubbing her back and when she calmed down, he stood up and put her in her bassinet before going back over to Stephanie. They lay down together, Stephanie cuddling up to him as he turned off the TV and left them in the dark. Chris's voice lowered so Stephanie only would hear and they wouldn't wake up Kensington, who would need to be moved out of their bedroom soon since she was such a light sleeper, "The only thing is, if he is the GM, how in the hell did he convince your dad to let him be the GM?"

"Hunter's a suck-up, you know this," Stephanie whispered back. "Besides, my dad is all about the shock value. If it is Hunter, then the shock would be pretty big and my dad likes that, ratings and everything."

"I guess that makes sense," Chris said. "The thing is though, now I want to be in that match. If I'm going to leave…now I don't know how I'm going to leave."

"Chris, you just…you leave," Stephanie said.

"Not going to work."

"Everyone thinks you're going to leave anyways," Stephanie said.

"What?"

"Chris, I have a newborn so I'm up at some pretty crazy hours when you're not here," she told him. "I look on the internet, I'm not an idiot. I spy on your Twitter, you know this and everyone is begging you not to leave so of course, I'm like, 'what, why are they thinking this?' and someone has been saying you're in contract negotiations and that you won't sign."

"So they don't realize that I signed a lifelong contract called my marriage license?"

"Apparently not, so you could probably just leave and not show up the next week and everything would go on."

"Yeah, it can't happen that way."

"You never did tell me why you were acting like a weirdo at the end of the show tonight, I mean, just sitting there, staring, not acting like anything and then when Morrison came up to you, you didn't even punch him in the face like he deserved. You should have punched him in the face, I would have punched him in the face and you _know_ Flynnie would have punched him right in the kisser."

"She would too," Chris said. "But I was thinking."

_Chris couldn't stop thinking about what he was going to do now. He wanted back in that match. He was planning something for that match. He was going to give it his all up until a point and then when he lost, he would get that look on his face, the one where he acted like he was shocked and then he would act like this was a huge mistake, but then he planned to walk out with his head held high, possibly holding his hand up. It would be the dignified way to go. The GM had taken that way from him, screwing with his mind. What did they want from him? Did they really want him to stay? Or did they want him out of the match just to be spiteful? Was it Hunter doing this?_

_He didn't have time to think about Morrison and whatever he was saying. He didn't have time to pal around with someone so obviously beneath him. Let the guy have his very brief moment in the sun, Chris was still who he was and Morrison was still a guy who wore a hideous coat and sunglasses you couldn't even see out of and ones he wore indoors to boot. He often wondered if people forgot that he could go to his wife and tell her to fire them. Not that he would ever take away someone's livelihood, but they should remember that the threat was there. Morrison was getting on his last nerve trying to get Chris riled up enough to what? Punch him in the face, Chris wasn't sure, all he was sure of was that he had to think of some kind of plan to get back in that match and get back on the card. _

_If he got back in the match though, he could see the GM not allowing him his stipulation. So he had to think of a new plan, he had to think of something that could get him out and not raise the ire up of the GM. If the GM was Hunter though, Chris knew the man would find a way to make him stay. He would find some loophole that Chris could not get out of, something to get him to stay. Chris didn't realize at the time why it was so important for Hunter that he continue to wrestle. Hunter_ was _jealous of Chris's ability to stay healthy. As Hunter got older, his body was starting to slow down and there was no worse feeling than that of having that which you love slowly slip away, bit by bit and piece by piece._

"So I came up with a plan," Chris said.

"Right then and there?"

"Well, not so much then and there," Chris said. "It kind of hinges on some things. I'm going to get back in the match next week, by any means necessary, but I understand that I'm probably not going to get my stipulation back, especially if it's Hunter. He's not going to grant me the time off so I have to do it by different means."

"Different means, I don't understand, what other different means are there besides basically telling the world that you're leaving…you're telling the world that you're leaving!" Stephanie said, then cringed when she realized the volume at which she'd said it and then winced a few moments later when Kensington woke up. "Damn it, I'm sorry."

"It's fine," Chris said, kissing her forehead before slipping out of bed. "Baby, I think it's time that we let Kensington have her own room. She's not happy in here with us and I think it's better if we just let her sleep in her crib."

"Are you sure?" she asked as she turned on the light so Chris could see what he was doing. He lifted Kensington up and started bouncing her slowly to get her to calm down again. "I mean, she's still so little and both Sawyer and Flynn stayed with us longer, a few weeks at the very least."

"Kensy is different than the others, like Flynn was different from Sawyer," Chris said, nuzzling his baby's head. "I think she'd like that, plus we have the baby monitor in case she needs us. I think it's time."

"Okay," Stephanie said, "so are you going to announce it."

"No, I actually…well, I came up with a different plan."

"What's your different plan?" she asked him curiously.

_Chris knocked on the door and looked around. The door opened a minute later. Chris looked at the other person and nodded his head in greeting. "What do you want, Chris?"_

_"I'm going to need a pretty big favor."_

"Chris, what's your different plan?"

"I've got to get injured."


	292. Pull You Back In, September 13, 2010

A/N: Sorry, real life and all that stuff. Anyways, the one (and I do mean one) good thing about Chris being away is I can catch up now...of course now that I say that, Steph will probably come back, oy! Anyways, thanks for the reviews and the reads, enjoy. :)

* * *

First things first, he had to get back into that match.

"How do you think you're going to do that?"

"I'm not sure, well, I do have an idea," Chris said as he leaned back on the couch he was sitting on, staring at the ceiling as Flynn took her nap on him. She'd just kind of conked out and now she was laying with her legs flailed out on her daddy's legs. Sawyer was in the bedroom taking his own nap, but Flynn had been obstinate in her nap-taking.

"What's this idea?" Stephanie asked as she checked on Kensington in her crib. The baby was sleeping peacefully and Stephanie left her alone, knowing if she even so much as touched Kensington, she'd wake up.

"Well, I'm just going to go out there and demand that I get put back in the match."

"Well that's…a plan," Stephanie nodded.

"What do you suggest I do then, oh great planner?" Chris asked. "What kind of elaborate plan can you come up with on short notice because I have to leave for the show as soon as the kids wake up from their naps. Are you going to call in the CIA to somehow root out the GM so that I can go beat them up?"

"Well, if you had given me a week's notice I would have been able to concoct something epic, but unfortunately, you've given me no time to really think about this so you'll have to go with your dumb plan," Stephanie told him.

"My plan isn't dumb, I've done it before and it's worked," he told her, "I'm just going to go out there and demand that they put me back in the match. If it's Hunter, as I suspect it is, he'll put me back in the match."

"And if it is Hunter, he's not going to make it easy for you to get back in, you know that, right," she told him. "I mean, you're his friend and everything, but he's never done anything easy, he's probably going to make you jump through hoops to get what you want."

"Then I will be jumping through some hoops," he replied. "I can deal with whatever the GM has in store for me. I just have to make sure that I get back in that match. I'm sure the GM is not going to allow me my stipulation though."

"So then you'll go through with that stupid plan where you get injured."

"Why is everything I do stupid to you? That's not very nice of you to say, you know," he told her. "I love you and I go along with every one of your plans and I never call them stupid or pointless."

"Are you kidding me? What about the plan that saw us faking a separation? You _hated_ that plan and called it stupid every chance you could get," Stephanie rebutted. "You think I have stupid plans sometimes too. I just don't see the point in getting injured, I don't see why you have to get injured to get away."

"I'll only _fake_ being injured, I already discussed it with you."

"But still, all the variables have to be right in order for you to not get injured. I mean, what if Randy kicks you in the head wrong and you end up with a concussion. Chris, you've had enough concussions for one lifetime. I don't want you to end up with serious head problems when you're older. We have three children that need raising and a concussion is the last thing that I need you to have."

"Stephanie I discussed it with Randy and he's not going to put a lot behind it."

"Can I ask you again how you agreed to get him to do this?" Stephanie asked. "How can you trust him?"

"Trust me, I've given him a very lucrative offer."

Stephanie should trust Chris, but she didn't like the way he was saying that. A very lucrative offer? Had he paid him off or something? She didn't see Randy as the type who would take money for something like this, but then, she and Chris did have a lot of money, enough to throw it around a bit for things like this. Still, she just didn't see him as the kind of guy who would take a bribe. Chris had to have offered something else. Then her mind flitted to a raven-haired beauty they both knew very well, but surely…

"Chris, did you offer him Britt?" Stephanie asked, aghast that he would actually offer a _person_ to someone in exchange for a favor. She never thought Chris would do something like _that_.

"Yes, Stephanie I offered Britt as his personal sex slave," Chris said with a scoff. He grunted a little when Flynn kicked him in the stomach. "I didn't offer him Britt. Just don't worry about what I offered him. He took the deal and he's going to be careful."

"I still don't like this whole idea."

There was more to it than just the whole maybe injured thing. That was a huge part of it as she didn't want Chris to be injured. She was being honest when she said she didn't like the thought of him getting hurt and concussions were being proven as extremely harmful to someone's health, but there was also a pride thing at work here. Chris had never been seriously injured in his entire WWE tenure and even in his WCW tenure. He, and by extension she, was extremely proud of this feat. Going out from being injured just seemed like such a cop-out of sorts. She didn't want him to be the guy that got injured once and was out indefinitely.

"Stephanie, it's the only way I'll get to leave."

"It can't be the only way," she argued.

"Okay, fine, then I'm going to go out there and I'm going to tell them that I want to take time with my band and with my family so essentially I'm going to abandon them all."

"Why don't you just fake like you quit?"

"Because people aren't going to buy that," Chris told her. "They kind of know about our situation."

"Our situation?" she wondered.

"We're married, how can I just quit if we're married?" he asked her. "It just doesn't make sense to be married to you and yet quit the business. It just wouldn't make any kind of sense at all. I might as well go out there and be like, 'hey, guess what, my wife just had a child and I'd like to spend time with that child,' and then be done with it."

"You're not doing that."

"I know I'm not doing that," he said, his voice getting louder. He took a deep breath and continued, "I'm not going to fight with you over this, Stephanie. We're both extremely stressed right now. You have a newborn that you're taking care of and then when we're all home we're trying to play mediator between Flynn and Kensy and I have all this band stuff-"

"Which we haven't even really discussed, you know," she told him.

"You really want to start this now, over the phone?" he asked her.

"I'm just saying, Chris," she started, then took a deep breath herself. "Look, I get it, okay, I really do, I get that you want to do your band stuff and I'm all for that, but I guess when you said that you wanted to do it, back when I was pregnant, I thought it was going to be a domestic thing, you know, the US and Canada and maybe Mexico, I guess, maybe the UK, but now it's blossoming and I think I heard you talking about going to Malaysia and Japan and Chris, we have three children who need you and love you-"

"Stephanie, don't bring the kids-"

"Would you let me finish and don't tell me not to bring the kids into this? We have _three_ children under the age of five and it's hard work taking care of all of them, you've seen this and I don't begrudge your band at all, I think you're fantastic, I love that you think I'm your muse when you're writing songs and I love that you think you're a rock star, but the fact of the matter is, you are their father first and my husband first and your family should come first and that's what this break was supposed to be about."

"So what, you want me to cancel after I've already announced everything?"

"No, that's not what I want at all, but in about a month, Kensy is going to be ready to go out on the road and I'm going to be back to taking over Raw. You'll be touring so I'm going to be what, traveling with three children all by myself, how is this fair, Chris?"

"I can't take the kids to Australia or the UK while I'm touring."

"Because you'll be too busy doing what? Drinking? Sleeping with women?"

Chris had to laugh at that, "Yes, Stephanie, that's what I do when I'm not around you, I sleep with whatever woman I want to, hell, every woman that comes on to me, I take to bed. I'm constantly surrounded by women. Hell, there's one laying on me right now." He looked down to Flynn, who was still out like a light, one of her arms covering her own face.

"Okay, so maybe not that one, but I know you can't take the kids to Australia or around the world, that's why it's such a hassle for you to do this and then you didn't exactly tell me where you were going."

"I'm sorry, but I can't cancel now. What about this, why don't you take my mom with you on the road?"

"Oh yeah, I want to drag your poor mother around with me so she can take care of your mess."

"Stephanie, I'm not doing this with you right now, I'm just not going to do it, okay, so would you just please drop it until I can get home and talk about it."

"You know how much the kids miss you when you're away! And Kensy is a newborn!"

"I'm serious, Stephanie, we'll talk about this when I get home!"

"Daddy," Flynn whined, her daddy waking her up with his loud voice.

"I'm sorry, Flutterby," Chris told her, rubbing her head as she moved her hand out of her face. "Just go back to sleep okay?"

Flynn sat up and rubbed at her eyes before she turned around and rested her head in Chris's lap, closing her eyes and almost instantly falling asleep again. Chris looked down at her as her breathing evened out, almost forgetting that Stephanie was on the other side of the phone line. He couldn't quite concentrate on her right now as his focus was on not moving so Flynn could get to sleep. He rubbed her arm a couple times to let her know that he was there with her and she sighed contentedly in her sleep. She was his little flutterby, who wasn't so much like a delicate, little butterfly from which he'd first culled her nickname. She was more like a fierce warrior, very much like her mother in both looks and demeanor. He didn't think Stephanie saw a lot of herself in Flynn's personality, but Chris could. She was determined and she never let anything get in her way and if she wanted to do something, by God, she found a way to do it.

It wasn't that he wanted to leave his kids because he didn't want to leave them. He wasn't the type of guy who regretted having a family after he already had them. He loved his family more than words could say, but he also had interests. He couldn't be the person who sat around and did nothing all the time, that wasn't his style. Even during this break, he knew that sitting around and doing nothing wasn't an option. But then, it would take him away from his kids and he hated that part of it.

"Chris, Chris, are you still with me?" Stephanie asked.

"Sorry, Flynn woke up from her nap, but she's back down again."

"Where is she?" Stephanie asked.

"She's lying across my lap," he explained. "She didn't feel like sleeping in the bed and she wanted to stay with me so she's sleeping in my lap right now and…well, I guess it's Daddy time right now because our other one just showed up."

Chris tilted his head as Sawyer stumbled sleepily into the room. His hair was sticking up all over the place and he looked very disoriented. Chris laughed as Sawyer tried to get the sleep out of his eyes, but he looked like a little zombie as he made his way to the couch and climbed on, snuggling up to Chris's side as he started to fall asleep too. Chris looked down at him and then leaned down to kiss his head.

"What are you doing in here, kid, I thought you were taking a nap in the other room," he told him.

"I want to sleep with you in here," he told him. "I didn't like it in there."

"Why not?"

"Because I didn't," Sawyer said drowsily.

"Okay," Chris said, "just rest." He turned back to the phone, "I don't know how you planned this, how you possibly could have planned this, but I've now got both of the kids lying on me and you just did this so I would know what I was missing while going out on tour, didn't you?"

"Our kids are just smart, I had nothing to do with that."

"Okay, I will try to fit my schedule in a better fashion, but I make no promises, okay?" he told her, giving in like he always did.

"Thank you, that's all I ask."

"Now how is my Kensy-bug?" he asked. "Does she miss me, has she been asking about me or anything?"

"She is fine, sleeping like our other kids are doing apparently? I think she's going to be up for Raw tonight though, if her schedule holds," Stephanie said. "I think we're going to try and watch it and she'll get to see her daddy wrestle for the first time. I think she'll be very excited to see you."

"How do you know if I'm wrestling or not?" he asked. "I haven't even gotten a schedule."

"Well, I don't know, I'm just assuming that you would be, but I don't know."

"Are you sure you don't know?"

"Am I sure that I don't know, well yeah, I'm sure that I don't know," Stephanie said. "Britt hasn't faxed me the schedule for tonight yet so I don't know what's going on, but I trust her to do the right thing. Either way, you're going to have your little plan with getting back in the match so you'll at least be on-screen and then I can point to you and tell her that's Daddy and she can be proud of you."

"I hope she'll enjoy it."

"She's our kid, of course she's going to enjoy wrestling. What do you take her for?"

"I don't know, one of our kids might end up not liking it, you know," Chris said, "we can't force wrestling on all of them, no matter how much you want to. I mean, look how that worked out for Shane. He was with the company and then got so burnt out on the entire wrestling thing and now he's gone."

"But that's good because I get all the power now."

"I hope our kids don't jostle for power when they're older."

"If they do, you know that Flynn is probably going to win that fight," Stephanie laughed.

Chris looked down at his daughter. Yes, he could picture her fighting to the death for the control simply because she was the picture of Stephanie. "Yeah, she would win that fight because she's a crazy woman. Anyways, I better go now and please tell Kensy that I love her."

"I will tell her, have the kids call me before they go to bed, but not right before they go to bed because I know they like to tell me about their days so a little bit before they go to bed," Stephanie said. "Chris, by the way, I know you have that tour set for next month and that you'll be gone for a couple weeks. I understand that and I'm not mad you're going out on tour, but just don't forget about us, okay?"

"Stephanie, baby, everything I do is for you guys, you ought to know that by now, I love you and I love Sawyer and Flynn and Kensington, I love all you guys, you're my family and I don't half-ass it on my family, not after it took me so long to really get one," he told her.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, because of all the wrestling," she joked with him. "Be careful tonight, I don't want the GM to suspend you or anything, that's not how I want you to go out."

"Okay, I will try to be on my best behavior."

Chris was never really on his best behavior. It just wasn't in his nature to be a yes man for everyone. When he wanted to do something or say something he never gave full contemplation to the consequences. Sure, he would think about what the possible outcome might be, but he never thought it all the way through and that's why his mouth had been getting him in trouble for years. He had a filter, sure, but the filter was never very good and it let a lot of different things through, things it had no business letting through. Tonight was not going to be an exception.

The door opened and Chris was surprised to see Hunter there, but also a little suspicious. Tonight was being touted as the "season premiere" of Raw (which he didn't fully understand because they ran shows year-round, but better he just go with it than question his father-in-law) and Hunter being here piqued Chris's interest. "Hunter, what the hell are you doing here? We're not in Connecticut."

"I know that," Hunter said gruffly. "I've just missed the business and you know I _will_ be returning so I thought I'd come visit. Britt wanted me to give you the schedule."

Chris raised his eyebrow as Sawyer heard Hunter's voice and looked up, "Trips!"

"Hey there, tough guy," Hunter said, kneeling as Sawyer came running over and threw his arms around Hunter. Hunter returned the hug as Flynn came over as well, getting a hug of her own.

"Hi!" Sawyer said. "Where have you been?"

"I've been injured," Hunter said, "I had to have surgery so I've been getting better and I'm going to be coming back soon."

"Cool, was surgery bad?"

"It wasn't fun, but I've unfortunately had a lot of them."

"Daddy, have you had a lot of surgeries?"

"No," Chris said, smirking at Hunter, who just glared at him. "I'm way tougher than Trips is."

"I already knew that," Sawyer said as Flynn squirmed her way into the conversation.

"Hi, hi!" Flynn said sweetly.

But Sawyer wasn't to be deterred. "Did you hear about our new baby?"

"I most certainly did hear about your new baby, your mom and dad even sent me some pictures of her so I could see her for myself, she really is pretty, I think, do you like her?" Hunter asked nicely. He'd missed these kids. There was something so rejuvenating about being with them that almost made him feel completely better.

"I like her a lot and I help Mommy and Daddy all the time and I make her not cry and sometimes I help give her, her bottle and then sometimes I hand Mommy stuff when she has to change diapers even though it's really gross."

"You sound like the best big brother in the world," Hunter told him, ruffling his hair as Sawyer beamed.

"What do you have there?" Chris asked, gesturing to the bag he'd just noticed Hunter had brought in with him, "also, you think I can get that schedule so I can know when I'm getting my time on the show."

Hunter handed the paper to Chris, "I got the kids some gifts, I thought it might be nice if they got something since you guys are probably giving a lot of attention to Kensington right now and understandably so."

"You didn't have to do that," Chris told him.

"I wanted to," Hunter said, then turned back to the kids, "you like presents, right?"

"Yes!" Sawyer said with a scream that made Flynn scream too.

"Three of these, man, you have _three_ of these."

"And the new one's got a pair of lungs on her."

"Sounds like her mother."

"I'm going to choose not to see that in a way that you may have meant it," Chris said.

"Can I have my present now?" Sawyer asked.

"Sure you can, tough guy," Hunter said, pulling out a wrapped box for him. Sawyer grabbed it eagerly. He loved getting presents, but who wouldn't love getting a present?

"Kid, what do we say?"

"Thank you," Sawyer said politely. "Can I open it now?"

"Go ahead," Hunter said as Sawyer tore the wrapping paper off. "It's a camera, Daddy, I got a camera."

"You got my kid a camera?" Chris asked, coming over and kneeling behind Sawyer. Sawyer held it up to him and it was a kid-sized camera that actually took pictures. Chris was actually quite impressed by it.

"I know Sawyer likes to take pictures so I thought he would like this. He can take pictures of Flynn or Kensington-"

"We just call her Kensy," Chris let him know.

"Okay, well, he can take pictures of Kensy then," Hunter shrugged. "I thought it was a cool thing for him to have."

"I like it, I can take pictures!" Sawyer said. "Daddy, can you open it, please?"

"Sure," Chris said, taking the box and opening it for Sawyer as Hunter pulled out another gift that was oddly wrapped and handed it to Flynn.

"This one is for you, Flynnie," Hunter said and she took it, tearing at the paper without even thinking. She pulled out a doll. A _baby_ doll. "I thought you might like this, Flynnie."

"No babies!" Flynn screamed throwing the doll as hard as she could, making it slam off the couch and falling to the ground.

"Well, Flynn just demonstrated how _she_ feels about Kensy," Chris said. "Getting her a doll just shows how long you've been away."

"I thought Steph was joking when she said Flynn hated Kensy," Hunter said.

"Yeah, I wish," Chris said as he grabbed the doll and put it on the couch. "Flynn, say thank you to Hunter for getting you something."

"Tanks," Flynn said, going over and hugging Chris around his neck as she buried her face into his shoulderblade.

"I'll get her something else."

"It's okay, dude, seriously," Chris said. "She just doesn't like babies."

"What does she like?"

"Wrestling. She's been trying to teach herself how to wrestle," Chris said.

"Oh, well," Hunter said with a small laugh. "I got something for Kensy too, but you can wait until you get home for that."

"Thanks," Chris said, then actually took a moment to look at the schedule. "Wait, what the hell, Morrison is getting a shot at taking over _my_ spot in the 6-pack challenge, oh hell no. Are you kidding me with this? Did Britt decide this?"

"I think it might have been the mystery GM," Hunter said. Chris looked at him, but tried to mask his suspicion. Instead, he stood up and just looked at the schedule. If he showed that he was suspicious of Hunter, then Hunter might try harder to keep him there if he was the mystery GM. In fact, if it _was_ Hunter, Chris could work on him a little bit.

"I guess I'll just have to get back in the match my own way."

"What do you plan on doing?" Hunter asked curiously.

"I've got a plan, I'm just going to demand that I get put back in the match and I think the GM will give me what I want."

"You think so?"

"I know so," he said pointedly. "The GM knows what an asset I am, that's why I think he'll remove the original stipulation I put on the match with regards to me quitting if I were to lose it. I don't think he'd let it go through."

"So you're not going to leave then?"

"No, I don't think so. I mean, Stephanie is coming back soon and if she's going to be here, I might as well be here too, right? I can just take some time off for my tour and then be back here," Chris lied. But if Hunter was the GM then he was going to want Chris on the show and Chris could not give wind of what he and Randy had planned.

"Good because leaving is bush league," Hunter told him and Chris nodded in agreement.

"So you got the schedule from Britt, what's going on there? Interesting that you seemed so casual about bringing her up."

"Nothing is going on there, she doesn't trust me and doesn't want to be with me," Hunter shrugged, "so there's really no point in pursuing it because I wouldn't get anywhere. I blew it with her big time and she's not going to just up and forgive me any time soon. The best I can hope for is that we'll remain friends once all this is over and as a man, I have to take that and not demand anything more."

"If I were you, man…"

"Yeah, what would you do, Chris, please, enlighten me on what you would do in this situation since you seem to know more about my love life than I do and think you know this situation, so tell me oh great one."

"I'm not presuming to be some kind of love expert, but I haven't done too badly for myself I don't think," Chris said.

"Yeah, because you took another man's leftovers."

"Stephanie is _nobody's_ leftovers, believe me," Chris said. "Besides, she was getting away from you so I'd say it was a step up. I'm not getting involved with you and Britt, I just wish you'd both wise up and figure out what you are to each other. If you don't, you're going to play this circling game forever or until she finds someone better than you, which is very likely, most of the women you've been with have, minus Chyna, but I don't know _what_ the hell you did to her to ruin her like you did."

"Shut up," Hunter mumbled. "I'm getting out of here, I hope the GM gives you what you want."

"I hope they do too," Chris said. "Hey, wait, do you think you could watch the kids later?"

"Yeah, sure," Hunter said, happy to be around people who wouldn't interrogate him about affairs that were none of their concern.

"Thanks," Chris said. "Hey, do you think you can watch them now?"

"Yeah, I don't have anything to do right now," Hunter said. It was the right now that Chris heard and wondered if that meant Hunter would be doing something later, something that involved a computer and annoying e-mails.

Chris left them then and headed for Randy's locker room. He rapped on the door quickly before Randy let him in. "Hey, man, I just wanted to make sure that you've kept everything to yourself about our deal."

"Yeah, I have," Randy said. "I can't believe you actually _want_ me to kick you in the head though."

"It's the only way, I've got my suspicions about the GM and if it is who I think it is, they won't let me hold fast to the stipulation I put on the match," Chris told him.

"Who do you think it is?"

"I can't tell you that, too risky," Chris said. "Anyways, I know it's going to be difficult, but I will get you that title. I know that you want it more than anything and if I have to bribe every one of the other guys, I'm willing to do that."

"I don't think you'll be able to, so I think it will go to the fallback offer," Randy said. "I don't think Sheamus would take a bribe, but that's just me and my impression of the guy, have you ever had a conversation with him?"

"Briefly," Chris admitted. He really didn't have reason to talk at length with the man.

"He's short a few screws."

"Aren't we all to subject ourselves to this business?"

"Touché," Randy said. "Some more than others then."

"Didn't you trash a hotel room so bad that it cost you like 30,000 dollars in damages?"

"I was young then, I had no sense of responsibility, didn't you almost get maimed by the yakuza?" Randy asked him.

"Someone read my book," Chris smirked at him and Randy rolled his eyes. "I didn't say that I was any better than Sheamus, but look, yeah, the guy is intense or whatever, but if I can work on him, then maybe he'll take the bribe."

"You really want out, don't you?"

"I need the break, but some people aren't willing to let me have it."

"Don't you have a contract expiring, that's what I keep hearing on the wrestling rag sites," Randy said.

Chris scoffed, "You _read_ those sites?"

"I have looked at some, yes, but look at your Twitter, whenever I see you on my timeline, it's all about how someone reviewed something about you or what people are saying about you, my fans do the same thing with wrestling sites and I read them sometimes. They keep saying your contract is up."

"The contract's a formality, just to make sure that I'm getting my fair wage or whatever, that I keep my title, I don't really need it, I haven't seen I married Stephanie. The sites don't know what they're talking about regarding that. Stephanie is my wife so it's not like I really need a new contract."

"So then you can't not sign it and take your break."

"I'll have a new one drawn up and I'll sign it, it just won't go into effect for a while," Chris said. "Look, I just came in her to make sure that we're still on with this plan."

"Of course we are," Randy said. "I trust that you'll keep up with your part of the deal."

"I will," Chris said, shaking his hand. "Now I just need to get into the match."

Getting Morrison out of the match was the easy part. All he had to look for was the opportunity. He watched the match backstage, plotting where he could insert himself. Being falls count anywhere, it was pretty much no holds barred so he could get away with hitting Morrison. When they got to the stage, Chris knew it was time. He went out there and grabbed a chair, hitting Morrison in the back and then walking towards the ring with the chair, not even looking back even as he heard Sheamus's music start to play. That was the first phase of tonight done with. Now that spot in the match was open again and he fully intended to fill it right now, whether the GM wanted it or not, though he knew the GM was just trying to jerk his chain and assert his power. Chris wasn't intimidated though.

Stephanie held up Kensington towards the television. "That's your Daddy, Kensy. He just hit Morrison with a chair so he could get his spot back. Now we have to see what he does to get the spot back."

Kensington snuffled against Stephanie and she adjusted the baby so that she could at least look in the direction of their TV, even if her eyes weren't sharp enough yet to really make out what was going on, on it. "Your daddy is the best in the world at what he does. He's a great wrestler, one of the greatest wrestlers there is. You know, before your big sister Flynnie was born, he came back and surprised me. It was one of the best moments of my life, just hearing him with that music and seeing him out there, calling out to those fans. Your daddy is a special breed, Kensy. He's just one of those guys who has had _it_ since the very beginning."

Stephanie looked at him proudly when they returned from commercial. "We're very lucky to have him. I hope that you'll like wrestling as much as Sawyer does, but maybe not as much as Flynn does because she tries to put moves on everyone, but definitely as much as Sawyer. I'm sure you will though, it's in your blood to love it. Not that you have to work as a wrestler or in the business. I think that your daddy and I have had enough children that we can expect one of you guys not to be in the business, but by all means, if that's what you want, I think you should. But first, let's see how your daddy gets back in the match."

He set the chair in the middle of the ring and sat down, looking out at the fans. He had a microphone with him and he just sat there silently for a few minutes. He finally spoke and told everyone that he was not going anywhere until he got what he wanted and that was his spot back in the match. His voice was deadly serious and he was very serious about sitting there all night long if he had to in order to get his spot back. He told everyone, but more specifically the GM that it was lunacy to take him out of the match and even worse that he tried to replace him with Morrison. Who was Morrison after all? He was hardly the man or wrestler that Chris was, he didn't even qualify to clean Chris's boots.

He then threatened to quit, which, if the GM was Hunter, would irk him even more. Hunter would never let Chris go out like that. He would never allow Chris to just leave. Not that Chris _would_ leave this way, although it would be easy if he just said he was quitting and walked out and then didn't come back for several months. Actually, that would be pretty funny, but now he was in too deep with this plan and he'd already told the GM to put him in the match and Hunter, if he was the GM, would give it to him. The GM didn't budge at first and Chris threatened to track them down and expose them. He didn't believe he had far to go to do that though. All he'd have to do was go backstage and find Hunter.

This seemed to incite something in the GM as a new message was received. He smirked; he knew the GM would come through with an e-mail. Cole started to go through his whole, stupid spiel, but Chris cut him off and told him to just read the e-mail. This GM thing was going to Cole's head and Chris wanted to knock him back down. Cole started to read the e-mail and the GM said they didn't like ultimatums and there was no chance in hell that they'd work. Chris shook his head.

Did he really think it could be Vince? Well, there was always a chance when a McMahon was involved in the equation, but Chris spent enough time around Vince, enough _forced_ time around Vince since they were family to know that Vince would never have held out this long. He would've never been capable of keeping it a secret. Vince would want to flaunt it and he'd be prancing around the ring. He wasn't buying it. Another message came up and Cole _again_ tried that stupid formality and again Chris cut him off and told him to just read the message already. He didn't need to know the GM had messaged him, he could hear and see that a message had come in.

The GM this time said there was something he should know. He was going to make the match an elimination match, which, fine, whatever, but then the GM said he was back in the challenge. That was all he needed to hear. The deal was a deal and he was back in and now the plan could go to perfection. Now he was going to guarantee he was walking out the champ, even though he knew he wasn't. There was another message, this time angry about being interrupted. He then said that he was going to be in a match. Chris should have known better. He should have known that it wouldn't come so easy. If it was Hunter behind all this, he'd probably take great pleasure in doing this after Chris called him out about Britt.

The cage match part was where he started to get angry. His kids were sitting backstage and he needed to be able to take care of them and a cage match was tiring and dangerous. He kind of flew off the handle, demanding to know the GM. If it was Hunter, he was going to ream him out, but if it was someone else, he'd find them. But if it was Hunter, he had to keep his cool so as not to blow the cover off of it. Damn it, it was a lose-lose situation and now he had to wrestle and he had none of his gear. He'd have to wrestle in a suit, which put him already at a great disadvantage and with it being a handicap match, he was going to have the disadvantage.

It reared its ugly head early when David and Tyson were both climbing at the same time and Chris could only go after one of them. David managed to get out, so it was just him and Tyson, which was a better match up for him because one-on-one Chris was the best and Tyson was still what Chris would consider a little green. The kid had barely held anything and he was no match for Chris. The kid fought hard and with Chris not being prepared for the match, he gave it a good fight, but Chris ultimately prevailed after Tyson tried to give him a hurricanrana. Chris had countered it, dropped Tyson and put him in the Walls, to which he tapped easily.

And just like that, Chris was back in the match.

"Daddy, Daddy, you're back in the match," Sawyer said enthusiastically as Chris came back to them. "I'm happy for you."

"Thanks, kid," Chris said, nodding at Hunter, who was sitting at the desk that had been in Chris's room, right in front of Chris's laptop. "You on my computer or anything?"

"Nah, Flynn just got tired, put her on the couch," Hunter said, gesturing towards the couch, where Flynn was sleeping, a blanket covering her and a pillow under her head. "Didn't have anywhere else to sit."

"I see," Chris said, thinking this was awfully convenient. "Thanks for watching the kids for me."

"No problem, I'll see you around, maybe I should go visit Stephanie and check out the new McMahon-Jericho spawn."

"Steph would love the company," Chris said. As soon as Hunter was out of the room, he called over Sawyer. "Kid, did you see Hunter on the computer while I was gone?"

"I dunno," Sawyer shrugged.

"Are you sure?"

"Maybe," Sawyer said. "You should ask him if he was."

"If only it were that easy, kid, if only it were that easy."


	293. Into Action, September 20, 2010

A/N: Thanks for the patience, dear readers. :)

* * *

"When you said you were going to throw the match, that wasn't what I had in mind."

"Well, I know I didn't put my full effort into it, but even I thought I would last longer," Chris said quietly. It was the hours after Night of Champions and he was talking with Stephanie before he headed to bed. Sawyer and Flynn were sharing the bed next to him so he had to be especially quiet while he spoke to his wife. "That didn't sound right, did it?"

"Well, if we were doing some other kind of activity, I have no doubt that you would last longer than you did tonight," Stephanie laughed.

Chris groaned. "Don't tease me like that, Steph. I already can't have sex with you because you're still recovering from Kensy's birth, but now I'm not even near you so there's no chance of fooling around and you're coming at me with that coyness you have."

"Coyness? I have no idea what you are talking about," she told him in, yes, a coy voice. "I'm not doing anything but complimenting you on your…staying power."

"Oh yeah, my _staying_ power."

"I do appreciate a guy that can…last," she joked. "At least more than five minutes than you did tonight, was it even five minutes? It seemed much, more shorter."

"I don't know, the fact is that Randy won and that's what I had promised him in the first place so I'm off the hook. I fulfilled my part of the deal so I don't have to pay up what I might have had to pay up."

"Okay, I've got to ask, how did you get the rest of the guys to agree to let Randy be the champion. I don't understand how you managed to get them all to agree to throw the match. What the hell did you offer them, Chris? I don't want to check our bank account and see that we have a huge chunk of money gone because you paid off a bunch of guys."

"Like I said, I took care of it," Chris said. "Don't worry about it. Just worry about our daughter and yourself and that's all."

"Chris…"

"Stephanie, trust me, I know what I'm doing."

"So you're going to be on Raw tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah, I have a match tomorrow."

"I don't know, I mean, who knows what's going on with you now. Everyone saying that you're leaving, how do they even know?"

"Because they think that I'm holding out on a new contract or some such crap like that," Chris said.

He thought the rumors about him leaving over his contract were ridiculous. Didn't people understand that the wrestling world was _his_ world? Yes, he was a rock star and had a band and he did other TV stuff and radio stuff, but wrestling was his first and true love. And to think he would leave over a contract issue, what made them think that? He was part of the McMahon family, for better or worse, and even if he hated his contract, he could probably kiss Stephanie in all the right places and she would give up whatever he wanted. He had power and control beyond his wildest imagination, he didn't need to be disgruntled about anything. He just wanted time for his family and his band.

"What would you be holding out for?" Stephanie asked rhetorically, feeling the same way Chris did, that people were being ridiculous over this. She'd been on his Twitter account and saw everyone saying stuff like, 'Thank you Jericho,' which, though nice, was without basis.

"Well, I was thinking about putting an addendum on there that says you can't get pregnant with any more girls, but I'm not sure how we'd enforce that," he joked.

"I know, by adding one that says no more children," Stephanie piped in.

"Well, I can't control my sperm or your eggs so that's probably a moot point."

"Oh, I'm sure," she said. "There are ways to control-"

"Don't act like you don't want what I can give you," Chris said. "I know that you are going just as crazy as I do and that when you're ready to go at it again, I'm going to have my clothes torn off me."

"I never suggested anything of the sort," she said indignantly.

"Yeah, right," he said. "Okay, I'm heading to bed, what are you doing tomorrow?"

"Trish and I are going out to lunch with the babies."

"Are you sure you want to take Kensy out?"

"Yeah," Stephanie said. "I think she'll be okay, she only really cries a lot when she wants to go to bed or when she's interrupted from sleeping. Otherwise, she's a good baby and Trish and I need some time to talk to adults since she's stuck with Tilden all the time."

"What about, you know, her husband?"

"Okay, so she doesn't have any other female to talk to."

"Lita?"

"Chris, I'm going out with Trish because we both have babies and want to go out," Stephanie said with exasperation. "Plus, it's just easier going out now because I don't have Sawyer and Flynn here. Did they enjoy tonight?"

"Do they enjoy wrestling, of course they did…also, did you just really ignore the fact I said that I wanted to go to bed?"

"I'm your wife, if I want to keep you up at night, then I'll keep you up at night," Stephanie said proudly. "It's one of my privileges as your wife, among the many others, like when I tell you to get naked for me and you have no choice but to obey me."

"So you just want to get me hard so I can what?"

"I'm doing no such thing, besides you have our kids in the same room, I would never," she told him. "Anyways, I will let you go to bed, I'll be checking our bank account in the morning though for any withdrawals."

"You aren't going to find anything."

"I can access your private account, you know, I have all the necessary information to access anything of yours that I want to, even that bottom drawer in the desk in your office, I bet you didn't know that, did you?"

"You do?" he asked.

"Chris, we've been together for eight years, you don't think I haven't figured out where you hide things you don't want me to see?" Stephanie asked smugly. "Or that I wouldn't know where you hide keys?"

"None of that is really mine," he said quickly and she laughed. "I don't care if you know what I have in there, you're my wife, go ahead and look. Do you wish I was there right now?"

"Of course I do, I miss you when you're out on the road, I'd love to have you here to cuddle with me."

"I'll dream of you," he promised her.

"Yes, because you can control that, I better get to bed while Kensy is asleep. We'll see you on Tuesday, I'll call the kids in the morning, or rather, you call me when they're up and before breakfast or after, just around breakfast so I can say good morning to them."

"Got it, boss," he told her. "I love you, I love Kensy too."

"We love you, I love Sawyer and Flynn."

"I figured as much, night, baby."

In a hotel room a few floors down, Lita was trying to hold in her laughter at her boyfriend. She loved Edge dearly and she couldn't imagine not being with him at this point in her life, but her boyfriend could be _such_ a drama queen. He always got that crazed look in his eyes when he was upset. When she'd first known him, that look meant a lot of things when directed at her, usually it meant she was going to get caught or speared or something. But then, she usually deserved it. She'd been with Matt at the time (it seemed so long ago now that she wondered what she had ever seen in him) and she was always getting involved in his rivalries with Edge and his brother.

"I hate Raw," Edge seethed, his teeth clenched.

Lita just nodded and said, "I know you do."

"It's that damn GM," Edge said. "I know it's probably not Stephanie at this point, but I would hate it if she were, but it's someone and that someone is asking for it. The second they reveal themselves, I'm attacking them."

"What if it is Stephanie? You're going to attack her?"

"I'll attack Chris if it's her." Lita giggled a little bit, not being able to contain her laughs any longer. "What is so funny?"

"Nothing," she told him, looking away.

"No, come on, are you laughing at me?" he asked indignantly. "Oh, I'm so glad that you find pleasure in my _pain_, Li. I mean, here's this anonymous GM who has it out for me. Now that Chris is leaving or whatever, I'm going to be the main target. They're probably going to put me in handicap matches every week."

Lita continued to laugh, "Yeah, that would be horrible."

"What are you laughing at?"

"Nothing, I swear."

"Don't pull that with me."

"I was just thinking about something, it's silly."

"No, you can't do that and not tell me what you meant," Edge pouted, "what are you thinking about? Will I find it funny because I could really use a good laugh right now so you should just tell me what it is."

"Okay, okay," she said. "I was just thinking about how funny it would be if Sawyer was the anonymous GM."

"Sawyer?" Edge said with shock.

"It's just that you always think you're fighting with him-"

"He starts it," Edge argued, thinking about the kid. He loved Sawyer, despite his ongoing rivalry with him. He was just about the coolest kid he'd ever met, but when your parents were Chris Jericho and Stephanie McMahon, you were bound to end up like Sawyer. Chris and Stephanie insisted that Sawyer was nothing like them, better than they were, but Edge could see them in that little boy. "He's the one who is always calling me Ed…you know, it would be him, you know, just to annoy me."

"Yeah, because I'm sure Sawyer is able to type out all those e-mails to Cole."

"The kid can read, you know."

"He reads Dr. Suess and other age appropriate books, Edge," Lita laughed. "I don't see him cracking open _War and Peace_."

"Probably all part of his evil plan."

"How about you calm down and we get to sleep so that you'll be rested and ready to antagonize the GM some more tomorrow."

"Now I'm just going to picture Sawyer on the other end of that computer, so thanks for that, Li. You _know_ that Chris and Stephanie let him go on so he can look at like the Disney and Sesame Street sites, what if he goes and uses the e-mail when we're not looking?"

Lita was now cracking up, burying her face into Edge's neck. "You are hilarious. But wouldn't that be adorable if he was."

"There is nothing adorable about that kid, he's out to get me."

"Only you would think a four year old is out to get you."

"You don't see that look in his eyes, Li," Edge said, kissing her forehead. "You just don't see the look in his eyes."

Flynn was the first one up in the morning. She yawned and stretched her small limbs around the bed. She looked around, realizing this wasn't her house, but she was used to waking up not really knowing where she was. She traveled with her Daddy a lot and they were always someplace different, but she liked that. She liked seeing things she never saw before. She sat up in bed a little bit and looked around. It was pretty dark in here, but she could see Sawyer next to her and in the other bed, her daddy was sleeping and making some noise while breathing. Her daddy was so silly. She should wake up Sawyer so they could wake up Daddy.

She might as well practice her wrestling while she was at it. "My elbow!" she hissed as she stood up on the bed and dropped her elbow onto Sawyer's shoulder.

"Oww," Sawyer said, waking up and seeing Flynn rolling over onto the other side of the bed in a fit of giggles. "Flynnie, what are you doing?"

"Elbow," Flynn grinned, burying herself into the covers. "I wrestle."

"You're not a wrestler and I was sleeping, that's not nice, I'm going to sleep, you should sleep too," Sawyer said, closing his eyes and turning away from Flynn. But then he turned back to her, "I still love you though."

"Love you," Flynn said and Sawyer turned away again to go back to sleep. He was used to Flynn trying to wrestle him, but she didn't have to wake him up. Flynn heaved a big sigh and looked up at the ceiling. Oh well, if her brother didn't want to help her then she could certainly do it herself. She flung the covers off of her and climbed down from the bed, her legs dangling over the edge for a moment as they tried to find the ground.

She padded her way over to her daddy's bed and leaned over it, trying to reach him, but he was in the middle of the bed and she couldn't reach. She then tried to climb into the bed, pushing herself up and throwing one leg up and onto the mattress and trying to push herself up. She got about halfway there when she fell and landed with a thump on the ground. She laughed at herself, having taken worse bumps before. Falling never bothered her. Sometimes, when she was at the park, she saw other kids fall and start crying, but she didn't cry like that. Falling could be fun.

She got up and tried again, throwing her leg over again and this time, she managed to pull herself. She crawled over to Chris and started whispering, "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy, Daddy, Daddy, Daddy…"

"Huh, what's going on?" Chris said, trying to swat away the small hands that were patting him on the face.

"Mornin' Daddy," Flynn told him, her mouth right next to his ear so it was very loud to him.

"Flutterby, it's very early, why don't you go back to bed."

"We westle," she told him matter-of-factly.

"No, I wrestle," he said, finally opening his eyes and seeing Flynn hovering over his face. "I'm going to wrestle and you're going to watch."

"Co'baker!" Flynn said, sprawling herself over Chris's chest. Chris laughed and ran his hand over her back.

"We'll do the Codebreaker later, okay? Right now, we're just going to sleep. I mean, look at your brother, he's still asleep."

"We see Mama?"

"We'll see Mommy tomorrow, I bet even she's sleeping unless Kensy is awake." Flynn made a sour face at the name. She knew she had a sister by the name of Kensington, but that didn't mean that he had to _like_ her sister. In fact, if her parents wanted to return the baby, she wouldn't be unhappy with the prospect. It had been so much better when it was just her, Sawyer, Mommy, and Daddy. Now there was this thing and it cried a lot and it was always needing to be held and she couldn't understand why her parents would want to keep something like that. She would return it immediately. "Now come on," Chris told her, "you can sleep in bed with me, but let's just go back to sleep."

She decided that it was probably a good idea to get some more sleep so she curled into her daddy's side and let herself fall asleep. Chris stayed awake until he felt her breathing even out, his hand running up and down her back to lull her to sleep. He hoped that Flynn would be okay not going to shows for a little while, while he was in taking a little while off. Kensington was still a couple weeks away from being able to travel on the road and Chris was going to use the opportunity to have a sort of vacation at home before his tour officially started. After that, everything would be a little disjointed. Stephanie and the kids would be going on the road and he would be going to Europe.

The thought of being away from his family for two weeks was a sobering one though. He'd never spent that much time away from them before, not without seeing them at least a little. The last time he'd spent any kind of significant time away from Stephanie was when she was still pregnant with Sawyer and that was years ago. He was going to miss them terribly, but he feared that his kids would miss him even more. He didn't want them to be any extra trouble for Stephanie. He knew that she was going to have her hands more than full with all of three of them and he wished he could at least take one of them, but because they were spending most of their time traveling and then having shows with little to no downtime and a weird schedule it wouldn't be responsible for him to bring any of the kids with him.

He also just hated being away from them. With the kids this young, two weeks was a lot of time. When he came back, Kensington might look different for all he knew. He was probably going to miss her first smile, which he hated, but this was something he'd planned to do, this tour and he wanted the opportunity. Stephanie allowing him to take time off was a rare thing and he had to take advantage of it while he could. Besides, when he got back, he was going to let her do whatever she wanted, hell, he would let her go on her own vacation and let him take care of all the kids by himself. Anything to show her how much he appreciated her.

"Hey, you guys!" Trish said later that day as she met up with Stephanie and Kensington for lunch. She waved them over and cooed when she saw little Kensington in her carrier, sucking on a pink pacifier and looking around furtively. "Hey there, you little cutie pie."

"Say hey, Kensy," Stephanie said, lifting her up and setting her down on the booth next to where Stephanie was sitting. She smiled as she sat down and looked over at Tilden, who was sitting in the high chair at the end of the table, stuffing some Cheerios in her mouth. "Hey there, Tilde, you seem to be enjoying those Cheerios."

"That's because she watches Daddy when he eats his, don't you, Tilde?" Trish said, nodding her head at her little blonde angel of a baby. Tilden was as bubbly a seven month old as you could get. She had a lot of Christian's features, but somehow they were all tinged with a little bit of Trish. "Christian loves to pretend he's some kind of monster when he eats with her and now she just loves the stuff. It's like her crack."

Stephanie laughed, "I love when they're that age, everything is still so new to them and the world is so crazy wonderful."

"Well, before you know it, Kensy is going to be at that age," Trish pointed out.

"Yeah, but I have these other two that aren't babies anymore. Sawyer is…well, he's an adult practically."

"Sawyer has _always_ been the adult in your family," Trish winked at her. Stephanie laughed, but Trish continued, "You know it's true, Steph, that kid is more mature than you and Chris combined…except when he's with Edge I guess, but then, Edge brings out the bad side in him."

"Then I have my little warrior. I swear she's plotting someone's doom."

"She's cute," Trish told her.

"I want your baby, let's trade," Stephanie said.

"3 for 1, yeah, I don't think so, Tilden is enough as it is, I don't know how you do it."

"Neither do I."

"So I of course saw Chris last night. He okay after what happened?" Trish asked. Trish knew of Chris's plan to take some time off, though she didn't know the logistics of the plan. "Is he off the show now? I mean, he did lose and wasn't that the stipulation?"

"No, the GM reneged the offer, said it was never officially on the table as it wasn't in the contract he signed for the Pay-Per-View in the first place."

"So he'll be on Raw then?"

"Yeah, he's on Raw and he's not kicked off. Though I'm guessing you figured out that he laid down last night, well, not laid down, but he pretty much threw the match."

"That was pretty obvious."

"I think he thought he would last longer, but it was effective and he got to play his little wounded puppy thing…speaking of which, Christian?"

"He has his own problems over on SmackDown with this guy, Alberto or Albert or something. I'm so busy with Tilden that I haven't really been paying as much attention as I probably should to who my husband is wrestling, but he's embroiled in something over there."

"Nice to know you're so involved in your husband's work," Stephanie joked.

"I'm involved, but we can't all be crazy wives who are willing to do anything they can to get their husbands what they want. How are you two going to survive for however long Chris is taking off, speaking of which, how long _is_ he taking off?"

"He'll probably be back in January or February, nothing too long, not like last time. I don't think he could stay away from it for that long. I have a feeling that Sawyer and Flynn are going to nag him to start wrestling. But, you know, it should be nice to get him to ourselves for a while. His 40th birthday is coming up in November and I'd like to do something special for it since it's such a big one."

"What do you think you're going to do? A party?"

"I was thinking about it, but I was also thinking maybe he and I can get away for a little bit. I know he'll just be back from his tour, but I was thinking that maybe we could go on our own trip or something. I think it would be nice. I love my kids dearly, but with three now, Chris and my time is at a premium and we have to spend so much time with our kids that we don't get as much time alone as we used to. We do when we're just about to go to bed, but by then we're usually exhausted."

"You act like you and Chris are having problems or something," Trish told her.

Stephanie laughed, "I wouldn't say we're having problems. I would just say that we're stretched a little thin and I'd love to get some time to reconnect with him. I think back to how we were before the kids, hell before we were married and we were romantic and passionate and spontaneous."

"And now?"

"We plan everything and I'm not saying the romance is dead, sometimes Chris does the sweetest things, like he'll come home with flowers for me or something or he'll do some of my work for me without telling me, just the paperwork, nothing I'd get mad at him over or if I'm tired and fall asleep on the couch, he'll carry me upstairs and put me to bed, but sometimes you just want what you used to have, that all-encompassing romance. Plus, with Kensy and him still wrestling, we're on such different schedules, I miss him and I know I'm going to miss him when he's in Europe. If I didn't have the kids, I'd go with him."

"I understand, Christian is starting to kind of put the pressure on me to start traveling with him, but I'm not sure."

"I thought that's what you guys wanted."

"It was, before Tilden actually came along," Trish said. "I'm just not sure that I want her on the road like that."

"Are you knocking the way I raise my children, Trish?" Stephanie asked, shaking her head a little.

"No, no, no," Trish said, shaking her head vehemently. "Stephanie, I'm not trying to diss the way you raise your kids, I'm just not sure it's right for me and for Tilden. I mean, you go there and you do stuff, right, you have your job and you have things to do and everything, but what do I do? I don't wrestle anymore and since Tilden, I haven't really even had a thought of putting on the old wrestling boots and having a match, I'd just go there and sit around and for what? Nothing because I'm not doing anything. When I'm here, Tilden is surrounded by her toys and her house and I can work from home with taking care of my yoga studio. But I know that Christian hates spending time away from Tilden, even if it is only a few days a week."

"Just tell him that, he'll understand," Stephanie said. "If I wanted to do that, I'm sure Chris would understand."

"Yeah, I guess you're right, I just hope that he understands that I want to be at home right now, maybe when Tilden is a little older, but right now, I like just spending time with her."

Stephanie looked over at Kensington and let the baby play with her fingers a little bit. "I know what you mean. I love spending time with Kensy, she's so different from both Sawyer and Flynn, but I love them too, I miss them when they're not around, it's too quiet. But I'm sure they're having fun with Chris."

"Daddy, do you think you're going to win the belt tonight?" Sawyer asked.

"I don't think so, kid."

"You should ask Randy to give you the match and then you can get the belt and then I can play with it and Flynnie will probably steal it because she likes you so much," Sawyer said. "You should tell that to Randy right now because he won last night and not the guy with the ketchup hair, what's his name again, Daddy?"

"Sheamus," Chris told him.

"That's a funny name," Sawyer giggled.

"Funny name!" Flynn echoed. "Daddy, beat them."

"Who should I beat, Flutterby?" he asked her as he held her in his arms. She scrunched up her face and thought for a moment.

"Everyone!"

"You want me to face everyone tonight?"

"Yes."

"I know you think I'm the best, Flutterby, but isn't that asking a little too much?" he told her, kissing her cheek.

"No, you can," she told him in her sweet, high-pitched voice. Chris laughed. He loved that his daughter thought him invincible. It was just like a little kid to think their parent could do everything.

"I like that you think that, but how about we stick to maybe one or two people," Chris told her.

"Like Randy!" Sawyer said. "You really should have him in a match, Daddy. He has lots of drawings on his arms, how come you don't?"

"Because I don't want drawings on my arms and those are called tattoos."

"That's a funny name, Ed has a lot of tattoos too."

"Yes, he does."

"I want some."

"When you're older," Chris told him as they got to his locker room, "and you have to ask Mommy before you do."

"I will, she'll let me," Sawyer said confidently as he dumped his backpack on the ground. "Daddy, do you think that Trips is here again like he was last week because I had fun when we were playing together, he played wrestling with me, but he played himself, which is just silly."

"Why is that silly?" Chris asked.

"Because you should pick someone else, I don't play as you just because you're my Daddy," Sawyer said.

"Gee, thanks," Chris said.

"Chris," Britt said, sticking her head in the door. "Thought I saw you come in here, schedule for tonight, Morrison requested a match with you, probably stemming from your match before Night of Champions. You up for it?"

"Did I really do much last week?"

Britt shrugged, "Anyways, there you go." She handed him the schedule, then walked in a little further. "Okay, I'm going to need a hug from Sawyer and a hug from Flynnie before I can even begin to do any more work."

"Hi, Britt!" Sawyer said, slamming into her legs before she could even kneel down. She pried him off her legs and then knelt down and hugged him.

"Oh, you just give the best hugs," Britt said.

"Britt, is Trips here tonight?"

"Sorry, sweetheart, he's not here tonight, but you should call him, I'm sure he'd love to hear from you," she said as Sawyer gave her another fierce hug. She stood up and Flynn was already leaning out of Chris's arms, eager for her own hug. She walked over and plucked her out of Chris's arms and gave her a big hug. "Oh, there's my little divas champ."

"I dress me."

"You did, well that explains the two different socks accompanied by the stockings," Britt said. "I missed you."

"Me too," she said, giving her another hug.

"Okay, I've got to work so you can have this little one back," Britt said, reluctantly giving the child over to Chris. "Chris…I know you're planning on leaving, but…how?"

"That's for me to know, sorry, Britt, but I'm kind of keeping it under wraps for now."

"I thought you were leaving last night."

"The GM won't let me do it that way. But I'll get my way, even if I have to use nefarious means to do it, but I don't want to get you in trouble, so it's better if you just don't know what it is."

"Get in trouble? Chris, what are you planning to do, out the GM."

"I wish, I haven't been able to really get any solid information on that and you'd think I could, being that I'm in the McMahon family, but when Vince wants something on the down low, he can keep it on the down low."

"So you can't get any information."

"None."

"Well, whatever you decide to do, we'll miss you."

"I'll be gone for like a month before I'm back on the road with the wife and kids, you won't miss me, Britt, nobody will miss me."

"You should start thinking higher of yourself…wait, you do, what's with the humble act?'

"I'm trying it on for size."

"Okay, well, hope that works out for you, I've got work," she told him, ducking out of the room.

"Okay, you two, before we do anything, I have to go talk to Randy."

"To get the match?" Sawyer asked eagerly.

"No, something else, I have a match with Morrison tonight," Chris said, "so come on."

They walked together to Randy's locker room. Chris felt like he should be more upset about the night before, but he wasn't. The plan all along was for him to throw the match. It worked in perfectly for what he was planning to do. It was just a stroke of luck that Randy had actually won the title. Chris had not been able to find a way for Randy to win, but he didn't have to. Still, he was planning on taking all the credit for it because that would get him what he wanted. He knocked on Randy's door before Randy answered. Sawyer, seeing the belt, ran right past Randy and over to it.

"Do you like your belt because I can take it," Sawyer offered. "I have one kind of like this."

"Sorry, you can't have it," Randy said. "So dude, seriously, how the hell did you work that out last night? I didn't think you'd be able to do it and suddenly I'm the champion. How the fu-"

"Dude, my kids," Chris hissed at him.

"Sorry, how did you do it?"

"Look, I told you to just leave things to me. You got what you wanted and I'm going to get what I wanted. I was put in a match with Morrison tonight, but that's fine. I'm going to lose to him, do everything I can to make it look like I'm putting up a fight, but I'm going to lose, then I'm going to do an interview, I'll clear it with Britt. I want you there, interrupting me and we'll make a match for next week and then we can implement the plan."

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

"Well are you going to kick me in the head like you mean it?"

"No," Randy said, "but there's got to be an easier way."

"There would if the damn GM weren't around. But I think I know who it is and they aren't going to let me go so easily."

"Who do you think it is?" Randy wondered.

"Classified information."

"You know, it's not cool when you do that," Randy said, "I don't like this GM either and neither do a lot of people, if you could expose them, I think that you should do it. Is it Stephanie? Is she the one behind this?"

"She wishes," Chris said, "but no, it's not Stephanie. My wife has an infant to take care of, the last thing she needs is this."

"Fine, but seriously, how did you get the other guys to agree to drop me the title."

"I'm Chris Jericho," he told him. "I don't think there needs to be any more explanation than that."

"You're a jackass."

"Look in the mirror, just make sure you don't punt me too hard or else."

"What are you talking about?" Sawyer asked.

"Grown up stuff," Randy told him gruffly. "Look, I'm not going to try to hurt you, but I can't make any promises. I won't hit you hard enough to concuss you or anything, but it could hurt for a while, is your wife going to be there?"

"Nobody will be, I'll be catching the quickest flight out of there next week."

"Why do you want to leave, Chris?"

"I have a lot of reasons for leaving, it's not forever and when I come back, I can beat your ass for kicking me in the head so it really all works out."

"You think you have the whole world figured out, don't you?"

"Not the whole world."

Edge certainly did not have anything figured out. He was at the end of his rope with the GM, the absolute end of his rope. He'd dealt with annoying characters in the past, the Hardy Boyz, the Dudleys, plenty of other clowns he'd faced, but by far, this GM was the most annoying person he'd ever encountered and the worst part was he hadn't even faced them. They were, for all intents and purposes, just a computer. A computer that sat there and passed judgment on them. How dare this nameless, faceless person think they could perceive to know anything about him or this business.

This was his livelihood and it was being ruined by a thing, not even a person, a _thing_. He'd won the match, he'd won it and the GM had to step in again. This person had it out for Edge. He seemed to be the main target. Chris got some of the brunt of it, but Edge was fearful that after Chris went on sabbatical that Edge would be the sole benefactor of the GM's hatred. He wouldn't be able to live under that kind of regime, he just wouldn't be able to. The man/woman/thing was fooling with Edge's career and that's where he had to draw the line. If this went any further, the GM would live to regret it.

Chris's match had gone without a hitch. He'd tried, put effort into it, but not the effort he knew he could have. He felt like he was at half-tank anyways. He wasn't in the same shape he was last time he'd left. At that point, wrestling had been his mainstay for fifteen years and there had definitely been a little burnout when he'd left. He wouldn't lie and say that he still felt the same in 2005 that he'd felt in 1990 as a fresh-faced newcomer. This time around, it was different. He wasn't so much burned out, but he felt like he wasn't all there.

His mind was in the game, but it was elsewhere as well. It was with his kids and his new baby girl that he wanted to spend more time with. It was with his band and the tour they had coming up. It was with the book that he was putting the finishing touches on. Sure, he loved going out there and putting on a show, he always had and always would, but he wasn't putting his pedal on the gas. He was easing up on it, coming to a slow stop at a stop sign. He'd speed up again soon, but not so much now. He put on a show though, after the match and the crowd bought it. When he called them sheep, he wasn't exaggerating, it wasn't a line he fed them to make them hate him, it was the truth. They were so quick to believe everything that he said or did. If they saw him sad, they thought him sad.

But really, he was looking forward to this little break. It was something new and different and exciting. He knew he was coming back soon enough, but he was going to get to spend time with his family, with his kids that were becoming these awesome, little people whom he just loved to spend time with. He looked forward to getting to know Kensington's personality and seeing how she turned out and who she looked like. He was also hoping to somehow bridge the gap between Kensington and Flynn. Flynn acknowledged that there was a baby in the house, usually by stomping around with her hands covering her ears when Kensington was crying or yelling at the top of her lungs whenever Kensington let out so much as a whimper. With time, maybe they could get Flynn to actually like the baby and now they were going to have time.

He and Randy managed to look pissed at each other. He didn't hate Randy, not totally. He still thought what he did with Britt was wrong, but it was a long time ago and Britt and Hunter weren't even together anymore. So no, he had no problem with Randy and whatever Randy was, his word was good to Chris. So when Randy said he wasn't going to hit him in the head with as much force as usual, he took Randy for his word. This was the way it had to be. It'd been established that Randy would punt you in the head, Chris needed to _look_ like he was legitimately injured and so it worked perfectly. At least it worked perfectly on paper.

In person, it could be a whole different story.


	294. Exit Stage Left, September 27, 2010

A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews. Anyways, I take some liberties with Chris's DVD in this one in that in the HaK universe, anything about his family isn't what's going on in the story so I do use some creative license regarding that. Anyways, now that Chris has left, I'll be writing some non-wrestling stuff in the chapters so just letting you know ahead of time about that. Enjoy. :)

* * *

It wasn't so much that she woke up, but that her hand banged into something solid and the pain from it radiated to her brain and forced her eyes open. She shook her hand and wondered why Chris felt so solid this morning, not that he wasn't a solid body or anything, just not this solid. Her eyes peeked over at what she had hit and she saw that it was her laptop that she'd hit. There was something sitting on top of the laptop and she grabbed it, flipping to her back and holding it over her head. Her face lit up.

It was Chris's DVD. He'd been keeping it under wraps from her and he'd actually sent out a company-wide memo that under no circumstances was she allowed to see any part of it. She'd wanted to be on it, but he'd insisted that she not be because she was horribly biased and he didn't want her gushing all over him on it, he wanted it to be an honest interpretation. Or at least that was what she was told. She thought he just didn't want her on it because she might take it over.

There was a note taped to the top of it and she pulled it closer so she could read it. _I know you've been dying to see this and what better day to watch it than your birthday. I took the kids out for breakfast, we'll bring you back something. You might want to flip ahead to 46:43 on the documentary par, go to the Millennium Man chapter. I think you'll enjoy that part. I love you, baby, happy birthday. _

Stephanie sat up and pulled her laptop to her. She decided not to watch it on her laptop, but instead went downstairs to the living room, putting the DVD in and flopping down on the couch. The house was always eerily quiet when the kids weren't here. She'd gotten so used to the noise that it was almost uncomfortable without it. Still, it was also kind of nice. She grabbed the universal remote and turned on the TV and the DVD player. She waded through all the ads at the beginning of the DVD until finally she got to the menu. She wanted to watch the whole thing, but wanted to see the part he flagged first. She chose the correct chapter and then fast-forwarded to the right part of the DVD before letting it play.

"_Working with Stephanie was the first…chance I had to _really_ be Chris Jericho."_

She had to pause it there. It was such a simple sentence, but it held so much meaning. She knew Chris inside and out so she could read the tones of his voice and the look on his face and when he said that she felt infused with this warmth. The way he spoke her to the world…they kept so much of themselves in private, which is what they wanted. They had long established that their relationship was between them and not the world. They didn't need prying eyes into their personal lives and they absolutely agreed on not dragging their children into any kind of spotlight. Still, in the few brief moments he mentioned her here and there, she felt it. She felt every word as if they were etched on her skin.

In this sentence, he was saying how he had come alive when he was around her. How he had become himself. And sure, he might be speaking of their first battles, the hatred that fueled their lives for the past ten years, but it was more than that. She smirked as she thought about how they had started. When she'd first met him, she had thought him so handsome, gorgeous really, but the attitude, that attitude had been bad, an anti-establishment kind of attitude. Not that it had mattered because she'd been dating Andrew at the time. He didn't hate her on sight, she knew this now, years later, but once she'd married Hunter, once _she_ became "the man" Chris had turned against her in the only way he knew how.

"_That's what took me to the next level was working with her…cause we had tremendous chemistry."_

She'd have to ask him about that _had_ tremendous chemistry part because she felt like they still did have a lot of chemistry between the two of them. She almost couldn't believe the kind words he was saying about her. She half-expected him to say that he'd hated her guts and she was the biggest slut on the planet, so this was a pleasant surprise for her. He thought they had chemistry back then.

It was something she only sometimes thought about, the heat that flared between them during that time period. It went largely ignored, at least by her. She'd been crazy in love with Hunter, mostly for the power of being with him, but she had no time to think about Chris at that time period. Sure, whenever she was around him, something flared in her, but it always felt more like hatred than attraction. When he kissed her though, she'd be loath to admit that his mouth had tasted so much like…just like man, hot and musky and just masculine in every way. She'd dreamed about that kiss the night it happened, but then he'd called her roadkill and she'd hated him the very next moment. She supposed now, looking back that there was some heat and chemistry there, some kind of unseen force that was pulling them together. It was like the universe knew they should be together and was trying to push them together without them knowing.

She laughed when they showed the clip of Chris saying that she had lost her flower a long time ago. It was just funny to her now, hearing Chris say things like that to her when he knew so much about her and how they now shared three children together. She also remembered when they'd watched this scene with Sawyer and Flynn and Sawyer had asked her why she had lost her flowers and why Chris had cared that she lost her flowers. Chris had started snickering and explained that the flowers had wilted a long time ago before he winked at Stephanie and she flipped him off.

"_I just went on this big tangent for like months that she just went and slept with everybody that she met."_

She _wished_ it had been for months. Her husband was conveniently forgetting that he had done this for two years with little time off. And calling her a snob; he really hadn't known her back then, not at all. She knew he had these perceptions of her, but they were all very wrong. Yet, she wouldn't trade them for anything because they were part of their history. She didn't know what would have happened if Chris hadn't started to insult her, hadn't hated her. Sometimes she even wondered what it would have been like if Chris had stayed in WCW and come over in the Invasion. So many little moments that could have changed everything.

"_And it's ironic because…the first angle I had in the company was with a woman, Chyna, but the one that really put me over the top was with another woman…Stephanie."_

The way he said her name at the end of that, the brevity with which he regarded their time hating each other, she knew he felt it too, felt all those moments had been leading up to something, cherished them even when they were less than ideal. If they hadn't had any of those moments, they would not be the people they were now. The credit he gave to her in regards to his career was nearly staggering to her and the emotion in his voice when he said her name, you couldn't mask that emotion.

God, she wished he were here right now.

"Daddy, leave her here," Flynn said, pointing at Kensington.

"I'm not going to leave her here," Chris said, laughing at Flynn, "she'll be coming back home with us?"

"Why?"

"Well, Mommy and I kind of like her, Flutterby," Chris said, reaching over to cut up Flynn's sausage for her. He'd decided to give Stephanie at least the morning off from the kids for her birthday. He didn't know why he thought it was a good idea to go out with them by himself, but he was out with them by himself. Flynn had been angry that Kensington was coming along, but as long as Chris kept Kensington next to him, she didn't seem to care. Flynn wasn't a crier so she hadn't cried that Kensington was with them, but she had that attitude of I might cry. She was like Stephanie that way, they got angry instead of teary. Sawyer, as always, was the model kid and Kensington had only cried when they were getting out of the car.

"Why?" Flynn asked.

"Because she's our daughter, just like _you're_ our daughter and we love you, don't we?"

"I better," Flynn tried to explain, which made Chris laugh even harder at her.

"You think you're better than Kensy?"

"I talk and walk," Flynn told him.

"Well, yeah, that's true," Chris said slowly.

Flynn interrupted him, "I better."

"Sawyer, chew your food okay, you're not a vacuum, you don't need to inhale it," Chris said, glancing over at his son, who seemed to be inhaling his scrambled eggs. "Do you want me to cut up your other pancake for you or are you getting full?"

"Cut please," Sawyer said, "even though I can do it myself."

"It's your Mommy's birthday, I don't want her to know I let you handle a _knife_ on her birthday or I won't make it to _my_ birthday."

"What are we going to do on your birthday, Daddy?" Sawyer asked as Chris pulled his plate over to cut up his pancake for him.

"I don't know, I haven't thought about it yet," Chris told him, cringing as Kensington's pacifier fell out of her mouth and, startled, she started to cry.

"Kensy's crying," Sawyer pointed out.

"Thanks," Chris said sarcastically.

"Be quiet!" Flynn yelled at Kensington and Chris sighed.

"Flynn, we don't yell at the baby, okay?" he said as a couple other people looked over. Why did he think bringing three children, including an infant, to breakfast on his own would be a great idea? He was starting to really feel guilty for subjecting Stephanie to this for two weeks. But then, Stephanie was way more on top of things than he was. She was efficient and in charge, God, he loved that woman.

"She louder than me," Flynn said, throwing a look of disgust at the baby. Crying in a restaurant, the nerve of that thing!

Chris reached over and grabbed Kensington's pacifier, putting it back in her mouth, but Kensington just spit it back out in favor of getting her aggression out through wails. Chris quickly picked her up and cradled her against his chest, rubbing her back and whisperings things to her. She started to respond, even as Flynn was glaring at the two of them with malice in her eyes. Chris backed against his chair a little bit. Flynn looked exactly like Stephanie when she glared that it was almost eerily terrifying to Chris. He glanced over to Sawyer and saw that he was trying to use the knife that Chris left there. Chris snatched it away from him.

"What did I just tell you about knives, Sawyer?" Chris asked, even though it was just a butter knife, it was still a knife.

"I wanted my pancake," Sawyer argued. Chris awkwardly cradled Kensington against him, holding her with his arm while he quickly cut the rest of Sawyer's pancake before Kensington could flop out of Chris's arms. "Thank you."

"You're welcome, no knives," he said, looking back over at Flynn just as her fork fell to the ground. She looked down from her booster seat at it.

"Oops," she said, looking at Chris. Luckily there'd been another place setting at the table so he pushed the fork over to her and she smiled and started to happily get back to her meal as Chris continued to calm down Kensington. She was whimpering now so the worst was over and he tried giving her, her pacifier back, which she took this time. He continued to hold her as he ate, glad that things had settled for the moment.

"Do you think Mommy will like her present that I got her?" Sawyer asked around a mouthful of pancake, a little syrup dripping down his chin.

"She'll love anything you got her. It's not what you get, but it's the thought behind what you get her."

"Did Kensy get her anything?"

"I helped Kensy with her gift like I helped you and Flynn with yours," Chris explained. "Then we got the pictures with you and Flynn and Kensy to give her, which I think she's going to like."

"Even though Flynnie did _not_ have a good time," Sawyer laughed.

"I good," Flynn argued, then she whined, "Daddy, I good!"

"Yes, you are, Flutterby, you're very good," he reassured her and she happily went back to her meal.

"Why would Mommy want a picture?" Sawyer asked.

"Well," Chris said, "Sometimes you just like to have memories when you get older and when Flynnie was just a baby, you guys took some pictures too and you take pictures every year for me and Mommy, but now we have Kensy so I thought it would be nice to have some with her too. Plus, it's not only for Mommy, we're going to give some to Grandma and Grandpa, Gamma and Gramps, Uncle Shane and Auntie Rissa, Trish and Christian, Edge and Lita, Hunter, and Britt."

"That's a lot of people."

"You have a lot of friends."

"I know, people like me," Sawyer said.

"They like me," Flynn interjected.

"They do," Chris told her with a wink. "Now let's eat breakfast so that we can go see Mommy and wish her a happy birthday."

"I'm going to give her a hug," Sawyer said.

"I am too!" Flynn argued. "I hug."

"You give great hugs, Flutterby," Chris told her sweetly and she gave him a beautiful smile, but then scowled when Chris whispered something to Kensington and then gave her a kiss on the head.

"Daddy, I want kiss," Flynn said, puckering up her lips.

"I can't reach you way over there," Chris said, but sensing that Flynn was jealous, he got up, went around the table and kissed her on the cheek. She grinned and then went to pull on Kensington's foot _hard_, but Chris intercepted her hand and put it back down on the table. These kids were going to be the death of him.

He managed to make it through the rest of breakfast without too much incident. Flynn had flung Kensington's blanket to the ground a couple times, but Chris had just chastised her and threatened her with timeouts if she didn't cut it out. Sawyer had tried to help him, but sometimes helping meant getting himself into trouble. Otherwise, the breakfast had been successful. He got them all in the car and started to drive them home, tasking Sawyer with holding Stephanie's breakfast. He was extremely proud and carried it very carefully, not wanting to spill anything for his beloved Mommy, especially on her birthday.

They arrived home and Chris helped Sawyer out of the car first, then Flynn before, he grabbed Kensington. Sawyer had already run towards the front door with Flynn in close pursuit, running as fast as her short legs could go, which was still considerably slower than her big brother, which frustrated her to no ends. He rocked Kensington back and forth as he carried her carrier. She was on the verge of falling asleep, but was staring up at him sleepily, trying to fight it as best she could, but she was fighting a losing battle. Chris grabbed his key and opened the door, sending his two older children barreling into the house.

"Mommy! We brought you breakfast!" Sawyer exclaimed to the house in general.

"Mommy, it birthday!" Flynn yelled.

Stephanie came out of the living room, still in her pajamas and her robe hanging loosely from her body. She smiled at her kids, but went straight for Chris, grabbing his face in her hands and kissing him deeply, tilting her head to deepen it even further. Chris immediately responded, then felt Stephanie's soft tongue invade his mouth and he nearly dropped Kensington's carrier as Stephanie pressed against him. It was always difficult when he couldn't really enjoy his wife, but she was making it extra difficult right now. Finally, when their lungs were both screaming for breath, she broke free of him. He stared at her, her eyes shining and bright and her lips puckered and swollen.

"What was that for?" he rasped.

"You are the most wonderful man I have ever known," she told him.

"I just took the kids out to breakfast, it wasn't exactly bringing world peace or anything," he told her, "although it was close, but our kids are mostly well-behaved, sort of."

"Not that, though that was nice of you," she said, running her hands over the sparse hair on his cheeks. "But no, just…"

"Steph, have you been…crying?" Chris asked, looking at her eyes. They seemed a little red-rimmed. "Baby, what's wrong? Did someone upset you on your birthday? Oh damn it, was it your dad? Did he call or something and upset you?"

"No, it wasn't…I wasn't crying, just…tearing up a little, that's all," she said, leaning forward to kiss him again.

"Mommy," Sawyer tugged on her robe. "We brought you breakfast from where we went. You can eat it."

"Thank you, baby boy," she said, kneeling down and kissing him. Flynn came over and got in on the action as Stephanie took her breakfast. "I hope you guys were good for Daddy when he took you out."

"We were, I was good," Sawyer said.

"I good, Kensy is bad," Flynn said, trying to implicate her sister.

Stephanie laughed and kissed Flynn's forehead. "She was bad?"

"She cried a lot," Flynn told her.

"Well, I'm glad you were there to help your daddy, did you help, Daddy?"

"Always," she nodded.

"Sawyer, why don't you take Flynn into the living room and we can watch something when I finish talking to your daddy," Stephanie said to Sawyer.

"Do you want me to take Kensy?" Sawyer asked like Stephanie was just going to give up Kensington to Sawyer.

"No, we'll take care of her," Stephanie assured him.

"Okay," Sawyer said, grabbing Flynn's hand as they ran into the living room.

"So do you want to explain to me what has you so emotional?" Chris asked as Stephanie rose to a standing position again. Stephanie grabbed his free hand and took it in between her hands, kissing his knuckles. "Baby, what has gotten into you?"

"I watched your DVD, well, part of it at least," she said, "the parts you wanted to show me and then after that, but mostly the part that you wanted to show me."

"Oh, great, how did you like it?" he asked. "I thought it came out really well and that I covered a lot of topics in the documentary section. I thought overall it was one of the better DVD collections, which I think is only fair because I had to wait for so long and because I'm your husband so it stands to reason that I should get the best one, right?"

"What you said about me," she told him, her voice trailing off at the end. "You…the things you said about me…"

"What about them?" he asked. He'd just said what he thought of at the moment, what he thought of Stephanie. He didn't see it as a big deal, he wasn't saying anything she didn't know, was he?

"Me being the first time you really felt like Chris Jericho?"

"Well," he said, shrugging a little, "you did. I mean, before that, I don't know…"

"You do know," she said, kissing him again. She couldn't keep her lips off him. She just wanted to keep kissing him. "I don't think I was Stephanie McMahon until us."

"Lies," he told her, "Hunter had, grudgingly though I say this, a huge part in making you the Stephanie that I love. I just, with me, with WCW. You put me on the map, baby, and maybe it wasn't in the best way, calling you out, calling you a slut or a filthy, dirty, disgusting, brutal, skanky, bottom-feeding trash-bag ho, but I don't know, you just made me feel for the first time that I was getting recognized as Chris Jericho."

"You have no idea how much I love you," Stephanie said. "I love you so much, I love you more than I ever thought…well, more than I ever thought I'd love you that's for sure. I'm glad that we hated each other, I'm glad that we have that history. I just love you."

"I love you too," he told her, kissing her. "Steph, you know how much you've meant to me. You have to know, I mean, I wouldn't have married you or had three children with you just to say, 'hey, I'm married and have kids,' it was always going to be you."

"Just hearing you say that to the world, I don't know, the tone, it was all in the tone, not even in the words so much, but the way…the way you said my name at the end."

"What? Full of love? Well, I do love you, never forget that, please," he told her as Kensington started to fuss. "Come on, let's watch the rest of the DVD while you eat your breakfast and then we have some gifts for you and then it's your day to do what you want and tonight, I'm taking you out to dinner and then we can make out like teenagers since we can't go all the way, but maybe I can get to third base?"

Stephanie grabbed his hand. "Come on, I need to see more about the career of Chris Jericho."

By the time Monday rolled around, a new chapter was about to be written for Chris's career. He had to make tonight look authentic so Chris had brought Sawyer and Flynn with him. If he didn't have them with him, it would look suspicious because they came with him every week. They had no idea what was going to happen, but Edge and Lita both knew and had agreed to take the kids back to the hotel before everything went down. If things went according to the plan, Chris would probably be leaving on a stretcher. He'd already talked to the EMT's, planning out everything to the last detail. All he needed was to fake like he had a bad injury and he'd be home free.

"Chris, are you sure you want to do this, I mean, this way?" Lita asked him.

"Yeah, because the GM wouldn't let me leave otherwise."

"Is it because your son doesn't like to not go to shows? Because he likes to be here?" Edge asked.

"What are you talking about? What does Sawyer have to do with any of this?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, Ed, what do I have to do with anything?" Sawyer asked, sneaking up on Edge.

"Jesus Christ!" Edge exclaimed. "What the hell, Sawyer, don't sneak up on people?"

"You knew I was here," Sawyer said, "I was sitting right over there, you saw me when you came inside."

"He's right," Lita snickered, "you did see him, he even said hello."

"Shut up," Edge said, "so Sawyer, what are your plans for the night?"

"Huh?" Sawyer asked, looking to his daddy for clarification, but Chris just shrugged at him. "I don't know what you're talking about, I'm just going to watch wrestling and then tomorrow I'm going to go home and then I go to preschool on Wednesday."

"You're not going on the computer?" Edge asked.

"I only go on if Mommy and Daddy say it's okay," Sawyer said. "Like when I want to go see Phineas and Ferb on the computer, but not always. I'm going to go play now, bye, Ed!" Sawyer ran back over to play with his trucks and Chris looked at Edge strangely.

"Why the hell were you asking my son what his plans were for the night? Are you going to take him drinking later or something?"

Lita smirked and responded, "Edge thinks that Sawyer is the anonymous GM."

"I do not!" Edge said with a scoff and a pointed look to Lita. "Lita joked that it could be Sawyer and I was just joking around with her saying that it would make the most sense if it was Sawyer because Sawyer seems to have it out for me."

"You think _that_," Chris pointed to Sawyer, who was crashing two trucks together, "is out to get you?"

"Look at him, he's crashing those trucks together, what kid does that?"

"You're not around kids much, _all_ kids do that, hell, if you want my more violent child, I think you would look no further than Flynn, who would probably kick you in the face if you weren't paying attention."

"Flynn and I are cool, but me and Sawyer, not cool at all, he has it out for me."

"Well, rest assured, my son can't type so I don't think you have to worry about him being the anonymous GM."

"They have it out for me, you know, I'm having the GM on the Cutting Edge tonight and I'm going to get some answers, damn it, because I deserve them, stupid GM thinks they can get the better of me, of _me_," Edge said, "I need to go for a walk, I'll be back."

Edge got up and left and Lita sighed, but stayed behind. "This GM thing has him on edge…oh God, that was horrible. He just doesn't like them because they aren't playing fair, but I'm sure you get that since it is the reason for your plan tonight, which, really Chris, do you want to go through with it? I mean, it could go wrong and you could get hurt and Stephanie has her hands full as it is, don't you think?"

"The plan is already in motion, Li, it started last week," Chris said, "I have to go through with it now. I can't let the GM win on me too. Edge is enough on that front."

"And you're sure about leaving?"

"Yeah, I'm sure. You know, I feel like I barely know Kensy, I mean, I do, but I've been so busy, not just with wrestling, but with other stuff, I would just love to spend a lot of time with her and get to know her."

"How are you going to accomplish that by going on tour?"

"Well, that exempted, but I'll have all of November and then most of December and then I think I'll evaluate starting then. What's this though I've been hearing about you wanting to come back?"

"That's nothing, but sometimes, I just…I had fun with Edge when we were together out there, ruling over everything and I miss it sometimes. I mean, I'm already here, right, so I don't know, it's not really a thought, sometimes I just feel like I'm drifting."

"I know the feeling."

"No you don't, you liar," Lita said.

"No, I do, really," Chris said, "right around the time I decided it was time to come back to being onscreen. I don't know, two years was way too long to spend away from the ring and by the end, I started to get that feeling, like, what am I doing not being in the ring?"

"You were raising your son, you were running the company," she pointed out.

"Not the same and you know it."

"Stop trying to deflect from your situation, how the hell can you trust Randy to do this for you?"

"Because I just do," Chris said. "Look, I have it all planned out and it's going to work, Li. I know it will. As for what you really should be worried about, I think it should be with that boyfriend of yours. He has serious potential to go off the deep end."

"You think I don't know that, believe me, the man is two seconds away from hunting down the GM by himself."

Britt strode into Randy's locker room. He was surprised to see her, but then remembered she was taking over for Stephanie while Stephanie was on maternity leave. "Britt," he said with a nod. He was a different guy now, not one who would go after Britt like a hunter and its prey. He understood now what he'd done wrong before and while he still found Britt attractive, he wasn't going to put the moves on her again.

"Randy," she said, "look, I just wanted to make it clear that I don't want you to pull anything on Chris tonight. I know you're our champion and whatever, but you're still an employee and he's trusting you so if you're thinking-"

"I'm not going to hurt him," Randy said, raising his right hand, "I swear to God, I'm not going to hurt him. I'm just going to do what he asks so he can take his time off. I'm not that kind of guy anymore, okay, that's not my style any longer, I'm not out to hurt him."

"You better not, Randy, or I swear to God, I'll suspend you."

"I won't," he said. "Look, I know we got off on a horrible foot and we've had a…checkered past so to speak, but I'm not that guy anymore. Chris asked me for a favor, he gave me what I wanted and so now I'm giving him what he wants. He explained everything to me except who he thinks the GM is. I know the situation and I'm going with what he wants."

"It's just very easy to slip up and put more force behind a kick to the head."

"I'm barely going to put any force, just enough to make it look believable, but that's it."

"Why should I trust you, why should _he_ trust you?"

"Like I said, I'm not the same guy I was before. I own up to my actions now and while they may not be as scrupulous as someone like John Cena, I do have a set of morals and I'm not going to hurt the guy while his kids are watching."

"They won't be, they'll be back at the hotel, Chris doesn't want them to see it and worry," Britt said offhandedly.

"I understand," Randy said, "probably better that way anyways."

"Yeah," she said, then looked at him, "thank you for helping him out. He feels like he's between a rock and a hard place and you're really doing him a favor. You've actually changed a lot, Randy."

"I guess so," he said, but he didn't feel changed, not really. He still felt like the same guy, but he could see where people would think he went through this major change. "How have you been anyways? You seem to be doing a great job with taking Stephanie's job."

"Because she still does more than half of it, just from home," Britt answered. "I mean, I can hold my own, but Stephanie is pretty much propping me up, but thank you for noticing that I wasn't doing a horrendous job."

"I don't think you could," he told her. "And really, I'm not going to hurt Chris."

"Well, just make sure you stick to that."

Edge had not cooled down by the time he got to the ring for his Cutting Edge segment. They'd told him earlier they would be using a digitized voice for the GM, another layer in hiding the identity of this jackass who was trying to screw with his career. He knew it wasn't Sawyer, but it made his temper flare down a little more if he thought it was the kid and not someone with the intent to ruin him.

Somehow the digital voice made the GM more annoying. He tried to keep his composure, but it was difficult. He asked the GM why he was a such a coward and the GM countered by calling him a moron. Moron? _He_ was the moron? He was just the guy that came out there every week and didn't hide behind a computer. Him a moron? The GM was a moron for thinking they were _so_ cool and in charge when it was really Stephanie behind everything…maybe Stephanie _was_ behind this, but no, Chris would know, he would have had to have known if it was Stephanie.

Edge wouldn't be insulted by this stupid voice and he shot back at them. The computer was annoying and the GM was even more annoying. The GM was just trying to get under his skin and Edge almost let it until he realized he was simply arguing with a computer. The GM was trying to humiliate him now. It wasn't bad enough that the GM had to interfere in his career, now he had to make a fool out of him. He was just going to go ask Chris who it was. Chris had to know or had to have _some_ way to find out. He could break into Vince's office and find the information. He was Vince's son-in-law, nobody would bat an eyelash at Chris going into his office, maybe he could even bring Sawyer or Flynn or Kensington as a distraction. They were cut enough kids.

The GM said Chris had no idea, but Chris could find out. The GM threw another curveball and said that Edge would have an opponent tonight, but Edge didn't, he wasn't scheduled…until the GM did schedule a match…against John Cena. If Edge wasn't mad before, he was pissed off now. He went into the match pissed off, but still managed to beat John Cena. At least he thought he had, when that damned computer started talking with its stupid voice and restarted the match. Edge was going ballistic at this point and could barely contain himself. So thrown off his game was he that he ended up losing the match. He stayed in the ring before looking over at that computer, the bane of his existence. The coward that sat behind it didn't know him and yet the fact that they tried to control him was too much for him.

The computer had to go.

It kept talking, too many words, too much…he tried to walk away, but he couldn't…not this time. He pushed over the podium and knocked the computer to the ground. He grabbed a chair and then grabbed the computer, breaking it over his knee before hitting it repeatedly with the chair. He hated this thing and he hated the GM and this was the message he was sending.

"Edge, baby," Lita said as he came through the curtain. "Are you okay?"

"I hate it, Li, I hate it so much," he said, mumbling to himself over and over again. "I hate it."

"I know, baby, I know," she said, stroking his hair. "Come on, let's go get Sawyer and Flynn and then we'll go back to the hotel and we can curl up on the couch and watch a stupid movie or something, how does that sound?"

"I hate him, Li, or her, or it, I don't know."

"Don't worry, we'll figure something out," she said, ushering him down the hallway.

Chris jumped from foot to foot before his match. He wasn't nervous about the match per se, but he was nervous about the kick. It had to look believable without him looking like he was acting. He knew that it would all come down to timing. Beyond that, he knew that it was going to be the last time he was out there for a while and it was a sobering thought. When he'd left the first time, he'd felt like he was on the precipice for something huge. Stephanie was pregnant with his baby and it was their first child and he'd been so excited and nervous and being away hadn't even really entered his mind he'd been so thrilled with having his first child.

Now it was five years later and it was just different this time around. It wasn't that he didn't have something to look forward to, he did, he had his family and he had his band, but there was just something different in the air this time. Maybe it was because he knew this wouldn't be two years, maybe it was because Stephanie would be back and he'd be back, maybe it was just the fact that he had so much he did have to do that the wrestling could just slip out seamlessly, whatever it was, it was just different.

He'd requested some time before the match to talk to the crowd. He wanted this to be as normal as possible and he had to act cocky and like he would win this match and there would be no doubt in his mind that he would win the match. He started to go over everyone that he had ever beaten and whenever he couldn't think of anyone, he would just start to spout off names of wrestlers he knew. The list was impressive though because he had beat many of them. It made him realize how prolific his career had actually been. He loved wrestling and he had done so much.

Randy eventually came out and the match started. Chris wished he could remember the match, but he kept thinking about the ending and how it would go. He would be lying if he said he wasn't nervous. He trusted Randy, but it wasn't like they'd practiced this beforehand. He was going on instinct and he had to make sure his head was in the right position and that Randy landed it in a specific spot. It was a lot to think about while trying to have a match.

Finally the time arrived and he hoped that Stephanie wasn't watching. He knew she would be, but she always worried for his safety and he didn't want her seeing this and thinking and getting upset. He couldn't help it if she did though. He was on the ground, his hands and knees and Randy was preparing for it. He just had to stay there and not move. He braced himself as he heard the crowd chanting and then the slight bounce of the ring as Randy ran for him.

He played it up. Randy had been exactly what he'd asked for. The kick had looked vicious, he knew from the crowd reaction, but the way Randy had used his foot, it hadn't put very much impact on the side of Chris's head. He sold it like it had been a death blow of course and then he just lay there, just laid there until the trainers and personnel were in the ring attending to him. He acted like he was out of it, had to, had to make it seem believable and so he just lay there as they strapped him onto the gurney. This _had_ to convince the GM that he was injured so he played it to a tee.

They wheeled him out to the ambulance and once inside and the doors closed, he opened his eyes and sat up. "You okay, Chris?" one of the EMT's asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"We're still going to want to check you out though," he said, grabbing a light to check Chris's eyes. Chris let him do the examination and he deemed Chris fine, "We'll just tell the GM through e-mail that you suffered a concussion and it would be in your best interest to stay off the show until the symptoms wear off and from there, it'll pretty much be up to you when you come back."

"Thanks a lot," Chris said, shaking his hand. "I guess I'll just sneak out of here then."

"Sounds good, have a great night."

"You too," Chris said, slipping out of the ambulance as he went to his car. Britt was leaning against it as he made his way over, dangling the keys in front of her. "I'm fine, Britt, no worries."

"You better call your wife, she's called me five times asking if you'd shown up," Britt told him. "You sure you're fine?"

"Clean bill of health, Randy kept to his word," Chris said. Britt looked down and nodded before Chris took the keys from her. "Don't tell me you've had a change of heart about Mr. Orton?"

"No, I'm just glad he didn't hurt you," she said, "or I would have had to hurt him."

"Thanks, Britt," he winked at her. "I guess I will see you in a few weeks when my wife makes her triumphant return."

"Have fun," she told him, giving him a hug, "and if I don't see you before it, be good on your tour, okay, I know you're going to rock the UK and France out."

"Thanks," he said, hugging her back. "I'll see you soon."

Britt kissed his cheek and then walked back into the building to finish up her work for the evening. Chris got in his car and grabbed his cell phone, dialing home. "Chris?" Stephanie answered on the second ring.

"Hey, baby, it's me."

"You're okay," she said, the relief flooding into her voice.

"Yeah, I'm fine, I've been checked and everything."

"It looked good, people totally bought it," she told him. "I bought it."

"Good, I'm glad, I wanted it to look realistic and Randy did a good job of kicking me without really kicking me. I owe him for that one."

"No you don't, you got him the title," she said. "You owe him nothing."

"Okay, that's true," he said.

"You sure you're fine?"

"I am, I'm heading back to the hotel, I'll get the kids from Lita and Edge and probably call it a night. Then you know what I'm going to do, baby?"

"What?" she asked.

"I'm coming home to stay."


	295. Leaving on a Jet Plane, October 4, 2010

A/N: Thanks to the readers. This chapter is a bit disjointed, trying to balance between the show and some of the real life stuff, I guess you'll see when you read it. Hope you enjoy, review if you feel it. :)

* * *

"This is nice."

"You think so?" Stephanie said, pulling Chris closer to her, his arm wrapped around her waist.

"It's nice to wake up on a Monday morning and not have to worry about getting to the show. I get to just spend the day with my family. Even better, I get to spend some time alone with my wife since all three of our kids are asleep right now or at least quiet."

"I think they're all still asleep," Stephanie told him. She turned over on her back. "But we only get you for a few more days before you start your tour in the UK. Then you belong to everyone else again for a while."

"It'll only be a couple weeks and then I'll come home and then I'll get to be your little errand boy while you go back to work and then you can be my dirty girl because I'll get you back in bed," he said, kissing her cheek.

"You want this?" she said, gesturing towards herself.

"Why wouldn't I want you?" he asked, snuggling against her even tighter. "Hell, I wish I could have you right now, kind of awkward waking up with a boner I can't use the way I want to."

She laughed and elbowed him on the side. "You're so insatiable sometimes."

"You bring it out in me," he told her. "Everything about you just oozes sexuality."

She closed her eyes and ducked her head, "You're just saying crap to me now."

"Excuse me? You're accusing me of throwing you _lines_."

"Chris, we both have noticed," Stephanie told him, turning on her back so she was looking up at her husband, who was hovering over her, his brows knitted together. She reached up and ran her hand down his face before arching her back a little to kiss him. "Sweetie, come on."

"Come on and do what?" Chris said, smirking at her. "You tell me what you want and I'll be a willing participant."

"No, not that. The issue of my weight," she said, her mouth twisting to the side. "I mean, I think we've both noticed that I haven't exactly reduced so much."

"So what?" Chris asked, honestly confused that she was bringing something like that up. "You just had a baby."

"Yeah, over a month ago," she said. "I look like a blimp still, I read…people still thought I was pregnant."

"Who said that?" he asked, an edge to his voice. Nobody said anything about his wife and got away with it. He already hated stupid wrestling sites for the inaccuracies they posted about his career or other things that happened on the show and they had said crap about Stephanie all the time. It was why he mostly tried to avoid them. He hated when people said stuff about Stephanie and if any of his fans ever said anything about her after watching his DVD, he would go to fisticuffs.

"It's nothing, just something I've noticed."

"Baby," he said, kissing her, "you are so goddamn beautiful."

"Chris, don't lie to me. I'm fat, let's face it." There was something else in her voice and Chris stared at her. "Don't stare at me like that."

"What's wrong? Tell me what's wrong."

"I look horrible, you're going away for more than two weeks, we haven't been able to be intimate in weeks and won't be before you go because my check-up is while you're gone and well…"

"Don't even give me that," he told her, flopping down on his pillow. "Don't you even…" He just started laughing and pulling the pillow over his head. "Stephanie…"

"What!" she said, pulling the pillow away from his face and he gave her a boyish grin before she slid further into the bed and pulled the covers over them.

"Yes, let's just shut ourselves off from the world," he told her, pulling her over so they were sharing his pillow, their noses nearly touching. "Who cares what anyone else thinks? The only people in this marriage are me and you, not the kids, not your parents, not my parents, not Trish and Christian or Edge and Lita or any of our other friends and certainly not the wrestling sites or the wrestling fans, just you and me so fuck them and what they think."

"I care what you think."

"I think you're as beautiful now as you were the day I met you in your cute pink sweater set and modest skirt."

"You mean it?"

"Are you kidding me?" he told her, grabbing her and rolling over her a little as he started to kiss her. "You could gain five hundred pounds and I wouldn't care, hell, you'd be good for my weightlifting."

She shoved him away as he tried in vain to kiss her. "You're horrible."

"I'm just in love with you and hate when you don't think the best of yourself," he said, settling in next to her again. "So do you think if we just stay under the covers all day the kids will notice or do you think Sawyer will just take care of the house by himself?"

"I think he would notice the two adult-sized lumps in the bed," she whispered to him.

"Damn it. One of these days, we're sending them all away to boarding school so we can take back the house," Chris told her.

"Like you would send your babies away," she said, kissing his nose. "You love them far too much, although I did question the love for a bit since you're leaving us for over two weeks in favor of touring with your band."

"And when I'm coming back, who is probably going to dump said kids on me?" Chris asked.

"I would never dump my children like you are," she told him smugly. "I may want a little break, but leaving them for weeks on end…"

"Our computers are both equipped with webcams so that we can communicate with each other and the kids can see me. It's not going to be forever and it'll be nice to get away from each other for a little bit. You have to admit, baby, that we do spend an awful lot of time together, what with our jobs being so…intimate."

"I knew it, you really _don't_ want to be around me," she told him.

"Well, no, not all the time," he admitted, "but then, I know I can bug you too."

"Not very much," she told him with a sly smile. "Just a little bit, very small." She held up her thumb and index finger.

"So what do we have on tap for today?" he asked her since she was the one who always had everyone's schedules coordinated.

"Nothing, just sitting around, being a family," she told him. "I didn't plan anything for before you go because I wanted to spend as much time with you and I didn't want to plan anything because I just want to be with you."

"You mean we really have nothing to do? Well this is a shock," Chris laughed, "usually we have lists of things to do while we're home. Well, you've been home, but usually you have things for me to do while I'm home."

"Doesn't mean you can't do them, but I'd rather you spend as much time with the kids so they don't think you're abandoning them and leaving me for a younger, thinner British model who hasn't had any children."

"I think I'll pass on the model thing," he said, leaning in so his lips were brushing against his wife's. Just as he was about to deepen the kiss, Kensington's cry pierced over the baby monitor and Chris laughed into his wife's mouth. "Three kids, huh?"

"Not entirely my fault," she told him with a smirk.

He nodded, "I know, I'll go get her."

"You're the best husband."

"Well, since I'm leaving, I'm trying to give you one more for the road," he told her, pushing the covers over them until they were back into the world and then getting out of bed. He padded down the hallway towards Kensington's nursery and pushed open the door, being greeted with her wails. He leaned over the crib and smiled at her. "Hey there, Kensy bear, you're just my little early bird girl, aren't you?"

Kensington continued to cry and Chris put her out of her misery and picked her up. She smelled and Chris knew that could only mean one thing. He took her over to her changing table, putting her down and unbuttoning her onesie so he could change her diaper quickly while he sang to her. Her cries calmed down as soon as she was freshly pampered and he picked her up again, pulling her small body against his, kissing her downy dirty blonde hair.

"Your brother and sister like to sleep in so I bet they're still asleep, but maybe you want to come lay down with me and your mommy, huh?" he whispered to her. She just buried her face farther into his chest. Chris walked back to the bedroom where Stephanie was sitting. When she saw her baby, she opened her arms and Chris came over and handed her over.

"There's my girl," Stephanie said, cradling Kensington in her arms. "Were you happy to see Daddy on Monday morning, I know it's usually just you and me?"

"She was so ecstatic she pooped just for me," Chris joked as he climbed back into bed. Stephanie pulled down her tank top and Kensington practically jumped at her. "Lucky girl, you get the attention that I want."

"Pervert," she told him. "So…"

"So…" He laughed and looked up at her. "What's on your mind, baby?"

"Just thinking about you going away."

"I'm not going to cheat on you," he told her," and I'm a little insulted that you even-"

"No, I'm just thinking about taking care of the kids all by myself. I mean, I know I can do it, but…it's going to be hard and they're going to miss you so much and I'm a little worried is all. I can handle it, but I'm not sure how the kids are going to handle it, especially Flynn. I'm going to have to pay attention to Kensington sometimes and Flynn is going to hate that."

"Use Sawyer to distract her, problem solved!"

She ducked her head as she ran her hand over Kensington's cheek. "If only it were that easy."

"If I could take at least one of them, Flynn," he coughed, "you know I would. It's just we're going to be on a bus and performing every night and sleeping all day because we'll be performing every night and that's not good for a kid, even one like Flynn. If any of our kids could handle it, it'd be Flynn."

"She's a little tomboy."

"Tomboy, she's more like a little devil."

"Hey, don't compare my daughter to a devil…even if she is a little one."

"Small one," Chris said. "You'll be fine and the kids will be fine, I promise you that."

"We'll see how things go when you come back and we'll gauge it on how much I want to kill you for being gone."

Chris rubbed Kensington's foot, "I'm guessing you'll definitely want to kill me."

Edge ran his hands through his hair and sucked on his teeth a little bit. "I'm putting my foot down tonight."

"You've been saying that for weeks now, if you're not going to do it then don't say you're going to do it," Lita told him. "I'm sick of hearing you talk about hating the GM and not actually doing it. At least Chris tricked him so he could get some time off."

"I don't want any time off though. I just had a ton of time off with my injury and I don't want to leave again."

"I didn't say that you should leave, what I _am_ saying is that if you keep harping on wanting to do something about the GM, then _do_ something about the GM. Stop talking about it, you're not a man that does nothing, you're a man of action or at least you used to be. I seem to remember a bunch of feuds you had with the Hardys and how you were always trying something to get the better of them."

"We were awesome, weren't we? I mean, not you because you were on the wrong side during that time."

"I just didn't know what I was missing on the other side," she flirted, winking at him. He sat with her and leaned his head on her shoulder.

"You should have been on my side then."

"I remedied that eventually and thank God I did because if I were with Matt right now, I think I probably would have killed him because he's acting like a child."

"You should have realized that when you were dating him."

"I did," she said and he looked at her, "Okay, so it took me a little while, but I did, I found you, didn't I? But now you're acting like a child and you need to start taking action."

"I am, believe me, I'm going to be against stupidity from now on and there's nothing more stupid to me right now than the GM and his little lap dog, Cole," Edge said. "I'm asking Britt for time and I'm going to call him out."

"It's about damn time," she told him, "it's just about damn time."

Stephanie adjusted the phone on her shoulder as she prepared the kids' lunches. Chris was out in the backyard with them, playing with Sawyer and Flynn on their playground while Kensington sat in her bouncer on a blanket on the grass, a large hat perched on her head and the cutest pair of little sunglasses on her face. She watched them, glad that Chris was getting some time in with the kids before he left. Right at this moment, he was sitting behind Flynn as she was about to go down the slide. Sawyer was hanging off a bar, watching them.

"So how's Christian?"

"He's doing okay, he's bummed out because he thought he was right on the cusp of going for the title, but he's happy that he gets to spend time with Tilden. It's going to take some months to get him back in ring shape, but the surgery went well enough and he's in a brace right now. He's a little mad that he can't really hold Tilde, but he's in good spirits. It's his first time being under anesthesia so he was nervous, but he came out of it fine."

"Good, good, I'm glad to hear that. It'll be okay that he's not there though because Chris isn't going to be there either and so Chris will have someone to hang out with that's not me," she laughed.

"Yeah, that is good, but he's going to miss wrestling," Trish said, "I wish I could make it better for him, but I can't. He's never been injured like this. It'd be like if Chris got injured. He doesn't know what to do with himself."

"Well, at least he'll be around to help you with Tilden." Stephanie watched as Chris chased Sawyer around the backyard, Sawyer laughing and trying to evade Chris. Flynn, who had just climbed off a swing from the swingset went over to the blanket with some of her toys. Kensington turned her head to look at her and Flynn walked over to her and scowled down at her. "Trish, I've got to go, Flynn is eyeing Kensy."

"Oh, good luck, bye," Trish said as Stephanie walked quickly into the backyard, just in time to see Flynn hit Kensington on the leg.

"Flynn Murphy Jericho!" Stephanie yelled, startling Flynn. Stephanie stomped over. "Why did you just hit your sister?"

"I didn't," Flynn said, but looking for all the world like a guilty little girl.

"I just saw you," Stephanie said, "don't try and lie to me, Flynn, I saw you hit her, so why did you hit her?" Flynn just shrugged as Chris jogged over, Sawyer clinging to his back.

"Hey, what's going on?" Chris asked, a little out of breath from running around with his son.

"Flynn just hit Kensy on the leg."

"Flynn," Chris said sternly. "What have we told you time and time again? You do not hit your little sister, she's just a baby, we don't hit."

Flynn folded her arms defiantly over her chest. "I no like her!"

"We don't hit," Stephanie told her. She grabbed Flynn's hand. "Come on, you're getting a ten minute timeout at the kitchen table."

"Mommy!" Flynn whined, trying not to go with her. "No!"

"That's what you get for hitting your sister, Daddy and I warned you and now you get to suffer the consequences of your actions."

"Daddy!" Flynn pleaded, hoping to appeal to her beloved Daddy. She jutted her bottom lip out for him.

"Sorry, Flutterby, we don't hit the baby," Chris said regretfully. Stephanie leaned over and picked up Flynn.

"Until you learn not to hit your sister, you're going to get timeouts," Stephanie told her. "I love you, Flynnie, but we can't do that. Kensy is only a month old, she is much, much littler than you are and you could hurt her, do you want to hurt her?"

"Yes," Flynn said and Stephanie rolled her eyes.

"No, we don't want to hurt her."

"Give her back," Flynn told her mommy.

"Where and to whom am I going to give her back to?" Stephanie asked. "She came from my stomach and before that, well, you're too young to know where she came from before that so who are we going to give her back to?"

"Gamma and Gamps?" Flynn asked.

"You want to give her to Gamma and Gamps?"

"Uh huh, they take her," Flynn said. This would be good for her. She wouldn't have to see that baby and her grandparents seemed to like Kensington well enough. She was sure they would be happy to take her.

"I don't think so," Stephanie said, "look, you, you're going to need to start getting along with Kensy because you're going to be stuck with her for the next 16 years until you go away to college so unless you become a genius like Doogie Howser and go off to college when you're like 11, then you have to get used to her. That includes no hitting. Do you understand?"

"I no like her," Flynn said pitifully.

"Why not?"

"She a baby," Flynn said. Stephanie sat down with her at the kitchen table. "She a baby."

"I know she's a baby."

"I not a baby," Flynn said.

"Do you think that because she's a baby and you're not a baby that we're going to forget about you?"

"No," Flynn said, but she sounded like she was lying, even though she might not really know what was being told to her.

"Baby girl," Stephanie said, leaning her cheek against Flynn's head. "No matter how many babies show up and with Daddy and me, I don't know how many will come along, but no matter how many there are, we're not going to stop loving you or paying attention to you, you have to believe that."

"Mommy," she said, sniffling a little bit and hugging Stephanie around the neck.

"I mean, wasn't Daddy just out there playing with you on the slide?"

"Uh huh," Flynn mumbled.

"And don't we read a little bit of _Charlotte's Web_ every night?"

"Yeah," Flynn said, "I like it."

"I know you do, only you would love spiders, baby girl," Stephanie joked. "So Daddy and I love you _so_ much and we'd never forget about you."

"Sawyer," Flynn said.

"Are you kidding me?" Stephanie said, opening her mouth wide and pretending like she was shocked. Overexaggeration was the only way to get through to her. "Sawyer! That boy loves you so much. When you were born, he loved you from the moment he saw you. He loved you from the moment he knew about you. He would talk to you every night and every day and he couldn't wait to spend time with you. He loves you so much and yes, he loves Kensy too, but that's because he knows she's his sister, like you are, but that doesn't mean that Sawyer doesn't love you. Doesn't he play with you all the time?"

"He does," Flynn said. It was true, Sawyer was always playing with her when he wasn't in preschool. And even after he came home from there, he would come play with her. She liked it because then she wouldn't have to play alone.

"So see, we all love you very much and nobody's forgotten about you," Stephanie said. "So no hitting, okay?"

"Okay," Flynn said. Stephanie stood up and put Flynn on the chair. "Okay, you have to stay there for ten minutes and then you can go outside and play with Daddy and Sawyer and what do you have to remember?"

"No hit?" Flynn said.

"Good," she said, leaning down to kiss Flynn's head. Stephanie went back into the kitchen to finish lunch. Flynn sat at the table, lolling her head around. She was bored just sitting there, but that was the point of the punishment. When the ten minutes were up, Stephanie went over to her. "Okay, punishment over, do you want to help me bring lunch out there?"

"Okay," Flynn said, jumping off the chair.

"You can bring the juice," Stephanie said, holding a pack of juice boxes to Flynn. She took them from Stephanie and ran outside, screaming along the way. Stephanie followed with the sandwiches she'd made. Flynn was setting the juice down on the blanket as Stephanie sat down the sandwiches and then sat down herself.

"I no hit her, Mommy," Flynn said, proud of herself.

"I saw that," Stephanie said, ruffling her hair. She passed out the sandwiches and smiled at her husband. "So this is nice."

"It is," he said, giving her a warm smile that made her blush a little. Sometimes they forgot how blessed they were. Five years ago, they didn't have any of this and even though Chris was soon to be leaving for tour, they were just so blessed with everything. "Thanks for lunch."

"Well, you usually cook so I thought I'd return the favor and it's not that difficult to put ham and cheese on some bread," she told him. "So while we're all here, I thought I would tell you something."

"Okay, it's too soon for you to be pregnant again…right?" he asked, staring at her, looking her over and remembering when she said that she hadn't lost any weight. They may not always be careful, but Kensington was only a month old, that would mean his kids would be less than a year apart.

"God no," she said, "but while you're gone, Kurt is going to come visit and I thought I would let you know beforehand."

"Wait, so you wait like three days before I leave for the UK to tell me that Kurt is coming to visit?" he asked, putting his sandwich down. "Why is he coming here?"

"Because he's my friend and I want him here," Stephanie told him. Sawyer and Flynn just watched them go back and forth. "And the best part is that you won't be here so I don't have to hear you complain the entire time about it. It works out for everyone."

"I just don't get why you're even trying to be friends with him anymore, after what he did, how he's acted."

"He's not that guy anymore. Look, he's engaged, his fiancée is pregnant, things are changing for him and he's a different man."

"Yeah right," Chris scoffed.

"Daddy, we should be nice to people."

"Yeah, we should be nice," Stephanie reiterated. "You won't even know he's here because you'll be overseas and he can help with the kids while you're gone."

"That's not a selling point to me, you know," he told her. "I would rather he not be around my children at all."

"Chris, you don't dictate my friends," Stephanie told him. "So you don't have to like it, but you are going to accept it and that's it, got it?"

"Fine, but if he answers the phone, I'm not talking to him."

She rolled his eyes. "I don't care if you talk to him or not. You don't have to interact with him at all, hold your stupid little grudge like you hold every grudge in the entire world. Like with Steve and that grudge that you've held _forever_."

"He kicked you in the stomach!" Chris exclaimed. "How many times do I have to reiterate that point? You were _pregnant_ and he kicked you in the stomach and gave you a Stunner. I'm just supposed to let that go?"

"Look at him," Stephanie said, pointing at Sawyer. "Do you see anything wrong with him?"

"I'm not sick, Mommy," Sawyer said, not really understanding how he was dragged into this conversation. "I'm okay, I'm not sick."

"I know, baby boy," Stephanie said. "Chris, he's better than the both of us, better than we could ever hope to be. There's no reason to hold that grudge and there's no reason to hold the grudge against Kurt. I've forgiven him."

"I don't care," Chris said. "Stephanie, when I married you, I promised you that I would protect you, didn't I? Kurt made you…he hurt you and I let that happen."

"How did you let that happen?"

"Because I should've known what an ass he was."

"Oh yes, because you should have just seen through everything. Chris, I'm over it, you should get over it too."

"Yeah, when pigs fly."

"Don't fight, it's annoying," Sawyer told them.

"What do you even know about annoying?" Chris asked.

"I know things," Sawyer said. "I know lots of things, so you shouldn't even say anything about that."

Stephanie just tilted her head smugly.

By the time Raw rolled around, everything and everyone had settled down. Kensington was upstairs sleeping and Sawyer and Flynn were sitting on the couch in their pajamas, a bowl of popcorn between them. Stephanie was curled into Chris's side on the loveseat and they watched the beginning of Raw, Chris periodically kissing the crown of Stephanie's head as she played with his fingers.

"Are you ready to go back to work?" Chris asked.

"More than you can imagine," Stephanie told him. "I'm so ready to go back, though I must say that Britt is doing a really good job running the show. I think that when I take over the company, I should put her in charge of Raw. I think she would do a great job at it. It's funny because when she came in here as your assistant-"

"That you were jealous of," Chris added.

"Jealous?"

"You thought she was beautiful and that I would sleep with her."

"I didn't think you'd sleep with her."

"You thought I would sleep with her."

"No, whatever," she said, swatting at him with her free hand. "Either way, I'm just saying that when she came in she knew nothing about the business, but now she's just a natural at it."

"It probably came from sleeping with Hunter."

"You're disgusting," she told him, but she was laughing while she said it. "Do you miss being there?"

"My body is thanking me, actually," Chris said. "It needed the break. You know I don't get many of those. I think once I come back next year that I'll feel more refreshed. It'll be good."

"Of course you will, you always come back better than ever," Stephanie said. "Then we'll rule around there again, while trying to juggle three kids backstage, but I'm sure we can handle that."

"We will," Chris said as they continued to watch.

Edge was antsy backstage. He was crusading against stupidity, starting with this GM. He'd actually fought with a computer, a _computer_, that's how far he had sunk. He wasn't going to let himself get that far down the rabbit hole again. Lita was right; he needed to start taking action and stop acting like a little bitch who didn't get his way. That change was going to start tonight. Britt had been good enough to let him have some time on the show and he was going to use it to call out that crock of a GM.

The joke was on him though. Just when he thought he had the power over that idiot GM, the GM put his power back on display by trading Edge to SmackDown. He wasn't sure how to feel about that at first. He liked it on Raw, but then, SmackDown wasn't a bad show and it would get him away from a coward who wouldn't show his face. So in the end, maybe this would be a blessing rather than a punishment. In fact, it _would _be a blessing. When Christian recovered from his injury, they'd be on the same show and they could reunite and at least be E&C for a little while. That would be awesome. Then, when Chris came back, maybe he could return to SmackDown and they'd all be on there. That would be a total party if everyone was there. Then Trish could travel with Tilden and Stephanie would be there with her and Chris's two good children and Sawyer. Oh man, he had to make this happen somehow.

"Are you okay?" Lita asked when he came back.

"Better than okay," he told her.

"You are aware you just took a finisher from Miz, right? Do you have a concussion?"

"Please, that kid couldn't hurt me if he wanted to," Edge said, "I'm better than okay because I don't have to deal with that GM anymore. I'd rather have the devil I know than the devil I don't and Vickie and Teddy or whoever is in charge over there, I know them, I understand them and I can manipulate them to do what I want. The GM thought he had it out for me, but he's actually doing me a huge favor by sending me over there."

"Well at least you have a positive outlook on the whole thing."

"Who cares about Raw? I'm done with this show."

"So that's it? You're not going to find out who the GM is now?"

"Out of sight, out of mind, let's get out of here," he said, grabbing her hand. "We're going to celebrate me being put on the better show, did you hear that GM, it's the better show!"

Lita looked around and then looked at her boyfriend, "Who are you talking to?"

"The GM," he answered, "he's probably lurking around here, listening in on everyone's conversations and that's what he does to get off."

"Yeah, we need to get you out of here," she said, pulling his arm.

"Daddy, does Edge have to leave now?" Sawyer asked as he popped some popcorn into his mouth.

"Huh?" Chris asked. He'd been making out with Stephanie and not really paying attention to Raw. He had to get in as much time with his wife as he could before he had to leave.

"Daddy, weren't you watching?" Sawyer asked.

"Watch wrestling!" Flynn growled at them. Her eyes went back to the screen even though there was a commercial on. She even groped blindly at the popcorn, not turning her eyes towards it at all.

"Edge had to leave," Sawyer said. "The computer said that Edge was going to go to SmackDown so he had to leave."

"Edge was traded?" Chris asked. Then he looked to Stephanie, "Did you have any idea this was going to happen?"

"It was news to me," Stephanie shrugged, but Chris couldn't tell if she was being sincere. It seemed like something that she would know about, but her claiming innocence seemed a little out of the ordinary. "Maybe they told Britt and she just forgot to tell me when she was briefing me about the show."

"Yeah, maybe," he said, "I bet Edge is happy though, he hated the GM, but I wonder if it was just convenient for the GM to get Edge out of his hair before Edge found out who they were. I mean, that could be bad."

"Yeah, I'm sure it could be," Stephanie said, "why don't we watch the rest of the show. If we don't, Flynn might jump us when we're asleep."

Chris didn't want to jump to conclusions, but he felt like his wife might know more than she was letting on. He wouldn't press though. If she had some kind of plan going on, then he was just going to let her have it. Then he would find out later and chastise her for it. He had bigger things on his mind. Like the fact he was leaving in a few days and hadn't even started packing.

The next few days flew by and before they knew it, Chris was leaving for his tour. The kids had been clinging to him since last night and Sawyer and Flynn had spent the night in bed with him and Stephanie. He wasn't even able to hold his wife before he had to leave her for a few weeks. He'd had to gaze at her from across the bed. Now they were in the car on their way to the airport and he had to sit in the back with the kids so they could talk about all the things they were going to do while he was gone and making Chris promise to call them everyday.

"Are you sure you want to go and leave this crazy?" Stephanie asked as she looked in the rearview mirror.

"If it means I get to avoid looking at Kurt Angle then I'm all for leaving."

Stephanie rolled her eyes and looked at the road ahead of her. "You're so bitter."

"I'm pumped is what I am. I can't wait to rock out the UK and then France. It's going to be so awesome, Steph. I just wish you guys could be there to see me. If we didn't have the kids, you could come with me and be proud of me every night."

"I'm already proud of you."

"Yeah, but you could see me and see the crowds over there. They go nuts for us and then we have the VIP packages and you know that I'm going to get hit on all the time, well, maybe, I don't really know who bought the VIP packages, they could be all dudes."

"They're not, I'm sure," Stephanie said. "But vain much?"

"Don't be jealous of my boyish good looks," Chris said, winking at Flynn, who giggled and hid her face in her hands. "See, my charm even has Flynn, the warrior, giggling. Are a bunch of girls going to like me, Flutterby?"

"Um…yes!" Flynn said.

"See, I'm charming," Chris said. "Everyone's going to love me, I'm probably going to get bras and panties thrown at me at every show."

"Why would people throw their underwears?" Sawyer asked.

"Because it shows how much they love me."

"Should I throw mine?" Sawyer asked.

"No, you keep yours on," Chris said. "I'm going to be hitting them away with sticks."

"Yeah and then getting lawsuits thrown at you," Stephanie told him.

"Don't worry, I'll spend the whole time missing you guys. I really do wish you could see a show. Maybe I can have one of the tech guys set up my webcam so you guys could watch it one night. It would let the kids see what I was doing and you could watch."

"That sounds nice," Stephanie said. "The kids would like that."

"You do know I want you there, right, baby?" Chris asked, leaning forward and pressing his hand into Stephanie's shoulder. "I really wish you could go."

"It's okay, Chris, I understand," she said, throwing him a smile. "Don't worry, you'll have a blast and then when you come home, you'll have a blast with us."

"Yeah," he said as they pulled up to the airport. Stephanie pulled into the departure area and then parked. "I guess this is it."

"Say goodbye to Daddy, you guys," Stephanie said. "Tell him how much you'll miss him."

"I'll miss you, Daddy!" Sawyer said. Chris stood up out of the car, but then leaned in to get at everyone. He kissed Sawyer's cheek as Sawyer hugged him from his booster seat.

"You be good, kid, you hear. You have to take care of Mommy and Flynnie and Kensy, okay, because you'll be the man of the house."

"Can Mommy still be in charge?"

"Yeah, but you make sure she does a good job, okay?"

"Okay," he grinned.

"I love you."

"Love you too, Daddy."

"And you," Chris said, pointing at Flynn before kissing her cheek and giving her a hug. "Don't be mean to Kensy and don't try to wrestle with everyone, okay, you be a good girl, okay, Flutterby?"

"Okay, I mi you," she told him, hugging him again.

Chris kissed her nose, "I'll miss you too, I love you."

"Love you," Flynn said.

"Hey there, Kensy bear," Chris said, rubbing his youngest child's stomach. "You just keep being you and don't grow up too much while I'm gone. I don't want to come home and see that you're walking and talking, okay? You just stay the cute, little baby you are. Daddy loves you."

Chris kissed her head and she cooed at him before he got out again and pulled the door closed. He turned around to Stephanie, who'd gotten his bags out for him. She pulled him into a hug and he kissed her, nearly dipping her. She laughed and pulled away, hugging him. Chris held onto her for almost a minute, just savoring her. He sighed as he pulled away and kissed her again. He hated to leave her, but he knew that she'd be okay.

"I love you," he told her, resting his forehead against hers.

"So I've heard."

"You'll be okay?"

"I have tons of people to help me," Stephanie said, "besides, if I can handle like 50 irate wrestlers, I can handle three children. We'll be fine, you have fun and you blow the roofs off those places, okay and make everyone a Fozzy fanatic."

"I will, love you."

"I love you too," she said, kissing him. "Go before I drag you back home with me."

"I'm going, I'm going," he said, pulling his bags over to the check-in and waving to his kids, who were waving back. "I'll see you in a couple weeks."

"Oh yeah, you will," she smiled and waved as he went inside. She sighed and went back into the car to see her kids still waving.

"Is Daddy gone now?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah, he'll be back though."

"I know, Mommy," he said, "we'll see him when he gets back."

"Yeah, but for now, it's just me and you guys."


	296. Tour, October 16, 2010

A/N: Thanks to all my readers, even if you don't review, I see how many are reading and I really appreciate you all for sticking to it. Anyways, this chapter is more a set-up to what I want to do in the next few chapters, so think of it as a gateway chapter rather than a mish-mash of whatever, which it probably is. Anyways, enjoy and review if you care to. :)

* * *

"It was really nice to meet you."

Chris said goodbye to the last of the VIP ticket holders here in Manchester. It had been a blast meeting all these diehard fans. At first he thought they might all just come to see him as Chris Jericho, which, vain, perhaps, but a valid point. He wasn't _just_ a rock star, he was also a wrestler and very aware that he had fans all over the world. He could hardly go anywhere without someone knowing him. To his surprise and secret delight, people knew this band and were fans of this _band_ of which he was only one part and he was happy to meet these amazing fans.

But right now, he had other things to do. Sound check was in a little while and so he and Rich headed to the Academy 3 where the concert tonight was being held. They had their own car to drive them there and when they arrived, the two said their goodbyes and went to their separate dressing rooms. Chris was fortunate enough that the equipment guys always set up his laptop for him by the time he got here. He walked over to the table it was sitting on and turned it on. This was one of the highlights of his day. Sure, the concerts were always amazing and meeting the fans willing to buy the VIP's was a blast, but these were not the people who supported him day in and day out with their love, at least not the love that the people he was about to see gave him.

He looked at his watch and saw that he was a few minutes early from the scheduled time. He hadn't realized how hard it would be being away from his family, but it was harder than he ever could have imagined. Everyday he would see his children and they felt so far away. Then he would go to sleep on his tour bus, alone, in an uncomfortable bed, cramped with other guys who snored and not in the cute, airy way that Stephanie did, but in a deep, booming way that kept him up sometimes until the exhaustion crept over him and forced his eyes closed. The desktop booted up and he tapped his fingers against the table.

He'd been on the road for over a week now and it would be another week before he would get to go home. He enjoyed the travel and he'd traveled more before, but he didn't have a wife and three kids waiting at home for him and he couldn't help but feel like he was missing out on everything. Every time he saw Kensington she looked like she'd just gotten bigger and just the other day Stephanie had said that she smiled for the very first time. His daughter had smiled for the very first time on purpose and he hadn't been there to see it. It turned on and he turned on his Skype and waited for his wife to sign on. His face lit up when she did and he immediately connected with them.

Soon, the screen popped up and Stephanie, Sawyer, and Flynn were in front of the camera. Sawyer was kneeling on a chair and Stephanie was sitting in another with Flynn in her lap. Sawyer grinned and waved, "Hi Daddy!"

"Hey there, kid," Chris said, grinning in a way he hadn't since talking to his wife before he fell asleep last night. She always tried to stay up to wait for his phone call, even if it was late. "You look good."

"I got a haircut," Sawyer said. "Mommy said I was starting to look like a shaggy dog."

"He was," Stephanie said, ruffling Sawyer's hair and smiling at the camera. "How are you? How's the tour going?"

"It's going great. The VIPs today were awesome, we had some serious metalheads in there, tried to give me a run for my money."

"Did you put them in their place?" Stephanie joked and he laughed and nodded. "Why am I not surprised? I mean, I've learned to love metal because of you and I thought it was okay before, but you get seriously competitive about it."

"That and wrestling, I will crush anyone."

"You'll crush me in wrestling knowledge?" Stephanie asked, giving him a look.

"Okay, maybe I'd lose to you," he told her. "How has your day been going?"

"I went on a boat!" Sawyer announced.

"You went on a boat?" Chris asked. "Where did you go on a boat?"

"With Kurt," Sawyer said. "He took me on a boat!"

"What?" Chris asked, looking at Stephanie through the camera on his laptop. "Kurt took my son on a boat, by himself, you let him take Sawyer by himself?"

"Chris, it's not a huge thing. Kurt thought it might be fun to take Sawyer fishing so they went out in a boat and they went fishing. It was supposed to be fun for them and it was."

"He could've fallen off the boat."

"I don't think that he would have let our son fall off a boat," she told him.

"Daddy, I wore a life's jacket," Sawyer told him. "I was okay, but I didn't caughted any fish, but that's okay. We got hot dogs for lunch and they were yummy so we didn't really need any fish. I had a lot of fun."

"Well, I'm glad you had fun," Chris said, but then gave Stephanie a look like they would talk later.

"Chris, he was just trying to help me out and Sawyer had fun," she said, "It's been really difficult with all three of the kids and I just needed a little bit of a break and so he took Sawyer for me. That's all."

He sighed. He knew Stephanie was having a hard time. Though Flynn hadn't hit Kensington again, she was still not on board with the baby thing and if Kensington was getting any extended attention, Flynn started to throw a hissy fit, which made Stephanie's life more complicated. Add onto that the fact that the kids missed their father terribly and she was put in a hard spot. She was doing the best she could, but she had a lot more respect for single mothers because this job was no joke. She was also still trying to help Britt run Raw on top of all this.

"I'm sorry, I'm glad that you had a good time, kid," Chris said, "Hey there, Flutterby, miss me?"

"Yes," Flynn said, leaning in close to the computer so her face was the most visible thing. "I see you."

"I see you too, you look very pretty today, have you been wrestling?"

"Uh huh," Flynn nodded. "I mi you."

"I miss you too."

"Come home, pease!" Flynn said, jutting her bottom lip out and giving her most pathetic puppy dog look. Her daddy hadn't come to see her in days and days and days and she didn't know where he was. Didn't he want to be around her? Was this because she had hit Kensington because if that's what it was, she would never lay a finger on Kensington again. She would even hug that stupid baby if it meant her Daddy would come back.

"Flutterby, I know you miss me, I miss you too, but I'll be home before you know it," Chris said, his heart feeling like it was being tugged out of his chest. "Then when I get home, we'll do all the stuff that you want."

"No, now!" Flynn said, turning away and burying her face into Stephanie's shirt as she started to sob. She didn't want to see her Daddy anymore. She wanted him here. Her mommy had told her that her daddy loved her, that he would never not love her, so why wasn't he here to be with her. Why was he always on the other side of that little box?

Chris felt his eyes sting when he looked at Flynn sobbing into Stephanie's neck. He wished he could reach through the screen and take her into his arms, but he was thousands of miles away from her. Who's stupid idea was this tour anyways? Flynn had barely been able to make it through the overseas tour he'd had with WWE and now he was gone for even longer now. God, he was an idiot.

"Sawyer, talk to Daddy for a bit, I'm going to take Flynnie to the playroom, okay?" Stephanie said.

"Okay, Mommy," Sawyer nodded as Stephanie stood up and left the frame. "It's okay, Daddy, I know you're going to be back soon. Flynnie just doesn't know that you're going to be back, but she'll see."

Why was his kid so awesome? "Thanks, kid."

"I can take care of her," he shrugged.

"Thanks, I'll be back in a week, I promise," Chris told him. "Then I get to spend all my time with you for the next month and we're going to do tons of stuff together, I'll even take you out on the jetski, how does that sound?"

"Wow, that'd be cool, Daddy!" Sawyer said. He'd seen his father out on the jetski back behind the house where there was the big water that wasn't their pool. He'd never been allowed to go on it, but that would be so much fun.

"So has Flynn been upset a lot?"

"Not really, I think she just misses you now because you've been gone _forever_," Sawyer said, dragging out the last word. "What are you doing over there again, Daddy?"

"I'm doing concerts with Fozzy," Chris explained. "In a couple days, I think your mom is going to let you watch my concert. Then you can really see what I've been doing over here."

"Is it very differents from wrestling?"

"Well, I'm on a stage so everyone is cheering, but it's different because I'm singing mostly and I'm not wrestling, but it's kind of the same."

"That sounds like fun, you sing good, but Mommy doesn't," Sawyer laughed.

"I know, Mommy's voice isn't…great," Chris laughed. "I can't wait to be at home so I can get one of your awesome hugs."

"I can hug the computer," Sawyer told him. Chris laughed and nodded and Sawyer leaned on the table and hugged the computer so all Chris could see was Sawyer's t-shirt. "Love you, Daddy!"

"I love you too, kid."

Meanwhile, Stephanie was sitting on the couch holding Flynn. She was still crying into Stephanie's neck, but Stephanie made no attempt to remove her. Stephanie simply rubbed her back and whispered comforting words into her daughter's brown hair. She kissed the crown of Flynn's head as Flynn's fists gripped her shirt even tighter, clinging to Stephanie like she would disappear if she didn't. Stephanie hugged Flynn closer to her and then laid her cheek across Flynn's head. Flynn's sobs started to quiet down a little bit and Stephanie hated seeing her daughter cry. Flynn wasn't much of a crier so when it did happen, it made Stephanie ache.

"Shh," Stephanie whispered to her. "It's okay, sweetheart."

Flynn sniffled and pulled away. There was snot running down her nose her eyes were red and her cheeks tear-stained. Her face was red from crying and her hair disheveled. She painted the most pathetic picture Stephanie had ever seen. Flynn was supposed to be her little warrior daughter, but she was also her Daddy's Little Flutterby and she was without her daddy right now. She looked at her mommy with those blue eyes of hers. They were just subtly like Chris's, but enough to where she saw Chris in them.

"Hey there, pretty girl," Stephanie said, brushing her hair out of her face. She grabbed a tissue from the side table and put it on Flynn's nose, "blow."

Flynn blew her nose into the tissue and Stephanie wadded it up before putting it on the side table and grabbing another, drying Flynn's cheeks and then cleaning her up a little bit. "There, now doesn't that feel better?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah," Flynn answered, but then looked down.

"Where's my little wrestler?" Stephanie asked, tilting Flynn's chin up towards her. "Sweetie, I know you miss Daddy very, very much, huh?"

"He go away," Flynn said softly.

"I know, he did go away, but you know he'll be back, right?"

"No, he go, he mad," Flynn said, softly whimpering.

"Baby girl, why do you think he's mad?"

"I hit baby," Flynn said, "He go. He no come back."

Stephanie brought Flynn to her and hugged her tightly. "Baby girl, that's not what happened at all. Daddy would _never _leave you like that. Daddy would never, ever, _ever_ make you think that he was leaving you. He loves you so much you wouldn't even believe. And you paid your time for hitting Kensy and you haven't hit her since and Daddy knows that. Daddy would never stay mad at you. Daddy is just over in another country and he's doing a lot of singing because he's in a band. You've heard them, Daddy plays them all the time in the car and you and Sawyer dance along. He just went over there to sing for other people like he sings for you before you go to bed."

"Too far," Flynn whined.

"I know, I know, he's too far for me too, but we have to be brave until Daddy comes back. And then when he comes back, you know where he's going for a whole month?"

"Whe?" Flynn asked.

"Nowhere, that's where. And if he does go somewhere, he's going to bring you along because he's not going to let you out of his sight. He misses you too, baby girl, believe me. Every night, when I talk to him before he goes to bed, all I hear about is you and Sawyer and Kensy and how you guys are doing and he wants me to tell him everything that you did the entire day and he makes sure he gets every last detail."

"Okay," Flynn said, "I want him!"

"He'll be back," Stephanie said. Flynn started to get drowsy from crying so hard and Stephanie rubbed her back until she fell asleep. Stephanie put Flynn down on the couch and let her sleep for now. She left the room and walked into the living room where Kurt was sitting, bouncing Kensington in her bouncer. "Hey, Kurt, thanks for sitting with her."

"It was nothing," Kurt said, "She's totally a cutie and I've got to practice for when I become a father."

Stephanie laughed, "I can't imagine you as a father, to be honest. I don't know, it just sounds so weird, thinking of you as a father."

"Hey, I thought the same thing when you said you were pregnant with Sawyer. I couldn't picture you and Chris with one kid, let alone three."

"Neither could we," Stephanie laughed, leaning over to pick up Kensington.

"How's Flynn?" Kurt asked, having seen Stephanie walk by with a sobbing Flynn a short while ago. He understood that she was missing her father, but it still hurt him to see that she was so upset over it.

When Stephanie had invited him over for the visit, he'd been ecstatic to come down to Florida. He hadn't really gotten to spend any quality time with Stephanie because of Chris. If he didn't know Chris so well, he might have been offended by it, but he understood where Chris was coming from. He'd been…at his worst when he'd been unkind to Stephanie and that was putting it nicely. He hadn't liked the him that existed them. The guy he was now was more like the guy who had been best friends with Chris and Stephanie. Stephanie was willing to forgive, but Chris wasn't.

He didn't know what he would have to do to gain Chris's friendship again. He was just trying to be the guy that he was back then and hope that Chris could see that in him and they could get back on track. He missed Chris and wished they could go back to the way they were or at least a semblance of what they'd once been.

"She fell asleep from her crying," Stephanie said. "She doesn't understand why Chris has been gone so long."

"Kind of puts things in perspective," Kurt said.

"Hold that thought," Stephanie said, "Chris is going to want to see Kensy."

"Okay," he nodded as he watched her go into the other room. His friends had built a life while he'd been gone. And what a life it was. He was sad that he couldn't share in it though, at least not until recently.

Stephanie went back into the kitchen where Sawyer was telling Chris all about the movie they'd watched the night before. "Oh, Daddy, here's Mommy again. I love you, have fun, bye!"

Stephanie sat down as Sawyer jumped off the seat and started running towards the playroom. "Sawyer, don't go in the playroom, Flynn is sleeping! If you want to go upstairs, ask Kurt to help you with the baby cages and you can go play in your room or the upstairs playroom!"

"Okay, Mommy!" Sawyer yelled as Stephanie turned back to the camera. "Hey, was Sawyer keeping you entertained?"

"He pretty much outlined his itinerary for the next week until I could come home," Chris laughed. Then she watched as he smiled. "There's my girl."

Stephanie held up Kensington to the camera. "Look who it is, Kensy, it's Daddy, can you smile for Daddy?"

Kensington's face lit up with the most serene smile and Chris beamed from the other side of the Atlantic. "My God, does that baby have the cutest smile you've ever seen or what? I mean, at least the cutest one since Flynn's at that age and Sawyer's before that. I can't believe I missed that, I bet it was the best smile ever. Tell me the story again."

"There's not much to tell, sweetie," Stephanie laughed as she leaned in closer, setting Kensington down on the table and leaning in so Kensington could rest her body against Stephanie's shoulder and her head leaned against Stephanie's cheek. "I went to check up on her after her afternoon nap and when I looked down at the crib, all I could see was her gummy, little smile."

"Damn it, I can't believe I missed that and I can't believe I'm over here and you're over there and you are cleared and ready for landing and I can't be there to land…"

"You make it sound so disgusting," Stephanie said, but then she smirked at him, "and I wouldn't worry about that, you'll be home soon and then when you're home, we can have all the fun that we want. Maybe we can send the kids to your parent's for the night and then we can be as loud as we want and I'll let you do whatever you want to me."

"Stephanie, such language in front of our daughter?" Chris said, gesturing towards his baby girl. "Anyways, how's Flynn?"

"She thought you were mad at her for hitting Kensy and that's why you left," Stephanie explained.

"What? How could she think that?"

"Well, think of the timing of it all. She hits Kensy and gets in trouble, a couple days later, you leave and go away and she only gets to see you through a computer screen. She's just confused, Chris. She's not used to you going somewhere without her. But when you get back, she'll understand."

"I hope so," Chris said, looking down.

"Chris, sweetie, chin up," Stephanie said. "You're having an amazing time over there, every night when you call me before going to bed, you sound so happy and I'm _so_ proud of you. I've been looking at your Twitter and reading what people have said about the concert and you are making so many people happy and you should be proud of yourself."

"I'm making my daughter cry," Chris said.

"There are a lot of things in this world that could make her cry," Stephanie said, tickling Kensington's stomach a little to get another smile, "Look at the pretty baby with the adorable smile."

"You're trying to distract me with her adorableness," Chris said, "besides, Flynn cry? That girl is like a rock. Yet I make her cry."

"Chris, you'll be back soon," she told him. "She's two, sweetie, at two you don't get everything. Sawyer understands, Kensy understands."

"Kensy is seven weeks old, Stephanie."

"She's a very astute seven weeks," Stephanie said, kissing Kensington's hand. "Chris, it'll be okay. Don't stop having fun out there because Flynn misses you."

"Stephanie-"

"Christopher," she returned. "Sweetie, I love you, but you have a job to do. How long until your soundcheck?"

"A few minutes," he said, checking the time on his computer.

"We better let you go then, you'll be okay?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"Chris, she'll be fine. She just misses you, but she'll be okay. She'll wake up, I'll throw on some of your old matches and she'll be as good as new, I swear. She'll be trying to wrestle Sawyer by the night's end. How was the VIP thing?"

"It was fun, they've all been really fun," he told her, getting a little bit more enthusiastic. "The fans here are so nice and they really want us here and they've really made us feel welcome. I like it here."

"Good," she told him. "I'm glad that you're having a good time."

"It's been hard with the kids, hasn't it? I'm a bad husband for leaving you like this. I mean, you just had a baby seven months ago and now you're taking care of three kids and I'm not there and you-"

"Need to shut up," Stephanie intervened. "Do not guilt trip yourself. We're fine, I can handle things, now go because you have soundcheck. Say bye-bye to Daddy, Kensy."

"Bye, Kensy-bear, I love you," Chris said, blowing her a kiss and making a silly face. Stephanie rubbed her stomach some more to make her smile. "Oh yeah, Daddy needed that smile to get him through the night. Tell Flynnie I love her, okay?"

"I will, what about me?"

"I love you."

"I love you too, sweetie," she said, blowing him a kiss of her own before they were disconnected. "Did you like seeing Daddy? I think you did my beautiful girl. Now let's go talk to Kurt."

Stephanie found Kurt reading a magazine in the living room. "Hey, so Sawyer wanted to go up to his room so he's up there. That's okay, right, you said that's okay."

"Yeah, he has tons to occupy him up there and he wants to come downstairs, he just hollers. He doesn't need the baby gates, it's Flynn that needs it. She would jump down the stairs if she could. She's a daredevil and she likes to just run at stuff and we don't want her falling down the stairs."

"Understandable," Kurt laughed.

"So what was on your mind earlier when you said the way Flynn was acting put things in perspective for you?" Stephanie asked, shifting Kensington in her arms so the little girl could be more comfortable.

"It's really nothing," Kurt tried to shrug it off, "it's just, well, you know my fiancée is pregnant and everything."

"Yeah, I'd actually love to meet her," Stephanie said. "I'd love to know the woman who is getting you to settle down. Not that I didn't think it would happen, you've always had a quality about you that screamed settle down. Not like Edge, who doesn't seem to have that quality at all. Lucky for him, he has Lita."

"Yeah, I always wanted to do the family thing, you know," Kurt shrugged. "Just…well, I know it's too late to do anything, but I see the way Flynn has been missing Chris and it's easy to tell Sawyer misses Chris and when my kid is born, what's going to happen with me? I travel a lot, is my kid going to be like that. It'd be worse with me because I'd be traveling and I don't think they'd travel with me. The kids travel with you guys so they're never without you or Chris, but what if I'm going to hurt my kid by being gone."

"Oh, Kurt," Stephanie said sympathetically. "It's all really just a balance. You balance the job and you balance the parenthood. You'll make a great dad and you'll figure it out for yourself how you'll balance it all out. There's no completely right way to raise your children. You just have to do the best you can. That's what Chris and I do. We don't have all the answers, we just try to do our best and try to make sure our kids are happy, that's all we really can do."

"Your kids are amazing, Sawyer is so smart, I can't even believe how big he is now. Missing those years, it's like he went from this infant into this kid. And Flynn is smart and funny and cute and then you have this new baby and they're all happy and they love you."

"And so will your kid," Stephanie said. "People think too much, they worry too much and yes, that's good, but it's also good to just dive in there and be a parent."

"You're right."

"Of course I am and you'll get to see that tonight when we go out to dinner with Trish and Christian."

"Wait, what?"

"Well, I don't want you cooped up with me and my kids all evening so I invited them to dinner."

"Steph, they don't like me. They're still mad at me too."

"And you're all being childish, so you know what, we're all going to dinner, so be ready by seven."

"What about the kids?"

"Chris's parents are going to be watching them, Tilden too, it'll just be an adult dinner tonight."

Chris loved being on the stage and he loved being on tour. He'd never really done a tour quite like this before, a different city every night for weeks. He felt like a true rock star, living out of a bus, partying until the wee hours of the morning and then sleeping the day away. So his partying was significantly subdued now that he was approaching 40, it didn't really stop him. Being on stage just gave him such a rush that even if he wanted to sleep right after a concert, there was no way the adrenaline would let him sleep. So he went out with his bandmates, members of the crew, sometimes people in the media and he had fun. Then he got to do what he loved every night and he got to sing and entertain and be a different Chris Jericho.

The crowds loved them and knew their songs. They sang along with him and they cheered and they answered when he yelled at them. He was on top of the world and it felt good to conquer something that wasn't in the ring. Sure, wrestling was fun and it was his passion and it had given him _way_ more than he had ever given wrestling, but this was the second fulfillment if a lifelong dream. After he'd realized he probably wasn't going to be the next great hockey star, he'd turned to music and wrestling. The wrestling had certainly been the more challenging of the two when he looked back at it. The road to being in the WWF, his ultimate dream, had been a long, arduous one. Now he co-owned the company with his wife. Without wrestling, he didn't think he'd be quite in this position.

Hell, without wrestling, he might not be in any position. He might be at some dead-end job being unhappy with an unhappy and unsatisfying life. Wrestling opened doors to him. Wrestling led him to meeting Rich and forming Fozzy in the first place and it got him his foot in the door of music. The road would have been more difficult if he had tried the rock star life from scratch. He had stepping stones and the fanbase continued to grow and he was amazed at it. He was amazed at how people responded to him as a singer and not just as a wrestler. They appreciated him for this and not for wrestling. He couldn't ask for better fans.

So he went out there and put on the show of a lifetime every night. He wanted to make this concert worth every bit of money they spent on a ticket. So he put everything on that stage, he put his blood and guts on that stage and he rocked it out for them. He was living the dream so he wanted to share that dream with the people watching him. That was the only way to do this. He didn't even look at this as a job, but as pleasure, as fun, as everything he'd ever wanted to do professionally. He had the wrestling, he had the music and in his personal life, he had the trophy wife (who was worth more than him and did triple the work he did, but she was gorgeous so he could call her his trophy wife) and 3 beautiful children. Life was good for Chris, it was _damn_ good for Chris.

Maybe it wasn't so good for Kurt. Especially not with the way Christian kept staring him down. Trish was holding onto Chris's good hand while his arm was in its brace and she kept squeezing his hand, telling him to calm the hell down. She wasn't too keen on Kurt being here, but she was at least trying to be pleasant, which was more than she could say for her husband. It seemed that whatever grudge Chris was holding, Christian had gotten wind of it and was doing the same thing.

"So, Christian, how's your arm?" Stephanie asked.

"Same old, same old, doing the physical therapy thing," Christian said. "I can't really hold Tilden, which is the worst part of it."

"He can, it's just awkward and she's so squirmy sometimes that she might hit him in the arm and hurt him," Trish explained. "She likes to lie down with him during nap time though."

"Yeah, she does," Christian said tersely.

"Kurt's going to have a kid."

"That's great, congratulations, Kurt," Trish said, then nudged Christian in the side.

"That's really nice," Christian echoed, but halfheartedly. "So Steph, you missing Chris?"

"Like you wouldn't believe," Stephanie said, "It's been really hard without him around, but you know, we're surviving."

"Tell him what you're doing," Trish prompted her, sending a sly, conspiratorial towards Stephanie.

"No!" Stephanie said. "You know Christian and his big mouth, I'm not going to tell him jack squat."

"Hey, I resent that!" Christian said, loosening up for the first time tonight. "I don't tell things. I keep secrets. Didn't I keep you and Chris a secret for the, what was it, fifteen years you spent in hiding."

"It was not that long."

"I don't tell things."

"Well, one thing is just for me, but I've been planning a little trip for Chris's birthday. We're going to be using my dad's private plane and we're going to be flying down to the Bahamas for some rest and relaxation after his tour."

"What about the kids?"

"I haven't decided yet, but honestly, they're probably coming with us. Flynn's having a hard time with Chris being gone and I don't mind going on a family vacation."

"Stephanie, you and Chris need time alone," Trish said, smirking at her best friend. "Don't you think they need time alone, Chrissy?"

"Um, are you asking if I think my friends should have sex, Trishy?" Christian asked.

"Yes, that's exactly what I'm asking," she laughed, "I just think you guys deserve the short break, I mean, let's face it, you guys have three children under the age of five, you must be driven crazy!"

"Sawyer doesn't bother us at night, neither does Flynn, Kensy is one of those rare, rare babies who already sleeps through the night. She's a godsend, neither Sawyer nor Flynn slept through the night this early. Kensy though, the best baby, she sleeps through the night, granted she goes to bed late, but still, not late enough to where I'm not getting enough sleep. She's perfect."

"Oh yeah, rub it in," Trish said. "You know how hard it was for Tilden to get through the night."

"Yeah, but she does now, but either way, Chris and I get a lot of time together at night when the kids are asleep, it's not like we never get a moment to spare."

"You should have alone time!" Trish insisted.

"If you'll excuse me guys, bathroom," Kurt said, feeling a little out of place in the conversation. Trish and Christian barely acknowledged him and this was a mistake, it was just a huge mistake. What was he thinking letting Stephanie talk him into tonight? Nobody was ever going to forgive him except her and they all seemed like a lost cause.

"Oh, while Kurt is gone," Stephanie said, "which, by the way, you could be a little nicer to him. He's going out on a limb here and you could acknowledge that fact and be nicer."

"I'm trying, it's hard though," Trish told her.

Christian spoke up, "I'm not trying nor do I plan to. He didn't just hurt you, Stephanie, he hurt all of us. Remember how we used to be, it was like us against the world. You, Chris, me, Trish, Edge, and Kurt, we were like the six musketeers or something. Now it's like, we're not."

"We've all grown up," Stephanie said, "well, maybe not Edge, but other than him, we've all grown up. Chris and I have the kids, you and Trish have Tilden, Edge has Lita…"

"Yeah, but we're all still in Florida. We go over to your house all the time and you come over to ours all the time, Edge and Lita babysit for all of us when we need it. Kurt doesn't fit anymore and he shouldn't after the way he acted, the jerk that he was."

Stephanie wanted to slap him, but she refrained. "Give him a chance. Look, it took a lot of courage for him and the least you can do is act civil. Now before he comes back, this trip I'm planning for his birthday, I wanted to invite you guys. I think Chris would have a lot of fun. I'd invite Edge and Lita but Edge has to work and if Edge is working, Lita would hate to come alone, but it kind of works out that Christian is injured because you guys can come along. Chris would want to celebrate with you guys, you know how he is, the more the merrier. He might even invite some of his old friends, once I tell him what we're doing. Everything will be up to him since it's his birthday. But either way, it's our treat, completely."

"Wow," Trish said, "that'd be amazing, thank you, Stephanie. But we couldn't let you pay for us…"

"Look, I don't normally flaunt my wealth, that's not me, I mean, it used to be me, but it's not me anymore, but it's well within our range to pay for you guys and whoever else Chris wants so just treat it like a gift, I want to do this for Chris. It's his 40th and that's a big deal and after what he gave me for my birthday, I really need to do something for him."

"You never did tell us what he got you for your birthday," Trish said. "I mean, we know he took you out to dinner."

She thought back to the DVD, the words, everything, and it still warmed her to think of them, "It's a personal thing, but believe me, the way…the way he presented it was something else."

"Sounds amazing," Trish said. "If you guys want us there, we're there, for sure."

"Yeah, really," Christian said.

"Great," Stephanie said, "I know it'll be a great birthday for him. I'm really looking forward to surprising him with it. Oh, Kurt's coming back, so shush."

"Hey, sorry about that, guys," Kurt said, sitting down. "Just called Gia to check in with her."

"Gia is Giovanna, Kurt's fiancée," Stephanie explained.

"That's a really pretty name," Trish said.

"Yeah, pretty," Christian said.

"Thanks, I like it too," Kurt said and this conversation was very stilted and he wanted out of here right now. Stephanie gave a pleading look to Trish and Christian and they almost gave a simultaneous sigh.

"So Kurt, how did you meet her?" Trish asked. Stephanie gave her a grateful look and then mouthed two words to her.

"Thank you."


	297. Wrapping Up, October 22, 2010

There was only so much traveling one guy could take. The tour was winding down and would reach its conclusion this weekend in France. He could not wait to get home. Living on a bus was irritating now. He liked his bandmates, but being on a bus with the same people for two weeks was hell, especially when they were all guys. If it was Stephanie, then sure, he'd be fine, but he could have sex with Stephanie and so that would curb some of the utter boredom. He was also tired of the interviews. So many interview, so many of the same questions over and over again. If someone asked him when he was coming back to wrestling one more time, he was going to scream.

Most of all, though, he attributed his sour mood to missing his family. He hadn't seen them in two weeks and he was only now realizing how they had really, truly changed the man that he was. They were him. Being away from them, it made him different. He was moodier, on edge more. They seemed to curb him of his moods. He hoped he hadn't been like this before them, but before them, he hadn't known what he was missing. When he'd set out on his own when he was twenty, really on his own, the world his oyster, the only people he'd been leaving behind were his parents and though he was sad to leave them behind, they knew and he knew that it was the right choice.

Now, here, he knew it was right for him to go and do this. Having his concerts was the best feeling in the world, but damn it if he didn't miss the other parts of him. He could just picture them in his mind, his two eldest kids playing in the backyard while Stephanie and Kensington watched, Kensington occasionally smiling at something. He hadn't even gotten to see his daughter's smile in person. There she was, throwing smiles at strangers he was sure and he hadn't even really been on the receiving end of them. God, he sounded like a sap right now, but this much traveling was scrambling his brain.

"Hey, Chris, what's going on?" Rich asked as he stepped on the bus. Rich and the rest of the guys had gone on a short tour of Yeovil and now they were getting back on the bus that would take them to the airport. Chris had stayed behind to give an interview and had been waiting for the guys ever since.

"Nothing."

"Moping," Rich said knowingly.

"Shut up," Chris answered good-naturedly. "I'm not moping."

"You're moping. Look, I miss people too, but I'm not sitting around moping about it."

"Sorry, I'm just thinking about the kids," Chris shrugged. "I miss them and I miss my wife and I'm so ready to get off this damn bus. Thank God we don't have one for France. If I never see a tour bus again, I'd only be so happy."

"Except I'm sure you'll see one again."

"Don't remind me."

"Come on, man, cheer up, I'm sure things are going to look up for you soon," Rich said, patting his shoulder as he walked past him to the back of the bus.

Chris was thankful to be off that godforsaken thing and on a plane to Lille. From then it would be a concert and a flight to Paris and then home. They were in the home stretch and that alone made Chris happy. He wanted nothing more than to climb in bed with his wife and his own bed and his own pillow and curl up and fall asleep for a week, only waking to eat, sleep, and see his children. Thank God Stephanie had talked him into that break because he didn't think he could just jump right back into wrestling after the grueling tour.

The hotel was a welcome sight and he was glad for a real bed. He collapsed against it and stared up at the ceiling. He had a few hours before he had to go to the VIP gathering so he really had nothing to do. He checked his watch, subtracting time from it and figured that the kids were probably just done with lunch. This would be a perfect time to talk to them and Stephanie. They would certainly perk him up before he had to go out and meet people. He arched his hips and grabbed his phone from his pocket, dialing Stephanie's cell phone number.

"Hello?"

"Hey, baby," Chris said, smiling involuntarily at just hearing her voice.

"Hey, sweetie, what's up?"

"I was wondering what you guys were doing, I have some downtime so I was hoping to get on video chat so I could talk to the kids and you of course. I just miss you guys so much and I need a fix before I go out tonight."

"You're cute," Stephanie said. "I'm out though. I decided to go shopping. Your parents were nice enough to take care of the kids for the day. Let me give them a call and I can talk them through how to do the video chat and you can talk to the kids at least, okay?"

"Thanks, baby," Chris said, then added slyly, "Are you shopping for anything special? Like someone's birthday or whatever?"

"Now whose birthday would I be shopping for?" she answered. "I don't know anyone who's having a birthday."

"Really, wow, that's not cool," he told her.

She laughed. "I might be, anyways, give me half an hour and then call up the kids, okay?"

"Yeah, okay, but before you go, I miss you."

"You're sweet," she told him.

"Hey, this is where you're supposed to say that you miss me too!" Chris protested, acting like a child. She laughed at him and he pouted, though he knew she couldn't see it. "You're not being very nice to me. I haven't seen my family in weeks and I'm dying over here. Plus, my side keeps hurting."

"Poor baby," she said, "are you getting sick or something?"

"No, I think I pulled something," Chris said.

"While being onstage?"

"I'll have you know that I go all out, but then, you saw me go all out, didn't you?"

"You're just that type of guy," she told him, thinking back to his concert. "Sawyer has wanted to watch your concert every hour since you sent it to us. He loves it. I don't know if I should be exposing it to him so much since you swear all the time, but he doesn't seem to really care about that. Though if my son starts saying shit and bitch, I'm going to blame you."

"Or you can blame yourself for letting him watch it."

"You're the one who told him that you were sending it and he was so excited. Flynn liked it too, but not as much. I think she much prefers seeing you as a wrestler than as a rock star. She kept asking if you were going to wrestle."

Chris laughed, "I can't wait to see her, all of them actually. I need some hugs and some love, but you can provide that in full."

"You're truly insatiable," she told him. "You'll be home before you know it and everything is ready for your return."

"I can't wait, I'll let you go now so you can really focus on what you want to get me for my birthday and I'll call the kids in about a half hour," he said, "I love you."

"I love you too, have a great concert tonight, okay?"

"I always do," he responded before they both hung up the phone. He lounged on his bed, staring up at the ceiling as he waited for the thirty minutes to pass so he could speak with his children. He and Stephanie hadn't been together for weeks and he was craving her body especially bad. He saw all these hot women at his concerts and he was a man, he looked, but when it came down to it, the only woman who could get him going was one with that soft, brown hair and those smoky blue eyes and damn it, now he was going to need a cold shower to stop from thinking about her. Three days, just three more days and he was going to throw her down on their bed and not come up for air for days.

Finally, the time rolled around and he was out and on his computer before he knew it. His parents were on and he called them and moments later, they were all on screen, shoved into the little box on his computer. Sawyer was sitting on his own chair while Flynn was in his father's lap and Kensington in Loretta's arms, looking like she was asleep. Sawyer pushed his way to the front immediately and waved at Chris. He'd gotten used to seeing his Daddy on the computer.

"Daddy, I watched your singing this morning after breakfast," Sawyer informed him.

"Again?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer nodded. "I wanted to show it to Gampa. He liked it! I can sing the songs, Daddy, just like you can. Gamma said that she's gonna get me a mikeyphone and I can sing too."

"Thanks, Mom," Chris said, "Now I'm going to be upstaged by my kid."

Loretta laughed, "I can't help it, they're my grandkids, I have to indulge them."

"Have they been good for you today?"

"They're the best grandkids in the world," Loretta said.

"Hi, Daddy," Flynn said, peeking her head from around Sawyer. She was in much better spirits today he noticed. Apparently Stephanie was telling her repeatedly that he was coming home soon. He liked it better when Flynn was in a good mood; it didn't stab at his gut that much to be away from her.

"Hey, there's my flutterby, how's the wrestling going?"

"I show Gampa," Flynn nodded.

"She showed me by trying to push me down while I was walking," Ted told Chris.

"Take down," Flynn said proudly.

"Wow, trying to take down Gampa," Chris nodded, "I'm impressed, that's like when I try to take down Big Show so I like a girl who has the drive to do that. Have you learned any other new moves?"

"Hmm, no," Flynn shook her head. "I watch you."

"When I was singing?" he asked.

"Uh huh," Flynn said. "You loud."

"Well, everyone has to hear me."

"Daddy," she said abruptly.

"Yes?"

"I not hit Kensy!" Flynn announced proudly and clapped for herself.

"Wow!" Chris said and clapped for her too. "I'm very proud of you. Do you like Kensy now?" He chanced to guess that maybe Flynn had finally warmed up to Kensington.

"No!" Flynn said indignantly, folding her arms. "I just no hit."

"Well, that's a step in the right direction," Chris told her and she beamed. Her daddy was proud of her and probably not proud of that stupid baby. But she wasn't going to hit the baby again because it got everyone mad and she didn't want anyone to be mad at her; then they'd probably like Kensington more.

"Okay, I mi you!"

"I miss you too, but I'm coming home soon, right?"

"Uh huh," she nodded. "Mommy said."

"I know," Chris said, "I better get one of your famous hugs, okay?"

"Two!" she exclaimed, holding up her fingers.

"Even better," Chris said. There was nothing like talking to his children to brighten his mood. Now he felt like he could go out there tonight and be the best Chris Jericho he could be. Before he'd have to psych up himself, now his kids were the ones to psych him up.

Meanwhile, Edge was psyching himself up about SmackDown. Making the transition from one show to the other was never a totally smooth one, no matter how big a name you were. You had to get a feel for all the people that were on the shows and some of these guys he'd never faced before. This Alberto Del Rio guy? Never faced him. If he got into the ring with people he didn't know, he wouldn't know the flow of the match. It was something he thrived on though, beating people and so this was going to play right into his hands. He just had to get used to everyone.

He also had to get used to being around Vickie again and _that_ was perhaps harder than anything else. When he was on Raw, he didn't have to think about her and he certainly hadn't thought much about her. He was in love with Lita and he loved being with her. That was that, he was happy and he didn't think about his ex-wife and that crazy relationship. Looking back now, he wondered what he had ever seen in her. The funniest part was the fact that she was looking great now and while he wasn't attracted to her anymore, she did look good.

Now that he was back here though, he'd been noticing things, things like Vickie parading around with Dolph wherever he happened to be, Vickie and Dolph leaving at the same time as him and Lita, Vickie and Dolph eating when he and Lita were in catering. If he didn't know any better, he was starting to think that this was deliberate, but certainly that couldn't be the case. He knew that his divorce from her had been less than amicable and he'd already been dating Lita at that point in time, but it was like Vickie was still holding a grudge with him. He couldn't understand why though.

"Do you think it's weird that we always see Vickie?" he asked Lita as they were walking down the hallways. He'd _just_ seen Vickie walking down the other way and she'd sent them a once over. He'd noticed it, but Lita had been looking at something on her hand, a bruise or a marker or something and hadn't noticed.

"She works here," Lita said dismissively.

"Do you think she hates me?"

"Yes," Lita answered and when Edge didn't say anything, she looked over at him, "what, I think she does. I mean, she's your ex."

"Did you hate me when we broke up the first time?"

"A little, yeah," she admitted and shrugged.

"You hated me?"

"Well I didn't really like you. I mean, after everything that happened with us. I guess we just rushed into the relationship. I mean we really should have thought about what we were doing to people and then it was just like we were together and then everything kind of exploded there."

"So you're saying what we did to Matt."

"Yeah, what we did to Matt," Lita said, squeezing his hand. "Right after we broke up, I guess, I guess I thought back to Matt, you know, what I'd done to him and I was a little sad about it because he really didn't deserve it. He wasn't the best boyfriend, but he was a good one. I entertained the thought of going back to him, seeing if he'd forgive me, but it was too late and I knew it."

"I don't want you ever back with that loser," Edge told her and she winked at him playfully. "You think I'm joking, but I'm really not. I will lock you in a room before I let you ever get back with him. Look at him now anyways, he's completely crazy."

"You just-" Edge gave her a look. They'd both seen Matt's youtube videos and had seen how he was behaving. "Okay, he's a little crazy. I bet you that this is just Vickie's way of showing you what you're supposedly missing."

"Missing? Please. Look at her and look at you, I ain't missing anything, believe me. You're a million times hotter. I don't know what the hell Dolph is doing with her, talk about leftovers."

"Don't be a jerk," Lita said, slugging him in the stomach. "So hey, I was like, thinking and I know this is going to sound so stupid, but um, you know how Pee Wee Herman is going to be a host on Raw on the 1st of next month?"

"Yeah, can you believe that? I mean, seriously, how can we make this show more ridiculous, oh, I know, we'll bring in a kid's show character. What stupid people are actually going to enjoy that?"

"Well, I happen to think he's really cool and was hoping that we could go to Raw that night to meet him," Lita said, "but obviously you think I'm a stupid person so you know, never-mind."

She stormed off, her arms folded in front of her and Edge just stood there. Then he looked down, wanting to slap himself in the forehead. But how was he supposed to know that his girlfriend, his metal-rocking, red-haired, punk rocker girlfriend liked _Pee Wee Herman_. That was not what he expected at all. Not to mention, was that a deal-breaker? Sure, Edge wasn't the most mature guy, but really, Pee Wee Herman? He sighed and started after her; he was going to have to make it up to her.

The French crowds were a surprise to Chris. Fozzy had been in the UK before so he knew what to expect there, but hadn't know how it would be in France. It was uncharted territory so to speak. The venue had been small, more intimate, but the crowd had been as riled up as all the other crowds. Even now, when the crowd would start singing along to a song, it sent chills down his spine. These people had listened to his song enough times to know it, maybe even more than he did and they were singing along and it was just this moment, this special moment in time that he was sharing with this crowd. It was living in one of its purest forms, this community of people all doing this one singular thing, sharing and being one voice.

It was incredible.

When he ran backstage, he knew he wasn't going to sleep for hours. He was on too much of an adrenaline high. After the doldrums of the last legs of the UK part of the tour, he was reenergized with the new locale and the new fans. It was like the first night all over again. He could round up the guys, maybe some of their sound guys and light guys and they could all go out for a night on the town. They were in France for God's sakes, they should be living it up! He just felt this renewed sense of pride with his performance that evening and he wanted to go out and celebrate it with the guys.

He was just passing towards his dressing room when someone stopped him. It was one of the coordinators, "Mr. Jericho, I was told to give you this."

"Um, thanks," he said, taking the piece of paper, wondering if it was a message or something. Why would someone send him a message unless it was about Stephanie or the kids? His heart started pounding as every horrible thought ran through his mind. He didn't have his phone onstage for obvious reasons and so surely whomever would think to call the venue or maybe their tour manager had been contacted? He could not get this piece of paper unfolded fast enough and his hands were trembling until he read the words on the page.

_Roses are red_

_Violets are blue_

_I know your hotel room_

_And I'm going to make love to you_

What in the hell? Chris read over the words several more times before he even looked up and around confusedly. Okay, so he didn't think this was a joke by someone and it sounded like a very clever groupie had gotten backstage in order to pass this note to one of the coordinators. He walked over to where the security was gathered all the while trying to spot someone who didn't belong here. Sometimes security would let pretty girls backstage and he didn't blame them, they didn't know who would want some pretty young thing or not. So maybe security would know of anyone backstage.

"Hey, excuse me."

"Yes, Mr. Jericho?"

"Yeah, I was just wondering if you let anyone in that wasn't on the list and it's okay if you did, I'm just curious is all," Chris said, trying to appear casual. It wasn't like he was going to get them fired or anything.

"No, sir-"

"Chris," Chris told him. Whenever someone said sir it reminded him of Vince and he didn't need those images in his mind of him becoming like Vince, talk about creepy.

"No, Chris," the guy said, "everyone backstage has been on the list as far as I know."

"Well, okay, thank you," Chris said. Whomever it was had probably just gotten in somewhere else and slipped someone the note to give to him. The part about the hotel room bothered him though. He didn't like the thought of someone knowing where he was sleeping. It harkened back to when he was in places like Japan when a girl would come up to his room and knock on the door and try to get into his bed. Back then if the girl was cute he might have entertained the thought, but now he was married and he took his vows seriously. If he didn't, Stephanie would probably cut him off, literally.

He decided to dismiss the note altogether and threw it in the nearest trash can. He ran into Frank on his way to his dressing room and stopped him. They made plans to meet back at the hotel after getting dressed. The problem with being onstage was the amount that you sweat. Chris didn't just stand there and sing, he was moving around, jumping, dancing, clapping his hands. He was not a static guy up there and so he sweat nearly through his clothes. A quick shower and a change and he'd be ready for a night on the town.

He headed back to his hotel in a taxi, hoping the driver didn't think he smelled too bad and kind of feeling bad if he was stinking up the car. He got dropped off, paid the driver, and walked inside. He was just walking past the reception desk when his name was called. He wandered over there and stopped. "Um, you called?"

"I'm sorry," the night manager apologized. "I'm just a huge fan and thought I could get an autograph?"

"Oh yeah, sure, of course," Chris said.

"You also have a message that was left for you," he said pushing two pieces of paper at him. Chris signed his signature for him and promised that if he saw him again, he'd take a picture with him and Chris took the other piece of paper from him. He unfolded the message and read it.

_Get yourself ready because I'm so ready for you_.

Chris turned right back around to the guy, "Do you know who left this?"

"I'm sorry, it came before my shift started. "Is there anyone I can contact for you?"

"No, no, is the person who received it still here?"

"I think they've gone home for the night," he responded.

"Oh well, thanks," Chris said. He turned around and shook his head. If some random chick was going to come to his room, he wanted to ask for a different room. He'd dealt with these types before, some of them would even sit outside the door and wait for him. He'd had to call security on them and that was never a comfortable situation. Then you never knew if you were dealing with some crazy chick who would stalk you or try to cut you into pieces. He was in no mood to deal with this. He desperately needed a shower and he wanted to change his clothes and grab a nice beer and hang with his friends. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialed his wife as he started for the elevators.

"Hello?"

"Hey, baby, show's over, just getting to the hotel for a shower and a change and then I'm heading out so maybe don't expect a call before bed," Chris told her.

"Oh, that's too bad, that's one of the highlights of my day," she said and he could tell she was pouting. "So how was the show?"

"Incredible," he told her. "I feel like I've got my mojo back."

"That's great," she told him, "I'm happy that you're happy. I know you've been feeling a little down and have been a little homesick so I felt bad that you had to keep touring so I'm glad that you're doing so well now."

"I am, but I still can't wait to get home to you and the kids," he said with a happy sigh.

"They can't wait to see you," she told him. "So did anything interesting happen at the show? It was the first time you guys were performing in France so was it any different?"

"No, the crowd was smaller because the venue was smaller, but you wouldn't know it to listen to them," he said, stopping a few moments to talk to his wife. Frank could wait a few extra minutes for him to get ready. "Speaking of interesting, I've gotten two notes from some crazy fan of mine. They appear to be attempting to sex me up tonight."

"Really? That _is_ interesting, you should take them up on that," she joked and he chuckled.

"Yeah and I'm sure you'd be fine with me banging some French broad, yeah, right, I've heard they are very passionate here though."

"So what did the notes say?" Stephanie asked.

"One was like a poem, some roses are red crap, something about making love to me all night long. If they knew anything about me, they'd know I hate that expression."

"I do too."

"One of the reasons why I love you," he said, "the other said that I should get ready because they're going to come to my hotel room or something. I really don't know nor do I care. If someone shows up at my door I'm going to call security though. I'm in no mood to deal with crazy fans."

"My poor sweetie, always getting bombarded with sex invitations," Stephanie said.

"Baby, you sound odd, I'm getting this weird echo," Chris said. It was like he was hearing Stephanie twice. "Is it your phone?"

"I don't think so," she told him. "You sure it's not you, I'm hearing you just fine."

"Really, because all I can hear is you and then it's like I hear you again. Are you sure that you can't hear it?"

"I'm sure," Stephanie said, stepping up behind Chris. "And I think that girl had the right idea when she said to get yourself ready."

Chris turned around so fast he almost got whiplash and nearly hit Stephanie in the face. He blinked a couple times like she was some kind of mirage, conjured up by his brain because he missed her so much. This could not be real. His wife could not be standing in front of him right now, looking at beautiful as she ever had, her hair pulled back and out of her face and a coat wrapped around her and the biggest smile. He was just missing her so much that he made her materialize and she wasn't real.

"Stephanie?" he sputtered.

"You were expecting some hotter, French chick? "she asked, coming over and hugging him, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck.

She was real. He could feel her and in a moment, his arms were around her waist and he nearly sobbed out of the real joy that seeing Stephanie brought out in him. He lifted her off the ground and then leaned down to press his lips to hers. She laughed against him as he pushed blindly for the elevator with his left hand, his mouth still seeking out hers, his head tilted to deepen the kiss. It was late so there was no one around to gawk at them. When the elevator dinged its arrival, Chris pulled her into the conveyance and pressed his back against the wall as Stephanie's hands rand through her hair.

"Chris, Chris," she said, pulling away. "Hi."

"What are you doing here?" he asked, his voice filled with wonder at her presence. "I thought you were…I called you this morning…"

"I was already in France," Stephanie said. "I actually arrived here yesterday, but I didn't want to tell you until tonight."

"The kids…"

"The kids are back home," Stephanie said, "but I just couldn't wait to see you and when I heard that you were so homesick, I wanted to come and see you even more. Not to mention, we _never_ get time to ourselves. We're always taking care of the kids and I feel like we've been living in a different realm. I just needed some time to be with you, just you and have that time for us. So we're actually going to stay in Paris an extra day and fly home on Tuesday."

"The kids, Flynn…" Chris said.

"I know, she understands though and Chris, we need this. I'm not saying," the elevator dinged and they got out, holding hands. She continued, "I'm not saying the romance is out of our relationship or nonsense like that, but what I am saying is that we need time apart from the kids before we lose ourselves completely in them."

"It's just hard not to focus on them because we had them all so close together," Chris explained.

"I know and trust me, Flynn can go an extra day without seeing you. She loves when your parents take care of them, I suspect they give her candy, which we won't give her so she'll be more than fine at home and you have me."

"That's right," Chris said, looking at her hopefully. "And we can?"

"Of course we can," she said, waggling her eyebrows a little bit. "That was a _huge_ part of why I wanted to be here with you as well. I've been wanting you so badly and believe me, taking care of myself was getting pretty old."

"Lord do I know what you mean," he said. He opened the door and then asked, "Wait, so were you backstage at the show?"

"Yeah, I called Rich and he put me on the list so I was able to get backstage and drop the note off. I stayed for a couple of numbers and then I came back here. Since I had originally called for the reservation for you, they already had my credit card number in the system and they let me have the key. I just thought I'd have a little fun with you."

"You're beautiful," he said, kissing her neck.

"You stink," she told him back.

Chris pulled away, "Oh, sorry, I came back here for a shower…oh man, I have to call Frank and tell him that I can't make it out tonight…wait a second, did you plan that too, how did you know I'd want to go out?"

Stephanie tapped his forehead, "I'm in there pretty deep."

"There's somewhere I'd like to be in pretty deep."

"I'd say pervert, but I'm way too horny to care right now," she told him.

"So Frank has no intentions of going out."

"Not with you he doesn't," she said, starting to unbutton his buttons. "The only place you need to go, Mr. Jericho is to the shower to get all nice and clean."

Chris watched as Stephanie got the last of his buttons and started to push his shirt off his body. She could even make taking a shirt off into something sexy. He'd barely touched her and he was already nearly ready for her. She glanced up at him, an almost innocent look on her face and he pulled her up to him, kissing her again, laying her down on the bed. He didn't even care that he still needed the shower, he just wanted his wife.

"Chris, seriously, you stink," she told him even as she fumbled with his pants.

"We can shower afterwards," he said, helping her push his pants down, "right now, all I want is you."

"I'm sorry I don't look my best," she told him as his hands roamed over her stomach.

"What, you look so hot," he whispered in her ear. "You're gorgeous."

"I mean, just, you know, after the baby and everything, I'm not…well, you know, back to normal I guess."

"Normal?" he asked, pulling away. "What's normal?"

"Not a fat mess."

Chris actually laughed at her. He could never understand Stephanie after she had a baby. He wasn't stupid, he knew that pregnancy changed her body and with having 3 kids within the span of 5 years, it was bound to alter her looks. If it took her longer to lose some of the baby weight, it took her longer to lose the baby weight. He wasn't with Stephanie because of how she looked and frankly, to him, she couldn't look bad, especially not when she'd traveled thousands of miles just to be with him, to spend time alone with him.

"You're not a fat mess, I'd never be with a fat mess," he told her tenderly. "Quit it with the inferiority complex, it does not fit you well _at all_."

"Do you know how handsome you are?" she said, looking at how gorgeous he was hovering over her. She barely noticed his hands working their way up her shirt and to her breasts, making her shirt bunch just under her bra. "How…just handsome you are."

"Yeah, and do you know how beautiful I find you," he said, "Now can we quit with the talking already? I've got my wife here, who I love, who is so freaking hot I may spontaneously combust and she wants to talk about irrelevant things."

"I'm sorry," she said, pulling him down. "I know you've been so patient."

"I really have."

"Well, the wait is over."

Hours later, Chris lay in bed, his head resting on top of Stephanie's. Tonight was his best night in a while. He had a great concert and then he got laid; if there was something better out there than that, he dared someone to find it. After having Stephanie a couple times on the bed, they'd moved to the huge Jacuzzi tub in the bathroom and had sat there for what seemed like forever, just sitting in silence and appreciating each other's company. They'd tumbled back into bed, a mess of limbs and kisses and caresses and now they were satiated and resting comfortably in each other's arms.

"I think we needed that," Chris told her quietly.

"All the sex?"

"Well that, but just…I don't know, not having to be quiet in case we woke up the kids, not having one ear always focused on the baby monitor in case Kensington woke up, not worrying that Flynn or Sawyer would open the door and walk in on us, just all of that."

"I know what you mean, they're a handful."

"But look at us, on the tail end of mind-blowing sex and we still can't even talk about anything else but our kids."

"We've become _that_ couple, the one that just has nothing else to talk about."

"Well, we do have other stuff, I was thinking about when I should get back to wrestling," he told her. "I mean, I really have no reason to be away this time and it's just different from last time."

"What are you thinking?" Stephanie asked.

"I'm thinking that I should come back soon, maybe by the end of the year or early next year. Nothing too far off," he told her. "I don't want to be gone for years like last time, hell, I could come back as soon as we're done in Australia, but I guess it can wait."

"It can," she said, "let's not worry about business or the kids while we're here. Let's just go to Paris and have a good time and just be with each other. I want to be with you and not the kids. We have plenty of time for them later, but this is time to focus on us and where we're at."

"I like the way you think," he said, kissing her forehead. "We should pretend like we're still dating and we have none of those responsibilities and just act like we were back in the day. I mean, we should absolutely check in on the kids, but otherwise, we'll just be Chris and Stephanie, no other names attached."

Stephanie smiled and pressed a kiss to his chest. "You looked great out there tonight. I know I say I'm proud of you all the time, but I'm _so_ proud of you."

It felt good to hear that. He knew Stephanie was proud of him, but he still liked to hear the words. There was always this tone in her voice that went beyond pride. It was like a special lilt that was just for him. He wanted her to appreciate his musical side and for all her jokes about his band and his songs and how she was worried about just how she influenced songs like Broken Soul, he knew she was proud of his music and his talent. She was just his biggest supporter and he couldn't have asked for a better person to stand by his side for always. There was nobody else for him but her. He couldn't even picture anyone else in his life but her. He held her a little tighter against him, even as he felt her start to relax.

"You falling asleep?"

"Yeah, it's late," she said, "long night."

"You're telling me."

"Sleep now," she said as she started to drift.

"Hey, baby?"

"Mmhmm?" she mumbled, burying her face into his chest as she cuddled with him.

"You're the best surprise I could ever get."


	298. Home at Last, October 25, 2010

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, hope you enjoy, readers. :)

* * *

"God that's beautiful."

Chris looked at the painting Stephanie was looking at, her head slightly tilted to the side as if that angle made it more beautiful to her. Chris gripped her hand a little tighter, pulling her into his side, "Not half as beautiful as you are."

"You are so cheesy," she told him, but she gave him a luminescent smile that really did transcend any painting in there for him. Then she rolled her eyes and looked away, pulling him towards another painting.

"What?" he laughed, "I can't help it. You're way more beautiful than any of the art in here."

"Chris, this is the Louvre, one of the _most_ famous art museums in the world and all you've been doing the entire time is staring at me and only looking at anything around you when I tell you to," she responded, "I had to tell you to look at the _Mona Lisa_, I mean, come on, that's _the_ most famous painting in the world. Do you get why I'm emphasizing all these things?"

"She's not even that hot," Chris said with a smirk. "I'd much rather look at you anyways."

"What is this city doing to you?" Stephanie laughed.

"Hey, Paris, City of Love, that's what it's called right and you're here, you're really here with me and not thousands of miles away and for the first time in a really long time, it's just you and me. Sue me if all I want to do is look at you."

Stephanie closed her eyes and opened them, leaning forward before pressing a kiss to his lips. Today was just their day. She still ran the look on his face when he saw her through her mind and she felt very loved. She knew Chris had been homesick, but when she saw the way he looked at her, that mix of shock, surprise, and happiness on his face she was so glad she'd come. Ever since then, Chris had been acting like a sappy fool and while it was a little annoying, it was also incredibly endearing.

Now today was their day for sightseeing. Stephanie had wanted to go to the Louvre, having always been interested in art and Chris wanted to see John Morrison's grave. Both of them had been to Paris before, but it was on business so they'd never been able to go see things like this. So they each had picked one place to go and that was their day. No kids to think about, no work, just the two of them enjoying each other's company. It was like a little mini-honeymoon they had never had. Tomorrow they would fly home and Chris would get to see his little monsters. And as much as he loved being with his wife, he missed his kids.

"But there's a lot of beautiful paintings here."

"They'll still be here next time I come," Chris said, sure he would come at some point. "Then I can look at them."

"You can look at _me_ all the time," she told him, making a face. "You see me everyday."

"Yeah, I do, but that's beside the point. I didn't get to see you for weeks so now all I want to do is look at you, is there something so wrong with that?"

"I guess not," she told him, kissing him again. "I would just enjoy everything more if you would look at it too and would talk to me about it."

"Okay, fine," he said, looking at the closest painting to them, "Okay, _Wedding Feast at Cana_, beautiful painting, the colors are still so vibrant and look at the realism of the figures, great, great painting, you go."

"_Chris_, that's not what I meant," she giggled. "You are acting like a dork."

"Oh wow, okay, there's a McDonald's here?" Chris said, looking at the map he'd just taken from Stephanie to see how far they were from the exit. "Is nothing sacred anymore? How can you have all these great works of art and then a _McDonald's_?"

"Because someday McDonald's will take over the world?" Stephanie said with a shrug. "Why are you looking at the map anyways? Is there something you want to see?"

"I want to see if we can leave so I can have you too myself. I was thinking that we could go to some cute, little café and act like a couple of teenagers in love or something. We could share an espresso or a French pastry. Or maybe we could go to some market, grab some things and have a picnic."

"In this weather?"

"I don't care, I'm not that cold," he told her.

Stephanie didn't know what had come over her husband. Maybe it was the city just taking him over, but there was just this way he was looking at her. He really hadn't looked at her like that in a very long time, since before Sawyer was born, maybe before she was even pregnant with Sawyer. He had obviously missed her very much, but the way he was constantly looking at her didn't seem to be the affect of missing her. It was like everything was new to him and he was just taking her all in. It was unnerving and heady all at the same time.

"I'm not going to sit outside and then get sick. Next week I have to be in Connecticut to help my mom campaign, remember? And I don't want to be everywhere and be sick with a runny nose and a cough."

"Fine, fine," he told her, "but I still want to grab something to eat with you, somewhere romantic."

"I thought you wanted to go to Jim Morrison's grave," Stephanie pointed out. "That was your choice for our sight-seeing day."

"And we still can, later, after I feed you," Chris said, "come on, let's go, no more art, I hate art…I shouldn't have said that so loud, huh?"

"I think not," she said, kissing his cheek. "You're like a little baby though, can't even stay for a couple hours to see the art. When we get to that grave, I'll take your picture and that's it, nothing more."

"I wasn't going to say a rosary," Chris said, rolling his eyes as he leaned in to kiss her again, right there in the middle of the museum. He couldn't help himself. Stephanie being there was still such a surprise to him. Seeing her behind him after talking to her on the phone, it was like all the loneliness had dissipated in an instant. He wanted to somehow show her how much her being here meant to him and he couldn't find a way to accurately depict that happiness.

"Good, I'm just saying now," she told him as they finally exited the building. "And then you are taking me to some romantic dinner tonight, right?"

"Right," he told her, grinning at the plans he'd made. He'd asked around the hotel and found a great restaurant that he was taking Stephanie to. But that could wait until later. Deciding that it was a nice enough day for walking, they just decided to go around on foot for a little bit and find this café that Chris was so adamant about. "You really do look beautiful today."

"Thank you," she said, tugging on his scarf. "You look very handsome for what it's worth. Even with the burgeoning sideburns." She ran her finger down the side of his face.

They walked along in silence for a little bit, Chris squeezing her hand every now and again. They didn't need more than the silence between them. Everything that needed to be said could be said between their joined hands and both of them were just taking in this exotic locale and how right everything seemed to be at this moment, how perfect. Their lives were not perfect, they were busy people, they juggled so much between them and there were big fights and little arguments and three children who depended on them and work, so much work, and eccentric families and crazy friends. For right now though, things were perfect.

"I thought about proposing to you here," he said, finally breaking the silence.

"You did? I thought you wanted to propose to me by getting me a contract and a new job since my father had so unceremoniously fired me," Stephanie said, "don't you remember that whole elaborate plan, sweetie?"

"I remember the plan, believe me," Chris told her, "that stupid plan consumed me and made me think you were interested in Christian of all people. But I mean before that, before I thought of the perfect proposal and certainly before you ever found the ring."

"I liked my proposal just fine," she told him, gripping his arm. "I couldn't have asked for a better one. How many girls get to say that they threw their ring at their boyfriend's head?"

"Any girl that's said no in a very angry way?" Chris joked.

"Why did you think of Paris?" she asked.

"Well, it was right after I bought the ring. I had every intention of making it the most elaborately romantic proposal in the entire world. I think I was just missing you so much and thought that I would have to do something spectacular to convince you to marry me."

"Rather than ask?"

"We were broken up at the time, baby," he said, patting her arm. "I just, after your first marriage, I know we talked about marriage, but I could never be sure if you wanted really to have another go at it. Not to mention the fact that you didn't get great proposals. Andrew had, well, on TV, and Hunter didn't even propose anything except kidnapping you and we all know how that turned out. You deserved romantic."

"I hate romantic," she told him, "you should know that."

"You like it once in a while," he corrected her, "when the moment calls for it-"

"And not when it doesn't."

"But doesn't a proposal warrant a very dramatic and romantic gesture?" he asked. "Isn't that the one moment where you're supposed to do something that will blow the other person away?"

"Not if that's not what the person wants. All I've ever wanted were whispered words. That's all I ever needed and it's what I got. You should know by now that I was never happy with the big things. Hunter tried to do the big things for me, beating guys up, being the champion and it wasn't what I really wanted. I like what I've got going for me, but for the record, what would you have done here to propose?"

"It was a fleeting thought mostly," Chris explained, "nothing set in stone, but it would've involved nighttime and maybe the Eiffel Tower, cliché, yes indeed, but I was a desperate man searching for the perfect way to propose to you."

"I would have laughed in your face," she teased him. "I would have laughed and left you up there alone and rejected if you had done something like that."

"You would not have! You are desperately in love with me." She grinned and bumped her hip against his. "Don't do that, you know I'm in pain."

"We're taking you to the doctor's when you get home."

"Not before I see my children," Chris said. "I will not let anything stand between me and my kids when I get home."

"I know, I mean when we're back to being settled. My massages aren't working for you and it worries me," Stephanie said. "You might have torn something."

"I would know if I've torn something," he told her. "I know my body, Stephanie. After being a wrestler for the past 20 years, I think I know a thing or two about my body. It's not a tear, if anything, it's just a strain. I probably just need a few painkillers until it gets better."

"I hope it's just a strain," Stephanie said.

"You worry about me too much, which definitely means that you are completely in love with me. I mean, who else has given you what I've given you, namely three beautiful children and-"

"A life," she told him, glancing at him and then hugging him around the waist as they continued to awkwardly walk down the street. "Everything I've wanted and you've just given me a life. See, I can let Paris affect me as well. Romantique, non?"

"Mais oui," he told her, caressing her cheek with the back of his hand. "Il y avait dans sa beauté je ne sais quoi de romantique et de fabuleux qu'on n'avait vu jusque-là qu'en idée."

"Okay, you've lost me, there's only so much high school French that I remember," she told him.

"Well then you'll never know, will you?" he teased her. "Just know that it means I think you're beautiful."

"Well, there is one phrase that I can remember," she said to him, cupping his cheek and rubbing her thumb over his lips as they stopped on a deserted street. "You wanna know what it is?"

"Yes, I do," he nodded.

She leaned up a little and brushed her lips just over his ear, "Je t'aime."

Like all good (or bad vacations) they all come to an end and their day of frolicking through Europe like a couple of wayward poets had to cease at some point and reality, all of it, had to come stumbling back into their lives. Chris and Stephanie were not well-rested the next morning. Chris's choice of restaurant had indeed been romantic, romantic enough to warrant the two of them rolling around their bed until the sun was threatening to spill into the room. They woke up tired and somewhat cranky with the pending flight back home.

Stephanie slept most of the way, her head nestled against Chris's shoulder. He rubbed her back every now and then, comforting in her sleep, but he was too excited to sleep. He kept looking out the window like he was suddenly going to see Florida pop up in front of him, despite the fact they had a layover in Newark before they could even got to Florida. He was just anxious, his leg jingling every so often in the anticipation of it all. Their connection in Newark was a short one, just enough time to get something to eat and then it was off to Florida.

"Would you calm down," Stephanie said sleepily.

"You haven't seen the kids in like four days, I haven't seen them in over two weeks, I miss my kids, I miss Sawyer and his diplomacy and how he takes care of everyone even though he doesn't know it, I miss Flynn with her obsession with my wrestling and the way she wants to take everyone down, and Kensington, I have not seen my infant daughter in over two weeks. I miss my kids!"

"You're adorable," Stephanie said, "I called while you were getting the food at the airport and-"

"You didn't tell me you called them?" Chris said. "I would've wanted to talk to them, how come you didn't tell me you were talking with them?"

"Because I think it'd be better if they just got to see you and I didn't actually talk to the kids, I talked with your dad and I told them when we were coming in and asked how the kids were doing and he said they're doing fine and Sawyer and Flynn are very excited that you'll be home. Kensington doesn't really understand at this point, but I'm sure you'll get a smile out of her."

"If she remembers me," he said glibly.

"Only a few more hours," Stephanie reminded him.

"Are they coming to the airport?"

"No, just your dad is. Your mom thought that it was too late for them, she puts them to bed earlier than we ever do. She always balks at me when I tell her what time to put the kids down for bed, but she doesn't understand that we run on different hours than she and your father do."

"I remember when I was a kid, she was strict about bedtime. I used to read under my blankets, you know, use the old flashlight, which is why I had the glasses, but she would always find out and she'd get so mad at me. She was just trying to be strict because my dad wasn't around a lot so she had to be the enforcer of a lot of things, but she's pretty weird about bedtimes."

"Maybe she and your dad were getting busy and she didn't want you to be awake for it."

"Oh my God, why did you just go there?" he asked her, making a face and pretending to puke. "That's going to put images in my head that may stay there forever. As far as I'm concerned, my parents only had sex once and that was to make me."

"Just think, someday our kids are going to want to believe that we only had sex three times, one for each of them."

"If they only knew," Chris chuckled. "Wait, the kids _will_ be awake though, right? I mean, Kensy is a wildcard, we can't just keep her up at this age, but Sawyer and Flynn will be up, right? I don't want to wait until the _morning_ to see them."

"Ted said that he would keep them up, even against Loretta's wishes," Stephanie said. "They won't be able to go to sleep though anyways because they know that you're coming home and there's no way that either of them is going to fall asleep voluntarily and besides, we'll probably be home around 9 and they usually don't go to bed until 10 or so, depending on what time your mother has been trying to coerce them into bed. I imagine Sawyer grudgingly going along with it a la his father and Flynn fighting it tooth and nail, possibly hanging onto a doorway or kicking someone in the shin-"

"A la her mother," Chris added.

"Thank you for that," she said, rolling her eyes, "but they'll be awake and your little demon children will be there to greet you after your long absence."

"Good," he said, "Is it strange how much I missed them?"

"Never."

"I love them so much, being away from them, it's not like I needed reminding or anything because they're my children and I love them, but I didn't realize how much I would miss them. I've been away for a while, but that was because of work, like I had no choice work, but this tour, it was my choice and somehow that made it worse and it was nearly unbearable until you showed up."

"You're just a big sap about your kids. You're the big, bad Chris Jericho, but when it comes to those three, you melt into a big pile of goo."

"I do. If someone were to want to get to me, they'd just have to insult my kids."

"Hence your ever-bitter grudge with Austin," Stephanie said, lowering her voice into a gruff snarl. Chris just glares at her and she laughs, "I'm sorry, sweetie, but at this point, this grudge is comical to me-"

"Stephanie, what if Sawyer had been-"

"But he isn't," she interrupted, reminding him of his son.

"You could have lost-"

"But I didn't," she again reminded him. "He's sitting at home, waiting for you, probably looking at the windows. I love the way you love our children, Chris, it's one of the reasons I continue to love you as fiercely as I do, but give it up!" She shoved him in the shoulder and he stopped her assault by kissing her.

"I bet they've changed."

"Chris, you haven't been away for years," she pointed out.

"Didn't you say you were getting Sawyer a haircut?"

"Yes, he did get one, but you've seen it on the webcam."

"And Flynn, she's probably taller."

"Maybe by a fraction of a centimeter," Stephanie said. "You're adorable with this, but trust me, they are the same exact children that you left."

"Yeah, except they miss me a lot and I miss them."

Back at the house and a few hours later, Sawyer and Flynn were sitting on the couch watching the beginning of Raw, something they liked to do every week. "Gamma, I know him," Sawyer said, pointing to the screen where Wade Barrett was walking down with the rest of Nexus.

"You do?" Loretta asked, indulging him. Flynn was sliding off the couch so she could sit on the floor in front of the couch, as if sitting closer to the television would somehow transport her _into_ the television. "Flynn, reasonable distance, please."

"I am," she argued, though her little butt was still scooting forward bit by bit to the television. Flynn was in that defiant stage, pushing boundaries wherever she could and this was one of them.

"Flynn, no closer, understood," Loretta said a little bit more firmly.

"Okay," Flynn said, stopping where she was.

Loretta turned back to her grandson, "So who is that then, darling?"

"That's Wade, Daddy helped him on NXT, that's a show where they have people that I don't know and then they take people I know and they help each other," Sawyer said, trying his best to explain the concept of the show. "Daddy was helping Wade and that's why he's so good now because of Daddy."

"Well, your daddy is a good wrestler," Loretta said.

"He's the best in the world," Sawyer corrected her. "And he's coming home tonight!" Sawyer bounced around in his seat. He couldn't wait for his daddy to get home. Maybe they could even watch Raw together.

"Daddy tonight!" Flynn cheered, raising her arm in the air like she'd just won some huge victory.

"Yes, you two, Daddy is coming home tonight."

"Yes!" Sawyer pumped his fist. "Daddy's wrestled Wade too and John Cena."

"You know, I used to watch your daddy wrestle a long time ago. I remember when he left home to go become a wrestler," Loretta said, tucking in Sawyer to her side.

"Did he go far away from home?"

"Yes, he did, very far away."

"Did you miss him?" Sawyer asked.

"Very much, but I knew that he wanted to become a wrestler very bad and sometimes you have to let someone go to do something they love. I knew that this was your father's dream and if he was ever going to achieve it then he was going to have to look past Winnipeg and go out and find what was out there and be the best wrestler he could be."

"Daddy said he's been lotsa places."

"He has," Loretta explained. "He's wrestled in a lot of different places, but his real dream was always to be in the WWE, that was his ultimate goal."

"Grandpa owns it."

"Yes, your grandpa does own it, but your daddy didn't come into the company with the intention of ever owning it or ever marrying your mommy."

"He didn't like her," Sawyer said with a nod. "He was mean to her, but then she was mean to him and then she threw water on Daddy and then Mommy was sad because Daddy said that she was a hooter."

Loretta laughed, "Yes, your parents weren't very nice to each other back then."

"Because Mommy was married to Trips, that means that he was like Daddy with her, but not really because he's not my daddy, he's just Trips."

"Your parents had a very strange relationship before you came along," Loretta told him, "So tell me more about this group I'm seeing, Nexus, what are they like?"

"They're mean, they tried to hurt Daddy even though Wade was helped by Daddy and then it wasn't very nice and they beat up on Grandpa too and other people, but then they made John Cena part of them because he lost and he has to be part of them, but he doesn't want to."

"Why doesn't he want to?"

"Because he doesn't like them because they're mean and he's not mean."

"Do you like John Cena?"

"He's okay, but he's not my friend," Sawyer said. "I just like my friends."

"Who do you consider your friends?"

"My _friends_," Sawyer said emphatically.

"Honey, I don't know who you consider your friends," Loretta laughed at him.

"Ed and Chrissy and Trips and Britt and lots of other people that I like," Sawyer said.

Ted was just pulling into the driveway and Chris already had the door open before he'd set the car to park. Stephanie watched him, her eyes bright, "He really just wants to see the kids," Stephanie said as she and Ted got out of the car.

Chris fumbled with his keys and his hands were shaking with excitement. He finally found the right one and slipped it into the lock, unlocking the door. He could hear chatter coming from the living room and he headed straight there. He saw them before they did, Sawyer talking with his mother and Flynn sitting close to the television, her eyes fixed on the screen as the images danced across her face and lit up her dark blue eyes. He glanced at the screen and saw it was wrestling, but he didn't care.

"I'm going to need two of the biggest hugs I've ever gotten!" Chris exclaimed from the doorway.

"DADDY!" Flynn screamed in her loudest voice ever and was barreling towards him at breakneck speed. Chris knelt before she reached him, but just barely as she crashed into him, her small arms banding around him. "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!"

"Daddy, you're here!" Sawyer yelled, jumping off the couch and running towards Chris. Chris extended his free arm towards his son and Sawyer bounced right into them, hugging Chris for all he was worth. Flynn had called dibs on his neck, but Sawyer was trying to get in there too.

"I missed you both so much," Chris said, his eyes burning with tears. He stood up, holding the both of them and they clung to him like fly paper, sticking to him and he could feel Flynn grinning into his neck as he kissed the tops of their heads.

"Daddy, I missed you so much," Sawyer said.

"I missed you too," Chris choked out, the emotion of the moment getting to him something fierce. "I missed you, Flutterby."

Flynn didn't respond, just kept holding onto her father, not wanting to let go. Chris just keeps kissing her head and cheeks. Flynn is much too strong-willed to let herself cry over seeing him, but he can tell that she's being as emotional as she lets herself be. So like Stephanie. He wants to see his Kensington, but that can wait a few more minutes. He looks over at his mother and she has that mom expression on her face, the one where she's just so proud of him and happy for him, he recognizes it from his high school graduation.

"Hey, Mom," he says over his kids' heads.

"Hello, Christopher," she said, standing up and kissing his cheek. "Did you and Stephanie have fun?"

"We did," Stephanie said as she came in with Ted. "Chris was very surprised."

"I'm sure he was, we had a hard time keeping the kids from telling you," Loretta said. "Come on, Ted, let's go."

"You don't have to go, Mom," Chris said. "You could stay here tonight."

"We only live twenty minutes away, Chris, believe me, we'll be okay," she said, kissing his cheek again. "Welcome home."

"Thanks and thanks for watching them," Chris said as his mother kissed her grandchildren.

"I love doing it. Come on Ted, let's say goodbye and then go."

Once the goodbyes were done, Chris sat down on the couch, just letting his kids sit with him. Flynn still hadn't said anything, but he didn't try to force her to say anything. His presence was all she needed. Stephanie went upstairs to check on Kensington while Sawyer pulled away from him, but kept close to him on the couch.

"Did you have fun over there?" Sawyer asked.

"I had a lot of fun, but I missed you guys too much. I was very homesick."

"That's too bad," Sawyer said, "I liked your concert, Daddy, but I'm glad you're home now and it's almost Halloween and we're going to dress up, aren't we, Flynnie?"

"Uh huh," Flynn mumbled, her grip getting tighter around Chris. "Don't go, Daddy."

"I'm not going anywhere, Flutterby," Chris told her. "I'm not going anywhere for a while, okay, I'm going to stay here with you for the next month. It'll just be us and I'm not even going to wrestle, just spend my time with you."

"Good," Flynn said, hugging him tighter. "You no mad at me?"

"I was never mad at you, Flutterby, I just had to go do my tour. I'm not going anywhere. So, kid, what are you going to be for Halloween?"

"Indiana Jones, like in the movies we watched."

"Very, very good choice, I definitely approve," Chris told him, "and what about you, Flutterby, what are you going to be?"

"Daddy," she answered.

"Daddy?"

"She's going to be you for Halloween," Stephanie said, reappearing in the doorway. "Kensy is asleep by the way and I didn't really want to wake her up, but Flynnie wants to be you for Halloween and are you really surprised by that. The girl adores you and wants to be just like you. We've been getting things for her costume, haven't we, Flynnie?"

"Uh huh," Flynn nodded. "I Daddy."

"Yes, you're just like Daddy," Stephanie said, "now why don't we go upstairs and we can watch Raw in bed and then go to sleep because Daddy and I have jet lag and we're tired."

"Okay," Sawyer said, hugging Chris again. Chris stood up with both kids as they went upstairs, Stephanie lagging behind to turn off the television and lock up. She went back upstairs just in time to see Chris dump the kids onto the bed. They crawled up to the top and sprawled themselves over the pillows as Chris turned on the television for them before heading into the closet, where Stephanie was already changing.

"Neither one of those monsters has even so much as hugged me," Stephanie pointed out as she pulled off her shirt.

"Am I supposed to feel sorry for you?" Chris asked, "because I don't. They obviously like me better."

"I know they missed you, but a hug would have been nice," Stephanie said as Chris leaned over and kissed her neck. "Why don't you go in and check on Kensy before you get into bed, that way you can see her so you don't feel deprived of your Kensy fix."

"Good idea, but I have a feeling you're going to try and get some hugs while I'm gone."

"I deserve at least a couple," she said indignantly.

"I'm so glad to be home and in my bed and in my house," he said, "I just get to relax now and have a relaxing birthday and Halloween."

If only Chris knew what Stephanie had planned. She hadn't told anyone but a few select people what she was planning in regards to the birthday trip she wanted to have for Chris. 40 was a big deal and she wanted to make sure that it was a great birthday and didn't spark off a midlife crisis that would leave him with a tattoo or something (he had the sports car and each of his ears was pierced four times so he couldn't go that route and he wasn't going gray so a tattoo seemed the safest assumption for a midlife crisis). She wasn't going to tell the kids, the little blabbermouths and Trish had promised to keep all the plans a secret, even from Christian and she was going to keep Christian in line about the mere idea of the trip. She wasn't even going to tell Chris to pack. She was secretly going to do it and then just whisk Chris and everyone away. She couldn't wait to see his face.

"Yes, you do," she said as Chris patted her on the butt.

"I'm going to go check on Kensy."

Chris left the closet and left his two older children lounging on the bed, engrossed in Raw again. He went down the hallway to Kensington's nursery and gently pushed open the door, not wanting to wake her. Her ladybug nightlight is making the room glow with soft reddish light, bordering on pink and he walks over to her crib, the same crib his Sawyer and his Flynn have lain in when they were this tiny. Flynn was just barely out of the thing come to think of it. He placed his hands on the edge and peered down at the little girl.

She was warmly dressed in a pair of purple footy pajamas, a picture of a unicorn right over her heart. Her head was nodded off to one side and her thumb very close to her mouth as if waiting to suck on it when she wakes up. Her chest rises and falls rhythmically, reassuringly and her nose twitched ever so slightly whenever she inhaled a little too deeply. He reached forward and gently, barely rubbed her tummy a little bit.

"Hey there, Kensy-bear, I can't wait until you wake up so I can finally see one of those smiles I've heard so much about," Chris whispered to her, leaning his chin on the railing of her crib. "I missed you, little girl. I know you probably didn't even really realize I was gone, but God did I miss you and tomorrow, I'm spending all day with you and your brother and sister, maybe not at the same time as your sister though, but then, I'm not sure on that situation. I hope she's come around, but I highly doubt it."

Chris ran his finger over the soft skin of her hand and then brought his hand up, kissing his fingers and pressing them to Kensington's chubby cheek. Her hair is growing in more, falling over her forehead just a little bit, a shade of brown lighter than Stephanie's and Flynn's, but much darker than Sawyer's blond head. He brushed some of the hair away from her forehead and then left her to sleep. They were lucky to have a baby that already slept through the night at two months old and he wasn't going to ruin that by waking her up right now.

He padded his way back to his bedroom, the lights already turned off and the television bouncing light around the room. Stephanie's already in bed, Sawyer and Flynn as well, all tucked in. Stephanie smiles at him and he climbs into bed, only to be greeted a moment later by Flynn, who hugs Chris and practically lays across his chest in a haphazard way. She's just so happy he's here and she can hug him. She was so worried that he was mad at her and didn't want to be around her. Chris rubbed her back as she watched Raw. She got to have her two favorite things at once: wrestling and her daddy. Life was very good for her right now. She just had to make sure her daddy never left again, at least not without her. She'd just have to use the Walls of Jericho to get him to stay.

"Good to be home?" Stephanie asked as the kids started to drift to sleep. If she was honest, she was going to follow soon too. The jet lag and the time difference was hitting her like a brick wall and she was about two seconds from drooling on the pillow like Flynn was doing to Chris's chest. Flynn had one hand on Chris's cheek and her foot was on Sawyer's face, but Sawyer was asleep now and had his head on Chris's arm.

"A little cramped," Chris said, using his free hand to move Flynn's arm. "How did she end up in this position?"

"Very careful maneuvering," Stephanie said. "Here, let me take her and put her to bed."

"No, just leave her," Chris said. "She missed me and I missed her."

"Chris, you're a human mattress right now," Stephanie informed him. "That can't be comfortable for you."

Chris wasn't very comfortable. Flynn moved a lot in her sleep and she kept slapping him with her hand. Her knee was also regularly jabbing him in the side, luckily not the one with the injury, but still, it didn't feel great. His left arm was also asleep because of Sawyer lying on it this entire time and he kept moving his fingers to keep the blood circulating. Plus, Sawyer had also given Chris a few jabs to the side courtesy of his errant foot connecting with him. Only his kids could get away with so much kicking and punching without any kind of retaliation. He wasn't comfortable at all and he wasn't sure just how he would sleep in this position, but…

"Actually, you know what, I'm just fine the way I am."


	299. Halloween, October 31, 2010

A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews, almost to 1800, yay! :D Anyways, this chapter was getting a bit long so I kind of just ended it where it seemed appropriate. With like nobody on any of the shows except for Edge, I've kind of been basing chapters off of Chris's tweets or other things going on outside of the ring, so the chapters may jump around a little bit, just to let you know, and as always, since it's not on the show, I do take some liberties. Anyways, enjoy! :)

* * *

"Would you call this clingy?"

Stephanie looked over her shoulder as she folded some of Kensington's onesies. Chris had just walked into the bedroom with Flynn hanging onto his neck, quite literally. He had no hands on her, his hands up in the air and Flynn just dangling from him, her arms clasped on his neck and her legs around his middle as far as they could go. Stephanie laughed and shook her head at her oldest daughter. Ever since Chris had arrived home, Flynn had been his shadow.

Every day he'd been back, Flynn had needed to be around Chris, mostly for her own reassurance. She needed to make sure that he wasn't going to leave again and the only way she could do that was to follow him around. When he went into his office, she followed him, when he went into the garage to get something, she would stand at the door to watch. Hell, she'd even tried to push open the bathroom door while he was taking a shower, but Stephanie had intercepted her and told her that Daddy had needed some privacy. Even then, she sat outside the door, waiting for him to come back out. And every night, Flynn wanted Chris to tuck her in and if he dare leave before she fell asleep, she'd whine and reach her hand out to grab his hand and demand he stay there with her.

"Flynnie, what are you doing?" Stephanie asked as Chris's arms returned to secure Flynn against him lest she fall onto the ground, not that she wouldn't take the bump like a champ.

"With Daddy," Flynn explained.

"I know you're with Daddy, but do you think you might want to give him a break?" Stephanie asked as Flynn shook her head.

"It's okay," Chris said, kissing the top of Flynn's head, "I don't mind."

And he really didn't. He knew his kids had missed him and he had missed them as well and as long as he needed to stay with Flynn by his side, he'd do it for her. "Are you going to act like this when I come home after being away?" Stephanie asked Flynn.

"You going?" Flynn had not even considered the idea that her mother would leave her. Her mommy never left her. Sometimes she would leave her mommy to go with her daddy somewhere, but her mommy was always around. Her mother couldn't leave! "Whe!"

Stephanie folded the onesie in her hands and then walked over to Flynn's startled face. "I'm only going for a few days. I have to help Grandma try and win her election."

"What 'bout me?" Flynn asked. "I help."

"I know you'd be a big help, but I don't think we're going to get votes if you threaten to wrestle everyone," Stephanie said, making a very ferocious face at her daughter.

"You know, that would probably be _very_ bad for your mom's campaign. She's trying to distance herself from the whole wrestling thing, taking it on the chin for the supposed violence in the sport and then she has her two year old granddaughter come in and say that all she wants to do is try to wrestle everyone."

"I never even thought of that," Stephanie said with a laugh. "That really wouldn't look good for my mom's campaign. I should take Sawyer, now there's a family image kind of kid. Adorably handsome for one, everyone thinks so-"

"That's my doing," Chris said, patting his chest a little bit. Stephanie folded her arms and looked at him, "What? Stephanie, we can both admit that he looks exactly like me, I mean, he has the McMahon chin, but otherwise, well, let's just say that I don't need a paternity test for him. The other two, I'm not so sure."

"Even if she wasn't," Stephanie jerked her thumb towards Flynn, "try getting rid of her."

"I never would."

"But besides Sawyer being adorable, he's so diplomatic, he's going to make a great owner for the company someday," Stephanie said proudly. "Wait, speaking of the monster, where is he?"

"He's putting on his costume again," Chris explained.

"I have told him at least five times today that we're not going out until later," Stephanie sighed. "I'm tired of making him take it off, he can just leave it on until we leave later. Just do not even so much as hint at giving him the whip until we actually go out."

"I wouldn't dream of it."

"What are you dressing as?" Stephanie asked.

"What do you mean?" Chris wondered.

"For when we take the kids out," Stephanie said. "Chris, you know the kids like it when you dress up with them. I'm dressing up."

"What are you going as?" he asked.

"Sherlock Holmes," she smiled and then off his skeptical look, "What? I liked the movie and I thought it would be a cute costume."

"Only if you're dressing up as a sexy Sherlock Holmes," Chris told her.

"What sexy?" Flynn asked.

"It's what Mommy is 100 percent of the time," Chris explained to her succinctly.

"Mommy, you sexy," Flynn told her.

"Well, that's a nice compliment, Flynnie," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes at Chris. "You need a costume, the kids want you in one so please find one before we go out tonight and please try to wrangle in Indiana Jones before a big boulder comes out and runs him over."

"Stephanie, the boulder didn't _get_ Indiana Jones, Sawyer's fine," Chris said, walking out of the room.

"Check on Kensy for me too, please!" Stephanie called out from the door and Chris raised his hand and gave her a peace sign. "Does that mean you're going as a hippie?"

"Wait and see!" he called out and he took a right into Kensington's room.

"What doing here?" Flynn sighed. She knew this room. It was Kensington's room and she didn't want to be here. It didn't even have any wrestling stuff in it. Chris and Stephanie had put one of Chris's Intercontinental titles in Flynn's room and the little girl had insisted that they put some of Chris's old magazine covers from his office into her room. She was amassing quite the collection centered around her hero. Kensington's room wasn't fun at all. Sure, it had ladybugs, which were cool, but there weren't even any toys besides the mobile that had been _hers_ over Kensington's crib, which had also been _hers_.

"We have to check on Kensy," he explained.

"Why?"

"Because we have to see if she's awake," Chris told her patiently.

"Why?'

"Because if she's awake, she might need some food or a diaper change or someone to hold her," Chris told her.

"You hold me," Flynn said and if that baby thought that she was letting go of her daddy, that thing had another thing coming to it, a lot of other things coming to it in fact.

"I am holding you," he said, stepping up to Kensington's crib. Kensington blinked up at him, obviously awake and greeted him with a smile. The first time he'd seen that smile directed at him the morning after he'd arrived home had been amazing and wondrous. It was just crazy how each of his kids could wow him in their own ways. "Hey there, Kensy-bear, how was the sleeping?"

Kensington snuffled and Flynn sighed loudly and sarcastically, so loud that Chris turned and kissed her cheek, to which she smiled at. Take that, Kensington! Chris leaned over to pick up Kensington, with Flynn clinging to him so there was no threat of her falling. Chris patted Kensington's diaper to check to see if she was wet and she was mercifully dry so he cradled her to the part of his chest not taken up by his other daughter.

"Daddy, put down," Flynn sighed.

"I can't, Flutterby, can we just be nice this once?" Chris asked her.

"No," Flynn said, shaking her head dolefully.

"Okay, well, then you'll just have to deal with it," he told her, wrapping one arm around Flynn while the other held Kensington. "All I need is Sawyer hanging off my leg and I'll be set, wouldn't I?"

"I dunno," Flynn said, not understanding what he meant.

"Hey, Flutterby, why don't we go downstairs and we can all watch TV, maybe a movie and then Mommy can help you into your costume for Halloween since you wanted it to be a surprise for me."

"Okay, she come too?" Flynn asked, pointing an accusing finger at Kensington.

"Yes, she's coming too," Chris said. Kensington stared at Flynn across their father's chest and she smiled at Flynn. Flynn didn't have the wherewithal to roll her eyes, but if she did, they would surely be rolling out of her head right now. Kensington couldn't look smug because she had no idea what smug was. It was just, she liked her sister. Sure, she didn't see her that often, but she generally liked everyone she had come in contact with so far.

"Oh," Flynn said. "Okay."

They walked downstairs and Sawyer was in the living room, jumping from the couch to the floor and yelling, "Indiana Jones!" as he did so. Maybe that Indiana Jones marathon they'd had before he left on his tour had not been the best idea after all. Sawyer saw Chris and he grinned at him and did some sort of ninja move towards Chris.

"Nice one," Chris said.

"I can take Kensy," Sawyer said, holding out his arms.

"Okay!" Flynn assented, glad to get this baby off her hands.

"Yeah, no," Chris said to Sawyer and then turned to Flynn, "and no. You can hold Kensy if you sit down on the couch, kid, but I'm not going to hand her to you, no matter how many times you ask and no matter how many times you think you can outsmart me. Sawyer McMahon Jericho, you're not going to pull one over on me."

"Okay, Daddy, I'm sorry," Sawyer said playfully as he got on the couch and held out his arms. "I can hold her now."

"Yes," Flynn nodded, ready to push Kensington out of Chris's arms so she could have her daddy back.

"I have a better idea, Flutterby, why don't you help feed Kensy today?" Chris said, knowing he was going out on a limb here, but with Stephanie leaving tomorrow for Connecticut for some last minute campaigning and Chris staying with all three kids wherein he would have to pay attention to Kensington over Flynn, he needed to do something to try and mend this bridge between Flynn and her little sister.

"No," Flynn said, no shaking of the head, no histrionics, just a flat out answer.

"Daddy, I'll do it!" Sawyer said, holding out his arms insistently, "I can help."

"I know you can, but I think that Flynnie should have a turn."

"No," Flynn said again.

"Why don't you sit down on the couch next to Sawyer," Chris said, leaning over and trying to put Flynn on the couch. Flynn wouldn't let go of Chris's neck though. Chris had to pry her arms off of him. "I'm going to get Kensy's bottle and then we can feed her, okay?"

"No," Flynn said, a little more forcefully this time, but Chris didn't waver at all.

"Sawyer, tell Flynn how she can feed the baby," Chris said, "while I go get Kensy's bottle."

"Sure," Sawyer said as Chris walked into the kitchen. "It's really easy, Flynnie, you just have to hold her and then Daddy can help with the bottle and holding it because it's a little hard to do at the same time."

"I don' wanna," Flynn whined, sinking into the couch and crossing her arms in protest.

"She's our sister," Sawyer said.

"So?" Flynn asked.

"I love you, Flynnie," Sawyer said and Flynn beamed. She loved her brother very, very much. He was the best brother in the entire universe and her favorite person, tied with her daddy of course.

"Love you," Flynn sing-songed.

"I love Kensy too."

"Oh," Flynn said, making a face.

"She's nice."

"Uh uh," Flynn shook her head.

"Uh huh," Sawyer said.

"Uh uh," she said emphatically.

"You'll like her," Sawyer said.

"Uh uh," Flynn said, knowing she didn't.

Chris walked back in with a bottle and Kensington. "Daddy, she doesn't like Kensy so I'll feed her."

"Thanks, kid, but we're going to try Flynn today," Chris said, sitting down on the other side of Flynn, giving her little to no escape, Chris on one side and Indiana Jones on the other. She was trapped and they were both bigger than her. "Hold out your arms."

"No," Flynn said flatly.

"Flynn Murphy," Chris said sternly, using her full name, which was so rare that Flynn stared up at her daddy with those stormy blue eyes of hers. It was startling how one of their kids could be so utterly Chris and the other so utterly Stephanie, but Chris was really staring down at the innocence that had left Stephanie long, long ago.

"Okay," she said softly, feeling chastised and hating it. She held out her arms and shut her eyes like Chris was going to put a snake in her arms or something. Chris set the bottle down on the table and then gently put Kensington into Flynn's arms. It was the first time Flynn had ever held Kensington. Chris smiled down at her as Kensington looked over at who was holding her and smiled.

"Open your eyes, Flutterby," Chris told her and Flynn opened them. Well, wouldn't you know, she _was_ holding this baby. "Look at how good you're holding her, she's even smiling at you and everything. I think she really likes you."

"Me?" Flynn wondered. The baby liked _her_? Well, that wasn't _so_ farfetched actually. "I am nice."

"You're very nice," Chris said. "That's why she's smiling at you. She's probably asking herself where you've been all this time."

"Right here," Flynn said.

"Yeah, but you've never held her before."

"Daddy?" she said.

"Yes."

"I no hit her," Flynn said proudly.

"I know, I'm so proud of you," he told her, kissing her head. "Sawyer, do you want to help Flynn feed Kensy?"

"Yes!" Sawyer said with exasperation. _Of course_ he wanted to help feed Kensington, wasn't that what he'd been saying all this time?

"Okay, here," Chris said, taking the top off the bottle he'd just made for Kensington and handing it to Sawyer. "You can help feed her by holding the bottle while Flynn holds her, how does that sound?"

"I can do that," Sawyer said, taking the bottle from Chris and gently placing it near Kensington's mouth, just like his mommy had showed him a million times. Kensington turned her head to the left a little bit, her eyes open and staring at Sawyer, whose face was hovering over hers. She started drinking her milk, a little unnerved that there were so many people around her while she was trying to eat.

"You got her?" Chris wondered.

"Yes," Sawyer said, holding the bottle diligently.

"Okay, just keep feeding her, I'm just going to go get Mommy, Flutterby, can you continue to hold her?"

"Uh huh," Flynn nodded, still a little in awe that she was holding her and everything. It actually wasn't…so bad? She actually kind of liked it. She felt important and she was helping a lot and she liked to help. This was actually a little bit cool.

"Okay, be right be back," Chris said, getting up and running upstairs quickly, dodging the baby cages on the stairs. Stephanie was now folding some of Flynn's clothes when she heard the ruckus being caused by Chris barreling down the hallway.

"Hey again," Stephanie said, "How do our kids have so many clothes? They're babies and they have bigger wardrobes than I do."

Chris laughed as he caught his breath. Then he reached forward and grabbed Stephanie's hand. "Come with me."

"What? Chris, I'm still folding," Stephanie said, pointing at the laundry she still had to fold.

"Come on, now," he said, pulling her towards the door of their bedroom. "I want to show you something."

"Can it wait?"

"Nope," he said as she dropped the shirt she'd been about to fold onto the bed. "Come on, you're going to _love_ this."

"I am? Did you get me something?"

"No," Chris said, "just come on."

He dragged her downstairs, actually lifting her over the baby cages and she laughed at his behavior. It wasn't her birthday so he couldn't have gotten her a gift, unless it was some sort of gift for having taken care of the kids by herself. Maybe some of that romanticism from Paris had followed Chris home and he was going to have some grand gesture waiting for her downstairs. He pulled her into the living room and then paused. She looked around to see what he was going on about and she stopped short, staring at the couch.

Flynn was holding Kensington in her arms and she was laughing and smiling over at Sawyer, who was holding Kensington's bottle. Her eyes flitted back to Flynn and Kensington. Flynn wasn't crying or screaming or growling like a wild animal. She wasn't dropping Kensington or hitting her; she was sitting there with the baby in her arms and she was helping. She looked to Chris and then back to Flynn and back to Chris, who was grinning so wide it threatened to consume his entire face.

"How did you do this?" she whispered, like she was afraid if she so much as raised her voice, the illusion in front of her would evaporate.

"I put my foot down," Chris told her.

"You put your foot down?"

"I wouldn't let her say no, which she kept saying, over and over again, but I told her this was how it was going to be."

"So you went all Dad on her?"

"I asserted my authority, despite the fact that we're outnumbered doesn't mean that we aren't the bosses around here…sort of, when they aren't controlling things."

"They look adorable," Stephanie said, her eyes squinting as she tried to fend off tears. "She's never held her, ever. She's never even really wanted to be around her, if I had known you had _this_ kind of power, I would've married you sooner."

"Mommy, look!" Flynn said. "I holding the baby!"

"I can see that!" Stephanie said, coming over and sitting next to Flynn. "Wow, you're doing a really good job, right, Sawyer? Just like I taught you how to, right?"

"She is, just the right way," Sawyer agreed, "I'm helping to feed her too, Mommy."

"I have two very special helpers with me then," Stephanie said, kissing both her kids on the head. "This is going to be a big help for me and for Daddy when we have to take care of Kensy."

"I help too," Flynn beamed.

"I know, I'm going to need your help a lot," Stephanie said, giving Flynn an extra kiss on the head as Kensington pulled her head away from her bottle. "I think she's just about done, you want to give her back to Daddy and he can take care of her."

"Okay," Flynn said as Chris came over and knelt down next to the couch. "I helped!"

"You sure did," Chris told her, taking Kensington and bringing her out of the room.

"I'm so proud of you," Stephanie told her daughter.

"Mommy, when can we go ticker-treating?" Sawyer asked impatiently.

"Not until later, baby boy," she told him. "A few more hours."

Those hours seemed to drag on and on and Sawyer was getting very impatient for the hours to dwindle down. He changed out of his costume and back into it three more times before Stephanie told him just to leave it on because they were leaving soon. Stephanie had gotten her own costume on before she set about gathering all the things for Flynn's costume. Flynn didn't want Chris to see her costume before she had put it on so Chris was busy getting his own costume ready, something he was throwing together from all the stuff he had in the house.

"Hey kid, you want to help me with my makeup?" Chris asked.

"You're not a girl, Daddy, you don't wear makeup, Mommy wears it," Sawyer said as he passed by his daddy's office, where Chris was looking into the mirror.

"Where are you going?"

"To see Flynnie in her costume."

"So you'll go watch her, but you won't help me?"

"Fine," Sawyer said, walking into his daddy's office. "Daddy, why are you wearing a dress?"

"Because this is my costume," Chris explained.

"Are you going to be a girl?" Sawyer asked, making a weird face. That was the worst costume he'd ever seen. The dress didn't even fit his daddy and it was very ugly to boot.

"No, I'm going as a witch," Chris told him. "Or Ozzy Osbourne."

"Who's that?" Sawyer asked.

Chris sighed, "Don't worry, by the time you're 10, you'll know who that is, okay?"

"Okay," Sawyer shrugged as he sat on the couch and watched his daddy put on the face makeup. "Do you think that Flynnie will be scared of you? She doesn't like when you put stuff on your face."

"You're right, but she's older now."

"She still might not like it," Sawyer said, pushing his hat back over his eyes where it had fallen down.

"I think she'll be okay," Chris said, then made a face at Sawyer, "am I scary?"

"No," Sawyer said, "you look weird."

"Thanks, kid, it's your mom's fault, she's the one that said I had to dress up."

"Mommy's dressing up and she looks good," Sawyer said, "She's Sherry Holmes."

"Sherlock Holmes," Chris corrected him.

"That's what I said," Sawyer said to him, "and Kensy is not going to be anything, right, Daddy? She's just going to come along."

"Yeah, Mommy is just going to be holding her, but we can't leave her behind. She can watch you and Flynnie go trick-or-treating and maybe next year she can dress up as something, she can probably use Flynnie's old butterfly costume."

"Flynnie probably won't like that," Sawyer said.

"Well, she'll probably be nicer then," Chris said, crossing his fingers playfully. "Can you hand me that wig over there?"

Sawyer jumped off the couch and got the wig and handed it to Chris. Chris pulled it over his head and Sawyer laughed, "You look like you did before when you had long hair."

"Hey, you liked my long hair," Chris told him, "you used to pull on it all the time and then you would try and eat it."

"I did not!" Sawyer exclaimed.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure you did because I was there," Chris said. "And when I cut my hair, I didn't tell Mommy about it and I just came home with short hair.

"I bet she was mad, she doesn't like it when you do things without asking her."

"Oh, yeah, she was definitely mad and she said that I should have talked to her about it, but she got used to it and so did you."

"I like your hair, but I liked it when it was long and when I saw it on TV when it was long."

"Well then you'll like it tonight."

"Okay," he shrugged. "You look very weird, Daddy."

"Or scary?"

"Just weird," Sawyer said. "I'm going to go see Flynnie and Mommy! Bye!"

Sawyer ran out of the room and into his parent's bedroom. He flew onto the bed where Flynn was standing. Stephanie was helping her get her own wig on. Flynn kept trying to adjust it herself, but she kept making it askew. She already had her t-shirt on, but hadn't yet put on the ring tights. Stephanie had gotten some custom-made ring tights made for Flynn. They were exactly like her favorite ring tights of Chris, the old red ones with some barbed wire up the sides. Stephanie had even gotten her some small boot covers that would fit over her shoes. She'd really gone all out on the costume because she thought it was sweet that Flynn wanted to go as Chris.

"Flynn, stop adjusting your wig," Stephanie said. "I've got it just the right way and you keep messing it up."

"I fix it," Flynn said, brushing some of the hair out of her face.

"I've already fixed it," Stephanie said, making a face at her daughter. She'd put the hair into half ponytail already so most of it wasn't in Flynn's face. "Okay, time for your pants."

"Yes!" Flynn exclaimed as Stephanie grabbed them and held them in front of Flynn. Flynn placed her hands on Stephanie's shoulder so she could slip her legs into her pants. Stephanie pulled them up and pulled away to look at Flynn. She looked so cute in her Jericho shirt and ring tights. "Socks, Mommy."

"Okay, we'll put the covers on too," she said as Flynn plopped down on her butt and wiggled her toes at Stephanie. Stephanie put on some socks first, then she put the covers on. Then Stephanie put her shoes on and covered the shoe with the boot covers that said Jericho up the side of them.

Flynn looked at them, "That my name."

"Yes, your name is Jericho," Stephanie said. "How does she look, baby boy?"

"She looks like Daddy," Sawyer laughed.

"I is Daddy," Flynn giggled, covering her mouth as she laughed at herself. She was having a blast. This was really the first Halloween that Flynn could somewhat comprehend what going on. She knew they had to dress up and that they got candy for dressing up and that sounded a-okay to her. She loved candy, the more the better and if people were giving it away for free, well, how could you pass that up?

"Can I come in now?" Chris asked from outside, "I've been barred from my room and I'd kind of like to come in."

"Hold on," Stephanie said, handing Flynn the plastic replica belt of the Intercontinental title they'd gotten for her to bring along trick-or-treating that wouldn't be too heavy for her. "Okay, you can come in now…Flynn, show Daddy your costume."

Chris walked inside and Flynn's eyes widened. "Daddy?"

"Hey there, wow," Chris said, taking in what was surely a mini-version of himself, "you look amazing, Flutterby. You look just like I did when I used to hate your mommy."

"Yay!" Flynn said triumphantly. "I beak walls!"

"You do."

"You look scary," Flynn said, "bye!"

"Flynn, where are you going!" Stephanie yelled.

"Play!" Flynn said as she hung a left into the upstairs playroom.

"You really outdid yourself with her," Chris said, coming over to Stephanie. "She looks so much like me I'm wondering if you didn't somehow time travel, take me, mini-sized me and then turned me into a girl."

"And all that before dinner," Stephanie said with a smile. "You look awful by the way. Are you wearing one of my old costumes?"

"How could you tell?" he asked.

"The fact that you're in a dress right now, so what are you supposed to be?"

"Ozzy Osbourne as a witch," Chris answered, "what? You gave me like 10 minutes notice on getting a costume ready, what do you think I was going to go as? I should have just gone as Chris Jericho and then I could carry around Flynn and freak people out."

"So why don't you?"

"I just put the makeup on and everything."

"Undead Chris Jericho?"

"Yeah, I want to freak my kids out by going as a dead version of myself, nice one, Stephanie," Chris said, "I'm sure that they'll appreciate thinking of their father as dead."

"No, just go as dead Chris Jericho since you seem so intent on being Mr. Serious and not the fun-loving Chris Jericho that Flynn is demonstrating at the moment."

"Since when am I not fun-loving?" he asked, waggling his eyebrows and leaning in to kiss her. Stephanie moved at the last moment and he looked at her, "What's this? You don't even want to kiss me because I suggested going as a dead version of me?"

"You have makeup on," Stephanie said, pressing her finger to the tip of his nose. "Can you go get Flynnie so we can get going? I want to get out there early enough to where we don't have a bunch of whiny ass kids."

"I'm not a whiny kid," Sawyer said from where he was still lying on the bed. "Can I have my whip now, Mommy?"

"Yeah, Mommy, can I have my whip now?" Chris asked smarmily. She shoved him out the door as he chuckled and went down to the playroom. Flynn was playing with some chalk on the small chalkboard they had. She was drawing some pink scribbles. "Hey there, me."

"Hi, Daddy," Flynn said, "I draw this." She held up the belt and then pointed to her drawing.

"Nice, you ready to go?" he asked. He just looked at her smiling face. She still looked like Stephanie, but with the blonde wig and her Jericho t-shirt and ring tights, she looked ready to get into a ring and kick some butt. She ran over and he picked her up and she leaned her head against his shoulder. "Do you know how much I love you?"

"Yes," she told him.

"I don't think you do," he said. He couldn't help it though, the pride she had in him radiated off him. He was truly her hero and he knew there were a lot of kids that did look up to him and a lot of aspiring wrestlers to whom he could be considered a hero, but to be a hero to his daughter, to all of his kids really, it was something different. It wasn't many people who knew him, really _knew_ him, day in and day out that loved him so unconditionally. When he was young, it had just been his family, his parents, grandparents, but that was it. That had persisted until Stephanie and sometimes, when he caught her looking at him, he still saw those strains of emotion she'd had when they first started dating and he'd sacrificed public knowledge of their relationship for her plan.

"I do though," she nodded.

"I really like your costume."

She giggled and made a face, her tongue sticking out a little before she bit her bottom lip, a habit he did himself. She really did have him down to a tee, "Cause I you!"

"Yeah, yeah, you are me. Now let's go get some candy!"

The first place they walked to was Trish and Christian's house so that they could see their costumes. Trish and Christian felt like Tilden was still a little too young to go trick-or-treating so they were just going to pass out candy tonight. Sawyer and Flynn ran up to the door, Flynn trailing a little as Chris and Stephanie brought up the rear with Kensington, who was sucking on a pacifier and clinging to her mother's lapel on the jacket she was wearing. Sawyer reached up and rang the doorbell and waited patiently before Christian answered the door.

"Ticker treat!" Sawyer and Flynn yelled happily. "Hi, Chrissy!" Sawyer beamed as he held up the pillowcase he'd brought with him.

"Wow, who are these guys? I don't even recognize them," Christian said, kneeling down to their level. "Do I know you?"

"It's me," Sawyer laughed, "Sawyer."

"Sawyer, wow, I could have sworn Indiana Jones was at my front door looking for an adventure. That's a pretty gnarly looking whip you got there," Christian told him as he put some candy into Sawyer's bag.

"I'm not allowed to use it, it's only for tonight," Sawyer explained.

"Does that belong to your mom?" Christian asked, glancing up at Stephanie and Chris who had gotten to the front door.

"Very funny," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes as Trish came to the door with Tilden in her arms.

"Oh hey guys," Trish smiled. "Wow, you guys look great, Flynnie, are you your Daddy?"

"I am, I am!" Flynn screamed.

"What? I thought you were Chris and you'd just shrunk," Christian said, putting some candy in Flynn's bag. "Are you sure you're not Chris Jericho?"

"No, Daddy is," Flynn said, pointing to Chris.

"He looks more like a scary monster."

"It still Daddy," Flynn giggled.

"You've managed to outdo yourself, Chris," Trish noted, taking in his eccentric costume. Only Chris would be crazy enough to go out looking like that and act like he was dressed normally. Granted, it was Halloween, but Chris looked extra ridiculous.

"Stephanie insisted I dress up," Chris told her, "so I dressed up."

"You look super cute, Steph," Trish said, "but no dress-up for Kensy?"

"Actually, she's my Watson," Stephanie said, "just instead of a pipe, she's sucking on a pacifier and instead of a suit, she's wearing a onesie and instead of a hat, she's wearing, well, no, she's got the hat."

"Aww, she looks like a great Watson, huh, Tilde?" Trish asked the baby, who babbled something and then tried to reach down for Sawyer. "She's saying hi to you, Sawyer."

"Hi, Tilden," he waved at her and she waved back. "Mommy, can we get more candy now?"

"Yes, but what do we say to Trish and Christian first?" she said.

"Thank you!" Sawyer yelled.

"Tanks!" Flynn echoed as they started running for the street, Chris walking after them.

"We'll see you guys later," Stephanie said, "Trish, I'm calling you tomorrow, we have to have lunch later this week when I get back from Connecticut."

"Will do!" Trish said. "Have fun you guys!"

The kids had fun, certainly, what with all the candy they were receiving. With Sawyer knowing exactly what Halloween was about at this age, he wanted to hit every house his eye could meet, even the ones that were dark. Flynn, always wanting to do what Sawyer wanted to do, acted the exact same way, with Chris chasing after them and Stephanie and Kensington pretty much taking a nice stroll through the neighborhood. When they had hit up all those houses, they drove over to Chris's parents' complex, a gated townhouse community and dried those suckers out of candy before going to his parent's house to rest for a while and have dinner.

When they had their fill there, they drove back home and everyone collapsed on the couch. Sawyer and Flynn were rooting through their loot bags and Stephanie told them they could each have two pieces of candy, but no more than that so they had to choose wisely. They were each trying to pick the two best pieces while Chris waved a lollipop in front of Kensington, who watched it go back and forth with delight. Once they picked out their two candies, they all sat down to watch a movie before bed. By the time the movie was over, everyone was pretty exhausted and after bath time, the kids were put to bed, where they were out almost as soon as their heads hit the pillow, despite the sugar they'd had earlier. While Stephanie was putting Kensington to bed, Chris washed off all the makeup from his face and took of his costume. Stephanie came in a few minutes later as Chris walked out of the closet in only his boxers.

"Hey, did the baby get to sleep?"

"Yeah, she had an exciting night," Stephanie said as Chris sat on the bed.

"God, you must want to get out of that jacket," Chris said, referring to the Sherlock Holmes plaid coat that Stephanie had been wearing all evening.

"Yes, I do," Stephanie said, "but before I do that, I just wanted to say thank you for dressing up tonight, the kids like it when you do that and when you act silly like you do and it was funny seeing your parents' faces when they answered the door. Secondly, I actually have another costume that I've been wearing all night long."

As she was talking, she had been unbuttoning her coat slowly. Chris's eyes flew to her fingers and raised an eyebrow, "Another costume."

"Don't think I didn't notice the way you were looking at those girls while they were dancing," she said, her coat unbuttoned now, but she was holding onto the lapels and she was holding them tight as Chris's eyes widened. His mind was racing a mile a minute right now and the images were all decidedly dirty and getting dirtier by the second. "I know you liked it, right?"

"Stephanie, what are you wearing under there?" Chris asked, his breath stunting a little bit as he only now noticed she was wearing stiletto heels.

Stephanie pulled the jacket apart and his eyes nearly popped out of his head. She was wearing a red and black corset, tied tightly and very lacy. She was also wearing some skimpy underwear and a black garter belt holding up the stockings he'd mistaken for leggings. She dropped the jacket and just stood in front of him. He was glad she was over whatever complex she had regarding her figure because she looked incredible to him and always had. He nearly popped right then when he saw her and she crooked her finger at him, beckoning him over.

"You look…there are no words, were you wearing that the _whole_ time, trick-or-treating, dinner at my _parents_?" he asked incredulously.

"Except for the heels, yes," she winked at him, "you like that?"

"Oh yes, yes, I like that very much. Now come here, you."

She walked over to him and he placed his hands on her hips as he looked up at her, "So you like my costume then?"

"I love it and I hate that I'm going to be away from this for all those days you're going away."

"I'm trying to help my mom win an election," she said, sitting down and straddling his lap. "It's important to her and I want her to win. My dad actually called this morning and asked if I would help him with something regarding the campaign, I'm not sure what he meant, but I agreed to do it."

"That could be your downfall," he told her.

"How so?"

"Well, you never know what your dad will have planned for you," he said, flipping her hair over her shoulders so he could better see the cleavage about to spill out of the corset. "And can we please stop talking about your _dad_ of all things right this moment?"

"Okay," she said, running her hands down his jaw. "What would you like to talk about then?"

"How sexy you look?"

"Anything else?"

"How much I want to rip your clothes off right now? How much I want to see you out of all of this, how I would like to use my teeth to untie those strings?" he wondered.

"Well let's see if I can't help you with all of that."


	300. All a Dream? November 1, 2010

A/N: Thank ya kindly for the reviews, they make me very happy to continue writing this story, so thank you, my lovelies. :)

* * *

When Chris woke up the next morning, the bed was empty. He laughed at the thought of Stephanie ducking out and running after the night they had last night. It reminded him of a few nights he'd had when he was single. But no, his wife hadn't left him during the night, suddenly regretting their entire marriage and children and picking up and leaving it all behind. Stephanie had taken the earliest flight to Connecticut and it left at something like 6 in the morning so she was probably long gone by now since the sun was shining in through the blinds. He tried to get up even after his exhaustion from the night before when he realized what had woken him up in the first place. Kensington was whimpering over the baby monitor and so he turned it off and got out of bed to start the next several days as a single father.

He walked into the nursery and heard his little girl crying and leaned over the crib. "Hey there, you. Decided you needed to wake me up extra early today, huh? That's okay. I'm sure you're used to seeing Mommy, but she's away for a bit," he told her, lifting her up and over his head a little before bringing her to the warmth of his chest. "We'll just have to try and get by without Mommy for the next several days, I bet we can do it."

He checked her diaper, then changed her when he found her wet before going downstairs to get her a bottle, being extra quiet so he didn't wake up Sawyer and Flynn, who still had a good hour left before they woke up due to the late schedule they usually had. Sawyer was off from preschool on Mondays and Tuesdays so it would just be him and the kids today. He heated up the bottle from the fridge and took the baby back to his bedroom and got back into bed. He sat there, feeding his daughter as he stared down at her.

"You are so cute," he told her. "I'm sorry that I was gone for a few weeks, but I'm going to be around this week. But then I have to go to Australia, but it's for less than a week and then I'm going to be yours for the rest of the year."

Kensington smiled around her bottle at him and he smiled down at her. He was actually looking forward to the next few days. Sure, he was going to miss his wife terribly as he often did when she was away, but he was looking forward to the time with his kids. He felt like he had barely been there the past couple months, what with the WWE tour overseas and his Fozzy tour. He was missing a lot of formative time with Kensington and his other kids needed him as well. He wanted to be there for them, not being this halfway dad, only there some of the time. He needed to be there for them all the time.

"Who's Daddy's pretty girl?" he said in a baby voice, which seemed to delight the infant. "Are you one of Daddy's pretty girls, huh? I think you are. I think you and Flynn are the two most beautiful girls in the world next to your mommy. And do you know how much you have me wrapped around your finger, huh? I would say it's a lot. I love you and your brother and sister so much that I would do anything for you, I hope you know that, Kensy-bug. You are the best things that ever happened to me. Far better than anything else I could ever do."

"Mom!"

Linda turned around and beamed at her daughter, opening her arms as Stephanie came willingly into them, hugging her mom, "Stephanie, I'm so glad you could make it."

"Like I could be anywhere else."

"I'm just sorry Chris and the kids couldn't come along. I would have loved to have seen my grandbabies," Linda said, thinking about her three lovely grandchildren.

"I know, but Chris just got home from being overseas and Kensy's not quite travel-ready yet so it's better if they stay behind. So what do we have on tap for today, I'm ready for anything," she said cheerfully, a trait she attributed solely to her husband and their night of passion.

"Well, we have a rally this afternoon and your father said something about a vignette or something, I've tried to keep him out of things, but you know how he is."

"Yes, I do, I'll try and talk him out of it," Stephanie laughed as she wrapped her arm around her mom and walked down the hallway with her. "Are you nervous?"

"Yes, a little, I know the polls are projecting a loss for me, but you never know what the voters might do on election day so I'm trying to keep spirits alive. They say it isn't over until the fat lady sings and all."

"Well don't worry, I'll be out there voting for you since I've never changed my address on my voting registration. Chris said if he were considered a resident of Connecticut he would have voted for you too."

"That's sweet of him, how did his tour go?"

"It went really well and he had a great time," Stephanie said, "I actually flew out to Paris to be with him and we got to spend a few days together over there, it was all very romantic and a nice break from the kids."

"Oh, I know how that goes," Linda winked as she led Stephanie into a cluster of cubicles in her mother's home base for the campaign. Stephanie made a slight gagging noise and Linda laughed and patted her on the shoulder. She saw Shane talking to someone, one of her mother's campaigners before he looked over at them.

Her brother spotted her and came over, "Steph, hey!"

"Shane, long time no see, big brother," Stephanie said, hugging her brother tightly as Linda stepped away to talk to someone. "How's everything? I'm sorry I haven't called to check in, but with Kensy and the rest of the monsters, I've been so busy."

"I'm great, Rissa's doing great and so are the boys, how are yours?"

"They're doing great, they missed Chris so much while he was on tour though, but now that he's back, they're all happy and clingy and we _finally_ got Flynn to hold Kensy, it only took a couple months, but she's finally acknowledging that she has a baby sister."

"That's great," Shane laughed. "You have to come over while you're in town, Marissa would love to have you over and I know the kids would like to see you."

"Me? Yeah right, they're both going to be disappointed that I don't have Chris and Sawyer with me. Sawyer so they can play with him and Chris because he's cool Uncle Chris while I'm boring Auntie Stephanie."

"They don't think you're boring, Chris just sets the bar incredibly high," Shane joked. "But we would like you over, especially since we haven't been able to get down to Florida. Marissa is still upset that she hasn't been able to see Kensy yet. I swear, she wants to keep trying until we get a girl and I'm going to end up with a baseball team."

Stephanie laughed, "Have Chris get her pregnant, he seems to have some variation in there since I've had my boy and my two girls."

"Very funny, like you'd give him up," Shane said, rolling his eyes and slinging his arm over her shoulder. "And I kind of doubt that Marissa would be up for it."

"Are you kidding me? Shane, do you know how many people tell me how lucky I am," Stephanie said with a wink. "Believe me, if Marissa had any brains, she would take my place for an evening."

"Okay, yeah, this conversation has got to stop," he shook his head as he shuddered. She laughed at his response. She'd missed seeing her brother, but she didn't want to move back to Connecticut. Now that she lived in Florida, she realized how stifling Connecticut had really been. Being around her family was just too much and Florida was just enough distance from them that she felt like she could breathe. She didn't mind living around Chris's parents because they were nothing like her own parents and they knew when to stay away.

"So how's the job going?" she asked, changing the subject.

"You only ask because you're so happy that you're going to get the company whenever Dad decides to retire," Shane told her sarcastically enough that she knew he was joking.

"Oh yes, you caught me," she deadpanned. "Is it everything you hoped for since you abandoned your father's company?"

"Yes, it is, I'm happy with what I'm doing, not that I don't miss wrestling, I do and we still watch it and we still love it. I'll always love it, I just needed to be away from it, that's all and I'm happy with my decision."

"Well good because I'm taking the company," she told him smugly.

"God help us all," a new voice said. Stephanie turned and saw Hunter standing there. She furrowed her brow as he walked closer to them. He was looking good, clean shaven and his hair pulled back. He was also wearing a suit, which looked good on him.

"Hunter, what are _you_ doing here?" Stephanie asked, confused as to her ex-husband's presence.

"Actually, Hunter has been helping me out," Linda said, walking back over and smiling at her ex-son-in-law. "He's been doing a lot of campaigning and actually going door-to-door to get more votes for me and he's been at different functions for me. He's really thrown himself into it and for that I'm so appreciative."

"Really, I didn't hear about that," Stephanie said, wondering _why_ she hadn't heard about that. Granted, she had her own life and she'd just had a baby a couple months ago, but she figured she would hear if her ex was campaigning for her mother.

"You've been pretty busy, you know, giving birth," Hunter laughed, leaning forward to hug Stephanie. "I've missed you."

"Yeah, I heard you've been coming around to Raw, at least that's what Britt has been telling me," Stephanie said slyly. "Just why would you be hanging around there, Mr. Helmsley?"

"It's not because of Britt," Hunter told her. "I'm just trying to get back on the traveling schedule. You might not have missed me, Steph, but I do plan on going back to wrestle at some point in the near future, but you're probably too busy planning for your husband's return."

"I don't even have a timetable for Chris's return," she said, "I can't believe you're helping out my mom like this."

"What better do I have to do? I'm injured so I can't work, the girl I want to be with won't give me the time of day beyond being her employee and my best friends all live in other states and your mom was campaigning and I like your mom so I thought I'd help out."

"That's sweet of you," Stephanie said, "is this your way of trying to weasel your way back into my life because it's not going to work?"

"It's not your life I'd like to weasel my way back in," he said nostalgically, "but this isn't about me, this is about getting your mom as many votes as she needs to win, I assume that's why you're here and not because you want to spend time with me."

"You're correct," Stephanie said, "I want to help my mom in any way I can."

"Come on, I can show you some stuff to do. I'll be going to that rally with you later on, be kind of like your support. I know the ropes around here and you kind of don't so I think your mom would want me to go with you."

"Wow, I never thought I'd be having you show me how to do something," she said.

"I believe I've showed you how to do several things," he whispered to her and she shoved at him. "I'm sure your husband appreciates those things now."

"You're a jerk," she told him.

"How is he? And the rest of the gang you're raising?" he asked.

"Chris is great, his tour was fantastic and we even got to spend a few days together when I flew to Paris and oh my God, get this, Flynn _held_ Kensington yesterday, in her arms and she wasn't half asleep or drunk on medicine or anything like that, she was holding her and helping to feed her and it was the cutest sight you've ever seen, let me show you a picture," Stephanie said as she pulled out her phone. "You're going to love it."

They stopped so Hunter could see the picture, "Wow, I never thought I'd see the day were Flynn actually wanted to be around Kensy, what happened?"

"Chris went all dad on her and told her that she was going to do it no matter what she said or how much she protested. He really just put his foot down, it was very impressive," she said proudly.

"I should come down and visit, it'd be better than sitting around like I've been doing currently," Hunter said.

Stephanie looked at him sympathetically, feeling bad for him. It was obvious that he was lonely, if the fact he'd thrown himself into her mother's campaign were any indication. He didn't have anyone to go home to and now she felt bad that she had been bragging about her family, though he had asked. She wished that there could be more to his life and she wished that he would find someone, Britt or otherwise. Their lives had taken such vastly different turns since their divorce. Although right after it, they had both been in that same horrible place, trying to figure out where things went wrong, but then she'd moved on.

He'd gone from woman to woman, Evolution helped with that, then he'd had a string of girlfriends and then Britt, but then he'd blown that. She was settled now, she had a husband who was wonderful her every day, did everything for her and three great kids. She had nothing really to complain about.

"What are you doing for lunch?" she asked.

"Um, I don't know, why?" he asked.

"I want to take you for lunch."

"You do?"

"Yeah, I do," Stephanie said, "I think it would be nice, a couple of friends going out for lunch. When's the last time we did anything just the two of us?"

"I don't know, when we were married, maybe?" he shrugged. "Usually Chris is around or you have one of the kids with you so no, we haven't spent a lot of time alone together since I got over the divorce thing and losing you to Chris thing."

"Yeah, well, you didn't _lose_ me to Chris for one," she joked. "I didn't start seeing him until after we broke up-"

"Tomato, to_ma_to," Hunter said, "but I'd love to go to lunch with you and then we could head over to the rally."

"Sounds good to me," she nodded.

Chris set Kensington on the middle of his bed as he walked into the closet to get dressed for the day. He quickly put on some athletic pants and a fitted t-shirt. He walked back out and went to pick up Kensington. He held her with one arm as he went through the hallway to check on his other kids. They were both still asleep so he thought he'd have a treat for them and make them Belgian waffles for breakfast. Usually they had cereal because their days were busy, but today promised to be a lazy day.

"I think it'd be cool to make breakfast for your brother and sister, don't you?" Chris asked as he set Kensington in her carrier on top of the kitchen table. He set about getting everything ready to make the waffles for his kids. He'd had to search around a bit to find the waffle maker. Sometimes he just didn't know where Stephanie put anything. He finally found it in a cupboard near the oven of all places. "I don't know why your mother insists on putting things where I can't find them. One of these days she's going to put you somewhere that I can't find you and what am I going to do then, Kensy-bug?"

Kensington gurgled a little as she reached her small arms upward in a stretching motion. Chris was just going to go over and tickle her tummy when he heard Flynn from upstairs. "Daddy! Daddy!"

"Looks like daughter #1 is up, I'll be right back, don't go anywhere," he said, getting in a little tickle before jogging up the stairs. He expected Flynn to be on the landing near the baby cage, but she wasn't there. He tried her bedroom next, figuring she might be calling from her bed, but she wasn't there either. "Flynn, where are you?"

"In here, Daddy!" she screamed and he followed her voice into his bedroom and saw her lying in his bed. "Hi, Daddy! Morning!"

"Good morning to you," he said, jumping on the bed and crawling after her as she squealed and tried to hide under the covers. "Where's my Flutterby? She was right here a second ago and now I can't…" He uncovered the blankets and grabbed at his daughter, "find her!"

"No!" Flynn yelled as Chris started to tickle her. "Daddy, no!"

"Yes!" Chris said, tossing her up in the air and then catching her. "What were you doing in here?"

"Whe you?"

"I was downstairs getting you breakfast, how does waffles sound?"

"I like," she said enthusiastically.

Chris held her aloft and just looked up at his little girl, who was smiling at him, her hair still mussed from sleeping and still in her cute pajamas with the dancing cartoon fruit on them. "You want to go wake up your brother so he can share in the waffle bounty?"

Flynn nodded and Chris nodded to mimic her and she laughed as he stood up and walked with her to Sawyer's room. She held onto him, barely even noticing that Stephanie wasn't around. It wasn't that she was attached to her father more, okay, maybe she was a little, but she just had missed him so much that she'd barely taken notice of anyone else. Her daddy was here and with her and she would miss him when he left again so she wanted every moment she could spend with him. They walked quietly into Sawyer's room and looked at him. He was sprawled across the bed on his stomach, his arms spread out to the side and the blankets half off of him.

"Look at your brother," Chris whispered to Flynn. "Doesn't he look silly?"

"Uh huh," Flynn said in a whisper.

"What do you say we wake him up?" Chris said conspiratorially.

"Uh huh," Flynn repeated.

"On the count of three, one…two…three!" Chris said, dumping Flynn on the bed as she started to crawl towards Sawyer.

"Up! Up! Up!" she yelled as Sawyer was startled from his sleep as his little sister climbed all over him and Chris started growl and lift him up.

"What's going on?" he asked, almost frightened at what was going on.

"Mornin' time!" Flynn yelled in his ear and his eyes widened. It felt like there was a fire drill or something and he almost wanted to pee in his pants from what was going on. It was like he was being attacked.

"Daddy?" he asked, confused, the sleep still muddling his brain.

"Come here, kid," Chris said, hugging him. "You want to get some waffles?"

"Okay," he said, still a little confused, but he was never going to turn down waffles if they were offered to him. "Great, come on, you two crazies, your sister is downstairs probably wondering if her family abandoned her."

He hefted the two of them and got them downstairs in one piece before setting them down. They both ran for the kitchen, Sawyer a few steps ahead of Flynn. Sawyer climbed onto a chair and Flynn did the same. She stood on it and looked at Kensington who was peering over at her, her head turned to the side a little. Chris walked in after them and kept an eye on Flynn. Sure, she had held Kensington yesterday, but that was one time. She could have woken up this morning and still hated her sister. To his surprise and delight, Flynn grabbed Kensington's hand and just held it.

"Hi!" Flynn said to her sister.

"She's smiling at you," Sawyer told her as he peered over at his sister.

"I know!" Flynn said. "Daddy, 'ook, 'ook!"

Chris poured some batter into the waffle iron and checked on the sausage in the oven before going over to his kids and looking at Kensington smiling at Flynn. "I told you she liked you, Flutterby. I think that now that you're helping with her, she's going to want you a lot more and she'll smile at you a lot more."

"I help?"

"Well, she already ate today, but you can help by keeping her company while I'm cooking," Chris said.

"Okay," she nodded. She liked being a helper and her sister wasn't so bad after all. It wasn't like she really did anything. She just kind of sat there and she liked it when Flynn helped her and there was nothing wrong with that. If her daddy thought that she could help then she was eager to please him.

"Thanks," he said, kissing her head. "You can help too, kid."

"I always do, Daddy, except when I'm a preschool. Daddy, can my friend Robby come over and play?"

"Well, we'll see, okay, maybe not today, but he can come over sometime this week. I thought that today we could just relax at home, maybe play in the backyard and maybe barbeque or do something fun like that, does that sound good to you?"

"Yeah! That sounds fun, can we go swimming?" Sawyer asked.

"Sure, if that's what you want to do," he said, thankful they lived in the warm temperatures of Florida so that his kids didn't have to be cooped up in the house so much during the winter. Sure, they had incremental weather and it rained, but for the most part, the days were exceptionally nice and it meant his kids could enjoy the outdoors.

"I want to, Flynn can come too and maybe Kensy can?"

"Only if I'm holding her and only if you two have your floaties on."

"I can swim though, Daddy," Sawyer argued.

"I know that you took swimming lessons, but you're still not ready to swim completely on your own," Chris said, setting the first waffle down in front of him as he got some sausage on the plate as well. He then buttered the waffle and cut it into pieces for Sawyer. "I still want you to be safe, got it?"

"Got it," he said, "is Mommy here?"

"Mommy left this morning, but don't worry, she'll call us later."

Stephanie walked back to the table and sat down across from Hunter, "Sorry about that, I just wanted to check in with Chris and the kids. I didn't want to do it really early just in case not everyone was up so I figured now was as good a time as any."

"How are they?" Hunter asked.

"Swimming so they kept it short," Stephanie said. "Sawyer and Flynn are dog-paddling while Chris is holding a very confused Kensy. They sound good though, the kids yelled at me that they were having fun with Daddy. Leave it to Chris to make me look incompetent as a single mother."

"I'm sure that he's having his fair share of trouble," Hunter said, trying to prop her up.

"Oh, you'd think so, but he's super Dad," she said just as her phone rang. She picked it up, thinking it might be Chris, but looking at it realized it was her own father. "And on the opposite end of the spectrum, we have _my _father."

Hunter laughed, "You going to answer it?"

"Since I'm most likely going to see him later, I'd rather he tell me what he wants instead of hearing him bitch and moan about how I didn't answer my phone," she answered the call with, "Hello, Dad, what do you need?"

"I just had a brilliant idea."

Stephanie rolled her eyes at Hunter, " What kind of brilliant idea?"

"Just a little fun before your mother's election tomorrow," Vince told her.

Stephanie could only imagine what her father had in mind. Vince had already been a wildcard during this election. Even before her mother had won the nomination, her father had been a sore point. There were all the scandals, every single one of them being dredged up. She'd been lucky with that actually because if they hadn't focused on her father, they might have started to focus on her and bring up the fact she'd been kidnapped and stayed married to her kidnapper or they might have brought out footage of her husband pointing out her breast implants or any of the other things that Chris had done to her. Now that she thought about it, she was really glad they focused on her father, but now she had a feeling she was getting dragged into this.

"What kind of fun?" she prompted, trying to drag it out of him.

"A little vignette."

"Dad, what are you thinking?"

"Just get to Titan in two hours, okay?"

"Dad…"

"Stephanie, please, I really want to do this."

She closed her eyes, if she said no, her father wouldn't stop until he got the yes he wanted. "I'll be there. Now I'm having lunch with Hunter so if you'll excuse me, I'll be ending this conversation, bye."

She ended the call before her father could convince her to do anything else and she turned to Hunter. "Your dad I take it?"

"Yeah."

"What did he want?" Hunter asked.

"He wants to do something for tonight, maybe for my mom's campaign, like a last minute video or something," Stephanie shrugged, "I'm not really sure, but he'll tell me when I go to Titan, but I don't want to think about that right now."

"So tell me more about Flynn holding Kensington and how's Sawyer? How was their Halloween? I heard that Flynn was going to go as Chris, that must have been a trip and a half," Hunter laughed.

"Yeah, it was great, but I want to talk about you actually," she said, grabbing his hand and holding it in her own.

"Um, what's with the hand?" he asked, looking down at their joined hands. He knew that Stephanie wasn't trying anything romantic with him; those feelings had completely evaporated between the two. When he looked up at her he saw sympathy and he groaned inwardly. He could see where this was going and it was the exact place that he didn't want it to go. "Stephanie…"

"Hunter, I have got to ask why you're so into my mom's campaign. I was talking with Shane and he said that you've been here more than pretty much everyone except my mom, you've been around more than my brother."

"Your brother has a job and a family."

"You have a job," she tried to argue, but there was no addendum of family to that sentence and so it was left hanging there, out in the open, for all the world to hear. Yes, Hunter Hearst Helmsley was completely and utterly alone, shout it from the rooftops, ring the church bells, sound the horns. He hated the way it just hung in the air between them.

"I'm injured and I can't wrestle right now. Traveling has been all I've able to do for a job. Look, like I said, I like your mom and I think that she could bring about some real changes to this state and maybe even to this country and I want her to win. I like what she stands for."

"Since when are you into politics?" Stephanie wondered. This was a far cry from the man who had told her politics were idiocy…of course, Hunter had been very into training whenever it came up.

"I'm evolved. When you're out of action for as long as I've been, you learn a lot of stuff about everything."

"So you're a sad, old man with nothing to do," Stephanie reasoned and then she shook her head, disgusted with herself, "I'm really sorry, that came out totally wrong. I didn't mean to insult you like that."

"You're only telling the truth," Hunter said. "I guess, I guess that your mom's campaign gave me something to invest in, you know. Everyone's so busy around me. You and Chris are in Florida and Chris has his music right now and you guys just had a baby and you have three kids that you need to pay attention to and I get that, you can't be around. Shawn is basking in his retirement and spending time with his kids and his wife and he's loving it. He says that some days wrestling doesn't even enter his mind and that he's felt better than he has in years and I'm so happy for him. Britt is doing a spectacular job as your temporary replacement and she's happy and what am I doing? Nothing, rehabbing, getting surgery. Sometimes I go visit my sister and her kids, try to be a role model for her son since his dad isn't around anymore. Go to my mom's, hear about some girl she wants me to date that sounds hideous to me. This is just who I am now."

"Well can you paint a sadder picture?" Stephanie said, "I think I just got depressed right over here and need some medication."

"I'm okay with my life, Steph, I really am, but I just hated sitting around and doing nothing so that's why I wanted to help your mom out, not only because I do believe in her, but because it gives me something to focus on when I've really felt like I've been drifting for these past several months."

"Why don't you come back down to Florida with me?" Stephanie asked. "Wait, no, you know what? I've been planning this getaway vacation for Chris's birthday. I'm going, the kids are going, Trish and Christian are coming and they're bringing Tilden. Lita's coming, Edge isn't coming because he has to work, but we're all going to fly out to the Bahamas and have a great time and just relax and get away from it all and you seem like you could use some time with some people. I hate thinking that you sit at home by yourself. So fly back down to Florida with me and stay with Chris and I for a few days before we leave."

"I've never stayed at your house. Whenever I've been down in Florida, I've stayed in a hotel."

"Well you're welcome to stay in our madhouse, Chris wouldn't mind and we have plenty of room for you, the kids will love to see you, Sawyer especially and it'll be good for you."

"I wouldn't be imposing?"

"Imposing, I don't think so," Stephanie said, "please come, I insist."

"Thanks," Hunter told her, smiling gratefully. "I'm really glad that we're friends again, I don't know what I'd do if I really felt alone."

"You're not, trust me," she said to him. "So any headway with you and Britt at all? I know that she's been at least talking to you again."

"Because she's the boss right now," he said, "but I'd rather not talk about it. I blew my chance with her and if that was the only chance I had with her than that's the only chance I had with her. It's time that I really looked forward instead of backwards with that."

"Okay, I won't bring it up, let's just have a nice lunch and I will finally tell you more about Flynn and Kensington."

Chris chased the naked Flynn down the hallway, grabbing her and wrapping her up into a towel. "Hey, what's with you running away after I give you a bath?" Chris asked her, taking her to her room. "You're supposed to wait for me."

"I did," Flynn shrugged as Chris set her on her bed. He dried her off with the towel before grabbing a clean change of clothes for her. Flynn was just yawning when Chris set her clothes on the bed.

"Okay, as soon as we get the clothes on, I want you in the bed," Chris said, "it's naptime."

"No nap," she whined, even though she was so very clearly tired. She'd worn herself out dog-paddling around the pool in her floaties and trying to get away from Sawyer, who was splashing her the entire time.

"Okay," he said, pulling her shirt over her head. "Will you lie down at least?"

"Why?"

"Because I want to lie down too, I'm really tired and I want to take a nap so if you're not going to take one, you can just lie with me while I nap, right?"

"Yeah, okay," she said, lying down and getting under the covers. Chris laid next to her on the bed, his back against the headboard as Flynn curled into his side.

"Comfy?" Chris asked her and she mumbled. "You know, if you were to take a nap and I'm not saying that you should, but if you were going to take one, I bet it would be very nice and it would keep you well-rested for staying up to watch wrestling tonight."

"Wrestling?" Flynn said softly.

"Yup, I thought we could all watch Raw together, how does that sound?" he asked. There was no answer and he looked down to see that Flynn had already tumbled off to dreamland. He gently pulled himself away from her and got off the bed, pulling the blanket over her small frame. He went down the hall to check on Sawyer, who, like the good kid he was, went off and fell asleep on his own. Kensington was also sleeping and so he had the house to himself. Today had been surprisingly easy so far and he wondered if the storm was just getting ready to be cast. But if it wasn't, Stephanie was greatly over-exaggerating how hard taking care of all of them was.

"Okay, Dad, what did you need?" Stephanie asked as she walked into her father's office.

"You brought Hunter with you," Vince said, observing Hunter over Stephanie's shoulder.

"Yes, we're going to a rally, remember? For Mom."

"Oh yes, well, this won't take long. I wanted to do something for Raw tonight and I needed your help with it."

"What kind of thing for Raw?"

"I wanted to do a vignette, kind of a parody type of thing. Your mother's opponent, I don't even want to say his name because it's vile," Vince nearly spat, "But I wanted to get a little zinger on him before the election tomorrow."

"Do you think that's wise so close to when people are voting?"

"Not many of the fans I think are in Connecticut," Vince tried to argue.

"You do understand that there's this thing called the internet, which can easily get a hold of everything and anything and can post whatever you're planning to do on said internet for all of Connecticut to see. Do you really want to blow Mom's chances?"

"I wouldn't be blowing her chances, it would be a parody and I want you to be in it."

"Doing what?"

"Well, my idea is to pretend like the parody is a dream and that you're dreaming it and that you wake up and realize it's a dream and that I'm in a coma."

"You're in a coma? So I'm what, talking to a hologram of you that is being transported through your brainwaves?"

"No, it would make sense for my part of the skit. I'm going to pretend to wake up from a coma and act like everything is so different now and I don't know what's going on and then you're going to wake up and pretend like it was a dream and you know what, since Chris isn't here, Hunter, why don't you pretend to be her husband in the skit?"

"Excuse me?" Hunter said, looking at Vince strangely.

"So you want me to wake up in bed _with Hunter_?" Stephanie asked, trying to clarify what her father was asking her to do. "I'm not comfortable with that, Dad, and I don't think that Chris, my _husband_ would be comfortable with it either."

"If Chris had come with you, I obviously would have had him be the one in the bed, I respect your marriage, but he's not here, is he? Or did you bring him and the kids along?"

"You know full well that they're not here," Stephanie said.

"Then this is the next best thing. Then maybe people will think that you were dreaming when you thought you'd woken up and that when you really wake up you're waking up with Chris."

"That makes little to no sense."

"Either way, I want you in it and we can keep Hunter off-screen so people don't know who he is," Vince said dismissively. "That way you won't have to feel bad or like you're cheating."

"I wouldn't be cheating because I would simply be acting," Stephanie said, "and I think people could recognize Hunter's voice."

"It is distinct," Hunter tried to add, feeling like he was in the middle of a cyclone right now. "Just you know, so you know."

"Yeah, so it wouldn't work," Stephanie said.

"Stephanie, I really want to do this."

"It's a stupid idea," Stephanie said. "Why do you have to take everything and make it into something so stupid? Why can't you just leave well enough alone for once? Let Mom have her election and stop trying to butt into it. God, if Mom won, I'd hate to think of you having to sit on the sidelines and be a politician's husband."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"That you wouldn't be able to take a graceful step backwards is what that means," she said, "everything has to be about you."

"I just want to do this _for_ your mom, in case she loses, I want to make light of it so as not to upset her too badly."

Stephanie wished that she could argue with that logic, but she couldn't. Her mother stood a good chance of losing tomorrow and she didn't want her to feel bad for the loss. She wanted her mother to win of course, but she didn't want her mother upset by a loss. If this made her laugh or seemed to soften the blow, well, she guessed she could be a party to it. After all, Shane couldn't, he wasn't part of the company anymore. If she just gave in this once.

"Fine, Dad, I'll do it."

"Hunter?" Vince said.

"You really want me to do it?" Hunter asked.

"Yes, I think it would be funny."

"Steph, is it okay with you?"

"Yeah, sure, whatever, can we just get this over with? Hunter and I have someplace to be in about an hour and we can't be late to that because it would reflect poorly on Mom," Stephanie said.

"Great," Vince told her, "Come on, we've got everything set up in the studio downstairs."

Vince was already walking out of the office when Stephanie hung back to wait for Hunter. "Why do I let him talk me into these things?" she asked.

"Because he's your dad?"

"God help me."

Chris settled down with the kids as they were watching Raw. He liked to keep up with the product and see how everyone was doing and where he could insert himself when he came back. If he was going to be on top, he had to know who was going to be on top when he came back. Studying the competition and knowing what he was getting into before he got into it were the only ways to ensure that he would come back at the top of his game. He'd gone to the doctor's a few days ago and was diagnosed with a strained abdomen muscle so he couldn't exercise the way he wanted to, so he felt himself getting behind in his training, but he could resume that after he was healed up.

He still had no idea what Stephanie was planning for his birthday, but as of now he was hoping to spend it quietly at home. He was going to be turning 40 in a little over a week and it was more than a little nerve-wracking. He didn't _feel_ 40, that was the thing that was getting him. He knew he was turning 40, had known for the past year, but it felt like 40 should feel over the hill or something. He felt like he should be having some sort of midlife crisis, but he wasn't. He felt this odd sense of calm, like it was just another day.

40 wasn't as scary as he'd originally thought it would be. He seemed to think that turning 40 would instantly mean his body would break down slowly and bit by bit, but he felt stronger than ever. He thought a lot of things about 40 and it seemed none of them were coming true. Stephanie still found him attractive (as did thousands of other women if the ones that tweeted him constantly were any indication), he was living vicariously through his children, and don't even get him started on all the new things and experiences he was undertaking. It was just he didn't feel 40. He felt like he was still in his 20's…well, okay, maybe very late twenties, the final days of his twenties, but still. He just didn't want to make a big deal out of something that wasn't feeling like a very big deal.

"Look, Daddy, it's Grampa!" Sawyer exclaimed, breaking him out of his reverie.

Chris looked up and saw that it was Vince on the TV in some sort of skit with Freddie Prinze Jr. That was…odd. "Grampa, Grampa!" Flynn exclaimed with a laugh.

"What's he doing?" Sawyer asked as he broke out into the giggles at seeing his grandpa act so funny. "He's so silly!"

"He really is acting silly," Chris said, even though he knew a lot of this was going over his kids' heads. They were just laughing because they were watching their grandpa on TV and it delighted them in a very childlike way. For him, it was a little surreal whatever was going on. Was this meant to be funny, mocking, what was this really supposed to be?

"Mommy!" Sawyer yelled and Flynn followed suit a moment later with her own yelled, "Mommy!"

Chris blinked a couple times when he saw his wife pop out of a bed he'd never seen before, her hair down and looking quite gorgeous. Then he frowned a little bit when he heard another voice next to her. Then he scoffed a little bit when she smiled that sexy, sleepy smile she actually used a lot late at night when he woke up horny and wanted her. That wasn't what he was expecting at all and hearing Stephanie pretend to be in bed with Hunter was a little on the disturbing side while he sat here with two of their three kids.

"Daddy, did you see Mommy on the TV?" Sawyer gasped. "She was on the TV!"

"I saw," Chris said.

"Mommy silly," Flynn giggled madly, shaking with laughter.

"What was she doing on TV? Was she sleeping?" Sawyer asked. "She was in bed."

"I saw that she was in bed," Chris said. "That was pretty…Mommy looked pretty, huh?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, now laughing because Flynn was still cracking up and it was contagious. Chris grabbed the phone on the coffee table and started to call Stephanie. "Are you calling Mommy?"

"Yeah, I just want to tell her we saw her on Raw."

"Tell her she was funny!" Sawyer exclaimed.

"Funny," Flynn echoed, still dissolving into a fit of giggles.

"Hello?"

"Since when are you sleeping with Hunter? Is this your way of telling me that you've been having an affair with your ex? All over national television? Well, I've got to say this is pretty humiliating," Chris told her.

"I didn't know how else to break it to you, but if you check the closet, you'll see that all my good clothes are gone, brought back up to Connecticut because I'm moving in with him."

"So really, what the hell was that? Your dad was…what the hell was that?"

"My dad trying to 'ease' the blow for my mom if she loses and me pretending to be having a dream so that it's clear that it's supposed to be funny and my dad wanted someone to be married to me and since you were unavailable, Hunter got the gig."

"At least they went with someone you _have_ been married to," he reasoned, "but imagine your husband's shock when he sees that."

"I thought I'd leave it a surprise," she told him.

"The kids think it's hilarious, Flynn is about to die from laughing. She is literally on her side, still laughing."

"Is that, that hyena-type noise I hear in the background?"

"It sure is," Chris said. "They loved seeing you and I have to say, seeing that little smile you had on your face, it reminds me of many a night when I wake you up and you…"

"I'm at a dinner with a lot of my mom's supporters," Stephanie said.

"If I were there, I'd drag you to the bathroom and-"

"Hanging up now!"

"Oh come on."

"You have my children right there, hanging up now," she told him, "oh and by the way, I'm bringing Hunter home with me, he needs a break from his life."

"Wow, so now what? You want to have us both?"

"Is that an option?" she asked.

"Sorry baby, but you're a one-man woman."


	301. 40 Around the Corner, November 5, 2010

A/N: Thanks for the reads and reviews, I really appreciate them. This is more of a set-up than anything else, sorry if it's boring, hope you enjoy anyways. :)

* * *

"Daddy, where's Mommy!"

"Sawyer, I told you, Mommy will be home tomorrow."

"I want Mommy," Sawyer whined, pouting and folding his arms over his chest as he sunk back into the couch. "I want Mommy!"

"Since when do you whine?" Chris asked him.

"Because I miss her," Sawyer said, obviously upset. "Because you don't read the stories right like Mommy does, I want Mommy back because she does the stories right."

"_That's_ the reason you want her back?" Chris asked incredulously. "Seriously, kid, because she can _read_ better than I can?"

"Yes," Sawyer said definitively.

"Well gee, thanks," Chris said. "Mommy will be home tomorrow, I promise. She's just staying a couple extra days because she wanted to spend time with Grandma and Grandpa and Uncle Shane and Aunt Marissa. We don't get to see them a lot so she wanted to go see them and spend some time with them."

"I miss her," Sawyer pouted. "Tell her to come home."

"Did you act like this when I was gone, demanding that I come home?" Chris asked him.

"No," Sawyer said, "I just want Mommy, that's all."

"So you don't care when I'm gone?" Chris joked.

Sawyer laughed, "Daddy, I don't like when you're gone either. But Mommy is always here and she's not here and I want her to be here and I think that Flynnie and Kensy want her home too and so she should come home."

"Daddy!" Flynn yelled, running into the room and then darting back out again, screaming the entire time.

"Flynn, indoor voices please, Kensy is trying to sleep upstairs and with the racket you're making, you're going to wake her up," Chris said as Flynn ran back into and then out of the room. "What is she doing? I thought she was taking her nap in the playroom."

"She's playing," Sawyer said with a shrug.

"You're not going to help me get her?" Chris asked.

"Daddy," Sawyer said, dragging Chris's name out, "I'm already helping you with the clothes."

"You call this folding?" Chris asked, looking at Sawyer's pile of "folded" laundry. He knew that Sawyer wasn't going to do a good job and knew he'd probably have to fold all that stuff later, but Sawyer was helping him and that's what mattered. He was just joking around with him.

"Yup," Sawyer said with the little bit of sarcasm that Sawyer had in him. He and Stephanie were lucky that he didn't have all their sarcasm.

"Hi, Daddy!" Flynn yelled again as she ran into and again out of the room. This time, Chris got up and started to follow her. She giggled as she looked over her shoulder and saw him coming and turned it into another gear and started running.

"Flutterby, would you please stop running and come into the living room?" he said, watching as she turned into the kitchen. "Flynnie!"

"Hi!" Flynn yelled at him, her brown hair flying behind her as she ran out of the kitchen, past the dining room and Chris sighed as he followed her. The kids, for the most part, had been good while it was just him taking care of them, but they were a handful. Even at their most well-behaved, they were still running, jumping, lively children and they were tiring. He nearly collapsed into bed every night and was starting to feel guilty for all the time he was spending away from home.

Chris started to follow her and watched as she turned the corner towards the garage, laundry room, and Stephanie's office. "Flynn, stop running!" he told her and just as he turned the corner to grab her, he saw her dart into Stephanie's office and close the door behind her, laughing the entire time. Chris walked over and went to open the door when he heard the click on the other side that signaled Flynn had just locked the door on him. Sighing, he knocked on the door, hoping to coax her out of there.

"Flynnie, can you please open the door so that I can come get you and then we can do something fun together like watch wrestling?" Chris said through the door, trying to sound like he was going to have the best time ever.

"No, play!" Flynn yelled from the other side of the door.

"Okay, well, I'll play with you if you come out of there. You know that's Mommy's office, Flynnie and you know that Mommy would be _very_ mad if you were to touch anything in there. Remember the time that you accidentally scribbled on Mommy's very important papers?"

"No," Flynn said, though she did remember. She'd had to sit in timeout for a whole fifteen minutes. Just because her mother had gotten mad over some papers and _maybe_ her mommy had said not to draw on them, but she _really_ wanted to draw and how was she supposed to know her mother would go ballistic? She was just drawing.

"I think you do and if Mommy comes home and sees anything out of place, I'm going to tell her it was you and not me and then you'll probably get a timeout for like a week or something, do you really want to have a timeout for a whole week?"

Well, no, but who would? "I play!" Flynn yelled out again and went and hid under her mommy's desk. She wondered when her mommy was coming home. Lately it seemed that someone was always leaving and she hated it. First it was her daddy, who'd been gone forever, now it was her mommy and she just didn't get why she couldn't come along. She liked to be on planes and she was a very good girl (when she felt like it) so why was she constantly being left behind?

"Daddy, Kensy's crying, I hear her over the walkie-talkie," Sawyer said, coming over to Chris. "Where's Flynn?"

"Hi, Sawyer!" Flynn yelled from the other side of the door.

"She's going to be in trouble," Sawyer told Chris. "She can't be in Mommy's place without Mommy in there."

"You're telling me," Chris said, "Come on, Flynnie, if you want to play hide and seek, we can do it out here, but not in there, okay?"

"Nope, nope, nope," Flynn said from her hiding spot. She wanted to stay right here.

"Daddy, Kensy," Sawyer reminded him.

Chris ran a hand down his face. "Okay, can you stay here and talk to Flynnie while I go upstairs and get your little sister?"

"Yeah, okay," Sawyer nodded.

"If you can actually get her out of there, we'll go out for ice cream after dinner and you can have whatever you want," Chris promised him, knowing that bribing his kid wasn't necessarily the best thing to do, but he didn't much care at this point. Kensington was probably screaming her head off and wanting to be picked up and he had to focus on that right now, not if it was the right thing to bribe his kid.

"Okay!" Sawyer said more enthusiastically. If they went and got ice cream that meant he could get toppings on it like sprinkles and cookies and that was better than boring, old ice cream any day. Chris ruffled Sawyer's hair and then went upstairs to get Kensington.

He could hear her crying as soon as he got to the stairs and took them two at a time to get up to her. She was awake and crying from her bed, her face red from exertion. She finally saw Chris hovering above her and started to calm down, reaching her small arms towards Chris. He whisked her out of her crib, changed her quickly and then went downstairs to see if Sawyer had any luck with Flynn. He half-expected her to be standing next to Sawyer, but Sawyer was still standing in front of the door.

"I couldn't get her out, Daddy, sorry…can I still have ice cream?" Sawyer asked pitifully.

"Yeah, we'll still go, after all, you did give it your best effort," Chris told him. "Just stay here a second longer."

Chris went into the kitchen and grabbed his cell phone, dialing Stephanie's number. She was the only one who knew where the keys were for the doors. They weren't actual keys, but these metal sticks that could unlock the mechanism that locked the doors. He had put them somewhere, but like everything in his life, Stephanie had to swoop in and do things her way. If anyone knew where they were, it'd be her.

"Chris, hey, sweetie, what's going on?" Stephanie said as she answered the phone. "I miss you."

"Yeah, I miss you too," he said quickly, "question though, do you know where those key things are to unlock the doors?"

"Who got locked where?" Stephanie asked. "The only doors that have locks on them are our bedroom and our offices and the bathroom doors have the child lock protector things, so where the hell did someone get locked in?"

"Flynn, your office."

"My office, what…Chris!" Then Stephanie lowered her voice, "weren't you watching her?"

"Of course I was watching her, she's two years old," Chris said. She was running around and I was following her and she thought it was a game and now she's in your office and she locked the door, but refuses to open it. Sawyer is talking to her, I've got Kensington, things are under control, I just need to know where you put those keys."

"I threw them away," Stephanie said.

"What?" Chris exclaimed, "Stephanie, our daughter is locked in a room!"

"I'm kidding, jerk," Stephanie said, "they're in the garage, top drawer of your toolbox, they're in a plastic bag, you can't miss them. So…seems that not everything is as easy as you make it out to be, is it?"

"They're not being difficult."

"Uh huh," Stephanie said. "Sure they aren't, face it, you need me there."

"I need you because I love you," Chris said, "also because Sawyer becomes a little bossy and demanding when you're not around. I'm not sure if it's because he really is like you or he's trying to pick up the slack on the nagging while you're gone, but a little while ago he demanded that I tell you to come home."

"Interesting, you must be doing a horrible job if he's demanding that I come home."

"Just get your ass home tomorrow, okay, your family misses you and we're not a small contingent, if pressed we'll come hunt you down," Chris told her. "Would we find you in Hunter's bed if this were to happen? Was that his bed on Monday? Or did you two just get a hotel?"

"Hotel," Stephanie said, "but it was uber romantic, you know, having a ton of camera people and a director and producer and everything. It was just the most wonderful experience of my life," Stephanie said sardonically. "Now I'm going to let you go so you can get our daughter out of my office and if one thing is out of place, I'm blaming you."

"Me! But it was Flynn who went in there!"

"You weren't watching her close enough and if there is anything amiss, I'm going to punish you," Stephanie told him coyly.

"Then I better get her out of there, I love you and I'll see you tomorrow," Chris said. "I can't wait to see you."

"I love you too, bye," she said and they hung up the call. Chris went to the garage to get the keys to set his daughter free. Then he was going to calculate how many minutes it was going to be until his wife came home. Taking care of three children was taxing and at the end of the day he didn't even get to curl next to his wife. He needed her back and fast.

The next day, Stephanie was unloading her bags from her car, much to Hunter's chagrin. "Would you let me do that? I'm the guy."

"Yes, and I'm the girl who is perfectly capable of handling her own bags, thank you very much," Stephanie said, setting her things down. "I don't need you to help me with this."

"Does Chris help you with your bags?"

"No, because Chris is too busy helping our kids with their bags. I guess I'm not used to someone helping me with my stuff anymore, but I didn't ever need anyone helping me with my stuff so it really doesn't matter now does it?"

"You're way too headstrong," he told her, "why did I even let you talk me into coming here?"

"Because you need the break from your life. Besides, with my mom's campaign over, what do you really have to do besides rehab some more? And if I know you like I think I know you, and I do know you very well, you'll just throw yourself into that and never come out of it. So this is good for you. Look, it's one night here and then tomorrow, we're all leaving for the Bahamas tomorrow and you'll have a blast and I'm sure there will be some hot women around willing to have a one or two-night stand."

"No, Hunter, it's not weird that your ex-wife is encouraging casual sex with women I don't know," Hunter said, looking over at Stephanie.

"Live a little," Stephanie winked at him as they got to the door. She was about to open it with the key, but then thought of something and rang the doorbell. "Pretend to make out with me."

"What?" Hunter asked, shocked and looking at her.

"Just pretend, don't actually kiss me, just wrap your arms around me," Stephanie said, pulling him in front of her. "Come on, I think I can hear Chris coming!"

"I'm not going to-"

Stephanie pulled Hunter towards her and sort of over her, grabbing him and wrapping him around her as she wrapped her own arms around his neck. She kind of positioned them away from the door and buried her face in his neck. It was funny in a way. For a moment, he thought he might actually like it, that having Stephanie in such close proximity again would do something to him, now that he was single and the prospect of Britt evaporating every moment, he might feel something, but nope, nothing. So he pretended with her.

Chris opened the door and saw Stephanie and Hunter wrapped up in each other. He looked at Kensington in his arms and then rolled his eyes, "Hey, you guys, come on inside when you're done."

"You're no fun," Stephanie said as she pulled away. "You're supposed to act like the jealous husband and then want to beat up Hunter and then question him as to why I was pretending to be married to him."

"Sorry, I guess when you're two months from your sixth wedding anniversary and have been with your wife close to a decade, the jealousy thing just wears off," Chris said, then patted Hunter on the shoulder. "Good to see you, man, Stephanie told me that you were helping with her mom's campaign, really, man, you had _nothing_ better to do?"

"Sorry if I'm not circling the globe," Hunter said as Chris ushered them inside.

"Hey, I've been here the last several days taking care of my kids, so I don't know what you're talking about, but you want to go up to your room? It's upstairs, one of the two that isn't cluttered with kid's toys, unless you want to sleep in the playroom, but I don't think it'd be too comfortable."

"Thanks, I'll take my stuff up," Hunter said.

"Now I can greet my wife properly," Chris said, leaning down to kiss Stephanie. "God, I missed you, baby. You don't know how much you're needed around here. I mean, the kids were okay, but you're the one who keeps _me_ sane. How did we end up with these crazy kids?"

"She's not so crazy," Stephanie said, taking Kensington out of Chris's arms. "Hey there, sweetheart, did you miss me?" Kensington smiled at her and cuddled against her chest. "Oh yeah, you want right to the goods, don't you? You can't even give me a moment's peace before you want something, huh?"

"She's a girl who knows what she wants," Chris said, kissing Stephanie again. "The other two are upstairs, they'll probably see Hunter first and talk to him and wonder why he's here before they come down and see you. We were up there making cards for your mom to say we were sorry that she lost the election. I thought it might be a nice gesture if they sent them to her."

"You are the sweetest man, I'm sure she would love that and thank you so much for those flowers you sent her the day after the election. My dad told me when she walked downstairs the next morning there were flowers as far as the eye could see. And one card from her very much beloved son-in-law."

"Your mom likes fresh flowers, I remember these things," Chris said, tapping his forehead. "I had them on standby to have them ready and I called your mom and dad's housekeeper to let the florists in to deliver them."

"That's why I love you," she told him, leaning to kiss him again.

"Mommy, you're home!" Sawyer said, running towards her and crashing into her legs. "I missed you, Daddy doesn't do the stories right, only you do!"

"I know," she said, kneeling down so she could hug him. From somewhere else, Flynn crashed into her back and hugged her. Stephanie had to grab her arm and pull her around to the front so she could give her a hug too. "There's my little rebel girl, did Hunter help you guys down the stairs?"

"Yup," Sawyer said as Flynn struggled to push him out of the way to get to Stephanie.

"Hi, hi, Mommy!"

"Hi," Stephanie replied politely. "I feel very loved right now."

"I love you," Sawyer said.

"Love you," Flynn echoed and Stephanie tried to bundle them all up in her arms. She was glad to be home. It was nice to visit her family, but her real family was here now, in Florida, with Chris and her kids. This was the only place she wanted to be. Of course, they were leaving the next day, but she was still going to be with them and that's what mattered.

The rest of the day, Stephanie caught up with the kids and they both told her what they had done while she was gone. She was impressed with Chris, having taken care of them so well. It wasn't like she thought he couldn't do it, but he did make it look easier than she did. But then, Chris was so obviously the fun parent so she barely stood a chance as it was. He probably thought up millions of activities for them to do to keep them entertained and probably took them out to fun places. She really needed to step up her game to compete with her husband for fun parent status. She didn't want to be the horribly boring one after all.

After dinner had been eaten and cleaned up and the kids were settled in their beds, Stephanie noticed that Hunter was sitting out back, nursing a beer. She nudged Chris as he took out the trash to the garage and he looked at her. "Do you think you can go talk to him?"

"What? Why?" Chris asked.

"Look at him out there, Chris," Stephanie said. "He just looks so lonely."

"Stephanie, let the man have his thoughts," Chris said. "At least for tonight, if he acts like this tomorrow night too, then I'll talk to him, is that a compromise?"

"Fine," she said, "what do you think he's thinking about anyways?"

"I don't know," Chris said, not in the mood to analyze his friend's mind. "I'm not a psychiatrist so I don't know what he's thinking about. Maybe we should just leave him to his thoughts like I said and not try to solve every problem that everyone has. I mean, don't get me wrong, I do love that quality about you, it's a nice quality to have, but not every problem has a clear-cut solution."

"They should," she sighed. "I just want him to be happy. All he has is wrestling, at least before we were together he had Joanie, you know, even then he didn't _just_ have wrestling and then after we broke up, he had Evolution to keep him company and then he had Shawn and even though he didn't have a girl, he had people around him and he always had wrestling, but now he doesn't have anything."

"He'll be back soon."

"I just worry about him is all," Stephanie said. "Sometimes…sometimes I feel guilty for my happiness, is that weird?"

"Yeah," Chris told her. "That's weird because it's not like you should regret that you're happy. God, Stephanie, stop being so empathetic, the guy is going to land on his feet, he always does, that's why he can be such a bastard sometimes."

"I'm sorry," she scoffed, "I just have so much and he has so little."

"Maybe he doesn't have as _little_ as you think he does," Chris told her. "Leave the guy alone. Now I've got really gross trash in my hand so if you'll excuse me and let me take this trash out and then get to bed. I'm exhausted and I think I'm going to sleep until my birthday if that's okay with you."

"Whatever you want," Stephanie said, watching his back as she smirked. She knew that he was tired and he would probably crash as soon as his head hit the pillow. She was counting on it actually. When he fell asleep, she was going to pack for everyone. She already had secretly gotten Kensington's and Flynn's bags done already. Chris never seemed to notice how many clothes the girls had. Sawyer's clothing consisted mostly of band t-shirts that Chris bought him so that might be a big more noticeable if there wasn't an Iron Maiden shirt laying on top of all the other clothes. Chris came back from the garage and Stephanie pulled him over to her as he passed. "Why don't you go to bed, I can lock everything up and make sure everything is taken care of."

"Are you sure?"

"The kids are already in bed so all the big stuff is done. I'll just finish with the dishes and clean up a little, Hunter can help me."

"Is this your way of getting rid of me so you can have a tryst with him in my house?"

"Yes, yes it is," Stephanie told him, "now get to bed so I can get it on with him."

"I'm going, I'm going," he said, starting to leave, then coming back over and hugging her. "I really did miss you. How did I become so attached to you in the first place?"

"The fact I put out like before our second date?" she told him.

"That did help your stock rise," he told her, pulling her closer and holding her by the waist. "So how weird would it be to have sex under the same roof as your ex-husband, too weird?"

"I thought you were tired and I don't want to do all the work," she said, realizing that this would keep him up. She really wanted to get him to bed so she could pack and not be rushing around in the morning. It was already going to be hectic with getting the kids ready as it is. Her father's plane had a flight to keep and she didn't want to leave late. With Hunter around though, it might be easier to get the kids ready the next morning, but it was still going to be a lot to do.

"I'm not _that_ tired."

"Go to bed, we can have fun tomorrow night when we're both rested. Besides, I haven't even taken a shower yet today so I smell," she said, pretending to sniff at her arm. "Yuck, I definitely smell, how can you even stand to be around me?"

"Oh, I could stand it," he said, leaning down a little and then pushing against her lips. "Come on, Stephy, please."

"To bed with you!" she said, shoving him away from her.

"You know there are plenty of women willing to put out even before the first date," he told her.

"Then go find one right now and take her to bed and sleep," she told him, turning him around and pushing him towards the stairs. "you're worse than Flynn, I swear. Just get to sleep."

"Worse than Flynn, wow, way to insult a guy," Chris said, then kissed her. "I'll see you upstairs."

"Night," she said, kissing him before she went out to the patio. "Hunter, you okay out here?"

"Yeah," he said.

"Well, I was going to clean up around here and then go pack for Sawyer and myself while Chris is asleep, but I need to turn the alarm on so if you could…"

"Oh yeah, sorry, I'll come inside now," he said, standing up and walking inside. "I can't believe you've managed to hide this from Chris for so long. I know you've been planning this for a while."

"Chris understands that my business is my business. He doesn't tether me so it was really easy actually," she said, "I just hope he likes it. We haven't been home, well, he hasn't been home and I know he missed it, me and the kids mostly, so hopefully with us there, he'll like it."

"You planned a whole trip for him, I think he's going to like it."

"I hope so," Stephanie said. "He hasn't really said much about turning 40. I guess we haven't really discussed it either, but I don't know, I half expect him to have some nervous breakdown or something, but he's just like he's always been."

"It's not that terrible turning 40, Steph," Hunter told him. "I didn't have a nervous breakdown."

"Sure you didn't," she said, patting his chest, "I can just see you now, crying in the bathtub. I don't know, I guess I just expected Chris to start looking for gray hairs or something, you know how vain he is. But nothing. He's treating it like any other birthday."

"Maybe it is. Maybe you're the only one who cares because now your husband is old."

"Have you _seen_ my husband?"

"I don't look at your husband like that, sorry," he said. "I think I'll head up to bed though, thanks for inviting me, by the way."

"It's no problem," she told him, watching him walk up the stairs. She just hoped by the time this vacation was over, she had instilled enough courage in Hunter to go after what he really wanted.

The next morning came too quickly for Stephanie. When she'd gone upstairs to check on Chris, she'd found him out like a light on the bed, on top of the sheets. She'd had to tuck him in like a child before she could even start to pack for Sawyer and then herself. By the time she got to bed, it was well past one and she had to be up at seven to get everyone ready. She crashed onto the bed herself and curled herself around Chris, hoping that her surprise would be a good thing for Chris. Chris held her closer in his sleep and she sighed against him, pressing her face to his neck as she fell asleep, hoping that the next several days would be everything Chris could hope for in a birthday.

The sun rose much too early for her tastes. Her alarm went off and she didn't want to move. Chris was so warm against her and his body was so inviting that she could probably just lay her head against his collarbone and fall asleep again. But this was a busy day and she didn't have time for that. Instead, she lifted herself off of the bed a little, just enough so she was hovering over Chris and she kissed his jaw with fluttering kisses meant to wake him up slowly. They did the trick as a sleepy smile twinged on the side of his lips. He didn't open his eyes though, but he held her closer.

"Was this the fun you were talking about?" he asked as he held her tighter, pulling her so she was almost on top of him.

"No, it's not," she said in a sing-song voice. "You've got to get packed, that's why I'm waking you up."

"Packed?" he asked, his voice still rough from sleep. "Are you kicking me out? Did I mumble some other woman's name in my sleep?"

"No," she told him, kissing his strong chin. "I have a birthday surprise for you and you have to get packed in order for it to happen."

Now he opened his eyes, "Birthday surprise?"

"Yes, you, my love, my soulmate, my husband," she said cheekily, "are about to be whisked away on an all-expenses paid, from my own bank account, trip to the Bahamas! Surprise!"

"Are you kidding me?" Chris asked, sitting up and in doing so, caused Stephanie to sit up as well. "You're taking me to the Bahamas for my birthday. We're going to the Bahamas, I get to see you, in November, in a bikini, wet in the ocean? We can have sex in the ocean?"

"Chris," she blushed, "you really don't want to see me in a bikini, do you?"

"Um, hell yeah I do."

"I look-"

"_Hell yeah I do_," Chris told her emphatically, his eyes twinkling at the thought of having his wife on a beach and in the water and having her all to him…oh, "We can't go."

"What?" Stephanie asked, looking at him like he'd grown another head and that other head had a different personality and was still talking to her. "Chris, do you know how long I planned this? I mean, I have my dad's jet ready and waiting for us. I booked the nicest hotel on the island, I've packed, well, not for you, but I've packed. I've been planning all of this for weeks, Chris, _weeks_, and you can't go, why the hell not?"

"I'm not going to leave the kids with…wait, _Hunter_ is going to be taking care of our kids? You're letting our kids stay with him? He doesn't have kid experience," Chris groaned, "Stephanie, I-"

It was only then that Chris noticed she was laughing. He stopped mid-sentence and waited for her to calm down. "Is that what you're so worried about?"

"I just got back home and they missed me so much, I can't just turn around and leave them again, I wouldn't feel right doing that, especially not after how Flynn missed me so much. I can't do that to her again and for a vacation."

"Sweetie," she said, placing her hand on his cheek. "Do you think that I wouldn't think of my children? They're coming with us and so are Trish, Christian, and Tilden, Lita, and Hunter. Edge would come, but he has work, so it's not a vacation with just us, it's a vacation for all our friends. You wanted to be surrounded with friends for your birthday, so here we are. I invited your parents, but they felt like they'd be cramping your style, but everyone else is coming. I thought Hunter could use the break and Lita wanted to come and well, Christian is your best friend and so…"

"The kids are really coming, it's for all of us?" he asked.

"Yes," she told him, "so go get packed so I can get the kids ready and we can go because we do have a flight to keep. So…surprised?"

"Yes!" he said, hugging her. "You didn't have to do this, you know? I mean, I would have been happy with just a dinner with you and maybe the kids, maybe just you though so we could have some dessert."

"You're unbelievable," she said, "but this is your 40th birthday, it's a big one. I want you to have the time of your life and all because of me, but don't worry, I won't take all the credit, just about 99% of it."

"Thank you," he told her, kissing her and bending her over the bed. "You're the best wife."

"I know, but I've got to get up though, but before I really get out of bed, how are you on the whole turning 40 thing? I mean, I know we haven't really discussed it because apparently you haven't really wanted to discuss it, but how is it turning 40?"

"You want to take notes?" he asked cheekily. He started to run his hands up and down her sides, making her tank top ride up a little as he eyed her lecherously, wondering what time this flight was and if they could fit in a quickie before they had to get ready. He'd be willing to just throw a bunch of clothes in a suitcase if it meant he could have sex with his wife right now.

"I just want to make sure that you're not going to leave me for a younger woman, that I'm not suddenly going to find you in bed with Kelly Kelly or one of the Bellas," she joked.

"What about both of the Bellas?" he mused.

"That's disgusting," Stephanie said, shoving him away. "They're _sisters_."

"Would now be a bad time to say I've been with sisters?" he told her.

"What! At the same time, that's gross, Chris, oh now you've made yourself disgusting to me," she told him.

"Not at the same time!" Chris said, then kissed her. "I'm not going to leave you for a younger woman, to me, now in my old age, you _are_ a younger woman and the only younger women in my life are Flynn and Kensington. Otherwise, you're stuck with me."

"You just aren't doing that whole, 'oh no, I'm 40!' thing and it's like, I thought you would because you are so…I don't know, you think you're God's gift to mankind sometimes and I thought turning 40 might injure your vanity."

"I like to think of myself as a fine wine," Chris told her, "I get better with age."

"Like I said, vain," she told him.

"I'm fine with turning 40 because it's just a number. I feel as good as I did as when I was 25, okay, maybe not _as good_, but I think I'm better now than some other people's 25's, plus I've got so much that I'm doing, I'm active. I'm a wrestler, albeit on hiatus, I've got my band, my kids, you, _you_ who will keep me on my toes so much that I'm going to live to be 150. Turning 40 isn't going to be that big a deal to me because I don't feel it."

"So no earrings?"

"Baby, I've got four holes in each of my ears, there's no more room for piercings."

"No sports car?"

"Have one, but I never drive it because it's not practical with three kids."

"No dyeing your hair?"

"Highlights maybe," he conceded.

"No 'young' haircut?"

"I've been thinking Mohawk, what do you think?"

"No," she shook her head, "no younger clothes?"

"If I wore younger clothes I'd be wearing Flynn's clothes," Chris told her with that smile of his.

"No midlife crisis?"

"Maybe a midmorning crisis if I don't get coffee in me, but no midlife crises for this guy, I'm too happy with what I've got to have some sort of crisis. I didn't spend the first 32 years of my life dicking around to have a crisis now."

"Good, I just wanted to make sure. You can feel free to have the checklist when I turn 40."

"You are going to be the sexiest 40 year old, I swear to God, you are going to be a hot cougar. Damn it, that means you're going to want a younger guy, damn it, you're breeding Ted aren't you, he's going to be your prey when you're a cougar, damn it to hell, Stephanie!"

"Stop," she shoved at him wriggling her way out from underneath him. "I'm getting the kids ready, pack your clothes and be ready in an hour, I'll throw some toast in for you and some coffee, but we have _got _to be out of here by 9:30."

"That's plenty of time for you to work on me, make sure I don't end up with a Bella. Nikki Bella-Jericho…or Brie Bella-Jericho, which one do you think sounds better?"

"Neither, but you're still not getting any right now," she said, getting out of bed. "Now get ready!"

"I'm getting ready," he finally said, flopping back onto the bed a moment. Stephanie walked to the door and before she left, she turned around, looking straight at Chris, flashing him as he nodded his head vigorously in approval.

"I hope you're ready to party, Chris Jericho."


	302. Snapshots of 40, November 9, 2010

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and reads, much appreciated. Anyways, this chapter is kind of like a bunch of little one-shots all tied together by one theme, like snapshots, just in case you get confused. Hope you enjoy! :)

* * *

"Daddy, I think I see it!"

Chris looked over Sawyer's shoulder and out the plane window, seeing a set of islands up ahead. He wasn't totally sure those were the islands they were going to, but they seemed about the right size. "I think that is where we're going."

"I saw it first," Sawyer said, grinning at Chris before pressing his face back to the window. "Are we going to have fun, Daddy? For your birthday?"

"You bet we are," Chris said, dropping a kiss to the crown of Sawyer's blond head. He turned around in his seat to look at Stephanie, who was holding Kensington in her lap. Flynn was next to her, keeping Kensington occupied by shaking a rattle in front of her face. Whenever Kensington tried to reach out for it, Flynn would pull it back and giggle, making Kensington smile. Stephanie was faced the other way, talking with Trish while Christian was pointing to things out the window to Tilden, who kept slamming her little fist on the glass. Lita was talking animatedly with Hunter over something wrestling-related because he kept catching words like "moonsault" and "promos."

He smiled to himself, already enjoying his vacation. It wasn't so much the fact that he was getting away and going to another location where he could relax, but the fact that he got to do all of that with his friends and family. Sometimes things got lost in the shuffle when everyone was busy. Now that he and Stephanie had three children, they were always busy with them, having to worry about them. The same went for Trish and Christian on a lesser scale with Tilden. Hunter was in Connecticut and injured and Edge and Lita were always off being Edge and Lita. It was nice to get a chance to be with everyone and spend time with them.

"Sawyer thinks we're almost there," Chris told Stephanie, poking his head around the corner.

Stephanie looked out the window, "Yeah, I guess that's it. I wouldn't know though, but it makes sense. Also the fact that we're starting to descend."

Just as she was about to continue, the pilot told them over the speaker that they were indeed making their final descent and that they should all buckle up. Chris stood up and helped Flynn get her seatbelt back on since Stephanie was holding Kensington in her arms. When he pulled back, he turned his head slightly to give Stephanie a brief kiss. He pulled away and smiled at her, a simple one and then he went back to his seat and made sure Sawyer's seat was buckled.

When they got off the plane, Chris holding Flynn in one arm and holding Sawyer's hand with the other, walked down the steps and was immediately hit with the warm, sunny air. He walked down slowly, letting Sawyer keep up with him, Stephanie following behind them with Kensington. He smiled and looked around, already feeling relaxed and at peace. He glanced back at Stephanie as she adjusted the sunglasses she'd put on as she exited the plane.

This was going to be an awesome vacation.

* * *

"Mommy, I no wanna!" Flynn yelled as she tried to run away from Stephanie, but the sand made it hard to get any kind of grip while she was trying to get away from Stephanie. Stephanie picked her up and brought her back to their blanket on the private beach that belonged to the hotel. "No!"

"Baby girl, if you don't put on sunscreen then you're going to get burnt and it's going to hurt," Stephanie told her calmly. "Do you want to hurt and have your whole vacation ruined?"

"No," Flynn said reluctantly, but she sighed and stuck her arm out so that Stephanie could put some sunscreen on her.

"Sawyer wore his sunscreen."

"Where he?" Flynn asked, looking around, wondering where her brother had gone.

"Your brother went with Daddy, Christian, and Hunter. They're having some guy time today and your brother wanted to go along with them, but he'll be by later because I think your dad wants to try his hand at surfing," Stephanie explained.

"What that?"

"It's where you get in the water and stand on a board and try to ride a wave all the way back to shore, you have to balance on the board," Stephanie told her.

"I want to," Flynn said.

"You're too little, baby girl," Stephanie said, putting some sunscreen on Flynn's face before plopping a hat over her head. "Okay, there you go, you can play in the sand, but you cannot go anywhere by yourself, you can sit right over there with your toys and play, understood?"

"Okay, I want Sawyer," Flynn pouted.

"I know, he'll be back later," Stephanie said, pushing her daughter's butt towards her toys. Flynn walked over and settled into the sand, pulling up her bucket and beginning to put some sand into it as Lita walked over with Kensington.

"I love your daughter, Stephanie, I want to keep her," Lita joked as she sat down on one of the blankets they'd spread out over the beach. "She's so calm and happy, I don't think I've ever seen a baby who was just so content with everything."

"I like to think she was a reward after we had that one," Stephanie said, pointing to her little troublemaker who was now dumping all the sand out of the bucket she had just filled, patting it down into a kind of mound. "The powers that be had to apologize for giving us one that is exactly like us…and we thought she was so innocent when she was born, but no, turns out she's too much like Chris and me."

"One of them was bound to," Lita said, handing over Kensington to Stephanie, who laid her down in her carrier. "It is so beautiful out here. I'm just sorry that Edge couldn't' come with, but I feel like it's been forever since we've all gotten to hang out. You guys have your kids and I have Edge and it's just like things get so hectic, you know what I mean."

"Of course," Stephanie said, leaning back on her hands and she rocked Kensington's carrier with her foot and watching Flynn as Tilden crawled over to her. Flynn gave her a look of distrust, but didn't do anything when Tilden made a grab for one of Flynn's shovels and tried to stick it in her mouth before Trish reached over and pulled it away from her mouth. "I don't even feel like I've really seen Chris, what with him touring all the time and as soon as he comes home then I have to fly to Connecticut to be with my mom. Then when we get back to Florida, we're going to be right back on the road again because I'm going back to work soon."

"I heard that Britt is doing a really good job in your absence," Trish said as she leaned back and laid down on the sand, her head turned so she could still see Tilden, who was wearing a sun bonnet and a cute baby two-piece that had a watermelon print on it.

"I taught her everything she knows," Stephanie told them with a laugh. "She is doing a great job, she'll definitely deserve a vacation when she's done."

"It's too bad she couldn't come with us," Lita said, "I'm sure that someone wouldn't have objected to that if you know what and _who_ I mean."

"Oh my God, what is going _on_ with those two?" Trish asked, turning to look at Stephanie. "Please tell me one or both of them have come to their senses. They're turning into Trish and Christian 2.0 and I say that as part of Trish and Christian. Now that I'm married and I look back to that time in my life I wonder what the hell I was thinking. I mean, Carlito, I loved him, sure, but I was a fool to think I could love him as much as I love Christian."

"What about Tiffany and Christian?" Lita asked.

"Christian loved her too, hell, he still loves her, he's not in love with her, but they keep in touch and it's okay in my book, I don't mind, mainly because she has someone and she doesn't have designs on my husband, but he's told me he didn't love her like he loved me and I believe him when he tells me things. It just wasn't the same when I wasn't with Christian. I don't know, you know how you've been with people and you look back and you wonder why you were ever with that person and not with the person you've ended up with."

"Look at us," Lita said, gesturing to her and Stephanie. "I spent so many years with Matt. I thought that we were perfect for each other. We had the same interests, we dressed similarly, had the same values, we looked great on paper, but damn it if he wasn't the most boring guy and it wasn't the most boring relationship."

"Good thing you got out of that when you did," Stephanie said, "nothing against Matt, but he's being really weird right now, I guess because he hates us or whatever, but Edge is much better."

"He is," Lita said dreamily. "I never get tired of him. I don't know, he's like a big kid, but he keeps me on my toes. I love him for that, I love him for everything and you would never have thought we'd be together, I didn't think we would be for a long time, until it happened actually. I mean, we can't come close to the epic war between Chris Jericho and Stephanie McMahon, but I like to think Edge and I had a little bit of that love/hate thing going on, especially when Matt and Jeff were fighting with Edge and Christian."

"You _were_ decidedly on the Hardy side of that battle," Trish chuckled. "Hell, so was I, what with Jeff and that whole debacle. Me and Jeff, could you imagine Jeff and I with a baby?"

"Isn't his girlfriend pregnant or didn't she just have a baby?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, I haven't talked to him in a while, but she is pregnant," Trish said. "But I can't imagine having kids with Jeff, he was so wrong for me. He's a much better friend than he is a boyfriend. I'm lucky we couldn't get the timing right with that one. I guess he would be one of my 'what was I thinking?' guys. But what about _you_ and Hunter, Miss Stephanie McMahon."

"What about us?" Stephanie asked, looking askance as her friends. "I don't see what we have to do with anything."

"Oh yeah, sure," Trish said. "You and Chris were the king and queen of dancing around your feelings. If you hadn't been so oblivious to it, you guys would probably be working on your sixth child by now."

"You're out of your mind," Stephanie said. "Chris and I _hated_ each other back then. He made my life a living hell, that's the _only_ reason why I responded in kind to his insults because he was hurting me with them. If you look back, then really, it should've been Kurt who I ended up with since he was the one who liked me."

Trish and Lita looked at each other and laughed a little before Lita fielded that answer, "Stephanie, I'm sorry, but you need to go back and look at the tapes during that time. People backstage already thought you two were having sex. I mean, I'm remembering that one time, after he kissed you that first time, you guys were talking and I think he was on the Titantron and you were in the ring and you two were _so_ flirting with each other."

"I was setting him up to get attacked by DX!" Stephanie argued. "There was nothing there with me and him. I just wanted him to think that I was interested in him so he would come out there and get jumped."

"You can't fake that kind of chemistry," Trish said. "Come on, Steph, I love you and everything, but even you can't be that blind. There was something brewing between you and Chris _long_ before you ever went out on a date and think about it, if you two _weren't_ flirting and all hot for each other at that point, there wouldn't be a you guys at all because why would he have ever gone up to you and wanted to be your business partner? Then you wouldn't have fallen in love with him and then he wouldn't have been all pissed that you didn't hug him and then you would have nothing and live a cold, lonely existence eating Spaghetti-O's out of a can."

"Wow, thanks for making me sound pathetic if not for Chris," Stephanie guffawed. "I think I'm perfectly capable of having a life if it didn't include Chris. I would have found someone else…but I guess you're right, looking back I wonder just how it could've been if I didn't hate his guts, but it is what it is and Britt and Hunter are what they are."

"Do you think they'll ever get back together?"

"For his sake, I really hope so."

* * *

Chris scooped up Sawyer into his arms and started tickling him. "Daddy, stop!"

"Not a chance," Chris said, throwing him into the water. They were hanging out at the hotel pool because Stephanie didn't want Sawyer in the ocean without her there to watch him, like Chris would just let Sawyer get sucked under. So instead, Chris, Christian, and Hunter were all hanging out at the hotel pool with Sawyer, who was so happy to be spending some time with the guys. He felt like he was part of some special group. "Here you go, Hunter!"

Chris tossed Sawyer into the air and the young boy landed with a splash right in front of Hunter, his arm floaties making sure he didn't go too far under, though Sawyer was getting better with his swimming lessons. Sawyer laughed as he paddled over to Hunter. "Hi!"

"Hey," Hunter said before Sawyer tried to dunk him under the water, "what are you trying to do?"

"Dunk you," Sawyer laughed.

"Are you trying to teach your son to drown me?" Hunter said, tossing Sawyer a little and then splashing him with some water. Sawyer splashed him back.

"Is it working?" Chris asked before he swam under the water and came up under Sawyer and grabbed him, making Sawyer yell in surprise and then try to get away from his father and swimming towards Christian, who was just hanging onto the side of the pool and watching everyone.

"Chrissy, help!" Sawyer squealed before Chris got him again.

"Hey there," Chris said, "You think you're ready to go play with Flynn."

"I wanna stay with you, I wanna go surfing like you're going!" Sawyer protested. "I can do it, Daddy!"

"You're just a little too young for it, kid," Chris said, kissing his cheek. "I wouldn't want you to fall. Maybe when you're a little older you can go, okay?"

"But I'm older _now_," Sawyer argued.

"Yeah, maybe older than you were a second ago, but you should probably be seven or eight before you try to attempt surfing."

"But that's so far away, I'm four," Sawyer said, "but I'll be five soon, right, Daddy?"

"Yeah, you will and seven and eight will be here before you know it, but don't tell Mommy that because then she'll freak out at you growing up too fast," Chris said. "But Christian, Hunter and I want to go surfing so you'll have to hang out with Mommy and them."

"But it's all _girls_," he said, not that he didn't like girls, but he was having fun being one of the guys.

"We can wait a little while," Hunter said, swimming over, "the kid's having fun with us and it's cool if we hang out for a little bit."

"So what's going on with you and Britt?" Christian asked, peering over his sunglasses at Hunter. Hunter knew that this was going to come up.

"On second thought, those surfing lessons sound fun right now," Hunter said, obviously trying to dodge the question.

"Dude, our lives are so boring," Christian said, "that we have to gossip about yours. I mean, I'm rehabbing, Trish has her yoga studios, and we have Tilden, that is our lives, boring as hell, Chris and Stephanie are just trying to make sure they have all their kids altogether and don't lose one, we have to live vicariously through your drama."

"There's no drama, I'm a single man," Hunter said, looking around, "and if you see any hot chicks, direct them towards me because I'm looking to score while we're here."

"What's score?" Sawyer asked as Christian and Chris snickered.

"I just want to play a game while we're here and I have to keep score," Hunter told him. "That's all."

"I want to play, can I play?" Sawyer asked. "I'm really good at games, just ask Mommy, I beat her _all_ the time when we play games. I'm really good at hide and seek."

"This isn't the kind of game that a little kid should be playing," Hunter said, "but I'm sure we can play some other game while we're here, this one is a really adult game, but there are a lot of kids games we can play."

"Okay," Sawyer shrugged, not understanding why Hunter looked so flustered.

"As I was saying," Hunter said. "It doesn't matter what Britt does."

"That's why you've been going to Raw even though you're still injured," Chris said.

"I'm going for a swim in the ocean," Hunter said, swimming away and getting out of the pool.

He didn't want to talk about Britt while he was here. He'd screwed it up; would people just leave him alone from now on about it? He had to try and move on from her, from that relationship, that perfect relationship. God, why had he been so stupid as to choose friendship over the best relationship he'd ever had? Britt had understood him in ways that other women could only dream of. The only other person that could maybe compete with the level that Britt knew him was Chyna. When he'd been with Chyna they understood each other, they were on even keel.

He'd felt that with Britt, he'd felt it more with Britt in fact. Stephanie was nothing more than a deviation, but Britt, it was like she'd been made for him and he hated to get into clichés, but it was that feeling of completeness. He'd screwed up though, listened to Shawn, thought that his friend who had known him forever was the one who knew him the best, could help him make the best choices, but that hadn't been the case. Britt was the one who knew him best and he'd abandoned her, left her in the dust and who could blame her for moving on and not wanting him.

He didn't want to suffer through that humiliation again though, the humiliation of rejection. He'd put himself out there only for Britt to tell him that it wasn't going to happen. How much clearer could she be? He just had to accept his fate as what it was. Maybe there was even someone out there better than Britt. Maybe she was on this freaking island right now! He didn't know, but he didn't want his friends to talk to him about Britt.

"Why is Trips mad?" Sawyer asked as he watched Hunter leave. They'd been having fun, but now Hunter didn't want to stay.

"He's just mad about Britt," Chris told Sawyer, hugging him.

"Yeah," Christian said. "He's just mad because he still loves Britt, but he's not with her."

"With her?"

"Boyfriend and girlfriend."

"Like Mommy and Daddy?" Sawyer asked.

"No, we're married," Chris said, "like Trish and Christian are married, but Edge and Lita are boyfriend and girlfriend and that's what Hunter and Britt were, but they broke up and now Hunter is sad, but they still love each other."

"Oh," Sawyer said, "but you and Mommy aren't going to break up, right?"

"No, we're not going to break up."

"Hunter should just tell Britt that he loves her and then they can be boyfriend and girlfriend again," Sawyer said with a shrug, "wouldn't that be easy, Daddy? If he just told her that and then they could be happy again."

"Yeah, that would be the easiest, but I think Britt is just a little bit wary about taking Hunter back."

"Do you think she will though and then Hunter can be happy again?"

"I think if she's pushed enough, she'll definitely break."

* * *

"I'm glad we have this time together," Stephanie said as she watched Sawyer and Flynn run around on the grass just outside the hotel. They'd been cooped up this morning because of an unexpected rainstorm, but the day had brightened enough to go out and after being inside all morning, they needed to stretch their legs. Flynn was chasing after Sawyer as Chris held Kensington, rubbing her back as she sucked on her pacifier and took in her surroundings. Stephanie reached her hand over and ran it through Chris's hair, massaging the back of his head.

"Who, us or us and the kids?"

"Us and the kids," Stephanie said, smiling down at her younger daughter. "With you having been gone for so long, I like that we get to spend the time with you. I feel like we haven't gotten to be a proper family since Kensy was born so I like that we're here and we're together, even if we are with our friends."

"I like being with them, they've made everything fun, like yesterday when we all went out on that boat, I think it would have been boring with just us on there, but with everyone I think we had a good time."

"Especially when Christian fell off the boat and we had to throw him the life preserver," Stephanie laughed at the memory of Christian sputtering as he came to the surface and needing to be dragged back onto the boat. "That was hilarious just seeing him topple over."

Chris laughed, "I don't think he's ever going to live that down and I know Edge is going to be pissed that he wasn't here to see that. Thanks for the vacation again and the amazing present. I know a lot of planning went into this because you keep having activities for us to do and I appreciate the effort that went into this."

"When you have a newborn and two other kids and you're stuck at home all day, you think of vacations and getting away from it all…even if said kids have to come," Stephanie said, "plus, this was special for you and I wanted everything to be great for your birthday tomorrow. I just want you to be happy."

"Don't you know I already am," he told her, smiling at her gently, in a way that made the creases around his eyes look warm and homey and just very Chris Jericho. She loved that face. It was one she came home to everyday and the one she fell asleep to every night and it was everything to her. "Even if I wasn't on this vacation."

"Yeah, yeah, so I've heard," Stephanie said. "You apparently love the hell out of me and the kids."

"There's no apparently about it," Chris said. "Who else would ever do this for me? If I didn't have you…I'd probably be spending my 40th birthday in a smoky, disgusting bar telling everyone that it was my birthday trying to get laid."

"You would have gotten laid, probably several times by several different women," she told him, leaning her head on his shoulder as she scooted her head closer. "And then you could have bragged to your friends about it."

"I do still brag to my friends about the sex I have," Chris told her, kissing her forehead as he felt her laugh against him.

"You better not."

"Are you kidding, I totally do, especially to the single ones," Chris told her. "You know, the guys who haven't settled down, who have to go looking and work to get laid. That's the best part of getting married, you don't have to work to have sex. You're right there, I roll you over, you reciprocate, we engage in foreplay where you declare that I really _am_ the best in the world at what I do, then we have sex, I roll over and fall asleep."

"This is something to brag about?"

"I don't go into details," Chris said, "but yes, I do brag."

"You're such a weirdo," she said affectionately as Kensington looked up at her mommy and smiled around her pacifier. Stephanie scrunched her nose at her. "Do you think you have the perfect life?"

"No, but nobody does," he told her. "I think I'm very lucky with the life I have, but perfect, nothing is perfect. I mean, I'm related to Vince McMahon, how is this perfect? I didn't set out to ever be related to that man."

"You just wanted to work for him, that was your childhood dream, right?"

"Yeah, _work_ for him. It was never my intention to come here and fall for his daughter. I mean, I'd only seen you in the catalogues and then sure, I scoped out the competition so I saw you right before I was going to sign with the company, but it's not like I saw you a lot. I mean, I'd barely seen you the first time we met."

"Which is why I took your breath away," she said nonchalantly.

"Oh yes, you sure did, Miss Prude," Chris scoffed. "Isn't that how you were back when I met you?"

"Or so you thought," Stephanie told him. "I can accept that we're not totally perfect. I just want you to be exceedingly happy with the choices you have made. Like the choice to go to Australia."

"It's only for several days, barely even a week, the kids won't feel too bad about me going, I mean, look how they were when you were gone, they barely missed you," he said smugly, trying to lord it over her head that he had been more missed than she had been.

"That's why they hugged me so fiercely and demanded that I come home," Stephanie said, "Oh well, I guess I'll have to go win their love."

She stood up and Chris watched, content, as she started to chase after their children.

* * *

"This is so romantic," Trish said as she held Christian's arm tighter. She would have held onto his hand if his hands weren't occupied by pushing Tilden's stroller. "We never get to have just romantic nights out anymore. We should really take up Edge and Lita's offer to take care of Tilden. Or even Ted and Loretta's since they offered. Wouldn't it be so nice to just have nights to ourselves."

"We have all our nights to ourselves while I'm injured," Christian pointed out.

"Chrissy, not like that," Trish said, "I just mean like going out and pretending like we're just first dating or newlyweds or something and not some couple with a kid."

"I'm romantic," he told her. "I bring you flowers."

"That's true," Trish said. "I'm glad Chris and Stephanie brought us along. I love being here. There's always something so nice being away from home. It's like everything is somehow better. I don't know, like everything is surreal. Plus, I think Tilden is loving it. She's been so busy these past few days, playing around and exploring in her own way that she's been out like a light every night, which gives us free nights."

"I can't argue with the awesomeness of that," Christian said. "Are you going to do something like this for my 40th?"

"I'll do something very special for your 40th," she told him. "What about my birthday, it's next month, you know?"

"I'm sure I'll think of something to do," Christian said, kissing her and stopping where they stood so that he could kiss her deeper. "You know, I think you have something with his whole romantic thing. I _do_ feel like it's more romantic here."

"I knew you would see it my way," Trish said, leaning up to kiss him again. "Just because we're a family now doesn't mean that we should forget we're a couple. I'm very happy and I want to stay that way."

"Should I have reason for concern?"

"Well, you do spend an awful lot of time tweeting now," she joked around. "Always taking pictures of our cats, like we're weirdoes."

"You wanted the cats," Christian said. "You're the one who thought that having pets around would be a good influence on Tilden and then one turned to two, to five. I can't help it if I like sharing that fact with my peeps. I should take some pictures of Dr. Doogie Meowser for them. Besides, better I take pictures of the cats than of Tilden and go posting them around the internet, right?"

"I guess you've got a point there," she told him. "I'm sure Ted and Loretta are taking good care of them, right?"

"The best care," Christian told her. "So let's get back to this romance thing. What other romantic things would my wife like to do?"

"Walk on the beach at sunset maybe?" She looked up at him hopefully.

"My darling, I think that can be arranged."

* * *

"How did we get roped into babysitting?" Hunter asked as he cradled Kensington against him. She'd just been crying a few moments before, but he'd managed to calm her down.

"Because you're single and my boyfriend is not here," Lita said as she sat with Tilden on the sand and helped her build a sandcastle while Sawyer and Flynn did the same with their own sandcastles."

"Oh yeah," Hunter said. "Hey, about that…"

"Hitting on me, really, Hunter?" she asked.

"No, I just…how did you know you wanted to get back with Edge?"

"I don't know, it just felt right. Are you thinking about getting back with Britt?"

"I was thinking maybe…"

"You should."

"You think so."

"Hunter, I know you don't want to hear advice from some other people, but let me tell you, all of us here, every one of us, me, Trish, Christian, Chris, Stephanie, we all wasted time, years of it, _years _of it because we were too blind and too stupid to think that we were wasting our time. I wanted Edge, I needed him and I was stubborn until I was set up with him again. Trish and Christian spent years dancing around each other and you know the Chris/Steph saga. If you're asking my advice, just get her already and save us the sob stories."

She certainly had a point.

* * *

"You're 40."

"I am," Chris said, stretching his arms above his head, "what time is it incidentally?"

Stephanie glanced at the clock, "It's 5:15."

"Steph," Chris groaned, "Kensy doesn't even wake up until 7:30, that's a good 2 hours of sleep you are interrupting right now."

"But you're 40, it's your birthday," Stephanie said, kissing his chest. "You are officially a 40 year old. You're entering a new part of your life. You're in a new decade of existence. 40 years ago today, your mother gave birth to you in what I can only imagine was excruciating pain and then you came into this world, probably as cocky as you are right now, congratulating the doctors at being the best at what they do."

"You think that's how it happened?" he laughed.

"No, but I like to imagine that it was," she joked with him, hugging him tightly. "You are a very handsome 40 year old, let me tell you that right now. You are so handsome and so wonderful in every way. I'm very lucky that I have you and that you love me, in spite of everything that I bring to the table, good and bad, mostly bad-"

"Mostly good," he corrected her.

"And you still put up with me, only a wonderful, wonderful man would put up with that."

"I am pretty wonderful, aren't I?"

"You're an amazing husband and you are probably one of the best fathers on the planet. All three of our kids absolutely adore the hell out of you. Sawyer looks up to you, Flynn wants to be you, and Kensy, well, she loves nothing more than a good Daddy cuddle. You're great with them, I can't imagine those kids having someone else as their father."

"They probably wouldn't have ended up so awesome, this is true," Chris told her, holding her closer to him. "I just try my best."

"You try your best at pretty much everything and then you succeed at pretty much everything," Stephanie told him. "It's what makes you, you, and then at the end of the day, you somehow make people feel like they're the most important person in the world to you."

"I think you get that feeling because you _are_ the most important person in the world to me," Chris told her.

"No, I see it with other people, with fans, with friends, just the way you make everyone feel. You do it at your concerts, I mean, I saw when you sent us the video of the concert. You engage the crowd and I bet you somehow make them feel special. Your mother and father broke the mold with you, Chris Jericho, and the rest of us have just been so lucky these past 40 years. The ones who even get just a little of you know they're lucky and I'm just bursting with luck. I think I won some cosmic lottery I had no business winning when you asked me out."

Chris could feel a blush coming to his cheeks and he was choked with emotion, "Steph…"

"It's true."

"How can you even think that _you're_ lucky-"

"No, no, no, don't go into the whole 'I'm the lucky one' speech. I know how I am, Chris, I know how caustic and ornery I can get, I can be a downright bitch when I want to be and you put up with that."

"I have my faults."

"You do," she agreed, "But they are far less egregious than mine are. I'm lucky, Chris, just believe me on that one."

"Okay, okay, you're lucky," he told her, "I love you."

"You have no idea how much I love you."

"I really am lucky."

Stephanie ran her hand down his chest and into his boxer shorts, "And right now I'd say you were about to _get_ lucky. Happy Birthday, sweetie."

* * *

Chris sat on the rocks as he heard someone coming up behind him. He turned around and saw Christian walking up to him with a couple of beers in hand. He handed one to Chris and he took it gratefully as Christian sat down next to him. They didn't need words for a while, just sitting in silence and watching the sun descend into the sky. They'd just finished dinner and Chris had asked if he could go on a walk by himself, reflection time, and Stephanie had said she would take care of the kids and he should enjoy his birthday however he wanted to enjoy it. He'd found himself on the beach and there were some rocks that looked perfect for sitting on.

"How'd you find me?"

"Not hard, Stephanie knew where you were," Christian said. "So what are we thinking about here?"

"Life," Chris said, "where I'm going now."

"Back to your room, probably to sex up your wife when your kids go to bed."

"I don't mean tonight, though that's probably what I'm going to do, but I just mean like, now. I know 40 isn't a big deal and I'm not really upset or weirded out about turning 40, but it certainly does make you take assessment of your life, you know what I mean."

"I'm not 40, so no," Christian laughed, then patted Chris on the shoulder. "And what are your thoughts then…about life I mean."

"I was 19 when I really started on this crazy journey. Before that, I was just some kid from Winnipeg, with wrestling and rock posters on my wall, wishing I could be just like those guys. I was a determined asshole, I'll tell you that. When I left Winnipeg, I told myself there was no way I'd go back unless it was to visit. I wasn't going to be stuck there. My life has been strange and crazy and amazing all at the same time. I got my dream. Not many people out there get that. So many people just languish, but I have my _dream_ and not only do I have my dream, but I have my dream on my own terms."

"Chris, man, you have _more_ than your dreams, you _own_ the company."

Chris laughed, "I didn't even think about that, but you're right. I _never_ set out to own the company or do any of that. I just wanted in. I just wanted to hold that Intercontinental belt like Ricky did. I didn't even really, truly aim for the WWE title when I first started, I was happy with the IC belt, but when I got here, I thought, maybe the WWE title could be in my reach and I kept grabbing and grabbing for what I could get. I grabbed Stephanie, man, I grabbed her and held on tight."

"She's a keeper."

"If I went back and told that 19 year old…"

"What could you possibly say to that kid?" Christian asked as he took a swig of his beer and dipped a foot into the water, careful not to let his sandal fall off.

Chris thought about it for a moment, thought back to that kid he had been, on the cusp of his 20's, a world of possibility and promise ahead of him, but laced with uncertainty and self-consciousness. Sure, he acted cocky, always had, but there was fear there, fear that he would have to go back to Winnipeg, work in some dead end job and maybe live off the little bit of fame his father had accrued during his hockey ears.

"I'd slap him on the back," Chris said, "to start, so as not to freak him out. I'd tell him that he's going to have to keep at it, that nothing is going to come simple to him, but it's all going to be worth it in the end. Then I'd probably tell him that he's going to control Vince McMahon one day, which should shock the hell out of him, but then I'll explain that he's going to be doing the boss's daughter, which that virgin will appreciate because even though he hasn't gotten laid yet, he's a 19 year old guy so it's on his mind for sure. Then I'll tell him he's going to have the three greatest children on the planet and he is going to feel so much love for those tiny, little things that it'll feel like his heart is going to burst, but not to take any of what's to come for granted because life is too short to sweat the little things."

"Good, sound advice," Christian nodded.

"Then I'd want to take him back here, to this moment, so he could have a taste of what he's going to have, just a taste, just to motivate him to keep going. There were times when quitting seemed the best and only option, but I never did. I couldn't, not until I got everything I wanted."

"The IC belt."

"I guess, but I don't know, a kid doesn't think about family and kids and stuff, but you think about settling down I guess and well…"

"You're happy?"

"Happy doesn't even really come close to how I feel," Chris said. "Happy isn't seen on my radar anymore, I've passed it so long ago."

"Wow…"

"I mean, I was happy getting into the WWF after the disaster that was WCW in the later days. I was happy getting matches I wanted, I was happy being on a card at a Pay-Per-View. Happy is so _not_ what I feel anymore. I've got a great job wrestling, I'm at the top of my game. I'm a freaking rock star. I've hosted a game show, I've written a best selling book. I have the most awesome wife, who lets me keep a lot of my independence, who _gets_ me, who puts up with me, who gives great head, don't tell her I told you that, but seriously, _so freaking good_, who loves me for all my faults, and I cannot stress enough how crazy I am about my kids, but you've met them, you know."

"They're pretty great, even that middle one."

"_Especially_ that middle one," Chris told him, "that girl is going to break about a million hearts and I'm going to laugh at it every time because no man is ever going to touch either one of my daughters."

"You're going to like stand there at the door if they ever date, aren't you?"

"Hell yeah, I am, and Stephanie can do that bitchy mean face she does and we'll stand there and stare at the boy and he'll know not to touch my daughters."

"I'm going to be the same way with Tilden."

"We're a couple of old men, sitting here, talking about beating up our daughters' future boyfriends," Chris said, "we'd used to talk about who was sleeping with who and who was available and now we're talking about how cute our kids are."

"Hey, Tilden is the cutest."

"Flynn and Kensy would like to have a word with you about that."

"My daughter is gorgeous."

"So are my daughters," Chris said. "Suffice to say, we have our work cut out for us in that department."

"You can say that again."

"Life is good, Christian," Chris said, staring out at the horizon. "Life is so good I feel full to bursting. It's almost like you feel like it'll topple over, but…it's just so good. I couldn't have asked for a better world than the one I live in right now. It's like everything I've ever wanted I've gotten and so much more I didn't know I needed, but I have them too."

"So that's probably why you have no problem turning 40. Everything is going to so well for you that you have no reason to be worried about getting older because you like where you're at."

"I do like where I'm at," Chris said, nodding to himself, "I like it a lot."

"Come on, we better get back before the wives get lonely and start making out with each other."

"Okay, now _that_ might make it a perfect birthday, maybe throw in Lita there."

"Let's not get _too_ happy," Christian said, slapping his shoulder. Chris laughed as they walked back and grabbed his phone, typing something, sending it and then walking back to the hotel with Christian, laughing and joking along the way about things Chris would have to do before he died and if he should now make a bucket list. As this was happening, the rest of the world was alerted.

_Had the best heart to heart talk with my best friend on the edge of the world last night. One of the coolest moments of my life._


	303. Slam This, December 13, 2010

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and the reads. I'm skipping ahead in time to the Slammys since nothing really happened in the time between the last chapter and this one. So yeah, time jump ahead. Hope you enjoy reading and reviews never hurt so leave one. :P

* * *

"Do you ever think about where you would be if we never started dating?"

"No," Stephanie said. "I don't. I guess I don't have the time, you know, what with raising _three_ small children. But tell me, Chris, do _you_ have time to think about what it would be like if we never started dating? Is it something you think of _often_?"

Chris laughed and kissed her head. "No, it's not something I think of often, thank you very much. I was just thinking about it is all. I mean, sometimes you think about things and with our wedding anniversary coming up next month, you get to thinking about what would have happened."

"Instead of thinking about how we still have to do a lot of Christmas shopping for the kids while trying not to let them see their presents."

"We don't have to worry about Kensy," Chris reminded her. "I don't think she knows what Christmas is yet, I don't think she even knows her name yet, I think I saw her turning her head to the word chocolate the other day, which I found odd. Maybe any long word she thinks is her name since Kensington isn't the easiest name on the planet."

"Yeah, we don't have to worry about her, but Sawyer and Flynn are nosy, especially Sawyer because he knows exactly what Christmas is, I think Flynn is still a little hazy on the subject."

"Is that why she tried to clock Santa Claus in the face?" Chris laughed, thinking back a few days before when they took the kids to the mall to see Santa Claus. Chris had tried to get Flynn to sit on Santa's lap, but she was having none of that and thinking this Santa guy was a complete stranger, she tried to deck him one in the face before jumping off his lap and into Chris's arms. He would like to say he didn't laugh, but he cracked up at it.

"Chris, that was embarrassing!" Stephanie said, covering her face. "Did you see the look on some of the other parents, they were looking at Flynn like she was raised by wolves!"

"Sometimes I think she might be," Chris laughed, then pulled Stephanie's hands away from her face. "She's just tougher than a lot of other two year olds."

"A lot?"

"Okay, she's tougher than _all_ the other two year olds," he corrected himself with a laugh. "But I, for one, applaud her independence and moxie. She's awesome and she just didn't want to deal with that Santa malarkey. She knows what she wants."

"You just let her because she's your little flutterby and she has you wrapped around her finger. You're such a daddy," Stephanie teased him, nudging him in the shoulder. "The mighty Chris Jericho is felled by a two year old and a three month old."

"I never said I didn't have my kryptonite, it just happens to be those girls," he told her.

"And yet you sit and contemplate what it would be like if we had never started dating," she winked at him as she stood up and went over to the table she'd been using as a desk. "So tell me, Chris, because I really _do_ want to know, what if we had never started dating?"

"I was just thinking! I have plenty of time to think now that I'm free for the rest of the month," he said, coming over and sitting next to her. He grabbed one of her papers and she shooed his hand away like even touching anything would ruin her intricate system. "I've got a lot of time on my hands and with all the tours, I've been spending a lot of time alone. Flying from Australia to Tampa gives you a lot of time to do stuff."

"I thought you spent most of it sleeping or reading," she said, scribbling down something as Chris pushed the glasses up her nose. "That's what you told me when I asked you."

"And thinking, I don't stop thinking just because I'm not around you…is there anything I can help you with?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, can you stuff these?" she asked, pulling some things from a chair. She set down a series of envelopes and cards.

"Aren't these the-"

"Slammys for tonight," Stephanie said. "I do not know how I came to have these, but they were in the stuff that Britt gave me this morning when we had our meeting. I have a feeling they got passed down the line and right back to the boss."

"So you want me to stuff them."

"Yeah," Stephanie said, leaning over him. "Okay, so you have the categories on the cards with the winners and then you just have to find the corresponding category and put it in, think you can handle it?"

"I pretty much ran the show with our first two kids and I've written a New York Times bestseller-"

"I didn't ask for your life story," she told him, looking at him over her perched glasses. "I asked if you could handle this."

"I can handle this," he said, leaning over to give her a peck on the lips. "Wouldn't it be funny though if I switched the envelopes? Think of the chaos that would reign if I did that. Oh man, I'd love to see some of these wrestlers improvise on what to do. Can you imagine Kelly Kelly trying to figure her way out of a situation like this where she wasn't fed something to say?"

"I don't want to see that, just get it done," she tapped the envelopes before going to whatever she was doing.

"Don't you think I'm being given too much power, knowing all the winners for tonight?"

"They're stupid awards," she mumbled, engrossed in her own work, looking over the offers from different venues that wanted to host various shows and trying to map a schedule out. Britt was good with the actual show, but the planning like this fell a lot to Stephanie, being the executive that she was. She was the Executive Vice President of Creative and as such had a hand in planning out the venues.

"Yeah, I guess…hey, wait a second, I _won_ Superstar of the Year a couple years ago," Chris told her. "Are you saying _that_ was stupid?"

"Pretty much, yes," Stephanie told him. "I'm sorry, but it's just ridiculous giving awards that don't really mean anything. I mean, yes, it's nice to recognize people, but really, what does it signify other than bragging rights? Do you keep your Slammy in a place of prestige? No, you let Sawyer have it and it's sitting in his room and I'll probably have to get Flynn one when she gets jealous of it. That's all it is. You have far more stock in the titles you've won."

"Wrong again," Chris buzzed, "I take way more stock in my _family_, so see, you don't know me at all!"

"You slept with a teddy bear until you were twelve years old," she told him with a smirk.

"Who told you that!"

"Your mom," Stephanie said, "when Sawyer would drag around your title belt. She thought it was adorable and told me about how you would drag…um, what's his name, Mr. Boo-Boo around with you all over the place."

"I liked Yogi Bear and Boo-Boo, God, isn't there anything in this world that you don't know about, seriously, this is why I didn't want my parents living near us, they have too much access to you and how am I supposed to keep the upper-hand in this relationship?"

"Tell me when you _get_ the upper-hand."

"You change so much when you're back to being in charge, you know that," Chris told her. "I mean, the second you get in command and it's like you're not that sweet, nice Stephanie anymore, you're like cold, bitch Stephanie."

"Just the way you really like it, right?" she told him.

"I'm not so sure anymore," he told her, but the truth was he did. He loved when she was in charge and breaking backs all over the place. Stephanie had been so excited to return to work today she'd probably have jumped out of the plane to get here tonight and saved herself the trouble of waiting for the plane to land. She'd had to wait a few extra weeks to return to work because Chris had gone to Australia for a mini-tour with Fozzy and wouldn't have been able to take care of the kids. Now that he was back and didn't have anything scheduled for a while, she was back at work and loving it already and she wasn't even _at_ the arena.

"Christian and Trish are here tonight," Stephanie commented idly.

"Oh yeah?"

"Christian is going to be presenting. I thought it would be a nice treat for the fans to see him."

"They'll love that."

"You know what they'd love more?"

"What is that? I think it would be to see you, but you tell me what you think."

"I think they want to see _you_."

"Negative, they hate me."

"They miss you."

"You've personally polled all these people?" Chris wondered. "You've gone out and sought every WWE fan and asked their opinions?"

"Yes, I have and they want you back," Stephanie said smugly as she returned to her work, poking her finger at the envelopes as Chris continued stuffing. "So stop avoiding and tell me what you thought about in regards to us not dating? Would I have ended up with three kids?"

"No," Chris said. "I don't think you would have ended up with anyone."

"You're kidding me, right?"

"No, I just imagined a scenario where you weren't with anyone, that's all," he told her with a shrug as he stuffed a card into the correct envelope. "I just think that there aren't many guys out there who would know how to handle you. You're not easy, Stephanie."

"Gee, thanks, I'm glad for that…but are you sure about that considering I slept with you before our official second date?"

"That's not what I mean, but thanks for reminding me. I just think that you're so driven and assertive and everything that you would be too much for most men to handle. You need to be in charge and you need someone who understands that. I just think that you wouldn't have anyone that could really be that person and so you would probably turn a lot to your work."

"So I'd be a workaholic spinster with…twenty cats or something?"

"No, you'd travel too much so no cats. I'm sure you'd try other men, but none of them would know what to do you with you. They would try to control you or try to change you, tell you that you didn't need to work so hard, that they would take care of you and you could just sit back on your laurels."

"Okay, so what would the future entail for you? Don't tell me, you would find some great model to be with and you'd be oh so happy and have the perfect life?"

"No," he said in a silly voice, "that's not what I thought at all. Actually, I think I would be alone too. Like you, I would try different relationships, I'd probably play musical partners like so many of the wrestlers do, but I think ultimately I wouldn't find anyone either because any other woman wouldn't get my independence."

"So we'd be alone, the both of us?"

"Dancing around each other and never realizing that we were perfect for one another, isn't that sad?" he asked her. "Isn't that just the saddest thing you've ever heard in your life?"

"You're too dramatic."

"Hi," came a soft voice from behind them. They both turned their heads and saw Sawyer emerging from the adjacent room, stretching his arms over his head. "I'm done with my nap."

"Well congratulations," Chris said. "Do you want a snack?"

"Yes, please," Sawyer answer, walking over to the table as Chris went over to the mini-fridge in their room. He grabbed a juice box and a yogurt for Sawyer and brought them and a plastic spoon over to the table as Sawyer climbed onto a chair on the other side where there weren't a bundle of papers. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Chris said as he took the lid off for Sawyer.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm working," Stephanie explained, "and Daddy is helping."

"Oh too bad, I didn't win for getting punched in the face by Mike Tyson," Chris said, putting the card into the envelope. "And I was so hoping to win for being humiliated like that."

"You shouldn't be looking at the winners," she chastised him.

"Why not?" he asked, "it's not like I'm going to actually _be _on the show tonight. If you'll remember, I'm not officially under contract right now so me going on the show would be very dangerous. What if the stage fell on me, huh? I could sue this company for all its worth and then _I_ would become the CEO and President and first order of business would be firing the Executive Vice President of Creative."

"Then fine, look at all the winners and spoil it for yourself."

"I think I'll live."

"What are you talking about?" Sawyer asked as he spooned his yogurt in his mouth.

"The Slammys tonight," Stephanie told him. "We're going to be giving away awards and Daddy was nominated for a few, but he's peeking at the envelopes."

"What's nomeentated?"

"Nominated," Stephanie said slowly, "it means when you're considered for getting an award and where you go against others to see who wins."

"Oh, okay," Sawyer said, "well, I'm glad you are, Daddy."

"Thanks," Chris said.

"Mommy, are you excited to be on the show again?" Sawyer asked. "I like being here and so does Flynnie, but I don't know about Kensy because she's so little and she probably doesn't even know where we are."

"I'm very excited and as soon as Flynnie wakes up from her nap then we're going to start getting ready for the show and then were going to go to the show and we're going to have so much fun, right?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said. "I'm going to get to see everyone and I haven't seen anyone in _forever_ because Daddy doesn't want to wrestle anymore because he's gotten kicked in the head and it hurt, but then it didn't hurt and he's okay, but he was singing and singing and then went to Tralia and left again and Mommy was mad."

"Remember when our son couldn't talk?" Chris said, turning to Stephanie, who was laughing at Sawyer's rambling. He sure did take after his parents in some areas of his life. "Also, you were mad?"

"Oh, it was nothing, Flynn was trying to help me with breakfast and she grabbed a jam jar out of the fridge and accidentally dropped it and got jam everywhere and I was just made because she tried to help me clean up, but there was broken glass and she got upset, I'm surprised I didn't tell you about that…oh wait, you were at a concert."

He rolled his eyes and went back to the task at hand. "Daddy, aren't you going to be a wrestler anymore?"

"Of course I'm still a wrestler."

"But you don't wrestle and you're not on the shows," Sawyer pointed out.

"Well, I will be soon, I just took the break because Mommy had Kensy and she needed the help to take care of the baby, especially since Flynnie didn't like the baby at first so we had to make sure everyone was okay."

"She likes the baby now."

"I know, so I'll be back soon."

"You will?" Stephanie said, looking over at him.

"I have a standing invitation to re-sign, right?"

"Yes, of course you do."

"Then I'll be back soon," he teased her.

Later on, Chris and Stephanie were herding their brood into the arena. Stephanie was holding Flynn and Sawyer's hands while Chris pushed Kensington in her stroller. She had no idea where they were and her eyes were wide as she looked up at Chris. Chris, for his part, was absolutely playing the role of proud father, pushing his baby girl around. This was the latest any one of his children had ever started traveling so he had to make up for some lost time around here being the bragging father.

"Oh my God, that's your baby!" Eve said, coming up to Chris and looking over his shoulder at the carriage. "She's beautiful! Look at those eyes, oh my God, you're so lucky! Brie, get over here and look at the baby, she's so little. Chris, she's gorgeous."

"Thanks," Chris beamed. "I think so too."

"Oh wow!" Brie cooed over the little girl. "Oh, she's so tiny. But look at those cheeks, those cheeks are screaming pinch me!"

Chris grinned widely and saw Stephanie looking back at him and rolling her eyes at his pride before she turned around and continued to lead their other children to their office for the evening. Chris stayed behind because what guy wasn't going to lavish in praise over his incredibly gorgeous daughter who was the most beautiful baby on the face of the earth and if anyone tried to dispute that with him, he would fight with them right now.

"Chris, she's so cute," Brie told him. "Oh man, she's smiling!"

"She smiles, look at that smile, there's no teeth, it's so cute!" Eve said, grabbing Kensington's hand. "Hello, baby, hello!"

"How old is she?" Brie asked.

"She's three months old, just about," Chris answered.

"She's still so little," Brie said. "Is she going to be a diva one day?"

"No way," Chris said, then realized he was talking to some divas. "I mean, you know, she can do whatever she wants to do. If she wants to be a diva, then she can absolutely be one."

He didn't want either of his daughters to be divas! They were his precious, little girls and he didn't want either one of them in the kinds of outfits that the divas wore, more skin showing than clothes. He pictured his daughter in anything that Kelly Kelly wore or something that Alicia Fox wore and he cringed at the thought. His heart would not be able to stand it and he would probably go out there and cover them with a sheet. Flynn probably wouldn't wear that stuff though, being as how she wanted to be a serious wrestler, but how could he know about Kensington yet?

"She'll be one of the best then," Eve said.

"Yeah, I hope so," he said slowly, trying not to picture men leering at his daughters. God, why did he have to have two daughters? Why couldn't his y-chromosomes have impregnated Stephanie? What was wrong with those swimmers?

"Chris, hey man, what's up, hey there, Kensy, you're looking beautiful today," Hunter said, in the most chipper mood Chris had seen him in, in ages. Chris raised an eyebrow. "Wow, Chris, I think your daughter gets more beautiful every time I see her."

"What's gotten into you?" Chris asked suspiciously.

"What are you talking about?"

"You're…way happier than you should be, are you coming back tonight?"

"No, I'm still not ready," Hunter said, "maybe we can talk…alone?"

"That's our cue, Brie," Eve said, nudging the brunette. "Your daughter really is beautiful, Chris, congratulations to you and Stephanie on her."

"Thanks, guys," Chris said, watching them walk away before turning to Chris. "Thanks for that. I don't think I could stand being around them anymore. They were talking about Kensy being a diva and a father doesn't want to hear that. That's akin to saying that you hope my daughter appears in Playboy…oh my God, what if one of my daughters poses in Playboy? What if _both_ my daughters pose in Playboy? I can't live in a world where there are pictures like that of my daughters for anyone's eyes to see!"

Hunter put his hands on Chris's shoulders, "Calm down, Chris, your daughters are two and three months old. They also have Stephanie for a mother. I think they're going to be okay."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, you're right, you're right," Chris said, staring down at Kensington. "What if they do porn! What if Stephanie and I are such horrible parents that our kids rebel and go into porn?"

"You and Stephanie are _great_ parents," Hunter said. "Plus, look at Flynn, that girl would kick a pornstar's ass."

"I guess," Chris shook his head. Daughters, man, why were daughters so difficult? "Wait, so what's got you in such a good mood?"

"I'm doing it."

"Not with me, I hope."

"You're so gross," Hunter gagged. "Even if I were gay, you wouldn't be my type."

"So you've thought about what your type would be if you _were_ gay?" Chris joked with a snicker as Hunter looked like he wanted to strangle Chris where he stood and would too if Chris's daughter wasn't right there.

"No, but I know I wouldn't want a jerk," Hunter said, "I'm getting Britt back, tonight, I'm getting her back tonight."

"You are? What prompted this change?" Chris asked as they started walking towards Stephanie's office.

"Lita actually."

"That's not a person I ever expected you to take advice from, especially advice that me and your ex-wife have been telling you for…how long has it been now, like a year?"

"Well, she was better at it..."

"I'm damn good at giving advice."

"She just hit home with me is all," he explained, thinking back to their conversation. They'd just been talking about her and Edge and how they had gone through all this stuff, being apart, him being married to Vickie and still, after all that, they knew they were right for each other. Edge had been _married_ in the interim and he still knew Lita was the one for him. They transcended something, proved that it didn't matter how long they were apart, if it was there, it was just there. Chris and Stephanie couldn't understand that. Sure, they'd apparently broken up when they were first together (he hadn't known about it at the time, but he heard things), but they obviously hadn't stayed apart for very long.

Britt was it. She had to be. There were other girls, other women, others, but there was no Britt except Britt. He thought he'd felt something for Joanie, had loved her, thought she was the one, but she wasn't. He'd loved Stephanie, definitely thought she was the one, but she definitely wasn't the one for him. Then he met Britt and it was suddenly like, yes, this is the one! Then he'd gone and blown it because he had taken the advice of a guy who didn't really know what he was talking about. He'd lose her and there was just no getting her back. No getting her back at all until now. Now he was ready for it.

"Well it's about time someone did," Chris said as Hunter held the door open for Chris and Kensington. "Hey, baby, guess who's finally grown a pair?"

"Pair of what?" Sawyer asked.

"What, what?" Flynn asked too, bobbing her head from side to side.

"Nuts," Chris said.

"Oh, so why did Hunter get nuts?" Sawyer asked.

"I'm anxious to hear this too," Stephanie said from her desk.

"I'm getting Britt back tonight," Hunter told her, brimming with anticipation of having his girl back.

"Oh," Stephanie said, pursing her lips.

Hunter didn't like that response and looked at her strangely, cocking his head to the side, "Oh?"

"Yeah, Britt's not here," Stephanie said. "She had some family emergency. Well, not so much emergency as it is her brother is having surgery and so she's flying to Phoenix to take care of her niece and nephew while her sister-in-law stays with her husband. It's nothing serious. He just has to have gallbladder surgery and yeah."

"Damn it, are you kidding me?" Hunter sighed, running his hand over his face. All his plans and they were for nothing.

"I'm sorry, but she'll be back next week, do you think you can keep your cajones until then?" Stephanie asked sweetly. "Or will they just shrink right back into your body like they did every time you tried to get me pregnant?"

Chris's jaw dropped and he burst into laughter, "Oh my God! Did you hear that, did you _hear_ that? My wife just burned your ass so bad that I can see flames!"

"Daddy, did Mommy say something funny?" Sawyer asked from his trains.

"Mommy just called out Trips is what just happened," Chris said, applauding his wife. "I…you are brilliant, baby, brilliant."

"Shut up," Hunter said, "I couldn't get her pregnant because the swimmers got lost down there and couldn't find their way through that gaping tunnel."

"Not as good, sorry," Chris said, "because I've been where you've been…as gross as that still is and as much as I hate to think it, but I know that it's not everything you said it was that one time in the ring when you were trying to humiliate my wife."

"I just speak the truth, that's why Sawyer is my oldest," Stephanie said, sticking her tongue out. "Don't worry, Hunter, you'll have the opportunity to get with Britt next week."

"I just wanted to do it now, but I guess I can wait, thanks for letting me know," Hunter said.

"Hey, Hunter, for what it's worth, I'm happy that you're going to go after her and get her this time. I think it's about time and I know she's single and probably wouldn't turn you down," Stephanie told him. Hunter shrugged because he didn't know how to respond to that and then left the room. "Well thank God _that's _over. Can you stay with the kids? I have some things to do."

"Yeah, that's fine," Chris said as Stephanie stood up and kissed him and the kids before leaving. Chris set up the portable playpen for later and put Kensington in her bouncer before taking up residence on the couch. He wasn't there for two minutes when the door burst open.

"I demand a better locker room!" Miz yelled before he saw that it was just Chris and his children. "Oh…"

Chris stood up and sauntered over to Chris. "So you don't like the locker room you got?"

"Where's your wife?"

"Working," Chris said, "what are you doing?"

"I wanted a better locker room. The one I have doesn't have a leather couch or a bathroom. I'm the WWE champion here, I think I deserve better accommodations, don't you, I mean, you always got the best…wait, you got that because you're boffing the boss's daughter."

"Yeah, that's right and I've been doing her since before you knew what an armbar was, Mike," Chris told him, folding his arms. "You're lucky I'm not wrestling right now because if I was, that wouldn't be around your waist."

"You sure about that? Isn't that how Jack Swagger won?"

"I don't get what it is about you guys with the briefcases. You go around for the better part of a year and you act like you're the best in the world because you happened to climb a ladder faster than anyone else, then you take advantage of a guy when they're down so that you'll get the easy win."

"It's called strategy."

"It's called not working for it," Chris said. "I'm sure some will say that you worked your way up to it, but I call BS on that. You know what it took for me to win the Undisputed Championship, back-to-back matches against The Rock and Stone Cold, two of the best to ever be in this business and I didn't even get a break between the two, but you, yeah, you, don't have to work for it, so yeah, I guess it is strategy to look like a punk."

"You're just jealous."

"I own your ass, Miz, in _and_ out of the ring," Chris told him. "All I see when I look at you is a copycat trying to be me."

"You wish, old man," Miz scoffed.

"Well, I guess we'll see how _old_ I am when I come back."

"Whatever, just tell your wife to get me a better locker room," Miz said before storming out.

"Idiots," Chris said, going back and sitting with his kids. "At least I have you guys to keep me sane."

Stephanie was being driven insane. With the show being 3 hours tonight and everyone on the roster here plus guest stars, it was getting overcrowded backstage. It was almost strange being back at work after so long. It'd been more than three months since she'd actually been backstage. She wouldn't say she was overwhelmed, but it was certainly a busy show to start working again. She was in her element though and she didn't let the busyness get to her. She knew what she was doing and she knew she could do it well.

Still, there was a lot of hustle and bustle on the show and it didn't start off as well as she'd hoped when Nexus came by to visit her. "You haven't been around a while, but we rule things around here now," Wade said with his little group. "Just thought you should know in case you get any…ideas."

"Oh, I have ideas," Stephanie said. "Believe me, I have ideas, but the first one I'll share with you. _I_ run the show and _I_ run the company. You may go out there and act like the bosses, but I am the boss. You can't run roughshod on me. So you can go on thinking you rule things around here, but trust me, you really don't. I guess this was some sort of scare tactic because you thought I'd come back softer because I just had my third child, but you'd be wrong, to my kids, I'm nice, to everyone else, I'm a hardass, get used to it."

"We'll see, Stephanie, we'll see."

"Oh, I'm so sure, quaking in my boots over here!" Stephanie said, rolling her eyes as she sat back down. Luckily for her, the rest of the show seemed to run smoothly, even if everything seemed to be conspiring against her not to make it happen, especially that damn anonymous GM. Before long she saw Christian and Trish walking out. "Hey guys, you ready…wait, where's Edge?"

"I'm here, I'm here!" he said, running into the area. "Sorry, I didn't miss anything, right?"

"Nope, not at all. I'm so glad you came tonight, Christian, the fans are going to go nuts over an E&C reunion,"

"If they can remember who we were," Christian said.

"Of course they will," Trish said, leaning up to kiss his cheek. "They are going to go nuts for you out there. I'm sure that Tilden is watching and she's going to be so proud of you. I'm sure Lita has her glued to the TV."

"I hope not."

"You know what I mean, go out there and get 'em, tiger," she teased before pushing him towards the gorilla.

Christian had to wait for his moment though. He wasn't going to go out there at first. Edge was going to introduce him. Once his brother introduced him to the crowd, he came out to loud cheering. It felt good to hear that again, especially after everything with his surgery. The crowd clearly remembered E&C and he was glad because those were some _fun_ days. He'd loved being in a tag team with his brother and maybe someday they could be again.

Being up there with Edge really felt like old times and the banter and the joking they used to fall into was right there back again. When he teased his brother with his phone and the anonymous GM, he knew that Edge was probably going to sucker punch him in surprise for that, but it was worth it to see his brother's face. Their mother was probably watching and shaking her head, wondering what she was going to do with her two boys. It was only fitting that Edge win the award though, what with his crazy eyes.

Even when they were younger, Edge had a bit of a crazy streak, but then, to be a wrestler, you kind of had to have that kind of streak in you. He probably had one, though considerably more subdued than his brother's was. He wouldn't go around and beat up computers, but that was just him. He just didn't see the point in getting so upset over a computer and an anonymous GM behind it, but then, he wasn't in his brother's situation.

"You're a jerk," Edge shoved him as they went backstage. "You're a huge jerk."

"What!" Christian laughed. "It was funny and very appropriate to the category that you were in. I mean, come on, you went ballistic on a computer and you should have seen your face when I pretended that the GM had e-mailed me. You almost had a heart attack, right?"

"Trish, will you tell your _husband_ that he's being a jerk-off to me."

"Husband, you're being a jerk-off to your brother," Trish said, "even though it was funny."

"You're a jerk too," Edge huffed. He held up his trophy. "What the hell am I supposed to do with this anyways? I don't want this. It'll just remind me of what an asshole that GM is."

"Maybe you should give it to them since without them you wouldn't have won it," Trish joked and Christian snickered and high-fived his wife.

"Nice one."

"I can't stand either of you."

"Edge, if you're really looking to get that thing off your hands, I know a little girl who would probably love to have something wrestling-related in her room," Stephanie said from her seat at the production table.

"It doesn't have to do with Chris though."

"She's two, she has no clue, we just tell her it's Daddy's and she'll freak out and demand it go in her room," Stephanie said. "You should see her with Chris's office, every other day she decides she has a _new _favorite magazine cover that must go into her room. He's getting cleaned out pretty good."

"Well, as long as it isn't going to that troublemaker son of yours," Edge scowled. "I guess she can have it, here."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, taking it from him when he came over and handed it to her. "She'll love it."

"Well, might as well go to someone who can love it," Edge said, showing off his massive soft spot. Even though he always claimed not to know anything about kids, he usually came through, even with Sawyer and their little feud.

The trio of people around Stephanie eventually left and she went back to her work. She had to admit that the show looked to be running even more smoothly than it did when she was gone, not that she was denigrating Britt's work, but she was just so good. After a while, Chris stopped by with the kids right before he was going to start putting them to sleep in their nice, soundproof room. Kensington was asleep in her carrier and Flynn was getting sleepy and was clinging to Chris's neck while Sawyer was just happy to be there.

"Hi, Mommy, how's working?"

"It's very good," she said, letting Sawyer sit on her lap. "How do you like the show so far?"

"Daddy kept losing, but Ed won," Sawyer said. "And I saw Chrissy and that was fun."

"I thought you would like that," she said, kissing the back of his head. "I think the show misses you, Chris."

"No, it doesn't, look at these guys, they're champs. At some point, I'm going to retire and it's good to see the show is in good hands with some of these younger guys."

"We still need you and now that I'm back and the kids seem to be doing okay, at least this first week, maybe it's time you started thinking about coming back. I'm not saying you have to come back next week or anything, but soon? Before WrestleMania because it's just not the same without you."

"I'll think about it," he said, "but I do have my book coming out in February and I'll have to do a book tour with that."

"Yes, yes, blah, blah, blah, I debuted, I sucked at first, couldn't find my spot, finally I found my way by insulting that bitch, Stephanie McMahon, blah, blah, blah, Undisputed Championship, blah, blah, blah, business partners with my former enemy, blah, blah, blah, nailed the boss's daughter, blah, blah, blah, had kids, we get it," Stephanie said.

"So you blah, blah, blah'd everything that didn't pertain to you, so my life is just you."

"I've heard your life story, the book tour bores me," she said.

"You're not getting a copy of my book then."

"I know what you say in it."

"No, you don't," he told her, sticking his tongue out.

"Chris, have you forgotten you had me proofread it for you before you sent it to your publishers?"

"Oh yeah," he said, "damn it, Stephanie."

"Daddy, what that?" Flynn asked, pointing to the Slammy.

"This is for you, Flynnie," Stephanie explained. "It's an award and we're going to put it in your room, it's just like the one Daddy won when he was Superstar of the Year."

"I want!" she said excitedly.

"We'll put it in your room."

"Okay," Flynn smiled. She cuddled against Chris and sighed in happiness.

"Feels good to be back, doesn't it?" Chris asked, looking around and seeing Stephanie back where she belonged. She just had an air about her when she was here.

"Yes, very…even though Wade and his Nexus tried to intimidate me."

"I'm guessing that didn't work."

She knitted her eyebrows in disbelief, "Do _you_ think it worked?"

"Nope, but get this, I had a run-in with Miz while you were gone. He came in demanding a new, better locker room. I think when I come back I might have to teach that little snot a lesson. After I get Randy of course."

"But you planned the injury with Randy."

"But the logical thing to do would be to go after Randy for the revenge factor," Chris told her. "It just makes the most sense. After that I can go after the Miz and prove to him that he's not the best, but I am the best in the world at what I do."

"He really is," Sawyer said.

"Daddy best," Flynn breathed out as she snuggled closer to Chris. Stephanie smiled and looked at her family. They were everything to her and the business was the second everything to her and once again they were merged and she was here talking to Chris about when he came back. They were here, together and happy, all five of them and she wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.

It was good to be home.


	304. Insults, December 20, 2010

A/N: Trying valiantly to catch up, hope you'll bear with me, enjoy! :)

* * *

"Hello, you filthy, dirty, disgusting, brutal, skanky, bottom-feeding trash bag ho."

Stephanie looked over at the action figure sitting on her shoulder. "Hello, jackass."

"Just like old times," Chris said, appearing next to her. "Do you think Flynn will like this one?"

"You could buy every single Jericho action figure in the place and Flynn is going to like it," Stephanie said as she perused some of the other wrestling action figures in the aisle. "You'd think I could get these for free."

"You could if your dad's company actually made them," Chris said as he threw a couple more action figures into the cart. "Do you think we should get Sawyer one of the rings?"

"He already has them, not to mention if we did then Flynn would want one too and she's still too young for them. She'd put one of the pieces in her mouth, we already have to strip down your figures to the bare minimum as it is just in case."

"Strip down my figure to the bare minimum?" he asked, wiggling his eyebrows lecherously. "I like this idea very much."

"Oh get over yourself," she told him, shoving him in the shoulder.

Chris came up behind her and placed his arms around her waist, picking her up and kissing her cheek. "I love you."

"Put me down," she giggled.

"I can't, I'm too in love with you for the moment," Chris said, "I just can't keep my hands off you. And when we're alone on the road and the kids aren't around, then I have to touch you all the time, can't help it."

"Chris, we've barely even scratched the surface of shopping so will you please put me down and save the lifting for later," she told him, "besides, there are people shopping and they're going to wonder who the crazy couple is."

"Let 'em stare," he said gamely, but he put her down. "I love you."

"I love you too, sweetie," she said, giving him a peck on the lips. "Okay, so we've taken care of Flynn and partially Sawyer. We have to get some things for Kensy though."

"The kid doesn't even know what Christmas is, we shouldn't get her anything," he joked.

"She'll still want toys to play with."

"She literally has no interest in anything that isn't a few feet in front of her face," Chris said, wrapping his arm around Stephanie's shoulder as they walked through the aisle. He spotted another action figure of his that Flynn didn't have and threw it into the cart. "I mean, I would give that girl a gift everyday of her life if I could, but I just don't think we should go too overboard with her because she doesn't understand and she'll just grow out of anything we get her in a few months."

"But they might come in handy later."

"Later, what later?" Chris asked, looking at her with wide eyes. "Are you suggesting or even hinting that you want more than _three_ kids?"

"Knowing us, how we can't keep our hands off each other, how our kids like to sneak up on us, I don't think it's out of the question to guess that we might have more children," Stephanie said. "I always wanted a big family anyways and we have the means so if any more were to come along."

"No, uh-uh, I'd turn them away, tell them to go find another family," Chris said, "I can't take more daughters. If I ended up with like five daughters, my heart couldn't take it. The two I have right now are enough for my heart."

"You're such a daddy," she said, kissing his cheek. "It's adorable. Now do you think we should get Sawyer a new bike? He's outgrown his tricycle and Flynn is starting to use it more than he is. I think he's ready for a big kid bike, at least one with training wheels."

"Yeah, let's do it. I have all the time in the world now so I can teach him to ride a bike," Chris shrugged. "Do you want to get it here or wouldn't you rather wait until we're at home and our son won't see it?"

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that," Stephanie laughed. "We can only get some small things right now."

"Yes, let's go to the infant aisle, we can at least get some rattles and mobile stuff for Kensy. She already has all of Sawyer and Flynn's old toys. That's the beauty of having so many kids so soon, we really only have to buy for Sawyer and then we can pass it down the line."

"We have enough money to get them new things," Stephanie pointed out.

"Oh okay, snob," he muttered as he started to pull the cart. He glanced back at her and just shook his head. "Don't be one of those women. We have enough to provide our kids with new everything, but that's just impractical. I refuse to be one of those guys who lets money go to his head. I'm not going to automatically buy new things for my kids."

"I was just saying," she told him. "I can't wait to see their faces on Christmas morning. Sawyer and Flynn are at an age where they can really get into the spirit. They're going to be so cute when they come downstairs and see all their presents."

"I still wish we could have gone to Canada for Christmas."

"Sweetie, we're compromising and we're going to my family for an early Christmas, staying home for Christmas, and then we're going to Canada for New Year's and we can bring in 2011 in your homeland."

"Thank you for the concession," he said, kissing her lips.

"Plus, this means that we're spending more time in Canada and I'm sure your parents will be happy to go back and visit all their friends," Stephanie said, "I have a feeling that our kids' social schedules are going to be very filled for the next few weeks. My parents are going to want to show them off, your parents are going to want to show them off, plus presents? This is all about them at this point."

"And that's why we're in a toy store in the middle of the day instead of lounging by a pool in Tahiti, spending Christmas naked on a beach somewhere?" Chris asked.

"Yes, that is exactly why," she said, leaning her chin on her shoulder, "and you, Mr. Jericho, would not have it any other way and if you said you did, you'd be lying. And do you know how I know this?"

"How?" he defied her to answer.

"Because your eyes keep lighting up every time you see anything one of our kids will like. Even when you're staring at me, I see you looking over my shoulder and seeing something that you so desperately want to pick up. That's how I know."

"I can't help it, there's too much stuff," he said, grabbing at something over his shoulder. She looked and saw it was a farm set. "Flynn would love this."

"Okay, okay, get it," she said as he put it into the cart, then looked back at her with an impish look. "You're whipped for those children. I find it cute though and very endearing. We better finish up soon though, I don't want to make Ted baby-sit for too long."

"I can't believe I let you talk me into letting Ted DiBiase Jr. take care of our children," Chris said, shaking his head, mostly at himself, but at his wife as well. "I mean, _Ted_. What does he know about kids at all?"

"It's only a couple of hours. Kensy was asleep when we left and she'll probably still be asleep when we get back and Sawyer and Flynn are easy to handle," Stephanie said, then looked over at Chris as he gave her a look. "Okay, Sawyer is easy to handle, but when Sawyer's around, Flynn is a lot better so I'm sure that they're fine. As soon as we're done here we're going to pick them up."

Ted watched as Sawyer and Flynn ran around the grassy knoll in the back of the hotel. It was a fairly nice day in Austin, at least temperature-wise. It was in the mid-70's so the kids hadn't needed jackets or anything. They were content to run around with each other, playing some sort of game that only they understood. Flynn was chasing around Sawyer as he dodged her outstretched hands. She kept falling down from going to fast and Ted swore that every time she did, he cringed and waited for her to start wailing and run over to him and complain about boo-boos. Except she never did; every time she fell, she'd just pick herself back up again and start running, ignoring grass stains on her knees and bruises that were bound to pop up.

Sawyer finally ran over to him and Maryse and studied her for a long moment. "What are you looking at?" she asked him, staring at him like he was a zoo animal let out of his cage.

"You have really yellow hair," Sawyer told her.

"Well so do you," she told him.

"I know!" he exclaimed. "But you have really, _really_ yellow hair."

"Yellow hair, yellow hair!" Flynn sing-songed as she came over and stood next to her brother.

"I know the color of my hair," she told them both condescendingly. "I can see in mirror what color my hair is."

"Okay," Sawyer shrugged.

"Hi," Flynn said, biting her lower lip as she put her hands on Maryse's knees and then grinned up at her.

"Ted, get this girl off me, she is dirtying me!" Maryse said, squirming away as Ted came over and picked up Flynn, letting her sit in his lap.

"Hey there, Flynnie, how are you today?" Ted drawled at her.

"I okay," Flynn nodded and nodded and then nodded some more. "How you?"

"I'm doing okay, I'm going to be wrestling tonight, at least I hope I am, do you think you'd want to watch me wrestle or do you only watch your daddy wrestle?"

"I watch wrestling!"

"She likes wrestling," Sawyer explained, standing next to Ted. He was infinitely nicer than the lady with him. She kept looking at them like he was going to make her eat worms like Addison had said her older brother made her do one time. He would never make Flynn eat worms, but it looked like someone told Maryse that she'd had to eat worms. "We watch it _all_ the time."

"I'm sure you do," Ted said, "I bet you watch your daddy a lot."

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, "he's the best in the world at what he does. He's been a wrestler for a long, long time and I saw when he wrestled before he was here and he wrestled and he was in ugly clothes."

Ted laughed, "Your dad's been wrestling for twenty years or so, do you know when he's going to come back?"

"He said soon," Sawyer said, "but I don't know when that is."

"Hopefully it will be soon."

"We do not need him around," Maryse said with a scoff. "I mean, we are doing fine without him, why did he even leave. And he is _not_ the best at what he does, he just a liar when he says that, you know?"

"Maryse, come on," Ted said, gesturing towards the two kids. Kensington was asleep in her carrier next to his chair, but he gestured to her as well. "These are his kids, they're little."

"They are still people," Maryse pointed out. "I don't know why you agreed to baby-sit them, what do we look like, laborers who do nothing all day. We are not the kind to sit here and look after babies, we are not that. We should be out doing something and doing something fun and adult and not kiddie. I do not do the kiddie thing good, I do not like them."

"Baby, it's not for very long."

"What is it, Ted? Are you in love with Stephanie McMahon or something?" she asked, then looked as his face flushed a little bit. "Oh my God, you're in love with Stephanie McMahon!"

"No," Ted said, making a face. "She's just my friend."

"No, no, no, that did not look like face of person who is just a friend," Maryse said in disgust. "You love her."

"You love Mommy?" Sawyer asked.

"I love Mommy!" Flynn declared.

"Me too," Sawyer said, "she's the nicest, bestest, most prettiest mommy in the whole, wide world and she had two sisters for me and I like them and I have a daddy too."

"You talk and I do not understand, come get me when they are gone. And I would not love Stephanie McMahon if I were you, I heard she got _fat_," Maryse said, leaning over and whispering in his ear. "I would never get fat."

"She's not fat," Ted said, glaring a little at Maryse as she walked away. He turned to Stephanie's kids, both of whom were looking at him expectantly, like he was supposed to have some game they could immediately play. "Um, what do you guys want to do? We can't really do much because we have your sister, but we could maybe play…um…do you guys like to play anything?"

"Tag!" Flynn said.

"Well, I can't just leave your sister here," Ted said, "or I would absolutely play tag with you, but maybe something quieter, do you guys have a book in your bag or anything that we can read, I'm a pretty good reader and I can even do the voices for you if you'd like."

"Mommy does the voices and she's really good at it," Sawyer said.

"I bet she is."

"You like our mommy, huh?" Sawyer said and if Ted didn't know better, he would say there was a very knowing smirk on Sawyer's face when he said that. He didn't like the idea that Stephanie's four year old son knew about Ted's crush on his mother.

"Um, yeah, she's really nice."

"She is," Sawyer said. "Do you like her a lot?"

"Yeah, I like her a lot."

"Do you like her a lot, _a lot_?" he wondered.

"I don't know what you mean by that, but I really do like her, she's a very nice lady," Ted said. "I bet she's a really great mom, but I bet your dad is great too, right, because he's a really good guy and he loves your mommy very much."

"Mommy went to see him when he was on his singing thing and they went to Porpup."

"Porpup."

"Where 'Aris is, with the big tower thingy."

"Oh, Paris in Europe."

"Uh huh," Sawyer nodded. "Read now, please!"

"Okay," Ted said, grabbing their backpack and getting a book out of it. He saw it was some Dr. Suess book and he grabbed the chair that Maryse was sitting it and pulled it closer so Sawyer could climb onto it and hear him reading. Flynn was still sitting in his lap and looking at the book before he could start to read it to them. Once they were all settled, he started reading in as funny a voice as he could muster, which he didn't think was funny, but Sawyer and Flynn seemed to think it was hilarious.

Stephanie walked out back to where Ted had directed them to go by the note on the table in their suite. She stood a little ways behind him, Chris next to her as they watched Ted reading animatedly to their kids. Chris looked at Stephanie and she just laughed. She found it endearing that Ted would go to so much trouble to take care of her kids like he was. She thought he might just turn on the TV and leave them to it, but he took them outside to play and was now reading to them.

"See, what did I tell you, he did a great job, all three of them are in one piece and look, he even put a hat on Kensy so that she wouldn't get any sun."

"He's trying to practice for when he becomes their stepfather is what he's doing," Chris said. "He's obviously trying to impress you by being this guy who knows how to deal with kids. Never before have I seen such a blatant attempt to impress you before and I was with you when Hunter was trying to get back to you."

"You're so mean to him, you know that, right?"

"The man is _still_ trying to get with you and he has a girlfriend now…although…"

"What is that although all about?" Stephanie asked, hanging onto Chris's arm and pulling his face towards her.

"Well, I mean, Maryse…"

"What about her?"

Chris scrunched his face up and looked at Stephanie, shrugging one shoulder. "It's not like I _hate_ her, but she just seems a little…high maintenance. I mean, look at her, don't you think she looks high maintenance."

"You used to say _I_ was high maintenance, so what are you saying?"

"I was wrong about you being high maintenance, you're _no_ maintenance because you can take care of yourself."

"Good answer. So you don't think Maryse is all that?"

"All that? Okay, 1998. But no, I don't think she is. Now can I please go say hello to my children before they vote me out of the family and vote Ted in. I'd like to get some time with them."

"Yes, Jericho, go to your children," she said, pushing him in the back. Chris walked backwards and winked at her before he turned and went towards his kids, who were very engrossed in Ted's dramatic reading of _Green Eggs and Ham_.

"Hey, there are my children!" Chris said loudly, extending his arms.

"Daddy, shh, Ted is reading," Sawyer shushed him as Ted looked over his shoulder. He almost looked embarrassed to be caught reading such a little kid book, but since Flynn was sitting on him, he couldn't move without her falling out of his lap.

"Shh!" Flynn said, putting her finger to her lips.

"Wow, Ted, I can see that you've already stolen my children from me, well, since I know you want my wife and now you have my kids, I think I should just concede the victory right now. You can be Flynn's favorite wrestler; she'll want to watch all your matches so you better have them ready."

"Daddy!" Flynn giggled as Chris made a funny face at her.

"I guess I'll be going now," Chris said, starting to walk away.

"Daddy, you should listen to Ted too!" Sawyer suggested, then saw his mommy walk up. "You too, Mommy. Ted does all the voices and he's really good, but not as good as you."

"Wow, I think I might have to hear this," Stephanie said.

"I should give these back to you," Ted said, nodding his head and lifting up Flynn from his lap and handing her over to Chris. "Maryse is kind of mad at me and I should probably go see if she's okay."

"That's too bad, why is she mad at you?" Stephanie asked as Sawyer lifted his arms to her. He was getting too old to be held, but sometimes he just wanted to hug his Mommy and let her hold him. She picked him up and he banded his arms around her waist and held her neck.

Ted started to blush a little bit, but neither Chris nor Stephanie knew the reason why. "She just has these stupid ideas."

"Ted loves you," Sawyer said. "That's why Mary-see was mad about. She said that Ted is loving you."

"Oh," Stephanie said, looking down and then laughing a little as Chris started to snicker. Ted's face continued to get redder and redder the more he stood there and he wished that he could just disappear into the ground right about now. Maybe a black hole could just swallow him up?

"That's not what she said," he stuttered, ducking his head. Stephanie could hear Chris desperately trying to hold in his laughter and she punched him in the arm and he looked at her, his face red from trying to hold in the laughter. She gave him a look and he had to turn away and walk a few steps away with Flynn, pretending to look at something in the grass.

"It's okay, Ted, I'm sure Sawyer just misremembered it," Stephanie said reassuringly.

"Mary-see also said you were fat, Mommy," Sawyer said and now it was Stephanie's turn to want a hole to bury herself into. She'd been working hard to get back into shape and she was getting rid of the baby weight in rapid succession, but she still had three children to take care of so sometimes it was hard to get her work-out in. But she looked better and Chris never made her feel bad about herself. "Fat's bad, isn't it?"

"Excuse me, what did Maryse say?" Chris asked, overhearing this part of the conversation.

"She didn't," Ted said, "you're beautiful, Stephanie. You're like, one of the most gorgeous women I've ever seen in my life and don't listen to her, she was just mad."

"It's okay, Ted, why don't you get going, you have a show tonight as well. Thank you so much for watching the kids for me, you obviously made a very good impression on them," Stephanie said politely while Chris fumed next to her, already plotting what he was going to do to that bleached blonde bimbo before the night was over.

"Anytime you need someone to watch them, Steph, don't hesitate to ask."

"I appreciate it," she said, giving him a half-hug before Ted left to go chew out Maryse for what she'd said. Stephanie turned to Chris and shook her head, "Chris, please don't do anything, it's not worth it."

"Oh, it'd be worth it, nobody says that kind of thing about you and gets away with it. How _dare_ she say something like that about you when half her hair is fake and the rest of her is too I'm sure."

"Hair can be fake?" Sawyer asked, pulling a little at his own hair.

"Yeah, it's called extensions and she has them," Chris said.

"Chris, we have the kids tonight and-"

"No, no, no," Chris said. "Let's go, I've got some thinking to do."

Stephanie couldn't talk any kind of sense into him. For the rest of the afternoon, he alternated between pacing and sitting on the couch looking deep in thought. Even when Flynn tried to tug on his arm and get him to play with her, he told her he was thinking and she slunk off sadly to go play around with her toys. Stephanie even came and sat next to him, but nothing was working. He wanted to get back at Maryse for what she'd said.

She at least got through to him enough to get to the arena, even though he went straight to her office and continued to sit and think. Finally, Sawyer came up to Stephanie and tugged on her sleeve. "Mommy, is Daddy mad at us?"

"No, baby boy, Daddy's just thinking very, very hard."

"Stephanie!"

Stephanie rolled her eyes and watched as The Miz barged into her locker room, Riley right behind him. "What is it, Miz?"

"I'm the champion and I demand that catering serve me in my locker room. I'm the WWE champion!"

"Yes, you are, but that doesn't mean you get preferential treatment."

"It absolutely does," Miz told her. "Now, I don't want to come off as a loser here, but I like to eat my meal in the confines of my new, private locker room. I think it only fitting that I eat with the very best and that's me because I'm awesome."

"What about Alex?" Stephanie asked, nodding towards the man standing at the right hand of Miz.

"What about him, he can walk to catering and eat by himself."

"Yeah, I totally can," Alex nodded.

"See," Miz told her. "So can you please get on this because if I'm not happy that means your WWE champion is not happy and if the WWE champion is not happy then the entire product suffers. You know what, I should probably just start giving you a list of what I need at every show."

"Yeah, do that, Miz, you come up with the longest list possible and then you give that to me…"

"Awesome," Miz told her with a nod. "Hey, kids, this is what a real champ looks like!"

Sawyer turned and looked at him. "You look like a frog," he said.

"Get your kids in line," Miz said angrily as he stomped out of the room, "Frog…what a joke!"

"He did look like a frog," Stephanie said, winking at Sawyer and making him laugh. "Chris, Chris! Did you hear any of that?"

"Of course, he's a jerk," Chris said offhandedly. Stephanie sighed and came around and sat next to him, hugging him around the waist. He had enough wherewithal to wrap his arm around her waist and she just looked at his profile. His jaw was set extra tight and he was a far cry from the happy-go-lucky guy she'd gone Christmas shopping with. She wanted that guy back.

"I don't care what she said," Stephanie told him.

"Well, I do."

"I know you do."

"Who the hell does she think she is?"

"Jealous."

"What? Because of me?"

"Oh get over yourself," she laughed, "because of Ted. If Maryse said that Ted loved me and then got all insulting with me, don't you see the connection. She was just mad at Ted and she lashed out the only way she could. Look, I know that it's taken me a while to start getting the baby weight off, but it's coming off and I don't feel so self-conscious anymore."

"You shouldn't have felt that way in the first place."

"I know," Stephanie said, "it's just hard to live standing next to you all the time."

"Okay, now I know that has to do with me, but what?" he asked, gazing over at her.

"You're perfect…on the outside, mind you, you absolutely have your flaws and being with you for nearly…nine years has alerted me to these flaws, but the fact is, the person that everyone sees, _that_ Chris Jericho is perfect and frankly, in a lot of ways, so is the private Chris Jericho so it's hard to live next to hat and feel good about myself when I know I'm not at my best."

"You're always at your best."

"Because you love me, because you see in me what others don't, but again, outside perception."

"Damn outside perception."

"I usually do, I _am_, so you should too, okay, don't let the crowing of Maryse get to you, okay, look at all the things to occupy your time…like Kensy, she's awake and I know she'd want nothing more than for her daddy to explain wrestling to her."

He thought about it for a moment. Stephanie was smiling at him and he loved her and he should just let it go. Yeah, he should just let it go. He kissed Stephanie and then went over and picked up Kensington, holding her up and kissing her forehead before he snuggled her against his chest. He could hear her soft sigh and she grabbed onto a fistful of his shirt. She had a strong grip for an infant and he kissed her head again.

"I'm going to go show her around."

"Good, don't run into Nexus though, they might be planning a sneak attack."

"I'll be careful," Chris said.

He intended to take Kensington to the gorilla to show her the ropes (not literally, Stephanie would kill him if he made an impromptu appearance on the show with Kensington. She wouldn't care so much about him, but the kids were off-limits during show time), but he got sidetracked when he saw the women's locker room. He was so tempted that he just had to stop and knock on the door. Natalya was the one that answered.

"Hi, Chris," she said brightly, "hey, Kensy, you are as cute as everyone has been saying."

After Natalya cooed over Kensington's smile, Chris asked her, "Is Maryse in there?"

"Yeah, hold on." Natalya disappeared for a minute before a bored-looking Maryse sauntered over to the door.

"Yes, what do _you_ want?" Maryse said, giving a disgusted look towards the drooling Kensington. She was used to men drooling, but baby drool was downright disgusting and it was getting all over Chris's shirt.

"I heard what you said about my wife today, about her weight."

"Oh, well, I cannot help it if your wife looks like a fat cow, does she moo in bed?" Maryse asked.

Chris's eyes narrowed. "If you know what's good for you, Maryse, you'll shut your mouth right now."

Maryse put her hand up at him. "I do not have to talk to you, goodbye." With a flip of her hair, she disappeared behind the closed door. Chris gaped at the door for a long moment. He couldn't believe her complete rebuff at his threats. Well, if that girl thought this was over, she was sorely mistaken. Chris was very fierce about defending his family and he wasn't going to let someone like Maryse say crap about his wife. She would just have to learn the hard way.

Meanwhile, Stephanie had settled into the gorilla with Sawyer and Flynn sitting and watching the show very diligently. They were always quiet when the show was on, which was a big help when Stephanie had to work like she was doing right now, making sure cues were ready and matches were on schedule and that everything was working as she communicated with the director and other staff taking care of the show. Sawyer and Flynn were content to watch the goings-on and they loved seeing the inner-working of the company. It was about the only time they ever really sat still.

"Hey, Britt, there you are," Stephanie said. She'd only seen her assistant once when she came into the arena and was handed a stack of papers. "Where are you always running off to?"

"Working," Britt said. "It's what I do here every week, what you guys pay me to do, remember?"

"Yeah, I know, just," Stephanie didn't want to say anything about Hunter, she hadn't even _seen_ him tonight and she hadn't talked to him so she had no idea if he was even here, but after last week, she just hoped that he hadn't chickened out again. It was time to get his life back on track and if he couldn't do that now, when the hell was he going to do it? "I just was wondering if you saw anyone new?"

"New? Did you guys hire someone that you wanted me to meet with or something?" Britt asked. "You didn't let me know anything about that, but if you want me to meet with someone and show them around, I think I've got a little time before I have to check my e-mail for those forms that your lawyers wanted you to sign regarding the venues for…April I think it is."

"Oh no, nobody new, was just wondering if you saw anyone around?"

"Well, I've been talking to some people, the usual people," Britt said slowly, not understanding what Stephanie was getting at. "Oh, you know Vickie is here right. She's with Dolph I think, but yeah, I know they're here, so you might want to steer clear because I know there's no love lost between the two of you."

"That's for sure, thanks for the heads up. So nobody other than that?"

"Not really," Britt said. "Did you want me to see Kensy again because I can definitely squeeze in doting to the night's agenda."

"She's with Chris right now and these ones are content to watch. Just thought you might have something to say or that something new had gone on."

"No."

"Any plans for Christmas?"

"My family is actually coming to my place in New York instead of me going to Hawaii. I always go there so they thought it'd be nice if I host this year. My brother won't be able to fly because of his surgery, but my parents will be and then we're flying to Arizona for New Year's to be with my brother and his family."

"Sounds like fun."

"It should be," Britt said. "I love the holiday season, don't you? I mean, you get to watch your kids open gifts and it just must be so much fun."

"It is fun. So no other plans, nobody's called? No New Year's dates?"

"Why? Do you know anyone who's interested?" Britt laughed. "What is with you tonight, Steph? You're acting like a crazy person…okay, you're already crazy, but more crazy than usual, is something up?"

"No, I was just wondering your plans."

She mentally cursed Hunter for being such a coward. If he loved Britt, he needed to stop wasting his time pretending like he didn't need her. What did that ever get anyone? If you weren't open to the possibilities of life, what the hell could you be open for? Hunter kept closing himself off to everyone and everything and it was going to catch up to him. He was already in his 40's and alone, not even a pet in sight, let alone a wife or a home or kids. All he had was emptiness and time and neither one kept you very warm at night.

"Oh, well those are it," she said. "I'll see you later, Steph."

"Yes, later."

"Is everything okay with Britt?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah, Hunter is just being stubborn with her," Stephanie said as she began to watch the show again. She'd found that she hadn't been paying much attention as of late to the show. Sure, she watched with her kids, but she was too busy watching her kids to watch the shows. She had to pay attention so she would know who was mad at whom and who wanted to beat up on whom. It was a lot of work keeping up with the soap opera that was WWE.

"Why?"

"Because he's a coward."

"You kissed him, didn't you?"

"When we were married, yes."

"Yeah, that's what I meant. Mommy, why didn't you like him anymore? I like Trips a lot."

"Well, I know you like him now, but he wasn't so nice back then. But I guess we just didn't get along and we fought all the time and it was just better if we were apart. But it worked out for you because if I hadn't broken up with Hunter, then I wouldn't have been with Daddy and I wouldn't have had you."

"And you love me."

"I do."

"And Hunter loves Britt?"

"You're too smart for your own good, do you hear me, Mr. Jericho. I don't know what I'm going to do with you, but you just too smart and too handsome and everyone is going to like you when you become a wrestler."

"Okay," he giggled. "Will he kiss Britt again?"

"If he's as smart as you are, he better," Stephanie said, hugging Sawyer to her and giving him a kiss on the head. "But then, I don't think everyone can be as smart as we McMahons can be."

"Daddy's not a McMahon."

"Well, he married into the family," she whispered conspiratorially to him. "So we can include him in that."

"Good," Sawyer nodded.

"I'm going to call him now though," Stephanie said, picking up her phone and scrolling through her contacts to get to Hunter's number.

"Hello?"

"I thought this was the week you were getting back with Britt?" Stephanie said into the phone. "Or did you lose your nerve _again_?"

"No, this is the week…it's just not the right time."

Later on, Stephanie actually found herself sympathizing with Vickie Guerrero of all people. The names Cena was calling her and the way he was drawing attention to her physical appearance disgusted Stephanie. She couldn't figure out why people always had to go there, to that place. And Cena of all people doing so; she didn't understand why he was so popular. But if she had her way, everyone would be praising Chris and worshipping at his altar, so maybe her views were skewed, but it just remained, she didn't like the guy. He was such a two-face, acting one way in front of the fans and acting a completely different way backstage. That reminded her, she didn't know where Chris and Kensington were and they hadn't been by to see her. Well, that was odd.

Chris didn't bother with knocking. Ted didn't have anything he hadn't seen before and he didn't think Maryse would be here since he saw her in catering, chatting with the makeup lady, probably telling her how to put on _more_ eye makeup because it wasn't like Maryse couldn't put enough on her eyes. Chris was convinced she'd be way more beautiful if she just didn't wear so much makeup. She was probably a knockout without makeup. Sometimes he didn't get women. Sure, some of them needed layers upon layers of makeup, but most women were just beautiful as themselves. This was something he hoped to integrate into his daughters.

"Chris?" Ted said, standing up like he was in trouble.

"Ted, we need to talk."


	305. Christmas, December 25, 2010

A/N: Many thanks for the reviews and reads. Hope you enjoy the chapter and reviews are much appreciated. :)

* * *

"I'm glad you guys decided to spend Christmas in Connecticut."

"Well, with the show in Albany, it didn't make sense to fly to Connecticut, then fly back to Florida and then fly back to New York," Stephanie explained as she watched Sawyer and Flynn playing with Kenny and Declan. Declan, the oldest, was trying to be the boss of things, but Flynn was defiant in letting him take the lead. Kenny and Sawyer just kind of went along and watched the power struggle.

"Then I have to thank the schedule," Linda said, patting her hand. "It's nice to have you here. Have Ted and Loretta settled in well over at your house?"

"Yeah, Chris took them over to Titan for a tour. They've never been there, even with all the time they've spent up here, but I think he just wants to show off my office, though why it's still there, I have no idea."

"Because we're always hoping you'll move back up here."

"We like it in Florida and so do the kids," Stephanie said. "It's the right place for us right now and most of my work is on the road anyways."

"How is it being back?" Linda asked. "You took a lot longer to come back this time, didn't you?"

"Well that was because of Chris's schedule, it just wouldn't have been practical for me to come back with the kids and not have help."

"You could always hire a nanny," Linda pointed out and Stephanie shook her head vigorously.

"Even before we had the kids, Chris and I both agreed that we wanted to raise our kids, not have anyone else raise our kids," Stephanie said, "I don't think I'd feel comfortable handing my kids over to someone else to raise. They each are different and just need to be fostered."

"I can see that," Linda said, looking to her grandchildren who were running around the living room. Luckily before everyone had come over for the holidays, she'd hid the valuables. She couldn't risk it with four very active grandchildren running around. "Looks like Flynn is now the boss."

Stephanie looked over and indeed, Flynn seemed to be bullying the others into doing what she wanted, despite the fact she was the youngest of them. It was nice to see that the lone girl in the group was being the leader. "That's just how Flynn is. She has a way with her. I'm kind of glad Rissa and Shane haven't gotten all their shopping done because it gives them time to spend together and they don't get to see each other as often as they should."

"Another reason you should move back up here," Linda said. "I love having all my grandchildren here."

"So you can spoil them?"

"Only a little," Linda said. "Then I have my two most adorable grandchildren to dote over. I get to see Bray all the time, but I hardly get to see Kensy and I feel like I'm missing out. She's already gotten so big."

"She's only a few months old, Mom," Stephanie said, thinking about her daughter upstairs, taking a nap with her cousin.

"So what are your plans for the rest of the day?"

"Well, I was going to meet Hunter," Stephanie said, looking at her watch, "in a couple of hours. He said that he wanted to meet with me about something, but I'm not sure what about. He said that it was urgent. I think he has gifts for the kids and he wants me to go pick them up. I think he's going to New Hampshire for Christmas."

"Tell him thank you again from me, he worked so hard on my campaign and I don't know how I'm ever going to repay him."

"He didn't have anything better to do," Stephanie told her. "He's still in love with Britt and he's lonely and he's just been rehabbing and he thought it would be a nice thing to do because he likes you. He's actually quite pathetic right now, it's a little sad. He's so hung up on her and he can't move on and then whenever he tries to move forward, he chickens out."

"I don't think you should be talking," Linda reminded her.

"What are you talking about? I was _never_ like that."

"You might not have been directly, but I remember a very annoying teenager who behaved in very much the same fashion."

"Yeah, but that was when I was in high school, there's a huge difference between a 16 year old and a 40 year old," Stephanie said. "He _is_ acting like a teenager, but he's not 16, he's a grown man and he should go out and get what he wants. That's what he did with me."

"I don't think necessarily just wanted _you_," Linda pointed out.

"Regardless, he wanted me at one point, but I hope that I can convince him to take the necessary steps to stop being such a kid and just go after what he wants and not to be lonely anymore."

"It's easy for you to say that because you're happy. It's not as easy for someone who doesn't have what they want. I know I've been out of the dating scene for a while and so have you for that matter, but I think it's hard out there, harder than it was in the past. You should cut him a little slack."

"I can't believe you're saying these things over _Hunter_."

"He really helped me," Linda shrugged. "I saw a different side of him when he helped me with my campaign, a side that I'd never seen before, even when you two were married. I think the two of you brought out the worst in one another and now that you're apart, the best parts of you can show. In fact, I think Chris brings out the best in you."

"Yeah, he probably does," Stephanie said. "He probably does…"

Loretta looked at her son in shock as they walked out of Titan. "What do you mean you haven't gotten Stephanie anything!"

"We don't really exchange Christmas presents anymore," Chris explained. "We really just focus on the kids at this point."

"No, Christopher, you can't not get your wife a gift," Loretta said, "Ted, tell the boy that he has to get him a gift, you get me gifts, right?"

"Mom, when I'm your age, then I'll get Stephanie gifts because our kids will be grown, but right now, we'd rather just see our kids open presents."

"That can't happen, you have to get her a gift, we'll go get her one right now," Loretta told him. "We can go to the mall and I'm sure you can find something that she'll like. You can afford anything you see so you don't have a budget. I can help you find a gift that she'll like. I've spent enough time with her that I think I know what she would like."

"Retta, if the boy says that he doesn't get gifts for his wife, maybe we should let him decide not to get her a gift because I'm sure he would know."

"Thank you, Dad," Chris said to his father.

It wasn't like he didn't like getting Stephanie things, but Stephanie had so _many_ things. She was a difficult person to shop for to begin with, but they'd been together for years and years and they never had want for anything. They were both in agreement that presents for each other weren't a priority; if there was something one of them wanted, then by all means the other person could get it for them, but otherwise, they were perfectly happy to not do anything for each other.

"You can't just give each other nothing!" Loretta was horrified about the prospect. She figured this could possibly just be a test by Stephanie to see if Chris would actually get her something.

"We are, Mom, okay," Chris said. "Come on, I'll take you guys to a late lunch."

"Then we can go get Stephanie something."

Chris just groaned and followed his parents back to his car. He'd had fun showing them around Titan. They'd been impressed with how everything flowed so smoothly and they were even more impressed over the fact that someday, all of this would be Chris and Stephanie's. They never imagined their son the leader of a major brand, but here he was, an entire company that he might someday have a hand in running. They both knew Stephanie would of course actually be running things, but surely Chris would take a part. Chris was still proud to show them what would be Stephanie's though.

"Finally, you're here!" Hunter said, pulling her into his house, nearly causing Stephanie to topple over. "You don't have any of the kids with you?"

"No, my mom is babysitting them. Chris is out with his parents since they came up to spend Christmas here," Hunter said.

"Hunter, who was at the door!"

"Damn it," Hunter muttered to himself.

"Your parents are here, I thought you were going to New Hampshire to be with your parents and sister and her kids," Stephanie said, looking down at herself. She didn't know why, but she liked to look presentable in front of Hunter's mother, probably because the woman hated her and she wanted to look like she was above Pat's pettiness.

"No, they're coming here," Hunter told her. "Well, they're here actually. I thought I could sneak you in so you wouldn't have to see them but…"

"Your mother is like a hawk, Hunter," Stephanie said as Pat entered the foyer. "Pat! It's so wonderful to see you again!"

"Hunter, what is _she_ doing here?" Pat asked him and Hunter gave her his best smile. Stephanie could never figure out why guys were so hung up on their mommies. While Chris wasn't as bad as some guys, at times he was still such a mama's boy that it sickened her. At the end of the day though, she probably shouldn't talk because Sawyer seemed to love her something fierce and she loved the adulation.

"Mom, I've told you a million times that Stephanie is my friend," Hunter told her. "I asked her over to talk to her about something important to me."

"I'm in town with my family for Christmas," Stephanie told Pat.

"Oh, your family," Pat said through gritted teeth. She was bitter because her son, her wonderful, wonderful son didn't have anyone to speak of at the moment and hadn't for a long time. She didn't know why her son was allowed to waste away by herself while the woman who had broken his heart and treated him like trash was allowed to have a husband and two children.

"Yeah," Stephanie said, trying to remain nice in the face of rudeness. "We thought it would be nice to spend it with my parents."

"Stephanie and Chris don't get to travel that much up here," Hunter explained. "Stephanie just went back to work after maternity leave and before that she was in Florida."

"Maternity leave?" Pat asked. "You…have another child."

"Stephanie gave birth to a little girl in August," Hunter said.

"Kensington," Stephanie said, feeling uncomfortable now. She could almost see the words streaming through Pat's mind about the fact that she now had three children with her second husband, the husband she had after Pat's beloved son.

"Oh, well congratulations," Pat said, but it was with a streak of sarcasm in her voice. Three children? Three children! This woman was just rubbing her face in it and Pat had to get out of there before she did something rash. "Well, I'll be in the kitchen, Hunter, if you need anything."

"I won't!" Hunter said, leading Stephanie upstairs and into his bedroom.

"So _this_ won't make your mom suspicious," Stephanie laughed as she went over to the little sitting area Hunter had off his room. "Wow, you know, I haven't been in here in almost ten years or something. A long time, kind of weird being back here. Why did we come up here again?"

"Because it's the only place in this house that my mom's ears won't be prying," Hunter said, sitting down. "She at least gives me that."

"If Sawyer is ever like this with me, I hope someone will tell me so that I don't act like your mother acts."

"You're my ex-wife, this is your life sentence," Hunter shrugged. "It's actually probably good that you didn't bring any of the kids, I don't think my mom could have taken that."

"Oh…"

"What?"

"Well, I was going to bring the kids by tomorrow because Sawyer thought it would be a great idea for him to get gifts for all his friends, young _and_ old. We went out and he bought a bunch of small gifts for his and Flynn's friends from preschool and play-dates and then we took them out to get some gifts for you and some others, you know, the usual, Trish, Christian, Tilden, Edge, Lita, Britt, and of course, you. We have it at the house and he wanted to hand deliver it. He doesn't know you got him gifts, this was his own thing."

"Are you sure that kid wasn't switched at birth? A McMahon being generous and selfless? I didn't think it was possible."

"Jury's still out on that one."

"I'll try not to let my mom be here when they get here," Hunter said.

"Good because they really want to give it to you…so what is this all about?" Stephanie asked. "You said that it was urgent and so I…oh no…"

"What?"

"I completely forgot," Stephanie said just as she heard the doorbell ring downstairs. "Damn it."

"Stephanie, what's going on?"

"You said that you were probably going to need to talk to Chris as well and I told him if his thing with his parents ended early that he should just come over here and we could talk to you together and I'm almost 99% positive that the doorbell you heard just now is my husband."

Hunter froze, "Oh no."

Chris nodded his head along to the song he was humming to and singing in his head. He looked around and started patting his hands on the wall next to the door, a drumbeat to go along with his head singing. Stephanie's car was out front so she had to be here. She'd told him that Hunter wanted to talk to him and he had no clue what about. He laughed to himself thinking about their vacation for his birthday and the thought that Hunter might have fallen for Lita since they were kind of stuck together the entire time. A fight between Hunter and Edge might actually be funny.

The door finally opened, "Well, it's about time, man…woman…that is Hunter's mother, right?"

"Oh, it's you," Pat said as Hunter's sister, Lynn peeked over her shoulder.

"Oh, you're Chris Jericho, right? I don't think we've met," Lynn said, intercepting him before her mother could get at him. "I mean, not officially anyways, I'm sure I've seen you around. Your Stephanie's husband, right?"

"Yeah, that's right, is she here because her car is here?" Chris said, jerking his thumb towards the driveway. "She told me to meet her here because Hunter wanted to speak with us."

"Of course, of course," Lynn said. "They're upstairs, let me show you."

"Okay, thanks, um, nice seeing you, Mrs. Helmsley," Chris waved at her stony face as Lynn led him upstairs.

"Sorry about her, I think that you're almost obligated to hate your ex-daughter-in-law and anyone associated with her after a divorce," Lynn said. "It's required by law or something. She's just mad because she doesn't understand how you two can be friends with Hunter."

"We weren't for a long time."

"I know," Lynn told him, "it doesn't matter to me, my brother is a big boy, he can deal with things himself, but my mom wants to be mad on his behalf and I don't really blame her for being upset, she's a mother, you're a father, right, I'm sure you would be the same with your kids."

"Yeah, I probably would be."

"They're in there," Lynn said. "Sorry again about my mother."

"Thanks, Lynn," Chris said before he pushed the door open. He realized this had to be Hunter's bedroom and he looked around before seeing Stephanie and Hunter standing up and walking towards the door. "Oh no, by all means continue what you were doing in Hunter's bedroom."

"Sorry, prying ears and eyes," Hunter said. "Did my mom answer the door?"

"Yeah, but your sister saved the day," Chris said as Stephanie pulled him over to the couch and sat him down. Stephanie sat down on his lap and he wrapped his arms around her waist as Hunter sat down. "Before we get on with anything, I'm just going to say what we're all thinking, this is so goddamn weird. I'm sitting in my wife's old bedroom where she slept with her ex-husband."

"Oh no, that's a new bed," Hunter told him, "that's not the bed Stephanie and I had wild sex on every night."

"Where's your bathroom because I'm going to throw up," Chris gagged.

"Might not want to go in there because Stephanie and I have had sex in that shower," Hunter shrugged and Chris let his head fall against Stephanie's shoulder as Stephanie and Hunter both laughed at him. "I'm sorry, it's just too easy."

"You're disgusting," Chris said, "so what's this all about? I mean, the secrecy, the being in bedrooms we have no business being in…"

"It's Britt."

"Told you," Stephanie said, turning to her husband and poking him in the chin. "I knew as soon as I heard it that it was about Britt. I knew that you were going to do something special for her over Christmas, so what is it, what are you planning? Are you going to like, take her out to the snow or something and then like, ask her back in some wonderful forest setting."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Hunter said, turning to Chris, "are you not getting enough romance into her because that was pretty damn sappy."

"Chris and I have been together for almost nine years and everything romantic has already been done, sue me," Stephanie said. "So really, what are you planning?"

"The truth."

Stephanie and Chris looked at each other before Chris responded, "The truth?"

"Yeah, I'm going to tell her the truth, I'm just not sure how I should put it, do you think you guys can help me?" he asked.

"I'm not sure what you mean by the truth, the truth about what?" Stephanie asked. "I mean, like the truth about how you feel or the truth about what happened? What kind of truth are we talking about here?"

"The truth about how I feel _and_ about what happened, everything that I've been keeping inside of me for all this time, I want to tell her all of it. I don't want to hold anything back from her," Hunter explained. "I think that if I tell her everything, if I just tell her the truth about everything that she'll take me back. I really think she will."

"If you think that's for the best," Stephanie said. "I don't think it could hurt. What do you think, Chris?"

"I think the truth is a good place to start."

**Christmas morning**

"I'm glad I decided to come to Canada with you," Lita said as she cuddled against Edge on the couch in his mom's house. They sat contentedly watching Trish and Christian helping Tilden open her gifts. "I know my mom was a little sad that I wouldn't be coming home, but I'm glad that I came here to be with you guys."

"I'm glad too, I know I'm not the more articulate guy when it comes to how much I love you, but…I love you, you know that right?" Edge said. "Everything I've been about for the last few years has been about you and I'm glad I stole you away from Matt Hardy."

"Boy, am I glad you did that too," Lita joked. "Because I'm not sure I could stand to be with him as he is now. I mean I don't harbor any ill will towards him even though he obviously still holds a grudge with me, but I'm glad that I let you steal me away."

"I'm better for you," he told her and she believed him because it was true. Way back in the day, she'd thought she'd been made for Matt Hardy. They held all the same interests, they were practically the same person and it felt right. But she never could just sit on a couch with him and cuddle. Now the world was seeing why. Matt was a complainer and he was an excuse-maker.

"You are," she told him, kissing his jaw. "Nobody understands me better than you."

"That's for damn sure," Edge said. "Matt never would have stood a chance…and looking at him now…"

"Let's not bring him into our conversation, he's no longer a part of our lives so we shouldn't bring him up."

"So then I'll just bring up this," Edge said, handing Lita a box. "Merry Christmas, Li."

"Edge…"

"You're my girlfriend and I love you," he told her, "open it, it won't bite, I promise."

"Okay," she said, taking the box from him and opening it. "Edge…this is a ring…oh my God, are you proposing?"

"What? No," Edge said, shaking his head, "I know that we're not ready for that, _I'm_ not ready for that, but it's a promise ring, you know, like one day, I'm going to want to marry you, but not today, but one day, when we're both ready, I'm going to marry you. I just wanted you to wear this for people to know that you're taken, not that I'm claiming you or anything, just…you're the most important person in my life."

"What happened to skirt-chaser Edge?" she asked teasingly as she slipped the ring on her right hand, admiring it for a moment before she took Edge's face in her hands. "Are you still going to look at other girls?"

"Yes," he told her as she smushed his face a little.

"Are you still going to comment on how big a girl's rack is?"

"You bet."

"Are you still going to comment on how if you weren't single you would totally hit that?"

"I most likely will," he told her.

She leaned forward and kissed him, "Good, because that's the only Edge I think I can deal with for the rest of my life."

"Good," Edge said, pulling her towards him and hugging her.

"You guys," Christian said, "Tilden's going to open your present next."

"You mean _you're_ going to open it for her," Edge said good-naturedly as he sat back against the couch again, Lita settling against him. "I think she likes the paper more than she likes her gifts."

"I don't think that's true."

Edge pointed over his shoulder and Christian looked at his daughter, who was grabbing at the wrapping paper and laughing as she crinkled it in her hands, fascinated by the sounds it made. She looked to her mommy and tried to hand it to her, but Trish just let her have it. Tilden thought the paper was really cool and it was all different colors and she loved looking at different colors. She could even point to the right colors if her mommy or daddy asked.

"Okay, so maybe it's a little true," Christian said, "Tilde, don't you like any of the gifts everyone got you. Everyone was thinking about you and everything you would want."

"She's already all toyed out," Trish said, "after everything she got from my parents and my sisters and their families last night, I think she won't even have room in her bedroom for all the toys and God, getting them all back to Florida is going to be a chore."

"It's her first Christmas, we had to get her everything she wanted," Edge and Christian's mom breezed into the room. "Besides, she's my first grandchild so I had to get her everything I could find…Lita, when are you going to have a baby?"

"Mom!" Edge said, embarrassed that his mother would ask something like that. "That's not any of your business."

"I just wanted to ask. Neither one of you are getting any younger and I would love it if you two had a baby," she said. "I'm just making a suggestion, you don't have to take me up on it, but if you were to have a child, I guarantee that I would spoil it."

"I don't think Edge would do well with a kid, Mom," Christian snickered, looking over at his brother. Tilden climbed into her daddy's lap and Christian picked her up and held her against him.

"Hey, I baby-sit Tilden and she loves me, right Tilde?" Edge said and Tilden babbled and laughed at her uncle. "See, she loves her Uncle Edge, coolest guy she knows, plus, Li and I baby-sit Stephanie and Chris's kids all the time and Flynn and Kensy love me, Sawyer is another story, but that kid has it out for me anyways. I would make a great father."

"Yeah, right," Christian said.

"I would, I could have a kid right now and I'd be awesome at it."

"I'd like to have a say in that," Lita said with a laugh.

"Mom, Li and I aren't ready for kids, but maybe someday. For right now, I think we're both fine just watching after the kids around us," Edge explained and his mother shrugged and accepted the answer. She never thought she'd see Edge settle down with any one woman so this was more than enough for her.

Trish smiled at the family she had. It was crazy and strange sometimes, but she wouldn't give it back for the world. Christian looked over at her and smiled, glancing at the new earrings he'd given her the night before. She leaned over and kissed him as Tilden tried to push them apart. She wasn't fond of her parents kissing and often wanted them all to herself and paying attention to her. She was totally the light in her parents' eyes and she liked to keep it that way. Trish pulled away and sighed happily. She wouldn't trade this for the world.

"What are you thinking?" Christian asked, catching the look on her face.

"This is Tilde's first Christmas," Trish said as she watched Tilden crawl over to Edge and he picked her up, throwing her up over his head and catching her. "It's her very first one and how special that is for her. I know she probably doesn't get it, but it is special. I don't know, she's amazing, isn't she?"

"Yeah, she really is," Christian said, looking at his daughter. "She's the best present ever."

"Yeah, I know," Trish said, "which is why you treated her like a delicate flower for so long."

"Come here, you," he said, pulling her into his lap as she started laughing and shoving at him. "I can't wait until I can go back to work. I think that's going to be my Christmas present this year, just a little late. I miss it. I want you and Tilden to come with me too."

"Wait, I'm sorry, are you saying you want your precious, little girl to be exposed to the evils of wrestling?" Trish asked, pretending to be shocked by his declaration.

"I want her there. I love it there and I want her to love it there too and if Stephanie and Chris's kids can be so cool and well-adjusted and travel, I think Tilden can too and then I can spend more time with her. I mean, she's going to be walking and talking soon and I don't want to miss out on that because I'm on the road…so what do you say?"

"I'm in," Trish said, hugging him. "I'm so in."

Sawyer ran down the stairs as soon as Chris opened the baby gate. He grabbed onto the banister and started down the stairs at the fastest pace he could. Flynn, who was also excited, went down one step at a time because she just couldn't go any faster. Still, she was very excited about this. Chris went down behind them, keeping his hand on top of Flynn's head so that she kept her balance going down the stairs. Stephanie brought up the rear with Kensington, who was sleepily sucking on her pacifier.

"Wow!" Sawyer yelled as he looked under the tree. "Daddy, Santa came!"

"I see that," Chris said as he held Flynn's hand as they walked into the living room.

"He knew we were in Connettycut! Just like you said he would know!" Sawyer said as he dashed to the presents and started looking through them.

"Did he eat your cookies?" Chris asked and Sawyer jumped up and ran over to the fireplace.

His jaw dropped as he saw that Santa had in fact eaten the cookies and drank the milk and the carrots he'd left for the reindeer were gone too. "Daddy, he ate them, he must have really liked them because he only left a little bit!"

"Cookies?" Flynn said.

"Santa ate them all," Chris told her and she shrugged and went over to her presents. "Looks like you two were _very_ good this year."

"I was! I was!" Sawyer said. "Daddy, can I open them now! Pretty please!"

Stephanie sat down on the couch and watched as her kids rooted through the presents, desperate to open them. Chris started sorting through the presents as his parents came downstairs. Stephanie accepted the hug from Chris's mom as she sat down on the couch next to her. Ted helped Chris with the presents, the piles getting bigger and bigger for Sawyer and Flynn and even Kensington getting her own growing pile.

"Merry Christmas," Loretta whispered to her youngest granddaughter, whose eyes were drooping closed. Sawyer and Flynn had insisted on getting up super early and it wasn't to Kensington's schedule. She usually woke up around 8 and it was only 7 right now and so she was still on the sleepy side. "She doesn't have a clue what's going on, huh?"

"No," Stephanie said, rubbing Kensington's back, "but I didn't want her to miss out on the fun. It wouldn't be the same if they weren't all here."

"I understand," Loretta said.

"Okay, go to town!" Chris said, sitting on the floor in between his kids as Sawyer grabbed the biggest present he could find and started tearing into them. Flynn followed his lead and started opening everything in sight, not having any regard for any particular present, but opening things up like a madwoman, ripping at whatever she could get her hands on.

"Cool!" Sawyer yelled as he unwrapped a Phineas and Ferb boombox. "Daddy, this is so cool! Santa is great!"

"He sure is, but that's from me and Mommy," Chris laughed. "You didn't read the tag on it."

"Thank you!" Sawyer called out in the general direction of his parents.

"Daddy! It Daddy!" Flynn screamed, unwrapping one of the seven Chris Jericho action figures Chris and Stephanie had gotten Flynn. Flynn started to try to open the toy and Chris took it from her and opened it, handing it to her as she started to crash it against the presents, making grunting noises that Chris was positive he did not make when he was in the ring. Flynn tore at another present and it was another figure of her father and she screamed, "It you! It you, Daddy!"

"She really does love him, doesn't she?" Ted chuckled to himself. "I wish Chris had been like that."

Stephanie laughed as Chris came and sat next to Stephanie's feet with some of Kensington's presents. He opened one of them for her and then turned to his daughter, who was starting to wake up more now that her brother and sister were screaming at the top of their lungs with every present they received. For instance, Sawyer was now yelling because Santa had gotten him his very own scooter. He tried to start riding it, but only succeeded in nearly running over Chris's foot.

"Hey, look, Kensy-bear, a…um, bumpy ball, just for you," he said, shaking it in front of her face as she grabbed at it. She smiled around her pacifier, liking the sounds that it made. "You've got quite a lot of stuff here, do you think you want to help me open some of them?"

"She might," Stephanie said, handing Kensington over to Chris. He sat her down in between his legs, letting her sit up while he supported her back. She looked up at her daddy as he grabbed a present. He held her hand with one of his and helped her to tear the paper on a new playset where she could lie on her back and look up at her toys. "Aww, look what you got, Kensy!"

"What get, Kensy?" Flynn asked as she crawled over to where her Daddy was sitting. "That look fun."

"She's going to have a lot of fun with it," Chris told his older daughter.

"It no have you 'doh," Flynn told him. "I like you."

"Not everything has my face on it, Flutterby," he joked with her, giving her a wink. "I think Kensy will like this just fine."

"Okay," Flynn said, going back over to her presents because she still had a lot to open.

"Mommy, I think this is for you," Sawyer said as he had come across a present that said "Mommy" on it and he could read that. It was a small box and Stephanie took it from her son and thanked him before he went to go look at his presents again as Ted helped him with his toys.

"What's this?" Stephanie asked as she saw that it was from Chris. "Chris, I didn't want anything, I told you not to get me anything."

"My mom insisted," Chris shrugged.

"I didn't get you anything though," she said, feeling guilty.

"Don't worry about it, it's nothing expensive or anything like that, just open it, okay?" he said as he cradled Kensington against his chest now so he could look at Stephanie as she opened the gift.

She opened it up and inside was a jewelry box. She laughed, knowing that she had so much jewelry that if she wore it all she wouldn't be able to move. It was kind of long and flat and she opened it only to find…paper. There was a folded piece of paper inside and her name written across the top of it. She looked to Chris in wonder and then plucked the paper out, finding nothing underneath. He gave her a pointed look, telling her with his eyes to read it.

_Stephanie,_

_My mom told me that I _had_ to give you a gift because it was what was expected of me as your husband, but I don't think that's true so to get her off my back, this is my present to you. When it was my birthday, you told me that you felt like you had won some cosmic lottery and that's why you got so lucky to be with me. I'm sitting here right now, with you sleeping next to me, and all I can think about are those words. They've been stuck in my brain ever since you said them because every time I think about them, I think about how wrong you actually are._

_You didn't win a cosmic lottery because I was the one with the winning ticket. I'm the lucky one and I know that this is sappy, but it's Christmas, so let me be sappy for one time in my life, okay, then tomorrow we can go back to thinking the sap is for losers. I figure if there's one day I can be a sap, it's Christmas since you won't allow it on V-Day (see, I didn't even spell it out for you because I know you hate that commercial mess of a "holiday"). The real reason I don't need Christmas presents anymore is because you give me everything I need everyday of the year, not just on Christmas._

_There are not many wives with three children who would let their husbands follow their dream to Europe for two weeks, but you do and you've always understood that making music is something I've wanted to do. You put up with me over that and over so many little things I do to bug you and I know I bug you. You're the most independent, amazing person I know, men and women include and everyday I thank my lucky stars that I'm with someone who can understand me and even puts up with the light on in the middle of the night. You're really not even waking up and I'm sitting here humming to myself. That's how great you are._

_I was thinking to what Hunter was telling us when we met up with him, about how it was time to tell the truth. I just kept thinking about all of the crap he's having to go through right now to try and win his love back and how lucky I am that you're right here with me and that we are so uncomplicated. I know that we used to be full of complications, plans, secrets, what not and while that was exciting, this is even better. I won the cosmic lottery, Steph, me, not you. Without you, I wouldn't be waiting to see our kids freak the hell out when they get to see all their presents. Sawyer, our wunderkind, and for the record, on that front, we must have won the universal lottery because how the hell did we end up with that kid, is probably going to wonder how everyone else likes their presents before he even starts to play with his stuff._

Stephanie looked up and saw Sawyer looking over the toys that Flynn had got as she explained her excitement over all the Chris figures she had.

_Flynn, our troublemaker, will probably try to boss Sawyer around into playing with her. And then there's our Kensy. Three kids. Three gifts. Steph, you've about covered any gift I could possibly want. Merry Christmas and I love you, everyday of the year and I think the only gift I can really give you is to be the best husband and father I know how to be. I hope that I haven't been failing at either over the last six years, but if I am, feel free to wake up and hit me…okay, you didn't wake up and hit me so I guess that means I get an A. Score! I love you and I won't even wake you up for sex right now, instead I'll let you sleep. My love always._

_Chris_

_P.S. Maryse isn't getting off so easy with what she said. Details to follow…_

"I love you," she said, leaning down and kissing him. "I love you so much."

"Love you too," he mumbled against her lips.

Hunter was glad for once that his family really celebrated on Christmas Eve and not on Christmas Day. They'd had a small breakfast and would have dinner later, but that left the entire day to him. He drove himself to New York and to the address that Stephanie had given him. He didn't know where Britt was staying anymore but Stephanie had been a huge help. She and Chris had both been huge helps. Usually, he would have gone to Shawn, but he proved he wasn't as trustworthy as he appeared. When he showed up at her apartment, he was actually fortunate to catch someone leaving and didn't have to be buzzed up. He kind of doubted that she would buzz him up actually.

He reached her door and knocked, almost chickening out when he did it, but he couldn't chicken out anymore. It was time to move forward, time to get what he wanted. He was tired of coming home to an empty house and filling his time with bygone memories. She wasn't the one who answered the door though and he found himself utterly embarrassed by his sudden appearance. He hadn't even wondered what she did for Christmas.

"Hunter?"

"Lelie, hi," Hunter said to Britt's mother.

"This is a surprise, what are you doing here…oh, where are my manners, Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas, I was hoping to talk to Britt, if she was here that is."

"Of course she's here, do you want to come in?"

"Maybe it's better if I stay out here," Hunter said, "I don't want to intrude."

"Okay, if you insist," Lelie said, "Hold on, okay?"

"Thanks, Lelie."

"No problem," she said, patting his arm. He paced the hallway a little before the door opened and he turned to see Britt stepping out into the hallway, closing the door quietly behind her. She took a few steps towards Hunter and he stopped his pacing.

"Hunter, what are you doing here?" Britt asked. "Merry Christmas by the way."

"Merry Christmas," he returned.

"Okay, so what did you want?" Britt asked, folding her arms.

"I was an asshole," he started, looking down at his feet. "I was the world's biggest asshole to you. I ditched you. I ditched you to be with my best friend who wasn't really my best friend because he tried to break us up and succeeded and I'm not trying to blame him, it wasn't his fault. I chose to be an ass, but I'm not gonna do that again."

"Hunter…"

"No, no, no, Britt, I know you. I know you so well and I know you're pushing away because you think that this world is…you think it's all fickle, but it's not. I know that there's a ton of serial dating, but there are really good examples. Look at our friends, they're all happy and together and then look at like John Morrison and Melina, they're together and Ted and Maryse and they're together and people are happy and it's not as fickle as you might think. I want another chance and I'm willing to do anything to get it."

"It's been such a long time, Hunter, we've both moved on-"

"Tell me you've moved on," Hunter said, grabbing her tiny hands. "Tell me you've moved on and I will leave you right now and I will not bug you again, but I know you're running, Britt, I know you're running and I'm sorry that I made you want to do that, but I'm here now and I will do anything to make you happy."

"What if leaving would make me happy?"

"Okay, I can't do _anything_."

She laughed. "I'm still hurt, Hunter. Whenever I think about you, I still hurt and that's why it's so hard for me to give you another chance. I don't want to feel those feelings and I keep stamping them down."

"I know and I will do everything I can not to make you feel like that again, I just want another chance to prove to you that we're good together. We're wasting time, Britt, we're wasting so much time. I'm tired of wasting it. I'm tired of feeling lonely and missing you. I'm tired of coming home and not having someone there with me to fill those damn empty spaces. There's only so many times I can work on someone's campaign or impose myself on my friends' lives. Before I know it, I'm going to be standing on Trish and Christian's doorstep because I'm so lonely."

"You're a crazy, crazy man."

"I know and I know we still have a lot to work out and talk about, but if you're willing, I want to open the lines of communication. A foot in the door is all I'm asking for here Britt, just a foot in the door."

She leaned up and kissed him unexpectedly. It wasn't a frenzied, heated kiss, but a nice one nonetheless. He grasped at her as she gripped his shirt tightly before letting go. She looked up at him and her face crinkled a little, "We have _a lot_ to talk about."

"I know."

"Come on, you drove all this way and I'd be a horrible host if I didn't invite you inside."

"Inside?" he asked hopefully.

"You've got your whole body in the door, happy?" she teased, taking his hand in hers, letting it dwarf it like it used to a long time ago.

"Very."


	306. New Year, December 27, 2010

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and reads, hope you enjoy the chapter, if you feel like reviewing, that'd be cool. Enjoy. :)

* * *

"Daddy, what do you do on New Year's?"

"Well, you celebrate the new year by staying up until midnight and then when it turns midnight that means that it's the new year because it'll be the first day of 2011. And then at midnight, we have some streamers that we can pop and then you drink a little drink and then you're supposed to kiss someone."

"Are you going to kiss Mommy?"

"I'm going to kiss Mommy, then I'll kiss you, then I'll kiss Flynnie, then I'll kiss Kensy."

"Okay," Sawyer giggled as his eyes started to get heavier. "Daddy, is I going to stay up til midnight?"

"Well, if you can, Mommy and I said that this is one time where you don't have to obey the bedtime rules," Chris told him, running his hands through his son's blond hair. He didn't expect any of his kids to be up until midnight though. He and Stephanie had told the kids they could stay up until midnight, but they both expected them to conk out around 10, 11 at the most. While they were used to staying up, there were limits, even for them.

"I'm gonna," Sawyer said. "Daddy, I'm gonna."

"Are you really?" Chris teased.

"Uh huh, I can stay up," Sawyer said. He yawned, "but not tonight because I'm pretty tired. I had a long day."

Chris laughed and looked down at his son. "Did you hear that from Mommy?"

"Uh huh, that's what she said when you were gone and sometimes I would lay in bed with her because she didn't feel like going to put me to bed so she said I could sleep with her and that would be okay and she said that she had a long day because she had to take care of three kids and that was a lot of kids and that it was your fault, Daddy. Why is it your fault?"

"It's not my fault, your mommy just likes to say things like that. She was very aware that she could have a kid."

"Why did you have a kid?" Sawyer asked.

"You mean why did we have _you_ because you're our oldest kid," Chris told him.

"Yeah, I know that, because I'm four and Flynnie is two and Kensy is…I don't know how old Kensy is, Daddy."

"Kensy is four months old."

"That, so why did you have one if we make Mommy tired because she has to take care of us?"

"Well, Mommy doesn't really mind taking care of you," Chris told him. "She loves all of you, right? Like what is she doing right now?"

"She's making sure that Kensy is sleeping and that Flynnie got to bed earlier than me and that she is sleeping too," Sawyer answered. "Then she's going to come say goodnight to me and then I will go to sleep."

"That's right, she loves you guys very much. She was just joking when she said that you were all very much hard work because while you _are_ hard work to take care of, you guys are the best things that ever happened to Mommy and me."

"Really? But Daddy you were the Unputed Champion and you were the first one ever because you beat Rock and Coldstone in one night and nobody does that and nobody did it anymore."

"I know I was and I'm very proud of that accomplishment, but it doesn't even compare to you or your sisters, not even a little bit close. You guys are the greatest things ever and nothing is ever going to change my mind about that," Chris told him. "When I married Mommy, we didn't want kids for a while because were going to focus on work, but then Mommy told me that she was going to have a baby and I was very excited."

"That was me, right?"

"That was totally you. I couldn't believe it. We were supposed to have waited, but you just kind of snuck up on us, but we've never looked back, kid. Every single moment since the moment your mommy told me about you, I've wanted you. I knew you were going to be the coolest kid I'd ever met."

"What's going on in here?" Stephanie asked from the doorway, looking at her boys with a smile on her face.

"Sawyer was asking why we wanted to have kids in the first place," Chris explained. "I was telling him how he snuck up on us."

"You did," Stephanie told him, coming over and sitting on the other side of him. "I hadn't been feeling well for a couple of weeks. It wasn't anything too bad, but I just felt like my stomach was out of whack, like I had an upset tummy, but not all the time and it wasn't going away. Then, I started to feel weirder and weirder and I had some other symptoms, so I decided that I might be pregnant and I should check. So I did the check and it said that I was pregnant so I told Daddy and then we went to the doctor and he told me about you."

"That's cool, you like me."

"Of course I do," she said, leaning down to kiss his head. "Now go to bed because we have to go to Raw tomorrow and I don't want you to be a lazy bones when we're there. I'm expecting you to help me."

"I'm too little!" Sawyer laughed.

"Okay, well then you can watch the show with Daddy, how's that?"

"I like that better," Sawyer said, grinning up at his father.

"Okay, to bed then," Stephanie said, kissing his head again, "sleep tight."

"Don't let no beddybugs bite!" Sawyer responded.

"You got it," Stephanie said, giving him a wink as Chris kissed his head.

"Night, kid."

"Night, Daddy, love you, love you too, Mommy."

"Love you," Chris and Stephanie said together as they closed Sawyer's door halfway. Stephanie grabbed Chris's hand and led him to the bedroom. She let go of his hand so they could get ready for bed and when they were, they climbed into bed and Stephanie cuddled up to her husband. "You ready to go back to the grind after Christmas?"

"I'm always ready to go back to the grind," Stephanie joked, then leaned up and kissed his chin. "You know my penchant for working while my husband loafs around. I had to do it for a couple years back in the day."

"You did not, I worked," he said.

"Yeah, but you aren't now."

"Not that you know of," Chris told her. "I'm taking care of the kids while you work and I've got my book tour coming up, which will whisk me away some days, but I can definitely take one or two of the kids with me, then…well, I've got some stuff."

Stephanie flipped over so she was straddling him, "Stuff? What kind of stuff?"

Chris sat up so they were nose-to-nose, "That's for me to know and you to find out." He wrapped his arms around her waist. "Just because we're married doesn't mean that you get to know everything about my life just like I don't know everything about yours and what goes on in that brain of yours."

"Like I say, as long as you're not cheating on me or doing something that could hurt the kids, I'm okay with not knowing all your secrets," she told him, punctuating it with a kiss. "And I trust you are doing neither of those, so have your little fun. I know you're planning on doing something with Maryse, you know, you admitted as much in your Christmas letter to me."

"I am planning on doing something to Maryse."

"Is it something that would involve her wanting to leave the company because I'm not sure that would reflect well if the husband of an Executive Vice President were to start driving people to quit," Stephanie told him.

"No, it's just a harmless, little prank," Chris said, twisting her hair around his finger and pulling her closer to that he could kiss her. "Plus, it has the added benefit of me working with one, Mr. Ted DiBiase Jr."

"Chris," she whined.

"I have to keep my eye on the guy. Our kids are good little spies and told me point blank that he was in love with you. How am I supposed to react to that but to keep a close eye on the guy and make sure that he has no designs to take me out of the picture. I could start my car one day and blow up. Then he gets you and I'll have to haunt you to keep him away like in that really crappy movie we watched that one time."

"He's not in love with me, it's just a crush," Stephanie said.

"You had a crush on me and look where it got you!"

"I did not!" she protested even as Chris pulled her higher into his lap so she wrapped her legs around his waist.

"Well, I think you did when we were enemies, just for the record, but I'm talking about when you and I were business partners and you were so hot for my body that you kept trying to touch me at every opportunity even though you probably thought I didn't notice."

Stephanie blushed. "I wasn't _trying_ to do that."

Chris smirked at her, finding her adorable right now. They were almost to their sixth wedding anniversary and he still loved that she got embarrassed abut how much she liked him when they weren't dating. "But you did it anyways? Baby, I love you, we're together with three kids, I think you can admit you had a raging crush on me."

"Stop," she pushed at him and he laughed and gripped her tighter, "You're embarrassing me."

"I had a crush on you too though, so I'm just as bad," he leaned to the side and kissed his neck. "Some nights, all I could think about was how you touched me. How it would feel if you just kept touching me." He kissed her collarbone as she leaned back a little. "I hated myself for it at first. We were just supposed to be business partners, that's all, I wanted to keep it strictly business because I didn't trust you."

"I'm hurt,' she said, pretending to be shocked, but then his tongue came up the column of her neck and she was silenced pretty quickly as the air hit the streak he left behind.

"But then you were just so beautiful and fiery and how could I help but fall for you. I learned to accept it and accept what I could get from you. So how can I really blame Ted for falling for you? I think any man who has ever come in contact with you has to come away way more impressed than when they first meet you."

"I love you," Stephanie said.

"You better, I _really_ don't want to lose you to Ted."

"You're such a-"

She was cut off by Chris's mouth and was suddenly flipped again onto her back as they started to make out. She knew part of this was to distract her from what he was going to do with Maryse. She was curious as to what this "harmless little prank" could be, but she wouldn't pry. As long as Maryse couldn't sue the company, she was fine with whatever it was. She didn't have time to think anymore as Chris's hands were pulling her tank top off. Any thoughts of business flew out of her mind at that.

Ted walked into his dressing room and nearly jumped out of his skin. Chris was sitting in a folding chair, lounging and looking at him. "Jesus Chris, Chris, what the hell?"

"Where's your girlfriend?"

"Women's locker room, think she's gossiping with some of the divas or something," Ted said, setting his bag down. "That's the first place she usually goes when we arrive at the show. She's always finding out some juicy tidbit."

"Anything pertaining me and my wife?"

"I think Maryse knows better at this point to bring the two of you up to me…or at least Stephanie."

"So there is crap going around about me?"

"Just that you're too afraid of Randy to come back," Ted shrugged. "I don't believe it though. I mean, with Stephanie being the head around here and always claiming it's her show and then the kids, she probably needs all the help she can get, plus, you do a lot of stuff, right?"

"Yeah, I don't care what other people think of me," Chris shrugged. He'd learned long ago not to let someone's opinion get to him unless they were someone he cared about and he did not care about Maryse.

"Did you tell Stephanie you were here?"

"No, she's getting things set up in the kids' room, I mean her office," Chris joked, loving that Ted was still standing by the door and looking uncomfortable, like Chris would attack him at any moment for liking his wife. He liked having that kind of power over the guy. "She does know that I'm planning a little something for Maryse."

"Does she know what?"

"No and she doesn't care as long as Maryse can't sue the company."

"Don't you think you're being a little childish?"

"Don't you think you should have better taste in women or not rely on my wife to get you dates?' Chris asked. "But then, I guess when you want to _date_ my wife, it's kind of hard to find a woman you like."

"Chris…"

Chris chuckled. "Chill, I think you're going to blow a vessel or something. You just need to chill out, I don't really care. Just don't have sex with my wife or steal her from me and we're fine. Besides, I don't want to do anything bad to Maryse, I just want to teach her a lesson."

"How is this teaching her a lesson?"

"Because it's going to injure her precious vanity. And isn't that like her biggest thing? Besides, it might teach her a little humility and you would reap all those benefits," Chris told him.

"I would?"

"Yeah because right now it seems like she thinks she's better than you and do you want a girl who is constantly looking for someone better?"

"Stephanie's better than you," Ted pointed out.

Chris chuckled a little, "Believe me, I know and I'm still the lucky bastard who got her," he said, standing up and patting Ted's shoulder as he passed him. "Sorry you weren't a few years older, dude, you _might_ have had a shot at her. Of course, I'd still be around and we all know she has wanted me pretty much since the day she saw me so you still would have stood no chance in the long run, but you might have gotten a good couple of weeks out of it."

"So why the hell is she with you?" Ted asked and for the first time, Chris was impressed with the guy. He was finally joining in on the friendly ribbing thing. It was about time Ted grew a pair.

"Look at the package," Chris shrugged cockily. "So you're going to plant the seeds, right?"

Ted thought about Stephanie and how hurt she had looked when she heard what Maryse had said about her in front of her own kids. He liked Stephanie, perhaps more than he should, okay, definitely more than he should, but even if he hadn't, it was still a terrible thing to say. "Yeah, I'm going to."

"Thanks, man, if you ever think it's not right or mean, just think about Stephanie, that should get you through it…hell, I'm sure the thought of her has gotten you through many a night and believe me, she's worth the fantasies."

Ted honestly wanted a hole to just swallow him up right now.

When Chris got back to Stephanie's office, it was in complete disarray. All the kids stuff was out, but they'd insisted on bringing way too many of their new toys and they were scattered all over the place. He could barely walk and had almost stepped on a couple of Sawyer's matchbox racers, much to his horror. Stephanie was sitting at the desk, looking frazzled over something she was looking at. Kensington was lying on her blanket, with one of her new play-consoles dangling over her. There was a little automatic spinner that she kept staring at in fascination. Flynn had one of his action figures sitting on top of Sawyer's fire truck so not only was he a wrestler in Flynn's eyes, but maybe a firefighter too. Sawyer was playing with some cars that when crashed together, they broke apart and then you had to fix them.

"Did I walk into a war zone?" he asked.

"Thank God you're here, take two of them, any two, I don't care, but just take two of them."

"And do what exactly?"

"Show them the ring, show them the pyros, show them the outside, I don't care."

"I'm not getting the loving mother vibe from you right now," Chris teased her, coming over and trying to kiss her. She pulled away at the last moment. "Okay, too far, got it."

"Stop it, Chris, I've got a lot of work to do. I never do anything over Christmas so it all piles up and Britt isn't here yet, which probably means she's back to sleeping with Hunter and shirking work."

"Good, I hope they're both getting laid," Chris said, "means he's not going to come whining to us anymore."

"Seriously, people, kids, two, out of here."

"Which two?" he asked, glancing at his kids.

"Any two," she answered. "They just kind of want me right now and I can't handle all of them wanting Mommy time at the same time while I'm trying to catch up with stuff, so they can have Daddy time."

"Should I pick names out of a hat, I think we have enough kids now where that will work," Chris joked and Stephanie glared at him. "Okay, Flynnie, Sawyer, you're with me."

"Where?" Sawyer asked.

"We can go watch them test out the stuff."

"I already saw all that," Sawyer said.

"Me too!" Flynn chimed in.

"Okay, what do _you_ want to do then?"

"Can we go exploring?" Sawyer asked.

"What's exploring? You want to explore the women's locker room is that what you want to do because you are _so_ my kid if you do," Chris said with a lecherous grin that Stephanie tilted her head at, looking down at him from her high perch.

"No, just around, I want to see things."

"So you want to walk around the arena?"

"Yes."

"Do you know who I am?" Chris asked him.

"You are Daddy," Sawyer told him.

"But what's my name?"

"Daddy."

"Sawyer?"

Sawyer laughed and made a face, which Flynn giggled at. Funny faces were the best, "Chris Jericho."

"Well, I can't really go out there because people might recognize me when they come in and if they recognize me, they're going to be like, who's that with him and then they'll want to see you and then Mommy will have me castrated."

"What's that?"

"Something very bad."

"There's nobody here but vendors, Chris, you know that," Stephanie said. "You can take him around a little bit. We don't even let people in until an hour before the show is set to start so you should be good."

"Fine, fine, let's go exploring," Chris said.

"Yay!" Sawyer yelled, jumping to his feet. Flynn followed his lead and Chris lifted Flynn into his arms while he held Sawyer's hand.

"And we're off, we'll be back when things start so be prepared if you're going to be annoyed, put on a happy face."

"I will because then I'll be done with this stuff," Stephanie said, looking over at her family and waving then sighing with relief when they were gone. The relief was short-lived however when CM Punk walked into the room. He was alone, had been since his little society broke up and was subsequently let go. "Can I help you?"

"I think you might be able to," Punk said, sitting down without being asked. "It's a pigsty in here."

"I have three children," Stephanie said, checking on Kensington, who was now batting at some toys above her head and smiling and laughing silently to herself.

"Oh yeah, that's right, kids," Punk said, waving his hand like he'd just remembered. "I'm here to tell you I'm the head of Nexus."

"You are?"

"Yes, I found myself a little bored after my SES was disbanded forcefully," he said pointedly, but Stephanie wasn't one to be intimidated, especially not by this guy. "And I think these guys, well, _some_ of these guys are worthy to be associated with me."

"Interesting," Stephanie said, then steepled her fingers under her chin, "but tell me what this has to do with me?"

"Well, as the person in charge around here, I thought it was your job to know when things were going to go down and I feel that tonight, right before the new year is the perfect time to execute this plan, nothing like out with the old and in with the new, right?"

"Okay, well you've told me your plan."

"There's a little something else as well," Punk told her. "I think that it would be in the best interest of the group to have someone…powerful on their side. Not that I'm not almighty and powerful in my own right because I am, but someone even more powerful than me…and that's where you come in."

"You want me to join Nexus?" Stephanie asked incredulously. The gall of this guy, asking her to join a little group she had no intention of joining.

"Not in the literal sense, but more in the spiritual sense."

"And how would this benefit me?"

"I know lots of things," Punk told her. "I'm the kind of guy who remembers things that happen around me, even if people don't think that I remember, I usually do, probably because I'm sober and not hopped up on drugs most of the time like some people around here. Damn vices."

"Yes, we get it, you hate anything in excess except hearing your own voice, get on with it. Are you saying you have dirt on someone?"

"No, nothing like that, though I do, don't worry your husband isn't cheating on you, except for his drinking and occasional smoking, your husband is pretty straight and narrow."

"I wasn't asking about my husband," Stephanie said, knowing and trusting her husband. She didn't need Punk of all people to tell her about her husband.

"Well, as I understand it, Cena was…not on your good side at one point, was he?"

"I guess not, why?"

"Well, he's target #1 right now, not only for that reason, but because he's a buffoon."

"I can agree with you on that."

"To me, Nexus has been directionless and I blame that on poor leadership skills. Wade was doing okay in the beginning I guess, but he'd just come out from under Chris's tutelage and of course at that point he would have at least some knowledge of leadership-"

"Stop trying to butter me up by complimenting my husband," Stephanie groaned. "I don't take well to that."

"Okay, backing off, either way, Wade had them on track at first, but look at them now, nobody takes them seriously. I want to take them back to the point where people feared them. I want to take out everyone who thinks they're someone and I think you can help by just…helping us out every now and then."

"And I would get the satisfaction of knowing that people I don't like are being targeted."

"Exactly," Punk told her. "We both benefit."

"Seems like you would get more benefits than I would."

"Then I would find ways to make it worth your while."

"I'll think about it," Stephanie told him, noting the flash of disappointment that she wasn't taking the bait right after his first pitch. She was going to make him work for that and she smiled, "but I'll be getting back to you soon, now get the hell out of my office before I decide that Nexus is going to be banned until WrestleMania."

Punk had the smarts to know she meant business and scurried out of the room. Stephanie went over and picked up Kensington, much to her dismay because she'd been having fun with her toys. "I don't know what is up with that man, Kensy, but I don't know if I want to be associated with them, what do you think?" Kensington just smiled at her mommy and stuck her tongue out. "I feel the same way."

Maryse walked into Ted's locker room and she rolled her eyes, "You are sitting around again? You are never going to win anything if you do that?"

"What would you have me do then?" he asked.

"I don't know, warm up or go beat someone up for nothing."

"Yeah, I think I'm going to sit here."

"Fine, be a lazyass, that is why Miz of all peoples is champion and you are _nothing_. You do not have anything," she berated him.

"I don't see _you_ with the Divas title."

"I do not need it. Nattie needs it because she is ugly and ugly girls go for the title right now and I am very beautiful."

That gave Ted the perfect in he needed. "You are very beautiful."

"It's about time we agree on something," she told him haughtily, taking a seat in his lap. He grunted a little, but then put on his best smile.

"Of course we do," he said, tucking her hair behind her ears. "You know you're gorgeous, way more so than any of the other divas. You know, I was reading this article on some news site or something, it said that women who wear extensions are more likely to go bald if they keep their hair extensions in for too long. Something about how it pulls on the natural root of the hair."

"What?" Maryse asked, trying to keep the calm in her voice, but Ted could tell that it was freaking her out a little.

"Yeah, I don't know, it's just a study they did, but I found it funny because of all the divas that wear hair extensions. You don't have to worry though, babe, because I know that your hair is real," Ted said, running his hand over her head.

"Of course it is, everything about me is real," she told him, but she was touching her hair. "You know that."

"That's why I said that."

"Yes," Maryse said, "those other girls will look very silly."

"Well, the bald look worked for Serena, right?" Ted laughed.

"I better go," Maryse said, quickly getting up and going towards the door.

That was _way_ too easy.

Things were in motion all over the place.

**New Year's Eve**

Chris leaned against a column and watched as people streamed through the airport, eager to get to their destination and spend the new year with their family and friends. He'd invited all his friends up to Winnipeg to celebrate the new years with them at his parents' house. His parents were going out with their friends for the evening so the house would be theirs. Trish, Christian, Edge, and Lita had all been in Canada already and Britt and Hunter had been in New York so everyone was really able to get there. There was just one person missing.

"Hey."

Chris looked up and saw Kurt, "Hey."

"So…"

"Come on, I don't want to pay for an extra hour of parking," Chris said, jerking his head towards the exits. "I thought we'd grab a bite to eat first, you hungry? I know I am."

"Yeah, I can eat," Kurt said, knowing they weren't just going to eat. He'd been surprised when a few days ago, Chris had called him up and invited him up to Winnipeg for New Year's Eve. His fiancée was overseas visiting family and he was alone. So he'd planned to just spend time with his family, but then Chris had called and he's accepted the invitation, but he was a little nervous about it. He and Chris hadn't spoken for a very long time and for it to come so suddenly startled him.

"Good."

They walked in silence to the car and it was silent on the trip to a pancake house. They went inside and sat down, still having not said anything. It was only after they'd ordered and Chris took a sip of his water that he even really looked at Chris. "So I know you're wondering why the hell I invited you here."

"It's crossed my mind, yes."

"I know you talk pretty regularly with Stephanie."

"I do," Kurt said. Sometimes they were the highlights of his week, talking with Stephanie and remembering how it used to be. It still wasn't the same and he knew it probably wouldn't ever be. There was a lot of time lost, but he was a different man now and he took what he could get.

"I love my wife, Kurt," Chris started, staring him down stoically. "I know you know that because you were there for a long time, but I only love her more now. She's…everything to me and that's an understatement and not hyperbole. She's given me everything. I mean, she part owns the company that gave me a job so really, she's given me everything. Whenever she's hurting, I hurt with her and I hate it. I hate when she hurts and you hurt her and it bothered me a lot. I still hate Austin for what he did to Stephanie when she was pregnant with Sawyer and I probably always will. That's just how I'm built. I can't help it. But I'm trying to change or at the very least, I'm trying to see where she's coming from."

"Okay," Kurt said, not wanting to interrupt Chris, but to let him know that he was listening and understanding what Chris was saying.

"I'm willing to talk to you again, I'm willing to accept you in her life. I'm not necessarily willing to accept you into mine just yet, but I know that she wants you in her life and I'm hindering that because I can't stand the sight of you. So this is my way of letting my wife know that I'm okay with what she does."

"So we're not friends?"

"Not yet, but the ability is there," Chris told him.

"I can live with that for now," Kurt nodded. "I'm not that guy anymore, the one that hurt her."

"You're just going to have to prove it to me then."

"I'm going to try."

Stephanie looked out the window again. Chris had said he was going to meet up with a couple of his old high school friends for lunch, but he wasn't back yet and it was bugging her. He could have at least called and told her he was going to be late. She felt arms wrap around her, but from a much shorter person and she turned to see Trish grinning over her shoulder.

"You should see the two lovebirds," Trish said, coming around and sighing happily. "They are too cute."

"I thought they were taking it slow," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, I thought they would too, but I guess making out where they think nobody can see is their way of taking it slow and who the hell wants to take it slow anyways," Trish said.

"You and Christian?"

"Okay, well…we were apart much longer than those two and the both of us were in very serious relationships and we were scared," she said. "Why are you constantly staring out the window by the way? Are you and Chris _so_ attached that you can't even spend ten minutes without him?"

"He just said he'd be back by now," Stephanie said.

"You're honestly worried?"

"I just don't want him getting drunk or something."

"In the middle of the day?"

"Shut up," Stephanie said, trying to elbow Trish, but she kept moving out of the way. "I don't know. Whenever we're up here, he's always meeting up with his friends and he never takes me with him and…I know this is going to sound stupid, but I always kind of feel like he doesn't want me to hang out with his friends."

"Christian's the same way, but that's because he acts like an idiot with his friends. You know what they do? They actually wrestle, for real. He doesn't get enough wrestling at work so he does it with his friends like they're teenagers again. He hasn't because he's still recovering right now, but usually, that's what he does."

"I hope he wins," Stephanie kidded.

"He better win," Trish said. "Chris probably doesn't bring you along because he acts like a goof-off when he's with them and who wants to act like a goof in front of their wife who is very witty and quick to insult."

"I guess you're right."

"Steph, Chris is so proud of you, you know that. The man brags about you to everyone he knows. And you know how I know this? Because I've caught him in the act before. He loves to talk about you so stop feeling like he's ashamed when he's the one who is probably ashamed of his stupid teenage behavior. Now come back to the party, Sawyer is arguing with Edge and it's hilarious."

"Okay," Stephanie said.

"No, Ed, that's not right."

"It is right," Edge told him. "I don't know why I'm arguing about this with you, but it _is_ right."

"No, it's not because I watched it the other day and it was right!"

"What are you two arguing about?" Stephanie asked.

"The Muppets Take Manhattan," Edge told him. "He thinks he knows that movie better than I do, but he doesn't because I've seen it a million times."

"Me too," Sawyer argued.

"You haven't even been alive long enough to see anything a million times," Edge told him.

"I have too!"

"Okay, okay, you two, agree to disagree here," Stephanie said, coming over and putting her hands on Sawyer's head.

"Your son is a jerk," Edge said.

"You're a jerk, Ed."

"It is _Edge_!" Edge folded his arms in front of him and sulked. Sawyer laughed and Edge threw him a face.

"Little boys to your opposite corners," Lita said as she sat next to Edge. "Aww, my poor, widdle Edge-wedgie is sad. Hey, Sawyer, you want to know what Edge's real name is?"

"Ed has a real name?" If anyone had told him before, he'd definitely forgotten. He just always thought Edge's name was Edge, but that wasn't his name, well that was silly!

"Don't you dare, Li," Edge warned her. "Or I'm going to break up with you right now, I swear to God, I will."

"His name is Adam," Lita winked at him.

"I like it!" Sawyer told him.

"What? Oh, you would," Edge told, making another face. "Only you would like such a stupid name."

"Okay," he shrugged and then ran off.

"You are like a little kid," Stephanie told him.

"Honey, I'm home!" Chris said in his worst Ricky Ricardo impression. Stephanie's face lit up and she turned towards the foyer and started to walk over there when she stopped. "And I didn't come alone."

"Kurt?" Stephanie said.

"Hey."

"What is going on?" Stephanie asked.

"Chris invited me to come up and spend New Year's Eve with you."

"Chris, you did this?" Stephanie asked. He nodded sheepishly and she went to him and hugged him tightly. "Thank you so much."

"I'm trying to start the new year off right," he told her, kissing her cheek before she went and hugged Kurt.

"I'm so glad you could make it, come on, the party's in the other room." She lead Kurt into the living room and glanced back at Chris, mouthing thank you to him and he just shrugged and then was cut off when Flynn grabbed a hold of his hand and told him she was going to stay up to midnight.

She was still holding on at 11:23. Everyone was gathered in Chris's parents' living room. Christian was lounged on one of the loveseats, Trish in his lap while Tilden was asleep upstairs in her portable crib. Hunter and Britt were cuddled up in another loveseat, looking for all the world like a teenaged couple in that new part of their relationship. Britt kept whispering things in Hunter's ear while playing with his hair. Edge and Lita were huddled on one side of the couch, Lita tucked into his side. On the other side, Stephanie was sitting with Sawyer curled up against her side, awake, but sleepy.

Kurt was sitting against an ottoman and Chris was leaning against the couch next to Stephanie's feet, Flynn, the most awake of their children (by sheer determination he was sure) was lying across his legs, but wide awake and looking around, her eyes darting to the TV every once in a while because they kept showing a really cool lighted ball. Kensington was in Chris's arms, sucking on her pacifier.

"Okay, who's turn is it?"

"Mine," Edge said. "Okay, best thing to happen to you in 2010, go!"

"Tilden," Christian and Trish said together, then laughed as everyone groaned at their joint answer. Christian acted indignant. "What is so wrong about agreeing that our daughter was the best thing to happen this year?"

"The fact that you answered at the same time, like some weirdo couple," Edge supplied for them and Christian flipped him off.

"Not in front of my kids, please," Stephanie said, sticking her tongue out.

"Speaking of kids, I think ours is trying to stay up until midnight," Trish said as she heard Tilden over the baby monitor. "If you'll excuse me, I think someone wants to join the party."

"Okay, other people chime in," Edge said.

"I think it goes without saying that Chris and mine is Kensington," Stephanie answered.

"See, that's like the best thing to happen to you every other year," Edge said, "predictable. Come up with something else."

"I'm sorry, but my daughter is the best thing."

"Okay, I'll say something else for sake of argument," Chris said. "I'd go with my Fozzy tour. Seeing the crowds was awesome and then Stephanie surprising me was even better, so I'll go with that."

"What about you, Flynnie?" Edge asked.

"Daddy!"

"No, that's not an answer," Edge said.

"I see Daddy," Flynn said.

"She obviously thinks the best moment of the year is any time she sees me, but who can blame the girl, right?" Chris said with a shrug.

"Bush league answer, Flynnie," Edge shook his head, "bush league answer."

"Here's our last party member," Trish said, bringing in Tilden and sitting back down with Christian, who kissed his daughter's head. "So what did I miss?"

"Flynn's best moment is any with Chris…girl's got a skewed sense of heroism," Edge said.

"What about you Sawyer?" Trish asked.

"Everything," he mumbled before he buried his face into Stephanie's shirt.

"Baby boy, did you want to go to bed?"

"No, I'm wanting New Year's Eve," Sawyer told her sleepily and she just brought him closer to her body.

"Mine was running the show," Britt said, "I mean, I could go for the cliché answer and say my boyfriend, but I'm going with running the show and not totally making the company burn up in flames."

"Uh oh, Stephanie," Lita said, "Britt's gunning for your position."

"Over my dead body," Stephanie said, pretending to act fierce, except she never really could pretend when she _was_ so fierce. "Hunter?"

"Britt."

"Aww," everyone said and he got angry. "But we already knew you were pathetic," Chris said, "you have to give us something else."

"This year sucked, I was injured and alone for most of it."

"He means to say his movie, he's proud of it," Britt said. "That's his best moment."

"It was you."

"You're being too sweet."

"You're sweet," he told her.

"I love you," Britt said, leaning down to kiss him and soon they were lost in themselves.

"Oh gross, get a room," Edge said, "Kurt, what's yours?"

"Well, tonight is pretty awesome," he admitted, "but I think it was proposing to my fiancée. It was just a really cool moment and her saying yes was the icing on the cake."

"We'll have to formally meet her sometime," Stephanie said encouragingly, garnering a couple nods from others. "What about you two?" she asked to Edge and Lita.

"Breaking that damn laptop," Edge nodded happily. "Best moment ever."

"Weirdo," Lita said. "I don't know, I think it would have to be cutting Vickie down to size, that's always fun. Okay, next question, who's next?"

"Okay, biggest wish for 2011?" Stephanie asked.

"Wow, that's a tough one," Lita said. "Um, that it's just a good year. That everyone I love has a good year and that we can do this again next year."

"I want that too!" Trish said. "That's mine…oh and that my yoga studios do well."

"That I can come back from injury and become the World Champion," Christian said.

"Not happening, bro," Edge said, "my biggest wish is that I stay World Champion the entire year."

"No fair," Christian said, "you know that's not happening."

"We'll see."

"I hope that my book does well," Chris said, "and that everyone likes it and that nobody is offended and that people can read between the lines because there's a lot of that in there."

"Duly noted," Edge said, "so when you say that you hate me, you really love me, right?"

"Yes, Edge, that's exactly it," Chris told him.

"Mine is that I can go a whole year without getting pregnant," Stephanie said to everyone's laughter. "You think I'm joking, but I'm serious."

"No, that has to be your wish for 2012 because our kids come every two years," Chris told her, leaning back. "I make no promises though, the sperm is strong."

"Eww," Christian said, "didn't need to hear that, guys."

"Sorry," Chris shrugged and winked at him.

"That my wedding is going to be nice," Kurt said, "and go off without a hitch and that my kid is okay."

"That's sweet," Stephanie said and Trish agreed.

"I'd ask those two," Trish said, pointing at Hunter and Britt, who were still making out, "but I don't think they know we're in the room right now."

"Hopefully they'll at least leave before clothes start coming off," Chris said.

"Okay, okay, okay, here's one," Trish said. "Best wrestler in this room in 2010?"

"Hunter's automatically out," Edge said, "He was injured for most of it so he can't even count. Chris left the company-"

"To help take care of my kids!" Chris protested.

"Christian was also out with injury," Edge said, ignoring what Chris just said, "and Kurt is in TNA so he automatically doesn't count, I win by default."

"No!" Flynn said. "Daddy best!"

"Total bias, you don't count," Edge dismissed her.

"Daddy's the best at what he do, Ed," Sawyer mumbled.

"Yeah, not going to count _that_ one because you can't get my name right," Edge told him. "I still win."

"Hey, that's three votes to one," Chris said, "I win and I _am_ the best at what I do."

"I was doing awesome before I got injured," Christian said.

"What does being in TNA have to do with anything," Kurt argued. "We're just as good."

"Kurt, you're my friend, but that's grounds for getting thrown out of my house," Stephanie said, "or Chris's parents' house that is."

"Okay, okay, I get the picture."

"I'm the World Champion, end of story."

"Not end of story, I was World Champion this year too _and_ I beat you."

"Cheap tactics," Edge told him.

"You guys, you guys, it's almost midnight," Lita said, pointing towards the TV and Stephanie turned the mute off so they could hear. "Hey, you two over there, take your tongues out of your mouths for like two minutes, will you?"

"Sorry," Britt said, having the decency to look a little ashamed.

All eyes turned towards the TV as they watched all the festivities in New York City, the ball dropping slowly as it was getting ready to make its final descent. Stephanie grabbed Chris's hand and smiled down at him as he checked on Sawyer, who had fallen asleep. Flynn was still up, though she was now yawning, the adrenaline crash coming very soon. Everyone started to count down with the TV.

10…9…8…7…6…5…4…3…2…1…and then it was 2011.

Britt and Hunter resumed their making out while Christian kissed Trish first and then Tilden, who was blinking slowly with sleep-filled eyes. Edge practically pounced on Lita, causing Sawyer to wake up and look around, wondering what was going on. Stephanie leaned over to kiss Chris and then she kissed Sawyer.

"Mommy, why is everybody kissing?" Sawyer asked, confused as he watched his daddy kiss Flynn on the cheek and then kiss Kensington's head.

"It's a tradition. At midnight on New Year's Eve, when it turns into the new year, you kiss whoever you're with," she said, kissing him again.

"Oh, okay," he said, leaning over the couch to kiss his daddy's cheek and then kiss Flynn and Kensington too. "There."

"Happy New Year," Chris told him.

"Happy New Year, Daddy," Sawyer told him.

"New Year!" Flynn exclaimed, dancing around the room.

Stephanie stepped over to Kurt and kissed him on the cheek. "Since your fiancée couldn't be here, Kurt, Happy New Year."

"Happy New Year, Steph," he said, smiling at her as he looked around glad to be surrounded by friends as Stephanie went back over to Chris and told him she loved him.

They all hoped it would be a happy new year.


	307. The Right Way, January 3, 2011

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and reads, sorry this is late, wasn't feeling well, but wanted to get it posted. Hope you enjoy, review if you're up for it. :)

* * *

"You don't just automatically get to call me your girlfriend, you know?"

"What? You mean that I can't call you my girlfriend, then what am I supposed to call you?" Hunter asked. "The girl I'm currently making out with, but who won't have sex with me."

"Hunter, we said that we were going to take this slowly and we're still working out all the kinks and talking things through, I told you that we have a lot of issues to work through," Britt said, running her finger down the bridge of his nose.

"You realize we've had sex a ton of times, right?"

"You're just impatient because you've gone through a long dry spell," Britt teased him.

"Don't bring up the fact that you've made love with other guys, please, because I already know and it will continually bug me forever."

"Don't be so dramatic," she told him. "I really should get to work. I'm pretty sure Stephanie and Chris are already here."

"They can take care of things, Chris isn't even wrestling right now so what does he have to do? He can help Stephanie with whatever she's doing," Hunter told her, leaning forward to kiss her. He was still so thankful that he had Britt back in his life. Even if they were taking things "slowly," it was better than doing nothing at all and even if Britt was still reluctant to call herself his girlfriend. Though when people asked, she said it, but she wouldn't say it when it was just him because they were "working things out."

"He's taking care of the kids, you know, the three little people that come with them to the shows," Britt said. "I have to help Stephanie with the actual running of things and like you should talk, you're cleared to wrestle and have been for a while now and still, you're not wrestling and unless something has drastically changed while we've been apart, you don't have any children as an excuse."

"I'm waiting for the right moment."

"The right moment?" she asked. "What, to you, is the right moment?"

"I don't know, when I find something I want."

"Isn't that the WWE championship? I mean, let's face it, you could take the Miz out with one hand tied behind your back and maybe a gimpy leg and probably blindfolded," she told him, running her hand down his cheek.

"Are you saying you believe in me?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at her as she flirted by batting her eyelashes at him and giving him the coyest look she could muster at the moment. He smiled up at her and tapped the side of her nose.

"I've always believed in you."

"Even when you hated me?"

"I never hated you," she told him and with that she sighed and it was time for another one of their talks. They'd been talking over things as they started to repair their relationship. They hadn't sat down and had a big, long talk like some people had tried to tell them to do, but instead, they were taking things as they came. Whenever one of their past issues came up, they would talk about them and it was working for them; it created a balance between their new relationship and hashing out their old problems. Mainly, they just needed time.

"You didn't? I could've sworn you did."

"No, I never did," she shook her head and sucked on her bottom lip for a moment. "I was just disappointed in what happened. I don't think I've ever really hated anyone in my life. I've disliked people, sure, but I've never really hated anyone. It's like, you say you hate someone, but you never really do. And with you it was just like, I guess the feelings were always still there so I guess I couldn't hate you."

"I'm glad," he said, "because I thought that you did hate me."

She shrugged. "You're a hard man to hate."

"Listen to what you just said," Hunter laughed, "and think about who I am."

"Oh come on," Britt said, "those people who hate you just don't know the man underneath it all, I kind of lost it for a while too, but then I found it and you are a good, kind man and if the people don't want to see them, that's their fault."

"Yeah, I guess, but I still don't think people are necessarily in the same boat you are when it comes to me being a hard guy to hate."

"They think the worst of you because you were at your worst with Stephanie. You two brought out the worst in each other and that's why you guys were destined to fail. You have to be with someone who brings out the best in you, I think."

"Do you think that's the key to a good relationship?" he asked her.

"I think that's a good point to have in _any_ relationship, not just a romantic one. It can apply to your friends too. Why be a friend to someone when all they do is bring out the worst in you? Why be that kind of person?"

"So you mean why am I friends with Shawn?"

There was another point of contention and probably one of the biggest. Shawn being who he was, was one of the biggest catalysts of their downfall. Hunter, though, had just got the love of his life (or so he prescribed her) back and he wasn't going to give her up again. If that meant that he would have to cut Shawn out of his life, then he was going to cut Shawn out of his life. There were some things in this life that you had to fight for and Britt was one of the things in his life that he was going to go to bat for, whatever it took, he told himself, whatever it took.

"No, that's not what I mean?" Britt said. "I mean, sure, I guess I see Shawn as a bad influence on you, but he doesn't bring out the worst in you, I don't think. I think he is the worst though."

"Oh, I see what you did there," he laughed, but then turned serious again as he prepared to ask her a huge question, "Do you want me to cut Shawn out of my life? I mean, do you want me to stop being friends with him because I will, no questions asked."

"No, because I would never ask you to do that," she told him and he breathed a sigh of relief he hadn't realized he'd been holding. He loved his friends, all of them, but they weren't as there as Shawn was if that made any sense. They hadn't been there to help him and guide him when he first showed up on the scene. They were his friends and he loved them, yes, but they hadn't played the same role in his life that Shawn had. "I would never dictate who you were friends with because that's not what I do and that's not who I am. I would ask you be more considerate of me when he's around and-"

"I can do that," he added quickly and she kissed him. "I will do whatever you want."

"Hunter, honey, you're not doing penance," she told him with a gentle look. "I'm not asking you to go through some twelve step program to be with me, you _are_ with me, we're just working things out and I have things I need to work out too."

"You're perfect, you always have been the perfect one, that's why everyone wonders why you're with me. They all thought I hit the jackpot with Stephanie and I think a lot of them think that I should've been alone forever after that."

"I'm not perfect."

"You're perfect, face it, babe, you're perfect."

"Stop, don't put me on a pedestal," she told him, pushing him in the shoulder.

"If the fans knew that a girl who barely pushes 5'2 could boss me around, I'd lose every bit of street cred that I ever had," Hunter said. "I think you could be the one to convince them that I'm not the tough guy they all see me as."

"I'm tough," she said, flexing her arm for him. He squeezed her bicep and pretended to be impressed and she laughed against him, hugging him around his neck as he hugged her back. This was the best time he'd had in, God, he couldn't even remember how long ago it had been when he'd been as happy as he was right now. "So what about your mom? I haven't even asked you how she's taken the news."

"She's actually pretty happy about it, to be honest. I think she just saw that I was lonely and would've been happy for whomever chased the loneliness away…except maybe Stephanie. I think if I brought Stephanie home again that she would be pretty pissed at me."

"I think Chris would be more of a worry if that ever happened," Britt told him.

"No, my mom is definitely scarier than Chris," Hunter told her. "You should have seen her…you know, that's probably why she was so happy we got back together."

"What? What are you talking about?"

"When I was trying to figure out what to say to you. I asked Stephanie and Chris to come over because they were in Connecticut for Christmas and well, my family was there because I wanted to be within driving distance of New York and my mom answered the door when Chris came over and she was there when Stephanie came over and she found out that Stephanie had had Kensy and well, you know how she's been with Stephanie since the divorce…"

"She absolutely wishes that Stephanie was dead so she can dance on her grave," Britt supplied him and he nodded. "So you think that because she had to see Stephanie happy and you miserable that she was willing to welcome the girl she thought was _way_ too young for her son?"

"Yeah."

"So I have to thank Stephanie and Chris for making your mom realize I'm not as bad as she originally thought, well this is certainly a blow to the old ego," she said, clutching her heart. "Either way though, I'm glad she approves and will not butt into our business in the way only your mom could."

"She's my mom."

"And you love your mommy, I get it," she told him, "but I only want to share a bed with you, not the both of you."

"Share a bed?" he perked at the thought.

"When the time is right," she told him, "then we will have all the mind-blowing makeup sex that I know you are _dying_ for. But as it stands right now, I've really got to get to work or else I'm going to get fired and it's going to make coming around here with you very awkward."

"If we get married, I'd never make you work."

"Then I guess I'll never marry you," she winked at him, "because I happen to love my job."

"Okay, okay, I will never tell you, you don't have to work, how's that?"

"Now you're just being patronizing," she teased as she pushed herself off his lap. "Now, what are you going to do when I'm working? Are you just going to sit around and do nothing or are you going to go out there and kick butt and reclaim what's yours? Seriously, The _Miz_ is our champion right now, doesn't that piss you off?"

"Not particularly."

"You've gone soft, Hunter, you're a dough boy," she said, leaning over and poking him in the stomach. "The Hunter that I used to know was known as The Game and that was because he knew how to play it. Don't tell me that you're so rusty you don't think you could beat a guy whose only claim to fame is an MTV appearance and whose catchphrase is simply himself stating he's awesome over and over again."

"I'm not rusty, the time just isn't right, besides, he's not the one who took me out. When I come back, I have to take care of some unfinished business with someone."

"Oh yes, the pasty one."

"The one who thinks he's the king."

"Don't come out in that ridiculous outfit again, please, Chris and Stephanie will never let you live it down."

"I still don't see what was so wrong with that outfit, I was going for like a medieval king look and I thought that I achieved that."

"You looked like a glorified caveman, I would be embarrassed to date a man like that. So if you want Sheamus, then go after Sheamus, but _do_ something instead of sitting around here like a bump on a log."

"Do you think that I could shadow you all night?"

"No, now goodbye, honey," she said, leaning over to kiss him, "be a good boy and you'll get a reward. Go find Chris if you're really bored, I heard he's coming up with some prank to pull on Maryse because she said some choice words about Stephanie."

"Like what?"

"Like she was fat and Chris said, but you can't tell Stephanie, that Maryse asked if Stephanie mooed in bed," Britt told him and she saw the anger flash in Hunter's eyes. Whatever Stephanie and Hunter was, was over, but Britt believed that whatever it was in Stephanie that Hunter had fallen in love with hadn't even completely left his system, it had only dulled itself to fierce loyalty and friendship and she could see that his eyes were reflecting that deep sense of loyalty.

"She said that?"

"She's a petty bitch."

"I'm finding Chris."

Chris winced as Sawyer accidentally rammed Flynn's carriage into his butt again. He didn't know why he'd insisted on going in _front_ of the carriage because Sawyer couldn't really see over it and was constantly pushing into Chris. Chris decided to change his strategy and start walking behind his two children, one of his hands on top of Sawyer's head as he maneuvered his children around the large boxes surrounding the hallways. Flynn wanted to stay with Stephanie while she checked on all the pyros so Chris had taken his other two children and he was going to go check in Ted and see how everything was progressing with his little prank.

"Daddy, take your hand off my head," Sawyer said, leaning his head back to look at his daddy, "It's bothering me."

"Well you can't see where you're going so I have to guide you so you don't run Kensy into anything. I don't want to explain to Mommy that you broke your baby."

"I won't break her," Sawyer told him. "I'm careful."

"If you want to push Kensy's stroller, then you're going to have to deal with me, okay?"

"Fine," Sawyer said, exasperated that his father would have to help him with something he was perfectly capable of doing himself. "But I could do it if I wanted to."

"I know you could, but this time I'm just going to help you with it," Chris said as he saw Hunter coming up the hallway, "Hey, look, there's Trips."

"Where?" Sawyer asked, peeking his head around the side of the carriage and seeing Hunter walking towards them. "Hi, Trips!"

Hunter smiled, just the people he was looking for. "Hey guys, where's the little devil?"

"She's with Stephanie, she wanted to help with the show so Stephanie has put her to work. I think she's scrubbing floors or something though," Chris said as Hunter leaned over the carriage and looked down at Kensington, who was staring around at the ceiling, which was really the only thing she could see at the moment. "I see you are checking out the beautiful Miss Kensington. Jealous that I get to haul around such a beautiful girl?"

"Aren't I always," he said, grabbing Kensington's hand and waving it around a little, "Hey, Kensy, how's it going? How are you liking the world of WWE so far?"

"She's loving it, I can tell," Chris said, though it was nearly impossible to really tell if Kensington liked it around here. She was such a genial baby as it was that they could probably take her to a monster truck rally and she would be in hog heaven.

"You just want all of your kids to be wrestlers, don't you?"

"Yes, yes, I do, but clothed ones in my daughters' cases."

"I'm going to be a wrestler _and_ do what Mommy does," Sawyer declared.

"Wow, double duty, I'd be impressed," Hunter said, "So what are you guy's doing because I've really got nothing to do. Britt said that I should return to the show, but well, you know…"

"No, I don't know."

"Sure you do, you're not on the show," Hunter pointed out.

Chris rolled his eyes, "Why does everyone just assume that because I'm not on the show I have nothing to do? I mean, hello, I have this awesome book coming out next month that people are going to freaking love and I'm going on a book tour-"

"How is Flynn feeling about that?"

"I'm probably going to take her with me," Chris said, "or Sawyer. Now that Flynn doesn't hate Kensy, she can stay with Stephanie since Kensington can't really do the whole huge travel thing. But as I was saying, I have my book coming out, plus, I'm taking care of my kids. I'm kind of like a stay-at-home dad right now, except I'm more like a stay-backstage kind of dad. Stephanie wants to be the one working and I'm the one supporting her by taking care of the kids. So see, it's not like I'm not doing anything."

"Well I have my movie coming out soon."

"Oh yeah," Chris snickered and Hunter narrowed his eyes.

"What was that for?"

"What was what for?" Chris asked, pretending like he hadn't done anything.

"You're in a movie?" Sawyer asked. "Wow, I didn't know that! Is it a good movie, Trips?"

"I think so."

"Can I see it?" Sawyer wondered.

"Of course you can, it's really kind of a kid movie, I mean, it's definitely something you can watch, you see much worse when you watch wrestling."

"Especially without Daddy because he's the best in the world at what he does, that's what he says when we watch wrestling. He says that it suffering without him and that nobody is good, but him."

"You really are indoctrinating those kids, aren't you?"

"You better believe it, I'm not raising a bunch of Cena-loving, Mysterio-worshipping kids."

"I don't like either those," Sawyer said, "I like Daddy and Ed and Chrissy and you, Trips, but you don't wrestle anymores."

"I do too."

"No, you don't. Edge has the big belt and Daddy is taking care of us and Chrissy is injured and you are lazy, that's what everyone says now that you're lazy and Mommy said that lazy boys are sleepers."

"No, kid, that's what she said about La-z-boy recliner chairs, that you can sleep in those because they're comfy," Chris corrected him.

"Oh," Sawyer said, screwing his face up, "then what did she says about lazies?"

"Probably that they aren't worth her time," Chris said.

"Then you aren't worth my time," Sawyer said, shaking his head at Hunter.

"Why is everyone getting on my case?" Hunter asked. "First Britt, now you, tough guy? I can't win around here. I'm just waiting for the right moment, plus I'm going to be doing movie stuff, premieres and everything, so give me a break. Look at what you're doing, pranking people!"

"Shut up!" Chris hissed. "I don't want a certain someone to know they're getting pranked."

"Sorry," Hunter said as he started walking next to Chris as they continued down the hallway to wherever they were headed. "Britt told me what Maryse said about Stephanie. I can't believe she had the guts to say that in front of you, what was she thinking?"

"She's like all the other brain-dead divas around here, they don't think before they speak and they don't learn before they go out there and try to wrestle. They're embarrassments and who the hell is Maryse to be talking about my wife like that. I'm not going to stand for it, I don't like when people say crap about her. Like if we were together when you said she was as wide open as the Grand Canyon…you would have been a dead man."

"What's as wide open?" Sawyer asked.

"Nothing, you're too young to know."

"I'm almost five!" Sawyer protested.

"I'll tell you when you're five hundred."

"Daddy, nobody can live that long!"

"Then I'll tell you when you're a little older," Chris told him.

"I don't blame you for wanting to get back at her. What a thing to say," Hunter said, shaking his head. "Stephanie signs her paychecks."

"Maryse just doesn't know when to keep her mouth shut, Ted said that she's one of the biggest gossips around here. He said that she's always with some of the other divas, the mean girl ones and they're always talking badly about everyone else."

"Me?"

"I'm sure they talk about you, they talk about me," Chris said, "which I don't really care about, but my kids and my wife are off-limits. That's where I absolutely draw the line."

"So what kind of prank is this?"

"You'll see," Chris said as they arrived at Ted's locker room. "So Ted's in love with Stephanie. Sawyer heard Maryse accuse Ted of it and he didn't deny it. I mean, I know it's more than likely a crush, but if you hear me referring to that, that's what that's about."

"You love torturing the kid, don't you?"

"I do admit that it has a certain…cache to it, but it's all in good fun and at some point the kid will come out of his shell and actually insult me back. He's getting there and he'll be there and only then will I respect him. As for now, he's just the guy who has a crush on my wife."

"I can't believe you aren't even jealous."

"For what reason would I have to be jealous?" Chris asked. "Because some dude wants my wife, well, I'm sure there are a lot of dudes who want my wife, at one time, _you_ wanted my wife."

"Because she was mine first," Chris said, "but I'm not really the type to get jealous anymore. Just not my style. It also helps to think that not a lot of guys want to soldier the three kids that Stephanie has now."

"I would, your kids are awesome," Hunter said, "who wouldn't want to be around those kids?"

"A lot of guys," Chris told him. "I don't know if I'd want a woman who had three kids by some awesomely handsome guy who was good at everything he ever tried to do." He knocked on the door in front of them and waited for Ted to open on the other side. It was Maryse instead and Chris narrowed his eyes.

"Hi Mary-see!" Sawyer said to her, trying to be friendly like he was with most people. She looked down at sneered at him.

"Tell your child to get people's names right," Maryse told him.

"Child, call her Mary-see all you want," Chris told his son and Maryse looked like she wanted to slap him, but she wouldn't dare do something so bold to someone who had so much power, so she curbed herself.

"What are you here for?" she asked instead, glaring at Chris and then at Hunter.

"I just needed to inform Ted of what he was doing tonight," Chris said so smoothly that Hunter was impressed, but Chris had said that he was a great liar and he was.

"And you?" Maryse asked Hunter.

"I'm just with him," Hunter said.

"Your hair looks even yellower," Sawyer told her.

"My hair is not yellow," Maryse said, pushing past them, "and for the record, your baby is ugly."

"Thanks, Mary-see!" Chris called after her and then rolled his eyes. He _knew_ his daughter was absolutely gorgeous and he knew that Maryse was just saying this because she was upset because she didn't have Ted as wrapped around her finger as she first thought he was. It had to be a blow to her ego to have her boyfriend having a huge crush on someone else and being a little shameless about it.

"What's her problem?" Sawyer asked.

Hunter laughed and leaned down to his young friend, "I think the stuff that makes her hair so yellow is starting to leak into her brain."

"It can leak?" he asked, aghast that things could leak into your _brain_. Wasn't that really bad?

"Yeah and I think you could tell it has with her," Hunter nodded and Sawyer giggled.

Chris pushed the door open and saw Ted just coming out of the bathroom in his ring gear. "Oh hey, where's Maryse?"

"She left, seemed she was mad at you," Chris said, letting Sawyer push Kensington into the room before closing the door behind him. "What did you do this time, DiBiase?"

"Nothing, everything has been setting her off nowadays," Ted sighed and sat down. "I think it might be the prank, but then, she's been in a weird mood a lot and that has nothing to do with the prank."

"Look, you can do better, believe me," Chris told him. "I'm not saying this as a friend so you don't have to think that I'm being patronizing to you or anything. I'm just talking to you as a guy and you can do better than Maryse. There are women on this roster you could do better with."

"Like who?"

"Seriously?" Chris asked. You look at Maryse and think _she's_ the top of the heap?"

"I'm not exactly popular around here."

"But you're rich and good-looking, when you have those two things, girls are pretty much ready to fall at your feet. Right, Hunter?"

"Yeah, I guess so," Hunter said, finally being acknowledged as being in there. Ted gave him a slight nod of recognition and Hunter nodded back and that was it. It wasn't like they were bosom buddies and ready to gossip or do each other's nails; a nod would suffice.

"He doesn't know, he doesn't fit the good-looking part of it," Chris joked, slugging Hunter in the arm. "Hey, everyone in this room either loves or has been in love with Stephanie, wow, we should start a club."

"I love Mommy," Sawyer declared.

"High five for loving Mommy!" Chris said, holding his hand out so Sawyer could slap it. Hunter observed the furious blush that Ted was trying to hide by ducking his head. Hunter knew Chris was loving this. Chris was the kind of guy who would find a weakness and exploit until the other person submitted. He'd seen it first-hand with himself and with Stephanie and with other people as well. Ted didn't even have a comeback. "So did everything go well this morning?"

_Ted looked down at Maryse. She was sleeping soundly, her eye-mask over her eyes as her limbs spread across the bed. He slipped out of bed and over to her duffel bag. He kept looking up at her as she slept, every sound was magnified it seemed and he was afraid that every moment he was doing something, she'd take the mask off and catch him. But she just kept snoring (and if she knew she snored, she would probably go on a rampage). He grabbed the baggie he'd kept under his pillow all night and then found the bag she kept her brushes in. He unzipped it as slowly as he could and put the fake hair inside of it, scattering it along the bottom and putting some on her brushes._

_After he planted it, he climbed back into bed and lay there until Maryse snuffled and snorted, signaling her wakefulness. She stretched her arms and hit him in the face. "Oww!"_

"_Que? Que?" Maryse said, sitting up and taking off her mask. "What it is?"_

"_You hit me in the face."_

"_Oh," Maryse said, not bothering to apologize. "I feel ugly today."_

"_You look beautiful," he told her, giving her his best smile._

"_What do you know?" she said. "My hair is a mess!"_

"_Why don't I comb it for you?" Ted offered, seeing an opening for really getting under Maryse's skin. _

_Unfortunately, she looked at him suspiciously, "Why do you want to do that?"_

"_Because I care about you and I thought it could be a romantic gesture. Aren't you always saying that I should be more romantic? You're always complaining about it so here I am, trying to be more romantic."_

"_Oh, well then, go to do what you want," Maryse told him. _

"_Your brushes are in your bag, right?" Ted said, getting up and going over to her bag._

"_Yes, you can't miss them," Maryse answered, fluffing up her hair and preparing for Ted. He went through her bag and grabbed the bag he already knew was in there, but he hesitated just a little to make it look like he was actually looking for the bag. He picked it up and unzipped it loudly._

"_Whoa, Mar, do you ever clean your brushes?" Ted asked her with a laugh._

"_What are you talking about? My brushes are always clean," Maryse told him, turning her head as Ted pulled out strand after strand of hair from her bag. "What is that!"_

"_I don't know, your hair, it looks like your hair."_

"_Oh my God!" Maryse said, starting to feel around her hair. "Non, this cannot be happening, mes cheveux! Teddy, mes cheveux!"_

"_Have you noticed your hair thinning?" Ted asked, actually enjoying her panic. Yes, he was terrible, but he was really starting to see that Maryse was a terrible girlfriend. It was always about her and he was supposed to succumb to her whims every time. She never gave him anything and practically made him beg if he did need something._

"_Non!" Maryse said, feeling around a particular part of her head. "Is this a bald spot? Is this a bald spot!"_

_Ted knew there was no bald spot, but the power of suggestion was clearly taking over Maryse's mind at the moment. He came over and looked. "It is looking a little thin."_

"Oh my God," Chris was laughing so hard he was holding his stomach and looking at Ted. "You're brilliant, man, I've got to give you your props, that is genius. Oh man, the only thing better would have been if you'd gotten this all on video."

Hunter was laughing too and Ted looked kind of proud of himself. "She spent half an hour examining her hair and muttering in French."

"No wonder she was so pissed," Hunter said.

"Yeah, she's pretty on edge today. I have to admit, it's kind of funny and it's not like we're really hurting her or anything. We're just playing a prank and she kind of deserves it because she really shouldn't have said that stuff about Stephanie. It's just not cool."

Chris couldn't stop laughing, "She more than deserves it."

"Daddy, what's so funny?" Sawyer asked. He'd been trying to peek in on Kensington and not listening to Ted recount his morning with Maryse.

"We're just talking about something funny that Ted did."

"Trips, did you know that Ted does _all_ the voices when he reads stories?" Sawyer told his friend. "He's really good, but not as good as Mommy because nobody is as good as Mommy is with the voices, but she doesn't sing, she lets Daddy sing."

"I'm not that good," Ted drawled.

"Uh huh, you are," Sawyer said.

"Seriously, Ted, do you just want to take over?" Chris told him, teasing him again, but he kept it short. "Thanks for doing this, I owe you one…as long as that one I owe you isn't Stephanie."

"I think we should leave the poor guy alone," Hunter said, taking in Ted's red face. He was blushing more than a grown man should. "Don't worry about Chris, Ted, he's just a jerkface who does this to everyone."

"Trips is mad because I stole his wife, just like you're doing to me."

"Okay, big man, let's go," Hunter said, steering Chris out of the room.

"I was just getting started," Chris protested. "Later, Ted."

"Bye, Ted!" Sawyer waved and Hunter nodded to him again as they left the room. "You really do torment that poor guy."

"Can't help it, the target is too easy, he sets me up, I can't just not knock it down."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, come on, let's go bug our significant others."

Punk stared down at Flynn, who was staring up at him. Their faces were very similar in expression. Punk was staring down at her, not understanding why this little girl was staring at him. Flynn couldn't understand why this guy was staring at her. She narrowed her eyes at him and stared him down, giving her fiercest expression. After seeing it, Punk lightened up a little. He liked the cut of her jib.

"Hi," Punk told her.

"Hi," Flynn said to him back.

"Oh cool, you can talk?"

"You talk too," Flynn said as Stephanie watched the exchange. As soon as Punk sat down, Flynn was looking him over, like a little bodyguard or something. Her arms were leaning on Punk's chair now as she looked at him intently, as if trying to assess this guy before her.

"Well, I'm an adult."

"I not a baby," Flynn told him.

"I never said you were," Punk told her.

"Well I not."

"Good because I'm not really fond of babies," Punk shrugged.

Flynn reached out and touched his arm, "What dat?"

"Those are tattoos."

"What dat?" she wondered, still running her hand over his arm at all the drawings. They weren't smudging or anything. Sometimes when she was using markers or paint it would get on her, but then her mommy or daddy would help her wash it off in the sink and then it would come off, but this wasn't even smudging. Now that she thought about it, Edge had drawings on his arms too.

"It's when someone draws something on you, but it doesn't come off."

"Pretty," Flynn told him with a nod.

"I'm not pretty, I'm a guy, guys aren't pretty," he explained to her. "Guys can be handsome."

"Pretty," Flynn said, continuing to run her hands over his arms.

"I do believe she likes you," Stephanie said, smirking at Punk as he looked at her and then back down at Flynn, who was grabbing at his arm and moving it around so she could look at all the pictures that were drawn there. She would have to look at Edge's arms when she got the chance because he had drawings too. Maybe she could even do a drawing for him.

"Whatever," Punk said, looking down at Flynn in consternation.

"She's very difficult to please, you should be proud," Stephanie continued to needle him.

"You wrestle."

"Yeah, I do and I'm damn good at it too, did you see those guys that were with me earlier? They're my team now, I'm guiding them, I'm showing them the light."

"Daddy wrestles," Flynn told him, "he good, he best!"

"I'm the best."

Flynn laughed at him, "No, no, no, no, Daddy best, silly!"

"You're too young to get it," Punk told her.

"I'd wager to say she's watched more of Chris's wrestling than you have," Stephanie said, "now, I know you didn't come in here to talk to my daughter, though she is quite entertaining. So what is it, Punk?"

"Did you see what happened last week? Just as I told you, Stephanie, just as I told you, now look, I know you told me you would think about it, but I've got such big plans. I want to trim the group down, see who's really loyal to me, make sure they know that I'm the boss. I want all of this and I want something more at Royal Rumble."

"That's a ways away, you know."

"Not that long and you know it," Punk said, "now I know that your husband has no intentions of coming back any time soon and we all know that you are biased towards him and you favor him and then give him what he wants-"

"Hold up right there, I've _never_ favored Chris over anyone. I've been extremely unbiased because Chris wouldn't have it any other way so I'm telling you right now that I never did anything for him."

"Fine, whatever," Punk told her, "the fact remains, he's not coming back at the Rumble, is he?"

"There aren't really any plans for him to do so, no."

"You can rig the Rumble."

"I can?"

"Yes, you can, we both know you can, Stephanie. Even before I came into this company, I knew about you, how could anyone _not_ know about you? You're the girl that bought ECW right out from under her father, aren't you? You're the one who took over the entire company and drove your father out. You've done a ton of stuff around here, I know you're a schemer and a manipulator, just like I am. Those guys out there, they want to look up to me. I just took advantage of their weaknesses, just like you do."

"I gave that up, I'm more concerned with my family now," Stephanie told him, simply arching an eyebrow.

"That's bull-"

"I trust you not to finish that word in front of my two year old daughter," Stephanie said in an even tone, but with danger lurking just beneath it. Flynn had gone back to play with some of her crayons, trying to draw on her own skin, but she had ears and could hear what was being said.

"That's crap and you know it," Punk said. "Don't tell me that domestic life has suddenly changed you."

Stephanie shrugged at him. "Look around…Phil." Punk straightened as Stephanie used his real name. "I have a company and a show to run here. I have a husband who I have to maintain a relationship with and I have three children, all of whom are under the age of five, one of whom is an infant. Do you really think I have time for silly plans anymore?"

Phil looked at her levelly, "I think you do." She scoffed and looked down. "I don't think that any amount of kids or whatever life you have could take that out of you. I know you because we're alike, Stephanie. We know who we can manipulate around us. We know who's weaker. I think you've been banking your entire adult life on feeding on the weak."

"Really? You think that's how I've operated?"

"I think most everyone in your life has been weak and you've taken advantage of that."

"Since when did you become such a suck up?"

Punk laughed, "I'm not sucking up if I'm telling the truth, you of all people should know what the truth is since your husband seems to like to talk about it all the time. I'm sure that he's the same way, am I right?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," she told him.

"See, this is why I know you'd be good as the silent Nexus partner," Punk told her, "you keep a straight face even when someone is calling you out."

"I can't rig the Royal Rumble for you. What do you want me to do, let every guy on the roster lie down for you so you and your cronies can throw them over the top rope? The Royal Rumble is the best, and sometimes only, shot some of these guys are going to get. And you think you can manipulate yourself into a win. This isn't Survivor."

"It's not, but you can get my guys into the match early. Look, I'm looking to trimming the group down as I said and I'm thinking that we can get all my guys in early and then we plow through the rest of the participants until I win."

"And you think you'll have these guys wanting to follow you so hard that they will forgo their opportunity at WrestleMania?"

"I have them well-convinced that they aren't ready for the big time yet."

"I don't think Wade feels that way."

"Ahh, Wade Barrett," Punk said, tapping his fingers together. "Don't worry about Wade, I'm not. Just believe in what I'm saying to you."

"I'm not one to be brainwashed," she told him, pressing her hands to her desk, "and for you to come to me and think that your words, your 'sweet' words of whatever you're trying to sell me are going to work on me, you've got less brains than I thought."

"I'm just leveling with you."

"Get the hell out of my office," Stephanie told him, leaning back against her chair. "I'll see if you're being sincere and then and only then will I consider what you're trying to sell, but don't make it a habit of acting like you're my biggest fan."

"Noted," he told her as he stood up and walked out of her office, running into Chris on his way out, "your wife is pretty nasty, you know that right?"

"I wouldn't have married her if she wasn't," Chris said, pushing in Kensington as Sawyer skipped over to his other sister, who greeted him with a grin and a very kid-like hug. "What was that all about?"

"Just business," Stephanie told him, standing up and walking over to give him a kiss. "I feel like I haven't seen you in forever."

"It's not been forever."

"Oh, I wasn't talking to you, I was talking to Kensy," Stephanie said, winking at him as she leaned over to pick up her daughter. She lifted Kensington into her arms and nuzzled her nose into Kensington's downy hair. "I missed you too I guess."

"Thanks," he said drolly. "So what kind of business does Punk want you for?"

"Illicit business," she told him, lowering her voice and trying to sound ominous. "Very secret, totally underground."

"What have you gotten yourself mixed up into this time, McMahon?" he told her, shaking his head and pulling her closer, Kensington nestled safely between her parents.

"That's for me to know, Jericho, and you to find out."


	308. Full Steam Ahead, January 10, 2011

A/N: As always thanks for the reviews/reads. Just a little reminder that some things will be skewed for the HaK universe, like Chris's book. Hope you enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

"So tell me again why Vickie is bugging you?"

"I don't know, I think she's still in love with me," Edge told Stephanie. "I mean, really, once you have _this_, it's really hard to find any sort of upgrade. Vickie is now having to slum it with Dolph and he's probably banging LayCool anyways because they're a lot hotter than she is, no offense meant to my girlfriend."

"Who's not even here," Stephanie pointed out.

"Just because she's not here doesn't mean she doesn't hear things and the last thing I need is for her to think I'm after those women. I don't know if you know this, Stephanie, but I don't have the best reputation around here with the ladies. That's not to say that I don't have a good reputation in bed or anything because everyone and their mother, including yours I bet, wanted to see me have sex with Lita in the ring, but word gets around that I can cheat even though I've never cheated on Lita…I mean, I cheated with her when she was with Matt, but that's a different story altogether."

"I think Lita is pretty secure."

"No, no woman is ever secure, believe me, I've known too many of them and I _know_ that's not the truth."

"I'm a woman," Stephanie reminded him.

"You're different."

"How am I different?"

"You act like a dude."

"I what?" Stephanie asked incredulously, her chin drooping down to her chest as she regarded Edge. In all her years, she'd never been called a guy before so this was kind of a shock to her senses. "Repeat that."

"You act like a dude," Edge shrugged, like this wasn't a big deal. "I mean, yes, you've got a helluva rack there going for you, which, I mean, one of these days, you should just flash me because Chris brags all the damn time about those things and it's getting to the point where I'm going to have to see them to believe him."

"He brags about my breasts."

"Yeah, I mean, you know how guys are," Edge laughed, "we talk about these things. I talk about Lita's boobs, Christian talks about Trish's, which I've heard they're delightful but I know that Christian would never let me see them. I mean, he hates when he has to ask me to watch Tilden and I'm an _awesome_ uncle to that kid. Chris talks about yours and he says that despite having three kids, they are as awesome as ever."

"I am _never_ going to flash you," Stephanie said evenly. "Never, not ever. Not even to save the world."

"It's really nothing to be ashamed of, Stephanie. I bet your boobs are spectacular, even if they do have implants, Lita has them. Vickie didn't. Even hers weren't that bad. Anyways, yeah, you've got nice boobs and I bet you're a tiger in bed, if what Chris says is any indication-"

"Just how often _do_ you guys talk about us in bed?" Stephanie asked, wondering if she was going to have to speak with her husband about his chatty habits. The way Edge made it sound, it was like they talked about their sex lives all the time. What were they, the male cast of Sex and the City?

"Whenever it comes up in conversation," Edge answered. "Chris is a bit of a bragger though. I mean, he doesn't go into details, which sucks, because I have a feeling you're into a lot of really kinky stuff, not weird stuff, but like, kinky good stuff."

"That's none of your business."

"Dude, it's common knowledge that you put out after what, two days?" Edge said. "We've known that for years and if you were willing to give it up that easily, you must want it bad. Also, the three kids thing is kind of obvious, don't you think? All of them within two years of each other. Come on, Stephanie, what do you take me for?"

"A guy who shouldn't bring up my sex life and then compare me to a dude."

"Oh yeah, back to the dude part, you're all in charge, you wear business suits, Stephanie, you're a dude."

"I'm not a dude."

"You're powerful like a dude," he explained. "I'm complimenting you. It's a good thing, you're in charge and you take charge and I really like it. It's a cool way to be. Chris is lucky to have you. I think it's cool that you're like a dude."

"Thanks then," she rolled her eyes, "So you think Vickie is still in love with you because she's…after you or something? I haven't seen anything on SmackDown to indicates that she cares anything about you."

"Yeah, well she's not doing it overtly, she's just…there, she's always there with that sneering look of hers."

"Did you ever consider that she's sneering at you because she doesn't like you?"

"Well, I mean, I guess she doesn't like me, but there's something in her eyes that's like more than hatefulness. It's like there wanting in there too, like this past Thursday, when I got back from my match with Kane and I had the title with me and everything, she was looking at me like she wanted to pounce on me and since she calls herself a cougar now, it's an apt comparison."

"Okay, so then did you ever consider that it's because you have the title?"

"So? Why would she want the title?"

"She doesn't want it, Dolph, remember him, she probably wants it for Dolph," Stephanie said. "Duh, Edge, don't you think that's why she would look at you with _want_? She wants the title. Use your brain, dumbass."

"No need to be harsh," Edge pouted. "You really think so, she's always bringing up the fact that I'm her ex-husband."

"You _are_ her ex-husband."

"But she doesn't have to bring it up all the time."

"It's just stating the facts."

"Stephanie, help me," Edge whined. Stephanie knew why everyone came to her with these things, but sometimes it was like she had a myriad of children and not the three she did have. The three she _did_ have were a lot more well-behaved than some of these guys. She had Punk constantly wanting her to join Nexus as a silent partner, her husband was off pulling pranks with Ted and now Hunter, and Edge was whining about his ex-wife.

"Help you do what?" she asked, throwing her hands out in front of her. "Edge, what in God's name do you think I can do for you?"

"You could fire her."

"On what grounds? If I fired her, she'd slap with a wrongful termination suit."

"Suspend her?"

"Again, for what?" she asked. "SmackDown isn't even my jurisdiction, it's my father's jurisdiction and he appointed Vickie as the General Manager. That's his choice, not mine. I run Raw, that's what I do, if you were here, maybe I could tell her to back off, but how can I possibly enforce anything when I'm not over there?"

"Because you're a McMahon!" he exclaimed. "And isn't your dad in a coma or something?"

"No, my dad is a jackass, but he's not in a coma. He wants us to say that because he's a jackass, but you're welcome to go to him. He might be able to do something for you."

"Yeah, like I'm going to go complain to your dad, he can be weird and scary," Edge said, shaking his head. "So you're saying I flew to Nashville for nothing?"

"You could go see the kids, I know they'd like to see you," Stephanie told him.

"Yeah, so what? Your kid can make fun of me again. You know, he's really too much of a know-it-all, you should really discipline him for that. He's always trying to contradict me and I'm an adult and he should respect his elders, don't you think?"

"He likes you, Edge."

"I'm so sure," Edge scoffed. "He's combative. Everyone says that he's nothing like you or Chris, but he's _exactly_ like you and Chris. He's sneaky, stealth like you two. At least Flynn is up front about being a little terror, Sawyer acts like the golden child and he's not."

"He thinks that arguing with you is fun for him," Stephanie said, "give him a break, he's four years old."

"He's almost five, he should know better by now, isn't he starting Kindergarten in the fall?"

"Don't remind me," Stephanie said with a sigh, "I'm not ready to see my little boy go off to school, it's all downhill from there and then he's going to be off to college and then wrestling and then he'll have a family and I'll never see him."

"That Mama's boy never see you, not going to happen, plus, but the time that happens, you and Chris will have like 15 more kids to take care of so you'll be fine," Edge said with a nod as Stephanie flipped him off. "I wish one of your kids was in here right now because then you wouldn't dare flip me off like that."

"I can't believe you flew all the way down to Nashville just to tell me this when I live near you."

"I was in North Carolina this weekend with Li."

"Why haven't you asked her to officially move in with you yet?"

"Because that will just lead us down the path to destruction, nothing good ever comes from people moving in together, nothing."

"I lived with Chris before we were married or even engaged, so did Trish and Christian."

"Okay, well, it's different from me and Lita. In my experiences, it just creates too much tension. She's a very independent person and it's kind of like we have two houses in that way. She spends more time at my house, but sometimes we want to get away and then we go to North Carolina."

"Where she has a house very close to her ex-boyfriend whom you helped her cheat on," Stephanie pointed out.

"Inconsequential. Matt and his buddies are too busy making their lame videos to care what I'm doing. We've never even run into them when we've been there. I think they live in a bunker or something while Lita and I like to be seen about town. But then, look at us and look at them, wouldn't you want to be out with us?"

"Sure," she said, "sorry your trip was in vain."

"If she starts to get on me though, I'm not going to stand for it, just so you know. I'm not going to let her do that to me. I'm going to do something about it. I'm going to kick Dolph's ass or something, I don't really condone hitting women, so you know, I probably wouldn't hit Vickie."

"That's nice to know."

"I'm a gentleman," he said, "so is Kurt like back in the group or something? When did we invite him back? Did you guys have a meeting? Did you guys _vote_ and not invite me?"

"You don't have to be friends with him, Edge," Stephanie laughed. Sometimes she just loved being around Edge. He was never serious and even when he was serious, he knew how to diffuse a situation better than anyone she knew that wasn't Chris. Edge was a good friend to have when he wasn't being a jackass and watching him and Sawyer interact was always comedy. If they weren't famous, she might make videos of the two of them just to share the hilarity. "I'm friends with him and Chris is willing to at least try."

"I never thought I'd see the day where _that_ would happen," Edge said and off Stephanie's raised eyebrow. "Let's face the facts, Steph, your husband knows how to hold a grudge. I mean, yeah, for the most part, he's an awesome guy and one of the funnest people to hang out with that like, ever lived. But the dude holds a grudge."

"You don't have to tell me that," Stephanie said. "I know firsthand how much he can and has held a grudge. I was on the receiving end of it for two years, remember?"

"Oh yeah, that was hilarious," Edge laughed, "I was thinking of Austin though."

"God, I don't think Chris will ever forgive Austin and it's going to be awkward since we're having Austin hosting and training with the new Tough Enough. Chris told my dad that he would help oversee it behind-the-scenes, at least kind of see what's going on, you know, since he's not doing anything right now except help me with the kids. He doesn't know Austin is going to be associated with the show yet. I told my dad not to tell him."

"Make sure I'm like a million miles away before someone tells him," Edge said, "I do not want to see the blow up that results from that."

"Neither do I, I'm not looking forward to it, but he's going to have to learn to get on with the guy. I don't really care what he thinks. Sawyer is fine and for him not to think that Sawyer is. I get why he's upset, I was too at the time, you just don't think that a man will go that far, though I've gotten myself into some sticky situations. But Sawyer is awesome, according to me."

"So why did he accept Kurt back now?" Edge wondered.

"Because he's a good husband," Stephanie answered. "He knew that I wanted Kurt back in my life, that I always felt like there was something so unfinished about how I left that friendship."

"You didn't leave that friendship, Steph, he was the one that screwed up. You tried to help him and he didn't want anything to do with that. It wasn't your fault."

"I know," she said, trying not to think back that far. So much had changed since then. She wasn't the same woman she'd been and Kurt so obviously wasn't the same man he'd been. She didn't want to remember the Kurt during those final weeks. She'd rather remember the one that was the best man at her wedding and the goofy one who kept their secret. Or maybe even just think of him as he was now. "Anyways, I just never felt right with how I left it and having him back is something that makes me happy and Chris wants me to be happy, even if he's not completely happy with my decisions."

"So now he's trying?"

"He said he'd try."

"Daddy, up, up, up," Flynn screamed as she stood in the middle of the ring and pointed to the top rope.

"Not happening."

"Mimmal dopkick!" Flynn screamed jumping up in the air the best she could, which was about an inch or two off the ground before she fell on her butt and laughed at herself. Chris had to give her credit, she took bumps like a champ.

"Were you going for a missile dropkick?" Chris asked her as he snuck a peek at Kensington, who was asleep in her carriage. Apparently the ring had a lulling affect on her because as soon as he'd stepped inside of it, she'd drifted off to sleep and he'd had to put her back in her carriage.

"Yeah! I win!" Flynn said, jumping to her feet again and dancing around.

"What are you doing? Are you trying to be like a diva?"

"No," Flynn said, "I you!"

"When did I look like that?"

"I know, I know!" Sawyer said as he climbed up the ring steps and rolled under the bottom rope into the ring. "It was when you were dancing with Rikishi and Too Cool, that's right, right, Daddy? That's who you danced with, right?"

"Wow, I'm surprised you remember, I'm surprised both of you remember," Chris said. It had been a throwaway scene and a break from being intense. He wasn't exactly a moment he was proud of, but his kids were young so they tended to latch onto the funny moments. They still loved watching when he'd pied Stephanie in the face. They always bowled over in laughter and then bombarded him with questions about what Mommy did afterwards. He always lied and told them that Mommy had thrown a pie in his face, making them laugh even harder. Stephanie had told him once though that she'd cried herself to sleep that night and he didn't want that particular part of the story repeated to his children. Not only did it make his own heart hurt, but these children were his children with the woman he'd made cry and he didn't want them to know that.

"It was funny!" Sawyer said, grabbing his stomach as he laughed. "You danced silly, Daddy."

"Silly Daddy," Flynn agreed as she kept dancing around.

"Oh, I'm silly, huh?"

"Yes!" Sawyer snorted as he kept laughing. His eyes widened as he saw the look in his father's eyes. Chris rushed over and picked them both up, one in each arm and started peppering their faces with kisses. "Daddy, no!"

"I'll show you who's silly!" Chris said, blowing raspberries on their cheeks.

"Daddy!" Flynn laughed as she squirmed in his arms. "Daddy, no!"

"I'm going to get my two little kids," Chris growled and hugged them closer to him. He fell to the mat with the two of them still giggling. "Are you guys going to be wrestlers?"

"Yes, yes, yes!" Flynn screamed, raising her arms up like she'd just won a belt. "I best, Daddy. I best you."

"You're going to best me?" Chris asked. "You want me to wrestle you in the ring? I don't think so, Flutterby, but I plan on teaching you everything I know so that you will be the best female wrestler that the world has ever seen. And I'll have Trish and Lita teach you too so that you really _are_ the best in the world. And since you're so awesome, I trust that you will wear tons of clothes while you wrestle."

"Okay," Flynn shrugged.

"Thank you."

"Daddy, what if I don't wanna be a wrestler?" Sawyer asked.

"Don't let your mother hear you say that," Chris said, shaking his head and making a scary face. "But if you don't want to be a wrestler, then what do you want to do?"

"I don't know, I do want to be a wrestler, but when we were going over jobs in class and stuff we wanted to do when we grew up other people were saying other things and they didn't say wrestler, they said firemen and police guys and um, cookers."

"Chefs," Chris corrected him.

"Yeah, cookers. Nobody wanted to be a wrestler, why, Daddy?"

"Well, wrestling is hard, you know how hard it is, remember when I got my tooth knocked out? Not a lot of people want to go into something where their teeth can get knocked out."

"Grandpa has fake teeth," Sawyer pointed out.

"Grandpa was a hockey player so of course he has fake teeth, hockey is way harder than wrestling, let me tell you," Chris said, then kissed his head. "Kid, you can be whatever you want to be, just like Flynn and Kensy can be whatever they want to be. Of course, me and Mommy want you to be wrestlers or work in the company, but you never _have_ to do it."

"Okay, thanks, Daddy," Sawyer said. He liked knowing that he had his options open if it ever came to that. "Daddy?"

"Yeah?"

"How come you don't wrestle anymore, don't you like it?" Sawyer asked. It'd been such a long time since he'd seen his daddy wrestle and he knew that his daddy had a band and that they had gone to faraway places to play, but didn't his daddy _want_ to wrestle anymore?

"I love it, kid," Chris said, sitting up with his kids, right there in the middle of the ring. Flynn curled up on his lap while Sawyer was tucked under his arm, looking up at him curiously. Flynn was just playing with the hem of Chris's t-shirt, occupied by that at the moment. "At first, Mommy asked me to take some time off because she had Kensy and she needed the help in taking care of all of you guys and since I'm your dad, I was happy to help."

"I could help too," Sawyer pointed out.

"Me too!" Flynn declared, suddenly interested in the conversation.

"You both help out a lot, but there are some things that I can do that you can't."

"Like what?" Sawyer challenged him to think of something.

"Drive," Chris said, sticking his tongue out at his son.

"Oh, yeah, I can't do that," Sawyer sulked.

"Anyways, then I had the stuff with the band and now I'm going to have a book coming out and I have to do a lot of stuff with that because people are going to want to meet me and everything because I wrote it."

"Can I read it?"

"Um, not until you're much older, okay?" Chris told him.

"I can read though."

"I know you can, I'm very impressed by it, but there's a lot of language that you shouldn't repeat in there and some stuff that's a little too adult for you. Don't worry, when you get older, you can read it and then you can tell me what you think about it."

"Why did you write it?"

"Because people want to read about me."

"What?" Sawyer asked.

"Because they think that my life is fascinating and interesting and they want to read about all the experiences I had. They want to know how I got to where I am today and what I've been doing with my life that they haven't been able to see."

"Like how we had fried rice for dinner last night?" Sawyer asked.

"It yummy," Flynn spoke up.

"It was yummy, I agree," Chris said, kissing the top of Flynn's head, making her look up at him and smile. She loved when she got kisses from her daddy. Then she laughed wildly when Chris made a funny face at her. "But not like that. It's more like, how I became a wrestler and the kinds of things I experienced, like when I was mad at your mommy and didn't like her."

"Why do people want to read that?" Sawyer asked.

"Because they're crazy for me," he told his son.

"I like you."

"But you know me so it's different and not only do you know me, you're part me so it's very different, there are only two people like you in this world, kid, one is this little monster right here and the other is asleep in her carriage. You guys are part of me like nobody else in the world is, that's kind of why I love you three more than anything and anyone else in this world, more than Fozzy, more than writing my book, more than hockey, more than wrestling."

"More than Mommy?" Sawyer asked with incredulity.

"Let's not get carried away now," Chris winked at him, "but yes, a little bit more than Mommy, but only because you're my kids and Mommy is my wife, but I love her very, very, very, very, very much."

"That's a lot of verys."

"You better believe that's a lot of verys because I love Mommy so much."

"How much?"

"From the end of the universe and back."

"Wow, does Mommy know?"

"I hope so!"

"Is that why you got mad at Mary-see for what she said about Mommy because it wasn't very nice?"

"I know you've heard me insult people, I know you've heard me talk about how I don't like people or how I make fun of people when I'm in the ring and yeah, I know that it sounds bad when I turn around and get mad at someone else, but I love Mommy and she didn't do anything to Mary-see. But Mary-see decided to be mean about Mommy for no reason at all and so that's why I'm mad at her."

"Why doesn't she like Mommy, Mommy's the best."

"I love Mommy," Flynn said, "I love, love, lover her!"

Chris laughed, "Because Mommy's the best, that's why Mary-see doesn't like her. It's hard to not be as great as Mommy is and when someone isn't, they get jealous of Mommy, like when your friend, Jimmy, got to go to DisneyWorld and you didn't. You didn't like that much, that's jealousy."

"I don't like that."

"I know, it's not something we generally like. But don't worry, Mary-see is going to get what's coming to her."

Maryse adjusted her hat again. It was not tipping on her head the right way. For the past week she'd been wearing a hat to cover up what she was sure was a developing bald spot. Whenever she looked in the mirror after a shower, she could swear that it was getting bigger and bigger. She couldn't take the extensions out herself and she hadn't had time to get to her hairdresser so she was stuck with these infernal things in her hair and they were downright pulling her hair out. She didn't want anyone to see, especially not the other divas. It was a ruthless business and she could just imagine all of them making fun of her for being bald. She would rather die than have that happen.

"Why could this have not happened to someone like the Bellas?" Maryse asked, more to herself than to Ted.

"I don't know, maybe that's their real hair."

"Oh please," she said, throwing up her hand at him. "If that is their real hair than I am the Queen of England and I despise England."

"Okay, then I guess not," he told her. She was really starting to become insufferable and the more he saw the real her, the less he liked.

"Ted, can you see the spot?" she asked in worry.

"Nope, can't see it," Ted said because you can't see something that doesn't exist in the first place, but Maryse didn't have to know that.

"I cannot believe I go bald," Maryse said pathetically. "I be ugly, I am not ugly, but I be ugly."

"You're not ugly," he said, not on the outside at least, but her personality certainly was. "Don't worry, babe, I'm sure everything will be just fine…"

Stephanie was walking down the hallway when someone sidled up next to her. She tried to take a left away from said person, but they grabbed her arm and stilled her. Punk looked at her, biting one of the nails on his left hand. "You busy?" he asked.

"Yes, can't you see that I am?" she said, gesturing towards the stack of papers in her hand. "I haven't seen my husband and kids and I want to make sure that my kids have eaten and then on top of that the show is starting soon and doesn't it look bad if you are trying to pursue me as your partner here in front of everyone where all your supposed enemies might see?"

"I'm just talking to my boss, that's all," he shrugged. "Have you thought about what I said?"

"No, because I have better things to do."

"I'm going after Randy soon."

"I don't care."

"I think you do. I mean, did you _ever_ really get over what Randy did to you a couple years ago?"

Stephanie looked around, wondering if the rest of Nexus was lurking around, hiding behind corners. She also wondered if she'd actually see her husband and kids at this point. Anything to stave off this weirdo would be a wonderful distraction for her right now. He couldn't seem to take a hint and yet, she wasn't entirely sure what he was capable of. On the other hand, she hadn't had a good plan in a long while and it might be fun. Nexus was obviously formidable now that it had a clear leader who had been around before. Still, they were essentially a bunch of rookies and nobodies.

"Yes, because I played him right back, I'm obviously still with my husband, right, and I didn't end up with Hunter, did I? It was all an elaborate plan, the kind you could never dream up."

"That's why you'd be such an asset to the group. You're scheming and you would be good for this. Randy's a jerk, he kicked your husband in the head."

"That was a plan," Stephanie told him.

"Chris had Randy kick him in the head on purpose? Is he mental?"

"Are you?" Stephanie asked. "You're the one standing here and bothering me for the third week in a row."

"Just try us out then," Punk said.

"You don't think you can do this on your own, do you?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You don't think you can lead this team if you don't have the front office connection. You had your other little group when you were on SmackDown and it fizzled because Serena was fired and then Luke. You want the reassurance that this isn't going to backfire on you. That's where I come in."

"Stephanie…if you say the word…"

"What's going on here?" Chris asked as he happened on the conversation. "Well this is a surprise, Punk. Impressive takeover of Nexus. You just came in and overhauled everything. I have to applaud you for the effort."

"Thanks, Chris," Punk nodded. "I'll be seeing you, Stephanie. Just watch tonight, you'll see how much of a leader I really am."

He turned heel and walked away. Stephanie sighed in relief and then took in her family for a good moment. Sawyer was pushing Kensington's carriage and Flynn was in Chris's arm, looking very pouty and sad. She looked at Flynn and made a little frown face, which Flynn smiled a little. Flynn then reached her arms for Stephanie and Stephanie, despite needing to do stuff, saw that her daughter needed some comfort.

"I boo-boo," Flynn said, holding up her arm and indeed, there was a bruise on her forearm, a small one, but still, it was a bruise.

Stephanie pressed her lips softly to the bruise, "There, I kissed it and made it better, was that what had you so upset, baby girl?"

"No, she's upset because they didn't have tater tots in catering this week like they did last week and she's very bummed and doesn't understand that was a different arena that we were at and she started yelling for tater tots so she had to have a time-out and she's very upset about it, it may also be the embarrassment of humiliating herself in front of everyone. You know how sensitive she is," Chris said, trying to lighten the mood.

"Yes, of course, our very sensitive daughter," Stephanie said, rubbing her back. "It's okay, baby girl, we'll go home and we can have tater tots and Daddy can grill some burgers if the weather is nice and we'll make a day of it."

"Okay, thank you," Flynn said in her sweet, little voice.

"You going to the gorilla to be all in charge?" Chris asked, kissing her cheek.

"You know it," Stephanie said.

"Let me walk you there."

"Will you carry my books?" she asked coyly, holding out her stack of papers that she was holding with her free hand. Chris took them from her and then helped to direct Sawyer in the right direction. Kensington was awake now and wiggling around in her carriage, swatting at the dangly things hanging in front of her face.

"So really, what was that about?" Chris asked once they were settled at the gorilla. "You and Punk have seemed to meet up an awful lot for two people who use to hardly know each other."

"He wants me as Nexus's silent partner, essentially, he wants me to rig things for him without getting anything in return. I think that he thinks that I'll just give in and do whatever he wants because you're not here. If I were going to date anyone here in your stead, I think it would be Miz solely because he is like your shadow career. He's stealing everything from you."

"Let him have it for a while, the kid can dream he's like me."

"He's not you, though, he's like the poor man's you, no, he's like the pond scum's you, all the single-celled bacteria, that's what he's like in comparison to you. He's such a copycat," she said pretentiously.

"Yeah, he is, but they say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery."

"Maybe in Candyland, but not here," Stephanie scoffed.

"Mommy, that's a girl game," Sawyer told her. "I don't like that game because there's no such thing as Candyland."

"I like it," Flynn piped up. She liked the pretty pictures on the board.

"I know you do," Stephanie said, holding her closer. "I love playing the game with you, it's very fun."

"Isn't that like the best part of having kids, getting to do all the kids' things and having an excuse for it? I think that's really one of the best things about having kids," Chris said, "I mean, you know, besides the whole having someone to love and all that."

"You're such a good father," she deadpanned.

"Hey, where's your assistant?" Chris asked, changing the subject before it wandered into deep waters.

"Sick, got the week off and I'm sure Hunter is taking care of her, why do you think I'm so swamped?"

"Why didn't you tell me, I'm here to help you after all, so use me however you deem fit," he said.

"Go out there and wrestle," she ordered him.

"Oops, not under contract," he told her. "Sorry."

"Speaking of sorry, there's going to be an announcement tonight and Shawn is going to be inducted into the Hall of Fame."

"That douchebag?"

"Chris, it's not a Hall of Fame based on someone's content of character, but their wrestling ability and you would be the first one to say that Shawn has a lot of it. You have modeled the way you wrestled after him."

"Before I found out what a jackass he is," Chris said, "I don't like the guy…but you're right, he is a good wrestler and I guess I can't stop them from putting him into the Hall of Fame. I'm going out on a limb here I know, but Hunter will be inducting him, yes?"

"I have no idea, I'd imagine so, but with Britt back with Hunter, I think it's up in the air. I don't know what Shawn thinks of the two of them back together and I'm not sure what Britt thinks of Shawn right now. I mean, the man had a huge hand in breaking them up, plus with what happened with us and him."

Chris thought about Shawn and the fact that he was going to be inducted. The fans still believed that he was some righteous character, that he should be revered and beloved because he was a good man. They seemed to forget that Shawn was not always good and they overlooked the fact that this religious thing seemed to be a weird kind of repentance for the years he'd spent being an asshole to everyone in his life. He could just hear the pop from the crowd now, they'd all cheer for their hero, HBK, when they didn't know who they were cheering for.

On the other hand, the man was a wrestler. The man was _the_ wrestler as far as a younger Chris was concerned. Sure, Ricky Steamboat had had a huge impact on Chris's career as well, but when Chris saw Shawn Michaels, when he saw this man who was like him and saw how well he was doing and how far he was getting, it gave Chris hope. The younger Chris still looked at him in awe that the older Chris knew was gone from his eyes. Shawn absolutely deserved to be in the Hall of Fame and he deserved to be in there as soon as possible, did it make him suddenly like Shawn, no, of course not, but it was deserved.

"He should be in it," Chris said. "He definitely should."

"I agree, just because he's an ass, doesn't mean he's not worthy of it."

"I just don't look forward to seeing him again is all. But then, I never look forward to seeing him ever since we went at each other's throats."

"Don't worry, you don't even have to come to the Hal of Fame if you don't want to."

"Really?"

"No, you can just help backstage if you want. I wouldn't make you sit through that if it bothers you that much."

"God, I love you in so many ways."

"Kiss me," she tapped her cheek.

"I'll do you one better," he said, kissing her fully on the lips. "Okay, so back to business, so Punk wants you in his little group, eh? What are your thoughts on the matter?"

"I'm not sure. Part of it intrigues, but the other part wants to have nothing to do with him and his stupid group. They cause trouble around here and it's hard to corral a bunch of guys with the sole intent of messing with the establishment. He wants to take out Randy. He tried to sweet-talk me, saying that I couldn't possibly be over what Randy did to me because Randy is going to be his next target. I don't know why exactly, but Punk's memory runs long I've figured out."

"So he's probably holding a grudge for Randy. Do you think he could target Austin at some point?"

"You're so predictable," Stephanie said, "anyways, Punk wants me, he wants me to rig stuff for him, like Royal Rumble. He wants to make sure all his guys are in early and that way they can just take out everyone.

"But how can you rig the Rumble?"

"That's what I'm saying," Stephanie said. "I can't exactly rig it until I do something to where they pick their number and I've somehow marked some balls, but then there's no way to make sure that they get the right number unless I let them be the very first guys and it's so involved."

"You like that kind of thing though."

"With people I like, sure, but what the hell am I going to get out of CM Punk or any of his Nexus buddies? What could they possibly give me in return for helping them to cheat their way to the top? They want Punk to main event WrestleMania. They want to take out every other guy to win for him. They're so blind. They're holding their careers back because of him. They think that they're helping their leader when in reality, Punk is using them all for his own gain and they don't even realize it. Rookies…"

"Hey, when I was a rookie, I wouldn't have gotten caught up in something like that."

"Well, you're smarter than them apparently," she told him, "so tell me why I should even consider going into his little group?"

"The entertainment of it all…"

"So you're saying that I should help him while plotting to screw him over?"

"If you want to look at it that way. I'm just saying you should turn it around on him and make him look stupid in the end."

"This may have some potential."


	309. Six Years, January 17, 2011

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, reads, and what not. I hope you have a sweet tooth because this is a chapter full of fluffy goodness, it's long too so sit back and take your time.

As a note, none, I repeat _**none**_ of the "excerpts" of Chris's book in this are from his actual book. I wrote them all and they give nothing away about his book so if you haven't read it yet don't worry, you haven't been spoiled because if this was how his book really went, well, the wrestling world might be a little topsy-turvy right now. Anyways, hope you enjoy. :)

* * *

"For you."

Stephanie opened her eyes briefly to look at her husband, who was lying on his side. He was already dressed and she wondered why because they really had nothing to do today. It was a rare day where he didn't have something going on (he had been doing a lot of stuff with Fozzy and with his book) and she didn't have to work.

"What time is it?" she asked.

"8:20."

"Chris, even Kensington doesn't get up until 9 and it's Saturday so Sawyer doesn't have preschool, what are you doing up and dressed?" Stephanie asked, pulling more blankets over her as she tried to create a cocoon around her.

"Because I was waiting for something and it finally came, I guess we were the first stop on the guy's route," Chris said eagerly. "So I just decided to get dressed and I made you breakfast. The kids are still asleep, but I thought you might like some time with me before those monsters invade our lives."

"Time with you is nice, sleep is better," Stephanie said.

"Steph," Chris whined, lying down. "You can't go to sleep now." Stephanie reached out from her cocoon and grabbed Chris's jeans, tugging at the zipper. She unbuttoned them and then pulled the zipper down, prompting Chris to speak, "Not that I don't like where this is headed because, believe me, any time you initiate nakey time, but I kind of had other things in mind."

"I don't want nakey time or sexy time, I want sleepy time. Breakfast can wait for people who are actually awake," Stephanie told him, "so just get back in bed and let me use you as a pillow until the monsters wake up from their hibernation."

"You didn't even ask what it was I had for you," he sulked. "Stephanie, I got you something and you didn't even ask to see what it was."

"Is it something I'll need in the next ten minutes?" she asked.

"Well, no."

"Then it can wait," she said, flipping onto her other side so she wasn't even facing Chris. He sighed and got out of bed where his jeans started sliding down his ass. He just pulled them down and stepped out of them, leaving him in his boxers as he walked to the other side.

"It can't wait!" he told her excitedly, sitting on the floor next to the bed so he could face her.

"Yes, it can," Stephanie said, turning back over to her other side.

Seeing a battle ahead of him, one which he could definitely lose as Stephanie was a very valiant adversary, Chris hopped up, threw open the covers, grabbed his wife and pinned her arms to the bed as he straddled her, pulling the covers over them again as he let go of one of her wrists. Her face was facing up, but her eyes were still closed. So Chris leaned down and nuzzled his nose against hers and she smiled as he found her lips.

"Let me sleep," Stephanie whined. "We have three children, Chris, all of whom are a bundle of energy. Kensy is trying to catch up to her brother and sister, have you ever seen such a wiggly baby? I think she's going to start crawling way before the other two did."

"Heaven help us," Chris whispered against her lips, "but I got you something and I really want you to see it because, well…it means something to me."

At this, she opened her eyes, her stormy gray ones meeting his clear blue eyes, creating quite the weather scene with their eyes, "What is it then?"

Chris kissed her briefly before he sat up, still straddling her thighs as if to keep her in place. To tease him a little, Stephanie arched up into him and he groaned and looked down at her mischievous face. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Nothing," she said, wriggling underneath him a little to the point where she could start to feel Chris getting aroused from all the contact.

"Stephanie, now you're just playing dirty," he told her.

"I like being dirty," she winked at him.

"I'm trying to be serious here."

"I'm being as serious as a heart attack," she told him. "Come on, Chris, don't you want me?"

"Do you want a kid #4?" he asked. "Because I'll impregnate you right here, right now if you want. I won't hesitate to call my men to action and you better believe they will get right down to business with your eggs."

"God, why do you have to make it sound all technical?" she made a face at him. "You know I hate that. It takes all the fun out of it. Not that I still can't go of course." She arched her back into him again and he growled at her and then pounced, kissing her roughly as she wrapped her legs around his waist. He rolled them over so she was on top of him and she pressed her body further into his, letting the two of them meld together.

"Is this what you want?" he asked her playfully.

"If you insist on waking me up at this hour, before any of our kids are awake, while they're snug in their beds, then yes, this is what I want," she told him. "But I believe you had something for me."

"Now you're just being a tease," he pouted. "You got me all aroused as I'm sure you can tell and _now _you want to know what I have for you."

"That sounds about right, yes," she told him, gazing down at him. "So what is it?"

"Do me and then you can know."

"I want to know now, then I will do you?" she told him enticingly, pressing her pelvis against his crotch to which he groaned at and grabbed her hips. He tried to grind against her, but she pulled his hands away. "Uh uh, I want to know what you have for me."

"You're being a bitch," he told her.

"You woke me up so you have to suffer the consequences."

"I don't want to suffer the consequences, I just want you," he told her, trying to be charming. On any other woman, it might have worked, no, on any other woman it _would_ have worked, but Stephanie wasn't just any other woman. Stephanie was _the_ woman. He thought back to his present for her. "Get off me and I'll give it to you."

"Okay," she said, kissing him on the corner of his mouth before she rolled off him and onto her side. Chris got up, adjusted his boxers as Stephanie winked at him, licking her lips and nearly making him jump on top of her again. He went back over to the side of the bed he'd been on and grabbed the gift off the floor. He then jumped back on the bed and held it behind his back.

"You ready for it?"

"Of course I'm ready for it," Stephanie told him, "I've been up for how long now, I'm definitely ready for whatever it is that you have there behind your back. I know that it's not jewelry because you're not that kind of guy so I'm honestly a little confused…oh my God…I'm the worst wife in the world."

"And why would that be, baby?" he asked, looking at her impishly, raising an eyebrow.

"Today's our anniversary."

"Bingo!" Chris said, grinning at her. "It only took you like five hours to figure that out."

"Oh my God, I can't believe I forgot," Stephanie said, slapping her hand against her forehead. "It's just that we don't make a big deal out of it; we usually celebrate the date we started dating more and the wedding is the afterthought."

"I love how you consider the day that we wed, one of the most important days of our lives, a day wherein we pledged our eternal love to each other, to be an afterthought. It's a real blow to the ego to think that you don't consider that day to be special."

"I do and you know it," she said, looking at him. "It's just we have a lot of special dates nowadays, we have our anniversary, our wedding anniversary, your birthday, my birthday, then we have three children's birthdays to remember. We have a lot of dates!"

"No excuse, Stephanie," he said, shaking his head.

"I got you something, don't worry about that," she said, then smiled dreamily. "I can't believe it's been six years since we got married. Do you remember the day?"

"Do I remember the day? Um, it was my one and only wedding, of course I remember the day. I remember being so nervous that you weren't going to show up and then you got cold feet and I remember thinking that you had skipped the island and decided to humiliate me in front of all my family and friends."

"Shut up," she covered her face. "I just didn't want to ruin you like I did Hunter."

"I think it's safe to say now that you didn't ruin Hunter, but that you two just weren't right for each other."

"Yeah, it's probably safe to say that now."

"Then I remember you walking down that aisle and I think I forgot how to breathe," Chris said, looking nostalgic and remembering that moment like it was yesterday instead of six years ago. "You were so beautiful. More beautiful than anyone I'd ever seen before. I can't even describe it, but I just felt lucky, like I was just the luckiest bastard in the entire universe. You were…"

"You were looking pretty handsome that day if I recall correctly," Stephanie told him. "I just didn't know how you could be so confident in us."

"I've always been confident in us," Chris said, "I wouldn't have had three kids with you if I wasn't."

Stephanie ducked her head a little, "I love you more now than I did then."

"You better, I've given you the best six years of my life!"

She laughed and reached forward to hug him, which was awkward considering they were lying in bed and they were side by side. "I love you so much."

"Can I give you my present now?"

"Of course," she said, pulling away from him and sitting up and cross-legged on the bed. Chris mimicked her move and Chris pulled his hand away from his back and handed her the gift. She looked down at it and then up at him.

"It's an advanced copy of my book," Chris said. "A full month before it comes out."

"You told me I was going to have to wait like the rest of the country to read it. You wouldn't even let me read the drafts," she told him, "even though, as head of Creative, I do a lot of editing."

"I know you do, but I wanted it to be a surprise to you. I mean, I know you were there for most of this, hell, you were there kind of for all of it, just not the beginning stuff because we weren't together, but you knew me and you were backstage and a lot of this stuff you've heard or experienced, but I still wanted that element of surprise, that's all. But you've been a very good girl this past year so you can have it early."

"Okay, before I get to this, past year, grades?" Stephanie told him. "Lay it on me."

"I'd rather lay it _in_ you," he told her, leering at her body barely covered by her tank top and skimpy shorts.

"Chris, I need my assessment," Stephanie gestured towards herself.

"A plus, plus, plus," he told her with a nod. "In the past year, you have given me a third child and I love my Kensy more than anything else in this world except for you, Sawyer, and Flynn, so for that alone, you pass with flying colors."

"Score!" Stephanie said. "I guess this means you'll be staying another year?"

"I think that is going to be correct, Mrs. McMahon-Jericho," he said. "So…in addition to the book, which I'm sure you want to get to immediately, I will keep the kids out of your hair today so you can read it."

"Thanks, but that's not necessary, I'd rather-"

"Please, I want you to read it," he told her, his voice softening and his sincerity shining through the usual comedic routine he employed.

"Okay," she said, "is that why you woke me up early?"

"Well, no and yes, I really did make you breakfast, but just stay in here and read, okay? I'll take care of everything. The least I can do for all the things you do to take care of the rest of us and the stuff you do while I'm out on the road…I want to do this for you."

"You must have written some pretty nasty things about me in here," she tapped the book. He shrugged playfully and disappeared out of the room.

Stephanie watched him go and then opened the book, running her hand over the first page. She looked at the dedication to his fans and smiled at that. She figured if she didn't start reading immediately that Chris would be immensely hurt over the whole thing and there was obviously a reason he wanted her to read it so badly, which was curious to her. It wasn't like she didn't know Chris or know everything about him, well, almost everything. She didn't know the logistics of this prank he was pulling on Maryse, but for a lot of other things, she knew what he was all about.

Chris kept glancing towards the door to the kitchen, expecting Stephanie to walk through it and he didn't entirely know why. She was a quick reader, but it wasn't like she was going to finish the book in ten minutes. He'd put a lot of thought into that book and though he wrote it in bits and pieces, everything he wrote about Stephanie came right from the heart. There was a lot about her in there considering the role she played in his life and if there was anyone in the world he wanted to impress with his book, it'd be her.

Stephanie walked in about ten minutes later, her nose in the book as she sat down at the kitchen table. He smiled nearly involuntarily as she just continued reading. He grabbed her breakfast and set it down in front of her, kissing the top of her head. She turned and looked up at him, smiling as she held up the book to him. She was already 15 pages in and he wanted her to get to her parts because the beginning was Stephanie-light. The real meaty part started later in.

"What do you think so far?" he asked eagerly. She was the only critic he wanted to get approval from.

"So far so good," she told him, not telling him that everything he'd written so far, she knew about from his mouth. It was unique getting to hear it in a different voice than the one she usually got from him.

"Great," he said, picking up a strawberry and holding it front of her mouth.

"You're spoiling me today," she told him. "I need to spoil you."

"Never," he told her. "You're constantly spoiling me."

"How?"

"Just being you," he said, "I think Kensy might be up, I'm going to check, you just keep reading, okay?"

"I am, I am, you are so determined to have me read this entire book today, aren't you?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I want to happen," he told her as she picked up a piece of cantaloupe and fed it to him. "Yum."

"You're yum."

He laughed and kissed her, tasting the strawberry on her lips and tongue, "I love you."

"I love you too, now go get our daughter so I can read."

He saluted her and jogged upstairs to Kensington's room. He pushed open the door and could already see that Kensington was awake. He walked over to her crib and looked down at her. "Hey there, Kensy-bug, what do you think you're doing?" Kensington had rolled over on her stomach and she turned her head to look at Chris. Chris plucked her up and held her over his head, making her laugh. "Let's get you changed for the day and then we'll go downstairs and I think there's a nice bottle full of breast milk in the fridge for you, you lucky girl."

Kensington giggled, making a grab for Chris's chin. He made a funny face at her and she giggled even harder, her small body shaking from the laughs at her father. "You're a funny lady, Kensy-bug, I'm glad you can appreciate my sense of humor."

He brought her downstairs and into the kitchen, setting her down in her highchair. Kensington tilted her head towards Stephanie and babbled a little bit to try and get Stephanie's attention. Stephanie turned her head towards her daughter a little and Kensington reached for her. Stephanie leaned over and kissed the top of Kensington's head, to which Kensington scrunched up her nose like she didn't want the kiss. Chris came back with Kensington's bottle and held it up to her mouth as Kensington turned her attention to breakfast. Kensington grasped at the bottle and put her hands over Chris's. She was able to hold the bottle herself for the most part, but she couldn't take it in and out of her mouth just yet so someone had to watch her. Chris waited a few moments and then took his hand away as Kensington looked at him over her bottle.

"You got that?" he asked her and she just continued to eat. "I know, that's really good, isn't it?"

"You're disgusting," Stephanie said from behind her book.

"What? I didn't tell her _how_ I know that it's the good stuff," Chris told her.

"You're still disgusting," Stephanie said, "don't corrupt our daughter. She's still innocent and I'd like to keep this one that way, I've already got one kid who wants to jump off of everything she's standing on and do some sort of elbow drop or swan dive."

"It could be worse, she could want to do a swanton bomb or a 450 splash," Chris said with a cheesy grin.

"Heaven help_ you _if she ever decides she wants to do that because I will personally make sure that you never have another night of fun for the rest of your life," she said, "now let me get back to reading, I have a feeling a certain beautiful, gorgeous woman is about to make her entrance."

Chris looked at the book and what page she was on, "Yeah, not yet, but you're getting there. I want your full assessment when you're done, got it?"

"Of course, like I wouldn't give you an honest opinion, I don't pander to you," she said smugly.

Stephanie continued to read the book as she occasionally popped a piece of fruit into her mouth. Chris helped Kensington with her bottle and then burped her when she was finished, setting her back in the chair with a couple of toys to occupy her while he went upstairs to get the other kids. Sawyer was just groggily getting up and he ruffled his son's head and whispered to get up and Sawyer smiled sleepily. He went to Flynn's room and she was still out like a light so he shook her gently and was greeted with a slap to the face. He chuckled and told her to wake up. He went back to Sawyer's and got his clothes out so Sawyer could change and then went back to help Flynn get dressed.

He helped them downstairs and into the kitchen, where Stephanie was still sitting with Kensington, "Morning, Mommy!"

"Hey there," Stephanie said, finally putting the book down as Sawyer and Flynn came over for a hug.

"Happy Annibersary!" Sawyer exclaimed.

"Happy, happy!" Flynn said, swinging her arms around.

"Aww, thank you," she said, giving them both kisses. "Did Daddy tell you to say that?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, "what is it?"

"Well, six years ago, before you were born," she poked him in the nose, "me and Daddy got married and that's why my name is Stephanie McMahon-Jericho."

"Oh, that sounds like fun," Sawyer said, "I should've gone."

"Well, you kind of didn't exist," Stephanie said sympathetically.

"Oh, that's too bad," Sawyer said before he climbed on his chair.

Edge bit his lip and Lita turned his face towards her. "Edge, I know that sometimes one of us is more in the mood than the other, but it'd be nice if you were at least a little bit into me while we're trying to be intimate."

Edge laughed softly and apologized, "I'm sorry, Li, I was just thinking about what happened yesterday on SmackDown with Vickie."

"You two fought like you were a married couple before and now you're divorced," she told him, rubbing his chest. "You fought like a divorced couple, that's what you guys are. She's bitter, you just plain don't like her and let's be fair, Dolph isn't half the man that you are and I'm sure that applies to a lot of different areas."

Edge smirked at her, "I just have this feeling that she's not done with me yet. She's in charge and when she's in charge, she's absolutely ruthless and I don't really want to be on the receiving end of that. I mean, this isn't a stupid prank like Chris is pulling on Maryse, this is my career and with her new boy toy, I can see her making my career a very unhappy one for the time being. I'm too old to deal with this."

"You act like you're in your 50's," Lita said. "Whatever Vickie decides to throw at you, you can take it. You have me by your side and if worse comes to worse, I'll challenge Vickie to an unsanctioned match after the show is over and show her that I can still take her."

"She does hate you," Edge pointed out.

"Because I took her man," Lita said, trying to swivel her head, but swiveling her hips instead, making Edge groan. "She can't compete with me, she could only hope to compete with me, but she ain't got nothing on me. Plus, that Cougar thing she think she's got going for her, it's more like Dolph is desperate."

"You think so?"

"Uh yeah, talk about damaged goods, he's a poor substitute for you because she can't have you. Look at Dolph, bleached blond hair, totally trying to be you," she told him.

"You're just trying to make me feel better…or get sex out of me."

"A little bit from column A and I never have a problem with column B. Come on, we're supposed to take care of Tilden today and I'd like to enjoy you now before we have to focus on our niece."

"Hey, did you just call her _our_ niece?" he asked, the side of his mouth turning up in a smirk. Lita had never referred to Tilden in that way before.

"Well, I figure I'm going to spend a while with you, forever fingers crossed, so eventually Tilden will be my niece too."

"I like that thought," he pulled her down. "Come here, you."

_I'd like to preface this and all subsequent Stephanie mentions and stories with this: I have to sleep next to her every night and she could shave off my eyebrows if I say anything bad about her and seeing as how I value my eyebrows, I will be all compliments to her (even though she really is a filthy, dirty, disgusting, brutal, skanky, bottom-feeding trash bag ho)._

_The first time I really interacted with Stephanie, I mistook her for one of Godfather's hos. She then put me into a handicap match with her then husband's little cronies. I implore you, dear readers, to go back and look at Stephanie and tell me whether or not she looked like Jenna Jameson's out-of-luck second cousin from Timbuktu. It's okay, I'll let you go watch…see what I mean?_

_Now, because she'd been slighted by yours truly, she felt the need to try and get back at me for the next two years. The only way to accurately describe Stephanie and I during this time period was something akin to Godzilla vs. Mothra, a fight to the death with bloodshed (usually mine), broken bodies (again, usually mine), and humiliation (definitely hers). The funny thing about hating Stephanie was that everyone seemed to go right along with me. Sure, she didn't exactly put her best features out there, but it was as if everyone took my opinion as God, like I had personally seen Stephanie sleeping with every guy in the locker room (Side note: In the almost nine years I've been with Stephanie, she's never cheated on me so…my bad). I think everyone just jumped on the bandwagon because they all wanted to fuck the authority of the WWE and I was just the guy who was willing to stand up against the woman and man in charge._

_For two years, I couldn't stand her and dancing on her grave was added to my bucket list. I was determined to outlast that spawn of Satan (sorry, Linda) just to dance on her grave. It's weird thinking back to that time now, I look back at the segments and I laugh simply because the feelings that I was feeling then are so far removed from how I feel about Stephanie (but that's better saved for later in this book, stay tuned, kiddies, the Stephanie/Chris story is _far_ from over!)_

"Daddy, help me!" Flynn yelled and Chris jogged over to where Flynn's foot was caught on the little bridge of their backyard playground. Her foot had gotten caught between the floor of the bridge and the protective barrier that kept their children from falling. Chris came over and wedged Flynn's foot and she was up and bouncing a moment later, forgetting her foot had ever been caught.

Stephanie looked up from her book and watched as Chris pretended to try and grab at Flynn's ankles, making her squeal in surprise and run across the bridge and book it down the slide, coming close to kicking Sawyer in the calf because he'd happened to be standing next to the slide. Chris ran over and grabbed Flynn, making her accidentally punch Chris in the jaw. He rubbed it indignantly and Flynn laughed and kissed his "boo-boo" before he set her down and she started climbing up the playground again.

Chris came over to where Stephanie was lying on a blanket, thanking the heavens that she lived in Florida and they could spend a January day outside and not cooped up. Kensington was next to Stephanie, lying on her stomach, just like her mommy and trying to grab at the toys in front of her, but she wasn't quite able to maneuver herself closer to the toys, but they figured she'd be trying to crawl soon enough.

"I got to the first mention of me," she told him, tapping the page. "Eyebrows?"

"I value my eyebrows, thank you very much," Chris said, rubbing at his face before he nudged his head against her shoulder.

"I should just do it now to mess with you," she told him, turning her head to kiss him.

"Keep reading," he prompted her. "There's a lot of you in there and I'm working my ass off keeping most of the kids away from you, that little bug over there is the only one who's even hanging around you."

"Probably because she's not mobile," Stephanie said as they both looked at their daughter.

"That could have something to do with it, yes," Chris said, reaching out and poking Kensington in the middle of the back, making her look over in confusion and he made a funny face at her and she actually turned her head away to laugh. "Our children really like funny faces. They're such little weirdoes."

"You're a weirdo, Godzilla vs. Mothra?"

"You can be Mothra, Mothra is totally hotter than Godzilla. I'll totally be Godzilla, because you know I am," he winked at her.

"Oh my God, is this how you are in the rest of the book, egotistical?"

"It's _my_ book, of course I'm promoting myself," he told her, "do you want me to read to you? Would that be romantic on our sixth wedding anniversary?"

"Only if I get to comb your hair later?" she asked.

"I still don't see a gift from you," he told her. She pulled her shirt open a little and pulled her bra away. "There's a little teaser."

"You got me breast implants, score, that is just going to make the transition easier," he joked.

"I love you," she told him, "even if you did want to dance on my grave."

"Well now you better not die before me because I'm not living without you, so screw that," he said.

"So you want to die first? Unacceptable, I don't want you to die on _me_ so that's not going to happen."

"So obviously the both of us will have to go down in a sea of flames, shouting metal and giving the devil horns all the way?"

"Clearly."

"Okay, well, I'll leave you to the reading then, I promise, it gets better, do you like it so far?" he asked anxiously, really wanting to impress her. She leaned forward and gave him a short peck on the lips and nodded enthusiastically. He beamed and pushed himself up, going over and kissing Kensington on the head before running back over to Sawyer and Flynn, growling like a monster.

_A lot of people over the years have asked me why I would kiss Stephanie if I hated her so much. When I did hate her, I would pull out the old, "I hate her so I'm going to kiss her to distract her and make her disgusted" card, which, in hindsight, could I have sounded more like a third grader with a crush. I don't think I was fooling anyone except maybe myself. I was living in the land of delusion and nobody was kind enough to pull me out. The kisses really should have tipped me off, but at the time, I honestly believed that I was just kissing her because I knew it would piss her off and when I got the expected reaction I thought job well done on my part. _

_Stephanie was a thorn in my side. Those two years, she was this constant pricking, like water dripping from a drain at night that just won't stop. Every show, drip, drip, drip, she'd be putting me in horrible matches, she'd have people put me through sets (and damn did that hurt, I looked like Quasimodo for a week, walking all hunched over like I'd just been ringing the bells at Notre Dame), she'd come out and insult me, she'd interfere in my matches, every show, drip, drip, drip and I couldn't seem to figure out how to turn her off._

_It didn't help that she'd bought ECW at this time so instead of just her husband, she had a whole crew of guys who were waiting to impress her (and sleep with her too, I'm sure. I wonder if I took a survey…nah, I'm probably better off not knowing). So while her husband couldn't defend her, she had a bunch of guys who would and it was like a Peanuts gallery coming after me every week. Like any white horse riding hero, I vanquished all my foes and consistently stood standing after the gunfight, much to Stephanie's chagrin. I was proud that she threw everything she could at me and I withstood it all. It was especially satisfying the night of the Survivor Series when me and the other WWF guys put her out of business. I can still hear her shrieking after she lost (oh, wait, she's actually shrieking at me, writing break!)_

"Steph, you want lunch!" Chris called out from inside. "I'm going to bring sandwiches out."

"Yeah, I'll have whatever the kids are having!" Stephanie called back to him.

"Okay!" Chris said before disappearing into the house.

Sawyer ran over and plopped himself next to Stephanie and snuggled into her side. "Mommy, is your book good?"

"It's all about Daddy, so it is good, he's talking about me right now," she said, pointing to a picture in the book of her and Chris. "He's talking about when he didn't like me."

"Daddy's so weird because I like you, Mommy and if Daddy didn't like you then he shouldn't be a good guy," Sawyer said and though Stephanie didn't quite understand what he was saying, she was thankful that he would stick up for her.

"Thanks," she said, kissing his head.

"What's he saying about you, Mommy?"

"Just that he liked to beat me every week."

"He hit you!"

"No," Stephanie laughed, "I would send wrestlers after Daddy and Daddy would beat up on them."

"Oh, that's better," Sawyer said.

"I help Daddy!" Flynn said, running towards the door and slamming her hands on the screen trying to get inside. "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!"

"Flynn, Flynn, Flynn," Chris said, coming to the door and opening the screen. She ran inside and he grabbed her and lifted her up. "What do you want?"

"Help you, I help you, Daddy," she told him in a sing-song voice.

"Okay, come into the kitchen and help me," Chris said. "I'm trying to make Mommy's day easier because today is our anniversary, like I told you this morning. Way before you were born, Mommy and I got married and it was a big party. So today is a special day and that's why we're just letting Mommy read."

"Oh, okay," she said, climbing up on a chair. "I help too."

"Okay," he said, thinking of something she could do that wouldn't require being too messy or anything with knives. "How high can you count?"

"Hundred!" she announced even though she could count to maybe fifty.

"Okay, can you please count out eight pieces of bread for us," Chris said, setting the bag of bread in front of her. "Count slowly while Daddy makes a phone call."

"I can do it," she said, grabbing the bag in her hands and reaching inside for the bread. Chris kept an eye on her as he dialed the number.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Ted, it's Chris, you left me a message earlier, said it was kind of urgent, what's up?" Chris asked.

"I don't think I want to be with Maryse anymore. I mean, I'll stay with her because of the plan and stuff because Stephanie deserves it, but I was just wondering…could we maybe…amp up this thing with Maryse? I don't think she even really likes me to be honest. I think she sees me as some sort of stepping stone, to what I really don't know, but I don't like feeling used like that."

"So you want to up the prank?"

"Yeah, I mean, you're like the genius of pranks or something. I thought you could think of something to do to her, something not too horrible, but enough to really cut her down to size. I'm really sick of hearing how she's better than me and how she's doing me a favor by being with me. It's really frustrating."

"Is that why you've been crap in the ring?" Chris snarked on him as Flynn did actually pull out eight slices of bread. He didn't think she would be able to do it, but that was what he got for underestimating his daughter.

"Hey," Ted said.

"Too easy, man," Chris told him. "But look, I will think of something to do for you and Maryse that'll make Maryse wish she had never met you, not that she'll know it was you per se, but it'll make her wish she'd never joined the company. Just the right side of humiliation, but here's the thing, today is my sixth wedding anniversary, I know, you don't want to hear that because it interferes in your plans to marry Stephanie, but I kind of don't want to think about work so much today, but I will think of something, I promise you."

"I'm sorry, I didn't know it was your anniversary," Ted said sheepishly, which was just the tone he took around Chris.

"It's not a problem, we don't exactly have it tattooed to our foreheads," Chris said.

"Well, um, congratulations…to you both."

"Thanks, man, I'll get back to you, don't worry."

"Thanks, bye, Chris."

"Bye, Ted, I'll tell Stephanie you love her."

He hung up before Ted could answer.

_I was the Undisputed Champion and I wanted to be the best champion I could be, not only because I was somewhere I'd never been before and felt like I had something to prove, but because I wanted to show everyone who'd ever doubted me that I could be something and be someone they never thought I could be. I felt like I wanted to fight the world to prove myself. I didn't know at the time that my reign would be a short one, relatively speaking, but I put myself into it as much as I could._

_In January, while I was trying to prove to Rocky that I was worth of being the champion, the Game was back in full swing. He'd come back to a huge ovation (not as big as the ovation I got for my second coming) and he'd won the Royal Rumble. The only thing he didn't really want to bring back was his wife. It was becoming clear that the time away had not solidified his marriage to Stephanie, but had driven them apart instead. Hunter had come back a changed man and Stephanie had come back very much an unchanged woman._

_She faked a pregnancy, which nobody knew at the time, and everything seemed to be going 'ol Trips way. He was going to WrestleMania to face me, he was healthy after a lengthy stint of quad rehab, and now his wife was pregnant. Excuse me while I puke. Eventually, it came out, at their vow renewal (of course!) that Stephanie was faking the entire thing and needless to say, Hunter was pissed and vowed his revenge._

_I was a changed man at this time too. Being the champion and getting a taste of the power had made me, shall we say, the Hulk, not to be confused with the Hulkster, but the Hulk where I was getting angry at everything and everyone and anyone that disrespected me pissed me off. _

_And then I saw an opportunity._

_If you've been paying attention, Stephanie and I didn't get along. We never had picnics or brunch together, we never frolicked through fields of daisies, and we never did each other's hair. But what I saw one night in February 2002 was a woman who wanted revenge. What I had was a title and a way to get into the inner-workings of Hunter Hearst Helmsley's mind. All I had to do was swallow a little bit of my pride, go out there, and cozy up to his soon-to-be ex-wife._

_I had no clue what the hell I was in for._

_Being Stephanie's business partner was not what I expected. I didn't think I'd be running her errands or acting like her personal whipping boy. The thing was though, for as much as everyone thought I was her personal cabana boy, I really kind of didn't mind it. It was confusing to me at the time because I couldn't figure out why I wasn't madder that I'd become a human pooper-scooper (to those interested, Lucy went on to live a full life with Hunter). I'd been so angry at Rocky for thinking he was automatically going to beat me at the Royal Rumble, but now that I was fetching lotion for Stephanie, I wasn't bugged at all. What the hell was wrong with me? Was her perfume really a magic potion that was meant to hypnotize me? Was I just going soft? Did I want to become her personal assistant? Too many knocks to the head? The truth? _

_I was just falling in love._

_I didn't know this was what was happening at the time. Onscreen, all you saw was Stephanie sending me around as her personal errand boy, what you didn't see behind the scenes was how into my matches she was; how she would study them and go over them until her eyes were probably swimming. People didn't see the times she made me laugh or smile, which was so foreign to me coming from her. What nobody knew was that Stephanie was actually a decent human being trapped in a marriage that was too much too fast and that she'd needed the out. I'm not apologizing or condoning her actions, she can write her own damn book to do that, but she was essentially trapped in a bad marriage with a guy that was bad _for_ her and he brought out a lot of qualities in her that wasn't really who she is as a person (can you tell I'm her husband? You can, okay, good)._

_The match against Hunter was a disaster and that's putting it nicely. Stephanie had no business being in that match and she knew it, I knew it, Hunter knew it, the seven year old kid picking his nose in the twelfth row knew it. Still, she'd put herself on the line for me, in a way nobody had ever done in my career before. I'd had nobody believe in me so much that they would put their own career on the line and despite the fact she used to be a bitch to me, had thrown a bucket of water in face, had me gored through the SmackDown set, and had her husband hit me with sledgehammers, I didn't want to be the reason she left. I wasn't, not really as she was the one who got pinned, but still, I felt awful. _

_That night, I went to her hotel room and I apologized to her. There was something in the air that night, but I couldn't put my finger on it. She accepted my apology and I thought that was the end of it; I'd apologized for not protecting her, she was out of the company and I still had to go to work the next week. I accepted that this would be the last time I would see her and so did she and even though I felt something more on that night, I was a coward and I turned tail and ran._

"Do you even want your gift?" Stephanie asked later that day. She'd been reading his book and needed a break and he'd just put the kids down for their naps. "I mean, I wasn't lying when I said I got you one."

"Are you sure you don't want to keep reading, you're not even at the good parts yet!" he told her.

"I've been reading about me and I love it so far," she told him, giving him a hug. "You've been very kind about me."

"Kind about you, this is turning into the Chris/Stephanie story!" he told her.

"No, it's not, you have plenty of other stuff in there, all the other guys you didn't like and why and your music stuff and stuff about your family and your dad and everything," Stephanie pointed out. "It's not all about me."

"But you're still not at the good part yet," he whined. "Don't you just want to keep reading?"

"No, Flynn told me that you were talking to Ted."

"How did she tell you that?" he asked.

"Daddy talk to Ted," Stephanie imitated their daughter. "What's going on with you two? Is he in love with _you_ now? Because that'd be a load off my shoulders."

"Very funny, I like to think I'm taking the young one under my wing, grooming him in my image so when you two get together, the transition will be easier for you and the kids," Chris said, "but if we're being honest, he doesn't really like Maryse anymore and he wants me to come up with some master plan to get back at her, do you know if Maryse has ever posed nude?"

"Oh my God, don't even, Chris," she said, "if you want to see pathetic though, look at this."

She held up her phone with a new text message, "Stephanie, have faith in the Nexus…"

"Has he been sending you these all week?"

"Yes, pretty much," Stephanie said, "one or two a day, but everyday."

"Do you want me to beat him up on Monday?"

"Only if you want to," she told him, "but he is persistent, I'll give him that. And maybe I should make that persistence pay off. I like a pet project, as you know, and maybe this is just what I need. I mean, they are going to take down some prominent guys and I'm always for putting the guys in their places."

"Like me."

"Well, according to your book, yes."

"When did I say you put me in my place?"

"It was inferred," she said, then stood up. "Sit right there!"

"I'm already sitting!"

She disappeared from his view and he picked up the book, leafing through the pages until he got the part he desperately wanted Stephanie to read. He read over it and smiled to himself. Stephanie came back into the room with a wrapped gift and she presented it to him. He took it anxiously and ripped off the paper. Behind a mounted piece of glass was a bunch of guitar picks with signatures underneath them. He recognized them all and he looked up at his wife in surprise.

"Steph, what is this?"

"A lot of grunt work," Stephanie said with a smile, "but worth it. I tried to get one from every one of your favorite metal bands. I don't know if I got them all, I think I did. I couldn't remember some of them because they were so damn obscure, but I tried to get as many as I could."

"How did you do this?"

"Well, I called Sharon Osbourne and she hooked me up with a lot of these guys and then I called some of your metalhead friends and they helped me out too, I asked them not to say anything. They were all so nice about it and I just thought it'd be a neat thing for you to have. I know you actually know some of these guys and whatever, but I was at this store in…Detroit I think it was, music memorabilia and they had something like this except it was for musicians that you weren't exactly fans of so I went on a crusade to get you the guitar picks of the ones you are a fan of."

"This is awesome, this will look great in my office."

"That was the other part. Your office is absolutely filled to the brim with wrestling stuff-"

"Not true, Flynn keeps stealing stuff from my office for her room. I mean, she's got belts, magazine covers, Slammys, action figures in that room."

"Well anyways, now you have something a little more towards your Fozzy side," Stephanie said, "I know it's not a national best-selling potentially book, but I thought you might-"

He cut her off with a kiss, probing her mouth with his tongue, "I love it, thank you, baby."

"You're welcome."

_When Stephanie came back to the WWE, I thought that we could pick up where we left off as friends not as the enemies we'd once been. When I went backstage to greet her, she rebuffed by attempts for a hug and instantly, a myriad of excuses poured into my head, from the logical "she wants to be professional, hugging is not professional," to the more absurd, "she has a cold, she doesn't want to catch her germs or she has a rash and doesn't want it to spread." Either way, I was put out during the entire conversation. I couldn't concentrate on her words because I was so angry that she wouldn't hug me. She put me in a match against Edge, one I'd been both dreading and wanting and I wasn't even paying attention because I wanted that hug, damn it!_

_I left her office in a huff and tried to figure out if I needed my annual cootie shot. I eventually called my doctor and found that I was up-to-date with my cootie prevention and so I stomped back to her office demanding to know what was going on with her. I was pissed off and wanted her to know I was pissed off. What started off as a conversation about lack of hugging turned into a much more serious conversation involving our feelings. Needless to say, I ended up kissing her that night and asking her out for a date._

_I guess this is the part of the book where I turn into an utter sap. Stephanie saved me. Yes, that Stephanie. Stephanie McMahon saved me in ways I didn't even know I needed to be saved. She saved me like I was drowning in quick sand and needed a branch. I'd never truly been in love before. Sad, right, but you try traveling 300 days a year and finding love, it's like you're a different species from a regular person and I was from freaking Mars and the rest of the population was freaking Venus (see what I did there?). The person who had once been my worst enemy was now my greatest ally._

_Our relationship was instantly tested when she asked me to spy for her. I ended up going to Raw because she wanted to get dirt on Bischoff. I went without question because I was already gone for this woman. All the time I'd spent hating her, all the time I was her business partner, I was falling in love with her. I was already gone by the time we actually started dating. The first night, I targeted the one man who I knew would make me an instant player. I hit Ric Flair with a chair and I'd do it again for Stephanie, hell, I'd hit you if Stephanie wanted me to (she doesn't, don't worry, she doesn't even know what I'm writing right now)._

"Hey, Steph," Britt walked in and then instantly quieted down, "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were reading. What are you reading? Is that Chris's book?"

"Yeah," Stephanie said, setting it down. "He gave it to me for my anniversary saying that I had to read it."

"Because you're in it?"

"Yeah, I just read this great part, I won't spoil it for you, but that man, I swear to God," Stephanie said, thinking about her husband. "I didn't read it yesterday because the kids were being unruly and Flynn is getting a cold even though she refuses to slow down so I thought I'd pick it up tonight."

"Makes sense," Britt said, "but before you get to that, I was asked to give you think by CM Punk." She handed Stephanie a slip of paper and Stephanie unfolded it and read it: _Just making sure you're keeping it in mind!_

"He's so annoying," Stephanie said, throwing the paper away. "Tell him to stop bothering me, it's getting annoying. So how are you and Hunter?"

"As good as can be expected," Britt said dreamily. "It's nice to be back with him, but we're still working on it. Not everyone can just open a book that the world gets to read and see how much their man loves you."

"Could you imagine a book written by Hunter?"

"I don't think either one of us would have to worry because it'd be about his one true love, the belt."

Stephanie laughed, "He has slighted us both for that. But she is shiny and flashy and she never talks back to him."

"Yeah, but the sex isn't as good I don't think," Britt joked as Hunter and Chris walked into the room. Chris was cradling Flynn, who wasn't feeling well, but had insisted she come to wrestling instead of staying with her grandparents. She didn't even want to miss one show. Sawyer was walking next to Hunter, who was also pushing Kensington's stroller. "Speak of the devil."

"Were you talking about me?" Chris asked suspiciously.

"No, we were talking about Hunter," Britt said, going over and kissing his cheek. "All bad things too, how your horrible in bed-"

"I knew it!" Chris exclaimed, "Jericho, one, Helmsley, zero! That's why Stephanie is married to _me_ and when Stephanie leaves me for Ted, I'm going to take Britt and show her what a _real_ man is like."

"There's so much wrong with that sentence," Britt said, "besides, after what I heard you wrote about Stephanie in your new book there's no way you can divorce her without having a lot of egg on your face."

"True," Stephanie said, "you do write about me a lot."

"I like you," he told her impishly.

"What about me? What do you say about me?" Hunter asked.

"That you weren't pleasing Stephanie where it counted the most, that you have this weird wheezy laugh sometimes…"

"Shut up," Hunter said.

"I was just telling the truth!"

"Come on, Britt, I don't have to stand for this," he said, swiveling Kensington's stroller around. "I'll bring Kensington back later since you don't want her to get sick."

"Thanks, Trips," Chris said.

"Thanks, Trips," Sawyer echoed.

"Okay, you three, out of here because I'm reading."

"We'll be quiet, Mommy," Sawyer said, making a shh sound. She couldn't say no to that and Sawyer went to play with his things while Chris held Flynn and read her a story quietly so Stephanie could continue to read his book.

"Are you going to watch the show?" Chris asked when Stephanie was still reading and the show was closing on them.

"I told Britt to take over for the night and only get me for the big stuff," Stephanie responded. "I expect Punk with a PowerPoint project any minute now trying to convince me to rig the Rumble for him, but other than that, my schedule is clear."

"I think I need to talk with him, like right now."

"He's out in the ring," she gestured towards the TV. "See, Nexus is out there, playing their little Nexus games."

"Well when he comes back then," Chris said, put out by the man that was pretty much stalking his wife. "I'll make sure he knows his place."

"Sure you will," Stephanie said, already picking up her book and going back to reading. She'd just finished up Chris talking about one of the reasons he hated Evolution.

"You're not paying any attention to me, are you?"

"Sure," she said, the book already up to her face as Chris shook his head and went back to coddling his poor, little sick girl.

_Chapter 32: All the Single Ladies_

_Before I could get to the Royal Rumble and start my hopeful road to WrestleMania, I had one stop that was more important than any wrestling match. After two and a half years and two stupid break-ups and one misunderstanding for which I'll never forgive Christian (he knows why), I was marrying the woman of my dreams and sometimes nightmares. My poor mother never thought I'd ever get married so I think the day was most special for her. For me, it was a culmination of years of flirting with disaster and coming out unscathed on the other end._

_I've never told Stephanie this, but part of me always kind of thought her being with me was some elaborate prank and that she would one day declare that she had fooled me and was still married to Hunter and she would deliver a figurative sledgehammer to my heart. When I say I'm in love with this woman, I mean I'm _in love_ with this woman, but wouldn't I have to be to take on Vince McMahon as a father-in-law? But those first two years, they scared the crap out of me because knowing Stephanie like I do, two years to set up a plan is nothing because she would stick it out to the bitter end. Needless to say, she wasn't playing me unless this really _is_ an elaborate set-up and my next book will detail all the messy divorce proceedings._

_Getting married is weird because you don't feel different, at least I didn't. After you have a kid, it's like the world changes, if you have surgery or you get hurt, you get this new outlook, but being married, at first, it didn't feel different. I was still with Stephanie and sure, we had these rings on our fingers, but it was still like we were just dating. It took me a while to get used to the thought of Stephanie McMahon being Stephanie McMahon-Jericho. I wanted to do right by her and I knew when looking at her that I wanted the rest of my life with her. It's just one of those feelings that I'm as sure about now as I was back then as I was back when I first kissed her, but not as I was back when I spit on her._

_When I entered wrestling, I never expected to get the returns that I have. Wrestling is a risky business and there's a fine line between success and failure. One minute, you could be the next up and coming star and the next, you could be working for a crowd of 50 in some stinky, old gym that seems like it could collapse under a butterfly. I always had dreams of making it and I knew with hard work, I could do it. What I didn't think wrestling would give me was a wife. That was the last thing I was looking for when I started wrestling and the most important thing I've gotten out of the business._

_Many people think, as I've heard this from time to time from various people (wrestlers to regular Joes on the street), think that I'm with Stephanie McMahon because of the power. We keep our personal lives intensely private because we like the fact that we can separate our work from our home life. Because of this, I think people tend to think of our relationship as superficial or like I'm getting something out of it. I never tell this to Stephanie because it would only bug her and a bugged Stephanie is not one I care to live with, though I guess if she's reading this now, she knows. But I get that a lot, I get asked if I got the title reigns because of her because before I was with her, all I had was one pretty short run. _

_The answer to this is no and it will be the most definitive time I will say this. I'm not with Stephanie McMahon for what she can give me wrestling-wise, if I was, she would have found out and kicked me to the curb faster than Britney Spears and her first husband. I worked a long time before I ever started dating Stephanie and I got to where I was without her and if there was no Stephanie, I'd still be where I was at. She is my wife and my boss at the same time, yes, but she's not a yes (wo)man to my every wish and so no, she is not tipping any scales in my favor. We ironed that out on our first date._

_For those of you who don't know or don't like Stephanie very much, that's fair, you're allowed your opinions, but because this is my book and my thoughts and my experiences, let me just say, Stephanie is an incredible woman who I have been privileged to work with for many years. I've also been extremely lucky to have her in my personal life as well. Falling in love with her might not always have been the plan, but it's the hand I've been dealt and this one is a keeper. She's kind, intelligent, so goddamn gorgeous, sweet, bitchy, manipulative, and conniving in all the best ways. She is, simply put, my everything. And if you don't like that, well, to steal the immortal words of The Fonz, sit on it._

_So to all the single ladies: This one's taken._

Stephanie stood up and walked over to the couch. Flynn was resting on one end, watching Raw on the television. Chris had been watching too, stroking Flynn's arm to help comfort her and lull her into sleep. He was startled when Stephanie came over and straddled his lap, pulling his face towards hers and kissing him passionately, her tongue wrestling its way inside his mouth. He responded a moment later, wrapping his arms around her waist as she pulled herself closer.

"Yuck!" Sawyer said, making a face. "Kissing is gross."

"Only to little boys," Chris mumbled before pulling away. "What was _that_ for?"

"It's for being taken."


	310. Get on the Road, January 24, 2011

"Why do you keep things from me?"

"I keep things from you?" Chris asked glibly. "Rewind yourself and think about that question and think about the entire book of things you've kept from me. We keep things from each other, baby, and that's just how we are."

"But you keep teasing me about some big news and if it affects our family, I think I have a right to know what this is," she said, pulling him closer by the t-shirt.

"Shouldn't you be putting Sawyer to bed? I think he's going to want to hear a bedtime story."

"I don't know why you read him that part of your book, now he keeps wanting to hear it because he likes that you wrote about him," she said, teasing him by running her tongue up and down the column of his neck. "Now he's become as egotistical as you are. He's going to want to go to all your signings and sign his name in the book because he's in it."

"If that's the case, then I'm going to need a really long table because I mention a lot of people in the book," Chris told her, nearly losing himself in the sensations of Stephanie's tongue against him. "I'll go read to him if you want."

"You don't do the voices right," she teased him.

"Well, the book is about me, from my point of view so if I can't get my own voice down, then I've got some serious problems," Chris said, gripping Stephanie's hair.

"Now, what is this big news you keep teasing me about?" she asked him, reaching down and playing with the top of his pajama pants. She just let her fingers linger along the waistband, ever now and again, dipping a few fingers inside. "It's one thing to tease the world, but teasing your wife…that's a cardinal sin, Jericho."

"And what's this you're doing then?" he asked, looking down at her hand as her fingers scratched against his stomach.

"Foreplay?" she told him, kissing the corner of his mouth, darting her tongue out a little to lick the crease of his mouth.

"I'm not telling you a damn thing," he told her, pulling her hand away from his pants. "Now if you'll excuse me, I think that my son wants a book read to him and since that book is _my_ book, I can't deny him that."

"Now who's the tease?" Stephanie asked as she crawled into the bed, pulling up the sheets and crawling underneath. "I hate hotel beds."

"You've been traveling pretty much nonstop for the past 12 years and _now_ you're talking about how much you hate hotel beds? Don't you think it's a little late for that?" he asked.

"Shut up, I'm going to send you on your book tour early if you keep this up!" Stephanie said, shaking her head and folding her arms as she leaned against the backboard. "Then you can go and be lonely on the road and see if I surprise you this time."

"So what, now that you think you're back to being hot and can I say that I always thought you were hot, you think you don't need me around anymore, is that what this is?" Chris asked. Indeed, Stephanie felt must better about herself now that she was trimming down after having Kensington. She knew that Chris never looked at her differently, but she couldn't help but look at herself differently and she was finally feeling like herself again.

"Yes, that's exactly it."

"Speaking of which, though," he started, "I wanted to talk to you about the book tour."

"Story!" Sawyer yelled impatiently from the other room in their suite.

"I better go before that kid wakes up his sisters," Chris said, "but I want to talk to you about the book tour later."

"Okay," she said, but she was already pulling some work out of her bag that she had kept next to her bed. "I want to talk to you about some things too!"

He gave her a thumbs up over his head as he walked down the short hallway and turned right into the other room in their two-bedroom suite. Flynn was snuggled up in her double bed, a couple pillows around her so she didn't roll off the bed. She'd been asleep for about an hour now as she was still recovering from her cold. Kensington was in a portable crib in the living area so she didn't disturb anyone. Sawyer smiled when he saw that it was Chris who came.

"Hi, Daddy," Sawyer said quietly, being mindful of Flynn sleeping in the next bed over. "Are you going to read to me?"

"You bet I am," Chris said, climbing onto Sawyer's bed and settling down next to him. "Mommy said that you wanted to hear my story again."

"Just me, Daddy," Sawyer said, sinking into his pillow.

"Why just you?"

"I'm special, that's why. Mommy said that I was special because everyone is going to read about me and they're going to like me, is that true, Daddy?"

"Everyone already does, kid. I don't think I've met one single person who doesn't like you. Now some people seem to not like you because of me and Mommy, but as for you individually, are you kidding me, you're totally loved."

"I love you."

"I know, I love you too, kid."

"I love Mommy and Flynnie and Kensy too."

"And they love you too."

"And I love Chrissy and Trish and Tilden and Trips and Britt and Ed and Lita and Uncle Shane and Auntie Rissa and Declan and Kenny and P and Grandma and Grandpa and Gamma and Gramps."

Chris took a deep breath, "Wow, that's a lot of people and I'm sure they appreciate it."

"Read now, please," Sawyer clapped his hands together, then remembered Flynn was sleeping and clapped his hands very softly together. "Can you read about me now, Daddy?"

"Okay, okay," Chris said, reaching over Sawyer and grabbing his book off the nightstand. "You're very bossy. Maybe I should tell them to take you out of the book and we can pretend you never existed."

"That's not funny," Sawyer told him and Chris chuckled and opened the book to the bookmarked page.

"You know, if you want, I can read the whole book to you, not tonight, but we can work on it."

"That's okay, I just like me."

"You don't like me?"

"Flynnie would want to hear it because she likes you best of all and I think she likes you better than anyone in the entire universe, Daddy, because she wants to be like you and be a wrestler, but she can't be a boy so she has to be a girl and she can wrestle like…Daddy, who wrestles who's a girl because Mommy says they're all less than worth and not good and she hates them."

"I don't think Mommy hates them specifically, I think she just wishes that she had more control as in the hiring and firing power to bring in better divas, plus, and don't tell Mommy this, I think that she sees all the divas love me and she hates it."

"They do not!" Sawyer laughed, "You're Daddy, nobody loves you like that!"

"What? Hey! Do I have to show you my Twitter feed, kid," Chris said, starting to make a grab for his phone in his pajama pant pocket. "Because I can show you just how many people love me like that!"

"No," he laughed harder, "Daddy, they don't!"

"I can't believe that my own son thinks I don't have game," Chris scoffed. "This is an insult to me, Sawyer McMahon Jericho. This is a real burn, you know that."

Sawyer continued to giggle, "Daddy, you only have one girl and that's Mommy."

"Well, yes, that is true that Mommy is the only girl that I love, love, love, but others can love me. I also have two other girls in Flynnie and Kensy."

"Yeah, you're right there," Sawyer conceded.

"Thanks," Chris said, then opened the book again, "Okay, so here we go. One of the main reasons that I walked away when I did was because Stephanie wanted to try out a normal life, whatever that means. I haven't had a normal life in nearly 20 years and I don't intend to have one for the next 20. The normal life of Stephanie McMahon and Chris Jericho consisted of about a week before Stephanie got tired of it and wanted to go back to work. The reason she wanted the 'normal life' was because we suddenly found that we were no longer the only two people in our relationship; Stephanie whispered to me on the night of SummerSlam 2005 that she believed she was pregnant and considering we were married, I was about to become a father."

"With me!" Sawyer interjected.

"Yes, with you," Chris said, then continued, "The thought of becoming a father was terrifying at first. Stephanie and I had planned to get pregnant at some point, but as we would come to find out three times over, our kids have a habit of sneaking up on us. Our plan was to get pregnant three or four years into our marriage to give us enough time to really be married as if the time really matters, like we'd suddenly be more mature in four or five years (we're possibly more immature now). But suddenly, I was going to be responsible for this separate human being. All those old fears of Stephanie screwing me over popped into my head, but instead of Stephanie, all I saw was this baby trying to hit me with a diaper."

Sawyer laughed, "Diapers, you're so funny!"

"Thanks, I'm glad my humor is juvenile enough for you," Chris told him. "Sawyer McMahon Jericho was born just after midnight on May 2, 2006. Being a father changed the entire game. Just when I thought I had everything figured out, I realized that I had nothing figured out at all. For so long, it'd just been me, Chris Jericho, this lone wolf of a guy and suddenly I was a guy with a wife and a son. It's hard to make jokes about it even now because seeing this little guy, red-faced and as handsome as well…me, made the world suddenly flip on its head. Now I had to think about things before I did them (I'm a notorious doer and then thinker and not thinker than doer) and remember that I had a son at home."

"That was me," Sawyer beamed.

"That was you," Chris said as Sawyer grinned. "I love being a dad. It's the best job title I've ever been given. Once upon a time I dreamt of being a wrestler. I thought man, being a wrestler is the greatest job in the world, I'm going to score the honeys and I'm going to turn the world on its head and everything about being a wrestlers simply screamed the best. Then…fatherhood. Being a dad is one of the most rewarding and humbling things I could have ever experienced and something for a long time I doubted would ever happen for me and I'm glad it did. Sawyer is one of my best friends and one of the most awesome kids you could ever know. I'm lucky everyday that I know him and get to be his daddy because I wouldn't trade him in for anything in the world."

"I love you too," Sawyer said, starting to get drowsy now.

"Funny story about the whole thing though, a lot of people actually think Sawyer is a girl and that's kind of Stephanie's fault. We played a prank one time on the show and they announced Stephanie had a daughter. I can safely say that Stephanie did not have a daughter that time. I think a lot of people still, unfortunately, think my son doesn't exist, but let's keep it our little secret. To everyone who hasn't read the book, Aurora Rose is alive and well. As for being a dad, because this book is only supposed to cover until I made my return in 2007, it kind of neglects a couple other little things that I should mention. In addition to my amazing son, Sawyer, I have two beautiful daughters, Flynn Murphy Jericho and Kensington Vaughn Jericho, both of whom are the lights of my world and any young boys out there, don't even think about it!"

Chris looked down at Sawyer and saw he was asleep. He leaned down and kissed Sawyer's head, pulling the covers up a little more and then he put the book back on the nightstand before slowly getting up. He went over to Flynn and kissed her head too before he turned off the light and tiptoed out of the room. One quick peek at the sleeping Kensington and he was back in his room, sitting on the bed and watching Stephanie work.

"Hey, they asleep?"

"All three of them," Chris said, looking up at Stephanie. "What are you working on?"

"Preliminary plans for the Hall of Fame ceremony," Stephanie said. We've got the space booked and everything, just going over the timetables and orders and things like that. I think it's pretty clear that we're going to have Shawn last."

"Seems smart."

"He's one of our most popular superstars ever, never-mind the fact that he's a jerk who hits on girls who are underage," Stephanie said, "but I'm not bitter."

"That sounded a little bitter," Chris said, reaching out to rub her leg. "Why don't I take care of the Hall of Fame for you?"

"What?" she asked, looking at him in confusion, then she shook her head, "Chris, with your book tour coming up and whatever else you're doing, I can't expect you to-"

"Stephy, baby, let me take care of the Hall of Fame," Chris said, reaching and taking the papers from her. "You have to worry about Raw and about WrestleMania and everything and it's the least I can do. Look, we have three kids, one of whom is an infant, and what the hell am I doing? Signing some books, doing some interviews, I want to do this."

"You're the best husband," Stephanie said. "You really don't have to though…"

"And I really want to…besides, it means I can stay backstage during the ceremony," he told her. "If I were to go, everyone would think I was coming back and then all the attention would be on me and hey, this way, we can bring the kids and they can hang backstage with me and watch, well, Sawyer and Flynn, Kensy not so much."

"Okay, if this is what you want," she said, leaning down to kiss him as she pulled more paperwork from her bag.

"Wait, what are you doing?"

"I've got other stuff to do, sweetie," she told him, then looked at the clock. "It's only nine o'clock so I'm still going to be doing work, I've got a few things to iron out for tomorrow and then I have to think about the Royal Rumble, which is this Sunday."

"Have you decided what you're going to do with the new Nexus?"

"Yes, I have, I'm going to help them," she told him, "but they're not going to know it."

Stephanie had been thinking about and she doubted Punk's intentions. She liked that he was out to get some of the bigger guys in the company. She wanted some of these guys to be knocked down a few pegs and she liked the drive Punk had when it came to getting even. She had the same drive whenever she was wronged so she couldn't fault him for feeling the same way. But still, she didn't want him to know that she was helping because then it gave him the advantage in the relationship. So she was going to toy with him a little bit and let him believe that things were just going his way until she eventually lowered the boom on him and made him pretty much obsolete in his own group.

"I don't see how that would work," Chris told her, trying to think it over. "You're going to help without telling him? How is that intimidating?"

"Because he won't know what hit him when I eventually…hit him," Stephanie said. "When he knows what I've done, he'll owe me a very, very big one and I intend to collect."

"Collect on what?" Chris asked, eyes widening. "Stephanie, are you going to make Punk have sex with you?"

"Yes, Chris, that's exactly what's going to happen here," Stephanie rolled her eyes and went to her paperwork. "As for anything further, you don't need to know since you insist on keeping secrets from me, I can keep secrets from you just as well."

"You're only doing that because you think you don't know everything I'm about."

"I don't, you keep things from me and I thought we had an honest and open relationship," she told him, going over the itinerary for the next day and then for Sunday and who was actually going to be in the Royal Rumble.

"Far from it," Chris scoffed. He sat up and peeked over her shoulder. "Kevin Nash, can you believe that? I can't believe you let Trips talk to that waste of space."

"Chris, my dear, there is always reasons for everything," Stephanie told him with a wink of the eye.

"Stephanie, seriously, I'll tell you something I'm doing if you tell me something you're doing," he told her. He was very curious as to what his wife's plans were here.

"You promise? Wait, one of your big things, what does it have to do with, I know you have several things going on. Is it book related? Wrestling related? Fozzy related? Other related? Sleeping with another woman related? Sleeping with another _man_ related?"

"Um, everything except those last two," he told her. "Which one do you want to know?"

"The wrestling one of course," she told him. "You're planning something wrestling related and you haven't told me, wait, are you coming back? Wait, are you going to be at WrestleMania, oh my God, Chris! This is amazing!"

"No, I'm not coming back yet, Steph, you know that I'm doing other things right now and it was _your_ idea that I leave, remember?"

"Not my idea to have you away so long," she muttered, "and I didn't say your other things were bad, in fact, they're great, I'm very proud of you, I probably don't say it enough, but you do know how proud I am of you, right? I get to brag to all my friends about how amazing my husband is and they're all really jealous."

"Did you brag about the book?" he asked smugly.

"Yes, I bragged about the book, but only at your insistence, you weirdo," she told him, shoving him in the shoulder lightly. "So what's your secret and who have you be planning with because it hasn't been me."

"Your dad."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, hold up, " Stephanie said, holding her hands up in the air. "You've been planning something with my _dad_? My father, Vince McMahon, right? You've been planning something with Vince McMahon and you didn't tell me. Are you trying to take my job?"

Chris started to chuckle and he rubbed his forehead before he placed his hand on his wife's shoulder, "Baby, why is it that whenever something seems to be up you automatically think someone is trying to take your job?"

"Because I've had it snatched away from me so many times…you aren't though, right?"

"I have to live with you, you think I'd take your job when you have access to me 24/7, yeah right," Chris said, "this, what I've done, it's going to blow you out of the water. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if your dad _did_ offer it to me after this."

"What have you done that's so incredible?"

"My dear, only the impossible," Chris told her and she was starting to get annoyed with all his double talk and innuendos. She peered down at him from her glasses and he laughed and leaned up to kiss her. "I have done something that you are not even going to believe."

"I think I'll believe it."

"Actually, I think you should go first because mine is just going to blow you so far out of the water that you'll feel bad for your paltry news," Chris said, "so go ahead, what is yours about? Why Nash? Why Booker?"

"Well, being friends with Kurt again isn't the only good thing about that relationship…"

"No…Stephanie…no…" Chris's mouth gaped as he gleaned onto what she was saying. There was no way that Stephanie could have possibly invited Kurt back into her life to be a spy for her over in TNA. There was just no way that his wife could be _that_ devious, but then, this was Stephanie, of course she could be that devious. "You didn't."

"Do you really think I'd invite him back into my life and not get at least a _little _retribution?" she asked. "He did hurt me."

"Wow," Chris said, staring at his wife, "I never figured…wow, Stephanie, I didn't even realize you could be that kind of person. I love that you are, but remind me never to divorce you or get on your bad side."

"Don't get me wrong, I love being friends with Kurt again and I'm glad to be friends with him, but it'll never be the same and I might as well get a little something out of it, right, and if Kurt wants to use me to get back into the WWE if he wants, well he's free to do that."

"He won't, he feels like he's top dog over there," then it dawned on him again, "which you know, damn it, Stephanie, brava, baby, brava!"

"Thank you, thank you," Stephanie gave a little bow. "But if he does come over, then better for me. Anyways, he happened to mention that Dixie was trying to get Kevin Nash and Booker under new contracts. So I simply asked Hunter to talk to Nash and he agreed. I talked to Booker, he liked the sweet deal and he came over too and that's how you downsize the competition."

"Vicious bitch," he told her.

"WCW didn't fold for a reason, Chris," Stephanie told him. "If I recall correctly, there was a certain man who was fed up and who my father talked up until he came over. I mean, he was even invited to my father's house and everything."

"Yeah and looking back now, what a gyp that was. I mean, yeah, I got to meet with the inner circle of the WWF at the time, but where the hell was the boss's hot daughter? Common sense right there, if you want to lure a guy away from one company to another, use the hot daughter angle and they are in."

"I was probably working, you idiot," she told him. "And it's not like you would have noticed me anyways. My brother told me you were so star-struck you looked like you were going to pee your pants."

"I would have had something else in my pants if you'd been there," he waggled his eyebrows at her suggestively.

"Yeah, crap, because there's no way you would have leered at me with my _father_ right there," Stephanie responded, her face contorting into an annoyed look. "Face it, you were terrified. Besides, my point is that my father got you to come over to our side and that was that, I'm just doing the same."

"I'm glad I came over when I did," he told her impishly, kissing her shoulder. "If I hadn't, who knows how we would have gotten together."

"By fate," she told him sarcastically, "so now will you please tell me what you've done?"

"Well, you know how your father wants a special WrestleMania guest host?"

"Oh, did you get one of your metal friends?" Stephanie asked. "Or one of your Hollywood connections? Because while that's great, I'm not sure that-"

"I got Rocky, Stephy," Chris just came out and said it in the middle of Stephanie's sentence. It was good that she did because Stephanie turned to him, speechless, her eyes widening and Chris nodded. "I told him that it'd be fun, I talked it up a little, brought up some of how Cena called him a sellout pretty much. I appealed to the one thing that gets to him, his pride. He doesn't want to be looked at like that and with good reason."

"I love you!" Stephanie exclaimed, tackling Chris on his back and crushing all the papers underneath them and between them. She kissed him like it was her last night on Earth and he laughed around her maniacal assault.

"I love you too, baby, if I had known getting Rock was enough to make you pounce on me, I would've done this sooner."

"I never thought he'd come back, he's always been so reluctant, except when you talk to him, what are you, some kind of magical wrestling guy?"

"I try to be. Whatever my baby wants, my baby is going to get," Chris told her. "Which brings me to the point I was supposed to make hours ago it seems when I wanted to bring up my book tour."

"Oh yeah, who cares about that?" Stephanie said. "I want to reward you for getting Rocky to come back, so whatever on the whole book thing, you sign some books, you answers some questions, you have some people tell you you're insane for marrying me, you have girls' panties melting, blah, blah, blah, make out with me."

"I will, in a moment," he laughed at her persistence. "I just was wondering if you wanted me to take one of the kids with me on the tour to kind of lessen the hassle of them. I was thinking Flynn would be a good candidate so Sawyer wouldn't have to miss preschool."

"You want to take Flynn with you on your book tour?" she asked. "Chris, I don't know, I mean, you're going to be doing a lot of heavy traveling."

"She's used to it," Chris told her. "She's probably the best traveler of our entire brood of children."

"Lies, you know Sawyer is."

"Sawyer is because he's Sawyer, but Flynn adapts to everything a lot better, plus, she loves wrestling so much and it'll be fun for her to go to signings with me, she'll love it."

"I don't want people to see her, Chris, we've spent so much time trying to protect our kids' privacy. I know I let you write about them in the book, but really, I just don't want them exploited."

"We can say she's someone else's kid, Flynn doesn't look very much like me."

"I'll think about it."

"I just don't want you in another position where you have all the kids and you're stressed because it's getting closer to WrestleMania time and I know how you get during that time and I don't want you to have the added stress of all three kids."

"Thank you," she told him, leaning down to kiss him. "We'll talk later though, okay?"

"Okay."

Edge burst into Stephanie's office. "Okay, so I'm on Raw tonight, I'm facing the Miz and I just saw Dolph and Vickie! They're going to interfere in my match! Raw is your jurisdiction, so you can stop this from happening."

"I just run the show, take it to someone else, Edge."

"Stephanie," he whined.

"Someone _else_, Edge."

Edge huffed and turned away and almost ran into his most hated enemy, "Vickie."

"Edge," she sneered. "You're going to lose to Dolph, you are aware of that, right?"

"No, I'm not."

"Oh, like you would've been anything without me," Vickie told him. "You were nothing until you were with me and you're nothing now. Dolph is the new one here who is going to rule and he's going to be the best champion this company has ever seen."

"Vickie, is it nice in your delusions?" Edge asked.

"I'm not delusional, you're the one who's delusional," she told him. "You're on your way out, you're way too old."

"Says the person with the Cougar necklace. Dolph is only with you because he thinks that you can get him the championship, but if he knew that the only reason I had the championship was because _I'm_ talented, he's going to realize being with you is a waste of time."

"You didn't think that when you were _with_ me."

"Of course I did, why do you think I made out with Alicia, huh? Because I couldn't stand your ugly face," Edge told her, "and Lita is a million times hotter than you would ever hope to be. So you can play your little Cougar act, but nobody's buying it, Vick. Everyone thinks you two look ridiculous."

"Why would I care what anyone thinks?"

"You obviously do or you wouldn't be trying to constantly change yourself," he said, gesturing towards her clothes, "or trying to get people to like you, like Laycool, oh, you guys are my best friends. You're just a wannabe popular girl."

"Excuse me?"

"Oh, and that phrases is played out," Edge told. "You know what, do your worst, I hope you and Dolph _do_ interfere tonight, hell come out and do commentary for all I care."

"Maybe we will!"

"Then do it!"

"Maybe we will do it!"

"Fine!" Edge said, throwing his hands up in the air.

"Fine!" Vickie screeched back at him. "I never loved you, you know!"

"You know that's BS, I'm the one who never loved _you_!"

"You wanted me!"

"To use you!"

"Yeah right!"

"You're full of it!" Edge yelled at her so loud Lita and Chris could hear it from around the corner. Lita, with Flynn in her arms, rounded the corner and saw Edge arguing with his ex-wife. She rushed over and grabbed Edge's t-shirt.

"Edge, a word."

"And here comes your little whore," Vickie narrowed her eyes at Lita and gave her a condescending look as she took in Lita's tight t-shirt and a little bit of her midriff showing.

"Cut it out, Vickie, what do you think, I'm going to hit you right now?" Lita asked. "Because if I were to hit you right now, you'd be on your ass, believe that."

"I could take you," Vickie said, though she knew that was probably a lie.

"Don't try me," she said, then started pulling Edge away.

"I'll see you later," Edge said menacingly and Vickie turned and walked away in the other direction. "Why did you stop me?"

"Because you're acting like an imbecile. You're letting Vickie get to you, you know that, you're just being blind to the fact that she's getting under your skin," Lita explained. "You've got to calm down or you're going to get hurt in your match later."

"Getting hurt bad," Flynn spoke up.

"I agree with her," Lita said, "getting hurt _is_ bad."

"Yeah, well tell that to Tweedle-dee and Tweedle-dum," Edge said. "I can't believe she's back on this. What is her problem?"

Lita wished she knew the answer to that, but it kind of escaped her as to why now of all times Vickie had a renewed interest in her ex-husband. The two of them were divorce, she had a boyfriend, Edge had her and it didn't make sense to Lita for this sudden resentment. Shouldn't they have been past this now? Something was up with Vickie, but Lita wasn't about to try and find out. It would be a waste of her time trying to figure out Vickie Guerrero's motives for anything.

"What was going on?" Chris asked as Lita dragged Edge over.

"Hi, Ed, you look mad," Sawyer said.

"Don't even get me started with you, Sawyer," Edge said. "I need time to cool down. Lita's right, I have to focus for my match and I can't do that when I'm distracted and bent out of shape because my stupid bitch of an ex-wife won't keep her damn mouth shut."

"Dude," Chris reminded him who was around.

"Sorry," Edge said, "I'm going."

He stomped away and Sawyer tugged at Chris's hand, "What's wrong with Ed? Is he mad about something?"

"Yeah, but it's about his ex-wife."

"What's an ex-wife?" Sawyer asked.

"You know how Mommy was married to Hunter before and now she calls him her ex-husband?" Chris told him.

"Yeah."

"Well, Edge was married to Vickie and they got divorced so she's his ex-wife, but if you're married, then you don't have the ex in front of the word, so Mommy is just my wife, not my ex-wife."

"Oh, so he doesn't like his ex-wife?"

"Not at all," Lita answered for Chris. "I'm trying to figure out why Vickie cares so much, but I can't think of any reason why now?"

"Because she can?" Chris said.

"Yeah, I guess that makes the most sense even though that doesn't make any sense at all."

"Does anything around here?"

"You're right, anyways, I should go talk to that petulant child I call my boyfriend and see if I can cheer him up before his match, here, you can take this," Lita said, handing over Flynn to Chris, who was more than happy to go back to her daddy's arms. "I'll see you guys later."

"Bye!" they called out. "Okay," Chris said. "Let's go find something to do."

Britt was going to scream if Hunter didn't stop bothering her. He had been hovering over her all evening while she was trying to get her work done. The WrestleMania season was coming upon them and one never got used to WrestleMania season. It was like the entire company took a massive caffeine boost and they were all running around filled with all this excess energy. The last thing she needed on top of this stress was for her boyfriend to be smothering her.

"Go find something to do!" she told him.

"I don't know what to do."

"Oh, I don't know, come back!" Britt said. "You're fine and yet, you hang around here like you're…Chris or something! Except Chris takes care of the kids _and_ Stephanie said that he was taking over all the prep and grunt work for the Hall of Fame this year so really, why don't you find something to do."

"Hey, what's this?" Hunter asked, looking at what Britt had just been looking at. "Taker's coming back?"

"Yeah, he is, next month," Britt said. "They're setting up some return thing for him next month, promos like Chris got when he returned, but not as secretive because Taker's not trying to fool anyone really. But I guess it'll kind of be a big deal, what with his streak and everything."

"Coming back, huh?"

"Yeah, coming back," Britt said. "What's it to you?"

"Nothing, I don't know, it's stupid, you know, but I guess…I guess I'd love one more crack at him. I mean, I lost to him at WrestleMania X-7 and I hated that I lost to him then. Then with Shawn last year, it's like, well, I kind of don't like the guy."

"Surprise, surprise," Britt said sardonically as Hunter stared at her. "You don't like very many people, Hunter, and let's face it, you're not the most personable person or the easiest to get along with."

"People just don't get me, either way, it doesn't have to do with _my_ demeanor, just his," Hunter explained. "It's well within my right to not like the guy."

"So what are you going to do then?" she asked. "Are you going to suddenly call him out or something? Because please do. You've gotten the all clear from the doctor's and I don't really know what's keeping you from coming back."

"I'm scared," Hunter admitted to her, admitted something to her that he would _never_ reveal to anyone else, even if they were torturing him. He was scared of going back in the ring only to come right back out again. He envied Chris in this way. Chris had never been seriously injured in his entire WWE tenure and he knew Chris hadn't been out while in WCW either. The guy just seemed to bounce back from whatever ailed him. It wasn't fair either. Hunter put his whole life into this business, he bled WWE and he was constantly out, while Chris, who flitted in and out at will was still perfectly fine.

"What? No way…"

"I am, I mean, it seems like I'm always getting injured and what if it happens that something bad happens to me? I want to be with you, Britt, forever if I can and if I got hurt…bad, then I can't expect you to take care of me."

"You know your way around a ring, you wouldn't get hurt and I'll tell you right now, even if you did get hurt, I'm not going anywhere." She turned to him and took his face in her hands, punctuating her sentiment with a kiss. "I love you, Hunter, whatever the circumstance. We've been through too much for me to just quit on you if you got hurt. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I abandoned you because of that. I love you so you're stuck with me."

"Thank you," he told her, not knowing what else to say. Stephanie had never done anything like this, be so emphatic with her love. Chyna had been so needy in her own ways that it had been him reassuring her of his love all the time. He was lucky that Britt took a second chance on him.

"It's my pleasure, so…because you read this and you're thinking and you're not going to get hurt…are you saying what I think you're saying?" she asked hopefully, not just because she wanted Hunter out of her hair, but because she wanted him in that ring again, kicking asses and beating everyone and their mother.

"I'm ready to come back."


	311. Going, Going, Gone, January 31, 2011

Flynn Jericho liked wrestling.

In fact, she might like wrestling more than anyone else in the world ever because she knew all about it and had since maybe before she was born. It wasn't like she could remember that far back because she was simply a fetus without any sense of self, but if she could remember that far back, she would remember that her father would speak to her, in that comforting Daddy voice of his, all about his matches and what he was doing on the show. And if that little, tiny thing that would become Flynn Murphy Jericho could remember, she'd remember hearing the cheers for her father and the adoration and then the boos and maybe that's why wrestling was everything she loved in this world.

She loved the hustle and bustle backstage, seeing all the wrestlers and divas hanging about. None of them were like her Daddy, though, none of them could even match him and even if they all challenged him, he would beat them all. He was _that_ good or so she believed. She couldn't remember the first match she'd seen, whether it be taped or live, but all she knew was that she loved watching her daddy in the ring. It was one of the most fun and exciting things she could do. She loved seeing him fly through the air or punching someone in the face or knocking them down. She loved seeing him get the pin and winning or holding up the belt or even just out there and talking in that scary voice he could do.

Suffice to say, Flynn was a Daddy's girl.

"I think it'd be good to get some Daddy/Flynn time," her daddy said as she played with her toys next to him. Her mommy was sitting at the desk, working like usual. They did this every week, go somewhere new and they'd get to play and have fun while Mommy worked. It almost didn't seem fair because her daddy wasn't even wrestling, which she didn't like and didn't understand. Wasn't he the best in the world? If you were the best in the world and as she understood it, being the best at something was a pretty good place to be, so why wasn't he doing that.

"Like you don't get that already," Stephanie said as Flynn watched her look up at Chris. She got up from where she'd been sitting and walked over to her daddy, lifting her arms up as Chris lifted her easily and set her down next to him. She leaned against his side and just watched as her parents spoke to one another.

"Yeah, but it's with you, Sawyer, and Kensy around," he joked, "and none of you are worthy of me or Flynn. But seriously, you're going to still be traveling with the show, the big WrestleMania push is coming up, you have to deal with the hubris that is Alberto Del Rio since he won last night and I'm trying to be helpful."

"By taking my daughter away for over a week?" Stephanie asked. "Chris, do you not understand how trying it's going to be to have Flynn with you?"

"I not bad!" Flynn piped in. Where was everyone getting this idea that she was bad or something? She'd never really done anything wrong and anything that anyone perceived as wrong wasn't really her fault, not really.

"Of course you're not," Chris told her. "It won't be a problem, Stephanie, I'm going to be by myself anyways and any groupies I invite to my room will definitely be there _after_ Flynn goes to sleep."

"Be that as it may," Stephanie said, "you're going to be doing a _ton_ of interviews and traveling a lot, all over the country, we fly twice a week, really, and that's fine, Flynn is fine with that-"

"I fine," she shrugged and Stephanie nodded to her. She wasn't sick or anything. She put a hand to her forehead, which her mommy and daddy always did when she wasn't feeling well, but she couldn't tell if there was any kind of difference, she just kind of felt the same as she always had.

"No, baby girl, this is dealing with something else," Stephanie told her sweetly, throwing her a smile for good measure. A lot of people seemed to think that her mommy was a really scary person, but she just didn't see what they were talking about. "I just don't know if a full week and a half of traveling will be good for her. She might not get the right amount of sleep and then you're traveling with a cranky, little girl and you know how cranky she gets, Chris."

"Yeah, I understand, but Sawyer has preschool when we're at home and I don't want to take him out of it and Kensy is just too young to travel like that, so really, Flynn is the odd one out," Chris said, "plus, I definitely think she could handle it and I don't plan on going out a lot since I'll be usually in one place only for a day. If I have Flynnie with me, I'm going to take care of her, she's my daughter, I love her."

"I never questioned your love," Stephanie told him. "I question how you'll do with her. Plus, what are you going to do with her during your actual signings? Is she just going to sit next to you and sign the book with you?"

"She probably could at least do a nice little drawing for your fans," Chris joked. "Wouldn't you like to do a drawing for everyone, Flutterby?"

"I can draw," she told him matter-of-factly and draw she could. In fact, she was probably the best artist in the world and she should be called the best in the world at what she did. Never-mind the fact that she'd never actually studied art, but she just seemed to know these things.

"I know, everyone knows that," Chris told her. "She could sit with me, I wouldn't mind it and I mention the kids in the book so it's not like most of them aren't going to know that I have kids and if one is there, what's the big deal with that. I can buy her a ton of books and it'll keep her occupied."

"What about when you're doing your interviews?" Stephanie asked. "You're going to be on-screen and she can't sit on your lap during interviews. She'll just take it over with the massive amounts of cute she's got going."

"I am cute," Flynn said because well, if she could be the best at drawing, she could certainly be the best at being cute.

"Again, everyone knows that," Chris said, this time leaning down to kiss her head. "I love you for it too. And I'm sure that I can have a production person or something who can sit with her, where I can still see her when I'm doing my thing."

"So you want to trust our child with a stranger?"

"I'm sure I can scrounge up someone trustworthy who doesn't want to kidnap my child, not to mention, if someone tried to kidnap Flynn, she'd kick their ass," he winked at her and she giggled and buried her face into her daddy's side. She thought he was the funniest, most best person in the entire world next to Sawyer, of course. Sawyer was also her favorite, but he was just a little kid like her. Her daddy seemed to be able to do everything.

"Of course she would," Stephanie said.

"What are you guys talking about?" Sawyer asked. "Where are you going, Daddy?"

"Well, I'm going to be going on a book tour for my book that you love…wait, I'm sorry, for the excerpt about _you_ that you love. I'm sure that's everyone's favorite part of the book, just because of you," Chris said, "but I'm going to be going around the country a little bit and signing books and I'm trying to convince your mommy to let me take Flynn."

"Why can't I go?"

"Because you're in preschool and do you really want to miss preschool?"

"Not really," Sawyer said, "I like it there."

"Then I think taking Flynnie along would be good."

"I just don't know, Chris," Stephanie said, taking her glasses off and setting them on the desk. "I guess she would be okay to travel, I just worry about _all_ the traveling and all the one day stands so to speak. And one if you want to relax and have a drink, you can't do that."

"I really planned on just sleeping a lot and plus, it would get really lonely out there on the road and if I have my little girl with me, it'll mean that I won't have to talk to myself all the time, even if Flynn's vocabulary is less than that of a well-trained chimp."

Sawyer giggled, "That's not nice, Daddy."

"Sorry, Flutterby," Chris told her. "So what do you say, Steph? Will you let me help you out by taking our troublemaker off your hands?'

"Okay, but if she gets to be too much, I will send your mom or dad out there immediately to come get her," Stephanie said. "Chris, are you sure you're not taking on too much? I mean, you're going on this book tour, you're going to be taking care of Flynnie all by yourself, you're already taking care of the Hall of Fame ceremony, you're looking in on the Tough Enough competition, you have all these concerts for Fozzy lined up in the summer, you've got whatever this prank is with Maryse that you won't keep me updated on, but give me stupid clues like nudity, which, I'm not sure I even _want_ to know what that's about, and then you've got this super secret thing that you whisper about on the phone, but won't tell me about even though I know something's up and it's all just…a lot. I worry about you."

"You worry about me, that's so cute," he said, nearly being condescending. "Baby, I love you very much, but when have you ever known me to slow down for anything?"

"I don't know," Stephanie said, "I know we both do our work and do it well and I know you like to have constant projects, but I don't want you to take on _too_ many of them. I just feel like…you know, never-mind, if you say that you're okay with all of this, then I'm okay with you taking on all of this."

"No, please finish whatever that sentence was," Chris told her. "You were going to say something and now you're holding back and I really want to know what it is that you're holding back because you're Stephanie McMahon and you don't ever hold anything back so if you are holding something back, this is cause for alarm."

"It's not cause for alarm," she told him, shaking her head. "It's not cause for anything. I've got a lot of work to do here. With WrestleMania, I have to make sure all the schedules are set and you would not believe some of the requests that the wrestlers and divas have. I mean, they all have their little specialized schedules and I'm trying to work with the WrestleMania team to coordinate events and then there's that special VIP program we're doing with the more elite superstars, generally speaking and I'm busy."

"You stay here," Chris whispered to Flynn, who grinned in a conspiratorial fashion as Chris stood up and walked over to Stephanie's desk. He flipped her chair towards his and knelt down in front of her, placing his hands on both her knees. "Hey there."

"I'm busy," she told him, but she was trying to suppress a smile and her tone was good-natured so he knew he wasn't actually bugging her. He scooted a little closer to her as she legs spread a little to accommodate his body in between her legs.

"Never too busy for me, right?" he asked impishly.

"I guess not," she told him, "but what do you want?"

"To know what you were going to say," he answered. "You forget that I've known you for over ten years now so nothing is getting by this sharp brain, not a damn thing. So you better just give it up before I have to beat it out of you."

"Beat it out of me?"

"Tickle it out of you?"

"Daddy is the best tickler!" Sawyer spoke up and laughed just from thinking about getting tickled by his father. He was relentless and never stopped until you were gasping for air from the laughter.

"Mommy knows," Chris said, then threw Stephanie a look. "Mommy knows very well."

"Disgusting," she said, shaking her head, "so what exactly are you doing with Maryse?"

"I'm waiting for photos."

"Nude photos?"

"Yes," Chris said. "Remember when Dave got all those nude pictures of Mickie and posted them all over the place?"

"Chris, no," Stephanie told him. "That's way too humiliating, what if someone did that to me? She's not that bad and if you're doing this because she called me fat, as you can see, I'm much better looking now."

"You've never been bad-looking," he told her.

She smiled and kissed his forehead, "Thank you."

"Besides, this is for Ted. He's starting to really dislike her and I'm just helping the guy out. He's actually thinking of just taking the pictures himself and then humiliating her with those. I can't say I blame the guy since she's a whore."

"Don't go throwing that word around again," Stephanie said, "you use it too liberally for my liking."

"You're my number one whore, don't worry, so come on, what was it you were going to tell me," he poked her in the side, "tell me before I _do _have to tickle it out of you and I don't care that you're all business-like right now, I'll still do it."

"It's stupid."

"You always lead with that when it's something not stupid, so tell me now before I go insane!" he said, pretending to grab at and pull out his hair. "I'm going crazy over you, Stephanie!"

"Why do you keep running from us?" she asked and it stopped Chris in his tracks. If he'd been standing, he might have staggered backwards from what she'd just asked. It might not even have been the question itself, but the seriousness in her voice.

"Whoa, huh? I don't understand, Steph, running away from what?"

"Us," she gestured around the room. He actually scanned the room to try and figure out this us because all he saw were his kids. Kensington was having tummy time on her blanket with Sawyer playing with her and Flynn was back to her own blanket, bashing a couple of his action figures together.

"Us like you and the kids, us?" he asked.

"Yes, us," Stephanie said. "I told you it was…I just don't want to talk about it."

"No, you can't say something like that and not talk about it," Chris told her. "I don't understand where you're coming from. Is this because I didn't want to tell you what I was doing because if that's it, I'll tell you right now. I was planning it as a surprise, but if you want me to tell you now, I will."

"No, it's just…oh my God, I'm going over it in my head and…we've been together a while now, right?"

"Nine years this year," he told her, running his thumbs over her knees.

"Are you tired of me?" she asked and he would have laughed if she wasn't being serious. He felt like he was suddenly in some Twilight Zone where everything _looked_ the same, but it was all really just slightly off.

"Am I the who's it and the what's it?" he asked. "I'm sorry, what, I'm slightly…no, I'm very confused, am I tired of what exactly? This outfit because no, no, I'm not."

"Of me, of our relationship."

"Okay, seriously, did I _just_ walk into the Twilight Zone?" he asked. "I slipped through a portal, didn't I? I'm in some weird alternate dimension that I don't quite understand…are you an alien?"

"You go on tour for two weeks…you go on another tour…now you're going on a book tour…and you're going away for the summer to do stuff in the UK for Fozzy and then there's this unknown thing that you've been whispering about…are you tired of us?"

"Baby, you know how I am?"

"I know how you are, but I'm not used to you being who you are away from the rest of us. Look, I know that things have been crazy since Kensy was born, I know that we didn't plan her at all, but-"

"I love my daughter, Steph," Chris interrupted her, "where the hell is this coming from? Did Maryse say something to you, did someone else? Is someone spreading rumors about me? I will kick their asses."

"No! Nobody is spreading rumors, you just always seem to be…away from us, like you're running away and it's…troubling."

"Baby, I'm sorry if I've made you feel this way…wait, how long have you felt this way?"

"Not long, I was just thinking over the weekend, what with your book tour coming up and I know I should be rational. People love you in Fozzy and people are going to love your new book, but I'd be lying if it doesn't feel like you want to be anywhere but at home with your family."

"Wow," he reeled, rocking back on his knees. "Wow, that actually hurt, Steph."

"Chris…"

"No," he said, putting his hand up and then brushing her off when she tried to reach for his arm. He stood up and just shook his head over and over again. "No, Steph, don't even…okay, seriously…"

"Chris, I'm sorry," Stephanie said, trying to reach for him, but she could tell she'd hurt him.

"I need to get out of here," he said, quickly grabbing Kensington, who was just starting to whimper from being on her stomach for too long. It was just instinct for him now to at least grab one of the kids so that Stephanie didn't have to deal with all of them at the same time. With Kensington about to cry, he grabbed her and left the room without another look back.

"Mommy?" Flynn whimpered as she ran to Stephanie and hugged her around the waist as best she could since her mommy was sitting down. "Daddy mad?"

"I said something wrong, Flynnie," Stephanie said, picking up her daughter. "I didn't say the right thing."

"Daddy looked sad," Sawyer said, coming over and leaning his chin on the chair. "Did you make him really mad, Mommy? What did you say to make Daddy so mad?"

"It'll be okay, guys, Daddy just needs some time alone to cool down."

Kensington started to cry and so Chris took her to a more secluded spot near the exit where it was quieter. The show was about to start, the filming going on for WWE Superstars and he could hear the crowd and if he could hear it, then Kensington could too. He found a couple metal chairs backed against a wall and it was relatively quiet so he sat down as Kensington continued to cry. She just needed some comfort though and her daddy's soothing hand on her back helped her immensely.

"I feel like doing the same thing, Kensy-bug," he told her, kissing her temple, "except I don't think it would be appropriate for a grown man to start bawling when he's supposed to look tough…I just don't get where your mommy is coming from. You know I love you guys more than anything, right? I'm not trying to leave you behind, I'd never do that…God, I'd never do that…"

"Hey, Chris, I've been looking for you," Ted said, plopping himself down next to Chris without warning and now Chris was _really_ glad he hadn't been crying. "So what's up? Hey Kensy, you're cute today. Nice shirt, I'm assuming it was your day to dress her?"

Chris actually laughed, needing one right now as he took in Kensington's Metallica shirt that was passed down from Flynn, "Of course I did…and nothing's up, just needed a break from Stephanie…actually, you can help with this since you're kind of a neutral party despite your obvious love for my wife."

Ted tried so hard not to blush, he really did, but it was just so difficult when Chris was right there. He tried to be a man, but being a man around this man was an impossible mission. He didn't have Chris's quick wit. "I told you, I'm not in love with Stephanie."

"Yeah, yeah, sure," Chris dismissed his defense. "Do you think Stephanie and I are a good couple."

"Well, you guys have three kids," Ted pointed out.

"No, ignore the kids for a moment, do you think Stephanie and I are a good couple, like do we go together, when you see us, do you think we make sense? Try to put aside your love for Stephanie while answering this question."

"Why are you even asking?" Ted wondered. "I should be asking you if you see any kind of future with me and Maryse because we're just dating, but I shouldn't be telling you about Stephanie because you guys are married."

"But marriage is harder than dating in some respects, like, okay," Chris said, holding Kensington with one arm and making a swooping gesture with the other, like he was trying to wipe a slate clean, "if you're dating someone and you don't like them anymore, you just dump them and you move onto the next person, but theoretically speaking, you're supposed to stay with your spouse forever, but then, what if things get stale and you just stick with a person because now you've established this life?"

"Are you thinking about divorcing Stephanie?" Ted asked and his voice raised higher.

"What? No, God, put your tongue back in your mouth, you're not getting a shot at her," Chris groaned. "I just want to know an outsider's opinion on my relationship with Stephanie and I want you to be completely truthful, none of this bullshit ass-kissing because I'm like a boss or like I can fire you, which I can't, I want the truth."

Ted stopped and steepled his fingers under his chin. "You and Stephanie are like…epic. I mean, by the time I came into the company, you two were already married and everything, but I watched before and I'd been backstage with my dad so I saw you two together and I mean, yeah, you guys hated each other, but you work well together. I mean, you guys are like a staple here. You see Chris and there's Stephanie, you see Stephanie and there's Chris and of course you guys work, you're way too much like each other not to work and you've got three beautiful children who are funny and cool. You guys have this life and I think everyone is jealous of it."

"Thanks, man, I needed to hear that," Chris said, "now, do you feel that in any capacity about Maryse?"

"No," Ted answered.

"I think you have your answer about what the future holds," Chris told him.

"I was afraid you'd say that."

Sawyer grinned when he saw his friend, "Hi, Ed! Where's Lita?"

"She couldn't come this week, Saw," Edge said, already in a bad mood. Sure, he'd come out of the Royal Rumble as the champion and that was great, but Alberto Del Rio had won the Rumble and was going to have to face him at WrestleMania, he could just feel it. It would give him a chance, though, to get back at Del Rio for what he did to his brother, but that was only a small part of it. He felt like he was fighting two battles right now, one with Del Rio and the other with Vickie. He wouldn't even say Dolph because Dolph was no challenge if it weren't for Vickie.

"What's the matter?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah?" Flynn asked from Stephanie's arms.

"I just don't want to face the Miz tonight."

"He's not awesome," Sawyer said, "Daddy said that he's a rip-off and that he's a poor man's Jericho, I don't know what that means, but it didn't sound good at all so I don't think he's good and I think you can beat him, Ed."

"I know I can beat him, I just don't know what the hell I'm even doing fighting him. Clearly I'm the best champion, right?"

"Daddy," Flynn argued.

"I mean right now, Flynnie, but even if your dad were here, you'd fight tooth and nail for him, I get it," Edge said, "but what I'm saying is that I don't see the point in this, do you, Stephanie?"

"I don't make the matches necessarily, I just enforce them, but I think it's a supremacy thing cooked up by the GM's to see whose is bigger," she told him. "I'm just an enforcer really. Besides, it's one match."

"Yeah, one match that Dolph will probably interrupt or Del Rio and everyone is gunning after me and it's tiring and I'm crabby because Lita's not here and your kid keeps calling me Ed when he clearly knows that my name is _Edge_."

"Your name is really Adam," Sawyer pointed out.

"I'm going to throw your kid out into the cold!" Edge told Stephanie. "How can nobody see how horrible he is?"

"Because all he did was say your actual name?" Stephanie told him.

"You know how much I hate that," he hissed, "Sawyer, you know I don't like my real name, but yet you refuse to call me by the name that I prefer and instead call me something that isn't even close to my name."

"Ed is the first two letters of your name, I can read," Sawyer said.

"I have a match to get to," he said, getting wild-eyed as he was wont to do. "I have to go out there and fight and then probably get beat down and yeah, tonight is just great!"

Edge stormed off in a huff and Sawyer laughed and looked up at his mommy, "What's wrong with everyone tonight? Everyone is mad or something?"

"I know, I think it's just one of those nights."

"One of what nights?" Sawyer asked.

"One of those nights where everyone is just in a bad mood and they say and do things they don't mean, one of those nights."

"Why does that happen?"

"A lot of reasons. I think a lot of people realize that WrestleMania is coming soon and they're very nervous for it because it's the biggest show of the year. I think that puts a lot of people on high alert."

"But what about Daddy?"

"Well, Daddy's around too so he's stressed too," Stephanie said, though she knew that wasn't the case and more than anything, she'd hurt him. It honestly wasn't her intention to hurt him. He'd pressed for what was bothering and she'd told him and he was the one who was hurt and it wasn't like she wanted to hurt either, but it was what she felt.

She knew Chris loved her, it was quite obvious from the way he'd written about her and the little things he did for her, but she just wanted to make sure that he was honestly happy with them; that he was still _in_ love with her. It was just a small thought that had nipped at her brain a little over the past couple weeks, growing and growing until it was like a worm, wiggling around and invading her thoughts with its nagging question.

"Steph, guess who I got to come back?" Britt said, turning the corner and finding her boss while dragging her boyfriend behind her.

"It'll never be as good as who Chris got back."

"What do you mean?" Hunter asked.

"Hi, Trips," Sawyer said.

"Hey there, tough guy," Hunter said, lifting him up and giving him a hug. "Have you grown since the last time I saw you. I think you've got muscles now too."

"You just saw me last week, Trips, I can grow muscles in a week," Sawyer told him.

"You're a smartass, just like your dad, huh?" Hunter said, putting him back down.

"I dunno," Sawyer shrugged as Hunter made a funny face at Flynn, who laughed and buried her face in Stephanie's neck.

"Chris got Rocky to come back and be the host at WrestleMania."

"You're effing with me," Hunter said. "Chris got _Rocky_ to come back."

"Like Rocky as in…The Rock?" Britt wondered.

"Yeah, the one in the same. Chris talked to him and convinced him and it's going to be a huge surprise," Stephanie said, trying to keep from bursting. "He's amazing. So, we're setting up the big debut on Valentine's Day, might as well find something useful for that snoozefest of a holiday and because of that, maybe you don't want to come back that night, Hunter, unless you do…"

"How'd you know it was me?"

"Um, who else would it have been after being gone for nearly a year?" Stephanie asked, rolling her eyes. "I'm just giving you a heads up. If you come back on the same show as Rock, nobody is going to care that you're there, just saying."

"But they'd care if Chris came back, right?"

"Probably not, it's Rocky, you know how popular he is," Stephanie said. "Whatever, I'm just giving you the heads up."

"Well, thanks, Stephanie, I appreciate that," Hunter said. "I want to make an impact when I come back…maybe I'll find a better moment to do so."

"If you find one, let me know about it."

"I will," Hunter said as he and Britt walked away, "Well, that was one surprise I was hoping got a better reaction, but how can I compete with Rocky?"

"Oh come on, I've seen tapes, you are just as good," Britt said, wrapping her hands around his neck. "I think you're even better actually. I mean, Rock was great for the fans, but who was so intense that he could instill fear? Not Rocky, he was too peppy and happy-go-lucky. He didn't intimidate anyone like you did."

"You love me though," he responded.

"I could love Rocky, you wouldn't know," she teased him. "But, if you want to make an impact, Stephanie told me something that might be interesting to you."

"She did?"

"Yes, she did because I'm her assistant and I take care of a lot of stuff for her. So that means I se stuff that normal people don't get to see and I get to know things way before anyone else knows and I do have an interesting tidbit for you _and_ it shows how mature I can actually be."

"What is it?"

"I have it on good authority that Taker is returning soon," Brit said, raising her eyebrows like Hunter was going to jump for joy, which, of course, he didn't. Instead, he looked bewildered and she tilted her head, her dark hair sliding over her shoulder. "Hunter!"

"Why do I care that Taker is back?" Hunter wondered. "I mean, yeah, we've had our differences in the past, but what does that have to do with me?"

"Do I really have to spell everything out for you?" she asked. "What I'm getting at, you dumb-dumb, is that he's coming back and he hasn't yet paid for what he did to Shawn. I mean, I know that it was Shawn's idea to retire and all that and I'm sure if he'd wanted to, he could've come back to the show, but the fact remains that it was a career vs. streak match and Shawn lost and you were upset. So, what I'm saying to you right now is that you have a golden opportunity here to do something about this."

"You think I should get revenge for Shawn?"

"I know that you've kind of hated how he didn't exactly get to go out on his own terms and I'm not saying that Taker is solely responsible for everything that happened, but this is your chance to at least rectify it a little."

"And you wouldn't mind?" He didn't want to step on a land mine here and get into hot water with her. He knew that Shawn was always going to be a bit of a sore subject for them and Hunter was lucky because Shawn hadn't really come up in many of their conversations. The conversations they'd had lately were more on their relationship and not Hunter's with Shawn. So he didn't know how to react to this. He didn't want to place the blame on Shawn, but his words had had a profound affect on Hunter and made him choose the path he'd taken.

"I know that he's one of your oldest friends and I don't want to be the one who took that way from you. I think Shawn just needs to now that I'm sticking around and if he doesn't like I, that's his problem, not mine. I'll treat him with respect if he does the same."

"You're really remarkable."

"No, I think it's more just understanding that you two are friends and not being mad about it, even though I do have things I _can_ be mad about. I'm not going down that path, I'm going to play the adult here."

"Thank you," he said, kissing her cheek. "You find me places to be on the show, you let me be with my best friend still. You can do everything."

"Not everything," Britt laughed, "but enough."

"How'd you do it, Stephanie?" Punk asked as he stopped Stephanie in the hallway. He looked at her with those calculating eyes, peering down at her. She felt powerful and in control of him, like a junkie and his dealet.. "How did you get our numbers to come out like that? I know you were the one behind it, you had to be. If it hadn't gotten screwed up, I know I could've won the whole damn thing."

Stephanie shrugged, but didn't say anything. Flynn did though, "Pretty arms!"

"Thanks," Punk threw her a thanks, "so how did you do it?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about, but let me tell you though, Punk," she said, leaning closer to his ear. "You owe me one."

Stephanie found Chris back in her office when she returned with Flynn and Sawyer. The show had already started and Edge was wrestling and Sawyer and Flynn were now glued to the TV because they wanted to see their friend Edge wrestle. Chris didn't have Kensington in his arms anymore and instead, she was drifting away in their portable crib. Stephanie crooked a finger at Chris and he came over and leaned on the edge of the desk.

"You've been pretty scarce tonight."

"Just thinking," he told her. "I was really hurt by what you said."

"I know and I didn't mean for it to come out like that," Stephanie told him.

"I love you, Stephanie. When I'm not with you, I think about what you're doing, when I'm asleep, I wonder if you are too. You're amazing in every way to me and if you're not getting that from me, then I need to start doing better because it's what I feel."

"I overreacted. I guess I just don't like sharing you with the world, but you've been amazing these past few months, taking a break from wrestling, helping raise our kids, Fozzy, books, it's all so amazing and I'm so proud. I just want some time with you."

"You will, I've been looking over itineraries while you weren't here. You guys will be in California while I'll be there too, so you guys can join me and Flynn after you do Raw and we can all be together," Chris told her and she actually lit up a little at that.

"We can come to your signing?"

"Yeah, you know, you could even sign it with me, half the book is about you anyways," Chris joked with her, pulling her towards him and hugging her. "I love you, Stephanie, I love you and the kids so much. I guess I just like to take advantage of every opportunity that comes my way. I think it's the caveman part of my brain that says that as the man, I have to earn the money and you make a ton more than I do so…"

"So the caveman in you is like, more money!"

"Yes, that's exactly it, but do not mistake my commitments for wanting to be away from you or the kids. If I could, I'd have you come with me all the time so I could show your cute ass off in front of everyone. I mean, as hot as I am, I'm only appealing in the shallow department, but could you imagine if I was to bring my gorgeous wife out with me and we looked like the perfect couple? Instant marketing genius."

"So I'm a pawn then?"

"Yes, because if I have to be your trophy husband, then you have to be my trophy wife in exchange."

"Only you could make being a trophy wife sound romantic. And it's not that I want to take anything _away_ from you. I just miss you while you're gone and I guess I mistook that for…" Chris put his finger on her lips and shook his head.

"Baby, never, ever, ever think that I'm not happy or running away from you. That will _never_ happen because you and me, long haul, baby. You're stuck with me, for better or worse, remember that whole speech. I like to think I've made a lot of betters for you and not many worses."

"You have."

"So we're all set then, we're good, you're not going to wound me anymore?"

"I won't wound you," she said, "but this big secret you're keeping from me, I want to know."

"Oh, I'm sorry, because you're no longer mad or hurt, it goes back to being a big surprise. But trust me, I think you're going to find it highly amusing and entertaining, at least I hope that you will. I do think you'll like it; at the very least you'll laugh at me and isn't laughter what holds the world together."

"I thought it was duct tape."

"That too."

"When can I know?"

"Soon."

"Can I get a hint?"

"Television."

"You're coming back!"

"Um, no, but just…television," Chris told her, rubbing her nose with his. "I want to tell you, I just…I want it to be a surprise. But don't worry, it's nothing bad, it's nothing that will make you think I'm running away, at least I hope not."

"Okay…you're not giving me much confidence here. Will Flynn like it?"

"No, Flynn's going to hate it," he answered and it was probably true, Flynn probably would hate it since it had nothing to do with wrestling.

"Then I might hate it."

"Unless I'm in the ring, Flynn is going to hate what I do," Chris told her. "But just you wait, okay, can you do that for me, for a little while longer?"

"Okay, okay, I can wait, but you better make it worth my wile, Jericho. A girl doesn't take too kindly to waiting."

"McMahon, it'll be worth your while."


	312. Dancing Machine, February 7, 2011

A/N: Thanks for the reads and reviews. I know that Chris is on DWTS this season so I just wanted to remind everyone that I really only follow the WWE shows and anything in real life I just kind of spin to my own HaK universe. So while I'll definitely be using stuff from the show, it's not going to be exactly the same. Just a forewarning. Hope you enjoy the chapter, review if you want. :)

* * *

"Yeah, I'm really looking forward to meeting you too."

"It should be fun, I promise you that it will be fun."

"In addition to all the hard work," he added playfully.

"Well, there's going to be hard work too. I'm not going to lie, it's not going to be easy, I don't plan it to be easy and if you want to be good, it's not going to be easy."

"I never liked easy," Chris said with a laugh. "I really just want to get this started. I'm a little anxious as it is. My wife has no clue yet, I haven't even told her. I want it to be a surprise, but as I understand it, the rumor mills are already going and I think she's going to find out."

"You should tell her beforehand though, will she be surprised?"

"Yes, she will," Chris said, thinking about his wife. "She doesn't really _mind_ surprises, but I don't' know how she's going to feel about this one, it's really a toss-up, but I really just want it out there in the open so that I can start telling people and get all the teasing out of the way."

"Because…wrestling is not synonymous with dancing?"

"That's right," he said, "but I hope to change their minds and your mind if you're thinking the same thing."

"I wasn't, but I'm sure you can prove me wrong if I start to think it. Already I can tell that you're in this to win this."

"From just hearing my voice?"

"I'm a teacher, I can tell these things," Cheryl said.

"Oh, you can just tell?"

"Yes, I can tell when a student wants to learn and when a student is just there because he's forced to be there. I know the show has been trying to get you on board pretty hard and you mentioned you had time and you wanted to try and that is wanting to learn."

"Yeah, I guess it is, I do want you to teach me."

"See, we're already on the right track and I haven't even met you yet. I really like to just a preliminary idea for my partner before I meet them. We can work out the logistics later, but I just like to get a small feel for how it's going to be."

"I'm a hard worker and I try to be the best at what I do all the time."

"Good, then we'll be perfect for each other."

"I want to be perfect with you," he said with resolve. Suddenly he felt two arms wrap around his neck and Stephanie lean her head against his. "Hey, I'm going to have to cut this short, but it was really nice talking to you."

"Okay, I can't wait until we meet," Cheryl said, "Have a nice night, Chris."

"You too," he said before ending the call and turning his head to the side a little bit. Stephanie kissed the corner of his mouth and he smiled against her lips. "Where are the kids?"

"With my dad," Stephanie explained. "I know what you're thinking, why would I let my father anywhere near the kids, he's a hazard to them, he'll just make them as crazy as he's made me, but they haven't seen him in a while and they don't know that my dad is an absolute nutcase and he really kind of isn't around them. I don't know why, but he acts like a normal human being to them."

"Probably because you didn't let him see Sawyer for the first few months of his life so he knows that he has to treasure whatever time he gets with them, plus, he's barely spent any time with Kensy at all so you probably felt bad over that too."

"Or I just wanted time alone with you and because I know how hyper our kids are, I left them all with him. I'm sure Flynn is climbing over something, Sawyer is wanting to know what's going to happen tonight and I told Kensy that if she wants to cry her heart out for the first time in her life, that now would be the perfect time to do so."

"Do you think she'll take you up on that?"

"I hope so," Stephanie said, "so who was she?"

"Who was who?" he asked.

Stephanie smirked at him and then tapped her finger against the screen of his phone. "The woman you were just talking to."

"How could you even possibly know if it was a woman or not? You couldn't' hear the phone and I'm pretty sure you weren't standing there the entire time I was there, so what makes you think I was talking to a woman?"

"Because you always use a different tone with women, of course," she told him, like he was aware of it or something. He wasn't though and he furrowed his brow.

"I don't understand."

"What? You've never noticed?"

"No…"

He thought about all the women he talked to on a daily basis and did his voice change when he spoke to them? He didn't recall it ever changing and why would it? He couldn't understand why he would change his voice? Was this a phenomenon? Did Stephanie change her voice when she talked to men? Did he ever really pay attention? The answer to that one was no. Why would he ever really try and figure out the tones of people's voices?

"I can't believe you've never noticed," she laughed, "whenever you're talking to a woman, your voice gets this lower register, not like deep, _deep_, but like, deep, husky, sexy deep. I always know when you're talking to a woman because you use the voice. You don't use it with me though or anyone you're really familiar with."

"I do not, I think you're making this up," he told her.

"I'm not!" she protested, hugging him tighter. "Chris, I know the sounds of your voice. You don't use it with Britt, Trish, or Lita and you definitely don't use it with your Mom because awkward, but with every other female you do, even the ones you don't like. It's just a force of habit I guess. You want to sound sexier, more manly."

"I do not!"

"You do, you change the way you talk when you're speaking to the children," Stephanie told him. "When you're talking with them, you get this really cute, Daddy voice, it's just something you do."

"So when I talk to guys?"

"Then you get all Mr. Tough Jericho," she told him, shaking him around a little bit. "It's just a little thing that I noticed about you. I don't care if you want to sound all sexy for the ladies. So who were you talking to?"

"None of your business."

"Was it part of that surprise you have for me?"

"Yes."

"Is it jewelry or a car or something that I can use?"

"No."

"Just tell me or when you're off doing something I'll steal your phone and call back the number or I'll just ask the phone company for it. I'll call them up and tell them that I suspect there have been suspicious phone calls being made from my phone and ask them to send me a copy of the phone numbers being dialed and we're under the same plan so it'll be right there because most of the numbers on your phone I'd recognize."

"Why did I have to marry the smartest, most devious woman on the planet?" Chris asked the universe. "I couldn't have fallen for a dumb broad."

"Where would the fun be in that? What is this big thing you're planning? I really have no idea. I know that you are going to be hosting those awards, what were they called, the Revolving Door awards or something?"

"Thank you for taking such an interest in my life," he told her sarcastically, "It's the Revolver Golden Gods. That's what it is and I'm seriously very excited about this. They not only want me to host again, they want me to host _and_ they want Fozzy to perform, Steph, this is really huge for us, plus with us being booked for Sonisphere this year, which is like a dream line-up, it's really great for us…don't give me that look."

"I'm not giving you a look!"

"Stephanie, it was _your_ idea for me to take the time off," he reminded her. "You were the one to ask me. I was perfectly happy wrestling and being the best in the world and you asked me if I would take time off because you were going to need help with Kensy. You can't take that back now, no revisionist history."

"I know what I said, but once again, you are gone far too long!"

"Well, you're going to have to wait," he told her.

"You said that you were coming back soon, this is not soon!"

"I'm not arguing with you over this," he told her, leaning his forehead against hers. "I'm not going to argue because you will lose because you told me specifically to take time off. You never specified how much and you know that I'm a guy who needs to do stuff, which you consider running away from you."

"Are you going to lord that over my head from now until the end of time?" she asked him, sneering at him a little, which he only found cute, really. She hated it when he brought up things that were so heavily skewed in his favor. This was a woman who liked to not only win arguments, but _annihilate_ her opponents. When she had no retaliation, she tended to get hostile and when she got hostile it tended to mean that he wouldn't be getting any for a few days and that made him very, very un-Chris Jericho-like.

"Only for another week or so," he told her. "Besides, baby, WrestleMania is already going to be stacked as it is. I may have gotten you Rocky, but I know your father has been trying to get as many people to come back as possible, do you think he's threatened by the mastery I showed when I got Rocky to come back?"

"Yes, I think he is," she rolled her eyes, "no, you just gave him a good idea is all. It's not like he's intimidated by you, he loves you, well, as much as any man can love his son-in-law, he's probably not thrilled that you stole his daughter, but he loves you like a guy who stole his daughter."

"I didn't steal you, Hunter stole you, literally, he stole you. I even told your dad my intentions. I'm just saying that it's like he wants to upstage me and good luck! So he's got who back, Austin as the Tough Enough trainer, who cares, guys a jackass-"

"Just your opinion," she added.

"He could have hurt my son!"

"Didn't," she added, "but moving on…"

"I don't understand how you can be so flippant when it's our kids involved, but fine, moving on, he's got Booker T back, Nash was back, and now I hear he's talking to JBL? What's with _that_?"

"They run in the same circles, sort of," Stephanie shrugged.

"He's another guy who I could go the rest of my life without interacting with or breathing the same air as," Chris grumbled, thinking back to that feud he'd had with JBL and how big an asshole the man had been, to the point where Chris had nearly gone ballistic.

"You hold on too tight," she said, "but you haven't even asked me how I'm entering the foray."

"You're entering the foray of what?" he wondered.

"Bringing people back. I couldn't let you and my dad have all the fun, now could I? I've got someone back and I think that it will definitely turn a few heads and it actually wasn't that difficult to get them either, they've kind of been itching to come back for a while."

"Who? Why are you always keeping things from me?" he whined.

"Whoa, do you want to back up and listen to yourself say that sentence again? Because the original point of this conversation was to find out the lady, or whore depending on whom you were speaking to, you were conversing with and I still haven't a clue who it was."

"Fine, you are entitled to keep things from me," Chris said, "but not this one, who do you have coming back? Can I guess?"

"You'll never guess because it's so obvious that you'll skip around the obvious and guess forever."

"Is it…yeah, I don't have a clue."

"It's just Trish," Stephanie answered. "I've got her to come back as a Tough Enough trainer. She's been itching to get back in here and this is the perfect way for her."

"Whoa, has she talked to Christian about this?"

"Yeah, she has and he's totally supportive of it, in fact, it really didn't take much negotiating at all."

"_Tilden," Trish said good-naturedly as she wiped her daughter's mouth. "So you guys are definitely coming to her birthday party, right? I scheduled it for the weekend _after_ the 7__th__ because my parents and Christian's mom couldn't come down from Toronto until the weekend after her actual birthday so we're just kind of postponing it, plus, on her actual birthday, you guys and Edge and Lita are all going to be at Raw so what's the fun of having a party when half the people we want to come can't be there? Christian and I are going to have a cute family dinner with just Tilden and then we'll have the party the weekend after."_

"_We're definitely going to be there, we've already shopped for her present," Stephanie said as Kensington go fussy in Stephanie's arms. She set her down into her carrier that was in the booth next to her. "I can't believe Tilden is going to be a whole year old, where did the time go?"_

"_You're asking me? It feels like just yesterday I was miserable and in labor, wondering how the hell you were able to pop out two kids like it was nothing!" Trish said, brushing Tilden's blonde hair back and out of her face. Tilden smiled at her and then went back to the food sitting in her high chair. "She's going to be talking and walking soon. I don't think I can handle that, Stephanie. It's going to make me want to have another one."_

"_You don't?"_

"_Not right now, I've been thinking about going on the road with Christian and Tilden and I don't think being pregnant would be fun…not that I'm saying you shouldn't have been pregnant and on the road!"_

"_I'm not offended, Trish," Stephanie laughed, popping a French fry in her mouth. "In fact, you know, that gives me a great idea. I told you how Chris pulled off the coup of all coups, right?"_

"_Yes, yes, yes, your wonderful, talented, miracle worker of a husband was able to get The Rock, who hasn't been on WWE television in years and years to come back and be the host of WrestleMania and that everyone is going to sing his eternal praises."_

"_Okay, so I have mentioned it."_

"_It's nice that you love your husband, but spare us the gag-factor."_

"_I'm sorry," Stephanie said, "but he really outdid himself with it this time. Anyways, with all of that going on…how do you want to be a Tough Enough trainer?"_

"_A what?"_

"_Austin's already in, why not you? You're one of the best female wrestlers we've ever had, nobody in the company right now has your talents and I think if you could apply that to any of the women wrestlers that we have, they'd be better than the current crop, especially Kelly Kelly or the Bellas."_

"_You really don't like them, do you?"_

"_I really don't like what they represent. It's not my job to hire people so I just go with the talent that I've got. But they're under contract so it's not like I can really have just cause to fire them," Stephanie shrugged, "so, will you do it? It wouldn't really require any extra travel that you won't already be doing and I really think these people will benefit from it."_

"_I'll talk it over with Christian, but you know what, I think I'm in."_

"So she just really wanted to do it."

"Well good for you, look at us, wheeling and dealing and-"

"Trying to get out of whoever was on the phone…"

"Shouldn't you be getting the kids back from your dad, I thought that he was going to start off the show and you might want to get the kids before he has to go out there or he's liable to bring them out there with him and do something like, tell them all these are the future of the company and don't we want some anonymity for our children?"

"You kind of broke that when you put their picture in your book, Chris," she pointed out to him. "Besides, it's not like we don't go out with them, we aren't like Michael Jackson when he made his kids wear masks and hats and things. When we're out with the kids, people see us and you're bringing Flynnie along with you on your book tour so people are going to see her."

"But you don't want them out there."

"No, but he told me he'd bring them by here when he has to go out there," Stephanie said, "so who was on the phone, Chris?"

"Again, none of your business."

"I'm your wife, everything is my business," she told him. She was really very curious to know what this big secret Chris had was because she honestly had no idea. She knew everything he was doing, the awards, the concerts, so what was this big thing that he had planned? She knew he wouldn't be going to TNA, that was a ridiculous thought, not only because he was very much pro-WWE (being that he was married to her and all), he'd become nearly angry with the way TNA was looking. She liked to think part of that was to defend her specifically, but it certainly defended the WWE and that was good enough for her.

"No, it's not, I thought we've been over this."

"But you have been keeping this from me for a while now, I can tell. You're being so secretive about it. You're always on the phone, whispering about something and then you had that 'meeting' in Los Angeles when I called you when you were there negotiating for the Revolver awards, but it wasn't a meeting for that. Chris, really, what's going on?"

"Stephanie, do you trust me?"

"Explicitly," she told him. "Wait, do you think I'm about to accuse you of having an affair?"

Chris laughed and shook his head, "Of course not…do _you_ think I'm having an affair?"

"No, that wasn't on my mind until just now and you asking me to trust you, why would I need to trust you if you weren't doing something that I wouldn't particularly like?" Stephanie asked, narrowing her eyes. Then she softened them and laughed, "I definitely don't think you're having an affair, but I think you're planning something and I don't know what. Did _Downfall_ get picked up for another season or something, I thought that they said they may, but not until the summer, though I guess the negotiations could start now…at least that only takes, what, a few days to film?"

"It wasn't that," he told her.

"It isn't?" she asked. "Okay, I'm calling time here."

"Time?"

"Yes, time, I know that we have our secrets, I know that we both are in this relationship and keep certain things from each other, but I have a feeling this affects me in some way and I'm going to have to call authority now so I'm going to need to know what's going on and if you don't tell me, well, prepare for an argument."

"I wasn't aware that we could call authority."

"I just did, so spill, come on, Chris, what is it? I know you're not sick, you would _not_ keep that from me, oh God, would you keep that from me? We've never discussed the circumstances if one of us was sick. Why have we never discussed the circumstances if one of us was sick?"

"We have," he told her slowly, "and if I was sick, I would _never_ keep that from you. I tell you when I stub my toe, for God sakes, why would I keep a life-threatening illness from you, use some common sense here, baby."

"Okay, I'm using it, now tell me."

"Okay, fine, I…am going to be dancing on Dancing with the Stars. I met with them and I have signed the contract. You know they've wanted me and I figured since I was having the time off anyways, what with taking time off from Kensy that to get them off my backs, I would do it now. They were thrilled of course because, well, look at me, who wouldn't want this gorgeous mug all over the place. The girl on the phone was my partner, Cheryl Burke, I know you're not familiar with her, I wasn't either, but I've looked her up and she's good and I think I can go far."

Stephanie pulled away from him and folded her arms in front of her. "I think I would have preferred the affair."

"Stephy, baby, come on, you're not actually _mad_, are you?"

"Are you aware, Jericho," Stephanie said and Chris knew she was mad because this was not a playful Jericho, this was 'an alienation, you're the only Jericho I know,' Jericho, "that Dancing with the Stars runs up against a little show called Monday Night Raw?"

Chris had to stop for a moment and contemplate what his wife was saying to him. She wasn't mad he was on the show itself, check. She wasn't mad that he had kept it a secret from her, check. She wasn't mad that he had been talking to another woman, check. She _was_, however, mad that he was going to be on another network the same time as her show. He knew he should be mad or at least upset that she wasn't being more supportive of him, but she wouldn't be Stephanie if that wasn't the first thing she thought of and oddly enough, he kind of loved her more because that _was_ her first thought. Only she could get away with that. Any other woman and he would have thought the worst. Sometimes he even surprised himself with how much he loved this woman.

He ducked his head and looked at her adoringly, his eyes shining bright with laughter, "Baby…"

"Chris, are you kidding me with this? I cannot believe you would go to competition!"

"Stephy, baby, calm down," he said, standing up and gathering her up in his arms, rubbing his hands over his lower back, "In case you haven't noticed…I think the demographic for professional wrestling is going to be _slightly_ different from the demographic of Dancing with the Stars."

"Chris, sweetie, have you looked in a mirror?" she asked him.

"What?" he asked, confused as to what she was getting at.

"You're one of our biggest stars, your fans have a name and have for _years_. All these Jerichoholics are going to want to see their party host and their hero on television and they're going to watch you and not me and how could you want to compete against me!"

"I thought I was competing against the ten other people, but that's just me," he said, "I guess I didn't realize there was going to be another person I was competing against."

"Not to mention, you have droves of female fans who think you're hot and I'm practically hitting them away with sticks already-"

"Wait, you think this means I'm going to get more female fans and what? Leave you?"

"No, I'm saying that you have tons of female wrestling fans who will switch over to see you!" she said, "Please, like you could do better than this!"

"Wow, you get awfully cocky when you're angry, where was the woman that thought I wasn't attracted to her? Is she still in there?" he asked.

"She bit the dust," Stephanie told him. "I can't believe you would do this to your own company, I cannot believe you."

"Okay, authority time!" he told her, his voice lowering, but not in the sexy way. It was in the Mr. Tough Jericho way that he used when talking with other guys. "I'm pulling the authority card here. How about, instead of being completely adorable about your show, and you are, trust me, I do find this adorable, but before you have an aneurysm that leaves me a widower and therefore _way_ more sympathetic to a viewing audience although I'd be a lot sadder without my wife…so it's a no-win situation, how about you just support me?"

"Well of course I support you, that's a given," she waved him off. "You know I support you."

"I do?"

"You're my husband."

"Yeah, that's not a really good reason right there because there have been plenty of times where you haven't supported me so why are you supporting me now?"

"Because it's just a dance show," she told him.

"You do realize it's going to be hard work for me and that I'm going to have to fly to LA occasionally, right?"

"Now why are you trying to make it worse off than it is? I know I can't be there so maybe once in a while you bring one of the kids, I'm not mad you're on the show, I think it's kind of funny actually," she laughed a little as she thought about her husband in bright neon colors and prancing around the dance floor. "Are you going to wear feathers and stuff?"

"No."

"You probably are," Stephanie laughed, "and you're going to have to learn to point your toes and maybe you'll even have a rose in your mouth! Oh my God, this will be priceless. We're going to tape these and someday, we'll show them to our grandchildren and they'll laugh at how crazy Grandpa was!"

Chris leaned in closer to her, "We'll see if you make it to old age, you might just keel over before then because the show made one mistake."

"Very funny…okay, now I'm picturing you lifting up your partner and twirling her around in the air!" Stephanie held her stomach in laughter. "Oh, this is going to be so funny!"

"Well for that, you're not allowed in the audience."

"Oh come on, sweetie," Stephanie said, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Dance with me, my wrestling twinkle-toes, let's glide across the dance floor like Fred and Ginger."

"You're such a bitch," he told her as she tried to lead him around the office. "I'm never going to use my newfound dance skills on you. I'm going to be smooth and you won't get any of the benefits."

"Oh, my little dancing boy is upset, come on, let's go down a little jive to get us in a better move," Stephanie said, doing jazz hands. "Come on, Chris, show me what you got, shake your ass like I'm the judge and you want a 10!"

"I'm not sure I want to know what's going on in here."

"Daddy!" Stephanie said impulsively, giggling as Chris's face turned beet red.

"Mommy, what are you doing?" Sawyer asked, giving his parents a strange look. His mommy was acting like a crazy person, not the cool, calm person that he was used to. He was kind of afraid of this mommy.

"I'm just dancing with Daddy," Stephanie said, giving Chris a wink. "He was showing off his dance skills."

"For what reason?" Vince asked.

"Don't say anything, Vince, but I'm going to be on Dancing with the Stars."

"Doesn't that show go up against Raw!"

"What is _with_ this family?" Chris asked. "Is it too late to request an annulment? Every single one of you is the same as the next, what have I married into?"

"Much too late," Stephanie said, "but Dad, Chris said the demographic is different and I guess he's right, all the old ladies will be drooling over Chris, right, Chris?"

"Yes, all the old ladies," Chris said, rolling his eyes.

"Daddy, you're dancing on a star, are you going to space?" Sawyer asked, now even more confused. What was going on here! If his daddy was going to space, he really didn't want him to go.

"No, I'm going to be on a TV show where I dance and I'm the star."

"_You're_ a star?"

"I had the same reaction," Stephanie said.

"Chris, you're sure Rocky is on board with this?" Vince asked, "Because if I go out there and announce Rocky for next week and I don't deliver, it'll be your head on a platter. The fans are going to expecting something huge. I can't back out of that now."

"No, it's still happening, he will absolutely be here next week, so go out and make your announcement, Vince," Chris said, shooing him out of the room as Stephanie grabbed Kensington's carrier from her father. When Vince was completely out, he turned to his wife, "Seriously, why do I put up with him?"

"Because you married me," Stephanie said, setting Kensington's carrier down before picking up the little girl and cooing at her.

"Why again?'

"Because you love me."

"Why?"

"Because you think I'm hot," she said, sitting down and lifting Kensington up before blowing a raspberry on her tummy.

"Daddy, you didn't answer my question," Sawyer said, tugging at his father's pants, "you're a _star_? But I thought stars were in the sky!"

"Daddy a star?" Flynn asked. "Daddy, you star?"

"I'm what's considered a star because people know who I am because I'm on TV. See, I'm what you'd call famous. That's when lots of people know me for doing something pretty great. So a lot of people know me from wrestling and from Fozzy."

"Oh, okay, you _are_ a star then, but not a sky star," Sawyer tried to comprehend what his father was saying.

"Exactly," Chris said.

"Are you dancing with Mommy?" he asked. "Because I bet Mommy can dance and be good at it because she's Mommy."

"Thank you for the vote of confidence," Stephanie told him as she gave him an exaggerated pout, which only made Flynn crack up and bury her laughter into Chris's shoulder as he knelt with them. "But no, I won't be dancing with Daddy."

"My partner's name is Cheryl and I'm sure that you will like her."

"Okay," Sawyer said, "I'm going go play with my toys now, bye!"

"Bye," Chris said as he watched Sawyer go over to his toys and then he turned to his Flynn and he tilted his head at her, "Hey there, Flutterby, I think that you and I have to have a talk."

"We do?" Flynn asked. What had she done now?

"Yeah, I know you want me to come back to wrestling, right?"

"You wrestle," Flynn nodded. "You daddy, you wrestle."

"Yeah, well, I'm not going to be wrestling for a while because I'm going to be dancing. Now I'm not saying that I won't be back, but I won't be back for a while, do you understand?"

"You no wrestle?" she asked, her bottom lip quivering. That was all she took out of her father's speech. "Daddy!"

Flynn burst into tears and it was such an odd sight of his little girl that it startled him. Flynn wasn't big on crying, hell, none of their children were. Sure, they cried every now and then, but they usually expressed their sadness or anger with pouting or being little hellions (like parents, like children). Chris immediately pulled Flynn into his arms and let her sob against his chest. He looked to Stephanie and she just shrugged.

"Flutterby, I'm not going away forever, I promise you," he said, pulling her away a little and staring her straight into her gray eyes. "I promise you that I will come back to wrestling and I'm going to kick everyone's butt, okay?"

"No," she whined softly.

"Yes, I will, promise," he said, putting his hand over his heart. "I promise you, okay, Flutterby. I would never go back on my promise to you, I love you too much for that and I know that you love when I wrestle and I would never make a decision like not wrestling without taking your feelings into consideration first, okay?"

"Okay," she finally relented, but continued to cry as she fell against him again.

"Shh, shh," he said, standing up and walking around with her, like he had when she was a little baby. "Cry it out."

There was a knock at the door and Stephanie called them in. Ted walked in and surveyed the scene. "Did I come at a bad time?" he asked, looking at Flynn.

"No, what is it?" Chris asked.

"I got…the stuff," he said, looking pointedly at Chris. Chris smirked. The kid had come through for him. Well, for himself really as Ted was the one who wanted to get back at Maryse for the offense of being a mean bitch.

"Awesome."

"You look really pretty, Steph," Ted said, smiling over at her.

"While I'm right here, have you no shame, man!" Chris said. "I'm going to go talk with Ted, okay?"

"Enjoy your naked pictures," Stephanie called after him, giving a short wave.

Christian set down the small cake in front of Tilden. It was nothing compared to the cake they'd ordered for Saturday, but for their small family celebration, it was perfect. There was one small candle lit in the middle of the vanilla cake with the sprinkles covering the white frosting. Tilden smiled and glanced at her parents before grabbing a fistful of cake and shoving it into her face. Trish and Christian laughed at her, shaking their heads as Tilden's eyes widened at how good this cake was.

"You like that, Tilde?" Christian asked his daughter, ruffling her hair back a little. "It's okay to eat it all, it's your birthday so you always get to do what you want and if you want cake, well, Mommy and I will stay up until you fall asleep."

"Speak for yourself," Trish laughed, then grabbed Christian's hand across the table. "Our daughter is a whole year old, Chrissy, _our_ daughter."

"I know, this is pretty crazy, huh, how a year ago, we didn't even know what we were doing? But here we are and Tilden is a happy baby and I think we're doing a great job. I'm happy with how things have turned out."

"So am I," Trish said, "and now that we're going back on the road, I think the adventures are really going to start."

Chris took the picture and whistled, "Wow, okay, so you _are_ banging this, right?"

"Yeah, I'm banging that."

"Yeah, if you're banging that, I'm going to have to rescind on this plan," Chris said, handing the pictures back to Ted.

"Dude, what?"

"She's hot, man, I would hate for you to miss out on _this_ because of some dumb plan because believe me, she'll know it was you and yeah…I'm saving your ass here, buddy," he said, patting Ted's chest as he scooped up Flynn.

"You've never seen her naked before?" Ted asked, "It's all over the place, she's posed nude."

"I make it a habit not to look at naked pictures of anyone I work with, I thought I could make the exception with this project, but dude, yeah, stick with this because we both know a hand just doesn't cut it."

"So you're out?"

"If you want to get back at her, just don't do what she says, it'll drive her nuts, that's what I do when I want to push Stephanie's buttons. Maryse seems like she's got a hot temper too, hell, maybe you can use that to get more sex because dude, bang that," Chris told him, "see ya, Teddy-boy."

"Daddy, what bang?" Flynn asked as he left the locker room.

"It's a game that adults play and you will not be playing it until I'm dead," he told her, kissing her forehead.

Britt bounced on her feet, "So you're really, truly coming back when Taker comes back on the 21st?"

"I am," Hunter told her.

"Oh, this is going to be so exciting!" Britt said. "Do you think everyone has missed you? I bet they have…I bet they're going to go crazy."

Hunter believed they would, but there was a little thought at the back of his mind that kept bugging him. It wasn't a big deal, but it was there. He knew Rocky was coming next week and it worried him that he wouldn't get cheered as much as Rock was. He knew he would get cheered, but he really wanted to get _cheered_. It was greedy of him, but he liked being the best and he was going to get overshadowed by The Rock, he just knew it.

"What's wrong?" Britt asked.

"Nothing, I was just thinking about Rocky coming back."

"Don't worry about him, just worry about Taker, you have revenge on your mind and I know you want it and I know you want it bad, even if it is for Shawn Michaels, who hardly deserves your friendship at all. I don't get what people see in him."

"He projects himself well," Hunter shrugged.

"Yeah, too well, duped an entire generation and a half of people," she said before Hunter leaned in and kissed her, "Don't try to butter me up with kisses, I'm not going to suddenly change my mind on your friend. At the very least he hasn't encouraged you to dump me yet or ditch me."

"You know I'm sorry about that."

"_You_ are, but who knows about him, he probably still laughs about it before he goes to bed."

"You make him out to be so evil."

"Yeah, well, you try getting ditched somewhere," she told him, frowning at him playfully before he pulled her into his lap. "Okay, I've got to go, the show isn't going to run itself and with WrestleMania and my handsome boyfriend coming back, I've got to be on top of things."

"Do you think I can be Undertaker at WrestleMania, like, really, really think so?"

"I think someone is going to be 18-1."


	313. Finally, February 14, 2011

"You don't have to roll out the red carpet for him."

"I wasn't planning on doing that," she said, jokingly pretending to roll up a red carpet. "I just want to make sure that he's comfortable tonight, that's all."

"I'm sure he'll be fine, he's just Rocky," Chris said, "remember, the guy who used to insult you and make fun of you and call you a whore…"

Stephanie narrowed her eyes at him, "So should I marry Rocky next then?"

"Nobody said you should do that," he said, kissing her cheek. "In fact, if you were to go find another husband, I think it would be Ted, not Rocky. It's why I've been grooming Ted to take over in my place."

"When?"

"When I'm in LA doing Dancing with the Stars, Ted is going to stand-in for me," Chris told her. "I figured I could have someone be around for you and the kids and Ted just jumped at the chance."

"I noticed you haven't had any clandestine conversations with him lately, did you two have a falling out?" Stephanie countered, pinching his cheek, "And I thought you two made such a great couple too."

"Please, if I were gay, I'd have _way_ better taste than Ted DiBiase and look at me, I could do better," Chris said, patting his chest. "I'd want someone totally hotter, now him, on the other hand, at least he's going for the hottest woman there is."

"So why aren't you plotting Maryse's downfall like you were last week? I haven't even heard you cackling about anything," Stephanie said. "What happened? I thought you were in cahoots and it was nice seeing my boys getting along."

"We're your boys now?"

"Of course," Stephanie said, "so really, what happened? The naked pictures thing didn't pan out. It seemed like he'd actually got them. I figured you'd have stacks and stacks of naked pictures of her to post all around the backstage."

"Yeah, I saw the naked pictures," Chris said, "wasn't worth it."

"What do you mean it wasn't worth it?"

"She's gorgeous and he's tapping that and it was stupid of him to want to bring her down like that when he's getting it regularly. The good thing is you don't have to necessarily talk during sex-"

"We talk during sex," Stephanie pointed out. "I talked with Hunter when we had sex."

"Didn't need to know that second one, but I know we talk, but we don't _have_ to talk during sex, we just do because we never shut up, plus, you can have the lights off, not that you'd necessarily want the lights off with Maryse, I mean, she's pretty gorgeous."

"I just _love_ when my husband comments on someone else's naked body, especially someone we work with," Stephanie said with a mock dreamy sigh.

"I didn't _want_ to look at them, but Ted had them for the plan so I did, it's not like I saw the pictures on the internet that there are of her or any of the other women in the WWE though I was curious with Chyna because really, Hunter was sleeping with her and I really wanted to know why."

"You're disgusting."

"I worked with her and I don't know what he saw in her, I thought if I looked at the naked pictures I might find out, but I couldn't bring myself to look so other than Maryse last week, I've never seen any female here naked except you."

"That's reassuring, I'm surprised that Kelly Kelly hasn't just exposed herself to you."

"I'm sure it's crossed her mind," Chris said, "but I advised Ted that I'm pretty sure Maryse is at least okay in bed so he should really just stick it out because hell, at least he's getting sex out of the deal, even if Maryse is a hosebeast most of the other time, besides, she thinks she's going bald and we're keeping that going."

"I can't believe she actually believes that she's going bald," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "Okay, so do you want to do this?"

"Okay, let's do this," Chris said, but just then, Kensington started whimpering after waking up from her nap. "Okay, let's do this _after_ I get Kensy."

Chris went over to the portable crib and picked up his daughter, who smiled immediately when she saw him. Chris grinned back at her and kissed her cheek, which made her smile even more and shake a little in laughter. Chris adjusted her in his arms and walked over and sat across from Stephanie as she settled back at her desk, glancing over at Sawyer and Flynn who were quietly (read: loudly but not bothersome) sitting on their play blanket doing their own thing, Flynn occasionally making Sawyer look at something in the book she was "reading."

"So," Stephanie said, pulling herself away from her work, "where are we at for the Hall of Fame?"

"Everything is going along great, I've sent out the notices to everyone so they know not to schedule anything for that time even though most of them knew, but then the younger guys might not realize they're not allowed to do anything that night except be there and then they got the invitations to the after party and everyone knows they're allowed to bring an extra guest unless they come to me and ask me for extra tickets, we're very nearly sold out of regular admission tickets so that's great, we're going to pack people in. The venue is all set for us, I found this amazing restaurant very close to the venue where we're having the after-party, I've already booked the entire restaurant for us and next week Britt volunteer to fly to Atlanta to meet with the people catering the event and I trust her food choices so we've got that covered. I figured that if this is going to be an awesome party we're going to need open bar, the budge didn't really allow for it, so I kicked in some of our money for that, hope you don't mind-"

"No, I don't care, but-"

"I have contacted a limousine company, rented out all their limousines so nobody is going to drive drunk that night-"

"But-"

"I've also hired top-notch security, nobody is getting in, nobody is getting out who's drunk. The guy I talked to about it said they will be checking people at the door."

"How do you even do this?" Stephanie asked. "It's like you knew everything that I was going to say or ask before I asked it _and_ you have it all covered."

"Because I know everything that you would want covered and I know because I've been working for this company for 12 years so I know everything that goes into WrestleMania. I want to make sure this goes off without a hitch. That way you can enjoy the proceedings before you freak out about the show the next day."

"I've got pretty much everything covered," Stephanie said, "I'm right on track, I'm glad that we're both on track with everything. I know that my dad is going to be watching you like a hawk during the Hall of Fame. He's putting a lot of trust into you with this one. I think he thinks of it as a tryout for when we take over the company."

"By the time that happens, the both of us…wait, I'm sorry, _I_ will be retired so Sawyer will just have to take over in my stead, I figure he'll be graduated from college by then," he said, rubbing Kensington's back when she started to whine at the lack of attention. He pulled her away from his body and sat her on the desk in front of him, holding her hands as her legs dangled over the edge.

"I would roll my eyes, but that's probably what will happen," Stephanie said with a sigh. "My dad will probably just keel over in the ring, hanging on to the very end."

"Like you won't be," Chris told her, "are there any other concerns that you had for the Hall of Fame because we're in a very serious meeting right now, aren't we Kensington?"

Chris turned Kensington around so she was facing Stephanie and Stephanie smiled and poked her in the nose. "Yes, we're having a very serious discussion, Kensy, we don't know if we're going to dress you up for the Hall of Fame or not. I think that we'll find you a pretty dress just like Mommy's and then we can all look pretty, huh?"

Kensington smiled and Flynn bounced over, "I look pretty!"

"You do look pretty," Stephanie said, lifting Flynn onto her lap. "I guess you want to be part of this meeting too, huh?"

"Uh huh, I meet," Flynn nodded. She could have meetings too, just like her parents did, well, if she knew what a meeting was, but she figured it was talking or something and she liked to talk and especially about wrestling, even though her daddy wasn't wrestling and that made her sad. Her daddy had been trying to show her the kind of things he was going to do, but she wasn't exactly interested in it.

"What do you want to talk about, Miss Flynn Jericho?" Chris asked his daughter.

"I can meet too!" Sawyer said, coming over and climbing on the chair that was next to Chris. "I can meet, I have meetings, I can meet too."

"We get it, you can meet," Chris said. "Okay, so we're having a Jericho family meeting here, I like it, I like it, we're working as a cohesive unit, this is good, so what do you want to discuss, Miss Flynn?"

"Wrestling!" Flynn growled, balling her hands up into fists and making a very mean face that would put any face the Ultimate Warrior had made to shame. Stephanie tilted her head and looked at her daughter's profile and then looked at Chris with an incredulous look on her face as Chris cracked up at his daughter's face.

"Okay, what about wrestling?" Chris said through his laughter.

"You wrestle!" Flynn pointed a finger at him. Kensington tried to lean forward and grab Flynn's hand and Flynn laughed and tried to swat it away, which only made Kensington laugh and look over her shoulder at her daddy.

"Daddy doesn't wrestle, Flynnie, Daddy's going to dance and be a dancer," Sawyer said, "right, Daddy, that's what you're going to do and Daddy, who dances too?"

"Well, I'm not sure on the entire cast yet, but nobody that you would know, kid," Chris told him. "Remember, Flutterby, how we watched all those dances on youtube this weekend and how I showed you how I was going to dance, which is sort of like wrestling?"

Who the hell was her daddy trying to kid. Flynn gave him a look like she smelled something really bad and shook her head, "That no wrestle."

"She's got you there," Stephanie said, "I saw the dancing you were showing her and that was no wrestling and if it was, that's a pretty provocative way to wrestle and not a style I think I've seen before."

"Ha ha," Chris deadpanned, "I'm grabbing guy's butts and other stuff all the time in wrestling, now I get to grab a much nicer butt."

"My husband, ladies and gentlemen, talking about naked pictures and grabbing butts."

"Ladies and gentlemen, you mean our two daughters and our son."

"Who's naked?" Sawyer giggled. Was someone going around naked because that would be funny.

"Nobody is naked," Stephanie shook her head. "So this Cheryl woman, she's kind of pretty, don't you think?"

"Is this a trap?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Me? A trap, never," she told him. "I'm just making an observation. So you went ahead and watched, what, the entire series or something? Because you were in there forever or did it just take that long to convince Flynn to watch all of it."

"I watched it too, Mommy, and now I think I can dance because it didn't look so hard," Sawyer told her. "I think Daddy's going to do a good job and if you win, you get a big thing and it looks like a shiny ball and if Daddy wins it, Kensy's going to get it, that's what Daddy said because Kensy doesn't have anything in her room and Flynn and mes have lots and lots of things in our rooms that belong to Daddy, but Kensy doesn't because Kensy can't talk."

"That's what I said, Kensy can have the trophy if I win it," Chris nodded. "I think it would look cute in her room."

"I think so too," Stephanie said, "I can't wait to meet this Cheryl, I wonder if she's a tough teacher, I hope so. I hope that she whips you into shape and makes you win. I'm sure there are going to be people more name familiar than you are and you're going to have to win over all those old ladies."

"Are you saying old ladies because you don't want to cop up to the fact there could be younger women that would find my absolutely enchanting and would want me for themselves and if they ever came to Fozzy, they'd throw their panties at me?"

"I'm saying old ladies because I think old ladies," she said.

"Daddy, I'm going to watch," Sawyer told him, "after wrestling though because wrestling is better."

"Love wrestling," Flynn yelled, which was the only tone of voice that Flynn really knew. If they didn't know any better, they'd think she was hard of hearing with all the yelling she did, usually about wrestling.

"See what you've done, Stephanie," Chris told her, "our kids don't know anything else but to love wrestling, have you brainwashed Kensy yet?"

"I'm working on it," Stephanie said.

"You know, it's a good thing, me being on this show I mean, because it'll bring in new viewers to wrestling if they want to see me when I come back."

"Chris, sweetie, I love you with all my heart, but do you really think that these people are going to start following you so vigorously. This is something that bugs me about the show, they don't know you. So what, they see you dance well, they vote for you, they like you _on the show_, but what about when the show is over, they forget about you, you just become that guy on the show. I'm mad because they won't know you and I know you and…I'm rambling, God, I sound like Sawyer."

"Hey," Sawyer said, knowing enough to be insulted. "Mommy, are you saying I talk too much?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying, baby boy, and if you weren't my son, I'd find you annoying, but since you are my son and I love you very, very much, you can talk all you want."

"Okay," Sawyer said, feeling happy again. "Can I vote for Daddy?"

"I don't see why not," Stephanie shrugged, "we'll have to get a television set up in here so we can watch Daddy on the show while Mommy is watching since Daddy has no consideration for other competing shows even though he has a large stake in the show."

"I'm bringing new viewers!" he gave her a cheesy grin and then leaned his chin on Kensington's shoulder. "You wouldn't glare at a man who is so in love with his daughter that they create this cute picture."

"You're lucky Kensy is cute," Stephanie said, winking at her daughter, who clapped her hands giddily from getting attention from her daddy. If Flynn wasn't in Stephanie's lap at the moment, she might be jealous, but instead she just cuddled in deeper with her mommy and felt better. "I just hate that people aren't going to _know_ you beyond all the stuff on the show I guess."

"They can look it up or better yet, get my books," Chris told her. "Does that really bother you?"

"Yes, I guess, it's just…I mean, I know you get fans from the other stuff that you do, I know this, I just want people to know how far you've come, that's all. Like will they realize all the crappy places you had to live to get where you are?"

"Did you live in yucky places?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah, I lived in some real dumps," Chris told him.

"You lived with garbage?" Sawyer asked softly thinking about his father literally living in the dumps they had behind the supermarket. That would probably be the worst place to live. It was stinky and people put their yucky stuff in the garbage, they put Kensington's stinky diapers in the garbage, did his Daddy have to live with garbage like _that_?

"It's just a saying," Chris reached out to ruffle Sawyer's hair, "I lived in apartments and hotels, but they were dirty and not very clean."

"Oh," Sawyer understood now, but it was still yucky.

"I can tell them all about that," Chris said.

"I know, but it's not the same. I'm proud of you and all your die-hard Jerichoholics will be proud too, it's all those other grubby little fans that you're going to get that I don't trust, you know I can't stand a bandwaggoner. Those are the worst kinds of fans."

"Yes, yes, yes, I know your hatred for the bandwaggoners," Chris said, "but like I tell you time and time again, a fan has to start somewhere, doesn't it? A bandwaggoner can turn into a real fan and if they truly, truly love me, money in your pocket, baby, because they are going to buy wrestling stuff that involves yours truly."

"Yeah, I guess."

"That's how it works, look at how we have to buy _The_ _Chaperone_ when it comes out," Chris snickered. He'd seen an advanced screening of the movie and yes, he was snickering because of that.

"He's proud of that movie, Chris, don't make fun," Stephanie chided him, shaking her head.

"I want to see Trip's movie!" Sawyer declared. "He said I could, he said it was okay for kids and I'm a kid! Flynnie can watch it too, she likes Trips too."

"Okay," Flynn shrugged; she did like Hunter, so that was fine with her.

"I'm sorry, but Stephanie, come on, I had to lie to the guy's face and tell him that was good. I did better in _Android Apocalypse _and_ Albino Farm_ and those weren't exactly the pinnacle of theater."

Stephanie laughed, "You were ridiculously funny in _Albino Farm_, I'll give you that, but he likes the movie and it's a WWE release, so, as an owner, you should like it since it came out of the company that you own."

Chris's shoulders slumped, "Why do I have to own the company, it takes away _all_ my fun! I just want to be able to make fun of stuff, but I can't because I own the stinking company. One of these days, I won't!"

"That involves divorcing me."

"Like I said, one of these days I won't," Chris told her with a smirk. "Maybe I'll run off with one of my new fans."

"Then say goodbye to these," Stephanie said, running a circle around her children.

"Your b-o-o-bs?" Chris spelled and then frowned, "but I really like those, I don't want to say goodbye to those, those are quite possibly the best set I've ever seen…wait, what am I saying, I married you, they're _absolutely_ the best set I've ever seen, half the reason I married you right there."

"Don't spell!" Sawyer complained. "It's not fair!"

"Sorry kid, that's what adults do, when you can learn to spell is when we're going to start talking in code," Chris told him. "Anyways, if this meeting is over, I think I'm going to go say hi to Rocky and welcome him back home."

"Can you take the kids with you? I've just got a lot to do tonight and I really don't want the distraction."

"All three of them?" he asked and she nodded hopefully, biting her lip and giving him a pathetic look. If it weren't WrestleMania time, he wouldn't have done it, but he really wanted Stephanie to have as little stress as possible going into WrestleMania.

"Please?" she asked, pouting.

"Okay, fine, give them all to me, but only because it's WrestleMania and I love you and I want you to enjoy WrestleMania this year because you're not pregnant…you're not pregnant right? I can never fully be too sure nowadays."

"Another baby?" Sawyer asked excitedly.

"No more!" Flynn said with exasperation. It was already enough dealing with Kensington, who, though nice, sort of, was still someone who sometimes got in the way of her Daddy hugs and that was just unacceptable.

"Sawyer, Flynnie, Daddy is joking, okay," Stephanie said, "I'm not going to have another baby, I _just_ had Kensington a very short time ago and I don't plan on having another one for a very long time, at least not until at least two of your are in school, I cannot take more babies, no offense, Kensy."

"None taken," Chris said in a girly voice. "Okay, Jericho children, let's have a round up. No toys, just you guys, I guess I'll take Kensy in the stroller, Flynn, you up for walking?"

"Mmhmm," she said, jumping off of Stephanie's lap and then running towards the door, trying to jump up and open it. Sawyer went over and opened it for her and she smiled and gave him a quick hug, "Thanks!"

"Sawyer, can you hold her hand?" Chris asked as Sawyer grabbed Flynn's hand before she started running out into the hallway like a little banshee. Chris put Kensington in her stroller, though she was reluctant to leave Chris's arms. She eventually relented and Chris strapped her into her stroller and turned towards Stephanie, "You owe me on, McMahon."

"You're going on a rival show," she just told him.

Britt sat on the bench in front of where Hunter was working out in the workout room set up for the wrestlers during the show. She was looking at some papers Stephanie had given her relating to the contracts for the matches at WrestleMania and who still had to sign theirs and what they should schedule for next week regarding the show. Her father and all these other people feuding were trying to bring in wrestlers from the past and they all needed one-day contracts. She was currently looking at Cole's request list, which was looking pretty ridiculous.

"I'm feeling good," Hunter said as he lifted some more weight, adjusting the machine to add more weight onto it. "My arm feels great, like it was never injured in the first place. I'm really proud of myself for this. I'm going to kick some ass at WrestleMania."

"Good," Britt said, though she was distracted. Hunter grunted his disapproval at her answer and she looked up at him and gave him an encouraging smile, "You're doing great, honey, I'm so proud of you."

"You could care less," he told her as he continued to pump iron as they say.

"It's not that," Britt said, "I'm just busy, okay, so, I'm not familiar with someone named Grandmaster Sexay, Brian Christopher. Who or what is that?"

"What are you looking at?"

"This list that Stephanie gave me regarding one-night contracts, you know, for liabilities sake. We can't have someone in the ring if they don't have at least a one-night contract because if by chance they get hurt then we're absolutely screwed and Cole has this list of people he wants to bring in, I guess for his feud with Jerry, but I'm not sure who this Grandmaster Sexay is and what kind of nickname is _that_?"

"It's the nickname of a person who never gets laid and pretends like they do," Hunter told her.

"Well you sound nonplussed by this person, did I hit a cord?"

"Just a schlep," Hunter said, "someone that was not worth the contract they _ever_ had. He was part of this bogus comedy act called Too Cool."

"And were they?" she laughed.

"No, they were a couple of novelties, that's all," Hunter grunted. He had no patience for people who didn't put their whole heart in the business. He worked his ass off and that's why he was on top and fooling around and dancing, that was just stupid. "They danced all the time, that was their claim to fame, that and being with Rikishi."

"Oh, okay, so what does this Grandmaster Sexay have to do with Cole?"

"It's Jerry's son."

"The King?"

"Yeah."

"I didn't know he had a son, interesting," Britt shrugged as she looked back down to her list. "That should be something I guess. Oh well, whatever, we'll get in contact with him and see if he wants to be here, which I assume he does. How come I've never seen him before?"

"He and Jerry don't get along very well, Christopher's been in trouble with the law a little bit. Jackasses who can't seem to keep clean, I'm glad Vince has been doing away with them. We don't need that crap in our locker room, cancers, the whole lot of them."

"That's what some people would say of you."

"Maybe when I was married to Stephanie, but I don't have that kind of power anymore."

"That's what you think," Britt said, "or do you just not listen to what people say about you around here. I mean, I guess some people think you've changed, what did you used to be like? I mean, I've seen clips here and there of you and Stephanie and yeah, I get that you were both insufferable, but I think anything on camera just tells half the story. Were you really as bad as everyone says you were?"

"Yeah, I was," Hunter said, "I took advantage of my position and of Stephanie and I'm not proud of it. I earn everything now. I'm not that guy anymore. That's why I'm here. I'm getting in ring shape so I can take down Undertaker."

"Which you will," Britt reminded him.

He smiled at her, "Yeah, for Shawn."

"For Shawn!" she pretended to be enthusiastic, but it came out dull and unappreciative. "I really wish I could get behind you on _that_ front, but I can't. I'm glad you're doing this for your friend, but it's just not in me to forgive him quite yet."

"I'm just glad you let me be his friend."

"Like that'd stop you," she said, "I think you can take Taker even without bulking up like you are. That guy is on his last leg. He doesn't have it in him to perform anymore. You're going to take him down easy. I bet you'll win in a few minutes. You'll just take out his leg and then you'll be the winner."

"I love that you think so highly of me, babe, but that's not how it's going to go down. Taker is ruthless in ways that nobody else sees. When you think you have him down, you really don't, that's the thing, he's always keeping you on your toes. Like I'll hit a Pedigree and I turn, just for a second and he'll be there, standing there because he's stealthy. He's always gotten by on his stealth. He's never been a better wrestler that me, I believe this with all of my heart, but he's got something that nobody else has and I can't take him lightly, especially not at his show."

"His show, his show," Britt said, "whatever, it's not _his_ show. So what, he has a streak going, congratulations, what does he want, a pie? I don't care what he wants, I think that streak is all smoke and mirrors, he's probably never faced anyone truly worthy. He probably wrestles guys he knows he can beat."

"He wrestled me at WrestleMania X-7 and he won."

"You were probably having a bad night, you're allowed."

"He wrestled Ric Flair, one of the legends-"

"When?"

"I don't know, WrestleMania 19 or something."

"Oh, so within the last ten years then?"

"Yeah."

"Yeah, Flair's old, I know he's your mentor or your whatever, higher power or something, idol, but he's old and he needs to hang it up and of course Taker could beat the one guy who's older than him," Britt said, pretending to yawn, "I'm still not impressed, you'll have to do better than that."

"You just love me and that's why you're so behind me."

"I know Taker's medical condition, even if I still didn't like you, I'd still think you were going to win."

"Britt, please don't make me the winner before it happens or else you're going to be severely disappointed if I lose, of which there _is_ a shot. It might not be a big one, but there is a shot that he could beat me."

"Yeah, with that attitude, sure. Say it with me, Hunter, 'I'm going to end Taker's streak,' come on, say it, say it!"

"I'm going to end Taker's streak," he said with no emotion in his voice. Britt shook her head. That was unacceptable to her. The thing was, even if she didn't believe in Hunter, even if nobody did, he had to want it. She could tell that he did, but not at the level she thought he should. She wanted to mentally prepare him, to get him so riled up that he went into that match thinking he was a god of wrestling.

"Like you mean it!" she ordered and it was almost funny, this 265 pound man being bullied by a woman who was nearly a foot shorter than him and over 150 pounds lighter than her. If anyone were to see him now, he'd be humiliated…but instead, he was a little turned on.

"I'm going to end Taker's streak."

"Again!" she demanded. "With feeling!"

"I'm going to end Taker's streak!" he shouted at her and she nodded her approval. "God, you're tougher than the trainer in Rocky."

"Well, good and powerful things come in small packages," she told him. "Hey, maybe I should become your valet. I can go out there and pound the mat and yell at the referees and demand you get rematches and that you get the belt."

He knew she was joking, but sometimes he didn't think Britt knew how beautiful she actually was. She dressed nicely, but it was never in a showy way even though she had a lot to show. She was thin and petite and her jet black hair in contrast with her light skin made her exotic-looking. She wasn't as well-endowed as some of the divas, but she'd never had implants so there was no reason for her to be so busty. He could almost picture her in those skimpy outfits.

"Why are you leering at me?" she asked.

"I was just thinking about you out there in some cute outfit," he told her, raising her eyes.

"I never actually _would_ be your valet, just so you know. I don't think I'm exactly what Vince has in mind when he says diva."

"You could be a diva."

"You love me, you're almost obligated to say that."

"I think it's cute you don't think you could be, but you absolutely could, in fact, I bet you would be more popular than Kelly Kelly."

"I'm going to take that as an insult, why the hell would I want to be anything like her? That's enough reason _not_ to want to be a diva. Plus, if I ever was, I'd be one of those that can't wrestle and everyone rips on them and I don't want that to be me. I'm perfectly content with where I am."

"Do you want to be Stephanie's assistant for the rest of your life?" Hunter asked. "I'm not knocking what you're doing, but you've been here for five years now and you're still Stephanie and by extension, Chris's assistant. Do you want to only do that?"

"I'm happy with where I am right now," she said, "and Stephanie has told me that I'm invaluable to her and I consider her and Chris my close friends. Stephanie has also told me that all I'd have to do is say the word and she'd find a place for me at Titan, but I wouldn't be happy with that. I wouldn't be happy with the desk job, I want to be right here. I've become accustomed to the schedule these past five years and yeah, I'm happy for now. Someday, in the future, I may want to branch out or do something else, but since I plan on being with you for the foreseeable future, wrestling is always going to be in my blood."

"Look at you, you came in with _no_ experience and now look at you."

Britt stood up from the bench, clutching the sheets of paper in her arms before she walked over to Hunter and gave him a brief kiss on the lips. "I didn't think I'd like it so much, but I do. I think the wrestling world is one that is easily sucked into. It's like this dysfunctional family, but at the end of the day, you all still come together, in a weird, odd, wonderful way."

"Has Stephanie gotten to you?"

"She's very persuasive that one, very persuasive."

"Daddy, where are we going? We've been walking _forever_," Sawyer said with exasperation. It wasn't so much all the walking, but just the fact that they didn't seem to be going anywhere. They were in a part of the arena where there wasn't a lot of people and it was kind of dark down here.

"Because we're planning a surprise tonight so we have to keep the surprise where nobody will see it, do you understand?"

"I guess," Sawyer said, but he didn't. They finally stopped in front of a door and he looked up at it, expecting to see a wrestler's name on it, like usual. He could pretty much read all the wrestler's names so this was odd. Who was it then? His dad was knocking on the door though so there had to be someone in there. He looked around and down the hallway, before he heard another voice.

"Chris!"

"Hey man, what's up?" Sawyer turned to the door and saw his father hugging someone that he didn't really know, but the man seemed vaguely familiar.

"Nothing, just hanging out back here in the dark," Rocky said with a laugh, "come on in before I'm found out."

"Okay," Chris said, reaching behind him and ushering in Sawyer and Flynn before pushing in Kensington.

"Holy…wow, you decided to bring the brigade," Rocky said, gesturing towards the kids.

"Stephanie's busy with WrestleMania stuff so I told her I would bring the kids with me, don't worry, they're good secret-keepers, they won't tell that you're here," Chris said, then turned to his kids, "You guys, this is Dwayne, but you can call him Rocky, okay?"

"I think I know you, but I don't know if I know you," Sawyer said, sticking his hand out for Rocky to shake.

"I used to fight a lot with your dad," Rocky said, shaking his hand. "I bet you got the handshaking thing from your mother, huh?"

"I don't know," Sawyer shrugged.

"Since you've never really met them before, since you're Mr. Goes Off to Hollywood," Chris said, "this is Sawyer, Flynn, and the little one is Kensy."

"Nice to meet you all," Rocky told them.

"Daddy beat you," Flynn said, folding her arms. She knew _exactly_ who this guy was. Her daddy had beaten him and she'd seen it with her own two eyes. "He beat you."

"Why am I not surprised that your daughter knows this and she's how old?"

"Two," Chris said with a smirk. "How's your daughter?"

"Growing up too fast," Rocky said as he sat down. He invited Chris to sit down and they all did, Sawyer sitting in between Chris and Rocky with Flynn in Chris's lap and Kensington still in her stroller. "I can't believe you have three kids with Stephanie, this is…unreal."

"What's so unreal about it?" Chris joked. "Wasn't it obvious that Stephanie and I were going to be together?"

"I should have figured, but three kids and all under 5 right, I can barely handle one kid and you've got three little ones." Though Chris kept in touch with Rocky over the years, they were both so busy they never really got to spend time together so Rocky never really got to see his kids at all. He'd met Sawyer a couple times, but he'd never even seen Flynn or Kensington. And since he'd never really been there to see Stephanie and Chris as a couple, it was jarring to him to see their children, this weird combination of two people who had hated each other so vigorously.

"It's hard, but they're pretty awesome," Chris said, holding Flynn a little tighter.

"Daddy betta," Flynn said, then looked at Chris, "you beat him."

"I know, Flutterby, I know," Chris said with a nod and Flynn looked smugly at Rocky, like she had just shown him what was up.

"All I see when I look at her is Stephanie," Rocky said with a laugh. "Does she act like Stephanie a lot because that move right there and the look she's giving me scream Stephanie. Just look at how much of a smart aleck she looks."

"She's actually kind of obsessed with wrestling," Chris said, "and she's mad because I'm not wrestling right now."

"Which, I've got to ask, why? Not that there's anything wrong with it," Rocky said, "I mean, I'm not wrestling, but why?"

"Stephanie asked me to take time off after she had Kensy because she wasn't sure she could do the whole three kids thing, which, of course she can because she's Stephanie and because I had the time off, I've been doing a lot of other things."

"He's going to be a dancing star," Sawyer told Rocky.

"A dancing star?"

"I'm going to be on Dancing with the Stars."

Rocky let out a big bellowed laugh, "Wow, you are? I can't even imagine you dancing, wow, good luck with that one, I think you're probably going to need it being on that show. Knowing you though, you won't stop until you win."

"I plan on being the best.'

"So I've heard."

"So do you know what you're going to say when you go out there?" Chris wondered. "We're not going to have anyone introduce you, I don't know if Stephanie's assistant told you that. We're going to hold you off until the end of the show and then we're just going to let you do your thing. We have network permission to go overtime, so really, you can go on as long as you want to."

"That's good to know," Rocky said, "I was planning on talking about what we talked about over the phone. I think it's about time someone actually took Cena to school. I mean, he goes out there and acts like he's God's gift to wrestling, but there's not been anyone to put him in his place. I'm that man."

"Good, the fans will eat that up," Chris said, "I have no love lost for the guy."

"Hey, what's this I hear that you're _friends_ with Hunter Hearst Helmsley?"

"Yeah, so, it's a long story, we're friends, it's just easier that way. You _have_ been gone for seven years, man, a lot is bound to change around here and not just me and Stephanie and the fact we have a family."

"A large family," Rocky said, "you're lucky though, man, I mean, I imagine Stephanie hasn't calmed down, but you're lucky because look at everything you have."

"Believe me, I thank God everyday," he said.

"So you and Stephanie doing okay? I mean, I guess the kids are an indication, but just wondering how you guys actually function together, you guys just celebrated an anniversary, right?"

"Six years this January, nine years this July," Chris said, "Stephanie and I are doing great. She's the same, old Stephanie though. When I told her I was going to be on Dancing with the Stars, she actually got mad at me because I was going to what she deemed the competition because Raw and Dancing are on at the same time."

"That's Stephanie alright."

"You better believe it, but damn if I don't love her," Chris said, "she's amazing and I couldn't ask for more, really."

Just as he finished his sentence Stephanie strode into the room without knocking, "Oh, you're still here."

"Hi, Mommy," Sawyer said with a smile.

"Hey, baby boy," Stephanie said, "I just wanted to come personally and welcome you back, Dwayne and say how happy we are to have you here and I'm glad my husband could talk you into coming back."

"Stephanie, my favorite two-dollar hoe from down the block," Rocky stood up and walked over to her, "what, no hug for an old friend."

"Still the jerk I see," Stephanie said, but she hugged Rocky anyways, "It's good to see you again. You're looking very well."

"Thanks for having me back, I've heard how you got on Chris's case whenever he left and I thought I might get the same treatment."

"I actually like him," Stephanie joked. "So you're all set for tonight, right? You know what you're going to do and you know what you're going to say and-"

"Steph, remember who I am."

Stephanie laughed and rubbed her forehead. "I'm sorry, yes, yes, you know what you're doing. I trust you to go out there and electrify the crowd as you like to put it. It's just with so many young guys I feel like I'm dragging them around on a leash to get things done."

"She only does that with Ted DiBiase."

"Shut up, Chris," Stephanie said, "but I know with you I can pretty much just let you have free reign out there and everything will come out super. Let me thank you again for agreeing to be here. I know that you didn't…I mean, I know you haven't…"

"Stephanie, all in all, this place is my home and I've been neglecting it far too long. I need to come back here and remind everyone what wrestling is all about. I think I'm just the man to do that since your husband seems to want to put on some dancing shoes."

"Oh, he told you, you better vote for him," Stephanie said, poking him in the chest, "I want Chris to win."

"I'm sure he will."

"Okay, I've got other things to do, but if you need anything, find me or whatever," Stephanie said, "it was nice seeing you, Dwayne and welcome back."

Stephanie started to leave, but Dwayne stopped her with, "Steph."

"Yeah?" she asked.

"It's Rock," he winked at her and she smiled and shook her head before leaving. He turned to Chris when Stephanie had left, "Okay, so she seems a lot calmer and a lot less sluttier than when I last saw her."

"She's a mom now," Chris said, "she's a changed…oh who am I kidding? She's just acting nice because you're here and she doesn't want to ruffle your feathers, not that she could, but you know she's only being nice to you because she wants you to get ratings."

"Things really _haven't_ changed around here," Rocky said.

"Yeah, but we'll leave you now since we're probably bugging you."

"Not at all, tell me what else I've missed around here."

Chris and Rocky spent the next half hour just catching up with everything that had gone on backstage. Rocky especially got a kick out of Chris and Stephanie pretending to get a divorce just to further a plan. It was something only the two of them would do or get away with. He hadn't realized how much he had actually missed the people around here until he started to hear about all of them. There were so many new guys, so many green guys that he had never heard of, but the company was still thriving so they must be doing something right. Before long, the kids were starting to get restless so Chris decided it was time to go and said his goodbyes for now to Rocky before he ushered the kids out of the room and took a right, only to find Edge pressing Lita up against a wall.

"Oh dude, seriously," Chris said, disgusted as Edge and Lita broke apart.

"Dude, what the hell?" Edge asked, then seeing all three of the kids, put Lita down. "I thought this part of the arena was empty, why the hell do you have the kids here? What are you doing walking around here?"

"We have someone here."

"Who?" Lita asked, trying to stave off her embarrassment at being caught out by Chris. She could have sworn nobody would be down here and then for Chris to have the kids with him, it was mortifying.

"Over here? Why? Is it someone to attack me?" Edge asked.

"Who's going to attack you, Ed?" Sawyer asked and Edge narrowed his eyes, was Sawyer insulting him? He wouldn't put it past him to insult him.

"Everyone because I'm the champ, maybe _you_ want to attack me."

"No," Sawyer laughed, "I wouldn't do that, you're my friend."

"Some friend," Edge said, "so is it one of my enemies?"

"No, it's Rocky, he's back as the WrestleMania guest host."

"Like, Rocky as in The Rock, that Rocky?"

"Yeah, the one in the same," Chris responded.

"Holy hell, are you serious?"

"Just watch later," Chris said as he pushed past the couple to get his kids into the locker room and to bed.

Chris and Stephanie watched intently as The Rock's music hit. Stephanie had been at the gorilla for the show as she usually was and while Chris had been sitting with the kids, he wanted to see Rocky's return up close and so Lita was sitting with the kids in Stephanie's office. Stephanie made sure the entrance was perfect and then sat back and watched as Rock's music hit. She turned and kissed Chris as Rocky came out, a thank you for doing something so spectacular among the other spectacular things he did. He really was so good to her, not just personally, but professionally as well. She thought to his dancing gig and she made a decision. He supported her so much so it was time for her to support him.

"Chris?"

"Hmm?" he said, wondering if his return cold generate this much buzz, but then, he hadn't even been gone a year and though he had some concerts in the works for the summer, unless something came up, he'd be back wrestling by the end of the year so he probably wouldn't get such the fanfare. Rocky had been gone 7 years so that was much longer than he'd ever been gone and surely people knew that he was very involved backstage. Maybe he was just trying to rationalize why he wouldn't get such a huge pop, but he knew he'd get a decent one.

"I'm going to be there for you."

"Where?" Chris asked, tearing his eyes away for a moment, "where am I going?"

"At Dancing," she told him. "I'm going to be there for you."

"I know, you already said that you were going to support me, which I appreciate."

"No, I'm going to take at least two Raw'\s off and I'm going to come to the taping of your show. I'm going to be in the front row of that audience cheering you on. I can have Britt take over a couple of Raws and it can be after WrestleMania week, well not the first one, because I'll be there for your first show and then I will be there for you."

"Baby, I appreciate that, but you don't have to do that for me," he said, thought it warmed him that she was willing to put aside something she loved dearly for him.

"I know, but you do all these things for me, bringing Rocky back, taking care of the Hall of Fame and what do I do, sit here and complain to you and not even really support your dancing thing, but make jokes about it…I'm horrible to you."

He laughed, "Yeah right, Stephanie, you're _so_ horrible to me."

"I am though and I want you to know that I'm there for you, for this, for Fozzy, for whatever."

He put his hand to her forehead, "Wow, are you okay? Stephanie, I've never asked you to be anything but you. I find it endearing that you hate that my show is going up against this one. I don't care if you never sit in the audience for me because I know that you support me and all the things I do for you, I do out of love…wow, Rocky's return sure made you crazy."

Stephanie laughed, "I know, but I want to do stuff out of love too and don't bring up the kids because that is _so_ cliché."

"Sorry, okay, I won't bring it up," Chris said, "but I'm glad you'll be there, I wouldn't want to be the only one without a cheering section."

"We can bring your parents, it'll be a thing," Stephanie said, squeezing his hand."

"Look, Rocky's about to talk, we better listen to what he has to say, I have a feeling it's going to be pretty damn good," Chris said. Stephanie smiled and leaned her head on his shoulder.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

"Chris?"

"Hmm?" he asked, watching Rocky making his triumphant return and immediately easing right into his catchphrases.

"Will you eventually teach me to dance, once you learn all those fancy dance moves?" she asked sweetly.

"For you, Steph, I'll have you dancing across the floor in no time."

"Okay," she said.

"Hey, Steph?"

"Yeah?"

"Have you noticed I haven't even mentioned what today is?" he told her.

"Oh yeah," she said, then she leaned up to kiss him, "Happy Valentine's Haters Day."

"Happy Valentine's Haters Day, baby."


	314. On the Road Again, February 21, 2011

A/N: Sorry for the lack of chapter last week, the chapter upload function was down and I just decided to wait to update. Hope you enjoy. :)

* * *

"And you will take care of her?"

"You act as if I'm going to into space and not taking my daughter on a book tour," Chris laughed as they settled in at the gate. They were at the airport, but Chris and Flynn were heading to New York and Stephanie, Sawyer, and Kensington were heading to Florida. It was late Monday night and they'd both be taking red eye flights back to the East Coast because Chris had an early morning appearance on The Wendy Williams Show. "Stephanie, we're going to be fine, in case you haven't been paying attention, I have three children that I've been raising for the last five years so I think I can handle her."

"But what about when you're on late tonight, aren't you filming that Red Eye show late?" she asked worriedly, looking over at Flynn, who was sitting sipping on some orange juice with Sawyer telling her something. They were both sleepy, but awake for now. They figured they'd both sleep on the plane. Kensington was already asleep in her carrier, an infant sleep mask over her eyes to block out the light. The airport itself was fairly quiet this late at night. "It wouldn't be fair to just drag her to some show late when she's tired."

"You worry too much," Chris said, kissing her forehead. "I called your mom and dad and they are happy to take her for the night, in fact, your mother was thrilled with the prospect."

"I didn't know you called my parents," Stephanie told him, her brows knitting, "how come I didn't know?"

"Because I figured that your mom would tell you or something, but don't worry, as soon as we land, I'm checking into the hotel and then we're going straight to filming with Wendy Williams, then I have the rest of the day off and I'll be taking Flynn to Connecticut and then I'm going back to New York for my signing and then I have Red Eye."

"So she'll be spending the entire night with them?"

"Yeah, then I have the signing again in New York the next day at noon, which I'll do, then I'll go pick Flynn up and the next day I have the signing in Huntington. I've got some local TV appearances though, but those are small and Flynn can certainly be there. You've got my entire itinerary planned out, baby. I'm good. Then we're going to travel the country until next week when you guys get to meet up with us."

"I just can't believe it'll be a week without my baby girl," Stephanie said, looking over at her daughter, who was now leaning her head against Sawyer's shoulder, still slowly sipping at that apple juice. "I'm going to miss her."

Chris cleared his throat, "Excuse me, just her?"

"Well I'll miss you too, but that's a given," she told him, kissing his cheek. "Are you sure you have to go away?"

"If I want to put money in the bank."

"You don't need to work," she told him jokingly. "Mama will take care of you."

"I don't need a sugar mama, thanks, I do well enough on my own," he told her and she smiled and rubbed his cheek before she leaned in to kiss him. "So you will miss me when I'm not around, right? You wouldn't get anyone else to do all the manly stuff for you, will you?"

"Of course not, I'll just have Sawyer do all of that."

"Good, put him to work then," Chris said.

"I plan to, I think the front lawn is going to need raking," Stephanie joked as she looked at her sleepy little boy, who kept yawning and blinking slowly. "They're both going to drop on the plane, if not before then."

"I hope so," Chris said, "because I am taking Flynn to the Wendy show and the last thing I need is a crank two-year old."

"No, the last thing you need is a cranky _Flynn_," Stephanie pointed out, "a regular two year old might be cranky, but this is Flynn you're dealing with here and she's not your normal two year old, she's a lot meaner."

"And I so want her to make a good impression," Chris laughed. "Thank God for first class. The seat goes down into a bed and I've got her sleep mask and ear plugs if she wants them, but the noise has never really bothered her…and down goes Frasier, down goes Frasier."

Stephanie glanced over at her daughter, who was now completely asleep, her orange juice sippy cup dangling from her hands precariously, a little drop of it seeping from the corner of her mouth. Stephanie stood up and plucked her daughter up from Sawyer's shoulder, pressing her finger to her lips so Sawyer knew to be quiet. She went back over and sat down next to Chris, cradling the toddler in her arms. When Flynn was asleep, she looked like an angel, her long, dark eyelashes pressing against her skin and her slightly dark waves falling against her forehead, her mouth slightly open and arms akimbo. When she was asleep was the only time she honestly looked like an innocent being, not the little monster she usually was.

"You want me to take her?" Chris whispered and Stephanie shook her head, clinging to Flynn a little tighter.

"No, I want to hold her a little longer," Stephanie said. "I won't get to for a whole week. What am I going to do without her?"

"Not have to run around for hours trying to keep up with her?"

"But I _enjoy_ that."

"You've got two others to take care of, I don't think you'll be lonely," he told her, reaching out to rub Flynn's back a little bit.

"But I won't have my Flynnie," Stephanie said, kissing her daughter's light brown hair. "It's going to be so quiet without her. If she gets to be too much trouble, just let me know and I'll fly out and get her and bring her back home. I'll leave Sawyer and Kensy with your parents and come get her. Promise me you'll do that if she gets to be too much."

"I promise," he told her, knowing that if he argued, she'd get upset with him. She nodded her head and they sat for a while until it was time for Chris and Flynn to go to their gate and wait for their plane. Chris went over and kissed Sawyer on the head, "I'll see you in about a week, okay, kid?"

"Bye, Daddy, loves you," Sawyer whispered, his head drooping.

"Love you too," Chris said, then kissed Kensington's cheek softly so as not to wake her up. Stephanie stood up and frowned. "Can I have her now?"

"I guess," she pouted as she handed over Flynn reluctantly. Chris shouldered Flynn's bag; he'd checked the rest of their bags except for Flynn's and a small backpack that he carried his stuff with him in. It was just easier to check them and not lug Flynn _and_ their things around. He leaned in and kissed Stephanie goodbye, who returned the kiss with vigor before pressing a kiss to Flynn's cheek and whispering something to her that Chris couldn't hear. "I love you. You two be safe, okay?"

"Okay, I love you too, take care of the others," he said, kissing her again before he left them at their gate. He walked slowly over to his gate so as not to wake up Flynn and when he got there, they were just about ready to board. Since he had Flynn, he was able to board the plane first and it helped because Flynn was cranky when he had to adjust her bed down to a bed and she started whining. He wasn't normally embarrassed by his kids, but it was late and people's nerves were usually frayed this late. He pulled the provided blanket over Flynn and settled her in her seat before he took his own and got ready for two whirlwind weeks.

When the plane touched down, the sun was already up and it was light outside. Flynn was still asleep, the plane providing a lot of white noise for her. He gently extricated her from her seat and got off the plane. There was a limo waiting for him, name and all, near baggage claim. It was a courtesy vehicle for his Wendy Williams appearance and he was grateful for it because he didn't know how long it would take to get a rental and he didn't want to hassle with that when he had Flynn still asleep in his arms. The chauffer helped with the bags and they were on their way to the show.

By the time they arrived, Flynn was up and Chris had changed her right there in the back of the limousine. He'd have to brush her teeth at the show in his dressing room or wherever they put her, but he was able to get her changed into a new outfit and comb her hair so that she looked extra adorable. He wanted everyone to think that he had the most beautiful daughter in the world and she was certainly looking like it thus far. She still had a little sleepiness in her eyes because she'd spent the night on a plane, but somehow, her tousled look added to her innate adorability.

"You ready to watch Daddy go on the show?" Chris asked her as they were getting closer to the studio.

"Potty, Daddy, pease," she told him.

"Okay, we'll go potty as soon as we get there, okay? Can you hold it?" Chris asked. Flynn had been completely potty trained for a couple months now and Chris had to say that he was extremely thankful for that. Changing diapers was, by far, the worst part of having a baby. No matter how many kids he had, he'd never get used to it. He just thought the whole endeavor of diaper-changing was disgusting. He couldn't wait until Kensington was potty-trained, even though that was probably two years away and by then, who knew, he might have another baby (okay, now he was just terrifying himself).

"I guess," Flynn nodded her head and then smiled at her Daddy.

"Wow, look at how pretty you are," Chris said, making Flynn's grin widen. "Are you sure you aren't going to come out there with me and show off how pretty you are?"

"Daddy, no," she said, covering her face and shaking her head as Chris made a funny face at her. She started laughing and Chris pulled her to him and hugged her before putting her back in her car-seat.

"Okay, there we go, we have to sit in our car-seat or else Mommy will throw a fit," Chris said, making another funny face, which made Flynn throw her head back in laughter. Her daddy was the funniest guy in the world. "We don't want Mommy to throw a fit, right?"

"No," Flynn giggled, "whe Mommy?"

"Mommy's in Florida with your brother and sister," Chris explained, "for now, it's just you and me, Flutterby, let the madness begin!" He waved his arms in the air and made a crazy face and Flynn nearly died from the laughter. They arrived at the studio where they were taping and Chris's first order of business was finding his dressing room and helping his daughter go to the bathroom. Once that was through, they were whisked to makeup and hair, where Flynn watched her daddy get ready. She was quite confused as to why her father needed makeup. Didn't her mommy just use makeup, but not her daddy?

"Chris?"

Chris looked over and saw the host of the show, Wendy herself, walking over and extending her hand. He reached out from under the apron they'd put on him and shook her hand, "Hey, it's really nice to meet you, Wendy."

"You too, I just wanted to come in and say hello before we officially had our interview, just let you know what we were going to talk about," she told him, leaning against the vanity in front of him. "I actually heard through the grapevine that you were going to be on Dancing with the Stars, so I guess we're actually going to be opponents because I'm going to be on the show as well."

"Oh wow, who are you with?" Chris asked.

"Tony and you're with Cheryl, right?"

"That's what they tell me," Chris joked. "I'm looking forward to it though, I think it'll be tough, but fun."

"I hope so, but for today, I was thinking that we're pretty much going to cover your book and maybe a little bit about being a wrestler and what that entails and…now who is this little girl?" Wendy asked, just now noticing Flynn who was still just looking at her father.

"This is my daughter, Flynn, Flynn, say hi."

"Hi," Flynn said sweetly, waving her hand. "Daddy wrestles."

"I have heard that," Wendy said.

"He best," Flynn told her very seriously.

Chris laughed, "She's my biggest fan."

"Is she your only one?" Wendy asked.

"No, actually, she's my middle one," Chris explained. "I have a son, Sawyer, who's almost five, and a younger daughter, Kensington, who is nearly six months."

"Oh wow," Wendy said, "well, it's very nice to meet you, Flynn and you too, Chris, I'm sure this interview will be great."

"Thanks, I'm sure it will," Chris said, glad that she seemed friendly enough. He'd done his share of talk shows over the years, but it was always a little strange at first. When he'd written his first book, he'd honestly not known how it would do and if anyone would actually want to read about his life, now that he knew people were interested, it was still a bit strange because he didn't think he was _that_ interesting. Sure, he thought his life was different from the norm, but he never saw the true appeal of it. He didn't think he was all _that_ interesting, but was flattered so many thought so.

The audience was mostly women, which kind of suited him because he was good-looking so even if they didn't care a whit about his book or the wrestling or Fozzy, he could still be eye candy. His wife told him enough that he was good-looking and made womens' panties melt that he believed it at least partly. He'd always kind of think of himself as a dork and he didn't think he'd ever see himself as anything more than that.

He walked out there to the applause and sat down, Wendy started off by asking him about wrestling, which he mentioned briefly and then asked about the book, which he was happy to talk about. He hoped to get some buys out of the audience. One of his missions for this tour and for doing Dancing with the Stars was to show people that wrestlers and wrestling was not this thing to look down upon. He hadn't told Stephanie that's what he wanted to do, but he knew she'd appreciate it if she did know. A lot of the things he did was because he wanted to show the world-at-large that wrestling was not some low-brow piece of crap that employed a bunch of lunk-heads and was run by jackasses (okay, Vince was a bit of a jackass, but his wife most certainly was not).

"So, while I was meeting with you backstage, I happened to meet a very special girl in your life," Wendy said.

Chris laughed and nodded. Flynn was sitting backstage with one of Wendy's assistants who had been tasked to watch over her while he was out here. "I brought my daughter with me and she's coming on my book tour with me."

"I met her and she's adorable," Wendy said.

"Thank you," he said, "she's definitely my little spitfire."

"And you mentioned that you have two more. Is it difficult being a father to three kids and living the kind of lifestyle you do because you always seem to be very much on the go, does it become hard being a hands-on father?"

"Well, since my kids are all fairly young, they travel a lot with me and with my wife. She has a pretty high-profile job within World Wrestling Entertainment, where I do work still. A lot of people think I've left, but I'm just taking a break from the wrestling aspect, I still help my wife backstage and for the most part, save the next couple weeks, I do travel to all the shows."

"So your wife works for the WWE as well, is that where you met?"

"Yeah, that's where we met," Chris nodded. "She's actually my boss's daughter so there was that whole situation, but our kids travel with us and we've never been the type of people who have wanted nannies or anyone else to raise our kids. They love being out on the road, they love being around wrestling and we love having them there. My wife grew up in the business and she grew up on the road a lot too, knowing all these wrestlers and she's one of the most amazing women I've ever known and so I don't think having our kids on the road is a detriment."

He could hear some aww'ing in the crowd and he knew he had won at least some of the fans over, so mission accomplished. He just had to be his charming self and he'd have everyone in the palm of his hand. He wondered briefly if he should bring Flynn out here. All that cuteness was such a waste if not everyone got to see it. She was looking extra adorable today in her little, purple dress and white hair clips. Stephanie would kill him if he brought her on TV though, it was hard enough getting her to okay him putting a picture of the kids in his book, bringing one of them on TV would be a nail in his coffin. When the interview was over, he went backstage and scooped Flynn up in his arms.

"You good, Daddy," she told him, giving him the patented Flynn seal of approval.

"You think so?" he asked her, kissing her cheek.

"Uh huh, I watch it," she told him nodding her head. "You talk and talk and talk and talk and talk…"

"So you thought I talked too much?"

"No," she assured him, "they see wrestle!"

"I know, they showed a clip of me, was that your favorite part?" he asked. She nodded vigorously and he should have known the only part that made her grin like that was the part where he was wrestling. This girl was over the moon for wrestling and he wasn't even sure how that had happened, but he wasn't going to complain. "Well, okay, little miss, I think that we're going to go grab something to eat for lunch and then Daddy's going to take you to Grandpa Vince and Grandma Linda's house to spend the night, how does that sound?"

"I like it!"

He laughed, glad that she was in a good mood, "Well, I'm glad you like it, so let's go, Flutterby."

There was something about being at an autograph signing that he really enjoyed and that had to be meeting the diverse fans that he'd culminated during his illustrious career. Sometimes he'd meet some really crazy people who believed he was absolutely the jerk he was on television (which, he was a little bit of a jerk, but not to that extent) and sometimes he'd meet some crazy girls who absolutely loved him and he'd charm their asses off. Then there were the kids who looked up to him and it was always a fun time. He loved interacting with the fans that were willing to stand by him. He wasn't so keen on interacting with the ones that came just to talk smack with him.

He was surprised by all the people that had already read his book. The preorders had been amazing and had already put him on the best-selling list, which had pleasantly shocked him. The thought that everyone was so eager to read what he wrote was amazing. He figured this one might do better than the first one because this book covered his time in the WWE, which most people had seen. They wanted to get a touch of what was going on backstage and he hoped he hadn't disappointed. Despite the numerous mentions of Stephanie, there was actual content in the book. He enjoyed hearing people gush about their favorite parts, whether it was when he was insulting Stephanie or going toe-to-toe with the Rock, he liked hearing the perspective from the other side.

That didn't mean it was tiring though. He went back to his hotel room after dinner and simply collapsed on the bed. Without Stephanie or anyone he knew there, it was pretty lonely and so he simply laid on his bed and watched TV. It was nice to have these kinds of nights though, a day to recharge and reflect on what had happened and what was to come. He was booked pretty solid for the next couple weeks. He was going to have a radio show in the morning, then a midday signing, then he'd have to pick up Flynn, then he had a nighttime signing. He was starting to wonder if he shouldn't just pick Flynn up after the night signing and then they'd go to his next location. He was so tired he couldn't even remember where he was going. Thank God his wife had the foresight to write out an itinerary for him.

He picked up his phone and called Linda, knowing she would have no problems taking care of Flynn for an extra night. He knew his daughter would be disappointed, but it was better for her if she had the extra time to sit around and play. They'd be spending plenty of time together over the next week so a few hours couldn't hurt. After the call, he called Stephanie to check in with her and the other kids and then he was off to bed. He knew by the end of these couple weeks, he was going to go straight into dancing so he needed all the rest he could get.

He went about his day's activities and after his evening signing, he drove to Connecticut to pick up Flynn at Vince and Linda's. "Chris," Linda said warmly, "Flynn has been asking about you all day. I think she thinks she's going to have to stay here."

"She asks about me everyday," Chris joked as he walked inside and briefly hugged his mother-in-law.

"She reminds me of Stephanie," Linda said, "she was always wondering what Vince was up to and asking if she could help him."

"Was she okay for you?" Chris asked.

"An angel…well, if an angel had a little bit of devil in her," Linda laughed, "she's certainly more energetic than any of my other grandchildren, I'll give her that. Have you had anything to eat? I have some leftovers from dinner if you haven't, I know you pretty much came straight from your signing."

"Actually, I'm pretty starved," Chris answered, "I didn't eat on the way here because I didn't know about Flynn, if she was missing me or not."

"She's upstairs sleeping, she had a long day today, Vince took her into the office with him and I'm sure was showing her off to everyone there. Why don't you two just stay the night here, you can set off in the morning. Do you have anything scheduled tomorrow morning?"

"I'm just calling into some local radio shows and then I have my signing later that day…"

"Then you're staying, I insist," Linda said.

"I don't know," Chris said, not that he didn't want to accept her invitation; it was just the fact that he had so much to do. "Besides, if I did stay, Steph and I have the house."

"That you _never_ use," Linda pointed out, "and is probably so dusty, you can't have my granddaughter staying in a dusty house. You two can stay here the night, you know we have plenty of room."

He knew, like it so often happened with Stephanie, that he was going to give in. Linda put a warm plate in front of him and he smiled gratefully, "Okay, okay, I get that I'm not getting out of here tonight."

"You had no chance," Linda told him with a wink as she sat down, "so let's talk."

"I'm used to Vince sounding intimidating, but not you, Linda," he joked as he started to eat. "Is there something I'm doing wrong?"

"No, there's nothing you're doing wrong, in fact, I think you're doing a lot of things right, well, maybe not the whole staying away from wrestling thing, but Stephanie explained to me what you're doing and I have to say, that's going to be challenging."

"You're telling me," Chris laughed, "but I'm excited for it too. I think that I can do well and I think that it'll bring in some more fans to wrestling."

"I love how you're always thinking of wrestling," Linda said. "So I just wanted to say that I read your book. Vince of course got an advanced copy of it and since he's so busy, he hasn't had that much time to actually sit down and read anything, so I took the copy and I read it."

"What did you think?" he asked. "Honest opinions only, we're family and if you can't be truthful with your family, it's just not worth it."

"You love my daughter," Linda said and Chris didn't know why, but he blushed. It was kind of obvious that he loved Stephanie, but under Linda's naked scrutiny, it just kind of felt magnified. "You love my daughter very much."

"What gave it away?" he finally said. "The fact we have three kids? That we've been together almost nine years?"

"The things you wrote about her…"

"Just what I felt," he shrugged carelessly.

"I'm glad to know my daughter is in such good hands," Linda told him as Vince came into the kitchen.

"I thought I heard voices," Vince said, "Chris, hello, when are you coming back?"

"To what?" he wondered confusedly.

"Wrestling," Vince said. "We need you back."

"You _don't_ need me back right now and not to mention you have a ton of people coming back, I don't want to get lost in the shuffle," Chris shrugged. "I'll be back when I'm back, I hear enough of this from Steph."

"Just wondering," Vince said, clapping him on the shoulder, "Stephanie tells me, grudgingly since…well, she's Stephanie-"

"Vince, you know that your relationship with her is your relationship with her because you made it that way. You're actually really lucky that she still talks to you, she very easily could just not talk to you ever."

"I know," he said, "she tells me that you're going to be backstage at the Hall of Fame because you're running it?"

"Stephanie takes on too much as it is," Chris said, "I want her to have some fun with WrestleMania and if she's doing every event, then she can't enjoy herself because she'll be so worried with everything. I know I have a lot to do, but she has more to do, she always has more to do so I'm lightening her load a little bit."

"Well, I look forward to working with you," Vince told him, "hope you're enjoying the free food."

"He's family, Vince," Linda said. "Are you excited about going out on tour?"

"Yeah, I love meeting the fans, the ones that stick with me," Chris laughed, "not so much the ones that hate me, though they come out too and hey, they're buying the book, which is more money in my pocket, which just goes to your daughter and grandkids in the end."

"I like to hear that," Linda said, taking Chris's plate as he finished up. "And Stephanie is okay with you being gone for so long?"

"She understands," Chris said, "I know it's harder for her to be away from Flynn, but she understands that this all part of it and she's actually said she's going to come watch me dance, which is the best thing she could've ever done for me. She's actually taking time off Raw to come see me dance, can you believe that? I mean, this is your daughter we're talking about and we both know that she's not exactly the most flexible person when it comes to work."

"Try being married to the original," Linda said. "You want to check in on Flynn before you get settled?"

"That'd be great," Chris said. "She in Stephanie's room?"

"Yeah, she's in there, I'll let you alone for the rest of the night," she said, patting his arm, "you know where everything is, just take one of the spare rooms and we'll see you in the morning."

"Thanks, Linda," Chris said as his mother-in-law walked out of the room. He went out to his rental car and grabbed his bag before taking it upstairs and throwing it into the first bedroom upstairs. Once he dumped his suitcase on the bed, he went a few doors down to the shrine to the young Stephanie McMahon. He opened the door and was hit with 80's nostalgia and pink, so much pink. Stephanie had truly lived it up like a princess. It was always weird for him being in here, it felt like he was a creeper and the thought that he'd had sex with a woman who had a four poster pink bed was unsettling.

Tucked into that pink bed, though, was his little girl, who was surrounded by big, soft pillows. He didn't want to wake her, so he just looked at her sleeping for a few moments before he went back to his room to settle in for the night.

Flynn was extra excited when she saw that Chris was there last week. After breakfast, some call-in interviews, and a quick shower, Flynn and Chris were on their way to Boston. Chris cranked up the tunes and Flynn sang along (it was gibberish, but he gave her credit for trying to sing along to Helloween) as they drove down the highway. It took them a little over five hours to get to Boston, including a stop for lunch, and then they checked into their hotel for a bit to wind down from their trip and let Flynn call Stephanie and the kids to say hello. After that was done with, Chris gave Flynn a quick bath since he didn't know what time they'd be back tonight.

"Okay, what do you want to wear tonight, we've got the Daddy's Girl t-shirt or we have the Jericho's Girl t-shirt. I think either one will make you look adorable and we're going for maximum adorable today."

"I dunno," Flynn shrugged.

"Flutterby, you're shivering because you're cold, would you just pick one?" Chris asked her.

"That one," Flynn said, pointing at the Jericho's Girl t-shirt. It was a specially made t-shirt that Flynn had given Chris because she liked him. In actuality, Stephanie had taken Flynn shopping and they'd passed a t-shirt booth and Flynn had wanted a shirt with her and her daddy on it after she'd seen another t-shirt like that. Chris thought it was cute though and he looked good on t-shirts anyways so why not.

"Stellar choice," Chris said, pulling it over her head and helping her get it on. "Wow, would you look at you, you look like the most beautiful girl in the world. You get more beautiful every day, how do you do it? I don't know how anyone is going to pay attention to me at all."

"Daddy," she giggled.

"I'm just telling the truth," he shrugged at her and then made a face. "Okay, so do you have all the toys you want to bring to the bookstore? We're also going to buy some books for you to read while Daddy is busy, okay?"

"I know," she said as she stood on the bed and smiled proudly at her father. He came over and kissed her on the nose. "Silly Daddy."

"Yes, I'm silly daddy," he told her, "okay, so here we go!"

He lifted her and threw her up in the air before catching her and holding her to his side. He leaned down and grabbed her backpack of things and then they headed out and down to the limo that would be taking them to the bookstore. Only the best for him. He put Flynn in her car-seat and then got in afterwards. "Daddy, whe go?"

"We're going to sign autographs, remember? Well, I'm going to sign them and you're going to sit there like a good, little girl."

"Who sign?" she asked.

"Well, my fans who like me are going to read my book and they're going to see that picture of you and your brother and sister and they are going to wonder how you could be so cute when you're only two years old," Chris said, "and then everyone will want you to sign the book."

"I do it," she giggled. If someone wanted her to sign something, she could do that.

"I bet you could, but you know what most of these people are going to have in common with you?" he said, poking her on her dimpled chin.

"What?" she asked in wonder.

"They all love my wrestling!" he told her, making a face.

Flynn's mouth widened. They all liked her daddy's wrestling too! These were the kind of people that she wanted to be around for sure. But none of them could possibly like her daddy's wrestling more than her; it just wasn't possible. She'd watched everything about her daddy that he showed her and they couldn't have done that because he was her daddy not theirs. But it was still going to be cool to see all the people who liked her daddy too. They arrived at the bookstore and Chris grabbed their things from the limo and they were escorted inside through the back of the store. Chris got a glimpse of the line and it was twisting around the parking lot and he smiled. He liked when there was a good turnout, even though it meant that he didn't get to interact with the fans as much as he usually would have liked.

They took him to a room in the back, which probably served as a break room and he sat with Flynn while they set up the outside area. He decided to give Stephanie a call just to check-in. "Hello?"

"Hey, baby, it's me."

"Hey, where are you?" she asked and he could hear Sawyer chattering away in the background.

"I'm at the bookstore here at Boston University," Chris said, "the weirdest thing happened though."

"It did," she said, then she could hear Stephanie's voice away from the phone, "Yes, Sawyer, you can give her, her bottle back, but don't bump her in the nose with it again."

"Everything going okay over there?"

"Yeah, Sawyer just thinks because you're not here he has to pick up the slack," Stephanie said and Chris could tell she'd moved away from the scene as the voice in the background got softer. Sawyer was probably talking to Kensington while he fed her. "So what was the weird thing?"

"I went into one of these bathrooms and there was some old piece of graffiti in the stall that said, 'For a good time, call Stephanie McMahon.' I wonder how long that's been up here, got any ideas?"

"I hate you," she said good-naturedly.

"It's interesting seeing where my wife spent her formative years," Chris said, "where she probably laid down for the whole football team…and the baseball team…and the basketball team…and the hockey team…and the chess club…"

"Okay, yes, we get it," Stephanie said, "how's my baby doing?"

"She said that she's very excited to meet other Jerichoholics."

"And do you think she'll be put out when she finds out that there are possibly bigger Jerichoholics out there than she is?" Stephanie wondered, smirking at the thought of Flynn being aghast that anyone could be a bigger fan of Chris than she was.

"She's got the advantage," Chris answered.

"She does, how?"

"Hello, she's my daughter, the fruit of my loins so to speak, unless I did something really stupid while drunk when I was younger, then I highly doubt anyone coming to see me tonight has that same claim. She can just tell them I'm her daddy and problem solved for her."

"Oh, that easy, huh?"

"That easy," Chris said. "She's handling the traveling like a champ though."

"Chris, she spent the last couple days with my parents and she has only traveled to Boston and you have like five other cities that you're hitting," Stephanie pointed out, "saying she's a champ now is nothing."

"I'm just saying I think I chose the right trip companion," Chris told her.

"I'll be sure to tell that to Sawyer and Kensy."

"Please do, tell them they need to step it up," Chris told her, "and then tell them I love them anyways, you know, just so their self-esteem doesn't get too down…okay, I'm being signaled so I've got to set up shop out there, I love you guys."

"I love you guys," Stephanie told him, "bye, sweetie."

"Bye, baby," he said, hanging up the phone. He went over and lifted Flynn and brought her out into the bookstore area. He set up a little blanket behind him for Flynn to sit on with her toys before he got settled in his chair with his trusty Sharpie in hand. The handler briefed him on what was going to happen and he nodded along though he'd heard this same spiel over and over again in so many different places for both his first book and Fozzy. It wasn't anything new at this point.

They brought in the first thirty people and the first person in line, a female who looked to be in her early 20's, was wearing a Jericho t-shirt and was looking at him wide-eyed like she might faint at any moment. He chuckled inwardly as she was ushered over and Chris waved her over. She looked like her feet were made of concrete because she appeared to be shuffling over, afraid to be in the same airspace as him. These kinds of fans always made him laugh because they treated him like he was some deity when in actuality, he was just another person on the earth and he wasn't really any more or less special; he just had more recognition than other people had.

"Hey, it's okay, I don't bite," he said with a grin.

"You're…you're Chris Jericho," she said with a gulp.

"That's the name on my underwear," he joked, but she couldn't even laugh. He reached out and patted her hand, "it's okay, don't be nervous." The moment she touched him, her eyes darted to her hand and he could see she was already contemplating never washing that hand again. "How about I sign your book?"

"Yes, yes, please, yes," she nodded, thrusting the book at her.

"What's your name?"

"Ashleigh," she told him, "I'm a huge fan, I have been for years and I've never met you and I drove two hours to be here and I skipped class today just to be here and I've loved you since you were in WCW."

"Wow, thanks for being a fan, Ashleigh," he told her, "have you read the book yet?"

"Yeah, I preordered it, it was an amazing read."

"Did you have any favorite parts?"

"I loved when you discussed your match with Shawn Michaels, that was such an interesting part to read," she said.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it so much," he said with a smile and pushed the book towards her, "did you have anything else you wanted me to sign?"

"Oh yeah, yeah, I brought my Fozzy CD, is that okay?"

"Of course," he said, grabbing the CD from her and pulling out the lyrics sheet and signing it for her, "there you go, Ashleigh, it was really nice meeting you."

"Thank you so much," she gushed, "thanks for entertaining me so much, I just…thank you."

"No, thank you," he said, smiling at her before she leaned over the table for a picture. There were so many people in line that they didn't have time to actually sit next to him and take the picture so this was the only way. She couldn't stop smiling when she left and Chris could tell this was going to be a good signing. He started getting into the rhythm of it when, in between a couple people, he felt a tug on the hem of his shirt. He turned and saw Flynn staring up at him. "Hey there, Flutterby, what's up?"

"Sit with you?" she asked.

"You want to sit with me?" he said. "Are you sure you don't want to sit over there?"

"No thanks," she told him, already climbing into the chair next to him. They'd set it up for people to sit down next to him, but since they hadn't anticipated this many people it left an empty chair.

"Okay, but no bothering people, okay?" he whispered to her and she nodded solemnly. He hoped Stephanie wouldn't be angry with Flynn sitting with him. At least when he leaned over to get pictures, it completely blocked Flynn from sight so she wouldn't be showing up in anyone's pictures and then posted all over the internet claiming that this was Flynn, although, it wasn't like she was a secret anymore, there was a picture of her in Chris's book and she was mentioned as being Chris's daughter so the mystery wasn't really there.

The next person came up and Flynn did as she was told, just sitting there and watching everyone. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Flynn get off her chair and then come back with a coloring book and crayons. She was so used to occupying herself at wrestling shows that she knew what she wanted to do and how to do it instinctively. She started pulling out her crayons and coloring, occasionally looking over at Chris. One particular person had brought an action figure for Chris to sign and Flynn's eyes widened and her mouth dropped open a little. As soon as the man had put down the action figure, Flynn grabbed at it and stared at the figure inside the box.

"Thanks!" Flynn said, already wanting to open it and put it in her bag with the rest of the action figures she'd brought with her. This one had long hair! She only had a couple that had long hair. Her daddy had had long hair once, but she didn't remember it because it was a long time ago she thinks when she didn't remember as much.

"Flynn," Chris hissed at his little girl, looking at the guy, "sorry, she's a huge fan of me. Flynn, that's the man's action figure, not yours."

"He give it," Flynn shrugged, hugging it to her and grinning at her daddy in that cheesy way he sometimes did.

"For me to sign," he said, gently taking it from her hands. "We can't take what's ours, right?"

"Oh," she said dejectedly, her eyes going down to the ground and her shoulders slumping.

"It's okay, we can choose one thing from my office for your room when we get home, deal?"

She _loved_ it when her daddy let her have things from his office! She brightened immediately and nodded eagerly at the prospect as Chris gave her a quick kiss to the head before going back to signing things. The guy who she'd tried to steal from was nice enough about the whole thing, stating that he had kids himself and he understood how they could be. He was grateful because one edge of the box of the action figure had bent and Chris felt bad about that. He should've told Flynn that stealing was a bad thing.

Now that Flynn knew that people were bringing in things like action figures and pictures of her daddy, she was more interested in what he was doing, trying to crowd him and get a peek of all the cool things that her daddy got to sign. She didn't get too much in the way, but every now and then Chris would nudge her back over to his seat. She wasn't yelling and she wasn't crying so he didn't get mad at her. It couldn't be too much fun just sitting there and watching people who were, in turn, watching her. Every now and then someone would stare at her and she wanted to give them a dirty look back, but she didn't because that wouldn't be nice to do.

"Your daughter?" one person asked and Chris smiled and nodded.

"That's Flynn."

"She's beautiful."

"Thanks."

Flynn heard her name, but didn't respond to it from this stranger. All in all, this whole thing was weird. These people seemed to like her daddy, but they just didn't like him like she liked him and it was pretty sad that. Well, not everyone could be like her.

Wade opened the door for Stephanie and she looked up at him gratefully, "Thank you."

"It's alright, thought I'd help," he told her.

"Even after you attacked my husband?" she said as she pushed Kensington's stroller in while Sawyer brought up the rear.

"Had to be done that," Wade shrugged, "if you want to be the best, you've got to go after the best and your husband was just in the way of that, had to be done."

"Yeah, you say that now, but you just wait until he comes back," Stephanie said, "you may have been his protégé, but he is still the master and when he comes back, he'll be better than ever."

"Is he back soon then?"

"No, not yet, but when he is, you'll know it," she told him, "thanks for the hand, come on Sawyer."

"Bye!" Sawyer called after him as he followed his mother.

Hunter paced his locker room, alone and glad for it. It wasn't like he didn't like Britt being around, but God help him, he was kind of nervous. It wasn't like he was scared, that wasn't the right word for it because he didn't get scared, not about this. He just hadn't been in front of the crowd in so long that it was a little nerve-racking trying to figure out the reaction he'd get. Would they hate him? Love him? The Rock had gotten the ovation of a lifetime and now he was going to what, get booed? This did not sit well with him.

He grabbed his phone and dialed a number quickly. "Hi, hi!"

"Flynn?"

"Hi, it me!" she said.

"Hey there, short stuff, do you think you can put your dad on the phone?" Hunter asked. There was some shuffling over the line and then Chris's voice.

"Sorry about that, Flynn grabbed it before I could, who is this?"

"It's me."

"Oh hey, what's up?"

"What did it feel like when you came back?"

"To the WWE?"

"Yeah, after you'd been gone for two years, how did you feel when you came back?"

"Good because I knew that Stephanie would be happy."

"Eliminate her."

"Yeah, I'm not divorcing her," Chris said.

"No, eliminate her from the equation. Say that she wasn't there, how did you feel?"

"Are you nervous?"

"I'm not nervous, just…anxious. I haven't been out there in such a long time, it feels like everything has been happening without me and now I'm suddenly going to insert myself again, against the Undertaker!"

"Okay, wow, hold up, dude, Hunter, you sound like a rookie or something and we both know that's not you. You've been out before, man, a number of times since you aren't as sturdy as some blond, Canadian demi-gods."

"I don't need the comparisons, thanks, but those weren't as long, I was gone for a while with the quad, yes, but I've been gone almost a year this time and I didn't feel like I left on the top of my game, so who's to say that the people will actually think I'm good anymore. Plus, I'm 41 now."

"Okay, age has nothing to do with ability," Chris said, "I'm 40 and I'm in magnificent shape and with the dancing, I'm going to come back even stronger and I'll kick your old ass-"

"Seriously, you're not helping here."

"Look, you're Triple H, you have your fans, I don't know why, but you do. Go out there, be Triple H, that hulking mass of man that couldn't get Stephanie pregnant even if he tried," Chris said, "you're putting too much into it. I was…anxious when I first returned too, but I didn't let it control me, you know. I knew who I was, I knew I was Chris Jericho and I went out there knowing what I could do. The crowds, none of that even so much as scared me, but it was just the knowledge that I was back in this arena I hadn't been in for a while. But once you're out there being who you are, all the nerves fade away."

"Thanks," Hunter said. "I think I needed that. I don't know why I'm acting so weird."

"Because you _are_ weird?" Chris asked him. "Remember when I came back, I wasn't exactly the picture of calm."

"Yeah," Hunter chuckled. "So how goes the book tour?"

"It's exhausting," Chris admitted. "I'm constantly doing everything and with Flynn, I have to think of her. She's just about to go to bed. We just got back from the book signing that I did and she's cranky and I'm cranky."

"Why don't you have Steph come and get her if she's being too much trouble?"

"She's never too much trouble," Chris said, "besides, Stephanie has enough on her plate. I'm doing okay, Flynn is actually being really good, it's just tiring is all. But good luck with you tonight, okay, you'll be fine out there, I swear. Besides, aren't you just planning on looking at Taker anyways?"

"Intimidating Taker," Hunter corrected him.

"Yeah, good luck with that, you're going to lose at WrestleMania, you know that, right?"

"His streak is ending," Hunter told him.

"You wish, later man," Chris said, "the girl has got to sleep."

"Night, bye," Hunter said, hanging up. He decided he'd need some more calm and went to seek out his girlfriend. He found her in Stephanie's office, taking some notation for something WrestleMania related, which everything seemed to be nowadays. Stephanie gave him a short wave and Sawyer ran over to him, Hunter scooping him up.

"Hi, Trips," Sawyer said jovially.

"Hey there, tough guy? How are you today?"

"I miss Daddy and Flynnie, but it's okay because we'll get to see them soon, but I still miss them and I think Kensy does too."

"I just talked to your dad, he sounded like he missed you."

"Really?" Sawyer asked. "Cool!"

"You are," Hunter told him and Sawyer beamed and Hunter was starting to rethink this kid thing because Sawyer was calming him down immensely right now. He was certainly helping to calm him down, that was for sure. He needed that calm. He just took a deep breath and sat on the couch waiting for Stephanie to finish.

"Did you need something, Hunter?" Stephanie asked finally.

"Nothing, just worried about tonight," he explained.

"There's nothing to worry about," Britt waved him off before turning to Stephanie, "he somehow thinks that everyone is going to hate him or not remember him, did he get like this after he got injured before?"

"Yes, he was so anxious to get back because he couldn't stand seeing how the belts were being treated. Never-mind that Chris had the belts at the time, but he was just so eager to get back and he was so worried everyone would forget him."

"I don't get that," Britt said, talking as if Hunter wasn't in the room. "He's one of the biggest stars and he thinks people are going to forget him."

"I'm right here," Hunter told them, but they ignored him and he frowned, "they're not listening to me, tough guy."

"You have to talk loud," Sawyer advised him, that's usually how he got his point across.

"I know he is, but he has this weird thing where he thinks that his reputation is that of a jobber," Stephanie said, "it only comes out when he's been injured and coming back."

"I'm right here!" Hunter intoned loudly, much to Sawyer's approval, but much to Kensington's disapproval as the booming voice made her start to cry. Stephanie shot Hunter a dirty look as he shrugged and pointed at Sawyer as the culprit. Sawyer looked shocked and gaped at Hunter as Stephanie picked up Kensington and held the little girl towards her. "Sorry, Kensy, I didn't mean to bother you."

"I should hope not," Stephanie said, kissing Kensington's head as she continued her work, not even letting her daughter deter her from her WrestleMania high.

"You're going to be fine," Britt told him, suddenly showing up at his side, rubbing her hand up and down his arm. "You're going to go out there and you are going to show Undertaker that when someone returns, they do it with style. And your ovation is going to be incredible."

Turns out, she was right. The ovation was more than he was expecting. He wouldn't say it rivaled Rocky's because…it didn't and he didn't have the expectation bar set _that_ high, but for what it was, it was a rousing ovation. He tried to remain his intimidating self, but inside, he was beaming. Chris was right, this was where he belonged and he was back and he was ready to take on everything and everyone and first on that list was Undertaker. He could work his way up to the WWE champion. He certainly didn't expect Miz to be holding it when he took it back as his own, but if Miz was lucky enough to be coming out of WrestleMania the champion, Hunter was sure that he could win with one hand tied behind his back.

Right now though, as he entered the ring, the smooth tape rubbing against the palm of his hand, he had something else he needed to focus on. The Undertaker thought he was top dog around here, that he could just command everyone, especially around WrestleMania time. Oh yeah, his streak was impressive, but streaks were meant to be broken and if there was anyone backstage willing to take up the task of making that one appear in the zero column, it was him. Nobody else commanded the respect that he did and it was time to take out the best on the grandest stage of all.

Staring into Taker's eyes was like staring into some kind of weird abyss. There was just something about the stare, the way his eyes bore into you, it was almost like you were looking at your own demise. But Hunter wasn't going to let that get to him, not tonight. He knew WrestleMania was coming and that everyone would not want a piece of Taker. It was his ground, hallowed ground even, but Hunter had never been too shabby at WrestleMania. He could hold his own as well as anyone. He didn't see anyone else rushing out to face the dead man. Only him, he was the only one with the guts. He knew nobody else would challenge the Undertaker.

Nobody but him.


	315. Gotta Dance, February 28, 2011

A/N: Thanks for the reviews first of all. Second, on Sunday, I had to put one of my dogs to sleep. I'd had her for 16 years, since I was 12 so to suddenly not have her around is horrible. Understandably, I'm absolutely devastated and writing has not been on my mind very much. I've ground through most of this update (I had some of it written beforehand), but it's not my best stuff, it's more just a distraction from the crying and feeling sad. So I hope it's not too much of a hassle to read and if you enjoy, maybe throw a review in if you feel like it. Thanks. :)

* * *

"Now isn't this better?"

"Let me see, having my wife in bed versus not having my wife in bed. Not having sex last night versus having sex last night. Being naked in bed with my wife versus being fully clothed and in bed by myself," Chris pretended to weight the options between the two extremes. "Yeah, I'm going to have to say that I'm going with being with you as the better option."

"So you're saying you missed me?" she said coyly as her hand wandered down beneath the sheets.

"Yes."

"Good, I'm glad you missed me, even though you should have been okay with spending all that quality time with your daughter," Stephanie shrugged as Chris groaned when she made contact with him.

"I loved spending time with my Flutterby, but I'm not going to lie, it's weird," Chris told her. "I don't like being without you all. I love Flynn with everything in me, but it's just not the same without Sawyer, Kensy, and you."

"Well, that's why we're called a family," she said, "so the kids and I are going to be leaving you _again_, how do you feel about that?"

"But it's only for a few days," Chris told her, closing his eyes as her hand worked him over, "why are you still trying to hold a conversation when your hand is doing _that_?"

"Because the kids and I are leaving later today and so I won't have time to do this with all the getting ready," Stephanie said, "so I have to multitask and do two things at once and don't you want talk to me, didn't you marry me for my mind?"

"No, I married you because you put out before our second date," Chris said, "and I really can't concentrate on conversations when your hand is doing that."

"Oh, that's too bad," Stephanie said, not moving her hand, "because it ain't going anywhere, sorry to say. I've got to make sure that you get taken care of so that you aren't straying off with your new dance partner."

"Like that would happen," Chris chuckled.

"I'm just glad that our house out here is actually being put to use," Stephanie joked. "It's been sitting there for months since the last tenants and at least you'll have a place out here and we can come out and visit you."

"I hate the sound of that," he admitted. "I hate thinking that you guys aren't going to be with me and that you aren't going to be here for me every week. I wish you could be."

"Well, that's what you get when you don't come back to wrestling and go to a competing show," she said, grabbing him more firmly in her emotions with him being on a rival show.

"God, Stephanie," he croaked out, "can we just…"

Stephanie leaned forward and kissed his jaw. "What if I told you I'd be there every week and that we were living out here with you? You know I wouldn't be happy with it, but I'm going to try to be here as much as I can because I want to be with you, I want to see how you do and I want you to do well. I'm proud of you, sweetie, whether you win or not, but you better win."

"I don't care about that," he said, flipping over so he was on top of her, "we are _done_ talking."

After they were up and about, the rest of day went in a flash. Stephanie and the kids were flying to Buffalo where the next Raw was and he was staying in LA to meet Cheryl and start their rehearsals for Dancing with the Stars. Then he'd be flying home with Cheryl so they could continue rehearsing while at home. He was anxious to get these started. Overall, he really just wanted to impress his wife. Sure, it'd be nice to win, but a lot of what he loved about the things he did outside of wrestling was impressing his wife.

Stephanie was difficult to impress. She'd grown up in the wrestling business and so nothing she saw really impressed her all that much. She was Stephanie McMahon; she'd seen it all. So when he wrestled, she wasn't sitting there in awe of him. She was sitting there with a discerning eye, finding all his flaws and he was exposed to her in all his glory. She'd seen him at his worst, concussed, bruised, hurting, and at his best and both didn't phase her.

With Fozzy, yeah, that was a personal journey, something he'd started before he was ever in love with Stephanie, but he still loved that she was proud of him. Even though she acted like it wasn't impressive to her, his CD was in her rotation in her car (she switched out between all of them periodically) and that made him happy. When his book did well, she was proud of him. He knew she was proud all the time, but he liked to do big, grand gestures too and he liked when she responded to them in kind.

Chris drove his rented car to the studio where he was meeting Cheryl for the first time. He was nervous, maybe even more nervous than he was before his first wrestling match. This was absolutely uncharted territory for him. He'd never wanted to be a dancer. When he wanted to be a wrestler or a rock star, he had the motivation to do so, he wanted it badly, but dancing? He'd never entertained the thought until Dancing with the Stars had come pursuing him. He had to flip a switch to want to do well and he knew he could. He was a competitor and this was his livelihood, this type of competition. He'd risen to the top in wrestling, he could do it with dancing.

He opened the door and walked into the studio where Cheryl was waiting, "Hey!" Chris said enthusiastically, going over and hugging Cheryl in greeting. "It's really nice to finally meet you."

"You too," Cheryl said, pulling away, "I'm really excited to get to work with you. I've been watching some of your matches and I love the potential I see there."

"You saw potential from my matches?"

"Absolutely," she told him, "you've got great balance for one and that's really important when you're dancing and you're quite graceful in the ring, is that the right word for it?"

"Yeah, you can say that, none of the other wrestlers are around," he winked at her.

She laughed, she could tell she was going to like this guy already. "Well, okay, so…our first dance is going to be the cha-cha, which is one of the Latin dances. We don't get to choose our music so I have to choreograph around it, but first things first, what kind of dancing do you do or have done or do you have any kind of rhythm?"

"No," Chris laughed, "my dancing amounts to running around on stage and acting like a ham. I can slow dance, if that counts for anything, but actual dancing, no, I can't say that I have. So I'm looking to you to teach me everything."

"Okay, well, first off, I just want to see if you have rhythm at all," Cheryl said, walking over to a stereo system, so if you could just dance for me, any kind of dance, I don't care, I just want to get a sense of what I'm working with here."

"So really, your entire intent is to humiliate me?"

"Yes," Cheryl told him, pretending to be serious, "that's exactly my intent here."

"Can I at least get into something more comfortable?" Chris asked, looking down at his jeans. "I mean, maybe I'll look better if I'm not so restricted."

"Fine, okay," she said, "but I'm going to work you hard."

"I welcome that, seriously," he told her. "I worked my ass off to get where I'm at in wrestling and I'm not afraid of anything."

"Well, get into your dancing gear, we'll see if you have rhythm, then you can tell me a little bit about yourself and then we'll get into the rehearsals, sound fair?"

"Sounds great," he told her, grabbing the duffel bag he'd brought with him and going into the dressing room. He liked Cheryl already. He wanted someone who was going to push him. He liked women like that, his wife was the ultimate motivator and he wanted someone who could dominate him (not like that!) and lead him to victory. He knew that Cheryl had won twice with Drew Lachey and Emmitt Smith and he wanted to be her third win. He quickly changed and got back out there.

"Okay, so here we go," she said, turning on the music. Chris tried not to be embarrassed, he really tried, but as he awkwardly moved his hips around and tried to look like a "dancer," he was embarrassed as hell. Some things in his life came naturally to him, but this did not. He could see that Cheryl wasn't laughing, which was a blessing because if she'd started to crack up, he would've stopped on the spot. She was appraising him, looking at him with a shrewd eye and he felt slightly uncomfortable with the scrutiny. Finally, after what seemed to him like hours, Cheryl turned off the music. "Well, you're not terrible."

"Wow, that's a compliment," Chris joked. When worse came to worse, he could make someone laugh or charm his way out of things.

"I'm giving you the truth. It's going to be a lot of work, I'm not going to lie and say it isn't, but there's potential there and it's my job to bring it out of you. I intend to do so. You at least have some natural rhythm in there and that's better than most, really. I've seen some of the celebs who just have nothing going on for them and they can be whipped into shape so we're going to work on it."

"As long as I'm not eliminated first, I'll really feel accomplished."

"Well, you're not going to be, we're winning this thing," Cheryl told him. "So okay, getting to know you time! Just give me a little bit about yourself that you think is important. I know that you're this huge wrestler guy and everything and that you worked with the WWE and everything."

"Yeah, I'm a Grand Slam winner in the WWE, which means I've held every title there is to hold pretty much. I've been wrestling for 20 years though I did take a couple year break in 2005, but I came back in 2007. Wrestling was all I wanted to do with my life, well, that and be a rock star, but wrestling came first. I wanted so badly to be a wrestler and decided that would be my life's work. I started training when I was 19 and I've been in the business ever since. It's my passion in life and I love it and will love it for the rest of my life. Wrestling has given me more than I ever thought it would and for that it will always be my number one."

"I can tell you've got passion, I like that," Cheryl told him, "I like that a lot."

"Good," Chris said, "the rock star thing came a little bit later. I'd been friends with this guy, Rich, for a while and we just kind of jammed together and then we formed Fozzy. It's been a real journey getting the band to where it is, but we're really getting some recognition in the metal world and I'm damn proud of it."

"Dedication, I love that too," Cheryl said with a nod. There was definitely a lot to work with here and she couldn't wait to get started.

"And as for me, I'm a ham. I love to play things up and I'm not afraid to look stupid. People say I'm funny and they say I'm charming so I'm inclined to believe them. I'm also told I'm good-looking, which I am and cocky, which I just proved. I can be serious though when I need to be so whatever you want to do with me, you can do with me. And as for my home life, I'm married and I have three beautiful children and they are the absolute loves of my life," Chris said, "so, you ready to take this on?"

"Let's do this," Cheryl said, extending her arms and inviting Chris into hold.

"Is Rock…or should I say Dwayne here tonight?" Cena asked as he walked into Stephanie's office.

"And hello to you too, John," Stephanie said.

"I just want to meet that dude face-to-face, but it seems like he's once again too good for everyone here," John told her, "I can't believe he came here, showed his face and then turned tail and ran."

"He has other commitments," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, of course you're sticking up for your friend," John scoffed. Stephanie wished that people, kids mostly, could see this side of John Cena more; they might hesitate to like him, but the man did sell merchandise so she couldn't hate him fully. He brought money to her pocket. But maybe, since Sawyer and Flynn were now watching the man, they could spread the word that there were other more worthy wrestlers to cheer for.

"In case you haven't realized, The Rock is _not_ my friend. He tolerates me, I'm sure, but he's my husband's friend and let me just tell you this straight away, husband and wives can have separate friends, shocker, I know," she said, pretending to gasp.

"Whatever, is he here tonight?"

"No, he's not, he's going to be via satellite."

"Typical. You know, he's just proving everything I said about him right. I would never abandon the company. I know you own the joint and everything, but I would never leave to go do something else. This is who I am and what I am. I would never turn my back on it."

She believed that was a load of crap, but didn't tell him so. "That may be so, but the way I see it, people are cheering more for Rocky than for you, what does that tell you? To me is says that fans are loyal. No, he might not have been here, but he made his imprint on the business as a whole and that should be respected."

"Respect my ass."

"Isn't that one of your things, respecting other people?" Stephanie said. "Look, you can talk all you want about Rocky, the fact is that he's here, he doesn't like you and whatever you think about him is your problem, not mine. Rock brings in the people and I'm not saying you don't, John, but you have to respect him for that."

"I don't have to respect him for nothing," Cena said, walking out of there without another word. He was so angry over this Rock thing, but then, she knew what it was like to be on the receiving end of Rocky's insults. In fact, she'd had to deal with that for years and she wasn't acting like John. Okay, sure, she may have been petulant sometimes, but she was older and wiser now and didn't act like that.

"What's his problem?" Sawyer asked and Stephanie laughed at her son's candor.

"You know Rocky?"

"Uh huh, he's friends with Daddy," Sawyer nodded.

"Daddy beat him," Flynn added.

"He did, multiple times," Stephanie told him. "John's just mad because Rocky has been beating him at his own game and it hurts his feelings, but John doesn't realize that Rocky is just better than he is and should give it up to him."

"Oh, so John's not right?"

"No, he's not right at all," Stephanie shook her head. "Rocky is a good guy, sort of, well, your dad likes him well enough. They were friends because they both didn't like me. I think that was the main thing they had in common. They used to tease me."

"That's not nice though, Mommy," Sawyer shook his head, "we're not s'posed to tease and make fun of people because it's mean and it hurts their feelings. That's what I learned in school, that's what they said because being mean isn't nice."

"That's a very good thing to learn in the real world," Stephanie said, "but sometimes, around here, we have to let our aggressions out, but only the wrestlers. We want to try and be nice first because being nice gets things done most of the time."

"I know, it means that we get to be nice and do things and have friends," Sawyer said.

"Mommy, I fight."

"You're not going to fight yet," Stephanie said as Kensington started to cry. Stephanie got up and went over to her, plucking her from the portable crib. "You can fight when you're older."

"Stephanie, I cannot wrestle, it is…impossible!" Maryse exclaimed, strutting into the dressing room. "You just must simply take away me from the match tonight, I cannot go out there."

"And why not?" Stephanie asked over Kensington's cries.

"Can you not calm your own baby down?" Maryse wondered snidely.

"I think she heard your voice and just decided to cry harder," Stephanie countered, "now, you are schedule for a divas match tonight and as my employee, I expect you to be out there, there are no excuses except injury or an emergency."

"It is a personal tragedy!" she exclaimed.

"Okay, what is it then?"

"My hair!" Maryse said with sorrow lacing her voice. Stephanie only now noticed that Maryse was wearing a baseball hat. Okay, what had Chris told Ted to do now? Only her husband would actually call someone to make sure a prank kept going.

"Look at this," Maryse started pulling hair out of her pocket, "I find on pillow, every day, more and more and then, I feel head and this!" She turned around and lifted up her hair to show a bald spot that had obviously come from a razor. Stephanie stifled a laugh and made her face a passive mask by the time Maryse turned around. "I cannot go out like this."

"Maryse, are you a sound sleeper?"

"I have the, how you say it, the no sleeping thing and I take the sleeping pills so I sleep well, why do you ask?"

No wonder Ted was able to pull this off, "No reason, I just hear that stress can make your hair fall out."

"You must take me out of the match!"

"Sorry," Stephanie shrugged, "it's already been made. And I'm such fat cow that I can't possibly change it, but thanks for stopping by."

Maryse's jaw dropped and Stephanie didn't know if it was because Maryse wasn't getting her way after being used to getting what she wanted or because she'd found out that Stephanie knew what she'd called her. After much coaxing from Chris, he'd told her that Maryse had asked if she mooed in bed. While it had stung at first, all she had to do was look at her husband to realize that whatever she looked like, she'd done pretty well for herself.

"Bye, bye, Maryse," Stephanie said.

"Bye!" Flynn yelled as Maryse slowly backed out of the room as if she was waiting for Stephanie to strike. But Stephanie could occasionally be the bigger person and just returned to her work instead.

Hunter paced around the gorilla and waited for the show to begin. He had plans tonight, big plans. There was some business he needed to take care of and he was going to start with it tonight. When the show finally started, he walked out to another chorus of cheers and he'd be loath to admit that it didn't feel good. It felt damn good, in fact, to know that he'd been so missed. It was such a change from the days he'd been with Stephanie. It almost made him wonder why he'd wanted to be such a bad guy (then he remembered the power and that was what made him that guy). This felt good though and he couldn't even start talking because the crowd was still in an uproar over him.

When he finally began to speak, he talked of his time here in the WWE. He'd accomplished almost everything there was to accomplish here, even doing the boss's daughter (a fact that he loved to rub in Chris's face), but there was one thing he'd never done, one thing that nobody had ever done and that was beat the Undertaker at WrestleMania. Hunter didn't believe Taker had any kind of special powers. Was he an intimidating man, yes, but so was Hunter. Nobody had been able to beat Taker, but he knew he could. He'd had one shot before, but they'd been different men then, the two of them. Now it was his time to end the streak, to be the best of the best and prove that WrestleMania was now _his_ show.

He and Taker had history, but now the history would belong solely to Hunter. Before he could do or say anything else, Sheamus's music hit and Hunter realized that he still had some unfinished business to take care of before moving onto Taker. He made quick handiwork of Sheamus though. He wasn't lying when he said that nobody in the locker room could even challenge him at this point. Sheamus was just a living, breathing personification of that idea and he'd dispatched of him easily enough. It was a message to Taker as well. Hunter meant business this time and he would be ready for whatever Taker was ready to dish.

"You know, Taker is kind of scary," Stephanie told him later that evening. "I mean, I was under his clutches for a while and he's not a very…I don't know how to put it, he's just not what you'd expect."

"He likes you though," Hunter said, "everyone knows it. Everyone knows that he's willing to do anything for you, which is weird by the way. I never brought it up when we were married, but it's a little strange that he's so willing to do anything for you."

"I use my womanly wiles," Stephanie shrugged and then gave her best coy look.

"Yeah right, I don't know what happened with you two-"

"God, not you too, look, Taker just likes me, period, end of story," Stephanie said, "but I don't think you know what you're getting into."

"I've faced him before," Hunter told her, "plus, I love you Stephanie, but you don't know what you're talking about with this one. I can handle Taker."

"Sure, on any given night, but at WrestleMania, it's like he morphs into this crazy madman and suddenly, the years seem to fly away and he's at the top of his game. I just don't want you to go in there with your usual cocky self thinking that just because you're younger or more well-rested or more talented or whatever that you're going to win. You're probably going to lose and-"

"I'm not going to lose, Stephanie, believe me, Taker's streak is done for, absolutely done for."

"Well, I see I'm not going to get through to you, but don't say I didn't warn you, Hunter," she told him, "just don't say I didn't warn you."

Cheryl settled into her seat next to Chris on the plane. After a few days rehearsing in LA, they were making their trip to Florida where Cheryl would meet Chris's family and learn more about him and get to know him in his own setting. It was easy to get tidbits of a person, but being home with them really gave the pros a taste of who their celebrity was. Cheryl was looking forward to seeing Chris interact with his family. Because they'd been rehearsing so hard, they didn't have a lot of time for talking so Cheryl only knew the most cursory facts about his family.

"I'm really excited to meet your family. We've been so busy with rehearsals and press things I don't think I've really gotten to know anything about them beyond the fact that you have a wife and three kids, right?" Chris's face lit up at the mention of his family. Cheryl laughed and ducked her head. "I've opened a door here I'm going to regret, aren't I?"

"Yes, yes you have," he said, pulling his butt up so he could grab his wallet out of his back pocket. "And you probably shouldn't have done it on a six hour flight."

She laughed. Chris was one of the most charming guys she'd ever met and she couldn't help but like him instantly. "That's okay, I'd love to get to know your family. We're going to be working together for hopefully a while and I think it's cool to really get to know my partners. So you can lay it all on me. Your wife's name is…Stephanie, right, did I remember?"

"Yeah, that's my wife," Chris told her.

"Now, I know that you've done pretty well with the wrestling and the other stuff you do so does she work or is she a stay-at-home mom?" Cheryl asked.

"Wow, you really haven't ever watched wrestling, have you?"

"I'm sorry," Cheryl said, shrugging her shoulders high and looking sheepish. "It's really not my thing, I mean, they gave me a tape of some of your ring stuff and from what I can tell you're really good…of course you don't need _me_ to tell you that since they also gave me a list of all the titles you've won and how many times and that was a long list."

"It's okay, it's not for everyone. I'm hoping, with the show, to take a little of the stigma off. Wrestling, besides my family of course, is the love of my life and my first love. Suffice it to say my wife is considerably wealthier than I am and she does work…her ass off most of the time."

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to presume."

"You didn't know. She's the Executive Vice President of Creative Development and Operations at World Wrestling Entertainment, which, in layman's terms means that she runs the shows, with more focus on our main show, Monday Night Raw. She also deals with the wrestlers and divas and all the employees on the stage side of things."

"Wow, now I'm _really_ sorry I assumed she was a stay-at-home mom," Cheryl told him.

"I don't think my wife would know the meaning of stay at home to be honest. She works harder than I do, for sure, her father owns the company and is the president and she'll be inheriting the company when he retires."

"Whoa, so like, you _own_ the WWE?" Cheryl asked. "They didn't tell me that."

"I technically do, through marriage, but it's Stephanie's company, not mine. I don't really deal with the executive side of the wheel. It's still a little weird for me to think about being the owner so I generally don't, but if you want to get technical, yes, we do have a good stake in it. Like I said, Stephanie is wealthier than I am so I should be the stay-at-home dad."

"So when you say she's wealthy, you mean she's _wealthy_."

"Yeah, she can definitely afford to buy and sell me a few thousand times. She didn't earn the nickname the Billion Dollar Princess for nothing," Chris joked, "but she's not a snob, believe me. Don't worry, she'll love you, she'll laugh at me, but she'll love you."

"Okay, wow, so now we're learning stuff about you, so since she works there and is your boss's daughter, I'm guessing you met in the company?" Okay, that whole Billion Dollar Princess thing was kind of freaking her out a little. It sounded so much like a mafia thing.

"Yeah, we did, we've known each other for 12 years. I came into her father's company in 1999," he explained.

"And how long have you been together?"

"We've been together nine years this July," he said proudly, "and we just celebrated our six year wedding anniversary in January."

"Oh, congratulations," she said, "so was it like love at first sight?"

Chris chuckled, "More like hate at first sight. When I met her, she was engaged to another guy and then what happened was this other guy kidnapped her and drugged her, then married her and she decided to stay with the guy for a couple years and they were horrible people."

"She was…drugged?"

"Yeah, see, this guy hated her father and…wow, saying this back makes it sound crazy, it was crazy, but now I sound like a madman. What happened was she fell in love with the guy and they decided to stay married, but he made her into this horrible person who nobody could stand. I especially hated her and she hated me and we would constantly insult each other and try to set the other up."

"This is oh so romantic," Cheryl laughed, "but if you hated each other…"

"Well, in 2001, her husband got injured and left and she turned into an even more unholy terror. She had me put through an entire set once and well, I threw a pie in her face, it was this whole thing, but she'd bought this other company and she was forced out, it's a long story, she came back with her husband and they'd been having problems that eventually came to a head. I was supposed to face her husband at our biggest show so I decided to put our differences aside and we became business partners."

"Okay, this is very…odd, but okay."

"Well, being with her like that, I started to fall for her. She wasn't anything like I expected her to be. Her ex-husband was a bad influence on her, but get her away from him and she was…amazing. I never did anything about it though because I was a coward and eventually, she got kicked out of the company and I thought I'd never see her again."

"So you like kissed her?" Now she was enthralled in this story. Why hadn't they told her about how interesting Chris was?

"No, we just kind of parted ways. I liked her though and then a few months later, she showed up as the new General Manager and I went to see her and she acted so business-like to me, it startled me because I thought we were at least friends, but she wouldn't even hug me. I was so angry," he said, remembering the feelings of that day. It was a little strange relaying it now. Almost everyone he knew, knew the story of him and Stephanie and those who didn't, never really cared to know so it almost felt like he was going back to that day and it was a strange and heady feeling. Cheryl could already see the emotions he had for this woman etched across his features and figured she must be a special woman to capture Chris's attention like she was. "I stormed out and then I stormed back in and demanded to know what was up. She confessed that she'd had feelings for me, I confessed the same and the rest is history as they say."

"That's so sweet and weird," Cheryl told him. "So you obviously love her."

"I think that's safe to say," Chris said, "here, let me show you the family." He flipped to the first picture, which was a wedding picture of him and Stephanie. "This is us at our wedding."

"Wow, nice, beautiful, Hawaii?" she asked.

He nodded, then flipped to the next one, which was a picture of Stephanie taken this last Christmas. They'd all taken a family Christmas card and then each member of the family had taken their own separate picture. "And this is my beautiful wife."

"She's gorgeous," Cheryl said. "I hope she likes me, it's weird, I always feel like I'm going home to meet the parents, you know, like I have to get their approval or something. We're going to be working pretty closely together and there's the chemistry issue and I hate to admit it, but sometimes, wives get jealous."

"My wife doesn't get jealous," Chris said, "she's too confident to really get jealous, plus we're at that point in our relationship where it doesn't really matter. I mean, there's a guy who's totally in love with her and I don't really care, I usually just rib the guy."

"Then I think we'll be fine."

"Plus, not to degrade our partnership, but if I show you Stephanie and I in some of our scenes, our chemistry kind of blows the roof off the place, so everyone tells us."

"I'd love to see that actually," Cheryl said, "because then maybe we can tap into it for our dances. You have video?"

"Even if I didn't, I have access to the WWE archives, so we're good to go."

"So tell me about these kids. I love children, one of my passions is teaching children to dance so you've got three of them, that's adorable."

"You say that now," he said, flipping to another picture, "Okay, this is my oldest, Sawyer, he's four, but he'll be five on May 2nd. All our kids were surprises, we've never planned for any one of them, we joke that they like to spring themselves on us, but our original plan was to wait three or four years before we had children…Stephanie got pregnant with Sawyer seven months into our marriage."

Cheryl laughed, "He looks _just_ like you."

"Yeah, he's my mini-me, that's for sure, at least in looks, personality-wise, Stephanie and I aren't exactly sure where he got that from. He has some of our qualities, stubbornness, talking too much, but then he's like the kindest, most compassionate, helpful kid in the universe and we're like, 'where did _that_ come from?' but we don't question it. He's probably the best kid any parent could ask for and he's one of my best friends."

"I love it when parents think of their kids as their best friends. It's really endearing."

"He is though, I don't know what I'd do without him," Chris said. "He's usually the adult. Stephanie and I…we're schemers, we always have plans, schemes, people we're manipulating, but Sawyer, he's like, the adult, he's the grounded one always tethering us so we don't act crazy."

"Schemers?"

"I've got about three plans going right now. I'm teaching a diva a lesson and my wife currently has a wrestler by the balls, she helped him rig something and she's waiting to collect. In the past, we've pretended to be getting a divorce to get back at someone, we've tricked people, we're horrible people, but Sawyer is the rock."

"Good to know, good to know, are you sure I have nothing to be afraid of partnering with you?" she asked sardonically.

"I promise not to scheme," he told her. "Anyways, Sawyer will probably think you're the coolest. He likes pretty much everyone and everyone who is a friend to him gets a friend for life. Now, that brings us to this little girl…" Chris flipped to a picture of Flynn, where her sweet, cute smile belied the tough little girl interior.

"Oh my God, Chris, she is so adorable!" Cheryl covered her mouth. "She's gorgeous! And I'm not just saying that, she's so cute."

"She's my little Flutterby," Chris said, "but she's going to hate you."

"What?"

"Flynn is my tough child."

"Tough, like she's tough to raise?"

"Tough like she'll beat you up if she wants to," Chris said, then shook his head. "She wants to be a wrestler and has decided that two is when she wants to start training. Stephanie and I have to watch her constantly because she's a daredevil. She will jump off of any surface she can climb onto and her favorite thing in the world is wrestling and her most, most favorite thing in the world is to watch _me_ wrestling. She's watched pretty much my entire career and she likes me wrestling. She already hates the idea of me dancing because it's not wrestling so she's already pretty angry at me. I can talk her down, but she holds grudges for a while."

"She does?"

"She wouldn't acknowledge the fact she had a sister for a few months."

"Terrible twos?"

"I wish, but she's just my Flynn," Chris said, "she'll come around though. If you really want in her good graces, she takes bribes in the form of my action figures."

"You have action figures?"

"A lot of them," Chris said, then flipped to one of the last pictures, "and this is my youngest child, Kensington, or Kensy as everyone calls her and she's six months old."

"She's darling, Chris," Cheryl told him. "Now will she hate me too?"

"Nah, she's a good baby, she's just getting into baby food and stuff," Chris said. "And that, in a nutshell is my family."

"Well, I feel like I know more about them already."

The rest of the flight was spent talking about Cheryl and her life and Chris really liked getting to know her. He felt like the better they knew each other, the better their partnership was going to be. Before either of them knew it, they were already landing in Tampa. Chris had told Stephanie not to bother coming to pick them up as they would just take a cab back to their house and so that's just what they did, traveling to his house and Cheryl looked out the window as they pulled up.

"You've got a nice house."

"You say that because you only see the outside, but we've got three children under the age of five in there, so just, be prepared, my wife isn't much of a…cleaner," Chris told her as he grabbed her bags, being the gentleman that he was. He would drive her to her hotel later. He thought it a little too forward to invite her to stay the night. Maybe when they were more familiar with each other. He walked to the door with Cheryl following behind him as he grabbed his key and opened the door. "Hello!" he yelled out.

"Daddy!" Flynn yelled from the kitchen, jumping off the chair she'd been eating her afternoon snack on and racing towards the door.

"Flynn, what have I told you about jumping off things!" Stephanie said with exasperation, then looked to Sawyer, who was looking at her expectantly. "Go, go!"

"Thank you!" Sawyer yelled, climbing off his chair and taking off after his sister.

Chris knelt down as soon as he saw his little girl running as fast as her short legs could carry her. She threw herself into his arms and gave a happy sigh of contentment. "Hey there, Flutterby, you act as if it's been years since I've seen you and it's only been a little while."

"No!" she defied him.

"Yes," he told her, kissing her forehead. "Have you been good while I was away?"

"Uh huh!"

"Hi, Daddy!" Sawyer said, running into the room and hugging his daddy as well, careful not to shove his sister out of the way. "Guess what?"

"What?"

"Today at school, I kicked the ball really, really, _really_ far and my teacher said that was the farthest she'd ever seen anyone kick it before!" Sawyer told him excitedly. "I was really good."

"Well of course you are," Chris told him, kissing his temple. "You're the best kickball player in the world at what you do."

Sawyer laughed, "Just like you're the best wrestler in the world at what you're doing, right?"

"Right," he said.

"Best, best, best," Flynn said, only then noticing there was someone else there. She narrowed her eyes, "Who you?"

Sawyer looked over and noticed her too. "Hi, I'm Sawyer."

"You guys," Chris said, turning a little, "this is Cheryl, she's going to be my partner when I'm on the show, remember how I told you I'm going to be on Dancing with the Stars?"

"Instead of wrestling," Sawyer said matter-of-factly.

"Daddy, you wrestle," Flynn said through gritted teeth and giving him an angry look.

"I am a wrestler, Flutterby, but remember that I'm taking a break right now because Mommy had Kensy and because I wanted to do some other things, but I promised you that I'd go wrestle again, didn't I?"

"No," Flynn said defiantly and Cheryl could sense that stubbornness Chris was telling her about.

"Didn't I?"

"Yes," she resigned herself to say, but then pouted, whimpering, "Daddy…"

"Shh," Chris whispered to her, "we have to make a good first impression."

"Okay," she whispered back.

"Are you dancing with my daddy?" Sawyer asked.

"Yes, I am, I'm going to make him the best dancer that I can."

"Okay, that's nice of you," Sawyer said with a smile. "I have a mommy."

Cheryl laughed, "I know, your dad has told me all about her and about you guys."

"All good things I hope," Stephanie piped in from where she'd been watching the scene. She stepped forward and reached out her hand towards Cheryl. "Hi, I'm Stephanie McMahon-Jericho and you must be Cheryl Burke."

"Yes, it's nice to meet you," Cheryl said, shaking Stephanie's hand, "Chris has told me all about you over the plane ride. Seriously, he can't stop talking about you…and you are almost as intimidating as he says you are."

Stephanie laughed and looked to Chris, shrugging his shoulders, "He likes to brag apparently."

"Can't help it," he said, giving her a peck on the lips. "Where's Kensy?"

"She's still taking her nap," Stephanie said. "Come inside though, we can't have you just standing by the door. So you are going to make my husband into a twinkle-toes?"

"I'm going to sure as hell try."

Stephanie led them into the living room and offered Cheryl a seat. The kids were clinging to Chris so he had to sit on the couch, where Sawyer settled in next to him and Flynn cuddled against him as she hung around his neck. Cheryl looked around the living room and she had to admit, it wasn't what she was expecting from what Chris had been telling her. She found Chris warm and everything, that wasn't the problem, but when she'd found out about his situation, how he co-owned a billion dollar company and how his wife was this huge executive primed to inherit said company she almost pictured this very sterile house with prim and properly dressed children.

But that wasn't it at all. The house was very warm and very much lived in. There were pictures all over the place of Chris and Stephanie and their children and what she guessed were friends of theirs. The house had toys littered all over it and their kids were not some 'prim and proper sitting with their hands in their laps' kind of kids. They looked like fun, little kids and even Stephanie, who she thought would be this scary professional lady was in jeans and a t-shirt. She really shouldn't have let Chris scare her like that. She actually felt very welcome.

"Unfortunately, the show films on Mondays, so I won't be able to attend all of them," Stephanie lamented. "So why my husband wants to be on the competition, I don't know-"

"Stephanie…"

"I'm just saying," Stephanie said and Cheryl was starting to see the dynamic between them. "Anyways, it's our biggest part of the year, WrestleMania, we have a lot of build-up and it's just a lot of work around this time of year and I probably can't get away for more than a few shows. I'm going to definitely try and make a few but if I can't make it, I'll definitely send representatives."

"Oh, that's too bad that you can't make it."

"You don't want her there anyways, she'd be too much of a distraction for me," Chris winked at her.

"Yeah, from me laughing at my husband," Stephanie said cheekily, raising an eyebrow at him.

"You hear what I'm going to have to put up with?" Chris joked.

"I'm going to make him into a bonafide dancer, Stephanie, I promise. You won't even know who he is by the time I'm done with him."

"You see," Chris said. "Then I can take you dancing or something and show you up and then everyone will stare at me and I'll get hit on more than you."

"You already do," Stephanie said. "Chris gets hit on a lot, he likes to keep score."

"Because I rock," Chris shrugged. The baby monitor Stephanie had been carrying started to make noises before they all heard Kensington's cries. "And there's my Kensy-bug. I'll go get her. You want to come with, Flutterby?"

"Uh huh," she mumbled, still clinging to Chris. It usually took her a couple hours before she would let go and then go off and do her own thing. Chris smiled at Cheryl and Stephanie before he left the room to go get Kensington.

"I'm really looking forward to working with your husband. He's a super nice guy and from what I've seen already, I think there's a lot of potential to go far into the competition. Chris said he's a really hard worker and judging from how good he is at wrestling, I'd say that's true and I can really work with that."

"He really is," Stephanie said, then leaned forward in her chair, letting her arms rest on her thighs, "but I'm glad I get the chance to talk to you because there's something I want to say."

Cheryl had been through this a couple times before. Sometimes the wives didn't get that this was just a competition and they saw her and saw a threat. She never named names but there were some of the wives who threatened her if she dared put any designs on their husbands. They didn't seem to understand that part of dancing was acting and that's all it was. She had a boyfriend that she loved dearly and she would never, ever consider being a homewrecker to anyone. She just wanted Stephanie to understand that.

"Stephanie…"

"No, let me finish," Stephanie said, cutting her off and looking at Cheryl so intensely that the younger woman started to shift in her seat uncomfortably.

"Okay," Cheryl said timidly. She'd never encountered the likes of one Stephanie McMahon-Jericho before so she wasn't quite sure how to act, but Stephanie had suddenly turned scary. Gone was that friendly demeanor of a few minutes ago. She looked to Sawyer, but he didn't seem the least bit frightened of his mother.

"My husband and I are not losers, we're winners, we like winning and we like being on top of everything that we do. My husband has won every imaginable belt there is in the WWE and has won most of them multiple times and I certainly hate to lose. I want you to do whatever it takes to make sure that my husband wins this competition. If he is not getting his footwork right, then I want you to go after him hard. If they say you don't have chemistry, then I don't care if you have to dry hump him on the dance floor, the Jerichos are not losers and I don't want him to fail."

Well that wasn't what she was expecting. Cheryl just nodded, then laughed at herself, "Okay, I swear I thought you were going to threaten me not to steal your husband."

Stephanie laughed, "Yeah, if you want to take him off my hands, you can have him. I just want to make sure he wins. I might not be totally jazzed he's on the show because he should be wrestling right now, but if he's on it, he's going to win it. I've scoped out the competition and I think you guys have got a shot."

"You have?"

"I don't do anything half-assed," Stephanie said. "So I want you to go all out, do whatever it takes to make sure my husband looks good. I've heard you're tough, don't hold back, Chris worked his ass of to get where he is today in the wrestling world, he's not afraid of a little pain."

"What are you talking about?" Chris asked as he walked back in, Kensington in one arm and Flynn in the other.

"I'm telling her to make sure you win," Stephanie told him. "I don't care if she has to get out a whip and cane, you're winning this competition, I'm not letting you lose to the Karate Kid."

Chris rolled his eyes, "Don't listen to her, she's ultra-competitive."

"No, listen to me, you're going to win, Chris, you better not even come home if you don't win," Stephanie said. "I'm not going to have a loser in my house. Besides when you win that trophy, you can put it in Kensington's room, Sawyer already has some of your belts and Flynn has everything she can get her grubby, little hands on and Kensy needs stuff too."

"Okay," Chris said, then showed off Kensington to Cheryl, "This is Kensington, Kensy, say hi to Cheryl." Kensington gave her a gummy little smile and Cheryl cooed at her.

"You really have a gorgeous family," Cheryl said. "We should definitely play that up."

"Yeah, I'd really kind of prefer not to," Chris said. "We kind of keep our family private. In wrestling, there's a lot of stigma against Stephanie, totally unwarranted, but we just kind of like to keep ourselves private."

"If you think that it'll help Chris, we could at least have Sawyer and Flynn on the show," Stephanie said in turn.

"What?" Chris asked, looking over at Stephanie. "Steph…"

"Chris," Stephanie said, "look, you've already posted our kids' pictures in your book, people know what they look like, Flynn was on your book tour and even Sawyer was there for a couple of your signings. They're not a secret anymore and I want you to win at all costs."

"I don't know, Steph," he told her, looking at her. Hadn't they wanted their children to have as normal a life as they could get? Sure, they traveled with them, but this was national television. This was in front of millions and millions of people, surely Stephanie would have a problem with that. "I mean, they're so young."

"Sawyer's almost five," Stephanie pointed out, "Cheryl, if you think that'll get him votes, then I'd be willing to take one or two of them."

"We really don't have to," Cheryl said, "there have been times when they don't bring their kids. Emmitt didn't really want his kids featured too much and he still won."

"But making out Chris to be a family man would really get the vote from the core audience," Stephanie pointed out. Cheryl was starting to see what Chris said when he told her that he and his wife were schemers. Stephanie was sharp as a tack and it was plain as day. "I know that the voters are mainly going to be women and a lot of those women are going to be mothers and if they see this man being an exemplary father, then they're going to want to vote for him."

"Stephanie, baby, I know you want me to win, but think about this for a moment. We've always wanted more privacy for our kids."

"So they're shown for what, a few minutes, if that?" Stephanie said, "I don't want to be like Michael Jackson with his kids, Chris, when he made them wear masks and what not. I don't mind my kids being on the show if it helps you."

"But it might not even help."

"Oh come on, you're going to need a hook, Chris, you're going to need to draw in the fans that aren't sure about voting," Stephanie told him. "You're always going to encounter viewers who aren't going to be compelled to vote; these will be the votes you need to stay and to win. You have three small, adorable children. People will see them, say aww, see you interact with them and bam! You've got a bevy of new voters and fans, fans that will want to see what you do when you wrestle."

"A-ha, there it is!" Chris chuckled. "I knew there had to be a payoff somewhere there."

"So sue me," she said, "Cheryl, you'd say that this sounds like a good plan, right?"

"I, uh, guess it wouldn't hurt," Cheryl said, not wanting to be caught in the middle of this. Stephanie was headstrong, even more than she was.

"Okay, good, that's settled, we can at least bring Sawyer. Cheryl, I'll of course defer to you when dancing is involved," Stephanie was now conducting the Chris Jericho PR meeting. "Now, Chris, sweetie, we're not going to have you being Mr. Serious on the show. We both know that you're a complete dork, use it to your advantage, then you'll also get the cute vote."

"I thought I had that in the bag," Chris said, "I'm hot."

"Yes, you are hot, but you are cocky hot, which means you know you're hot and some girls hate that, but if they see you don't take yourself seriously, they'll want to vote for you. I want you to work hard, but I want you to have fun too and that will show, okay?"

"Okay, drill sergeant," Chris laughed, "I'm sorry you have to deal with this, Cheryl, but well, this is how she operates."

"I just have a plan, sue me," Stephanie told him. "You guys need a name too, something catchy. What should you be called?"

"Cherichoholics?" Chris suggested.

"Chericho, oh, I get it, Cheryl and Jericho, good, I like it, that's really going to get in people's heads," Stephanie nodded. "I'm sensing merchandise, people eat that stuff up."

"Wow," Cheryl said, "you sure know what you want to do."

"No, all I know is I want Chris to win."

"Well, I will take care of him dancing," Cheryl said, "that's really the only thing we have total control over."

"Oh Cheryl," Stephanie said, tilting her head, "I think you're adorable, but it's not, believe me. Chris, we're going to film a segment for the SmackDown before you start the show, we've got to keep you up on WWE television, the more exposure the better."

"What about Teddy and Vickie, they won't like that."

"I'll pull rank," Stephanie told him, raising an eyebrow. "They can't dispute that and if they do, I'll go over their heads to my father and you know he'd love it if he could get some viewers to watch Raw because they see you. It's a win-win situation. But don't worry, you just leave all that to me."

Now Cheryl _really_ wondered what she'd gotten herself into.


	316. 1, 2, Cha Cha Cha, March 21, 2011

A/N: I'm skipping ahead a few weeks since there's not really much I need to cover, so I'm skipping ahead to the first episode of DWTS. As a reminder, I only follow the shows, so anything on DWTS WILL be embellished (obviously) so while I take as much of the show into consideration as I can, I do change parts, just letting you know. Hope you enjoy, thanks for any and all reviews. :)

* * *

"And 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8…come on, Chris, speed it up."

"Yeah, I'm trying, believe me," Chris said, trying to remember the steps as Cheryl counted him off. They were working on footwork at the moment and he couldn't quite get the steps right as he glided (he hoped) across the dance floor.

"Trying isn't good enough, we're dancing for the first time in two days and I want you to be perfect, trying will not get you the votes."

"Maybe it would on the first week," he argued.

"Are you arguing with me?" Cheryl asked. "Because Stephanie told me that if you started arguing with me that I should call her and let her know and then she can handle the situation. Do you want Stephanie to handle the situation?"

"No," Chris grumbled. "It's not fair that you two are teaming up like this, you know that, right?"

"It was her idea," Cheryl smirked. "I just thought it was a good one."

Chris shook his head, but he couldn't be too mad. For all the teasing that Stephanie had been doing, she really was committed to having him do well. She and Cheryl were working in tandem on him though and it sort of felt like he had two wives, or at least a sub-wife who did whatever his real wife wanted him to do. He appreciated Cheryl's toughness though because in the last few weeks of rehearsing, he'd actually been learning and picking things up rather well. She made things accessible while still being tough.

"Of course you did, it gives you complete autonomy over me."

"Can't say I don't like that," Cheryl told him, "so come on, stop stalling, I want this perfect and we're not going to quit until you do so I suggest that you get it right now so you can take a break."

"You'll never let me have a break," he said, "you're going to work me until I'm skin and bones and nothing else, just a dancing skeleton."

"That might work if they make us do holiday-themed dances," Cheryl said, "so come on, let's get this right, and a 1, 2…"

Chris concentrated on his footwork wanting it perfect, not just so he could get a break, but because he actually wanted to win this competition. He was nothing if not competitive and though he'd been getting to know some of the other celebs and building friendships, this was still a competition and at the end of the day, he wanted all of those other celebrities eliminated so he could have the trophy. It was the same thing in wrestling, though, he could be friends with a guy, but if he was slated to wrestle with said friends, then he was going to beat their asses until he won. That was the nature of his life, there was a time and place for friendships and in the ring and now on the dance floor were not those places.

"Okay, good, that was _much_ better," Cheryl said with an approving nod, her arms actually unfolding on her chest. "We can take a break now."

"Thank God," he said, collapsing onto his back on the dance floor. "I haven't trained this intensely since…well, forever really, probably since I made my comeback to wrestling."

"Comeback?" Cheryl asked, sitting cross-legged on the floor. She'd been getting to know Chris better spending so much time with him and she was glad he was her partner. He was a charming, sweet guy and she loved just hanging out with him. It was rare that someone got a partner who they genuinely loved spending time with, but Cheryl loved spending time with Chris. And it didn't stop there. Cheryl found Chris's family as charming as she found him. Stephanie had turned out nothing like she'd thought and while the woman was tough as nails, she was funny and easy to talk to as well. It went without saying that she loved Chris's children. They were adorable and so proud of their father. She almost felt like an honorary Jericho in a sense.

"Oh yeah, I guess I never mentioned that," Chris said, turning his head so he could face her. It was probably the only part of him that wasn't screaming for rest. "In 2005, I took a hiatus from wrestling. Stephanie was just pregnant with Sawyer and she decided that she wanted a normal life. Of course, this lasted about two weeks before she went back to work, but I took the opportunity to do some things, writing, a play, touring, so I didn't come back to wrestling until the end of 2007, much to Stephanie's chagrin, but yeah, I had to get the ring rust off and that was tough."

"Well, at least you have experience in training, which is more than I can say for some of the other dancers," Cheryl said, "I'm not going to name names, but some of the other pros are having a little difficulty."

"I think if you're not used to it then it's going to be a rude awakening. This is no joke. I'm sore as hell and I've worked out pretty much everyday for the last 20 or so years," Chris said.

"Because dancing uses muscles you're probably not used to when you wrestle," Cheryl said, "plus, you haven't wrestled since last year, so you aren't using those muscles as frequently. You'll get used to it and then it won't feel as difficult. Then you'll really start to pick up the movements of the dance and your hips might not actually look like they do right now."

"Thanks for the vote in confidence."

"Well, in my assessment, I think you're going to do better at the ballroom dances at first, not to say that you won't improve in the Latin, but I'm thinking that with your build, your posture will be easier to maintain in closed hold."

"You're talking technical again."

"Sorry, I'm just saying, you've never had to move your hips before," Cheryl said, "well, not in this way at least."

"That makes it sound dirty," Chris joked. "Are you trying to say that I've moved my hips in different ways?"

"You have three kids, don't you?" Cheryl eyed him and he burst out laughing. "I'm just saying, that you haven't really moved your hips this way, but like, posture-wise, okay, so you were saying when you first learned to take…bumps, was it?"

"Yes, bumps."

"Okay, when you first learned those, you had to remain stiff and fall back a bunch of times while maintaining that stiff back, right, or something like that, just like you aren't up on your dancing technical terms, I'm not sure on the wrestling ones."

"Yeah, pretty much like that," Chris said.

"So you're used to being rigid…I'm really not helping myself with these words, am I?"

"You really aren't," Chris laughed. "If I didn't know better, Cheryl Burke, I'd think you were coming onto me or something."

Chris liked the dynamic that he and Cheryl had. He wouldn't say there was chemistry necessarily, there was, but it wasn't like this weird sexual tension thing. Chris didn't work with many females. Before the WWE, he'd never really worked with a woman, period. In the WWE, there was, of course, Stephanie, whom he'd married and there was Trish, who was one of his best friends and the other divas were just around for eye candy and while nice enough, he guessed, he never actively befriended them, except for Katie Lea, who he still talked to on occasion. There was Britt, but she was also just a friend. There was the actress who'd played his wife in the play he'd done in Canada, but the play in question was more about tension between them, not necessarily chemistry.

So he didn't know how to have chemistry with someone. He figured some of the other celebrities, particularly Kirstie and Ralph, would know how to manufacture chemistry enough for their dances. With him though, he felt more like a big brother type to Cheryl. They got along, teased each other, but he felt like her brother and that's how their dynamic played out. He worried about how it would come across to the judges and just hoped that he could fake the chemistry enough not to get called out on it.

"Yeah, right, Stephanie would kill me if I even tried," Cheryl said. "I don't have to know everything about her to know _that_."

"She has been pretty scary in the past," Chris nodded. "She actually should be here in a while, she said she'd bring us lunch."

"That's nice of her. Is she okay with being here, you tell me all the time she's a workaholic," Cheryl said.

"She is, but she brought her work with her and she's leaving the show in the capable hands of her assistant, Britt. You'll meet her eventually, I'm sure. She's one of our best friends now and she's dating Stephanie's ex-husband."

"The guy who drugged her."

"One in the same."

"I will never get your world," Cheryl said with a laugh. "It just sounds so fantastical and weird all at the same time."

"Isn't that dancing?"

"Nobody in the dancing world has drugged a woman to marry her," Cheryl said, "and if it did, I would like to think that she would go to the cops and tell them, not stay married to them for two years."

"Their marriage was over long before that. She was just in her rebellious stage. Stephanie and her father have an odd relationship. They love each other, that goes without question, but they're always in this tug of war. Stephanie wants more power, Vince doesn't want to give it up so Stephanie goes ballistic on him, he goes ballistic on her. With her brother out of the business now and on his own, it's all left to Stephanie and she wants it all now and doesn't even want to wait for her father to retire."

"She does come off as headstrong," Cheryl nodded.

"She is, when she stayed with Hunter, it was a power play over her parents and her brother. She and Hunter weren't right for each other though. He brought out the worst in her, which is why I hated her."

"Are you sure it wasn't just because you secretly loved her?"

"No, I really didn't," Chris answered. "I really didn't like her at all. She was not the kind of person I wanted to associate with. She was horrible and mean and she played people against each other for her own amusement."

"And yet this is the woman you've promised to love and cherish for the rest of your life," Cheryl laughed.

"She changed!" he protested, half-hearted trying to hit her in the knee with his fist. "She's not like that anymore. Well, not to me, she is probably to other people so that's okay, just as long as it isn't to me."

"Do you think that she calmed down with motherhood? I hear a lot of women just seem to, I don't know, calm down after they become mothers."

"Stephanie can turn it on and off. She can be super sweet to our kids and then a ball-breaking bitch the rest of the time, I love that about her though. Hell, I love everything about her," Chris shrugged. "She's awesome and I'm so glad she's going to be here to watch me dance for the first time. I'm really hoping she likes it."

"So you're going to focus on making sure _she_ likes it then?"

"Yeah, I think so. Didn't you say that if I'm only dancing for one or two people then I'm not going to worry about the rest that are watching?" he said. "That was your advice, correct?"

"I'm not saying it's a bad thing!" she told him. "I think it's just easier to focus on someone or someones when you're dancing because then the pressure isn't as on you, do you do that in wrestling?"

"No, I feed off the crowd."

"Okay, so maybe it won't work for you in this venue."

"I am pretty damn nervous though," he admitted. "I don't even think I was this nervous before my first wrestling match because with that, I knew I was good, or at least believed it enough to go into the match thinking I was good. This? I'm not sure about."

"You're doing great," she assured him. "You're going to go out there and you're going to do great. If you're dancing for the entire audience, great, if you're dancing just for Stephanie, great, but you're going to do fine."

"What if the judges hate me though?"

"They won't, they're going to at least understand that this is the first week so unless you go out there and completely mess up the number, you're going to be fine and you're not going to mess up because you'll have me there with you, okay?" she said, patting him on the leg. "Now come on, we've rested enough and I at least want to get in a couple more through runs before your wife gets here."

"Do we have to?" he whined.

"Yes, now get up," she said, grabbing his hand and helping him to his feet. "Okay, now get on the stage."

"We're even going to do the leap?"

"I said the entire thing," Cheryl said, "plus, you've got on your kneepads, so come on before I start to get angry."

"You really are just bossy," Chris told her and then got on the small stage in their dance space. He proceeded to go through the number, counting silently to himself as he tried to remember all the moves and grab Cheryl and throw her around in the appropriate spots. He wouldn't call himself a dancer just yet, but he believed he was getting there. At some point in this competition, he hoped that he could be somewhat of a dancer, just for his own pride, if not to make everyone he knew proud of him as well.

"Okay, that was great, let's try it one more time," Cheryl said, clapping her hands and Chris trudged back to the stage. "You're doing great, Chris, I wish I could show you the footage from your first rehearsal to now because the difference is incredible."

He knew she was mostly just propping him up, but it still felt good to hear and so he picked up his steps a little bit more. He stretched his neck and started his counting again. He got through the entire routine and was panting by the end of it while Cheryl didn't even seem phased. He just wasn't used to this kind of cardio, but he would be. He was going to be the best if it was the last thing he did. He didn't go into things thinking he was going to fail and this was just another thing he wasn't going to fail at.

"I'm so proud of you," Cheryl said, patting his shoulder when they finished. "Grab a water and we'll take a real break now."

"Thank you!" Chris said gratefully as he went over to the cooler in the corner and grabbed a cold water. Just as he was lifting it to his lips, the door opened and Stephanie peeked her head in.

"Hey guys, we allowed to come in?" Stephanie asked. She didn't want to interrupt their rehearsals. She'd visited every so often and she's seen parts of the dance, but not the entire thing. Chris didn't want her to see it until they were performing it live.

"Yeah, come on in," Cheryl smiled and Stephanie opened the door and let Sawyer and Flynn run inside.

"Hi, Daddy!" Sawyer said as he ran over.

"Hey, kid," Chris said, sweeping Sawyer up into his arms. "What have you been doing today?"

"Mommy took us to the beach and we played in the sand and I made a sand castle and Flynnie stomped on it because she was the monster and she was the castle-stomper," Sawyer explained. "I liked the beach."

"I wish I could have gone," Chris said, kissing his cheek before he looked down at his little girl, who seemed to look a little tanner than she had this morning. Stephanie was trying to come up with ways to distract the kids while they were here in LA. She was doing a great job, taking them all these different places, on Monday before the show, she was taking them to Disneyland, which Chris thought was insane to take all three by herself, but she was a determined woman, that was for sure. "So you were stomping castles, Flutterby?"

"Uh huh," she nodded eagerly, "I was good."

"I bet you were," Chris said, then leaned over and pecked Stephanie on the lips. "It's so nice to see you guys, Cheryl finally said I could have a break, she's been whipping me into the ground."

"Good," Stephanie said, then held up her arms, "we went to this deli I found on the way over and picked up lunch for everyone. Cheryl, you're into sandwiches, right?"

"I could eat a sandwich, thanks," Cheryl said.

"We brought a blanket too because we can have a picnic," Sawyer said, squirming in Chris's arms. Chris put Sawyer down and he jogged over to Kensington, pulling the blanket out from under Kensington's carriage.

"That's sweet of you guys," Cheryl said as she helped Sawyer. "It's too bad the cameras aren't here today because I'm sure they would eat this up."

"Oh, I bet," Stephanie said as she picked up Kensington and sat her down on the blanket. Kensington just sat there looking around. She couldn't crawl yet, though she did try her best to kind of scoot across the floor on her stomach, but she was sitting up on her own. Sawyer and Flynn followed, sitting on blanket too. "I wasn't sure what kind of sandwich you liked Cheryl, so I got a meat one or a vegetarian one."

"I'll take the vegetarian one, thanks," Cheryl said as Stephanie handed it over. She handed Chris one, then the kids before taking one for herself and setting in front of Kensington, who had eaten earlier so she was just sitting around watching everyone.

"So how's everything going, how's Chris doing?" Stephanie asked.

"He's doing great, we're just really fine tuning the routine and I think you're really going to be proud of him," Cheryl said.

"Daddy, are we going to like you?" Sawyer asked.

"I like you," Flynn told him with a grin, but then added, "when wrestle."

"I knew there was a catch to that," he winked at her. "I just hope you guys will like what I have to offer on Monday, I know that I'm going to try my hardest."

"And that's all you can do," Sawyer said with a nod. "That's what my teacher says and that's what you have to do."

Chris nodded, but it was easier said than done. The more he thought about it, the more nervous he became. So he supplanted the nerves with work. He still had the Hall of Fame he was planning and so he spent his evenings working on that, so much so that he was now sitting in bed, the night before his big debut and he was looking at seating arrangements. Stephanie, who was asleep first for once, opened her eyes and saw Chris with papers spread over the bed and over her.

"Chris, what are you doing?"

"Since I'm not going to be able to sit next to you, do you have a preference on who you'd want to sit next to? Hunter told me he's probably going to be inducting Shawn so he won't be out there either. Thankfully I didn't have to talk to Shawn, but big surprise on his inductor, right? He's telling people he has no idea, but we all know it's going to be Hunter. I just wonder if Britt is okay with this."

"Sweetie, your dancing is tomorrow, don't you think you should get to bed now?" Stephanie said, reaching out and rubbing his arm. "You're going to need to be awake if you want to be on top of your game."

"I will, I just want to get some of these things squared away. I know you don't like the guy, I don't either because he's an ass-kisser, but I think that since he's the champion, and I can't quite believe I'm saying that, but I'm thinking of putting Miz next to you. It's logical at least."

"Chris, to bed with you," she said, sitting up and rubbing his shoulders. "You're too tense, you're dancing the cha-cha tomorrow, that requires you to be loose. You have to lighten up, okay? I know that you're nervous, but it's going to be okay, now put the work away and go to sleep."

"I never thought I'd see the day where you tell me to put the work away," Chris said, turning towards her. "I mean, you're usually the one with papers strewn about our bed. I'm just trying to catch up. With all the dancing I've been doing…"

"Chris…"

"Stephanie," he responded.

"Stop," she told him, leaning over and kissing his jaw. "Now come on and get some sleep or else you're going to look like walking death on the dance floor and I'm not sure the zombie look is what the show is going for."

"We don't know that," Chris said, closing his eyes as his wife's lips brushed against his skin. "They could be looking for the stiffest dancer who wants to eat their brains."

"Uh huh," she mumbled against his skin. "You do know that I am going to be taking three children to the happiest place on Earth tomorrow and it's been a while since they've been so they probably won't remember much of what's going on and so I need my sleep."

"You promise you'll take pictures of Kensy, right?"

"Yeah, but she probably won't even know what's going on," Stephanie said, "but I will come back with an abundance of pictures and we can look at them tomorrow night."

"And Sonya is going to be watching the kids, right?"

"Yes, Sonya is going to be watching the kids. She loves when we come out to California because she loves babysitting for them, but I think she's used to it because I can imagine that she has to babysit Rob a lot of the time."

Chris laughed, "Yeah, I can see that."

"She's happy to do it and then I can come see you dance and we can go to this after party thing and live it up and be the hottest couple there. I know that Kendra is probably going to think she and her husband are the hottest people there, but please, like I can't be a Playboy model, am I right?"

"Of course you're right," he said, not noticing that Stephanie had gathered up his papers. "Hey, I was still looking at those."

"There's still time to arrange the seating for the Hall of Fame, plenty of it, but you need to sleep and so do I. You're going to be back on TV tomorrow and you want all those supposed new fans you're going to get to see you at your best and not like you just came off an Iron Man match."

"I guess you're right."

"Of course I'm right, I'm always right," she told him, putting the papers on her side of the bed so he couldn't get at them without her knowing it. She turned off her light and then reached over and turned off his. Then she pulled him down so he was lying on his back before she cuddled into his side. "Now get some sleep."

They remained silent for a few moments before Chris spoke. "I'm nervous."

"I know you are."

"I've never been this nervous before."

"Never?"

"I mean, I'm sure I have been, but it's a different kind of nervous. The last time I recall being so nervous, like literally about to shake right out of bed was right before Sawyer was born. But that was a different kind of nervous. That was me about to be a father, this job I didn't know if I could do. This is different. I don't want to fail and I don't want to look stupid."

"You won't, I promise," she told him, rubbing his stomach, which felt like a jumble of nerves. He was still so amped up right now, he didn't know if he would be able to get any sleep at all that evening. How could he sleep when he just kept going over his routine in his head? His brain of all things wouldn't let him rest, what hope was there for the rest of him?

"But how do you know?" he asked.

"Because I know you, Chris. You wouldn't go out there if you didn't think you were going to be the best at what you do. Every time you go out into the ring, you go out knowing that you are better than your opponent, do you win every time, no, you don't, but you go out thinking that you can beat everyone. That's what you're going to do here, you're going to go out there and you're going to believe that you can beat whomever you need to beat."

"What if I suck though? What if I fall or what if I don't catch Cheryl? What if I forget all the steps and just stand there like an idiot?"

"Then you do what you do in the ring, you get up, you move on and if you forget your steps, then you improvise like crazy," she said. "Chris, you need to calm down, okay, you're going to be great tomorrow, I know you will be."

"I'm so glad you're here, have I told you that yet," Chris told her, brushing his hand over her hair. "I'm so glad that you're going to be there tomorrow. I just don't know if I could honestly do this without you there."

"I wouldn't want to be anywhere else."

"Not even at work? Because you love work, you love work so much."

"Not half as much as you," she said, "now come on, get some sleep, okay, tomorrow is going to be a busy day for the both of us and we need our respective beauty sleep."

"I love you," Chris said as Stephanie's rubbing his temple with her fingers was lulling him to sleep. "Thank you."

"I love you too," she told him, whispering her words so he would finally close his eyes and drift off to sleep.

Britt sat behind the desk reading the e-mail that Stephanie had sent her a half hour ago about the show tonight. She was happy to take over, but Stephanie was still very much in charge even as she was getting ready for tonight, according to the e-mail. The show was recorded and didn't seem to air live so Britt didn't exactly know where Stephanie was though she would find it funny if Stephanie were e-mailing her _while_ Chris was dancing. Still, she didn't mind running the show.

The door creaked open and Britt looked up from what she was doing to see who it was, "Hey, Edge, what's going on? You're not on the show tonight, are you?"

"No, I'm just stopping by, hanging out with my brother and sister-in-law. I was just wondering if it would be easy to get a hold of Stephanie right now. I know that she's in California with Chris, but I didn't know what her schedule was and didn't want to bug her if she was with Chris or the kids or something, unless she's with Sawyer, then I don't mind interrupting."

"He loves you, Edge, you know that right?" Britt told him.

"I love the little kid too," Edge said affectionately, "but don't you dare tell him I told you that because he'll just lord it over my head, believe me, he's really just like his parents, but everyone seems to think he's not like them at all, but he is."

"He really isn't," Britt said, "but either way, Stephanie doesn't appear to be doing anything right now because she just sent me an e-mail, is it anything I could help you with because I am in charge tonight."

"No, it's not, but thanks, I just really need to talk to her, but thanks for asking," Edge told her, "I'm sure you're going to do a great job tonight, even if you are favoring your boyfriend."

"What are you talking about?" she said, acting indignant.

"He's got the top of the show, come on, Britt, I'm not dumb, I would've done the same thing for Lita if it came to it," Edge winked.

"He has one of the highest profile matches on the WrestleMania card, Edge," Britt tried to reason and Edge just nodded along like he was just patronizing her and didn't believe a word she was spewing at him. "Stop it! He _is_! He's going to go out there and beat the Undertaker."

"Britt, oh, Britt, cute, petite, little Britt," Edge said and now he _was_ just patronizing her, "he's not going to win."

"If anyone can beat Taker, it's Hunter," Britt reasoned, "he's the best in the business, no offense meant to you or Chris or anything, but he is the best here and he's going to be Taker."

"You're too naïve, it's because you're in love with him. You can't see that when it's WrestleMania, it's like this weird force takes over Taker and he becomes this unstoppable machine. I've seen it and experienced it firsthand. It's like no matter how old the dude is, he turns it on…actually, you know, I don't think I even know how old Taker is. Maybe he's like hundreds of years old and now that WrestleMania is here, it's like the source of his power or something."

"Now you're just taking like an insane man," Britt said. "He's just a guy, like any other guy here and it's about time someone stepped up and beat that stupid streak."

"Blasphemy!" Edge said. "The streak is stuff of legend at this point. And you do know that Taker has already beat Hunter at WrestleMania?"

"That was like ten years ago, they're different men now, Hunter is more than ready now, he's more focused, he's better at preparing. Back then, he was like this loose cannon and now he's more poised."

"You really think he's going to win, don't you?" It was more a statement than a question, but Edge had been there. He knew when you sometimes went into something blindly just because of the love behind it.

"I do."

"Then I hope he does for your sake," he told her, "thanks for letting me know about Steph, see you later, Britt."

"Bye, Edge," she said in a singsong voice.

Edge closed the door behind him and sighed. He grabbed his cell phone and scrolled through his contacts until he got down to Stephanie's number. He sighed and pressed the button before leaning against the wall, looking around him nonchalantly as he waited for her to hopefully pick up the phone. It wasn't a conversation he _wanted_ to have, but it was one he needed to have and he needed to go to the boss, if not Vince, then Stephanie and he'd much rather deal with Stephanie than with Vince.

"Hello, this is my mommy's phone and she is doing her hair and she can't talk so who is this?"

Edge laughed a little, "Hey, kid, I wanted to talk to your mom, is she there? It's Edge."

"Ed! Hi, Ed!" Sawyer said, "guess what?"

"What?"

"I went to Disneyland today and I was riding on all the rides that I could go on and we went into Toon Town and we went on all the rides there and then I was riding on Dumbo and it was fun and Flynnie got to ride with me because she's bigger now and Mommy watched us because she had Kensy, but she had fun too, Kensy I mean, not Mommy, but Mommy too," Sawyer rambled without seeming to take a breath. "And then Mommy gotted us candy apples and they were super yummy and Flynnie got it all over her mouth and it was funny."

"Wow, that sounds like a day," Edge said, excusing the fact that Sawyer had called him Ed. The kid was in a good mood and he could forgive it this once.

"Did you have a good day, Ed?"

"I did, thank you."

"What did you do?"

"Lita and I went on a walk and it was really fun because we got to see a lot of things we wouldn't have seen otherwise. I don't think it was quite as good as Disneyland, but I think it was close."

"Oh, that's too bad, you should've come and gone with us, it would've been fun," Sawyer told him. "Did you want to talk to Mommy now? I think she's done. She told me to answer it for her."

"I'd like to talk to her if that's okay with you."

"Uh huh, bye Ed, hope you have a good time!"

"Bye, kiddo," Edge said as he heard shuffling over the line.

"Hey, Edge, sorry about that. I was just pulling my hair back and then Kensington decided that she wanted to try and eat one of my hair rollers, which isn't that tasty for an infant, so I had Sawyer answer my phone for me. Five years old and he's already tech savvy, what is going on in this world? So what's up?"

"Well…"

"What's wrong?" Stephanie instantly picked up on his voice. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure it out plus she was a mother and she could now tell these different voices.

"I've just been having problems again, they're nothing serious, just things that have been bothering me physically. I can still wrestle, don't get me wrong, but I was thinking maybe after WrestleMania I could take some time off or at the very least I could just not wrestle for a little bit, let my body rest."

"Are you sure you're okay?" Stephanie asked. "I don't want anything serious to happen to you."

"I'm fine," he said, though he knew he might be lying. Things hadn't felt right for him, but he could still do his job and he could still entertain the fans like nobody else. "I'll be fine, just need some time."

"Okay, well, I'll be back at work next week, not next Monday, I'll still be here with Chris, but later that week I'll obviously be there since WrestleMania and all of that and we can definitely sit down and iron it all out, okay?"

"Thanks, Steph, you're the best."

"I try," she said, "you're sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine," he assured her again and he wasn't sure if she actually believed him, but she let it go. "Tell Chris good luck tonight, I know the boys are going to have the show on back here and we're all going to root for him."

"Vote for him too while you're at it," Stephanie said. "I want him to win."

"For someone who was so totally wanting him back, you sure have changed your tune."

"Well, if he's on the show, he may as well win."

"I'll tell everyone to vote for him then."

"That's all I ask, bye Edge."

"Bye, Steph."

Christian just sat back and admired his wife, "Are you not the hottest thing on this show because I think you are. I mean, I know that I may be biased, being your husband and everything, but I'm guessing that everyone thinks so. You know, everyone thinks the brunette hair is hot."

Trish laughed, "Who thinks it?"

"Everyone," he said, "they think it makes you look even hotter and they don't think you've even lost a step. I know everyone is like, Trish is back, she's the best female wrestler of all-time and she's so awesome she puts all these divas to shame."

"You're insane, Chrissy," she said, leaning over and kissing him on the lips and then leaning further and kissing Tilden on the head. "Nobody is saying that."

"Hello, everyone is. Nobody likes the divas like the Bellas or Barbie or whoever is here. They like you though because you can wrestle and Trishy, you've still got it, let me tell you," Christian said, "and I can say that because I'm a wrestler and I can recognize the skill level in other wrestlers and yours is far and away the best among the females."

"Even better than say…a Beth Phoenix or a Natalya?"

"Okay, on par with them and a couple others, but much better than most," he nodded, "don't you think so, Tilde?"

"Ya," she said with a smile. She was just starting to say small words, yes, no, Mama, Dada and Christian and Trish were thrilled over her progress. She was actually talking and it was such a trip for the two of them to hear this cute, adorable little voice from their daughter.

"See, she agrees with me. You're kick-ass, Trishy, I'm so happy I get to see you out there. You reek of awesomeness."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Trish laughed and kissed him again. "I don't think John likes me very much though."

"What? Doesn't like you, do I have to kick this guy's ass for not liking you? Who does he even think he is? Does he realize that we have the inside track on the people that _run_ this company? Stephanie is your best friend, if anyone could do something about this, it's Stephanie and I wouldn't hesitate to ask her about it."

"Chrissy, wow, seriously, when you love someone, you love intensely, don't you?" she said, taking Tilden in her arms as Tilden reached out to her. "Daddy's a bit of a nutcase, Tilde, we better stay away from him."

"I just don't want anyone disrespecting you, that's all." Christian was so proud of Trish coming back and dominating and being one of the trainers on Tough Enough. She was back to being the head diva in charge and he loved that she had taken this role on, but he wasn't going to stop being her husband just because she was back. It was a little strange to be honest though, just a little bit. He was so used to Trish staying at home and taking care of Tilden, but now she was on the shows, wrestling, doing her thing and it was just out of their ordinary for right now.

"He's not, I just don't think he likes me and he's allowed not to like me, some people don't."

"Impossible."

"Chrissy, come on, somewhere, someone in the world doesn't like me."

"Then they're wrong."

"Thank you for sticking up for me," she told him. "I love that about you. Now, if you'll watch Tilde, I'm going to go find John and talk to him about what kind of role he wants me to play later, if he wants me to interfere or whatever."

"I don't know why you can't be in _my_ corner with all of this."

"Because he's going against the same people I am, it wouldn't make sense to be with you because I really don't have anything against Alberto so you can go at that all you want and leave me out of it, plus, you have Edge behind you and all that. You're brothers and that's fine with me."

"So you just don't want to be with me because you're like ashamed or something," he said, but he was obviously joking.

"Yes, Chrissy, I'm ashamed of you," she told him. "So very, very ashamed, in fact, why did I even marry you? I just have no idea about us anymore. I think I'll go run off with someone right now."

"Just make sure it's not Jeff Hardy or Carlito, okay?"

"I wouldn't touch Jeff with a ten foot pole at this point," Trish shuddered. She hadn't spoken to Jeff in months, but she'd seen all the online stuff about him and Christian still had friends in the TNA locker room who saw firsthand the destruction that was going on around Jeff. She felt bad for him, but she didn't know what she could do. Jeff didn't seem to really want any help and it couldn't be forced on him. Besides, she had her own life now and she had other things to worry about and she couldn't focus a lot of her time on a guy who was a never was in her life. "And Carlito is dating someone seriously so there's no chance there."

"Just making sure. I would say Rocky, since you kissed him, but he's not here. And there was Chris, but I'm fairly positive there's nothing going on there on the sheer fact that would mean you were messing with Stephanie's husband and no way would you invite that brand of crazy into your life. Same goes for Vince. Trish, you've kissed a lot of guys around here."

"Is that a crack at me?"

"No, I'm just observing, that's all," he told her, "and some girls."

"Okay, I get it, I'm a whore, you don't have to rub it in."

"But John probably won't kiss you."

"Don't think so," Trish shook her head.

"Okay, then you can go."

"Aww, look at you trying to act like you can tell me what to do," she told him with a wink. "I'll see you two later, take good care of her, Chrissy, I'm telling you right now."

"We'll be fine," Christian said, "won't we, Tilde?"

"Dada," she giggled.

"Yup, we'll be just fine."

Hunter didn't know what the hell Ted was trying to pull. Sure, he said he wanted to do something big, didn't want to be an afterthought, but it was like a puppy trying to get into a ring with a bull; things were just not going to go in Ted's favor. For a moment, Hunter wondered if Ted was doing this because he wanted to impress Stephanie, like challenging him would be this huge gesture, but then he put that behind him, Ted couldn't be that stupid.

His next thought was that the guy was probably mad at his girlfriend and wanted to take his aggression out. That made sense in a weird, strange way, but that still didn't stop Hunter from beating him into a pulp. Sometimes you just had to do what you had to do. It had the added benefit of sending a message to the Undertaker that he wasn't messing around. He could pulverize everyone in that locker room and if he had to go through them all to make his point, he would do so gladly.

Stephanie looked around the ballroom. It was abuzz with noise as everyone was chatting about the cast. Stephanie, for once, was taking a backseat to it all and just taking it in. She'd never been in a venue like this before, sitting here, supporting her husband in an endeavor like this one. She was so used to Chris the wrestler and Chris the rock star that she had no expectations for what Chris the dancer could be. The Bellas and Alicia Fox, who both lived in LA and had the nights off had decided to come to the show to support Chris. It was nice to have a little back-up, but she hardly had anything in common with the three of them so they were off talking to themselves while she just sat there and listened to people talk around her.

Her husband seemed to be a wildcard, a mystery to these audience members. She could hear some people talking about how they'd never heard of him, but he looked kind of scary. She laughed at that, Chris, scary? The words just didn't go together, Chris was not a scary guy, Chris was a funny guy, but not scary. Other people were dismissing him, saying that a wrestler would never come out and be anything but a clunky, rhythmless meathead. Chris would definitely show _them_ who was boss. Now she really wanted her husband to come out here and show everyone up. She hated when people just assumed all wrestlers were this weird stereotype. They weren't; Chris was going to prove that.

She spent most of the show restless and shifting in her seat. Chris wasn't going on until near the end so she had to sit through a bunch of other dancers she had no emotional attachment to and who instantly became the enemy. She watched with a shrewd eye, trying to determine who was going to be the real competition. There were some who were clearly not as good as Chris was going to be and she was glad that at the very least, Chris wasn't going to be eliminated first. That was his biggest fear, but she didn't think he had to worry about that.

When they said that Chris was coming up, she straightened in her chair. This was what she'd been waiting weeks to see and now it was here and she couldn't wait to see the final product. She'd only seen the snippets, so seeing this was going to be a new experience and she knew Chris would want her opinion. She slogged her way through the rehearsal footage, stuff she'd seen or knew about already and watched as Chris took the floor.

Chris had been standing backstage, trying not to shake right out of his pleather jacket. He'd been listening to music all day to calm his nerves, but it wasn't working anymore. They were about to be introduced and he could hear his own voice playing over the monitors so the audience could see his video package. He hoped he came across okay in that, not that he had been acting as anything other than himself. His disastrous turn on Celebrity Duets played in his mind and the fear of going first, the fear of that Jericho Curse was settling over his body. He was going to lose.

"You're going to be fine," Cheryl said as if sensing his tenseness. "We've been over this a million times and you've been doing wonderfully. Just go out there, do what we've done in rehearsal and most importantly, have fun!"

"Okay," he nodded.

"Good luck," she said as they walked out onto the stage and got into their places. Chris stood there, smiling, probably looking like an idiot (he sure felt like one) and pondered why he'd agreed to do this show in the first place. He could be in the safe confines of an arena in Pittsburgh right now, pestering his wife about the show and looking to have a match, but no, he had to do this show and it's dancing and be out of his element. And then, then the music started and he started stomping and clapping his hands, inciting the crowd to action.

He glanced over at Stephanie and she was clapping along with him and she sent him a wide grin filled with that pride he'd been so desperately seeking. And like she did so many times in their lives, just seeing her there, just knowing she was there was enough to calm him down. If Stephanie, this woman who was such a perfectionist that she hardly ever seemed to make a mistake (in his eyes), could believe in him, then he could do this. He was Chris Jericho and he could do anything.

So he danced. Was it perfect? No, it wasn't, he knew it, but he'd tried his best and he'd done his best most importantly of all. He remembered his steps and though he knew his hands and his hip action weren't the greatest, it still felt good. He knew that Cheryl would get on him for his rise and fall, his posture, his footwork, keeping his toes pointed, balance, all this, but right now, in the moment, he felt great, like he was conquering this whole new world. The pressure seemed to float away and as he turned and spun and got glimpses of his very observant wife, he took Cheryl's words to heart. He was not dancing for the millions of people watching at home. He was not dancing for the audience, the judges, not a single person except for him and Stephanie. He was dancing for him and his wife. That was it. He just focused on being himself and making Stephanie proud and before he knew it, he and Cheryl had finished dancing and he was trying to gain his breath.

He could hear Stephanie cheering for him over his shoulder and that made him want to go over and hug her and kiss her, but he refrained so he could get the judge's comments. He was bracing himself for the worst, but they were complimentary for the most part and he was so relieved that he couldn't even stand it. A 19 had never felt so good before. He would take that 19 and he would relish it for the evening. Sure, they had work to do, he knew it, but this was a start and it went better than he had hoped for.

When the cameras stopped rolling, he made a beeline for Stephanie. "What did you think, honest opinion?"

"Other than the lame costumes, which I blame you for because this is so you," she said, fingering the pleather, "I loved it, I thought you were great, sweetie. I'm so proud of you. I don't know all the technical dance terms, but you were better than I ever could have imagined. Were you the best, no, I think Ralph is really good, but I'm sensing Hines is going to creep in there and try and beat everyone, but you are going to be a force to be reckoned with."

"You really think so? You're not just buttering me up because you love me and have my babies and don't want me to be sad?"

"Would I lie to you about something competitive?"

"No, I guess not," he told her. "You look beautiful by the way. I thought it when I saw you earlier, from the celebriquarium up there. I couldn't keep my eyes off of you, kind of made it difficult to focus on the other dances, but I figured you were taking extensive notes as it was."

"You know me too well," she hugged him, "I'm so proud of you, sweetie, you have no idea, just so proud of you."

"I love you," he told her, "you have no idea how just seeing you out here calmed me down. I know how much of a sacrifice it is for you to miss work and not be at Raw, your first love, but I'm really glad you're here."

"Chris," she told him, taking his face in her hands, ignoring all the people milling about, the Bellas who wanted to congratulate Chris too, Cheryl who was kind of hanging back behind them, everyone was ignored as he looked at his wife's face. "I will only say this once, so you better listen and listen well. _You_ are more important than any Raw will ever, _ever_ be. And I could not be prouder of you than if you'd won every single title in the WWE at the same time. You hear me? There is nowhere in the world I'd rather be than supporting you in everything and anything you choose to do. Wrestling is just a thing and yes, it's my blood and God, I love it, but not even close to how much I love you. So trust me, my job is the last thing on my mind right now."

He didn't even know what to say to that. He knew Stephanie loved him more than wrestling, him the person, but for her to actually support him in things like this, something that was detracting him from wrestling, it was unexpected, but the words she'd used, the way she expressed herself was in a way he'd never had from her before and it filled him with confidence.

Chris was going to win this damn this thing or die trying.


	317. Quick, Quick, Slow, March 28, 2011

"Okay, put your foot right there."

"Right here?"

"Yes, right there, no, right _there_."

"It is right there!"

"It isn't, move it to the right!"

"I put it right where you said to put it!"

"No, you're not!"

"Okay, I'm done, that's it!"

"You can't, I have to practice!" Chris complained.

"There's not even any room in here."

"And whose fault is that?"

"Yours!"

"How is it mine?" he wondered.

"Because you bought this house," Stephanie told him. "You decided that because I was pregnant and giving you your first born that I would need a _house_ for some inexplicable reason. I still don't know why you bought me a house."

"But look, it's saving us a lot of trouble now that I'm living out here," he pointed out.

"I hate when you say that you're living out here, it makes it sound like we're not living together and that's just weird. Thinking about you not living with me and living somewhere else, I don't like thinking about that," she told him.

"We're living together right now, aren't we?" he pointed out. "So how can we feel like we aren't living together, when we're…living together?"

"Because I think of home as Tampa," she told him, "so this doesn't feel like home, it's just a place that we're staying. But you're living here now so I guess this is where you live. And I've got to leave soon, you know that, right? I mean, WrestleMania is next weekend…"

"Stephanie, I'm well aware that WrestleMania is next weekend, I'm flying up on Thursday," Chris told her, "it's like you think I'm so consumed by this dancing thing that I've completely forgotten everything else in my life."

"Well, we _are_ standing in the living room and you want me to help you practice dancing," Stephanie said, gesturing with her head towards their positions. Chris was holding up Stephanie's arms in traditional closed hold position.

"I need to practice my holds, baby," Chris told her.

"Yes, but I'm not your partner."

"You _are_ my partner," he said cheekily, "you're my partner in life."

Stephanie rolled her eyes but smiled, "I love you very much, but I'm not a dancer so I'm not sure how you expect me to keep this up. I can't exactly do all the steps with you. I mean, I watch you and Cheryl, but it's not like I'm paying that much close attention to the steps or anything."

"But you sometimes pay attention," he told her, "you can at least just hold me so I can practice this hold. I'm trying to keep my posture up."

"I can tell."

"You know what else I could get up?" he asked her, grinning and then leaning in and kissing her.

"I'm sure you could get that up," Stephanie said, "but I thought you wanted to practice."

"I do want to practice…practice on you," he said, pulling her closer to him so that her chest was pressing into his chest and they were closer than was probably normal for the quickstep. He was looking at her like he was going to command her any moment and she stared him down.

"So you don't want to do well on Monday then?"

"I can do well on Monday," he said, leaning down to kiss her. "I can do well tonight as well."

"What in the world has gotten into you, Chris Jericho?" Stephanie asked, not that she was complaining really. She loved being with Chris so she never had a problem when he tried to put the moves on her. Chris was and always had been a charming man. Sure, sometimes he was cheesy, but that just added to his endearing charm. Not many men could be a ham and charming at the same exact moment, but Chris had it down to a science and one smile and Stephanie was usually ready to melt. It also helped that all his charm could be easily backed up in the bedroom, but nobody but her needed to know that.

"It's WrestleMania week," he said, waggling his eyebrows, "you know how hot that always gets us. It's when we always have the biggest fights or the best sex and I'm starting to get in the groove of it all."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yes, and I can't wait to see you at the Hall of Fame, you are going to look so smoking hot."

"Oh, that reminds me, I invited Cheryl to come to it. I know she's going to fly down so you can rehearse while you're down there and I thought, well, I can't have her sitting in her hotel room by herself while we're out doing all of our things so I invited her to the Hall of Fame and of course the after party and she'll be at the show and everything. I told her that she can sit out in the audience if she wants. She can probably sit with your parents and the kids."

"You're the best, you think of everything," he told her. "I think, well hope, that Cheryl will like that. She really hasn't gotten a taste of what we're really about. I think if she sees our world, at least for the night, that she'll learn a lot about the two of us, our dynamic, my dynamic."

"I agree," she told him. "She'll have fun."

"Yeah."

"So the quickstep?" Stephanie said. "Don't you find it kind of silly that you, who is learning to dance himself, is trying to teach me how to dance? I mean, there's no way you know what you're doing enough to expect me to be any good to you."

"I don't need you to be good, I just need you to kind of follow me, I'm the lead, that's my job as the man. I know that concept seems odd to you because you're so used to being the head of this relationship, but in the dancing world, I command you, like Cheryl said, I'm the frame and you're the picture, I'm the thing holding you up."

"Well, not really because I can stand," Stephanie told him and he groaned, "Okay, okay, I'm the picture."

"You're a beautiful picture," he told her, kissing her again.

"My, my, my Mr. Jericho, I do declare that you are trying to charm your way into my pants," Stephanie drawled comically.

"I can get in those pants any time I want," he winked at her. "Okay, so now will you please move your foot there?"

"Like this?" Stephanie asked, moving her foot over and Chris nodded as he started to lead her across the dance floor. Stephanie wasn't actually that bad. She was naturally graceful, but she wasn't exactly Ginger Rogers or anything.

"Yes, thank you," he said as he tried to guide her across the living room floor, only to succeed in stepping on one of Kensington's stacking rings. He yelped and then lifted his foot, looking at it and making sure he hadn't cut it. He picked up the ring and looked at it. "Whose toy is this?"

"That would be Kensy's," Stephanie said.

Chris sighed, "How can I be mad at my baby?"

"You can't," Stephanie said.

"I mean, she's playing with toys now and she's sitting up and trying to crawl and she's too adorable. I should be going to her room, waking her up and telling her that she shouldn't leave her toys lying around."

"You'd never do that," she told him.

"Of course not, I love my baby."

"You love all your babies," Stephanie said.

"I'm whipped for them, aren't I?" he said, placing Kensington's toy on the coffee table. She nodded. Just like he'd suspected. "I can't wait for Sawyer and Flynn to watch me dance on Monday. I can't believe you're letting them sit in the audience."

"I think it'll be good for them…well, I think it'll be good for Flynn. Sawyer understands what you're doing, he knows that you wrestle and you love it and this is just something that you're doing, but I'm not sure Flynn gets this whole thing. I think that if she sees you dancing, she's going to get a real feel for what this is and maybe she'll learn to love it."

"Or hate me even more for looking like a sissy and then she challenges me to a match at WrestleMania and how can I compete with that girl?" he joked.

"She might think you look stupid, but I think she'll like it, plus, I found _the_ cutest dress for her at one of these fancy Beverly Hills boutiques," Stephanie said haughtily. "I love going in there and everyone is probably thinking, hey, who is that lady, she shouldn't shop here and then I have more money than all of them, but I don't even care."

"California is changing you," he shook his head. "I can't dance in here, there's just no room."

"Go outside, there's plenty of room out there."

"Come with me?" he asked.

"The kids are in here," Stephanie said, "I can't just leave them."

"They're all asleep," he pointed out, "plus, I'm not asking you to go to a bar with me, I'm asking you to sit outside and watch me and help me when I need it. Come _on_, Stephanie, I've been working very hard on the Hall of Fame to make it a success and I've been working very hard on my dancing _and_ I've got to start doing stuff for the Golden Gods and-"

"Remember who you're talking to, Jericho, because if anyone is _not_ going to be sympathetic it's the woman who holds and executive position at a billion dollar company on top of raising four children."

"I resent that!" he said, grabbing her hand, "come on, it's a beautiful night anyways and the moonlight can only enhance your beauty and make you glow."

"You're disgusting now," she told him, but she let him pull her outside. She locked the door behind her just in case and then followed Chris out into the driveway. The back led out to the beach so that wasn't an ideal location to try dancing so he had to settle for the flat driveway and street. He stood in the middle of the driveway and Stephanie sat, her back leaning against the garage door.

"Baby, do you think I can win this thing?" he asked as he twirled around the front of their house.

"Of course I do," she told him.

"Really?"

"Yes," she told him with conviction, "I always believe in you."

"How do you like being a housewife?" he asked, since she hadn't been to Raw in two weeks this Monday and while she did have work, she'd been more into taking care of the kids than anything else. It was a change for her; that was for sure. The only other time she'd ever stayed at home during any period of time was when she was pregnant with their kids.

"I hate it, I'm not good at it," Stephanie him as he hopped along the drive. "It's not fun for me, it never has been. I don't think I could be that kind of woman. I don't think I could be the kind of woman that just takes care of the kids; it's not who I am."

"You know, when I was first telling Cheryl about my family, she asked if you were a stay-at-home mom because I was worth money, you know, with the books and everything," Chris told her, "I laughed at that because well, it's you, but I just can't imagine that role for you."

"Me neither," she said, "keep your back straight."

"Thanks," he told her. "You really are proud of me?"

"So proud," Stephanie told him.

He smiled and winked as he twirled again, counting out his steps. "They say that the quickstep is a killer dance. They're always going on about how it's the kiss of death so I really want to do it well. Cheryl says I'm coming along nicely, but I just don't know."

"I think you're doing great," she reassured him. It wasn't like Chris not to be confident in what he was doing, but because this was such a foreign thing to him, he needed it and he needed a lot of it. Not only was it something new for him, but he was being judged for it, which added a whole level of pressure. Wrestling, the only judging was from the fans and your peers, but they didn't have paddles with numbers on them to grade his every move.

"I love you," he told her.

"I love you too," she told him, nodding her head and humming along to the song he was dancing too, which he appreciated since it made it easier for him to remember his steps. The quickstep wasn't an easy dance. Most of it was done in closed hold and it was mostly running around, except that you had to run around in a precise manner. He had to keep his knees up and his feet had to be in a certain position. He was used to that kind of thing in wrestling, especially with his Lionsault. If he didn't catch the ropes right, he could hurt himself, but this was different in a way he couldn't yet articulate.

"What are you doing?" he asked when he looked over at Stephanie. He'd gotten so caught up in his steps he hadn't even noticed what Stephanie was doing. She was currently on her phone, the small light illuminating her face.

"I'm just looking at your Twitter," she told him, not looking up at him. "I know you say you read every tweet you get, but you don't."

"Are you posting as me again?" Chris asked. He'd given up on the Twitter when it came to Stephanie. The woman invaded every other part of his life, she might as well invade this one too. Before he knew it, she was probably going to be playing drums in Fozzy.

"Just a couple things," she said, "but if anyone was going to post as you, wouldn't it be? I know you better than you know yourself."

"That's not possible."

"It is possible," she told him, "you're thinking that there's no way I could know everything about you, but I pretty much do. It's nothing major, just saying that you had to go out into the street practically to practice is all."

"What do you think people would think if they knew you were tweeting for me?"

"I think they would be okay with that. In fact, they would probably be more than okay because sometimes I read things like Stephanie should be on Twitter and then asking you to get me on there so if they knew that we sort of share the account, they'd probably be fine with it."

"Share the account?"

"Well, I'm on it checking it for you."

"Share the account?" he repeated.

"Okay, so I go on your account, what's the big difference?" she asked. "Just dance, Twinkle Toes."

Chris started dancing again until he heard Kensington crying, "Do you have her baby monitor out here or is our daughter just unusually loud?"

"I have it," she said, "she's not used to this house and I don't think she likes it very much. At home she sleeps through the night fine, I think she doesn't like it here because of Flynn. You know that Kensy is a light sleeper."

"Yeah and Flynn likes to move around in bed a lot. You going to stay out here?"

"I'll come in, there's only so much practicing I can do without a partner and if you're not out here with me, it's not fun at all," he told her, sticking out his hand as he pulled her up. "Stephanie?"

"Yeah?" she said as they walked back inside the house.

"I wish you could be here every week," Chris told her, wrapping his arm around her. "I didn't tell you before, but last week, I was so nervous going out there, but seeing you, you were just…I don't know, seeing you just made me feel better, a lot calmer, you know, like I could really do it, I just wish you could be there for me every week."

"Chris…"

"No, I know that you have work and I would never try to stop you from working. I know that I'm more important than the show, but I know that the show is important to you as well and I would never make you choose, it would just be nice is all. Seeing you cheering for me, it makes me feel better about the whole thing. I just like you being there."

"I know," she said, leaning her head on his shoulder. "If you want me there, I'll be there."

"Steph, no, I don't want to make you choose," he told her. "That wasn't my intention, I just wanted you to know that seeing you there, you have this calming affect on me."

"Are you trying to butter me up because you suddenly find yourself attracted to Cheryl?" Stephanie teased as they walked upstairs. "Because if that's the case, I will have to rip her hair out and then I'll have to show her what wrestling can do to a person."

"I don't think that's necessary and no, Cheryl is not my type, she's too nice."

"I'm not sure I like what you're implying," she told him.

"There is nobody that can match me like you," he said, then he pressed his fingers to his lips as they entered Kensington and Flynn's room. Flynn was sitting up in bed, pouting and Kensington was crying.

"Daddy, she loud!" Flynn said angrily.

"I know, Flutterby, I'm sorry she woke you up," Chris said, sitting with Flynn as Stephanie went over and scooped up Kensington. She cradled her baby against her chest and rubbed her back, nodding to Chris that she would take Kensington to their room. Chris laid on the bed next to Flynn, who huddled under her blanket. "You've got to go back to sleep, Flutterby, if you want to see me dance. I'm not going to have you sitting there not looking cute. You have to compete with all the other kids and I want you to be the cutest of them all. Mommy said she got you a new dress and everything."

"Uh huh," Flynn said sleepily.

"Okay, I'm going to go get some sleep too, I love you, Flutterby."

"No go," she mumbled, grabbing onto the hem of his shirt as she closed her eyes. Chris leaned down and kissed her head.

"Shh, go to sleep, Flutterby, Daddy's not going anywhere."

Christian was looking for his brother. Tonight they had a match together and he was still getting used to the fact that he and Edge were working together again. It had been years since they'd been on the same show and the same page so actually getting to be together like this was almost new for them. It wasn't like they didn't know each other well or anything, they were brothers after all, but they had different skill sets now than they did when they were E&C and he wanted to make sure he and his brother were on the same page. He found Edge sitting on top of a trunk, flexing his hand over and over again.

"Hey, bro, what's going on?" Christian asked as he came upon Edge.

"Oh hey," Edge said, quickly stopping with the hand-flexing. "Wait, where's Tilden? I thought you had her tonight since Trish is in New Jersey with Snooki of all people, does Trish actually like that chick? I mean, she seems kind of…I don't know…weird. That's not a good word for it, is it?"

Christian shrugged, "She has to get along with her, they're in a match together so they kind of have to get along or else they'll lose and Morrison is being weird with Trish as it is."

"He is?"

"Yeah, I don't know what's up with that, but she won't let me talk to him, she told me that this is her match and I need to worry about…your match I guess since I don't have a match, how are you doing for next Sunday anyways?"

"I'm doing well, I'm almost in the zone," Edge said.

"That why you were flexing your hand?" Christian said and Edge looked up at him, "Dude, bro, I know you…probably better than most people seeing as how I've lived with you since the day I was born."

"Yeah, so you're younger, what of it?" Edge said.

"So I know something's bugging you, is it your neck again?" Christian asked.

"It's bothering me a little bit, but Stephanie said I could have time off after WrestleMania if I needed it and I think I'm going to take a couple weeks off and just recuperate. It's nothing major or anything, I'm ready to go for WrestleMania, believe me."

"Edge, man, you wouldn't lie about this stuff, would you?" Christian asked, concerned for his brother. "If Mom found out that you were hiding something…"

"Mom doesn't have anything to worry about, Christian," Edge said pointedly, "because there's nothing _to_ worry about."

"Does Lita know that you're not doing well?"

"Where's Tilde, dude?"

"She's with Lita, duh," Christian said, "who else do you think I would trust my kid with?"

"Britt and Hunter?" Edge said.

"Okay, well, yes, I would let them take care of Tilden, but Britt's in charge tonight since Stephanie is still with Chris on the dancing, anyways, stop deflecting, does Lita know how you're doing or are you keeping this stuff from her?"

"I'm not keeping anything from Lita," Edge said, standing up, "geez, you know, Christian, maybe you should mind your own business, okay. Of course I would tell my girlfriend how I'm feeling, I'm with her nearly everyday, I think she would know what I was feeling."

"I'm just saying, man," Christian said. "I worry about you, you're my brother, I care about what happens to you."

"I'm sorry, it's just I'm a little on edge, shut up," he quickly added, "because of WrestleMania and going in the champ and Del Rio and now his lackey and it's all just a lot of stress, which is probably the root cause of me feeling like crap, stress can do that to people, you know."

"I know, believe me, I know," Christian said, "but if things start to get bad-"

"Go see the doctor, I get it, I get it, come on, let's go find your daughter and my girlfriend, we can talk along the way," Edge said, wanting to get his mind off of what was going on with his body right now. The truth was, he wasn't feeling very well at all. But this was WrestleMania, the biggest show of the year and he couldn't possibly back out now because he was stressed or whatever was going on with him. He couldn't do that, he had to soldier on. Was it stupid? Potentially, but there were so many people counting on him that he couldn't let them down, he wouldn't do that.

"We can take the both of them, easy. I mean, it's us," Christian told him as they were walking.

"What do you mean?"

"We're E&C, we _made_ the tag division back in the day, they don't have any hope against us, not really, I just wanted to make sure we were on the same page, knew what we were doing."

"Don't we always know what we're doing?" Edge laughed.

"Yeah, but I don't want your doing and my doing to not coordinate and then we lose and look like idiots," Christian explained. "I just want to beat them up since I'm probably not going to be able to do it on Sunday."

"Sure you will, I'll let you get some licks in," Edge said, then pointed ahead. "Two of our favorite girls straight ahead."

"I can see that," Christian said, jogging over and going up right behind Tilden and covering her eyes, "Guess who, Tildy-bear?"

"Dada!" Tilden exclaimed and Christian's eyes widened.

"Did she just say Dada?"

"Oh my God, she did!" Lita said, her mouth opening, "what did you just say, Tilde? Did you just say Dada?"

"Dada, Dada, Dada."

"She's never said it like that before," Christian said, "oh my God, she's never said it like that before. She's said Mama, she's said no, but she's never really clearly said Dada, my daughter knows who I am! My daughter knows who I am!"

Edge laughed, "She probably knew who you were before, dude." He was happy for his brother though. He loved Tilden. That was his girl, his niece, and one of the only kids in this world he could tolerate. She was growing up right before his eyes and getting cuter and smarter by the day. He didn't like to brag, but his niece was going to be one of the great ones someday; he just knew it.

"I have to tell Trish, damn it, why isn't Trish here to see this! She's going to be so mad that she actually went out with Snooki instead of getting to see Tilde say my name for real the first time. I mean, she's been flirting with it, kind of saying it, but nothing like this, nothing so clear and right to me like that, it's always been kind of like she was trying to say it, could kind of say it, but it was difficult for her to say it."

"Then go tell Trish," Lita said, handing over the little girl. "Go!"

"I am, I am," he said, grabbing at Tilden and rushing off to his locker room to tell Trish about the progress Tilden had made when she wasn't there. Unfortunately, because Trish was in a bar somewhere in New Jersey, she apparently couldn't hear her phone or didn't have it on because it went to voicemail. He left a message telling Trish that Tilden had said his name and since he didn't have anything else to do, he decided to call Stephanie.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Steph, you busy?"

"Christian, um, a little," she said, trying to comb Saywer's hair so he looked presentable. "I'm just getting the kids ready for the show tonight. The filming is coming up soon and I've got to get Sawyer and Flynn into TV shape. Chris is already over there and Sonya has Kensy so I'm kind of set, what's going on? Is everything okay with the show? I know Britt said that everything was okay, but was she lying?"

"No, everything's fine, running efficiently," but then he added because he knew how Stephanie operated, "not as well as if you were here though, I mean, nobody can do your job and it's silly to think anyone could."

"You're sweet, Christian, but what's up?" she said as she patted Sawyer's back to let him know he was done. He pointed to Flynn, who was sitting in the hallway pushing one of Sawyer's cars around the floor and Sawyer went over to her and tapped her on her shoulder.

"Mommy wants you," Sawyer told her and Flynn nodded and ran into the room, throwing herself on the bed and probably wrinkling her dress in the process. Stephanie wasn't anal enough to get mad at her. She was two years old, sometimes clothes got wrinkled. Stephanie loved her dress though, a bright cotton apron dress, white fading into blue with flowers and butterflies all over it, which she thought was appropriate for Chris's little Flutterby.

Stephanie started combing Flynn's hair as Christian spoke, "I'm kind of worried about Edge."

"You are? Because of his match with Alberto on Sunday?" Stephanie asked.

"No, just…in general. I mean, I know it's kind of not my business, but then it is because he's my brother, you know, but I don't think he's as well as he's trying to make himself out to be and I'm worried about him."

"Okay, well, there's not much I can do from here," Stephanie said, clipping Flynn's hair back with a purple hairclip. "I can certainly talk to him before the week is over. Maybe we should have our doctor's check him out. I think we can order some tests done, tell him it's just a precautionary measure, you know, a pre-WrestleMania thing."

"I'd rather not lie to him," Christian said, "because he might get upset, but I think if we level with him, he mentioned that he's asked you for time off after WrestleMania and I've just seen him flexing his hand like he wasn't really feeling it, I just think that maybe you can persuade him to have more tests. If I bring it up, he won't listen to me, maybe he'd listen to Li, but I don't know. If you tell him it's a liability thing, maybe that will convince him."

"I'll talk to him when I come up, for sure," Stephanie said, "we'll figure out what's going on, just keep an eye out for him, okay?"

"Thank you so much, Stephanie," Christian said, "you have no idea what it means to me."

"Christian, Edge is one of my very best friends and one of the first people to know about me and Chris and he's been a mostly good friend ever since, I want him to be okay just as much as you do. Does it seem really bad?"

"I don't know, he's always been kind of good at covering things up, feelings, injuries, all of that. I just think something isn't right with him, but with it being WrestleMania, it's not like he's going to really say anything."

"I understand. He wants to put on a show for the fans."

"Of course," Christian said. "But hey, Tilden said Dada clearly for the first time today."

"Oh, Christian, you must be so happy!" Stephanie said knowing that must have thrilled Christian to no end. She'd seen Chris's face when Sawyer and Flynn had said his name for the first time and the way it brightened, she could just imagine that same look on Christian's face. "What did Trish think?"

"I'll let you know when she knows. She's in New Jersey tonight with Snooki, which, your Dad's idea?"

"Well, not initially, I mean, sort of. Chris was talking to my dad and somehow Jersey Shore came up and Chris mentioned that TNA had brought in one of the people and then my dad was like, well we need the bigger star or something, which Chris said was Snooki and that was how that was borne. Chris likes all those shows, sometimes I think he has too much time on his hands right now."

"But he has the dancing," Christian told her.

"Yeah, I guess," she said, "but he still watches too much TV. I'm sure Trish is going to love the fact that Tilden said your name. You two are such doting parents over that girl."

"Like you aren't!" he scoffed. "You and Chris are the worst of the worst."

"We are not, we are very level-headed parents."

"No, you're not," Christian said, "but I'm not going to argue over it right now since I know you're probably busy getting the kids ready. Thanks for talking about the Edge thing with me, I'm just worried and better safe than sorry, right?"

"Yes, especially when it comes to wrestling," Stephanie said, "good luck in your match tonight."

"You know about that?"

"Christian, I might not be there, but who do you think approves Britt's stuff?"

"Sorry, thanks, tell Chris good luck if you see him."

"I'll let him know, bye Christian."

"Bye, Steph."

Christian tried not to notice that something seemed slightly off with Edge during his match. He tried to just go out there and concentrate on wrestling, but when he could see that his brother was struggling, even as slightly as Edge was, his receptors were on high alert and he knew there was something his brother wasn't telling him, probably the severity of what he was feeling. He wished he could just stop the match, stop WrestleMania and get Edge checked out, but his brother would never go for that. He would just have to keep an eye on Edge until Stephanie could get there and convince him to get some more tests done. If Edge thought the company was at stake, he would get it done and Christian feared that was going to be the only way he'd get his brother in to see a doctor.

Well, maybe there was another way.

"Li?"

"Hey," Lita said, then whispered, "sorry, Tilde has been really good and sleeping like an angel."

"Thanks for watching her," Christian said, "hey, can I ask you something about Edge?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"Has he seemed out of sorts lately?" Christian asked, "like, has he been stiffer than normal?"

"Well, no more than usual I don't think," Lita told him. Christian could tell she was telling the truth. No way would Lita of all people cover for Edge with something as serious as an injury. Lita had suffered her share of injuries over her career and she loved Edge enough not to put him at risk. But Christian _could_ believe that above anyone, Edge would keep something like this from Lita.

Edge was a proud guy. He had his humbling qualities, mostly hidden by his goofy and man-whore exterior, but he was still a very proud man. He wouldn't want Lita to worry about him. He wouldn't want her to be scared for him. He projected a lot of things to the world, but Christian knew that he was different when he was with Lita. He didn't know the inner-workings of their relationship, didn't know how they behaved when they were completely alone, but he knew his brother was not the same guy when he was around Lita. Whatever Lita was to Edge, she made him a changed man. With every other woman in his life, Edge had let his eye wander. Not so with Lita. Lita kept his grounded.

Edge would do anything to make sure Lita was okay, even pretending like he was fine. "Keep an eye out on him, please, for me, Li," Christian said.

"Christian, what's going on? Is Edge okay? Is he keeping something from me?"

"I kind of think he may be keeping something from everyone right now," Christian said, "I'm not sure what, just…watch him for me, okay? When he thinks you're not looking, just watch him."

"Okay," Lita said and now she was so distracted she could barely mutter out a goodbye to Christian. If something was wrong with Edge, she wanted to know about it. Sure, she and Edge weren't married or engaged or whatever, but they'd made a pact to be together. Whatever this was between the two of them, they were lifers now. Their commitment was just as good as a marriage and she needed to know he'd be there and he'd be okay.

Christian's words were going to haunt her.

"Okay, you two," Stephanie said as she took her seat next to Flynn, with Sawyer right beside her. "We have some ground rules going into tonight, you got it?"

"Mommy, it's nice in here," Sawyer said, looking around. He wasn't really used to fancy places like this. When they watched his daddy wrestle it was not in places with dance floors and nice chairs, it was loud and this was kind of quiet. It was weird.

"I know, which is why we all have to be on our best behavior," Stephanie told them. "Tonight, Daddy is going to be dancing, okay? But…and this is a big _but_, there are going to be other people dancing too. Now these people deserve our attention too. It's like when you get to see other wrestlers besides daddy, we are respectful towards them, right?"

"Yes, wrestlers!" Flynn growled and held her hands up in a defensive stance.

"Okay, there won't be any of _that_," Stephanie said, putting her daughter's hands down. "When other people dance, we're going to clap and be polite about it. We are _not_ going to get up or run out onto the dance floor, this means you, Miss Flynn. I know when you see someone you want to beat up, you have the urge to chase them, we will not be beating anyone up tonight. I know when you see Daddy, you're probably going to want to go see him or talk to him, but we can't, Daddy is concentrating very hard tonight and we have to be supportive."

"By watching him and cheering when he's done, right, Mommy?" Sawyer said.

"That's exactly right, baby boy," she said, shooting him a smile. "When Daddy's done dancing, we have to cheer and cheer for him and then he'll be happy that we cheered for him."

"I want Daddy to be happy."

"I do too, what about you, Flynnie?"

"I do too," she said because she did.

"Okay, best behavior, promise?" she asked the two of them.

"Promise," Sawyer said diligently.

"Proms," Flynn echoed and Stephanie kissed both their heads before the show started in earnest. Like clockwork, when Chris came down the steps, his kids cheered for him and he beamed in their direction. His kids had never been on TV before, but damn if they wouldn't make good TV. How anyone could look at them and not want to vote for him, he didn't know. He'd _have_ to get the most votes if the world saw how beautiful his children were. It was just too bad Kensy wasn't here because then it would be the cute trifecta. He saw Flynn's dress and Stephanie was a genius. Butterflies for his little Flutterby? Damned if his woman wasn't on top of every aspect of his life!

Stephanie couldn't help but think about how handsome her husband was. He was definitely the eye candy of the season. She'd looked around this ballroom and seen many a women eyeing up her husband. Yeah, Ralph Macchio might have been the Karate Kid, but he paled in comparison to the Ayatollah of Rock and Rolla. The outfit he was wearing was hugging him in all the right places and all the ladies were bound to see _exactly_ what she got on a nightly basis (well, not nightly, but a lot) and she sat up straighter wanting to nod her head and pop her invisible collar. That was _all_ hers, ladies, all hers.

"Daddy silly," Flynn giggled and whispered.

"He is?" Stephanie asked her.

"He no wrestle," Flynn laughed, "look, look silly."

"I'll be sure to tell him later," Stephanie said, holding Flynn's hand.

Her kids were kids and when they were bored, sometimes they looked it. She could tell that Sawyer was at least trying to be interested when everyone else danced and he didn't necessarily do anything rude, but he was obviously bored. Flynn, who was younger, flopped all over the seat and at one point had her head practically in Stephanie's lap. Stephanie couldn't blame her; she didn't know who any of these people were and she didn't care about them. She was glad when Chris's package started because it perked the kids up considerably. Finally they were able to see their father and see what they came for.

Flynn looked excited to finally see Chris and was pretty much bouncing in her seat. Sawyer was leaning forward and when Chris showed up, their faces lit up like the fireworks. They were so in love with their daddy. The music started and their father started to glide across the dance floor, smile in place and dancing like he'd never danced before (well, he'd never danced the quickstep before so it wasn't too out of place).

Chris felt more comfortable this week. While last week he'd been so nervous he thought he might puke, this week he wanted to have fun. His kids were in the audience and they were going to cheer him on (or boo him in Flynn's case, he wasn't sure what he'd get out of her) and he was happy to have them and Stephanie here. He glanced over at them just before the dance started and grinned at his family, who were all grinning back like they were some crazy happy family. It gave him the confidence he needed throughout his dance. He counted the steps in his head while trying to maintain the happy, upbeat demeanor and he thought he did a bang up job.

When he was anticipating the dance, it always felt like forever, but when he was actually dancing, it seemed to go by in an instant. Suddenly, they were finished and he looked up at the camera and blew a quick kiss to his Kensy-bug, who Sonya promised would be watching the show. He could hear the cheers from his family and when he looked over, he could see that Sawyer was standing on his feet, cheering and yelling for him and that felt so good he couldn't even believe it. Flynn was clapping madly, but still looked a little put out. He'd seen her cheer more for matches of his she watched on DVD and video, but he'd take what he could get out of his little warrior girl. Stephanie mouthed to him that he was amazing and he beamed.

"Daddy was good!" Sawyer said to Stephanie as they sat down so the judges could critique him.

"I know," Stephanie said nodding, "what did you think, Flynnie?"

"It no wrestle," she shrugged, "but it good."

Stephanie just kissed her head and blessed her soul as she watched the judges rave about Chris. She was perhaps even more proud of her husband and it made her think about some things in her life. Chris supported her. Every stupid thing she'd ever wanted, Chris supported her. When she'd asked him to go to Raw and spy for her, he'd done it, when she'd asked him to keep them a secret for almost two years, he'd done it, when she'd asked him to pretend to divorce her, he'd done it, when she asked him to take time off, he'd done it. Everything he did for her and she had given him two measly shows? Everything he did for her, given her and she was waffling. That wasn't a good wife. She couldn't be there next week because of WrestleMania, but she was going to try and be there every week. She had a competent assistant in Britt who could take care of things. It was time for her to really sacrifice something for a change.

Chris went backstage to await his scores and Brooke asked him if he responded well to tough love and he said that Cheryl was like a dancing Yoda, but then added, "My wife is pretty tough as well so I'm pretty much used to it, she's that hot brunette in the front row, but I don't think anyone is tougher than my two year old daughter, Flynn, my little Flutterby. She's that absolutely adorable little girl in the butterfly dress in between the hot brunette and my mini-me. She's as tough as they come and if I can live with those two, then Cheryl will be a piece of cake."

Stephanie blushed and leaned over to the kids, "Daddy just mentioned you."

"Also, just wanted to say hi to my baby at home, Kensy, hey, Kensy-bug!" Chris said quickly before getting some of the best scores of the night. He was immensely proud of his accomplishment.

But nothing could compare to after the show when Sawyer and Flynn ran up to him and hugged him tightly, "Daddy, I think you were the best, best, best of anyone I ever saw!"

"Thanks!" Chris said enthusiastically and kissed his son's cheek. "What did you think, Flutterby?"

"I like wrestles," Flynn told him, "but I like Daddy."

"Well thanks for that then too," Chris said, kissing them both on the head. Cheryl came over and Stephanie hugged her and congratulated her on a job well done as well.

"You're turning him into this polished gentleman," Stephanie joked, "I never thought I'd see the day."

Chris looked over this little group, "Well gang, I guess there's one thing left to do."

"What's that?" Cheryl asked.

"It's WrestleMania time."


	318. Arrival WrestleMania Pt 1, April 3, 2011

A/N: Was starting to do the WrestleMania chapter and it was getting long so I decided to cut it off here and continue on with it in the next chapter. Hope you enjoy (I know people read this even if you don't review so I do hope you're enjoying!). :)

* * *

Lita knocked on Stephanie's hotel room door and shoved her hands in her pockets. She'd told Edge that she was going to hang out with Stephanie and while that wasn't entirely a lie, it wasn't entirely the truth either. The door opened a moment later and a harried-looking Stephanie was on the other side. Her hair was pulled back in a messy ponytail and she was in a t-shirt and sweatpants. She smiled, though, when she saw Lita.

"Hey, Li, what's up?"

"Hey, Steph, are you busy?" Lita asked.

"Only a little," Stephanie said, "come on inside."

"Are you sure? You look kind of busy and…stressed."

"Oh, I just look like that because it's WrestleMania week and because Chris isn't coming in until Thursday and he's always the one who calms me down this week, but he has rehearsals and I don't even have the kids here with me so I don't have that to calm me down either," Stephanie said with a shrug, "so I'm just kind of busy and lost, but come on in. Right now I was just preparing what I wanted to say at the press conference tomorrow. My dad can't come in for some reason until tomorrow evening so he asked if I could take care of officially opening the weekend."

"Thanks," Lita said, stepping inside and giving a low whistle, "when you get a room, you get a _room_."

"Yeah," Stephanie shrugged, "we have to have enough space for the kids to have room. Kensy needs her own room because of the light sleeping and well, here we are."

"Where is Chris going to practice?"

"I checked with the hotel, they have these large conference rooms, I booked one for them so they have use of it all weekend long. It should be good enough for them to practice."

"That's really good, Chris is doing pretty well, I've been voting for him," Lita admitted.

"That's really sweet, every vote counts," Stephanie said, feeling like she was on the campaign trail all over again, except instead of campaigning for her mother, she was campaigning for her husband to win a stupid dance contest. "So, you look very serious right now and I don't think you came to talk about your voting habits."

Lita sighed and sat down on the couch in the living room area of the suite. Stephanie took a seat next to her, pulling her legs up onto the couch. She waited for Lita to speak because it seemed like whatever was on her mind was something big. Stephanie had an idea about what it would be about, but she didn't want to go ahead and jump to conclusions, but she figured it would have to do with what Christian had spoken to her this past Monday.

"It's Edge," Lita finally said, confirming what Stephanie thought.

"Okay…" Again, Stephanie left pause for Lita to continue what she was saying.

"Christian told me to keep an eye out on him and I really think there's something wrong and he's just not telling me," Lita responded. "His hands are shaking. Whenever it happens, he either balls them up into fists or puts them in his pockets of busies himself with doing something. Then I notice that's he constantly flexing his hands, like he has no feeling in them or something. He tries to hide it from me, but he can't hide everything from me, we live together for the most part. I want to talk to him, but it's WrestleMania and he's going to get defensive. He doesn't take to these things well."

"Well, Christian had the same concerns. I've actually got a standing appointment with the company doctor tomorrow who is going to recommend that Edge get checked. We'll tell him it's a precaution for his match on Sunday, but I think it'll give a better understanding to what is going on."

"Oh good, I can't believe he's been trying to hide it. I don't know why though, he's never really hid anything in the past. I guess I'm just worried that somehow it's worse this time and…I just don't want him going into the match being…I don't even know," she shook her head. "I love him, you know."

"I know," Stephanie said, reaching out and squeezing Lita's shoulder. "It's hard seeing people you love hurt."

"You're lucky at least," Lita told her. "Chris never gets hurt. He's like, this…I don't even know."

"Yeah, I know," Stephanie laughed softly, "I was actually talking more about Shane and my parents, whenever they had something happen to them. I hated it for the most part, but yeah, when Chris got his tooth knocked out, I wasn't happy about that."

"If only Edge had gotten his tooth knocked out."

"I'm sorry," Stephanie said, "I know that what you're describing is serious and believe me, we're going to deal with this seriously. I might b Edge's friend but I'm also his boss and as such, I want to make sure that my talent is protected."

"Yeah," Lita said. "God, it's tough being with a wrestler, isn't it?"

"You're telling me," Stephanie laughed, "All my adult relationships have been with wrestlers pretty much. First there was Andrew, then there was Hunter, now there's Chris."

"When I was with Matt, like, right in the middle of it all, I thought to myself, this is the man I'm going to be with. Everything was good, you know, where you're in that moment and you think it'll never get better than this, but if this was happening with Matt, I'm not sure I would have the same level of concern. I know that sounds terrible of me and it's not fair to compare relationships, but…I'm worried as hell, Stephanie. I want to ask him about it, but I know what he's going to say, he's going to brush it off and I will get angry and we'll fight."

"Well, he's going to have to face it sooner or later," Stephanie said, "but don't worry, I've got things covered and we'll handle this. Maybe we should get Sawyer to talk to him, Sawyer already makes him angry so it wouldn't be so much of a stretch."

Lita laughed, but nodded, "He probably could get the information out of him. You have no idea how many times I have to hear him talk about how Sawyer can't say his name right and how annoying it is."

"Actually, Sawyer _can_ say Edge's name, he just thinks that Ed is a really cool nickname for him."

"Oh man, I'm not even going to tell Edge that, I think it'll just make him angrier," Lita said, "so how is Chris doing with the dancing? Like the backstage scoop."

"He likes it," Stephanie said, "he says that it's really hard and from the rehearsals that I watch, it does seem pretty hard, but you know how Chris is, he loves the challenge of it and he loves competition, obviously. I think everyone likes him as well, but can you really blame them, Chris is charming and he can charm the pants off anyone."

Chris sat down and folded her arms in front of her, "Okay, so this week, we get to choose the music and we have to have a personal story to go along with the dance, which for us is the rumba. Now, the rumba is one of the more…intimate dances, it's built a lot on dancing together, like a couple _couple_. A lot of people have described it as sex on the dance floor almost. Now that doesn't mean that our story necessarily has to do with love or sex or anything like that because that'd be a little awkward on a family show."

"Well, now that you've put all those restrictions on me because I was absolutely going to have a dance about my wife," Chris laughed.

"Okay, so, personal story, what's it going to be?"

"So I've been wracking my brain trying to think of what I thought would be a good personal story and I guess that I just, well, I was trying to think back. I talked to Wendy about her personal story and hers was about her journey to being a successful radio DJ and I thought about my journey to be a wrestler, but I don't think that would be a very rumba-tastic dance. Maybe one of the more aggressive dances."

"Yeah, that would be appropriate," Cheryl said.

"Anyways, thinking back, I went back to a place that I didn't really want to go back to, but I think it played a really big part of my life back then and I think dancing to this story and for the person this is about is something that would be really poignant and resonate with the audience."

"Lay it on me."

"Well, right after I finished my wrestling training, I was going to set out onto the road, but then I got a call that my parents had been in a car accident. A car had run a red light and t-boned my parents' car. My dad was driving so the brunt of the accident didn't really affect him, but my mom was in the passenger's seat and…it was really bad."

"Oh, Chris," she said, looking at him sympathetically.

"I don't even know how I got home," he laughed. "I was in Calgary at the time and I got back as fast as I could. My dad broke had a broken arm and a concussion, but my mom was…it shattered her pelvis and broke her hip and her shoulder and there was the head trauma, which was the worst of it. She had to have surgery to reduce the swelling and they kept her in an induced coma for a couple weeks."

He was starting to get emotional thinking about that time in his life. Obviously his mother was doing well and she was as vibrant and active as she'd always been. Still, he remembered being a scared, little boy. He remembered now that Lance had driven him home because he'd been too shaken up to even attempt to drive and one of his oldest friends had recognized that. The entire ride he just kept thinking about being an orphan, being 19 and suddenly having no immediate family.

"But she's okay now?" Cheryl asked. Chris mentioned his mom a lot, but he had no idea the condition she was in.

"Yeah, she's okay. The swelling eventually went down and they were able to revive her, but she needed a lot of physical therapy. She can walk and do all of that stuff, but she can't do a lot of things for a long period of time. Her hip will start hurting her. But well, she likes dancing, we used to watch this show, Solid Gold, and she loved the dancers and she can't really dance anymore and so I'd like to dance for her."

"I think that's really sweet, Chris," Cheryl said.

"What do you guys think?" Chris asked.

"Gamma was hurt?" Sawyer asked.

"Bad?" Flynn asked as well.

"Yeah, pretty bad, but she's okay now," Chris told the reassuringly. "Do you think that I should dance a dance for Gamma?"

"Yes, because that would be really nice of you to do for her," Sawyer nodded. "I think Gamma will like it, is she going to watch it too?"

"Yeah, I wanted Gamma and Gampa to come watch on Monday since Mommy and the rest of you won't be there since you'll be at wrestling," Chris said, "that way I'll have people who will come cheer for me."

"I think that would be very nice and I like wrestling so I'll be happy too."

"What about you, Flutterby, do you think it would be nice to dance for Gamma?"

"Wrestle f'her," Flynn told him.

"Well, Gamma isn't as big a wrestling fan as you are, how about I wrestle for you when I come back, okay?" Chris said.

Flynn lit up at that, "Okay!"

"You're so easy to please," he winked at her. "Okay, so we've got our story and I would _love_ to do the dance to Let it Be by the Beatles. Would that be possible?"

"Absolutely," Cheryl said, "I think that's a good choice and I definitely think we can work it so that it's more of a tribute dance rather than a sexy dance. We'll just shift the emotions from it."

"If it comes out too sexy, I'll just say that it was for Stephanie and not for my mom, a little retroactive storytelling."

"Retroactive storytelling?"

"Right before the dance, I was thinking about my wife who couldn't be here tonight because she's working and she's been working so hard all weekend to make sure millions of wrestling fans have something great to watch and I just wanted to dedicate that dance to her as well because I love her so damn much."

"Smooth, Chris, smooth," Cheryl laughed. "Come on, do you guys want to see your dad dance?"

"Yes!" Sawyer yelled.

"Can wrestle?" Flynn asked.

"No, we're not going to wrestle, Flynn," Cheryl laughed, "but by the end of all this, I'm going to try my hardest to make you like dancing."

"Uh uh," Flynn shook her head defiantly. She liked wrestling and she wouldn't be satisfied until her daddy was wrestling again. All of this was just something that was impeding his way to wrestling and if she had her way, he would be there for WrestleMania on Sunday.

"We'll see," Cheryl told her.

"If you can get that little girl to love dancing by the end of this, I'll owe you a dinner at the fanciest place you can think of," Chris told her as Chris ushered Sawyer and Flynn on top of the small stage in the room next to the portable playpen that Kensington was currently chilling.

"Deal," Cheryl said, shaking his hand as he came over and then pulling him into closed position. "Okay, now it's time to focus on this rumba!"

"Go Daddy!" Sawyer cheered from where he was sitting.

"So much easier when I've got the cheering section here," Chris said, grinning at his kids. "I guess I just turn it on when they're here."

"We're working now, Chris, I'm the boss," she reminded him with a wink as she started to maneuver him around the floor.

Stephanie felt frazzled. She'd taken her father's private jet to New York for the press conference for the opening of WrestleMania and as soon as that was over, she'd be flying back to Atlanta. The travel schedule wasn't too brutal, but it meant that she didn't feel on top of her game. She pretty much exited the plane, got in the limo, went to the press conference, and then delivered her speech. She was lucky that she had some of the wrestlers and divas with her so the flight wasn't terribly boring.

When she went out there, the crowd actually cheered and that was always new for her, no matter how many times it happened. She just never got used to people actually liking her. She heard a "Please come back!" chant and she nearly blushed at that. People actually wanted her back? That was a new one. For a moment she thought that maybe they meant they wanted Chris back and since she was the closest thing to Chris they would chant it at her in the hopes that she would bring Chris back. Little did they know that her husband was as stubborn as a mule and would only come back when _he_ was ready.

She went through the motions, welcoming everyone to what was going to, hopefully, be a great weekend and introducing some of the superstars that had come with her. She did her job as professionally as she could, but was glad when the entire thing was over. She sauntered backstage and looked at her watch. Chris was already in rehearsals so she couldn't call him and check up on the kids and she guessed when Chris had a moment he'd call her to check-in.

"You were great out there," Hunter said, coming over and slinging an arm over her shoulder, "and was that a chant for you to come back."

"Obviously everyone here was already drunk," Stephanie joked, "because I think that's the only way anyone would want me back on television."

"I don't think you give yourself enough credit," Hunter told her. "People love you now that you're with the golden boy of the WWE and the world. I mean, your reputation suffered when you were with me, but now that you're with Chris, you can do no wrong."

"Oh yes, I'm sure that's so true," she said sarcastically.

"Well look at him over there, dancing his heart out, making women swoon I'm sure, and you're his beautiful wife in the audience whom he loves and talks about and everyone is jealous of," Hunter said in a mock-dreamy tone.

"Shut up," Stephanie said, "I do have a surprise for him though."

"I have a couple surprises up my sleeve as well," Hunter told her.

"Yours first," she prompted him, wondering what he could possibly do for a surprise. She knew that he had been asking to have a horse at WrestleMania and that he wanted some other extensive entrance, but that wasn't a surprise to her; she was coordinating the show so she knew all of these things.

"Can't tell you, sorry," Hunter shrugged, "it's for me to know and nobody to find out until I'm ready, but what is your thing?"

"Well, I've decided to take a leave of absence from the shows," Stephanie explained as Hunter's eyebrows knitted together and he looked at her strangely. "What?"

"Are you pregnant again?" Hunter whispered to her, his eyes gliding around the room making sure nobody was listening in on them.

Stephanie looked around too, then leaned in closer to Hunter and whispered conspiratorially, "No." Then she laughed at him.

"Then why in the hell are you leaving?"

"Because it's about time that I start acting like Chris's wife," Stephanie told him. "He's been so supportive of me all these years, over everything I've wanted to do and I've wanted to do some horrible and mean things and he's been there for me. It's time that I'm there for him. I'm going to be stepping away while Chris is on Dancing with the Stars. When he wins, then I'll be back. In the interim, I'll be taking care of things from the boss perspective, but I'm going to entrust Britt with the day-to-day operations."

"Wow, I didn't think you had it in you to actually take a step back. I never thought I would see the day where you would actually say that you wouldn't work on purpose, well, unless you were pregnant, then that changes the circumstances of course."

"I didn't think I had it in me either, but I was watching Chris and I was so proud of him and he's so proud of himself and working so hard. I mean, okay, in our marriage, I wasn't very supportive of you, was I?"

"Well, that was a long time ago…" He hedged, not wanting to hurt her feelings. "You were definitely supportive of me when I was wrestling."

"See, but that's just the thing, it's easy for me to be supportive while you're wrestling, while Chris is wrestling. I'm here, I'm supporting, I was rooting for you and I rooted for him and all that good stuff, but Hunter, when you were in rehab, trying to get your quad back to shape, where was I? Was I by your side, encouraging you?"

"You did…"

"No, I didn't, I stayed for what, a couple weeks and then I bought ECW because I just could not stand not working anymore," she told him, "I didn't support you. I couldn't even support you when you were hurt, that's the kind of person I am. I'm not very supportive, but I expect everyone to be supportive of me, as demonstrated when you came back and I was making all those demands and you hated it."

"That was different," Hunter tried to reason, hating that Stephanie was getting down on himself. Enough time had passed that he could look back on their marriage with semi-fondness and the dewy mist-covered glasses made their marriage not seem so bad…except for her faking a pregnancy of course. That would probably never be something he looked back on fondly.

"It wasn't and I'm doing it again, expecting Chris to support me with all the WrestleMania stuff, doing the Hall of Fame while he's rehearsing like 15 hours a day. It's time I...it's just time I supported him now in something that he cares about."

"Wow, you're growing up."

"I hate you," she said, shoving him away.

"I'll miss you."

"No you won't, your girlfriend is going to be in charge so you are going to love it because then you'll probably try to persuade her on what to do," she said, "but just remember, I'm not actually leaving, everything Britt does still has to be cleared by me."

"I wouldn't have expected anything less from you, Steph," Hunter told her.

**Thursday**

"Cheryl, are you going to watch wrestling with us?"

"Yeah, I was planning on it," Cheryl said brightly, "if you guys don't mind me sitting with you."

"No, you can sit with us!" Sawyer nodded. "We get to sit with my Gamma and Gampa and they're going to watch with us because Daddy and Mommy can't go out there because Mommy is working and everyone knows Daddy."

"I understand," she nodded very seriously. "We wouldn't want anyone to focus on your daddy and not on the wrestling, huh?"

"That's right, we have to be nice like on Monday when we were watching Daddy, Mommy said that we had to be nice to all the dancers because they all work as hard as Daddy does and we have to make sure that they get claps too."

"You're very smart," Cheryl told him and he grinned and ran back over to where Flynn was sitting and coloring. Cheryl laughed and turned to Chris, "It's so cool that your father-in-law let you fly in his private jet, does he let you do this often?"

"Occasionally," Chris said, "Stephanie's had this planned as soon as she heard I was on the show, though. She wanted to make sure that I would get there on time and what better way to get there on time than to pretty much control the flight."

"She really, _really_ likes to be in charge, doesn't she?" Cheryl joked.

"I think she's been like that since birth," he said, "I don't think I can remember a time…no, no, wait, I can, I can remember a time when she wasn't in charge, but then she ended up marrying a guy who drugged her so then she was in charge and got power hungry so it was probably just lying dormant for a while."

"It's still pretty cool though," Cheryl said, "that she would arrange this for us. Kind of feels VIP-ish, you know. I mean, this _is_ my first wrestling event ever and it's your biggest show of the year, right, WrestleMania?"

"Yeah, as they say, it's the granddaddy of them all," Chris told her. "It's definitely our biggest show, we usually hold them in huge stadiums, everything usually comes to a head at the show. Everything seems to revolve around it. Guys know that if they want to make a name for themselves, that WrestleMania is the time to do it."

"So like, if you're on the show and you're in like the main event, does that mean you're really high up there? I've seen commercials for Undertaker and Triple H, are those their names, did I get it right?"

"Yeah, Taker is…this really kind of scary guy, I'd stay away from him if you ever encounter him, he's really creepy and the only people he seems to really like around the company are Stephanie and his brother, Kane. He and Stephanie have this very weird history that I don't even get into myself."

"Okay, he sounds kind of scary and Triple H is Stephanie's ex-husband, right?"

"Yeah, that's Hunter. He's a good guy, didn't used to be, but like I said, Stephanie and Hunter brought out the worst in each other. They just weren't good together."

"I'm really excited to see everything that you do," Cheryl said. "This whole life kind of fascinates me. I mean, you guys travel so much and you're constantly working and then taking your aggressions out in a ring, it's kind of like this crazy paso doble."

Chris chuckled, "Well, I've never heard it referred to in quite that way, but I guess that you could look at it that way if you wanted."

"Sorry, I'm excited, sue me," she told him, "but that reminds me, we've really got to nail down the feeling of our rumba for Monday. I feel like we're getting there, but I'm not sure you want it to be _too_ sexy with your story, right?"

Chris made a face, "Yeah, I think it would be just slightly awkward of me to dance a really sexy dance based on my mother, not that my mom isn't gorgeous, she's a very beautiful lady. I mean, she did make me after all. You'll love her, she makes everyone feel welcome…well, not so much Stephanie at first, but that's because I was with her and I'm not with you so she'll definitely like you."

"She didn't like Stephanie?"

"She watched the show, thought Stephanie hated me and was using me, she got over it. Hell, even if she hadn't before we got married, she definitely would have once she got pregnant with Sawyer. My mom, ever since I was old enough to make decisions for myself, has wanted grandkids. So when I finally had Sawyer, she was over the moon. Then when we had Flynn, my mom was ecstatic, Kensy was just icing on the cake at that point."

"Did you ever think you would have so many kids?" she asked.

"No, at some points I didn't think I would have any kids to be perfectly honest. Before Stephanie, I didn't really take relationships seriously. It was just too hard with all the traveling. I'd end up seeing a girl for a little while and then ending it because I just didn't have the time. I only dated a couple girls I ever worked with and they were busts. I just figured I'd wrestle and then I'd retire, settle down, get married, and have the kids, like the two would be separate parts of my life. Then I realized I had fallen for Stephanie and life kind of changed. We just thought we'd wait a little while for the kid thing. Definitely didn't think I'd have three kids at this point in my life."

"You know, _that_ could've been your personal story," she told him.

"What, my wife and I can't keep our hands off each other so now we have three kids and here's this sexy dance about it?"

Cheryl gasped and covered her mouth in laughter, "Okay, so maybe that's not the best way to go about things."

"Yeah, probably not, I like the story I chose though. I want to dance for my mom. She's always loved dancing and I don't know, she's supported me for so long and since dancing was always a love of hers and since she actually had to relearn to walk before, I think it's appropriate to her."

"No, I really do like the personal story," Cheryl said, placing her arm on Chris's. "I think the audience is really going to relate to you and I think it'll go over well. I think one of the obstacles that you, in particular, have to overcome is the perception of the 'wrestler.' I'm sure you've heard this all before."

"Of course, I've been hearing it for the past 20 years, believe me," Chris said, "Everyone has this perception of us, that we're idiots, lunkheads, that we all spend our days in the gym or taking steroids. While yeah, there are guys that take steroids, I tried it once, hated it, and never did it again, never really saw the point. And we're not idiots, there are a lot of the guys backstage who can have the most philosophical and intellectual conversations you've ever seen."

"Which is why I think that with how well you're doing and how well you're coming across, you're kind of breaking a lot of those common misconceptions, which I'm sure tickles Stephanie to no end."

"She does like it," Chris said, "I've always felt defensive of our business. I guess because it is like a family. I always say that wrestling has given me more than I ever thought it would and that's the truth. Besides giving me my wife and family, it's given me this special bond with all these guys. I may not like some of them, but we all belong to the same club so to speak and I will fight to the death for that club. Doing it for Stephanie is just an extra bonus. That's why, after my friend, Chris Benoit, died I went on a lot of news shows. I hated the way people were portraying the industry, how they were calling us out when they had no clue about what we were like. I felt it was my duty to set things straight. I think Dancing with the Stars can only further this."

"I admit that when they first told me about you, I had my reservations, not because I thought you would be an idiot, I just thought you'd be so into the whole wrestling, working out, being this wrestler and I thought well, that's all he'll be, but you're not like that at all and Stephanie isn't either or any of your friends that I met. I'm pleasantly surprised."

"Good, it's working then," he shrugged. "But believe me, this weekend, be prepared."

"Now I just think you're purposefully trying to intimidate me because how crazy can it be?"

"It's not necessarily crazy it's just really hectic," he told her. "There's a lot to do, a lot to take in and it's really fun, but it's also jam-packed and Stephanie is pretty crazy around this time. Hopefully she'll be a little better this year because she let me handle the Hall of Fame, but I wouldn't be so sure about that. She _loves_ WrestleMania so much."

"I can already tell."

Cheryl had no clue what was in store for her, but she liked Chris and wanted to be there and really get into all of this. When they landed, they were treated like real stars with a limo and a chauffer. Cheryl helped Chris get all the kids inside, buckling in Flynn while Chris took care of Kensington and Sawyer yammered on about what he wanted to do this weekend and how he couldn't wait to see his mommy. Her WrestleMania weekend had officially begun.

Stephanie flung open her door on the third knock, "Edge, glad you could make it up here so quickly."

"Well, you told me to be up here and Lita insisted that I get up here. She practically pushed me out the door. What's going on?" Edge asked. "Oh man, did Del Rio want to put a stipulation on the match or something?"

"No, it's nothing like that, sit down," she said, moving out of the way and sitting on the couch so he would follow. Edge took a seat next to her and he stared at her, waiting to hear what she had to say.

"Hey, aren't Chris and the kids arriving today?"

"Yeah, they should actually be here any minute," Stephanie said, looking at her watch, "but that isn't what this is about. A couple people, namely your brother and your girlfriend, have expressed some concern over your physical shape over the past week or so and so I've arranged to have a specialist look at you."

"Stephanie, excuse me?" Edge said. "Christian and Lita have talked to you?"

"On separate occasions, yes," Stephanie told him. "They both told me that they were worried about you and frankly, after hearing what they have to say, I'm worried about you too and I think it would be best to have you checked out and have some tests done to make sure that you're okay."

"This is bullshit," Edge said, standing up quickly. "I can't believe you all went behind my back."

"Edge, you are an employee, your health is a liability to us. This is strictly a business decision. I cannot send one of my biggest stars out there if he's hurt," Stephanie explained to him. "Now, I'm not pulling you from WrestleMania. I haven't seen any evidence to suggest we needed to go down that route. But I do want you to get checked out."

"Can you cut with the corporate crap, please," Edge told her. "I don't need this."

Stephanie relaxed her shoulders. They always went so rigid and straight when she was in business mode, "Okay, I'm sorry, but Edge, after what they've told me, after what they said you've been trying to hide, they just want to make sure you're okay."

"How the hell do they think they know what I'm feeling, they don't know what I'm feeling," Edge told her. "You don't know either."

"So tell me," Stephanie implored him. Obviously something was bothering Edge. Yes, Edge could get mad, she'd seen it a number of times, but this time, it seemed different, there was a different note to it. He seemed more frustrated and maybe he was.

"It's nothing, I'm fine," Edge told her.

"Edge, I'm one of your best friends, yes?"

"No, because you gave birth to Sawyer, who loves to antagonize me."

"You love him and I love you and you're my friend. The one good thing I have right now though is the fact that I'm not your brother and I'm not your girlfriend-"

"I wanted you to be, remember?"

Stephanie laughed and recalled a time when Edge was trying to pursue her. He'd been pretty relentless about it too and she'd had to reject him time and time again because she'd been with Chris. It wasn't until Edge had actually caught the two of them that he'd stopped wanting her. She nodded slightly at their shared memory and he gave a short laugh. He was scared to voice what he was feeling. If he said it out-loud then it made it true and he didn't want what he was feeling to be true because he knew the truth would not be kind to him.

"I remember," Stephanie laughed, "but right now, I'm not either one of those things so it's not so personal. Edge, Christian and Lita care about you, they love you, and they want to see you well. That's all this is."

"Steph…"

Stephanie, being a mother, could tell the tone of Edge's voice and she stood up from the couch and wrapped her arms around Edge. He didn't move for a moment before he hugged her tightly, burying his face in her neck like a little boy. Stephanie cooed in his ears as she stroked his blond hair. Her years of being a mother prepared her for moments like this and Edge was just a little boy right now, needing comfort from a mother-like figure.

"It'll be okay, shh, it'll be okay," she told him. "We'll make sure that you're okay and if you need time off, believe me, you'll get it in a heartbeat."

"Thank you," he whispered, but made no attempt to move.

The door opened and Chris and Cheryl ushered the kids inside. Edge pulled away from Stephanie quickly and turned away from the group entering the suite and rubbed at his eyes quickly. Chris looked between the two of them and then stared at Stephanie, raising his eyebrows a little. Stephanie tilted her head a little, silently explaining to Chris that she would tell him what was going on later, but now wasn't the best time. Chris nodded and tried to brighten up the room.

"Are you ready for some WrestleMania?" Chris asked.

"I am, I am!" Flynn yelled and jumped up and down.

Sawyer walked over to Edge and smiled up at him, "Hi Ed, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm good," Edge said, "are you excited to watch WrestleMania?"

"I'm going to cheer you on," Sawyer said, "I think you can beat the other guy really bad and then you'll win. You lost last year, but that's okay because that meant that Daddy won, but this year you're not wrestling Daddy, so you can win."

"Thanks for the vote of support," Edge laughed. "I'll be sure to try and win, okay?"

"You have the big, gold belt, you _have_ to win because if you have the big, gold belt that means that I can see it because Daddy's not wrestling right now so he can't have it," Sawyer said, then added, "He's dancing, you know."

"I've seen him," Edge told him. "I watch him every week."

"Do you vote for him because that's important, right?" Sawyer said, looking over at his dad and Cheryl.

"Yeah, _do_ you vote for me?" Chris asked.

"I have Lita do the voting for both of us," Edge answered, "I'm way too busy to be able to vote, but she's not and believe me, she's doing enough work for the both of us."

"Good," Sawyer said.

"I'm going to head out though, Steph, um, call me, we can set up the appointments and stuff," Edge told her, his voice turning serious as he looked at her pointedly. Stephanie nodded and Edge ruffled Sawyer's hair and made a face at him, "I'll see you later, Saw."

"Bye, Ed," Sawyer said.

"Cheryl, nice to see you again," Edge nodded at Cheryl. She smiled at him before he left and Chris turned to Stephanie questioningly.

"What was that all about? Was he okay?"

"We'll discuss it later, okay," she told him then looked over his shoulder, "the first thing I want to do right now is get some hugs from my favorite kids the entire world!"

Chris didn't let Stephanie off that easily. Well, there was really nothing to let off, but he wasn't going to forget about what had happened earlier. He didn't so much mind walking in and seeing his wife in the arms of another man; it was just Edge after all, it was the way Edge pulled away that bothered Chris all through dinner and putting the kids to bed. He didn't know what was going on with Edge, not really. He seemed to remember Stephanie mentioning something to him about it, but he was so swamped with rehearsals and remembering dance steps that whatever it was had slipped his mind.

Stephanie came out of the bathroom running her fingers through her hair and then stretching her neck from side to side, "Thankfully today wasn't so hectic, everything was great at Axcess and everything should be running smoothly for tomorrow and then Saturday is your time to shine," Stephanie said, pulling the covers back and climbing into bed. She scooted over to Chris's side and sighed in content as she snuggled up to her big, strong husband. "I can never sleep quite right when you're not here."

"Because you like to use me as a pillow?"

"I just miss your presence," she told him.

"So now that the kids are asleep and we're alone, what was going on with Edge earlier? If I have my calculations correct, he was…it seemed like he was on the verge of tears," Chris said, reaching over to turn off the light, leaving on the soft light from the television, which was currently on mute. Stephanie watched it idly for a moment. Chris had left it on Sportscenter and it was running through the baseball scores for the day.

"Remember how I told you he's been having trouble, well, that Christian and Lita think he's been having trouble or is in pain?"

"Um, no."

"Chris!"

"I'm sorry, I'm so busy right now that I forget things, remind me again?" he asked sweetly, skimming his fingers over her shoulder.

"He's not been feeling well, well, Christian and Lita have been noticing that he's been acting like something has bothered him, but when they ask him about it, he's said that nothing was wrong so I arranged to have a specialist check him out, just make sure that everything is okay. That's why he was here today, but he's scared, which has me worried."

"He's scared? Like he told you he was scared?"

"Yes, he told me he was scared," Stephanie told him. "I've never seen him like that before, I think something is honestly bothering him. I think this whole thing is bothering him."

"Maybe it's not the best idea for him to wrestle at WrestleMania then."

"It's far too late to change the plans and I don't think it's that bad. I mean, he didn't exactly tell me what was going on with him, didn't list me the symptoms, but I trust Edge and the knowledge he has about his own body and if he says that he can go on Sunday, then I'm going to believe him."

"Baby, I know that you want to believe the best in people-"

"When have I _ever_ expressed that?" she asked him.

"Okay, in our friends then, I believe you want to see the best in our friends, but I'm not sure you get this whole wrestling thing from the wrestling perspective. Injured or not, tons of wrestlers will go out there regardless. I mean, there were a lot of times I wasn't feeling well and I went out there and I've never had a serious injury. Edge _has_, a number of them in fact, and so that makes this a potentially dangerous situation."

"I believe that Edge is at a place in his life where, if things were _that_ bad, he would say something."

"He obviously hasn't said anything to his brother or his girlfriend."

"Because it's harder to say stuff to people who love you without them overreacting."

"Oh yes, you do love to overreact to things, that's true," Chris told her. "I just don't think this is a good idea, there's something that doesn't feel right about any of this."

"He says he's okay, I can't just uproot him now," Stephanie told him. "We're getting the tests done as soon as possible, probably Saturday morning and then we're going to have not one, but two specialists look at them so that we can be absolutely sure of what's going on in there. I'm not going to just let this fall by the wayside."

"Well, I guess you've got things handled."

"Yes, yes I do, so don't worry about it, okay, I've got things under control," she yawned and pressed her cheek against his chest, "now goodnight, I love you."

"I love you too."

Chris caught up with Edge as he was eating breakfast in the small restaurant beside the lobby in their hotel. Chris grabbed a chair and nodded to his friend before sitting down, "So why are you eating alone?"

"Lita and Trish are going shopping," Edge said, "Christian is off with Tilden, I think he's taking her to the zoo and…wait, aren't _you_ supposed to be going to the zoo with them? I thought that Stephanie and you were taking the kids to the zoo."

"Stephanie and Cheryl are taking them, they volunteered."

"Wait, shouldn't you and Cheryl be rehearsing?"

"We're spending all afternoon rehearsing and all evening, so the morning and early afternoon she's giving me a break and she's going to help out Stephanie. I wasn't going to complain. Not that I don't love my kids, but damn, all this dancing makes me exhausted. I don't think I've ever felt this tired in my entire life."

"So note to self, never do Dancing with the Stars," Edge joked. "So what's going on with you anyways? I feel like I haven't seen you. You obviously haven't been around and I haven't even really seen Stephanie since she's been in California with you. It's like you're getting too good for us now."

"I promise to never forget the little people," Chris told him. "Everything's been good, I really like California, the pace is different, faster, something I really like about it. But I do miss Florida and when I win the competition, it'll be nice to get back. My parents have been taking care of the house while we've been gone. I've met a ton of cool people on the show and around Hollywood, it's pretty awesome."

"Good to hear that you're moving on with your life and forgetting your friends who vote for you every week, just letting you know."

"I appreciate that," Chris said, "but I was actually hoping to find you because I really wanted to talk to you."

"To me?"

"Yeah, about yesterday."

"I wasn't trying to get all up on your woman," Edge said, trying to act like a gangster, but coming off very poorly.

"I know that, you have your own hot girlfriend and every guy knows that if you even so much as put the moves on my wife that I will kick their asses so bad their mother wouldn't recognize them, but it's about what spurred that physical altercation with my wife."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that she told me what's going on, how they're going to have tests done, how you've wanted time off after WrestleMania," Chris said, "is everything okay?"

"I wish everyone would stop asking me that," Edge said with a scoff. "I'm fine. I've just been feeling a little weird, that's all, but it's nothing major or anything. I'll probably go to the doctor and he'll tell me I need rest."

"Cut the crap with me, Edge. I'm sure that it might have worked with Stephanie, but I'm not Stephanie and I know that if your brother or Lita knew that they would be asking the same thing."

"I'm _fine_," Edge told him. "I'm getting the tests done, aren't I?"

"Are you sure that you can go on Sunday? It's not too late to change the match."

"What are you going to do? Step in and take my place? I don't think so," Edge said, "I'm well enough to have my match and I'm not going to let anyone stop me. I know what you're thinking-"

"I'm thinking that you may be more hurt than you're letting on," Chris said. "Do you understand what could happen to you out there?"

"Oh yes, Chris, I've just been wrestling for years, yet I don't know what could happen. I wouldn't risk it."

"Wouldn't you?" Chris asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm not like a Glair or a Hogan, a guy who can't possibly walk away and keeps coming back despite injury. I'm going to be fine on Sunday. Don't worry, okay, God, you're worse than my mother, you know that," Edge said, angrily spooning some eggs into his mouth.

"I'm just worried about you is all. I wouldn't want you to go out there and endanger yourself or your opponent."

"Yeah, well I'm fine," he said, standing up. He reached into his pocket and grabbed his wallet. "Suddenly I'm not so hungry." He took out some money, enough to cover his meal and threw it on the table. "You and Christian and Lita, you can all just mind your own business."

Chris could have left it there, but he ended up following Edge, grabbing him by the arm as he left the restaurant. "Stop acting like a child, Edge, you're an adult man, start acting like it. You don't just run away."

"You have no idea what's going on with me?"

"Then _tell_ me, hell, tell someone, I don't care who it is, tell Sawyer if it'll make you feel better, but just tell someone so you're not keeping all of this bottled up all the time."

"Seriously, dude, I'm fine," Edge said, "I've got to go, I wanted to get a massage today. I'll see you later."

Flynn jumped up and down, "Mommy, no see! No see!"

"Okay, okay," Stephanie said, lifting her up so she could see the pandas. "There, can you see better now?"

"Yes, thanks," Flynn answered as she wrapped her arms around Stephanie's neck. "They funny!"

"They're cute too, don't you think?" Stephanie said.

"They are!" Flynn giggled as one of the pandas was walking around and it _was_ silly. "Sawya, look!"

"I can see, Flynnie," he told her kindly as he pushed himself against the railing. "Look, Mommy, that one is eating!"

"They have to eat too."

"Pandas are cool," Sawyer said, "but not as cool as lions because Daddy was kind of like a lion, right, Mommy?"

"Yup, that's what they called Daddy before he came to even the WCW, Lionheart."

"I knew it," Sawyer said.

"I knew too!" Flynn told him and she did because she knew everything there was to know about her father and then some. She was his biggest fan after all.

"I'm going to go tell Cheryl," Sawyer said, rushing to the bench where Cheryl was sitting with Kensington in her stroller.

"I think Sawyer likes her," Christian said as he walked over with Tilden. He glanced back at Sawyer who was eagerly telling Cheryl about the pandas. "He looks at her like he likes her."

"My kid likes everyone."

"He's Jericho's son, I think he likes to charm the pants off women," Christian said with a laugh. Stephanie laughed too.

"I wouldn't be surprised if he did," Stephanie said. "She's nice though."

Sawyer ran back over. "Mommy, I have to go to the bathroom."

"Here," Christian said, "I can take him since, you know, we have that whole boy thing going on. Can you just take Tilde?"

"Yeah, sure," Stephanie said, putting Flynn down and taking Tilden from Christian. Sawyer took Christian's hand as they went off towards the men's room. Flynn skipped over to Cheryl and Stephanie followed suit, sitting next to her husband's dance partner. "Thank you again for coming today."

"It's fine, I'm glad to do it," Cheryl said. "Having part of the day off is good, it'll give us time to reenergize."

"Chris hasn't told me much about your dance this week, what's it about?"

"Well, it's about personal stories. At first he wanted to do a dance tribute to you, but he's going to do a dance for his mom," Cheryl said, "he said that a dance in tribute to you might be too hot for anyone to handle."

"Only he would think that," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "I'm glad he's doing that for his mom though, I think she'll really enjoy it."

"I think so too," Cheryl said, "at least I hope so. He's been putting a lot of work into it and I think that it can be one of those defining dances, you know. I really think he's putting a lot of emotion into it and it shows."

"He's never content unless he's being the best in the world at what he's doing," she said, stealing a catchphrase from her husband.

"He's pretty awesome, isn't he?" Cheryl said.

Stephanie laughed, "Uh oh, you've completely fallen under the Jericho charm. I can see it. You're totally under his spell."

Cheryl laughed, but it was a pretty accurate description. She wasn't attracted to Chris romantically; his family was too awesome and kind to her for her to have any of those feelings for Chris, but there was still something about him that made her swoon in a way. It was more like a big brother thing between them, but when she saw the way he interacted with his children, how much he loved his wife, there was just no way she couldn't swoon just a little bit.

"I just need to know what his flaws are!" Cheryl joked.

"He's too cocky, he can be mean sometimes, he doesn't think before he speaks a lot of the time, believe me, there are a lot of things that can get annoying with him but in small doses, he's like magic. That's how I fell for him in the first place."

"I imagine that he's getting a lot more votes because of this charm thing he can do."

"Wouldn't be surprised, I told him to turn it up and with the addition of the kids in the audience, they see the sensitive family man. It's too bad that Kensy can't come because I think she only ups the cute factor."

"You're just like a marketing genius."

"Only when it comes to my husband," Stephanie told her.

Lita came in and threw all her bags on the couch, "Edge, you in here!"

"Hey," he said, showing up in the doorway, "How was your shopping?"

"It was good," she told him, "I found a dress for Saturday night, I think you're going to find me so sexy you will want to do me in the bathroom."

"I always want to do you in the bathroom," he told her. "So I talked to Stephanie yesterday."

"Oh, you didn't…tell me that," Lita said, looking at him. "What did you talk about?"

"About the tests I'm going to have done," Edge said with a sigh. "I know you talked to her, I know Christian did too."

"Edge, honey," Lita said, a tone of sympathy that he'd never really heard from her before. The way she said it, the tone of voice just made Edge ache. He stared down at his feet and she could instantly tell what was really going on in his brain. Lita understood him in ways that nobody else did and nobody else probably ever could. She walked over to him and she hugged him tightly. "What's going on?"

"I keep shaking, you've probably noticed and the feeling…it's not like it has been before," he confessed to her, the first time he'd said it out loud to anyone. It didn't feel good getting it off his chest though, it felt relieving, but putting it into words did make it real and not just something he was dealing with. Lita grabbed his hands and brought them up to her lips, kissing his knuckles.

He and Lita were never ones who were really good with their emotions. They weren't like his brother, who could wear his heart on his sleeve and profess things in ways he couldn't. Christian had always been the more sensitive of the two. He remembered when they were in high school and Christian wanted to take this girl to a dance. He'd gotten her flowers and written her a special poem and everything, making the girl feel so special. He'd never been able to do that. Oh, he had no problem with getting a date or anything, but he just never could be like Christian and be so open and honest.

Lita was the same way. She'd always held a part of herself back, even with Matt. She'd settled into routine and she'd let that dictate her life. With Edge, there was a lot of excitement and lust and they were fine with that, they loved that, but this second chance for them, it had made their feelings more real. The first time around had been on the heels of an affair, a heady feeling. This time, it was just them and they had to confront serious things sometimes and while it was necessary, it was hard for the both of them.

"Please don't say something stupid like we're in this together," Edge told her. "I don't think I could handle something that cheesy right now."

"Even if it's how I feel."

"Yeah," he told her.

"Then just let me be here for you, okay?" she told him. "Whatever happens, just let me be here for you."

"Okay."


	319. Show, WrestleMania Pt 2, April 3, 2011

A/N: Continuation of WrestleMania, hope you enjoy! :)

* * *

"Well, we couldn't get Edge into the specialist until at least Tuesday so we're just going to have to wait it out."

"Okay," Lita nodded.

"Still, our trainers did give him a quick check and he is cleared to wrestle on Sunday as they can't see anything physically wrong with him on the outside," Stephanie explained. "We're really just going to have to wait for the specialists on it. They're going to give us a much more accurate picture of what's going on."

"I understand," Lita said, "you just should have seen him though. I've honestly never seen him like this and it was a little startling. I just hope that everything is okay, you know, I worry about him. Edge is the love of my life, you know, and I don't use phrases like that often so you know I mean it. I don't want anything to happen to him."

"We're going to make sure it doesn't," Stephanie said, laying her hand on Lita's arm. "The trainers wouldn't let him out there if they saw a real risk."

"But on the outside, I can understand them not seeing anything wrong, it's the inside I'm worried about."

"I know."

"I never understood what it meant to be a wrestler's girlfriend or wife until I actually became one, you know," Lita said. "I mean, Matt, for the most part, he stayed fairly healthy, nothing like Edge, but then Edge, I don't know, it's not like he's absolutely injury-prone, it's just the same crop of injuries that seem to crop up all the time and I swear if I didn't dye my hair, it'd be white. You're so lucky that you have Chris."

"That's a first," Stephanie said.

"Oh come on, like you don't hear that _all_ the time," Lita said, "I can admit that I've found Chris incredibly attractive in the past so yes, I'd say you were a lucky girl and I think there are millions around the world who would agree with me."

"Okay, I'll give you that," Stephanie laughed. "But I have my own set of worries about him that have nothing to do with injury so I'm not fully out of the woods on that front."

"Like what?"

"Haven't you ever noticed that Chris is always on?" Stephanie said, thinking about her husband's constant need to do everything and anything. Anything that came up, he was on board with. She wished that sometimes he would relax. Sure, he did relax every now and then, but he always wanted some project on the horizon, whether it be a book or Fozzy or Dancing with the Stars or Downfall or appearing in some movie or wrestling. It was always something with Chris, always something to do and yes, it worried her. One of these days she feared his hectic schedule would catch up with him.

"Always on like always a ham? Because that I'll agree to," Lita joked.

"No, well, he's that too, but I mean, he's always doing something. He never quits. He always has at least on project, usually more and it's always something, he always has to go somewhere."

"He's a workaholic, I'm sure you knew this before now."

"Yes, I knew, but then it was just wrestling, you know, which is more structured than the life he's leading right now where he's jumping from one thing to another to keep him occupied. He's never happy unless he's got something to do. He never wants to really take time to relax. I mean, look, he's doing the Dancing right now, but on top of that, he's coordinating the entire Hall of Fame and the after party tonight," Stephanie said, shrugging her shoulders helplessly. "He got everything set up."

"Stephanie, I hate to break it to you, but you're the exact same way, the _exact_ same way."

"Hey, I've been taking time off to be with Chris in California and I'm taking a kind of sabbatical from the road to be with him for the duration of his Dancing with the Stars gig."

"Explain the _kind of_ _sabbatical_ to me?"

"I won't be at the shows," she answered.

"And so you will be relegating _all_ duties to Britt then?"

"Of course not, I'll still be running things, she'll just be my stand-in at the shows, but I plan on video conferencing in to check on schedules and what not," Stephanie said, not seeing the point Lita was trying to make.

"Stephanie that means you're not relaxing or taking a break. You and Chris are both extremely work-minded, which is probably one of the reasons you're perfect together. Chris has told me about how you sometimes stay up until very late with papers all over your bed working. Sure, you don't have as many things going as Chris does, but within the realm of the company, I think you work harder than almost anyone," Lita said. "You can't see it because you're just used to it, but okay, so when Hunter got injured, you couldn't even take several months off because you had to work. I know you know that's true."

"It's not the same, I'm not jetting…okay, fine, I do jet everywhere, but when I'm at home, I'm not like that, when we're not at Raw or planning Raw, then I'm at home being a mom to my kids."

"Really?" Lita laughed, "Hey, Steph, you want to hang out tonight, Trish and I are having a girl's night and we're going out to dinner. 'Sorry, Li, I can't go, I have work to do.' Sound familiar?"

"Okay, fine, fine, fine, you've got me, me and Chris are alike, you happy now!" Stephanie said, rolling her eyes good-naturedly.

"Yes, yes I am," Lita said smugly. "So where's Chris anyways? Another project?"

"Yes, another project, he went with his parents to go shopping for the kids. They're not going to be in the audience tonight, but Sawyer and Flynn are going to be backstage with Chris tonight watching the show and Chris's parents wanted to get them some clothes for tonight and take Chris out to lunch."

"And you didn't go because…" Again, Lita was looking at Stephanie smugly.

"Because I have to go to the arena and check on set-up and pyros and Hunter wants a horse."

"Excuse me?"

"I wish I were joking, but Hunter thinks that because it's WrestleMania he should have some big, extravagant entrance. So far, he wants to come out looking like a medieval king or something with guys and shields and all of this and he wants to ride a horse down the entrance ramp."

"Like a real horse?"

"Like a real horse," Stephanie confirmed and Lita snickered, "oh, believe me, I had to use every muscle in my face to stop from laughing, but it is a big match so I figured I would indulge him. I said we could try it out today, which is where I'm headed after this."

"Didn't he learn from that Viking costume thing he had a few years ago?"

"He _still_ thinks he looked good!" Stephanie laughed. Lita's jaw dropped a little. "I know, I've tried to tell him that he looked ridiculous, but he thinks that he looks intimidating so I don't know, maybe this one will be better. He's the one working with the costume department, not me."

"So you have no idea what he's going to come out and look like?"

"Nope."

"Okay, someone needs to tell Britt to rein him in because he goes overboard."

"Let me tell you, when something gets into Hunter's head, it's nearly impossible to get it out again."

"Will you film the horse?"

"Well, we will have cameras so we can see how fast we have to move them, where there'll be during this entrance," Stephanie said, "why?"

"Because I have go to see this," Lita laughed. "You know, I don't hate Hunter, I like him, but sometimes I just…sometimes his ego is too much, way too much and I say this as someone who is with a guy who thinks he's God's gift to women."

"But that's what got him where he is so you can't really knock it. You have to have a little bit of cocky to be in this business I think," Stephanie said, "Chris certainly has it."

"That's true," Lita nodded, "and like I said, Edge has it."

"Exactly, anyways, I better get down there so we can start on this experiment. I don't even know where he came up with a horse to ride in on," Stephanie said, standing up from the table she and Lita had been occupying, grabbing the coffee in front of her. "I'll see you tonight at the Hall of Fame."

"Yeah, you will, I still have to buy a dress," Lita said and then off Stephanie's look. "I brought a spare one just in case I couldn't find anything, but nothing seemed right for the occasion so I was going to go looking for one. If I don't find one, I've got the back up and don't look at me like that, Stephanie!"

"I'm not looking at you in any way, I just have no idea how you could wait until the last minute to get something like that done."

"I don't buy dresses months in advance," Lita told her.

"I didn't buy it months in advance, just _a_ month in advance, but I happened to be shopping and I saw a very cute dress that I wanted to wear so I wore it, that's all," Stephanie said. "You always make me sound like I'm the most rigid person on the planet, but I'm not, I can be flexible every now and then."

"Okay, fine, I'm sorry, I don't think you're the most rigid girl on the planet," Lita said. "Now get out of here because I can tell that you want to get to work and seriously, I'm going to need footage of Hunter on a horse because at this point and time I can't think of anything that would be funnier."

"I'll try, I make no promises," Stephanie said, giving Lita a smiled, "Bye."

"Bye!"

Chris groaned as his mother pulled him to another area of the store, "Mom, nobody's even going to see Flynn, why do we have to look for a dress for this long? We've been here for hours it seems and you keep wanting her to try on more dresses. I really liked that green one and I think it would be good for tonight because she can wear the long-sleeved shirt underneath in case she gets cold."

"She didn't look cute in that," Loretta said.

"Mom," he whined, "Flynn looks cute in everything, she's two, she's at the height of her cuteness, I could put her in a potato sack and she'd look like the adorable kid in the potato sack. Plus, that dress was light enough that she can run around in it if she wants to and you know Flynn, she's not happy unless she's running somewhere."

"I just see so many cute dresses," Loretta said, pulling a yellow dress from a rack then putting it back. "I can't help it that I want her to look her best."

"I want her to be comfortable," Chris said, "the aesthetic appeal is secondary to me. She's going to be in this dress for hours and Mom, the last thing I need is for Flynn to be uncomfortable, get mad, run away, and then end up on stage."

"She won't," Loretta said.

Chris knew he was fighting a losing battle here. His mother loved shopping for his kids. It gave her another opportunity to spoil the hell out of them and she took those opportunities any chance she could get. "And on top of all this, you want to buy Kensington stuff too?"

"It's only fair that she gets something as well even if she's not going to be there," Loretta said. "We'll get her some things afterwards."

"Okay, Mom, I love you, but I'm putting my foot down," Chris said and Loretta turned to him, looking at him critically. Chris shifted uncomfortably, but held his ground. "Mom, I'm their father, they are my children, which means that ultimately, I make the decisions. We're going with the green dress for Flynn and Kensy doesn't need any dresses. Sawyer already has a very nice dress shirt and pants, we are done. The kids are already antsy, that's why they're with Dad because they hate shopping now. So…that's it, I'm putting my foot down."

"Okay, that's fine," Loretta said, putting the dresses she had in her hand back on the rack. "If that's what you want."

"Don't be mad at me, Mom," Chris said, pouting a little.

"I'm not, but if you don't think I'm coming back here tomorrow and buying them things anyways, you've got another thing coming to you," she winked at him, patting him on the cheek. "Come on, let's go pay since apparently your kids are antsy."

"Thank you, Mom," Chris said sweetly, wrapping his arm around his mother's shoulders before she started to push Kensington's stroller. "You can spoil them all you want tomorrow."

Cheryl was really starting to feel comfortable around Chris's friends. All of them were welcoming and nice and she was really getting a sense of the family aspect that Chris talked about in regards to the wrestling world. She just kept underestimating this entire world and she felt bad for it. Chris told her a number of times how the wrestling world and wrestlers in general got a bad rap and she was feeling that first-hand and she was learning and she really hoped that by being on the show, more people learned that wrestling was like any other sport and like any other show.

"What made you want to be a dancer?" Trish asked as they hung out around Axcess. Christian had an autograph session and Trish had invited Cheryl to come along with her and Tilden to just hang out since Trish figured Cheryl might be uncomfortable being Chris's shadow for the entire weekend.

"It runs in my family for one and I just love it, what made you want to be a wrestler?"

"I didn't really start off as one," Trish admitted. "I was pre-med and then I started modeling and I was contacted by the company to come in and be a valet, you know, escort guys to the ring and things like that and the money was good and the exposure was even better and so I thought, okay, I'll at least try it. So I was pretty much eye candy when I started and I did some really bad things and I didn't like the person that I was when I first started here. I used my looks to my advantage and I pretty much tried to sleep my way to the top. Nobody will ever tell you this, but I had an affair with Stephanie's father, not something I'm proud of now and a part of my life I'd rather forget, but I think that was the turning point for me. I didn't like who I was so I started to change. It wasn't until I got injured that I decided I wanted to be a wrestler, I wanted to do something more than just stand around and be gawked at. I trained and trained and eventually became what I think was a pretty good wrestler."

"Wow," Cheryl said, "it's like everyone here has got this story. I mean, the dancing world has its share too, but I think it's even more pronounced here. How did you get with Christian?"

"Long story, very long," Trish said, hoisting Tilden up in her arms a little as the little girl looked around in fascination at all the people milling about and all the different activities there were around. She wished her mother would stop talking so they could go try out all these things. "I've had a lot of relationships around here, some short, some longer. I was kind of involved with this guy, Jeff Hardy, he's sort of with TNA right now. Anyways, Christian had had a crush on me for a while and Chris and Stephanie kind of nudged us together and so we started dating, this was the end of 2002, beginning of 2003. We were together for a while, but then things suddenly sprung up and we broke up and we were on an off for years really. I got engaged to a guy named Carlito, but Christian just…my fiancé knew I was still in love with him and broke it off. Then Christian got engaged to a woman named Tiffany and they were happy, but then she got a fellowship in Europe, she's a doctor, and so they ended it, but amicably. They're still friends. Christian and I became friends again and then we got back together and it was for good."

"You guys are cute together."

"Thanks," Trish said.

"And Tilden is adorable too."

"She knows it," Trish said, kissing the top of her daughter's head. "So how are you enjoying things so far?"

"I like it here, it's weird, but it just feels nice to be around what Chris likes. I really like him. He's been a great friend and he's so easy to get along with. I never expected to have so much in common with him."

"Chris has always been easy to get along with. He's just that type of guy who gets along with everyone."

"I can tell, he has _so_ many friends. I thought I had a lot of friends, but it seems like one time around Chris and people are just flocking towards him."

"I think it's the smile, there's something about that smile," Trish said. "If I wasn't madly in love with Christian and Chris wasn't absolutely devoted to Stephanie, I'd probably be attracted to him. Of course, I'd never cross Stephanie like that. That'd probably be a person's death wish."

"The thing is though, I guess my boyfriend is kind of on this side of the coin, but I don't know how I would handle all of these women wanting my husband. I've had guys who have had crushes on me, I've been hit on, but then, I'm not married, you know, and I know from Twitter that so many girls love Chris. I've gotten a huge jump in my followers. I just don't know how you handle that. I guess because Stephanie's in the business she understands, but even then, I'd probably be so jealous."

"I think it's because Stephanie believes she can kick anyone's ass at any time without any hesitation," Trish joked, "but I think it's really mostly because she just trusts Chris. They've been together for so long and I'm sure you've seen how Chris talks about her-"

"You would think she held up the world," Cheryl said.

"I think to Chris, she does," Trish said, "she's an efficiency machine. She runs her family like you wouldn't believe and she's had her ups and downs, but she is an amazing person. I love her to death."

"I don't blame you, she's fast becoming a good friend."

Stephanie tapped her foot and waited next to the horse that Hunter had requested. She tried to keep her head down to keep from laughing. Then when she looked up, Hunter was in his full regalia and she started coughing to keep from laughing. He looked ridiculous and she knew that there was no way he would change his mind on this get-up so she was stuck looking at him like that.

"Okay, Hunter, this is the trainer of Hold Up, which is this beauty right here," Stephanie said, rubbing the horse's nose. "So we're going to have you get on the horse and I know you've been horseback riding before because you have taken me on the beach and um, I guess we'll just do a run through, see how it looks and everything. I'll be down there."

How she managed to keep a straight face during that entire speech, she would never know, but she still managed to do so. She walked down the ramp and as soon as her back was turned she started to laugh. She didn't know what compelled Hunter to believe that he was some sort of reincarnation of a medieval king, but whenever he thought so, it had hilarious results. Her shoulders shook as she took her spot near the end of the ramp, standing at an angle so she could see the whole thing. She tapped the pack on her belt and told the production guys to go ahead and start up Hunter's entrance as Hunter sat astride the horse.

"And we are a go!" she called into the microphone she was carrying, her voice reverberating throughout the mostly empty arena.

What happened next happened in a flash. Hunter was sitting there and as soon as the music started, the horse became startled and started to buck a little. There was a trap door on the stage that it seemed to lodge open and it start to fall over, which made Hunter fall over as well. Stephanie started jogging up the ramp until she got to the top where the trainer was trying to calm down the irate animal while a couple other guys helped Hunter up since he was having a hard time getting up because of his long cape.

"Are you okay?" Stephanie asked Hunter as she made her way over to him.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Hunter said, trying to adjust the cape so he wasn't stepping on it.

"Hunter, I know you wanted a horse, but I don't think this is going to work out, the music's too loud and we're in an empty arena, with the crowd noise, I don't think this is going to work out."

"I actually agree with you," Hunter said, "I don't want to fall off a horse during my entrance, that's not how I really want to be introduced for my match. I've already been embarrassed enough for one lifetime."

"Thank goodness you agreed," Stephanie said, "now, about the outfit, is there anything we could do with that to make it less…ostentatious?"

"You don't like it?" he asked, "I thought I looked good."

"I mean…what did Britt think about it?"

"She hasn't seen it yet, I wanted to surprise her."

"Oh…yeah, yeah, this is a surprise alright," Stephanie said, "but, look, if you like it, I guess that's all that matters, right?"

"You think I look stupid," he said, rolling his eyes. "This is exactly why we never worked out."

"Because I didn't want to see you in stupid outfits, if that was the case, I probably would have put a stop to that leather jacket/jean jacket combination you insisted on wearing everywhere while we were married, like you thought it made you look more like a thug or something."

"You're criticizing _my_ fashion sense while we were married, excuse me, Miss Slut of the Universe, need I remind you of those booty shorts you were wearing that one night, yeah, I remember those and all those leopard, zebra, whatever prints you had?"

"You liked it!"

"Maybe I didn't!"

"You did, I changed my entire wardrobe so you would like it!" Stephanie said, then realized everyone, including the horse, was staring at them. "And we've been divorced for almost nine years."

Hunter laughed, "You're right. I like what I'm wearing."

"And that's fine," Stephanie said, "if that's the look you want, I say that you should go for it."

"Thanks, so are you doing anything now?"

Stephanie stared at him and then gestured around the arena, "What does it look like I'm doing? Standing around? I've got about a million things to check off my checklist so I'm going to have to say yes, I'm doing something right now."

"Okay, I got it," he said, rolling his eyes, "I just wanted to show you something, but I guess it can wait until later."

"Is it important? If it's important I can make the time for it," Stephanie said, "but if it's not, I really have to get this done so I can get back to the hotel to get ready for tonight. I don't know if Chris's parents are helping get the kids ready so I might have to get them ready as well."

"Chris is dressing up? Isn't he going to be backstage the entire time?"

"Yes, but he still has to look nice," Stephanie said. "So is it important?"

"It is, but it's not something that needs your immediate attention or anything so I think we can wait on it, but if you do have a free moment, I'd like to talk to you," Hunter told her, "but only when you have the time."

"I'm sure I will have some free time at some point and I'll let you know when I do, is that okay?"

"Yeah, thanks, Steph."

"You're welcome."

Chris grabbed Flynn, who started grunting and trying to break free from him. He wasn't deterred though and continued to bring her into the bedroom. She still tried to break free from her father's arms so she could go back to playing, but Chris was having none of it. He got to his bedroom and dumped her on the bed, where Flynn tried to scurry off the bed. Chris grabbed her again and sat her down.

"You're not going anywhere, Flutterby, you have to get dressed, then you can go back to playing with Sawyer."

"Now!" Flynn protested.

"It will take two minutes," he told her. "Stephanie, your daughter is being difficult."

"She's your daughter too," Stephanie said, peeking her head out from the door. "So you can't pin that on me."

"Yeah, but when she acts like this, she's absolutely your daughter because this is Stephanie McMahon behavior if I ever saw it."

"You didn't know me when I was two, you can't tell me how I was so how would you know if I was like that. I'll have you know that I was a perfect angel when I was two. Maybe I should ask your mom how you were when you were two and then we'll see how it goes, shall we?"

"I was an even bigger angel than you were," Chris said as Flynn tried to sneak out while her parents were talking.

"You've got yourself a runner," Stephanie said, pointing towards Flynn who was making her way towards the door.

"Oh no, you don't," Chris said, scooping her up again. "You are getting dressed right now. In fact, here's what I'll do…Sawyer, can you come in here to get dressed, please!"

"Okay!" Sawyer yelled, then came running into the room.

"See," Chris told his daughter, "Sawyer is cooperating."

"Where are my clothes?" Sawyer asked, looking around.

"Right there," Chris said, pointing to the bed where Sawyer's clothes were lying. Sawyer went over and grabbed his shirt, lifting it off before starting to get dressed. "Look at Sawyer, Flutterby, he's getting dressed so don't you want to get dressed too?"

"No," Flynn shook her head.

"Well too bad," Chris said, lifting her up and standing her on the bed. He started to pull her t-shirt off, even though she tried to simultaneously pull it down. "You are the most stubborn child in the world. I think I'm going to take you back to the hospital where you were born and see if they'll take you back."

"They no do," Flynn told him as he finally got her t-shirt off.

"I think they'll make the exception if I pay them enough money," Chris told her, kissing her nose. "Then they can find you a new family and I'm sure you'll like them very much and you can still watch me when I'm on TV and everything and maybe every once in a while Sawyer will give you a call."

"Daddy, no!" Flynn laughed and tried to push him away.

"I think so," he said, helping her get her jeans off. He grabbed her dress and helped her slip it over her head and then got her arms through it before pulling it down. "Wow, who knew I had such good taste in dresses."

"What are you talking about?" Stephanie asked as she walked out of the bathroom, dressed in her dress and just pulling her engagement and wedding rings back on her finger. "Oh, Flynnie, you look so pretty! Did you actually pick that dress out because it's perfect for her."

"I thought so too," Chris said, smoothing it out over her shoulders. "I figured it'd keep her comfortable while still making her look good.

"I'm dressed!" Sawyer said and Stephanie whistled as she looked at him.

"Look at my two handsome guys," Stephanie said, placing her hands on Chris's shoulders and giving him a kiss on the lips. "Thank you for taking care of tonight, have I told you how much I appreciate that you took care of everything?"

"I like the thanks I get," he said, popping his eyebrows up a few times.

"Believe me, you'll be getting some thanks later."

"How are you going to thank him, Mommy?" Sawyer asked curiously. "Are you going to buy him a cake because if you are, can I have some?"

"Why did our kids learn to talk?" Stephanie asked, then turned to Sawyer, "No, I'm not going to buy Daddy a cake, but before we go to bed I'm just going to tell him thank you and then he'll say you're welcome and it'll be a very nice thing to do because saying thanks is the polite thing."

"Oh, okay," Sawyer said, "are we going yet? I want to see everyone get 'ducted."

"Yes, we'll go as soon as we get our things together, then we're going to go pick up Cheryl and then we're going to go meet with Grandpa Vince and Grandma Linda and then we're going to the Hall of Fame," Stephanie explained to him. "Then you will be backstage with Daddy and Grandpa Vince and Cheryl, got it?"

"Got it," Sawyer said.

Sawyer was actually looking forward to this. He didn't completely understand the concept of the Hall of Fame, but he knew it was a big deal because he had to dress up to go to it. His parents hardly made him dress up for anything unless it was really important so this must be something really important. His mommy was talking about WrestleMania all the time and this seemed to be a part of it. His mother had tried to explain to him that the Hall of Fame was something that happened when wrestlers didn't wrestle anymore, but that they should be remembered…or something like that.

He didn't really get the whole concept of it because he was only four years old. After his parents got everything together, he was tasked with holding his mommy's hand as they went to get Cheryl. He liked Cheryl. She was really nice and sometimes, when his daddy was taking a break from dancing, Cheryl would show him how to dance too. He was learning a lot of moves and Cheryl had said that he could show them off to his mommy and everyone when he got really good. Cheryl sometimes showed Flynn how to dance too, but then Flynn would always try to turn it into a wrestling match. She just really liked wrestling.

When they had picked up Cheryl, they went downstairs and everyone was yelling his mommy and daddy's name and they were giving short waves to the people. Sawyer was swiftly picked up by his daddy and they were whisked into a limo to go wherever they were going. He looked out the window to try and see what was going on, but it was getting dark out so he really couldn't tell where they were going until they got there.

His mommy had to leave them, but they went backstage where Cheryl hung out with them while his daddy started to get stuff ready and run around with his Grandpa. He almost wished that he could've been sitting with his mommy, but she'd told him that it might be long and that she didn't want them to get bored so they had to stay backstage. Flynn was jumping around and trying to look at the stage as everyone got to their seats.

"Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!" Flynn said, tugging on Chris's pants as he talked over his headset to his father-in-law who was on the other side of the stage.

"What is it, Flutterby, I'm kind of busy right now," Chris told her.

"I go there," she said, pointing out to the stage.

"That's completely off-limits to you," he told her, "you're staying back here."

"Why?" she asked.

"Because I'm working and you're not being honored tonight, you will be in about 40 years, okay?"

Flynn frowned, 40 years seemed like an awful long time from now, but she conceded, "Fine!"

Then she ran away and Chris rolled his eyes as he started to chase after her, lifting her up and just deciding to hold her for a while. He peeked his head out and saw that Stephanie had taken her seat and she looked beautiful. He smiled crookedly and was happy that for the first time in what seemed like forever, she wasn't sitting next to Hunter. Every year it seemed she was stuck next to him, causing internet rumors to abound and this year, it was nice not to have to worry about that.

"Hey, man," Hunter said, clapping Chris on the back.

"Hey, why aren't you in one of the green rooms?" Chris said. "I thought you and Shawn would be crying over shared memories or something…either that or you would be pranking someone…unless you're pranking me now, which, not cool, man, I'm working right now."

"No, just thought I'd see what you guys were doing," Hunter said, "it's a long way to Shawn's induction, I've got to keep myself occupied somehow, plus, it's cooler watching from here than on the closed circuit."

"I guess," Chris said.

"Where's Britt?" Hunter said, trying to peek over Chris's shoulder.

"You know, all of this is really distracting when you're trying to work," Chris said.

"Sorry, but where is she?" Hunter said, then spotted her sitting a few seats over from Stephanie, just watching the beginning of the inductions. She looked beautiful in her red dress. It made her stand out, but not too much. She didn't need flashy colors to stand out. As far as Hunter was concerned, she stood out all on her own. Hunter knew she couldn't see him, but he kind of hoped their bond was so strong that she would know he was looking at her anyways. It wasn't that strong, nobody's really was and so he turned to Sawyer. "Hey there, tough guy, are you watching?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer told him. "They're getting 'ducted because they were good before."

"That's exactly it, are you going to give me a speech when I get inducted?"

"Yeah, I can do that," Sawyer nodded, "I'll just talk about you and then you can talk because that's what Daddy says is going to happen. Flynnie thought they were going to wrestle and so he told her that they were too old to wrestle and that Shawn couldn't wrestle because he's a loser."

Hunter snickered, "Your dad said that?"

"Uh huh, he said that he's beaten Shawn a majillion times, but I don't know how many that really is, but it seems like a lot," Sawyer responded.

"That is a lot," he said, then turned to Cheryl, "Hey, I don't think we've formally met yet, but I'm Hunter Hearst Helmsley, you may have heard of me as Stephanie's ex-husband, but hopefully they also said friend."

"They did," she said, shaking Hunter's hand. "I've heard a lot about you."

"I can never hope that it was all good because I know Chris too well."

"Then I don't have to lie and say that it was all good stuff," Cheryl said.

"Well, at least I've somewhat redeemed myself. How are you enjoying your time?"

"I'm enjoying it a lot, a little lost tonight, but I'm still enjoying it."

"Here, how about I sit with you and explain things since Chris is busy. I know a lot more than Chris does."

"I heard that, you don't," Chris said even as he was cueing people up for their inductions and talking with Vince still and trying to rein in Flynn.

"We'll see about that," Hunter told him.

Stephanie sat in the audience and she was trying to focus, but she kept wondering what her family was doing. The show was going off without a hitch so she knew that Chris was doing a good job, but she wondered how the kids were enjoying the show. She hoped they were taking it all in. This was part of their history. The WWE was their history and she wanted them to share in it now that they were old enough to at least somewhat understand it. She was also proud of Chris for coordinating all of this. Every was having a good time and the seats were filled and the inductions were looking good and the packages were amazing as usual. She was impressed with her husband's skill, though she really shouldn't have been since he always claimed to be the best in the world at what he did.

When Hunter came out to induct Shawn, she tried to care. She liked Hunter and she enjoyed his speech, but there was just so much bad blood between her and Shawn that it was difficult for her to see everyone cheering for him and loving him so immensely. She would never argue that he deserved to be in the Hall of Fame, he absolutely deserved to be inducted. Whatever Shawn was to her didn't diminish what he did in the ring. Even Chris would agree to that and Chris held grudges, but he could never deny that Shawn was one of the biggest reasons he'd decided to become a wrestler. Shawn had paved the way for Chris and in that way, and more than likely only that way, he was happy that Shawn was getting the recognition he deserved. Actually, Chris might be more excited for Shawn's induction than he was for Austin's since Chris still actively despised Austin even now, five years later.

The entire ceremony ended without any problems and Chris showed up from backstage with the kids and Cheryl in tow and walked straight towards his wife. "How did it look from out here?" he asked.

Stephanie wrapped her arms around him and smiled, kissing his gently, "It looked perfect."

Lita pulled Edge closer as he looked around the club Chris had rented for the after party. "You're not paying attention to me," she told him, fake pouting.

"Sorry, just observing, making sure Del Rio isn't around or that overgrown troll he calls a lackey," Edge said. "I wouldn't put it past him to ambush me while I'm trying to have a good time with my girlfriend."

"No fights tonight, you know the rules," Lita said. "Nobody who is facing each other tomorrow is allowed any contact. That is the number one rule of tonight. Tonight is to have fun and celebrate the inductees to the Hall of Fame and their families, it's not for fighting so Alberto won't be anywhere near you."

"It'd be just like him to break the rules though," Edge pointed out.

"Perhaps, but then Stephanie would do something to him, something bad I'm sure," she said, "are you ready for your match tomorrow?"

"I'm ready for any match, anywhere, any time," Edge said.

"Are you nervous?"

"I'm more nervous for my doctor's appointment, so what does that tell you?"

"That you're not nervous for Del Rio."

"Bingo," Edge said.

"We haven't really talked much about the doctor thing," Lita pointed out. "How are you feeling about that anyways? Are you okay with it, are you really scared for it? I want to be there with you, you know that, right, I like want to be _in_ that little room or big room, whatever, when they're looking at you."

"They probably won't allow you back there."

"Don't care, I'll protest until they do. I don't want you to have to face that alone," Lita told him. "It's you and me in this and whatever the outcome, surgery, more time off, we'll be doing it together. I love you and you're stuck with me."

"There are worse fates I can think of," he told her, leaning his forehead against hers. "Thank you for being there though and for pushing this whole doctor thing. I know I can be stubborn."

Lita snorted, "Stubborn? Edge, honey, you would have ignored this until the end of time. But let's not focus on this, let's just have a good time and we'll worry about the match and the doctor's when we come to it, agreed?"

"Agreed."

Britt tugged at Hunter's arm, "Okay, what's up with you tonight, you're acting strange? Are you going to ditch me again and run off with Shawn?"

"What? No," he told her.

"That was a joke!" Britt explained, shaking her head at him, "Come on, what's up, I know something is up and now you just need to tell me what it is so you're little dynamo of a girlfriend can fix it. Do you think it's weird I called myself a little dynamo? I was just trying it on for size since I'll be taking over for Stephanie for the duration of Chris's show."

"Sounds good," he said distractedly.

"Seriously, what's going on, Hunter, tell me," she said, pulling his face towards hers. She was considerably shorter than he was so he would have to hunch over to see eye to eye with him, but she did her best looking up at him. She wished she had a stepstool so she could stand on it.

"Nothing's going on."

"You've been weird ever since we arrived at the party. You seemed okay after the ceremony and now you're acting all weird and distant, what is it?"

"Nothing, it's just…it's just the end of an era," he said hastily. "I know Shawn's been off TV and everything, but now it's like, okay, he's in the Hall of Fame, that's it for him. He's done, there's really nothing left for him to do now."

"Aww, you're sad because your buddy is officially old," Britt said, "that's cute."

"I've just got a lot on my mind. That's going to be me soon, you know."

"No it won't. Shawn was broken down, you're not, you're in great shape and you're going to prove that tomorrow when you beat Taker."

"Britt, I hate to break it to you, but I've had my share of injuries."

"That are healed, you'll be fine. Now none of this, let's dance and have a good time. Got it?"

He let her pull him onto the dance floor and it did take his mind off of things. He spied Cheryl, who he really ended up liking, standing near the bar and felt bad for her as he saw none other than Kelly Kelly walking up to her. "Hi, I'm Kelly Kelly, you're Chris's partner right, on that show, with the dancing and the stars. I forget what it's called though."

"Dancing with the Stars," Cheryl said, looking around the room. Chris and Stephanie were dancing with the kids right now so she thought she'd get something to drink and then this girl had walked up to her.

"Yeah, that's right, I saw you guys, so, you can tell me, are you totally doing Chris?"

"What?" Cheryl was shocked at the line of questioning.

"Like are you having sex with him?" Kelly asked. "Because let me tell you, so many of the divas, well, actually, I don't know how many, I never really asked, but I know that we would all totally do Chris if he didn't you know, like marry Stephanie and have all those kids, but like, he's so hot, so if you've slept with him, you _have_ to spill the details."

"We just dance together," Cheryl said.

"Really? But like, you have that chemistry or you like have to work on it and stuff like that."

"Which we do…while dancing."

"Oh, well that's a bummer, later," Kelly said, sauntering off and Cheryl shook her head at that.

"Sorry," Chris said, "we saw you with Kelly and decided you probably needed some help."

"Just slightly," Cheryl said, "she's…weird."

"I'm not sure how she keeps herself employed," Stephanie said, "I probably really don't want to know. Oh, I've got to go, I just saw someone I needed to say hey to, I'll be back later!"

"Wow, she really is happier than I've ever seen her before," Cheryl said. "You were right about WrestleMania being special for her."

"Wait until you see her tomorrow."

WrestleMania was like a holiday for Stephanie. She loved it beyond measure and there was just a buzz in the air. The buzz was different this year because Chris wasn't wrestling, but that didn't mean that she wasn't anxious for the show to start. Stephanie and Chris left early to get to the show, leaving Loretta and Ted with the kids. Kensington would be watching from backstage, but Flynn and Sawyer were anxious to watch from the crowd like they had in years past. They arrived a couple hours before the show and when the time came, they were situated in their third row seats and ready for the show to start.

"Who are you looking forward to seeing?" Ted asked the kids.

"Um, Trips and Edge and Christian," Sawyer answered.

"Me too…but no Daddy," Flynn frowned.

"He'll be back soon, Flynnie," Sawyer nodded.

Edge jumped around a little backstage. Stephanie had told him they were getting the first match on the card because of how Edge was feeling. They wanted him loose for his match and Stephanie feared if he went on last that he would tighten up. Edge was glad Stephanie was looking out for him, but he couldn't care at the moment. He only had one thing on his mind and that was winning. The physical wellness of his body was a secondary thought to pounding Del Rio into the ground. It wasn't just for him that he wanted Del Rio but for his brother as well. Christian had suffered at the hands of the Latin superstar and Edge had to avenge that, maybe with a little help from his brother.

When he entered the ring, he threw a smile over to Sawyer and Flynn, mostly to Flynn since she'd never called him Ed and he could almost see Sawyer shouting "Go Ed!" at him, but he didn't let it phase him. His arm was feeling a little numb, but he shook it off, telling himself mentally that he'd be going to the doctor soon and they would tell him what was up and then Stephanie had told him he could take some time off. He just had to make it through this match. That was it, make it through the match.

The adrenaline kicked in and Edge forgot about how he was feeling. He and Del Rio locked up and then he was on. He was Edge the wrestler and everything else seemed to fade away. Nothing else mattered as he started to get offense in on Del Rio. Del Rio was a crafty guy though and Edge couldn't underestimate him or he'd be in trouble. It helped a little to know that Christian was right there. Edge knew that Christian wasn't just there for moral support, but to make sure that nothing happened to him. Christian knew he wasn't feeling well and he was watching out for his brother.

Del Rio dumped him to the outside, right in front of Christian, and he noted the look of concern on his brother's face. He let them fuel him as he started to get in more offense, forcing Del Rio to get on the defensive. It worked for a while until Del Rio tried to get his armbar and then it was a test of wills. Someone was going to break first. Christian and Brodus Clay started to fight on the outside, but Edge needed to concentrate.

The ending of the match came quicker than he'd ever expected. There were some flurries, Clay being a distraction, Ricardo being a distraction, even Christian being somewhat of a distraction even though it was to benefit Edge himself. Suddenly, he got the spear and then it was over and he'd won the match. This time, he could have sworn that Sawyer was cheering the loudest. He sent a big grin that kid's way before he made his way up the ramp. He couldn't end his fun there though. Instead, he took a little extra aggression out on Del Rio's car.

It was a shame to have to do it, but damn it feel good.

After Tuesday, he didn't know what the future would hold so he seized the moment. When he got backstage, he was seized by his girlfriend and he held her tightly, letting her be an anchor for him. He was still the champion and that's what mattered. They would celebrate it tonight before the seriousness of what was going on with him would loom over him once again.

"When is Trips coming?" Sawyer asked impatiently after what seemed like hours and hours. He liked wrestling, but he liked it better when he got to see his friends. Flynn just like the wrestling. She didn't care as long as _someone_ was wrestling.

"Soon, I think," Loretta said.

It couldn't come fast enough for Hunter. He was anxious to get this match underway. He knew that physically, he was in better shape than Taker. Still, when it was WrestleMania none of that seemed to matter. Taker had some kind of switch he turned on for this show and nobody had figured out how to turn it off. It didn't help that it was a No Holds Barred Match either, but he'd made his bed and now he needed to lie in it.

His entrance went off better than he'd expected and the fans seemed to eat it up, which pleased him. Backstage, Chris was cracking up, his head on Stephanie shoulder as they laughed. Even Cheryl was trying to hold in her laughter, but couldn't, the sound coming out in high-pitched squeaks. "He's done it again!" Chris exclaimed, "This is going to be the best blackmail ever when he has kids, oh God, I'm dying, I am dying!"

"Chris, come on!"

"No, I'm sorry, this is…it's too much!"

Hunter finally made his way to the ring and he was ready now. The walk had calmed him to the point of near lucidity. It was clear to him now, he could see himself winning, picture it, taste it almost. Taker wasn't scary, he was just another wrestler and Hunter needed to use that knowledge to his advantage. That was what had been missing in their match ten years ago. He'd been too in awe of Taker and his WrestleMania streak. Well now, it was time for it to end.

He fought hard. That was the only way to put it, he fought harder than he'd fought in a very long time. There was determination and drive there, everything needed to be a winner. He even spotted Sawyer and Flynn in the crowd, cheering him on, and they spurred him to do better, to win so they could cheer and he could see their beloved faces light up. He tried so hard, he tried for Britt, who believed in him with such blind faith that even he believed he could do everything.

But Taker was Taker and he still had some of that magic left and he'd used it, used every last bit of it with Hunter and then Hunter had lost. The defeat felt worse than the first time and he couldn't even muster up enough energy to get up after he lost. But it turned out that while he'd lost the match, he'd given Taker everything he'd given and that was enough to do some damage. Hunter respected what Taker was, even if he didn't particularly like the guy. Seeing him after the match, the damage Hunter had done, on the one hand, it felt good that he might have come closer than anyone else in Taker's WrestleMania streak, but on the other, this was a fallen comrade and for maybe the first time in his life, Hunter didn't make something about himself, but about someone else. He felt obligated to help Taker, so he did.

It didn't lessen the sting of the loss though, not completely. Britt was the first one there to hug him, sweaty body and all. That was exactly the way he'd planned that, even if the first part hadn't gone as planned. He cleared his throat and suddenly Stephanie was by his side and handing him something. Britt looked at Hunter as he dropped down and she thought he was hurt so she dropped down with him.

"Are you okay, do you need the trainers?" she asked frantically, her small hands pressing against various parts of his body, checking for bruises and cuts.

"No, you stand up," he said, helping her to stand. "I wanted to ask you something."

"Hunter…"

"I planned on winning the match, but I've been thinking about this ever since we got back together-"

"Oh, Hunter," Britt said, covering her mouth.

"I just…when we got back together, I knew I wanted to be with you forever. When I'm with you, Britt, I feel like I can do anything. You make me feel things I've never felt for any other woman. I made a mistake marrying a woman after drugging her and after that marriage fizzled, I didn't think I'd ever want to get married again. Then I met you and I think I know now that marriage can be a good thing. I want to have that good thing with you forever, Britt."

"Hunter," Britt said again, the only words that seemed to be coming out of her mouth as she stood there in shock. Hunter opened the box for her, the diamonds now glinting in the neon backstage light.

"So Britt, will you marry me?"


	320. Heart on a Sleeve, April 4, 2011

A/N: Just a reminder, had to switch things up a little bit for Chris's DWTS appearance since his mother is alive in the story. Hope you enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

"_So, Britt, will you marry me?"_

_Britt looked around and saw they had an audience. It wasn't just a few people either, there were at least twenty people just staring at her and it was getting unnerving. The pressure was all on her shoulders and she suddenly felt hot, her skin searing and she tried clearing her throat, but it was very dry. She leaned down a little and everyone seemed to be leaning with her._

"_Hunter, can we go somewhere and talk?" she whispered to him._

"_Uh, yeah, sure, of course," he said, pulling himself up. This wasn't how he expected it to go, but yeah, they could talk. She hadn't said no and that had to be a good sign. "Sure…let's go talk."_

"_Thank you," she told him gratefully, taking his offered hand and eyeing everyone around them, hoping that they were going to leave them alone. They walked back towards Hunter's locker room, neither one even uttering one word. They were both lost in their own thoughts and when they both almost walked right by Hunter's locker room. If Hunter hadn't come to, they would have bypassed it. He opened the door for her and let her go in first before entering after her. They stood there for a few awkward moments before Britt stepped forward and kissed him. "Thank you so much for the proposal."_

"_So that's a yes?" he asked anxiously._

"_It's a give me the night to think about it?" she said. "I was just taken completely by surprise, Hunter. I had no idea you were going to do this. I mean, Stephanie did, obviously-"_

"_She was just holding the ring for me," Hunter said, "I only told her this morning. I didn't tell anyone else, not even Shawn."_

"_Wow, it's just a lot to take in, honey," she said, placing her hands on his still sweaty chest. "I mean, I was just cheering you on against Taker and oh my God, you should have won that match, it's ridiculous that you didn't."_

_He laughed, "Thanks."_

"_You're welcome, it's just a lot to spring on a girl, especially since we only got back together in December and you know, things were a little rocky before that. I just, can we meet up for breakfast tomorrow or lunch, how about lunch so you can sleep in?"_

"_Okay, we can do that, does…does that mean that you aren't going to spend the night in my room?" he asked._

"_Yeah, maybe it's better if I get my own room tonight."_

"_Yeah, sure, that's fine, we'll see each other tomorrow at say, 11?"_

"_Yes, at 11."_

"What does she want to think about?" Hunter asked.

"I don't know, man, she's always seemed a little wishy-washy," Shawn said.

"Why did I even come talk to you? You wouldn't understand."

"I'm just saying that this broad is tugging on your chain and it's about time you figured that out and cut her loose for good. Look, your little experiment didn't work out so move on, find someone else. I know that Becca has a million different friend she could set you up with."

"I'm not talking to you anymore," Hunter said, getting up and leaving his friend's hotel room. He should've known that Shawn would be the worst person to speak to, but he thought, for once, he could just be a friend and give him some advice. He walked to the elevators and went upstairs to the penthouse, knocking on Stephanie and Chris's door. Stephanie answered a moment later, Kensington in her arms.

"Hey, Hunter, what's going on?" Stephanie asked, then turned around, "Flynn, knock it off, I told you not to do that near the TV, understood!"

"Okay, Mommy!" Flynn said, then Hunter heard her yelling and running.

Stephanie laughed and rolled her eyes, "Kids, am I right?"

"Wouldn't know," he said, looking at Kensington who was in turn staring up at the ceiling and just looking around at whatever she seemed to see up there. Stephanie saw him looking at Kensington and she laughed.

"She likes the way the light bounces off the ceiling," Stephanie said, then stepped aside, "come on in. Flynn and Sawyer are still on wrestling overload so they're having some mock fights, don't mind them."

"Clothesline!" Sawyer yelled as he gently bumped Flynn in the chest. Flynn overdramatically fell on her butt and then immediately got up and started to charge after her older brother.

"I figure at the end of the day, having her fight him means she won't be a crybaby when she gets hurt and I guess that's a plus," Stephanie said, but then she had to intervene when Flynn appeared to be throwing actual punches at Sawyer. She put her hand on Flynn's forehead, making it so she couldn't land any punches on Sawyer. "Flynn, we do not throw actual punches, don't make me say it again."

"Sorry," Flynn mumbled and backed off, but then she yelled, "Spear!" and charged after Sawyer, making him grunt from her small force, but he didn't topple over immediately.

"I swear, they're going to drive me insane," Stephanie said. "You two, can you please sit down and play with your toys. The time for wrestling is now over. Hunter is here and I need to talk to him and I can't talk to him if you guys are bumping all over the place."

"Okay," Sawyer said and pulled Flynn over to their toys.

"Thank you, I love you guys and if you're good, _maybe_ we can go in the ring later," Stephanie said and they both lit up at the thought.

"Where's Chris?" Hunter asked. "Shouldn't he maybe be helping you or something?"

"He and Cheryl took the red eye last night, almost immediately after WrestleMania. They've got the show tonight. His parents went with him since they're going to be there to cheer him on since I couldn't be. Tonight I'll be doing the show then I'm going to be handing over the reins to Britt for a while."

"Speaking of, that's actually what I came here to talk to you about."

"I figured as much," Stephanie said, "what's going on by the way? I'm figuring that you are not at the current moment engaged or else you wouldn't be here. I remember when Chris and I got engaged and believe me, we didn't want to talk or see anyone for a couple days so we could celebrate."

"Didn't need that visual," Hunter said, "but yeah, we're not officially engaged…yet. It's just a yet because she said she needed to think about it and I respect that. Sometimes you can't rush into these decisions and I know that. I mean, yeah, I know that, we only got back together in December and we were apart for a long time and-"

"Hunter, it's okay to be nervous about what she's going to say," Stephanie said, patting in on the knee as she adjusted Kensington so the little girl was sitting in her lap. "I've never been on the asking end of a proposal, but I figure that it's really difficult to actually be the one trying to propose like that."

"It really is!" he told her. "I just…you're nervous because it's up to them and maybe it shouldn't be just up to her, I should have talked to her. You and Chris talked, right?"

"Our proposal was less than ideal so you really shouldn't ask how ours was," Stephanie told him. "It wasn't traditional, it wasn't pretty. I mean, I liked it for what it was, but it's not exactly a highlight of my relationship with Chris."

"Well you've got so many highlights as it is."

"True. Did you guys talk about marriage before this? I mean, since you've gotten back together, not before," Stephanie asked him.

"Not really. I mean, it came up every now and then when were talking, but it was never anything serious, more in passing. I guess I probably should have talked about it more. I just wanted to go for the element of surprise. I figured that's what all girls really wanted."

"To be surprised in front of a ton of people? I never get men who propose to girls at sporting events and things like that, restaurants. It's supposed to be this intimate moment and I just don't understand the kind of men who want to make it a spectacle, no offense."

"None taken," he said, "she told me she doesn't want to break up, but what does that mean?"

"It means she's thinking about what you asked. Sometimes a girl needs time to think about this. It's a _huge _decision and let's face it, you didn't propose to me. You drugged me and you married me. You took away that decision. Britt probably just needs to think about what this means. Marriage isn't something to take lightly. I didn't with Chris. When he proposed, I knew that we were right for each other."

"Britt knows we're right for each other."

"Yes, but marriage is different," Stephanie said, "look, just give her the time to think about it and then you will be whatever you guys will be. She doesn't sound like she wants to break up with you if she said point blank that she didn't want to break up with you."

"Trips, what are you talking about?" Sawyer asked as he came over and leaned his arms against Hunter's legs.

"Well, tough guy, last night I asked Britt if she wanted to marry me and then she said she had to think about it and I just needed some advice and since your mommy is married and since I was married to her once, I thought she might have some insight to give me."

"Oh yeah, you were married to Mommy, I forgetted," Sawyer said, "but then Mommy said I wasn't born yet so I don't have to remember stuff like that, which is good because I don't remember that stuff. But you asked Britt to marry you, like Mommy and Daddy are married?"

"That's exactly it."

"Are you going to have a baby?" he asked, his eyes lighting up. "I can take good care of babies. Mommy, don't I help you with Kensy _and_ Flynn when she needs it, but Flynn isn't really a baby anymore, she's just a little kid, but Kensy is a baby and I'm a helper to Mommy."

"No, Britt's not having a baby," Hunter said, "at least not right now or anything. Talk about scary prospects. That would be crazy if…I'm really talking to a four year old about having kids, aren't I?"

"I'm almost five," Sawyer said, "I'm going to be five on May 2nd. That's really soon, it's in less than a month, right, Mommy?"

"I don't want to talk about it," she told him with an exaggerated pout.

"Mommy doesn't want me to get old," Sawyer told her. "She thinks that I'm going to get too big, but I'm still little."

"You are getting too big," Stephanie said, running her fingers through his short, blond hair. She couldn't even begin to fathom that her son, her darling baby boy, was going to be five years old. There was just something about that age that seemed to take the baby out of him. At four, there were still some baby-like qualities about her son, but five just seemed so old. He was going to be starting Kindergarten in the fall and it was like her son was being taken away from her.

She wanted him to go back and be that little boy she'd fallen in love with at first sight. He was so small and tiny and light in her arms that first time. She'd forgotten all about the pain as soon as she'd seen that little boy in all his cuteness. She wanted to hang onto that little boy as long as she could, but she could feel him slipping away. She held Kensington a little closer. At least she still had one baby in her midst. She wondered how Chris would feel about four children, but then quickly dismissed that idea. She wasn't crazy yet.

"I'm not big!" Sawyer said. "I'm still little."

"Five's too old."

"I two," Flynn said as she came over as well. "Hi, Trips!"

"Why does your husband do this to me? He turns all your kids into his little clones."

"Because he can?" Stephanie said with a shrug. She then held up Kensington a little. "Kensy can't talk yet, so she's your best bet at this point."

"I'm surprised Chris left you with all of them. He didn't even take Kensy?"

"I said I would take care of them. With WrestleMania and the Hall of Fame, he's been working so hard and hasn't gotten a lot of time to practice his dance and he and Cheryl needed all the practice they could get. It's just one day really. The kids and I are flying to Los Angeles on Tuesday. I think I can handle my kids for one night."

"While you're working?"

"I'm Wonder Woman, didn't you know that?" Stephanie said smugly. "According to most people anyways. Besides, Chris took the kids last week when I had to come to Atlanta so this really is the least I can do. I never realized how selfish I really was in our relationship."

"I don't think you're selfish if Chris wants to do it."

"Yeah, I guess, still though, I've been asking so much of him and this dancing thing really is a commitment. It's a lot of hard work. Chris is rehearsing so many hours a day. I don't think the viewers really get the sense of how much work this is. Chris is busting his ass and then after that, he still tries to have a life on top of it. He likes to do things, he likes to meet with people go out and then he has me and the kids and it's a lot to juggle and I need to be more mindful of that."

"You still have work though and you do your part, so don't think of yourself as selfish."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, "as for your problem, I don't think it really is one. I think that you're blowing things out of proportion and that when you and Britt talk, everything will be okay. I know proposing is scary, but I really don't think you have anything to worry about. I think you and Britt are going to be okay."

"You really think so?"

"I really think so," Stephanie said, "now you can either get out of here and go find Britt or you can continue talking to me and my crazy kids."

"I think I'll go find Britt."

"Good boy."

Edge tapped his leg nervously against the ground. Stephanie had managed to get him in to a doctor on Monday instead of Tuesday. It was like moving up your execution without warning. He'd planned on preparing himself for the doctor's on Tuesday, but this morning Stephanie had called and told him there was a great doctor in the Atlanta area who could see him and they could get a second opinion with their regular company doctor. So he was sitting here, nervous, with Lita holding his hand like he was a child.

"Adam?"

"Damn it, I hate when people call me that," Edge said under his breath and Lita tossed him a look before standing up and pretty much pulling him out of his seat.

"Be nice," she muttered to him out of earshot of the nurse.

"I am," Edge said, then walked up to the nurse. "I'm Adam, but I prefer to be called Edge."

"Edge?" she said, looking down at the file. "I don't have…Edge written down here."

"Well, it's a nickname, but I like it," he said, trying not to sound rude, but he was here getting checked out and he didn't want to be here and he didn't want to feel the way he did, but he felt bad and he hated it. He hated all of this. Yes, wrestling had its risks and he'd suffered through some of the risks, he'd been injured, but there was always that fear there. You never knew what tomorrow was going to bring and he didn't know what this was going to bring. He wanted more.

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but you can't go back with him, we're going to have to give him an MRI and you can't be in there with him for that."

"Yeah, of course," Lita said as she grabbed Edge's face in her hands. "You'll be okay?"

"Of course, I'm a wrestler," he told her, giving her a light kiss. "I'll be back soon."

"I'll be waiting."

Loretta looked around the space as she really got a feel for it. It was difficult to really assess the space last night when they'd arrived. She'd never officially been to their California home so this was really the first time she'd gotten to see where her son and daughter-in-law were living out here. It was nice, extremely bright and open and it was reassuring to see that he had a nice place to live while they were out here. She knew they'd had this house for years, but it was different.

"Hey, Mom, I brought you some coffee," Chris said as he set a cup down in front of his mother.

"Thank you, dear," she said, "you have a very nice house here."

"It's about time you came out here," Chris said. "I can't believe we've never had you out here in the five years we've had it. Of course, Stephanie and I are hardly here, but it's nice and you like the warm weather."

"I do," she said, "are you nervous for tonight?"

"Not really, I mean, sort of, you know," he hemmed and hawed and it didn't take a mother to know that he wanted to say something. It just happened she_ was_ his mother. "Okay, spill, Christopher, what do you have on your mind?"

"This show is not me," Chris said, knowing that he could tell his mother anything. Sure, he didn't really, the only person he ever told everything to was Stephanie, but the invitation was still there and right now he was taking it. "Not to say that it's bad for me or it's a horrible show, but it brings out parts of me that I don't show to people."

"I think you showed a lot of emotion in your books," she expressed to him and she was right, but it was different.

"See, that's different, Mom," he told her, "in a book, there's still a sense of impersonality. I don't have to look these people in the eyes and tell them about me or about what I went through and the people I do tell, well, they're usually friends or family and I'm not embarrassed in front of them. I'm a proud guy, Mom, I mean, you know that I am, you've seen me grow up. Telling the facts is not the problem, it's the way I'm telling the facts."

"Well, I hate to bring up the books since you think they are impersonal, but a lot of what you wrote in that book was extremely personal and you still put it out there in a way that left yourself exposed. Take your first book, you put all the struggles and frustrations right there on the page for everyone to read. In the second one, you pretty much laid it all out there in regards to Stephanie. You put your love on that page, put yourself out there. That's pretty brave of you."

"But it's not the same kind of brave," Chris said, "sharing just isn't the problem, like I said. I just…I'm going out there and I'm revealing this part of me that I haven't before."

"Me?"

"Yes, you," he said, blushing a little bit, "but more…just the fear, you know. Getting that phone call and I haven't gone back there in…God, years. I haven't even really gone there with Stephanie. I mean, she knows what happened, obviously, she's my wife, she knows _way_ too much about me. She's really kind of crazy, isn't she?"

"The one thing I've learned, well, the first thing I learned about Stephanie is that she's thorough."

"Really? I thought the first thing you learned was that she was a big slut who liked to ruin my life," Chris pointed out his mother's initial disdain for his wife, then girlfriend. "I thought that was how that first meeting went actually."

"You're going to hold that against me, are you? That was something like eight years ago, opinions change. Stephanie just likes to know everything about everyone. Can't say I blame her for wanting to know what makes _you_ tick."

"I'm a simple guy," he protested. "I just…if you had been seriously…I would've quit wrestling for you, Mom, I hope you know that."

"I know you would have," Loretta told him.

"It's a scary thought, looking back at that now. Wrestling is…everything to me. I hate thinking that I would've hated you if I'd given it up, but I guess that's why you can't trust hindsight. I didn't know then that I would find Stephanie here, that she would be my end game. I had no clue. I think about it and I wonder what would've become of me if I'd left and I hate the thought. I certainly would've settled. There's no one in this world for me except her. I can't imagine my life without her to challenge me and oppose me and love me the way she does. But I would've given it all up for you."

"And I wouldn't have let you if you had even so much as tried," she told him. "You are the type of man that needs to go after things. You have never let anyone tell you what you could and couldn't do. I'm proud of you for that and for everything you've ever accomplished in your life. Sure, I may have thought wrestling was an odd choice for a dream, but you do it well. I'm proud of you for that."

"But you're most proud of the kid thing, aren't you?"

"Three beautiful grandkids for me to spoil, of course I am!" she told him playfully and he laughed.

"I don't know what I'd do without you, Mom."

"You would just keep going on being Chris Jericho," she told him. "You're as headstrong as your father is and you would've plowed through whatever it is you thought you needed to do. Look at you now. Look at everything you've accomplished. None of it is because of me, not really. I may have raised you, and done a fine job if I do say so myself, but you have done all of this for yourself. I have no doubt you will continue to excel in whatever you choose to do from here on out."

"I just want you to like what I do tonight."

"I will _love_ what you do tonight, regardless of what everyone else, judges, audience members, the world, regardless of what any of them think, I will love it," she told him, hanging onto his arm. "There has not been a moment where I've ever been disappointed to have you as my son, not even when you brought in that slut to my house."

"It's going to be a completely different tone from anything I've ever done before. I'm exposing myself and it's weird."

"It'll only feel weird at first and then you will back to who you are," she told him, then added, "you wish Stephanie was here, don't you?"

"She does have a calming effect on me," he said, "but that's okay, I want you and Dad there tonight. I like the thought that you two are going to be there. I need my cheering section and some of the other people have their parents come so it's only appropriate that, on the night I'm dedicating my dance to you, that you are in the audience cheering me on."

"They won't be able to stop me from giving you a standing ovation."

Hunter wrung his hands. He felt like he was on the way to his execution rather than Britt's hotel room. There was something weighing on his shoulders and it felt like the weight of the conversation he was going to have with Britt. He knew that things were not going to end well. Well, he didn't _know_, but he had a strange and bad feeling whenever he thought about talking to her. He knew they were supposed to meet for lunch, but after the disastrous night's sleep he had, he needed to talk to her and get this all squared away.

She answered on the second knock and actually looked surprised to see him. "Hunter, hey," she said, but then moved out of the way to let him in. "I'm sorry, I was still in bed, I'm exhausted from last night and I just wanted to sleep, do you mind if we got in bed?"

"You're asking me if I'd mind that?" he asked with a laugh and shed enough clothes to feel comfortable, he jeans and shoes mostly and they climbed in bed. "I couldn't wait to see you. After last night, I think we need to talk and I just couldn't wait any longer. I know I said I would give you time, but I'm not sure what that meant and so I hope I'm not overstepping my boundaries right now, but I just really needed to hear whatever you had to say, good or bad. I just want you to know that whatever you say, I can handle it."

"Okay," she said, climbing into bed and facing him, pulling the covers up so she was covered. He took it as a good sign that she was allowing him in her bed. That had to count for something. "I didn't want to say anything, but I've been up all night too. I've just been thinking about us, about me, about you, about everything under the sun really. It's weird when you have this moment that you're trying to decide which way your life goes. You're not given too many of those moments. Most of the time we just cruise along and hope for the best."

"So did your thoughts lead you to any conclusions?" he wondered.

"I think they did. I was just lying here, trying to think of ways to phrase what I wanted to say to you and it's difficult finding the words sometimes, delicate words, words that don't sting or hurt," she told him and now he was starting to worry. Why would she have to worry about words that sting if she wasn't going to reject him? He was nervous now, but they were in bed together and they weren't wearing a lot of clothes, didn't that mean something?

"Okay," he simply said, waiting for her to continue.

"I don't want to marry you," she told him slowly, like if she said it fast that it wouldn't mean the same thing or something. She stared at him for a reaction, but he didn't know what the appropriate reaction would be. He felt like raging though, he felt like standing up and trashing this hotel room, but he was also too numb to do so. Instead he just stared at her and she nodded her head a little and continued as if this were some normal conversation and she hadn't just crushed his hopes and dreams. "That's not to say that I don't want to be with you though."

"What?"

"I don't want to break up with you," she asserted, "I just don't want to marry you."

"You're going to have to explain yourself," he said, the anger testing his voice and he tried to bite it back, but it was impossible.

"I don't see the point in marriage," she told him. "The more I think about it, the more I think it would just be a detriment to our relationship. I mean, I just don't see the point. Your first marriage was terrible, it just was and I don't know, I don't think I could handle it if this marriage would dissolve between us."

"I'm a different man now, it wouldn't be the same."

"I understand, but I'm not even sure that marriage is something that I want," Britt told him. "I'm not even sure it's something I think is necessary. I'm not saying that people are crazy for being married. Chris and Stephanie and Christian and Trish have great marriages, but they are becoming the exception to the rule and not the rule. I don't want to fall into those statistics, I don't want to burden myself with arrangements and flowers and dresses. I want to be with you, I want to be everything with you, Hunter. I want kids with you, I want a house with you, I want a _life_ with you, but I just don't think marriage is necessary. It's just a sticky thread that doesn't feel right for what we have."

"I feel like this is a cop-out," Hunter said, "like you're taking the easy way out. Like I screwed things up in the past and now you're scared."

"That did enter into my mind," Britt admitted, "but it wasn't the only factor I considered. I just don't feel we're at a place where we need this huge ceremony. I just want…you and that's it and whatever comes with that. If things don't work, I don't want those sticky threads."

"But what if we have kids?"

"Then we have kids and we love the hell out of them," Britt said, "you don't need a ring on a finger to make a baby. I just want you, Hunter, and I love you and I love that you wanted to propose, but I just don't think it's what I want now…or really ever, do you understand?"

"Honestly, no," he told her. "I love you and I want to be married to you and you're saying that you want to be with me, you want everything except the wedding. So let's make it small, we'll fly to Vegas and get married."

"Like you did with Stephanie?"

"Totally different situations. They were not the same at all."

"I know, but I don't want any of that fuss, with the marriage licenses and what not. Why can't we just leave well enough alone?"

"I'm not sure about this, Britt," he said.

"I'll wear your ring on my right hand," she told him, "it'll be like a signal that I'm with someone that I love very much and who hopefully still loves me…and I'm not saying that I can't change my mind. There may come a time where I want to get married and then, boy, you are going to get so married to me…so can we try?"

He contemplated it for a moment. He loved this woman beyond measure and reason and he would do anything for her, even this, "I guess we can try."

Stephanie felt odd being here tonight. She knew that she'd had to leave the show before, had left it three times before for extended periods of time, but this time felt weird because she wasn't nine months pregnant and there was really no real reason for her not to continue working. It was hard for her to set aside things she loved for anyone, even her husband, and it was a stretch for her to say that this wasn't difficult. It was difficult for her, but she had to stick by her guns that she was doing the right thing.

For tonight, Chris was dancing before Raw started so she'd had the TV set up in her office to receive cable so she and the kids could watch Chris on the show. She kept checking her watch and when she did that, when she sat in anticipation of seeing him, it made her departure that much easier to bear. When the show started, she gathered the kids around, Sawyer and Flynn on the couch and Kensington in her lap so they could all see Chris.

"I think Daddy's going to dance real good, Mommy," Sawyer told her.

"Daddy!" Flynn said as he was introduced and walking down the steps. "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!"

"He can't hear you, you don't have to yell, Flynnie," Stephanie teased her good-naturedly. "I think Daddy's going to dance really well tonight too, baby boy. Do you think Daddy is going to be the best of the night?"

"He's the best in the world so I think he can do it, Mommy," Sawyer said and Stephanie nodded and gave him a look like she agreed.

They sat in silence until Chris's video package started. She already knew what he was dancing about and to, but it didn't lessen the emotion in his voice as he spoke about his mother's accident and her long journey to recovery. She knew he rarely showed that side of him publicly and she was proud of him for putting himself out there like that for all the world to see the way his heart ticked.

"_So this dance is for my mom, officially," Chris said in his video package to the camera, "but Cheryl said the rumba was basically a really sexy dance, so all of those parts are dedicated to my beautiful wife, Stephanie. Every day with her is like some crazy story."_

Stephanie smiled and realized that giving things up for this man wasn't that difficult at all.

Chris stood backstage, shaking with nerves. It wasn't even about the dance or anything, it was about the emotion and the story behind the dance. He was putting himself out there like he never had before and he was letting all these people see a Chris that, nowadays, Stephanie only really got to see. He had to be someone new for this dance and he really wanted to do that for is mom. She had sacrificed so much for him and he wanted to do something nice for her.

When he was out there dancing, it was like all of that melted away. He was just a guy dancing with a girl and the movements took on a life of their own. He was a dancer and all these movements he thought felt unnatural at first were starting to become part of his rhythm. He was dancing and holding Cheryl and he put himself into it as much as he could, transformed into a serious contender and someone who could win this, who could go out there and do the best they could and win this.

When he finished and he wasn't sure how he got through some of his steps, the crowd started clapping and cheering and it was so gratifying. Before he walked over to get the judge's scores, he ran to his mom and gave her a hug and a kiss before running back over. The responses were positive although not wholly praising and that was okay. That dance had ceased to be about scores and turned into a poignant tribute to the woman who had shaped him into the man he was today. It was about his mother, it was about his love for her and how much she'd given up to let him be Chris Jericho. It was all about her and the scores didn't matter at all.

Not this time.

"You're looking sad," Britt said as she came over to watch what was going on as Hunter started the show out there.

"You're looking unengaged," Stephanie fired back at her.

"Well, that's because I am."

"You turned him down, Britt!" Stephanie chastised her friend. "This should be grounds for me to fire you."

"Then who would get to take over for you while you're gone, you barely trust your own parents," Britt said, "Hunter and I talked and I convinced him, at least partly, that marriage doesn't need to happen. I'm not anti-marriage, I just don't think it's right for me, that's all. He says he understands, but I'm not sure he really does."

"Of course he doesn't, the guy wanted to marry you," Stephanie said, "but if that's what you want."

"It is," she confirmed, turning to watch Hunter speak out there. He seemed distracted and she knew it was her fault. He could blame his loss to the Undertaker all he wanted, but she knew that at least some part of her had broken his heart. She just didn't want to get married and she still wanted him, but she knew it would take some time to convince him that she didn't turn him down because she didn't love him, but because she just didn't love the idea of marriage. "I thought you were going to have Chris's show on so you could see him."

"He already danced and nearly moved me to tears."

"If you cried," Britt pointed out.

"I'm about to hand over the reins to you, Britt, don't blow it," Stephanie said.

"Will there be a ceremony?"

"Yes, I'll coronate you," Stephanie said, "I'm making the right choice."

"You are, Chris is going to be so thrilled when you show up and tell him. How are you going to do it?"

"I'm going to wait until he thinks I'm going to leave and then just say, surprise, I'm staying," Stephanie said. "I think it's going to be fantastic."

"Are you going to miss it here while you're gone?" Britt asked and if you'd asked Stephanie earlier on this day, she would have said yes, but after Chris's dance, there wasn't anywhere in the world she wanted to be than in that ballroom with him, watching him impress every one of the people who thought his casting was a joke.

"You know, I'm not sure I will."

Chris smiled into the phone as he saw Stephanie waving Kensington's hand around, "Say goodnight, Daddy!"

"Night, Kensy-bug," Chris told his daughter as Stephanie then handed the phone to Flynn so she could say goodnight.

"Say goodnight to Daddy while I put Kensy in her crib," Stephanie told her daughter and Flynn smiled into the phone.

"I see you!" Flynn giggled.

"I see you too, Flutterby, did you have a good time at wrestling tonight?"

"Uh huh, you no there," she then said, frowning.

"I'll be there soon," he told her, "In the meantime though, you'll be coming here tomorrow and I can't wait to see you. I missed you today. I missed you coming to my show, but Grandma was here and she liked it, did you watch it?"

"Uh huh, I watch, then wrestle!" Flynn said in that tone of voice she always took when she talked about wrestling. It was somewhere between a growl and a very cute baby voice. It was adorable to Chris.

"Did you like me dancing?"

"Okay," she shrugged, she much preferred to see him wrestle, that was all. "Sawyer!"

"Okay," Chris said as Flynn handed the phone off to Sawyer. "Hey there, kid, I missed you tonight, how was wrestling?"

"It was good, Daddy. Trips talked and then there was wrestling and stuff, but it's not as good as when you wrestle. But I know that you're dancing and so you can't do both because that would be really hard, but you should come back soon, Daddy or else I think Mommy will be mad at you."

"I think she will too," Chris said. "I can't wait to see you tomorrow."

"You just saw us yesterday, you aren't even gone that long," Sawyer said. "I'll see you tomorrow and it won't be long and anything."

"Well I can still miss you, can't I? You're my kids and I think it's my prerogative as a father to be able to miss my kids. Goodness gracious, I don't think anyone else has to go through this for their kids."

Sawyer laughed, "Daddy, you're funny. You danced good, Daddy and you made the lady cry and that was good crying and not bad crying. Did Grandma like it since you were dancing for Grandma?"

"She loved it."

"Oh good," he said. "Mommy and I voted for you and Flynnie too because you were so good and we want you to win."

"Well thanks, every vote counts, you know."

"I know, that's what Mommy said," Sawyer told him. "But Daddy, I miss when you wrestle."

"I know you do, kid, but I'll be back soon enough, okay, I promised you and your sister that and I don't go back on my promises to you," he told them. He wouldn't go back on this one either if he could help it.

"Mommy says it's time for bed so I'll talk to you later, Daddy, night!" Sawyer said, handing the phone off to Stephanie.

"Chris, I'll call you back in a few," Stephanie said before hanging up. Chris sat on the couch as he waited for Stephanie to call back and indeed, in a few minutes, she called him up. "Hey."

"Hey," he said with a smile and a wink for her. "God I love this video phone thing. It makes missing you a little less lonely."

"Have you been drinking?" she teased.

"Only slightly," he said, "so first things first, Britt and Hunter?"

"Not engaged, still together, Britt doesn't want to get married."

"Wow, that's actually a shocker," Chris said, "well, all the more power to them, so what did you think of me tonight?"

"I thought you were wonderful," Stephanie said, "everyone adored you. I think they are all shocked that someone they thought was probably a dumbass is schooling them all. You are making me so proud of you. You're amazing, Chris, but then, I knew you always would be."

"Thanks for believing in me. After I get done talking with you, I'm going to watch Raw," he told her, "so it's kind of like returning the favor, was the show good?"

Admittedly, she'd been distracted coordinating everything for her time off, but she lied to keep him off the track, "Yeah, it was an okay show, would've been much better if a larger than life superstar was there."

"Not you too," Chris groaned, "I said I promised to come back and I will, but I'll watch the show and give you my comments tomorrow."

"You always do."

"It was hard out there tonight," Chris admitted. "I don't know if I like putting myself out there like that."

"I thought it was endearing."

"Did you really?"

"I did."

"But-"

"Sometimes, Chris, you have to show that side of you. I know you can be that kind of man, but I think your fans needed to see it as well. I also think that gained you a lot of fans. Who's going to say anything bad about a dance as poignant as that one?"

"Always thinking business."

"No, I'm thinking from my heart. Your mother is lucky to have a son like you and I'm lucky to have a husband like you. I think this tore down any shred of doubt anyone may have had about our marriage, thinking you were some insensitive jerk all the time."

"Who thought _that_?" he asked with a laugh.

"I don't know, people," Stephanie said, "doesn't matter anyways, what you did out there, the way you projected yourself, the side of yourself you let the world see. Chris, I truly hope that you're proud of yourself too. It's one thing for us to be proud, your parents, me, the kids, whomever, but it's another thing for you to go out there and be proud of who you are and what you represent. So were you proud of yourself for shedding that asshole that lives inside of you so much of the time?"

"Yes, I was proud of myself."

And he had every right to be.


	321. And Then It's Gone, April 11, 2011

A/N: To all my readers, thank you for your patience, I really appreciate it.

* * *

"That's not good."

Chris looked over at Stephanie while she was on the phone. He'd been playing with Kensington while the other two kids took a nap and the tone of Stephanie's voice had made him turn his head. Kensington didn't seem to like that because she slapped Chris on the leg and he turned his attention back to her and she smiled up at him, babbling a little and showing off her scant few teeth. He made a funny face at her and then lifted her up in the air while trying to hear the rest of Stephanie's conversation. Her face was scowling and whatever she was hearing couldn't be good.

"And this was confirmed by another…" She paused, "Yes, okay, thank you, I'm glad that you got that other opinion."

"Steph?" Chris said, but Stephanie held up a finger to him and he shut his mouth and focused back on Kensington. He rolled a ball for her and then set her down on the ground and watched as she crawled towards the ball and then started pushing it back towards Chris.

"Yes, thank you, goodbye," Stephanie said, then hung up the call. She sighed and banged her head against the table causing Chris and Kensington to turn towards her.

"Steph, what's going on?" Chris asked, crawling over to Stephanie and Kensington followed him because she loved to crawl and thought this was some sort of game. She came up right behind Chris and then sneezed. "Bless you, Kensy-bug, but cute sneeze."

"Bad news, really bad news," Stephanie said and when she looked up there was actually tears in her eyes.

"Who was it you were talking to?" he asked.

"A doctor."

"Oh my God, you're pregnant again?" Chris said, the panic cutting through his voice. Okay, four kids…_four_ kids. Well, that was going to be…okay, no, he was freaking out a little bit.

"What? No, I _just_ had Kensy," Stephanie said, shaking her head.

"You're okay, aren't you?" Now he was worried about his wife. If she was sick, he didn't know what he'd do and he didn't want to think about that if it was the case.

"I'm fine, that was about Edge," Stephanie said. "Those tests, they came back, triple opinion and it's really bad, Chris. He's…he's going to have to retire immediately. No…farewell match or…it's really bad."

Chris ran his hand over his mouth, "Does Edge know?"

"They said he was scheduled to come in this afternoon, but because of Raw on Monday and full disclosure of injuries is company policy and so the doctor just called. Basically, Edge has this condition where his spine narrows and because of his injuries, the fluid around the spine isn't sufficient or something and one wrong move and he can be paralyzed…or worse."

"Wow," Chris said, shaking his head. "I had no idea."

"I don't think Edge even had any idea," Stephanie said, "if he had then he's…no, there's no way he would've fought at WrestleMania if he did have any idea. I think he thought it was just a pinched nerve or something, maybe, I don't know. He kept saying he was okay, but…well, he's not okay."

"That's…man, that's crushing news," Chris said, "I can't believe…what are you going to do?"

"What can I do, what can anyone do? He can't wrestle anymore, that's an absolute given. He's not only a liability to himself, but to everyone around him. I can't have him wrestle and then have him get seriously hurt or hurt someone else. The only option is for him to retire, effective immediately."

"That puts such…he's the champion."

"I know what he is," Stephanie snapped, then took a deep breath, "sorry, didn't mean to snap. I'm more worried about him than I am about the company. I mean, this is his livelihood and I know he's always saying that he wants to walk away within a couple years, but it's always been like a threat, not an actuality and now he's being forced out and not on his own terms. How would you feel in that situation?"

"Well, I did always want to go out kicking and screaming, but at this point, it's kind of moot because I'm married to you and everything and well, I'm not getting out."

"I know, but…we're going to have to have him give up the title and I guess that Del Rio will have to face a new contender," Stephanie said, "that's the only solution."

"What are you actually going to do about Edge?" Chris asked. "Like, this is less than ideal of course, but you can't just say, hey, he's injured, he's retired and then leave it at that, Edge deserves better than that. I hope you agree."

"Of course I agree. I'll just have to call…my father and tell him the situation," she said, almost saying that she was going to call Britt. She hadn't yet told Chris that she'd taken a leave of absence from the show to stay with him in California and she'd almost blown it. She did have to notify her father though on the situation, but she needed to call Britt too.

"Good idea, I hope for once he's understanding," Chris said with a roll of the eyes.

"Chris, he's not like it was over there at WCW, firing people via fax or telegram or carrier pigeon or whatever it was like over there."

Chris laughed, "Yeah, that's how it was, they even had dungeons over there."

"Shut up, I don't know what went on over there," she said. "I'm going to go up to our room to make the phone calls, get a little privacy."

"You can go downstairs into the small office," he said.

"You mean the one that has absolutely nothing in it but a chair and some crates?" she said, speaking of the room they had no use for and just kept empty. There was a guest room downstairs as well, but Chris's parents were staying there for a few extra days. They were out and about in Los Angeles today though. Actually, they'd been out and about every day. They were enjoying the warm weather and the sights and Chris and Stephanie had barely seen them. They'd heard mention of a second honeymoon and they were glad there was a whole floor separating them.

"Okay, our bedroom then, whatever," he said.

"Listen out for the kids, they should be waking up soon and I'm sure they will come barreling down the stairs looking for their afternoon snack."

"I will, but then I _have_ to get back to the studio for evening rehearsal with Cheryl," Chris said.

"Okay, that's fine, I was going out to dinner with the kids and your parents anyways," Stephanie said, "you'll be getting food with Cheryl or after, yes?"

"Yeah," he said, "look at us, we're such a well-oiled machine."

"I think the nearly ten years we've been together will do that," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes, "I'll be upstairs if you need me, please knock first because I'll be discussing business. And do not come in there looking for sex because like I did last time, I will lock you out."

"I wasn't _looking_ for sex, I was demanding it," he said, smashing his palm on the ground, making Kensington emulate it, "Kensy-bug, I'm happy that you love me and want to help the cause, but you're really not going to help with this one, it's because of what I like to do with Mommy that you're even here right now."

"Yes, that's true," Stephanie said, "but don't bug me."

"I won't, I've got things to do too, I've got a life, which, right now, consists of this little bug right here and then later will consist of dancing. Because I was born to dance!" he declared in a funny voice that made Kensington laugh. He laughed along with her. "Go do your business work now!"

"I am, I am," she said, but she dreaded going up the stairs. She was going to make calls she didn't think she would have to make and that was always tough. She planned on calling her father, then Britt. She knew Edge didn't know the news yet and she didn't want to be the one to tell him. It was something his doctor should explain. She would just mess it up. She closed to the door to their bedroom and went over to the small table and chairs they had out on their balcony. If she was going to make some tough calls, she might as well have the ocean as her backdrop. She grabbed her phone and started sorting through her numbers.

"Vince McMahon's office, this is Ellen speaking, may I ask who's calling?"

"Hey, Ellen, it's Stephanie, is my father in?"

"Oh hi, Stephanie, I'll put you through, hold on," her father's secretary said.

"Thanks."

Stephanie waited a moment and then, "Stephanie, hello, what is it?"

"Hello to you too, Dad," she told him.

"Well, you're calling me and you hardly ever call me because you apparently hate me."

"Dad, let's not get into this, please," Stephanie said, "I called on business, not on anything else and I don't hate you, I told you, I'm not leaving the company like Shane. I'm just taking time off to be there for Chris. You can't hate me for that."

"First Shane leaves, then Chris leaves and hasn't come back yet, and now you take this leave, what am I supposed to think, Stephanie? All my kids and/or kids-in-law have decided they're too good for this company."

"Dad, I'm still working, I'm just not at the shows, the shows you won't even let me actually be on and I have to run them and consort with…okay, I'm not getting into this, I'm not leaving the show and I'm calling you on extremely serious business and I'm not going to let this devolve into a fight."

"Very serious business, is it in regards to you or Chris? Is he retiring?"

"What is it with people jumping to conclusions today?" she wondered aloud. "It has nothing to do with me or Chris. As you know, we sent Edge in for some tests because he'd been feeling under the weather, do you recall this?"

"Yes, I recall this and that you decided that he should have some tests done."

"Well, the results came back today on the tests. I wanted to make sure that they were checked over by a few different doctors, just to make sure that the initial diagnosis was correct."

"And does he need time off, is that what this is about?" Vince asked. "It's going to be a little difficult, since it's right after WrestleMania and you know my general feeling about having matches for titles on regular shows, especially when it's pretty clear that we're going to have a work."

"I know, Dad, but it's actually worse than that," Stephanie said, "Edge is going to have to retire. His injuries are too severe and he has been permanently not cleared to wrestle. There's no recovering from what's going on with him and so he's simply forced to retire."

There was a long pause and it was like Vince was contemplating whether or not her words were real or not, but they absolutely were. She wouldn't joke about something of this magnitude, not when it involved not only the World Title but her friend as well. He finally spoke. "And the doctors are absolutely sure there's nothing can be done?"

"Absolutely. It's a degenerative thing, culminated by his previous surgeries," Stephanie explained. "It's not something that can be corrected by surgeries and it's extremely dangerous for him to step in the ring. It has to do with his spine, but one bad bump and he could be paralyzed, Dad, or even worse than paralyzed, that's how bad it is. Him stepping in the ring is dangerous and it would be putting his life in our hands if we were to ever put him in the ring again."

Vince sighed, "Okay, well, I'm not putting our wrestlers in danger. What do you plan to do?"

"The only thing we really can do. I'm going to allow Edge time on Monday's show to talk about whatever he wants, I'm giving him the microphone and letting him go out there. It's the least we can do. This is all so abrupt that there's really no planning. And because of the circumstances, a retirement party doesn't seem at all appropriate. We'll have to strip him of the title or ask him to relinquish it at least. Then we'll have to find out a new contender to face Del Rio."

"What if we just gave it to Del Rio?" Vince asked. "He has been going after it."

"Dad, really? This isn't like the situation where you gave Hunter the title, it shouldn't work that way. I don't think we should just hand a guy a title because he happened to be going after it. That only fair thing to do would be to…I don't know, hold a Battle Royal with the contendership on the line."

"That sounds fair."

"I think so too," Stephanie said, "I've also been thinking, I know that we hold our annual draft every year, but I think we should move it up soon so that we can get some guys over on SmackDown, especially with Edge's absence."

"Or your husband can come back."

"I'm not pressuring him to do that," Stephanie said, "it doesn't work, believe me. Plus, I don't want to be a nagging wife. Chris has taken on so many responsibilities as it is. The man is run thin and I know I am too, don't point it out, but still, okay, I'm not adding another thing onto his plate until he's ready."

"Fine, fine, thank you for calling me."

"You're the president, I'm obligated," Stephanie said. "I've got to call Britt now so I'll talk to you later to iron out whatever details you may need ironing out. Okay, Dad?"

"Okay, but first, please tell my grandchildren that I love them."

"Of course," Stephanie said, her voice softening slightly, "bye, Dad."

"Goodbye, Stephanie."

Stephanie hung up the phone and started to dial Britt. Meanwhile, downstairs, Chris was deep in thought when a couple of squeals brought him out of his reverie. Sawyer was walking into the room, his hair mussed from sleep and he could hear Flynn yelling at him to wait up as she made her way down the stairs. She showed up a few minutes later and looked positively angry that she'd been left in the dust. It took her a little longer to get down the stairs than her older brother and it wasn't fair that he was so much faster than she was.

"Daddy, you look sad, what's wrong?" his ever-compassionate Sawyer asked him, his eyes filled with worry and concern. Why and how he ever got a kid as sweet as this one, he'd never know, but he certainly wasn't going to question it.

"I was just thinking," Chris told him.

"What were you thinking about, a sad movie?"

Chris laughed, "No, not a sad movie, I was just thinking about Edge. Something happened to him and he's going to have to stop wrestling."

"Ed is going to have to stop wrestling?" Sawyer asked, his eyes wide, but then he remembered that his daddy had stopped wrestling and it was only for a little while. "Just for a little while, right? Like you, right, Daddy? He'll come back."

"Ed go away?" Flynn asked. Was Edge going somewhere?

"No, not like me, kid," Chris told him, knowing that Sawyer would take this hard because he loved Edge. "More like when Uncle Shane left. Edge is hurt and he's hurt in a way that makes it dangerous for him to wrestle so he can't wrestle anymore…forever, do you understand?"

"Forever? But that's such a long time!" Sawyer told him.

"I know, but things like this happen," Chris said, pulling Sawyer up into his lap. "You see, when you wrestle…actually, Flutterby, come here, I think you should hear this too, even though you're little, I think that I need to start getting this into you now before it's too late."

"Okay," Flynn said, coming over and climbing on the couch next to Kensington, who was occupied with some plastic keys that she was now chewing on. Flynn looked at her for a second in disgust, she didn't chew things like that and drool all over the place (most of the time).

"Good, I've got you all here," he said, looking at the little faces looking up at him (minus Kensington, she was _really_ into those keys). "Now, we all love wrestling, don't we?"

"Yes!" Flynn screamed, startling Kensington, who looked up at her sister with wide eyes. She babbled something incoherently before going back to her plastic keys.

"Flutterby, indoor voice, please," Chris said, though he knew the effort was futile when it came to Flynn. She was naturally loud, kind of like him and his wife.

"I love wrestling," Sawyer confirmed. "It's fun."

"I know, that's why I wanted to be a wrestler when I was growing up, because it looked fun and challenging and it was my dream. I wanted to be a wrestler so bad. I really didn't think I had a shot at first, being that I wasn't a huge guy like Sheamus or Trips, but once I saw guys my size, I knew I could do it."

"You did do it, Daddy," Sawyer said, "you're the best in the world at what you do."

"Thanks," he kissed the top of Sawyer's head. "The thing about wrestling though and what we might not see at first is how dangerous and hard it really is. Wrestling is fun, I love it, you guys love it, Mommy would marry it if she could…"

Sawyer laughed and Flynn followed suit, followed by Kensington because, hey, she liked to laugh too, "You can't _marry_ wrestling."

"I know, but if you could, Mommy would be all for that, believe me," Chris said, "but when you go into the ring, you're putting your body on the line. It might not hit as hard with you guys because I've never been seriously injured, but a lot of guys go into the ring and get injured. It's very easy to get injured. That's why, even if we don't like some wrestlers, we still have to respect them for what they do."

"Like Shawn?"

"Exactly like Shawn," Chris said, "we might not like Shawn the man, but when he's wrestling, we have to respect that he's putting his body on the line. A long time ago, I think even before you were born, kid, Edge really got hurt and he had to stop wrestling for a while. His injury got worse over the years and he took some tests and they told him that he couldn't wrestle anymore. This is something that happens. It's very sad and we'll have to call Edge and tell him to get better-"

"Can we make him a feel better card?" Sawyer asked. "Flynn and I can draw it!"

"You know what, I think that's a _fantastic_ idea," Chris told him. "In fact, I think that's the best idea anyone has had all day. Edge is probably going to be feeling a little sad about all this and I think that we can help make him feel better."

"I'll get my markers!" Sawyer exclaimed, hopping off Chris's lap and running for the stairs since his markers were upstairs in his room. He stopped at the foot of the stairs and ran back to where Chris, Flynn, and Kensington were sitting. "Daddy, we should get Mommy to help."

"Well, I know that Mommy was working on some stuff, but I think she needs a break," he winked. "What do you say we go up there and ambush her?"

"What's an ambush?" Sawyer asked.

"It's where we sneak up on her and surprise her."

"Oh, I wanna do that," Sawyer nodded his head enthusiastically.

"Me too," Flynn added. She liked plans too.

"Okay, okay," Chris told them. He picked up Kensington and then led his kids upstairs, walking behind Flynn as she slowly made her way up the stairs, holding onto the bars of the railing as Sawyer climbed quickly and waited at the top for the rest of them. Flynn eventually scaled her way up the steps and they tiptoed down the hallway to the end where the door was still closed. Chris knelt on the ground between Flynn and Sawyer and started whispering to them, "Okay, so I'm going to open the door and we're going to rush Mommy, okay."

"Got it," Sawyer said.

"I got it," Flynn said forcefully, like she was trying to show up Sawyer.

"Okay, on the count of three, one…two…two and a half…two and three quarters…two and infinity-"

"_Daddy_," Sawyer hissed while giggling.

"Three!" Chris said, opening the door and letting his two oldest kids run in.

"Mommy!" Sawyer and Flynn yelled as they tackled Stephanie against the bed. Stephanie, surprised, didn't realize what was going on at first until Stephanie looked over and saw Chris coming over as well.

"What's going on?" she laughed as she hugged both Sawyer and Flynn to her. "Did you guys have your after-nap snack?"

"No, we're going to make Ed a feel better card and we need your help!" Sawyer explained as he tried to tickle Stephanie, who tried to elude his hands.

"That's really sweet, baby boy, did you come up with the idea?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said. "I want to make Ed feel better. Do you wanna help, Mommy?"

"Of course I do. Why don't you and Flynn go grab some construction paper and markers and crayons and bring them downstairs to the kitchen and we can all make Edge some get well cards and then next time we see him, we can give them to him."

"I'll go get the stuff then," Sawyer was already running out of the room, Flynn on his heels begging him to wait up.

"That was really all his idea?" Stephanie asked as Chris leaned in to kiss her neck. "Chris, stop, I'm trying to talk."

"That was absolutely his idea because we have the best kid in the universe who thinks of other people before himself, which is so very unlike his parents who usually think of #1 first and then everyone else second."

"I resent that, I think of my children first," Stephanie said, making a funny face at Kensington, who opened up her arms and wanted to be carried by her mother. Stephanie took the baby into her arms and kissed the top of her head. "Maybe _you_ think about #1 first…"

"No, I think of my kids too, but Sawyer thought it'd be a nice gesture. Flynn agreed and Kensington appears to agree," Chris said, playing with Kensington's foot for a second. "I think I hae time to make a card before I have to get back to rehearsals."

"Then let's make some cards."

The doctor had left the room to give Edge and Lita a moment, telling them they could stay in there as long as they needed and that he would be in his office if Edge had any additional questions. Edge sat there, on that stupid examination table and stared at the ground in front of him. White linoleum, like every other goddamned doctor's office he had ever been in. The faint smell of alcohol wafted through the air and it nearly made him sick to his stomach. Lita was sitting quietly next to him in a chair the doctor had provided for her and she rested her hand on his knee.

"How could this have happened?" Edge finally said.

"Honey," Lita said, her tone remorseful and sad. "It's going to be okay."

"I always knew that I'd retire fairly young," he said, ignoring what she'd just told him. "I always knew I didn't want to be in my 50's and wrestling, but…it's being torn away from me, Li. It's being torn away and it's not on my own terms and…"

"I know," she said, standing up and wrapping her arms around him. He wasn't crying, but she could feel that tenseness in his body that suggested he was trying to hold it in. She whispered unintelligible words into his ear as she held him and after a few moments, he banded his arms around her. "It'll be okay."

"How?"

"Well, think of all the things we get to do now," Lita said, "we can go on vacations, remember what those things are? They're where you just get away and do whatever you want. We can go on that hiking trip you've always wanted to do and we can go camping, we can go on safaris if we want to. You can learn how to fly a plane or a helicopter. You can do all the things you've been putting off for so long."

"But…wrestling…"

"I know how hard it is to walk away," she told him, pulling back so she could look him in the eyes. "Believe me, I know because I've done it…"

"Not under these circumstances," he said bitterly.

"No, not under these particular circumstances, but I've had to walk away, learn to live away from it. And honey, it's not like this will be the end of all things. Stephanie would absolutely give you a backstage job if you wanted one-"

"God, I couldn't be there and then not wrestle," he said, shaking his head.

"Okay, well, if that ever became an option for you, then I'm sure Stephanie would hire you in a heartbeat and you've still got a million friends, everyone loves you, you know that," she told him, "And you're not going to lose that."

"I want to go home," he told her, "I just want to go home."

"Okay, we'll go home."

Edge spent the next couple days sleeping and lounging mournfully around the house. He didn't want to do anything except sit around and it was worrying Lita. She knew he was going to take the news hard, it didn't take a genius to figure that out, but she didn't realize he wouldn't have the foresight to see that things were going to get better eventually. She ended up calling Christian, hoping that his brother's presence might help. She needed some time off too and decided to go out with Trish and Tilden.

"I'm seriously worried about him," Lita said as she pushed Tilden's stroller around the mall. "I've never seen him this upset."

"Well, all things considered, he's never had to face the end of his career."

"Still, I don't know, I guess…I don't even know. You never really expect this to happen. I know the possibility is always there, but I guess you just never think it'll happen to you," Lita sighed. "I just wish that he could see the forest for the trees. It's not going to be the end of the world, but he thinks it is."

"I'm sure he'll be okay."

"I hope Christian can get through to him."

Christian sat opposite his brother, trying to assess the situation in front of him. Edge was just sitting there, watching TV, but it wasn't so much what he was doing, it was how he looked. He looked absolutely miserable. His hair was pull back and out of his face and he just looked haggard, like this invisible weight had descended upon his shoulders and settled there, weighing him down and hunching him over. Christian sucked at his teeth a little. He'd sat there for at least a half hour, hoping that Edge would initiate some sort of conversation, but so far, Christian had barely been acknowledged.

"So what's going through your mind?" Christian finally asked during a commercial break of whatever Edge was watching, something about wind surfing.

"What the hell do you think is going through my mind?" Edge snapped.

"Okay, you don't have to act like an asshole, you know," Christian said, slumping down in his chair a little.

"I don't even know why Lita had you come over, I'm fine."

"Yeah, _this_ is fine, sure," Christian gestured toward the state of his brother at the current moment. "This is always how you look when you're fine."

"I am fine, I'm just getting used to how things are going to be from now on."

Christian rolled his eyes a little at his brother's drama, "Look, I'm not going to say I know what you're going through because I don't, I really don't. I have no idea what you're feeling or what' you're going through, but Edge, you're my brother, I've known you my entire life and I consider you not only my brother, but my best friend as well so I think I know you better than most people. I've had to deal with your damn mood swings forever and I've had to deal with you trying to be my dad so I think I'm well qualified to at least sort of know how you're feeling."

"Well, you don't."

"I know it must be hard now, but it doesn't mean this is the end of the world," Christian told him. "If you want, you can look at this as a new beginning."

"That's the lamest thing I've ever heard," Edge told him, not taking his eyes off the TV though Christian doubted that he was even watching at this point.

"It's not lame. Think of what you can do now, all the things you couldn't before, right," Christian said, "you and Lita can settle down and I know you're up in the air about the whole kid thing, but maybe you guys might want to get married at some point."

"I don't want to get married and neither does Li. I've been married once and that was enough."

"But maybe somewhere down the line, you and Lita might change your minds and then you guys can have a normal life."

"We'll never have normal lives," Edge said, "you're nuts."

"Okay, you know what, I'm just trying to help here and I feel like I'm getting slammed for trying to help. If you want to sulk and act like this, fine, but I'm not going to let you act like a jerk to me," Christian said. "I'm your brother, I'm not your doormat."

"I just didn't get to go out on my own terms. It was snatched away from me," Edge said, burying his face in his hands. "I didn't get to end it the way I wanted to, nothing was on my terms."

Christian got up and sat next to his brother, patting him on the back and then lightly rubbing his shoulder, "Dude, your entire career has been on your terms. Look at you. Look at us, but mostly look at you. We started off being like…these weirdos and why, because we wanted to make a name for ourselves so we let each other look like tools, but after that, everything was us, man, E&C, that was all us, then I went a little crazy, but then you rose to the top on _your_ terms. You've been dominating and winning championships left and right and what about that hasn't been on your terms, Edge? You've always done things your way, your style. So what, you didn't get to end it the way you wanted it, but you've been you for so long and everyone, for the most part, has loved you for that. You've got so many friends, so many fans who adore the hell out of you, women who would be willing to drop their panties for even a shot at you. Everything has been your terms, _everything_."

"You're right," Edge mumbled after a second. "You're absolutely right."

"Yeah, so what is this moping you're doing, you have been Edge forever, since the moment you told Mom that you hated the name Adam and would not respond to it any longer. What other kid would actually stick to that? I mean, Mom, Grandma Edna, and I, we all went along with it because Mom told me that we shouldn't be rude and squash your dreams, but I think she thought you were going to drop that after a couple weeks. But she still calls you Edge because you hate Adam."

"Dad came up with the name," Edge said, "I hated it ever since he left."

"I know," Christian said. "Still, this is who you've been for decades, what's going to change now? You can't wrestle, you knew it would happen eventually, but that doesn't stop you from being Edge. Wrestling doesn't define who you are as a person. Sure, wrestling tends to take over lives, but you've always been a guy who knows where the wrestling ring ends and real life begins. Look at Chris, he's not wrestling right now, but he's still Chris, loud, brash, cocky…you're still Edge."

"I always knew I'd have to leave, just not this way."

"Nobody knows the way they're going to go out, nobody has a crystal ball. But be thankful that this was caught before something happened to you," Christian said rightly. "What if you were paralyzed, then Lita has to take care of you for the rest of your life? That's not fair to her or to you."

"Okay, Christian, geez, you've drilled it into my head enough, got it, thanks," Edge said, annoyed at his younger brother now. "You don't have to keep going on and on about it."

"I'm sorry, I just want you to be okay, _God_," Christian said. "So come on, Trish and Lita are out with Tilden, they'll probably be gone all day, let's go out, get a drink, do something stupid and by stupid I mean stupid fun, like go karts or something."

"What are we, 12 again?"

"Sure, come on," Christian tugged on the sleeve of Edge's shirt and then pulled him up out of his chair, "get up, go get dressed and I don't know, maybe take a shower, when was the last time you showered?"

"I don't know."

"Gross, go shower, get dressed and I'm taking you out."

"I don't really feel like it."

"Too bad, already happening, wheels are already in motion, you're already going upstairs, so come on, let's go, go, go," Christian forcibly pushed his brother towards the stairs. "I'll be waiting, you've got half an hour."

Cheryl pressed her hand against Chris's chest, "I need you to stand up straighter, you need posture, Chris, I'm not going to tell you this again."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he said, straightening his back. "Do I even look remotely like I'm in charge here? I know I'm supposed to be like the bullfighter and you're supposed to be the cape, but I'm getting the distinct feeling that you're really the bullfighter."

"I am here, but on that dance floor, I'm going to be the cape," Cheryl said. "Now come on, I've watched videos of your wrestling and I know you know how to do arrogant very well, hell…you _are_ arrogant, I need to see that in your face. Imagine I'm Stephanie if you need to, imagine it's like when you guys hated each other."

"I never should have shown you that footage."

"Well you did and now I know what you're capable of," Cheryl told him. "That was your biggest mistake. So channel that hatred and anger."

"But I don't hate her anymore, I love her, she's my wife," Chris reasoned.

"I'm sure you can go back there. I _need_ you to get that swagger. The dance so far is technically okay, you're doing fine with that part, but I don't feel like you're getting into the character of the dance. You've said you've had plans in the past that make you have to pretend to hate someone and that you've taken improv classes, use that."

He didn't know why he had such a hard time getting into this character. It should have fit him like an old glove. He was comfortable playing the aggressor; he'd done it so many times while wrestling, but this wasn't wrestling. It was more acting than he'd ever done before. It required of him something completely out of his norm and he was trying to fit into what Cheryl wanted of him. When he was wrestling, it was so easy to channel his anger onto his opponent, whomever it was. This required him to be angry and forceful with someone he liked very much.

It plagued him, this inability all day and all night and when he got home from rehearsal, he went straight upstairs and collapsed on the bed where Stephanie was sitting under the covers. "Rough night?" Stephanie asked as she took off her glasses and stopped reading the magazine that was in her lap.

"You can say that again," he said as Stephanie got out of bed and walked over to him, pulling down his track pants. "I'm too tired for sex, baby, maybe tomorrow morning."

"I'm not looking for sex, sweetie," she told him and he managed to lift his head a little and lift an eyebrow. "Yes, Chris, there are times when I'm not craving your body or whatever you really think is going on in my head."

"I just think you want me 24/7, is that wrong?"

"Yes, because it's not true, I'm just trying to help you undress. Are you going to take a shower?"

"Are you going to take one with me?"

"I thought you didn't want sex?" she said to him as she threw his pants into the laundry basket. She went to grab at his shirt, but he pulled her over him and then on top of him so she was hovering above him.

"Who says if we go into the shower together that sex will be had? Maybe I'm so sore and so tired that I need help bathing."

"Take a bath then," Stephanie told him. "It'll really help your muscles too. I suspect you're working muscles you didn't even know existed."

"I knew they existed, they just weren't vital for wrestling, like the heel muscle."

"Do heels have muscles?"

"Well whatever is down there is killing me," he said as Stephanie kissed his neck. "I already feel better, will you take a bath with me?"

"No because I already got soaking wet with your three, little hellions taking their baths earlier. Sawyer's okay because he's almost 5 and he can almost start taking baths by himself, I think we should start easing him into taking baths alone, but just ease, not like, leave him to take it full stop, but remain in earshot. Flynn, on the other hand, when I gave her, her bath, she thought it would be funny to grab her little bucket and dump it on me. Then Kensy loves the water and splash me with it."

Chris suppressed his laugh, "But we have three beautiful, active children, shouldn't we be happy about that?"

"Sometimes they annoy me," Stephanie admitted as she pulled Chris up off the bed with all of her might. "I'll sit with you though. I finished my work early and the kids, your parents, and I had a really lovely meal. Your dad barbequed for us and he made these fantastic ribs, it was great."

"I'm sorry I missed it."

"You had rehearsals," she said, sitting on the floor after running the bathtub as Chris undressed. He waited for the tub to fill with water before easing in his aching body into the tub. Stephanie leaned her chin against the side and smiled at him. "So what's on your mind? What's Chris Jericho thinking right now?"

"That there's enough room in this tub for two if we squeeze in real tight," he told her, giving her a small smirk.

"Stop deflecting, how was rehearsal? Judging from the way that you're aching and not telling me how great you're doing, something's wrong."

"I just don't feel like I'm getting this dance. I have the steps, that's fine, but I'm not getting the character right and it's frustrating because I'm so used to getting things and having things come naturally to me. Plus, with last week…"

"You're worried because you were in the bottom two?"

"Yeah…"

"They explicitly said that the bottom two might not necessarily be who was in the bottom," she told him, then went on to rationalize the entire thing as only Stephanie could do, "You know what they were probably doing, right?"

"What were they doing?"

"They were trying to get you more votes. They put the fear of God into your fans. Now they're thinking, oh my God, Chris was on the verge of going home, we've got to vote for him more! Classic scare tactic."

"You really think so?"

"I _know_ so," Stephanie said in a haughty tone. "Now about this character, what's it supposed to be?"

"I'm supposed to be cocky and arrogant and fierce."

"You just described yourself, I'm failing to see how this is a problem," Stephanie said, reaching for his hand and holding it in hers despite the fact that it was wet. "If I know anything about Chris Jericho and I like to think I know better than most, it's the fact that you are cocky and arrogant and fierce."

"It's just, I don't even know what it is to be honest with you. Cheryl told me that I should act like I did when I hated you, but I don't hate you, so how am I really supposed to channel that. I love you now and then she told me to picture her like an opponent I faced in the ring, but I don't hate Cheryl so that was hard too."

"First off, you _can_ channel your hatred for me," Stephanie told him, "remember when I made you fake like we were getting a divorce, you were able to act pissed and angry with me then. So channel that."

"But I hated that stupid plan, that's how I was able to get through that."

"I've got it!" Stephanie told him. "Picture Cheryl as Austin, you _hate_ Austin."

"I do hate him."

"So picture that it's Austin and you want to beat him up."

"I could try that," Chris nodded. "Thanks, baby, you're the best."

"And after a long day with the kids, I really am amazing."

"Now don't _you_ get cocky."

"I'm just showing you how easy it is to turn it on. Maybe I should dance with Cheryl on Monday instead of you," she joked. "I'm sure that the show is ready for some female/female dancing."

"I'm not so sure Len could take that," Chris said, "I wish you could be there with me on Monday, cheering me on. Just having you there makes me feel so much calmer. It's just like your presence alone makes me less nervous."

She had been planning to wait for the next day, Sunday, to tell Chris that she had taken a leave of absence from the company, but since he had brought it up now, she thought it the perfect time to tell him what was going on, "Oh, wow, you know how some things just slip your mind until you're reminded of them?"

"Um, sure," he said, "what's going on?"

Stephanie smiled at him, kissing his hand at the knuckles, "Well, as it turns out, I've taken a sabbatical from work…well, okay, not exactly a sabbatical, but I've taken a leave of absence."

"A what? I'm not even sure you know the meaning of those words," Chris said, shaking his head as if he hadn't heard her correctly.

"You heard me, I've taken a leave of absence. Britt is running the show for me. I'm still doing paperwork and I'm still helping with the schedule, but as for being at the shows, I've turned that over to Britt for the duration of your competition on Dancing with the Stars," she said with a shrug.

"Are you serious?" He still wasn't sure if he could believe her. This was Stephanie…Stephanie McMahon. She who got angry when she was pregnant and had to leave the shows, who waited with baited breath the six weeks until she could bring their children and get back to work, the person who had fought mercilessly with her father for any position he would let her have.

"I'm dead serious. As long as you're out here, I'm out here to support you," she told him, sitting a little straighter, proud of herself for actually committing to this."

"You're joking."

"I'm not joking, I could show you the company-wide memo I sent out deferring most of my power to Britt."

"You're here…you're…staying here."

"I will be in that audience until you win that trophy," Stephanie told him.

"Stephy…"

"It's nothing," she tried to sound nonchalant about it, but Chris looked truly moved by what she was doing.

"This is your work though, your love, you don't have to do this for me."

"I don't have to, of course, I don't have to, but I want to," she told him, clearing her throat. "It had come to my attention that you have made more sacrifices for me than I can shake a stick at. Chris, you have supported me with every dumb thing I've ever wanted to do and without question. A week, _a week_ into our relationship you were willing to hide what we had _and_ switch shows for me-"

"Baby, I do the things I do for you because I love you, I'm not asking you for anything in return and if I did, I think the three kids would've more than made up for anything I have done for you," he told her.

"I know you say that," she told him, "and I know you mean that, but now I want to do something for you and I know you think it's this huge sacrifice for me to give up work for an extended period of time, but it's really not. I _want_ to be in that audience. Do you have any idea how extremely proud of I am of you? I really don't think you realize how proud I am of you and how happy I am for you every time anyone has said anything positive and believe me, people are saying it. When I'm at the ballroom and people figure out the fact that I'm your wife, usually because I'm sitting in your section and they come over and they are raving about you and how you're amazing and I'm sitting there basking in the glory and yes, I've been in this position before with the wrestling and I've had women come up to me and tell me how jealous they are, but this is a new medium and I'm so proud of you."

"I don't even know what to say."

"Nothing, just bathe yourself so we can go to bed."

"Okay…I love you though, just so you know."

"I love you too, but then I'd have to be to be crazy enough to give up _work_ for you," she told him and he laughed and shook his head.

"I can't believe I got the great Stephanie McMahon to give up her true love."

She winked at him, "Stephanie McMahon-Jericho."

Edge didn't want Monday to roll around. If he could just slow down time he could still think of himself as an active wrestler. Unfortunately, Monday came and he was in Connecticut and in the building where he would have to announce his retirement. It felt surreal, like he wasn't even really there, that he really wasn't doing this. It was almost like a dream, where he was watching it all happen, but it wasn't to him, it was to some kind of foreign person who just slightly resembled him, some dream Edge.

"Hey, Edge," Britt said as she entered his private dressing room for the evening. "Hey, Li."

"Hey, Britt, what's going on?" Lita said, feeling much more jovial than Edge at the moment.

"Nothing much, just getting into the groove of being in charge again," Britt answered, "and before you ask, because I can see it brewing in your eyes, Hunter and I are fine, we just decided that we didn't need to get married to be together."

"I'm not judging, that's how Edge and I feel," Lita said, "marriage is just a word after all, it doesn't make us any less committed."

"Thank you, I've been trying to get that into everyone's head for the past week, but I didn't think anyone was really getting it. I don't hate Hunter or want to break up, I just don't think that marriage is necessary for a couple to be together or monogamous with each other."

"I know what you mean."

"I don't think Hunter's mother does, he told her he was proposing to me and then had to tell her I said no and if she didn't hate me before, which she pretty much did, she hates me now."

"Don't worry about her, she's not in your relationship, don't let anyone butt in."

"I know, I'm trying, anyways, business, I've sent out word that there will be a short meeting in 20 minutes so you've got the time to address everyone backstage, Edge."

"Thanks for setting that up, Britt," Edge told her, "I really appreciate it."

"No problem," she smiled sympathetically at him, "Stephanie and I both agreed to give you as much time as you need at the top of the second hour. Basically, the microphone is yours and you can take as much times as you need. We've scheduled it so that we can push things around if necessary and I don't suspect you're going to talk for an hour, right?"

"No, I won't talk for an hour," he smiled a little, the corners of his mouth turning up.

"Then we're good and you're good and I will see you in 20 minutes at catering."

"Thanks again, Britt, you have no idea-"

"Edge, come on," she shrugged her shoulders slightly and then left the room.

20 minutes was all that stood between him and the night of goodbyes. Lita rubbed his shoulder, but it was as if he didn't feel it, not really. He, instead, mulled over what he was going to say. He didn't have anything set in his mind, but he knew that he wanted to address the wrestlers and the people who worked so hard to make the show possible. He felt he owed it to them to tell them first before the fans, to let them know exactly what was going on. He had some other things in mind, but he was pretty much going to wing it. Then he'd have to do the same on SmackDown.

The walk there was far too quick and then everyone was in his sights, sitting around, whispering to each other, wondering what was going on and probably wondering why he had a big chunk of promo time right in the middle of the show. Although he was the World Champion so maybe the reason why wasn't such a hot topic. He made his way to the front where Britt was standing with Hunter, who looked more like an enforcer than a wrestler. He was sending glares whenever someone got too loud and when Britt cleared her throat, he cleared his soon afterwards, which got more people's attention than his petite girlfriend's, even though she was in charge.

"Everyone, I called this meeting because Edge wants to address you and I suggest that you give him your attention and not text through this, I'm looking at you, Alex Riley," Britt said, eyeing him until he stopped what he was doing. She looked over to Edge, "the floor is yours."

Edge stood up and gave a short wave. "I'll keep this brief because I know a lot of you don't want to sit around here and feel like you have better things to do, but if you could humor me for just a few minutes. Several days ago, I went to the doctor's who were checking on some tests I had done. Because of the results of those tests, I've been forced to…retire," he took a deep breath. "The doctors will not medically clear me and there is no surgery for my spine anymore. I just wanted to thank you, each and every one of you for making me who I am. Even if I we never really hung out, you were here, part of my family. Christian may be my brother, but all of you are part of my family too. We've traveled together, we've fought against each other, been allies, and for all that, thank you. Thank you for being friends or enemies or someone I could count on at some point or even someone I nodded to in passing. I didn't want to leave her without you all knowing that you all mean something to me, from Randy, one of my craziest friends, Rated RKO, to the lowly interns. I've gotten to live my dream for so long and thanks for being part of it and making every moment worth it. That's really all I have to say, thanks."

The first people to come up to him, predictably, were the divas, who were cooing over him and acting like he was dying and not retiring. Then came the other wrestlers, most of them telling him what a bad break this was and how they would miss him. Some were liars, he knew, but he still appreciated the sentiment. It meant a lot that people were willing to put aside grudges to wish him luck and ask how he was doing.

"How did this happen?" Randy asked as he walked over. He may not have always been a good friend, but he was still a friend.

"Years of wear and tear and the surgeries didn't help."

"And there's really no coming back?"

"No, they've told me it's not going to happen."

"I'm really sorry, man," Randy said, shaking his hand. "You'll be okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine, thanks for asking."

He knew that this was hard, but he knew the hard part was going to come later when he actually had to step in front of his fans, the people that cared and paid money to see him. They were the ones that spurred him on, they were the ones who had always spurred him on, whether they hated him or loved him, he went out there wanting to entertain them, make them see what he saw in the mirror. Now he'd have to tell them that he wouldn't' be there for them any longer and it was going to be one of the hardest speeches he'd ever have to make.

"Mommy, how come Flynnie didn't come tonight?" Sawyer asked as he squirmed in his seat. His mother had told him there was still a little while before the show started and he was getting bored. There was nothing to do here and they couldn't bring any toys or anything to play with.

"Because Flynnie was being obnoxious earlier," Stephanie told it like it was. "I thought it would be better if we just left her with Gamma and Gamps. She'll have more fun with them and Kensy. Tonight will be about us and then after Daddy dances and the show is filmed, we'll go out to dinner and it'll just be the three of us. We never get to do anything with just us."

"It's because we have Flynnie and Kensy," Sawyer said matter-of-factly, "but that's okay because I like them because they're my sisters and I like taking care of them so I don't mind if I don't get to go out."

"I know you don't, but Daddy and I have to show you in some way that we appreciate all the help you give us with Flynnie and Kensy. I know that Flynnie isn't the quietest, most well-behaved girl in the world, but you handle her like a champ."

Sawyer beamed under the praise and Stephanie wasn't just giving it to him to be polite, he really did help her with his sisters and it was time they started acknowledging how important Sawyer was to how well the family ran, "I like her."

"I know you like her, I'm glad you like her and Kensy."

"It's okay," Sawyer said. "Mommy, does Daddy like the other dancers because isn't he trying to beat them like he does the other wrestlers?"

"Yeah, he is trying to beat them, but at the same time, they like him as well. It's hard not to like people that you spend time with and I think Daddy likes them, remember how he went to Ms. Alley's house the other day?"

"Her house was kinda scary," Sawyer said with distaste.

"I know or how about when Chelsea invited you and Flynnie to go to the Disney studios so we could watch some of the shows filmed there and take a tour of where they make _Phineas and Ferb_, that's a pretty good deal, huh?"

"Oh yeah! I'm glad that Daddy has friends then," Sawyer said eagerly, his eyes lighting up.

"Me too," she told him, "that's why we clap for all the dancers, not just Daddy."

"Uh huh, I know," Sawyer said.

Chris sat backstage in the celebrity area after the show started and they were all introduced. He was going over the routine in his head and he admitted to himself that he was adding extra pressure because of last week's results. He didn't want to end up in the bottom again even if it had just been a ploy to get him more votes. He didn't like the anxiety of waiting for the entire show and then standing there with that thumping music and the very real possibility that you would be sent home and your chances would be finished. He didn't want that pressure again and to alleviate that, he had to dance his balls off tonight.

He was still mulling over his character for this dance. He'd always said that it was easier to make people hate you than love you. He was trying to make people love him by being a character that as filled with anger. It was a tricky thing he thought at least. With wrestling, he knew all the moves, but dancing, he was still stumbling through. It was easier being cheesy or being passionate, but somehow, being something he actually _was_ turned out to be the most difficult endeavor yet. The paso doble was supposed to be this fierce dance with fire behind it, but he wasn't feeling very hot right now.

"You've got this," Cheryl told him. "You know this dance inside and out, channel what you need to in order to get the result that you want. You are the bullfighter."

"That's not helping, Cheryl," Chris laughed.

"What did Stephanie tell you to picture?" Cheryl asked knowing that Chris discussed almost everything with Stephanie.

"Stone Cold Steve Austin."

Cheryl narrowed her eyes a little, trying to remember the name. "Wrestler I'm guessing, sounds familiar…"

"I'm sure you've heard of him, but he was one of the guys I beat for the Undisputed Championship, not only that, he's probably the biggest name to come out of the wrestling world. I know a lot think it's Rocky, but Austin defined a generation of wrestling," Chris said grudgingly. He might not like the guy, but he had to give him his due.

"Okay, so you are picturing him because he was one of your opponents?"

"No, I'm picturing him because he's a jackass and I hate him," Chris said bitterly, then felt like he should elaborate because Cheryl was probably thinking he was insane. "When Stephanie was pregnant with Sawyer, she went out to the ring with her family and we hadn't told anyone that she was pregnant yet and Austin gave her a wrestling move where he kicks her in the stomach and then essentially makes her crash to the mat."

"Oh my God, that's awful," Cheryl said.

"Yeah, I mean, we went to the hospital immediately afterwards to get checked out and she got the clean bill of health, but we really didn't know if anything would be wrong with Sawyer because of it or anything, I mean, the doctor said the chances were low, but you just never know and she wasn't far along and, he's great, obviously, he's bright and articulate and he's normal in every sense of the word, so it all turned out alright, but I've never gotten over the anger so Stephanie said to think of this dance and think of Austin and I should be okay."

"Well then, I think you should use that and we'll see how it goes, okay?"

"Yeah, okay."

He hated having his dances at the end of the night. He had to sit there and watch as the other celebrities and dancers went ahead of him while his anxiousness built up and built up until he felt like bursting. Every once in a while, his eyes would catch Stephanie's (she always seemed to be looking up at where the celebrities and their partners were sitting) and she would give him a smile or a little thumbs up or something to calm him down. He knew she knew that he was nervous and would need the little bits of reassurance throughout the night.

He still couldn't believe she was actually sitting there, on a Monday, watching him dance and not in Connecticut at Raw. He'd expected her to go this entire week so when she'd told him that she'd actually taken a leave of absence from the show, it had shocked him, but now that she was here, with him, giving him little funny faces (he didn't find them as funny as Flynn and Kensington did) to make him smile and not feel like tonight was his last night after last week's scare. There were times, like this one, where it just reinforced how much Stephanie meant to him in his life.

He, of course, knew how much she meant already. The woman had been with him for almost nine years and they had kids together, but Stephanie was always so…Stephanie. It was hard for him to define exactly what she was, but everything she was made him so happy to have someone like her, no, to have _her_ in his life. There was nobody comparable to the woman he was lucky enough to snag. He knew she felt the same way about him so he didn't feel bad feeling like an absolute sap at the moment.

Finally, his turn came and he was so ready to just dance. It was almost lime main-eventing a PPV, you had to wait and wait and analyze and think over what you were doing to the point of exhaustion and then, when the time came, it was over in a flash. He tried to savor the dance, but it became an amalgamation of the music and his steps and just everything and he was flowing and holding Cheryl and trying to act like he wanted to murder her or at least maim her. The dance felt good though, when he was finished, he felt like he'd done a great job (if not a little over-the-top) at portraying the character and getting the steps right.

The judges sort of reflected that. Len seemed to never want to give him an 8, he noticed, while Bruno and Carrie Ann were pretty willing to up his scores to 8, Len always seemed reluctant, but it became a goal of his to get that 8. He knew he could do better, he was a novice at this, and he would prove to Len that he deserved the higher score. That was his mission, to get better and to show the other dancers that there was something to fear in him. He wanted to win this and he was putting in long hours, hours spent away from his wife and three young children, in order to make this possible. He didn't want his hard work not to pay off. He didn't want to let anyone down, especially himself. He never liked being second best, it was the drive he had that allowed him six heavyweight championships and it would allow him to win this competition.

"You look ridiculous," was the first thing Stephanie said to him after the show was over and he came over to see him. "Who _dresses_ you?"

"Well, Cheryl gets the final say, but they make the clothes."

"I hate it," Stephanie said, "gold jacket, is that even a jacket, God, I think I need to talk to Cheryl."

"Thanks for the support," he teased, leaning in to kiss her. "What did you think?"

"Len is nuts, you had so much intensity during that entire dance, I have a good mind to go over to him and ask him what he was watching and if he needs some glasses in order to properly see what he's watching."

"I think he knows a little bit more about dancing than you do and his comments are fair."

"Fair my ass," Stephanie scoffed. "I don't know why he…you know, I really should just go over there and ask him if he's still competent enough to do this job because maybe he's going senile and can't really remember what good dancing looks like."

"Yes, Stephanie, please go over there and embarrass me."

"I'm just observing their style, Carrie Ann would so jump your bones if you were single and she was single, that's another observation I've made, I think Bruno might too," she told him, running her hands over his gold jacket-thing. "This really is hideous. But I'm proud of you, I thought you did a great job and I could see intensity from here to eternity."

"Thank you," he said and she kissed him lightly so as not to draw a crowd. Chris didn't care about crowds though and pulled her closer and kissed her deeper than was probably necessary for a crowded room full of people. He turned to Sawyer when he was done, taking in how handsome his son looked in his sweater-vest with a tie and a long-sleeved shirt with dress pants. His kid was a sharp dresser. "So, kid, what did you think?"

"I think you'll win," Sawyer gave him the vote of confidence.

"See, I like how he says it, short, succinct, to the point, that's what I want from you."

"Fine," Stephanie said, "I think you'll win."

"Good, I'm going to get changed and then I'm taking two of my most favorite people in the world out to dinner."

Edge's night was considerably less upbeat than Chris's was going. He was now standing at the gorilla and waiting for his cue. The crowd had no idea what was going on and he almost felt bad that he'd be going out there with no warning and shocking them like he was. But what way was easier? Posting it on the internet, sky-writing, homing pigeon? He didn't know any other way to do this that wouldn't surprise people. Just over a week ago, he'd been wrestling in the biggest show of the year and now he was nothing more than another retired wrestler, albeit not one who would return every other year only to retire fifteen times before it actually stuck.

He wrung his hands a little bit and wished Lita were here and not chatting with Britt over the ideologies of marriage. Sure, he'd told her he didn't need her here, but it still would've been nice if she'd be here without him asking her to be. That was a kind of mean thought and he pushed it away as his cue came and he walked down to the ring.

He must have looked strange, not dressed in his regular show attire, but just as a guy standing there. The crowd was great and they loved him and he loved them back and that's what made this so hard. The fans were always there. When he was trying to work his way into the WWE, the fans were there, when he and his brother acted like idiots, the fans were there, when he and Christian split up and when Christian left him alone, the fans were there. They were here and he was here with them and now he was leaving them behind, saying farewell and going where they would not tread.

The words came out faster than he'd intended and he wasn't even sure where they were coming from, but they were bubbling in his throat and he spoke from the heart. That was the only place the words could come from. It was hard though and his voice broke a couple times and he ran his hand through his hair, a nervous habit. He was laying it all out there for everyone to see. He hated the name Adam, but if he had to put it in layman's terms, it was like he was being Adam instead of being Edge. He was just himself, just a guy who loved wrestling beyond measure and got to do what he loved for a very long time against so many odds. There were so many men and women he'd met on the way up that stayed there, that lost their dreams, that gave up on them.

He was one of the lucky few who got to live his dream and not only did he live it, but he got to live it on the grandest stage of them all and he lived it large. He'd aspired, dreamed, and then he'd achieved and Christian had been right, everything up until this final point had been on his terms. He'd been Edge from the very beginning, he'd lived Edge every moment and he'd gone places even he had never believed he could go. In the end, everything was beautiful.

In some ways, that made this even harder. When things were so good and you had to leave them behind, it was bittersweet. He knew he had good years left in him, his mind was so strong, so focused, but his body had betrayed him. It had betrayed him in the worst way and he couldn't coax it back for even one more match. He wasn't an idiot; he would not risk his life or his mobility for one last match, but it didn't stop his mind from wanting that one blazing moment where he'd pin a guy 1-2-3 and then hold up the belt one last time on his terms. In a way though, he'd gotten that at WrestleMania, but he just didn't know that moment of glory would be his last, would be the lasting impression on his impressive career.

But sometimes life is what it is.

You deal with the hand your dealt and when the cards are terrible, you've got to play on. You throw down some cards, you grab some more and then you hope for something better. That's all you really can do. You go on and on and you just hope the next day is better than the one before. Your life is a measure of days, of moments, and you build on them. Edge had some amazing moments and then there was some low moments, but as he walked out of that ring, with the crowd's respect behind him, with the wrestlers respect right in front of him behind that curtain, he realized something.

At the finish, maybe it was on his own terms.


	322. Elusive Eight, April 18, 2011

"But look at this face, it's saying, 'please give my Daddy a break so that he can play with me,' do you really want to say no to this face?"

Cheryl folded her arms and looked at Chris, who was being as manipulative as he could be right now. He was holding Kensington right next to his face and leaning his head on her tiny shoulder. Kensington, his little, manipulative daughter, was grinning and sticking her tongue out a little, her blue eyes staring straight at Cheryl. They'd been practicing for four hours now and Stephanie had come to visit with the kids and Chris had asked if she could leave Kensington so he had some support. Now Cheryl knew exactly why he'd asked to have Kensington here. Sawyer and Flynn could talk and express themselves, but Kensington was still too young.

Kensington held her arms out to be held by Cheryl and she shook her head and took the baby into her arms, "What's that you say, Kensy?" Cheryl said, pretending to hold her ear up to Kensington's mouth. Kensington just took some of Cheryl's hair in her pudgy baby hands and threaded it through her fingers. "You're saying that if your daddy wants to win this competition then he's going to have to keep rehearsing for at least another hour, well, if you insist…"

"Kensy, come on here! You're supposed to be helping _me_, not her, I'm your daddy," Chris joked around. "Come back here."

"Oh, nope, sorry, Kensy and I want to watch you do your footwork, don't we, Kensy?" Cheryl said, making a face and nodding mock seriously at the little girl. Kensington babbled and then laid her head on Cheryl's shoulder blade.

"You two obviously planned this," Chris joked and then stepped back. "I really do need to get out of here by seven, ideally, I wanted to take Steph out tonight. I've been rehearsing so much and she's been taking care of the kids I haven't even gotten to properly thank her for staying out here with me."

"She wanted to though, so do you really need to thank her?"

"Yes, because leaving work is hard for her. I know she did this because she loves me and I love that she wanted to do this for me, but I'm not stupid enough to think that she's not on her phone right now doing things for the show," Chris said.

"That's sweet—I think—and since you want to do something special for Stephanie, I guess I can let you out at seven."

"Thanks," he said, "Okay, so let me get this footwork stuff done."

"Kensy says thank you."

Stephanie reached forward to cut up the chicken tenders on Flynn's plate. She could eat them herself, but they were a little big so she wanted to help Flynn out. Flynn wanted none of this and thought she could do it herself and kept trying to shove Stephanie's hands away. Finally, Stephanie handed her, her juice so Flynn was occupied with drinking something while she cut them up. Sawyer was just looking around at all the people walking by, idly munching away on his grilled cheese sandwich.

"Okay, there you go, Flynn," Stephanie said, then leaned back in her chair, holding the phone she'd had pinned to her shoulder by her head, "sorry about that, Britt, the kids and I are having lunch and Flynn, well, you've met her."

"Difficult as always?" Britt laughed.

"And yet, I still keep her around," Stephanie mused, "I'm not sure why I don't send her back."

"Because you realize that you're only dealing with part you and part Chris and Flynn has all the aggressiveness that you two have?"

"I have no idea what you're going on about," Stephanie laughed, "so…I know SmackDown isn't exactly our jurisdiction, but with the Edge retirement thing, I've decided that it's my place, as the executive _and_ as his friend to have it handled in the best way possible, at least this week. So have you talked to Teddy at all?"

"Yeah, I did, Edge is going to relinquish his title on SmackDown tomorrow," Britt said, "I think Teddy's going to let him speak to the crowd there as well. I agreed that would be the best thing to do."

"Good, he's not going to just put the title on Del Rio, is he?" Stephanie asked. "Because that would absolutely be the wrong move in this situation. Ideally, I think Edge should just choose whom he wants to face Del Rio in the title match at the next Pay-Per-View because he _is_ the champion and I figured that you know, we should give him a little leverage given the way that he's being forced out."

"Not to interrupt you or denigrate your idea, Steph, but I was actually thinking that they could just have a battle royal. Teddy was at a loss for what to do because he figured that with the title contendership up in the air with Edge's departure that it really left the door wide open for a couple different guys. But I thought of this as a really good opportunity to give some guys who might not necessarily ever get a title shot the chance to at least compete for one."

"That's actually a great idea, I approve, did Teddy?"

"He thought it was a good idea too so I think he's going to take it."

"Well that just reinforces the fact that I did a good job when I hired you to take over for me…for the time being," Stephanie added.

"Of course," Britt said, "I have no designs on your permanent job, Steph. Things, otherwise, are running smoothly. I'm not sure what's going on with Hunter though. He really hasn't been on the show and really doesn't feel like he wants to be on the show."

"Does he realize he's under contract and has to do what you say?" Stephanie said. "If I were there, he'd be on the show."

"Yeah, well, you're a little bit bitchier than I am," Britt said, "I think…I think he's still a little stung with the proposal thing. Things have been slightly weird between us, but I won't get into that. The second thing I think is that he wasn't fully healed when he came back to wrestle Undertaker and that he pushed himself too much in order to be some big shot who tried to end Taker's streak."

"Now _that_ I can believe," Stephanie said, "I don't get it with wrestlers sometimes, they hide their injuries and then try to pass them off as not serious and then some come back too early only to get injured immediately again. It's a vicious cycle. I'm so glad Chris never fell into that pattern."

"He would've had to be hurt to fall into that pattern."

"Well, actually, he has hidden some minor injury stuff from me and I hate it, but he should know better now. You know, I'd _never_ admit this to him and if you ever breathe a word of this to him, I will fire you and blacklist you for every major company across the world, but sometimes I'm glad Chris is on a break from wrestling. You just see so many times guys getting seriously injured, like Edge, what if that happened to Chris? I know it won't, his back is fine, he's never had major surgery, but then I think, we have three small children, what if something happened to Chris and then I have to take care of him and he wouldn't be able to help with the kids? I know Chris has the same fear sometimes. I want him to wrestle again, but then my fear levels rise again."

"You put on a good show because you always want him back."

"This time it's different, I don't know why it's different, it just is. I guess…I guess because the last time he left, I was pregnant with Sawyer, we had no kids, not really anyways, and it was just us, but things have changed now. We have Sawyer, Flynn, and Kensington," Stephanie said, making the kids look up at her, but she waved them to get back to their food. "It's a different ball game now. I can't really blame Hunter if he's sidelining himself because he feels like he hasn't healed. Talk to him though, if that's the case, shelve him."

"Okay, talking with him isn't easy right now, I swear I think he thinks I'm going to break up with him and the proposal thing was just me trying to spare his feelings for a while. I don't want to break up with him, but he seems to think I do."

"Well, I guess the only way to show that you're committed to him is to stay committed to him."

"Thanks for the sage advice," Britt said sarcastically.

"Get to work," Stephanie told her playfully. "I'll call and check in on Sunday, if you need me-"

"Don't hesitate to call, day or night, night or day, any hour, doesn't matter what I'm doing, I'll answer the call," Britt droned the same speech Stephanie had given her every, single time she called to check in.

"I get it, I'm repetitive."

"Go enjoy your time off, for God's sake!" Britt ordered her.

"I'm going, bye, tell Hunter I said hi."

"Me too, I want to tell Trips hi," Sawyer said.

"I too!" Flynn added.

"And the kids say hi too," Stephanie said, much to Sawyer and Flynn's approval.

"Okay, will, do, bye Steph."

"Bye," Stephanie said, then turned to the kids, "so, what are you guys going to do with Gamma and Gamps tonight, have you decided?"

"Yeah, we're going to go tumbling," Sawyer said excitedly.

"Tumbling, okay, explain, I don't know what that is," Stephanie said. Ted and Loretta had said they had a fun night for the kids planned, but she hadn't asked the details yet. She trusted them with her kids, of course, just didn't know what this was all about.

"Gamma said that it was like gymnastics," Sawyer explained. "They have lots of trampolines and things you can climb. She said it was like a big playground, but it's not outside, it's inside so you can go at night and have fun."

"Oh," Stephanie said, realizing where they were going, "how did Gamma and Gamps find out about this place?"

Sawyer shrugged, "I guess they drove around and saw it."

Stephanie laughed, "You make a lot of sense, Sawyer Jericho, a whole lot of sense."

"Thanks…I think," he told her.

"That was a compliment," she told him, winking at him, "that means that I was saying something nice and saying that you make sense is nice."

"Oh, okay then! Where are you and Daddy going?"

"We're going out to dinner. Sometimes Mommies and Daddies need some alone time so that's what we're doing, but we'll see you in the morning since you'll probably be in bed when we come home."

"But then Daddy has 'hearsal."

"For dancing," Flynn added, like Stephanie wouldn't have known that it was for dancing.

"Yeah, he does, but we can go visit him while he's practicing."

"I like that," Sawyer said.

"I like wrestling," Flynn said. Stephanie laughed, leave it to Flynn to bring it back around to wrestling.

"Well, I like whatever Daddy is doing."

"No fair!" Sawyer exclaimed.

"Nope, already called it," she said. Her kids huffed a little at being outsmarted, but then went back to their food. Stephanie finally got to finish her meal, but her mind wandered to Britt and she hoped her friend could handle herself with Stephanie's ex-husband. He was a difficult one, but if anyone could get him to talk, it was Britt.

Hunter walked into the kitchen where Britt had set up her war post as he liked to call it. He saw her set down the phone and asked, "Who were you talking to?"

"Just Stephanie," Britt said over her shoulder. "We were talking about how to handle the Edge and the title situation. She liked my idea of the battle royal and since Teddy did too, I think we're going to go with that to determine who gets a shot at the title."

"That's nice," Hunter said, grabbing a water bottle from the fridge. "It sucks that he's going to have to give it up at all. I don't know how I would do that. I think they'd have to pry the title from my cold, dead hands."

"I don't doubt that," she laughed quietly. "Hell, I'd probably have to physically stop you from going out there and trying to wrestle again."

"Probably."

This seemed like the perfect segue so Britt had to take it, "So…are you injured?" She wanted to slap herself in the face for that. She had been planning to be sympathetic, to bring up the conversation slowly and with tact and she'd started off blunt? Oh Britt…

"Am I what?"

"That came out all wrong," she told him. "I just mean…well, you haven't come back to wrestling full-time yet and you seemed to ready and raring to go when you were facing Undertaker at WrestleMania, but now you've kind of fizzled and I'm simply wondering if you're more hurt than you're letting on or if you're hurt at all, really. I'm not asking this as your boss right now, but as your concerned girlfriend. I mean, you're at the shows and everything and is just…is everything okay."

"I'm fine," he told her with a shrug.

"Okay, well, you tell me that, but why aren't you on the show then?"

"I see no reason to be," he told her and he knew he was being a little bit stand-offish with her, but he didn't like feeling like he was interrogated over something that was his own choice. If he didn't see a place for himself at the shows, then it was his choice not to go out there.

"Well, the title for one," Britt said, "I know that you love the title and you would love to have it around your waist again, that's something to go back for and believe me, you could absolutely beat the Miz for that title, it wouldn't even be a contest."

"Maybe that's why I'm not back, I don't see any challenges that I want to face."

"Okay, fair enough," she told him, but she was definitely sensing his attitude about the entire thing and she wasn't liking it very much. It just played into the idea she had that Hunter was still stinging from her rejection of his proposal. She wished she could tell him that nothing was going to change between them, but whenever she did, he just brushed it off. "I'm not pressuring you to come back or anything, just wondering about it because you know, you were wrestling and then you weren't and now you're just here…"

"Does that bother you?"

"Of course it doesn't bother me," she told him, then rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Hunter, you are far too old to be playing these stupid, little games. Will you just say what you want to say to me so we can get it over with? I keep sitting here, wondering when you're just going to let it all out. So just do it."

"Lay what out, I don't have anything to lay out."

"Cut the crap with me," she turned to face him fully. "You have a lot to say to me and you want to say it and you're holding back for some stupid reason and I want to hear what's _really_ going on in your head."

"I have-"

"Stop it!" she shouted at him, standing up. "Stop it, please, I can't take it anymore. You want to tell me off for rejecting you, then please, by all means, just tell me off, but I can't stand this cool demeanor you've been giving me for nearly two weeks now. You say everything is fine, but we both know it's not, so just tell me everything now!"

"I have nothing to say, really."

"Fine!" She gathered up her papers and clutched them to her chest as she walked past him. "Everything is just peachy keen!" She stormed upstairs and into the guest bedroom. She didn't have an office in this house and she'd feel weird storming into Hunter's area and closing the door so the guest room was the only sanctuary she had right now and she would stay here and not talk to that man for at least the rest of the evening.

Stephanie clipped Kensington's hair back as Ted held his youngest grandchild. "Okay, I guess that should keep the hair out of her face tonight. You have the video camera, right, because I want as much video as you can get of Sawyer and Flynn doing whatever they're doing. I have a feeling they're going to be adorable."

"I will take as much video as I can," Ted assured her.

"Okay, thank you, do you know if they have anything for Kensy, not that she can do a whole lot, being as young as she is."

"I'm sure they'll have something to interest her," Ted told her. "We didn't go inside, but I know that Retta checked out the website and they probably have infant things, at least maybe a play area."

"Great," Stephanie said.

"Steph, are you ready to go!" Chris said impatiently.

"I guess that's my cue," Stephanie said, "thanks for watching them tonight, Chris and I appreciate it. You do so much for us and just know that I really appreciate that you're here."

"Stephanie, these are my grandchildren, no thanks are necessary. I love spending time with them, whenever I get to spend time with them," Ted told her, "now go before my son has a coronary."

"Okay," Stephanie said, then kissed Kensington's head, "bye-bye, Kensy, be good for Gamma and Gamps, okay, I love you."

Stephanie walked out into the foyer where Chris was saying goodbye to Sawyer and Flynn. Stephanie walked over and hugged the two of them as well before she and Chris were out the door and to the car they'd rented while out here. Chris held the door open for her and she nodded graciously before getting in and waiting for him to get into the driver's side. He hadn't told her where he was taking her, only that it was nice and to dress accordingly.

"So, this is nice, you having the night off, us going out without the kids," Stephanie said. "Not entirely sure what the occasion is, but I like it."

"It's just a thank you for being here and taking time off away from work," he patted her knee.

"Well then, you're welcome," she joked, "so how did rehearsal go today?"

"Pretty good, I know I do better at the ballroom dancing than the Latin dancing, so I feel like I've got a really good grasp on the dance. I think the theme is a little silly though, actually, I think it's a lot silly. I'm Canadian, not American so this American theme is really kind of dumb to me. I can't even imagine how Petra feels and then some of the dancers aren't American and it's not even the 4th of July. It just seems silly and cloying to the audience."

"Well, it's not like you haven't dealt with that kind of thing in our company," Stephanie pointed out, "besides, it's just a dance and I'm sure you'll nail it."

"I'd like to nail you," he told her, "preferably when this night is over."

"I thought we could have one conversation that didn't end with you wanting to sleep with me, just one conversation," she shook her head, "but no, now I know your real intentions for the evening. All you want is to get in my pants and you've conveniently gotten rid of all the distractions _and_ you're wining me and dining me."

"You've caught me," Chris shrugged, "all this is a ruse. Back to the dancing though, I'm pretty confident about it. I think I'm going to do a great job and get that elusive 8 from Len. I told Cheryl not to hold back, to work me like a racehorse."

"Good, because the more you practice, the better you are."

"Hey, speaking of dancing…sort of," Chris said, "well, it's tangentially associated with it, but I don't know how I didn't know this, but guess what's filming right next door on the lot. I've been so engrossed with the dancing, I've barely left the rehearsals and on competition days, I barely leave my trailers, but we were working on the stage yesterday, planning steps and we got a break and I got the chance to finally look around."

"Does this story have an ending or is it just going to be one long ramble about things that I'm finding increasingly boring?" Stephanie asked.

"American Idol films right on the next stage."

"That's cool," Stephanie said, "but I'm not sure what's the big deal, I mean, I know you watch that show, but this is cool because…"

"You haven't been paying attention when we watch," he said disappointedly.

"I have not, no, I am usually doing work, but I listen to the singing, which, whatever, I don't prefer any of those children. I mean, the only singer I'd let in my bed is that hottie lead singer from Fozzy. God, I wouldn't turn _that_ guy away," her tone changed to husky and Chris smirked.

"He'd let you in, believe me," he told her, "but one of the singers, his name is James, he's a huge wrestling fan. He loves WWE, you would know this if you actually watched the shows with me."

"Chris, I took a leave from being at the shows, not from working for the shows, besides, I don't like reality television, so I have no reason to watch. I'm not you with your American Idol and Fabulous Racing and Jersey Boys or whatever it is you watch, Trailer of Love."

Chris groaned, "You could not have gotten any more of those wrong. I'm so disappointed. Plus, I only watch those shows because you're working and when you work and I even so much as try to talk to you, you rebuff me so I have to find ways to spend my time."

"You _could_ be a good husband and watch matches for me and critique them," Stephanie said hopefully.

"I already watch every wrestling program in the world…that you produce," Chris said, then squinted, "anyways, he seems like a nice kid so I set up a meeting with him, just to talk, hang out, seems like a good kid and what better way to help a wrestling fan out than to let him meet one of his favorites."

"Presumptuous aren't we?"

"He said it on his Twitter that I was one of his favorites," Chris told her, "so I thought it'd be cool. I'm never above interacting with the fans, my heart. You're free to join up with us if you want because what's better than one amazing wrestler? An amazing wrestler and his smoking hot wife who _owns_ the company."

"Yeah, sure, whatever, I'll go."

"Sound more enthusiastic, will you?"

"I am!" Stephanie said, then laughed. "I just know that he's not going to want to meet me is all. I'm not as exciting as you, never have been, never will be, it's why when we're out and people go, 'Oh my God, it's Chris Jericho,' they go up to you and then it's like, 'oh, hi, Stephanie, nice to meet you.'"

"Okay, first of all, I'm more approachable because I have that demeanor," Chris explained, "whereas you are just so intimidatingly beautiful and smart that someone wouldn't want to go up to you in fear of humiliating themselves. That's partly the reason I didn't ask you out when we were business partners…the other part was because you were kind of a bitch to me."

"I think things worked out well the way they did," she assured him, "also thank you for that complete load of crap you just tried to sell me."

"Crap? I never tell you anything but the truth," Chris told her, "besides, who actually knows more about the business than you do? You had Andre the Giant holding you when you were little, nobody has that kind of experiences, don't say Shane, okay, I get that Shane was there too."

"I didn't say that," she said as they hit the notorious L.A. traffic, "oh, look, I get to be stuck in a car with you now."

"You wanna get on Daddy's lap?" Chris asked, patting his lap. "As long as we're stuck here and we have the time…"

"I _hate_ when you do that," she shuddered.

"Hate when I do what?"

"When you call yourself Daddy when you're referring to me. First of all, I called my father Daddy for a long time, so there's that creep factor. Then there's the fact that our children call you Daddy and the way you use that Daddy and then turn around and have the kids calling you Daddy, it's weird, Chris. It's also very not sexy."

"Duly noted, Daddy's sad now," he held in his laugh as she groaned and rested her head against the pane of the window. Chris laughed some more, his tone rich and blanketing the entire car. She couldn't help but feel the infectiousness of it seeping in through her skin and then she was laughing and turning towards him and he shook his head at the both of them as he inched forward in traffic. "Luckily I left us plenty of time to get there."

"Good," Stephanie said, "gives me time to do this."

Chris's eyes widened as Stephanie unbuckled her seatbelt and started leaning over his lap. "Holy…Stephanie!"

"Shut up and act calm," she whispered huskily to him. "I think this will make time go by quicker."

It was like déjà vu for Edge. While he thought Raw was difficult, somehow, it was even more difficult at SmackDown. Everyone was looking at him with those sympathetic eyes, pity, a sea of pity was all he could see when he looked out at the crowd. While he had the element of surprise at Raw, there was none of that here on SmackDown. Edge was probably the furthest thing from internet-savvy, but Christian had told him that so many people on Twitter (he vaguely understood the dynamics of Twitter, just vaguely though) were sending him messages to relay to his brother.

Edge appreciated it all, but he hated it all the same. He knew this would happen and while he didn't hate the fans for caring, he hated that they were looking at him like that. He knew he'd had something ripped from his hands; he didn't need the crowd to tell him that. He didn't need any of this and yet, he did crave it in some ways. He craved the minutes he could still stand in that ring, however short it may be. It felt like some sick countdown, a big clock over his head, ticking away and telling him how many more moments he had left before he had to get out of that ring and not ever return.

It didn't help that tonight he'd have to officially give up his title. He didn't mind doing it on the show; he understood the need for it, but he didn't want to give up that title. It was symbolic of him and yes, cliché ahead, his struggle to become something more than he ever thought he could be. It was years of watching wrestling in his basement with his brother, the two of them trying to emulate the moves they saw on the screen (Christian had always hated getting the figure-4 leg-lock), it was the hard training he'd pushed his way through, it was him and Christian driving around in a beat-up, old car, sleeping on gym mats in the freezing cold. It was all of that and now he had to give it back, say his career was over and then leave.

The wrestlers had been waiting backstage for him again, standing and applauding him and while he appreciated it and appreciated them, it still stung because of why they were clapping. He went out there with a deep breath and now the sea of eyes, staring at him, some wishing he would never leave and maybe a few who were muttering their good riddance to him. It didn't matter though because either way, there was no coming back, no tomorrow for hi wrestling career, just this vast amount of space ahead of him.

His music never got old, his entrance never failed to make those decades old butterflies flutter in his stomach. He may never get to do this entrance again, but damn if it didn't feel so good coming out there. He loved his entrance so much, he had to do it twice. He wished he had the time to thank everyone in the world who had ever helped him. He knew it wasn't possible, but he really wished that he could. As it was, he talked again about how he loved every moment of his career. Looking back now, he wouldn't have changed how anything had gone. Sure, there were times during his career that he hated what was going on, but that was while he was living it. Now that he had to look back and knew where he'd ended up, he wouldn't change a thing about it.

He addressed how thankful he was towards the doctors who had caught this before he took the worst of all bumps and how now that he was leaving, he would have the time to do all the things that he wanted to do with Lita. They could do all the travelin they'd been putting off and it was going to be an exciting new adventure. He was also incredibly thankful that his mother could be here tonight. Stephanie had arranged it so she could be here to see him tonight and he couldn't believe that his mom was actually here. It'd been such a long time since she'd actually come to see either him or Christian wrestle so to have her here was extra special to him. Everything about this night felt special in its own way. After he'd given up the belt officially, he went over to his mother and gave her a big hug. She hugged him back and then he walked up the ramp and to the back, where a bevy of people were waiting.

He had a short conversation and ignored Del Rio before Christian and Trish made their way over. Christian had been putting on his ring gear for later and Edge embraced his brother, "You better win tonight, you hear me?" Edge told his younger brother.

"That was the plan," Christian responded, then grinned and pulled away from his brother. Judy had made her way backstage and Christian made a beeline for his mother. He enveloped her in a huge bear hug and lifted her off the ground, much to her protests, "Mom!"

"Oh, there's my little boy," Judy said, hugging her younger son. "I've missed you."

"I missed you too," he said, pulling away as Edge came over to join them.

"Look at my two boys," Judy said, holding both her sons in her arms. "I'm so proud of the both of you, I know that had to be tough out there for you, sweetheart, but you came out with such poise and maturity about the situation. I'm so proud of you."

"Thanks," Edge said with a slight blush. Whatever Edge was seemed to fade in the presence of his mother.

"And you, you are going to go out there and you are going to win that match and I'm going to watch one of my sons succeed the other with that title," Judy told Christian.

"I won't let you down, Mom," Christian said.

"Good, now where's my granddaughter?" Judy asked.

Christian turned to where Trish was hanging back a little, watching her husband and brother-in-law interacting with their mother. "She's right there," Christian told her and Judy went over and grabbed Tilden. "Are you going to watch my match, Mom?"

"Of course I am, I just thought I could watch it back here with my grandbaby," she said, kissing Tilden's blonde head. "I haven't seen her except for the pictures you send of her and I want to spend as much time as I can with her. Look how big she is, I can't believe she's this big now."

"She eats her weight in food, I think," Trish explained, rubbing her hand up and down Tilden's back.

"Good," Judy said. "So are we going to watch your daddy win tonight, my darling?"

Tilden grinned and made a face before answering, "Yes!"

Christian hoped he could live up to the expectations.

There was a lot riding on this match. Maybe even more than any other match he'd ever been in, in a WWE ring. Sure, he'd had a ton of tag team matches and he had held the ECW Championship, but even he admitted that it wasn't nearly as important as the World or WWE titles. Those were the big league titles and while his brother had had numerous runs with those belts, they had eluded Christian for his entire career. Now was the time to go for it. He knew he could take care of Del Rio, the only thing he needed was the chance. He also couldn't ignore how amazing it would be if he was to claim what his brother had been forced to give up. He could carry on the legacy for his brother, hold onto the torch.

He also wanted to do it for himself, to prove that he was as good as the other top guys here. He'd felt for a long time like he lived in Edge's shadow, like he'd somehow been the lesser of the two. It had caused him to turn on his brother when the Alliance was still in effect. He'd never been proud of those feelings, but they were always simmering deep in his gut. Now was his chance to prove to himself that he could be there where his brother resided. As much as he hated Edge being hurt and retiring, there was a chance for him now to take the spotlight.

So he had to win this battle royal. Battle royals are funny matches. They're such a clusterfuck that it's difficult to discern the action sometimes. Everyone is going for themselves, caring only about themselves. The only time you worked with someone was to eliminate someone else. It was a free-for-all and you went where you could. The problem was that while you might be taking a guy out, someone else is looking at you wanting _you_ out. You had to be on constant alert at all times you'd find your ass on the floor, looking up at the ring and your dreams of being the champion. And only one guy wouldn't be looking up, but looking down on everyone else.

On this night, Christian was the one looking down.

Edge immediately went out there, so proud of his brother and he couldn't just stand backstage. He had to get into that ring and congratulate his brother. He hugged his brother tightly, "I'm so proud of you, that belt is as good as yours."

"I hope so," Christian told him.

"Don't worry," Edge said, "I know so."

Stephanie giggled as Chris fumbled with the keys. They weren't drunk or anything, well, Chris had a few more than Stephanie, but Ted and Loretta hadn't left the porch light on so Chris was fumbling for his keys while Stephanie held her cell phone up so he could see what he was doing. Chris leaned over and kissed her, making her tilt back a little before he got the key into the door and unlocked it. Stephanie shushed him as she saw all the lights turned off.

"I think everyone's in bed," Stephanie whispered to him and he nodded and pulled her into the house, making her crash into him as they kissed. He continued to hold her hand as he spun them into the kitchen, where, laughing they fell against the fridge. Stephanie brought her arms up around Chris's neck and kissed him deeply, snaking her tongue against his. He returned the kiss with vigor, pressing her further against the fridge.

Chris growled against her, "We should take this upstairs."

"Mmm, I like that idea," Stephanie said, pulling away as she started to kiss his neck, laving his skin with her tongue.

"I can show you a different type of dance," Chris told her playfully.

"Hopefully not one Cheryl taught you," Stephanie joked back as Chris spun them to the counter where he dumped his keys and wallet somewhere to be found tomorrow morning. Stephanie shouldered off her purse, dropping it in the vicinity of the sink as Chris spun them around again. He lifted Stephanie easily so she was sitting on the counter and she had to bend down to kiss him as Chris wrapped his arms around her waist. "So dinner was nice…"

"You're nice," he told her impishly. He started running his hands up and down her thighs, lifting her skirt a little higher with every stroke. They got lost in their kisses and caresses that they didn't hear anyone come in until the lights turned on.

"Oh Jesus, I'm sorry, I didn't know you two were home," Ted said as he stood in the doorway.

Stephanie laughed as Chris ducked his head against her neck. "It's okay, Ted, we just got in. We didn't wake you, did we?"

"No, I just came in to get a bottled water from the fridge," he said, walking over quickly to the fridge and opening it and getting a water.

"Sorry, Dad," Chris said embarrassedly.

"It's okay, Chris, I have three grandchildren and I didn't think they got here through immaculate conceptions, enjoy your evening, you two," he said knowingly before leaving them be. Stephanie burst out laughing at her husband's face.

"One day, Chris, we get to be the embarrassing parents walking in on our kids."

"I hope I'll have sense enough to give them privacy," Chris said, burying his face against Stephanie's neck again and kissing her warm skin, feeling her pulse just beneath his lips.

"At least it wasn't your mom, she'd be cheering us on to start working on #4," Stephanie said, running her fingers over Chris's shoulders. "So, Mr. Jericho, did your dad scare you from your mission tonight?"

Chris pulled away and, with a squeal from Stephanie, took her into his arms and started upstairs, hitting the kitchen lights with his elbow, "Baby, I'm not _that_ embarrassed."

He wanted that elusive eight.

He knew he'd have to earn it. He knew that it wouldn't be given to him on a silver platter. Nothing in his professional (or personal for that matter) life had been given to him on a silver platter. All the titles, the prestige, the fans (or haters) in wrestling had all been borne from hard work. Fozzy had been merely an idea, but he'd clawed and worked his way into making it a successful band. His relationship with Stephanie had certainly not been handed to him. He'd had to work on that too and still worked on it everyday. Everything required some kind of hard work and dancing was no exception.

The thing was though that he thought he was already deserving of that eight. Was he the best dancer out there, no, he probably wasn't, but he thought he was doing a good job and certainly the other judges thought him worthy of such scores. He knew Len didn't have a personal grudge against him and he was just being objective in his own way, but whenever he went over his previous dances with Cheryl, she would tell him that they deserved that eight and so it became a goal, the dangling carrot in front of him that spurned him on to do better every week.

He knew he could outdo himself this week. Ballroom was his forte; he didn't need video to know this, he could feel it when he danced. There was a rigidity in some of the ballroom dances that his body type and his wrestling served him well with. He was good with posture and form and not so good with shaking his hips. The movements of hip shaking felt awkward to him, but the ballroom dances, there was a real fluidity of movement, especially with the Viennese waltz. He wouldn't say it was the most exciting dance, but it probably felt the most natural to him of the dances he'd done so far.

He still thought this theme was a little bit on the annoying side. It wasn't like he didn't like America, he was born here and held dual citizenship, but as a proud Canadian, there was a part of him that rolled his eyes at the entire thing. He got being patriotic, but it all felt so pandering and if Chris had anything that he hated, it was pandering. Sure, he'd done some pandering for votes, but still, the principle of the thing.

The moment he walked out there for the introductions in the beginning, he knew that he had most of the ladies drooling. He could see it in their faces, but the one face he was focused on was perhaps the one drooling over him the most. Stephanie had obviously seen Chris clean-cut before, but his costume looked like a uniform and Stephanie had never seen him like this before. He threw her a smirk before they went to the celebriquarium and she blushed under his gaze and turned to tell something to Sawyer.

He would have kept focusing on her if the dance wasn't going through his mind on a continuous loop. He was going second tonight so he didn't have to wait long to get ready. Cheryl gave him a pre-dance pep talk that he didn't need but appreciated and then it was dance time. He felt comfortable out there now. The nerves of dancing in front of millions of people had dissipated and now it was just go out there and perform like he had for years with wrestling. He felt like he was putting his best dance out there on the dance floor and he hoped he would be rewarded.

When he finished the dance (feel great about it) and looked over at Stephanie, she flashed him an eight with her fingers and Sawyer flashed one too. He grinned at them and nodded like he knew he was going to get one. He could feel that it was coming. He'd upped his own game. As much as this was a competition with other people, it was also a personal competition. As each week progressed, he, as a dancer, had to step it up. He couldn't remain in a stalemate or the people would stop voting. So every week, he was in a competition with the Chris of the previous week. He knew, without a doubt, that the Chris of the previous week was not as good as he'd just performed.

If Len didn't give him an eight for that performance, then he'd start bringing out his old "Conspiracy Victim" signs and march around in front of the judges. Bruno and Carrie Ann praised him as they'd been doing for weeks now and their praise felt good, but it wasn't the praise that he was craving. Bruno and Carrie Ann clearly liked him and were rooting for him (at least as much as the others), but Len seemed to be holding back. Tonight though, he knew that it was coming.

And when it did, it felt as he imagined it would—amazing.


	323. Elimination, April 25, 2011

"So are we just going to keep dancing around the subject?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Hunter said as he poked at some lettuce with his fork and ate it, chewing thoughtfully.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about," Britt said, "will you just talk to me instead of acting like you're a child who didn't get the pony they've been dying for? You're starting to get increasingly annoying. If you're objective here is to get me to break up with you, it's not going to work so will you just talk to me."

"I don't have a problem, maybe you're the one with the problem, did you ever think of that?" he asked her.

"Oh, okay, so you're going to turn this around on me then?" Britt said. "You're going to act like I'm merely seeing things here and that there couldn't possibly be this huge current of tension running through this house right now?"

"I don't know what you're seeing," he told her, but his demeanor and his demeanor for the entire week had said differently. She'd tried to talk to him everyday, sometimes in the morning, sometimes at night, but oh how she'd tried to actually have a conversation about what was bothering him. But Hunter was stubborn; in fact, he might be the most stubborn person on the planet at this given moment.

She had some idea of what was wrong, of course. She knew that he was still stinging from her rejection of his proposal and she understood that, but he was taking it too far. She knew on some level he was humiliated, but she didn't want him to be. She didn't want him to be embarrassed or upset about it. She just didn't want marriage, but marriage was not Hunter. That was the thing that he didn't seem to understand and she wanted to talk to him about it, but he needed to want to talk back to her and that wasn't happening.

She wished there was someone around he could talk to. Shawn wouldn't be good, Shawn would just tell him that this was what Britt had wanted all along, to string him along and then dump him, probably in some weird attempt to get back at him for ditching her in the past. Chris and Stephanie were in California and they had their own things going on and they weren't readily accessible. She could call some of her friends, but not very many of them knew Hunter because of all the traveling they did. She couldn't call her parents because her mother would think she was crazy for not wanting to get married. She just felt very alone.

"Fine," she said, subduing herself again. She didn't want to get into another huge fight and she couldn't force his feelings out of him. "If you ever decide to see there is something wrong, then I would hope you could come to me."

The rest of their dinner was spent in silence and then Hunter left to go to his gym and work out while she stayed in the kitchen to do some work for the shows. Stephanie had e-mailed her some schedules and itineraries so she had to go over them and she was glad for the busywork. Anything to keep her distracted from her personal life was a welcome one. She didn't want to think about how she had maybe single-handedly ruined her relationship, the only really, really good one she'd ever had. Hunter got her in ways other men hadn't and she loved him for it. She just didn't think marriage was necessarily the answer.

Okay, so now she was feeling down again and she needed some advice and she had to get it somewhere. She picked up her phone sitting on the other end of the table and she dialed her mother. Sure, her mom might not agree with what she was doing, but it was still her mother and if anyone knew Britt, it was her mom.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Dad," Britt said to her father, happy for the familiar lulling tones of her father's British accent.

"Britt, it's so good to hear from you, my dear," her father told her, the happiness in his voice making her smile, "how are you?"

"I'm doing okay, Dad," she told him. "Just been really busy with work since Stephanie took that leave of absence, but I love the work I do so it's really nice to have so much to do. It makes me feel important."

"Of course you're important," he told her, "everything you do is important."

Britt rolled her eyes, her dad had always been one of her biggest supporters and had always told her that she could do anything and everything she ever wanted to do. He'd been very surprised when she'd taken the job with the WWE, but now that she was very much into it, he'd actually become a huge fan of the product. "Thanks, Dad, is Mom around?"

"Yes, of course, let me go get her for you, call more often though, okay, I like to know what's going on in my daughter's life."

"Of course, Dad," she agreed and then waited on the line for her mother to come on the phone.

"Britt?"

"Aloha Makuahine," she told her mother, Aleka.

"Kaikamahine," her mother said warmly. "What's up?"

"I need your advice on something, Mom," she said with a sigh.

"This sounds serious, should I sit down?"

"I guess so," Britt laughed, "it's just relationship stuff."

"I thought you and Hunter were doing well now," Aleka told her. She'd always liked Hunter, well, when he wasn't breaking her daughter's heart. But otherwise, he was a kind, funny man and she liked him very much.

"We were…I didn't tell you something, but don't be mad at me, okay?"

"Okay, I will try not to be."

"I mean, it's not bad," Britt said, "but a few weeks ago, Hunter actually proposed to me."

"He did!"

"Yes," Britt said, "but Mom, I turned him down. I just…don't want to get married. It's nothing against Hunter, I love him very much, but I just don't feel like marriage is something I want or need to do. I feel like there's always this pressure for marriage and I don't want that pressure hovering over us. I'm much happier just being with Hunter. It wouldn't preclude us from having kids or buying a house or just being together. I absolutely still want to be with him, but I just want it on our terms. Does that make me horrible?"

"It's your opinion," her mother said. "Nobody should hate you for having your own opinion and it feels like you've thought this out."

"I really have, Mom. I just want to be with him and not have to feel like I have to keep up this marriage thing. I know that marriage is hard work and I'm not saying that it's this horrible thing, just…it's not for me."

"And I'm guessing that Hunter doesn't agree with this."

"He says it's fine, but I know it's not fine. The way he's been behaving, he acts like everything's okay, but it's not and I don't know what to do. I want to be with him, I love him, but it's like he's trying very hard to get me to break up with him. I think he thinks that I'm not committed and that this is me trying to cushion the blow before I break up with him."

"Oh, Britt, I wish I could tell you what to do, honey, but this is something that you both have to work out together. Will he not talk to you at all?"

"He keeps insisting that everything is fine. I try to bring it up everyday. Every single day, I try to initiate some kind of conversation with him and he rebuffs me every time. I'm really trying o be adult about this. Should I just say yes, Mom? I mean, I love him, so…should I just say yes."

"Britt, your father and I have always told you that you should never do anything you're not comfortable with," Aleka said. "This is one of those things. Marriage shouldn't be because you feel bad because you feel differently. If you do that, then you'll just be unhappy."

"I'm not exactly happy right now though."

"Well, then you should knock some sense into that crazy man."

Britt laughed, "Thanks for listening to me, Mom."

"That's what I'm here for. I don't want you to do anything you don't want to do, honey. I don't think that's how you should live your life. You've made it this far doing your own thing and making your own choices and it would make me very sad if you didn't continue to live your life like that. You deserve only the best and I know you will have it."

"I want it, I just want him and he's so stubborn and annoying sometimes," Britt said. "I wish that he would be more mature about this. I don't want him to act like such a child over this."

"Well, you have to understand, honey, that he was the one proposing. It's a lot to put yourself out there like that. I'm sure that he was expecting you to be surprised and happy and leap into his arms to say yes. He's might still be shell-shocked that you didn't do that. From what I understand, his first marriage didn't have a proposal, right?"

"No, it didn't."

"So he's never done anything like this before and I know that it's putting yourself out there."

"You're right," Britt said, "okay, well, I think I have a new way to approach this. I'll let you go now, Mom, but thank you so much for listening and helping me with this. Next time I have some time off, I'm going to come home and visit."

"And bring that stubborn man with you. Aloha Au la 'Oe."

"I love you too, Mom, bye."

"Bye, honey."

Britt ended the call and sat there for a moment, contemplating her next move. Her mother _had_ given her an idea of what he might be thinking, but if she was going to try this whole talking thing again, she wanted to do it right. She needed him to understand her point of view, but she needed to understand that he was having a whole separate set of ideas regarding this botched proposal. Then maybe they could finally understand each other.

Stephanie swilled her wine around the glass again before she took another sip of her wine. She set it back down on the table and then looped her arm through Chris's and leaned her head on his shoulder, just listening to him talk. She knew that whoever this James kid was that he wouldn't want to talk to her and that seemed to be the case. He was completely hanging off of every word Chris was saying though. She couldn't blame him though, sometimes she found herself hanging off of Chris's every word.

She only listened to snippets of conversation, right now they were talking about the best German metal bands of all-time and she couldn't even name one German metal band, let alone actually have a conversation wherein she discussed the merits of different ones. When their conversations diverted over to wrestling, she interjected every now and then to say something, but otherwise, her presence wasn't needed. Part of her thought that she shouldn't have come at all and just left these boys to their own devices while she was at home with her kids, who at least paid attention to her most of the time.

It wasn't a total wash though. Chris was easily the best-looking guy in the place and it didn't go unnoticed by her that there were many women checking Chris out. It wasn't why she was hanging off him at the moment (she was bored and looking for something, _anything_ to do), but it did aid in letting all these Hollywood women that her husband was _very_ much taken. Even if they did break up, she did a good job planting herself in his life forever with their three kids. Chris, for his part, didn't notice any attention he got. Sometimes he could be so oblivious, usually when he was doing something he really liked.

Chris laughed at something James said and it brought her back to the conversation and away from the redhead that had been sitting there, eyeing Chris. She rolled her eyes and looked at her husband. He glanced at her and gave her a smile and a small kiss before going back to his beer and his conversation. She closed her eyes and just let the noise of the bar and grill take over her. She listened to the rumble of Chris's voice and the heartiness of his laugh and it lulled her until she felt Chris's lips on her forehead.

"Hey there, Sleeping Beauty," Chris told her.

"I fell asleep?"

"Yeah, you were snoring a little, but don't worry, only I heard, I'm sorry if we've been boring you," Chris said. "I know that metal isn't your thing. I'm sorry, baby."

"It's okay, you're enjoying yourself," she said, then looked across the table. "Did he leave? God, I'm so rude, I didn't even get to say goodbye."

"He's just in the bathroom," Chris told her. "You can leave if you want. Go shopping around here or something."

"No, I'd rather stay with you in here," Stephanie told him, kissing his cheek. "I have to keep the vultures away from you anyways."

"Vultures?"

"Sometimes, I don't know about you. You can't tell that every woman in this place is looking at you like you're some piece of meat? Hell, I think some of the guys are too. If I leave, there's a good chance that you'll be inundated with women."

"You're crazy," he said, running his finger down the side of her face. "You have the crease of my t-shirt on your face. You look adorable. Why are you so tired anyways?"

Stephanie rubbed at her face, "Maybe it's because I'm with three kids all day everyday and it's a little bit hectic. Here comes James."

"I'll try to be better and include you more in the conversation."

"Thanks, but you two talk," Stephanie said. "Don't worry about me."

"I always worry about you."

"Well don't worry about the small stuff," she said as James started to sit down. "I'm sorry I apparently fell asleep on you, James, that was incredibly rude of me and I'm really sorry. I don't find you boring or anything, just my knowledge of metal is whatever I'm telling Chris to turn down at home."

James laughed, "It's okay, Chris told me that you're tired because you're Superwoman."

"Jerk," Stephanie nudged him in the ribs.

"How is me comparing you to someone incredibly awesome being a jerk, you're going to have to explain that one to me," he told her, "because I thought it was a compliment."

"Because you always make me out to be something I'm not," she told him, "anyways, I'm not Superwoman."

"She absolutely is," Chris said, "you should see her. She's amazing. That's why I married her."

"It's so weird because you hated her," James said. Stephanie thought he was a nice kid. Chris had told her about his disabilities ahead of time and so she was aware, but it didn't bother her and after a while, you barely noticed anything wrong. "You really, really hated her. Was that for real?"

"That was absolutely real, I couldn't stand her," Chris said, grinning at his wife. "She was really, truly awful. But it wasn't her fault, she was married to completely the wrong guy. It wasn't until I came into her life as a good guy that she saw I was the best thing that ever happened to her."

Stephanie rolled her eyes, "Don't listen to this guy, he doesn't have a clue what he's talking about, he absolutely fell for me first. I just happened to go along with it."

"Yeah, you keep telling yourself that."

"Do you like owning the company, Stephanie?"

"Well, I own it, but not really, not yet anyways, my dad is still in charge and we butt heads a lot," Stephanie responded. This was something she could talk about. The company was her forte and she could talk all night about it. "But eventually, yes, Chris and I will run the company. Shane will be a silent partner."

"That's so cool that you get to own the company," James said to Chris. He was completely in awe of the man and Stephanie found that sweet in a way. He obviously looked up to her husband and she loved that he could be a role model to people. It just made her more proud of him and she was already almost full to bursting with it.

It was so different from wrestling. In the WWE, they were on even keel, they both were at the top of their games, but here, she knew she had to defer to him. She was not _just_ his wife, but in a way, she was just his wife. She didn't play in his band, she wasn't dancing with him. She was his support system and she figured that maybe this was what normal marriage felt like. It wasn't a bad feeling, it was kind of nice. She reached her hand down and grasped Chris's hand under the table. He didn't look over at her, but she felt him squeeze her hand and she smiled and was content again to just watch the two of them talk.

Christian bounced Tilden on his legs as he held her standing on his lap. "Are you here to calm me down, Tilde?"

"Yes!" Tilden affirmed, nodding her head vigorously.

"I don't know what _you're_ all worried about, you're not even wrestling tonight," Edge said, "I'm the one who's getting called out by Del Rio, which, I don't even get that to begin with. I'm officially, well sort of officially retired."

"Officially retired," Lita interrupted from her hushed conversation with Trish in the corner of the room.

"I did say officially retired," Edge told her.

"No, you said that you were sort of officially retired, that implies that you could come back and wrestle again, but that's not happening, is it?" Lita prompted him, tilting her head down so her chin was nearly touching her chest.

"I didn't say that I was going to wrestle or even thinking about it," Edge said, "I just said sort of because I'm going to stick around for my younger brother, that's all. I just want to make sure that he wins the World Title. I'm really just looking out for him. I kind of want my niece to have her father to look up to as a role model, I mean, look at who she's surrounded by. She's got her mom, multiple Women's Champ and what was it, 3-time Babe of the Year and a trainer on Tough Enough…"

Trish flexed her muscle and winked at her brother-in-law, "How could they not want me to train them with these guns."

"Then she's got her uncle, who has held every possible title and is one of the most prolific champions ever," Edge said, touting himself, "her pseudo-aunt, Lita, another multiple Women's Champ. Then she's got Chris and Stephanie, Chris, who does everything under the sun well and Stephanie, a strong business woman. You're really lagging so by seeing that you get the title, your daughter won't have to look at you in shame any longer."

"Thank you so much, but I think I'm doing okay," Christian said, leaning forward to kiss Tilden's nose. "Besides, Tilden is already making her way up the ranks, isn't she, Trish?"

"What are you talking about?"

"When you were filming Tough Enough," Christian said, nodding his head towards his wife like that would jog her memory. It appeared to work as the flash of recognition hit Trish's face and she started laughing.

"Oh, you guys should have seen her. How have I not told you this story yet since it happened weeks ago?" Trish said. "I guess with all the WrestleMania stuff and Christian's winning and Edge's retirement I forgot to mention it, but one day, Christian and Tilden came back to just visit for the day, see how the filming worked and all that. Well, Tilden really wanted to see the ring and she was charming all the wrestlers and it was just adorable. She loved it. I'm not saying I'm going to push her to be a wrestler or anything, but it was an interest. I'm not Stephanie and Chris who brainwash their kids, but it was cute and she seemed so interested in it."

"I think it's the first time she really got a taste of it," Christian added. "Like, we've never really had her out there while I was wrestling and then she was this up close to it, I think that it really piqued her interest. It'd be cool to have her be a diva, well, I mean, in the grand sense of things, what with the whole second generation thing. But whatever you want to be, Tilde, I'll be proud of you…unless that something is prostitute or porn star, then we're going to have to talk."

"Uh yes," Trish said. "So, Edge, have you decided to actually go out there when Del Rio calls you out?"

"I have to, don't you think? I may not be able to wrestle, but I'm not a coward."

"But he's going to be careful."

"Li, you're not my mom."

"I worry, sue me, I kind of have investments in this relationship and I'd like to see them pan out."

"I guess I just want it all to last a little longer," Edge admitted and nobody said anything because, really, how could they deny him that?

He never thought himself to be a guy who would cling to something once it was gone, but there was a part of him clinging and he knew it. It might have made him look pathetic, but he didn't care. When something was ripped from you, you tried so hard to hold into anything that you could and in this case, he did still have a little left in the tank. He and Lita were already planning what they were going to do when they went on a month long vacation in a few weeks, but for now, he was here and wanted to be here. When he was with Lita, they'd start that part of their lives, but for now, he wanted this. He wanted his music and to walk down the ramp and for a few moments in that space between the ramp and the ring, he wanted to pretend that he was going to wrestle.

He just wanted those few minutes to last. They were going to have to last him a while.

For Christian, it was the start of a different journey. As his brother was going out, it finally felt like he was coming in. The main event door had always seemed closed to him, something he occasionally got to peek through whenever Edge won something. He never got to play with the big boys though. Sure, he got his tastes here and there, but he was never really _in_ that scene. There were always those above him, Austin, Rock, Triple H, Chris, Edge, Cena, Undertaker, so many of them just there and he'd always wondered how they were better, how they had climbed that ladder that he couldn't.

It finally felt like this might be his time. He finally felt like he was there or at least could be there. The title that had eluded him all these years was finally right in his sights, within his reach and he finally felt like he was something that people really, truly paid money for. Sure, when he and Edge had been part of E&C, they'd entertained, but that was just two brothers acting like they had when they were kids. Now he was more serious, focused and the fans still wanted him. He was appreciative of them and hoped that they, too, could propel him towards the title he coveted so much.

He knew that winning the title wouldn't suddenly make everyone bow at his feet, but it had to mean something and to be included in that elite list of wrestlers who had held the title, it would be the proudest moment of his career, he could already tell. He only had one more person to beat for it. After years of trying, only Alberto Del Rio stood in his way. He wasn't going to let him stand in his way much longer.

Chris collapsed face first onto the bed, "Kensington hates me."

"She does?"

"Yes," Chris said, "she hates me and she wants a new father."

"Well, I guess I can start the divorce proceedings and then go on a date with my lawyer for starters, get me back in the game," Stephanie said as she put down her paperwork. She was going over the standard contracts since the draft was coming up on Monday. They'd moved it up this year because of Edge's unexpected retirement. "I wonder what dating is like now, I bet it's more competitive and I'll absolutely have to find someone who loves children, that's a must…but for the record, what did Kensy do?"

"She peed on me," Chris said with a groan.

"Oh, so that's why you are not wearing a shirt, I was wondering," Stephanie said, "but how did that happen?"

"I was changing her diaper to the nighttime one, you know, the-"

"I'm well aware of what a nighttime diaper is."

"Well, just as I had her undressed to change her, my phone rang, so I answered it, but I had to pick her up because she's so squirmy now that she would have rolled right off the changing table so I had to hold her to me and the little chick just peed on me."

Stephanie giggled, "She probably had to go, Chris."

"On me?" Chris asked incredulously, but he was holding in his laughter too.

"Well, when you really have to go, you really have to go," Stephanie shrugged. "It was your fault for taking the call, who was it?"

"James, he wanted to hang out again," Chris said, "I said I'd check my schedule, but I couldn't make any promises, of course. I still have rehearsals and I barely get any time with you, let alone the kids, and I just don't have the time to be hanging out a lot."

"I'm sure he understands," Stephanie said, "speaking of not spending time…"

"Steph, baby, you know I wish I could spend more time with you," Chris said, crawling up the bed and laying on his side so he could look at her. "I'm just stretched so thin right now. I feel like I'm juggling a million things. You and the kids are _always_ at the top of my list, but…"

Stephanie pressed her fingers to his lips to shush him, "Chris, that's not what I wanted to talk to you about. I know that you're doing your best, how's your dance coming along?"

"I think I'm doing pretty well, Cheryl said I still have work to do, which is why tomorrow I'm going to have to cancel me taking you and the kids out to dinner, do you hate me?"

"No, I don't hate you, the kids understand too, well, Flynn and Sawyer do, Kensy peed on you, so I think you know how she feels," Stephanie said, "this show means a lot to you and we all understand that."

"I have the best family."

"We try," Stephanie said.

"So what was it you wanted to talk about then?" Chris asked. "Steph, if this is about me posting that video about coming back sooner if I win, I just meant-"

"You'll come back when you come back," Stephanie said. She grabbed the contracts she'd been going over and she put it on her nightstand before she scooted down the bed so she was face to face with Chris. "I feel like I only ever see you when we're in bed."

"That's a bad thing?"

"Never, but it's taken a bit of getting used to," Stephanie laughed, grabbing his hand and holding it in hers. "I think I've really matured since you've taken this latest break. I also think that Hunter and Edge's injuries have spooked me a little bit. I know that you're not as young as you used to be, hotter than you used to be, yes, I'll say that you do get better with age, but I know that wrestling gets harder as you get older and I think that you actually stepping back will be good for when you come back. The only person right now who has a problem with you not coming back is Flynnie."

"You really haven't been reading my Twitter lately because everyone seems to want me back and want me back _now_."

"I know, but they're not your family, I'm your family, we're you're family and other than Flynnie being irrationally angry, you can come back on your own time," she told him. "I want _you_ to be ready, mentally, to come back."

"Flynnie will probably kick me in the balls for not coming back. She's kind of a scary kid."

Stephanie laughed, "She's a really scary kid. Anyways, what I really wanted to say was that…I like being your wife."

"Whew," Chris said, pretending to wipe off his forehead, "because seriously, Stephanie, I was _worried_ that you suddenly didn't like being my wife. I mean, you'd given me all those indications, you know, the nothing and then the nada and the zip."

"You misunderstand me and then you try and joke," Stephanie said, "but I'm being serious here. I like being your wife. I like being around and being proud of you and watching you in your element. I know that I have before, but it was really more wrestling-related. Like when you did that game show, I didn't really get to see it, or the play you did in Toronto, I didn't really get to go because of work and I'm missing out because I am so proud of all you accomplish. There was so many guys who would say, 'I'm a wrestler, that's all I am , that's it,' and they'd be happy and that's fine, but you want to conquer the world and I love that about you and I'm so happy to be your wife. Before I convinced myself to take this leave of absence, I kept thinking, what if I end up regretting it or if I resent him, but I don't regret it."

"I'm really glad to hear that and for the record, I like being your husband," he said, but she cut him off again.

"Not about you, sweetie, this is about me right now," she said. "I've been thinking long and hard about things and how I feel right now and…the kids and I are going with you to Europe for Fozzy."

"What?" Chris scoffed, feeling just as confused now as he had when she had told him she was taking her leave of absence.

"You're going to be gone for a month, I don't want to do that to the kids again and I know you can't take them by yourself," Stephanie said, "It's like a month away from the shows, Britt is doing a great job and I still feel connected with the shows because I'm still working so I want to go with you. It's entirely up to you though, I know that you are going to be doing a lot of traveling, but you said that Rich's wife was coming with him and I think you mentioned someone else's wife coming, not sure if I remember who it was, but I thought maybe we could come."

"You honestly want to come with me and the band?"

"Yes, I do."

"Stephanie…"

"Is that a good Stephanie?" Stephanie asked, biting her lip. "Also, since Sawyer is starting Kindergarten in the fall, I thought it could be like this one last hurrah type thing where we don't really have to worry about his school."

"You know I've been excited for this tour," she nodded in agreement; she did know. Chris loved performing with Fozzy and she loved that he loved performing with Fozzy. It was something eh loved so it was something she loved too and that was that. "Still, I kept thinking about the kids and you, of course, but about the kids and how they hate when I'm not around and how much I miss them when I'm not around. I always feel like I'm going to miss something huge, like Sawyer's first loose tooth or Flynn perfecting the Lionsault or Kensy's first steps. I hate that feeling."

"I know the feeling," Stephanie said, "why do you think we don't have nannies, Chris? Because those are _our_ kids and I'd be damned if I let someone else raise them."

"Exactly, so hell yes I want you to come, but only if you want to."

"I want to," she nodded. "I want to be with you, everywhere."

"You're amazing, you go absolutely above and beyond and I want to nail you so hard right now."

"Again with the sex."

"To show my appreciation!" he protested and she laughed as she pulled him over her. "I don't want to wear you out though. You have a long day of rehearsals tomorrow and I wouldn't want to send you to Cheryl all tired."

"Believe me, I'm not going to be tired," Chris said, leaning down to kiss his wife.

By the time Monday rolled around, Chris was so used to his routine that he almost felt like a zombie. He got out of bed, kissed Stephanie's head, checked on the kids (Sawyer was fast asleep with his face buried in his pillow, Flynn was hanging half off her bed, and Kensy was sucking her thumb while she slept), went down for breakfast, where he would always run into his mother, who got up ridiculously early for no reason, drank some coffee, then headed off to the studio. He'd get his makeup done, get his hair done and then he would go over his routine for hours, meet up with the other dancers and celebrities, talk with Cheryl and then wait and wait and wait.

It was the same thing, but then when showtime hit, it was this entirely different energy. He couldn't even describe it. There were nerves and anxiety, anticipation and more nerves, but then there was also this exhilarating feeling of getting out there and performing. It wasn't quite the same rush he got while wrestling or singing, but it was up there, that was for sure. He loved it. He loved that his wife and kids were in the audience cheering him on. He loved Cheryl. He loved dancing.

Unfortunately on this night, the dancing didn't love him.

It all felt wrong when he did it. He couldn't figure out why because his steps had seemed good, everything had seemed okay, but there was just the wrong feel to it. When he looked over at Stephanie, she was cheering for him, but he could tell that she knew what he was thinking. That something wasn't right. But he couldn't have that attitude. He couldn't go to the judges and look like he was defeated. He knew he was a good dancer and that maybe this wasn't his best dance, but that didn't mean he didn't have a lot of dances that he could do and would do well.

"It was the music," Stephanie said when the show was over and he was wallowing in his own defeat.

"You think so?"

"There was just something with the music that didn't gel with the dance," she said as Chris sat next to her, pulling Flynn into his lap. She was tired though and instead of being his fierce warrior Flutterby, she was his tired, little Flutterby and she just wrapped her arms around him. He couldn't blame her though, sitting quietly for hours and watching dancing was not his Flynn's idea of a good time. She was happy to see her daddy though. "But who the hell chooses this music?"

"Well, it's guilty pleasures week, you know and-"

"And the music on this show sucks," she said, shaking her head. "But don't worry, I sent out a text as soon as the show was over, it's to all my contacts telling to vote for you or else."

"Steph, you have like everyone in the company on that phone," Chris said.

"I know and they better vote or else they're fired," she told him.

"Daddy, the judges didn't like you," Sawyer said, "but I thought that you did a good job."

"Thanks, kid," Chris said, leaning down to kiss Sawyer's head. "You have no idea how nice it is to hear that _someone_ liked it."

"Who no like?" Flynn asked, perking up a little bit. Did someone not like her father because if that was the case then she was going to show them what was what! Nobody disliked her father and got away with it.

"It's okay, Flutterby, I don't need you to play my bodyguard, okay?" he told her, kissing the top of her head too.

"You should have trot the kids out there, or put them in the package, appealed to all the parents out there," Stephanie said, running her hand through Chris's hair.

"Baby, I love your enthusiasm, but I'm not going to exploit the kids any more than I already have. It's enough that they're here and I don't even want them here to be some kind of pawn, I want them here because I love them and I want them to be proud of me."

"I'm proud of you," Sawyer said, "I think you're the bestest dancer…well, maybe Cheryl is, but I think that you are right there too and I don't just say that because you're my daddy, I love you though."

"I love you too," Chris said, laying his head on Stephanie's shoulder. "Why are you guys the best?"

"Because we are," Stephanie told him. "It's not that bad, sweetie, you have so many fans and they love you and when they see the show, I'm sure they're going to dial for you, okay? I'm sure of it."

He really wasn't so sure and he spent the night feeling restless. It wasn't until Stephanie physically laid pretty much on top of him that he stopped moving around and just lay there, listening to her breathing. He'd heard her breathing before, had watched her sleep before, but her breath tonight felt different. He wanted the calm and Stephanie's breath against his chest felt nice and it brought him back down to the ground after he felt like his mind was soaring somewhere.

He didn't feel good going into tomorrow's elimination. With last week and the bottom and he just felt bad going into the show. Cheryl would try to bolster his spirits, he knew, but he just didn't feel good about his chances. The field was becoming narrower and the competition harder, but he wasn't a quitter. He'd tried his best and if he failed to win, he at least tried. It had taken him years and years to even break into his dream of the WWE and years after that to even sniff the World or WWE title. Getting this far in a medium he was so unfamiliar with was a testament to how dedicated he was to being the best at everything he tried.

"So how optimistic are you about tonight?" Chris asked Cheryl right before they were scheduled to go out there.

"I'm going to be very optimistic," Cheryl said, throwing him her best smile.

"Then I will too," he told he rand she smiled and hugged him. "Hey, in case we are going home tonight, I just want you to know, I couldn't have asked for a better partner and a better friend. If I were single, I'd want to date you."

Cheryl laughed. Chris was always saying something serious, but then diffusing it with humor, "Thank you, I would not want to date you though, totally not my type."

Chris laughed and he felt better. "Stephanie brought Kensy tonight. I was worried it was my last night and I asked her to bring Kensy too. She'll have a binky in her mouth the whole time so she won't be bothered, Sawyer was like Kensy, he loved his binky. Flynn didn't really care either way."

"I'm sure seeing her will help calm your nerves."

"I hope so and if it doesn't and I get voted off, everyone can see how gorgeous my family is so they don't feel bad that I have to leave."

"Good way of thinking," she told him, "but let's not think about that now, okay? Let's just focus on the now and not worry about what may happen."

He resolved himself not to think about it, but it was hard when he was once again in the bottom two. His heart pounded and as that red light closed in on him, he knew it was over. His initial feeling was disgust. He was angry because he didn't think he'd been that bad. Then there was a sadness that it all had to end, but then at the very end of that, a little bit of relief because now he could go back to being Chris Jericho without the constant rehearsing and tearing himself away from his family.

He thanked Cheryl profusely for everything she'd done and she had done so much for him. She'd been a coach, a friend, a support system; he couldn't have done this without her. She'd been so much more than just a partner. He knew he had a friend for life and he was grateful for the relationships he'd culled on the show. He glanced over at Stephanie when he thanked his family and he almost made her laugh with the absolutely deadly look she was giving the judges right about now. If she didn't have Kensington in her arms, he would've probably been restraining her before she ripped the hair extensions from Carrie Ann's head. Most of all, though, he was actually happy he was going to be the hands-on dad he had been before all this started. The kids had suffered without him there all the time, with him leaving at odd times. He got to be Daddy again and not Chris Jericho.

In the end, it was okay. He would live. He'd loved the experience, but he knew it would never last. He'd hoped that it would last until he held up the mirror ball trophy, but it hadn't and he was grateful for the time he'd had. Stephanie and the kids came up to him as soon as the cameras stopped filming. They had to hang back for a few minutes because the other celebrities and dancers were saying their goodbyes as well and Stephanie didn't want to interfere. Chris had been popular among them; he was always popular. When they finally dispersed to go celebrate their safeness, Stephanie came over and handed over Kensington, who looked up at Chris, smiling around her binky.

"So who do you want me to kill?" Stephanie said, watching as Flynn wrapped an arm around Chris's leg, leaning her head against it. Chris leaned down and picked Flynn up with his free hand so he had both his girls in his arms.

"Nobody," Chris said, "it was my time to go, I guess."

"It was _not_, I can name at least two other dancers who-"

"Steph, leave it, it'll be okay, sometimes we don't win, that's just how it goes," he told her, finding it funny that he had to rationalize the loss with Stephanie, who was taking it a lot worse than he was.

"I know, but still."

"I meant what I said, part of me is happy. I get to wake up tomorrow and spend the entire day with my kids and it's going to be awesome. We can go to the beach and you know what, we can go _home_. Doesn't Florida sound awesome right now?"

"I do miss it," she admitted.

"Plus, Sawyer's turning five on the 2nd and now we can have that real birthday for him instead of having it out here. We can invite his friends and everything," Chris said as they both looked at Sawyer, who was dancing with Cheryl, much to his delight. "Then we have to get packed for Europe, it's going to be a whole thing. Are you okay now that I lost?"

"No," she told him, "I'm not okay, I want you to get the voting documents. I want to see where you ended up in the voting."

"Only you would want that."

"You're now entitled to see it," Stephanie said, "and I want you to see it."

"Why am I handling this better than you?"

"Because clearly you're not as competitive," she said haughtily.

"Then _you_ do the show," Chris told her.

"Oh, sweetie, this show couldn't handle me," she told him.

"You'd bully your way to the top, that's what you're saying."

"By any means necessary," she told him.

"It was fun though, wasn't it?"

"I'm so proud of you," she told him, getting in between their two girls to give him a kiss. "I loved watching you."

"So do you think all those supposed old ladies love me now?" he asked. She laughed and kissed him again, except this time Kensington and Flynn both pushed her away from their precious daddy.

"They just all better start watching you when you wrestle." Chris just shook his head and took inventory. He gave a resolute sigh and smiled at her and his daughters.

"Well then, onto the next adventure."


	324. The Fifth Year, May 2, 2011

Stephanie bit her lip and folded her arms. Chris laughed at her as he watched her, but kept his laughter silent so Stephanie wouldn't know that he was actually laughing at her. She just looked so adorably flustered right now and it was sweet. But then, he found most of the things Stephanie did sweet, even when she was being a bitch to other people or even to him really. She sulked a little more and Chris reached over and extricated one of her arms from their folded position and took it in his.

"Stephanie, we knew this was inevitable," he told her gently.

"I just didn't think it would happen this fast," Stephanie said, turning away her gaze and directing her eyes to her husband. "I just can't believe it."

"I know, neither can I, but it's not like we could stop it."

Stephanie sighed and then turned back to her gaze to Sawyer, who was running around the backyard with a couple of his friends that they'd had over for a play date. Flynn was following after them, not able to catch them, but then, this was Flynn, she always found a way to get there eventually. And when she did, watch out, because she didn't take too kindly to being left behind.

"He's going to be five on Monday, five years old. I mean, before, every year on his birthday I was like, aww, he's getting a little bit older, but my son is turning five years old," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "My baby is going to be five years old. Where did the time go, Chris?"

"I'm not sure," Chris shrugged.

"Kensy is almost a year old," Stephanie said, almost sounding distressed. "She'll be a year old in August. Flynn is almost three…our kids are growing up too fast. It just all feels too fast. Our youngest child is almost a year and our oldest is almost five. I still remember all the details from Sawyer's birth and it was years and years ago. So much has changed in five years. How did it all change?"

"Because time just goes on."

"It's hard to believe there was a time when Sawyer couldn't even sit up on his own."

"I know," Chris laughed. "Remember how scared we both were to be parents? I remember you being freaked out that you were going to screw him up. Hell, I had the same fear that somehow we would be such poor parents."

"You've done a great job," Stephanie ran her fingers over Chris's wrist.

"_We've_ done a great job," he told her, leaning his head down a little to look into her eyes. "You are an amazing mother, Stephanie. Look at those two kids out there and then go look upstairs at Kensy. Those kids are the best things to ever come into my life, I hope you know that. And they wouldn't be have as wonderful if you weren't their mother."

"I do know that," she told him.

"I am in love with those kids."

"I am too," she laughed with a slight blush coming over her cheeks.

"And I'm so glad they came when they did, surprises and all. I wouldn't change a thing about when we had them and hey, we're lucky they didn't come earlier because then you might be freaking out that Sawyer was turning eight or something."

"I don't even want to think about him turning eight or ten or eighteen for that matter," Stephanie said, "I sometimes wish we could just keep them babies forever."

"Or just have more of them as we seem to do when one has worn out its welcome," Chris joked and Stephanie laughed. "I'd go out on a limb and say that any kids of ours are lucky to have us. Who else has such cool parents like we do?"

"I don't know, lots of kids?" she said.

"I don't think so," he said, "I mean, look at our parents. Your parents were gone a lot because they were trying to build the WWE into what it is today so unfortunately, they didn't have as much time for you as they probably could have, right?"

"They tried," Stephanie said, "failed a lot of the time, but they tried."

"Then there was my dad and God love him, he did try too, but he was always gone playing hockey until I was like twelve years old," Chris said, "I couldn't travel with him. Sometimes my mom and I would go to wherever he was playing and I remember watching him and wanting him to acknowledge me and he didn't. Our parents gave effort, but I'd say we're doing a lot better."

"Because we take them with us?"

"Yes, because we refuse to allow them to sit at home while we flit around the world like a couple of teenagers," Chris said. "I'm proud of the fact that I'm the one raising my kids and that they're all happy and healthy. Sure, Flynn is a little aggressive and mean, but otherwise, our kids are better than we turned out."

"Hey, I'd say I turned out pretty well, thank you very much," Stephanie said, pretending to be indignant. "And don't sell yourself short either. I think that you have a lot of new fans wondering just what the hell you're doing now and when they can see you again."

"Very sly, Mrs. McMahon-Jericho, a very subtle way to ask me when I think I'm coming back. I admire your fortitude, I really do."

"I wasn't trying to ask that," Stephanie said, "I wouldn't because I already made the commitment of coming with you to Europe and around the States so I'm off the clock."

"You _say_ you're off the clock, but baby, we both know that you are never off the clock. You breathe the business and, frankly, I'm still a little shocked that you actually agreed to take all this time off. If I didn't know any better I'd say you were hiding a pregnancy from me."

"Yes, not happening," Stephanie said, "I just love you so much is all. Can't a woman love her husband?"

"I suppose," he told her, looking like he was suspicious, but it was broken up a moment later when Flynn stomped over and stood in front of him with a huff. "Okay, Flutterby, what's with the face?"

"I fell," Flynn said, holding out her hand, which had a small scrape on the palm. It was small, but it was red and very scrape-like. Flynn seemed angry at herself that she'd gotten hurt. She did that though, whenever she would fall and scrape a knee or cut herself, she always seemed angry about it. It was like she couldn't believe she'd allowed herself to actually get hurt.

Chris took her hand in his much larger one and frowned a little, "I see that, what happened?"

"I _fell_," Flynn said again because she had just told her father what happened.

Stephanie laughed and Chris looked over at her, "She did tell you what happened, Chris?"

"I know that," he said, then turned back to Flynn, "I was just wondering how you fell."

"Off the slide," Flynn told him.

"Flutterby, were you trying to climb _up_ the slide again?"

"No," Flynn said, but then smiled in such way that gave her away every time. He'd never tell Stephanie this, but she sometimes got the same exact smile when she was trying to lie to him. He liked having a little bit of leverage over his wife so he kept it to himself.

"Flynnie, Daddy and I have told you a million times, slides go down only, not up," Stephanie said, "now let Daddy go clean that up, okay?"

"Okay," Flynn said, holding her arms up to Chris and grinning when he picked her up and held her in his arms.

Stephanie watched them go into the house and then turned her attention back to Sawyer, who was still racing around with his friends, climbing all over the jungle gym and playground, hopping on the bridge and screaming around playing pirates or something equally amusing to five year old boys. Stephanie leaned her chin on her hand and smiled softly every time Sawyer seemed to come around into her direct line of vision.

He was in that stage where he didn't really want to be carried anymore. It wasn't to the point where it was considered deathly embarrassing to be carried around by your parents, but that point wasn't far off. He preferred to walk by himself and only liked being carried when he was tired and he didn't want to walk. Otherwise he was getting so grown up and it had all seemed to happen in the blink of an eye. Stephanie didn't feel old, but five years had passed since Sawyer was bon, since she'd stood on the precipice of this new title, mother.

She was here, three kids later, but it didn't feel like five years. It still surprised her every now and then when she had a conversation with Sawyer. He wasn't in that stage where Flynn was at, where she could get her point across, but her vocabulary wasn't huge. Sawyer could have conversations about things, could understand things and he had the dexterity of his father. Sawyer wasn't clumsy or toddling, he was a young boy and he was getting so big. Too big if you asked her and it made her want to cling to these last moments of his babyhood before he left her for good.

"Hi, Mommy," Sawyer said, waving at her while he passed and she waved back at him.

"Are you guys hungry because I can make lunch," Stephanie said. She wasn't a great cook, but she could handle some sandwiches.

"No, not yet," he told her, then raced away with another wave and a scream as his friend, Mason, caught up to him. Stephanie continued to watch until she heard footsteps behind her and then saw Flynn run by her, as good as new it seemed. She looked over her shoulder and saw Chris walk back out with Kensington in his arms. "Hey, someone up from their nap?"

"Yup, I decided to check on her and she was wide awake and had pulled herself up and was trying to grab at her mobile. I think she was planning to escape the crib," Chris said, kissing Kensington's cheek before handing her over to Stephanie. "I think she's going to walk soon. It's just a hunch I've got."

"She's only eight months old and she barely started crawling a month ago," Stephanie said, looking down at her daughter, who stared up at her with a smile on her face before grabbing Stephanie's shirt and playing with it.

"I don't know, it's just a hunch I have. She's already pulling herself up and I think she can actually take a few steps while holding onto stuff."

"Sawyer and Flynn never walked this early. Sawyer didn't even like walking by himself for the longest time," she said and maybe she just wanted to prolong Kensington being a baby and needing her. If Kensington started walking, there was another marker that said her kids were getting older.

"They're different kids, baby. I've read things that said sometimes a kid will go from barely crawling to walking. I just don't think she's interested in crawling. I think she sees Sawyer and Flynn walking around and she wants to catch up. Look at her right now," Chris nodded towards his daughter and Stephanie looked down. Kensington was watching Sawyer and Flynn playing on the playground structure and she looked absolutely fascinated by it.

"Well, I want to keep her little for a little while longer," Stephanie said. "Besides, we have other things to discuss, like our son's birthday party tomorrow since we're actually going to be at Raw until we go to Europe."

"Yes, that plan where you take your job back for a little while," Chris said. "You know I completely forgot that Sawyer and Rocky had the same birthday."

"Well, either way, Rocky can have his birthday celebration in front of the entire world while Sawyer will have one in the back, at least with the wrestlers," Stephanie said, "but tomorrow. I need you to pick up the cake early, I want to have it in my possession."

"I will do that."

"Good, we'll just bring it to that tumbling place we're holding the party," Stephanie said, "he loved that place, Chris. I have never seen him as excited as he was when your parents took him to that tumbling place in California. We're just lucky that we have enough money to get what we want and that we were able to secure a spot at the local place and that most of his friends didn't have plans."

"They're five, what possible plans could five year olds have?" Chris asked. "Besides if everyone else's five year old is like _our_ five year old, they're probably happy for an entire day free of their kid. Besides, tumbling is a really good stepping stone to being a wrestler."

"Our son the high flyer?"

"If that's the way he wants to be, but if he wants to be a wrestler, then I'm going to train him myself," Chris told her. "That way he can be the second best in the world at what he does."

"Oh yes, because you'll _always_ be the best in the world at what you do, right?"

"You can't top perfection, baby, you just can't. Plus, my genes are awesome, but we both know how crazy and manipulative your genes can be so we don't know how Sawyer is really going to turn out," he winked at her.

"Well, if it's any indication how he is now, I'm going to go out on a limb and say he'll end up nicer than the two of us have," Stephanie told him. "Maybe all our kids will end up better than we are."

"Let's hope so," Chris told her, then got up to go play with the kids, "I really do hope so."

Stephanie laughed and shook her head. Sometimes she felt like she was raising four kids instead of just the three. "Daddy's crazy, Kensy, Daddy's so crazy."

Britt tapped her foot on the floor. "Hunter, we have a flight to catch and we promised Sawyer that we would be at his birthday party and you aren't ready yet!"

"I'm coming," he said gruffly.

"Can you hurry?"

"I am hurrying, God, would you just give me a minute! His party isn't even until tomorrow so I don't know why you're rushing me."

Britt tried to take a deep breath, but it wasn't working. She felt like she'd been taking deep breaths for so long now and if she didn't get this out then she was going to hyperventilate. She stomped upstairs and into the bedroom. Hunter was bent over his suitcase and she went over and shoved him in the shoulder. He wasn't expecting it so she swayed to the side a little bit and then straightened himself before looking at her like she'd gone insane and maybe she had. Britt walked to the door and turned the lock, locking them in and pressing her back against the door.

"What are you doing, I thought we had a flight to catch."

"Like you said, the party's not until tomorrow so if we miss our flight, we book another one," Britt said, "I'm not leaving this room until we hash everything out."

"There's nothing _to_ hash out."

"Bullshit," she told him. She took one more deep breath and hoped it would be the last one for awhile. "It must have been really hard to propose to me."

"Huh?" She'd taken him by surprise and that was a good thing, it meant that he would let her talk and she needed to talk right now.

"To propose. I mean, there must have been a lot of planning put into it. I know that you told your parents that you were going to propose and though my mother was reluctant to give me the information, I know that you actually called my parents to ask them too. Then you had to buy a ring and plan it just how you wanted it and then the moment had to be perfect and the atmosphere right. I'm not even taking into account how badly your nerves must have been frayed."

"Uh, yeah, yeah, it was pretty nerve-racking," he nodded dumbly.

"I know and I want you to know that I finally understand that. I think at first I was simply thinking in terms of future, how I didn't think that marriage was necessary for me to have a life with you. But I talked to my mom and she made me realize that I wasn't looking back, I wasn't taking into account how much _you_ went through in planning that proposal for me. I don't know, I guess…I've never been proposed to before. I know that's kind of irrelevant, but I've never been on the verge of anything so serious before. You're the first guy I ever thought of in terms of forever and that's a really scary thing and you were on that edge of forever and it must have been doubly scary for you because you have been married before and you saw firsthand how marriages can fall apart and you put yourself out there again. That must have been difficult."

"I…I haven't wanted to even think about marriage until I met you," he confessed to her.

"I know," she said and, encouraged that he wouldn't run away from her, she went and sat next to him, grasping his large hand in both of hers and pulling it into her lap. "I'm sorry that I turned you down in the way I did. I should have been more sensitive."

"So you want to marry me?" he asked hopefully.

"No, I'm not changing my mind about that," she told him truthfully, "but I want you to know that I love you. I know that you're scared. I know that you think that you did something wrong with the proposal, that you missed the moment and that if it had been perfect I would have said yes, but I wouldn't have."

"I just don't get it," he said, "we talked about it before…I feel like the break up screwed us up, set us back."

"It didn't," Britt said, "yes, being apart gave me time to think, but it wasn't you that made me decide that marriage wasn't for me. It was just…I was looking at our relationship and I liked where were at and I know that marriage is just a word and a piece of paper, but it's added pressure, do you understand what I'm saying?"

"Not really," he told her, shaking his head. "If you want to be with me, if you want to be with _only_ me, have kids with me, be with me forever, then why don't you want to get married? I don't get what kind of pressure you mean."

"It's just like, marriage is like, seen as a success or a failure, I guess I just don't want the pressure to feel like a success."

"That makes no sense, Britt," he told her.

"I know, it's just, I don't know, I feel like if we were to get married, we be under such scrutiny. I just want to be with you, that's all. I don't even understand myself half the time, just…I just don't want to get married, but that does _not_ mean that I want to break up. You've been sulking around here for weeks thinking I'm going to break up with you, but I'm really not. I really want to be with you."

"It's just…you turned me down and I feel rejected."

"I know," she said, "I wish I could make you not feel rejected because I wasn't rejecting _you_, not at all. The ring, everything, it was all beautiful and the fact that you went to my parents means a lot to me, _you_ mean a lot to me. I'm not mad at you, I'm not punishing you by not wanting to marry you, I just want what I want and I'm sorry that it's not what you wanted. I want to make mutual decisions."

"I want that too," he told her. "Britt, I don't have to marry you. I love you and I want to be with you and if I get you, that's all that matters."

"Do you really mean that?" she asked. "I don't want you to feel uncomfortable anymore. I don't want you walking on eggshells around me. When I annoy you with my humming, tell me that I'm annoying you!"

"You annoy me with your humming," he laughed and she hugged him.

"That's the Hunter I know and love," she told him, burying herself into him. "I love you."

"I love you too," he told her, hugging her tightly. He missed her like this. He still didn't understand her reasoning, but if she was willing to look at things from his side, the least he could do was start to look at things from her side and it couldn't have been easy for her to turn him down and she still loved him and wanted him and maybe that had to be enough for now. "We're going to miss our flight."

"We'll catch the next one," she told him, pushing him down onto the bed.

Christian was lying when he'd said he never touched the World Title because he didn't feel worthy. It just sounded good, saying that to the crowd, making the title seem so much bigger than him that he wasn't even worthy of its presence. When Edge had first won the title, they'd celebrated with some whiskey shooters and he'd held the belt, even put it around his waist. So he was lying, but the sentiment was there.

He wanted the belt, he felt he deserved the belt. He deserved it more than anyone in his opinion. He was tired of being one of the "best wrestlers never to have held a Heavyweight Title." He didn't want a permanent spot on that list, to see his name for all eternity on the list of also-rans, to be an addendum to his brother's career. He wanted it for himself, a name in the history books, to tell Tilden and whatever other children he might be blessed with that he had been a World champion. That was all he wanted.

He knew Del Rio probably had the same dream. He was the son of a wrestler so it was probably in his blood, but Christian felt like he wanted it more, needed it more desperately. He had a full life, that wasn't the problem, he just wanted to add to that full life. He wanted to see that new brand of pride in Trish, the same kind he saw in Stephanie and Lita's eyes whenever their significant others won the titles. He wanted to see that reflected in his gorgeous wife's brown eyes. He would do anything to get that title.

"I don't want you to help me," Christian told his brother as they spoke on the phone after SmackDown. "I know that you probably want to, but I don't want it."

"Are you sure? I mean, I could just be down there to make sure that Del Rio doesn't…"

"It's a ladder match, pretty much anything goes in a ladder match," Christian said, though he really didn't need to explain to his brother of all people about ladder matches; Edge was as well acquainted with them as Christian was. "I just don't want your help. I want to win this on my own, I know I can do it."

"I know you can too," Edge encouraged him.

"Even if that overgrown turd interferes, I don't want your help," Christian said. "I can handle anything that comes at me, okay?"

"Okay."

"I just know that you're my big brother and-"

"Dude, I get it," Edge interrupted him, "you want this win to be untainted, I get that, I've wanted it too, believe me. You want to win on your own merits because it'll feel like more of a win. You deserve that, Christian. Plus, Lita would kill me if I interfered in your match."

"Oh yeah, the consequences thing."

"I mean, I know the risks, but Lita seems to think that just me stepping into a ring will make me paralyzed, not that I'm not being cautious, but she's being overly cautious."

"She's just caring and she's worried about you. Once she sees how fine you are, she'll lay off, at least a little."

"I hope so," Edge said, "but I saw you tonight, you did good, I'm proud of you, little bro. I know that you're going to kick ass on Sunday. I heard that Sawyer is getting a two-day birthday party because the show is in Tampa. That kid doesn't even deserve one, let alone two."

"Three," Christian corrected. "They're doing the tumbling one tomorrow, which is the big one, then they're taking a couple of Sawyer's friends to the show on Sunday, then on Monday, his actual birthday, there will be a kind of wrestler party backstage. It'll be a co-birthday with Rock, but still, it'll be for Sawyer too."

"What? That kid, I swear…"

"You love him."

"He's a devil child."

"You love him," Christian repeated, his voice calling out Edge's statement.

"I do not."

"You do too, you think he's one of the coolest kids you know."

"Tilden is one of the coolest kids I know."

"Well, yes, she is, but that's because she's your niece. You love Sawyer, you love arguing with him because you're just a big kid yourself," Christian told him. "Face it, man, you like kids."

"No, no, no, no," Edge said, "I like your kid and I like Chris and Stephanie's kids. That's a big leap from liking four kids to liking _all_ kids. I certainly didn't like the kid who was kicking my seat on the plane a couple weeks ago. That kid was a jerk."

"Okay, sorry, you don't like _all_ kids, but you like the four that you know, including Sawyer, so what did you get him for his birthday?"

"Nothing, that kid deserves coal."

"What did you get him?"

"I told you, nothing."

"You know that's not true, what did you get him?" Christian asked. Edge loved to play up his little feud with Sawyer, but when push came to shove, Edge probably would hang out with Sawyer everyday if he could. Edge was such a big child, always getting into some kind of mischief. He had to remind himself to keep Edge away from Tilden when she was in her rebellious teenage years; he could only imagine the kind of shenanigans she and her Uncle Edge could conjure up.

"A fort, okay."

"You got the kid a _fort_? And I'm supposed to believe you don't love that kid."

"He has a playground and no playground is complete without a fort," Edge said with what sounded like disgust, like Chris and Stephanie should have really though this through. "Plus, it was on sale and stuff and he has two sisters and who knows how many more Chris and Stephanie will pop out, as the oldest, he might need a little space every now and then, a quiet place."

"So you bought him a fort?"

"Yeah, what's so wrong with that, forts are awesome."

"Are you going to bring your comic books over to his house and start a girl-hating club?" Christian asked with a laugh.

"I'll have you know that comic books are literature in their own right and I like girls, I have a girlfriend who will attest to that," Edge told him. "Besides, I think the kiddo will like it and it's his birthday and five is a big deal."

"Don't tell that to Stephanie."

Chris leaned his forehead on Stephanie's shoulder. She rubbed the back of his neck and he groaned in satisfaction. "I don't think I've ever been so tired in my life and I've been in marathon matches. Am I getting old or something, out of shape, why am I so tired?"

"Because while you've been in long matches and long rehearsals dancing, you've never had to deal with 15 four and five year olds before," Stephanie told him, "plus one Flynn and one Kensington. We're just lucky that Christian and Trish were there to watch over Tilden. It's too bad Shane and Rissa couldn't bring the kids."

Chris groaned again, "I don't think I could've handled anymore."

She laughed, "The important thing is that Sawyer had a blast and you saw him. He was all over the place. He was having so much fun and that's what we wanted. It was his day."

"His _day_? The kid is getting more than a day. We have to deal with this all again tomorrow."

"Yeah, but it's just his two very best friends," Stephanie said, "and you can't even go sit out with them so half the night they'll be under your parents' charge. So you won't be as tired."

"You'd think that," Chris said, "did you see Flynn trying to climb that rock wall?"

"I don't know how that girl got it in her head that she could climb that thing. She still goes up tentatively on the stairs."

"I know," Chris said, "she was so determined though. She was excited when she got three feet off the ground. It was adorable though. She just wanted to do everything that Sawyer was doing."

"I know," Stephanie said. "Even Kensington looked excited. I let her bounce a little on the corner of the trampoline and you should've seen her face, Chris. She was in seventh heaven bouncing around like that. I think it's safe to say that they all had a wonderful time and leg one of Sawyer's birthday was a success."

"Did you see the kid's face when Edge hauled in that fort, that thing is _huge_."

"Did you Edge's face when Sawyer yelled 'Thank you, Ed,' I thought Edge was going to pull that thing right back out of the backyard," Stephanie giggled, thinking back to Edge's face when Sawyer had said that. He'd put a big poster-board on the fort that said "From Edge!" on it, hoping to get Sawyer's attention, but Sawyer didn't even notice it; he was five, he didn't get subtlety.

"Okay, time to put the kids to bed, even if their movie isn't finished, they are getting put away to their cages."

"The animals!" Stephanie said dramatically, throwing her fists up into the air. "The damn animals!"

"They are animals," Chris said, wandering into the other room. Stephanie heard him chuckle and then, "Steph, come in here."

"What is it?" she asked, walking into the living room. Chris pointed towards the couch and she turned her head. Both Sawyer and Flynn were fast asleep on the couch, their heads next to each other as they both breathed softly. "They are so worn out, normally they'd be fending off bedtime."

"I know, but it's good for us," Chris winked at her and she shook her head. Her husband was so insatiable sometimes. It wasn't like she _hated_ it; it was nice to feel so wanted and loved, but he was just so overt about it sometimes.

"And why is that?" she played along.

"Because that means I can get some sleep!" he told her and this time she just laughed. "I get the small one, you get the big one?"

"Sounds like a deal," he said, picking up Sawyer gently. He mumbled in his sleep, but didn't wake up more than to slip his arms around Chris's neck. Chris kissed his head and headed upstairs with him. They were already bathed, brushed, and in their pajamas so it was just a bed run for them. Stephanie followed suit with Flynn, who tried to push Stephanie away at first, but then assented to being picked up as she cuddled into her mother's body, pressing her face against Stephanie's neck and wetting it with her drool.

Stephanie trailed behind Chris as they went upstairs, observing how small Sawyer still looked in sleep. If any kid deserved a lot of birthday parties, it was that kid. The kid who was absolutely a gift and one she didn't even think she deserved. He was better than she could ever be at any point in her life and her dearest wish was for him to never end up like her. She wanted him to stay better than she was.

Christian closed his eyes and when he opened them, Sawyer of all people was across from him. "Hi, Christian, I saw you sitting here alone and I wanted to come over and say hi."

"Hey, kid, where are your friends?"

"Over there," Sawyer said, pointing to another table where his two friends, Jeremy and Mason, were eating brownies and having some milk. "I think you're gonna win tonight."

"Really?" Christian asked. "Are you going to cheer for me?"

"Uh huh, we're going to be sitting out there and we'll cheer for you because we like you and you are my best friend," Sawyer grinned widely.

"I am?"

"Well, I have a lot of best friends, but you are one of them because I like you and you are funny and you came to my birthday party."

"Thanks," Christian said. "I'll be sure to think of you if I win."

"Is Tilden here tonight?"

"Yeah, she is here, but she can't sit out there with you guys."

"Why not?" Sawyer asked. "Flynnie is sitting out there with me and so is Kensy, so Tilden can come sit too, she can stand with my Gams and Gampa."

"I don't know, kiddo, she's still a little young, it might scare her."

"No, because she'll see you," Sawyer shook his head, "so she should come out and cheer you too because you're her daddy and I like cheering for my daddy when he wrestles or dances because he was a dancer, but he got voted off."

"Sawyer, come over and finish your brownie," Loretta came over to escort Sawyer back to the table. "Your friends are almost done with theirs. Then we've got to get out there because the show is starting soon."

"Okay, Gamma," Sawyer said, "I know you'll win, Chrissy."

"Thanks, kid," Christian said, then turned to Loretta. "Hey, Loretta, do you think I could ask you a huge favor and you are absolutely free to turn me down if you want to."

"What is it?" Loretta asked kindly.

"If it's not too much trouble, I mean, I know you've got Sawyer, Flynn, and Sawyer's friends, but I'm going for the World Title tonight, I've never won it before, which as you know, my brother has a bunch of times, but I never have and I was just hoping, wondering if maybe you could handle Tilden out there with you guys. She's never seen me wrestle like this before and if I won, I'd love for her to actually be out there. Trish can't because she's too well-known and Edge can't because he's Edge, I was just-"

"Say no more," Loretta said with a smile. "If we can handle Flynn going anywhere, then we can certainly handle Tilden."

"Thank you so much," Christian said. "I'll go get her."

"Okay, we'll wait here for you."

Christian was out of there like a flash, going towards his locker room when he actually passed Trish. He stopped in his tracks, doubled back and then caught up to her, slinging his arm around her back. "Hey Chrissy, I thought you were in catering collecting your thoughts," Trish said, kissing his chin.

"I was, but Sawyer had the best idea."

"Taking advice from a five year old, I can get behind this," Trish joked, "what did he suggest? A plan for world peace, right?"

"I wish," Christian said, "but he said that it would be cool if Tilden was out there when I won tonight and I think that's a genius idea, I'd love for her to see me out there doing my thing. I asked Chris's mom and she agreed so…would you be on board for Tilden watching my match from the audience?"

"I love that idea. I really should give Sawyer more credit next time," Trish said. She bent over and pulled Tilden's diaper bag from under her stroller and handed it to Christian. "Here's her diaper bag." Then she grabbed Tilden from the stroller and for a second, Tilden was confused, but then when she saw her daddy, she got really excited and squealed happily, nearly launching herself at him. Christian laughed and took her into his arms, feathering kisses all over her face, which Tilden giggled at and then tried to push him away.

"There's my crazy girl," Christian said, kissing the top of her blonde head. "Have I got a surprise for you. You are going to watch me win the title."

"Wittle?" Tilden asked.

"No, the title," he told her. "The big gold belt that Uncle Edge used to have, do you remember that?"

"No," Tilden said, then laughed at her own answer.

"Well, you'll remember when I win it."

"You sound confident," Trish observed.

"It's because I am," Christian said. "I have to be to go into this match. I can't go in there afraid that I'm going to lose because then I _will_ lose. I got this though. I know ladder matches, I'm amazing at them. Yeah, I usually had Edge there, but I can do this."

"I know you can, I've believed in you for years," she told him. She ran her hand down his cheek. She did believe in this man. She'd believed in him even when they weren't together. Christian was better than what people thought. Many people saw him in terms of E&C, but he was so much more than that. Everyone out there tonight was finally going to see just what he could do, how he could hold his own on a large stage.

"Thank you for being there."

"Where the hell else would I be?"

"Married to someone else," he said, bringing up, however obliquely, her other failed engagement and near wedding that wasn't.

"I would've found you eventually, you were the first one I ever wanted to marry," Trish told him seriously. "Now I get to be married to a World Champion. I'll feel oh so self-important."

"Says the woman who has held the Women's title multiple times."

"I'm not too shabby," she pretended to pop her collar.

"Okay, well Ms. Babe of the Century," Christian kissed her, "I'm going to take Tilden to Chris's parents because I think they wanted to get situated early because they're taking care of all the kids."

"Are they really okay with that, I mean, Flynn…"

"I think with Chris not wrestling it seriously lessens the chance of her climbing over the barrier and inserting herself as a surprise entrant into the matches. Now if Chris _was_ wrestling, that'd be a different story."

"Yeah, she would defend her daddy's honor, which, Tilden, let Daddy win on his own, okay?"

"Kay-kay," Tilden stuck her tongue out a little.

Trish lifted herself up a little so she could kiss Tilden's cheek. "Have fun out there, sweetheart."

Stephanie was back in her element. Chris watched her as she dictated everything that was going on. Her headset was on and she was barking orders at someone who was apparently lagging at their job. She was on fire so far tonight and nobody was being saved from perfection. It had been too long for her, obviously, and the woman she'd been in California was not the woman he saw in front of him now.

"Baby?"

"Well make sure that pyro goes off correctly or else," she said, holding up a finger to silence Chris. "Oh, and I need you to contact production because when I was at the gorilla earlier, the headphones to talk to the referees were on the fritz. I cannot have that happen during the show. If we need a match sorter or longer or if there's an injury, I have no way to communicate with the referees, so I'm going to need someone to check on that wiring. We've only got thirty minutes before the show starts so I need as many people as it takes, that will be priority number one, got it?"

Whoever was on the other side of the conversation seemed to assent because she nodded and then responded that she'd be in touch. She pushed her headphones back against her shoulders and then looked at Chris. "You free to talk now?" he asked.

"Yeah, sorry about that, but you have to make this quick, I've got to get to the gorilla, I'm running the floor show tonight," Stephanie said.

"I just wanted to say how natural you look behind the desk, running things."

"Thanks," she said, "that all because if it is, I think I might go find Britt just to finalize some of the plans we had for tomorrow, preliminary plans for Rocky's birthday thing and then I have Sawyer's little birthday thing tomorrow. It's nothing big since we had the party yesterday, but it _is_ his birthday tomorrow so I ordered a 250 cupcakes from this local bakery, I found it online, got good reviews, ordered them weeks ago, but they're supposedly really great and I thought it'd be fun to have that and he can share them with everyone here and it'll be his little part of the Rocky party. They're going to all have little pictures of Sawyer on them."

"So people will be eating my son's face?" Chris asked.

"Yes, they will," Stephanie said, "and I chose a great flavor too."

"Well, delicious. But there was one more thing before you go off and rule the world. You know you don't have to come to Europe, right? I mean, I'm not forcing you to go, I hope that you don't think I'm somehow coercing you into going."

"How could you coerce me when it was my idea?" she asked. "I was the one that told you we were going."

"I know, but I see you here and you're _here_, you know, like, this is so you. Look at you, being Miss Dictator. You were born to do this and I don't want to strip it away from you because I've got a tour to do."

"Chris, like I told you-"

"Baby, I know what you told me, believe me, I was there. But you thought it through, right? Because if we're out there on the road and you're missing this, I don't want you to start resenting me."

Stephanie stood up, gathering her papers about her and then hugging them to her chest. She pointed to herself with her free hand. "My choice, Christopher. Don't worry about what I _may_ be feeling because you're wrong. I do love it here, but do I love it as much as you, not a chance. I make my own decisions, I made mine, done, end of story, now I've got to find Britt."

Chris stood up and grabbed her arm before she could exit the room. She looked at him like she needed to go and he needed to let go of her arm. He leaned forward and pressed a brief kiss to her lips. "I love you."

"I love you too, watch Kensy!"

Stephanie breezed out of the room, thinking about Chris. She knew that he was going to feel guilty, but she wanted to be with him and he needed to get over that. Stephanie located Britt in one of the many common rooms dotted throughout the backstage area. She had some papers in front of her and Stephanie dumped her own papers next to Britt's papers. Britt looked up and kicked a chair out for Stephanie to take a seat.

"Hey," Stephanie said, "I've only got about 15 minutes left now, but I have the Rocky stuff and-"

"I've got it all covered, Steph, no worries," Britt told her.

"Okay, your mood is definitely bolstered. I didn't get a chance to talk to you yesterday because I was running after a bunch of kids _and_ keeping Kensy occupied, what's going on?"

"Hunter and I are back on track," Britt admitted. "It feels so good to say that too. We talked and we still have stuff to work out, but for the most part, I think that we're definitely okay, we're talking and I understand how hard it was to plan the proposal and get rejected and he understands that I don't want marriage…at least for a while now."

"I'm glad you two talked things out."

"Chris's proposal to you…"

"Was a surprise," Stephanie answered. "He had no intention to propose to me that day. So it was something else entirely, but…when Andrew…sorry, it's still weird thinking back to that relationship. I don't know what I was thinking. I think that day, I wasn't brave enough to do what you did, of course, Hunter only proposed in front of what, fifteen people, Andrew proposed in front of thousands live and millions at home and…I said I needed time too. But then he asked again and I accepted and I shouldn't have. I loved him, but I think it was more like I loved him because I was finally making a decision for myself, that wasn't influenced by my father or brother."

"Obviously you don't regret not marrying him."

"I don't know where we would have ended up," she admitted, "not here, not like this. I'm not a huge believer in fate or soulmates, but everything lead me to Chris. Every decision, everything lead me straight to him. I think that's the testament of a relationship. How it endures. So no, I don't think you're crazy for not wanting to get married right now if you're happy and he's happy, all the more power to you and I am about to be late for the show."

"Go, go, I've got tomorrow covered."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, leaving to take her place behind the booth where she belonged.

Flynn was a bundle of excitement. She was sitting on her grandpa's lap because Tilden was with them. She was still a little suspicious of the other girl, but she wasn't bothering Sawyer so she could live with her for now. Sawyer and his friends were standing at the barrier, watching the show start and they were very excited, well, Sawyer's friends were, Sawyer was excited too, but this was nothing that he wasn't familiar with. She was excited even though her daddy said he wasn't wrestling, which just made the entire show go downhill.

In fact, the show was a little bit boring because nobody she was friends with was even on the show. Sawyer's friends seemed to like John Cena because they kept wondering when he would come out, but she had no reaction to him at all. He was just another guy backstage that she didn't really talk to. It wasn't until she saw Christian that she cared and she cheered for him and watched Tilden's face light up and her grandma lean over to say something to her, something about that being her daddy, which made Tilden clap. Flynn was jealous, she wanted to see _her_ daddy wrestle.

Christian's father skills honed in on Tilden almost immediately. She was luminescent sitting there, waving her arms around in the air. He drew strength from her and wondered why he didn't have her out there sooner because he felt calmer just by her being out there in general. No wonder Chris liked it when his kids were out there. He was pumped for his match, more than maybe any other match he'd ever been in. He pumped himself up as he walked past the myriad of ladders.

When the bell rang, they both looked up at the belt hanging there, theirs for the taking. They just had to reach it and the person who wanted Christain to win the least was standing right across from him. They both hesitated for a moment before the first punches were thrown. Christian got the early upper-hand, but Del Rio came right back, but then Christian came back again. The ladders weren't making an early appearance and Christian couldn't vouch for Del Rio's strategy, but his own was to wear down Del Rio as much as possible so that when Del Rio got tired, he could climb the ladder and win.

But a ladder match is not such without the ladders. He tried to get one, but Del Rio intercepted him before he could. Del Rio then kicked him underneath the ring, which Christian didn't understand, but used to his advantage. Despite being pitch black underneath the ring, he was able to navigate his way to the other side fairly easily, his hand only bumped something a couple times before he emerged and saw that Del Rio had gotten a ladder and was trying to get it into the ring. Christian did a baseball slide into him. Christian grabbed the ladder and put it into the ring.

He saw an opportunity, but it was too soon to get the ladder and Del Rio took him right down. Del Rio tried to climb, but Christian grabbed the ladder and knocked it down, expecting his opponent to fall out of the ring, but Del Rio didn't cooperate and instead, he landed on his feet before Christian got a kick to the head. He knew this was just the start of it all and he would just have to endure whatever came.

It was a hard fought match. Both men wanted their first title run and it was down to who wanted it more. They fought back and forth, injuring themselves in the process because you _always_ got a little injured in ladder matches. The worst of it was when Del Rio set him atop the ladder that extended from the ring to the announcer's table. Christian was so tired by this point he could barely move and Del Rio could see it. Of course, the worst of it was for Del Rio since Christian gained whatever strength he had left and pushed himself off the ladder so Del Rio crashed right into it.

Christian went for the ladder and he climbed. He thought he had it, he did have it, right in his hands and he was grasping, trying to find the spot to tear that belt free when Clay came over and knocked the ladder over, but he wasn't giving up that belt. He hung on for as long as he could and he wondered if that was the closest he'd ever come. Then Del Rio was back and he felt the chance slipping away. Then he heard it. He heard his brother, not interfering per se, but there, signaling that he was there for his brother.

"It's Ed!" Sawyer screamed at his grandparents, craning his neck to try and see what was going on. "Ed is here!"

Christian had to do it. This was the time. This was his time. He had to seize the moment like he had never seized it before. He glanced over to Tilden and she was just sitting there, watching and fascinated by everything, her eyes darting around. He wondered what Trish was doing, he wondered if he could finally do this. Everything he'd ever wanted in the wrestling business was dangling above the ring, enticing him, beckoning him. His name in the history books, the belt around his waist, finally, _finally_ crawling his way out of Edge's shadow. No longer would he be the little brother, the other half of E&C, he would be Christian, World Champion.

"Go for it, Chrissy, go for it," Trish muttered over and over again, her hands clasped together as if in prayer. She spurred him on from her seat, willing him to get that ladder and start to climb. She wanted to push him up with her mind.

But he didn't need her help.

He set the ladder up and each step was like a mountain, his body was aching, screaming for rest. He stopped midway to check and see where Del Rio was. He was still down, lying there, prostrate on the ground, and this was _his_ time. He could hear Edge screaming for him, his brother, here to the last and he loved his brother for being there for him, always looking out for him, always being there for him. He scaled a couple more steps, then needed to stop. His body was still screaming, but there was another buzz surrounding him. It was everyone in that arena, it was his wife, it was his daughter, it was his brother, it was his best friends, his good friends, his sort of friends, his acquaintances, the strangers, and the fans, always the fans who had supported him and wished this for him almost as long as he had wished it for himself.

He wanted to soak it all in, every single nanosecond, he wanted a video camera as he stood there, so he could capture every look in the arena. Then he could remember this feeling, bottle it up for all eternity and live it over and over again. He wanted to savor every touch, breath, drop of sweat he'd shed to get here. His career flashed before him in waves, struggles, setbacks, high, lows, everything.

He climbed.

Then it was right there, in front of him, like the end of a beautiful story. The conclusion was right there and he took it. He took it and grabbed it and it was his. It was all his. He screamed in relief, excitement, every other feeling in body was bursting forth from his mouth and he almost toppled right off that ladder because his emotions were getting the better of him.

Edge could feel the tears in his eyes and they were about to fall. He looked up at his brother with every pore bursting with love. If there had to be any kind of resolution to his career, an endnote, he was glad this was it. He could still remember Christian as the annoying little brother who never left him alone and then his best friend who was determined to make it with him in this crazy business. This was his brother, his blood, and God would their mother and Grandma Edna be proud right now.

"Chrissy won!" Sawyer was jumping up and down and cheering and yelling and even Tilden seemed excited, but she just liked seeing her daddy so she was just happy to be there. She just wished he'd come over and pick her up, but he seemed busy.

Trish was bouncing off the walls, hugging everyone she encountered, whooping it up as she watched the monitors. Her husband was the World champion and it felt as good as if she had won it. She was so proud of him, so proud of the journey. He deserved this, he deserved it and everything that came along with it.

Christian held the belt above his head, thanking every power that be for this moment. He finally climbed down off the ladder and he fell to his knees with the belt still clutched to him. Edge came over to him and pulled him up, just like he'd always done and they embraced and Christian was crying and Edge was nearly crying and they were quickly losing every bit of masculinity they may have ever had. It didn't matter though, not with this outcome.

"I'm so fucking proud of you right now," Edge told him.

"I know, I know," Christian said and they started jumping up and down.

They hugged again, "You deserve this, bro, you deserve this."

"Thank you for being out here."

"No, this was all you, man, this was _all_ you. Never sell yourself short. You deserve this and you are the champion, soak it all in. This is _your_ moment. Okay, this is yours, this is all for you," Edge said, before he let Christian be by himself for a moment.

Christian didn't even know what to think right then. It was all so overwhelming and he felt like every emotion he could possibly feel was revving up inside of him. He was the champion and it had never felt so good. He walked around the ring for a moment, just taking it in. He got out of the ring and he walked around, just a little, just so he could get to Tilden and he pointed at her and then patted the belt. Tilden clapped and tried to reach for him, but he had to get out of there now. When he got backstage, Trish launched herself at him.

"Oh my God, you won, you won!" she buried her face into his sweaty neck.

"I did it, Trishy, we're champions."

"You are," Trish said.

"We both are," he told her. "I wouldn't have been here without you. You pushed me to come back."

"I think that was Stephanie."

"You know what I mean," he said, kissing her.

"I thought you might want to see someone else," another voice said and Christian pulled away from Trish to see Loretta holding Tilden. "She was very excited to see you and her Uncle Edge. I thought you might want to be with her."

"Thank you so much, Loretta," Christian handed the title to Trish as he took Tilden in his arms.

"It's no problem, she enjoyed herself and congratulations."

"Thanks," he said, then kissed Tilden. "Baby, did you see Daddy out there, I won because you were there with me."

"Kay-kay," Tilden said, just wanting to hug her daddy.

"You did it, Chrissy, you really did it," Trish exalted, hugging him tightly, the belt pressed between them. "I'm so proud of you."

This was truly his moment.

Stephanie woke up the next morning and tried to sneak to the door when Chris woke up and caught her, "Steph, what are you doing?"

"My baby is five years old today," she said, "I just want to watch him for a bit."

"He'll be five later too, you know," he told her.

"I know, but I just wanted a few moments to watch him sleep, pretend he's still my little baby. Don't mock me."

"I'm not, just don't wake him up," he said softly before turning back over. Stephanie padded her way down to Sawyer's room, opening the door a little so she could see her little boy who was suddenly not so little anymore. She just leaned on the wall and looked at him. He turned over and it was like he could feel someone watching him and he opened his eyes.

"Hi, Mommy," he mumbled sleepily. "What are you doing?"

"Just watching you sleep, you five year old."

"Oh yeah, it's my birthday," he said, then thrust his arms out to Stephanie. She came over and crawled onto the bed with him and he snuggled up to her, closing his eyes again, "Love you, Mommy."

"I love you too," she told him, leaning her cheek against his soft, blond hair. "You know, five years ago, I was holding you and getting ready to bring you home from the hospital."

"Was I sick?" he asked.

"No, you were just born and you hadn't even been home yet. You were so little and I was so in love with you and I'd only known you for a few hours. You were just the cutest little thing I'd ever seen. Daddy was there too and he was so excited to take you home, but we were scared too."

"You and Daddy don't get scared," he told her, snuggling deeper into her embrace, sleep wanting to take over again.

"We were so scared that we wouldn't be a good mommy and daddy to you. We'd never done it before and we weren't sure how we were going to make sure that you were the happiest kid in the world."

"I'm happy," he muttered.

"I know you are. I love you so much, baby boy, I don't think you'll ever know how much, but I do. You are the absolute best parts of me and Daddy. You're all the parts where we don't measure up. You're going to be amazing, baby boy, don't let anyone tell you otherwise." She looked down and saw he was asleep. She just closed her eyes and laid there with him.

Chris stretched his arms out. "Okay, okay, everyone, I know that it's Rocky's birthday, but it's not just _his_ birthday tonight, so I just want to make a little cupcake toast. Does everyone have a cupcake with this gorgeous mini-me mug on it?"

"Yes!" came the resounding yell.

"Hey, come on, indulge me, okay! Don't make me pull rank!"

"What rank?" Miz said, then laughed at his own joke.

"Uh, the rank where I own the company and can say a few words and have you fired, that rank," Chris reminded him, "which I still might do if you don't stop copying my career."

"What, you're nuts!" Miz countered.

"Either way, this is not about you," Chris said. "So, I'd just like to say that I have the coolest kids on the planet. Yeah, yeah, I know some of you have kids and you think yours are and we all think that of our own kids so I can say that I have the coolest kids. Five years ago today, I was scared out of my wits about being a good father. Suddenly I had this person, this real person who depended on me and would rely on me and I had no idea what the hell I was doing. I still don't. Yet I ended up with someone who is just the best kid anyone could ask for, so to Sawyer Jericho, one of the good ones!"

Everyone cheered and Sawyer looked almost embarrassed. "Thank you!"

"So chow down on my son's face!" Chris said, holding up his cupcake.

Everyone started eating and mingling and generally enjoying the festivities of Sawyer and Rocky's birthday. Chris went over to his son and knelt next to him. "I love you, kid."

"I love you too."

"So what do you really want for your birthday?"

"For everyone to be happy," Sawyer said, "and a water slide."

Chris laughed, that was about right for his son. "Okay, well, we'll see what we can do."

"Okay!" Chris hugged his son before Sawyer went back to his cupcake.

"Happy Birthday, kid."


	325. Blink and it's Gone, May 9, 2011

A/N: I may skip ahead a little bit since nothing really happens that's totally pertinent until maybe Christian's heel turn. I really want to get to tonight's promo with CM Punk, talk about epic (minus the Steph comment, but I'll just chalk that one up to him thinking she's an idiot for not being with Chris, heh) Anyways, enjoy, I hope. :)

* * *

"It doesn't even feel real sometimes."

Edge and Chris looked at each other knowingly. They'd both been in this position before, the place where you're the World Champion and you can't quite believe it just yet. Christian was still trying to get over his win at Extreme Rules. He'd believed that he could win and he'd gone into that match believing that he could win, but to _actually_ win was a whole different thing entirely.

"But it feels damn good, doesn't it?" Chris asked him.

"Hell yeah it does. It's just, you know, now I'm at the top of the mountain, every guy out there is gunning for me and me alone. I'm the coveted one. I can't even believe that it's mine," Christian said. "I just can't even comprehend the fact that I'm really the champion, after all these years."

"I think we both felt the same way, right, Chris?" Edge said. "I just felt like it was finally my time and I'd been due for a long time."

"I felt the exact same way," Chris added. "It was like, yes, I've finally arrived. After WCW and all the shit I went through over there, to come over here and even have a shot at being the WWE or World champion was amazing. I mean, it was rough at first, but then when I won that Undisputed Title, all the hard work felt worth it."

"That's exactly how I feel," Christian nodded. "I feel like it was all worth it. There are times, man, when you wake up in the morning and everything just hurts. Every single bone in your body is screaming to give this up because you _hurt_, but you can't, you never can, it's like this sickness and then one day, you're there, at the top and you realize that _this_ is what it was all for."

"Yeah, I get you," Edge said wistfully.

Christian felt like an ass. His brother had just retired and here he was, talking about how he was so happy about winning the title his brother had had to vacate. He wasn't being sensitive right now. "I'm sorry, man, I didn't mean to you make you feel bad."

"You aren't," Edge said. "Believe me. I've come to terms with it…as much as I can anyways. Besides, I've been getting some really good offers outside of wrestling. In fact, I got one this morning that sounded really good, might take the person up on it."

"Oh really?" Christian said, "What offer was that? Like a TV show or something? I know you did that guest starring thing on that show, sorry, forgot the name of it, but is it something like that?"

"Actually no, Sawyer invited me over to read comic books and hang out in his new fort," Edge said.

Chris and Christian laughed before Chris spoke. "Seriously, dude, he loves that thing. I know he loves his sisters, he does because he helps with them and he lets Flynn in the fort whenever she wants, but I know that he likes to play without them sometimes and that's just the place he can go."

"Stephanie said he's been telling you guys that he wanted to invite me over."

"He has, he said that because you were the one who got it for him, that he should be nice and invite you over. He really likes comic books right now. They're nothing difficult or anything, but I think the association with the pictures is making it a lot easier for him to read."

"I can't believe the kid is reading," Christian said, "it makes me feel so old. I mean, I remember when Stephanie had him. Now he's reading."

"Not you too," Chris said, "I have to go through this every year with Stephanie. Every year, she's going on and on about how she feels old, how she can't believe Sawyer or Flynn or very soon Kensy is getting so old and now she doesn't have anymore babies and then usually, she ends up pregnant."

"Not happening this time," Edge said, "Kensy's not two, she pretty much needs to be at least two before you actually have another kid."

"Thanks for the analysis, doctor," Chris said sarcastically.

"It just makes me feel old," Christian responded. "It just makes me realize how fast time flies, I mean, Tilde's over a year old now, which is crazy in and of itself. I can't even imagine looking at a five year old. I guess this is what it's like for parents, you watch your kids get older and older, but you've been there since the beginning so when you look at them, you'll always see that little kid staring back at you…or in my mom's case, Edge is still a kid."

"Very funny, jackass," Edge told him, sticking up his middle finger at his younger brother. "If I were still wrestling, I'd kick your ass for that title."

"Except you'd still have it," Chris pointed out.

"So when are you getting your ass back to the grind?" Edge asked. "I mean, unlike some people here, namely me, you can still wrestle and do that whole thing. Is Stephanie bouncing off the walls not having you wrestle?"

"No, she's really not," Chris said, "I think she just realizes that I have a lot of things that I love and she's never really forced me to go back to wrestling. If you recall, she didn't exactly get me back, back in 2007. I surprised her with the entire thing."

"True, but she kept nagging you about it, we all saw it," Edge said.

Chris shrugged. "It's different this time around."

"She's getting soft."

"This is Stephanie, she's never soft. She just wants me to be happy."

He was appreciative of it too. He could have some wife who tried to keep him anchored at whatever he did. He knew if Stephanie wasn't a traveler like she was, there would be a definite strain on their marriage. He didn't even have to analyze to realize that. He traveled a lot, _a lot_, and that was just with wrestling. Even when he wasn't wrestling, he was traveling a lot, maybe not as much, but still, it was a lot. Hell, he'd had to move out to LA for a while because of Dancing with the Stars.

Chris was kind of a restless guy. You kind of had to be if you wanted to be a wrestler. Wrestling didn't afford you roots like many other lives. Yes, he had the house in Tampa that he called home, but it wouldn't be that way if it didn't have Stephanie and the kids in it. The apartment he'd had in Atlanta was just a place to keep the stuff he couldn't take with him on the road. For years, he didn't even really have a permanent residence, living out of his car and in cheap hotel rooms that dotted different countries around the globe.

Wrestling was a restless business and he just didn't think he could be with someone that didn't know that. He was fortunate to find Stephanie, someone who _got_ it, who not only got it, but had grown up with it, had lived it far earlier than he'd ever did. She'd grown up with a father who was almost like an original, traveling with this company he wanted to take from a territory to the largest company in the world. It was just one of the many reasons that Stephanie got him, got all of him and understood all parts of him.

"Are you happy not wrestling?"

"For now, yeah," Chris said, "it'll obviously never be out of my system. I don't foresee myself being one of those guys who says they're retired and then comes back about five hundred times for a 'final' match. But, come on, it's not like I'm escaping it, marrying who I did, and the kids would never let me forget about wrestling."

"Oh yeah, doesn't Flynn have an outstanding hit on you if you retire?"

"The girl knows where I sleep plus she doesn't sleep in a crib anymore, I should probably star sleeping with one eye open," Chris joked. "I'm coming back, if for nothing else than to appease Flynn."

"Whipped," Edge said. "This is why I don't have kids."

"Yeah, _that's_ why you don't have kids," Christian scoffed. "It has nothing to do with the fact that you couldn't handle the responsibility of a kid all the time. You'd get driven nuts and you know it."

"Uh, not true," Edge told him.

"You're a great babysitter, but that's just babysitting."

"You are a great babysitter," Chris agreed.

"Yeah, that's why you entrusted your kids with me next week when you and Stephanie have to go back to LA so you can do that radio show or whatever fill-in thing you're doing," Edge said smugly. "You _could_ have given the kids to Trish and Christian or hell, even Kurt Angle, but you chose me."

"You had nothing better to do."

"Beside the point," Edge said, "you know I take good care of your kids. I'm the best at taking care of your kids."

"You and Lita," Chris pointed out.

"Yeah, she's just there."

"Yeah, just there," Chris laughed, "I'm so sure. But I will admit that 2 out of my 3 kids like you and the one that doesn't, well, she doesn't talk so we can't really get her opinion on much of anything at this point, except the fact she wants to grow up faster than she can because she wants to catch up with her brother and sister."

"I'll be sure to shower lots of attention on Kensy, get her over on my side," Edge said, "but Sawyer just loves me because I pretty much bribed him with the fort and he _still_ can't get my name right."

"You do know that he can actually _say_ your name, right?" Chris told him. "I've heard him say it before and he absolutely knows that you like to be called Edge."

"Excuse me?" Edge said, his mouth dropping open a little bit, "Do you mean to tell me that this _entire_ time, your son has been able to call me Edge and simply refuses to do so because he what, thinks that Ed is funny?"

"He thinks it's an affectionate term for someone he considers one of his best friends," Chris said, "but yes, he knows your name."

"That little sneak!" Edge said, taking a rather long swig of his beer. "I thought the j sound of the g confused him or something, but he can say it. I should really take that fort back now. Wait, he thinks of me as one of his best friends."

"He classifies you guys," Chris said, "he says that you two, Hunter, and Britt are all his big best friends and Mason and Jeremy are his kid best friends."

"Well, I guess I can live with being his best friend," Edge said.

"Yeah, because you don't have any other ones," Christian teased his brother.

"What do you call you two?" Edge asked.

"Well, Christian is my best friend," Chris shrugged, "I don't know what you are."

"Chris is my best friend."

"Oh, oh, oh, I get it, I'm the odd man out now," Edge made a face that told them he was not amused, "Yeah, I get it, it's dog on Edge night because he's not pussy-whipped like you two. I mean, me and my girl, I didn't even need to propose to keep her. Plus, we don't have kids to answer to so I can have sex whenever I want, I bet you have to lock the door, Chris, in case the kids walk in."

"Well, no, because if our kids need us and the door is locked then that's dangerous, but Stephanie and I are discreet and we haven't had any embarrassing incidents _and_ our sex life is going strong, so weak argument, man, very weak."

"Either way, I'm still pretty much a free man."

"You're just as whipped, you just don't have kids wrapped around your fingers," Chris told him.

"I'd beg to differ even with that one," Christian said, "I mean, you know he loves our kids, he's a big softie for them, look at how he spends all this money for presents for them. He loves our kids and he'd do anything for them."

"I'm leaving if you guys gang up on me anymore, I'm still an injured man, you know, I'm still smarting from the diagnosis."

"Is your arm still numb?" Chris asked, genuinely concerned for Edge's health. He hadn't really inquired because he saw Edge and he seemed fine, but this was an injury that couldn't readily be seen and he felt bad for not asking before this.

"It's getting better. The doctor has me wear this brace at night to keep the circulation going in it and it seems to be working. He has to check on me every three weeks for a while to monitor my progress. If it remains the same, they may do more surgery to alleviate some of the pressure on my spine. We're trying to avoid that."

"I'm sorry, man, that's rough," Chris said.

Edge shrugged, "I knew what I was getting into years ago when I started this. Injuries are just a part of this business, even for someone like you, I mean, I know you've not had any serious ones, but the minor bumps and bruises."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. Wrestling can kick your ass and then spit you out."

"It does," Edge said, "and I got a really bad break from it, but you know, I'm not doing anything strenuous anymore so I'm hoping that this remains a minor problem."

"I hope so too," Chris nodded at him and Edge sent him a grateful smile. It was difficult getting over such a huge part of his life, but with friends, he was getting by everyday and the rest of his life didn't seem so empty anymore. Even if he had to fill it with days of comic-book fort reading; there could always be worse.

Sawyer's legs swung back and forth as he ate his lunch after finishing up preschool on a beautiful Friday afternoon while he watched his mommy clean up around the kitchen, "Mommy, why are we going to Europe again?"

"Because Daddy is playing over there with Fozzy," Stephanie answered him, "so we're going over there to be with him and support him so that nobody has to miss anyone else."

"I miss wrestling though," Sawyer said. "We didn't even get to go at all when Daddy was on the dancing show and now we have to go away again. I miss watching it. Will we ever go back all the time?"

"Of course we will," she told him, reaching out to ruffle his hair. "Grandpa is the president and I work there so of course we'll be back. We'll always be back. There's no way that we could ever escape it, but sometimes it's good to get a break from things. You know, when I was little-"

"You not little," Flynn said around a mouthful of potato chips.

"I'm not little anymore, but you've seen pictures of when I was a little kid like you guys," Stephanie told them, "when I was that little, Grandma Linda and Grandpa Vince weren't around very often. They were when I really needed them, but they worked a lot so they were away a lot. And Uncle Shane was a lot older than me so a lot of the time I was left with a nanny-"

"What's a nanny?" Sawyer wondered curiously.

"It's like a babysitter, but they spend more time with you and sometimes they live with you. My nannies lived at the house with me and they took care of me when there was nobody else there."

"We don't have nannies," Sawyer pointed out.

"No nanny!" Flynn yelled, spraying soggy potato chip crumbs all over the counter.

"Oh, Flynnie," Stephanie said, grabbing a paper towel to clean up after her daughter, "Daddy and I decided before any of you were born that we didn't want to have nannies for you guys. We wanted to raise you because we're your mommy and daddy and that's our job. So now Daddy is going away and we're going with him because we want to be a family."

"Okay, that's nice," Sawyer shrugged. "Will we like it?"

"I think you will, we won't go to all of Daddy's concerts, but I'm sure he'd love to have us at a few."

"I sing wif Daddy," Flynn giggled. "I do it."

"You're going to sing with Daddy?" Stephanie asked, dropping her mouth open. There was _no_ way Flynn was going to sing with Chris. It was already going to be loud wherever they went and having her onstage in front of all those speakers and the crowd and no way, not going to happen, but she could indulge her little girl for now.

"Uh huh," Flynn nodded, "I sing."

"I know you sing, but you kind of sound like me," Stephanie said.

"You can't sing, Mommy," Sawyer laughed.

"I know I can't, I leave that to Daddy," she winked at him.

"That's because he has a band and they sing and make songs together and then Daddy plays the songs over and over and over and over and over," Sawyer said, shaking his head. Stephanie wished she had a video camera to film this so she could show Chris how much he was influencing her kids.

"I know, but either way, we're going to be there for Daddy and that's what's important about the whole thing, now eat your lunch, okay, because if we're going to watch SmackDown tonight and see Chrissy with his big, shiny new belt, we're going to have to get through lunch first."

"But SmackDown isn't on until _forever_," Sawyer complained.

"Well if you eat, it'll go faster," Stephanie said.

"Honey, I'm home!"

"In the kitchen!" Stephanie yelled. "There's your dad now. But first we finish lunch, alright?"

"Okay," Sawyer said and Flynn nodded.

Chris walked into the kitchen, "Hey, where is the fanfare? I come home from a kickboxing class and nobody runs to the door to see me? Aren't there three kids in here who love their father enough to come running, or in Kensy's case crawling, to the door? Or a wife who welcomes me home with a kiss and a protein shake?"

"Hello, sweetie," Stephanie said, coming over and giving him a peck on the lips. "The kids are eating lunch and one Miss Kensy is taking her nap so no, nobody was here to greet you. Let me take your bag and throw it's probably stinky contents in the laundry room."

"Thanks," he said, kissing her again before she left the room.

"Sammy, Daddy," Flynn said, holding out her ham and cheese sandwich. Chris took a small bite of it and made a yummy face while rubbing his stomach. Flynn giggled and went back to eating her lunch.

"Daddy, I can't wait for SmackDown tonight, we're going to watch Chrissy, aren't we?"

"Why would we do that?" Chris asked, pretending to feign ignorance.

"Because he's the champ!" Sawyer said. "We have to watch him because he's the champ."

"He have gold," Flynn added.

"Oh yeah, it must have slipped my mind," he said, walking around the counter and attacking both his kids with kisses as they giggled and tried to squirm away. "I guess now we have to watch Chrissy be the champ, right?"

"Yes!" Sawyer said, dodging Chris's kisses, "because he's our friend."

Christian had a swagger tonight that he'd never had before in his entire career. He walked the halls like he owned them and in a way, he did. He was the World Champion and everyone there knew it. In his life out of wrestling, he could go to a store and only a few people would ever recognize him, but here, everyone knew exactly who he was and that was the best feeling in the world.

"Be careful there, stud, you might just let your head get too big," Trish said from beside him.

"What are you talking about?"

"You should see your face right now, I'm serious, it's hilarious," Trish said, but she reached out and rubbed the small of his back. "I love you so I'm telling you for your own good."

"What does my face look like then?"

"It looks like you just got laid for the first time," Trish replied with a laugh. She was proud of her husband, but he really did look like he was the finest thing that had ever graced WWE television. "The moment you let yourself get too cocky is when you lose, you know that, right?"

"I know that, I mean, I don't know it with this belt, but I know it," Christian said. "You know, I called Teddy yesterday and told him that I wanted time at the top of the hour and he almost had to oblige because I'm the champion. I'm getting all these perks and it's almost crazy. I kind of want to see what else I can do."

"And you say that you don't have an ego."

"I never said that I don't have an ego, I'm reining it in though, believe me, I'm not going to let myself get carried away."

"Good, because I don't want a husband that expects me to do everything for him or something, dote on your every word."

"I would never expect that of you and you know it," he told her. "I mean, every once in a while, I'd love to be doted on, but I'm not counting on it every day, that would just be asking too much. But do you see how people are looking at me? They're looking at me differently, don't you think?"

"I haven't really noticed," she told him and it wasn't like she was searching everyone's face to see if they were looking at her husband differently. "Maybe you just think they're looking at you differently."

"No, no, I can sense it," Christian nodded to himself as if he needed convincing, "I think they know that I'm the champion and that I'm a force to be reckoned with now. God, why didn't Edge tell me that this was what it was like to win the World or WWE title? If I'd have known that it was like this, I would've tried a lot harder to get it by now."

"So you weren't trying all these years?'

"You know what I mean. It takes a certain…cache to win the major titles," he said as he pushed open his locker room door for his wife and daughter. He took a moment to take in the plaque on the door, _Christian – World Champion_. He ran his fingers over the etched plaque and held in a slight squeal, not wanting to appear uncool. He was trying to keep it mostly together, but inside, he wanted to run around the entire arena with the belt over his head, yelling and whooping it up.

This was the first night Edge wasn't going to be here, so he really was on his own now. Everything was of his own merit. He was finally going to forge his own path and not be in Edge's shadow, his younger brother who somehow wasn't as good as the older one. He hated looking at it like that, but the comparisons were always going to be there. He did not want to be the Jannetty to Edge's Michaels. He didn't want to be the hanger-on and as long as he had this belt now, he wasn't going to be that at all.

"What kind of cache?"

"Killer instinct, I guess," he told her. "Ruthlessness. That need to win. I don't know, I guess when you're not the champion and never have been, you just tend to notice things about the champions."

"And you've noticed that they're what? Better than you? Because that's not true, Chrissy," Trish said, lifting Tilden from her stroller and kissing her nose before setting her on the couch so she could set up Tilden's play blanket. "You're just as good and there have been a lot of wrestlers who have been amazing and never won the big one, so to speak."

"I know, but when you're the champ, everything is different because people _know_ you as a champion. If Chris still had never won the title, do you think he would get the recognition…okay, wait, sorry, bad example, okay, what about my brother, if he retired and had never been champion…"

"People still would have missed him," Trish said, "because even before he was a champion, he was well-known. You're going to need to come up with better examples than that."

"Shut up," he told her good-naturedly. "I'm just glad that I'm the champion now because it almost feels like I've set out all I wanted to do in the company."

"Well then congratulations," she winked at him before putting Tilden on her blanket and sitting down with her to play. "You deserve it though, just so you know, you were more than deserving of it."

"Thanks, Trishy," he said, coming over and sitting on the blanket with his wife and daughter.

Sawyer jumped up and down in happiness, "We get to have pizza, we get to have pizza because Chrissy is the champion!"

"Well that's not the only reason," Stephanie said as she hung up the phone after ordering their dinner. She'd already sent Chris and Flynn out to pick up the pizza since their favorite place was clear across town and didn't deliver. "I don't really feel like cooking, that was a big reason. Plus, pizza is just easier than anything else, so that's what we're opting for."

"But Chrissy is still the champion," Sawyer said.

"Yes, he is still the champion and I guess the pizza can be for him too."

"Can we eat in front of the TV?" Sawyer asked, knowing he might be pushing his luck because his mommy liked to eat dinner at the table, but maybe, just maybe because they were having pizza and everything, they could eat while watching TV and then right after they ate, they'd be right there to watch Christian on SmackDown. It sounded like the perfect plan to him.

"Maybe…just this once though," Stephanie told him and he ran up and hugged her around the waist. "I only said maybe, baby boy, so don't push your luck."

"Kensy can eat there too," Sawyer said, "you can just move her high chair in there and then she can eat in there too!"

"Well, I don't know about that," Stephanie said, "I think that Kensy is going to eat in here, do you want to help me feed her?"

"Okay, where's her baby food?" Sawyer asked, opening up the fridge and looking around. "What are we going to feed her tonight, Mommy? I think she wants carrots and peas."

"Okay, she can have some carrots and peas and some chicken pieces," Stephanie said, grabbing all the necessary things from the fridge and handing them one by one to Sawyer, who brought them to the counter. "Okay, we have to heat these up, but first we'll put them in Kensy's plate."

"Got it," Sawyer said, watching as Stephanie put all the food onto a plate and then stick it in the microwave to heat up a little bit. "Mommy, how come Kensy has to eat mushy stuff like that? When I have carrots, they're not like that."

"Because your teeth are stronger than hers, she just got her teeth so she has to figure out how to use them."

"Oh, but Flynn can use hers and she's littler than me."

"But she's still older than Kensy," Stephanie explained as the microwave dinged and she pulled out the plate, sticking her finger into the peas and carrots to make sure they weren't too hot. "Okay, I'm going to get Kensy and you can help feed her, okay? Bring this over to the table and I'll be right back."

"Sure," he said, taking the plate and bringing it over to the table as his mommy went into the other room where Flynn was in her playpen. He could hear her babbling to herself. She couldn't really talk yet, but his parents said that she could start talking at any given moment. He thought that was pretty cool. He couldn't really remember when Flynn had first started talking so this would be extra special for him if he could hear Kensington's first word.

Stephanie brought Kensington into the kitchen and she sat her daughter into the well-worn high chair that her two previous kids had used when they were younger. Stephanie helped Sawyer scoot his chair closer to Kensington and he knelt on the chair and started to feed her with the spoon Stephanie provided. Stephanie watched them from the counter as she got some plates out for when Chris came back with the pizza. Sawyer was always patient with his younger sisters, whether it be Flynn demanding he play with her or Kensington wanting to crawl after him somewhere. He was always waiting for them or playing with him and with him being older now, he was turning out to be a great helper for her and Chris.

Stephanie's phone rang from the kitchen table and Sawyer grabbed it before she could get it, "Hi, this is my Mommy's phone, who is this?"

"Sawyer," Stephanie hissed.

"Oh, hi, Britt!" Sawyer said brightly. "Mommy's right here, I'm feeding Kensy."

"Sawyer, can I talk to Britt now?"

"Here you go," he said, handing her the phone, then yelling out, "Bye, Britt!"

Stephanie took a few steps away from Sawyer and Kensington, turned so she could still watch them and then brought the phone up to her ear, "Britt, what's up?"

"It's R-Truth, I think he's gone mental," Britt said. "He's left me five messages since I guess he doesn't realize you're back for a while and each one is more incoherent than the next. He's talking about Little Jimmy and hospitals and the unfairness of life and I just…I'm at a loss."

"Okay, can you forward me the messages?"

"Yeah, sure, I'll forward them now and can you listen and try to decipher what's going on and call me back?"

"Yeah, of course," Stephanie said. "I'll talk to you in a few."

"What does Britt want, Mommy?" Sawyer asked as he spooned some peas into Kensington's waiting mouth before she let some dribble down her chin.

"Just something about a wrestler," Stephanie said as her phone buzzed with new voicemails. She leaned against the counter to listen. Britt wasn't lying when she said they were nearly incoherent. She could barely understand what Truth was trying to get across. It was a lot of buzz words and sayings that she didn't understand. What she could glean was that if he didn't get time on Monday to speak his mind that he'd be angry and that he wanted a shot at the title. The rest of it though, it went completely over her head. It was like the man's brain had twisted and all the neurons had gotten crossed at different points and all that was left was this babbling.

Stephanie called Britt back and she answered immediately, "So what do you even make of that?"

"I don't know, but it seems he wants time to talk and a shot at the title."

"I've got to say, I don't really think he's deserving of it," Britt said, "there are a couple of guys who I think would be better suited for a shot at the title, one of them being Del Rio. I know that he got a shot with Christian, but with the way he's been stepping up his game and his recent move, I think it would be a good way to bolster his status on Raw to at least give him a shot. He's made a compelling argument as to why he should get a shot at the title."

"I think he's deserving too, but really, all of this is up to you. I mean, it is up to me as well, but I'm deferring a lot of this to you and if you think Del Rio, then I think Del Rio as well." Stephanie wanted to implant as much confidence as she could into Britt. Britt had been doing a wonderful job in her stead and when Stephanie eventually took over the company, she wanted Britt to take over her position full-time. She saw this as a way to condition her and prepare her for the future.

Britt had really blossomed in the business and Stephanie was proud of the progress she'd made from the lowly assistant to Chris while she was on maternity leave to now, knowing all about the wrestlers and under Hunter's tutelage, Britt could probably go out there and call a match just as well as if she were an announcer. She was far more experienced in the world than she had been on that first nervous day when neither she nor Chris really knew what they were doing.

"Okay then," Britt said, sounding more confident now that Stephanie had approved of what she was doing. There was still that need to please her. "I still don't know what we're going to do with Truth, plus there's the issue of CM Punk coming up."

"I'll deal with him at a later date," Stephanie said, "contract stuff should go through me anyways, so you don't need to worry about that one."

"Thanks, he's been…well, you know."

"Annoying, you can just say annoying," Stephanie said, "how are you and Hunter?"

"We're fine. He's still stubborn about coming back full time, I think he wants to ease into it. Well, hold on," Britt paused and Stephanie waited, "okay, coast is clear. I think he's angling to get a job backstage, like as a talent scout or something. I don't know, he's been like, trying to kind of covertly take some of my duties with the guys. I think he wants to transition."

"Well, he would be good backstage, I guess. All of this can be addressed when Chris and I get back from the tour, but until then, let's try and keep as much of this stuff on the backburner as possible. I already have a lot to do with booking me and the kids into rooms and all of that. I mean, Chris has a room, but we have to upgrade and then with getting all their things together for weeks on end over there…"

"I get it, Steph," Britt said. "Don't worry about anything, everything is under control over here and will be until you get back."

"You're the best, Britt, you know that, right, I mean, I tell you that a lot, don't I?"

"You do," Britt said.

"I come bearing pizza," Chris came into the kitchen with the pizza in one hand and Flynn's hand in his other.

"Dinner just got here, Britt, do you have everything under control?"

"Yeah, I've got it, you guys have a good night, give the kids a kiss from me."

"Okay, night, give my love to Hunter."

"Bye."

"Bye."

Stephanie turned to her husband, who was opening up the pizza box and then turned to her. "Hello, my beautiful wife," he said as he grabbed her hand and twirled her, making her glide across towards him as he took her in a closed position and then danced her across the wide kitchen floor, making his kids laugh at them.

"What's got you in such a good mood?"

"Just you," he told her, leaning forward to kiss her. "Thinking about the tour and everything and you're going to be there and life is good."

"Could be better."

"Of course, with wrestling, but indulge me," he said as he dipped her backwards. "You are so beautiful…to me…"

"What would your Fozzy fans think if they could hear you now?" Stephanie asked as he pulled her up.

"They would want refunds," he said as he kissed her again and pulled away to dole out the pizza. He got a slice for the kids and then for himself and Stephanie as Stephanie told him they could eat in the living room just this once. He widened his eyes as he heard the decree, but grabbed the plates and the box of pizza while Stephanie gathered the recently finished with her dinner Kensington and rounded up Sawyer and Flynn to the living room.

They enjoyed their dinner and afterwards took their respective baths and put their pajamas on. They were nice and cozy for SmackDown and they were delighted to see that Christian was the first thing on the show that evening. "It's because he's champion," Sawyer explained. "He can talk first."

Christian did like this perk. He walked down to the ring, basking in the glory of it all. The roar of the crowd even felt different. It was amazing what one belt could do for you. But he knew that this belt was the coveted belt of not just the guys backstage, but most of the aspiring wrestlers around the world. The WWE was the big times and there were tons of wannabe wrestlers and indie workers that would love to have what he had, to be here. He took that in, took in the brevity of it all.

When he was in the ring, it was his moment. He told the crowd how he'd waited so long to get to this moment and he wanted to do it right. It was so much better than he thought it would and as he held the belt in the air, the belt that was his, he was holding it up as a representative of his work for the past 17 years. This here was the culmination of it all.

"Big gold belt," Flynn breathed in awe as she watched Christian hold it up for the world to see. Her eyes twinkled as she saw the belt that she wanted for her daddy. "Yours," she told Chris as she pointed to the TV and looked back at Chris who was lying across one of the loveseats with the increasingly tired Kensington laid across his chest while he rubbed her back, her binky hanging precariously out of her mouth.

"When I come back, I'll try and get that for you," he winked at her and she smiled and turned her attention back to the screen.

Christian first thanked his brother for all of this because without the support of his brother, he wouldn't have gotten where he was today. Edge had been by him every step of the way and he couldn't have asked for a better brother or tag partner. Edge helped put him on the map and in a world where your persona is everything, being in E&C had really defined who he was. It had been the stepping stone needed to get here.

His victory speech was short-lived though when Mark Henry came out, then Khali, and finally Randy Orton. It was interesting to say the least, being in this position, the holder and not the person wanting. Edge wasn't kidding when he said he had a target on his back. He hadn't even held the title a week and everyone was here, wanting a piece of him. He wanted to be a fighting champion so he would take all comers, but he didn't expect such an influx.

What he didn't expect was the title match to take place tonight.

"And that's why SmackDown management just isn't as good," Stephanie said while watching and looking over at Chris, who rolled his eyes at her. "Look at how he did that, just…tonight, no build-up, no tension, just, hey, have a match, bush league, right there, total bush league."

"Okay," Chris said, knowing that arguing with her would get her nowhere. But well, he was Chris Jericho. "Hey, remember when I beat Batista in a steel cage to gain back the World Title…"

"That was different."

"How?"

"It was a rematch," she said smugly.

Christian was dumbfounded that he'd have to fight _tonight_. It wasn't that he couldn't, it just felt odd he'd have to defend his title so soon after winning it. He barely had time to physically prepare, let alone mentally prepare for a match. He thought about going to Teddy and demanding that he push back the match, but that seemed awfully cowardly of him to do. As the champion, shouldn't he put himself out there, prove himself? He didn't want to rest on his laurels, declare himself above this because he was the champion.

He'd never done this before, never been in this situation and he was at a real loss for what he was expected to do. He didn't want to face Randy so soon after winning the title, didn't think it was fair, but what other alternative gave him an out and didn't make him look like scared in the process. Randy was good, one of the best right now, but Christian could beat him so he had to concentrate all his energy on that and not on the fact that this match was unfair.

Trish just looked at him sympathetically while he got ready for his match. She didn't say anything, but she didn't need to either. While he sat there, making sure his boots were laced up tightly, she just laid a hand on his arm and rubbed it softly, making his hairs stand on end. He nodded at her, not quite knowing what he was nodding at, but it seemed the appropriate gesture.

"You'll beat him," she told him softly.

"Thanks," he responded, not feeling the need for more words.

He didn't hate Randy. He kind of liked the guy some of the time, when he wasn't being his usual asshole self. But tonight, he was the opponent and he had to treat him as such. Christian had plans laid ahead of him, plans that included him being the champion for a significant amount of time, Randy was an obstacle, but Christian had not come 17 years to lay down for anyone.

He went out there with the swagger he felt was needed for this match. It was _his_ belt, not Randy's and he couldn't go into this match intimidated. It was his to lose, he knew that and he had everything to lose on this one. Randy was a great wrestler, a former champion, but he couldn't let that affect him. And he didn't. He didn't let it affect him, but Randy was better than him, Randy was hitting the moves while Christian didn't. He was getting what he wanted in the match and Christian couldn't quite measure up on this night.

And he lost his belt.

He was downright shocked as he sat there in the ring. It was over. It had barely begun and now it was over? As much as his mind couldn't wrap around the fact that he was the World Champion, it now could not wrap around the fact that he was no longer World Champion. It felt like a tease, the whole thing. Winning the title, being the champion, it now all felt like a tease from the fates. 'Yes, Christian, here, have a taste of what you've been missing these past 17 years, what all your friends and your brother have gotten, now give it back.' It was a punch to the stomach as he watched everything he'd planned for disappear like his belt had to Randy Orton. When the shock wore off, there was simply one feeling left.

Anger.


	326. Pretending, May 16, 2011

A/N: Pretty much just a set-up chapter as I'm going to go ahead and skip ahead to when Christian turns heel. Hope you enjoy. :)

* * *

"Time to party!"

"We're going to have a party?" Sawyer asked. "I don't think Mommy and Daddy would want us to have a party and not have them here."

"No, we're not going to have an actual party," Edge told him, making a face at him, which only served to make Kensington and Flynn giggle. "I'm just saying that we're going to have fun while your mom and dad are away. Aren't we, Li?"

"We are," Lita said, kissing Kensington's cheek.

"Why we no go?" Flynn asked. Usually when her parents went away, they went with them, so

"Because they're only going to be gone a few days," Lita explained. "So instead of you guys having to fly all the way across the country, they just thought it was easier if you guys stayed behind and your grandma and grandpa are visiting Canada so it was either us or you guys take care of yourselves."

Sawyer laughed, "But I can't drive!"

"I love that _that's _the thing he says that prohibits him from just taking care of his sisters by himself. It's not because he's too little, it's just because he can't drive," Edge laughed and Lita laughed too. She was sure that if Chris and Stephanie told Sawyer to take care of his sisters by himself, he'd accept immediately.

"I help take care of them," Sawyer told them matter-of-factly.

"I know," Lita told him, "your mom told us that you help out a lot. She said that you can help feed Kensy and everything."

"I do that, I know how to change her diaper too, but I don't like doing that, I think you know why," Sawyer said and Lita loved this kid. He was hilarious.

"I get it," she winked at him. "I won't make you change any diapers."

"I will if you don't call me Edge," Edge told him.

Sawyer laughed like that was a joke, "You're funny, Ed. I'm going to go play upstairs, can I?"

"Fine, I guess," Edge said, "but I know you know my name, Sawyer, I know you do, your dad told me."

Sawyer looked at him and smiled and that was a Chris Jericho look of mischief. Edge would recognize it anywhere. Sawyer knew he was toying with Edge and he couldn't believe everyone thought Sawyer was this innocent, little kid. He was just like his parents, sometimes more than anyone was willing to admit. He may be an awesome little kid, but he was still a Jericho and a McMahon and that was a lethal combination of there ever was one. Sawyer started going towards the stairs and Flynn started following right after him.

"Flynnie, where are you going?" Edge asked her.

"I'm playing," she shrugged and followed Sawyer towards the stairs. He looked at Lita and she shrugged.

"I guess I'll go watch them and you watch the baby?" Edge asked.

"Yeah, sounds good to me," she said, "since I get the easy one."

"We don't know if Kensy is the easy one yet, she could be the biggest troublemaker of them all," Edge said, grabbing at Kensington's foot, making her kick at him. "She could be an even bigger troublemaker than her older sister."

"I don't think that's possible," Lita said. "I think that Kensy is a sweet baby and she's going to be a great, little girl for us while her mommy and daddy are gone, aren't you Kensy?" Kensy bit her bottom lip and smiled. "See, look at that face."

"Yeah, they all have nice faces until they're waking you up in the middle of the night for a glass of water."

"Come on, you don't mind, you always put up such a fight, but I saw that you packed some action figures that you are probably going to give Flynnie, right?"

"She doesn't have as many Edge figures as you would think someone who likes wrestling should," Edge told her. "Why are you guys always calling me out, I can do what I want, I'm an adult, you know."

"You also brought comic books to read with Sawyer."

"The kid is learning to read, I'm just helping to further his education. He's going to Kindergarten in the fall and I don't want him to be behind the other students. He's a smart kid, I mean, you saw how he responded to me and he _knows_ my name and he's just teasing me now so you know that he's smart."

"Go play with them, Mr. Psychoanalyst," Lita said. "Kensy and I are going to have fun and maybe play with some blocks or maybe she can help me make some cookies for dessert tonight. Does that sound fun, Kensy?"

Kensy babbled and Lita nodded, shoving Edge towards the stairs and upstairs to look after the two older children. She had to admit, she loved when she got to take care of Chris and Stephanie's kids or Christian and Trish's daughter. She didn't think she was ready to have a child all the time, but she certainly loved the interludes when she got to hang out with them. With Chris and Stephanie gone for a few days, it gave her a chance to be around kids.

She often thought about what it would be like to have children with Edge. Neither one of them was getting any younger, but with Edge's recent retirement, they found that they had things they wanted to do. Before his retirement, traveling had meant work and that left no time for actual traveling. Traveling in the business was living out of a suitcase, a different city all the time, no time to enjoy yourself in any one place. She and Edge wanted to explore the world, go all the places they'd wanted and stay there for as long as they wanted. Kids would only hinder that.

Maybe after all that was out of their system would they have a child. She did think that a kid between her and Edge would be adorable and mischievous and she really wanted to see Edge as a dad. She suspected that for all his protests and false anger, that he would make a wonderful father. She saw the way he was with Sawyer and how they had their running joke, but that they were great friends. And he was the best uncle to Tilden. Whenever they went over to Christian and Trish's and Tilden saw him, her eyes lit up and she always wanted to be held by him.

Whether Edge liked it or not, he was a kid magnet.

Chris kissed the top of Stephanie's head. She'd fallen asleep about an hour into the flight and her head was resting on his shoulder. She had a loose grip on his hand as they'd been holding hands before she fell asleep. He didn't mind though. He was just listening to music and occasionally checking on his wife. He was glad for the few days off from the kids and from their life in general. While Chris loved his life, sometimes it was nice to get away and with three kids, it was harder for him and Stephanie to get away.

Chris mentally plotted out the timeline for the next month or so. He and Stephanie would be doing Raw until they had to leave for Europe and then it would be them and the kids in Europe until the middle of July. His tour ended on the 17th of July, by his own design, because the 18th was his and Stephanie's nine year anniversary and the last thing he wanted to be doing on his anniversary was singing to a crowd of fans and not somewhere with his wife. He'd have to include the kids this year since they'd still be in Europe at the time of their anniversary, but he was still wracking his brain trying to think of something special for him and Stephanie to do for their anniversary.

It had to be good, but he didn't want it to be too spectacular. Next year was their ten year anniversary and he was going to do something huge for her. Ten years was a decade and a decade was…sometimes it was unfathomable that he had been with someone this long. Nine years was nothing to shake a stick at. And to have nine years with Stephanie McMahon of all people. He half-expected them to dissolve into fighting matches and revenge six months into their relationship and to be at a point now where they would only look at each other with revulsion.

He ran his thumb over her knuckles and then leaned his cheek on the top of her head, which seems to wake her up as she jolted slightly. "What's going on?" she asked sleepily. "Did I fall asleep?"

"Yeah," he whispered to her.

"God, I usually never fall asleep."

"Well, I'm not surprised since Flynn wanted to sleep with us last night because we were going away and she kicked you all night long."

"Oh yeah, that's true. Remind me to cut her toenails when we get home, I think my thighs probably look like they were scratched up by a baby bear or something," she laughed. "They were sharp like claws."

Chris chuckled. "I'll be sure to remind you. You should go back to sleep, get some more rest because once I get you alone, there will be no rest for you."

"Yeah right," she told him, "you're going to be working so much that I'll be left alone most of the time anyways. I mean, you're filling in on this radio show and then you've got some band stuff to do with interviews, right?"

"Uh huh and I can tell you really are sleepy because if you were fully awake you would know exactly what I was doing, when I was doing it, and where I was doing it."

"Mmm," she moaned lightly, settling herself closer to him, "you're probably right with that one. Although I'm not as involved with your band side of things. I let you have that to yourself because you know I would just monopolize it like I usually do."

"I don't mind you monopolizing me," he told her. "You could probably organize things better than I ever could."

"You already have a band manager," Stephanie pointed out, "and I'd rather not butt heads with him because I'm sure I could."

"I can just see you guys fighting over what the set list should be."

"Believe me, if anyone could do a set list for you guys and make it stick, it would be me…and probably Julie too. Is she coming with Rich on the tour? I like her a lot."

"I don't think so, she came on the last one, but I'm not sure, I'll have to ask him about that," Chris mused. "It'd be nice for you to have someone there to hang out with while I'm doing band stuff, you know, VIP and then the concerts and everything like that."

"Can I come to the VIP or is that not allowed?"

"You could absolutely come if you wanted to," Chris told her, "I'd have no problem with that. The way I figure it, a lot of these fans are wrestling fans, I'm going to say a majority of them judging by the number of times I get asked when I'm coming back so if you're there, it's like, wow, bonus. If you were some nobody, then maybe it wouldn't be as big a deal, but you could be like the special surprise. I should tweet about that, tell all the VIP's that they get a special surprise."

"No, you shouldn't because then they'll be expecting something spectacular and then there I come and it's like, letdown central!" she told him.

"I don't know why you think you have no fans," Chris shook his head. "I'm just going to tell you this. You've got fans. I scope around Twitter and the internet when I'm bored and believe me, you would not be hated if you came back to TV or if you came out from under your corporate shell."

"We're not discussing _my_ return, thank you very much," she told him. "I'm content with what I'm doing right now."

"Okay," he said, but this was something he wanted to discuss with her later. "So when we land, we get the rental, then we go to our place, just drop our stuff off and-"

"And I've got to make some work calls. It may not occur to you, rock star, but it's the middle of the work week and that's usually when business is done so I need to get some business done before I can have any kind of fun."

"What kind of business?"

"Don't worry about it," she told him, squeezing his hand. "You take care of your stuff and I'll take care of my stuff and then we'll both be done with our stuff and then everything will be great and we can spend a few days kids-free."

"I don't like the sound of that."

"You don't like the idea of spending a few days without the kids?" she asked, knowing what he meant, but teasing him all the same. He nudged her gently in the shoulder and listened to her laugh at him as she purposefully misunderstood what he meant.

"I meant that I don't like the sound of you not telling me what's going on. It sounds like someone has a plan they're not telling me about and considering that someone is you, I'm usually right with these things."

"No, I don't have any plans, it's really just boring stuff that I would rather not bother you about. I mean, you don't bother me about hiring lighting guys or something for your tour and I don't really care about it."

"But I know that you aren't in the music business, but I _am_ in the wrestling business."

"You _are_?" she asked, acting like she was incredulous over the fact. "Tell me, oh Ayatollah of Rock and Rolla, where exactly are you in the wrestling business at this current moment?"

"I watch the shows, I'm there," he said, "for you to think that I'm not there is absurd as I am there."

"Being a body there is not being _in_ the wrestling business. You're simply a fan and I think I can do my job just as well as somebody who-" Chris cut her off with a kiss that left her breathless and dazed. He certainly knew how to shut her up and then make her look like a starry-eyed teenager. "That's not fair," she breathed softly.

"Who ever said I was _fair_?" he asked her. "I'm just trying to get information out of you and since I _am_ in the business, whether or not I'm wrestling at the moment…"

"You promised Flynn, Chris."

"I know what I promised my daughter, Stephanie," he returned. "I know what I say to my kids. Those three kids are the most important things in my life. They are what I get up every morning for and they are what I do everything for. I know what I told her and I'm not planning on letting her down."

"But if you do…"

"I told you, I'm not planning on it," Chris said and he wasn't. He loved his kids more than he'd ever loved anything in this entire world. If someone told him to choose between his kids and wrestling, he'd choose his kids, if someone told him to choose between wrestling and Fozzy, he'd choose his kids, if someone told him that he had to save his kids or save himself, he'd save his kids, no questions asked.

"Okay," she told him. "It's just contract stuff and then budget stuff and things like that."

"Oh, boring!"

"See, I told you," Stephanie said. "So you don't need to know about it."

"Just because I didn't want to know about it didn't mean that you didn't have to tell me," he told her. "By the way, our lighting guy, his name is Jack, he's been doing it for years and he knows to keep the spotlight on me the entire time."

"Good to know."

"Except for when I signal to him by pulling on my ear, then I'm going to have him turn the spotlight to you in the wings and then I was thinking that you could come out there and do a duet with me, but we'll turn your mic _way_ down so that nobody really hears you or hey, we can pre-record you, then use autotune, _then_ we'll just have you lip-sync. That way your singing career can recover from the tragic hit it took during 'Wind Beneath my Ring.'"

Stephanie blushed, her entire face burning red like she'd just suffered a sunburn. Chris laughed at her. Someday, when they had a bevy of grandchildren, he was going to break out a tape of that moment and play it for them all just to embarrass her. It was something he was looking forward to in old age. If he was going to grow old with Stephanie, he was going to make damn sure that it was an entertaining affair.

"I should burn all those tapes."

"Never!" he told her. "I need those tapes to prove to our family that I am the cooler one."

"Shut up," she said, burying her face into his shoulder. "It's embarrassing the way I used to behave."

"Used to?"

"I'm better now!"

"Slightly," he said, not giving her much benefit of the doubt. "I'll give you that you're at least nicer now. I have to attribute that to me, of course, after nine years together, I've softened you around the edges, made you more palatable. Your stock has risen, baby."

"That wasn't all you."

"Yes, I'm pretty sure it was…because let's see, before me, everyone thought you were a raging bitch and a slut-"

"Who perpetrated the slut image in the first place?"

"You," he answered immediately and without so much as a breath continued, "because you wore the sluttiest outfits you could find and then insisted on hanging all over your husband like a scarf on a winter's day."

"Or a scarf on any day of the entire year," she told him, tugging on his scarf that he wore nearly everywhere with every outfit he ever owned and when he brought it home sometimes, it stank like nothing else and had to be washed immediately. She was starting to hate that scarf a little bit.

"You got this for me," he said defensively, "when I wear it, I think of you…plus it hides the hickies on my neck that you give me."

"You're cheesy and such a liar," she told him. "Besides, you were the one who got everyone thinking I was some kind of slut, so that image is on you and you're just lucky that I overlooked it when I did and was able to allow you to be with me."

"You to be with me?" he scoffed. "Nobody allowed anyone anything. I took what I wanted since someone was all like, 'oh, I don't want to be friends with you and not _with_ you because I'm attracted to you!' Sound familiar?"

"I would have eventually," she rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, sure you would have, sure you would have."

"Changing the subject," she said firmly, "have you spoken to Christian lately? I haven't heard from him since, well, before the whole debacle on Friday with the belt. I tried calling Trish, but she didn't answer and I just hope he's okay."

"I'm sure he's fine," Chris said, "I haven't talked to him, but I called too and I got Trish and she said they were just taking it easy for a few days, letting him get over it. You should've seen my Twitter feed, people were asking me to tell Christian that it would be okay and that he should still be champion."

"That's actually really nice, I do so hope he's okay."

Christian was angry, but he was trying not to let it show. Still, there was this inherent anger that was boiling underneath his skin. He managed to curb it when he was around Trish and Tilden, but when he wasn't with them, it steamed him. He could feel the anger rolling over him in waves. He'd gotten his dream only to have it ripped away days later. Teddy was the GM so, yes, he could do whatever he wanted with his show, but what had gone on was unfair. If he were Randy Orton, there was no way he would have had to defend his belt the next week. He didn't expect Teddy to make Randy defend it this week on SmackDown, so why had he?

To boost the ratings of SmackDown? How about some build-up, how about a contract signing, how about everything that _should_ go along with having a big match like that? He hadn't even had time to properly prepare and while a wrestler always says you have to be ready for everything, sometimes you aren't ready for everything and it's a complete travesty that it was expected of him. He'd finally reached the pinnacle only to have the rules changed on him while he was standing at the top.

He didn't want to think of it as a double standard, but it was the only way he _could_ think of it. The real veterans of the two major titles were always respected in ways he _thought_ he'd be respected when he got the title. He thought the same courtesies extended to them would be extended to him, but the ceiling he thought he'd busted through had just grown taller while he wasn't looking. It was always going to be out of reach and he was angry that it never seemed he was going to break through.

He knew some wouldn't agree with his opinions. Some would say that he should have known he would have to defend the title at any time and he should have been ready at a moment's notice. Still more would tell him that he was lucky to have the title at all. There were plenty of wrestlers who would never get the same opportunity and to even have held the belt for a few days would be their dreams come true. He knew there would be people out there who thought all this; the problem was that he didn't care about what they thought because they weren't him.

If anyone else had held the title, he liked to think that they would feel the same way after having it stripped, well, maybe not someone like Hunter or Cena or his brother who had held it multiple times, but to a guy holding it for the first time. He didn't want to look at any bright side and for people to ask it of him irked him. It was so bad that even Trish saying it didn't help him at all, it only made him angry at her for saying it, though he'd just nodded in her general direction. He had to keep up the appearances after all.

He was Christian, he was the nice guy, the one who everyone likes, the one who has the countless numbers of peeps. He was the good brother to Edge's crazy nature, he was the responsible one with the wife and daughter. He had to keep that up, keep acting like this was who he was even though right now, the only thing he wanted to do was go out to that ring, rip every rope down and fling it into the crowd and destroy the entire set out of spite, but he wouldn't do that. He'd continue to play the part.

He just didn't know how long that could last.

Stephanie looked out across the water. "This is nice."

"I thought so," Chris said, "since it's our first night here, thought I'd be oh so romantic and take you out."

"Thanks," she laughed.

"Plus the rest of our days here are booked solid. I promised Cheryl we'd have dinner with her while we were here, hope you don't mind."

"I don't."

"Good," he said, "so I did want to talk to you about something, seriously here, not joking, not being funny Chris, but there is something I just wanted to talk about and I know you're going to rebuke me because I know you, but I would just like your honest opinion, okay?"

"Well with an intro like that, what else can I say but okay," Stephanie said. For a moment, a flash of fear rattled through her gut. She was fully prepared to hear Chris tell her that he was officially retiring from wrestling. She knew he'd made the promise to Flynn, but promises could be broken and he could let Flynn down gently.

"Are you sure you want to come with me to Europe?" he asked and she sat back in her seat, not expecting that particular question. Chris could tell that she wasn't prepared to hear that and he was curious to know what she thought he was going to ask.

"Okay, officially confused," Stephanie said, "haven't I made it perfectly clear that I wanted to come with you to Europe, we already have everything booked for it, Chris."

"I know, I know," Chris said.

"I mean, we have a tour bus and everything, one with a crib built into it for Kensy, so yes, I am coming," she told him, "I don't understand where this is coming from."

"Well, last week, when we were at Raw, you were so happy to be there and you were so in charge and I know you've been doing work and I know you were talking business earlier today when we got to the house and I just…I don't want to take you away from what you love. I know that you think you want to come with me, but I know you and I know your work and I feel like I'm taking you away from what you love."

"I love _you_, get that through your thick-headed skull," Stephanie told him.

"I know you love me, that's not what's being asked here. But you're a working woman, you're not just a wife, you've never been a housewife in any sense of the word and I feel like I'm taking advantage of you."

She laughed because it was all so absurd. This was her husband and she wanted to be with him. Was it so hard to believe that? It was probably all those years that she had been all about her job, but she was getting older now and she liked to think that she was somehow more mature about things. Her job was still a very big part of her life, but it didn't _need_ to be her life anymore and it had taken her a while to see that.

When Stephanie was in her early 20's, she was just starting out here, trying to find her way. Her job had consumed her because she hadn't yet found a way to balance out anything in her life. She couldn't really date anyone because now she was traveling all over the country and the world and it just didn't lend itself to a relationship. She'd eventually fond her way to Andrew and to Hunter, but her job was still something she was fighting for, mostly with herself or the image her father had of her rather.

Her father always saw her as his little girl and she'd had to rail against that image, her most obtrusive way being marrying Hunter, but she'd eventually gained at least some semblance of her father's admiration and now she was at a place where she was content with her job, not finding the need to fight so hard for it. Oh, of course she still clashed with her father; she wanted to be the GM and she wanted to be out there, but that was an ongoing fight that would be ongoing until she took over the company.

She had a family now too, which she didn't have while she was clawing her way out of the Daddy's Little Girl shadow she'd been cast in. They were far more important and she couldn't help but want her family to be together. The kids missed Chris horribly when he was away and she didn't do too well with it either. Chris was always mopey too when he didn't have her or the kids around so this was the best arrangement and one she was more than willing to make.

She was so proud of how far Chris had gotten with his band. She could still remember the time he'd given her his CD, a week after they'd started dating when she'd found him sitting on the trunk, asking him if he was happy there and him giving her a free copy of his CD. She could admit it now, but asking if he was happy was a little more involved than just about the show. They'd been together for a week at that point, but they'd already slept together a few times and she was just covertly asking if he was happy with her, which he obviously was.

Back then, Fozzy had just seemed like this pet project. The first CD was pretty much a pet project, aliases, wild stories, and more covers than a linen store. But they'd grown past that and they were a legitimate band with a legitimate fan base all over the world. They were making music, good music that people enjoyed and she'd been there for most of the journey; she'd seen firsthand how hard Chris had worked for this dream to become a reality. In some ways she figured it paralleled his journey to becoming a wrestler.

"Taking advantage of me? Chris, nobody's tried to take advantage of me since Hunter married me in a drive-in," Stephanie told him.

"I just don't want you to resent me while we're in Europe and you're sleeping on a bus with the kids a curtain away from us and you're watching Raw on your computer and wishing you were there instead of cramped with me."

"Well, for one, we have a pretty nice bus and the facilities in our section are hardly cramped and even if they were, I would gladly stay cramped with you forever if I had to."

"So if we were to suddenly go broke and we had to live in a closet and share a single…"

"Then you better learn to live with me sleeping half on top of you…oh wait, you already do, plus, the kids all will have their own beds, they are specially putting in a crib for Kensy and Sawyer and Flynn will have those beds in that little hallway and we have a TV and a kitchenette and it will be fine for a month."

"Okay, but still, your work."

"Chris, I will be inheriting that entire company someday, probably a long, long time from now because my father will try to live forever. I'm sure he's trying to find something to make him immortal right now, work will be there…believe me," she told him.

"I just hate that I'm feeling like I'm selfish," he shrugged and it did feel like that to him. He felt like he was being selfish trying to go away for a month.

"You're doing a job, this is something that you do as a job and it's something important to you and if it's important to you, by default it becomes important to me, like when you took the Hall of Fame over for me, you did that because it was important to me and you wanted to help. This is my way of helping and if there are any bad crowds on the tour, I'll go out into the audience and start cheering or hey, I can crowd dive or something and that'll get people amped up, right?"

Chris tried to picture Stephanie crowd diving and he started guffawing at the image. "Are you going to be all hot and sexy trophy wife when we're there like you were when we were dating? I seem to remember you coming to some Fozzy concerts dressed in some hot, vinyl outfits."

Stephanie threw her head back in laughter as she recalled those old outfits, "Chris, I don't think I could fit my fat ass in those outfits if I tried. Three kids have not been totally kind to my figure."

"You'd still look hot in them."

"I will wear reasonable outfits to your concerts that we attend."

"Something sexy?"

"You think everything I wear is sexy," she pointed out.

"I do, even those ratty old Boston University sweatpants that you wear when you're having women troubles every month," Chris said, "They just look so cute on you, I can't help myself."

"I'll look sexy to ward off the girls trying to get into your pants," she told him, "I know there'll be girls trying to sneak into your dressing room so I've got to make sure I establish myself as being there and being your wife."

"And trotting out our kids."

"If the situation calls for it," she shrugged ominously, but then she was the one who turned serious for a second, "I know I've told you this before and I want you to believe me this time, okay, but I'm so proud of you for what you've done with Fozzy. You've taken what started off as really nothing more than a joke concept and you've turned it into a band that is playing at…um, that really big concert that you're playing at…"

"Sonisphere," Chris reminded her.

"Yeah, sorry, I get so lost in your blue eyes," she winked at him and he laughed and looked down. He loved when they got flirty, it reminded him of when they were still dating and everything was fresh and new and wonderful. "But I'm proud of you and I'm a very proud wife and this proud wife wants to see the fruits of her husband's labor."

Chris gave her a crooked smile, "I just wanted to make sure that you weren't just doing this for me because you felt obligated to. It would kill me to know that you were just doing it because it was something I was doing. Or even if you were doing it because I was selfish and decided to flit off to Europe for a month."

"Well, that was kind of selfish," she said, but then added, "I'm kidding, we talked about it and I was okay with it and I'm still okay with it. We're going to have fun, all of us and the kids will really get to see you in this new element and who knows, Flynn might become the biggest Fozzy fan in the universe and then she'll go around watching videos of your concerts all the time."

"I'll believe that when I see it."

"Hey, you never know."

Sawyer was getting ready to watch SmackDown and he settled on the couch next to Edge, "Ed, is it really true that you can't ever wrestle again? Like ever?"

"Yeah, unfortunately it is," Edge told him, noticing that it didn't sting as much thinking about it.

"I want to wrestle," Sawyer told him. "Do you think I can?"

"I think you'll be able to do anything and everything that you want to do," Edge told him. "I could even help you train when you get older. I mean, you don't want your old man to train you, you'd be way better off with me."

"I would?"

"Absolutely, I'm better than your dad and I'm better than Christian _and_ I'm better than Hunter."

"Hmm," Sawyer said, "I don't think you're better than Daddy, he's the best in the world at what he does, that's what he says all the time and I think it's true."

"He's the best!" Flynn yelled from her seat on the floor. "Best, best, best!"

"Well this is a biased household," Edge said.

"Is Christian mad that he didn't get to keep his gold belt? I didn't get to talk to him. Mommy said that he wasn't really in the mood to talk to anyone, but he's my best friend and I don't want him to be sad about it."

"He's a little sad about it, but I think he'll be okay," Edge told him, though he hadn't really talked to his brother. Trish had said he was being a little bit broody, but that he seemed okay about everything. He hated that what happened last week had ruined an amazing moment at the last Pay-Per-View. He and his brother, celebrating Christian's win, it had been one for the ages and it was sad that it had to end so soon.

Christian was good at playing the part of okay. He was good at pretending that he was okay about everything and that everything would work out in the end. He acted like he was totally optimistic that he would get another shot and that he wasn't angry at Randy. He didn't let it show how utterly pissed off he was at everyone and everything. He was going to let that lie for now, hope it died down. He went out there and did his job and at the end of the day, if he had to team with Randy, well, he'd work together with Randy if he had to.

That's what ended up happening anyways. He'd had to play the runner-up, just being congratulated for playing, but certainly not getting the lead, that was all Randy. So he got to stand there next to the champion and pretend like it was completely okay that he had to be some sort of lackey. He'd shake Randy's hand even, yes, he would shake his damn hand and pretend like things were a-okay because at the end of the day, he knew, he _knew_…

His anger was going to spill over very soon.


	327. Heel Turns and Tattoos, June 6, 2011

A/N: So I'm skipping ahead a little bit, just to warn you. Thanks for reading, I know how many of you there are and I really hope that you're enjoying the story still. :)

* * *

"Daddy, you said you weren't going anywhere without us!"

"I'm only going to be gone for a few days," Chris said as he threw some things into his suitcase.

"But I thought we were going to Europe with you," Sawyer pouted, climbing onto his parents' bed so his daddy could see the full effect of his sadness. "Mommy said that we were going with you."

"You _are_ going with me to Europe, but I have a few concerts in Canada and then in New York, then I'm coming home. We're not going to Europe until later this month," Chris explained to him. "I'll only be gone four days, kid, okay, and I won't even be that far away."

"I wanted you to stay," Sawyer said with a sad sigh. "I wanted you to stay here. Why do you always go away?"

"Laying it on a little thick, aren't we?" Chris said, but he noted that Sawyer was sad about him going away. It was unusual for Sawyer of all people to be upset with him going away. Usually it was Flynn who was put off by the thought of him leaving, not Sawyer. Chris probably figured that with him actually being around a lot and them not traveling so much that Sawyer had just become a tad clingy. "Come here, kid."

Chris climbed on the bed and he scooped up his son and sat him down next to him so they could lean back on the pillows. "Can I come with you?" Sawyer asked hopefully, looking up at Chris.

"You know that I normally would take you, but it's really only going to be for four days," Chris said. "I know you'll miss me, I'll miss you too, but then I'll be right back home. You know that I have to travel a lot with the concerts that I do, what's going on?"

"I dunno," he shrugged.

"You sure?"

"Yeah," Sawyer said, leaning his head against Chris's chest. "Daddy, are you going to die?"

Chris's eyes widened and he looked at his son, "Okay, what the…Sawyer, why are you asking me something like that? Where did you even…who was talking to you about death?"

"Chrissy," Sawyer answered.

"Excuse me, what did Christian say about death?" Chris could not believe that Christian was talking to his kid about death to the point where Sawyer was asking him if he was going to die.

"When Christian and Trish were taking care of us when you went out to dinner with Gamma and Gampa and we were watching TV and I asked him about the belt and he said that it doesn't matter because life is only death at the end or something like being dead and I asked what was dead and he said that's when someone dies and then they never come back ever, ever, ever again and I don't want you to die, Daddy, okay, you can't, I don't want it."

Chris was going to kill Christian. He was going to give Sawyer a firsthand lesson in death when killed his best friend. He knew that Christian had been acting moodier and moodier since he lost his title, but this was getting ridiculous. It was starting to filter into their lives and he wasn't going to stand for his friend (if he held onto that status for very long) talking about things that were scaring his kid.

"Death is a very serious thing," Chris told Sawyer, scooting down on the bed so that he could be face to face with his son, "but it's nothing you need to worry about right now, got it? You're only five years old and I'm not going anywhere."

"But if you leave, you could die and I won't ever see you again and I don't want you to go," Sawyer told him, his bottom lip quivering a little bit.

"I'm not going to die anytime soon, I promise," Chris said, though at the end of the day he knew it was an impossible promise to keep. "I went to my doctor and he said that I'm in great shape so you don't have to worry about me dying on you."

"I'd miss you and Mommy would miss you and Flynnie would miss you and Kensy would miss you," Sawyer told him.

"I would miss all of you too, that's why I'm not planning on going anywhere," Chris said, "death is really nothing you should worry about. You're a kid and you should just worry about playing and reading and learning, but not about dying. Christian shouldn't have told you about that."

"What happens when you die? Where do you go?"

"Well, nobody really knows what happens," Chris said slowly, hating that he was having this conversation with his son, but Christian was a douchebag, "but I like to think that you go to this place called heaven and that heaven is whatever you want it to be."

"Like what?"

"Well, in my version of heaven, there's a lot of metal playing and The Beatles and I can watch wrestling and I can do whatever I want to do."

"That sounds okay."

"You can't be afraid of death," Chris told him, "because it's just another one of those things that happens. But I swear, kid, you don't have to worry about it and I don't want you to think about it anymore. I'm just going away for four days and then I'll be back, I promise you that, I promise you that on all my belts that everything is going to be fine."

"I guess you can go," Sawyer told him as he kissed his son's head.

"I love you," Chris told him, "I love you more than anything or anyone else in my life except for your mommy and your sisters. I would never do anything that would put me in danger of not being around for you guys."

"Okay," Sawyer nodded, relieved that his daddy wasn't going anywhere.

"Why don't you go play in your room, I'm going to go talk to Mommy." Chris lifted him up and then, with Sawyer giggling, threw him down on the bed and pretended to get him in an anklelock as Sawyer struggled to get off the bed, falling to the floor with a laugh before running out of the room and into the upstairs playroom.

Chris took a deep breath and got off the bed himself before he stalked his way downstairs. He checked on his girls in the living room, Kensington was in her playpen, chewing on a doll's hand while Flynn was engrossed in what appeared to be a hardcore match. He stopped for a moment, but Flynn barely even turned her head to look over at him. Seeing they were okay, he walked over to Stephanie, who was sitting in the area that overlooked the living room so she could work and watch the girls at the same time.

"I'm going to kill Christian," Chris hissed as he took a seat at the small nook table they had set up.

"Do you have a motive?" Stephanie asked, setting her pen down and looking over at her irate husband.

"You want to know what my son just asked me upstairs while I was packing?"

"What?"

"If I was going to die," Chris told her and her brow instantly furrowed as she stared at her husband.

"He asked you _what_?"

"Yeah, he was being clingy and didn't want me to go to Canada, even just for four days, so I knew something was up because he's never really had a problem with me going anywhere for a few days before so we had a talk and he asked me if I was going to die so I asked him where he heard about death and he said that when Christian and Trish were babysitting, Sawyer asked if Christian was sad about the belt and that Christian said something to the effect of life is just waiting for death or something and of course, our son asks about things he doesn't know so he asked about death and Christian told him. I guess as long as Sawyer had both of us around, he wasn't afraid, but with me going away for a few days, he was afraid I was going to die while he was away."

"Unbelievable," Stephanie said in shock. "How could he do that to a little boy?"

"I don't know, I'm pissed though."

"He's been acting weirder and weirder since he lost that belt, I talked to Trish about it."

"Does she notice the change? He could act differently around her," Chris said.

"No, she's noticed big time. She says that Christian is definitely moodier and even when he's with Tilden, he's not acting like his usual doting father self."

"Wait, you mean he's not being super Dad with Tilde?" Chris asked. If anything, he figured that the funk Christian was in wouldn't touch his relationship with Tilden. Christian loved that little girl like he'd loved nothing else in the world. To know that he wasn't acting himself around his darling daughter pushed this right into serious territory.

"No, apparently he's been irritable even with her," Stephanie said. "Trish told me that she almost wishes Christian had never won in the first place if this was how he was going to end up acting."

"It's tough to lose."

"Yeah, it is, I know this because you were never exactly happy when you lost, but you always put the kids into this separate untouchable category. Even when you were angry like you are now, you didn't let the kids know it. You've never done that with them."

"You're right, but still…"

"Then this, I mean, I'm more disappointed in him than angry with him. Why would he put such a burden on a child? Sawyer didn't do anything to him and he has to go and instill these ideas in his head about his father dying because he was going away," she shook her head and threw her eyes skyward. "I just can't believe that he would bring something like that up with Sawyer."

"Like I said, I'm going to kill him, I swear to God, I'm at the very least going to punch him."

"Maybe that would get it through his thick head that he needs to bounce back from this. It's not him, Christian has never been that guy. Edge has been that guy, Randy has been that guy, Hunter practically lives in that guy-ville, you've been that guy, but he's never really been that guy."

"When was I that guy?"

"Oh please, Chris, I can name a thousand times that you were that guy."

"It was never because I lost the title," Chris told her, "I had good reasons for acting the way I did after every one of my World Title losses and most of them were to do with how I lost them and to whom and how that affected you, do you want me to run down the list? The first time I lost was to your husband and I was trying to defend _your_ honor even though I wasn't even sleeping with you so I didn't really get anything out of that relationship-"

"You know, except for the wife and three kids," Stephanie gestured around her, "but I meant more when you went all psycho on Chyna."

"Well, she deserved it," Chris shrugged, "but I never let it get to me as bad as Christian is right now. I can't believe he did that to Sawyer, I want to kick his ass. At the very least, I think I'm going to go over there and talk to him."

"If you think it'll help."

"You're…not going to stop me?"

"If you think it will help him, I think everyone who loves Christian is on your side. He told my kid he's going to die someday, at the very least I think someone should talk to him about his mouth," Stephanie said.

"You got the fort?" Chris asked.

She nodded, "I've got it down."

"Okay, I'll be back in a bit then," he stood up and then leaned down to kiss her goodbye.

Chris tried not to let his anger get the better of him. He knew and understood that Christian was in a really bad place right now and that was upset over his loss. He'd been where Christian was, in a sense, he'd never really lost the title after five days of holding it, but the principle of losing was the same either way. They'd both lost their belts at some point and yeah, Chris had been angry, but not to this point. He pressed Christian and Trish's doorbell five times in short succession, each time his finger pounding into the button with force.

Christian answered the door and leaned in the doorway, "What's up?" he asked casually.

"Are Trish and Tilden here?"

"No, they're out," Christian answered, which gave Chris the go ahead to say what he wanted to say. He would have felt slightly bad if Trish and Tilden were here, but if they weren't, he wasn't going to censor himself.

"What the hell is going through your mind, you jackass?" Chris said, pushing his way inside. Christian took a few steps back to get out of his way and looked confused for a moment.

"What're you talking about?" Christian asked.

"You know what my son asked me today?" Chris said, but didn't wait for Christian to continue, "he asked me if I was going to die. Yes, that's right, my kid asked if I was going to _die_? What the fuck is going through your brain!"

"It's the truth, we're all just going to die, aren't we? We're born, we dick around a little, then we die, never quite reaching that happiness we thought we were going to get."

"I'm only going to do this one, but I think it'll be enough," Chris said. Then he reared his hand back and punched Christian right in the face, making his stagger back as he grabbed his jaw. He tasted the coppery flavor of his own blood on his lip. He shifted his jaw left and right as if trying to get it back in place. He wiped his own mouth and saw the trace of blood left behind on his hand. "Don't you ever, _ever_ talk to my kid about things like that again! I would never go up to Tilden and tell her about death or murder or something like that."

"It's the truth."

"No, you know what, yeah, it is the truth, but why does a five year old need to hear that?" Chris said. "Where's your head at, man? What happened to you? I know that you lost your belt and that's sad, I'm sympathetic towards what happened to you, but acting like this? This isn't you."

"It _is_ me," Christian said, "remember when I turned on my brother because I was jealous, huh, and everyone hated me because I went to the Alliance."

Chris refrained from making a joke about Stephanie not hating him because she was in the Alliance because this was a serious situation, "No excuse, that was a long time ago-"

"What about the time I cheated on Trish with Molly or how about when I left her without a goodbye and then flitted into her life almost a year later, huh?"

"Different circumstances, you're really not like this anymore. You love Sawyer, Christian, you love him, he thinks of you as one of his best friends and I'm disappointed in you."

"Well I'm disappointed that I'm not the champion and don't give me some speech about how you're not champion or how you had to wait to become champion because our journeys here are completely different. You were in WCW and they _wanted _you, they sought you out," Christian told him, "Vince freaking McMahon invited you to his _house_. I'm surprised he didn't throw Stephanie at you to seal the deal!"

Chris often wondered why Vince hadn't trotted out Stephanie that first meeting. He always figured it was because he didn't want anyone to be with his daughter and…wait, this wasn't about Stephanie and him, this was about Christian and his inability to move past his title loss. If this was how Christian acted, he'd have hated to have seen how Kane acted when he lost the title after a day. That must have been brutal.

"Then, you didn't have to wait fifteen years for the title, you got pretty much within two years-"

"I put in the work, I didn't have that title handed to me. I had to fight Rocky and even then, I look back now and it took interference from Stephanie to win. It's not easy, Christian. I know that belt is what we all work for, hell, I worked _damn_ hard for it, just as much as you did and you don't think I know how much it sucks to lose it?"

"It's not the same."

"It's exactly the same!" Chris said. "It's just a belt. At the end of the day, it's just a belt."

"No, it's not and you know it. It's the culmination of all those years of work. You know what I mean, Chris. We're the last of a dying breed, but you know it. You have been in just as many crappy motel rooms as I've been in. You've slept in your car when you didn't have enough to find a place to stay. You crashed on couches, you were stiffed out of payment, you were there, but at the end of tunnel, all you could see was the WWE and that title."

"Okay, I'll give you that." It was the truth after all. Chris had seen that title at the end of the tunnel of the sea of working his ass off.

"That's all I could see too and now it's gone."

"I'm not going to speak for you, but for me, that tunnel has changed. When I look to my future, that belt's not there anymore. That was the singular thought of a Chris that is long gone. That Chris cared about the belt, yes, he wanted the belt very badly, but that's not me anymore. You know what my main motivation to get the belt is?"

"What?"

"To please Flynn and Sawyer," Chris said, "they love that belt, they love when I have it and I love that they're proud of me, but they're what matters to me, not that belt. Trish and Tilden matter to you and you know it. You know that they love you and they don't care what you have or don't have."

"Well maybe I do! Maybe I needed this, did you ever think of that? Maybe I'm being selfish, but I don't give a damn anymore, it's _time_ for me to be selfish," Christian snapped. "Everyone else gets to-"

"No, don't forget there are thousands of guys who never, _never_ get that opportunity and it doesn't matter if it was only for a few days, you reached a plateau that not many men have reached," Chris reminded him.

"You don't get it, so why don't you just leave?" Christian was tired of this conversation and he didn't want to have anything more to do with Chris right now. He couldn't even explain his own feelings so how was he supposed to explain them to someone else? It was just…he'd worked so hard to get what he'd strived for, for years. Then to have it nearly stripped from him, Chris didn't get that disappointment, hell nobody he knew did.

"Fine, but I'm telling you right now, I don't want you talking to Sawyer until you apologize to him about what you said. I don't want you around any of my kids actually," Chris told him, "so just stay the hell away from all of them."

Chris stormed out of Christian's house and back to his car. He ended up passing Trish on the road coming back and she waved at him and he gave a polite, but curt wave back. Trish made a face as she passed and then continued to drive home. Chris had to have been coming from her house. She wondered what had happened there. She knew Christian wasn't his normal self and she hoped that something hadn't happened between the two of them.

"Chrissy!" she called out as she got home. "You here?"

"Hey," Christian said, nodding in passing before he started upstairs without even saying anything to Tilden.

"Was Chris here?" Trish asked.

"Yeah, he stopped by."

"For what?" Trish asked.

"To talk to me."

"About…"

"I said something to Sawyer that he didn't like."

"What did you say to Sawyer?" Trish asked, but Christian just shrugged at her "No, Christian, I want to know what you said."

"I told him that all things die."

"What?" Trish asked. "What is going on with you, Chrissy? It's like you've changed and it's horrible and you barely even play with Tilden anymore and frankly, I don't like it and I think your attitude needs to change and change fast."

"I don't think I want you guys coming to SmackDown on Friday," he told her. "You should probably just stay home with Tilden. I think it would be for the best."

"What, why?" This was the first time in a while that he was suggesting she not come to SmackDown with him Before, he'd go on and on about how much he liked her being there with him and how he loved that she was traveling with them now and how it was so much better now that he could be around Tilden so much more.

Christian just shrugged and left the room.

Trish sighed and pushed Tilden into the kitchen before taking her out of her stroller. She didn't know how to break this funk Christian had let himself wallow in. She knew he had taken losing his belt bad, but this was bordering on ridiculous. She wanted her husband back, but it seemed that every second he was pulling farther and farther away from her. She almost wished that he had never won the World Title in the first place if this was going to be the outcome.

She'd hoped he would have a longer run too, but that's not how it worked out and he just wouldn't accept it. It was strange, though, because he had been mostly polite and maybe even friendly to Randy ever since he'd lost the title to the other man. It was just when he was at home that he treated everyone like they were scum. She wondered if he had some sort of agenda that he was keeping from her. But she didn't want to go there. She didn't want to think that Christian, of all people, was keeping secrets from her. That wasn't how their relationship worked now and admitting that it could go back to that place was frightening.

Chris threw his stuff down in the hotel room. He was still pissed about what Christian had said to Sawyer and it didn't help that he had go away right after that. As far as he was concerned, he and Christian were not friends right now. Christian couldn't go around and traumatize his kid without there being consequences. He'd told Stephanie that he didn't want Christian around Sawyer and for once, Stephanie didn't argue with him. She thought it was for the best for now as well and he was grateful for that. He flopped down onto his bed and grabbed his phone. He wanted to call Sawyer and let him know that he was here.

It might ease his own mind to talk to Sawyer and just to ell him that things were okay. This was like a small warm-up tour before he and the rest of Fozzy went off to Europe. He was glad for this little tour because he loved performing with his band and he knew they were going to have a blast. He had about two hours before they had to go to the VIP dinner. He really enjoyed the VIP experiences, almost as much as the fans did. It gave him some insight into what made people like Fozzy and it was invaluable to him as a performer. He wasn't the kind of person who wanted to telegraph anything; it was part of the reason why he'd taken so long to come back to wrestling after Sawyer was born. He didn't want to go through the motions.

As a musician, you were _right_ there in front of the fans, same with wrestling in a sense (though the ropes gave you some barrier), and there was no hiding things. This wasn't taped, this was live and in person and you had to bring it every night or else the fans wouldn't give it back to you in return. Hearing from the fans in an intimate setting like dinner gave him the time to pick their brains. He was always happy to answer their questions as well and it was really a give and take that he was glad Rich had thought of in the first place. He didn't even mind when someone asked about Stephanie or the kids.

"Hello?"

"Hey, baby, can I talk to the kid?" Chris asked.

"So not even a sentence to me?"

"No, not even a sentence," Chris joked, "so can you please put him on?"

"Hold on." He held on until he heard the phone shuffling.

"Hi, Daddy!"

"Hey, kid, I just wanted to let you know that I got here okay and I'm still alive and well and the first thing that I did after putting my things down was to call you and tell you that I was okay," Chris told him, "and I will call you after the VIP dinner and then Mommy is going to call me when you go to bed and chances are that I will be onstage, but then I will call and leave a message that I am okay."

"Thanks, Daddy," Sawyer said, "I just want you to be okay."

"I know you do and it's really nice to have someone who cares so much about what happens to me," Chris told him, "so I promise I'll call you everyday."

"I'll call you too and Flynnie can call you too. I bet she likes knowing that you're okay."

"I bet she does and if I wasn't, I bet she'd come over and beat someone up to help me."

Sawyer laughed, "Daddy, that's silly, she's little. Are you going to be playing Fozzy tonight?"

"Yeah, I actually have to get ready and everything, we've got a dinner to go to and a soundcheck and then I have the show that I'm going to do and everything. It's going to be a crazy few days. I should have brought you with me so you can see what it's going to be like when we're in Europe, but you, your sisters, and Mommy are already traveling to Raw on Monday and I don't want to make you fly so much."

"That's nice of you, I hope you have a fun time with all your friends."

"I hope you have a fun time with all _your_ friends since I heard you're going over to your friend's house tomorrow."

"I really am," Sawyer said, "Oops, Mommy wants me to help with Kensy, I'm going to go, Daddy, be okay, okay?"

"I will, I love you."

"I love you too!" Sawyer said before he abruptly hung up the phone. Chris laughed at the nature of children. His kids were always off doing something, flitting off from one activity to the next. Even Kensington was like that. Now that she was crawling, she was getting into everything, constantly wandering off somewhere without her parents' knowledge. It kind of reminded him of himself actually. He was very much like that, always going from one thing to the next. Wrestling was a mountain conquered and now he was trying to conquer the music world.

He was lucky he had a family like he did. He was set financially so it wasn't imperative for him to continue working. Music was a rough business and if he didn't have the money he did and was only a musician, he knew how hard it would be for him to have the family he did. Plus, with all the traveling, he was lucky to have a wife who understood him so implicitly. Wrestling, in some ways, was like music. There was a hard road to the top and Stephanie was used to the wrestling road so it made the music road a much easier pill to swallow.

He wanted more than anything to be successful with Fozzy and he finally felt like they were really getting the recognition. They'd started as something of a joke, a tribute band, fake almost. He was proud of where they were and this summer tour almost felt like a culmination. Sonisphere was one of the biggest festivals they could be booked to and to be on the card was an amazing feeling for him. He was proud and excited and man, he needed to burn some energy off right now. He got up and started looking through his clothes to find the perfect outfit for the gig tonight. It was time to be Chris Jericho the musician and he was going to rock his ass off.

On the other end of the spectrum was Christian. Where Chris was excited and happy about where he was, Christian was unhappy and disgusted with where he was. He was tired of playing second fiddle to Randy Orton. He wasn't anyone's lackey anymore. He'd spent too long being Edge's lackey and he had promised himself that he was going to break free and look at him now, he was just Randy Orton's sidekick or something. This match he was inevitably going to have with Randy, it wasn't about honor anymore, it was about drive and he was driven.

He didn't want Trish here tonight because he knew she saw something different in him. But he'd faced the facts already, he _was_ different. You couldn't sugarcoat it, it was what it was. He was different and he didn't want to go back to being the doormat he'd been for all those years. So that's why he had to do what he had to do.

After Teddy had told them they couldn't have Randy and him fight tonight, he'd been angry, but then he got a special gift. He was going to be the guest referee for a match between Randy and Sheamus. It was almost like the fates were smiling down on him. Instead of coming out as Randy's opponent, he could be Randy's ally…for now.

He'd been looking for the opportunity to tell Randy what he _really_ thought about the fact that he'd lost, but that opportunity hadn't been perfect. He needed that element of surprise on his side and tonight it would come. He would play it straight like he had been the past few weeks. Waiting for the perfect moment had given him one thing and that was that element of surprise. He'd lulled Randy into a false sense of security. It would have been easy to turn on Randy that first night when they'd had to partner up. He could have not helped Randy vanquish all those other contenders. He could have given him the Killswitch instead of shaking his hand, but he hadn't. He'd pretended to be happy for him, cordial, friedly, but that ended tonight. That very much ended tonight.

"I'm worried about him," Trish said as she set grabbed the box of eggrolls and grabbed on before handing the box over to Edge. "He's been weird and then with me not being there at his own request. I just don't understand him."

"You just have to let Christian work it out on his own," Edge said, "he's just that type of guy, you know that, Trish. I hate that I have to be the mature one, but I think letting it go is the best thing for him."

"I guess he can't get into too much trouble being the guest referee," Trish said as she watched the screen, though it was still commercial and her husband wasn't on it right now. She hoped the Edge was right, but she didn't know right now. She knew Christian and the Christian of the last few weeks was nothing like her Christian, nothing like her Christian at all.

Christian was really playing his part to perfection, the king and queen of deception, Chris and Stephanie would even be proud. He'd pretended like he was going to be against Sheamus and for Randy and it worked beautifully. Randy even came up to him after he'd talked to Sheamus. "Hey man, I just wanted to thank you for what you said to Sheamus," Randy said, "I think it's only fair to really call it down the middle."

"I think so too. I don't want to be unfair to anyone. I want my shot, but I can wait, you know, so I don't want to ruin it by doing something stupid," Christian said with a smile. "I'm going to be fair."

"You know, you've been really cool since the match we had and I want to thank you for that, I know it would've been easy to be angry, but I appreciate that you're a man about it."

"No problem," Christian said, patting Randy on the shoulder. "I believe in respecting my opponents and that night, you were better than me, I'm big enough to recognize and appreciate that." Okay, Christian, don't lay it on too thick.

"You're a good man, Christian," Randy nodded at him. "Thank you for that."

And thank Randy for being a trusting idiot. Christian wasn't lying when he said he'd call the match down the middle. It was exactly what he did. He was the perfect referee, being exactly what everyone expected of him, always being exactly what everyone expected of him. That's why the ending was going to be so sweet.

"See, this is what I don't get with him," Trish said. "Look at how he's acting right now. He's being this model wrestler, doing his job, not being partial. He's being a good guy and then he comes home and he's the world's biggest jerk. I don't get it."

"Maybe he's working out his aggression here instead of there," Lita tried to explain. "You never know."

"Yeah, right, okay," Trish said, but she remained unconvinced. She hadn't told Edge or Lita about what Christian had said to Sawyer. She was embarrassed that her husband had done that and she knew if Edge heard Christian had said that, Edge would react the same way Stephanie had said Chris reacted, with a well-deserved punch to the face. Edge loved Sawyer and he wouldn't tolerate that behavior from his brother anymore than Chris had.

It wasn't until after the match that everything was revealed, to Trish, to Edge, to the world. Instead of handing the title back to Randy after he'd won, Christian hit him with it. It felt good too, it felt deserved. This was supposed to be _his_ and it wasn't and so now Randy was going to have to suffer the consequences. He was tried of being Mr. Nice Guy and now it was time to try the other side of the fence. He took off that damn referee's shirt and then told Randy he _could_ beat him and he would and the belt would be his again.

"Well, I guess that's that," Trish said, looking down. "I guess that's where Christian has decided to go."

"Trish, you don't…he's justified in a way," Lita said.

"Yeah, for that," Trish said without thinking.

"What do you mean by that?" Lita asked her, looking at Trish and Trish was tempted to tell everything, but she refrained.

"Nothing, it's nothing, just…Christian has decided to regain what's his, good for him."

Chris just hoped Stephanie wasn't going to kill him. "Come on, man, we said we were going to do this," Rich told him, slapping him on the back. "You can't back down on me now, besides, you already have a tattoo."

Chris looked down at his one tattoo, the Stephanie that was etched across his ring finger. "Yeah, well, I never really told you how I came to have this tattoo in the first place. I was drunk and I was missing Stephanie and I was impulsive and decided that I was going to get her name tattooed on me because I loved her so much."

Rich chuckled at him, "Really, so you were drunk, why am I not surprised?"

"Shut up," Chris said, but he was laughing as well.

"How did she react?"

"Rich, you've met Stephanie, how do you _think_ she reacted?" Chris said.

"You're still married so I'm guessing it blew over."

"Yeah, after she yelled at me for an entire night. Seriously, she kept me up almost all night just to yell at me over it, how stupid it was of me to get her name, then I had to remind her that she was my wife, then she went on about how if I ever had a second wife that it would be super awkward, then I told her I didn't plan to have a second wife. The next morning, she got over it, but yeah, that was a rough night."

"So what do you think she's going to do when you come back with a bigger tattoo on your hand?"

"I really don't know, but I'm going to post a picture on Twitter. I know she checks it so maybe she'll see it, then by the time I get to Richmond, she'll be okay with it and she won't yell at me too much…of course, her dad is going to be there on Monday and he sets her on edge as it is."

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Rich asked. "We can always wait on it or not get it at all."

"No," Chris said, "I want this. I want to make this kind of commitment."

"You know what's funny, it's like, the only other tattoo you've ever gotten is a commitment to your wife and now this is to your band. Where's your wrestling one?"

"Dude, my Stephanie one _is_ my wrestling one," Chris joked. "She's wrestling and wrestling is her so it all fits."

"Okay, well, you're positive you want to do this?"

"Positive."

Chris and Rich had had the idea for Fozzy tattoos for a while now. He wanted one to show how he was totally on board with this band and how it was part of his life's work now. He knew Stephanie might not be too happy over it, but it was his body and he could do what he chose with it. Okay, so maybe he kind of couldn't since Stephanie perpetually had the upper-hand in their relationship, but she couldn't kill him. She would get over it like she'd gotten over the other tattoo.

He posted the picture to Twitter, but didn't mention it to Stephanie otherwise. If she went on his Twitter page and saw it, she didn't mention it so when Monday rolled around, he found himself shoving his hand into his pocket. The show was starting relatively soon and he knew that Stephanie would be busy so he played that to his advantage. Maybe she was so busy this weekend she hadn't seen it. But who was he kidding, there was no way he could ever hide a tattoo from Stephanie. She knew every inch of his body, had seen him naked more times than he could count and his hand wasn't exactly easily concealed.

He walked to her office and could hear her speaking loudly on the other side, "Look, I think we're being extremely reasonable with this deal."

"I don't think you are."

"Well, it's not up to me to determine your worth," Stephanie was saying and Chris now recognized the other voice as CM Punk's. "I'm just here to tell you what we're willing to offer you."

"I want more."

"Then you'll have to take that up with my father," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, because that'll be fruitful."

"I can't tell you what it's going to be unless you go talk to him."

"Whatever, you know, you think you're so great, sitting up there on your high horse," Punk said, "but you wouldn't be where you are without your daddy's money. So you can just come back down to our level and-"

"Who was it that needed my help to rig things?" Stephanie cut him off. "Who was it that came to me time and time again trying to convince me? _Now_ you want me to get off this supposed high horse? Tell me, am I smarter than all of those divas out there?"

"What has that got to do with it?"

"You've slept with enough of them to know, right?" Stephanie countered and Chris whistled a little. Punk had no idea what he was getting into. "I think after you've had all of them, you can see the difference. Yes, my father had money, but he earned it and he used it to get me an education, but what I've done with that education is all _me_ and nothing to do with my father. Now, you can go to him and negotiate yourself a better deal or you can act like a little boy who isn't getting the toy that he wants. Those are your options, but you're not going to bully me into something like this."

"You know there's a damn hierarchy around here. This stupid invisible glass ceiling and it's not fair, none of this is fair. I just want to be compensated for what I do around here. I'm sure that you'd do this if I was your husband."

"My husband is damn good at what he does, even you can't argue with that. Sorry I didn't marry someone like the Brooklyn Brawler, but what Chris does has no bearing on this. Chris was a champion before we ever started dating and what he has done is under no influence of mine. Please, just talk to my father."

"Fine, okay, fine." Chris could hear scuffling and he jogged back a few steps and acted like he was casually walking towards the door when Punk came out and glared at him for a moment, sizing him up before walking off. Chris looked back at him and then pushed open the door. Stephanie was back to looking at whatever paperwork she was doing and looked up when he walked in, her business face on so she probably thought that it was Punk come back to complain about something else. She softened when she saw it was Chris. He walked over and gave her a peck on the lips.

"You're a sight for sore eyes," she said with a smile that confirmed she had no idea about his hand, "and because I know you…" He could swear that she was going to bring it up, "no, Christian has not apologized to Sawyer so we're still not talking to him."

"Okay," Chris said, then looked around the empty office, which he only just now realized was empty because there weren't three pairs of arms trying to get at him. "Where are the kids?"

"With my dad, he's here for the Tough Enough announcement and of course he wants to see the kids because they're his grandkids and I needed the break after four days with those little hellions running around."

Chris laughed and kissed her again. "I'm sorry, but don't worry, I'm here now, at your service."

'Then can you talk some sense into CM Punk?"

"Next week, I'll prepare something," he told her as the door swung open.

"Daddy, hi!" Flynn yelled as soon as her smoky blue eyes laid on her father. She ran over to him and then Sawyer followed and they were both hugging him and he was hugging them back as Vince brought up the rear with Kensington in his arms. Her face was red and her eyes were puffy, tears drying to her cheeks.

"Dad, what happened?" Stephanie got up immediately and took Kensington from her father, nuzzling her nose against Kensington's still damp cheek. "Kensy-baby, what's wrong?"

"I think she just wanted you," Vince said, "I don't think she likes me very much."

"She takes after me," Chris joked, winking at Vince.

"Don't forget you're married to my daughter, without me, you wouldn't have a wife right now."

"Touché," Chris said, "but then you made my daughter cry."

"I think she would have done that anyways, Stephanie was constantly crying when she was a baby," Vince said and Stephanie rolled her eyes.

"I did not," she mumbled as she kissed Kensington's cheek. Kensington started to feel better, kissing (or at least attempting to) Stephanie.

"So how did things go with Punk?" Vince asked.

"He's probably going to come complaining to you so you should watch out for that. He's not happy."

"I think I'll seek him out," Vince said, "maybe if he thinks that I'm the one pursuing him, he'll be more open to negotiations."

"Smart," Stephanie said as her father went and kissed his grandchildren on the head, even though all of them were preoccupied by their parents at the moment. "Bye, Dad."

"Bye, Vince," Chris added.

He waved at them and then left. "Daddy, you made it!"

"I know," Chris said to his son, "and I'm still alive."

"I see," Sawyer said, hugging him again.

"I told you I'd be okay," Chris said, kissing the side of Sawyer's head. "You can't get rid of me that easily."

Sawyer laughed as Flynn looked at Chris's hand. "Daddy, what dis? You have pictures!"

"Daddy, what is that? That's like Ed!" Sawyer said, peering over his sister's shoulder at his hand.

"What's going on?" Stephanie asked, her and Kensington coming over and Chris looked up at her sheepishly as she looked over her kids' heads to see what they were so enamored by. Flynn was rubbing away at the tattoo on his hand and Stephanie coughed for a moment before she looked back up into Chris's eyes. "Is that what I think it is?"

"Yeah…"

"Were you drunk?"

"No…"

"Oh," Stephanie said, "I see you also got 'Stephanie' touched up."

"Well, it is our nine year anniversary coming up next month and I figured that if we've come this far, we're probably going the distance and don't even talk to me about how people get divorced even after a long time, I've heard it."

"On your _hand_, Chris?" she asked. "Why there?"

"Because I'm a glutton for punishment…and it seemed like a better spot than my butt," he joked with her and Sawyer and Flynn giggled at the word butt.

"I like it," Sawyer said. "I think it looks cool, can I get one sometime?"

"Absolutely not," Stephanie told her son.

"It okay," Flynn said, still trying to rub at it. "I do like it."

"See, you're outnumbered," Chris told her, "even with Kensy's vote, you'd still lose."

"Like I have a choice, it's permanent and I can't drag you to get it removed." She smirked and came and sat next to him on the couch. "I don't understand you sometimes, Chris."

"I don't understand you, baby," he told her as he kissed the top of her head, "but I continue to love you in spite of your rather crazy opinions."

"We'll discuss this later…but if I were so inclined to like such things as tattoos…"

"Yes…"

"I might think it romantic that you got my tattoo touched up."

"Yeah?" he smirked at her attempts at not smiling.

"Only a little though," Stephanie told him. "It doesn't really mean anything, I still think tattoos in general are something that should be discussed because your body is sort of my body at this point and-"

He simply cut her off with a kiss.


	328. The Ultimate, June 13, 2011

A/N: So 9 years ago, I started this crazy journey called "Hugs and Kisses," and I just wanted to thank all the readers who continue to read and enjoy this story. I love writing this story and it's thanks to you that I keep writing it. Tonight's Raw was kind of crazy, huh, I can't wait to get there and I'm kind of in love with this chapter as a result. I hope you enjoy the chapter and if you want to show some love for my craziness of writing this for 9 years, then by all means, go ahead. ;)

* * *

"I don't like this thing."

"Well then it's good that you're not the one who has it," Chris said. "I am."

"But I have to look at it all the time," Stephanie shook her head. "Chris, why don't you discuss these kinds of things with me?"

"Because I'm 40 years old and I think by now I can make my own decisions," he told her as he watched her playing with his hand. She'd been constantly doing that since he got his new tattoo, like if she looked at it enough and complained about it enough it would somehow disappear. She touched on everything, from the location, to the choice of tattoo (she didn't realize it was more an homage than anything else), to the colors. Every little detail was scrutinized to the point of banality and when she finished with one subject, she'd move right on to the other.

"Yes, but you're a 40 year old with a wife."

"You don't say!" he said sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "I didn't know that's what you were, I've only been married to you for six years!"

"Shut up," she scolded. "I just have to be the one to look at this and your beautiful hands."

"My hands are anything but beautiful," he told her, "years of playing the bass and wrestling have made sure they're callous-filled and rough, you of all people should know that."

"Well, I like the way they feel against my skin," she teased him, gliding her fingers over his skin to demonstrate. He closed his eyes for a moment and took in the softness of her fingers. They were so different from his own. Stephanie liked to get manicures when she could, especially since, with three kids, she was constantly having her hands in something, cleaning up after someone, giving someone a bath. Getting a manicure was like her therapy and he wasn't complaining because when it came time for him to get attention, her hands felt so nice on his body.

"They like what they feel," he told her.

"Would you want me to get a tattoo?" Well this was a new tactic.

"No," he told her point blank and he wasn't lying; he didn't want Stephanie to get a tattoo.

"Why not? You have one, what if I wanted one?"

"What would you get?"

Stephanie stared down at his tattoo and rubbed her thumb against it lightly. It was a little bit raised since it was a new tattoo, but nothing too noticeable. "I don't know, probably something with the kids' names or something like that, something that meant something to me. Why wouldn't you want me to get one?"

"You're perfection," he told her with a careless shrug. She tilted her head to look at him and he stared back her, his blue eyes meeting hers and staying there, not wavering. "Look, for me, this was just saying, 'this is _my_ band, I've seen it come this far, I've nursed it since it was in its infancy and look at what I've done with this. Rich and I had this dream and now it's a reality.' That's what this is."

"Well, if I had one, it would be meaningful for me."

"Yeah, but, every inch of you is meaningful," Chris told her. "You are just so beautiful and I love you the way you are."

"I loved you the way _you _were," she reminded him.

"I'm not going to win this one, am I? I should have just told you, you should get one if you want, huh?" he laughed, knowing he was caught in his own web and just admitting to it before he dug himself some kind of hole he couldn't dig his way out of. If that ended up being the case, he'd be at the doctor's getting his tattoo removed right now.

"No, you're not, but you get extra brownie points for saying that I'm beautiful and perfection," she winked at him and then pretended like she was tallying up some points for him.

"And I even really meant it too, can you believe it!" Chris told her and then grabbed her off the lounge chair she was sitting on and pulled her into his lap. "Shall I get cheesy with you, baby?"

"Now you're just trying to distract me from the fact that I don't like that you have a big F on the back of your hand."

"You can pretend that it means a dirty word that I want to do to you pretty much every second of every day," he wiggled his eyebrows suggestively and she laughed and pressed her hand against the side of his neck.

"You're insatiable. I'm thinking of taking on a second wife just to satisfy this sexual desire that you seem to have all the time."

"No way, no other woman would be able to satisfy me."

"Questionable, debatable, and probably wrong. Do you mean to tell me that if some incredibly hot woman walked into our backyard right now, naked as they day they were born, big, enhanced breasts like you like, a thin waist, legs that stretch on for miles, with a gorgeous face, you would turn them down."

"First, I would think they were disgusting for coming into my backyard naked while my two eldest children are playing," he gestured towards Sawyer's fort. Sawyer and Flynn were inside it right now, well, Flynn was inside it and Sawyer was lurking outside and popping in the windows whenever Flynn tried to guess which one he was outside. When he surprised her, she'd yell in delight and surprise at her brother's silliness. "Second, I would politely turn them down and tell them that I have a beautiful wife who I love and they can take their skanky, naked ass out of my yard."

"You would?"

"Absolutely, I'm devoted to you," he told her. "I'm absolutely devoted to you. If you were to die tomorrow, which, don't, Sawyer is still pretty clingy, so I don't want to exacerbate that issue, I would never marry again, I would never see another woman again."

"BS," she shook her head, "you would, it might take you a while, I _hope_ it would take you a while, but you would date again. I'd _want_ you too, what with the kids. Just make sure that they're a really good person and not a whore or a slut or Kelly Kelly."

"Duly noted," he told her, kissing her cheek.

"So onto more…no, wait, wait, wait, less exciting things, have you thought of what you're going to say to Punk on Monday. I figured that it might be better to hear a pitch coming from one of his own. The thing that I find funny is that yeah, he was an indie wrestler for a long time and that's great and all, but you worked ten times as hard and complained about a million times less."

"Yeah, not at the beginning."

"You were trying to find your niche. You were trying to get in good with everyone. You didn't know how to break through."

"Okay, then setting that aside, I didn't complain because by the time there might have been stuff to complain about, I was already with you. We started dating in 2002, Steph, I was only with the company a few years before we started dating so it was never about me complaining."

"Still, you could have, you could have tried to manipulate me to get what you wanted."

"Didn't I?" he asked smugly. "I mean, I got you to fall in love with me, then I got you to marry me, then I got you to have kids with me, I think that I've done a fair share of manipulating."

"It's not manipulating if the person wants it," Stephanie said, "so what are you going to say to him? It's a big deal to have him re-sign. With you not around, with Batista gone, with HBK retired, with Edge retired, with Hunter doing whatever it is he's doing…oh damn it, I forgot, I needed to call Hunter about that desk position he wants so badly."

"Wait, he's actually going through with that?" Chris asked.

"He is," Stephanie said, "he wants to make the transition from front of the stage to the backstage and he wants to be a backstage agent when he retires so I figured that I should give him a proper interview, at least over the phone."

"You and Hunter working closely together, should I be worried?" he joked, scrunching his face up like he really had to think about this.

"Oh yes, you need to worry a lot…you need to worry about coming back so that we don't have everyone dropping like flies."

"I'll think about it _after_ the tour. I've got a lot on my mind with that. There's a lot of planning that goes into a tour and why am I telling that to you of all people?" Chris asked. "You plan things on a much larger scale." She nodded along with his statement.

"Plus the Punk thing, which you're saying…"

"I'm just going to tell him the truth, I guess, that he shouldn't be selfish, which, I don't think he's necessarily being, but I think he's being really closed off about the entire thing. It's one thing not to want the offer, but it's another thing entirely to act like a jerk about it and he doesn't have to act like that. In fact, he shouldn't act like that, at least around you. I don't care what he does with your father, what he does with your father is fine with me because beyond the fact that he is your father and helped to create you, I really don't care what happens to him."

"That's nice, Chris," Stephanie said sarcastically. "He's your family."

"Not by choice," Chris protested, "_you_ were by choice and you were the only choice I had in that situation, now, I love Shane and Ris and the boys and your mom, but I could really give or take your dad and so can you. But when Punk starts treating you like shit, then we have a problem."

"He hasn't really."

"Well, I'll warn him then," Chris said, "I'm tough, I look tough, right?"

"I guess so."

"What, you guess so?"

"I just said I guess so," Stephanie said, "but you _could_ come back and challenge him to a match or something. Make a statement that way."

"Subtle, real subtle there," Chris rolled his eyes. "When do I get a say in what I do with my life?"

Stephanie grabbed his hand and held it up, "I think you have more than enough say in your life as it is, that's how these things happen."

"A lot of women would find it romantic that their husband would get a tattoo of their name on them," Chris told her. "They would know that their man was committed enough to put their name permanently on their body."

"Isn't it like one of the tattoo rules that you should never get a significant other's name tattooed on you because you're just asking for trouble that way?" Stephanie asked.

"I don't believe that."

"Yeah, tell that to your second wife," Stephanie shook her head.

"I'll just have to find someone named Stephanie and problem solved," Chris told her, "but until then, I think that you'll do just fine. Now didn't you have to go call Hunter?"

"Oh yeah," she said, leaning over and wiggling her ass against Chris's lap, which only made him swat at her shoulder for being so overt about it all. She grabbed her cell phone and then settled herself back against Chris. Chris glanced over her shoulder at Kensington who was standing in her playpen and smiling over at them. Chris nodded towards Kensington and Stephanie looked over at her. "I love the summer, we can just sit outside and do whatever we want."

"I'd get my daughter if I could get up."

"Oh, sorry." Stephanie stood up and Chris went over and picked up Kensington, peppering her face with kisses as she giggled and pressed her hands to Chris's face.

"Kensy-bug, what's got you so happy today?" he asked as he resumed sitting next to Stephanie. Kensington just pulled the hat she was wearing over her head and laughed at herself as Chris laughed at her looking up at him playfully from under her hat. "Are you just the happiest baby in the world?"

Kensington babbled and then tugged at Chris's t-shirt. He just kissed her again and adjusted her hat as he watched Stephanie on the phone, her feet lounging on another chair. "Hey, Hunter, yeah, it's me, I wanted to call and follow up on that thing I talked with Britt about, you being backstage."

"Oh okay," Hunter said, stepping out of the room where Britt was watching television. "I didn't think it would be such a problem, honestly, I think that it would be a valuable experience for me."

"May I ask why you don't feel the need to come back and actually wrestle?" Stephanie asked. She'd been wondering that for a while. It seemed like Hunter had no interest whatsoever in wrestling and she couldn't figure it out. Hunter loved wrestling. When they were married, it was pretty much all he ever talked about. She couldn't believe he'd changed so much since he was last regularly wrestling. It was like everything had shifted and yet, she just couldn't imagine Hunter watching other guys with the belt and not being jealous.

"I just don't want to get injured," he admitted to her and she was surprised by his candidness. She was expecting some convoluted answer, but he told her straight out what it was. "I'm not getting any younger, we both know this and I know that I'm not going to be able to wrestle forever. All these injuries have taken their toll on me one way or another and they've shaved time off my career. The last one just lingered for so long and I'm afraid that if I get injured again, I'm going to be out for even longer."

"I understand," she said and she did. Hunter was officially injury-prone. It was so nice having a husband like Chris. He never got seriously injured while wrestling and so she'd come to expect a certain amount of safety when he went into the ring. Sure, she knew there was always a risk when he wrestled, but she just believed that Chris could rise above injury. The same couldn't be said for Hunter and the injuries had been piling up for a long time now. It probably didn't help that he'd used steroids in the past, another thing that Chris had avoided after trying them once. It probably helped his muscles by not taking them (plus it gave him adorable love handles).

"So I have to start thinking of a life outside of wrestling yet I want to stay in the business in some capacity. It also helps because once you take over for your father, somewhere down the line, and Britt takes over your position, I'll be able to travel with her. I really want to be able to contribute."

"Okay," Stephanie said, "I understand and I do think that you're qualified, but I want to know what you believe you can bring to the table."

"Really?" he asked.

"Hunter, if nothing else, indulge me. I need to figure a place for you and I know that you're thinking that you can find your own place, but as your employer, if you're going to take a desk job, so to speak, you're going to need some sort of actual duty that I can report."

"Well, I have a lot of experience," Hunter said, "I mean, you know that. I've got a lot of in-ring ability so I can train new guys or mentor some of them."

Stephanie snorted and glanced at Chris, but he was too involved in playing with Kensington to even notice that she was acting incredulous towards Hunter and the idea of him mentoring anyone. "You mentor someone?"

"Why did you scoff like that's so out of the realm of possibility?" he asked, slightly offended. He thought he had a lot to offer the wrestling world. He knew he wasn't the most popular guy with the fan some of the time and he knew that he definitely wasn't one of the most popular men backstage, but that didn't mean he wasn't good at what he did. He was a champion through and through and some of the younger guys could probably use that kind of mentoring.

"I'm not, I'm just trying to picture you actually mentoring someone and the image is just not coming to me, I'm sorry," Stephanie told him. "You've just spent so long trying to be number one, usually at the expense of everything else in your life, that I'm not sure you would be the kind of guy that should be mentoring someone else."

"Don't you think that makes me the perfect type of guy to mentor someone with the drive and desire to want to be a champion?"

"I'm afraid at what cost that advice will come," Stephanie told him.

"So you're holding past grudges on me then, that's what you're doing?"

"I'm not…I don't hold a grudge against you, but you hardly lead a life for quite a while there," Stephanie said. "You let power and greed corrupt you. Think back to right after we got divorced and you were just, power-crazed and angry and you only had one thought in your mind and that was to win the WWE title. That was all your life was about."

"You have no idea what my life was about then, you were busy with Chris," Hunter said, "but regardless of that, I'm not that man now. I have Britt and I'm happy and well-adjusted. I would make a good mentor for some of the younger guys as I am now. I could show them what mistakes _not_ to make. I mean, that in and of itself should be a valuable lesson, right?"

"You've got me there," Stephanie said. "I just want to make sure you know what you're doing. I know you think that this is something you can handle, but I know you and I just want to make sure that if you are behind the scenes that you stay there. This isn't some elaborate plan to get the WWE title, is it?"

"No, it's not, I swear to you, it's not. I'm just thinking of my future."

"All these injuries have really spooked you, haven't they?" Stephanie mused.

"I was just thinking about what happened with Edge and he's younger than I am and I know I didn't have quite the injuries he did, but they pile up eventually and it's got me freaked that one day my hand is going to go numb and it's scary."

"Yeah, it's not easy being on the other side of that."

"I just want to play it safe for now. I don't want to retire, but my body isn't what it used to be," he explained. He eventually wanted a family with Britt and he didn't want to be stuck in a wheelchair or unable to do things with his children. That wasn't what he wanted out of life and if that meant that he had to take a step back from wrestling in order to have future happiness, then he was more than willing to do just that.

"Okay, well, I'll be there on Monday so just come find me on Monday and I'll have you kind of shadow me, but I'll find something for you to do on a trial basis. Consider it like a training program or something," Stephanie said, "I'll see if you're as good as you think you are."

"I think I'm better," he joked, "hey, so I heard about what Christian said to Sawyer, that's horrible, is he okay?"

"How did _you_ hear about it?"

"Trish told Britt, Britt told me," Hunter said. "I can't believe that he would say that, is Sawyer okay?"

"Yeah, Sawyer's fine. He still makes sure he knows where we all are at all times, but he hasn't asked us again if we're going to die."

"Good, I wouldn't want him to worry about that. I've seen what's going on with Christian, maybe I should talk to him, it'll be my first assignment of sorts," he said and he was only semi-joking. He wanted to find a niche backstage and while he didn't necessarily think of Christian as a friend so to speak, they got along well enough and had an easy repertoire.

"What are you going to tell him?"

"That losing the belt isn't the end of the world. That first taste is always so addictive. I'd imagine it's even worse if you lose that belt within a week. How do you reconcile with that? You get something you've strived for, for so long only to have it ripped away from you. But it's not the end of the world."

"Tell that to him, even Trish is getting fed up with him and that's hard to do because she's usually pretty mellow."

"Absolute power corrupts absolutely."

"Don't get all history quotes on me," Stephanie said.

"I'm just saying that he's gotten greedy."

"Greedy or not, he needs to cut the act."

"Well, that's really only up to him, isn't it?"

Trish liked being married. She especially liked being married to Christian. He was a great husband and a wonderful father and a good person. She loved that Christian, the one who was always trying a little too hard and who cared too much. The problem was that Christian appeared to be disappearing right before her very eyes and was turning into this hardened shell that she disliked more and more every day. She didn't want her life to be this way and she hated how her husband was consumed with this idea of being the World champion. She wanted him to be happy but at what expense.

"Do you want to go take Tilde around and show her off, I know you love to do that," Trish said as they settled into Christian's dressing room.

"No, I want to concentrate on what I'm going to say out there."

"Well, I know that couldn't possibly take you very long and Tilden loves it when you show her around and you go exploring. She loves exploring things."

"Then go take her," Christian said as he drooped down to the couch. He steepled his fingers under his chin and stared at a spot on the floor.

"But she likes it when you do it," Trish told him, holding Tilden close to her and making a pouty face. "You like it when Daddy takes you around and shows you all the cool stuff, don't you, Tilde?"

"Yeah," Tilden said, biting her bottom lip into a smile.

"Well, I'm busy, I told you already that I needed to think about what I'm going to say. If you two are just going to distract me, then you should probably just go find something to do, okay? I can't be bothered with nonsense."

"Okay, this has got to stop," Trish said, setting Tilden on the ground. She raced over to her stroller as fast as she could toddle and grabbed a stuffed animal out of it just for fun. "I'm sick and tired of your attitude towards me and Tilden and towards our friends. We didn't do anything to you, Christian. We didn't put you in that match, we didn't interfere and we're deserving of a little more respect than you're giving us right now. Plus, I know that you're angry at Randy, but frankly, the man went out there and did his job. Yes, hold a grudge, go out and win, do that, but stop acting like everyone else is to blame."

"So now I'm to blame then, huh? I'm not a good enough wrestler, right?"

"I _never_ said that, but sitting around here moping, acting like a jerk, ignoring people, it's not going to work. That's not how this is going to work. If you want to hate on the fans or any wrestlers that step in your path, then by all means, mow them down fast. But do not treat the people who care about you like crap because we don't deserve that."

"Are you done, I've got a lot on my mind," he told her, seemingly not taking in anything she had just said. She shook her head and turned away from him.

"You know what, forget it, just forget it, act like a jerk. Tilde, grab your stuffed animal and let's go, we're going to walk around."

"Good, now I can concentrate," Christian said, standing up and going over to his duffel bag to grab something. Trish narrowed her eyes and ran her hands through her long hair before pulling it back into a ponytail and then letting the brown hair flow over her shoulders once again. One thing Trish was not was passive. You didn't get to win as many titles as she did if she let everyone walk all over her. Wrestling was a cutthroat business and she was a lot of power compacted into a small body. She stalked over to Christian and grabbed his arm, tugging him around.

"You better shape up, Christian," she told him, her voice low and nearly feral. "If you think you're going to keep this up around me, you have another thing coming to you and don't act like my words don't affect you, don't put on this stupid act of bravado, if you want to be angry, then be angry, but if you continue to act like a dick around me or my daughter or if you go around telling five year old kids about death, I swear to God, you will regret the day you ever won that damn title."

"Trish," he started, rightly feeling chastised by his wife. Her brown eyes were ignited with a fire he'd never seen before and he'd never seen it because she'd never been so pissed at him before.

"Shut up," she told him, "I don't want you to speak any more to me tonight, Tilden and I will see you at the end of the show and if your behavior towards us hasn't improved than you can find your own place to stay."

"I'm-"

"Save it," she waved him off and grabbed Tilden, lifting her up easily and walking out of the room without one more glance at Christian.

Christian knew he was in trouble. He'd tried very hard to be nice, to play nice with everyone that he cared about, but this burning hatred was seeping into his personal life. Whenever someone came around, tried to talk to him, cheer him up, he just felt irritated. Even when Tilden came around, he felt his temper grow shorter and shorter. The other day she'd accidentally spilled juice on the kitchen floor and he'd nearly blown up at her. He refrained, but it scared him how much he wanted to yell at a toddler.

Everything seemed to feel wrong nowadays. He wanted the belt, but at what expense was it coming? He was just so angry with how he'd been shafted by Teddy Long in regards to the match. He'd only held the belt a few days and was expected to defend it without any kind of warning. It just felt disrespectful towards him and he didn't know how to combat this feeling. He was going out there to talk to the fans, but he didn't want them on his side anymore. He didn't need them.

He _did_ need his family, however, and he had to make a better effort to be normal around them, even if it felt wrong at first. He loved his family and friends and he wanted to make nice with them, but he just couldn't right now and it killed him because he'd never felt particularly like this before, except maybe when he'd turned on his brother out of jealousy. But then he'd really had nothing to lose except Edge. He certainly didn't have a wife or a child or very many close friends.

First things first, after the show he had to apologize to Trish and Tilden. Then he was going to owe a huge apology to Sawyer. He'd tried to block the incident out of mind, but as he thought to the way he'd treated everyone, his memory kept flickering back towards Sawyer's face when he'd talked about death and Sawyer made the connection that eventually his parents would die. The stricken look on his face, the horror of it, it was something he'd burned into Sawyer's brain when he certainly didn't deserve that image. Trish had told him, in passing because he'd been ignoring her much of the time, that Sawyer had been clinging to Chris and Stephanie, always making sure they were safe. That was his fault.

That was his doing.

He had to fix this, even if it meant swallowing his pride. Trish was right; the people he loved hadn't done anything to him except support him. He owed them all an apology and he had to try to get over the disappointment. Part of him probably felt like he'd let them all down too. They'd all been so excited for him and he felt almost guilty for losing, like he wasn't worthy of the title. But he'd held it and he could hold it again and when he did, he wouldn't feel like such a failure.

When he went out there, it was a bit of trepidation. Even underneath it all, for many years now, he'd relied on the fans and their support of him. They had been his peeps, but he couldn't cow-tow to them anymore. He couldn't play himself off for the fans. He realized that when his brother and Chris both had buckled down and stopped caring what the fans thought of them they did the best. Their careers took off when they realized that being a fan favorite wasn't what this business was about. If he wanted to be a legend, someone that people remembered for ages, he had to let go of being something that they wanted him to be and instead, being someone that he needed to be.

He didn't expect the fans to understand him. They were so set in their ways. The world of wrestling seemed like an old western, you had the guys in the white hats and the guys in the black hats. The line was drawn and the fans cheered for the white hats and hated the black hats. There was hardly any room for gray hats, but wrestlers weren't perfect and the fans sometimes didn't see that there was a human behind the wrestler taking to the ring. Randy wasn't some god who did no wrong, he did a lot of wrong, but he'd been given the white hat and Christian hated him a little for that.

But he also understood that he would have hated anyone that beat him for the title. He'd been a victim of misfortune, but he wanted the opportunity to correct it. He wanted the opportunity to go out there and prove that he was just as worthy as Randy Orton at holding the title. If he was so inclined to actually hate Randy, he might think about when Randy was with Trish, but that was a long time past and instead, he just wanted the belt by any means necessary.

If he was really mad at anyone, it was Teddy Long and he said so. Stephanie or Bischoff (when he was GM), hell maybe even Vickie, never would have run the show like that. They wouldn't have polled the crowd and then judged simply on hearing. How could you even measure that? It was Teddy's job to make the decisions, not the fans' job to make the decision. Their position was to watch what was put out. A good General Manager would have saved a big profile match and would have let someone earn their spot instead of just giving Randy Orton a title match. It was incompetent of Teddy to book matches that way. A lazy man's way out so to speak.

He was going to get that match at Capitol Punishment. He was going to get it and prove to the fans, to Randy, to Teddy, and everyone else that he was better than what they thought. He was going to win the title back. It had become his new goal. The belt was too precious to just forget about it and he understood now the lust for it, the hunger and drive that made men beat each other and turn on each other and hate each other.

When he got backstage after asking nay demanding a new match, Trish was sitting there. Tilden was in her pack 'n play asleep and the lights were dimmed low, the only thing casting any real light was the closed circuit television that Trish had been watching. "She had an early night," Christian nodded towards Tilden.

"She didn't take her nap today so she wanted to eat early and then go to bed early," Trish glanced at Tilden to make sure the little blonde pixie was actually asleep. "So, I just saw you out there."

"Yeah, I said what I needed to say out there, now I needed to say what I needed to say back here," he told her. "I don't like fighting with you, ever, because I always feel like that other shoe is about to drop and how far is too far with you."

"We work things out, always," Trish assured him. "I don't love you any less if that's what you're thinking. I think of a fight as an isolated incident, not interconnected. I guess if we fought all the time it might be different, but we don't."

"Which I'm glad for," he added. He sat down next to her and took her hand in his, running his fingers over hers and then just sitting for a moment to collect his thoughts. "I felt like a failure…okay, honestly, I still _do_ feel like a failure."

"A failure?" Trish cocked her head to the side, "Why? Because you lost the title?"

"Yeah," Christian told her. "That's exactly why I feel like a failure to be honest. All of you, everyone was going crazy for me up to the match where I won. You were all telling me it was my time, I deserved it, I earned it and I bought into it. I wanted to win for all of you and then I did and you were all so proud of me. From my mom, to you, to Edge, to Lita, to Chris, Stephanie, Sawyer, you were all so proud of me. I was proud of myself. I had done it, you know, won the big one that had eluded me here for so long. Then I lost it, just like that, it was gone and I felt like I'd let all of you down. You were all pulling for me and I couldn't keep up my end of the bargain."

"Chrissy, it's just a belt," Trish told him, grabbing his hand with her free hand so his hand was sandwiched in between both of hers.

"I know that, but I still felt like I let you down. I was like that growing up. I've always been like that. Everyone says I'm the more sensitive one between me and Edge. It's true, I've always been that guy who wears his feelings like a second skin."

"I love that about you though," Trish gave him a look that made him love her all the more.

"Thanks, but I just felt like I'd failed you all and you were all so disappointed in me and so I want the belt. I can't get rid of these feelings," Christian told her, "I'm trying, but it's difficult. I shouldn't have said what I did to Sawyer, I'm especially sorry for that."

"Tell that to him," Trish nodded. "He needs to hear that."

"I will, I'll try to be better, I promise."

"I only need you to be better here," she gestured around the room, "with your friends and family, all bets are off when it comes to your work."

"Thank you for the concession," Christian laughed. "I'm sorry I've been such a jerk, I never wanted to be that guy."

"I, of all people, know that. You're not a jerk by nature," she scooted herself closer to him and gave him a hug. "So what do you have planned for the rest of the night? I know that you're thinking of something."

"How did you know?"

"Because I know you," Trish said. "So are you planning on going after Randy or Teddy or something?"

"I'm just going to see how things play out," Christian said. "So is Tilden upset that she hasn't really been around me?"

"Of course she is, she loves the hell out of you," Trish told him, "so does Sawyer. He doesn't understand that what you said was necessarily something bad. I mean, he gets that it's bad, but he doesn't love you any less for it."

"I'm an asshole."

"You were, but it's not you. You just have to apologize for it, but let's just get through tonight first."

Christian wasn't as much of a schemer as his brother and he was certainly not a schemer like Chris or Stephanie was, but he did have a few tricks up his sleeve. When Sheamus was put into a match with Randy, he saw the means to get a little bit of what he wanted to do with Randy. He just needed the element of surprise and he found that in pretending to be leaving the arena. Everyone kind of knew that he and Trish were fighting (had been, but weren't anymore) so it didn't seem odd that he might be leaving alone. This gave him the perfect chance to surprise ambush Randy during his match, which was exactly what he did.

Randy wasn't expecting the attack on him, but Christian felt good afterwards. He didn't know if it was because he got one over on Randy, proving, even if for a little bit that he could be better than the other man or because he was now learning how he had to separate his personal life from the business. Either way, he felt good about himself as he stood over Randy. He proved tonight that he could be the better man. He just needed to do the same at Capitol Punishment.

He also needed to issue a huge apology.

He felt so bad about what he's said to Sawyer that he ended up waiting until Sunday afternoon to even contemplate going over there. He'd spent all of Saturday with his car keys next to him, ready to walk to his car and drive over to Stephanie and Chris's house. He'd resolved to go before Monday because the Jericho family would be in New York and they'd be staying in Connecticut for the duration of the week to spend time with Stephanie's family so this weekend was really the only opportunity he'd have to go over there. Still, he felt bad and had to psych himself up to go over.

Finally, when time was running out, he grabbed his car keys, yelled to Trish that he was going over to Chris's and got into his car to make the short drive to Chris and Stephanie's house. It loomed dauntingly in front of him as he pulled into their long driveway. He sat in their driveway for a moment before he got out of the car and then walked up the walkway to the house. He rang the doorbell and stood there before he could hear a flurry of activity from inside the house.

The door opened and he looked up, but saw nobody so he looked down and saw Flynn's face peeking around the door. "Hi, Chrissy!" she exclaimed happily.

"Hey there, Flynnie."

"Flynn, don't open the door without someone," Stephanie said in an exasperated tone as she opened the door further and saw Christian. "Oh, hi, Christian."

"Hey, Steph, is Sawyer here?" Christian asked. "I owe him an apology."

"I'd say so," Stephanie said, but her tone wasn't as angry as he expected it to be though he deserved for it to be. "He's upstairs with Chris, they're playing a computer reading game."

"I can read!" Flynn told the two of them even though she couldn't. "I play with Kensy."

"You're playing with Kensy?" Christian asked.

"Uh huh, we play with Daddy dolls," Flynn explained. "Kensy eats 'em."

Christian laughed, Tilden was the same way, "I bet you're having a lot of fun, huh?"

"Yup, so bye!" she told him, scurrying off to get back to her sister before Kensington ate all of her daddy's action figures. At the very least it was kind of gross haven't all that drool over her action figures.

"Do you think I can go up there?"

"Yeah, go ahead," Stephanie said, "I'm not mad at you, just disappointed that you would go there with Sawyer."

"Believe me, I'm disappointed in myself," Christian told her. "I shouldn't have done it and I was just mad at myself for feeling like I failed all of you."

"It's okay, just don't do it again," she threw him a smile and he gave her a tentative smile back before he headed upstairs and down the hall to Chris's office. He walked to the open door and saw Chris and Sawyer sitting next to each other and staring at the computer as Sawyer read to Chris. They looked so alike that it was actually pretty funny and Christian knocked on the open frame of the door. Father and son looked up simultaneously, but the expressions on their faces couldn't be more different. Sawyer was ecstatic to see Christian, his grin wide and eyes bright. Chris was less than thrilled to see Christian, a frown on his face and his brows knit together.

"What are you doing here?" Chris asked.

"Chrissy, I'm reading, come listen, I'm really good," Sawyer told him.

"I bet you are," Christian told him. "I was hoping I could talk to you though."

"Me?" Sawyer pressed his hand against his chest. He looked to Chris and Chris nodded at him. "Okay, what do you want to talk about?"

Christian came into the room a little bit more and he sat on the couch that Chris had set up in there. "I wanted to talk to you about what I told you about last week, about death and people dying and all of that."

"It's okay, I talked with Daddy and it's okay," Sawyer shrugged. He wasn't so worried anymore even though he still didn't want anyone to die.

"It's really not okay," Christian said. "Chris, do you mind?"

"No, I think I should hear what you have to say," Chris said, running his tongue over his teeth, "I think I need to hear it too because I have to make sure you don't traumatize my son any further."

"Look, man, I'm really sorry," Christian said, but then turned his attention to Sawyer. "Sawyer, you know you're one of my best friends, right?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer told him with a nod, "you're one of my best friends too, one of my big best friends, not little ones."

Christian laughed, "Yeah, I got that. Well, as your best friend, I shouldn't have told you about things that you're not really ready to hear about. You're a kid and your job right now is to be a kid and have as much fun as you can squeeze into each and every day. I shouldn't have made you worry about things that you don't need to worry about."

"Like dying," he added solemnly.

"Like dying," Christian agreed. "I don't want you to be scared of letting your mommy or daddy go to the store or anything. I was sad because I lost the title and that's why I said those things to you. It wasn't because of anything you did. I just felt like I'd failed all of you guys because I'd lost the belt and I didn't realize that you would've liked me anyways."

"I like you a lot," Sawyer said, "and it's okay if you don't have the big, gold belt. Daddy doesn't have it and I like him and Ed doesn't have it and I like him, it's okay, it's fun to play with, but it's okay if you don't have it, there are lots of other things to play with."

"Yeah, that's true, you're really smart," Christian told him, "but I just felt like I disappointed you all."

"I don't know what that means," Sawyer said, looking at Chris.

"It just means that he thought that you would upset with him if he lost," Chris explained.

"Oh, I'm not upset," Sawyer laughed at the idea that suddenly he wouldn't like Christian because he didn't win. That was silly! If you were friends with someone, you should help them when they don't win.

"I know," Christian said. "I just wanted to say I was sorry."

"It's okay," Sawyer shrugged and as far as he was concerned, the matter was over. He was never mad at Christian in the first place so there was really nothing that he saw that Christian needed to apologize for. He just saw Christian as the friend he always was.

"Why don't you give Christian a hug," Chris stage-whispered to him, "it looks like he could really use one."

"Okay," Sawyer whispered back before climbing off his chair and jogging over to Christian and climbing onto the couch to give him a big hug. Christian returned it gratefully and gave Chris an apologetic look. Chris rolled his eyes and nodded, prompting Christian to smile in relief at being forgiven by both the Jericho men. "Now do you want to hear me read?" Sawyer asked as he pulled away.

"Sure, I've got a few minutes, show me what you got."

Stephanie had a little over two week until her family was going overseas for a tour and subsequently, she had 3 Raws to train Hunter in whatever it was he thought he could do around here and 3 Raws to convince CM Punk to re-sign with the company. It might not seem daunting at first, but both objectives were nowhere near as easy as she figured they were going to be. The easier of the two was obviously going to be Hunter. She could find a place for him somewhere, Punk was the wildcard. He didn't bend to normal tactics and he was a guy who was very much independent. He didn't _need_ the WWE and while the WWE didn't necessarily _need_ him, it certainly wanted him.

"Hunter Hearst Helmsley reporting for duty, Ms. McMahon-Jericho," Hunter strolled into Stephanie's office, interrupting a meeting between her father, herself, and John Laurinaitis. "Sorry, I didn't know you were in a meeting."

"It's okay, take a seat," Stephanie gestured towards one of the free seats around her desk. Hunter gave a sheepish look as he sat down. "So the Punk situation really fell into your hands, John. I don't know what you did to screw it up this badly."

"I offered him what I thought was fair."

"And that obviously didn't work and you should have tried harder," Stephanie chided him. "Dad, you're not making any headway either and with the recent rash of departures, either from retirement or contracts running out, or whatever the reason, there's been a rash of departures of name guys and it's worrisome to the product in general. Yes, we need the young guys, but we need the veterans to get the fans watching so they can connect with the younger guys."

"Don't tell me how to run my company, Stephanie," Vince told her and she scoffed. "Maybe one of those departures could come back if-"

"Don't finish that sentence," Stephanie said, "I'm sick and tired of you trying to use me as a pawn to get Chris back here."

"Well, let's face it, he should be back, he never should have left in the first place."

"Is this really where this conversation is going to go?" Stephanie asked. "Is this really where you want to pick your battle?"

"All I'm saying is that if you gave him the word, if you asked him nicely, he would probably come back if for nothing than to please you. You're his wife and he presumably loves you."

"And now you're questioning his love for me," Stephanie guffawed as her jaw dropped open. "It's unbelievable how far you are willing to detract from the situation at hand to cover your own fallacies."

"I'm just saying-"

"No, what you're saying is that you don't want to take responsibility for the re-signing of someone who the fans enjoy watching and someone the fans-"

"Punk is…well, frankly, he's a punk," Vince said.

"He is a bit…much at times, but he can wrestle and people pay to see him. Cena has the child demographic, yes, and that brings us a lot of money of which I'm happy about, but there's a niche here for Punk, there's always been a niche here. The fans can relate to him in ways that nobody else can."

"Your husband could!" Vince protested and Stephanie was fuming and on the verge of reaching across the table and strangling her father. He always made her life difficult and that's why she tried to keep their interactions strictly superficial.

"Stop it with Chris, okay, he'll come back when he wants to and I'm not going to coerce him."

Hunter cleared his throat, "I've got to agree with Stephanie. I don't think it's right that she demand him to come back. I mean, he wouldn't do it anyways from what I know of him. I'm just saying that you shouldn't force the guy to come back."

"Look who's talking," Vince said, "what about you?"

"He'll have his place," Stephanie informed her father. "Look, I'm trying very hard to rectify the Punk situation, but you and John have both dropped the ball on this one and that's all I'm going to say about it. If this falls through…you know what, meeting over, we'll deal with this when it comes closer."

"You don't get to call the meeting over," Vince was petulant now.

"You're in my office, yes I do," Stephanie told him.

"This isn't over, Stephanie."

"It never is with you, Dad," Stephanie stood up and shooed them out of the office before she turned to Hunter. "Thanks for trying to defend me, I appreciate it."

"It looked like you could use the help."

"He was just being my dad," Stephanie shrugged. "Always trying to intimidate me. But this Punk thing is a really big signing and well, you know, we can't afford to lose anyone else or anything. It wouldn't look good to suddenly have this mass departure."

"I understand, so…what did you want me to do around here tonight? Do you want me to make the pitch to Punk, I might be able to talk him into re-signing."

"I love you, Hunter, but let's face it, you're the _last_ guy that would probably convince me," Stephanie joked and Hunter laughed because it was probably true. "For tonight, probably just work with me?"

"I can do that, where's Chris?"

"Probably glaring at Austin right now, trying to murder him with laser eyes," Stephanie said, "he wasn't happy having Austin here last week and he's even unhappier having Austin back again this week. He's still holding that over five year old grudge."

"It must get tiring for him."

"It does, but hopefully he's actually making a pitch for Punk to re-sign. I figured that he would be someone good to talk to Punk about things and maybe he'll convince him and everything," Stephanie said with hope in her voice.

What Hunter didn't know was that Stephanie had received a call this morning. A very interesting call to be exact, a call that was making the smile on her face and the hope in her voice very, very fake. Sure, she wanted Chris to talk to Punk and a few days ago, she'd wanted Chris to convince him to sign a new contract, but this morning, well, this morning had changed everything.

_Stephanie giggled as Chris tickled her sides, "Chris, I just woke up, don't do this to me!"_

"_I'm sorry, but I can't help it," he told her, grabbing her closer. "I can't resist you."_

"_Sure you can," Stephanie said as her cell phone rang. "What the hell? Who the hell could that be at 7:25 in the morning?"_

"_Don't answer it," Chris said, burying his face into Stephanie's neck. "Just ignore it."_

"_Could be important," she said, reaching over to her bedside and grabbing her phone. "It's Basil."_

"_The spice?" Chris joked, but then added off of Stephanie's look, "On the board? What does he want?"_

"_Well, I don't know, let me read his mind," she rolled her eyes then answered the phone. "Hello, Basil, what's going on? Is everything okay?"_

"_Stephanie, hello," the senior advisor greeted her, "I'm sorry to be calling so early, but the board minus your father had a meeting this morning, early, before work because we didn't want your father to hear about it, but we've been keeping an eye on him and we just wanted to let you know that we're monitoring him. You're the one we told because as we understand it, you're the next in line for the CEO position."_

"_Yes, that is correct," Stephanie said, "but why are you monitoring him?" _

"_We've just been concerned for the past few weeks with regards to the talent and the handling on the business end of things. We'll be assessing for a few more weeks, but in the event that your father is deemed incompetent, the official power would then go to you."_

_The wheels were already turning in her head. "So in effect you would oust my father?"_

"_In a manner of speaking, yes, he would be relieved of most his duties, he could remain as figurehead, but only that as the power would then pass onto you. You're more than competent, Stephanie, the entire board knows this."_

"_I understand," Stephanie told him. "Thank you for informing me, I think it best we keep this from my father, you know how irate he gets…as an aside, you're seeing whether he can keep CM Punk around?"_

"_That is a factor, yes. It's been brought to our attention that there's some dissent among talent and your father hasn't exactly been taking care of this in what we deem a quick matter."_

"_Okay, well, I hope that my father can turn things around," she responded what she felt she should. _

"_We'll be in touch, Stephanie."_

"_Yes, thank you, Basil, have a wonderful day."_

"_You too, Stephanie, goodbye."_

"_Goodbye."_

"_Stephanie, what was that about?" Chris asked._

"_About that talk with Punk," Stephanie turned to him, "I think we have to revise it."_

Chris knocked on CM Punk's dressing room door. He wanted to look intimidating, but with all the kids around him, he probably looked more like a big playground. Punk answered the door a moment later and just stared at Chris. "What do you want?"

"Hi," Flynn said, "I know you."

"I know you too," Punk said and gave a slight smile. The kid was charming, what could he say?

"Stephanie wants to talk to you."

"I don't want to talk about the contract, okay, I told you guys what was up and I'm sick and tired of talking about it," Punk went to close the door, but Chris put his hand on it to keep from closing.

"You'll want to hear what she has to say," Chris told him.

"Why?"

"I can't tell you out here," Chris said, "but if you come to Stephanie's office."

"You going to beat me up because I dared insult your wife?" Punk asked. "Is that how you work around here?"

"No, it's not," Chris told him.

"My daddy is nice, don't be a bully," Sawyer said and Chris laughed and even Punk had to laugh at that.

"Okay, I have a feeling you're going to use your cute kids to get me to agree so I'll be there in ten, is that alright with you?"

"Yes, just make sure you show up," Chris said, then gathered up his kids and went back to Stephanie's office to find it empty save for Stephanie. "Hey, so did you have the meeting with your dad?"

"I did and it went perfectly," Stephanie told him. "Everything is looking good so far. I'm really happy with what's going on. Is Punk coming?"

"He said he'll be here in ten," he said, putting Kensington into her playpen, where she promptly smashed her face against the netting on the side, trying to get out so he lifted her back out and put her on the blanket with her brother and sister, which made her much happier was she tried to crawl into Sawyer's lap and read his book with him. Sawyer, ever the nice brother, let her and then started reading to her. "You're sure you want this?"

"It's time," Stephanie told him. "It's time for me to stop hanging back. The opportunity has presented itself and I'd be a fool not to take it."

"But with Europe, you can't go now."

"Of course I can," Stephanie nodded. "It makes it look even less like I'm planning this if I'm not here to oversee it. If I'm here, my dad is going to know, I have to go now. I want to go, you know that, going in the first place never had anything to do with this business. It was always because I wanted to go with you, you know that, right?"

"I know. And _you_ know that I don't want that position, right? When it does happen, you know that I still want to do my music and all of that for now, right?"

"I know," she echoed. "I don't have the spot for you anyways, but if you ever want…it's open to you."

He was about to respond when Punk walked in, earlier than he said he was. He nodded towards Stephanie and then sat down. "Chris said you wanted to see me."

"I do," she told him. "As I understand it, you don't want to re-sign."

"I don't," Punk said, "your dad and John have made it perfectly clear I'm not a top priority and I'm not happy."

"I respect that," Stephanie said, "and I don't think you should re-sign."

"What?" Now Punk was surprised and he was thinking that this was some sort of reverse psychology thing. "You're not going to talk me into it by using psychological warfare, Stephanie. I'm smarter than that, I _invented_ that."

"You didn't, but okay," Stephanie said, "and I'm not using warfare on you. You're not what I want to target. I don't want you to re-sign because it benefits me. See, I can be honest with you. My father is under scrutiny from the board and if he is deemed incompetent, he's out and I'm in. I want in, Phil." He was chuffed that she used his real name. "I want it. I've waited years to have the power, the _real_ power, not the power that my dad has bestowed on me whenever his whim dictates. I'm tired of being dicked around by him. The board has almost taken it out of my hands and I'm not an idiot so I'm grabbing at it. One of the things they're looking at is how he handles you. That's where you come in. You not re-signing works perfectly for me."

"Why? So your dad looks incompetent because he doesn't have to do much to look like that," Punk said.

"It'll help," Stephanie said, "so what I want to do is I want you to take the WWE championship out of the company. I will get you a match with John and you will win that match with John-"

"What, you've paid him off?"

"No, of course not, but I know you can beat him. You're a better wrestler."

"God, it's time someone noticed."

"I'm married to a wrestler, a damn good one," Stephanie smiled at Chris, "so I know that Cena bugs the hell out of you because he's got everything that you think should be yours and he only has try half as hard in that ring. It eats you up inside. That's why you'll beat and when you do, you'll take the championship with you."

"You honestly want me to take that belt out of this company?"

"For now, you'll be back I'm sure," she told him, "but yes, I want you to take it. I don't want anything to mess up my father being taken out and me being put in. Losing the biggest championship of them all, having it gone from the company, they'll have him out faster than you can say CM Punk tricked him."

"So what do I do until then?" Punk asked.

"For now, nothing, I don't want wind of this getting out. But then I want you to do whatever the hell you want to do to make it look like you want to be anywhere but here. I'll have my man on the inside. He's already being trained and he doesn't even know it."

Punk glanced between Chris and Stephanie and Chris spoke up, "Yeah, I know, she's kind of scary when she gets like this."

"So you just want to use to get your father out so you can take over. What makes you think you'll be better?"

"What makes you think I'll be worse?" Stephanie countered and Punk had to admire her. He'd known Stephanie to be a manipulative bitch, but he'd never seen her more manipulative than she was now. "Don't get me wrong, I love my father as my father, but this is business and in business, you have no friends or family, my father's proved that time and time again when he's put me in matches and choked out with wrenches and had me beaten up. Tit for tat."

"How do you know he won't know what's going on?"

"Because I'll be in Europe with my husband and kids and having the time of my life and he won't know that I'll still be here and I have more than enough people who are willing to help me."

"You've neglected to think of one thing though, Stephanie," Punk told her.

"What's that?"

"That I have to _agree_ with this plan," Punk sat back in his chair and gave her a smug look. "And I might not want to."

Stephanie laughed and Chris knew that laugh, he was scared of that laugh. It was the laugh that said that Stephanie was absolutely in charge and that she was going to drop the bomb on you in t-minus 5…4…3…2…1…

"You have no choice."

"Yes, I do," Punk said, "if my contract runs out, yes I do."

"Oh, that's not the problem," Stephanie said. "If you'll recall several months ago, almost six to be exact, you came to me and you wanted something. You wanted my help to get it and I gave it to you and you owed me. I'm cashing in, Punk, consider this my Money in the Bank briefcase, you're familiar with those, right? You've used them enough. You owe me."

She had him. He couldn't believe it, but she had him and she was right. She was absolutely right. He had owed her a favor and she was cashing it in. He'd completely forgotten about that, it'd been months and months ago. But this was Stephanie and she kept tabs apparently. Boy did she keep tabs.

"So I think we have a deal?" Stephanie gave him a smile that was far too calm for the situation. He nodded.

"We have a deal."


	329. So It Begins, June 20, 2011

"Thank God the nightmare that was Austin is gone this week."

Stephanie rolled her eyes. "It's been over five years!"

"Don't care, if I could get that guy in the ring right now, believe me, I'd make a comeback," Chris said, "I'd challenge him to a street fight in fact, a non-commissioned match like with Shawn. Yes, that's what I'd do."

"Chris, please, seriously, we're having company over tonight."

"I know we're having company and I'm helping, but I can gripe, right?" Chris said. "And this week's Power to the People thing, what's that about, it's just Taboo Tuesday with a new name, where the hell does your dad come up with this crap?"

"Chris, calm down," Stephanie said as she sat on top of the counter. Chris was the one cooking dinner tonight because she was terrible at cooking. She was just watching as the kids watched a video in the other room, being quiet for once. "This is why we're getting rid of my father. I'm not saying that I won't have the occasional bad idea-"

"Whoa, can I get the video camera so I can tape you saying that?" Chris asked. "I think that's the first time you've ever said that you could come up with a bad idea even though we've done stuff like pretending to want to get a divorce."

"Shut up," she said good-naturedly as she rolled her eyes and swung her legs. "It might not be so bad and you don't have anything to do with it so what does it even matter to you? You're not even wrestling so it's not like you're going to be put into a stupid match. Hey, remember when…I think it was Hunter who was in that blindfold match and had to wear that bag over his head?"

"I think that was Hunter," Chris chuckled. "I should find tape of that and show it to the kids so they can tease Hunter mercilessly. I think they'll really enjoy that."

"_They'll_ really enjoy that or _you'll_ really enjoy that?"

"The beauty is that it'll be both."

"You're so kind and see, you're not going to be in something like that so you should quit complaining. You can only complain about it when you are actually back with the company and even then, I think your complaints are going to fall on deaf ears."

"Yeah, until the next time you come onto me looking for sex and I tell you that I'm not in the mood."

"The good thing about you being a guy is that I can very much tell when you're in the mood and if you're not, this," she held up her hand, "can do the trick very nicely. And then this," she pointed her mouth, "can get you even more riled up and then-"

"I know where this is going," he glanced down at her lower half and she nodded with a wink. "Then I'll just have to go into one of the kids' rooms before you even try any of this because there's no way you'd even try something like that with them around."

"Damn kids," Stephanie mutter playfully.

"Oh, that's nice, Steph, just damn our kids right here and now," Chris told her with a shake of his head as he checked his lasagna in the oven. It was looking good, but not quite to where he wanted it. He walked over to Stephanie and stood in between her legs. "Okay, so tell me again, you want to put Hunter in charge of things up front?"

"I want him to be like…the puppet," Stephanie said. "Britt absolutely does not ever want to be on TV, I don't blame her, she said that if she went out there knowing there were thousands of eyes on her and millions at home, she'd freeze so she never wants to be out there. The fans have been clamoring for Hunter to come back, you saw what happened at WrestleMania, they want him, nobody wants me."

"I want you and plenty of other people want you. I'm telling you, baby, if you got a Twitter account, you would have thousands and thousands of followers within minutes. People would go nuts, they'd love you, they'd praise you every second of every day and shower you with love and tweets and fanart and you'd see."

"That's all well and good," she told him, placing her hands on his shoulders, "but that's the minority. What I have to do is make sure that the fans know that there's someone on their side so to speak. You refuse to come back-"

"I never outright refused," he corrected her.

"So if I were to ask you to come back right now, tell you that I wanted you back and that I would give you the head position of day-to-day operations and you could do _whatever_ you wanted, that you would have hiring/firing privileges and everything, would you come back?"

"No."

She guffawed, "I knew it, see, you're refusing."

"I'm not refusing per se," he told her, "I'm just…I'm enjoying what I'm doing right now. I'm enjoying making music that people like. And I love touring because it's more intimate than wrestling. I get to interact with the fans on my _own_ terms, you know what I mean and when we're at a venue, it just feels different and I like it. The ring closes you off to people..."

"I'm not asking you why one thing is better than the other. I'm not even mad that you're taking time off. I'm happy that you're happy," she told him, leaning her head down a little and looking into his eyes. "I want you to be happy and if that's not wrestling, I have to learn to understand that even if I really, really don't."

He laughed and kissed her, tilting his head to the side and squeezing her waist a little. "I love wrestling and I love you and I love all that madness, but I just want to focus right now and until this whole thing kind of blows over…I want my return to be something that isn't overshadowed by you staging a coup on your father."

"Well, thanks for letting me have the spotlight, anyways, the fans want Hunter back and this is a way to do it but he'll only really be my puppet in the end. I'll have to make him sympathetic and you understand that we may have to keep up appearances, right?'

"Wait, what? Keep up appearances?"

"The last time I was on TV, I was the man's wife," Stephanie said, "I can't suddenly be like, hey, we were joking-"

"Stephanie, everyone and their mother has seen my book."

"Oh yeah, this does present a problem," Stephanie said, rubbing her chin. "Well, we'll come to that bridge when we come to it, maybe we'll just act like we are on TV, I mean, Undertaker acts like he's something supernatural right and he's not."

"That we know of," Chris said, looking off to the side. He'd never be fully convinced that there wasn't something strange with the Undertaker. There was just this presence that he had that was creepy. His whole family was just a big bunch of creeps.

"Oh yeah, I'm sure he's stirring his cauldron right now," Stephanie told him sarcastically. "All I'm saying is that it might be necessary to put up a front and that's okay, people will know that we're acting, it'll be a whole thing. But we don't even know that yet. Every bridge when we come to it. Right now that biggest thing is making sure the transition is smooth."

"And that your father doesn't hunt you down."

"He wouldn't," Stephanie said, "I'm still his daughter. I stood to inherit the company after he retired anyways, what with Shane resigning and getting this whole new life that doesn't revolve around wrestling, but that's his loss and ultimately my gain. So if this thing with Punk goes through then we're in the clear and the company is mine…I mean, ours."

"No, I think you were right the first time when you said that the company would be _yours_, let's not make any pretenses about that one, shall we? We all know that _you'll _be in charge and I'll just be that dude along for the ride."

"But doesn't it sound good, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, President and CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment?"

"It does have a certain ring to it." Stephanie had been nearly beaming since she'd heard the news that her father's job was at stake and she was the one putting the final nail in the coffin. It wasn't so much revenge (though that was part of it to be sure) but it was just something she wanted so badly.

"I feel bad dragging you along to Europe now so you can't actually bask in the glory of your takeover."

"Oh, I will," Stephanie said, "Money in the Bank is where it's all going to happen. We need time to let it slowly build, let Punk get all agitated…I should really wait until he gets here to discuss this with the both of you, well, him since it'll be his job to do all of this."

"What are you going to do with the title once it's gone though? Won't that kind of be a huge mess?"

"No, because we'll crown a new one…and I've got a few other tricks up my sleeve," Stephanie said. "I'm going to re-sign Punk and nobody is going to know about it. He'll get his time off of course, but…well, I've got to keep things low for now so my dad never suspects that I have anything to do with this. But then, when I single-handedly get Punk to come back, well then, I look like the hero."

"One of these days, I'd just love to crawl inside your brain," he told her. "I really want to know what goes on in there. I just picture some really dark places, places that I really don't want to see, but I kind of have to see what kind of brain I really married."

"You don't want to get in here," she told him. "Believe me. Anyways, I'll save the rest of this for later, but don't worry, I'll bask in it. Well, no, I'll quietly bask in it so my father doesn't know that I had it planned, but we can certainly celebrate."

"Who's having a party?" Sawyer asked as he came into the kitchen and went straight for the fridge to grab a juice box. "Are we having a party?"

"No, we were just talking about when we go to Europe and everyone is going to have fun watching Daddy with his concert," Stephanie told him. Sawyer was old enough now that he could tell everything, but had no real filter to keep anything in. Long gone were the days where he didn't pick up on the conversations going on around him.

"Oh, is Daddy singing like a party?" Sawyer asked as he sipped at his juice.

"It's kind of like a party," Chris said, "I perform and everyone cheers and sings along. You're not going to come to every single one of my concerts, but Mommy has consented to let you go to a few."

"Why can't we go to all of them?" Sawyer asked.

"Because they're very, very loud and being around loud stuff too much can really hurt your ears," Stephanie told him. "So when we go, we're going to have to wear earplugs so that it won't be too loud for us, especially for Kensy. Her ears are very sensitive still because she's just a baby."

"Oh, I see," Sawyer said. "I still want to see you though, Daddy, because I think that you're going to be really good because I saw you before and you were really good even though Mommy said that you say lots of bad words and that's not something that little boys should say."

"She's right, it's only for grown-ups," he told her. "Are your sisters okay in there?"

"Flynnie is watching and she likes it and Kensy is in her playpen and she's eating her book again. She's weird."

"She just likes chewing on things because she has teeth now," Stephanie explained.

"Oh…it's still weird," he said, wandering back into the other room, leaving Stephanie and Chris alone.

"God, I want to bring that kid out on stage," Chris said, "I know I can't because well, I can't, but wouldn't he make the cutest like backup dancer or something, an opening act. I mean, I'd bring him out there and the crowd would just love the hell out of him."

"Of course they would, he's Sawyer," she said, "Everyone loves him. I kind of think Punk has a soft spot for kids. It's jut this hunch I get. From what you told me about what the kids were saying and how I've seen him act with Flynn and how I've seen him act with some of the Make-a-Wish kids, I think he's really a big softie underneath that tough exterior."

"So what you're trying to say is that I should prepare myself for when you use our kids as pawns in your scheme to get Punk to re-sign secretly."

"You know me too well, almost frighteningly well," she told him. "I'm not sure I like that development. I should be able to still hold some cards close to my vest. But I think that if I present myself as this doting mother, as a really good person, he'll crack under me."

"You are a doting mother and a good person to the kids."

"Well, he doesn't know that, but I'm going to show him and maybe Sawyer or Flynn will say something cute and he'll be more receptive to me when I talk about re-signing a contract with the company. It's obviously not totally about the money with him, but I think that's a big part. I don't think it's so much _how_ much he gets, but that he gets what he thinks he deserves. I have to appeal to that and come across as someone he can trust. Right now, I'm not, I'm the bitch who has him cornered. So please, please be good tonight."

"I will and just to show you how good I can be, I'm going to go coax Kensy to make Punk, CM Punk, or straight edge to be her first words, do you think I can do that in half an hour?" he glanced at the clock.

"It would help the cause."

"Please, you have him right where you want him and you know it. I don't know how you consistently do it, but you have a lot more power than you think you do. I think it's because you're a woman and you use your womanly wiles to get men to do what you want. But seriously, look at your track record, everyone you've ever wanted to do something for you has done it, even me."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked.

"It means when we were business partners. I hated your guts and yet, when we were together, there I was doing everything for you and not even really complaining, which isn't me," Chris told her. "I don't know how you do it, but you get everyone to do your bidding."

"I'm observant," she shrugged.

"That's it?"

"That's pretty much it, yes," Stephanie said, "I know how to prey on someone's weaknesses. Like Randy, when he wanted to quit Evolution, it was so obvious that he was tired of sitting in the dark, standing behind Hunter and Flair and Batista, it was so obvious that all he wanted was the recognition so I played with that. You look for what you can manipulate. I was lucky with Punk though because he did owe me, but I also knew that he's not that type of guy who wouldn't honor that kind of agreement."

"Yeah, he really does seem to like his honor," Chris nodded. "He's really stuck by the straight edge thing, which I never could have done so I've got to give him his props for that one."

"What? You mean you couldn't go without your precious GG," Stephanie rolled her eyes. "You and that stupid drink, if only the fans and your loyal Jerichoholics knew that you hardly ever really drink it and only do it so you look cooler. If they only knew that instead of GG, your usually drink is FP for the copious amounts of fruit punch our children drink…"

"How do you know I don't spike my drink?" Chris asked her playfully as he went to stick the garlic bread in their second oven.

"Because I would know because when you get really drunk you get really horny," she shrugged at him. "But Punk just doesn't want to drink and all the more power to him. I'm not one to knock on someone's lifestyle because I wouldn't want people to knock mine."

"Okay," he threw over his shoulder. "I still can't believe you're staging a real coup on your dad I figured one day it might happen, but I guess now that it's here I'm just really surprised. Do you realize in a couple month's time, you're going to be running the company, for real. You are going to push your dad into retirement. Wow…"

"It's like in medieval times or whenever, when the son had to push the father off the throne, that's simply what I'm doing here and it's really time," Stephanie said, "my father has never given me the power that I deserve so now is the time to take it away from him."

"We haven't really discussed yet whether or not we think your dad is going to be mad over this," he told her. "I mean, we have to face the fact that your dad probably doesn't _want_ to be pushed out of the spotlight. This is Vincent Kennedy McMahon and your dad has been running things for a long time. I mean, he'd probably just die in that ring if he could."

"I realize that," she said, but she didn't really want to think too long and too hard about it. She knew that her father wasn't going to be pleased over the development or the impending decision on his future. Her father was a proud man, someone who thought that he knew what was best for him, his family, his company, and everything else he could get his hands on. This could devastate him, but it could also force him into something better…maybe. "Best case scenario, he doesn't hate me, but is still upset."

"And worst case?"

"He'll disown me and then try to sue me for the company, perhaps trying to get Shane to quit his job and come back," she said. "I think my mom will be behind us though. I mean, I'm not telling her what I'm doing, she'd hate it, but after the board decides, I think we can persuade her that it's the right decision. We can tell her that he'll have more time around the house, they'll have time to travel and actually stay in one place for more than a couple days, plus they have that vacation home in Miami that they love and they have six grandchildren to dote over."

"Yeah, that's true, but that's what your _mom_ sees, what does your dad see?"

"Well, he has the yacht and he and my mom love sailing and he loves his grandkids too. Whatever we do to him, he loves them so maybe he'll see this as an opportunity to settle down. After working hard for decades and decades, it's good for him to take this break."

"Good for you, you mean," he joked and she narrowed her eyes at him. "Sorry, it was just there for the taking and I had to take it."

"Why don't you just check on your garlic bread," she told him and his eyes widened as he remembered that he should check on it. He lifted the oven door and checked to see that it was nice and bubbly, but not quite done. He closed the door again and turned back to Stephanie.

"But I don't know that your dad knows how to relax."

"He'll learn, he'll have plenty of time. I mean, he can't be so naïve as to believe he really will just work up until the end. I understand that someday, in the far, far, far off future, one of my kids or one of Shane's kids, but really, one of our kids, is going to take over for me and I'll have to accept that.

"I'm betting it'll be Sawyer, I'll bet you right now."

"What are the stakes?" she asked him.

"I don't know, ultimate control over our retirement?" he joked.

"Fine, sure," Stephanie said, "but I think it'll be Sawyer too, so it's not really much of a bet. I mean, of our kids, he's the one with the best head on his shoulders, at least right now, I don't know what Kensy will be like, she's a wildcard. Flynn will probably pull a Flair and wrestle until she simply can't anymore."

"Flynn would actually probably make a really good owner, she's like you," Chris said, "she's headstrong so she'll definitely get what she wants and…wait a minute, I'm debating whether or not our five year old or our almost three year old is going to take over the company that isn't even _yours_ yet."

Stephanie laughed, "You're right, we're thinking way too far ahead."

"Just a tiny bit," he laughed. The doorbell rang and Stephanie's eyes widened. "Well, are you ready to get down to business or what?"

"I am," Stephanie nodded, "I just hope he's willing to buy what I'm willing to sell…that came out wrong."

"So you didn't mean to sound like a hooker?" Chris told her. "That's good to know because I was going to say, I must be doing something right that I don't have to pay at the end of the night, but then I was like, wait, I have live with you and raise the kids and that's not a fair deal at all."

"Very funny," she hopped off the counter, "I better get that before one of the kids does."

"You know, I really think Punk has a soft spot for the kids so having one of them answer the door might not be a bad idea," Chris said, "I can be manipulative too, you know. Just because you are the _most_ manipulative one in this family doesn't mean you're the _only_ manipulative one."

"I didn't say you weren't," Stephanie said, heading into the living room really quick to pluck Kensington from her playpen. "You're coming with me, gorgeous girl." Kensington smiled at her and Stephanie made a funny face. "Save it for the guest."

Stephanie went to the door and then opened it, smiling as CM Punk looked slightly uncomfortable. Kensington took this moment to blow a raspberry and it seemed to put Punk at ease as he smiled at the baby. Oh yeah, Punk definitely had a soft spot for kids. It wasn't a bad thing, it actually humanized him a little bit. She didn't know what it was about CM Punk that made him seem so…unapproachable, but he was. There was a standoffish quality about him, but he seemed to enjoy being around kids.

"Hey," Stephanie said brightly. "Thank you so much for coming over. I thought it would be less suspicious if we didn't meet at work because then it'd be like, why is Stephanie meeting secretly with Punk."

"Um, I guess I understand, hi, Kensington," he said to the baby, who scrunched up her face, squinting one eye in his direction.

"You can call her Kensy, everyone else does," Stephanie told him, wanting to make him feel at ease and like she could be trusted. "But come on in, welcome to our house."

"Chris Jericho and Stephanie McMahon's house," Punk stepped inside the foyer. "This is a trip. I feel kind of like Chris did when Vince and his honchos met with him at what I guess was your house."

"You've read Chris's first book," Stephanie said knowingly.

"And the second, kind of sappy if you ask me, but whatever," Punk said aloofly.

"I get it, because he talked about me a lot," she told him, taking a moment to roll her eyes. "This isn't to make you feel intimidated, Punk."

"You can call me Phil," he sad, "but only when we're in this house or my house, I guess, not that I'm inviting you to Chicago."

"I wasn't expecting you to," she told him, "but please do feel welcome, that I do want. I'm not as scary as I make myself out to be, believe me, that's business and in business, you have to act like that, but I'm at home and so I'm going to act like I'm at home."

"You're still kind of scary."

"Well, I'm still Stephanie McMahon," she shrugged, "come on in."

Punk looked around the house. It was about what he expected from somewhere that Chris Jericho lived. He just figured Chris would make something feel lived in. Stephanie was something else. He never knew what to expect from that woman. He'd been surprised that she'd actually called him out like she had last week. He would have wagered to bet that Stephanie had forgotten that she was owed a favor. He obviously would have lost that bet Nothing went past her and she was just so hard to read sometimes.

The house was large, he expected that, but it wasn't as large as he thought a house owned by any of the McMahons would be. He'd been to Vince and Linda's once and it was gigantic. He just expected the same out of Stephanie's home. He figured there would be three stories and fifty bedrooms and more closets than in his entire apartment building. The house was still large though and he figured there was probably something like six or seven bedrooms. Extravagance, he rolled his eyes at that, but then remembered that Chris and Stephanie had three kids and who knew how more they'd have since they seemed to have them all the time.

"Punk, what's up?" Chris walked out of what he presumed was the kitchen. "Dinner's almost ready."

"You're cooking?"

"I always cook, unless you want to be poisoned tonight, yeah, I'm cooking," Chris said. "Come on in though, make yourself comfortable, I'm sure Stephanie wants to talk to you a bit before dinner."

"I figured as much."

"Follow me."

Punk followed Chris into the living room, which was sunken a little as he had to walk down two steps to get into it. Sawyer and Flynn were watching a video and Kensington was in Stephanie's lap, playing with her mother's hands. Punk took the lead and sat down next to Stephanie, with his back to Sawyer.

"Hi, CM Punk," Sawyer told him. "Mommy and Daddy said you're coming for dinner, I hope you have a good time. You can be my friend if you want to."

"Thanks," Punk turned to him a little. "You can't have too many friends, right?"

"I have lots of friends," Sawyer told him, "I don't mind having you as a friend too, but only if you want to and if you're nice because I don't like mean people because they are mean and shouldn't have friends unless they're mean too."

"I guess that makes sense."

"What doing here?" Flynn asked, seeing the man with the drawings all over him again. She walked over and grabbed his arm again. She liked to look at them a lot, there were just so many. "I draw on you?"

"I don't think so," Punk told her. "I don't think there's room on my arm for it, you see how many tattoos I have."

"Lots and lots," Flynn told him, "Daddy have dis too."

"I saw that he had a new one," Punk told her.

"Yours pretty," Flynn rubbed her cheek on his arm and he actually laughed. It was just too ridiculously cute to resist laughing at. Flynn laughed because Punk was laughing and even her laugh was adorable. He was such a sucker for children. He was sure Stephanie was taking note of this and filing it away for future use. She was wily.

"Well, thanks."

"I get some, Mommy?" Flynn asked hopefully. She wanted pretty pictures on her arms too. She would look great with them, maybe she could even draw her own, maybe this guy had drawn his own too.

"I don't think so, Flynnie," Stephanie told her.

"You draw dis?" Flynn asked Punk.

"No, I had someone else draw them for me," he explained to her. "That's usually what you do, have someone else draw it for you and then they put it on your arm or wherever else for you. But you should probably wait until you're older if you're going to get them, kids with tattoos really aren't all that cool."

"Oh," Flynn nodded seriously. She refused to let go of Punk's arm though and just kept turning it over and over again so she could see all the pictures.

Punk turned to Stephanie, "So…you've kind of got me trapped here into helping you so I might as well get it over with, right? So what is it that you exactly want me to do?"

"First and foremost, I want you to re-sign with me," Stephanie said. Punk was about to open his mouth and Stephanie cut him off, "I'm willing to meet your demands, but you have to be willing to meet mine."

"So you're saying if I give you what you want, which is apparently your dad's job, then you'll give me what I want?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying."

"I can't believe you hate your dad that much."

"I don't hate my father," Stephanie was quick to say and it was the truth. "We may have many differences, but I've never said that I hated him and I don't hate him. My father has done a lot of bad stuff to me in my day, he has, but at the end of the day, I love him for being my father, even if he wasn't the best. This is strictly about the business and what I think I can bring to the table in opposition to my father."

"You McMahons are so eager to just step all over each other," Punk shook his head. "I don't get it, I would never behave that way with my family."

Stephanie shrugged. "You grow up in a tough environment, you learn to survive. That's just how I am and I'm willing to do what it takes to get what I want, my father will not begrudge that of me. He might be mad I'm taking over, but he can't be mad by the means in which I do it."

"Okay, so what do you want me to do? And I'm only doing this because you're giving me the money I deserve. You know, there are a lot of guys on the roster that deserve to get matches, that deserve the chance to get a title."

"Yes, there are, but we don't give anything away on the show," Stephanie said, "look at you for instance, you're dynamic, you see what you want and you go ahead and grab it, these guys that you claim aren't getting the matches they deserve need to step it up if that's what they want. You don't want guys to get handed things on a silver platter."

"Some guys do…and I'm not saying your husband, it's well-documented that he doesn't like your assistance, but look at Rock for example, I mean, he comes in and doesn't wrestler, isn't on the shows, but he has a main event at WrestleMania? How is that fair, Stephanie?"

"In a lot of ways, it's not, but in some ways, it is. We are slaves to the ratings. We have to do what we need to, to keep sponsors. If we get someone like Rocky, who has drawing power times a million, the ratings go up, the sponsors pay more and ultimately, we are able to pay _you_ more. Having him appear is part of the fuel that keeps us going. I know it's not fair to everyone, but it's the nature of the beast. The Rock being on the show means I'm able to give you the money that you think you deserve."

He didn't want to admit that she _may_ be right so he kept his mouth shut, "So really, can we get on with what you want me to do?"

"Sawyer, can you go help Daddy set the table and get dinner ready?" Stephanie asked.

"Do I have to?" he whined. "I don't wanna."

"You don't _have_ to, but it would be a nice thing to do for me, but if you don't want to, I can't make you," she said.

"Fine," he said, getting up and walking into the kitchen.

"What kind of witch are you? How do you just get everyone to do everything you want?" Punk asked, looking at her strangely.

Stephanie shrugged, "I just needed him out of here because he's old enough to tell everyone what's going on and while I love him, if he did that, I'd have to ground him and I'm not even sure how you ground a five year old. Anyways, basically what I said the other night, I want you to act like you don't want to be here, that you're intent on leaving and because of that, you will do whatever you want to do."

"So go completely off the rails?"

"If you want, I don't really care what you say. You can insult me and Chris all you want, it'll make it look more real if you include us in your tirades or whatever you're planning, you can hijack the show, I don't really care, just give me a heads up, but vague so I can look really surprised whenever you do pull whatever you're thinking. I'm really giving you free reign here, so don't screw it up."

"Okay, so if I sign, won't it make everything moot?"

"No, because nobody will know except me and my lawyers. I've long learned to have my own set of lawyers independent of the company's. Anyways, you'll re-sign, but only Chris, the lawyers, and a few select people, like Britt, will know."

"So then if I win the title, what happens then?"

"There are no ifs, you'll win, I'm sure of it," Stephanie said, "but then, I want you to take the belt and leave. This will make the board furious. There's no way that my dad will keep his position in that case."

"So then what?"

"So then you just act like you're the champion and then when the time is right, you'll come back, I'll look like the hero who brought you back and everything will be right in the world," Stephanie explained. "I'm only giving you the most general of outlines here. The nuances will have to be decided later of course."

"Of course," Punk nodded. "You really think this will work."

"If we all play it like we're meant to play it, then yes," Stephanie said. "The pieces are already falling into place. I'll communicate with you via phone when I'm over in Europe and nobody will be the wiser about what's going on."

"How do you think you can improve the product though?"

"I don't think with my dick for one," Stephanie said and Punk laughed, then looked at Flynn, but Flynn wasn't even paying attention, she was examining his elbow. "I just think that I can be fairer or at least I can try to be. To be honest, I don't know how I'm going to work out because I've never held this modicum of power before, but I think I can do better than my father did and that's all I can really say at this point."

"Okay, well, we'll see then, don't make me regret signing with you…even if it is slightly against my will."

"I don't think you will," Stephanie said.

"Dinner!" Chris called out.

"I think that's our cue."

Punk didn't want to admit that he liked Stephanie and Chris because well, he didn't, okay, so he kind of did, but they were different when they weren't at work. Punk had never really had a problem with Chris before, they just didn't really run in the same circles, but Chris had never been one of those guys that treated anyone differently because they weren't a champion or something. It was just one of those situations where something didn't turn out as bad as you thought.

He still had his reservations about Stephanie, but it was mostly to do with how ruthless she appeared. He'd heard about her scheming, had seen some of her plans, but to see it up close was something else entirely. She was actually kind of scary. She could go from being scary and in charge to this loving mother in no time flat. He'd seen it firsthand over dinner. She was discussing taking over for her father and then she'd picked up Kensington and Flynn for dinner and showering them with kisses that made them giggle. It was such a stark contrast that he found himself almost intrigued by her.

They'd already planned tonight out. Punk was going to demand a match for Money in the Bank with Cena and after he'd beaten Mysterio the night before, he felt entitled to face Cena, at least that's what he was telling the fans. Not that he didn't think he deserved the match, he obviously believed he deserved the match, but the fans would never see it that way. The fans were always cheering for the wrong guys, the guys that made funny faces, said funny things and somehow got more screentime than he did. Cena was the personification of that ideology.

The one element of Stephanie's plan that she couldn't control was the anonymous GM, at least that he knew of. He wasn't convinced that she or Chris weren't the anonymous GM. After finding out everything Stephanie was capable of, he wouldn't be surprised if she had her hand in the cookie jar with this one either. She and Chris feigned innocence, but were they really innocent? He called out the GM though and said he wouldn't leave the ring until he got his match. He could be petulant. If the anonymous GM was Chris or Stephanie, they would surely give him the match so he wasn't worried about that.

The GM asked him to leave the ring, but he was getting the match by any means necessary and this would be a perfect opportunity to take Stephanie's advice to task and so he didn't leave and instead started making snow angels. That was a nice message of who gives a fuck to anyone and everyone watching, including the board. It occurred to him then that this bad boy thing could actually be a lot of fun. Stephanie had told him to go all out and do whatever he wanted and that could seriously work to his advantage if he played it right.

"Steph, I love you-"

"Whoa, man, you _love_ her?" Chris asked, staring pointedly at Hunter.

"Okay, I love her in a platonic way that is not indicative of any past romantic liaisons, is that better?" Hunter asked.

"Yes, much, thank you," Chris said as he stood near the door, as if standing guard.

"So Steph, seriously, you really have me doing nothing around here and you told me that you would find a place for me."

"There _will_ be a place for you," Stephanie said, "believe me, okay, just…I don't want to count my chickens before they hatch and I don't want to get your hopes up on what I'm going to have you do."

"Okay, what are you two planning?"

"I can't discuss it here," Stephanie said, nodding towards Sawyer and Flynn.

"You want to take a walk with me?" Hunter asked.

"Where?"

"Outside to the parking garage. It's quiet, it's isolated, everything will be away from any prying ears if that's what you're so worried about," Hunter said.

"Trips, did you know that I'm going to Europe soon?" Sawyer said as he walked over to Hunter.

"I did, tough guy, I'm going to miss you."

"I'll bring you back a present," Sawyer told him.

"Thanks."

"See what I mean about not being private," Stephanie said, "come on, let's walk and talk."

"I'll see you later, tough guy," Hunter ruffled Sawyer's hair as he walked out of the room, letting Stephanie go ahead of him. They walked and made small talk until they were in the parking garage and then Stephanie pulled them over to the production trucks that were sitting around. "Okay, what's going on? You keep claiming that you have a place for me, but I'm starting to think you really don't."

"I'm taking over," Stephanie told him.

"What are you taking over?"

"Everything," Stephanie said with such determination that it stunned Hunter.

"I don't understand."

"The board is following my dad closely, any more screw-ups and he's out as the President and I'll be in, it'll all be mine, I'll be in control, everything will go through _me_, not my dad, not anymore."

"Whoa, but how are you going to do that? I mean, he hasn't really done anything _bad_, has he?"

"Punk re-signing is a big thing right now. The board doesn't like how he's handling all these veterans leaving or not re-signing or retiring. They feel the product and the stock is suffering and this falls under my dad's jurisdiction."

"So he has to try hard to get Punk to sign and then he's in the clear."

"You really think I don't have that covered?" Stephanie said. "Punk is under my thumb right now, he's working with me. We have a plan and at the end of this plan will be me getting the company, finally. It's time for me to take charge. It's time for me to be the one who makes the decisions."

"Okay, so, you're crazy for one," Hunter said, "but where do I fit in?"

"I'm going to be busy behind the scenes, I can't do everything and Chris has Fozzy right now and that's where his heart is for now so wrestling for him is not really a thing he wants to do, but you…you want a desk job. When I become the President, I'll be handling the business end, Britt will be handling the backstage and you…you're going to be my figurehead."

"What?"

"You're going to be the one out there, running things, mostly for show, mind you because I will be deciding things, but you're going to have a huge hand in running things, are you up for it?"

"You mean you want me to be in charger?"

"Well, nominally, yes, but you'll really be there for me, like a mouthpiece."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm in," Hunter said, "I'm totally in."

Chris watched as Tilden integrated herself into the play circle with his kids. Flynn was eyeing her warily and scooting herself closer to Sawyer, like Tilden would start playing with him and steal him away from Flynn. Sawyer wasn't really paying attention though as he played with the handheld video game he had with him. Tilden seemed to play nicely with Kensington, probably because only six months separated them. They spoke to each other in lines of gibberish that nobody could understand but them.

"They all seem to be getting along," Trish said, "except Flynnie looks like she wants to pounce on my daughter like a piece of prey."

"She won't because we're here," Chris told her. "Flynn hates timeouts more than anything in the world and she wouldn't dare. So Christian is kind of loving this f-off attitude, isn't he?"

"Well, as long as it's not with us then I'm okay with it, he's doing what he has to do to get his belt back."

"His belt? Look at you, already calling it his."

Trish shrugged, "I have faith in him, that's all."

"Stephanie's the same way."

"So you guys ready for Europe and this whole Fozzy tour."

"As ready as we'll ever be. We're leaving pretty much after Raw next week and then it's traveling nonstop for a month. I just hope the kids are ready for that, I think they will be. It'll be weird having them all over there, trying to juggle both the responsibilities of the band and being with my family."

"But do you really think you could go a month without them?"

"Hell no, a few days without them is bad enough. I don't know how some guys do it, how they can be away from their kids for extended periods of time. I just can't do it, they all mean too much for me to leave them like that. I feel like I'm missing big chunks of their lives and then it's like, I only get so much time with them at this age. Sawyer's starting real school in the fall so this really is like sort of a last hurrah type thing."

"You guys haven't explained how that's going to work," Trish said, "I mean, presumably Stephanie will be coming to Raw and what if you come back, what happens with Sawyer?"

"We haven't really talked with him yet, but he's going to be so upset when he realizes that he won't be able to come to Raw all the time. We might actually go to SmackDowns because he only has half days being in Kindergarten they only do half days so Fridays, if the show is close, we may be able to go since he's in the morning class."

"That'll be a consolation and Christian is on SmackDown," Trish shrugged. "Times are certainly changing. I haven't even seen Edge and Lita for like two weeks, they're traveling around the country, wherever the wind takes them as Edge put it. You guys are all going to Europe, you're abandoning us."

"Don't worry, I'm sure you guys can hold down the fort until we get back. Are you excited though?"

"Trish, you have no idea. I love performing over there."

"And that's why you're not back yet?"

"I have things I want to do first, then we can see about the wrestling." He wished people would stop asking him when he was coming back, but he understood that because of who he was, he was going to field these questions until he did show his face on television. He only hoped that Stephanie would be by his side when he did.

Stephanie was please when Punk won his match later on. Even though she was going to be at Raw the next week, this was a great way to send her off to Europe. Punk had won his match and was now the #1 contender, her plan really was coming to fruition right before her very eyes. If everything worked perfectly, she was going to rule. She just hoped she was making the right decision regarding Hunter.

Hunter couldn't stop thinking about what it meant to be in charge. He didn't have the same delusions he did when he was married to Stephanie, but the power was already going to his head. He simply neglected the fact that both his ex-wife and his girlfriend were ahead of him in the food chain. If he had power, even just a little, there was so much he wanted to do, so much he wanted to try and change. He felt like a new man with a new mission and it wasn't the WWE title. He wanted to help rule this company.

He felt power hungry…again.


	330. Promo To End All Promos, June 27, 2011

"You have to say bye-bye to the house."

"Why?" Flynn asked. Her mouth dropped open a little, why did she have to say goodbye to their whole house? Were they moving? But they had left a lot of her toys behind, if they were leaving forever, she wanted to go back inside and grab a bunch of stuff. This was not something you sprung on a two-year old.

"Because we're not going to be back here for almost a month," Stephanie said, her eyes wide as she talked to her eldest daughter. "We're going to go to Europe to be with Daddy, remember?"

"Oh yeah, I know dat," Flynn said. "But no bye-bye."

"Okay, if you don't want to say bye-bye, I'm not going to force you," Stephanie said, shaking her head and making a funny face, which never failed to make Flynn burst out into a fit of giggles. This time was no exception as she laughed and covered her face as she shook her head. "So, funny face, because we're going away, are you _sure_ that you picked the five toys that you wanted the most?"

Chris and Stephanie had told both Sawyer and Flynn that they were allowed to bring ten relatively big toys with them on their trip, things like their action figures, coloring books, and other assorted books didn't count because they could easily be packed away into a backpack or suitcase. The bigger items, Sawyer's scooter for example (that he could ride in parking lots when they felt so inclined), were of a different nature and they'd had to make sure that they didn't bring too much. The bus could obviously hold a lot of stuff in the undercarriage, but they had enough clothes for five people to think about as well.

Chris was lucky that Stephanie was as organized as she was. She'd made extensive lists for everyone in the family and had followed each lists to a tee. She'd gone over them the night before and this morning to make sure everyone was covered. She'd thought of everything they could ever possibly need and he felt assured that they wouldn't leave anything behind. Right now she was checking her travel bag (different from her purse) to make sure she had the kids' passports with her.

"Baby, you ready?" Chris asked as he came out the door. Kensington was in one of his arms and Sawyer was trailing behind him with his parents behind them since they were driving the Jericho family to the airport as it wouldn't behoove them to park in the long-term parking for a month.

"Yeah, I think so, you've got your passport and Kensy's passport, right?"

"Yeah, I've got them," Chris told her.

"Can I see it to be sure?"

"They're in my backpack, I don't want to get them out, I have Kensy right now."

"Turn around," she said and he groaned and she repeated herself, "turn around."

"Fine," he said, stopping in the middle of their walkway to turn around. "They should be in the very first pocket."

Stephanie unzipped the pocket and rifled through some papers until she saw their passports. "Okay, good, I just wanted to make sure. I've got mine, Sawyer, and Flynn's so we're set on that front. We've got everything in the car, yes?"

"Yes, me and my dad have all the bags and we counted them to make sure and having them numbered was a great idea," he told her, turning around and kissing her. "You're the best type of person to bring on a trip like this."

"And you're sure that you'll be okay getting most of these bags alone and handle Kensy at the same time?"

"I will be fine," Chris told her.

Chris had decided that he was going to go on ahead of the rest of his family. Stephanie and the kids, minus Kensington, would be heading to Raw in Las Vegas while Chris and Kensington were flying ahead to Birmingham. They'd be staying there a few days until Stephanie and the kids arrived. Then they would use Birmingham as their first hub of the tour, using that as their base for the first couple gigs before taking the train to Margate and then going to the continental Europe. It was going to be a lot of traveling, but Stephanie and Chris hoped that the kids would enjoy the travel as they weren't doing that much flying. The kids could enjoy the scenery and the tour bus would give them enough space to maneuver around and stop when they wanted to and sight-see a little bit.

"I just worry about the two of you," she admitted. "I mean, you're going to be like 5000 miles away and you're going to have Kensy and it's not like you can just leave her to fend for yourself if you and the guys want to go out."

"Well, you know how Rich is, if worse comes to worse, he can watch her since he doesn't necessarily like to party as much as I do."

"That's not reassuring," she told him as they helped the kids into the car. Chris's parents took the front seat, leaving Chris and Stephanie with the kids in the backseat, thus giving them the opportunity to continue their conversation. "Maybe she should just stay with me, it wouldn't be that difficult to switch the flights."

"Yes, it would and plus, I'm not leaving you with all three of the kids," Chris shook his head. "You're already going to have your hands full with Sawyer and Flynn and they want to be at Raw so I'm not going to let you have all three."

"I just don't want-"

"You two need to just settle down and go with what you have planned," Loretta said from the front seat. "You're all going to be fine. Chris is responsible so he'll take care of Kensy very well and Stephanie, you are more than capable of taking care of Sawyer and Flynn."

"I take care myself!" Flynn piped in defiantly.

"Of course you can," Stephanie said indulgently. "You're a very big girl."

"I know, I am," Flynn nodded before she went back to looking at the passing scenery out her window.

"Well, I guess that's one less kid to worry about," Chris joked. "But really, I can handle it. When Kensy and I arrive, I've arranged to have a driver pick us up so they should be able to help me with the buttload of bags that we're bringing and then we're going to set up shop at the hotel and get some probably much-needed sleep."

"God, I didn't even think about how this trip is going to be like 14 hours," Stephanie said, looking down at Kensington, who was in her car-seat in between Chris and Stephanie. Kensington looked up at her and smile, babbling a little as she kicked her feet around, feeling restless in this stupid car-seat. She was starting to take after Flynn a little, which could only mean that Flynn was a bad influence on her little sister.

"I'm sure she can handle it, we do have two stops, an hour in Washington and then an hour in Frankfurt so at the very least, we can get up a little and walk around, plus, I'm sure she'll spend some of that time sleeping and then, if she gets cranky, she loves me, I'll help calm her down. My Kensy-bug wouldn't act up, would you Kensy?" Chris looked at his daughter and she beamed at him. "See, look at that face."

"I don't envy you, I'll tell you that, it's going to be bad enough on a five hour flight with the dynamic duo back there," she gestured towards Sawyer and Flynn in the seat behind her.

"I don't envy you, having to deal with a bunch of wrestlers, plus your father who is going to get on your case about CM Punk and that whole situation," Chris said. "I heard all the messages he left on your work line. It's like he can't stop calling you."

"I think he's really starting to feel the pressure. After last week and Punk's little defiant act, I think my dad is really on edge about the whole thing. He realizes that if Punk doesn't sign that essentially Punk can't be fired and if that's the case then Punk can do whatever he wants to do and that scares the crap out of him."

"Is Grandpa scared?" Sawyer asked. "But Grandpa doesn't get scared at anything because he said that's he's Vincent Kennedy McMahon…my name is McMahon too. I'm Sawyer McMahon Jericho, right, Mommy?"

"That you are, because you are part McMahon," Stephanie told him with a smile, "and the McMahon part of your name is very important."

"Why is Flynn named Flynn Murphy Jericho?"

"Yeah, why I name dat?" Flynn asked.

"I just liked the name," Stephanie told her, "and when we were thinking of names for you, Daddy and I were in a big fight and thinking of a name for you really helped us make up from our fight."

"I helped," Flynn grinned happily.

"Yes, you've been helping me and Daddy since even before you were born," Stephanie said. "But as for your question, Sawyer, Grandpa really, really wants something to happen, but it's not happening right now so he's a little bit worried, but don't worry, you don't have to worry about anything, it's just work-related."

"Oh okay, I won't worry then," he nodded. "I don't want Grandpa to be scared, it's no fun to be scared. I know because I thought there used to be monsters under my bed, but I don't think that no more."

"Because Daddy chased them away."

"He did," Sawyer nodded seriously. "They don't never come back again either. Daddy scared them a lot."

"Daddy is very good at scaring things away," Stephanie told him.

They finally got to the airport where Chris and Kensington were being dropped off at the international terminal first. Ted got out of the car and started unloading their things. He was going to help Chris check everything in while Loretta drove Stephanie and the other kids to the domestic terminal. Stephanie climbed out of the car and helped Kensington out of the seat while Chris said goodbye to Sawyer and Flynn.

"And you be a good baby, okay?" Stephanie told her daughter. "Always listen to Daddy and try not to cry or fuss too much on the trip. I know it's going to be long, but you're a very good, little girl and I'll be so proud of you if Daddy tells me how good a girl you were. Even if you aren't such a good girl, I want you to know I'll be proud of you. Also, keep your eye on Daddy, okay, because I think he needs someone to watch over him sometimes. Also, if you see any girl trying to hit on Daddy, you know what to do, right, you slap them right in the face."

Kensington smiled and stuck her tongue out. Stephanie kissed her on the nose. "Yes, you know exactly what to do. You have to watch out for those kinds of girls. You'll just have to remind Daddy that he has three very special girls."

"What the hell are you telling her?" Chris came over to say goodbye to his wife and get his daughter.

"I told her that she's going to be my special lookout for other women when you're over there. I can never be too careful," Stephanie said with a wink. "I'll see you on Wednesday morning, yes?"

"I'll be there with bells on," Chris said, "well, at the hotel, but I'll be there and you be safe. I told Sawyer and Flynn that they're to watch out for you, make sure no guys come after you. You're going to be in Vegas and you know what they say about Vegas."

"Some tired, old motto?" she asked.

"Something like that," he said, leaning forward to kiss her. "I'll miss you, but have a safe flight, okay?"

"You too," Stephanie said, "I'll miss you too, I'll miss Kensy more, but that can't be helped, she's my baby and I hate being away from her."

"I know," he told her, "I love you."

"I love you too."

"You've got to let me get in there," Loretta said, taking Kensington from Chris's arms. "I can't believe I'm not going to see any of my grandbabies for nearly a month. How can I possibly go that long without seeing them?"

"You always have standing tickets to come to Fozzy, Mom," Chris told her charmingly. "You know, I really don't recall that you've ever actually come to see my band play. You and Dad can get away, you're both retired, Stephanie and I have more than enough money to get you plane tickets-"

"Very true," Stephanie interjected.

"And I'd love for you to see the band live. I know you've listened to and hate the music, but you're always welcome."

"We'll see," Loretta told him, "but only because I don't think I can stand all the time away from my grandchildren. A month is a long time, I just know they're all going to grow and with Flynn and Kensy especially, they're both growing like weeds and by the time they come back, it'll be nearly the girls' birthdays and they'll probably be unrecognizable."

"Doubtful," Chris said, "but we have to get going, we have to check all this stuff."

"Okay, bye, Kensy," Loretta kissed her granddaughter's cheek before getting back to the car and letting Chris and Stephanie have a parting moment.

"I love you," Chris told her again, "I'll see you on Wednesday and be safe and have fun knocking your dad down a few more pegs with your lovely plan to rob him of his life's work."

"I fully intend to have fun," she winked at him. "I love you too, I hope Kensy will be okay. Please, please, please call me when you have your layovers, I want to know how Kensy does. And you too, of course."

"Of course I'm second fiddle," he said, then kissed her long and hard. "Bye, baby."

"Bye, sweetie," she waved as Chris and Ted lugged their things into the airport.

"Mommy, there's so much here!" Sawyer's face was nearly pressed against the window of the taxi driving them to the Venetian Hotel where they were staying. "Look, Mommy, that place looks like a castle!"

"I see that, that's the Excalibur."

"And that one has a roller coaster, Mommy, it has a roller coaster in the hotel!" Sawyer exclaimed. They hadn't been to Las Vegas in a while and the last time, Sawyer had been too young to really be occupied by the scenery.

"Pirates," Flynn added as they passed Treasure Island.

"I know, there's lots to do here," Stephanie said. "I think that we can hang out at the pool today since the show isn't until tomorrow and maybe we can do a little exploring once Hunter and Britt arrive. That way we all have a buddy."

"Okay," Sawyer said. "Mommy, do you think I could go on the roller coaster?"

"I don't know, baby boy, we'll see," she said. She was glad that Hunter and Britt were arriving today as well, even though she'd planned it that way. She wanted to speak with Hunter and Britt privately about what was going to happen. Because the two of them were so integral to the company after her father's ousting, she needed to brief them on what their roles were and what they would be doing when the time came for things to be over.

Stephanie could tell that Hunter was already relishing in this role she was giving him. She wasn't blind to Hunter's faults, she was very much aware of them, two years of rocky marriage had given her more than enough insight into her ex-husband's psyche. Hunter hadn't changed _that_ much. The man still loved power. He still wanted to be better than everyone, it was just in a different venue this time. When she'd called to tell the two of them that she wanted to have dinner on Sunday night to discuss plans, she'd heard the raw glee in Hunter's voice and she recognized it immediately and it brought her back to a place she hadn't gone in over ten years.

"_Trust me, this is going to be great."_

"_I'm not so sure," Stephanie said, turning to her new husband. She brushed some of her hair out of her face. He was handsome, maybe not as handsome as she'd found Andrew, but she had to push him out of her head. Hunter was her husband now and he'd been so persuasive towards her, had said all the things she needed to hear and right now, he seemed like the only man in the world she could trust._

"_Of course you're sure," he prompted her. "Stephanie, this could be the greatest thing to ever happen to the wrestling business. _We_ could be the greatest thing to ever happen to the wrestling business."_

"_But, I mean, taking down my dad…I just…he won't expect it and it'll hurt him."_

"_He hurt you," Hunter reminded her and he was right, her father had hurt her and so had her brother in his refusal to accept anything between her and Andrew, claiming that Andrew was beneath her station. "So now it's your turn to get some revenge. He has no clue that you love me and want to be with me."_

"_I don't…love you," she told him, trying not to act repugnant._

"_Stephy," he said, reaching out and brushing her hair back and running his fingers down her cheek in a way that made her shudder. She wasn't sure what the feeling he was stirring inside of her was, but she was loath to admit that it kind of felt good. "I care about you. I married you because I saw you from afar and you were so unhappy and you just didn't know it. You didn't know it because you thought Andrew was good for you, but _I'm_ good for you, I see in you something that you don't see in yourself, there's power there, power there for the both of us. You just have to let it out."_

"_And turn on my father," she said softly._

_He nodded, "Sometimes you have to do really hard things to get what you want and you want power, don't you? Everyone wants power."_

"_I do want power," she said as if hypnotized._

Yes, she knew that Hunter was always trying to reach for the top and when he got there, he found some new prize to find. She could hear that same tone of voice, that same conspiratorial whisper. She'd have to knock him down a few pegs tonight when they went out to dinner. This was _her_ company and she wasn't going to let Hunter worm his way into it. And if he tried, well, she had Chris and Chris could take Hunter. She thought back to Chris's fight with Goldberg and how he'd taken down that man and Hunter wasn't as savvy as Goldberg had been at fighting. Chris could take Hunter. Wait, actually, if it came down to it, Britt could take Hunter.

Whatever Hunter was, Britt had it better. Britt was like the calming force for all of them and it had to be because she was late to the game and hadn't grown in the wrestling business. Chris was all of 19 when he'd entered the crazy world, Stephanie was born into it, and Hunter was in his early 20's when he'd started, the business had warped their adult selves, hardened them, made them shrewd in a way that Britt could never understand. Britt had joined late, was rational, calm, saw the big picture. While everyone was plotting deviously, Britt was there to remind them that there were repercussions. Surely, if Hunter got out of hand, Britt would slap him on the wrist and he'd go running like a scolded dog (not scalded like JR seemed to think).

When they got to the hotel and to their suite, Stephanie immediately set out to get the kids ready to go down to the pool. Bathing suits on and sunscreen had to be slathered onto skin before they were ready to go. Stephanie pushed all the towels and things into an over-sized bag and grabbed a hand in each of hers and headed down to the pool. The kids immediately wanted to get into the water so Stephanie put on their floaties and got in the pool with them, holding onto Flynn most of the time while Sawyer paddled around her.

"Hey, lady, you have some really cute kids."

Stephanie looked up and saw Hunter towering over her, "What are you doing here?"

"Got an earlier flight and I figured you'd be down here since you told Britt and me when you called that you were taking the kids down to the pool," Hunter said, sitting on the edge of the pool and dangling his feet in the water.

"Where's Britt?"

"Over there," Hunter nodded his head towards a shaded cabana area where Britt was currently sitting, a floppy hat covering her and shade making sure she didn't burn, which she tended to do easily. "You want me to watch the kids since I think I can see you dying to go talk to her."

"Thank you, that'd be great," she said as Hunter slipped into the pool and took Flynn from Stephanie. "Hey there, Flynnie, you liking the pool?"

"We have one though," she told Hunter.

"I know you do, you want to go swim with Sawyer, let's go over there," Hunter said, walking towards were Sawyer was dog-paddling around. "Hey, tough guy."

"Trips, hi, I didn't know you were here already, Mommy said we were going out later with you so it's surprise to see you here now," Sawyer said and Hunter laughed, figuring that most of his vocabulary had to come from Stephanie's business dealings.

"I couldn't wait to see you guys so I had to come early," he winked at him. Then he grabbed Sawyer and threw him into the pool, making Sawyer yell in delight.

Stephanie wrapped her towel around her and made her way to Britt. Britt waved as Stephanie approached and Stephanie scooted the chaise lounger next to Britt closer to her. "So hey, I'm glad you guys made it early."

"Me too, we get to enjoy the day," Britt said, "Hunter looks like he's having a blast with the kids. Do you think he'd make a good dad."

"Whoa, what?" Stephanie asked incredulously.

"I'm just wondering, I'm not pregnant nor am I thinking about it, but I am like you know, almost in my 30's and I don't want to live my life without ever having kids, you know. I was just wondering how Hunter would be as a father because obviously, we're together and I want him as the father of my children, is that crazy?"

"Well, at one point, I wanted him as the father of _my_ babies, so it's not out of the realm of possibility. If you had asked me several years ago if Hunter would have made a good father, I probably would have told you, you were crazy, but now, I think he'd be a good one."

"I think so too," Britt mused.

"Speaking of Hunter, there's some things I wanted to discuss regarding him."

"Like what?" Britt asked.

"Well, I know you didn't know Hunter before he turned nice, I mean, you kind of did, I guess because when Sawyer was first born he was still kind of a weirdo, but you really know the after-asshole Hunter better than the asshole Hunter so I really just wanted to kind of discuss that."

"So you want to discuss my boyfriend being an asshole in the past?"

"Essentially," Stephanie said, "but I promise you it's not as weird as it sounds. All I'm saying is that I'm giving him a lot of responsibility once I take over, I mean, he's going to practically be the face of the new regime, _my_ regime, and as such I need to make sure that he knows that he's answering to me and me alone and that he's not allowed to go off on his own."

"I don't understand."

"Hunter likes power," Stephanie said, "you've seen that with how he acts around the belts-"

"In Hunter's defense over that, he really hasn't been that obsessed with the title. Being injured has given him a new perspective on things and as such, he's really not as power-hungry as he used to be and I think he should be commended for that."

"I'm not saying anything is going to happen, I'm just saying that this is power that Hunter…look, when he married me, it wasn't because he loved me. He made it sound nice, made it sound like he wanted me and only me and didn't really care about what anyone thought, but he was manipulating me. It took me a long time to figure that out because I was so blinded by it and I did end up falling in love with him so I thought the power was a moot point because he loved me. I just…I know that man still exists somewhere in there and I want to make sure _you_ know that man existed."

"People change though, Stephanie, you've changed, even just in the time I've known you, you've changed. When I first met you, you hated me and don't even act like you didn't because I know that you did. You thought I was some threat to your marriage, like because I happened to be somewhat pretty I would swoop in and steal Chris from you, but now you're one of my best friends, people change."

"We don't change that much," Stephanie told her with a scoff. "I just don't want Hunter to ignore the fact that I'm the one with the power. It's easy to forget because I'm putting him in front of everyone-"

"If you're so concerned about it, why don't you put yourself in that position?"

"Because I'll be so busy behind-the-scenes, I mean, that's why I'm upping your position."

"Then why not Chris?"

"Chris is focused on his music right now and I'll be honest with you, I think it kind of scares Chris. He's never really been put into a position where he has actual power. When he filled in for me, it was just that, he filled in for me, he didn't have the power to do what he wanted because he knew he was doing what I wanted. I just think that he thinks that it'll go to his head and then he'll feel bad because he's been saying that he would never use me for power for the past nine years and he doesn't want to go back on that."

"Yeah, like Chris would ever do that," Britt scoffed. "The man thinks that you make the sun rise everyday."

"And like Hunter doesn't think you hang the stars," Stephanie countered, glancing over at Hunter to see that he was having a little mini swim contest with the kids. "I just don't want the Hunter of old to rear his ugly head."

"I think you've got him all wrong, Steph, all wrong."

Chris ran his hand over Kensington's head as she slept. Kensington, thus far, had been an exceptionally good baby. There were only a few times where she'd started crying and it didn't take much for her to calm down, much to his relief. He hated getting those stares from people, the kind that were condescending, like he couldn't control his own daughter. She was sitting in her car-seat, which was hooked to the plane seat. Chris had thought about laying her down on the seat, but if he fell asleep himself then Kensington might roll off the seat and he couldn't have that.

He turned away from the window he'd been staring at (there was really nothing to see as it was nighttime and the sky outside inky) and turned back towards Kensington, looking at her sleeping face. She was usually an angel when she was awake, but she was truly an angel when she was asleep. The same could be said for all his kids, but Kensington was still a baby and her chubby cheeks lent to her cherub-like face. He ran his knuckles down the side of her face and smiled. He was so glad they were all going to be with him when he was touring Europe.

"Excuse me, sir, do you or your daughter need anything?" the flight attendant whispered as she checked on the passengers, most of whom were sleeping.

"No, I think we're okay, thanks," he whispered back.

"She's gorgeous," the flight attendant said of Kensington, which only made Chris swell with pride. "How old is she?"

"Ten months," Chris answered.

"They're always so adorable at that age, is she your only one?"

"No, she's actually my third," Chris responded. "I have a five year old son and a two year old daughter as well."

"Wow, have your hands full, well, if you need anything at all, just press the call button," she smiled and nodded at him before making her way down the aisle to the other first class passengers.

Chris wondered what Stephanie was doing right now, probably chilling or eating dinner, but it was probably too early for dinner. He hated being away from the rest of his family, but was glad Kensington was there to keep him sane. He found that as he got older (or more accurately, as the kids got older) it became harder and harder to go anywhere without at least one of them in tow. It just spoke to how much he loved his kids that he always wanted them near him. He felt better when they were near, like he wasn't missing anything.

He placed his hand on Kensington's foot and then tried to get some sleep of his own.

"I can't wait to get this plan underway," Hunter said as he tore off a piece of bread at dinner. "I really want to get down to business, you know, right now, I just feel like I'm wandering because I really don't have a place, but I'm really looking forward to actually being in charge."

Stephanie looked pointedly at Britt, but she just scowled and took a piece of bread for Flynn, who had been trying to reach the bread basket. Flynn took it gratefully as Stephanie spoke, "Hunter, I know you're anxious, I am too, but let's not forget that I'm going to be the one in charge, okay? I'll be the one making most of the decisions and while you will have some power, I just want you to remember that it's me who will ultimately make most of the decisions."

"Oh, I know," he told her with a nod. This time, Britt gave Stephanie the pointed look.

Stephanie remained unconvinced.

"So he said that he knows that I'm the one in charge," Stephanie said on the phone to Chris the next morning. He and Kensington had arrived safely and were checking in with the rest of the Jericho family.

"But…" Chris could sense there was more to this.

"I don't know, I'm just still worried that he's going to end up being like he was before and then he might try to control me like he did before and I just cannot have that. I don't want to come to blows with him or anything, but if he tries to take my power, that's where it's going to go."

"Well, let's give him the benefit of the doubt until then, shall we?"

"You don't know him, I mean, you didn't know him back then, you just made fun of him, well, no, this was before you got that mouth of yours…"

"I've always had this mouth, I just hadn't found better ways to use it until you turned out to be a huge slut," Chris said, "but that was a long, long time ago, we're all different than we were eleven years ago."

"That's pretty much what Britt said, but I don't know, this is a whole different beast and I want my era to be just as great as my father's was," Stephanie told him, "are you sure that you don't want to take over with me? I know you have your music, but surely it's not going to consume _all_ your time."

"Well, Rich and I were discussing another album and I've been writing," he told her, "so you know, that _is_ time-consuming, plus there's this little thing called our family, remember that?"

"I juggle it all," Stephanie said.

"I know, but for now, I was actually thinking and I'm glad you brought this up, but I was thinking, at least until I come back, maybe I don't travel to Raw on Mondays with you when Sawyer's school starts, that way he has one parent there because Kindergarten is a whole different beast from pre-school."

"That's actually a pretty good idea, but Chris, really, are you sure you won't come back and take over with me?"

"Steph, baby, I love you, but I'm not going to, you've got the pieces in place and I'm more than happy to be the guy standing in the background supporting you. You know I've got your back and that I will do whatever you want, but not this."

"Fine, it was worth a shot," she sighed.

"You've tried valiantly, I'll give you that. You've fought the good fight."

"I'm just putting it out there," she told him. "I guess I have this silly dream where my husband and I rule the company with iron fists and do better than my dad ever could."

"Why does it have to be you and me, I'm sure you can do that all on your own. Baby, you are a superhero. You take care of everyone around you, you are a lioness in business, you've got everything going for you, you don't need me."

"Of course I need you, what yare you saying?"

"You're misunderstanding me, I'm just saying that if the moment called for it, you could do anything you wanted to do," he told her. "I believe in you and I know you're going to do a great job being the boss. You don't need me to be right next to you, I'm perfectly happy being one of the guys that is clapping for you."

"Okay, well, is Kensy being good for you?"

"The best," he said, glancing over at his daughter, who was sleeping in the crib provided by the hotel. "We're just going to hang out tomorrow, maybe do a little sight-seeing just to get out of the hotel room so we don't get cabin fever. What are you and the kids doing?"

"Well, the kids are still buzzed from all the excitement of yesterday. I'm taking them to the arcade for a little while and then we're heading over to the arena and then we've got the show so I hope that you'll watch or have the opportunity to watch."

"I think I get the channel over here, I'll stay up and watch you guys."

"Well, watch the show, not us since none of us will be on it, but yeah, I get what you mean."

"I'll just have to see what Punk has cooked up," Chris said, "I miss you though, do you miss me?"

"You saw me yesterday and I'll be there in a couple days."

"Doesn't mean I can't miss you. Kensy misses you and the kids. She knows she has nobody to play with her, I think it's bugging her that she's all alone. I guess that's what happens when you have brothers and sisters. I wouldn't know, but I can see her looking around and probably wondering where Sawyer and Flynn are."

"Aww, don't make me sad for my baby," Stephanie said. "I guess when you're the youngest of three, you just don't know anything else. But we'll see you on Wednesday and then were all going to rock out and be Fozzy Fanatics, is that what we are?"

"You're Fozzy Royal Family," he told her, "I love you. Good luck tonight."

"Thanks," she said, "I love you too."

"Keep me posted on the Hunter thing though," he added. "Just in case he decides he wants to get chippy with you, you know that I'm there for you."

"I know, but I guess I can handle myself," she said flirtily.

"I know you can, bye, baby."

"Bye, sweetie."

Punk couldn't help himself, he was starting to like Stephanie and her family, mostly her family. It was no secret (to him and those close to him) that he actually really liked kids. They just had no filter and they were innocent and didn't try to play head games and in a world where politics were the only real way to get what you wanted, it was nice to hang out with some of the younger fans who still believed that you were some kind of superhero. Stephanie and Chris's kids were more adorable than kids should be, especially that middle one. She was a spitfire and how could he resist it when she liked his tattoos so much?

"Hey," Punk said as he walked into Stephanie's office without knocking.

"Hi," Stephanie said, "I wasn't expecting you to just barge in here."

"I figured it went with the character if I just didn't give a damn if I walked into your office since I was leaving," Punk said, taking a seat. He turned to where Sawyer and Flynn were looking over some of their prizes from the arcade and he smiled, "Hey, guys."

"Hi, CM Punk," Sawyer said with a wave.

Flynn's eyes lit up at the tattooed man and she ran over to him and thrust the stuffed animal Sawyer had won for her at him, "Look, look, my Sawa give me dis."

"That was nice of him," Punk said. "You've got yourself a really good brother, huh?"

"Love my Sawa," Flynn agreed. She hugged her stuffed animal close to her chest. "I show Daddy but he no here!"

"Flynn, why don't you go back and play with Sawyer while I talk to CM Punk," Stephanie told her daughter sweetly.

"Daddy in…I dunno, he with Kensy," Flynn just completely ignored what Stephanie said. "I see him dough, on the day."

"You're going to Europe, right?" Punk told her.

Flynn nodded, "Dat's where I go! I miss wrestling."

"Yeah, I know what you mean, I kind of miss real wrestling around here too," Punk said, sending a glance to Stephanie, one which she rolled her eyes at. It was worth a shot to Punk. One thing he wanted to get better when Vince was gone was getting more wrestling on the show. He wanted the show to get back to its roots.

"My daddy wrestle," Flynn told him. "He beat you."

Punk laughed, "You think your dad's beat everyone, don't you?"

"He has," Flynn flashed that winning smile of hers. "I like you dough so it's okay."

"Thanks," Punk told her.

"Flynnie, go play with Sawyer now," Stephanie told her daughter and Flynn nodded and gave a small pat to Punk's arm because she just loved his tattoos so much and then rushed back over to her brother before flopping down onto her butt next to him. Stephanie leaned in a little closer and whispered conspiratorially, "I think she has a little bit of a crush on you. She asked me over the weekend if she could watch your matches."

"She did?" Okay, so just when he thought they couldn't get any cuter, they got so much cuter.

"Yeah, she's obsessed with wrestling, usually Chris wrestling so you should feel very honored that she wanted to watch your matches at all. We ended up showing her some and she was completely fascinated…though it might have been because of all the tattoos, but still, she loved them."

"Cool, I'm flattered," he told her, "so, um, tonight, I wanted to run something by you."

"Okay," she said, not knowing what to expect from him. She didn't know him that well so she couldn't tell if his tone was good or bad.

"Well, I wanted to cut a promo tonight, but it's…it's not going to be nice," he said for lack of a better word. "I mean, I know you said that I could do whatever I wanted out there, say whatever I wanted out there, but I still felt like I should run it by you. I don't want to offend you, which is weird for me, it's weird for me not to want to offend someone who I kind of have nothing in common with, I mean, we're not friends, at least I wouldn't call us friends."

"I wouldn't call us friends either, so don't worry," Stephanie told him, smirking at him. "So what is it you wanted to warn me about because I'm assuming there are some warnings coming on."

"I'm going to say some stuff that you might not want to hear."

"About whom?" she asked.

"Well, mostly about your father," Punk told her.

"I don't care about that, my father and I have been on different sides of the coin enough times to where I'm pretty much immune to anything said about him. You forget that I've had to find out about my dad cheating and helped my devastated mother get through a rough patch, I've hated my father, like _hated_ him, anything you can say can't ever match what I thought of him then," she said. She hated to think back to then, to what her father had done to her mother, but she was telling the truth.

Her mother had been so devastated finding out about her father. It didn't help that her father had to flaunt it in front of her mother, Trish coming to mind immediately. She was glad she was at a place with Chris where she could joke about infidelity with him. Even though Chris was a gorgeous man who could probably have any woman that he wanted, he always chose her, which sometimes still surprised her, but he was a man she could count on and she never worried about what he was doing or who he was with. She had complete trust in him.

"Well then I guess your dad is not a subject I need to clear you with…I was going to mention you, you know, to make it more authentic," Punk told her. "Is that okay?"

"Absolutely," Stephanie said, "you could call me any name in the book and I wouldn't care. I mean, Chris has called me pretty much every name in the book and I haven't cared so I don't think you could do any more damage than he's done really. I just have one condition."

"Which is?" he wondered what her condition could be. He could imagine her saying that he had to mention at least that she was hot or something to that effect, which would be weird, but well, he should probably just hear her out.

"You don't mention the kids," Stephanie said, "they're off-limits, I know Chris has spoken of them before and everything, but seriously, no mentioning the kids, I don't want them in the limelight any more than they are."

"Oh, that wasn't even a though in my head, I wouldn't overstep that boundary even if I _did_ hate you," Punk nodded. "I was going to mention that I thought you would be just as bad as your dad though, is that okay? God, I can't believe I'm actually asking you that, you've turned me into a lackey, Stephanie."

"Everyone is at some point or another," she responded coyly, "but I actually think that's a great idea."

"You do?" Stephanie was constantly surprising him. "I mean, I'm basically going to say you're a terrible leader and that you pretty much only got the job because of who your father is."

"And I am fine with that," Stephanie shrugged. "I mean, even if you really thought that, I wouldn't care. If I cared about every person who thought I was doing a bad job, I would be….God, crying in a corner right now, I'd probably be alone because I would let everyone who says I'm a fat cow get to me, and I wouldn't have a family because I would be in the aforementioned corner, crying my eyes out."

"You're kind of strange," Punk told her, squinting at her and giving her a look.

"I've learned, mostly from Chris, that I don't need to be anyone but me. You know, when I was with Hunter…I heard people talking about me and my body, I read on the internet how people though I had saggy breasts," Stephanie laughed here, "and I went out and I got breast implants. Can you believe that? I let everyone dictate how I was, but me. I mean, I stayed married to Hunter because he was telling me that I could have all this power and it sounded so nice. I changed my entire look because he thought I'd look sexier. I augmented my body because I wanted to live up to this image. You obviously don't have that problem."

"Well, I learned long ago that I don't give a crap what anyone thinks," he shrugged.

"Yeah, it wasn't until Chris that I learned that lesson fully," she told him, "he liked me for me, which was strange since he hated me once upon a time, but he made me see that I could just be myself. Don't you dare tell him, but a lot of my confidence comes from him, but if you tell him, I kill you because he does not need that kind of upper-hand in this relationship."

Punk laughed, "Okay, so you don't care if I mention you, do you think Chris would care if I mentioned him, I mean, I might not by name because you mentioned that whole, hey, maybe I'll pretend to be married to Hunter thing, which is just odd, but do you think he'd mind?"

"Chris has a thicker skin than I do…he doesn't have breast implants," Stephanie joked and Punk appreciated a wicked sense of humor.

"Okay, got it then," Punk said. "Then I'll go ahead with what I want to say and how I want to say it. Your dad is going to be so pissed."

Stephanie's smile turned decidedly scarier, "Good."

"Hey, Flynn, I was heading out, I'll see you later," Punk said as he stood up to leave.

"You can call her Flynnie," Stephanie told him.

"Okay, bye," Flynn said, standing up, running over and giving him a quick hug on the leg. "I see you later!" She then dashed back to her brother while the supposedly badass CM Punk melted on the spot.

Punk was actually kind of relishing his role in this little game by Stephanie McMahon and company. It was something new and something he'd never done before so it was kind of cool that he was part of some big, huge plan to bring down the President of the company. He didn't know if Stephanie would be better than her father, but he at least had to give her a shot and he couldn't say that he really hated her anymore.

The first part of his plan tonight was to interrupt Shawn Michaels. Stephanie had briefly mentioned that she couldn't stand him and while he didn't really dislike Shawn, there was something in Stephanie's tone that he picked up on, something that indicated that it went farther than the business. He was pretty good at reading people. Overall though, Shawn was an easy target, a really easy target and he kind of exemplified something that bothered him about the wrestling business. He knew it was addictive, but what he hated was the veterans and retirees coming in and taking all the time on the show, time which could be used to develop younger stars. He couldn't believe the narrow-mindedness sometimes of Vince McMahon. How did he expect to get people interested in the younger wrestlers if he kept trotting out these older guys?

Of course, when speaking his mind, the anonymous GM had to show up and ruin everything. He was just trying to state his opinion and then the damn Raw Roulette wheel had to become involved. There was another stellar idea, instead of putting on real matches, let's let a wheel decide the matches, that was sure to result in some five-star wrestling. There was so much he just wanted to change. He knew that there were wrestling companies out there that would harness his actual wrestling skill, but Punk, admittedly, was still a slave to money, but wasn't everybody? Yes, he could go back to his roots, but, and God, he hated that this was true, it felt like being sent back down to the minors after you'd gotten a taste of the major leagues. He knew there was TNA, but that was in worse shape than WWE. So he was kind of stuck with the only game in town and he just had to trust that the regime change would result in some other changes as well.

When he got backstage, there was a text message from Stephanie, _I thought you were going to have some epic promo…_

He answered her back immediately, _Don't worry, it's coming, when the time is right, let's hope your dad actually lets me say what I have to say…_

_I'll try to distract him_

It was epic.

It was epic in a way that couldn't accurately be described. Chris was lying on his bed, head against the headboard, nearly knocked out from sheer exhaustion, but he'd stayed up because he wanted to see the show, wanted to see the advancement of Stephanie's plan. Kensington stirred from her crib and he looked over at her, but she stopped moving and stayed asleep. Chris turned back to the TV and sat closer so he could turn down the volume so as not to wake up Kensington.

There were no words to describe what he'd just seen go down. There just wasn't. Chris sat wide-eyed as he watched Punk pretty much degrade everyone in the company, especially Vince. It was so on point with some of the things that he couldn't really believe it. If this was early 2001, it was everything he wished he could have said to Vince at the time. He'd been where Punk was, except worse off because at least Punk had held the titles, Chris hadn't at the time and he felt so low and like he could do nothing to please Vince, to get title shots, to earn the respect of the man in charge. Nowadays, it didn't matter, he had Vince's respect on not just the business level, but the personal level. But the Chris Jericho that was trying to make a name for himself was applauding Punk and giving him a standing ovation.

Then he laughed when he was the doofus-in-law. He could appreciate a good dig and doofus-in-law was a pretty funny one he had to admit. Then just like that, it was over because someone had cut off the feed. Chris immediately dove for his phone because he _had_ to talk to Stephanie about this and talk to her about it right now. When she didn't immediately answer her phone, he instead went to his Twitter application to tweet about his feelings.

_So anything newsworthy happen on Raw tonight?_

Stephanie was with her father, who was irate. She'd stalled him, telling him that Punk should get to at least speak his mind; it was when personal stories about Vince that he'd cut off the feed himself, "What the hell was that?"

"I don't know, Dad, I mean, there's really nothing we can do because his contract is expiring and everything and so it's not like we can really fire him because he's leaving."

Punk came backstage and walked up to Vince, "You cut me off, how dare you."

"How dare I? How _dare I_? How dare you waste time on my show with lies and…that's it, you're suspended indefinitely, this is the last time you'll ever appear on my show and consider your match with Cena at Money in the Bank cancelled!" Punk just stared at Stephanie, who just stood there staring at Vince.

This was _not_ part of the plan.


	331. Let the Madness Begin, July 4, 2011

A/N: Thanks to all the readers, this chapter is pretty long and pretty rambly. It's mostly to do with Chris's tour so there's that. Hope you enjoy! :)

* * *

"Mommy!"

"Flynn," Stephanie hissed at her. "You have _got_ to quiet down, do you understand me?"

"No!" Flynn said, crossing her arms against her chest. Stephanie glared at her, obviously upset with her, but Flynn was upset too. She glared right back at Stephanie, loose strands of brown hair falling out of her ponytail and in her face. Stephanie tried to brush the hair away, but Flynn jerked away from her.

"Flynn Murphy Jericho," Stephanie whispered harshly, leaning down so she was eye level with her daughter. "There are a lot of people around us and I do not, do you hear me, do not want a repeat of earlier, okay? There are people trying to sleep and we have to respect that, okay?"

"No," Flynn pushed her bottom lip out. She should be afraid though because her mommy had used her full name and she never did that unless she was exceptionally angry, but Flynn couldn't help it.

Flynn had been in a bad mood ever since they got to the airport. She'd woken up on the wrong side of the bed it seemed and a 14 hour flight didn't help matters any. They had one stop in Newark, but they had a close connecting flight so they hadn't really been able to walk around, which was driving her nuts. Earlier, when Stephanie had accompanied Sawyer to the bathroom, telling Flynn to stay in her seat, she'd come back to see Flynn running down the aisle. In embarrassment, Stephanie had grabbed her daughter's hand and given her a timeout, but the entire plane ride seemed like a timeout.

They'd served dinner, but Flynn had been ornery and didn't want to eat. She kept pushing the plate away even though the kid's meal had been her favorite chicken nuggets. The flight attendant had been extremely patient and told Stephanie she could keep the food in the small kitchen and if Flynn wanted to eat, they could warm it up for her. The flight attendant had seen lots of fussy children so it was nothing new, but Stephanie was still embarrassed by the unruly behavior of her daughter. She couldn't really blame Flynn totally though, the flight was long and she was a little kid used to running around and so sitting for all this time was no fun. Hell, it was no fun for her either.

The only problem was that now Flynn wouldn't sleep. It was nighttime, the windows dark and they weren't getting any sleep at all. Stephanie suspected that Flynn was hungry, but wasn't saying anything because she was upset from sitting here. Sawyer was asleep in the seat across the aisle from Stephanie. He'd been out for hours now. She glanced back at him to check on him and his face was turned towards hers from the reclining first class seat that turned into a bed. He'd been the model traveler to Flynn's horrible traveler. He was five years old though, old enough to know there was an end in sight and with the help of a portable DVD player, he'd been more than occupied.

Stephanie unbuckled Flynn's seatbelt and pulled the little girl into her lap, leaning her chin on Flynn's head. Flynn resisted at first, trying to twist out of Stephanie's arms, but the grip was tight and the hold wasn't broken even by Flynn's best attempts. She finally relaxed in Stephanie's embrace and leaned her head against her mommy's chest. "I know that you're cranky, baby girl, and I know that it seems like we've been on this plane forever-"

"We have," Flynn whined.

"I know, it's a really long flight, but you know who's waiting at the other end? Daddy and Kensy," Stephanie told her. "They're waiting for us and they would be so sad if you weren't there. Daddy would be gone for a whole month if you'd stayed at home with Gamma and Gamps."

"Oh," Flynn said. She hadn't thought about that. She wasn't entirely sure what a month was, but it seemed long. "I miss Daddy."

"I know, but just think if you hadn't come along, a month is a pretty long time," she said, knowing it wasn't an actual month, but it was close enough. "And I know that this plane trip is long and boring, but it's really close to being over. Are you hungry?"

"Yes," Flynn nodded. Stephanie kissed her head and pressed the call button for the flight attendant, who came directly to them.

"Hi, what can I do for you?" she asked politely.

"Someone is ready to eat, do you think it would be too much trouble to heat up her food?" Stephanie asked, hating to be such an imposition, but Flynn hadn't eaten anything since a small snack at the beginning of the flight. She wasn't positive, but she swore she could almost hear Flynn's tummy growling over the roar of the engine.

"Of course, I'll have it ready for you in a few minutes," she told her and then disappeared behind a curtain at the front of the plane. Stephanie leaned down and kissed the top of Flynn's head as Flynn played with the sleeve of Stephanie's shirt.

"Mommy, Daddy really be there?"

"Of course Daddy will really be there," Stephanie told her, "and once we get there, we're going to get our things, then take a car to the hotel where Daddy and Kensy are and then we're going to just take a bit of a rest for breakfast and then we're going to go walking so you won't be cooped up any more than you are. Then Daddy will be going to his VIP thing with some fans, he might bring you guys along, maybe, I don't know, then we're going to meet Daddy at his sound check and then we're going to watch his concert and that'll be a lot of fun, you can wear the new outfit we got in Las Vegas."

"The one Daddy likes?"

"Yeah, the one Daddy will like. You'll look like a little rocker," Stephanie told her. "Daddy will definitely approve of that because Daddy likes that heavy metal music, doesn't he?"

"Uh huh, it loud and I no know it," Flynn said.

"I know, it is loud, but it's kind of good too, huh? I think Daddy has been poisoning our minds and brainwashing us into liking it," Stephanie told her, making a face, which made Flynn bury her face in Stephanie's shirt in laughter The flight attendant came back with Flynn's plate of food and Stephanie mouthed thank you to her and she nodded conspiratorially before going to check on other things.

Flynn turned towards her food and started gobbling at it. She hadn't eaten her dinner and now she was so hungry. Stephanie loosened her grip on Flynn, but let her stay in her lap. It seemed that Flynn needed the closeness of her mother and it probably reassured her that Stephanie was there, not that she'd be anywhere else. Flynn was eating happily so Stephanie just watched her eat and occasionally looked over at Sawyer, who barely moved save for the occasional twitch of his nose. She couldn't wait to see Chris again and really talk to him about Punk's promo.

They'd spoken after Stephanie had gotten back from the arena. She'd been too stunned before that to speak to anyone so she'd gathered her things and the kids things and _the kids_ and gone back to the hotel. It wasn't until she'd settled them with an in-hotel movie (the show had ended at 8 and the movie would lull them to sleep) that she called Chris. She didn't know whether he'd be awake or not considering the time in Birmingham, but when he answered the phone, he didn't sound groggy.

The suspension to CM Punk was certainly a wrench in the plan. They hadn't expected her father to suspend Punk indefinitely. And by indefinitely, it meant that it would last until Punk's contract ran out and thusly, the match between Cena and Punk had been canceled. This was definitely not good for her chances of taking over for her father. She could see it going one of either two ways. The board could think her father had done a good job taking control and not letting Punk do what he wanted or they could oust him anyways because he'd just let CM Punk walk. She was hoping for the latter, but she had to take this bull by the horns and think of something. That's why she wanted to see Chris. He could help her come up with some kind of plan to reinstate Punk.

"All done," Flynn announced proudly, pushing the plate away a little.

"Good job," Stephanie told her. "Do you want to watch a DVD until you fall asleep?"

"Uh huh."

"Okay, what do you want to watch? A movie?"

"Daddy," Flynn said.

"Okay, what of Daddy's do you want to watch?"

"Dubby dubyou," Flynn told her.

"Okay, does that mean WCW?" Stephanie asked.

"Uh huh," Flynn nodded. Stephanie had asked one of the video guys at Titan if it would be at all possible to consolidate Chris's matches and promos onto some DVD disks. The guy had done an amazing job and so Stephanie was able to pretty much have Chris's entire career on standby for Flynn's entertainment. She could already see it coming in handy and she knew that it would help on the long bus trips if Flynn could watch any of Chris's ECW, WCW, or WWE matches.

"Which one?"

"First one," Flynn held up her index finger.

"You want to watch his debut?"

"Yeah, that one," Flynn told her.

Stephanie nodded and put Flynn into her chair, reclining it so that it became a bed. She set the DVD player on the little pull-out side table and then rooted through the DVDs until she saw the one with Chris's first WCW matches on it, helpfully labeled with dates. She popped it into the DVD player and got some headphones out, putting it only in the ear that was free. She turned it on and Flynn smiled as her Daddy came out to the match wearing a black jacket and yellow tights.

Stephanie let herself rest then for a little bit, closing her eyes.

By the time they made it into Birmingham, even Sawyer was restless. As soon as they got off the plane, Sawyer and Flynn tried to take off running, but Stephanie called after them. They stopped obediently, knowing their mother's wrath was not one they wanted to incur. They found the driver holding the "Jericho" sign and they were on their way to the hotel. Stephanie wondered if Chris would mind if she just dumped the kids off and got her own room. She was so frazzled right now, not just from the kids, but from work and travel and it was all overwhelming.

Chris and Kensington were in the lobby when Stephanie and the kids walked in. Sawyer and Flynn ran straight for him and Chris knelt down, intercepting them with one arm. Kensington babbled happily and tried to grab at the person closest to her, which happened to be Sawyer. Sawyer kissed her cheek and she giggled and happily smiled. It was when she saw Stephanie that she really started to pull away and Stephanie walked straight up to her daughter and picked her up, giving her a big hug.

"Daddy, Daddy, I missed you!" Sawyer said and Flynn confirmed this with a big head nod. Chris lifted the both of them before leaning over to kiss Stephanie.

"You look stressed," Chris noted with a bemused smile.

"I am stressed, I need a 3-day nap," she told him. "I just want to go upstairs and sleep. It's hard with the kids because if I sleep, then they need something so I had to stay awake for the most part."

"Have you guys eaten?"

"No, we'll just get room service," Stephanie said, "our bags are over there."

"Come on, let's go up to the room, I'll take care of the kids and you can rest, okay?"

"Thank you," she said gratefully, following him and the bags as they went up to the room. "Hey there, Kensy, I missed you so much, did you miss me?" Kensington grinned widely, a confirmation if she ever saw one, with her tongue sticking out a little. It was something that Chris did and all their children seemed to pick up on or inherit. If it wasn't so cute, it might be annoying. "I'll take that as a yes."

When they got to the room, Chris took back Kensington and Stephanie went straight to the bedroom, collapsing on the bed and closing her eyes. She just laid there for a few minutes, completely still as she listened to Chris ask the kids what they wanted for breakfast. When they had told him, she heard him come into the room and then felt the sag of the mattress as she felt Chris lie down next to her. She opened her eyes and turned to her right, meeting Chris's blue, blue eyes and adorable smirk.

"Hey there, pretty lady," he said coyly.

"Hey," she said, haggardly.

"Do you want me to get you anything for breakfast while I'm ordering?"

"Anything greasy and delicious, I've earned it," Stephanie told him.

"The kids were a handful, I take it."

"Flynn more than Sawyer, but by the end, even Sawyer was acting like he wanted to strip the plane bit by bit," Stephanie told him. Chris just laughed and leaned over to kiss her. She half-heartedly returned the kiss because she was just too tired to put any more effort into it. They stopped when Kensington, who was still in Chris's arms, hit Chris on the face.

"I think she wants to go play with her brother and sister," Chris said, "I'll be right back."

"Mmhmm," Stephanie said, her eyes closed again as she sighed and felt Chris get up. She heard him order breakfast and then apparently set down Kensington because she asked Sawyer to keep an eye on her and Sawyer complied willingly, probably smiling now that his baby was back with him. A few moments later and she could feel Chris's body back on the bed and then his hand came to rest on her stomach. It crept up her shirt and started rubbing her stomach. She could tell by now, nine years after the fact, when Chris wanted sex and when he just wanted to comfort her. This was definitely just to comfort her.

"You look exhausted," he told her softly, like he was disturbing her if he dared raise his voice. "So Flynn was a troublemaker?"

"Yeah, she wouldn't eat her dinner, she wouldn't sleep. She finally calmed down enough that I was able to get her fed and sleeping, but it was difficult. I'm not faulting her though, she's two, I can't be mad because a two year old can't sit still for fourteen hours, _I_ can't sit still for fourteen hours."

Chris laughed, "I'm sorry you had to deal with both of them."

"They're my kids, of course I deal with them, I don't want anyone else but you dealing with them. I could never just hand off my kids to a nanny. That's not the way that I work and it's not the way that I ever want to work."

"But what if we end up having like seven children, would you accept some help then?" he joked.

"No, I'll accept the invitation to the insane asylum because that's where you'd have to put me if we had seven children," she told him. She finally opened her eyes and turned towards him. "You're a sight for sore eyes."

"You missed me that much, I'm touched, baby," he leaned over and kissed her cheek. "Kensy and I have been having fun. We've run into a number of people who are actually coming to the concert. I don't want to say they were stalking the hotel, but it was a little suspicious."

"So you think there are throngs of fans outside, just waiting for you guys to emerge?"

"Yes, I do," Chris told her. "I'm excited though, there's a buzz in the air, can you feel it?"

"The only buzz I can feel is-"

"From your vibrator?" Chris joked and Stephanie groaned. Chris laughed some more, "What? I'm just joking, you know that. Wait, do you have one?"

"You're disgusting," Stephanie shoved at him, but he didn't budge, "besides, why would I need one when I've got the real thing."

"Yeah and the real thing is as good as what I've got," he winked at her and she shoved at him again. "Oh, like you weren't thinking it. You're _always_ thinking it."

"I think you've got me confused with you, the insatiable slut," she joked back, "so back to buzzes in air, you think there's a buzz?"

"We're going on a long tour, nearly a month, I think there's definitely a buzz in the air. I can't wait to get out there and get performing."

"You really are an entertainer," she rubbed his cheek. "Look at you, you can't even stand to be away from a stage. I think that's where you shine, really, not just here with your music, but with wrestling too, and all your other things for that matter. I think that you just need to be in front of people. I think that's what you were born to do; whether it's wrestling, music, dancing, I think you just thrive in front of people. You're a ham that way."

"You had to go and ruin a beautiful speech by calling me a ham, didn't you?"

"Aren't you? You're almost always _on_, if you know what I mean."

"On top of you, is that what you mean?"

"I'm starting to think your brain is hard-wired for sex and that's it."

"Only sex with _you_, so you should feel flattered if anything. I mean, look at the guys in our business, I can name like ten guys that are cheating on their wives right now, seriously, I could just rattle them off. You hear shit in the locker rooms, believe me. You've never been in one…well, you haven't in nine years, before that, I'm sure you were on the floor of the men's locker room every week."

"So those ten guys, are they the same ten guys doing Kelly Kelly?" Stephanie asked, ignoring Chris's slut comment.

"Ouch! Catty there, aren't we, baby?" Chris laughed though, thinking back to Randy's interview that had broken around the internet. It was pretty harsh if he did say so himself. He wasn't necessarily a fan of Kelly Kelly, but Randy's words had been indeed harsh.

"I'm just saying," Stephanie said, "I mean, that's what he said and knowing that Kelly has tried to get _you_-"

"It was a kiss, she kissed me, I pushed her away, she thought we were fighting, wasn't that when I had to pretend to be divorced from you-"

"Inconsequential," Stephanie told him. "Besides, who cares about her? And thank you for not being one of the ten guys who is sleeping around on their significant other."

"When would I have the time, I spend all my time with you anyways so it's not like I could…well, I guess that's actually a moot point right now because I spent a few days without you, but the only girl I ever spent time with was Kensy and sorry, but I may like her more than you."

"Understandable, Lord knows I like her better than I like you," Stephanie told him. "You know, we're probably going to get so sick of each other on this tour because we'll be spending so much time together that we'll probably end up divorced at the end of it."

"Wow, and the tour ends the day before our anniversary, talk about coming full circle. Instead of confessing your love for me, you're going to confess your hate this time around?"

"I didn't confess my love for you, get out of here," she scoffed.

"Oh Chris," he said in a high-pitched voice, "I can't just be around you and not be friends with you. I like you too much, kiss me, Chris, oh kiss me now!"

"I don't recall that night going that way."

"That's how I recall it," he shrugged. "Maybe for our anniversary, I'll recreate the moment."

"So I have to not hug you?"

"Exactly," he said as there was a knock at the door.

"Breakfast is here, Daddy!" Sawyer yelled.

"I hear it," he said, giving Stephanie a quick kiss before getting off the bed, "breakfast awaits."

He held out his hand to her and she grabbed it, letting him pull her off the bed. She walked into the living area and helped Flynn get into a chair while putting Kensington in the high chair the hotel had provided for them. She was sure that Kensington had already ate, but she was also sure that Kensington would want to be around her brother and sister after being an only child for a couple days. It was probably totally out of her element to have such attention on her when she was just becoming aware that she would have Sawyer and Flynn around her most of the time. Chris opened the door and let the room service guy push the tray in with the food. He put it on the table while Chris got out a tip and then he left, thankful for the large tip Chris always gave.

"So have you thought of any way to get around the Punk situation?" Chris asked as he sat down in between Flynn and Kensington, helping Flynn take the cover off her food and then helping to cut up her Belgian waffle while Flynn ate the strawberries alongside her pancakes.

"What's wrong with CM Punk?" Sawyer asked. "Is it because Gampa got angry with him, Mommy?"

"Yeah, it's exactly because of that."

"Gampa was _mad_," Sawyer told Chris. "He yelled and everything."

"I heard," Chris said seriously. "He suspended CM Punk."

"Oh, that's not good, is it?" Sawyer was a little unclear what the word suspended meant, but judging from his parents' tones, it didn't sound like something he'd ever want to encounter. He could tell that his mommy and daddy were talking about CM Punk a lot more and that CM Punk was coming around to talk to his mommy more, but he didn't really think too much of it because that was his parents' jobs to talk to people; there were always people streaming in and out of his mommy's office and his daddy was always talking about someone he had no idea about. He'd just learned to take things in stride.

He understood, to an extent, that his parents did something that made them very noticeable. He just had no scope of how recognizable they were. He didn't know how famous his parents were or why exactly wrestling made someone famous. He just knew that lots of people knew his parents and wanted their autographs. Otherwise, he just shrugged it off. It wasn't something that necessarily included him so he didn't take the time to worry about it.

"No, it's really not," Stephanie said, "it means that he can't wrestle, but that's not fair, right?"

"No, if someone wants to wrestle, they should wrestle because they love to do it," Sawyer tried to reason.

"I like wrestling!" Flynn slammed her palms on the table and then gave a ridiculously innocent smile that was so displaced on her face. She immediately went back to eating her newly cut-up pancakes.

"I know you do," Stephanie said, "but yeah, I'm not sure what to do. I was thinking about waiting it out, seeing if the board f-i-r-e-d my dad anyways because of how he handled the situation and let it get that far, far enough to where Punk was disparaging the company _on_ a company show."

"But it could go the other way," Chris pointed out.

"I know, which is why I really don't want to take my chances with this, you know," she shrugged, "I would much rather there be a match and the p-l-a-n would just work out the way it's supposed to work out, but it looks like that's not happening."

"But there has to be a way," Chris said, "you always find a way."

"I was hoping that two heads were better than one in this situation. You know how I work, you know how the company works, you know how people work, you're a very people-oriented person and well, you've kind of been in my shoes, what with taking over for me when I was pregnant all those times. Plus, you've been champion before and I don't recall a time where you were suspended…but still."

"Well, I'm trying to look at it from Cena's perspective. I mean, okay, this is Cena, right, Mr. Righteous Guy, he always wants to do what is right and good in the world…God, does he have a girlfriend or wife or anything because I feel sorry for her being married to a guy like that," Chris shook his head.

"What do you mean by that?" Stephanie asked. "I mean, most girls would probably want a guy who was good and wanted to do the right thing all the time."

"Do _you_ want a guy like that?"

"I'm stuck with the guy I got," she countered, tilting her head and looking pointedly at him. But the right side of her mouth was quirked up, which let him know she was just teasing.

"And do you like me, yes, you do, and do I always do the right thing, no I don't, it just must get annoying trying to be perfect around Mr. Perfect," Chris said, "too much pressure on you to be something that you probably aren't, that's all I'm saying. But anyways, so he wants to do what's good and right-"

"But on the flip side, this means he'll probably get to keep his title. I can't really envision anyone right now who would seriously challenge Cena for the title, unless someone, _someone_ were to come back and challenge for it because they feel that they have to make an impact immediately upon their return…"

"Well, I don't know what Trips is doing, but maybe he'll go for it," he said, knowing what she was implying, but turning it back around on her. He took a bite of his eggs benedict and raised an eyebrow at her.

"Was just suggesting."

"Well, the thing is that yeah, he might get an easier match, but when has Cena been like me or Trips and _wanted_ the easier match. If you put Punk and say…Yoshi Tatsu in front of Trips and you told him you'd be fighting one of them for the WWE Title, 99 out of a 100 times, Trips is picking Yoshi because at times, you've just got to preserve what you've got at any costs, right?"

"I guess," Stephanie said.

"But that's not how Cena works, he would choose Punk."

"So what you're saying is that Cena _wanted_ that match with Punk?"

"Knowing Cena, yes, I think so."

"So because he wanted that match, he wouldn't want to compromise that match, he wouldn't want to settle for something else, a lesser match."

"Look how much everyone was promoting it. I know you don't read the wrestling sites, but I do and this thing simmering between Punk and the company is getting a lot of face time on websites and everything. I've even got people on Twitter telling me to come back so that I can be in a triple threat match, I don't know why-"

"Probably because of the doofus-in-law comment," Stephanie guessed. "I mean, everyone kind of knows that you're my husband so I guess they figured you would take offense to that particular barb. You really should have tweeted how angry you were about it or something, just something to further the charade that we're not on Punk's side."

"Daddy, Punk has a lot of tattoos, how come you don't have so many?"

"Because Daddy is perfect the way he is," Stephanie answered for her husband.

"But if he's okay…why does he have some already?" Sawyer pointed out. "He has an F on his hand because that is the name of Fozzy and that is his band and because he likes Fozzy Bear on the Muppets!"

"What? Who told you that?" Chris asked.

"Ed told me, he said that you like cartoons," Sawyer laughed.

"Daddy, you silly!" Flynn added around a mouthful of pancake, some of it spitting out of her mouth as she laughed.

"Flynn, don't talk and eat," Stephanie scolded her while snickering.

"That would be such an Edge thing to say," Chris scowled. "He's loving this retirement stuff too much, has time to come over and make my kids think lies about me. When are he and Lita going on their great adventure?"

Stephanie shrugged, "I think they're still planning it out. They're really going all-out for this, if I didn't know any better, I would say that this was a honeymoon or something. I wouldn't be surprised if they just got married on a whim while on it."

"I don't think they want to get married."

"Do Lita and Edge not want to be married?" Sawyer asked. "Why not, aren't you and Mommy married and you like it, right?"

"Well," Chris said, then glanced at Stephanie, who was glaring at him playfully. "Well, I think marriage is good for some people, but it might not be good with others."

"You also have Mommy's name tattooed on your finger, I seen it," Sawyer said, even though he couldn't right now because his daddy was wearing his ring. "And that's because you love Mommy more than you've ever loved anyone in the entire universe because she's the bestest, beautifulest, prettiest, smartest person in the world."

"Now where did he hear _that_?" Chris asked.

"I have no clue," Stephanie said coyly.

"I wanna ta'oo!" Flynn announced to everyone. She pointed to her arm and told them, "I draw here!"

"Not on your life," Stephanie told her and Flynn shrunk back a little. Well, now she wasn't so sure she wanted a tattoo if her mother looked at her like that when she wanted one. She never wanted to see that look again. It was kind of scary, but Flynn knew she'd see it again because she was kind of always getting into something. "We'll finish our discussion about Cena later?"

"Let's finish it now," Chris said, "I think you should talk to him about it."

"That won't seem suspicious?"

"Not if you cover it with business," he answered.

"What do you mean by that?" She was so glad she had Chris for this. He always brought in another perspective. She couldn't imagine anyone other than a wrestler, a really good wrestler having this point of view. If she'd married something like an engineer, they never would've understood her, not in the slightest.

"I mean that you call him and tell him that because the match was cancelled that there is going to be a new #1 contender and that the match will happen on Raw," Chris said, "but when you're talking to him, you've got to drop hints like how the match would have been great, how evenly matched the two of them were, how it kind of seems like the easy way out that Punk was suspended. I mean, the guy is probably already trying to ride the righteous train, thinking of ways to get Punk back. That's how he operates, I bet he's laying there at night, eaten up about it."

"Perhaps," Stephanie said, "I guess I could try that, try calling him. Britt and Hunter are my eyes and ears at the shows, more Britt than Hunter, I'm just not sure I can trust him yet, but, I'll take your advice."

"Good," Chris said, "now can we finish up with our breakfast, I've got things to do. I'm meeting up with the guys, we're checking out the venue, then we're doing a prelim soundcheck, then we're doing the VIP, which reminds me, are you coming to that?"

"We're coming, but we're going to stay out of your way, we'll just kind of be there, I know that you guys rented out a private dining area-"

"How did you know that?"

"I have your freaking itinerary," Stephanie said, "I made a copy of it, hello, I have to know where you are because we have the kids and we have to coordinate our schedules according to them."

"Oh yeah, I forgot."

"So I'm thinking the kids and I will be in the restaurant, but just in the regular portion of it."

"I don't see why you can't be in there with us. I'm sure that most of the people coming are wrestling fans and they'd love to see you."

"Sweetie, this is Fozzy, this is not the WWE, this is your thing, not my thing, _your_ thing and I really think it should stay that way. The kids and I are here as your support, not because I'm part of this. I'm not going to impose."

"You're my wife, you're not imposing."

"I would be if I was there, it's not about me," she said, "I'm perfectly fine having dinner with the kids and you know, they can come back there and talk to you if they want to, I'm not going to force them to sit there all night, but this is your thing and that's it, final, I'm giving the last word on the proceedings so don't argue with me."

"You'll lose," Sawyer nodded seriously.

"The kid is right," Stephanie told him. "You should listen to him."

"He is smarter than me."

"I'm not smarter than you," Sawyer told his father. His father knew a _lot_ more than he did.

"Debatable, but fine, I will concede this point and this point only."

"Okay, so we'll just hang around while you go do your thing, I think I'm going to do the Cena call today, that way it looks like we're really serious about the #1 contender thing. I'll call Britt and let her know the plan too."

"Sounds like our first day is going swimmingly," Chris told her. "Wait, do you want me to take the kids?"

"No, because there's the time difference, it's still really early in the States so we're going to rest from the jet lag and then I'll call and you go because you're accustomed to it."

"Okay, but I'm taking Kensington with me, you can pick her up at the restaurant."

"Sounds good to me."

After breakfast, the excitement of arriving and seeing Chris and Kensington had worn out the kids significantly. Their body rhythms were completely off and both of them adopted that whining tone to her voice that told her that the only place they needed to be right then was bed. They hadn't taken a bath in over a day so she insisted that they take a quick bath just to get clean. After they weren't so grubby, she put them into some comfortable clothes and then put them in one of the beds in the room. They nodded off almost immediately and she kissed both their heads before she took her own shower and nap.

She was awoken by Flynn coming over and climbing into bed with her, just watching her with a smile on her face. She grabbed Flynn and pulled her towards her, making Flynn giggle and cuddle in closer. "Are you feeling better now?" Stephanie asked.

"Uh huh, I wanna see Daddy," she told her mother. "Where he?"

"He's doing a sound check right now," she explained, "but pretty soon, we'll head over to where Daddy is having his VIP thing and you can see him for a little bit before we eat dinner and then head over for the show."

"We get see Daddy?"

"Yes," she said emphatically, not understanding that Flynn was asking if they were going to see Chris sing, which was what they were also doing. Stephanie thought that of all the shows Chris was doing, this one would be an important one to go to. It was kicking off this tour and she wanted to show that she could be there for Chris.

It wasn't that much of a sacrifice towards her. She had to learn to let Chris do things on his own and not rely on him to be wrestling forever. She'd come to terms with the fact that he had other interests and she had to grow right along with him. When she'd started dating him he'd already had Fozzy (she remembered his silly gesture of giving her his Fozzy CD, which was empty at the time because he was teasing her and they'd already been together and planned out an entire thing wherein he went to Raw and became a spy), but it was nothing like what it was now. Now, it was a viable job that was bringing in money, not that they needed it, but she knew that Chris liked to at least pretend he was the breadwinner of the family and not married into so much money, there was no way he could possibly spend it all in his lifetime.

She'd also come to terms with the fact that Chris, though agile and definitely in shape, was not going to wrestle forever. He just couldn't and she'd be damned if he became like Flair, an old man still trying to grasp onto his prime. So if music was the next avenue he was going to take after wrestling, she wanted him to do it with gusto, but make sure he knew that it was going to be with her by his side and not some groupie or groupies who would stroke his massive ego. She knew he wasn't going to run off and find some other wife, but it was the little reminders that made sure he knew there would be consequences for that if it ever did happen. She liked to put the fear of God in his sometimes; it spiced things up a little.

"I got new to wear," Flynn told her mommy.

"You mean a new outfit?"

"Yup, yup, yup," Flynn grinned.

"I know, I bought it for you," Stephanie kissed her daughter's nose. "Daddy is going to think you're the cutest girl there, he won't be able to take his eyes off you."

Flynn was excited, this was going to be so much fun. Once Sawyer woke up, Stephanie started to get the kids ready. They both had to change into their new outfits and Stephanie thought they looked absolutely darling so she had to get pictures of them. Stephanie had gotten both of them custom made Fozzy t-shirts (since Chris didn't seem to have any kids Fozzy t-shirts, something he should really rectify) and she'd gotten Sawyer a scarf that matched the one Chris was always wearing and a pair of sunglasses like Chris's. He was also in some jeans that were kind of torn and worn-looking and he looked like a mini-Chris Jericho.

Flynn was wearing her Fozzy t-shirt and a pair of black and white-striped leggings with a purple skirt over it and some high top Converse and a pair of sunglasses as well. Stephanie wasn't huge on the metal scene, but she thought both her kids looked like little rockers ready for the show. If she'd had Kensington with her, she would have decked her out too, but Kensington looked cute in her pink overalls so that could slide. When Stephanie had taken enough pictures (making a mental note to send them to everyone she knew), they went downstairs to get a taxi to take them to Nuneaton.

The restaurant was a cute place, not too big, but definitely not small. Stephanie walked to the back, but there was a security guard standing there, probably to make sure that nobody uninvited could get in. "Hi, I'm Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, Chris's wife, I just wanted to see him for a second." He looked at his list and it appeared she wasn't on it because he kept looking suspiciously up at her. Stephanie rolled her eyes, of course someone would forget to put her name on there. They probably thought she could just stroll in.

"Hold on," the guy said in a thick British accent that Stephanie could barely decipher. He disappeared behind the curtain and Stephanie looked around. The place wasn't packed so they shouldn't have trouble getting a table when the VIPs started to roll in. The security guy came back out and this time he had Chris with him.

"Sorry about that," Chris said, "I thought I'd put your name on the list, but yeah, she's cool, this is actually my wife."

"Aww, thanks, I was afraid you'd come out here and call me a stalker claiming to have your kids," Stephanie joked. "Where's Kensy?"

"Charming the pants off Sean," Chris said, then looked down at the kids. "Wow, look at you guys."

"We dressed up," Sawyer announced.

"You look like me…well, like 35 years ago," Chris ruffled his hair, "and you look very beautiful, Flutterby."

"Thank you," Flynn beamed.

"You got them dressed up?"

"It's the start of your tour, of course I did," Stephanie told him, "don't they look ready to rock."

"Oh, baby, you're cute too," he said, leaning over and giving her a kiss. "Come on back, we're just hanging out for another twenty or so minutes before the VIPs start coming in. We decided to be early this time. Usually we come last, but we're all pretty stoked for the tour and thought coming early would be a nice surprise."

"Great logic there."

"Have you called Cena?" he asked as he wrapped his arm around her waist and led her and the kids into the private room.

"No, the kids and I collapsed in exhaustion when you left so I haven't had the chance, maybe when we get back after the concert, the time difference makes that convenient," she explained.

"That's true, but let's forget about business and have some fun for a while."

They walked into the room and Stephanie greeted all the band members individually with a hug and a warm smile. As much time as Chris was spending with his band, Stephanie had really come to know them as well and she felt comfortable mingling with them and talking with them. She was caught up in a conversation with Rich about how she needed to start listening to more German metal so she could keep up with Chris when Chris and Kensington came over and kissed her on the cheek, sitting down next to her and wrapping his free arm around her casually as he watched the conversation between the two of them. Chris could not have been happier in that moment.

What could be better though? He was touring with his band, about to meet a bevy of fans who loved his music and on top of that awesome sundae, he had his wife and kids with him and he didn't have to miss them while he was away. A month away from them would have been too long. In that case, seeing them on Skype and talking with them over the phone wouldn't have been enough. It was never nearly enough when he was on the road without them.

He never thought he'd be the type of guy who would rely on other people so much, but then, these weren't just any people. They were his family, the people he loved more than he loved himself and because of that, they held a higher regard, they were the only people he would drop everything and anything in his life for. Just these four other people, nobody else. He lived for them, everything he did was for them.

Sawyer and Flynn were both talking with Sean about something, it looked like Flynn was showing off her outfit to Sean, who at the very least pretended to look interested. "The dinner is starting in about ten minutes, just wanted to let you know."

"Oh, we better get our seats in the main restaurant then," Stephanie said.

"You should stay, Steph," Rich told her. "I don't see why you couldn't, we have more than enough room back here."

"She thinks it would take away from us," Chris rolled his eyes and Stephanie nudged him in the side. "Kensy wants to stay, don't you, Kensy?" Kensy garbled a couple syllables. "Yes, she wants to stay. I agree with Rich, Steph."

"Yeah, well I don't agree with either one of you, so the kids and I are going to sit down and have a nice meal," Stephanie said. "It's not a big deal to me. Enjoy your fans, you deserve this."

"Stephanie loves our last album, she's our biggest fan," Chris joked, "but only because she's my inspiration."

"Oh, so that's why all our songs seem to have to do with some woman," Rich winked at her and she just guffawed.

"Okay, give me my baby," Stephanie said, lifting Kensington out of Chris's arms.

"Mommy, Frank said he could teach me how to play the drums!" Sawyer ran over and hopped next to Stephanie, "then I can be in Daddy's band!"

"Who are you, Little Ricky?" Stephanie asked.

"Who's that?" Sawyer wondered.

"Nothing, so you want to be in Daddy's band?"

"I can do it," Sawyer turned to Chris, "I can be in your band, right, Daddy?"

"Hell yeah, you can," Chris told him, giving him a hug, "I'd love to have you in it, like father, like son."

"I can be a wrestler and a drummer and I can do what Mommy does," Sawyer decided.

"Ambitious, I like it," Stephanie said, "but Daddy's VIP thing is going to start soon so we're going to have dinner in the other part of the restaurant."

"Okay," Sawyer shrugged, "we'll see you after though, Daddy?"

"Of course, you guys are coming to the show," he said, then looked at Stephanie, "I forgot to bring Kensy's earplugs, did you bring them?"

"Look who you're talking to, Chris," Stephanie said, leaning over and giving him a peck on the lips. "Have fun with your fans, you too, Rich, the both of you have seen this thing from infanthood, you deserve to live it up now. You should also consider a US tour, just saying."

"She's absolutely going to persuade us into doing a US tour, isn't she?" Rich said.

"The woman talked me into marrying her, of course she can persuade us to do a US tour, she persuades me to stay with her every day."

"Nine years," Stephanie pointed her finger between her and Chris, "six and a half years of marriage, and three kids, he's absolutely whipped."

Chris shrugged, "I deal with it. You going to get the little monster?"

"Can you get her?" Stephanie asked, "Just bring her out there?"

"Sure," he said, going over and grabbing Flynn. He followed Stephanie into the other part of the restaurant and helped her get the kids sit down at the table that had been reserved for them. With a short kiss, Chris was back in the room and she was left with the kids. She was just about to start talking to them when her phone rang. She checked it and saw that it was Britt and she had to answer it.

"Hello?" Stephanie said, watching as people were strolling into the back and feeling twinges or pride at how many people were going back there.

"Hey, Steph, so have you come up with anything? Hunter is driving me crazy thinking of ways to make this Punk/Cena match happen."

"Is he now?" Stephanie said knowingly.

"Shut up, Stephanie," Britt said in a sing-song voice, "I'm not going to listen to you again about your stupid little 'Hunter is power hungry' spiel. He just wants to help because he has nothing going on right now and this is something he can do. He suggested that he talk to your father-"

"Is he crazy?" Stephanie scoffed. She couldn't believe that Hunter would do that and think it would work. "He would…my father would never listen to what Hunter has to say. My father barely listens to what I have to say and I'm his daughter."

"She thought he could have a different perspective as a wrestler."

"When he is a wrestler, let me know," Stephanie told her, "besides, I've got a plan, Chris thought it up."

"Oh, so Chris is allowed to help and _not_ be power hungry, but Hunter can't?" Britt reasoned.

"Chris isn't power hungry, he doesn't even want to return, he's just helping me."

"So it Hunter!"

"Okay, I'm not arguing with you anymore about this, you're my right-hand woman and I can't fight with you, we're on the same side here," Stephanie said. She laughed at herself though and could hear Britt laughing too. They were acting like best friends, which, Britt was now. "Okay, onto other things, Chris's idea is to appeal to Cena. I'm going to call him soon, I'm just at dinner with the kids, Chris is with the VIP's, as soon as this is over, I'm calling Cena."

"You think that will work?"

"Yes, I do, Chris was right when he said that Cena is always there to do the right thing. He wants everything to be just and fair and it's boring, but it works for us in this instance. We can use that to our advantage."

"Let me know how that goes," Britt said.

"I have to, you're in charge over there."

"A mere puppet," Britt joked, "but I know you're eating dinner, so I'll let you go. Have a great night, bye, Steph."

"Bye Britt, tell Hunter not to plot to overthrow me while I'm gone," she teased.

"Very funny, Stephanie, bye."

Chris was having a blast, even though his family was sitting outside without him. He'd never get tired of interacting with the fans. They were the reason Fozzy was a success and though he knew that a number of them were here because he was Chris Jericho, he knew a lot of them liked Fozzy and loved the band as a whole and he was so grateful for that. They were even starting to have repeat offenders at these VIP things, which was flattering and pretty cool. He liked that he could come to a city and know people, it was like having friends all across the world.

Everyone was talking and he was talking with a couple who were gushing about Chasing the Grail to him and trying to get information on their next album. Chris was trying to keep mum about it, but let it slip that it would probably come out in mid-2012 and to look for it. When he had a moment alone, he slipped out of the private room and into the restaurant, walking quickly to Stephanie's table and leaning down to kiss the crown of her head.

"Hey, how's it going out here?" he asked. Flynn held up a forkful of spaghetti and Chris took a bite from it. "Delicious."

"I like to eat it," Flynn said, taking a bite of it herself.

"Have you eaten?" Stephanie asked.

"Food's on its way," Chris said, "there's a lot of us, we have to wait it out. I just wanted to come out here and check on you guys, see how you were doing, see how the food was. I ordered the lasagna, which I see you have…"

Stephanie cut off a bite and offered it to him, "Okay, that is good, I made a great choice."

"Are you having fun in there?" Stephanie asked and Chris nodded giddily. He looked like a little kid, so excited and pumped up. It was the first day of the tour and he had to be filled with adrenaline. "You better get back in there before they know you're missing."

"You guys are good though, right? I don't need to complain to management because we paid a lot to them for this and they know you're my wife."

"They're treating us like royalty," she joked, "go, go have fun, I'm proud of you."

"I love you," he said, kissing her, then he kissed Sawyer's head, "I love you, kid."

"Love you, Daddy," Sawyer said around a ravioli.

"Love you," he kissed Kensington's head. She didn't even look up at him because she was picking up food with her fingers and eating it. "And I love you, Flutterby."

"Mmhmm," Flynn was still eating.

"Quite the reception I'm getting, I'll come get you guys later."

Stephanie nodded and watched Chris go back to the private dining area. She and the kids finished their dinner and then they had some time for dessert so Stephanie let them splurge. Sawyer and Flynn shared some gelato and Stephanie let Kensington take a little bit of her cake, but only a little because Kensington wasn't used to sugar. When Chris was done with the VIP dinner, he came out and sat with Stephanie for a bit before they all headed over to Quens Hall, where the concert was taking place.

Stephanie and the kids went backstage while Chris and the band warmed up, then Chris came back for a while, while the opening acts were performing. He helped get the earplugs into the kids, only Flynn had trouble because she hated people doing things for her. Chris was a jittery mess when it came time for him to go out there. He wasn't nervous, he was more anxious to get this tour started. Stephanie followed with Kensington in her arms and Sawyer holding her free hand and Flynn holding onto Sawyer's free hand. They made their way to the side of the stage and stood a little ways back so they weren't next to the speaker and Stephanie found a couple chairs that Sawyer and Flynn could sit in while they watched Chris.

Chris was in his element out there in a way that he wasn't with wrestling. Stephanie watched on proudly as he did his thing, getting the crowd involved as they all cheered for him and the rest of the band. She was nearly full to bursting with pride. There was no other way to describe it. Occasionally, Chris would glance offstage and she'd smile and wave Kensington's hand. Sawyer and Flynn were bopping and dancing along with the music, getting out of their chairs and dancing, which made Stephanie laugh and when Chris looked at her again, she pointed down at them and the grin on his face was luminescent.

Chris was pumped. Did life get any better? He could probably die right now and die with a smile on his face. Life was just…good, exceptionally good. Good in the way that makes you want to run to a church and thank God right then and there for everything that you have. The fans came out to see his band and it was gratifying. It was one thing to just listen to his music, but to come out, to buy tickets, to buy VIP packages, to get here and watch him and a band that was a joke in the beginning play and to enjoy and cheer and sing along, it was magical. Stephanie and the kids were the icing on the cake, but the fans were really what this was all about.

When he looked and saw his kids dancing and hopping around, it was funny and sweet and, they liked him, he knew they did, but it was just another facet of him they liked. Stephanie was an open book to him now, but that didn't change how thankful he was for her. What wife would drop everything for a month just to watch him chase his dream around a foreign country? Well, maybe there were lots, but he got the top of the heap on that one. This was going to be an amazing tour, he could already tell.

"Get some sleep, you must be exhausted," Stephanie said, pulling the covers over Chris. She started to walk away when Chris pulled at her arm.

"Where are you going?" he asked her.

"Calling Cena," Stephanie said. "I've got to do that so I can plant the seeds as soon as possible."

"Oh, okay," he said, "but then you'll come to bed?"

"Of course, but you'll probably be asleep, you had an exciting night tonight."

"Stop talking to me like I'm one of the kids," he told her. "They had fun tonight, didn't they?"

"The way they ambushed you after you were done didn't clue you in, Sawyer even told all the other guys they were good," Stephanie said, laughing over her diplomatic son. "They loved it, they loved you and the crowd, even Kensington liked it, but that might have been because of all the stimulation."

"Probably," he said, "but don't let me keep you from Cena."

"Love you," she leaned down to kiss him before going into the other room. She pulled out her phone and scrolled through her numbers until she got to Cena's and hit the call button. She drummed her fingers against the tabletop until he answered.

"Hello."

"John, it's Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, we need to talk."

"What about?" he asked and the suspicion in his voice was clear.

"About Raw, about the new #1 contender," Stephanie said, "we need to figure out who you'll be facing now with Punk suspended. You don't have an opponent for Money in the Bank and we need to find one, unfortunately, the match with Punk isn't going to happen, I know that would have been great."

"Yeah, it probably would have."

"I mean, I don't know how to get through to my dad, he doesn't want anything to do with Punk anymore and it's really a shame. If there was just some way to convince him, I mean, you wanted the match with Punk, didn't you?"

"Yeah, I thought it would've been a really good match, Punk is hot right now, you know and to be the best, you've got to beat the best and all that. Just too bad that it's come to this, but I guess Punk deserved it."

"I don't think so, when is it wrong for a man to speak his mind, huh?" John said, playing right into Stephanie's hand. "He gets suspended for that, pretty much fired for that, what if I was going to do that, what I said those things, would I get fired or suspended too?"

"That would be my father's jurisdiction."

"Your father is a jackass who takes the power and holds on too tight. When are our opinions going to count, never?"

"Well, I mean, if you really, really want the match, you could always talk to my father about it." This was going easier than she had ever planned. John seemed to be on the same wavelength as she was, in fact, it seemed liked he'd been thinking about this since Monday.

"What the hell can I do about that?" John asked. "Your dad isn't just going to say, 'Hey, yeah, Punk, get your ass back here, we need you.' He believes that he knows best, doesn't he, that's how he operates, well, it's BS."

"You are the champion, you do have some leverage, you know," Stephanie said, "I'm kind of reminded of the time when Hunter and I fired Mick Foley and Rock gathered everyone to reinstate him. We were intimidated by that we reinstated him. Intimidation goes a long way, you know."

"Maybe…maybe that could work. It's only fair that I face Punk, you know, I want that match and it's not fair that your father took that opportunity away from me and from Punk just because he happened to not like what he said."

"I get your point."

"I'm going to do something about, yeah, I'm going to do the right thing," Cena was talking himself into it and Stephanie hadn't even needed to set a real trap. Sometimes she didn't need a huge plan and it was refreshing when someone took over something for her. "I'm not going to let your father dictate what happens just because he doesn't like it. If Punk is suspended, I'm going to tell him that I'm walking…with the title around my waist."

And that was how Stephanie got CM Punk back in the match.


	332. Negotiations, July 11, 2011

"Oh my God, Steph, you should have been there."

Stephanie laughed softly as she could still hear the excitement in Chris's voice. It was moments like this one that made her glad that she'd asked him to take time off after Kensington was born. It afforded him the time and energy to do things like this, things that he loved. She knew he loved wrestling, would always love it, but she loved when he did something for himself and was happy about it, ecstatic even, if his voice was any indication.

"I wish I could have been, I'm sure it was amazing," she told him genuinely. "I bet that you tore that entire stage to pieces and nobody else there could compare."

"You are aware of what bands were there, right?" he chuckled, but secretly was in love with the way she always thought he was the best at everything.

"Of course I know, you never shut up about it," she joked, "but I still think that you're the best out of all of them. They're all sell outs, you're still pretty underground, therefore, you are the best with the most loyal and devoted fans."

"Okay, maybe," he conceded. "I love you though, God, you should have been here, you would have loved it, I would have dragged you onto the stage and serenaded you or something, I don't know, maybe I would have sung Wanderlust to you."

"Yeah, no thank you," she laughed. "We're just here at the hotel, which, admittedly, it feels good to be in a hotel and not on the bus. I think the kids are glad that they got to stretch their legs as well, run around and all that without me yelling at them that we're on a moving vehicle."

"Well, you have a valid point."

Since the Sonisphere concert was right in the middle of their tour of Germany and the surrounding countries, both Chris and Stephanie thought it would be pointless for her and the kids to fly to London for one day and then fly back to Germany. Instead, their bus and the bus the rest of the guys from Fozzy were using had gone ahead to Saarbrücken. Since they didn't have anywhere to be that night with Fozzy in London, Stephanie had gotten a couple rooms at a hotel so they could have a break from the bus.

The kids were doing pretty well with the bus. There was enough room where they didn't have to sit still all the time and with all the toys, activities, and DVDs Stephanie and Chris had brought, they were more than occupied. Still, they were kids, they needed space. Saarbrücken, like much of Germany, was a beautiful place. Stephanie had found this beautiful park and she and the kids had had a picnic this afternoon. Even Kensington was happy to be out in the summer sun, walking around with the help of Stephanie. At nearly eleven months, she could walk with someone's help, but seemed hesitant to attempt it on her own. It reminded Stephanie of Sawyer when he was little and reluctant to try the walking thing by himself. In due time, Kensington would figure out that if she wanted to keep up with her brother and sister, she was going to have to walk on her own.

"Tell that to them," Stephanie said.

"Have you been working?"

"Yeah, I have been," Stephanie said, "with the not moving around a lot, it's a lot easier to get work done. I'm going to call Punk in a bit, just check in, see what he's going to do at Raw tomorrow. I'm going to be watching from the hotel room since we're not going to your concert tomorrow."

"You're not, I thought you were," he whined.

"You know it's Raw day, I told you that when Raw was on, I wasn't going to be going to your concert. Plus, we've seen most of them, I think the kids are starting to get bored of them."

"What? No, they're not," Chris protested, "my kids love me, they love to watch me perform. You're just saying that."

"I'm not, it's different than it is for wrestling, wrestling has something to offer that's different, usually, at least relatively speaking. But you guys have a set list that you follow and I know that you try and make every concert a new experience because you have repeat offenders, but it's still basically the same thing and kids aren't stupid, Chris, they know when they've heard things before."

"Still, I'm their father."

"And they love you, but they need a break too," Stephanie pointed out, "not to mention, I think they're going to want to watch wrestling, you know they love it."

"Not when I'm not on."

"Well, not _as much_ as when you're on, no, but Flynnie has been pretty adamant about watching Punk and his matches. I really think she kind of has a crush on him."

"She's only nearly three, there's no way that my daughter has a crush on _anyone_," Chris said, "she's too young for that kind of thing. She can start having crushes when she's fifty-three or something, when I'm dead, when I die, then she can start having crushes."

"How's that ivory tower you plan to lock her in?" Stephanie asked sarcastically.

"It's going very well, plus I've got that welder making the chastity belt for both her and Kensington, no man is ever going to defile my daughters," Chris told her. "That guy would die."

"You're cute, but it's going to happen eventually," Stephanie told him in a melodic voice that was just mocking him with its tone.

"No, it's not," he firmly said. "I know what goes through a guy's mind when they're teenagers. I may not have had sex when I was a teenager and I may have been really dorky and into wrestling so much that I barely had any girlfriends in high school, but I know what was going on in my mind and like hell I'm letting my daughter date any teenaged boys."

"I'm sure that you can intimidate them into not touching your daughters like that," Stephanie said, "you have a presence and just _what_ do teenaged boys think about that grown men don't think about?"

"The thing is a grown man has, usually, an easier chance, I think, just because well, I guess older women want it more."

"Out of the loop much? When I was a teenage girl and I saw a hot guy, I wanted him in more than innocent ways."

"Eww, don't do that, don't make me think that," Chris said.

"What? You knew I'd been with guys before, I was _married_ before, Chris, you know that, you're very good friends with my ex-husband."

"No, I mean, don't make me think that my daughters will want boys."

"Well, they could want girls, we don't know," Stephanie said.

"Like that's supposed to reassure me, I don't want _anyone_ being with my daughters, men or women alike if that's what one of them prefer," Chris gagged. "Why can't they just stay babies?"

"Because the world doesn't work like that."

"Well, Flynn can't have a crush on Punk."

"I think she does though, I'm just saying, she likes watching him."

"Let's change the subject please!" he insisted.

"Okay, well, my dad called to check in on us, but it was really just a cover to see if I'd spoken to Punk at all, but I played it off well, saying that I hadn't, that I was really focused on being supportive of you and that my duties right now were extremely limited and if he really wanted any kind of information that he should talk to Britt."

"And he bought it? He actually bought the idea that _you_ would not be involved in any active duties or wield the power like an axe over Britt's head?"

"Yes, because I'm in _Germany_ right now," she answered. "He probably thinks I have little to no contact at all-"

"Except for the fact that Britt practically gives you hourly updates," Chris interrupted to say. Stephanie rolled her eyes though she knew Chris couldn't see them. Chris seemed to know though, "I know you're probably doing something sarcastic with your face right now, but I live with you, I know you and your obsessive need for power, like father, like daughter _and_ like mother, like daughter."

"My mom hasn't completely decided if she wants to run again, Chris."

"So I have to put on happy, bubbly family face again?"

"When did you do that last time?"

"I did!" Chris said, "I had to be a perfect angel."

"Liar," Stephanie told him. "Wait, I do not have an obsessive need for power!"

"Says the woman with the elaborate plot to overthrow her father," Chris said, "not that I want to be on your bad side."

"Yes, because then I withhold from you, right?"

"No, please, I know where to get you to fall for me in two seconds," Chris told her.

"My dad is going to be at Raw on Monday."

"That should be interesting," Chris said, "is he going to try to get Punk to re-sign again? It'll be funny if he could considering you have the contract nearly written up with your lawyers as it is."

"No, he's not because I have control over Punk and he just doesn't quite realize that I'm the one calling the shots. I think he thinks that he really has the ball in his court, but he really doesn't. I'm appealing to him in ways that he wants to be appealed, but I'm in control."

"You just made it sound like you're offering to have sex with him," Chris told her.

"Yes, Chris, I'm having sex with him right now, from Germany. He's still in the States, but you know, we're still having sex," she said drolly.

"I just said it _sounded_ like you were. So are you going to talk to Punk?"

"Yeah, I said that, didn't I? I'm going to talk to him, see what he's going to do, then I'm going to relay that information to Britt. She'll probably tell Hunter, then Hunter will add it to his log on how he plans to overthrow me."

"I think you give him way too much credit."

"Or not enough," she told him. "I don't know, I'm not going to speculate anymore. I just worry that he's going to try and take over or try to strong-arm me like he did last time. I really had little do with the McMahon-Helmsley Era."

"Really? Because that's not how I saw it," Chris told her.

"You were the exception, you were an easy target because you started things between us."

"No, I didn't, you did by making me a co-IC champion with Chyna," Chris reminded her. "I very clearly remember that night because I was so angry that you couldn't see that I had won and then you go and you act like a bitch and I'm sorry, I saw pretty even footing in that duo."

"Well, it wasn't. With you, yes, it was me, but you thought I was one of the Godfather's hos."

"You _looked_ like one of the ho's!" he argued his point. She had too. She'd been wearing some really tight clothing and her hair was like a rat's nest and she looked skanky. It wasn't the skankiest she'd ever looked (he recalled once where she was wearing short shorts and heels and a halter top type thing and she'd looked like a streetwalker), but she had still looked like one of those hos.

"I did not!"

"Not to mention the fact I apologized and you proceeded to make my life a living hell. I genuinely, _genuinely_ apologized to you and to Tori and you _still_ put me into a handicapped match. How was that fair?"

"You thought I was a hooker!"

"Then you made my life a living hell for two _years_, so I'm sorry, baby, but I'm not going to believe the whole 'I had no power, Hunter stole it all from me,' story that you're trying to sell me right now. You were just as responsible for that debacle."

"No, no, no," she almost had a tantrum. "I was only responsible for you, that was it, everything else was mostly him. It was all about how he should be the champion, how he should make the decisions. I mean, yes, I made decisions about you, but that was because Hunter didn't think that you were worth his time at that period."

"Oh, that makes me feel so much better that I didn't even register on his radar enough to be dealt with."

"I'm just saying-"

"No, I get what you're saying, I'm a nobody, you married a nobody and you wish that you could have married someone better, more recognizable." Now he was just joking, but he did want Stephanie to know that he wasn't mad or anything. He was just kidding around with her and that he was actually listening to what she was saying.

He'd never had experience with Hunter in power before, at least not closely. He'd been a thorn in Hunter's side when the McMahon-Helmsley Era, but he'd never been one of the in-crowd. DX definitely had been, Kurt had kind of been, hell, even Edge and Christian had sort of been in with the McMahon-Helmsleys, but he could never say the same thing. He was nothing but a person who didn't respond well to authority, even when authority had luscious brown locks, and the stormiest blue-gray eyes he'd ever seen in his life.

"You don't know what he was like behind the scenes," Stephanie said, "do you think I would worry about this so much if I didn't actually think something could happen?"

"Yes, because you're you and you're always worrying over something," he told her, but then added, "it's just in your nature to worry about something from all angles. Maybe Hunter _was_ horrible back then, I really don't know how he was behind the scenes, I wasn't married to him, thank God, but I can't decide what to do for you."

"I wish you could," she said, "I don't hate him, not anymore, I just think that with power, it'll all go to his head again and that's the last thing anyone needs."

"We'll keep an eye on him, we really will. By the time this is all going to work itself out, we'll be back in the States and you'll be back at work so it's not like you're leaving the company actually in his control. You're not. It's going to be in your control. He won't be able to do anything behind your back because you'll be watching his."

"You're right," Stephanie said, "we'll be there."

"Yes, we get to spend our anniversary working and flying and traveling and doing nothing whatsoever romantic," he lamented.

"Next year is our ten year anniversary, you can save whatever big thing you were planning until then because that one is going to be a really special one," she told him. "I better let you go since I know you have an early flight and I've got to call Punk anyways."

"Okay, I love you, tell the kids I love them again," he said.

"I will."

"You better or else I'll hear about it and then I'll divorce you or something, or I'll just be that thorn in your side again."

"You still are, that hasn't changed, love you too, bye, Chris."

"Bye, baby."

Stephanie hung up the call and then immediately called Punk's number. "This is Punk, what do you want?"

"Do you not check your phone?" Stephanie asked.

"No, I don't feel the need to, if it's someone I don't want to talk to, I'll just say bye and then hang up, problem solved," Punk told her. Sometimes he could be such a blowhard. It was just lucky she'd been dealing with those kind of guys for almost her entire life.

"Well, I guess that's effective."

"So what do you need?" he asked.

"I just wanted to ask what you had planned for tomorrow."

"Whatever," Punk said and she could almost see him shrugging.

"You don't know."

"I was just going to go in there, do my thing, do whatever I wanted to do, kind of like the week before last, just get myself wherever I want to be. Your father's biggest mistake was letting me back in after what he did."

"It was calculated. I talked with John about it to get you back in, so it was premeditated on my part," Stephanie let him know. She couldn't have him thinking that she wasn't involved in this or that things happened by happenstance. There was no happenstance when you were trying to take someone down. There was only careful attention to detail.

"You talked with John?"

"Of course, it wasn't difficult actually," Stephanie explained. "He already wanted you back in the match."

"That John, always the upstanding guy," Punk was sarcastic in his assessment of Cena. "If I didn't think he was such a kiss ass, I might want to hang out with the guy. Actually, scratch that, I don't think I could suffer through him for even one night."

"You and me both."

"Good girl," Punk said, "so it's cool that I do whatever?"

"Well, I was hoping you were going in with some kind of plan, _any_ kind of plan…"

"That's kind of your MO, isn't it? You like to have things planned down to the last meticulous detail and then if everything goes to pot, you kind of get angry, huh?" He paused. "I can read you. You just like things to go your way or if they don't, you freak out."

"I do _not_ freak out," she argued while he scoffed. "I don't, I just adapt, I have adaptability."

"Sure you do," he countered. "It's okay, but that's not the way I work. I don't want to go in there like I'm doing business. I'm going in there to make a point, but I won't know what the point is until I'm there and I can see what I want to do. I have to see what's going on around me before I get to comment on it, right?"

"Your point?"

"My point is that you can't plan a protest. You have to know what you're protesting. So Monday, I'll see what's there," he told her, "I'll call you though, I know you'll be watching. Don't worry, you can trust me."

"I never thought I'd hear you say that," Stephanie confessed. "And how do I know if I can."

"You can't, but isn't that how trust is built, you put your faith into someone and then bam! They do what you thought and you can trust them then? That's what I am for you. You don't know if you can trust me, but I can prove that I can trust you. You'll have to do the same for me, but we can wait for that until after you come into power, power that I'm practically handing to you."

"Let's not get carried away, Phil," Stephanie warned him. "I can still break you."

"You're one scary bitch, Stephanie, but hell, I like women like that."

"I was under the impression you just liked women."

"Touché."

"So I guess I'll see what you're up to tomorrow, then."

"Don't worry, Stephanie, you're getting the company."

Stephanie didn't like going into things without knowing what was going on, but she just had to make sure that she could really trust Punk with what he was doing. He hadn't steered her wrong yet and she was offering him a very lucrative contract so he had all the incentive in the world to do what she wanted. It just came down to what they had spoken of: trust. She had to trust him, but she didn't yet know if he was trustworthy or not. If he were any one of her friends, she would trust without hesitation, but she didn't know that much about Punk outside of work. She had a feeling they ran in different circles, call it a hunch.

Britt knew that, even though Stephanie wasn't calling every hour on the hour, that she was going to be assessing Britt like a hawk. Even more so, Stephanie was worried about Hunter's role in all of this. She didn't know where Stephanie's concerns were coming from, but that was something that she couldn't really comment on. She'd never bee around Hunter when he and Stephanie were together. Sure, she had tapes and everything she could watch if she wanted to see how they were like onscreen, but she'd never seen how they were backstage, in those moments where the cameras weren't rolling.

She knew that Hunter had been a different person when he was with Stephanie. She could glean that much when she was watching their onscreen interaction from when they were married. But was he really that power hungry backstage? And if he was, could he be that mad with power again? She knew she could rein him in though, if it came to that, that wasn't the problem, the problem was she didn't know of this change. She knew that Hunter loved to have the power that the WWE Title afforded him, but what about actual power. She didn't want to give Stephanie the satisfaction of actually worrying about this, but it was a thought in the back of her head, something to keep an eye on for sure.

"I can't believe Stephanie hasn't called."

"Chris might have talked her into going to the concert or something," Britt shrugged. "You never know, right? I mean, they're over there and I know he loves to have her there."

"Yeah, that could be it, but I don't know, you know how she likes to have her nose in everything."

"Was she like that before, when you guys were in power?" she wondered, tilting her head so she could get a better look at Hunter. He had a thoughtful look on his face, like he was going back there to remember how she was when they were together.

"Not really, I mean, she was, but I don't think it was like how it is now. I think once she got the taste of power and then had it taken away that she started loving it more and more. I think that's why she bought ECW in the first place, she wanted that power back."

"Yeah, what was with that?" Britt laughed. "Did she even tell you she was doing that?"

"No, she just said that she was tired of sitting around while I rehabbed, then the next thing I know, her brother is introducing her as the new owner of the Alliance, color me shocked."

Britt frowned momentarily. The way Hunter put it, it sounded like Stephanie was definitely the worse of the two. Maybe Stephanie thought that Hunter got drunk with power, but it was really her that steered that ship. "So when you guys ran things before, would you say that you had a lot of input? I don't really know how much you're going to have when Stephanie takes over, but since you guys aren't married anymore…I just figured you had a lot."

"I had a ton of input," Hunter said nostalgically. "Stephanie had just gotten out from under her father's thumb, she was like a baby. I had to make a lot of decisions at first."

"I see," Britt said, her frown deepening a little more. "You must have loved that."

"There is a certain…cache when you're the boss, yes," he told her, coming over and sitting next to her. "You know, we're going to get a lot more say when Stephanie's in charge. I mean, you're not going to be a measly assistant anymore, you're going to pretty much be doing Stephanie's job and then with me, I'm going to be on the show, everywhere, I think that both shows would benefit. I wonder if Stephanie has thought of that yet."

"Thought of what?"

"The fact that she'll be taking over for her father, which means that she'll have control over all the shows, SmackDown included. Maybe if she doesn't think she can handle that, she can just give me complete control over it, like she's doing with you. I doubt that Chris would want to take it. He seems pretty adamant about doing the music thing for now so he might not want to have any part and if that's the case, I could definitely do it."

"So you would want to control SmackDown?"

"I think both shows could benefit from my presence is all," Hunter shrugged, thinking about it. If he was going to be on Raw, he might as well be on SmackDown as well. He could actually really help Stephanie with the coordinating. "Plus, Stephanie has three kids and they're all really young…"

"She's always seemed capable before."

"But her father has a bigger job," Hunter pointed out, which Britt had to admit was correct. Her father had a lot of duties that would need to be covered by Stephanie. There was advertising and sponsorship, then all the merchandising and branding, then scheduling, and it had to be a little daunting. Maybe Hunter really was just looking out for Stephanie. "She'll probably be so busy and whatever free time she has, I can't imagine she'd want to spend that anywhere else than with Chris and the kids. Oh man, and you know what, she doesn't even _live_ in Connecticut. She might need someone who can get to Titan and take calls or meetings for her."

"That is true," Britt mused. He really had a point and he really did seem to want to be helpful.

"Yeah, I just want to help when I can," he told her, confirming her recent thought.

"That's really sweet of you," Britt said, coming over and kissing him. "I really think that she'll appreciate that. Just make sure you don't cross her or anything, she will be your boss after all and she could fire you."

Hunter chuckled, "God, that's right, nobody can go over her head anymore. She'll be the head, okay, that's a little scary to think about."

"I bet," Britt said. "But I'm sure she'll do a good job and if she gets too drunk on power, I'm sure Chris will be able to rein him in."

"I was actually talking with him and he might not be around come the fall."

"What do you mean? Is he going on another tour or something?"

"Nothing like that. They're still trying to work out how they're going to do Sawyer going to school. Chris said that he's contemplating staying home with Sawyer since Sawyer won't be able to come."

"Oh really, I didn't realize that's what was going on," Britt said. "I guess that makes sense though, but what about Chris's parents, couldn't they just stay with him?"

"I guess, but well, you know how Chris and Stephanie are with their kids, they want to be the ones raising them."

"It's understandable," Britt said. "Anyways, I better get ready for the show. I'll see you in a bit, unless I can persuade my handsome boyfriend to accompany me?"

"Of course you can," he told her, grabbing her hand and leading her out of the room.

Stephanie turned the volume down on the computer so as not to wake the kids in the other room, then thought better of it and looked for her headphones so she could just listen without disturbing them. She knew they wanted to watch Raw, but it was on too late for them to watch. She had considered waking them up and watching it then going back to sleep, but she wasn't sure disturbing their sleeping patterns would be a good idea. It was the first time she'd actually be able to sit down and watch Raw on a television since she and Chris had been on the bus. Last week they'd been driving to Switzerland and she'd had Britt send her the show and she'd watched on her computer, which wasn't the same as watching it live of course.

This week, Britt and Stephanie had somehow set it up so that Stephanie could get a live stream from the show. It wasn't like the regular stream that people could get, but it was very similar. It allowed her to be on the bus and still be able to watch Raw. Chris, after his concert, had decided to hang out with the members of the band, Anthrax, and so he was on their bus with them right now and said he would just spend the night, which was fine with her. Sometimes they just needed some space.

"Mommy?"

Stephanie looked up and saw Sawyer standing in the little hallway that connected the sitting area from the bunk beds where Sawyer and Flynn slept, rubbing at his eyes. "Baby boy, what are you doing up?"

"I had to use the bathroom," he told her, "didn't you hear me flush the toilet?"

She hadn't; she'd been so engrossed in watching the show she hadn't even heard the toilet flushing, but then, sometimes it was difficult to hear over the sound of the bus itself. "I guess I didn't notice."

"What are you doing? It's very late, isn't it?" he asked.

"I was just about to watch Raw."

"Wrestling? But it's so late," he told her, not understanding the time difference thing.

"I know, but since we're here in Europe, it comes on really, really late because of the time difference. It's only 9 o'clock back home, right when Raw starts, but it's very late here and I was staying up so I could watch it."

"Can I watch it with you?" Sawyer asked, pattering over to her and climbing on the seat next to Stephanie. Stephanie took him into her arms and he cuddled into her. She didn't expect him to last very long because it was so late, but she'd let him stay with her until he fell asleep and she could take him to his bed.

"Sure you can," Stephanie kissed the top of his head.

"You have to make sure everyone does what they have to, right, Mommy?" Sawyer asked, punctuating his question with a jaw-popping yawn.

"Yeah, I do, that's why I'm watching, if anyone is out of line then I'm going to have to take care of them," she said playfully.

Sawyer laughed softly, "I like watching Daddy, but I miss wrestling."

"I miss it too, but before you know it, we'll be back in the States and then we'll be at Raw and things will be happening."

"Like what, Mommy?" Sawyer asked.

"I can't tell you right now, but you'll see soon."

"Look, Mommy, there's CM Punk."

Indeed, there was CM Punk. He looked like he was coming down to the ring to do commentary, and he did sit down at the commentary table with a megaphone with him. Stephanie laughed to herself. She could only imagine what Punk was going to do with that. She didn't have to wait long to find out as he said that if his microphone was going to be cut out again, he would just take matters into his own hands and use the megaphone to get his point across. She had to hand it to him, he was really going balls out with this plan. She knew that somewhere inside, where he didn't like to appear vulnerable, he was probably really, truly venting out his frustrations.

He wasn't different from Chris, lashing out to try and get attention. Chris had been a conspiracy victim and Punk didn't care what he did to get attention he deserved. She'd give it to him when she was in charge, but for now, she let him have what he wanted, let him vent in the ways that he wanted. Stephanie hadn't heard about the interviews that people wanted, but she was intrigued by it. She wondered if it was true or if he was just posturing. She reasoned that he probably wasn't lying and maybe after she got him to re-sign, she could have him go on those shows. It would definitely be good for business. Above all else, this would be good for business and she was all about business.

This want for a public negotiation caught her off-guard, but it was genius because there was no way her father would give into his demands. "Mommy, he seems really mad," Sawyer told her.

"Yeah, he is mad because he wants something, but Grandpa won't give it to him so he kind of wants to demand it from Grandpa."

"Why won't Grandpa give it to him?"

"Because Grandpa is stubborn," Stephanie told her son.

"Daddy says you're stubborn."

Stephanie laughed, "I guess that I am."

Stephanie continued to watch the show and it took no time at all for Sawyer to fall back asleep. During a commercial break, she lifted up Sawyer and took him back into the bunk area, laying him down in his bed and pulling the covers over him before she went back into the living area and she grabbed her phone intending to call Britt and get the lowdown on what was going on exactly.

"Hey, Stephanie, what's going on?" Britt said, knowing that Stephanie would probably contact her after the situation with Punk.

"Hey, so my dad is definitely there and they're definitely going to do this?"

"Yeah, your dad said that he was going to actually do it," Britt said, "came and told me and everything. I'm not sure where he's going with this though. I don't think he's going to give in to Punk though, but I'm really not sure. The vibe I'm getting is that he'll listen to what Punk has to say but that he's not giving in under any circumstances. Your father believes that he has the upper-hand, especially after the whole suspension thing."

"But my dad reinstated Punk."

"Yeah, because he put the provision on Cena. Your dad feels like he's got control of the situation because Punk knows that he can change his mind on that at the drop of a hat. So I think your father thinks that he can just fire Punk or suspend him if it came to that point during this thing."

"And do you think it will, have you talked to Punk?"

"I haven't, but do you want me to?"

"I don't know, I don't think he'll tell you what he's going to say. He wouldn't tell me what he was going to say earlier when I spoke with him so I doubt that he's going to spill to you everything that he's planning to demand. He says that he thinks better on the moment and you can't plan something like that, something to that effect anyways, it's late over here, my brain is pretty fried at this point."

"I understand, do you want me to tell him to get outrageous so that your father can't possibly fill any of his demands?"

"I think he's already going to go that route," Stephanie laughed. "I can't even imagine what he's going to say to that. The demands he made of me were reasonable, but God, the demands he could make to my father are too hilarious to contemplate."

When the time finally came for her father to come out, he seemed to waffle on the decision. Her father had never done anything like this before so of course he would be on the fence about it. Her father liked to do business mostly behind closed doors, at least this type of business. What he paid a lot of the upper tier superstars was very lucrative and he hated to disclose the amount. She remembered a few years ago when Chris and Hunter had appeared on the Larry King show. Larry had asked Chris how much he made and her father had answered with a glib non-answer of "Too much" or damn close to that.

So to go out there and possibly discuss money matters had to have her father on edge. There was also the matter of not knowing what else Punk could demand out of this contract. Her father was never a stupid man and after Punk's rants, she knew that her father knew that Punk was beyond the point of caring what Vince really wanted and that this could possibly end up in a disaster. It probably would end up in a disaster for her father, another humiliation. She tried to be sympathetic, he _was_ her father, but then the light at the end of the tunnel shone on her again and she could nearly taste the victory at the end of it.

She could keep her father on if she wanted to, but she wanted to take over. He could maybe still be the Chairman of the Board or a special consultant, but she was going to be the President and everything would finally run through her and her alone. She was already thinking of the possibilities of this and had been since the board of directors told her of their reservations about her father. She hadn't told Chris yet, but she was keeping a running list of things she wanted to change. She was also wondering how she wanted to decorate her new office. She would surely be moving to the top floor after her father was relieved of his duties.

Her father finally got to the ring and called Punk out there. Punk came out, mocking her father, and when her father extended his hand to shake it, Punk didn't take it. Punk, for his part, didn't feel like shaking this man's hand. He was conspiring with his daughter so he had no need to suck up to Vince any longer. He really didn't know if Stephanie would be better, but she spoke prettily and very convincingly. He could imagine that's how her father had been once upon a time, when he'd taken over the business from his father. He could probably butter people up with the best of them back then. It was too bad he'd seemed to lose that over the piles of money he made off people's talent. Not to say that Vince didn't deserve a lot of credit, but he didn't deserve it _all_, just another point that Punk hated.

Punk continued to make fun of Vince, even saying he thought he'd come out here dressed in John Cena gear. If he were Vince though, he'd be worried about the match. He'd be worried because Punk knew that, beyond a shadow of a doubt, he was a better wrestler than John Cena. The thing was, the fans, the blind, stupid ones couldn't see that. Sure, Cena had charisma, he'd give him that, he'd give him that in spades, but when it came down to the talent that brought them all to this business, Cena couldn't compare. Cena actually couldn't compare wrestling-wise to a ton of guys in the back who got no push whatsoever, who hung on by threads, hoping their moment would come. That was probably the biggest point of contention he had with Vince McMahon, the wasting of talent. There were so many guys who could break through, but were being held down by stupid politics. Now it was his turn to use politics against Vince McMahon.

Punk started talking about the provisions that he wanted in his contract and they got a little ridiculous (ice cream bars) but there was also truth to them. When he brought up how WWE fired guys on whims it seemed, that was real. That was really him wondering why guys who could wrestle, guys who, given the chance, could tear it up in the ring were not given any kind of chance whatsoever. He wanted that to change. He hoped it would change under Stephanie's regime. The crowd started chanting that they wanted wrestling and Vince said he didn't care what they thought and that was another thing, Vince _had_ to care what the fans wanted or they'd disappear. It appeared like he and Vince were on two different planes of thought.

It didn't help when Cena came out either. Cena, who thought he was better than everyone. Punk didn't have a problem with egos, lots of people said his was too big, but what he did have a problem with was people who couldn't back that up. Cena could sort of back it up on the microphone but not in the ring. He was kind of like Mick Foley on the microphone. They were good, but relied a lot on pandering to the fans. At least Mick's had been ironically, but Cena seemed to believe in every false word he could spew. That wasn't his style. He didn't pander to the fans because they didn't deserve to be pandered to. They deserved to be entertained and that was it.

In the end he ripped up that bogus contract, telling Cena and Vince he could go be the best in the world somewhere else with the WWE title. In truth, he wasn't planning on going anywhere else, but he knew the threat of it would freak Vince out and that brought a special twinkle to his eye.

Stephanie, on the other side of the world, smirked. She had to hand it to Punk, he knew what he was doing and he knew what he was doing very well. She may have underestimated him when this all began, but he was stepping up to the plate in ways she couldn't have imagined. He was more than deserving of the raise she was going to give him with his new contract. She was about to call Britt and tell her to tell Punk that he'd done a fantastic job when the bus started to slow down. Stephanie pulled at the blinds a little and it was still dark outside. She checked her watch and it was just after 5am. They certainly weren't near Århus yet. They hadn't even left Saarbrücken until about 1am.

Stephanie went to the intercom at the front of the bus that went directly to the drive and she pushed the button on it, "Hey, Ernst, um, why are we stopping?"

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Jericho," he said, his accent thick, but not undecipherable. "The other bus has had an accident."

"The other Fozzy bus?" Stephanie asked quickly, hoping that everyone was okay.

"Yes, they were about 16 kilometers ahead of us and we just reached them. I'm stopping because the bus is said to be quite damaged."

"Of course, of course, do you know where the Anthrax bus is?"

"I haven't gotten the confirmation on that bus yet, I've been trying to get them, but don't know what frequency they're on. They left behind us yet so they probably haven't gotten close."

"Okay, thank you," Stephanie said. She quickly went to the back of the bus and pulled on a robe and some shoes. As soon as the bus had stopped, she climbed out and quickly went over to where the guys were standing, looking a little shell-shocked. Stephanie grabbed the first guy she saw, Sean, and pulled him into a hug. "Are you guys okay?"

"Yeah," Sean told her, hugging her back. "Yeah, we're all okay."

"Thank God," Stephanie said, going to all four of them and giving them hugs, then pulling away to check them over. "You're sure that you're all okay."

"Yeah, the bus though," Rich said, looking a little worse for the wear. "It's pretty much totaled, we skidded on like two wheels, I don't even, it all happened so fast." Stephanie hugged them all again just for good measure.

"Were you guys asleep?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, we were. All of a sudden we just kind of jolted and I think they said a tire blew out and we were tossed around, but we're okay. The bus isn't fit to drive on, I don't think though. I don't know what we're going to do. There's no way this is going to get to Århus now though, we have to stay with the bus at least until they can get the driver out of here and we were already on such a tight schedule, it's still at least seven hours until we get there."

"Okay, well, the next show is in Hamburg, right?" Stephanie thought over the itinerary. Rich nodded. "So, okay, if there's no way we can get to Århus now, I think you're going to have to cancel the show unfortunately."

"I think that's the only thing we can do and then focus on getting to Hamburg because we're not even really close to there."

"Yeah, so you definitely want to stay with the bus?"

"Yeah, we have all our stuff in there and everything and what else are we going to do?"

"Okay, well, if you're waiting, we're waiting," Stephanie told them all.

"You guys should go ahead to Hamburg, you've got the kids."

"The kids are fine," Stephanie said, "actually, you know what, you guys are probably exhausted and a little bit worn out from what just happened. The driver can stay with the bus, why don't you at least come onto our bus and get some rest."

"We can't put you out like that."

"I wasn't asleep anyways," Stephanie said, "I just finished watching Raw. I can put Flynn and Sawyer in my bed, Chris is on the Anthrax bus so the bed is more than enough room. You guys can take the bunks, there's four of them so obviously there's room enough for you all."

"Are you sure?" Sean asked.

"Of course," Stephanie said, "you guys are my friends too, I hope. Come on."

"I'll just tell the driver where we'll be," Rich said, jogging over to where their driver was still making phone calls. Stephanie went to her own driver to tell them they were going to stay here until a replacement bus came so they could transfer all their things onto it. When that was finished, she went onto the bus and gently picked up Sawyer from his bed. He didn't stir as she put him into her and Chris's bed. Flynn kicked at her a little but finally gave up and Stephanie carried her to the bedroom as well. She checked on Kensington, who was still asleep and then invited the guys onto the bus. They got settled in and Stephanie took a deep breath and walked outside of the bus to get a little air. The entire thing was scary and she was just glad they were all alright and selfishly, she was glad Chris wasn't on the bus.

She closed her eyes a moment and leaned back against the side of the bus. She just let her thoughts roll over her. Then she laughed. Here she was, by the side of the road in Germany of all places. Nine years with Chris in less than a week and this is where she found herself, living out of a bus so her husband could realize his dreams. It just felt like one of those surreal moments that you had to see to believe. She yawned loudly, stretching her arms above her head and decided that she'd try to get some sleep before they got going again. Sawyer and Flynn barely took up space in the large bed so she could just sleep on one side with Flynn in the middle and Sawyer on the other side. She cracked her neck and started to walk back towards the bus entrance when a new pair of lights started to slow down.

Stephanie turned towards the bus that was just slowing down and even before it stopped, she could see someone jump off and start running towards her. It was only when they got out of the immediate spotlight of the headlights did she see that it was Chris. She smiled when she saw him, but frowned when she could see his face.

"Stephanie, are you okay!" he took her and held her at arms length away from him. "Are the kids okay, where are they?"

"Chris, what are you talking about, it was the other bus that was in the accident, why in God's name did you think it was us?"

"They just said one of the buses had an accident, that's all they could get because there was static and I thought I heard them say your name and I freaked out and I couldn't reach you when I tried to call."

"Oh, my phone is inside."

"I was freaking out," he told her, cupping her face in his hands. "We couldn't tell if you guys were okay or not and I just kept picturing you and the kids hurt and paramedics and don't ever do that to me again."

"Sweetie, we didn't _do_ anything," she told him and she could actually feel him shaking. "Wow, you were really worried."

"Are you kidding me? I kept telling the driver to speed up," Chris said, "I couldn't…don't…"

"It's okay, everyone is okay," she assured him. "The guys are sleeping on our bus for now, we're waiting until a replacement is set and I think the cops or the German cops are coming to take a statement or whatever they do for accidents over here. I told the guys they could get some rest on our bus. The kids are sleeping in our bed so that everyone had a bunk. Rich said that it's probably best to cancel the Århus show and so we're just headed straight to Hamburg."

"Wow, you've got everything taken care of, don't you?"

"You know me," she shrugged. "Have you slept?"

"Really? You think I slept after hearing that call?"

"Come on, let's get some rest then," she told him, pulling him towards the entrance to their bus. "Then I can tell you all about what CM Punk did tonight."

"I'm glad you're okay," he told her, wrapping his arm around her. "That you all are. You're never allowed to get hurt, deal?"

"How in the hell can I promise that?" Stephanie asked.

"I said deal," he prompted her.

"Okay, fine, deal."


	333. The Takeover, July 18, 2011

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, took a couple minor embellishments in this chapter. Hope you enjoy nonetheless, review if you feel like it. :)

* * *

"It's happening soon!"

"Could we maybe focus on the fact that my tour is ending tonight?" he asked.

"I know that, I'm very happy with the tour and how it's gone and I can't wait to see what happens at your concert," she said, but he could tell she was distracted because that didn't even make a lot of sense.

"You're barely even paying attention to me, I can tell," Chris told her and if he didn't love her so much, he might be annoyed by it, but he really couldn't blame her.

In less than 48 hours, Stephanie was going to be the active President of World Wrestling Entertainment. He couldn't even believe that. There was a part of him that kept playing it over in his mind. He was going to be _married_ to the president of the company. The person who was going to be in charge of everything, who would hold virtually all corporate power was going to be his wife. Stephanie was going to have everything she ever dreamed of, all the power she'd wanted from the day he met her. She'd been power-hungry then, she just hadn't known it.

It was all a little surreal and he figured it would've felt even more surreal if he was still an active wrestler. If he was wrestling right now, he'd be married to the boss. He wouldn't be married to the boss's daughter, he would be married to _the boss_. When he became a wrestler, he never expected this, any of this. When he'd entered wrestling, he'd never even entertained the thought of being in the McMahon family. It never was a fleeting wish or dream or anything. It was not on his list of goals to accomplish when entering the company.

But here he was. God, sometimes, he really did wish he could go back and talk to his 19 year old self. How could the him of the past, hell, the him that was in WCW, what was going to happen. He didn't so much care about wrestling now, he did, but in an oblique way. He'd accomplished everything he ever could accomplish. There was nearly nothing that he could do that would feel like an achievement. The only thing he could logistically think of was winning the Royal Rumble. Other than that, there really was nothing that he could think of that needed doing.

Still, that guy back then, the one who had all those aspirations, he might've died in shock if he'd been told he'd be married to the president of the WWE. Of course, he'd have to explain to the past him that the president isn't Vince McMahon any longer so as not to confuse his past self. He'd have to bring a picture of Stephanie with him though, to show the past him, at least the past him in the indies and just starting out. The WCW Chris knew of Stephanie and he'd just go, "Hey, so that hottie (it was the 90's!) in the WWF, the boss's daughter, dude, you're gonna nail her." Then the past him would go, "No way, are you kidding me?" and then he would just nod and look smug and say, "Nine years, man, nine years."

He was at a place he never expected to be. Stephanie knew her entire life that it would come to this, that her father would eventually retire or be ousted from the company such as it were, but there was no way he could have entered the Dungeon and thought as he stood among Lance and then a bunch of nobodies who would never amount to anything that he would someday be sitting with the President of the WWE sitting in his lap, looking at him like he was the only man on Earth. He marveled at his life, simply marveled at it.

"Chris, Earth to Chris," Stephanie patted his cheek. He slowly turned his gaze onto her. "You were saying that _I _wasn't paying attention to you and then you go and zone out on me. Where were you just now?"

"I was just thinking."

"About tonight, you're going to go out there and you're going to put on the show of your life and then when you get home you can go right back to planning whatever you have next," then she coughed while saying, "coming back to wrestling."

"Subtle, baby, very subtle," Chris told her while rolling his eyes. "I was actually thinking about me, well, me in say…1990."

"You in 1990? Feathered, bleached blond hair, fringed ring tights, virginal, what about you in 1990?" she asked coyly as he blushed deeply, not over the virgin thing (he was quite good in the bedroom, thank you very much), but he was thinking of that hair and those hideous tights. He still had a couple pairs tucked away in the attic, but they would never see the light of day if he could help it.

"Just…look at me now."

"Well, you are a rock star now so I guess that 1990 you would be very surprised to find that you had a successful band that was touring," she told him, thinking he was still on his Fozzy kick, which was totally understandable. The tour, save for the bus accident, had been a complete success. They'd played out to sold out crowds and the fans had been incredible, both to the band and to Stephanie and the kids. Whenever some of the fans did come across the kids, whether it was at a concert they attended or a VIP dinner they were at the same place as, the fans had been nothing but sweet and respected Stephanie and Chris's need for privacy with the kids. She couldn't have asked for a better tour to tagalong on and she was proud to be Chris's wife in all of this.

Chris put so much of himself into everything he did and she admired it because that was how she operated as well. They were two people who never half-assed anything they did and for Chris, it showed that he put his heart out there when she saw the fans' faces. They were thrilled to see Chris and Rich and the rest of the guys. All of them went out there and busted their asses to make sure every last person in that place had the best time of their lives. The tickets were cheap compared to the experience they got and Stephanie was proud of all her band boys as she called them. She felt almost like a little mother hen with all of them, funnily enough. They felt like one, big family at this point. In fact, the three kids were in the Fozzy bus right now with the guys so Stephanie and Chris could have a little time alone before the last VIP dinner.

"No, I'm not even talking about Fozzy right now," he told her. "I was talking about wrestling."

"What about 1990 you and wrestling then?" she asked.

"He'd never believe any of this," Chris shrugged, "not just Fozzy, which he wouldn't believe, but think was really awesome, but everything I've done in wrestling."

"You've done a lot," she nodded.

"No," he was frustrated that she wasn't picking up what he was saying, but he wasn't exactly being straightforward about it either. "I mean, you, me, all of that. I was thinking about how crazy it would be if he knew where he was going with you. 1990 me hadn't even had sex yet, I mean, you do realize that. I'd never been intimate with a girl farther than…uh, second base."

Stephanie giggled and buried her face in his neck and he laughed as he felt the vibrations against his skin. "You're so cute, you know that right, I mean, you are so cute and if you weren't so cute, I would have killed you by now."

"You didn't talk to me for two days before yesterday!"

"Because you were hovering around me and I couldn't stand it any longer."

Two days again, the cramped nature of the bus had gotten on Chris and Stephanie's nerves. It was difficult being on a bus with the same people for so long. She and Chris had fought over something stupid like where they kept the crackers for Kensington or something like that and it had escalated to the point where Chris slept on the Fozzy bus for a couple nights because he officially wasn't talking to Stephanie. They'd cooled down like they tended to do and they were back to being the best of friends.

"Is that what that was?"

"Look, I love you with all my heart, but being around you all the time is not fun," Stephanie told him.

"Okay, well, I was thinking about how my 1990 self would feel knowing that he was with you and about to be married to the president of the company."

"I would think that 1990 you would have been like, 'Why the hell am I going to travel around the world then, I'm just going to go to the WWF if I'm going to own it someday.'"

"Own it, geez, there's another thing my past self would not be able to grasp. 'Hey, kid, I know you're living out of a dingy hotel and that your car is on its absolute last leg and you will have pretty much no money for the next six years and no real place of residence, but guess what? You're going to marry a billionaire's daughter, own three houses, and this billionaire, oh, yeah, it's Vince McMahon's daughter.' That'll go over well. Past me would drop dead so current me would never exist and where would you be? Married to the likes of Ted DiBiase I'm sure!"

"We would have really cute kids," Stephanie mused and Chris growled at her, "kidding, kidding. Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, President of World Wrestling Entertainment, it certainly has a ring to it, doesn't it?"

"It does. But let's not count our chickens before they've hatched…well, we've been doing that, so let's not count all of them before they hatch, Punk still has to win this match and take the belt, everything is predicated on that and we won't even see this match-"

"Thank God for wi-fi on planes now, we can check the results midair," she reminded him. They were leaving nearly immediately after the last concert was over so they would be back in time for Raw the next night. It was going to be tight, they would probably arrive either right before or a little late, but Stephanie wasn't going to miss this for the world. Unfortunately, she would not be able to attend the Board of Directors meeting being held on Monday morning, but she was sending Britt and Hunter in her stead and they would keep her informed of the decision the board was going to make. She was absolutely positive that Punk would win. "He's going to win the match."

"You don't know that."

"I do know that, I know he's going to win because I believe in him and besides, my eldest daughter has a crush on him so I have to cheer him on."

Chris groaned, "Don't remind me."

"I thought it was cute."

"It wasn't, it was horrible," Chris said. This morning, Stephanie had mentioned the Punk/Cena match while the kids were eating their breakfast. Flynn's face had lit up when she heard Punk's name and declared that she wanted to watch him right now. They didn't have any of his matches handy so Chris had suggested they watch something of his and for the first time in her life, Flynn had declined, saying she wanted to watch Punk, not Chris.

"She still loves her daddy, don't worry," Stephanie told him. "She just thinks Punk is cool and with all his tattoos, she's enamored by him. You're still her favorite."

"I hope so," he pouted.

"You're _my_ favorite," she told him. "And do you know why you're my favorite?"

"Why?" he asked.

"Because in a mere few hours, you and I will have been together for _nine_ years," she told him, trying to keep her giddiness at bay.

"Wow and here I thought you'd forgotten because you're getting the company tomorrow," he teased and she hit him in the shoulder. "So are we going to celebrate two anniversaries from now on, our anniversary and the anniversary of you taking over?"

"No, I think that I can just stick with our anniversary."

"Has it really been nine years since you wouldn't hug me?" She nodded. "I can't believe it's been that long. I can't believe that we'll have been together for nine years. You're the longest I've ever loved someone, that's for damn sure. So is it safe to say that you aren't going to turn on me at some point and reveal that you're still married to Hunter?"

"Pretty safe, I think," she nodded, pretending to be serious about that. "But you never know, ten years could be my limit. I could be sick of you."

"Well, I could be sick of _you_," he told her, "but let's hash that out when we do our assessments tomorrow. I'm going to give you a heads up now though, once again, you've outdone me this year. You gave me Kensy this year and there's no way to top that."

"Yeah, she is pretty damn cute, isn't she?"

"I'll say," Chris said, thinking of his youngest child. Kensington was an absolute sweetheart. With those eyes of hers and that smile, both his girls were going to be charmers, well, Flynn might be an aggressive charmer, but a charmer nonetheless. "But we'll get into that tomorrow."

"Of course, I've got my checklist ready," she winked at him and then got off his lap.

"What are you doing?"

"I was going to call Britt," Stephanie said, but Chris pulled her back down. "Baby, time difference."

"Oh yeah, stupid thing that," Stephanie reminded herself. "I'm anxious."

"I know, why do you think I'm engaging you in conversation? I'm trying to get your mind off the Pay-Per-View tonight. Everything is going to go just as you planned, okay? Somehow, your plans usually work. Punk is going to win and he's going to walk and then tomorrow morning, your spies will go to the board meeting, they will see that Punk has run off with the title and they will insist that your father forcibly step down and with your brother out of the picture, which wasn't even your doing, but somehow worked out in your favor, you will be taking over and by the time it happens tomorrow night, you will be there."

"Hunter's going to go out there though," Stephanie said. "He's going to assume his new duties…it's still not too late for you though."

"I'm sure Hunter will do a great job, if there's anything that Hunter loves, it's this business, you have to hand him that. I may love it and I do, don't get me wrong, but not like he does."

"Yeah, he really does," Stephanie said. "I think…maybe, if he does it, it'll lessen the blow."

"You mean it'll look like you didn't orchestrate this," Chris said knowingly and Stephanie pursed her lips a little. "You don't want your father to find out it was entirely your doing."

"No, I don't, it's just, if he knew that it was my plan, that this was all my plan, he would be so mad at me. I'm not sure that relationship could be repaired."

"He could admire your gumption. After all, isn't that basically what he did with your grandfather?"

"Sort of."

"He's proud of you."

"My grandpa? He died when I was like 9," Stephanie said and Chris gave her a pointed look. "Oh, you mean my dad. Well, _that's _debatable."

"Not at all," he told her. "Not at all."

Stephanie was laughing with the kids over dinner when Chris slipped into the seat across from her, "Hey, so I thought I'd come check on you guys."

"We're fine," Stephanie said, "go back to your VIP."

"Yeah, so that's what I wanted to talk to you about, we're all done in there, looks like you're done in here, one of the fans actually had a cake made for us since it's our last night and I wanted you guys to come back there and enjoy it with us," he explained.

"That's sweet, Chris, but this is-"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, this is _my_ thing, I've heard this lecture a million times over the last couple weeks, but Stephanie, for one night, can it be _our_ thing? I would really like it if you came back there with us and the guys would like it too. They know that your intentions are good, but I want to enjoy this night with the whole Fozzy family and that includes you and my kids."

"Daddy, did you say there would be cake?" Sawyer asked.

Chris nodded, "Yeah, we have a huge cake and there's not enough room in my stomach to finish it so maybe you guys can come back here and help me eat some of it."

"I love cake," Flynn's eyes widened as she thought about cake. "I want some!"

"See, look, your kids want cake and if Kensy could talk, I'm sure she'd like some cake too. She had to get in some practice before her birthday," Chris placed his hand on Stephanie's arm and squeezed it gently, "Stephanie, please."

"Okay, fine," she said, "we'll have some cake."

"Thank you," he said, already taking Kensington from her high chair. Sawyer and Flynn, at the promise of cake, were already walking to the back room where the VIP event was being held. Stephanie stood up and grabbed her purse and the diaper bag and was kissed by Chris when she turned around. "This means a lot to me, you know."

"I know," she smiled at him as they walked to the back.

They parted the curtain separating the private room from the rest of the establishment and Chris announced, "Look who I found sitting out in the restaurant, I think she's been stalking me. Everyone, let me introduce my wife, this is Stephanie, Stephanie, these our the cool VIP's for tonight."

Stephanie gave a sheepish wave as Chris gave up his seat to her, grabbing a spare one in the corner and sitting next to her. Frank had given up his seat to Sawyer and grabbed an extra one and Flynn was sitting in Sean's lap. The cake was opened and everyone got a slice and Stephanie was welcomed warmly by everyone. It seemed a few people were too intimidated to talk to her, but she tried to make conversation with a few people sitting around her. She mostly talked about Fozzy since her dearth of metal knowledge was low.

After the VIP dinner, the guys went to the concert venue while Stephanie and the kids followed shortly thereafter. The concert itself was almost as electric as it had been that first night. There was a small sense of finality to it, but it was still a great time. Stephanie and the kids were having a blast like they had been on the entire tour and the band was putting it all out there since it would be the last show for a little while. They wanted to show their appreciation to the fans by putting on the best concert they could. They did the same thing with every concert, but tonight had a different vibe to it.

Stephanie mainly focused on the concert, but she would be lying if the Money in the Bank Pay-Per-View wasn't looming large in the back of her mind. She kept as much of her concentration on the show as she could, but she kept thinking to the match. The show wouldn't even be starting for another couple hours and even after it started, the match wouldn't be until the end of the card, but it was just the anticipation of what was going to happen or what she hoped very much would happen. By this time tomorrow, she could be President. It was like standing on the edge of a cliff that you were going to dive off of, there was the adrenaline pumping from knowing you were going to jump off, but you kept waiting for the right moment.

She'd been teetering on this edge for so long, but had never had a true opportunity to do it. Everything she'd been planning would happen over the next 24 hours. If all the pieces fell into place it would be a glorious thing. First Punk would win, then Punk would take off, then the board would hold a meeting, then her father would be removed as the President, then she would be appointed, and then, finally, her father would be notified of the decision to relieve him of his duties. Like a little domino stack and her finger was just about to knock the first one over.

She was broken from her thoughts by the crowd chanting, "Fozzy!" and "One more song!" at the band and she started clapping as well. Their flight wasn't immediately after the show so there was certainly time for an encore and since the next few weeks would focus solely on her and their positions would be nearly reversed, Stephanie wanted Chris to have his shining moment. Sawyer and Flynn soon followed suit, clapping along and even Kensington was getting in on the action though she was very sleepy so her hands clapping together was more like a soft tapping.

"You guys want one more song!" Chris yelled at them and was responded to with raucous cheering and applauding. "Okay, one more. This song is going to be dedicated to a few people. First, to the Fozzy inner circle, the guys and gals that have made this whole tour possible and so fucking cool I can't even tell you. Second, it's going to go for my family, who traveled this entire way with me and who are amazing and standing in the wings, but most importantly, this is for you guys, for everyone who has followed us across Europe, spent your hard-earned cash to come see us, do VIP with us, and just be our awesome fans. Thank you all for making this one of the best months of my life!"

They played an encore before taking their customary picture with the crowd. Pumped, Chris ran backstage and right into the waiting arms of his kids. He lifted Sawyer and Flynn up, kissing them on the cheeks quickly before putting them down. "I'm going to get cleaned up and then we'll head for the airport, okay?"

"Sounds good," she said and he could hear the nerves in her voice. She was nervous for later.

Being in the air was no fun when you wanted nothing more than to be in Chicago and watching your fate play out right before your very eyes. But Stephanie was stuck on this plane, constantly refreshing wrestling sites (yes, multiple) to get the results. The final match had just started and her eyes were scanning the results quickly as Chris peeked over her shoulder.

"How's it going?"

"Nothing so far," she answered him. "It just started."

"Well, knowing this is the main event and it's for the title, I can see this lasting a while," he told her.

"So can I," she frowned, wanting to know the outcome now.

"Hey, so," Chris paused and looked down. "Okay so I know that we're actually going back in time so to speak so we're actually kind of back and forth and whatever, but, um…Happy Anniversary."

Stephanie turned her head away from the computer to look at her husband, who had the sweetness to look embarrassed that he was doing this on a plane flying over the Atlantic, with lots of people around them. The kids had fallen asleep (they were exhausted from the concert and nearly dropped to sleep immediately after take-off when they dimmed the lights) and they were among the scant few who were still awake. Chris's whispered words, however, were still filled with meaning.

"Happy Anniversary to you," she returned, leaning forward to give him a small kiss on the mouth.

"I have something for you, but it's in my bag that we checked and it would be better to give to you later anyways so do you think you can wait?"

"Considering it's kind of not our anniversary yet and sort of is," she joked, "I think I can wait for it. So nine years, huh?"

"Yup, you have no idea how much I still love you, Steph," he told her, grabbing her hand and kissing her knuckles. "I just need you to know that, from now until whenever, the end of time, I guess, I just want you to know that I love you."

"I know," she nodded. "I love you that much too."

"I don't know what I would've done if you hadn't come into my life, I don't know what you would've done if you'd turned me away that night or you know, I don't know what you would've done if you'd hugged me that night."

"We would've found our way to each other somehow," she told him, believing every word she was saying. "You're not with someone for nine years and then look back and don't think that somewhere along the line you were destined to be together."

"I don't believe so much in destiny."

"I don't either, but you try coming up with a better word," she told him. "I just think that regardless, the attraction that we so obviously felt for each other would have come shining through."

"Okay then, optimist," he told her, "so how'd I do this year?"

"Well, you get marked down for not coming back to wrestling sooner," she told him, ticking things off on her fingers, "that really hurt you in the polls this year."

"I should get some of that back, you asked me to take time off," Chris reminded her.

"I took that into account, but when it became extremely obvious that we could take care of three children with little problem, you should have come back. I was going to take points off for the dancing thing because you didn't win, but then you did dedicate dances to me and your mom, so you definitely get points for that. Then I was going to take points off for the Fozzy tour, but then we came along with you, so again, I can't really take anything off for that. I'll give you a solid B+ for the year."

"B+? Come on, I deserve at least an A-. Is there any way that I can get some last minute extra credit? We've only ever joined the Mile High Club that one time and it wasn't risqué at all because we were in your father's jet so it wasn't like someone could walk in on us and the bathroom on your father's jet is really spacious. Do you want to go right now? I could get that A."

"No, because I'm not leaving my babies unattended."

"We're on a plane, where could they go?" Chris asked. "Flynn is a strong, little girl, but I'm going to go out on a limb and say that she can't open an airplane hatch."

"I just don't want to, but because I love you _so_ much, I'll give you an A+ if you tell me that you want to take over the position that I'm giving Hunter."

"No can do, I guess the B+ it is."

"I gave you the opportunity," she shrugged. "So okay, me now, what do you think, how did I do in this past year?"

"A+, you gave me Kensy, how could you not get an A+ for that? You gave birth to my daughter, while tearing parts of you that should _never_ tear and then…you gave me Kensy and although I wished she was a boy so that my heart wouldn't feel like it was in a vice 24/7 because I have the overwhelming need to protect my little girls, I would never trade Kensy in for anything in the world."

"Not even for a son?"

"Never, I love that baby far too much," Chris glanced over Stephanie's shoulder where Kensington was sleeping in her car-seat. Her head was nodded off to the side and there was thin stream of drool dangling precariously from the side of her mouth. Her wispy hair was falling over her forehead and her arm was dangling over the edge of the car-seat. "She has my heart. They _are_ my heart."

"You cute Daddy," she said. "Well, I'm glad I got the A+, it was worth it."

"Check your match now," Chris nodded towards the computer and her eyes widened. She'd completely forgot. She leaned forward to kiss him and as he pulled away, he said, "I love you, Stephanie, for the past nine years and all the years God sees fit to give me."

"I love you too," she told him, "and stop using pretty words, I can't top that."

"You never have to."

The match could not go fast enough for her. She didn't know how people who didn't buy Pay-Per-Views could stand this refreshing the page thing. Seeing a match and reading about a match were two such totally different things and reading about it didn't even nearly get her as revved up as she would be if she were watching it. It probably had a lot to do with the fact that she was sure that every time she'd refresh the page the winner would be announced and her father's fate would be sealed, but every time she refreshed the page, nothing was going on except more wrestling.

She wanted this to be over so she could be sure of what was going to happen. She needed to know what was going to happen with her father, with her, with everything. She was impatient and Chris kept trying to calm her down, but she couldn't be calm, not when she was on the cusp of having all the power her mind ever could have thought of. How could she possibly sit still when her entire life from hence forward could be changed by one, single win? On top of that, the win wasn't even in her hands, she had no way to communicate to Punk, to even cheer him on.

Then, she refreshed and saw it. The one thing she'd wanted to see all night. Her smile widened until it felt like it was cracking and she looked at Chris who was reading the results over her shoulder. His eyes widened as he read the last part, the part she'd immediately skimmed to and he looked at her and wanted to scream, but couldn't, not with all these sleeping people. She opted, instead, to hug him tightly

"It's happening," Stephanie whispered to him and she found herself on the verge of tears. She didn't know what the tears were for, but here they were and she was pulling away from him so she could wipe at her eyes.

"Baby, I am going to be so proud of you," he told her. "I get to be the husband of the President, you are going to do a fabulous job, I can see it already."

Stephanie laughed, but the damn tears were in her eyes. "I dreamed about this, not just for the past few years or however long you've known the real me, but since I was little. I guess I always knew that I'd have it and not Shane. I don't know how I knew, probably because I was more determined than he ever was. I just knew that I wanted this, that there was no other place in the world for me."

"And look at you now."

"It feels good. I love my dad, but I've wanted this, just like he wanted it from his dad. He was tired of sitting on the sidelines and so was I."

"Your dad will understand, baby," he said, knowing that she was actually worried about that. There was already a rift in her family, there didn't need to be a gaping hole there as well. "Your dad is a businessman, first and foremost, if anyone could understand how you feel and how much you want this, he will. Plus, the man has got to know by now that you are excellent at your job."

"I don't know."

"He knows," Chris told her. "Tomorrow, well, later, I guess, we're going to land in Wisconsin and you're going to show everyone how the job is really done."

"I guess now I just wait on the call from the board?" Stephanie shrugged.

"I'm sure that with Paul and Britt there, you'll hear from them as soon as it's over."

"Yeah, that too, I guess…is it weird that I want like a ceremony?"

"Do you want a crown and scepter, a coronation if you will?" Chris joked. "Because we did just come back from the UK and if you wanted that, you should have told me so I could make an attempt to steal the crown jewels."

She laughed and leaned forward to kiss him, "Thank you for always being here to support me."

"Oh, the thanking the little people speech already?" he told her.

"Well, the only little people around here are the ones I gave birth to," Stephanie laughed. "You've put up with me for so long, Chris, nine years exactly…actually more because I was always in your business before that-"

"This is very, very true, but I wouldn't have been Chris Jericho if you weren't a thorn in my side, prodding me along, sending your goonies after me."

"Still, you've put up with everything and I'm going to pay you back."

"Pay me back for what? You support the ones you love, that's the end of it."

"I want to make this a great new era," Stephanie said, "I want it to be as good as my father's, better even, I want to leave the kids with someone spectacular. When Flynn, I'm guessing it's going to be Flynn, stages the coup to take over for me…I want her to have something that she can be proud of like I'm proud to take this over for my dad."

"It'll definitely be Flynn, I think she's plotting already."

"Who knows, could be her and Punk taking over," Stephanie kidded and then giggled at Chris's face.

"Stop it," he poked her in the shoulder. "I do not want my daughter to have crushes!"

"Too late," Stephanie said in a sing-song voice.

"Hey, you know what's kind of funny?"

"What?"

"Well, Britt and I will be backstage, her because her job is backstage and she never wants to be on-screen, but then I'm backstage because I'm not coming back, but you'll obviously be running things and Hunter will be your right-hand man so to speak so it's really the McMahon-Helmsley Era 2.0."

"Oh God, I didn't even think about that," Stephanie made a sour face. "That's not what I'm calling it."

"I would hope not," he told her, "but it should be funny seeing you two working together. Maybe I should count my lucky stars that I'm not wrestling right now because then I won't have to incur your wrath."

"I wouldn't incur any wrath on you."

"Are you kidding me? When I come back, but not in the capacity that you want me to, when I come back as just a lowly wrestler, you're probably going to make my life a living hell because it won't be as the COO or whatever bogus title you're bestowing on Hunter."

"I told you…I won't begrudge your decisions."

She would be a little sad that Chris wouldn't be working directly beneath her (in public, he often worked beneath her during…other times), but she didn't want to force him. Still, it would be something to think about. She hoped that someday, soon preferably, that Chris would decide that he wanted to be that guy, wanted to be the one who was directing everything. Chris knew just as much about this business as Hunter did, maybe even more because Chris had a knack for remembering everything (i.e. his vast metal music knowledge) and he would make a great executive. But Chris was anything but the executive type and she could see him turning her down time and time again.

"Yeah, you say that now," Chris joked.

"Stop it, you're talking to your future boss," Stephanie said, then giggled a little at how good that sounded to her ears.

"Okay, now that we know what's going on and probably what's going to happen very soon, why don't we try and get a little shuteye, what do you think?"

"I don't know if I can sleep," she answered honestly. "I think my adrenaline is so high right now that I don't think I'll be able to sleep at all."

"If you don't, you're going to crash really hard when we get into New York and then we have the connecting flight to Green Bay and then you'll probably be asleep when the power is officially bestowed onto you in front of the entire world and then where will you be?" Chris asked.

"I'm sure I'll stay awake."

"Come on, baby, just get a little sleep for me, please?" he pleaded, jutting out his bottom lip. She sighed and nodded and closed her laptop, putting it back in its case and shoving it under the seat in front of her. She pressed the button to lean her seat back and grabbed Chris's hand as she turned her head towards him. He leaned forward and kissed her before closing his eyes.

Stephanie was only able to get about a half an hour worth of sleep before she woke back up. There was just too much adrenaline in her body right now. She ended up laying there until Kensington started to whimper. Stephanie sat up and gathered up her daughter. Sawyer and Flynn were up soon after and then soon after that, they were landing in New York. While they were waiting for their connecting flight, Stephanie had an opportunity to check her phone.

She didn't have any new messages yet since it was still extremely early, only about 4:30 in the morning. There was, however, an e-mail from Punk that she clicked on anxiously.

_Hey, Stephanie, so I won, I'm sure you know. I have the belt in my possession, I've got some ideas for it, I'll let you know, hope that everything works out with your dad and all of that. Get in touch with my lawyers, we can work out that contract. Later- Punk_

Stephanie smiled at that and showed it to Chris who raised his eyebrows, "I wonder what kind of ideas he has. I mean, what the hell is he going to do with that belt?"

"I have no idea," Stephanie said, but she wanted to know.

Chris laughed and then showed her his phone. On it was a picture of the WWE title belt inside what she presumed to be Punk's fridge. "He tweeted that a while ago, I guess now we know where he keeps the belt."

"If I didn't know he was on our side, I'd be furious," she said. "I can't wait to get the message from Britt and Hunter. Maybe we can…Chris, do you think that we could cancel the flight and change it for later. We're in New York, Connecticut isn't even that far, we could maybe go to the meeting. I know that it might be a hassle, but we've got the time and I know that it can't take too long to get to Green Bay, do you think?"

"I'm not sure, Stephanie," Chris said.

"Wait, wait, wait, Hunter and Britt are taking the corporate jet, I know because I booked it, I just said that Britt had to take a meeting for me when my dad asked about it," Stephanie said, "You know that we could all fit on the jet since it's just us and that plane has held a lot more. We'll go to the meeting and straight to Green Bay."

"Okay, if that's what you want to do, then I think we should do it."

"Thank you!" Stephanie said, "I've got to let Britt and Hunter know. If you'll excuse me."

Stephanie stood up to go make the call and presumably cancel their spots on the flight. Chris watched after her. The light in her eyes was shining so brightly right now. She was going to be fantastic at what she did. She was like him in that matter. She didn't do things unless she knew that she would be good at them and she was good at pretty much everything she did. He was going to muse more over his wife, but his kids were whiny and he had to take care of them.

When Stephanie was finished with the phone call and canceling the flight, she came back over, "Well, Britt was pissed that I woke her up, but they know I'll be there. Come on, we can hire a car to take us home."

Stephanie was on top of everything and Chris just followed along. They took the private car to their house in Greenwich so they could freshen up. When that was done, they got a couple hours sleep before they had to wake up again for the meeting. They were going to travel straight from the meeting to Green Bay so the kids had to get up again and they were so jet-lagged they kept falling asleep wherever it happened to be. Stephanie felt bad for keeping them up for so long, but they could sleep all day tomorrow if they wanted to.

The meeting was set for 7am sharp and Stephanie arrived with fifteen minutes to spare. She set Chris and the kids up in her office before heading up to the boardroom. Her father was in Green Bay since he made it a point to go to Pay-Per-Views and the Raws after Pay-Per-Views. All the better though since he wasn't here. Stephanie met up with Hunter and Britt outside the office. She hugged them both as they congratulated her and then the board started arriving. Stephanie acted as a kind of host to them, shaking their hands as they entered and took their seats.

"Daddy, I thought we were going back to wrestling," Sawyer mumbled to Chris. He was so tired, but Chris had brought up some croissants and hot chocolate for the kids and Flynn and Sawyer were slowly eating their breakfast while Kensington got some extra sleep.

"We are, but Mommy is in a very important meeting right now."

"What kind of meeting?" Sawyer asked.

"Well, you know how Grandpa is the big, big boss of the WWE, like how everyone answers to him?" Chris said to him. Sawyer nodded as he took a bite of his croissant. "Well, see, Grandpa isn't doing his job as well as he used to and so the board of directors, a very powerful group of people are deciding whether or not it's best to have Grandpa run the company or to have Mommy run the company."

"Mommy is very good at working," Sawyer told him.

"I know that!" Chris told him. "You know, Mommy and I have been together for nine years today."

"Nine years? That's a long time, I'm only five," Sawyer said, "that's longer than me."

"I should hope so," Chris told him, "I don't know what it would say if me and Mommy had a kid before we were even together. That would've been a little weird."

Sawyer laughed and took a sip of his hot chocolate. Chris was sure the sugar would help them wake up. Was it a dirty tactic, yes, but at this point he was pretty desperate. "What will you do if Mommy is the boss?"

"Nothing because I'm not wrestling right now," Chris said, "but I'll be there to help Mommy if she needs it. Plus, with you going to school next month for the _first_ time, I'm probably going to be staying home so that I can take you to school and everything on Mondays while Mommy is working."

"Wait, I can't go to wrestling anymore?" Sawyer asked. He hadn't realized that going to school meant that he wouldn't be able to go to wrestling anymore.

Chris and Stephanie hadn't broached this subject yet, but Chris had to tell him the truth. "Kindergarten isn't like preschool, kid, we can't just let you go three days a week like we did with preschool. Kindergarten is everyday, Monday through Friday so you can't go to wrestling anymore."

"I don't wanna go to school!" Sawyer said. "I like wrestling, Daddy."

"I know you do, kid, I know," he said apologetically, "and I'm sorry, but we can talk about this and how cool school will be, okay?"

"Okay, I guess," Sawyer said, knowing that his daddy didn't want to talk about it right now.

"It's mine!" Stephanie nearly pirouetted into the room.

"That was fast," Chris told her. "You were barely in there for half an hour, if that, it was like twenty minutes. How did it all happen that quickly? What did you do, brainwash them into just handing it over to you?"

"No, after what happened last night they were practically begging me to take over. It wasn't even a thought process. The fact that the belt is no longer in the company set them off. It has them running scared trying to repair what they think is the chaos. They sat me down, told me my father was incapable of doing his job any longer, took a vote and it was unanimous that I take over."

"Congratulations!" Chris said, hugging her tightly. "Wow…wow…"

"I'll say," Hunter said as he and Britt walked into the room. "They just handed it over without much thought, fools because this girl is going to be the death of them."

"Shut up," Stephanie said, but gladly took the hug from Hunter. "Are you ready for tonight?"

"Yeah, I'm definitely ready for it. I'll take a little pleasure out of this since your father hated me for a really long time."

"Be gentle though," Stephanie said, "I know that sounds weird coming from me, the woman who just got him pretty much fired from the job he loves, but I don't want the blow to actually do any damage or something."

"I will, don't worry, Stephanie. I've got this."

The flight to Green Bay was one of celebration. It wasn't only Chris and Stephanie's anniversary, but it was the night Stephanie was officially taking over. She spent a lot of the flight writing down ideas she wanted to implement. Chris likened her to some kind of politician about to make some big speech and that made Stephanie realize she probably should give some kind of speech to the roster on the transition. The second half of the flight was spent writing that.

When they finally arrived in Green Bay and got to the arena, her father was an irate mess. Chris ushered the kids to Stephanie's locker room and Stephanie went to go see her father. She took a deep breath and put on her best face, the one that didn't show how happy she was that she was now in control, well, not totally in control, her father still believed that he was the one in charge, but by the end of the night, that would be different, things would be different.

"Dad?" Stephanie opened the door calling out. "Are you in here?"

"Stephanie, just the person I want to see, get the hell out of here, John," Vince directed to his right-hand man, the former Johnny Ace. John left quickly as Stephanie sat down across from her father. "It's about time you got back from your little trip."

She knew her father was just irate, but Stephanie was still agitated by him, "It wasn't a little trip, Dad. Chris had a tour with his band, he was working."

"Yes, working when we could use him back here, especially now," Vince said, "do you think he could come back tonight? I know that it's short notice, but we've got a mess on our hands, did you watch the show last night?"

"No, but I read the results online," Stephanie said. "I know what happened and no, Chris is not going to come back."

"He's your husband, tell him to come back!"

"I'm not going to tell my husband to come back, God, Dad, not everyone is here to do your bidding. Chris is my husband, he's not some guy that you can jerk around and use as a puppet, just because he's in this family does not mean he's obligated to do what you want."

"Well what do you suggest we do then?"

"Dad, calm down, you're going to make yourself sick. I'm sure you have some sort of plan for the Punk situation."

"Don't say his name to me, don't you dare say his name to me ever again. The little ingrate, that damn ingrate and Cena…oh, that man…he's a good-for-nothing…I built him, I can destroy him and consider him destroyed, I'm firing him."

"Dad…"

"Don't argue with me, young lady."

"Dad, would you…"

"I'm still in charge and we'll just make a new belt and it won't matter that, that…that _man_ has the belt. We'll just make a new one, it'll all be fine," Vince said. Stephanie, for a moment, wanted to tell her father right now, wanted to relieve him of his duties right this second, but on the tail end of that, she remembered all the times her father had made her feel so small. She was ruthless, she realized, but at this point, she couldn't care. She was a McMahon and with that word, with that _name_ came certain inferences of character that she definitely lived up to. Ruthlessness was just one of them.

"Do what you see fit, Dad," Stephanie said simply. "I have a lot of things to catch up, but I'm sure we'll see each other later."

She almost felt detached from the situation. In a way, she was. She hadn't been here for nearly a month and though it was only a month, there was catching up to be done. But in another way she felt detached. It was as if she was running parallel from her father right now. He was so angry, so belligerent and she was so calm because she knew the outcome of this evening. When her father went out there at the beginning of the show, she sat there and watched him, knowing that his plan, all his plans wouldn't be going through.

"You okay?" Hunter asked. He had come in there to go over what he was going to say with Stephanie.

"Yeah, of course, why do you ask?" she turned to him.

"I don't know, you know, I remember the night before Armageddon, when we were talking about what was going to happen with the match between me and your dad," Hunter mused with a chuckle. They were alone at the moment, Chris and the kids were watching the show at the gorilla and Britt was informing the entire roster and backstage crew that there would be a meeting after the show so everyone had to stick around. "You were so scared."

"I was scared because I didn't love you, but I was falling for you," Stephanie said, nudging her shoulder against his. "You were daring and exciting and so different from the way Andrew treated me, from the way any guy treated me up until that point. It scared me because it felt so good. Then, when you brought up taking over the WWF, I just thought to myself, I could really like that and it scared me how much I was willing to screw over my own father."

"You're not scared now though?"

"No," she laughed, "I've hardened in the last twelve years. You have to in order to thrive in this business, my father forced me to toughen up. That girl was so…I don't even know that girl anymore."

"She's still in there. I see her a lot when you're with the kids."

"No, that's just my motherly side showing," Stephanie told him. "I wasn't ready to take over then. We let the power go to our heads, Hunter, we got too greedy with it all. We asked for too much. Remember when we fired Mick and everyone was going to revolt against us? We were so high on our horses."

"I know, we were pretty bad back then, no wonder Chris hated us."

"He sure changed his tune."

"I think it was the fact you put out before the second date if I've heard things right."

"Jerk," Stephanie said. Then she remembered her worries, "Don't get greedy this time, Hunter. We have to think what's best for the company this time."

"We will," he told her, patting her on the knee.

When the time came for everything to happen, Stephanie was at the gorilla with Chris and the kids. She sat there at the table, eyes glued to the TV and her left hand clutching Chris's so tightly that she was probably cutting off circulation. He couldn't tell because he'd lost feeling in that hand a few minutes before. Sawyer and Flynn were intently watching the wrestling they so loved while Kensington could care less and was snuggled into Britt's arms.

With a brave smile, Hunter went out there right before Vince was set to fire John Cena. While she probably wouldn't have minded to see John go just because she didn't particularly care for him, it would be bad business. Hunter thought, back when he was married to Stephanie, that he would be doing this one day, that he would be taking over for Vince. The circumstances were different now, but the sentiment was the same. Vince seemed almost pleased to see him at first, even being nice and introducing him as his ex-son-in-law (Vince hardly ever acknowledged Stephanie's first marriage voluntarily, he much preferred her second marriage). He almost felt bad for the news he had to deliver, but he cared much more for Stephanie than he did for Vince.

It was hard saying the words though. When he'd come into this company, Vince had been this intimidating fixture. Hunter figured that had been the case for about 99% of the guys backstage. He was the man you had to impress, the guy who held your entire career in the balance. Now he was standing here, telling this man he had been to a meeting that essentially stripped away any power that he had. Vince was shocked by it as anyone would be when they were told in front of thousands of people that they were essentially fired. Hunter didn't even know where the emotions were coming from, why he felt so strongly, but he almost felt responsible for the ending of an era. Vince, unto himself, was an era.

Maybe Stephanie had wanted him to do this so that he felt badly about the whole thing, so that the blame fell on him. It would be a very Stephanie thing to do. He knew, logically, that it was because Stephanie couldn't let her father know that she had nearly orchestrated this entire thing, but still, this felt awful. He honestly felt horrible for doing this and when Vince was leaving, he felt like he'd just ripped a man's heart out and hadn't he? The WWE had to be the biggest thing in Vince's life for a while now. Linda had her campaigning, Shane had a new job and a family, Stephanie had Chris and her family, so what did that leave Vince? God, now he was feeling sorry for himself and that shouldn't be the way it went. Things would be okay though, he had to believe that or feel like the piece of shit that just ruined a man's life.

Stephanie stood up when her father came backstage. He saw her and he came over to her. "You knew."

"I knew," Stephanie said. "I'm taking over now."

Vice looked at his daughter and saw a confident woman. "I see. And what makes you think you'll do a good job."

"I may carry the name Jericho now, but I will always be a McMahon," she told him.

"I'll be leaving," he said simply and her father was shell-shocked. The rage would probably come later, but for now, this was all he was going to get.

Stephanie watched him go and then gathered the people around her and went to catering, where everyone was waiting. Britt was sitting up front and Stephanie nodded to her as she walked and looked out at the people. "I'm sure you all just saw what happened. It's true, my father has been removed from the day-to-day operations of the company. While he will remain on in a limited capacity, I am now the President of World Wrestling Entertainment. There will be changes, nothing too drastic, but there will be changes, but I'm hoping these will make for a stronger, better company. There's a new era in the WWE now and it's being led by me and believe me, I don't respond to sucking up like my father does, so don't even try it."

"Plus, she has a husband who won't take kindly to guys hitting on his wife to try and get a better position," Chris added, which got a laugh out of everyone.

"See, things can still be good around here," Stephanie said, glad that she at least had Chris as a buffer. "So, next week, we'll start fresh and I hope that you will look at me like you looked at my father…with less disgust."

Everyone gave a polite clap and Chris came over and kissed Stephanie, then pulled something from behind his back. "Hey, so I've been waiting all day to give this to you and I was waiting for the perfect moment and I just wanted to give you my anniversary gift for you."

"Oh no, my present is back in the car…"

"I'll get it later, open it," Chris urged her and she ripped open the flat box and pushed the tissue paper inside.

"Oh my God, I love it," Stephanie said, hugging Chris tightly.

"Happy Anniversary."

"Happy Anniversary."

Inside the box was a door plaque that said:

_Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, President_


	334. New Reign, July 25, 2011

"So how afraid of you should we be?"

Stephanie rolled her eyes and laughed, "Not afraid at all. I don't want to be looked at as this crazy lady who's now running things."

"Even though that's precisely what she is," Chris added affectionately and Stephanie rolled her eyes at him playfully. "She just wants to be a woman of the people, marrying a lowly wrestler such as I plays right into that. See, she can converse and even marry the common folk."

"If I were to marry a lowly wrestler, I would've married Alex Riley," Stephanie told him.

"Ouch, if I were Alex, I'd be highly insulted right now," Chris said, "but I'm not a lowly wrestler?"

"You're a six-time World champion, I hardly think that qualifies you for lowly wrestler status," Stephanie said. "I only align myself with the best. But things aren't going to change as drastically as some people seem to be thinking. I don't know where everyone is getting this idea that I'm going to completely overhaul the system."

"I think it's because people know you," Trish told her and Stephanie scoffed. "Stephanie, let's face it, you've made it no secret that you've been gunning for your father's job for quite some time now and now that you have all this power, it's like, well, what's she going to do with it? If I still worked here, I might be a little worried."

"You're my friend, you shouldn't worry, but overhauling the entire system would be imprudent," Stephanie explained. "All I want to do is make things better by tweaking the system, making improvements where needed, but not doing anything drastic. That could cause a mutiny or something-"

"And that has happened to her before," Chris said. "I remember that night, don't you, Christian, hell, Trish, I even think you were there, when we all stood there with Rocky and rebelled against Stephanie and Hunter until they caved."

"Oh yeah, I remember that," Christian laughed. "God, that was forever ago."

"Then I don't plan on making past mistakes," Stephanie huffed, hating that they were bringing up a failure of hers. If they started talking about the Alliance, she was getting the hell out of this room, office or not. She didn't need to be reminded of her glaring failures and the Alliance had probably been her biggest one to date.

"Good," Christian said, "but that's not going to stop people from fearing for their jobs."

"Yeah, like I'm going to get rid of everyone only to have to find and hire new people…hey, sweetie, you know, if you did want to do something that didn't require a lot of work, you could always scout talent for me. You're always traveling for Fozzy somewhere and there are wrestlers all over the world so you know, scouting might interest you."

"Do you see what she's trying to do here," Chris chuckled. "Even when I say I won't be on TV, she still finds some kind of spot for me."

"It could be kind of fun though," Christian shrugged and Chris glanced at him, wondering why he was breaking the bro code. You weren't supposed to side with the wife, you were always supposed to side with your best friend. This was not going to help him. He was so adamant about letting this be Stephanie's thing. She had been adamant about letting the Fozzy tour be his thing, why wouldn't she accept that this could be her thing? Well, okay, he did know why, it happened to be because he was a wrestler, but that was a moot point right now because he was inactive.

"Daddy, are you going to get a job?" Sawyer asked, walking over to the group. Flynn was being bossy with Tilden on the play blanket and he didn't want to play what Flynn was playing, but if you didn't play what Flynn wanted to play, she could get angry. He loved his sister very much, but sometimes he didn't feel like playing her games. And then Kensington was just hanging onto the furniture and walking around and _that_ was no fun either. So the adults it was.

"What do you mean am I going to get a job?" Chris asked as Sawyer climbed up on the couch next to him. "I already have a job."

"What do you do?"

"I do Fozzy, I do lots of appearances, I work as your father," Chris told him, "that's a pretty big job right there, not anyone could just do it. Do you think that some random guy could swoop in here and take over?"

"No, Mommy wouldn't like that because Mommy likes to be in charge, that's why she's the boss now."

"Thank you, baby boy," Stephanie said.

"I think you should help Mommy because she has a lot to do now and you don't do anything while we're here and you can do stuff."

"I take care of you!" Chris was indignant now. He was getting called out by his five year old son of all people. This he expected from Stephanie, but not from Sawyer.

"I can take care of myself."

"Oh, well, excuse me then," Chris held up his hands in defense of Sawyer's statement. "I guess that means you want to move out of the house too?"

"No, I'm too little for that," Sawyer said, "I can help you with your work, Mommy."

"Wow, so there is someone around here who is willing to help," Stephanie smirked at her husband, "but that's okay, baby boy, you don't have to do anything except start to get ready for Kindergarten."

"Oh yeah," Christian said, "are you excited to be starting real school, Sawyer?"

"I guess," he said with a slight sullen tone to his voice.

"You're not excited?" Trish asked and she glanced at Stephanie who mouthed something to Trish, but Trish couldn't figure out what Stephanie was trying to say. Stephanie mouthed it again, but Trish still couldn't figure out what she was saying so Stephanie just mouthed 'later' and Trish nodded because she understood _that_.

"It's okay, I like school," Sawyer said. "Daddy, can we go get something to drink, I'm really thirsty."

"Sure, kid, you can tell me more about what you want to do to help Mommy around here, do you want to be one of the security guys?"

Sawyer's mood uplifted. "They're so big, I can't do that one, Daddy, you're just being silly. You could it though."

"I don't know, I think they're bigger than I am too," Chris said as he led Sawyer out of the room.

"So what's going on?" Trish asked. "Why doesn't he seem to be excited for school? I thought for sure that he would be ecstatic to go. I mean, this is Sawyer we're talking about. He's like the most easygoing kid on the planet."

"We had to tell him that by going to Kindergarten, he can't come to wrestling anymore except in the summer and on holidays," Stephanie explained. "He's grown up here, his routine is that every Sunday or Monday morning, he's on a plane to wherever to watch wrestling. Everything in his life has been wrestling and that's my fault. It's completely my fault and Chris's fault for letting him grow accustomed to this lifestyle. So now it's like we're ripping him from his life."

"He'll get used to it," Trish sympathized.

"I guess, I mean, he will, he's resilient, but I can't help but feel bad. He loves wrestling. God knows what's going to happen when Flynn starts school, she might just freak out and declare that she's running away," Stephanie tried to joke.

"Have you considered home-schooling him?" Trish asked. "I mean, you guys can more than pay for a private tutor to come along with you on Mondays or you know, I'm not entirely sure how home-schooling works, but maybe he wouldn't have to have a tutor except when you're at home."

"Yeah, but I don't want to deprive him of a normal life because of what his parents' lives are like. He deserves to go to school and live a normal life and have friends and everything. One thing that my parents and Chris's parents didn't compromise while we were growing up was the school thing. It was hard of course, with Chris's dad, he was traveling for a good chunk of the year and it was just him and his mom and with my parents, it's pretty well-documented how they weren't exactly there, but we had as normal a life as we could have with parents who were celebrity in some way."

"I get what you're saying," Trish said, "I'm sure that once he starts school and makes all those new friends and starts learning that he'll forget that he can't go to wrestling."

"I know, we're still thinking about what to do when he goes to school. Chris is probably going to stay home with him, maybe with Kensy too, depending, but I know Flynn will have none of the staying at home business so she'll probably come with me to work," Stephanie said, "but then we don't know what we'll do when Chris comes back. We're thinking about just having Ted and Loretta look over him, but we have time to figure that out since Chris isn't coming back soon or at least if he is, he's not telling me."

"It sounds like you've got things worked out. You're Stephanie though, I'm sure you'll figure out what you need to do," Trish said.

"Except now you have a buttload more responsibility," Christian joked, but nobody laughed at his lame attempt. "What, I'm just saying that now you're in charge and everything…hey, how did your dad take it by the way?"

"As well as could be expected, really," Stephanie said. "I mean, you know, for my dad."

"_I can't believe this!" Vince raged as Stephanie sat with Chris and the kids at the dinner table of her parents' home. "I can't believe they saw me unfit."_

"_Dad," Stephanie said, "I'm sure that they think this is for the best and I know that I can do your job."_

"_It's the principle of the thing, I'm the CEO…"_

"_You still are the CEO, Dad, you just don't have any of the day-to-day operations."_

"_I'm a damn figurehead is what I am," Vince slammed his fist on the table, startling everyone, but especially Kensington who started to whimper and then started to cry._

"_Thanks, Dad," Stephanie said as Chris got up and grabbed Kensington taking her out of the room and away from her irate grandfather. He had been shell-shocked for about 24 hours before the anger set in. Stephanie didn't seem phased by it, but Chris just hoped that he never found out Stephanie planned this or else he would really lose it…either that or he would be incredibly proud at her initiative, he could never really with this whacked out family. "Don't swear in front of my children."_

"_I apologize," he directed his words at his two elder grandchildren, who were staring at him like he had two heads, "I didn't mean to swear like that."_

"_Daddy does during his shows, it's okay," Sawyer shrugged. When he'd been on tour with his Daddy, he'd heard lots of words that his mommy had told him never to repeat._

"_You're not a figurehead, Dad," Stephanie tried to reassure him, but he was._

"_Okay, then let me have my job."_

"_No, I can't do that."_

"_See, figurehead," Vince said to Linda._

"_Would it be so bad…truly, Vince, if you took some time off. I mean, we're not getting any younger and I would love to be able to spend time with you, plus, I think that our daughter is more than capable of handling things."_

"_I have no doubt Stephanie will do an adequate job," Stephanie took notice that he said adequate and not something like exceptional. Way to keep her down, Dad. "It's the way this was all handled. I didn't know I was being assessed and this business with that…that man who started all of this."_

"_Actually," and Stephanie was going in for a kill right now and this would be rightful payback for that adequate thing, "I've been in communications with CM Punk and he is willing to negotiate with me on his terms to re-sign with the company, but it might take some time and until then, we can't just have a blank hole where the belt should be."_

"_You're…negotiating with him?"_

"_Oh yes," Stephanie said, but her father didn't need to know the negotiations had been going on for a while. "I mean, it's tenuous at best, but the lines are open between the two of us."_

"_How did you do that? He wasn't even willing to listen to me."_

"_I guess he just found me charming."_

"_You make it sound like you whored yourself out."_

"_Dad!"_

"_Vince!"_

"_Grandpa!" Sawyer said just to fit in with what everyone was saying._

"_What the hell did you just say?" Chris asked as he walked back into the room with Kensington, who was much calmer now and smiling as she cuddled her head in the space under Chris's chin, playing with the necklace he wore around his neck. "Did you just say it sounded like my wife was whoring herself out. Do not tell me you just said that because…father-in-law or not, I will kick your…butt." He only said butt because his kids were right there, but failed to censor the whore part._

"_What's whoring?" Sawyer asked._

"_Yeah, what is it?" Flynn asked, confused just like her brother._

"_Nothing," Linda said sweetly, "Vince, I think you should take that back_ now_."_

"_Yeah, I agree with her," Chris said, "I think you should take that back _now_."_

"_I'm sorry," Vince said and he did sound contrite, either that or he was afraid that Chris would actually take him outside and beat him up. Inside, where he wasn't quite so angry, he admired Chris for sticking up for his daughter, but on the outside, he still felt burned by everything that happened the last Monday._

"_It's fine," Stephanie responded, then muttered, "I've heard worse."_

"_I don't like what the board did to me."_

"_Well, it's done, I'm in charge now and I think I deserve respect," Stephanie told him._

"_You have to earn that, Princess."_

"_That's_ about what you expected?" Trish asked.

"Yeah, pretty much," Stephanie nodded. "He's pissed, but he'll get over it."

"Sure he will," Christian said, "have you _met_ your dad?"

"Well, he has no choice, the board made their decision and that decision was me and now I'm in charge," Stephanie said with an edge to her voice that neither Christian nor Trish was going to question, especially since she was now Christian's boss, not that she hadn't been before, but now she was _the_ boss.

"Are you going to make an appearance on the show? I know that Hunter isn't here, is he coming to make any kind of announcement?"

"No, he's not, he's actually at Comic-Con representing the company with the new video game," Stephanie shook her head, "it's just me. I just want to kind of get a feel over how things are going around here. I haven't actually been here for a long time. I also wanted to connect with the champion, make sure that he's not abusing his newfound power."

"I'm not, trust me," Christian patted the title, which was sitting over his shoulder. "I'm not going to let this baby out of my sight any time soon and I'm certainly not going to lose it tonight."

"And finally, he won't be obsessed with getting it," Trish teased him, "and if he should lose it, what's going to happen, Chrissy?"

"I'm not going to fly off the handle like I did before," Christian said, "or else I'm going to get it."

"That's a good boy," Trish reached out and pinched his cheek. "Because I'm not going to tolerate his behavior a second time and he's still very sorry about bringing up death to Sawyer."

"I really am on that one," Christian told Stephanie.

"It's okay, he's five, he forgets more things than he remembers," Stephanie said. "But I just want to kind of observe, I'm not looking to retake Teddy's powers or anything-"

"If you wanted to do that, I'd have no problem with that," Christian said, "the guy's been a jerk to me, hell, they've all been jerks to me."

"Christian is going what is known as a heel streak," Trish patted his chest. "Everyone is suddenly the enemy."

"No, everyone is not the enemy, well, no, wait, they are because I'm the World Champion right now, but what I'm saying is that I had to shed the dead weight. That dead weight was caring so much about what other people saw me as. I wanted all the 'peeps' to love me and that wasn't getting me anywhere. I had to go out there for myself. Stephanie of all people should know how that is because Chris did the same thing and look where it got him."

"Being away from wrestling and being on Dancing with the Stars and doing Fozzy has done a lot for Chris's image," Stephanie said. "People are really starting to warm up to him again and they even like him. I really think that Dancing with the Stars showed everyone that there was a new side to him."

"Mommy!"

"What is it, Flynnie?" Stephanie asked without looking over, figuring that she was going to complain that Tilden wasn't doing something right in whatever game Flynn was insisting they play (probably something wrestling-related).

"Kensy is goin' away," Flynn told her.

"What are you talking about?" Stephanie turned to Flynn who was looking behind the couch.

"Kensy goin' way," Flynn said while pointing her finger behind the couch, her exasperation making her words nearly unintelligible. Stephanie got on her knees and looked behind the couch to see that Kensington was walking on her own towards the door.

"Kensy!" Stephanie exclaimed, making Kensington look up at her Mommy with a wide smile, but her loss of concentration made her fall on her butt. Stephanie quickly got off the couch and was going to rescue her daughter before she started crying, but Kensington just used the back of the couch to get herself back up and then started walking back towards the door. "Kensy, you're walking!"

"Oh my God, she is?" Trish said, coming over and kneeling on the couch. "Oh my God, she's walking, is this the first time she's done it on her own?"

"Yeah, it is, oh my God, Kensy," Stephanie covered her mouth, her eyes tearing up with pride.

The door opened and Chris and Sawyer walked back in and it was like Kensington finally saw who she wanted and she toddled over happily to Chris, who was staring at Kensington like she'd grown another head. Kensington finally made her way over to her daddy and gave what could only be described as a sigh of relief that she'd finally made it. She gripped Chris's jeans in her chubby toddler hands and then grinned up at him.

"Kensy, you walked!" Sawyer said, proud of his baby sister. She stuck her tongue out at him as Chris lifted her into the air.

"Where do you think you were going?"

"I think she wants to do my job," Stephanie said, tugging on Kensington's foot. "Is that what you were doing?"

"Yeah, she's telling you, you have to go observe," Trish said. "Aren't you having that meeting before the show, to give another speech to the troops?"

"Yeah, but I've got about fifteen minutes before I'm going to address everyone," Stephanie said. "It's not really a big deal, I just want to say what I said on Monday, that things aren't really going to change around here, but that I want them to understand that I'm the boss now and that I will command the respect that I deserve. People respected my father and now it's time for them to respect me."

"Do you really think they respected your father?" Christian asked. "I mean, I know that some people respected him, but I think a lot of people talked about him behind his back."

"I don't care about that, as long as they respect me to my face," Stephanie said, "people already talk about me behind my back. I just want people to understand there's a new regime, but it's still the McMahon era."

"No McMahon-Jericho era?" Trish wondered.

"Not unless a certain someone decides to come back," Stephanie gazed at her husband.

"I think the McMahon era sounds just fine as it is," Chris told her.

"You just don't want to have fun with me," Stephanie pouted, but she couldn't keep it up when her daughter had just walked for the first time. She walked towards Chris with outstretched arms, but she wasn't going for Chris. Instead, she went straight for Kensington, puckering up her lips and giving her a big, smacking kiss on the cheek. "I'm so proud of you, baby girl."

"I can walk," Flynn said, walking over, "see, I can walk."

"You can do a lot of things," Stephanie said sweetly. "Do you want to help me give the meeting in a few minutes because I have to go talk to everyone on SmackDown. Daddy doesn't want to help me, but I think that you can."

"I can do it!" Flynn said excitedly. "Let's go!"

"Okay, I guess we'll see you guys in a bit, you're amazing, Miss Kensy," Stephanie gave her another kiss. "Before you know it, we're going to hear you talking real words, aren't we?"

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves, stop pressuring our children," Chris told her, but then gave her a kiss. "Do you want me to be there or is this a thing where you want to be like the huge boss who doesn't need anyone by her side?"

"I think I can do this one by myself," she told him. "I can't rely on you to be the muscle all the time. Flynn can be the muscle this time."

"I have muscles," Flynn declared, curling up her arm to show them off like her daddy did sometimes. She really didn't have what you would call muscles, but Chris pretended to be impressed and squeezed them a little with his free hand.

"Wow, have you been working out?" Chris asked.

"I do sometimes," she confirmed, which made Chris laugh.

"Well, okay then," Chris said, "good luck you two."

"Christian, would like to come with?" Stephanie asked.

"Sure," Christian said, saluting her like she was a general and then following her out of the room.

When she got to catering, everyone seemed to be there already. She sat up front and waited for any stragglers that came along. When it had been about three minutes since the last person entered, Stephanie put Flynn on her chair and stood up. "Hello, everyone! I know that you're wondering if I'm going to be making any drastic changes around here, but like I told the Raw roster, there won't be anything drastic. I want to tweak some things for sure, but nothing is going to be any kind of crazy change. I'm just going to be observing tonight, Teddy is still in charge, so if you have any complaints I am _not_ the person that you need to come to."

"Go wrestle!" Flynn ordered them, pointing towards the door as some of the people laughed.

"I suggest you do what the girl says," Stephanie told everyone with a smirk. She walked back over to Flynn and picked her up. "You were very forceful out there. I think that you'll be great when you take over the company. Are you going to throw me out when I'm old?"

"Yup, yup, Mommy," Flynn grinned at her and nodded vigorously.

"Well, at least I know what's coming," Stephanie said. "Come on, let's go assess."

Stephanie eventually wanted to give a little bit of a State of the Union type address on Raw so in order to do that, she had to come to SmackDown and see what was going on. It was part of her kingdom and she felt it was the part of her kingdom that she had been lacking in taking care of. It was true that she didn't come to SmackDown often. When Chris had been on the show she was here every week, but when he'd left it turned into a "out of sight, out of mind" situation. Now, though, it was part of her domain and she had to care about it.

The full scope of her job was really starting to come into focus now. Before, it had just been a dream, something she filed away ideas for, but now it was something even more than that. There were papers, so many papers and she had so many people under her, all the departments were now looking up to her and so she was constantly bombarded. She ha dot get a new assistant too since Britt was taking over the things she did for Raw, though Stephanie still had her hand in that as well. She was grateful that Britt and Hunter lived in Connecticut so they could be her eyes and ears whenever something came up.

She really didn't want to uproot her family and move to Connecticut. The easiest thing to do would be to open up a Tampa office. She was still contemplating it, but at least she had the corporate jet if there was something urgent that required her attention in Connecticut. She would also do a lot of her work while at Raw so she thought the system would suit her just fine. She would eventually get the hang of running everything. Her father had done it for so many years there was no reason that she couldn't do the same or do even better if asked.

When they got back to their hotel, Stephanie laid down on the bed and pulled out her phone. "Not here two minutes and already back to work."

"Shut up, I wanted to call and check up on Punk."

"Oh, after the stunt he pulled at Comic-Con, right?" Chris said, jumping on the bed and hovering over her. He started kissing her neck and she laughed, trying to push him off. "I wish I had thought to do that, I mean, talk about fun."

"Stop!" she tried to wriggle out from under him, but he wasn't budging. Instead, he laid flush on top of her, resting his head on her breasts and sighing in pleasure. "You're disgusting."

"What, the kids get to hug you all day long and they're all over you, I never get any time to hug you or do anything so when they're in bed like they are right now, I have to take advantage of it."

"More like you're taking advantage of me," she contradicted her statement by running her hand through his hair, which made him almost purr like a kitten. She laughed as her hand trailed down to the back of his neck. "You're so heavy."

"I'm a growing boy," he mumbled into her cleavage. "I thought you were going to call Punk."

"I would if you would get off me," she told him. He only shifted a little so his entire weight wasn't on top of her, but he kept his head on her chest.

"I think I could just fall asleep like this," Chris told her and she didn't know how she knew, but she knew his eyes were closed. "These are the two best pillows a guy could ask for, just saying. Take it as a compliment, okay."

"Still a chauvinistic thing to say," Stephanie told him.

"They're still nice and-"

"Don't finish that sentence, please," she said, scrolling through her numbers until she reached Punk's, "and I'm about to make a phone call so would you please be quiet while I talk or is that too difficult for you?"

"I'll be on my best behavior, Mother," Chris said in a funny voice.

"Yeah, if I were your mother, this would be very, very gross, just saying," Stephanie said, running her hands through his hair again. Chris snuggled further against her, then got off of her abruptly, disrobing his clothes until he was in his boxers, then got back on top of her. "What are you doing?"

"I already brushed my teeth when I was helping the kids brush their teeth, Flynn insisted that if she brushed her teeth, I had to as well so I'm ready for bed." He wrapped his arms around her waist like she was a rag doll and rested his head right back on her chest.

"Hello?"

"Phil, it's Stephanie, I was just calling to ask how it went at Comic-Con."

He laughed, "It was great, did Hunter talk to you?"

"Yeah, he got mad at me because I didn't tell him you were going to be there and you were going to interrupt, but we needed it to look as real as possible and I think you did a great job."

"You saw the video?"

"I don't think you could help seeing the video," Stephanie told him. "Chris was online earlier and he pulled it up and we both watched it together. He's jealous that he never thought to do something like that."

"When would he have had the opportunity to do that?" Punk asked. "He was what, a rebel for a few months, when the internet was still relatively new, then the man became part of the establishment."

"Punk says that you're part of the establishment," Stephanie told her husband.

"What?"

"He's a corporate guy," Punk shrugged. "I mean, it's not to say he's not a good guy, I guess, but he's still a corporate guy, probably the worst one next to your ex-husband."

"Why do you say that?" Stephanie asked.

"Because he married into the family."

"Phil, I don't mean to sound bitchy here, but it's going to come off that way. The fact that I'm Vince's daughter had nothing to do with why Chris fell in love with me and decided to marry me."

"Didn't it though? I mean, you never would have met otherwise."

"Well, that might be true, but we don't know, either way, he still thinks what you did is cool," Stephanie said, pushing Chris's head down as he looked at her quizzically.

"Do I need to defend your honor again?" Chris whispered to her. She shook her head and tried to push his head down again. He gave her a look of consternation before putting his head back down against her chest.

"It was fun, I'll definitely tell you that. I think I definitely got Hunter pretty flustered, it was like he didn't know what to say and when he did try to talk, he sounded kind of goofy, like he couldn't believe he was being put on the spot."

"Well, I'm actually glad you did that because I think that it reminds Hunter that his place is below me, shut up, Chris and shut up, CM Punk. See how I have to include you in that now because of the dig against me."

"I had to make sure that it sounded believable," Punk explained to her.

"Tell him he was stealing my lines."

"Chris says you stole his line, which, I'm going to have to agree on that front. You can't really say that you weren't because Chris was the original Stephanie insulter."

"But someone has to pick up the slack because I don't know anyone else that's gotten any good digs on you since Chris, unless you guys still do that, but I don't know what turns you on so maybe he does."

"Disgusting," Stephanie laughed. "I don't mind, I've been called worse, much worse so a few words my way aren't going to hurt me and you're right in that it makes this whole thing look believable. Anyways, you're not going to show up until the very end. We're going to crown a new champion and then I'm going to have the winner face John. I'll just say that he deserves a match because of the match he lost to you and he'd be the #1 contender or something like that. And I expect he'll win since he's pretty unmatched right now it seems, I've kind of skewed the whole thing in his favor because I know you still think you have a score to settle with him."

"So you've cheated then?"

"Cheated, took advantage of a situation, it's all relative, Punk," Stephanie told him.

"Okay, well, how am I going to get there without anyone seeing me?"

"I'll have that arranged, you just worry about getting to Virginia in time for the show."

Punk was able to get to Virginia for the show and Stephanie stowed him away at the hotel, arranging for a private limo to escort him to the show when it was time. She figured that nobody would expect Punk to come in a limo so it would at least throw people off for a little while. Another way she was throwing people off was having Chris come in the same limo so if people questioned it, they would see it was just Chris inside and they wouldn't think anything of it. Stephanie didn't want the surprise to be spoiled.

She knew her father would be watching tonight and she wanted him to see that she'd gotten Punk back. He said she'd need to earn his respect and she hoped that would be a step in the right direction. Granted, Punk had never dissented from her, but her father didn't know that and didn't need to know it either. All he would see is that she somehow got Punk back into the company. He would be surprised, that was for sure, but maybe that's what he should get for basically calling her a whore.

The funny thing about being the boss now was how much people were sucking up to her. She used to think it was bad before when she was just running Raw, but now it had increased ten-fold. Everyone was coming up to her, asking how she was, telling her she looked great. It got a little sickening after a while to be honest, but she just tried to keep her best face on. It wasn't going to deter her from thinking what she wanted to think. People must think her pretty stupid if they honestly believed that a little ass-kissing would somehow sway her opinion of someone.

She walked into her office and saw Hunter there, looking like he was ready and raring to go. "Hey, boss, so what do we have tonight?"

"You are _really_ getting off on your position of power, aren't you?" she smirked at him.

"Aren't you?" Hunter asked her. "I mean, it has to feel pretty good walking down those hallways and knowing that everyone is cowering in fear of you."

"I don't _want_ people to cower in fear of me."

"Bullshit," he swore since Sawyer was off with Britt somewhere and Flynn and Kensington were with Chris. Stephanie had felt bad leaving all the kids with Chris and though Flynn would normally want to be where wrestling was, upon hearing that she could hang out with CM Punk, she'd decided to stay with Chris, much to Chris's chagrin because the thought of his daughters having any sort of crush was nearly devastating to him. "You _love _that people have to answer to you."

"I love it, yes, but cowering in fear and loving the power are two different things," Stephanie said, sifting through piles of paperwork.

"Aren't you going to watch the show from the gorilla?" Hunter asked as she looked like she was going to hunker down for the night.

"No, Britt has got it covered, I've still got a lot to do since we're still in the transition phase of my takeover. My dad isn't being as cooperative as I'd like him to be so it's a lot of extra work for me. It'll probably take me at least a month to really start feeling like I've got everything covered. I'm playing a game of catch-up right now."

"I see, is there anything you need help with?"

"Nothing you'd be good at," she told him, "it's mostly business stuff. Britt is taking care of the more wrestling-based stuff for now, booking arenas, ticket sales, things like that. She's been a real help, but I think I might have to take on another assistant, this one more of an actual assistant since calling Britt an assistant at this point is kind of insulting. I mean, I did promote her."

"Thank you for that," he told her.

"Why are you thanking me?" Stephanie asked. "Or are you just being facetious?"

"No, I'm really not, but I just like seeing all her hard work getting paid off, you know. I mean, this is the woman I love and I want her to succeed. She loves this business now. It's so funny how she knew nothing about it when she came in here and now it's her life as much as it is mine."

"It's funny that I thought she was a threat when I first knew of her," she laughed.

"Yeah, like she'd want Chris."

"You act like Chris isn't hot," Stephanie said. "So, actually, because you're here, I wanted you go out and kind of give a speech to the fans. Just you know, actually, thank my father while you're out there, see that we're not really trying to usher him out so fast, but that it is my company now. I also want you to announce a match for John Cena against the winner of tonight's WWE Title match."

"So you're just going to give him a match then?"

"Yes because he'll win it and then Punk will come in."

"Stephanie, I used to love you, but sometimes, I don't know why you ended up so crazy."

"I do things my own way," she winked at him. The door opened and Sawyer came walking through, "Hey there, baby boy, did you have fun with Britt?"

"Yeah, we went and talked to some people and gave them the schedule for tonight," Sawyer said. "Britt said they were treating me nice because I'm the boss's son and they have to be nice to me."

"I figured he should know where he stood," Britt joked.

"I think they're nice to you because you're a nice, little boy," Stephanie told him, ruffling his hair as he came over for a hug.

"Looks like you've got a lot of work to do, Mommy, are you even going to watch the show?"

"I am going to watch the show, I have to, I'm the boss now."

"You are and Grandpa isn't anymore because Grandpa is old and he needs to relax now, I heard Grandma say that to him when I went to the bathroom while Grandma and Grandpa were getting ice cream."

"My little boy, such a good spy," Stephanie hugged him and held him close to her, a look of pride on her face that made both Britt and Hunter laugh. Leave it to Stephanie to be proud of her son spying.

"What are you going to do tonight, Trips?" Sawyer asked.

"I'm going to give a promo out there, tough guy," Hunter said. "You can watch me."

"How come you're doing it and not Daddy?" Sawyer asked. "He's mommy's…um, I don't remember the word, Mommy."

"Husband," Stephanie supplied for him.

"That's right, he's mommy's husband, not you, but you were married to Mommy, I 'member it when I saw it when I was watching tapes of Daddy," Sawyer said. "So why isn't Daddy going to be the one in charge?"

"Because Daddy has other things like Fozzy to do," Stephanie explained.

"But he's here tonight so why can't he just be on the show?" Sawyer asked, not understanding why his father just wouldn't be on the show if he was here already. It just didn't make sense for his father, who was a wrestler by his own saying, wouldn't go and be a wrestler or at least be on the wrestling show.

"I don't know, if you can find out that information for me, you really would be a godsend," she kissed the crown of his head. "Do you want to go watch the show with Britt at the gorilla or you can hang out with Hunter, but I've got to do a lot of work so I think I'll be boring."

"Here, you can come with me for now," Hunter said to the kid. "We can go pretend to be bossy with people and you can help me figure out what I'm going to say when I give my promo later. Let's figure out how we're going to thank your grandpa for everything he's done."

"Just say, 'Thank you, Grandpa!'" Sawyer shrugged, figuring the easiest way to say thank you was to just say it.

"I think we can come up with something better," Hunter ushered him out to a grateful look by Stephanie. Now she really could focus on everything she needed to get to work on.

Chris sat with Punk in the parking lot. The driver had arrived early even though he was supposed to circle around for a while, but he didn't and so Chris was stuck in a limo with his two daughters and CM Punk. Kensington was exploring the limo while Flynn was staring at Punk's arms, again in fascination. This time she was looking at his right arm though, which she hadn't really gotten to see in its entirety before.

"Your daughter is kind of creepy," Punk told him.

"She just likes your tattoos."

"But she's been staring at them for like five minutes."

"She's two, give her a break," Chris said. "So that thing you said about Stephanie, when you were confronting Hunter, you know, I mean, you better not think like that, just letting you know that."

"I don't think like that. I mean, I think your wife is kind of a bitch and she's really…I don't know how to put it, but she just likes to wear the pants if you get what I'm saying, I mean, she pretty much has you whipped, right?"

"You're not endearing yourself to me."

"I don't _have_ to like you, man," Punk shrugged.

"Nobody said you did, I was just making conversation."

"I don't hate you either," Punk told him. "I don't know, I've just never really hung out with you, I mean, I've talked to you, but I wouldn't say we're friends, I wouldn't say that about your wife either. She does like to pull people into her fold though, doesn't she?"

"She likes to have everyone owe her something at all times."

"So that's how she gets her way," Punk nodded. "She really has a mind like a steel trap."

"Half the reason why I married her."

"Why _did_ you marry her?" Punk asked him. "I mean, not even because you insulted her all the time, but didn't…I don't know, didn't you feel like you were kind of selling out."

And there was what was really on Punk's mind. Chris thought that Punk took a really circuitous way to get there, but he'd finally reached there. It had to bug Punk, this guy who wanted to just purely wrestle and get by on his own merits, that he was becoming a little soft (in his own opinion) and now he was going after the money. It had to weight on him that he'd pretty much sold himself to Stephanie for the right price.

"Why should I have felt that way?"

"I mean, there are a million women in the world. What made you choose Stephanie?"

"I don't think I necessarily _chose_ her. I mean, you know her, you know that she's pretty great."

"See, you understand me, you came from the indies, hell, I think your journey was harder than mine was-"

"Different times, man," Chris interrupted.

"Yeah, but still, you worked hard to get where you were, when you got with Stephanie, did it feel like…I don't know, didn't it feel like you were becoming something you weren't. I don't know how to explain it. God, I hate talking this emotions crap."

"Are you falling in love with my wife," Chris tried to diffuse Punk's tension.

"Yeah, no, you can definitely have her," Punk scoffed. "I don't know, I just feel like, okay, I made this huge deal over taking the belt and saying that I wasn't going to come back and the whole time, I knew it was this lie. Let's face it, dude, I think we both know that the WWE isn't big on the whole wrestling thing. They won't even say wrestling for God's sakes so doesn't that just marginalize everything we do here? Well, I do here, since you aren't wrestling. I've chosen the money route."

"I can't say what reasons you have for it, but I don't know, in my experience, it was different. I didn't marry Stephanie for her money, that's the least of my worries," Chris said, "it didn't feel like selling out because I love my wife. I can see where you're coming from though. I was poor when I signed with WCW so the money was like this wonderful gift. Maybe you just like entertaining the fans."

"I don't even know. I want things to change, I hope under Stephanie they will. I know that she has you by her side, which makes me feel a little better. If there's anyone in the company that doesn't know how it's been trying to get into the company, it's Stephanie, but you know how hard you have to work."

"And look, the money, that's your hard work getting paid off. It's all the years that you toiled trying to reach the top. It's a reward for that. Enjoy what you do, man, and everything else falls into place."

"Like having weirdo kids."

"Well, no, that was my case, I don't think you're in any position to have kids, do you even have a girlfriend?"

"I'm dating Beth, well, semi-dating her, it's nothing serious, but we're together, yeah."

"You sure do get around," Chris told him.

"And you…I was going to say and you don't, then I remembered, you don't," Punk said, "but I'm young, I can live it up, I don't have responsibilities like you do."

"I like my responsibilities," Chris said.

"Daddy, I draw on you," Flynn turned towards her father, standing up on the seat and then kissing Chris's cheek. "I can do it and you get one."

"On my face?" Chris asked and Flynn nodded. "I don't think Mommy would like it if I got a tattoo on my face."

"I make pretty it," Flynn told him and he shook his head. "No fun, Daddy."

"Sorry, I'm no fun," Chris kissed her nose and she hugged him.

"Okay, so she's not really a weirdo," Punk said, wondering why these kids were so cute. God, soft spot much. Chris's phone rang and answered, didn't say anything, then closed it.

"It's time, go ahead," Chris said, nodding towards Punk. Punk grabbed the belt away from Kensington, who was patting her hands over it while it sat on the seat and he got out of the limo. Chris and the girls followed him, but instead of going out with him, they went to Stephanie's office. Stephanie was in there, watching anxiously as Cena had just won the belt.

Punk showed up out there a moment later and he had the belt with him. "Just like you wanted it," Chris told her.

"So far, so good."


	335. Storms Brewing, August 1, 2011

"So you actually like Stephanie then?"

"I wouldn't go that far, Beth," Punk told her, but he was having a difficult time even convincing himself of that. "She's just…I don't know, kind of cool."

Beth always had this intense look on her face so Punk never really knew how to read her. She wasn't like most women he dated, who wore their emotions on their sleeves. That's why he liked her though, she wasn't vapid and for a long time, Punk had been attracted to vapid women. He'd left a trail as long as ticker tape. Beth was different though, he could actually hold an intelligent conversation with her and he appreciated that.

"You like her then," Beth told him, being logical where he was not.

"No, I don't _like_ her," Punk said. "I think it's hard to like someone like Stephanie McMahon. I mean, she's always thinking business. I don't know how Chris puts up with her because she seems to always be about business."

"I don't think that's true. You only see her around the business. She's probably really different when she's not working. She has time to raise three kids and I don't see her and Chris with any nannies."

"That's true," he had to give them credit there. It would be so easy for them to pawn their children off to someone else. "I don't know who would want to take Flynn though. She's a weird, little kid."

"That you find yourself adoring."

"Stop reading me so well," he told her, giving her a smirk and she leaned over to kiss him. "I'm not supposed to care. I can't care. It's not about cute kids or being friends, it's about becoming a fan of what I love to do. I love wrestling, I'm a fan of it, you know, but how can I be a fan of it when it's so bad right now. I mean, even on your side of the thing."

"_Especially_ on my side of things," Beth said, shaking her head. "I'm so tired of playing this good-two-shoes let's be friends with everyone act. It's not getting me anywhere and then I have to sit back and watch girls like the Bellas or damn Kelly Kelly get title matches and win these matches. It makes me sick to my stomach."

"So do something about it," Punk told her, "I did something about my situation. Go out there and kick their asses, you know you could. You could break them in half if you wanted to. I've got Stephanie on my side and besides, do you honestly think it was _her_ idea to hire them in the first place?"

"No I know that it had to be her father-"

"Yeah, so if Stephanie really wants to improve the business, she's going to want to have women who can wrestle. Besides, I mean, with girls like the Bellas and Kelly Kelly putting eyes on her husband, who I guess is good-looking-"

"He is," Beth confirmed.

"Well that came out of your mouth pretty fast," Punk told her, staring at her.

"Well he is, I'm not going to deny it. He's a very good-looking man."

"Okay," Punk said slowly, "well, I've seen how the Bellas and Kelly Kelly and Eve and all of those girls look at him. I mean, they look at him like he's a piece of meat or something and I'm sure Stephanie hates that."

"I don't think she cares, I mean, she's got Chris pretty whipped from what you tell me."

"I guess he just loves her a lot," Punk said, then realized he was pretty much defending Chris. Well, Chris wasn't bad either and he was one of the guys who would appreciate what Punk was trying to do. Plus, they just had those cute kids and damn it, "Why are kids such a weakness?"

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm such a sucker for them. I mean, the other day, when I was talking with Stephanie, Sawyer asked if I wanted to read some comics with him, granted, his comics were lighter fare than I'm used to, but he wanted to read comics with me! How am I supposed to resist a kid who loves comics?"

"Knowing your collection, you can't," Beth said knowingly.

"I think Chris and Stephanie use their kids to their advantage, like little pawns or something."

"And it's working."

"I hate to admit it, but I think it is."

Beth smirked, "You know, under that gruff and mean exterior, you're a really big softie, I'm not sure I can like you anymore. Maybe you would be better suited with Kelly Kelly…oh wait, too late for that, right?"

Punk smirked. He loved that she could call him out like that "Okay, yeah, you got me there, ha ha. You know, though, the one guy I don't trust in all of this is Triple H. I don't like the guy, I don't think I ever will like the guy…"

"Why? I mean, he seems to be better now."

"But it's still Triple H. At the end of the day…I guess I don't believe that people ever really change. I mean, I guess they do in some ways, but at the surface, I think a person is the same way they're going to be."

"What about Stephanie though? She used to be a huge bitch and you didn't like her very much, but you've changed your mind on that."

"But think back to who she was in the beginning, when she was sweet and always took everyone's feelings into consideration. I think that is the person she was always meant to be, you know. Triple H though, I don't know, Beth, he's a jackass through and through."

"Have you told Stephanie how you feel?"

"No, because she's friends with him, like good friends."

"So? It's not like they're married. I think if you said this about Chris, she'd be madder, but if you told her about Hunter, she'll probably respect you for it," Beth said, then nodded her head towards the entrance of the hotel restaurant. "Look, you're just in time, the whole gang is over there, go tell her now, I won't be offended if you ditch me for a few minutes."

"I can't talk about it with her _here_, with her whole family around," Punk told her like she was crazy.

"Then tell her you want to talk later. Look, if you're going to make changes around here like you want, you're going to need Stephanie's help. You can't just be a chickenshit and sit around on your hands."

"I haven't been doing that, you _know_ haven't been doing that."

"So don't do it now," Beth told him, almost getting out of her seat to push him towards where Chris and Stephanie were getting their kids situated. He finally relented and got out of the seat himself, walking over to the booth where they were sitting. Stephanie was leaning over telling Flynn what was on the kids' menu while Chris was pushing Kensington's high chair closer to the table so she wasn't sticking out into the aisle. Sawyer was coloring on his kids' menu. He cleared his throat and caused everyone, even Kensington to look up at him. A mix of blue and gray eyes were staring at him.

"Hey, Punk," Stephanie said as Chris slid into his seat. "What's going on?"

"Hi, hi!" Flynn waved happily with a wide grin on her face.

"Hey, Flynn," he said, "Steph, I was just wondering if I could talk to you, after you guys eat your dinner of course. I didn't want to interrupt, but when you're free later, I was hoping that I could have a word with you."

"Sure, what about?"

"Just things," Punk nodded, shoving his hands in his pockets, "you guys enjoy your meal. Can you text me when you're done and I can meet you in your room?"

"If this is your way of trying to sleep with my wife, I really shouldn't be here for it," Chris told him with a laugh and Punk laughed.

He countered with, "Well, if you're trying to unload her, telling me to save it for another time isn't the best idea."

"Finally, someone who can keep up," Chris nodded in approval.

"Okay," Punk didn't know what that meant, but Stephanie rolled her eyes at her husband in response to it. He inwardly shrugged, figuring it was better not to think about what kind of inside jokes these two had with each other.

"I'll let you know when you can come up."

"Thanks, I'll let you guys have your dinner now, bye guys," Punk waved and Flynn waved the most enthusiastically back.

Stephanie looked at her husband, "He seemed rather serious, I wonder what that was about. Do you think he's unhappy again? I don't want to be looked at like my dad was. I mean, if they fire me, who would run the business? Sawyer?"

"I can't run a business, I'm in Kindergarten," Sawyer was aghast at the prospect. "I can't run a business, Mommy, I have other things I have to do."

Chris laughed, "I guess I could have the company."

"Oh yeah, you'll run it when you won't even co-run it with me," Stephanie made a face. There had to be some way to convince her husband that he should be working with her. She respected his job, but damn it, they were a team, they should be a team in business as well. It just wasn't fair that she got to bask in all this glory. She believed he could do both Fozzy and the WWE if he wanted to. It wasn't like she was asking him to go out there and put his body on the line. She just wanted him to have some say in things.

"Maybe I just want more power than you," Chris told her.

"Mommy is the big boss," Sawyer said. "Nobody can tell Mommy to do anything, right, Mommy? You're the big, big boss."

"I am, baby boy," Stephanie said, gazing at him fondly. "But for some reason, Daddy just won't help me with everything I have to do."

"Daddy, helping people is what good people do," Sawyer told him. "Good people are always there to help. It's called volunteering, I remembered."

"I'm there for Mommy, but I don't really have to help her because she has plenty of people there to help her as it is."

"Like Britt and Trips."

"Exactly like that."

"I help!" Flynn exclaimed. "I'm three."

"Almost three," Stephanie reminded her of her birthday that was coming up fast, too fast. Her kids' birthdays always seemed to come on too fast. She wished she could just freeze them in time, but she knew that was impossible so she dealt with it, but she certainly didn't like it. "Still, I wonder what that was about."

Stephanie wondered all through dinner and after the kids had some dessert, she was anxious to get back to her hotel room so she could talk to Punk about whatever was on his mind. She hoped that he was okay with what had happened the last Monday with them crowning Cena the other champion. She thought that a match for the champion would be perfect for Punk to get another one over on Cena. She hoped she was right in thinking that. When they got back, she texted him her hotel room and not ten minutes later, he was knocking on the door.

"I'll get it!" Flynn yelled as she ran for the door, trying to reach the doorknob.

"Flynnie, let me help you," Stephanie said, walking over and helping her sister. "Sawyer, can you make sure that Kensy doesn't get into anything, please because Daddy is on the phone?"

"Sure, Mommy," Sawyer went over and picked up his little sister, holding her in his arms. "Come on, Kensy, I'll read you a story, okay?" Kensington nodded vigorously and he took her into the bedroom and helped her onto the bed where Chris was sitting talking on the phone about another Fozzy tour with someone. Kensington crawled over to Chris and stood up, resting her head on his shoulder. He turned to press a quick kiss to her head and then Sawyer climbed on the bed with the book he was going to read and Kensington dutifully followed her brother and sat next to him, curling into his side as he opened the book.

"Hey, Punk, what's up?" Stephanie asked as she ushered in her guest.

"I see you again!" Flynn said excitedly. "Carry me."

"What?" Punk said.

Flynn lifted her arms, "Carry me, please!"

"I don't think so, I don't have much experience in carrying kids and I'll probably just drop you or something."

"It's okay," Flynn told him, still holding her arms up to him. She wasn't budging so Punk leaned down and picked her up tentatively. She gave him a big hug around the neck and he awkwardly patted her back while she hugged him. Stephanie aww'ed and he gave a face that showed how little he had ever really interacted with kids since he was one.

"Come on, we can sit down outside since Chris is on the phone and I don't want to disturb him," Stephanie lead him out onto the balcony, letting Flynn down before he started walking.

"Flynnie, I don't want you out on the balcony so go play with your brother and sister," Stephanie told her middle child.

"No, I stay wif Punk!" Flynn ordered.

"Then come here," Stephanie said, opening her arms and Flynn crawled into them quickly. "Sorry, kids, you know how they can be."

"Not really," Punk said, "anyways, what I really wanted to talk you about and it was at the prompting of my girlfriend was…I mean, I don't really know how to put this, but I don't know, I guess…how do I know I can trust Triple H?"

Stephanie was surprised at his question. She herself had taken a long time to answer that particular question. When she and Hunter had first divorced, she didn't trust him at all. He was conniving, manipulating, he hated her guts. When they'd separated, he'd done everything in his power to humiliate her, going so far as to get her kicked out f the company that she loved so very much. Then, when she'd come back, he'd still been an asshole to her. It persisted for a very long time, years, really, and culminated when he found out about her and Chris. The man had even gone so far as to fly to Hawaii to stop her wedding.

Somewhere after Sawyer though, Hunter had changed. He'd become more of the man he was today, someone trustworthy and, dare she say it, friendly. Yes, there was something friendly about Hunter now and she wasn't sure why there was such a change. Maybe it was the fact that her life with Chris wouldn't be deterred as he had hoped. Whatever it was, she did trust him. Still, she had the same question as Punk did. She wondered how far that trust should extend and if she really could trust him with as big a responsibility as this was.

"Has he said anything to you?" she asked. First, she had to get that out of the way. If Hunter was going behind her back, then there _would _be a problem. Hunter hadn't told her that he was going to speak with Punk about anything so if he had gone behind her back while outright lying to her, she would do everything in her power to get Chris to take over.

"No, we really haven't talked…and I guess that's really the problem," Punk frowned as he thought about the bigger man. Hunter could be intimidating, but he wasn't intimidated by him. He hoped that wasn't how it came across to Stephanie. "I just mean that I'm in this with you, we're doing this, well, I'm doing this because I want change. I want to see change here at the top because I think if there's change here, it'll trickle down the wrestling business and it'll benefit everyone."

"I get that and I really want to do the best job I can do here. I'm already trying to think of ways…"

"I know, I get that, it's really not you that's the problem, Steph, I promise. I just don't know if I can trust this guy. His track record isn't exactly clean, you know. I mean, he's pulled some really dickish stuff in the past."

"I know he has," Stephanie nodded, "but so have I."

"The difference is that I'm getting to know you. I know how you do business, you've more than shown me that, but then beyond that, what I see behind-the-scenes, the person that's just you, the one that's around your kids, I feel like I can trust you, but all I see when I look at Triple H is Triple H. Where does the guy out in the ring end and the guy that lives his life away from the ring begin?"

"I've never really seen a difference, I'll be honest with you," Stephanie said, "I've always thought that the ring, all of this was just Hunter's life. He's got a few hobbies outside of the ring…look, I have the same reservations."

"You do?" He was actually shocked by this. Stephanie was always in charge, could she actually believe there would be dissention in her ranks? She kept such close control of everything, he couldn't imagine any one branch would fall off. He just wanted her reassurance, but now that he didn't have it, he was a little worried.

"Trust can only go so far. There's always going to be a seed of doubt where Hunter is concerned and I can't help that. You probably remember that I knew how he was during the McMahon-Helmsley Era. I knew how he operated."

"And how exactly did he operate?"

"He took over. I was the one who had the power, but he took over by virtue of being my husband."

"But he's not your husband now," Punk said redundantly, "but you're afraid that he'll still take over the power."

"It is a concern, not a fear mind you, but a definite concern."

"I don't get why Chris won't come back. He claims to love the business, he's here, why don't he just be the COO. It's not like it seems hard since it's really you in charge…wait, that actually brings me to another point, Britt."

"What about Britt?" Now Stephanie was confused. Britt had never been anything but an exemplary employee. Surely Punk couldn't be questioning her credentials.

"Can we trust her?"

"Of course we can trust Britt!" Stephanie protested. "Why on Earth would you think we couldn't?"

"Because isn't she marrying Hunter or something?"

"No, they decided not to get married," Stephanie said, "but their relationship has no bearings on anything in the business."

"Don't you think it kind of does though? What if they both decide that you're not doing a good job and they try to overthrow you?"

Stephanie had never even considered that. But Britt was not weak-minded. If Britt showed any indication that she was as weak-minded as Stephanie had been in late 1999 when Hunter had gotten her drunk on his pretty words, then she might be worried. Britt was tough, she might not look it, being as petite as she was, but she commanded the attention of people. Stephanie liked to think she'd given her that quality.

"Britt's not timid. She's not going to cow-tow to Hunter if the case may be," Stephanie explained. "If they dared even so much as try to overthrow me, they would have something else coming to them. As for Chris, I would love for him to come work with me, nothing would please me more, but as a stubborn man yourself, Phil, do you think that you could be coerced if you _really_ didn't want to do something?"

"Isn't that what you did when I wanted to leave?"

"No, because I knew you didn't really want to leave."

"I would've left."

"I don't think you would have, but that's just me," Stephanie told him. "I just think that you have unfinished business here and that you wouldn't have left. Plus, like you said, you want things to change and if things are going to change, I think in your mind, you're just the guy who would be able to do it."

He didn't like that she could read him. Was he that transparent because if he was, then it was a little disconcerting. Stephanie was just one of those people who could read a tell. She was probably killer at poker. She never gave anything away, but she always seemed to be holding onto all the cards. She was like Vince, except more charming, which was even deadlier than Vince. Vince was very straight to the point. He never beat around the bush, never tried to pull anything, what you saw was what you got. But with Stephanie, she was somehow more…when she talked to you, she was like a snake charmer, you found yourself lost in the daze of her words.

"So your husband won't be swayed?"

"Not unless he wants to be. I don't even think when he comes back that he will want anything to do with corporate," Stephanie shrugged. "I think he'll just be fine being a wrestler."

"I'll be fine being a what? Are you planning my return already?" Chris asked, sauntering into the room, giving a nod towards Punk who nodded back accordingly. Chris took a seat behind Stephanie and leaned his chin on her shoulder. "So what's going on? Why did you need to talk to my wife?"

"He doesn't know if he can trust Hunter," Stephanie supplied for him, essentially catching him up on the whole conversation with that one statement.

"Geez, you too," Chris said, then pointed at Stephanie, "This one doesn't really trust him either. I told her I can be the enforcer if he doesn't, but then, if you really want the job, maybe you can do it too."

"I was just thinking, what if I kind of challenged him, I mean, what if I just leaned on him really hard and then we see what happens," Punk said.

"Wait, are _you_ suggesting a plan to _me_?" Stephanie asked, incredulous that Punk would be so forward as to ask her to participate in something. "I don't know if I should necessarily be plotting against someone working directly underneath me."

"And see, that's how I thought you always worked, with someone right underneath you," Punk said then looked to Chris for approval. Chris gave him a thumbs up and Stephanie shoved it down.

"So you're really going to start in on that?" Stephanie asked. "I'm going to have to deal with another asshole who can't stop talking shit about me?"

"I can't look like I like you or am friends with you, not that I am friends with you, but you are kind of cool, I mean, you're cooler than a lot of people backstage, not that I have a huge problem with anyone, really. You know though, you've got a lot of guys on the roster who have a lot of talent that you don't utilize."

"I've always been of the mind that they have to earn it."

"Do you ever watch Ryder's videos that he posts on youtube?" Punk asked.

"Chris has," Stephanie said, "I don't really have time for that, what with running the billion dollar company, being a wife, and raising three young children."

"Okay, noted, but that means you," he looked to Chris, "haven't told her about them, which, dude, come on, even if you don't find them funny, the guy is doing everything he can to get over."

"Bring it up with my wife, I have no clout around here," Chris shook his head.

"But if she's going to listen to anyone, it's going to be you," Punk said. It was true, if anyone could _really_ make some changes around here, it was going to be Chris. Chris knew what was good for the business. He may be slightly out of touch because he'd been in the main event for so long, but he had to remember what it felt like to be a little guy. Maybe that's how he had to appeal to him. Chris was more in touch with the guys than someone like Hunter was. Chris could really do a lot of good around here and he couldn't believe that he wouldn't do it.

He thought to the plan he'd just suggested to Stephanie. He wondered if he could discuss that with her privately and maybe they could kill two birds with one stone, get to see if Hunter was actually being as trustworthy as he said _and_ somehow get Chris to have more input in things. Stephanie could never understand what it was like to be a wrestler, even if she got trained, had matches, became a 15-time women's champion, she'd still never know. He had to get Chris on board, but how? He might actually have to get to know the guy.

"I'm staying out of it."

"Okay, well, fine, I better go, but maybe we can talk again…hey," and Punk couldn't believe he was really resorting to something so…almost cheesy. "Beth and I were going out to dinner next Sunday when we got to the next city and well, do you guys want to come with us? You could bring the kids. We could even go somewhere out of the way so nobody could see us out there and mingling."

"Um, sure," Stephanie nodded, looking to Chris, who shrugged. "Yeah, that'd be great."

"Cool, well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow at Raw then, bye."

"Bye," Stephanie said as she got up to walk him to the door. He waved her off and stuck his head in the bedroom.

"Bye guys!" he called to the kids.

"Bye, Punk!" Sawyer and Flynn exclaimed and then he was gone.

Stephanie tapped her fingers against her desk as she lost herself in her thoughts. It was a tiny bit reassuring that Punk actually doubted Hunter like she did. She knew that she should give the man the benefit of the doubt, but there was that nagging voice in the back of her head that just wouldn't let her do that. She had to be shrewd and it would be stupid of her not to have any reservations. If Chris would just have some involvement in any of this.

"Why do you have to be such an ass?" Stephanie said out loud, looking distastefully at her husband.

Chris looked up from the lyrics he was working on for the next Fozzy album and squinted his eyes in confusion at her. He hadn't been doing anything, just sitting her minding his own business. They hadn't even said a word to each other in the last fifteen minutes and suddenly he was an ass? Was he supposed to say something to her? Did she ask him to remind her to do something?

"Um, I don't know what I did!" he protested, unsure of why she was mad at him.

"If you weren't off playing rock star, I wouldn't have to worry about half the stuff I worry about!" Stephanie told him and she wasn't even sure where this anger was coming from, but she knew if Chris was the one she was working with, if he was the one standing out there with her, she would have complete trust in him, the fact that he wasn't hurt her. Perhaps it had taken a long time for her to identify this feeling, but that feeling was hurt.

"Steph, you know this is something I've wanted to do."

"And you know I've wanted us to run the company, you know this has been something that I've wanted to do with you," Stephanie said, "yet, here you are, doing nothing, helping me with _nothing_ and, God, what's wrong with this business that you won't work with me? Is it just me that you don't want to work with, huh?"

"Where is this even coming from?" he asked her.

"Nothing, never-mind," Stephanie said, angrily writing something down. Chris knew this was not nothing and he put his notepad down and walked over to her, kneeling next to her chair.

"Tell me."

"I'm sorry, I'm just on edge, what with Punk thinking the same things I've thought about Hunter. I just wish that you were the one out there with me and I'm sorry, but I'm a little hurt that you aren't."

"So you wanted me to drop everything that I was doing and do this with you?"

"When you put it like that, it makes me sound selfish," she frowned. He leaned over and kissed her softly. "Now don't be sweet, just go finish your lyrics to whatever wonderful song you're going to have."

"You know half my songs are inspired by you," Chris told her, tucking her hair behind her ears. She gave him a half-smile and he smiled back at her. "Everything I do, in some way, is about you, baby, okay, and you are going to handle this and you don't need me. You only want me because you know that I can be trusted, but you also know I probably wouldn't be the best for the job. You really should be trying to convince your brother to come back."

"Oh yeah right, like I'm going to share my new power with him," she scoffed. "That's never going to happen."

"You could always hire him as an underling."

"I don't trust my brother either," she told him, but she was smiling through it.

"So, really, I'm the _only_ person in this world who you would trust implicitly with something like this?"

"You and my mom," Stephanie responded, "that's it."

"Not our kids."

"Please, them," she pointed at her children. "I wouldn't trust them as far as I could throw them."

"I'm sure they appreciate that," Chris said, "Steph, I can't tell you to trust everyone or anyone, really, because that's not your nature. But give them a little slack for now, okay, because really, they've given you no reason not to trust them, I'm speaking for Britt and Hunter because I know Punk brought her up too. If things go south, I _am_ here for you, until Sawyer starts school."

"Okay," she told him, kissing him again. "Go on, go finish your song about me, which I'm expecting to be a huge hit, got it?"

"Don't pressure me!" he told her, then went back and sat on the couch, taking up his notepad, but his working was short-lived when Flynn decided she was bored playing with Kensington (who really just wanted to walk around, under supervision of course) and wanted to see her father. She climbed on the couch, pushed his notepad away and sat down on his lap, leaning her head against his chest. "Well, hello to you too, Flutterby."

"Daddy, I'm being three," Flynn told him, looking up at him.

"I know, it's your birthday coming up, I was there to see you born."

"I know, what I getting for birfday?" Flynn asked.

"If I told you that, then you wouldn't get it because it wouldn't be a surprise."

"Oh," Flynn didn't like that. "I help you do your doing."

"You're going to help me write a song?" he asked.

"Yes, I can do allthing," she said, meaning that she could do anything and if Flynn wasn't really little, Chris would believe it. Someday though, Flynn was going to take over the world, Chris was sure of it. She was so determined and with her beauty, she would have everyone falling to their feet in front of her, willing to do her bidding.

"I'm not sure you know enough words to help me write a song though," he said.

"I almost three," she told him, believing that three meant she could do anything and everything. She was going to be a whole three fingers, but her brother was five fingers, which was bigger. She wondered when she was going to catch up to Sawyer's age. He always seemed to be more fingers than she was and she didn't know what she had to do in order to catch up. Was there something she could do?

"I know you're almost three, but I still think you might be a little young, but three is practically a grown up."

"How old you is?" she asked.

"Much, much older," he told her.

"But much?" she prompted him, twisting her mouth. Saying that wasn't an answer and she didn't like it when her daddy didn't answer her, it wasn't nice and it wasn't fair.

"I'm going to be 41 in November, so I'm 40 right now," he told her. She looked down at her fingers, but she couldn't count that high on them. "I know, it's a lot of fingers. It's both your hands four times, which is a lot."

"It is," Flynn said solemnly. Kensington came walking over to the couch and she leaned her chin on the couch and grinned up and her daddy and her big sister, her dirty blonde hair falling into her face. "Go 'way, Kensy, I with Daddy now!"

"There is enough of me to go around," Chris told her.

"No, I have you, she can go now," Flynn nodded, though Chris had no idea where she could go.

"There is enough of me to go around," he repeated, firmer this time and Kensington tried to climb onto the couch, but was failing miserably. She ended up falling and landing right on her knee, which made her start to whimper and then cry.

"Dada!" Kensington cried, one of the few words she liked to say. Kensington was quieter than Flynn and Sawyer, probably because they were older and talked a lot and she was forced to listen, but Kensington could say a few words here and there, mostly pertaining to her parents.

Flynn heaved a big sigh and got off of Chris so he could pick up Kensington. He did so and she clung to him, crying. "Big baby," Flynn muttered to herself.

"She's not even a year old," Chris told his daughter. "Hey there, Kensy-bug, everything okay with you, you want me to kiss your knee and make it better?"

"Dada," she whimpered and Chris sat her in his lap and pulled up the pant leg where she bumped her knee and gave her a kiss on the knee. She sniffled and threw herself at Chris again. Chris held her as Flynn tried to crowd in there too.

"I want a kiss too!" Flynn demanded.

"God, my daughters are pushy, I wonder where they get _that_ from," Chris said loudly as he leaned over to kiss the crown of Flynn's head, but she turned up at the last second and he ended up kissing her forehead.

"I heard that, I don't care," Stephanie told him. Sawyer, feeling lonely, decided to give up on the action figures he'd been playing with and pushed a chair next to Stephanie, climbing on it and looking over at what his mommy was doing. Stephanie looked at him. "Are you looking for a job?"

"No, I'm just looking," Sawyer said. "Mommy, do you think Hunter is really bad still?"

"Oh, so you were listening to my conversation with Daddy, were you?"

"I can't help it, I hear things because I have ears," Sawyer told her and Stephanie was starting to regret that she and her husband were very sarcastic around their children because it was obviously rubbing off on them. Still, she loved her little boy and she gave him a funny look.

"And so you heard about me and Daddy talking about Hunter," she confirmed and he nodded.

"I thought Trips was our friend," Sawyer said innocently.

"He is our friend," Stephanie told him, "but before you were born. You know when you watch old tapes of Daddy when he made fun of me?"

"Yes, that's when you were married to Trips, but that's not good because you shouldn't have married him and you should have married Daddy even though Daddy called you bad names, which isn't nice and we don't repeat."

"That's right, well, I was married to Trips and when I was married to him, he was kind of…mean in a way. He wasn't mean to me, but he was mean to everyone else because he was the boss of everyone else, like I am right now. I'm just worried that he'll go back to being that mean guy and not the nice guy who we're all friends with."

"I think that you just need to make sure that he doesn't be mean again."

"I know, but how do I do that?" she asked him.

"You have to watch him and if he does be mean, then you have to tell him that's not good and then you have to make sure he doesn't do it again because if he does, then you can have Daddy beat him up because Daddy can beat up everyone."

"I like that plan very much," Stephanie said, kissing his cheek. "So what do you think about Punk? Do you think he should be our friend?"

"Flynnie likes him a lot, but I think that's because he has lots of tattoos on and Flynnie likes the drawings. He seems okay, I don't really know because I don't talk to him a lot. He might be a nice guy, we should keep our eye on him too."

"You're so smart, you're going to be the smartest kid in the whole Kindergarten class if you keep this up," she told him. "I know you're going to have so much fun when you're there, baby boy. Your friends are all going to be there and I bet you're going to have a really great teacher while you're there."

"And we won't take naps, that's what my teacher said when we were talking about it's going to be different. We don't take naps, but I don't need naps anyways, that's baby stuff, only Flynnie and Kensy need naps."

"Oh, so you're a big boy now then."

"Yup," he nodded. "Mommy, I'm going to miss wrestling."

"I know you will, but you and Daddy can watch it every night and you can even call me whenever you want and I'll let you talk to whomever you want to talk to and it'll be okay for you and then you can tell me all about your day and everything."

"Daddy will miss you too."

"Daddy always misses me," she told him smugly.

"Well, he misses me too and everyone is going to miss me."

"I don't doubt that because you are such an awesome, little boy, oh wait, excuse me, big boy," Stephanie corrected herself. "Now if you'll excuse me, I think I should go around and make sure everything is okay since I'm the boss."

"Can I come?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah, sure, of course you can," Stephanie told him. "Chris, Sawyer and I are going to make the rounds and we'll probably stay at the gorilla if you want to come join us in a little bit when the show starts. I just want to keep my eye on you-know-who, make sure that he doesn't do anything to upset the delicate balance that is the show."

"Good luck with your stalking," Chris told her with a wink.

"It wouldn't have to happen if you would…"

"Not happening," he said, "besides, look at all the attention I'm getting from the most gorgeous women in the building. I don't think I'd want to give this up."

"Come on, baby boy," Stephanie said, taking Sawyer's hand. They started down the hallway where they were stopped shortly by Jack Swagger. "Hello, Jack, how are you this evening?"

"I'm great, Stephanie, I just wanted to congratulate you again on being the president, I know that you're going to do as good a job as your father did," he told her and she smiled gratefully, but couldn't help thinking that he was really just trying to suck up to her. She knew that Jack, though a former champion (grudgingly so because she remembered how he'd received that championship) hadn't been getting as much screen time as he probably liked.

People didn't seem to understand that she didn't make these backstage politics. Yes, she tried to be diplomatic, but she wasn't going to give someone like, say, Evan Bourne a title shot just because. There had to be reasons to give someone a title shot, they had to earn it and a lot of guys didn't. Punk had been talking her ear off about giving Zack Ryder a chance. She still hadn't seen these videos, but she'd be lying if she didn't see that the crowd was starting to bring in signs for him and cheer for him whenever he did show up. She wasn't going to tell him he was in the main event, but maybe she would schedule some matches for him. She wasn't even sure if he deserved time to speak, but maybe if he proved himself in the ring she _might_ allow him to have a microphone every now and then.

"Thank you, I really appreciate the kind words," she told him, "I really just hope that I can do my father's business justice. I better get to the gorilla though, I wouldn't want to miss the show."

"Oh sure, nice talking to you."

"You too," she said, tugging Sawyer along. They were stopped around the corner by the divas champion herself. Stephanie rolled her eyes. Now while she might guess that Jack's intentions were to suck up, she _knew_ that Kelly's intentions were to suck-up, but then she figured a lot of Kelly's life consisted of sucking. Petty, yes, inaccurate, probably not.

"Stephanie, hey!" Kelly said with that burst of sunshine that always seemed to live in her face. If Stephanie could, she would fire Kelly right this second, just based on the looks that this blonde, little bimbo had given her husband once, twice, five _thousand_ times, but Stephanie had to think of the business and for some reason that was beyond her mental capacity, the male brain seemed to be overwhelmingly fixated on whatever it was that Kelly had to offer. And Stephanie wasn't thinking about Kelly's wrestling skills (Stephanie had been a bad Women's champion, but even she had to believe she could take on Kelly). "Hey, Sawyer."

"Hi Kelly Kelly," Sawyer said, knowing her name, knowing everyone's name. "Can I ask you somethin'?"

"Sure," Kelly told him, leaning down a little so she was more in sight of Sawyer. Stephanie nearly told her to get her breasts away from her son's face, but she refrained because Sawyer didn't even really know what breasts were. Stephanie was curious as to what Sawyer could possibly ask Kelly. If her son had a crush on Kelly Kelly of all people, she was giving up hope on the entire male population.

"Why is your name two times?" Sawyer asked. "It's weird."

"Oh, well, I think it's cute," Kelly said. "I mean, I like the name Kelly, so why not have it twice?"

"Because it's weird," Sawyer told her.

"I like it," Kelly said. Sawyer shrugged and kept looking at her like she was weird and Stephanie was proud of her son. "I'm so happy that you're running things, it's like, so female power, you know, like, the girls are running the joint, it's so awesome."

"Thank you," Stephanie said, "but just because I'm a woman doesn't mean that things are going to suddenly become clouds of pink. I'm still running a business."

"Totally, but it's awesome and you are going to do a fabulous job…and Chris too, right, he's like, around, right?" she asked, batting her eyelashes and Stephanie wanted to slap her so much.

"Yeah, he's around, but his with our daughters," Stephanie said.

"Your little girls are so cute," Kelly told her. "I bet they're just darling, they must be from what I've seen of them." Obviously she didn't know Flynn if she thought Flynn was darling because Flynn was anything but darling, daring for sure, but not darling.

"I like my sisters," Sawyer told her.

"Aww, you're cute too," Kelly said, ruffling his hair, which Sawyer didn't seem to appreciate.

"We've got to go to the gorilla," Stephanie interjected, "but it was nice talking to you, Kelly."

"For sure and any time you need a babysitter, I'm always available to help, I'd love to help you and Chris out if you need it."

"I'll keep that in mind," Stephanie led Sawyer away and to the gorilla.

"Mommy, why is everyone being so super nice to you now?" Sawyer asked when there were at least five other people who came up to her and wanted to say hello. His words were quiet because he didn't know if it was something he should ask. He loved his mommy, she was the best mommy in the entire world, but he'd never seen so many people want to speak to her before. It was a little unnerving for him.

They sat down at the gorilla and Stephanie leaned in closer to him. "Because I'm the boss now and everyone wants to make sure that they're on my good side because they're afraid that if they make me mad then I'll fire them."

"Oh, would you?"

"Well, if someone isn't performing up to the standards that I think they should be performing, then yes, I think that I could fire them, but I wouldn't fire people just because I didn't like them. That would be unprofessional and that's not what business should be about. At least that's not what I want my business to be about."

"I see," Sawyer said, "so they just want to be nice to you just in case."

"Exactly, just like I want to watch Hunter, just in case."

"I get it now," Sawyer said.

Now that Sawyer understood, Stephanie was able to focus on the show. When she was at the gorilla, people tended to stop bothering her because she was actually working. Britt was around somewhere, running things, but Stephanie liked to make sure things went well on-screen and this was the best vantage point she could have. Punk went out there to speak about why he came back. What he said was the truth though, it was what he told her he was coming back for.

Punk didn't see himself as a savior, not in any sense of the word. He knew that he came off as arrogant and probably a little bit pretentious, but he was also self-aware. He knew that while his actions were facilitating change that if Stephanie wanted, she could do everything the exact same way as her father. The change had to start at the top and it would become a trickle-down effect. He was simply someone who wanted to give voice to a lot of people who didn't have them, the guys in the back who toiled away for years and got nothing. That's all he wanted to be, not somebody to be worshipped.

He had problems with the fans who wanted to worship him. He was just a guy. He was starting to get why so many guys before him had turned their backs on the fans. They were so fickle, but then when someone was perceived as "cool" suddenly everyone was jumping on the bandwagon and claiming that, oh yes, they'd been there from the start. He hated the disingenuous fans, hated them and what they stood for.

He knew Hunter was going to come out, he and Stephanie planned nearly everything that was going to happen, but one thing he liked about Stephanie was that she didn't try to tell him what to say. She could plan out everything, but his words were his own. He thought back to their conversation about trusting Hunter. Punk knew that Hunter knew that he was going to taunt him, that he had to keep it up that he was anti-establishment so Vince wouldn't get wind of what had happened, but that didn't mean that Hunter had to know _everything_. He didn't know about his distrust and Stephanie's slight distrust of his actions.

When he brought up Stephanie as Hunter's wife, he did it with such a tone as to mock him, to make light of the divorce and to subtly tell Hunter that while he had the power now, standing out there, the power didn't really lie with him, the power lied with Stephanie. The wife dig was also meant to remind Hunter of a time when he _did_ have the power. He wanted to put Hunter in his place, which was the solid number 3, behind Stephanie and Britt. Hunter could act like the big shot that he thought he was, but he was nothing without Stephanie.

Hunter was taken aback by Punk's words. Then he was confused because he didn't know why Punk would call Stephanie his wife. Hunter obviously didn't pick up on Punk's tone, but he went along with it because he didn't know what else to do. Besides, there was a time when he'd played Stephanie's husband to trick Randy, but that was a long time ago and he didn't know what bearing that really held on the current situation.

When they were backstage, Hunter confronted him about it, "What was that about?"

"What was what about?" Punk asked, honestly not knowing what Hunter was talking about.

"The thing about my wife, about Stephanie being my wife, we both know she's not my wife and if Chris heard you-"

"Wait, you didn't get what I meant by that?" Punk couldn't believe that Hunter hadn't been able to read between the lines. He figured that Hunter had enough brains to know what he meant by that. There was just something that rubbed him the wrong way about Hunter. It was probably how he'd behaved in the past. If there was anyone in this company who wanted to shove guys down, it was this guy.

Punk may not like the Super Cena act, but the fact was that Cena never really intentionally tried to shove guys down. He was good at what he did, which was dazzling the crowd and though his in-ring skills were sub-par, he was always able to somehow eke out a victory. Hunter though, he liked to shove the little people down. He was always wanting title matches, he was always grabbing all the belts. The only important thing to him was the titles and he had no time for people like that.

He didn't want to be friends with the guy, didn't even want to talk to the guy, but he was Stephanie's friend and underling so their interaction was inevitable. He didn't want it though, didn't want this man to interfere with what could be a good thing. Hunter was always going on about how he wanted things to change too, how he wanted things different, but things weren't going to be different under him. He was already cutting Punk down and while the words may have been planned, there was truth behind it, just like there was truth behind his own words. Stephanie really had to watch out. And if she didn't watch too carefully…

Then he was going to have to watch out for her.

He almost couldn't believe that's what it was going to come down to. He was so into this now that he didn't want Stephanie to get hurt. He eventually saw the interview that Hunter did about how the Stephanie insults and mentions were getting old and he smirked to himself. It wasn't that Hunter had thought they were inappropriate, he just thought it was old material? Was that Hunter's less than subtle way of telling him to knock it off, to stick to whatever script Stephanie was feeding them? It wasn't going to happen. This was the exact point he wanted to make, Hunter wasn't in charge and Punk was going to push his buttons as much as he could. The sleeping giant was under there and better Stephanie see it now before Hunter's head got too big.

He was actually suspicious, for a moment or two, that Hunter would actually strip him of the title. He almost wanted him to because he knew that it would be Hunter's idea and not Stephanie's and then it would be problem solved. Hunter was smarter than Punk gave him credit for because he didn't, but he was probably lying in wait, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Yes, Punk was getting too caught up in this plan, too caught up in helping Stephanie and the thought washed over him over and over again, but he didn't want to acknowledge it until it was punching him in the face.

He cared about Stephanie McMahon.


	336. Small Changes, August 8, 2011

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews and junk. Enjoy. :)

* * *

"Mommy, I fwee today."

Stephanie opened her eyes as she looked into her daughter's gray-blue eyes, still more gray than blue though. Flynn was leaning her chin against the bed and was smiling at her. Everyday, Flynn would cross another X off the calendar with Chris or Stephanie's help. Last night, they'd crossed the last X off of it after her birthday party. They'd had to hold it on Saturday because they were flying to San Jose today for Raw the next evening. They'd be spending the next several days in California so any party had to be before they left.

"I know, baby girl," Stephanie whispered to her. "What time is it?"

"Daddy time."

"It's Daddy time?"

"Daddy wakes up," Flynn told her.

"Oh, Daddy is already up?" Stephanie asked.

"Who the hell do you think woke _me_ up?" Chris asked from the doorway. He had Kensington, still in her pajamas, in his arms. "Flynn was talking to me while I was asleep and then I woke up with her mid-sentence telling me about balloons."

"I got lots," Flynn added, just in case Stephanie didn't remember all the balloons she'd gotten the day before. Most of them were still sitting downstairs, probably wilted since last night. She didn't know what she was thinking when she'd done that. Stephanie just hoped that Flynn wouldn't mind when she threw them away after they deflated. Because they were Flynn's birthday thing, she was wary that Flynn would want to keep them forever and ever and then Stephanie or Chris would have to sneak them out of the house into the garbage.

"I know, the entire house was covered in balloons."

"And presents," Flynn reminded her of all the cool things she'd gotten yesterday. There was a whole mountain of them!

"Yes, you got lots of those too," Stephanie sat up in bed. She invited Flynn up, but Flynn didn't want to come up and instead shook her head.

"I want to get up, I fwee!" Her little girls lisp more prominent in the morning. "Fwee's eat lots and lots."

"Three year olds eat lots and lots?" Stephanie asked incredulously as Flynn nodded again. "I don't know about that, I've seen Daddy eat and he eats a ton, I don't think you could compete with Daddy when it comes to eating."

"I can do it," she told her mother defiantly. "I can do anyfing!"

"Well, I'm sorry, my baby girl," Stephanie said, pretending to be remorseful about her comments to her daughter.

Flynn ran over to Chris. "Daddy, put her down. It not her birfday yet. Carry me!"

"I thought she might get less pushy with old age," Chris said with a shake of the head. "I guess I was completely wrong about that. Flutterby, I can carry you both."

He picked Flynn up with his free arm and she glared at Kensington for a second before she laid her head on Chris's shoulder, sighing happily. Stephanie looked at her husband and his two daughters, both of whom were cuddled up to him adorably. Chris was such a manly man sometimes, but when it came to those two little girls, he was like a pile of mush. They both had him wrapped around their fingers so completely Chris was doomed for the rest of his life.

"What are you looking at?" Chris wondered.

"Nothing," Stephanie shook her head, "I was just thinking about how cute you look with the two of them in your arms. If only the world could see you now. All those people who hate your guts would have to change their minds instantly once they saw you like that."

"Oh, would they now?"

"How could they help it?" Stephanie said, getting out of bed. "Where's our son by the way? I don't see him here."

"He was still asleep when I checked in on him so I figured I'd let him sleep," Chris explained. "These two on the other hand are very much awake and if we don't get them fed, I think they might turn on us."

"We've got a busy day today," Stephanie said, taking Kensington from Chris. Kensington, for her part, clung to Chris until the very last second. "Kensy, you don't want me to hold you? I thought you liked me."

"Mmm-nuh," Kensington said, but then giggled and went to Stephanie anyways.

"Daddy's girls," Stephanie said to both her daughters.

"Do you blame them? I mean, I don't want to act conceited or anything over here, but I'm a great dad if I do say so myself, plus I gave them life so they obviously are indebted to me. Not to mention I was the one that made the first move on you so they wouldn't have been thoughts in your brain if not for me."

"Yeah, push yourself a little harder there why don't you," Stephanie said, "what the hell was I doing while _you_ were giving them life?"

"Enjoying the hell out of it," he wiggled his eyebrows and Stephanie groaned at his cheesiness. He laughed and leaned over to kiss her, which both of their daughters did not appreciate as they both felt tiny hands all over their face. Chris pulled away and gave her daughter's stern looks. "I love you both, but when I'm kissing Mommy, you cannot interrupt, that is very rude of you."

"I don't care!" Flynn said.

"Me, me, me, me!" Kensington added with some airy giggles.

"Okay, we get it," Chris said, "your mother and I won't have privacy for a very, very long time. Now let's get some breakfast. Can you check on the sleepyhead?"

"Yeah, got it covered," Stephanie said as Chris sat Flynn on his shoulder and started singing Happy Birthday to her as they bounded down the hallway. Flynn started screaming for a piggyback ride so Chris shifted her to she was clinging to his back and then he galloped down the stairs amidst Flynn's laughter. Stephanie made her way down the hallway to Sawyer's room. She peeked her head in and he was still asleep. It was still early since Flynn had gotten up very early for her birthday. She decided to just let Sawyer sleep until he woke up himself. He was old enough to come downstairs on his own. She quietly closed the door behind her. "We're going to let Sawyer sleep a little more," Stephanie told her youngest child.

"Kay-kay," Kensington told her. Whenever she wasn't around her brother or sister, she tended to talk more, but when she was around them, she tended to let them speak. Stephanie kissed the side of her face and then kissed her again before they went downstairs. Stephanie laughed as she saw a piece of cake sitting in front of her daughter.

"Oh no, no, no, no, I draw the line at cake for breakfast."

"But it's her birthday," Chris pointed out. "It'll go bad, Steph, seriously, one day out of the year we let her have cake for breakfast. It's her third birthday, it's a big deal. Come on, we're the adults here, nobody is going to get on our case."

"Except when her teeth rot."

"They're all baby teeth, they're going to fall out anyways," he told her charmingly. "Come on, you know you want some of this delicious cake that you got. It was completely homemade and delicious."

"Stop it, I'm going to get fat again."

"What do you mean _again_?" he asked. "When were you ever fat?"

"You know when?"

"You mean when you were carrying the weight that you had from our _child_, that weight, because seriously, you're going to act like that was you while you were fat? Nope, not buying it, have a piece of cake. Kensy, you can have a very small sliver of cake, but for you, oatmeal." Kensington didn't know what to make of this so she just kind of stared at Chris.

Sawyer walked sleepily into the kitchen. "I heard everyone," he said in a sleepy tone, looking for all the world like he was left out of everyone's festivities. "Why didn't anyone wake me up? We're having _cake_ for breakfast!"

"We were going to let you sleep," Chris said, lifting him up and setting him down on his seat with a plop. "We thought since you're a growing boy that you might want to sleep, were we wrong in this assumption?"

"What's an assumption?" Sawyer asked.

"It's when you guess something that will happen. We guessed that you might like to sleep in because you were going at the playing thing pretty hard yesterday at Flynn's party."

"I still wanted cake," Sawyer said.

Chris grabbed a plate and cut him off a slice, "There you go. Now everyone should eat their respective cake because we have a long flight ahead of us-"

"While you're feeding our children sugar," Stephanie pointed out.

"The flight is in the afternoon," Chris said, "it'll be burned out of their system by then. Anyways, we're flying to California today and we've got to be ready because we don't want Mommy to feel rushed because Mommy is going to be very busy this week because she's got lots to do."

"I do, I have a very big show, SummerSlam remember?"

"Oh yeah," Sawyer said, "that's a big show, that's the 2nd biggest one, right, behind WrestleMania, right?"

"Why haven't I hired you yet?" Stephanie asked with a smile. "Yes, it is and because it's the 2nd biggest show of the year, we want it to be really good so you guys are going to help me out by staying out of my hair when I need to work. This does not mean that I'm going to disappear, but it does mean that I'm going to be very busy."

"I offer you my services, madam," Chris said as he put some oatmeal on Kensington's high chair and then sat next to her, starting to spoon feed her some of the gloppy food.

"What?" she asked. "What do you mean?"

"It doesn't mean I'm coming back, just so you know, I want better build-up than that," he told her, "but anything backstage, I'm there to help, if you need me to stitch some ring outfits, I'm there, if you need someone to tease the diva's hair, I'm there, if you need someone to shine Del Rio's car, just hand me a rag."

She laughed, "Are you sure you want to be one of my lackeys?"

"Isn't that the position I've been holding for the last nine years?" he asked. "I thought it was." He continued to feed Kensington, who opened her mouth every time Chris got a new spoonful. "Look at me here, forgoing my cake right now so your youngest child can receive nutrients she needs to be a one-year-old in a couple weeks."

"I'm fwee today though," Flynn said, "Her not one yet."

"Not yet, but she will be," Stephanie said wistfully, looking around the table at her family as she ate her slice of cake. It was always hard when one of the kids' birthdays came around. It made her start to reflect on the past and how things had changed so quickly. One day, she and Chris were dating and now here they were. Sawyer and Flynn were eating the cake as if Chris and Stephanie would spontaneously decide that they could never have cake again. Chris was making exaggerated monster crunching noises as he spooned oatmeal into Kensington's mouth. This was her family, her crazy, silly, amazing family.

She looked at Flynn. When Flynn was born and in her first months, she'd been such a calm, chill baby. It was funny looking back now. Both she and Chris had thought she would be the calm child because she was so sweet and quiet and pretty much slept through the night since birth. Never could they have anticipated this headstrong, stubborn, daredevil of a little girl, her hair always askew and her voice louder than a bullhorn. Flynn was anything but the calm baby she'd lulled them into believing. She was a spitfire and the gleam of mischief in her eye was only going to intensify as she got older.

She looked to Kensington. In just a couple weeks, she was going to be a whole year old. How had she ever thought her family complete without that little girl? She was so grateful that Chris was going to help her at SummerSlam. For as much grief as she gave him about not coming back, he still helped her in a lot of ways, even if it was just taking care of the kids when she was busy. She would never marginalize all the ways Chris made her life easier, better. He wasn't the perfect husband, nobody could be, but he was the best damn husband she could have ever hoped for.

"You have got to stop staring," Chris told her good-naturedly. "She's only three, there's a long way to go."

"Stop, you know me too well," she blushed as she started to eat her cake. She leaned across the table and held a forkful for Chris and he devoured it. "Thank you for helping this week though, I really appreciate it. I know you don't have to-"

"Don't give me a boss speech," Chris laughed, "you were going into boss mode. Just stay in wife mode. I like helping you, I love the business, I just have other things because baby, at some point, wrestling is going to not be my career because wrestling into my 60's is _never_ going to be on the table, okay?"

"I know that, I wouldn't want you to," she told him.

"So I'm exploring my options now so I'm prepared."

"Just so long as you don't leave us behind."

"Yeah right, like you'd let me," he winked and she wanted to shove the cake in his face and she held up her plate comically, dangling it over the table like she was going to throw it in his face. Chris laughed and pretended to dodge her attempts at getting at him. Everyone at the table was laughing or amused and Stephanie set her plate back down as she finished with her cake. She loved her family so much it hurt sometimes.

The plane ride was long, not as long as the trip to Europe had been, thank God, but still, it was long. They were fortunate enough to get a flight direct from Tampa to San Jose. It had its pros in that they didn't have to stop or switch planes and prolong their flight, but it also had its cons when the kids were stuck on a plane for 6 plus hours. Kensington was okay, she hadn't had as much cake as their other two children. Sawyer and Flynn, on the other hand, were literally bouncing in their seats. Flynn kept yelling out that it was her birthday and luckily she was three so it was more cute than irritating. The flight attendant had even given her and Sawyer a couple of those wings they give kids, which Flynn thought was amazing.

Stephanie, who was sitting in between Flynn and Kensington while Chris was across the aisle with Sawyer, was interrupted from rubbing Kensington's hand with Flynn's tugging on her shirt sleeve. "Mommy?"

"Hmm?"

"I see Punk?" Flynn asked eagerly.

"Not only are you going to see him, guess what?" Stephanie said, leaning in closer like she was going to relate a conspiracy plan to her daughter. Flynn, loving that her mother seemed to know something she didn't, leaned in closer as well, her eyes gleaming so much like her mother's that if anyone could see them right now, they would run the other way screaming in terror.

"What?" Flynn whispered just over the din of the plane engines.

"We're going to have dinner with him tonight," Stephanie told her daughter.

"Yay!" Flynn yelled and Stephanie winced at the tone of her daughter's voice. She glanced over her shoulder at her husband, who was staring at her with something akin to horror at his daughter's outburst. Even Sawyer was wondering what was going on.

"Flynnie, we have to remember to use our plane voice, not our outdoor voice," Stephanie reminded her, "we can have a quiet high five."

But nothing was quiet when it came to Flynn. Instead of a quiet high five, Flynn slapped her mother's hand while simultaneously yelling, "High five!"

"Flynn," Stephanie whined, "indoor voice."

"Sorry," Flynn shrugged, not caring if anyone was bothered by her. She was three, what did she care what other people thought about her. She liked who she was.

"What is going on over here?" Chris leaned over their seats, having gotten up from his own to see what commotion was about. Kensington reached up for him and grabbed the hem of his shirt to get his attention. He put his hand on her and let her play with his wedding ring as he talked to his wife.

"I told her we're going to have dinner with Punk tonight and she's excited."

"Flutterby, do you like Punk better than you like me?" Chris pouted, jutting out his bottom lip comically far.

Flynn looked shocked at the mere prospect that she could like anyone more than she loved her daddy. That was just impossible. There was nobody, _nobody_ that she loved more than her daddy…except maybe her Sawyer, but that was different, that was her Sawyer. She loved her Daddy so much! "No!" She shook her head and then she thought about how much she hated that her daddy didn't think she loved him. Her face crumpled and she started to cry.

"What the…Flutterby," Chris said, reaching across Stephanie to pluck his daughter from her seat as she started to cry softly.

"Great, nice job," Stephanie said to Chris as he took Flynn back to his seat, sitting down and holding his daughter in his lap as she sobbed into her shirt. He didn't even know what he'd done to make her cry so hard, but he felt bad for it, whatever it was. Sawyer twisted his mouth and patted Flynn on the leg. She looked over at him and somehow this made her cry even harder and she buried her face into Chris's shirt, causing a dark wet spot to form.

"What's wrong? What did I say, Flutterby?" Chris whispered into her hair.

"I love you, Daddy," she whimpered as she tried to gasp for breath.

"I know, Flutterby, I know you do, I love you so much, I know you love me, I was just joking with you," he said. He had no idea that him joking about how she didn't love him would make her so upset. If he had known, he wouldn't have said anything. "Shh, it's okay, I know you love me."

"I love you," she whimpered again, clutching at Chris like he would disappear before her eyes.

Chris hugged her tighter and Sawyer leaned over and kissed Flynn's hand. "It's okay, Flynnie, you don't have to cry about anything."

"I'm not," she said, but she was crying. She pouted at her brother, but then was surprised by a kiss from her daddy. She smiled up at him, sniffling and he gave her a sad look and then made a funny face, which perked her right up and then she was laughing at her daddy, who was so very silly. He made another face and she dissolved into a fit of giggles, hiding her face again, but this time because she couldn't stop laughing. "Daddy!"

"What?" Chris asked, making another face, knowing that it was Flynn's kryptonite. Sometimes he would pause videos when the faces on the screen looked weird just because it would send Flynn into hysterics. He wasn't even sure why someone making a funny face cracked her up so much, but it always did the trick when she was upset (which wasn't too often, Flynn was prone more to anger than sadness).

"I love you," she told him, smiling and making a face of her own.

"Well, I'm the luckiest guy on Earth then," he told her, "do you want to go back to your seat with Mommy?"

"No, I stay here now," Flynn said, nodding her head. There was an empty seat next to Chris and Chris helped her sit down. "No, no, no, I sit with my Sawa. It my birfday."

"Oh, excuse me," Chris said, standing up a little and putting Flynn in the middle while he moved to the window seat. Flynn danced around a little in her seat and then leaned her head on Sawyer's shoulder.

"Hi, Sawa!" Flynn told her older brother.

"Are you feeling better, Flynnie?" Sawyer asked.

"I better now," she said, watching the little screen of the portable DVD player. This occupied the kids for the rest of the flight and before they knew, they were landing in San Jose. Stephanie and Chris helped the kids off the plane before going down to the car rental center to get their car. The drive from the airport to downtown San Jose was short, ten minutes and they stopped at their hotel to get settled in. Because of the time difference, it was still afternoon when they landed and so they took the kids down to a small park outside their hotel. Downtown San Jose had a great park right in the middle of it where there was lots of grass to run around at.

By the time dinner rolled around, they were tired out and the sugar was out of their system. They went to a local Thai restaurant that Punk had suggested because they had live music on the weekends and it was relatively close to the hotel. They were seated and Stephanie and Chris immediately had to think of what the kids would eat and that kind of hindered things. They weren't picky, but they didn't like spicy things so they had to choose accordingly. Flynn had insisted on sitting next to Punk so she was sitting on his right side with Beth on his left.

"You're Beff," Flynn leaned across the table to look at her. "You're good."

"Thanks," Beth told her, smiling.

"Why you here doh?" Flynn asked, wondering why she would come along. She only thought that CM Punk was going to be here for dinner so having someone else here too had been a bit of a surprise to her.

"Well, I'm his girlfriend," Beth said kindly. "Do you know what a girlfriend is?"

"Mmm, no, I not fink so," Flynn shook her head, "what it is?"

"Well, it's when two people like each other so they decide to go out with each other and only each other. It's kind of like your mommy and daddy are together, but they're married, girlfriend and boyfriend isn't as…um, serious as that is."

"Oh, you like Punk den?" Flynn asked.

"Yeah, I like him a lot," Beth said, laughing at Punk's expression. He looked clearly uncomfortable discussing his relationship status with a three year old. "He's very cool and we like to go out."

"I like him too," Flynn said, "he has pwetty pictures."

"Oh, you like him too?" Beth asked with a smile, looking at her boyfriend, who was looking more and more mortified by the second. She thought it charming that Flynn seemed to like her boyfriend so much. It was adorable. Punk could come off kind of abrasive sometimes so to have someone so young so clearly like him, it was something new for her.

"I do," Flynn nodded. "We can both like him!"

"I like that idea very much," Beth said, "but since I heard it was your birthday, how about for tonight, you can have him."

"Okay, thanks!" Flynn said, grinning up at Punk.

"Excuse me?" Punk said, confused about what had just happened before him. "Are you allowing me to date a three year old?"

"No, I'm letting a three year old who so clearly likes you think that she can have you for the evening," Beth said as she laughed with Chris and Stephanie who were watching the exchange in amusement. Punk's face was especially funny.

"I don't know how to deal with these things," Punk said, but then he turned to Flynn, "Happy Birthday though, Flynn, I bet turning three has been pretty awesome, right?"

"I like it," Flynn told him, "it's a good number."

"I think so too," he told her for lack of anything else to say. "Did you get a lot of cool things?"

"I got lots and lots," Flynn told him.

"That's great," he said, but then he didn't know anything else to say so he turned to the adults at the table. "So what are we doing tomorrow, what do we have on tap? I mean, obviously something has to be done about the match and all of that at SummerSlam with the belts, have you come up with something?"

"Well, it's a big match so we kind of wanted a guest referee, right?" Stephanie turned to Chris.

"That was the plan, yeah," Chris said. "Someone who can be fair. We just haven't thought of anyone yet. Stephanie wanted me to do it because she thinks I can be impartial, but she forgets that I don't like Cena so I won't be impartial at all."

"Shouldn't you want it skewed in my favor, I thought that was how you guys operated," he said, but it was in jest.

"Yeah, if we liked you more," Stephanie countered and Punk still appreciated that she could go toe to toe with him. The waitress came and took their large order and promised their spring rolls soon before leaving.

"You really should be the guest referee," Punk told Chris, "everyone would freak out."

"He won't do it," Stephanie pouted, but she grabbed Chris's hand. "He'll come back when he's ready and not a moment sooner."

"I'm getting you back, man," Punk told him. "We need guys like you, even though you are corporate now."

"I still don't think I am."

"You _married_ into the McMahon family, that automatically makes you part of the corporate side of things, it just does," Punk told him. "You can't deny that you're married to Stephanie."

"Yeah, except when you're claiming that Hunter and Stephanie are still together," Chris pointed out.

"Oh, that, I'm just trying to get under his skin," Punk shrugged it off. "It threw him off. I'm just trying to make sure the guy keeps honest. I know you guys are friends with him, but he was half the problem when he wrestled. He's the kind of guy who will let a guy get a taste of the big time and then swoop in and steal the spotlight. He's been holding down guys for years. He inserts himself where he doesn't belong. At least you've never done that, Chris, but you're a different breed from that guy."

"How do you know that?" Chris challenged him.

"Because if you were, you'd still be wrestling and you would be inserting yourself everywhere like Paul is doing," Punk told him. "I'm sorry, I know you guys are friends with him."

"He doesn't have a ton of tact," Beth added with a snicker. He glared at her and sat back in his chair.

"I kind of don't," Punk shrugged. "I don't really care, I mean, I'm going to tell it like it is, that's what I have to do. I'm just trying to be the guy who the fans can relate to. I want to change the company and I hope you guys want the same thing."

"I want to make the company better," Stephanie told him, "I want to build on what my father did, but I want to do things better. I like what I've done so far. I'm not going to answer to you, Punk, but I'm trying to take everything in consideration."

"That's all I ask for."

Stephanie looked to Britt and Hunter, "Okay, so we've got the title situation to deal with. I really like the idea of having a guest referee, but who can we have that would be impartial, but who would still be able to enforce things with two other men in the ring. She was trying to wrack her brain and so were Britt and Hunter.

"We could always go without one," Britt said, "I mean, if worse comes to worse, I think we should be able to trust our referees. Plus, the match is so big that we don't really need that added extra, you know."

"I just want things to be fair because if it isn't, we're going to at least have one irate person and I'd rather that not be the guy that I was planning with and just signed to a new contract. I don't want him telling my father because that would only open up a world of hurt. I don't want to deal with him on top of all the things I'm dealing with right now."

"I still think that our referees can handle it. If something goes wrong, we'll have it all on tape and then we can deal with that after," Britt said to Stephanie. "I think that is definitely the way to go."

"Okay, well, you are in charge so I'm going to leave it up to you and if you think that it's best that we just keep a referee then I'm going to go ahead and listen to you," Stephanie told her. She wanted Britt to know that she believed in her as the one running Raw. It was hard for Stephanie to ever completely give up control, but she trusted Britt and her decisions and nobody would see her in any kind of power position if Stephanie kept undercutting her decisions.

"Thanks," Britt said, trying not to beam. Her promotion meant hard work, but she was more than ready to take it on. She wanted to prove to Stephanie that she'd made the right choice in giving her this new position. It wasn't temporary anymore, this was permanent and she wanted everyone to know she was serious about her job.

"Did you have anything to say?" Stephanie asked Hunter. He shook his head, but he appeared to be deep in thought. "Really, because usually you have more than your fair share of things to say and I would hate to have you not get your word in when I'm offering it to you."

"No, nothing," he said, but he still appeared to be deep in thought."

"Okay, well, it sounds as if everything is set for tonight," Stephanie said. "I trust that you'll take care of everything, Britt."

"Got it covered, boss. You want to come with me, babe," Britt said, shaking Hunter's arm a little.

"Yeah, I'll walk you out," Hunter said, then turned to Stephanie, "bye, Steph."

"Bye," Stephanie called out and then got up herself to go join the rest of her family in catering. Chris had taken them there to get a snack before the show started. Because they were in California, the show started at six so they probably wouldn't eat until the show was already on.

When the show did roll around, Stephanie decided she would watch it from the gorilla, sitting next to Britt. Hunter was going to go out at the top of the show and just kind of recap what was going on. What Stephanie wasn't expecting was for Hunter to declare _himself_ the guest referee. Stephanie looked to Britt, but Britt looked just as stunned as she did. She turned to Stephanie and shrugged her shoulders, shaking her head to signal that she had _not_ told Hunter to do that. She was the one who wanted a regular referee so why would she turn around and let Hunter be the guest referee.

As if that wasn't enough, John and Hunter got some words in when Hunter was announcing matches for tonight. John was saying how it an ego thing, but Hunter claimed it was for the fans. However, then he went on to say that whatever happened would be because _he_ wanted it to happen. Every red flag Stephanie could have possibly had on Hunter seemed to raise at that moment. This was what she feared. She and Britt had mutually decided on one thing and Hunter was going out there and doing another, completely against their wishes.

As soon as he was backstage, Stephanie told Britt to take care of things and walked up to Hunter, who was looking pretty proud of himself, "You, me, my office, _now_."

"What's going on?" he asked.

"_Now_!" Stephanie said emphatically, stomping towards her office. She threw open the door and Hunter followed. Chris was eating dinner with the kids so the office was empty. Stephanie turned to her ex-husband and asked, "What the hell was that out there?"

"What, me being the guest referee?" he wondered.

"Don't play stupid with me, you know that's exactly what I'm talking about," Stephanie said, "you were sitting right there, right _there_," she pointed at the chair he'd been sitting in earlier, "as Britt and I agreed that we wouldn't have a guest referee and you said you had nothing to say. Then you go out there and declare yourself the guest referee, without even running this idea by either one of us? Explain yourself."

"Well, I fully intended to go with that, but it just didn't seem right."

"It didn't seem _right_? Who are you to make that kind of decision? Do not forget who you're working under here, Hunter. You're not working for my dad anymore and you are certainly not the boss. _I_ am the boss and if I'm not around, _Britt_ is the boss, but you are not the boss and you had no right to do that. And don't think I don't know you did that on purpose because if it really just came to you, you would have run it by me and you wouldn't have said it in front of the world wherein I cannot renege on something you've already established."

"I just think we need to make sure that Punk wins and I can do that. You were talking about how you were worried that he would leave if you didn't do things right by him, so I'm trying to help you out because I can act impartial, but then not be. Why the hell would Cena or _anyone_ suspect that I'm actually on Punk's side!"

Okay, so Stephanie hadn't thought about it from that angle. It did sound good though. If Paul was in the ring with Punk and Cena, he could covertly skew it in favor of Punk, but damn it, that's not what should be done. "Hunter, if Punk found out that you cheated on his behalf, he will perhaps be angrier than if he lost the belt at all."

"But this is huge."

"Not everyone is as unscrupulous as we are. Punk is like Chris, he likes to get by on his own merits."

"I thought this was a good idea."

"You cannot do this, you cannot go over my head because my head is the only head that you need to concern yourself with," Stephanie said, "we're not in this together anymore, Hunter, I want you to know that and remember that. We are not married, we are not in charge, I'm in charge and if anyone was going to be in this together with me, it would be Chris."

"But he's not."

"He doesn't want to be."

"You should make him if it's so important to you."

"What? How did we even get on this topic?" Stephanie asked, shaking her head. "I don't even know what's going on anymore. Stop trying to deflect away from the subject at hand and that is the subject of your subordination. If this happens again, Hunter, I will be forced to take action so don't try and mess with me or play me."

"I wasn't, I was trying to make the best decision for you and for the company. We don't want Punk leaving for real."

"Get out of here," she told him. "I don't even want to see you right now. You're bugging me."

"Still sounds like we're married," he muttered to himself and she shot him a dirty look. "Steph, I'm sorry, I won't do it again. I just thought about it and I thought it was the best decision. I hope you'll forgive me."

"Don't do it again, I'm warning you, consider yourself on probation."

"Okay, that's fair, later," he said, slipping out of the room.

"Wait, come back later so we can discuss the contract signing, okay?" she told him. He nodded his head, then left the room. Stephanie ran her hand through her hair and stood there for a few minutes, taking a couple deep breaths before she went to sit at her desk. She got about two steps before the door opened. It was Chris with Kensington, but Sawyer and Flynn were nowhere in sight.

"They're with Britt," Chris answered, knowing the question on Stephanie's lips. "They wanted to watch the show and I wanted to come talk to you. What was that out there? I thought that you guys decided there wouldn't be a guest referee."

"We _did_," Stephanie said, "but Hunter went out there and decided that he was going to take charge and make the decision himself."

"What? So he just completely dismissed what you guys decided then?"

"Yes, I mean, his reasons were actually kind of sound, but I don't know if I believe that those were his intentions or if he was just thinking on the fly to appease me and his real intentions were to undermine me. I just don't know with him."

"I know," Chris said, coming over to her, "but first instinct, what is your thought?"

"My thought is that he did this on purpose, that he wants the power and he's trying to get it from me. You know this is my first thought, this is why I wanted _you_ in this position and not him, but I had to settle because you insist on not helping me at all."

"Stephanie, it's not a matter of not helping you. It's just a matter of-"

"Yeah, I get it, you have other projects, other things that you want to do, but do you know how much it hurts my feelings," Stephanie said, "I know I can't exactly be involved in Fozzy because it's a band and I can't sing and I can't play any instruments, but I try to be there. I go to concerts, I give you suggestions on set-lists, I have tried my best to become friends with everyone in the band and on the crew, doing a damn fine job of it, I think and we both know I'm not the easiest person to get along with. Now I'm in a bind and you're absolutely refusing to help, in a business you've been in for like 20 years and it hurts, Chris."

Stephanie didn't necessarily mean to let that all out there, but everything had to be said. She needed to say it because she was feeling it and Stephanie wasn't necessarily one who bottled up her feelings when they got too heavy. Instead, she was the kind that let it all out like a volcano. She was trying not to let it show, but she wanted Chris's help. He was her husband and the one person she could trust in this company and every time he rejected her offer, a little part nagged that he was rejecting her.

"I'm sorry," Chris told her, "I didn't know it meant that much to you."

"Well, I can't change it now because Hunter already has the job and I can't just yank the rug out from under him without due cause, he signed a contract for it," Stephanie said. "I don't know why you…no, you know what, never-mind, I've got a lot of stuff to do."

Chris came around and hugged her with his free arm. Kensington ended up hugging her as well.. "I really am sorry. Stephy, baby, you know I would do anything for you and if I knew that it meant _this_ much to you, I would've done it."

"But you did know, you _had_ to know that this was big for me."

"I thought…I guess I thought that you would want all the power and I'm sorry, but I don't want to be in a place with you where I might come to resent you."

"Resent me?"

"Because you're a little difficult to handle business-wise. I don't want to be combative with you and I feared that if I did take the job, it would devolve into that because we don't agree all the time. Haven't you ever heard of not mixing business with pleasure? I guess I took that too far."

"That sounds like an excuse."

"It is one, but I'm still here for you, okay, and we'll keep an eye out on Hunter, I promise you that we will. I'll go spy on him right now if you want me to," he told her, trying to lighten her mood. She gave him a half-smile. "Do you have any concept of the amount of love I have for you? Like any inkling at all?"

"Yes."

"I would never leave you high and dry," he told her, cupping her face with his free hand. "I'm not that kind of guy. I would never do something to you that you didn't know about. I would never be that guy to you."

"I never said you were like Hunter," Stephanie said. "You've never much been interested in anything I can give you. You still insist on making your own money even though you could be a very good trophy husband."

"Hey, I'm going to be a house husband in a couple weeks when our son goes to Kindergarten."

"I'm just glad his school starts on a Wednesday because I'd never forgive myself for missing his first day of school," Stephanie said. "Not that I wouldn't miss Raw for him. If he did start on a Monday, I'd skip it, but…you know."

"I know," he told her, "I'm sorry I hurt you. I would never want that."

"I know, you're not like that either," Stephanie told him with a smile. "I do love you."

"I love you too, okay, I'm going to go spy on Hunter now, is that okay with you?" he asked, giving her a look. She laughed and pushed him away. "I guess that's a yes then, okay, well then I'm going to go then. And hey, um, is there anything I can do to make up for the hurt?"

"You just being there for me," she told him and he smiled.

"Well that I can do," he told her, before he started backing towards the door. "I wonder if I can find a trenchcoat around here…"

"You're ridiculous!" she told him, but she was laughing now and feeling better just by having him there with her.

"Maybe a hat like the guy in _Casablanca_ and dark sunglasses or would that make me too much of a creeper?"

"I'm not kidding, stop," Stephanie was laughing so hard right now that she could barely get the words out. "I'm supposed to be working and you're distracting me with your craziness. Even Kensy can't get a word in edgewise."

"She's too full from dinner," Chris said, patting her tummy. "She ate enough for three babies."

"Did you eat a lot, Kensy?" Stephanie asked her daughter. In response, Kensington burped loudly, which made Chris laugh so hard he nearly dropped her. "Okay, well that wasn't the response I was looking for, but I think it answered the question quite nicely."

"How rude of you, Kensy," Chris kissed her cheek, which made her grin widely, proud of herself for making everyone laugh. "Do you want me to chill with you for a while? I know you're still on edge with the Hunter thing, even if you're appearing to be cool about it."

"No, you can go sit with the kids if you want. It's just that everything better go as planned later on with the contract signing or else…I don't even know, I'm going to dock his pay or something. I already told him he was going to be on probation and so another one of these little incidents and I won't be so kind."

"Good, you need to take a firm hand. Maybe people aren't really getting that _you're_ in charge now. They really should know though because otherwise they'll find out when you're firing their asses."

Stephanie sunk into her chair. "I'd rather it not come to that, but I can't have him usurping my power."

"He won't, we'll make sure of that. I mean, I will from afar since the kid and I are going to be at home."

"I wish you could be here, both of you. Are we making the right decision with him, Chris?" Stephanie asked. "Do you really think that this is the best way?"

"Steph, the kid has all his friends attending Kindergarten. I don't want this kid to be home-schooled. I know that home-schooling isn't bad nor is having a private tutor, but I want our kids' lives to be somewhat normal, don't you? We both went to school, right?"

"Yeah, we did, even though our parents traveled for work."

"Exactly. We need to give our son the same opportunity. He'll love school so much that he'll forget all about wanting to be here and when the show is close then he can come up and watch."

"You're right," she said, "we'll be okay."

"As long as Hunter does his job," Chris reminded her.

"That's right."

Luckily for Hunter, he did do the right thing later on. Sure, he had some words and was generally the blustery individual he could be, but there were no surprises this time. Hopefully there would be no surprises next time either. She wondered if Britt was starting to come around to her side regarding Hunter, but she didn't want to bring it up just yet. Britt seemed to get awfully offended whenever Stephanie brought up her distrust of Hunter so it was better to just wait and see what happened and if anything did, then she could go to Britt.

She wanted things to work out with Hunter. She was friends with him now and they had an easy relationship. She didn't want to go back to being enemies with him, constantly looking around corners and wondering when the next strike would occur. She was trusting him with a lot of responsibility, but the only way they were going to work was if he knew his place around here.

In the end, she could only hope promoting Hunter was the right decision.


	337. Whodunnit? August 14 and 15, 2011

A/N: Thanks for reading, this chapter covers SummerSlam and Raw, just letting you know, enjoy. :)

* * *

Britt looked over at her boyfriend, who was still sleeping. She knew some people always thought their significant others were cuter when they were asleep, but for Britt, she much preferred seeing him awake. When he was asleep, he was almost _too_ innocent. She liked her men with an edge and if anyone had one, it was Hunter. She loved him though, so completely that she didn't think she could ever love anyone ever again, not like this. It was strange and exhilarating and nice, comfortable.

Still, her mind kept going back to what Stephanie had warned her of weeks ago now. She kept thinking about Hunter in power. Without his knowledge, when he was out, she would go and watch some of the old tapes when he was married to Stephanie. The first thing that always struck her was them as a couple. She'd never known them as a couple. She'd only started working for the company because Stephanie had just had Chris's baby so there was no reference point concerning her and Hunter for Britt to fall back on.

Seeing them together felt so wrong. Throw in Chris hating Stephanie and bashing her every other minute and it was like stepping into The Twilight Zone. Everything was strange. But then she always got past that to the part where Hunter was an absolute asshole to everyone except his friends and even then, it was all about loyalty to him. He was still part of the Hunter she knew now, she believed that every part of you was built upon your past. But that part he'd built on was a horrible asshole. He was just…horrible.

She was scared now, well, scared might be a little hyperbolic. She was simply concerned that he could revert back to that. The alarm had been raised this past Monday when he'd gone out there and changed the plans that she and Stephanie had agreed on. Hunter had his say and he didn't say anything. He had agreed, but then he'd gone out there and changed it. He'd assured her that it was an on-the-fly kind of thing, that he'd just thought of it as he was out there, but she didn't know if she could believe him. It was scary that she was doubting her trust in him, but this was a side of him she wasn't familiar with.

"Hey," he said and she was startled because she was unaware that he had woken up. "What's on your mind?"

"Nothing," she told him, but then decided that she needed to be honest with him. "Are you _sure_ that when you made yourself the guest referee that it was because you thought, at that moment, that it was the right decision."

"I told you that's what it was," he told her, "why? You don't believe me, is that it?"

"I do believe you, but it's like a 60/40 thing right now," Britt admitted to him. "I trust you, I _love_ you, you know that. This is business though and I have to look out for the business that I'm in and the business that I'm in means that I have to check in on my employees."

"Geez, you sound more and more like Stephanie everyday," he joked.

"I'm not joking around here, Hunter," she told him, placing her hand on his arm. "I'm really not. I'm completely serious about this. I want to do this job well. The only way I can ensure doing that is if I know that everyone is on board with what I'm doing. This includes you."

"I know it includes you," he told her, "I know that I answer to you and Stephanie, we all do now."

"Yes, but then you go out there and you change things and-"

"I _told _you that was a last moment decision. It just seemed right in that moment because the two of them were not getting along and we want Punk to stay the champion and I thought the best way to do that would be to ensure that it happened by any means necessary. But apparently this can't be believed."

"Stephanie warned me," Britt said in a low voice.

"Stephanie what?" Hunter asked because he'd honestly had a hard time hearing what she was saying. She was mumbling and he couldn't understand a word she'd said.

"Stephanie warned me about this, about you," Britt said louder this time, not trying to cover up the fact that she had been talking about Hunter and Stephanie's warning about him. Hunter's eyes narrowed as he peered at her, while his brows knit together in confusion and then recognition.

"Stephanie told you about how I used to be."

"She did," Britt confirmed with a nod. "She told me and then I went ahead and I looked at tapes and things and you were just…not who you are, but you could always go back to that and it terrifies me. I mean, we're not married, but I'm with you, Hunter, forever as far as I'm concerned, but if that's the man you are, the man you want to be, then I don't want to be with that man."

"I'm not that guy anymore. God," he sat up and ran a hand through his sleep-mussed hair. It didn't do much good because it fell right back into his eyes. "I keep telling you _and_ Stephanie that I'm not doing anything and neither one of you believes a damn word that I'm saying! I don't know what it's going to take. Do you want me to get on my knees in the middle of the ring and publicly apologize?"

"I'm not trying to pick a fight here!" Britt told him, but she was getting angrier and she knew they would explode soon. They were loud people when they fought.

"Then what are you doing? You're making accusations about me and-"

"I think I have every right to figure out what the hell it is that you're trying to do because-"

"Because you don't believe me when I say that I thought that up and didn't plot against you and Stephanie," Hunter supplied for her. "No, no, I get it, neither one of you thinks that I'm actually part of this group. You think I'm out for myself, just like I always am, just like I always will be. I get it, crystal clear."

Hunter got out of bed and stormed over to his suitcase, grabbing some clothes and changing quickly. "I'm going to go work out."

"Hunter, I don't want you to go."

"Leave me alone," he said defensively. She got out of bed and tried to get in front of him at the door, but it wasn't going to work. She was petite and he had a good foot on her and more than a hundred pounds. She tried to barricade herself in front of the door, but he just picked her up and set her down behind him as he left.

She should have handled that better.

Chris peeked his head out of the kitchen at the sound of a pounding on the front door. "Who the hell could that be?"

"I don't know," Stephanie said as she helped Kensington with her breakfast. "Go check."

"I am, but seriously, whoever it is sounds pissed, I hope it's not a murderer," he said, then went to the front door and looked through the peephole. He opened the door, "Hunter, man, it's pretty early, what are you even doing here?"

"Can I talk to Stephanie?"

"Uh yeah, sure, we're just eating breakfast, come on in," Chris said, opening the door further, allowing Hunter entrance. "Can I ask what this is about?"

"I just need to talk to her," he said gruffly.

"Okay," Chris said, drawing out the syllables. Chris led the way to the kitchen, Hunter trailing behind him. Chris walked into the kitchen and looked at Stephanie, who looked confused until she saw Hunter over Chris's shoulder. "Hunter, what are you doing here?"

"Trips, hi!" Sawyer said over his scrambled eggs.

"Hi, Trippy!" Flynn added, emulating her older brother.

"Hey guys," he said, smiling at them. They hadn't done anything so he couldn't be mad at them. Even Kensington was waving her hands in the air, her mouth covered with breakfast though. He looked to Stephanie, who was just wiping her hands on a napkin before standing up.

"I needed to talk to you," Hunter said, looking at Stephanie, "alone preferably."

"Okay," Stephanie said, "my office is downstairs, through there." She pointed towards a short hallway with a flight of stairs. He started walking towards it and she shrugged at Chris while Hunter's back was turned. Hunter made his way down the stairs and into the bare office down below. Stephanie took a seat on the small loveseat against one wall while Hunter took to pacing around the open space. "What is it?"

"Why the _hell_ did you have to go to Britt and tell her how I used to be?"

"What?"

"How I was with you? You told her that I was a jackass and you warned her about me or something like that."

"You came here because of that?" she asked incredulously. Of all the things, she hadn't expected that to be the reason. "Look, yes, I did tell her about how you used to be because that was how you were and I was concerned giving you a position of power because you didn't do so well with it last time."

"Tell me this, Stephanie, are you the same woman that you were twelve years ago?"

"No, but-"

"No, that's the only answer there is, no, but here I am, being accused of being the same guy. Twelve years ago, you were a heinous bitch-"

"Hate to break it to you, I still am," Stephanie said.

"That's not true and you know it," Hunter told her. "You know you've calmed down, you know you're more professional, less impulsive than you were before. You know this. So why do you refuse to believe that I could be the same."

"I never said that you were that guy or that you were going to become that guy, not definitively anyways," Stephanie said, "but the potential is always there. It's different with me because I do have the power now-"

"And what if your father knew how you got the power, huh?" he asked.

Stephanie stood up and got in his face, "Do not threaten me, Hunter! I swear to God, you better not threaten me because I will come down so hard on you, you won't know what hit you. Do not try to blackmail me because I will bury your ass so fast."

"Stop thinking I'm some bad guy."

"I never said you were! But Hunter, we cannot ignore the fact that you have _always_ loved being in charge. I'm looking after my own assets here, okay. I do not want things to get out of hand while I'm in charge. This is my company for all intents and purposes and I'm not going to have you screwing me over!"

"Then trust me, goddammit!"

"I never said I didn't!"

"Okay, you two, back to your corners, God," Chris said, coming downstairs holding Kensington in his arms, "we could all hear you up there. You two need to calm down, Flynn and Sawyer were wondering what was going on. I sent them upstairs to play while I came down here to tell you to calm down for one and ask you what the hell is going on for two. We have a big show tonight and you guys are fighting."

"I know," Stephanie said, "but Hunter is acting crazy."

"Yeah, I'm acting crazy when I have my girlfriend accusing me of trying to change everything to suit my whims."

"I'm not…I'm not going to do this with you today!" Stephanie told him. "I don't care what you think, yes, I'm suspicious even now, still because we agreed, we _agreed_ on the no guest referee. Even if you had second thoughts you _knew_ that we could change it today. If worse came to worse, it could be a last minute decision, but you went rogue on me!"

"What, are we playing Risk or something?" Hunter asked. "I didn't go rogue, I just made a decision that at the time seemed the best decision. I don't know why you and Britt are all over me because of one choice."

"Because when does one choice turn into two, three, four, do not forget that in 1999, _you_ were the one who convinced me to come into power."

"And look at what that did for you! It gave you the confidence to be who you are now!" Hunter told her. "You wouldn't be you without me."

"And now you're taking credit for me," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "I don't know why I even deal with you, you're impossible!"

"_I'm_ impossible, oh believe me, you and my girlfriend are the impossible ones here. I make one small decision-"

"You think it was small?" Stephanie asked incredulously. Neither her nor Hunter were getting in any complete sentences because they kept talking over each other. "It was not small, this is a match involving one of our biggest titles in the entire company with a guy we _just_ re-signed and a guy who is arguably the most popular among the young demographic!"

"I can't get it through to you that it was an impulsive decision."

"Oh my God, shut up, shut up, shut up!" Chris yelled, which made Kensington start to cry, which only made him angrier, "See what you did? You guys are acting like children right now. God, it's like looking at the McMahon-Helmsley Era downfall all over again, which, as the second husband, a guy doesn't need. Look, Hunter, be mindful of the decisions that my wife makes, Stephanie, be considerate of the fact that sometimes, people make decisions out of the blue because they think it the best in that situation. You've probably done the same at some point and can you both just grow the hell up before tonight because we have a goddamn show that we need to execute and if the mama bear isn't happy with the baby bear then the whole thing falls apart and don't look at me like that, most of the literature I read nowadays has an age span of 1-5!"

"Sorry, Chris," they both mumbled.

"Now, Kensy and I are going outside because she's upset now," Chris said, stomping back up the stairs. "Hunter, go back to Britt and get out of my house."

The tension didn't really seem to dissipate even when the show did start. Stephanie was running around, overseeing everything and she hadn't had the time to really talk to Britt or Hunter since he left her house that morning. She hadn't even gotten to talk to Punk yet. They had to keep up appearances tonight because there were so many people around, but she would have liked to talk to him before the show started. That had become a pipe dream.

"Hey," Chris said, jogging up to Stephanie, "where do you need me?"

"Preferably out there, in the ring," Stephanie reasoned. Chris tilted his head and looked at her. "I thought I would just throw that out there, see if it stuck. Are the kids with Trish then?"

"Yeah, she's got them, so really, what do you want me to do?"

"I can't really think of anything at the moment to be perfectly honest with you," Stephanie said, "I've got everything I'm doing, Britt has everything, and Hunter is preparing I guess. I just need you to be here for me. This is really the first time I'll be here, in charge of a major, _major_ show and I just need my husband to support me."

"That's the one thing I _know_ I'm the best in the world at," he said, giving her a hug, "are you going to sit at the gorilla?"

"Yeah, I was planning on it," Stephanie said, "I wanted to oversee the show from right here, especially the last match. I want Hunter to not do anything rash. How's Christian doing by the way? Is he nervous for tonight?"

"You know how he is, he's confident that he can win tonight and all the more power to him. I hope he wins, he deserves to keep the belt longer," Chris said. "He didn't really want to talk though because he wanted to focus on the match. He actually left while I was dropping off the kids because he said that he needed to go gear up."

"Don't you miss those days?" Stephanie wrapped her arms around Chris's neck. "Having big matches, winning title belts, the satisfaction of a job well done?"

"Don't you miss not haranguing me about coming back?" Chris asked her, wrapping his arms around her waist. "I love you dearly, but when you get on a subject, _man_ do you get on a subject."

"I'm relentless, what can I say?" Stephanie asked him with a wink and a smirk. "Either way, you know that everyone is trying to copy you in some way. Everyone is stealing your stuff because nobody believes that you're coming back. I wouldn't be surprised if people started stealing your finishers."

"Where do people get these ideas that I'm not coming back, I've _never_ said that," he shook his head as he started walking Stephanie over to the gorilla. "Do you want me to sit with you while you work?"

"You can and they get that idea because you keep saying you're not coming back any time soon even though I seem to recall you saying if you won the Dancing with the Stars trophy you'd be back sooner, but that didn't pan out."

"Well, I didn't win so they didn't get me," he said, "now let's focus on making this SummerSlam better than any other SummerSlam there ever was."

Christian walked back into his locker room, which was now resembling a poorly-maintained zoo. He sighed, "Trish, really, what is going on here? When did you say you would be the in-house babysitter?"

"Chrissy, they're kids, get over it," Trish told him. "They aren't going to suddenly jinx you."

Christian just stopped and looked around the room. Sawyer was playing with some toy cars, making them crash into the wall. Flynn was sitting in Trish's lap, looking over the program for tonight and pointing out all the wrestlers, while Tilden and Kensington were playing with some blocks, one of them stacking and the other one knocking down the stack. It was a madhouse in here and he couldn't concentrate. He had a very important match tonight and he couldn't concentrate on it with all this noise and commotion. He felt a patting on his leg and saw Tilden standing there.

"Hi, Dada," Tilden said, her blonde hair falling into her eyes and making her squint. Okay, so that was cute and he couldn't help but lean over and pick up his daughter.

"Hey, Tilde, what's going on?"

"Pay, pay," she said, which was her word for playing and not her word for paying for something. She pointed to where she'd just been sitting with Kensington, who was diligently building another tower of blocks, looking over at her friend every once in a while. Stephanie and Trish had always thought Flynn and Tilden would be the best of friends, but with Kensington closer to Tilden in age, they were the ones always having play dates while Flynn liked her daycare friends more.

"Were you having fun?" he asked her. She was actually calming him down without even trying and he loved her for it.

"Uh huh, yup, yup," Tilden said, then pointed to the ground to be put down. Christian leaned over and put her down and she immediately toddled over to Kensington's tower and kicked it, sending bricks flying everywhere, even a couple hitting Kensington. Kensington, for her part, thought this was hilarious and started laughing at her friend's impulse while Tilden went around and started picking up blocks carefully.

"They're silly," Flynn said from where she was sitting with Trish.

"I know," Trish said, kissing Flynn's head as Christian sat next to her. "Oh hello there, are you embracing the zoo then?"

"I guess I am," he said, leaning his chin on her shoulder. "I guess this will just have to be the way that I calm myself for my match."

Stephanie finally found a moment to slip into Punk's locker room. He was startled to see her come in unexpectedly. "You do know I could have been changing or something, right?" he told her, looking at her with that critical eye of his, the one he usually wore right before he started to belittle someone.

"You don't have anything I haven't seen before, Punk," Stephanie dismissed him. Why were guys always assuming she was some virginal person or something? She had three kids, she'd been married twice, she'd had previous boyfriends, nothing anyone showed her at this point could be some kind of mystery.

"Yeah, well, I'd rather not flash my boss."

"Whatever," she said, "I just wanted to say that I'm going to be wishing you luck later."

"You're telling me you're going to be wishing me luck _later_," Punk said, narrowing his eyes and then rubbing his chin, "and you're doing this later instead of now because…you have been rendered speechless by me?"

"Yes, your hotness radiates off you in waves, I'm planning to leave Chris for you right this instant," Stephanie told him, "please, oh please, Phil, make me yours, ravish me right now, no, dumbass, I want to do it later so that the cameras can capture it. As you know, I have kept one of my father's biggest yes-men employed-"

"Oh yes, the big bad wolf," Punk said, "what about him?"

"He's _still_ my father's yes-man," Stephanie said, "so I suspect that he's been lurking around trying to find anything and everything out that he can and bringing it back to my father. As you know, my father is still the Chairman of the Board, a mere title at this point, but still enough to sway the board back to his side, especially if I'm doing anything unseemly-"

"Which you are always doing," he pointed out.

"My affairs are my affairs," she said coolly. "Either way, I have to make it clear, _we_ have to make it clear that we are not working together. I like the whole thing about me and Hunter being married, I think it's an inside joke for those in the know, but I also like the teasing quality of it. How it alludes to how bad we were in the past. Stick with it."

"So you're going to pretend to be married to Hunter then? How does your_ husband_ feel about this?"

"What my husband doesn't know won't hurt him," Stephanie said. "He doesn't and won't care either way. I go home with him, he knows this. Anyways, I'll see you in a bit. Play it up, Punk, and I'm sure that things will go in your favor later."

"You sure about that, Jericho?" he asked, the only person who had never added the McMahon to that. She turned around. He probably thought she was crazy, always plotting and planning something. Many normal people didn't live their lives that way and a lot of the time, she lived that normal life. When she was at home with her husband and kids, the rigors of work did fade away. When she was with them, she was _with_ them, but work was an entirely different story.

"I'm absolutely positive."

When they did meet up later, it was everything she'd hoped for and more. Punk was always quick of wit and he didn't disappoint her or hold anything back. She was happy to be called an idiot by him and she was even happier when he'd insulted her. She would never admit it, but it kind of felt like when Chris used to insult her, calling her a filthy, dirty, disgusting, brutal, skanky, bottom-feeding, trash-bag ho. If she'd let those roll off her back (revisionist history because she _never_ let those roll off her back), she could let this one roll off as well. Besides, Punk was her…friend, sort of. She found that she kind of liked him in that annoying brother kind of way.

She had to go say good luck to Cena as well just to keep up appearances and then get back to Chris, who was holding down the fort at the gorilla. Or at least she thought he was. She suddenly saw him walking over and she opened her arms to him. He hugged her and she asked him, "Hey, what are you doing over here?"

"Flynn, she's angry that I'm not with her watching the show so I'm heading over to grab her. Sawyer and Kensy are fine, but Trish said Flynn wants to watch with us so I'm grabbing her."

"Oh, okay, I'll see you in a little while then."

Stephanie said her good lucks to Cena, which were much less entertaining than saying them to Punk. Cena was gracious as usual as she wished him good luck, telling her that he was going to do this for his fans and for the company because he hated that Punk had disrespected the company that he loved. She pretended to be flattered by him thinking so highly of the WWE, but inside, she was puking. She was treating him like she was one of his little fans, someone he could pander to. In the end, it actually made her kind of angry. This was exactly the kind of thing that Chris had spoken out against at one point only to be rebuffed by fans everywhere, but they ate up Cena like he was candy. She was glad to be out of there when she was.

She ran into Hunter afterwards, right before the start of the match between Punk and Cena. She ran after him down the hallway and put her hand on his shoulder. "Hey," he said, "what's going on?"

"I just wanted to talk to you before we went out there," Stephanie said, "I know you know what to do, but I want to make it clear that we are going by what we have planned, right?"

"I'm not going to do something stupid, Stephanie, you've already berated me enough," he told her. "One thing though, that I've got to ask. What the hell is with Punk _still_ saying that we're husband and wife? I don't get it, what is the point?"

"It's just an inside joke, he's just referring to when we were the terrible twosome," Stephanie explained. She guessed that people weren't really getting it. "It's just a callback to when we were together and we had the McMahon-Helmsley Era going on and it's just about that…you know though, if Chris thought we were getting closer, he might want to come back."

"Stephanie, what are you thinking right now?" he groaned.

"That maybe I could have some other little plan going right now?" Stephanie told him. "Kiss me."

"What?"

"Kiss me right now," she told him, "nothing with tongue, but just, kiss me right now, the camera is over your shoulder."

"Um, fine," he said, leaning over and kissing her briefly before leaving. Stephanie smiled. Maybe if Chris thought something was happening…well, okay, no, he was probably going to be pissed, oh man, she hoped she wasn't going to be in trouble. She walked slowly back to the gorilla where Chris was sitting with Flynn. She was asking him something and he was focused on her, but he had to have noticed when she slipped into the seat next to him.

He looked over at her and she could tell he was perturbed. He went back to focusing on Flynn who was trying to give commentary, talking about how Punk was going to win the match and how he was going to retain the title. Stephanie tried to reach for Chris's hand, but he shrugged it off expertly by going in to tickle Flynn. While the little girl screeched with laughter, Chris ignored her so she focused on the match at hand.

It seemed to be a back and forth affair as all matches seemed to go. She didn't know why she had faith in Punk, so much faith, but maybe it was because his brashness reminded her a little bit of her husband's and she loved that about Chris. She loved the way he could call out anyone at any time over anything and get away with it. Punk could do the same. She liked that in a guy. She pretended to watch the match exclusively, but her eyes kept flitting over to Chris and Flynn. Chris now had his chin on Flynn's shoulder as she narrated the match.

"He almost get the pin, Daddy, but he didn't!" Flynn exclaimed on Punk's behalf. "You go out."

"You want me to go out there?" he asked.

"Uh huh, you can win," Flynn said.

"Why can I win?"

"Cause it Undipoots winner and that you cause you beated Austin and Rocky," she grinned up at him, remembering that her father had won _both_ those belts when she watched it and it was really cool and he could go do that again.

"Oh, you think I should go be the Undisputed WWE champion then?"

"Yes, you should," Flynn said, then yelled, "Daddy, Cena almost won, but no!"

Chris laughed and kissed the top of Flynn's head. He glanced over at Stephanie, but she was looking at the match, which was good because he didn't want to talk to her at the moment. He leaned his chin on Flynn's head as they continued to watch the match. Now that Flynn had mentioned it, he actually could kind of picture himself out there and wrestling again. The itch was starting to come back, slowly but surely, but he wasn't going to tell anyone about that yet. He wanted it to develop before he really made a decision on what he was going to do.

"Daddy, Daddy, he wons it!" Flynn yelled, breaking him out of his reverie.

Hunter had seen Cena's foot on the rope. He was the referee, he was _supposed_ to see everything. That wasn't part of the plan though. The plan was for Punk to win, by any means necessary. It was what both Britt and Stephanie told him. He knew after taking the matter into his own hands that he was going to have to find some way to make it up to them, some way for them to trust him again and believe him when he said that it was impulse to make himself the referee. He saw the perfect opportunity at that moment. He was the COO, he could claim ignorance and not suffer any consequences so that was what he did. He counted the three for Punk and that was that.

"Oh thank God," Stephanie breathed out, glad that Punk had won.

Hunter attempted to shake Punk's hand when he came back around, but Punk refused, thinking it would be _too_ convenient if he shook the man's hand. Hunter relented and simply clapped as he started walking backstage, oblivious to what was going on behind his back. Chris wasn't however and she noticed someone walking down the aisle, someone who looked a lot like…but no, no, it couldn't be _him_. But it looked just like him. The camera went back to Punk, celebrating on the turnbuckle.

"Did you see that guy, Stephanie?" Chris asked, looking towards her, the first words he'd said to her in what seemed like hours.

"What guy?"

"The one who was walking towards the ring," he said and he turned to show Stephanie when they both saw Kevin Nash laying out CM Punk. "What the hell...what the hell is _he_ doing here! Stephanie, did you know about this!" Chris was livid if she had. What the hell was Stephanie doing around here that he didn't know about? She was kissing Hunter, bringing in Nash? What was his wife _thinking_?

"No!" Stephanie said and Chris knew her well enough to know that she wasn't lying.

"Then what the hell?" Chris asked.

Stephanie was angry. "Where there's Kevin Nash, there's only one other person…Hunter."

Before they could even begin to discuss what was happening, they saw Del Rio dash past them and Stephanie's eyes went straight for the monitors. Knowing that Del Rio held the money in the bank case, it wasn't a shock that he was out there. She pressed her hands against the table in front of her, not moving, her eyes watching until she saw Del Rio take the belt that had just been Punk's.

This was nothing like they'd planned.

Punk, understandably, showed up at their hotel room later that evening, "What the _hell_ was that?" he said immediately upon entering the room. Stephanie pressed her fingers to her lips. She and Chris had just put the kids down to bed after their long day and the last thing she needed was them waking up right now.

"I don't know," Stephanie said.

"Wait, so you didn't plan that?" Punk asked.

"No, I didn't plan that, why would I plan that, why would I want the belt on Del Rio?"

"I don't know, I don't know your crazy plans!" Punk told her. "I don't know half of what you even do. I don't know, maybe you have some sort of secret alliance with Del Rio!"

"I don't and be quiet," she hushed him. "I don't know what's going on, but all I can figure is that somehow Hunter did this. I haven't heard from him tonight and he's not answering his calls. If Britt is anything like I am right now, she's grilling him about this, but I have to think it was him. He's friends with Nash, way more than I've _ever_ been, if anyone would plan this, don't you think it would be him?"

Punk thought back to that evening. Hunter had helped him win. He knew that Cena's foot was on the ropes, he'd seen the replay, he knew. Still, Hunter had given him the title. Why would he then have someone attack him like that? It didn't make sense unless Hunter was in cahoots with Del Rio and Stephanie didn't know. Maybe he was bitter, but it just didn't make sense to him. Nothing tonight had made sense to him.

"I just want to know what's going on."

"Believe me, I do as well."

"You'll tell me when you find out anything?"

"I will," Stephanie assured him. Punk sucked at his teeth a little before he nodded and showed himself out. Stephanie ran a hand through her hair, "I'm going to kill Hunter if he was behind this. I'm going to kill him."

"Oh what, you're not just going to make out with him," Chris told her and it was like she was being pelted with snowballs right now. This one was crushing the back of her neck and she turned to look at her husband who was looking at her accusatorily.

"Can we not get into that tonight, please, I've already got a lot on my plate."

"So as usual, I'm going to have to take the backseat?" he asked and she scoffed.

"You're joking, you've _got_ to be joking me," Stephanie said, "so all of a sudden now you come what, fiftieth? The only people more important than you in my life, Chris, are our three children, nobody else. Everyday, I put all of you before I put myself, do you get that?"

"That's why you're kissing your ex-husband and calling him your husband, right?" he said.

"It's a _joke_. Punk started it because he thought it would be funny to reference the McMahon-Helmsley Era and what a disaster that was. I went along with it because I thought it was a funny and clever tip of the hat to the entire thing and for those people who know that we're married, which is many since your book is out there…"

"I don't like it!" Chris said. "What makes you think that I like seeing you kissing your ex-husband, even if it's a goddamn joke? Huh?"

"What? Are you…are you insecure about my love for you?"

"Did I say I was?" he asked.

"No, but you're implying it," she pointed out. "How can you ever be insecure about the two of us? We've been married for six and a half years, we've been together for nine years, how can you possibly be insecure?"

"I'm not insecure, I just don't like seeing my wife's lips all over her ex!"

"I wasn't making out with him or straddling him or anything like that, it was a peck on the lips really," Stephanie said, "It wasn't even that big a deal! It's like acting. If I were an actress, would you have a problem if I had to kiss another actor for a part?"

"This isn't acting, this is life!" he told her.

"It is acting, we're just acting like that couple as an in-joke thing, how can you not see that?" she said, failing to mention that part of it was to make him so jealous that he would consider coming back and being the COO or just come back period. She didn't think now was the appropriate time to bring _that_ up. She could tell that he was honestly mad about this, but she just couldn't figure out why he would be _so_ mad. It's not like she and Hunter hadn't kissed (longer than the one tonight) before. Chris had even kissed Britt and she wasn't flying off the handle.

"Because I do _not_ like it!" he said, sounding out each word individually. "I cannot get it through your head enough, I don't like it, I don't want it, I don't want you to do it either."

Well, when someone told Stephanie McMahon she couldn't do something, that drew up the ire in her, even if it was her husband. Chris wasn't the kind of husband who put his foot down often. He just respected that she wasn't the type of person who took orders. There were only a few, very few times he ever even so much as tried to forbid her from doing anything. Her eyes blazed as she dug her heels deep into the carpet.

"You're forbidding me?" she asked him incredulously, her jaw slacking a tiny bit.

"Yeah, yes, yes, I'm doing just that," Chris told her, his hands on his hips.

"No, I'll do whatever the hell I want to and you can't tell me what to do," Stephanie told him. "I'm not going to take orders from someone. If I say that I'm acting, that's just what I'm doing and if you don't think I am, then go to hell because I don't care."

"Oh, that's nice, I'm just your husband, the guy you _married_, of course I get no say on what you do, of course not, God forbid I don't like my wife kissing her ex-husbnad."

"Well I don't like that you're trying to tell me what to do!"

"I'm telling you that it bothers me!"

"And I told you it wasn't anything!"

"It still bothers me!"

"It doesn't mean a goddamn thing!" Stephanie shouted. "I'm not going to do this with you tonight, I've got things I need to do. I've got to get to bed."

"Fine, go to bed," Chris said, "I'll just sleep in the kids' room."

"I don't care _where_ you sleep."

"Why don't _you_ just go sleep with Hunter then!"

"Maybe I will," she said, stomping into her room of the suite and slamming the door behind her. Chris scowled and made his way into the kids' room. He grabbed Flynn gently and put her in the bed next to Sawyer and then climbed in the now occupied bed. If Stephanie refused to see things his way, fine, he just didn't have to talk to her.

"Cheryl!" Sawyer exclaimed as Cheryl Burke stood up from the table she'd been waiting at.

"Sawyer, oh my God, look how big you are," Cheryl said as she knelt down and Sawyer ran into her arms, giving her a big hug. Flynn followed a moment later. "Hey there, I heard you just had a birthday, pretty girl. I wish I could've been there, but I've been dancing."

Flynn looked over her shoulder at Chris, "Daddy, you dance no more!"

Cheryl laughed, "I see she hasn't matured. I'm teaching dancing with people and then I have to start another Dancing with the Stars, but my partner won't be your daddy unfortunately."

"Damn it," Chris joked. "Here I was hoping that I'd get a second shot."

"Maybe if they do an all-star season," she joked back as she stood up and then her jaw dropped. "That _cannot_ be Kensington. Chris, she is so big now! This is not the baby that she was when the show ended."

"Hi," Kensington said with a soft voice as she looked at this crazy lady.

"She did not just tell me hi, Chris, she did _not_ just tell me hi!" Cheryl gushed.

"She's walking now too," Chris beamed.

"I cannot believe how big they all are," Cheryl helped Flynn get into a seat. "Stephanie's working I'm guessing since you guys have a show tonight?"

"Yeah, she's already on her way to San Diego," Chris said, his jaw tight. He and Stephanie had only said a few words to each other that morning but it was more than enough. Neither one wanted to budge and when they butt heads like that, their stubbornness came out full force.

"I bet she's even busier now that she's the head of the company," Cheryl said as she watched Chris help Kensington into a highchair. "I'm so glad that we could meet today and that you invited me to the show tonight. I've missed hanging out with you."

"I've missed you too," he told her, "so which poor schlep has to try and fill my gorgeous dancing shoes?"

"We're still talking contracts, but it appears I'm going to be paired with Rob Kardashian."

"Oh, I'm definitely better than him and worth more money too I bet," Chris winked at her and she laughed.

"I miss your crazy sense of humor," Cheryl told him. "So how was your tour this summer?"

"We went with Daddy," Sawyer interjected. "We got to live on a bus and we got to go to Daddy's concerts and it was fun."

"Wow, it sounds like fun," Cheryl said, "I heard you were going to Kindergarten next week, I bet you're going to have a blast."

"I think I might," he nodded.

"I missed these kids, Chris, you have really got to come visit more often with them," Cheryl said. "I don't know if Rob has any kids, but nobody could be cuter than this bunch."

"Thanks, Cher," Chris told her.

Stephanie tapped her fingers against the armrest, willing the limo to go faster. She stared across the long car at Britt and Hunter, well, more Hunter than Britt. Britt was sitting away from Hunter, who was directly across from her. The entire car was silent and she wished Chris didn't have the kids because at least they would be making noise and talking and crawling or trying to crawl all over everything.

"Okay, so am I just going to be the one to break the ice?" Hunter asked. He looked to Britt, "You haven't spoken since last night and you," Stephanie was the target this time, "you haven't said anything since I saw you this morning."

"What is there to say? Unless you want to confess," Stephanie told him.

"The only thing I did last night was miss Cena's foot on the ropes, but you know _why_ I did that. I'm going to go out there tonight and apologize so that it looks like I wasn't skewing the match towards Punk. Look, I know neither one of you is going to believe me, but I didn't tell Nash to do that."

"Didn't _you_ get him tickets last night?" Britt said.

"Wait, what?" Stephanie asked. "I didn't know this. What are you talking about? Hunter, _you_ gave him tickets?"

"He asked for them, to see the show, I didn't think it was a big deal."

"Then why didn't I know about this?"

"Because you're busy doing a lot of other things. I didn't think I needed your permission when I invited people to shows."

"Well didn't it seem odd to you?" Stephanie asked.

"No, he's my friend, he was in town, why would it be odd to have him come to a show, he's worked for the company for God's sakes. It wasn't like I planned this to happen or anything. I didn't tell him to attack Punk, _why_ would I do that?"

"You tell me," Stephanie asked, folding her arms over her chest.

"I just can't win with either one of you, can I? I just can't escape my past. Never-mind the fact that you seemed to have escaped your bitchy past and everyone looks up to you, huh, Steph? What if it was you? You're as good as anyone I know at lying and you always, _always_ have something up your sleeve. How do I know you aren't deflecting all the blame onto me while you pull some plan?"

"I'm not."

"And I'm supposed to take your word for that?" Hunter asked. "What do you take me for, Stephanie? I'm not falling for that. Does that sound familiar to you? Because it's what you do to me. You think I'm so hungry for power, look in a mirror."

"Everyone just needs to shut up," Britt said. "We're getting nowhere with this. Hunter, tell Nash to show up tonight and explain his actions. He'll tell us just exactly what happened and if he doesn't, then we'll find out."

"Fine," Hunter muttered, grabbing his phone and texting Nash, telling him he had to explain himself tonight. "Then you'll see that it wasn't me."

"Yeah, we'll see," Stephanie said as she spaced out looking out the window.

Cheryl held Kensington as Chris ushered them into the building. "You really didn't have to drive with me."

"It's okay, we're driving back tomorrow. We're going to stay here an extra few days before we head to Canada. Then we have the kid's first day of school and Kensy's birthday. We're going to be so busy."

"Sounds like it," Cheryl said, "can we go see Stephanie?"

"Uh yeah, sure," Chris nodded. "We probably should."

"Okay, what's wrong? You sound like you don't want to see her and considering she's your wife, I'm guessing that you are in a fight if you don't want to see her. What happened?"

"It's nothing, just a stupid fight," he said, "we'll get over it like we usually do. I'm just angry with her over something and she's angry with me because I told her to stop doing what she was doing."

"You guys are okay though, right? I mean, you guys are good together," Cheryl said.

"Yeah, we'll be fine, I promise," Chris said and he believed that. Stephanie and him were just strong-willed, but that didn't mean he loved her any less. His love for her was as steadfast as a mountain. She just infuriated him more than anyone else in his life. He led Cheryl down the hallway until they found Stephanie's door. He opened it and Stephanie was sitting at the desk, staring at her phone when she looked up and grinned.

"Cheryl, hey!" Stephanie got up and went around her desk to hug the dark-haired girl. "You look fantastic. How have you been?"

"I've been great, much better since I was able to get this guy off my back," Cheryl pointed at the shocked Chris. "But congratulations to you on becoming the new…what is it, CEO, is that what you are now?"

"President, I'm the president," Stephanie said haughtily.

"Impressive," Cheryl told her. "Chris must be so proud."

"Yeah, I guess," Stephanie said, looking over at Chris, but he was getting the kids situated. "Come on over here though and sit, let's talk about everything that's been going on with you these past few months, I'd love to hear it all."

"Are you sure?"

"I've got the time."

After Cheryl and Stephanie caught up, Cheryl decided to walk around on her own and just see what was going on. She knew some of the people backstage from when she'd visited and some of them from when Chris had visitors while he was on the show and she wanted to say hi to a couple of the divas who had shown up in support for Chris. That gave Stephanie and Chris a few moments to talk to each other.

"Hunter insists that it's not him," Stephanie told her husband.

"I don't care," he told her, but secretly, he was wondering if Hunter was in fact lying. It would make sense for Hunter to tell Nash something like that, but then the endgame didn't make sense to him. What could Hunter gain from Stephanie being ousted as the president? Surely, he didn't think that he would be instated as the new president. If anything, the job would probably fall to whoever was a viable Vice-President, but then they were calling Hunter the COO, so it could ostensibly fall to him, but then maybe the CFO, who was a guy Chris didn't know, could come into power. So maybe Hunter _did_ have a stake in this.

"Fine, whatever," Stephanie said, "I was just trying to involve you, that was all."

"I don't want to be involved in your _affairs_ anymore."

"Oh yes, sure, I'm having an affair with Hunter, that makes perfect sense now, _clearly_ that's what I was doing when I was trying to play a part."

"You keep insisting that you're 'playing a part' but I don't think that's it. I think it's something else, but far be it for me to actually know what you're up to. I never know what you're up to so I should just keep myself in the dark about this too, right?"

"Like you don't do a ton of stuff behind _my_ back. Get off your pedestal Chris, you're getting awfully lonely up there in perfect-ville."

"I know I'm not perfect, but I'm not so blatantly imperfect."

"That doesn't even make sense," Stephanie told him. "I don't get you. I just don't get you at all. You act is if I'm suddenly two steps away from dashing off into Hunter's arms, but if you had two brain cells you'd see that I find him suspicious."

"Is that what this is then? These little liaisons?"

"Liaisons? Wow, so do you really think we're having an affair or what?"

"I don't know what you do when I'm not around."

"Oh, you mean the five minutes a day when I'm not somewhere in your vicinity?" Stephanie asked him. They spent most of their time together as it was, when in the hell could she ever have time to be with someone else, let alone Hunter, who repulsed her at the moment.

"I don't care what you do anymore, Stephanie, if you want to play this stupid game, go ahead and play it, see if I care!"

"I don't care what you think either!"

"Good, glad we're on the same page!"

"Stop it!" Sawyer shouted at the both of them, his hands on his hips. "We don't like fighting and you shouldn't fight and I don't know what you're fighting about, but you should stop it now! You don't yell!"

"Sorry, Sawyer," they mumbled to each other, but then glared at each other like they were blaming each other for the outbursts.

"Say sorry!"

"What?" Stephanie asked.

"Say sorry!" Sawyer insisted again. "We say sorry after fights. You make me says sorry to Flynnie."

"Sorry," Stephanie muttered to Chris, but they both knew she didn't mean it.

"Sorry," Chris likewise didn't mean what he was saying.

"Good," Sawyer said, going back to his toys.

Chris went over and knelt next to Stephanie, "You know what, you can do whatever the hell you want to do. I don't really care anymore. If you want to go on pretending that Hunter is your husband, go for it."

"It's a joke, you jackass," Stephanie said.

"Doesn't feel like one to me," he told her and she could've sworn that there was hurt in his voice, but before she could do anything about it, he was out of the room.

She was frustrated with herself. Yes, she wanted Chris back and she thought that it would make him jealous and that's exactly what she wanted, but the reaction was all wrong. She wanted him to tell her that Hunter better get out of his way and he was going to be the COO. How was she…no, she was stupid, she should have known he'd be angry. Of course he'd be angry. Now they were in too deep though and he was going to continue being mad at her and it probably wasn't worth it at this point, but she just _hated_ when someone told her not to do something. It just made her want to do it even more.

Chris walked around, catching up with Cheryl again and they walked around the arena as he detailed the entire tour to her. She listened well and laughed where appropriate and he should have felt happy to have his friend there, someone he cared about, but he kept going back to Stephanie. He felt like he was being played somehow, but he couldn't put his finger on _how_ he was being played. He hated not knowing. No, he didn't think Stephanie was actually cheating with Hunter, he couldn't even fathom that, she wouldn't do that, but Stephanie had motives for everything.

"Chris, you are so distracted it's not even funny," Cheryl told him. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"I'm fine, it's just the usual Stephanie mess," he said, "remember when I said she has plans all the time?"

"Yeah, I remember."

"I just have a feeling that this time around, I'm the subject of one."

Hunter went out there later that night hoping he could clear his name. He was going to and did apologize about the Cena thing. It was the right thing to do for the situation. If he didn't have remorse for it, then it looked suspicious. This much, he, Stephanie, and Britt could agree on. Everything after that, they couldn't find any common ground. There was no trust between them and they felt like separate branches on the same tree. He wasn't about to go out there and admit that he was the one who texted Kevin Nash because that would be suicide and frankly, untrue. If he was going that route, he wouldn't be so obvious about it. Kevin Nash was obvious and Hunter was better than that. Hunter had woven intricate stories before and he was better than just calling his friend to do his dirty work for him just like that. No, he was better than that, slicker than that.

Nobody believed him though. Everyone thought he was still the big, bad wolf. Sure, he'd had his moments, but he was never going to be forgiven for his past sins. They were always going to pop up no matter how hard he tried to outrun them. Even his own girlfriend, who claimed to love him more than anyone, didn't believe him, looking at him all night and all day with those suspicious eyes. She didn't even bother to question him, ask him, just look at him, accusing, wondering if he was capable of creating a coup to take her down. Why would he do that to the woman he loved? Why would he put something he loved so much on the line like that? He wished people would see _that_ for what it was.

He wasn't even going to get into Stephanie's brain. Stephanie jumped to conclusions she had no reason to jump to, but that was Stephanie's personality. She could be so calculating sometimes, but others, she was so willing to just jump on a person or thing without thinking. She could somehow be both reckless and incredibly cunning. She was so much wrapped into one pretty body.

Punk walked into Stephanie's office unannounced. He did that now, not even caring because if she could walk into his, he should be able to walk into hers. "Hey, Flynnie," Punk said to the little girl who obviously liked him. Flynn grinned brightly at him and came over, lifting her arms up to him.

"Carry please," she said and he lifted her easily, walking over Stephanie and she smiled at him. "Hey, have you talked to Hunter?"

"He insists that it wasn't him as you can see."

"Tell me you don't believe him."

"I don't even know," Stephanie said. "He said Nash is going to be here to explain himself. I guess we find out then."

"Oh, I'm going to find out."

"Punk, you lost, didn't you?" Flynn asked him sadly.

"Yeah, I did, but I intend to get my belt back," he told her and she smiled and he looked pointedly at Stephanie.

"I think we should play it up like you suspect me," Stephanie said.

"What?"

"To look like you don't trust anyone in charge," Stephanie said. "Just find me after you talk to Nash, make sure the cameras are with you and look like you're not happy to see me."

"Okay," Punk said, then looked at the screen Stephanie had on. Nash was just getting there. "It looks like I have to go get some answers, I'll see you later, Flynnie?"

"Okay," she said brightly as he put her down, patting her head awkwardly as she ran back over to her sister, grabbing the toy right out of her hand, making Kensington very confused.

"I'll see you later, Steph," Punk said.

"Punk, wait, before you go, when I see you again…could you please not mention anything with Hunter being my husband. I know you're joking, trying to be sarcastic, but please…for me, don't say it."

"Uh, yeah, sure, Stephanie."

Nash provided no answers whatsoever. He got an anonymous text to beat up the winner? The entire thing didn't make one ounce of sense. He still suspected Hunter and it would be the easiest conclusion and wasn't that Occam's Razor? The simplest conclusion was the most likeliest one and wouldn't it be so easy for Hunter to deny the entire thing _because_ it would make too much sense, be too easy? He wasn't familiar enough with Hunter's logic to come to such a conclusion, but it seemed to be staring him right in the face.

Nash was a blowhard and it spoke to Hunter about the company he insisted on keeping. This entire thing was just messed up and in ways he couldn't yet fathom. What the hell was going on around here? He thought he had it in with Stephanie, but there was obviously some other work at hand here and he really wanted to know what it was, wanted to know everything because he was trying to change this business for the better and he couldn't do that if there were a million people trying to vie for power position.

Talking with Stephanie, however fake it was, was always fun though. She was crazy and manipulative and how could you not like someone so off their rocker? But did someone not like her? Was it Hunter who wanted her out? If she was out, would he be in? Or was it her father? Or…could it be Chris? Chris always looked like he didn't want the power, like he was fine staying in the background, but wouldn't that be the most convenient place for someone to stage their masterpiece? Wouldn't he be the _least_ suspected?

"Stephanie," Punk called out after she walked out of the room.

"Yes?" Stephanie said and shooed the cameras away, pulling Punk back into Hunter's office when the camera crew was gone. "What's going on?"

"The text, all of this, the secret texter and whatever…do you think…I know I'm going to sound crazy, but do you think that it could be…Chris?"

"Okay, CM Punk, you are officially crazy."

"But doesn't it make sense that it could be him? You'd never suspect him!"

"It's not Chris," Stephanie laughed.

"Are you sure?"

"I'm positive," Stephanie said, but then her mind started to work overtime. Chris would have the means and the opportunity and if…but he wasn't mad at her _before_ last night's show. No, there was no way he could pull this off without her knowing. There was just no way.

"Well, if you're sure," Punk said.

She was sure…wasn't she?


	338. Counterattack, September 5, 2011

**A/N: A bolded author's note because I screwed up last week. I said that last week was the August 22nd episode of Raw, when in fact, it was the August 29th episode of Raw, so I totally screwed up the timeline, first time that's ever happened!**

**Anyways, I deleted the last chapter and incorporated it into this chapter so last chapter is IN this chapter, which is why I included the dates. That way, you can easily skip over the parts that I wrote for last week and just read the stuff for this week that is new if you want. I did slight modifications to what I wrote last week, but if you read last week's chapter, you really don't need to reread everything if you don't feel like it. **

**So, in summary, I screwed up, so this chapter will end with the September 5th episode so essentially it's two shows. Sorry again for the screw-up!**

* * *

**Sunday, August 21, 2011**

"I think you should just apologize to him."

"I didn't do anything wrong," Stephanie argued as they pushed open the door to the bakery where Stephanie had ordered Kensington's cakes. They'd gotten a large cake for everyone coming to the party and then a mini-sized one for Kensington. Stephanie was trying not to think about her daughter turning a whole year old. She loved having a baby in the house and now her baby was a full-grown toddler.

"Don't you think you did though?" Trish told her. "I love you to death, Steph, I really do, but don't you think you're going too far with this one?"

"It's a joke, it's just a running in-joke. I didn't even start it, let me remind you, it was Punk who started it," Stephanie argued on her behalf. Chris was still upset about her thing with Hunter, if you could even call it a thing. It wasn't like they weren't talking, but there was a coldness to his tone whenever he spoke to her, which was usually only in public. In private, when it was just the two of them, he barely spoke to her. She thought he was blowing it all out of proportion. They were trying to curb it this week since it was Kensington's birthday and they didn't want it to spill over onto her party.

They were having the party tomorrow, Sunday, because Kensington's birthday was on a Thursday and having it on a weekday seemed out of place. For her actual birthday, they were just having a small dinner. It was a busy upcoming week anyways. On Sunday night, almost immediately after the party, they were flying to Oklahoma for Raw. Then Wednesday was Sawyer's first day of Kindergarten (a fact that nearly made Stephanie weep every time she thought about it), then Thursday was Kensington's birthday. Things were definitely changing around the Jericho household.

"Yeah, but did you have to finish it?" Trish asked as they waited in line. "I mean, did you really have to carry it so far?"

"I was teaching him a lesson," Stephanie said defiantly.

"And what lesson is that, Stephanie? That the guy shouldn't get upset when you have a 'joke' where you pretend you're married to a guy that you _were_ married to and then kiss him…in front of the entire world?"

"He shouldn't, it's not like there's anything going on."

"I think it's just a little bit…"

"A little bit what?" Stephanie cut in. "It's a little bit what, Trish?"

"Stephanie, calm down, I'm not taking sides," Trish told her.

"I wasn't asking you to take sides," Stephanie said, then she stopped talking as they reached the front of the line. Stephanie gave the order slip to the woman and waited while she got the cakes. When Stephanie had paid for them, she and Trish carried them out to the car to take them back home. "As far as I'm concerned, there are no sides, he's being ridiculous."

"Okay, so I think it's a little bit rude of you, skewed even."

"Skewed?" Stephanie asked. "Skewed how?"

"So let me put it this way and do not jump all over me when I tell you this," Trish said, "because I don't want you throwing me out of your car or something, but here it is. Okay, so Chris does everything for you, you know he does, Steph. Every day, he puts you before him-"

"He puts the kids first."

"I meant of you two, don't try to deflect," Trish told her. "Okay, so what I'm saying is that every, single day, he puts you before himself. He loves you, Stephanie, like, _loves_ you, like the epic kind of love-"

"Don't believe in that."

"Let me finish!" Trish said with exasperation. "Okay, so he loves you and he does so much for you. The guy wrote his book and it pretty much revolves around you. He writes on and on about how much he loves you, how happy he is to have met you and then you go and you pretend to be married to your ex-husband, do you get why I said skewed?"

"But it's a joke."

"Yeah, it's a joke, but it's not a joke to him. He loves you."

"I love him, that's not in question, I love my husband, I'm _in love_ with my husband, I don't want another man, I don't want to be with anyone except him. But he knows this. We've been together too long for him to start thinking the other shoe is going to drop. Plus, Britt is with Hunter and they're happy and what does he think, I'm suddenly going to start developing feelings for Hunter again."

"I can't say that, I don't know. I haven't talked to him about it, but I can see where he'd be upset."

"It's called acting," Stephanie told her. "There's nothing going on there but acting. I mean, Undertaker acts like some sort of paranormal freak, but he's not. He only does that for intimidation."

"So you and Hunter go around kissing to…what?"

"I don't know, have a united front," Stephanie shrugged as she turned sharply, her anger flowing out through her driving. She glanced at the backseat to make sure the cakes were okay, which they appeared to be since the boxes were where she'd left them. "I just don't like him trying to tell me what to do."

"I don't think he's trying to tell you what to do, but trying to make it look like he's less hurt than he is. If he were kissing someone and called it acting, wouldn't you be a little mad? Like, okay, when he was dancing with Cheryl, if they had kissed during the dance, wouldn't you have been a little bit…iffy with that?"

"No, because they were acting parts. Dancing requires you to act parts," Stephanie said. "Hell, I didn't rip your hair out when he kissed you for your stupid plan."

Trish's mouth dropped open a little bit. "Oh, wait, wait, wait, wait, how could I have been so dumb? Now, I get it, of course, nothing with you is ever as simple as you make it seem. You have a plan, okay, spill, what is it, Steph?"

"I don't have a plan," she shook her head.

"You do, you wouldn't have said 'your stupid plan' in that tone if you didn't have some stupid plan of your own. Is Hunter in on it? Is Punk? I seriously doubt Chris is in on it because his anger seems more than genuine, so give it up, Steph, what's going on?"

"Nothing is going on," Stephanie said, dodging the question.

"Don't pull that with me," Trish told her. "I'm your best friend, we've been best friends for years now."

"You were never supposed to be my friend, I hated your guts, you slept with my father, you tried to seduce my husband," Stephanie said, still trying to dodge what was really going on. It wasn't that she didn't want to tell Trish, she just didn't want it to get back to Chris. If he found out this was all a plan before she was ready to reveal it (after he'd come back), then it would fall apart and he would probably never come back.

"Yes, that was before you found the love of your life and before I found mine," Trish said, "we're both different people now and don't try to pull this with me, Stephanie Marie McMahon-Jericho, I know better."

"Fine, but it stays in this car, do you hear me? Do not tell your husband or I swear, Trish, I will find some way to fire him."

"It's never good when you're friends with your husband's boss," Trish said, "but fine, I will keep this from my husband. So what are you up to now?"

"I want Chris back."

"I thought you were okay with having him gone," Trish said, "you went on his tour with him, you were fine with him going on another short tour this winter, you know he's working on the new album, plus there's the whole book number three deal going on. I thought you were happy for him."

"I am, but you know that my heart is with the company and I always have to look out for its best interests, especially now that I'm in charge," Stephanie said, "I've already made the executive decision that starting Monday, we would have both Raw and SmackDown superstars on the show."

"Okay, so why do you need Chris?"

"I just…I just want him back. I hate having Hunter as the COO-"

"You know if Chris comes back, he's not going to want that position," Trish told him. "I think he would rather people think you and Hunter _were_ married than take over that thankless role."

"He's the only person I trust," Stephanie sighed, "especially now. Part of the reason I'm doing this is to see what Hunter does. Britt is suspicious of him now and I know that Punk has been for a while. With all the suspicions, I guess I just wanted to see if I was right and that he would go off the deep end. With the marriage stuff, I'm just trying to get Chris so riled up that he comes back."

"I don't think this is one of your better plans," Trish told her.

"It might not be, but I just want my husband back in the company. I would like it to be as the COO, but I would be willing to settle for just having him back. I know that he wants to take more time off and I'm not mad at him, I just…I miss him and I'm going to miss him _and_ Sawyer when Sawyer starts school next Wednesday and I don't know, I guess if I could persuade him back, the only one I'd have to miss is Sawyer."

"Well, it's a dumb plan, but at least you're not totally oblivious to what you're doing."

"I just want a good outcome."

Chris cupped his hands around his mouth. "Sawyer, can you please make sure that Tilden and Kensington don't climb on anything too high for them! You can be keeper of the playground!"

"Okay, Daddy," Sawyer called from the top of the playground structure. Kensington and Tilden were supposed to be confined to the small sandbox they had in the backyard, but they kept going over to the playground and trying to climb up things they had no business climbing up. Chris had his hands full trying to make sure Flynn didn't do a swan dive over the slide or something.

"So what's on your mind, man?" Christian asked as he sipped at his iced tea.

"I'm thinking, just _thinking_ mind you, about coming back soon," Chris said, taking a sip of his own iced tea, letting the cool liquid funnel down his throat as Christian took in the words his friend had said.

"What makes you say that?"

"Well, I don't know, Punk pointed out something to me the other day," Chris said.

"I didn't realize you and Punk were so close," Christian said, "he's giving you advice now? Does that involve drinking less GG?"

"He knows that's a lost cause," Chris chuckled, "but he just mentioned how everyone is kind of…taking my stuff, not like overtly or anything like that, but he made me realize that a lot of guys are kind of…modeling certain aspects of themselves after me."

"You mean how the Miz is basically your clone now?"

"I didn't say that," Chris said quickly, "but it has crossed my mind and I don't think you should do that if the original isn't around. It's just a thought, I mean, I know that Stephanie wants me back, she says she doesn't, but she does. I have a sneaking suspicion that her whole thing with Hunter is an attempt to make me jealous."

"Aren't you though? I mean, you're pretty pissed about it."

"I'm pissed about it because it sucks seeing it broadcast like that without motive. I'm putting a motive on it, but I can never be one hundred percent sure about my wife's intentions. If it's her convoluted way of trying to get me back, I can kind of understand it-"

"But it still bothers you," Christian finished, "you know she loves you though."

"I know, but sometimes, she's just so much trouble."

"Too much trouble?"

Chris let out a small whoosh of air, "I don't know sometimes. I've never met a woman more stubborn or headstrong. Sometimes I just wonder what it would be like to have a normal wife. Would I be happier?"

"No," Christian told him, "you want to be challenged. Besides, you love Stephanie. You can't tell me that you're honestly thinking about how it would be like to be with another woman. Would you honestly want another woman at this point?"

"I don't know," Chris said then turned to Christian, "of course I know that I wouldn't want someone else. I just wish sometimes it weren't so hard with Stephanie, but then, I guess the best things never really come too easy, do they?"

"Not usually."

"I hate seeing her kiss him, it's disgusting."

"In all fairness though, it was really more of a peck, something you'd see between relatives," Christian said.

"Um, what kind of relatives do _you_ have?" Chris joked and Christian gave him the middle finger before Flynn ran over.

"Daddy, catch me," Flynn said, then ran back to the playground.

"That sounded like an order and knowing Flynn, she doesn't mean catch me running."

"I'll go check on the babies," Christian said, heading towards the sandbox. "Chris."

"Yeah?" Chris said as he eyed Flynn climbing _up_ the slide and rolled his eyes at how she never did things the way they were supposed to be done.

"You like her stubborn, admit it," Christian smirked.

"Shut up." Chris said, but he was avoiding looking at Christian when he said it. He chased after Flynn and caught up to her on the slide, lifting her so that she was on the top of the slide. She slid right back down again and then tried to climb back up the slide. "Why don't you try using this steps, Flutterby?"

"This is funner," she told him with a smile as she clung to the sides of the slide, trying to pull herself up.

"Well, I can't argue with that logic," Chris said.

"We're back!" Stephanie called out from the screen door. Chris looked over at her and gave her a tentative smile, which she returned before disappearing somewhere in the house.

When the kids were tired out from all the playing, they went inside to have some afternoon snacks. Chris helped Kensington into her highchair while Stephanie prepared their snacks and Tilden's snack. Trish and Christian were going out that evening so Chris and Stephanie were babysitting for them and after Trish and Christian both kissed their daughter behind, it was just Chris, Stephanie, and four kids. Tilden and Kensington were sleepy so Stephanie brought them upstairs to take a nap while Sawyer and Flynn played quietly in the downstairs playroom.

"Hey," Chris said as he walked into Stephanie's office. She looked at him over her glasses and he sat across from her, leaning forward so he could look at her. "I think we need to talk."

"What about?" Stephanie asked.

"Don't act like you don't know what this is about," Chris told her.

"Can we not do this now? I have a lot to do before Raw on Monday and I won't have the time to do it tomorrow because of the party. I just want to get everything done first," she told him and it was the truth. She had so much more responsibility now. "I'm not trying to make it sound like we don't need to talk, but I just really need to get this done."

"And so when _will_ you have time to talk, after Raw on Monday, _after_ you probably go out there and make out with Hunter?" Chris asked and he knew it was mean and not at all based in any factual evidence, but he was petty and wanted to get the words in.

"No, that's not what I said, why do you have to misconstrue my words all the time?"

"Why do you have to ignore my feelings all the time?" Chris asked.

"I don't ignore your feelings!" Stephanie protested. "When do I ignore your feelings?"

"Right now, with this," Chris told her. "You don't get why I'm pissed, you just go ahead and do it all over again like you don't care what I think and it really seems like you don't so I hope that you're happy with that."

"I'm always thinking about your feelings, Chris," Stephanie said, "I constantly let you do whatever you want to do, I don't restrict you when you want to do something, when you want to fly to LA or negotiate for something or another, when you have a million different projects, I never restrict you from what you want to do, I _want_ you to be happy."

"Then you turn around and tell me that you don't care when I tell you that I don't want you kissing your ex-husband."

"Acting!" she told him, enunciating the word slowly.

"You know, I don't even know why I put up with you," Chris told her. "I don't know why I let myself deal with this kind of bullshit because I don't have to, you know. I don't have to put up with this kind of thing from someone who supposedly loves me."

"Oh, so now it's _supposedly_ loves you?" Stephanie said snidely. "Yes, you've got me there, Chris, everything is just me supposedly loving you. God, way to be a whiny crybaby."

"Yeah, wanting my wife to knock off the kissing is absolutely me being a whiny crybaby," Chris said, pushing himself up. "You are seriously the most infuriating woman I have ever met. You're stubborn and caustic and if things do not go you way, you hate it and you refuse to budge."

"You knew that when you asked me out, sweetheart," Stephanie said sarcastically. "You knew I wasn't going to change."

"Well maybe you could budge a little on this one specific issue."

"The second you told me that you were forbidding me, you changed the game, sorry," Stephanie said, folding her arms over her chest. "I don't have to listen to a word you say and the mere fact that you're getting so bent out of shape over something that's not even that big a deal is-"

"It _is_ a big deal," Chris slammed his hands on her desk, startling her, "and the _mere fact_ that you don't get why it is makes me doubt how much you know me in the first place."

"Fine, the leave, just leave if I don't know you."

"Maybe I will leave!" Chris told her, storming out of the room and not looking back.

"Fine!" Stephanie yelled out at him, then heard the door slam as Chris apparently left the house. At this point, Stephanie knew she was probably in the wrong, but she just hated the fact that he was so upset over this. Was she acting like a bitch? Yes. Yes, she was. She sighed. Okay, so maybe the kiss had been going too far. She could acknowledge that. She would just tell Chris when he got home that she was sorry and that she was wrong. She could do that, she could bite the bullet and tell him that he was right. She would steel herself when he came home.

Except he didn't come home.

Stephanie got a text around dinnertime that stated that Chris would be spending the night with his parents. This worried her because that wasn't like Chris. Even when they had fights, he would always stay at home, just not talk to her. If he was mad enough to not want to spend the night in the same house as her, she knew she was completely wrong with how she'd been going about this. Was it really worth all this trouble just to get her husband to come back and be the COO? Not really, no.

"Mommy, where's Daddy, he's not eating dinner? Is he out with Chrissy or Ed?" Sawyer asked as Stephanie handed out slices of pizza to Flynn and Sawyer. With her limited cooking skills it was either order in or starve.

"Daddy is just spending the night with Gamma and Gramps," Stephanie explained.

"Will he be back for Kensy's party?" Sawyer wondered.

"Yes, he'll be back tomorrow," Stephanie said as she went about cutting up the pizza into small pieces for Kensington and Tilden. "He just wanted to spend time with them, that's all."

"But he won't be here to say goodnight?" Sawyer looked saddened by the fact.

"I know that he would want to, but he will tomorrow, okay?" Stephanie tried to remain upbeat, but it was difficult. She tried to occupy herself the rest of the night with preparations for Kensington's party, but it felt so empty without Chris there to share in her excitement. Though her birthday wasn't until Thursday, it was their daughter's first birthday party and she wanted him to share in it. But instead he was at his parents, probably talking about her as her mother told him she knew she was right about that slutty daughter-in-law. Okay, so it probably wasn't going like that, but she was thinking the worst at this point.

The next morning, before even the kids were up, Chris unlocked the door and came into the house. He went upstairs and into his bedroom where Stephanie was still sleeping, her body sprawled out over the bed. Chris gave a short laugh an eye-roll before he went into the bathroom to grab a shower. When he came back out, Stephanie was still asleep, she must have gone to bed late. When he emerged from the closet, dressed, she was awake and sleepily looking over at him pulling a t-shirt over his head.

"You're home," she said, her voice dry from the night. She scratched her chin and opened the covers, inviting him to join her.

He shook his head, "I'm dressed."

"Can we talk?"

"Yeah, I think we should get this squared away before Kensington's party," Chris said, sitting on the bed as Stephanie scooted over to give him room. "I'm sorry I just ran off like that last night, I know you had Tilden and I shouldn't have left you with four kids."

"It's okay," she said, then cleared her throat, "Chris, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have gotten angry and I should have taken you into consideration and I wasn't for the sake of a dumb joke. I just want you back here."

"It's not that easy, Steph," Chris told her. "Not this time."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that I don't think you even really get why I'm angry and I don't think you _really_ care because if you did, I think you would have stopped it when I asked you to," he told her. "I'm really unhappy, Stephanie, with all of this. I'm unhappy and I can't just turn a switch and be happy."

"Wait, so you're saying you're unhappy with me?" Stephanie asked, sitting up now. "You're not happy with me? Chris, I don't understand, you don't want to be married? Are you asking for a separation? Oh my God, on the day of our daughter's birthday party? Chris, please, no, don't, I'm sorry, okay, I'm so sorry!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, baby, calm down," Chris said, holding his hands up. Stephanie stopped mid-rant. "You know, last night, I actually thought, for a few minutes that I should leave you."

Stephanie's eyes teared up. This could _not_ be happening. What had she done? If she drove Chris away, she would hate herself for the rest of her life. Here was this amazing man, the most amazing man she could ever be with and she had driven him away. What was wrong with her? "Chris, please, I'm sorry."

"Steph, let me finish," Chris said, "I thought about it, then I thought about it some more and realized that the only reason I would do that is to punish you. I wanted to punish you because I felt like you were punishing me. I finally figured out what was bugging me so much about this Hunter thing. It wasn't the saying he was your husband and it wasn't the kissing…okay, it was a little bit the kissing, but more than that, it felt like you were punishing me for not being the COO. Like you were saying, 'Fine, Chris, you didn't want to be the COO, here's what I'm going to do.' So I wanted to punish you. I actually thought for about five minutes that I should leave you. I'd convinced myself that it was right and that after the way you treated me and how unhappy I was, that it was somehow indicative of our marriage."

"Please don't leave me," she whimpered and she never whimpered. She'd grown so far past whimpering that the sound felt foreign, as if not even coming from her own mouth.

"Baby, let me finish," Chris told her, "But I'm not unhappy in this marriage, I'm just unhappy about this situation. And what would I get out of leaving you? Nothing, because I love you and leaving you would not only hurt you, it would hurt _me_ and those three things that we have down the hallway, those strays that somehow wandered into our house. You're not punishing me, right?"

"No," Stephanie shook her head.

"You have a plan, don't you? After those five minutes were up, I thought rationally and figured that your plan was not meant as punishment, but something else, so fess up, baby, what is it?"

"I wanted you to come back," Stephanie told him. "I just thought…if you got jealous enough that we were 'acting,' you would want to step in. I didn't start this, Punk really did, I just…kind of went along with it because I thought it would be beneficial for me."

"Of course you did," he said, squeezing her knee.

"You're not leaving me, right?"

"And have your father and brother track me down and kick my ass? Have you take the kids and turn them against me? Wake up alone? Have some guys hitting on you the _second_ they think you're free, not on your life," he told her with a smirk. "Look, can we come to a compromise?"

"A compromise, but you know the plan," she told him.

"You can continue the joke, but no kissing," he told her. "I don't need to kiss lips that come right back from kissing Hunter, it's weird."

"So you're really not leaving me?" Stephanie said. "I just, you're really not going anywhere?"

"I'm here, I'm sorry I wasn't here last night," he crawled over her and then leaned down to kiss her. "I love you, you're mine. I love you all the time, everyday, forever. Just don't try to pull stupid plans on me."

"I'm sorry, I really am," Stephanie said, "I know I think of stupid things sometimes, but if I ever go too far, like I did this time obviously, tell me because I'll scale it back. I'll try and change, I promise."

"No, I don't want you to actually change," Chris shook his head and started in on her neck. "I like you just the way you are. I just want you to think about plans before you try to execute them. That's what I did when I had my stupid plan to leave you. I thought rationally and said, what the hell, that's the _worst_ idea in the world!"

Stephanie laughed and placed her hands behind his neck as he pulled away to look at her. "I would be lost without you."

"I know!" he told her in a silly voice and then he came down and kissed her again.

"Daddy, you're home!" Sawyer said, rushing towards the bed and jumping on top of it, launching himself at Chris, giving him a hug. "Did you have fun at Gamma and Gamps's house?"

Chris laughed again and turned over, grabbing Sawyer and tickling him a little. "Yeah, I had fun over there. They're very excited to come to Kensy's birthday party later. Are you excited for the party?"

"Well, it's not my birthday and it's not even Kensy's birthday, not really," Sawyer explained. "Her birthday isn't until Thursday. I'm starting school on Wednesday."

"I know," Chris said, lying down and pulling Sawyer into his arms, "but Mommy and I will both be coming with you to your first day and you have a bunch of your friends there so it won't even be that scary. Plus, you only have a half day of school so it won't be very hard."

"I'm not scared, Daddy," Sawyer said, "I'll just miss wrestling."

"You will get to go when you can, baby boy," Stephanie brushed some of his blond hair out of his face. Chris smiled softly at her, knowing that she was trying not to be emotional about all this. It was an emotional week though, with Kensington turning one and Sawyer starting school, if Flynn decided to win the Divas championship, Stephanie might just melt into a ball of tears.

"I know," he said, giving her a smile. "Can I help wake up Kensy? It's her birthday and I wanna help."

"Of course you can, do you want to make Daddy go see if Flynnie is awake?" Stephanie asked in a conspiratorial whisper.

"Um, yeah!" Sawyer said, leaning his head back so he could look at Chris. "Flynnie is cranky when she wakes up, that's what you always say, Mommy."

"Well, I only speak the truth," Stephanie said, "why don't you go check on Kensy for me, see if she's already awake and I'll be right there."

"Got it!" Sawyer broke free from Chris's arms and hopped off the bed, running down the hallway.

Stephanie leaned forward and pressed her lips to Chris, getting lost in the sweet taste of his mouth, minty fresh from the toothpaste he'd used, "I love you."

"I love you," he mumbled against her lips.

"Are you really not mad at me anymore?" she asked.

"I'm really not mad," he told her.

Stephanie remained cautious the rest of the day however. She knew that Chris _said_ he wasn't angry with her and it didn't appear like he was actually mad at her, but she always kept her guard up when it came to these things. They were too busy for her to dwell too long on anything though. They had to set up for the party and by the time they did that, everyone was starting to arrive. First were Christian and Trish with Tilden, then Chris's parents came next, eyeing them suspiciously. Then her family started trickling in. Then some of Flynn and Sawyer's friends so they wouldn't be bored. Kensington, at one, didn't have many friends of her own so it was a pretty small party.

"Stephanie, did you need some help?" Loretta asked when Stephanie went inside to grab some more sodas and beers for the outdoor coolers.

"Oh, I think I'm good, but thanks, Loretta," Stephanie said.

"So did you and Chris get things squared away? I was a little worried last night when he came over and said he was going to spend the night, especially with Kensington's party today. I talked to him briefly, but he wasn't really in the mood to talk. He didn't even eat dinner with us, just grabbed a sandwich and went back up to the guest room."

"We're fine," Stephanie said.

"Are you sure? He's never come over to our house before. I thought something was seriously wrong. You know that we watch the shows and I kind of figured it had something to do with your ex-husband, him not being here today kind of clued me in that it could involve him."

"Hunter and Britt were invited, but they wanted to get to Tulsa ahead of time so they couldn't come," Stephanie explained. "There's nothing going on there. He's with Britt, I'm obviously with Chris."

"But the fight seemed pretty bad."

"I know it must have and it was, but we talked this morning and we've come to an understanding," Stephanie said just as Chris walked into the kitchen to see what was taking Stephanie so long with the drinks.

"Mom, stop grilling my wife," Chris said, kissing Stephanie's cheek as he grabbed the drinks from her hands. "We had a fight, it happens."

"Well, you'll excuse me if I want to check in on my son and daughter-in-law and make sure everything is okay. My three grandchildren love you both and I don't want anything to ruin their happiness."

"We're fine," Chris said, rolling his eyes as he went back outside.

"Trust me, he's right," Stephanie said, "we're fine."

"Okay, well, if you insist," Loretta said, giving her a short hug. Stephanie sighed in relief and then went to check on the food outside and see if she needed to put more out. Her brother came over and slung his arm over her shoulder.

"So how's the company treating you, little sis?" he asked.

"Perfectly fine," she told him haughtily. "Even better that I don't have to share it with you. That's probably the best thing about it."

"I'm perfectly happy where we are," Shane said, "You have what you want and I have what I want and we're both in good places. So how's Dad taking it? He doesn't look like he's talked to you yet? I heard he was mad, but is he mad at you?"

"He's mad at the world and he's definitely not looking forward to being Mom's first man if she gets elected this time, which…I'll be honest with you, Shane, I don't know why she wants to run again. It only drags us all through the mud."

"Because Mom needs something to do I guess," Shane answered, "and who knows, maybe she'll win this time and Dad could just spend all this time going to functions. It has to look good to have such a self-sufficient daughter, running a multi-million dollar company like you are."

"You flatter me," she joked.

"How's Chris doing?" Shane asked. "He hasn't come back yet even though Kensington is a year old now."

"Busy, as usual. You wouldn't believe everything he's been doing and everything he's going to be doing. I don't know where he finds the time, but I just have to accept that he's happy right now," Stephanie said with a wistful sigh. "That's all I really can do."

"Mature, you're growing up finally."

"Stop it," she pushed him away.

"Stop the party! Just stop the party because everyone needs to recognize who just walked in!"

Stephanie and Shane looked over towards the door to where Edge and Lita were standing. "Ed!" Sawyer yelled, running over to Edge as Edge lifted him up. "Where have you been?" Sawyer asked him.

"Traveling my young friend, haven't you learned my name yet?" Edge hugged him. "Where's the party girl?"

"Over there," Sawyer said, pointing towards Kensington, who was sitting on a play blanket with Tilden on the grass. Chris went over to Edge and shook his hand.

"So how was South America?" Chris asked.

"I'd tell you, but not around the kid," Edge winked at him and Chris could only imagine what that meant. No, he knew what that meant, but he'd rather not think about it. Lita nudged him in the side before going over to find Trish or Stephanie and talk to them. "It was amazing, dude, you and the missus have _got_ to take a vacation there sometime, you will not regret it."

"You try convincing Stephanie to take a vacation," Chris said as Edge put Sawyer down. "It's good to see you though. You've been missed."

"What can I say? People love me," Edge shrugged, "Now point me in the direction of the beer."

"Will do," Chris said, pointing him there. Stephanie came over and wrapped her arms around his waist. "Hey, you, my mom wasn't too inquisitive, was she?"

"No, she wasn't," Stephanie said, "Chris?"

"Yeah?" he asked, looking over at Kensington.

"Are you really okay with me?"

"Of course I am," he told her, kissing the top of her head. "Look at her over there."

"Who?" Stephanie wondered.

"The neighbor across the lake," Chris told her sarcastically, "I'm talking about the lady of the hour, Miss Kensington Vaughn Jericho. Look at her."

Stephanie looked at her daughter, who was currently wearing a bucket on her head for some reason while grabbing at some giant Lego blocks. Stephanie had given her a tiara when the party started, but maybe she just preferred the bucket. Stephanie laughed a little bit. "She's a weirdo."

"I was so sure she was a boy," Chris told her. "I was so sure that you were having another little boy, but look at her, how could I have ever wanted anything except her? I wouldn't have wanted to wait for kids, Steph. I'm so happy with the ones we have right now. The past year has flown by, I can hardly believe she's already a year old. She was so beautiful. I love my life."

Stephanie smiled against him. "They're all perfect, I'm glad our plan didn't work."

"God, Steph, you have no idea how glad I am."

**Wednesday, August 24, 2011**

"How long have you been up?"

Chris rubbed at his eyes and looked over at his wife. He'd woken up moments ago only to notice that Stephanie was already up and laying there, staring up at the ceiling. She didn't look like she'd just gotten up so he could only surmise that she'd been up for a while now, just laying there. He reached out and rubbed her stomach, making her look over at him and he gave her a sleepy smile as he scooted towards her, laying his head on her chest.

"A while," she said noncommittally.

"How long is a while," he said as he felt her fingers brushing through his hair, tickling his scalp.

"I don't really know. I couldn't sleep last night," Stephanie told him. "I'm surprised you didn't wake up. I know you're a heavy sleeper, but I was doing some heavy-duty tossing and turning last night."

"What's wrong?" he asked her.

"Nothing really," she told him. "I guess I'm just going through what any mother goes through on their child's first day of school. I'm anxious for him, though I know he's not very anxious. I'm worried because this isn't preschool and he has to get used to a whole new environment and then I'm sad as well. I mean, up until now, Sawyer has lived by our schedule and now he has this whole new schedule and I'm losing him to the big, bad world of education."

"We knew this was going to happen," he told her.

"But it's all gone by too fast," Stephanie said, looking away wistfully. "Just yesterday, he was still that tiny baby that we had and now even our baby isn't a tiny baby anymore. It just feels like we've gone from having Sawyer to having him go to school in the blink of an eye, where did it all go?"

"Time flies when you're having fun," Chris joked and Stephanie did laugh at that, leaning forward to press a kiss to crown of her husband's head. "He's going to do great today. He'll love it there. He has a bunch of his preschool friends going with him so he won't be looking for anyone to talk with, plus we both know Sawyer is a really personable kid as it is. He's going to make a lot of new friends too."

"I'm not worried for him, I'm worried for me," she told him and Chris looked up to see what she meant. "I'm going to miss him so much."

"It's only half day, it's just like preschool."

"But this is big kid school, next year, he's going to be there all day, away from me."

"We still have two others that aren't in school yet," Chris pointed out.

"That's supposed to make me feel better? You're going to have to do better than that, Chris," Stephanie said. "I don't care that I still have two who aren't in school, I have one who is and I feel like he's growing up too fast, they all are. Kensy is turning one tomorrow, a whole year old."

"_Only_ a year old," Chris reminded her. "That's nothing, that's the blink of an eye, she's still a baby. And please don't suggest that we have another kid because you want another baby, I'm going to have to draw the line at that until our next kid suddenly pops in on us."

"God forbid," Stephanie said. "He's going to do great, isn't he?"

"I have a good feeling he will. I was a pretty good student," he mused. "I liked to read like he does and when you're that young, school is anything but a drag, what about you, what kind of student were you?"

"I loved going to school. Shane never wanted to hang out with me when we were at home because he was so much older than me so when I was at school I had people who I could hang out with. I guess that's a real positive from having the kids so close together, they can all play together. I didn't have that."

"I bet you that Sawyer is going to come home today and he's going to be so excited to tell us everything about what happened today," Chris said. "I'd be really surprised if he didn't have a blast."

"Yeah, I'm sure he will, but that doesn't mean it's going to be any easier for me," Stephanie laughed. "I just don't want them to grow up so fast. I want to keep them at that age where they're adorable and they love us. Do you realize at some point, they're going to hit that age where they can't stand to be around us, when you calling Flynn Flutterby or Kensy Kensy-bug is going to embarrass them and they'll tell us they hate us and they'll rebel."

Chris laughed, "I will cherish embarrassing our kids, that's half the fun and look at the two of us, how the hell are they going to rebel? By becoming doctors or something?"

Stephanie laughed, "Stop it, you've got to let me have my freak out moment."

"I'm not going to let you go down that road," he said, pushing himself up so he could look Stephanie in the eyes. "Even when our kids are grown up, married, out of the house, having kids, we'll always have each other, that's the deal with us. You're never going to be alone and your life will be awesome."

"Yeah, until you leave me," she told him, frowning a little, but making it clear that she was joking.

"Temporary insanity plea," Chris told her, leaning forward to kiss her. "I wasn't in my right mind, being away from you warped my way of thinking. I would never do that unless you gave me serious cause to and even then, I'd try and think it through."

"Ditto," she said, then looked at the clock. "I better get him up."

"You sure you want to do that, you might cling to him and then not ever let him go. I can get him up and dressed and you could go check on the girls," Chris said.

"No, I'll get Sawyer, you can get the girls," she said. "I'm sure that I want to wake him up. I can handle it, you act like I'm going to kidnap him."

"Aren't you?" he joked and she shoved him so hard he fell off the bed. He started laughing from the floor and she crawled over to the edge and looked up at her. Stephanie laughed until Chris grabbed her hand and pulled her down on top of him, grunting when she landed hard against his chest. Chris ran his fingers through her hair so it bunched at the back of her head and then leaned up so he could kiss her. Stephanie pressed her palms on the floor on either side of Chris's head as she tilted her head to kiss him.

"Mommy, Daddy, why are you on the floor?"

They both looked over towards the door where Sawyer was standing. "Hey there, kid," Chris said, "you ready for your first day of school?"

Sawyer skipped over and sat next to his parents, who were still lying on each other. Sawyer didn't seem to mind as he sat cross-legged with them, like this was some kind of floor party that he was privy too. "I woke up because I heard a loud bang."

"That's because Mommy pushed me off the bed because she's a mean lady," Chris told his son with a very serious voice.

"Mommy, that wasn't very nice," Sawyer told her, leaning his chin on his hand. "You always tell me that I shouldn't push Flynnie or Kensy when we're playing and you shouldn't push Daddy either even though Daddy is bigger than you are."

"I'm sorry, Daddy," Stephanie said, giving him a quick kiss before sitting up and sitting cross-legged next to Sawyer. "So hey there, my oldest child, are you ready for your first day of school?"

"I think so," he said.

"I'll miss you while you're gone," Stephanie told him with a pout.

Sawyer laughed and scrunched up his face as he looked at his mommy, "Don't be silly, Mommy, I won't be gone forever, I'll come home after school."

Stephanie laughed and hugged him to her, "You better come home after school. What am I going to do without you until the afternoon, I'm going to be so sad."

"You have Flynnie and Kensy, you'll be okay, Flynnie is a handful, that's what Gamma said," Sawyer said, "I don't really know what that means, but maybe that means that you'll look at her a lot."

"I think I will," Stephanie said, "do I really have to let you go to school?"

"I think so," Sawyer told her.

"Okay, come on, I'll help you get your uniform together so you can get dressed. Daddy can go check on your sisters and get them up."

"Yeah, of course," Chris said, patting Sawyer on the knee and then squeezing Stephanie's knee. "We'll have to get a new routine going now that you're in school, kid, but I'm sure that we'll figure it out."

Stephanie and Sawyer got up and headed to his bedroom while Chris pulled himself off the floor. He walked first into Flynn's room, but she was still asleep so he walked into Kensington's room. She was sitting up quietly in her bed, batting at a small teddy bear they kept in her crib. She smiled when she saw Chris and grabbed the bars of her crib and hoisted herself so she was leaning against the side. She leaned her chin on her forearms and gave him the sweetest look. Chris leaned down to her level and kissed her nose. Kensington giggled and patted Chris's cheek.

"Good morning, Kensy-bug," he told her, lifting her up and changing her before they got her dressed. By the time they were done, Flynn was awake and going through her own clothes, deciding herself what she wanted to wear. Chris put Kensington on the floor while he helped Flynn find something appropriate to wear. She fought him all the way until they decided on purple leggings with a green skirt and a Fozzy t-shirt that Flynn wanted to wear at all costs (not that Chris minded, free advertising).

They finally got down to the kitchen were Sawyer was eating a bowl of oatmeal and Stephanie was spooning some into a couple other bowls, setting one down in front of Flynn and then setting a smaller bowl in front of Kensington. Stephanie handed Kensington a spoon and though she wasn't quite old enough to master using it yet, she loved to try and feed herself. Chris grabbed another spoon and when Kensington wasn't trying to feed herself, he fed her oatmeal to her. She was so distracted with trying to eat by herself that she hardly noticed when Chris was spooning oatmeal into her mouth.

"This is brain food," Stephanie kissed the top of Sawyer's head, "it'll help you absorb everything you're going to learn in Kindergarten."

"I wanna kiss!" Flynn demanded and Stephanie obliged by leaning over and giving Flynn a kiss on the head, "I cans go Kiddiegarden too, Mommy."

"You will soon enough, don't push it," Stephanie told her.

"Mama!" Kensington whined, feeling left out and Stephanie got out of her chair and went to kiss Kensington on the head too. Kensington held up the spoonful of oatmeal and offered it to Stephanie, who took it and rubbed her stomach.

"Okay, is everyone satisfied with kisses?" Chris cleared his throat loudly and Stephanie rolled her eyes and went over and gave him a kiss, a proper one before she sat down again and watched her children eat.

"How come you and Daddy aren't eating?" Sawyer asked as he shoveled oatmeal into his mouth.

"Because after we drop you off to school and drop Kensy and Flynn over at Gamma and Gamps for the day, Daddy and I are going out for breakfast," Stephanie answered, giving her husband a smile. Chris had invited her to breakfast the night before, just a breakfast date kind of thing because Chris could tell that Stephanie was still worried about their fight. It was almost like she was walking on eggshells around him, not quite tentative, but still like she was holding back on being completely herself. He hated it and he wanted her to quit with it.

"I wanna go with," Flynn told them.

"Maybe some other time, baby girl," Stephanie said, "now let's eat up because we've got to get going or Sawyer is going to be late for his first day of school and that just won't do."

The kids ate their breakfasts while Stephanie got Sawyer's backpack and other things together. He only went half days so she didn't have to pack him a lunch, but the school had sent over a list of supplies that Sawyer was going to need and Stephanie put those carefully into his WWE backpack. It only seemed appropriate that his first school backpack should be a WWE one. After the kids ate, they all piled into the SUV and drove to Sawyer's private school. Then they all had to pile back out in order to walk Sawyer to his classroom.

The teacher was standing at the door greeting all the new students and their parents. Along with the list of supplies, there had been a letter saying that the parents were welcome to come in and spend a half hour with their kids if they wanted to, just to get a feel for the school and the new setting for their children. Sawyer led the way with Chris and Stephanie following. Stephanie was holding Kensington and Chris was holding onto Flynn's hand, even though the older of their two girls wanted to run into the classroom herself.

"Hello there," Sawyer's new teacher said as they approached the door. She looked like a nice woman. She was about average height, was a little plump, but not overweight and had curly blonde hair. She was wearing a dress with a long skirt and somehow she just looked like a Kindergarten teacher, warm and inviting. "I'm Mrs. Carper, what's your name?"

"I'm Sawyer Jericho," he answered with a smile, sticking his hand like he did whenever he was meeting new people, a habit he'd picked up from his parents.

"Oh, well so formal," she said, shaking his hand, "and these two people must be your mommy and daddy, huh?"

"Yes, they are," Sawyer said, "this is my mommy and my daddy and those are my sisters, their names are Flynn and Kensington."

"I'm Flynn," Flynn told her, "I could be here too."

"You'll have to excuse her, she loves taking after her brother," Stephanie said, extending her hand in much the same fashion as Sawyer, "I'm Stephanie and this is my husband, Chris, and you've met our son, Sawyer."

"Welcome and come on in and stay a few minutes if you want. The kids put their backpacks on those hooks against the far wall," she pointed towards a closet inset into the wall where there were already a number of backpacks hanging haphazardly. "We'll be getting their supplies later and each child has their own cubbyhole to place their supplies in. Right now, you're free to walk around, check out the classroom and everything inside of it and help Sawyer get settled in if he needs it. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask."

"Thank you so much," Stephanie said as she shook Mrs. Carper's hand and then Chris shook it too.

Stephanie, Chris, and the gang followed Sawyer into the bright, cheery room where other kids were chattering away with their parents and their friends. Stephanie helped Sawyer put his backpack on a hook and then they looked around a little, "You okay?" Chris asked his son, "Not overwhelmed?"

"No," Sawyer said, looking around, "oh, look, there's Andy, can I go play with him?"

"You don't want to hang out with us?" Stephanie asked, secretly wishing that her son would cling to her and not ever want to leave. She knew it was a selfish wish, especially when Kensington's small arms were banded around her neck, but this was her first baby, the first child she'd ever held and called hers. Those blue eyes were the first eyes that had ever looked at her and loved her completely, not seeing her faults. Chris loved her _in spite_ of her faults, but Sawyer didn't see any. Now he was going off into the big world without her and it broke her heart.

"It's okay, I'll see you later, you have your breakfast," Sawyer shrugged.

"He's right, as usual," Chris said.

"Yeah, I guess he is. Can we at least get a goodbye?" Stephanie asked, kneeling down. Sawyer threw his arms around her and Kensington and Stephanie kissed his cheek and he kissed her cheek back. "I love you and if you need me, you just ask your teacher and she can get me, okay?"

"I know, Mommy," he said. Chris knelt down too and Sawyer went and hugged him.

"Mind your teacher," Chris told him, "and be nice to the other kids, I know you are, but just reminding you and I expect you to be smarter than me when you come home, okay?"

"Daddy, I'm only in Kindergarten, I can't!" Sawyer laughed.

"Okay, well then learn as much as you can."

"I will, bye Flynnie," Sawyer said.

"Can I stay?" Flynn asked.

"Uh uh, you're too little," Sawyer shook his head.

"I am not!" Flynn stomped her foot.

"I'll see you when I get home," he hugged his sister and she hugged him back grudgingly before he ran over to his friend, who looked excited to see him.

"Well that was a lot less painful than I thought…for him at least," Stephanie said, looking at her son. "It looks nice in here. I mean, it's very…Kindergarten-y."

"I know," Chris said, standing up along with Stephanie and wrapping his arm around her waist. "Come on, Mommy, let's go."

"Do we have to?" she asked. "Can't we just watch him for a while?"

"He doesn't need us hovering, he's fine. Let's let him go a little," Chris told her. "Is that okay? Are you okay?"

Stephanie nodded slowly as Chris led her out of her classroom. Her baby was growing up.

Despite her best efforts to feel like this day had some sort of cosmic significance, nothing particularly strange happened to Stephanie. She and Chris had breakfast, they picked up the girls afterwards and came home. Chris spent time with the girls in the backyard while Stephanie got some work done. Before she knew it, it was lunchtime and she was emerging from her office. Chris was going to pick up Sawyer while she spent some time with the girls and started on lunch. It was all very mundane, but still, she couldn't wait to see her little boy and hear all about his first day of big kid school.

Sawyer ran out to Chris, who was picking him up, a paper waving behind him. Chris leaned down and Sawyer gave him a hug. "Hey there, kid, what do you have there?"

"We made drawings today," Sawyer said, "we had to draw our families and then we talked about our families and that's how we got to know everyone. And we played games so we could learn everyone's names, but nobody else is named Sawyer, I'm the only one."

"Well, we've given you a pretty unique name," Chris said, "so you had fun your first day then?"

"I like Kindergarten so far," Chris took Sawyer's hand. "I think it's good."

"Well I'm glad because if you didn't like it, I was going to say to hell with it, you're not going back," Chris told him.

"You can't do that, Daddy," Sawyer told him, "you have to go to school."

"Oh, I see," Chris said. "So what did you say when they asked about families?"

"I just said that I had a mommy and a daddy and two sisters and that we all lived in a big house and that you were a wrestler and Mommy was the president and that we like to go to wrestling shows because they're fun and that we like to go to concerts too because we did that, Daddy."

"That sounds like a great description of us," Chris winked at him. "So did you make any new friends while you were here at school?"

"Uh huh, there's one right now," Sawyer pulled him over to a little boy who was with his mother. "Hey, Aiden, I'm Sawyer, remember?"

"Hi, I remember," Aiden said.

"This is my Daddy, he was asking if I made any new friends and I met you today so I guess you can be my friend because we talked," Sawyer thought this was logical, talking was how he'd made his other friends.

"Hi!" Aiden said to him, "This is my mommy."

"Hi, Aiden's mommy," Sawyer said.

"Hi," his mother said. She looked to be around Stephanie's age, maybe a little bit younger. She had dark red hair, probably dyed and green eyes. She was short, probably around 5'2, but she seemed nice enough. She stuck her hand out to Chris. "Hi, I'm Emily, Aiden's mom if you couldn't tell."

"Chris, Chris Jericho," Chris shook her hand.

"It would seem like our sons are now friends," Emily said, looking over at Sawyer and Aiden who were now comparing their drawings.

"Looks like it," Chris chuckled.

"We should look into setting up some play-dates," Emily told him. Chris couldn't tell if she was hitting on him or if she actually was looking out for the best interests of their kids. Sometimes he didn't wear his wedding band, like he wasn't today, but he always had Stephanie's name on his finger so it was always like he was wearing a ring, but a lot of people didn't look closely at it so he didn't know if she was coming onto him or what. He couldn't call her out on it because if she wasn't, he'd be embarrassed, but he didn't want her getting any wrong impressions.

"Yeah, that would be good," Chris said, "you're on the parents' list, right?"

"Yeah, Emily Hodges," she answered.

"Oh, cool, well, you should give me a call then to set one up, it's under Stephanie and Chris Jericho," he said, trying not to be too overt with name-dropping his wife, but also trying to avoid being too subtle.

"Great, I'll give you a call then," she said cheerily, unfazed by his mentioning his wife, which led him to believe he'd been wrong. "Aiden, come on, honey, we better go get some lunch into you. It was nice meeting you, Sawyer, and you too, Chris."

"Thanks, you too, Emily, bye Aiden" Chris said as they walked away. "Come on, kid, Mommy is going to want to hear all about your day today."

**Thursday, August 25, 2011**

Another day, another morning of Chris waking up and seeing Stephanie already awake. This time though, she wasn't in bed when he'd woken up. He stretched for a moment and checked the clock. It was still twenty minutes before Sawyer had to wake up for school so it wasn't because she was waking him up. As the haze of sleep deserted him, he smiled as he remembered what day it was. It was his Kensy-bug's birthday and he figured that's where Stephanie was right now. Before locating her, he thought for a moment about that day a year ago.

He'd hoped throughout Stephanie's entire pregnancy that she'd be having a boy. He just felt like he could keep his dignity better if he had a boy. Daughters were so…they were just so precious and sweet (and incredibly tough in Flynn's case) and they held a special spot in his heart. Not that Sawyer didn't, but it was different with his daughters. He remembered seeing Kensington for the first time and how beautiful she'd been. Every one of his kids was this crazy miracle that he loved so unconditionally. He would do anything for those kids.

"Hey, someone wanted to come say hi to Daddy," Stephanie said as she walked into the bedroom. "I could hear you groaning while you stretched."

Chris sat up and leaned his back against the headboard as he outstretched his arms for Kensington. Stephanie handed her over to Chris and he took her, kissing her cheek and then cradling her to his chest. Stephanie climbed back into bed and sidled up to Chris's side, wrapping her right arm around his middle as she leaned her head against his shoulder blade.

"Did you wake her up?"

"Nah, she woke up herself," Stephanie said, "she's just quiet when she wakes up because she's still so sleepy. I just wanted to watch her sleep for a little bit."

"Remember when you did that with Sawyer on his first birthday?" Chris recalled as he rubbed Kensington's back as she nearly cooed with the attention.

"Yes," Stephanie said nostalgically. "I was so surprised that it had been a whole year since he'd been born and look at him now, starting Kindergarten and loving it. I'm glad he loves it though, it'll make it easier for him to not come to wrestling."

"I think so," Chris said. "Hey, Kensy-bug, do you know how old you are today?"

"Mmm," Kensington mumbled, but held up one finger.

"She's so smart," Stephanie said, poking Kensington's stomach. "I love you, Kensy."

"Mama," Kensington breathed out with a smile.

"Uh huh, a year ago today, you were born and everyone loved you," Stephanie told her sweetly.

"Except for her older sister."

"Yeah, well, things take time with Flynn," Stephanie said, "but she eventually came around and now she mildly tolerates her younger sister so that's progress. I can't believe we had our first child over five years ago and now our youngest is a whole year old. It's unbelievable."

"It's pretty amazing too," Chris said.

"Who do you think she takes after? Now that we've had her for a year, you'd think that we'd have a read on her," Stephanie joked.

"Like Sawyer, I think she takes after Sawyer," Chris said. "I think Flynn is the only one who really takes after us. Sawyer and Kensy both have that nice gene, but Flynn, she's like us, stubborn, headstrong, sometimes mean."

"I think she's like you," Stephanie said, "I don't know why, but she just reminds me of you."

"Because she looks more like me?"

"Maybe," Stephanie said, "I don't know, she is like Sawyer, but then, I guess it might be too early to tell after all, Flynn didn't change personalities until she was almost two, right? Before that, we thought she was the most chill baby in the world."

"You're right, not that I would change Flynn for the world," Chris said, thinking about his little flutterby. She was perfect the way she was. She wasn't a spoiled brat or anything, she was just independent.

"I'm glad that we're just having a small dinner with your parents tonight though, we don't need another huge thing for her since her party was last weekend. This way we can celebrate her birthday and Sawyer starting school and that Flynn turned three a couple weeks ago because if that girl feels left out, she might start a riot."

"Good idea," Chris said.

"Morning!" Sawyer and Flynn were in the doorway.

"And this is why we can't have naked time anymore," Chris whispered to Stephanie. "They just barge in like they own the place." He turned to his kids. "What are you guys doing up?"

"It's Kensy's birthday!" Sawyer said.

"Sawa wake me up," Flynn said grumpily, running over to the bed and climbing in, scooting herself in between Stephanie and Chris, effectively pushing Stephanie out of the way so she could get to her daddy.

"Why did you do that, Sawyer?" Stephanie asked as Sawyer launched himself onto the bed.

"Because it's Kensy's birthday!" Sawyer said, "and she's my sister and I'm going to tell my whole class that it's my sister's birthday and that we're going to have cake, right, we're having cake, right?"

"No, Gamma is going to be making some pie for dinner," Stephanie reminded him as he sprawled himself on his stomach at the bottom of the bed. "Gamma is going to be making a special birthday dinner for Kensy's birthday and she said she would make some strawberry pie."

"I like that," Flynn said as she cuddled into Chris further.

"Is it too late to rethink the kid thing?" Chris asked. "I can't even get a few minutes alone with you."

"Yeah, it's too late," Stephanie said. "You'll like the strawberry pie, baby boy, Gamma said that she's going to put lots of whipped cream and I'm sure she's going to make something delicious."

"Better than you, right, Mommy, because you're not a very good cook," Sawyer giggled.

"Okay, come here, you," Stephanie pounced on her son and started tickling him. "We've got to get you ready for school or nobody is going to know it's your sister's birthday."

"Mommy, stop tickling me," Sawyer said as Stephanie lifted him up. Sawyer wrapped his long legs around Stephanie's waist as she led them out of the room. "Can I have two slices of pie?"

"We'll see," she said as they disappeared to get ready.

"Daddy, I like pie," Flynn told him.

Chris laughed, but only because he was now imagining what Rocky always said about pie and he really shouldn't go there, but damned if it wasn't imprinted on his brain. "I bet you're going to like everything Gamma makes."

"I think so too," she said, "it my birfday a little while ago."

"I know, you turned three, now Kensy is one."

"I still bigger," Flynn told him, then turned to Kensington, "I bigger dan you."

"Okay," Kensington said from where she was nestled.

"Come on, let's get ready for the day."

**August 29, 2011**

Stephanie walked slowly with Kensington into the arena. Flynn was already skipping ahead of them and Chris was talking with Sawyer right in front of her and Kensington. Stephanie had noticed that Sawyer was a little reserved today, but she figured that it was because he knew it was going to be his last wrestling show for a while. His school had had a teacher conference on Tuesday so she and Chris figured that Sawyer could come to the show and fly back on Tuesday. She wished that she could just fly his entire class all over the country so Sawyer could continue going to Raw, but she knew that wasn't possible and this really was the best decision for him.

She didn't want her kids to not have a childhood. She'd had one and even though her parents worked a lot, she was grateful that she'd gotten to just be a kid. She knew Chris felt the same way. She had nothing against home-schooling or private tutors, but they just weren't for her. It was kind of like the nanny issue. She didn't want anyone raising her kids except for her, that's what it boiled down to. She loved her children and didn't want anyone else taking care of them.

"Hey there, one year old," Britt said as she came up to Stephanie, handing her the schedule for the evening before kneeling down so she was face-to-face with Kensington. "I'm sorry I couldn't make your party, gorgeous, but Hunter and I have your gift for you and you can take it home."

"Hi," Kensington said with a soft smile.

"Hey," Britt said, standing up again. "So that's the schedule for the evening, I've got everything else taken care of, but is there anything that you needed?"

"Yeah, I wanted to talk to Hunter so if you could get him to come to my office some time before the show starts," Stephanie told Britt.

"Did you find out that the text was from him?" Britt asked quietly.

"No, I still don't know who that was from nor do I really have any solid subjects, it's about something else though, it's nothing big, don't worry," she told her, "but if you do find out anything regarding the texter, please let me know, I would like to know who the hell is trying to mess with my show."

"I want to know too," Britt said, "I'm trying to do my job here and I've got guys who are just barging in thinking they can run the place and I get the feeling that Nash doesn't respect me. Hunter had him over for dinner last week, I think to try and get it out of him who the texter was, which, if it is my boyfriend, it's a pretty ingenious thing to do, questioning him like he's innocent, but Nash just kept…I've only met him briefly a couple of times before. I guess since Shawn doesn't like me, he spread that poison to all of Hunter's old friends. He was cold to me. I think Hunter had a word with him when I was getting dessert, but it didn't improve much."

"That's just how they are," Stephanie said, "they were the same way with me. It's like you're intruding on their little boys' club, don't let it discourage you, they're just jerks with an ego complex. I won't even tell you how they treated Chris when he was in WCW."

"Wait, so it's not just misogynistic? It extends to everyone?"

"Yeah, they think they're better than everyone because they've been around the block so to speak," Stephanie said. "I just roll my eyes and move on."

"I wouldn't be surprised if Nash did this all on his own because he thought Hunter deserved better that to have two women as his bosses, his ex-wife and his girlfriend," Britt rolled her eyes as she said that sarcastically.

"You may be onto something."

"Britt, we've got a problem with the pyros for the opening," a voice crackled over Britt's radio clipped to her belt.

Britt grabbed the radio, "I'm on my way," she turned to Stephanie, "I guess that's my cue to go and work. If I see Hunter, I'll tell him to come find you."

"Thanks, Britt," Stephanie called out as Britt jogged away. Stephanie lifted up Kensington and walked quickly to her office while looking over the schedule. She let Kensington down when she got inside and saw Chris setting up their things. "I told Britt to tell Hunter come over when he could so I could explain things."

"Steph, you don't have to explain every little thing you're doing now," he said, shaking out the blanket they always brought and laying it on the floor. Almost immediately, the kids were on it, grabbing things out of their backpacks, except for Kensington, who just plopped down next to Flynn to see what she was doing.

"I know, but I was just letting you know," Stephanie shrugged one shoulder as Chris came over and sat on the edge of the desk and watched her as she started grabbing files and papers out of her own bag. "What are you staring at?"

"I'm staring at the worried version of you," Chris told her playfully. "What's on your mind?"

"Nothing, the show. I mean we're making a semi-huge change with having both Raw and SmackDown superstars on the show and I think that deserves some attention, plus there's the entire thing with Nash and that text from the mysterious person and-"

Chris took the papers from her hands and set the down on the desk before gathering Stephanie up in his arms and pulling her closer to him so she was standing in between his open legs. "You can't lie to me anymore. I mean, you can because you do, but you're not always very good at it. What's going on?"

"I told you…"

"You told me a bunch of BS," he said, lifting his eyebrows. "What are you really thinking about? I'm not going to let you do work until you tell me."

"That's not fair."

"Never said I was going to be fair," Chris told her. "I will go to any lengths to get the truth out of you, if that's what it takes."

"No, stop, don't tease," she told him, "I just want to get to work."

"Not letting you," he shook his head and tightened his grip on her, "not until you tell me. Is it because of Sawyer going to school on Wednesday? Or being Kensington is turning one on Thursday? Or because Flynn turned three two weeks ago?"

"What if you left me?" she asked.

"Huh?"

"I mean, it entered your mind, however briefly," she said, "Chris, I'm not good at relationships."

"You've been pretty good for the past nine years at it."

"I'm going to screw it up. I nearly did this time. I made you think, however briefly, that the right choice was to leave me."

"Because I wanted to get back at you for doing your little stunt, that's the only reason. Stephy, come on."

"No," she told him, shaking her head. "I'm going to screw it up, I just know it. I don't know when it will be, but I will. I'm going to drive you away because that's what I do, that's who I am. I'm the girl that drives men away."

"Now you're just being dramatic," he told her, brushing her hair over her ears and then running his hands down to her shoulders. "Stop worrying. I'm not mad, I'm not going to leave, you're stuck with me, not that I think this is a bad thing because I'm me and well…come on…"

"You made me worry," she told him with a pout.

"So now it's all my fault?" he joked, kissing her and pulling her so her body was pressed against his. Stephanie rested her hands on his waist as she kissed him. They were only broken apart when they heard someone clearing their throat loudly. Stephanie pulled away and they both looked over at Hunter. "Well if it isn't my wife's other man."

"Chris," Stephanie said, burying her head in his neck.

"I'm kidding," Chris told her, "I think my wife has something to say to you, emphasis on the _my_ part."

Hunter shrugged, "I think then I know what this is about."

"Hunter, I will not be kissing you anymore, but since the whole husband/wife thing is apparently part of the show now, Chris said it's okay to continue doing that and saying that," Stephanie said. "Since most people aren't so obsessive as to check the facts, it's not a big deal, so says Chris, right?"

"Yeah, it's not ideal, but as long as you guys aren't getting naked and doing it, I won't make a big deal out of it."

"Eww," Stephanie said, "like I'd want that again."

"Whoa, hey, come on," Hunter said, "there's really no need for that."

"Sorry, it just slipped out," Stephanie shrugged. "Anyways, I'm sure you know what you're doing tonight and Britt told me you haven't gotten anything from Nash."

"I want to smoke him out," Hunter said. "I want to put him in a match. I talked to him this morning and he told me that Laurinaitus signed him to a contract. I was supposed to keep it confidential, but I figured you should know."

"John signed him to a contract?" Stephanie asked incredulously. "I did not give him authorization to do that."

"Well, he did it anyways. I figure if I get Nash into a match, he'll try everything to get out of it, including telling us who sent the text. I don't think he's telling the truth when he says it's a mystery."

"Okay, well, I may have misjudged you when I said you were guilty. I'll have Chris talk to Punk about this," Stephanie said and Hunter nodded. "Thanks for helping."

"I'm trying to clear my own name," Hunter said. He glanced over at the kids, "Hey, tough guy, how was school?"

"Hi, Trips, I liked it, I liked going a lot and I have fun with my friends and my new friends and I have a cubby," Sawyer said, "but I'll miss you when I'm not here."

"I think you'd be the only one," Hunter winked at him. "The shows starting soon, you better get to talk to Punk now. I'll see you guys later."

Stephanie bit her lips in thought as Hunter left. "What are you thinking?" Chris asked.

"Hmm?" she asked distractedly.

"I asked what you were thinking about," Chris told her, "so what are you thinking about?"

"John giving Nash a contract, I don't like it," she shook her head, "there's something about it that I just don't like. Why would he do that without consulting me first? Why would he just hand out a contract like that?"

"I'm not sure, but I think I should go talk to Punk before the show starts," Chris said, "I'll take Flynn with me, she loves to see him anyways."

Stephanie didn't say anything so Chris took it as a cue to leave her alone with her thoughts. He went over to Flynn and asked her if she wanted to go see Punk, which she readily and eagerly agreed to. He picked her up and kissed her cheek, reminding her that he was her number one person. He was just about to open the door when Stephanie gasped. Chris turned abruptly to observe his wife, thinking she had fallen or something equally gasp-worthy.

"Mommy, what is it?" Sawyer asked, obviously hearing his mother gasp too.

"My dad," Stephanie said, looking intensely over at Chris. "It had to be my dad."

"What are you talking about?"

"My dad, it had to be him," Stephanie said, "I mean, John was and is my dad's biggest yes men. If my dad texted Nash to do that, to take out the winner, to make _my_ company look weak, then my dad can swoop in and tell everyone that I'm incompetent and take back his job. He's trying to outwork me!"

"Steph, you have no proof," Chris told her.

"What else could it be? My dad's not stupid. Nash is friends with Hunter. If it's my father, he knows this; he knows that if Nash comes out and does this that I'm going to suspect Hunter. It deflects away from him. John is my dad's lackey though so he'll do what my dad says over what I say. It all makes sense. My dad probably doesn't know about what we did, but he has a plan of his own."

"Okay, I'm not saying this is out of the realm of possibility because it's your family, but maybe we should hold off on the confrontation I see brewing in your eyes. We're not entirely sure yet."

"But we'll find out, oh, we'll find out."

It was with this information that Chris and Flynn went to Punk. Flynn was ecstatic to see him and immediately wanted to be held by him so she could give him a hug. "Hey, Flynn," Punk said in his usual manner. He was getting used to Flynn wanting to be held by him. "So what's going on?"

"Hunter is going to set up a match for you at Night of Champions, it'll give you a chance for revenge. Just go out there and do your think that you've been doing, you know, insulting Hunter, insulting my wife," Chris said, "what you've been doing."

"Okay, sounds good," Punk said with a shrug. "Is that all?"

"Stephanie thinks it might be her father behind everything with Nash," Chris explained. "Don't tell anyone."

"Who am I going to tell? I can't tell, nobody knows we're all working together, but even if it was her father, I still don't trust Hunter. Maybe he made a deal with her dad to keep his job or something if Vince comes back."

"I don't think Stephanie would allow him to come back," Chris said, "but she's thinking that Vince wants to make her look incompetent."

"Sounds like something they would do. I gotta ask, that family, I mean, why would anyone want to marry _into_ that bunch of nuts?" Punk asked. "I can't imagine ever being happy with any of them, they're all insane from what I've seen."

"Stephanie is just my brand of insane," Chris said, "besides, I don't think you're complaining about all the attention you're getting from my daughter. You think my kids are adorable, Punk, you're not fooling anyone with your exasperation when they're around."

Punk rolled his eyes, "Kids are kids, man."

"I like you," Flynn told him with a shrug. "You're very nice."

"Thanks," Punk said, "you're nice too."

"I the best in whole world," Flynn said proudly.

"Okay, I was wrong, I can see _exactly_ why you married into this family, you're a nutcase too," Punk said.

"I told you she's my brand of nut."

"I'll do everything I can out there to make it look believable. And I'll beat Nash at Night of Champions, I think that's a given. Maybe it'll send a message to Vince while I'm at it," Punk laughed. "If the match happens that is. Nash'll probably tear his quad on the way to the ring."

Chris had to laugh at that, "Actually, I wouldn't doubt that."

"You don't like him."

"Not even a little bit," Chris said.

"WCW memories, huh?"

"Yeah," Chris told him, "he was a dick back then and he's still one now."

"What's that, Daddy?"

"Nothing you _ever_ need to find out about, Flutterby," Chris said.

"You can count on me to finish the job," Punk said with a laugh over Flynn's question and Chris's answer.

The confrontation between Hunter, Punk, and Nash went as planned and Stephanie was satisfied that everything was going well. She was satisfied until a phone call Hunter received. Why she didn't receive it she could only guess, but Hunter was in her office as soon as he got the phone call. "Stephanie, we have a problem."

"What?" Stephanie asked, looking up from her laptop, where she'd been looking at the Sesame Street site with Kensington. Sawyer, Chris, and Flynn were with Christian and Trish so it was just her and Kensington at the moment.

"The Board of Directors just called me, they changed the match," Hunter told her.

"What do you mean they changed the match?" Stephanie asked. "To what?"

"Me and Punk," he explained.

"Excuse me, how can they do that? They can't do that, that's my jurisdiction," Stephanie said. "Did John have anything to do with this?"

"Yeah," Hunter nodded.

"It's true then," Stephanie said.

"What's true?"

"It has to be," Stephanie said, hefting Kensington a little.

"Stephanie, what's going on?"

"My father wants back in."

Stephanie smiled across the table at her husband. They'd decided that at least once a week to have a breakfast date with each other, just to keep things fresh and to get a little time by themselves. Loretta and Ted were always happy to have the kids so taking care of the girls one morning a week was a joy for them. For the past couple weeks though, Chris noticed that Stephanie had seemed off. Whenever he brought it up, she waved him off, but today, he was going to get his answers.

Even after they had dropped off the girls at Chris's parents' house, Stephanie seemed slightly distracted. When they were walking towards the breakfast place, Chris wrapped his arm around her waist again. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she told him, "just thinking about what Sawyer is doing right now. He really seems to like school. I can't believe you guys aren't going to be at Raw on Monday. It's going to be so strange. I mean, we've always…I don't know, it's like breaking up the team."

"I'm sure he's fine, let's focus on us for a little while, huh," he said, kissing her cheek. "We hardly ever get to go out on dates anymore so this is a nice thing for us to have this breakfast once a week. The kids are all taken care of, we don't have work today, why don't we just take the moment to focus on us?"

"I really wish I could catch my dad doing something that would indicate that he's coming back," Stephanie said aloud, pretty much ignoring everything Chris had _just_ said. Chris groaned in irritation at his wife. Sometimes, she just couldn't let things go for a little while. "What? I'm just wondering."

"I just said that we should focus on us for a while, your father is not part of the us I was talking about," he told her. They walked into the restaurant and were seated before they continued speaking. "I just want to have a nice breakfast with you."

"I want that too, I was just wondering," Stephanie said, "but I'll drop it, I'm sorry, what do you want to talk about? We can talk about Fozzy or something if you want or um, metal, any good albums coming out that you're going to get?"

"And now you're overcompensating," he said as they ordered their respective meals. Chris grabbed Stephanie's hand across the table. "Why are you still freaked out about the fight we had? That is in the past."

"I'm not freaked out," she protested.

"And eagerly starting a conversation about what albums I want to buy is not deferring to whatever topic I want to talk about?"

"No, I don't think so, I'm taking an interest in your interests. I'm simply trying to figure out what you want to talk about because I care about what you think and what you like and I want to be able to converse with you."

"Okay, cut it out," Chris said, "I'm sorry I ever told you that for a few moments I came up with a stupid plan. Stephanie, you are the woman who convinced me to fake a separation for a plan, that's all this is, I was going to fake being mad at you enough to leave you, but I didn't go through with it nor do I honestly feel what you think I'm feeling."

"But you thought it."

"I'm not rehashing this with you. You thought about faking a separation, hell, nearly faking a divorce. It's the exact same thing really. I didn't want to do it because I knew that I'd only be doing it because I was mad at you and wanted to get back at you."

"But don't you think that's enough motivation for that kind of things?" Stephanie asked. "I mean, people have left other people for lesser offences."

Chris pinched the bridge of his nose and then looked up at his wife. He was never going to understand her. That was part of her appeal, but when it was being directly responsible for the headache forming in between his eyes, it wasn't so cute. He never should have told Stephanie of his stupid plan, of all the regrets he'd had this past week, that was his biggest one right now. If he hadn't been so stupid, his wife wouldn't be acting like some simpering fool.

"I'm not leaving you," he told her firmly, 'what is it going to take for you to realize that, do I have to propose to you again or something, do we need another wedding? Stephanie, I love you, why isn't that enough?"

"It is," Stephanie said, "I'm not trying to be like anything, I'm just being…cautious, that's all."

"I don't want a wife that's cautious around me," Chris told her, "it makes it sound like you have something to be afraid of with me and when have you ever really been afraid of me, never, while I, on the other hand, have been scared of you plenty of times."

"Very funny," she deadpanned.

"Stephanie, I've been with you for nine years. In those nine years, you've never been anything other than yourself. Obviously, this has been something good because I've stayed with you for nine years so don't change yourself now."

"I'm sorry."

"Stop being sorry," he told her, leaning up a little so he could kiss her. "Now can we enjoy breakfast together?"

"Well, if you want me to be myself, then I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to talk about my father," she said with a shrug. Chris laughed.

"Now this is the Stephanie I wanted," he grabbed and squeezed her hand. "So you really think that your father is behind everything?"

"It makes sense, he's the one with the biggest motive. I don't think Shane or my mom really want to have any stake in the company right now, especially not with my mom thinking about running again and my brother with his position in that broadband company, there's nobody who can have more power than I can except my father. Nash wouldn't do something like this if it wasn't going to be worth his while, my father is the only one who could ensure that it would be."

"Okay, that does make sense when you put it like that."

"And if it is my dad, the one part that I'm really worried about is whether or not he knows about _our_ plan to get him ousted by the board of directors. If he knows, then we are in for a world of trouble."

"How could he though? We covered our tracks unless your dad hires out private investigators to follow our every move," Chris joked, but then he frowned and looked around, "you don't think your father would actually do that, do you? Because I have a problem with being followed."

"I don't know, I really don't, I guess our best bet is Hunter trying to get any information he can from Nash. I still don't even trust Hunter 100%."

"Well, hopefully he's actually on our side then."

Hunter opened the door and ushered Nash inside, "I'm glad you could come over, man."

"I thought you were pissed at me," Nash said, eyeing Hunter warily.

Hunter shook his head, "I'm not mad. I mean, I would like to know what the hell happened, but we're friends, above everything else, we're friends."

Hunter didn't know when his life had changed so drastically. There was a time when he considered Nash one of his closest friends. But somehow, that had changed. Shawn was still his best friend, faults and all, but Nash, Scott, and Sean, they'd all kind of drifted to the background of Hunter's life. He talked to them occasionally, but they were in such different places in their lives than he was. He had a steady girlfriend he loved, he had other great friends and he'd just lost touch.

"Yeah, I guess," Nash said, coming inside a little further, "where's your girlfriend?"

"Oh, Britt," Hunter said, reinforcing the fact that his girlfriend _did_ have a name. "She went out for a while, grocery shopping and stuff like that."

In truth, he'd sent her out so that Nash would feel more comfortable. If Britt was around, Nash might feel more guarded and not want to talk candidly with Hunter. As it was, Hunter knew he was going to have a difficult time getting information out of Nash, that was, if Nash _had_ any information. Nash was a smart guy, but he wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed and he might just be following blind orders.

"You want something to drink?" Hunter asked.

"Beer?" Nash suggested and Hunter nodded.

"Make yourself at home, you know where everything is," Hunter said as he made a beeline for the kitchen while Nash settled into the living room.

"Dude, what the hell have you let happen to your place, it looks like a knick-knack explosion in here," Nash called to him.

"Britt likes that kind of stuff."

"After your disaster of a first marriage, I don't see why you would want any woman living in your house again," Nash said as Hunter brought him a beer. "Don't you love bachelorhood? I mean, you do what you want, when you want, you aren't tied down to anyone."

"I like the way I am now," Hunter said and he did. Britt was the best thing to happen to him since becoming a wrestler. "So man, what the hell is going on? You're getting mysterious texts, you're getting new contracts, but you have no idea what's behind them?"

"No," Nash shrugged, "Hunter, man, if I knew, I'd tell you, you know that. You know we're buddies and we share, man, but I have no clue. I just got the anonymous text and it sounded like a pretty good deal. I do a run-in and it's easy money. Then John offers me this contract and who am I to refuse, right?"

"Something stinks about all of this. John didn't have clearance to give you a contract."

"So what are you going to do? Are you going to revoke it?" Nash asked. "It's not like I asked him for one, it's not like I begged, someone wanted me to do their dirty work, but I don't see why I can't benefit too. Unless the ladies in charge have something to say."

"Don't bring them into it," Hunter shook his head. "They're not here so we shouldn't be talking about them."

"Why not? Stephanie is getting off on the power, I'm sure. She sure did the last time you two were in power. I'd assume that not much has changed."

"She appointed me into this job, didn't she? She didn't take over everything."

"What about her husband? Why isn't he doing this?"

"He has other things."

"I never got that guy. He was always such a jackass, thought he was better than everyone, still thinks it, that whole family is a bunch of whackjobs."

"Hey, hold off on them, okay, they're my friends too," Hunter said. "I just want to get to the bottom of this, we all do. I just wanted to know if you had any idea who it was that had hired you. John should have run it past Stephanie, but he didn't."

"I'm telling you for the last time, Hunter, I have no idea."

Stephanie felt somehow incomplete without Sawyer, Chris, and Kensington there with her. Because she was the youngest and really had no interest in being at the shows, Chris had decided that Kensington would be better off at home with him and Sawyer. Subsequently, Flynn was the only one to come to the shows with Stephanie and ostensibly, would probably be the only one to come to shows at all unless there were special circumstances. Even though today was Labor Day, the show was too far away for Sawyer to fly back in time to make it to school the next morning so thusly, the enforced departure of her son had begun.

"Mommy, I wish Sawa and Daddy here," Flynn told her as she played by herself, "even Kensy."

Flynn _had _to be desperate if she wantedKensington to be around to play with. "I know that it's kind of boring with just us, baby girl, but you know you could have stayed home with Daddy if you wanted to and skipped wrestling."

"I no do that!" Flynn said emphatically. There was no way she was going to miss wrestling. Flynn got up from her play blanket and walked over to where Stephanie was working. "What you doing, Mommy?"

Stephanie lifted her daughter and sat her on her desk. Flynn crossed her legs and sat on Stephanie's desk watching her work. "Right now, I'm looking over potential advertisers and then I'm going to look over potential venues for future shows."

"I dunno what dat mean," Flynn shrugged.

"It means that I'm seeing who wants to give money to get their commercials and everything on our show and then I am going to find places where we can have wrestling."

"Oh, I get it," Flynn said, "we should have shows with Sawa."

"You think we should have shows near home so Sawyer can come?"

"Uh huh," Flynn smiled. "He likes it too."

"I know he does, does Kensy like it?"

"I don't know," Flynn said, "she no talk so I dunno."

"Well, she talks a little."

"Like a baby," Flynn said, feeling superior to her sister in that moment. Stephanie laughed and made a funny face at her daughter, which, as it always did, busted Flynn's gut. She loved funny faces more than almost anything in the world. "Do another!"

Stephanie made another face, which is when Punk just happened to walk into the dressing room, acting like he was pissed off. "Nice face, your mother ever tell you if you leave it like that, it'll stay that way?"

"What can I do for you?" Stephanie asked.

"The same thing you can do for me every week, convince me that Hunter is not in on this cosmic joke. Suddenly I'm in a match with him and it's like, whatever, fine, I can deal with that because at least Hunter can _walk_ you know, but I feel like I'm saying the same song and dance every week. I think Hunter is duping the both of us."

"He's given me no indication that he's really-"

"Hi, Punk," Flynn said, biting her lip and looking at her.

"Hey, kid," he smiled at her, but then continued with Stephanie, "cut the crap, Stephanie, we both know that he's a bad guy. We have to take him down. I still say we smoke him out."

"He's my friend."

"You're the boss now, you have to look out for everyone else, not just your friends," Punk told her. "I'm setting the seeds tonight."

"The seeds?" Stephanie asked, confused as to what he was saying. She still didn't want to believe that Hunter was this bad guy trying to take her down from the inside. "I really think it's my dad."

"And who's to say that your dad isn't in on it?"

"So you think my dad and Hunter are working together to what? To put him back in charge? That doesn't make sense."

"Maybe your dad is behind it, but maybe he's using Hunter and Hunter doesn't know it and in that case…Stephanie, we have to take down Hunter ourselves, just to make sure that we're still good, that you're still in charge and I'm still around."

"Since when is it you and me against the world?"

"Since I'm the reason you're sitting there looking like you want to rule the world."

"Are you threatening me, Mr. Brooks?" Stephanie asked, leaning in a little more and staring him down when he looked at her.

"I am merely concerned, Mrs. McMahon-Jericho," he responded.

"I'm Flynn Jericho," Flynn said, leaning her head closer too, which caused Punk and Stephanie to both start laughing.

"I'm trusting you, Punk, so don't screw this up, okay? If Hunter finds out."

"Look, I'll make sure it doesn't look like you if we're wrong, okay, I'll say that it was entirely my idea."

"Thank you, you've turned out…nothing like I expected."

"I could say the same for you," Punk said, "so it's just you and the little chick today?"

"Yeah, the boys and Kensy are at home."

"Gimme a high five," Punk said, holding up his hand for Flynn to slap. She eagerly slapped his hand. "Wow, you're going to be a great women's wrestler with a slap like that. Have you started training yet?"

"Uh huh."

"Wow, really?" Punk asked. He was getting more and more comfortable around Stephanie's kids. He might not always ay the right thing, but he figured that he was doing okay since Flynn seemed to like him so much.

"Yup, I gonna wrestle."

"Yes, in about 20 years you are," Stephanie said.

"You'll be great," Punk said, "but I better go. I'll see you guys later."

"Bye, Punk."

The first thing he did after leaving Stephanie's office was act like talking to her was always a chore. He just happened to see Miz standing around and while he didn't like Miz (he thought he was a fake poser), Miz was perfect for what he was about to do. "I can't believe her," Punk muttered.

"Hey, you were talking to Stephanie?" Miz asked. "What'd she do, fire you?"

"No, she just refuses to see that bastard Trips for anything other than he is. He's not doing a good job around here, don't you think?"

"Well, I guess I haven't really thought about it."

"He claims to care, but he doesn't care. I wish she would appoint someone, anyone else."

"He is kind of a jerk."

"Kind of, yeah right," Punk said as Eve came over and she was an easy target as well.

"What are you guys talking about?"

"Hunter," Miz informed her. "Punk doesn't think he's doing a good job around here. What do you think?"

"Well, he is kind of all about himself or so it seems, I don't know," Eve said, but then furrowed her brow together as she thought. "I know you have problems with him Punk, but do you think they're justified?"

"Absolutely. He treated me like crap and he's been holding down people and he's doing it again. He's inserting himself into a match with me so he can be in the spotlight again. How long until he's giving himself title matches?"

"I would freaking hate that," Miz said.

"And let's face it, Eve," Punk said a little derisively, "since he's been in charge, has he really focused any on improving the women's division? You guys have stuff to offer, but you aren't getting the time to showcase it."

"Wouldn't that fall under Stephanie though?"

"You know how he made himself the guest referee?"

"Yeah," Eve nodded.

"He did that without Stephanie's permission. He's just doing things on his own now so he can't really be trusted. For all we know, everything he's doing is his own doing. He could be undermining Stephanie as we speak. I think she's actually the _lesser_ of two evils so what does that tell you? Just food for thought."

Punk walked away, supremely satisfied with himself. The satisfaction even extended to meeting up with Hunter and Nash at the beginning of the show. Punk watched as Hunter went about firing Nash. It was all so convenient though. First he gets pissed at Nash, which is all well and good, it showed that he wasn't trying to be biased. Then he kicks Nash out of the match and takes his place because Nash shouldn't have a contract, then he fires Nash because he's subordinate.

Punk just felt like he was seeing through all of Hunter's games, but he just couldn't figure out what the game was and why he was playing it at all. Hunter couldn't have the power, nobody would let him, but Punk would swear that he was trying to wrest it away from Stephanie.

"I'm sorry, Stephanie, but it just seemed the right thing to do," Hunter said, "he wasn't telling me anything and I just couldn't have him…I mean, we didn't give him the new contract so he had to go."

"Okay, I think it was the right decision," Stephanie said, "you can go now, you didn't even have to really come in here, you could have called me."

"I just wanted to make it clear why I was doing what I was doing," he told her.

Stephanie watched him go and sighed. Hunter had gone about making decisions without her and Britt again. Granted, she wanted Nash gone so she wasn't too upset about it, but he was openly defying her now and what Punk was saying was making a little bit of sense. What if Hunter was trying to deliberately sabotage her? Her father's reach was long and he could have offered Hunter something he couldn't refuse. If it was her father, though, he was playing it extremely cool, but she should have expected nothing less.

"Hey, Stephanie," Trish said, sticking her head into the room, "you busy?"

"Oh hey, Trish," Stephanie said, "I'm not too busy. Flynn, why don't you play with Tilden?"

"No way," Flynn said, but Tilden was already toddling over to her play blanket. Flynn gave a sigh of exasperation and offered up a Christian action figure to Tilden. "There your daddy."

"Tanka," Tilden smiled as sat down next to Flynn, who immediately scooted away a little bit.

"What's going on?" Stephanie asked.

"Well, since you're my best friend, I was tasked with giving you a message," Trish said.

"A message, what, did Chris tell you to tell me something while we were at the show because he couldn't be here tonight?"

"No, he didn't, this is from Punk."

"Punk? Why would he come to you?"

"Because he didn't want to be obvious he said. He said that I was the safest bet because we're best friends and it wouldn't be weird if I came to see you," Trish explained. "I think he likes plotting with you."

"Doesn't everyone? Except Chris when I'm trying to do something to hurt him," Stephanie reminded herself, "but what did Punk want?"

"He wanted me to tell you that he's sorry for not telling you about what he's going to do, but that he has a plan."

"What kind of plan?"

"I don't know, that's all he told me to tell you."

Stephanie was forced to watch the show with both eyes after that. It wasn't until midway through the show that Punk showed up again and he was calling out Hunter again. Punk was purposefully provoking him, Stephanie could tell. What he was getting at, she couldn't figure out. Hunter was irate and changing the match. She could live with that. Then Hunter went back into his crazy mode and started making threats at Punk, but Punk wasn't deterred. Instead, Punk made his own stipulation. A stipulation that made Stephanie's eyes widen.

Stephanie didn't have time to seek out Punk until after the show was over. She literally carried a sleeping Flynn to Punk's room after the show, knocking on his door loudly. "Stephanie, what's going on?" he asked when he opened the door. "Oh wait, the stipulation."

"What are you trying to do here, Punk?"

"If I win, which I will, and Hunter is forced to leave the COO position, if your dad or anyone is behind this, I think they won't let it happen like that."

"So you think that if Hunter were to be fired, my father would come out and say that he can't let that happen?"

"Yeah, and if Hunter is innocent, then nothing will happen and he can just go back to being a wrestler. You can always find a new COO, hell, convince your husband to finally come back. I thought it was a win-win situation."

"Punk, you're a genius."


	339. Back on Track, September 12, 2011

"So let me get this straight, you're plotting _against_ Hunter now?"

"Chris, it's not really plotting against him," Stephanie said as she grabbed her husband's hands and held them both in her own. She looked down at him. "It's more like I'm…keeping him in check."

"Except that he has no clue what you're doing so I hardly think that he's complicit in whatever it is you're doing," Chris told her, his eyes drinking her in as they lay in bed. They'd been so busy this week with Sawyer and him going to school and Stephanie with work and then their other two kids, they'd hardly gotten a moment to just talk with each other. Usually their night ended with them falling into bed, exhausted, and falling asleep within minutes.

"He doesn't have to be complicit. Punk is just taking precautions."

"Sounds like he's just as conniving as you are," Chris pointed out, "no wonder you two are getting along so well, you both think alike, I'm not sure whether this is good for bad for the company."

"We're not conniving. I just…with my father possibly being behind all of this, I really have to think thoroughly about everyone that I have working underneath me," Stephanie told him and that's all it was.

"You're starting to sound paranoid," he chuckled. "I wonder if this is why your dad acted like he did all the time. Maybe he was such a jackass because he was nervous about all the underlings trying to take over. Maybe that's why he never wanted you to be the GM because he knew that if he let you, you would be one step closer to taking it all away."

"Now you're just full of conjecture," Stephanie told him with a frown, "I'm not paranoid. Paranoid would be me looking over my shoulder constantly, thinking that anyone could be better than me, but I don't think anyone is better than me right now. I think I'm the best of the best and there's not one person backstage or onstage that could be half as good as I am."

"So now you're just a narcissist," he joked and she squeezed his hands harder. He chuckled and leaned up to kiss her briefly before he fell back against the pillows behind his head. "I love that we finally have time to talk with one another. I feel like we've been disconnected all week."

"We were pretty connected a little while ago," she winked and he grinned at her lewdly, licking his lips, "but I feel the same way. We've just been getting into this whole new lifestyle thing and once we get our routine together, we'll figure it out, we've been figuring it out pretty well for the last nine years, wouldn't you say?"

"I'd say we've gotten it right a time or two," he grinned at her, "even if my wife has become a paranoid dictator."

"I'm not paranoid!" she complained as Chris pulled her down so she was lying flush on top of him. "Stop saying I'm paranoid. I'm really not. I mean, I'm secure in the knowledge that I'm good at my job. It's just everyone else who might not be on the up and up."

"And if you think that somehow Hunter _is_ working for your father, which, I find hard to believe in the first place, do you think that Britt is in on it as well?"

"I don't think so, I think Britt is trustworthy."

"But then if you think Britt is trustworthy, don't you think that you should give her the benefit of the doubt and think that she's not with someone who is trying to stab her in the back. I don't think Hunter would go through all the trouble of joining forces with your father when he pretty much just got Britt back."

"But," Stephanie said, "what if Hunter is still upset about the rejected proposal."

"She explained what she wanted out of the relationship, he said he was okay with not pushing," Chris told her and he had no reason to really believe that Hunter would do that. He really loved Britt. Chris had never looked, _really_ looked, at Stephanie and Hunter's marriage because he had no reason to look beyond what they presented themselves as (assholes) but Hunter always seemed different with Britt than with the few girlfriends he'd had since the dissolution of his marriage to Stephanie.

"Yeah, well maybe he just _said_ that to hide the hurt," Stephanie told him. "I mean, what if I'd rejected you when you proposed."

"Moot point because you forced me to propose to you," Chris pointed out. "I didn't have much choice in the matter after you'd found the ring in my drawer."

"Can you just go along with my hypothetical situation, please," Stephanie said, "okay, so you told me that you wanted to propose to me by getting me my job back. So say you went through all that trouble, you convinced my dad to give me my job, you got the contract all ready, you had the ring on the pen and you handed it to me and you asked me to marry you, told me that you loved me, that you wanted to spend the rest of your life with me, that you couldn't imagine anyone else having your children and I turned around and said no, wouldn't you be bitter?"

"Well, I'd want to know why you said no and as far as I know, Britt _did_ tell Hunter why she didn't want to marry him," Chris told her, "so if he knows, I don't see why he should be unhappy about it."

"Chris, if I had rejected you, you would've been pretty mad."

"I don't think I would've been. Would anything be different now if we didn't get married?"

"Yes, because we wouldn't have Sawyer, Flynn, or Kensy," she told him.

"We probably would have still had them," Chris replied. "I don't see how being married changed that fact. It's not like we sat down and said that after we were married we were going to try for kids like Christian and Trish did, we just had them. Who's to say that we wouldn't have if we had never gotten married?"

"I don't know," Stephanie said, "I'm just saying that she could be and that's why Punk and I have this whole thing going. It's not even that big a deal."

"You say that now, but plans have a way of snowballing if you're not careful and I'm not there to make sure you don't go overboard. I like to think I'm the rock in this relationship and that if I see you acting like a complete fool that I can stop you before it's too late."

"Trust me, I'm okay," she said, pressing a kiss to his chest. "I'm not going to do anything stupid and I'm going to be careful. Punk and I have everything under control, so you don't have to worry about anything. If anything goes awry, I have plausible deniability because nobody knows I'm actually working with punk."

"I guess that's true," Chris said, "but it doesn't mean I have to like it. You get too caught up in everything sometimes. I worry about you."

"You worry about me?" Stephanie scoffed. "Chris, you're going on _another_ tour of Europe in November, plus you have the radio show again. You're the one who's doing too much around here."

"The radio show is easy and the tour isn't as long as the other one. I'm just sorry I have to go alone this time, I got so used to you guys being with me."

"Your parents are a godsend," Stephanie said, "since they're going to be staying with Sawyer and all. But you take on too much sometimes, plus there's the whole deal with your third book, which I don't even know what you're going to write about there."

"Flynn and Kensy and more about how much I love you," he said, leaning down and kissing the crown of her head. "You know, the usual stuff that manages to find its way into my books. Plus, I'm not the one running an entire company."

"Suffice it to say we're both workaholics," she laughed, "yet we somehow manage it all, we should pat ourselves on the backs." She felt Chris pat her on the back at that and she snuggled into him deeper. "Do I get to be a guest on your radio show?"

"No, because your knowledge of metal music is based solely on what I tell you about it."

"I can still come on and be like, your sidekick," Stephanie suggested jokingly. "You know, the pretty girl they always have in-studio who says the mildly clever things and everything, who always entices any special guests. I can wear low-cut tops and short skirts and we can flirt on air and everything."

"Enticing, but no," he told her. "I already know what I want it to be and you don't fit on the agenda, sorry!"

"Oh you'll be sorry," Stephanie said, sitting up and straddling him again. "I can make you very, very sorry."

"I bet you could, but I know you won't. You should get to bed anyways, we have a long day tomorrow, you and Flynn are going to the homeland. I can't believe you guys get to go to Canada without me. It's almost sacrilege, going to where I'm from without me."

"It's not like we'll be in Winnipeg, we'll be in Ottawa."

"Doesn't matter, I claim the country on the whole," he said, "at least Flynn belongs there since she's half-Canadian."

"I don't think she identifies herself as that."

"I don't think she identifies as anything other than a wrestling fan. You should store up some of the oxygen while you're there, just grab a jar and get some fresh Canadian air for me. You can bring it home and I can have a whiff of it."

"You're such a weirdo," she told him. "I'll do Canada proud since I have my Canadian husband who wasn't even born in Canada and was born one state over from me in New York and acts all high and mighty like he's really from Canada."

"I have dual citizenship, I'll have you know, and because I'm a Canadian citizen, that means my children are Canadian citizens as well, so they _are_ Canadians, no matter how much you try to Americanize them."

"You haven't lived in Canada for like twenty years, come off it already," Stephanie told him. "You are an American, Chris, an American."

She stuck her tongue out at him, "No, I have not embraced baseball or football, I'm a hockey guy all the way and that right there automatically means that I'm a Canadian. And with the Jets back in Winnipeg, you better believe I'm taking the kids up for a weekend to see a game, it's only right."

"What if I want them to be a Bruins fan?"

"Bite your tongue, woman!" he told her. "I would never let them be Bruins fans, are you kidding me? They're going to be Jets fans."

"What if they want to be Lightning fans?"

"Well, I can't begrudge them that, but I don't want them to be, they're going to be Jets fans and that's it," Chris said. "I bet Flynn is going to feel so at home in Canada."

"She's been there before, a number of times," Stephanie reminded him, "besides, we'll be busy. I'll be working and she's been my little enforcer. She really motivates everyone to get to work, I don't know what I'd do without her. I thought that you could do the job, but she's a million times better and you only have to pay her in cookies."

"Whereas you have to pay me in sex."

"Wow, I'm just a prostitute now?"

"My very own kinky, little prostitute," Chris leaned up again and started kissing her. Stephanie wrapped her legs around his waist as her arms wove their way around his neck. Chris flipped them over so that Stephanie was underneath him and he started trailing kisses down her neck. Stephanie moaned in approval of his ministrations and Chris smiled against her skin. Tonight was the first night all week they hadn't been too tired to fool around. He relished in the way his wife's skin tasted like the strawberry body gel she used.

"Chris, what was that?" Stephanie said abruptly.

"I was kissing you, is that bothering you?" he asked, pulling away and looking down at her.

"No, I thought I heard a thump," Stephanie said. "It sounded like someone fell out of bed. It was probably Flynn, she's always moving around, go check on her, will you?"

"I'm kind of in a state right now," he grinded against her a little to show her that he was in no condition to be checking on his daughter.

"Oh geez, get off me then," she pushed him off, searching for her tank top, which had been lost some time ago. Chris plucked it off the ground next to the bed and handed it to her while Stephanie slipped into her underwear. She grabbed some pajama pants hanging over a chair and put them on. She opened the door and went down the hallway a little bit and to Flynn's door. She turned on the nearest hallway light and peeked her head into Flynn's room, but Flynn was sound asleep.

She then peeked her head into Sawyer's room, but he was asleep as well. She found that strange, she must have been hearing things. She walked down the hallway again when she heard some muffled sounds. She turned around suddenly, staring down the hallway. "Chris?" she hissed.

"What?" Chris asked from the bedroom.

"I hear something out here, come here!" she said, her voice tense.

"What do you hear?"

"Chris, I hear someone walking around up here," Stephanie said, then heard the clatter of toys from Kensington's room. "Chris! There's someone in Kensy's room!"

"What!" Chris said, rushing out of the room, pulling on boxers as he came out. "Is it one of the kids?"

"No, Flynn and Sawyer are both in their beds and Kensy is in her crib, there is someone in there with her," Stephanie told him, pushing him towards the door. "Go kill them!"

"With what?" he asked. Then he called out, "Hello?"

"Oh yeah, that's smart, alert the probable kidnapper in our baby's room that we're onto them," Stephanie rolled her eyes. They heard Kensington giggle and Stephanie's eyes widened, "He woke up Kensy!"

Chris went up to the door and slammed it open, startling Kensington and making her cry, "What the hell? Kensy?"

Stephanie looked around her husband and saw Kensington playing with her toys on the floor, crying now because her daddy had startled her when he slammed the door open. "Kensy, what are you doing?" Stephanie asked, coming into the room and picking up her daughter. "Did you climb out of your crib? Chris, I think she climbed out of her crib."

"And took it like a champ!" Chris said, coming over and taking Kensington from Stephanie. "You didn't even cry or anything, wow, the girl knows how to take a bump."

"Oh my God, that is the last thing we need to think about right now," Stephanie rolled her eyes, "what if she fell on her head?"

"I think she'd be crying."

"We don't know that, she could have a concussion and be out of it," Stephanie said, feeling all around Kensington's head. "How in the hell did she manage to climb over her crib, we moved it down and she's just over a year old, Sawyer and Flynn didn't even really attempt that until they were older."

"She's a natural," Chris said, looking in amazement at his daughter, "Kensy, you are amazing, I mean, you really shouldn't climb over your crib, but you are pretty cool, what did you want to do though, play with your toys?"

"Pay," Kensington said, pointing at her toys.

"She did take a late nap today, she might not be as tired as we thought she was," Stephanie admitted. "You want to come lie down with Daddy for a while? I'm going to go find the crib tent we have so she can't climb out."

"Oh yeah," Chris said, bouncing Kensington around in his arms a little. "That should work…do you think we should get her a toddler bed."

"I think she's still too young, I think the tent will be fine," Stephanie said, kissing Kensington's cheek. "Don't scare Mommy like that again."

"Mama," Kensington giggled and Stephanie gave her a knowing look as she left the room and went downstairs to the playroom closet where they kept a lot of their old kid junk. Chris walked back to his bedroom with Kensington in tow.

"You know, you're really cramping my style here, Kensy-bug," Chris told his daughter. "I mean, sure, you could have just prevented baby #4, we'll never know, but really, Mommy and I haven't been able to get any alone time all week and then you have to learn how to climb out of your crib. Nice bump though, I gotta say. That's some top rope stuff right there."

Chris laid down on his bed and let Kensington lay on his chest. She curled up against him and he rubbed her back and sang Broken Soul to her, the only ballad he had in his Fozzy repertoire. He could hear Stephanie walking upstairs, the tent bumping into the wall along the way. He listened as she cursed to herself and then went into Kensington's room because he could hear her maneuvering the crib away from the wall so she could get the tent set up. He lifted his head a little and saw that Kensington was still awake, but blinking slowly like she was fighting to stay awake.

"Don't fight sleep, Kensy-bug, just let it wash over you and then it'll be tomorrow and you can play with Sawyer and Flynn, you love playing with your brother and sister, don't you?"

"Uh huh," Kensington whispered.

"I know, we all like to go into the backyard and we have fun on our playground, huh? Daddy might be getting too old to play on it though," Chris joked and he heard Kensington mumble in protest. "You don't think so, well that's nice of you. It's hard keeping up with you and your brother and sister, you keep me and Mommy on our toes."

"Hey, I've got the tent up," Stephanie said, coming over and lying next to Chris, but in a way so that she was face-to-face with Kensington, "what are you two talking about in here, are you gossiping about me?"

"No, we were just talking about how hard it is to keep up with her and Flynn and Sawyer, they're all so fast," Chris said, running his fingers through Kensington's soft hair. "Is she asleep?"

"She's definitely on the verge of it. She probably used all her energy getting up and out of that crib. I'll never figure out how she did that. She's definitely your kid though, little daredevil. You'd think we could have one calm child."

"You want to try for more," he waggled his eyebrows at her and she glared at him and shook her head before standing up and slowly taking Kensington from Chris. "Night, Kensy-bug."

"I think she'll sleep now," Stephanie disappeared for a moment and Chris quickly stripped off his boxers and laid on the bed, trying to look as sexy as possible. When Stephanie came back in and closed the door behind her, she laughed, "What are you doing?"

"Trying to entice my wife to bed, is it working?"

"I don't know," she said, walking closer to the bed and pulling off her tank top, "you'll have to show me more closely."

Hunter looked around him as he walked down the hallway with Britt. He was getting the strangest stares from everyone or at least that was what he thought. He couldn't be too sure because whenever he looked at anyone, they would turn away. It was just so strange. Was it because he was in charge? Was it because he had toilet paper stuck to his shoe (he checked, he didn't)? It wasn't like they were looking at him fearfully though, so he couldn't figure out what was going on, if anything was going on, he'd been known to be wrong before.

"Do you get the feeling we're being looked at?" Hunter asked.

Britt looked over at him, "Huh, looked at by whom?"

"By everyone," he told her, looking around again and once again, whenever he looked someone in the eye, they would look away. Something was going on and it was bugging him that he didn't know what it was. "Do I have a sign or something on my back?"

Britt leaned backwards a little and looked at her boyfriend's back. "There's nothing there. You're probably just imagining things. There's nobody looking at you, I don't see anyone looking at you."

"Are you sure? I mean, it's like, when I look at them, they look away so that's how you know they were looking at you in the first place. It's been happening ever since we arrived. Is there something going on that I don't know about?"

"No, you know what it probably is though," she said. He looked at her, waiting for her answer. "It's probably just everyone thinks that you were in on the Nash thing and that the two of you are working together. You know how word travels around here and you might as well be guilty until proven innocent, don't let them bother you."

"I guess you may be right, but I have nothing to do with that, I fired him, remember?"

"Well I know that, but they could possibly still think you two are planning something against Punk," Britt said, "they have no clue what's going on so let them stare if they're staring, you just have to let it roll off your back."

"I'm trying to connect to them though, how can I just let it roll off my back?" Hunter asked. He was trying to be a COO of the people, something that Vince had never quite gotten when he was in charge. He always held himself at such a high level that nobody could ever hope to achieve equal status. Hunter didn't want to be like that. He'd been at the bottom before, he wanted to be a guy who understood the wrestlers. He didn't want to necessarily be much higher than they were. That's why he'd been trying to feature guys like Zack Ryder. He knew the guy had a considerable internet following and he wanted to showcase that.

"Because it's probably nothing and you're getting worked up about it," Britt told him.

"Do you really think I'm not in on the Nash thing?"

"I told you I didn't."

"But are you sure?" he asked. The only person he really cared to have on his side was Britt. Stephanie, well, there was no pleasing her most of the time, but Britt was the woman he loved and if he didn't have her on his side, believing him at his word, then he might as well just quit right now.

"I told you I believed you and I do."

"I don't think Stephanie does or else she wouldn't have allowed that stipulation to go through."

"I think she thinks you'll win and I think Punk is going to put up a fight, yes, but I just don't think that you're going to get fired either way," Britt told him, pulling him into her office. "I think it's all just keeping up with making sure her father doesn't get wind of what went on. You know she suspects her father was the one to bring in Nash. I'm sure Nash was chosen because Vince thought he could get whatever information Stephanie was hiding from him through you. If he thinks Stephanie was up to something, he knows he can't get her to crack and he can't get Chris to crack, he doesn't know me well enough to know what might make me crack, but that leaves you."

"You make too much sense sometimes," he told her with a laugh, "you really think that's what's happening?"

"I have no reason to believe otherwise," Britt said, unloading her papers. "Plus, if we're being honest here, I think some of the people around here would love to see you knocked off your high horse."

"What, you mean they want to see me lose my job as COO?"

"Yes, I do."

"You're probably right with that actually. They probably think I deserve it after the way I've acted over the years. They can't see that I'm trying to help you guys out here and I'm not trying to be some hotshot."

"But that's what you are and I'm sure there's even some jealousy there."

"I wouldn't even be in this position if Chris had wanted the job. I bet if he'd had the job nobody would be clamoring for his ouster."

"Chris is a different type of guy," Britt dismissed him casually.

"Wow, not even a comment in my defense," he joked. "You couldn't even say that you can't believe that and that a lot of people would want to see Chris out, that it was merely the position that people were jealous of and that anyone could be in it and they'd hate them."

"I'm sorry," she said with an exaggerated sigh, "but let's face it, Chris is…more personable than you are, he just is, babe. That's not to say that he's _better_ than you because I'm not saying that. I'm just saying that he's…friendlier."

"I'm not friendly?" he asked.

"You're a little gruff," she told him, "but I think it's just because people see this tough exterior and don't realize there's a real guy under there. Besides, when you're not being mean, kids really like you. Look at Stephanie and Chris's kids, they love you so you can't be all bad."

"if Chris had this job, he'd be killing it right now. Everyone would love him, the company would be running smoothly, hell, even Vince would probably have no reason to complain about anything."

"I think Vince would find something to complain about."

"You're actually probably right about that one," Hunter said, "I just wish I knew why everyone was staring at me. I feel like I'm some sort of zoo exhibit and everyone is coming to gawk at me."

"Get over yourself, babe," Britt said, "come on, we've got work to do."

Chris opened the door with Sawyer right next to him, "Hey guys, come on in."

"Thanks so much for having us over," Emily said as she ushered Aiden inside the house. "It's really nice of you guys."

"It's our pleasure," Chris said, "Aiden, you and Sawyer can go play in the backyard if you wanted to. Sawyer, you can show him back there."

"Come on, I've got a playground we can play on," Sawyer said, grabbing his friend's hand and leading him to the backyard.

"Come on in, Emily," Chris said, gesturing inside more. "I think our sons are becoming fast friends."

"I would say so," she said, "you have a beautiful house."

"Thanks," Chris said, "I made some coffee if you wanted some."

"That'd be great. Thank you so much again for having us, especially Aiden. We just recently moved here over the summer and he was so afraid of not making any friends and he was so scared the first day of school. I had to stay until we were forced to leave and even then I think he had a little bit of trouble letting me leave."

"Sawyer practically brushed us off," Chris joked as he indicated that Emily could sit at the counter while he poured their coffee.

Emily laughed, "I'm thankful that your son is so welcoming."

"He's like that. Me and my wife don't know where it comes from."

"Oh, well, you're pretty welcoming, I can't speak for your wife, but I'd love to meet her," Emily said. "Is she working?"

"Yeah, we actually, well, she right now, but we travel for work. She's in Canada right now with our middle child, Flynn."

"What does she do? What do you do for that matter? I'm an attorney."

"I'm an inactive professional wrestler for the WWE," Chris said, handing her a coffee and putting out some sugar and cream for her, "but I also front a metal band, Fozzy, which I'm touring with currently, we're on down time right now, but I'll be doing a short tour of Europe in November. My wife is the President of World Wrestling Entertainment."

"Wow, I never would have figured you for a professional wrestler," Emily said, shaking her head.

"Why is that?" he asked.

"I don't know, I guess wrestling comes along with some predisposed ideas and I guess the most prominent one is that wrestlers are a bit…dim, I guess, I'm sorry, please don't take offense to that," she apologized.

"None taken, I know that we come with that notion, but that's not who I am, that's definitely not who my wife is. My kids love wrestling and I do too. It's the only thing I wanted to do growing up and the business has given me so much more than I anticipated."

"I'm guessing you mean your wife," Emily said knowingly.

Chris ducked his head a little, "Yeah, she's amazing."

"I can tell you think so by the way you look right now," she laughed, "tell me about her, what's she like? I have pretty much no friends in the area and I don't know, maybe she and I have something in common, does she like to shop by any chance because I do not know any good stores around here."

"She can definitely work her way around a store. When she comes home, you and Aiden should come over and stay for dinner, we'd love to have you."

"That'd be wonderful, but only if we can return the favor," she told him. He nodded enthusiastically. "So, really, what's your wife like?"

"She's stubborn and headstrong and completely independent to the point where I have to rein her back in sometimes. She's very opinionated, but if she likes you, you have a friend who will do everything in her power to help you and she has a considerable amount of power."

"Is she on TV?"

"Not right now, but she has been, so have I, you get used to it."

"Do your kids go on TV?"

"No, never, we're trying to protect them as much as we can, give them the normal childhood, that's why Sawyer is in regular school and not privately tutored. Up until he started school, we'd travel to the shows with my wife and our other kids. But that's not how we wanted to raise our kids. The only real time we've mentioned them publicly was in my book."

"Okay, now you're just kidding with me, you've written a book?"

Chris shrugged a little, "Two actually, both…not to brag, but both of them were New York Times bestsellers."

"Oh my God, I know why I recognize you! You were on Dancing with the Stars, weren't you?" she said, her jaw dropping a little. "It has been _killing _me trying to figure out why I thought you were so familiar, but I remember you mentioning you had books on that show and okay, now I'm a little intimidated to be here."

"You really shouldn't, believe me, we're normal people, relatively speaking."

"Wow, sorry, I feel like I just met a famous person, which…I did!" she said, then looked down, "and now I'm making a complete embarrassment of myself."

Chris's cell phone buzzed and he excused himself, grabbing his phone and answering the call, "Hey, baby, what's up?"

"Punk's plan worked, the whole putting the seeds in, it worked. Hunter just came to me and told me he thought that everyone was staring at him and talking about him behind his back. If Hunter is planning something, I've so got him."

"Unless he isn't and you unnecessarily sent the masses to hunt him down."

"Easily correctable," Stephanie said.

"Chris, I hate to interrupt your call, but bathroom?" Emily said, waving her hand in front of Chris.

"Oh, down the hallway, third door on your right," he pointed to the hallway past the kitchen and the living room. She nodded and disappeared as Chris got back to his call.

"Who was the female voice I just heard?" Stephanie asked, dropping the Hunter subject for a moment.

"That was one of Sawyer's friend's moms, Emily, remember, I told you about her."

"She sounds pretty," Stephanie said, the playfulness in her tone alluded Chris to the fact that she wasn't mad about the entire thing, which was a good thing because the last thing Chris needed was to contend with a jealous wife.

"You sound jealous," Chris said.

"How dare you!" she joked.

"I dare," he said, "so back to Hunter, please?"

"So back to this Emily, please, what's she doing there? How long will she be over there? Have you made out with her?"

"The answer is dropping off her son to play with Sawyer, she will be leaving as soon as she finishes her cup of coffee and she will be by later after I take the boys out for pizza, in time for Raw, I might add, and we totally have, right on our bed too."

"I figured as much," she said, "but yes, back to Hunter. If things are as they seem and he's not plotting against me, things will even themselves out."

"Until they completely backfire on you."

"They won't," she insisted, "I've got everything under control. I don't see how I can't have everything under control."

"If you say so," Chris said, then saw Emily walking back from the bathroom. "I've got company though, baby, so I'll talk to you during or after the show, depending on how irate you are."

"I'm not going to be irate, everything is going just like I planned it to go so why would I be irate?" she asked.

"Because you're you and you are pretty much always irate," Chris told her. "Tell my daughter I love her by the way, just so she knows."

"I think she had a good idea, but tell the same to my son and daughter."

"I will, I love you," he told her.

"I love you too, bye, don't do anything kinky!"

"Gross, baby, bye," Chris said, hanging up and going back into the kitchen, "sorry about that, my wife just wanted to inform me about how something was going."

"It's okay, I actually better go, but just call me when you guys come back from dinner?" Emily said.

"Yeah, that sounds fine," Chris nodded.

"Thank you again for taking him for tonight. Ever since Aiden's dad died, he's never really gotten that whole male bonding thing and this is his first kind of guy's night out so I really hope he has fun."

"My middle name is fun," Chris told her, walking her to the door. "Don't worry, I really have everything covered."

Punk smirked at Stephanie and raised his eyebrows, "I told you, I have everything covered. Nobody trusts Hunter. I mean, I'm sure we could have it turned around if we need to but-"

"Punk, I'm going to ask you something here and I want an honest answer, are you playing me?" Stephanie asked. "Because I really think that you're playing me. I mean, I could've dealt with the plan, but the enthusiasm you're showing me right now, it worries me, actually concerns me."

"I'm not playing you," Punk said. "I just don't trust the guy and…I'm giving you an escape route."

"What escape route?"

"Hunter as your scapegoat," Punk said. "Look, I like you, Steph, I've told you before, I like you, you're cool in my book. I didn't expect it, I still don't halfway believe it most of the time, but I do. I like your leadership, you're hands-on without butting in, you get what I mean? You're here and you're accessible, but you're not blind to your faults like your dad is. You can take the criticism where your dad couldn't. I want to see you stay in power. If things start to go wrong, everyone's going to look at Hunter, aren't they? And you'll come out of it unscathed."

"Where have you been all my life?" Stephanie asked.

Punk shrugged. "Hunter won't suspect you either because if he does do a bad job, it's not going to come from you, it's going to come from the wrestlers."

"So that I'll look completely innocent, but in actuality, I'll have kind of started the ball rolling in that direction, but he wouldn't know that and I could still remain his friend if he wasn't working for my father. If he is working with my father, I don't want to be his friend."

"So you have all your bases covered."

"Are you smart?" Flynn asked, looking up at Punk.

"I like to think so, are you?" Punk asked.

"Very," Flynn nodded seriously.

"Good, that means you can keep secrets."

"I do, lots," Flynn told him. "Lots and lots."

"I bet with your mom and dad there are a lot of secrets to keep, huh?" Punk threw a look over at Stephanie and she rolled her eyes.

"Um, okay," Flynn said, looking up at Punk adoringly.

"So…what if you win?"

"Then you find yourself a new COO."

"Are you thinking you're going to win?"

"I'm thinking something is going to happen that won't let me win and I think that whatever that something is, is going to tip you off to what's really going on around here regarding Hunter, your father, Nash."

"So you won't be mad if you don't win?"

"I'll still be pissed, I want to win every match I'm in, but I'm not expecting to. There's something fishy about Hunter just up and firing Nash like that. A little too put on, maybe, like he had to do something to make it convincing. I know you probably think that I'm paranoid-"

"Chris says I can get pretty paranoid about my power, so I don't think you are. I think you're looking out for your best interest, our best interest actually."

"I'm just trying to advocate change," he said. "I also wouldn't trust Laurinitis at all."

"I don't, believe me, I try to keep him as in the dark as I can. I have a good feeling that he reports back everything to my father, so the less he knows the better position we're in."

"I agree," he said, "how do you survive in your family?"

"When you've been in it for nearly 35 years, you get used to it, you adapt or you run like my brother did. I stay and fight, I think you of all people appreciate that."

"I do," he said, "I better go though, before everyone starts pouring in. I'm going to lay it pretty thick tonight."

"You never disappoint."

"I'll see you later, Flynnie," Punk said, ruffling the little girl's hair. "Do you want Beth to beat Kelly?"

"Yes, Beth is best! Kelly stinks!" Flynn said.

"Sorry, I've been putting ideas in your daughter's head while you were on the phone with your husband, but I thought they were pretty accurate thoughts, right, Flynn?"

"You're right!" she exclaimed happily.

"Well, I can't argue with the truth, I have no love lost for Kelly Kelly."

Punk just laughed and stood up, waving at the two McMahon women before leaving her office quickly, making sure to look angry so it seemed like he was arguing with Stephanie instead of planning with her. He hated to lie to her, but Hunter not being in charge did serve a purpose further than what he'd said. Hunter had never liked him and if he did get to knock him down a few pegs, he couldn't see the harm in that. He wasn't lying when he said he liked Stephanie, but Hunter, that guy was scum and scum didn't change, it only disguised itself better.

Chris and Sawyer waved as Emily and Aiden left. "Okay, kid, are we ready for Raw or what?"

"Or what!" Sawyer joked and Chris laughed and picked him up. "Okay, well then, we'll just watch something else and we won't watch wrestling."

"Not fair, we have to watch wrestling or else Mommy would be really mad at us," Sawyer said, "and I like to watch it because I like to see what all my friends are doing!"

"I bet they all miss having you around though," Chris said. "Come on, we better get inside before Kensy gets angry at us."

"Kensy doesn't get angry, Daddy, she's only a baby," Sawyer said as they walked back in the house. They went into the living room where Kensy was still lying on the couch watching a video before Raw. She was lying on her side and Chris set Sawyer down, who ran to one of the loungers and hopped on as Chris lifted Kensington and sat where she'd been lying and then cuddled her against him. "Daddy, put it on Raw!"

"I will, hold your horses!" Chris told him good-naturedly as he reached across the couch to grab the remote. "Did you have fun tonight?"

"Uh huh, thank you for the pizza," Sawyer said, repeating what Aiden had said when they left.

"You don't have to thank me for dinner, kid, it's my job to feed you," Chris told him. He turned the video off and then turned the television to Raw, which was just starting. "I'm glad you had a good time though. Whenever you want a friend to come over, any friend, even a _girlfriend_, just ask."

"Daddy, I don't have girlfriends, girls are my friends, but they're not my girlfriends. Do you have any girlfriends?"

"Mommy is my girlfriend, my _permanent_ girlfriend," Chris told him.

"Shh!" Kensington said as she was watching and Chris looked down at her incredulously.

"Now I'm getting shushed by you?" Chris said. "I think all three of my kids run on little wrestling batteries."

The show was kind of unexciting for the most part, at least for Chris. There needed to be some injection of something and it occurred to him midway through the show that it really needed someone like him, not that he was necessarily thinking it _should_ be him, but it needed someone with more charisma than was being outputted at the moment. He'd had people all over Twitter bringing up how all these guys were trying to be him, but were sorry pretenders. He hated to agree with them because he believed that wrestling was a cycle, once your time was up, it was up and there's always going to be new blood, better than you, but his successor, well, his successor was probably curled up in the lounger right now.

By the time the show was halfway finished, Sawyer had managed to find his way onto the couch with Chris. Sawyer's head was nestled into Chris's side while Kensington was asleep on the couch next to Chris with her feet pressing into his thigh. "Daddy, why is Punk so mad? Isn't he our friend?"

"Yeah, he's our friend, but he just wants things to be different," Chris told him.

"He doesn't like Trips, huh?"

"No, it would seem not," Chris said and it seemed that all of the anger Punk was spewing was actual anger and not in any way acting. Chris couldn't blame him though. For a long time, he'd had the same problem with Hunter. It had taken him a long time to trust the man and even now, there was still a lingering aura of distrust that just seemed to come naturally to him when it came to Hunter.

"I like Trips, he's my friend," Sawyer said.

"He likes you too," Chris said and at least that was true.

Punk's words were harsh, but they were heartfelt. Punk was sick and tired of Hunter positing himself as the perfect specimen for a wrestler. He'd been doing it for years, flaunting that he was the Game, that he was everything a wrestler should be, getting title shot after title shot because he was some sort of amazing wrestler. The truth was there were a number of guys backstage that could take Hunter down in an actual wrestling match, guys who'd busted their asses a million times harder than Hunter had ever done. Why should Hunter get all the perks?

Hunter couldn't tell if Punk was being truthful or just spewing things at him. He was once again feeling out of the loop. Stephanie had said to just go out there and improvise what was going to be said, but it felt like Punk had all of this planned out in advance. He was caught off-guard and tried his best to keep up with Punk, but he almost felt like he'd been set up to look like a loser, but he didn't see how that could be. Suffice it to say though that he didn't like the way things were shaping up. And he especially didn't like the thought of losing the COO position.

So why did it feel like he was being forced out?


	340. Warning Signs, September 19, 2011

"It's kind of heinous that I don't have a match."

"It happens," Edge shrugged, "you can't always have a match. I mean, you could, but sometimes you don't."

"Still, I'm me, I should have a match, don't you think?" Christian said. "It's just not fair. I should get at least one more match for the title, I'm entitled to it. Instead, I'm here in Buffalo, New York with nothing to do."

"Well, you're kind of doing something," his brother said.

"I'm sitting in on a play-date between my daughter and her friend," Christian said, looking over at Tilden and Kensington who were giggling together over something only they understood. They kept babbling to each other in some kind of baby language that nobody seemed to understand but them.

"You like your daughter though," Edge pointed out, "you can't deny that you love spending time with her."

"I guess…I mean, of course I love spending time with Tilde, it's the highlight of my life, but what I'm trying to say is that I should be thinking about the match I'm supposed to be having and not thinking about not letting my daughter and Kensy eat a phone cord or something."

"I don't think they're going to eat any phone cords," Edge looked at the little girls who were having a ball of a time. Being so close in age meant they had a lot in common he guessed; he didn't really know much about little kids so he just assumed that because there was only about six months between them that they had a lot in common.

"You know what I mean," Christian rolled his eyes, then looked over at his daughter and Kensington, "Tilde, are you and Kensy still having fun with each other?"

"Yes!" Tilden exclaimed, bobbing her head up and down in agreement of her words.

"Are you having fun, Kensy?" Christian asked.

"Uh huh," Kensy nodded sweetly. It wasn't very often that Kensy got to have a friend with her on the road. But since she'd come with Stephanie and Flynn to Buffalo for the Night of Champions Pay-Per-View, Stephanie and Trish thought it would be nice if Tilden and Kensington could get in a play-date while they were here.

"Cool, we'll eat lunch in a little bit, okay?" Christian said, but they were already back to playing. He turned to his brother, "Are you going to come to lunch with us? I figured I could take them to McDonald's or something, grab a quick bite. Stephanie and Trish said they would see us at the show."

"You're so whipped," Edge said.

"Yeah, like you're not."

"Lita didn't even come with me, so what's up with that, huh? Not so whipped now, huh?" Edge pretended to pop his collar, which made his brother give him a strange look.

"The more you protest being whipped, the more whipped you look by the way, just thought you should know. I don't care that I listen to my wife, she's my wife for a reason because I value her opinions," Christian said. "Besides, if Lita could be here, I'm sure she would be. But I know that it's her mom's birthday and she wanted to spend it with her, so I know that you're still kind of whipped, even if you don't think that you're whipped, which you are."

"Shut up," Edge said, "I wanted to be with her, but she thought it would be a good idea to come to the show and just visit everyone since we were gone for so long."

"Don't let Stephanie get wind of you hanging around-"

"What do you mean by that?" Edge asked. "She already knows I'm here."

"I mean, if she knows that you're hanging around now, that you're _that_ guy, she's probably going to…I don't know, have you on the show or something. I wouldn't put it past her, she's very persuasive."

"Believe me, I know, but would it be the worst thing in the world to be on the show?" Edge asked. "You don't understand because you're there, you're working, you're wrestling, but once you have to step away, there's this itch that you get. It's hard to explain if you haven't been through this. You end up missing it in weird ways. You miss the way falling on your back feels and that sting of someone's slap. You miss the entrance music and going out there and running down the ramp. If I ever get married again, I swear, I'm going to come out to my entrance music and everything."

"You would too, I know you," Christian laughed.

"I know now why guys come back, why they always come back. I know why Flair is still fu—I mean freaking," he looked to the girls who were both completely uninterested in what he was saying, but he tried to watch his language around them nonetheless, "wrestling. He can't help it. None of us really can, maybe the odd one out of everyone. Maybe Chris, I don't know, but I miss it."

"I'm sorry man," Christian said, sorry this had to happen to his brother of all people. It must be such a disappointment to be stripped from one of your loves with no warning. He couldn't imagine wrestling one day and then not being able to the next. It had to be even worse for his brother though because his retirement was completely foisted upon him. There was no chance for a comeback without putting himself at great risk and no matter how much Edge loved the business, he wasn't going to put his life at risk like that and nobody could blame him. It was just much too dangerous.

"You have nothing to be sorry about," Edge told him. "It's not your fault this happened to me, hell, it's not anyone's fault so you shouldn't apologize."

"At least you and Li are together and you love each other and you have a lot of other stuff that you're doing," Christian tried to prop him up.

"Yeah, I do and I'm glad for it, but hey, why can't I at least make an appearance, right? You know, I should really talk to Stephanie about that. She's the President now, she can definitely get me on the show if she wants and if I want. When we get to the show, I'll bring Kensy back to Stephanie and we can actually talk about it."

"I bet she'll be thrilled."

"Knowing Stephanie, I'd say yes. How weird is it that Chris and Sawyer aren't traveling anymore?"

"I don't know since I'm usually on SmackDown, but I know it's different for them," Christian said. "I think they're getting used to it though."

Sawyer flopped himself on the couch. Chris, who had been looking over some notes he'd been writing on the papers he'd written some lyrics on. He had a process when he was writing lyrics. He liked to jot his ideas down first, little snippets and then he would go through and polish them. Because he was such a perfectionist, this process could take days or even weeks because he was constantly going back and changing things or tweaking other things until he had the perfect song. Then he'd send them to Rich to start getting music written.

"Daddy, whatcha doing?" Sawyer asked, turning on his stomach and leaning his chin in the palms of his hands as he looked up at Chris.

"I'm writing lyrics."

"What are lyrics?" Sawyer asked.

"They're the words to songs. Fozzy is going to record and release a new album and I'm writing lyrics for songs that we're going to record for the album."

"How do you write it?"

"I get an idea and then when I get that idea, I start to get more ideas that go along with that first one and then I write them down and make a song out of it until I think it sounds good," Chris told him, showing him what he had so far. "This song is inspired by your mommy, a lot of songs are inspired by her."

"Because you like her?"

"Yup, because I like her very much," Chris said. "So then, when I'm done, I send them to Rich and he'll make music for it."

"That's cool, Daddy. When we have show and tell, I should show everyone your music because we got to go on tour with you and I think that everyone in my class will like it and I think Mrs. Carper will like it too."

"I'd be so proud if you did that."

"I don't think anyone else I know has a daddy like you are, Daddy," Sawyer said. "I don't think anyone has a mommy like Mommy."

"I _know_ that nobody has a mommy like your mommy," Chris winked at him, "but that's what makes Mommy so special and why we're so lucky to have her. She's not like any other mommies."

"I think she's better," Sawyer confided in him.

"I think she's better too, that's why I married her," Chris confided right back. "I don't think I would have been happy if I had married someone else."

"And you wouldn't have me!"

"I know and that would suck big time," Chris shook his head and acted like it was a disgusting thought not to have Sawyer and as far as he was concerned, it was a disgusting thought. Sawyer was his best friend and a world without his best friend was not a world he wanted to live in. Even scarier was a world without his Flutterby and his Kensy-bug. "What would I do without you and your sisters?"

"Um, be very, very sad?" he said and Chris laughed and nodded, laying a soft tap on Sawyer's shoulders. "So are we going to watch Night of Champions tonight or what? I thought, since Mommy and the girls are going to be gone for a couple of nights, we could get some pizza and we could eat in front of the TV-"

"Mommy never lets us do that!" Sawyer said, aghast at the prospect.

"But Mommy's not here so who's going to stop us?"

Sawyer's eyes widened a little, "That'd be fun, Daddy. I still miss going to wrestling though."

"I know you do and that's okay. It's a huge part of our lives. Wrestling is something that's in your blood, not just from me, but from Mommy too. When I was your age, I used to watch wrestling with my grandma. You never met her, but she would have liked you. We used to watch it in her basement and I loved watching all the wrestlers. When Mommy was your age, she was getting baby-sat by wrestlers so it's definitely in your blood."

"Why did you want to be a wrestler?"

"I just knew that it was something I wanted to do," Chris told him and he loved that he was having this kind of deep conversation with his son. "I used to wrestle with my friends and then I'd do weightlifting, I was pretty dorky back then. Once I graduated high school, I knew that I wanted to be a wrestler and nothing else would satisfy me."

"Then you went and saw Mommy?"

Chris laughed and shook his head, "I wouldn't see Mommy for another nine years."

"Nine years!"

"Yeah, nine years. Mommy had _no_ idea who I was back then. I went to a school that everyone called the Hart Dungeon. It was where Bret Hat trained with his dad and brothers, you know Bret, you've met him," Sawyer nodded, he knew who Bret Hart was. "Anyways, when I went there, that's where I met Lance, he was the first friend I ever made when I was a wrestler."

"Wow, were you good?"

"Not at first, but I persevered because I had a dream. I knew that not a lot of people there had the same level of commitment I did, but I knew that I could make it."

"Where was Mommy?"

"Mommy was still in high school," Chris said, "I knew about Mommy. Grandpa Vince used to have her model t-shirts and stuff in the WWF catalogue where they sold shirts and things for the wrestlers like Hulk Hogan and I used to buy stuff from it so I'd seen pictures of Mommy, so I knew who she was."

"Was she pretty?"

"There hasn't been a day in your life where your mommy hasn't been pretty. Even when I didn't like her, I had to admit that she was very, very pretty," Chris told his son. Sawyer giggled at that for some reason.

"Was it hard being a wrestler?"

"It's very hard…well, it was very hard for me. If you want to be a wrestler when you grow up-"

"I do, I do!" Sawyer interjected.

"Well then, it's going to be a lot easier for you. You've got me and Christian and Punk and Hunter who can train you to be a wrestler and you've got what's called the inside track."

"What's that?"

"It's like when you can take a shortcut. You can take a shortcut to being a wrestler because you're my son and Mommy's son. So you don't have to work your way into the company because many, many years from now, you're going to own the company."

"I'll do a good job," Sawyer said seriously, which made Chris smile. "Daddy, can I ask you something?"

"Of course, you can ask me anything, you know that."

"If Punk is our friend and Trips is our friend, how come they're going to fight each other? If we're friends, you don't fight your friends, that's not nice," Sawyer said. Leave it to Sawyer to ask the really, really tough questions.

"Well, it's like this, Mommy is worried that maybe Trips isn't telling the truth so by having Punk wrestle against Trips, she might be able to find out if Trips is lying to her or not. But we can't tell anyone about it because then Mommy would get mad at us and that's not fun, is it?"

"Never because Mommy can be scary. I hope Trips is nice and not lying though."

"I hope so too."

Stephanie wasn't exactly sure what was going to happen going into Punk and Hunter's match. It was last on the card so she had the entire night to mull it over. It was hard to concentrate when it was on her mind so she was glad that she had Britt and Teddy Long there to take care of things for her while she tried to figure out if her father really was behind everything. It didn't help that she had Kensington and Flynn there with her, but they'd been quiet (quiet for those two) for most of the evening so they didn't provide any extra distraction. After the show had started, Flynn was so engrossed in it that, she barely even made a peep. Kensington wasn't as interested so she sat in Stephanie's lap while Stephanie tried to work.

"Mommy, come watch!" Flynn whined from the couch. "Come watch wif me!"

"Okay, hold on, baby girl," Stephanie said, continuing to work out some of the upcoming schedules. Britt had bombarded her with an itinerary for the coming months and she was perusing them and signing off budgets and she had to go over those.

"Mommy, you not watching!" Flynn interrupted her thoughts again.

"I know, baby girl, but I'm listening to what's going on," Stephanie assured her.

"But you not watching!" Flynn told her again, the lilt in her voice decidedly annoyed. Stephanie figured that Flynn wasn't quite used to watching wrestling by herself yet. She had two siblings and two parents in the wrestling business so it wasn't often that she had to sit there by herself and watch.

"I know, but I will be."

"I want Sawa!" Flynn yelled angrily, huffing and folding her arms across her chest.

"He's at home with Daddy," Stephanie told her gently. "But we'll see them on Tuesday. That's the day after tomorrow. Tomorrow we've got Raw and you love going to Raw, don't you? I know you do."

"I want Daddy!" Flynn yelled this time, making Stephanie roll her eyes.

"I can't make Daddy magically appear, Flynn. Now, you can sit down there and watch the show and wait a few minutes for me to join you or, if you really, really want, you can just turn off the show and go play with your toys or something."

"No!" Flynn said petulantly, sending a glare to Stephanie.

"Flynn Murphy Jericho, I will tell you one more time, you do not talk back to me like that or you will get a time-out and I will turn off the TV and you won't get to watch the show," Stephanie warned her. That seemed to calm Flynn down because she just turned her attention back to the TV, but she wasn't happy about it. Flynn was smart though, she knew when to back down from a fight and this was one fight she needed to back down from or else suffer the consequences of not seeing wrestling and that was not what she wanted. "What are we going to do with your sister?" Stephanie whispered to Kensington. Kensington tilted her head back and just smiled.

"You don't trust me, do you!" The voice startled everyone in the room, three pairs of calculating eyes looking towards the door.

"Excuse me, Hunter?" Stephanie asked.

"Why are you mad?" Flynn asked, leaning over the side of the couch.

"You don't trust me," Hunter came forward, ignoring Flynn altogether. "I just get the feeling that you think that I'm some sort of…I don't know…what the hell is going on around here is what I want to know."

"Going on around where?" Stephanie asked.

"Here! Everyone keeps looking at me like I'm crazy, like I'm doing something horrible. I'm trying to _help_ this company, trying to help you and all I feel like I'm getting is grief. I don't even think you trust me in this position."

"I never said I didn't trust you," Stephanie told him, though if she was being honest, she kind of didn't trust him, but that was neither here nor there at the moment. The key was to make sure Hunter didn't know she didn't trust him. "Do you think if I didn't trust you I would make you the acting COO of the company? That's a lot of responsibility for someone I don't trust."

"Then why does everyone seem to hate me?"

"I can't control what people think, Hunter, but I have to say, past actions facilitate present reactions. You weren't a good guy in the past so I think people are wary of you and I can't really blame them because I know that if I was in their position, I would be thinking the same thing. You're not exactly the most outwardly friendly-type of guy, but in this business, in this position in particular, there really is no room to be."

"Is that why you gave it to me, because you knew it would turn everyone against me?"

"Hunter, you _asked_ me if you could do something more backstage, I'm only adhering to your wishes. Stop being paranoid is all I can say," she told him and then felt a little bit bad about it because she was giving him reason to be paranoid, except he didn't know it. By the end of the night though, she might be willing to fully trust him, but he would have to prove himself out there. "Unless you think something is going to happen during your match, do you think that?"

"No, I don't think that, do _you_ think that?"

"I have no idea, that's why I asked," Stephanie said. "I would have no reason to have anyone or anything interfere, it would be counterproductive."

"But you expect someone to come out there. If you think your father is doing something then you must think that he's going to have something happen out there, you must think it."

"I haven't ruled out the possibility, no."

"So you think it could."

"I definitely think it could, so I'd watch my back if I were you, just in case."

She didn't mean to make that sound like a threat, but that's what it ended up sounding like. Hunter looked at her suspiciously, but didn't say anymore before leaving. Stephanie went back to her papers, but only signed a couple more before she and Kensington got up and went to sit on the couch with Flynn. Flynn smiled happily at her mother finally sitting with her and watching the show. She wondered if Sawyer and her daddy were watching too.

"Mommy, Daddy and Sawa watch too?"

"Yeah, they're watching at home," Stephanie told her as her daughter cuddled into her side while Kensington leaned her head against her chest. She smiled down at her girls. "So who do you want to win tonight, do you want Punk to win or do you want Hunter to win?"

"Hmm, Punk!" Flynn declared after thinking about it for a few minutes.

"You like Punk better than Hunter?"

"I like Trips," Flynn said, not wanting her mother to get the wrong idea. She liked Hunter a lot, but she liked Punk a lot too because he had drawings all over him and it was fun to look at. "I like Punk too!"

"Wow, now that's a hard decision, but I guess we'll see who's better later on tonight."

"We will," Flynn nodded seriously.

Chris looked at Sawyer and laughed. The kid was so engrossed in the show that he hadn't said a word for about twenty minutes. Punk and Hunter had been going at it pretty hard for a while now and it didn't look like it was going to let up any time soon. Sometimes, when Chris was watching, he got so into it that the taste for wrestling came back and bit him hard. Of course, he had other commitments going on right now so even if he wanted to come back, it would be difficult because he had another tour coming up.

Chris involuntarily winced as Punk hit a particularly hard move on Hunter. Chris hadn't been in the ring with Punk very many times, but he knew that Punk had a proclivity towards being stiff; it was just the way the guy worked so he knew that Hunter was feeling it now and was going to be feeling it even more the next day. Depending on whether or not Hunter was secretly working with Chris's father-in-law dictated how sympathetic Chris would feel.

"Daddy, they're both good," Sawyer breathed, his eyes not leaving the TV, "I don't know who'll win."

"I don't either," Chris said.

Chris and Sawyer continued to watch until Miz and R-Truth came out of nowhere. Chris didn't know why they would be there, why they'd be interfering until he remembered Stephanie had let Punk poison everyone against Hunter, but that didn't explain the beat-down on Punk. Chris could only deduce that they thought this would somehow put them on the map. Chris tolerated Miz a lot of the time, but Miz would have to think Chris a fool not to see that Miz was trying to rip off Chris's career. It was one thing to be Chris Jericho, a very good one thing, but why would anyone want to come off like the poor man's Chris Jericho because Miz did a good job of it.

John Laurinaitis was the next to come out and that didn't bode well for anyone. Chris couldn't imagine what Stephanie was doing right now, but he could imagine that it involved being incensed and trying to figure out what was going on. Britt was probably there, wondering herself. The match continued, but things were getting to that point where anything could happen and it usually did. Though the match was going and the two men were fighting, things were going on outside the ring that were going to break down this match in a few minutes.

Miz and Truth didn't seem to be done, but Punk and Hunter took care of them, but there was no taking care of Laurinaitis. Chris noticed that John looked to be on his phone and then suddenly out of nowhere, Nash was coming out of the crowd. Chris was about to think that this was all a plan incited by Hunter and Nash and he would have continued to think it if Nash didn't attack Hunter. It seemed pretty clear then that Nash might be working for Laurinaitis and if Nash was working for him, then it was almost certain he was working for Vince. Hunter still remained the wildcard, but it didn't look like Nash had any love lost for Hunter.

"Daddy, what's going on?" Sawyer asked, watching the chaos on the TV screen. "Why did he do that?"

"I'm not sure, Sawyer, I'm not sure."

Stephanie didn't get a chance to talk to Chris until a couple hours after the show ended. She'd tried to find Nash, but he was nowhere to be found. Then she'd tried to find Laurinaitis, but everyone told her he'd left almost immediately after the match. Britt had gone to take care of Hunter and Punk had been so angry he'd told her he was going to his hotel and they'd talk later. Because of all the hullabaloo, she'd had to gather the girls' things by herself and lug it out to the car with the girls in tow. Once back at the hotel, she put the girls immediately to bed because they had a flight to Cleveland in the morning and after all that, she finally had time to call her husband.

"Hey, baby," Chris said as he picked up the phone. "I didn't think I'd hear from you tonight."

"Why not?"

"I thought you'd just be working out conspiracy theories all night, that's all," he joked and she made a noise that belied her annoyance. "So what's going on, what happened after the match?"

"I wish I could tell you," Stephanie told him. "John and Nash were nowhere to be found, Punk was angry, everything is going to hell and I have no clue what the hell is really going on."

"Do you still suspect Hunter?"

"I don't know."

"Don't you think that tonight pretty much proved that he isn't in on whatever you think he's in on though?" Chris asked. "I mean, Nash had no problem beating him down. Do you think that should count as giving him the benefit of the doubt?"

"The thing is though, he kept his job, didn't he?"

"What does that have to do with anything, Nash took out the both of them," Chris pointed out.

"Well, it's easy to take them both out, but go easy on Hunter so he can get the win. It's perfect actually, making it look like Hunter had no clue. At the end of the day-"

"You're an absolute crazy person, that's what's at the end of the day," Chris told her, "you're paranoid. You think that everyone is out to get you, but I don't think they are. I think you're letting Punk scare you."

"Scare me? I don't scare easily, Chris."

"But he's gotten under your skin with his own distrust of Hunter. Look, I think you should take a step back from both Hunter and Punk. Still have your plans, I know you, you like your plans, but just be objective. Punk has reason to dislike Hunter, we _all_ have reasons to dislike him, it's really very easy to dislike him, but maybe that's all that it is and you have to see that for what it is."

"You're right," Stephanie said, "at the end of the day, Laurinaitis is really the enemy, don't you think?"

"Yes, because I think he's the one working for your dad. I think he's still in your dad's pocket. It's important that _he_ never finds out what's really going on because if he knows, _then_ your dad is definitely going to know."

"Yeah, you're right again, you're very smart."

"I'm not in the lion's den so I have an outside perspective of everything," Chris told her. "How are my girls by the way?"

"Wonderful," Stephanie said, "like they usually are and I'm sure that our son was the model child like he usually is."

"Yes, he was, earlier though, he asked me why Punk and Trips were fighting if they were friends, so I kind of let him in on the plan. I figure since he doesn't travel anymore, he's not going to be a liability."

"Well, as long as he keeps his big mouth shut," Stephanie joked. "Speaking of big mouths, Edge said he wanted to be back on the show, at least for a one-off thing, just to be back. I told him that we could work it out."

"I'm sure you love that idea."

"It would bring in the ratings, people miss him."

"So tonight did have a silver lining, huh?" he told her, a little bit knowingly.

"Very small lining though, I had to squint to see it," Stephanie said, "and don't laugh at me, you know that this is worrisome for me. I can't trust my father, he's very untrustworthy. Even if he doesn't know that I had him removed as President, he's still going to want back in either way. I talked to my mom and she said my dad isn't happy in semi-retirement-"

"Not that we thought he would be, remember?"

"Yes, not that we thought he would be," Stephanie said, "but that's beside the point anyways."

"Maybe you should give him a position, you know, something that would keep him busy."

"Chris, you have been a part of my family for how long now? Almost seven years and you think my father is going to accept a job from me? He will look at that job and all he will see is the pity behind it and it will kill him."

"Okay, so no job then," Chris chuckled. "I'm just trying to help you out, baby. I hate when you get stressed like this. If I were there, I would get you to relax."

"How?"

"I would lift your shirt off, maybe you lie down on the bed and then I'd work all the kinks out of your shoulders and back, then I would lean down and press a kiss to your skin and work my way down the small of your back-"

"That sounds nice," Stephanie said. "It actually makes me wish that you were here. I could probably use a little relaxation."

"You should get some rest because you guys have an early flight in the morning. I'm sure Raw will go better for you than did the show tonight. Maybe you can get some answers. You know, I would just go and question John. He'll lie, sure, but if he is lying, you'll be able to tell and then when you come home, maybe we can figure out a plan together."

"A plan _together_?" Stephanie asked, arching her eyebrow even though she knew he couldn't see.

"Aren't those your favorite kinds of plans, the ones where our two equally evil minds come together to manipulate a situation to our benefit? I mean, that's part of the reason we're so good together, right? Because we get each other so well and we don't judge the other too harshly."

"Only part of the reason," she said, "I like that though."

"Good, now get some sleep, I have a feeling you'll need it for Raw tomorrow."

"I'll call in the morning to say hi to Sawyer, I love you," Stephanie said, "thank you for always being there to calm me down."

"I love you too, I'll talk to you and the girls later."

Stephanie was impatiently waiting for John Laurinaitis to show up. She'd told security at the employee entrance to inform her once he showed up, but as of yet, he hadn't arrived. It was annoying because she knew he was avoiding her. And the fact that he was avoiding her was a very obvious sign that he had something to hide. She wanted to speak with him, try to get a feel for what was going on, but she didn't have the opportunity if he wasn't here.

She was willing to give Hunter the benefit of the doubt. He had seemed surprised by the multiple ambushes last night and she didn't figure him for the kind of person who could reasonably fake like they were being attacked unknowingly. Hunter could act, sure, but he wasn't _that_ good an actor. Plus, at the end of the day, she did consider him a friend and if he was a friend, then she really should try and believe his story. She was still wary in the end, but she had to put that aside and focus on the guy who did seem like he was working for someone.

"Earth to Stephanie, come in, Stephanie," Trish said, waving her hand in front of Stephanie's face.

"Oh, hey, Trish, were the girls okay for you?" Stephanie looked beside her to where she figured the girls would be, but then she saw they were already on their play blanket, occupying themselves with the various toys littering the blanket.

"Yeah, they were great, I think I stood here for about five minutes trying to get your attention though, what's going on?" Trish asked.

"Is Christian okay with having a match tonight?" Stephanie asked, deflecting away from her and her problems. "I know that he was kind of mad that he didn't have a match last night, but you know, I hope that this makes up for it slightly."

"I'm not sure, I haven't really asked him," Trish laughed. "He's off talking with his partners or whatever, planning out their strategy. He's just upset that he doesn't have that one more match and…I can't get through to him sometimes."

Stephanie studied her friend, "That didn't sound like a playful, oh my husband, sometimes he's a jerk type response. Is everything okay with you and Christian? I know I haven't been around as much as I could be, what with traveling to Europe with Chris and going with him to California earlier this year, but you know I'm always here for you, right?"

"I know, it's not a big deal," Trish said, sitting down and putting Tilden down on the ground. Tilden made a beeline for her friend, Kensington and plopped right down next to her. Flynn looked annoyed that there was another little kid trying to hone in on her toys, but relented when it seemed there was no getting away from the situation without scooping up all of her action figures and going elsewhere. "Have you and Chris ever been in a slump?"

"Sure, Chris and I fight all the time, we fought a few weeks ago, pretty bad one too, he spent the night at his parent's house even, but we worked it out the next morning for the most part," Stephanie said.

"No, I don't mean fighting, fighting is something, Christian and I, I just feel like we're in a slump, like everything is monotonous and kind of boring. Do you ever feel that way?"

"Well, Chris does a lot of things and I do a lot of things…so we always have things to discuss and we always have plans so there's that. Besides your yoga studio, do you have anything?"

"I mean, we travel with Christian and I take care of Tilden and-"

"God, I'm sorry, Trish, but that sounds horribly boring," Stephanie told her. "You know, it might be the traveling, maybe you're spending too much time with Christian."

"But we've traveled together before and it was fine then."

"But you had wrestling, see," Stephanie pointed out, "you had your own thing. I know you love your yoga studio and all the yoga-related stuff you do, but that's only a part of your time. You should get a hobby or something or, you know what, you're here, why don't I have you mentor some of the divas, the ones who need it, who could use some guidance. Hell, you could help train some of them better before the shows."

"Really?" Trish asked.

"Yeah, sure, I don't see why not. Tilden isn't a baby anymore so she doesn't need you holding her or being with her all the time. I can certainly watch her when I'm working in my office. This way, you'll be doing something that helps others and you'll be doing something to help yourself as well."

"That'd be great," Trish said, "I really like that idea."

"And if you and Christian are in a slump after that, then I guess you'll have to figure out why you're in a slump at all."

"I guess that makes sense, thanks for making me feel better, I really appreciate it, Steph."

"You're my best friend, of course I'm going to help you in any way I can," Stephanie said, "you could help me by calling me immediately if you see John Laurinaitis around."

"You _still_ haven't talked to him?" Trish asked.

"He's being very stealthy, I don't like it."

"I'll be sure to call you if I see him. I hope you can get to the bottom of all this."

"Me too, I really don't want it to end up me against my father again. I'm sick and tired of that fight. So, regarding the new position, I'll have a divas meeting before the show next week and we can officially announce you."

"That sounds great, Steph, thank you so much."

Stephanie was feeling full of goodness and it would have translated well towards the show save for the fact that John was still nowhere to be found. Stephanie suspected that he wouldn't show up until the show actually started in order to avoid talking to her. His case was not doing well at all. If he was going to try and convince her he wasn't working with her father, avoiding her like he was wasn't going to work.

There was a knock on her door about fifteen minutes before the show actually started and she got up to answer it herself. It was Hunter and she allowed him entrance. "So do you believe me now?"

"Hunter, calm down, I never said I didn't trust you," she reminded him.

"But is John Laurinaitis here?"

"No, he's not, not as far as I know. I had gate security on the lookout for him, but they haven't seen him and nobody else I've had keep an eye out for him has seen him either. I never said I didn't think he wasn't working for my father. I firmly believe he is. I just want all the facts."

"I'm starting to think nobody likes me around here."

"I can't help how people perceive you, Hunter." It was the truth too. Punk may have planted a few seeds in the head of the wrestlers, but their perceptions of Hunter had already been formed. He was, arguably, one of the biggest names in the history of the business so everyone was bound to have an opinion of him, a preformed opinion of him and no matter how he acted, opinions rarely changed drastically.

"Whatever, I just don't want _you_ to think I'm not on your side because I am."

"Okay, okay, the more you argue, the less believable you become by the way."

"Why you guys fighting?" Flynn asked, coming to stand in front of Stephanie.

"It's nothing, Flynnie, go play with Kensy," Stephanie told her.

"I no wanna," Flynn said defiantly and held her ground in front of her mommy. "You beated Punk."

"I did, I wanted to keep my job," Hunter looked pointedly at Stephanie. "I'm doing the best I can with what I have to work with, Stephanie. You keep me on a pretty tight leash."

"So does Britt," Stephanie countered.

"Punk is nice," Flynn nodded. "He has pictures."

"Well, I like to think I'm nice too, Flynn," he said, "I'll just go out there and I'm going to do my job and I'm going to do my job well. I hope that you can appreciate that, Stephanie."

Hunter hated the way people were seeing him nowadays. He thought that he would be respected when he took over the COO position, but that was the farthest thing from reality. People never seemed to think the best of him. Deep down, he knew it was his own fault. He hadn't exactly incited trust in people for a long time, but he was trying to remedy that. He was trying to be a man of the people. The regime had been run by Vince McMahon for so long that nobody knew there could be a different way. He was trying to be that different way, but if nobody let him, then nobody was going to benefit from what he wanted to do and where he wanted to take the company.

He wanted to make it better, but everyone kept accusing him and he wasn't even doing anything. He wasn't part of some big, elaborate thing with Vince. He wasn't blind, he knew what rumors were going around. He wasn't working with Nash and he certainly wasn't going to go against Britt. He loved Britt and he would never hurt her like that. He didn't know what was going on with Punk and Stephanie anymore, but that was the problem. He felt like an outsider when he should be an insider and it was frustrating and disappointing that he was being pushed out so harshly.

He wasn't going to let anyone intimidate him though. He hadn't gotten as far as he had in the business letting people dictate what he did. When Punk went out there, Hunter was already planning on going out there as well. He couldn't just sit there and let Punk talk crap about him like he hadn't fought last night because he _had_ fought and he'd fought hard to keep his job. It wasn't his fault that Punk kept getting screwed. There was a conspiracy going on, but it didn't involve him. He was not involved and to be so blatantly disrespected by pretty much everyone was starting to get on his nerves.

Stephanie couldn't believe John had managed to slip into the building without her knowing. As soon as she saw him on-screen, she'd called the security gate, cursing them out for not telling her that John had arrived. The guy on the other end kept repeating that he hadn't seen John come in. After five minutes, Stephanie gave up the argument and figured that John had snuck in some other way, possibly through the front gates. It still irked her though and she gathered up Kensington and Flynn, taking them to Christian's dressing room to ask if Trish could watch them. When she could, Stephanie marched her way to the gorilla and waited.

The moment John Laurinaitis stepped backstage, Stephanie was stomping over to him, "You, me, my office, _now_."

Stephanie had a McMahon look in her eye and John could do nothing but follow her. She kept looking over her shoulder to make sure he was following her. She slammed open her office door and he followed her inside. She pointed to the chair across from her desk and he sat down obediently. The look she was wearing on her face was nearly terrifying and if he didn't obey, well, Stephanie _did_ have firing powers.

"I'm not going to fire you, John," Stephanie began, walking around him as if sizing him up and down, "because I have no due cause and I know that if I were to even try firing you, you would come at me with a lawsuit, not because I think you'd be smart enough to think of it on your own, but because I know that you aren't working alone."

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Don't try and play me for a fool, John," Stephanie said, "you've tried it far too many times for me to count at this point, but you've known me a long time and have I ever, ever looked like the fool you think I am right now?"

"I don't think you're a fool."

"Yes, you say that, yet I don't believe you. You expect me to believe that you aren't in on something here?"

"I'm not."

"Stop it, John, you're not fooling anyone, do you understand me? You are not fooling anyone. You heard Hunter out there, he's going to start digging into this conspiracy and people's heads are going to roll and I don't care who it's going to be. That'll be on _your_ head, by the way."

"I work for you, Stephanie."

"Yes, you do, you should remember that when you're going to my father and telling him everything that's going on," she said, staring him right in the eye, "and don't for one second think that I'm not onto you and my father. When he was in charge, you were the first person in line to kiss his ass. It must _kill_ you to know that you can't kiss mine. I mean, who did my father have by his side, my mom? While she is fierce and I'm sure you're scared of her, she's not as intimidating as that guy I married, you know the one, blond, blue-eyed, could probably take you out in one punch. You were around when he took Goldberg down, right, guy like twice his size? You know if you cross me, if you should do something that I don't like, he loves me…"

"I don't see why your husband is involved, but okay."

Stephanie laughed, "I get it, play it cool, then go tell my father that I'm being paranoid, that I'm starting to crack. That's what he wants. He doesn't trust me. He doesn't think I'll do a good job. I've heard it all before, but the Board put _me_ in charge and it would do _you_ good to remember that, okay, John? You can report _that_ back to my father."

Miz and Truth had to send a message. They were just the unfortunate victims of that message. Stephanie wasn't going to let her father dictate what happened from behind the scenes, using his little croney to do so. Miz and Truth were simply means to an end. If they told her father that she meant business, so be it, this was _her_ company now and she wasn't going to give it up without a fight. Plus, she'd told the wrestlers to go help Hunter when he was attacked by Miz and Truth so that took care of Hunter for a while. Surely, if he wasn't in on the plan and even if he was a little, her helping him out had to help. That left everyone appeased. She'd talked to John and warned him, which had to please Punk, she'd had people helping out Hunter, which would turn down the paranoia, and she'd sent her father a message, which certainly pleased her.

All in all, she'd say it was a good night.

Stephanie unlocked the door and put Kensington on the floor in the foyer. "Daddy!" Flynn yelled out. Chris popped his head around a corner and Flynn's eyes lit up, "Daddy!"

"Hey, there are my girls, we've been waiting for you!" Chris came over and scooped up Kensington and Flynn in his arms. "I've missed you, it's been more than two days since I've seen you, I missed you."

"I missed you!" Flynn said, giving him a kiss on the cheek, which Kensington replicated.

"Dada!" Kensington giggled when Chris pressed a kiss to her cheek. She scrunched up her face and stuck out her tongue in happiness as Sawyer came charging down the stairs and straight into Stephanie's arms.

"Guess what, Mommy?" Sawyer said as Stephanie pulled away from his hug.

"I got to tell everyone at school today that you get to boss everyone around," Sawyer said, "they like you."

Stephanie laughed, "Well, I'm glad they liked me after you told them I'm bossy."

"You're the boss, I said that."

"But, kid, what was the subject of why you were talking about your mommy?" Chris prodded him.

"We were talking about heroes," Sawyer told her, "and I said that you were my hero because Mommy, you can do anything."

"Oh, well," Stephanie said, looking up at Chris, who gave a slight nod. She pulled Sawyer into another hug and gave a slight laugh so she wouldn't cry at being named one of her son's heroes. She knew at this age that the parent was really one of the only people a kid looked up to, but still, it was enough to make her want to burst into tears. "Thank you, baby boy, I'm very proud of you."

"Thanks," Sawyer said, then tugged on Stephanie's hand. "Did you have fun at wrestling?"

"Yeah, I did," she said, standing up and still holding Sawyer's hand.

"We haven't eaten lunch yet, we thought we'd wait for you, make sandwiches," Chris said as they all walked to the kitchen. Chris set Flynn and Kensington down and Flynn took off, with Kensington in hot pursuit (as fast as she could possibly go on her toddler legs). Chris turned to Stephanie and kissed her properly as Sawyer broke away to catch up with his sisters. He took Kensington's hand as he passed her and helped her get to the kitchen. "So, really, how was Raw?"

"Productive."

"It looked like it, but I have a feeling the reason you say it was productive didn't take place backstage. So what was it?"

"I sent my dad a message…and I hope he hears it loud and clear."


	341. Unrest, September 26, 2011

"Who's my pretty lady? Who's my pretty lady?"

Stephanie danced around the room as Kensington laughed and clapped along with Stephanie's pseudo-singing (not actual singing because Stephanie knew her voice wasn't the best thing in the world). Kensington seemed to love it though. She'd woken up from her nap very cranky and crying for her. So Stephanie had picked her up and was now dancing around her room trying to cheer her up.

"Mama, Mama," Kensington clapped, singing along with Stephanie's cadence like they were doing a duet together. Stephanie made a face at her and Kensington laughed. Though Flynn would be loath to admit it, she and Kensington were alike in a lot of ways. They both had a soft spot for people making funny faces for some reason and so their parents and Sawyer took every opportunity to get the easy laugh.

"What's going on in here?" Chris said from the doorway, where he was leaning. "Are you guys having a dance and didn't invite me?"

"Girls only sometimes, Daddy, right, Kensy?" Stephanie said to Kensington. Kensington giggled and leaned her head on Stephanie's shoulder, peeking over at her daddy. Chris came over and pressed a kiss to Stephanie's lips before pressing a kiss to Kensington's shoulder.

"Yes," Kensington breathed out as she snuggled into Stephanie even more, giving a sweet sigh of content.

"I wish I could come with you to the show," Chris said, "I miss you when you're gone."

"I know you do," Stephanie said as Chris wrapped his arms around his girls as best he could, "but we both know this is best for Sawyer. He loves Kindergarten so much and I would feel terrible if we pulled him out simply for our own selfish reasons. That's not fair to him when he loves it so much, just like we knew he would."

"I know, believe me, I know, you see him when he comes home, he's got a million things to say and he tells us all about his day," Chris mused, "on Mondays, he comes home, we have a manly discussion about school over lunch and then he plays for a while, then we eat dinner and watch Raw."

"Sounds very manly."

"It's good to get some father/son time whenever we can. The rest of the week is okay because we love our girls," Chris told her and she gave him a coy look, "but I think it's nice that we can get time by ourselves."

"I agree, my boys need their rough and tumble time, it also explains that tomato sauce stain that is on the couch," Stephanie said, "as I understand it, you eat dinner in front of the TV while I'm not here."

"Damn it, I thought we could keep it a secret," he said.

"Like you could keep a secret from me," she said smugly.

"So what are you going to do about the show, what nefarious plans are you cooking up? What evil lies in your heart that's just bursting to come out?" Chris asked playfully, nudging her in the side.

"Nothing," Stephanie said and Chris's eyes widened. "I mean, after I issued that warning to John, I just…I don't' know, I know he told my father so I'm sure my father's thinking is that he has to lay low for a week. Or at least lay low in my father's terms."

"Which means that he'll still try to do something, but he'll be covert about it?" Chris intimated. He knew his father-in-law and it wasn't like the man to lay completely dormant. The McMahons always had some schemes brewing, at least Stephanie and Vince did. Vince and Stephanie were so similar, but refused to see the similarity between them. The only thing to Chris is that Stephanie's scheming was inherently adorable to him while Vince's scheming usually gave him headaches.

He figured that Vince might not know about Stephanie's coup, but might suspect it. It was no secret that Stephanie had wanted to wrest control away from Vince for a long time. They'd struggled for a very long time and Vince would be stupid to think that when he was ousted out of the seat of power Stephanie wouldn't be involved somehow. Stephanie was never one to hide how she was feeling and what she wanted. Vince was probably taking to retirement like a cat to a bath. Stephanie kept in touch with Linda, talked to her a lot of the time, but any conversation between Stephanie and Vince was stilted at best. He knew something.

He was really glad he never had this problem with his parents. His biggest concern had been them moving so close to him and the fear of feeling like he was going to be smothered by them. Thankfully, the community they moved to provided them with lots of new friends (this was Florida after all, retirement capital of the world) and they only smothered his children and that was fine with everyone. They were actually a godsend to him and Stephanie whenever they needed a break. Stephanie got along with them well too so they were kind of like surrogate parents to her, parents unlike any she'd ever had before. He was glad he could give her that.

"Where you at, Lionheart?" Stephanie asked as Chris dazed away from her.

"Nowhere, I was thinking about your relationship with your father," Chris said, "how you two are more alike than you'd think. Don't hate me for saying it. You and Flynn are a lot alike too, just so you know, so therefore, Flynn is a lot like your dad too so you have company."

"This doesn't reassure me," she told him. "You're saying that I'm just going to pass on these genes of mine that make me a horrible bitch?"

"You kind of already did," Chris joked, "the jury is still out on Kensy though. She's still too young for the full personality to come through, but from that incident climbing out of the crib from last week, I'm going to say that she might actually be more like you as well."

"So both our girls are like me, while our perfect child, Sawyer, is like you, is that what you're saying?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Please, Sawyer is not like either one of us, he's better and we know it," Chris said, "I don't think any of the kids are like me. Makes me wonder sometimes why that is, do you have any explanation for it?"

"Yes, when you're away, the cat will play," she told him, "Now that you're stuck at home with Sawyer, I find lots of enjoyment elsewhere."

"Ted, huh? Well, I guess I always knew you would be a part of the DiBiase posse, just didn't know you'd be the DiBiase whore too," Chris smirked as he started to back out of the doorway, a sly smirk on his face as Stephanie flipped him off with her free hand. "Or have you moved on to a new boy toy, hmm, who might be man enough for you, could Punk be developing a crush? He _did_ say that he liked you."

"Please, Punk? For one, not my type, for two, how could sleeping with me go with his 'damn the man' mentality?"

"Well, I'm a man, maybe he's sticking to me by sticking it in you," he told her as something slammed into his legs. He looked down and saw Flynn, newly up from her nap, grinning up at him and clinging to his leg.

"Hi, Daddy, I done with nap!" she announced excitedly.

"I see that!" he said to her, "Wow, you are looking well-rested, do you think you might want an afternoon snack though?"

"I would, please!" she dragged out the last word as Chris swung her up into his arms. "Hi, Mommy, I napped, hi Kensy."

"Such enthusiasm," Stephanie said, "Hi, baby girl."

"Kensy, you snack too," Flynn ordered her little sister.

"She will," Stephanie said, walking out of the room with Chris as they headed downstairs. Sawyer was over naps at this point so he was watching a video in the living room downstairs. "But what about you and your new mom friend?"

"What new mom friend?" Chris asked as Flynn played with Chris's necklace, which made Chris need to tilt his head away from her.

"The one that's the single mom, you know the one, Emily, right? I can't remember because I still haven't met her even though she really, really seems to like you," Stephanie explained, looking at Chris knowingly.

"Oh, please," Chris laughed, "she's just the mom of a friend of Sawyer's. I do love when you get jealous though, it's very endearing considering how long we've been together and how long I've been faithful to you."

"And how long has that been? Six years…five?"

"Two months," Chris told her and she laughed and slugged him in the shoulder as Chris laughed as well, setting Flynn down on a chair while Stephanie put Kensington in her high chair. "What? I'm reformed, I swear."

Stephanie slung her arms around Chris's waist, "Yeah, you better be reformed, Mr. Jericho."

"Or else what, Mrs. Jericho?"

"Just or else," she teased, leaning up to kiss his cheek. "Is this Emily girl pretty?"

"She's not you, as far as I'm concerned, no woman on this earth _is_ you except you so the temptation is never there. I mean, there are attractive women, but baby, you've got me, all of me for the rest of your life, so you're stuck with this."

"Poor me," she pretended to be dramatic, "oh my God, I completely forgot!"

"What?" Chris asked as he and Stephanie gathered up some yogurt and carrot sticks for the kids' snacks.

"Hold on," Stephanie said, "Sawyer, if you want a snack, pause the video you're watching and come in the kitchen!"

"Okay, Mommy!" Sawyer yelled.

"Okay, so now what?" Chris asked.

"I didn't tell you about the conversation I had with Trish last week. It was so brief that it completely slipped my mind, but I thought you would be interested in hearing about it because maybe you could mine some information from Christian."

"Oh no," Chris shook his head, "I don't know what you're planning now."

"Nothing, actually, it's more serious than a silly plan. Trish mentioned that she and Christian were in a rut."

"Like a fight?"

"That's what I initially thought too, like they were having a fight, but she said it wasn't like that. She said that it was like, they were boring, I guess like they just go through the routine or something, you know, get up, barely talk, take care of Tilden, that kind of thing," Stephanie answered. Sawyer came running into the kitchen and sat down at the table with his sister. Chris and Stephanie took pause in their conversation to get the kids their food, setting it down in front of them before going back to their conversation, sitting on the stools next to the counter to talk.

"So they're in a slump," Chris said, leaning his chin on his hand. "Well, every couple goes through that."

"Have we gone through that?"

"Of course we have, there are times when our life gets monotonous, it usually occurred right after we had a kid, I would go to work, you would be at home and we'd be kind of in this weird slump where everything was the same. Nowadays, we both have a lot to do so it's harder to get into a slump. You have the company and you're traveling, I have Fozzy and the new radio show, prelims for my book, other appearances and helping you out when you need it."

"See, that's what I thought too, like maybe Trish just needs more. She does her yoga thing and that does take up her time, but then when she travels with Christian, all she is there is his wife and Tilden's mom so I hired her."

"She's coming back to wrestling?"

"No, I wish," Stephanie scoffed, "but she's going to act as a kind of mentor to the divas, especially the ones like Kelly Kelly and Eve who might not have a great grasp of the whole wrestling aspect of being a diva. Women like Beth and Nattie, they don't need help, they've got this down, but the other girls, they're floating, you know."

"No, I get it, believe me, I get it."

"I'm hoping that will help out with whatever's going on with them. I don't want it to be anything serious, you know, they're our best friends, they've been with us through thick and thin and I want to do the same with them. When…Kurt turned out not to be the guy we thought, Christian and Trish were there to pick up the slack for us."

"That's for damn sure," Chris said, "I would hate to see them break up after everything they went through to be together."

"I know, it'd be like our friends watching us split up after everything _we've_ been through."

"We'll just keep it a secret from them," Chris winked at her and she leaned forward to kiss him. "Well, that's a good start keeping it from them if we pretend to be affectionate with each other."

"Who's pretending?" Stephanie said, pressing her hand to the back of his neck so she could pull his head closer and give him a proper kiss. Chris tilted his head to deepen the kiss.

"Eww, you're kissing!" Flynn exclaimed.

"That's what grown-ups do," Sawyer explained to his little sister.

"If we didn't have them," Chris said as he pulled away, leaning his forehead on Stephanie's. "You know what I'd be doing to you right now."

"No, Mr. Jericho, it's what _I_ would be doing to _you_."

Trish was actually excited to come to the show tonight. Over the past couple weeks, she couldn't say that she was totally jazzed about being there, not like she was tonight. She hadn't been lying to Stephanie when she said that she felt like she was in a rut with Christian. It wasn't so much that things were bad between them or that they didn't talk with one another, it was more than that, bigger than that almost. They still kissed and they still had sex, but it was all so much of the same that it just didn't excite her anymore.

She knew it probably wasn't anything Christian did or she did, but just the fact that her life was drastically different than it used to be and then she was thrust back into the life she used to live except she wasn't living it anymore. When she went to shows, she would look at the divas and she would see her past and it was…it made her reminisce and miss it, but she also felt like she'd grown past it so it confused her. She wanted what she used to have, but wanted what she did have at the same time.

Tonight was different though. She felt like she would matter tonight. She was going to come to the show and she was actually going to _do_ something, something that would help with the show and help with the divas. They were so often pushed down and she wanted to build it back up again. She had no real personal feelings for any of the divas; she didn't hate any of them nor did she particularly have any favorites either. That made her objective and it would make her job easier. She just wanted everyone to improve. The only thing that could make her hate one of the divas was if they hit on her husband, then they would face her wrath.

"You look excited," Britt said when she saw Trish walking in with Christian and Tilden.

"Hey, Britt, I guess Stephanie told you that I'm coming back in a mentor capacity," Trish grinned, she couldn't stop grinning nor did she really want to stop. Today was going to be a good day for her and she was going to be introduced as the new consultant. She'd done a fabulous job (by a lot of people's standards) on Tough Enough so she felt more than capable of doing this job.

"Yeah, she did, she wants to see you whenever you have a moment too," Britt told her.

"I'm going to see her right now, can you take care of Tilde, Chrissy?" Trish turned to her husband.

Christian looked down at the stroller with the sleeping Tilden inside. "I think I can handle her, she doesn't appear to be very high-maintenance at the moment."

"Okay, great, thanks, Chrissy," she leaned up to kiss him and he leaned down to reciprocate the kiss. She laughed and clenched her fists in excitement as she bounced down the hallway to Stephanie's office. This seemed to be just what she needed to get out of her rut. She reached Stephanie's office and knocked on the door. When prompted, she walked inside and smiled at Stephanie. "Hey, Steph, Britt told me to come see you when I could."

"What did you do, just walk in the door?" Stephanie joked.

"Actually, yes, I did," Trish said, "I just couldn't wait any longer to come talk to you and be introduced and everything. I just feel like I'm about to burst from excitement about this whole thing. I'm so happy you offered this to me, thank you so much for the opportunity."

"You're one of the best divas we've ever had, plus, you know what some of these girls are going through because when you came into the company, you weren't exactly hired because you were some great wrestler," Stephanie reminded her, giving her a pointed look.

"Are we going to get into that again?" Trish asked with a laugh. "I'm definitely not that woman anymore. It's hard to believe I ever was that woman and I never want to be like that again. I don't want any of the divas to be like that either, I want them to think they're better than just being around because they have nice bodies and pretty faces."

"It's going to be tough to make it legit. I'm just saying this as a real thing. I mean, I know my wrestling and I don't know, I think my dad thought with his other brain when he hired females into this company a lot of the time. I know Chris is still angry that we let go of Katie Lea. He really thought she was beautiful. But you know, it's going to be tough."

"I'm up for the challenge. I mean, look at me when I came in, I didn't know an arm drag from an arm bar, I was that green. I worked so hard to become better at it, if any of these girls have that kind of heart, I want to bring it out of them."

"Good, that's the attitude I want. It's time that they wrestle and mean it and not just wrestle and look cute."

"I agree, I totally agree," Trish nodded. "Of course, this does mean I have to work with the likes of Kelly Kelly and the Bellas, but what can you do, right?"

"You don't have grudges against them," Stephanie told her. "I might have grudges against them."

"You don't have grudges against them because even though I know that Kelly Kelly has tried on numerous occasions to seduce your husband, he has never shown any interest in any other woman for as long as you've been together, not any serious interest at least."

"Nobody said I was ever jealous," Stephanie said, "so I'll have Britt get the word out that all divas should report here, is that cool with you?"

"That's more than cool with me, let's do it," Trish told her with a nod.

"What're you doing?" Flynn asked, perking up when it appeared there'd be a plan afoot.

"Trish is going to help all the girl wrestlers to get better," Stephanie explained to her kindly.

"I can help," Flynn offered. "I wrestle."

"You do and I'd say you're better than a lot of the females on our roster," Stephanie indulged her little girl and Flynn nodded very seriously. "But maybe you could be like a special, special consultant sometimes when Trish might really, really need it."

"Okay, I help you, Trish," Flynn nodded to the blonde.

"I'll be glad to have your help, Flynnie," Trish winked at her. "So, are we going to do this?"

"As soon as they get here."

Trish sat idly before there was a knock at the door. Stephanie went to open the door and she ushered in the divas, most of whom were trepid about the situation. Stephanie was the boss now and they had no idea what she cold be saying to them. It was rare that they were all called into her office at the same time.

"Have a seat, ladies, or stand," Stephanie told them, trying to ease their nerves, but it was difficult. Everyone tried to find a place to sit and those who couldn't just stood there. Flynn saw Beth and got excited. She was friends with Punk and she liked Punk a lot. She went over and lifted her arms to Beth, who picked her up easily.

"Hi, Beth," Flynn said jovially. "I wrestle."

"I know you do, I've seen you, you're very impressive," Beth told her.

"Where's Punk?"

"He's around, maybe after this we can go see him," Beth whispered to her, "but I think we have to listen to your mommy first."

"Actually, Beth, Nattie, you two didn't really need to come, but you can stay and listen," Stephanie told the two most proficient female wrestlers on the roster. "Okay, so I brought you here today not to punish any of you or anything, so you can stop worrying."

Everyone visually relaxed and Stephanie inwardly laughed at that. She couldn't help it, but she loved the power she wielded. She had worried an entire gaggle of women without even saying anything. She could just imagine what it would be like if she called a meeting with all the men on the roster. They would probably be scared of her as well and she kind of liked the scene that played out in her mind. She should tell Chris about it, he would get a kick out of seeing all the guys cowering in her presence.

"Now, I know that a lot of you have come under fire for your skill sets or lack thereof, but that's what I'm here to talk to you about. The women's division shouldn't have to be a laugher for people or a bathroom break, I don't want that, I don't think any of you want that either, right," she asked rhetorically, "so I wanted to help and so did Trish, who, if you haven't noticed, is right there."

"Hi, guys," Trish waved. She'd been sitting off to the side with Kensington in her lap.

"As you all probably know by now, Trish is traveling with her husband to the shows and she doesn't really have anything to do so we came up with this idea. For the less experienced wrestlers, Trish is going to be a mentor to you."

"A what?" Kelly Kelly asked, snapping her gum.

"A mentor, someone who is here to help you," Stephanie explained to her while simultaneously resisting the urge to roll her eyes until they fell out of her head. "Trish is going to take time every week to kind of coach you guys before the shows, improve your skill sets and maybe even have a few impromptu matches to sharpen your skills."

"I want to help you guys because there's a lot of potential in this room. It's not fair that guys get so much attention for their wrestling while the women are just supposed to prance around and act like they know what you're doing. Some of you do and when you get in the ring together, I want even footing, I want to see you all excel."

"We don't need it," Nattie spoke for her and Beth, who nodded.

"You guys are very good," Stephanie agreed, "but you two have been career wrestlers, the others, I know my father hired you not so much for your wrestling skills, but I say, let's show him how he should have looked at your talent and not your bodies."

"I think it's a great idea," Eve said, "I'm for it."

"She would be," Beth muttered to Nattie, who smirked. Stephanie shot her a look and she shut up even though Stephanie partly agreed with her.

"So I'm going to leave this up to Trish now," Stephanie said, "she'll be the one working with you and she has complete authority as authorized by me. She cannot fire you, but rest assured, if she sees something she doesn't like, she can come straight to me and recommend your termination so treat her with respect."

"Anyone who wants to do a little training before the show, meet me in the ring in fifteen minutes," Trish told them. "I want to do an evaluation of skill and then we can figure out who is where and if you don't think you need this and feel like being a bitch and thinking you're superior, I suggest you rethink that."

The divas and Trish left save for Beth, who still had Flynn in her arms, "Why do I get the impression that a lot of that was some veiled insult to the divas that they didn't pick up on?"

Stephanie laughed, "Is that how it came across?"

"To me, yeah, but to them, no."

"It's to help them, it really is," Stephanie cradled Kensington in her arms after having taken over carrying her from Trish when she left. "I know you hold yourself back out there, Beth, I know Nattie does too and you shouldn't have to do that. You're not working to your full potential either and it's not fair for you. So I want them to be good so you have to up your game and not plateau."

"I see, I appreciate that then."

"I thought you would," Stephanie said, "not that I don't think you couldn't still annihilate them in the ring, but you shouldn't have to dumb yourself down to the competition and then lose because you get caught off guard because you're bored."

"You sure seem to have me pegged," Beth told her.

"I've been around enough to know these things."

"I wanna see Punk," Flynn piped in.

"Is it okay if I take her for a while?" Beth asked.

"Yeah, just be careful with her, she likes to wrestle so she'll try it out with you and you might not realize she's about to ambush you."

"I think I can handle myself, I'll bring her back before the show starts."

"Bye, Flynnie, have fun," Stephanie kissed her daughter's cheek.

"Bye, Mommy."

Chris liked the alone time he got with his son. The first couple weeks had been an adjustment, but now it was really just a great time he got to have with his son. One of his favorite things was just talking with Sawyer. At this point, Sawyer was able to have long conversations and sometimes they would just sit outside on the grass and talk. Right now, they were sitting in their living room, their backs against the couch as they sat on the floor and played video games on the big screen in front of them.

"Daddy, what was it like when you first started to wrestle?"

"It was hard," Chris said, "when you first start you kind of feel like you don't know what you're doing except that you do know what you're doing. I just had to trust myself. I felt like I had a good first match, but you never know."

"Did the fans like it?"

"It felt like they did. I think I was floating on cloud nine that night, just from having the match."

"Do you think that I'll do that when I have my first match because I'm going to be a wrestler like you are," Sawyer asserted. "I want to be just like you, Daddy, but a little like Mommy too."

"I think you'll feel the same way. It's just a rush of feeling when you have that first match. When I went in to train to be a wrestler, they said it was going to be really hard and that a lot of us would quit, but I knew I wasn't going to be one of those guys. I was going to be one of the best and I wasn't going to stop until I made it to the WWE."

"And you did!" Sawyer grinned, pressing the buttons on his controller simultaneously, "you did make it there."

"I know, it was a dream come true," Chris told him, "for a lot of reasons."

"How did you get there?"

"Well, you know I wasn't happy in WCW, right?"

"Nobody cared about you and you had to do everything yourself," Sawyer said, something he'd heard a million times before whenever his daddy talked about the times he'd spent in WCW. His daddy didn't really seem to like it there, but Sawyer never understood why. His daddy said it was one of the bigger companies, something that rivaled the WWE, but because Sawyer had never seen it like that, he had no understanding of why his daddy would want to be there at all.

"Yeah, that's right. I just didn't like it there and I didn't feel like anyone appreciated me, plus, nobody thought that I could be as good as some of the bigger names at the time. I never got a shot at a really big title," Chris told him. "So when my contract over there was running out, I contacted JR and asked him if he would want me over there."

"And he did?"

"He said there was interest in me and that got me talking about coming over there and then I talked with Grandpa Vince about coming over there and he invited me over to his house to talk to him and some of the other people in charge-"

"Like Mommy!" Sawyer interrupted. "Mommy is in charge of everyone!"

Chris laughed, "Mommy is in charge of everyone _now_, but back then, Mommy wasn't in charge of anything. She didn't really do much in the way of running things. She had just finished with college so she wasn't really in charge."

"Oh," Sawyer said, wondering what it was like when his Mommy _wasn't_ in charge. That had to be strange.

"I went to Grandpa's house and Uncle Shane was there and I talked with everyone and Grandpa Vince and I had brownies in the kitchen that Grandma Linda made."

"I like brownies," Sawyer nodded.

"So do I, that's why I almost had to fight Grandpa to get them!"

Sawyer busted up laughing and put down the controller as his focus turned more towards Chris. "You could beat Grandpa Vince, he's _old_!"

"I wouldn't want to have to fight him," Chris made a face as he put his controller down as well.

"Was Mommy there?"

"No, Mommy wasn't there, if she was, I like to think she would have introduced herself, but she wasn't there. Besides, I was too nervous to really talk to her."

"You were nervous? But it's just Grandpa," Sawyer said. His grandpa could be kind of scary, but he wasn't really scary. His mommy wasn't scared of his grandpa.

"But he wasn't Grandpa Vince then, he was just Vince McMahon, the owner of the WWE and he was big and scary and intimidating. I didn't know then that I would know him so well. I was just hoping he would offer me a job."

"Mommy has his job now, does she like it?" Sawyer asked.

"I think Mommy loves it, I think that's what she's wanted for a very long time. I think she's doing a good job, don't you?"

"Mommy always does a good job," Sawyer said, "I think that she's mad at Trips though because she doesn't think he's doing a good job. I heard her talking to Punk about saying she was going to test him and tests are to make sure someone does a good job."

"I think Mommy just wants to make sure that someone isn't trying to take over for her," Chris said.

"Did Trips meet with Grandpa Vince too?"

"I'm not really sure if he did to be honest. I think that Grandpa Vince made things special for me because he thought that getting me would really make WCW angry. He wanted to make me look good so they would look bad."

"Did he do it?"

"Well, I had to do it for myself because that's what you have to do sometimes, but Grandpa Vince really did help me and he gave me the chance to be really good. That's all I really needed, someone to believe that I could be the best in the world at what I did."

"I believe," Sawyer told him proudly.

"I know, I'm very happy you believe in me so much. I could have used you back then, pushing me on."

"Did you have a girlfriend?"

Chris laughed, "I had some girlfriends, yeah, but nothing was every serious or anything. I traveled too much and I partied a lot. Before you guys, I used to go out a lot, I'd drink a lot and I'd meet a lot of girls and we'd…well, we'd kiss and then I would send them home."

"Do you still want girlfriends?"

"Why do I get the feeling this is Mommy trying to use you to spy on me?" Chris joked, winking at his son. "No, I don't want any girlfriends now, I'm happy now. Once I came to the WWE, my focus really turned to becoming the WWE champion. That's all I ever wanted to do."

Chris mused as he remembered the hard work that he'd gone through to get where he was. Talking about it with Sawyer brought a pride in him. He was glad his son was curious about his past. He couldn't wait for Sawyer to be old enough to read and digest his book. Sure, there were some parts he'd rather not have his son read (losing his virginity was one part he could do without Sawyer knowing about…at least not yet), but for the most part, he believed Sawyer would enjoy getting to know about his past.

"That's what I want to do too," Sawyer smiled at him and Chris reached out to ruffle his hair. "Was Grandpa Vince really, _really_ scary though?"

"Very!" Chris said.

"Daddy, can I be a rock star too, like Fozzy?"

"Of course you can," Chris said, "you know, maybe we can call Frank and he can start giving you those drum lessons that you wanted. Do you want to play the drums or do you want to play something else?"

"I'd like to play the drums, that would be fun," Sawyer said.

"Thank God we have a huge house or Mommy might get mad that you're going to learn to play the drums of all things," Chris said as Sawyer tackled him to the ground. "What's this? Why am I getting tackled?"

"Because it's almost time for wrestling!"

"Oh, well, in that case, it's on Sawyer Jericho!" Chris said as he gave a cry and tussled with Sawyer.

Trish clapped Eve on the back, "I'm really proud of you, Eve, you did a great job out there. I like what I saw and I think you could be a lot better if you tighten up those moves. We'll work on it next week, alright?"

"Thanks, Trish," Eve hugged her. "I think this arrangement is actually pretty cool."

"I do too," Trish said as she let Eve go into the dressing room with the other divas. She was just walking down the hallway when an arm came around her waist and she smiled as a kiss was pressed to her neck. "Hey, you."

"Hey, how did it go?"

"Great, actually," Trish told him. "I felt like I really helped. It felt good to help."

"I'm glad," he told her, hugging her closer. "I want you to be happy, I know you've been bored a lot lately, I'm not stupid, Trishy, I know what you're feeling even if you don't tell me what you're feeling."

"I'm sorry," she told him.

"Don't be sorry, just tell me what you're feeling when you're feeling it," he told her. "I want to know what's going on in your head and I don't need you to sugarcoat it for me, okay?"

"Okay," she said, turning in his arms. "I'll try to be better."

"And so will I, come on, Tilden is with Stephanie and Kensy and I want to talk to the new COO about a match and I need to figure out what to say," he said, kissing her forehead. "You want to be useful and help me out."

"Lead the way."

Christian had always thought he and Hunter were friends, maybe not as good as Hunter and Chris were friends, but Christian and Hunter had hung out in social settings and gotten along. So when Hunter treated Christian like he was some kind of jackass, it really set a fire underneath him and sent him straight to Stephanie.

"How could he do that? You let him do that!" Christian exclaimed to Stephanie, which startled his daughter, who started to cry at seeing her father so upset. Christian mentally cursed at himself and went to pick up Tilden, cradling her in his arms, which made Kensington start to cry because her playmate had been taken away from her. Stephanie got up and picked up Kensington, who buried her face into Stephanie's shoulder, her fists grabbing at Stephanie's shirt.

"He does have to have _some_ authority around here, Christian," Stephanie said. "I can't just use the guy as a mouthpiece, he _does_ have some value."

"Does he?" Christian asked. "I thought you didn't trust him."

"He's given me no good reason not to," Stephanie reminded him. "I can't keep him down like that. I don't even think it was totally unfair after the way you came out there. I'm just saying that you can't expect special treatment because you're friends with something."

"I'm sorry, you're right," Christian said, "I guess the thing with Trish has me on edge."

"Don't you think you should discuss this with Chris, he'd have more manly advice than I would," Stephanie told him. It's not that she didn't want to hear what Christian had to say, but she felt like Chris might be a better listener and advisor to Christian.

"It doesn't matter. You're my friend too. I guess you've noticed Trish has been…I don't know, a little distant."

"Yeah, I've noticed."

"I just don't want her to regret me," he looked down, taking a moment to kiss Tilden's head. Stephanie observed the way he looked at his daughter, like the little girl could light up the world if she wanted to. She recognized the look immediately because her husband wore it all the time when he was around the kids.

"I don't think it has anything to do with that, Christian," Stephanie told him. "I think she just wants something to do."

"Simple as that?"

"I really think so," Stephanie nodded. "Have faith in your relationship, trust me, things will work out and they'll be fine again and then all the divas will be great wrestlers and your wife can take all the credit."

"You really think we'll be okay?"

"You love her, right?" Stephanie asked.

"More than anything," he answered sincerely.

"Then you two will be just fine, trust me."

Christian took Tilden and left, leaving Stephanie and Kensington alone with each other. That didn't last long though because not ten minutes later, Punk came in with Flynn in his arms. "Hey, I needed to return this to you."

"Hey, Flynnie, did you have fun with Punk?" Stephanie asked as Punk set Flynn down.

"I had lots of fun!" Flynn said, jumping up and down and grinning at Punk before she reached her arms for Kensington. She was in the mood to play with her toys but it was no fun playing by herself so she wanted her sister to play with her too. Stephanie set Kensington down and Flynn took her hand and led her over to the toys. At least Kensington was good for one thing.

"Hey, Steph, can't stay long, but I wanted to let you know there's unrest among the peasants," Punk said and Stephanie wasn't sure he was joking.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean I think my turning people against Hunter thing went a little _too_ well."

"Too well?"

"Yeah, it seems that there's some people out for Hunter's head."

"Who?"

"Who do you think?"

"I don't know."

"The people he's screwing over…or the ones who think they're getting screwed over. They're talking to Laurinaitis…"

"Which means that my father is seeing that some people are unhappy."

"Yeah, if your dad is behind this, he's getting ammo. Sorry about that."

"It was bound to happen either way. I'll keep my eye on them."

"I'll keep my ear to the floor if you get what I'm saying."

"I do," she said, "thanks for telling me about it." Punk shrugged and gave her a lopsided smirk.

"I'd rather have you around than him."

"That's nice of you to say."

"I mean it," he said, "so I just wanted to warn you. If they get their way then Hunter might be out of there. I don't mean to worry you or anything, but I wanted you to know."

The only problem was there was lots to worry about now.


	342. Walkout, October 3, 2011

A/N: Thanks for reading! :)

* * *

"And you're sure you can take care of them all by yourself?"

"Why do you _always_ ask me that?" Chris asked with a smile. "Sometimes I think you think that I cannot handle our kids, but I know I can handle them because I _have_ handled them in the past and considering the fact that they're all still alive and well, I think I can do a good job."

"I never said you couldn't do a good job, but usually when you take care of them, they're all healthy and happy and bubbly. They're not this time. Sawyer's okay, but Kensy and Flynn are both sick."

"I know, but I think I can handle their sickness," Chris told her. "I don't want you to worry. You have the show to worry about and I think you're juggling something like, what, fifteen plans right now?"

"It's not that many," she protested.

"Okay, but either way," he said, grabbing her hand and kissing her knuckles, "you have your father hot on your tail trying to get his job back. Just focus on that and let me take care of the kids."

"You're too good to me," she said.

"It's because we're in bed and we're exhausted," Chris said, "I don't have it in me to be anything but nice and kind because I'm too tired to think of anything witty."

"This from the man I'm leaving to take care of my children while I'm working," Stephanie shook her head slightly. "I'm not saying that you're not a good father, but my God, Flynn is the whiniest child when she's sick. As if she could be any worse than she usually is."

"She's not bad," Chris argued, giving his wife a pout. "She's just rambunctious, but she's very nice around others. She always places fairly nice with the other kids. She's a little on the bossy side, but aren't all three year olds a little bossy?"

"I guess so, I don't have much experience with them to know," Stephanie said, "but I think she's getting better, at least I hope she's getting better, I don't want to be the mother to the bully. I don't want Flynn to be a bully."

"Do you honestly see her as being a potential bully?" Chris asked and Stephanie raised an eyebrow and gave him a pointed look, "Okay, yes, I can see Flynn as being a bully, but I don't think she will. I don't think she'll mellow out either, but she knows the time and the place where she can be hyper."

"I hope so," Stephanie said, "I feel bad for Kensy though, this is her first real cold and she doesn't know what to make of it. I guess it could be worse, it could be the flu, luckily all three of them had their flu shots, but it doesn't mean that they weren't susceptible to the cold. I'm surprised Sawyer didn't get it."

"Maybe Flynn and Kensy brought it home from a plane or something," Chris said, "I do know that Sawyer is going crazy being quarantined from his babies."

"He likes to help," Stephanie shrugged. She gave a sigh and Chris reached over and brushed some of the hair out of her face, looking at her imploringly. She sighed again and leaned her head up a little so she could look at him. "I feel a change in the air."

"A change in the air?" Chris asked. "Like what? Because the girls are sick?"

"No, at work, why would I feel a change in the air because the girls are sick?" she asked rhetorically. "That's just stupid, I know they're sick, I can't change that. My poor girls though, they both had low-grade fevers, I felt so bad."

"_You_ felt bad. They look at me with those eyes of theirs, those 'Daddy, please make me feel better' eyes and knowing that they just have to ride it out, it kills me over here," Chris told her, growling a little bit while he talked. "But what's the change?"

"I feel like there's something going on that I'm not aware of," Stephanie told him, "and it's driving me as crazy as Sawyer is feeling crazy. I know that John is cooking something up his sleeve…or should I say my father is cooking something up his sleeve. John doesn't have the balls to pull something over on me."

Chris laughed. His wife could be so dramatic sometimes. He did believe that Vince was trying to pull something; it was too obvious with the way he was going about it. John had always been a kiss-up, one of his father-in-law's biggest yes men so it came as no surprise that he would still be under Vince's thumb. There just shouldn't be so many dramatics when it came to work. Things should be cut and dry, but it never was with this family he'd married into. He'd never known it would be like this. He mused a little wondering if, had he known about the nature of this family beforehand, he would have still wanted to date and marry Stephanie. Easy answer, but it was still fun to muse about it.

"Don't laugh at me!" she told him sternly, the corners of her mouth turning down in a frown, "you shouldn't laugh at me when I'm being serious."

"I'm not laughing _at_ you, I'm just laughing at this whole situation. I'm laughing that I'm in this situation in the first place," he told her. "I mean, come on, who could have predicted I'd be in this epic power struggle between father and daughter."

"Epic power struggle?"

"It's the only, and the best way, to describe it," he told her. "I don't think your dad will get control. I think you're doing a great job and that the board recognizes that. I don't think they want you out, I can't think of one, single reason why they would want you out of there."

"My dad is persuasive though, Chris, you know he is. He has a silver tongue."

"You have a very, very nice tongue," he joked and then yelped when she punched him in the shoulder. "Ouch, ouch, don't bruise the man that's taking care of three kids, two of whom are sick!"

"Yes, because your shoulder is an integral part to taking care of them."

"Excuse me, two of our kids are under the age of four, that means they are prone to tears, what do you think they want to lie their head on when they're bawling their cute eyes out? My shoulder, that's what," he told her smartly and she rolled her eyes. "Plus, for the record, you do have a nice tongue and I'm going to say it as many times as I want to say it."

"He can talk people into doing anything though. Look at how many people he lured over from WCW when the Monday Night Wars were going on. All the people that left, yeah, they wanted to go to WCW, but I don't recall anyone being seriously persuaded."

"I don't know what went on with that," Chris told her, "you forget that I was pretty low on the totem pole over there, so low that nobody could see me."

"But my father persuaded you. He rolled out the red carpet for you, he made you feel special, made you feel wanted. He could be doing that with the board right now for all I know. I mean, not right this second, but he could be having clandestine meetings with them discussing me and he could be talking about all my failures."

"What failures? As far as I know, you haven't had any."

"Remember Daniel Rodimer?"

"No," Chris shook his head. The name sounded vaguely familiar, but he couldn't immediately place it.

"Exactly," Stephanie said.

"Who is it?"

"He was that wrestler, he was in one of the old Tough Enough competitions and I thought he could be the next Rock and I took him under my wing and I made you review matches with him and he completely failed and had to be let go," Stephanie said, "I know you don't remember, but I bet you anything that my dad remembers and he's probably telling them I don't have a good eye for talent so how can I really expect to take the company into the future if I can't recognize talent like he can and then he'll trot out examples like Hogan, The Rock, Austin, Hunter, you, and what do I have?"

"I'll come to bat for you. They weren't there when I went to your father's house. It was just the guys who were your dad's lackeys, not the freaking board. I'll lie."

"You'll lie?"

"Yes, I'll say that I was on the fence, but then Vince McMahon's beautiful daughter called me and told me that coming to the WWE would be the best decision of my life and that I would be a fool not to switch companies," he told her with a grin and a playful raise of his eyebrows.

Stephanie laughed and leaned over to kiss him, "You're the best. Do you think if I made out with Rocky, Hunter, and Austin, they'd say the same thing?"

"I don't know, you want me to call them up and ask?" he said. "I don't think your father is doing any of those things. Plotting, yes, but I don't think he's in the board's ears talking about your shortcomings because there are none and he knows it."

"You can't be objective here."

"I'm being objective!"

"You love me!"

"That has no bearing on what I think of you as a boss," Chris said, "besides, I can be objective because I'm not your boss so I don't look at you and see the woman who can fire me, so there, objective."

"You can look at me and see the woman who could divorce you," she pointed out to him.

"Yeah, right, who would take you if it weren't for me…I mean, no, my darling, you love me so much and our love is so deep," he told her, leaning over to kiss her as she did to him. "Stop worrying, okay, please, you're going to give yourself a heart attack or something. Besides, your father doesn't think you're weak. He may think he's better than you, but he sure as hell doesn't think you're weak."

"Wait…"

"Oh no, what have I done?" Chris asked. Just then, they could hear Kensington crying over the baby monitor. Flynn didn't sleep with a baby monitor anymore (they'd stopped that shortly after she'd turned 3), but because Flynn was sick, they'd had one in her room too. "Saved by the baby."

"Our daughter is sick, jackass," Stephanie said as Chris alighted from the bed at lightning speed and went down the hallway to Kensington's room. They still had the crib tent on it because Kensington was getting too adventurous for her own good and Chris went over and took it off so he could access his daughter. He felt her head and she still felt warm and although her temperature was hovering around normal, she still had a slight fever.

"Dada!" she cried when she saw him, reaching her arms out to him. Chris took her into his arms and cradled her against his chest.

"Shh, shh, I know, Kensy-bug," he told her, "I know you feel hot and yucky."

Kensington just whimpered and buried her nose against Chris's t-shirt and got snot all over it, but better his shirt than his skin. He took Kensington to the glider chair in the corner of the room and sat down, propping his feet up on the ottoman and rocked back and forth a little bit, grabbing a tissue from the side table and cleaning her nose. He hated to see any of his kids miserable like this, but Kensington had never been sick before so it was extra heartbreaking to see his baby girl halted by her cold.

"Hey, you didn't come back," Stephanie said as she walked into the room.

"We needed some cuddle time," Chris told her. "She likes to know we're close, I think."

"Well, she does love us," Stephanie said, "I checked on Flynn, she's sound asleep, which is good. I felt her forehead, she's a lot cooler than she has been, the children's Tylenol worked, I think and the humidifier is making her wheeze less."

"Good," Chris said. "So go on, what were you saying right before I had to get Kensy?"

"I think my dad is going to go for a weaker target," Stephanie said, squeezing into the chair with Chris and Kensington. There wasn't really enough room for the both of them so Stephanie ended up on Chris's lap with Kensington occupying the space on his other leg. Kensington sleepily grabbed for Stephanie's hand in the dim light from her nightlight. Stephanie gave it willingly and Kensington grasped her tightly, even in her exhaustion and cold-induced haze.

"Britt?"

"Or Hunter," Stephanie said. "I mean, you've seen all the stuff that's happening to Hunter, but not to me. I mean, yes, John is acting like a jerk to me some of the time, but it's nothing like what's going on with Hunter. I think Hunter is the target. If my dad can start at the bottom, he can work his way to the top."

"How though? How could he break Hunter?"

"He's already cracked, he could break at any moment," Stephanie said, "not that I totally expect him to, not at first anyways, but he's weak right now, everyone knows it, John knows it. I wouldn't be surprised if my dad tried to get John Hunter's job because then it would cause all kinds of conflict between John and I, leaving me vulnerable…"

"So what can we do about this?"

"We?" Stephanie pulled away to look at his face or what she could see of his face.

"Yes, we, of course we. I mean, I can't exactly come with you this week, but if you need me, you know I'm there for you. You've worked too damn hard and too damn long to get where you are. You've had to wait for so long to get this position and I'm not going to let anyone take that away from you without a knock-down, dragged-out fight," Chris told her, his voice belying the fierce tone underneath.

"I love you so much," she told him.

"Let's just focus on keeping your job, then we can focus on the love," he kissed her then and she kissed him back hard.

"Actually, let's try and focus on getting these little girls better."

"I'm with you on that one."

It was funny what having kids and a family could do to a person. Though part of her relished alone time where she could sleep in and not worry about tying shoes or making lunches or mending action figures, there was another part of her that felt so lonely when her family wasn't around. She didn't have Kensington tugging on her pants asking her with those sweet, clear blue eyes to pick her up. She didn't have Flynn barreling down the hallway with an action figure in her hand, making it fly for some inexplicable reason. She didn't have Sawyer showing her a book and all the new words he could read. She didn't have Chris asking her if the lyrics he'd written sounded okay. It was just lonely.

"Stephanie?"

Stephanie looked up and saw Christian giving her a tentative smile as he pushed the door open. She shook herself free of her thoughts and waved him in, "Hey, Christian, what's up, how are you doing? Where's Trish?"

"She's in the ring right now, going over some things with the divas," Christian said, his smile proud though his voice tried to remain humble. "She's still really excited about the job you gave her. She's taking it so seriously too. She wrote down a list of different moves she wanted to show the divas this week."

"I'm really glad," Stephanie said and meant it. She wanted to see Trish succeed. Her father had never really done anything like this for the divas. Her father had never really been high on them unless they looked good. She wanted to take his scraps and turn it into something great and she had faith that Trish could do that.

"Yeah, where is everyone?" Christian asked, looking around her office. Even if the kids weren't physically in there, there was usually a play blanket set up on the floor with a plethora of toys and books on top of it.

"Trish didn't tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

Stephanie was slightly surprised that Christian didn't know the girls were sick. If Tilden had been sick and it cause Christian to miss work or something of that ilk, Trish would have told her and she would have told Chris. Stephanie wondered for a moment if things were worse between Christian and Trish than either one of them was letting on. She really hoped it wasn't because she wanted everyone around her to be happy or at least partly happy. She was tempted to ask if there was something more going on with him and Trish, but she refrained because it would probably be easier to mine information from Trish.

Instead, she just answered the question, "Flynn and Kensington both came down with a cold, probably caught it from being on a plane…either that or Sawyer, but he isn't sick. Chris and I decided it would be best if they stayed home this week."

"Oh, that makes sense, I bet Flynn wasn't happy though."

"Are you kidding me? She tried to convince me she was fine," Stephanie said with a laugh. "She was pretty cute trying to do it though. She kept saying she was fine, but then she'd have these big sniffles or coughs and she kept trying to say that it was okay, she could still come because she would be better."

"Poor thing," Christian laughed. "How are you ever going to get that girl to go to school?"

"God, don't make me think about that," Stephanie told him, "I already had enough trouble letting Sawyer go to school, I can't imagine two of my kids in school and I also don't want to think of how I'm going to have to literally drag Flynn away from wrestling."

"Hopefully she'll have calmed down by then."

"Have you ever seen Flynn watch wrestling?" Stephanie asked and Christian conceded that she had a point there. Flynn was enamored by the sport. "So what's on your mind, Christian? Is everything okay?"

"No, actually, it's not," he told her. She began to wonder if this _was_ about him and Trish. Maybe things _were_ getting worse between the two of them.

"What is it?" she asked.

"I just wanted to warn you about what's going to happen tonight, on the show, I mean," he told her, sitting down in front of her. "I just…I just didn't want you going into tonight not knowing what was going on. I know you have some sort of thing with Punk-"

"Don't make it sound like I'm having an affair with him, Christian," Stephanie said, sticking her tongue out. She may like Punk, but the last thing she was, was attracted to him. He definitely was not her type.

"I didn't mean it like that, I just know that you're kind of in on things with him," Christian said, "but I'm not sure if he's down with what's going to happen tonight."

"What's going to happen tonight, what do you mean?"

"It's Hunter," Christian said. "There's been rumors going around, strong rumors about something happening tonight to take him down. There's been a lot of talk about that lately. I think it's coming from Laurinaitis. I've been trying to do my own spy work, you would be proud."

"You've been spying for me?"

"Yeah, I've been saying that Hunter isn't a great COO, he's doing badly at his job, nothing against you, of course, but I've been keeping my ear to the ground as they say."

"As they say?"

"You know what I mean. Anyways, there's supposed to be some big meeting tonight, something about getting Hunter out of power. People are pretty serious about this. I haven't seen some of the guys do it, Punk, Cena, they haven't really been involved, but it's pretty wide-scale. People are even looking to me to say something, like I'm in charge of this."

"Are you?"

"No, I'm just trying to help you, I know how much this means to you, the job I mean, not Hunter being the COO."

"Thank you, Christian. Are you okay to be seen with me?"

"Wow, I didn't even think of that. I'll tell you what, I'll tell Trish what I know and she can tell you. You're best friends, people won't suspect anything."

"Thank you, Christian, I appreciate this."

"You're my friend," Christian said simply before he ducked out of her office, trying not to be seen.

Chris checked in on Kensington and was pleased to find she was still asleep. Her naps had been extra long since she had gotten sick, but the extra rest could only be good for her. Chris went back downstairs to look in on Flynn. She'd woken up from her nap, but was still fatigued and had settled herself down on the couch. Chris had put a blanket over her and a pillow under her head. He'd also given her a cup with a lid and a straw so she could drink some Pedialyte so she didn't get dehydrated.

"Daddy, phone ringing!" Flynn's tired voice called out.

"Thank you, Flutterby," he said as he came into the room to grab his cell phone. He looked briefly at the display and smiled, "Hey baby, what's going on? How are things?"

"Not good, Chris," she told him.

"Daddy!" Sawyer yelled from somewhere in the house.

"Hold on," Chris said, pulling the phone away from his mouth. "Sawyer, where are you?"

"Upstairs!" Sawyer yelled at him.

"What do you need?" Chris asked him, walking into the foyer and looking up to where Sawyer was standing. "Is it Kensy, did she wake up?"

"No, she's not awake, I just wanted to watch one of your DVD's before wrestling, can I?"

"Sure, I'm just talking to Mommy, but after I talk with her, you can watch it in my office, okay?"

"Can Flynnie watch it too?" Sawyer implored, using the strategy he'd thought about earlier. His daddy wouldn't let him see either of his sisters and it was getting boring having nobody to play with. He didn't even get to see his babies at all. They didn't even eat dinner with him. He had to eat it with his Daddy by themselves and it wasn't that unusual to do that on Mondays anymore, but his sisters were here and in the house and he couldn't even eat with them. It just wasn't fair, he was so bored!

"Kid, what have I said?"

"But Daddy!" Sawyer whined.

"I wanna DVD wif Sawa," Flynn showed up out of nowhere, the blanket dragging behind her in one hand and her other clutching her cup. She took a happy sip of her drink and then smiled up at her brother. "Hi Sawa!"

"Hey Flynnie," Sawyer said, waving at her.

"Okay, you two, you said hello, Flutterby, back to the living room, Sawyer, you can go watch TV in my office, I'll be up there as soon as I'm done talking with Mommy."

"I love you, Mommy!" Sawyer said after giving Chris a huge pout.

"Love Mommy too!" Flynn added, letting Chris know to tell her mommy that she loved her too, not just Sawyer.

Chris followed Flynn into the living room where she climbed back on the couch to watch TV. Chris situated the blanket around her while simultaneously talking to Stephanie, "Sorry about that, the kids say they love you though so you should feel immensely happy about it."

"I'm not happy."

"What's going on then? What could possibly be so bad? Is your dad there or something?" Chris asked.

"No, but something is going down tonight, something huge is what I'm being led to believe."

"Huge? What do you mean by huge? Are you okay, is everything okay with you? Is there someone there to protect you? I think I have Punk's number, do you want me to call him? Does this have anything to do with Hunter?"

"Okay, sweetie, deep breaths, I'm not in any immediate danger," she told him, laughing a little and loving that even without trying her husband could make her feel better. "It's not even really about me, I mean, it is, but not really."

"Okay, so what's going on then?" he asked, calmed by the fact that his wife wasn't in danger. If she was, he might have to sprout wings and go save her. He'd have to call his parents first to take care of the kids and he briefly wondered if maybe it would be best if Sawyer spent the night with his parents until Flynn and Kensington were all better.

"Hello," Stephanie said on the other end, "did I lose you over there?"

"What? Sorry, I was just thinking that maybe the kid should stay with my parents until the girls are better," Chris said.

"If you want," Stephanie said, "but the girls are probably past contagious at this point. They've been sick since Friday so they're probably just on their way to being mended now."

"Yeah, you're right, sorry, go on, what were you saying?"

"Thank you," she said, "anyways, I was just sitting here, minding my own business and Christian comes in and he tells me that there's some sort of coup being staged right now."

"Against you?"

"No, against Hunter. There's word going around…well, actually, Christian seems to have gone rogue on me because he's been spying without me knowing it. Anyways, apparently John has been planning something, some sort of calling out against Hunter. I think he has a lot of people behind it, at least it sounded that way hearing it from Christian. Christian is pretending to be a part of it so he can get information."

"Wait, so John and these people are planning something, how many people are we talking about?"

"A lot," Stephanie said, "Christian is going to tell Trish and she's going to tell me a little later so as not to arise suspicion with Christian talking to me. It seems like this is a real problem. If John is behind it, remember when I said that my father might go after the weakest link. He's going after Hunter. He can't take me down, he wouldn't, but he can take Hunter down. You know he doesn't have the best reputation."

"That's true, what are you going to do?"

"What can I do?"

"I'm not sure," he admitted.

"I can't go out there and say that they can't defy me, it'll just make them turn on me and that's probably what my father wants me to do. If I go out there and the entire roster turns on me, Chris, my father can swoop in and prove that I was wrong."

"That would definitely be something your father would do, I admit."

"I know it is. But then on the other hand, if I let them do this to Hunter, I might lose him as a friend for not coming out there to defend him, for basically sending him to the wolves."

"What does Punk think about this?" Chris asked. "Is he orchestrating it in any way?"

"Christian said that Punk really doesn't have a part in it that he knows of."

"Okay, well, I think it comes down to what you want to do about it, baby."

"I don't want to lose my job."

"You do know that Hunter might be pissed with you, right?"

"I know, but…this is all I've wanted, Chris…for so long, this is all I've wanted and I don't want my father to come in again and take it away from me."

"Here, why don't you do this? Hear what Trish has to say, call me, then we'll talk again; there's enough time before the show for this to happen and if it does happen on the show, well, I don't know, but we'll figure it out."

"Thank you, Chris, I love you," Stephanie said.

"You know, I love you too, keep me posted."

"I will, tell the kids I love them."

"I'll do that," Chris said, "I'll talk to you soon."

"Yes, soon."

Stephanie waited impatiently for Trish to come find her. She hadn't seen Britt or Hunter since right after she'd arrived and she knew Britt had a lot to do, but Hunter, maybe it was just that she didn't want to see him or talk to him. If she saw him, she might spill what was going on and she wasn't sure that was the best idea right now. Hunter could be a very irrational man when he wanted to be and knowing that everyone was plotting against him might make him very angry and lash out and she couldn't afford anyone lashing out right now. This was her regime and her father was trying to take it right out from under her and she couldn't afford any mistakes.

She just didn't trust that Hunter wouldn't go completely off the handle and do something stupid. Was she content to sit back and watch what might happen tonight? No, not really, but the choices were both bad. If she defended him, if the whole, entire roster was going to be out there denouncing him and she came to his rescue, they would turn on her too, they would start turning their anger towards her and she couldn't afford that with her father lurking in the shadows. It was all about self-preservation for Stephanie.

The only people Stephanie cared about more than her job was her husband and her kids. Nobody else even came close and if she had to choose, this had to be the way. Stephanie wished that she had at least one of the kids here to distract her, but she didn't. She could only sit there and tap her pen against her desk and she was starting to get annoyed with herself. It was with great relief when the door open and Trish came inside with Tilden.

"Hey, sorry I couldn't get here sooner, I was talking with Kelly Kelly and she was telling me that a bunch of people are going to confront Hunter tonight and if they don't get him to resign or something, that they're going to walk out."

"Walk out? As in they will physically leave?" Stephanie asked. This was worse than she thought if they were actually thinking about walking out. Her mind remembered the last time she'd been in this position. Or at least the last time she could remember being in this position. It was years ago, when she'd still been married to Hunter. They'd fired Mick Foley and Rocky had gathered up every superstar backstage (including her current husband) and they'd gathered around the ring threatening to walk out if Mick wasn't reinstated.

She'd remembered the fear that coursed through her then. She'd just taken over, the McMahon-Helmsley Era was in full swing, but it was precarious, just like it was now. It would continue to be precarious as long as her father was still here. Not that she wanted her father to die; she simply wished he could be happy in semi-retirement.

"Yeah, they will physically walk out of here. Kelly Kelly said that she wants no part of it though," Trish shrugged.

"Great, I'm going to have two hours of Kelly Kelly if this happens," Stephanie said, "is there anything I can do to stop this?"

"Fire Hunter, that's the only way. I don't know why they're so pissed. I think it's just because now he's in a position of power and you know that not very many people actually like him. Christian, I talked to him by the way, said that he thinks it's really all John Laurinaitis's fault and that if it weren't for him, everyone would be fine with the way things are going."

"I have no doubt your husband is right," Stephanie leaned back in her chair. "I can't have them walk out."

"You're going to fire Hunter?" Trish asked, her eyes widening. She never would have expected that from Stephanie.

"No, I'm not going to do that either. I guess…if they're going to walk out, I'm going to let them walk out."

"You can't be serious, Stephanie, what the hell would you do?" Trish asked. "You can't have a show that doesn't have any wrestlers. I mean, maybe Christian would reconsider."

"Christian said Punk wasn't involved, did he say that to you?"

"Yeah, he said that there are a few guys who want no part. I think it was like, Randy, John, Punk, Kelly Kelly, just a few of the top tier guys."

"Fine then, I will let the rest leave," Stephanie said.

"Are you serious?"

"You know what, yes, I am. I put Hunter in that position for a reason," Stephanie said, "and if the rest of those guys want to act like fools, we'll see how far it gets them."

"Stephanie, think about this though, your father would have a field day with you if you let all the wrestlers walk."

"I can handle him."

"Are you sure?" Trish said.

"No, but I don't see any other way."

Chris sat at the table with his kids. Since Stephanie had thought the girls were probably no longer contagious, he didn't feel like they should have to eat apart. Sawyer and Flynn were chattering away because it felt like they hadn't been able to see each other in forever. Chris had made chicken fingers, French fries, and cauliflower for dinner and so it was a very finger-accessible meal so he could focus on eating himself instead of cleaning up food for everyone. His phone rang by the side of his plate just as he was cutting up another chicken finger for Kensington to eat.

"What's going on?" he asked as soon as he'd wiped his hands on a napkin and picked up his phone.

"They're going to walk out."

"Walk _out_?" Chris asked. "What do you mean walk out?"

"Like walk out, walk out. It's Laurinaitis's doing, that's what Trish told me. He's the one behind this entire thing. They're going to call out Hunter and if Hunter doesn't resign or something, then they are going to walk out."

"Everyone?" Chris asked incredulously as Flynn and Sawyer ceased their conversation to look at Chris. He looked like he was upset over something, but they couldn't figure out what he'd be upset about.

"Almost," Stephanie answered, "Trish said there are only a few people who don't want a part in it, mostly the main guys like Punk and Cena, Kelly Kelly too, but she probably doesn't grasp what's going on rather than try to prove a point."

Chris almost let himself laugh over that one, "So what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to let it happen. I figure, if I don't let it happen, if I stop, like I said, my father will see it as me standing behind Hunter and then he'll get me put out. I guess if I stay out of it, maybe…I don't know, maybe next week…maybe my father will think it's actually Hunter's doing."

"Okay, you know I don't like plans in general, right, I mean, I do, but…"

"No, I know what you mean," Stephanie said. "You don't like it when I have some extreme plan."

"Here's what I want you to do. I want you to tell Britt that Flynn's fever spiked and I had to take her to the hospital. She's okay, but she's dehydrated from the cold, then I want you to leave. Just leave, change your plane ticket and come home tonight. At some point, I want you to call your mom, tell her that Flynn isn't feeling well and we can't find her blanket and we think we might have left it at our house the last time we were there. With your mom thinking that Flynn isn't well she'll obviously tell Vince. Vince will then know you aren't at the show therefore you would have _nothing_ to do with what happened tonight because as far as he's concerned, you're totally in the dark about everything."

"Oh my God, you're a genius," Stephanie said. "Why are you holding out on me when I have plans?"

"Daddy, I okay," Flynn said.

"I know," Chris said, "but you are feeling sick and you have been thirsty, right?"

"I firsty right now!" Flynn said, grabbing her cup and slurping up her Pedialyte through the straw.

"Good, drink up," Chris said, "look, if your dad thinks that Flynn is sick then he's going to be sympathetic, he has a soft spot for the kids that he doesn't have for anyone else. If your dad were to go to the board and try to get your job, you can counter with the fact that you were not at the show and had no idea what was going to happen. Who are they going to be more considerate towards, the man who has probably treated them like they were blowhards for years or the woman who rushed home to be with her sick three-year-old daughter?"

"I love you so much right now," Stephanie told him. "I don't think I've ever found you hotter."

"I told you if you needed me, I would help you, it just so happened this was the way that I had to help you. But seriously, go now before the show starts so you can't be culpable for anything that happens."

"Okay, I love you, I'll probably try and catch a red eye so if someone comes into your room and ties you to the bed and has sex with you right there and there, it's just me."

"Oh, really, because I have a girl on the side who likes to do that too," Chris told her with a smirk though he knew she couldn't see it.

"Tell her to take the night off, I'll talk to you later, bye."

"Bye, good luck," Chris said.

Stephanie gathered up her things haphazardly, looking like she was disheveled and then grabbed her bag. She tried to carry them all in her arms as she left her office. "Britt, has anyone seen Britt?" Stephanie asked, trying to sound frantic.

"Yeah, I think I saw her near catering," Kofi Kingston told her.

"Thank you," she said, then walked quickly to catering. She saw Britt sitting inside eating and she rushed over to her. "Britt, thank God I found you."

"Hey," Britt said, "oh and let me ask you, is there some weird vibe going on tonight? I feel like I've been getting stared at or something, it's weird."

"I don't know," Stephanie lied and she did hate lying to her friend like this, but if Britt wanted to keep _her_ job than Stephanie had to keep her job. "I actually have to leave immediately."

"What? Why?" Britt asked, obviously confused as Stephanie expected her to be.

"Chris just called me, Flynn wasn't feeling well, fever spiked or something and he took her to the emergency room and she was dehydrated. Chris said she'll be fine, they just had to get some fluids in her, but with being so sick, you know, it's always a worry, but I wanted to get home to be with her."

"Of course, I've got everything covered. Don't worry about it, just worry about Flynn."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, rushing out of there and trying to look harried. Was it mean of her to do this? Yes, it was, but Stephanie never claimed to be innocent. Was it the worst thing she'd ever done? No, it wasn't, not even close to the worst thing she'd ever done. But if she had any hope of keeping her job and not letting her father swoop in and take it right back from her, she couldn't be party to things like that, she couldn't look like she was supporting a losing horse.

Stephanie got in the limo and called her mother, asking if she could drop by their house to look for something that wasn't even there. She knew the information would get to her father, her mother wouldn't keep something like this away from Vince, Stephanie knew that. Everything was going according to plan and her husband was the one to thank. He knew how important this was to her and sometimes in business, you couldn't have scruples or morals, you just had to act in self-preservation.

When everyone was coming at him like he was the anti-Christ, Hunter, for the first time, knew what it felt like to be judged on his past actions. He knew that a lot of the guys backstage held a grudge against him, thought he'd slept his way to the top with Stephanie and was probably doing so now with Britt, but it was all conjecture and hearsay. But to stand there in the ring and feel bombarded like he was, it was like it had all come to a head.

And the accusations were ridiculous to him, totally unfounded and it was like they were scratching at dirt to find ways to knock him down. They called him out for grievances of which had not played a part. Barrett called him out for parking lot beat-downs, like Hunter had been personally standing there watching. What had happened to these guys? Ten years ago, a beat-down in the parking lot was the norm, you had to stay on your toes, be a man not a coward like these people were. Then Beth saying the divas felt unsafe, unsafe from what exactly? The divas weren't in any danger and why was she making it sound like he was personally terrorizing them.

Everything just felt like this strange land where everyone was turning against him. When the first guys started to leave it felt surreal, like it wasn't even happening. Then everyone started leaving, every single person and it was this mass exodus of employees, even the one bastion of hope he thought he would have in JR wasn't to be. Even the camera guys were walking out and he was so confused. He didn't know what to do or what to think because he didn't know what brought this on. It should have been obvious though, Laurinaitis was behind this, Laurinaitis was the one orchestrating this.

"Daddy, everyone left," Sawyer said as he watched Raw with Chris. "They all just left."

"I know," Chris said, not believing what he was seeing. He wouldn't have been out there and it had nothing to do with the fact that Hunter was his friend and Stephanie was his wife. It was a cowardly move, just to watch out. That wasn't how it was supposed to work. You had to fight for change, not just walk out. The only one he understood was Christian because he knew Christian was acting as a spy, but the rest of them. This breed of wrestler was nothing like he'd been through. They thought Hunter was creating an unsafe working environment? How spoiled were some of these younger guys? He'd had to wrestle in gyms with rings that seemed ready to collapse under butterfly wings. WWE was the best out there in terms of sheer quality of equipment and money and these guys were just plain cowards.

"Why?"

"Because they're dumb, that's why," Chris said.

When Stephanie finally got home, in the middle of the night, she slipped into bed next to Chris, waking him up. "Hey," Stephanie said, "I didn't mean to wake you."

"It's okay," he told her.

"What happened? I mean, I read it, but…was it bad?"

"Yeah, it was bad," Chris said. Stephanie nodded a little and Chris leaned forward to kiss her. "But you're going to be the boss, okay, nobody is going to take that away from you, I won't let them."

"I believe you," Stephanie said, "I'm just not sure what my father has in mind."

"Whatever it is, he's not winning. We are."


	343. Checkmate, October 10, 2011

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, hope you enjoy the chapter, I had fun writing it. :)

* * *

"Did you want to get some pizza for dinner?"

"Yeah, sure," Hunter said, but it was so noncommittal that Britt had no idea if it was what he actually wanted or if he was just saying it because it would get her off of his back. Not that she was on her back, but he seemed to take every sentence to him as a slight, no matter how hard she worked to try to cheer him up.

Britt walked over to where he was sitting on the couch watching some World's Strongest Man thing on ESPN Classic and took a seat next to him. She looped her arms through one of his and then leaned her chin on his shoulder. She made no attempt to talk for a few minutes, just reveling in the quiet. She didn't want to seem obtrusive to him and he didn't shake her off so she figured that her presence wasn't bothering him. She pursed her lips a little in thought before closing her eyes and tucking herself in closer to him.

"I know you don't want to talk about what happened, but can I?"

"I can't stop you from talking," Hunter told her.

"I know, but I don't want you to get mad at me or anything. I know you haven't gotten mad at me, but I don't want to push too far," she admitted. She didn't know what it was going to take to really set him off. She almost wished he would get super angry, just start throwing things at the wall or going to their in-house gym and reducing their punching bag to nothing but a heap of stuffing.

His anger was simmering inside of him and she could feel it whenever she touched him, but he kept himself reserved and she couldn't figure out why. Why wasn't he angrier, why wasn't he calling up the wrestlers and demanding they be there on Monday? She wanted him to _do_ something, not just accept it. Maybe it was the fact that the walkout involved so many of their colleagues, but even so, Hunter hadn't been deterred by this kind of thing in the past, but he also hadn't have the entire roster save for a few people just completely leave.

"I'm not mad."

"See, that's where I think you're wrong," Britt said. "I think inside you're seething with anger over this. I think the problem is that you don't know what to do about it. Usually, you would take it out on someone, whoever made you angry. You would call them out and have a match with them because that's how you've always operated. This time, however, you can't exactly do that. There are over 50 people who walked out on you, called you incompetent, and that _had_ to bug you, babe. I don't care who you are, from a production assistant to the Chairman of the Board, being called incompetent has to bug you."

"Well, yeah, I'm bugged. They don't know how it is to be management and what did I do that was so different from anything Vince did when he was in charge or when Stephanie was in charge or when Bischoff was in charge or any of the other Raw GM's that have blasted their way through this damn company? What made me the target, you know?"

"I can't say that I know, honey," Britt pulled her arms away from him and reached behind him to rub his back. "I just think that they thought you would be an easy target because you're a wrestler. I guess they just thought, I don't know, that you couldn't really do anything about it."

"That's not fair though. I haven't put them in danger, I haven't done anything to them. I've been trying to make things better!"

"You know, it could just be old grudges."

"Don't you think I've paid those dues?"

"I know, I think you have, I don't think you're the man you once were, but you can't underestimate other people's grudges. I can see that there would be guys who had faced you in the past or who might have wanted to try to befriend you who you might have been…less than nice to and they see that now you're in power and they think to themselves, oh, he got there because he's dating the new head of Raw and he was once married to the new President. It's just jealousy and old grudges."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" he snapped and he didn't mean to, but he hated this situation. The people who had left were cowards, plain and simple. They couldn't take him so they walked, what kind of lame excuse was that. Sure, John has put the seeds into their mind, but they had made their individual choices to leave. Well, except Christian, he had heard from Chris that Christian was spying to see what was going on in this little faction.

"Hey, hey, hey, don't get mad at me now, okay," Britt warned him. "I want you to get mad, but don't you dare turn that anger on me."

"I thought for sure Stephanie would _do_ something."

"Hunter, I know you wish she could, but she was gone by that time. She didn't know this was going to happen," Britt said. "It's her father's doing, not hers. I'm sure if she'd been there, she would have chewed out all those guys for leaving."

"You really think so?" he asked her incredulously. "You think that Stephanie would have lifted one finger to help me out there, to step out and call _them_ out for what they were doing? You honestly think that?"

"I honestly think that, but I'm guessing you don't. She was the one who appointed you as the figurehead. Why wouldn't she help you in this circumstance?"

"Because it would have made everyone mad at _her_," Hunter explained. "Stephanie wouldn't risk that, even for me."

"This isn't her fault, this is John Laurinaitis's fault, this is Vince's fault, but you can't fault Stephanie. Flynn was dehydrated and she had to go to the emergency room. Stephanie _had _to go back home. If we had kids and one of them was sick, you would want to be home immediately, wouldn't you?"

"Yeah, I mean, I guess I'm not mad at her, I just wish she had been there. I'm not sure if she would do anything, but having her there, she's intimidating and the boss, if she said something, wouldn't they all have to listen."

"You'd think so," Britt said.

"Have you talked to her?"

"I talked to her briefly on Wednesday, just to see how Flynn was doing and everything. We didn't discuss much about what happened or about business in general, just a few things. I figured we had all week to come up with some sort of solution and Stephanie probably needs time to think about it anyways."

"What do you think she's going to do? Did she give you any indication at all what she might do, a clue, a hint?"

"She said that she's probably just going to let them walk."

"What?" Hunter said, not comprehending what his girlfriend had just said. To his ears and brain, it sounded like Stephanie was giving up. Stephanie _never_ gave up. She was the kind of person who would power through anything without any regard for anyone else just to reach whatever goal she set for herself. There had to be something more to this.

"Well, I don't know the particulars, but she said if they want to act like that, then we'll just do the show without them."

"And do what?"

"Well, I don't know, there are a few guys at our disposal. We'll figure it out, even if it means we have to do something like an Iron Man Match to fill in the time. Maybe you could get in the ring, there are things, ways. I think Stephanie wants to prove a point to her father."

"What point could she possibly prove when we're going to have, what, four guys out there?" he wondered.

"That she's not going to let his petty stunts get to her or ruin her product," Britt conjectured. "Let's stop thinking about this, though, okay. Look, let's just forget about it for tonight and tomorrow I'll call Stephanie and we can find out everything that's going on. Remember, we have Christian on our side and he can tell us everything that's going on in that little group. I'm sure he's doing a convincing job."

"It helps that nobody really knows we're friends. Since this seems to be centered around me, I guess it's believable that he would walk out. I'm actually surprised Punk didn't walk out or lead them out since he seems to have some weird grudge against me."

"Punk doesn't strike me as the type to just walk out like that."

"He left when his contract ran up."

"But he did a statement while doing it," Britt reminded him. "He didn't just walk out, he went out with a blaze of glory and took the highest title with him, where I'm from, that's called making a statement."

"He doesn't seem like a quitter," Hunter assented.

"I think part of it is also that he has genuine affection for Stephanie," Britt shrugged.

"What, you mean like he likes her, like he _likes_ her?" Hunter asked and only asked because, despite being a great wrestler, Punk had a certain reputation when it came to ladies. It was no secret that he had dated his fair share of divas over his time in the company, but Stephanie of all people? He just couldn't see it no matter how much his brain tried to wrap itself around the concept.

"God no," Britt said, "I think they're friends and I think he would view it as a betrayal to their friendship."

"Oh okay, I was going to say…"

"Either way, whatever, let's go do something fun this evening. We'll go to dinner and then we'll go dancing or to a movie just doing something that is fun, whatever that may be, we could even just drive around. You in?"

He needed the break desperately. He wanted to be angry, so angry, but he didn't want that anger around Britt. He loved her too much to blow up around her. "Of course I'm in, let's go."

"You'll see, this will definitely help clear your mind."

Stephanie laid on the floor with her kids. Flynn and Sawyer had their heads next to hers and they were staring up at the ceiling. Chris had gone to the grocery store with Kensington so it was just her and her two eldest children and after they'd colored for a while, Stephanie suggested they lie on the floor and just talk with each other.

"So Halloween is coming up," Stephanie said, "do you guys have any idea what you want to be?"

"Daddy!" Flynn piped in.

"You want to be Daddy _again_?" Stephanie asked.

"Yup, yup," Flynn said from where she was lying, "I like Daddy and he's funny. I like him."

"I know you like him, but you can be whatever you want to be, within reason of course, you could be a princess or you could be a pumpkin, a witch, an astronaut, a hamburger, you can be anything you want to be."

"I wanna be Daddy," Flynn told her. "I like Daddy bestest of all."

"You should be Mommy," Sawyer joked around.

"Mommy?" Flynn asked and Stephanie laughed at the distaste that seemed to bring up in her daughter. She thought there were a lot worse things you could dress up as than her (Kelly Kelly sprung to mind, now _that_ would be a slutty costume, apropos of Halloween indeed).

"Yeah, you could dress like Mommy because she's the boss."

"No," Flynn objected to that idea, "I wanna be Daddy."

"Are you sure?" Stephanie asked. "Maybe I should give you some time to think about it. You could be anything, but if you really, _really_ want to be Daddy, you can be Daddy again, but if you want to be something else, that's okay too, we can be anything we want to be."

"What are you going to go as, Mommy?" Sawyer asked, curious as to what she was going to wear. She was Sherlock Holmes last year.

"Hmm, I don't know, what do you think I should be?" she asked her kids.

"Daddy!" Flynn said and Stephanie laughed, which made Flynn and Sawyer laughed. She could tell Flynn was joking, but there was a little bit of seriousness in there too.

"You think I should be Daddy too?"

"That would be really funny," Sawyer added. "Daddy would think that you were really silly if you dressed as him. He should dress as you then, that would be _funny_."

"It would be funny, but I'm not sure that I should dress just like Flynnie, I want another costume, what do you think I should be if I'm not Daddy?"

"Um, an alien?" Sawyer suggested.

"That's interesting, what about you, Flynnie, do you have any ideas?"

"Kitty-cat! You be a kitty-cat," Flynn told her.

"Oh, I kind of like that idea," Stephanie said. "I could be a kitty-cat. What about you, Sawyer, what do you want to be?"

"I don't know," Sawyer told her, "I don't think I've really thought about it. Last year, I was a Indiana Jones, but I don't know what to be this year. Maybe I can be a superhero like in the comics I read with Ed and Punk."

"Oh, that's a good idea. We've still a few weeks so we'll think of something and we have to think of something for Kensy too. This will be her first Halloween dressing up and we want her to look cute. You want to know a funny story, baby boy?"

"What?" Sawyer asked.

"Your first Halloween, we didn't want to dress you up because you were just a baby so you didn't know what Halloween was and we weren't going to go trick-or-treating with you, but Grandma Linda dressed you up as a pumpkin so that was your first costume."

Sawyer laughed, "I was a pumpkin?"

"The cutest pumpkin in the world."

"What I, Mommy, what was I?" Flynn asked.

"Well, your first Halloween, we didn't dress you up because you were too little and we didn't want to bother, but the first time we dressed you up, we dressed you as a butterfly because that's where Daddy got his nickname, Flutterby, for you," Stephanie said, sitting up so she could kiss Flynn's cheek briefly. Flynn laughed and playfully wiped at her cheek.

"Then Kensy should be a bug because Daddy calls her Kensy-bug," Sawyer told her.

"Now we're using our thinking caps," Stephanie said, leaning up again and kissing Sawyer's cheek, much to his delight as he scrunched up his face. "We have to make Daddy dress up too, don't we?"

"Uh huh because Daddy's costumes are always silly!" Sawyer said enthusiastically. His daddy was always putting silly things together and then it would make people laugh because his daddy was just like that.

"They are and I bet he'll even out do himself this time," Stephanie said. "After that though, what is Daddy doing?"

"He's going away," Flynn said, her voice a little more sullen now. She didn't like thinking about Chris going away because it made her sad. Last time, they had all gone with him, but his mommy said that they couldn't this time because Sawyer had school.

"I wish he didn't have to," Sawyer said, his voice equally as sullen.

"I know, babies, but this is something Daddy loves and we love Daddy, right?"

"Yes," they answered in unison.

"And we wouldn't want Daddy to miss out on things that he loves. Daddy does a lot for us here, doesn't he? He plays with you guys and you like that, right? And he makes us dinner and he even does your hair, Flynnie. And who takes care of you, Sawyer, when I have to go to Raw?"

"Daddy does and we have fun," Sawyer answered.

"Daddy will only be gone for two weeks and a couple days and we will call him everyday while he's gone and we can video chat with him and he'll send us pictures and he can set it up so we can watch his concerts again."

"Mommy?" Sawyer said.

"Yes, baby boy?"

"Sometimes I wish Daddy wasn't a rock star," Sawyer told her. "I wish he could just stay here."

"But what about me? I go away."

"But not for long," Sawyer said. "You always only go away for like a day, Mommy. I don't like Daddy going away for so long. It makes me miss him."

"It makes me miss him too, but Daddy has a lot of fans who like to see him and we can't be selfish and keep him here all to ourselves, what would we do, chain him up in the kitchen?" Stephanie tried joking so as to disperse her kids' moods. She had only brought up the tour to remind them of it because she didn't want them blindsided when Chris left if they forgot he was going.

"Who's going to take care of me when you're at wrestling?" Sawyer asked.

"Gamma and Gamps are going to stay with you. They'll come over here so you don't even have to go over to their house," Stephanie said. "It'll be really quick, baby boy, I promise. You okay, Flynnie?"

"I still go to wrestling with you?" Flynn asked.

"Of course you can," Stephanie assured her.

"I okay," Flynn said, but she was still a little down.

"Hey, Flynnie," Stephanie said. Flynn looked up at her and Stephanie made a funny face, which made Flynn roll onto her side away from Stephanie to start laughing, her stomach convulsing as she couldn't stop. Man, did she love a good funny face. "We're going to be okay, guys, we'll plan something special for Daddy's return and everything."

"Oh no, Mommy!" Sawyer said.

"What is it?" Stephanie asked concernedly over her son's tone.

"Daddy's birthday, we'll miss it! I know it's November 9th and yours is September 24th, but we're going to miss Daddy's!"

"Don't worry about it, baby boy, okay, we'll be able to tell Daddy happy birthday, I promise."

Stephanie didn't tell them she was planning something for his birthday. It was a need to know basis and the kids didn't need to know…yet.

She was saved from any more questions when the door opened and Chris and Kensington clattered noisily into the house. Stephanie could hear the keys drop onto the table they kept next to the door for keys and then the rustle of the grocery bags as Chris picked them up. It was only a few moments later that Kensington wandered into the living room and, spotting her brother and sister and her mommy lying on the floor, toddled over to them, taking the one step into the living room very slowly. She came over and plopped herself down next to Stephanie. Stephanie picked her up and held her aloft, making Kensington grin and reach down for her.

"Did you have fun with Daddy, Kensy?" Stephanie asked.

"Yes!" Kensington told her, though she might not have a clue as to what Stephanie was actually referring. It didn't matter to Kensington as Stephanie "flew" her back and forth.

"Hey, everyone," Chris walked into the living room after setting the bags into the kitchen. He walked over to the gathering and then looked down at them, then he looked up at the ceiling like there was something extremely interesting sitting up there. Then he looked back down at his family. "What's going on here?"

"We're having deep thoughts and discussion," Stephanie said. "Care to join us?"

"Always," he said, settling in between Sawyer and Flynn so his head was across from Stephanie's. Stephanie brought Kensington down onto her chest and Kensington got herself comfortable on Stephanie's chest (which was very comfortable indeed). "Okay, so what are we talking about?"

"We talked about what we want to be for Halloween," Sawyer caught him up to speed, "and we talked about how we're going to miss you when you go on your Fozzy tour because we are and I wish you didn't have to go."

"Oh," Chris said, "I know that you're going to miss me and I'm going to miss you too, but it won't be for that long, I promise you guys and we'll talk all the time so you won't even miss me."

"But we will!" Flynn told him.

"I know, but it won't be bad, I promise," he said, his kids tugging on his heart. He loved Fozzy, it was his baby in a different way than his other babies, but still it was something he'd worked on. When he and Stephanie had kids, not decided to have them, mind you, but once they found out about Sawyer, they'd promised each other that having kids wouldn't stop _them_ from living as well and pursing what they wanted. This was something he wanted and it wasn't at the expense of his children, but it was just something he wanted.

"Hey, so why don't we talk about something else while we're all here," Stephanie suggested before it got to the point where Chris started second-guessing himself. She knew how much Fozzy meant to him and she didn't want to him to start thinking he should back off.

"Like what?" Sawyer asked.

"I don't know, you choose something," Stephanie said.

"Wrestling!" Flynn interjected.

"What about wrestling, Flynnie?" Stephanie asked.

"Mommy, you wrestle too?" Flynn asked. Flynn, for all her love of wrestling, could care less about Stephanie when she was on TV in the past. Whenever they were watching some old Raw or SmackDown, Flynn always wanted to fast forward Stephanie's parts and go straight to Chris's. As a consequence, the only match Flynn had seen that involved Stephanie was when she'd had that disastrous match with Hunter and Chris.

"I did some wrestling, yes," Stephanie told her.

"You were bad, huh?" Flynn said. "Not like Daddy."

She could hear Chris snickering and if Stephanie were next to him, she would have slugged him. "I don't think I was _bad_, Flynnie, but I wasn't trained like Daddy was. Daddy spent a lot of years getting better as a wrestler, I didn't intend to be one so I was only in matches occasionally and I usually had help."

"Help from who?" Sawyer asked.

"Well, for a while, Hunter would help me because he was my husband-"

"Mommy, if you knew Daddy before you married Trips, how come you didn't marry Daddy?" Sawyer asked. "I know you didn't like each other, but maybe if you talked to each other you would have liked each other, didn't you talk to each other?"

"Well, baby boy, when Daddy and I first met, I was already with someone else. His name was Andrew, I'm not sure you've seen those tapes because Daddy wasn't on a lot of them. He and I were going out for a while and he asked me to marry him and I didn't know Daddy very well at that time."

"Mommy ran in a very different circle," Chris said and Stephanie could hear the smirk in his voice. That would have earned him another slug.

"Did you say yes?"

"Yes, I did, you've seen the wedding video, baby boy," Stephanie said, "you probably just don't remember. I was going to marry Andrew, but Hunter interrupted and he had taken me and married me."

"Still, you could have married Daddy first."

"I could have, but Daddy was…well, it was just that Daddy and I didn't know each other. We'd only talked a couple of times. He was very focused on being the best in the world at what he did and by the time we did talk, Daddy didn't like me and I found Daddy to be very rude."

"I don't like a girl in my class, she yells all the time and she pushes other girls down. I don't like her at all, does that mean I'm going to marry her?" Sawyer asked.

Stephanie laughed, "Probably not, but you never know. I didn't think I would marry Daddy, but we all know how that worked out."

"Daddy, when you love Mommy?" Flynn asked.

Chris gave a snort, "I don't really know, Flutterby. I guess it was a slow thing and by the time I realized I was, I was already in the middle of loving her. But if I had to pinpoint, I think it was when we became business partners. There was a side of Mommy I'd never seen before and I really liked it."

"So why didn't you marry her _then_?" Sawyer wondered.

"Because I was technically still married to Hunter, but I was getting a divorce and Daddy and I had hated each other for so long that we were afraid to tell each other that we really liked each other. It took us a while to admit it to each other, but we eventually did and _then_ we got married."

"What are you going to do on Raw? All the wrestlers walked out," Sawyer asked, "how can you do a show if you don't have anyone to wrestle."

That was the million dollar question. Stephanie had been contemplating it since Tuesday when she'd had time to watch what actually happened. At first, she'd had no idea what to do, but then she'd remembered that some of the wrestlers hadn't gone out there. Granted, it was a very small contingent, but still, some of them hadn't gone out there and that had to mean something. She'd also talked to Britt and Britt had told her that Zack Ryder of all people had gone back out and regretted his decision. Of course, Hunter had given him a Pedigree so he was probably not happy enough to stay.

First, she'd worried about SmackDown, but then she heard from Christian that while they were still protesting Triple H that they would be appearing on SmackDown and since it was primarily Teddy's jurisdiction (and apparently they had no qualms about him being in charge) they would probably wrestle. That at least took one load off her mind because if she had to worry about SmackDown, she would have just died from the stress already. Still, there _was_ Raw to worry about and it was a big worry. They had two hours to fill with the entertainment the fans had come to expect of them over the years. To have thousands of fans show up to nothing would be detrimental. They had sponsors they needed to keep happy in addition to keeping the fans happy.

She thought about negotiating with the wrestlers who had walked out, but then thought about the wrestlers who hadn't. Should they somehow miss out because they didn't walk out? The last thing she wanted to be was a pushover. She was the boss and if the wrestlers thought they ran the asylum, they were wrong, _she_ ran the place and they would have to get used to that. They may rail against Hunter, she was not Hunter.

"We're still going to have the show," Stephanie told her son.

"But what if nobody's there?" Sawyer asked.

"I'll wrestle!" Flynn volunteered and Stephanie could hear Chris trying to hold in gales of laughter on his end.

"Flynnie," Stephanie said sweetly, but she too was trying not to laugh, "I really, really appreciate your offer to wrestle, but I'm not sure that would be the best idea."

"Well, who knows, wasn't Kelly Kelly one of the people that didn't walk out," Chris pointed out, "I think if Flynn could beat anyone she could beat Kelly Kelly. Do you think that Kelly Kelly would be shamed to lose to a three year old?"

"The girl used to striptease, I think any dignity she had left that body a long, _long_ time ago," Stephanie said.

"I didn't even think of that," Chris laughed. "Flutterby, you're going to have to wait to wrestle. If you wrestled now, I think we'd be violating about a million child labor laws."

"So you're going to have nothing?" Sawyer asked.

"No, there were a few wrestlers who didn't act like big babies."

"Are they going to wrestle?"

"Yeah, we can just have them wrestle in an Iron Man match or something," Stephanie said.

"We'll figure something out," Chris interrupted. "Don't worry, we're a team and we figure things out together."

Chris had really saved Stephanie this week. She knew it was kind of cowardly in her own right to just leave like she had, but it had worked out in the end. Britt and Hunter were none the wiser and she'd talked to her mother who sent along word from her father that he hoped the girls were feeling better so her father had to know she wasn't there when the walk out happened. She'd tried to get a hole of the Board of Directors, but they were a hard bunch to pin down. She was afraid that her father was meeting with them without her knowing so she'd asked her secretary in Connecticut (who forwarded all her calls and what not to Florida) to act as a spy for her. She had told her that her father _had_ been in a meeting with the Board of Directors a couple times so she knew something was happening.

She was prepared to defend herself though if it came to that and she wasn't going to waste time on being nice. If she had to pull out the big guns then that was what she would do. She'd fought her father before, but she had the leverage now. _She_ was the President, not her father and that gave her the advantage. They had no recourse for ousting her from her position and she wasn't going to let them find any legitimate or illegitimate reason for taking away her position. Her father wasn't going to get his way this time.

"Okay, who wants to help me start making dinner?" Chris asked as he stood up.

"I do, I do!" Sawyer and Flynn both said and Chris grabbed them both in his arms and walked towards the kitchen with Stephanie and Kensington bringing up the rear. They walked into the kitchen and Stephanie set Kensington down, who went straight to a blanket they kept in the corner. Chris set Flynn and Sawyer on some stools and started getting things ready, telling them they could stir and do other small things when the time came for it.

"You need any help?" Stephanie asked.

"No, you go work for a while," Chris said, "make sure that father of yours doesn't dare take what you've worked so hard for."

"Thanks," she said, leaning up and kissing his cheek. "You're the best."

Stephanie watched her family for a moment, laughing and joking around, and she wanted to be with them more than anything, to join in the laughter and fun. It would be easy to go in there and stand between Sawyer and Flynn and pepper their cheeks with kisses and help Chris make dinner while dancing Kensington around the kitchen. But she had business to take care of. She left them and went to her office, sitting down in her comfortable, leather chair as she picked up the phone.

"Britt here, what's up, Steph?" Britt answered.

"I just wanted to let you know what's going to happen on Monday," Stephanie told her.

"Oh great, I've been waiting to hear from you. What are you going to do, I mean, what are _we_ going to do?" Britt wondered. "We're in this together."

"Yes, we are," Stephanie said and felt momentarily bad again for abandoning them on Monday. "What we're going to do is put on a show with the guys we have left. I'm not going to give in to my father's plans. He would think me weak if I just gave in. He would never give in and I can't do it. So we're going to work with what we've got."

"Stephanie, we've got like four guys."

"Then we'll do some sort of Round Robin thing," Stephanie said, "when we get there on Monday, I want to take inventory of who we have left. With those guys, we'll figure out what we're going to do."

"Are you sure you know what you're doing?"

"God no," Stephanie said and she wished she were joking, but she wasn't, "but I'm going to act like I do, that's the only way this is going to work. I can't look like I'm thinking all this on the fly."

"Okay, well, if that's what you want to do…"

"Britt, I think it's the only thing to do."

Chris grabbed Stephanie's hand as they walked into the arena. She smiled gratefully over at him and he threw a smile back at her. After what happened the week before, Chris wasn't going to let her come to this show by herself. If the entire roster decided that Stephanie was the next target than they were going to have to go through Chris first. He wasn't going to tolerate his wife being ridiculous or demeaned. There was a line and if that line was crossed, sure, Chris hadn't been in the ring in a while, but that didn't mean he'd automatically forgotten how to kick ass.

"Thank you again for coming with me tonight, sweetie," Stephanie told him softly and he lifted her hand to kiss her knuckles.

"You know whenever you need me I'm there."

"I know," she said, "I still think Flynnie could have come with us though."

"Not if things get volatile. She can miss _one_ week of wrestling."

"Yeah, but she wasn't happy about it."

"She's hard to please, but she'll be back next week and she'll forget all about how she couldn't come this week," Chris said, "we don't know what's going to happen tonight so we've got to think ahead and if stuff gets bad, I don't want my three-year-old daughter here to see it, no matter how tough said three-year-old is."

"You're right," she said. "It's weird, don't you think?"

It was weird. That was the only way to describe the backstage area that evening. There was hardly anyone milling about. The few cameramen and other crew members who had walked out had come to their senses and decided this was not a fight they wanted to involve themselves in, so the entire production crew was here. The announcing team was not and the wrestlers, most of them were gathering out in the parking lot according to Christian. They were holding some kind of huge protest, but she couldn't concern herself with them at the current moment. She had to focus on the guys that had stayed.

"It's so quiet," Chris said, "it's like when you're in the last match and nobody stays to watch it and you finish up and after your shower, it's like a ghost town."

"I know," Stephanie said as she passed catering. Usually catering was the hub of activity, but now there were only a few people milling about. It was like there was no show but some people decided to show up anyways. "If my father could see this…"

"Well, he's not here," Chris said, "so forget him."

"I'm trying, but I just know he's behind this so it makes it difficult to see. I don't know why he can't just retire like a normal person. He doesn't need the money, why can't he just enjoy retirement, find a hobby for God's sake. The man's hobby should _not_ be trying to take down his own daughter."

"Your family has always been a little off-kilter," Chris said, then gave her a playfully apologetic look. "Your father just wants to be relevant. That's all he's ever wanted to be. He doesn't go about it in the best ways, he never has, but that's all he really wants, the relevancy."

"Well, he's still a jerk."

"A jerk who is your father though, don't forget that."

"I love him as my father, but as a businessman, that's a whole different story. You don't like my dad either so don't try to be his champion, especially at this moment, I mean, look around, however indirectly or directly it may be, my father has a hand in this."

"I know, but I can't hate the guy totally," Chris told her and off of Stephanie's horrified look, "I can't, he's your father, without him, there is no you and without you, there is no us, and without us, there is no Sawyer, Flynn, or Kensington."

"Don't be cute," Stephanie said as she pushed open the door to her office and saw Hunter and Britt already waiting for her, "Hey guys, did you tell everyone to meet me in here?"

"Yeah, they should be here shortly," Britt said.

"Kind of sad that they can all fit in this room," Stephanie sat down in her chair.

"Chris, we weren't expecting you," Britt looked at him, then stood up and hugged him briefly. "What are you doing here? Are you going to wrestle tonight since we've pretty much got nobody else?"

"You mean with my ring rust, God no, that would have people switching the channels in two seconds," he joked, "I'm here for Stephanie, in case anyone wants to give her any kind of trouble, I'm going to be here to set them straight."

"Ahh, the enforcer," Britt said as she sat down again. Chris leaned against the wall behind Stephanie.

"Hey man, how you holding up?" Chris asked his friend. He really didn't blame Hunter for all of this. He was just caught up in a maelstrom from which he couldn't find his way out. John Laurinaitis had blindsided him and he had tried to do the best he could with what he was given.

"I'm pissed," Hunter said and Britt gave his knee an encouraging squeeze. "I don't give a damn who is out in that parking lot, I'm going to have a show tonight if it's the last thing I do."

"I like that attitude," Stephanie said, "we're going to need it tonight for sure. This show is going to have to be good in spite of the situation, we have to make this the best damn show that we can or die trying."

Chris held his tongue, but his wife was being a little dramatic. He was saved from having to say anything when the door opened and a few of the wrestlers stepped inside. Punk smiled at Stephanie and Chris while taking a seat, followed by Cena and Randy. Mason Ryan, for some reason, hadn't walked out and Sheamus walked in as well. Bringing up the rear was Eve and Kelly Kelly, talking amongst themselves, but shutting up when they saw they were the last ones arrived.

"So this is it?" Stephanie asked.

Britt nodded, "Yeah."

"First of all," Stephanie stood up, "thank you for not walking out. I know that it must have felt like peer pressure not to and I'm sure you were approached to join in with the others, but thank you for not joining them."

"You know that's not how I choose to fight," Punk said and Stephanie nodded at him.

"Tonight, this it," she said, "we're going to pretty much play by ear. Hunter, you can make whatever match you see fit and-"

"Hey, I can announce," Punk offered and Stephanie laughed a little, "what, I think people really like my announcing so you know, I bet they'll dig it tonight. I can announce circles around Lawler and Cole."

"Well, thanks, we're going to need it," Stephanie said. "Thank you again for staying and here's hoping we have a good show."

"We'll make it a good show," Cena told her and everyone nodded. Stephanie was grateful they all stayed and even if there were 5000 wrestlers outside, the few she had were exceeding her every expectation. Stephanie dismissed them and they all went to get ready or at least sort of get ready since they had no clue what exactly was going to go on.

Hunter didn't really know what he was going to say when he went out there, but when he stepped onstage, it was like the fire was lit underneath him. Being backstage, in that dreary environment, it was easy to get down on himself, thinking he'd caused this. Yes, Stephanie had told him time and time again that it was her father's fault, but it was hard to think that when you were the one being walked out upon. The crowd cheering him spurned him on, made him feel like less of a failure.

He'd shown up tonight. While the pissants were standing outside, he was here, here for the fans, to entertain them. What were they doing outside? They were depriving these people of their talents. These were hardworking people who had spent their hard-earned money to come to this show and these wrestlers thought they were above that? Nobody was above that. Hunter said that if he had to, he would have wrestled a broomstick for 2 hours. Some of the men who stayed came down to the ring to show their allegiance, not necessarily to him, but to the company and the fans.

They were the ones who stuck around and they were the ones who should get the crowd's good opinion, not the jackasses outside who refused to come in. He made a match between Sheamus and Cena, with Punk on commentary and he thought that it would actually be entertaining for the fans. Hell, this was a Pay-Per-View caliber match right now and he hoped the wrestlers who'd walked out were watching this somehow to see how unneeded they were. Nobody was above this business,_ nobody_, and who were they to think they were?

Hunter was refereeing the match since the referees, like the announcers had decided not to come back. The match was barely a few minutes old when music Hunter never expected to hear sounded over the arena speakers and Hunter shook his head. Leave it to Vince McMahon to always have his music at the ready. Vince came down the ring and Hunter wanted to punch him in the face (probably not as much as Stephanie wanted to punch him in the face, but still, it was quite a bit). Vince came down and tried to appeal to his ex-son-in-law status, but Hunter wasn't stupid and had dealt with Vince far too many times to not know when the man was being insincere and he was being insincere right now.

The way he said he'd been enjoying watching Raw was so derisive, even if it didn't initially sound that way. Of course Vince liked it, he would love to see the downfall of his daughter so he could swoop right in and take over again. That was so like him, to just sit in wait, letting his lackeys do all the grunt work while he reaped all the benefits. He probably took great pleasure in firing Hunter and announcing that no McMahon was going to take over. That was a stab in the gut to Stephanie right there and Hunter knew it and Vince knew it. Putting in Laurinaitis was essentially putting himself in the spot of Raw General Manager. Vince wasn't working on behalf of the Board of Directors. Vince had put ideas into their head.

Stephanie didn't seek out her father. She knew that's what he wanted, for her to go backstage and stand there and glare and yell. It would've been perfect for everyone to see. Oh, look, there's Vince's erratically behaved daughter, Stephanie, making a spectacle and acting like she's a child and not the President. She knew that was what her father wanted her to do. He'd done with Hunter, used his own anger against him and he would do it with her as well until the balance of power (according to Vince) was restored. Instead, Stephanie stayed in her office and while she was seething inside, she kept a calm and cool demeanor.

"I know you're not okay, but you're giving a good semblance of it," Chris told her, trying to give her a smile, but she barely gave him a nod of the head.

"He'll be here soon," Stephanie said, "not to gloat, but to say that it was a difficult decision on the part of the Board of Directors, but it doesn't reflect any on me and that he knows I wasn't there when everyone walked out and then he'll ask how Flynn is like he cares."

"I think he does honestly care about Flynn," Chris pointed out, but then clammed up quickly when she sent him a look.

"I know he cares on some level, but let's face the facts, my father doesn't take them into account like he should. Look at your father. He's at home right now, probably watching Raw with Sawyer and Flynn, who are no doubt asking a million questions and he loves answering every one of them because _their_ best interests are always at heart. My father doesn't even care about me enough to think I could do this job. I had to wrest it away from him forcibly and I've been _trying_ to prove myself, but he will never give me the opportunity."

"Steph, calm down, okay, if you act like this when your dad comes in here."

"I know," she said, taking a deep breath and going back to the paperwork sitting in front of her, "I know."

Chris pretended to check on his cuticles, but was really stealing glances at Stephanie every so often. If he had his way, he would have already sent Vince to the hospital. He was telling the truth when he said he could never truly hate Vince because the man did give him Stephanie, but that didn't mean he couldn't strongly dislike him and that's how he felt right now. Besides his kids, Stephanie was the most important woman in the world to him and to see her angry made him angry and whomever made her angry, Chris wanted to kill.

There was a knock then and Stephanie nodded to Chris and he stood up and walked to open the door. It was Vince, just like they knew it would be, "Chris," Vince nodded to him and Chris just gave him a look before walking back to the couch and sitting down. "How's Flynn?"

"She's fine," Chris answered shortly.

"I really didn't want to be the bearer of bad news," Vince started, but Stephanie was quick to cut him off.

"Yes you are, Dad, don't lie," Stephanie said, "I'm perfectly aware of what you think you're doing."

"Stephanie, we can't have all those wrestlers-"

"Interesting choice of words you have there, that _we_ you so conveniently inserted into the sentence," Stephanie told him, "and here I was, under the impression that _I'm_ the President of this company."

"You are," Vince conceded, "but it is still a family business."

"I know your games, Dad, I know them all too well in fact. I'm not going to fall into them. I just want you to know that I'm onto them. I know that you put Laurinaitis in charge because you feel like he'll be the best for the job…which means _you'll_ be best for the job, right, Dad?"

"I was only bringing the new from the Board."

"Of course, well, you've said your piece and I respect that," Stephanie said, "perhaps Hunter wasn't doing an exemplary job, but the President of this company is and as the President, I'm sure you wouldn't take offense to having security showing you out. I wouldn't want something to happen to you before you leave."

"You're kicking me out?"

"No, don't be ridiculous, but you've said your news, that's why you were here, right?"

"I thought I could watch the show."

"Well, I don't think so," Stephanie told him, "you have no more business here. Now, security can show you out or my husband can show you out and once you're out in the parking lot, that's not my jurisdiction."

Chris looked at Vince, "You know how you used to be protective of Stephanie? I'm a million times more protective."

"I'll leave of my own volition," Vince said, "It was nice seeing you two again, give my love to the children."

"Before you leave, since I'm _sure_ you'll be seeing him, please send Laurinaitis to my office, thank you, Dad," Stephanie said as her father left. "Well, I think I handled that exceedingly well."

"I'm proud of you, I think he was actually rattled by how calm you were being. He really expected you to crack, but what are you going to do with Laurinaitis?" Chris wondered.

"You'll see when he gets here."

The door burst open and Hunter was on the other side. "I can't believe this, Stephanie."

"I'm sorry, Hunter, I had no idea he was here or that the Board was going to do that, I knew he was talking to them, but I didn't think it was over this," Stephanie said, "I can't really do anything if it was their decision, which I'm sure my father coerced them into giving, but I can reinstate you as a wrestler if you want."

"If I want? Those jackasses walking out on me cost me that position, oh, I want."

"Okay," Stephanie said, "then you've got it." On the tail end of that sentence, John walked into the room. Hunter turned to him and he looked like he was going to pummel him right then and there, but he refrained, instead pushing hard past him.

"You wanted to see me?" John said.

"Please, sit down, I'll make this quick," Stephanie held her hand out to the chair in front of her desk. John looked at Chris and he just returned the look with equal intensity. John reluctantly took a seat across from Stephanie and then waited for her to speak. "Well, since you are now the interim Raw General Manager-"

"I'm going to do a great job."

"I'm sure you will," Stephanie said, "but since that will be your primary position for the foreseeable future, until we can find something more permanent, I think a dock in your salary is in order."

"Excuse me?" John said.

"Well yes, I wouldn't want you to be so taxed holding two titles in the company, that of Executive Vice President of Talent Relations _and_ the interim Raw General Manager. Both positions hold a lot of weigh and I feel like it wouldn't be fair for you to hold both of them at the same time. I can't have anyone thinking they're above anyone. So therefore, I hereby relieve you of your duties as Executive Vice President of Talent Relations. As the interim General Manager, however, you will be working directly under Britt and myself. I'm not saying you have to consult us with everything, but most things it would be best if you went through the appropriate channels."

"You can't take away my executive position."

"The Board appointed you the interim GM and as such, I think the Board would more than agree that you shouldn't hold both titles, I'm surprised you would agree to the new position considering how lucrative the old one seemed to be," Stephanie laughed casually, "but, this position affords you more time on television so I guess we know where you want to succeed. Once we find a permanent solution to the GM situation, we can reevaluate, depending on who we have to go in your place."

"You don't have anyone in my place." For a moment, Stephanie was caught off guard. She really hadn't thought that far ahead. She was just trying to find any advantage she could get right now and while she knew the Board probably wouldn't really care if he held both positions, she could be persuasive enough to get them to keep him the interim GM, but if she didn't have someone as the Executive Vice President of Talent Relations then her father could possibly swoop in and take it. Suddenly, a voice broke through her panicked thoughts.

"She does," Chris said.

"Who then?" John asked, turning to Chris and looking at him challengingly.

"Me."


	344. New Regime, October 17, 2011

"And so, with that, I would like to recommend Chris Jericho as the Executive Vice President of Talent Relations."

Stephanie made sure to look around the table, making as much eye contact with the Board members as she could. She gave them all an easy, assured smile and then glanced at her husband. Since he'd taken his sabbatical from wrestling, he hadn't had much occasion to wear any of the suits he'd worn while still with the WWE, but today, he'd brought one of them out of semi-retirement. He was looking sharp in his pinstriped suit with a smart black and white tie and even a pocket square. He smirked at her imperceptibly and she tried not to blush under his gaze but it was no secret that he loved seeing her in her element like this.

"I believe that Chris has a few words to say on his behalf before you approve him into office," Stephanie said, reaching her arm out towards Chris who proceeded to stand from his seat.

"Thank you, Stephanie," Chris said and then gave her a wide smile before looking at the Board in front of him. He wasn't going to lie, they all looked like stuffy shirts who liked to golf during their time off and look down their noses at guys like him, but that wasn't what this was about right now. He wasn't here to judge them, he was here to appeal to them. "I'm thankful you've given me the opportunity to speak on my own behalf." They nodded and he crossed his hands in front of himself. "I know that some of you may be thinking to yourselves, 'how can we trust this man, he's never been to business school, what does he know about helping to run a company?' and that is a very good question. First of all, I'd like to point out that John Laurinaitis, the man who formerly held this position before he was appointed to the interim Raw General Manager, was, like me, a wrestler first and also did not attend business school. We've both been in the business for a long time and know how it works, but I think I have the advantage over him in one department. I've been a part of the McMahon family for almost seven years and therefore have worked closely with Vince, Linda, Shane, and of course, Stephanie.

"Being part of the family, I think it's very clear that you pick up a few things because they're all as sharp as tacks," he joked, knowing that to appeal to them, he had to use his connections. "But overall, being a wrestler, being part of this business for the past twenty years has afforded me a great deal of experience dealing with wrestlers. I've traveled all over the world because of wrestling, Germany, Mexico, Japan to name a few and believe me, there are a lot of different personalities in the business and I can handle them all because I've been handling them all for the past twenty years. Also, on this point, traveling has let me learn and evaluate different styles of wrestling and since the WWE is looking to go after a more global market, bringing wrestling to countries that might not be familiar with our product, we need to look at talent from everywhere. In Mexico, the luchadores are extremely popular, I've wrestled with them, I can spot talent. The WWE has to constantly move forward, constantly look for talent, I can head that up better than almost everybody. I think it goes without saying that the President of the company and I will not clash to the point of implosion. I think getting along with your superiors and working with them is an important part of this job. It also means that I've got the President looking over my shoulder, sometimes literally, at all hours of the day, how can I fail with that kind of attention?"

The Board laughed softly at that and Stephanie gave him a surreptitious thumbs up. She stood up again, "I know that my father isn't here and that he still does have a say on the Board, but with the majority of the vote, Chris would be the ideal candidate to be the Executive Vice President of Talent Relations and I recommend him highly and yes, I'm biased, but surely, you can see the man has experience."

Jeffery, the CFO, spoke up, "I see no problems with this. In fact, he might be a step up from John in that I think Chris might have more experience with the product right now."

"Absolutely, I do, these are my friends and I keep my ear to the ground with developmental companies, especially Lance Storm's wrestling school. I know what to look for out there and the kind of person to look for."

"He's been an exemplary employee," Stephanie added. "He's never suffered serious injury so he knows how to carry a company when others have gone down and I speak from intimate knowledge that Chris has never failed a drug test nor does he take drugs."

"I would hope you'd know," Basil, another board member joked and everyone laughed.

"With three kids, he better not be," Stephanie said. "So I take it the Executive position will be filled."

"I think there isn't any dissention is there," Jeffrey said, "show of hands in agreement to Chris taking the position."

Every hand raised and Stephanie nearly burst from joy. Chris nodded at them, "Thank you so much, you will see the talent rise to the top from here on."

"I expect it to," Jeffrey said as he stood and shook Chris's hand. Chris went around and shook everyone's hand as they started to leave the conference room. The moment everyone was gone, Stephanie nearly shrieked and threw herself into Chris's arms.

"You have no idea how much I love you," she told him, "you will _never_ know how much I love you."

"You've only been telling me that for the past four days," Chris told her, "are you sure it's appropriate to be holding the new Executive Vice President of Talent Relations so intimately in the middle of the board room. I wouldn't want to be charged with sleeping my way to the top."

"Too late for that," Stephanie told him, kissing him briefly and playfully before pulling away and turning serious. "I really want you to know how much this means to me. You just…you don't even understand."

"Steph, we've been over this…"

_Stephanie sat there, stupefied, as her husband told John Laurinaitis that he was going to be taking over the executive position John was now vacating. John looked at Chris, his eyes narrowing. "You?"_

"_Yes, you heard me," Chris said, "I'm taking over, so get your ass out of here John before my wife fires you. I mean, we know she can, right? No matter who you think you may be working for, ultimately, it's still Stephanie."_

_John left without another word and Stephanie turned to Chris. "Chris, what are you _doing_?" she wondered because her husband had surely gone crazy._

"_I'm taking over," he told her with a smirk._

"_But Fozzy…your radio show, everything, you've got so much to do and now…now you're taking this over. I can figure something out, you know. We can find someone else to take over the position," Stephanie said, "I don't want to-"_

_Chris cut her off with a shake of his head. He got up from the couch and went over to her and knelt down in front of her. "You've worked too hard and too long to give up this. This company is yours, even before the Board told you it was. You've been here, year in and year out, trying desperately to put out the best product you could. I'm not letting your dad take that away from you."_

"_Chris, you've never really wanted to be an executive though," she pointed out and it was true, he'd never wanted to be a suit. Sure, he didn't mind filling in for Stephanie whenever she got pregnant (he always felt responsible for her having to leave), but he never sought out some sort of position within the company. He had a lot of other interests. Still, this was his wife and when his wife was threatened, whether it be physically or professionally, he wasn't going to let it happen. "You have all your other things that you love and I don't want you to come back into the fold because I'm in a bind."_

"_No, that's not what it is. What it _is_, is that I love you and I want everything for you. If I have it in my power to make you the happiest you can be, you better fucking believe that I'm going to do that," he told her, giving her a half-smile._

"_I really don't deserve someone like you," she told him._

"_Yeah, well, the same could be said on my end," Chris told her with a wink. "Besides, I'm not necessarily ready to be back in the ring, _but_, I know I can deal with the talent back here and being out of the limelight and doing my Fozzy thing primarily, it'll give me time to go check out talent and you know, maybe get some new guys."_

"_The only thing is Sawyer," Stephanie said, "I don't want him without a parent for a couple days a week, even if your parents are the one taking care of him."_

"_I can have Hunter be my liaison," Chris said, "my assistant if you will. That way, he'll still have a position, but I think it would soften his image if he was working with me. I mean, let's face it, people like me better than they like him."_

"_Where do you think of these things?"_

"_I'm not you, I'm not totally focused on one thing," Chris said, "and Sawyer is resilient, he understands what we do. If I have to be out of the house every once in a while, he's not going to hate me or you."_

"_I know, I'm not being rational," Stephanie said, "but, Chris, are you really sure because this is huge and I don't want you to feel like you have to do this for me. I hate feeling guilty, you know this."_

"_I do know it, but there's nothing to feel guilty about. I can do this job, I can do every job. I'm not letting your father win, not this time, not with these stakes. I haven't loved you for the past nine years only to say, 'hey, when something is tough for you, deal with it yourself.'"_

"_I wouldn't have thought that anyways," she told him, resting her hands on his shoulders. "I would never think that."_

"_Okay, well, be my inspiration for the next Fozzy album and we'll call it even, okay?" he told her, his half-smile turning into a full one."_

"_And you really think I deserve you."_

"_Cut the talk and just kiss me already," he told her, "I mean, I did just volunteer to become a suit."_

"_Your wish is my command."_

"I know, I know, I'm sorry," she told him, shaking her head. "So, do you think we should go get the kids or do you think my mom is going to just never let them leave?"

"Well, we are here for the entire weekend and don't fly back until Sunday night so she _might_ be willing to give them up _or_, now just hear me out on this one…maybe we can let her have them for dinner and we can go have a little celebratory dinner all to ourselves and maybe, just _maybe_ your mom might even let them spend the night so the two of us could have some alone time, some much-needed alone time."

"Wow, you _do_ think of everything don't you, Mr. Jericho?" she said coyly, grabbing his hand and pulling him out of the boardroom and to the elevator so they could go to her office, where she'd left her things.

"I do know your office is sound-proof," Chris lifted his eyebrows lecherously as he whispered in her ear. Stephanie laughed.

"You're insane," she told him as they stepped on the elevators. She was going to say something else, but Chris leaned in to kiss her, effectively cutting her off.

Linda loved having her grandchildren around. She just wished it were under better circumstances. She was gearing up for another political run, but that was the least of her worries right now. Her husband and daughter were at odds again and it was impossible trying to figure out who to side with. Ultimately, she would always side with her daughter because her daughter was proud and strong and the future and her husband was…well, impetuous came to mind. She wished he would accept his retirement gracefully but he wouldn't. It also put a strain on Stephanie and Chris visiting Connecticut and she hardly got to see her grandchildren as it is. She hated to think it because it was so horrible, but she was jealous of Chris's parents because they got to see the kids all the time, any time they wanted and she envied the time they got to spend with these three little darlings.

"Grandma Linda?" Sawyer said as they finished up their lunches.

"Yes, sweetheart," she ran her hand through Sawyer's blond hair. He was looking more and more like Chris everyday and he was getting so big. She felt like every time she saw her grandchildren they grew another inch or two. The same could be said for Shane and Marissa's children. She was so thankful to have so many grandchildren, was it such a crime to want them near her always.

"Gamma always has cookies after lunch, do you have cookies?" There was that jealousy again. Of course Sawyer knew what Loretta had because they ate lunch there often.

"Of course I do," Linda said, "I think we have some in the cupboard."

"Can we have some?"

"Sure, let me go get them," Linda said, disappearing for a moment and returning with the bag of cookies. She gave a couple to Sawyer and the eager Flynn, who immediately began to chomp on one as if her life depended on it. Linda laughed as she grabbed one for Kensington and broke it in half so it would be easier for the toddler to eat.

"Thank you," Sawyer said and Flynn gave a mumbled echo. "Grandma, where's Grandpa?"

"He's in his office right now," Linda explained. "You'll see him later, but he's a bit busy right now so he decided to skip lunch."

"Mommy says it's not good to skip food," Sawyer said, "especially for little kids because we're still growing up, but I guess Grandpa Vince is pretty old so he doesn't really need to grow up anymore."

Linda laughed, "I think that's pretty accurate."

"Grandma, does Grandpa Vince hate Mommy?" Sawyer asked innocently and it broke Linda's heart to even hear him utter a question like that. It should not even be a thought in this little boy's mind that his grandpa would hate his beloved mommy. She wished that everyone would see what this stupid tug-of-war concerning power was doing to the entire family. Why was _she_ always the one that tried to keep level heads when nobody else so much as gave thought to the possibility of cohabitating?

"Oh, honey, you shouldn't worry about that," Linda told him, "your grandpa doesn't hate your mommy at all."

"But he's not very nice because he keeps doing bad things, that's what Mommy says," Sawyer explained.

"I love Mommy," Flynn added, "Grandpa be nice too."

"I wish your grandpa would be nice," Linda said in a low voice so only they would hear, "but I think your grandpa is just having a hard time adjusting to not being in charge. He's been in charge a long, long time, long before you were ever born."

"Before Daddy was born?" Sawyer asked.

Linda laughed, "No, not that long, but almost. Your grandpa just…I don't think he ever really expected to leave. It's hard when you've been doing one thing for so long and then suddenly you're not doing it anymore. You get so used to it and Grandpa is like your mommy, they both like to be in charge."

"Mommy's the boss," Flynn nodded very seriously and Linda couldn't tell if Flynn was talking about Stephanie at home or when Stephanie was at work. Linda figured that Stephanie was the boss regardless of the setting.

"Daddy's going to be the boss too," Sawyer added, "isn't that where they are right now and why we came to Connety-cat."

"I think it might be," Linda said as the kids pushed their empty plates away. "Okay, so what do you guys want to do now?"

"I canna watch wrestling, Grandma?" Flynn asked. She knew that her grandparents had a great collection of wrestling stuff here and she liked to watch wrestling and they probably had stuff that involved her daddy and she couldn't think of a better way to spend her afternoon.

"Of course you can, do you want to watch too, Sawyer?"

"Can I go see what Grandpa is doing?"

"Hmm," Linda weighed the options. Vince was angry right now, for whatever reason it was this time. She'd stopped trying to figure out why he was so angry all the time. She tried not to concern herself so much with the business right now. Last time she had tried to run for office, the wrestling business came back to bite her in the ass so she was really trying to keep her distance this time around. She wished she could say the same of her husband, but she'd have to pry him away at this point. On the other hand, this was Sawyer and Vince, if nothing else, loved his grandchildren. "Okay, I don't see why not. Do you know where his office is?"

"I think so, I can find it," Sawyer climbed out of the chair and wandered off down the hallway. Their grandparents' house was _big_. When he went to his gamma and gamps' house in Florida, it wasn't very big, his mommy called it something like a cityhouse or a townhouse, yeah, that was the one. He never got lost there. He stood in the middle of a long hallway. He knew where the bathroom was, but his grandpa's office wasn't so clear. Then he heard sounds coming from behind one of the doors and he figured that's where his grandpa was. He made his way to the door and knocked on it.

"I'm busy, Linda!" came the gruff voice of his grandpa.

"Grandpa, it's Sawyer!" he called back.

"Oh, Sawyer, come in, come in," Vince called out and Sawyer opened the door and peeked his head in. "Hey there, what did you need?"

Sawyer took this as an invitation to come inside and he ran inside and over to his grandpa's desk. "Hi, Grandpa, whatcha doing?"

"I'm just working," he said.

"But Mommy said that you don't work anymore," Sawyer frowned, wondering if he'd misunderstood his mommy.

"Oh, I know, but well…things aren't going the way I'd like them to go," Vince told him, "so I'm trying to correct things."

The one thing that Vince underestimated was Sawyer's calculative nature. Many people overlooked it because Sawyer was such a sweet child, always willing to help anyone who needed it and with a kind word for everyone. But that did not mean he was stupid. He remembered things and he knew that people in his family were fighting. Though he didn't get the logistics of it, he knew that it was his grandfather and his mommy that were doing the fighting and when it came to it, he would always love his mommy the best. Maybe his grandpa was doing something that wasn't going to be nice to his mommy.

Vince figured, erroneously, that telling anything to Sawyer wouldn't get back to Stephanie simply because Sawyer was five and who remembered anything past cartoons when you were five, especially when it was business. "Did someone do something wrong?"

"I just think your mommy's management style differs from mine," Vince told him, "so I'm trying to correct the situation."

"I think Mommy does a good job, so do other people," Sawyer said.

"I'm sure she's fine, but you do know that I built this company into what it is, right?" Vince told his grandson. "Therefore, I should be the one running it."

"So you're running it?"

"No, I'm not, but I'm trying to establish some kind of legal footing," Vince said, not knowing that Sawyer was absorbing this like a sponge. He may look like Chris, but there was some definite Stephanie buried deep inside there and to overlook that would eventually be someone's downfall.

"How do you do that?"

"Well, I'm trying to use infiltration."

"What's that?"

"Don't worry about it," Vince told him, patting his head, "this doesn't concern you, okay, so I don't want you to worry about it. So why don't you tell me all about Kindgergarten, I hear you've been having a great time."

"I have!" Sawyer said, "I can tell you all about what I've learned."

"Well, I'd love to hear it."

The weekend went quickly in Connecticut and before anyone knew it, they were using the private jet to fly home to Florida. Stephanie and Chris would both be going to Raw on Monday so Sawyer would have to stay at home with Chris's parents. Flynn and Kensington wouldn't be joining Chris and Stephanie this week either, though Flynn had tried to insist after she didn't get to go to Raw the week before. The show was in Mexico and it was just easier with the two of them so they wouldn't have to fuss with passports and what not. Chris wasn't planning on going every week, but under the new position, he felt it necessary to go for the very first week to make sure everyone understood the change in power.

"So did you want to have like a formal meeting before the show starts?" Stephanie asked as they sat in bed. Chris had a notebook in his lap, trying to write out some lyrics to show Rich when they started their tour beginning next month. Chris wanted to make sure he had enough lyrics to really be able to choose and select the best ones. Stephanie had noticed Chris looking over at her every so often and she could only surmise that he was trying to get inspired. Stephanie had her laptop in her lap, looking over expense reports sent to her and where cuts could be made. Even when they were in bed they couldn't completely stop being them.

"No, I don't think so, I think a company-wide memo is fine," Chris shrugged. "That's getting sent out tomorrow morning, right?"

"Yes," Stephanie said, "but thanks for reminding me, I need to send Sherri that so she can send it out. I can tell her to send it out to the wrestlers as well, I'm sure we have some sort of e-mail for them all."

"Yeah, or just have whomever does the schedules for Raw add a top page with the memo on it," Chris said.

"Oh, that's a great idea," Stephanie told him. "That way we can make sure that everyone realizes that John isn't the one to go to for anything other than what happens on the show. I wouldn't want him to intercept something meant for you and screw it up for you."

"I'll keep him on a tight leash," Chris laughed and then leaned over to kiss her.

"So how are the lyrics coming along? Is Rich going to be blown away by them?"

"I don't know," Chris said, then joked, "whenever I bring lyrics to him, he likes the ones that I hate, but then he puts them to music and they sound a million times better so I have no idea which ones he's going to like."

"Can I read some?" she asked.

"No," he said, pushing the glasses up her nose as they started to fall down the bridge. "You know that I don't want you reading the lyrics before the album comes out."

"I don't understand why you won't let me read them, they're probably so raw that they would never see the light of day anyways."

"No," Chris whined, "because a lot of them are inspired by you and I'd be embarrassed if you read them when they're not refined. Just wait for the album and then it'll be better and sound better, okay?"

"Embarrassed? Why in the world would you be embarrassed around me? We've been together for over nine years, there is nothing, and I mean _nothing_, you can do that would embarrass me at this point, you know that, don't you? I've seen you burp, fart, vomit, have the runs, pop zits, fall down drunk, have your pants pulled down on national TV, have you naked on national TV, seen you dance ballroom, again on national TV, what the hell more is there to embarrass you?"

"My raw emotions!" he argued and made a face at her.

"Oh please, like you don't tell me about those," Stephanie rolled her eyes, "but fine, if you want to be like that, then go ahead, be like that, don't let me read your silly, little lyrics for your silly, little album."

"You're not going to win with that," he told her, then looked to the door in confusion as a small knock sounded on it. "What time is it?"

"It's only 9:36," Stephanie said, looking at her laptop.

"Come in!" Chris said to the door, which opened a second later as Sawyer's head popped out from around it. "Kid, what are you doing up, you have school tomorrow and you need to be in bed."

"I know," Sawyer said, "but I forgot what I wanted to say!"

"You had something to say?" Stephanie asked. "What is it, baby boy? Is everything okay? Did you fall down or something?"

"He said he forgot he wanted to say something, not that he fell down," Chris whispered to her and she pushed him in the side. "Come on over, kid, climb on up."

"Okay," Sawyer ran towards the bed and threw himself on top of it, scattering all of Stephanie's papers as he crawled towards the head of the bed.

"Watch the papers, please," Stephanie made a mad grab for the papers that Sawyer was crushing underneath him and put them on the nightstand next to her as she set her laptop down near her feet. Sawyer sat in between his parents. "This better be important, baby boy, because you are supposed to be in bed and I don't want you to fall asleep during school tomorrow, that wouldn't be very good, they frown down on that in Kindergarten."

"I talked to Grandpa!" Sawyer told them.

"Well, I know, baby boy," Stephanie laughed, "you spent Friday night with him and Grandma."

"I talked to Grandpa while he was working," Sawyer said, "and I know that you told Daddy that you wished you knew what Grandpa was doing."

"Are you saying you deliberately went to talk to Grandpa while he was working so you could see what Grandpa was doing for me?" Stephanie asked him. Sawyer nodded eagerly. Stephanie's eyes widened and Chris snorted in laughter.

"Wow," Chris managed to say, "there are no other words."

"Sawyer, I appreciate that you did that, but you didn't have to do that for me," Stephanie told him, though she had to admit she was impressed. She knew that Sawyer could understand his world and his surroundings, but she didn't know he listened when she and Chris were talking business.

"It's okay, Mommy, I wanna help because I like you better than Grandpa."

"Well, thank you, I like _you_ better than Grandpa too," Stephanie joked. "So…uh, what did Grandpa say?"

"Grandpa said that he was trying to get legal footing, I 'membered what he said very goodly," Sawyer said.

"Legal footing, you know with the company?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, "and he also said that he was…um…in…in-something, the word was really big. Infiltering or something like that, it sounded kind of like that."

"Infiltering?" Stephanie tried to sound the word out. "Infiltering, hmm, I'm not sure what that means, infiltering, Chris do you have any idea what that could mean?"

"I'm not sure," Chris said as he thought as well.

"Oh wait, do you mean infiltrating?" Stephanie asked him and Sawyer's face lit up.

"That was the word, Mommy, that was it, that's what he said he was doing!"

"Sawyer, you are the best, little boy a mommy and daddy could ever ask for, I hope you know that," Stephanie said, kissing the top of his head. "I think I know exactly what Grandpa was saying to you and I'm so very impressed that you were able to remember it all."

"I did for you!" Sawyer said, feeling extremely proud of himself and puffing his chest out a little bit with that pride.

"Thank you, but you really don't have to spy for me, baby boy. I love you even if you don't spy and I love you every single second of every single day so you know what, you don't have to spy."

"I know," he shrugged, "I just wanted to, I'm going back to bed, goodnight, I love you, Mommy, I love you, Daddy!"

Sawyer hopped off the bed and ran out the door, closing it behind him and presumably running back to his room. Stephanie looked at the door for a second and then looked at her husband who was looking at her with one eyebrow raised. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Because our son has decided he needs to _spy_ for you," Chris said with his arms folded. "Wow, this could make a good song."

"Stop it, I don't tell my kids to spy for me. He must have just overheard us talking and thought he could do this for us and in a weird way, it was sweet of him. He doesn't want my father to take over so he wants to help me stay in power, I think it's sweet."

"Our five year old is a spy," Chris repeated.

"Well, you have to admit, he's the cutest spy you've ever seen, right?'

"I'll give you that one."

"I knew my father was trying to infiltrate the business, we'll just have to keep John reined in as much as we can," Stephanie said. "I want him on a need to know basis. No meetings should include him at all if we can help it. I know he's probably going to try to use his own leverage to get matches done so I'm already expecting that, but we have to try and keep some modicum of control."

"We will," he said, "we should get to bed though, we've got an early flight tomorrow. We're leaving here at seven and I don't want you to be cranky. At least we're leaving before the kids wake up so I don't have to deal with four cranky people."

"Oh, like you aren't cranky in the mornings too," she rolled her eyes. "You're really just biding your time until you can go to Europe and act like a fool and drink until the cows come home."

"How did you know?" he asked.

"Let me see your lyrics!" she demanded.

"Goodnight, baby," he teased as he started to put his notebook away, laughing quietly as his wife scowled from behind him. Stephanie grabbed her laptop and sent out the memo about Chris before going to bed herself, knowing they had a long day the next day.

By the time they arrived into Mexico, got through customs, and made it to the arena, Stephanie was sure that everyone had to know that Chris was a new executive and had taken over John's former position. Britt had e-mailed her the usual schedule while she was en route telling her the memo had been added to the schedule and that everyone would get them upon arriving. She just hoped that nobody was going to show any backlash towards him because she was still so happy he'd taken the position and she didn't want anyone to ruin it.

"You look nice," Stephanie said, taking in another suit Chris decided to wear.

"I might as well look the part, don't you think?" he asked.

"You do and more."

"Steph, I know what you're thinking, stop thanking me for taking the position, it's not that big a deal and I have a feeling you'll be doing most of the work anyways, relegating me to the background like you usually do."

"Stop, that wasn't what I was going to do," she pouted.

"Sure it wasn't," Chris joked. "It's okay, though, I don't really mind. I mean, what do I do, I just deal with wrestlers for the most part, right, do the scouting, deal with expiring contracts-"

"Invite back any wrestlers whose contracts have expired and that didn't sign new ones," Stephanie said and Chris glanced at her with a look on his face and she laughed and kissed his chin, "it was worth a shot."

"Yeah, well, I'm an executive for real now, I don't have to go back to being a measly, little wrestler so you can just forget that."

"For now, I will," she said as they pulled into the parking lot. They got their things and walked inside. There was no different air for the two of them, though Chris could see some glances at him from people with schedules. He wasn't going to be a different guy now that he actually held a position within the business infrastructure of the company, but he could see where people might think that he might. He wasn't going to start being some staunch bureaucrat and he hoped that nobody saw him like that.

They got to their joint office for the evening and Stephanie got a text message from Britt asking if she was there yet. Stephanie responded that she was and waited for Britt to show up, which she did a few moments later, "Thank God you're here, we're already having problems with John. He said that while the schedule looked 'okay for what it was,' that he thought, as the interim GM and working under the Board, that he would and should be able to insert himself where necessary."

"Great, he and my father are trying to use the Board as their way of putting themselves in the show and since my father is still a member, that essentially means he's doing my father's bidding. I swear, I don't know what I'm going to do with that man. I'm tempted to have him put into a retirement home where he's monitored all the time."

Chris laughed at that because the image was so ridiculous. He tried to picture Vince doing arts and crafts or playing shuffleboard and he just couldn't do it. The image was just too hilarious for his mind to seriously comprehend. Now putting Vince into an insane asylum, that he might be able to see.

"We just have to let him do what he wants," Chris said, "at least at first. The Board is going to be watching our every move for a while, what with me being hired as the VP of Talent Relations and you dealing with Hunter being so unceremoniously fired. So we see how he behaves tonight and we'll use that as a measuring stick for the future."

"And if he runs completely roughshod?" Britt asked.

"Then we _all_ figure out some way to make his presence lessen," Chris said, "but we will figure it out. We just have to assess the situation first. Besides, once you tell him that he can do whatever he wants, it'll throw him for a loop and then he probably won't do as much as he and Vince are planning."

"How do you figure that?" Stephanie asked this time.

"Because they're expecting us to tell him he can't do anything and that everything is set in stone so when we say it isn't, all the bad plans they had, you know, putting people we like into matches or making stupid matches for the sake of making you or Britt look bad will look even worse because you're giving him all this power and he's going to intentionally going to make the show look bad when you're telling him he has the power to do what he wants."

"When did you get so conniving?" Stephanie asked. "Do you read like spy books when you're just with Sawyer?"

"I have an outside perspective, I'm not in this war, I mean, I am, in a way, but this is between you and your dad and the rest of us are just collateral damage," Chris told her. "Do you want me to go tell him?"

"Actually, I think that would be great," Stephanie said, "you are, after all, the VP of Talent Relations, so go relate."

"Okay," Chris stood up, "oh hey, how's Hunter doing with all of this?"

"He's pissed as hell," Britt said, "but honestly, I think it's good for him. He needs to get back into that way of thinking. He's been too soft for too long, I want him to get back into this and reclaim that fire."

"I think I'll stop by with him as well."

Chris left and went in search of John's office. It wasn't hard to find because the plaque on the door seemed to be three times larger than any he had ever seen on Stephanie _or_ Vince's offices. Leave it to Laruinaitis to out-showboat Vince McMahon. Chris knocked on the door and the new interim GM answered it a moment later. They shared a smug look before John opened the door further, letting Chris inside.

"Jericho," Laurinaitis said in that perpetually husky voice of his. "What do I owe the pleasure? How is the new title suiting you?"

"Just fine actually, the last person who held the position though kind of left the paperwork in shambles, but I'm sure I'll be able to figure it out soon enough."

"Oh, very funny," John said, proving once again that the man had absolutely no sense of humor whatsoever.

"I wasn't trying to be," Chris countered. "But I do come bearing a message from my wife. You'll remember that she's the actual President of this company, the one who is signing your paychecks, just in case you forgot who she was."

"Oh, I know who she is, she seemed to have the show pretty laid out when I got here," John told him.

"That's exactly why I came here actually," Chris said, "Stephanie, Britt, and I agreed that we should allow you some creative freedom when it comes to the show so what we're going to do is let you do whatever you see fit. Now, remember you are the interim GM so there has to be a grace period, but go hog wild if you want."

"What?" John asked, confused, just like Chris banked on him being. "What do you mean?"

"What do you mean, what do I mean?" Chris told him. "I said that you can do whatever you want to do. The power is on you. I'm sure Stephanie told this to the Board, since they are the ones who appointed you, I think Stephanie wanted to keep them abreast of the situation."

Chris knew she hadn't called the Board (unless she was thinking along the same wavelength as he was at the moment, which, all things considered between them, it wouldn't be too farfetched to think they were having similar thoughts), but he also knew that if John didn't believe she had called the Board then John would still try to do something stupid and then try and pin it on Stephanie to get her fired. He would tell Stephanie to call them when he saw her later.

"Oh," John said, at a loss for words.

"Yeah, so enjoy the show, I know I will," Chris patted him on the shoulder. "I'm sure this doesn't…put a crimp in any of your plans, right?"

"No, no, of course not," John told him.

Chris smirked at him, "Good, I wouldn't want anything to be…ruined."

Chris left, feeling smug as ever, and went off to search for Hunter. He found his locker room (not office any longer) and knocked again. Hunter answered the door and Chris could see Punk standing behind him. Chris raised an eyebrow and Hunter nodded his head inside as Chris pushed past him. "What's going on here? A meeting?"

"I don't hate the guy anymore," Punk said, "obviously we're working for the same side and I explained that I thought he might be secretly working for Vince. I'm not some asshole who won't admit when he's wrong about something."

"Was that a commentary on me?" Chris asked.

"Or me?" Hunter added.

"Both of you if that makes you feel better. Where's the little punk chick?" Punk asked Chris.

"At home with my parents."

"You mean to tell me that little girl didn't beat you up for not letting her come to wrestling for two weeks? Dude, she's probably plotting your death right now," Punk scoffed, knowing that Flynn loved her wrestling.

"We didn't want to deal with passports, it's annoying," Chris said, "but I'm sure she's watching, so what are you two doing, planning something?"

"I'm just telling him I've got his back," Hunter asked.

"I'm not sure yet how I feel about this, but hey, with the new regime, I've got to have my bases covered, don't you think?" Punk said rhetorically. "Oh hey, I read the memo, so do I have to worry that you're going to let power go to your head?"

"When have I let it before?"

"I don't know, with the new VP title and the memos and back to the suits," Punk gestured to Chris's attire, "who knows, you could be firing up some sort of stogie and drinking whiskey and I don't what the hell executives do so don't give me that look."

"I'm not giving you any look. I took the job because I don't want Stephanie to be fired, I'm betting that neither one of you do either," Chris said.

"Well, he slept with her, so I'm guessing yes," Punk shrugged.

"Thanks for bringing that up," Hunter said.

"Well, don't get any ideas," Chris told Punk.

"Hey, I'm sorry, but your woman comes with _way_ too much baggage to be attractive," Punk told her, "with her family, I'm surprised that _either_ one of you was willing to take that on. Wait, Hunter, you only took that on because you _did_ want the power, but what's your excuse, Chris?"

"She's a tiger in bed, she put out before the second date, I'm sure you of all people would appreciate that, Punk," Chris said, knowing that Punk had a reputation for flitting between women in the company. He had probably slept with a majority of the divas, whether they be actual relationships or one-night stands.

"Touché," Punk said, "also, I never knew that about Stephanie, but it puts things in perspective now."

"I hope it does," Chris flipped him off. "Anyways, we gave Laurinaits full reign tonight to throw him off his game, if I were the two of you, I'd watch your backs, just saying, because you never know what he's going to pull."

"Don't worry, we can handle him."

"I'm pissed off enough to handle anyone," Hunter said. "Whoever is in my path…I'm not the COO anymore, I'm Triple H and someone is going to regret it tonight, believe me."

"Oh, I believe you."

When Hunter went out there, shedding his persona, to help out Punk, it was like all that executive power went right out the window. He knew who he was supposed to be and what he was supposed to do. Stepping in that ring had never felt so satisfying. He'd had nearly the entire roster against him not a week ago and now that he was back, there they all were, ripe for the picking and he wanted to pick off every one of them. He felt like he was back in old form and with Punk by his side, the two of them against any takers, he finally felt like his old self again.

And everyone better watch the hell out.

As expected, John didn't actually go overboard and Stephanie was pleased to see that Chris's idea had worked. Her father was probably reeling from the shock of her letting John do whatever he wanted to do and she wanted him on his heels. After what Sawyer had told her, she knew her father was trying to compile some sort of evidence against her, but she couldn't let him get any. She knew he probably had a few tricks of her sleeve, but what she didn't have was a husband so charming and manipulative that he was willing to put everything on the line for her. With Chris by her side, she felt like she couldn't lose, but when it came to it, she even had Sawyer on her side with this one. She knew, though, that her father would probably try to come off stronger next week.

But she had to stay one step ahead.


	345. Knocked Out, October 24, 2011

"I can't believe _you_ are skipping a show."

"Hey, don't knock on my wife like that," Chris said, wrapping his arm around Stephanie. "She can occasionally separate work from personal life."

"What, every once in a blue moon?" Christian asked with a chuckle, which earned him a glare from both Chris and Stephanie. "Sorry, I'm not used to being in the company of adults during my home time. Usually Trish and I are running around trying to keep up with Tilden. I hope she isn't giving your parents too much trouble."

"My parents deal with Flynn," Chris reminded them.

"Oh okay, then yeah, if they can handle Flynn, they can handle Tilden," Trish laughed, "so again, I can't believe you aren't going to Vengeance. Is this some other power play on your father?"

"No, it's really not," Stephanie said, "Britt is going to be there and I trust her to be my eyes and ears. It's just that now that Sawyer is in school I really don't like to spend time away from him. I mean, you guys are leaving tomorrow for the PPV on Sunday and then there's Raw on Monday and you don't come home until Tuesday. For me, that's three days without seeing my son and I can't do that anymore, I don't _want_ to do that anymore."

"I completely understand," Trish said, "I wouldn't want to be away from Tilden that long either."

"You guys do know you're killing us over here, right?" Christian said, gesturing to him and Chris. "I mean, we're both going to be in Europe, Chris longer, but that means we'll be away from our kids and you're killing us."

"I have to agree, I'm already having serious doubts about this tour."

"You can't back out now," Stephanie reminded him, "you would leave a path of disappointed people in your wake."

"Like all those _girls_ who love you, Chris," Trish teased as she lifted her eyebrows in lechery and took a sip of her margarita. "They would be so disappointed not to see you and have the opportunity to throw their underwear at you."

"Your husband has female admirers too," Chris pointed out.

"I know, I tease him too," Trish patted Christian's knee, "it's just much more fun teasing you so that's why I do it."

"Well thank you," he said.

"Trish has a lot of admirers too, I practically have to beat them off with sticks," Christian said smugly, "but I'm the only guy she goes home with so, yeah, popping the collar because I'm the best and everyone knows it."

"Do they?" Chris asked. "It goes without saying that Stephanie is the most awesome one out of us all because she is the big boss now and she has the most power and if there's anything sexier than power, I dare someone to find it."

"You're all crazy," Stephanie said. "Chris, you're going on the tour and everything is going to be great and all your fans will be excited and you will write great music with Rich and the world will continue turning."

"She failed to mention the working in between gigs," Christian said, "since you're now one of the big-shots in the company, Mr. Executive Vice President of Talent Relations. I can't believe you are now a VP of the freaking company. How the hell did this happen?'

"It just did," he tried to downplay the entire thing. "I'll do what I can while I'm in Europe."

"Actually, Chris is going to be doing a little scouting while he's there. There are a few guys that we've given tryouts too and while everyone is in the UK, he's going to be evaluating a few guys and girls that we've given tryouts to."

"Hold up, so not only are you touring with Fozzy, you're actually scouting for the show as well?"

"Yeah, you'll actually see me in Birmingham at the show you're doing there on the 7th," Chris told him. "I have a show that night in Nottingham, but the Birmingham show is only an hour away and it's in the early afternoon so I actually have plenty of time to get to the WWE show and to my VIP event. Birmingham is actually on the way to Nottingham from Cardiff where the show is the night before so they're dropping me off."

"Thanks a lot man," Christian said and Chris gave him a quizzical look, "for making the rest of us look like mere mortals. I mean, you couldn't just go on your tour and do your music, you had to add working for the company onto that list, how are we supposed to compete? I'm dead tired just from being a wrestler and a dad and you're working two jobs with three kids five and under."

"What can I say? I like to keep busy."

"That does seem like a lot on your plate, Chris," Trish told him.

"I know, but really, I'm just watching some guys wrestle, probably for less than an hour. I've got that and then I have one in Germany while I'm there. I know some guys who I wrestled with way back in the day who actually have wrestling schools in Germany and I'm going to be dropping by. We hardly have any European talent outside of the UK and I'd like to see what they have to offer."

Stephanie beamed at him. "Isn't he the best?"

"Okay, you two, save it for later," Trish said and she had to admit she was a little buzzed, but it was hard not to be. She and Christian hardly got a night off. With Edge and Lita constantly traveling now that Edge was retired, their most trusted babysitters were hardly ever there and Christian had a huge problem with leaving Tilden around some teenager for fear that they'd neglect his daughter and they hated to use Chris's parents because it seemed weird so they hardly got to go out and it was so nice when they did. They loved Tilden, but she was tiring. She took another big sip of her drink and then poured some more margarita into her glass from the shared pitcher on the table.

"We're not doing anything later," Stephanie said, but in a voice that suggested they _would _be doing something later.

"Yeah right, I'm sure you two are getting it all in before Chris has to go to Europe," Trish said and everyone at the table looked at her. "What are you guys looking at?"

"The fact that you're well on your way to drunk," Chris told her.

"No way," Trish shook her head vehemently, "you guys aren't even…I'm not even drunk or tipsy or anything, I'm just having a good time."

"Sure you are, Trish, sure you are," Stephanie said, "so how are you liking the new job? The divas seem to be improving, slowly, but they are looking improved, I mean, Eve as the number one contender, who could have see her looking like anything viable in the ring, but she doesn't look so out of place now."

"I love it so much," she said, her voice slightly slurred as she laughed then took another big sip of her drink, "I love my girls, they're working so hard, I love them so much."

Christian snickered as he looked at his wife, "You love your girls?"

"Uh huh, they're so pretty and everything and they try, you know, and they're so misunderstood, I was misunderstood you know. Stephanie, I'm so sorry I slept with your father, it was so wrong of me, you should've hated me, you should still hate me."

"I don't hate you," Stephanie told her, mouthing to Christian, "how many has she had?"

"Three," Christian mouthed back at her.

"You should hate me," Trish said, "you should all hate me, I was such a bitch, Chris, I was a bitch to you too, I tried to kiss you and I liked you, I just didn't tell you because Stephanie is the love of your life, but I really thought you were pretty hot and if you weren't with her, I probably would have wanted to sleep with you."

"Wow," Chris nodded as he looked at Stephanie, who was now looking at Trish like she was crazy. "That is some brand new information."

"It is to me too," Christian said, but he was snickering so he didn't think of it as something he had to worry about. He found it funny more than anything else. Trish very rarely got drunk. She wasn't much of a drinker, but when Chris and Stephanie had invited them out to dinner, she'd jumped at the chance so fast Christian's head nearly spun.

"I'm so sorry," Trish shook her head, the alcohol making her feel a little light-headed.

"Trishy, why don't you have some chips?" Christian pushed the bowl of tortilla chips towards her, hoping that getting something in her stomach might help. Trish was a lightweight when it came to drinking, even more so than Stephanie, who also barely drank. It went without saying that Chris could drink them all under the table.

"No, I don't want chips, I just want to tell them how sorry I am," Trish nodded. "I should apologize to your mom, Steph, I really should, I think that I should call her and apologize to her."

"I don't think my mom needs an apology," Stephanie told her, reaching over to pat her hand. "I think you should just eat something, our food should be here soon."

"How do you have so many kids?" Trish asked. "You guys have so many kids, how did you have so many kids?"

"Stephanie is hot," Chris answered and Stephanie jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow, "what, I was just answering the question. This is pretty funny though, right, I mean, have you ever seen Trish drunk?"

"No," Stephanie said, "but we shouldn't laugh."

"I have to go to the bathroom, I'm going to the bathroom," Trish said, stumbling out of her chair.

"Do you want my help?" Stephanie asked, making a move to stand up and see if Trish needed assistance to the restroom, which was looking more and more likely.

"Chrissy, you can come with me," Trish waved off Stephanie's offer. Then she stage whispered to her husband in a voice loud enough for Chris and Stephanie to hear, "Maybe we could have sex in the bathroom."

"I don't think so, Trishy, come on," Christian rolled his eyes as he guided his wife towards the bathroom. "We'll be right back."

"Okay," Stephanie nodded and as soon as they were out of earshot she turned to her husband, "okay, that was weird, right? I mean, not what she was saying because well, she's drunk, but the fact that she got drunk in the first place, you think that's weird, right?"

"Why would that be weird?" Chris asked. When he was out there with Fozzy, plenty of people got drunk, he got drunk, so he didn't see what the huge deal was if Trish got drunk just this once. She hadn't been out in a while without Tilden and she was letting loose.

"Um, because Trish _never_ gets drunk. I've been best friends with her for the past…God, like seven years and in that entire time, I think I've seen her get drunk maybe once at her bachelorette party and I know because I was pregnant and couldn't drink. Other than that…never."

"She's just having fun."

"I don't know, I think she wants to get drunk for some reason. Do you think she and Christian are still in that slump?"

"I don't know, I haven't really talked to him about it. We usually just talk about the matches he's in or the kids or Fozzy, I'm not going into in-depth conversations with the guy, we save those for special occasions," Chris told her. "I wouldn't look too much into it. This is futile, isn't it? You're going to butt your nose in where it doesn't belong, aren't you?"

"Yes, I am, you're going to be gone for two weeks, that is going to give me ample time to talk to Trish, hell, I can do it before you leave," Stephanie said, "I just want to make sure they're okay. I don't want anything to happen to them, they're our best friends and it's like we've watched their entire journey together. Remember when Christian was so nervous to bring her over to our place because he was afraid she would run after she saw our plan?"

"Yeah, I remember, you ended up running downstairs and completely blowing it," Chris laughed, "okay, I guess I care about their relationship, you really are just a devil, sent to torment me, aren't you?"

"I like to think of myself as more of an angel," she said coyly, "grabbing him on the arm. She is doing a good job with the divas though, I have to give her a ton of credit for that. I think she relishes the role because she worked so hard to make women's wrestling something people actually watched and not something that made you take a bathroom break or change the channel."

"She's still got a long way to go to make that division have any credibility."

"Maybe you'll find someone amazing overseas, we are scouting a couple women, aren't we?"

"Yeah, I don't have the applications on me at the moment," he gestured to the table, "but I know there are at least a couple women on there."

"I wonder what they look like," Stephanie mused.

"I thought you said that looks, from now on, are inconsequential when looking for women wrestlers…or were you just saying that because I'm now the head of scouting, which means that any woman that wants in the company will have to be interviewed by me?" he asked, his lips twitching into a half smile-half smirk.

"Please, like I care what you look at."

"If I cared about looks like that, all the divas would be brunettes with blue-gray eyes," he winked at her and then leaned over to kiss her. She kissed him back while laughing. "Why don't you care that I look at other women anymore? I'm going to Europe, European women are known for being beautiful."

"I know you're going to Europe, but I also know that you love me," she reminded him, "I've never had cause to worry before, should I worry now?"

"I'm about to be 41, I think I'm hitting midlife crisis age," Chris told her, "who knows what I might do! I could call you from Germany and tell you I've met some beautiful fräulein and I'm leaving you."

"And I would tell you that you'll never see the kids again," she told him.

"They'd revolt, led by Flynn. She'd stage an uprising."

"Yeah, but our other two are pretty good kids and Flynn would be calmed by her Sawa."

"Damn it, you're right, okay, I guess I'll stay faithful to you, but if I see some hot chick over there…I'll be forever angry with you that you captured me in my prime."

"Oh, was that your prime? The prime where you were single and pining for me, that prime?"

"I was not pining," he scoffed. "I was merely overcome with thoughts about you."

"How did we get so off-topic here?" she asked. "I'm going to check in on Trish."

"Well shut up right now because they're coming back. Let's try not to laugh at her drunken state."

"I make no promises," Stephanie said, leaning over to kiss his cheek, "none at all."

Trish managed to somewhat sober up by the time they finished their meal and drove back to Chris and Stephanie's. When they opened the door, they were greeted by Flynn and Sawyer, who were yelling and running towards them. Kensington and Tilden were already in bed, but the two older Jericho kids were far from tired. Stephanie and Chris were met with a couple hugs as they screamed out their hellos. Trish winced at the loudness of their voices and put her hand to her head.

"What's wrong, Trish, are you okay?" Sawyer asked as he noticed that Trish didn't look so good.

"I'm okay, Sawyer," Trish said.

"Hello, hello," Loretta said, coming out of the kitchen, "did you four enjoy yourselves?"

"Some more than others," Stephanie joked as Trish sent her a small glare.

"Tilden is upstairs and sharing a crib with Kensy right now," Loretta told Christian and Trish, "if you wanted to go get her."

"I'll go get her, thanks again for taking care of her," Christian told her.

"Oh please, she's a darling," Loretta waved him off, "I love taking care of her when she's over here."

"We really appreciate it," Trish said, "really, really do."

"Stop with the thanking already," Loretta said then turned to Sawyer and Flynn, "did you two want to go finish your desserts in the kitchen, I think your ice cream is either melted or Gamps ate it."

"No!" Flynn screamed, running back into the kitchen.

"Gamps, don't eat my ice cream!" Sawyer ran in the same direction as his sister.

Christian came down with Tilden in her arms. She was fast asleep with her head on her shoulder. They left after saying their goodbyes and Stephanie made Trish promise to go out to lunch with her sometime next week, which she did readily. Stephanie and Chris followed Loretta into the kitchen where Sawyer and Flynn were sitting with Ted at the kitchen table. Chris went over to join them as Stephanie grabbed a glass of water, Loretta following her over.

"So how was dinner, fun?"

"Yeah, it was, Trish got a little drunk though," Stephanie said with a laugh.

"So come talk to me," Loretta led her into the living room. Stephanie was confused, wondering why Loretta would want to talk to her.

"Is everything okay?" Stephanie asked. "Did something happen with the kids while I was gone because you can feel free to put them in time-out or something if they're bad."

"The kids are never bad, they're angels," Loretta said, then added off of Stephanie's look, "Okay, so Flynn is an angel _most _of the time, but she was very well-behaved this evening except for whenever Tilden wanted to play with something she was playing with, then she got a little bit bossy, but she's three so that's to be expected."

"Okay, so it wasn't the kids, so why did we need to talk?"

"I was just wondering why you weren't going with my son on his tour next month," Loretta said. "I mean you went with him over the summer and we'd be more than happy to take care of the kids while you were gone."

"Oh God, Loretta, no, I can't be away from them for two weeks, plus I have work," Stephanie said, "I can't just take two weeks off."

"I suppose, but I just…I worry about him over there by himself without you guys."

"Why?" Stephanie asked. "He's been gone for that long before and we didn't go with him. Is there some reason why he shouldn't go over there? I'm just a little confused. And you'll be spending time over here if you think you're not allowed over here because he's not here because you guys can come over whenever you like."

"I just hate the thought of him being alone for his birthday, I think I'm having flashbacks like I'm in a war or something," she laughed, "when he struck out on his own at 19, I barely got to see him until he was in WCW. I never got to see him on his birthday and it always killed me that he was alone."

"I doubt he was alone," Stephanie joked. "I doubt he'll be alone this time. He's having a concert that night and he has the guys in the band and he'll be fine, Loretta. You don't have to worry about him like that anymore, that's my job now and believe me, I keep my tabs."

"Okay, okay, I understand, also, between you and me, how's he doing with that job that you gave him or the Board or whoever. He's never seemed like the businessman type and I'm a little curious to know how that's working out for him."

"He's wonderful at it," Stephanie beamed. "Whatever your son touches seems to turn to gold, you did a magnificent job with him."

"I don't even know how," Loretta winked at her as she led them back into the kitchen.

"Where did you two go?" Chris asked as Flynn tried to spoon some ice cream into his mouth. He made a monster noise and took some of the ice cream and she giggled as she continued to eat.

"Girl talk, sweetie," she said, coming over and kissing the crown of his head. "So did you guys have fun tonight?"

"Uh huh, Gamps read with me," Sawyer said, "we read the book that we're reading in Kindergarten. Did you have fun tonight?"

"I did have fun tonight, but not as much fun as I would have had with you guys," Stephanie said, giving them both kisses.

"That's why you're staying home and not going to wrestling!" Sawyer said. "It's because you love me very much and you don't want to go anywhere until Raw, right, Mommy, because you love me so, so, so, so much?"

"That's exactly why I'm not going to wrestling," Stephanie said and there were no ulterior motives with this one. It wasn't because her father might be there or that her father might try to stage some sort of plan. She had a difficult time being away from the kids and that was whole of it. She knew that it was easier for Chris (though she didn't know how because the man was attached to his kids), but for her, being away for more than a couple days wasn't something she liked if she could help it and in this instance, she could help it. Sawyer looked so happy to hear that and she loved him all the more for that.

"But we still get to watch?"

"Of course we have to watch, I have to make sure everything goes okay and Daddy has to inspect the talent."

"Oh yeah, because Daddy is a boss now."

"Daddy is a big boss," Flynn said to Chris. "I help you."

"You can, I'll send you tapes of the wrestlers I'm going to see while overseas and then you can tell me what you think of them, okay?"

"I tells you now, they no gooder than you," Flynn said.

"Number one fan right here," Chris said, "only she would say that about someone she's never seen."

"Well, she knows her talent," Stephanie said, giving him a smile, "and I can't argue with her either. Okay, guys, say goodnight to Gams and Gamps because we have bath time and then a little TV time, then bedtime!"

"Night, Gams and Gamps," Flynn said, holding out her arms for hugs.

"Night!" Sawyer said, giving them hugs as well before everyone headed upstairs to get ready for bed.

The next day was another hectic one, even if nobody in the Jericho household was going to be at Vengeance. With three kids, no day was ever completely calm, no matter how hard Stephanie tried to keep it that way. You just had to ride out the waves. Luckily by the time Vengeance was starting, the kids had quieted down and were sitting quietly on the couch, a large bowl of popcorn sitting between Flynn and Sawyer, who were each munching quietly on their snack. Chris and Stephanie were squeezed on the loveseat with Kensington in Chris's lap, a bowl of pretzels in between them.

"Now isn't this nice?" Chris asked. "We don't have to deal with the stupid crap that's going on backstage and we can just enjoy the show for what it is."

"It is nice to get away for a little bit."

"Good, I'm glad you feel that way, I don't need you having a heart attack before you're 40," he said, leaning over to kiss her. She kissed him back, but rolled her eyes as he pulled away. "Don't roll your eyes at me. I worry about your health. I don't want to be a single father."

"If anyone needs to slow down, it's you," she argued.

"No, because my jobs are way less stressful than yours," Chris said, "your job is extremely stressful and we don't want you to go away, do we, Kensy?"

"Hi, Dada," Kensy said, leaning her head back to look at him before sticking her entire hand in the bowl of pretzels, grabbing about seven of them at once.

"Eww, Kensy, I hope your hands are clean," Chris teased her as Stephanie shook her hand a little so she only had one pretzel. Kensington gnawed on it as she grinned at her parents. "You wouldn't want to deprive this little beauty of your company, would you?"

"I'm fine," Stephanie said, "clean bill of health, but it is nice to have a day off every now and again. Besides, I'm hoping that somehow John will screw things up and look like a jackass while we sit here and laugh our asses off."

"I love you when you're ruthless," he said, leaning in for another kiss and only breaking it when Kensington jabbed his chin with a pretzel. "I can't wait until our lives become our own again, only at the very least seventeen more years for that to happen."

"Unless more of these," she poked Kensington in the nose, making her laugh, "come our way."

"Mommy, Daddy, quiet now!" Flynn told them as the show was about to start. "We watch and you no talk."

"Sorry, geez," Stephanie said, "pushy, little one."

They quieted down so they could watch the show. They were mostly interested in Punk and Hunter's match against R-Truth and Miz, but they also hoped that Christian won in his match against Sheamus. Unfortunately, the latter was not to be, but that didn't mean that Hunter and Punk couldn't pull this out. They were far superior to R-Truth and Miz, R-Truth had never even held the WWE or World title and between Punk and Hunter, there were a great many titles so it stood to reason that Punk and Hunter would have the match.

They would have had the match if it weren't for Kevin Nash _again_. Stephanie looked to Chris and he shrugged. "I thought they were really friends," Stephanie said, shaking her head. "I don't understand what he's getting out of this."

"Why would someone want to hurt Trips?" Sawyer asked to nobody in general.

"I don't know," Stephanie said, "do you think that Nash is actually working for someone else and not my father? He just seems to have this personal vendetta against Hunter and I can't really understand why. I mean, it would be adding insult to injury if he was just targeting Hunter for no reason. I mean, it doesn't get to _me_ if they go after him. He's my friend, but nothing more."

"Well, I'm not there so maybe your father thinks that Hunter is the next best thing?" Chris suggested. "If I were there, I think your father would have someone going after me all the time, but I would just kick their ass because that's how I roll."

"But it doesn't bother me, I mean, it bothers me because if it is my father, then I don't like him beating up people to get back at me-"

"It's not like he's going to beat _you_ up," he pointed out.

"He wouldn't dare do that though. My father is a lot of things, but…oh wait, no, he _has_ beaten me up," Stephanie said, "do you remember a little match at No Mercy in 2003 where my father _did_ beat me? I believe there was a wrench involved."

"Oh yeah, I guess I've blocked that out of my mind," he said, but the memories pelted him at the moment. That was the first time he'd ever seen Stephanie in a hospital bed and it had jarred him, he recalled. It made him sick to think and remember that Vince was _very_ willing to put his daughter's well-being on the line. "He can't do that now, seeing you hurt would hurt the kids and your dad wouldn't do _that_."

"That's true," Stephanie said. "He really wouldn't do that to me because of them, whatever he is, he loves those kids and would never try to hurt them so I guess I'm in the clear, but it doesn't make me feel any better that Nash is stooping his low."

"Maybe it really doesn't have to do with your father. Maybe Nash went to your father, yes, but maybe that's what it was, _Nash_ went to your father. We don't know what Nash and Hunter's friendship is really like. Maybe Nash is very much like Shawn. We know that Shawn is a jackass to everyone except Hunter and maybe this is the same thing except Nash got tired of it," Chris tried to find an explanation for it all.

Stephanie wished there was some guidebook she could read. She hated the feeling of being manipulated even if she was someone who manipulated people all the time. Maybe she could dish it but not take it. Or maybe it was simply a control issue. Or maybe this was just Hunter's problem and she really had nothing to do with it, that could be a distinct possibility. Hunter had many enemies, she just didn't expect Nash to ever be one of them. They were such good friends.

"There must be something that happened then, something really bad," Stephanie pointed out.

"Who did something bad?" Sawyer asked.

"I'm not bad!" Flynn whined. "I not in trouble!"

"Nobody said you were in trouble, Flynnie," Stephanie said, "we were just talking about why Kevin Nash would hurt Trips."

"Because he's mean and he's a meanie-butt," Sawyer responded like this was the only logical answer.

"But they were friends before."

"You don't hurt your friends like that. We learned that in school, that you have to be nice and you have to treat everyone like you want to be treated," Sawyer said dutifully, "it's like a rule or something."

"That's a pretty good rule to live by," Stephanie told him sweetly. "We just want to know why Nash wasn't following that rule because he's supposed to be Hunter's friend, but that wasn't friend-like behavior."

"I'm Trip's friend and I wouldn't do that."

"I know you wouldn't, baby boy, I know you wouldn't."

Hunter collapsed onto the bed of his hotel room. He wanted to punch the wall, hell, at this point he wanted to punch _everything. _He didn't know when his life had started spiraling as fast as it had in recent months. All he'd wanted was a desk job, something that meant he wouldn't have to be in the ring all the time. He was getting older and didn't really feel like putting his body through the rigors that he used to when he was 30 and not 40-plus like he was now. He couldn't even have that though. Everything around him felt like it was crumbling and he could not understand what everyone's problem was.

"Hunter?" Britt's small voice came from the other room. He'd stormed into the bedroom, completely ignoring his girlfriend trailing behind him.

That was the worst part of it all. He felt, through all of this, that he was being a bad boyfriend. He tried not to completely focus on himself, but after Stephanie, he'd had to fend for himself for a very long time and he'd become accustomed to thinking about only himself. Now he had Britt and granted he'd been with her for a while now, there were still aspects of his life he had to get used to and this was one of them. She didn't deserve a pissed off boyfriend and that's exactly what he was being.

"Yeah?" he said, trying to keep the irritation out of his voice. The irritation wasn't even for her, but it was there, it seemed like it was there constantly nowadays.

"You okay?"

He was also getting tired of her needing to say that, "Come here."

She came into the room and laid down next to him. She scooted over to his side and he enveloped her into him. She rested her head in the crook of his arm and just lay there with him for a few moments. "I like this, this is nice."

He laughed softly and kissed the top of her head. "I like it too."

"I know you're angry…"

"No, I'll talk about it tomorrow, but right now, I just want to forget that it happened. I'm just so tired of it all, babe," Hunter said, "I don't know what everything thinks I'm doing wrong and I just keep thinking, is this karma?"

"You've changed though, not one, single person has reason to hate you right now and it's stupid that they do. And Nash of all people, someone you considered your friend, I don't know what's wrong with that guy, but you don't need him in your life."

"We were so tight, you know, all of us, the Kliq. I went through hell for those guys when they all left me here. I never even got to see a significant title and this is how they repay me now. I know that Scott is messed up and X-Pac is wherever the hell he is, but Nash and Shawn…"

"Shawn's always going to be there for you," Britt reminded him though she was loath to admit it.

"But he doesn't like you and I just don't get him anymore and Nash, I thought we were cool, but obviously I was wrong about that."

"I thought we weren't going to talk about it."

"You're right, I'm sorry," Hunter said. "I just feel betrayed."

"You'll have me, okay, you'll always have me."

Stephanie sat down next to Chris, after taking Kensington to the bathroom to be changed, as he tried to cut some of Flynn's lunch up. They were eating lunch before going to the arena and Flynn was anxious to actually get there. She hadn't been to the show in two whole weeks and she was chomping at the bit to be around wrestling again. Because of this, she wanted no help from Chris with her ham and cheese sandwich, even though all he wanted to do was to cut it into smaller, more mouth-friendly pieces.

"Daddy, stop," Flynn whined loudly and Stephanie only then noticed that Chris was on the phone with someone, holding the phone between his ear and his shoulder.

"Steph, can you cut up her sandwich for me?" Chris asked and Stephanie nodded as she put Kensington back into her high chair. "Sorry about that."

"It's okay, Chris," Cheryl said on the other side of the line. "I'm guessing that Flynn was giving you a hard time."

"You would guess correctly," Chris laughed as he watched Stephanie struggle with Flynn, but then ultimately give Flynn the Stephanie glare, which made Flynn instantly give up the fight and let Stephanie cut her sandwich up. Stephanie smugly sat down as soon as she finished, sending a look to Chris that screamed she had triumphed where he had failed.

"It's good to know some things haven't changed."

"So what's going on, what's up?" Chris asked. "Are you missing me so much as a partner you couldn't stand not talking to me or something?"

"Actually, well, I was wondering if you would want to come in and see how Rob and I were doing. They suggested that I bring in a former partner and since you were my last partner it might be fun to bring you in and you might be able to give Rob some pointers."

"Wow, that's a high honor," Chris told her, "but unfortunately, I can't right now, I'm sorry."

"Oh man, that's too bad, I was really hoping to see you again," Cheryl said. "I miss having you guys out here, you've got to come visit and bring Steph and the kids, I miss those little ones."

"I know, we should spend some of our winter out there. I've got a tour in November, but other than that, I'm not seriously booked up at the end of the year. I mean, I am, I took on a new job, but that isn't anything newsworthy."

"Not newsworthy, what have you taken on this time?" Cheryl asked. "Don't you think you should slow down sometimes?"

"I'll slow down when I'm dead," Chris told her. "I just took on an executive position in the WWE. Stephanie was in a bind and I wanted to help her so I'm the new Executive Vice President of Talent Relations."

"My God, as if you didn't have enough to do."

"It's not a big deal, not really," Chris reiterated, "but it does mean that I'm busy enough that I can't come out there right now."

"Well, I'm still sorry to hear that, but I understand. I better go though, I'm calling you before morning practice and I need to start limbering up because Rob is coming in, in a few minutes. Give Steph and kids my love."

"I will, see you, Cheryl."

"Bye, Chris," she told him and Chris hung up the phone.

"Cheryl wanted you to come out there for something?"

"To help Rob," Chris shrugged. "I haven't really been watching to be honest, but I guess he's not doing too well and so she wanted me to come and see if I could help out or something, but I'm kind of strapped right now."

"Which is my fault."

"No, it's not, I'm here, this is my job."

"I just feel bad that we left Sawyer, don't mind me," Stephanie shook her head.

"He's fine, he's at preschool right now and he's having the time of his life, I'm sure of it and don't forget that he loves my parents and they love him so I'm guessing he's not missing out on much without us there and we're going home tomorrow."

"I know," she said, "I'm just sad about it, let me be sad."

"Focus on the show tonight."

"Britt and I already have the show pretty much laid out. We're going to let Laurinaitis do what he wants again, but I'm kind of going to try to influence him a little more, you know, nudge him, that's how they said it, right?"

"I think what you were going for was leaning on him," Chris said, eating some of his lunch finally.

"Oh, then I'm going to lean on him. I know he won't tell me anything about what my father is doing, but if he knows I know that I'm onto him, he might get a little more fearful and stay away from my show a little bit more…for all I care, he can stay away from my company too."

"You just say the word, I'll rough him up."

"What's roughen up?" Flynn asked, her mouth full of food as Stephanie and Chris cringed at her spitting out masticated bits of ham and cheese.

"First of all, we don't talk when we're eating," Chris told her, "that's gross and rude and Mommy, Kensy, and I don't want to see that, got it?"

Flynn swallowed and nodded, "Sorry, Daddy."

"Okay," he gave her a half-smile, "second of all, it means to beat someone up. I wish to beat John Laurinaitis up because he is not nice to Mommy and what do we do to people who aren't nice to Mommy?"

"Be mean," Flynn said, "cause Mommy is bestest."

"That's exactly it."

"Grandpa a meanie," Flynn said. "Sawa said it."

"Great, that kid is now spreading the news," Stephanie said. "I've got to have a talk with him about that. I appreciate and love that he wants to help, but he's five and shouldn't worry about this kind of thing."

"Well, there's not much he can do from the couch so come on, let's finish our lunch and get to the show, okay?"

"Why are you so eager to get there?" Stephanie asked. "You have some clandestine meeting with someone or something?"

"You wish," Chris said, "basically what I do is sit around and pretend like I have some big, bad job. It's really tough, but someone's got to do it. No wonder John decided he was going to spend the rest of his career kissing your dad's ass, this is the cushiest job I've ever had. Which, while we're on the subject, am I required to kiss the new President's ass, because I don't really have a problem with that."

Stephanie waved her hands in the general direction of their daughters, "Really, Chris, really? That's what you want to say here, right now, with them here, that's really where you want this conversation to go?"

"I was just saying," he joked, "they don't know what I mean."

"I know," Flynn declared and Chris raised his eyebrow at her. "It mean you like Mommy."

"That's exactly what it means," Chris grinned at her, "that's _exactly_ what that means."

For once, being at the show didn't seem stressful and Stephanie couldn't quite figure out why. Something seemed off, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. She'd had Britt talk to John, just telling him what she'd said before, that he could feel free to insert himself where he wanted and after that, everything was pretty much set. She'd ended up sitting on the floor playing with Flynn and Kensington and that was unusual for her on Mondays. There was just something in the air tonight.

"You okay?" Chris asked as he continued to work on lyrics. It was getting down to crunch time and he wanted to make sure he had enough material to show Rich when they went on tour.

"What?" she asked distractedly.

"You look like you're somewhere else, are you back to thinking about Sawyer?"

"No, I'm just thinking about how things are too quiet around here, running too smoothly. I don't like it. It seems weird. I almost expect something to happen merely because _nothing_ is happening right now, is that crazy?"

"No, you're thinking it's like the calm before the storm."

"Yeah, that's exactly it, I just have this bad feeling."

"I'm sure it's nothing," Chris told her, "just try to put it out of your mind, okay, and relax."

"Easy for you to say, you're just lying there, writing lyrics," she told him, "I'm the one actually doing some worrying over here."

Chris put his notebook down and came over to sit with Stephanie on the floor with the girls. He wrapped his arm around her and it was this that CM Punk walked in on. "Oh, uh, hey, I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

"Punk!" Flynn yelled, standing up and rushing over to him, hugging him around the leg. "I missed you!"

"Thanks, kiddo," he said, lifting her into his arms. "Hey, Steph, what's going on, why are you two on the floor?"

"We were playing with the girls," Stephanie explained. "Why are you here, what's wrong? I knew something had to be going wrong, I just knew it, I could feel it."

"Nothing bad, I was just wondering if Laurinaitis was here because I want to talk to him later about what I think I deserve, match-wise, I'm assuming you'll want me to go to him," Punk said, "you know, mess with him a little bit."

"Mess with him?" Stephanie asked.

"Hey, if he's the one in charge now and you're not the one who hired him, then he's fair game. So hey, if Hunter is still COO, what the hell is he doing wrestling, I don't get that," Punk asked as it had been bothering him for a while now that Hunter was still COO, but seemed to do nothing.

"It's really just a vanity title, something to give him leverage," Stephanie said, "it doesn't mean much in the long run. So you're going to mess with Laurinaitis because-"

"He's mean," Flynn interjected. "I don't like him, he probably stinks."

Punk started laughing, "I like your gumption, Flynnie."

"What's that?"

"Your bravery, but whoever is against your mom is automatically against me."

"Thanks, Punk, I appreciate that."

"Just letting you know ahead of time so it doesn't come out of the blue."

"Again, thanks."

"Canna I go with Punk?"

"I don't know, Flynnie," Stephanie said, "I think Punk might have a lot to do and we don't want to disturb him, do we?"

"It's cool, I can take her for a while, I'm not doing anything until later," he said, "we can go chill in catering or something, if that's cool with you."

"Yeah, just please watch her, she can be a runner sometimes," Stephanie said.

"Cool, come on, kiddo," Punk said as they left.

"See, you were worrying for nothing, everything is going along smoothly."

She wished that statement had proven true. Oh how she wished that statement had been proven true. When Hunter went out there, she'd expected it. Britt had scheduled time for him to talk about what Nash had done the night before and it seemed like this was Hunter's way of getting the truth and after being attacked by a former friend, some kind of explanation was needed. Britt was with Stephanie watching in the office, complaining about what Nash had done and how it had affected Hunter when Nash showed up out of nowhere.

"Oh my God!" Britt screamed, literally standing up and covering her mouth with her hand. Chris stood with her and put his hand on her shoulder while she kept her eyes glued to the TV. Her hands started shaking, but her brain wasn't functioning properly.

"Britt?" Chris tried to revive her from her reverie, but she wasn't moving. "Britt, I'm sure he's okay. Britt."

Stephanie, noting Britt's inability to respond stood up, with Kensington in her arms, and went over to her and looked at her, "Britt, it's okay, this is Hunter we're talking about, you know how tough he is."

"I…" That was all Britt could get out.

"Okay, well, I'm going to go check on him," Chris said. "You stay here, okay, Steph, stay with her and don't let her out of your sight. We'll get him some medical attention and he'll be fine."

"He's not like you," Britt said quietly.

"Excuse me?" Chris asked.

"He's not like you," Britt repeated, "he doesn't bounce back like you. He doesn't…you don't get injured, he gets injured."

"He'll be fine," Stephanie told her, "he's tougher than you think. They're probably just helping him."

Stephanie and Chris exchanged looks. Britt looked really bad, pale, almost comatose in a way and Hunter didn't look good on the TV either. They cut away from the show to go to a commercial and Chris left to go find out what was going on. He was halfway down the hallway and about to turn to get to the parking lot when he heard his name being called. Stephanie was leading Britt behind her and Britt was sobbing.

"What's going on?"

"He collapsed, they're taking him to the hospital," Stephanie said. "Britt wants to go and I'm going with her, you can take care of the girls and watch over the show while we're gone, right?"

"Yeah, of course, it's not a problem, here, give me Kensy," Chris said, taking Kensington from Stephanie's arms. Stephanie took the opportunity to wrap her arm around Britt's shoulder as Britt started sobbing into Stephanie's shoulder, halting them in the middle of the hallway.

"He…he couldn't breathe," Britt sobbed, her voice muffled and Stephanie ran her hand over Britt's hair like she would one of her children.

"Shh, it's okay, Britt, he'll be fine. He probably just got the wind knocked out of him. That happens a lot with wrestlers and he's probably just trying to control his breathing and it got away from him. We'll go with him to the hospital and everything is going to be okay, you'll see."

"Yeah, let's go, come on," Chris said, leading the way for the two women behind him. He didn't realize he was doing it, but he was subconsciously acting like protector towards them. Nash seemed to be on a rampage and he didn't want his wife or Hunter's girlfriend caught in the crossfire. This made him think of Flynn, who was still hanging out with Punk. Last he'd check, Beth was putting Flynn's hair into braids in catering so she was probably safe.

When they got there, there was a loud commotion and everyone was gathering around Hunter, but they couldn't see what was going on. Nash appeared to be leaving, but Chris stopped and wouldn't let them either of the women pass until he could deem it safe. Was it a macho thing to do, yes, it was, but it was what he was doing in the moment and he wasn't going to let either one of them get hurt. They saw Laurinaitis come in and act like he was genuinely concerned and then Hunter was loaded onto another gurney while Britt sobbed even harder and Chris had never seen her like this and it incensed him.

"Wait!" Stephanie said just as they were about to close the doors. "This is his girlfriend, we're going with you to the hospital."

"Okay," one of the paramedics said, "get in, with the cranial hit, we've got to-"

"What do you mean cranial?"

"He was just hit in the head, ma'am," the paramedic explained, which earned another gut-wrenching sob from Britt. Stephanie helped her into the back of the ambulance and then turned to Chris.

"You'll watch over the show, right?"

"Yeah, I'll meet you at the hotel later, whenever you get in. I don't want to take the girls to the hospital, but let me know what's going on, okay?"

"Okay," she kissed him briefly and then she was gone as the wail of the ambulance echoed into the night. Chris turned around and saw Laurinaitis standing there, looking on in disbelief.

"Close your jaw, John, I'm sure this is _just _what you wanted." Chris stormed off with Kensington in tow. "I've got a show to take care of, do what you have to do out there, but make sure you keep what happened in mind. I have a good mind to do the same thing to the Raw GM."

Stephanie hated hospitals. They smelled too clean they were too bright and things were too…precarious in them. But she wasn't about to leave Britt here all by herself to cope with this. They'd immediately taken Hunter in for tests and x-rays and Britt had managed to pull herself together enough to stop crying. That didn't mean she was okay though as Stephanie observed her sitting in the corner, staring at the floor and messing around with her necklace, rolling around the chain in her slim fingers.

Stephanie let her be with her thoughts. She knew if Chris were in the hospital, she would want to be alone with her thoughts. It was such a common perception that someone would want all the support in the world at a time like this, but sometimes, people just wanted to be left alone for a little bit. Stephanie respected that and she got up to get a cup of coffee from any coffee machine she could find.

"Britt, do you want any coffee?" she asked gently.

"I'm good, thanks," Britt said, not taking her eyes off what appeared to be some sort of water stain on the floor (Stephanie hoped it was a water stain).

Stephanie patted her shoulder and then wandered down a few hallways until she found a coffee machine. She let the cup fill with dark brew before she took that first warming sip. She stood there, looking around, hearing distant beeps and the sounds of people shuffling around, coughing, all those sounds that seem to echo in a hospital. She grabbed her phone and thought about calling Chris to check up on the show, but she became irrationally angry at that moment and called Laurinaitis instead.

"Hello?"

"What in the hell was going through your mind? You _had_ to know that Nash was here."

"Stephanie?"

"Who do you think it is, jackass?" Stephanie asked. "Nash couldn't have gotten backstage without a pass, so you had to give him one because I know that nobody on my team gave him one."

"Stephanie, you know that Nash is one of the recognizable faces, he probably didn't need one."

That was true, but she was still pissed, "You still probably knew that he was coming, is he working for my dad too? I'm onto you, John, I know what's going on, I know that my father is trying to get me fired and what better way than to let wayward men into the shows. Nash is not under contract and we have this happen and now what? I'm going to look like an idiot, well no, I'm not going down like that."

"I had nothing to do with this."

"That's crap and you know it," Stephanie said, "come off it, Laurinaitis, you know more than you're letting on, but you're so afraid of offending my father that you won't admit it. Does it feel good to be someone's lackey, always doing their dirty work? Is that how you wanted your life to turn out."

"I didn't do this, Stephanie."

"Well, you know who did, John."

"This is not-"

"Shut up, this isn't over."

"You can't-"

"I can and I have," Stephanie said, "consider yourself lucky that you have a job at all right now. I'm only keeping you on because the Board, i.e. my father, is the one that put you into your current position, but believe me, the second, the _moment_ that I can, I will fire you, believe that, John."

With that, Stephanie hung up the phone.


	346. Tricks and Treats, October 31, 2011

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, this is more of a filler chapter, I just like writing about Halloween! Hope you like it anyways. :)

* * *

"Is he all settled in?"

"Yeah, he's just resting right now," Britt said, her eyes going upward at the ceiling as if she could see through it and into the bedroom where Hunter was resting. He had been well enough, finally, to fly home to Connecticut, but he wasn't going to be cleared to wrestle for another four weeks. He was furious over the entire thing because he felt like he'd just gotten his momentum back and because this delayed his ability to get back at Nash for what he'd done.

Britt was still on edge about the entire thing, her nerves very nearly frayed. Seeing Hunter so helpless like that had stirred a fear inside her the likes of which she'd never seen before. She was used to tough situations. You couldn't be in the business she was in without being tough and dealing with difficult circumstances, but the attack on Hunter had been too brutal for her to ignore. She hadn't even slept the first night. She'd opted to stay by his bed until the nurses had forced her to go back to her hotel because he wasn't going to be doing anything that night from the heavy medication they'd given him.

She wanted to kill Nash with her own bare hands for what he had done, but she was a petite woman so she knew the likelihood of this happening was slim to none. Still, if she could logistically get away with it, she would have already been digging the grave. "Good," Stephanie said, "I'm glad to hear that he's back home."

"Yeah, he is, I'm glad he's here too. I hate hospitals, especially when someone I care about is in them. Thank you again for staying with me like you did."

"Of course," Stephanie said, "I couldn't just leave you there by yourself."

"Even if I had been by myself, Hunter's mom ended up calling me about fifteen times that night," Britt said, rolling her eyes as she thought about it. It was one thing to be worried about your son, but it was a completely other thing to continuously call for updates. "She was getting mad at me because she thought I wasn't giving her enough updates. She told me that I should be updating her every hour."

"So did you?"

"God no, that woman needs to learn some boundaries. Hunter isn't a little kid anymore and she needs to stop treating him like one. I had everything under control."

"I know, I saw you," Stephanie said and it wasn't mean to be a dig. "You usually do."

"Thanks," Britt said. "His mother is insisting that she and his father come up here and spend a few days so she can cook his favorite meals for him. So just my luck, she comes and then ends up staying something like three weeks."

"Oh my God, I would think you would end up just leaving."

"I'd just start walking and never look back," Britt joked.

"Britt!"

"Oh, there's the patient calling me, I better let you go."

"Yeah, okay, wait, are you going to come to Raw on Monday?"

"Actually, I wanted to talk to you about that, would you absolutely hate me if I didn't go. I'll definitely go the week after, but with Hunter in his condition. They told him he should limit any physical behavior for at least a week since after that they want to reevaluate his neck."

"I thought you said it wasn't broken."

"Yeah, it's not, but there's muscles and tendons and what not and they just want to make sure that everything really is okay once the swelling goes down."

"It's fine, just worry about getting Hunter well again," Stephanie told her.

"Thanks a lot, Steph, bye," Britt said.

"Later, Britt," Stephanie hung up her phone and set it down on her desk. She pushed some papers around as the door opened. She looked up and saw Chris and he raised his eyebrows, wondering silently if it was okay to come in. "Come on in, I'm not doing anything, what's up?"

"Nothing," he shrugged, "I just wanted to see how you were doing in here."

"I'm doing fine, has Sawyer decided what he wants to be for Halloween yet."

"What _are_ we doing for Halloween though?" Chris asked. "It's on Monday and you presumably have to be at Raw and the kids are going to want to go trick-or-treating. Flynn can't stop talking about it now that she realizes she's going to get free candy out of it and now that Sawyer is telling her all about it."

"I know, but on the other hand, the Muppets are going to be on the show. I know the kids would _love_ to see the Muppets up close and personal," Stephanie said, "Sawyer loves _The Muppets Take Manhattan_."

"Baby, _you_ love _The Muppets Take Manhattan_," he told her with a laugh. She couldn't help it that it was one of her favorite movies growing up. "But then, didn't everyone, at some point in their lives, love the Muppets?"

"Yes, they did and while Flynn hasn't seen as much, she watches Sesame Street and Kermit makes appearances on it as the reporter guy sometimes and in the videos that we show her. So she knows a little about them too," Stephanie said.

"So we take them to Raw."

"We can't, they want to go trick-or-treating. This just isn't fair. I mean, these things are icons."

Chris laughed, "Look at my wife, getting all excited for the Muppets. This is the woman who was nonplussed by Ozzy Osbourne and ZZ Top, but you bring in the Muppets and she's creaming all over herself."

"Oh, come on, remember the story you told me about when you met Wayne Gretzky?" Stephanie countered.

"Okay, first of all, it was Wayne Gretzky, the Great One, which brings me to the second point, which is that you cannot compare Wayne Gretzky, the _best_ hockey player of all-time to the Muppets, there's just no way, maybe, _maybe _if Jim Henson were still alive, then yes, meeting him would be amazing, but the Muppets, not going to compare," Chris told her, coming over to her and kneeling down next to her chair, leaning his chin on it.

"Fine, I just would feel bad for the kids to miss that."

"I don't think they'll be upset when they will have pillowcases full of candy," Chris said.

"I don't want to miss trick-or-treating with them," she admitted.

"So don't miss it," he told her, "it's as simple as that. You don't have to make everything in our lives so complicated, baby. Things aren't always going to be completely complicated."

"But Britt is going to be staying home with Hunter this week and she won't be there and if I'm not there, that means Laurinaitis and essentially my father are there and they can do whatever they want and that worries me."

"Steph, you're still the president of this company, I think that affords you _one_ night where you don't go to Raw. You still cover everything else in this company and Laurinaitis seems to be playing it pretty straight right now. I think your father is afraid to make a move."

"Afraid? My father afraid of something?" Stephanie asked.

"Your father gets scared at stuff, don't make him out to be something he's not," Chris told her. "Your father is just a person like everyone else. If he pushes too hard, you'll just go back to the board and you'll have him put out of the board and then he'll really be nowhere. So I think you're safe for one night. You love Halloween with the kids. You're supposed to dress up as a cat."

"I don't know what Sawyer is going as, we still don't have a costume for him."

"We can throw a sheet over him, say he's a ghost," Chris joked. "We can find a costume for him and as I understand it, Flynnie wants to go as her absolute hero. I can't say that I blame her because her hero is a stand-up guy, practically a superhero!"

"Very funny," she kissed him as she leaned forward. "And you, what are you going as?"

"I don't know, you know I usually just throw whatever the hell I can find on," Chris said. "I can even take Sawyer to the Halloween store or something and we can find a costume for him. Do you have Kensy's costume?"

"Yup, she is going to be the world's cutest ladybug," Stephanie beamed. She couldn't wait to see Kensington in her costume. She was going to need to take a million pictures and then she was going to have to send them to everyone.

"Look how into Halloween you are, you won't regret not being at Raw, I promise you won't," he told her, running his hand down her arm and then lacing his fingers through hers. "You know what, how about I take the kid and we go have some father/son time, bonding and what not, get him a costume, pick up dinner."

"Don't you call that Mondays?"

"Well this Monday we have our lovely ladies with us so we're modifying," Chris said, "does Flynn's costume need anything?"

"You're not seeing it until it's on her, Chris, you know she likes to surprise you like that," Stephanie said, placing her hands on his shoulder. It was true, Flynn hated Chris knowing what she was going to look like. Stephanie had told her to tell Chris all about her costume one night and Flynn had nearly thrown a fit. She wanted it to be a surprise for her daddy and Chris found that absolutely endearing.

"Fine, fine, I thought I would try the weaker of the McMahon women," he winked at her and she scowled at him. "I'm sorry, baby, the kids have turned you soft, but Flynn, that girl is made of steel, she actually kind of scares me sometimes…all the time."

She laughed, "I guess if you and your son are going out for guy time that means that I have to leave the sanctity of my office and go see what my girls are doing?"

"I left them in the kitchen, they're playing with a whole bunch of knives, I figured that was pretty safe, right?"

"If that were true, you would have a _lot_ of stuff to write angsty lyrics with," she patted him on the cheek. "How's that going by the way? All I see you do nowadays is write in that damn notebook of yours, makes me think I'm a bad wife with all the material I might be giving you. Will your next album be called Chasing the Divorce?"

Chris couldn't contain his laughter over that and he smiled at his wife. He loved when she could lighten the mood like that. Not that the mood necessarily needed to be lightened, but he just loved when he was with her and things weren't about plans or people they hated. He liked when they could just be a couple with one another, a normal family unit: mom, dad, kids, no pets, just a regular family with regular family issues, not wondering if her father was trying to stage a coup.

"I like that, I'll have to keep that in mind," he said, getting up and offering her his hand. She grabbed it and they walked hand in hand to the playroom. Sawyer was playing with a kid's digital camera, taking pictures of everything that he found fascinating in the room while Flynn was drawing with chalk on her small chalkboard. Kensington appeared to be stuffing every doll she had into the small oven of the play-kitchen in the corner of the room. "Anarchy, pure anarchy."

"I prefer to think of it as controlled chaos," Stephanie said.

"Kid, you want to go shopping for your costume?" Chris asked his son, who was now peering at him over the camera.

"I don't know what I want to be, Daddy," Sawyer answered, his mouth twisting up into a frown. He just didn't know what he wanted to dress up as. His friends all knew and had been talking about it, but he just didn't know what he wanted to be!

"I wanna go," Flynn chimed in, stepping forward with her dusty, colored hands. She'd obviously been playing with some markers too because her hands were covered in colors.

"You have a costume, one that you won't show me, Flutterby," Chris said, "I think this should be just me and Sawyer, you understand, right?"

"No," she answered frankly because she didn't. So what if she had a costume, why should that and that alone be why she couldn't go? She didn't much care for the secrecy of the entire thing, she did not care for it at all.

"Well, you can come next time, okay?" Chris was trying to be diplomatic.

"Kensy, I think you've fit everything you can in here," Stephanie said as she went over to her youngest daughter, who had stuffed the oven so full it was bursting and wouldn't close, despite Kensington's best efforts to shove everything inside.

"Uh huh," Kensington told her and Stephanie laughed, which made Flynn glance over at them.

"That's not how you do it!" Flynn said with a big sigh as she walked over and started to pull stuff out of the oven. "I show you, Kensy, you canna do anything!"

"Hey, she can do things, she's just younger than you," Stephanie said as she sat cross-legged in between her girls. "We all do things at our own pace. You're three years old and you don't do some things that Sawyer can do."

"But I can, I do what Sawa do all the time, I can do it," Flynn told her mother, insulted that she would say something like that. "I do go school if I wanna, but I don't wanna."

"You can't yet, Flynnie," Stephanie told her.

"Come on, kid, let's slip out of here while we can," Chris told his son, grabbing Sawyer's hand and nodding at Stephanie before the girls could notice they were gone. "We can go shopping, get lunch, and then pick up something for dinner."

"Okay, Daddy, I hope I can find something cool."

"Even if we don't, you'll be the coolest kid out there."

Chris took Sawyer to the mall where they went looking for a Halloween costume. Sawyer still didn't know what he wanted to be, but he was enjoying the time he was spending with Chris. It wasn't that they didn't get to do things together on their own, they did, but Chris was going to be leaving soon for his tour so Sawyer wanted to spend a lot of time with him before he went. Chris, conversely, wanted to spend as much time as he could with his kids before he left.

"Daddy, do you really have to go on your tour?" Sawyer asked.

"Well yeah, kid," Chris said, "we've already paid for the venues and people have bought tickets and I'm not sure that they would have a lot of fun if we didn't show up."

"But we'll miss you lots and lots," Sawyer said as they entered a store.

"I'll miss you too, but it won't be for that long, I promise."

"Why do you always go away?" Sawyer wondered.

"Whoa, what do you mean by that?" Chris asked. "I'm not always going away and when I do go away, most of the time I bring you with me."

"Yes you do, you do lots of stuff and you go away. Do you just never want to come back?"

Chris laughed, "Not come back? You, your sisters, and Mommy are the most important people in the world to me. You're more important than anything, ever, that has ever happened, but I like my band and I like performing for people, you know that. You're just being silly because you don't want me to go, aren't you?"

"Daddy, no I'm not," Sawyer said, but then he laughed too, "Mommy said it was a guilt trip."

"Oh, yeah, I'm sure Mommy said that," Chris said, ruffling his hair. "Next summer, when you aren't in school, you and everyone can come along when we do another tour, is that a deal?"

"Okay, but why can't I go now?"

"Because you have school and I doubt that you'll want to miss school, would you? You like school a lot and you'd miss your friends and you wouldn't learn anything when you'd be with me because I'm not cool like your teacher, am I?"

"You're the coolest person I know, Daddy," Sawyer said and it was the truth and it was the truth for a lot of people it seemed. Sometimes, his daddy would show him something called Twitter and all the people that talked about him on there. Sawyer couldn't believe that _so_ many people wanted to talk to his daddy. Sometimes he didn't feel like talking to his daddy, but apparently, people would try and talk to his daddy _all_ day long.

"Well thanks," Chris said with false humility, "you really think so?"

"Everyone on the Tweet-tweet place thinks so," Sawyer shrugged. "They like to tweet-tweet you, don't they?"

"They do, what do you think about that?"

"I think it's silly," Sawyer giggled. "Who wants to talk to you?"

"Wow, thanks," Chris said, "I'm glad to know that I'm so boring to you, I will never speak to you again."

"You're being silly again!" Sawyer said, but then his face scrunched up, "Daddy, I don't know what I want to dress up as, I don't have any ideas at all!"

"Why don't you be a zombie?"

"What's a zombie?"

"It's someone who is dead who comes back to life," Chris explained to his son. Sawyer's eyes widened and he looked absolutely horrified.

"People who are dead come back to life?" Sawyer's face turned positively ashen and Chris quickly lifted him up and gave him a hug, right there in the middle of the costume store.

"No, no, no, it's just a thing in horror movies, that doesn't happen," Chris said, hoping that Sawyer believed him and didn't get scared. Stephanie would make _him_ into a zombie if she found out that he'd freaked his kid out with talk like that. "It's just make believe like unicorns."

"Are you sure?" Sawyer asked, pulling away and looking at Chris's face.

"I'm absolutely positive," Chris said, "it's nothing that's real, I promise you and would I tell you something like that if it wasn't true? I wouldn't try to scare you like that, what do you take me for?"

"I know, you're a good daddy," Sawyer said diplomatically, "but I don't wanna be a zombie."

"Okay, well, how about we go in the opposite direction and you can be someone who kills zombies?" Chris said, one of his favorite movies coming to mind. "There's a movie with a character named Ash and he really likes to kill things that are dead."

"I like that better."

"We better ask Mommy first if you can be him. Why don't we go to the food court and get some lunch and then we can call Mommy?"

"Okay, I am pretty hungry."

Across town, Stephanie was eating lunch with the girls. She'd heated up some leftover pasta from the night before and had made some simple garlic bread. Now all she had to contend with was pasta sauce getting all over clothes and faces and hands and chairs and tables. At least the pasta had been penne so she didn't have wayward noodles flying all over the place and Flynn trying to slurp them up.

Stephanie cut another piece of penne for Kensington and helped her get it into her mouth with her spoon. Kensington was getting better with her spoon, but she still preferred to use her fingers and Stephanie knew she couldn't really correct her when she was so young. The phone rang and she grabbed it off the counter and sat at the table with the girls again so she could make sure they ate and didn't choke and what not.

"Hello, McMahon-Jericho residence, Stephanie speaking."

"Is this how you always answer the phone?" Chris asked. "It's our house phone, you don't have to be so formal."

"What is it that you need?" Stephanie asked as she took a bite of garlic bread from her plate.

"I had an idea for Sawyer's costume, but I think I'm going to need your approval because it's kind of…well, not very kid-like and if you think it's too much…"

"Remember that he has to go to school in costume, Chris," Stephanie reminded him, "they don't want anything with blood or gore, no guns, no knives, nothing that suggests anything gruesome."

"Oh, well, for his school, we can just have him go as a rock star, we've still got stuff, hell, he can go as me if he wears what you bought him when we went on tour, but for the actual trick-or-treating, I was thinking Ash from _Evil Dead_, what do you think?"

"You want our son to have a gun and a chainsaw?"

"Stephanie, remember when we saw that toy chainsaw at Toys 'R Us? They make them for kids so why not? It's not like he's going to turn into something evil because of a costume, I think he'll actually look kind of cool. You know I love that movie."

"Chris, we're going with his friends, what do you think their parents are going to think if they show up at our house to go trick-or-treating with us and our son is covered in fake blood with a chainsaw for a hand and a gun in the other?"

"That we're the coolest parents on the planet? Besides, Bev, Mike, Kylie, and Jack all know what we're like, our kids have hung out since they were like three years old and Emily has been around a few months now so I really don't think it'll shock her, she seems pretty cool."

"Oh yes, I finally get to meet this Emily character," Stephanie said. "Great impression I'm going to make on her."

"Stephanie, you are so crazy," Chris said, "so can he be Ash, can he, can he? Please, please, please, pretty please. What's the good of having a son if I can't introduce him to things like this? I have to make sure he has good tastes in movies and music, that is my job."

"And with Flynn and Kensington?"

"I'll do the same with them if that's their bag. But they might like really girly things…Flynn doesn't show it right now, but by this time next year, she could want to be a Disney Princess for Halloween."

"Can we make some odds and bet on that?"

"Yeah right, she's probably going to want to be me again next year, not taking that."

"Sawyer can be Ash, but I have to approve of the costume," Stephanie told him.

"Oh my God, you're the best wife ever, I love you, baby!" The phone was hung up a second later and Stephanie rolled her eyes at Flynn, who thought that her mother was making a funny face so she started laughing at her. Stephanie laughed back and then made a real funny face, which made Flynn _and_ Kensington start to laugh.

"What's so funny?" Stephanie asked, pretending to sound like she didn't know what had made them laugh so much.

"You're funny, Mommy," Flynn told her. "You make silly faces."

"Fun!" Kensington exclaimed as she continued to eat with her fingers.

"Was that Daddy?" Flynn asked.

"Yeah, it was, he found a costume for Sawyer and he wanted to ask about because it might be a little inappropriate for some people, but I said that I would have to approve the costume before I saw it."

"What is it? He gonna be Daddy too?"

"No, Flynnie, I think you're the only one who's going to be daddy this year. At least in the family. There may be people who are fans of Daddy who will go as Daddy for Halloween."

"Really? People like Daddy," Flynn said in a self-satisfied way.

"They really do," Stephanie told her.

"Are people being you?" Flynn asked.

"Hmm, there might be a couple, but I don't know who would want to be me," Stephanie told her and that was the truth. She couldn't imagine anyone wanting to be her for Halloween, unless they were trying to make fun of her.

"I like that," Flynn said. "We go Raw too, Mommy?"

"No, we're just going to go trick-or-treating, you'll have to miss Raw this week, I'm going to miss Raw this week too, but that's okay because I'm going to leave someone in charge and hopefully the person I leave in charge won't mess things up."

"Do they messy things already?'

"He messes things up a little bit," Stephanie said, "but finish your food and then we wait for Daddy and Sawyer to come home and then they can show us what they got for Sawyer's costume.

When Chris and Sawyer finally got home, they'd stocked up on different things for Sawyer's costume. They'd bought a cheap dress shirt and slacks that Chris was going to shred and put some of the fake blood (which they'd bought as well) on it. They'd also bought a toy chainsaw (Stephanie really wanted to know why there was such a thing as _toy_ chainsaws), but Chris had refrained from the gun. While it was accurate to the costume, he figured the chainsaw was going to be enough to really make the costume. He didn't want to go overboard. Stephanie couldn't believe she was agreeing to this, but Chris looked so excited about it she gave her approval, but that if one person complained about the chainsaw, it would be confiscated by her and not given back.

At least for school, Sawyer dressed up like a little rock star, complete with Chris spiking his hair up just like his own hair and giving Sawyer a pair of his sunglasses. Sawyer was happy to go off to school in the costume, but both he and Chris were excited to be going out in the Ash costume later. Chris just hoped they didn't run into any stuffy old ladies. By the time Chris picked Sawyer up from school they were both bouncing off the walls.

"Mommy, can I put my costume on now?" Sawyer asked as soon as he walked in the door, Chris trailing behind him, holding onto Sawyer's backpack and the small bag of Halloween candy given to him during his class Halloween party.

"It's too early, but you can go put on some regular clothes," she said, gesturing towards his school costume.

"But I wanna be Ash now!" Sawyer whined and Chris grinned at Stephanie.

"He's not putting it on yet," Stephanie looked at her husband. "So you two boys can go play or whatever you want to do, go play with Flynnie and Kensy, but you aren't putting on your costume right now. We're not going trick-or-treating until 5:30 so you're just going to have to deal with it."

"Okay," Sawyer sighed with a frown. "What are we doing after trick-or-treating?"

"We're going to go to Gamma and Gamps' house to show them your costumes and to eat dinner, then we're going home and then we'll all get out of our costumes and then we'll watch Raw together."

"I like this plan," Sawyer said.

"I thought you might, now go occupy yourselves," Stephanie told the two of them and they ran off laughing and chattering about how cool Sawyer's costume was going to be. Stephanie just smiled good-naturedly at her two excited boys. She loved to see the father/son bonding time between the two of them. It only reinforced how alike they were.

Stephanie went into the kitchen to get the bags of candy they were leaving on the doorstep for kids to come and get (she figured some smart kid would just take it all, but what could you do?) when Chris came in and wrapped his arms around her waist, kissing her neck. She smiled and felt him smile against her skin. "You're still putting him in that costume."

"I'm not thinking about that, I was just going to make some sandwiches for the kids and eat them upstairs. We can be good boys and wait until later to put the costumes on. Thanks for letting him be Ash," Chris told her.

"We'll see, I still have to approve this costume."

"Will I be approving your costume?" he asked.

"I think you will," she told him.

"Are you going to be distracted tonight?"

"No, why should I be? Because of Raw?" She felt Chris nod against her. "No, Christian is there so if anything happens, he can tell me and Punk is there so he'll definitely be keeping things in line so I'm not worried. The thing is this, I only get so much time with my kids when they're kids and things like Halloween, which they love, that's my time with them so I don't really care what's going on at the show unless my father is actually there and has taken over."

"You never cease to amaze me," he told her.

"Well, thank, I guess," Stephanie said, "but I'm just telling the truth. They're my kids, this is something they love and I love them. They come first, always. The business is second to them and you're third, so…"

Chris held her tighter as they both laughed and he lifted her off the ground, pressing kisses to the back of her neck. "If I didn't love you so much…"

"But you do," she said, "come on, I'll help you with the sandwiches, we can have an indoor picnic upstairs."

"Let's do it then."

Chris and Stephanie made themselves and the kids some sandwiches and took them upstairs where they all sat and floor and ate and talked about their costumes and how fun it was going to be to dress up. After everything was cleaned up and they played around for a while, Stephanie decided that it would be okay to get into costumes and start getting ready because Sawyer's friends and Trish and Tilden were coming soon.

"We're getting ready in Sawyer's room!" Chris announced.

"Fine, we're getting ready our room," Stephanie said, picking up Kensington and grabbing Flynn's hand as they walked into their respective dressing areas.

Stephanie helped Kensington get into her costume first. It was easy enough, being a leotard with a ladybug back on it. Stephanie helped her into it and then brushed her hair back and clipped it back. "We'll put your little antennae on a little later, Kensy," Stephanie said, plopping the little girl on the bed. "Okay, Miss Flynnie, are you ready to be Daddy?"

Flynn nodded eagerly, "I wanna, I wanna!"

"Okay, hold your horses," Stephanie said as she left the room to go into Flynn's room, grabbing a garment bag out of the closet. She brought it back into her room and set it on the bed, where Flynn started trying to _rip_ open the bag, which Stephanie swatted her away from doing (not that she thought Flynn could rip through fabric). She unzipped it and pulled out the suit she'd had made for Flynn. She helped Flynn out of her clothes and put the dress shirt on her and the pinstriped gray pants. Stephanie then tied the black and white striped tie around Flynn's neck before helping her to shrug on her suit jacket, buttoning it up.

"I like it," Flynn said, looking down at her suit.

"I think you look too cute," Stephanie said, kissing her nose. "You want to do your hair now?"

"Uh huh," Flynn said and she hopped off the bed and Stephanie's eyes widened because she was afraid Flynn would tear the suit, but it was okay and she ran over to the vanity table that Stephanie used for her hair and makeup. Flynn climbed onto the stool and Stephanie grabbed some of Chris's hair gel and started to work it into Flynn's hair. Flynn had just gotten a haircut a few days ago so it was short enough to where it didn't look like a mohawk. When she was finished with that, she grabbed Flynn's World championship belt and handed it to her, letting her sit on the bed so she could put socks on Flynn's feet. "What about you, Mommy, you dress too?"

"Yup, I'm going to get dressed, just stay on the bed and watch Kensy for me, okay?"

"I watch her, she no fall like a baby," Flynn told her with a slight hint of derision in her voice.

Stephanie sighed, but knew that Flynn would watch Kensington and make sure she didn't fall right off the bed or if she did, Flynn would probably blame it on Kensington. Stephanie went into the closet and grabbed the leotard she was wearing tonight. She undressed and slipped it on, checking herself in the mirror and deeming herself not _too_ bad. She could probably look better, but hey, she was just going out with her kids. She grabbed the cat tail and pinned it on before she walked out again.

"Mommy, you no look like kitty," Flynn told her. "I look like Daddy."

"I haven't put my makeup on yet," Stephanie said, going over to her vanity and grabbing the face painting kit. "But first, we've got to take care of Kensy."

Stephanie sat across from her youngest child and she grabbed the black face paint marker and started putting some on Kensington's nose, which she giggled at, making it harder for Stephanie to put it on, but she managed. When that was done, she did the same to her nose (looking into the mirror) and then gave herself some whiskers. She pulled her cat ears headband on and then looked at Flynn and meowed. Flynn laughed at her mommy for being silly.

"Okay, you ready, guys!" Chris asked from the hallway.

"Yes, we're ready," Stephanie said and Sawyer walked in, looking very much like a young Ash from _Evil Dead. _"Wow, Sawyer, you look crazy."

"I am, that's what Daddy said, but I'm going to save the world," Sawyer said. "Do you like it?"

"Yes, do you like it?" Chris asked, still standing outside. "I'm not going to come in if you're just going to hit me."

"He looks fine," Stephanie said. "You can come in, there will be no bodily harm."

"Daddy, come see me!" Flynn said, standing on the bed.

"Okay, I'm coming in," Chris said and walked in then burst into laughter. "Oh my God, she's wearing a suit."

"An exact replica of one of your suits," Stephanie added. "So it's not just any suit, it's meant to look exactly like yours."

"And the sunglasses and the belt."

"You are a peppersite!" Flynn said proudly.

"I think she was going for parasite," Stephanie said.

"You look amazing, Flutterby," Chris said, kissing her cheek. "You look like me and what's this? My Kensy-bug, adorable. Are these my daughters or are these my daughters?"

Kensington held out her arms for Chris and he picked her up. "You look cute, Kensy," Sawyer said, "I like you as Daddy, Flynnie."

"Thank you!" she said.

"Chris, you have to dress up too."

"Do I have to?"

"Yes, all the parents are dressing up too, this is supposed to be fun," Stephanie said, "so will you please find something to wear?"

"Well, you're in luck because I bought something when I was out with Sawyer and I promise you it's the dumbest costume you've ever seen."

Eminem as an M&M. Stephanie had to admit, he wasn't lying when he said it would be the dumbest costume she'd ever seen, but as long as Chris was willing to go with it, she couldn't help but laugh at him. He was so stupidly proud of his concept that he actually started rapping around the house while they waited for everyone to show up. Stephanie was having such a good time with her family that she even managed to forget that she was leaving someone she considered the enemy in charge of her beloved show.

The doorbell rang and Stephanie went to the door with Chris. "Oh, I think this is your new girlfriend."

"Friend, Stephanie, _friend_," Chris said as he slapped her butt. "Now that we aren't around the kids, I can tell you how goddamn hot you look in that cute, little leotard, I'm going to peel that sucker off you later with my teeth."

"Don't you think you're just overcompensating now?" she teased him and walked towards the door looking at him coyly.

"No, I'm just telling you my intents," Chris said as he opened the door. "Emily, Aiden, hey, you guys, nice to see you."

"Oh my God, Chris, what in the world are you supposed to be?"

"M&M Eminem," Chris explained as Emily laughed at his ridiculous costume.

"Are we the first ones here?" Emily, who was dressed as a pumpkin, asked after she'd composed herself.

"Yeah, but it's cool, here, you need to finally meet my wife, this is Stephanie, Steph, this is Emily, Aiden's mom," Chris introduced them and Stephanie stuck out her hand to shake. She appraised her because that's what she did with all of Chris's female friends (not that she ever felt a risk, but it was a precaution nonetheless) and then smiled.

"It's so nice to finally meet you," Emily said.

"You too," she said, "Aiden, I've heard a lot about you as well, Sawyer's in the living room, I think you know where that is."

"Yeah," he said, running off in his baseball uniform costume.

"Thanks for inviting us, I'm glad Aiden is doing things with his friends and everyone has been so great to us since we moved here," Emily said. "Chris has been great."

"Yeah, he's a great guy," Stephanie said, glancing over at Chris, but he was not even going to look at her.

There wasn't much time to really get to know Emily before the rest of the parents and Trish and Tilden arrived. After that, they were in the kid zone for the next couple hours. Nobody really seemed to mind Sawyer's costume so Stephanie didn't feel the need to change it. They set off into the neighborhood and trying to wrangle four five year olds, a four year old, a three year old, and two one year olds was not a day at the park. This was Flynn's first real Halloween so she was a terror, running from one house the other, making Chris chase after her, which was difficult in the M&M part of his costume.

Eventually the kids started to get tired and they decided to walk back home and disband the group. Chris and Stephanie took the kids over to his parents' house for dinner and to show them their costumes and Loretta was nearly appalled at what Sawyer was wearing. "Chris, what did you dress him as?"

"He's Ash, you know, from _Evil Dead_," Chris said proudly.

"I don't even want to know," Loretta said, "he's a little boy, why is he carrying a chainsaw?"

"To kill the zombie, Gamma," Sawyer told her, "but I can put it down." He took it off his hand and went to the kitchen where his grandpa was and where Flynn and Kensington had wandered off towards, with Flynn holding Kensington's hand. Loretta looked back her son and daughter-in-law and shook her head.

"I think we're in trouble," Chris said, trying to pull Stephanie close, but he couldn't with the M&M costume on. He pulled away and then pulled it off, leaving him in the black tank top he'd worn underneath. He resumed his position with his arms around Stephanie. "Do you think my mom is going to send us to our room without dinner?"

"Oh shut it," she told him playfully.

"I'm just thinking about what I want to do to you. Do you have any idea how distracting that tail is?" Chris asked her and she guffawed as they went into the kitchen to eat with the rest of the family. Stephanie did make it worth his while when she managed to shake that tail pretty well on the way to the table.

By the time they got home for Raw, the kids were ready to get out of their costumes with the exception of Flynn. She would have worn that suit to bed if her parents had let her, but they told her it was pajama and Raw time and so she had no choice but to comply because if she didn't, they might not let her watch Raw and that was the worst fate she could think of.

"So I think Emily has a crush on you," Stephanie said as they settled into their usual spot on the loveseat. They always ended up squeezed in together on the loveseat while the kids got the couch. It was kind of unfair that the three little ones got all the room while they had to squeeze together.

"Mommy, do you _always_ have to talk when wrestling is about to come on?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah, we no like talking and we wanna watch when it comes on," Flynn frowned at them.

"Okay, geez, sorry," Stephanie said, then whispered to Chris, "I think she likes you."

"I think you're on crack," Chris whispered to her.

"You didn't see the way she was looking at you."

"You think every woman has a crush on me. When did it change from me thinking every woman had a crush on me to _you _thinking every woman has a crush on me?" he asked.

"I'm just stating a fact, I'm going to have to watch out for that one, I am," Stephanie shook her head and then quieted down as Sawyer and Flynn shushed her at the same time.

Meanwhile, in a city far away, Punk was looking at Laurinaitis, more like staring at Laurinaitis. Punk didn't like the way the guy carried himself. He acted like he was the best in the world, but he was a lousy GM and a lousy Head of Talent Relations and for that, Punk was glad Chris had taken over. At least Chris understood the wrestlers of today. John was so stuck in the past, the one that Vince controlled. Stephanie was a different breed; while she was hands-on, she knew when to mind her own damn business and he liked that about her. That's why he was watching Laurinaitis like a hawk.

He had a match with Mark Henry tonight, Laurinaitis's doing, but Punk believed he was the best in the world so he knew he could be Mark. "What're you staring at?"

"What the hell is it to you?" Punk asked Cena, who had somehow sidled up to him without him knowing.

"Because I think we like the guy about the same, which is to say we don't like him," Cena said.

"Yeah, again, what the hell is it to you?"

"Are you planning something?"

"I'm looking at the guy, does it look like I'm planning something?"

"A little."

"Why the hell are you even around me?"

"Rock's supposed to have a video shown at the top of the show, I want to see it," Cena said succinctly. "It's about us teaming together, you know, at Survivor Series."

"I don't understand why you would even want to team with the guy in the first place. He's never here, he isn't committed to this business like other people. I mean, look at Jericho for example, he's not wrestling, but he doesn't turn his back on us."

"He's married to Stephanie. Rocky is different."

"Yeah, different, too good for the business, only comes when it's convenient for _him_," Punk scoffed. He hated people like that, who used the business whenever they needed something, "I just don't get why you are party to it…oh wait, I get it now, you need the cheers, right, because we both know that you aren't exactly a fan favorite."

"That has nothing to do with it," Cena scowled.

"What's this? Resentment on the great John Cena's face, get out of here, dude," Punk said, throwing his thumb away as Cena walked away. He didn't have time to deal with that. The less 'friends' around here the better He had plenty of friends out of this company and he didn't need ones in it, ones who would no doubt try to ride on his coattails. It had worked for a while, having disciples, but in the end, he didn't like relying on other people and the only disciple he had was Flynn and that was because she liked his tattoos and she was a cute kid.

Christian walked by him and nodded his head and Punk nodded his head back at him. He wouldn't call Christian anything other than a coworker, but he knew that Stephanie and Chris were friends with him so he couldn't be too hard on the guy. He didn't really ever actually hang out with Chris and Stephanie so he never really interacted with their friends. He had a very distinct personality and so did they and while they didn't clash, they weren't what he would call "out of work friends," but he liked them all the same. They were good people trying to do a good job for everyone and that was the reason he was staring at Laurinaitis and making sure the douchebag wasn't trying to pull something while the cats were away. If anyone here was a rat, it was Laurinaitis.

He was lucky because his match was early in the show and that way he could just make sure that nothing happened for the rest of the two hours. To his surprise, Laurinaitis actually made his match a contender's challenge, stating that if he won, he would face Del Rio. Punk briefly wondered if that was really Laurinaitis's doing or if Stephanie had called to tell him to do that. Either way, he wanted the opportunity.

It would have gone better if Del Rio hadn't interfered though and cost him the title shot. He half expected Laurinaitis to just laugh it off, but when he went to the man (as he was the only one in charge that night, much to Punk's chagrin), he was actually…reasonable. He told Punk that if he asked Del Rio and Del Rio consented to a match, then the match would be made. That was almost too easy and it made Laurinaitis look suspicious, at least in Punk's eyes. It was well-documented that Laurinaitis didn't like him, so why would he be so nice to him now. Maybe nice was overstating it, diplomatic might be more appropriate.

Still, just because John was being nice didn't mean that del Rio was just going to consent to a match. He would _never_ consent to it because Del Rio wasn't an idiot and he knew that Punk was better than him and smarter than him and damn sure was a better wrestler than he was. Punk needed to be crafty. If only Stephanie were here, she could help because she was the queen of crafty, but since she wasn't, Punk went a different route and when Del Rio was laid up in the ring, Punk got what he wanted by force. Sometimes that was the only way to deal with people and as he twisted Del Rio's arm, he knew that it was going to work and then it did.

"I just wanted to congratulate you on getting the match," Laurinaitis said as Punk walked backstage. He held his hand out for Punk to shake. Punk stared at it until Laurinaitis clued into the fact that Punk wasn't going to shake his hand.

"What do you want?"

"I just wanted to-"

"Yeah, you expect me to believe that _and_ your nice act a little while ago?" Punk's brow furrowed into his annoyed look, a look he often wore in the ring along with his incredulous "is this guy for real?" look.

"I'm just trying to do what's best for the show."

"Yeah, right," Punk said. "What do you really want, John, stop beating around the bush, I _hate_ when people beat around the bush and don't tell me what's going on."

"Vince would like to schedule a private meeting with you."


	347. Rock It Out, November 7, 2011

Chris ran his hands over his face as he looked at the ceiling. Stephanie was still asleep next to him, or at least he thought she was because she wasn't moving that much, and so he just stared up at the white ceiling that never looked any different any time he looked at it, but it was the most fascinating thing at the moment. His flight was at three this afternoon and, when he'd glanced at the clock a few minutes ago, it was 5:42. He didn't have to be up for at least another hour and a half. His family was late-waking anyways, but Sawyer had school and so everyone would be up and hustling and bustling around.

He thought back to Halloween last night and how he and Stephanie had ended the night with some mind-blowing sex. He didn't want to say that she'd used her cat costume as a way to tantalize him, but that would be lying. She was the sexiest cat he'd ever seen (did he really just think that?). It was the last time he'd be with his wife and having sex for the next eighteen days or so and when you were used to having sex at least four times a week, eighteen days seemed like his own personal hell. He wouldn't even really get any time to take care of himself since he was sharing a bus with four other guys. So he'd had to make the best of it last night.

Then there was the issue he didn't want to think about because it made his heart ache and his stomach clench every time he thought about it. He was going to spend eighteen days away from his kids. It rivaled the time he'd spent in China and touring with the company and every time he was away from them for that long, something inside him got a little harder. Leaving them got harder and harder every time he had to do it instead of getting easier and easier. He'd never not wish to have his kids, but God, it would just be easier if the kids weren't in the picture. He wouldn't have felt as guilty and Stephanie could have easily come with him.

When he was away from his kids, he always felt so detached, like he was missing every important thing in their lives. They were young, but not so young that he would miss some huge milestone. Kensington could walk and talk now so he wasn't going to miss anything, Flynn was Flynn, and Sawyer was Sawyer and they weren't going to undergo some huge transformation in eighteen days. It just felt like they were; it felt like he was going to come home and they were suddenly going to be these new people and he would have to catch up to the people they were now.

He felt Stephanie come over and cuddle herself into his side in her sleep. Her tank top bunched up and he could feel the skin of her stomach against his side and he wrapped his arm around her to pull her in closer. She noticed the movement and opened her eyes to narrow slits. "What's going on?"

"Maybe I should stop touring," he said.

"We both now that's not going to happen," she told him, moving her head so her lips were brushing against his neck.

"I'm going to miss the kids so much, how can I do this to them?" he asked her. "How can I be so selfish as to go on a tour for nearly a month and leave them behind? I'm their father; they need me and I'm just going to go off and do what? Sing for people? I'm an adult."

"Yes, an adult who has his own set of dreams and aspirations. Just because you're a father doesn't mean you suddenly have to shut off who you are. If I'd shut off who I was when I had the kids, I wouldn't be the president."

"But you never just leave them."

"Chris, you love Fozzy, I know you do, I've been there since nearly the beginning. You're starting something here, something you're proud of, something you built from the ground up, that's something you've never done before and you should be proud of it, I'm proud of you and you have fans who want nothing more than to sing along and meet you and cheer for you."

"I built myself up in the WWE, I've done it all before."

"No, this is different," she told him, "the WWE was around way before you ever set foot in it, my grandfather and father built it up from nothing, you were just a cog in the machine."

"Gee, thanks."

She laughed, her body shaking against him as she looked and saw that it was still really dark. She cursed her husband's existential crises so early in the morning. She was going to be responsible for the kids alone while he was gone and she needed all the rest she could get. "You know what I mean, you helped to make it what it is and that's great, but it was here before you and it'll be here after you…a long time from now since you own the company now."

"Oh yeah, _that_," he said, "plus I have an actual position now."

"Uh huh, when is your first scouting trip again?" Stephanie asked.

"The 7th," he responded, "I'll be at the show in Birmingham and then I'll go to Nottingham for the Fozzy gig."

"Good, good," she said with a nod of her head. "The kids are going to be okay, Chris. They're part Jericho and part McMahon, they're resilient, that's what makes us who we are. That's what's always made us who we are. We bounce back, we thrive, we're not whiners."

"They're five, three, and one, baby, they're not exactly warriors, I mean, Flynn is, but she loves me, she idolizes me. Did you see her in her costume last night, my God, that little girl was adorable. She was wearing a suit, sunglasses, she had her hair spiked up, she _was_ me."

"For everything that Sawyer is, Flynn is so very much like you," Stephanie said.

"Oh, she's got you in there too, believe me," Chris said.

"She'll be fine too. She knows that you love Fozzy and she knows that you love her and before you even say it because I know you're thinking it, she's older now than she was when you went on your long tour before without her. She understands it better now that you are coming back and that you're not leaving because you're necessarily leaving her."

"Thanks," he said, "go back to sleep, we've still got time before we have to get up."

"Thank you," she told him, "and since I know you probably won't get anymore sleep this morning, just believe me when I say that this tour is going to be great and once you're out there on that stage, all of this will just fade away."

Chris didn't go back to sleep, he couldn't. He just kept thinking and maybe thinking was dangerous, but he couldn't just turn the switch off and become a drooling mass of whatever. He stayed awake until Stephanie stirred against him again, moments before her alarm went off. He got out of bed before she did and went down to Sawyer's room to help him wake up. If this was his last morning here for a while, he wasn't going to make Stephanie do all the work.

Stephanie, for her part, went downstairs and got breakfast ready before Sawyer came down, sleepy from last night's excitement, to eat. Chris was still upstairs, probably checking on the girls, but came down without them, meaning they were both still asleep and were going to be kept that way. Chris and Stephanie had decided to enroll Flynn in preschool at the start of the new year for three days a week (when Stephanie didn't take her to Raw) so Flynn was still able to sleep in.

When Sawyer had finished up and gotten everything into his backpack, Chris had taken him to school, just like most mornings, then picked up some coffee on the way back for him and his wife and the routine they had down pat seemed comforting this morning. Tomorrow Stephanie would get up, get ready, but instead of Chris there, Loretta had offered to come over in the mornings to take care of the girls and Stephanie would take Sawyer to school and get her own coffee and then come home and work in her office while her mother-in-law took care of the girls. It would be different, but it would still work.

By the time Sawyer got out of school, the mood of the day had turned slightly sour. They were going to lunch after they picked up Sawyer, then it was straight to the airport for Chris, where he'd be separated from his family for weeks. He didn't want to feel so morose, but he did. He just needed that stage; Stephanie was right, when he got on that stage, all the reasons for staying would melt away and he would not wish to be anywhere else. Stephanie was also right when she constantly told him that he was most at home on stage, performing for people. It was something he'd done for the past 20 years and it was in his system and who he was.

"Daddy, I'm going to miss you," Sawyer said as he took a bite of his quesadilla, the cheese forming a giant string from his mouth to the tortilla.

"I will too," Flynn said with a great, big, heaving sigh meant to show how depressed she was about her father leaving her like he was.

"I won't be gone that long," he said, wishing they wouldn't do this, wouldn't make it harder for him to leave. He was probably going to cling to Kensington and not let Stephanie take her from his arms when he hugged his youngest daughter (Flynn would throw a fit so clinging to Kensington was probably his best bet).

"Yes you will," Flynn said like she knew, "you'll be gone lotsa days."

"Not that many days," Chris said.

"We won't even get to see you for your birthday, Daddy," Sawyer told him.

"You guys, Daddy loves what he does and we love Daddy, right?" Stephanie told them gently.

"Yeah, but he still has no go," Flynn said, which didn't quite make sense, but in some odd way, made Chris feel even worse than he was before. He looked down at his enchiladas and suddenly they didn't seem so appetizing, but he forced himself to eat so he wouldn't have to look at the two forlorn faces staring back at him (Kensington had no clue what he was going to do).

"And we'll be here and when he comes home, we'll all be super happy," Stephanie tried to lighten the mood, but it wasn't working. "Do you like your tortilla, Kensy?"

"Eats, eat, eats," Kensington said, taking a big bite out of her tortilla. She seemed to be the only one at the table who was happy, with her big grin and her sparkling blue eyes as she ate her plain tortilla with some chicken from Stephanie's plate. Stephanie kind of wished all her kids were that oblivious so her husband wouldn't be wearing the face he was wearing at the moment.

"That's my good girl," Stephanie told her. She made a funny face at Kensington, who laughed, which also made Flynn laugh because damn it, funny faces were still the best thing since her daddy. How was she supposed to resist something like that? She just couldn't, that's what.

"Daddy, you call though," Flynn said after her giggling fit ceased.

"Of course I'm going to call and we can do video calls so you can see me and maybe Mommy can have you watch a couple of my concerts."

"I like that," Flynn said and Chris was grateful for that because if he had to hear anymore about how much they'd miss him, he was going MIA on his band and just staying with his kids. He wished he could bring at least one of them, but having a little kid on a bus with four other guys and late nights and what not, it didn't seem prudent.

"Good, I'm glad," Chris said, throwing a glance over at Stephanie, who gave him an encouraging smile.

Lunch finished much too quickly for him and then they were on their way to the airport. Chris sat in the back with the kids, just talking with them, every so often planting a kiss on Kensington or Flynn's head, making sure to get in as many kisses as he could manage as they would have to sustain him until he got home on the 20th.

When they arrived at the airport, they all got out of the car as Chris grabbed his bags from the trunk. He knelt down next to Sawyer and Flynn and opened his arms. They both hugged him tightly, their small arms wrapping around him like they never wanted to let him go and he hugged them back just as tightly, kissing them both on the cheeks. Flynn was trying not to cry, but she sniffled a little bit as she buried her face into Chris's neck.

"I miss you!" Flynn said against him.

"I'll miss you too, Flutterby, I love you though and I'll be back, okay?" he told her and she nodded. "You'll have to learn some new wrestling moves while I'm gone so you can show me what you know when I get back."

"I will, I go Raw wif Mommy," she said.

"You make sure and beat anyone up who bugs Mommy, okay? I know you can do it."

"I do that," Flynn nodded seriously. She would beat up anyone who hurt her Mommy. She loved her mommy and nobody would ever hurt her if she could help it.

Chris turned to his son, "And you have to make sure that our girls are taken care of, okay, I know you can do it because you're just awesome like that, right?"

"I think so," Sawyer shrugged.

"Don't let Flynnie go overboard with anything, you know how she is," Chris whispered.

"I won't, Daddy," Sawyer whispered back. Chris kissed them each one more time before he stood up and looked at Stephanie and Kensington. Kensington reached for him and Chris took her into his arms, hugging her tightly, like he had with his other two children. Kensington gave him a big hug back, but she just thought it was because her daddy wanted a hug and she was never one to turn down a hug, especially not from her daddy. He gave her the best hugs in the universe, okay, maybe the same as her mommy.

"Hi, Daddy," Kensington said as she looked at his face, her toothy grin staring back at him.

"Hi, Kensy," he said back to her in a silly voice and she giggled. "Daddy has to go for a while, so you have to be a good girl for Mommy, do you think you can do that?"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," she nodded eagerly.

"Can I take her with me?" Chris asked in a desperate plea.

"Sorry, she stays with me," Stephanie said, rubbing Kensington's back.

"But she's too cute for words and she's little, she can sleep in a drawer or something," Chris joked, not wanting to let go of his little girl. How could he be expected to make it? God help him, he did not want to give up his daughter right now.

"Chris, you have to get going," Stephanie let the reality sink in.

"Okay," he said reluctantly, handing Kensington back to Stephanie. He leaned forward and kissed Stephanie and she kissed him back with gusto, obviously giving him something to remember her by.

"I love you," she told him.

"I love you too," he leaned his forehead against hers.

"Be safe and have fun," she told him.

"I'll try."

"Not try, Chris. Do."

Stephanie had been right of course. Once he was in the UK and actually at the show, everything he was worried about disappeared. He had been slightly distracted during the VIP session because he kept thinking about his family and a couple people who had been to one or more of the VIP sessions during their summer tour had asked if his family was there and that brought them to mind. When he was onstage though, it all melted away. He was the consummate performer and he didn't have time to remember that he already missed his family a continent away.

The adrenaline he felt after the show carried him into the night and he felt energized and ready to party and it was good to know that even after all this time, he did still know how to have a good time. Being on the bus with the band was kind of like living in a frat house (or how he imagined it was living in a frat house, he only had movies like _Animal House _to compare it to). There was a camaraderie and these guys were like his on-the-road family, much like everyone in the WWE was a kind of family.

It seemed like everyone at home was doing okay as well. There had been no crying fits whenever he called or video-chatted. He half-expected Flynn to have some kind of crying jag, but apparently his mother had come up with a million different projects to keep her busy and she showed them off every time they video-chatted. He could remember some of the projects from when he was a little kid and it warmed his heart to know that his daughters were doing the same kind of thing he'd done over 30 years ago.

"So I know you said the concert was great tonight and I'm really happy about that," Stephanie said Friday night after the concert when he'd given her a call. He was drinking some Grey Goose (or as he affectionately called it "GG" or as Stephanie not-so-affectionately called it "the stupid drink that means I have to take care of the kids by myself") and lounging on the bus. Paul and Frank were out, but Rich was in his bunk watching a movie. They were set to leave in about an hour so Chris thought it would be ample time to call his wife. "But you are still going scouting, right?"

"I've only told you a million times that I am," Chris told her, "why don't you believe me when I tell you that? I'm going on Monday before the concert. It's too bad that I have a concert on Monday, I should have scheduled around it so I could go to Raw and oversee things since you're not over here."

"Well, I have important things to do over here and Britt is back at the job. And I never said I didn't believe you, but I know things can come up and I just want to confirm that you will be there because if you aren't, then I will send Britt."

"Britt can't evaluate talent," Chris scoffed. He loved the girl dearly, but Britt had only been around wrestling for the past five years and five years in comparison to his nearly over 35 years of being a wrestling fan and a wrestler, it didn't measure up.

"Okay, then I can ask Christian if he'll do it since he's going to be there anyways," Stephanie said.

"But I will be there, believe me. I'm the Executive Vice President of Talent Relations and the board appointed me. If I don't go or don't look like I'm doing my duties, your dad is going to be on me like a bee on honey. He's looking for any reason to get us out and I'm not going to be the one giving him the reason."

Stephanie smiled on her end of the phone. There was this fierceness that came to his voice whenever they talked about Vince taking over again. Stephanie had to admit that she loved him a little bit more because he was so adamant about her keeping her position. If she and Hunter were still married, Hunter might take the same tone, but only because being in charge is what he wanted and the power that came along with it. Chris wanted it for her and she was always reminded with little things that her second marriage had been much more successful than the first (not including the fact that she'd been with Chris for nine and a half years).

"Thank you."

"You don't need to thank me, this is my job," Chris told her.

"I'm still going to thank you," Stephanie told him. "I'm just reminded once again why you're amazing."

"Well, I'm not one to turn down a compliment."

"You never are."

"How are the kids before I get so…spirited-"

"Drunk," Stephanie coughed.

"Spirited," he insisted, "that I forget to ask about them."

"Actually, when you're blitzed, you ask about them more and then sometimes you want me to describe their every movement," Stephanie said to him. "Sometimes you even sound like you're going to cry."

"Liar," he laughed, "what are they up to right now?"

"They have just finished dinner and they are watching a movie in the living room. Kensington is sprawled out on the loveseat and she has refused to give up her binky after she found it lying on the coffee table, but she's happy enough, so I'm letting her have it for now. She's got a pillow under her head and Flynn is being quiet for once because she's never seen this movie and Sawyer is eating popcorn that I made for them. This should take them straight to bath and bedtime."

"I bet they look cute, don't they?"

"They're adequate, I haven't taken them for their winter cute-up, you know like a tune-up, but a cute-up."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it," Chris said sarcastically. "I don't want to interrupt their movie time. You'll tell them I said goodnight."

"Of course I will."

"I love you."

"I love you too, stop drinking, get some sleep. I want you to be alert when you watch those wrestlers."

"I will be, bye, baby."

"Bye, sweetie."

Chris pulled up his sleeves as he adjusted his suit jacket. Then he grabbed his cufflinks sitting on the counter and put those in, adjusting his sleeves again. He looked up at the mirror and decided that he looked decent enough, definitely like someone in charge. He walked out of the back of the bus and was greeted with whistles and he flipped off the guys before running his hands through his hair one last time.

"Wow, Chris, looking good," Paul said with a laugh.

"Look who decided to be too good for us," Frank teased him.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, get it out of your system now, you guys. I'll be back to my regular self later and then I'll kick your asses for making fun of me. This is part of my job, you know."

"Yes, this _job_ that you now have," Billy said, "are you getting paid for it or is it just because you're pussy-whipped?"

"Ease up, guys," Rich said, but even he was laughing a little bit at Chris's expense. He'd seen Chris in suits before, but it was just such a jarring contrast from the guy at the concert last night who'd been in torn jeans and a t-shirt. The guy in front of him looked like he was going to a huge business presentation.

"Have you seen my wife, dude?" Chris asked Billy. "You've seen how she is, tell me you wouldn't do something she told you to do?"

That eased Billy a little bit, "Yeah, she is pretty intimidating. I remember when we had the bus accident and she practically like ordered us onto your bus so we could get rest, still, do you actually _like_ doing this? I mean, it's just us here, I don't think Steph had the wherewithal to have the bus bugged."

"I don't think she did that…I hope she didn't do that," Chris laughed, "I do like it. I like helping her. Is it what I thought I'd be doing, no, but she's my wife and whatever makes her happy…well, like the cliché goes, it makes me happy too. It's not difficult work, I just scout, I deal with talents, contracts, things like that."

"But it's a desk job, it's everything that we aren't."

"I can do both," Chris told him, "I juggled being a wrestler and having Fozzy, didn't I? I can do the same with this."

"You just look ridiculous."

"I think I look hot," Chris said, "I can't just go in there and not look like the boss. I am an executive when I'm with the company. I'm not when I'm onstage, there's a difference and hell, the people I might be seeing today could someday be working for us and I can't show up looking like shit."

"Sure you could," Rich joked.

"Hey, okay, so since we're getting the truth out of you," Frank said, "I've always been dying to ask, just how much is Stephanie worth? I know it's got to be more right now because she's the president, but dude, how set are you?"

"Enough to buy you over about a million times," Chris responded to him. "What does it matter?"

"Because I just can't imagine you as this super-rich guy. I mean, I know you're well-off from the wrestling, but Stephanie, she's got tons of cash, doesn't she?"

"Yes, she does," Chris said and that was all he was saying, "she's worth a lot."

"She's cool though," Billy said, "when she doesn't have you pussy-whipped."

"She'll kill me for saying this, but Steph is amazing in bed, so I'm a lucky guy in more ways than one. Why do you think I've stayed with her this long?"

"Oh, she would kill you for saying that," Rich laughed. Chris loved the ease with which he could talk to his bandmates. It was like a little vacation from everything else in his life and while he missed his family terribly, being here with these guys just reinforced how guy time was an integral part of life. And because these guys were not affiliated with the wrestling world, he got to escape that for a while as well and just talk about music and metal and rock and roll and it was a refreshing change of pace.

"Don't I know it!" Chris chuckled.

"So those things you used to say about her then…" Billy chuckled.

"What did you used to say?" Paul asked. Paul, being the new guy to the band, was still getting used to everyone even though they'd known him for a while. He was getting better with each day and he would assimilate soon.

"Chris used to call her a slut and whore and stuff like that, what was that long one you used to call her?" Billy asked, looking over at Chris.

"A filthy, dirty, disgusting, brutal, skanky, bottom-feeding, trash bag ho," Chris supplied dully. That was so far from his perception nowadays so he didn't like referring to his wife in that manner, except when he was around her and could use it to tease her and make her angry. Then it was a little bit funny.

"Oh yeah, she was pretty slutty back then, wasn't she?"

"Dude," Chris said, "that's my wife you're talking about."

"But you hated her back then."

"You hated your wife?" Paul asked. He'd never been a wrestling fan so he was unfamiliar with anything having to do with Stephanie and Chris. He'd only met Stephanie once, briefly a while ago and while she seemed really nice, he hadn't had the opportunity to really converse with her at length.

"She was annoying and she hated me too, that was when she was with her first husband though," Chris explained. "She's not like that anymore."

"No, now she just has you running the business," Frank snickered.

"I can't wait until I get off this damn bus," he said with a shake of his head. "Do you know how long it is until we reach Birmingham?"

"Probably another ten minutes," Rich said, looking at the GPS thing they had on the bus to tell them where they were. "You sure you've got a ride to the gig tonight?"

"Yeah, I'm positive," Chris said, "I hired a car to take me there, then I'll just change in the bus and head right on over to VIP and fulfill my other duties. I can handle both of them."

"Who are you seeing today?"

"I have the papers on my bunk. I've got two guys and four girls trying out this time."

"Four girls?" Billy asked. "Are they hot?"

"How should I know? I've never met them," Chris said, "I assume so because that's the company's MO, but I really don't know nor do I care. I care if they can wrestle. Stephanie and I are sick and tired of divas who can't wrestle for crap. So hopefully these girls can hang with the best of them."

"Do you need help evaluating?"

"No, I don't, thank you," Chris rolled his eyes. The bus eventually pulled up to the arena where the show was being held this afternoon and Chris said goodbye to the band before getting out at the wrestlers' entrance and going inside. Since he was the boss, he barely needed to flash his ID to get in as everyone knew him there already.

"Hey, Chris, man, what's up?" Christian emerged from one of the doors as he was walking down the hallway. "How's the tour going?"

"Awesome, hey, what are you doing tonight, are you on Raw?"

"No way, I'm wrestling here, there's no way I'm wrestling, then going to Raw like two hours away and then wrestling again. I have no reason to be over there and I have a feeling Laurinaitis will take it out on me or something."

"Cool, then you need to come to my concert, it's only an hour away and you're not doing anything tonight, right?"

"No, I'm supposed to be driving to Liverpool though. We're filming the SmackDown show tomorrow because we're wrestling pretty much everyday," Christian said. "But I'm not doing anything tonight."

"Come to the Fozzy show in Nottingham," Chris said, "I'm not taking no for an answer. You're my best friend and I don't even think you've been to one Fozzy show. That's so unacceptable."

"I have to wrestle tomorrow though, probably, maybe, depending on what I have on tap and who the hell might bug me enough to want to wrestle."

"I'm the boss, I order you to go to my show tonight," Chris clapped him on the back. "Come on, here, I'll let you use the car I rented. It has a driver so you wouldn't even need to worry about driving at all. It's what, like an hour and a half from here to Liverpool, it's only like 2 hours from Nottingham, I insist, dude."

"God, fine," Christian said, "but only because I really have nothing to do tonight and Trish and Tilde are in the States, probably having lunch with your wife."

"What do you mean? Steph and Trish are having lunch?"

"That's what they said, either today or tomorrow, I forget," Christian explained. "Trish said that Stephanie probably wants to discuss the divas you're meeting today…which makes it more likely they're having lunch tomorrow, once you send your assessments. Hey, shouldn't you be, you know, _meeting_ with these people?"

"Oh yeah, that's right, how unprofessional of me," Chris joked. Inside though, he was thinking about the lunch between his wife and Trish. Christian had no idea, but it wasn't just because they wanted to go over the potential divas. If only it were that simple. Chris was almost inclined to tell Christian about what Stephanie was suspecting, but Chris didn't want to butt into his best friends' relationship. He was kind of tempted though, just to check up on them. He cared about them and if they were having problems, Chris wanted to offer all the help he could.

He and Stephanie didn't have a perfect relationship, not by any means, but they were still making it work after nearly ten years together so they had to be doing something right. And if Christian and Trish weren't doing well, he wanted to do something and not let them find themselves on the wrong side of a divorce or something…and now he was becoming like Stephanie, jumping to conclusions before anything was even clear.

"You want to come with me, I could use someone to look at talent with me," Chris said.

"Yeah, sure, I've got nothing better to do."

Chris and Christian walked around until they found Chris's temporary office. It still boggled his mind whenever he saw the nameplate that said: Chris Jericho, Executive VP. It was a surreal feeling and he pushed open the door to see six very nervous looking people. He gave them an easy smile. "I hope you haven't been waiting long."

"No, sir," one woman said in a thick, Irish brogue.

"Okay, first things first, I'm Chris," he said, going up to each of them and shaking their hands. "I'm just Chris Jericho and I don't want you guys to think of me as some big, scary boss. I just want to see you guys wrestle. There's no pressure to be the best, I just want you to _try_ your best."

They all nodded and Chris had them introduce themselves to him and tell him a little bit about themselves. He tried to ease their tension with jokes and light-hearted banter and it seemed to work because they began to calm down. Chris didn't want to be stuffy like some of the other VP's in the company and he didn't have to be with his position. Stephanie was trying to change the attitude backstage and this had to help that image.

Chris paired them up and they all headed to their special locker room to get changed while Chris and Christian walked into the arena and took a couple seats ringside so they could see the action when the tryouts began. "So far, what do you think?" Chris asked Christian.

"They have good looks, especially that chick, um, what does she go by, Alpha Female. I like her look, it reminds me a little bit of Ashley Massaro, but tougher, like Beth, she has the same kind of physique as Beth and she has an impressive record in the company she's working for right now."

"I agree," Chris nodded. "She's huge too, which is good. We need more females who are impressive like that."

"Trish is really working hard with what you've got though. She spends so much time coming up with things to teach them and help them with. She analyzes matches like crazy," Christian chuckled a little. "She's so cute when she's watching tape, she's like a talent scout or something."

"You should have her look at your matches and tell you what you're doing wrong," Chris joked.

"And have her completely tear me apart, no thanks," Christian told him. "The girl is brutal. She's not holding back with what she says to the girls. If she had someone like that Alpha Female girl, I think it would really challenge the less-than-great women wrestlers to really step up their game."

"If only," Chris said as they started trickling out. Chris instructed the guys to go first since there was only two of them. Chris and Christian watched intently with Chris taking notes and talking with Christian every now and then, talking about how they looked in the ring. They both agreed that Andrew Tyson looked really good and Chris thought that he might have something to offer the company, with time of course.

After they were finished and Chris thanked them and told them they could hit the showers, the women started wrestling and it was something else to actually watch women wrestlers who could wrestle and had actually _trained_ how to wrestle. Chris wished that these kinds of matches were the kinds of matches the women put on every night in the WWE. Vince had really let the ball drop on that division and now they couldn't just overhaul it because people were used to seeing these divas and they _did_ have fans, no matter how bad they were.

"Damn," Christian whispered to him.

"I know, right."

"I wish the divas actually wrestled like this."

"God, so do I," Chris shook his head. "I know Trish is doing her best, but what these girls have is actual training and experience. They aren't just being thrown into a ring and told to do whatever they know and then all you see are a bunch of half-ass moves."

"Can we just fire The Bellas, Alicia Fox, and Kelly Kelly and hire these girls?"

"God, I wish," Christian said.

When the girls were finished, Chris thanked them and told them to hit the showers and invited them and the guys to stay for the house show and enjoy themselves. They thanked him profusely and Chris told them he was happy to see them and they were all very talented and they were. He wished he could take Christian's advice and just hire all of them. Chris went back to his office and immediately called up Stephanie.

"Hi, hi, this is my Mommy's phone."

Chris smiled to himself and disguised his voice, "Who is this?"

"You know my name, Daddy," she told him, not fooling her at all.

Chris laughed, "How did you know this was me, Flutterby?"

"Because I talk to you _all_ the time alreadys," Flynn told him with a sigh. How could she not know her father's voice? Her father was very silly.

"Where's Mommy?"

"She do Kensy's diaper," Flynn explained.

"Is Sawyer at school?"

"Gamma take him."

"Oh okay, so she's changing Kensy's diaper and you are doing what?"

"I sitting," Flynn said. "I have toast and I eats it, whatta doing?"

"I just got finished watching some wrestlers and I wanted to talk to Mommy about them and tell her how it went."

"Did it go good?"

"Yeah, it went really well," Chris told her. "I think that we could have some of them that we might want to have be wrestlers in the WWE, what do you think about that?"

"I okay wif it, you come too," she told him.

Stephanie came into the room, "Flynn, what are you doing!"

"It just Daddy," Flynn said, "Daddy, Mommy here, I talk later."

"Okay, I love you," he told her.

"Love you," she said, then thrust the phone at Stephanie. Stephanie took it from her daughter while putting Kensington in her high chair so she could go back to her toast cut up into small pieces.

"Hey," Stephanie said.

"So Flynnie doesn't sound too torn up that I'm not there."

"She's actually been really good," Stephanie said, glancing over at Flynn, who was just eating her breakfast happily. "They've all been really good, actually, I don't know if it's because they know it's just me or they're just better at handling you gone."

"Gee, thanks," Chris said sarcastically.

"I'm not trying to make you feel bad," Stephanie said, "I just think they're older so they understand that you aren't gone forever and that you'll be back."

"Still…"

"You _want_ them to be crying and obstinate, thanks," she said, "so what's going on? Did you see the tryouts, is that why you're calling? How were they? Do you think that anyone deserves a contract? It's really up to your discretion at this point because this is what your job entails. Of course, you should run it by me and I'm going to want to see the video tape on them and did they bring in tapes of their previous work? I know we've seen some, but I'd like to see what they feel belongs on their reel."

"Whoa, slow down there, baby, it's only like, what, after 8 am over there? You shouldn't be this much into business mode before 9 am and before you've probably eaten breakfast and had your coffee."

"Your mom is getting me some after she drops off Sawyer," Stephanie explained, "and I ate breakfast with Sawyer, we had oatmeal, I'm well-nourished, so come on, how was it?"

"There are a couple of people who I really like and would be willing to offer developmental contracts to. The women were good, Steph, way better than most of what we have now. It's such a difference when they have actual training."

"Trish is doing her best," Stephanie reminded him.

"I know she is, but these women have experience that our divas don't have, there are a couple I'm seriously considering, I'll show you when we get home and we can assess further. I'm going to stay for the regular show then Christian and I are going to the Fozzy show."

"Christian?"

"Yeah, he's here, he's got nothing to do so I thought he should come see me perform and we can hang out a little afterwards."

"Ask him about Trish, see what's going on there," Stephanie told him.

"Yeah, I'm not going to do that, baby. So what are you doing for Raw? Isn't it actually taping pretty soon?"

"In a couple of hours, yes," Stephanie said, "I'm really not worried though, I've got Britt there and I know she can handle things when I can't be. John isn't going to do anything if she's there. I think he and my father are laying low because we're onto them. So you're really not going to ask anything about Christian and Trish?"

"I'm really not. I told you, you can, but I'm not going to. You're the one that wants to interfere. If they are having problems, then maybe I'll help, but until that is proven correct, I'm just going to stay out of it."

"Fine, you're no fun, you know. Oh, sweetie, Britt is calling me, so I've got to go, but call me after your concert tonight and call the kids before, please?"

"I will, don't worry and _maybe_ if Christian has a few drinks in him, he'll spill anything that might be going on."

"You're the best, love you," Stephanie said before switching over to the call with Britt, "Hey, Britt, what's up?"

"I may just kill someone," Britt said, her teeth gritted.

"What's going on? What did John do?"

"It's not all him," Britt said, "Nash is here tonight. John invited him, paid for his goddamn ticket and everything. He's here tonight and John is insisting that I give him time to explain his actions. I'll tell you what I want to do with his explanation, Stephanie, I want to shove it right up his ass."

"Okay, calm down-"

"I don't want to calm down! This jackass tried to kill my boyfriend. He's got some stupid grudge and he's here and I want to rip him to pieces, I don't care if he's more than two feet taller than I am, I still want to rip him to shreds. I don't know what I'm going to do to him if I run into him, but I suspect that it's not going to be very pretty and there's nobody here to hold me back and I can't be held responsible for my actions in this situation, Stephanie, I won't be."

"Britt, you have to handle yourself."

"Stephanie, if this was Chris, you would be doing the same thing, so don't tell me that I should somehow control myself," Britt told her fiercely. Britt may be petite, but she had as much spunk in her as anyone Stephanie knew.

"I won't, I'm sorry, I would be just as angry."

"I'm going to at the very least punch him," Britt said as if it was a foregone conclusion. "I'm going to punch him in this stupid face. I'll get a step-stool, I don't care."

Stephanie bit her lip to keep from laughing and watched as Flynn showed off her empty plate. Stephanie pointed to the sink and Flynn ran over to the sink and stood on her tiptoes to slip the plastic plate into the sink. Then she ran off into the other room. Stephanie let her go as she could see her from where she was sitting if she turned around, which she did. "Well, can you maybe use your words and not your fists? My father would _love_ to fire you or have you fired if you assaulted someone with a contract, even if it is just Nash."

"At this point, I might not even care," Britt told her. "I'm that angry that he's here like he did nothing and he's probably going to act like he did the world a favor, which is only going to upset me more."

"You have to handle yourself, Britt, I know it's hard, it would be difficult for me too, but we're trying to coexist here, not rock the boat because then my father doesn't have leverage on us."

"I'm so angry. I…I'm so angry," Britt said as she thought about the attack on Hunter again. Every time she thought about it, it made her want to punch something or, in this case, someone. Knowing that Nash were here tonight, acting all smug and happy about what he'd done, yes, Britt wanted to kick him in the balls for what he'd done.

"Channel it, just try and channel it into work."

"Fine, but still…I'm angry."

"I know, I know you are and you have every right to be, but think about how bad it would be if my father was back in charge."

"Okay, yeah, you're right," Britt said, "I'm sorry."

"It's okay."

"I'm going to get some work done," Britt said, "I'll talk to you later."

"Okay, bye, Britt."

"Bye."

As soon as Britt hung up, Stephanie was back on the phone and impatiently waiting for it to be answered. Even two rings was too much for her and when Punk finally picked up, she was nearly annoyed. "What is it, Stephanie?"

His tone may sound harsh, but she knew that was just how he was. He acted like that with everyone, "I need you to do me a favor."

"Don't I do enough favors for you?" he asked. "Do I get a pay raise?"

"You get a job, that's as good as a pay raise," she told him. The only way to counter his sarcasm was to rely on your own sarcasm.

"Fair enough, what do you need me to do?"

"All I need for you to do is make sure that Britt doesn't physically assault Nash."

"That douche is here tonight?" Punk asked.

"Yeah, apparently. Has my father tried to contact you again by the way, while we're on the subject?"

Stephanie recalled the call she'd gotten last week from Punk informing her that her father had requested to see him. She couldn't believe that he was actually going to try to go after Punk. It made sense though, he was the top dog right now, even when he didn't have the belt on him. Her father was bound to want to take advantage of that for the same reasons Stephanie had wanted to take advantage of that.

"_No," Punk told Laurinaitis and the older man narrowed his eyes at Punk._

"_Excuse me?"_

"_I said I wasn't going to meet with Vince. I don't want some 'secret' meeting with Vince. I don't even want to see him."_

"_Do you know who you're turning down here?"_

"_Yeah, the _former_ president of the company."_

"_You should meet with him, he insists."_

"_He can insist all he wants, I'm not meeting with him. You can go back to him and tell him that I'm glad he's not here anymore and that the second I heard he wasn't, I was more than happy to hear some proposals regarding my return," Punk patted Laurinaitis on the chest and then flipped his tie into his face. "You make sure to remember all that, I want him to hear every word._

"No, and he better not," Punk said, "I made it pretty clear that I didn't want to talk to him."

"Good. I can't believe he's trying to pull this now, trying to pull the rug right out from under me."

"You're too good for that though, you're one step ahead," Punk told her, "and don't worry, I'll make sure Britt doesn't go off the deep end. She's kind of a crazy chick, isn't she? You know, if she wasn't taken, I might be interested in her."

"What about Beth?"

"Things aren't going that great."

"I swear, Punk, you are like…the most indecisive man when it comes to women and I say that as a friend."

"I'm still just living my life day to day, Steph," Punk said. "You think Britt would ever consider-"

"I'm calling you to make sure she doesn't try to injure a man probably three times her size, do you really think that relationship is in trouble?" Stephanie asked him sardonically and he could practically see her face through the phone, tilted and incredulous.

"It was worth a shot," he told her. "I've got it covered. I've got my own bone to pick with Lauruinaitis anyways."

"Okay, later, good luck tonight, I'll be watching when it comes on later."

"Later, Steph, tell the kiddies I said hey."

"Later."

Punk hung up the phone and decided he was going to go see Miss Britt himself. He knew where her office was having passed it on the way. He actually saw Beth on the way there, but didn't stop to talk to her. She'd started acting jealous after he'd been spending time with an ex of his, but it was nothing out of the ordinary and she needed to lighten up a little. He just wasn't the kind of guy who did long-term commitment well, but he was trying with her like he hadn't with anyone else and if she didn't want to trust him, he wasn't going to force her.

Before he could get to Britt's door, however, he was met with his archenemy of the moment, Mr. John Laurinaitis. Punk rolled his eyes as he was approached the raspy-voiced lackey of Vince McMahon. "Is there a reason you're blocking my path?" Punk inquired annoyingly.

"I wanted to see if you had reconsidered on that meeting we talked about," Laurinaitis said.

"Hmm, let me think about it for a moment…yeah, that's still going to be a no-go. But I'm sure you've got the ass-kissing routine down so my presence won't be too missed, will it?"

"You're making a huge mistake," John told him, shaking his head in disgust and Punk could only imagine it was disgust for not taking Vince's side. Like hell he would take Vince's side. He would rather drink a whole keg than join Vince's side for anything.

"Don't think I am, sport."

"You will be sorry."

"Promise?" Punk asked before he took off again. That was about all he could take of Laurinaitis for a while. He couldn't understand why Vince couldn't take a hint. Maybe that entire family just never quit until they got their way. It didn't matter, he had other things to take care of as he pushed his way into Britt's office for the evening.

"Miss Britt if you're nasty," Punk said as she pushed open the door and leered at her, "what's up?"

"What is it, Punk?" Britt asked, running her hand through her hair.

"What's wrong?"

"Why are you asking?"

"Because I like you, got it, so tell me," he prompted her to tell him. "Wait, is this to do with Nash being here tonight?"

"You've seen him?" Britt's eyes narrowed.

"No, of course not, if I had, I might have punched him or something for all the trouble he's caused me. A little birdie named Stephanie tells me that you want to punch him too."

"She's not subtle, is she?"

"I'm afraid not. But believe me, I'm in the same boat as you are. I'm pissed at them as well. They've tried to wreak havoc on everyone, Nash screwed me over too, I can't stand the guy. I wish nothing more than to kick his ass."

"We should do it together and then nobody is there to tell on us," Britt said. "We can dress all in black and then ambush him when he's going to his car after the show. He'd never know what hit him."

Punk actually laughed, "Okay, now we may be going a little overboard with all of this, just a little."

"But it would be fun, right?"

"Yeah, yeah it would be."

"So you're mad at Laurinaitis?"

"Always. I think Del Rio's pissed at me though, should be fun tonight," Punk said, "what are you doing after the show?"

"Nothing," Britt said, "probably going back to the hotel, hang out there for a while, go out to dinner."

"Let me take you out," Punk said, "we can go eat and you can drink and I can have water."

"I don't drink much, if at all," she said.

Punk grinned, "Then you're perfect company! It'll just be a friends thing, don't worry. It'll help to take the aggressions out since we won't be able to do them the way we want. I mean, we can't blow it for Stephanie."

"She's amazing, I wouldn't want to blow it for her, no. Yeah, I'll go out with you tonight," Britt smiled. "I might as well see some of the country while I'm here."

"That's the attitude," Punk said, then listened. "Hey, I think our best friend is in the hallway. You want to give him a piece of your mind. Stephanie said you couldn't touch him, but I bet she didn't say you couldn't tell him off."

"That's right," Britt said, pushing herself up.

"I've got you back," Punk told her.

"Thanks," she said in passing as she threw open the door. Nash was standing right there, talking on the telephone, like he was doing it deliberately so she would hear him. "Well, well, well, look who decided to show up like the big man that he is."

"What do you want?" Nash asked her in a derogatory tone of voice.

"Nothing _you_ could give me," she told him, raising an eyebrow. "I just want to tell you, you're a vile human being and if my job didn't matter to me, I would kick your ass right now."

"Yeah, right, what could _you_ do to me?" he scoffed and looked at her.

"You don't even want to know what I'm capable of. You're a coward, Kevin Nash. You're a coward because you go after guys when they're already down or hurt and you know why you do that? Because you can't fight for shit. You have to take the low road because your knees are probably held together by duct tape and you're so old that you want to recapture whatever it is you thought you had back in the day and that make you nothing more than _sad_. You are a sad, _old_ man and just because you are jealous of Hunter, you think you can get away with ambushing him. Hunter will tear you to shreds, but I'll tell you now, you're _lucky _it's not me."

"Again, what could you do to me?"

Britt smirked. "When I was little, my mom put me in Tai chi because she wanted me to get in touch with my Asian roots because I was half-Hawaiian, she's a little kooky like that. I've been training for 23 years. I could make it so your knee would completely wrecked and it wouldn't even be difficult. So next time you want to hurt someone I love, you remember that, you remember how angry I am right now and then think, is this worth it?"

Britt stalked away and Punk ran after her, "Holy crap, were you serious back there?"

Britt laughed, "Yeah, I am. Hunter's the only one who knows I train, I'm afraid if I tell Stephanie she'll somehow think this would translate well to wrestling and try her damnedest to recruit me."

Punk was seriously impressed, "So if he came at you…"

"I have about 500 ways to take him down, regardless of his size," Britt said, "I'm even better than my brother and he's pretty damn good at it too. It's all about being calm and I know I wasn't back there, but what can you do? Sometimes you lose it a little bit."

"So do you have like a black belt?"

"Yeah, but really, it's not even about that, it's easy to learn Tai chi, but it's mastering it that's difficult, it can take an entire lifetime to master the art form. I train with a master in New York."

"You're amazing."

Britt shrugged, "Blame my mom. She's the one who put me in the class to begin with."

"Do you think I could have you in my corner when Del Rio comes after me tonight like I know he's going to? He'll probably have his little sidekick with him, I could use you."

"Punk, you couldn't handle me," she laughed and winked at him before they walked off.

Christian took another long sip of beer while Chris took down another glass of his precious GG. "Okay, I have to admit, you pretty much rocked it out there. I don't know why I haven't been by to see you guys before."

"I don't know either, you're my best friend," Chris told him. "Makes no sense to me."

"I'll have to come to more," Christian nodded as he could feel the buzz creeping up on him. It wasn't as drunk as his wife had gotten a few weeks ago, but it was a nice, heady feeling. "I should probably make this my last because I can't be hung over for SmackDown tomorrow, the boss might fire me."

Chris laughed, maybe a little too hard from the vodka he'd been consuming. "Yeah, I don't think that's going to happen."

"Okay, probably not. This is cool though, hanging out, thousands of miles away from the wives."

"You want to be thousands of miles away from the wife?" Chris asked and before he could think about it, he realized that he was butting his nose in where it didn't belong.

"I don't know, it's just nice, you know," Christian took another long sip of beer, practically chugging the entire thing down in one noisy gulp. "You know, maybe one more drink after this one, then I'll go."

"What's going on with you, man, everything is okay, isn't it?"

"Yeah, man, everything's fine," Christian said. "Everything is just fine."

Now even Chris was starting to get suspicious.


	348. Celebrate Good Times, November 9, 2011

A/N: I got a little carried away with Chris's birthday so I didn't even get to the show so I'll probably just do a double show chapter next week, hope you enjoy nonetheless. :)

* * *

Stephanie looked at the three faces in front of her, an amalgamation of her and Chris. They were all smiling at her to varying degrees. Kensington was leaning across Flynn's lap and Flynn was patting her on the back (maybe a little harder than she should be, but Kensington didn't seem to mind as she was more focused on Flynn's shoelaces). Sawyer was just grinning at her and wondering why his mommy had called a family meeting. Stephanie sat on the loveseat as she faced them.

"Mommy, what are we doing sitting here?" Sawyer asked.

"Well, I've got a big surprise for you guys."

"I like s'prises!" Flynn said, leaning forward and trying to push Kensington off of her. Kensington sat up and then crawled over Flynn and into Sawyer's lap. He wrapped his arms around her and she leaned her head against her big brother's shoulder. "What it is?"

"Well, do you know what November 9th is?" Stephanie asked, knowing that at the very least Sawyer would know. Flynn _might_ know, but Kensington probably had no clue whatsoever what the date was.

"It's Daddy's birthday," Sawyer answered matter-of-factly.

"I knew dat," Flynn said, mad that Sawyer had gotten it before she did.

"Yes, Daddy is going to be 41, that's pretty old, right?" Stephanie said and Sawyer and Flynn nodded. "I think so too, Daddy's even older than I am."

"Wow," Kensington breathed, which made Stephanie laugh. Kensington had a great sense of humor for someone so young. Sometimes she would say the funniest things at just the right moment.

"Yes, wow," Stephanie told her. "But…later tonight, pretty late, we're going to…go to Europe and see Daddy for his birthday!"

Flynn's jaw dropped open and she scooted herself off the couch and went right up to Stephanie's face and grabbed her cheeks and held her hands there as if about to tell Stephanie something very, very important, "We go see Daddy?" she asked as if she just couldn't believe this was true.

Stephanie nodded and looked Flynn in the eye, "We're going to see Daddy tomorrow. I got everything packed today when Gamma was taking care of you guys and while Sawyer was at school. So we're going to eat dinner and then we're going to get on a plane and go see Daddy."

Flynn's eyes lit up like pulsars, "I go see Daddy!" She started bouncing around and then did a little dance as she pulled away from Stephanie. Kensington, seeing her sister was obviously very happy about something, started to clap along as if there was a beat.

"Mommy, I can't go," Sawyer said with a pout.

"What? Why not, baby boy?" Stephanie asked him, coming over and kneeling in front of him and Kensington, who was still in his lap and who was still clapping while Flynn flounced around with her skirt.

"I have to go to school, Mommy, I can't go," he said as Kensington tried to pinch his cheeks. He was good with her though and simply moved her hands away from his face. He was always so considerate and patient with his sisters that it amazed Stephanie sometimes that he didn't get pissed off with them.

"Well, baby boy, I know that you have school, but I called the school and told them you wouldn't be there for the rest of the week. This is only for this week though and only because Daddy is in Europe and I know how much you guys wanted to see him for his birthday and I know that he'd want to see you for his birthday too. Your school is okay with it and when you were talking with your friend, Justine, after class today, I got all your work from your teacher so you won't be behind at all."

"I can go?" Sawyer significantly brightened up with this new information.

"Of course you can go, this is Daddy's birthday, we can't go without you," Stephanie told him, her eyes widened at the thought. "You have to come, you're all coming and we're going to spend a few days with Daddy and it's going to be a great time."

"I can't wait!" Sawyer said, "Kensy, we get to see Daddy!"

"Okay," Kensington shrugged before leaning forward to reach for Stephanie who took her into her arms. Stephanie held her close and Kensington planted her with kisses, which Stephanie was just going to go ahead and say was because she was so happy that she was going to get to see Chris.

"We're going to see Daddy and you're going to have a great time, aren't you? Have you missed Europe, Kensy girl?"

"Maybe," she told her mommy. Kensington was learning new words left and right so Stephanie and Chris never knew what was going to come out of her mouth next. As long as it wasn't anything vulgar, they figured they were doing okay with her.

"Well, it's probably missed you and your cuteness," Stephanie kissed her cheek and then patted Sawyer on the knee, "you have to help me with your sisters until we get to the UK, do you think you can help me with that, baby boy?"

"I'm a good helper," he told her with a nod. "I can help you."

"You're the _best_ helper."

"I get to see Daddy, I get to see Daddy," Flynn danced around and then jumped right next to Kensington's face and growled in it, "I get to see Daddy and you do too, Kensy!" Kensington just laughed at her sister's antics. She'd been around Flynn enough to realize that her sister was just loud and that was how she was and you just had to go along with it.

"Yes, you do, so you guys better go get a few toys and things that you want to bring on the plane with you. No more than five and bring a couple books and things so you have things to look at while on the flight. I'll bring the DVD player, but I just want you guys to be prepared."

"Okay!" Sawyer and Flynn yelled as they ran to the downstairs playroom. Stephanie looked at her youngest child and smiled.

"I'll get your toys, don't worry, Kensy," Stephanie kissed her forehead and headed into the playroom to see what her children were choosing to bring and trying to curb them from anything extra large.

Once the kids chose what they wanted to bring and Stephanie set up their backpacks, they took the rest of the afternoon to just relax. Chris's parents took them out to an early dinner before taking them to the airport. Stephanie had Kensington and Flynn in her sit 'n stand stroller, with Kensington in the sitting part and Flynn on the standing part so she didn't wander off and get lost in the busy airport. Sawyer was walking next to Stephanie, staying close to her. He had his little backpack on and looked like a seasoned traveler. Flynn had her backpack on as well and the rest of their carry-ons were shoved under the stroller.

Getting them on was fairly easy, since it was fairly late so they were kind of tired. The flight would be overnight, but they were stopping over in New York before going on to Manchester so she had to keep them up for the first couple hours of the flight, hence bringing the books and toys. Sawyer and Flynn sat next to each other on one side of the aisle while Stephanie sat with Kensington on the other side. The flight was only a couple hours long so Sawyer and Flynn just looked at some picture books and played with some toys and most importantly, stayed quiet. The kids were good travelers though and had been brought up in this lifestyle so she wasn't surprised when some of the people around them commented on how well-behaved her children were (if only they could see Flynn most of the time).

Getting them off the plane in New York and then to another gate was something of a hassle, but Stephanie managed. They had about an hour until their red-eye flight to Manchester so they sat down in some chairs that faced the window so they could look out at all the lights and things. Kensington was asleep in her car-seat and Flynn was resting in Stephanie's lap, her head against Stephanie's chest while Sawyer was sitting next to her, his head leaning on her shoulder.

"And when you wake up," Stephanie whispered to them, "we'll be in Manchester and then we're getting driven to York and we can pick up some food on the way or something and then we can take naps when we get to the hotel, but short ones because we don't want to stay up all night or anything."

"When do we get to see Daddy?" Sawyer asked softly.

"We'll get to see him at his VIP thing. I talked with Rich and they rented out a club and it's going to be VIP's and Daddy's friends that are over there because there are some bands that are touring and Daddy knows a lot of people-"

"Daddy knows everyone," Flynn mumbled.

"I don't think Daddy knows _everyone_, Flynnie, but he knows a lot of people," Stephanie told her, "so Daddy won't know that we're going to be there and then we're going to surprise him."

"I like surprises," Flynn said.

"I know, so does Daddy and I think he'll like this one."

"Because you shouldn't spend birthdays by yourself," Sawyer said, "that's just sad."

Stephanie laughed, "That is sad."

"Mommy, before Daddy was yours, what did Daddy do for his birthdays?" Sawyer wondered curiously.

"I'm not entirely sure," Stephanie said, "but he traveled a lot so I guess he would meet up with his friends or something like that. Maybe he would go out with some of the other wrestlers and they would probably go to a bar and have some drinks."

"And kiss girls?" Sawyer asked.

"Yes, there was probably some kissing of girls," Stephanie nodded, though she would rather not think about _that_ aspect of his birthday although she knew the number of women Chris had slept with in the past, she still didn't need to think about any specific times it happened.

"Did he kiss lots of girls?"

"I don't know how many girls he kissed, why? Are you going to go around kissing lots of girls when it's your birthday?" Stephanie asked him, raising an eyebrow. Sawyer looked up at her and gave her a sleepy laugh before putting his head back against her shoulder.

"No, I don't want to kiss girls. Girls are kinda yucky," he mused. "Not you guys because you're my mommy and my sisters, but the girls in my class. I like them, but they're just friends, but then they say we have to be boyfriends with them, but I don't want to be a boyfriend."

"Well, you don't have to be a boyfriend," Stephanie told him, kissing his head. "You just have to be Sawyer…but maybe some time in the future, you might want to be someone's boyfriend."

"Hmm, maybe."

"Daddy was my boyfriend at one point, Daddy was my boyfriend for a while actually."

"How long was Daddy your boyfriend?"

"Daddy was my boyfriend for three years before we got married," Stephanie explained to him. "So the time that we've had Flynn in our family, that's the time it was when Daddy and I were boyfriend and girlfriend."

"Then you go married."

"Then we got married," she confirmed for him and he nodded.

"Well, maybe I will be someone's boyfriend, but not now because I'm only five years old and I think you have to be fifty-three when you get married."

"Fifty-three? Oh, Grandpa Vince would have liked the way you think when I was a little girl because he didn't want me getting married until I was fifty-three."

"It's a good number," Sawyer shrugged. "How old were you?"

"Not fifty-three," Stephanie laughed, "I was 23 when I got married to Hunter and I was 28 when I got married to Daddy."

"Those are good numbers too," Sawyer said, his head falling against Stephanie again as he yawned extra loudly, his mouth opening wide and Stephanie wrapped her arm around him.

By the time they had to board the plane, the kids were just about dead on their feet. Stephanie got them situated in their seats and put the seats all the way down into beds so they could get some sleep. With pillows under their heads and blankets over them, Sawyer and Flynn were out almost immediately. She'd already hooked Kensington's seat into the plane and Kensington didn't even bat an eyelash. Stephanie reclined her own seat into a bed and she laid down, not sure if she would get much sleep on the flight, but with the kids asleep, she figured she would try and when the cabin lights dimmed and the din of the engine became that metallic dullness of white noise, she drifted off, thinking about how surprised Chris was going to be.

"Are you ready for your birthday bash!" Billy asked, slapping Chris on the back as he stumbled out of his bunk.

"No, I'm ready for some damn coffee though, tell me there's some."

"On the table," Billy said as Chris shuffled his way to the sitting area of the bus. Sometimes these things were so damn small and you couldn't escape people and he was already in kind of a bad mood so he needed his coffee before he was going to snap at anyone.

His mood was two-fold, the first of which was the fact that he was turning 41. There was just something about being in his forties that didn't gel with him. It seemed like in the blink of an eye he'd gone from 21 to 41. The years had been a blur and now he was firmly in middle age. It was a good thing that 40 was the new 20, but there were parts of him that still did not feel at all like he did when he was 20, wrestling had mad sure of that. He still felt good, don't get him wrong, he still felt good and strong and healthy, but there were parts of him that were slowing down slightly.

The second part was the fact that his family wasn't here to celebrate with him. He had no doubt that the guys were thinking up something crazy for him later and he appreciated that, but there was a quiet brilliance at spending his birthday with the ones he loved the most. He would miss them, but Stephanie had promised to call and so he just had to wait patiently until she decided to make that call. And if it wasn't timely enough for him, he would just have to make the call to her.

"41, man, how does it feel?" Rich asked.

"No different than 40," Chris muttered as he took that first wonderful sip of coffee.

"You sure, you're a whole year older, a whole year closer to death," Rich said and Chris flipped him off. "Come on, is that any way to start off your birthday?"

"Yes, it is when I'm so damn tired I can barely see straight," Chris said.

"It's because you're getting too old for touring," Frank joked.

"If the Rolling Stones can tour until they're in their 100's, I can sure as hell tour when I'm in my 40's," Chris said, "besides, I've still got the energy, just not in the mornings."

"Or nearly afternoons, it's almost 11, dude."

"Gross," Chris said as he tilted his neck until it popped. "I'm so tired still, do we really have to have a concert tonight?"

"Yes, we really do," Rich said, "besides, it's your big birthday bash and we're having the pre-party, the concert, and then the kickass after party and you, my friend, are going to have so much fun."

"You think so?" Chris asked. "What makes you think that?"

"Because we're all going to make sure you have fun," Rich said. "None of this being bummed out that you are aren't around your woman, we won't have it. Maybe we'll get you laid tonight, how about that?"

Chris flipped him off again. "I don't want a divorce as my birthday gift from Stephanie, thank you very much. Unless the chick is incredibly hot and I just cannot resist and she's so beautiful that even I'm intimidated to go up to her, in those cases, I may make the exception."

"Then I'm going to find this woman for you tonight," Rich told him, knowing that Stephanie was on her way to York for tonight. He'd been in collusion with her from the start. He'd set everything up over here and they should be arriving in York or may have already arrived. When he had a free moment from Chris, he would check in with Stephanie.

"She better be spectacular," Chris joked. "I'm determined to make tonight the best concert of the tour. I want my birthday to come with a bang."

"It will, I'm sure," Frank told him. "We're going to kill in York."

"We've been killing in every town," Paul said. "These Fozzy fans are insane, I love it."

"I do too," Chris said as he sat down at the small table and leaned back. "I love the UK fans, but I cannot wait to get some US tour dates, I mean, you guys get those tweets all the time too, 'When are you coming to the US?' 'Are you guys going to ever tour the States?' It's frustrating that we haven't because we're essentially ignoring half our fanbase."

"It's just hard because we all have lives," Billy said, "we can't just flit off all the time."

"This is true, unfortunately," Chris said, "not that it wouldn't be cool to have the time to just tour all the time, but we do have responsibilities."

"Some of us more than others," Frank pointed out as he smirked at Chris. "You know, responsibilities that involve wearing fancy suits and desks. How much was that suit you brought, Chris?"

"None of your business," Chris told him.

"Did your sugar mama buy it for you?"

"Yes, yes, yes, I get it, I'm the butt of all the jokes because it's my birthday and you guys want to give me a difficult time, I get it," Chris said good-naturedly. He knew he was going to be the butt of all these jokes since today was his birthday and they were bound to give him a hard time for it.

Maybe it was a good thing though because it kept his mind off of Stephanie and the fact she wasn't here to celebrate. If he didn't have anyone with him, he was liable to start seeing her on every street corner or something. He was determined to make this day amazing though. You only had a birthday once a year and he was going to make the best of it, even if he didn't want to fully recognize that he was 41 now and somehow that just seemed worse than 40. When you were 40, you just said you were 40, but now he was really _in_ his 40's and he did not like that one bit.

"We do it because we love," Frank told him with a laugh.

"Well, just love me by making today rock."

"It will," Rich assured him. "Now get off your ass and shower or something because you stink, dude."

"Okay, got it, I stink, I'm taking a shower, none of you better fucking pull any damn pranks on me while I'm in there. Do you hear me? I better take all my clothes in there or else you'll probably throw them all over the goddamn road."

"We weren't, but now that you mention that," Paul said, "it's probably not a bad idea."

"We won't throw the suit out though," Billy said, "we wouldn't want the sugar mama to get mad at you, it's probably like a 10,000 dollar suit."

"Shut your mouth," Chris said as he grabbed some things from his bag and headed into the bathroom, making sure to lock the door behind him. Since the bus had bunks rather than a bedroom, the bathroom was actually pretty spacious all things considered, but it took a ltitle getting used to regarding the swaying it did and if you didn't have good balance, you'd fall down a lot.

Rich made sure he heard the water running before he grabbed his cell phone and called Stephanie. Stephanie was still in the car on the way to York. She and the kids had stopped along the way to get something to eat and now they were back in the car and headed towards their destination. She answered the phone as soon as she saw who it was, "Hey, Rich, what's up?"

"Hey, I was just wondering where you guys were."

"We're still on our way to York, I think we have about 45 minutes until we're there. Then we'll head to the hotel, check in, and then I'm going to let the kids get settled in a little bit."

"Okay, great, I'll text you when we're leaving for the VIP thing."

"Great, I can't wait, thanks, Rich."

"I might even have a few tricks up _my_ sleeve."

"What do you mean?" Stephanie asked. "Are you planning something?"

"I might be, but that's for me to know and you to find out," Rich told her cryptically. Stephanie narrowed her eyes. She couldn't think of anything they hadn't covered yet and then her eyes widened in horror.

"You're not going to try and get me up there to sing or anything like that, are you?" Stephanie asked, frightened that Rich was going to try and embarrass her in front of hundreds of people. It was a well-known fact that she was a terrible singer. Her parents had been felonious in telling her that she had a good singing voice when she was younger and she'd carried that belief all the way to the night of Austin's appreciation night. It wasn't until she was watching the show afterwards (after getting all the milk off her) that she realized she sounded like a cat being strangled and then run over repeatedly.

"Stephanie, I have not heard you sing, but Chris has told me that if your kids want any kind of musical career that they better have inherited his genes."

"So what is this you have planned?"

"Well, you're going to have to wait to find out, aren't you? But don't worry, it's something good, something that you and Chris will both be appreciative of. Chris is like a brother to me at this point, we've been through so much so of course I'm going to go all out for his birthday so don't worry, I've got this."

"I'm trusting you, Rich."

"Good, I want you too." He paused then spoke again, "I think I just heard the shower go off so I'm going to have to get off the phone with you, but text me when you get to the hotel so I know you guys arrived safely."

"Okay, thanks, Rich, see you later."

"Bye, Stephanie."

Stephanie wondered just what this surprise was that Rich had planned, but she did trust him. He was a good guy, really upstanding and had been such a good friend to Chris, even before she and Chris had started dating. Rich had been in Chris's life almost as long as she had so she knew that he knew Chris extremely well and if this surprise was something Chris was going to like, she knew she would like it too.

"Mommy, we dere yet?" Flynn asked, peering out the window from her car-seat. She did not recognize anything about this place.

"Almost there, baby girl," Stephanie told her.

"Den we see Daddy?" she asked.

"We have to wait a little while to see Daddy because Daddy is on his tour bus driving to York too so who knows, what if we passed Daddy?" Stephanie said though she knew their routes were entirely different. Flynn's smile was enough to make her not feel guilty for her lie.

"When are we going to see him, Mommy?" Sawyer asked.

"Later this afternoon, after we get all settled in at the hotel and take a little nap."

"I no want nap," Flynn insisted.

"You will in a little while when the jet lag hits you," Stephanie reasoned with her. "Why don't you guys try to get a little rest in the car before we get there, then maybe your naps later won't be so long."

"Okay," Flynn said, though she made no attempt to rest as she continued to look out the window, hoping to spot her daddy's tour bus.

The rest of the ride to the hotel was pretty quiet with all the kids looking out the window at where they were. They were fascinated by new places and she was blessed to have kids that actually liked traveling considering all the traveling they did as a family. Her kids were all five and under and yet had been more places than some adults. She liked to think they were seeing the world and not the fact that it was her and husband dragging them around.

When they got to the airport they were helped inside by a bellboy and Stephanie walked up to the clerk to check in. That was when she heard Kensington squealing at something and she turned around to hear, "Surprise!"

Stephanie's jaw dropped as she saw Trish, Lita, and Edge standing there, all with goofy grins on their faces. "You guys! What are you doing here?" she asked.

"It's Chris's birthday," Edge said, "you think we're going to miss the huge ass party he's having? Like hell we were going to miss this. Rich called us and told us all to come because there was a huge party and we didn't have anything better to do so here we are."

"Christian is even going to fly in from Brussels for the after-party," Trish said, "he doesn't have a show tomorrow so he figured that he could make the flight back and party for a little while before taking tomorrow off."

"Hi, Ed!" Sawyer said as he saw his friend. This was a surprise indeed! "Where have you been?"

"I see you haven't learned the 'ge' sound in Kindergarten," Edge said, giving Sawyer a high-five. "Li and I have been traveling."

"I missed you," Sawyer said sternly.

"Well, I missed you too," Edge said, "that's why we've got to hang out today and tonight."

"Okay," Sawyer nodded, glad with that arrangement. Edge and Lita had taken their traveling adventures to the extreme and they were constantly somewhere other than Florida and Sawyer missed having his friend around him. He wished that Edge wouldn't go away so much, but his mommy and daddy told him that they were having fun so he hoped that was true.

"Hi!" Flynn said happily, finally glad there were other people she knew because her mommy had to carry Kensington everywhere and she wanted to be carried to. She went up to the closest person, Lita, and lifted her arms. Lita lifted her easily and held her. "Hi, Li-li."

"Hey there, gorgeous girl," Lita said, kissing her cheek. "Are you excited for your daddy's birthday tonight?"

"Uh huh, we see Daddy," Flynn said, filled with glee at the idea of seeing her daddy later. It had been a week since she'd seen her daddy and that was just unacceptable.

"Here, let us help me help you with the bags," Edge said, grabbing some of them while Trish helped. All together, they got up to Stephanie's suite. They helped the kids get down for their naps and then decided to just lounge around the room for a while, Stephanie texting Rich telling him they were at the hotel and they would see him later at the VIP party.

"I can't believe you guys all came, this is going to be a great birthday for Chris. I think he was a little bummed that not many of his friends were going to be there. I mean, he has some guys that are touring around Europe right now coming, but they're touring, you know, so you just can't come to parties. It's mostly going to be fans and people who happen to be at the bar we're going to later tonight."

"What are you going to do with the kids?" Lita asked, "you know, while we're at the party. I can't imagine you want them partying with you that late into the night. I mean, I know they're little night owls, but I don't think they're _that_ used to staying up late."

"I made sure the hotel had a baby-sitting service and so there will be someone up here with them. With the amount I'm paying, they will stay here as long as needed," Stephanie said, "so Chris and I can party until whenever we want."

"Well la-dee-da," Trish said with a laugh as her phone rang. "Hold on, it's Christian." Trish answered the phone and Stephanie watched her intently, trying to decipher what was going on. She hadn't yet had the opportunity to really talk with Trish about what might be going on in her marriage. The last time they'd had lunch, talk was dominated with business as they went over Chris's assessments of the female wrestlers he'd auditioned the week before.

"Trish?"

"Hey, Chrissy, what's up?" Trish asked.

"I got injured, it's not good."

"What do you mean you got injured?" Trish's voice perked up with worry. Everyone else in the room took note of this and Stephanie sat forward a little. If Christian was injured, this concerned her as well. "Are you okay, what do you mean not good, what do you mean by that? Are you at the hospital right now? Christian, what's wrong?"

"I would tell you if you let me get a word in edgewise, geez," Christian tried to speak. "I am at a hospital right now, they're checking me out, they think it's like a hairline fracture or something. I'm going to get x-rays, but it could also be a ligament thing, but I'm sidelined indefinitely. They're sending me home from the tour."

"Oh, Chrissy," Trish said and then she noticed that Stephanie's eyes were nearly bugging out of her skull, "They think that he might have hurt his ankle, a break or some torn ligaments or something, they're checking him out now and they're sending him home from the tour, I guess to recuperate."

Stephanie sighed, this was bad news not just for Christian, but for the show as well. She needed to make sure Teddy had been contacted because Christian had a match at Survivor Series and he was probably going to need to be pulled from it. She started to go for her phone, but remembered the promise she'd made to herself. Today was Chris's birthday and business operations on her end would be put on hold for the day. She wasn't going to think about work on his day. Even if someone got injured and would be out of a huge match at a Pay-Per-View. No, no, she was not going to succumb.

"I'm still coming to York though," Christian said. "It's not so bad that they have to keep me overnight or anything. They're just going to probably put a soft cast on me and that's it. I'll fly into Manchester than I'll get the rented car and then I'll head onto York, I can actually probably leave soon and get there even before the concert."

Trish sighed, "Fine, just please be careful, okay, I want you all in one piece."

"I will be, don't worry, I'm definitely still in one piece."

"You better be," she said, "I love you and I'll see you later."

"I love you too."

Stephanie was encouraged that they were at least saying I love you to each other and she vowed not to think about that either while they were here. Trish hung up the call and explained what had happened, but Stephanie tried to change the subject back to anything that didn't make her fuss with worry over what they were going to do with the show. Instead, she asked what they had gotten Chris. Edge and Lita had found a couple old Beatles records on their travels and bought that while Trish and Christian had gotten him tickets to the Winnipeg Jets game against the Tampa Bay Lightning in February.

Eventually the kids got back up and they decided to call up room service for some lunch and then get ready for the night. There was a nice buzz in the air while they were eating though. Everyone seemed to be happy and Stephanie was glad her friends had surprised her because it was nice for Chris to be surrounded by friends and family. She was starting to think his parents should have come along as well. Tonight was going to be a great party.

"What are you smiling at me like that for?" Chris asked as he eyed Rich suspiciously. "Dude, did you pull some prank on me or something?"

"Why do you keep thinking we're going to pull pranks on you?" Rich asked.

"Because it's my birthday and I wouldn't put it past you guys to do something like that," Chris explained suspiciously. "Is there going to be strippers at my party or something? Or like something really seedy like a soft-core porn demonstration or something?"

Rich chuckled, "No, but that's a really interesting idea. I wonder how much that kind of thing would cost?"

Chris let himself laugh a little as well. "I don't know, but that would be uncomfortable at best, but there aren't any strippers coming tonight, right? To the after-party, I mean, I don't want some kids wandering in and us getting arrested or something. I don't need my wife to wake up with a million text messages about how I'm in a UK prison for aiding in underage…stripper-dom or something."

"I can assure you that there aren't any strippers and if there were, I would make sure it was an 18 and older affair," Rich said, "and I'm not acting suspicious, so would you just cut it out, please? Tonight is your night and nothing bad is going to happen, I promise."

"Okay, I guess I believe you, are the guys all inside already?"

"Yeah, we did a little decorating for your birthday, we hope you don't mind."

"Oh God, is it going to be all over-the-hill stuff and shit like that?" Chris asked.

"No, geez, stop," Rich said, rolling his eyes at Chris's behavior. The guy seemed like he was on the lookout for everything except the really awesome surprise that he had coming to him. They'd rented out a club nearby Fibbers, the venue they were playing at that evening. They could just walk over there when the pre-party was done and walk back to the bar after the gig was over for the after party.

Chris and Rich got off the bus and walked into the bar, which was sparsely decorated (thank God) but did have a banner that exclaimed it was Chris's birthday. "Thanks for not going overboard," Chris said gratefully as he went to the bar and got a drink from the bartender. "So now we just wait for our VIPs?"

"Yeah, unless you have something better to do," Rich told him. "We're expecting a lot tonight actually, I think everyone wanted to wish you a happy birthday and get in on this party we're having."

"I can't help it if I'm popular," Chris said, acting cocky, which they both laughed at as Chris sipped at his drink. He didn't want to drink too much before the show because it would make his voice rough and he had already been putting it through the ringer. The last thing he needed was to lose his voice at some point on this tour.

"You're probably going to get a lot of bottles of GG if I know anything about the fans." Rich was referring to the nearly 30 bottles of the stuff they had on the bus already. Every VIP event they went to at least two people brought him some Grey Goose vodka, which he admittedly tweeted about quite often and non-admittedly did not drink as much as he said he did (Stephanie would make him sleep on the lawn if he did).

"Hey, the more the merrier," Chris told his friend, raising his eyebrows a little as they sat there and just small talked until people started to arrive.

Rich had been correct. Almost every person who walked in the place went straight to Chris to wish him a happy birthday. He was happy with all the attention and extremely gracious to everyone who came up to him. A lot of them had bottles of vodka with ribbons around the neck and some people even brought him candy and one person even brought him a scarf (he guessed they thought he wore his other one too much, but he liked it!) Either way, he ended up with quite the haul. It was nice to have everyone acknowledging his birthday, but in the back of his mind, he kept thinking about how his wife nor his kids had called to wish him a happy birthday.

His parents had called him almost immediately after he'd woken up, but Stephanie hadn't called and he hoped everything was okay with them. If they weren't though, he was sure his parents would have said something to him. It just wasn't like her to wait this long, but then, she _did_ have all the kids with her and maybe she was waiting until later so that he could talk to all the kids at once. Sawyer _did _have school today and maybe she wanted one big, group phone call. Still, he kept waiting and anticipating it, but nothing was going on.

"Okay, you guys, are you ready?" Stephanie asked as she looked over her kids. They were all dressed warmly and appropriately for going out except for Flynn's untied left shoe. Stephanie bent over and tied it for her, to which Flynn smiled gratefully and patted Stephanie on the head.

"I'm ready," Sawyer said.

"I too," Flynn said.

"Me, me, me!" Kensington waved her arms in the air as much as she could since her jacket was rather thick.

"Okay, good," Stephanie said, "then let's go surprise Daddy."

Stephanie helped the kids leave the room and head downstairs to where Trish, Lita, and Edge were waiting. Christian was still taking his original flight so he wouldn't be there until later. Edge picked up Flynn and Stephanie took Kensington as they headed out to the taxi they were taking to the bar where Chris's party was being held at the moment.

Stephanie almost couldn't contain her own excitement, but tried to keep it inward so she didn't rile up the kids before they got there. They were heading in the back way and then had a little extra additional surprise for Chris, which she couldn't wait to do. She couldn't wait to see his face when they surprised him. He was probably wondering why she hadn't called him yet, but she wanted to make sure this was a total surprise and if she talked to him she was worried that she would give it away and that was the last thing she wanted to do, not when they were so close now.

They arrived at their destination and alighted from the car quickly so nobody going in would see them. The bar had a small stage for very small performances so there was a little bit of a backstage. They waited there and Stephanie texted Rich telling him that they were there and ready. There was a DJ playing some music so Rich told her to come on in and he would tell the DJ to start playing Happy Birthday and they could come in at that point.

Stephanie heard the music cue and she started helping the kids walk out there, keeping low so that Chris wouldn't see her. "Okay, you guys, you know what to do, right? We're going to sing Happy Birthday to Daddy."

"Got it," Sawyer whispered to her and Flynn nodded as Stephanie ushered them over to the mic that Rich had just set up. Stephanie grabbed it and brought it down low enough so that all her kids could sing (or in Kensington's case, attempt to sing).

Chris wasn't facing the bar at the moment; instead, he was talking with a fan about the difference between death metal and deathcore, which people often confused for the same thing, when, in reality, it was not the same thing at all. He didn't fancy himself an expert at death metal or deathcore, but he knew enough about both genres to differentiate between the two. When the Happy Birthday song started up, he rolled his eyes and shook his head at his stupid friends, but then he straightened up a little bit as he continued to listen.

"Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to Daddy! Happy Birthday to you!" Two small voices yelled into the microphone with another small voice trying to keep up, but falling woefully behind.

Chris whirled around so fast he might have gotten whiplash before he saw on the small stage his wife and his kids. His jaw dropped so far he had to pretty much pick it up off the floor before he pushed through the crowd to the stage as they finished and immediately swooped Stephanie into his arms, not caring that he was giving his fans a little bit of a display here. Stephanie hugged him tightly and kissed him on the cheek (_she _was still aware where they were).

"What are you doing here?" he whispered into her ear.

"Like we were going to miss your birthday," Stephanie told him, kissing his cheek again.

"But Sawyer has school?"

"He can skip school for a couple days, he's in Kindergarten," Stephanie told him. "I don't think that missing a few days of school is going to make him grow up to be an ignorant sucker."

"Daddy, we here too!" Flynn tugged on his pants, very angry that she was not the first person he'd gone up to. Chris laughed and pulled away from Stephanie to lift up Flynn and Kensington at the same time, kissing their cheeks before kneeling down in front of Sawyer to give him a kiss as well.

"I missed you guys so much," Chris told them so only they could hear. "God, it's so good to see your faces."

"Our faces are the same," Flynn told him, "they not change."

"I know, but it's different seeing you in person than it is seeing you over a computer," Chris told him, kissing them again. "You are just the best birthday presents I could ever ask for. I don't need anything else for my birthday."

"We missed you," Stephanie attempted to hug him when he stood up again.

"Daddy, were you really surprised?" Sawyer asked.

"Are you kidding me?" Chris told them. "This is the last thing I expected, but the best thing I could have hoped for."

"We're not the only ones here if you haven't noticed," Stephanie said, gesturing behind her where their friends were standing patiently. Chris got a second surprise when he saw them.

"Seriously, you guys came all this way to be with me," he said, incredulous that they would travel just to be with him, just to make sure he wasn't alone on his birthday."

"When are we ever ones to not go to a party?" Lita asked as she tried to hug Chris and then Trish did as well while Edge patted him on the back.

"How does it feel, old man?"

"You can call me whatever you want, my family is here!" Chris said excitedly, grinning over at Stephanie like she was the biggest prize of them all. "I can't believe it, you guys, thank you, Steph, baby, you're the best."

"Don't thank me, we wanted to be with you, it wouldn't be the same for us," she said, leaning forward to give him a small kiss now that the din had died down a little. "But don't let us keep you from your VIPs."

"I don't think I can even think right now, are you coming to the concert?"

"Of course we are," Stephanie told him. "We wouldn't miss it for the world."

Chris was on cloud nine for the rest of the VIP get together. Any time he was away from Stephanie, he always had one of the kids with him, whether it was Sawyer sitting on a bar stool next to him while he talked to some fans or Kensington being fascinated by his bracelets while he drank some club soda (no GG in front of the kiddies) or Flynn trying to tell everyone that her daddy was the best in the world. He couldn't believe he was holding his kids in his arms and not waving at them through the computer from thousands of miles away. He wanted to hold them all night long to reassure himself that they were really there with him.

Eventually they had to go to the concert and he had to give them up, but Stephanie and the kids stood by the side stage (earplugs firmly in their ears) as they watched the concert with his friends. He could not be happier going out there and performing. For the first time that day, he didn't feel 41. He felt ageless, timeless, like he was just this entity floating across the stage, entertaining everyone.

The after party was even more fun if that were possible. While the kids had gone back to the hotel with Trish (who was meeting Christian there, then coming back), Chris and Stephanie found themselves back at the bar from earlier (which was now open to patrons and was pretty much packed now). They were on the dance floor, dancing like they used to before they got married and had kids and settled down and Chris kept trying to pull Stephanie even closer and make out with her, which she tried to protest, but eventually gave into every time.

"I'm so glad you're here," Chris told her, kissing her again, not caring who saw. He might have had a few more drinks since the concert ended, but because they had the kids with them in the suite, they might not get any alone time for bedroom activities later in the evening.

"Chris, it's your birthday, I know that you love your friends, but we love you and we wanted to be here with you."

"You know I haven't even asked how long you're staying," he told her.

"Until Saturday," she told him and his eyes lit up. "Yes, it's not a one-day thing. We'll be here until Saturday, then we're going to fly home to Tampa, then I'm going to fly to Raw next Monday."

"I wish you could stay longer."

"By the time we leave, your tour will be half over so you won't miss us," she said, swaying with the music as they spoke.

"I missed you so much, you have no idea," Chris told her, "I mean, I'm having so much fun and this tour is amazing and just like the last one, the reception we've been getting has been so great, the UK fans are among the best, but I missed my family. You guys are what I do everything for."

"Are we?" she asked.

"Okay, a little bit for me as well," he said and she nodded in agreement. "I love you so much, like, words can't even contain it."

"I love you too."

"You being here means more to me than anything."

"You're welcome, stop thanking me," she told him, leaning forward and doing the kissing this time. "We love you and we want to be here with you."

"I couldn't have asked for anyone better in my life, you know."

"I think we've already established that," she told him, smirking at him.

"I was worried that Rich's surprise for me would be strippers at my party."

"Well, we'll have to see if we can find someone to strip for you later."

His birthday was only getting better by the second.


	349. Time For Change, November 14 to 21, 2011

A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews, much appreciated. This chapter feels like a set-up chapter. Also, I'll be out of town over the Christmas holidays until the 27th, so next week's updates will probably come later in the week, probably the 28th or 29th or maybe I might skip, I haven't really thought it out yet, but I just wanted to give you a heads up that they're won't be an update, sorry! But I hope this'll tide you over and a Happy Holidays to all my wonderful readers! :)

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"My favorite person!"

Stephanie raised her eyebrow as Rocky stuck his head in the room. She rolled her eyes when he gave her a charming grin. At least he thought it was charming. When Stephanie saw his grin, all she could see was the guy who, along with Chris, tried to make her life a living hell whenever he possibly could back in the day. He and Chris were constantly tormenting her and thinking it was funny instead of hurtful. Luckily for her, she had Chris wrapped around her finger now and Rocky had thankfully calmed down a little.

"My least favorite person," she joked because that wasn't true. There were a lot of people Stephanie liked less than Rocky, but she stood up and walked over to him, extending her hand towards him. He took one look at it, raised his iconic eyebrow and then slapped her hand away before hugging her. "Oh, we're doing this now, are we?"

"You and I go too far back to not hug," he said, pulling away from her. "You happy to see me."

"Was I ever, in the history of knowing you, happy to see you?" Stephanie asked him. He shook his head cheekily. "So why would I be happy to see you now?"

"Because I'm going to be on your little show and make you look good. I talked to Chris, he told me about this little tug-of-war that you have going on with your father. I'm surprised your dad hasn't contacted me yet to try and get me to campaign for him or something, tell him that I think it was much better around her when he was running things."

"I'm surprised he hasn't either," Stephanie said, "he's pretty much trying everything else he can do to take his job back."

"I always knew you would just kick him right out of his office," Rocky told her. "I just knew you would stage a coup or something, mutiny or whatever."

"I didn't really have to, it was the Board of Directors who decided that he needed to be removed from his position," Stephanie explained.

"Are we going to both pretend like you didn't have _anything_ to do with that?" Rocky asked her, giving her a look that said he knew that there was no possible way that the company just _fell_ into her lap. This was Stephanie McMahon after all and Rocky knew her. "I've known you for over ten years, Steph, don't think that I don't know you."

"You know nothing about me," she smirked.

"I know more than you probably think."

"If you're implying that my husband has told you something about that I might find embarrassing, I don't care what he's told you," she laughed, "probably lies anyways. Either way, the company is mine now and I intend to run it and not into the ground like my father thinks. If he does request a meeting with you-"

"I tell him to go mind his own damn business and leave me alone, when have I ever listened to you father?" Stephanie opened her mouth and Rocky quickly added. "Shut up, that was different."

"Was it?" Stephanie asked. "Seemed you weren't too into bucking authority when you were in a little thing called The Corporation…"

"You had to go there."

"I had to," Stephanie shrugged, "I wouldn't be me if I didn't. So what are you going to do tonight, what exactly are you going to tell Cena? Or are you just going to lay him out? What is your motivation for tonight?"

"I'm going to accept," Rocky told her in no uncertain terms. I don't like who he's facing, I don't like disrespect so yeah, I'll team with him, but it'll be the only time I team with him, then come WrestleMania, I'll demolish him, just like I've done every time I've stepped into that ring and don't bring up the fact that your husband beat me, I have to hear it enough from him."

"I didn't say anything, but my first husband did beat you too," Stephanie got the joke in anyways and Rocky scowled.

"What the hell is going on with him anyways? Is he okay?"

"_You_ asking how Hunter is? God, how long have you been away, Rocky?" Stephanie scoffed. "Showing concern for your former hated enemy, I never thought I would see the day. Perhaps your hatred for Cena has made Hunter a little softer around the edges?"

"No, I was just wondering if he was going back into hiding like a little pansy-ass," he said to her, "because that would be just like him, run away from a problem instead of facing it head-on, I've always thought he was a bit of a coward. Never, _ever_ tell Jericho I told you this because I'll never live it down, but you stepped up in that department, honey."

"I already knew that, Hunter already knew that," Stephanie rolled her eyes. "Are you going to screw over Cena at Survivor Series?"

"Isn't that for me to know and you to find out?"

"He does sell merchandise and he does bring in the little kids so if you are planning on taking him out, can you do so in a manner that won't mean he misses any time. People_ do _come to see him, even though I know you probably think that's preposterous," Stephanie explained to him. "The last thing I need is a dip in attendance or ratings enough for my father to think he needs to intervene. He's already got Laurinaitis as his mole."

"I figured that guy was still an ass-kisser," Rocky said, looking to his left and noticing for the first time that Stephanie's daughters were in there with them. Flynn was sprawled on her stomach on the couch watching something Chris-related on a portable DVD player, headphones in her ears, which made her oblivious to the world around her and why she hadn't seen Rocky. Kensington was chewing on the corner of a book while simultaneously trying to piece together a puzzle block she'd been working on.

"Once an ass-kisser, always an ass-kisser."

"Am I mistaken or don't you also have a son?" Rocky said, knowing full well that they did have a son, but he obviously wasn't in the room at the moment.

"He's in Kindergarten now so he goes to school all week so he can't come to Raw, he's back home in Florida," Stephanie explained.

"I can't believe your kids is in Kindergarten," Rocky said with a shake of the head. "I'm still coming to grips with the fact that you and Chris _Jericho_ have three kids at all and now one of them is old enough to start school. Sometimes, I swear coming back here is like stepping into some kind of Twilight Zone."

"I'm so glad you see my life as a Twilight Zone," Stephanie told him. "Yes, he's old enough for school. He's five and he'll be six in May, the same day as your birthday coincidentally, I didn't put two and two together until you had that birthday celebration here last year and realized you two have the same birthday."

"It must be why he's so cool. According to Jericho he's some sort of diplomat," he joked.

"You think that's funny, but he really is…he's nothing like me and Chris, which makes him better than us probably. He's just too good to really be a kid of ours, we did something right with him, but we're not quite sure what it is."

"Hi," a little voice said from below them. Kensington had finished her puzzle and was now standing in between Rocky and Stephanie. She was looking up at this man whom she didn't know and couldn't remember.

"Wow, she's gotten so big since the last time I saw her," Rocky said, then knelt down. "Hi there."

Stephanie knelt down as well. "This is Rocky, Kensy. He's friends with Daddy. They used to wrestle together, isn't that cool?"

"Hmm, yes," Kensington grinned at him and leaned forward to pat him on the shoulder.

"You look like your mom, you're very pretty."

"Flattery doesn't work with any of us," Stephanie said as Kensington eyed him critically. Flynn finally saw movement out of the corner of her eye and turned her head around to see her mommy and sister talking with someone and she narrowed her eyes and thought for a moment before her eyes widened. She knew that guy. She took off her headphones and got off the couch and stomped over to Rocky.

"You a loser," Flynn said and Stephanie had to hold in her laughter at Flynn's bluntness. She managed to catch herself and give her daughter a rather stern look (or at least that's what she hoped she looked like).

"Flynnie, we don't say things like that," Stephanie told her daughter.

"It is though," Flynn said, "you're Da Rock and my daddy beat you and beat and beat you and he beat you."

"Some of the time," Rocky said, "but I beat him too."

"He beat you and Mommy wif the WCW belt and he beat you and Stony for the Inputed title," Flynn said matter-of-factly. Rocky was not surprised that she knew a lot about Chris's career. Chris had mentioned that Flynn idolized him and that she loved wrestling in general and she had obviously been doing her research. "You…a loser," she repeated, giving him a look of sympathy.

"Well, it would appear that I am."

"I knew it," Flynn said, grinning at him.

"I definitely know who _her_ parents are," Rocky said, glancing over at Stephanie.

"You expected _all_ our kids to be good, little citizens of the world."

"My daddy could still beat you, he should," Flynn nodded, then ran back to her DVD player, yelling, "I missing my wrestling!"

"She really is your daughter, isn't she? I know that Jericho told me she was a spitfire, but I didn't quite believe him. Nice to see you're raising your kids well."

"The best we know how," Stephanie stood back up, taking Kensington with her as Rock stood up as well.

"So when is your husband coming back?" Rocky asked. "Isn't he tired of bumming around being a musician yet?"

"Are you tired of bumming around and being an actor yet?" Stephanie asked. "He loves what he does and I love him and if he wants to be a musician, as his wife, I need to support him with that and I do. He's in Europe right now touring and we just got back actually because of his birthday last week, but he's touring with his band and they're selling out places and he's having a ton of fun."

"You don't seem too on board with this as you seem."

"I am though," she told him with a nod. "If he wants to come back, he's free to, he knows that. I'm not going anywhere, the WWE is always open to him, we own it, together, the both of us and besides, haven't you heard, he's the Executive Vice President of Talent Relations."

"No, I did not hear, what is that about?"

"He took over the position once Laurinaitis was," she cleared her throat, "forced to step down from it as he had taken over the General Manager position."

"Another of your little…tricks."

"Perhaps, but as an active wrestler, I don't know, Chris can come back whenever and I'll be happy for him when he does and I'll be happy for me when he does because I do miss him around here, but his band is doing well, he's making all these connections in the music world, which he _loves_ being the crazy metalhead that he is and his band is going to be recording another album soon, filled with songs inspired by yours truly."

"Sounds like he's busy."

"He is and I'm okay with that. Besides, we have three kids to raise, him getting in the ring, it can be scary, especially with the way that Randy took him out or what happened with Hunter recently. I have to start thinking long-term and in the long term, I want my husband to be around to help me take care of my crazy kids."

"Crazy is right," Rocky said, eyeing Flynn.

"Hey, that's my daughter you're talking about," she poked him in the chest. "So is there anything you really wanted to talk to me about or was this just your way of bugging me and keeping me from my work?"

"It was definitely just to bug you and keep you from your work. What kind of man would I be if I didn't come here and talk to my favorite ever female to work in the company?" Rocky said. "You know, if you hadn't been taken, I would have kissed you like I kissed Trish that one time and you would have loved it."

"Don't mention kissing Trish to her husband, he won't take too kindly to it."

"Christian, I could take him," Rocky joked. "Heard he got injured though, that's a bummer."

"Trish is here though, she helps out with the divas."

"Oh yeah, the divas," Rocky said, "that girl, Kelly Kelly has been trying to hit on me the entire night, she keeps finding me and catching up with me to 'talk' so she can get advice, but I don't think advice is what she's really looking for from me. I heard that pie gets taken a lot around these parts."

"You wouldn't be mistaken."

"Then I know to stay away from her. I don't like sloppy twenty-thirds. Luckily for you though, Chris likes sloppy seconds."

"Okay, get out of here now," Stephanie said good-naturedly, pushing at him as he laughed.

"I think I'll go find Trish, later, Steph."

"Goodbye, Rocky."

Punk leaned against the wall and he wasn't saying that he was waiting for Britt, but that might be a lie if he did say it. Ever since he'd seen her absolutel smackdown of Kevin Nash, she had intrigued him. He liked women, that went without question, he liked pretty much all kind of women (his dating history attested to that) and he couldn't help who he was attracted to and he was definitely attracted to Britt. The way she'd handled a guy who had to be at least twice her size was amazing and he couldn't help but be attracted to that.

Though he dated all types of women, the women he was most attracted to had to be strong ones. That's what had attracted him to Beth in the first place. He thought she wasn't like typical women, clingy and annoying, but after he'd hung out with an ex-girlfriend of his (who meant _nothing_ to him at this point in his life), she'd become moody and jealous. He'd told her repeatedly that they were still friends, but now she was practically refusing to speak with him and he didn't have time to deal with that. He didn't _want_ to deal with that.

He liked his women to be tough and he had a hard time finding any woman who was tough enough to withstand him. He knew he wasn't a bed of roses, not by a long shot. He barely slept, surviving on whatever meager hours he could get every night. He didn't drink and he didn't do drugs, but he still liked to party, he liked to read comic books and graphic novels almost exclusively and he liked loud music. He could be mean, but witty, and underneath it all, he could be kind of a scumbag. But there were also great qualities in him that he didn't let a lot of people see.

He just wanted a woman who could accept every facet of him and it was so damn hard, especially in the business he was in. The women here were all so vapid and barely had anything between the ears. That's why he thought Beth had been different. She never seemed to get along well with the so-called "divas" and he thought she'd been different enough to get that while he wanted a relationship, he also needed time to himself. That was just how it had to be if someone wanted to be with him. The only other female wrestler to look at around here was Nattie and she and Beth were best friends and he wasn't sure he could pull off the best friend switch on them without getting his ass kicked by two mad women.

Britt, on the other hand, he wasn't sure if she could handle him, but damn it if he didn't want to try. When he saw her petite form (which made her fierceness just that much more…adorable, God, he'd resorted to using words like adorable!) walking down the hallway with a stack of papers in her hand, he fell into step beside her when she walked by. She looked up, noticing the movement next to her and she gave him a smile.

"What are you doing walking around with me?" she asked without even looking up at him.

"I was bored, saw you," he told her, hoping she'd look at him so he could give her a smirk. He'd been told countless numbers of times that his smirk was quite dashing and charming. If she saw it…maybe she'd be intrigued.

He knew she had a boyfriend and he knew she loved that boyfriend, but he knew he was a scumbag and he couldn't even tell what she saw in that overgrown ape. Hell, he couldn't figure out how that guy had managed to get two beautiful women to be with him for any extended period of time. He'd always thought Chyna was more his speed, but then he'd married Stephanie, who was gorgeous and Britt, who was beautiful and gorgeous. What did that guy have? Punk suddenly didn't want to think about what might attract women to him and he involuntarily shuddered.

"Are you going to bug me?" she asked.

"Of course I'm not going to bug you," he said, pressing his hand to his chest like he'd just been insulted. "I just wanted the pleasure of your company."

"Uh huh, sure, what do you want?" she asked, used to dealing with wrestlers who wanted something.

"Honestly, nothing," Punk told her. "I just wanted to talk to you and see how you were doing. Is Hunter here tonight?"

"No, he's still at home," she answered, a little fire coming to her voice that he found so hot. She was so fierce and he loved it. He could only imagine the damage they could do together.

"Still not feeling well?"

"No, I don't know, he's very moody," she shrugged. "He gets that way."

"After he gets beat up?" Punk asked sympathetically while trying to hold in his laughter. She was making Hunter sound like a pussy who couldn't fight his own battles and had to go back to his room and sulk like a baby. If Nash had pulled on him what he'd pulled on Hunter, Punk would've been back the next week to wreak havoc on Nash's face.

"No, when he gets betrayed by someone he considered a friend," she explained to him, though he noticed there was a slight tinge of amusement in her voice. "I think he's plotting out his next move and I just kind of let him do his own thing. He'll eventually figure it out."

"You don't try to input him or influence him?" Punk asked.

"No, he can handle himself, he's a big boy. I mean, sure, I give my opinion, but at the end of the day it wasn't my friend who betrayed me."

God, she _was _nearly perfect. She gave Hunter space to do things and didn't try to butt in when she didn't get her way. Damn it, why did she have to be taken and by someone he didn't exactly hate. He didn't like Hunter, but he didn't hate him either. He wasn't the type of guy…oh, who the hell was he kidding? He _was_ the type of guy who might try to steal a girl right out from under someone's nose. He had been very cavalier with his relationships in the past, Maria was enough proof of that one.

"What do you have there?" he asked instead, trying not to think about how pretty she was. There were so few dark-haired divas around here and so Britt's jet black hair really stood out.

"Just planning ahead for some things for next week," Britt said, "I didn't have much to do right now so I thought I'd get a jumpstart on next week."

"Do you like what you're doing now, running the show?"

"Absolutely," Britt told him enthusiastically. "I can't believe I'm actually running the show to be honest. I mean, I came in as Stephanie and Chris's assistant and that's it and now I'm running the show, it's crazy."

"You still don't know a ton about wrestling though, do you?"

"I know a lot, I've learned a lot, I'm no slouch, Punk," she told him, trying to appear haughty, but it only made the both of them laugh.

"I could teach you, you know, watch tape, go over moves," he said, "I mean, Stephanie still does the whole headset thing, talking to the announcers and what not and I get that, but don't you think you should be able to do that part too, just in case or something."

"Just in case what, it's not like Stephanie is telling the moves to the announcers, who have years and years of experience," Britt said, "but I do appreciate the offer. I bet you know more than most around here, being who you are."

"What do you mean being who I am?" he wondered.

"The fact that you kind of did the old school way of coming into the WWE. You didn't just get a random contract or go straight to FCW. You were in the indies, you came up in the system, I know things, Punk."

She did and that made her even better! "You're right, you're something else, but come on, you know that Stephanie would be impressed if you did know stuff."

"I'll think about it, will that satisfy you?" she asked him.

"For now."

Punk hadn't even realized that Britt had led him to Stephanie's office, but he jerked his thumb towards the door as if asking her whether or not she was going in. She nodded her head and he nodded back before opening the door for her. Britt left him then and walked to Stephanie's office. Stephanie looked up at her other new visitor and she smiled at Britt, who laid down something in front of her.

"A revised schedule," Britt said, "courtesy of one John Laurinaitis."

Stephanie picked up the piece of paper and looked at it, reading what he had scheduled for the first segment. Her eyes narrowed as she read that he'd changed the time she was going to give Rock at the beginning of the show and instead had given the time to The Miz and R-Truth. Stephanie looked up at Britt and shook her head, "So I guess what he's trying to do is put all the people _he_ likes on the show while the people that should get time won't?"

"Well, we can take something out of his," Britt said.

"No, I want this to happen and when it absolutely sucks, I want it to be all on John," Stephanie said, "not on us, you just run the show like you're doing, give John the power and let the fans decide because I have a feeling whatever Miz and R-Truth and whoever else John likes is going to do is going to flop horribly."

"You're probably right," Britt said. "I just hate that guy and your father is just…"

"A puppet-master in need of a smackdown? God, I wish I could be the one to give it to him, but I think once the board sees that John is doing a crappy job, they'll oust him anyways. I mean, they said they're still looking for a permanent GM."

"I wish you could be it," Britt said, "I know you have a lot of work to do, but you're probably the only one who might be somewhat fair."

"I don't know about that, maybe slightly _more_ fair," Stephanie joked. "I just need to find a way to counteract what my dad is doing. I know that Rocky is on my side and-"

"You know, Mick is here tonight as well. He actually asked me for time from Laurinaitis, I guess he figured that he should show loyalty to your dad or something," Britt said, "John gave him time, I don't know what for, but I'm sure your dad thinks this is some kind of coup getting Mick."

"I did not know this and nice to know my dad is trying to pull stuff like this on me. Mick is a good guy, but a little misguided sometimes," Stephanie said, "do you think you could watch the girls for a little while, I want to talk to Mick."

"Sure, of course," Britt said, turning to the girls, "Hey, you guys, can I play?"

"Okay," Kensington told her. Flynn was still watching DVD's and didn't pay attention to what Britt was saying and didn't even know she was there until Britt sat next to Kensington.

Stephanie left the locker room and started looking for Mick, surprised that he was even there. Her father probably thought this was something spectacular because the last place Mick had been was TNA. Stephanie did, despite not saying so outright, that TNA was competition. Were they the best competition, WCW level back in the day kind of competition? No, they weren't, not even close, but Stephanie did keep tabs because at the end of the day, there was another wrestling company out there and it needed to be taken seriously.

Still, at this point in his career, Mick was more a novelty act than anything else. There was nothing wrong with coming back and being around the fans and playing up the fact that you were Mick Foley. Mick had never been anything but kind to her and she really liked him, but he wasn't a wrestler so she wanted to know his motivations for being here tonight. Was it as a fan, was it as a wrestler, entertainer, what was it?

"Stephanie?"

Stephanie looked to her right to see Zack Ryder with his petition. She smiled nicely to him and asked, "What do you need, Zack?"

"I was wondering if you would sign my petition, I figure if I get your signature than the US Title, in the bag!" Zack said with a cheesy, yet charming smile. Stephanie had found Zack intriguing. He had a natural charisma, which was slowly elevating him in the company. It was hard to get noticed sometimes, but he was doing a very good job of it. Other wrestlers were starting to take him more seriously, even though his demeanor was laidback and hardly as intense as some wrestlers around the place.

"I would love to, but I can't be impartial," Stephanie said, "because ultimately, that petition is probably going to come to my desk, so-"

"John Laurinaitis said the decision is solely up to him and nobody else, not even the higher-ups," Zack told her.

"Did he now?" Stephanie said, then grabbed the petition from Zack and signed her name on it. "Then there you go. You've got my signature and if there comes a time when you present that to John and he _won't_ give you the title match, come to me."

"Wow, thank you, Stephanie," Zack smiled at her, "thank you so much."

Zack walked off and Stephanie heard a voice behind her, "Giving it up for the underdog."

Stephanie turned around and saw Punk, "Well, he's a good guy, plus, if I can stick it to Laurinaitis, why not?"

"You know, that's what you really have to do around here to make sure that everything changes," Punk told her. "You have to get these younger guys involved, this is going to be their company someday and if you don't start giving them the opportunities now…"

"I know what you mean," Stephanie said, "I want things to change and they will, but you can't force a transition to be quick, you just can't. Chris and I will try our best and Chris believes in the philosophy as well."

"Good, I'm glad, I want things to change, that's why I put my trust in you," Punk told her. Stephanie nodded.

"I know you did and I would continue to talk to you, but I just heard that Mick Foley is here and I've got to talk to him about what he's even doing here," Stephanie said, "but keep this discussion for later, I would love to hear your thoughts on it."

"You would."

"I would and Chris would. We want this company to thrive and we want to make it better and we know you do too and we should hear what you have to say, in fact, if you really want to, you should bring by a couple of the guys who you think might have good ideas too."

"Why your dad isn't quaking in his boots, I'll never figure it out," Punk said. He had to admire Stephanie for actually sticking to her agenda. He had been afraid at first that she would end up being just like her father, a complete dictator who only thought about what _she _wanted to see, but she was shaping up very nicely. She seemed to actually be concerned about what happened in this company and keeping her employees happy.

"Because he has believed he knows what's best around here for the better part of 30 years," Stephanie answered. "And nobody really wanted to step up."

"Hey, before you go," Punk leaned in a little closer to her. "I've been thinking."

"About?" she prompted.

"Going to see your dad, figuring out what it is exactly that he wants. John has stopped bugging me about it, but I figure, hey, what if I did go talk to him, you know, just to see what he has to say," Punk told her. He'd been thinking about it for a little while now. It couldn't hurt to figure out what Vince wanted. It didn't mean Punk had to go along with it, only that he heard it.

"Are you sure?"

"Why not?"

"You could get really mad at him and punch him or something," Stephanie joked. "Then he'd have his secret forces fire you."

"I'm not afraid of his secret forces," Punk laughed. "Besides, it'd help you and Chris and Britt out."

"I guess it might, depending on what it is my father would say to you."

"So do you think that might be something we should look into?"

"I think it might."

Stephanie was very interested in what her father might want Punk for, but she had other things to take care of at the moment. She met up with Mick, who said he had something planned for Cena that would be hilarious. Stephanie didn't know what it was because he kept saying it should be a surprise, but Stephanie decided to just let it go. Whatever it was couldn't be as bad as what John probably had planned for The Miz and R-Truth. She knew her father was trying to make her look bad, make her look incompetent for letting this go through, but from what she was hearing from the board, they knew it was Laurinaitis and not her putting these schedules together and she was very willing to let him take the fall.

**November 21st**

"So you didn't miss me at all?" Chris asked as he played patty-cake with Flynn.

"Uh-uh," Flynn shook her head and smiled at him. "I no miss you."

"I thought you would though," he said as he slapped her hand, but pouted at the same time and acted like that was the saddest thing he'd ever heard. Flynn only giggled.

"Don't be silly, Daddy," she giggled and then crawled over to him and stood up so she was face-to-face with him on the couch. "I miss you, but I know you come back. You always do. You just go sing because you like to be loud. I see you."

"Yeah, you did come see me and I don't like to sing just so I can be loud," he explained to her.

"Den why do you sing?"

"Because I like to entertain people," he told her.

"Oh, well, you do dat wrestle," she told him, tilting her head to the side to tell him that she liked it better when he entertained people while he was wrestling. The meaning was not lost on Chris and he just leaned forward and kissed her nose. "Daddy, you be silly again."

"I'm sorry, you bring out the silly in me," he told her, making a face and listening as she erupted into a fit of giggles. Kensington heard this and pushed herself off the floor and walked over, leaning her chin on the couch. "Hey there, Kensy-bug, you missed me, right? I mean, one person has to miss me around here."

"No, she no miss you!" Flynn shook her head.

"She didn't?" Chris asked. "Well, did Sawyer miss me?"

"No!" Flynn laughed, throwing her head back as Chris helped Kensington onto the couch.

"Did Mommy miss me at least?"

"Nope!"

"Nobody missed me at all?" Chris pretended to act like he was hurt and pretended to start crying, covering up his face. "Nobody loves me because nobody missed me while I was gone."

Flynn just kept laughing at her funny daddy, "Daddy, we no miss you cause you here now!"

"Oh!" Chris said, acting like he understood now. "So you still love me?"

"I do, don't do dat, Daddy, you know dat," Flynn shook her head. "Kensy, love Daddy too!"

"Yes," Kensington nodded happily.

"See! I know Sawa does too."

"What about Mommy?"

"Hmm, I no know about Mommy," Flynn shrugged.

"Wow, so maybe Mommy doesn't love me."

"I think maybe she do," Flynn said, then reached forward and hugged Chris. "You no sing no more, you stay home…or westle!"

"I'm not, I'm yours for now, Flutterby," Chris hugged her back and then growled and made it a bear-hug, making Flynn scream in delight and mock terror while Chris grabbed Kensington with his other arm and brought her to his body as well. Kensington screamed in surprise, but she loved hugs from her daddy too so she happily giggled along with her sister.

"What's going on in here?" Stephanie asked good-naturedly as she pushed open the door.

"I'm giving my girls some hugs because I missed them even though they both said they didn't miss me and that you and Sawyer didn't miss me either. Plus, Flynn questioned whether or not you actually loved me."

"She was right to do so since I had my boyfriend over while you were gone on your tour," Stephanie shrugged as she walked in with a slightly uncomfortable CM Punk trailing in behind her.

"What's the look on your face, Punk?" Chris asked with a smirk.

"Nothing," he said, "just the fact that you two are weird."

Flynn extricated herself from Chris's arms and hopped off the couch and stood in front of Punk, "Ooh, you have the big belt…"

Punk knelt in front of her, "You want to hold it?"

"It's pretty heavy," Stephanie said, "I don't think she can handle that."

"Well, then, you can look at it," Punk said, putting it down on the floor in front of her and Flynn immediately dropped down on her butt to look at it, running her hands over it.

"I like it," Flynn told him, looking up at him with wide, excited eyes. "I like it so much."

Punk laughed at her face. It was so amazed at the belt and it was cute the way she thought it was the coolest thing in the universe. "I like it too."

"Kensy, come look!" Flynn yelled at her sister, bossing her around like usual. Luckily, Kensington was too young to know what bossing around was and she liked her big sister so whatever Flynn was doing, Kensington was fine with joining in on. Chris set Kensington the floor and Kensington toddled over to her big sister and plopped herself down next to Flynn, who instructed her to look at the belt.

"So Punk, you had a meeting with us, I believe," Stephanie said as Chris stood up from the couch and walked around the desk to sit on the arm of Stephanie's chair as she sat. Punk sat across from them and kind of chuckled at how formal they were being.

"Uh, yeah, on a couple of things, actually," he said, "the first being me talking with your father. I talked to John a couple days ago, called him since I don't think I can keep a straight face around him, that I would meet with your dad on Thursday of this week."

"That sounds good and then you'll report what he said, right?"

"Of course, like I'm going to find whatever he has to say enticing, the guy is old news," Punk said, "besides, what I'm about to talk about, I don't think your dad would be very open to the idea at all and therein lies the huge problem I have with him."

"Which is?" Stephanie wondered.

"I just don't know if the younger guys are getting their due. I know there's not much you can do about it. I think there is room for improvement on your end, you know, giving guys title shots that deserve it and who have earned it. We can't stay in the past, you know, it doesn't work that way. I mean, here you are, getting all hyped up for Kane's return and that's fine, he has history here, he's put in his time, but you've got these guys like Zack and like even someone like a Yoshi Tatsu who are trying their best to get higher up and they've got guys like Cena and Randy to bring them back down. I know I'm part of the problem, but, I don't know, I just think there could be more done."

"I hear what you're saying," Chris said, "and I understand it and I agree with it and you know, we see that these guys are trying to step up and it's not going unnoticed."

"Also, I think Cena doesn't even really care what happens with Zack, I think he's just trying to get more people to like him. The guy is so polarizing with the fans, I think he's at the point where he's really desperate."

"I don't disagree with that either," Chris said, having no love lost for Cena. "Look, I hear what you're saying, Punk, I really do and as the VP of Talent Relations, I take your opinions into consideration. Unfortunately, with Laurinaitis trying to pull the reins, it's going to be difficult, but I'll talk to him."

"I just think you guys need to start building up these other guys before all your vets retire and you're stuck with people nobody has ever even heard of," Punk shrugged. "That's all I'm saying and I know things can't change overnight, but…maybe it's something to think about, right?"

"No, you're absolutely right," Stephanie said, "I appreciate your opinion and I encourage you to voice it and anyone can, I don't think people realize that, we're not difficult people to talk to and we want to hear from people."

"Thanks, I guess that's all," he said, "for now at least, I'm sure I'll think of something to complain about again soon."

Stephanie laughed, "Well, I'm not going to call you a complainer, you said enough for the both of us."

Punk saluted them both and then went over to Kensington and Flynn, "Sorry, kiddos, it looks like I'm going to need this back. Do you think I can have it?"

"Um, no," Flynn said, but then she laughed and nodded. Punk laughed along with her and ruffled her hair and Kensington's hair. Kensington had no idea what he was doing and touched her head, looking at him confusedly, but he left before he explained himself.

"He's absolutely right, you know," Chris said, kissing the top of Stephanie's head. "We need to do something about the youth around here, build them up, make them the focal point. Not only will it boost morale backstage, but it'll also differentiate us from your father, which I think is really important right now."

"So in case my father gets it in his head that he wants to come back into power, the wrestlers, for the most part, will be on my side?"

"Exactly," Chris said, "I think that's exactly what we need to do."

"Okay," Stephanie nodded. "I think we should call a board meeting on this one, talk it out with the board, let them know that we want to kind of start in a new direction, slowly at first, integrating it and I think they'll like the sustainability that this would bring."

"I agree," Chris said, "but of course, we still have the veterans around and they have to feel needed as well."

"Veterans like…you," Stephanie looked up at him sweetly and he shook his head, but then winked at her playfully.

"You never know when I might get the urge," he told her, leaning down to kiss her. "And then I might get other urges."

"In front of our daughters, you perv," Stephanie said, but she rubbed his cheek. "I'm so glad you're home, nothing is the same without you hear as my sounding board. I don't think I'd be able to run a thing without you."

"You have a very competent staff, which, hey, have you talked to Trish yet?"

"I decided to drop it," Stephanie said, "she and Christian seem fine, but if I see anything, then I'll ask her about it."

"Smart."

"The real person I have to worry about is Britt, with Nash hanging around, she's liable to break his face and I wouldn't blame her."

"I wouldn't blame her either. Times are changing around us, baby, they are changing fast," he said, rubbing the back of her neck.

But perhaps things were changing for the better.


	350. Who Could It Be? Nov 28 to Dec 5, 2011

A/N: So, since Chris is back (YAY!), I'm probably going to skim over some shows so I can get caught up now that I actually have stuff to write about so this chapter and the next one are probably going to feel fast, sorry if that's annoying, but I want to write current so yeah, anyways, hope you enjoy. :)

* * *

"Baby, can I talk to you about something?"

Chris looked up from the computer screen he'd been staring at. He was looking over his work e-mail. The jump in the number of e-mails since he'd started his executive position in the company was significant and he now had to check his e-mail everyday. Unfortunately for him, everyone in the company had his e-mail and didn't hesitate to contact him. It could be annoying, but this was part of the job.

He pushed himself away from his desk a little, "Sure, what is it?"

"I was watching the show again and I noticed a cryptic video, who's it for?" Stephanie asked. Sometimes she missed things while she was working so she often went over the show when they got home to see anything she missed. This video was apparently one of the things she'd missed and she was very curious about it. Since Chris was the head of Talent Relations, if someone was coming back, he had to know about it since all transactions went through him.

"What video?" he asked.

"Don't give me that, you know exactly what video I'm talking about," she told him, flexing her muscle, "don't make me use these."

"Don't make me use these," Chris flexed his own muscle. Though Stephanie had been getting more muscular, she knew she was no match for her husband and she came over and he pushed his seat away from the desk so she could sit in his lap. "Where are the girls?"

"Your father took them for the morning," Stephanie said. "He got an invitation to go to a Tampa Bay Lighting practice so he said he wanted to bring the kids since they don't know much about hockey. He's hanging out with the girls this morning and then picking up Sawyer from school and then they're going to the team's afternoon practice."

"How did I not know this?" he shook his head.

"You were working," Stephanie shrugged. "He asked last night, called, I was sure that I told you, but I might not have."

"Why does it feel like we're living two separate lives right now?" He asked with a frown.

"Because we both have so much to do that the only time we really get together is at night when the kids are in bed and even then we both kind of bring work into bed with us…then it gets all wrinkled when we have sex on top of it," she tells him, leaning in and tugging on his earlobe a little bit.

He laughed, "At least it's good to know that even though we barely see each other during the day that we can still see _all_ of each other at night. I like that."

"It's good that we're spending time apart though," Stephanie reasoned. "Couples shouldn't be together all the time, that's when they start to get sick of each other and I don't want to start resenting you or something."

"Never going to happen," he said, "I wish I would've known that my dad was taking them. I would have gone with them. I like hockey!"

"You sound like a little boy," Stephanie said, rubbing his cheek and then leaning in to give him a peck on the lips. "Do you want me to call your daddy and ask if you can go with him? I bet he'll let you come."

"Hmm," Chris tapped his chin. "Let me weigh my options here. I can spend the afternoon with my dad, who is pretty damn cool and my three kids who I love more than life itself…or I can stay here…alone, with my wife, who I love and never get to spend time with because of those three kids that I love more than life itself…"

"Okay, I think I know what's clear here," Stephanie nodded and then started kissing his neck. "So you would choose me over your children, I'm not sure how I feel about this, should I feel flattered or horrified?"

"Well, I'm sorry, but if it came down to saving them or saving you, you'd have to fend for yourself."

She laughed against his skin. "So what were you doing up here?"

"I was looking through my work e-mails. I've got some disgruntled workers and then I have some guys who are trying desperately to pull a Zack Ryder."

"What do you mean? They're coming up with their own videos on youtube or something?"

"No, they're trying to find ways to stand out because they know if they stand out, they're going to get more opportunities and they'll be, hopefully, taken more seriously," he said, "they want to know if there's anything they can do, they're trying to come up with different ideas and they want to run it by me."

"That doesn't sound _too_ bad," Stephanie said, leaning forward and reading the particular e-mail he had on the screen. "Well, no, this doesn't sound too bad at all."

"It's funny though, what with all of the technology today, how guys can get over with the fans so easily. I had to work in obscurity for so long, but if I were trying to make it today, I could have a Twitter account to drum up fans, I could get a Facebook page, make videos of myself…I probably would have gotten noticed a lot sooner."

"You did pretty well for yourself," Stephanie said, "I like to think so anyways, considering you married me and everything."

"Oh, I'm not complaining, but just think about it. I could have made it into the WWE sooner and then I would have met you sooner, before Hunter got his paws on you and you wouldn't have been that skank and I would have been attracted to non-skank you and we would have gotten married sooner and then we would have seven children right now."

"God forbid," she said. "I don't want that many kids, thank you very much."

"I'd say things did work out pretty well for me though, I mean, I did find you after all, after we slogged through all the crap that was our initial relationship. Now I got my trophy wife and perfect children and I'm all set."

"Perfect children?"

"Two perfect children and Flynn," he corrected himself. "I swear, that little girl just got all of us, just every single part of us. If I were going to doubt any of those kids as ours, Flynn would be the only one I'd believe belonged to us."

Stephanie giggled, "So come on, those videos, what are they about and who are they for? As the President, I'm entitled to know what's going on with my show. I can fire you, you know, or…even worse, I can hold out on sex."

"Yeah right, you're just as insatiable as I am," he said. "It's just someone that I got to return is all."

"Someone you got to return?" she asked. "Who is this mystery person?"

"That's for me to know and you to find out," Chris said, "don't you trust me? I'm the one who got Rocky back, didn't I? I know what I'm doing and I want to keep it a surprise. It's just between me and the guy coming back."

"Okay, so it's a guy…is it Austin? I know that he and Punk have been kind of talking back and forth on Twitter recently, haven't they?"

"I wouldn't invite Austin back if he was the last wrestler on Earth," Chris told her bitterly and Stephanie rolled her eyes in an exaggerated manner to show him what she thought of never-ending grudge on Steve Austin. It seemed that no matter what she did or said, he would never forgive or forget what Austin had done.

"Chris, how many times do I have to tell you that Sawyer is _fine_? I shouldn't even have to tell you. Sawyer can tell you himself that he's fine. He's a perfectly healthy, wonderful, little boy. Hey, that kick by Austin might be the reason he's so nice and not like Flynn."

"Don't joke about that," Chris frowned. "Don't ever joke about that."

"Sweetie, I love you, but Sawyer is a good kid and he's fine and you shouldn't keep holding this grudge like Sawyer isn't fine."

"I don't care what Sawyer is like now, it's the principle of the thing. The guy went after my wife, I'm not going to sit around and let him get away with that," Chris said, "so God no, if Austin wants back into this company-"

"You will let him in under orders of the President," Stephanie interjected to tell him sternly. She wasn't going to let Chris think that he was going to turn Austin away. Nobody turned Austin away. He was probably the biggest draw the company had ever seen (arguably of course) and she wasn't going to let her husband's petty grudge stand in the way of Austin wanting to come back if that was the case.

"Is it for Taker?" Stephanie asked. "It kind of had the vibe for him. It was sort of dark and we've used kids in his return videos before and it could be for him. I know that he wants to come back because if his streak even though I think it's time for him to retire. That old gimmick is getting stale."

"Gimmick, sure," Chris muttered.

Stephanie laughed, "You don't honestly believe he has _magical_ powers, do you?" She waved her hands in front of his face and he pushed them away. "He only uses that to intimidate people. He's no more scary than his brother…which, by the way, they aren't for him, right?"

"No, he has his own videos and he's ready to come back, but apparently, therapy was not working for him and he wants the mask back."

"Wait, so he wants to come back with his mask on, why? He hasn't worn that damn thing for years and we can all see that he isn't burned, that was all in his freakish mind," Stephanie said, wondering why he had regressed.

"I don't know, do you really want me to question the man? He's insanely large and just…insanely insane. I don't want to mess with him. I may be the boss and an ex-wrestler, but I know when not to argue with the talent."

"The talent? Well la-dee-da," Stephanie said, "look at you being all corporate, when do we start taking the power lunches?"

"This coming from the woman in charge."

"It's okay, you can tease back, you're sleeping with the boss, I think I can allow you a few…extras," she said, running her finger down his chest. "I know you have a lot of work e-mails, but we're alone, the kids won't be back for hours…"

"What happened to holding out on me because I was in trouble?"

"Well, I'm insatiable," she winked at him. "Plus, we don't get a lot of time by ourselves. We always have the kids and when we don't have all of them, we have some of them and sometimes you aren't even here and taking care of myself just isn't fun."

"Do you picture Ted when you do that to yourself?" he asked her.

"I picture Ted when I'm doing it with you," she countered and he scowled at her as she giggled. He grabbed her tighter around the waist and kissed her neck, growling something unintelligible into her skin. "I'm sorry, I probably shouldn't have told you that and bruise your fragile, male ego."

"It's sufficiently bruised."

"So you're really not going to tell me who's returning?"

"It's someone from the past."

"Okay, from the distant past or the recent past?"

"I'm not telling you anymore, I liked seeing your face when I brought Rocky back so I'm going to have a good time seeing your face when I bring this next guy back," Chris told her with a smug look on his face and she studied him carefully. "Steph, don't you trust me to do my job? I like to think I've been doing it pretty well. I've taken care of the talent, I take care of travel arrangements that go awry, I've handled a number of stupid arguments between wrestlers, I've even consulted with Layla over how she should look when she returns. She sent me a bunch of pictures of different outfits she's thinking about wearing."

"Excuse me?" Stephanie asked. "What did these outfits look like?"

"I don't know, like outfits," Chris shrugged. "It's not like they were naked pictures or anything, besides, I find you to be the hottest piece of ass I know. I like my woman just fine, thank you very much."

"Oh, you're so sweet, I feel so objectified," Stephanie said with a dreamy sigh. "Do you think I'm beautiful?"

"Well that was a little out of left field," Chris told her.

"I've just been working out more and everything and getting into better shape, you know, it helps with the three kids thing and I'm just wondering if you think I look more beautiful now than I did before I got into better shape," Stephanie said casually.

"Baby, I've told you since the moment I knew we were something more than a fling-"

"Which was…"

"I don't know, like a month after we started dating, when I told you I loved you, even though I think I loved you before that, hell, I think I was falling in love with you for a while before we even started dating," he told her without hyperbole. "But I've told you, time and time again, I don't care how you look. I don't care if you gain 500 pounds, I will and always will think you are the third most beautiful girl in the entire world."

"Top three, not bad," Stephanie nodded.

"The other two in front of you are tied and they can't be beat, you really had no chance against them," Chris told her.

"I can live with that. They are part me after all."

"Don't take all the credit!"

"I can take most of it though," she told him.

"I think you are beautiful now, you were beautiful six months ago, you were beautiful five years ago when you were pregnant with our first child, you were beautiful…wait, no, you were skanky then…but well, we all grow up sometime, right?"

"Jerk," she shoved at his shoulder. "Whoever this guy is, he better be worth it."

"I think he is, I wouldn't have brought him back if he wasn't. I mean, I have a whole campaign for the guy. Videos and everything. I'm working closely with the video department on it, I want them to look good, the videos I mean."

"We have one of the best video departments around, I have faith they'll do a good job."

"I know, but remember, I came up with both my debut and my return vignettes so I know a thing or two about things like this. I'm merely consulting."

"Like I said, I trust you."

"You didn't say that once in this entire conversation," he reminded her.

"Well, I'm saying it now."

CM Punk pulled up to the McMahon residence. Somehow, he'd expected it to have bats or vultures flying around huge turrets that burned the sky with a dark black. It just looked like a normal house though. Okay, so didn't exactly look like a normal house. It was much larger than a normal house and the driveway alone was bigger than any house he'd ever lived in. It was a nice place, he had to say, but totally excessive. To his knowledge, it was only Vince and Linda who lived here and what the hell did they need with all this space? He was never one who got on with excess. He had what he needed and that was enough for him.

He parked his rental car and got out of the car, giving a low whistle as he got his first really good look at the place. Yup, totally excessive and nothing he would ever buy for himself. He walked up to the front door, cracking his neck along the way. The doorbell chimes were even extravagant, playing a lilting tune that he was sure rang its way beautifully through the house. He'd been buzzed in by the gatekeeper and so they knew it was him. A housekeeper answered the door, typical, and he introduced himself to her gallantly, even bowing, making this woman think he was crazy. He liked doing that, though, making people think things about him. The way he looked was always going to be a factor in the way people thought of him so why not play it up?

"You must be Mr. um, Punk," she said politely, "won't you come in, Mr. McMahon is expecting you."

"I should hope so," he laughed, "just point me in the right direction."

"Follow me."

"Sure, if that's what you want," he said, following her down a couple of long corridors before they finally came upon a door. She opened it for him and ushered him inside. The room reeked of wood and judging by the dark mahogany (he was guessing, but wasn't it _always_ mahogany?) that's why it reeked like that. Vince rose from his chair, trying to appear looming, but Punk didn't take much to intimidation.

He was only here to find out what Vince wanted anyways. He didn't much care what the man had to say, but Stephanie did and that's who Punk was loyal too. Loyalty wasn't quite the right word, it made him sound like a lap dog, but he couldn't think of a better one in that moment. He would find out what Vince wanted and then would pass the word along to Stephanie. He believed Stephanie when she said she was going to try to do her best to foster new talent and that's where he wanted the company to go and Vince would only try to pull it into the past. The botched return of the nWo came to his mind immediately. If he'd been around then, he could only imagine what he would have tried to pull on those sorry-ass losers.

"Punk, so nice to see you and under much better circumstances than when we last met."

"I'd say so," Punk said. If he had the belt on him, he would have pat it, but it was back home, sitting on his couch, probably gathering dust. He wasn't the type of guy who carried it around everywhere. He imagined that The Miz, while champion, brought that thing everywhere so he could just tell people he was the champion.

"Congratulations on your win."

"Thanks," Punk said.

"Have a seat, have a seat," Vince pointed to the chair and Punk plunked himself down into it, leaning back until his back was sunk into it, giving Vince a cool look as the man himself sat down. "Thank you for agreeing to see me."

"Well, I had nothing better to do," Punk said, "so what do you want?"

"I think we can be beneficial towards each other," Vince didn't beat around the bush. "I know that we didn't see eye-to-eye before, but I'm more than willing to negotiate with you now."

"Last I checked, Stephanie was the President."

"Yes, Stephanie," Vince said and it wasn't with contempt, but more with begrudging pride. Punk knew that even if Vince wanted into the company again, wanted to regain every ounce of power he had, that he was still proud of his daughter. This family was twisted into more knots than an old tree's branches. None of them wanted to see another one succeed without succeeding themselves. It was like they all clawed for the top no matter what the casualty list looked like. "I understand she's in charge, but I don't feel like she's ready yet."

"She felt it."

"I know, she did and I'm not saying the Board made a bad decision in hiring her to take over for me, but I just feel like she doesn't have as much to give as I do right now and with you as the champion, I think we could come to some sort of…agreement that we both want to see Stephanie maybe gain some more experience."

"Hasn't she been working for you since the minute she graduated college, didn't she do a bunch of stuff before that, I've heard rumors about guys who have tried-"

"We'll not get into that," Vince said sharply. Yes, this man still obviously loved his daughter, but God forbid she do a good job taking over for him. "I just think she's not ready and I wouldn't fire her, goodness no, I've had plenty of opportunities to fire her, but I never have."

Punk raised his hand, "Beg to differ there, pard'ner, but you didn't let her back after she bought the Alliance, she had to practically sneak back into the company."

"That was under entirely different circumstances."

"May be, but I figured I shouldn't point out your error," Punk said, "how do you know Stephanie won't do a good job, the company hasn't bottomed out yet and guys are getting opportunities that they weren't before."

"I'm sure she's putting up a good front."

Punk was actually kind of pissed. Stephanie wasn't putting on a front, Stephanie was doing as good a job as she could under the circumstances. Her father was trying to undermine her at every turn, but she was turning him away and still managing to do her job and he actually admired her for that. Vince was obviously not doing well with the change, but Punk found the change just fine thus far.

"I'm sure that's a matter of opinion."

"I suppose…"

"So what you really want is you want me to help you get rid of Stephanie or have her demoted, right?"

"You _were_ the one who did that to me," Vince reminded him and he snorted at that. The man had a point, it was him who had a hand in getting Vince fired from the job he loved so much he was willing to take out his own daughter.

Punk stood up, "Don't call me, Vince, I'll call you if I think you're worthy."

Except Punk had absolutely no intention of ever working with Vince, but Vince didn't need to know that right now.

Hunter sucked at his teeth a little over dinner. Britt had been distracted with work, so that gave him a lot of time to think and think he had. "I want to wrestle again. I'm not done."

Britt looked up from the document she'd been perusing while eating. "What? You want to wrestle again?"

"The doctor said that I was good to go and I'm tired of hiding. I'm fine and I want to beat Nash to a pulp."

"Liar," Britt snapped at him. "The doctor did not say that you were good to go, the doctor said that you were able to maybe wrestle, but that you should take a couple months off before you even think about it because head injuries are tricky. He said that he advises athletes with severe concussions to look out for symptoms for at least two months, he did the same to you and now you want to climb back into a ring, I don't think so."

"You're forbidding me?"

"I'm absolutely forbidding you," Britt told him.

"You can't do that."

"Sure I can, I'm your boss, remember," Britt told him, "and I can dictate whether or not you have a match or not. If you don't like it, what are you going to do, ask Laurinaitis? I'm sure he'd love that."

"I can go to Stephanie."

"You would not."

"I would too," Hunter said, "I have to get back at him for what he did. You don't understand. I have to be a man and I can't let my girlfriend stand up for me."

"What are you talking about?"

"You don't think I didn't hear about what you did, confronting Nash like you did? You didn't think that would get back to me?"

"How did you know about that?" Britt asked him. "Did Stephanie tell you? I asked her not to mention it to you."

"No, Nash told Shawn, who told me."

"Oh, wonderful, I'm sure that the version that you heard is vastly different from what actually happened," Britt scoffed, "it's no secret that Shawn has no love lost for me and he would love to have his little buddy back 24/7."

"Did you or did you not go up and threaten Nash?"

"I did, what's the matter with that?"

"It makes it look like I have my girlfriend fight my battles for me and I'm a goddamn wrestler, so how do you think that makes me look, like some dude who can't get the job done on his own so he sends his little, petite girlfriend to do the dirty work."

"Okay, see, this is something I don't get," Britt said angrily. "Why is it okay for you to go up to some guy who bothers me and threaten them to within an inch of their life, but when I try and do the same with you, it's like I've given you the death sentence?"

"Because I'm the guy," he reasoned, but Britt couldn't believe he would try and pull that. She had been self-sufficient long before she'd ever met Hunter and she would be self-sufficient now when she was with him. She hated that double standard. Just because a guy looked big and tough and strong didn't make it necessarily so. She was just as strong and tough under this short stature.

"That's a load and you know it," Britt said, "I could hold my own in a fight, even against you, Hunter and I'm sick of you thinking like I can't defend you if I want to. Go ahead, fight, do whatever the hell you want, but you're not getting my clearance."

"Britt…"

"No," she stood up and pushed her chair away from the table. "Don't you…you know what, you're not even worth it."

Britt didn't talk to Hunter for the remainder of the weekend. She didn't want to talk to him and she was just glad that they were back home and alone and not at her brother's house in Seattle with all of her family celebrating Thanksgiving while they were fighting. They were in the privacy of their own home and at least their fight was self-contained for a few days. That didn't last though because before they knew it, they were back at work and the iciness of their weekend spilled over into their work day and everyone took notice.

"What's wrong?" Punk asked as he fell in stride beside Britt as she walked down the hallway.

"Nothing."

"Lies," Punk said, "come on, you can tell me."

"I'm not your friend."

"But I'm a good listener," he told her, trying to give her a cheesy grin.

"Believe me, Punk, if I wanted you to know, you'd know," she told him, before quickening her pace and losing him completely. He shrugged and decided to find something else to do. He'd already told Stephanie what was going on with her dad and it was exactly as they thought. She took it in stride, like she did many things, and said she would play it by ear, which was the only logical thing she could do at this point. No counterstrikes until the initial blow was her philosophy for right now.

If her father actually tried to come in and take her job, that's when she'd have a problem, but the best thing she could do right now was to do her job well. Britt walked into her office and gave a strained smile, "Steph, I need a favor."

"Only if I can ask you a question," Stephanie countered.

"Okay, deal, what do you want to know?" Britt asked.

"I want to know if you know who those videos are for," Stephanie said. "Chris told me they were a secret or whatever and that he was bringing someone back, but I'm not sure who he's talking about and as president, I think I should be in the know."

"Oh, he said something like Undertaker or something," Britt shrugged. "He didn't tell me too much about it, but that was who he was insinuating, I think."

"That makes sense, this is about when he comes back, I think Chris just wanted it to be some weird surprise for me, making me think he actually brought someone back who was big, not that Taker isn't, but he shows up around this time every year."

"The videos seem to fall in that vein," Britt said, "I saw the one for tonight and it has that kind of darkish quality."

"I agree, that's why I asked him if it was Taker, but he said it wasn't," Stephanie shrugged, "oh well, I guess someone is going to try and take down Taker again, do you think it's going to be Hunter?"

"That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about…not a match between him and Taker, but just Hunter in general."

"What about him?"

"I think he's going to challenge Nash to a match at TLC, something No Holds Barred or something like that and I'm worried. He had a severe concussion and while the doctor gave him the clean bill of health, he also said to make sure he checked for symptoms and that he advised him not to get into a ring for at least two months. This is where you come in."

"How do I come in?"

"I already told him I would not give him a match so I need you to deny it if he wants it."

"Britt, I—"

"Stephanie, please, you know how much he means to me and I don't want to see him hurt like he was, I don't want to see him…you don't understand because Chris has never been like that, he's never been beaten like that or had to take time off or anything, I mean, what's the worst that's happened to him while you were together?"

"He hurt his leg," Stephanie said, "um, he had some bone spurs in his elbow…"

"Exactly," Britt said, "please, if it comes to that, will you please, please not put him in that match?"

"Okay," Stephanie told her. "I won't put him in a match."

"Thank you," Britt said. "I just don't want anything to happen to him. I love him, even when he's pissing me off like he is right now."

"He could go to Laurinaitis, you know?"

"I know, he could," Britt said, "but I don't think he will. I mean, I don't think he's that desperate to get a match or at least I really hope he's not that desperate to get a match. I really, really hope he's not that desperate to get a match."

"I don't know, Britt."

"I know, thanks, but…yeah, I guess the videos are for Taker or something. I'm not entirely sure what the girl is supposed to represent in the thing, but that was my understanding of the entire thing."

"He won't tell me," Stephanie laughed, "he likes to do that, he didn't tell me about Rocky until he absolutely had to and now he's not telling me about this. I think it's probably Taker and he's only trying to keep it a secret because of his executive position."

"Wouldn't it be funny if it were Chris?" Britt laughed.

"Yeah, right, he's having fun with his band and I haven't been pressuring him and he says that he wants to focus on Fozzy right now and I'm okay with that."

"But are you happy with that?"

"Of course not, but I'll live," she shrugged, "it is curious that there's a she in the video though. I wonder if Taker would bring back some minions or something, Lord knows he could find some if he wanted."

"It could be," Britt said, "I really don't know, Chris said he's handling it since it falls more under his jurisdiction because he personally signed the guy to a contract so he feels like he should handle it and he's right, I mean, I run the show, you run the business, but he deals directly with the talent."

"Damn it, he is right, but I should be able to see these contracts," Stephanie said, then tapped her chin.

"But come on, do you really want to ruin his fun? I mean, he really seems into his job right now, do you really want to take that away from him?"

Stephanie sighed and thought about it. No, she really didn't want to take that away from him. Britt was right, Chris was really enjoying his job right now and it was a job that he didn't have to take at all. She had practically forced him into the position (even though he had volunteered it for himself) and at first she thought he would grudgingly do it, but Chris was sitting in on conference calls with her and inputting ideas and actually liking what he was doing.

"No, I guess not."

"I didn't think you would."

Stephanie was not one to stay out of things though so it was difficult for her not to focus on the videos and try, at every turn, to guess. She'd promised herself she wouldn't actively look though, but if the information should somehow fall into her lap, she wouldn't hesitate to possibly look at it if the timing was right or if the conditions were ideal. She just wanted to give Chris his space, but kind of impart herself in his space a tiny bit. Just a tiny bit so she could find out what he and Taker had planned. Surely there was something big going on if he felt the need to hide it from her.

It was Thursday and she was leaning in the doorway while he played with the girls in the playroom. Sawyer was at school and she had just finished cleaning up after the girls' late breakfast while Chris had taken the girls to the playroom to work off some energy. He was sitting on the ground with Flynn sitting next to him as they did puzzles together. Kensington was playing with their mini-kitchen in the corner, dutifully placing items into the little fridge like she watched her mommy and daddy do when they bought groceries.

"Hey," Chris said as he turned his head after feeling her presence, "you got everything cleaned up?"

"Everything except Miss Flynn Jericho," Stephanie said, "don't think I didn't see you sneak off while I was cleaning. Did you wash your hands after you ate?"

"Yes," Flynn said, but she looked guilty as all get out and Stephanie raised her eyebrow as she looked at her daughter. Flynn just stared back at her. The thing about Flynn was that, even when she was blatantly lying, she believed her lies so fiercely that you almost wanted to believe her.

"Let me see your hands," Stephanie took a few steps closer. Flynn reluctantly held out her hands, which now had bits of carpet fuzz sticking to them because she still had syrup from her waffles all over them. Stephanie shook her head, "Oh, Flynnie, what am I going to do with you?"

"Um, take me to the toys and I get Daddy," Flynn said brightly and Stephanie laughed and shook her head.

"No, we're going to go wash our hands, little miss," Stephanie scooped up her protesting daughter and took her out of the room. Kensington, seeing her father was free, grabbed a plastic corn cob and brought it to Chris, pushing it against his cheek.

Chris turned his head and pretended to take a bite, "Om, nom, nom," he fake-chewed as Kensington laughed at him. "Thank you for the corn, Kensy, I was very, very hungry, but now my tummy is all full."

"Goo," she said, which was her way to say good, she always just left out that extra d at the end.

"It was good, you're a very good cook," Chris told her, "better than Mommy."

"Hey," Stephanie frowned as she came back with Flynn, who was all washed up and holding Stephanie's hand. "I'm not that bad anymore, having three kids has forced me to learn at least a little so my kids don't starve when you're not here."

"I no hungry," Flynn shook her head, she'd just eaten so of course she wasn't hungry. "I eated my waffle and my fruits and Daddy says that fruits makes you toots."

Stephanie rolled her eyes and made a face, "You're disgusting, you know that, right?"

"What? It's the truth and who doesn't love fart humor," Chris told her. Stephanie sat down next to Chris and he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "Lighten up, you can like fart jokes at 3 and you can like them at 43 and 53 and 63 I bet."

"Yeah, well, I don't want our daughter going around telling fart jokes."

"She'd be the hit of preschool, I'm telling you. I'm just arming her with an arsenal to use when she gets there," Chris told his wife, kissing her temple.

"Get way from Daddy, he mine," Flynn said with an exasperated sigh, climbing into Chris's lap. "He not yous."

"You can share," Stephanie told her. "If I wasn't with Daddy, you wouldn't be here so you better remember that."

Flynn grunted and Chris laughed as she buried her head against his t-shirt. Kensington wanted a cuddle too so she went to Stephanie and climbed in her lap, wrapping her arms around Stephanie's middle as best she could. Chris just looked at Stephanie as they were inundated with children, but she wouldn't change it for the world. There was nothing better than the love your children could give you.

"So," Stephanie said, "how are those videos coming along?"

"They're coming along fine. The person returning thinks they look good."

"Little dark, don't you think?"

"I guess they could be seen as a little bit dark, if that's what you want to think of them," Chris shrugged to himself. "I don't think they're too dark, I think they're more mysterious than anything else and that's what I want people to think, that they're mysterious."

"They are mysterious I guess, I mean, with the girl, you know, I mean, the girl is the really mysterious part, what does she do in this, was it a one-time thing?"

"No, we're bringing back the girl. You know, the little girl who did the videos is really talented, she really captured what we wanted to go for," Chris told her.

"So all these videos are done then?"

"Yeah, of course, I mean, I wasn't going to keep bringing them back every week. I talked with the guy and we plotted out what we wanted. If we want to change anything, we can just change it through voiceover and that's easy enough. Everything has been taken care of."

"When did you even film these?" Stephanie asked.

"When we went to see your mom about a week before the first one aired, remember how we went up for the weekend before Thanksgiving because your mom wanted the kids to be there to look good for that campaign thing."

"Oh, you did? Wait, when you went to Titan, _that's_ what you were doing?"

"Yeah, pretty much," Chris shrugged.

"How did you get this past me?"

"You were preoccupied with the kids. Your mom wanted to buy them the new outfits and you insisted that you see these outfits because you didn't want them looking like little Connecticut snobs."

"What's a snob?" Flynn asked.

"It's someone who thinks they're too good for everyone else, something I never want you to be," Stephanie told her daughter.

"Okay, I won't," she said.

"So you really are just going to keep me in the dark?" Stephanie asked him.

"I'm not keeping you in the dark per se, I just have a project and I'm invested in it and I would like it if you would back me up on it."

"I know it's Taker," she blurted.

"You sneaky, little witch," Chris told her, glancing over at her. "So you went snooping I'm assuming?"

"I didn't, I asked Britt and she said that she figured it was for Taker and with the tone of the videos, I was able to come to my own conclusion, that's all. I mean, with the videos, the way they're shot and how they're mostly empty and mysterious when you look at the scenery and then the creepy kids…I mean…you know. I'm just wondering who the girl is."

"Seems like you've got pretty much everything figured out, don't you?" Chris said. "I should have known that you would figure it out all on your own. I mean, you're just clever like that, aren't you?"

"I didn't snoop!" she protested, pouting so much that Chris leaned over and kissed her bottom lip.

"Stop!" Flynn growled. "I get kisses!"

"You get kisses too," Chris kissed her nose and then he felt Kensington slap his thigh and so he kissed her nose too. "Geez, with all the girls around here, I could get kisses all day, I'm a lucky, lucky guy."

"Oh yeah, so lucky," Stephanie told him. "I better get to my office and do some work though, are you good with the girls?"

"What you do, Mommy?"

"I'm going to make some phone calls, then I'm going to do some work. Why? You want to help?"

"Yes, I helps with the wrestles," Flynn said with a bright smile.

"Well, how can I say no to that face?" Stephanie said as she set Kensington down on the floor before picking up Flynn from Chris's lap. "We can watch matches and you can tell me who's the best and who you don't like, how does that sound? Then maybe we can fire some people."

"Okay, I likes it!" Flynn giggled as she wrapped her arms around Stephanie's neck. "See you later, Daddy!"

"Have fun with Mommy, Flutterby," Chris waved at her as they walked out of the room, leaving Chris with Kensington. She looked at her daddy imploringly and Chris wrapped her up in a hug and kissed her cheek. "Hey there, Kensy-bug, I guess it's just you and me for the time being, huh?"

"Yup, yup," Kensington said in her sweetly high-pitched voice.

"Well, since it's just us here, I have to tell you a secret and you're the only one I trust in this house to keep it and it's killing me not to tell anyone," Chris said, then leaned his head in towards Kensington and whispered in her ear. "The videos are for me. I'm coming back to wrestling."

Kensington had no clue what he was saying.

For Hunter, it actually didn't matter about asking for a match because when it came down to it, it was there for the taking. This made Britt upset though, that he would accept a match of this magnitude and just ignore everything she'd said. Now he was trying to get clearance from the doctor, which was really just a note to tell her that he could wrestle and it wouldn't be dangerous.

Sometimes, she couldn't figure out what place she had in Hunter's life. She knew he loved her, but it was like he didn't want to listen to her. He was an independent guy, yes, and he'd spent a long time being single, but at one point, the guy had been married so he had to know a little bit about compromise. Wrestling always seemed to take precedent with him and it was frustrating. Instead of his health, all he could think about was how Nash had hurt his feelings.

It wasn't healthy for him to invest so much in this. She just wanted him to realize that revenge wasn't always the answer. There were going to be moments where you had to take a step back and evaluate a situation and come to the conclusion that walking away was the best thing for everyone. He hadn't learned that and she was coming to the end of her rope. She didn't want to have a fight with Hunter every time he was angry at someone. That was no way to live and she wondered if loving each other was enough to overlook the glaring gaps in their relationship.

"Will you just talk to me?"

"No," Britt said, "stop calling me, I don't to talk to you."

"Britt."

"No," she said, hanging up the phone and turning it off. She didn't want to talk to him right now. She was worried about brain damage and he was worried about beating someone up.

"All you have to do is turn that frown upside down?" a cheesy voice came from her right.

"CM Punk."

"Another fight with the Mister?" he asked. "That's too bad if it was. I don't know why he fights with you. You don't look like someone you'd want to mess with, not after what I saw you do to Nash."

"So maybe you should step away then?" she told him, giving him a sidelong glance that told him that she was listening, but not going to put up with his crap tonight.

"Well, I don't think you'll hit me and if you do, that would really suck, so please don't. I'm a champion, I've got a belt to protect, I don't need to get in any backstage fights. So…you never got back to me on that dinner, how about I get your mind off things tonight?"

Britt stopped and leaned against the wall. "Do you really think I don't know what you're doing here?"

"What am I doing?"

"You're trying to ask me out so you can get in my pants," Britt told him plainly. She'd known his intentions from the very beginning. Punk's reputation proceeded him.

He pressed his hand against his chest, "I think I may actually be insulted. I was trying to do no such thing, at least not the first time."

"I have a boyfriend."

"Yes, a boyfriend, not a husband, I heard you turned him down for that job, not that I blame you because if I were you, I would want someone like me too," he said smoothly and she did have to laugh at that and he smiled at her, a genuine one, not one of his sarcastic ones that he usually sported. Britt found that he was much more handsome when he just smiled like a normal person.

"I had my reasons."

"I know, marriage looks like it'd be a drag," Punk told her.

"I thought you were with Beth," Britt said to him.

"That's out of here, we didn't work, she had jealousy issues that I just can't be dealing with. If a chick starts getting jealous, they're not worth my time. I have friends who are girls, tons of them and I don't want my girlfriend thinking I'm sleeping around. I may have a rep, but I'm not a cheater."

"I think Maria begged to differ."

"Misunderstanding, besides, you're you and I like the challenge. I think you could give me a run for my money. I'm not the type of guy who sits back, Britt. I think you're gorgeous and I like your attitude."

"Yeah, well, the answer is still no," she said, pulling away and smirking at him as she sauntered away.

"One day you're going to say yes to the invitation?"

She turned around and started walking backwards, "Keep asking and we'll see."

Punk had to smile at that because it wasn't an outright no. She must really be in a huge fight with Hunter if she was so willing to flirt with him like she was just doing. It didn't matter to him though because she hadn't said no and that meant there was a chance that at some point she would say yes. He hated rooting for the end of a relationship, but when he could reap all the benefits, it was hard not to cheer for it.

"The ratings are down," Stephanie said, mostly to herself, but Chris overheard as well.

"That's not a good thing."

"In the big picture, no, but in the small picture and for us, yes. Remember, we've given over the reins to John. He's the one who is booking most of the show while we let him do what he wants. I'm running the company, which is mostly corporate stuff, you deal with the talent and there hasn't been another uprising, Britt runs the technical part of the show, but we've mostly let Laurinaitis deal with the actual show. Therefore, the poor ratings fall on him, which will make him look bad and then my father does not have a leg to stand on."

"It's the simplest plan and yet, you pull it off," Chris told her. "I mean, the easiest solution is usually the best solution, Occam's razor and you're pulling it off and making your dad's decisions look like crap."

"It was all part of the plan," Stephanie said, "we just have to keep our noses out of it and let him take the fall and then when he's gone, we rise up like the phoenix. Ratings are usually down a little during football season as it is so when we do quarterly reports, we have that to fall back on to exonerate ourselves, hopefully by the time we have the conference call about that John is out of here. We've got to make that happen as soon as we can."

"We're already working on it," he winked at her.

And he was working on a little something of his own.


	351. The End of the World, January 2, 2012

A/N: Thanks for reading everyone, I'm almost caught up! I'm through his return so next chapter will be this week and next week and then I will FINALLY be all caught up. Again, there's some skimming and skipping going on, but the chapter is still really long so I hope you enjoy it and if you want to review, nobody's stopping you, I hope! :P

* * *

"There's got to be some action figure of me that she doesn't have."

"Chris, she has every action figure made of you since you came back in 2007 until you left last year," Stephanie told him as they looked through the wrestling aisle at the local toy store. The kids were with Chris's parents while he and Stephanie went shopping for them for Christmas. They were all at an age where they would definitely know that going to a toy store was a big deal. Even Kensington was at an age where presents would definitely interest her so she couldn't come along either.

"There has to be one or two she doesn't have," Chris said, still pawing through the rows and rows filled with his employees.

"Chris, we own the company, don't you think that we've seen all the action figures you could possibly have?" Stephanie asked, pulling a CM Punk one from the shelf and putting it into the cart for Flynn.

"And I don't see why you are getting her CM Punk."

"Because she likes him," Stephanie answered drolly. "She'll love these, not as much as she loves you or anything, but she'll loved these too. You know, she likes wrestling in general, not just you."

"I know, but she likes me best of all."

"Well, there aren't any new ones of you," she pointed out, "and there haven't been in a while because you've been gone."

"Inconsequential," he scowled, "you know, this is just like me not being included in the WWE '12 video game, it's an outrage, I still don't get why I'm not included in that. I mean, isn't Brock Lesnar in that game and he's been gone for _years_."

"I'm not in the video game department, I can't handle that, that's a whole separate company," Stephanie told him as she saw a Christian figure that Flynn would probably like as well and if she didn't, Tilden might get a kick out of it.

"I've been pretending like it bugs me on Twitter," Chris said, acting proud of himself, like this was some sort of huge prank he was pulling. "I think people are really buying it."

"You know what else people are buying?" Stephanie asked as they turned into another aisle that held video games and Stephanie bit her lip and wondered if it would be appropriate for them to buy Sawyer his first video game system. Maybe they could get him the aforementioned WWE game.

"I don't know, what?" Chris asked as he looked at some of the older video games, filled with violence and what not. Chris wasn't a huge gamer, but he did occasionally indulge in a little video game fun when he had the time, which was rare.

"These Undertaker videos," Stephanie said, "apparently, there are a lot of people on the internet who believe it's for the Undertaker, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, I think it'll get people really hyped for his return, which is ultimately going to be good for us."

"You think so?" Chris asked while turning his head away so he could smirk at his leisure. He knew Stephanie had inquired the online research team to see what the buzz was on the internet. With her position as president, it was harder for Stephanie to get time to scour the internet for opinions and speculation. He'd gone straight to them and told them they'd get nice Christmas bonuses if they only looked up information on what people were saying about the Undertaker's return.

If it got to Stephanie that most of the speculation was for him, he would just say they hadn't told her because he didn't want her getting her hopes up for his return. His wife, who thought she was the most clever person on the planet, was so convinced that it was Undertaker, that she had figured it out without him even telling her, that she didn't seem to even put much thought into the whole video thing, except telling him, after each one, that she liked what they were about.

"_I just don't get the entire she thing," Stephanie told him after the last video had prominently featured a little girl, even going so far as to say that _she_ held the key to his arrival. "Is he going to be returning with someone? I wasn't aware that Taker was really with anyone."_

"_It's the WWE itself," Chris told her, "the she is the company calling him back, you know what I mean. It's like, the time is now and the WWE is calling him back to say that the streak is still intact and that he needs to come back because she's beckoning him to continue with it."_

"_Oh, well, I guess that makes sense," Stephanie said, "I don't think I would have actually gone with a human being for that to represent that."_

"_It's throwing people off," Chris said, "it's making them think it's different people who could be returning."_

"_I know," Stephanie laughed, "someone actually told me that they think it's for Shane and myself, like Shane is the little boy coming to reclaim the company and I'm the little girl who's telling him to come back."_

_Chris laughed at that. He'd heard the same rumor, which he thought was funny and they were sort of half-right, but the reason for the little girl would be revealed to Stephanie all in due time. The she was actually a couple of things. "Yeah right, like you would invite Shane back into the company."_

"_I know, right," Stephanie laughed harder, "For one, Shane is happy with where's he at now and why would he drop everything that's going for him right now just to come back and try and reclaim the company? He still has his shares, but he has no desire to return, secondly, I would never want him here because then I'd have to share-"_

"_And we all know how you do with sharing?" he pointed out. "I think that's the last thing you'd want."_

"_Yeah, I know, but I like the misdirection, it's good," she told him, "you're doing a wonderful job."_

He was trying to play it up online like he would never return to the ring. He kept hyping Fozzy (which he would have done anyways) and talking about music and generally being a jerk, trying to throw people off his scent. It didn't seem to be working since everyone was so adamant that it was him. He was getting slightly annoyed that they wouldn't lay off of it, but the wrestling sites were not doing him any favors. The only people who knew he was definitely returning were himself and Kensington. He'd told nobody else, not any of his family, not any of his friends, nobody knew it was him, but people just wanted it to be him _so_ badly. They'd also probably heard that he was back to working with the company and just assumed it was as a wrestler and not in an executive position because Stephanie hadn't issued a press statement when he'd taken over the job.

Every other tweet to his Twitter account seemed to be about him coming back though and it was getting irritating. He didn't exactly know yet how he wanted to return, but he had some definite ideas. It was getting to a point where the other half to the puzzle would have to be let into what he was doing, but that could wait for now.

"Yeah, of course I think so, I want people to tune in to see who it is," she said, "do you think we should get a system for Sawyer or is he too young?"

"You're never too young," Chris said, flagging down an employee so they could get one of the systems behind the glass. "He'll love this and he's almost six so you know, they like video games, we can throw in something educational for him so we don't look like horrible parents."

Stephanie nodded her head, "Okay, that's what we'll do, we'll balance it out. We still need things for Kensington. I feel a little bad for her, getting everyone's hand-me-downs, she deserves new things all for herself."

"That Flynn will just steal."

"Well, she'll be too busy with her own toys to steal from Kensington for one day. Plus, Flynn's toys are more mature than Kensington's would be, Kensy isn't even two so what would Flynnie want with them?"

"Have you never seen Flynn play? That girl thinks everything is hers, we really should start working on that, I mean, she is starting preschool in a few weeks and we don't want her to be bossy."

"I think that's just in Flynn's personality," Chris gave her a pointed look.

"Don't look at me!"

"Steph, baby, you know you're bossy," Chris said as the employee handed them the video game system to put in their cart. "She's just like you. She may love me like a moth loves a flame, but she's so you, which is apropos since you love me so much too."

"Yeah, for now."

"What do you mean, for now?" he gasped. "Our seventh wedding anniversary is next month and you come out with this!"

"We'll see if we make it to next month," she joked, "we're not getting each other any Christmas presents, right?"

"Nope, just don't tell my mom that or she'll make me buy you something again, I wish she would understand that we have everything we need and what we don't have, we have all year to buy ourselves," Chris shook his head. "She doesn't seem to understand that."

"She's just well-meaning," Stephanie kissed his cheek. "She just thinks that we have to…I don't know, keep the romance alive and presents are the way to do that."

"If only she wasn't my mom, I could tell her we have sex at least three times a week," Chris said and Stephanie slapped him in the arm and gestured around her. They were in a toy store; they couldn't talk about that kind of thing when there were tons of children running around. "Sorry, but it's true."

"I know, but you don't have to announce it to the entire store that you're getting some on a regular basis, God," Stephanie pulled the cart as he walked behind her.

"Do you think we should get Britt a Hunter action figure so she can use it as a voodoo doll?" Chris changed the subject.

"You shouldn't even bring him up around her," Stephanie told him. "She gets this look in her eye that is just downright scary. She's really pissed that he went back in the ring, in a sledgehammer ladder match no less."

"He's lucky he didn't get his brains knocked out," Chris said, "I mean, the guy gets attacked, barely gets clearance and then goes into a match like that? I've been in some brutal ladder matches, but they've never included any sledgehammers, but I know how bad it can be."

"You're thinking of your Hell in a Cell versus Hunter?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, that was definitely one of the craziest matches I've ever been in, not one of my best, mind you, but definitely one of the craziest. I always kind of felt I was defending your honor in that match."

"You've mentioned that," she told him.

"I'm just saying," he said, "you were gone, he was still pissing me off, it felt good to get a little revenge, even if he did beat me in that match. What a shame too, I didn't have anyone to go home to, just an empty bed."

"You poor thing," Stephanie rolled her eyes and gave him an exaggerated pout. "Now your bed is never empty, unless you go off and do whatever it is you do when you're away from us."

"My bed isn't empty then either," Chris winked at her. "Oh, hey, that reminds me, I was hoping to run something by you."

"What did you want to run by me?"

"Well, Dave, you know Dave, right?"

"Chris, the guy has been one of your best friends for years, why do you always do that when you talk about him? I know who he is, I've met him and hung out with him and he's come to visit us, I think I know who Dave is at this point."

"Sorry, it's just a force of habit," Chris said, "anyways, he's going snowboarding for New Years and I figured that since New Years is on a weekend, maybe we could go up to Canada and go snowboarding with him."

"We or you?"

"Us, of course," Chris said, "I mean, you wouldn't actually come out with us or anything, you know, you wouldn't go skiing, I mean, you can ski if you want, but you don't really ski that much, what with your knees and everything."

"Yes, the bum knees, moving on…"

"It's New Year's, I don't want to spend it without you guys," Chris said, "I want you to come and hey, Sawyer is definitely old enough where he could learn to ski and Flynn actually might be too and you and Kensy could watch or hang out in the lodge or we could take the kids sledding, they would _love_ that, I'm sure there'd be a lot of things to do while we were there and I'd get to spend some of the holidays in Canada, where I'm from. I mean, we _are_ having everyone down for Christmas in Florida and there's just no real Christmas down there, not with the weather, we need the snow, the kids need the snow."

"Okay, wow, going for the hard sell there, aren't you?" Stephanie told him.

"So what do you think?" he asked. It would kind of be a last hurrah for him because after he returned to the ring, things were going to be busy. He was still holding his executive position so he'd almost be like a player/coach in that he'd be essentially working for himself (wow, that was a weird concept). Plus, he still had his radio show and all of his Fozzy stuff and appearances, so he was going to be bogged down by a lot of things so going out now and vacationing would help him when he had to get back to the grind.

"Okay, you can tell Dave we'll be there."

Britt picked at the meal in front of her before looking up at her lunch companion, "This is not a date."

"Two people having lunch together, alone, I'd say that's kind of a date," Punk told her with a smirk. He couldn't believe that she'd said yes today. She must really, _really_ be pissed at Hunter, but he didn't care. Okay, he cared a little because he didn't want her to be hurt or upset about anything, but in the long run, he believed he could offer more than Hunter could. The only problem was that Britt might want to settle down and he was kind of like a leaf blowing in the wind, he never felt like stopping. Maybe Britt could settle for that and be happy with that. He would show her how fun life could be, that was for sure.

"It's not a date, it's two people going out for lunch together," Britt shrugged, "I just did not feel like eating in catering today so I decided to come here."

"I figured you would be happy because Hunter won last night," Punk told her. "I mean, he beat up the guy who beat him up, shouldn't you be happy about that? I figured you would all over Hunter today, like the big, strong, proud girlfriend."

"Yeah, well, I didn't want him to be in that match in the first place," Britt said. "So I don't care if he won or not, the fact is that he was in that match and I'm angry that he was in it."

"But he won, shouldn't that cancel out your anger?"

"No, why should it? I'm mad because he shouldn't be wrestling, I don't care what his doctor said, I know Hunter coerced him into saying that," Britt explained. "His doctor really said he should take a couple months off, but no, he didn't, so I'm mad."

"I heard that he was going to take those couple months now."

"Yeah, until something comes along I'm sure, something that he wants," Britt said, "those videos, the cryptic ones, they're for Undertaker and Undertaker beat Hunter last year and he's never really gotten over that. So Undertaker comes back, then what? Suddenly Hunter is saying that the two months thing was stupid."

"You think he wants to go after Taker?"

"Yes, I do," Britt said, "he's never forgotten how Taker has beaten him twice now at WrestleMania. He really wants to be the one to end the streak, it's like, a mission of sorts, not a huge one, but one that lives in the back of his mind."

"Well, by the time WrestleMania rolls around, it will be two months."

"Don't be logical when I'm mad," she said, pointing her fork at him. "It's the principle of the thing. He's stubborn and I don't need that. So when you think about wanting to date me, remind yourself of that."

"I don't want to date you, I'm not saying that."

"I'm not an idiot, Phil," Britt said, dropping the pretense of his ring name. "I know you have your eye on me, I know you've been following me around, trying to hang out with me."

"So this here, this lunch is out of pity."

"No, it's because I don't want to be around my boyfriend, but that doesn't mean that I'm doing this for some ridiculous reason like to make him jealous, I'm a grown-up, I'm not going to do that. You're my sort of friend so I'm going on a sort of lunch with you."

"You can't sort of go to lunch, you're either at lunch or you're not at lunch," he told her with a smug look.

"I was going for symmetry in my sentence," Britt said, "I'm just saying that I'm not interested in what you're offering, I'm flattered-"

"Okay, you can stop there and save me the pain of hearing the 'it's not you, it's me' speech. I never asked you out formally, but I'm saying that I'm an option and I know you're pissed at your boyfriend and I'm not trying to swoop in, but we've got something here, Britt."

"Nothing, we've got nothing."

"I don't believe you can't feel it," he told her and he was looking at her in a charming way, but she just shook her head, "you do, I know you do, I know you have to, it's not something totally tangible, but it's there."

"Is this how you've plowed your way through half the divas?" Britt said. "Your reputation precedes you…by a lot, I might add."

"I just haven't found the right type of person who gets me," he confessed and that was the truth. "I keep thinking I've found it and things are good for a while, but then…nope, nothing, you know. I'm a unique individual, I need a unique woman. You're about as unique as they come because you just came into this business not knowing a thing, only here because you needed the job and you started as an assistant to Chris because Stephanie had just had Sawyer, but you're into it now. I like that."

"It was forced habitation," Britt argued. "In order to survive, you _have_ to become a part of it."

"But you've got that outside perspective that a lot of us don't have. Most of us have wanted this since we were kids, worked at it so we don't know any better, but you do. You're not really a part of it, that hunger and drive."

"Okay," Britt said, "so what happened with your talk with Vince?"

"_That's_ what you want to talk about?"

"I'm curious," Britt told him, "what did he want, is he plotting against Stephanie? She said she's not going to do anything, but I never believe her when she says that, I just always figure she's got some plan she doesn't want to talk about."

"He wants his job back and he doesn't want Stephanie to have hers. He wants everything back and he said he'll give her a good job, but I'm not on board with that and Stephanie told me I don't have to play spy. I think she knows that I'm not her lap dog so I don't answer to her."

"She's persuasive."

"You could persuade me to do it," he raised his eyebrows comically.

"Phil," she said charmingly, "go jump off a bridge."

Despite what Britt had said at their earlier lunch, Punk felt like he was really making headway with her. It might take him a long time, but he felt like he could break her down. She wasn't right with Hunter, he just had to find a way to make her see that, though it seemed like Hunter was doing a pretty good job of taking care of that himself, what with inserting himself into matches where he shouldn't. Maybe he could persuade Nash to come back again and challenge Hunter to another match. If he didn't hate Nash so much, he might actually do that, but no, he hated the guts out of Nash.

There was a knock on the door of his locker room and he smiled, hoping it was Britt. "Come in!"

It wasn't, Chris walked in with Kensington in his arms. She was certainly the calmest member of that family and he threw her a smile. He was such a sucker for kids, but he hated people knowing that was one of his weaknesses. It always kind of melted the block of ice around his heart when he saw a kid wearing one of his t-shirts or holding a sign for him. It told him he was doing something right by the next generation of wrestling fans.

"Hey boss man, you come to fire me?" Punk said good-naturedly.

"You wish, it'd give you more time to do whatever the hell it is you do. I don't even get half the stuff you tweet."

"Of course you wouldn't, you don't run in my crowds," Punk told him, "so why are you here and not your wife? She's usually the bearer of news when it regards anything remotely related to me."

"Because this has to do with her and I don't want her here while I discuss it."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, it's _about_ her? Man, I'm not attracted to your wife. I mean, she has gotten into some fantastic shape, which, kudos to her, as a gym rat, I've gotta give her credit. I should really tell her that, but is she sensitive about the whole thing?"

"When, in the entire time you've known my wife, have you found her to be sensitive about anything?"

"Point taken, but seriously, I have no desire to tap that."

"Well, I'm sure my one year old daughter appreciates hearing that," Chris said, gesturing towards Kensington, who was just giving Punk a funny look, but that might have been her going to the bathroom, who knew, "plus, everyone knows that you've got the hots for Britt."

"What? Lies," Punk said.

Chris scoffed and squinted at Punk, "You're about as transparent as a window with that one, dude, so you're better off just admitting it. Don't worry, Hunter has no idea, if there's one thing I know about him, he can be rather oblivious."

Punk laughed, "Like that time Steph pretended she was pregnant, oh man, he was so excited…kind of a bummer how that turned out for him."

"Very funny," Chris said, "but it worked out for me just fine. What I want to talk about in regards to my wife is the show, it's related to the show."

"Okay, sit," Punk said as they sat on the couch. Chris set Kensington down on the cushion in front of him and she crawled over to Punk and sat next to him, staring up at him with a vacant smile on her face. Punk let her play with his arm as she traced her fingers over his tattoos. Kids were always fascinated by them. "So what's going on?"

"I would do anything to help my wife," Chris said, "I know you know this, I'm being serious now, not being joking or whatever."

"No, I know," Punk said, "I commend you for that. I don't think I could be with someone for as long as you've been with Stephanie, I would probably just get bored, but I think it's cool that it works for you guys."

"I hate that her father is trying to pull one over on her. I know she says she doesn't care and that she's just going to keep working and letting Laurinaits plot his own downfall and in turn, let Vince realize he's no longer necessary."

"I'm not seeing where I'm fitting in…hell, I'm not even seeing where _you_ fit in here."

"I want Stephanie's show to be the best it can be…I can help that."

"Oh hell no, those videos _are_ for you," Punk said, "I've had people constantly asking me on Twitter if it's you, how I'd feel to face you if you came back because we've had that banter about the 'best in the world' thing. I thought they were for Taker, that's what everyone believes around here."

"I let them believe it, Taker and I have discussed things," Chris said, "so everyone can be kept in the dark."

"Stephanie doesn't know," Punk surmised since Stephanie was nowhere to be found in this conversation.

"No, she doesn't and she's not going to, which is why I have that one with me and not the blabbermouth," Chris nodded towards his younger daughter. "While Vince was in charge, I didn't come back, but coming back now, that's considered a coup for Stephanie and it's not going to make Vince happy because he wanted me to come back."

"Well duh you would come back for Stephanie, she's your wife," Punk said, "but I'm still not seeing where I come in."

"I want you to ask as a liaison between Vince and me," Chris said.

"You mean like a double agent?" Punk asked. As a comic book fan, this thought excited him. He liked spies and things like that. It would be like he was Batman.

"Yeah, I want to make sure that Vince gets that this is no longer about him and it's about Stephanie. I want you to be someone that can get me the inside information and since Vince specifically targeted you, you're the obvious choice."

"So then we'd what…feud with each other? We'd hate each other to keep up the ruse?"

"Exactly, you catch my drift, so are you in? We can iron out the details once I come back and things get rolling."

"Are you kidding me? This is like a real-life comic book, you bet your ass I'm in!"

As the weeks wore on, Chris was getting excited for his return. While he loved Fozzy and loved how far they were progressing with the band, wrestling would always be his first love. Wrestling had done more for him than anything else in his life and for that, it would always hold a special place in his heart. Besides, this wasn't only for him, he was returning for her, the 'she' in the videos. If his wife didn't so fervently believe that the videos were for the Undertaker, she might have gleaned onto the fact that she was the girl in the videos.

"Sweetie, guess what?" the woman of the hour said as she walked into his office.

"Mommy, bes quiet!" Flynn said from the couch where she and Sawyer were watching a DVD of one of Chris's matches from Japan. It made Stephanie laugh because the commentary was in Japanese so the two of them couldn't possibly understand what was being said, but she wanted quiet nonetheless.

"Sorry," Stephanie told her daughter, "guess though, Chris."

"Christmas has been canceled?" Chris guessed and this caused alarm in Sawyer. He knelt up on his knees and peered over the couch at his parents.

"Don't say that, Daddy!" Sawyer told him, frowning at his father.

"Say what?" Chris asked.

"Christmas is not canceled, Santa is gonna come on Christmas and he's gonna give us presents, don't say that!" Sawyer whined, his face screwing up as he got more and more upset. He didn't want Santa to not come to their house.

"Okay, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Chris said, holding his hands up, "God forbid."

"You don't joke about things like that," Sawyer shook his head before he turned back around to watch the wrestling match, but then he remembered something, "Mommy, when does Uncle Shane and Auntie Rissa and Declan and Kenny and Andy and Grandma and Grandpa coming?"

"Tomorrow night," Stephanie explained. "They're coming in on Christmas Eve and then we'll have a nice dinner and we'll go to sleep so Santa can come and then on Christmas morning, we'll all open presents."

"Cool, okay," Sawyer turned around again so he could watch wrestling.

"So what's going on?" Chris wondered, sensing that his wife had some news.

"I've just been asked to do an interview about my new muscular form," Stephanie said, "can you believe that, they want to interview me for my body. I mean, I _never_ thought that would happen, did you?"

"Can I admit something to you?" Chris told her.

"Of course you can, you're my husband, I take your opinion and then I ignore it most of the time," Stephanie joked.

"Mommy, pease bes quiet! I tries and watching," Flynn said with a heaving sigh of exasperation. Stephanie looked over at her guiltily and moved to sit in Chris's lap so they could talk quietly enough that Flynn wouldn't bite their heads off.

"Okay, now that we're not going to get yelled at, what did you want to tell me?" Stephanie asked, smiling at her husband as he wrapped his arms around her waist and held her tightly against him.

"I kind of liked you…before," Chris told her. "I'm not saying you don't look fantastic, you do and I love that you love getting into shape and I love that you want to work out with me-"

"Well, with the kids, I didn't have time to before, but with Kensy older now and not as needy as she once was…"

"No, I know, baby, I know," Chris said, "I love the way you look, but I just want you to know that I loved the way you looked before and there was nothing wrong with the way you looked and there never will be."

"I know," she said.

"I don't think you do, I just…no, I know you do, but I love you and I don't need you to be a stick or lift weight in order for me to find you attractive," Chris told her. "I actually liked you with curves, made you sexy."

"So…now I'm not sexy?" Stephanie asked him.

"No, you're sexy now too, I just wanted you to know that I love you and if this was in any way for me or to make me stay with you or-"

Stephanie cut him off with a laugh, "Sweetie, this wasn't for you at all. I mean, okay, a little bit, but I've never questioned how attracted you are to me, that's never been an issue in the entirety of our relationship. We slept together before we went on a second date, the physical nature of our relationship has been long established. It was just something I wanted to do for me and because my kids are nuts, all of them, little nutcases, the whole lot and it's easier now for me to keep up with them than I was before."

"Okay, it's cool, you know I love you, I just wanted to make sure you knew that you don't have to do this for me in some 'gotta keep my man attracted to me' ploy because you could pretty much be picking your nose and I'll want you."

"Thanks, gross, but thanks," Stephanie kissed him lightly, "but I'm going to be in an interview and people are going to think I'm cool. You're not going to be the only one people read about Mr. One of the 100 Top Living Rock Stars."

"I don't brag about that too much," Chris guffawed in protest.

"Oh yeah?" Stephanie asked, pointing to the magazine, already framed and up on his wall of fame.

"Okay, so I do a little, but sue me, I'm allowed. I'm a very important person in two worlds, wrestling and in rock music, I'm a crossover hit."

Stephanie shook her head and pressed another kiss to his lips, "What other woman would possibly put up with this ego?"

"Plenty, they would overlook the ego to get to the goods," Chris told her, "you just think nobody would want me, but people want me, lots of people want me."

"Mmhmm," Stephanie said, leaning in and kissing him as Chris deepened the kiss and wrapped his arms tighter around her waist. Stephanie pressed herself closer to him, forgetting that their children were sitting not ten feet away watching a wrestling DVD. Stephanie opened her mouth as she felt Chris's tongue press insistently against her lips.

"That's gross," Sawyer said as he made a gagging noise. Stephanie pulled away from Chris and saw that Sawyer was standing right there. "You kiss too much."

"We do?" Stephanie asked.

"Yes, you kiss all the time, but I guess that's okay, can we have our snack now, Mommy? I know Kensy's not awake, but my tummy is growling."

"Well, when the tummy growls, you can't ignore it," Stephanie said, getting off of Chris's lap and scooping Sawyer into her arms. He was so big now that his legs pretty much were able to wrap around Stephanie, but he still liked to be held by his mommy and Stephanie had to take advantage of that fact while she still could. There was going to come a day when getting held by your mommy would be a criminal offense. "Flynnie, you want your snack now?"

"No, I watching," Flynn said distractedly as she continued to watch.

"Suit yourself, come on, baby boy, you can help me make some cookies for everyone when they come tomorrow."

"Okay!" Sawyer said, excited for Christmas and all the presents he was sure to get.

Since everyone who was staying over with them wanted rental cars, Stephanie nor Chris had to pick up anyone at the airport. This was convenient for them since they weren't too keen on being chauffeurs while Stephanie's family was here. All they had to do was wait for them to show up and then the merriment (or lack thereof) would commence. Loretta had come over early to help Chris with the dinner (Stephanie was supervising from a safe distance) and their house was filled with wonderful smells that had Stephanie nearly salivating.

"I'm so glad I married a guy who could cook," Stephanie said, "and a mother-in-law who could cook even better."

"One of these days I'm going to give you some lessons," Loretta told her with a wink as she checked on the consistency of the mashed potatoes she was making. "And Kensy can pretty much eat everything we are, right?"

"Yeah, I think it should all be good for her," Stephanie said, "I don't think I've ever let her have ham, but she'll probably like it, I don't see why she wouldn't."

"Mommy, Daddy, Gamps is here!" Sawyer yelled from the foyer as Ted let himself inside the house. "Hi, Gamps!"

"Hello there, young one," Ted said, picking up Sawyer easily even while his back protested a little since his grandson was getting so big. "Where is everyone?"

"Kitchen making dinner, it smells good!" Sawyer said eagerly. "I'm going to get a lot of presents tomorrow, Gamps, but guess what?"

"What?"

"I got to pick out toys to give to kids who aren't going to get any and we dropped them off this morning and everything and Flynnie and even Kensy helped when we picked them out, which was a little whiles ago, but we didn't want to say anything because we didn't want to brag because that's not good, but you know how much we spent on toys?"

"How much did you spend on toys?"

"Ten thousands of hundreds of dollars," Sawyer beamed, "because it's nice to give things to people who don't have any and Mommy and Daddy said that there are lots of kids who wouldn't get any toys or any food so we're helping and I _like_ it!"

Ted laughed, "You are a very generous and thoughtful little boy."

"What did he do now? Obtain world peace?" Chris asked as his father and his son walked into the kitchen, Ted setting Sawyer down on the ground so Sawyer could go over and see what his grandma was doing. Loretta gave Sawyer one of the whisks off the handheld mixer to lick mashed potatoes from.

"He was just telling me about the charity work you guys did, that's nice of you."

"We have a lot to give," Chris shrugged.

"That's still very commendable. The family here yet, Stephanie?"

"Do I look angry or upset, Ted?" Stephanie joked. "They should be here any minute though. Shane called me saying they were on their way over so the fireworks should begin very shortly."

"Don't let your father get to you," Loretta told her, "not now, not around the holidays, this is a time to spend with family and not fight and just forget everything."

"I would love to do that, Loretta, but it's my father that probably won't."

"If he doesn't, I'll talk to him," Loretta warned ominously. "I'm not going to have Christmas ruined because your father can't keep himself in check for a few days. I'll be damned if he ruins my grandchildren's Christmas."

"Thanks, Loretta, but I think my mom has probably already put the fear of God in him," Stephanie said. They conversed easily for a little while before the door rang. "I guess that's them, I'll be right back."

Stephanie went to the door and opened it to see her entire family on the other side and while she was happy to see most of them, she was not happy to see her father, especially knowing what she did about him. He couldn't see her worth even though she'd been trying for years to show him she was the right person to take over. Had she gotten the company by semi-ill-gotten means? Yes, but she was still doing a damn good job.

"Hey, you guys," she gushed to her brother and sister-in-law. "It feels like forever since we've seen you!"

"I know," Marissa said, hugging her sister-in-law, "you live too far away and we're too busy nowadays. We should see each other more often!"

"I agree," she said, picking up Kenny, "Hey there, Kenny, Flynn and Sawyer have been waiting for you guys, they're in the playroom, do you remember where that is?"

"I don't know," Kenny shrugged at his aunt.

"Okay, well, Sawyer, Flynn, your cousins are here!" A few moments later, Sawyer and Flynn emerged from their playroom and their eyes lit up as they saw playmates. Stephanie put down Kenny and Flynn immediately grabbed his hand and started dragging him towards the playroom while Sawyer told his brothers where to go. Kensington was still napping so she was nowhere to be found.

"Hey, Mom," Stephanie said, hugging her mother and looking at her father over her shoulder. As she suspected the reception seemed a little bit icy. She pulled away from her mother. "Hey, Dad."

"Stephanie."

She wished she could say that it got better as the night wore on, but it seemed like her father would talk to _everyone_ except her. He held conversations with everyone at the table it seemed, but to her, he had barely said two words. He ever had a rousing discussion with Kensington about her corn, but to her, nothing except the occasional "Can you pass me a roll?" She'd tried to engage him in conversation, but he wanted nothing to do with her so she finally gave up.

This didn't go unnoticed by any of the adults around the table, especially not Chris. He'd been watching Stephanie and her father all evening, trying to assess the situation. When dinner was over and the kids were put into the living room with a Christmas special on the TV while the adults drank coffee and talked, Vince practically ignored Stephanie the entire time. It was bordering on humorous how out of the way he went trying not to talk to her. If Chris wasn't so angry over it, he might have laughed.

It just reinforced his decision to return. Chris was determined to help Stephanie make the best show possible and he knew that his presence and charisma would help that. He had some ideas for his return, some good ones too and he'd been discussing them with Punk ever since they had agreed on their plan. There was one idea that he'd suggested that Punk had described as "genius," and right now, that was the front-runner for how he would come back. He wanted Stephanie to have all the ammo she could get and if he got people talking about his return, hyped up about it, then that would be something she could hang over her head to Vince.

"Your dad's an asshole," Chris said as they laid in bed later that evening after they'd seen everyone to bed in the various guest rooms and walked his parents out to their car so they could get back to their condo. After that they'd put all the presents under the tree and eaten the cookies that were left by "Santa."

"Tell me something I didn't know."

"Could he have been any more obvious ignoring you all evening? I swear, if I wasn't in my house and there weren't a bunch of kids around, I would have punched him," Chris said, tensing up in anger. Stephanie tried to soothe him by rubbing his stomach.

"Don't get worked up, everyone will hear you," she reminded him.

"I don't care, our house is huge, nobody is going to hear anyone, I can't stand him and everything he does to you. Why is he still trying to make it like you aren't doing something he should be proud of? Damn it, if Flynn took over the company or Kensington or Sawyer, I would be proud of them, beyond proud."

"I know, but that's you and it's not my dad, you know this," Stephanie said, "I'm just going to ignore him. That's the only way to deal with this. We just have to ignore him. It's Christmas and tomorrow we get to see our three beautiful, wonderful children open their gifts and that is something that we need to celebrate and not think about how my father is a raging jackass."

"You're right," Chris said, "this isn't about us."

"Exactly, okay, my father will be dealt with. He'll learn that he can't have everything he wants," Stephanie said reassuringly. "I'm not going down without a fight."

Neither was Chris.

"Mommy, wake up!" a small voice hissed in the wee hours of the morning. Stephanie blinked a couple times, wondering what it was that had woken her up. She saw both Sawyer and Flynn staring back at her. Their hair was tousled and their pajamas crumpled, but they were both wide awake.

"What are you two doing?" Stephanie asked.

"Mommy, it's Christmas!" Sawyer told her as Flynn nodded along eagerly. "I looked downstairs and Santa came, Mommy, he came and we were _really _good because there are so many presents."

"What's going on?" Chris asked, peering over his wife's shoulder. He saw two of his children standing there with eyes filled with anticipation of what was to come in a short while. "Every other day of the year you two are impossible to get up, but _now_ you're up at the crack of dawn?"

"Daddy, we gots _lots_ presents!" Flynn told him as she bounced on the balls of her feet.

"I bet they're all for me," Chris told them, "because Santa thought I was the best all year."

"No!" Flynn exclaimed in frustration, her mouth pursing as she stared down at Chris. "I gets 'em too!"

"We're not opening presents until Kensy wakes up, that's the deal. Plus, we have everyone over here so we have to wait for everyone to wake up," Stephanie explained.

"But that could take _forever_," Sawyer grimaced dramatically.

"That's why you two are going back to sleep because it's not even seven yet, you little monster. Come on, you can stay in here with me and Daddy."

Sawyer and Flynn were still disappointed they weren't going to open presents right that second, but staying in bed with their mommy and daddy wasn't such a bad deal since they never got to stay in there normally. Sawyer climbed in and settled down in between Stephanie and Chris. Flynn had other ideas as she climbed over both her mommy and her brother to get straight to Chris, flopping down on his chest with a grunt from Chris.

"Flutterby, what are you doing?"

"I sleeps with you," she told him, cuddling into his body as she sighed happily, glad just to be close to her daddy. Chris laughed softly and laid his hand across Flynn's back before they all drifted back to sleep.

A couple hours later, at a more decent hour, they wandered downstairs to open presents. Chris's parents had let themselves in early and Loretta had made breakfast for everyone so there were heaps of pancakes, bacon, and eggs to be had before they got down to the business of opening presents. By the time they all settled into the living room around the Christmas tree, the kids were so hyped they looked like they were going to pounce on that mound of presents like wolves.

Ted started handing out gifts to everyone, which only made the kids go crazier. When they finally had the gifts distributed, the kids went to town, wrapping paper flying everywhere as the adults watched and took pictures of their excited faces. Flynn screamed in joy every time she got another action figure. Even Kensington, the youngest one there was enjoying unwrapping her gifts, holding them up to Stephanie, whose lap she was sitting in while opening her various toys and saying they were good after every one of them.

"Thank you, Daddy and Mommy!" Sawyer yelled after he saw his new video game system. He hopped up and ran to both of them, giving them big hugs before going back to his presents. Stephanie was warmed to see their reaction and was glad they were enjoying themselves.

"This is for you," Chris said, showing up out of nowhere and handing an envelope to Stephanie with his messy handwriting on the front before he grabbed Kensington from her lap and held her close as she showed him a puzzle box she'd gotten. "Cool, Kensy, we're going to have to play with that later, huh?"

"Uh huh," Kensington said quietly among the cacophony coming from her siblings and cousins.

"Chris, we said no gifts," Stephanie said, "why are you always doing this? It makes me look bad."

"It's nothing big, believe me," Chris said, "just open it."

Stephanie gave him a look as he scooted down on the loveseat next to her, putting Kensington down so she could open some more of her presents and then go see what her brother and sister had gotten. Stephanie opened the envelope and pulled out a very simple Christmas card, one you would see in any store around the country. She opened it up and something fell out, but before she looked at it, she read the note Chris had written.

_I think this is going to come in handy for you very soon, so you should probably keep it close. What it means and signifies will all become clear very soon and I think that when it does, it'll show you just how much I love you. Merry Christmas to my #1 from your #1_.

Stephanie looked down at the other piece of paper, it was a strip with the words "Free Pass" written on top of it with little stickers and decorations around it that she recognized from one of Flynn's activity books. She looked up in confusion at her husband, wondering what this was a free pass to and hoping that it wasn't a free pass to sex or something like that. "I don't get it."

"You will, just keep this with you at all times, okay?" Chris told her, "I'm serious with this, keep this with you at all times and when it is time, you'll know it."

"Time to what?" she asked.

"Time to cash in."

"But I still don't understand what it's a free pass for, a free pass to do what?"

"It'll become clear soon, I promise you, it's a general pass to get me to do something."

"Okay, here you go," Stephanie said, handing it to him, "I want to know what you gave me the free pass for."

He handed it back to her, "Keep it on you, this is a very valuable and very powerful little piece of paper, letting it fall into the wrong hands will be fatal to both you and our relationship."

"So this is an anti-divorce coupon."

"If you want to think of it that way."

"Chris, I don't understand," she laughed as she tried to decipher what this present was about. "Oh, is this if I do something like have a plan that you don't like and you get mad at me, I can give this to you and you won't be angry at me anymore because knowing me, I imagine this could come in handy, like a 'get out of jail free' card."

"Just keep it on you, okay," he told her, kissing her forehead.

"Okay," Stephanie said, looking down at it again and missing the look Chris was sending to Vince.

By the time January 2nd rolled around, Chris was nearly a nervous wreck. Holding in the truth from Stephanie had been harder than he had originally thought. Stephanie had gotten wind of the fact that people suspected it was him, but not to the extent of how many people actually believed it. There was even a picture of him this morning, but luckily for him, Stephanie had no reason to find it suspicious that he was at the airport in Tennessee before Raw the next day. Stephanie and the kids had been at the rental car counter while he was waiting for their bags after their trip to Canada. Since Sawyer didn't go back to school until the 5th, there was no need to fly directly to Tampa.

Apparently the videos were doing their job somewhat because a lot of people were also undecided on whether it was him or really Undertaker so that was something of a triumph. Stephanie, who wholeheartedly believed that it would be Undertaker (Chris had mentioned nonstop for the past week how 2012 was going to be the year of Fozzy), was the only one he cared about surprising. Everyone else was just a bonus. She thought he was making tour plans (which he was, Fozzy didn't stop because he was wrestling), but he was really making plans with Punk about what they were going to do. Stephanie was none the wiser and he couldn't wait until later.

"Chris, is Taker here?"

"Yeah, well, he's not here _here_," Chris said, "we have him off-site in a limo and he'll be arriving during the show, pretty much right before we have him scheduled, right before the main event tonight. That way, nobody will really see him since they'll be in the arena and it'll really be a great surprise."

"You think of everything, I love you," Stephanie said, beaming at him. "I hope the fans react positively to his return, I really think this will be his last WrestleMania, he's really slowing down."

"I guess those supernatural powers just weren't going to last forever, were they? You know, the same ones that made me secretly married to him all these years."

"Shut up, you don't know what he's capable of!" Chris said, folding his arms in a mock pout.

"I'm glad I'm at wrestling," Sawyer said out of nowhere as he hugged Chris around the waist. "I like it here."

"But you like school too, right?" Chris asked him.

"Oh, I do, I like school a lot, but I like it here too, I wish my school could just come with me!" he said, smiling up at Chris like he had the power to make this happen.

"That would be very convenient," Chris said, "hey, have you seen Britt?"

"She's taking the night off," Stephanie said, "vacation time that she had saved up so I'm running things tonight. I'm surprised you didn't know this."

"Talent relations, not everyone relations," Chris said, "but why did she take the night off?"

"Um, because it's the day after the first day of the year?" Stephanie said with an obvious tone to her voice. "Otherwise, I don't know. She said that she thought some time away with Hunter might do them some good, get him away from the temptation of the ring."

"You know that Punk is totally into her, right? And that he's made it not so much a secret."

"Oh, who _doesn't_ know, well, Hunter, but he's always been dense about these things."

"That's exactly what I said," Chris laughed as he ruffled Sawyer's hair.

"What's dense and why is Hunter it?" Sawyer asked.

"None of your business, nosy," Chris told him. "You don't need to know everything in the entire world, kid."

"But don't you, Daddy?"

"I wish!" Chris told him with a laugh. "That's the cool thing about living, you never run out of things to know. That's partly why we go to school, so we can learn these things."

"I going to school!" Flynn exclaimed.

"You are, preschool," Stephanie said.

"Kensy not going cause she's a baby," Flynn informed them.

"That's right, she'll stay at home with us," Stephanie said.

"Baby," Flynn muttered at her sister, who looked up at her, but then went back to an activity center she'd gotten for Christmas and was enamored by.

"So do you think Punk is actually going to get her?"

"I'm not speculating."

"That would really suck for Hunter, don't you think? I mean, first, he loses you and in such a way too, fake pregnancy and babies-"

"Fake babies?" Sawyer asked. "Who had a fake baby?"

"Mommy had a fake baby," Chris said, "I don't think you've actually watched those shows in a really long time, you probably don't remember. Mommy and Hunter were having troubles in their marriage and Mommy was desperate to make things better because she wanted to come to the show so she pretended that she was going to have a baby, but she really wasn't going to have a baby."

"You almost had another baby!" was all Sawyer could take in.

"No, baby boy," Stephanie shook her head, "there was no baby, I was only pretending that there was a baby so Hunter wouldn't leave me, but then he did when he found out there was no baby and that's what led me to be business partners with Daddy."

"And then you got married."

"Well, the abridged version, sure," Stephanie told him.

"But first he loses you and then to lose Britt, the guy is cursed."

"Don't say that, you don't know a damn thing about what's going to happen, so just go about your business on the show, okay, that's all you have to worry about, don't be one of them, the gossips who have nothing better to do than to talk about other people."

"But my life is boring!" he told her.

"Really? What with the three children, the band, the executive position, the radio show, all of that and your life is boring?"

"A little, yeah," he told her and then smiled. "I'm just saying."

"What is with you tonight? You're all giddy or something," Stephanie studied him, narrowing her eyes.

"I'm just happy that we're all here and I'm happy because the week in Canada really did me some good," Chris shrugged. "Seeing my friends and snowboarding and drinking tons of GG on New Year's Eve, it was all really fun and I'm glad we got to do that."

"Me too, I had fun as well, but now it's time to get to work and the show is not going to run itself. Since Britt isn't here, I'm going to sit at the gorilla and direct traffic so to speak so can you take care of the kids?"

"It would be my pleasure," he told her and she stood up and kissed him. "This one was almost as good as the one I got at midnight, just less tongue this time."

"I was halfway drunk," Stephanie said, "so that's why you got the extra tongue."

"You kiss with your tongues?" Sawyer asked, feeling grossed out.

"No, we don't," Chris protested, "you're disgusting, Sawyer Jericho, absolutely disgusting, now go play."

When Stephanie left, Chris almost did a little jig. He had stored away what he was wearing elsewhere in the arena so that it was going to be right there when he needed it. He'd brought some leather pants that he was going to dress into right before he went out there, but for now, he was going to stay in his street clothes in case Stephanie decided to come back to her office for something. He was distracted while taking care of the kids because all he could think about was what would happen later.

He'd planned out everything, now it was just time to go out there and execute. He hadn't been in the ring in so long, but now, here, anticipating it, knowing it was coming, there was nowhere else he wanted to be than in that ring. He knew the fans were going to freak out and he expected, but they were not going to expect what he was going to do, not at all. He couldn't wait to go out there and then come backstage to see Stephanie's face, to see Flynn's face and Sawyer's face and even Kensington's face because she'd never seen him on TV. He'd taken the break right when she was born so she had no clue her father had ever really been on TV.

When the time came, he went into the bathroom and put on his leather pants, pulling on a t-shirt for now since Stephanie would be very suspicious if he went out there with no shirt on. "Hey, you guys, you want to go see what Mommy is doing?" Chris asked. "You can watch the show from there."

"Okay!" Flynn said eagerly, racing over to Chris to get first dibs on being held by him. Unfortunately, Kensington needed to be carried more than she did, but she did get to hold her daddy's hand.

"Come on, kid, you can't stay in here by yourself," Chris gestured for Sawyer to follow him and Sawyer opened the door so they could walk down the hallway. "You have to be good around Mommy, okay, because she's working and she has to watch all the segments and we don't want to bother her, right?"

"We won't be a bother," Sawyer threw over his shoulder as he led the way to the gorilla even though he really didn't know where he was going. He would glance back at Chris every now and then, who pointed out the way. They came up on the gorilla and Stephanie looked glad to see him.

"Chris, where the hell is Taker?" Stephanie asked. "I forgot to ask you to give me the driver's number so I could tell him when his segment was on."

"He's not here yet?" Chris asked, knowing full well that Taker was not anywhere near here. He wasn't even in the same state.

"No, he's not here yet, do you see him here?" Stephanie waved her arms around wildly. "Do you think he has the magic to materialize out of nowhere? Why did you change your pants?"

"Kensington spilled some juice on them and they made me look like I peed my pants," Chris lied smoothly, knowing Kensington wouldn't say anything because she didn't know her father was lying on her behalf.

"Well, that sucks," Stephanie said, "can you please get him in here because I'm freaking out, I will have like 10 minutes of dead air if Taker does not show up here! I do not know how I will fill that!"

"Hey, do you have your free pass?" Chris asked.

"My free pass? The one you gave me for Christmas?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, that one, do you have it?"

"Um, yeah, I think so," she said, pulling out her clipboard as Chris set Kensington down. She went for an open chair, trying to climb on it and Sawyer helped push her up so she could sit on it. She flipped to the very back of it and pulled it out. "I kept it on my clipboard since I usually have that with me, why the hell do you need the free pass now, you're not mad at me."

"No, it's time for the free pass to be used," Chris said, pocketing it. "I told you, you were going to need it soon and you just used it."

"Used it for what?" she asked.

"You know the she in those videos?" Chris said.

"Um, yeah, the little girl," Stephanie said, "what does that have to do with anything?"

Chris leaned forward and pressed his lips to her, kissing her quickly because he really didn't have the time. He'd met with the technicians earlier that day to go over exactly what was going to happen and swore them to secrecy. He pulled away from a confused Stephanie and pulled his shirt off. "Baby, you're the 'she,' and you've spoken, that's what the pass is for."

It didn't dawn on Stephanie for a moment until her brain seemed to click on and her mouth dropped open a little, making her look a little like a fish. Chris went over to a trunk sitting nearby where he'd stored the jacket he was planning on wearing. When Chris put it on, it all seemed so clear to Stephanie, the videos, the messages, the mysterious little girl who seemed to be in control of the little boy, and especially that damn free pass he'd made sure she had every day since Christmas. It all suddenly made sense and she a strange squeaking noise emitted itself from her mouth as she heard the very last video start to play on the loudspeakers inside the arena.

"You?" she asked, her voice about two octaves higher than usual. Chris shrugged his shoulders. "All along, no Taker?"

"No Taker," Chris told her.

"But…I…" She couldn't seem to form any words.

Chris took a step closer to her, "When my wife is the President and someone is trying to take her out and steal her job back, she's going to need some fire power. What your father didn't have right before he was fired…was me. So here I am."

"Chris…"

"Oops, that's my cue," Chris said.

"Daddy, where are you going?" Sawyer asked as his father started walking towards the stage.

"Just watch the show," Chris told his children.

By the time he went out there, the entire arena was dark, but he could see the occasional flash of a camera (what the hell were they taking a picture of, nothing?) and the stirrings of a "Y2J" chant. He smiled at that, it was nice to know the fans hadn't forgotten him in his absence. There was a kind of hush that settled in and he knew it was time. He turned on his custom-made jacket, the lights blinking in the darkened arena and then suddenly, just like that, fireworks and his music was playing and the crowd was going nuts.

He turned around to his adoring fans and immediately thought of them as hypocrites. When he'd left, everyone hated his guts and now that he was back, here they were, cheering for him like he'd never left. They were so predictable. One thing Chris never was, was predictable. He ran down the ramp, slapping hands with the fans and generally being a ham. He ran around the ring, interacting with the fans, the cameras, everything.

"Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!" Flynn tugged at Stephanie's shirt insistently. "That Daddy, he wrestles! HE WRESTLES!"

"I know, baby girl, I know," Stephanie said even though she was still in shock herself. Flynn was jumping up and down in excitement, wishing that she could be out there right now. Sawyer was delighted to see his father out there as well, he hadn't been expecting this. Kensington just smiled and laughed at how silly her daddy appeared to be and wondered how he had gone from being in here to being on that small little TV so quickly.

"That my daddy, that my daddy!" Flynn danced around as she sang to herself, watching and imitating Chris as he got into the ring only to step back out of it again. Then he went back in and started to talk, but then decided against it and on and on until he just decided to leave, not a word was said, but he could hear the murmurings of boos and that's exactly what he wanted. He wanted to turn the WWE on its head, he wanted Vince to think he saw an opening, to think that Punk could be that savior who would actually get him his job back while Chris ruined everything. Only it wasn't that way. Not at all, but Vince would soon come to find out that you did not mess with Chris's wife because then you incurred _his_ wrath.

He walked backstage and was bombarded with arms and hugs, "Daddy, that was you!" Flynn pushed her way to the forefront of his family, rudely shoving Sawyer _and_ Stephanie out of the way. "Your jacket lights up, it has lights!"

"I know," Chris laughed as he turned it on and off for her, her jaw dropping further and further as he did that. "Did you like me?"

"Daddy, you a wrestler again! I likes it, I loves it!" Flynn threw her arms haphazardly around Chris's neck as he lifted her up.

Sawyer was jumping up and down too, "Daddy, you were funny, but you didn't talk or anything!"

"I know," Stephanie said, "what was that all about? I'm still in shock though, I can't believe you're back and you're here and it seems like a dream and I'm the she and I didn't even realize and I feel like an idiot and you're back!"

"I didn't talk for a reason," Chris said, "I've got plans for that."

"I don't even care," Stephanie hugged him, not caring that she was crushing two of her children.

"Daddy, dere," Kensington pointed to the TV, then looked at Chris.

"I was there, Kensy-bug, but that was then and I'm here now," he told her and she nodded because she didn't know how else to respond.

"I can't believe your back, I just don't even know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything, I told you a long time ago, I would do anything to help you, this is anything to help you."

Stephanie pulled away and looked at him, not knowing what to say, but instead, she leaned forward and kissed him, pressing herself against him as best she could with Sawyer and Flynn hugging him, but she needed him to know how much this meant to her, how much he always meant to her and it was like when he'd said he didn't care how much she weighed or how she looked, she was telling him that she didn't care if he came and went, but the fact that he thought of her so selflessly was enough. They were enough. Flynn could barely keep her excitement at bay and she squealed as Stephanie and Chris pulled away.

"Daddy, now you go get my big belt!"


	352. Sounds of Silence, January 9 to 16, 2012

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and the reads, this story has been getting a lot of those and I just wanted to send my thanks for sticking with it. I'm finally caught up so the story is current and next week will be about next week's show! Hope you enjoy! :)

* * *

"And dat's where you go to the people!"

"That is where I went to the people," Chris said patiently as Flynn giggled excitedly on the couch next to him. This had to be the 50th time he and Flynn were watching his return, but she didn't seem to get tired of it. Every time she seemed to find something new that she liked and had to point out to him. Every morning since they'd gotten home on Tuesday, she would ask if they could watch his return again and every night before she went to bed she wanted to watch it one last time.

"You so silly!" Flynn laughed, doubling over as she cracked up over Chris grabbing the camera and messing around with it as he yelled straight into it. "Daddy, you silly!"

"I know, I _was_ being pretty silly," he told her. He had work to do, but seeing the delight on Flynn's face was worth missing a little bit of work. There were a number of hours in the day, but he would only get so much time with his daughter and he wanted to take advantage of it.

"You were!" Flynn said, "and you did it that way."

"I did do it that way on purpose and you really liked my jacket, huh?"

"I love it, I want it," Flynn told him seriously, giving him a look and furrowing her eyebrows together and nodding.

"You want it?" he asked incredulously. "But it's mine."

"You my daddy, you have to give it," she reasoned because he was her daddy and it was his job to give her things like that. He'd given her lots of things for his office, she didn't know why he wouldn't give her his jacket as well.

"I do?"

"Uh huh, it's a rule," she said to him.

"I don't think it would fit you though," Chris pouted at her, like this was terrible news. "It's probably too heavy for you and I don't think you'd have any place to wear it."

"I do," Flynn said, "whens I go to school."

"You start that next week," Chris said, "are you going to miss me when you're at school?"

"Hmm, no," Flynn told him, "I still see you."

"Well yeah, but you're going to spend time away from me and Mommy and Sawyer and Kensy. You won't be here for a few hours a day. But I think you'll make a lot of friends when you're there."

"Do dey like wrestling?" she asked.

"Um, some of them might, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that you might like it more than anyone there, but there could be some kids who might like it if their parents let them watch it. Some parents don't let their kids watch," Chris explained to her.

"Why!" Flynn seemed shocked that some parents wouldn't let their kids watch wrestling. What kinds of parents were these people? Didn't they know that wrestling was the best thing in the entire world!

"Well, some parents just think that maybe their kids are too young to be watching that kind of stuff."

"You don't," she told him.

"Well, it's a little different for mommy and I because Mommy and I are in the business and Mommy is the president and I'm a wrestler so it would be a little weird if I didn't like it," Chris told her. "But I'm sure you will find other things that your new friends will like."

"I make dem like it," Flynn said brightly, then turned to the screen again, "Daddy, now you leaving, but you no talk at all!"

"I didn't have anything to say," he said, grabbing her and tickling her. "So why should I say anything if I didn't have anything to say? But maybe I won't talk this week either, I'm trying to make a point."

"I no know what dat is," she shook her head, but gave Chris a smile anyways as she hugged him.

"You'll know soon enough, Flutterby," Chris said, kissing her forehead as Flynn beamed at him. She hugged her daddy again very tightly and he hugged her back, grabbing her tightly as well.

"I like you come back," she told him, not pulling away from her hug. Chris pulled away though and he looked her straight in her gray-blue eyes.

"I promised I would come back, didn't I?" Flynn nodded her head. Chris had told her time and time again that he would come back to wrestling. "I don't go back on my promises to you, Flutterby. You and Mommy and your brother and sister are the most important things in the world to me and I would never break my word to you."

"Tank you," Flynn told him, not getting the brevity of the situation.

"Chris!"

"Mommy, we here!" Flynn yelled.

Stephanie showed up in the doorway a few moments later, "Again, Flynnie?"

"I like it," she shrugged as she grabbed the remote and pushed the button that made the TV go backwards. Ever since she'd learned how to use the remote, you couldn't stop her from trying to watch anything Chris-related.

"You like it too so I don't know why you're complaining," Chris said, "you've watched it a number of times yourself, between the two of you, I think you could recite my every move from memory."

"I'm sorry that I'm so excited that my husband is back where he belongs," Stephanie said coyly as she sat down on the couch next to him. She had Kensington in her arms, but when she saw Chris, she reached out for him and Chris took her from Stephanie, planting a kiss on Kensington's cheek, which amused her, but did not amuse Flynn. "I'm just still getting over the shock of it all."

"I'm so glad I was able to surprise you. I think you were about the only one surprised," he joked.

"I must have been, but I'm usually clueless about internet stuff unless I'm told specifically about it," Stephanie shrugged. "I'm glad I didn't know, the shock and then the happiness, I wouldn't have traded that for anything. It was wonderful, you were wonderful…even if I have no clue what you're up to."

"All in due time. Everyone is so anxious for me to speak, but I've got motives, I'm not going out there and dicking around for nothing. I would have loved to have seen your father's face though when I showed up. I bet he spit out his drink…if he was drinking at the time."

"I don't know, I haven't talked to my mom about it, but I'm sure she'll have some information the next time we talk," she said, checking her watch. "Can you watch the girls? I have to go pick up Sawyer from school and I don't think Kensy wants to come."

"No, no, no," Kensington said.

"Okay, you only had to say it once," Stephanie said to her daughter. "I knew you didn't want to come so you didn't have to insist on it."

"Kensy wanna watches," Flynn told her mommy as she pointed to the screen. "She wanna see Daddy too because she never did!"

"Well, Mommy asked me if I would take time off from wrestling because she was going to have Kensy and I didn't want Mommy to feel burdened by all the kids so I decided that I was going to take time off," Chris explained to her. "So that's why Kensy never got to see me on TV, because I wanted her to have me around."

"You can still wrestle," Flynn deadpanned, "I no like you do dat, Mommy, you don't dat no more."

"Do what?"

"Ask Daddy to go away," Flynn told him.

"I don't want Daddy to go away again," Stephanie told her, "I like that he's there, in fact, I _love_ that Daddy is back because we both think that Daddy is going to go on and win the Royal Rumble, don't we?"

"I love that idea!" Flynn exclaimed.

Chris laughed, "So the two of you are going to start planning out what I'm going to do now that I'm back? Do I get any say in this at all? I mean, it _is_ me that's going to be wrestling, hypothetically speaking. Unless you two just decide to go out there and wrestle, is that what you've been training for, baby?"

"Yup, I'm going to get back in the ring and face _you_," she said sarcastically.

"What about you, Flutterby? Are you getting muscular so you can wrestle?"

"Yes, I can," Flynn told him, "you win da Wumble and you go and get my belt because I like Punk, but I like you better."

"You do?"

"You're my Daddy," she said with gritted teeth, "I like you bestest of all the bestest of wrestlers who do the wrestling and you are the best and the best and the best, best, best."

"I think she thinks you're the best," Stephanie said and Chris laughed and shook his head, "oh, yeah, she definitely thinks you're the best, but your plan is to win the Rumble, right, I mean, you haven't really said anything, but you are going to be in that match I assume, unless you're somehow going to fit into the title match, but I figure that you would just go to the Rumble."

"Geez, I'm not even back a week and already you're getting on my case! I mean, as if the negotiations with the new Executive VP of Talent Relations wasn't enough!"

"Oh, he was tough on you when you were ironing out a contract?" Stephanie asked jokingly.

"Yes! I mean, some of the stipulations he put in that contract, must have Stephanie McMahon-Jericho do stuff to me at least three times a week, brutal. I didn't think I'd get out of there alive with the things he had me put in that contract and sign."

"Very funny," Stephanie said, "you can't help us for being excited, you sprung this on all of us."

"Not true, I told Kensy," Chris said, winking at his daughter. This made Flynn extremely jealous because _she_ hadn't been told, but Kensington had been told. How was that even fair? She liked wrestling _way_ more than Kensington did. Kensington was too little to even really know anything about wrestling so why was she told?

"Why!"

"Huh?" Chris turned a confused head to Flynn's yelling. "What's wrong, Flutterby?"

"Why she know! I no know!" she was angry now and her little face was contorting into a contemptuous glare that Chris had only seen a couple times before and those times were on Stephanie and that time was during her vow renewal to Hunter after he'd humiliated her and pushed her down to the ring. He could still picture her face so clearly, that twisted roar of rage, spit flying from her mouth as she looked like Medusa, ready to turn someone into stone. It was eerie seeing that face on Flynn and it hit home just how much like Stephanie Flynn was. She may favor Chris more, but she was Stephanie through and through.

"Flutterby, I told Kensy because she can't really talk enough to say what I tell her, but you would have told everyone and I wanted you to be surprised because I knew how much seeing me would make you happy," Chris said calmly, trying to get that look off of Flynn's face. Instead, she huffed and hopped off the couch, stomping out of the room and presumably going to her room.

"I'll see where she goes, I'm already running late to get Sawyer," Stephanie said, leaning forward to kiss Chris, "good luck with that one though."

"Thanks a lot," Chris said, shaking his head as he looked down at Kensington. She was more a mixture of Chris and Stephanie, even in her looks she had both their attributes (and no McMahon chin in sight). Her temperament so far was much like Sawyer's, calm and collected, but Flynn had been calm at this age so he had no clue what he was really in for when it came to Kensington. He loved how Flynn was a spitfire, adored those qualities about her, but having two Flynns might send him to the looney bin.

"She's in her room!" Stephanie called from downstairs before Chris heard the door slam behind her.

Chris looked down at Kensington and sighed, "What have we done, Kensy-bug?"

"No, no," Kensington shook her head.

"Oh, so it's all my fault, is that what you're saying?" Kensington scrunched up her nose a little and looked at him sweetly as if to tell him that of course it was his fault.

Chris knew that Flynn would forgive him, she always did, but he wanted to give her a little time to cool off. They were a family of hot-heads and in that kind of family, cooler heads always prevailed so he needed to be the cooler head in this situation and let her recover from her hurt. She probably just thought she was out of the loop when pretty much everyone had been out of the loop. She would remember that he was a wrestler again and then she would be happy.

Though he hadn't said it out loud to anyone, Flynn was another big reason for him coming back. He had made that promise to her time and time again that he would return to wrestling. Seeing her face when he'd walked backstage last Monday had been more than worth it. Her eyes were so happy and she was so sweet and cute that he wished he could return every week just to see her face light up like that. _That_ was the reason he never went back on a promise to her or his other kids, that look on their faces was worth all the money in the world to him.

"Okay, let's go see what your sister is doing," Chris told his youngest daughter as he pushed himself off the couch. He'd given Flynn ten minutes to calm down and he didn't feel comfortable leaving her alone any longer. They walked down the hallway to Flynn's room and he knocked on the doorframe. Flynn looked over her shoulder at him, then went back to playing with her action figures. "Can I come in?"

"Dunno," Flynn shrugged without looking over at him. Chris set Kensington down and she toddled over to Flynn, sitting down on one side of her. Flynn handed her an action figure, Edge, and Kensington happily bopped it against the ground. Chris took the initiative and sat on the other side of Flynn. "Can I play?"

"No, no daddies," Flynn turned her body away from his and he sighed and turned a little so he could see her better. He had to go about this in a different way.

"You know, when I first started calling you Flutterby, it was always because I imagined calling my daughter that, I thought it was a cute nickname," Chris started, not entirely sure where he was going with this, but Flynn gave him a sidelong glance so he at least had her attention. "But now, you know why I call you Flutterby?"

"Why?" Flynn asked, curious to know why her daddy called her that. She'd just always assumed that it was just something he'd always called her so she never thought to question it, but if he wanted to tell her, she wasn't going to stop him.

"Because you're always going everywhere and in everything, you really do just flutter on by. I like that about you. I like that you have so many interests. I think it makes you a really cool kid. I didn't tell you about me coming back because I wanted you to be surprised because I love that face when it's happy, that's all, Flutterby."

"I wanna know things," Flynn pouted, her head down as she looked up at Chris with the saddest puppy dog eyes he'd ever seen.

"I know you do and I'm sorry you were hurt when I didn't tell you that I was coming back. I should have told you."

"You should have," Flynn echoed in agreement.

"I know, I'm very sorry," he pouted this time and gave her the same puppy dog face. "Do you think you could forgive me?"

"Um…" Flynn pretended to think about it for a moment before Chris made a funny face and caused her to break her concentration and start laughing. "Don't do dat, Daddy!"

"Do what?" Chris made another silly face while trying to appear innocent to his daughter.

"Make a faces!" Flynn could barely stutter out the words through her giggles and Chris pulled her too him and hugged her before letting her get back to her toys. Flynn handed him one of her action figures as a token of her forgiveness and he started bashing it against Kensington's Edge figure, which now made Kensington giggle too.

"You want to know a secret for next week?" Chris asked his daughters and Flynn now looked eager to be let in on the joke so to speak.

"What are you gonna do?" Flynn leaned in closer like this was some huge conspiracy and maybe it was. She still didn't understand why her father wouldn't speak when he was in the ring. Usually when the guys got in the ring they either talked or they wrestled, they never really just stood there and didn't do anything and then left.

"I'm not going to talk again and I'm going to pretend to cry," Chris told them.

"Cry?" Flynn said, her face contorting a little, "are you sad?"

"No, I'm going to pretend like all the cheers are so great that I'm crying and then I'm not going to talk again, I'm building up to what I want to do. I'm getting people talking about me and that's the most important thing is that people talk about me and that the word gets out that I'm back."

"Why is dat impotent?" Flynn asked.

"Because I'm trying to help Mommy."

"Help do what?" Flynn asked.

"I want to make sure that Grandpa can't take back the company. You see, Grandpa really liked his job and he wants to take it away from Mommy so that he can have it back, but we don't want Mommy to be demoted, do we?"

"What's demoted?" Flynn asked.

"It's when someone takes away your job and gives you a lesser job."

"I no want dat," Flynn said, "Kensy, you no wanna either."

"No," Kensington shook her head.

"See, we helps Mommy, I helps her. I do wrestling and I helps and I tell Grandpa he is bad and he smells and go away!"

Chris smiled, at her and then smoothed her hair down, "I'm sure Mommy would really appreciate that, but let me and her handle it okay, so don't worry about it. You just get to enjoy me being back to being a wrestler, which is what you've wanted all along and you leave the grown-up stuff to me and Mommy."

"I can dos it if I wanna, Daddy," Flynn told him. "I can helps if I wanna."

There was something in her tone that honestly made him think that he shouldn't doubt her, but Flynn was three and a half and she wasn't exactly worldly. Still, when Flynn got tough like that, it was almost like seeing Stephanie steel herself for something. With due time, he'd let her in on the plan. He just had to make sure that it looked like he and Punk were enemies, that was the main thing he had to do so that Punk could get the information he needed from Vince. He just had to trust Punk and surprisingly, he was finding that he did.

Just because he was an active wrestler again didn't mean that he was able to skirt around his other duties. Chris knew that Laurinaitis was probably furious that he was still the VP while being a wrestler when Stephanie had all but forced him out of the position when he'd taken over at interim GM. It actually amused Chris when Laurinaitis still referred to himself as an executive, most likely to save face, because technically he was still open to hold the position whenever he gave up being the interim GM, whenever that happened.

The board still didn't see fit to fire him even though he wasn't doing an exceptional job. Chris wished that Stephanie would take over, but he understood why she couldn't. She had enough going on as it is, but if she ever felt inclined to take the position, he knew she would do the job with a gusto that it lacked right now. Laurinaitis didn't even really play favorites, but sometimes his moves were so inexplicable that it had Chris scratching his head.

It was a little bit of a struggle to juggle both jobs, but since he wasn't actively talking on the shows and only out there for a few minutes at a time, it made it easier to do his work backstage, which was fortunate for Zack Ryder, who had a serious enough problem that he eschewed talking to Laurinaitis and came straight to Chris.

"Um, yo, is this a bad time?" Zack asked as he knocked on Chris's door. Flynn and Kensington were playing in the corner, but other than that, Chris had only been looking over travel arrangements for some upcoming tours.

"Not really, what's up, man?" Chris asked.

"I know you're totally like busy with…uh not talking or whatever," Zack shrugged and Chris noticed he didn't have any cameras with him so he wasn't filming for his show, "but I just wanted to say that…uh, I think Kane is following me.'

"Okay…"

"Bro, this isn't cool," Zack said, "is there something you can do about it?"

"I could, hypothetically speaking," Chris told him, "but do you really want me to intervene here?"

"Have you seen Kane, dude, the guy is huge! I mean, he's like, totally…well, he's huge!"

Chris held in his laughter because it seemed that Zack was seriously put out. This was the kind of thing he had to deal with on a regular basis. If it wasn't so funny, he might be annoyed at everyone coming to him with their problems. These were not his problems, but he was expect to solve everything under the sun and like doing it.

"Kane is huge, yes, but don't you think that you should maybe handle this on your own?" Chris asked delicately. "I'm not saying that it isn't something that you shouldn't be a little worried about, I know Kane can hold these weird grudges. I spilled coffee on him and he held the worst grudge for that and I apologized, but I didn't back down. Nobody respects someone who goes tattling."

"You've got a point," Zack said, rubbing his chin. "I mean, he's just a big, scary dude."

"Who's scary?" Flynn asked as she looked over at them.

"Kane," Zack answered her.

"Oh, he big," Flynn nodded, "he no scary though."

"He's not?" Zack asked her as if talking to a three year old was the most normal thing in the world.

"No, you just gotta beat him," Flynn said, "den he stop, dat's what happens."

"She's got a pretty good point," Chris said, "if you fight back or try to hold your own, he might respect you for that and leave you alone."

"That's true," Zack said, "okay, well, uh, thank for the advice and all that, man. I really appreciate it. I like that the talent guy is a wrestler…so, bro, seriously, what's up with the not talking thing last week? I mean, what was that about?"

"None of your business, Zack."

"Okay, I thought I'd try it," Zack pointed at him and then went to the door, looking both ways before exiting the room. Chris went back to his paperwork, but the door was pushed open a few moments later and Chris looked up this time to see Eve giving him a tentative wave.

"Come in," Chris gestured for her to come further into the room. Eve walked inside, her hands tucked into the jeans she was wearing. "What did you need, Eve?"

"Um, did Zack just walk out of here?" she asked.

"Yeah, were you looking for him?" Chris wondered.

"Oh, your daughters are here," Eve said, looking over at Kensington and Flynn. "They're adorable, I don't think I've told you before, but they really are cute, you're a really lucky guy."

"Thanks, but what do you need?" Chris asked again. It wasn't that he didn't like hearing compliments about his daughters, he did, but he kind of also wanted to know why Eve was even in his office. He didn't much interact with her, but from what he could tell, she was at least less vapid than Kelly Kelly and the Bellas so that raised her in his book.

"Oh, I just…I kind of like him and…I don't know, I guess…did he maybe…uh, mention me or anything? I've been trying to get a read on him, but nobody really knows anything really deep about him and I've been trying to…well, I guess it's stupid that I came in here now because he probably would come to talk to you about me of all things, right?"

"Well, no, he didn't talk to me about you, sorry," he said, thinking this was the weirdest conversation he'd had in a while and he talked about plans on a consistent basis. The last time he'd gotten involved in anyone's love life to this extent was when he was setting up Mark Ballas with Pia from American Idol when he'd been on Dancing with the Stars and even then it felt awkward to play matchmaker. That was something Stephanie was better at.

"Oh, it's okay, I mean…oh, you wouldn't understand, you're off the market," Eve said with a sigh.

"Yeah, but I think I remember dating and all of that," he said and now he wondered why the hell he was getting involved in this. Why was he getting involved in his employee's lives and why were they even coming to him. He figured that because he was back to being a wrestler, he seemed more accessible than when he'd just been an executive, but still, this was getting out of hand.

"But you've been with Stephanie for what…like ten years?"

"Later this year, yeah, but what about it, look, if you like Zack, you like him, go after him, don't waste time," Chris told her. "I mean, I'm not an authority and I don't know either one of you well enough, but I've never been too much of a fan of wasting time once you find someone you care about."

"Thanks, Chris, I needed to hear that," Eve said, "and again, your daughters are really pretty."

"Tank you," Flynn said, "say tank you, Kensy, she say we pwetty."

"Tank-tank," Kensington waved at her.

"Okay, the _cutest_ kids, seriously," Eve said, waving at the girls before Chris was mercifully left alone again.

He looked to his daughters and shook his head, "Daddy is popular tonight."

"But you no talk later!" Flynn laughed as she spilled their little secret.

"Well, it's different backstage, but in front of everyone, you're right, I'm not going to talk."

Stephanie ran into Punk and he nodded his head towards her before she grabbed his arm and pulled him aside. "Stephanie, what are you doing?" he asked as she nearly shoved him into a locker room. She took him down a side hallway and he had to physically force himself from her grasp. "What is going on?"

"Nothing," Stephanie said, "I was just wondering what you and my husband were planning. I was just curious and since he won't tell me I was hoping that you would."

"I can't do that," Punk told her with a shrug. "He asked me not to and shouldn't you be happy that he's just here in the first place, I mean, isn't that what you wanted since he left. I know you like him as a wrestler."

"I do, but I don't like being out of the loop, it's not my style so I was hoping you would let me in on it. I wouldn't tell him that I know…at least for a little while, I might let him know that I know in a little while, but not right now or anything."

"Yeah, can't do it," he told her, "I'm not going to betray his trust like that and besides, there really isn't that much happening as of yet."

"Hmm, that's interesting," she said, looking at him critically and he felt a little strange under her scrutiny.

"That doesn't even tell you anything!" Punk argued.

"It tells me that nothing has really gone down so there's still plenty of time for me to find out what you two are up to. I'm very glad he's here, but I want to know all his motives and as the president of this company, I think I'm entitled to know."

"Good luck finding that information," he said, starting to walk away, but Stephanie stopped him again.

"Oh, and Punk, be careful with this Britt thing, you're really treading some thin ice here and I would hate to see a bunch of people unhappy because you decided to do something rash. I don't know your motives or your plans, but just…remember that people's feelings are at stake," Stephanie was serious in her words and he could tell so he nodded a little.

"I'm not planning on doing anything rash, Steph, but even you have to admit that those two are a weird match, right?"

"I don't know, they seem to love each other and…underneath the gruff exterior, Hunter is not that bad a guy."

"We'll see," Punk said, "I'm not going to physically snatch her away, I'm just giving her options; you can't get mad at a guy for giving a girl options, can you?"

"I guess not, but don't act like an asshole," Stephanie said and Punk just shrugged at her before walking away. Stephanie didn't want to intrude on whatever was going on there, but God did she want to. It wasn't her place though and Punk didn't seem to be doing anything overt about his obvious attraction to Britt. He figured that if he did do something overt, Hunter would knock him off his block.

"Hey, Steph."

Stephanie turned around and smiled, "Hey Trish, we've missed you around here, how's it going with the SmackDown divas?"

"As good as can be expected, the Raw divas, you know who I'm talking about, need more help than the girls over on SmackDown. Brie wanted to get in some time with me today so that's why I'm here."

"I was going to say, I didn't know you'd be here, are Christian and Tilden here?"

"No, they stayed in Florida, just me," Trish shrugged, looping her arm through Stephanie's, "so I was hoping you might want to go out tonight, just us and maybe light up the town."

"I'd like that," Stephanie said, "I'm sure Chris will be fine taking care of the girls."

"Speaking of that, how shocked were you to see him last week?" Trish asked. "We haven't gotten to really talk about it and I'm dying to know if you knew and just didn't tell anyone."

"Do you think I knew?" Stephanie asked. "I had no idea and I was just as shocked as anyone that saw him. I thought it was for Taker, you know that, and then Chris shows up and I'm thrilled."

"Why won't he talk though?"

"Your guess is as good as mine, but it has something to do with Punk. They have this plan going or something, but neither one will spill, but oh my God, I haven't gotten to tell you that Punk is into Britt. He wants to be with her."

"What?" This was the first Trish was hearing of it and she couldn't believe nobody had told her of this development. "I thought that Britt was devoted to Hunter."

"She is, but Punk isn't convinced," Stephanie shrugged, "I don't really know what's going on except Britt _is_ angry at Hunter for wrestling when he shouldn't have. So you know, who knows what's going to happen."

"Remember the days when we were single and all the guys wanted us?" Trish asked nostalgically. "Now we're just a couple of wives with children and men don't look at us the same."

"Maybe men don't look at me the same, but I'm pretty sure that you walk out your door and guys want to jump you."

"Oh please, like you aren't in the same boat," Trish told her, bumping her hip against Stephanie's. "You're such a liar, anyways, I will let you go do work, tell Chris I said hi, I now have to go find Nikki because Bella thinks that she needs some advice too, twin things or whatever."

"Good luck with that," Stephanie said.

"It's what you pay me the big bucks for," Trish waved at her friend before wandering off again. Stephanie entered her office and saw Chris in there, but not doing any work. Instead, he was on the floor playing blocks with Kensington and Flynn. "I thought you had work to do."

"Did it, now I'm playing with my daughters and I will soon be getting ready for the show. Zack Ryder and Eve were both in here, Zack because of Kane, Eve because of Zack. I'm a regular love counselor now."

"Why, Kane is in love with Zack?" Stephanie joked.

"Half the internet is in love with Zack," Chris joked back, "but I think Eve likes him most of all."

"Look at you, you should host a new version of The Love Connection. You can set up everyone and you wouldn't have to throw anyone off any buildings," Stephanie winked at him and he laughed because he could picture himself with some stupid show trying to get people to be together with one another.

"Very funny," he said, "I think I should probably get ready for my turn later, I'm supposed to explain everything about last week and why I didn't talk."

"I have a feeling that you're still not going to talk."

"You'll just have to wait and find out."

When Chris went out there later in the show, he couldn't believe that the crowd was _still_ cheering for him after what he'd done last week. Were they that desperate to see him that they were willing to cheer him after he'd gone out last week and done nothing but mock them? It was almost like a game now, this playing at their emotions. He went out there, sauntering down to the ring, playing it up again, hoping they'd get it this time. He was mocking how they were cheering nothing he had done.

There were wrestlers backstage who worked hard and didn't get nearly as cheered and he'd done nothing and they were cheering. That was hypocrisy at its finest. They had no reason to cheer him, especially after last week. His triumphant return and he'd said nothing. He climbed in the ring again, microphone in hand and then pretended like he was going to start talking, but then acted like he was overcome with grief. He was thankful for the improve classes he'd taken because it made the fake crying that much easier if not less ugly. The crowd still cheered him though, with a few scattered boos, but these people were so dense.

He pretended to get choked up and then walked backstage, wondering how long he could actually keep up this act.

**January 16, 2012**

Punk pushed his way into Laurinaitis's office, getting Otunga out of the way as he sauntered inside. "Lose the lackey," Punk nodded towards Otunga and Laurinaitis nodded to Otunga who reluctantly left.

"What is it?" John asked. "What do you need?"

"I know you keep in touch with Vince, that's pretty damn obvious so I'm sure you know what he asked me and what he wanted me to do."

"Which was?"

"Don't play dumber than you already are," Punk told him, "Vince wanted me to help him get his company back, well, I've thought it over and I decided that I want to help him. I don't like the way things are around here and I think it was better before."

"You do?" John asked him, remaining a little bit skeptical of Punk's intentions, but he had his reasons. Punk was not the type of man who buckled to authority so to hear him say that he was willing to help someone whose job he'd helped destroy was a little bit on the suspicious side.

"Yeah, I do," Punk said. "The Stephanie experiment needs to be over. I'm over it, everyone else seems over it so I think that Vince coming back will be for the best. Let's make it happen, wait, I don't need you to make it happen, just tell Vince we can make it happen and you know what, I've got an idea. To test that I'm on your side, I'm going to make it look like I'm _not_ on your side."

"What?"

"Listen when I talk, John. I can't have people actually thinking I'm on your side, that would be stupid, it would turn everyone against me and you _need_ me, so you what actually needs to happen?"

Punk couldn't help himself, he was having fun with this. No, he was having a _blast_ with this. He'd read spy comics for as long as he could remember and now to be an actual spy, he felt like a superhero from one of his graphic novels and he was playing his part to the fullest. Plus, this way, he got to humiliate Laurinaitis without the guy even know he was meaning every word he said. It felt like a win-win for everyone involved…okay, maybe for everyone he liked that was involved, but that should count as a win-win.

"What?" John repeated again, still not quite following on what Punk was trying to say.

"I need to insult you, what better way to not show that I'm with you than to drive you further away. We all know you were going to screw me over at Royal Rumble, let's plant it in people's minds, shall we?"

"But-"

"It'll be brilliant!" Punk interrupted him, not letting him talk. "Run it by Vince, I bet he'll love it. Who has the first segment of the night?"

"Mick Foley asked for some time. He asked Stephanie, she gave it to him," he answered in his raspy voice. Punk wondered if John was a smoker and then was disgusted at the thought. Just another potential reason to hate him.

"Great, I know that someone will interrupt and that someone will probably be Dolph because he's being a whiny crybaby lately and with Vickie by his side, of course they're going to interrupt because that's what they do. That'll be my opening and…are you following me, John?"

"Not really."

"Keep up," Punk said, patting his shoulder, "then you can come out and act like your normal self, you know how to do that, don't you? Either way, it'll be fine, follow my lead, do your own thing, act normally, it'll all work out. I've got to go, show's starting soon and I bet Otunga is chomping at the bit to give some of his 'legal' advice. I'd check his credentials though, you never know where in the class they finished. You know what, I just thought of an even more brilliant idea."

"You have?" Laurinaitis was feeling pretty gobsmacked at the moment and he didn't know whether he should listen to Punk or throw him out of his office. Vince would've known what to do, but he wasn't here obviously so John had to just go with it?

"Yes, in order to make it really, really look like I'm on Vince's side and not Stephanie's side, you should pair me with the one guy around here who has always got her back," Punk said, figuring he might as well help Jericho while he was at it. He had some brilliant ideas rolling around in his head and why not use them?

"You mean Jericho?"

"That's exactly who I mean. If there's anyone back here who loves Stephanie, I think _and_ hope it would be her husband, am I right? Besides, you need to look competent and what do the people want? They want Jericho. You heard the chants and the cheering for him. Do it, Laurinaitis, the people want it and you and Vince have to now be men for the people."

Someone should someday erect a statue in his honor. He was just brilliant sometimes. He should be commended time and time again and the prize for his brilliance should be Britt. He smirked at that thought, but then pushed it away. That was something to come for another day. Maybe a day soon, but definitely not tonight. He didn't know if Hunter was backstage, he hadn't been here in a while, but he needed to start focusing on wrestling and not Britt. Priorities, he had to start getting them straight.

"I guess we could…"

"Great," Punk said, "I'll see you later."

Punk walked out of the room and then patted Otunga on the shoulder, "The butt-kissing can resume."

He walked jauntily down the hallway, very happy with how that had gone. Chris had pretty much told him to do his thing and he wasn't going to check up on his progress every five seconds, but in this instance, he felt like he needed to talk to Chris. He found Stephanie's office and looked around in case Laurinaitis had made Otunga follow him or something. There wasn't anyone of consequence around and so he knocked on the door. It opened a crack a moment later and he looked up to see…nobody, so he looked down and saw a face pushing out from the crack in the door.

"Hi, Punk," Flynn said.

"Hey, you," he said affectionately, "can I come in?"

"Um…what the password?" Flynn asked.

"Um, please?" Punk said, not knowing he was going to need a password.

"Okay!" Flynn threw open the door and let him in and he leaned down to ruffle her brown hair. "Thanks, kiddo."

"Phil," Stephanie said from her desk and Chris looked around, but didn't see Chris. "Hey, where's your other half?"

"He's off dealing with problems, what did you need?"

"What problems?"

"Everyone's problems, everyone has problems and they come to Chris so he's trying to solve some stuff, I think right now he's trying to calm Cena down. Cena wants to find Kane and beat him up right now and that's probably not a good idea so Chris is trying to calm him down."

"Oh, okay, I just needed to talk to him."

"I can relay the message," Stephanie said, smiling at him charmingly, but he was on to her.

He smirked, "Nice try, Steph, but it's not going to work."

"It was worth a shot," Stephanie said as her phone rang. She looked at the display and smiled, "I'm sorry, Punk, but this is Sawyer, I have to take this, but you're sure to find Chris around here somewhere."

"Okay, thanks," Punk said, before turning to leave.

"My daddy gonna take dat," Flynn told him from the couch where she was reading a book or looking at it, he didn't know if she could read.

"Going to take what?" Punk asked.

"Your belt, the big belt," Flynn told him with a sweet, but somehow vicious smile. "He gonna take it and it be mine and you don't get it."

"I thought you liked me, Flynnie."

"I do," she told him seriously, "but you not Daddy, he best, he better."

"I beg to differ."

"I know dis things."

"Well he's going to have to take it from me then."

"It's okay, he do it," Flynn said, "bye-bye!"

"Bye, Flynnie," he chuckled, knowing that she believed in her father, but if Chris was seriously going to come after his belt, then things were going to turn serious fast. He wasn't just going to hand it over and there were no friends when you stared at someone across the ring.

"What was that, baby boy?" Stephanie asked as she watched Flynn and Punk's conversation while trying not to laugh.

"I said that I had fun with Gamma and Gamps today, but I wished that I could've come to wrestling, but it's far, huh, Mommy?"

"Yeah, it is far," Stephanie said, "we're all the way in California so we couldn't bring you this time, but what did you and Gamma and Gamps do today?"

"We went to the ice rink and Gamps taught me skating and he said he's gonna buy me a hockey stick and then I can play with Daddy and him and that when Flynnie and Kensy are older, they can play too."

"Wow, it sounds like you had a fun day, are you going to watch Raw later?"

"Uh huh, I gotta see Daddy, he's my Daddy!" Sawyer said.

"I'm sure that he loves that he's going to see you.

Chris was not so much loving his other job right now. Luckily with the no talking thing, he didn't have much to actually think about during the shows, in front of everyone at least, but backstage, he felt like the principal at a high school. Right now, a couple of the divas, specifically the Bella twins, were trying to chase him down. He was pretending he didn't hear them though, which seemed to sort of be working, but he could still hear them and finally, he stopped and turned towards them.

"What's wrong, ladies?" he asked.

"It's this Perez Hilton thing," Brie...or Nikki said, he really couldn't tell them apart and had never taken the time to actually figure out who was who. "It's not fair that he's going to be there for our match later."

"Why not?" Chris asked. The Perez Hilton thing had been Laurinaitis's idea or more likely Vince's. Vince always thought he had his finger to the pulse of what was "cool," but usually, his ideas were lame so this smacked of Vince. He couldn't stand Perez Hilton himself, finding the blogger to be mean-spirited, but hiding behind a false sense of humor.

"Because!" The other one said. "They are like, writing for his blog or whatever about how he was fat or whatever, I don't know or care, but it's not fair because he's obviously going to like favor them and screw us over and it's not fair!"

"You guys, it's one match, it doesn't mean that much, who cares, retaliate if that happens."

"So you're like giving us permission to beat him up?"

"No, I'm not giving you that permission, I'm just saying prove it in the ring that you're better than that."

"We still don't like them though," one of them said and her sister nodded.

"Nobody asked you to," Chris said and it was times like this that made him so glad that not only was he not single and didn't have to wade through girls like this to get to the good treasures, but that his wife was intelligent and savvy and not petty and weird like this.

"It's just not fair," they sighed at the same time, which ended up looking kind of creepy. "We don't want him to be anywhere near us and it's insulting that he didn't ask us to be on his fitness blog because we look great, don't you think?"

"You look fine."

"But we're hot right?" They both struck a pose for him, trying to look seductive.

"Uh, sure," he said. He suddenly felt very much his age as he looked at them. There was something about young women that honestly kind of bugged him nowadays and he couldn't figure out why. Maybe it was because when he was in his 20's, women hadn't seemed so…slutty? Maybe it was just in his perception, but the Bellas looked like they were trying to whore themselves out right now.

"And we're better than Kelly or Alicia, right?" they asked at the same time and now it was just downright creepy.

"I don't know, whatever," Chris said, "go find someone else to discuss that with, I'm sure there are some wrestlers who would love to discuss your looks."

He walked off again, praying that neither one of his daughters ever ended up like that or he might have to lock them up for good. He was just about to turn the corner when he felt someone touch his shoulder and he couldn't take any more problems for one night. If it wasn't one thing, it was another thing and he hadn't even had time to think of what he wanted to do tonight and if he didn't come up with something, he was going to look stupid.

"What is it?" he snapped, but then saw it was Punk and Punk nodded towards the nearest room, looking around furtively while he did so. Chris found the room was storing some trunks and other equipment so it was fine to go inside and they ducked in. "What's going on?"

"I talked to John, he's probably already called Vince so I'm in, plus I've suggested some choice things for tonight."

"What?"

"You'll see, I said that I was going to insult John to make sure that it looked like we weren't working together, but believe me, I'm going to work him over the coals and he is going to be weeping like a little girl, maybe not Flynn, but a normal little girl."

"Of course," Chris said, "I'm sure Vince bought it. Anything to get the power back and he'll buy it no problem. This is perfect, so far, everything is pretty much going the way I want it to go. I just want to teach Vince a lesson that he can't mess with Stephanie and me. He thinks he can, but I'm not going to stand for it."

"Yeah, yeah, honorable and loving, romantic, blah, blah, blah," Punk told him, rolling his eyes, "but I've also got something for _you_ tonight, something that will cement that we aren't working together."

"Huh?" Now Chris was confused, what had Punk done?

"You know how I have that tag match tonight, me and Daniel Bryan versus Henry and Vickie's boy toy?"

"Yeah, what about it?"

"Well, I told Laurinaitis that in order for me to not look like I was working with him and Vince I should team up with Stephanie's husband because who else wants her to stay in power more than you," he poked Chris in the shoulder. "So if everything went according to _my_ plan, you're going to be in the match."

"I wasn't expecting that."

"Yeah, but…and here is where I'm seriously going to bow," Punk bowed and did a complicated hand flourish, "this is also perfect for your whole 'I'm the silent wonder' gimmick you've got going right now."

"How?"

"You, my friend, are not going to wrestle. You will play it up like you're psyched for the match and then when I'm in the ring, I won't tag you in until the last possible second and then you leave us high and dry, don't do a single move."

"Okay, that is something."

"I know, I'm good, you don't have to thank me, I've got your back."

"That works perfectly for me, everyone wants to see me wrestle and then I get all hyped like I _want_ to wrestle and then…I just leave."

"Exactly…"

"You are pretty good, dude," Chris commended him.

"I know," Punk scoffed, "your daughter, however, wants you to have my belt and that's where we've got the problem."

"If it comes to it, fight to the death," Chris held out his hand. Punk shook it.

"Fight to the death," Punk agreed.

When Chris finally made his way back to Stephanie (the show had started and Laurinaitis had had him paged to tell him about his match later on), she was jumping at the bit to know what had gone on with Punk and if the other man had found him. "What did Punk want? Why are you in a match with him? Is that part of the plan?"

"Stephanie, I love you, you know I do, but butt out," he said, kissing her briefly before picking up Kensington who had walked up to him.

"Ouchies!" Kensington said as she touched his jacket.

Chris laughed, "I forgot I had this thing on." He put Kensington down and took off his jacket, throwing it next to Flynn on the couch. She made a diving grab for it and then slipped it on even though it was about 15 sizes too big for her.

"I lights up too now!" Flynn said as she burrowed into the jacket even further while Chris picked up Kensington again.

"You look very stylish," Chris told her.

"Mommy?"

"I think the word you were looking for was garish," Stephanie said good-naturedly, "so what's going on later, are you wrestling? I can't believe I get to see you wrestle tonight for the first time in a year and a half…oh wait, wait, wait, how could I be so stupid, you're going to not wrestle, aren't you?"

"Maybe, maybe not," he said as he nuzzled the top of Kensington's head. "Who knows, I could go out there and wrestle my heart out."

"Or you could just go out there and…Chris, how many people, honestly speaking now, know why you aren't saying or doing anything right now? Be honest with me."

"Nobody," Chris told her and he was sincere, "I'm the only one who knows what I'm doing and I'm going to keep it that way. You're not going to know, I'm not going to tell Sawyer or Flynn or Kensy. Christian isn't going to know or Trish or any of our friends or my friends, nobody, just me until the time is right."

"I don't understand what is going on in that head of yours, but as long as you keep showing up here every week and you're on the roster, I can't really complain, can I?"

"Plus it's not like I'm not talking to _you_," Chris said.

"That would be pretty awkward of you," she told him. "I could see it now, you walking down for dinner and yelling and screaming and smiling, eating, and then leaving while we all cheer for you."

"I actually kind of like that arrangement," he joked and she narrowed her eyes at him before he went around the desk and leaned down to kiss his wife. Kensington gave Stephanie a kiss too for good measure.

"Speaking of arrangements, your father is trying to make our son a hockey player."

"It could be worse, _your_ father could be trying to make him into a bodybuilder, given his love of big, muscular wrestlers who can hardly actually wrestle," Chris said with a look. "It'll be good for Sawyer's coordination and endurance to learn hockey. I see no downsides to this."

"Unless he decides to be in the NHL like his grandpa when he's supposed to be a wrestler like his father."

"Hey, be content that I'm here now," Chris said, "and I'm a man with a plan."

"That you won't share with me."

"Like I said, baby, all in due time."

Chris did have a plan, but he wasn't ready to really share it with anyone just yet. Punk was on a need-to-know basis and everything he didn't know, Chris was keeping close to his vest…or sparkly jacket if you preferred. Going out there for his match, he was actually a little bit pumped. He hadn't worn his briefs and his wrestling boots like this in a long time. He'd spent some time getting the ring rust off with Lance when he'd told Stephanie he was at a meeting for Fozzy's next album, but it was nothing like this.

Sometimes, he really didn't have to feign his excitement when he was out there with everyone. He was genuinely glad to be back and he was glad he'd waited until he was ready because wrestling was _fun_. Being backstage and being harangued was not fun and so when he got to come out here, it was fun and exciting and he had people cheering him (for nothing really) instead of people like the Bellas and Sheamus complaining to him. It was so much easier being a wrestler so while he did everything else, being out here was the easy part.

The crowd started chanting his name as soon as the bell rung to start the match and he laughed inwardly at what he was about to pull. He caught Punk sending him some conspiratorial glances, but he ignored them for the most part, trying to play up how excited he was to be wrestling again. He kept turning to the crowd and screaming, getting them riled up. They wanted him to get tagged in so badly he could almost see the anticipation on thousands of faces. He pretended like he wanted the tag and kept leaning over the ropes.

Punk was trying to get to him, but he kept getting pulled back until finally he got the upper hand and landed an elbow drop on Otunga. Punk reached for Chris's hand and if you were paying close enough attention, you could actually see Punk smirk at Chris as he gave him the tag. Chris rushed into the ring, bouncing around and acting like this was the best thing in the world while everyone cheered him on and wanted to see him just get one move, perhaps the Lionsault seeing as how Otunga was laid out right now. Instead, he played up to the crowd, then he climbed out of the ring and walked right backstage and then walked past everyone and straight to his locker room where the first thing he did was help Stephanie load up their things to go back to the hotel.

Meanwhile, Punk was still fighting and with the help from Mick Foley they were able to actually win the match. But the real fun came afterwards when Laurinaitis came out. Punk grabbed a microphone and proceeded to lay into the man and damn did it feel good. Laurinaitis would of course think that he was playing a role, but the words were so harsh and uncaring that Punk figured the other man would honestly question whether these were lies or truth. He could see the interim GM getting red in the face, angrier and angrier and he loved it. He loved getting this man riled up and again he felt like the perfect spy. Laurinaitis finally nearly cracked under Punk's words and Punk loved his life at that very moment.

Yes, everything right now was definitely win-win for him.


	353. He Speaks! January 24, 2012

A/N: Thanks for reading, everyone, I'm finally all caught up! So tonight's chapter is from tonight's show.

Also, I put up a poll on my profile page wondering who Britt should be with, I'm pretty torn because I like writing her and Punk, but I've been pretty committed to her and Hunter so thoughts would be appreciated so if you want to head on over and vote, it'd help a lot, thanks! Enjoy! :)

* * *

Chris nearly bounced out of his office, like the entire floor had turned into a giant trampoline and he was the first person to recognize it and had decided to bounce around the entire house. Of course, this was not the case, but you couldn't stop him from feeling light on his feet anyways. He surveyed the hallway, saw and heard nobody, but needed to find his wife and find her fast before he burst with the news that he'd just received over the phone.

"Stephanie!"

"What!"

He turned his head towards the sound of her, "Where are you!"

"Our bathroom!"

Chris floated down the hallway into his bedroom. He could hear talking from the bathroom and realized she wasn't in there alone so she wasn't doing any business he didn't want to walk in on. He got to the door of their spacious bathroom and saw Sawyer leaning against the counter while Flynn and Kensington were sitting atop it, with Stephanie standing in front of Kensington, clipping her nails.

"What're you doing?"

"Mommy's making sure that our nails don't poke someone's eye out," Sawyer said.

"Manicures!" Flynn told him, wiggling her fingers, "They too long."

"Just some regular maintenance on the hellions," Stephanie said, not looking up at him as she concentrated on cutting the squirming Kensington's left ring finger. "Kensy, stop moving around so much or I'm going to pinch your skin."

"Uh-uh!" Kensington said and Stephanie held her by the wrist, but Chris came over and pulled Stephanie away from their daughter. Stephanie looked at him in annoyance until she saw his face. If he were a lightbulb right now, he'd be positively beaming. He picked her up and twirled her around right there, leaning down to kiss her quite passionately, especially in front of the children.

"I want kisses!" Flynn demanded, but Chris was ignoring her for the moment.

Stephanie finally pulled away to catch her breath, "Chris, Kensy could fall off the counter."

Chris looked at Kensington, but she seemed pretty steady on the counter, but he said, "Flynn, make sure your sister doesn't fall off the counter."

"I can make sure," Sawyer said, going to stand in front of Kensington.

"I can too," Flynn said, grabbing onto Kensington's right hand to show that she wasn't completely ineffective and she could help watch over Kensington as well. She was a big girl and she went to preschool and everything! "See, Sawa, I helps."

"I know," Sawyer smiled at her and Flynn patted him on the head, which made Kensington follow suit.

"Okay, so what is going on with you?" Stephanie said, setting the clippers on the counter and wrapping her arms around Chris's neck. "Is this something because we both kind of forgot our anniversary on Sunday?"

They both laughed as they thought about Sunday. Neither one of them had even remembered it was their seventh wedding anniversary until Monday night after Raw. It was only in bed did they realize they hadn't even wished each other a happy anniversary.

"_I feel like I'm forgetting something," Stephanie said as she rolled onto her back and stared at the dark ceiling, like the answer would light up like Chris's jacket and tell her why she felt she'd missed something important._

"_I don't know, did you leave something at the arena?" Chris wondered. "Because our flight is really early tomorrow so if you did, I would call the arena right now and see if you can get on with security to retrieve whatever it is."_

"_No, I didn't leave anything, I double check."_

"_Are you sure we both the girls here? Maybe we left one behind? Maybe Kensy is wandering around the arena yelling for her mama and dada," Chris joked and then yelped when Stephanie slugged him in the same. "Damn, you're getting strong, baby."_

"_It's all so I can fend you off. You get meaner the longer we're together," he told her, leaning over to kiss her cheek, only to hear her gasp. "What, what is it? Did you remember what you forgot, the missing link?"_

"_Chris, we are the two…our lives are way too busy," she told him, turning on her side so she could face him. She could just make his face out from the stream of light that snuck in through the gap where the hotel's curtains didn't quite meet up._

"_Yes, our lives are busy, but what's that got to do with anything."_

"_What's today?"_

"_Technically, it's the 17th," he told her, glancing over at the clock, "why?"_

"_What's the 15th of January?" she said to him and even in the dim light, he could see the annoyance, not at him, but at herself._

"_It's…oh damn it," Chris said, burying his face in his pillow so his next words were muffled, "It was our seventh wedding anniversary."_

"_My God, it was our anniversary and neither of us remembered," Stephanie scoffed at herself. "I'm usually so good at dates, how could this have eluded us?"_

"_Well, for one, I came back, that has been a huge distraction because you were so excited and I've been planning things, plus you're the president now, which means your responsibilities have quadrupled, I'm an executive, so my duties have tripled, plus I have Fozzy and Flynn is just starting preschool, plus we were packing for Raw."_

"_I can't believe we just acted as if it was some other day of the week."_

"_We don't celebrate it as much as the date we actually started dating though," Chris said, "we always remember July 18th. That's our real anniversary."_

"_But this is the anniversary of when we committed ourselves to each other," she groaned in frustration, "and we just let it pass by like it was nothing. Chris, I was only married to Hunter for two years, I've been married to you for seven, it should be commemorated."_

"_You know what, we do, every day that we're happy, we're celebrating the fact that we were smart enough to get married to each other and not pretend to hate each other for the past nine years."_

"_I'm mad at myself," she was so disappointed in herself._

_Chris pulled her into his embrace, kissing her on the shoulder, "Don't be, baby, I love you more today than I did on that cliff all those years ago. I pictured a future with you, sure, but the future is way better than I ever could have imagined it would be. Let's just celebrate that."_

"No, I'm taking you out next week for that," Chris said. He was going to LA because he had a NAMM show this weekend and he was expected to make appearances. Tomorrow was Wednesday and he was flying out in the morning, though Stephanie didn't know that yet. He was supposed to fly out Thursday morning, but something had just come up.

"Okay, so what is it then?"

"I didn't tell you because I didn't want to jinx it before it went through, but I just got the call that it did go through so I'm going to actually have to leave tomorrow morning, is that bad, do you hate me?"

"It depends on why you're leaving a day earlier," Stephanie prompted him, wishing he would just tell her what was going on because she was feeling even more out of the loop than she did whenever she remembered that Chris and Punk had something cooking up.

"Tell it already," Sawyer said as Chris looked over his shoulder at the three children staring back at him, obviously waiting for the news as well.

"My band, my brainchild, the baby that I've nursed for the over 10 years, the thing that I had even before I had you, just got signed to _major_ label, a worldwide contract with Century Media. Stephy, this is _huge_ for us, not us, you and me, I mean, you'll always have about a billion more dollars than I will, but for Fozzy, this is the next level, baby, this is the big time, I mean, this is huge and the band is flying out to LA and on Thursday, we're officially going to sign the contracts and please don't hate me for leaving a day early, but this is huge."

"I get it, it's huge," Stephanie said, leaning forward and hugging him, "I'm so proud of you, you have no idea."

"You are, really?" he asked expectantly, pulling away from her again so he could look at her face. Part of him thought that she would resent him somehow, though he didn't know why she would, maybe because he was leaving her with three kids until Sunday when she would take Flynn and Kensington and fly to Phoenix.

"Of course I am," she told him as if he should know that. "I know you love Fozzy and I'm so proud of how dedicated to that band you've been. Sweetie, you know I'm proud of everything that you do."

"I just, I can't believe I made it with this. When I was younger-"

"All you wanted was to be a wrestler and a rock star," she finished the oft-used phrase, "and now look at you, everyone is excited that you've returned to the ring, sort of, and now they can be excited for your music too. I have to call the guys and tell them congratulations as well."

"They'd love that," he told her, nodding, "I love you so much, thank you for being my support these past _seven_ years because without you, I don't know what I'd be right now. I'd probably be a fatass, sitting at home, lamenting what could have been."

"Or, you could have been the same guy minus the wife and kids," Stephanie told him, running her hand down the side of her face as they both laughed. "I'm fine with you going tomorrow, this is really important to you. As long as you show up in Phoenix on Monday, you can go and do your own thing."

"Why am I so goddamn lucky?" he asked, more to himself than to her and she shrugged.

"Daddy, what did you get? What's a record deal?" Sawyer asked and Chris turned to his children and scooped Flynn and Kensington up in one fell swoop and danced them around a bit as Sawyer thought his father had gone crazy. Stephanie pulled Sawyer towards her since her daughters' feet were flying in every direction. Sawyer looked up at his mommy and asked, "Is Daddy crazy now?"

"A little bit," Stephanie told him and Sawyer laughed at that.

"Daddy, what you doing!" Flynn said through the laughs.

"I'm just happy, Flutterby," he gave her a big, smacking kiss on the cheek and then one for Kensington and then gave one more to Stephanie and one to Sawyer. "I'm in a very, very, very happy mood."

"I still don't know what a record deal is," Sawyer said.

"It's when a band or a singer signs with a company and they want to make CDs with the band or singer and then they help promote it. There are big record companies who have a lot of reach and can really help a band become really good," Stephanie explained.

"And Daddy got signed with a big one?"

"That's right," Chris said, kneeling and putting his daughters down. "Daddy and Fozzy have been signed to a big one, what do you think about that?"

"That's cool, Daddy, I can tell all my friends that you're a big bander guy now and they'll think you're cool even though they like you already," Sawyer told him, giving him a hug around the neck. "I like your band, they sound good and you have good songs even when I don't know what you're saying."

"Thanks, kid," Chris said. He turned to his little girls, "What do you think, Flutterby?"

"Are yous still a wrestler?" Flynn asked, which of course was the first thing she would ask. If Flynn could have it her way, he would never think about doing anything else. Flynn would probably make him wrestle every night if she could.

"Of course I'm still a wrestler, I'll be there on Monday, I just have to do band stuff over the next few days, you understand, right?"

"Sure, if you still wrestle," she added seriously, like if he stopped wrestling, she was going to come after him herself and with her cunning, he wouldn't put it past her to plan out something like mommy and daddy did.

"I do, I promised," he told her.

"I'm proud of you, Daddy," Sawyer said, patting his shoulder and Chris gave his kid a huge hug before hugging Kensy, who didn't understand, but never turned down a single hug from her daddy, they were among the best you could get.

"Plus, I've been cooking up a little something and the three of you are going to get something very special from me on Monday," Chris said. This was something even Stephanie didn't know about and she raised an eyebrow. "You get something different."

"Why do we get presents?" Sawyer asked, not that he was complaining. There was never any complaining where presents were concerned.

"Because Mommy and I have been together seven years and because you three are part of that, the best parts of that if you ask me, I got you all something that I know you're going to love," he said mysteriously.

Now Monday could not come faster for any of them.

Needless to say, when Chris officially signed the new contract for his record deal, he felt like a giddy teenager who had just seen his first pair of real, live breasts. Everything felt better, looked better, smelled better, and the people at Century Media were nothing if not affable and accommodating. He felt like a VIP when they invited him into the building and when they were actually meeting with the representatives assigned to them, he felt like a true rock star, maybe for the first real time since he'd had Fozzy.

Every nerve inside of him felt lit on fire and he wanted to go out on tour right now, even though that was impossible. He just wanted to sing and perform and he was glad he was wrestling again because at least, for now, he had an outlet for all this energy. The thing about signing this was, it wasn't about the money, which was a good amount, but he didn't need money and he wouldn't need any money for the rest of his life. Stephanie had enough money so that he could lay around on his ass by the pool everyday if he felt like it.

This was purely about the music. He felt like he had so much music in him that he had to get out, that demanded to get out. Sure, most of his lyrics were somehow inspired by his wife, but still, everything inside him wanted to burst forth in a spew of lyrics and melodies. He'd felt the same way when he was just starting out wrestling. He felt like he had so much to offer the wrestling world if they would just see it. At first, it'd been hard, toiling away, trying to hone his craft, performing in front of paltry crowds. Even the die-hards in ECW hadn't quite satisfied the quench.

Then came his first match in WCW, almost a non-descript one, just walking out, playing to the crowd, not knowing if he would be a face or a heel because nobody really gave a damn about him. But he saw this whole expanse of time in front of him where he could be a wrestler and could show everyone what he had, what was bursting inside of him to get out in a twist of moves and Liontamers and moonsaults and running bulldogs.

At this point in his life, he felt like he'd accomplished everything he set out to do in wrestling. There was no up for him to go really. He planned on entering and subsequently winning the Royal Rumble (his highest finish being 4th), but other than that, there was nowhere for him to go but hit the ceiling that he'd obliterated once upon a time. He was a grand champion if you counted those things, actually, more than just a grand champion, he'd won other titles the other consider grand champions had never won. So really, wrestling right now was because it was fun and because his kids loved it.

Music was still something he was working at, but this was definitely the next step to becoming that ultimate rock star and he couldn't wait to embark on another journey. Was it a little much to be holding three jobs at once? For some people maybe, but for Chris it was just another day of life. Stephanie was the same way, she understood the need to keep busy so he had someone supporting him who understand that being busy was the only way to really live.

He wanted Fozzy to be the best of everything, to be bigger than any of the crap music that was put out today. If his band could single-handedly take out the likes of Justin Bieber, his life might take on an entirely new meaning. The sky was truly the limit right now and as he and the guys toasted to their new success, the world looked a whole lot brighter, even brighter than that first time he'd seen breasts (not the first time he saw Stephanie naked though, oh boy, had he not been prepared for _that_ one, but that was mostly because he never expected to sleep with her).

"How did it go?" Stephanie asked as he lie in bed later that night. He was aware that it was very, very late where she was, three hours ahead, but he just needed to hear her voice at that exact moment. He'd gone out celebrating with the guys, drinking maybe too much, but he could hold his liquor better than anyone he knew. He'd had many challengers, but he was always the clear victor when it came to drinking others under the table. He couldn't sleep now though, the adrenaline rush not having completely left his body.

"It went great," he said, taking heed of her voice, "I'm sorry I woke you up."

"I'm not, I'm lonely without you."

"Do you mean to tell me one of our more resourceful children has not climbed into bed with you?" Chris asked with a laugh. Usually, when one of them were gone, at least one, but usually all three of the kids would angle to get to sleep in the big bed with Mommy or Daddy.

"Nope, not a single one, but they were tired today," Stephanie said. "Sawyer had a big day at school because they were learning about different animals and they actually had the zoo bring out a few animals for them to see and Sawyer now loves turtles and wants one for a pet."

"We could probably swing that," Chris said, "they're pretty low maintenance, right?"

"Probably. I told him we would look into it and that once we thought about it, he might be able to have one since a dog is pretty much out of the question right now. If we told that kid he was going to get a dog, I think he'd jump so high he'd sail through the roof," Stephanie told him, "but he was especially tired and Flynn was nearly exhausted from preschool."

"You mean to tell me something actually wore her out?"

"Her teacher told me she was running everywhere today," Stephanie said and he could almost see her shrug. "She was extremely hyper so all the running tuckered her out and she was ready to drop by the time I got her into bed."

"And Kensy?" Chris wondered about his littlest girl.

"She and I had a very calm day," Stephanie told him. "After breakfast, I did a little work, then we went to the park to eat lunch and she got to go on the swings and then I took her to lunch and we did a little shopping for some new clothes."

"Sounds like everyone, including me, had a good day."

"Were they nice to you?" Stephanie asked.

"They were extremely nice, but why wouldn't they be, they're going to be making money off me soon enough, they have to be nice to me."

"Oh, I remember that well," Stephanie said, "I should tell you that's why I started dating you. My family knew the hoards of money we could make off you so we decided to keep you in the family."

"If I didn't know you like I do, I would not put that past you," he told her and he was only semi-joking. Stephanie probably couldn't have known how diversified Chris would actually become, but if anyone in this world could see any of his full potential, it would be the woman who'd had her eye closely trained on him for the past twelve years.

"I always knew you'd be a cash cow and that you'd bring publicity to my family's company."

"Is that what I've been doing all this time?"

"Of course, you couldn't possibly think that I love you!"

"I did have the audacity, yes."

"Foolish man," Stephanie joked. "I'm glad they treated you well though. I just want to say again how proud I am of you over this. You deserve it, you and all the guys, especially Rich though because this really was the brainchild of the both of you and you've worked so hard to make this band what it is."

"I love you," Chris told her simply, not knowing how else to really thank her for everything. "You're my entire support beam."

"Oh, you're keeping me around? I thought that this is where you dump the woman that stuck by you through thick and thin and then lived a life filled with floozies who you took only one night of satisfaction from before moving onto the next."

"But eventually, I would realize how hollow and meaningless that kind of life is and then I would come back to you on my hands and knees, begging for forgiveness, so I decided to cut out the middleman and just stay with you forever."

"I guess I can live with that if I must," she said, but punctuated the statement with a yawn.

"I really should let you go, baby, you've got all the kids and here I am, hogging you from sleep," he said remorsefully. He should have been more considerate when it came to his wife. She already had so many things to worry about on top of the three kids that she was taking care of single-handedly.

"It's okay, your mom has been great. She comes over in the morning and helps with the kids. She makes breakfast and then she takes Flynn to preschool. I'm so glad sometimes that they moved down here. They're a godsend."

"I think they think the same of you since they love the kids," Chris chuckled. "I'm sorry you have to rely so much on them. Now I kind of feel like a bad husband and father."

"I would only think that if the kids didn't absolutely adore you and know that you are there for them in any way. Which reminds me, what is this present you're giving them?" Stephanie tried to needle it out of him.

"I told you, I'm not telling, but they'll love it," he said, "now get to sleep, I don't need my beautiful wife to turn into a hag or I will consider dumping you for those Fozzy floozies."

"Get some sleep yourself, I'll talk to you tomorrow," she told him. "I love you."

"I love you too and thanks for being my number one floozie for the past seven years."

The first person he saw was, as always, Flynn. She was racing towards him as fast as she could run and she seemed to get faster everyday. She was barreling towards him in such a way that if she were bigger, she would completely bowl him over. As it was, she was just running as fast as a three year old could run, her light brown hair flowing behind her as her skirt followed suit. Chris set his bag down and scooped her up as soon as she was within arm's length.

"You were gone," she told him, pulling away and looking at him sternly. "You should not be gone dat long."

"I'm sorry," he said, looking over her shoulder at Stephanie and Kensington, making there way over slowly since Stephanie was holding onto Kensington's hand. Kensington's face was very reminiscent of Flynn's, full of joy at seeing one of her favorite people in the entire world. "Hey there, Kensy-bug!"

"I miss you more dan her," Flynn told him matter-of-factly.

"It's not a contest," he told her, "but I'm glad you missed me."

"You were gone for…hmm…one, two, fwee, four, five days I tink," Flynn said, holding up her hand. "Dat's too long, you don't do dat, Daddy, you wrestle."

"I am, I'm on the show tonight," he told her, "I'm going to be here."

"You talking?"

"Hmm, I don't know about that," he told her, giving her a wink as she giggled and Stephanie and Kensington finally caught up. Stephanie gave Chris a brief kiss before she hoisted up Kensington so she could get in on the action as well. Chris kissed her cheek before Stephanie held Kensington against her body. "Surrounded by my beautiful girls once again."

Flynn just laughed, but Stephanie answered, "It's about time you got here, we've been waiting for you, Mr. Big Huge Rock Star."

Chris laughed, "Yes, you know, I talked with the head of talent and tried to get my demands met, you know, only green M&M's, Perrier, shrimp cocktails, but that bastard would not give in to my demands, who do I go to see to talk about his subordination, is it the president?"

"She might be persuaded, yes," Stephanie said. "I've always wanted to be with a huge rock star, you know, act like a groupie."

Chris full out chuckled that time, "You, a groupie? Please, you would have an easier time convincing people you were the Queen of England rather than a groupie. But I will allow you to show me the way to the locker room."

"Then follow me," Stephanie said as Chris grabbed his bag with his free hand while holding onto Flynn with the other. He followed her until they got to their joint office/dressing room and Chris threw his bag on the couch while Stephanie set Kensington down near her toy blanket. Kensington dropped down on her butt as she saw a toy she wanted to play with.

"Daddy, you meets my teacher," Flynn said.

"Huh?" Chris wondered what she was saying.

"We have that parent/teacher conference, remember?" Stephanie said, as on top of things as she ever was. He swore sometimes he thought his wife was just a walking computer, storing all important events in that brain of hers. "They wanted to meet with every parent who just enrolled their kid after the first week to give an initial assessment and see how the kid is doing and if they're ready for preschool."

"I remember now," he said, "I've just been riding on such a Fozzy high that I have to get back into Daddy mode."

"You should always be in Daddy mode," Stephanie told him, grabbing some papers off a pile and then looking down at them distastefully. "This WWE network my dad has been pushing on the board…it's causing me more stress than anything else in my life right now."

"Why is your dad pushing it?" Chris asked as he set Flynn down after giving her a kiss on the head.

"Why do you think?" Stephanie said as Chris stood behind her, crouching over and looking at all the work in front of her. It was mostly stuff trying to line up sponsors for the network and what they could actually use to fill all the programming.

"I'm not sure…" His voice hitched at the end because he really didn't know.

"Because he thinks that if he can launch this successful network that it'll be noteworthy enough to come back and take over," Stephanie said, running her fingers through her hair and wishing she'd pulled it back this morning. "I forced the board to push the date back though. My father had such unrealistic expectations for the start date for this endeavor. Right after WrestleMania, when we barely have anything set for this thing. It's massive, you know, starting an actual _network_, but he's Vincent Kennedy McMahon and he thinks he can do everything."

In Chris's mind, only Stephanie Marie McMahon-Jericho can do everything. He grabbed her hands and turned her chair towards him. "You've got to calm down before you give yourself a heart attack before you're 40."

"You'll be the one to give me a heart attack," she reasoned with him, while he winked at her. "I'm just angry about this is all."

"I know you're angry, you're always angry," he said, lifting her out of her chair and then plopping himself down on it and then pulling her down with him. "You have to give some authority to the Executive Vice President of Talent Relations."

"Oh, excuse me, sir, I wouldn't want to trample on your responsibilities," Stephanie said.

"I'm half-expecting someone to come complaining to me in a few minutes," Chris told her. "As soon as the wolves get my scent in the building, they're sure to find me and then I'm off playing principal again. I don't think this is even really in my job description, you know."

"Yet you do it anyways," she told him, "so how was NAMM?"

"It was fun," Chris told her, "it's like a big party, you know, you see guys you know, you meet people you don't and then you just have fun and it's just fun and one year, you should come with me."

"And what, feel out of my element?"

"Oh, baby, as long as you're with me, you're not out of your element," he told her, kissing her temple. "I would never make you feel stupid if you were to come. It's fun, you get to meet people, get your name out there, you know."

"Of course."

"Hey, be nice to me, you know what a hellish day I had yesterday."

"Yes, doing pushups in the airport is so hellish."

"I was trying to keep in shape," Chris said, "I'm a wrestler now, I have to find ways to keep my trim figure."

"Yes, you're trim figure," she said, pinching him in the side. "You don't have to do pushups in the airport, or you wouldn't have had had to if you hadn't missed your earlier flight. I swear, you just do not do well without me, do you?"

"No, I really, really don't," Chris shook his head. "You're the glue that holds me together."

"I know I am," she said, then touched her forehead to his. "So as the gold-digger wife that I am, how much should I expect from this new contract?"

"Why, darling, a man never reveals how much he's making," Chris said, "but I'll just say that you never have to work another day in your life."

"Oh, then I plan to lie around on the couch all day and gorge myself on ice cream and hire nannies for all the children, individual ones of course, and a chef will be necessary and I'm thinking a maid because I'm not one for cleaning. I will require lots of plastic surgery to make me look beautiful and I want fifteen cars, three houses, and two yachts."

"Done, done, and _done_," Chris said.

"Very good, well done then, sir," Stephanie joked as she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. "I missed you too, you know, maybe not as much as Flynn claims to, but I did miss you."

"I'm glad you did because I missed you too." There was a knock at the door and Chris called out for them to come in. "I bet it's another petty problem from the people we work with."

But it wasn't, it was one of the production assistants. "Chris, we've got a delivery for you, three boxes. Did you want me to bring it in?"

Chris nearly threw Stephanie off his lap. "Thanks so much, I'm so glad they're here, I've been waiting for them."

The guy brought the boxes in and Chris grabbed them, thanking him for them before he set them down on a table by the door. Stephanie came over and looked at them curiously. "What's this? Is this something to extend your silence, this weird silent act you're pulling?"

"No, these are the presents I promised for my children," Chris said.

"You are so far gone for those kids," Stephanie told him, pretending to be upset and angry about it, crossing her arms over her chest and shaking her head as if in disgust. "I mean, look at you now, buying presents for them on a whim. You've turned into quite the sucker."

"Until the day I die," Chris responded and without an ounce of guilt or trepidation about it. When he'd found out about Sawyer, he was gone completely and there was no coming back from that edge. "Hey, Flutterby, Kensy-bug, I've got presents for you."

"It not my birfday!" Flynn said, but came running over anyways. At her name, Kensington came over too, eager to see what her daddy was doing with the two huge boxes that he was holding. He set them both down on the coffee table in front of the couch, one in front of Flynn and the other in front of Kensington. The other one, for Sawyer, would have to wait until tomorrow to be opened. Stephanie knelt down next to Kensington in order to help her with her box, while Chris knelt next to Flynn, not because she might need help, but so they had could get a better look at her face when she opened her gift.

"Okay, you can open them on the count of three," Chris said, "One, two, two and a half, two and three quarters…three!"

Flynn was already tearing apart the bow that held the box's pieces together as Stephanie helped Kensington pull his off and open the box. Kensington's eyes lit up as she saw what was inside, "Oooh," she marveled, looking at Stephanie with wide eyes. Stephanie matched her expression of wonder.

Flynn flung open the box and then her jaw dropped as her surprised eyes turned towards Chris. "Daddy!"

"Yes, it's yours," Chris said as Flynn grabbed the jacket out of the box and clutched it to her chest.

"Mine?" Flynn said eagerly.

"Chris, what did you do?" Stephanie asked as she helped Kensington get her jacket on.

"I had the guy that made it make a few more," Chris said as he helped Flynn slip it on. She couldn't stop grinning and looking over at Chris to make sure this was really his.

"Oh my God," Stephanie laughed as she found the battery pack on Kensington's jacket and lit it up. "Oh my God, I'm going to have a house full of fireflies."

"I love it," Flynn breathed as she ran her hands over her sleeves. The jackets were both a little bit so the girls could grow into them since he figured they would like the jackets for a while. Flynn was so much in awe that she seemed to be tuning the world out for once. "I love it."

Stephanie came around and knelt down next to Chris, wrapping her arms around his neck, kissing him along his jaw. "You have just made two little girls very, very happy."

"You think so," Chris said as Flynn went over to Kensington and started fawning over her sister.

"I do think so," Stephanie told him, kissing his jaw again. "You really think of everything, don't you?"

"This one was fairly easy," he admitted, "Flynn has been trying to steal my jacket for weeks so it was really just getting one of her own so she would get off my back about it."

"Oh, yes, I'm sure, it had nothing to do with your unconditional love for them, not at all," Stephanie said knowingly.

"A little, do you think Sawyer will like his?"

"Oh, he's going to love it, I'm sure."

"Good," Chris said as Flynn found her battery pack and turned it on, giggling madly as she glanced over her shoulder.

"Daddy, I light up!" Flynn nearly went crazy with glee over the fact that she was lighting up just like her daddy did when he was in the ring. She kept turning the jacket on and off and when she was done with that, she went to Kensington's jacket and turned it on and off.

"You just reminded me why I stay with you," Stephanie said as Chris looked over at her, raising an eyebrow wondering what that reason was. "Because you make me ridiculously happy."

"Well, I promised I would, didn't I?"

"If I'd had kids with Hunter, would you love them as much as you do our kids?"

"Of course I would because I love you, stupid question," he said as the door opened and they both looked over their shoulder.

"I need to talk to you," John Cena said, closing the door behind him before he spotted Kensington and Flynn in their matching jackets. "You bringing them out to the ring?"

"Yeah, they're going to talk for me," Chris said as Stephanie pulled away from him so he could stand up. "Which one of us did you need to talk to, me or Stephanie?"

"You, I guess, since you're the head of talent relations and this has to do with the talent," John told him angrily. Chris folded his arms as he stood there and silently prompted John to air his concerns. He'd gotten so used to this over the past few weeks that he didn't even bother being aggravated at being interrupted. "You've got to make Laurinaitis resign after what he did to Zack last week."

"Why are you so interested in Zack?" Chris wondered.

"We're friends and the guy has worked his ass off and he doesn't deserve this," John said fiercely.

"Okay, okay, I get it," Chris said, "look, I would love for the guy to resign, believe me, I would, but I can't force him to do that. Looking at this objectively, and I am because I hate him too, he hasn't done anything that has put anyone in any extreme danger."

"Zack-"

"Has been medically cleared to wrestle," Stephanie interjected since Chris hadn't had time to look over anything for tonight's show. "The doctor said he was beat up, but otherwise able to wrestle therefore we can't say that John put him in any immediate danger."

"You can't just let this happen!" John said. "How can you just do nothing? Aren't you in charge?"

"John, this is a very tenuous hold I have on this company right now," Stephanie told him. "You go out there and wrestle and you do your job. Your job isn't to play protector to other wrestlers. The Board has decided on Laurinaitis, not us and until they see something they don't like, my hands are virtually tied. Any kind of dissention from me could lead to my father wresting control back and if that happens, you better believe Laurinaitis won't just be here to stay, but will pretty much be given free reign."

"But if he did instigate something?"

"Then I can set things into motion," Chris said, "and I would if it came to that."

"Good," John said, "I guess I'll just have to wait for this to happen, but I don't like this sound of this, let me tell you."

"We're at a stalemate here, John," Stephanie said. "I can't really do anything about it, I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault," John shook his head, "it's his fault."

Punk sidled up to Britt as she sat at the gorilla. The show was starting in a few minutes, but he had just enough time to see what she was doing before he was going out there. She glanced over at him and he smirked at her. "No boyfriend again tonight? What is with this guy? If I were him, I would want to be around you _all_ the time."

"No, he's not here tonight, he's still rehabbing and getting into shape."

"Into shape for what?" Punk said. "His best days are behind him, don't you think you should put him behind you too."

"We're fine, Phil," Britt told him, but she had a small smile on her face and Punk could feel himself breaking through very, very slowly, but nonetheless, he was breaking through and it felt good to be making some progress with her finally.

"You may think you're fine, and believe me, I think _you_ are fine," he joked with her, "but still, I would have been here, supporting you."

"Supporting me while I what? Coordinate the show? I hardly think I need a cheering section to do that," Britt said to him. "You're on in about two minutes and it was _you_ who desperately wanted time at the top of the show so if you miss your cue that the show has started."

"I won't miss it, but will you miss me?" This earned another small smile.

"You're terrible at this, how on earth have you had so many girlfriends?" Britt joked back at him.

"It's the facial hair, drives the girls wild," Punk told her. "So come on, you like me, don't you? I can tell that you're trying to fight it, but I know you like me, it's okay, I won't even tell Hunter than you do."

"You better go," Britt said, "the show is starting."

"Can we talk later?"

"No, we can't, I'm busy and I'm sure you will be busy as well," Britt told him. "You always seem to find trouble when you're at work, Phil, and I don't think you're going out there to make nice with Laurinaitis."

"Now where would the fun be in that?" Punk asked as he walked backwards towards the stage.

Punk hadn't talked to Laurinaitis yet this evening so he had no clue what was going on, but Punk figured that he would think he was just extending what happened last week into this week. He'd spoken briefly with Vince over the past week and he'd been told that Laurinaitis didn't take too kindly to the telling off, but Vince thought it was brilliant and that he should keep it up so Punk took that as a ringing endorsement. Punk couldn't wait until the boom was lowered onto Vince that he wasn't working for him at all, but right now, he had to do the boss's orders.

He climbed into the ring and sat down in the middle of it like he was just talking with a bunch of friends. He talked about how Laurinaitis had publicly announced the week prior that he was going to screw him over at the Royal Rumble. How was he supposed to take that but with anger? Usually, people were more subtle when they planned to screw someone's match like that, but leave it to John Laurinaitis to tell his intentions to the world.

Since Punk knew he was going to get the short end of the stick, he wanted Laurinaitis to come out there so he could give him two broken arms, which obviously meant that he wouldn't be able to get that three count on Sunday. He knew full well that the man himself wouldn't come out, not like this, but he challenged him to come out anyways. Laurinaitis didn't like confrontation. He was like this snake who laid in wait for the perfect moment. He would only come out if he knew that he would somehow get the upper-hand and for that, Punk lost all of his respect for the man, if he'd had any that is. Like he thought, he was left in the ring alone and he was about to go find that son of a bitch when Cena came out.

Punk disliked the guy and it wasn't for his superhero persona that he'd adopted that seemed like trying to shine up a turd, it was more because Cena was always sticking his nose into other's business, always taking up "the cause," and in Punk's estimation, Cena only did it because he was a pro at leeching onto other people's success. Take Zack Ryder for instance, Zack had done everything in his power to gain the fan's attention, but then what happens? Cena swoops in and messes everything up for the guy. Cena didn't know how to take the spotlight off himself. He claimed he did, claimed that it was all for the good of everyone, but that was such BS that Punk felt like it should be tattooed on his forehead.

It was only then that Laurinaitis came out. Of course he would come out when there was little to no chance that Punk would actually get out of the ring with Cena. Instead, Laurinaitis tried to give a half-ass apology, which rubbed Punk the wrong way and he tried to goad Laurinaitis to the ring, but he wouldn't give, instead putting him into a match with Cena against Swagger and Ziggler. Punk scoffed at the competition. He believed he was the best in the world and teaming with Cena wasn't going to change that.

When Laurinaitis walked backstage, Chris was there waiting for him, still dressed in his street clothes and he looked at the older man. "Executive Vice President of Talent Relations, eh?"

"I still should technically hold the title even though you're holding the position hostage," John rasped.

Chris nodded his head, "Remember your place, Laurinaitis."

"I think you should remember yours," he shot back.

"Oh, I know my place, it's _in_ the McMahon family, find me when you get to join, but maybe having your permanently kissing Vince's ass does mean you're part of the family. Still, get it right," Chris said, "I own you."

He turned and walked away, going back to his locker room so he could change into his outfit for the return of the Highlight Reel. By now the TV was probably the Jeritron 17000. He pushed open the door to his locker room and saw that Flynn was still in her jacket, just lounging on the couch watching the show. Kensington was out of hers though as she laid down on the couch. He figured laying in that thing would be very uncomfortable, but Flynn didn't seem to mind.

"What are your plans for the Highlight Reel?" Stephanie asked as he grabbed his clothes.

"You know, same old, same old."

"You mean you're not going to talk?" Stephanie asked. "Don't you think at this point that the people are getting restless and really want to hear you say why you're back or what you're here for?"

"Maybe that's what I'm going to do," Chris shrugged as he went into the bathroom to change and then come back out again.

"Aren't you the least bit tired of that outfit?" Stephanie wondered.

"Why are you asking so many questions?"

"Because I still don't even know what you're up to and I'm letting you go out there and I have no clue what you're doing and I don't like feeling out of the loop with what you're doing," Stephanie pouted.

"I'm telling you, it'll all become clear soon. I just want to go after the title, you know what I mean," he told her, leaning down to kiss her.

"I didn't even get a jacket," Stephanie told him, but she was smiling so he knew she wasn't mad at him.

"Do you want one?"

"And look like you? No thank you, I have what is called fashion sense," she said, lightly running her hand over his arm. "I'm not a walking fire hazard. I swear if you suddenly burst into flames, I'm going to be so mad at you."

"I'll be mad at myself," he told her. "You guys aren't coming to watch me down by the gorilla."

"I think we're all very fine and cozy here," Stephanie looked to Kensington, who, despite it not being that late, was getting tired and just wanted to lie down on the couch.

"I wanna go wif you!" Flynn announced, lighting up her jacket. "We da same, Daddy."

"Okay, well, Britt's there and she can watch you so come on, mini-Jericho, let's go," Chris said, helping Flynn off the couch and opening the door for her while she started running down the hallway.

Chris let her run ahead of him and it was a good thing he did too because the camera was trained on him while he walked down the hallway. He took Flynn's lead and kind of acted like a goof as he walked towards the gorilla. Flynn ended up waiting for him at the end of the hallway and he grabbed her hand and they walked together the rest of the way, earning some "aww's" from the people working as they saw the two of them in their matching jackets.

"Oh my God, no, you didn't," Britt said as Chris and Flynn showed up together. "I think this is the cutest thing I've ever seen."

"Bwitt, I light up!" Flynn said, turning on her jacket for Britt.

"Oh, I need a picture," Britt said, grabbing her phone and taking a picture of Flynn. "You are the cutest, little thing ever."

"Kensy has one too!" Flynn told her.

"She does?" Britt gushed, feeling her ovaries aching.

"Uh huh."

"They liked them so much, I got one for all the kids," Chris explained. "Do you think you could watch her while I'm out there?"

"Of course, of course," Britt said, patting the seat next to her as Flynn climbed up and sat next to her. "You're too cute."

"Thank you," Chris said, "oh, you meant Flynn."

"Shut up," Britt said, "you're on in a few."

"Thanks," he said, preparing himself to go out there.

The set was so familiar to him now and he remembered when he'd come up for the concept of this. Now look at him, back here again. He went down to the ring and the crowd still didn't have enough sense to realize all of this was mocking them for the hypocrites he still thought they were. They were so ready and eager to cheer for him, but that's not what he wanted. He wanted to come back and prove a point and that's what he was going to do.

He tried to quiet the crowd and acted like he was going to speak, but at the last moment acted like he'd forgotten something and ran backstage. He had to think fast and Flynn didn't know why he was back here again so soon and she almost got up, but then Chris saw the t-shirt gun and grabbed it, bringing it back to the ring and amping up the crowd again. He kept going from side to side pointing the t-shirt gun in every direction, each side screaming louder than the next. But he wasn't going to give them a free t-shirt.

Instead, he grabbed the camera from the camera guy and started to film. Backstage, Flynn was doubled over in laughter. "Bwitt, he take the camera, he no use it!"

Britt found Flynn funnier than she found Chris. "He did take the camera, didn't he?"

"He did and he taking it and he no know how!" Flynn stuttered through her giggling. "He so silly!"

"He is silly," Britt said, "I think your daddy is being very silly."

"I love him," Flynn shook her head in happiness. "We have jackets now."

"You match. Would you act as silly as your daddy is right now?"

"No! Maybe!" she amended herself as Chris gave the camera back to the guy and went to grab the microphone.

Chris grabbed the microphone and then put his finger to his lips to quiet the crowd. This seemed to do the trick and he cued the video that he'd commissioned the video department to make for him. On the screen, different scenes from his WWE career, from his debut until now, played in fast motion over the screen, right up until the promos signaling his return. So many feuds, so many teammates, a little bit of Trish thrown in there for good measure (she'd get a kick out of it, Christian, maybe not so much). It all passed by in a few seconds, giving everyone to reflect on him.

Punk may say he was the best in the world, but Chris had an argument, a solid one, for that. After the video played, he shushed the crowd once more and everyone waited on baited breath for him to utter something, anything…and he didn't disappoint. Though it was one sentence, it conveyed everything he wanted to say.

"This Sunday, at the Royal Rumble," the smirk was threatening to break his face, "it's going to be the end of the world as you know it."

And that was it.

"So what did you think of it, kid?" Chris asked as he sat backstage talking to his son after the Highlight Reel had ended. Kensington was laying with her head in his lap as he rubbed her head into sleep. Stephanie was working quietly at her desk and Flynn was still with Britt as she wanted to watch the show. Chris had called Sawyer to get his input on the show since his kids were his best critics (they always had positive things to say, who didn't want to hear positive things all the time?).

"I thought you were weird," Sawyer said, "but then you talked and it was okay and I don't know what you meant by that."

"I meant I'm going to win the Royal Rumble, are you going to be there?"

"I get to be there because it's the weekend," Sawyer said excitedly. Chris and Stephanie were planning on using the company jet to fly from Tampa to St. Louis for the Royal Rumble. Because they were using the private jet, Chris's parents were coming with so the kids could watch the show from the audience and then they would fly back on a redeye so Sawyer could be at school the next day. It was going to be a tight squeeze of a schedule, but Sawyer had begged them to come and so they'd made the best arrangements they could think of for him.

"I know, so you thought I was weird?"

"Because you weren't talking and you were being weird with the t-shirt thing."

"Thanks, I like your input," Chris said, "do you think I'm going to win on Sunday?"

"Yes, you are going to win the Rumble and you know what you can do, Daddy?"

"What?"

"That thing where you hang on the ropes and then you flip over them, you can do that," Sawyer said, "then you won't be on the floor and you won't be out and everyone else can lose."

"I like that strategy," Chris said.

"I thought you would," Sawyer said. "You were pretty funny when you did the camera though and I liked your video, it had a lot of stuff on it that I had already seen, but you needed more Mommy on it because Mommy was your business partner and you liked her."

"I left that out for a reason," Chris told him. "I didn't think I could stand a chance getting noticed if Mommy was in the video."

Stephanie looked up and gave him a questioning look, but he just blew her a kiss before the door flew open. "Tell me you just saw that!"

"Whoa, hey, man, tired child over here," Chris said, pointing down at Kensington, who was startled and looking up at the person who barged into the room.

"You had to have seen what just happened to Zack," Cena said. "You had to have seen it!"

"I'm sorry," Stephanie said, "I've been working and Chris has been talking to Sawyer. Britt hasn't told me anything."

"Because she's making sure the ambulance is taking him away," John said, slamming his hands on the desk. "Kane threw Zack through the stage. Laurinaitis put him in the match, surely _now_ you can do something about this."

"Give me a few minutes," Stephanie said, "I can definitely do something about this."

"Good," John stormed back out and Chris looked at Stephanie.

"I think I can use this," Stephanie said as she started making phone calls to board members, who were becoming increasingly concerned with Laurinaitis's behavior. They trusted Stephanie to do the right thing and she would do the right thing alright.

"What are you going to do?" Chris asked after he'd gotten off the phone with Sawyer.

"I think it's time for Laurinaitis to have a performance review to see about his handling of Raw."

"What is going on in that head of yours?" Chris asked her. "You're not going to make this simple, are you?"

"Where's the fun in that?" Stephanie asked. "I have the perfect person to evaluate Laurinaitis."

"Who?"

"The same person who Laurinaitis tried to undermine."

"Oh, you mean-"

"I think Hunter is just the right person for the job."


	354. Into Action, January 30, 2012

**So apparently the site wouldn't let anyone read the new chapter, so I had to re-upload it, sorry for the inconvenience!**

A/N: Thanks for reading, everyone! Just a reminder I have a poll regarding this story on my profile page so go check it out and vote, please! :)

* * *

"Gamma!"

"Yes, sweetheart," Loretta said as she looked at Flynn who was climbing onto her lap and pointing out the window.

"Dat clouds," Flynn told her, pressing her finger against the pane. "Dey water."

"Really?" Loretta said as she indulged her granddaughter.

"Uh huh, I learns that in school," Flynn said proudly.

"Wow, I'm very impressed," Loretta said, kissing Flynn's head. "Do you really like your school?"

"Uh huh," Flynn nodded. "I smarts, I got lotta brains in my head."

"I think you do have a lot of brains. Your father was very smart when he was in preschool, that was a very, very long time ago though. Long before you were born or even a thought in your daddy's head."

"He little too?"

"He was little."

"Did he wrestle?" Flynn asked.

Loretta laughed, "No, he didn't wrestle. He liked to watch wrestling though, but he doesn't really remember it. His grandma liked to watch it and so he would watch with her and they liked to watch it together."

"Hmm, what is Grandpa?"

"No, it wasn't your grandpa's company. Your grandpa hadn't bought the WWF yet, I think it was your great grandfather that was running it. I don't think you know him, but he was your Grandpa Vince's daddy."

"Oh," Flynn said, "I no know him."

"I didn't expect you to," Loretta said as her son came over and sat next to her.

"Is she bugging you, Mom?" Chris asked as he reached forward to ruffle Flynn's hair. Flynn grinned at her father in the most charming way she could, which was pretty damn charming. She was excited though. They were all flying to St. Louis and she got to see her daddy wrestle for the first time in _so_ long. It felt like _forever_ since she'd been able to see her daddy wrestle and now he was going to be in the Royal Rumble.

She couldn't quite remember seeing her daddy in one before, but he'd showed her tapes of him in it and it was really cool. There were so many wrestlers in the ring and her eyes kept darting around to take in all the action. She was ecstatic that she got to see this live and she was going to cheer for her daddy and he was going to win because of it, she was absolutely sure of it. There was just no way he could lose when she was sitting there cheering for him.

"She never bugs me, how dare you think she bugs me," Loretta said, pretending to be offended by the question. "She's my granddaughter, I love her and I love all my grandchildren. In fact, if you wanted to have more, I wouldn't argue with that."

"We've already given you three!" he argued. "How can you want more after Stephanie has practically been a baby machine?"

"Because I get babies like this," she hugged Flynn towards, with Flynn grinning because everyone seemed to love her and she was just fine with that. "She was just telling me about the things she's learned in school, like how clouds are made of water."

"They are, Daddy," Flynn told him.

"I know," Chris said, "but now you do too."

"She really sounds like she's liking it there. I never got to ask how that parent/teacher conference you had went."

"Oh, yeah, she said some surprising things."

"_Mr. and Mrs. Jericho, it's nice to see you again."_

"_Hello, Miss Madison," Stephanie shook her hand, "but please, call us Stephanie and Chris, it's much easier to hear than the formal way."_

"_Okay," Miss Madison laughed, "please, have a seat and you can call me Allie." Chris and Stephanie each took a seat on one of the small child-size chairs. Chris shifted around a little, trying to find a good position, but there was just no position where half his ass wasn't hanging off the chair. "I'm sorry they're so uncomfortable, but well, they're that size for a reason obviously."_

"_It's okay, I've sat on worse," Chris said, leaning on the table._

"_So how is Flynn doing?" Stephanie asked._

"_Oh, she's wonderful," Allie said. "I can't rave enough about her. She's one of the sweetest kids we have. She's always willing to share, which is a huge plus. A lot of kids come in and they can be very possessive of the things they're playing with, but Flynn has this quiet ease about sharing, I'm guessing she's not an only child."_

"_She's actually our middle child," Stephanie answered, "we have a 5 year old son and a 1 year old daughter."_

"_That explains it," Allie said. "She just has that, I'm used to this kind of thing going on for her. She's really very well-behaved."_

"_Are you sure we're talking about Flynn?" Chris asked. _

"_Of course," Allie told them. "She's really a sweet girl. Is she not for you?"_

"_She is, she's just…loud sometimes," Chris said, "rambunctious, a daredevil, always ready to put you in your place, a little mean, bossy."_

"_Oh, well, she is loud, one of the things is getting her to use her indoor voice, but that will come with time," Allie smiled, "but I think she just has a lot of enthusiasm. She is a daredevil, she did try to jump off the playground this past week, but when we told her she couldn't do that, she listened and hasn't tried it since so she takes well to directions. She's not bossy at all though, not at all. In fact, I think she's one of the most sociable and accepting kids here. She tries to play with everyone and she doesn't exclude anyone when she's playing."_

"_Wow," Stephanie said, "not that we're that surprised, she is a sweet girl, but she's headstrong."_

"_I think maybe being around all the kids makes her on her best behavior, but she's not afraid to go up to any of the other kids and talk to them and she has got one of the best imaginations I've ever seen. Funny story, we were talking about mommies and daddies and what they do and kids love hyperbole and she said that her daddy was a professional wrestler and a rock star, so cute—"_

"_Oh, um, actually, I _am_ a professional wrestler," Chris cut in. "I've been a professional wrestler for the past 22 years."_

"_Oh…I'm so sorry, I guess I just thought…kids say some things like their daddy has been to the moon and it's not true and I just figured…so you're a rock star as well?"_

"_Yeah, I actually have a rock band and we're getting pretty big in the metal scene."_

"_Now I feel like an idiot," Allie said, then turned to Stephanie, "and she said that you were the boss of everything."_

"_I'm the president of the wrestling company that he works for," Stephanie answered._

"_Well then I amend my statement, Flynn is one of the most truthful children we've ever had," Allie joked. "I just wanted to let you know that she's doing fine so far and I think she was definitely ready for preschool so I'd love for her to stay."_

"I'm so glad that they liked her, but who wouldn't?" Loretta asked.

"I go now, bye!" Flynn jumped off Loretta's lap and nearly dive-bombed her grandfather before starting to talk about something.

"She's really excited to see me wrestle," Chris said.

"We all are, I'm hoping that you win," Loretta patted his knee. "In fact, I'm going to go ahead and declare that you're going to be the winner."

"Mom, why must you always put such high expectations on me?" Chris groaned.

"Because you put them on yourself."

"Chris," Stephanie said from her seat. "I just got another e-mail on your account, Cena is complaining about Zack again and saying that we should visit him and assess his injuries ourselves so that we can find some way to punish Kane."

Chris rolled his eyes, "Sorry, Mom, duty calls."

"Okay, there's another e-mail here from Big Show being all emo or something," Stephanie said, scooting over so Chris could sit on the long seat she was sitting on in her father's private jet. "I didn't realize that everyone had so many problems."

"Welcome to my world. It's actually no wonder Laurinaitis is clinging to the GM job. I wouldn't want to go back to this if I could help it," Chris said, perusing the page. "I can't believe they all think this should fall on my shoulders."

"You should tell them to work out their own problems," Stephanie kissed his cheek.

"Yeah, so they can complain to you, no thanks, I'd rather do my job than get punished by the boss." He sent Stephanie a sidelong glance, but she just shoved him a little in the shoulder while reading one of the e-mails. "I'll have to talk to John and tell him to back off this whole thing. He's got big matches to focus on and I don't know why he's so interested in Zack, it's not like any of Ryder's popularity has rubbed off on him."

"He's probably hoping that because he cares that Zack got injured he will get some of the sympathy."

"Or some of Eve."

"Gross," Stephanie made a face. "I don't want to think about that. That's disgusting."

"Hey, look, I'm just lucky none of the divas have come to me with their damn relationship problems. Did you hear that interview Punk gave? I don't know what he was trying to pull, but I think he was trying to tell Britt that whatever he had with Beth is completely over."

"We don't know that that interview was necessarily about Beth," Stephanie pointed out. Chris rolled his eyes, but Stephanie cut him off before he said anything, "Don't do that, you really don't. He just said a recent relationship, that's all. For all we know, it could be about whomever he was with before Beth."

"He was with Beth for a while though so you _know_ it has to be about Beth. He called her a douchebag, can you believe that? I couldn't believe he was saying that," Chris laughed, "not that it's funny…but it was a little funny."

"That's not funny. If we ever got divorced and then you proceeded to tell the entire world that I was a douchebag and a flake, even without saying my name because people would _know_ it was me, I would rip you to shreds," Stephanie said while Chris leaned forward and pressed kisses to her neck. "Don't try to butter me up with kisses, I would still kick your ass if you ever said anything like that about me."

"Steph?"

"What?"

"I do think you're a douchebag but you're my douchebag."

"Very sweet of you," she elbowed him in the side. "If anyone is a douchebag, it's you Mr. I Do Push-ups in the Airpor to Impress the Ladies."

"There was no impressing going on, they were already in awe of me," he told her. "You know, I don't get relationships anymore."

"You don't get them anymore? What does that mean for _our_ relationship? That you've just completely forgotten how they work, do you need an instruction manual? I'm sure I can find one on the internet and print it out for you."

"No, just…I don't get how you don't find that right person after the what, 230 women that Punk has dated. I know that some guys aren't meant to settle down, but I don't get it. I have you, you're perfect for me, I've known it for so long, I just don't get the constant searching."

"But what if I'd stayed married to Hunter? I would have been taken. Would you have thought I was so perfect then?"

"I think I would've wanted you. I probably would have just…I don't know, loved you from afar or something, waited for my chance."

"Maybe that's what Punk thinks he's doing with Britt."

"God, I don't know what his motives are there, but he's playing with real fire with this one. It's probably more dangerous than any match he could possibly have right now," Chris said. "He's contending with someone who loves Britt and I don't know, if he wants a fling with her, then that's not going to happen."

"I don't know, Punk has a little charm if you look past the sarcasm," Stephanie said, "but I'm staying out of it. I have no desire to step into that bear trap, not when Punk is on one side and Hunter is on the other. Besides, ever since I saw Britt take on Kevin Nash of all people, that girl can make every decision herself."

"Daddy, do you know what number you are for the Royal Rumble?" Sawyer asked as he came over to visit his parents, Kensington in tow. She was holding tightly onto her brother's hand, wanting to hang around him. Both Flynn and Kensington could get clingy with Sawyer, following him around everywhere and wanting to do everything he did. Kensington was in one of those moods today. She'd wanted Sawyer to walk next to her when she was in her stroller and she wanted Sawyer to carry her everywhere. Luckily, Sawyer was such an easygoing kid, he never seemed to mind his two little shadows.

"I might," Chris said with a shrug, "but I might not."

"Oh, but do you?" Sawyer asked again, looking at Chris.

"I don't have it right now," Chris said, patting Sawyer on the shoulder. "I think that's going to be the first thing I do when I get there tonight. You are going to cheer for me, right? I think I'm going to need my own cheering section."

"I know I am and I can make sure that Kensy does too," Sawyer reassured him. "She's never really seen wrestling, right? Because she was too little to sit out there because she was just a baby, but she's still a baby, but not so much a baby anymore."

"No, I think she can handle it now," Chris said, winking at his little girl, who grinned at him, but then turned to Sawyer and tugged on his shirt sleeve.

"Up, up," Kensington told him and Sawyer hefted her up into his arms, which was still a little awkward for him since he was only five but Kensington helped by wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Kensy, don't you think that Sawyer is a little too small to carry you?" Stephanie asked as she glanced over at two of her children. "You might hurt him."

"It's okay, Mommy," Sawyer told her. "I can hold her, she's not that heavy and she holds on so she doesn't fall and even if she did fall, I'm still pretty small so she won't fall far."

Chris laughed, "He's really got you on the logic front."

"Daddy, do you think you can win the Rumble?"

"Daddy will win!" Flynn said as she walked by and grinned at everyone like she'd just trolled them like her father had (at least that's what the kids were telling him he was doing). Then she went back over to a window to look out at it again.

"Do you think Flynnie will be mad if you don't win?" Sawyer asked, amending his first question.

"I think Flynnie will be mad at all the other wrestlers and then she'll climb into the ring and flip whoever wins over the top rope and then she'll be declared the winner and go on to challenge Punk to a title match at WrestleMania."

Sawyer laughed, "Daddy, that can't happen. She can't climb over the barrier and she's still too little to flip anyone over!"

"Oh, I thought she might be able to do it, what about you? Could you go in there and help me?"

"No!" Sawyer laughed. "Everyone is bigger than me, except for Hornswoggle, he's not very bigger than me. He's kind of my size, but he's not a kid though, he's just small."

"So nobody is going to help me?" Chris asked with a pout.

"You don't need help," Sawyer told him. "You're the best in the world at what you do and that will be to win the Royal Rumble. You've never done it before though. It could be hard. There's going to be a lot of people in the match."

"I know, but it was hard when I won the Undisputed Championship and it was hard when I won all the other titles and—"

"It was hard when Mommy was mean to you!" Sawyer supplied for him and Stephanie looked up from what she was doing and Sawyer made a face. "You _were_ mean to Daddy, Mommy, you know you were, you threw water on him!"

"He threw a pie in my face," Stephanie reminded her son.

"But that was funny," Sawyer laughed.

"Oh, I'm glad you think so."

"There were monkeys!" Sawyer reasoned. "They had flowers and pie."

"See, I'm telling you, had our kids been alive at the time, they would have totally been on my side," Chris said with a shrug, "not that I blame them because I was definitely on the winning side. You kept sending your goons and I kept kicking their butts."

"Well lucky for me then I hadn't yet had any babies with you because I didn't let you touch me," Stephanie deadpanned.

"But you kissed me back…twice," he smirked at her.

"You guys are weird," Sawyer said, "come on, Kensy, we can color if you want," he said, carrying his sister away and leaving his parents alone. They always got weird when they talked about each other.

"Effective way of getting rid of the kids," Chris said, leaning forward and kissing her neck wrapping his arms around her waist as he continued to pepper kisses against her skin as she read over some documents regarding future marketing.

"Your entire family is on this plane within eyesight of you right now."

"I think my parents know that we have a sex life," he whispered in her ear. "The three grandkids might have tipped them off to that fact. So, in conclusion, I don't think me kissing you on the neck is going to shock the entire plane into falling from the sky."

"Still, sense of propriety."

"I'm not making out with you and fingering you in front of an entire arena," he protested, "I'm merely kissing my wife the day before I have a big match where I _need_ to win."

"Since when do you _need_ to win?"

"I came back, I _just_ spoke for the first time," he explained, "I said this whole sentence about how tomorrow at the Royal Rumble, it'll be the end of the world as they know it. How is that going to make me look if I get eliminated two seconds after I enter the ring?"

"You aren't Kaientai," Stephanie told him.

"Man, it's moments like these that make me so grateful that my wife is you, someone who can pull out a freaking Kaientai reference out of her ass," Chris said, "only you could do that."

"And any semi-coherent wrestling fan since 2000," she shrugged, "and you would never get eliminated that fast."

"You never know."

"I know you, I know your capabilities. You are going to be a target, that's a given, but you can hold your own, remember the year you skinned the cat, even when they try to throw you out, you just flip yourself right back in again. You're amazing and you know it and I believe in you."

"You're always first in line to believe in me, aren't you?"

"Second usually," she said, pointing her finger towards Flynn, who had wandered over to Sawyer and Kensington and was coloring with them now. "Behind that one."

"Oh, yeah, you're right, you're always second best to that little girl."

By the time Britt and Hunter arrived at the arena, everything was already buzzing even though it was hours and hours before the show. The Royal Rumble was one of the biggest events every year and the match was so unpredictable that there was always a buzz of excitement when it came to the show. People were probably trying to figure out who had the best shot at winning this year. Britt was behind Chris 100%, but it was anyone's match to lose really. The key was to outlast everyone.

"I'm glad you decided to come tonight," Britt told her boyfriend who looked over at her and gave her a small smile, the only thing he was really willing to give her at the moment. "Do you really have to be like that, Hunter?"

"I'm not being anything," he argued, but then looked sheepish when he saw how peeved his girlfriend was.

"Yes, you are and you know you are so don't act like you aren't," she said angrily. "Look, all the spots are already filled so there's no way we can just _insert_ you into the match. What would it look like if we kicked someone out of their spot?"

"I have a better shot than any of these guys," he grumbled.

"That may be, but they were here and you were not here because you were rehabbing. I still don't even like the idea of you wrestling to begin with. I know you were medically cleared, but sue me for worrying about your safety and well-being."

The fight they were constantly having seemed to be going around in circles. Always going around in circles and it was frustrating to say the least. Britt wanted nothing more than Hunter's health. She cared about what happened to him, cared about what happened to his body. Although she hadn't been in the business for as long as many people here, she knew the death toll and she didn't want her boyfriend on that list. Sure, he didn't take drugs, wasn't on a downward spiral, but there was no telling how his health would be five, ten years from now.

The facts were that Hunter had sustained a lot of injuries in his career and not minor injuries, but major ones that required surgery and months of recovery. This was going to come back and bite him in the ass, she could already see it. Arthritis was already an issue he was dealing with and with the bulk of his body, it was only going to get worse. She didn't know why he was so willing to subject himself to more punishment that would mean more pain in his future.

"I know you, do you see me in a match?" Hunter asked her.

"No, but you want to be in one and I wouldn't put it past you to beat some guy up for his number," Britt said, "and if that happens, I have alternates who I will put in place of you. The guys in the match are the guys in the match and I don't need you trying to worm your way into this match."

"I never said I was going to," he protested. "I'm kind of sick and tired of you trying to tell me what to do though. I don't need you to play my babysitter."

"Oh, you think that's what I'm trying to do," she said, suddenly aware of where they were. She dragged him to her office and pushed the door open, shoving him inside and closing the door behind her, dumping her purse on a nearby chair and depositing her briefcase on the desk before swirling around facing Hunter. "You think that I'm doing this because I want to be your babysitter."

"I've taken pretty good care of myself for the past 42 years, Britt."

"Yes, and I'd like you around for another 42 years," Britt told him. "What if we have kids, Hunter? What if you can't even play with those kids because you can barely move, huh? I look at Chris and see him with his kids and Christian with Tilden, I want that for you, but the way you're going, you act like you've never been injured."

"That's not true and you know it," he told her, "besides, we don't have any kids because we're not married."

"You don't need to be married to have kids, I'll have a kid with you right now," Britt said, "I'm pretty damn committed to you, if we were to have kids, that doesn't change anything. God, how are we talking about this? This isn't where I wanted the conversation to go."

"You'd want to have kids?" he asked.

"Not right this second, no," Britt said, "but yes, sometime down the line, I would like to have a child, preferably with you, but maybe not you after how you're acting. Can't you just be happy that you're going to be on Raw tomorrow and you get to evaluate the guy who essentially took over your job and will not relinquish a title he doesn't hold?"

"Yeah, but that's tomorrow, tonight I get to see 30 unworthy guys fight for a chance that should be mine."

"Impossible, you are impossible!" Britt threw her hands up in the air. "I don't know what it is going to take to get through that thick skull of yours, but…no, you know what, I've got a lot of work to do before this show and I need to do it. I will talk to you later."

"So you're just leaving?" he asked.

"I'm leaving before this devolves any more than it already has."

"Fine, go, I don't care."

"Oh, now you're going to pull this?" she rolled her eyes. "Okay, act like a baby, I don't care!"

Britt threw open the door and walked out of the office, not bothering to take anything with her because she just did not have the wherewithal to go back and grab anything. She nearly stomped down the hallway until she was grabbed on the arm. She looked over and saw it was Punk _again_ and she had to hand it to the guy, he was relentless. He wondered if this was the same tactic he used for all women who had a slight aversion to dating him. She pulled her arm from his grasp and kept walking.

"Hey, hey, hey," he told her. "Why the rush?"

"It's a big day, go get limber or something," she told him quickly.

"You want to help?" he asked her.

"Wow, I never took you for cheesy, but you sure hit that nail on the head, didn't you?"

"Okay, admittedly, that was pretty lame," Punk told her, "but you can't knock the sentiment."

"Phil, I really don't have time for this right now. I know you mean well in that weird way of yours, but really, tonight is not the night you want to pull this with me. I'm already tired and my day has barely even begun. I've got a lot to do tonight and—"

"I get it, really, I do. I'm sorry, I didn't want to really take you from your work, you just looked kind of stressed and I thought I could help," he said, turning off that sarcastic jackass part he always seemed to be playing. But maybe that persona was simply how he projected himself to everyone else.

"Thank you, maybe I can find time to talk to you later…if you don't go and try and hit on me again," she told him sternly.

"I can't promise that so I guess I won't see you, Ms. Britt," Punk winked at her before walking away. She didn't know what it was going to take to get him off her back, but she was going to need to do it soon. Hunter seemed hellbent on doing something for WrestleMania and with him officially on the show the next night, things could get very messy very soon.

If she were single, she would probably at least entertain the idea of Punk, but she loved Hunter. He made her feel something she hadn't ever really felt, but she couldn't be too sure if that was something lasting. She second-guessed herself sometimes, but then pushed it away in a fit of denial. Things were not-so-great right now, but once they got back in the swing of things, everything would be fine.

Chris jumped up and down while Flynn jumped up and down next to him. "What're you doing?" Chris asked when he noticed Flynn next to him. He'd been so in the zone he hadn't realized she was there until he took a moment to catch his breath.

"I being like you," Flynn told him.

"I wanna be like Daddy too," Sawyer hopped on over. "Wait, what are you doing?"

"I'm staying loose," Chris said, "I really haven't wrestled in a while. I had one practice match, but I want to stay limber because I'm really going to need to concentrate tonight when I'm in the rumble match."

"So you can stay and win, right?" Sawyer said.

"Exactly," Chris said, sitting on the ground and stretching his legs in front of him. Sawyer and Flynn followed suit and stretched their legs in front of them. Chris laughed and looked at them. "So you want to stretch too?"

"Uh huh," they both said, nodding their heads. Chris proceeded to show them how to stretch and they copied his moves. Sawyer grinned at him, "This is easy, Daddy."

"Well, it's just easy exercises to keep me loose."

"Are you scared about the match?"

"No!" Flynn said, looking at her brother, "Daddy not scared, Daddy not get scared, he's Daddy."

"Daddies can get scared, can't they?" Sawyer looked to his father for confirmation that adults did get scared. Maybe it wasn't the same kind of scared, but there were scary things in the world and grown-ups had to be afraid of some things.

"Of course Daddies get scared," Chris responded to him. "But I'm not scared about the match, I've been in a lot of these matches before and I know what I'm doing so I'm not scared. Besides, I'll have you guys and Kensy out there cheering for me."

"Don't forget Gamma and Gamps too," Sawyer reminded him.

"Oh yes, Gamma and Gamps too, definitely," Chris nodded. "I'll have my own cheering section and if I get tired or scared in the match, all I'll have to do is look over at you guys and see you cheering and I'll be happy again."

Sawyer smiled at that, "I think you're going to win, I hope you will, but what if you don't?"

"If I don't, then I have to go to work tomorrow and I have to prove I'm the best in other ways. You can't win all your matches and you can't win at everything. Sometimes you're going to lose and when that happens, you just have to be happy that you tried your best. That's some life advice right there."

"Life advice?" Flynn wondered, her face scrunching up in confusion.

"It just means that it doesn't go with just wrestling. As long as you guys try your best at whatever you do, Mommy and I will be proud of you."

"I get the big belt," Flynn shrugged as if this was what she was going to do.

"Well, when you get that, I'll be proud of you, but if you don't, I'll be proud that you tried," he told her.

"I get it," Flynn said again.

"I'm going to get it too," Sawyer said.

"Well then I guess I have to get mine too."

Stephanie turned to the side and looked at Trish, who was walking with her. Christian had come tonight though he didn't have plans to be in the Rumble. He'd been cleared to wrestle, but with no open spots, he'd have to settle for watching the show tonight. "Have you noticed that Laurinaitis is on his best behavior?"

"I heard him saying to David Otunga that he was going to be completely fair tonight," Trish laughed. "You've put the fear of God into him."

"Good, he should be scared and so should my dad. I'm doing a good job around here, don't you think?"

"I think so," Trish answered, "but then you hired me so I can't really say you're doing a bad job because you're my boss and in doing so, I'm putting my job at risk and I'm not going to do that."

"I did tell you that Kharma is coming back tonight, right?" Stephanie said. "She's been cleared to wrestle and so she's going to actually be in the Rumble. She said she could handle being in the ring with 29 guys so I'm trusting that she can. I think if Chyna and Beth could do it, Kharma absolutely can do it."

"Oh, she doesn't need my help at all," Trish shook her head, "I think she can handle things just fine. I'm proud of my girls though, I think they're going to actually go out there and not embarrass themselves. It's going to be tough going against Beth and Nattie who are just off-the-charts in comparison, but I think they'll hold their own."

"I hope so," Stephanie said, "I would like the women's division to not be such a sleeper division. If only I could find a way to revive the tag team division. It's pretty much dead in the water and I remember the days when it was a prominent feature, but nobody likes to wrestle in teams anymore save for a few guys. Everyone thinks they have to strike it on their own."

"It's just the nature of today's beast," Trish said, "Christian wanted to strike out on his own after a while."

"But being with Edge got him to where he is," Stephanie reasoned.

"Mommy!" Stephanie turned around and saw her kids and Chris's parents walking towards her.

"Hey guys, what's going on?"

"The show's starting soon or have you forgotten?" Ted asked playfully as Stephanie checked her watch.

"Oh my God, I didn't even realize," Stephanie said, "I've been so focused on Laurinaitis and the situation tomorrow. You guys are going to go out to the arena now?"

"Yeah, we are," Sawyer said. "I can't wait. I'm so excited because I love watching the shows when we're out there."

"I like it more!" Flynn announced and nodded vigorously.

"Okay, I think you both like it a lot," Stephanie said, "do you want me to walk you out there. I don't think there's many people out there so it probably shouldn't be too much of a problem for me to go out there."

"I think we can handle it," Loretta said. "Don't you think it would draw attention to the kids if you were out there fussing over them? I don't want people to really know who they are, that might make things uncomfortable."

"You're right," Stephanie said, then knelt down in front of Sawyer and Flynn. "You two behave out there and you listen to whatever Gamma and Gamps tell you because they're in charge. Flynn, no running to the ring, I know you, I know the lure is so tempting, but you can't and the biggest part, the most important part of it all, you _must_ cheer for Daddy the entire time he's out there, got it?"

"Okay," they nodded together and hugged Stephanie. Stephanie stood up and then kissed Kensington's forehead.

"As for you, little miss, I want you to have fun out there and I know it might be crazy, but you'll enjoy it," Stephanie told her.

"Kay-kay," Kensington smiled at her.

By the time the show started, Flynn and Sawyer were almost jumping on top of their seats. They were a few rows back and on the aisle in case they had to make a quick backstage getaway for any reason. They understood that their Daddy wouldn't be on until the last match, so they had to sit through all the other matches, but they tried their best to remain excited for all these other matches. Sawyer liked watching all the wrestlers, but Flynn was a little more Chris-focused and kept trying to ask her grandfather when her daddy was coming out. She was finally sort of appeased when Punk came out. She cheered for him and clapped her hands.

"I like him," she told her grandfather.

"You do?" Ted asked.

"Uh huh," Flynn said, "he has lotsa pictures on him. Daddy only has two and they boring."

"Two pictures?"

"Uh huh, Sawa, what dey called?" Flynn asked her big brother.

"Tattoos," Sawyer said in between his own cheering of Punk.

"Dat it, Gamps, Daddy has two tattoos," Flynn said.

"That's right," Ted said, "do you know what they are?"

"Mmm, Sawa, what dey again?"

"Daddy has Mommy's name on his finger and he has an F for Fozzy."

"Oh yeah," Flynn said, "he likes dem. But we bes quiet, I wanna see Punk, Kensy, you wanna sees Punk too."

"Mmhmm," Kensington said from her grandmother's lap.

Punk knew that Laurinaitis wasn't going to screw him over. He'd talked to him before the match and Laurinaitis had pretty much said that keeping him the WWE champion was the key to getting Vince back into power. Despite all their bravado though, Punk knew that Laurinaitis was running scared. The board was not happy with him and Stephanie had set it up so Hunter could be the one to evaluate him, which made him even more uneasy. He would have to talk to Chris either later tonight or tomorrow to assess where they would go with the plan from here if Hunter did fire Laurinaitis. It was up to him, Stephanie had told him, but she'd recommended firing him, which seemed like it was the way things were headed.

Punk couldn't think about that now and he didn't want to think about Hunter if he were being honest. He needed to focus on this match though he didn't find Dolph Ziggler exactly the type of wrestler who could seriously compete with him. Sure, the guy would put up a fight and that's what he wanted, but he was the best wrestler in the world and Dolph was not so the fight was an unfair one at the start. If Laurinaitis kept up his word then Punk would absolutely win.

At first, it seemed that Laurinaitis wasn't going to play by the rules. He was going to be on the outside of the ring, sure, but that didn't mean he couldn't do damage out there. And in the beginning, that's exactly what he seemed to be doing. There were points in the match where Punk had the pin and Laurinaitis was dicking around outside, not doing his job and in those moments, Punk was sure that he was getting screwed over, that somehow, Vince knew he was working with Stephanie and this was their way of sticking it to him. But then the tides turned it seemed and Laurinaitis wasn't acting as conspicuously against him and Punk wondered if this was the real guy.

He probably had to play it as straight as he could considering his job was on the line. Eventually, Punk was able to win after about the fourth time he'd pinned Dolph. It was about time he'd won too because he was tired of pinning the guy and the referees being too incapacitated to do anything about it. He was still the champion, just like he knew he would be and when Laurinaitis winked at him, he knew the game was still afoot.

"Yes, finally, we get to see the Rumble," Sawyer said excitedly. Even Kensington clapped over this. She didn't know what to make of this spectacle though. She'd watched enough wrestling in her very short life to have a kind of understanding where she was in a very broad sense. Flynn made her watch so many matches that her daddy was in that it felt like an old familiar hat watching wrestling, but this was so different. Everything was so bright and loud and all these people were kind of scary. She stayed very close to her grandmother because it was kind of too much to take in all at once.

Unfortunately for the kids, their father was not going to be on for a very, very long time and every time they started counting down thinking their father could be next, it ended up being someone else. Stephanie was standing with Chris backstage as guys kept filing out in order and other guys limped backstage after being eliminated. Stephanie was simply holding Chris's hand and watching the show on the monitor in front of them, every once in a while catching a glimpse of their children.

"Are you sure you're ready to go out there?" Stephanie asked him. "You really haven't had a real match and we're almost literally throwing you to the wolves."

"Of course I'm ready, plus I'm in a really good position," Chris said, "Number 29 is second-to-last, I'm going to be fresh while these guys are tired. I've got a great advantage."

"If you're sure, I just don't want you to get injured."

"Look who you're talking to," Chris gestured towards himself. "Tell me where I've been seriously injured?" Stephanie grabbed his left arm and ran her finger down a faded scar. "Okay, seriously, that one, you're bringing up _that_ one? I had barely done any wrestling and was trying to pull off a move that I don't even do anymore."

"You asked me to point out an injury, I pointed one out."

"I thought you wanted me back," Chris told her. "Why are you scared now?"

"I'm not scared," Stephanie said, "but I am always concerned about you. That's the nature of the beast. It wouldn't have mattered who you married, your wife, whoever she might have been, would have worried about you too. That's what a wife does. You think the other guys' wives aren't worried about their well-being."

"Thank you for worrying about me," he told her, "but I'll be fine out there. The kids are out there, how can I lose when I know I'm going to hear Flynn screaming? I figure she'll be the loudest since she has no concept of indoor voices according to her teacher."

Stephanie laughed, "This is one place where she doesn't need to use her indoor voice. I hope you win."

"Gee, thanks, I really needed to hear that, I had _no_ idea you wanted me to win," Chris said as the 28th guy, Randy Orton, went out there. "Okay, I should really get ready." Chris leaned forward and kissed Stephanie briefly. "I love you."

"I love you too, good lucky," she said as she gave him one extra kiss for luck.

Chris jumped in place a few times before he did a couple push-ups right there at the gorilla. Big Show was the only guy behind him and he wasn't paying attention so he didn't feel like a complete douche like he had at the airport. He waited for the countdown and the entire arena to go dark before he went out there and turned his jacket on.

"He's here, he's here!" Sawyer jumped up from his seat and peered over to the entrance.

"He's lighting up!" Flynn exclaimed, her grandfather holding her up so she could see her daddy. "He's so silly!"

The lights came up and suddenly there was Chris and his children started cheering madly for him, yelling and clapping their hands as Chris made it down to the ring. Kensington was giggling and clapping along with everyone and she couldn't believe her daddy was right there. Where had he _been_ all night? She pointed at him and Loretta nodded her head.

"Who's that?" Loretta asked the little girl.

"Dada," Kensington said and then laughed as she clapped happily, looking at her brother and sister who were now in full-on cheering mode.

Chris got into the ring and started to try and clean house, eliminating David Otunga before trying to find out what else he needed to do. It was still a bit chaotic in the ring so he changed his tactic to staying alive. Things seemed to happen fast as soon as he was in the ring. He'd never entered the Rumble this late before, granted he had been #28 before, but #29 was a whole person later. Everyone seemed to be getting eliminated left and right and suddenly, he was in the final four, which really helped his chances. What didn't help his chances were the three other guys. Sheamus had been in the match the longest, coming it at #22, but Randy had been right before him and Big Show right after him so they were as fresh as he was.

But then, again, things started moving quickly and Randy was eliminating Big Show and Chris saw an opportunity and it was every man for himself so he eliminated Randy, which left him and Sheamus. He and Sheamus had never really faced off against one another so Chris wasn't exactly familiar with his style, at least not as much as he would have liked, but this was his reality now. He'd have to adapt and there was nobody better at adapting than Chris was.

They started to go back and forth, proceeding like this was just a one-on-one match and like there hadn't been 28 other guys who had just left after being denied a chance for WrestleMania. Chris knew that if he won, he'd go after Punk. Hell, if he didn't win, he'd go after Punk. It was something to further their plan against Vince, but more than that, Chris wanted the challenge. Punk claimed himself to be the best wrestler in the world and while that was all fine and dandy, Chris, despite their friendship, wanted to test that out.

In his lapse of thought, Chris found himself hanging off the side of the ring, Sheamus having tried to throw him over. Chris caught a glimpse of his kids. Sawyer and Flynn were beside themselves, trying to will him into the ring while Kensington was just looking wide-eyed at him, like she wanted him to come hug her. They gave him the strength to get back in the match and it went back and forth once again. Chris even forgot for a moment that this was still the Rumble and tried to pin Sheamus (he'd give himself flak over that later). He'd never made it this far before and so it was new territory realizing this was still a challenge.

There was more back and forth and Chris found himself outside the ring too many times for his liking until the last time, he'd recovered and before he could get back in the ring, Sheamus's entire body crashed into his and he couldn't believe it. He'd lost. Everything, all the bravado, the impact of his "end of the world" statement, it was suddenly all over and Sheamus was the one taking it. He couldn't believe he'd lost in the blink of an eye over a stupid error. The referees were ushering him away now and he was in shock over the whole thing.

"He no win," Flynn said. "Gamps, he no win." Flynn's lower lip trembled as she watched her daddy walk up the ramp and looking very lonely. "He no win…he da best."

"It's okay, Flynnie," Ted said, gathering her up in his arms. "It'll be okay. He can still wrestle at WrestleMania. He can still go for the big belt, just like you want him too. Remember that Sheamus is on SmackDown so he might want to go after the other big, gold belt and then your daddy can go after Punk's."

"He should win though," Flynn started crying in earnest and Ted hugged her to his body. She started sobbing into his shoulder.

"I think we should get them back."

"It's okay, Flynnie," Sawyer patted his sister on the shoulder. "He'll win sometime."

"He should win!" Flynn sobbed out again and Loretta nodded as they stood up. They ushered Sawyer in front of them as they walked towards the backstage area. WWE security was very familiar with the Jericho children so Loretta and Ted didn't even need to flash their backstage passes at them. Chris and Stephanie were still at the gorilla when they walked in. They both looked over when they heard someone crying. Their eyes both softened when they saw it was Flynn.

Chris immediately went over and took her from his father's arms. Flynn looked up to see who was holding her and upon seeing it was her daddy, she cried even harder. Chris just rubbed her back and kept kissing her head. "Shh, Flutterby, stop crying."

"You no win!" Flynn sobbed, her cries getting harder and her voice getting more and more strained.

"Daddy, I'm sorry you didn't win, you were so close," Sawyer said, coming over and hugging Chris's leg and Chris patted his shoulder with his free hand.

"Thanks, kid, but remember what I said, we don't always win things."

"You'll win next time," Sawyer assured him. "I think you're still the best in the world. Sheamus is good too, but you're better, you were just on the end of the ring and you got caught there, that's all."

"Thanks," Chris said to him gratefully. Leave it to his son to put it all in perspective for him. "Hey, Kensy, did you like seeing me out there?"

"See!" she said giddily, not understanding her father hadn't won and definitely not understanding her sister's tears. She didn't feel like crying and she didn't know why Flynn of all people felt like crying.

"Daddy, stop, you should go and win," Flynn said in gasping breaths.

"Shh," Chris kissed the side of her head. He'd never expected this kind of reaction from Flynn. Yelling, throwing things, kicking Sheamus in the shin, yes, but crying, never. Still, it reminded him that his little warrior girl was still very young and did not understand everything just quite yet. "Flutterby, it'll be okay. I don't always win, remember?"

"But you should!" she gasped for air.

"Okay, come on, let's get out of here," Chris said, "we've got to get you guys back to the airport and maybe it'd be best if Flynn went home with you guys."

"No!" Flynn pulled away from Chris. "I stay, don't make me go, Daddy!"

"Okay, okay, okay," Chris said, holding her close again. "I promise, you don't have to go anywhere, you can stay with us."

"Here, let me have her," Stephanie said, taking Flynn from Chris. "You go get dressed so we can drive to the airport and then get to the hotel and get these girls to bed."

"Mommy," Flynn whimpered into Stephanie's neck.

"I know, baby girl, I know, sometimes it's even hard for me to watch Daddy lose. But it happens," Stephanie said as she and Flynn brought up the rear. "But you know what we have to do when Daddy loses?"

"What?"

"We just have to cheer for him even harder next time," Stephanie said.

Flynn had trouble sleeping that night because she was so upset. She ended up needing Chris to sit with her until she fell asleep and while she eventually did fall asleep, by the morning, she had her fist in Stephanie's face while kicking Chris in the ribs as she had somehow found their bed. Stephanie woke up after the third time getting punched in the nose. She rose from bed and thought about what the day would bring. Tonight she was sure Hunter was going to fire Laurinaitis.

When they got to the show, Laurinaitis was at the entrance greeting everyone personally as they came in. Stephanie gave him one look and said, "Sucking up at the 11th hour doesn't save the man from the electric chair."

They continued walking and Chris looked at Stephanie, "You know that this puts a kink into my ultimate plan, don't you?"

"It's not my fault, tell it to the board, they're the ones who think he should be evaluated. They keep saying they need someone whose personal life won't interfere with the product. Good luck finding someone like _that_. Everyone has an agenda. At least this puts the fear of God into my father. Besides, when Hunter inevitably fires him, he'll just come crawling back to his executive position and we don't really have any reason to keep him from that job."

"I don't mind giving it up, but I'd rather give it up to someone else," Chris admitted. "It gets pretty tiring listening to problems day in and day out. Probably why I lost the Rumble. I was thinking about Sheamus and his e-mail about how he feels pressured to tan because people make fun of his pasty complexion."

"So essentially, you were blinded by his skin?" Stephanie laughed.

"You could say something like that."

"Daddy?"

"Yeah, Flutterby?"

"You winning tonight?" Flynn asked simply, looking up at him with the same sad look she'd been wearing since last night.

"I don't have a match tonight, Flutterby, but I'm going to do something that will get me that much closer to the big, gold belt, okay?"

"Okay," she said quietly. She had not been her usual Flynn today. She'd been quiet and sullen and not her usual boisterous self. She was typically all over the place, smiles and laughs and fun all around, but she wasn't today.

"Flutterby, you're killing me here," Chris lifted her up as he slung his duffel bag over his shoulder. "What can I do to make you happy?"

"I is okay," she told him, laying her head on his shoulder and not saying anything else. Chris look over at Stephanie and she just shrugged, not knowing what to do to help. They'd been trying to do different things to get Flynn out of her funk, but nothing was working. They got to their locker room and Chris set his things down on the floor before sitting on the couch with Flynn.

"You sure you're okay?" Chris asked.

"Uh huh."

"Do you want to watch the show from the audience? I think I can find someone to sit with you. I could take over Britt's duties and you can sit out there with her if you want," Chris said. "How does that sound?"

"I watch here," Flynn answered.

"Okay, if you want to do that," Chris sighed. "You want to go see if they have chicken nuggets in catering. I know you love chicken nuggets."

"I not hungry," Flynn said. "I go play with Kensy now."

"Okay," Chris said as he set Flynn down. Stephanie was setting up their things on their play blanket and Flynn grabbed Kensington's hand and led her over there and sat down with her. Where Flynn would usually immediately grab the action figures and cajole Kensington into playing wrestling with her, Flynn went for the toy cars instead, handing one to Kensington, who started scooting it across the floor. Stephanie went to her desk and started sorting through some things when she noticed Chris looked just about as sad as Flynn did. She got up and sat next to him.

"Hey there, now what's got you all sad?"

"Her," Chris said, "I should've done everything in my power to win and one lapse of judgment and look at her, that's not our daughter. Our daughter is not quiet and she's not dull. _Our_ Flynn is full of life and mean and amazing."

"She's just sad, she'll get over it, I know she will," she just needs time. The door opened just then and Stephanie groaned, "What do you want, John, and why don't you knock?"

"This is important, I just wanted to tell you that I've taken care of the show tonight and that I've put in some matches that I think the fans really want to see and I think the fans will like it. I've also made the main event for the next Pay-Per-View and Chris, you're in it, I definitely wanted you to be in it. It's an Elimination Chamber match for the title."

"Okay," Chris nodded, but didn't say anything else.

"I want to do the best job I can, Stephanie, I hope that we can let bygones be bygones and just move forward."

"It's not my call what happens tonight," Stephanie told him. "I just talked to the board and I'm doing their wishes. That's all. So sucking up to me isn't going to get you anywhere, John. You might want to go find Hunter and try sucking up to him."

"I wasn't trying to suck up. I know I'm doing a good job here and I know that the board will see that regardless of Hunter's biased evaluation," Laurinaitis said. "I know my worth."

"I'm sure you do," Stephanie said, "you can go now." When he left, Stephanie scoffed, "Look at how weak he is. Whatever you and Punk are doing, I don't think you need to worry about it anymore."

"That reminds me, I should probably talk to him," Chris said, but then he looked at Flynn and amended his statement, "Actually, you know what, I think I'm going to hold off on that until later. I think he'll understand."

"Speaking of understanding, you don't have any time scheduled on the show and yet you tweeted that you had something to say tonight? What are you planning on doing?" she asked.

"What? So now you're monitoring my tweets again?" Chris wondered.

"Yes, because I was so in the dark about you returning, I figured I should keep up with whatever you're doing," Stephanie told him. "So what are you doing?"

"You'll see, I _do_ have something to say," Chris smirked at her as there was another knock on the door. "I swear, I will be glad to give that damn job back."

"It could be for me," Stephanie reminded him.

"But it's more likely for me," he said, "Come in!" Sheamus walked in the door. "See, told you, for me." Chris stood up, "What can I do for you, man? Come to rub in your win last night?"

"Actually no," Sheamus said in his thick brogue, "though I could, believe me, I could. Actually, I heard around that your daughter was a little put out over everything and I wanted to see if I could help."

"You wanted to help?"

"I like kids…they don't much like me, but I do like them," Sheamus shrugged. "May I?"

"Um, yeah, sure," Chris said, inviting him inside as he and Stephanie watched Sheamus go over and tap Flynn on the shoulder.

"Hello there," Sheamus said, sitting down next to her. "I heard you were kind of sad."

"You're ugly," Flynn said as Stephanie snickered and looked down. Now _that_ was the Flynn she knew and loved.

Sheamus laughed, "A lot of people say that. I don't think I've ever heard it from a little girl, but there's a first time for everything. You know though, I really like your name."

"Okay," Flynn said.

"Flynn's such a pretty name," he said, "you know, it's Gaelic, which is Irish like me, that name and it actually means red-haired, like me too."

"Your hair is very red," Flynn agreed.

"Yeah, I know and my skin is very white, don't you think?"

"Like a piece of paper," Flynn told him.

"Yeah, well, I agree, but I'm Irish, so that's a little to be expected," he told her, "but I just wanted to say that your daddy gave a very good fight last night, I almost didn't win, he was that good."

"He's da best," Flynn said, "he coulds beat you. But dere was no pinning!"

"You know, if there were pinning, your daddy would've definitely had me beat," Sheamus told her. "I was just lucky that he actually was on the outside or we might still be wrestling."

Flynn laughed at that, which eased Sheamus's guilt. He wasn't one to usually feel guilty but to hear that he'd broken a 3 year old's heart was a little tough to stomach. He did like kids and he didn't want to see one hurt because he'd won a match. Though it was fair and square and he knew Chris understood that, Flynn was little and probably didn't.

"He's very good."

"I know, he was the first Undisputed Champion, I looked up to him," Sheamus said.

"You better," Flynn smiled at him.

"So can we be friends?" Sheamus held out his hand to shake it with hers.

"Mmm," Flynn tapped her chin. "Okay!" She shook Sheamus's hand. "Kensy, you shake too!"

Kensington looked up from what she was doing and shook Sheamus's hand before he stood up. Stephanie and Chris both walked him to the door.

"Thank you for that, seriously," Chris said.

"Yes, thank you," Stephanie added.

"It's not a problem," he nodded before he left. Flynn was now giggling and playing with her action figures again and Chris and Stephanie breathed a sigh of relief.

Punk hadn't seen hide or hair of Chris the entire night and so when he went out to speak to Laurinaitis, he figured the plan was off and went off on Laurinaitis, who probably thought he was still acting. It felt good, but he really wished he could talk to Chris and figure out what was really going on. He had a match later though and that was going to take prep time so he probably wouldn't have time to talk to Chris before his match against Bryan. No matter though, they could just talk after the show.

"Hunter, you _are_ going to fire him, right?" Britt said. "I mean, the board said you could take over again, so clearly you're going that route."

"Yeah, I am," he said, "unless you think that's too strenuous for me."

"Stop, please, I'm not in the mood to argue with you," Britt said, "I just wanted to make sure I knew what you were going to do out there. It's my job to run the joint and I wanted to make sure that you were on the same page."

"Well I am," he told her shortly.

"Hunter, have you ever, in your entire life, had anyone that cares about you? Not your mother or your sister or any of your immediate family, but just, someone else, a significant other who worried about you?"

"Stephanie."

"Stephanie's worry was superficial. I know she was with you with your quad injury, but she couldn't wait to get away from you after that. Did Chyna ever care about you like I do?"

"I guess not, she was always off on her own little plane of thought."

"Yeah, so you're not used to this kind of concern, but everything I've been doing has been out of concern for you, that's all," Britt said, "when you come to understand that, I think we'll be better off. I've got to get back to the gorilla and make sure everything is running smoothly. I just wanted to make sure you were on board with me."

"Yeah, sorry, I'm being a jerk," he said, but that was all he said.

"Yeah, we'll see."

Punk was so focused on the match, it never occurred to him that Chris might interfere. That had been the original plan, to have Chris challenge him in order to make Punk get more of an in with Vince. It was easier for Punk to be trusted if he was going against Stephanie's camp directly and that could only come with fighting it out with Chris. But because of the Laurinaitis thing, Punk had no clue Chris would even come out until his face met Chris's knees.

Chris stared down at him, but the staring was a message for Vince and not for Punk. The message was that whatever happened, whatever he was planning, Chris was going to get ahead of him. Chris was going to always be one step ahead of him. He believed in his wife more than anyone else in this world and if Vince wanted to play games, Chris needed to play them better. He might not be a McMahon, but the Jericho chops were not that bad, not that bad at all.

There was a kink in the plan though, a huge one that nobody suspected.

When Hunter went out there, he fully intended to fire Laurinaitis after making him stew for a little bit. Laurinaitis had the audacity to self-review himself and give himself 5's on a scale of 1-5. It would have been more accurate if that scale was 1-100, then maybe Laurinaitis would average 5's. Hunter found it so amusing that the very man who had taken over for him had been felled by the exact same reason. At least when Hunter went out, it was with some dignity, but Laurinaitis seemed to have none as he begged and groveled.

When Hunter brought up Vince's Kiss My Ass club, it was as a joke, plain and simple, a joke. He never expected to see Laurinaitis on his knees after having put _chapstick_ on his lips. Hunter had to laugh at that. Vince sure had him trained well, but _this_ well was a little unsettling. At least it confirmed that Laurinaitis was a seasoned ass kisser, as if it could ever be doubted. Hunter decided to end the guy's misery and wrapped a friendly arm around his shoulders. He was about to future endeavor him as it were, but then…

Then the gong sounded.

Hunter was on alert immediately, not even dismissing Laurinaitis, who was subsequently getting the hell out of there. The music started and Undertaker was there and Hunter was staring him down. He'd had no idea Taker was even here and he wondered if anyone had known or if he'd just shown up out of the blue. It would be just like Taker to show up when nobody was expecting him. He slowly made his way down to the ring and then inside of it to stare down Hunter. He didn't say a word and Hunter didn't either. Hunter, not wanting to feel as intimidated as he was, patted Taker on the shoulder and left, but he was reeling inside, reeling because he didn't understand.

What could the Undertaker want with him now?


	355. He Mentioned Her! February 6, 2012

A/N: I LOVED tonight's show simply because Chris mentioned Stephanie and how great was that! It was so unexpected and I loved it and totally the best thing about Raw! :D

Also, keep voting in my poll, one guy is very clearly winning at the moment. ;) Hope you enjoy the chapter, reviews always welcome and loved! :) Oh, and just a reminder, I only follow the shows, everything outside the shows I interpret the way I want.

* * *

"That's a sexy look for you."

Chris turned to the doorway where his wife was standing. "I thought you were putting Kensy down for her nap."

"I did, she's blissfully asleep. And Sawyer is at Josh's house and Flynn is at a new friend's house today for a play date."

"Who's this new friend?" Chris asked. "Is it a boy, will I have to go over there and scope this kid out?"

"It _is_ a boy," Stephanie said, "his name is Alex and he's the only kid in her entire class who likes wrestling so of course Flynn sought him out and decided to be his new best friend. He's four so she's into older men as well."

"Don't say that!" Chris covered his ears. "I don't want to hear about my daughter liking boys, she's too young, she doesn't like boys, she doesn't like them at all."

"Well, she likes this one, even if it's just as a friend," Stephanie said, "he seems like a sweet kid, I got to talking to his mother and she didn't know who I was, but she said that her son watches wrestling with his father, so I suspect that you are going to have not only a pretty excited child who wants to meet you, but a dad who wants to meet you as well."

"As long as he's cool and his son is a good friend to our daughter," Chris said, "She _would_ find the one kid who likes wrestling."

"I told his mother, Janie, by the way, that we should have Alex over sometime. He's right in between Flynn and Sawyer's ages so he'd probably get along with both of them and I said that we have a lot of wrestling toys over here so we're setting up a play date for next week after we come home," Stephanie said.

"That's fine," Chris nodded, "I'm glad Flynnie is doing so well at preschool. I was afraid she'd get herself thrown out, but she's proving everyone wrong. I didn't think she had it in her to be…normal."

"So you're calling our daughter abnormal while you're standing in our bedroom in the middle of the week in your ring tights?" Stephanie asked.

Chris laughed and looked down at himself, "I'm really not making a good case for myself, am I?"

"No, you're really not," Stephanie said, "may I ask _why_ you're in said ring tights or is this all part of your evil plan with Punk, which I'm assuming this little Codebreaker was a part of…"

"I'm just wondering if I like these. I was watching myself on Raw and I'm not sure I even like these ring tights," he assessed himself in the mirror, tilting his head as if to look at it from a different angle.

"I think the Jericho across your crotch really sells it for me," Stephanie told him with a wink and a lecherous grin.

"It's so girls remember my name when they're on their knees in front of me, want to demonstrate?" he asked her, glancing at her through the mirror he was looking at.

"Or I can just look at my driver's license, which says Jericho right there on my name," Stephanie said, but she came over and draped her arms over his shoulders as she leaned her chin on his right one. "I think you look fine. You've said it a million times that you're in the best shape of your life so you look great, hot, totally smoking, makes me want to…oops, where are my hands going?" Stephanie's hands trailed down his shoulders to his waist and then down to the top of his trunks. "Oh my, I'm sorry, but they seem to have a mind of their own today!" She reached inside to grab the string that kept them tight.

Chris grabbed her hands to still her and then looked up at her in the mirror. "Do not start something you don't intend to finish."

"Two of our children are out of the house, the other is asleep, I intend to finish," she told him and he turned around and pressed his lips to hers, effectively quieting her down for the time being.

Later on, Stephanie was tracing Chris's abs as they laid there in bed. "Kensy will be up soon and I've got to go pick up the kids from their friends' houses."

"Let's just forget we have kids. Let's call my parents, ask them to watch them, then just drive and never come back," he told her, kissing the top of her head. Stephanie pulled away to look at him in the face and then gave him a look. "What? All this afternoon delight has gone to my head."

"I don't think anyone would appreciate us just flying away from our regular lives," Stephanie said, "except my father, then he could take his job back."

"That's true," Chris chuckled. "He would love to see us just go away. You know, we never really have taken a vacation since my 40th birthday. We're so busy with everything that we haven't had any chance to get away. I don't know when the last time just the two of us got to get away was where one of us didn't have to work in some capacity. Could it be that maybe…hmm…what could be in the drawer of your nightstand…"

"Chris?"

"I don't know, you might want to check," Chris said and Stephanie sat up and reached over to her nightstand, pulling open the drawer. Inside were a couple of printed out airline tickets. Stephanie looked over at Chris, who was grinning at her.

"What did you do?" Stephanie asked. Then she looked down at the destination, "Oh my God, you're taking me to the Bahamas?"

"Next week, yup, for a few days, I thought we could take a few days for ourselves, _just _for ourselves and there's this great resort that we can go to, right on the beach of course. It's really nice, I checked it out and this is something I want to do for you."

"What did I do to deserve a trip?" she asked.

"Well, we never got a honeymoon and we forgot out seven year anniversary, I think I owe you a little something," Chris told her as he sat up to receive her hug. "I wanted to do something special for our missed anniversary and I figured that this was something we could both enjoy and we both deserve time off."

"You're the best," Stephanie kissed him. "I can't believe you did this for us. I mean, I know we missed our anniversary, but this is so sweet of you."

"There's more in there, but it's not for you," Chris said. "The other stuff is for the kids."

"What kind of thing for the kids?"

"Nothing much, but the Jets are going to be in town Thursday night and I'm going to take the kids to the game. I thought they would have fun and they liked it when my dad took them to that hockey practice, plus, it's the Jets and I'm from Winnipeg and they're half-Canadian anyways…"

"Which means they have hockey in their blood," Stephanie said, getting off the bed and finding her clothes quickly as she got dressed. "Where will I be while this is going on? Am I invited or is it Daddy/children time?"

"I didn't think you'd want to come to be honest," he said, "you could have a relaxing evening in or out, whichever you prefer. I can take the kids to dinner and then the game. You can do…whatever it is you do when nobody is around. Get naked and dance around, I don't know, is that something you like to do?"

"I'll figure something out," Stephanie said to him as she pulled her shirt over her head. "Kensy should sleep for another half hour or so, so you don't immediately need to get dressed, but if you could manage to put some actual clothes on and wash those ring tights, please."

Chris nodded and Stephanie left to go pick up the kids. She went to pick up Sawyer first since she knew the way to Josh's house since Sawyer had been friends with him since preschool and had gone over to his house a number of times. After briefly chatting with his mother, she loaded Sawyer up into the car and then put Alex's address into her GPS system, which would tell her exactly how to get there. Sawyer told her all about his play date while they drove and Stephanie listened intently as he told her everything they did and she laughed and smiled because she loved hearing all about her kids' days. There would always be something sad about them growing up, but she loved being able to have conversations with her children and she loved taking them places and she just loved being a mom.

They finally arrived at Alex's house and Stephanie asked Sawyer to wait in the car for her and he nodded. She walked up to the door and rang the doorbell, turning around to check on Sawyer and make sure he wasn't driving down the driveway or something when she heard the door open and she turned around with a friendly smile.

"Holy shit."

"Excuse me?" Stephanie asked.

"You're Stephanie McMahon," the man said. "Oh my God, you're actually Stephanie McMahon."

"Yes, that's my name," Stephanie nodded, "and you must be Janie's husband. Your wife told me that you were a wrestling fan."

"I can't believe Stephanie McMahon is standing on my doorstep…wait, you know my wife, my wife _knows_ you and she didn't tell me, how the hell does she know you? How could my wife not tell me she knew you…oh God, she wouldn't know who you are. Damn it, I'm sorry, God, I'm not…you're Stephanie McMahon."

"Yes, again, I'm Stephanie," she laughed awkwardly.

"Did I win some contest or something?" he asked, completely in awe of her.

"Actually, I'm just here to pick up my daughter, Flynn," Stephanie explained. "She had a play date with your son, Alex. Are they here?"

"Wait, you're Flynn's mother, your daughter, that Flynn, oh my God, I have had Chris Jericho and Stephanie McMahon's daughter in my house, oh my God, oh my God, that's why she loves wrestling and Chris Jericho…I didn't know her last name, if I had known her last name, I would have made the connection, oh my God, I've seen her picture, but she was so much younger in that. I've read both your husband's books and I've got all of Fozzy CD's, brilliant by the way, and you look fantastic, I saw those workout photos and you look great. Oh, I'm Travis by the way."

"Again, thank you, Travis" Stephanie said, "I have my son waiting in the car so if Flynn is here somewhere, I kind of have to get going."

"Oh, yeah, of course, come on in," he said, moving out of the way as Stephanie tentatively stepped into the foyer. "They're upstairs, you're welcome to wait down here if you want or come up."

"I'm okay waiting down here, thank you," Stephanie said, smiling at him. She'd never had someone so tongue-tied around her, but it probably would be a shock, as a wrestling fan, to have her show up on your doorstep. Travis disappeared upstairs and Stephanie looked around. The house was very nice and she was just turning around to look at a picture when she heard footsteps.

"Hi, Mommy!" Flynn said, holding onto the railing as she came down the steps, Alex and his father trailing behind her.

"Hey there, Flynnie, did you have fun?" Stephanie asked as she knelt down and intercepted Flynn's hug.

"I did! Alex is funny," Flynn nodded and then grinned over at her friend.

"She likes to play wrestling, I don't know any girls who like wrestling as much as Flynn does," Alex said.

"I like it a lot," Flynn confirmed and Stephanie laughed as she stood up and picked Flynn up.

"Well, I'm glad you had fun, you have to thank Alex and his daddy for letting you come over to play and have fun and eat lunch."

"Thank you! I had lots and lots of funny times," Flynn grinned at them and then nodded her head as if recalling all these funny, funny times that she'd had with them. Flynn leaned in close to Stephanie and cupped her ear while whispering loudly, "Can Alex come over to play?"

Stephanie turned to her, "I think that's a great idea." She turned to Alex. "Flynn and I would love to have you come over for a play date too. Flynn and her brother have lots of toys and he's only a year older than you are so you could probably play with him as well."

"Flynn says you have lots of wrestling toys, is that true?"

"Yeah, it is true," Stephanie nodded.

"He not have Daddy!" Flynn said, which nearly caused Travis to squeak out. "I have lots and you can play with dem, Alex."

"Thank you, Flynn."

"They are seriously adorable," Stephanie said to Travis, who just looked tongue-tied. "We really would love to have Alex over to play sometime. My husband and I are going away next week, but we would love to have him a couple weeks from now, maybe. If that's okay with you guys."

"To your house, to your house with Chris Jericho there?"

"Yeah, he'd be there, we live together since he's my husband," Stephanie laughed. "We're just normal people, we swear, you don't have to act like we're celebrities or whatever you're thinking, really, please don't, we just are…not like that."

"I'm sorry, I've just watched the WWE since I was a kid really," he said, "so this is kind of crazy for me. I saw you when you first debuted and so it's a little strange seeing you now."

"I promise, it'll get easier," Stephanie said, "but thank you again for having Flynn over here, she had fun and thank you for that."

"Thank you, she was great, let me show you out," he said, opening the door for them. "It was really, really nice to meet you."

"You too, bye, Alex, bye," Stephanie waved and Flynn followed suit as they walked towards the car. Flynn's eyes lit up as she saw Sawyer was in the car. She climbed eagerly in the backseat and the entire ride home, she told Sawyer all about her new friend. When they arrived back home, the kids went up to the playroom while Stephanie looked for Chris. She found him just putting his trunks into the dryer, Kensington sitting on top of the washer. "Hey, guys. Kensy, did you have a good nap?"

"Uh huh," Kensington nodded and reached her arms for Stephanie.

"Good, I'm glad," Stephanie said, taking the little girl into her arms. "The kids are upstairs if you want to say hi and tell them about the hockey game they get to go to and that I don't get to go to."

"Stop, you don't even like hockey," Chris kissed her in welcome. "It'll just be me, the kids, and my dad, all the people who love hockey. You wouldn't be any fun because you'd be asking a ton of questions."

"So will the kids," Stephanie pointed out.

"I like them better than I like you," he told her with a wink, but it was actually true of both of them. She loved her husband, but her kids were her kids and they had her unconditional love. The love she had for them surpassed her love for anyone else in the entire world.

"I figured as much," Stephanie laughed as she nuzzled her face against Kensington's dirty blonde hair. "So you know how I told you that Alex was the only wrestling fan in Flynnie's class?"

"Yeah…what about it?"

"Well, his father was kind of surprised to see me show up on his doorstep…so if you ever meet him, expect to be bombarded because he's not just a casual fan, he's one of those fans that is very, very into wrestling and I just thought you should know what you were getting into."

"That bad?" Chris laughed.

"Oh yeah," Stephanie laughed as well. "He didn't realize at first that I was Flynn's mother, he thought he'd won some contest or something. I think he's probably still in shock that he had Chris Jericho and Stephanie McMahon's daughter inside his house, he was that much in awe. I thought he was going to faint when he was talking to me and I'm just me so I can't imagine how he'll be around you, an actual wrestler."

"Thanks for the heads-up, but as long as Flynn likes his son and wants to be friends, then I'll put up with it. I'm not going to have her lose friends because I'm some snobby wrestler who can't deal with fans," he said, then made a face towards Kensington, "the same goes for you Kensy-bug. But I reserve the right to scare off any guy that looks untowardly towards you."

"You'd do it too," Stephanie said.

"Are you kidding me? If the guy even so much as looks like he wants to touch one of my daughters, I will throw him out on his ass so fast, his head will spin…not that I would need it for Flynn, I guess. I think she'll be kicking guys' asses herself if they tried anything. She's like that."

"Yeah, she is. She wants to have Alex over because Alex didn't have any of your action figures, which I'm sure she was _so_ put out about."

"I haven't had one made of me in a while," Chris shrugged, "I'm sure that if he could, he would have, but sure, have him over, it'll be fun for Flynn. I'm glad to see that she has so many friends. I swear, I thought she was going to be the bully kid that nobody wanted to hang out with so I'm just pleasantly surprised that she seems to get along with people."

"I think what her teacher said was right, she's used to the sharing thing. She learns from what Sawyer does and he's a good kid."

"Hi, Daddy," Sawyer's voice rang out as he stuck his head in the laundry room. "I didn't know where anyone was. I wanted to ask for some apple juice."

"Oh sure, let me get it for you," Stephanie said.

"Hey, kid, I want to talk to you and your sister in a little while," Chris said. "After I fold this laundry and everything, I've got a surprise for you and your sister that I think you're going to like, okay?"

"Okay, I like surprises," Sawyer shrugged as he followed Stephanie into the kitchen. Chris continued to fold the laundry, which always piled up until his trunks were done drying. He was just folding them and his boot covers when Flynn skipped into the laundry room, a big stain on the front of her shirt.

"And just what happened there?" Chris asked, pointing to her shirt.

"I had apple juice with Sawa and Mommy and Kensy and I spilled," Flynn said with a heaving sigh as if she was so disappointed with herself. "Mommy told me to come in here and ask you for a shirt to wears."

"Oh, you, come here," he lifted her up and sat her on top of the washer as he grabbed a dry shirt. He pulled off her dirty shirt, throwing it into the hamper and helped her put on her new shirt. Her eyes lit up as she saw his ring trunks sitting there and she pulled his boot covers off and pulled them on her legs.

"Look, Daddy, I you again!" Flynn giggled as she pulled the other one on too. "It say Jericho, dat my name."

"I know that's your name," Chris said, "okay, you look adorable right now. I should take a picture of you."

"I wear you undies too," Flynn grabbed his ring trunks.

Chris laughed, "Those are not my underwear, Flynnie."

"Uh huh, Mommy say you wrestle in your undies."

"Oh, she does, does she?"

"Yeah, which is just weird," Flynn said, "but I don't care."

"Thank you," he said, putting her down and giving her his wrestling trunks, "there you go, go to town."

Flynn put them on and started acting like she was Chris, "I Chris Jericho, I best ever! I get the big belt 'cause Flynn Jericho wants it!" Then she smiled sweetly up at Chris. "I put me in dere, Daddy, 'cause I do wants it."

"Okay, now I've _got_ to get some pictures, come on," Chris said as he led his daughter out into the living room. "You are adorable, you know that, right?"

"What's adorable?" Flynn asked.

"It's when you're super cute," he said as Flynn posed again in his ring trunks and boot covers. Chris took a picture of her as Stephanie, Sawyer, and Kensington walked into the room.

"Okay, I knew she was starting early, but I didn't know she was already getting ready for matches," Stephanie said as she looked at her daughter. "Flynnie, are you getting ready for a match?"

"I can!" Flynn said, making another face and kind of looking like the Ultimate Warrior when he'd grabbed the ropes and power up. "I will wrestle…um…Eve!"

"Wow, way to start off easy," Chris said with a laugh.

"I wanna try on your tights," Sawyer said. "I can look like a wrestler too."

"Sure, go for it," Chris said as Stephanie laughed at their weirdo children. Part of her, though, kind of loved their interest in wrestling at such a young age. Okay, _all_ of her loved that they loved wrestling at such a young age. Kensington didn't _quite_ get wrestling yet, but when she did, Stephanie was sure she would love it as well.

"Fine," Flynn sighed and took it off and let Sawyer try them on.

Sawyer started posing like Chris as well as he took a picture of him too. "I'm Sawyer Jericho and I'm gonna be the WWE champion and I can beat anyone and I will hold the big belt and best in the world at what I do!"

"That's my kid," Chris said, pointing at his son. "I'm getting all choked up, that's absolutely my kid right there. I always knew I'd have a son who would be just like me."

"Oh, give it up," Stephanie said, putting down Kensington.

"Me too! Me too!" she said, wanting to join in on the fun and doing an almost spastic dance to illustrate just how much she wanted to join in.

"All my children want to be like me," Chris said, pretending to cry as he covered his face. "I never thought this day would ever come. Before I started dating you, I thought I'd be too old to enjoy my kids loving wrestling—"

"Oh stop it!" Stephanie came over and pushed him over as he knelt on the ground. Chris laughed as he looked up at her. "At some point some woman would've grabbed you and given you those delightful, little kids you wanted."

"There you go, Kensy," Sawyer said as he helped her into Chris's ring tights. "Daddy, Kensy looks funny."

"She does," Chris said, taking a picture of Kensington as she gave the cutest face Chris had ever seen. It was a cross between coy and mischievous and it was perhaps the cutest she'd ever looked with his ring tights practically falling to her knees. "You're awfully cute, Kensy."

"She looks silly," Flynn said, silly being her favorite word of the moment. Everything was silly in her world. "I look like wrestler."

"You did," Stephanie indulged her. "We should send this to all our friends so they can see what the next generation of Jericho is going to look like in the future. It might even intimidate some other people's children."

"I've got a better idea," Chris said as he played with his phone for a bit. Stephanie watched him over his shoulder, trying to assess what he was doing while Flynn tried to start a mock wrestling match with her sister.

"Flynn, stop that," Stephanie told her daughter as she pushed a little too hard on Kensington, making Kensington fall on her butt. Kensington didn't care though as she just got up and started grappling with her sister again. "Okay, you two, back away from each other, you're not fighting right now."

"But Mommy, she's fighting too!" Flynn said.

"I know, which is why she needs to back away from you too," Stephanie said as she pulled Flynn away.

"Okay, there, now the entire world can see what my children can do in the ring," Chris said as he showed Stephanie his phone.

"You posted their pictures on your Twitter account? And who authorized you to allow our children's likenesses to be posted for the entire world to see? Did I tell you that you could put our kids' pictures all over the internet?"

"No, but they're half mine and the half that are mine wanted to be on Twitter," Chris shrugged, "but come on, look, we're already getting responses on how cute they are. How could you not want everyone know how beautiful our children are."

"You're buttering me up," Stephanie said, "I don't like it when you do that."

"Daddy, are they talking about us?" Sawyer asked as he sat next to Chris. Chris nodded and showed him the pictures. "What are they saying?"

"They said that you look like a real wrestler," Chris told him, "and that they can't wait for you guys to debut when you're old enough to debut and be wrestlers and that they're sure you'll be the WWE champion."

Sawyer grinned, "I'll really try, Daddy, I'll really, really try to do that."

"You will," Stephanie said, "I know you will. I can't wait for that day, I'll probably be the proudest mom in the world at that moment."

"Prouder than the moms whose children become doctors and lawyers?" Chris asked her.

"Sawyer can be a doctor on the side," Stephanie smirked, but really, whatever her kids wanted to do with their lives, she would be one hundred percent behind them. It was their life and whatever they wanted to do, she was all for it. She loved them and she wanted what was best for them and that was it. "After he's a wrestler."

"You so have your priorities straight," Chris laughed at her. "And the general consensus during the first wave of responses is that we have the cutest kids on the planet. I never doubted it for a second."

"And how many think they're cute because they're _your_ kids?"

"What? Are you saying that people just try to suck up to me? How dare you think that?" he joked.

"Daddy, where's our surprise?" Sawyer asked. "You said we were going to have a surprise."

"Oh yeah, hold on," Chris said, standing up and then running out of the room. Sawyer looked after him and then looked at Stephanie, who gave him a conspiratorial grin because she knew what was coming. Chris came back downstairs and back into the living room. "I got something for you guys."

"What? What?" Flynn asked, coming over and trying to grab at Chris's hands.

"We're going to hockey!" Chris said, showing them the tickets.

"Wow, cool, I love hockey!" Sawyer said. "Who's playing? Is it the Lightning?"

"Yeah, but it's also the Winnipeg Jets."

"That's where you're from!" Sawyer said.

"Exactly, so we're going to root for the Jets and we're going on Thursday and it'll be me, you, Flynn, Kensy, and Gamps."

"Cool," Sawyer said. Since he couldn't go to wrestling any longer, going anywhere with his father was a special thing to him.

Chris smiled at Stephanie. He loved doing things with his family. They were important to him and he knew he had a lot on this plate, but whenever he could spend time with them, quality time not traveling or wrestling or having a concert, he took the opportunity. They were only going to be young once and he had to take advantage of that.

When Monday rolled around, the kids were out of hockey mode and into wrestling mode even though Flynn insisted on wearing her new Winnipeg Jets t-shirt underneath her light-up jacket. She looked like a walking, talking billboard for her father. Whenever she had the jacket on, the lights _had_ to be on so as she walked down the hallway holding onto her father's hand, she was lit up like a little Christmas tree. Stephanie was on her other side, talking on the phone and she did not sound happy at all, but her mother rarely seemed happy when she was at the shows. Her daddy said it was because the show was stressful, whatever that was.

"What do you _mean_ he asked for a stay?" Stephanie asked, almost staring at the phone in disbelief. "I can't believe he would do that. What is going through his mind? And they actually let him have it, I cannot believe they would do that."

"He apparently made a really great appeal," Hunter said. "I didn't find out about it until this morning. I think your dad arranged it and that's why we didn't hear about it."

"You know, I should just have the board completely removed and get a new board put into place, one that my father doesn't have in his pocket. Where are you right now?"

"I'm watching the ring being set up, why?"

"I'm heading over there now," Stephanie said, "I want to talk about what's going to happen tonight. I know Britt gave you time at the top of the show to actually fire Laurinaitis, but we have to think of something else now."

"I think I have something, but I'll talk to you when you come out here," Hunter told her.

"Okay, I'm on my way," she hung up her phone and she turned to Chris, but he was already waving her off. "I'm sorry I have to ditch you like this, I promise it's not for long, I know you have a match tonight and you have to focus because it's an important match, but—"

"Just go," Chris told her. "I can handle the girls for a little while and my match isn't until the main event and that's hours away, I won't be distracted, I promise. Do you think you could get me some time at the middle of the show, I want to say something."

"You mean you actually want to _say_ something or you're just saying that you want to say something and then you're going to go out there and give one sentence?" Stephanie asked him. "Because we're kind of jam-packed tonight and we've got matches and Hunter's talking and we have that Cena package that we have to fit in somewhere and it's going to look like serious nepotism if I let you have _more_ time to do nothing."

"I'm not doing nothing," Chris frowned, "I was doing something, but believe me, I will be talking tonight and I'll be explaining some of the reasons why I came back."

"So you're going to be talking about…"

"Everyone stealing from me really," Chris said, "you had to have noticed that people have been blatantly ripping me off for a while now, right?"

"I don't notice these things, Chris," she said, "I've got bigger things to do than to worry about who might be stealing from you."

"Stealing is bad," Flynn piped in. "You shouldn't steal."

"See, she gets it," Chris said, "but go, go before Hunter thinks you stood him up. After the fake pregnancy, he's probably wary of you."

Stephanie glowered at him and then walked off. That left Chris with the girls and he was about to start walking towards their locker room when he spotted Trish up ahead, talking with Eve, looking like she was giving her a pep talk. Chris led the girls over to her while waiting for her to finish up her conversation. When Eve left, Trish turned to him and smiled, reaching forward to hug him and then say hello to the girls.

"Hey," Chris said, "I was trying to reach you on Thursday, well, trying to reach Christian actually because the kids and I had tickets to a hockey game and my dad ended up getting a cold and couldn't make it so we had an extra ticket and I tried to call Christian to see if he wanted to come, but I couldn't get a hold of you guys. You didn't answer your cell phones or your house phone, where the hell were you?"

"Oh, on Thursday?" Trish asked.

"Yeah, on Thursday, I called around, um, I think it was 2:00," Chris recalled, "yeah, but it just went straight to message. Were you guys at the movies or something?"

"We were probably just out or something," Trish shrugged. "We probably didn't even hear our phones, it happens when you're in noisy places, but I'm sure if we'd answered, we would have thanked you for inviting him."

"Yeah…" Chris said, sensing something weird in Trish's tone. "It would have been cool if he could have come. Stephanie ended up coming with us even though it was supposed to be a night off from us. Turns out that she likes us or something and didn't mind spending time with us, crazy, right?"

Trish laughed, "Yeah, I mean, who wouldn't want a night off, right?"

"So you were talking to Eve?"

"She's just freaked out about the situation with Kane and she wanted some advice. She said she would've gone to you, but she wanted to talk to a woman and I don't think you can really do anything short of suspending Kane, but I guess he hasn't done anything to _her_ really, not on the scale that he did to Zack," Trish said, her voice becoming quicker and quicker as she spoke, which only made Chris furrow his brow a little bit more.

"Trish, are you okay?" Chris wondered.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Trish nodded. "I'm just really busy."

"Is Christian here?"

"Oh…no, he stayed at home with Tilden. She didn't feel like flying, she's been pretty cranky. She probably knows her 2nd birthday is tomorrow and she's a little apprehensive about getting old," Trish joked.

"That's right, we have the party tomorrow afternoon, right?"

"Yes, that's right, my little girl is already two years old, I almost can't believe it," Trish said wistfully.

"If you were Stephanie, you would already be working on your second one," Chris joked with her and Trish laughed.

"I'm not sure we're ready for another one," Trish admitted. "I'm not sure that Christian wants that."

Again, there was something in her tone, but Chris didn't want to pry. Kensington, thankfully, started to whine a little and that signaled that it was time to go. "I better head to the locker room before Kensy starts in on a full-on tantrum. I'd tell you to tell Christian to call me, but since I'll see him tomorrow, I guess that's not necessary."

"Yeah, I guess not," Trish said. "I'll see you later, Chris."

"Bye," Chris said as he led the girls to his locker room. He entered and saw Punk was in there.

"Dude, where the _hell_ have you been?" Punk asked. "I've been waiting her for half an hour and you haven't even showed your face and I wanted to talk to you about what I talked with Steph's dad about."

"Sorry," Chris said as he helped Kensington from her stroller. She walked right over to Punk and raised her arms towards him. She wanted to be carried and she didn't care by whom. Punk took her in his arms and she sat in his lap.

"Hey, Kensy, what's up?" Punk asked her and she smiled and shrugged. "Not much in the mood for talking today? You take after your father then, huh?"

"Uh huh," Kensington said.

"And nice jacket, Flynnie," Punk said. "I think I could spot you from space if I had to."

"I like my jacket," Flynn ran her hand over the arm of her jacket. "I lights up and I am a light!"

Punk laughed, "You certainly are, you certainly are. I even saw the picture of you in your dad's ring tights, I thought you looked pretty cool and ready for the ring."

"I was, I wrestle Kensy, but Mommy said not to do dat because it no nice, but she likes it!" Flynn shook her head and sat on the couch. "You like wrestles, right, Kensy?"

"Uh huh, like," Kensington said.

"Like little sheep, aren't they?" Punk said as Chris set up the kids' things. "So, as I was saying, your father talked to the board and—"

"I know that he got Laurinaitis a stay. Hunter was just talking to Stephanie. He was just informed about it and he was telling Stephanie about it."

"Well, did you know that they're going to come to their decision soon, maybe tomorrow morning on what should be done about Laurinaitis? That means by tomorrow afternoon, you might not have to be an executive anymore, which means that you won't get everyone and their mother whining to you."

"That's good, but not so good because it'll put Stephanie and Laurinaitis against each other again."

"Yeah, but it's better than having him as the GM. He's a damn blowhard," Chris gestured to the girls, "sorry, sorry, he's a meanie butt-head. I would rather have Hunter as the GM than have Laruinaitis as the GM, what does that tell you?"

"I don't know, what is that supposed to tell me? You probably want Hunter as the GM so he has so much work to do that he forgets about his girlfriend."

"Shut up," Punk said, "I don't have to plan this stuff with you, you know, I could just branch out all by myself and become rogue again, how would you like that?"

"What's rogue?" Flynn asked, trying to follow the conversation.

"It just means out on my own," Punk said. "You don't have to bring up Britt, that's probably a dead end. I mean, it's really not, but if I don't get my hopes up then if she doesn't choose me, I won't have them dashed."

"You think you're an honest choice for her at this point?"

"She didn't marry Hunter, did she? She turned him down flat, didn't she? That _has_ to mean something. If she loved him as much she says she does, why not marry him?"

"You don't believe in marriage any more than she does," Chris pointed out. "You think it's an archaic institution that forces you to commit to something for the rest of your life when you are not sure how the rest of your life is going to go. You told me that and you don't ever get drunk so that was what you really thought."

"Marriage is okay for _some_ people," Punk corrected him, "I mean, you and Stephanie seem to have the whole situation down pat and that's cool, you guys are cool together and I totally believe that nobody else would put up with either one of you, but for me, it's just not the right thing at all. That's all I'm saying."

"Okay, so that's all you're saying and that's all she's saying."

"Whatever, this discussion is over, I want to talk about what we're doing tonight. I shouldn't even be in here, but I wanted to be clear about what you were going to say. We didn't get to really talk because I like to spend my home time doing anything other than wrestling."

"Fine, let's talk about later."

Hunter outlined everything he wanted to say to Stephanie as she nodded along. "I agree with everything. I think you should come out here, say that you were going to fire him, then blame it on the board. What are you going to do about Taker?"

"You know, I feel sorry for the guy, I don't know why, I think it's the way he left our match last time. He doesn't feel like the same guy. I actually plan to talk about that. I figure after last week, everyone deserves to know how I felt about what happened. I wasn't exactly terrified of the guy."

"Well, maybe there's not a lot left to be terrified of," Stephanie shrugged. "It's got to be taking its toll on him, you know, all this wrestling stuff. I guess he just feels compelled to try and keep the streak going."

"If he wants to wrestle me, really wrestle me, I will, but I think he'll finally go 19-1," Hunter shrugged.

"He might," Stephanie said, "but I wouldn't get too cocky if I were you. There's still fight left in him and to underestimate him would be stupid. He always comes back and he's not easy to put down."

"I know, believe me, I've been in the ring against him so many times, I think I know the protocol, but…it just feels different," Hunter said, "and I can't really explain why, but I'll have to think of some way to put it. I just want…I don't know what I want actually, but beating him might not…have the same gusto as it would have once had."

"You'll think of something to do," she patted him on the shoulder. "I better get backstage, Chris has the girls and he's got a full night on his plate."

"Hey, before you go, can I ask you something?" he grabbed her arm to keep her from leaving.

"Yeah, sure, what is it?" she turned to him, wondering what it could be. Hunter frowned a little, which she always thought made him look so unattractive. He always looked better when he smiled. He looked as if he was trying to think of what to say and he furrowed his brow before he looked back up at her. "Hunter?"

"Is there something going on with Punk and Britt?"

"Excuse me?" She tried to sound like she didn't know that Punk had a crush on Britt and was actively trying to pursue her. Part of having a plan was making sure all involved parties were happy. There was a status quo that needed to be met and if that status quo became off-balance, then the whole operation could topple over. If Hunter got mad, he could beat up Punk, which would make Punk want to leave the plan and she needed him. Conversely if Hunter knew that everyone knew about Punk wanting Britt, Hunter would be mad and could spill all the beans.

"I don't know, just this weird vibe I get whenever he's around her. They're not…I mean, you haven't heard any rumors of them being together, have you?"

"God no!" Stephanie said and that was the truth, thank God. At least it was the truth as she knew it. "There's nothing between them, that is such a crazy thought. Britt would never do that to you."

"Don't you think I deserve it though?"

"Deserve it? Why in God's name do you think you would deserve to have her cheat on you?" Stephanie asked, taking a seat again. "Hunter, why would you even think that?"

"Because I've treated her horribly in the past, I've ignored her, I've broken up with her. Why shouldn't she lull me into a false sense of security and then lower the boom? I mean, after the way I've treated her, it's probably the least I deserve. That's how things usually work out for me."

"You're referring to me, right?"

"You faked a pregnancy on me."

"It wasn't to hurt you though," Stephanie said, but then off of Hunter's look, "Okay, it was to hurt you a little, but mostly it was to try and salvage something so I didn't look like a failure. Hunter, at that point in our life, we weren't happy, but you and Britt _are_ happy; the situations are totally different, incomparable really."

"I guess so, I'm just not good at relationships. I mean, the three most significant adult relationships I've had are with Joanie, you, and Britt. Joanie is…I don't even know what's wrong with her anymore. She seems to have gone off the deep end. Chris was telling me about what she's been writing on Twitter about me. Saying all this crazy crap that does nothing but defame me and she still thinks we're together for some reason."

"Yeah, Chris showed me, it was…ugly. He always knew she was odd," Stephanie said, "but you can't place that blame on yourself, she's the one who has made poor decisions, you didn't do anything to her."

"Didn't I? I was with her when I married you," Hunter said. "I chose you over her and I barely even knew you. I just knew you had the name that I wanted and the power that I needed to become a top guy."

"Nice to know," Stephanie tried to joke, but Hunter wasn't laughing. "You did what you had to do. Am I going to say it was the right thing? Of course not, you drugged me, dragged me to Vegas, and married me without my consent, but you felt that was what you had to do and I don't regret it. If I hadn't married you, I wouldn't have become the assertive, headstrong person I am now. Plus, if I'd stayed that mousy, little girl, I never would have caught Chris's attention and we would probably not be together and I wouldn't have my kids. That's on you, Hunter. You did the right thing in the long run."

"I still feel lousy for Joanie," Hunter said, looking down. "I just don't want to screw up."

"Then don't," she shrugged. "I don't know what to tell you."

"Just listening helped, I better start thinking of things I want to say for my speech, I'll let you go, thanks, Stephanie, you're the best," he reached forward and hugged her. "I don't regret marrying you either. I needed it."

"Yeah, you did, I mean, how else would you hold the position you do now?" she winked at him as she made her way backstage. She was stopped a few times in order to talk to various employees about a myriad of different things, but she eventually found her way to her locker room to find it…empty. She figured Chris and the girls had gone to catering so she detoured there and found them eating at a table. They were sitting in a corner with Chris's back to the rest of the room and she could only surmise that it was because he didn't want to be bothered with the petty problems of the wrestlers. She made her way over to him and leaned down so she could talk to him. "Excuse me, Mr. Jericho, I have a problem?"

Chris jumped in his seat and peered over his shoulder, "Don't do that! You scared the crap out of me!"

"Sorry," Stephanie said as she kissed his cheek. "Trying to remain incognito?"

"Yes, I just want to enjoy a meal with my daughters, grab a plate and sit down," Chris said. Stephanie nodded and went over to the buffet to make a plate for herself and then sat down opposite Chris.

"Mommy, I eats my veggies," Flynn said, showing her an empty part of her plate.

"Wow, I'm impressed," Stephanie smiled, then looked over at Kensington, "and with you too, Kensy, good job."

"Tanks," Kensington said.

"So Hunter is starting to suspect something with Britt and Punk," Stephanie said as she took a bit of her rice pilaf. "He asked me about it, said that he probably deserved it if they were because of how he's treated Britt."

"Oh, that's such bull," Chris rolled his eyes. "That's like saying I deserve to have you divorce me because I was mean to you in the past. The past is irrelevant if the present is pretty darn good."

"What's divorce?" Flynn asked curiously. She'd been learning in preschool that asking questions was a good way to get smarter and to learn about things you didn't know. The world was a big place, her teacher had told her, and she wanted to learn more about it.

"It's when two people are married and they stop being married," Chris told her succinctly.

"Oh," Flynn said, "I don't like that."

"Neither do I," Chris said, "well, not with me and Mommy anyways."

"Well, I said there was nothing going on and hopefully there isn't or I'm going to look like a damn liar," Stephanie stabbed a piece of chicken and ate it aggressively.

"I talked to Punk, that went well, but there's something weird going on with Trish," Chris said, "I don't know what, but I picked up a vibe when I was talking to her earlier. I didn't even know she was here, she must have caught an earlier flight than we did or something since she was already here, but I was talking to her and I asked her about Christian and the hockey game, you know how I was trying to reach them and couldn't?"

"Yeah, so you invited me, your wife, as a last resort," Stephanie said knowingly, but she was smiling.

"We all had fun," Chris reminded her, "well, I asked where they were and she was really evasive. I don't know why, but it was suspicious."

"I don't know what she sounded like so I can't have an opinion, but I'll talk to her tomorrow at Tilden's party, maybe she'll say if anything's going on."

"I think you should," Chris said, "so you talked to Hunter about the show, how do you think that's going to go?"

"Well, time will only tell, but I think Hunter knows what he's going to say, what about you, do _you_ know what you're going to say?" Stephanie asked him.

"Yeah, and you know what?"

"What?" Stephanie asked.

"You should definitely watch it."

"As if I didn't plan to."

Hunter, though, was the first thing on the show. The crowd seemed pumped to see him, which made him feel good. He'd tried to talk to Britt backstage, but she kept running off trying to do work. He didn't want to read too much into it, but with his current state of mind, it felt like she was avoiding him. Still, they were both working so it wasn't like she didn't have things to do. She was running an entire show and she couldn't just drop everything to talk to him. Still, it would have been nice if she would have taken just a moment to talk to him.

As it was, he had to proceed with what he came out here to do. He addressed the crowd and told them that he had planned on firing Laurinaitis, but that he was superseded by the board on that decision when Laurinaitis (by way of Vince) had asked the board to keep his job. So that meant the decision would not be made by him. Instead, the board would decide soon on the fate of Laurinaitis and he just wished he'd spoken faster last week so he could have been the one to fire the guy.

That brought him to his next subject. He'd finally figured out how to talk about what he felt when he saw the Undertaker last week. For so long, Taker was this almost…deity in the wrestling business, this larger-than-life figure who loomed around every corner. He was a cornerstone of the company, a lifer so to speak, and he'd always made Hunter feel humble, something he never normally felt. There was an aura around the man that didn't go away when you were near him, but the aura only amplified when he was around.

Last year, however, when Taker was taken from the ring on that stretcher, everything seemed to change in Hunter's perception. It was like every feeling of that aura started to fade around him until it was just a wisp. He didn't feel scare of the Undertaker, but he kind of felt sorry for him. Wrestling against that would only make him depressed. He didn't want to sully his own memories of the Undertaker with a match against someone who, now, seemed so far below him. It was just the way he honestly felt and he thought he'd done a good job explaining it to the fans.

He proceeded to get out of the ring, but the lights went out and for a moment, he thought Chris was going to come out and he thought that was weird because he had no beefs with Chris and they hadn't discussed anything like this in accordance to the plan. Instead, a video started playing, a counterpart to his own video it seemed and it was obviously from the Undertaker. Hunter didn't quite know what to make of it, but he knew it didn't spell good news.

Maybe he was underestimating Taker, underestimating what the time away had done to him, but he couldn't go back and change his opinion and look like a coward just because a scary video played. No, he stood behind his feelings, but if Taker wanted to put up a fight, Hunter could give him one. He just wasn't sure Taker could give him one back.

When Hunter went backstage, he saw Britt sitting at the gorilla with Stephanie and he waved to them, coming over and kissing Britt's cheek. She gave him a brief smile before she had to go back to talking to someone, presumably in production, over her headphones. He stood there for a second, but when she didn't acknowledge him again, he walked away, hoping against hopes that the suspicions he was starting to have weren't going to come true. He didn't need to worry about Britt on top of worrying about the Undertaker.

Stephanie walked into her office and set down the papers she'd brought back from the gorilla on top of her desk. Chris was going out next so she had to watch the girls. She saw the two of them playing and then looked around for Chris. She could hear shuffling in the bathroom so she walked over and opened the door.

"What are you doing?" Stephanie asked.

"Oiling up my hot bod," Chris shrugged like it was natural.

"Here, let me," she said, coming to stand in front of him and grabbing the bottle of baby oil. "You know, this doesn't make you look any hotter than you already do. You don't need anything to make you look good but a smile."

"So you want me to go out there naked is what you're saying?"

"Well, no, but you know what I mean," she said, squirting some baby oil into her palms and then rubbing it on her hands and then over Chris's chest.

"You trying to get me aroused before I have to go out there?" he asked. "Is that your master plan?"

"This is arousing?" Stephanie asked.

"Yes, yes it is," he told her, then leaned forward and gave her a slow kiss. "I can't help it, your hands on me do things to me."

"What are you going to say out there? I'm very curious as to what you might actually have to say since you've spent so much time saying nothing at all. Not that I don't appreciate the silence from you every now and then, but I think the asylum is getting restless to hear you speak."

"And I will, like I said, I want to talk about everyone stealing from me. It's getting a bit ridiculous how much people steal from me. At least wait until I retire, you know," he said, "I'm still around, I'll always be around because I'm married to you so show a little respect."

Stephanie laughed, "You've stolen from people."

"I'm different, I'm the best in the world," Chris said, then leaned forward to kiss her again, "don't you think so?"

"I think you're very cocky," Stephanie said, kissing him deeply and wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Eww, stop!" Flynn said from the doorway. "I wanna watch you, Daddy whens you goes out there, I wanna see."

"You will," Chris said, turning his head slightly. "Do you think maybe your mommy and I can have a moment?"

"Nope," Flynn said.

"I guess that means I should go," Chris said, "thanks for rubbing me down."

"Any time," Stephanie told him.

Chris wandered down the hallway after leaving his girls behind and then to the gorilla. Punk was nowhere in sight, but that was expected. He walked down to the ring and he could hear a mixed reaction from the crowd. Good, that's what he wanted. These same people who cheered him had booed him not too long ago when he'd called them tapeworms and parasites. They were still that and they didn't even realize he'd been pointing it out to them week in and week out.

They were all wannabes, every single one of them. They turned their emotions on a dime and they were simply sheep. The worst wannabes were backstage. The men he was going to face at the Elimination Chamber were all wannabes because he had been there before any of them. He had done everything and they had done nothing. Sure, some of them had held the titles, but not like him. He'd held every title, was a Grand Champion, was everything you could ever aspire to be. He was the best in the world at what he did and it was time he was recognized for that.

The Miz had copied his suit and tie and the way he spoke, blatantly stole from him and he was shameless in it. Miz had looked up to Chris at one point and it showed in his demeanor. Kofi was just a spot machine and Chris had been doing flips and impressive high flyer moves before Kofi entered middle school. R-Truth thought he had great catchphrases, Chris had patented a million different catchphrases, most of them better than "What's up?" because come on, that wasn't even a catchphrase, that was a form of greeting.

Then there was Dolph, silly, silly, little Dolph who thought it was _so_ original to have a manager by his side, someone in a position of power who could sway decisions in his favor. Who the hell was Dolph kidding? Way before Dolph had ever even heard of Vickie Guerrero, Chris was being accompanied by a more beautiful, sassier, and _way_ more powerful woman. That woman's name was one Stephanie McMahon. She'd accompanied him to the main event of the biggest show of the year and not only that, he'd married her!

Then there was Punk, who had stolen parts of his mantra that he was the best in the world at what he did. Punk knew what he was going to say though so it didn't bother Punk in the slightest and, in turn, Chris knew Punk was going to come out and pull what was now known as being Jeritrolled. Punk played his part to perfection and so did Chris and nobody was the wiser that they were working together. Score one more for them over Vince. Of course, when the time came and they did fight for the titles, all bets were off.

"I will beat you later," Chris said as they saw each other backstage. He wasn't joking either, he was going to win by any means necessary.

"Bring it," Punk said simply, slapping his title as he walked away.

"Daddy, you talked 'bout Mommy!" Flynn bounced over to Chris from the gorilla where Stephanie had apparently taken the girls. "You talked 'bout her!"

"I know, she was the perfect example," Chris said, lifting his matching little girl.

"She is, she is! She walked with you and she liked you!" Flynn said.

"Flynnie, I did not," Stephanie said, but then grinned at Chris, "so Dolph is just a copycat so Vickie is just a poor man's version of me?"

"You bet she is," Chris told her, giving her a kiss. "Next thing you know, he'll be marrying her."

Stephanie laughed, "You loved have me accompany you."

"I was already in love with you so I did," Chris said, kissing her again. "One more for luck during my match?"

Stephanie kissed him again.

When his match started, he knew he'd be a target immediately and he wasn't disappointed as he was ganged up on. It worked to his advantage though because the everyone else started fighting each other while he stayed on the outside of the ring. He only intermittently got involved and that kept him fresh. He could see R-Truth getting injured and taken to the back so that was one less guy for him to worry about it. It was still not great odds, four other guys and him, but he'd never let the odds get to him before and he wanted that last spot in the match. Sure, it didn't _really_ matter what spot he was in, but knowing you were last was something of a relief. The tension and suspense was lessened when you knew your spot.

Eventually, the ending of the match came with him pulling Punk off of Dolph and throwing him into the announcer's table. He pinned Dolph for the win and took the belt before sitting in the middle of the ring, CM Punk style. He looked over at the table and could see Punk looking over it at him. He had a look on his face that said he thought Chris was a bastard, but a smart bastard. There were no hard feelings because Punk knew if given the chance, he would have done the same. They may be friends, but that didn't mean either one of them was going to remain complacent.

They were going to let this one play out for real.


	356. The Great Debate, February 13, 2012

"Yay, you guys are here!"

"Hi, hi!" Tilden waved at them. "Hats now!"

"You guys have to put hats on," Trish said as she handed out party hats to the Jericho family. Chris looked down at his like it was the last thing he ever wanted to put on his head. Stephanie nudged him and gave him a look. She'd already put her party hat on and was helping Flynn with hers. Chris sighed and put it on. "Thank you, it was one of Tilden's requests."

"Yeah!" Tilden said as Trish put her down. Tilden went up to her best friend in the entire world, Kensington, and grabbed her hand, leading her away and out to the party.

"Babies," Flynn said, shaking her head, but then she followed them out there, with Sawyer trailing behind, his hand on Flynn's shoulder as they went to where the party was in the living room since it was raining outside. Trish laughed as she watched them.

"So how are you feeling?" Stephanie asked Trish, looping her arm through Trish's.

"My baby is two years old, how do you think I feel?" Trish asked. She turned to Chris then, "Christian is out back if you want to go talk to him, he's with Edge, who decided his niece's birthday was enough of an event to come back from. He and Lita were still traveling around the world, always being in some different place. They always brought home souvenirs for the kids though and so they all had little trinkets from various countries.

"Where were they this time?" Chris asked.

"Bolivia," Trish said. "They said it was beautiful, but they're glad to be home and I think they're going to stay around here until WrestleMania since Edge is going to be inducted. Plus, I think that all the traveling is taking a little bit of a toll on them."

"I bet, I pretty much travel in the country and that gets tiring," Stephanie said.

"Come on, we got all these little cute things for the kids to do," Trish said.

"Hey, why don't you go out there, Chris," Stephanie said, "I wanted to talk to Trish alone for a second."

Chris knew what Stephanie wanted to talk about with Trish. It went back to what happened yesterday when he'd inquired Trish about Christian's whereabouts the previous Thursday. Stephanie had been itching to get Trish alone and get to the bottom of this mystery and Chris hoped she did. He wasn't nosy, but he wanted to make sure everything was okay with his friends. They'd been acting strange for a while, being in that rut like they said, and then this, it was one coincidence too many.

"I'll be at the party," Chris jerked a finger towards the living room as Stephanie led Trish into the family room, which was quiet and set apart from the rest of the house.

"What is it?" Trish asked. "I kind of want to get back to the party because I want to make sure that Tilde is having a good time, which I think she is. I can't believe my baby is two years old. God, this must have been what you felt like when Sawyer turned two, right, like how could the time go by this quickly?"

"That's exactly how I felt, but then, I was also pregnant with Flynn so I knew I had a new baby coming right around the corner."

"I'm not sure I'm at that point," Trish laughed. "I mean, I love babies and I love my baby, but I think I want Tilden to be older before I even contemplate having another baby."

"I don't blame you, I would have too if I had any choice in when I got pregnant," Stephanie said, "I just wanted to make sure everything was okay with you. We didn't get much of a chance to talk last night at Raw and then you took the red-eye back here and we came in this morning so I really haven't talked to you."

"What about?" Trish wondered.

"Well, I was talking with Chris and he was telling me about when he was talking to you and how he asked where you and Christian were last Thursday and why your phones weren't on."

"Oh, that, it was nothing, we were just out," Trish waved her off, "I better get back to Tilden. I really don't want to miss a thing."

"Trish," Stephanie stood up and grabbed Trish's hand. "Trish, you've been my best friend for almost nine years, you can tell me these things if there's something going on. That's all I'm going to say."

"I'm fine," Trish smiled and gave her a shrug. "Believe me, I'm fine, don't worry about me."

"Okay then, I won't worry about you," Stephanie said, "so lead me out to the party."

Stephanie tried not to spend the rest of the party observing Trish, but she couldn't help it. She noticed that she didn't go up to Christian a lot and that when she did, things didn't seem as loving as they once were, which concerned her. Sure, Trish would kiss his cheek and he would smile at her, but that was as far as it seemed to go between the two of them. When one of her kids turned a year older, she always felt wistful with Chris, but something was definitely off about Trish and Christian.

"Stop staring," Chris whispered into her ear as his arms banded around her waist and his chin rested on her shoulder.

"Sorry, I know I shouldn't, but you were right, something is going on."

"Talk to Lita, maybe she senses it too," Chris said, "I know they haven't been around much, but Li's pretty astute, Edge, on the other hand, he wouldn't know something if it hit him in the face."

"I might do that," Stephanie turned her head and kissed his cheek. "That's all the action Christian's got today, for the record."

"It's Tilden's birthday, not about them, they may just be thinking about that," Chris told her.

"Maybe, but I'm finding Lita," Stephanie pulled away from Chris and then wandered over to the kitchen where Lita was getting a drink from the counter, pouring herself another glass of orange soda. "Hey, Li, too good to talk to me now?"

"I thought it was the other way around, Ms. President," Lita said as she stepped forward to hug Stephanie. "Long time, no see, but I hear my boyfriend is going to be inducted into the Hall of Fame."

"We thought it appropriate because of how he went out," Stephanie said, "but he would have deserved it anyways. So how come you two haven't come back married yet? I have an ongoing bet with Chris that one of these days you're coming back married."

"Oh, please, don't even go there, don't even suggest we go there," Lita laughed, "I think Edge is deathly afraid of marriage now anyways. Vickie ruined him for me."

"I think Vickie just ruins things," Stephanie joked as Lita laughed and nodded. Stephanie looked around and saw they were alone so she decided to see if Lita was picking up on any weird vibes as well. "So I know you've been away a lot, but I wanted to ask you something. Have you noticed anything weird between Trish and Christian?"

"Oh my God, so it's not just me and Edge?" Lita said. "We picked up on it almost immediately upon coming back from Bolivia. There's something weird going on, but we thought you guys might know."

"No, they're just being kind of secretive and Chris tried to call Christian last Thursday, but they both had their phones off and when Chris asked Trish, she was very evasive about the entire thing so we thought you might know something since Edge is Christian's brother."

"If Edge knows something, he hasn't told me a thing about it," Lita said, "but I don't think he knows anything. I think they might be having problems and they just don't want to talk about it."

"With Christian injured, they have been spending more time together than usual and he can get pretty cranky if I remember."

"Yeah, it might just be the close proximity." Lita shrugged. "I'm sure if there's something really going on, Trish will tell us about it."

"I hope so, I don't want her going through this alone."

"Daddy, do you really have to go away?"

Chris looked at his son. "Well…no, but this is something for your mom and I. We forgot our anniversary so I wanted to do something nice with your mommy for a few days. We'll be back on Saturday and then Sunday, we'll do whatever you and your sisters want."

"Really? But what would we do?" Sawyer asked.

"Well, you can think of something between now and Saturday and then on Saturday night, I'll ask you what you want to do. We can go to the park, we can go to the beach if the weather is nice or we can go to the movies if that's something you want to do."

"Hmm, maybe I'll choose one of those things," Sawyer said as he looked into the suitcase. "Are you going to go swimming?"

"Maybe, we'll be right next to the ocean so we'll probably go to the beach while we're there. We can lounge around and everything," Chris told his son. "You're going to have a good time with Gamma and Gamps, you always do, don't you?"

"Gamma makes the best food," Sawyer admitted, "I like it when she cooks, there's always really good food. But how come we can't go with you. We usually do go with you and we go on vacations together."

"Sometimes Mommies and Daddies need time by themselves."

"So you can kiss?" Sawyer asked knowingly.

"Something like that," Chris laughed as he reached out to pat Sawyer on the shoulder. He loved spending time with his kids; they were funny, sweet, and curious, but man, did he want some time alone with Stephanie. It wasn't that they didn't get intimate time, but most of the time, they had their kids around so their conversations revolved around playing, toys, and the kids' schedules. He figured this was just true of most couples with children. That's why he needed a few days of adult conversation…which, actually, would probably revolve around wrestling…and the kids…still, they'd be together.

"You like to kiss Mommy, I know because I have eyes," Sawyer said and if Chris didn't know better, there was some sarcasm behind that statement. He looked at his son for a moment, but it seemed like Sawyer was being earnest. Chris just laughed.

"So you don't want me kissing Mommy all the time?" he asked.

"I don't care," Sawyer said.

"Sawa!" Sawyer's eyes widened as Flynn came barreling into the room, throwing herself on the bed. "Where you were!"

"I was right here, Flynnie," Sawyer told his sister. Sawyer had such an infinite amount of patience when it came to his sisters. Either one or both of them would get in what Stephanie and Chris called "Sawyer moods," and then it was like using the Jaws of life trying to get the girls away from their brother. Sawyer sometimes, very rarely, got annoyed with them and in those cases, Chris and Stephanie distracted the girls so Sawyer could get some much needed time alone (that he usually spent in his fort in the backyard, which was Sawyer only unless he invited you in).

"I look for you," Flynn climbed up on the bed and she grabbed Sawyer by the waist and sighed happily as she cuddled into her brother's side.

"What am I, Flutterby, chopped liver?" Chris asked. When Flynn was in one of her "Sawyer moods," even Chris was irrelevant.

"Hi, Daddy, what doing?"

"He's packing since he's going away with Mommy," Sawyer said.

"Oh, okay," Flynn said, "Sawa, I play wif your cars?"

"Why do you want to play with my cars?"

"I saws on the TV and they smash and I like it," Flynn said, "you can play with dollies. I play with dem when I gets backs from school and I no wanna play wif dem no more."

"You can play with them, but don't break them," Sawyer told her and she beamed at him. Chris continued to pack as his kids watched. "What else is there to do in the Bahamas?"

"I don't know, that's what I'm going to find out."

"Daddy?" Flynn asked.

"Yeah?" he asked her, looking down at her.

"I can goes with you."

"Thanks for the offer, Flutterby, but I think you'll have more fun here with Gamma and Gamps," Chris said. "You don't want to miss school, do you? You like it there and I heard that you have a lot of friends there."

"I do," Flynn said, then she looked at her brother, "I have lots of friends, Sawa, do you?"

"Yeah, I do," he nodded.

"Kensy has no friends," Flynn announced.

Chris laughed at her, "Kensy has friends, Flutterby. She's just smaller than you are so she doesn't need as many friends. Tilden is her best friend and Mommy takes her to play dates so she has friends."

"But not as many," Flynn said proudly.

"No, I guess not as many."

"Chris, are you packed yet? Your parents are getting here in like twenty minutes and we have to leave as soon as they get here! We have a flight, remember!"

"Yes, I remember," Chris yelled down at her, "and I'm pretty much done!"

"Good!" Stephanie said and then things went quiet. Chris turned to his kids and rolled his eyes, which made them both laugh. If anyone knew how Stephanie was, it would be her kids.

His parents were right on time and they all left the house to go to an early dinner before Chris and Stephanie went to the airport. The kids were pretty okay with them leaving since it was only a few days and before they knew it, Chris and Stephanie were in the air. Stephanie leaned her head against Chris's shoulder as she took his hand in hers.

"I'm so glad we're getting this little mini-vacation. I don't necessarily need it from the kids, but I do need it from work."

Chris pressed his fingers to her lips and shook his head, "Let's at least keep the work talk to a minimum, okay? I'm not saying we can't talk about it, but I want it to so that it's not the dominant topic of conversation."

"Okay, it'll be difficult though because you're back to being a wrestler so there's actually a lot to talk about," she told him, but he leaned forward and kissed her gently while shaking his head. Stephanie pulled away and nodded, "Okay, I will keep it to a minimum."

"Good, because this isn't a business trip. This is a vacation from all that and it's a celebration of our love," Chris told her, his voice filled with cheese, his eyebrows raising a little bit. Stephanie nudged in him in the shoulder playfully. "Why do you insist on rebuking my declarations of love for you? You never want to accept that I'm completely in love with you."

"Stop," she told him, poking him in the shoulder.

"I can't tell you the truth anymore?" Chris wondered. "We've been married for seven years, I just want to show you that I totally love you, what's wrong with that?"

"I know you do," she told him.

"I know you know I do, but I want to say it and I don't think that's such a bad thing," Chris told her. "I just…I'm sorry I forgot our anniversary for one—"

"I forgot it too so it's not like that's something huge on your part. We just put more emphasis on when we started dating because it was such a momentous occasion and this year is huge for us, it'll be ten years since we've been together," she said, her eyes lighting up, which made him melt just the tiniest bit.

"Still, seven years of marriage is nothing to scoff at, especially when the two people are the two of us," he told her and she did nod. "Without you, I wouldn't be wrestling right now, I'm fairly positive I would be retired."

"You didn't come back just for me, you came back for the kids too."

"Yeah, but if I didn't have you, they wouldn't be here…and we're talking about work again."

"Not really, it's not as if we're talking about you being the last one to enter the Elimination Chamber, which is going to be really advantageous to you. Not that I thought you had too much competition as it was," Stephanie told him. "I mean, ever since Mike has stopped copying you, you can tell he's lost a lot of steam, so much of who he was, was ingrained in what you were already doing. Left to his own devices and look at him now."

"You think too much of me…although he really was a big copycat."

"I know he was and Kofi, no match for you, R-Truth, please, not even a challenge, he's crazy so he'll probably go all weird and crazy during the match. Dolph Ziggler, not even in your league, Punk is your only competition."

"We're not going to hold back from each other, we already made that deal," Chris said, "We may know what's going on when it comes to talking to each other, but when we're in the ring, we're not going to hold anything back at all. We're going full-out and we're going to bring it. If I'm going to win that title in the Chamber, I'm doing it of my own merits, not like the time when I beat Taker and Shawn kicked him."

"Still, the outcome was that you won."

"I want it to be different this time. I'm the most experienced guy in the cage. So do you think Hunter is actually going to fight Taker?"

"I think he will. I think he'll pity him enough to take it, but then I think he'll be underestimating Taker and then he'll lose," Stephanie said, "but enough about that…how's the CD going? I know you guys are going to record it next week, right. You always keep me so in the dark about your Fozzy projects."

"There's a reason for that."

"Oh, yes, I remember, because you can't possibly tell me and ruin the surprise when it comes out. I bet you Rich tells his wife what's on the album, I bet she gets to listen to the demos," Stephanie pointed out.

"That's Rich, that's what he does, good for him if he does it, but I'm not going to. I write a lot of those lyrics and they're special to me and I don't want you to hear them until they are pitch perfect."

"So I can't come see you record them?" she asked.

"Are you joking with me?" Chris scoffed. "Of course you're not allowed to come. You know the rules. You've been around for three of our albums and you were practically there for Happenstance. I gave you the CD pretty much when it came out and I know you listened to it and liked it. Still, you know you're not allowed to be around when I'm making it. It'll jinx it."

"Yeah, because having your wife around is so terrible."

"I want you to listen when the product is finished. That way, I know that I put the best sound out there for you to listen to."

"Would you let the kids listen?"

"Sure, what are they going to tell you? Oh, Mommy, here are the lyrics? They barely remember to eat their breakfast they have so much to do, I hardly think they're going to remember the lyrics to my songs and spill the beans to you."

"So I'm the only one you don't care about," she told him, but her eyes were sparkling with mischief so he nodded and she laughed and looked out the window, but the sky was dark so there wasn't much to see out there. "Thank you for taking me on the trip. I think I need it. Running the company isn't harder than I thought it would be, but it's still a lot of work. I guess I just always imagined that when the company finally came to me, I wouldn't have three kids five and under to worry about. On that note though, please don't get me pregnant on this trip. I cannot handle a number four on top of running the WWE."

"I would gladly take over for you during your maternity leave," Chris told her. "I just can't believe the board let Laurinaitis keep his job as the GM. There _has_ to be someone better willing to take the job. If I wasn't already wrestling _and_ the VP of Talent Relations, I would take it in a heartbeat."

"I wish you would," Stephanie said. "God, so much for not talking about work."

"We really have nothing else to talk about," Chris admitted. "Maybe we should get separate jobs so we have more to discuss. Then when I come home, I can ask you about your day, you can ask me about my day and then we'd have tons to discuss. I can get a job in journalism or something."

"You would _hate_ that," she told him.

"Yeah, I would, but still, we'll find other things to talk about on this trip…and if we don't…we just won't talk…"

Stephanie settled into the room later that evening. "Three whole days without children! Oh my God, is this what real life is like for childless people!"

"Well, maybe for Edge and Lita," Chris said as Stephanie flopped back onto the bed.

"I don't even remember what it's like not to have them, so I guess I'm really bad, but remember the days before them when we could do whatever we wanted and didn't have to plan for three other people," Stephanie loved the warm breeze wafting in from the French doors Chris had opened. "Oh man, that breeze feels good. I wish we had French doors in our bedroom."

"We could arrange that," Chris shrugged, "or we could move."

"I like our house," Stephanie glanced up at him. Chris sat down next to her and he leaned over to start kissing her neck.

"Happy Anniversary," he whispered against her skin.

"You too," Stephanie ran her hand up and down his back. "Thank you for bringing me here, I love it, I love you too for the record."

"I thought so," Chris said.

"Chris?"

"Hmm?"

"Thank you for coming back," Stephanie told him, a bashful smile peeking on her lips. "I know you didn't have to and you didn't have to take the executive position and you keep doing all these things and just, thanks. I mean, I would say thanks either way, but…I kind of know you come back for me more often than not."

"I'd do anything for you," he told her with a shrug, "you should know that by now."

"No, no, no, I know it," she told him. "It's just, you've been doing it since the second we got together and I feel like I don't ever thank you enough. It's just nice, you know, it's just nice to have someone there who is so willing to do this for you, that's all."

"You're welcome," he said, then he pushed her further up on the bed, "but less chit-chat and more tit and tat."

Stephanie laughed, "So you just want to ravish me now that we're alone?"

"That was the plan, yes." Chris eagerly gave her the once over, trying to decide what his best course of action was here. He decided to just start undressing her and unbuttoned her jeans, pulling them down as she watched him with a raised eyebrow. He didn't care though, he had a mission and he had to accomplish said mission. Tonight's mission was to get his wife undressed, have wild, crazy, loud sex with her all night (they were in their own bungalow), and then repeat said night in the morning.

"I can't call your parents to see how the kids are?" Stephanie asked.

"I texted them that we arrived safely so they know we're here, that's all we need to do for tonight, no kids, no wrestling, no Fozzy for the rest of the night, you, me, that's it, that's all," Chris said, starting to take her top off, "got it?"

"Okay, got it," Stephanie said as she let him take her top off. It was going to be difficult, but she pushed everything else out of her mind and simply focused on her husband.

Unfortunately, all good things come to an end and by Monday, it was back to the grind of everything. When they'd gotten back, Sawyer and Flynn had decided that they wanted to go to another hockey game, but because the Lightning were in Pittsburgh, Chris promised to take them the next week to a hockey game and even told them they could each bring a friend, which only sweetened the deal. Because of that, everyone ended up happy and healthy on Monday night. Stephanie and Chris walked into the arena with the girls and almost immediately saw Hunter talking with Britt. Chris and Stephanie waved as they passed before heading to Stephanie's office for the evening.

"For the record," Britt said as she grabbed Hunter's hand, "I'm really glad you did turn down Undertaker, but we both know that he's probably going to try and pull something tonight. He's not going to give up."

"And I'm not going to give in," Hunter told her, looking her in the eyes. He was really trying to make an effort for her over this. He knew she was worried and he had to take that into consideration. He couldn't just decide for himself any longer; he had to make some decisions with Britt in mind.

"I know, but…then you have Shawn here tonight and who the hell knows what he's going to say," Britt sighed. "I think we both know how he feels about me."

"He's not going to say anything about you or to you," Hunter said, "he probably wants to persuade me into the match or something, tell me that I shouldn't be a coward. I don't know what it'll be exactly, he's kept me in the dark, but I imagine it's something like that. I won't listen to him though."

"He has such a strong influence over you though," Britt pointed out. "I'm not saying this is bad because he _is_ your best friend, but it would be nice if he would just stay out of it for once."

"He thinks he knows what's best, that's all," Hunter said, "but he doesn't know me anymore. He can't make this decision for me. I won't let him."

"Okay," Britt said. She wasn't convinced on that point, but she didn't want to get into another fight after having such a peaceful week with Hunter. They hadn't argued and it was nice and she knew neither one of them wanted to break that spell. Shawn was a real threat to it though, as he always was, but she tried not to focus on that. Shawn would just never be in her corner and ever since she'd turned down Hunter's proposal, Shawn kept looking for a way to break them up, with obvious little success.

"Hey, while we're talking about wrestling, can I ask you something?" Hunter said.

"Of course you can…unless this involves me doing something for you that you shouldn't get, like the title or something," she joked and he laughed lightly.

"Britt, Britt, Britt, where have you been?"

Hunter closed his eyes and tried to keep the scowl off his face. He suspected that Punk wanted something more out of Britt, but he knew if he brought it up with her, she would just get angry with him. He'd planned to ask subtly if something was going on, but now he had to get interrupted by this douchebag. He knew Stephanie and Chris liked him well enough, but he couldn't stand the guy. He never took anything seriously and he wasn't as dedicated as Hunter felt a champion should be. He was nearly a disgrace to the whole operation. He opened his eyes and saw that Britt was giving Punk an annoyed look. Good.

"What did you need, Phil?" Britt asked and Hunter stared at her for a moment. He wasn't aware that she actually called him by his real name.

"I just wanted to discuss the show with you, is that a problem? Should I not have come to you? I can go to old Clown Shoes and talk to him, but I find your company a little easier to take."

"Can't you see we're trying to talk?" Hunter asked, his patience wearing thin.

"Sorry," Punk held his hands up as if in surrender. "I wasn't aware that she was occupied to the point where she couldn't do her job. But I guess that her being at the show meant that she was no available for concerns."

"He's right, Hunter," Britt placed a placating hand on her boyfriend's arm. "I'm at work and if this is a work related issue, _which it better be_, then I've got to deal with him and whatever it is."

"Don't you think it can wait?"

"The show is going to be starting in a while and I would rather it happen before the show starts as it pertains to the show," Punk shrugged. He knew he was being an asshole, but he'd predicated nearly his entire career on being an asshole so why should he change who he was now? Things had been tense between Britt and Hunter for a while and yeah, it made him a douche for trying to take her away, but if she wasn't happy, wasn't he really doing her a favor more than anything?

"Okay, fine," Britt told him, "I can talk to you. Hunter, I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Okay," he agreed, but he made it clear he wasn't happy with the arrangement. She stood up and then leaned down to kiss him briefly before she walked behind Punk, who was already leaving the area, leaving Hunter behind. Britt jogged a little to catch up with him.

"So what is it?"

"Was this debate thing Laurinaitis's idea?"

"Do you honestly think it was mine or Stephanie's?" Britt asked.

"Okay, so I don't get it, how the hell did that guy keep his job?"

"I'm not sure, but I'm sure Vince would know," Britt said. "I know the debate thing is a stupid idea, I get that and I'm sorry that you have to go through it, but just consider it getting to talk to your Elimination Chamber opponents. Nothing has to get violent out there. It's just…I don't even think you're going to really debate, I mean, come on, do you think we're really going to hold anyone's attention if we have an actual debate?"

"You've got a point," Punk said, "I don't think Dolph even knows the meaning of the word debate, his mommy, Vickie probably has to tell him what it is." Britt laughed and Punk felt accomplished. "Oh look, I got you to do something I haven't seen you do around Hunter, laugh."

"Let's not get this started again."

"I know that Shawn doesn't like you."

"It's not a secret."

"Why do you put up with someone whose best friend breaks you up just because he thinks you're stealing his best friend away," Punk said, not noticing that Britt had paused and was looking at him critically. He realized she wasn't standing next to him any more and he turned to look at her. "What?" Punk asked.

"How did you know about that?"

"I talked to Evan when he was dating you, when you and Hunter were apart, I know all about it. Well, not everything of course, but you know, I knew that you guys broke up because of Shawn and he was brainwashing Hunter or something."

"It's none of your business," Britt told him. "Our entire relationship is none of your business, Phil."

"I'm just making conversation," he smiled charmingly at her. "My best friends would love you. I can guarantee you that. They would think you were amazing. They would never try to drive a wedge between us."

"You're not endearing yourself to me," she told him. "I don't know why you insist on doing this—"

"Isn't it obvious?" he asked as he stopped her. She looked at him with a bored and annoyed look on her face. Punk looked around him and, seeing too many people milling about, pulled her into the closest unmarked locker room, which was empty. "Britt, I like you and I'm giving you options," he said once the door clicked to a close.

"I'm with Hunter," she insisted.

"He's not good enough for you," Punk said, "the guy cares more about where he can get in life than you and you didn't want to marry him, remember?"

"I don't believe in marriage, I wouldn't marry anyone, I don't _want_ to marry anyone. It's all well and good for some people, but not me."

"Me either, but you think Hunter is just going to accept that, after everything?"

"He _does_."

"Britt, I'm not saying he's a bad guy, he's not. I mean, he's a little on the intense side and I can't picture him really outside of work. I always just kind of figured he went into some kind of stasis chamber until it was time to come out for the show."

Britt laughed, "He has a life, he has friends, he has people who care about him."

"Again, I got you to laugh. I know you say you don't want me and that's cool, I hear you, I'm not going to literally pressure you into being with me, but just know that I'm an option…that's all, just an option."

"Well then, thank you, I'm flattered, but I'm not interested," she told him. "Now, as for the debate, just…do what you do best, talk shit about everyone."

Chris scoffed as he looked at the schedule. "When the hell did Laurinaitis manage to slip this in?"

"What? That debate?" Stephanie asked as she grabbed a baggie full of Goldfish crackers for Flynn and Kensington. She handed Flynn the bag. "Share with your sister."

"Okay," Flynn said as Kensington held her hands out. Flynn poured some of the crackers into them as they both knelt in front of the coffee table, looking up at Chris as he looked over the schedule.

"Yes, this debate," Chris said, "why the hell are we having a debate? Who the hell has a _debate_? The entire point of wrestling is to get your aggression out against those people whom you hate. How is a debate going to solve anything? You know what this reeks of?"

"I don't know, what does it reek of?" Stephanie indulged him even as she was pulling out her own paperwork.

"Your father. Only your father would want to have a lame debate," Chris said, throwing the schedule onto the couch next to him. "So what I'm supposed to go out there and talk about the economy to these guys?"

"I hardly think it's _that_ kind of debate," Stephanie laughed.

"Daddy, I think you be good," Flynn said as she crunched on a cracker.

"Thanks," Chris leaned over and kissed the top of her head, "but I have nothing to say to these guys. They're all wannabes and I made that pretty clear last week. They're nowhere near my level. Not even Punk and I like the guy, but he's not exactly up to my level."

"Don't let him hear you say that," Stephanie said.

"I like Punk," Flynn said.

"Daddy, Daddy!" Kensington handed him a cracker and he took it from her and ate it.

"I know you like Punk," Chris told his older daughter, "but that doesn't mean that I don't want to beat him and get the big belt."

"Oh, I do wants it," Flynn nodded seriously. "I do."

"Me too," Chris said, "so should I prepare notes for this? Should I start making my pros and cons so I can have a solid rebuttal? Do I get two minutes to make my closing remarks?"

"Someone was on the debate team," Stephanie glanced up at her husband and gave him a smirk, but he didn't seem in the mood to hear it so she got up and came to sit next to him, moving the schedule aside. "What's with you tonight?"

"Nothing is with me tonight," Chris said.

"You seem…angrier," Stephanie told him. "Did something happen?"

"No, nothing happened," Chris said, "I just think this is a stupid idea and I don't really want to do it, but I'm pretty much being forced to by that jackass of a GM."

"Okay, so there is definitely something bothering you," Stephanie rubbed his thigh. "What is it, sweetie? You know you can tell me anything and everything? Is this something wrestling related or is this something us related or Fozzy related?"

"Can't I just be in a bad mood?" he snapped at her, but then retracted it by giving her apologetic eyes. "Sorry, I think I just woke up on the wrong side of the bed today. I'm not in a good mood and I just want to tear someone limb from limb."

"You do have a match against Kofi, that should let you get out whatever it is you're bottling in."

"I think it's just…maybe I'm taking too much on," Chris admitted. "I hate to think it, but maybe I'm doing too much."

"What brought this on?"

"Nothing," but he glanced at the girls when he said it so Stephanie grabbed his hands and pulled him up out of his seat, making it seem like she was getting him dressed by grabbing his duffel bag.

"Come here, I'll help you with your ring tights since your match is the first on the card after your…debate," Stephanie said, going into the bathroom, but leaving the door slightly open in case one of the girls needed her. "So what is wrong with you, really, seriously, what is wrong with you?"

"Nothing," Chris shrugged as he rooted through his duffel for his ring tights. He found them at the bottom and pulled them out, setting them down next to the sink as he started to undo his jeans.

"Why do you insist on doing this and making me jump through hoops until you tell me?" she asked. "Wouldn't it just be easier for the both of us if you just told me what was bugging you so we can solve it?"

"It's just something Flynn said when we were on the plane."

"I wasn't aware you had some in-depth conversation," Stephanie said.

"Because you were across the aisle with Kensy," Chris told her, "you didn't hear what we were talking about."

"Okay, so what did she say?" Stephanie wondered. Whatever it was had set Chris into a funk, but she couldn't figure out anything Flynn could say that would really put Chris in a bad mood. Usually, being around the kids put Chris in an amazing mood.

"She just asked why Daddies left," Chris told her, "which was obviously about me and how I'm always going places. So clearly, I'm not paying enough attention to my children and I'm a bad father that makes my daughter question why I'm gone so much."

Stephanie looked at him, "Or…her new friend, Bethany's father walked out when Bethany was a baby and when Flynn asked her where her daddy was, Bethany told her that her daddy left."

"What?"

"Flynn told me the story yesterday when we were making Jello for dinner," Stephanie said. "She said they were talking about families again and how there are a lot of different types of families and when Bethany talked about her family, she only had a mommy so Flynn asked her where her daddy was. Flynn asked me the same question."

"Oh," Chris said, "so she just wanted my input then?"

"Yes, she probably did," Stephanie nodded. "Chris, you're a great father. That's one area where you definitely, _definitely_ are the best in the world at what you do. Flynn knows that, it's why she idolizes you."

"I thought she was worried that I would leave."

"No, she just doesn't understand the whole different family concept. Look at her world, everyone has a mommy and a daddy, she was just confused."

"Well, now I feel like an idiot," Chris told her, sucking at his teeth. "I've been sitting there thinking about how I was a horrible father."

Stephanie patted him on the cheek, "Poor baby, now get dressed."

Stephanie left the room and Chris got dressed. He pulled a pair of sweat pants over his briefs so he wouldn't freeze to death before he had to go out there before he went out and sat in between his daughters, who both turned to look at him, almost identical smiles on their faces. Chris made a funny face at them, which caused them to laugh.

"Daddy, you have a match tonight, right?" Flynn asked.

"Yeah, against Kofi, do you think I'll win?"

"I know you will," Flynn said, hugging him around the waist.

"Well, with that vote of confidence, there's no way I can't."

Chris was in a much better mood when he went out for the debate…then he remembered this was a debate. It had Vince smacked all over it so in turn, it pissed him off. He hated that Vince was still in control of some things when everything should have been deferred to Stephanie. If Stephanie believed in Valentine's Day, he might go for some grand gesture wherein he would declare his love for her and demand that she instate herself as the GM after firing Laurinaitis. The debate would be a great platform for that, but he had to keep his mouth shut, which was difficult when he was surrounded by such…inferiority.

He even sort of considered Punk inferior to him, though he would never discount or discard Punk's friendship. Still, there was a lot Chris had done that Punk had never done and it wouldn't be fair to say the playing field was level when it came to him and any of these guys out here. It wasn't just in their careers, but in the Elimination Chamber itself. He was the one with the most experience there and he had eliminated more men than they had and the last one he'd been in, he'd won (albeit with help). How could these men think they could compare to that?

After Laurinaitis had to make his stupid presence known, Punk got to talking, saying he was the best in the world, okay, so he'd added a wrestler to that, but even that statement wasn't true. Chris could wrestle circles around him. Punk liked to talk about how he'd come up through the indies and it irked Chris because so had he, he'd worked harder than Punk as well, been to so many places, it was like Punk was discounting this because he was edgy, but Chris knew the truth.

He pretty much ignored everyone else while they were talking (which was ironic because Kofi was talking about how they were all overlooking him) because Chris didn't consider them threats. Hell, for all he knew, by the time he got into the chamber, they might all be gone and it could just be him and Punk. That would be convenient for him if they all just eliminated themselves. He was brought back to attention when the Miz started to talk about him. He claimed he wasn't a copycat, that it was absolutely not Miz trying to be like Chris and Chris wanted nothing more than to laugh in his face.

The Miz had been the worst perpetrator of being a wannabe. Everything about him was a wannabe and if Miz wanted proof, Chris only needed go to his DVD where Miz was gushing all over him like a silly fangirl. Miz wanted to be him and to suggest _now_ that it had all been something he'd come up with made Chris want to literally laugh in his face, Codebreaker him, and then throw him out of the ring like the little pansy that he was. He refrained of course, since they weren't supposed to get violent with each other, but it was in his mind to do that and he made a mental note to definitely target him if they were in the chamber at the same time.

Finally, and they saved the best for last, Chris got his chance to talk. 45 seconds, that was all he was supposed to have, but how do you encapsulate a tirade into 45 seconds? It wasn't easy. He weighed his words carefully, gazing thoughtfully into the crowd before speaking. He told everyone, after calling them neophytes (which, looking back, might not have been the correct word), that he was the real best in the world. He looked over at Punk when he said it, but Punk wasn't looking back at him in a deliberate attempt at making Chris seem uninteresting and irrelevant.

Chris continued, however, and stated, what he thought, were simply facts. He _was_ the one who had all the Elimination Chamber experience. He _was_ the one had held all these titles. Half of these guys hadn't even started wrestling when he was in WCW. Only Punk and R-Truth had debuted during the WCW Era. Chris was practically in the WWE when Punk had his wrestling debut in 1999. By that time, Chris had already been wrestling for nine years. He'd held title upon title upon title while these guys had been wallowing away and writing in their middle school diaries. They had _nothing _on him and it was pathetic for them to even think they did.

That brought him to Punk. Now, Punk always knew when Chris was going to say something to him; Chris always gave him a heads up, but only rarely did Chris tell him what he was actually going to say. It made things more authentic. He told Punk to look at him when he was being spoken too, but Punk didn't comply, opting to ignore him. Chris told Punk he might as well hand over the title because he was going to reclaim what was his.

Punk then pretended like he hadn't heard Chris at all, but then apologized for not listening. He said that he was thinking about when Chris left and came in 7th on Dancing with the Stars. Chris had to hand it to him, he had to give that one to him and it took everything inside of him not to start laughing. He could tell Punk was trying to make him break, but Chris was better than that and barely let a muscle twitch in his face, but Punk could obviously tell from Chris's eyes that he was more amused by that than anything.

Still, Chris had to act indignant so he went over to Punk and Punk held his title aloft and it was like the other guys disappeared…or would have if Chris hadn't turned right into a kick in the face by Kofi. Chris laid on the mat while Kofi acted like he'd just wont the title, but Chris would soon make him pay for that.

Chris never underestimated an opponent. It was far too easy to underestimate someone and then get caught with your proverbial pants down. He was much more experienced than that so he didn't take Kofi lightly. He couldn't afford to take someone like him lightly because Kofi was as agile as they came. Still, he was no match for Chris and eventually, what Chris knew would happen, did and he won the match.

"What's up, man?" Shawn said as he saw Hunter. They hugged and Hunter smiled at him. "You happy to see me?"

"Aren't I always?" Hunter said sarcastically. "So why the hell are you really here tonight? I know that Stephanie didn't call you?"

"That woman wouldn't call me if I was the last man on earth," Shawn chuckled. "How the hell is she though? Still married to Jericho? Or should I just guess yes since he mentioned her last week?"

"Of course they're still married and their kids are great."

"Good to hear, how are you though, are you getting by? Does this desk job just kill you sometimes?"

"No, I like it, it's good money for the work," Hunter said, "why are you diverting attention from why you're really here?"

"Because I've got some things to say and it's better if I say them to…everyone," Shawn told him. "Where's Britt? Too busy to be around you?"

"Shawn, come on, you know she runs things around here."

"I thought that was Laurinaitis."

"She's the brains of the operation," he told Shawn. "Come on, I'll show you to my office, we can hang out for a while."

Hunter was a little trepid when it came to what Shawn might have to say. He wouldn't budge and even give him a hint, but he had a feeling he knew what it was going to be. He was right as Shawn went right out there and started in on how he'd been watching the week before and had expected Hunter to accept Taker's challenge and was shocked when he didn't take it. Then he revealed he'd called that damn Laurinaitis to get time on the show. He looked at Britt who was sitting at the gorilla next to him and she was biting her lip.

"I can't believe him," she finally said, "I can't believe he would do that. He knows that I'm the one he should have called, that bastard…"

"He's calling me out there," Hunters mused.

"Hunter, please."

Hunter ignored her though and went out there anyways, knowing that he was going to need to talk to his best friend. He gave Britt one last glance, but could tell she was angry and so it was best if he just left her to her anger. He was going to go out there and he was going to say the same thing he'd said last week. He wasn't going to accept the match and it wasn't because he was afraid and at the bottom of it, it wasn't even because he thought of Taker as some weakling, he was really starting to understand that Britt only had his best interests at heart.

He could almost feel her slipping away from him and it was only his own fault. He kept screwing things up with her. He didn't want to do that anymore. He didn't want to screw this up. Britt was the only person who loved him for the person he was and not the person he tried to project himself as. Everyone saw him as this intimidating guy who had nothing but wrestling, but she didn't. Joanie was…Joanie was something he couldn't define. She was just there and broken and he wanted to fix her.

Stephanie was something else entirely. Stephanie was only with him in defiance and when it became clear that her family and the world accepted them, she started to wane from him. Where she once saw a rebellious act, she started to see a mundane one and then he'd been injured and everything had fallen apart, but there was really nothing there to really hold them together. Even from the beginning, it was all built on a shaky, crumbling foundation.

Britt was everything they weren't. She didn't _need_ to be with him. She wasn't broken, not at all, didn't need fixing or anything like that. She wasn't with him to defy anyone or show them up. She was only with him because she wanted to be. He'd never had that before. He was in his 40's and he'd never had a person who could just be with him without anything as the hooking point. He wanted to do right by her and wrestling when she worried about him was not doing right by her and he had to make this clear to the world that he wasn't going to do this.

He told Shawn that wasn't who he was anymore. He wasn't going to go out and take Taker's challenge. He had other things, but Shawn just couldn't fathom this and it was like his first breakup with Britt all over again. Shawn was trying to incite something in him, but he didn't want it. He was trying to tell Hunter that he was the guy who stepped on throats, but now he was the guy who wore suits and acted responsible.

Then Shawn went over the line.

Hunter tried to keep his cool, but when Shawn had asked if he married that chick and became one of them, his anger nearly reached the boiling point. He knew what Shawn was saying. He knew that Shawn had specifically used the word "married" to remind him that Britt had rejected him. It was Shawn's subtle way of reminding him that he _didn't_ have a wife and that Britt had not agreed to it. And one of them? His girlfriend ran the show, his ex-wife was his boss and gave him the job, one of his "new" best friends (as Shawn called Chris) was the executive VP of Talent Relations and this was Shawn's way of saying that he had chosen the wrong path and that they had never been there for him like Shawn had.

And while that was partly true, the fact that Shawn would go there, would rub his failed attempt at a proposal in Hunter's face just made him angry. He was just so…angry at his best friend for going there. There was no need for it, no reason for it, but he'd still hit him where Shawn knew it would hurt.

Then he went on to insult Hunter's pride. The problem with this whole thing was that Shawn knew exactly which buttons to press. He knew that pride and dignity were among the things that Hunter held dearest and he knew that being compared to a coward would hit him where it hurts. Hunter tried not to get into this, knowing it would only end in disaster, but Shawn wasn't letting him leave.

So Hunter retaliated. Stephanie had put him in this position. All of this was going to be his responsibility and it was huge. It was a huge task and he had to change his way of thinking and if Shawn, his best friend, couldn't understand that, then maybe he wasn't really a best friend. He wanted this. He wanted to be the COO. He wanted to have the responsibility of continuing this business in the right direction, for himself, for Britt, who did a hell of a job mediating between feuding parties, for Chris, who took on a million different responsibilities and still managed to look like the coolest guy in the room (Hunter could not figure out how the guy maintained wrestling, Fozzy, his kids, _and_ the crazy that was Stephanie), and for Stephanie, who saw something in him, who put everything in their past aside to give him a shot at greatness. These people were counting on him and he didn't want to let them down.

Shawn was proving to be a really crappy friend. He told him, in no uncertain terms, he was not going to wrestle Taker. Shawn didn't like it, but he left and Hunter was too, until Taker decided to make his presence known, but it wasn't going to sway Hunter. He had made up his mind and that was it. So he went backstage and that was it. If only that could have been it.

"I blame you," Hunter heard Shawn say as he went backstage. Britt was standing up and glaring at Shawn.

"What's going on here?"

"Your little girlfriend," Shawn said, "I bet she put you up to refusing."

"You're a bastard, you know that," Britt told him. "If anyone is the coward here, it's you."

"Oh, big words," Shawn said.

"You went over the line, Shawn," Hunter said, stepping in between the two of them.

"What are you even talking about?" Shawn asked.

"You know what you said," Hunter told him. "You knew what you were saying so don't act like you don't know."

"I don't," Shawn shrugged, but Hunter could tell he was lying. The two of them had been so close for so long it was preposterous to think that Hunter might not know his tells. He knew all of Shawn's tells, perhaps better than his wife did.

"You married that chick," Hunter reminded him.

"Oh, oops, I guess I got that wrong, what _would_ you call this? Because I would call this being strung along by a chick who has no intentions of ever committing to you."

"You son of a bitch!" Britt lunged at him, trying to get around Hunter, but Shawn moved out of the way.

"Get out of here, Shawn, before we both do something we regret," Hunter told him.

"Fine, I'm out of here, but don't say I didn't warn you, buddy."


	357. The Contender, February 20, 2012

"Lucy, I'm home!"

"Not funny!" Stephanie called out from somewhere in the house. Chris couldn't exactly tell where her voice was coming from because sometimes their house seemed to echo. Then he heard screams coming from the downstairs playroom before he saw a bevy blurs racing past, while Stephanie showed up on the landing. She cleared her throat and Chris looked up.

"Hey, what's going on?" Chris asked. "Why do I hear screaming and why do I see blurs that might or might not be our children?"

"Because I let Sawyer and Flynn invite their friends over, remember?" Stephanie said, but then gave him an annoyed look. "I thought you were coming home earlier, that's why I said they could have their friends over today, but no, you're late."

"Sorry about that," Chris said, "there was a delay on the plane when I got to the airport. It was stuck in San Francisco because of rain so it didn't get to LA in time. How many kids are actually in the house right now?"

"Five, if you include Kensy, but Sawyer has his friend, Aiden, over, you know, the one with the mother who is so obviously into you," Stephanie raised an eyebrow as Chris rolled his eyes. "And Flynn has Alex over because she wanted to show him her wrestling stuff."

"That's cool, was he impressed?"

"I think so, he did seem in awe of everything. Flynn even showed him his room and he thought it was the coolest thing he'd ever seen," Stephanie said of Flynn's decidedly wrestling-themed bedroom.

"Well, they're running around down here, I don't know what they're doing," Chris said, "and for the record, Emily doesn't have a thing for me."

"Oh, _Emily_," Stephanie shimmied her shoulders as if she was trying to look sexy. "Look at us, all on a first name basis with the women who undoubtedly wants to sex you up."

"Why do you say things like that?" Chris asked. "Why do you always have to go there when it comes to other women?"

"Have you looked in a mirror?" Stephanie asked. "I've been fending them off for years. I have a big stick and everything, hitting them away when they get too close. Why do you think all your female friends are married or taken?"

"What? I have plenty of single, female friends let me tell you," Chris told her. "Plus, I have looked at a mirror because I have to do my hair and everything so you know, I know I'm handsome so…yeah, you are fending them off. Now why have you not come down here and given me a proper welcome?"

"Because the kids had their snacks upstairs and I was cleaning it up," Stephanie said.

"Oh, do you need some help?" Chris asked.

"Can you just go watch the kids, make sure they're staying out of trouble," Stephanie said. "Kensy's up here in the playroom. She was watching me clean."

"Put her to work," Chris winked at her. "Whenever you finish, I expect you to come down here and give me a 'hello, my darling, loving, wonderful husband, I missed you,' kiss, got it?"

"Bite me," Stephanie told him as she disappeared upstairs and Chris heard another gaggle of yelling coming from the dining room now. Chris could not figure out why these kids would be in the dining room, but he went to investigate. The kids were running around the table, seemingly playing tag. "Okay, you guys, no more running in the house. It's all fun and games until someone gets hurt." Chris's eyes widened as he muttered to himself, "Oh my God, when did I become my parents?"

"Daddy, you're home!" Flynn said, running towards him and throwing her arms open. Chris picked her up and lavished her cheeks with kisses. "I miss you!"

"You did? But I was only gone for a couple days," he told her, but it was still nice to be missed.

"I know, but I can still miss you!" Flynn told him, giggling as he gave her more kisses. "I have my friend over!"

"I can see that."

"Hey, Daddy," Sawyer said, coming over as well. Chris knelt down and hugged him with his free arm. "I missed you too, but I knew you were coming home. I saw you on Monday and you had a really good match, Daddy. I know I told you already, but I wanted to tell you again."

"Thanks," Chris said with a chuckle as he set Flynn down. "Hey, Aiden, it's nice to see you again."

"Hi, Mr. Jericho," he said politely.

"You can call me Chris, it's okay," he said with a smile and then turned to Flynn's friend. "Hey there, I don't think we've met before, I'm Flynn's daddy and you must be Alex, right?" He stuck his hand out for Alex to shake and the little boy tentatively reached out to shake Chris's hand.

"Uh huh," he said, nodding, feeling a little shy around new people. "I've seen you on TV."

"Really, I heard you watched wrestling with your dad. He likes wrestling too, right?"

"Uh huh, he really does. He says he'll bring me to a show and we can watch all the wrestlers," he said happily.

"That's really nice of him, who's your favorite wrestler?" Chris asked. "You don't have to say me, it's okay, I won't hold it against you."

"You're mine, Daddy," Flynn said, giving him a big, smacking kiss on the cheek.

"I know," Chris winked at her and she stuck her tongue out.

"I like Zack Ryder," he told him. "He's funny. I like Randy Orton too."

"Wow, those are some pretty good choices," Chris said. "Do you guys want to go play outside? I can come out there with you and you can play on the grass or the playground or something."

"Sure!" Sawyer said as Chris ushered them outside, opening the patio door for them and letting them all run towards the playground. Even though Flynn was the smallest, she was keeping up with them pretty well, but he should have known she would. She never let anything slow her down. Chris quickly went into the kitchen to grab himself a glass of water before heading back outside to sit on the patio and just watch the kids for a while.

He'd been so busy with other things this week that just sitting there was the best use of his time he could think of. He'd had a press conference for the Golden God awards, which he was hosting again. The organizers seemed to like him and he liked hosting the awards so it was a win-win situation for everyone. In addition to that, he'd had a couple business meetings for an upcoming project he was working on. So he'd gone from wrestling, to Fozzy stuff, to other projects, so sitting here, just watching and enjoying seeing his kids happy was just what he wanted.

The sliding door slid open behind him and he saw Stephanie come out with Kensington toddling in front of her. Kensington first saw her brother and sister playing and wanted a part of it until she looked to her right and saw her father was home. Her dark blue eyes lit up as she saw that her daddy was home. She made a beeline for him, a big grin on her face as Stephanie watched from the doorway.

"Dada, Dada, Dada!" she nearly growled (sounding very much like her older sister) as she ran to Chris with arms open.

"Kensy-bug! My favorite bug in the entire world!" he said, scooping her up as she hugged him tightly around the neck, her small, chubby arms holding him extra tight, almost choking him if she wasn't just a baby. He pressed a couple kisses to her temple before he pulled away. "Is it possible that you got even prettier while I was away?"

"It's entirely possible," Stephanie said, sitting next to Chris and leaning over so she could give him that proper hello he'd been waiting for. "I think she may have missed you most of all."

"Not possible," Chris said, "not my chill baby, Kensy-bug. Are you getting to be like your sister? Maybe I should keep you away from each other like when you were a newborn so I don't end up with two little hellion girls."

"Good luck with that," Stephanie said as she scooted even closer to Chris. "I missed you too, I must admit."

"It feels good that you admitted that."

"Are you done with all your commitments so you can focus on winning the title on Sunday?" she asked, simultaneously reminding him he had a huge match on Sunday and trying to weasel some information out of him about his time in Los Angeles.

Sometimes she so despised that Chris liked to keep things from her. She knew why he did it; he liked to surprise her with things like this because he had this innate need to make her proud of him. She figured that it stemmed from the fact that she had tons of money. Though he didn't care about it, there had to be a little part of him that thought he should be the typical "man" in the relationship, bringing home the bacon. The truth was that she made enough that Chris could literally sit around all day doing absolutely nothing and she wouldn't bat an eyelash.

That obviously wasn't Chris's style, but he was always trying to make her proud and, while endearing, it was annoying when she was the last to hear about different projects he had in the works. "I'm done with what I have this week, but remember that I have to record the album pretty soon."

"So you'll be gone again?" Stephanie said. "I'm beginning to wonder if Flynn _was_ really talking about you when she asked about why daddies left."

She regretted it the second that it was out of her mouth, but it didn't mean she didn't feel it in her gut when Chris's face fell. She couldn't believe she'd stooped that low. Chris had a lot of projects. He had when she started dating him and she'd always encouraged him to go after his dreams. She studied his face, about to open her mouth when she saw him sucking at his teeth and his eyes turning that shade of red when he got upset.

"I'm sorry, you know I didn't mean that."

"I was going to ask if you guys wanted to come with me when I recorded it," Chris said quietly, "for the weekend, all of you, even Sawyer."

"I'm a bitch," Stephanie said, "I know you have other things, I should be more sympathetic, I jus miss you when you're not around and the kids want you and…I'm not trying to make you feel bad, you're always there for them, I'm sorry."

"It's fine," he said, holding Kensington a little closer. She was fascinated with his watch and was oblivious to her mother's blunder.

"Chris, look at me," Stephanie said, pressing her hand to his cheek. "I'm an idiot, I meant what I said on Monday, about you being the best father in the world. You really are and I'm just annoyed because I really want to know what your special projects are and you never tell me and you make me wait and it's annoying."

"I'm sorry," Chris said, "I just like surprising you. You always get this look on your face. It's like, you're just so proud of me and I like that look. You're a hard one to surprise, you know. I've gotten better at it over the years, believe me, but every time I think about surprising you, I think about how I couldn't even surprise you with a wedding proposal and I've been trying to compensate for years."

Stephanie laughed and rubbed his arm, "Well, maybe if you had found a better hiding place than in your nightstand, in plain sight, where anyone could see the huge rock you got me, I wouldn't have found it."

"Maybe if you weren't such a slob and remembered where you put your things, you wouldn't have been looking in the first place," Chris reminded her and she waved him off. "You like my surprises, you'll like this one. And I'm so ready to win on Sunday. I can't wait to see Sawyer and Flynn's faces when I bring them the big, gold belt. Can you imagine Kensy's face when she sees it? Kensy, you're going to love the big, gold belt, I know you've seen it and sort of held it before, but the next time you see it, it's going to be mine and we can bring it home."

"Okay," Kensington said. "Good."

"I do think it's good."

"Don't go around saying you're going to win when you don't know you're going to win," Stephanie told him, glancing over at the kids, who were a distance away, climbing all over the playground. Flynn was trying to climb up the slide as Alex laughed at her from the top while Sawyer and Aiden were on the bridge, jumping up and down and shouting something about pirates. "If Flynn thinks you're absolutely going to win and then you lose, it's going to be the Royal Rumble all over again and I don't like seeing Flynn like that."

"You think I do?" Chris scoffed, thinking about his downtrodden little girl. He hated to see any of his kids sad. There was just something so wrong about seeing your kids being sad over anything and not knowing how to help. It made him feel helpless when they were like that. "I would not wish that on anyone, least of all my kids."

"I'm just saying…it's not like I don't have faith that you'll win, I really think you will."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Chris leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. "I would hope you have confidence in me. It's not my first time in the chamber, hell, it's not my second, third, or fourth. It's my seventh time in there. Now does that really give me an advantage? Not really, but it does give me knowledge of how to win in there, where to throw my opponents."

"Do you plan on getting thrown through a chamber this time?" she asked sardonically.

"I'll try not to," he told her, giving her a smirk, "but I make no promises."

"But you do plan on being careful?" she asked him, pressing her hands into his arms.

"No, I was thinking about being completely reckless," he rolled his eyes at her. "I'm going to try to be safe because I kind of like being around you."

"I'm just making sure, you don't have to be a jerk about it, you know," Stephanie told him. "The boys' parents are picking them up soon so you can actually spend some quality time with the kids."

"I want to meet this parent of Alex's," Chris told her. "I'm guessing that since he's a fan, he's going to want to pick up his son, just to see where we live, should we change the locks?"

"No, I think once he realizes we're normal people, he's not going to be too awestruck every time he sees us. Flynnie likes Alex so I figure they're going to be friends and I'd hate for her not to have a friend because of a weird parent. _We're_ weird parents when you really think about it."

"I'm not weird, I would say I'm pretty damn amazing," Chris said. Stephanie nodded along like she really believed that and they sat quietly watching the kids playing until the doorbell rang. "I'll get it."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, "I'll stay and watch the kids."

"Come on, Kensy-bug, let's go see who's at the door, okay?"

"Kay," Kensington said as Chris went to the front door. He opened it and smiled, "Emily, hey, long time no see."

"Oh, hey, Chris," she said, reaching out and giving him a friendly half-hug. "Stephanie has mentioned that you've been busy working and everything, but it's so good to see you, how are you doing?"

"Busy," Chris said, "I actually just got home a short while ago, but I like keeping busy, how are you?"

"Busy too," she said with a note of exasperation. "You know how it goes when you've got a lot of work to do. Stephanie was actually doing me a _huge_ favor today because I couldn't pick up Aiden because of work so she's a lifesaver."

"She gets that a lot," he said, "come on in, they're in the backyard playing, but I'm sure Aiden will be glad to see you."

"I hope so, I could use a friendly face," Emily said as she followed Chris out onto the patio. "Hey, Stephanie."

"Hey, Emily," Stephanie said in greeting, flitting a look over to Chris, which he just narrowed his eyes at. He wasn't going to give in to her silly musings. She thought every woman in the world was after him and while flattering some of the time, other times, it was downright annoying because he wondered if, deep down, she believed that one day one of those woman would snag him somehow and drag him away. Stephanie wasn't as insecure as she had been those first couple years they'd been together, but every once in a while, he could still see it in her eyes, that flickering of worry.

"How was Aiden?" she asked.

"Perfect, as usual," Stephanie said, rising and giving Emily a friendly hug.

"Thank you so much for watching him."

"It was no problem," she said as she turned to the playground. "Aiden, your mommy is here!"

Aiden came running over as the doorbell rang again. Chris jerked his finger towards it and Stephanie nodded as she continued to chat with Emily. Chris danced towards the door with Kensington, making her clap and giggle happily as she was so happy her daddy was back from wherever he'd been. Chris made it to the front door and opened it to find a gobsmacked man standing on the other side, actually ogling at him.

"Hey, you must be Alex's dad."

"I saw Stephanie and I knew…I can't believe it's really you."

Chris stuck his free hand out and the man eagerly shook it. "It's nice to meet you, I'm Chris and you are…sorry, I don't remember your name."

"Dude, it's not a problem," he told him, "you probably have to remember a million names, I'm Travis and you're Chris Jericho. I just have to say, I'm sorry, I just have to say I've been a huge, _huge_ fan of yours for years, since WCW, you were brilliant in WCW. I know from your book how hard you had to work to get where you were and you were just brilliant with that. The conspiracy victim thing was hilarious and your WWF debut was one of the best debuts. I knew it was going to be you on the January 2nd things, I just knew it was and it's so great to see you back in the ring."

"Wow, cool, thank you for being a fan," Chris said, "do you want to come in, Alex is in the backyard with Flynn and my son and his friend."

"Oh geez, I'm going into Chris Jericho's house," he said, "I'm sorry, I sound like an idiot, don't I?"

"I've been around worse," Chris said, "believe me. I think it'll get easier seeing me the more times you see me. Flynn seems to really like Alex and I want her to have friends who like wrestling because she loves it."

"Obviously, who wouldn't with you as a dad and Stephanie as a mom?" Travis said.

"Hi," Kensington said, finally getting a word in edgewise.

"Hi," Travis said to her.

"This is Kensy," Chris introduced her. "So have you ever taken Alex to a show?"

"Yeah, I took him last time you guys were in Tampa and he loved it. It was a blast, he had a great time and there's nothing like a live show. You have all the adrenaline and he was a little young, still only three, but he could follow it pretty well and he didn't get bored."

"That's great, my kids love sitting in the audience."

"Well, they get to see you," Travis said, "so, maybe this is too personal and if it is, please, just tell me, but when you hated Stephanie, did you really hate her? Because now you two are married and have kids and all of that…"

"No, I hated her," Chris said, "she was horrible, but she's changed as you can probably tell."

They arrived outside and Alex ran over with Flynn in tow, "Hey, Daddy, you have to see Flynn's room, it's so much wrestling."

"Well that's cause her dad is a wrestler, bud," Travis picked up Alex. "She's going to have a lot of stuff because her dad is Chris Jericho."

"Oh yeah, I forgetted," Alex said.

"Hey, we're heading out, see you guys," Emily said, giving a wave as Stephanie ushered them out of the backyard and back into the house.

"Hi, Alex's daddy," Flynn waved. "Alex and I played and played."

"Sounds like a lot of fun."

"Hey," Chris said, "next time the show's in Tampa, just let me know if you and Alex can go and Stephanie and I can hook you guys up with tickets and backstage passes."

"Are you serious?" Travis asked.

"Of course, Stephanie and I own the company, we can do whatever the hell we want," Chris joked. "It'll be fun for Flynn to have a friend there and you can meet some of the wrestlers, you'll be our personal guests."

"You have no idea," Travis said, shaking his hand, "this is like a dream."

Chris laughed, "It's okay, any friend of Flynn's is a friend of ours."

"Thank you so much," he said, "and I really hope you win on Sunday."

"Thanks, so do I."

Stephanie pushed open the door to her office and saw Chris doing push-ups while Flynn sat on his back. "What are you doing?"

"Daddy push me up," Flynn laughed hysterically. "He did Sawa and Kensy too and he was funny!"

"I'm getting in some practice," Chris said as he laid down and let Flynn scamper off his back and over to Stephanie, lifting her arms towards her mommy. Stephanie picked up Flynn and gave her a kiss on the cheek as Flynn continued to laugh. "I gotta keep limber for my match."

"It's first on the card so you don't have to be too limber. Your parents are in catering and they wanted me to bring the kids over so they could eat a snack before the show started," Stephanie said as she tickled Flynn's stomach a little. "I figured that since your match is first and that's really the only one they seem to be interested in that they could just watch your match and then come back and we could eat dinner in catering while celebrating your victory."

"Daddy gonna win!" Flynn lifted her arms in victory.

"Win! Win! Win!" Kensington said from her play blanket where Sawyer was reading a book to her.

"We don't know that though!" Sawyer interjected. "He might not, there's a lot of people in the match and we have to remember like the Rumble, Daddy doesn't always win."

"Sawa, no!" Flynn huffed, her lips pursing into a frown. "Daddy winning!"

"Sawyer is right, Fluterby," Chris told his daughter. "There's always a chance that I won't win. We have to face the facts, there are going to be five other guys in the match with me and they all want to win too, so there's a chance that I won't."

"Is Sames in it?" Flynn asked.

"No, Sheamus isn't in it," Chris said.

"He my friend," Flynn told Chris, "but if he no in it, you win."

Chris laughed, "I will try, Flutterby, okay, but if I don't, then it's okay too because I can always go after the belt another time, okay? Things are never as bad as they seem."

"You gonna win," Flynn shrugged, then looked at Stephanie and gave her a very serious look. "He gonna, Mommy. I knows it."

"You can see into the future?" Stephanie asked her.

"Yup, yup, yup, I do dat and Daddy win," Flynn nodded.

"Well, I like your powers," Stephanie said, "Christian is here tonight if someone maybe wants to try and get some information from him on what is going on between him and Trish because it is killing me not knowing what's going on between the two of them."

"It's bugging me too," Chris told her, "but, haven't you thought about how, if they are so willing to hide whatever is going on, maybe they just don't want us to know right now and we should respect their privacy?"

"They're our best friends!" Stephanie protested.

"I have best friends!" Flynn raised her hand and grinned because she had a lot of them and they all really liked her. She also had wrestling best friends and she thought that CM Punk was her wrestling best friend because she liked him the best…after her daddy of course, nobody could ever be better than her daddy.

"I do too," Sawyer said as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

"And we should respect that if they want us to know, they will tell us," Chris said. "I mean, I'll try a little bit, but if he doesn't want to give up anything then I'm not going to force it out of him."

"Thank you," Stephanie winked at him and he groaned because she did have him wrapped around his finger. "I'm not asking you to do anything strenuous, I want you to save most of your energy for the match. You _are_ the last one to go in though so you're going to have some time to strategize and see what everyone's weaknesses are."

"I love when you get into strategy mode," Chris said. "Are you going to be at the gorilla for my match?"

"Of course," she said, "I'm going to take the kids for their snack, Christian please."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'll find him when I find him," Chris said, standing up and grabbing Kensington. "Do you want me to help you?"

"Sure," Stephanie said, "come on, baby boy, let's go to catering so you can have a snack with Gamma and Gamps before the show starts."

Stephanie led her family out of her office and down the hallway towards catering. Chris spotted Christian up ahead so Stephanie put down Flynn (much to her chagrin) and picked up Kensington so she could take the kids. Chris sauntered over to where Christian was, appearing as casual as he possibly could in the moment and sidled up next to his best friend.

"Hey, man, so you doing anything on the show tonight?" Chris asked.

"I might," Christian told him, "haven't decided if I am yet. You know, I've been cleared to wrestle, but Teddy still won't put me in any matches. I swear that guy has got some kind of vendetta against me or something. I don't know what the hell his problem is. It almost makes me wish for Laurinaitis because I can't stand Long so much."

"Those are fighting words, man," Christian said.

"Look, I'm not going to lie to you, Laurinaitis is not my first, second, or third choice, but dude, if the options are going to be Teddy or John, I have to endorse John."

"I'm not going to tell you what to do, but just remember," Chris told him, "if John is in power, that means Vince is in power and he's going to try and take that away from Stephanie and I don't want that for her."

"I think you underestimate your woman's power," Christian told him. "I'm just pissed because instead of me, he put in Santino. What the hell has that guy ever done to deserve a title match, you know?"

"I get it, I mean, he's not the best wrestler here, but sometimes we don't get the opportunity and it sucks, but it is what it is."

"What about you, you ready?" Christian asked.

"As I'll ever be," Chris shrugged. "How do you really go into an Elimination Chamber without being a little apprehensive? That steel hurts like a bitch, man, landing on it is never fun and with three kids I have to take care of, it's never fun the next day."

"I know that feeling," Christian said, shaking his head.

"So where's Trish?" Chris asked, knowing that by inserting her into the middle of the conversation, it wasn't as awkward as if he had asked about her right off the bat.

Christian shrugged, "Around. I think she's talking to some of the divas. I don't really know, we got here and she kind of took off. Tilden is with her parents in Florida. They couldn't make it to her birthday so they came to see her."

"That's nice of them. My parents are here so the kids can watch the show."

"Parents, right," Christian laughed.

"Yeah, definitely, always right there to take care of the grandkids and spoil them," Chris said. "So hey, I was thinking, you, me, Trish, Steph, we haven't done anything as couples for a while and with Edge and Lita actually sticking around, we haven't had them out in forever and Stephanie has the in with some fancy dinner place because she went to college with the owner's wife and so did you maybe want to go to dinner?"

Chris wasn't really lying. Stephanie _did_ know some owner's wife to some fancy restaurant, but he hadn't discussed going with her on a triple date with their friends, but it seemed the appropriate action at this juncture. If they were all out and it was just them with no kids, it might give them better access to what was going on. He didn't totally believe in interfering, but he really was curious as to what was going down with his best friends.

"I don't know, Trish and I have been busy."

"You need a break," Chris slapped him on the shoulder. "Away from work, away from the kids, away from anything else that ails ya. We can go and have a fancy evening, maybe make the wives feel special…"

"Well, I'd have to talk to Trish."

"Awesome, you're in then," Chris said, "no way will she pass it up, no way."

"Yeah, I guess you're right…"

"I know I am, man, I know I am."

"I've got to go," Christian told him quickly. "I wanted to see if I could talk to Teddy before the show, see if he can pull some strings, later, man."

Chris watched him walk away briskly and thought about how weird he was acting. He would just come out and ask what was wrong, but he knew Christian and he knew he would evade the question if he could. Usually Christian was a blabbermouth, but that was with other gossip, not his own life. So Chris and Stephanie might just have to get to the bottom of this themselves.

He had to focus on his match though, that was the most important thing occurring tonight and he couldn't overstate how much he needed to focus on this match. The Elimination Chamber was never without injury of some kind, even if it was just soreness the next day, which he knew was coming. With the kids with his parents and Stephanie running the entire operation, it gave him some much-needed time to get into game mode. He warmed up in Stephanie's office, which was quiet and for once, nobody was running to him crying about their problems. They probably figured he was too busy preparing for his match to be bothered, which was the truth.

"Chris, you're up soon," he heard Britt knocking on his door. "You might want to get ready."

"Thanks, Britt," he called through the door, wondering how she knew he was in there, but Stephanie must have figured he was. He went to the bathroom and pulled on his ring tights and grabbed his sparkly jacket (Flynn had been wearing hers all around backstage, but had to forgo it when she went out to the arena). He walked determinedly down to the gorilla where he was greeted with the image of his wife talking to Laurinaitis.

"I don't see why you would go and say that you had some big announcement when all you want to do is announce that you want to be the regular General Manager," Stephanie said, "that is not something that's newsworthy and if it was, I would want to be notified before you go behind my back and do something like that."

"I _am_ the interim GM and I thought it was my duty to state my intentions on becoming the permanent General Manager. Also, while we're on the subject," John said, "I would also like to point out that with your husband as an active wrestler, I think the duties of the Executive Vice President of Talent Relations should be transferred back over to me."

"Why the hell would I do that?" Stephanie asked.

"Because your husband has other things to worry about, going after the title, fending off five other men in a few minutes," Laurinaitis pointed out. "I don't think he can handle both jobs wherein, I think I could handle both. David has looked it over and he, too, thinks I can handle both."

"I don't care what he says," Stephanie told him, "You may think you have the Board of Directors under your thumb, which you don't, believe me, but this is still my jurisdiction and you're so lucky that I don't find a way to fire you. There's no way I would let you become the permanent General Manager."

"It's not entirely up to you, is it?"

"It will be," Stephanie told him, glaring at him, "now get to work, I don't want to see your face again."

Stephanie pushed past Laurinaitis and scanned the area for her husband. When she saw him, she walked straight up to him and hugged him, her arms snaking into his jacket and wrapping around his waist as he awkwardly hugged her without trying to bruise her from the sleeves of his jacket. He kissed the top of her head as she laid her head on his shoulder.

"What was that about?"

"He's going out there to announce that he wants Teddy Long to be reviewed as well and he wants to be the GM of both shows," Stephanie said, "I didn't want to deal with him before your match, but he was bugging me about it."

Chris looked around to the other wrestlers in the match, who were all in various stages of concentration. R-Truth was talking to himself and Chris could hear him utter Little Jimmy every once in a while. Dolph was getting a pep talk from Vickie, her screechy voice seemingly worse when hissing. Kofi was jumping up and down on alternating feet while The Miz just stared off into space. Punk was looking over at him and Stephanie with a little bit of concern, but when Chris made eye contact with him, he winked and turned away, instead going over to chat with Britt.

"Don't worry about him, okay, he's just a jerk and nobody actually wants him as the permanent GM," Chris said, "he may have a few wrestlers who don't know any better, but he doesn't have the whole roster and the fans hate him and if the board has any brains they won't let him run roughshod over this show. I wouldn't worry about it, okay, let him do his stupid, little announcement and you just worry about running this company."

"Be careful out there," she pulled away and looked at him. "Don't do anything stupid, okay? Don't be a hero, try to stay away from the outside of the ring and the walls of the thing and don't go climbing on anything and don't get smashed through a chamber."

"I don't think there's anyone in there who's strong enough to do that to me," he chuckled. "I'll be fine, okay?"

"I'm trusting you," Stephanie pulled her hands from around his waist and then placed them on his cheeks, leaning forward to kiss him, "For luck."

"Chris, you're up," Britt said, signaling that he had to go.

Chris leaned forward and kissed Stephanie one more time, "I love you."

"Love you too, I believe in you," she told him, wiping some of her lip gloss away from his lips as Chris left her standing there.

The arena went dark for him and he got into place, turning on his jacket as he turned away from the crowd. He could hear a mixture of cheers and boos and he didn't care at all as he turned around and sauntered his way down to the ring. He ignored everything and everyone as he walked towards the cage, looking at it up and down, assessing it as if it had changed in the two years since he'd been in one. It hadn't and he climbed inside, getting into his chamber as he handed the jacket to a referee. They took it and he looked around, spotting where his kids were sitting. He resisted waving, but sent them a look to show them he was thinking of him.

"He gonna win," Flynn breathed to her grandmother, standing on the chair. "You win!"

"Go! Go!" Sawyer screamed and cheered for his daddy.

Chris turned back around as the rest of his opponents trickled into the cage. He knew that it was going to be a while until he was in the match, but that didn't mean he could slack off. He had to pay attention and so when the match started, his intensity level went up. There was something to the claustrophobia you felt when you were in the chamber. Even though there were chains behind him so he wasn't literally locked into a chamber, the feeling you got when you were in here was like a feral animal. You would find yourself pacing or placing your hands up against the plexiglass, wanting to break free. Whenever he saw someone who looked like they should be pinned, but wasn't getting pinned, it was like a dagger to his heart, making his adrenaline rush as he wished to bust through the chamber and do the job himself.

Occasionally, to break the monotony, he would glance behind him as his kids. They were still cheering for him, sending him smiles and once when he looked, Flynn waved like a madwoman and that calmed him down enough to where he could focus back on the match. At one point, Punk came over to taunt him and while it looked malicious from the outside, he knew that Punk was just ribbing him because he had to be in this chamber and Punk knew how it felt. Chris wanted out of there though and every time a new entrant entered, he knew he was getting closer and closer to getting the hell out of this cage.

When finally his turn came, the first thing he did was go after Punk. They were no longer allies, but adversaries and he couldn't afford to think of Punk as someone who was his friend. They could be friends later, but they could not be friends now. Punk understood that and didn't hesitate to fight back. Chris wanted the belt and Punk wanted to keep the belt and that was the end of it. He got caught up with Dolph, but a well-placed Codebreaker soon took him out and that was one less person he had to worry about.

Neither he nor Punk was willing to back down from each other. They fought over towards one of the chambers and Chris was going to use it to his advantage if he could. He eventually got Punk into one of the chambers, half-way in to be exact, and then started closing the door on Punk, slamming it into him repeatedly, weakening him and if Punk was his friend right now, he'd probably appreciate how Chris was going at him.

Leaving Punk there, he went back to focus on Kofi. He had to remember there were other guys in this match, other guys who wanted that belt. Some of them had never tasted the pinnacle of the mountain and even though having the taste and then losing it was worse, never having had a taste had to feel pretty bad too. He had been where they were, hungry for that first title win, just wanting to know what it was like to be on top of the business you loved. He'd craved it, worked his ass off for it so he knew the hunger. He knew and he had to get rid of it.

He was trying to get Kofi down when The Miz came out of nowhere and took him out. He laid down on the mat trying to regroup himself when he felt it shake and looked up to see what was going on, realized that Kofi had jumped off the top of a pod onto Punk and Miz. He was indeed crazy and he'd be hurting tomorrow after that. Still, it opened up another opportunity for Chris and he got to Kofi and applied the Walls of Jericho (it was really the Liontamer as Chris put his knee to the back of Kofi's neck). Kofi tapped, but Chris wasn't done with him. There was an aggression after earlier this week and the cheap shot Kofi took on him.

Chris took him to the entrance where Kofi was going to leave and threw him out of the cage. At this juncture, Punk took the opportunity to kick Chris in the head, propelling him forward and he was falling…falling…falling…

Then everything went black.

"Focus on Chris!" Stephanie yelled into her microphone, which was connected with the production truck. "What's going on!"

"I don't know," Britt said. "I'm not hearing anything at the moment."

"It looks like he hit his head," Hunter said from the other side of Britt.

"Does it look bad?" Stephanie was on the verge of panicking, but she was managing to keep it under control.

"We've just got word from the referee, it looks like he's unconscious," Britt said, which made Stephanie throw off her headset.

"I've got to get out there!" she exclaimed, rushing towards the ramp, but Hunter got up quickly and grabbed her by the waist. "Let me go, Hunter, I swear to God, I will gouge your eyes out with my nails if you don't let me go!"

"Stephanie, there's nothing you can do for him out there, okay, let the EMTs look him over and then he can come back here and you can check on him," Hunter told her, not releasing his grip on her even though she was squirming against him.

"Did you not hear what Britt just said, he's unconscious!" Stephanie said, "Let me go! I need to be with him, he's my husband, he's hurt, he never gets hurt, oh my God, he's not supposed to get hurt!"

"Stephanie, it's okay," Hunter said, turning his death grip into a hug as Stephanie buried her face into her ex-husband's neck. "I'm sure he's okay, they're going to check on him and he'll be okay."

"Oh my God, the kids!" Stephanie pulled away, her eyes wide. "The kids are out there!"

Flynn tried to peek over the heads that were looking down at Chris. She really couldn't see anything though so she tugged on her grandmother's sleeve. "Gamma, where Daddy?"

"I don't know, honey," Loretta said, but she was preoccupied looking at her son and the people around him. He wasn't moving and she was starting to get worried as Chris usually got up from these kinds of things. Her son wasn't one who normally got injured.

"I can't see," Flynn said, trying to look. "What he doing?"

"I don't know," Loretta repeated.

Sawyer was trying to look as well, "Gampa, is he okay? What's going on? He fell, but he's supposed to be in the match and he's not in the match and he can't win if he doesn't go back."

"I don't know what's going on, Sawyer," Ted said as he held Kensington to him. Kensington wasn't paying attention though, she was looking up at the Titantron because it was really pretty.

They continued to stare at Chris, but he wasn't getting up and they seemed hesitant to move him. Loretta bit her lip and willed her son to get up, but he wasn't getting up and now she was starting to get a panicky feeling in the pit of her stomach. She looked over to Ted, but he wasn't saying anything and he was just trying to see what was going on.

"Sawa, what going on?" Flynn finally asked her brother because Sawyer always knew everything.

"I think Daddy might be hurt," Sawyer said, judging from how people kept looking over at his daddy and the worry on his grandparent's faces.

"Hurt?" Flynn's lip quivered a little. "No, Daddy no get hurt!"

"I think he is, Flynnie," Sawyer said and Flynn frowned and shook her head.

She turned to Loretta again and asked. "Is he hurt, Gamma?"

"I don't know,"

The match ended and Punk felt kind of horrible about it, even though he'd won. Chris looked like he was out and that's not the way he wanted to win and he knew that Chris would be furious about this. He hadn't meant to have it go like that, but you couldn't predict these kinds of things. He tried to locate Sawyer, Flynn, and Kensington in the crowd, but everything was kind of swimming for him now and he couldn't really focus.

The EMTs had finally put Chris on a stretcher and were wheeling him backstage. Loretta and Ted, upon seeing this, rushed backstage with three very confused children. Stephanie was already waiting for them and as soon as Chris came in through the curtain, she was over to him, but he was completely out, his hand hanging limply to the side. She seized it and went with them as they wheeled him into the trainer's room to assess him better.

"Chris, Chris, can you hear me?" Stephanie asked, gripping his hand, but he wasn't gripping it back. "Is he okay? What's wrong with him? Has he been unconscious this whole time?"

"No, he came to for a little bit, tried to sit up, but then he kind of fainted again."

"Why is he unconscious?" Stephanie asked. "That's got to be bad, right?"

"Not necessarily. He could have just hit his head really hard and that's it. It might not even be a concussion."

"Are you sure?"

"We'll check him out, Stephanie, don't worry."

"I've got to go check on my kids, but buzz me if he wakes up," Stephanie said, "My headset is at the gorilla."

"Will do," he said as Stephanie walked briskly back to the gorilla. She was just grabbing it when Loretta and Ted breathlessly showed up backstage, Sawyer running ahead of them. Stephanie knelt down to intercept him and hugged him tightly. She needed her kids right now because her insides were twisting into mush. She pressed her face into Sawyer's blond hair and tried not to cry in front of her kids.

Seeing Chris lying there had been bad enough, but when the word unconscious had entered the conversation, she'd felt like her world had just been swallowed up. Bad things didn't happen to Chris. Chris was indestructible when it came to wrestling. He wasn't supposed to get injured, he wasn't supposed to hit his head.

"Mommy, is Daddy okay?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah, is he alright?" Loretta asked.

"He's being checked out right now, I came here to meet you guys, see how the kids were doing, the trainer said he would buzz me when he had word on how Chris was doing," Stephanie explained.

"Was he conscious when he came back here?" Ted asked.

"No, but the trainer said that it might not be as bad as we think."

"Daddy hurt?" Flynn asked, her eyebrows knitting. "Daddy no win and he hurt!"

"It's okay, Flynnie" Stephanie said, coming over and pressing a kiss to Flynn's cheek. "He'll be okay. You know nothing can bring down Daddy. That's why he's the best in the world at what he does. He doesn't get hurt." It was difficult being brave for the kids, but she had to do so because they were probably scared.

"Can we see him?" Sawyer asked.

"Not right now, baby boy, but maybe in a few minutes, okay?" Stephanie said.

"I wanna see Daddy!" Flynn insisted.

"We will, don't worry," Stephanie said, trying to avoid Ted and Loretta's eyes because she might break down because they knew the situation.

"Stephanie?" Stephanie turned around and saw Punk standing there. "I am so sorry, I didn't think that would happen, I didn't mean to injure him, you have to know that I didn't plan on that happening and—"

"It's okay," Stephanie said, "you didn't mean it, I know you didn't mean it. He should be okay…I think so don't worry about it and don't blame yourself. These things happen."

"I'm still really sorry, I didn't want to win that way."

"I know you didn't, you of all people would have loved the fight."

"Yeah, I would have."

"You did that!" Flynn pointed accusingly at Punk.

"I'm sorry, Flynnie, I didn't mean to."

"Okay," Flynn took his word for it as Stephanie's headset buzzed to life. Stephanie grabbed it and put it on.

"Hey, what's going on?" Stephanie asked.

"We used some smelling salts and he's awake if you want to see him," the trainer said. "He's asking for you anyways."

"Thanks, I'll be right there." Stephanie turned off her headset and turned to her family and Punk. "He's up, he's asking for me so I'm going to head over, you guys can come with. Punk, it'll be okay, but don't expect Chris to take this lying down."

"I wouldn't expect anything less," Punk said, looking relieved that Chris was awake.

Stephanie led everyone over to the trainer, where Chris was sitting up and rubbing at his temples. He looked up when he heard the sound of footsteps and he smiled at his family. "Don't you ever worry me like that again!" Stephanie said, coming over as Chris opened up his arms to her. "You had me worried have to death." Then she whispered in his ear, "I kept it together for the kids, but I wanted to cry."

"I'm okay," he told her, kissing her cheek and then looking at his kids, who were in various states of worry (Kensington not worrying at all, but looking slightly empathetic to Sawyer, whose lips were screwed up with worry). "Hey, kid, how did I look out there?"

"You did good until you got hit in the head and fell," Sawyer said, "but you almost won."

"I know, it sucks that I didn't. Hey there, Flutterby, sorry I didn't win," Chris said and Flynn reached across her grandfather to try and get to Chris. He hugged her into his arms and kissed the side of her head.

"I glad you okay," Flynn said and that was all Chris needed to hear.

The trainer walked in and greeted them before talking to Chris. "You actually look okay, I think you just got your lights knocked out for a little while, but you're not showing any concussion symptoms as of right now. I would say to look out for them tonight, you know what they look like and so do you, Stephanie, so you can keep an eye on him. I want to check him before the show tomorrow and if he's okay, I'll clear him."

"Thanks, Josh," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, thanks, man," Chris shook his hand as he shook a few cobwebs from his head.

"You are so extremely lucky. Only _you_ would get knocked out and have nothing happen," Stephanie said, but it was with a great deal of relief in her voice. Chris leaned forward and kissed her. "Come on, take a shower and get dressed so we can go to dinner."

"Okay, thanks for caring everyone," he said to them all, but they were all still staring at him like he was fragile. "I'm okay, I swear it."

"We'll see how you are tomorrow."

The only lingering effect of his fall was the headache he had before bed. A couple of Advil in the morning and he was perfectly fine. That wasn't to say he wasn't sore though. He felt like he'd been in a car accident, but when he went to the trainer, he was given the all clear for tonight, which was fortunate since Britt had scheduled a battle royal for the #1 contendership as she thought that was the fairest way to decide who would get to face Punk at WrestleMania. Chris believed, though, that he should get the shot automatically because he hadn't been eliminated the night before.

So now he had to go through nine other guys to get a shot. It'd be tough competition, but he'd come this close to winning the Royal Rumble so he could do it again. Stephanie came up and started massaging his shoulders, which felt heavenly. Sawyer and his parents had flown home earlier that day, but with lots of reassurances than Chris was alright. His body was aching and Stephanie's hands were working wonders on him.

"What you doing, Mommy?" Flynn asked curiously as Chris's head had fallen back as a blissful expression took him over. How did other guys survive without having their wives here?

"I'm giving Daddy a massage because he's sore after his match last night and he has a match tonight to see if he can face Punk at WrestleMania."

"Daddy, tonight will you win?" Flynn asked since her daddy did not seem to be winning when he needed to.

"I think I will," he answered without opening his eyes.

"Okay, good, I want you to, bye!" Flynn skipped over to her toys and started knocking over Kensington's block stacks, which made Kensington laugh and started to build more.

"That feels so good, baby," Chris said, opening his eyes and looking backwards up at Stephanie. She smiled down at him and gave him a kiss. "I don't know what I'd do without you here, taking care of me, making sure I don't have concussions."

"I seem to recall one time you had a concussion and you ended up kissing me instead of fighting your match," Stephanie grinned down at him.

"I would like to say I remember that, but I really don't," Chris chuckled. "I was so out of it that match, I don't think I knew which way was up. Maybe I thought you were the girlfriend I had at the time." Stephanie grabbed him extra hard and he yelped. "Okay, duly noted that you don't want me talking about my exes."

"Then I might really think you had a concussion," Stephanie told him. "Do you think Hunter is going to give into Taker tonight?"

"Maybe, he's eventually going to give in though. He can't keep holding it off for long. He's going to give in because his pride won't let him do otherwise," Chris said, "what do you think about what Britt did?"

"What did Britt do?"

"The Battle Royal. She's upping the odds that Punk will match someone who he can take easily. She's tipping things in his favor," Chris said, "I'm surprised you didn't realize that. She's doing this _for_ him. If she was doing this logically, I would've gotten the shot because I wasn't eliminated last night."

"No, you were just unconscious," she said sardonically.

"I was fine," Chris said, "look, I'm in one piece, I'm talking to you, I'm fine."

"Head injuries are nothing to joke about, Chris. They can do real damage," Stephanie told him, her voice becoming stern and terse. "You could have been seriously injured last night. I don't know why you're so lucky or how you're so able to fend of things that other guys would be out for months for, but you do. You could have…I don't even want to think of it."

Chris grabbed Stephanie's left hand and kissed her right on the wedding ring. "I know they're serious, but I'm okay, baby, I promise, I'm fine."

"You don't know what ran through me when you were unconscious, Chris. I was trying to hold it together so the kids wouldn't freak out, but I wanted to go into a corner and cry while rocking back and forth. I need you in my life, I can't do this life without you."

"I know and I'm here," he pressed another kiss to her palm. "Calm down, okay, relax."

"I can't relax," Stephanie said.

"Do some work. Didn't you say that you had some ad things to go over for WrestleMania and sponsor stuff?"

"Oh God, yes," Stephanie said, "I have a conference call tomorrow with advertising tomorrow to go over what adspace we're purchasing to promote WrestleMania and then I have to listen to some prelims for WrestleMania Axxess."

"See, you have tons to do," Chris said, "and the show is starting soon and I've got to be prepared, so many things to do, so we should get to it."

Punk sat down next to Britt, but didn't say anything. He just kind of sat there, in his inexpensive suit jacket. It was nothing compared to the threads Hunter wore, but he wasn't trying to be like Hunter, just like Punk. Britt glanced over at him for a moment before she went back to her checklist, talking to production as they got things ready for the televised part of the show.

"You looked really worried last night," Britt finally said when she had a moment to spare.

"Huh?"

"When Chris was out," Britt explained. "You looked concerned for him. You cared."

"I care, of course I care," Punk said, lowering his voice, "you know I do."

"I know, but sometimes…sometimes you're really difficult to read," Britt told him. "It's not a bad thing to keep your cards close to your vest, but you don't even have any tells so it's hard to determine whether or not you ever actually care about anything, but I saw it last night…and then when you came backstage, when you came and you talked to Stephanie. I could see it in your face."

"I never want to actually hurt a guy," Punk shrugged, "especially not someone I consider a friend, who has those kids with those eyes that bore into you."

Britt laughed, "It was nice to see the softer side of CM Punk. I think I liked it."

"You did?" he asked, intrigued now.

"It was certainly better than what we usually get," Britt told him, sending him a meaningful glance. Punk didn't dare hope voice what he was seeing in her eyes, but his mind thought it. He thought he saw hope in them.

And hope was good.

Chris chuckled as he watched Eve get caught in her own web of lies. "That's what you get when you date a diva, man, that's what you get."

"Excuse me?" Stephanie asked. "When did you date a diva?"

"I'm just saying, they're only out for what you can give them. I'm talking about the divas nowadays, with the exceptions of the ones who can actually wrestle, but Eve, yeah, totally a stereotype. And using Cena of all people? I mean, I know the guy is kind of a doofus, but come on."

"He's a doofus," Flynn echoed as she laughed.

"Doofus," Kensington echoed the echo.

"See, he's a doofus," Chris said, "but I guess not as much as Eve is."

Chris got an even bigger kick out of John going to the ring and denouncing Eve. "Ho-ski. Are you kidding me? How is that even funny? It's not even creative. Now filthy, dirty, disgusting, brutal, skanky, bottom-feeding trash bag ho, _that's _creative."

"That's what you called Mommy!" Flynn laughed. "Mommy no like it."

"I didn't, I thought it was very rude," Stephanie said as she looked up from her work.

"But it still funny," Flynn whispered to Chris and he winked at her as he agreed. Cena was not funny, although he did have a point about Eve, who eventually came out and looked to be having a crying jag. She was making a fool out of herself actually.

"Do you think I should check on her?" Chris asked.

"Why would you do that?"

"Head of Talent Relations, she's a talent, her relations have fallen through…"

"Do you really want to have her crying on _your_ shoulder after that display?" Stephanie wondered. "You have a big match later, do you need to involve yourself in that drama? I mean, look at her, she brought it on herself when she wanted to use Ryder and Cena. Piggybacking her way to the top, I guess it's better than sleeping her way there."

"You do have to give her credit for that," Chris said. "I guess I'll let her cry on someone else's shoulder then."

"You just focus on winning tonight."

"You win!" Kensington poked Chris in the cheek.

"He's gonna, Kensy," Flynn nodded. "Daddy will win."

Hunter couldn't believe that Taker couldn't take a hint. He'd told him time and time again that he wasn't going to fight him, but the guy just wouldn't take no for an answer. He should have expected it from him, but to this extent, it was getting ridiculous. He was part of management now and he had to act like it. He had to build up the product, not get involved in petty fights. Still, he went out there and told Taker that it wasn't going to happen, but the man had to taunt him, he just _had_ to taunt him.

Hunter had nothing if not his pride and to be called a coward, to be called out like that was where the line had to be drawn. Hunter wasn't going to put up with that. He'd put up with too much, walked away from too much, but he simply could not walk away from that. He walked back to the ring, untying his tie and taking off his jacket. If Taker wanted one more match, Hunter would give him one more match, but it would be on his terms and they would have to go all-in. That was the only was he was doing this. Whatever happened, it was going to be the end of it, that was it. So he had to make sure that this would be the last time for both of them.

It had to be Hell in a Cell.

When he walked backstage, Britt wouldn't even look at him. He sat down next to her and tried to talk to her, "I'm sorry, babe, I had to do it. I had to make sure this was the end of it."

"Then end him," Britt told him, "end him and be done with it."

"You don't…you don't mind."

"No, I don't mind. He called you out, you're only following your instinct," she shrugged, "but you better make sure that you win. That's all I'm saying. You wanted this match, you wanted this brutality so you make sure you finish it."

"Oh, don't worry, Taker is finally going to lose at WrestleMania. I'm making sure of it."

Chris waned to go to WrestleMania as well. He wanted his own main event. It might not be Hell in a Cell, but it would be for the WWE Title and that was infinitely more precious. He just had to get through the rest of these guys to do it. Battle Royals could be really good for a person or they could be really bad. It just depended on how targeted you were. Punk was out there doing commentary and he could only imagine what the guy was saying.

Chris just tried to keep his bearings about him at first, trying to eliminate anyone he could see. Everyone was going at it so it was really just trying to find a spot. As the herd thinned, it got easier and easier to target certain people. The flow of the match was disrupted, however, when Big Show had thrown Dolph from the ring onto Wade and R-Truth. One second, he was wrestling and the next second, he was hearing gut-wrenching screams from Wade. Chris briefly looked over as did everyone, but they had to continue.

Whatever had happened looked bad, but he couldn't think about it as he eliminated Kofi, who also looked like he fell badly. He looked at Kofi for a moment, making sure he was okay. He might have wanted to beat him, but he didn't want to injure the guy. When he was satisfied that Kofi was okay, he returned to the match. It was down to him, Cody, Santino, and Big Show. Clearly, the biggest obstacle to his shot at WrestleMania was Big Show. He was going to be difficult to eliminate because of sheer size. Chris could see the stretchers coming out from the back and having been there last night, he hoped those guys were okay.

His fears about Big Show came to fruition when he laid them all out in turn. They eventually laid him out and gave them their finishers in turn, with Chris doing the Lionsault. Then he targeted Santino, throwing him over the rope and thinking he'd eliminated him. Unfortunately, Santino skinned the cat and then hit him a sock puppet in the throat. Chris went down, clutching at said throat while Cody eliminated Santino.

This left Cody and Chris to try and eliminate Big Show. They tried to suplex him, but ended up getting suplexed themselves. This was definitely going to be harder than they thought. Big Show then eliminated Cody and it was up to him. He went over the top and then grabbed Big Show, trying with all his might to pull his former tag team partner over the rope. Cody appeared out of nowhere and helped pull down Big Show. Chris had no idea why he'd just helped him, but it didn't matter, he was the winner.

He got in the ring and stared down Punk, who was nodding as he stood up on the announcer's table. Then Punk came into the ring and they stared each other down. Punk extended his hand, but Chris didn't shake it. They weren't friends here, not in this ring and he wanted no part of this. They were both thinking about how Vince would eat this up, but that Vince had no clue that this was like friendly fire. Chris wouldn't hate Punk if Punk won at WrestleMania and vice versa. They were friends and they were going for the title and they would put their all out there for the world to see and then they'd just see who was the better guy.

Chris got out of the ring and walked over to the referee, going straight into executive mode, asking what happened with Wade. He was told that it looked like either a dislocation or a break and Chris nodded. He walked backstage and Stephanie, Flynn and Kensington were there. The girls were sleepy, but happy for him. Kensington's eyes were drooping, but she grinned at Chris for a moment before closing her eyes completely. Flynn was more awake and bounded over to Chris, lifting her arms and not caring that he was gross and sweaty. She hugged him anyways.

"You won, Daddy, you gonna go wif Punk."

"I know, I am," Chris said, "I'm going to beat him, right?"

"Right!"

"Hey, is Wade okay?" Chris asked, "did you see him?"

"Yeah, I did, doesn't look good. Surprisingly, Dolph is fine. They're taking Wade to the hospital to get him checked out. They should notify you what's going on in a little bit since you're the head of the talent."

"Okay," he said, "I was wondering."

"But congratulations," Stephanie beamed, kissing him. "I'm going to cheer for you at WrestleMania."

"I would expect you too."

"I am too," Flynn said, "you get the big, gold WWE belt now?"

"Yeah, I'm getting the big, gold WWE belt now."


	358. Proving a Point, February 27, 2012

A/N: Thanks for reading and reviewing and favoriting and all that good stuff. I just wanted to say I LOVED the promo between Chris and Punk last night, one of the best I've seen in a while. This looks like it's going to be such a great feud. The only thing better would be to have Stephanie somewhere in there. ;) Hope you enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

"We're going to have a blast today."

"I know," Sawyer nodded happily. "Daddy?"

"Yeah?" Chris asked as she laced up Sawyer's ice skates. Chris was taking Sawyer ice skating in his new hockey skates. Sawyer had shown a real interest in hockey ever since Ted had taken them to that Tampa Bay Lightning practice so Chris thought it would be cool to take him to a rink and really teach him out to skate. They'd gone to a hockey sports store in the area to get him fitted and Chris had looked into some junior leagues. There was a five and six year old age division, but Chris wanted Sawyer to decide on his own if hockey was something he wanted to pursue.

"How come Mommy and Flynnie and Kensy aren't here?" Sawyer asked as he watched Chris.

"Because I thought it would be nice if we got to do something together for once," Chris told him. It was the truth too. Sometimes, because Sawyer was the oldest and because he didn't get to travel anymore, Chris felt like Sawyer was a little left behind. They had to give more attention to his sisters and with Sawyer in school now, Sawyer had to devote time to that and Chris didn't want Sawyer to feel like he had to sacrifice time with his parents. He knew Sawyer would never say anything, but that didn't stop Chris from feeling guilty.

"I wouldn't have minded if they came," Sawyer shrugged.

"I know you wouldn't have because you're a good kid," Chris told him, "but I know that sometimes we have to pay more attention to Kensy and Flynnie because they're younger and they need us more. Plus, I know that it bums you out that you can't come to Raw so I thought we could just have a guy's day today. We're going to skate and maybe I'll even show you how to use your new hockey stick and then we'll go for lunch."

"I bet we'll have fun," Sawyer grinned as Chris moved on to the next skate.

"I know we'll have fun," Chris told him, glancing up at him with a grin that showcased how much he really did want to have fun with Sawyer. "I know it's seemed like I've been really busy lately with wrestling and with Fozzy, but I always want you to know that you're at the top of my list. There's nothing in this world that I love more than you and if given the choice to spend time with you and your sisters or anything else in the world, you are always going to be my first choice."

"I know," Sawyer told him. He knew his daddy loved him. He'd always known that and he didn't quite know why his father was telling this to him now. He just thought his father had wanted to spend a fun day with him. "I like hockey, Daddy, do you think I could be good?"

"I think you could be great," Chris patted the top of his skate. "You know that grandpa played in the NHL, so you already have it in your genes to be great."

"Why didn't you play in the NHL? Didn't you like hockey?" Sawyer wondered curiously.

"Well, I wasn't as good at hockey as Grandpa Ted was," Chris explained, "plus, I wanted my own dream, you know. My dad was a hockey player, but I wanted to be a wrestler so I decided that was what I was going to be. And when you grow up, you can choose whatever you want to be."

"I want to be a wrestler too," Sawyer shrugged.

"I know you say that now," Chris told him kindly, "and I know that Mommy would love you to be, but you don't know what you're going to want to be when you grow up. And you can be anything that you want to be as long as you're happy, unless it something really bad."

"Like what?" Sawyer asked.

Chris could think of several professions he didn't want his son partaking in, but he was too young to talk about some of those professions. "You'll know when you're older, but even if you do want to be a wrestler when you grow up, you'll have to go to college first."

"What's college?"

"College is just school, but you're usually older when you go to it and you study one think you like very much."

"Did you go to college?"

"Yes, I have a degree in journalism because I wanted something to fall back on in case I didn't make it as a wrestler."

"But you're good," Sawyer scoffed. "You would totally be a good wrestler and you didn't need to go because you are a good wrestler."

"But I didn't know if I was going to be one when I started," Chris told him gently as he sat next to his son and started pulling on his own skates, which were well-worn and getting old. He might need to spring for a new pair himself, but these would suffice for now. He had grown used to these and he didn't want to break in a new pair. "It was really scary when I started. I didn't know if I was going to be good enough or not. I'd only done some weight training and some very basic wrestling stuff and this was intimidating."

"But you were still good."

"Well, I was better than pretty much everyone in the school with me. The only one who was any good like me was Lance Storm, you know Lance," Chris said and Sawyer nodded. He was one of his daddy's friends, but he was very, very serious and he didn't joke a lot or anything. "Nobody else made it but me and Lance. They just didn't have the right stuff so it's really not assured that if you train you're going to make it as a wrestler."

"But you would teach me," Sawyer shrugged.

"Oh believe me, if you want to be a wrestler, you're going to have the best trainers," Chris told him, knowing that he would definitely teach his son and so would Christian, Edge, Hunter, and probably even Punk. He would be well-equipped to go into that ring and kick ass. "Still, it's good to have something just in case."

"How come your just in case wasn't being a rock star because you're that too."

"Because that's just as hard to get into as wrestling. I've had Fozzy since even before me and your mom started going out and it's just now really getting some recognition," Chris explained to him. "It takes a long time sometimes to really make it."

"Mommy went to college too?"

"Yeah, Mommy went to Boston University because Mommy is very smart, but she always knew she was going to work for Grandpa," Chris said as he finished up with his skates. "And it's a good thing she did too because if she didn't then she wouldn't work for Grandpa and then I wouldn't have met her and I wouldn't have married her and I'd be sitting here talking to myself with nobody to skate with!"

Sawyer laughed and patted Chris on the leg, "But I am here! Are we going to skate now?"

"Yeah, we're going to skate now," Chris said. One of the advantages of having money was that he could do things like rent out a skating rink for a couple hours so he and Sawyer wouldn't be disturbed by a million different people. Chris stood up and held out his hand to Sawyer. Sawyer had been skating before, but he was still a novice and one thing that was still difficult for him was walking in his skates when he wasn't on the ice.

Chris led him over to the ice and stepped on first as he turned around and watched as Sawyer took to the ice. Sawyer slipped a little bit, but caught himself and smiled to himself, glad he hadn't fallen on his butt. Chris skated out towards the middle backwards and Sawyer tried to follow him, but at a much slower gait. Chris started to do a couple laps, just to get warmed up.

"Follow me, kid," Chris said as he got closer to Sawyer. Sawyer looked up and tried to emulate Chris. Hockey skates were different from regular figure skates and they could take some time to get used to on the ice, but he liked them much better than regular figure skates. Hockey skates had more stability to them and the blades were different and he was just more comfortable. Chris grabbed Sawyer's hand and they started going around the rink, from end to end and around the goals that were situated at either end. "You're doing great."

"This is fun," Sawyer laughed.

"I know," Chris said, smiling down at his son. He loved that he was creating moments that his son could remember. He didn't hate his father or even resent him, but there were so few memories of his father when he was little, except in the summertime, when hockey season was over. His father always tried to overcompensate during the summers, bringing him to a million different places and trying so hard to make up for all the time he spent on the road playing hockey. He was glad he had someone like Stephanie, who knew how to handle both personal and a very public life. "You're a natural at this. I think you're way better than I was."

"Really?" Sawyer asked excitedly. "But you're the best in the world at everything you do, Daddy."

Chris laughed. It was funny how much his kids believed in that mantra. "I know, but you're my son so it stands to reason that there are going to be some things you're better than me at. You may even be a better wrestler than I am."

"No way," Sawyer shook his head, "and you better not say that in front of Flynnie because she won't believe it and she'll yell at you."

That caused Chris to nearly double over in laughter, mostly about how true it was. Flynn, now knowing that Chris was going to face Punk at WrestleMania for the WWE title, had decided that maybe being friends with Punk wasn't the right thing for her. She said she didn't hate him, but that she wanted Chris to win so she really shouldn't cheer for Punk anymore. Chris and Stephanie both told her it was okay to keep Punk as her friend, but she was still undecided and got a sour look on her face whenever someone brought up Punk.

"I wouldn't want to be yelled at by Flynn," Chris shook his head.

"Me neither, she's loud," Sawyer said, "kind of like Mommy when she's mad at someone."

"Oh, you are so right, kid," Chris said. While he loved when his kids were babies, there was something to be said about being able to have conversations with your child. He liked that Sawyer and to a certain extent Flynn could hold real conversations with him. They were such interesting characters with their own personalities and it was fascinating and humbling learning new things about them everyday. "You think you can skate by yourself?"

"Yeah," Sawyer said, tugging his hand from Chris's and letting go altogether. Sawyer skated around and then looked back at Chris. "Daddy, I forget how to stop!"

Chris skated ahead of him and showed him how to stop, but when Sawyer tried it, he fell on his butt, laughing as he did so. Chris came over and grabbed his son's hands and helped up. "You'll get used to it. It gets easier as you go on."

"Can we shoot goals, Daddy?"

"Sure, of course we can, skate on over closer to the goal and I'll get our gear," Chris told him. He skated quickly over to the side and grabbed their things, bringing over a couple of pucks and hockey sticks, his old one and Sawyer's new one. He skated back over Sawyer and handed him his hockey stick, showing him how to hold it correctly. Chris had taken the liberty of putting a little tape at the end since Sawyer wouldn't know how to do that.

"Cool, I'm going to make a hundred goals," Sawyer said as Chris dropped the pucks. He tried to shoot one, but it went wide of the net, "oops, maybe not a hundred."

"Well, that one won't count," Chris said as he shot one that went into the net. Chris retrieved the pucks before going back over and hitting a few more with Sawyer.

"Daddy, are you nervous about your match at WrestleMania?" Sawyer asked, somewhat out of the blue, but he and his son were talking so it was good that he felt like he could ask questions.

"Not really. I mean, there's always going to be a little bit of nerves going into a match, but I'm really not that nervous. I've been to WrestleMania before and I've been in the main event for the title. You remember a couple years ago when I faced Edge."

"Yup, you beat Ed, but then he gave you a spear."

"Yeah and then before that, I was with Mommy and I faced Hunter, but I lost. You saw that match at home," Chris said.

"But isn't it scary in front of all those people?"

"I like it," Chris said, "I think you just have to think about your opponent and not think about the people watching. I want the belt because I know you and Flynn like it and I know Kensy will too so that's why I want it. I want it for Mommy too because Mommy works so hard and I like doing nice things for her—"

"I do too!"

"I know, that's why you're such a great kid," Chris ruffled his hair as he went to retrieve the pucks again. "I want the belt though and I'm going to do everything I can to get the title from Punk."

"Will that mean you aren't friends anymore?"

"No, you can face your friends, but sometimes you have to put aside your friendship for the greater goal. The thing about wrestling is that everyone wants one thing, they want the title; they want to be considered the best. That's why I went from WCW to the WWF, because I wanted to be the best. Punk knows that and I know that and whoever wins, we're still going to respect them, that's what being competitive is about. It's about winning and losing, but knowing how to react to each."

"I'm glad you'll be friends, I like Punk."

"He's a good guy," Chris said, "but that doesn't mean I don't want to beat him."

"Were you mad at him when you hit your head on the light?"

"No, because that was an accident as well."

"Oh," Sawyer said, "I was scared that you were hurt."

"I know," Chris leaned down and kissed his head, "I love you for that."

"I love you too, Daddy."

Stephanie clapped her hands as Flynn walked into the room. "Why, Miss Flynnie, you do look beautiful, darling."

"I pretty," Flynn flounced in, in her dress-up clothes, a dress that was slightly too large for her and a tiara sitting on top of her head. She'd chosen her replica WWE title as an accessory to the dress. Kensington was already sitting next to Stephanie in a big, floppy hat and a princess dress of her own. "I haves teas now and cookies."

"Well, the tea and the cookies and the sandwiches are ready," Stephanie said. Since her boys had gone to play hockey, she'd decided to do something quite girly with her daughters. She'd settled on a dress-up tea party and the girls seemed to be having fun. First, they'd gotten all dressed up and Stephanie had made little tea-size sandwiches and cookies with some iced tea since she didn't trust either of her daughters with hot tea.

"Good, good," Flynn said, sitting down in the little chair. "We're ladies."

"We are ladies," Stephanie smiled at her.

"Kensy, you have pwetty hat," Flynn complimented her sister.

"Tanks," Kensington pulled the hat even farther down on her head, nearly obscuring her face. Stephanie reached out and pushed it up.

"I like your hat too, Mommy," Flynn told her mother. Stephanie was wearing an old hat she'd worn to a wedding in Connecticut. It was just as opulent as one would think it was, complete with flowers and crinoline and little sparkles on it. She'd matched that with a feather boa. She had always had tea parties with her mother when she was growing up and while Flynn was definitely a tomboy, she loved that she was able to do the same little girly things with her daughters.

"Well, I like both of you," Stephanie nodded. Kensington grabbed her cup and held it out to Stephanie. "Oh, let's have some tea now, shall we, my dears?"

"We will," Flynn held out her cup for Stephanie. Stephanie poured the iced tea into Kensington's cup and then into Flynn's cup before pouring some into her own cup. "Now we can have sammies and cookies?"

"Yes, and we have a couple little cakes here for you too," Stephanie said, "but I want sandwiches eaten first." She handed one quarter sandwich to Flynn and the other quarter sandwich to Kensington, who took it eagerly, taking a big bite out of it.

"Mmm, yummy!" Kensington said as she smiled with bits of sandwich all in her teeth. Stephanie laughed and pushed her chin up so she was closing her mouth. Kensington gave her a cheesy (quite literally because they were ham and cheese sandwiches) grin and then chewed her food.

"These are fantastic," Flynn declared.

"Fantastic?"

"It was word of the day!" Flynn told her. "Mommy?"

"Hmm?" Stephanie mumbled around her sandwich.

"Do you really, really, really think Daddy is gonna win at the Mania?" Flynn asked. She knew that Punk was a good wrestler and her father wasn't winning as much as she thought he should so she wanted to get her mother's opinion on whether or not her father could actually win at WrestleMania. She liked Punk, but he wasn't her daddy and she would always choose her daddy because he was the best daddy in the entire universe.

"Of course I do. I think Daddy is one of the best wrestlers ever and I think he has a very good shot of getting the big belt and then he'll probably let you hold it for him because he knows how much you love it," Stephanie told her, poking her in the nose a little bit, making Flynn grin. "Do _you_ think Daddy is going to win?"

"I always do, but he didn't win the Rumble," Flynn shrugged, "he said he was gonna and then he didn't and I was sad."

"I know you were sad," Stephanie said as she took another bite of her sandwich, "but like Daddy said, you can't always win, but I think he has a really good shot at it. And you, you lucky girl, you and Kensy and Sawyer, you all get to watch it from the audience and cheer on Daddy and if he wins, then he'll hear you cheering for him."

"I wanna cheer for him, but I cheers Punk too," Flynn was in quite the dilemma. "What 'bout Sames?"

"Sheamus is going to go against Daniel Bryan. You like him, huh?"

"He talks funny and his hair is very, very, very red. I didn't know that hair could be that red."

Stephanie laughed. Her daughter was hilarious sometimes. Flynn had absolutely no filter and she was afraid she got that from both her and Chris, both of whom never knew when to shut up. She recalled many times where Chris would deliberately push buttons to get a rise out of the crowd. Kensington laughed because her mommy was laughing and Flynn just looked at them both like they were crazy.

"Well, there are people who have very red hair."

"I know that now. He my friend."

"That's nice that you have so many friends. You know what I was thinking?"

"What?" Flynn asked.

"Well, because WrestleMania is in Miami, which is in Florida, which is where we live—"

"We live in Tampa," Flynn interjected and Stephanie nodded. "I knew it."

"Yes, we live in Tampa, well, I was thinking that since your friend Alex likes wrestling so much and since WrestleMania is in the same state that we live, maybe you would want to invite him and his family to the show."

"I wanna do that," Flynn nodded eagerly.

"I thought you might. I think it'll be nice for you to have a friend there and I think Sawyer liked him too and if Sawyer has a friend he wants to invite, they can come too."

"And Kensy can have Tilden because they're best friends."

"Well, Tilden is already going to be there, but yes, you would all have friends there and you could all watch the show together, would you like that?"

"I do, thank you," Flynn said congenially as she grabbed another part of the sandwiches. "You make good sammies."

"Well thank _you_," Stephanie told her. "Are you enjoying your sammie, Kensy?"

"Like it!" Kensington took another big bite out of her sandwich.

"I love spending time with you guys," Stephanie told them both. "I know we don't get to spend as much Mommy/Kensy/Flynn time as I'd like because we usually have Daddy and Sawyer around, but I like you guys."

"We like you too, right, Kensy?" Flynn prompted her sister.

"Uh huh," Kensington nodded as she took a sip of her iced tea, getting a little bit on her dress, but that was okay, they were only dress-up dresses anyways. They were meant to withstand the worst these girls could handle.

"Mommy?" Flynn said.

"Yes, baby girl?"

"Can I watch Daddy on Monday?"

"You always watch Daddy."

"No, in the _seats_?"

"Oh, you mean in the crowd?"

"Yeah, like we did at the Chamber?"

"Well, we'll see, okay."

Flynn was bouncing off the walls because her mommy had said she could sit in the audience with Kensington. She loved watching the show from the crowd and she couldn't wait to go out there. Britt was going to sit with her and she liked Britt a lot so she was okay with this arrangement. She ran ahead of Chris and Kensington, then ran back, jumping up and down before she hopped like a bunny down the hallway.

"Your sister is crazy," Chris told his younger daughter.

"Uh huh," Kensington said, but then she tried to hop like a bunny down the hallway as well, but she wasn't as coordinated as her sister was and instead kind of jumped in place, but she really liked it and continued to do it until Chris swept her up into his arms. "Dada!"

"What?" Chris asked, kissing her cheek. "You're not a bunny, you're my little Kensy-bug, that's what you are."

"Yeah, yeah!" Kensington laughed as Flynn ran back over and looked up at her daddy and sister, her face screwing up into a look of intense concentration.

"I wanna be carried too!" Flynn declared and so Chris leaned down and picked her up as well. "Where we goin' again?"

"We're going to go see Rocky to make sure that he's here and that he knows what he's going to say," Chris said, "because I'm the VP of Talent Relations so it's my job to check in on him and make sure everything is good with him."

"Daddy, you gonna wrestle him again?" Flynn asked, pressing a kiss to Chris's cheek.

"No, I'm going to wrestle Punk, remember?"

"I know _that_," Flynn told him, shaking her head, "but you can wrestle other people too."

"I know, but I'm not going to wrestle Rocky, at least not now, but I don't think I'm going to at all," Chris told her. "You know, I looked at the schedule and I don't have anything to do on the show like a match or something. I was just going to talk out there. Do you still want to sit out there?"

"You're not wrestling or nothing?" Flynn asked, frowning a little bit.

"I wasn't planning on it, Flutterby."

"Oh," Flynn said, "but I wanna see you."

"Well, you can see me talk if you want, but I don't' know how long I'm going to be out there," Chris told her. "I just wanted to tell you ahead of time because if you and Kensy don't want to be out there, then I have to tell Britt that she doesn't have to go out there and she can work back here."

Flynn scrunched up her face, "I don't wanna be there if you no wrestle."

"That's okay," Chris told her, "you can stay backstage with Mommy and watch with her, how's that?"

"Okay, but when you do wrestle, I stay out," Flynn nodded and Chris nodded and she was satisfied. "Kensy, it okay, we see next time."

"Okay," Kensington said as they came upon Rocky's dressing room.

"Do you want to knock for me, Flutterby?" Chris asked as he leaned in a little closer to the door. Flynn reached out her small hand and knocked on the door, prompting Kensington to reach out as well to slap her hand against the door. Chris pulled away and kissed both their cheeks, "Thank you, ladies."

Rock opened the door a second later and smiled. "Hey, man, what's up?"

"Just wanted to come see how you were doing. It's part of the job description, you know," Chris joked as Rocky moved out of the way to let him in. He put Flynn and Kensington down so he could shake Rock's hands. "It's good to finally see you here."

"We can't all be like you and marry the boss's daughter…or should I just say marry the boss?" Rock laughed as he closed the door.

"Best decision I ever made," Chris told Rocky, "So really, how are you doing?"

"I'm doing great," Rocky told him, "my movie is doing pretty well, got all the press going for that, but hey, I read that your band just signed with a major record company, that has to feel pretty damn good."

"Can't complain," Chris chuckled.

"What did Steph think of that?"

"I'm wrestling right now, Stephanie could care less about anything that happens," Chris told him.

"Yeah, welcome back to you too, what made you decide to come back?"

"Stephanie, Flynn, and Sawyer, what do you think?" Chris told him. "They've all wanted me back and I can't deny that to my family."

"I should have known," Rocky said, then he knelt down to say hello to the girls. "Hey, girls, do you remember who I am?"

"I know who you are," Flynn said, stepping forward as Kensington leaned her head against Chris's jeans. "You're The Rock and you're coming back and fighting Cena."

"That's right."

"My daddy not wrestling you, but he would beat you," Flynn said. "He da best, nobody else is da best, only my daddy!"

"I see she's just as charming as your lovely wife," Rocky told Chris, who shrugged smugly. "You're very smart for your age, Flynn. I bet you watch a lot of wrestling with your daddy in it, don't you?"

"I want Japan and Mexico and other stuff that I forget."

"She's watched your old stuff?" Rocky asked. "I thought she might have just watched your stuff in WCW."

"No, Flynn likes it _all_," Chris told him.

"Well, you are an expert then," Rocky told her, giving her a kind smile. "You know, I think you would enjoy my movie, it's fun and it's kid-friendly, a lot of my movies are, I think you would see that I'm not really a bad guy."

"I don't wanna," Flynn shrugged, "I like wrestling."

"Well okay then," Rocky said, "I hope you'll cheer for me when I wrestle Cena."

"Hmm? Okay, I guess, only 'cause you ask, Cena no ask," Flynn then turned to her sister. "Kensy, you cheer for him too."

"Okay," Kensington quickly agreed.

Rocky stood back up, "And bossy just like your wife too. Wow, you sure did good work with that one."

"Hey, that's my daughter you're talking about," Chris said, but he knew Rocky was joking. "So…what Cena said last week, I know that had to bug you, man. I know you, I know how you work and Punk is pretty much saying the same thing to me."

"Yeah, but you're here. You may not have been wrestling, but you're here every week."

"Yeah, so what do you feel about it, really? I know what you're going to go out there and say," Chris said, "Stephanie told me you've got the end of the show to talk and I know you're going to go out there and defend yourself and incite the crowd like only you can, but it had to hurt a little bit." Kensington tugged on Chris's jeans and he picked her up again as Flynn just watched Rocky suspiciously like he was going to challenge her daddy to a fight right that second.

"I get where he's coming from," Rocky shrugged. "You can't help but feel a little proud of him for saying what he's thinking. So many of these guys are absolute suck-ups so I appreciate someone who's willing to call me out, but you know as well as I do that this is always going to be home base. Wherever you are in the world, the WWE is always a home, it _always_ will be. You get that, right?"

"I own the company, Rocky," Chris told him, "so yeah, I'd say it's home."

"Okay, maybe you get it on a different level than I do, but it's still there. Whenever I'm gone, I know where I came from. I'm not here, no, I _can't_ be here, but that doesn't mean I turn my back on it. That doesn't mean I'll ever completely turn my back on it."

"I know what you mean," Chris said, "even if I didn't marry Stephanie or have the kids, I would've come back too. You can't help but feel the camaraderie when you're here, even if you don't like everyone that you're around."

"See you get it, but Cena? This is all he has, so he doesn't get that there's more to the world than wrestling. You also get that, with the band and everything, you don't need to have wrestling be everything, even though it's a huge part of your life."

"He's just blowing off steam, trying to smoke you out so to speak, get the fans on his side because they're so overwhelmingly for you."

"Don't blow smoke up my ass, Chris," Rocky told him. "I know what I'm getting into and I know I've got my critics out there and back here. This business never changes, the faces change, but the business, it doesn't change."

"I know how it goes," Chris laughed. "I've been around here long enough to know how it's changed and I'll be here long after all these guys are gone."

"You're going to be the Vince of the next generation," Rocky told him and Chris looked horrified. "Yup, you're going to go out there every week, talk about being a genetic jackhammer because by that time, you and Stephanie may have seven children and it'll be great."

"Shut your mouth," Chris told him with a shudder. The last thing he would ever become was Vince. He would never allow himself to become Vince and he hoped if he ever showed any inkling that he would, Stephanie would shut that down immediately.

"Just saying it could happen."

"Will _never_ happen," Chris said then looked at his watch. "I've got to go, Punk has the first match on the card and I wanted to talk to him about a few different things. You okay back here?"

"I always am, I know my way around," Rocky said, "bye, Flynn, bye Kensy."

"Bye," Flynn was already at the door when she said it and Chris opened it for her as he gave one last wave. "He's okay, Daddy."

"I'm glad you think so," Chris said as they walked back to his locker room. Flynn was bouncing around again and he had no clue why she was so hyper. She hadn't had any sugar today and still, she was acting like she was running on pure caffeine. They finally got back to his locker room/Stephanie's office and pushed open the door, only to find Punk on the other side.

"Hi, Punk!" Flynn said, bouncing right on over to him and pretending to be a bunny again. She climbed up on the couch and looked at the tattoo behind his ear. "You even have drawings on your ear!"

Punk just laughed, "I do. You like it?"

"I do, it's cool," Flynn said, staring at it and then sitting back down and grabbing his arm so she could look at his pictures again. Then she saw he'd brought the belt with him and she climbed over his lap and grabbed it. "Ooh, it's nice…"

"She looks like Gollum with her precious," Punk joked as Chris set Kensington down with her toys. Kensington was pleased to see she was back with her toys and immediately grabbed a book that played sounds when you pushed buttons.

"She's a girl who knows what she wants," Chris said, "are you waiting for Stephanie or did you want to talk to me?"

"You," Punk said.

"What? Have you talked to Vince lately?"

"No, I haven't, kind of haven't been returning his calls. The thing is, with Laurinaitis and the board, it's nothing we can help, you know. I mean, they're going to judge either way and there's not much we can do about it. He doesn't seem to like me anyways."

"Gee, I wonder why that is?" Chris said sarcastically and Punk flipped him off when Flynn wasn't looking. "So what did you want?"

"I want to call off our truce," Punk stood up and faced him.

"You want to what?"

"I still consider you my friend or at least I will after WrestleMania, but as of right now, I want to make it very clear that we are not in a truce, we have no alliance, and we are not friends," Punk said. "I know we can play the respect card or whatever, but you're my friend and I can't do this while thinking about how I like your family."

"This makes no sense, dude, we already established that we were going to give it our all."

"We will, I am, I know you will, but we can't have this whole back and forth, knowing what's going to be said. I've got opinions of you, man, and I don't want to offend you, but I kind of do and it's all very confusing so we can't be friends for now," Punk said.

"What do you want to tell me?"

"Not here, not in front of your daughters," Punk shook his head. "Come find me later, we'll chat."

"So you're essentially calling me out right now?" Chris said.

"No," Punk said, "I'm just saying that I think we should just…focus on ourselves and winning and may the best man win." Punk stuck out his hand for Chris to shake. "Don't leave me hanging like last week, man."

Chris shook his hand, "Okay, but seriously, dude, don't hold back."

"Look who you're talking to," Punk shrugged and then pulled his hand back. "I better go, no more consorting with the enemy, though I may have to stop and say hello to your kids every once in a while, I'm still friends with them."

"Good, they like you," Chris said and Punk nodded.

"Hey, Flynnie, do you think I can get my belt back, I've got a match in a little bit and I should probably get ready for it," Punk said, kneeling next to Flynn, who was still looking at the belt.

"Oh, okay, have fun," Flynn told him with a smile.

"Do you think I could have a hug before I go?"

"Sure!" Flynn said, reaching out and giving him a hug.

"You give great hugs," Punk told her sweetly. Chris rolled his eyes because for all the sarcasm and everything that Punk had for everyone, he was such a softie around kids and from seeing him outside of the ring, he knew it wasn't just for his kids, but for any kids. Punk liked his younger fans.

"Thanks, Kensy, you give hug too!" Flynn ordered her sister like usual. Kensington shrugged and started to walk over. Punk met her halfway and hugged her too.

"Thanks, Kensy," Punk said, "I'll see you guys later."

"Bye!" Kensington and Flynn said at the same time. Then Flynn grabbed her sister by the hand after jumping off the couch and went back to playing with her toys.

"You guys, I'm going to change really quick, Flynn watch your sister."

"Yes, Daddy," Flynn said as she sat closer to Kensington as Chris grabbed his bag and took it into the bathroom. He started to get dressed when he heard the door open.

"Chris, you in here?"

"I'm changing, I'll be out in a sec!" he called to his wife.

"Okay," Stephanie said as he heard her going over to say hello to the girls before going over to her desk. Chris pulled on the leather pants he'd bought over the weekend and slipped them on. They matched his jacket and he'd needed a new pair because his old pair was getting pretty worn and he liked having a couple of pairs with him. He walked out of the bathroom and his wife's jaw dropped a little.

"What?" Chris asked, looking down at his shirt to see if he'd spilled something on it.

"You're just…those pants…are they new?"

"Yeah," Chris said, "what about them?"

"You look…if we didn't have the girls in here…the things I would do to you," Stephanie said as she came up and ran her hands down his arms. "You have to wear those later tonight. You have got to, I'm ordering it."

Chris laughed, "Jesus Christ, Steph, I don't think I've ever see you like this…at least not in a while. You look like you want to rip my clothes off right now."

"Oh, I'm resisting the urge," Stephanie told him, leering openly at him. "It's at times like this, I'm so glad I'm your wife because the thoughts I'm having of you would make any other man I was with jealous."

Chris laughed and kissed his wife's forehead. "It's nice to know that I'm still attractive to you. I can keep that in my back pocket."

"I'd like my hand in your back pocket," Stephanie told him, licking her lips a little, which made Chris need to kiss her, so he did. She pulled herself closer to him and started making out with him in earnest, holding him tightly.

Chris eventually had to pull away, "Steph, the show's starting soon and I've got to get out there because I want to talk to Punk."

"Oh, that's too bad," Stephanie said, "I was about to pull you into the bathroom and then do bad things to you."

"Our daughters are right there," Chris looked over her shoulder.

"We'd lock the door for a few minutes," Stephanie said, but then collected herself. "I guess I can let you go out there, what are you going to say?"

"A lot of stuff, Punk and I are no longer friends for the duration of this little thing between us."

"Not friends."

"No, now we're enemies."

Chris found it easy to get in that mindset. It was true that Punk had stolen the phrase or at least cribbed most of it. He wanted the belt as well and for that alone, he could disregard the fact that Punk was his friend. At the end of the day, this was for the belt and he wanted to prove to everyone he was still the best in the world at what he did. They may have given up on him in his absence, but he was here now and he wanted it to be known that he was the best.

Punk seemed to be expecting him when he got out there and from their earlier conversation, it wasn't like there hadn't been some warning. He walked into the ring and Punk could tell it was on now and Chris wasn't going to hold back and Punk respected that. A lot of guys who were his friends might have gone easy, but he never wanted the easy way out. He wasn't like some wrestlers who settled for mediocrity. He was always striving for the best.

Chris complimented him at first, praised him even, but then told him that he was the best in the world and that Punk was not as good as him, which got the crowd going. He said he'd never had to say he was the best in the world because the people said it for him and for the most part, that was true. He had fans all of the world telling him he was the best, even when he didn't necessarily deserve it. He saw it every day on Twitter, multitudes of tweets calling him the best in the world. They were his sheep, following along and baa-ing at everything he said.

Chris was special. He was part of a wrestling world that was starting to cease to exist. When he'd started wrestling, there was no developmental league so to speak. He'd had to work his way up through territories, at overseas companies. He'd honed his craft in different places, picking up different techniques that he used to this day. He was a well-rounded performer where so many guys these days couldn't counter their way out of a headlock.

There was a time when he just felt great being on a card, being able to go out there and wrestle and do what he loved to do without needing to play all the politics and the sucking up and the selling out or whatever. He had been given absolutely nothing by not one single person, but he had gone out there and grabbed everything he could and that's why he stood there and was the best at what he did. That's why he didn't care about impressing anyone when he'd come here because he'd let his wrestling do the talking.

It was only through a twist of fate that he was where he was now. He never set out to marry Stephanie or even date Stephanie or even like Stephanie for that matter. He never excepted to own the company. When he'd come here, the WWF title had been a dream, but it was still a brass ring he'd had to claw towards. Nowadays, sure, he could have the title stripped off Punk in two seconds and put on him, but he didn't work that way. He would never work that way.

He called Punk a maverick in his own right, but it was so obvious that he was just plagiarizing, but that's where Punk had to step in. Punk told him he didn't invent the phrase, didn't invent the concept of being the best, citing Bret Hart as an example.

Everything got all too real when Punk said that while Jericho had accomplished everything, he was never really considered "the man" around these parts and that hit home with Chris. It was true that he'd never been "the man," the absolute number one star, but it was a little naïve of Punk to think that he was either, not when everyone was waiting for the Rock. And while Chris may have never been "the man," Chris had carried this company on his back when bigger men had left hurt. He had been there when others hadn't and people seemed to forget that.

Punk then likened him to Rocky, going away and doing other things. That wasn't fair and they both knew it, but nobody was going to come out and cite the fact that Chris was here just as much as everyone, helping out backstage wherever he could. Nobody brought up that while he was out here talking to Punk, he also had a ton of work as a VP. No, of course nobody brought it up, but Chris told him that he knew what was going on. He wasn't out of the loop and he'd come back to embarrass Punk and take the title.

Punk was up for the challenge, wanted to strip this down to what it was, a match that had the potential to be one of the best in history. They didn't need anything but the two of them and the belt and that's what it would come down to. They were both in this now, no friendships, no alliances, just two men who both wanted something and one of them would walk away from it and the other would be left in the dust.

"Wow, that was intense," Stephanie said when he walked backstage. She was still leering at him, but had managed to be serious for a few moments. "You two weren't kidding when you said you weren't going to be friends anymore, neither of you pulled any punches, did you?"

"That's how it has to be. We can't be friends. We will after the match, but not now. Now, I just want the belt."

"I can tell," she said, running her hand down his chest and he looked at her. "What?"

"Seriously? Here, while we're working. You're the president of this company, should you be feeling up your husband in front of your employees?"

"I'm not feeling you up…much," Stephanie said with a smirk. "So you're really okay with you and Punk just beating the holy hell out of each other."

"I'll prove it to you."

Prove it he did when the match was over and Punk was coming up the ramp. Chris came out and slammed Punk onto the ramp, hitting his head against the ground a few times before he grabbed him and bodyslammed him right onto the hard grates. That wasn't it. They weren't friends so Chris was free to pile on. He put Punk in the Liontamer right there, with a couple referees telling him to stop, but he didn't until he was satisfied. Punk wouldn't appreciate this later, but Chris didn't care.

Their friendship was over and the rivalry had begun.


	359. Tagging It, March 5, 2002

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and reads and what not. I found tonight's Raw really kind of boring and uninspiring so I don't really care much for this chapter, but oh well, I hope you enjoy it anyways, maybe I'm wrong. :)

* * *

The doorbell rang.

"Sawyer, can you get the door?" Stephanie asked her son, who was sitting next to her coloring at the kitchen table while Stephanie was typing up an e-mail. Kensington was kneeling on a chair and scribbling stuff on paper that she would consider a drawing. "That should be Edge and Lita, I just want to finish this and Daddy is still out."

"Okay," Sawyer said, hopping off the chair.

"Make sure to ask who it is first, okay? And if it isn't Edge, Lita, Trish, Christian, Gamma, Gamps, or Daddy, don't answer it," Stephanie instructed him.

"What if it's Flynnie because Daddy took her with him?" Sawyer asked smartly and Stephanie could swear there was a little smirk on his face.

"Well, if it's Flynnie, then you can let them in," she told him with a wink and she watched as he disappeared from the kitchen and heard him as he walked to the front door.

"Who is it?" Sawyer asked, though their front door had frosted glass and he could sort of see who was on the other side and it looked like Edge and Lita because it just did. He knew what they looked like and it looked like them.

"It's Lita and Edge," Lita said sweetly and Sawyer opened the door and grinned at them. "Hey, you, where are your mommy and daddy?"

"Mommy's in the kitchen on the computer and Daddy is getting dinner so that we can all eat," Sawyer explained. "Hi, Ed."

"Okay, dude, Sawyer, you're five now, you're almost six years old, I think you know my name by now," Edge told him with a scowl. "I know you know what my name is and yet you refuse to say it. I swear, you're just like your parents."

Sawyer just shrugged as Lita laughed. Edge glared at her, "What? It's funny. I think he just gave you a nickname and you should embrace it. They call me Li-Li and so does Tilden. And Tilden calls you Unca E-e, what's the big deal?"

"The deal is that I know he does it on purpose," Edge said.

"Hey, you guys," Stephanie and Kensington walked up to them. "I trust that Sawyer was being a good host for you."

"He calls me Ed," Edge whined.

"It's your name," Sawyer said, going over to Stephanie and hugging her around the waist, resting his head against her. "It is your name and that's why I call you Ed. I like it, you're my friend."

"So now you just try to suck up," Edge said, "come on, I brought you some comic books, let me show them to you."

"Cool!" Sawyer said as Edge grabbed his hand and they headed into the living room to look at the comic books. Whenever they saw a comic book store in their travels, Edge always felt compelled to get something for Sawyer. They also had a few little things for Kensington and Flynn as well. Lita was carrying that bag.

Stephanie, Kensington, and Lita started to follow them into the living room. "We have some things for the girls. We forgot to bring them before, but I think they should still fit them. It's just some traditional clothes and stuff from where we went. They can probably use it for dress-up. Trish told me you guys had a tea party."

Stephanie took the bag and looked inside to see various dresses and what not. Kensington tried to peek her head into the bag too and gave a coo of awe at the vibrantly colored clothes staring back at her. "Oh, they'll love this for sure," Stephanie said. "I think Kensington already does, don't you, Kensy?"

"Uh huh," Kensington said as Lita shook her head. Kensington had really seemed to grow since they'd been gone. It was almost jarring. She and Edge had fun while traveling, but they sure seemed to miss a lot while they were gone.

"It's so weird sticking around for so long now," Edge said as Stephanie and Lita walked into the room. "Li and I are so used to the traveling, it feels strange to be so settled for a while. I mean, it's not bad or anything, it's just not what we're used to anymore."

"It would be nice if you guys stuck around for a while," Stephanie said, "I think Chris's parents sometimes get sick of all the babysitting they have to do and it would be nice if our old standby babysitters were around."

"I think we might," Lita said, "traveling is fun and all, but there's nothing like being home and with our family here, I think it might be time for us to stay."

"We have time to think about it though," Edge said, "since we're staying until the Hall of Fame."

"Hey, did someone mention the Hall of Fame," Chris said, coming into the room with a couple of pizza boxes in his hand. Flynn was holding a paper bag with some drinks and other items inside of it. Chris had offered to carry it for her, but she had resisted his help and determinedly carried it in herself. Chris set down the pizzas on the coffee table and opened both boxes.

"Wow, so you invite us over for dinner and all we get is pizza?" Edge joked. "I guess it's obvious where we rate on your scale."

"I told you this would be casual," Chris said as he took the bag from Flynn and pulled out a pile of paper plates and some napkins from the pizza place. He set both down on the table next to the boxes as Stephanie opened it up. "What were you talking about the Hall of Fame for?"

"Why are you so interested?"

"Chris is helping out with it again," Stephanie beamed at her husband. "He always thinks I take too much on during WrestleMania week so he helps me out with this."

"Are you having Christian induct you?" Chris asked as he handed out plates and then helped the kids get some pizza as Stephanie went into the kitchen to grab some forks and knives so she could cut the kids' pizza into more manageable pieces.

"Who the hell else could do the job?" Edge said as he handed Sawyer a slice of pizza. Sawyer thanked him and Edge nodded his head. For all their teasing of one another, Edge did love the kid. "I couldn't have anyone else induct me. There's been nobody else who has seen me before my entire career started. I mean, he's my brother, he's known me since he was born."

Chris laughed. "I just asked. I mean, I don't know, sometimes people choose weird people to induct them. I don't know, maybe you were going to be one of those people."

"I don't think so," Edge said, "although, can we please address the elephant in the room and ask what the hell is going on with my brother and his wife? I've been back a few weeks now and there is something seriously weird going on in that relationship."

"Thank you," Stephanie said as she walked back in and sat down, grabbing Flynn's plate and starting to cut up her slice into something smaller while Chris took Kensington's plate and cut her slice up into small squares that she could easily pick up and eat. Kensington kept trying to get at the pizza while Chris kept pushing her hand away. "Chris and I have noticed something weird going on, but we can't put our finger on it either."

"We've tried asking, well subtly asking," Chris said, "I don't want to sound like I'm imposing, you know. I mean, I want to know what's going on, but I don't want to be like, 'Hey, Christian, what the hell is going on with you and Trish?'"

"Maybe she's pregnant again and they want to keep it a secret," Edge suggested.

"No, it can't be that unless Trish is stupid," Stephanie responded. "She's still working with the divas and she gets in the ring and demonstrates moves and if she was pregnant I really don't think she'd be doing any moves and I certainly don't think Christian would let her do anything in the ring."

"Oh, you're right," Edge said, "I think we should stage an intervention."

Lita turned to look at him, swallowing her bite of pizza before she continued. "I'm sorry, you want to have an intervention, an intervention for what?"

"For them to tell us what is going on," Edge explained. "We all see something is happening here and I'm concerned. This is my brother we're talking about and his wife, my sister practically. I really do consider her my sister and then there's my niece, anything that affects her is my business."

"That's actually really sweet," Stephanie said. "I'm sure when they want us to know, they'll tell us."

"What do you really think it could be though?" Lita asked.

"I think there's problems," Chris said and Stephanie nodded. "I don't know what kind of problems, but problems."

"What's wrong with Chrissy and Trish?" Sawyer asked around a bite, his mouth already covered with tomato sauce. Stephanie reached out and wiped his face with a napkin. He didn't like that though and tried to pull away, but Stephanie got to him first. "Mommy, I can do it!"

"I'm sorry, but you were a mess," Stephanie handed him another napkin. "Nothing is really wrong with them, we're just wondering why they are acting the way they are, but you don't need to worry about anything, okay?"

"Okay," Sawyer shrugged as he continued eating his dinner.

"Hey," Edge was changing the subject because he didn't want Stephanie and Chris's kids to start saying something to Trish and Christian about what they were saying. The last thing he needed was for his brother and his wife to think they were talking about them behind their back. In all honesty, though, he was worried for his brother. Trish was the only woman in the world he'd ever seen Christian head over heels in love with. There were other women, sure, but none like Trish and he wanted them to be happy. "When you get inducted sometime in the far future, who do you want inducting you, Li?"

"Me?" Lita asked. "You think I'll get in."

"Yes," Edge said, "you guys think so too, right?"

"I think you're a lock," Stephanie nodded.

"Wow, I really don't know. I guess I would ask Trish since we had a lot of great interactions with each other and then we became friends and we were always teaming together and I think she would be a great inductor for me."

"In another lifetime, she would have said Matt or Jeff," Edge said, wrapping his arm around her and kissing her cheek. "I made sure that didn't happen."

"I still talk to Jeff," Lita told them. "Matt on the other hand…"

"No, I know," Chris said, shaking his head.

"Yeah, I'd just rather not deal with that drama," Lita said with a shudder. "Okay, Chris, your turn, when you get inducted, as you will, who are you going to have induct you? I would think this is difficult because you've never been the kind of guy that has traveled in a group."

"Well, the most logical choice would be Stephanie," Chris looked over at his wife, who smiled at him over her slice of pizza. "I mean, even if she wasn't my wife, she would probably make the most sense."

"Really?" Edge said. "How do you figure that? I mean, you guys hated each other before you ever got together, she would just totally insult you if you were to have her induct you and she still hated you."

"Even if Chris and I hadn't started dating, we put the past behind us when we were business partners," Stephanie pointed out. "I didn't hate him then. So I like to think that we would have remained with the civility."

"You don't know that though," Edge told her. "You guys could have started fighting with each other and you probably would have because you were both in love with each other, but didn't say anything. All that pent-up se—tension…it would have killed you both."

"I'm not saying I _absolutely_ would have chosen her if we weren't together, I'm just saying she's qualified. We had a bunch of encounters and now we're married so she would make the most sense at this point. I mean, there are some Hall of Famers who have their kids induct them and since I don't think any of my kids will necessarily be old enough to give a coherent speech, Stephanie seems the most logical choice."

"I bet your kids could give a speech," Lita joked.

"I could give one," Sawyer said, nodding. "I could talk."

"You are a very good speaker," Stephanie said, smiling at her son.

"What a speech?" Flynn asked.

"It's when someone gets up in front of people and they talk about something."

"I can do that!" Flynn said as she shoved a piece of her pizza in her mouth. "I talk a lot."

"That's for damn sure," Chris said, but then he winked at her to let her know he was joking, which she thought anyways as she continued to eat. "I guess I would probably choose Lance since he's been with me since the beginning. It would make a lot of sense for him to induct me since he's seen me through my entire career."

"That's a smart choice," Stephanie said, "whoever it is, is going to be great though, just like you are."

"Oh great, we just arrived in time for the love fest," Edge said as he rolled his eyes at Sawyer, "am I right or am I right, huh, Sawyer?"

"What's a love fest?" he asked.

"It's when your mom and dad get all gooey with emotions," Edge made a face, which the kids laughed at. Edge glanced at Chris and Stephanie like he was all self-important because he'd been able to make them all laugh, not knowing that all it took for the kids to laugh was making a funny face.

"You're funny, Ed," Flynn said.

Edge did a double take, "What did you call me?"

"Your name is Ed," Flynn beamed at him and Edge looked like his head was going to explode. He stared at Flynn for a long second and then he looked at Chris and Stephanie. "That your name."

"That is _not_ my name."

"Sawa says so," Flynn pointed at her brother. "He knows."

"He does _not_ know," Edge frowned. "He just calls me Ed, but my name is Edge, _Edge_. Do you get that, you guys?"

"No, it Ed," Flynn insisted.

"Ed," Kensington giggled as everyone started laughing. Edge sucked at his teeth a little and just shook his head as Lita leaned over to kiss his cheek.

"I'm sorry, sweetie, but it seems like you're Ed from now on," Lita told him and Edge grunted.

"I like you, Ed," Sawyer shrugged, then grinned like he knew exactly what he'd done with his sisters. He may look innocent, but he was just as conniving and manipulative as his parents. The only thing Sawyer had going for him that Chris and Stephanie didn't was that kid-face that always looked innocent, but seemed very rarely to be. "I like the name Ed."

"I like it too!" Flynn nodded.

"Me too!" Kensington added.

"You're turning everyone against me, aren't you?" Edge said to Sawyer and he just shrugged and ate his pizza. Edge decided to let it go for now. "Are you guys going to watch my movie? I mean, it's coming out and I know that it probably won't be in any theaters near you guys, but you got an advanced copy, right, Steph? I mean, you're the boss so you would think they would give you special privileges."

"I got an advanced copy, yes, it's still at my office in Connecticut though, I'm planning on having my assistant send it over," Stephanie said, "I'm looking forward to watching it."

"Are you going to let the kids watch it? I think it would be okay for them, maybe," Edge said, thinking about the movie he'd made. He knew it wasn't Oscar-worthy, but he'd had fun making it and had met so many great people while doing so and he would love to have more opportunities in the future to act.

"I don't know, I'll have to watch it first," Stephanie said, "then I'll assess it."

"I wanna watch," Sawyer said.

"Me too!" Flynn grumbled.

"I said, we'll see."

"I get to go to Raw on Monday," Sawyer told Edge. "Since it's in Boston, which is kinda near where Grandma and Grandpa live, I can go because it's not a lot of flying, but I gotta go on Monday with Mommy."

"Oh cool, you lucky kid," Edge said. "I wasn't aware you were bringing him."

"Yeah, Chris and the girls are going to fly up on Monday morning so Chris has plenty of time to get to the show and I'm going to fly in the afternoon when Sawyer gets out from school and then we're all going to fly back home that evening so Sawyer can get to school the next day and because someone is starting their vocal tracking for their new album…"

"That would be me," Chris did a little bit of a bow. "I know, I know, you're all anticipating the new album just as much as I am."

"Oh yeah, so wonderful," Edge said, his voice dull, but Chris could tell he was joking.

"It's going to be great, probably our best album yet," Chris told Edge and Lita. "I can't wait for you guys to hear it, I think you're really going to love it."

"I'm sure we will," Lita said. "So what have you got planned for Monday, anything special? Are you going to call out Punk again like you did last week, are you going to attack him again?"

"I'm not sure, I guess we'll just have to see."

Stephanie grabbed Sawyer's hand as they walked towards the arena. She could see some fans waiting at the entrances and she gave them a short wave as they screamed her name. Sawyer looked over at them, but didn't really acknowledge them. He didn't know how to deal with fans because he didn't have any fans (not that he knew of, but tons of people thought he was adorable and just like Chris). So he just held his mommy's hand as they walked inside.

"Mommy, why were those people yelling at you?" Sawyer asked as they ducked inside.

"They like me, that's all and they just wanted me to wave at them and say hello. They understand that I have a lot to do," Stephanie said as she walked down the hallway, grabbing a schedule on the way. She scanned her eyes and saw Chris had been scheduled into a tag match where he teamed with Daniel Bryan and faced Punk and Sheamus. She wondered if that was Britt's doing or Teddy Long's, seeing as he had been named the General Manager for the night. It was a decent and pretty fairly even match so she didn't need to go and complain, which was new for her.

It felt almost good to know that she didn't really have to worry about Laurinaitis tonight. Although, since Chris had come back, she'd given less attention to the man because her focus had been on the business and on Chris, what he was doing, who he was facing, all of that. It certainly calmed her down when it came to thinking about her father and Laurinaitis. Her father hadn't seemed to make a power move on her and she could only construe that the board thought she was doing a good enough job as to where they didn't feel the need to give her a job evaluation. At least she hoped that was the case.

"Oh, I like you too so I guess it's okay," Sawyer said happily. Stephanie could see it in his face that he was very excited to be there tonight. Sawyer was a champion when it came to traveling. He and his sisters didn't really know anything else and it never bothered him to fly. That's why she allowed him to go to shows that were relatively close on the East Coast. This one in particular was necessary because her mother was here tonight and she had been itching to see her grandkids. She wouldn't be surprised if Linda was already with Kensington and Flynn.

"Grandma is here tonight so you can spend the night with her if you want," Stephanie told her son as they kept walking, pausing every now and then to say hello to someone.

"But what if I don't wanna?" Sawyer asked. "I wanna watch Daddy when he wrestles or talks, is he wrestling or talking?"

"He's going to be wrestling tonight," Stephanie told him, handing him the paper, which Sawyer scanned and found his daddy's name. Chris Jericho and Daniel Bryan versus CM Punk and Sheamus.

"Oh, Daddy is going to wrestle Punk and Sheamus."

"That's right, you're getting so smart at your school," Stephanie said as she finally found her office for the evening. She pushed open the door and saw her mother sitting on the couch, apparently getting a lecture of some kind from Flynn as Kensington sat on her lap and played with her bracelets. Linda turned towards the door and her eyes lit up.

"There's my grandson!" Linda said, waving him over for a hug. Sawyer went over willingly and hugged his grandma. "You are so big, Stephanie, he is so big. I can't believe it, you're a young man already. I don't see you or your sisters enough."

"Hi Grandma," Sawyer said, hugging her again. "I see you sometimes."

"But not nearly enough," Linda pouted. "Every time I see you, you're bigger than the last time I see you. I don't want to see these kids next when Sawyer is graduating high school."

"Oh, Mom, come on," Stephanie said, hugging her mother as well. "You see them and I send you pictures and videos all the time so you're in the loop. Besides, with you running again, I'm sure you'll see them lots since you'll probably want to pimp them out to everyone."

"I wouldn't betray their privacy, my little darlings," Linda hugged them closer.

"I was telling her how I taken my friend, Alex, to WrestleMania," Flynn said. "He gonna be my friend I take and Sawa taken his friend. Kensy only has Tilden."

Linda laughed, "She's very fascinating, this one."

"He gonna be there 'cause he like wrestling too," Flynn said. "Daddy goes sees…um…his wrestling guy."

"Daniel Bryan?" Stephanie asked.

"That's it! Grandma, he going against Sames and Sames is my friend and Punk is my friend too," Flynn said with a nod. "I gots lotsa friends here and they like me."

"I'm sure they do, how can they help but?" Linda asked, running her hand down her granddaughter's cheek. While Stephanie had been pretty outgoing as a child, she'd never seen anyone like Flynn. She was so headstrong and blunt. She spoke her mind and she spoke it with conviction. She was more than outgoing, she was dominant like her mother. Flynn was definitely the product of two people like Chris and Stephanie, but her personality wasn't a turn-off, in fact, she couldn't imagine anyone not wanting to know this little girl.

"I dunno," Flynn shrugged. "Mommy, I can goes sees Sames and Punk?"

"If you want to, baby girl," Stephanie told her. "I've got some work to do first, but—"

"Let me take care of them tonight, at least let me help you out," Linda said, "I only get a few hours with them and I want to spend as much time as I can with them. Please?"

"Okay, Mom, thank you," Stephanie said. "You can ask Grandma if she'll take you to see Sames…I mean, Sheamus and Punk, okay?"

"Grandma, please, please, please, please!"

"I'll go too," Sawyer shrugged. "I like seeing the wrestlers."

"Okay, come on then," Linda said, "let's let your mommy get some work done and we can go say hello to the wrestlers."

"Yay!" Flynn jumped off the couch and ran to the door, grabbing Sawyer's hand along the way and pulling him away.

"I'll see you later, Mom," Stephanie said as Linda waved with her free hand as she followed the kids out the door. The quiet was welcome to Stephanie and she started to get down to business.

Britt looked over at Hunter as he paced the length of the room. She cleared her throat trying to get his attention, but it wasn't working. He continued to ignore her presence so she cleared her throat even louder. When that didn't work she decided to just talk to him. "You know, he _is_ your best friend, you can go talk to him if you want. I don't think there's anything in the rules of the universe that says you can't go talk to him."

"I don't want to," Hunter said, "I'm just trying to think of what he'll say to me. I know he's going to say something, that's specifically why he's here. There's no other reason why he's here, he just wants to mess with me. He's still angry, we haven't really talked since the last time he was here. Things are just weird between us. They're just weird and I don't know why he's even here."

"Maybe he just wants to say how happy he is that you took the match," Britt said, standing up and walking over to him. She stepped in front of him and grabbed his hands. "Would you please sit down for a while? You're going to pace this room so much, your legs will give out and then you won't be able to wrestle at WrestleMania and you're going to be in a Hell in a Cell."

"I'm not even sure where that came from," Hunter chuckled to himself. "I got so angry, I just blurted that out. I thought you were going to kill me when I got backstage."

Britt hugged him, "I wouldn't kill you. If you do something stupid _during_ the match, _then_ I'll kill you. I just want you to be safe, that's all. I worry about you. I heard about that hockey player, Sidney something or other, and he had a really bad concussion and he's _still_ not really playing and I don't want that for you."

"I'm fine, I got clearance and everything."

"I know, I trust you to know your own body and I know I'm not a doctor so I'm trying not to be overprotective," she told him, "I just don't want you to go in distracted and obviously this Shawn thing is distracting you."

"You don't like him," Hunter laughed.

"No, I don't," Britt shook his head. "It's not for lack of trying to like him though, I'll tell you that. I tried, I really tried, it's on his end why he doesn't like me, but I'm not worried about that. You're friends with him and I respect that and I respect your friendship."

"What does he want with me?" Hunter asked her, knowing she didn't know the answer. He didn't want to fight with his best friend, but they were in a fight and it was weird. It was always weird fighting with Shawn. When he'd first entered the company, they had an instant rapport with one another. It was like finding your other half and wondering where they'd been all your life.

"I don't know, you'll just have to find out later when he inevitably calls you out."

There was a knock on Stephanie's door. "Come in!"

Stephanie didn't look up, but expected the person to just start talking to her. There was a long pause and Stephanie finally looked up and saw who it was. "Stephanie."

"Shawn, what are you doing here? I mean, not here as in the show since I know what you're doing _here_ at the show, but what are you doing here in my office?"

"I needed to talk to you," he said, taking another step closer, "and I know I'm not your favorite person, but you're pretty much the only one I can come to since I don't even know who's in charge around here, not for this anyways."

"You can never go wrong with going to Britt," Stephanie said with a certain amount of smugness. She knew very well just how much Shawn resented Britt so it was fun to rub that in his face. The scowl was more than worth it and Stephanie's smirk almost turned into a smile. "She _does_ run things around here, as you well know."

"I thought you were the better choice," he told her, "and I know we don't get along—"

"That's an understatement," Stephanie said, "you know, the thing you're doing with Britt right now, this righteous indignation thing you've got going, it's the same exact thing you did to me. The _same_ exact thing. You tried to phase me out."

"And look how well you and Hunter turned out," Shawn said, "I was totally justified in thinking you two weren't going to last because you _didn't_ _last_."

"That's not the point. When we were happy, you should have been happy for us, but you weren't. It's like you hate him being happy. You want him to be miserable, that's what it feels like. Why is that though? Why would you want your best friend to feel like crap?"

"I don't, look, we're getting off point right now. I want to be the guest referee in the match between Hunter and Taker."

"Whoa, now why would I do that? You obviously favor Hunter, he's your best friend and you wouldn't call it down the middle, give me one good reason why I should do this for you? Remind yourself of the way you've treated me in the past and the way you've treated my husband."

"First of all, _you_ drugged me by using your pregnancy and second of all, your husband hit my wife."

"As far as I'm concerned, you deserved the drugging for everything you did to me over the years and Chris didn't deliberately hit your wife," Stephanie said, "he wouldn't do that. He's not that type of guy."

"Whatever, look, I will call the match fairly, but I didn't take too kindly to Hunter's reason for taking the match."

"Which was?" Stephanie asked.

"Because Taker said that I was better than Hunter. He's so…he's so arrogant sometimes, always striving to be better than everyone and I'm sick and tired of it."

"You're angry with Hunter, well this is a first," Stephanie said, "can't say that I'm surprised, what with your attitude sometimes."

"Pot calling the kettle black as far as I'm concerned. It's a wonder that your husband puts up with you from what I know about you," Shawn said.

"Oh, that was a zinger," Stephanie said, pretending to shake in her expensive sneakers (she didn't wear heels when she was around the kids, it was too difficult to keep up with them). "You got me there, why _does_ my husband put up with such a shrew?"

"I think the word you were looking for there was bitch."

"Got me again," Stephanie rolled her eyes. "You're not making the best case for yourself here. You do know that sucking up to me would probably be your best bet in this situation."

"I'm not sucking up to you so you can get _that_ out of your mind."

"You can always go complain to the head of Talent Relations," Stephanie shrugged.

"Which is just your husband," Shawn gave her a look, "I think I'll pass."

"Look, you may have made fun of Hunter for it," Stephanie started, "but you are a brand and one that is going to bring people in. Hunter had it wrong when he wouldn't take the match because the Undertaker is a brand and he needs to think of the business. I _am_ thinking of the business and despite your crappy real-life personality, which is odd since you say that you're a Christian, the people like you and that can only mean good things for WrestleMania, so you're in."

"Great," he said, "I also arranged to have time at the top of the show so I hope you'll let me announce it."

"Go ahead," Stephanie said, "now are we done here because I'm tired of looking at your face."

"Not as tired as I am of looking at yours," Shawn said, getting up, "thanks for the job, boss."

"Get out of my sight, Shawn," Stephanie scowled as he left. She made a gagging noise to herself as she got back to her work. Sometimes being the boss meant you had to work with people you didn't like and Shawn was pretty much at the top of that list. Still, having him on the card could only mean good things for the buyrate and seeing as how WrestleMania was their biggest show of the year, they wanted to do huge numbers.

"Oh hey, you're here."

"I've been here," Stephanie said, leaning back in her chair and looking up at her husband. "Where have you been?"

"Talking with Daniel Bryan, trying to figure out what we want to do for our match later," Chris said. "I wasn't really sure what he wanted to do. I haven't really interacted with the guy that much, I know he can wrestle so that's half the battle, but we wanted to win tonight so you know, gotta meet with him."

"I figured you were around."

Chris came over and kissed Stephanie lightly, "Are the kids with your mom?"

"Yeah, they are," Stephanie answered, "she was so happy to see them, I think she's going to keep them for the rest of the night."

"You should have seen her when we got here, she grabbed them and refused to let them go until Flynn said that she needed to breathe," Chris laughed, "she missed them when they were gone. She loves them."

"I know, but I do _not_ want her and my father moving to Florida. I like having your parents there because they very much have their own lives when they aren't helping us out, but my parents would hover and my dad would be the worst."

"I couldn't handle your dad near us," Chris said. "I just could not handle it."

Flynn ran down the hallway ahead of her grandma, brother, and sister. They'd already been to see Punk and he'd been fun to talk to, but now she wanted to find Sheamus. She couldn't read so she didn't know where he was, but she was determined to find him somehow. Instead of finding Sheamus though, she found Hunter, who was just walking down the hallway to listen to what Shawn had to say up close. Flynn, recognizing Hunter, ran towards him and threw herself at his legs.

"Hi!" Flynn said.

"Hey there, Flynnie, what's going on?" Hunter asked, his bad mood dissipating. He picked her up and she gave him a hug.

"I looking for Sames."

"Sames?" Hunter asked.

"She means Sheamus," Sawyer said, "hi Trips, what are you doing?"

"Oh hey, tough guy, I didn't expect to see you tonight," Hunter ruffled his hair. "I'm going to listen to what Shawn has to say because I think he's going to call me out there."

"Are you going to yell at him?" Sawyer wondered.

"Depends on what he has to say."

"And the next champion of the world, the heir to the best in the world moniker, Sawyer Jericho," Chris rushed in and scooped up his son and hugged him fiercely. "There is my progeny, the fruit of my loins."

"Daddy," Sawyer shook his head, but he was laughing.

"How was school, what did you learn? Are you smarter than me now?"

"I learned how tadpoles became frogs," Sawyer explained.

"Wow, you _are_ smarter than me now," Chris said, putting him down. "So Trips, I take it you're here because of Shawn?"

"Yeah, that's right," Hunter said as Chris took Flynn from him. Linda walked with them to the gorilla. Shawn was already out there, spouting off and then he called for Hunter to come out, which he did.

Hunter didn't want to start with Shawn, but Shawn started with him first so he was really only going out there because Shawn had wanted him out there. He really didn't feel the need to justify why he'd taken the match, but it seemed like Shawn wanted him to justify it or explain it. He didn't think there needed to be an explanation. Taker hard called him out, called him a coward and that was the last thing he felt like he was. He didn't think of himself as a coward and he never would. How dare Taker call him that!

Shawn didn't seem content with this and seemed to insist that Hunter own up to whatever reason Shawn had cooked up. The reason that Shawn had cooked up, you ask? Well, apparently it was because Hunter had gone back and taken the match after Taker had mentioned that Shawn was better. Of course, to Shawn and Shawn's ego, this meant that Hunter was obviously jealous of him, wanted to be better than him in every possible way.

Maybe Shawn was dense, but he didn't take into account that Hunter actually _liked_ him (some of the time). This was a match for the both of them. Neither one had been able to get it done in the four collective times they'd tried to beat him. Now was Hunter's third time and he wanted to do this for both of them. He wanted to be the one who ended this once and for all in Taker's domain, in the structure so named because of him, the Hell in a Cell. Shawn was too short-sighted to see this was what he was doing and of course Shawn wouldn't understand. Hunter wasn't all about himself. He was about others now too and this could be for the both of them.

Then Shawn dropped the bombshell on him that he was going to be the guest referee and Hunter was left stupefied. Was this a good thing or a bad thing? What did Shawn mean by what he said? Hunter couldn't figure him out nowadays. He didn't know if Shawn was going to be biased or unbiased and if he was biased, would he be biased in his favor? Things were shaping up very differently and when he got backstage, he eschewed talking to anyone and opted to talk to Shawn.

"What are you doing, Shawn?" Hunter asked.

"I'm being the guest referee," Shawn answered plainly.

"But why?" Hunter asked.

"Because I think I want to," Shawn was vague. "Look, don't worry about it."

"How can you say that?"

"I said it and I mean it, don't worry about it," Shawn said, patting him on the shoulder and walking away down the hallway, leaving Hunter to stew over his words.

"Don't listen to him," Britt said, "he's just full of BS, so just don't listen to him."

After that, everything kind of seemed anticlimactic when Chris went out for his match. His best friend hadn't turned on him, not like he'd expected Christian to since Christian wasn't really doing anything right now except being secretive about what was going on with him and Trish. When Chris's music hit, he could almost hear his kids backstage yelling and cheering for him. It made him feel good to know they were all here and watching, even if it was just a Raw. Knowing you had a built-in fanbase was a nice luxury.

He stared down Punk when he finally got down the ramp and to the ring. Punk smirked at him. They'd ended their friendship, but the camaraderie was still there and it would be there after this was all over. They were just two men who wanted the same thing and both were going to fight tooth and nail to get it. It was good to get into a ring with Punk again though because it would give Chris another chance to get a feeling as to what Punk was like in the ring. He'd had a few matches with Punk now, but still, there wasn't the familiarity he had with some of his past opponents.

The only problem was that it was a tag match, but that also played a good part because it gave Chris time to watch the match up close and get more of a sense as to Punk's weaknesses. He knew Punk was doing the same and it was nice to have an adversary who was as into this as he was. He wanted Punk to bring his all when they faced each other at WrestleMania and he had no doubt Punk would give it his all, even if Flynn had told him backstage that Punk told her he would get her some cupcakes for her birthday (Chris wasn't sure how the subject of her birthday had come up, but this was Flynn, she wasn't exactly known for her focus). He couldn't hate a guy who was so nice to his kids, but he _could_ hate a guy who had the belt he wanted.

There was a lot of back and forth in the match and Chris got in some great time with Punk. Though it wasn't always _that_ good, especially not when he was getting his knee slammed into a post and then his shoulder slamming into another one. He knew Stephanie would throw a fit later worrying about him, but that's what knee pads were for and his shoulder was fine. Eventually, Chris rolled Punk up for the pin and he felt good that he'd gotten another up on Punk. He knew this would only anger Punk and a little bit of him was aware that he could be poking a sleeping dragon with this one, but Chris didn't care. He went over and grabbed the belt, holding it aloft again. He knew he was being cocky, but he needed to be to show Punk that he meant business with this. He wasn't joking around, he wanted the belt and he wanted Punk to know that he wanted the belt.

"Daddy, I think you're going to win," Sawyer said as Chris came backstage. "At WrestleMania I mean."

"You really think I got a shot?" Chris asked him as he wrapped his arm around his son's shoulder as Stephanie picked up Flynn so she could kiss him on the cheek. Linda had not given up Kensington all night and didn't look like she was planning to until they pried her from Linda's arms.

"I think you definitely got a shot."


	360. Down and Dirty, March 12, 2012

A/N: 2000 reviews! Thank you all so much, I really, really appreciate it, I hope that those who review continue to do so and those who don't might reconsider. Thank you for reading this crazy, long story that really has no plot whatsoever. I hope you enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

"Guess what I get to do today?"

Stephanie opened one of her eyes, "Chris, what the hell?"

"I want you to guess, I mean, I know you know, but you can still guess, right?" Chris poked her in the side as she turned the other way. Chris hovered over her and then kissed her neck. "Guess, guess, guess."

"If you do not get the hell off me right now, you will suddenly find yourself to be a eunuch," Stephanie told him with a growl.

"You're not playing fair!" Chris told her and Stephanie turned around, glaring at him with a ferocity that actually made Chris pull back a little.

"I told you I am tired, I have been doing a lot of work and WrestleMania is coming up, if you know what is good for you, you will let me sleep," she told him and Chris gulped nearly audibly. Then she leaned forward and kissed him. "You're doing your vocals for the album today and I'm very proud of you, sweetie."

Chris beamed and gave her a hug. "I'll see you this afternoon?"

"Yeah, you will."

"Okay, well, I'm going to get the kid ready and did you want me to take the girls, they probably wouldn't be too much trouble and it would let you work on WrestleMania stuff without any distractions. They can sit and watch me."

"Are you sure?" Stephanie asked. "I mean, I know this album is a big deal for you and I wouldn't want you to be distracted because you had to watch the girls." She appreciated the offer, but she didn't want to put her husband out by making him watch two of their kids when she could probably take care of it.

"Stephanie, all I'm doing is singing today," he told her, kissing the tip of her nose and then giving her an Eskimo kiss for good measure. He could be so corny in the morning, she mused to herself. "While you run an entire company, a huge, international, multi-million dollar company. As much as I love Fozzy and think they're the greatest band in the universe, I don't think the scale is quite as large."

"It's not a competition," she joked with him, "but I really appreciate the offer and if it's really not too much trouble."

"I already told you it wasn't!" he said. "I'm getting the kid up and ready for school, then I'll get the girls ready and you can sleep in. I know you usually take care of Sawyer in the mornings while I'm the lazy one so you get to be the lazy one today."

"Wow, you should get excited for things more often," she said as she turned over and got comfortable in bed again.

"Well that was quick," Chris chuckled before he got out of bed and padded down the hallway towards Sawyer's room. He pushed open the already partially opened door and looked at his son who was half-hanging off the bed. He went over and gently nudged the sleeping child. "Sawyer, come on, get up, it's time to get ready for school."

Sawyer mumbled and turned on his back, opening up just one eye that peered critically at him. "Daddy…"

"I know, I know, it's early, you're tired, but you don't want to miss school, do you?" he asked, shaking Sawyer awake a little bit. Sawyer laughed and rubbed his eyes, sitting up.

"No, I like school."

"I believe you because you bring home the good grades," Chris joked with him, kissing him good morning on the forehead. "Get dressed and get ready while I get your breakfast ready, okay?"

"Okay," Sawyer stretched his arms out as Chris left the room and went downstairs to grab a couple of frozen waffles from the fridge. While he would love to give his kids homemade meals every meal, it just wasn't possible. He planned out the rest of his morning in his head as he toasted Sawyer's waffles. He would let Sawyer eat while he went up and got the girls up…or would it be better to get Sawyer ready, then come back home and get the girls up and ready? The girls would probably just sleep until he got back anyways. Nobody in this family was a morning person, they often had to drag themselves out of bed.

He really did want to give Stephanie a bit of respite. She had been working so hard and he wanted her to take it easy for once. She couldn't keep up the pace she was at, it wasn't healthy for her to do so. His thoughts were broken when Sawyer wandered into the kitchen. His hair was still askew, but he was at least dressed and more alert. Chris grabbed the waffles from the toaster and spread a little butter and syrup on them before setting them down in front of Sawyer with a couple of orange segments.

"Eat up," Chris told him as Sawyer grabbed his fork. Chris got Sawyer a glass of milk and then set it in front of him as well as Chris grabbed a cup of coffee, sitting next to Sawyer.

"Where's Mommy?" Sawyer asked.

"I'm letting her sleep in this morning," Chris explained. "I had to get up early anyways so I figured I would let your mommy sleep and that I could just drive you to school this morning."

"Oh, okay," Sawyer yawned as he ate his breakfast, "where do you have to go?"

"I have to go to the studio today. I'm going to start recording the singing for the new Fozzy album. Rich got in last night before we did and so he's here and we're going to record for the next couple of days," Chris explained.

"Are you excited?" Sawyer asked.

"You bet I am, I can't wait until it's done and everyone gets to hear it, I just hope they like it," Chris told him, taking a sip of his coffee. It was a real genuine fear wondering if people would like the album. He was a perfectionist so he wanted it to be perfect, which was why they'd pushed back the release date, which gave him an opportunity to make sure that everything was exactly how he wanted it. He was glad Rich was the same way because it made working together easier.

There was always a fear that people wouldn't like what you put out into the universe. He'd long since cared what people thought of his wrestling, but music was still something in which he felt he could fail. No matter how popular they seemed now (and he knew a large part of that was because of who he was in the wrestling world), that bubble could always pop at a moment's notice. He just hoped that moment was not any time soon. He took another sip of coffee to quell his nerves.

"I bet they will," Sawyer said encouragingly. "I think you're the best in the world at everything you do."

"Thank you for thinking that," Chris said genuinely. He reached out to ruffle Sawyer's hair. "We've got to get you a haircut, your hair is getting too long, I don't think we'll be able to see your eyes pretty soon."

Sawyer laughed, "Okay, I don't really care."

Chris laughed as Sawyer finished up his breakfast and then Chris escorted him upstairs to brush his teeth and hair. While he was doing that, Chris peeked in on his girls, all of whom were still asleep. He went back and watched as Sawyer grabbed his backpack. The drive to school was fun as Chris put on his CD and he and Sawyer sang along (Sawyer trying the best he could). When he got back home after he dropped them off, Kensington was awake and sitting huffily in her crib.

"Hey there, Kensy-bug" Chris said as he walked into her room. "Were you up waiting for me?"

"Yes!" Kensington said with a frown. She must have been calling out for someone and with nobody answering, she must have gotten a bit frustrated and angry. Chris picked her up out of her crib and started tickling her, which almost instantly put her in a better mood. She tried to squirm from Chris's grasp, but Chris lifted her shirt and blew a raspberry on her tummy, which sent Kensington into hysterics, her previous bad mood all but gone. Chris changed her diaper and helped her get dressed for the day, kissing her intermittently.

"You are the cutest bug in the entire universe," Chris told his daughter, who kissed his cheek. "Man, I'm the luckiest guy in the universe. I get kisses from the three most beautiful girls in the world every day. How did I get so lucky?"

"Dunno," Kensington shook her head.

"I don't know either," Chris made a face. "I must have stumbled on a four-leaf clover or something because who knew one guy could be this lucky."

"Dada," she giggled as she hugged him again.

"Oh man, and a bug hug, I love it," Chris told her, cradling her against him. "Do you want to go see what Miss Flynn is doing?"

"Finnie!" Kensington clapped. She loved to see what her sister was doing. Kensington, for all the trouble Flynn had put on her in Kensington's first months, loved her sister immensely. Even though Flynn could be bossy with her and sometimes pushed her around, Kensington could give as good as she got and Chris and Stephanie were starting to suspect the fire they constantly saw in Flynn was lurking in Kensington as well. "Sawa?"

"No, Sawyer's at school," Chris pouted. "So you'll have to hold off your Sawyer mood for later?"

"Love, love, love, love Sawa," Kensington held her arms out at her sides.

"Wow, that's a lot, you should tell him, I think he'd love to hear that," Chris said, "but for now, it's just going to you, me, and Flynnie. Mommy is going to take a day off from us and we're going to the studio because I'm going to record some songs for Fozzy."

"Foddy like," Kensington told him.

"Thank you, I like Fozzy too," Chris told her, "wait a second, do you mean Fozzy the band or Fozzy the bear because you did seem to like him when we went to the Muppets movie…"

Kensington just giggled and Chris gave her a fake scowl as he went down to Flynn's bedroom, walking in and seeing Flynn's small body flung on the bed. Her limbs were in all different directions, a line of dried drool going from her mouth to her chin, and the covers were half off the bed. Chris looked at Kensington, who didn't know what was going on, but Chris wished he had his camera to take a picture of Flynn. Even in her sleep, she was a crazy gal.

Chris set Kensington down on the end of the bed before he poked Flynn in the nose. Flynn's nose twitched, but she didn't wake up. He poked her in the nose once more, but again, she didn't wake up, being as stubborn in sleep as she was while awake. Chris turned to Kensington and shrugged. He leaned towards Kensington, pressing his forehead against hers. "Do you want to wake up your sister?"

"Okay," Kensington said as she started crawling towards Flynn. Chris helped her out by picking her up and plucking her down next to Flynn. Kensington giggled to herself as she poked Flynn on the nose just like she'd watched her daddy do a few moments before. Except she didn't really have the self-awareness to not do it as hard as Chris had so her poke actually felt like a poke.

The next sequence of events happened so quickly Chris wasn't quite sure what happened until well after it happened. Flynn snapped awake with a shove towards whatever was poking her. Kensington, in turn, got hit in the shoulder with one of Flynn's fists and then got a face-full of Flynn's other fist, right in the mouth, which stunned Kensington for a few moments before she let out a wail and started crying. Flynn, still disoriented, sat up quickly, thinking she was in trouble after seeing her daddy and she started crying too.

Chris just looked between them and part of him wanted to laugh and the other part was horrified that his daughter's were both upset. Chris grabbed Kensington first, holding her up and looking at her lip. She wasn't bleeding, but she could see that her lip was already getting swollen. Flynn reached her hands up to Chris, crying herself because she thought that Chris going after Kensington first meant that he was mad at her.

"Daddy, I sorry!" Flynn cried as she crawled towards Chris and threw her arms around his waist. "I sorry!"

"I know, I know," Chris said, lifting her up as she hugged him too. "We're all okay, we're all okay."

"What's going on?" Stephanie asked from the doorway. She'd been lying in bed, just reveling in the fact she was sleeping in on a weekday when she'd heard a wail and then crying. She'd gotten out of bed and padded her way down the hallway and walked in on Chris holding two crying girls in his arms.

"I don't…I don't even know," Chris laughed. "I'm not even sure what happened. Kensy was trying to wake Flynn up, Flynn got startled and she hit Kensy in the face and now Kensy has a swollen lip and Flynn is sorry and I'm just not even sure…"

Stephanie just laughed at the scene, then came over and took Kensington from Chris. "Come here, let me help you get them ready."

For Chris, the day could only go up from here.

Thankfully, things quieted down. After he and Stephanie calmed the girls down, they'd gotten them fed and now he was out for the day. They drove to the studio and he'd gotten the girls situated before he and Rich started doing the vocals for the new album. He thought the girls would be preoccupied with their toys and things, but they became fascinated with Chris's singing. He could see Flynn helping Kensington onto the couch so they had a better viewpoint. She boosted her little sister up on the couch before climbing on herself. They sat there and watched him sing, nearly identical smiles on their faces and he was glad they could enjoy this because he didn't think it was that exciting for two little girls, but he guessed it might be with all the buttons and things and hearing the new music. All his kids liked music, not just his own, but in general and that was nice to see as well.

He eventually got lost in the music, only checking the girls every so often to make sure they were staying out of trouble. They eventually went back to their toys because they had the attention spans of gnats, but they weren't being disruptive. Occasionally one of them would get fascinated with his singing again. He got into the songs, remembering writing the lyrics and the emotions he felt behind them. He could only hope he was doing it justice. He was such a perfectionist that any slight in the emotions he wanted to convey was considered something of a failure.

"Daddy, I gotta go potties!" Flynn banged on the studio door, which caused everyone in the studio to start laughing. Flynn was laughing too because she realized she'd said something funny.

"Chris, we'll take a break," the soundboard monitor told him through the intercom. Chris laughed and nodded, taking off his headphones as he came back out into the waiting area.

"Sorry about that," Chris said.

"It's okay, it's soundproof in there so the take was fine, there's no little girl yelling to her daddy that she has to go potty," he told Chris, who was still laughing. He grabbed Flynn's hand and then went over to Kensington checking to see if she needed a change, which he found she did. He picked her up and grabbed her diaper bag before heading to the bathroom. First he helped Flynn go to the bathroom and then changed Kensington.

"Are you guys having fun?"

"I a little bored, Daddy, now," Flynn said. "I wanna sing too."

"Well, can you let me finish this song and then we can let you sing a little bit," he said, knowing that she probably wouldn't remember. It wasn't cheap to get studio time so he really couldn't let her sing, but he may be able to let her sing a long and then bury it deep into one of their tracks.

"Okay!"

"Then we're going to take a lunch break."

This excited Flynn even more and helped her get through the next half hour or so. The distraction of lunch worked wonders and kept the whining to a minimum. Right before they dismissed for lunch, Chris asked if Flynn could just sing a little something. They said that would be fine if it was kept short so Chris picked her up and brought her into the studio. He made a mental note to maybe do this for Sawyer too. Kensington didn't know enough words to really sing anything beyond the gibberish she sang to herself.

"Okay, you ready?" Chris asked as he put a pair of headphones onto Flynn and then pulled some onto himself.

"Yeah!" Flynn told him, nodding her head and nearly causing the big headphones to fall down her face.

"So you're going to repeat after me," Chris said, "A cat scratch…"

"A cat stratch, I like kitties!" Flynn announced.

Chris laughed, "Okay, just say 'A cat scratch,' nothing else."

"A cat scratch."

"A whiplash," Chris told her.

"A whiplash!"

"A witch hunt in black."

"A witch hunt in black," Flynn repeated, trying to sing it a little bit.

"Okay, great job," the studio technician said, "we've got it."

"And now you sang," Chris told her, kissing her cheek as she pulled the headphones off. She helped Chris by pulling his off as well.

"I a singer," Flynn announced proudly and Chris nodded his head. He walked back into the other room where Rich was holding Kensington since he was going to lunch with them all. The lunch was casual and they talked metal mostly as they usually did when they were together.

Stephanie, who actually liked metal, didn't have as much knowledge and his other friends just weren't as into it as he was so when he was around Rich and especially his whole band, he felt like he got to get away from wrestling for a little bit and focus on something else. Wrestling was such a huge part of his life, but it felt good to step back every once in a while and remind himself that he had a lot of interests.

When he got back, it was back to work and back to tracks. Stephanie, having picked up Sawyer, felt bad that Flynn and Kensington had to spend the entire day in one place when she was done with her work for the day and Chris wasn't. So she decided to eschew Chris's warnings and go pick up her girls. There was no way Chris could be mad at her for picking them up.

Okay, so a little bit of her wanted to hear what he was recording. She'd never got to see him in the studio before, save for the picture he'd posted to his twitter this morning. She made it a habit to check out what he tweeted during the day, just to check in on him when he wasn't around her, see what he was doing, saying. She had to admit that he looked adorable recording his songs and she wanted to see him at work. She always saw him wrestling, but she never saw him recording and it was like a new adventure with her husband. After being together for nearly ten years, little surprises were pretty much the only ones they got at this point. She knew almost everything else about him.

"Are we going to see Daddy sing?" Sawyer asked from the backseat of her car.

"Yeah, we might, if he's recording," Stephanie told him.

"That's kind of cool," Sawyer responded. "I'd like to see Daddy when he sings, I bet he's the best in the world at it."

Stephanie laughed at how ingrained certain things were in her children's heads. "You think so? I bet he'd like that if he was, but he might not think so because there are a lot of great singers out there."

"Is Daddy your favorite singer?"

"I certainly love him the most," Stephanie nodded.

"Did you listen to Daddy even when he wasn't yours?"

"I did, when Daddy and I were business partners, he gave me in first Fozzy CD, but that was all cover songs so it was Daddy singing, but it was different because the songs weren't ones he wrote. Now he writes all his songs so it's different."

"Oh," Sawyer said, "I don't remember."

"That's okay, you don't have to remember, I'm sure if you ask, Daddy will let you listen to it. That's when Daddy pretended to be Moongoose McQueen and he acted very silly," Stephanie laughed as she thought back to that time, when Chris was pretending that Moongoose and himself were two different people.

"Moongoose is a funny name," Sawyer said.

"I think so too, I think Daddy thought it was a funny name too and that's why he decided that would be his name, but that was when Fozzy was more of a cover band, not like it is now. Nowadays, Daddy takes it more seriously."

Stephanie pulled into the parking lot at the studio and she and Sawyer got out of the car. They walked into the building and over to the reception area where Stephanie told them who she was. The person behind the desk happened to be a wrestling fan and didn't ask for verification because she knew that Stephanie was Chris's wife. The receptionist personally showed her to Chris's studio space and she thanked her while she and Sawyer snuck into the room. Chris was so into the song he was singing, he didn't even notice her walk in.

"Can I help you?" the technician asked upon seeing her.

"I'm his wife," Stephanie told him, pointing at Chris. The guy nodded, apparently taking her word for it, but she didn't know if he was a wrestling fan or if he realized that if she wasn't his wife, there was no way she'd have been able to get past the desk downstairs.

"Mommy, hi!" Flynn yelled as she looked up to see Stephanie. She got up and ran over, right into Stephanie's waiting arms. Kensington, on the other hand, lit up when she saw her brother was there. She'd missed him today and she'd wondered where he was. She went up to him and hugged him around the waist, burying her face into his shirt.

"Hi, Kensy," Sawyer laughed at her display. He picked her up and she held onto him. Obviously there was a Sawyer mood coming on.

"Hi, hi," Kensington told her older brother. He smiled at her and she kissed his cheek.

"What you doing here?" Flynn asked.

"I came to get you guys so you can go home so we can let Daddy work without having to watch you."

It was then that Chris looked up from his lyric sheet and saw Stephanie standing there, his eyes widened and he took off his headphones before heading out of the booth. "What are you doing here?" he asked angrily.

"I came to pick up the girls. I figured they'd probably had enough of this and would want to go home, is that okay with you?" Stephanie asked, noting how he was irritated by her presence. If it wasn't so annoying, she would find it endearing.

"Get out now," Chris told her, but kissed her to show that he wasn't trying to be mean.

"I didn't even hear anything so you're safe," Stephanie told him. "I just came to pick up the girls, I wasn't trying to start anything, I promise, okay?"

"I just want you to go because I don't want you to hear anything, now go," he told her, practically pushing her out.

"But the girls' things…" Stephanie pointed to the ground where their things were lying.

"I'll clean it up before I leave, you can just take them. You have the other car-seats in your car, right? Or are they still in my parent's car?"

"No, I have them," Stephanie told him. "Are you sure I can't stay for a few minutes?" She knew he would never let her stay, but she thought she might tease him for a second. He glowered at her for a second and she held up her free hand in surrender. "Okay, okay, I get it, I'm not welcome here. I'll let you get back to it, I love you, good luck."

"Thank you," he kissed her again before he started to go back into the studio.

"Oh, wait, does this mean I can ban you from Raw since I run that whole thing?" Stephanie asked as Chris flipped her off and she left with the kids, laughing the entire time.

Of course she couldn't ban him from Raw. He had a main event that he was prepping for at WrestleMania and she couldn't ban him without reason. No, he had to be there and she wondered what he had in store for the night. Punk had a match on the card, but Chris didn't have anything, which just lent itself to the fact that he was going probably interrupt the match or something. She hadn't asked him what he was going to do because frankly, she didn't have the time. As WrestleMania drew closer and closer, her workload got bigger and bigger. Even with Chris taking care of the Hall of Fame and still being the VP of Talent Relations, she still had a lot to do.

She really didn't know how he handled everything that he handled. His schedule was always so precarious, something popping up everywhere. It was a wonder he got time to sleep. Still, he always wanted to ease her load, but there was nothing she could do to ease his. He kept piling it on and piling it on and what could she do? She couldn't take over his radio show, nobody would listen to her blather on for a couple hours. She couldn't play in his band, she didn't sing very well (okay, that was an understatement). She couldn't take over for him in the ring, she wasn't a wrestler. She couldn't help him when he was constantly helping her. Sometimes she felt a little inferior to her husband, though she'd never voiced it, but he was so multi-talented, it was hard not to feel like you were a little dull in comparison. Chris shone like a bright light (literally with his jacket) and she just wasn't quite as bright.

Chris walked down the hallway with Flynn after getting her a water bottle from catering. She'd insisted she was so thirsty she could drink the ocean and that apple juice just wasn't going to cut it. So Chris took her to catering to get some water, which she was happily sipping from the bottle through a straw as she walked next to Chris. She was wearing her light-up jacket, blinking down the hallway, but Chris wasn't because his had decided to malfunction (also because the show wasn't on and he felt silly wearing it like a regular jacket. Flynn did not have this problem).

"Chris, can I talk to you?" Beth stepped in front of him.

"Hi Beff," Flynn said around her straw.

Beth smiled at her and waved before turning to Chris. "How come I wasn't invited to that Extra piece? I'm the champion, don't you think I should get that concession and not Alicia and the Bellas? It should be me making appearances, not them. They all need Trish to practically plan a match for them while I'm a great woman's wrestler."

"I know you are," Chris started, but it seemed she wasn't finished as she cut him off before he could finish his sentence.

"It's just not far. Is it because they're what people would term 'beautiful'? Because I'm beautiful and I'm sick and tired of people thinking that I'm not."

"Beth, I know you're awesome in the ring, I've seen it, I believe you," Chris had to try to get a word in here or there. "That's not my jurisdiction though. I don't get to decide who goes on programs. I think that's media or something, not my department."

"Still, it's not cool," Beth said. "So what's up with you and Punk?"

"What do you mean?"

"I heard you weren't friends anymore."

"No, we're not. Now we're adversaries."

"I like Punk," Flynn chirped.

"You know, there is one way to surely get under his skin." Beth was clearly still upset over her breakup with Punk, but Chris wasn't sure if he should take this information. On the one hand, it could be bad, on the other, Punk had said they shouldn't hold anything back from each other and to bring it out full force.

"Okay, how?"

"Bring up his dad," Beth said. "It's one of the most sensitive subjects with him. It's why he's straight edge in the first place. His dad was an alcoholic, total deadbeat. Punk never wanted to end up like him. If you bring that up…I mean…you know, if you guys aren't friends…"

"Uh thanks," Chris told her and she nodded, walking off. Punk had this uncanny knack for never leaving a girl on good terms. He remembered when Punk broke up with Maria and she'd been so vengeful afterwards. Now it was happening again and he must just be bad at break-ups. Still, did he want to go that far?

His own father had traveled a lot when he was younger, but he wasn't a drunk. He looked down to Flynn and she looked up at him and smiled around her straw. He couldn't imagine ever wanting to leave his kids, but if this was a way to get under Punk's skin, he should take it, right? There was no real harm in it if Punk was willing to talk about it. Chris could surely present it in a way…no, there was no way to bring up a drunk father without hurting feelings. He and Punk weren't friends now, but Chris wanted to stay his friend in the future.

Still, this was for the title, the title he wanted. He didn't want to crow on and on about being the best in the world and then lose on the biggest stage there was. That wasn't how he wanted to do things. He wanted to go out there and prove it and if that meant he had to play dirty to get Punk's head out of the match, he should do so.

"Daddy," Flynn said as Chris kept walking. He turned to look at her and saw she was about three feet behind him.

"Huh?" Chris said to her.

"Dat our door," Flynn pointed up at the door. She could read the 'Jericho' sign on the front of it because it was her own last name and she recognized it. Chris laughed and walked back over to her.

"Thank you, Flutterby, what would I do without you?" Chris shook his head at his own distractedness and pushed open the door for Flynn.

"Mommy, I gots water and I drinking it," Flynn took an extra loud slurp.

"That doesn't look like the ocean though," Stephanie told her.

"They not have that," Flynn said as she sat down on the couch.

"What's up with you?" Stephanie asked her husband. "You look distracted, what's going on?"

"Beth told me something I could use to get under Punk's skin and I'm just thinking about it, what I can say about it?"

"What did she tell you to use?" Stephanie asked, leaning her chin in her hand as she listened to her husband.

"She said that Punk's dad is an alcoholic," Chris said, "that Punk is straight edge because of it and that it's still a really sensitive subject for him."

"You cannot use that," Stephanie shook her head.

"Why not?"

"You want to drag something like _that_ into this?" Stephanie shook her head. "Chris, you can't do that. You still like the guy. This just feels like a low blow to him. You can't go there. I don't think you should. At the end of the day, this guy _is_ your friend, whether you like it or not. Do you want him to go digging up old bones in your graveyard?"

"I don't have anything to hide. I pretty much put it all out there in my books," Chris told her.

"Okay, well, if you insist on doing this, you have to give him the heads up. I know you guys called off your friendship until after WrestleMania or whatever, but this is something you can't just spring on a guy. I know you want to get in his head, but you have to at least warn him."

"But that's—"

"Chris, I'm serious here. If you don't, I will suspend you."

"On what grounds!" he growled at her.

"I don't care, I will find grounds," Stephanie told him, meaning business. I'm not letting you go out there and ruin the guy like that. I'm just not going to let you do that to his psyche. There's trying to get under his skin and then there's blowing him up like a demolition derby."

"Do you even know what a demolition derby is?" Chris asked. "Because I'm really not sure that you do."

"Stop it, go," Stephanie said, "that's the only way I'm allowing you to do this."

"Fine!" he said petulantly. "Watch the girls, I'm going to find him."

Chris stalked out of the room and down the hallway until he found Punk's locker room. He pounded on the door and waited, tapping his foot as he looked around. Punk threw open the door, a perturbed look on his face, but it softened slightly when he saw it was Chris. He opened the door and let him in. Chris walked inside, folding his arms in front of him.

"What's this about?" Punk said.

"Beth told me something…something I can use against you, to get under your skin for our match, something that would really bug you," Chris told him.

"Okay, so use it, I don't care."

"I think you would, it's about your dad."

"Oh," Punk said, now being the one to fold his arms in front of him. "She told you about that, huh?"

"Not much, but enough. I wanted to use it against you, but Stephanie said it was a low blow and that I should at least warn you about it," Chris shrugged. "I wasn't going to warn you, but I guess it's the right thing to do. I didn't want to blindside you with it. If it's too much—"

"You could have lied," Punk said, "you could have lied to Stephanie and told her you told me."

"Lie to Stephanie? She'd figure it out and I try not to lie to her too often about things that really don't concern her like this," Chris said. "I wouldn't do that."

"You came here because you felt like it was wrong," Punk said, not asked. He knew Chris and he knew how the man worked. "My dad is a piece of shit, plain and simple. I never wanted to be like him. I hated him for everything. I know that alcoholism is sometimes hereditary so I nipped that in the bud."

"I didn't want to blindside you. Look, I don't have to do it. It's up to you."

"Do it, it'll make all the fans hate your stinking guts and love me a little bit more so really, it's win-win for everyone," Punk told him. "Look, we said we're going all out. If you use this, I'll have to find something to do to you, right, fair's fair?"

Chris laughed, "Yeah, fair's fair."

"You're a good dad, man," Punk said, "I kind of think you can judge a person by how well they treat their kids, you know. You and Stephanie have all the money those kids need millions of times over, but they're not spoiled. You don't get them everything they want like some parents who think they can buy their kids' love. You and Stephanie are actually there for your kids. You don't spoil them, you spend time with them and they so obviously love you and vice versa. They're really lucky."

"Thanks," Chris told him, "but I'm really the lucky one, they're awesome."

"You're upping the ante, you know that."

"I do know that," Chris smirked at him. "But hey, in the event that Vince wants to seek you out again and try to recruit you if the Board falls through for him, this should pretty much convince him that we aren't friends."

"That's for damn sure," Punk stuck out his hand and Chris shook it. "I appreciate that you came here."

"I'm glad I did too," Chris nodded at him.

"Hey, Chris, one thing," Punk said.

"Yeah?"

"Can you not have Flynnie and Kensy watch it?" Punk said. "I know that it's going to be hell to keep Flynnie away from the TV when you're on, but I mean, she might ask questions and I don't know, I'd rather her not have to know about stuff like that."

"You'd be surprised what Flynn knows about," Chris said, "I don't think she'd understand it. She would just say that I was talking to you."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm sure," Chris said, "Kensy won't have a clue. She doesn't really get any of this yet."

"Okay, well, I just don't want them being corrupted thinking about the bad stuff out there, let them stay little for a long time," Punk said.

"Believe me, if I could keep them all little kids forever, I might do just that," Chris laughed, "it saves me from thinking about how my daughters will want to date someday and that there are guys like you out there."

"Okay, yeah, I'm definitely getting you back sometime next week."

Britt sat with Hunter watching the Undertaker and Shawn talk out in the ring. Britt rested her hands on Hunter's shoulder as she watched Hunter's best friend (maybe former best friend, she didn't know at this point) talked to Hunter's opponent. "You know, you should go out there."

"And interrupt this?" Hunter turned his head to her. "I don't think so. I think they should just kept his among themselves."

"But Taker is _your_ opponent. You can't just sit here and act so passive. If you and Taker are going to go at WrestleMania, then you two should _go_ right now. You have to show him that you aren't the coward he said you were."

"You think so?"

"I _know_ so."

Hunter waited until the end of the segment to go out there. He met up with Shawn at the top of the ramp and they gave each other a look of camaraderie, but Hunter also gave him a look of trepidation. Shawn was still a wild card, despite what they were to each other. Shawn could very well make him lose and then go after Taker to end the streak himself. He couldn't trust anyone in this match except himself, but it didn't hurt to make Taker suspicious and that's why he threw the DX crotch chop at him. Maybe that would throw him off.

Chris was looking to throw off Punk as well, sort of, since he's already told Punk what was going to happen. He was kind of glad he was staying backstage for this one as he didn't really want to see Punk's face when he said it. Despite Punk saying it was okay to talk about this, it didn't mean that it didn't hurt. Chris stayed behind the camera and was blissfully unaware of what was going on with Punk.

He went all out because Punk would expect nothing less, told the story about his father with a few tiny embellishments to make it even more dramatic and then segued into talking about how Punk was straight edge, but Chris was going to beat him so badly he'd be driven to drink. Chris didn't really think there was anything that could really do that to Punk, but the thought was out there.

He could actually hear the boos from backstage and knew he'd struck a nerve. He didn't care about the fans though, he hadn't for a long time so the boos were actually music to his ears. He'd stopped playing to the crowd years ago, it was as out as his original Y2J persona. He didn't need the fans and he wanted them to see that he wasn't in this match for them, but for himself and for his family. If Punk wanted to be the best in the world to them, fine, but he was the best in the world period and he was going to do something about it.

Britt knocked on Punk's door. "Phil, are you in there?"

He opened the door and smiled at her. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see how you were after what Chris said," she walked into his dressing room. "I mean, bringing that up was pretty harsh of him, I didn't think he really had it in him to go so deep, you know what I mean. I think that took everything to a whole new level."

"He told me what he was going to say, I wasn't blindsided by it," Punk explained to her and saw her breathe in relief.

"Oh good, I really didn't want to have to change my opinion of Chris," she laughed a little, "but still, that had to hurt, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm over it," Punk told her, "I mean, it's not like it's something I can actually change, you know. It is what it is and if it gets it out there that alcoholism is bad and that it can damage people and ruin relationships, great, you know. Hell, maybe it'll even make some people want to be straight edge and that's a good cause to fight for."

"That's a really smart way to look at it," Britt said. "I wouldn't want you to feel hurt. I know you don't like sympathy, but I just wanted to make sure you were alright because despite your attempts at wooing me, I do care about you."

"As a friend, I get it," Punk said, turning his head towards her. "You know, right now, I wish I cold make some magical plea to get you to see how good we'd be together, but I think anything I would say would fall short. My reputation precedes me too much, I think."

"Just a little bit," Britt said.

"I know you say you love Hunter," Punk told her, "but just know you have options if you want them, that I'm a really big one."

"I better go," Britt stood up, feeling uncomfortable.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to put you on the spot like that," he told her. "I do want to be friends with you and I accept that you're with the guy, I just thought I'd make a little, tiny push, you know what I mean."

"Yeah, I still better go."

"Please stay," Punk said. "I'm not trying to fish for sympathy or anything, but sometimes it does help to talk about things and how they make me feel. Even though I knew what was coming, it still brought up a lot of stuff I'd rather not think about."

"Oh," Britt said, looking down at him, biting her lip in concentration, trying to decide if he was being sincere or not.

"Please stay?" Britt took a deep breath. She felt like if she stayed, something was going to start brewing and she wasn't sure she wanted that. On the other hand, it looked like Punk could really use a friend right now and she didn't want to deny him that. She sat down again.

"Okay, I'll stay."


	361. Low Blow, March 19, 2012

A/N: I don't know where Chris was tonight so I'm just making it up for the story. And for those who want drama, just wait until WrestleMania, something always happens around WrestleMania...thanks for reading, hope you enjoy. :)

* * *

"Hey you guys, guess what we're doing tomorrow?"

Chris walked into the playroom, but didn't seem to register with any of his kids. Kensington was putting things away in her toy fridge, Flynn was drawing on her chalkboard and Sawyer was playing a handheld video game. Chris had never felt so ignored in his entire life. He cleared his throat and Kensington looked up at him and she smiled as she put a fake milk carton into the fridge.

"Hi, hi, Dada!" Kensington waved at him before going back to her toys.

"Wow, so out of three of my kids, only one actually acknowledges me," Chris muttered more to himself than to them. "I guess nobody wants to know what we're doing tomorrow except for Kensington, I guess that means I won't include you guys in my plans."

"Huh?" Flynn finally looked up. "I draws!"

"I see that, it's very nice," Chris said as he leaned in the doorway. "But that doesn't mean you have to ignore me when I'm talking to you."

"I not doing that," Flynn insisted. "I listen. It is important. I have dat in my school. We no talk, we listen, then we talk. I learned that."

"That's good," Chris said, coming into the room and sitting next to Sawyer. "Can you put the game on pause, kid?"

"Okay," Sawyer said, playing for a few more seconds before he pressed pause and looked up at Chris. Chris reached out and ruffled his son's hair. "What is it, Daddy?"

"Were you not listening?" Chris laughed. "You guys are too young to ignore me."

"I was playing my game, sorry," Sawyer shrugged. He had been very engrossed in it, but now he wanted to know what his daddy was talking about. He'd thought that his daddy had been working because his mommy told him that his daddy was in his office and that he shouldn't be bothered.

"It's okay," Chris leaned over and kissed the top of Sawyer's head. He looked to his daughters, both of whom had gone back to their activities and he said, "You guys, can I talk to you as well? This concerns you too, I've got kind of a surprise for you."

At the word surprise, Flynn lit up. That was all her daddy had to say. She _loved_ surprises. She ambled over to Chris and climbed on the couch, standing up on it and pressing her hands into Chris's shoulder. Kensington saw that everyone else was getting gathered and not wanting to feel left out, she went over to the couch and tried to climb on, but it was pretty full with everyone else on it. Chris lifted her up and then over his head and then brought her back down into his lap.

"Well, tomorrow, I'm going to be on SmackDown, so we're all going to go and you're going to get to watch me wrestle again this week and Sawyer, you can come too," Chris told them. Sawyer and Flynn's faces lit up. Another day to watch their daddy wrestle _and_ Sawyer got to go? That _was_ a great surprise.

"Really?" Sawyer asked, beaming.

"Yes, you can," Chris told him. "We're going to leave immediately after you get off from school and we're going to fly to Columbus."

"Yes, Daddy!" Sawyer threw his arms around Chris and hugged him. "I can't wait!"

"I thought this would be the reaction I'd get," Chris said, hugging him back. He loved when his children were happy. Seeing them happy only made him ridiculously happy. He looked to Flynn and she was grinning too.

"I get to see you two times," Flynn held up two fingers and then pointed to them. "Daddy, who you wrestling?"

"But wait," Sawyer interrupted, "why are you going to be wrestling on SmackDown? You don't wrestle on SmackDown so why are you going to be on there?"

"Well, you know how John Laurinaitis and Teddy Long were going to switch places?" Chris asked them and they nodded. Kensington just leaned her head against his chest and contented in being with her father. She grabbed his left hand so she would have something to play with it and fiddled with his wedding ring. "Well, because John is not a good guy and because he works with grandpa to be mean—"

"Grandpa is mean?" Flynn asked. She wasn't really aware of that.

"Well, he likes to do mean things," Chris explained, "but he likes you guys so I don't think he would be mean to you, but sometimes he gets mad at mommy and me so he does stuff. Anyways, since Laurinaitis is in charge, he decided that I was going to have a match. I guess he thought I would be mad about that, but I'm not. I get to do something I love and I get to bring you guys and I love that. I know you guys love wrestling and that makes me happy."

"I do like it," Sawyer said, "I like when I get to go see it because I do miss it when I can't be there. Sometimes I wish I could go with you, but I like school so I don't think that'd be a really good idea."

"I don't either. I wouldn't want you to be taught by tutors."

"What's a tutor?" Sawyer asked.

"It's someone that would only teach you and you wouldn't have a class or anything."

"Oh, I don't like that, I like my class and I like my friends," Sawyer said.

"I know, that's why Mommy and I have you in school and why we have Flynn in preschool, we want you guys to have a normal childhood. A lot of parents don't do what Mommy and I do. A lot of parents don't travel like we do. We always thought we'd wait to have kids, but you guys just decided to show up when you did so we had to deal with that. Not that we weren't happy when you showed up, we definitely were."

"That's good," Sawyer said. "I'm glad I get to go."

"Who you wrestling?" Flynn repeated herself, feeling like she was being ignored and she did not like to be ignored. She gave a big, huffy sigh.

"I'm going to be wrestling Sheamus," Chris told her, knowing what Flynn was more than likely to say next.

"Sames is my friend!" Flynn exclaimed, which was exactly what Chris thought she was going to say. Even though she hadn't interacted all too much with Sheamus, Flynn still considered him her friend and she was slightly aghast that he would wrestle with her friend, but then, her daddy did wrestle against other friends of hers. "I want you to win."

"Thanks," Chris told her. "I'm glad you usually want me to win."

"Always," Flynn nodded at him.

"Me too," Sawyer added.

"Me, me, me!" Kensington copied, but didn't look up from where she was tracing her fingers along her mother's name on her father's finger, having pulled his ring up to where she could see his tattoo.

"Do we have to pack?" Sawyer asked.

"No, Mommy and I will pack," Chris told him. "You guys just get to have fun, nothing else, just have fun."

SmackDown was always a different environment, but more than that, Chris did not want to deal with Laurinaitis. He knew that Laurinaitis had booked him for a match on SmackDown just to mess with him, probably on the orders of Vince. Stephanie had hinted to the board that there should be tag match if they _had_ to decide who was going to be in charge of both shows. Stephanie actually wanted to just take over the job herself, but she couldn't figure out a way to do that, that wouldn't look like she just wanted to grab the power for herself. Her father would probably use that against her even though she believed she was more qualified than either Teddy or John.

"Daddy, can I say hi to Sames?" Flynn asked as they walked down the hallway.

"I don't see why we couldn't," Chris told her. "Let's just find our locker room and then we can go find him and you can say hello, okay?"

"Mama, soo!" Kensington lifted her leg up so Stephanie could see that her shoe was untied.

"Chris, wait up a second," Stephanie called out to her husband. "Kensy's shoe is untied and she wants me to tie it for her because she's bossy." Chris and Flynn stopped to wait up for them, but Flynn was impatient and she hopped from foot to foot.

"She's just a baby," Sawyer laughed, "she can't be bossy."

"Oh, you'd be surprised," Stephanie said as she quickly tied Kensington's shoe for her. She giggled as Stephanie pulled away and lifted her leg to wiggle it around a little bit. She was holding onto Sawyer's hand so she didn't lose her balance and fall down on her butt.

"Hey man, what the hell are you doing here?"

Chris looked up from watching Stephanie tie Kensington's shoe and saw Christian. "Oh hey, man, Laurinaitis put me in the main event against Sheamus tonight."

"Daddy gonna beat Sames, but he my friend," Flynn added.

"Yeah, I know," Christian said. "I guess I just wasn't expecting to see you guys here, but it's nice to have you here. I'm going to try and decide which team I'm going to be on for WrestleMania."

"Why wouldn't you just be on Team Long?" Chris asked. "I mean, you know how Stephanie feels about Laurinaitis and the way he runs things, I can't believe you'd want him on both shows."

"Chris, man, you don't know what it's like for the guys that aren't married to the boss," Christian said. "Teddy can be completely unfair too. You don't know because you aren't on SmackDown, but the guy is just as power-hungry as Laurinaitis is."

"But dude," Chris said, "Long isn't trying to oust my wife from her rightful position as the head of this company. Laurinaitis is a jerk and he works for Vince."

"It's been months and months and it seems to me that Stephanie is still in charge though," Christian said. "I don't think the Board is going to take her out any time soon unless something really drastic happens. I don't think they see her as a bad leader at all. I think her job is safe, but I want Long out."

"So you've pretty much already decided then," Chris said, starting to feel a little angry towards his best friend. He had no idea that Christian was even thinking something like this. He didn't know that Christian felt that strongly about it though, but there was a lot about Christian's life that Chris didn't know about at this point.

Whenever Stephanie and Chris tried to meet up with Christian and Trish, they always said they were busy and couldn't make it. As a result, they'd had dinner with Edge and Lita a number of times, but there were only so many times you could have dinner with the same couple. Christian and Trish were their go-to couple and nowadays, they were MIA and it was starting to get beyond weird.

"Well, okay, I concede that I don't get the whole being mad because I'm married to Stephanie, so choose whoever you want to choose, but you're going to have to live with that decision when it comes to it and I think Teddy Long is a much better boss than John Laurinaitis."

"Then we'll just have to agree to disagree," Christian said.

"Where's Trish? Is she here tonight?"

"No, she's back at home with Tilden," Christian said.

"Why didn't you bring them?" Stephanie asked as she walked up to them. "I mean, shouldn't she be here. You come with her to Raw, right?"

"Yeah, well, she couldn't come today so she stayed at home," Christian shrugged, feeling a little bit like he was on trial and he really wanted to leave the situation.

"Well, that's all well and good," Stephanie said, "but where the hell have you guys been for the last couple of weeks? Every time we call you, you're busy. We've gone out with Edge and Lita three times, but every time we try to pin you down, you always say that you've got something else planned."

"We do," Christian said evasively.

"Christian, what the hell is going on?" Chris asked, tired of beating around the bush. He wanted to know what was going on with his best friends. There was something obviously up and it couldn't be that they were breaking up because they were obviously still together. On the other hand, that didn't really mean anything. Chris had known people who stayed together for the kids or for any number of strange reasons.

"What do you mean?" Christian feigned ignorance.

"You know what I mean," Chris told him. "Hell, I think Kensy knows what I mean."

"Mmm, no," Kensington shook her head, looking questioningly at Sawyer, who just shrugged because he didn't really get it either.

"Daddy, I wanna see Sames," Flynn tugged on Chris's jeans.

"I think your daughter wants to go see Sheamus," Christian said, trying to get out of this situation, but it wasn't going to be so easy.

"No, dude, you're not pulling this," Chris told him, shaking his head, "Stephanie and I are sick and tired of getting the run around and so are Lita and Edge, none of us know what's going on, but we can sense that something is wrong so would you please just tell us what's going on?"

"There's nothing going on and if there is anything going on, I would hope you'd mind your own business," Christian pushed past the Jericho family and walked down the hallway.

"Do you want to go talk to him?" Stephanie asked.

"Not right now, I'll talk to him later though, when he's calmed down a little bit," Chris told his wife. "Let's just find my locker room and then get this girl to see her friend. Plus, I'd like to get into my ring gear so I don't have to worry about it later."

"Do you think he'll tell you what's up?"

"No, but it's worth a shot, right?" Chris shrugged as the kids started getting restless and began to go down the hallway. "I think they're telling us they're bored."

"I think we should listen to them," Stephanie looped her arm through Chris's as they followed their children. "I'm happy, are you happy?"

"What kind of question is that?" Chris asked.

"I don't think Christian and Trish are happy, I'm just making sure you are."

Chris turned to her and kissed her forehead. "That is something you never need to worry about. Come on, we're being ditched."

Later on, Chris took Flynn to see Sheamus in his locker room. Even though Chris had a match with Sheamus he understood that Flynn would want to see her friend. Chris didn't harbor any ill will towards the other man, but he was still his enemy for the evening. He had to stay on high alert because he didn't know whether Punk would be there tonight. If Punk was there, there was no telling what might happen. Even though he and Punk had an understanding after what happened on Monday, there was no telling what the other man might do.

Chris had, after all, insulted the man's father. He didn't know the relationship between the two men at this point in their lives, but he figured it was a bad one. Actually, if Chris were a betting man he would say there was no relationship at all. Chris couldn't comprehend why anyone wouldn't want to be around their children. He couldn't understand why anyone would treat their children the way Punk's father had apparently treated him. He loved his children; they were the light of his life and they brought joy to him every moment of every day. Abandoning them was never an option; treating them like they didn't matter was not something he had inside of him. That was why he actually sympathized with Punk. He knew that this was hitting below the belt, but they'd both agreed that this was how was going to be and they could be friends again after WrestleMania.

"Daddy, we going to see Sames now?" Flynn asked.

Chris looked down at his daughter and smiled, "I told you we were going to, didn't I?"

"You did! I like him, he my friend. He has a very red hair," Flynn giggled. She liked his red hair though; she had never seen hair quite that color before. The only place she had seen a color that red was in her crayon box. She wondered if he colored his hair with crayons, nah, that was just silly.

"He does," Chris said kindly. His daughter got so excited over the smallest things. Flynn continued to skip down the hallway.

"Why didn't Sawa come with us?" Flynn asked curiously.

"I guess he didn't feel like coming with us," Chris told her. "I don't think he's as good friends with Sheamus as you are."

"But Sawa should like him too. He nice."

"Well, I just think that you're better friends with him. That's okay though. Sometimes, you're going to like someone that Sawyer doesn't. That's why we have friends, so you can choose them. You can choose who you want to be friends with."

"I like people."

"I know you do." Flynn smiled at him. They continue down the hallway until they arrived at Sheamus's door.

"Here we are," Chris said as they stopped. "Do you want to knock?"

"I can do it," Flynn told him, going up to the door and knocking on it though her knock was more like a pounding. Sheamus answered the door a second later and smiled when he saw Flynn. She was grinning back at him then she waved her small hand. "Hi, Sames, I come see you 'cause you my friend."

"Hello there, little miss," Sheamus knelt down on one knee in front of her. "What brings you here?"

"I like you," Flynn told him, "you is wrestling my daddy. He gonna beat you tonight. He the best in the world, he wrestle you and be the best."

"I think that will be a good match," Sheamus said kindly. "Your daddy is a very good wrestler, I've seen him on Raw. He's been doing a very good job."

"I said he the best in the world. He gonna beat you tonight and he gonna beat Punk at Mania. I know he gonna, sowwy."

"Well, I'm going to try my best to win tonight."

"I know," Flynn told him. "But he still the best."

Sheamus laughed as he stood up. Chris was laughing too, Flynn was always going to be his biggest supporter and he loved her for it. "Sorry, I thought she just came here to say hi to you I didn't realize she was issuing a challenge to you. Sometimes I think she just wants me to fight the entire roster one by one."

"I can't really blame her for that," Sheamus said in his thick Irish brogue. "She's your biggest fan, well, I guess all your kids are your biggest fans right?"

"I'd agree with that," Chris told him, "but I think that Flynn is maybe my biggest fan of all."

"Must be nice having someone who is so in love with you," Sheamus said. He just thought kids were awesome and he liked interacting with his younger fans. He also found it endearing that Flynn thought of him as her friend. It was that child-like simplicity that was missing from a lot of people around here. Nobody was friends with anyone, not really because any second someone you thought you knew could turn on you.

"We go now!" Flynn announced.

"We're going now?" Chris asked her.

"I said hi," Flynn shrugged. That was really all she wanted to do when she came to see Sheamus. She just wanted to say hi and that her daddy was going to beat him. She may like him, but her daddy was better and it was good for Sheamus to know this before coming into the match.

"I guess that means we're going to go now," Chris chuckled, but reached out to shake Sheamus's hand. "Thanks for talking to her, however brief that was. I didn't realize that she literally just wanted to say hi and that I was going to beat you. I know that we're facing each other tonight, but that doesn't mean that backstage, we can be nice to each other."

"I agree," Sheamus shook his hand. "Of course, I won't hesitate to beat the crap outta you."

"I wouldn't expect anything less, but let me ask you, have you been in contact with Punk? I haven't spoken to him since Monday, but I'm not sure if he's going to try something tonight so I didn't want to go in blind."

"Nah, he hasn't said anything to me so I don't think he's gonna and he's not even here tonight as far as I know."

"Okay, thanks," Chris said.

"No problem," Sheamus nodded, then turned to Flynn. "It was nice seeing ya again, little miss. I'll see you again soon?"

"Sure, bye!" Flynn said, skipping off down the hallway with Chris following her closely.

"Hey, Flutterby, do you mind if we make one more stop to see Christian before we go back to my locker room?" Chris asked her.

"Is Tilden here because I don't wanna play with babies," Flynn told him. She had enough of babies with her sister, but where there was more than one baby, it was just too much.

"No, no babies," he told her, "I want to talk to Christian."

"Okay then!" Flynn was okay as long as she didn't have to see any more babies.

"Actually," Chris said, "why don't I take you back to Mommy and then you can play with Sawyer and I can talk to Christian, is that okay with you?"

"Sure," Flynn shrugged, not minding it at all if that's what her daddy wanted to do. Chris walked her back to his locker room and dropped her off, telling Stephanie he was going to talk to Christian. She wished him luck and he searched for the man's locker room. When he found it, he knocked on the door and then walked inside. Christian was just lounging on the couch and he gave Chris a look of consternation.

"What are you doing here, Chris?" Christian asked and Chris could already hear the exasperation in his voice.

"I wanted to talk to you, man to man. Steph's not here, Trish isn't here, our kids aren't here," Chris told him. "I just want to talk to you. Look, I know something is going on between you and Trish. Everyone knows it. Hell, I think even Kensington knows it. I'm your friend, you know I have your best interests at heart. You can tell me what's going on."

"There's nothing going on and even if there were I don't think it's any of your business," Christian told him. Chris could tell that Christian was already agitated and he didn't want to exacerbate the situation, but he wanted to get to the bottom of this. If something bad was happening between him and Trish and Chris let it go, there was no telling what would happen.

"I know it's really none of my business, but you and Trish are my best friends. I want you to be happy and I think it's pretty clear to everyone that something is going on. I just wanted to know if I could help," Chris was really trying to be helpful and calm, but Christian was very irate and it was drawing up Chris's ire. "I'm not trying to nose into your business, I'm trying to help. You don't have to bite my head off. I know that Edge has tried to bring this up with you, but you're freezing him out as well. If you can't talk to your brother who can you talk to?"

"Look, if I wanted to talk to you or Edge about it I would talk to you guys about it, but there's nothing to talk about. Trish and I are fine, would you guys just leave it alone?"

Chris knew he was making no progress with Christian. Sometimes Christian could be a stubborn as a mule and this is one of those times. Apparently he and Trish had agreed to go radio silent on whatever it was that they were dealing with and nobody was going to break through. He started to wonder if there was actually something wrong with Tilden, but the last time he had seen the little girl, she'd seemed fine. Still, he felt compelled to ask about her just make sure.

"Hey, this whole thing isn't about Tilden right?"

Christian looked at him like he was crazy, "Tilden? No, she's perfect. Why would you think there's something wrong with my daughter?"

"I didn't, but the way you're acting is so weird I thought there might be something going on with her."

"There's nothing wrong with Tilden. There's nothing wrong with anything."

"Would you stop with this crap already? We all know something's going on, why won't you just tell us?"

"Could you just leave me alone? I have a lot on my mind as it is, I have to decide what team I want to wrestle for and I'm really undecided."

Chris knew of this is a load of BS. Christian had already made up his mind about what team he was going to wrestle on. The whole Peep Show thing was just a ruse. Chris knew Christian was going to choose Team Laurinaites. It was almost a forgone conclusion at this point. He knew that this was going around in circles and if he ever wanted to make it out of there in time for his match, he'd have to cut the conversation short.

"Look, I don't know what's going on, but I'm going to say it anyways like I do know," Chris cleared his throat. "I think you and Trish are having problems, I don't know if you're still in that rut you guys were talking about before or if some new issue has popped up. Two people who claim to be happy don't look like you guys. Something isn't right and we all sense it and we want to help, but not if you continually push us away. We can't help you if you push us away. I know that Stephanie and I are probably not the greatest helpers because we've never been in this place, but we're damn good listeners and that's all I'm saying on this subject unless you want to talk."

"I have to go out there, I'm on at the beginning of the show," Christian stood up and walked out without another word or glance towards Chris. Chris groaned to himself and then stood up, going back to his locker room.

"How did it go?" Stephanie asked as Chris sat down on the couch next to her. He leaned his head against her shoulder and she took the opportunity to kiss the top of his head. "I'm taking it that it didn't go well."

"No, he still wouldn't talk about it and he's mad at me now too and potentially mad at all of us," Chris told her. "I tried to help, he didn't want it."

"He'll come around, you can't give up. I want to help our friends," Stephanie ran her fingers over Chris's hand. "If we were in the same situation, I would hope that our friends would behave the same way."

"And get in the way of the inevitable warpath we'd create," Chris scoffed. "Nobody would help us."

"Okay, you're right, nobody would help us," she nodded, "but still, I would hope they would help us no matter what."

"You can't help people who don't want the help."

Like they thought, Christian chose to be on Team Laurinaitis and they wanted to dislike him, but he was still their friend. Before they knew it, it was time for Chris's match. He was wary about going out there, not for his match against Sheamus, but because there was no telling where Punk might show up. He didn't want to go out there and get attacked, not that he hadn't done that to Punk, but this was him he was talking about and he wouldn't want to get attacked personally. Yes, it was being a hypocrite, but he was a hypocrite, sue him.

Stephanie and the kids sat at the gorilla so they could watch Chris's match, but before the match even started, Chris was grabbing a microphone and looking out at the crowd, most of whom were already booing him. It didn't matter to him though and he wondered when the fans would glean onto that. The booing was never going to matter again because he did not measure his career by the amount of cheers and boos he got. In the beginning, he wanted the crowd to love him, to be on his side, but he'd since learned that there was no pleasing them so he just had to please himself.

Chris hadn't run this by Punk, but, since he'd cleared the father thing by him on Monday, he figured it wouldn't hurt to talk about Punk again. He started to talk about the vitriol he'd gotten since his comments on Monday. Some people were vicious over Twitter, threatening him, threatening his family, calling him out. It was pretty crazy, but he wasn't going to apologize. Personally, there was no reason for him to apologize because Punk knew what was going on all along.

He went, instead, into another spiel about Punk and drinking and his father. He talked about how the tattoos and the straight edge were all covering up what Punk really was, just another drunk in the making. The crowd hated him for it. If he were being truthful, the only thing Punk seemed to be addicted to were women. Otherwise, he seemed to be on the straight and narrow for the most part and what would the fans think if they knew the truth? Instead, they cheered even louder for Punk as Chris tried to start a "CM Drunk" chant to no avail. It didn't matter though, the crowd hated him, they loved Punk, and maybe, just maybe he really was starting to get inside Punk's head.

His match against Sheamus was a new one for him. Despite being the last two men in the Rumble match, this was nothing like that as neither one was trying to send the other over the top rope. This was an actual match and Chris could not recall a time he had faced Sheamus so it took him some time to figure the other man out. Sheamus had the size advantage, but like always when facing a bigger man, Chris had the agility advantage, even though he was older than Sheamus.

The match got pretty ugly and neither Chris nor Sheamus were above dirty tactics in order to win. Eventually, the match came down to a count-out, which was so rare nowadays. It wasn't his own doing that caused it, but Daniel Bryan's presence instead. But a win was a win and he'd take it and it gave him a moment to collect himself in case Punk decided to show his face. Unfortunately for him, since Bryan wasn't available, he drew the short straw and ended up on his back after Sheamus hit a move on him in anger.

"He no supposed to do that," Flynn said backstage as she frowned at seeing someone she considered her friend take out her daddy.

"But Daddy still won," Sawyer pointed out.

"That's good then," Flynn said. "He wrestle on Raw, Mommy?"

"I don't know yet, Flynnie," Stephanie said as she cradled the sleepy Kensington against her warm body, "he might have a match, but I'll have to talk to Britt and then Mr. Laurinaitis might have something to say about it too."

"I don't like him," Sawyer shook his head. "He's not nice."

Flynn was distracted when Sheamus came backstage. "You lost!"

"I did," Sheamus said good-naturedly. He could turn off the vicious just as quickly as he could turn it on.

"You were good though," Flynn nodded before running back over to Stephanie, stopping when she saw Chris come backstage and then ran back towards him, lifting her arms. "Up, Daddy, please."

"I'm sweaty, Flutterby," he told her, patting her on the head, "let me shower and then I will."

"Good match until the end," Sheamus said, coming up to Chris, "sorry I had to take you out, no hard feelings?"

Chris just smirked at him, "No hard feelings."

Sunday morning dawned bright and early for Chris and Stephanie, too early actually as Chris opened his eyes when he heard the door creaking. He sat up quickly in bed and towards the door, expecting some looming figure, but instead, it was just his daughter, holding onto a blanket, illuminated only by the nightlight they kept in the hallway for the kids to see if they had to go to the bathroom.

"Flynn, what is it?" Chris asked.

"Daddy, I no feel good," Flynn said. "I throw up."

"You threw up," Chris swung his legs over the bed and stood up, walking over to her. Before he got to her, she started gagging and coughing again and Chris picked her up quickly, rushing her to the bathroom and bringing her to the toilet. She did indeed throw up and Chris noticed it was on her nightgown. "Oh, Flutterby, you poor thing."

Flynn sniffled a little as she finished up. Chris brushed her hair back with his hand and kissed her forehead. She was a little bit clammy and Chris had to check for fever, but first he had to take care of her nightgown. He lifted off her nightgown and she shivered as she was exposed to the cold air. Chris threw the clothing in the hamper and flushed the toilet after wiping Flynn's mouth.

"Come on, Flutterby. We'll get you into a new nightgown, then I'll brush your teeth again and then into bed with you," Chris told her as she nodded pathetically. Chris took her back to her room, grabbing a nightgown out of the dresser quickly and putting it on her so she wasn't cold. He then brought her into the bathroom where he brushed her teeth just enough to get the icky taste out of her mouth and then took her to bed, tucking her in before grabbing the thermometer out of the bathroom cupboard. It was an ear one so he just had to stick it in her ear to see that she had a slight fever. "Looks like you got a bit of a bug, Flutterby."

"I not a bug," Flynn told him, "Kensy a bug."

"She is a bug," Chris told her, "you just have a bit of a bug. Stay here, I'm going to get you some water and a bucket and a little bit of medicine."

Chris went downstairs to get the supplies he'd need and brought them back up to Flynn's bedroom. Her bed was small, but big enough to where he could scoot in next to her. He gave her some medicine before putting it onto her nightstand. Chris kept the bucket close by in case she needed to throw up again and he made her take a few sips of water before he lay down next to her, rubbing her tummy as she tried to go back to sleep.

By the next morning, Sawyer had come down with the same bug that Flynn had and they were both miserable with fever. Chris and Stephanie had a hard enough time with one sick, cranky child, but two was something else. They'd wanted to get Kensington out of the house and over to Chris's parents for the next couple days when she too had started to throw up, which made three sick kids for the harried parents.

"We need more Pedialyte," Stephanie said as she came in with an empty bottle. "I split this one between Kensy and Flynn and it was our last one. I'm keeping them hydrated, but neither one of them is hungry at all."

"Sawyer wanted to try some toast, but I only made one piece and I'm only giving him half," Chris said, "try giving the girls some broth, it'll at least get something else into them. I'll go to the store."

"Great, thanks," Stephanie said as she went to get Sawyer's toast.

She was interrupted by Kensington's wail, "Mama!"

"I think we've got another incident on the way," Stephanie said as she put Sawyer's toast down and headed into the living room where all three kids were lying down. Sawyer was on the loveseat while Kensington and Flynn were on either side of the couch. Chris walked back in there and went over to Sawyer, giving him the toast as Sawyer tried to take little small bites.

"Hey, Steph?" Chris asked.

"Yeah?" Stephanie said as Kensington got sick again. Stephanie rubbed her daughter's back and tried to comfort the obviously uncomfortable little girl.

"What are we going to do about Raw?"

"Oh God, I hadn't even thought about Raw," Stephanie said, "we were supposed to fly up tomorrow morning. I'm not sure this is a 24 hour bug. I guess I'll have to stay home with them."

"Mommy, I feel sick again," Flynn said and Stephanie deeply sighed as she looked towards Flynn and tried to reach out to her.

"Just go in your buckets, sweets," Stephanie told her, "I have to help Kensington."

"Steph?" Chris said again.

"Yeah?" Stephanie cringed as she heard Flynn getting sick again.

"I think I'm going to stay home. I can take the night off Raw," Chris told her.

"You can't do that, you have to work and Punk is going to be there and you could have a match—"

"Stephanie, these are my kids, they're sick, they're scared, they have a lot coming out of them," Chris said, "I'm needed here and this is where I'm going to be for the duration. I have my priorities straight and I need to be here. Look, I can just go in via satellite if I'm _that_ needed."

"Thank you," Stephanie said as she helped Kensington lie back down before going over to Flynn and helping her.

"Don't thank me for helping my kids, that's my job," Chris told her as he went back to tending to Sawyer.

Punk knocked on Britt's door, but it wasn't the person she wanted who answered. Hunter was on the other side and he looked critically at Punk. "What do you need?"

"Is Britt here?" Punk asked.

"No, she's not here," Hunter said, "she's working so what did you need?"

"I just wanted to talk to her and thank her for talking to me last week, that's all," Punk said, "Hey, so you know how you think that you're just the shit around here because you have this _huge_ match with Undertaker?"

"What about it?"

"I really think you're on par with the Rock. You aren't here all the time. Yeah, you're _here_, but you're not wrestling so I don't think you should think so highly of yourself. You don't sacrifice any more than Rocky does."

"I do my job around here."

"No, you follow what Britt and Stephanie do, hell, Chris does more around here than you do. You've only got a vanity title," Punk told him, "face it, you just want to be a glory hog, just like Rocky. I might not like Cena, but at least the guy is always fighting."

"How is that different from Chris?"

"Because he's out there every week, doing whatever he can to make his wife proud, for her company, that's the difference while you sit back here, all plush and Chris is even taking care of the Hall of Fame ceremony."

"Why don't you just come out and say it, Punk," Hunter nearly spat at him. "You're jealous of me because I have Britt. I think we both know that's what this is really about, not my job, not how much I wrestle, this entire thing is simply about the fact that I have Britt and you don't."

For Punk, it wasn't all that, but Hunter had pinned down a pretty big part of it. "You know what, maybe it is, but we both know she deserves better than you. She told me all about what happened with you guys, how you freaking ditched her for Shawn, literally, you ditched her somewhere for Shawn and she came running back to you, she doesn't deserve that kind of treatment."

"But she deserves the treatment of a guy who just dates a girl until he gets tired of her?"

"I never said that, just that she's better than you are."

"She's better than you are too," Hunter told him. He hated that this jackass was questioning his relationship. He'd come to see very clearly how much Punk was waiting out his relationship with Britt, but Hunter wasn't about to give her up without a fight and if Punk wanted a fight, he'd get one.

"I can't argue with that, but I know I'm better than _you_ are," Punk turned on his heel and walked away. Talking to Hunter had only riled him up and now he felt ready to rip someone's head off. He needed to channel this when he was out there. Chris had called him earlier and told him that all three of the kids had the stomach flu and he wouldn't be there tonight.

They'd also talked about what happened on Monday and what it meant to Punk. Punk explained to Chris that his dad had overcome his demons as much as he could, which was to say nobody truly got over an addiction, but that he had been sober for quite some time. Punk was proud of his father and Chris was actually happy that the story had a happy ending thus far. Chris had said that he was probably going to be appearing via satellite, but that he wasn't going to say anything about what he was going to say, but that he'd had something planned. Punk was a little wary, but trusted Chris.

When he went out to talk to the crowd, he channeled that earlier anger from Hunter and put it right back into his promo about Chris. He was actually kind of glad Chris had brought it up because it gave him an opportunity to get it out there that nobody was alone in this, that so many people had been affected by this disease and that nobody should feel like this was a struggle unto themselves. It let him get the awareness out there, however brief, that this happened and it could be overcome.

It didn't mean he wasn't going to beat up Chris when he had the chance. He liked the guy, but he didn't like him enough to just hand over the belt to him. If Chris wanted a monster at WrestleMania, Punk would turn into the scariest monster he'd ever seen. Chris was just an obstacle and when it was all over, they'd be friends, but for now, they were adversaries and that meant Chris was something he had to overcome.

He dropped the microphone after his rant, knowing full well that Chris was going to show up and he did. He must be at FCW down in Florida to have a set-up like he did. He looked a little bit haggard, having not bothered to shave fully, but that was to be expected with three sick children. He knew that Chris was going to keep this brief because he probably had to get back home so Punks stood there to listen to what Chris had to say.

It surprised him when Chris said that this was just him, no fanciness and that he was there to apologize for what he'd said. Punk wasn't expecting that and doubted the sincerity of the apology simply because this was Chris and he always had something up his sleeve. He did seem a little sincere though and said he wasn't going to bring up Punk's father any longer, which was on the plus side. They didn't need the added drama for their match. They were just going to bring it. While Taker and Hunter and Rocky and Cena were going to be "headlining," he just expected to go out and have the best match of the night with a wrestler (and he wouldn't admit this in public right now) whose skill set was just as impressive as his.

Then Punk was slapped in the face when Chris brought up his sister. This was _not_ something they'd discussed and Punk couldn't believe Chris would go there. Now _all_ belts were off and Punk was honest-to-goodness pissed off. It was one thing to after his dad, but his sister? His little sister who he had tried to watch over and seen fall time and time again. How could…he was going to beat the ever-loving crap out of Chris the next chance he got. This was no holds barred now and Punk told Chris exactly what he was going to do to him before he stalked up the ramp and straight to his locker room.

"Phil!" Britt called after him.

"Not now, Britt!" Punk said as he went to his locker room, pacing back and forth, back and forth, back and forth.

Britt left him alone because he looked so angry and upset and she knew he probably needed to cool down. She didn't know why Chris had to go there, but she barely had time to think about it because the rest of the show was happening and she was in charge with Stephanie MIA that evening. She had a lot to do and she couldn't focus on much of anything, especially not Punk, because the show was the most important thing.

She eventually did stop when Undertaker was out there at the end of the show. She knew her boyfriend was going to tear him to shreds so she stopped by the nearest monitor to watch. It was a night of surprises because she heard the Undertaker ask if Hunter was willing to give everything up to win, the wife, the kids, everything. Now, knowing they weren't married, Britt could only assume that Taker meant these things hypothetically-speaking, probably thinking that Britt would eventually marry Taker. What really shocked her was Hunter's answer. Yes? _Yes_? So that's how much she meant to him, nothing more than a mere match?

It was nice to know what Hunter's priorities were.

Punk finally stopped pacing and looked at his phone to see what time it was. He couldn't believe it. He'd been pacing for the entire show. How had that happened? Well, he didn't have anything to do so nobody had needed to contact him. He'd paced for two hours? He was _that_ angry? Yes, he was that angry, in fact, he was so pissed over what Chris said about his sister…oh God, his sister! Punk turned his phone on and scrolled quickly through the numbers.

"Hello, big brother."

"Sel, are you okay? I mean, you weren't watching the show, were you?"

"Of course I was watching the show. You know I never miss you," Selene told him. "I would never miss you on the show, you'd probably chew me out if I did. Nice work by the way, I'm sure Dad was proud."

"Aren't you upset?" Punk said. "I will kick his ass for what he said."

"Oh that," Selene laughed. "I'm okay with it."

"You're…what?"

"I'm okay with it," Selene said, "Chris said it wasn't coming from a mean place and he explained the whole situation to me about his father-in-law and how you guys are just pretending to hate each other, well, sort of because you _are_ fighting for the title. He wanted to make sure it was cool that he included me in it. I think he found out about my problems from that girl you like, I forget her name, Brittany?"

"Just Britt," Punk said, now gobsmacked. "I didn't realize she'd said anything."

"It was in passing, don't get mad at her. Chris called me and gave me the heads up and actually asked what kinds of things he could say and I'm fine with it because he was nice enough to ask and well. I'm sorry, but the guy is very charming. I probably would have gone into detail if he'd asked," Selene laughed. "The look on your face though, great acting."

"I wasn't acting," Punk said, "he…never-mind, I'm just glad you're okay."

"I'm fine," Selene told him, "better than fine actually. I think you're right and that's it good to show people that they can overcome stuff like this. If it helps one person tonight to see that they're not alone, then it's worth it."

"Okay, well, I'm sorry I bugged you."

"It's okay, Phil, I'll talk to you later?"

"Yeah, love you, bye."

"Love you too, bye."

As soon as Selene ended the call, Punk called Chris. "Hello, Jericho House of Puke."

"You called my sister."

"Oh yeah, I did."

"You didn't tell me you called my sister," Punk told him, "how could you do that to me? I was so mad at you."

"I could tell with all the words that Britt had to bleep out," Chris chuckled. "I figured I could use the element of surprise this time. Actually, that was Selene's idea. I said I was going to call you and she told me that I should just spring it on you."

"That bitch…" Punk scoffed to himself. "I can't believe she would…no, I can believe that she would do that. I was ready to come down to Florida and kick your ass."

"You would have too," Chris laughed, "just adding a little spice to it. Go ahead and throw it back at me, just avoid the children and we're good."

"I can't believe you and my sister punked me like that," Punk shook his head. "I've been pacing the past two hours over this." Chris laughed over the line. "What's so funny?"

"Looks like I _am_ getting into your head after all, see you at WrestleMania, Punk."


	362. Breaking It Down, March 26, 2012

A/N: Does anyone else kind of feel like they should be giving more time to Jericho/Punk? It's just like, Rock/Cena, we get it, it's supposed to be big and I'm sure some people think that seeing Taker/H AGAIN is going to be "epic," even though these two guys barely wrestle anymore, but Chris and Punk is for the WWE Championship and that should mean something.

Okay, mini-rant over. This chapter is very much a filler chapter seeing as how Punk/Jericho was so sparingly used on the Raw before WrestleMania, loads of sense. My big WrestleMania chapter is coming up next week so this is really just a teaser and the next chapter will cover the entire week so it will more than likely pick right up where this one leaves off. I hope that you'll enjoy this and that it will whet your appetite for WrestleMania, enjoy. :)

* * *

"Daddy, I feel better."

Chris looked up at the doorway to his bedroom and instead of seeing his sick little girl from the other night, he saw his bright, little girl that he liked to see. The kids' stomach bug thankfully only lasted a couple days, but they were still a little bit wobbly so Sawyer was spending one extra out of school and was downstairs with Kensington, who was still very tired from the ordeal and spent most of the day napping.

Chris had to fly to New York the next morning, extremely early, because he was going to be on the _Good Day, New York_ morning show before going to Jimmy Fallon that evening. He also had a VH1 show that he had to go to all for WrestleMania. Stephanie had asked if he wanted to do some press junkets and, being the charismatic, charming man that he was, he took the opportunity.

"I know you are," Chris told her, giving her a smile as she trudged into the bedroom. Because Flynn had stayed up all almost all of Sunday night and didn't go to bed until late last night, she was tired as well, but not as tired as Kensington. Chris went over and lifted her into his arms, kissing her cheek and letting her cuddle into his arms. "I'm very happy that you're feeling better. You know I don't like to see you when you're sick, it makes me very sad."

Chris pouted comically and Flynn giggled softly and pushed his mouth up into a smile. "Don't be silly, Daddy."

"Okay, very serious then," he changed his face to a very serious one, which only served to set Flynn off into another torrent of giggles. "Where you going?"

"I have to go to New York," he told her, "it's kind of close to where Grandma and Grandpa live. You've been there before, it was a very big city with lots and lots of buildings and people."

"I think I 'member," Flynn told him nodding before she laid her head on his collarbone, deeply yawning as Chris rubbed her back soothingly. He just held her, standing there in the bedroom, staring down at his clothes and wondering what he was going to bring with him. He was only going to be gone a couple days, but he was the kind of guy who dressed based on moods. He noticed Flynn's breathing even out and realized she was asleep. He tried to set her down on the bed, but she whined the moment his arms started to slack around her so he picked her back up again. After the past couple days of being sick, she needed the rest and he wasn't going to deny her that.

Instead, he just packed with one hand, holding Flynn with his other one as she continued to sleep against him. She was still light and he was used to picking up much heavier things so holding her wasn't much of a bother except when he was trying to roll some of his clothes to fit into his suitcase.

"Hey," Stephanie said as she walked in, then saw Flynn was sleeping and lowered her voice into a whisper. "Oh, hey, she asleep?"

"Yeah, she was pretty out of it when she walked in here, it was only a matter of time until she dropped, where are the other two?"

"Both out as well," Stephanie said, "Sawyer was reading his phonics book to Kensington and they both just kind of tipped over, I put her in her crib, he's sleeping on the couch."

"The house has been so quiet today," he admitted as Stephanie took over packing for him, rolling his clothes as he sat down on the bed, careful not to jostle Flynn. "I don't think I've heard it this quiet since before we had the hellions."

"Not so much hellions right now," Stephanie brushed her hand over Flynn's soft waves. "They have to be exhausted, I'm pretty sure Kensy puked up her weight, you never realize how much you're carrying inside of you until it all decides to come out."

"If it's too hard taking care of them, we can send someone else in my place," Chris offered. "Punk probably isn't the best idea, well, he can be cool when he wants to be so I guess he wouldn't be _so_ bad, but we could probably get Hunter to do it, he's up there already."

"We'll be fine for a couple days, the worst of it is over, they're all recovering now and they'll be as good as new in no time flat," Stephanie told him. "Besides, people are going to be expecting you and we can't let your fans down."

"I still have fans?" he joked. "I thought that all the talking and calling out Punk's family pretty firmly put me in the 'no fan' zone."

"You're not X-Pac," Stephanie winked at him, "people still like you and if they only knew that you actually called Punk's sister to talk to her, then they would think you were a big softie like everyone else knows. If I took a picture of you right now with Flynn in your arms like this, people would be all over that."

"Then I better not, I don't need the praise," Chris said.

"Here, let me take her so you can get your bag packed and ready. I think for everyone's sake we better have an early dinner tonight. I still have one of your mom's lasagnas in the freezer so I'll just stick that in and I think I can handle some garlic bread and that could be dinner and we can all have an early night."

"Thanks," Chris stood up and handed Flynn to Stephanie. Flynn snuffled for a moment, but then molded herself to Stephanie, her arms hanging limply to her sides. "You might want to stick her in her bed."

"I will," Stephanie pressed her lips against the top of Flynn's head. "I just want to hold her for a second where she isn't talking a mile a minute or squirming to get down so she can go run off somewhere. I've got to savor these kinds of moments. Sawyer is getting too big to carry as it is. He's going to be six in May, Chris, _six_."

"I know, crazy," Chris said as he closed his suitcase. "We're going to have a six year old. So what kinds of things do you want me to say tomorrow? Do you want me to talk about my beautiful wife?"

"Well, I think you could mention what a great job your boss is doing," Stephanie intimated, giving him a little bit of a smirk. "I think my father would _love_ that. I mean, how many people might be watching, so many, he'd flip his lid if he saw it."

"You should call your mom and tell her that I'll be on and that I might stop by the house," Chris said, "just to say hi."

"Oh, sometimes I love when I know I married an evil genius," Stephanie leaned over to kiss him. "Then for sure my father would be watching and you could mention how I took over and…I mean, if you want to, that is. I'm not going to force you into talking about me or hijacking your interview."

"You could never," he said, lightly caressing her face with his fingers. "If there's anything besides wrestling and rock music that I like to talk about, it's the four other people in this house."

"Five, let's not forget how much you actually like to talk about yourself," Stephanie reminded him, tapping him on the side of the nose. "In fact, I think that's your _favorite_ subject right there if I'm not mistaken."

"You are mistaken."

"Hmm, I don't think so," Stephanie shook her head. "I think if we'd gone on a traditional first date, you would have talked about yourself the entire time."

"What? No I wouldn't have."

"I think that's what you did before me," Stephanie said, "I mean, I _was_ the first one who had extensive prior knowledge of you before our first date." She started to leave their bedroom and head for Flynn's room, glancing over her shoulder as Chris started to follow her.

"You have no clue how I was on first dates," Chris told her, scowling as she walked into Flynn's bedroom and placed her gently on the bed. "I was extremely charming and attentive and curious and I asked great questions."

"So tell me why it took you until you were practically 32 until you found me?" Stephanie asked smartly, popping her collar comically.

"Because _you_ were married. I had to wait until you left that guy until I even had a shot with you."

"You could have found someone, you were just egotistical."

"Maybe…maybe that's why I just found someone as egotistical as I am," he grabbed her hand, "come on, let's leave her alone and let her sleep, she needs it."

"And what do you suppose we do?" Chris smirked and stopped to listen for any sounds in the house. When all he heard was quiet, he smirked in Stephanie's direction before he pulled her towards the bedroom.

"Not sleep at all."

Chris always liked visiting New York. There was something about the hustle and bustle that was very rock star, if that made any sense. It was just a fast-paced lifestyle and there was something exciting about it. Standing in the middle of Times Square almost felt like you were standing in the middle of the world, like if you stood there long enough, you could see every other person in the world. He knew it was an exaggeration, but that's what it felt like. Tampa, in comparison, was very easygoing and he loved living there, but it was always fun to visit other places, even if it was for work.

His first stop, straight from the plane, was to Good Day, New York. He'd been on the show before, but hadn't really met one of the interviewers, who turned out not to know a thing about wrestling. He always found it uncomfortable when he was being interviewed by someone with absolutely no knowledge about the wrestling world simply because they always got it wrong. Most people who knew nothing about wrestling had some weird preconceptions, notions that they gleaned from bits and pieces they had heard from here and there.

He'd been dealing with that kind of thing his whole career so he was really good at putting on a smile and pretending like it didn't bother him when, in fact, the opposite was true. If you knew you were going to interview a wrestler, wouldn't it behoove a person to actually study up just the tiniest bit beforehand? And it always went to the same places, how he didn't look like a wrestler and that was an insult to himself and other wrestlers who didn't have the Triple H type body. He worked just as hard, but no, he didn't look like a wrestler. He wanted to tell this woman off, really did, but he refrained and just played the nice card while hyping up the show for his wife's sake.

When the interview was over, it wasn't soon enough for him. He didn't like this woman and wanted out of there. Thankfully, he didn't have anything to do between now and the Jimmy Fallon show, which was taping in a few hours. He put his sunglasses on and walked around a little bit, getting a feel for the city and clearing his head. Things were so hectic in his life that time to himself was held at a premium. Even when he was at home, there were the kids to think about so to have a few minutes where nobody was barging in on him or nobody needed him was a blessing in disguise. He made a mental note to have Stephanie take some time for herself so she could experience the same thing.

There were so many things coming up in his life right now that he felt anxious and nervous and that kind of heady excitement that came with the unknown. He was recording a few more songs in the next couple days when he got home and then again next week. He had WrestleMania coming up where he would hopefully come out as the WWE champion. He had the Golden God awards to think about and hosting that and before he knew it, Sawyer's 6th birthday would be here, then his Fozzy tour, more wrestling if that were feasible, then the girls' birthdays and it was all a little overwhelming, but in a good way, in a great way. He loved being busy.

His cell phone rang and he answered it, "Chris Jericho's phone, the one and only speaking."

"Hey, dude, it's Edge."

"What's up, man?" Chris asked him.

"I just asked Christian officially to induct me into the Hall of Fame, which he agreed to do so you can put him down as my inductor," Edge said, "but even more than that, I heard he was mad at you."

"Oh, you heard about that," Chris said with a dry laugh, "I didn't tell you because I didn't want him to get mad at you too if you brought it up. I told him that you were suspicious too, but I thought maybe if you didn't mention that we all thought it he wouldn't, you know, snap at you too."

"No, he did," Edge said, "which is weird, but even weirder than that, when I went over to his house to ask him, Trish wasn't there and I know you think, wait, that's not weird, but I asked Christian where she was and he said she was with her parents in Toronto, for a 'visit,' but I don't know, man, just seems like weird timing."

"Well, I mean, maybe, but we don't know the circumstances under which she went. Her parents could have needed her, it could have been someone's birthday or it could have just been a visit. If Stephanie liked her parents more, I'm sure she'd go visit them sometimes," Chris joked. "You can't really speculate, you know. Did she take Tilden with her?"

"Yeah, the munchkin wasn't there, unfortunately, I love spending tie with my niece," Edge sighed, "I don't know, he didn't seem to miss her all that much, which was weird, but then again, sometimes we can do without the other half, am I right?"

"Yes, you are right," Chris said, "I'm enjoying my time alone right now actually. But thanks for informing me and giving me absolutely no information whatsoever except to tell me that Trish is visiting her parents."

"I'm just helping," Edge said in exasperation, "you try to do one good deed and it gets all shot to hell. I'm trying to keep you in the loop with this Trish and Christian mystery. I would try to get my brother to tell me what's going on, but honestly, I think you got a better reaction than I would get. He'd probably throw me out of his house. I could put him in a headlock to do it, but I probably shouldn't put the strain on myself, right?"

"No, we don't need you injured again right before you're supposed to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Having you come out in crutches would not be the best image."

"Do I get to go on last?"

"I haven't decided that yet," Chris told him.

"Well, when you do, put me on last because I, my friend, am going to be the best thing going on that show."

"So you say," Chris said, "look, I better go. I've been wandering around and I've got to get back to my hotel so that I can go to the Fallon show that I'm doing later."

"Oh yeah, Stephanie is trusting that you'll make her and the company look good, I forgot," Edge told him. "I guess I'll talk to you later, good luck, man."

"Thanks," Chris said. "Later."

The Jimmy Fallon show was a good time and how could he hate a show where he got to come out of the floor with a bunch of smoke? You couldn't, that was the thing. Chris had a great time on the show, talking about an old Jean-Claude Van Damme joke he used to do, complete with an MC Hammer impression. The crowd was eating it up and he felt better on this show than he had that morning. At the very least, Jimmy seemed interested in him.

"My wife is probably sitting at home yelling at the TV telling me to talk about WrestleMania," Chris joked.

"Oh yeah, your wife is Stephanie McMahon, right?" Fallon said and Chris nodded.

"Yeah, she's the president of the company and I know she's watching and telling me to talk about the show, talk about the show," Chris chuckled, "but anyways, yes, April 1st is WrestleMania and I will be facing CM Punk to determine who the best in the world is, which will be me."

"Now your wife can calm down," Fallon joked.

"Yes, I hope she's calmed down. I'll actually be back watching with her while this is airing so she might even turn to me and slug me in the shoulder for taking so long," Chris said, then turned to the camera. "Please don't hurt me, Steph!"

"Was it weird marrying your boss?"

"Not at all, she's awesome," Chris said.

"Is she looking forward to your match?"

"Yeah, so are my kids actually," Chris responded. "I think this match is going to be a great one. We've got some huge matches happening on the show and they should be fun to watch. Our big one is The Rock versus John Cena. They've been trash-talking each other for weeks now and it's really getting heated and then our other big one is Triple H versus The Undertaker, which is going to take place in a Hell in a Cell match."

"Okay, that sounds intimidating," Fallon laughed, "I'm not sure I would want to be in that kind of match."

"It's rough, I was in one. These two fought last year and there's a lot of bad blood between them and now this is for outright supremacy I think, but I really do believe that I'm going to steal the show, don't you, audience?" The audience cheered for him and he gave them a thumbs up. "I'm planning on stealing the show. My match is for the WWE championship and I plan to walk out with it."

"I hope you do man, I hope you do, thank you so much for stopping by," Fallon shook his hand and they went to commercial.

Stephanie looked at Chris later that evening as they watched it. "Well, once you got on track, it was a pretty good show. You could have done without making me look like some horrible person who doesn't like to joke around though."

"I did no such thing!" Chris told her, hugging her tightly and pushing them both down to the bed. "I was just trying to say that you wanted me to talk about the show." He laid his head on her chest and sighed contentedly. "I did a great job, I think, don't you think?"

"Yes, I do think," Stephanie ran her hands through his hair. "Now, Mr. I Have So Much to Do. What are your plans for the rest of the week?"

"Why, do you have something special planned?"

"No, I just want to try and coordinate our schedules. I'm going to need to go to Stamford either this weekend or next week because I've got meetings and then I'm going to have to be in Miami very early next week because we've got all those events and what not. I'm not sure what you're doing, but I figure you might have to go early as well, which means we've got to ask your parents to watch the kids until they come down on Friday afternoon."

"I have recordings this week and then on Monday, when we're in Atlanta, Rich and I are going to lay down more tracks, but then the rest of my week is free since it's WrestleMania week. Miami isn't too far so it shouldn't be a problem going down there if you need me. I know you _have_ to be down there."

"How's the Hall of Fame going anyways?"

"It's going great, everything is in place and the party is pretty much planned. I hired a party planner because I just didn't have the time, but she's been keeping me abreast of the situation…and speaking of breasts," he wiggled his eyebrows.

"I'm talking to you so no," Stephanie told him. "I'm glad everything seems settled with that and so the kids can come on Friday, but maybe Kensy can come with me…but then I really don't want her stuck around while I'm doing things."

"We'll play it by ear," Chris kissed her. "This is going to be a great, fun week. Everything is going to run smoothly and WrestleMania is going to be better than ever."

"Thank you for being so reassuring."

"It's what I'm here for. You always freak out during WrestleMania week and I'm always the one to pull you back in, it's my job, it's what I do."

"And you do it well."

"Well enough to be kept a_breast_ of the situation?"

"Oh whatever, go for it, you pervert."

WrestleMania week was always a hectic one, everyone had something to do and somewhere to go and there always seemed like so much to do. Both Chris and Stephanie were booked solid this week. Because WrestleMania was this Sunday, Chris was booked to be both on Raw and SmackDown. Well, he wasn't actually booked to be on Raw, but when he saw that CM Punk had a match against Christian, he knew that he have to interfere somehow. It was getting down to the wire and he had to make an impression before Sunday.

Chris wracked his brain to find something to say to Punk that would have any kind of impact on him. He had already gone after his father and his sister so he thought that his mother would be the next appropriate choice. Unfortunately, Punk's mother was on the straight and narrow. On the other hand, Chris wasn't too upset about insulting the other man's mother because he wouldn't want someone to go around insulting his own mother. But there were lines that had to be drawn in a man's mother was that line. And in Chris's case the man's wife was out of bounds as well...okay, his kids were out of bounds too, in fact, Chris would be pretty pissed if anyone insulted his family. He knew he was being a hypocrite, but he never proclaimed to be an angel.

"Daddy, you gonna wrestle tonight?" Flynn asked.

"No, I'm not wrestling tonight, but I will be wrestling on SmackDown," he told her.

"Oh, okay," Flynn nodded, "I still get to see you though?"

"Of course you can. Why wouldn't I like you to see me wrestle? I always like when you watch me wrestling because then I get to have someone I know is going to cheer for me," Chris told her, ruffling her hair.

"I dunno, I just asked," she said.

"Hey, Chris," Randy said as he came up to the man, shaking his hand. "There's a meeting going on that you have to attend in the big meeting hall room A, I think it was. Anyone who has a Twitter account is mandatory."

"What the hell?" Chris asked. "What kind of meeting is this?"

"Not sure, was just told that we had a meeting and to spread the word around to anyone we knew had a Twitter account," Randy shrugged. "I heard that it was called by Laurinaitis so, you know, it's probably something pointless and boring that we're being dragged into."

"Great, I can't wait to see what _this_ is about," Chris rolled his eyes, "thanks for letting me know, I'm just going to put my things in my locker room and head on over there."

"Okay, cool, where's Steph?"

"She hung back, she'll be here later with Sawyer and Kensy. Since the show is in Atlanta tonight, we figured we'd bring Sawyer, let the hype wash over the entire family," Chris joked.

"Good stuff, good stuff," Randy laughed, "see you later."

"Bye," Chris nodded to him before he turned to Flynn. "Come on, Flutterby, we've got to get to a meeting."

"For what?" Flynn asked.

"I'm not entirely sure, but I guess we'll figure it out soon."

Proper use of Twitter hashtags? This was what he had to come meet for? The morning had started off so well too. He'd had a very early morning recording the title track for his new album at Rich's studio and he felt really good about the song and now he had to contend with being told how to type? They weren't children and they should be allowed to say whatever they wanted to say. This smacked of Vince McMahon, but was obviously a front by Laurinaitis. Chris posted a picture of himself being bored out of his skull.

He got a text message a few moments later, "Chris, take that picture down."

It was from his wife and he wondered how she'd seen it so quickly. She had to have a dummy account on Twitter, that little sneak. "Why?" he responded back to her.

"Because we can't have you looking like you don't agree with whatever is going on. You're an owner, you have to set an example."

"This is stupid," he responded back to her.

"Don't care, take it down _now_," Stephanie texted back to him. He scowled and took the picture down. Only his wife would get mad over something so stupid, but he wasn't going to get into a fight with her during WrestleMania week. They'd done that once before when Stephanie was pregnant with Flynn and it was one of the worst weeks of his life and he wasn't about to relive that disaster.

"Now, since I'm in charge," Laurinaitis droned on, "I want to make it very clear that I'm very serious."

"You not in charge!" Flynn yelled from the seat next to Chris, startling him out of his reverie of boredom. He'd brought his iPad for Flynn to watch a movie on while the meeting went on, but he hadn't realized that Flyn had taken off the headphones and was listening in on the meeting.

"Excuse me?" Laurinaitis said.

"My mommy's the boss!" Flynn yelled at him, scowling. She didn't like that this man was trying to take credit when his mommy was so obviously the one in charge. Several people laughed while a couple cheered her on and she looked around like everyone was crazy.

"You can't argue with the truth," Punk said from across the room, stifling his laughter.

"Mr. Jericho, do you really think this is a place where your daughter should be?"

"You know, technically, she can fire you," Chris told him, "so I think you would be a little nicer to her. And where do you suppose I put her, huh? Just dump her somewhere?"

"No, but surely there is someone who could watch her."

"I think she's just fine where she is," Chris told him, challenging him to say something more about his daughter. "She might be the only one in the room who doesn't get hashtags, I'm pretty sure the rest of the people in here know how to type a pound sign before putting a buzz word. We're not idiots, John."

"I don't appreciate your subordination," John told him.

"Yeah, well, I don't appreciate this stupid meeting," Chris said, standing up and looking out across the room. "Hello everyone, as you know, I'm Chris Jericho, my wife is Stephanie McMahon-Jericho and I'm the Executive Vice President of Talent Relations. I don't like this meeting, I think it's detrimental the preparation of the talent for the actual show tonight. So, as the Executive Vice President and as part owner of the company, I say you're dismissed."

"You can't do that!" Laurinaitis said loudly.

"No, I can, I really, really can," Chris said, "you're all dismissed, use hashtags at your discretion."

Everyone started to get up, giving Chris thanks for getting them out of there as Laurinaitis stalked over to him. Chris was just picking up Flynn when he got to him. "How dare you do that?"

"How dare you call an insipid meeting and treat a bunch of adults like they're naughty children who don't know how to do anything. We're not idiots, John, we don't need to be told how to tweet. Yes, we work for the company, but we also have lives outside of them. What are you going to do next? Are you going to say that we can't tweet about our real lives, am I supposed to pretend like I don't have children? Give me a break, man."

"I'm just trying to get this company into the 21st century smoothly."

"Yeah, I think we can handle that ourselves," Chris said, "stop acting like you know it all because you don't, at the end of the day, you still answer to my wife and not her father."

"We'll see."

"Oh yeah, we will," Chris said, throwing Laurinaitis a look over his shoulder. "You can count on that."

Chris spent the rest of his time playing around with Flynn and keeping her occupied until Stephanie arrived with Sawyer and Kensington in the late afternoon. She breezed into the office and gave him a light kiss before setting her things down. "So what was that thing this morning? Who called a meeting?"

"Your father by way of Laurinaitis. We were being taught how to use hashtags," Chris said sarcastically.

"What in the world?"

"I know," Chris said, "I took executive power and told them that the meeting was over because it was such a stupid thing to have in the first place."

"I'm glad you did. It's nice to finally see you using some of your power," Stephanie said, "you should always feel free to use it, especially over stupid things like this. So have you thought about what you're doing tonight?"

"Well, I was doing a little digging around, which means that I was talking with Punk's sister earlier and she's really actually very nice and she kind of helped me get something that I could use tonight," Chris told his wife.

"Should I be worried?"

"No, you should not," Chris told her, "it's not anything too bad, it's just something that she mentioned. I don't think he'll get to pissed off, but I had to get something so that it looked like I was continuing this feud with him."

"You're going to win on Sunday, Daddy," Sawyer said to him with a smile, "I'm going to watch with my friend and we're going to cheer you on and we're going to sit with Gampa and Gamma and we're all going to cheer with you."

"I'm gonna too and my friend come too!" Flynn added.

"I know, I'm going to have my own little cheering section, I think it'll give me just the boost I need for the win," Chris told them.

"I really think you're going to beat Punk," Sawyer assured him. "You really are the best in the world."

The other man claiming to be the best in the world was looking for someone who he thought might be the best in his world. He found Britt doing some paperwork in catering and he sat himself down across from her. "Where's your boyfriend?"

"Not here tonight," Britt answered without looking up, "he wanted to spend the week intensely training so that he could be prepare for Sunday, not that you can really prepare for Hell in a Cell, but he thinks that he can. He hired this personal trainer to get him in the best shape possible as well."

"That sounds like fun," Punk said, "I'm training by eating a lot of food."

That got a laugh out of Britt, "I guess we'll see if that strategy actually works out for you."

"I think it will, it hasn't failed me yet," he said charmingly. "I saw you in here and thought I could keep you company."

"I'm sure you did," Britt answered him playfully. "So…honesty hour, are you really okay with the things Chris is saying about your family? I mean, I know you were pissed off last week, but then you found out that Chris called your sister. So what are you feeling?"

"It's not fun hearing that kind of thing, but I know Chris isn't doing it from a malicious place. He's trying to come up with a plausible way to make everyone think that he hates me and vice versa, just in case Vince wants to use me as a liaison. I knew how it was going to be and I'm not going to say it's not hard to hear that about my family, but we're all tough."

"I bet, since they have you in them," Britt told him. "I know you know what Chris is doing to an extent, but it probably didn't have to go there."

"Does anything have to go there? I mean, we're guys, we wrestle for a living, it's bound to get personal every now and then. It could've gotten personal when I was going against your boyfriend."

"Hasn't it already gotten personal?" Britt asked. "Hunter told me what you said to him about me being too good for him and all that. I don't appreciate you thinking that you know what I deserve or not. I'm more than capable of making my own judgments."

"I would never doubt that you would," Punk told her. "I know you are. I just think that you're too good for that guy, but I've always made that clear to you. We have the same ideologies, you know, especially regarding marriage. It's rare to find a woman who truly feels the same way I do about how marriage is really archaic. The thing is, though, is that if I ever found the right woman, I mean, _really_ the right woman, someone who just amazes me in every way, I think marriage might actually be pretty cool. I think you might be that chick, Britt."

"I bet you use that line on all the ladies you bed," Britt teased, setting her pen down. "You say a lot of nice words, Phil, but behind them, I just don't believe a word you say and that's not an insult. I just think we actually live two different lives and want two different things. You, my friend, are a vagabond. You won't settle down because you don't like it. You date a girl for a while and then you move on and I'm not saying this is bad. For you, it may be great, but I need something settled and I have that with Hunter. I don't know what it's going to take for you to see that."

"I don't know what it's going to take for you to see that I might be the better guy for you," Punk told her. "Do you like huge romantic gestures?"

"I'm not 15," Britt told him, "I'm not that type of girl, if you knew me, you'd know that."

"I want to know you."

"Phil…"

"You know, if you gave me a chance," he whispered to you, "I think you would find that I'm not what you think of me at all…that I'm much, _much_ better."

"Hey, Christian," Stephanie said as she walked by him in the hallway.

"Oh great, am I going to get a lecture from you too?" Christian groaned.

"Um, what, no?" Stephanie furrowed her eyebrows. "What made you think I was going to say anything?"

"Because your husband tried and I know that he didn't think of that all by himself so I figured that you had something to do with that."

"I did," Stephanie said, "but so did your brother and his girlfriend so it wasn't like this wasn't common knowledge to any of us. I also think that the fact you deliberately brought it up right now means that you wanted me to bring it up."

"No, I didn't," Christian said.

"Where's Trish?"

"You know where she is," Christian answered. "You know she's in LA helping Maria train for the WrestleMania match. She couldn't be here because she's on Dancing with the Stars so Trish cleared her schedule to help that girl wrestle."

"Wasn't she at her mother's?"

"Yes, but then she flew down to LA," Christian told her.

"So you mean you haven't seen her in all that time? Did you go to Toronto on your off days to go visit her?"

"I know what you're doing, Steph," Christian said, "you're trying to dig for information without trying to seem like you're digging for information. Trish and I have busy lives, just like you and Chris do. Chris has a million different things and so does Trish. You don't begrudge him when he leaves, do you? You let him go and nobody grills you over how many times you've seen him in the past however long."

"But I usually go with him or he's usually only gone a couple days at most," Stephanie reasoned, "unless he's on tour, but that's a big, planned thing."

"And having Maria wrestle at WrestleMania was a big thing too, that's why you sent Trish out to help her in any way you can," Christian said, "look, I said it to Chris, I'll say it to you, don't worry about me, don't worry about Trish. I've got to go, I have to get into the right mental state for my match and I don't see that happening while I'm talking to you."

"Christian…"

"Stephanie, I let you live your life, let me live mine," he said over his shoulder before he sauntered off.

"Stubborn ass," Stephanie muttered to herself before she walked back to down the hallway in the opposite direction. She hoped that Christian or Trish would come clean soon, but she hadn't talked to Trish in a while. Her being in California was a hindrance for sure and she made a mental note to corner Trish for some girl time sometime this weekend whenever she had a free moment. Maybe she could even involve Lita.

Stephanie knew she was going to be stretched thin as it was, but she had to make time for the people in her lives, to make sure they were doing alright. Just as she thought that, she thought of all the things she still had left to do and she got the feeling she always did during WrestleMania, the feeling that things were not going to get done and she was going to have a disaster on her hands. This year was different as well because it would be the first year where she would be in charge. So this WrestleMania needed to surpass any that came before it.

Having Rocky versus Cena as the main attraction helped immensely. They were two of the biggest names ever and they were going to be wrestling each other after a year-long feud. Knowing the both of them, she knew this feud ran deeper than anything they were showing on the surface. It was going to be an honest-to-goodness grudge match and the fans were hopefully going to eat it up. Then there was a Hell in a Cell match, which always brought the dramatics and with two legends inside of the structure wrestling and another legend officiating, which was going to be explosive.

That didn't even take into account her husband's match, which had the potential to steal the damn show. She was looking to make this a great show and she knew Chris would do everything his power to make it so. She just needed to show the Board of Directors and her father that she was capable of being in charge and she was going to continue being in charge whether they liked it or not.

By the time Christian and Punk's match was set for the card, Chris had refined what he was going to say. He could not refine, however, the reaction to what he was going to say. Chris came on the Titantron again, but there were no false apologies this time. This time he brought up Punk's mother, but there was nothing to be said about her. Nonetheless, there was the issue of when Punk's parents got married. Selene had let that little tidbit slip out and Chris had found it the only bit he could use. It was a weak taunt, he knew, but it was all he had and it connected Punk to being a bastard, so there was that.

Punk was pissed, but not at Chris. There was anger inside of him, but not over Chris's words. He felt like he was getting nowhere with Britt and he so wanted desperately to have a chance with her, but she seemed stuck to Hunter. What pissed Punk off the most was that he could feel something with Britt, something he wasn't sure he'd ever felt before and it pissed him off that he couldn't pursue that feeling. Punk was never one who backed down from anything or took rejection easily. He went out and did his own thing, but this one thing was not something he could force and that made him want to punch a hole in the wall.

Or beat Christian into a nearly bloody pulp.

He wasn't entirely sure when he lost control, but he lost it and he couldn't get it back. His mind transformed Christian into Hunter, into this huge lummox of an obstacle that he couldn't get past. He wasn't going to sugarcoat it, he'd never had trouble with a girl before. Even though his reputation preceded him, women were eager to be with him. Britt was the exception and he couldn't figure out what Hunter had that he didn't. He had more going for him, but she was stubborn and as he pounded Christian's head into the announcer's table, all he could picture breaking Hunter's head open.

When he came back to himself, he was a little ashamed by what he had done, but the anger was still lingering inside of him. "Do you know what you did?" Britt asked as she found him huffing backstage in anger.

"Do you know what _you_ did?" he asked her, breathing right in her face, angrier than she'd ever see him.

"Me? I didn't do anything," she argued.

"You just don't get it, do you? You don't even get it. It's right here in front of your goddamn face and you don't even get it!"

"What's to get?" she asked in confusion.

And then Punk kissed her.


	363. Best, WrestleMania, April 1, 2012

A/N: Thanks for the reads and reviews, everyone, so very much appreciated! Anyways, just a short reminder that I fudge some things to fit the story, but really only the stuff that appears on non-Raw/SD/PPV shows, so there's stuff from the Hall of Fame that I messed around with, but it fits into the story, so yes.

Anyways, the chapter is so long that I just made this strictly a WrestleMania chapter and next week will be a double Raw chapter so I won't be too far behind, it's just this was getting to be massively long (it already is) and I didn't want to make it any longer.

And as a final thing, I started a new short story, Meet and Greet, based on the pictures of Ash and Aurora meeting each other at the Hall of Fame (how cute is that picture, right!) and a one-shot called Red Carpet based on a picture from the premiere party where Stephanie is doing an interview and you can see Chris in the background. So this was a very WrestleMania update day. So hope you go check those out if you've got the chance, thanks, enjoy! :)

* * *

For a moment, the briefest of moments, he could feel her kissing him back. It was so brief that if he hadn't been paying attention, he would have missed it. But it was there, for that one second, it was there and as palpable as his heartbeat. Everything in him was zoned in on her lips. They way they curved against his own, the slight dampness of them from her lip gloss. He knew this was a scumbag move, but he was beyond caring at this point. He needed to feel her lips, if only just once, he needed to know what she tasted like.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" she asked as she pushed him away, the brief second over with and the cold, hard reality coming at him like a death blow. "What in God's name do you think you're doing?"

"You drive me crazy," Punk told her, "do you know that?"

"I don't do that on purpose," she told him, shaking her head. "I don't know what makes you think you have the right to kiss me, but you don't. You cannot just go up to a woman and kiss her, who does that?"

"You are so frustrating," Punk looked around, saw that some people were coming and grabbed her arm, dragging her (not too forcefully) into the closest locker room, which happened to be empty, thankfully. "Would you please stop denying that there's something there between us? It's getting really old, really fast."

"Something there? You mean something you've constructed in your brain," Britt told him. "You come up with all this stuff and…" Punk started to lean in to kiss her and shut her up and she pulled back again. "What in the hell are you doing _now_!"

"I'm about to kiss the hell out of you!"

"No, you're not!" She put her hand on his chest and pushed him backwards gently. "Look, Phil, I don't know how you got the 50,000 other women you've dated to date you, but this is certainly not that way that you date _me_, especially because I have a boyfriend."

"Who barely even wants you!"

"Wow," Britt said with a scoff. "I can't believe you would even go there. How do you know what goes on between Hunter and I? You have no idea what our relationship is like. He doesn't like to be all shmoopy in public, but that doesn't mean—"

"The guy ditched you once," Phil said, "who's to say he won't ditch you again? I heard all the rumors about how Shawn was the one that was a jackass to you and convinced Hunter to break up with you. Do you think we're not surrounded by gossips? I was dating Maria at the time, and let me tell you, she had loose lips and she knew all the dirt, how he ditched you one time, just outright ditched you somewhere."

"You have no clue what happened between us," Britt told him. She knew people talked around here, she'd lived with it for nearly six years. It wasn't like she was living inside a little bubble. You couldn't when you were in this business. Everyone's business somehow got out unless you were intensely secret about it. She heard everything said about her at least once, starting from when she'd started, and everyone thought she was going to start sleeping with Chris. She'd heard it all, lived through it all so this was nothing.

"I have_ some_ clue and if I don't, why then did you turn down his proposal?"

"Because marriage isn't for me. I made that decision for myself, it had nothing to do with Hunter. I just don't think you need to get married to be together forever," she told him, hoping he would understand. She wasn't going to lie to herself and say that Phil wasn't a good kisser, he was, but she was not his to kiss.

"I feel the same way," Punk said, "we think alike, Britt, we are alike and we could be so good together."

"I'm not interested," she told him firmly.

"I don't buy it," Punk shook his head. "I just don't buy it. You drive me crazy. I think about you all the time. When I'm at the show, sometimes, wrestling isn't even the first thing I think about. I've never had that before. I've never wanted to come to work just to see someone. I mean, look at most of the slobs around here, would you look forward to coming to work to see them? But you make coming to work at least semi-decent because I have the chance to come see you."

Britt rolled her eyes. "How many girls have you used _that_ line on?"

"None," Punk shook his head, "go ask them if you want, you can go ask all of them if that's what you need to do. Look, I know I'm great at the relationship thing, I've never professed to be great at it, but I always figured it was because I didn't have someone who really got me. I don't know if you do, I'm not going to lie to you, but from what I know about you, you seem to be the closest I've ever seen. I've been trying not to feel this way, believe me, I've been trying very hard because I know you love Hunter or want to be with him or whatever it is you two have—"

"Thanks for marginalizing my relationship," she interrupted.

"I'm sorry," he said genuinely, "I didn't mean to do that, but when you sat with me the other week, when you talked with me after what Chris said, even though he told me about it, when you tried to go after me after what Chris said about my sister, nobody who doesn't care would have done those things. I take notice."

"Phil, you're my friend and I care about you," Britt started, but Punk waved his hand in her face.

"I know you're my friend and I know you care about me, but what I'm asking, what I'm pretty much begging here and you _never_ hear me use the word beg because it's so far beneath me is to at least give this a chance."

"There's nothing here_ to _give a chance to," Britt tried to tell him. She could feel they were going into very dark territory right now and if she didn't get out of here, things were going to get heavy and feelings were going to get hurt, and she wasn't that type of person. She didn't like hurting other people and all she could see in the future was hurt.

But on the flip side of things, to play her own devil's advocate, she knew that she and Punk had a lot in common, maybe more so than she and Hunter. Hunter was a very intense, very focused person while she could be flighty and more free-spirited. But then, didn't that mean she needed someone like Hunter in her life to make it better and make her saner? She liked the way Hunter treated her and she liked that he could calm her down. If she were with Punk, she would probably end up with more tattoos and piercings and she'd cut her hair and it would be a disaster.

It might be fun in the beginning, but Punk was not the kind of guy you settled down with because he was not the type of guy who wanted to be settled. He was the type of guy who wanted to be out there, who went out every night doing something different. Once in a while, she just liked to stay at home, curled around Hunter, watching a good movie with a bowl of buttery popcorn perched in her lap. That was something nice and safe and warm and she wasn't sure Punk would ever want or need something like that.

"You feel it, I'm not lying when I say I think you feel it."

"Phil, do you honestly see yourself, one day in the future, staying at home with me just to watch a movie?" Britt asked. "Or taking me to a romantic dinner just because or buying me flowers upon flowers?"

"Is that what you want?" Punk asked.

"Sometimes, yes, it is," she told him. "Sometimes I really just like the romantic, quiet stuff. I'm not talking overt gestures, I'm just saying that maybe what you think I want isn't necessarily _what_ I want."

"I could give you everything and more if you just gave me the chance." He hated how he sounded right now. He hated that all the cockiness and bravado was torn from his voice. This is what she'd reduced him to. He wished his wit would come back something fierce and pierce through the weakness, but maybe that's just what Britt did to him. She was always disarming. You'd be an idiot not to notice how beautiful she was. She was petite, slim, with jet black hair, and piercing blue-green eyes that stared right into you. But it wasn't until he got to know her that she became truly gorgeous. This small, almost tiny woman was able to stand up to guys more than foot taller than her, she could keep up with anyone, and damn it, she was just kickass.

"I have to go," she said, looking at her watch. "The show is still going on and I have to go."

"Can we talk sometime this week?" he asked her as she pushed past him.

"Of course we can, but…just forget about me in this way, Phil, please," she told him, "it would be better for the both of us if you just forgot what was going on between the two of us. I need to go check on Christian, you really did a number on him."

Christian couldn't believe his bad luck, after everything, all the rehabbing, he was right back to square one, except now it was worse, now he wasn't at WrestleMania. It had been one of the only things he'd been looking forward to and now the trainer was saying he'd reaggravated his neck and wouldn't be able to compete that Sunday. The door pushed open and Chris stuck his head in.

"Hey, dude, I just wanted to come see how you were," Chris told him. "I'm really sorry about that. I mean, I didn't think he would go ballistic over that. His sister didn't seem to think he'd be so mad. She told me it's something of a family joke and he would get it."

"Whatever, man," Christian said, "do you think you could just leave me alone?"

"I also wanted to apologize. I had no right to try to barge into your business. Whatever is going on with you is your business and I shouldn't have tried to pry. I know you don't pry into my business and I should extend the same courtesy to you."

"Thank you," Christian told him, almost going to nod, but remembering he had a neck brace on.

"That doesn't mean I'm not still extending the invitation to talk to me if you want to or Stephanie if that's what you want."

"Yeah, I know," Christian said.

"Well, I guess that's all I wanted to say. When are you heading down to Miami?"

"Wednesday for sure," Christian said, but made no mention on whether or not Trish was going to be there. Chris was certainly tempted to ask, but decided it wouldn't be worth it to get into another fight. Christian had just accepted his apology and Chris wasn't in the mood for a fight. He was just going to let it go and assume that Trish would be there since she'd been training with Maria for the match on Sunday.

"I'll see you later then, they're actually filming stuff for SmackDown so I've got a match if you can believe it, feel better, man."

"Thanks," Christian nodded as slightly as he could with the brace.

Chris had initially forgotten they were filming some SmackDown matches tonight. Usually they didn't film Raw and SmackDown on the same night but because of WrestleMania they had to film some tonight since everyone was headed to Miami. He was looking at this match like a warm-up. Granted, Kofi's style was not like Punk's, it was still a way to keep him in ring shape and he'd need it. There wasn't going to be a whole lot of time to train while he was in Miami. There was going to be so much to do. Punk was going to have a lot more time than he would to train.

When he got there, Stephanie would probably still be at the press conference so he'd have a little time to wind down after his flight, but that would be short-lived because Wednesday afternoon, he and Stephanie would be touring the venue for the Hall of Fame ceremony. That evening they had free, but they would probably just order room service while working on things. He may be able to get a workout in there. On Thursday, he had Axxess to get to, where he would probably kick it for a few hours. That afternoon, he would probably have some time to get a workout in, but it would have to be short. When that was done, he and Stephanie would need to get ready for the WrestleMania premiere party, which would take up their night.

Friday the kids were coming and they were going to want to see all of the Axxess exhibits so that day would be occupied and then Saturday was the Hall of Fame and he was going to need all day to take care of that. So this match was going to serve as something of a precursor in a way. Kofi was a good wrestler, but he was just no match for Chris. Chris was able to defeat him after a hard fought match, but it was still a defeat for Kofi after Chris put him in the Liontamer. Flynn loved pointing that out because she knew the difference between the Walls of Jericho and the Liontamer. After the show was over, Chris could only think one thing.

Let the madness begin.

**Tuesday**

"Where Daddy?" Flynn asked as Stephanie pulled the covers back on the small bed.

"He's working out right now," Stephanie told her daughter, helping her into bed. Flynn frowned at that, but she just looked at Stephanie disappointedly. "I know, you like when he tucks you into bed, but I think Daddy is definitely getting into WrestleMania mode right now."

"What dat?" Flynn asked, laying her head on the pillow before Stephanie bent over to kiss her on the forehead.

"Well, Daddy just really needs to focus on his match on Sunday because he really, really wants to beat Punk at WrestleMania so he can be the WWE champion. He wants to get that belt so he can be the best in the world and so you, Sawyer, and Kensy can have something to play with."

"I like that," Flynn punctuated her statement with a yawn. "I wanna him win."

"I know you do," Stephanie brushed her hair back, hoping to lull her to sleep. "We all do and Daddy is going to try his best to win. That's all we can really do. We just have to try our hardest. Sometimes, we're not going to succeed, but as long as we try our best, that's something to be proud of."

"He'll win," Flynn said, but then whined. "I wanna kiss though."

"He'll give you a kiss in the morning, just close your eyes and when you open them again, Daddy will be waking you up to go to preschool and you can give him lots and lots of kisses. Besides, he gave you a goodnight kiss before he went to work out."

"I know, I want more," Flynn said matter-of-factly, which made Stephanie laugh.

"You greedy, little girl," Stephanie said good-naturedly, "do you know how many girls there are out there who would love to get kisses from your Daddy while you're over here taking them all away?"

"A kabajillion?"

"Yes, a kabajillion women want to kiss Daddy."

"I no lets them," Flynn said as her eyes started to droop. "He my daddy."

"I know," Stephanie said quietly, "sleep well my little girl and I will see you on Friday, okay?"

"Mommy, you no go though."

"I have to, baby girl," Stephanie told her. "I have to go do things for WrestleMania and so I have to be there, but don't worry, I'll only be gone a few days and then you and Gamma and Gamps are going to fly down with Sawyer and Kensy and then on Sunday, your friend Alex is going to be here."

"He watching the show with me."

"Uh huh, he's going to sit out in the audience with you and you're going to have so much fun and you can see Daddy wrestle and Punk wrestle and Hunter wrestle and Sheamus wrestle…"

Flynn closed her eyes and within a few minutes, she was asleep. Stephanie stood up from the bed carefully, turning out Flynn's light, turning on her nightlight and then closing the door partway before heading down the hallway towards Chris's training room as he called it nowadays. He'd dragged some exercise equipment in the former upstairs guest room and was sequestering himself pretty much. Sawyer was in there reading a book on the chaise lounge, his legs swinging in the air as he lay on his stomach, periodically flipping a page on the book he was reading. Chris was grunting to himself as he pushed farther and farter on the treadmill.

"Hey, boys," Stephanie said as she walked inside, going and sitting next to Sawyer, running her hand on his back. "Baby boy, you have to go to bed soon, so try and wrap up your book within the next half hour, okay?"

"I'm almost done," he swung his head up to look at his mommy. "Daddy said I could do the treadmill too, but I'd have to go slow."

"You're still young, you don't need any treadmills," she kissed the top of his head. "You just read your book and get super smart so I can brag about you to everyone I know."

Sawyer laughed and went back to his book. Chris glanced over at them, trying not to break his concentration as he continued running. "Hey, why don't you get on the elliptical for a little bit, keep me company."

"I better not, I've got to get changed. Your dad is picking me up in an hour and a half to take me to the airport and I don't want to be all gross and sweaty when that happens."

"We could take a shower," he told her and even if he wasn't looking at her, she could hear the lechery in his voice.

"Don't say those things, not with Sawyer in the room," Stephanie admonished him.

"What did Daddy say?" Sawyer asked after hearing his name being said.

"Nothing, go back to reading," Chris huffed at him. "I think I'm entitled because you are leaving me. You're leaving your husband and your three children to fend for themselves, like wild animals."

"Yes, because _you_ never leave, ever, not at all," she rolled her eyes. "I think you can survive without me for, what, 12 hours, while I'm working on making WrestleMania the best show it can be. One night is not going to kill you, sweetie."

"You severely underestimate my survival skills," Chris told her, "this entire household is going to fall apart without you; you have no idea the kind of influence you have around here."

"I'm so sure."

"I'm done with my book, Mommy," Sawyer said.

"Okay, let's start getting you ready for bed then," Stephanie lifted him up and held him. His legs were getting so long now and he was getting too heavy to carry, but she just wanted him to stay her little boy a little while longer. In a little over a month, he was going to be six years old and sometimes she felt like her time was fading with him and that made her sad. He wasn't a baby anymore and she was so glad she still had Flynn and Kensington to be babies or else she might be flipping out.

Chris watched them walk out of the room before he started his cool down. He breathed deeply as the treadmill started to slow down and when it came to a stop he stepped off the machine to catch his breath. He toed off his shoes, leaving him in his bare feet before grabbing the towel hanging off the machine and wiping himself down. He grabbed his water bottle, taking a swig and wondering if he should do anything more tonight. He opted not to because he'd have a difficult time going to sleep if he worked out anymore.

He wanted to be in top physical shape for his match on Sunday. He felt like he hadn't had a proper match in so long and he didn't want any rust on him. He wanted to go into that ring and match Punk move for move. He was not facing some guy who left and came back, like Rocky. Even with Triple H and Undertaker's match, the both of them only showed up every once in a while to wrestle. When Chris came back, he came back full stop, none of this halfway stuff and it had nothing to do with the fact that he part-owned the company so he wanted to put the best product out there.

He sat down on the chaise lounge Sawyer had just occupied, picking up the book he'd been reading, The Monster at the End of this Book. He chuckled to himself as he grabbed his phone and laid back on the lounge, propping his feet up. He went to check his Twitter, see what everyone was saying if anything. Twitter was always fun to look at when he had nothing better to do and because Stephanie was putting Sawyer to bed, he had nothing better to do. He checked his timeline and saw that Punk had tweeted something with a picture. He looked at it and saw that it was apparently what Punk was reading. He clicked the picture and saw it was a comic book.

Chris rolled his eyes, but not in annoyance, more like amusement. Here he was, working his ass off to be ready and Punk was sitting there reading comic books. He decided to have a little fun with Punk and stood up. He was going to take his own picture just to show that he was serious about the match. He stood in front of the large mirror along one wall and took a picture of himself looking as fierce as he possibly could. Then he snapped the picture and posted it to his Twitter account.

"What are you doing?" Stephanie asked as she looked at her husband, who was still kind of studying himself in the mirror.

"I'm responding to something Punk posted earlier," Chris said, "I'm trying to make myself look serious about this match, let him know I'm not taking this lightly and it's not some gimmick match."

Stephanie's own phone buzzed in her jean pocket and she pulled it out, looking at the phone. "Oh yeah, you're going to burn a few panties with this picture."

"What are you talking about? And what the hell is your Twitter name? Why won't you tell me?"

"You have over 500,000 followers, find me," Stephanie told him with a smirk, "and don't act like you don't know what I mean. I mean that panties are going to spontaneously combust when they see this picture."

"Why?" Chris asked obliviously.

"Are you _really_ that stupid?"

"Maybe…I guess," he told her with a laugh. "I'm not entirely sure. I'm just trying to look intimidating."

Stephanie walked over to him as she put her phone back into her jeans pocket. She stood right in front of him, raising an eyebrow before she reached out and pulled his shorts up. "These were dangerously low and the look on your face, hmm, I think you're being very flirty. You must know how you looked."

"Honestly, I just wanted to poke fun at Punk."

"Not sure that mission was accomplished," she said as she leaned forward and kissed his neck. She trailed her kisses up to his jaw. "Your dad should be here in 30 minutes, I think we have enough time to let you give me one for the road."

"I don't know, I did just finish working out," he told her, but then glanced over at the chaise lounge. "How bad would it be to do it right here?"

Stephanie glanced over at the chaise as well, seeing Sawyer's book on top of it. She grabbed it and threw it on the couch by the window. Then she laid back against the chaise and beckoned him by the finger. "Maybe you can burn my panties too."

When they'd finished, they laid there, covered by a sparse sheet they managed to grab from the guest bed. Chris tucked Stephanie into his side and kissed her forehead. "Are you going to miss me?" he asked cheesily.

"Nope," she told him, "I'll be way too busy to miss you at all."

"I would be sad if I knew that wasn't true. Don't worry about the Hall of Fame, I've got everything under control. Just hold it together until tomorrow when I fly up. I don't know why you wouldn't wait until tomorrow to fly in with me."

"Because by the time you fly in, the press conference will already be happening and I need to be there to make sure everything goes okay. You're going to make sure the kids get off to school and preschool alright and then fly up. It works out fine since they'll have you there in the morning."

"It's not like they aren't used to my mom and dad," Chris said.

"Chris, Stephanie!" a voice called out.

"Oh God, it's your dad!" Stephanie grabbed the sheet and wrapped it around herself while she started grabbing her clothes off the floor. "We lost track of time!" Chris got up and pulled his boxers off the floor, slipping them on before putting on his shorts.

"I'll go distract him while you get dressed," Chris told her, giving her a brief kiss before wandering out into the hallway, vowing to take a shower as soon as Stephanie left. It would be lonely, but it would do nonetheless. He walked downstairs and nodded to his dad who was waiting in the foyer. "Hey, Dad, Steph will be right down, she's just making sure she has everything she needs."

"That's fine," Ted said, "what were you doing?"

"Training for my match," Chris told him. "I'm trying to get in perfect shape for Sunday. I want to win it that badly."

"Hey, Ted," Stephanie said, coming down the stairs. "My stuff is right there by the door."

"Oh, I see what you were doing," Ted said, biting his lip. Chris looked over at Stephanie and saw that her buttons were not straight and he laughed and walked over to her, unbuttoning the bottom two buttons and fixing them for her.

"Oh God," Stephanie pressed her hand to her forehead. "And now I'm embarrassed."

"Don't be, if you want to give us a fourth grandchild, I don't think Loretta is going to complain one bit," Ted joked, making Stephanie blush a deep red. "I'll get your things into the car so you two can say goodbye, although I guess you already did that."

Ted grabbed two of Stephanie's bags and went back outside as Stephanie rested her head on Chris's shoulder. "I now have to spend an entire car ride with him."

"Oh, don't worry, it's not so bad. He'll tease you a little bit, but then he'll drop it before he goes too far. I can't tell you how many times my dad teased the hell out of me after I went on a date somewhere."

"You're just loving this because it's not you," she kissed him briefly on the lips.

"A little," he told her, "but turnabout it fair play, remember that time your dad was staying with us and he caught me with my hand up your shirt. I hate knowing my parents had sex and I hate my parents knowing I have sex."

"You're 41, have been with your wife for 10 years, with 3 kids, I really, really think any delusions they had about your sex life have been obliterated a long time ago," she said, "now, I have to go or I'm going to miss my flight. I love you and I'll see you tomorrow."

"I love you too, travel safe, okay, and be careful when you're in Miami, there are thousands of fans there and a lot of them love you and they could hound you so just be careful."

"I will be," she said as Ted appeared again. She hugged Chris, kissing him one more time, "Bye, sweetie."

"Bye, baby," he kissed her nose and let her go, watching as Ted grabbed her other two bags while Stephanie grabbed her garment bag with the dress she was wearing to the Hall of Fame ceremony. She waved over her shoulder and then she was gone.

**Wednesday**

Chris got the kids off to school without a hitch and when that was through, he went straight back home where his parents were already settling for the next couple of days. They drove him to the airport and he was on the short flight to Miami. He really didn't have much time to do anything productive on the flight so he chose to just read his book and have a little quiet time by himself. When he arrived, he got his rental vehicle and drove straight to the airport. As soon as he was out of his car, there was a photographer there. He informed Chris that Stephanie had told him Chris was arriving and they were doing a special WrestleMania diary on him and Punk.

Chris just walked towards the hotel, chatting with the guy as he checked in. The photographer followed him to the elevators and then told Chris he would catch up with him when he was settled and that Stephanie had his number. Chris nodded at him before going up to his room. As he neared the door, he saw something sparkly and purple hanging from the doorknob. He looked around the hallway as if someone was going to jump out at him. He walked up slowly to his door and picked up the dress. It was an evening gown and it was really pretty, but what was it doing hanging on his door?

He sighed and realized that some girl had probably left it and had somehow gotten into his room. Stephanie was probably still at the press conference and so some girl had bribed her way in here after finding out what hotel WrestleMania was being held at. This kind of thing had been happening to him for years. He'd even wrote about an incident in his first book, but the last thing he needed was for some chick to start getting ideas. He unlocked his door, expecting to find a naked girl who he would have to persuade to get back dressed. He was pleasantly surprised to see Stephanie leaning against the wall in nothing but her underwear.

"I bought that to wear to the WrestleMania premiere party and I was going to surprise you with it, but then I though to myself, there's got to be some better way to surprise him."

"What are you doing?" he asked, but he knew what she was doing. Stephanie always got horny during WrestleMania week. There was something in the adrenaline of the upcoming event that made his wife's hormones go into overdrive. The sex the night before WrestleMania was always top notch.

"Well, I have the afternoon off, so do you, the kids aren't here, we're in beautiful Miami, there's a hotel bed right over there," she nodded her head towards the bedroom, "and it's been something like 12 hours since you've been inside of me and that's much too long."

"You are crazy," he told her, walking over and kissing her. She deepened the kiss and practically pushed him against the wall. Chris pulled away, his lips sticky with her lip gloss. "I swear, WrestleMania makes you a nymphomaniac."

"Like you're complaining," she said, looking down at his shorts and tank top. "Well this makes it easier."

She pushed his shorts down so he was only in his boxers before reaching inside of them. He groaned, but managed to get out, "How was the press conference?"

"I went with Hunter," Stephanie explained, kissing his neck. "I had him accept the whole commemorative plaque thing. The rest of it went fine, Punk talked for a while, I thought you would like to know that."

"I don't…care," he breathed out as Stephanie continued to handle him like a pro. "How did everyone else do?"

"Do you really care?" she whispered against his skin. "Don't you just want me right now?"

"I always want you," Chris told her, pulling her head up by the hair so he could kiss her. "I wasn't expecting you to even be here. I thought some chick had managed to get into my room. I was going to send her away."

"Good boy," she teased and then pulled her hand out of his boxers to get his shirt off. She tipped off his hat, grabbed his sunglasses and threw them on the floor somewhere before tugging his t-shirt off like a feral cat tearing away at a rodent.

After that, there wasn't much talking and then settled into the bedroom, but knew it would be short-lived, which it was when the photographer texted Stephanie to tell him he was coming up to the room. They reluctantly got dressed, kissing each other every now and then and they were fully clothed and cleaned up by the time the photographer came back up to get a few shots and the story. Chris let him in and then grabbed a small notepad to look like he was writing something down on it.

He often did that in a regular notebook, but he had it packed away in his suitcase so he lounged on the couch with the notepad, pretending to write as Stephanie directed his angles. When the photographer got the pictures, Stephanie settled into the couch next to him as Chris stretched his legs out over her lap. She stroked the smooth skin of his legs, something she'd had to get used to. When Chris wore the long tights, he never got his legs waxed, but when he made the transition from tights to trunks, he'd had to get rid of the hairy man legs.

"What are you thinking?" Chris asked as he put the pad of paper down and folded his hands behind his head, flipping his hat to the ground.

"I'm just thinking of everything I've got to do between now and Sunday," Stephanie said, "my mom is coming down, did I tell you that?"

"No, is your dad?"

"She said he was," Stephanie said, "I wish I could not invite him, but I can't do that to him. He's my father, he's Vincent Kennedy McMahon. I can't just ban him. I just don't want him to cause any trouble."

"I'll make sure he doesn't," Chris said, "besides, we've got everything under control. The only variable we don't have under control is the outcome of the Laurinaitis/Teddy match, but we'll come to that bridge when we get to it."

"You're right, of course you're right," she smiled over at him, patting his leg. He poked her in the stomach with his toe. "You're kind of wonderful, Mr. Jericho."

"Kind of?"

"Yes, kind of," she told him, rubbing his leg again. "Thank you for taking care of the Hall of Fame again this year. I don't know what I'd do without you running it. I think my head would explode."

"You know it's my pleasure," he told her. "I would do anything for you, almost literally."

"I know you would, but I don't need you to," she said. "I'm looking forward to this week. I'm looking forward to everything going off well and the show being great. I want it to be great. I want you to win and I want…I don't know, I just want my father to acknowledge that I'm not doing a horrible job."

"He will someday, baby," Chris assured her. "He just…it's hard for him to let go and you can understand that on some level. You hate it when you're forced to go on maternity leave. You're forced out, you can't do your job. But then, you find there are other things to do, like raise a baby and you kind of forget. Your dad is at that point. Your mom has the campaign and your dad just needs to find something for himself."

"He wants this, this is what he wants."

"But at some point, he's going to realize that he's getting too old for it."

Stephanie scoffed and looked down her nose at Chris. "You try telling my father that he's too old to do something. I mean, the man still pervs after 20 year olds, so I don't think my father thinks that anything is too young for him."

"Punch me in the face if I ever become that lecherous as that old man," Chris told her. "You want to make an early afternoon of it and go check out the venue for the Hall of Fame?"

"Yeah, sure, let me just call Britt so she can meet us there because I need her input about the whole thing."

"Sure thing," he said, lifting his legs so she could get up and he watched as she went into the bedroom to call Britt. He mused to himself how good it felt to be here. There was a certain buzz always in the air when WrestleMania was involved. There was just so much going on and nothing could top it. Technically, this was his thirteenth WrestleMania attended, but his tenth one wrestling. Still, that was a whole lot of WrestleManias. There weren't many guys with that much experience around here. He always wanted to be the show-stealer and he really thought he had the potential to do that again this year. His match could be the one they really talked about for ages.

"She's going to meet us there," Stephanie said, "do you want to change?"

"No, why?"

"I don't know, so you look more professional?" she asked.

"Fine, fine, fine, give me a few minutes."

After he was dressed in a nicer outfit, jeans and a t-shirt if you could believe that, they headed together for the venue. Every now and again, they were met by some fans who were milling about outside of the hotel and both were gracious enough to sign as many autographs as they could, but they really had somewhere to be so they unfortunately had to cut the time short. It was regretful because WrestleMania was really about the fans, but they also had real work to do. When they finally arrived at the American Airlines arena, Britt was already waiting outside for them.

"Hey, you guys, what took you so long?" Britt asked.

"Fans," Stephanie answered.

"Ahh, something I _don't_ have to deal with, which is why Hunter has sent me on all his errands," Britt joked. "Come on, they're waiting for us inside, said they'd give us a proper tour."

They met up with one of the personnel handling the venue for them, who took them on a tour, explaining how things were going to look when everything was set up. They got the general idea of where things were going. Unfortunately, the Miami Heat, who normally played in the arena, had a game the following evening so nothing could be set up until Friday. Still, it was nice to get at least an overview.

"You guys are welcome to stay for a while and walk around," the administrator, Gary, told them. They nodded and thanked him, sitting at some seats courtside.

"We'll have to come back Saturday morning to see what it really looks like," Stephanie told Chris, rubbing his arm.

"Yeah, I can fit that into my schedule I think. I don't think my VIP signing is until noon so we can probably come around 9 and figure it out," Chris said, "my parents can take the kids for the day since you have to take care of some stuff and I do too."

"Yeah, that works out," Stephanie said, then glanced over at Britt, who was doodling on her notepad. "Hey there, you okay over there?"

"What?" Britt asked, looking up and then shaking her head. "Sorry, my head's not in the game. So I'm going to be backstage for the ceremony, right? Coordinating everything?"

"Yeah, since Hunter is inducting, we thought you might want to hang with him," Chris shrugged, "is that okay?"

"Yeah, uh, sure, yeah, that's fine."

"Seriously, are you okay?" Stephanie asked her friend. "You don't look so hot."

"I've got a lot on my mind."

"Like what?" Chris asked. "Is it something show-related because I can help out. I'm trying to help out wherever I can."

"No, it's…Punk kissed me," Brit confessed with a sigh. It was nice to get it out there. She'd been holding it in for days and she was nearly full to bursting with this. She didn't know what to do and she didn't know what to think. Phil's words were charming, sure, but she loved Hunter and was it worth risking everything she loved for something fleeting?

"What?" Stephanie asked, sitting immediately down next to Britt. "When? When did this happen?"

"Monday, during Raw," Britt told them. "He wasn't mad at you, Chris. That's not why he beat up Christian so badly. He did it because he was frustrated with me."

"What?" Now Chris was sitting down. Well that kind of stunk. If he had known Britt was the weak spot…no, he wouldn't have done that to either one of them.

"Yeah, because I've apparently been driving him crazy and he thinks he's better for me than Hunter. He said all these things and he kissed me and I haven't told Hunter because Hunter will only kill him and Punk is tough so Hunter might be the dead one and I don't want them fighting, not over me, not right before WrestleMania," Britt shook her head. "I just couldn't tell anyone."

"What are you feeling?" Stephanie asked.

"Confused mostly," Britt said, "I'm devoted to Hunter. I love him, I've loved him for so long, but…Phil just kind of snuck up on me, you know, and I'm confused. I don't want to do this to Hunter. Steph, when Chris kissed you, at King of the Ring or at SummerSlam, what did you feel? Did you want to kiss him back? Honest answer."

Stephanie licked her lips a little bit, "Yes, I did. I didn't and wouldn't admit to anyone, _anyone_, but yeah, I did. I liked it. I liked his kiss, I liked his mouth, I liked the way he just grabbed me because he wanted to." Chris smirked. "Shut up, Jericho."

"I didn't say anything," Chris shrugged. "So what you're saying, Britt, is that you liked the kiss?"

"For a second, yes," Britt said, "and I have been feeling _so_ guilty ever since."

"No wonder," Stephanie said, wrapping her arm around Britt. "You'll figure it out."

"What would you do?"

"Now?"

"No, when you were dating Chris, but…I guess when you were engaged, when you knew that you were going to spend the rest of your life with him. I have always planned to spend the rest of my life with Hunter, marriage or not, I didn't care. Now there's this, what would you do?"

"I've never had this problem, Britt," Stephanie said, looking at Chris with soft eyes. Once she committed herself to Chris, there was no turning back and she'd never wanted to, "and maybe that's your answer…"

"What is?"

"The fact you're contemplating this at all," Chris finished for Stephanie. "What does that say?"

"I don't know," Britt shrugged. "I just want to get through this week and then I'll think about whatever this means. I've got WrestleMania and it's a big thing and I don't want to let you guys down."

"You wouldn't, you haven't," Stephanie said, "come on, there's a party tonight, you're going, we're going, everyone is going and just let loose a little, okay?"

"I'll try," Britt said, "I will definitely try."

Stephanie and Chris hated to leave Britt in this state, but they had to get ready for the event that evening. It was for charity and that was always something they wanted to make sure they got involved in. Stephanie, especially, liked working with charities. She loved helping people, which went against her usual bitchy persona, but there was nothing more rewarding then helping people who needed it, especially children. She knew her kids were extremely privileged and she wanted other children to feel privileged as well, no matter what their background.

"Oh, so this is the dress," Chris said as Stephanie walked out of the bathroom. "You look gorgeous."

"Thanks," she gave him a peck on the cheek before she went to grab her clutch. "You ready?"

"Don't I look ready?" Chris asked, giving her his best suave look. She rolled her eyes as she laughed and he extended his elbow towards his wife. She smiled and took it as they went down to the lobby to get into the car to the event. She leaned her head against his shoulder and sighed. "What is it?"

"Just weird being able to go out and not think about the kids and everything, I admit I haven't even really thought about them today."

"I'm sure they'd love to hear that."

"Stop, I love them, but it's nice to be away from them, like the old days. We're going to party and have fun and be drama-free."

"So you think," Chris joked, "but when are we ever drama-free?"

"Good point, but we're going to try our hardest."

When they got there, they were first going to go on the red carpet. They were stopped by Nattie, who was the hostess for the event and they each talked about how important it was to do charity and how this event was not just for the fun of it, but to do real good in the world and that's what the WWE wanted to showcase. After their interviews, they walked inside and everything looked perfect. The party planners had done a wonderful job, but that's not what Chris and Stephanie were noticing.

"Look," Stephanie said, pointing across the room at a couple standing by the bar. "Maybe our fears were unfounded. They look okay to me."

Chris looked to where she was pointing, seeing Trish and Christian standing together and talking, even smiling. Chris shrugged and turned to Stephanie, "Maybe we were wrong. Come on, let's go say hi."

"Okay," Stephanie let Chris lead the way over and Trish spotted them first.

"Hey, you guys are such a hot couple," Trish said, plastering a smile on her face. "Did you just get here?"

"Yeah," Stephanie said, "when did you arrive?"

"Earlier today," Trish said, "Christian didn't tell you I was coming in?"

"I did, I mentioned it," he interjected. "I told Chris on Monday."

"Oh, cool, yeah, I've been in LA with Maria, training and what not, in between her dancing thing," Trish nodded. "Tilden is here, actually, Hunter's niece is watching her tonight."

"Really? How did that happen?"

"I had Tilden out at the pool and she came over to say hi and comment on how cute Tilden was and that was that," Trish shrugged, "she's a sweet girl."

"She was when I was married to Hunter," Stephanie said with a smile. "It's good to see you two though, you guys have really been kind of incognito, if you know what I mean."

"We're sorry, we've been so busy," Trish said smoothly.

"We called and called and called," Stephanie said, "you're our go to couple and it kind of sucks when your go to couple won't return your calls. It makes it seem like you've found someone else to go out with."

"No, we haven't, Steph, don't worry," Trish told her. "We'll get together soon, when all our schedules clear up. I mean, I've got my yoga and the divas and Christian has wrestling when he feels better, plus you two have everything under the sun. When we get a free moment, definitely, for sure, absolutely."

"Okay," Chris nodded, looking at Stephanie. "Oh, hey, I think I see James over there, Steph and I should probably say hello."

"We'll see you guys later?" Stephanie said and they both nodded. Chris and Stephanie turned to walk away and they looked at each other. "That turned weird fast."

"You're telling me. We need to get to the bottom of this."

**Friday**

"Daddy, Mommy, we're here!"

"I can see that because we brought you here!" Chris said as he hugged his son again. "Who dressed you up like a tourist?"

"I thought he looked cute," Loretta said as she regarded Sawyer's outfit. He was wearing a Hawaiian shirt and shorts.

"Mom, he looks like he should have a metal detector and be scouring the beach," Chris told her. "Kid, you can change upstairs if you want to, you don't have to wear that shirt."

"What are we doing today?" Sawyer asked, holding Chris's hand as they walked towards the elevators. Stephanie was walking up ahead of them, talking with Ted, who was carrying Kensington as Stephanie carried Flynn.

"We're going to get you settled in and then we're going to have lunch and after that, we're going to Axxess and we're going to go around and look at the different exhibits and fun things for you guys to do," Chris told his son.

"What kinds of things do they have?"

"Lots of stuff, they have a fun ring with all this foam stuff in it and different things from all the WrestleManias and artwork you can look at, and just lots of stuff that you'll find fun and that your sisters will like too," Chris told him. "I'm so glad you're here, I missed you."

"We missed you too, but it was okay because we knew we'd get to come to WrestleMania and have fun. What are we doing tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow is going to be a long day. Your mom and I have to go see the Hall of Fame venue, then I have a signing, then we're going to the Hall of Fame."

"I'm going too, right? And Flynn too?"

"Yup, you and Flynn are going to come and you're actually going to sit with me and Mommy, crazy, huh?" Chris told him, but Sawyer just laughed. "Kensy is going to stay with Gamma and Gamps."

"Cause she's just a baby," Sawyer nodded.

"Pretty much, yeah, it would be terrible for her, as it is, you guys might get bored."

"I wanna see Ed though," Sawyer told him very seriously. "He's my friend and I want to see him get 'ducted into the Hall of Fame. He's going to give a speech, right?"

"You got it," Chris told him as they piled into the elevator.

"Kiss, Daddy!" Flynn leaned over from Stephanie's arms and Chris gave her a kiss on the cheek. "You're the best!"

"I'm glad you think so, are you ready to go look at the Axxess stuff?" Chris asked her and she nodded eagerly. "Good because as soon as we put our things down, we're going over there and you guys get to do all the stuff you want to do."

"Everything," Flynn told him and he nodded with excitement. The exhibits were boring to him because he knew all this stuff so experiencing it with his kids would be something special. Chris's parents decided they were going to explore Miami a little bit so they went to their room with the intentions of catching everyone later. Chris and Stephanie took the kids to their suite and got them settled before they went to WrestleMania Axxess. Because Chris and Stephanie were who they were, they closed off the exhibits for a short while so they could explore without being hounded by fans. Plus, Chris had to film some other stuff for his dueling diary.

"Wow…" Sawyer said as they walked inside. "This is so cool, Daddy."

"I know, right," Chris said as they went in further. "Go to town, you can go do whatever you want."

"Daddy, there a ring!" Flynn ran over to the ring filled with foam cubes that kids could jump into. Her face lit up. She'd been in the ring before, plenty of times, but never a ring that looked like this! There were steps and she was already flying up them and then she jumped into the foam pit even before the staff could tell her what to do. "Daddy, Mommy, this is crazy!"

Chris and Stephanie laughed as they watched her jump around in the foam. "Sorry about that," Chris said to the staff member. "She gets a little excited around rings."

"Can I go in too?" Sawyer asked.

"Go for it," the staff member said as Sawyer climbed the steps. Stephanie was over near Flynn, helping her get out. They both stopped to see Sawyer jump into the pit, laughing as he did. "Your little one can too."

"You want to jump, Kensy?" Chris asked and she nodded. He helped her up the steps and to the small platform situated above the foam. She was small so she just kind of fell into the pit instead of jumping into it, but she still liked it. Chris helped Kensington get out as Flynn wanted to go again.

"Daddy, you do it!" Flynn told her father and he looked at her and she nodded.

"Yeah, Daddy, I wanna see you do it too!" Sawyer said.

"Okay," Chris said, putting Kensington on the ground before he climbed into the ring. He stood on the platform and did a moonsault into the pit amid his kids cheering. Stephanie laughed at him and he looked at her, glaring playfully. "Do you want to try this, McMahon?"

"No, thank you," she shook her head and he nodded and the kids egged him on. "Okay, fine, fine." She put down Flynn and she climbed into the ring as Chris climbed out. "I can't flip though, I don't know how to do that." Instead, she just kind of cannon-balled into it as her family laughed at her.

When they were done with that, they went into the Undertaker area to look at the tombstones. There were some other fun things, but the photographer and interviewer arrived and asked if Chris would go look at his own display of clothes from WrestleMania XIX. He left Stephanie with the kids and went over to the exhibit. There were artifacts from all the WrestleManias on display, and before going to his own exhibit, he went to some of the others, specifically the Ricky Steamboat one, which he thought was awesome. He'd never seen this outfit in person before, which was a shame since he owned the company and certainly had access to the storage area.

He made his way over to his own elaborate outfit, something he probably would not be caught dead in now. It was funny how things had changed so much. WrestleMania XIX was one of his best matches, but one of his worst nights ever. He'd lost the match, but he'd also lost Stephanie that evening. That was the evening of their first breakup.

It was funny thinking about that now, but he was still hiding his relationship with Stephanie at the time, and it was so frustrating. He wanted everyone to know he was in love with this woman, but he'd had to keep hiding and at the time, he just couldn't keep doing it. So he'd broken up with her. He remembered the pain of that night, leaving her alone, telling her that he just couldn't do it anymore, saying goodbye to her. The match had been great, but everything else had been horrible. He talked about the match with the cameras, but he really needed a moment to reflect on that time in his life.

It didn't come though because as he was still looking around, he saw Edge coming up with him and he scoffed as he looked at him. He'd cut his hair! Chris could not believe it as he looked at the back of Edge's head and everything was cut off. They joked around about it for a little while until the camera wandered off and Chris just couldn't believe that Edge chopped off his hair.

"Welcome to the club," Chris laughed, running his fingers through his own hair. "It's so much better, dude, you're going to feel so much better now that you don't have all that hair holding you back. What does Lita think?"

"She likes it," Edge responded. "She said I looked handsome."

Chris laughed, "Lucky, Stephanie nearly divorced me."

"She would too," Edge chuckled. "So have you seen the power couple of my brother and his wife?"

"You mean the weirdos?"

"You saw it too then."

"Yup, we saw it too, at the premiere party. I'm staying out of it, I've got bigger things to do while I'm here, I can't worry about them," Chris said. "I have a match and dude, you have a Hall of Fame to worry about it and we can't worry about them."

"Daddy, who are you talking to!" Sawyer called out as he bounded over with Flynn, Kensington, and Stephanie trailing after him. Edge turned around to them and Sawyer stopped short, his jaw dropping open. "Ed, what did you do to your hair?"

Edge laughed and looked at Chris. He ran a hand over his shorn locks, something he was definitely going to need to get used to in the coming weeks, "I got my hair cut, what does it look like to you?"

"Wow, you cut your hair off a lot," Sawyer told him. "You look good."

"Well, thanks, I cut them just so you would approve of it," Edge told him.

"Ed, your hair gone!" Flynn laughed at him, pointing.

"It is, do you want it?" Edge asked her playfully.

"No, that's weird!" Flynn pushed at him when they got close enough.

"I think you look very handsome," Stephanie complimented him.

"Wait, so _he_ cuts his hair and you think he looks handsome, I cut my hair and you hate me for days?" Chris scoffed, folding his arms and staring at her. It was short-lived because Kensington was reaching her arms towards Chris and he pulled her into his embrace, letting her hug him around the neck. Sawyer and Flynn were off and looking at the different items from the various WrestleManias.

"You're my husband, Edge isn't," Stephanie commented. "I think it looks good on you. Where you headed now?"

"Lita and I are doing something cool and romantic…we're going to figure out how I want to style my hair," Edge told them. "I'm just not happy with how it looks with these weird waves, I mean, whose hair does that? Christian's doesn't do that, but then, I think Christian got our dad's hair, not that we'd really know since the guy left us, but from what I can remember, I think he had straighter hair. This is my mom's fault. So Lita and I are going to go get a bunch of hair products and we're going to try them out and then we're picking my mom up from the airport and we're going out to dinner with her and the weirdoes that are my brother and his wife, plus the lovely Tilden."

"Sounds like a full night," Stephanie said.

Edge looked at his watch, "Which I better get to, I'll see you guys tomorrow right? Chris, you'll be backstage at the Hall of Fame?"

"No, I'm going to be in the audience, Britt wants to take care of the backstage stuff since Hunter's back there. I'm going to be on standby."

"Well, I'll still see you there, bye guys," Edge said, walking over to Sawyer and Flynn and saying goodbye to them. Stephanie and Chris followed suit and went over to Sawyer and Flynn, who was just coming upon his own outfit.

"Daddy, that's yours because that's your name," Sawyer pointed at it.

"Yup, that's mine," Chris told them, "that was from WrestleMania XIX, which was in 2003, before either of you were born. I wrestle Shawn at that WrestleMania."

"I like it," Flynn said, going under the ropes to touch it. "Daddy, can I wear it?"

"Excuse me, I don't think she's really supposed to be touching stuff," one of the security guys came over.

"It's okay, dude, it's mine anyways," Chris said, "she can touch it."

"Oh okay, that's fine then," the guy said, walking away.

"No, Flynn, you can't wear it because everyone else wants to see it and they can't see it if you take it. I've got some outfits at home that you can wear when we get home."

"Okay," Flynn sighed because she did like this outfit very much.

"Were you and Mommy married?" Sawyer asked as he stared at the outfit and looked at it from every direction. It was kind of nice, but nothing like anything his daddy wore now so that was a little weird.

"No, your mommy and I weren't married," Chris said, "actually…that was the night I broke up with Mommy."

"Oh yeah," Stephanie gave a short, mirthless laugh. "I remember that, wasn't that when you started dating Molly for a while?"

"I think it was, yeah, the relationship of doom that went nowhere," he chuckled. "That was simply a disaster. Total disaster."

"Broken up?" Sawyer made a face. "I know that's not good."

"No, it wasn't good," Chris said, "but your mommy was stubborn and we were hiding our relationship and it made me very angry and I didn't like it. I wanted to tell everyone I loved Mommy, but she wouldn't let me so I told her that I couldn't be with her anymore. Then we were both very sad."

"Well, you weren't sad for long because you've been married _forever_," Sawyer dragged out the word.

"We knew we were supposed to have someone as cool as you were so of course we were going to get back together," Chris ruffled his hair. "I think I need to take you to Jan so you can get a haircut, kid, this is just getting to be too much hair."

"Okay," Sawyer shrugged.

"Flynn Murphy Jericho, what are you doing?" Stephanie looked up at her daughter. Since her parents had been distracted, Flynn wanted to try on Chris's outfit. She'd managed to get the pants down, but she was having trouble with the shirt.

"I was just looking," she said, trying to throw them an innocent smile.

"My daughter is a thief," Chris said, going over and plucking Flynn away from the exhibit. "You are not allowed to touch what isn't yours, you know this, Flutterby. You can't touch these things because other people want to see them."

"Fine," Flynn sighed as she looked longingly at the outfit. Chris set her down away from the outfit and fixed it so it was back on the mannequin. "But Daddy I should gets to see it more than anyone else."

"Why is that?" Chris asked as he knelt in front of her.

Flynn took his face in her hands and looked him straight in the eye, "'Cause you're my Daddy!" Then she kissed him square on the lips.

"Well, this kiss is certainly better than the one I got from Rocky earlier today," Chris said, "I know I'm your daddy, despite you looking like Mommy, but here's the thing, Flutterby. When this is all over, this outfit, it comes home with me or it goes to the WWE storage facility, okay? When that happens, it means that it's ours, which means that it's _yours_. Now, everyone else coming in here, they don't get to take this home with them. So they come to see it, but if you take it, they can't."

"Oh," Flynn said, screwing up her face a little bit. She didn't want anyone not to see her daddy's things and she _did_ have an awful lot of things at home that she had, including her light up jacket, which she was going to wear. "Okay, I won't takes it."

"Thank you," he kissed her cheek.

"Come on, Sawa, let's look at other things."

"Me too!" Kensington whined.

"Fine," Flynn said, dragging out the word, as Stephanie put Kensington down. Sawyer grabbed Kensington's hand and they walked over to some of the other things on display, with Sawyer reading what he could off the big signs to his sister. Stephanie and Chris hung back as Chris wrapped his arm around her waist.

"That night sucked," Chris told her, kissing her temple. "I was so mad at you."

"I was so upset that night," Stephanie shook her head, "I think I cried myself to sleep."

"Oh man, don't tell me something like that," Chris told her with a distinct pout.

"It's the truth. You were so mad, I thought you were going to leave me forever and that I'd screwed up everything. We'd only been together for less than a year, but it just felt like…different from any other breakup."

"Because you _loved _me," he teased.

She rolled her eyes, "Well of course I did."

"Will you love me even if I don't win on Sunday?"

"No, I'm absolutely going to divorce you if you don't win."

"Then there's my incentive."

**Saturday**

"Hey, babe, you need to sit still for a minute," Hunter said as he watched Britt fly about the room.

"Huh?" Britt said distractedly. She'd been so distracted lately that she hadn't even heard him. He attributed it to being WrestleMania, but had no way of knowing that Punk was the thing on Britt's mind. That kiss had thrown her into something and she was still trying to dig her way out of it.

"I was saying you need to sit still," he laughed as he stood up and went over to her, pulling her to him by the waist. She went willingly into his arms, hugging him around the waist, her arms barely making it all the way around. She just wanted to burrow herself inside of him and she took a deep breath of his cologne, which was such a comforting scene to her. "You work too hard, you know that. You need to slow down."

"But the Hall of Fame is tonight and then tomorrow is the big show and it was _raining_ today, hard, Hunter," Britt sounded on the verge of tears. I know we prepared for the chance of rain, but it's just, the fans are going to be soaked and that would suck…"

"It's going to be okay," he pulled her in even closer and he loved when she took comfort in him. She fit perfectly against his body. "You're going to be fine, the weather is going to clear up. Tonight is going to be so easy to run. You just have to make sure people keep their times, I'll be backstage for the most part and I'll help you wherever you may need it."

"Thank you," she mumbled into his shirt.

"You never have to ask for my help," he kissed the top of her head. "You look really pretty tonight, just wanted to tell you that before we got there and everyone started complimenting you on how beautiful you are."

"Stop."

"I will not stop," he told her and she pulled away and leaned up on her tiptoes, which meant he had to lean down since there was such a height difference, they had to meet halfway. He kissed her and she press her hands to his cheeks. "I love you."

"I love you too," Britt told him, giving him the bravest smile she could muster. "I think you look very handsome by the way."

"Thanks, I appreciate that," he told her, leaning his forehead against hers. "You want to go?"

"Yeah, let's go."

Edge stood in front of the mirror, looking at himself for the five hundredth time it seemed. His hair was done up how he and Lita had decided it the night before. He'd gotten some hair clay stuff, he'd never used it before with the long hair and he'd managed to tame those weird waves in his hair with her help. It was still weird to run his hands through his hair and feel nothing there. Lita walked out of the bathroom, her hair finally dry and she walked over to him, standing behind him and leaning over his shoulder on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek.

"You look great, stop worrying about your hair," she told him. "We liked this style, remember?"

"I know, I'm just getting used to it still," he said, "you look less like the drenched rat you were when you went out with Punk earlier."

"He said I can sit with him at the show tonight," Lita said, "since you'll be backstage the entire time. Is that cool with you?"

"You never have to ask me if it's cool," he told her, "you know I'm not the jealous type."

"Another reason to love you like I do," Lita told him. She dropped her towel, leaving her in her underwear as she went to grab her dress. Edge whistled lowly and she flipped him off playfully. "You're a jerk, so you nervous about tonight?"

"I'm only nervous about keeping it together," Edge said, sitting on the bed as he watched her get dressed. She pulled her dress on and he helped her with it where needed. "I just don't want to start sobbing and lose any manliness I had. It's going to be worse because Sawyer and Flynn are going to be out there. God, if Tilden were sitting there, I'd be a nervous wreck. Kids, man, they bring out the worst in you."

"Or the best," Lita looked at him through the mirror. "You know, I wouldn't be opposed to having one of those. Neither one of us is getting any younger and…it would be cool, you know."

"Are you serious?" Edge asked her, his mouth dropping open as his eyes widened. "You want to have a baby?"

"I'm just saying it's something to think about," Lita said with a shrug. "Look at you, you _love_ Sawyer, Flynn, Kensy, and especially Tilden. You would do _anything_ for your niece."

"She's my niece, I love the hell out of her," Edge said seriously because he would. That little girl was the best thing to ever come into his life. She was all the good parts of his brother and his wife and none of the annoying parts. "But you know we can't give a baby back at the end of the night."

"I realize that," Lita told him. "I'm just saying, I don't know, it's something I might want to do. I've never been against kids, we love babysitting and I'm not getting any younger and you're not getting any younger and I love you and I want to be with you for the rest of my life."

"Okay, well, can we please get me inducted before we start working on those kids?"

She laughed, her eyes lighting up as she turned to him, "I wasn't suggesting you get me pregnant right this second. I want tonight to be about you because it _is_ about you."

"You should be getting inducted too, you _have_ to, you're Lita for God's sakes," Edge shook his head, standing up and going to wrap his arms around her. "Thank you for being here with me. I don't know what I did to deserve to have you in my life—"

"You seduced me away from my boyfriend," Lita reminded him jokingly.

"Wait, wait, wait, no, that's not how I saw it, _you_ wanted me," Edge told her.

"Never," Lita shook her head. "I was also thinking that maybe we should lay off the travel for a while, set roots down again," Lita looked at him through the mirror. "I miss everything here in Florida, I miss our friends and just hanging out. I'm not saying we shouldn't travel, but I think we should spend more time at home."

"I can do that," he said, looking down. Lita grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze. He looked back up at her through the mirror and saw the question in her eyes. "It all went by so fast, you know."

"I know," Lita nodded.

"Too fast almost. One second, I was this guy with a dream and then…look at me, being inducted into the Hall of Fame. This past week I've looked at all these pictures and signs and people recalling memories and I'm like, how could it have been so long ago? It seems like just yesterday my brother and I were a couple of dorks. Now he's going to give this whole speech about me. Growing up it was the two of us against the world. Now we're grown men, he has a wife, maybe, who knows what's going on there, and a daughter, and I have you and life is good, but it just doesn't feel like that part of my life is over."

"You could always ask Stephanie for something to do, in the future, if you get bored."

"I know, that's a perk," Edge nodded. "Was this how you felt?"

"Yeah, it was," she told him. "One second, wrestling is your life and then suddenly, gone. Then you have to find something else and it's tough at first, that's why I had my music, but you have stuff, so you'll be okay."

"I know," he said. "So you think we should get this show on the road?"

"You ready for it?"

"No," Edge said. "You're never ready to really say it's over, are you?"

"No, but you're going to have to do it anyways."

"If I get emotional, can I picture you in your underwear?" Edge asked.

Lita cracked up and grinned at him, "I give you permission to picture me and whomever else you want in their underwear."

"Wrestlers in their underwear? Hmm, shouldn't be too hard to picture," he told her as he wrapped his arm around her. "Okay, let's get me into the Hall of Fame."

Sawyer tried to adjust his tie around his neck. It was too tight and he wanted to loosen it a little. He'd never worn a tie before and he kind of didn't like it. It kind of felt like he was being choked and he didn't like it at all. He kept pulling at it so it would give a little and Chris looked over at him from his seat in the limo on the way to the event.

"Your tie bugging you, kid?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, can I take it off?" Sawyer asked.

"Sure, you don't need it," Chris told him, having Sawyer scoot over so he could take the tie off. He stuffed it into his pocket as Flynn sprawled herself across the seat.

"Daddy, I pretty tonight!" Flynn flounced with her pretty pink sundress. She was also wearing rainbow stockings she'd insisted on wearing and on top of all that, her light up jacket from her daddy. She was representing.

"You're the prettiest," Chris indulged her and Flynn glowed at the praise.

They arrived at the arena and Chris and Stephanie helped the kids out of the car and started walking towards the building. They were using a back entrance instead of the front entrance where most of the wrestlers were coming through. This was because, as the directors of this event, they had to go backstage first to make sure everything was going alright. They checked up on Britt briefly, who had everything and everyone under control (with help from Hunter), so they decided to find their seats so the kids could sit down.

"Wow…" Sawyer said when they finally walked out. There were people who started chanting "Y2J" and even a couple shouting Stephanie's name.

"Told you, you'd be a knockout," Chris told his wife. "I mean, seriously, you look like an angel in that dress. If we weren't married, I'd want you to get married in that thing."

"Chris," Stephanie shook her head at him but she was blushing all the same. She would have kissed him if not for the thousands of people who were currently watching them. She wasn't sure she'd ever kissed Chris in front of this many people, their kisses before they were married notwithstanding.

"Just the truth, you look stunning."

"Stephanie," a warm voice said from behind her. They looked over their shoulder and saw Linda walking towards them.

"Hey, Mom," Stephanie said brightly embracing her mother. "You look great."

"So do you," Linda said, taking in her daughter's presence.

"Hey, Grandma," Sawyer said.

"Oh my God, let me get a look at you two," Linda got down on one knee and looked at her gorgeous grandchildren, all dressed up and looking so adorable. "Come here and give me a hug."

They both rushed into her arms and she hugged them tightly. "I missed you, Grandma," Sawyer told her.

"I missed you too."

"Where Grandpa?" Flynn asked curiously.

"He decided not to come," Linda glanced at Stephanie, but she didn't say anything. "I'm very happy to be here though."

"We're happy to have you, Mom," Stephanie said, "okay, so Flynnie, you can sit with me—"

"No, I wanna sit with Daddy," Flynn whined.

"Flynnie, you can't sit with Daddy tonight, you're going to sit with me," Stephanie told her. Flynn whined, and Stephanie hoped she wouldn't start to throw a tantrum because the last thing she needed tonight was for people to think she was a horrible mother.

"Why?" Flynn asked with a frown.

"Because Daddy needs to sit near the end in case he has to go backstage and if that happens, you cannot sit alone. Sawyer, on the other hand, is older than you and he can handle sitting alone for a few minutes," Stephanie explained.

Flynn gave a mad face, which just so happened to be broadcast for the entire arena to see and everyone "aww'ed" at her face. Flynn didn't know what was going on until she saw her face hugely broadcast on the TV and she looked around for the camera. Flynn, never being the shy one, waved to the camera and gave a big grin to everyone. Chris and Stephanie both looked up at the screen and their little ham of a daughter.

"Okay, Flynnie, that's enough," Stephanie said as Flynn started to make faces for everyone. "I don't think the world is ready for Flynn Jericho."

"I'm funny," Flynn laughed at herself as Stephanie led her over to their seats. The camera was still on them and she wished she could tell them not to film her family, but people were always interested.

"Be a good girl," Chris told her, kneeling down and hugging Flynn. "I'll see you after the show."

"Have fun too, Daddy, and you too, Sawa!" Flynn told them.

"Okay," Sawyer said. He didn't mind being on the camera, but it was a little weird to see himself in such big…everything. Stephanie and Flynn settled into their seats while Chris quickly bent down to give Stephanie a peck on the lips, which elicited a huge catcalling cheer from the crowd. Chris looked around bashfully for he and Sawyer went to their seats. Sawyer plopped himself down on one of the seats as Chris took the other seat, shaking hands with James Durbin again after inviting him to sit there the other night.

"Thanks so much for letting me come tonight, bro," James said.

"Not a problem at all, I just hope you enjoy the show."

The show was starting and Flynn thought she'd know everyone that was there because she loved wrestling so much, but she barely knew any of these guys who were being inducted. She fidgeted in her seat, wondering when anything good was going to happen or, at the very least, when someone she knew was going to come out. Stephanie kept putting her hand on Flynn's leg to stop her from moving around so much, but Flynn just kept pushing it away.

"Who that, Mommy?" Flynn kept asking whenever she saw someone she didn't know.

"That's someone named Mil Mascaras," Stephanie whispered to her.

"I no know him," Flynn said, flopping into Stephanie's lap, being bored beyond belief. She thought this was supposed to be _fun_, but this wasn't fun at all. Where were her friends, they weren't even here. Her mommy and daddy had told her Hunter and Edge were going to be here, but she hadn't seen them anywhere.

"Okay, come here, you," Stephanie whispered to her, grabbing Flynn and pulling the little girl into her lap. Flynn tried to wriggle around, but Stephanie was in her ear again. "Flynn Murphy, I know you are bored right now, but this is a very serious event. If you do not sit still, you will not be allowed to sit in the arena tomorrow at WrestleMania."

Flynn's eyes widened. That was a fate worse than anything she'd ever encountered. Time outs were one thing, but not getting to sit and watch wrestling, she sat stock still, leaning against Stephanie as she watched the show. Every now and then Stephanie would kiss the side of Flynn's head and Flynn would smile because who didn't love kisses from their mommy? Flynn rested her hands on Stephanie's arms around her and tried to watch, but every now and then she would let her eyes wander to Sawyer and her daddy. Sometimes, they'd be looking over and she'd wave and Sawyer would wave back at her, which made her giggle quietly.

Finally, something good happened when Hunter showed up. Flynn paid more attention to him, but he was telling funny things that she didn't get, but everyone else seemed to. She just shrugged to herself and continued watching until Christian came out and then she was very interested because Christian was one of her bestest friends in the entire universe.

Christian was emotional. There was no other way to put it. His brother was going into the Hall of Fame and damn it if he wasn't emotional. He went out there and he talked about his brother, even showing a text Edge had sent him of their old elementary school and the hallway the two of them used to wrestle in. He could remember those years, dragging in the mats, holding "events" with their friends, dreaming of being tag team partners and then tag team champions. They'd been brothers forever, and he couldn't be more proud.

Still, he wanted everyone to know what kind of brother he had been privileged with. He brought up their mother, Judy, how she was a single mother trying to raise two boys, two very _rowdy_ boys on her own and how she'd taken several jobs just to keep them fed and in clothes. Because of her sacrifice, both her boys loved their mother to distraction and would do anything for her.

He remembered the night Edge had said the words he was about to share with the world. They shared a room in the apartment they lived in growing up, bunk beds with Edge on the top and Christian, the younger brother, on the bottom. They'd been lying there after their mother told them that Christmas would be sparse that year and to maybe keep the presents down to one thing they wanted. Edge had vowed that night he would make enough money to buy their mom a house. Christian, never one to be outdone, said he would buy Mom a car to go with the house and maybe a boat (he'd really liked boats as a kid). That night, they vowed that when they made money that would be the first thing they did.

It came true too. Christian was so proud to call Edge his brother and his best friend. When Edge came out, they hugged and Edge thanked him quietly before going to the podium and joking because that's what he did. But then he turned serious. First he thanked his brother for being the best brother a guy could ask for. He couldn't help but get in a little bit about Christian and his wife, which he could see Stephanie rolling her eyes over at his non-show of subtlety, but if they were ever going to figure out what was going on with Christian and Trish, he would have to get the ball rolling on it. Then he thanked the love of his life, Miss Lita, who he winked as she sat next to Punk in the front row. She winked back at him, mouthing that she loved him, which happened to be caught on the cameras for everyone to see and "aww" at, which made Edge blush.

But then came the most important thank you of all. He thanked the woman who made this all possible, who gave him life, a home, a brother, and everything she could ever possibly give. Edge was as big a mama's boy as they came and everything he did, all his successes were to make his mom proud and to make her life easier. That was all he ever wanted. Then he thanked the fans for making this journey the best one he ever could have dreamed of. They were the reason he was here.

He took it all in, everything about this moment and preserved it. He wanted to keep it forever, hold it in his pocket and take it out whenever he felt low. Christian came out again and for the crowd, one last time, they did a 5 second pose. That was his gift to them for the gifts they gave him for the past 14 years. They cheered him, booed him, laughed at him, cried with him, but above all that, they were just there with him to experience the ride of his life and they were to thank for him being here.

They made it all worth it.

After the show was over, everyone went over to congratulate the new inductees. Lita made a beeline for Edge and he embraced her tightly, burying his head into her shoulder. "You were wonderful," she whispered to him. "Absolutely wonderful."

"Thanks," he told her, hugging her. "That was rough, I didn't think I would be that emotional."

"I know, but you did great," she pulled away and kissed him, "I'm so proud of you."

"Me too, bro," Christian said, "I'm really happy for you."

"Come here," Trish walked over, grabbing her brother-in-law into a tight hug. "Your speech was beautiful and so wonderful and I love you so much."

"Thanks, Trish, you should probably be saying to your husband, but I'll take it," Edge said with a laugh, but also with a slight suggestion that whatever was going on with them. Trish gave a short laugh, glancing surreptitiously at Christian before going to his side. Christian loosely wrapped his arm around her shoulders as his mother came over.

"Look at my boys," Judy said, embracing Christian and then Edge. They both gave her bashful looks even though they were both huge mama's boys and everyone knew it. "I just wish your grandmother could have made the trip down here to see it."

"Me too," Edge said, "but she can watch it on Monday."

"I'll make sure of it," Judy said, patting Edge's cheek. "I'm so proud of you, sweetheart, you have made me such a proud mother, the both of you, but since tonight is Adam's night, I have to say it to him, when you get inducted, you'll get the same treatment, Christian."

"I didn't say anything, Mom," Christian told her.

"Don't call me Adam, Mom," Edge scowled.

"I'm your mother, I call you what I want," she said as she hugged him again. "Your speech was great and I loved it, every word of it. I want to see all of you for breakfast tomorrow, right? My treat."

"Mom, you don't have to treat," Edge told her.

"Let your mom treat," Lita said, "she's trying to be nice."

"Listen to her," Judy told him, "she's a smart one."

"See," Lita made a face at him.

"Ed, Ed, you were 'ducted!" Sawyer ran over and hugged Edge around the waist. Edge laughed and knelt down to receive the hug Sawyer. "You were really good and everyone really liked you, did you have fun too?"

"I really did," Edge said as someone barreled into him from the side. He glanced behind him and saw Flynn flung across him. "Hey, Flynnie."

"I waits all night for you and you not come until the end!" Flynn said while dropping her mouth in exasperation. "You were best."

"Thanks, you guys," Edge said. "It really means a lot that you think that."

"You're my best friend, Ed," Sawyer said, hugging him again.

"Oh my God, you guys need to stop, I'm on the verge of a nervous breakdown here," Edge hugged them again. "You guys are the best, I mean that."

Edge just looked at the emptying arena. The fans had cheered for him and loved him and he loved them all back so much. Without them, he never would have been the man he'd become. They'd fueled him and his brother for so long and above anything else the business had to offer, he would miss the fans the most. But there was still so much life ahead of him and as he hugged Sawyer and Flynn again, he thought back to what Lita had proposed earlier and for the first time…well, for the first time, Edge could actually picture himself as something he'd never pictured himself as before.

A father.

**Sunday**

Chris threw his legs over the bed and looked over at his sleeping wife. He wanted to get an early start on the day and that meant waking up early. He moved his head from side to side, hearing a familiar crack and groaning in satisfaction as the pressure was released. Today was a big day. He'd made a lot of big promises and now he had to deliver them. At the risk of sounding cliché, it was time to put up or shut up. He wanted the title win for so many different reasons and he'd come back partly because he wanted that belt and he didn't want it to all be for naught.

"Hey," Stephanie's sleepy voice said behind him.

"Hey," he turned slightly to rub her arm. "Go back to sleep. It's really early, I just wanted to get down to the gym for a light workout, get my muscles going."

"Okay," she nodded so slightly he almost though she was literally nodding off. "Will you come back up?"

"Yeah, I'll come back up. I'll probably have breakfast here and then I'll head on over to the stadium. When are you coming over?"

"Early," Stephanie yawned. "Your mom and dad are going to watch them, then bring them over. Sawyer's friend, Andy, and his parents, and Flynn's friend, Alex, and his dad are going to be here later, their plane arrives at two, then there's going to be a limo picking them up and bringing them to the stadium. I have them on the VIP list so they can come right in and I told Jermaine to text me when the limo gets here, she said she would so I'll meet them there."

"You sure you're going to have time for that?" he asked. "I know you're going to be busy."

"I'll be busy once the show starts. I'm going to be sitting at the production table, directing the show. It's been so long since I've actually done that and what better place to do it again than at WrestleMania. Britt is taking care of most of the technical stuff before the show starts so I can show everyone around, but once the show starts, the kids and their friend will be out in the stadium, you're going to be super-focused so I can work."

"You have everything planned as usual," Chris said, leaning down to kiss her. "Love you and I'll see you later."

"Bye," Stephanie said.

If Chris could, he probably would have slept at the stadium. He was that anxious for his match. He wanted to get there and let WrestleMania really soak in for him. While the festivities surrounding WrestleMania were always fun, that wasn't what this was about. This show wasn't about having fun, it was about going out there and doing his job and getting that belt. He was tired of making nice with people and going places and dressing up. He knew he had a press conference later before the show, but he wanted to focus on his match and everything it entailed.

Punk was his friend, but this was bigger than the both of them. This match could potentially define them for a very long time afterwards. As he jogged lightly on the treadmill at the gym designated for the WWE wrestlers, he tried to calm himself and focus on what he needed to do to win this match. Punk was not some sloppy opponent whose ass he could beat with one hand tied behind his back. Punk was proficient at what he did and wrestling was his life. Punk was in a state in his life where wrestling _could_ be his life. It wasn't for Chris, which gave Punk the advantage in this match.

Chris had other priorities, bigger priorities. His kids were his number one priority in the world and that was not going to change for a day, week, whatever, they were always going to be number one. Punk didn't have kids he needed to focus on. Even now, Chris was thinking about how exciting it was going to be for his kids to watch WrestleMania. As they got older, it was going to get more and more exciting for them and with this one being outdoors, it promised to be one of the biggest spectacles ever. He smiled as he thought about then reminded himself he had a match and that _needed_ to be his primary focus.

When he finished his workout, he walked back to his room, putting his headphones on so he wouldn't be disturbed. He needed the quiet and the fans would only distract him. He managed to avoid some groups of people waiting outside the hotel and go inside, getting to the elevator and up to his suite. He opened the door and everyone was up and getting dressed. He saw Kensington running from the hallway and he scooped her up.

"Hi, Dada!" she told him brightly and he noticed she didn't have pants on, just her diaper and he laughed and kissed her head.

"Were you running from Mommy?" Chris asked as Stephanie showed up.

"Yes, she was, hey, how'd your workout go?" Stephanie gave him a kiss in greeting.

"It was good, I feel good, I feel really good," Chris nodded. He handed Kensington over to Stephanie. "Here, get some damn pants on my daughter."

"She's trying a new look, diaper chic," Stephanie said, tickling Kensington's feet. Kensington giggled and hugged Stephanie. Stephanie hugged her back as Flynn showed up out of nowhere and hopped right in front of Chris.

"Daddy, I'm pretty!" Flynn declared as she spread her arms out in front of her. She was wearing a light blue sundress with sandals and her hair was in two French braids.

"We really did not instill any humbleness into this one, did we?" Chris asked his wife.

Stephanie shrugged, "Clearly, the force is strong in this one, very, very, very strong."

"Makes me wonder all the time if Sawyer is actually ours," Chris said.

"Daddy, when my friend get here?"

"Later, Flutterby," Chris told her, "and you look very, very pretty."

"Thanks, I know though," Flynn flounced away, then stopped and gasped, "My jacket, I needs my jacket!"

"Flynnie, it's too hot for your jacket," Stephanie said, but Flynn turned to her, looking aghast at the mere suggestion that she not wear her jacket. She turned around and stomped off anyways. "Yeah, too much like us. When are you heading over?"

"As soon as I eat breakfast and get ready," Chris told her, "where's Sawyer?"

"Bathroom," Stephanie said as they walked back into their bedroom. It was a two room suite and Flynn was probably off sulking in the other room about her jacket. But the day was so warm, wearing a pleather jacket was going to be too hot for the little girl.

Chris started to get his things ready as Stephanie put pants on Kensington before setting her down. Stephanie then looked at the room service menu, ordering food for everyone. She walked up to Chris and wrapped her arms around his waist. "I love you."

"I love you too," he said.

"I know you're going to be so amazing tonight," she told him. "You're going to take the ring by storm."

"Thanks for having faith in me."

"I've had it for the last ten years, you've made it so I can't not have faith in you," she joked as Chris started to zip up his bag. "You sure you have everything?"

"Yeah, I'm sure," he told her, "I think, but I think I have everything I need. I can't believe the day is finally here."

"Neither can I. I can't believe you came back still," Stephanie laughed. "Thank you for that too."

"Thank me after the match."

After breakfast, Chris said goodbye to his family for a while and headed down to the large buses waiting downstairs. They were sending wrestlers and other personnel back and forth all day so all he had to do was climb on one of them and wait for it to leave. The buses were special because they had police escorts with them, Chris guessed it was in case the buses got hijacked and they were suddenly thrust into the movie, _Speed_, in which case, he'd take over the wheel and save the day.

When he got to the arena, it was still relatively quiet as he'd gotten one of the earliest buses. He went out into the actual stadium to check it out and saw some people milling about, one of them happening to be Punk. Chris chuckled to himself, leave it to Punk to be here earlier than he was. He walked over and sat himself right down next to him.

"Don't let the dueling diaries guy catch us, _this _would be quite the story," Punk told him. Chris had to laugh at that because there was no way they'd include this. "Are those guys annoying or what?"

"I kept telling them not to take pictures of my kids, they couldn't seem to get that through their heads," Chris said.

"So you ready for tonight?" Punk asked him.

"Yeah, I am, I'm going to bring it."

"Like I wouldn't," Punk scoffed. "I'm already there, mentally prepared, going to do everything in my power to retain my title and I know you're going to do everything in your power to take it from me," Punk said. Chris just nodded because that was the long and short of it and there was no use beating around the bush. "So tomorrow, we're friends again?"

"We'll see," Chris said, "we have to see how this all pans out."

"I wanted to come over last night and tell the kids how good they looked, they were cute. Stephanie was looking pretty smoking hot too."

"I know you kissed Britt," Chris told him, still staring straight ahead. "She told Stephanie and me the other day."

Punk just nodded his head, like there was music playing that only he could hear. "She's driving me crazy. That's why I took it out on Christian. You know what I mean, Chris. You've experienced, you know how it feels."

"I know."

"Hunter always seems to stand in our way, doesn't he?" Punk was joking, but there was truth behind the words.

"I wasn't in love with Stephanie when they were married."

"I'm not in love with Britt."

"But you're getting there."

Punk made one of his faces, the incredulous one, "I just think we'd be good together, that's all. I mean, we would, don't you think?"

"I can't be impartial on this one, you're my friend and Hunter is my friend, plus it's Britt's decision to make."

"I know," Punk told him. "I know I shouldn't have kissed her, but I couldn't help it. She was right there and looking at me and damn it, I had to do it. I'm just not used to not getting what I want when it comes to women. You know the feeling."

"I _knew_ the feeling," Chris joked, "long time ago, another lifetime ago."

"But hypothetically, you could pretty much get any woman you wanted, right?"

"Yes."

"So then there's the one girl you can't have, wouldn't that drive you crazy?" Punk asked him.

"It probably would have, yes."

"What would you have done?"

"Now you're just digging for what to do," Chris said, getting up and stretching. "We better stop talking before people start getting the wrong idea and thinking that I actually give a damn about you."

"Yeah, right, I know you want to kick my ass."

"I will too," Chris told him, he started to walk away and then turned around. "I would go after her. I'm not telling you, you should. Hunter's my friend and it took a long time to get to that point, but he's my friend, but…and I don't know how you feel about Britt, but if it's anything like I feel about Stephanie day in and day out, isn't that worth the risk?"

Chris left him then and went backstage again, wondering if Stephanie had arrived. It was still very early so he spent some time just walking around, getting the layout of the place, like it was going to matter really. Still, it was a way to clear his head. He went back to the locker room and grabbed his ipod so he could listen to music while he walked around. He'd decided to use the communal locker room instead of his private one because being around his kids would only prove as distractions, which he couldn't afford.

He decided to walk a lap around the arena before fans were let in and just took it slow, stopping every now and then at merchandise tables, once looking at a program for the show, once looking at all the memorabilia they had backstage. It took his mind off things and the music let him block out the world around him. He finally made it backstage and there was a note on his jacket saying that Stephanie had been looking for him and he crumpled it up before going to look for her. He'd seen the sign for her office on his walkabout so he decided to try there first as it was the obvious choice.

He pushed the door open, taking off his headphones and was greeted with his family. They all gave a collective hello when they saw him and he gave a slight nod before Stephanie came over to talk to him. "Hey, you doing okay?" she asked.

"Yeah, I talked with Punk a little while ago and it was a good talk, we talked a little bit about Britt, but other than that, you know, we just kept it light considering all we're going to go through later," he said, reaching up and brushing his hands down the side of her head so her hair smoothened out underneath his palms.

"I'm glad you two can still be on speaking terms," Stephanie said.

"Me too," Chris said. "I'm just trying to keep my mind clear for the match."

"Daddy, wheres I gonna sit?" Flynn asked.

"Dada, hi, hi, hi," Kensington told him, grinning at him and waving.

"And they aren't it, huh?" Stephanie said.

"Not really, but I wouldn't trade that back for anything," Chris said. "Maybe I should just accept the fact that the kids are here to stay and I'm going to need to wrestle regardless."

"Hey, Daddy," Sawyer said as he came over. "Guess what? Mommy said we could each get a shirt and we can choose it, but you don't have shirts so I don't know who I'm going to get. I think I might get a Punk shirt because he's my friend."

"I want Sames!" Flynn declared for good measure, "Kensy too."

"Uh uh," Kensington shook her head.

"Yes, you do," Flynn told her.

Kensington pushed into Flynn, "No!"

"Hey, okay, yeah, break it up," Stephanie said, grabbing Kensington's hand, "we don't push and we don't shove. Chris, get out of here while you still can. You don't have to deal with this today of all days."

"Daddy, don't you like us?" Flynn asked, her lip jutting out a little bit.

"Killing me here," Chris knelt down in front of his daughter. "Flutterby, you know I love you so much, but I've got to focus or I won't beat Punk and I won't get the belt."

Flynn perked up, "Go away then!"

Chris laughed and gave her a hug. "Thank you, but I don't want to be away from you guys. You want to go see the set? We can sit in the seats for a while."

"Chris, really, you need to focus on your match, it's okay, I can deal with them," Stephanie said.

"It's okay, I want to, they calm me down," Chris said, grabbing Kensington and holding her to him. "Come on, you two, we can go sit for a while, then we'll eat lunch and then your friends are going to be here."

"Okay," Sawyer said.

Chris led his kids out to the stadium, where they "oohed" and "awwed" over the entire setup. They went down to the ring and Chris sat with them in some of the front row seats. Kensington sit on his lap while Flynn sat on one side of him and Sawyer sat on the other. Flynn got up to get a closer look at the ring while Sawyer stared at the massive screen taking up nearly the entire field.

"Wow, this is really cool, Daddy," Sawyer turned to him to say.

"I know, someday you guys might even be here, wrestling like this," Chris told them, giving them a smile. "You guys are going to have so much fun tonight."

"I know it," Sawyer said, "I'm glad you're wrestling, Daddy. It makes me happy when you do."

"It makes me happy when you're happy," Chris told him. "This is your legacy, you know." Flynn came back over and she sat down next to Chris again. "This is going to be all yours someday. You're going to inherit all of this and I know you're going to make it so great. You guys are going to do such great things and you are just going to make me and Mommy so proud."

"I can wrestle tonight," Flynn told him.

"You know, knowing that we're having a non-wrestler in that match…I really think you could," Chris said. "You've got to be better than Maria is."

"I know I am," Flynn said with a nod.

By the time Chris returned the kids, time was really winding down. Sawyer and Flynn's friends arrived and they were greeted with great fanfare by Stephanie. Travis, especially, was excited. He never thought he'd actually get to meet any wrestlers, let alone be a VIP and invited backstage. Stephanie gave them the grand tour and it was more than they ever could have hoped for. After that, they were guided to their seats by personal escort and their seats were amazing, which was par for the course since Stephanie was the president of the company, but they never could have imagined this kind of VIP treatment.

"This is so cool," Travis muttered to his son.

"It really is, Daddy," Alex said as Flynn stood on her chair and looked around at the massive amount of people. "Thank you, Flynn, for inviting us."

"You're my friend," Flynn told him with a shrug.

"It's starting," Sawyer said excitedly as he and his friend, Andy, talked about how cool everything was and how the stage was pretty cool.

Chris unbuckled his belt and just stared at his jacket for a second. He could hear the crowd already getting pumped up. The noise was almost making the entire room beat. It was strange not being in private locker room, but there wasn't really anyone in here right now as most guys were watching the show and the ones that had matches had opted for their own private dressing rooms. His private dressing room always had other people in it.

"Is everyone decent in there!"

"Steph, I'm alone," Chris said as Stephanie peeked her head in. Her eyes widened a little bit as she regarded him. "What?"

"I'm sorry, you just look…well, you just look so…sexy," she told him, giving him the once over.

"Seriously, right now, _right now_, that's what you're going to pull on me?" he asked. "I've got a huge match and you're running the entire damn show and you want to tell me I'm sexy?"

"Is that a crime," she said, coming over to him and tugging on his belt.

"Any guy could walk in right now."

"They're all watching the pre-show matches," Stephanie said, "we set up the viewing areas, remember, everyone is there and you can't just stand there with no shirt on, your dress pants and your belt unbuckled. Let's go back to my office and I can help you…calm your mind…don't they say sex clears your mind?"

"I don't think so, but who am I to turn you down?"

"I thought you might say that," she said, pulling him to the door by that unbuckled belt.

Hunter was nervous for his match and it was an odd feeling. But this was an odd match and he hadn't wrestled intensely over the last year. He'd spent so much time behind the scenes that to step out there again was strange and almost overwhelming. The feeling was sort of like when he'd returned in 2002 from his quad injury. There was a nervous energy inside of him and it was threatening to burst free from his body and straight into the Undertaker. His match could not come soon enough. He wanted to go see Shawn, but with Shawn being the guest referee he thought it wasn't good to be seen with him right now.

"You're going to be great," Britt said, coming into the dressing room and rubbing his shoulders. "You're going to win and you're going to end that damn streak and then we are going to celebrate until the dawn."

"You think I really have a chance?"

"Against someone older than you who hasn't wrestled in, what, a year? No, I think you have a very good chance, a very good one," she leaned down and kissed his cheek. "I've got to go though. The show is starting and I've got to be there."

"Will you wish me good luck before my match?"

"You know I will."

Then it began.

The first match turned out to be a joke. 18 seconds worth of it. That hardly qualified as a match and as the show progressed, the more anxious the guys backstage were becoming, especially Hunter. He was wringing his hands and sitting next to Britt, who was sitting next to Stephanie, who was directing the entire show like a pro. When things got too heavy around them, he would walk around the immediate area, but his match could not come soon enough. Time felt too slow, like the show wasn't going fast enough.

Except it went fast enough to get to his match. They were touting it as the end of an era and he had to take that as a sign that it was his time to win. This was his time to shine and break the streak. He was one of the strongest guys here, which meant he could do this. Shawn went out first, giving Hunter a nod as he passed and Hunter started jumping in place, the nervous energy making him bounce off the balls of his feet. When the time came for his entrance, he went out there and was greeted by the crowd.

He didn't hear them because his mind was so far into the match already, even if it hadn't started yet. He got into the ring and waited for Undertaker's entrance, which was always a spectacle. Even if you didn't like the guy, his entrance music had to give you goosebumps and knowing what was coming next, Hunter had those goosebumps all over him. The streak was something to be revered in this business. It meant superiority and something Hunter always wanted was to feel superior.

When Taker finally entered the ring, he revealed he'd shaved his head. Hunter called out to ask him whether he thought this was going to scare him or not because it wasn't. The two of them, well, three, including Shawn, watched as the cage lower around them. Things settled down and Hunter tuned out the crowd because now was the time to really get this win and end this streak and end the Undertaker. The other man had a good run, but it was time to finish him and prove once and for all he was at the top of this mountain.

Shawn rang the bell and Hunter went immediately after him as they traded punches, but Taker got the early upperhand as he backed Hunter into the corner. Taker dropped him with a right hand, but Hunter was not deterred, not this early at least and came back at Taker with his own punches, which took Taker to the corner this time. The match was still early and after so long without wrestling each other, they each had to get a feel for the other again. Taker turned it around on him and suddenly Hunter found himself outside the ring.

He admitted then, in that moment, he may have underestimated Taker in all of this. There was a part of him that believed, erroneously as he was now seeing, that Taker would have lost not just a step, but many steps after being out of the ring for so long. He should have known better. Taker was some kind of weird entity that never seemed to really deteriorate when the time came. Yes, he was slower and his moves weren't as crisp, but the man was a competitor through and through and he was proving it at the moment and proving it well.

Taker even got on the ropes like he always did and that was something Hunter wasn't expecting. They ended up back on the floor again and Hunter could see Taker grabbing the steps. He tried to get out of the way, but the steps connected with his face anyways. Then he grabbed the top steps and put them in the ring. Hunter was trying to fight back, but Taker was getting one over on him now, but Hunter was not going to allow him all the offense. He mustered his strength and gave Taker a DDT. He tried to follow it with a Pedigree on top of the steps, but Taker was able to counter it.

Hunter was really taking the brunt of it now and those damn steps were causing him problems. Eventually, he was able to get in some offense and decided if Taker wanted to bring the steps into play, he would bring some toys to play with as well. He grabbed a couple of chairs from under the ring and hit Taker with one of them. Then he decided turnabout was fair play and used the steps against Taker. Now he was just seeing victory and kept hitting Taker with the chair until Shawn had to intervene. Hunter felt like a rabid animal, but Shawn, his best friend, was pulling him back from the brink.

Except this time, he couldn't just be pulled back. This was for vengeance, and Hunter was out for blood. He shoved Shawn away and continued to go at Taker with the chair. One hit, two hits, so many hits and it felt so damn good to get some of this aggression out of his system. He told Shawn to end it or he would, but Taker wouldn't quit. Of course he wouldn't, he was a tough SOB, but Hunter was tougher.

He yelled at Taker to say down, but he wouldn't. Hunter hit him again with the chair and tried for the count, but only got two. More chair shots, more hits, more aggression, more anger. Even Shawn couldn't get through to him and boy did Shawn try. Hunter went and got his favorite plaything in his trusty sledgehammer. How many men had been felled by this weapon? He wanted to add one more tonight. Shawn tried to argue with him, but he was beyond caring about Shawn. He was better than Shawn, he was always better than Shawn, but Shawn had the charisma to make the crowd like him in ways Hunter never possessed.

That just made him even angrier.

Taker was getting up and Hunter was so steely, he only had one thought in mind. Shawn wanted to end the match, but Taker wouldn't let him, so Hunter did the next best thing and knocked him out with the sledgehammer. He tried to cover him again, but the bastard kicked out and Hunter grabbed the sledgehammer again, intending to do something heinous with it, but Shawn stopped him, grabbing the weapon and throwing it out of the ring. Hunter kept telling Shawn to end it, but the man wouldn't and he knew that Shawn was just as scared as he was about the other.

Shawn must think that Hunter winning would make him seem weaker and they couldn't have that because in this friendship, for all those years, Hunter had been the sidekick. He sneered as Shawn checked on Taker. Shawn looked like he was going to call the match, but Taker wouldn't let him, putting Shawn in the Hell's Gate, and for a moment, Hunter respected the older veteran. But he couldn't have the referee going down when he could taste victory so close so he broke it up with the sledgehammer.

Then Taker put the same move on him. Hunter wasn't about to tap out to this, but things were starting to get a little fuzzy around the edges the longer he was in the hold. He suddenly slumped and didn't know there was another referee, all he could feel was the chokeslame, but when he could feel the counts on the mat, he had to lift his shoulder up so as not to lose. Not like this, he wasn't going to lose to Taker.

Taker chokslammed the referee and Shawn got up, giving Taker some Sweet Chin Music. Hunter hit the Pedigree and was so sure he was going to win, but Taker kicked out. Shawn was shocked, but Hunter was pissed off now. This was not going well for him so he threw Shawn out of the ring in anger because Shawn was the referee and he was pissed. He grabbed the sledgehammer again, but Taker headed him off at the pass.

Taker was able to get the upperhand again and even managed to hit the Tombstone, but Hunter kicked out again. It was getting tougher and tougher to do that the more tired he got, but he was not going down until the last drop of his energy had been expelled. At this point, Shawn seemed to have gone catatonic in a corner, but Hunter couldn't worry about that right now, Taker was getting his second wind and it was all Hunter could do to catch up.

They managed to go back and forth until Taker got the chair again. Then there was a storm of blows on his back and Hunter's fight was draining out of him with every blow. The hits were fierce and he could hear them loudly. They smacked against his skin and each one was worse than the next. With one last push, Hunter tried to get up, but he was in terrible shape. He was woozy and his back was stinging so much he felt numb. He tried to get up, but Taker was holding him down. Hunter tried one last valiant effort, but Taker laid him out again. Hunter tried to pull himself up, but it was too late. The Tombstone and then everything suddenly just went black.

And the streak continued.

"Gamma, he okay?" Flynn asked, tilting her head and trying to see what was going on. "That Trips, he okay?"

"I don't think he's okay, Flynnie," Sawyer told her and his face was a little screwed up. Those chair shots had been so loud and he couldn't imagine what he was feeling right now.

Britt was wringing her hands, her eyes glued to the TV as Stephanie conducted the show. "Get up, Hunter, get up, get up, get up," she muttered to nobody.

Hunter wasn't sure what was going on, hell, he wasn't even sure he knew where he was at the moment. He could hear the crowd, but it all just felt like noise, a loud wall of noise with no distinguishable sounds. Then suddenly, he was being lifted up. His eyes opened slightly, but the world felt tilted on its axis. He was helped from the ring, but he couldn't even be too sure who was helping him. Was it Shawn? Referees? Was his mommy in the ring with him? Was Britt? Everything was too much and he just wanted to sleep for 50 years.

Then he was at the ramp because the lights had gotten so bright from the large screen and he was being hugged. He looked at who was hugging him and it was Taker and Shawn, but why were they hugging him? He halfheartedly hugged them back because what the hell, hugs were…good he guessed. They helped him backstage and the first hands he really felt were small and warm and they were also shoving other hands out of the way.

"Respect, you call that respect!" Britt's voice was the one to bring him to reality. "You think a hug is going to make it better!"

"Britt…" He mumbled at her.

"You hit him with a chair all those times and you think that just because you showed him a little respect afterwards that it's okay?" she stood up to Taker, which was comical because she was so much shorter than him and literally had to crane her neck to look up into his face. "Don't you ever, _ever_ come near him again! Do you understand me? I'm not scared of you and if you ever so much as lay a hand on him again…"

"Britt, babe, it's okay," Hunter slumped against her.

"Come on, let's get you to the trainer and then cleaned up," she said, glaring at Taker. "You're lucky he needs me."

Britt helped Hunter to the trainers, where, other than the welts on his back, was given the pretty much okay (there was no such thing as an a-okay after a Hell in the Cell match) and Britt helped him to his locker room. She stripped him and helped get him into the shower. The water hurt his back, but otherwise, the warmth was so welcoming.

"Do you think I did good?" Hunter asked woozily as Britt stood next to the shower in case he needed her.

"Honey, I think you did great."

A short time later, the arena went dark, and Flynn and Sawyer went absolutely nuts. They knew what was coming and as the blue and red lights of their daddy's jacket went off, they started cheering loudly, standing up on their seats. Then Chris's music started playing and the fireworks went off and Flynn was literally jumping up and down so much that Ted had to pull her to the ground so she wouldn't fall off.

"He has fireworks!" Flynn yelled so loudly some of the people around her looked at her strangely. She turned to her grandpa in awe, "he had fireworks, Gamps!"

"I know, I know," Ted told her and Flynn was going ballistic as Chris made his way to the ring. Chris looked around for them and spotted his family, giving them a smirk as Flynn and Sawyer waved at him.

"He gonna win!" Flynn said, dancing around in her seat.

Chris turned his attention towards the screen and waited for his opponent. He could hear Flynn's screams above all else because she was screaming like she was in a horror movie. He glanced over at her and she was practically hanging over the barrier, grinning at him and dancing to his music. He threw her a small smile and she grinned at him, waving and generally acting like the nutcase she was in the audience.

But now was not the time. Punk's entrance started after a video package and now was the time to fulfill what he'd been saying since he'd returned. He was the best in the world at what he did and now he had to prove he was worthy of the moniker. The new twist of the DQ title change was an interesting one and Chris was going to use that to his advantage.

The bell rang and the friendship died on the spot. They were two adversaries and this was their arena to duel it out until one of them collapsed. This was for the title, for glory, for history. They locked up with one another, going to one corner and then to another. They traded holds and Punk got the upper-hand first. They went back and forth for a good part of the match, like other matches (minus Sheamus and Bryan), they had to get a feel for the other.

Punk hit him from behind in the head and then got some chops on him before he gave a knee to Chris in the gut. Chris cowered in the corner as Punk stomped away at him, hoping Punk would get carried away and get DQ'ed. Chris was never above cheating or manipulating to win. This was a battle and there were dirty tactics in battle and to suggest otherwise was incredibly naïve.

Punk started to stomp on him again with Chris not retaliating, but Punk stopped himself again. Chris, playing dirty and knowing it, asked Punk how his father was. When he was in the ring, he was a different man and that man played to win. Punk went at him again while Chris, again, did not retaliate in any way. Punk managed to control his temper and went to the top, but Chris rolled out of the ring before Punk could come down at him.

Instead, Punk just leapt on him, taking Chris out while the referee started the 10-count. Chris then asked how Punk's sister was, knowing that would get him riled up again. Punk grabbed a chair and Chris raced into the ring and begged Punk to just hit him with the chair, to take a swing at him because Punk really wanted to. He kept talking trash about everyone in his entire family, trying to prompt Punk to hit him with the chair.

"What he doing, Sawa?" Flynn whispered to her brother.

"If Punk hits Daddy with the chair then Daddy will win the big belt," Sawyer explained to him.

"Oh," Flynn said, then thought for a moment. "Get hit, Daddy!"

Punk was about to swing at Chris, but that wasn't how this was going to end; that would be cheap and Punk wasn't going to lose in such a cheap fashion. Punk, instead, kicked Chris. But Chris was on his toes and dropkicked Punk when his back was turned. Chris got in some offense, but Punk came back at him and tried to go for the GTS, but Chris was able to block it. Chris gave Punk a clothesline and then suplexed Punk straight to the floor, making the man cry out in pain.

Backstage, Stephanie smirked at the move. She liked Punk, sure, but right now, she wanted him to go down faster than Kelly Kelly on…any guy that moved. Punk certainly took more of the impact, but Chris took some as well and got up slowly. Chris was able to kick at Punk and then pull him back into the ring, but only for a two count. Chris then hit a backbreaker, trying for another pin, but only got another two count. He tried another move and another pin, but Punk wasn't relenting.

Chris went for one more move in the corner, but Punk ducked out of the way and fought back with some chops and then a knee right into Chris's chin. Punk then clotheslined Chris and got a swinging neckbreaker on him, but only for a two count. Punk went for a bulldog, but Chris blocked it and ended up going for the Lionsault. Punk moved out of the way at the last second and Chris landed on his feet, but then was down when Punk kicked him in the head.

Punk tried for the pin, but again, Chris kicked out. They traded counters for a little bit before Punk got the offense in and another two count. They ended up outside the ring again and he was near where his kids were sitting and could hear them cheering his name, which spurned him on. They managed to get back into the ring and Punk nailed the GTS, but Chris slickly put his foot on the ropes. They never expected that, but it was kind of one of Chris's signature things.

Punk was getting the upper-hand again, but it was short-lived as Chris made a comeback. He tried the Lionsault again and got it this time, but again, only a two count. He had never hated the number two more. This was his match to shine. He'd come back because he wanted to be the best in the world and he wanted to be acknowledged for it. He wanted the glory and he wanted the title. He'd promised his kids he'd come back and he didn't want it to be for nothing. He wanted to stand on top of the WrestleMania mountain like he had two years ago when he beat Edge. He wanted that feeling again.

Punk got him into the corner and climbed up with Jericho. Punk was going to go for the hurricanrana, but he should have known better, known that Chris had a counter for everything and anything, including moves that took place in the air. He managed to counter it into the Walls of Jericho. Punk managed to get to the ropes before he tapped out and Chris was forced to let go. He argued with the referee for nothing and that gave Punk the opportunity to turn the tables on Chris and dumped him onto the mat outside the ring again. Punk dove through the ropes, taking Chris out like Punk had been taken out a short while ago.

They got back into the ring eventually and Punk was going to come off the top rope, but Chris was ready for him and caught him into a Codebreaker. Another damn two count. Chris was getting angrier by the second and he grabbed Punk and started yelling at him out of frustration. He liked having an opponent who could go toe-to-toe with him, but he wanted the damn win!

Punk got him for the GTS, but Chris was able to block it and then when Punk tried again, Chris fought out of it again. They went back and forth for a bit before Punk tried again for the GTS, but his showboating cost him as Chris countered it for the Walls of Jericho. He wanted to win and he wanted to win now. The Walls turned into a pin for Punk and they went back and forth, rolling the other up for the pin, but neither one was staying down. Punk kept getting the Anaconda vice on him, but Chris was able to counter.

Until he wasn't.

And then he had to tap out because it was too much.

And then he lost.

Which made him not the best in the world.

It was okay though because if he had to lose to anyone, he was glad it was Punk. As they lay there in the ring for a moment, he reached out and rubbed Punk's head, telling him without words or hugs, that he respected him for taking him to the limit and coming out on top. They were friends at the core and that was what mattered at this moment. Chris was proud to call CM Punk his friend.

Flynn looked at Sawyer and frowned. He hugged her because she looked sad and she didn't say anything, just kind of watched as her daddy lay in the ring, the loser again. It was like every time she went out there to watch him, he lost. She didn't much like it and she screwed up her mouth.

"Daddy shoulda won," Flynn told her brother.

"I know," Sawyer said, "but 'member what Daddy said. He said that sometimes you don't win, but that if you try your best, then you did your best and you are good and you are the best in the world. He's still the best."

"Oh, I know," Flynn said with a smile. "He's the best, best, best."

Chris trudged backstage and Stephanie greeted him, pulling off her headphones. "We only have a Brodus thing so I've got a moment, I'm so proud of you, sweetie. You were magnificent out there and you should be proud of yourself."

"I am," Chris said. Punk came backstage then too and walked straight to Chris, extending his hand as he did so. Chris shook his head and grabbed Punk's hand, pulling him into a hug. "Come here, man, I'm damn proud of you."

"Thanks," Punk said, "you are one of the best in the world, Chris, don't doubt that, dude. You brought it tonight. Do you think Flynn hates me?"

"There's a very distinct chance," Chris laughed with him, "now get out of here."

"Later guys," Punk said as Chris turned to his wife, who immediately hugged him.

"I may be even prouder of you for that," she whispered into his ear.

"Okay, we're hashing this out _now_!" a voice came into their area as they pulled apart. They saw Edge dragging Christian behind him and then stopped in front of Chris and Stephanie, with Lita trailing behind.

"What's going on?" Stephanie asked.

"Trish went home this morning, right after breakfast, and I ask my brother what's going on and I get the same, none of your business, well, you know what, little brother, it _is_ my business because whatever the hell is going on with you, it's affecting all of us! So why don't you just tell us what the hell is wrong with you and Trish!" Edge was so angry, both Stephanie and Chris were taken aback. "And if you don't tell me right now, I tell Mom something's up."

"God, fine, you ass!" Christian said, "Though it isn't any of your damn business."

"Christian, you don't…" Stephanie trailed off.

"No, tell us," Edge said, "Tell us!"

"Trish and I are separated!"


	364. Revenge, April 2, 2012

A/N: Thanks for the reviews everyone! So I was writing this chapter and thinking about the ending and it just felt more impactful if I left it to this Raw only simply because of what I've planned for the story. Therefore, next week will _positively_ be a double chapter because by then, you'll know where the story is going. So this is just the Raw after WM.

Also, I hope everyone got to see that picture of Chris and Stephanie hugging from the Hall of Fame because can we say adorable! I hope you've all seen it because it's seriously awesome. Hope you enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

"If I had known it was that far, I probably wouldn't have done anything."

"You didn't know it was that bad," Stephanie shook her head at Edge. "Nobody did, they didn't tell anyone what was really going on."

"I should have known though, I shouldn't have pushed him to talk about that, I feel awful," Edge said, staring down at his cup of coffee. "I feel like the world's biggest jerk right about now. I knew something was wrong, I just wanted him to let it out of the bag. I honestly thought it was going to be something like they were in a rut or they were trying to have a baby and were having a lot of trouble, kind of like they did with Tilden."

"I don't know what I thought," Lita said, "but actually separated, I wasn't expecting that. I wish they would talk to us though. I mean, we can help, we've all been through those types of things. Edge and I were broken up for a while and I know it's not the same, but it kind of is and you two broke up before you were married."

"I can't imagine ever leaving Stephanie," Chris shook his head, glancing at his wife, who gave him a small smile over her drink. "I mean, we've had our fights, our really bad fights and everything, like that one WrestleMania, when you were pregnant with Flynn, and we just had that huge fight, and we didn't talk for like a week. I never wanted to leave you though. I've been with you for seven years and I've never once ever thought that."

"It has to be bad for them then, bad enough for this to happen," Stephanie looked at the people around the table.

It was the night after WrestleMania and instead of talking about the show, Chris's lack of a win, or Edge's emotional Hall of Fame moment, they were shell-shocked by Christian's revelation. None of them had suspected how far the relationship had gone. It was jarring to think of their best friends actually being separated. Christian had stormed off after saying that and they had yet to see him today, if he was even still in Miami. They had no idea of his whereabouts and all four of them thought it probably best to lay off him for a while.

"I just don't get it," Lita shook her head. "They worked so hard to get together. I mean, you had Christian with Tiffany, that was her name, right, Steph?"

"Yeah, that was her name," Stephanie confirmed.

"How is she? Like is she still in the UK?" Edge asked.

"Yeah, her husband is from there and her work is there. She's really happy though. I visited with her last time we were in the UK on tour with Chris. She actually came to one of Chris's concerts to see us. She's doing great. She actually had a baby not too long ago."

"Wow, to think that girl almost married my brother," Edge said. "I guess things work out…or don't, for a reason."

"Then remember Trish and Carlito," Chris said. "I mean, that went really, really far. They almost got married."

The table went silent for a moment before Lita dared to ask the question that was lingering over the table. "Do you think they'd still be together if she married Carlito instead?"

"No," Edge answered, "I really don't think so because if he had been _the_ man in her life, I think she would have married him and not gone back to my brother. I think she would have the conviction to stay with Carlito if she really loved him like that. You don't just turn your back on that kind of thing. I didn't with you. I made some stupid decisions after you, Vickie being one of them, but we found our way back to each other—"

"Yeah, because we pushed you two back together," Stephanie said.

"Either way, we would have found each other, just like you guys couldn't quit each other when you broke up," Edge pointed between the two of them. "If things are meant to work out with them, they're going to work out. They have Tilden to think about anyways, so that is going to sway their decision, don't you think?"

"Oh, for sure," Stephanie nodded. "If Chris and I ever decided to separate or get divorced, I'd want to make it as easy a transition as I possibly could for the kids…which means I wouldn't make it overt that I was stalking Chris to see if he started dating anyone else."

"Oh my God, I didn't even think of that," Edge cut in, "they could be dating other people! What if my brother is dating someone we don't know? What if they get divorced, how would that even work, we all love Trish, we all love Christian, would we have to choose sides? We wouldn't be able to all hang out together, that would be out of the question."

"You know, it could be amicable," Lita said, "I mean, they were hanging out this week and at least pretending to be a couple and even though things were a little odd between them, they were able to stay in each other's presence without fighting or even really yelling at each other that we saw."

"That's true," Chris said, "maybe we're the ones blowing it out of proportion and they just needed some time together. Like they just needed a little time apart before they get back on track."

"That's reasonable," Lita said, "the fact is we don't know the whole story. So unless they decided to tell us what's really going on we can't just jump to the conclusion that they're going to get divorced and we're going to have to choose sides."

"We'd probably have to do it boy/girl, Chris and I choosing Christian, he is my brother after all and you and Stephanie choosing Trish…because you're all women."

"Wow, so you didn't hear a word I said then," Lita rolled her eyes at her boyfriend, reaching her hand out to ruffle his hair. "God, I need to get used to this, how did you get used to short hair, Steph?"

"I'll tell you when I do," she gave a smart smirk over at Chris and he flipped her off.

"When are you getting the kids?"

"They'll be back around lunch," Stephanie said, "they wanted to go to the beach and since we gave Sawyer the day off—"

"I'm sorry, you _gave him the day off_, it makes it sound like he has a job," Edge laughed.

"Well, you know what I mean, we let him off the hook for school for one day since WrestleMania is a special occasion to us. So he's choosing to live it to its fullest. Chris's parents are going to bring them back and then we'll take them to the show tonight, you guys are coming?"

"We probably will," Lita said. "I was actually thinking about going home earlier though, see if I can't find Trish and have a talk with her."

"Oh, can you wait until I'm back?" Stephanie asked. "I'd like to get in on that."

"Of course," Lita said, "it's probably better if we're both there for her."

"Do we need to have a talk with Christian? Makeovers and nails done?" Edge asked Chris. Lita and Stephanie both glared at him and he held up his hands in defense. "Sorry, but it was too easy a joke to pass up."

"We'll just have to be supportive," Chris said, "that's all we can do."

Punk was not usually a swimming type of guy, but because he didn't like spray tans or tanning beds so if he wanted a little color and not to end up as white as Sheamus, he had to actually go out in the sun. He wasn't a vampire, so this did not pose a problem. Miami was the perfect place to get a tan too. God, he hated how that sounded. It made him sound like one of those California types who laid out and junk like that.

Today was his lucky day though, because Britt was laying out in the sun reading a book under a big, floppy hat that made him laugh for some reason. She just didn't seem like the big, floppy hat type, but then, her skin was pretty pale, he guessed due to her father's British-ness or something? He wasn't entirely sure, but Britt's skin was flawless and as his eyes ran up her legs to her bikini, he started cursing Hunter under his breath again.

The seat next to her was empty so he made his way over there and sunk himself down into the lounger. Britt noticed the movement out of the corner of her eye and looked up to see Punk grinning at her. "Oh, it's you."

"Is that any way to talk to me?" Punk asked in a silly voice, winking at her playfully.

"Yes, it is," Britt said, going back to her book. "If you had any brains in your head, you would just go sit somewhere else."

"I don't have brains in my head, I guess that's my problem," Punk told her. "I just saw you here and I thought I might come and sit next to you. I'm not going to cause trouble or anything, if that's what you're worried about."

"You've already caused trouble," Britt said.

"So your boy's match last night, pretty classic I'll admit, even though if you like _wrestling_, I think my match was better," Punk said, "not to discount what Hunter and Taker did, but come on, if it weren't them, they'd be getting 'boring' chants."

"He's fine, thanks for asking," Britt said.

"Well, I'm glad, I wouldn't wish injury on the guy," Punk told her seriously. "I would not wish injury even on my worst enemy. That's not how I work, you should know that."

"Yeah, I do," she mumbled, "sorry."

"It's okay. I'm guessing he couldn't sleep on his back last night."

"No, he couldn't," Britt said, "it's pretty nasty actually. Taker had a singlet on, but Hunter's was skin on metal and yeah, welts galore."

"Been there, had that done to me, it's no fun," Punk nodded. "So is he going to be on Raw tonight?"

"No, he's not up to it," Britt said, "not that I blame him. He just went through hell, almost literally, so I told him to take the day off and to just rest because he deserves it."

"I guess. I would have come to work though, but I guess that's just me."

"You're also younger," Britt pointed out.

"And faster, quicker, smarter, better-looking," Punk listed off reasons why he was so much better. Britt actually laughed at that and he beamed as he put on some sunscreen. "I didn't come out here expecting to see you, if that's what you were worried about. I just came out here to get some color because I don't do any of that fake tanning stuff."

"But you'll come out here and lay in the sun?"

"Of course, it's a great day," he said, grabbing his sunscreen and starting to slather some onto his arms. "Did you need any? I'd be more than willing to put some on you."

"No thank you, I'm pretty well-covered as it is," she told him.

"I'd say you weren't very well-covered at all," he leered at her openly and she flipped him off. "Oh come on, even you have to admit that was a pretty good line, I mean, not my best, but a pretty good line."

"No, it wasn't."

"You ran the show well last night."

"Stephanie ran most of it," Britt said. "I was just doing damage control."

"Don't sell yourself short," he told her, "you did a great job."

"Well thanks," she shrugged as she looked at what he'd brought with him. "What are you reading?"

He held up his Batman comic book. "Some intense reading for such an intense day. I figure I'm going to need something cool to tide me over now that Laurinaitis is in charge. I bet Vince is thrilled with that development. I heard he was in the area, came down with Linda, but that he hasn't shown up to anything, at least nobody has seen him. He wasn't at the Hall of Fame and I don't think he was at WrestleMania."

"Maybe he knows he's not wanted," Britt shrugged. "It's entirely possible."

"He has to be glad about the Laurinaitis thing. Stephanie should just fire him, just be done with it, you know. But then, I don't get the whole thing with her father in the first place. I mean, I guess I can see some of her points, but at least her dad was there for her, you know."

"Yeah, I guess," Britt said.

"Don't listen to me, I'm not making any sense," Punk shook his head.

Britt just stared at him. "Your match was good too last night, for the record. I thought you guys did a great job and you were both going all out. I think Chris could have beaten you any number of times, but you really persevered and that's to be commended."

"It was never really about being the best in the world, but it's nice to have a really good match and come out on top. Sometimes I don't feel like I have enough competition, but Chris really brought it and I appreciate that and I brought it too and I think he appreciates that."

"I'm sure he does."

"So…have you thought anymore about what I brought up?" he asked, going for broke now. He'd been skirting around it, but now it was time to say something.

"No, I haven't," Britt said, "and you shouldn't bring it up because there's nothing to bring up."

"Except the fact I kissed you," he told her and she scowled at him.

It wasn't the only scowl though, not by a long shot. Hunter had dragged himself out of bed to go find Britt and spend some time with her. He'd run into Dolph Ziggler in the lobby and, upon asking if he'd seen Britt (as Dolph was the first wrestler he'd come across), Dolph told him she was at the pool. He'd gone down there to see her, only to find she was talking with Punk. He walked up to them when he heard the word kiss and that stopped him in his tracks. Punk and Britt both had their backs to him so they couldn't see him unless they turned around, but they were talking and didn't notice him.

"Yes, there is that," Britt said, 'but I thought we discussed it."

"I don't think we discussed it enough. I definitely think we'd work together, better than you do right now. I know you're still hung up on Hunter because he was hurt last night in his match, but you should really drop him for me."

"Aggressiveness does not suit you, Phil," Britt shook her head.

"I could kiss you again," Punk suggested and Britt glanced over at him. "Okay, I won't, but I think you would like it."

Hunter had heard enough. He stomped away and it was like every nerve ending was exploding with frantic rage. He wanted to get Punk back, he wanted to slam Punk into a window and watch him bleed from a thousand cuts. That bastard dared to kiss his girlfriend and act like he was the one she should be with. He'd been through a lot to get Britt and he wasn't going to let some asshole take her away just like that. Hunter was the one that loved her, not Punk and he wasn't going to stand for this.

But how could he possibly get back at Punk for this?

He needed to him where it really hurt, but where was that?

Stephanie looked at Chris sitting on the couch of their locker room. She'd just gone to grab a water and found him sitting on the couch, just staring down at his phone. He looked involved in what he was doing, but not so terribly involved he would ignore her. She went over and sat next to him, tucking her leg underneath her as she leaned her chin on his shoulder. He turned his head to throw her a smile before looking back at his phone. She glanced down at his phone and saw he was looking at his Fozzy account, going through the mentions.

"You know, we never really discussed your tweet from this morning, the one about you moving on," Stephanie said to him, her breath blowing against his cheek.

"What about it?" he asked.

"Did you mean it?"

"Well, he beat me last night so you know…what more is there to do?" Chris shrugged. Punk had beat him fair and square and he'd laid claim to the best in the world moniker. What more could Chris do but give in? He'd lost and that was that. He wasn't entitled to a rematch and he doubted he'd get one with Laurinaitis as the GM. If he asked Stephanie, Laurinaitis would probably just accuse him of abusing his power.

"I still think you're the best in the world, but I'm sure there's someone around here who will piss you off. Maybe you should go after Otunga based on the fact he's Laurinaitis's stooge."

"Or maybe another copycat?" Chris suggested. He didn't know where he was going to go from here, but he was going to go somewhere. "If you didn't notice, Laurinaitis kept me off the schedule tonight, I'm sure he and Vince are loving the power."

"Of course they are, but we'll make sure they don't last," Stephanie said, "at the end of the day, I'm still the one running the company. My dad isn't doing anything that's terrible. When he starts going after my job then we'll have a problem."

"That's for sure, you'll fight until the death for that job," Chris joked, laughing softly at her mock glare.

"What are you really thinking about though?" she asked him, sensing something else was on his mind, something he wasn't talking about and she really wanted to know what it was. He just looked at her, surprised, mildly, she could see something was wrong. But then, he should have known she'd know, she always knew.

"I'm just wondering what's going to happen to Christian and Trish and how this could have happened in the first place," he admitted.

"Well, you know these kinds of things happen," Stephanie reached out to rub his arm. "Sometimes people have big problems and they have trouble getting over them and sometimes those people need to be apart."

"I just don't get it though, they were so happy, they fought so hard to be together and I feel like a bad friend for not being there for them when they needed me," Chris told her. "I don't know how they let it get this far, how could they let it get this far?"

"I'm not entirely sure," Stephanie said, "Trish really didn't confide in me or Lita. I think she's probably embarrassed, they both might be and that's why they haven't said anything to us about it. But we just have to hope their problems aren't as bad as they seem and if they do get divorced, we need to support them no matter what."

"I just don't get how you can just fall out of love with someone you married," Chris shook his head. "I'm sorry if that offends you, baby, but when I got married, I made sure it was what I wanted to do with whom I wanted to do it with. I can't imagine ever going back on that."

"Well, first of all, I'm glad for that," Stephanie patted his arm, "but sometimes, we think we know what's best for us, but then it just turns out it isn't the best for us. That's what I felt with Hunter. I just…kind of let it fade away."

"I don't know what I'd do if we ever separated," he admitted to her, sighing as he thought about that prospect. He wouldn't admit it, but it scared him to his very core that someday he and Stephanie might find themselves at cross-purposes.

"I assume you would go on."

"You assume wrong then," Chris told her, looking at her intensely. "I can't imagine ever falling out of love with you or ever waking up and not thinking I'm a lucky man for having you next to me. You have no idea how wrecked I would be if we got separated."

"Chris," Stephanie tilted her head.

"No, you really don't. I wouldn't handle it well at all," he confessed to her. "Just the thought of being away from you, the thought that I'd have to wake up in the morning not only to an empty bed but to an empty house, no way, I couldn't do it. I just don't want anything to disrupt my family. I can't imagine not living with my kids everyday."

"You don't have to worry, I'm not going anywhere, believe me," Stephanie told him, running her hand down his cheek. Chris grabbed her hand and kissed it.

"I worry about it sometimes."

"What do you worry about?" Stephanie asked, her head tilting and her brow furrowing. "Me leaving you?"

"I mean, I haven't, but I've been thinking about it since last night, how relationships fall apart," he told her with a shrug. "Don't mind me, I'm not making any sense over here."

"No, I'm going to definitely mind you, if you think something is wrong with us, I want you to address it to me right now," Stephanie demanded to know. If Chris was somehow doubting something in their relationship, she wanted to know. She hoped it wasn't something to do with him coming back and feeling like he had been pressured into it by her because that wasn't the case at all.

"No, no," Chris shook his head and looked at her. "I'm not suggesting there's anything wrong with us. I'm just thinking about the fragility of relationships in general, not specifically about our relationship. I just think if we were to break up, I'd be pretty devastated."

"I would be too, which is why we're perfect together," she leaned forward to kiss him briefly before the door to their locker room was thrust open wildly.

"Mommy, we're here!" Sawyer said as he opened the door. "We had so much fun at the beach. Grandpa let me go into the water and he stood with me, but it was really fun."

"The water was calm," Ted said as he walked in with Kensington in his arms. "We just went wading pretty much."

"I dids a castle," Flynn announced, then squealed when someone showed up in the doorway. "Hi, Punk! I goes to the beach today."

Punk had been worried Flynn would hate him for beating Chris the night before, but apparently she was taking it okay. Actually, Flynn had been much better after Chris's loss last night than she had been with any of Chris's losses. She understood now that her father, great as he was, wasn't going to win every match. It was a sobering lesson to learn, but as long as her daddy wrestled the best he could, that was going to have to do.

"Wow, that sounds like fun," Punk said, receiving a hug from her. "I wish I could have gone."

"You could have," Flynn shrugged, then looked longingly at his belt. "My daddy still better than you."

"You think so?" Punk asked kindly.

"Uh huh, he not win, but he still the best," Flynn said with conviction. "I think so and it is."

"Well, I'm glad you think that way, you should always think that way," he told her, ruffling her hair. She gave him another hug and he returned it happily. Flynn really could put him the best mood.

"You were good last night, Punk, I thought you did really good, but I still like my daddy best though," Sawyer told him.

"Well, I'm glad you thought I was good at least, that means a lot to me," he said, turning to Chris and Stephanie. "So I'm hoping we're friends again. I know we didn't really get a good chance to talk last night, but I really hope that we're cool with each other?"

"We're cool," Chris said, but he was still distracted about the Christian/Trish situation and was in no mood to really talk to anyone. His brain just kept thinking about his friends had let things get so bad. How had they let it happen? Had it been a slow leak that suddenly burst at the seams? Was there the same kind of leak with him and Stephanie?

"Are you sure?" Punk asked, looking critically at Chris. There was something off about him and he really didn't want to lose a friend over a match they both agreed to go all out for. Punk had been doing his job. He wanted to keep his belt and that's what he had planned and that was the mission he'd executed.

"He's got other things on his mind," Stephanie told Punk, "don't worry, it's not about you."

"Okay," Punk said slowly, still looking at Chris with apprehension.

"She's right, I have other things on my mind," Chris reassured him. "We're cool, I swear."

"Okay, I better go, did you hear about the big meeting with Laurinaitis now that the douchebag is still in charge?" Punk asked.

"We know, Chris doesn't have to go because he's an executive."

"Lucky bastard," Punk joked, which actually got a laugh out of Chris. "I'll see you guys later, later, Sawyer, later, Flynnie."

"Punks, I go with you?" Flynn asked, holding her hand out. "I cans go?"

"Well, I wasn't going to do anything except get a snack at catering, do you want to come with me and have a snack, if it's okay with your parents," Punk looked questioningly at Chris and Stephanie.

"That's fine, they could probably use a snack if they haven't had one," now Stephanie looked at her in-laws with question in her eyes.

"They haven't," Loretta answered.

"Can I go too? I want a snack," Sawyer said.

"Sure, come on," Punk said, extending his arm towards Sawyer and gesturing for him to come too. "Kensy?"

"No," Kensington shook her head. She was perfectly content in her grandfather's arms and she didn't want to go anywhere else.

"Okay, well, I guess I'll take them to get their snack and then I'll bring them back when we're done," Punk said, opening the door so Flynn and Sawyer could go before him. "I'll have them back soon."

Hunter was stewing down the hallway when he looked up and saw Punk walking down the hallway, one hand holding Flynn's hand while Sawyer talked animatedly about something, gesturing wildly with his arms as Punk laughed at whatever it was he was saying. Punk, like Hunter, thought Chris and Stephanie's kids were great fun and they were something of a necessity backstage. Things could get so hectic and chaotic, but when you hung out with kids, they really put things in perspective.

It was difficult not to like Chris and Stephanie's kids, no matter what your thoughts about Chris and Stephanie were. They were really good, sweet children with funny and cute dispositions and personalities. It dawned on Hunter what he needed to do to get back at Punk. He was going to take that bastard down if it was the last thing he'd do. Punk wouldn't care professionally what was done to him, but he'd care personally.

Hunter was going to make sure of that.

"Punk, I want that," Flynn said, pointing to a bag of popcorn. Punk grabbed it and handed it to her. "Thanks!"

"No problem," Punk said as he looked to Sawyer, "what do you want, buddy?"

"I can get it," Sawyer reached across the catering table to grab a small bag of crackers that looked appealing to him.

"Cool, we set?" Punk asked and they both nodded before moving to the drink station. He grabbed a water for himself and a couple of chocolate milks for the kids before he scoped out a table for the three of them. He pointed to it and followed them as they made their way to the table, climbing up onto the seats. "Did you enjoy the rest of the show last night?"

"Yeah," Sawyer said, "but the match between Sheamus and Daniel Bryan was really, really short."

"I know, that was kind of surprising," Punk said.

"Sames won and he's my friend so I was happy," Flynn said as she tried to get her bag of popcorn open. She didn't quite have the dexterity of her brother though so Punk opened the bag for her and she beamed at him in thanks.

"Yeah, that had to be pretty cool," Punk said. He had no real feelings towards Sheamus, but that match had been a joke.

"He lost because he was kissing a girl," Sawyer laughed and stuck out his tongue.

"Have _you_ ever kissed a girl?" Punk asked him playfully.

"Eww, I wouldn't!" Sawyer said. "Except for Mommy, Flynnie, and Kensy, they're girls and I kiss them."

"Well, they're your mommy and your sisters, they can get kisses, but you haven't kissed any of your friends who are girls?" Punk teased him again and Sawyer shook his head vigorously, his eyes wide like that was something he would never consider. "You're missing out then."

"No," Sawyer laughed. "Kissing girls is for grownups."

"You say that now," Punk said, "but it is kind of sad that he lost because he was kissing a girl."

"Yeah, but sometimes that happens," Sawyer said, "Daddy lost because he kissed Mommy."

"King of the Ring!" Flynn said. "Or SummerSlam!" Flynn made a crazy face that Punk had to laugh at. Her knowledge of all things Chris was a little jarring to someone who wasn't used to her and her enthusiasm about Chris's career.

"Yeah, you guys sure do know a lot."

"Daddy kissed Mommy because she tried to make him lose when he was wrestling Kurt Angle and so he just kissed her and then he dropped her, but then he lost because he was wanting to kiss her even more."

"Really?"

"I think so," Sawyer told him. "He says he hated Mommy, but that's just silly."

"I think so too," Punk assured him.

"Daddy loved her," Flynn put in her two cents.

"I think he still does, just a hunch though," Punk laughed at these two crazy kids. They were just the funniest kids you could ever encounter. After they finished their snack, he walked them back to their parents' locker room. Stephanie was there, but Chris wasn't so he left them with a couple hugs then had to go get ready for this stupid meeting later. He knew he was running late, but Johnny Toolbox could wait until Punk was ready to see him. Stephanie thanked him for watching the kids and he saluted her and left.

"Chris, wait up!"

Chris looked over his shoulder at Hunter, who was jogging to catch up with him. Maybe jogging wasn't the right word for it. Hunter was more like hobbling down the hallway to Chris. Chris waited for him, not thinking it fair if he kept walking. Hunter eventually made it to him and Chris gave him the once over. "You look like you were run over by a semi."

"I pretty much was," Hunter said, cringing as he twisted his back in a painful way. "You should see my back, it's pretty messed up. Britt had to take care of me last night. She's a champ though. I think she's gotten used to this."

"Yeah, I bet," Chris said.

"So I needed to talk to you and it's pretty serious," Hunter said, looking down at the ground. "I didn't…I mean, it's pretty serious stuff so do you think we can go somewhere and talk? I'm not really comfortable discussing this in front of anyone."

Chris was slightly concerned over what this could be about. Hunter was an intense guy, but he didn't really come to Chris with the important stuff. That was more of a Shawn job, even though Chris couldn't stand Shawn, Shawn was Hunter's best friend and the first person Hunter turned to for advice. He had no idea what this could be about, but if Hunter was seeking him out, then things were not good at all.

"Okay, sure," Chris said, glancing around and trying to find an empty locker room. He tried a door on the right and when it opened, he peeked his head inside, seeing that it was empty. He jerked his thumb towards the door and went inside, with Hunter following shortly after. "What's going on?"

"I know about the kiss with Punk and Britt," Hunter admitted to Chris, rubbing the back of his neck again.

"Oh wow, did she tell you?" Chris asked.

"No, she didn't, I actually overheard Punk saying it this morning when he was talking to his friend, that guy from Rancid," Hunter explained. "I didn't mean to overhear, but when I heard Britt's name, I couldn't help but listen. From what I understand though, Britt didn't kiss him back."

"No, she didn't," Chris told him and Hunter looked up at him in surprise.

"You knew?"

"Oh, uh, yes, Britt told us about it, me and Stephanie," Chris said, "I think she was going to tell you, but she didn't want it. It was unexpected, there's nothing going on between her and Punk."

"Yeah, I know," Hunter said and though he hadn't really known, he trusted Britt not to do something like that to him. It was Punk he had to worry about…for now anyways. "But he wants her, I know he does, I've confronted him about it before, not about this, I was too distracted."

"Look, I've been where you are," Chris told him, "I've had Stephanie be kissed by—"

"No, it was something else that distracted me," Hunter heaved a sigh, "and I don't know how to say it, I've been wrestling with it all day and I just…I figured at the end of it I needed to tell you what I heard because it involves you and I wouldn't be a good friend if I kept it from you."

"Kept what from me?" Now Chris was very confused. He didn't have any clue what Hunter might be going on about.

"It's something Punk told his friend. I know Britt loves me and I'm not worried about what happened with her. It's just…I don't even know how to say it, it's just so…wrong," Hunter shook his head in disgust, "the entire thing."

"What, man, you're starting to worry me here," Chris told him, wanting to know right now what Hunter heard.

"Punk said he was using your kids to get closer to Britt," Hunter came out with it. "He said that he knew that Britt really liked Sawyer, Flynn, and Kensy because, well, who doesn't, and he said that by using them, he could get closer to Britt. He could use that to his advantage, get her to see how he was good around kids. He said they were annoying, but he could deal with that if it meant he got a chance with Britt."

"No way, dude, no way," Chris shook his head. That could _not_ be true.

"I heard it, Chris. I didn't know whether he was joking or what, but then I saw him a little while ago with them, walking down the hallway. I walked by and he said they should look for Britt," Hunter said. It was true that he'd walked by them in catering. The truth, though, was that Flynn had seen Britt walk by and wondered if they should bring her a snack. "That's when I knew I had to tell you. He was probably thinking of going by her so she could see how he was a good guy or whatever. I know he wants her to see him like that."

"I can't believe this," Chris muttered. He didn't want to believe it, but why would Hunter lie to him? Hunter was his friend and he wouldn't lie about something involving his kids. Punk had taken a liking to his children, but he said he liked kids. On the other hand, Chris never saw Punk with any children besides his own so maybe…Punk was really using his children. But Punk wouldn't do that…would he? The truth was, he didn't know all that much about Punk, not enough to make a true judgment call on this.

"I know, I thought the same thing. I would never think about using kids just to get a woman to notice you. I mean, what kind of man would do that?"

"I don't…I can't believe…maybe it was something you misheard," Chris tried to reason.

"I don't think so, I heard what I heard, Chris, I'm really sorry about this. I just don't want Sawyer and Flynn to get hurt because I know they really like him and everything and they have no clue they're just pawns in his game."

"I have to go," Chris said, rushing out of the room. Hunter frowned as he watched Chris leave. It was tough to do that, to lie to Chris, but Punk had to pay for what he'd done and this was the only way to make sure he was blacklisted from Britt's life.

Chris walked briskly down the hallway towards his locker room. He threw open the door in anger, causing Stephanie and the children to look up quickly. They were surprised to see Chris so angry as he usually didn't look like that. Even Kensington could sense something was up and she went over to Chris, holding her arms up to him. He took her into his arms, her presence calming him significantly.

"Chris, what's wrong?" Stephanie asked.

"Sawyer, Flynn, can I ask you a question?" Chris turned to his children without addressing his wife.

"Sure," Sawyer shrugged, "What is it?"

"When you went with Punk to get your snacks, did he mention Britt?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, "when we were having snacks, he said it might be nice to bring her one." He left out the part about Flynn bringing it up because that wasn't what his father asked.

"So he thought it would be nice to bring Britt a snack with you guys?" Chris asked.

"No, he said we should invite her to sit with us, but wasn't there," Sawyer answered nonchalantly.

"She working," Flynn added. "We saws her when we were eating."

Hunter was right. Punk was trying to use his children. Punk was trying to _use_ his children to get a girl. These kids adored Punk, looked to him as a friend and that bastard was using them. A white hot rage coursed through Chris the likes of which he'd never felt before. He'd been angry before over a variety of things, he'd built half his career being angry at various people, but nobody had treated his children like this. This feeling paled even in comparison to his hatred towards Austin for kicking Stephanie in the stomach while she was pregnant with Sawyer.

This man had swept in and used his kids for his own personal gain? That was unacceptable and every harsh feeling he could have felt towards Punk while they were "feuding," was turning into a very real feeling. He felt hot, like the room was an inferno and there was nothing on his mind except revenge. He wanted to take Punk down, and it wasn't because he wanted the title, he wanted to see Punk in a bloody pulp.

"I've got something I need to do," Chris said as an idea popped into his head. If he was going to get at Punk, he was going to fight fire with fire. If Punk thought he could mess with what Chris held dear, Chris was going to do the same to something Punk held dear. "I've got to go."

He put Kensington down and grabbed his wallet from his duffel bag. "Chris, what is going on?"

"I've got an errand to run," he grabbed his keys. Stephanie was up and out of her seat as she headed him off at the door, standing in front of it and staring at him.

"Chris, what happened? Why are you so mad?" she asked in a low voice so the kids wouldn't hear.

"I need you to move," Chris told her quietly, but his voice was filled with rage. "I need you to move right now."

"Chris…"

"Stephanie, I'm not asking you, I'm telling you," his voice was clipped, but Stephanie could tell whatever was going on was something extremely serious. She wasn't sure if she should move until she heard what he was doing.

"No, you're going to tell me right now."

"I don't want to talk about it right now, right now I want to take care of it," he gave her another look. "Stephanie, I love you, but get out of the way."

"Chris, please, just talk to me."

"This is not the time for talking," Chris gently shoved her out of the way and he was out the door. Stephanie glanced at it and then the kids. She couldn't leave them in here alone, but she needed to know what was going on with Chris. Chris's parents weren't at the show tonight and Britt was nowhere to be found so she had no choice but to let him go.

Stephanie didn't see Chris for the rest of the evening. Wherever he was, he wasn't seeking her out. When the show started, she took the kids to the production table so they could watch the show from there so when Chris came back, nobody was there, which was fine with him. He had things he needed to take care of and it would be more difficult with the kids underfoot. He was going to teach Punk a lesson. Chris was a good guy at heart, but when you crossed him, that was it, you were done, and Chris would finish you.

Nobody, _nobody_ used his kids and got away with it. Those kids were the most important things in his world and he would gladly die for any one of them. Anybody treating his kids with no respect was going to get their head bashed in and that was just Chris's intention. He just has to wait for the right moment. Punk helped him on that front by speaking up to Laurinaitis one too many times. He was put in a match against Mark Henry and Chris knew he had his opportunity.

He waited on baited breath for the match to happen, not talking to anyone or going to see anyone. When the match started, he grabbed what he needed and grabbed his jacket and he was gone. By the time he got to the ring the back way, through the fans, the match was over and Laurinaitis was talking to Punk about bringing the hurt or something Chris didn't care about. All he had was tunnel vision for Punk. When Laurinaitis was done speaking, Chris cut in and started walking towards the ring, setting aside what he'd brought with him.

Punk was surprised to see him to say the least, laying there on the mat like he was. Chris went over to him, talking about how this was the man that beat him at WrestleMania. Punk just figured he was going to talk about his loss and maybe mock Punk a little bit, just to give closure to their semi-feud. Then Chris said they deserved to celebrate with a drink and Punk didn't know what he could possibly mean by that.

Chris went over to where he'd kept the stash he'd bought from the store. He took off his jacket and grabbed the bottle of Jack's and walked back over to Punk, talking about how he knew Punk was straight edge and how that meant he didn't do anything like drink or do drugs or smoke anything. Chris didn't care about that though, he was going to lead Punk straight to his destiny. Sure, Chris drank, but it wasn't to the point of alcoholism, not since his kids were born, which brought him right back to what he was doing this for.

He was going to get back at Punk in the worst way he could think of, with something Punk swore he'd never touch. He brought over the bottle and said they were going to have a toast. When Chris poured the alcohol on Punk, he was only a little bit satisfied. In reality, Chris wished to pulverize him right there. He tried to, but he slipped for his efforts. That didn't deter him though. He wasn't out here to impress the fans. He was out here to pulverize him and he started laying him with punches as Punk tried to protect himself.

Punk couldn't understand what was going on and what had drawn Chris's ire the way it did. He couldn't recall anything he'd done and they'd been cool earlier that evening. Chris hadn't told him about this and it was taking it too far. Dumping the foul-smelling liquid on him was taking it too far and he didn't like it one bit. Chris continued to insult Punk and went to grab another bottle. He continued insulting Punk's family and he knelt next to Punk, telling him that since he'd had one taste, he was going to want more and more because that's who he was destined to be.

But then he brought up the bottle and warned Punk that the alcohol would go straight to his head and then he slammed the bottle so hard onto Punk it shattered upon impact. The crowd gasped, but Chris was beyond caring. He stared down at Punk, his breath heavy and his rage palpable. This was only the beginning for the bastard. Chris was going to take it all away from Punk, everything.

He slowly walked up the ramp, stopping to look back at his handiwork. When he was backstage, Stephanie and his kids were gaping at Chris in horror. Stephanie got up and went up to him. "Chris, what the hell was that!"

"Only what he deserved," Chris told Stephanie, his jaw set tight.

"I don't understand, did you guys plan that?"

"No, but he deserved it. That man is no longer our friend," Chris said, "he was never our friend to begin with."

"What are you talking about?" Stephanie didn't understand. "Chris, I don't get what happened. We were fine earlier. What did he do?"

"He's been using our kids to get to Britt."

"He's been what?" Stephanie was even more confused. She didn't understand what Chris was saying. Punk had _used_ their kids? "No, Chris, you must have heard wrong. Punk likes the kids, he wouldn't…"

"Hunter heard him," Chris said. "Hunter heard him saying it to his friend. He was using the kids to get to Britt. This afternoon, when he took them to get their snacks, he only did it so they could find Britt, so Punk could show her he was a good guy. Then I asked Sawyer and he confirmed it."

"Chris, this has to be a mistake."

"Why would Hunter lie? Why would Sawyer lie?" Chris asked. He saw movement out of the corner of his eye and saw Punk limping backstage.

"What the hell, dude?" Punk asked when he saw Chris.

"You," Chris glared at him, stalking up to him. "You son of a bitch. You thought I wouldn't find out what you were doing. I'm onto your little plan, and I'm going to tell you right now, it's over. You wanted to fuck around with me, well you messed with the wrong man."

"I don't even know what you're talking about."

"Don't play dumb with me, Punk," Chris spat at him. "You know exactly what you've done. Was she worth it? Huh? Was she?"

"You're not—"

"Shut up!" Chris yelled at him. "You stay the hell away from me and my wife and you better stay the hell away from my children. If I so much as catch you anywhere near them, I will beat you senseless. My kids are not pawns in your stupid, little game. You will stay away from them! And I'm not done with you, believe me, this isn't over. It's not over until you pay."

Chris grabbed Kensington and Flynn before stalking off. Sawyer hurried after with Stephanie in tow. Punk was standing there, confused as to what had just transpired. Chris was so mad, madder than he'd ever seen him and it was jarring to see. Chris was usually so laidback, but he'd looked two seconds away from ripping someone's head off and he just couldn't understand what happened to make him so mad. What could he have possibly done?

Down the hallway, watching the whole thing was Hunter, and he couldn't be happier.


	365. Intensified Rage, April 9 and 16, 2012

Chris lay on his living room couch, hands folded behind his head, staring up at the ceiling. The house was quiet for once, Sawyer and Flynn were watching a video quietly in the upstairs playroom while Stephanie was in the kitchen with Flynn, doing paperwork. The environment was relaxed, which was conducive to thinking, which Chris was doing right that moment. He was trying to look back over everything with Punk and figure out the moments where he should have seen red flags and didn't.

He was still incensed over what Punk did to him and his family. Every time he thought about it, he became a little bit angrier and then he wanted to punch something. His walls were lucky they weren't holed up by now since he refrained from doing so. Stephanie didn't want to jump to conclusions, but even she admitted that it was suspicious that Punk would go after Britt so soon after becoming friends with them. It wasn't like Britt was inaccessible, but it was well-known that he and Stephanie were good friends with her.

He didn't like thinking someone used his kids like that. His kids were off-limits. They were just off-limits. He couldn't stress that enough because he didn't want anyone taking advantage of them. Since the moment they were born, hell, since the moment Sawyer was conceived, they were the most important things in his life. Everything Chris did was in some way related to his kids. Everything he did, from his wrestling to his concerts was to give his kids better than he could have ever dreamed of when he was a child. He knew he'd been well-off growing up, his father's profession allowed for financial freedom and he knew Stephanie more than had enough for 500 children, but still, it was the principle of the thing. He wanted so much for his kids and for someone to use that to their horrible advantage made him want to rip CM Punk's heart out and make him watch as it slowly stopped beating.

"Dada, hi."

Chris looked over to his left and saw Kensington had wandered in from the kitchen. She gave him a bright smile, slightly tilted like his own and then tried to climb onto the couch with him. "Hey, Kensy-bug, let me help you get up here," Chris told his daughter, lifting her easily and bringing her down right on his chest. Kensington snuggled up to him, her head resting right under his chin as he heard her sigh happily.

"Love, love," Kensington told him in her high-pitched, girly voice. Where Flynn was extremely loud, Kensington tended to be on the quieter side when she spoke, probably _because_ Flynn was so loud.

"I love you too," he told her, leaning down to kiss the top of her head. He ran his hand up and down her back. "Were you in the kitchen with Mommy?"

"Uh huh," Kensington's head bumped into his chin as she nodded. "I help."

"You were helping her with her work?" Chris asked. "Wow, you must be super smart because Mommy's job is really hard."

"No, no," Kensington told him.

"You don't think her work is difficult, wow, I underestimated you," Chris told her, laughing softly. "I didn't realize I had a genius baby on my hands. Do you know how much I love you?"

"Yup."

"Well, then I'm glad you know how much I love you, Kensy-bug. Ever since the moment I knew about you, I've loved everything about you," Chris told her. "You're the cutest, sweetest, little bug in the entire universe and I'm glad you're mine."

"Me too."

Chris laughed, "Are you going to come to LA with me next week?"

"Mmm, okay," Kensington answered him, though she probably didn't know what he was actually going to do.

"Oh, are you, Miss Kensington," Stephanie said from the doorway, leaning in it. "She snuck away from me, I guess I know why she did that now."

"I guess she couldn't resist my charms," Chris chuckled as Stephanie came over and sat on the little space next to him on the couch. She looked at him questioningly. "I don't think you'll be taking any of my babies to LA with you. You can go by yourself and have fun with all your metal friends. I know you're excited, you don't have to hide it from me. You get to be around all your heroes."

"Come with me," he grabbed her hand.

"What?"

"Come with me. I've never got to show you around like the trophy wife I married you for," Chris winked at her. "I mean, I know a lot of these guys pretty well now and they've never even seen you. They might not even think you exist."

"Except I've been on TV since I was 22 so all you'd have to do is show them a tape and say something crude that guys say like, 'I'm tapping that ass,' or something along those lines," Stephanie told him, rubbing his stomach a little bit.

"While I do and have said that exact phrase in the past, that's like showing a guy a picture of a 'girl' that you're dating. It could just be me showing them something and they don't believe it, you should come with me. I know you've still got some of those outfits you used to wear that were slutting it up big time, those would pretty much go, I mean, you could tone it down a little because you have three kids, but just a little," Chris told her.

"Very funny. No, you go and you have fun," she insisted.

"I always feel a little bit guilty going away," Chris said.

"It's a business trip, that's all, we all have them."

"I'm still pissed," he admitted.

"I know you are," Stephanie told him, leaning down to kiss his forehead then moving down to his lips. Kensington was still cuddling up to Chris so Stephanie had to maneuver around her daughter. "But you can't let that cloud your vision with other things. If you're still mad, just take it out in the ring, okay?"

"I will, believe me, Punk isn't going to know what hit him."

Britt paced the floor of her bedroom before staring at the door. Then she started pacing again, then stopping, then starting, then stopping, and finally flinging open the door and going downstairs. Hunter was watching some kind of sports show, boxing or some such and Britt flopped down next to him, staring at him intently before he gleaned onto her presence and looked over at her. He smiled before going back to his program and she tapped him on the shoulder.

"Yes?" he asked playfully and she gave him a weak smile. "What's up, babe?"

"I wanted to discuss something with you," she told him, gently reaching for the remote and turning off the TV. "It's a serious thing and I don't want any distractions."

"Okay…" Hunter figured she was going to tell him about the kiss and he smirked inwardly about how he'd already taken care of the problem. Punk was going to be out of their lives soon enough and nobody would be the wiser. Chris was so angry he probably would never speak to Punk again and that worked out just fine for him.

"Okay, so I'm just going to come out and say it," Britt nodded, "Punk kissed me."

"I knew," Hunter said.

"What?" Britt stared at him.

"I overheard Punk talking about it, among other stuff," he told her, "but that should probably be discussed with Chris and Stephanie because it's pretty heavy stuff."

"What's heavy stuff?"

"What Punk was doing," Hunter told her.

"The thing is, I know you've suspected that he's had feelings for me, I know you have, but he does and…I didn't invite his feelings for me," Britt said, "but I have to confess that…it felt good. I know that's not what you want to hear, but I was flattered. It's just…I work around so many beautiful girls and sometimes I don't feel like…I mean…I'm not saying this the way I want to say it. I've actually thought about getting breast implants, you know."

"What? You're gorgeous," he told her and she smiled at him, leaning forward to kiss him.

"I'm not fishing for compliments, but thank you," she told him genuinely. "I just…I see them all and it's intimidating sometimes. I mean, you've got these leggy blondes with cream-colored skin or the Bellas or Eve who are flawless looking or even Layla, who's got this like, she's so pretty…and it's intimidating."

"Stephanie felt the same way, I just don't get it," he told her. "I mean, she did get breast implants because of the fans and the other divas."

"It's easy to be insecure when you're surrounded by what are essentially models…so when Punk started liking me…I kind of liked it. It was like, okay, this guy has dated divas before, Maria, Beth, I think he was with Kelly Kelly at some point, and then over all them, he thought I was pretty. It's an excuse and I know it is and I'm sorry."

"I understand," he told her, "I've felt flattered too."

She laughed and looked down. "I know you're still hurting over me rejecting your proposal."

"Britt...come on, we talked about that."

"I know, I know we did," she nodded. "I just don't want you to misconstrue what I feel for you as something less than say, what Stephanie feels for Chris."

"I never did, I mean, a little, they're kind of crazy about each other and when I say crazy, I mean literally crazy," he joked and she leaned forward to kiss him again. "I know you love me and I know you're committed to me. I've never had a doubt in my mind that you loved me or wanted to be with me."

"I just don't see a piece of paper defining us. I may change my mind in the future, but right now I like what we are. The fact is we don't have something binding us except…us. We choose everyday to be together because we _want_ to be together. I want to be with you and…I can't imagine anyone else in my life except you."

"I can't either," he told her, grabbing her hand and bringing it up to his lips to kiss it. "I love you."

"I love you too," Britt smiled at him, hugging him tightly. "So what we were watching?"

Hunter looked down at her and the smallest twinge of guilt fluttered through him. He'd trusted Britt this entire time, but there was always a fear she'd wander away from him. She seemed pretty clear right now in saying she wasn't going anywhere and now he was starting to think about what he'd done with Punk. Was it really necessary to go that far, to ruin someone like that? Chris had been so angry, so malevolent about the entire thing. But if he confessed now, he was going to draw Chris's ire and he didn't want to lose that friendship. He would just have to keep his mouth shut.

Punk rubbed the back of his neck as he stood outside Chris and Stephanie's locker room door. He had spent the last week trying to wrack his brain thinking about what he possibly could have done to make Chris so angry with him. He'd honestly never seen Chris that angry and it was terrifying because if that kind of anger resided inside of him, it could be unleashed at any moment and Punk was so clearly the target.

He couldn't think of anything though, at least not anything from when Chris told him they were cool to when Chris went absolutely ballistic on him. He'd taken Sawyer and Flynn for some snacks, brought them back to Stephanie then got ready for the show. Chris kept mentioning the kids so he knew it wasn't what he'd done with Laurinaitis, but he'd only taken the kids out for a snack and neither he nor Stephanie had told him about anything the kids couldn't eat and he hadn't given them anything junky.

He finally knocked on the door and stood there, his face scowling as he waited for someone to answer. The door opened and Stephanie answered and he was kind of glad it was Stephanie and not Chris who answered the door. If it were Chris, he would probably be pummeled right about now. Instead, Stephanie just gave him the once over, but didn't let him in.

"Chris isn't here if you wanted to talk to him," Stephanie said shortly.

Punk nodded, "So you're mad too?"

"I'm not sure what I am right now," Stephanie confessed to him, "but I can't say you're my favorite person in the entire world right now."

"I figured that," he said, "but I really needed to talk to you, if that was okay."

"I'm not sure that's the greatest idea."

"What the hell are you doing here!" another voice interrupted and Punk turned to the side to see Chris stalking towards him. Punk held his hands up in defense, trying to tell Chris he was not here to fight, but just to talk. "Go away!"

"Look, dude, I just—"

"Get the hell out of here before I make you," Chris said, "we have nothing to say to you so if you don't leave right now, I'll have security escort you out after I make sure you're unconscious."

"I just wanted to talk."

"Fuck off," Chris told him, getting in his face. "You better stay the hell away from my kids or I will fire you."

"Chris," Stephanie interjected.

"I don't care, Stephanie, I'll fire his ass so fast…"

"Look, I'm going," Punk gave up in defeat. He knew a losing battle when he saw one and this was definitely a losing battle. He'd hoped the previous week had cooled Chris's temper, but it obviously hadn't and while he wanted to know what was going on, he wasn't in the mood to get into a fight with the other man. He just wanted to know what was going on. "I just…at some point, I was hoping we could talk about whatever this is."

"There's nothing to talk about," Chris snapped, "we're done with you. You can just leave us alone, don't talk to us, don't even look at us when we're backstage, but believe me, whatever you think is going to happen to you at my hands, it's going to be ten times worse."

"I don't want to fight, I thought we were friends."

"We're not, friendship was a sham," Chris told him, getting in his face.

"Punk!" Flynn peeked out through Stephanie's legs and then came around and went into the hallway. "Hi!"

"Flynn, get back inside," Chris told his daughter. Flynn looked up at her father. He so rarely used her name she was a little confused by what he was saying. She stared at him and Chris said again, "Flynn, please get inside the room."

"But I wanna talk to Punk," Flynn argued with him. She wanted to visit with her friend. She couldn't see the problem with that. She liked Punk and he was really nice to her and why wouldn't her father want her saying hello to her friend?

"You can't talk to him," Chris told her sternly, to the point where Flynn shrunk back a little bit, but then, because she was Flynn and that meant she was part Chris and Stephanie, she stuck her chin out and turned back to Punk.

"Punk, are you going to wrestle again tonight?" Flynn asked him. She didn't even give a glance to Chris or Stephanie because she was going to talk to Punk no matter what they said to her.

"Flynn Murphy Jericho, I told you to go back into the locker room," Chris said, his voice taut and he grabbed his daughter's hand, but she shrugged him off.

"I have a match tonight against Henry," Punk told her quietly, not because he didn't want anyone to hear, but he felt like if he used his regular voice, he'd be accused of more stuff he didn't do. He didn't know why Chris was mad, but there was obviously some kind of misunderstanding.

"I think you'll win," Flynn told him and Chris grabbed her hand again. "Daddy, no, I talks to Punk, he's my friend!"

"Flynn!" Chris nearly yelled at her, but Flynn was not deterred. It was times like this Chris wished she was more demure or shy and not as outgoing as her parents and certainly not as stubborn as they tended to be.

"No!" Flynn threw a tantrum as she stomped her foot and glared up at Chris in defiance. Punk was her friend!

"I'm going to go," Punk said, "Flynnie, it's okay, I have to go prepare for my match anyways. I'll see you, okay."

"Okay," Flynn pouted a little, but still waved, "Bye-bye."

"Bye," Punk told her, not even giving Chris a glance as he walked away, more confused than ever.

"You get a time-out," Chris told his daughter, picking her up and she looked at him as Stephanie followed him into the room. "I told you to do something and you deliberately didn't listen to what I was saying."

"Chris, I think a time-out is a little harsh, don't you think?" Stephanie asked her husband.

"I told her not to talk to him and to go back into the room and she clearly didn't," he said.

"Well, I'm reneged on that and you're not in a time-out, Flynnie. Go play with Kensy while I talk with Daddy, okay," Stephanie grabbed Flynn from Chris's arms, kissed her cheek and set her on the ground. Flynn gave one last withering look to her father before sitting with Kensy and playing with some of the toys strewn about, purposefully avoiding her father's action figures.

"Stephanie, don't undermine me when I'm disciplining our children," Chris told his wife and she grabbed his upper arms as if she could hold him there.

"Don't undermine you? When you have completely unreasonable expectations? Chris, Flynn is three. As far as she's concerned, Punk is still her friend and you can't just rip it away from him. Even if Hunter is right-"

"For what reason would he lie?"

"I don't know, but I'm trying not to jump to conclusions," Stephanie explained, looking him straight in the eye. "I'm just saying that even if Hunter is right, that doesn't change what goes on in our children's heads. Especially with Flynn and Kensy, they're set in their ways, they know things, know people and you can't just say to Flynn one day, hey, you can't hang out with someone. It doesn't work that way with such a little girl."

"He had the audacity to act like he didn't do anything."

"I'm not sure…I'm just confused about the entire thing," Stephanie confessed to him.

"You're what?"

"I don't know why Hunter would lie, I really don't, but I don't feel like we're getting the whole story," Stephanie told him what she was really feeling. There was just something so sincere about Punk's words that sent up a warning flag. She didn't want to accuse anyone, but things just didn't seem to add up to well in her mind. She couldn't bring it up with Chris because it would only incite a fight, but she really wanted to see if she could investigate things herself and come to her own conclusion.

"But doesn't it all make sense to you?" he asked. "I mean, what do we really know about the guy?"

"I don't know."

"Sawyer even told us that he was talking about Britt, that he wanted to invite her over, wait, no, that he actually wanted to go see her when he was with the kids. Hunter heard him and I trust what Hunter says."

"I do too," Stephanie reassured him, coming forward to rub his arm. "I wouldn't want anyone to use the kids for their own means either, I wouldn't want that. I just don't feel like we're getting the entire story."

"Well, I think we have everything we need and I'm going to bring him down," Chris told her, "you're either with me or against me in this one, Steph."

"Oh come on," Stephanie tilted her head to look at him disapprovingly. "So if I'm not totally on board with what you're doing, you're going to be mad at me."

"No, of course not," Chris told her, "I'm just saying what I'm doing, I'm not holding back, that man is going to pay for hurting my children like that. I'm not going to be mad if you aren't behind me, but if you are behind me, then I want to know it."

"I'm not behind what you're doing. I don't think you need to throw alcohol on him to make him 'pay.'"

"I'm just hitting him where it hurts," Chris said, "he wants to act like he's so superior to everyone else, I'm taking him down a few pegs, letting him know he's not going to get away with what he did."

"I think you need to calm down, you're going to make yourself sick," Stephanie rubbed his cheek. "I love you and I know you only want to protect the kids and I think that's extremely valiant and sweet of you, but I don't want you to go out of your way to make his life a living hell. Revenge consumes people and the kids don't even know what happened."

"Still…"

"I know, I can't stop you, you're your own person and all that crap you want to spew at me, that's all I'll say on the subject. I've got bigger things to worry about anyways, like Brock Lesnar."

"Oh yeah, I completely forgot about him," Chris pressed a hand to his forehead. "Your father?"

"More than likely," Stephanie shook her head. "He thinks he can still control things, but I'm going to turn this around on him."

"How are you going to do that?" Chris wondered.

"I'm going to act like it's the best thing in the world," Stephanie said. "I may not like Brock, but it's a professional opportunity and I'm going to go congratulate Laurinaitis on bringing him in. Then my father will see that I can use whatever he does against him and make myself look better."

"You really should be on my team for this Punk thing, you would make it look like an art form," Chris told him.

"Just watch the girls for me while I go talk with John, okay?" Stephanie told him. "Don't go ballistic on me and do not take anything out on your daughters. They love you and they respect you, but you can't hurt them with what Punk may or may not have done."

"I won't," he said, but the wheels were already turning in his head. Stephanie stared at him for a moment, decided to just drop it and walked out of the room without another word. She walked herself to Laurinaitis's office and knocked on the door. She was surprised, but not too surprised, to see that Brock was the only one inside the room and had answered the door.

"Brock, hello, I was actually hoping to see you here," Stephanie said, letting herself inside. "I'm sure you've heard I'm the new President of the company."

"Yeah," he said gruffly.

"I wanted to officially welcome you back to the WWE," Stephanie said brightly, reaching out her hand to shake his. "I look forward to working with you again and I think this arrangement can be mutually beneficial."

"You do?" he asked suspiciously, probably because her father had talked to him beforehand and probably warned that she wouldn't be receptive. Her father was probably trying to turn everyone against her in his own little way. She wasn't going to let that happen. What was especially funny to her was that her father thought all of this was suddenly going to drive her crazy enough to quit. He really did underestimate her tolerance for BS. She was Vince McMahon's daughter after all. Her BS meter was born high.

"I absolutely do. You're going to get exposure and I guess a piece of John Cena as it seems you've held a grudge against him, which I'm not sure I blame you," Stephanie chuckled, "but the WWE is going to gain as well. The door opened and Laurinaitis walked inside, Teddy Long and his stooge, Otunga, in tow. He looked surprised to see her there.

"What are you doing here, Stephanie?"

"I wanted to welcome Brock back," Stephanie said, "and congratulate _you_ on such a find. I really think you did good with this one, John. I'm sure the board would love to hear how _we_ got Brock to come back."

"We?" he picked up on her tone.

"But of course, as the president, things always come through me. Now, I'll allow it this time because this is quite the coup, but next time, run it by me first," she said coyly, "that way we can be on the same page. I wouldn't want credit where it isn't due. Also, I know you think you're still the Executive Vice Present of Talent Relations, but if I've told you once, I've told you a million times, you can't handle both jobs so Brock, when you want to deal with someone, you'll have to go to Chris, you know, Jericho, my husband as he is the Executive Vice President of Talent Relations. If there isn't a standard protocol around here, the system fails and I will be forced to terminate you, John, and I'm sure Teddy would have no problem filling in your position."

"You couldn't fire me," John said smugly.

"If I had due cause I could," Stephanie reminded him. "Going against company policy with regards to hiring new talent would absolutely fall under that provision, so next time, consult me. I'll see you all later, have a wonderful night."

Stephanie walked out of the room with a smug sense of satisfaction. She now had a valid reason to fire Laurinaitis if it came to that, and even if it didn't, she still had him right under her thumb like she wanted him to be. Her father thought he could pull the wool over her eyes? He had taught her much too well for that.

Though Punk had no idea the real reason behind Chris's anger, he knew that what happened last week happened because he was straight edge. He wanted people to understand what that meant and why it was so important to him. He thought maybe, just maybe if he did explain why it was so important, Chris might not pull anything else on him. He didn't know why this was bothering him so much…wait, he did. He didn't do anything he could think of, yet here he was, being accused of something he didn't know.

It was becoming personal and the way Chris treated him backstage only factored into how he felt right now. The way Chris had treated him like some sort of criminal, almost literally pulling Flynn away from him, it hurt him that he'd done that. He wasn't some monster who needed to be kept away from little children. Though he wouldn't bring Flynn into this, he wanted Chris to know he wasn't going to be pushed around. He was still CM Punk and didn't take crap from anyone, not even someone who used to be his friend. He wasn't going to tolerate that kind of behavior.

Chris was about to go on, but Chris interrupted him from backstage, his face appearing on the Titantron. Chris continued with his taunting, asking if Punk was hung over. He kept piling the insults on as Punk stood there, listening to him. He was reading between the lines, seeing the real anger Chris had inside for him. But Punk told him he wasn't going to be broken so easily. He was going to take everything inside of him and he was going to kick Chris's ass. Whatever he'd done, Chris had taken it beyond anything and there was no way he was going to sit back and take it any longer.

He wished he could have finished the evening believing that to be true. After Punk's match, Chris sauntered down to the ring, two 12 packs of beer in his hands, ready for a little toast with Punk. Chris knew he was piling it on, but at this point, he didn't care about Punk's beliefs or anything pertaining to Punk at all. For all Chris cared, Punk really could become an alcoholic because it would give him cause to fire the asshole who hurt his kids. Chris wasn't thinking straight, but he didn't know it. All he could see was revenge.

When Chris got into the ring Henry had already given a slam to Punk so Chris thought he was in the clear. Punk clearly had a lot more fight inside of him because he was able to kick Chris, but Chris had a lot more fight than Punk at the moment and gave him an impromptu Codebreaker, dropping Punk to the mat. Chris grabbed some of the beer and started pouring it all over Punk, taking great satisfaction in it. Punk slunk around in the beer, unable to get up as Chris kept insulting him and drowning him in the foul-smelling liquid.

When Punk finally was able to get up, Chris gave him another Codebreaker. The referees who spilled into the ring tried to stop him, but nobody could stop him in that moment and nobody was going to stop him from beating Punk now, everyday, forever. Chris wanted to make him hurt so he'd take his title away first, then his dignity, then anything else he could grab. Every punch, kick, Codebreaker was for his kids and he was going to show Punk you didn't mess with them…ever.

**April 16th**

Britt knocked on Punk's door. After what happened to him last week, he'd cut out of there so fast, she hadn't had a moment to talk to him, but she really needed to speak with him. Whatever he had for her had gone on long enough and she wanted, no, she _needed_ to talk to him about it and really clear the air. There was only so much she could take and it was the boiling point right now. She wasn't going to go another moment having Hunter think he was in danger of losing her.

"He's not there," a voice said from her right.

Britt looked over and saw Eve standing there, looking down at her since she was so tall. "Oh, you saw him leave?"

"No, I saw him hanging around outside, I don't know what he was doing," Eve shrugged, "he's just not there."

"Okay, well, thanks," Britt told her, giving her a nod before pushing past her and walking down the hallway. She'd promised Chris she would meet with him because he wanted to speak with her, but she'd wanted to get the talk with Punk over with first. She figured now was as good a time as any to speak with him. She walked down the hallway until she reached Stephanie's office and knocked on the door.

"Come in!" Stephanie called from inside.

Britt poked her head in, "Hey, Stephanie, I was hoping to talk to Chris. Is he in here?"

"No, he took the kids outside to play around for a while. They were getting a little stir crazy in here."

"Oh okay, I guess I can come back later because Chris wanted to talk to me about something, at least that's what he's been telling me via text message for the last week. I haven't had real time to sit down and do much of anything. Hunter and I have been kind of occupied with each other."

"Oh yeah?" Stephanie asked, raising an eyebrow and smirking when this caused Britt to blush. "What's going on?"

"Nothing, just a reaffirmation of our love for each other," Britt explained, trying to keep the grin off her face. "I've felt like I was being a bad girlfriend since this whole thing started with Punk and I didn't want to do that to Hunter. He deserves better than a weird girlfriend who likes that some other guy likes me."

"So you liked that Punk likes you?"

"You have to admit, it's flattering."

"I can see that," Stephanie laughed. "You're free to wait here unless I have to send you off to do some work…"

"No," Britt said, "I've got everything covered pretty much. The show is set, just have to get things on time so production can get the show ready to air in the United States. Other than that, it's pretty cut and dry, oh, except I have to make sure that segment with Brock is done. You still cool with him being here?"

"I have no choice but to be, right? I'm trying to put on a happy front. At the very least, he hasn't brought his wife around. I don't know if you know, but Sable and I…we had our problems, our _huge_ problems. She was messing around with my dad around 2003 and she was the reason I got fired and choked with a wrench by my own father."

"Okay, clearly I've got to watch more old tapes," Britt said, "but Brock married her?"

"Yes, after they both left," Stephanie said, "I don't know if she's calmed down, but I'd rather not see her."

"I can understand that, I sometimes still don't know how you're friends with Trish after what she did with your father," Britt said, "but speaking of, how are they?"

"Who knows," Stephanie said, "they aren't returning our calls, well, they do, when they know we're not going to answer and tell us everything is fine. I'm definitely going to take next week and see how the two of them are doing, at least how Trish is doing."

"How's Chris doing?" Britt wondered. "He's been so…mad…"

"I think that's what he wants to talk to you about," Stephanie said, "He wants to—"

"Mama!"

Stephanie held up her finger and went to the door, but before she could get there, the door was opening and Chris was carrying in a wailing Kensington. Stephanie immediately rushed over and saw that Kensington had a small scrape on her elbow. Stephanie pouted as Kensington reached for her desperately. Stephanie took the little girl from her husband and cuddled her, nuzzling her nose into Kensington's cheek.

"What happened, Kensy?" Stephanie asked her.

"Boo-boo," Kensington cried as she buried her face into Stephanie's neck.

"What happened?"

"She was trying to keep up with Sawyer and Flynn and she couldn't and she fell," Chris said, ushering his other two children inside the office.

"She was trying to run and she just fell over," Sawyer explained. He was happy to be there tonight because they were all the way in England and he was on his spring break so he could just stay there and have fun with his family.

"She cry like a baby," Flynn commented, shaking her head. Who cried when they got hurt? She'd gotten plenty of scrapes and she didn't cry like that (she did, she just never remembered she did).

"She is a baby," Sawyer told his little sister.

"I know, that why she cries," Flynn told him, "hi, Britt!"

"Hey, Flynnie, hey, Sawyer," she told them.

"I'm going to take her to the trainer," Stephanie said of her daughter. "Jim should be able to get her fixed up really quick. I didn't bring the band-aids with me."

"Can I come?" Flynn asked.

"Of course, come on," Stephanie said, walking out with Flynn and Kensington.

"Chris, you wanted to talk to me?" Britt asked.

"Um," he looked to Sawyer, who was still standing right there.

"You know, it can wait until we get a private moment," Chris told her, glancing down at Sawyer. He didn't need to be saying anything in front of his impressionable son. Sawyer was very much of an age where he could remember and tell everything about a conversation and he wasn't about to talk about serious matters in front of the young boy.

"Okay," Britt said. "Oh, by the way, I saw what you did on Wednesday, with Punk."

_Chris stood in the wings, almost praying Punk would win. Since Punk was in Russia with the rest of the Raw crew (he'd be joining them when they went to Europe in a couple days), Chris would be accepting the award on his behalf since they worked together. Except Chris wanted to send a message and so he needed Punk to win. When Punk did win, Chris sauntered out in front of the crowd made up of so many of his idols and friends and took the award._

_He accepted the award on his behalf and then brought up what had happened between the two of the recently and just when everyone thought he would be gracious about the entire thing, he flipped the switch and broke the trophy on his knee and threw the top of it away carelessly. That's what he thought of Punk, and that's what he thought of that damn trophy he'd won. He was sending another message to Punk. He wasn't safe anywhere. Any place Chris could get at him, he would. Any chance to humiliate him, he was going to take it._

"Oh yeah, good, I'm glad," Chris told her and she looked at him confused, but didn't say anything further about it.

"Well, we'll talk later," Britt nodded and Chris nodded as well. Britt didn't have anything else to say so she said her goodbyes and walked out.

Sawyer turned to his father and looked at him for a long moment, "Daddy?"

"Yeah, kid?"

"Why are you really mad at Punk now?" Sawyer asked and Chris was surprised he'd picked up on the real feelings spurring Chris on now. "I know you are because I know when you're mad and whenever you talk about him, you're mad."

"Something happened and I just didn't like what he did."

"Did he say sorry for it?"

"I haven't really talked to him," Chris explained to his son. "What Punk did was really bad and it really hurt my feelings. It's the kind of thing you don't do to someone who you call your friend and so now we can't be friends anymore."

"Did he kiss Mommy?" Sawyer asked innocently. Chris almost chuckled, but Sawyer was being serious and he needed to be serious as well.

"No, he didn't kiss Mommy. I think if he kissed Mommy, Mommy would be the one taking it out on him," Chris joked, shaking Sawyer's shoulder a little and making the little boy laugh too. "He just did something that wasn't very nice."

"But we should forgive him," Sawyer said, "it's better that way. My teacher says that forgiveness is something very powerful because we don't always give it and it's a great gift to give someone."

"I know, kid, I know, but in this case, I'm not sure it's the best idea," Chris told his son. "I know you don't understand, but everything I do is because I want you guys to be happy and I know this would make you happy."

"I guess," Sawyer shrugged, wishing his father would just tell him what it was. "It's no fun to lose friends though."

"I know, but we have each other and you have tons of friends," Chris told him, which made him smile because it was the truth, he did have a lot of friends. He was very lucky on that front. "We'll get by without having Punk as a friend, I promise."

"Okay, if you promise."

Britt decided to try and find Punk again. When she knocked on his door this time, he answered and he was smiling a moment later. "Please, come in," he said, "it's nice to know that not everyone hates me."

"I can't stay long," Britt told him, perching herself on the arm of his couch. "I just really needed to talk to you."

"Wait, so you aren't mad at me?"

"No, why would I be mad at you? Because Chris is? I'm not entirely sure why he's mad at you, he hasn't said anything about it," Britt told him.

"I figured he was trying to badmouth me to everyone."

"He hasn't," she told him. "He's been mad, but yeah…anyways, this isn't about that. I wanted to have a serious conversation with you."

"This isn't going to end well for me, is it?" He could read her body language and the way she was looking at him. It wasn't sympathy, but it was a steely reserve and he knew that look because he'd worn that look on a number of occasions. It was the look he wore when he was going to rejection someone and Britt was going to reject him. As if his week couldn't get _any_ better.

"I'm afraid not," she told him. "I'm flattered you like me, I really am. I think I just wanted someone to like me because…well, I don't even know, really. I guess, as a female, we just like it when guys are interested. It gives us an ego boost, but what I did…I had no right to lead you on, which is what I think I did."

"I wouldn't say that," he told her.

"I would because I think I was," Britt interjected. "I think I just wanted to feel good all the time and I was neglecting a really important relationship. I love Hunter and while we're not married, that doesn't make what we have any less viable. I love being with him and I love spending time with him and it's not fair for me to continue to let you think there might be a chance when there isn't one."

"I see."

"I like you, Phil, I really do, but I'm in love with Hunter, and I want to be with him."

"He's your boyfriend, why wouldn't you?" Punk told her, trying not to feel hurt, but it was near impossible. She was perfect for him, he could tell, but there was no way he could make her see for herself if she didn't want to see. And in the end, maybe he was the one who was wrong.

"I'm really sorry, but I just waned to tell you definitively how I felt," she told him.

"It's well within you rights to do that," he shrugged, staring at the floor a little bit. He'd been rejected before and picked up the pieces. This was really no different. He was going to wake up in the morning and still be the same person so it wasn't the end of the world. "Thanks for at least having the decency to tell me to my face."

"I'm sorry," she repeated softly. "I better go."

"Of course, don't let me keep you ," he told her, opening the door for her again. He didn't want to look at her any more than he had to so he kept his head down until she was out the door and already down the hallway.

Britt felt better for actually doing what she did, but awful for hurting Punk in the way she did. She didn't like letting people down and he had just looked so sad when she left. She wished she'd given him a hug at the very least, but she couldn't go back now. Giving him a hug, actually, going over specifically for a hug would do more damage than it would good so she refrained from going back and left things be. She remembered she'd wanted to talk to Chris and she hoped Stephanie was back so she could actually talk to him without interruption.

Hunter intercepted her before she could make it back to Stephanie's office. "Hey, where've you been?"

"Oh, I was going to talk to Chris about what he wanted to talk to me about. I suspect it's about Punk though," Britt confided in him. It sent something of a twinge down Hunter's spine, but he ignored it and smiled at her.

"Oh, you'd better go then. I don't want to hold you up."

"Thanks, babe," Britt said, leaning up to give him a kiss. "I also talked to Phil, explained everything to him and let him down gently. I was serious when I told you I was serious about us and doing that was the first step in proving that."

"You really didn't have to go through such trouble for me."

"I did," she told him simply, leaning up to kiss his cheek. "I really think I did."

"Mommy," Flynn whispered as she snuck up to her mother's side.

"Yes?" Stephanie whispered conspiratorially to her daughter. "What's going on?"

"Can I go see Punk?" Flynn asked, remembering the way her father had gotten so angry when Punk had seen her last week. She didn't' know if her father was still mad, but if he was, she didn't want to see it.

"You can't, baby girl, I think he's very, very busy," Stephanie let her down gently, not bringing up anything about what this was really about. Chris would throw a fit if he knew she let Flynn see Punk, but she also hated breaking her daughter's heart.

"Oh," Flynn frowned, but she understood. "People have lots and lots to do."

"Yes, they do," Stephanie nodded gamely. "Sometimes they can't fit doing other things into their schedule."

"I not see him even for one million seconds?" Flynn asked, thinking that wasn't a very long time at all.

"I don't think you can, baby girl," Stephanie pouted along with her and Flynn sighed.

"I wants to."

"I know you want to, but maybe we can think about it some other time, when things have cooled down and everyone isn't so busy," she tried to steer her daughter away from thinking about Punk.

"Oh well," Flynn shrugged, "I not sad."

"I'm glad you're not sad," Stephanie whispered to her. "I hate seeing you sad."

"I okay!" Flynn announced loudly, hugging Stephanie abruptly around the neck and then going back to her brother and sister and their toys. Her father walked out of the bathroom a moment later and she announced her news again. "Daddy, I okay!"

"Well I'm glad!" Chris said enthusiastically. "What's she so okay about?"

"Nothing," Stephanie said, "what were you doing in there?"

"Well, it was the bathroom so you know, I was doing bathroom stuff," Chris told her, giving her a charming smile.

"Since when are you on the phone when you're doing bathroom stuff?" Stephanie asked him, giving him a look that said he was caught and he was better off just confessing what he was doing.

"I'm showing some footage I got of Punk this afternoon, damning footage," Chris told Stephanie vaguely because he didn't want to give it away. Oh, before I forget, I'm giving myself a match. I know that I'm using my power, but I think it appropriate in this case."

"You never have to justify using your power to get what you want," Stephanie told him. "You've always been welcome to use it, you've just never felt the need to before. You want to give yourself a match against Punk, I assume."

"You're right, I'm going to give him a little concession though," Chris said, "I'm making it a Chicago Street Fight. That way, he can think he has the upper-hand and I can know I will use every means necessary to make sure he leaves that arena in an ambulance."

"Okay, hold on there, cowboy, we don't need to go all crazy in front of the kids," Stephanie gestured towards them. "They don't know what's going on, I'd like it stay that way if at all possible."

"I would too, but that's what's happening tonight, Steph."

"Hello again," Britt said from the doorway. "Chris, you free right now?"

"Yeah, I am," Chris told her, pushing the door fully open. "Come on, walk with me, talk with me, I have some things I have to set up before I go on tonight. I'll see you later, baby."

"Don't do anything stupid," Stephanie said, "be careful and don't get into any fistfights."

"I won't," Chris said, following Britt out the door.

"So what's going on, Chris?" Britt asked. "I want to know what's going on. Why are you so mad at Punk?"

"He was using the kids," Chris said lowly. "Hunter overheard Punk talking with his friend at WrestleMania, saying how he was using my kids to get closer to you. He thought if you saw how well he interacted with them, it would make him seem better in your eyes, I guess more domesticated and able to be with you with responsibilities."

"What? That doesn't sound like Phil," Britt told him. It didn't either, Phil wasn't the type of guy who used kids for some ulterior motive.

"Hunter overheard it though and I trust him, I _know_ you trust him."

Britt did trust Hunter. He was a good man at heart and he would never want anything to happen to Chris and Stephanie's kids. The problem with believing the best in Hunter was it meant believing the worst in Punk and she almost didn't want to do that. On the other hand, believing the best in Punk meant believing the worst in her boyfriend and she wasn't willing to do that either. Hunter would not lie about something pertaining to Chris and Stephanie's children. He knew how serious Chris and Stephanie took the well-beings of their son and daughters.

"I do," Britt rubbed her forehead as if trying to help it absorb the information. "It just doesn't seem like something Phil would do."

"But we don't know that much about him, really. It could be exactly what he would do. I mean, the guy has been with a lot of women and he seems like the type of guy who always gets what he wants, doing anything to get it."

"I guess," Britt said. She believed Hunter, she always did, but this was so much to take in at the moment. "I can't believe Phil would stoop that low. I mean, I knew he liked me, but to use children…it's almost too weird to comprehend."

"I didn't know what to think either, but I hate him for doing that to my kids. They got attached, you know, now they're asking questions and I just…I hate him for what he did," Chris's fists balled up in anger. "I've got go to finalize some stuff for tonight, I've got to go."

"Chris, are you okay?" Britt asked.

"Yes, believe me, I'm going to be very okay."

When Chris announced his match to CM Punk later on, he did so with all the malice he could muster up. Punk said he was going to beat Punk in front of his father, sister, and mother, the same people he'd jokingly barraged with insults. This time though, he wanted Punk's family there so he could hurt them as much as Punk had hurt his children. He wanted Punk's family to see the kind of scum they'd raised and grown up with. This was the man who single-handedly used three innocent children in a plot to get a girl, a girl who was with someone.

Stooping wasn't even the correct term for it. Using someone's kids, making them your friend, making a five, three, and one year old care about you, it was so heinous, thinking about it made Chris want to grab every bottle sitting behind him and beat every one of them over Punk's head. He pulled up the footage of Punk entering the pub from earlier that day, but that was just a sidebar to what he was actually feeling. Every time he thought about cutting some slack on Punk, he thought about Flynn's face or Sawyer's face or Kensington's face and he felt even angrier over the entire thing.

Punk was angry too now. He was still in the dark about what was going on and he felt persecuted for no reason. On top of that, Britt had rejected him and he felt that was a lost cause. So the last thing he was going to give up was his belt. It wasn't the only thing he had left, logically he knew that, but it was as if Chris had really taken everything from him in that moment and for that, Punk was not going down without fighting until he could fight no longer.

Hunter's plan had worked well…almost too well…


	366. Sobriety and Plans, April 23, 2012

A/N: Thanks for all the reads and reviews, much appreciated. Tonight's Raw had so much stuff, I hope I got it all in! Hope you enjoy! :)

* * *

"Hi, Lita!"

"Hey, kiddo," Lita said, smiling down at Sawyer. "Where's your mom?"

"She's getting Kensy dressed," Sawyer explained. "She doesn't want to put her shoes on. She's being fussy, that's what Mommy says she is."

"Oh, I see, I think babies are like that," Lita told him. "Sometimes they just don't want to do anything you tell them to do. You were the same way when you were a baby and Edge and I baby-sat you."

"I was?" he shrugged, then added, "I don't remember."

"I didn't really expect you to," Lita laughed, letting herself inside. "Are your grandma and grandpa going to take care of you guys for the day?"

"No, they went to Canada because they wanted to go see their friends and Gamma's sister because she lives there, I think," Sawyer scrunched up his face. "I don't really remember the reason, but it's okay because Grandma Linda actually came down to see us. She said she really missed us."

"Oh, that's nice of her," Lita said, "I bet she's glad she gets to spend time with you guys."

"I think so," Sawyer told her.

"Oh, hey, Lita," Stephanie said, coming down the stairs, "I told Sawyer to get the door, but I was expecting it to be my mom. I think she's running slightly late. She's getting here soon and she's going to take care of the kids for the day while we go out."

"It's fine," Lita waved her off. "You know we're not on a tight schedule or anything."

"Yeah, I know," Stephanie said, giving her a pointed look. The truth was they were going to see Trish. With Christian in the UK after his return to the ring, it left Trish here and she was vulnerable. Lita and Stephanie wanted to find out what was really going on and, more importantly, find out how they could help. Neither Stephanie nor Lita wanted their friends to go through something so difficult, and if there was any way they could offer their help, they were going to do it.

The plan was go over to Trish and Christian's and bombard her as they were calling it. Stephanie asked her mother if it would be too much trouble to take Tilden for the day as well as her grandchildren, and after Linda's consent, they were going to bring Tilden over to Stephanie and Chris's drop her off and then go out to lunch and then to get their nails done. They were going to play it as a day to relax and maybe get Trish to open up about what was really going on.

Everyone, even Edge, was still pretty much in the dark about what was really going on with Trish and Christian. The two were so tight-lipped about it their friends and family worried they were actually going through the divorce proceedings and not telling anyone so nobody would interfere. The other day, Edge called his mother to let her know what was going on and she'd tried talking to Christian as well, but no information had been given to her. This was a troubling sign. If Christian, a self-proclaimed Mama's boy (he and Edge were both huge mama's boys) didn't tell his mother what was happening, it was definitely a red flag that there was trouble ahead. Trish and Lita wanted to find out the truth before Trish and Christian came up to them all one day and told them they were legally divorced.

"What do you need help with?" Lita offered graciously.

"You don't have to help," Stephanie shook her head. Chris was still overseas on the tour of continental Europe, but she'd opted to take the kids home since they were doing one-nighters over there and the traveling would be too much for them. Sawyer was still on spring break so that left Stephanie with three kids to occupy, and with Chris's parents in Canada, Stephanie was a little bogged down. Her mother coming down for a couple of days was a life saver at this point. "I think I've got everything covered."

"Where's the wild one?" Lita asked, obviously wondering about Flynn.

"She's talking with Chris in the kitchen," Stephanie said, "they're skyping each other. He promised he would Skype with her every day until he got home."

"How sweet," Lita said.

"I got to talk to him too," Sawyer said proudly, "but then Flynnie took over and she's talking with his right now."

"I guess I'll go see what she's doing then," Lita shrugged to Stephanie and Stephanie nodded towards the kitchen, giving her the go ahead. Sawyer followed her as she went into the kitchen and saw Flynn kneeling on a chair at the table.

"And Daddy, did you really, really get hurt?" Flynn asked, making a face.

"You want to see it?" Chris asked.

"Uh huh," Flynn nodded and watched as her daddy turned around to show her where he'd had to get stitches from a move Punk had done on him. Chris was trying not to show how angry he was because he didn't want to blow up at Flynn like he'd done last week. He regretted treating her like that and realized he had to keep his anger for Punk in check when he was around the kids.

"I wanna see!" Sawyer raced over to the computer and stood next to Flynn's chair so he could see too.

"Eww!" Flynn made a face, sticking her tongue out and cringing. "That's gross, Daddy!"

"Wow, did you bleed a lot?" Sawyer asked.

"I bled some, yeah," Chris turned around and smiled at his kids.

"Daddy, that was yucky," Flynn told him, biting her lip. "You be more careful."

"I _was_ being careful," Chris made a face at her at her and she giggled, covering her own face. "Are you both being good for Mommy and helping with Kensy where you can?"

"Uh huh, I'm very good at helping," Sawyer boasted.

"That's a given," Chris winked at him, "what about you, Flutterby? Are you being good?"

"Um, yeah," Flynn nodded, but she had that little look of mischievousness that gave her away every time.

"Hey, Chris," Lita came in front of the camera and gave a wave. "I'm just waiting for Stephanie to get Kensy ready and then we're waiting for her mom to get here."

"Oh yeah, Plan Break-up, right?" Chris asked and Lita nodded. "I hope you guys can get something useful out of her and help her if she wants it."

"I just want to know the truth," Lita told him and he nodded.

"What are you talking about?" Sawyer asked.

"Nothing," Lita ruffled his hair and then leaned down to kiss the crown of his head. "You just worry about talking to your dad and not anything else, got it?"

"Okay," Sawyer said. "I like being off school for a whole week, Daddy, I just wish you were here because then we could probably do something fun, right?"

"We'll do something fun next weekend, I promise…and do you know why we're going to do something fun next weekend?" Chris asked, giving his son a knowing look as Sawyer's face lit up.

"Because I'm going to be six!" Sawyer answered excitedly.

"I'm three," Flynn interjected.

"I know, Flutterby, but your brother's birthday is coming up on the 2nd of May so it's his birthday soon. Your birthday isn't until August so you have to wait," Chris reminded her and she sulked a little. Why couldn't it be _her_ birthday soon?

The doorbell rang and Sawyer's face lit up, "That's Grandma. I'll get it."

"I'll come with you just in case," Lita followed him to the door. Sawyer went up to the door and asked who it was. Linda answered and Sawyer threw the door open.

"Hi, Grandma," Sawyer said, throwing his arms around her.

"Now this is a greeting," Linda said, kneeling in front of him so she could get a better hug. "I swear, Sawyer, every time I see you, I think you get bigger and bigger."

"It's because I'm almost six," Sawyer nodded at her and she nodded very seriously back.

"I really think it is," Linda told her grandson, kissing his forehead. "I'm so glad I got the time to come down here to visit you and your sisters. I miss you so much when you're not around for me to see you. And with your cousins not so close anymore, I get very lonely with just Grandpa."

"Well, Grandpa's kind of loud so that probably helps," Sawyer told her in all seriousness, but that just made it funnier to her as she laughed and kissed his forehead again.

"Grandma!" Flynn came into the room and made a beeline for Linda. Linda intercepted her hug as well. "I just talk to Daddy, but he had to go."

"Oh, do you miss him?" Linda asked.

"Uh huh, but he'll be back soon, he wrestle," Flynn shrugged as Stephanie breezed down the stairs.

"Hey, Mom, I'm so glad to see you, did you have a nice flight?"

"I did, thank you," Linda responded, hugging her daughter and taking Kensington from her arms. "I'm so glad I get to spend two whole days with my darlings. If I didn't have my campaign, I would spend a whole week with you."

"I think you'd get sick of us," Stephanie said, "so you'll be okay here by yourself? Chris's car is in the garage, the keys are by the front door and all the car-seats and booster seats are in there if you want to take them out. I put an extra one for Tilden when we bring her over, thank you so much for taking her, Mom."

"It's not a problem, I like children and I really hope Trish and Christian can work out whatever they're going through," Linda said sympathetically. "It's never fun to go through something like that."

"I know," Stephanie said, which caused Lita and Linda to look at her. "Hello, Hunter, remember that guy, the one I married before I married Chris."

"Oh yeah," Lita laughed, "I swear I thought you were talking about Chris and I was going to ask when_ that _happened."

"I had the same thought," Linda chuckled herself. "I definitely think I can handle myself with the kids. I might just make them lunch here though, since it might be difficult bringing them all out."

"Sawyer and Flynn can pretty much take care of themselves with regards to eating," Stephanie said, "Flynn just needs things cut up for her. Kensington and Tilden will probably be the ones who need help."

"Stephanie, sweetheart, you forget, I raised you and your brother so I think I know a little bit about children," Linda told her gently. "Go ahead and go."

"Okay," Stephanie hugged her mom and then went and hugged her children, saying goodbye to them. "I'll see you guys later tonight."

She and Lita left the house and climbed into Stephanie's car. "I really hope this works," Lita said, glancing over at Stephanie who nodded with her. "I just want to help. I hate knowing they're going through something and doing it alone."

"I know," Stephanie said, "I really want to help them get through this. I don't want to see them break up. It would be tragic after everything that happened. What about you and Edge, is marriage ever going to be on the horizon?"

"I don't think so. I know Edge was pretty traumatized with the Vickie debacle so I'm not sure he'd want to ever get married again and I don't blame him. He had the bad experience and he doesn't want to relive it."

"Are you okay with that?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, I'm absolutely cool with it. I never saw myself as the marrying type anyways. Edge and I can be in a committed relationship without being married. We're in love, we know we don't want to stray, I think we're good the way we are."

"As long as you're happy."

"We are…we're actually talking about having a baby," Lita let the news slip out.

Stephanie almost slammed on the brakes in her shock. "Oh my God, you are!"

"It's only a discussion right now, but I'm not getting any younger and neither is Edge and if we want kids and want to be able to enjoy them, I think we need to start getting on that train, you know what I mean," Lita said, to which Stephanie nodded eagerly. "I know it seems like we're crazy out there, what with our traveling and all that, but a baby would be nice."

"Babies _are_ nice," Stephanie told her. "They completely change your world, but for the better. Even when they're annoying, you feel such love for them. There are really no words to describe how it feels to know you brought something perfect into this world."

"Perfect?" Lita teased.

"Hey, my kids are pretty damn perfect," Stephanie said as she pulled into Trish's driveway. The bad thing about living so close was it gave them so little time to prepare. "Okay, so we're doing this, right?"

"Yes, and we're not taking no for an answer," Lita pumped herself up. They both got out of the car and walked to the front door, crossing their fingers and then giggling at their silliness. When they got to the door, Lita reached out and rang the doorbell, waiting for Trish to answer. She did a few minutes later with Tilden in her arms, messy from what looked like breakfast. Her eyes widened as she saw them there, but then they softened into a look of confusion.

"What are you guys doing here?" Trish asked.

"We are taking you out for the day. We're going to get lunch, then we're going to get our nails done and I think we may even have time to fit in some massages," Stephanie said as Lita grinned and nodded along.

"What?" Trish was even more confused now. "Did I forget something?"

"No, this is a surprise," Stephanie told her, grabbing her free hand, "because we are your friends and we feel like we've been neglecting you. Trish, obviously something is going on and we want to be here for you."

"Guys, seriously, you don't have—"

"Stop it, Trish," Lita cut in. "We all know what's going on, we just don't know _why_ it's going on and we're sick and tired of you and Christian acting like it's _only_ your problem and like you can't accept help from anyone. We are your friends, we are supposed to be there for you and we _want_ to be there for you and you won't let us and do you know how frustrating that is?"

"Li-li, no mad," Tilden said, reaching her arms out for her kind of aunt. Lita took her into her arms and kissed her forehead because she had food on her cheeks. Lita grabbed her bib and wiped some of it off.

"I'm not mad, Tilde, I just want to help your mommy and daddy."

"I help," she mimicked and Lita kissed her again.

"You guys, seriously, Christian and I are…you know, working through stuff," Trish said evasively.

"Nope, uh uh, you're not getting off the hook," Stephanie and Lita walked inside the house. "Get dressed, we're going out, and we're not taking no for an answer, so you might as well accept the fact that we're going out."

"But Tilden…"

"Got it covered," Stephanie answered her, "my mom is in town because she wanted to see the kids and she has so gracious agreed to take care of Tilden for the day."

"I couldn't put that on her, she's not her grandchild."

"Stop it, Trish," Lita said as Stephanie pushed her up the stairs, "get dressed so we can go already."

Trish knew she was fighting a losing battle so she reluctantly went upstairs to get dressed while Lita and Stephanie went into the kitchen so Lita could clean up Tilden. She sat the little girl on the counter as Stephanie grabbed a wet paper towel. Tilden giggled as Lita wiped her mouth, trying to move out of the way playfully as Lita made faces at her. Tilden tried to push her away, but finally got all of her face and hands clean as Trish entered the kitchen, hearing the laughter from the front hall.

"Okay, I'm ready," Trish told them and Stephanie grabbed her arm as they nearly dragged her out of the house. As soon as they dropped off Tilden (much to the chagrin of Flynn), they headed to one of their favorite lunch places, and Trish found herself glad to be out of the house and with her friends. She was admittedly keeping her distance from them, but it all seemed so silly now that they were here and laughing about stupid things.

"I'm actually glad I came out with you guys," Trish admitted to them as they were eating their meal. "I think I needed something like today."

Lita shared a look with Stephanie before she spoke again, swallowing her food, "Trish, what the hell is going on?"

Trish knew this was coming, but it was still difficult to talk about because she didn't even really know. "I'm not even really sure _when_ it started. It was just like, I don't know, you guys know we were kind of in a rut. I think, now that I look back, that it probably started really far back, with Tilden. You know how he was with her, he was so over the moon with her and it put a strain on us, but we pushed through that, but looking back, I'm starting to wonder if that didn't start this thing between us."

"It couldn't have been, you guys were so happy," Lita said.

"You always feel like that after a kid," Stephanie told her, "there's always that adjustment period, especially after your first. You go from two people to three and it's a shift because suddenly, you have to think about this little thing before yourself."

"Well then, we had that rut and it was just like we were living two separate lives and then Christian told me he'd love to have another child," Trish sighed, "and that's where the contention started. I'm not ready for another kid. I thought I might be, but when I thought about it, I'm not ready for one right now. My yoga studios are really up and coming, plus I've been getting offers for different things and it's just not the right time for me to have a baby. Christian was pretty upset with this, though he tried not to show it, but I hurt him. He started to think that I didn't want his kid ever, which wasn't the case, but you know how stubborn men can be."

"You know," Stephanie said, "when I was pregnant with Sawyer and with Flynn, Chris told me that if I really didn't want to have them, I could have an abortion."

"Are you serious?" Lita asked as Stephanie nodded.

"He got it into his head that I didn't want Sawyer because I wasn't like your typical pregnant woman so he said if I wanted, I could abort Sawyer. With Flynn, neither of us really wanted a second child at that time so he said the offer still stood and if I really didn't want another child so soon…of course, abortion was never an option."

"Wow, a world without Sawyer or Flynn, that would be insane," Lita shook her head. "I can't even fathom that."

"Neither can I, it's just guys get things in their heads and it has to be true. I'm sure deep down Christian knows it isn't because you don't want _his_ kid, it's just you don't want it right now."

"Yeah, but after that, every little thing was the start to a fight. Then when I took the job with the divas, we were even busier than before and so we spent less and less time together until we barely saw each other and we were starting to resent the other," Trish leaned her chin in her hand. "I never wanted it to end up like this."

"You guys haven't filed for divorce, have you?" Lita asked.

"God no," Trish shook her head vigorously. "The reason we've been so unavailable is because we're in marriage counseling. Neither Christian nor I _want_ to get divorced. I still love him, it's just…not great right now. We were embarrassed by the entire thing. I mean, both of you guys are in these great relationships and we kind of felt like failures."

"Chris and I fight all the time," Stephanie argued.

"Oh come on, Steph," Trish scoffed, "you and Chris are like the prototype for a successful wrestling relationship. You've been married for seven years and together for ten, you guys have three amazing children, and you're the freaking president of the company while Chris is a rock star and doing all this stuff. You guys are what we all aspire to be."

"That's not true, is it?" Stephanie asked. Sure, she and Chris were happy, but she never thought of other people actually looking up to them. It seemed strange to hear that.

Lita nodded, "It's absolutely true, at least for two people actually _in_ the company, not necessarily for a wife or husband that stays at home, but for two wrestlers or wrestling personalities, absolutely you guys are the prototypes."

"Ridiculous, Chris and I fight, we get angry with each other. I think it's great that you're in counseling, Trish, it means you haven't given up. You want to work through all this. You want to make it work. I think that's admirable," Stephanie told her friend.

"I think it's good too. It can only help, right?"

"I guess, but then there's that part of me that fears it every week like our counselor is going to suddenly say that we should just get divorced because we're a lost cause."

"I don't think that's what they do," Lita said. "They want to help you and, to be honest, it doesn't sound like you guys are in too much trouble. You both want to work on it, you both _are_ working on it."

"Thanks guys, I guess I really just did need some support," Trish told them. "It does feel good to get that out."

"You should tell the same thing to Christian," Stephanie said, "it might help him too. Is he still at the house?"

"Yeah, he's still there, we're in separate rooms right now," Trish bit her lip, "but I don't think we can actually bear having one of us move out. It would feel too real I think. It's like as long as we're both there, things are going to be okay."

"Things _are_ going to be okay," Stephanie grabbed Trish's hand. "I know they are."

"But you can't _really_ know, Stephanie," Trish told her. "I mean, I don't even know, and I'm the one in the relationship."

"I know the both of you, I know how much you love each other and how hard you worked to be together."

"You guys are great together and we all have rough patches," Lita added. "Whatever this is, it'll make you stronger in the long run. You'll look back at how hard you worked to be together and it'll all be worth it."

"Do you think you'll eventually want more kids?" Stephanie asked.

"Oh, absolutely I do," Trish said, "just not right now. I figured a good age would be around when Tilden is four or five, I just didn't want one right now, but Christian wouldn't listen to me, thinking I was just saying that to appease him."

"Men," Lita grunted.

"I can totally understand that," Stephanie said, "the plan was to have another one when Sawyer was four then when that planned failed, we wanted to wait until Flynn was four to have another kid…"

"And now that this plan has failed, you have another plan to wait until Kensy is four," Lita joked.

"I think I may be done," Stephanie said, "Chris and I have been extra cautious."

"Edge and I haven't been," Lita added, "I don't know if I told you, Steph, I think I did, but Edge and I have been thinking about having a baby and so we've…kind of stopped using any kind of protection."

"Oh my God, wow," Trish said, "why didn't you say something sooner?"

"I just didn't want to feel like I was piling it on," Lita said. "Neither one of us is getting younger and it's just something we think we both want because we love Tilden and we love all of your crazy kids, Steph, and we just think it might be time to really settle down."

"Never think you have to hide good news from us," Trish reached over and hugged her. "Not ever. I can't believe I may be getting a niece or nephew."

"Oh yeah, we're pretty much going to be related, that's crazy," Lita told her.

"Now I feel left out," Stephanie joked and they both laughed and grabbed her hands too. "I don't even have any really good news to relate. I mean, um, Chris got stitches in the back of his head due to Punk, but that's about the most exciting thing in our lives right now."

"Still better than mine," Trish laughed pathetically.

"Trish, seriously, stop feeling sorry for yourself," Lita told her, "you guys are doing the best thing you can do, you're working on it and the fact that neither one of you is even willing to move out…you guys are so not going to break up."

"I concur," Stephanie told her. "Next time though, come to us and complain. We'll all complain about something with our significant others and it'll make us feel better. You go first, Trish and it can't be something you've already said."

"Oh God, you guys, this is lame," Trish said and they both shook their heads and prompted her to think of something. She took a bite of her food and thought about it for a moment. "I hate the look he gives me whenever I bring up how the divas are improving. He always gets this look on his face like he couldn't care less. Like what I'm doing means absolutely nothing to him or to them."

"Well, you are making a difference," Stephanie said, "and that's my professional opinion as your boss."

"Thanks," Trish said, "I really am trying."

"Okay, Stephanie, what's yours?"

"Okay, mine," Stephanie thought for a moment and then she smiled, "yeah, I've got mine. I hate when Chris goes drinking with his friends when he's away like at the Golden Gods then calls me while he's drunk because he gets really horny and he tells me all the things he wants to do to me except he always waits until it's like three in the morning to call and I'm already asleep and so I have to answer the phone and hear about all the places he wants to lick me."

"Oh my God," Trish laughed, covering her face. "Why can I picture that?"

"I don't know, has he ever called you?" Stephanie asked, pretending to be suspicious.

"God, no," Trish continued to laugh, "I don't even know what I'd do if Chris called me and acted like that."

"Well, believe me, I usually let him get it out and then I stay on with him until he falls asleep, which he usually does because he'll call from bed."

"That's kind of oddly sweet in a weird way," Lita said.

"Well, next time I'll tell him to call you," Stephanie said, "so what does Edge do that is so annoying to you?"

"The Edge thing!" Lita said, giggling to herself. "He seriously hates it when I call him Adam. One time, we were in the middle of fooling around, you know, getting all into it and I moaned out Adam and he honestly pulled back and glared at me until I called him Edge. It's so annoying sometimes!"

"That's hilarious," Stephanie said.

Trish looked at her two best friends and grabbed their hands. "Thank you so much you guys, you have no idea how much I needed this. It's nice to feel normal again. I feel like there's really hope at the end of the tunnel now."

Lita smiled at her. "Believe us, Trish, there is."

Flynn walked down the hallway holding onto her daddy's hand. She liked holding onto his hand because he was her daddy and she loved him, but she also knew he was mad at Punk for something she didn't know. She really wanted to see Punk, but she knew her daddy would say no so she was going to have to ask her mommy to take her to see Punk. She hoped her mommy would let her see her friend.

"Daddy?" Flynn smiled sweetly up at her father, who looked down at her with a smile.

"Yes, Flutterby?"

"I miss you when you gone," Flynn told him.

"I missed you too."

"I glad you here," she told him truthfully. If Flynn were older, she might realize she was actually trying to soften any blow her father might feel when he knew she really wanted to go see her friend. What she didn't know was she already had another friend here.

"Thank you, I'm glad you're here too," Chris told her as they walked down the hallway together. "Are you mad you missed me wrestling in Europe?"

"Uh, no," Flynn answered, shaking her head and making her light brown hair fall in her face. She pushed it away impatiently. "I watch you on the TV. You hads longs hair."

"Oh, so it was old stuff then."

"Uh huh, it was, but it okay. You no know me," she explained.

"I really didn't know you," he said, "I didn't even know I was going to have you. You weren't exactly a thought in my head for a long time."

"That's silly, I should be there," Flynn told him.

"I had other things on my mind, I couldn't think about how I was going to have a flutterby when I got older. That was just a thing that happened without me really knowing," Chris told her and she giggled. "You think I'm crazy?"

"A little," she admitted funnily. She looked up ahead and her mouth dropped open. "Ed!"

Edge turned around and he groaned when he saw Flynn. "Flynnie, don't be like your brother. My name is Edge and you should call me Edge."

"I like Ed," Flynn shrugged. "It sound better."

"It sounds worse," he tried to tell her, scowling.

"Yo, what are you doing here?"

"Well, Lita and I were visiting my mom in Toronto because we wanted to tell her what was going on with Christian and Trish and really, Toronto is a short flight away so I decided to come see what was going on, find out if you had any more information about my brother…"

"No, sorry, dude," Chris said, "he was on the SmackDown tour so I never even saw him when we were overseas and then when I got home, I went straight to my family. Oh, but hey, Stephanie told me about you and Li and starting a family, is that true?"

"Would Stephanie have told you if it weren't?" Edge asked him. Then he laughed and went on, "It's just a thought right now, but a very real one. We're weighing our options, but I think we're both ready."

"You do know how much work it's going to be, right?"

"Of course we do," Edge answered. "We know it's going to be a huge change."

"Worth it though, definitely worth it."

Punk jogged to catch up to Britt, grabbing her on the arm, "Hey, can I talk to you?"

Britt looked at him strangely, "I've got a lot to do. Brock isn't here yet and his contract signing was supposed to be first, and I think I made it clear what was going on last week."

"I know, but you know what, that's not far," Punk told her. "I'm not okay with what you did to me."

"I wasn't okay with you kissing me, Phil," Britt wanted out of this conversation. She was pissed at him for what he'd done to Stephanie and Chris's kids, and she didn't want to talk to him tonight or next week or the week after that.

"Okay, fair enough, but you stringing me along because you were _flattered_? How is that okay? How is okay to send someone signals like that?"

"Oh, like you didn't have your own agenda," she challenged him, thinking about those three little kids who had become as dear to her as her nieces and nephews. Stephanie had let her know earlier that Flynn still asked her about Punk and that just made her angrier at the situation. She tried to restrain herself though, knowing it would be no use to get angry at him in the middle of a hallway.

"So I liked you, so what?"

"Don't act like you don't know what you did," Britt implored of him. "You know exactly what you tried to pull and you can just give up your little game now, we all know what you were up to? Why do you think Chris is pissed at you? It's because of what you did, and then you act like you're the one slighted here?"

"Look, I don't even know what's going on, why don't you tell me what I did?"

"I don't want to talk to you, I'm sorry," Britt said, "it's hard to even look at you."

She stormed off and now things were getting way too weird with everyone. He didn't _do_ anything, and it was getting frustrating being kept out of the loop. All he knew was Chris thought he did something, but he couldn't figure out what this something was. Chris hadn't acted upset when he found out about Punk's kiss with Britt, and why would he even care? Punk figured that, yes, Chris would be pissed enough to spit blood if Punk had kissed _Stephanie_, but Punk would _never_ do that.

He stormed off himself and towards Stephanie's office. He wanted to get answers and he needed to talk to someone about this. He barged into the room without knocking or caring who was inside. Luckily for his face, it was only Stephanie and Kensington. Kensington's face lit up when she saw him. She walked over and waved at him, holding her arms up to be held. Punk looked at Stephanie in defiance and picked up Kensington.

"Hey there, Kensy, how are you?" Punk asked the little girl.

"Good," Kensy answered, giving him a hug.

"What is it, Phil?" Stephanie asked.

"What the hell is going on around here?"

"You better leave because Chris is on his way here with Flynn. They just made a quick store run to get some granola bars and they should be back any minute."

"Stephanie, why is your husband out for blood?" Punk asked her, taking note of her cold voice. It was a lot less harsh than Chris's, but he could tell whatever happened was something she was mad at too.

"Because of what you did," she answered, "because of how you treated my children."

"I didn't treat them as anything. I like your kids. They're great kids."

"Yeah, great pawns, right?"

"Pawns? What? Wait, you think I used your kids, Stephanie, come on."

"You wanted Britt, right?"

"Well, yeah, I wanted Britt, I still do, but she's not giving me the time of day either. I mean, she's a great girl once you get past all the boyfriend stuff," Punk tried to joke. Stephanie remained unamused.

"How far were you willing to go to get what you wanted?"

"I don't understand."

"Look, Chris is going to be here any second so you're just better off leaving now before you start another altercation," Stephanie told him. She could tell he looked confused though and she wanted to talk to him because the way he looked, she wasn't sure you could fake that look. But then, Punk was a great actor so he very well could be trying to save his ass now, especially now that everything was out in the open. "I want to talk to you though, really talk to you. Things are a little hectic tonight with it being a three hour show. I know Sunday is going to be a big night for you, what with you being in your hometown with your entire family there, but maybe Monday."

"Thank you, Stephanie," Punk told her, nodding as he put Kensington back down. "I'm just really, really confused."

"I want to believe you, Phil, I _really_ do, but there's just so much he said, he said right now," Stephanie told him, "and if it comes down to it, I have to support my husband."

"I understand that," Punk said, "but maybe you're both wrong. I'll talk to you later, Steph."

"Bye," she told him, watching him go.

She thought for a moment about the implications of Punk's words. If he was right, if he was in the clear about all of this, where did that leave Hunter? Was Hunter lying? She didn't want to believe that after all the progress Hunter had made over the years that he could revert right back to the jackass who had been willing to put himself above everything and everything. At the end of the day, though, wasn't that something he would do?

How much did people really change? She ran her hand over her face. She knew the answer to that. Deep down inside, she believed you were always able to go back to the person you once were. Sometimes, late at night, she wondered what it would be like if Chris woke up one morning and remembered he thought she was a slut. She knew it was silly, but that man still lurked inside him, just like the woman who hated his guts still lurked inside of her.

"Mama," Kensington tugged on Stephanie's pants and Stephanie turned to look down at her, pulling her up into her lap and letting her look at what she was doing. "Pay-pay"

"You have the strangest word for paper," Stephanie kissed the crown of Kensington's head. "What I'm doing right here is looking over the contracts for Brock and Cena tonight. They're going to sign these and I just wanted to make sure they were in order."

"Oh," Kensington said, placing her hand gently on one of them and then looking up at Stephanie.

"Yes, this is very important. What Mommy is trying to do is make it seem like I like what John Laurinaitis is doing so that Grandpa Vince can say that I'm not on board with anything. He brought back Brock, who Mommy doesn't really like, but we have to pretend to like him for now."

"Okay," Kensington said as the door opened and Chris walked in. Flynn was carrying her granola bars, the box half open as she pulled one out and ran over to hand it to Kensington. Kensington took it and looked at curiously.

"Eat it," Flynn told her while Kensington just gave her a look that said she didn't know what to do with this. Stephanie helped her open it and broke it into little pieces before she noticed Chris had something in his hand as well.

"What's that?" Stephanie asked. It looked like a basket full of liquor.

"A little gift for Punk," Chris chuckled.

"Don't you think you're going a little hard on the guy at this point?" Stephanie chanced to say.

"Nope," Chris told her. "I don't think I'm going hard enough, but don't worry, this Sunday, I'll make sure he gets what's I'm trying to say. I'm going to make sure it happens in front of his whole family too."

Edge generally never liked John Cena. There were times, sure, where they got along for the sake of getting along, but he would never call John Cena his friend. Still, when Brock Lesnar, a guy so obviously there for the publicity and the pay out. The guy couldn't handle the WWE before, but oh, all of a sudden, here he is, trying to claim everything for himself. It bugged Edge that Cena was letting this guy dictate everything. He was not here for the fans.

Edge would _kill_ to be able to go out there and wrestle and entertain the fans again. He had worked so hard for so many years to get where he was and this blowhard comes breezing in acting like he'd earned his position? It didn't sit well with Edge that Cena as just letting this guy come in and manipulate him and make him look like a fool.

He was technically still under contract and because of that, he wanted to go out there and say something to Cena. Stephanie, who was working the table tonight, was sitting there and he sidled in next to her, giving her his best smile. "Hey, Stephanie," he said charmingly, flashing his toothiest of grins.

"What do you want?" Stephanie asked good-naturedly.

"Those guys in the production trucks, they still have my music, right?"

Stephanie pulled off her headphones and looked at him, "What are you thinking?"

"I can kill two birds with one stone for you here," Edge told her, knowing the way to get to Stephanie was to appeal to the businesswoman in her. "I can make Brock look awful and make Laurinaitis look like a jackass at the same time and it wouldn't even fall on you."

"We still have your music," she said simply as she put her headphones back on. Edge's eyes sparkled and he quickly got himself ready to get out there and talk some sense into John Cena. His music went off and he quickly entered the arena, much to the chagrin of John Larinaitis, but Edge didn't care one bit. The fans were ecstatic to see him and he was just as enthused to see them as well. He ran across the stage before climbing in the ring, allowing himself to soak in the cheers from the crowd before speaking directly to John. He told him that he didn't know who this guy was. This wasn't the guy he'd feuded with, hated, rivaled himself against. This guy was nothing like that, but he needed to be.

John needed to show everyone that he was better than Brock Lesnar, that he was better because he was here. Edge had never left. Edge had spent so long here and it was not right that some guy could come in here and…John needed to find whatever courage he had inside of him and start to use it because this was getting pretty old, pretty fast. He and Cena and so many guys in the back had carried the load for years while Brock was off trying to find himself or whatever it was Brock was doing. He'd been here, John had been here, guys like Taker, Shawn, they all worked their asses off for this business and this guy was just going to think he could come back and ride this wave. John needed to wake up and Edge could only hope he had given it to him because he couldn't wrestle Brock, but if he could, he would take on the challenge that John seemed to shy away from.

"Special delivery," Chris said as he walked down the hallway with Kensington holding one of his hands and Flynn holding the other.

"Mommy, I wanna jacket like Daddy's," Flynn told her mother as she gazed up jealously at her father's jacket. This one had _colored_ lights. Her jacket just had one color.

"I told her to ask you since you've got the big bucks," Chris told her, winking.

"Ooh, Mommy, guess what?" Flynn cut in again, finding another subject to talk about.

"What?" Stephanie asked, taking her headphones off as they cut to a commercial. She wanted to talk to Edge, commend him for what he'd said, but her children came first and as she saw Edge walk past with a wink, she knew she'd have to catch up with him sometime later this week when they were back home.

"We give present to Punk!" Flynn said happily because she at least got to drop something off at his locker room, but she didn't get to see him. She didn't seem to understand it was not a good gift and Stephanie looked at Chris critically.

"What?" he mouthed to her.

"You know what," she mouthed back as Flynn and Kensington both looked back and forth between them.

"What are you doing?" Flynn asked.

"What?" Kensington echoed.

"Nothing," Stephanie said, "come on, girls, Daddy has to go for his match and he can't be disturbed." Chris knew he was in trouble because of the gift thing, but the girls wouldn't know any better and it wasn't like he could just leave his daughters to go run the errand. Stephanie would just have to understand that.

When Chris was going up the steps to get to the ramp, Flynn turned to Stephanie and tapped her on the shoulder. Stephanie pulled her headphones off again and looked to Flynn questioning. Flynn leaned up on the chair and whispered in her mother's ear, "Mommy, cans I go see Punk?"

"Baby girl, I don't think that's the best idea tonight, but next Monday, I promise you we'll go see him, okay?"

Flynn clapped excitedly. "Okay!"

"Okay, but just keep this from Daddy, just this once, okay?" Stephanie told her, pressing her finger to her lips to signify that it was supposed to be a secret. Flynn copied the action and Stephanie leaned forward to kiss her forehead. "Now do you want to watch Daddy's match or what?"

"Daddy's match!" Flynn grinned eagerly, actually making a very scary face like this was the most intense thing in the world before turning to the monitor and tuning out the world. She tuned it back in a second later though, "Kensy, watch Daddy!"

"I am!" Kensington told her sister, glaring at her as she said it because she _was_ watching Daddy on the screen. Stephanie turned both her daughters' heads towards the screen and they watched their daddy's match.

Chris thought Kofi was a decent opponent, a good wrestler, but his mind was elsewhere that evening. Kofi was not the guy he wanted to beat up. He was just a precursor to it. As soon as he put the Walls of Jericho on Kofi and Kofi tapped, Chris grabbed a microphone and said that his match was proof he would go into Extreme Rules and come out the WWE champion. Punk might be extreme in some respects, but he was an extreme disappointment as a human being and Chris was going to prove it on Sunday.

He was building up his anger, oh yes, he was building up his anger and it would come crashing down on Punk this Sunday. Nobody messed with his kids. It was the one thing besides hurting Stephanie that would cause him to go over the deep end. There was no turning back now. Punk was going to get it and Chris's little gift could serve as a consolation prize.

Punk did not find the liquor basket comforting in any way or funny in any way, but it did give him an idea. He was tired of sitting back and taking whatever it was Chris was trying to dish at him. He had figured somewhere along the line, he'd been falsely accused and while he would rather use his words to work it out, sometimes his fists were just as good as his words were and that was going to be the case tonight. He didn't know exactly what he planned to do, but he needed to let Chris think that he was drinking and lull him into a false sense of security.

Punk stuck his head out into the hallway and the first person he saw was Alex Riley. "Alex, come here a second," Punk called him over.

Alex came over and asked him, "What's going on?"

"Look, I need your help with something."

"What?" Alex shrugged.

"I want to get back at Chris Jericho tonight."

"Are you serious?" Alex asked him. "He's married to the _President_ of the company, why would I want to mess with him?"

"He's not going to do anything to you, he could care less about you, it's me he wants," Punk told him. "Just help me with this one."

"Okay, fine, what is it that you need me to do?"

Flynn frowned at Chris. "Daddy, I no wanna go with you."

"You don't?" he asked in surprise.

"Uh uh," Flynn shook her head, "I stay with Mommy and watch the show 'cause I like wrestling and I wanna watch."

"Well, if that's okay with Mommy, is it okay with Mommy?"

"Eve? John hired _Eve_? Are you kidding me?" Stephanie said to nobody in particular. "This is just Vince McMahon tactics 2.0."

"Stephanie?" Chris asked, looking at his irate wife. She was muttering to herself though and so he made a funny face at his daughters, making them both launch into fits of giggles while he came around the table and knelt down next to her. "Steph, baby, look at me."

"What?" Stephanie turned to him.

"Don't worry about that, okay? Who cares about her," Chris told her, taking her face in his hands. "I love you."

"I love you too."

"Are the girls going to be okay with you?"

"Yeah, they'll be fine, go get showered or whatever. What _are_ you planning on doing?"

"I'll find something to do," he winked at her, leaning forward to kiss her before standing back up and heading down the hallway. He knew Punk wouldn't take a drink of the alcohol he'd given him, but he thought…maybe he'd done enough to make the man crack. Maybe tonight was the night he'd give in. Who was he kidding? It probably wouldn't be. Instead, he decided he'd go hang out with Edge for a while.

It was on his way back to his locker room to get a much-needed shower that he ran into Alex Riley, who stopped him. At first he thought it was going to be for a stupid reason. As the head of Talent Relations, he constantly had people stopping him and asking him for things he could not give them. This time was different though. Riley was telling him Punk was drinking some of the alcohol. Chris couldn't believe it at first, but Riley kept insisting it was true. He told Riley to show him to the locker room.

When Chris got there, he saw the open bottle and Punk appearing to be drinking something. He wasn't fooled, however, because he knew Punk could have easily manipulated him into thinking he was drinking. His mind started working overtime though and a plan formulated inside his head. Sure, Punk probably wasn't drinking, but that didn't mean he couldn't…a bright light seemed to form over his head and suddenly, he had a great idea.

"Thanks," Chris said quickly to Riley and booked it back to Stephanie. The girls were enthralled with the show and Stephanie was caught in directing everyone with what they needed to do. She barked out orders with lighting, cameras, music, everything under the sun so he was forced to wait until a commercial break. When Stephanie got to a commercial, she took her headphones off and looked over at him. She'd noticed he was there, but didn't have the opportunity to talk with him.

"What's up, sweetie?" Stephanie asked. "Why are you still in your trunks? Have you showered?"

"No, listen," Chris said, "you just saw what happened, right?"

"Yeah, with Punk, but I don't think he was-"

"No, no, neither do I, but I had a great idea," Chris told her, his eyes belying his excitement. "I'm going to go to Laurinaitis and I'm going to confer with him over this. First of all, it'll show him that I think of him as an authority figure, thus making us look better because we've accepted what he's offering and you know your father will hate that."

"I like this, go on," Stephanie said. She knew, in essence, she was giving her father what he wanted, but in doing so, she made herself look like the team player and when everything went down, as she knew it someday would, she would look like the person who tried to make everything work while her father looked like the man trying to undermine her. Her father thought she was two steps behind, but she was really five steps ahead.

"Plus, okay, bear with me on this one, what if we get Eve?" he asked her.

"To what? Take you on the days I don't want you?" Stephanie asked him with a laugh.

"No, what if we can get someone on the inside," Chris told her. "We had Punk and that was all well and good for a while, but he had his own agenda and he's not exactly trustworthy as we've come to find out."

"But Eve is?"

"Seeing her and how she behaved with Zack and Cena, I think she can be manipulated into giving us what we want if we can give her what she wants."

"I'm not letting her sleep with you," Stephanie told him, a smirk emerging on her face.

"Very funny, no thanks," Chris told her, "but she does want recognition, fame, but also, the one thing we have in spades…"

"Money," Stephanie supplied for him.

"She has no attachment to John, her lips aren't sewn to his ass like Otunga's are. If I can use my quick wit and charm, and yes, I do have some. Maybe we can really, _really_ see what your father is up to because let's face it, he wouldn't have done anything for Punk, but for a pretty girl like Eve—"

"Pretty girls have always been my father's downfall," Stephanie said with a sigh.

"I know," Chris ran his hand down her cheek. "So do you think this should be a go?"

"I absolutely think this should be a go."

Chris now had to put on a convincing performance. The hardest part would be acting like he cared anything for John Laurinatis. He didn't. The man was trying to undermine his wife, and Chris was very protective over her status. He walked into the GM's office without knocking because he owned the damn joint and it caused Laurinatis, Eve, and Teddy Long to look at him in confusion over him just barging in.

"I need to talk to you," Chris told Laurainitis, ignoring the other two for now.

"You can't just barge in here, Chris."

"Oh, I can," Chris told him then remembered himself. He had to be nice to this guy for a few minutes. "I really needed to talk to you. I figured since you _are _the GM and after your brilliant masterstroke of bringing in Brock Lesnar, I should come to you instead of just doing my own thing."

"Really? You want my help because I'm in charge."

"You are in charge, Stephanie let you be, and I trust my wife's instincts," Chris told him with a kind smile that hid his disgust.

"Well, okay, what is it then?"

Chris then proceeded to tell him about what he'd seen with Punk drinking, while on the job no less. He tried to make it sound bad enough to have him stripped of his WWE championship. By letting Laurinaitis think he had the authority to do so, it gave the guy confidence. A false sense of confidence, but confidence nonetheless. Laurinaitis wasn't sure he could do that, but Eve stepped in and Chris was honestly impressed with her knowledge of the company. She might be a very good person to crack.

Chris then suggested they give Punk a field sobriety test, which he would pass and Chris knew that, but that's not what this was really about. This was about instilling Vince with the confidence of letting John try more daring things that would hopefully eventually lead to his ouster and Vince's puppet-master gimmick would be out the window. He thanked them for their time, even complimenting Eve because you caught more flies with honey than with vinegar and left the locker room, waiting outside for Eve to come out. When she did, she stopped and smiled at Chris.

"Oh, hey, Chris, thanks so much for the compliments," she blushed, which didn't become her.

"Hey, I was actually waiting for you," Chris told her, "do you mind if we talk in private?"

"Um, isn't your wife around?" Eve asked tentatively, her eyes darting around. She may have messed with a couple of guys in John Cena and Zack Ryder, but Chris Jericho was off-limits and everyone knew it. Stephanie was the head of the company. She could fire you before you could even explain anything. That meant anything tried on Chris Jericho was subject to her immediate rage. Not that she, and probably every other female backstage, hadn't thought about it. Chris was good-looking, you couldn't help but notice it, but the fear of Stephanie outweighed that by a ton.

"She knows I need to talk to you," Chris said, "please?"

"Okay," Eve said as Chris led her to his locker room, opening the door for her. "What did you need?"

"How committed are you to working for Laurinaitis?" Chris asked.

"I want to do work for him," Eve said.

"How would you like to work for Stephanie and me?" Chris said, but before she could talk again, he spoke, "I'm not saying we need you to be _our_ assistant because we don't need an assistant, maybe a babysitter, but more like, you tell us what happens with Laurinaitis, and he doesn't have to know."

"You want me to spy?" Eve asked.

"If you want to call it that."

"But why? Stephanie gave him that job, I mean, the board did, but didn't Stephanie approve it."

"Vince is behind it," Chris said. "That's where you come in, we just want to know what's going on back there, what's happening in Laurinaitis's mind. Now, I know you're going to ask what's in it for you and that's reasonable. You would be handsomely rewarded monetarily-speaking."

"I like the sound of that," Eve said, "can you give me time to think about it?"

"I could, but I don't trust you," Chris said, "how do I know you won't go tell Larurinaitis about this?"

Eve rolled her eyes and tossed her hair back. "I want to discuss what my monetary value is to him. Money speaks, Chris, you know this. I'll let you know, whatever he's offering me, I'm sure you and Stephanie can top it. So we'll talk then."

"So it's about how much you can get then?" he wondered.

"Now you're using you're thinking cap," Eve said, "and you don't believe Punk's been drinking. I saw you looking into his locker room, you couldn't have look less shocked than you were."

"I needed an in," Chris told her, "I'm sure you know the feeling."

With that, he breezed out of the room. He went back to the production table and sat down in the seat Kensington was currently occupying, lifting her up so she could sit in his lap while he waited for Punk's sobriety test. Instead of watching the show like his daughters, he watched his wife with rapt attention. He loved seeing her like this, and it just reinforced why he was willing to go to any length to make her happy. She glanced over at him every once in a while, leaning over to give him a peck on the lips.

"Daddy, what you make Punk do?" Flynn asked him right before the sobriety test was set to begin.

"Nothing, Flutterby, we're just going to have fun out there," Chris told her obliquely. He understood now he had to be delicate with his kids and this was the best way to say it.

He went down there for the sobriety test, calling Teddy incompetent, which he didn't think was right, but he had to be on Larinaitis's good side for this one. After all the pomp and circumstance, Punk eventually made it down to the ring, playing a _very_ bad drunk. If Punk thought he was fooling anyone, he was delusional. Chris played along because he had to, but even he wasn't falling for this crap.

That almost made him angrier at Punk. If the guy was going to try and get him, at least make it believable. If this was Punk's way of getting back at him, it wasn't working. What did he think he was doing? He knew what he'd done and he knew why Chris was angry, but he made everything a huge, big joke. Chris's kids were not a joke. They liked to tell jokes, but they were not jokes and the fact that Punk was laughing as he was asked to recite the alphabet backwards made Chris want to punch his teeth out.

Punk took the microphone away from his mouth for a second so nobody could hear when he looked straight at Chris and asked, "What the hell is up with you, man?"

"You know what's up with me," Chris said, "don't act like you don't."

"I don't."

"Shut up," Chris told him.

Punk continued to act "drunk," which still wasn't fooling anyone and Chris decided to just call him out on it. If he wanted to act that way, Chris would get his title stripped away anyways. It was inconsequential to him. He would do what it took to be champion for his kids who had suffered at the hands of this monster enough. Unfortunately, Punk then decided to be funny and tricky again.

Chris should have expected the hit, but because of his anger towards Punk's antics, he didn't see it coming. Then Punk was all over him, punching him, taking him down and he couldn't recover from the initial onslaught. Punk was channeling his own anger over whatever was going on. Chris was supposed to be his friend, he wanted Chris to be his friend. He wanted to be able to hang out with Chris's cool family again. He didn't want to be accused of anything.

Most of all, though, he just wanted the damn truth.


	367. Broken, April 30, 2012

A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who has read the story. I got an incredible amount of readers last month for this story and I'm just thrilled so many people still read it.

Just letting you know ahead of time that I know I didn't write about the entire Raw. It's just where I ended it felt like the best place to end this particular chapter. I'll cover the other stuff that happened in the next chapter, though it's really not a big deal, I think, but I'll cover it anyways. I hope you enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

"Daddy, Kensy tried to bite me!"

Flynn ran into the room, holding her arm out as evidence, and straight into Chris's legs. She pouted and looked up at him with the prettiest, but saddest eyes, like her whole world was crumbling. Chris just laughed at her and knelt down so he was eye level with her. She threw her arms around his neck and buried her face into him. Chris hugged her back and then kissed the side of her head.

He pulled her gently away from him and looked her straight in the eye, "And what were you doing with Kensy?"

"Nothing," Flynn tried to say innocently, but Chris wasn't buying it. Kensington was not a biter, so something had to prompt her to try and bite her sister.

"Flynn…"

"Nothing!" Flynn insisted.

"Flutterby?" Chris asked her in his most charming voice.

"Elbow drop," Flynn mumbled, pursing her lips as she looked down at the ground. She chanced to look up at her father and saw a very disappointed look on his face. She jutted out her bottom lip like she was trying to appear more innocent than she was.

"Daddy!" Kensington ran into the room, a frown on her own face and he wondered what could be the matter with her. She ran to him and hugged him as well, not necessarily pushing Flynn out of the way, but moving her aside so she could have some space.

"She did try bite me, Daddy," Flynn reiterated, not liking that Kensington was just getting a pass on this.

"Okay, look at me, the both of you," Chris leaned back and sat down cross-legged in front of her. "I love you both, let's start with that. I also like that both of you are tough and you don't take crap from anyone, this is something I also like because it means that you'll hopefully be just like your mommy, headstrong and stubborn and not being pushovers. But…"

"Daddy, I can bes like Mommy," Flynn nodded.

"Me too!" Kensington said, sitting down on her butt to emulate her father. She smiled brightly at him, flashing him her tiny, little teeth and he couldn't help but smile at his kids. He didn't mean to be hubristic, but his daughters were both absolutely gorgeous. He hated being one of _those_ parents, but when you had daughters as beautiful as his were, you were allowed. They very much looked like sisters, but there were differences that set them apart from each other. They both had blue eyes, but Kensington's were brighter, more like his while Flynn's were smokier, like Stephanie's, hints of gray tinged throughout.

They also both had darker hair, but Kensington's seemed to be getting darker every day while Flynn's was definitely golden-tinged, but not enough to be blonde. Kensington had never grown into the McMahon chin, but they both had Stephanie's face, which was lucky for them because his wife was just as beautiful as his children were. Kensington had his smile though, that little smirky quality to it, while Flynn very much used Stephanie's facial expressions (most of all frustration). Sawyer was really the only one who really, truly looked like him. His daughters had been blessed with their mother's looks.

"Good, I want you two to be strong women when you grow up, however," he told him, looking down his nose at them, "both of you should know what you were doing was wrong. All I wanted to do was make a phone call and I leave you for two minutes and we start it by fighting?"

"I not fighting," Flynn told him, her mouth dropping a little, "I wrestle."

"Flutterby, we can't wrestle with your sister, we tell you this _all_ the time," Chris told his daughter. "She's smaller than you and you can hurt both yourself _and_ Kensy. You can do wrestling stuff with me _only_ when we have the mats down at home or when we're in the ring, understood?"

"I good," Flynn tried to tell him.

"I know you're good, but you're still little and I don't want anything to happen to you," Chris told her, pinching her chin in his fingers. "If anything happened to you, I would cry forever."

"You can't do that," Flynn laughed at him.

"I would do that, which is why you can't pull wrestling moves, especially not on Kensy because she's little and you could really hurt her and I don't think you would want to hurt your sister like that, would you?"

Flynn looked at her sister. It had turned out she wasn't such a gross thing after all. She always had someone to play with even if Kensington didn't like to play wrestling all the time like she did. "No, I no hurt her."

"Good, now Miss Kensy-bear," Chris turned to his younger daughter, who was giving him a charming smile right now. "Yes, yes, I see the face, but I'm not deterred, I know you didn't want Flynn to give you an elbow drop—"

"No dop!" Kensington expressed, shaking her finger at Flynn who stuck her tongue out at her.

"Yes, that's right, no drops," Chris said, "but you cannot bite your sister or anyone else. Biting is not nice and it's really gross. You wouldn't like it if I bit you, would you?"

"No," Kensington shook her head. "Bite tummy!"

"Wait, you're right, I do…bite your tummy," Chris said, grabbing Kensington and pretending to bite her tummy through her shirt. "Nom, nom, nom!"

"Daddy!" Kensington giggled and tried to push him away.

"Daddy, you forgets me!" Flynn said with annoyance.

"How could I forget my flutterby?" Chris asked as he grabbed Flynn in his other arm and started to pretend to bite her shoulder. She laughed and slapped her small hand against her father's arm.

"You're too silly!" Flynn said through her giggling. The door opened behind him and Flynn looked up. "Mommy, help, Daddy's biting!"

"Oh no!" Stephanie said as she led Sawyer into the room. They'd made a quick run to the store to get some snacks for their hotel room. They'd flown to Chicago the night before (Friday) so they hadn't had time to get any snacks or water for the room. Stephanie and Chris always liked to have snacks and drinks on hand when the kids were hungry and between mealtime.

"Sawa!" Kensington yelled, breaking free and running to Sawyer for protection. She threw her arms around his waist, giggling from her father's tickling. Sawyer hugged her back and she looked up at him. "Up, Sawa."

"Okay," Sawyer said, lifting her up so she could cuddle with him. "Go?"

"I went to the store with Mommy," Sawyer explained. "We got lots of snacks. It's not very nice outside though."

"I know," Stephanie said, patting Sawyer's head. "Thank you for coming with me though. It was nice to have some company."

"You're welcome," Sawyer grinned at her.

"Daddy!" Flynn was still laughing as Chris finally put her down. She ran towards Stephanie and hopped in front of her, "Mommy, pick me up now."

"What do we say?"

"Please!" Flynn begged as Stephanie set the things down and picked up her daughter. "I gonna be likes you, Mommy."

"You are?"

"Tough," Flynn told her through gritted teeth.

"Well, I'm glad then," Stephanie kissed her daughter's forehead. She glanced back at her husband and smiled at him. "Hey there, you're free to go for the rest of the afternoon, I know you wanted to get a workout in."

"Thanks," Chris told her, standing up and walking over to peer inside the bags of food she'd gotten at whatever grocery store she'd managed to find. He pulled out a bag of raisins and tore it open, pouring a few into his hands. "You don't mind if I cut out on you?"

"No, of course not, you've got a big match tomorrow," Stephanie smiled at him, giving him a peck on the lips. "You need to make sure you're in top physical shape because you know he's not going to take it easy on you."

"It's not me you should be worrying about," Chris told her, his eyes boring into hers. "It's him you should be worried about because I'm going to do everything in my power to absolutely pulverize him and by that, I mean, I'm going to—"

Stephanie cleared her throat and darted her eyes towards the kids, all of whom were watching Chris and listening to every word he said. He checked himself and smiled at his children as Stephanie spoke, "I'm sure you just want to get in some last minute conditioning."

"Daddy, what is a Chicago street fight anyways?" Sawyer asked, nothing getting by him as he was older now and able to glean onto things. It almost made Chris long for the days when Sawyer was completely oblivious.

"It's just a street fight that's in Chicago," Chris told him. "That's all."

"A street fight is when you fight in the street, right?" he asked innocently, thinking that's where you _had_ to have one because where else could a street fight take place?

"Well, not really, I mean, you _could_ go out into the street, but also, it's just you use things that you wouldn't normally use in a regular wrestling match. I guess you guys will see tomorrow," he said, but then slightly cringed because he realized that whatever was coming to Punk, Punk would return it with fervor and that meant things could get really scary for his kids.

Stephanie seemed to pick up on this and, in order to diffuse the situation, pulled her kids towards her. "Hey, enough wrestling talk for the day. I know there is a Children's Museum here in Chicago and when I looked it up online, do you know what today is?"

"What?" Flynn asked.

"Well, it's a bug day! And I think that would be the perfect place to take Miss Kensington."

"Daddy calls her a bug," Flynn pointed at Chris and he nodded eagerly.

"That sounds like fun," Sawyer said. "Can we really go?"

"I think the cards say yes," Stephanie said. "That way we can give Daddy all the time he needs to focus on winning tomorrow because I think we all want him to have the big, gold belt, don't we?"

"We really do," Sawyer nodded, "I don't think Daddy has had that one belt. He's had the one that Sheamus has, but I don't think he's had the one that Punk has."

"All the more reason for Daddy to get that tomorrow," Stephanie said, "so let's go get shoes and coats on and then we can head on out."

Stephanie put Flynn down and the kids headed into the bedroom to put their coats and shoes on, with Sawyer helping Kensington since she was still too small. Stephanie went to go help where needed, but Chris's hand grabbed her arm first. She looked at him and threw him a loving look. "You don't have to do that, Steph."

"Do what?" she asked, really wondering what he could mean.

"Take the kids for the day."

"Chris, they're _my_ kids, it's not like I'm going to ditch them," she joked, making a move to start walking back again, but Chris stopped her again. "What is it? Oh, is this because you think it's going to be _so_ difficult for me to handle all three of them. Chris, we've had kids for six years next Wednesday, believe me when I say I can handle it."

"But that place is probably huge and you know how Flynn gets when she has to do anything she considers a baby thing with Kensington."

"I can handle it," Stephanie told him again. "Believe me, there's probably a ton of things there for everyone, so I'm sure that we will be able to find something everyone loves."

"I love you," he told her, finding her spectacular every moment of every day, but there were the small things, the normal, mundane things that really brought to the forefront how much he loved this woman to distraction.

"I love you too," she responded by kissing him. "I better go make sure they're getting ready and Flynn isn't trying to shove Kensington into her coat."

"Thank you for understanding the other important things in my life," he called after her and she looked over his shoulder, pointing between the two of them.

"What's important to you is important to me, mano e mano, buddy," she winked, disappearing into the bedroom.

After Chris saw his wife and kids off to the museum, he decided to visit the local gym the wrestlers had been granted access to. There were some wrestlers there, but CM Punk was nowhere to be found and Chris was grateful. He couldn't be too sure an altercation wouldn't happen if he saw Punk right here, right now. Instead, he saw Hunter running on a treadmill so Chris headed over and grabbed the one next to him. Hunter looked over after seeing movement in the corner of his eye and he nodded to Chris.

"What's up, man? You seem to be incognito as of late," Chris said as he draped his towel over the top of the machine.

"What do you mean?" Hunter asked, trying to appear nonchalant.

"Just that we haven't even really talked in a while," Chris shrugged, "I guess you've been busy with being a guy behind the scenes or with Britt or whatever, right?"

"Yeah, that's right," Hunter said evasively, trying not to engage in too much conversation.

"How are you two?" Chris wondered. "I know that you know about the kiss and whatever, but you guys seem like you're pretty solid, I'm guessing nothing much came from that?"

Chris had no idea what came from that and for a moment, Hunter felt the entire guilt of the world pounding down on his shoulders, but he ignored it and remembered what Punk was trying to do. The guy was trying to take the woman he loved and he was what? Just supposed to take that lying down? That wasn't Hunter's style. He didn't take things lying down and he would do whatever it took to ensure that Britt was his. Had he gone too far? Perhaps, but sometimes you just had to, right?

"Yeah, we're doing fine."

"Glad to hear it, glad to hear it."

"I better go," Hunter stepped off his treadmill. "I promised Britt I'd take her out to lunch."

"Oh okay, see you, man," Chris told him, smiling and nodding at him before getting into his own workout.

Chris worked out for a couple hours, getting in some weightlifting and other strength exercises before cooling down with some yoga in his hotel room. After he'd showered and changed, he really had nothing to do with his wife and kids gone so he went out into the city and walked around, finding a small spot for lunch before heading back to the hotel. When he got there, Stephanie and the kids were back. Stephanie was just putting down Kensington and Flynn for their naps as Sawyer laid on the couch. He didn't really nap any more, but after the day they had, he was a little bit exhausted.

"Hey, kid, did you have a good time?"

"The best," Sawyer said, but he was sleepy so he didn't elaborate that much, "there were a lot of bugs there, Daddy, and we got to see them all and they had things you could dress up like bugs, which Mommy did with Kensy because you call her Kensy-bug and then we got to see all the different things they had and it was so much fun."

"I'm glad you had a good time," Chris patted him on the leg as his phone went off in his pocket. He grabbed it and looked at it, seeing that it was Rich sending him one of the completed songs for their next album. "Awesome," Chris muttered under his breath.

"What's awesome?" Sawyer asked.

"Rich just sent me a song from the new album," Chris told him. "You want to listen to it?"

"Yeah!" Sawyer said, clambering up onto his knees so he could get to Chris. "I like hearing your songs because you're the best in the world."

"I love hearing that," Chris told him as he stood up to grab his headphones so he could plug them in for Sawyer. He grabbed them from his gym bag and then sat back down on the couch, plugging them in for his son and then scrolling through the message to get to the song, letting Sawyer put on the headphones. He turned the volume to a reasonable level before he started playing the song.

Stephanie came out of the bedroom and looked between her two guys, "What's going on?"

"Sawyer is listening to one of the new Fozzy songs," Chris explained.

"What? That's not fair!" Stephanie told him. "Why does he get to listen to it and not me? I'm your wife."

"Because I like him better, that's why," Chris shrugged and she glared at him before going to grab a sippy cup from the sink in their kitchen area and filling it with some bottled water. "Who's thirsty?"

"Kensington, you know it's not Flynn, she hates the sippy cup, she thinks it's for babies," Stephanie said. "I want to hear that song."

"You will…eventually," Chris winked at her as she shook her head and headed back into the bedroom. Sawyer pulled off the headphones and grinned at Chris. "So what did you think?"

"I loved it!" Sawyer nodded at his father and Chris leaned down to kiss the top of his head.

"I knew you were my son."

The next day, Chris woke up with a bundle of nerves in his belly. He didn't know what the night was going to bring, but he knew it would bring pain. Street fights were not something to be taken lightly. They were brutal matches where anything was legal. There was a high potential for injury and he wasn't getting any younger. His body had taken a lot of beatings over the years, more than any one body should take possibly so at some point, wouldn't it have to give? He was extremely lucky that wrestling had afforded him little in way of serious injury. The most serious injury he'd ever had was with dancing, not wrestling.

"You okay?" Stephanie mumbled from her side of the bed.

"Just thinking about what the match is going to be like, picturing myself beating Punk in front of his family," Chris smiled to himself at that thought. He very much liked the thought of beating up Punk in front of his family. It would serve him right after what Punk had done to his kids.

"I bet that's a nice thought," Stephanie said as she reached up to run her hands into Chris's hair, something he loved as he closed his eyes and just experienced her fingers massaging his scalp.

"Yeah," he purred, "although I was thinking…"

"Oh no, what were you thinking this time?" she asked.

"Nothing bad or wrong or mean or anything, I was just thinking about how I don't think I want the kids in the audience tonight," Chris turned his head to look at Stephanie. She opened her eyes and stared at him.

"Because of what might happen?" she asked, but knew the answer already.

"Yeah, I just don't know what's going to happen out there. An elimination chamber is one thing, the chamber is really the only weapon there is, but with a street fight, who the hell knows what's going to happen, you know what I mean."

"I get what you mean, but you know the kids aren't going to be happy with that. They really like to be out there to cheer you on. I think Sawyer and Flynn know that a lot of people don't like you and they have to compensate," she joked, "but it's ultimately your call because it's your match. I don't know what you have planned so I don't want to presume that the match will be something they want to watch."

"I just don't know," Chris sighed. "I know they like to be out there to watch and I like knowing they're out there to watch me, but this match is going to be extra brutal."

"I understand," she reiterated, "if you don't want them out there, we just won't have them out there."

"Thanks for understanding," he leaned over to kiss her good morning.

"Understanding? You're thinking about the well-being of our children, of course I'm going to be understanding, I don't want to traumatize them any more than you do." Suddenly, her phone went off on the nightstand and she looked at Chris questioningly for a moment before she grabbed it and looked down at it. "It's Hunter, I wonder what he wants this early."

"Answer it," Chris urged her.

Stephanie answered the phone and had a short conversation with Hunter before she hung up and sat up in bed, "He has something he really needs to talk to me about, now, apparently."

"It can't wait?" Chris asked.

"He says it can't," Stephanie shrugged, getting out of bed now. "I better go and see what he needs. It could be something really important. Do you think you can take care of the kids when they wake up or should I wake them up now? You're the one with the huge match tonight, and I don't want to take away from your focus."

"No, I can take care of them. How long do you think you'll be?"

"I don't know," she told him, grabbing some things and heading for the bathroom. "I don't think I'll be too long, but I guess it depends on what he wants to talk about really."

"Well, okay, I guess I can handle things this morning."

It ended up that Chris had to take care of things until early afternoon. After getting the kids ready and ordering breakfast, Stephanie texted Chris to tell him she wasn't going to be back to the room this morning and she would meet him and the kids at the show. He was okay with that because taking care of the kids actually let him relax and think about something other than his match.

When they arrived at the arena for the show, Stephanie still wasn't around so Chris just let the kids into her office and sat them down on the couch. He'd decided that it would be better for them and for him if they weren't out there for his match. He didn't know what was going to happen, but he kept getting bad feelings about his kids watching what was going to happen.

"So hey, I wanted to talk to you guys before Mommy got here and before everyone started barging in."

"What is it?" Flynn asked.

"I know you guys like to sit out there and watch me with my match, I know you do," Chris told them. "I like having you out there because it's nice to have you guys cheering me on. It makes me feel good to know you guys want me to win."

"We always do," Sawyer told him. "You're our daddy."

"I know," Chris laughed at them, "I know I am. Tonight's match is probably going to get very bad though. You see, the reason we're not friends with Punk anymore is because he did some very bad things that hurt a lot of people—"

"What he do?" Flynn asked.

"It's really something more grown-up," Chris told her, "so it's best you guys don't know, but he just did some bad things and we can't be his friend anymore. Tonight, he and I are going to be in a street fight and those are really tough matches and anything can happen in them. Because of that, there's a chance it could get really bad and I could get hurt. I don't want you guys to be out there if that happens so I think it'd be better if you watched the show tonight backstage with Mommy."

"What, no!" Sawyer pouted.

"Daddy, I wanna watch you there!" Flynn added. Kensington just continued to look at her picture book since she didn't really care about watching the show.

"I know you guys do and I'm glad you want to, but I'm not going to let you watch it this time. I don't want you guys to watch it and get scared," Chris told them.

"I wouldn't," Sawyer said, "I know you're good, Daddy."

"Thank you," Chris took his compliment, "but I'm going to have to pull the Daddy card with this one and say no. You're going to stay back here, but that doesn't mean you can't watch the match. I just don't want you out there."

"But Daddy," Flynn whined, trying to put on her saddest face, which wasn't that difficult because she was disappointed she wouldn't get to see the match.

"No, Flutterby, I'm sorry," Chris told her. "It's not going to happen."

"But…" Sawyer started, but Chris looked at him and he refrained from saying anything else.

"I know you're mad, but I know what I'm doing, okay, believe me, I know what I'm doing," Chris said, coming over and kissing them all on the heads. They allowed it, but Flynn and Sawyer weren't happy about not being able to sit in the crowd for the show. They just didn't understand that the match was going to be anything goes and they might see something he didn't want them to see. They wouldn't remember this later anyhow, so he figured they'd be okay. Now he just needed to know where his wife was.

Stephanie eventually came in mid-afternoon. "Oh hey, how long have you guys been here?"

"Hours," Chris answered, observing her as she set her things down. He was a little suspicious because Stephanie had been gone for such a long time, which meant something was going on. He didn't suspect her of cheating because that would be ridiculous, but planning, oh, planning, _that_ she was definitely capable of.

"Wow, really, I didn't realize it had been that long," Stephanie shook her head at herself. "I guess the time just flew by."

Chris stood up, checked on the children before walking over to her. He slung both his arms around her waist and leaned his chin on her shoulder. "What were you doing?"

"Hunter and I just needed to have an in-depth discussion about his job and how he was doing and what he wanted to do in the future. He just really wanted to square away what kind of influence he could have on the company going forward."

"That sounds like a load of crap," Chris suppressed a smile as Stephanie looked over at him, her eyes bright with mischief. "I mean, you play a good game, McMahon, but you forget I've already mastered this game."

"You have not," she told him as she set some papers down on her desk. "Don't worry about it, it's just something that involves me and him."

"Yeah, that doesn't sound like an affair _at all_," Chris joked and Stephanie turned her head to press a kiss to his lips. He knew she wasn't going to tell him, but he figured if it was something that directly involved him, she would tell him.

"Oh yes, you know us, Hunter and I just going at it, why would I go back to that?" Stephanie asked him, making a face that showed him just how little she thought of her ex-husband. He knew it should, but it still made him feel good to know he was a better husband than her first. She'd just saved the best for last is all.

"Well, I hope whatever it is works out for you," Chris told her, "I also told the kids that I want them to stay backstage during the show tonight."

"So you decided to keep them back here?"

"Yeah, I don't want them out there for the match. I just don't know what's going to happen and I'd feel better knowing they weren't out there. I think if they were, it would be too much of a distraction trying to make sure they weren't scared or traumatized over what was happening. If they're back here, they have you in case they get upset."

"It's fine, I understand your decision," she told him, giving him a soft smile. "You will try to be careful though, won't you?"

"Of course I will, you know I would never do anything that would put me in danger of not coming home with you," Chris told her seriously. He would never put himself on the line, not when he had so much to lose. "I'll be fine."

"I hope so," she told him. "I don't want anything to happen to you."

"It won't," Chris told her, but he couldn't be too sure of that. "I better get dressed, since it's not a normal match, I'm not going to be in my trunks."

"You're not?" Stephanie wondered. "What exactly are you wearing then?"

"You want to help me get into them?" Chris asked, grinning at her lecherously. "I mean, they are pretty tight and I could use the extra woman-power to get me into them."

"Tempting, but the kids…"

"We'll be right in the bathroom, it's not like we're going to be in another part of the arena," Chris told her. "Actually, you know, we could probably get Hunter or Edge or Lita to take them since they're here tonight anyways."

"Now you're talking more my speed…" Stephanie looked over at the kids. "Hey, you guys, you want to go find Edge and Lita and hang out with them for a while?"

"Yeah!" Flynn screamed, running over and jumping up and down because it meant she would get out of here, which was something she wanted. She was bored of playing. "I wanna see the ring!"

"Okay, let's go find them," Stephanie grabbed her hand and then grabbed Kensington's hand as she led them out of the room. After she'd dropped them off with Edge and Lita, she came back to her office to find Chris sitting on the couch with his jeans in hand, twirling them around and she laughed and he patted his lap. She came and sat down on his lap and looked at him. He wrapped his arms around her waist and then leaned his head on her shoulder.

"I love you," Chris told her, just because he wanted to.

"I know you do, I love you too," she told him. "How are you feeling?"

"Good, I feel good," he told her, "so really, what are you and Hunter doing?"

Stephanie laughed and reached up to rub the back of his neck. "Nothing, it just involves Laurinaitis, but it's nothing that you won't see tomorrow night. Hunter isn't here tonight, he decided to hang back for whatever reason, but he's going to call Laurinaitis and he's going to be on Raw tomorrow night."

"Something is going down. You can't tell me that Hunter is going to be on Raw and not tell me something isn't going down."

"You won't let me listen to your album, I don't have to tell you what's going on," she reasoned.

"But I'm the Executive Vice President of Talent Relations, doesn't that entitle me to know what's going on?"

"Nah," she told him. She kissed him slowly, letting her tongue snake into his mouth, effectively making him forget that he wanted to know what Stephanie was up to. When his wife's tongue was in his mouth, he almost forgot what his kids' names were. She pulled away with a peck on his lips and then looked down at his forgotten pants. "So, I heard someone needed help to get into those things."

"You thought right," he said, grabbing them and putting them in her lap before he slid his right arm under her legs and hefted her up into his arms, bringing her into the bathroom as she giggled and kissed him.

He wasn't going to lie, getting in a quickie before a match always calmed his nerves. He wasn't going to say how many times he'd actually experienced this occurrence, but it was enough times to where he felt like he could make an objective observation. He looked down at his belt as he walked down the hallway and smirked to himself. He knew he should focus on the match seeing as how it was next, but his mind couldn't get off the images of Stephanie helping him get his belt on. Only that woman could make putting on a belt so damn sexy.

When he arrived at the area just outside the gorilla, he saw Stephanie sitting with the kids. He gave her a secret smile, which she returned eagerly and he came over to press his hands on the table in front of her and his kids looked up at him in anticipation.

"Good luck, Daddy," Sawyer told him, "I hope you win."

"I hope so too, kid," Chris smiled at him, still sneaking furtive glances towards Stephanie.

"Daddy, you're the best!" Flynn told him, leaning across the table trying to hold her arms out for a hug. Chris met her halfway and hugged her. "You winning."

"I'll try, Flutterby," Chris said, kissing her forehead.

"Go Daddy!" Kensington added, which made him beam with pride. With these three behind him, how could he lose? He came around to give Kensington a hug as well and his mind brought back how he felt after finding out Punk had been using his children for his own personal benefit. The fire started to brew in his stomach and he knew he was ready for what was about to come.

Stephanie held out her hands to him and he leaned over Kensington's head to get to his wife. She pressed both her hands against his cheeks and leaned in to give him a good luck kiss. Neither she nor Chris said anything else before his music started to play. He jogged through the gorilla and out to the stage where he was greeted with a decidedly pro-Punk crowd, nothing less than he expected of course. He gave a glance to Punk's family, wondering if they could even fathom what Punk had done to him. Knowing they didn't, they booed him, but he didn't care. This wasn't about them, not really. This was about vengeance for his children.

After the crowd died down their Punk cheers and after they were introduced, the two of them just stood there and stared at each other for a moment. Punk still had no idea what he'd done to Chris so his anger was simply fueled by how out of control he felt about the entire situation. If Chris wasn't going to come out and tell him what he did, he was forced to think Chris was just being an asshole about this and that was fine with him. If Chris wanted to be a jackass, he would treat him like a jackass.

They eventually started brawling with each other, not even holding back from the onset. Neither one of them was going to take it easy on the other, that was a given already. They were out for blood. They fought out of the ring and Punk threw some chairs back into it, rolling Chris in as well. Punk then went under the ring to get an old staple, the kendo stick (surprisingly, there was always a lot of junk under the ring. It could be a veritable treasure trove, which was strange, but he didn't question it). He got back into the ring and immediately went after Chris's back.

"Mommy," Flynn said, watching this all unfold backstage. That look like it really hurt and she threw her arms around Stephanie's neck.

"I know, baby girl, but don't worry, Daddy's okay," Stephanie said, but it was with consternation. She'd never taken a kendo stick to the back, but she knew they must really hurt. She remembered the time Chris was hit in the forehead with one and the accompanying welt that came with it. She knew he was going to be sleeping on his stomach tonight and made a mental note to stop by for some aloe from the trainers.

"You sure?" Flynn asked pathetically and Stephanie nodded, bringing her closer and hugging her.

Chris tried not to let the pain get to him, but his back was stinging and he could already feel the welts. He tried to get to the referee for safety, then was able to get in a shot and a dropkick. After that, Chris was able to knock Punk to the ground with a springboard dropkick. Chris followed him down and was able to throw him over the barrier. He was getting in some good offense and, when Punk started to fight back, he headbutted him and brought him back into the ring. He went to get the padding off the turnbuckle, but Punk was able to recover and come after him again. They brawled some more before they ended up outside the ring again.

Chris grabbed Punk and brought him over to his family. He wanted them to see his handiwork up close and personal. He took the padding off the barrier and slammed Punk right into it. He wanted them to feel even just a tiny bit what he felt when Hunter had told him about what Punk had done. It wouldn't help, not in the long run, but it made him feel a little bit good at the moment. He mocked them until Punk's sister slapped him. It was an affront and he was going to confront her about it, but Punk stepped in and started to beat on him.

Punk lost it when Chris went after his family. There was something lurking inside of him, something especially dark and he started to take apart the announcer's table. Punk grabbed Chris and slammed him into it, getting a sick sense of satisfaction from it all. Then he grabbed Chris for a piledriver, but Chris countered the move and backdropped Punk instead. He wasn't going down like this. He was going to put up the fight of his life for his kids.

Chris grabbed one of the monitors and hit Punk with it before grabbing a piece of the table and hitting him again. Chris brought him back into the ring to try and get in the pin, but Punk wasn't giving in either. Chris kind of admired that, but he wanted the match over. He wanted to watch as Punk's family looked on at him celebrating. He wanted to gloat and show them their son and brother was nothing more than a little pissant who used children to date women.

They went back and forth for a bit before Chris gave him as good as he got with the kendo stick. The pop of the stick on Punk was music to Chris's ears. Punk did manage to get a two count, but Chris got him again and dropped him to the mat for another two count. Chris had something special for Punk under the ring and went to get the beer he'd brought in specially. He opened it, pouring the liquid all over Punk while scoffing at the crowd. Hopefully after this match, Punk would need to turn to a good booze.

Chris got a little too cocky when he got another beer and it cost him. Punk got back at him with that damn kendo stick (Chris wanted to burn it now) and then Punk was starting to get a definitive upper-hand. Punk slammed the kendo stick into Chris's crotch and he knew he wouldn't be having sex with his wife tonight and was glad he'd gotten that quickie before the match. Still, Chris had dealt with worse (Stephanie's head falling into his crotch had been much, much worse) so Punk's attempt at the GTS failed miserably. Chris instead went for the Walls of Jericho, but wasn't able to get it locked. Again, the match started to go back and forth, with neither man really gaining any ground.

Eventually, Chris was able to get the Walls of Jericho on Punk and he locked it in as tight as he could. Punk was trying to resist, but Chris had him pretty well. Chris was so sure this would be the end of it. There was no mercy. Reaching the ropes wouldn't do anything for Punk. This was a street fight and there were no mercy rules. Punk did get to the rope, but there was nothing the referee could do but keep asking if Punk wanted to quit, which he wasn't about to do, not at all.

Punk reached with all his might to grab a fire extinguisher. Chris, who couldn't see behind him, had no clue what was going on and he pulled Punk back to the middle of the ring. Unfortunately, not being able to see his opponent would be his undoing as he got a face full of whatever was in a fire extinguisher, carbon dioxide gas or otherwise. Chris fell to the mat and grabbed at his eyes, the burning almost unbearable.

"Mommy, that didn't look good," Sawyer said, giving Stephanie a look of abject worry. His daddy looked like he was in a lot of pain.

"It's okay, baby boy, Daddy's okay," she repeated what she'd told Flynn earlier. Flynn had buried her face into Stephanie's neck, not wanting to see anymore because her daddy looked hurt.

Chris couldn't see for a moment, and in that moment, Punk was able to hit him with the extinguisher and send him to the floor. Punk followed him out and hit him again. Punk laid Chris out on the announcer's table while climbing to the top turnbuckle. He almost fell, but righted himself before sending himself and Chris through the announcer's table. Chris winced at all the pain and just laid there for a long second.

Stephanie, seeing her kids in distress, pulled them closer to her as they buried their faces into her shirt. Flynn was starting to cry and Sawyer was whimpering. She should have never let them watch this match. She excused herself from production, pulling off her headphones and grabbed Kensington (who really couldn't care less about what was happening) with her free arm. She guided Sawyer down the hallway and took them into her office so they wouldn't have to see the rest of the match.

"Shh, it's okay, babies," she told them soothingly. "Daddy is going to be just fine, okay. You know how Daddy is, he's really good at pretending things. You know he likes to play pretend with you, right, Flynnie?"

"He hurt," Flynn sobbed into Stephanie's t-shirt.

"Mommy, what if Daddy can't get up?" Sawyer asked, looking at Stephanie with increasingly sad eyes.

"He will, I promise he will."

Meanwhile, Chris was hitting a Codebreaker with a chair on Punk, trying desperately to win the match and end this torture. Punk was able to kick out somehow and Chris got frustrated, grabbed the kendo stick again and hit Punk with it. Chris then tried to end it with Punk's own move, but Chris was again too cocky and Punk got out of it. Punk threw Chris into the corner and caught him for the GTS before winning the match.

Chris felt defeated and angry. This was supposed to be for his children and instead he'd lost…again. It wasn't even about the title, it wasn't about being the best in the world, it was about his kids and not letting them get swindled by a guy who pretended to have their best interests at heart. He just hoped Punk was feeling as much pain as he was at the moment; that was the only consolation he could find.

When he finally limped backstage, the adrenaline was starting to quickly wear off and the pain was starting. His eyes were blurry from the fire extinguisher and he could taste some of it in his mouth. His head hurt from being constantly hit, and his back hurt from the kendo stick and going through the table. Every part of him was starting to scream at him, yelling why did he go through with that! He made his way slowly towards his locker room, some people telling him he'd had a great match, but he tuned them out.

He finally made his way back to Stephanie's office and let himself inside slowly. He looked at the couch and saw Flynn was crying and Sawyer looked as if he might have been crying. Everyone looked up at him when he entered and his kids' eyes widened as they saw him.

"Daddy!" Flynn sobbed, her tears coming in earnest now.

"Daddy, are you okay?" Sawyer rushed towards him.

"Hey, kid," Chris said painfully, "I'm okay."

He wasn't, but he'd be damned if he let his kids see how hurt he was. Stephanie looked at him, her eyes filled with worry and he nodded at her, letting her know he hurt, but that he would be fine. She nodded and set Flynn down on the ground as the little girl made her way tentatively over to her father. Chris winced as he slowly knelt down on the ground so he was eye level with his children. Kensington had her head in Stephanie's lap and was slowly falling asleep, but she did send a smile Chris's way.

"Daddy, do you need hug?" Flynn asked, her voice incredibly small and hesitant.

"I would like that very much," Chris told her. She stepped forward and started to lean in, "just be careful of my back, okay?"

"Okay," she told him, biting her lip and then hugging him around the neck, being mindful of him. Sawyer came and hugged him too, holding on as tight as he could. Chris wrapped his arms around them and hugged them back.

"I still think you're the best in the world," Sawyer mumbled to him.

"Thank you, kid, you have no idea how much that means to me," Chris told him sincerely and it was the truth.

"Okay, kiddos, why don't we let Daddy get in a shower before we head to the airport?" Stephanie said, reminding them that Sawyer was going to go home tonight with Edge and Lita.

They nodded and Chris looked at Stephanie gratefully before he headed into the shower. The water hurt on his back, making the welts feel like they were going to open up right there, but he managed to get through the shower, wrapping the towel around his waist as he went out into the office area to grab his clothes. Stephanie gasped as she saw his back, but then bit her lip to hide it from the kids, who were sitting like statues on the couch. They were not acting like their usual selves because they were so upset about Chris.

"I know, it looks bad, right?" Chris asked as Stephanie nodded. "Here, take a picture of it so I can see it…hell, maybe I'll post it on my Twitter."

"Are you sure?"

"Might as well document the damage so people can see that stick is real," Chris turned around as Stephanie grabbed Chris's phone and took a picture of his back. She winced as she did it though and gave Chris back his camera, but he set it down for now.

"You guys," Stephanie looked to Sawyer and Flynn, "why don't you help me out by packing up your toys, okay?"

They just nodded silently and went to their play blanket to start gathering up their things. Stephanie grabbed Kensington, who was asleep now and put her on the love seat in the room, then pointed towards the couch. "What?" Chris asked.

"Lie down, I had the trainer bring some aloe over so I can put it on your back before you get dressed," she told him. Chris lay down slowly on the couch and Stephanie started to put the ice on his back. "We don't have to leave for a little bit, but I thought this might reduce a little of the swelling for now."

"Thanks, baby," Chris told her, reaching out his hand for her. She grabbed it and gave it a squeeze.

"I'm so proud of you, I hope you know that."

"I know."

"We're all proud of you."

Chris woke up the next morning alone. The kids had all been so spooked, Stephanie had decided it was best for her to go home with them and skip Raw. They knew the kids were especially sad when even Flynn didn't protest going home and skipping wrestling. Chris wondered about Stephanie's plan with Laurinaitis, but Stephanie told him Hunter could take care of it and the kids were more important anyways.

Chris wasn't going to lie though, waking up alone sucked. The room was too quiet, and on top of that, having nothing to do sucked. Even when he was away on business from his family, he usually had something to do in the mornings, somewhere to be, but Raw wasn't for hours and hours yet. Plus, he had barely been able to sleep. He'd taken some painkillers before bed, but they'd worn off sometime in the night. He'd also had to sleep on his stomach the entire night because his back was in so much pain. To say that he was exhausted was an understatement.

Then, the more he woke up, the more he realized the sides of his mouth were numb, most likely from the fire extinguisher. This was just great. He had nobody here and he was feeling lower than low. He reached out for his phone and dialed Stephanie's number. "How are you?" were her first words to him.

"Hey, I can barely move, how are you?"

She laughed mirthlessly, "I wish I was there with you."

"I wish you were too, how are the kids?"

"They were subdued this morning. They were still afraid for you, but I told Sawyer he could call you after he got home from school, we didn't want to disturb you. Did you want to talk to Flynnie? She's just sitting here with me. She didn't really feel like doing anything this morning."

"Yeah, put her on," Chris told his wife and he heard shuffling as presumably the phone was passed from Stephanie to Flynn.

"Hello?" Flynn's voice came down the line and Chris smiled involuntarily as his daughter's voice floated into his ears, sounding like the best thing in the world.

"Hey there, Flutterby."

"Daddy!" Flynn said excitedly. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm doing just fine," he lied to her, wanting her to think he was better than he was. He never wanted his children to see him hurting if he could help it. This was one of those times. "I'm going to be on the show tonight so you have to watch me and cheer me on, right?"

"I always do," she told him, her voice brightening considerably. "I miss you."

"I miss you too, you have no idea," Chris said, "it was so boring waking up and not having you near me. I didn't know what to do with myself."

She laughed, "I have beakfest with Mommy and Kensy. Sawa is at school."

"I know," Chris said, "I can't wait until I come home tomorrow so I can eat with you guys too."

"We wait for you," Flynn told him.

"Thank you, I'm glad you'll wait for me," Chris told her, wishing he could be with them right now. It would be lying nearly face down on an uncomfortable hotel bed, his back hurting and the sides of his mouth numb. "Can I talk to Mommy again?"

"Uh huh, love you, Daddy!"

"I love you too, Flutterby, I'll call you later," Chris told her and she made a grunting noise before the phone was passed again.

"Hey, she looks much better, thanks for whatever you said," Stephanie told him.

"I told her I was doing okay."

"But you're not?"

"My back hurts like a bitch and the sides of my mouth are tingling right now, but other than that, you know, totally fine," Chris said sarcastically.

"Numb?" Stephanie asked, her eyebrows knitting together in consternation. "Chris, that doesn't sound good. I think you should go to the trainers, okay? Or the hospital, maybe? I don't think that's something you should mess around with."

"We went to the trainer last night, remember?"

"Yeah, but you weren't showing any symptoms like this, please, will you go for me?" Stephanie asked.

"Okay, I'll go in early."

"Thank you," she told him, "I just want you to be okay."

Chris kept his promise and went in early to check with the trainers. They said this could be a side effect of the fire extinguisher, and if it didn't go away by the following morning to go to the hospital to have it checked out. Knowing he was probably going to be okay eased his mind and he was able to pick up a schedule for the evening. There was going to be a Beat the Clock challenge and he was facing Big Show. He sighed and thought about how that must have been Laurinaitis's doing. He must have seen through Chris's charade last week and now he was being punished.

Beating Big Show was hard enough, but knowing he needed to be under a certain amount of time was more than enough pressure. He was still sore from last night and everyone knew it. He was going to be easy pickings and he didn't look forward to another match. He wished he could use his power just this once to give himself another shot at Punk. He just wanted to take that bastard down, just once, take the title away, even if it was just for a short while.

Punk, meanwhile, wanted to talk to Stephanie like she said she would. He really wanted to get to the bottom of everything and this might be his only chance. He found Chris's locker room and he knocked, hoping Stephanie would answer the door. He was not that fortunate, however, and it was a scowling Chris he was greeted with. "Is Stephanie here?" Punk asked.

"What do you want with her?" Chris wondered.

"I needed to talk to her about something," Punk answered. "Is she here?"

"No, she went home with our kids because they were so traumatized after the match last night, so thanks for that," Chris slammed the door in his face and Punk felt the urge to knock again, but refrained and turned on his heel. He never wanted the kids to get hurt in all of this, but it seemed that was what he was doing. He'd seen the schedule and he was glad so many other guys were getting a shot because maybe it meant Chris would lay off and he could figure out what was really going on and let things cool down before he attempted to be friends with them again.

Against his better judgment, he liked Chris and Stephanie. They were good people, usually, and they were fun to be around. He just wanted all of this to blow over so they could go back to being friends again.

"Yes, Stephanie, I got it," Hunter told her over the phone. "I know what I'm going to say. Shouldn't you be calling your husband to check in on him?"

"No, he'll call me if he wants to," Stephanie said. "Besides, I'm sure he's fine, he promised me he'd get checked out and if something were wrong, Jim would call me about it because he knows how stubborn Chris is."

"You've got everything covered, don't you?" Hunter laughed.

"I'm the president," Stephanie said haughtily, "I'm so glad you were able to find all this information out. This works out perfectly for me. It shows Laurinaitis what his real place is and can help with the Brock problem."

"Well, I wanted to help out," Hunter told her. He wanted to be in their good graces. He'd run into Chris last night when he was walking Britt into the hotel after taking her out to eat. Chris had told him about how traumatized the kids were and how Stephanie had gone home with them. The pin prickles of guilt he'd been feeling were turning into darts.

"I'm glad, thank you," Stephanie said, "any way to stick it to my father is a good thing to me."

By the time Hunter went out there, Laurinaitis was already self-congratulating himself. Hunter couldn't wait to take him down a few pegs. He went to the ring, shaking hands with the reluctant Brock before he went into his spiel. What Hunter had discovered was that Laurinaitis had essentially signed Brock to a more lucrative second offer. The first offer he'd given Brock had been reasonable enough and Stephanie had eventually signed off on it after finding out Brock had been signed in the first place, but this second one, including private jets and limos, had not been signed off on and therefore should be null and void.

Plus, with the first contract, Brock was not going to be the "face of Raw," or whatever it was Laurinaitis was trying to purport. Brock was not the face of the company nor was he ever going to be bigger than the company. He'd signed a contract just like any other person here and they were going to adhere to that contract. Laurinaitis tried to argue that he was the Executive Vice President of Talent Relations, but the guy just did not seem to get the fact that it was no longer his duty. It was Chris's jurisdiction so the mere fact they were allowing Lesnar to remain employed was something of a feat.

Hunter told Brock in no uncertain terms that he _was_ wanted, but it was going to be under WWE's terms, not his own terms. The days of his bullying were over and he wasn't going to put up with it. Laurinaitis kept trying to interject, but Hunter shut him down, telling him to shut up. This wasn't about him any longer, this was about Brock and him. He was the COO, Stephanie entrusted him, and he wasn't going to back down. He was not afraid of Lesnar, so the man could try and intimidate him all he wanted, but Hunter wasn't going to budge.

Laurinaitis tried to interrupt again, citing the Board of Directors like it was going to put the fear of God into Hunter. When his back was turned, Brock attacked him from behind and suddenly Hunter was being thrown around. He was so surprised by the attack that he had no defense against it at first. Then, when he tried to get on the offensive, to give as good as he got, Brock overpowered him, taking him down and putting him into a Kimura lock. Hunter could hear the pop in his arm and instantly knew it was broken.

He was trying to get out when he heard the roar of the crowd and could see a few wrestlers coming to his aid. Brock ran out of the ring and Hunter pulled himself up against a turnbuckle, grabbing at his arm and telling the trainers who ran out that it was broken. He knew his own body well and been hurt enough times to know when something was broken and this was definitely broken. He grabbed at his arm, trying to stave off the pain and the help from everyone, but he knew when he was licked. He let the guys who came out to help him aid him to the back and to the trainers, where they looked over him. He was just lying there when Britt ran in, pushing Sheamus out of the way to get to him.

"Hunter, oh my God, what's wrong with him?" Britt demanded to know, stroking Hunter's hair as she watched the trainer studying and prodding Hunter's arm.

"We think it's broken. We want to get him to the hospital for x-rays and an MRI."

"Okay," Britt said, looking down at Hunter. "I'm so sorry, honey. I should have sent some security out there with you. God, that's so stupid of me."

"You couldn't have known," he told her. "I didn't think he would pull anything either. I'll be fine, it's just my arm."

"That could be broken," she looked down at it concernedly. "I'm having security escort him out of the building right now. We'll take care of this, don't worry. I've got everything under control and I'm sure Stephanie won't allow this to go on. I'm sure she'll do something about it." Hunter gave her a weak smile before letting his head fall back down onto the examination table. His arm was hurting, that was for sure, and he knew what the x-rays would tell him. There was just one thing nagging him now, just one tiny…no, huge thing…

Was this karma coming to bite him back for what he'd done?


	368. What Now? May 7, 2012

"Steph?"

Chris reached out for his wife only to find she wasn't there. He opened his eyes and it was still fairly dark inside the room. He turned over onto his back and looked towards the window. There was some light streaming through it, but not much. He looked back over to the crumpled side of the bed where his wife should be and he wondered if one of the kids had had a nightmare and she was in there with him.

He sat up and cracked his neck. He had an early morning today because he was supposed to go back to the studio to finish up the last three songs on the new Fozzy album. He was still exhausted from the double whammy of the street fight and the match the night after, but he had other things he had to do so he couldn't lay around all day. He winced as he sat up; the wounds on his back were healing, but they still stung a bit whenever his muscles stretched across his back.

He lifted himself off the bed and did a few stretches to get his body into working shape. Some mornings were harder than others, but since he'd started using DDP's yoga regime, he had to admit that it was getting easier to deal with the mornings where he was sore. He did a few poses before he started walking towards the bathroom. He heard something coming from the closet and he furrowed his brow as he tried to place the sound. He couldn't, so he started to walk into the closet.

Sitting against the wall was Stephanie and she was hunched over, and it sounded like she was crying. "Steph?" Chris asked tentatively, not wanting to startle her, but he did anyways as she jumped. He saw her quickly swipe at her eyes, but made no attempt to actually look at him.

"Oh, Chris, I'm sorry, what are you doing up?" Stephanie asked, trying to sound nonchalant, like he hadn't just caught her crying so early in the morning, in their closet, by herself.

"What's wrong?" Chris asked, going over to her and kneeling down, running his hand up and down her back. For the long moment before she spoke again, he thought this must be about the US tour he'd announced the day before. Sure, it was going to take him away from wrestling for a while, but it wasn't going to be that long at all. The tour itself was only a couple of months and he was sure there would be times when they'd be close enough to see each other.

Stephanie had been supportive of him when they'd decided to pursue getting on this tour. She said it was a great opportunity for the band to gain more US fans, and a chance for the existing fans to see them live for the first time in a very long time. Maybe, though, that had all been a front and she was actually upset about the entire thing. He didn't want to lose her support for this and if it meant that much to her, well, he was willing to cancel their participation in the tour.

"It's nothing, it's stupid," Stephanie told him.

"Nothing you do could ever be stupid," Chris told her sweetly, running his fingers through her disheveled hair. "What's the matter?"

"It's really nothing. I didn't want you to see me like this," she told him, but she still hadn't looked him in the eye.

"Is this about the Uproar tour? I thought you wanted me to go on it. If you don't, you can tell me and I'll cancel it."

"No, no, it's not that," Stephanie sniffled, turning her face away as Chris only then noticed that she was clutching something in her hands.

"Then what is it?" Chris asked again. "Please tell me, baby. I can't stand the thought of you sitting in our closet crying to yourself. It's pretty much the saddest thing I've ever seen and I've seen some pretty sad things."

Stephanie bit her lip and then looked at Chris. Her eyes were red-rimmed from the crying and her cheeks flushed with dried tears. Chris sat down next to her and wiped his thumbs across her skin, getting rid of as many tears as he could. He leaned forward and kissed her, morning breath be damned, and then kissed both of her cheeks, tasting her tears. She closed her eyes at his touch, but opened them again as he pulled away.

"It's dumb," Stephanie told him.

"Nothing you do is dumb, not to me," he told her tenderly.

"He's six, Chris," Stephanie said, her voice a stuttering whisper.

"Oh, baby," Chris pulled her into his arms. He hugged her to him as she cried a little more, kissing the top of her head. "This isn't anything to be embarrassed about. He's your baby and of course you're going to have feelings as he gets older."

"It just feels so silly," Stephanie told him, burying her face into his warm neck. "I mean, it's not like he's going off to college, and I'm not usually so emotional over things like birthdays, but six is just…I mean, five is still kind of a baby. He goes off to school, yes, but it's still just five, one hand, but six is something else, six is just four years away from being ten, which is just ten years away from being twenty."

Chris held in his laugh, but he smiled against her hair. "I know it seems like he's old, but he really isn't."

"It is though," she told him, clutching whatever it was she had in her hands closer to her.

"What do you have there?" Chris asked her.

She held it up for him, "The onesie we brought Sawyer home in."

Chris kissed her temple at her sentimentality. "Look at the size of that thing. It's so tiny. I can't believe he ever fit in anything like that."

"I can't either," Stephanie said. "I just remember holding him for the first time and not really believing he could be mine. I was so scared of being a mother, so scared I'd do all the wrong things and he would turn out screwed up beyond belief."

"Little did we know we were getting the best kid ever," Chris told her.

"Yeah," she said, swiping at her eyes. "I just needed a good cry."

"That's okay, you're allowed," Chris told her, "but come on, we've got a long day ahead of us. I'm heading into the studio early so I can knock out at least one song. You have all of your work, then when we pick up Sawyer, it's party time!"

Since Sawyer's kindergarten was only a half day, they'd decided to hold the party afterwards. They'd rented out a miniature golf place and invited Sawyer's entire class for miniature golf and a pizza lunch. The staff was numerous so they didn't worry about handling too many kids, and with them renting the entire place out, there was little chance for anyone to get lost.

"Yeah, you're right," Stephanie said, standing up and helping Chris get to his feet. She grabbed a box on the top of their shelves that held some of Sawyer's mementos. There were also boxes for Flynn and Kensington's things. "Thank you."

"No, thank you," Chris said, "you reminded me that you do actually have human emotions."

"Oh, shut up," Stephanie said, shoving at him and then grabbing his hand. "Do you want to do the honors of waking up the birthday boy with me?"

"It would be my pleasure," Chris told her as he kissed her again briefly before they headed down the hallway towards Sawyer's room. They entered slowly, tiptoeing over to his bed and then sitting down on either side of him.

Stephanie reached out and gently shook her son's shoulder. "Sawyer, time to get up."

Sawyer snuffled a little bit so Stephanie shook his shoulder a little bit harder. He opened his eyes and looked around sleepily, seeing first his daddy and then his mommy. He yawned and looked up at them, wondering why they were both in here. Usually, only one of them would wake him up.

"Hi," he said, still a little out of it from sleeping.

"Hey there, kid, Happy Birthday," Chris told him happily, watching as his son's face lit up.

"Thanks, Daddy," Sawyer said, sitting up and launching himself at his father.

"Hey, baby boy, I can't believe you're six today," Stephanie told him and Sawyer crawled over to hug her too. "You don't remember, but you were just the tiniest, cutest little thing when you were born. You're getting to be such a grown up."

Sawyer laughed and cuddled up to his mother. She knew these days were limited and there would come a time when Sawyer would want nothing to do with her. She pushed those thoughts back and just held her baby boy. "No, I'm not, Mommy. I'm just a little kid still, you're a grown up."

Stephanie laughed, "I guess you're right, you just stay little forever, you got it?"

"I can try, but I don't think that'll work."

"Me neither, but maybe we can hold it off for a while," Stephanie told him. "Come on, we're going to make you a special breakfast and get you to school."

"And we have the cupcakes Daddy made, right?"

"Of course, we can't forget those," she said, referring to the treats Sawyer was bringing for the class. It was tradition for the birthday child to bring in treats for the entire class and Sawyer and Chris had made cupcakes the night before.

"Then we better get a move on!"

Trish came into the kitchen to grab herself a cup of coffee. Tilden was sitting at the table eating some oatmeal while Christian looked at his phone in another seat. Christian looked up when he saw her enter and sent her a small smile. She nodded at him politely before pouring her cup of coffee. There was a box of donuts on the counter and she grabbed one, taking a bite before grabbing a napkin. She went to the table and sat down.

"Hey, good morning," she told him, not wanting to seem rude and leave the room or not talk to him at all. Their therapist, Dr. Orr, encouraged them to talk whenever they could. Communication, she insisted, was the key to success and just wandering around the house, constantly ignoring each other wasn't going to solve any kind of problem.

"Morning," he told her, setting his phone down so he could look at her. He laughed and then pointed at her cheek. "You've got powdered sugar on your cheek."

She ducked down and laughed, wiping her cheek, but she didn't quite get it.

"Here, let me," Christian told her, reaching across the small table and brushing her cheek off with his fingers. "There you go, good as new."

"Thanks," she told him, "thanks for grabbing donuts too. Did you get these after your morning run?"

"Yeah, I thought, what better way to cap off a morning run than with a box of donuts," he joked and she laughed lightly before the quiet once again because deafening. She picked at her donut and put the little piece in her mouth, chewing thoughtfully.

"Thanks for getting Tilde up," Trish told him, looking over at Tilden, who was too engrossed in her food to talk to her parents. She liked mushy foods; they fascinated her so she was moving her spoon around her oatmeal slowly before bringing up little spoonfuls to her mouth.

"No problem, I thought you could use a morning to sleep in, since you've been so busy," Christian said and she noted the slight tone of derision in his voice, but she chose to ignore it for now. They would address it later, but she didn't feel like arguing in front of Tilden.

"I have been busy, so have you," Trish told him, finding it hard to keep the sarcasm out of her voice, but she managed. "Look, I don't want to spend the morning fighting with you, that's not how I think we should start the day."

"I agree," he told her, staring her straight in the eyes.

"Good," she nodded, then looked down at her cup of coffee. "So what are we doing about this afternoon?"

"What do you mean?" Christian asked.

"It's Sawyer's birthday party, remember?" she told him, hoping he hadn't forgotten. The kid would be devastated if Christian wasn't there. He considered Christian one of his best friends.

"Oh yeah, no, I remember, but what about it?" Christian asked.

"How are we going to handle it? It'll be the first real thing we've done together since everyone found out about us. You know they're all going to look at us with that look of sympathy, right? It's going to be awkward and I was just wondering, do we go together, united front type thing, act like we're trying—"

"We _are_ trying the last I checked," Christian interjected. He and Trish were trying. It was difficult because it turned out they had a lot more issues than they'd previously thought, but they were really trying. It was hard exposing all the bad things they'd held in for a long time, but also kind of freeing as well. It turned out there was even some leftover resentment from their dating fiasco and the debacles that were their other relationships.

"Yes, we are," she said, grabbing his hand and holding it for a moment. The contact was nice and she kept it as he turned his hand over in hers. Despite everything, they _wanted_ to work out. They didn't want to be without each other, it was just very difficult being _with_ each other right now. "Anyways, so do we go together or do we go separately? What do you think is the best course of action?"

"I say we just go together," Christian told her. "It's better that way. Besides, it'd be stupid to go separately, then it's like we refuse to even see each other and that's not the case."

"Okay, then together it is," she told him, giving his hand one companionable squeeze before letting go to eat the rest of her donut. "I'm glad we'll be going together."

"I am too."

Sawyer's party was in full swing, the kids running all over the place, trying to organize groups for miniature golf. Chris and Christian were going to head off the baby group as they dubbed it. It was pretty much just the younger kids. Flynn had her friend, Annie, with her, while Kensington was always happy to hang out with Tilden. They were bringing up the rear while Stephanie, Trish, and Lita were helping with all the bigger kids. Edge was hanging out in the arcade with any of the kids who didn't feel like playing miniature golf.

"We go now, Daddy," Flynn told him and he nodded as he watched his daughter try to putt the balls. He knew they were more fascinated by the big objects they had to try and navigate than actually playing the game so after he'd shown the girls how to hit, he let them pretty much go at it and try their best. They weren't even going to keep score.

"So you showed up with Trish, that's good," Chris said as he sat on a bench next to the first hole. Flynn's friend was trying to putt, but kept missing the ball. Flynn was laughing and trying to help her.

"Yeah, we're trying," Christian gave the stock answer he'd been giving pretty much since the truth about everything came out.

"So, dude, what the hell happened there?" Chris asked as he took a sip of his water. "I mean, one second you and Trish seemed to be doing fine and the next you're on the verge of divorce. I mean, maybe, are you guys legally separate or what?"

"No, we discussed that, but neither one of us wanted to go through with that," Christian sighed. "It's too much of a hassle, especially when we're trying to work on things. I'm not entirely sure what happened. I guess it was just a build up of stuff."

"Yeah, I guess I can see where if you had a lot of stuff going on, it would just build up."

"You know, it probably wouldn't hurt you and Stephanie to go to a therapist," Christian suggested, "not because you're having problems, but in case something were to come up in the future, it would probably better be sorted out now."

"I don't see Stephanie as the type to talk about our relationship with a complete stranger," Chris said, "besides, when Stephanie gets mad over something, she tells me, usually very loudly and in very explicit detail."

"Well, you're lucky because Trish and I just…I don't even know, man," he said.

"Daddy, we're done!" Flynn announced, even though Tilden and Kensington were just kicking at their balls. Chris and Christian followed the girls to the second hole and proceeded to continue their discussion.

"Well, sure you do, you know because you knew something happened. You're trying to make it better and that's all you really can do at this point. You shouldn't have felt ashamed about it though, we want to help. I heard that you were kind of mad at Trish over the kid thing."

"Yeah," Christian sighed as he watched Tilden pick up her ball and drop it down again so it fell down the small slope into a mountain with three holes for different outcomes. Tilden squealed as she ran around to the other side to see where her ball went, Kensington dropping her own ball quickly so she could go see what was going on too. "I just thought it was what she wanted, but turns out having a kid with me is something so heinous to her."

"Maybe that's not it," Chris shrugged as he and Christian walked to the other side of the mountain as Tilden was on her hands and knees, looking into one of the holes and trying to figure out how her ball got from one side to the other.

"Tilde, don't do that, it's gross down there," Christian told his daughter, going over and lifting her up. "Gross."

"Uh uh," Tilden shook her head, "I see ball!"

"I know you wanted to see where the ball went, but don't get on your hands and knees. I don't have your baby wipes, hold on, let me get some from Mommy."

"Here you go, man," Chris said, reaching into the baby bag he had because of Kensington and handing Christian some baby wipes. He smiled gratefully before wiping Tilden's hands and then setting her off towards Kensington, who was having fun dropping the ball into the hole and then picking it up again. Flynn and Annie were already waiting at hole number three, which was a few steps away.

"Thanks," Christian said, "I'm just ready to be a new father again, you know what I mean. I just know that I want another one right now and Trish doesn't and it's like, what is _so_ wrong about wanting my baby."

"She does have a lot on her plate right now," Chris reasoned. "Maybe she just wants to wait."

"She says that, but I get the feeling she doesn't really mean that," Christian confessed. "It's just this vibe I get, like maybe she regretted having any children with me."

"You know that's not true, Christian," Chris told him. "You cannot honestly believe Trish would trade away Tilden for anything. She loves that little girl, just as much as you do and that little girl was wanted. I was there for months when you were hoping and praying for a baby. I know how happy you _both_ were when she turned up pregnant."

"So what's so wrong with wanting another one?"

"Nothing, but maybe now doesn't feel right to her. You have to remember she's the one who has to carry it around for 40 weeks, not you. You have to let her have her say in this."

"I appreciate the concern, Chris, but it's just a bunch of stuff right now, the baby thing is only part of it, but it's more. I don't want to bore you with my stupid relationship problems though, it's your son's sixth birthday, we should focus on how awesome that is."

"Yes, he's survived six years without Stephanie and me screwing it up. It's quite the achievement."

It was quite the achievement. Sawyer was all smiles during his party and rightfully so. Six years was nothing to sneeze at and with his family, coming out normal was something to be commended. Christian took this scene in and it helped him realize what a family was supposed to be like. It wasn't to say he couldn't be that with Trish, they had been this once, but he wanted it again. He wanted to feel this happy.

When they came to cut the cake, Sawyer was sitting at the head of a long table, his large cake sitting in front of him with six huge candles burning brightly on top. Chris and Stephanie were on either side of him as the entire room sang the birthday song to him, Flynn singing at the top of her lungs (though she didn't quite know the words, she tried her best anyways). Christian wanted things like this in the future. He wanted to kiss over Tilden's head as she blew out the candles like Chris and Stephanie were doing over Sawyer's head as he blew out his candles.

It was going to take a lot of hard work, but he was willing to put it in if it meant he could have moments like these. He went over to where Trish was standing and watching and he wrapped his arm around her shoulder. She looked up at him in surprise and he looked down at her with a small smile on her face. She returned it and scooted herself a little closer as they watched the scene unfold in front of them.

"Did you have a nice time tonight?" Stephanie asked as she tucked Sawyer into bed.

"I had the best time!" Sawyer said enthusiastically. "I had so much fun with my friends, Mommy, thank you for the party."

"You don't have to thank me," Stephanie told him, brushing his hair out of his face. "I'm your mommy, this is what I do for you. I like giving you parties because you deserve it."

"I do?" he asked.

"Of course you do," she told him. "You are the best little boy a mommy could ever ask for. You know, when you were first born, I was so worried I wouldn't be a good mommy to you. I didn't know if I had it in me to be a good mommy."

"You're the best mommy," he told her seriously.

She leaned down to kiss his forehead, "It's only because I was lucky enough to have you as a little boy. You put up with so much, baby boy. I know it's been adjustment for you to not go to wrestling anymore, and I know sometimes you feel left out when Flynn and Kensy come with us, but you are so smart and so sweet, you put up with it. And you put up with your sisters, who always want to be around you."

"It's okay," he shrugged, "I don't mind."

"You are very special and I'm very proud to be your mommy," Stephanie told him, "plus, summer is almost here so you get to travel with us again."

"I like that," he said.

"Good, I'll get Daddy to come in and say his goodnights," Stephanie leaned down for another kiss. "Happy Birthday, baby boy, I love you so much."

"I love you too," Sawyer told her as she stood up and walked out of the room, heading into Chris's office where he was sitting on the computer looking at something. "The birthday boy wanted to say goodnight to you."

"Oh okay, I thought I'd give you a moment," he stood up and walked over to her. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," she kissed him lightly. "I just told him he was the best."

"He is the best, he's ours," Chris winked at her before he left and went down the hallway to his son's room. "Hey, kid, you still awake?"

"The light's still on," Sawyer said sleepily.

"That's right," Chris laughed. "I'm glad you had fun today and you got quite the haul of gifts if I do say so myself. You made out like a bandit."

Sawyer laughed, "Daddy, you're funny. Did you have a good time too?"

"Man, look at you, it's your birthday and you're worried about if other people had a good time," Chris sat down next to his son. "Of course I had a great time, I got to spend time with you and your sisters, and I got to see you get a whole year older. How does it feel to be six?"

"It's a lot like five," Sawyer nodded sagely.

"That's how I know you're getting older," Chris told him, ruffling his hair. "You lose track of getting older, but I think six is pretty much going to be a lot like five until you start 1st grade next year. Then you're going to have to go to class the whole day."

"I can do it," Sawyer waved it off and Chris waved it off too. "I'm glad you had a good time."

"I'm even gladder you had a good time," Chris said. "I want you to know you are the best thing to ever come into my life, kid. The absolute best thing."

Sawyer screwed up his mouth a little, "What about Flynnie and Kensy?"

"Well, you're tied of course, all of you are the best thing to me, but you were my first best thing. Before you, you know, I didn't even know if I was ever going to have any kids. Then you came along and everything changed."

"I didn't know that," Sawyer said, not quite understanding the magnitude of what his father was saying.

"I just mean that you are the coolest six year old on the planet and if I didn't have you in my life, it would be grossly incomplete."

"Thanks!" Sawyer said with a shrug. He yawned loudly and Chris laughed at him.

"Okay, I get the picture, you need to sleep," Chris leaned down to kiss his head. "Sweet dreams and I'll see you in the morning."

"Okay," Sawyer got cozy in his bed.

"And kid?"

"Hmm?"

"Happy Birthday."

Chris was still a ball of excitement after finishing up his part in the new Fozzy album. There was still work to be done, of course, but the majority of his part was over. He would be listening to the semi-finished project in order to make tweaks here and there, but the vocal tracks were laid and he couldn't wait for the world to hear his newest brain-child. It was like putting on a really good match except it took much longer and was a little more personal because his lyrics were putting parts of himself out there.

"I'm glad to hear you're doing okay," Stephanie told Hunter over the phone. "You just take all the time you need and don't worry about Britt either. I can handle her duties until you're feeling up to it. Take your time."

Chris looked over at his wife as she sat on the phone and wondered why the Board would choose not to punish Laurinaitis for what had happened to Hunter. He guessed it was because Brock had acted of his own accord and because he _had_ been under a contract, it was not going to fall on Laurinaitis for what happened. It wasn't the ideal situation, but there was really nothing they could do because it was the truth.

"Thanks, Stephanie," Hunter said, "I really shouldn't have let Britt stay with me."

"No, I think it's good you let her stay with you," Stephanie said, "You two just handle everything there with you getting better and everything her can be taken care of by me and Chris. He's only scheduled for a tag match so he's going to help me."

"I always help you," Chris called out to her and she stuck her tongue out at him, which made Flynn crack up and then climb onto the couch next to Chris. "What do you want?"

"A hug," Flynn declared, opening her arms to him.

"Well, that I can do," Chris told her, giving her a bear hug, grabbing her and lifting her up in his arms and then bringing her back down so he could hug her some more. She giggled as she buried herself into his neck.

"Daddy?" she asked, her voice muffled against his skin. He could feel a little bit of drool on him, but he didn't care, this was his daughter, what did he care if she got a little bit of drool on him. It was when random women drooled over him that it started to veer off into crazy territory.

"Yes, my Flutterby?"

"Can I's go see Punk?" Flynn asked, pulling away and looking him up in his face. "I misses him."

"Flutterby, what did I tell you about going to see Punk? We're not friends with him anymore and remember what he did to me last week? He was the one who hurt my back and hurt my eyes and everything."

"I know," Flynn told him, "but maybes he didn't mean to be mean. You did stuff too. He can still be my friend 'cause we say sorry."

"I don't think this is a time when you can say sorry," Chris said, "he just did things that were just not the nicest things to do to people."

"But what did he do?" Flynn asked.

"Adult things that you wouldn't understand," he told her.

"I would too," Flynn argued.

"I don't think so."

"I would," she insisted.

"Flutterby, I know you wouldn't."

"You would not know because I do know and I would."

"Flynn, you can't go see him," Chris told her slowly, his voice stern.

"Uh uh, I do it," Flynn pulled completely away from Chris and then hopped down off the couch and went to the door. "I go see Punk myself! Come on, Kensy!"

"Flynn!" Chris yelled at her, but his daughter was being defiant and if she didn't stop in two seconds, she was going to get a dreaded timeout.

"Chris, I'm going to take her to see Punk," Stephanie, who had ended her call, stood up from her seat and walked over to Flynn, bending over to pick her up. Chris looked at her like she was crazy, his mouth actually dropping open a little as he regarded her.

"You're going to _what_?" he asked.

"She's three, Chris, she doesn't understand any of this," Stephanie told her husband. "There's no way she can understand what's going on and because of that, I'm not going to make her sit here and think her friend is ignoring her or she's not allowed."

"Stephanie, he did this, it's his fault, and you're going to go ahead and reward him for that?" Chris was livid now, as angry has he had been in a really long time. He couldn't believe his wife would do this. She knew what Punk had done and she was basically going to ignore that.

"No, I'm letting my daughter go see someone she's friends with," Stephanie said, "I can't see her confused like this anymore, and I'm putting my foot down."

"Yeah, well, I'm putting _my _foot down," Chris stood up, "they aren't seeing him."

"I wanna see Punk!" Flynn told them, not really getting what was being said, but she knew she was the topic of discussion. She just wanted to go see her friend. She hadn't seen him in _forever_, and she just didn't understand why she couldn't go visit him. She could understand that her daddy was kind of mad at him, but she just didn't understand the whys of it.

"I know, baby girl, I know," Stephanie said as Kensington wandered over and grabbed Stephanie's free hand. "You should probably go meet with Del Rio because of your tag match. I don't believe you've ever teamed up with him."

"I'm serious, Stephanie, I'm vetoing this, I'm using the parental veto power here."

"And I'm using the 'I'm not breaking my daughter's heart' power right now," she said, "do you wish to seriously challenge me on this? Is this a cause you want to take up? I suggest you make up your mind now because we'll fight about it."

"I don't wanna fight," Flynn said, screwing her face up. She didn't want her parents to get into a fight.

Chris didn't know what to do. On the one hand, he was so mad at Punk, he could probably punch him through a wall right now. But on the other hand, Flynn was just a little girl and she didn't understand what was really going on. She just wanted to see her friend, that was all, and who was he to deny her something so simple. She was the victim in all of this and he wanted to make her feel better. Still, seeing Punk was just setting her up for a world of hurt because that guy was not going to change.

"So what do you say?" Stephanie asked him.

"Whatever," was Chris's way of giving in. Stephanie leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "Don't."

"I'm doing it because above all else, you are a good father," Stephanie whispered into his ear. "You know when to back off and let your little girl be happy, and I love you for that."

"I'm only doing this for her," Chris said, "not because that guy deserves anything because he doesn't deserve a goddamn thing."

"I know," Stephanie kissed him again, but this time on the lips. "I love you."

"I love you too," he said grudgingly, hating that he so easily gave into his wife. She was usually the rational one when it came to the kids anyways. He was always flying off the handle at anyone who so much as looked at his kids the wrong way. He knew it probably wasn't the best way to handle things like that, but it was the only way he knew how.

"I love you both," Flynn grinned, hugging the both of them.

"Me!" Kensington whined from down below, tugging on both her parents' pants. Chris swooped her up into his arms and kissed her on the cheek.

"There you go, you," Chris told her, giving her another kiss for good measure, "and I love you too, my little Kensy-bug."

"Yay!" Kensington clapped her hands.

"Mommy, you have to love Kensy too!" Flynn ordered her mommy to give Kensington a kiss as well. Stephanie obediently leaned over and gave Kensington a very loud kiss on the cheek, which sent the girl into a fit of giggles as she wiped comically at her cheek.

"Mama!" Kensington squeaked.

"Okay, why don't you take Kensington with you since she seems to be a little attached at the moment," Stephanie said as Kensington buried her giggles into Chris's shirt, "and I'll take this little monster."

"Roar!" Flynn said as she demonstrated just what being a monster was like.

"I guess so," Chris said, his apprehension still ringing in his voice.

"It'll be okay," Stephanie rubbed her hand against his side. "Seriously, go meet with Alberto now because once the show starts, I'm going to need you to play messenger for me because I'm going to be at the production table calling the show."

"Fine, fine, you're so bossy, now I know where Flynn gets it."

"I not bossy," Flynn said, but the contradicted herself with, "Let's go, Mommy." Chris just gestured towards his daughter, like, 'see, this is what you're like.' Stephanie just glared at him as she turned and left to go find Punk's locker room.

If she was admitting the truth, she wasn't just taking Flynn to see Punk because Flynn wanted to see him. It was partly that, but she'd also promised to speak with Punk last week and hadn't. It wasn't her fault though, the kids had been so upset she wanted to take them home and had done so. Still, she needed to talk to Punk because some things weren't adding up in her head. There was just something in the way he was acting that did not seem like a guilty man.

"You want to knock?" Stephanie asked as she came up to the door.

"Okay," Flynn agreed and reached out to knock a few times.

"What the hell is it?" Punk asked as he opened the door. "Oh, um, hey, guys, wow, sorry about that."

"It's okay, can we come in?" Stephanie asked.

"Sure, yeah, of course," Punk shrugged nonchalantly. "Hey there, Flynnie."

"Hi, Punk, I missed you," Flynn told him, reaching out for a hug. Punk looked at Stephanie for confirmation and she handed the little girl over. Flynn gave him a big hug around the neck and Punk returned it. It was amazing how such a small gesture could calm him down. He'd become incensed over damn Twitter. He'd been speaking his mind on the stupid amendment about same-sex marriage and how people viewed it as bad. He'd lost it temporarily against one particular homophobic user, and now everyone was getting on his case. Flynn's hug helped stem the tide.

"I missed you too, Flynnie," he told her. He wasn't an emotional guy, but if he was, this might make him tear up. "Thanks for coming." That was more for Stephanie than for Flynn. Stephanie sat down on the couch and motioned for Punk to join her. He sat down and let Flynn sit down as she went straight for his tattoos, trying to see if he had any new ones she'd missed. He didn't, but she liked looking at them anyways.

"So I think there's a talk I owe you," Stephanie said.

"Chris knows you're here?"

"He knows," Stephanie said, "he was pissed at first, but I know how to calm him down."

"That sounds mildly dirty," Punk joked.

"Well, it's usually very dirty," Stephanie said, tilting her head a little in playfulness. "So, you wanted to talk and so did I…"

"What the hell is going on, Stephanie? Why the hell is your husband gunning for me like he is. I half expect him to haul at me and punch me in the face. He put a huge beat-down on me on Sunday. I know I won, but did I really win?"

"I don't know, I just know he was beaten pretty badly," Stephanie said. "We know…or at least we think we know…have you ever used my kids to get Britt to notice you?"

She knew only one way to go at this and it was to be direct. Punk stared at her for a long moment with that look he always had on his face when he couldn't believe something. It was like he had to hear it again just to be sure he actually heard what he heard because surely it couldn't be what he was hearing. He tilted his head to the side a little bit and jut his chin forward, looking at her strangely. That wasn't the question he thought he was going to hear.

"What? Of course not, I wouldn't do that, I would _never_ do that. That's the worst thing…I like your kids, Steph, I like you and Chris, though I not totally sure why because you're both kind of mean and jerks…you're both jerks, but then, I'm a jerk," he shrugged. "I wouldn't do that though, they're kids."

"Are you sure?" Stephanie had to ask again. The problem was Punk looked completely sincere when he said it so she really had no reason not to believe him.

"Stephanie, I wouldn't do that. I do a lot of stupid things, I say a lot of stupid things as you will probably soon know because I kind of ran my mouth this morning," Punk said with a sigh, "but I wouldn't do that. Whatever Britt and I have, which is next to nothing, I mean, even if I did use your kids, that's a pretty lost cause."

"She is pretty devoted to Hunter," Stephanie said, "I believe you, by the way. You don't look like what you're saying is a lie."

"It's not. I just didn't understand why you were so _mad_ at me, why Chris went so far. I didn't feel like I deserved it, so I was confused beyond belief."

"Hunter told us that he overheard something about you…about you and using the kids for your own gain. Chris went off the handle over it as he does."

"I never said anything like that. Chris is my friend, you're my friend, why would I want to screw that up? I say a lot of crappy things, but when someone is my friend, they're my _friend_ and I don't screw that up…not if I care about them."

"Maybe he heard wrong then," Stephanie nodded, trying to figure out what had happened. None of this was making sense. Hunter had to have heard wrong. Maybe it was just how Punk was friends with the kids, how they admired him. Maybe it wasn't anything that was bad. Maybe…

"Yeah, I guess, I mean, I don't know…" Punk kind of had an idea though, but he knew Stephanie was friends with Hunter and he didn't know the guy personally, but he knew his past. He wondered if maybe Hunter was lying. Hunter knew Punk had kissed Britt and what better revenge was there then to have people he cared about turn on him? He didn't voice what he thought, but he might have to do a little detective work.

Stephanie was thinking the same thing when her cell phone went off. "Oh, I'm sorry, I have to take this." She answered her phone and had a short conversation before turning to Punk. "I've got to go, there's apparently someone that I have to meet with that I didn't know about because they just showed up…"

"Who?"

"I don't know, she just said I _needed _to get to my office," Stephanie shrugged, "Flynnie, we have to go."

"Really?" Flynn whined.

"Yeah, I'm sorry, baby girl, but maybe next week, after Mommy explains things to Daddy, you can hang out with Punk a little longer, okay?"

"I guess," Flynn said, hugging Punk. "I sees you later!"

"Bye, Flynnie, thanks for stopping by, I was really happy to see you today," he said. "Thanks, Stephanie…you know, for believing me and all of that."

"It's okay, I thought something fishy might be going on," she responded. "I'll talk to Chris and we'll try to get this sorted out."

"I appreciate that," Punk said, "and hey, tell Sawyer a belated Happy Birthday from me, okay? I actually got him something, just this comic book, I thought he might like it. I didn't bring it with me this week, but I can bring it next week, if that's okay."

"Yeah, he'd like that, he loves comics, Edge brings him a lot and then he reads them in his fort," Stephanie smiled at him. "I'll see you later, be careful tonight, I know you're probably going to get yourself in trouble, but try not to make it too much trouble."

"Where's the fun in that?"

Stephanie laughed before she grabbed Flynn's hand and escorted her daughter out of the room. They walked happily down the hallway, with Flynn doing little pirouettes every now and then as Stephanie cheered her on. They arrived at Stephanie's office and Flynn jumped in front of the door with a flourish while Stephanie opened the door.

"Hello, Stephanie."

"Oh you've got to be kidding me."

Chris had taken longer with Del Rio than he thought and the show had already started by the time they were done talking. The guy was okay, but beyond the actual match they were having, Del Rio started bringing up the different cars he wanted to use for the show and what kind of budget he could have to get the cars he really, really wanted. Chris, who didn't deal with budget, had to head him off at the turn before it turned into a real argument. Sometimes he wasn't ready to put on his executive hat, especially when he had a match he had to worry about.

When he and Kensington got back to Stephanie's office, he wasn't surprised to find it was empty. He set Kensington down on her play blanket before he went to change in the bathroom. He did so quickly so Kensington wasn't alone for more than a few minutes. When that was finished, he grabbed her and his jacket and went to the production table so he could watch the show with Stephanie.

When he sat down, she turned to him, "You won't believe who's here tonight."

"Who?" Chris asked. "Your dad?"

"No, but…actually, just watch for yourself later," Stephanie said. "You won't believe it."

"_Oh you've got to be kidding me."_

"_Stephanie, hello, once again," Paul Heyman said as he stood up. _

"_What the hell are you doing here, Heyman? If you're bumming for a job, I'm sorry, but we're all filled, but I hear there's an opening at the Denny's down the road."_

"_You're still as charming as ever, Stephanie," he said derisively. He still looked like the same, greasy, balding, manipulative scumbag he always was. She had no idea why he was here, but he was the last person she'd expected and one of the last she wanted to see._

"_Well, I only get better with age," Stephanie told him sarcastically._

"_Who are you?" Flynn asked._

"_My name is Paul," he said in the smarmy used car salesman way, "and who might you be?"_

"_I'm Flynn," she told him._

"_Lovely daughter, Chris's?" Now he was just subtly calling her a slut._

"_No, I have no clue who her father is," Stephanie shrugged, acting like she was an idiot about the entire thing._

"_Mommy," Flynn tugged at her shirt, "Daddy is my daddy."_

"_I know, Flynnie," Stephanie told her._

"_Smart too," Paul said._

"_You don't look nice," Flynn told him, shrugging before going to her toys._

"_Definitely your daughter. Now, what I'm here for is in representation of Brock Lesnar. After last week, he has issued a statement for you and the WWE universe, which he would like me to read on air and I suppose since you're in charge, I should come to you."_

"_You could have gone to Chris, but I have a feeling you wanted to come see me specifically."_

"_Is that any way to talk to your old business partner?"_

"_Worst decision I ever made," Stephanie said, "so there's no other options here. If I want to hear this statement, it's going to be read on-air and there's no other compromise. I know you, Heyman, I know you work. You like the theatricality of it all."_

"_Now, now, Stephanie, I think it's only fair that he get this read on-air, it's his own personal statement."_

_"That you no doubt wrote," Stephanie scoffed. "Look, I'm in no mood to deal with you when you get all whiny, so go ahead, read it on air, see if I care. I'll give you the time you need, but you have to meet me half way and tell me what this is about. What is going on with Brock?"_

"_Well, Stephanie, I don't think he much cares for how things are being run around here," Paul told her, "who does he go to, to see about that?"_

_Stephanie narrowed her eyes. If her father had anything to do with this, she might just go to his house and rip his face off. She wasn't sure he'd go this far, but the look on Heyman's face said otherwise. The greasy slimeball was looking at her like he knew her days were numbered, but they weren't and she wasn't going down without a fight. If her father was trying to stir up trouble, she would solve every problem he ever threw her way._

"_Well, that's too bad," Stephanie told him coolly, "but the best of luck to him."_

"Something else I wanted to talk about though, which is Punk," Stephanie said, "I think we're wrong about him."

"Great, so he got to you?"

"No, he didn't get to me, Chris, but there's something weird going on. Hunter may have heard something wrong, but something isn't adding up. Punk said he didn't do or say those things and I believe him, I think he was sincere."

"Stephanie, come on, I don't have time for this bull," Chris said as he leaned his chin on Kensington's head.

"Punk is nice, Daddy," Flynn added.

"I'm sure he is," Chris smiled at her, but glared at Stephanie.

He tried not to be distracted during his match, but Stephanie's words were plaguing his brain. Luckily the match was a tag match so it did give him some time to think in between wrestling. Stephanie was a skeptical person. She always sought the truth about things, so why not this? If what she was telling him was true, hadn't she at least gone out of her way to make sure it was as true as possible? And if it was possible, then what was the truth, where did the lie start, who started it, was Hunter the instigator or was he just passing along bad information?

Chris didn't know how his mind stayed on that match, but it did and he actually did pretty well. He'd been on such a Pay-Per-View losing streak, he was starting to believe he might have lost a little bit, but he really hadn't. Punk was just good and Chris was just blinded by hatred to the extent that it took over rather than aided him. He was so blinded it became hard to focus on what was really going on. But what _was_ going on? Who would start something like that, who would do such a thing? What could they gain from it?

Chris actually won the match for his team after a little assistance from Sheamus. Still, a win was a win and he would take it. He postured a little bit, but more than anything, he wanted to get backstage. When he did, he went over to Stephanie, who leaned up to kiss him in congratulations, but there was no time for that. He needed to tell her what he'd been thinking about.

"I believe you," he said and she looked at him confusedly. "About Punk, I believe you."

"Okay, good, I'm glad," she told him, running a hand through her hair as if the next question was so difficult, "so what do we do now?"

"We find out the truth."


	369. Closer to the Truth, May 14, 2012

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and reads and faves and PMs for this story, all very much appreciated. They need to give Chris more promo time, it'll make writing the shows easier. They could also have Stephanie come back, that would be ideal. Anyways, here's the chapter, it picks up the night of last Monday, hope you enjoy. :)

* * *

"I'm starting to think you're just a glutton for punishment."

Chris smiled around the makeshift ice pack Stephanie had made for him in their hotel room. She laughed at his face, how cute he could be, even with a swollen lip. It was so boyish, and she imagined this was what he was like when he was first breaking into the business, impetuous and without consequence. She just wondered who it was he looked at like this back then, if anyone…actually, it was probably nobody since Chris had admitted that there was no real time for girls back then. Still, she relished in the look.

She reached out her hand and ran it through his slightly damp hair. He'd taken a shower as soon as they were back at the hotel, always opting to take one here so the girls could get into their beds. He loved when she ran her hand through his hair, massaging his scalp lightly with her nails just scraping along the roots. He always closed his eyes, a blissful expression softening the edges around his face where age is starting to creep in. He's always going to be handsome though, she knows this and it's somehow comforting.

"What makes you think that?" he asked when his voice returned. He sounds like a kitten almost, his voice a soft purr of sorts.

"Well, you go in for a title shot and end up with a sucker punch that leads you to a swollen lip," she told him.

"That's nothing," Chris laughed, "this is probably the millionth swollen lip of my life, it's nothing unusual."

"You just have to stir up trouble, don't you?"

"It's what I live for," Chris said impishly, giving her a wink as he pulled away the ice-filled towel, now becoming soggy and drippy. He gingerly touched his lip before placing the towel down on the couch. "I think that's about all I can hope for right now."

"Let me look at it," Stephanie leaned forward on the coffee table and grabbed his face in her hands, turning his head to the side so she could see his lip. The swelling was down and the small cut had stopped bleeding, leaving only a little gash as a reminder of Randy's transgression. She leaned forward even more and kissed the corner of his mouth that wasn't swollen. He still winced a little bit, but she knew it was mostly for dramatic effect.

"It'll be fine," he told her.

"What were you even doing in there? I mean, besides demanding a title match even though we both know you weren't really entitled to one."

"Well, for one, it throws Laurinaitis off his game, which…if I remember correctly, he is a thorn in my wife's side, and if we're going to choose sides in this battle, I'm going to obviously choose yours," Chris told her, running his hand over her knee.

"Stirring up trouble?"

"Yes, I'm making it so it's difficult for him to even think around there," Chris told her. "Hopefully that'll make the guy think twice about trying to take over for you."

"Thank you, I appreciate your efforts. Except now you have to go to SmackDown because he ordered you in a match and he said, and I quote, 'If you don't let me put him in the match I want him to be in, then you are only serving to prove you can't separate your professional and personal life because that would be special treatment, Stephanie,' which is crap, but I'm not giving him an inch to use against me."

"I knew you never would, but it's okay, I can go to the show on Friday and since it's close—"

"I already booked the corporate jet for Friday, we're leaving as soon as Sawyer gets out of school," Stephanie interrupted. Chris laughed at her, shaking his head. "What?"

"You're just on top of things again, but you guys really don't have to come," Chris said, "I can go by myself and then come right back home."

"The kids will like it," Stephanie said with a nod. "Plus, with Sawyer never getting to go to shows on Monday, I think every time we can go to SmackDown is a good thing because it lets him feel a part of it again."

"This is why you're a good mom," Chris told her and she smiled gratefully at that. It never hurt to hear that he thought she was doing a decent job with their kids. "I just thought it might be helpful if you just stayed home."

"No, I want to be there, I'm the president, I like to see what kind of product I'm putting out there, you know," she said, smiling brightly, "I've got to keep on top of this company, you know, because this is our lives from now on."

"Don't remind me," Chris laughed, "I really thought I'd get out someday. I told myself, I'm not going to wrestle past 40, then what happens, I marry you, and now I'm telling myself, just don't let her make you wrestle when you're 60."

"I would never…you'll be the crazy old man who comes out and orders everyone around," Stephanie giggled. "So can we get to the elephant in the room? I promised we wouldn't talk about it until after the girls were in bed, and they've been asleep for over an hour now…"

"I owe him an apology," Chris said first off because it was true. He'd treated Punk so poorly, actually, that was an understatement, he'd drenched the man in booze and beer on more than one occasion. He'd insulted the man's family with real malice and he'd done nothing to deserve it.

"We both do."

"You don't, you didn't even really suspect him, did you?" Chris looked at her, studying the nuances of her face. "I know you, baby, I know the way you think and the way you act. If you for one second ever believed Punk really did any of that to the kids, you would have taken care of him yourself, I'm talking slaps, kicks to the balls, suspensions, fines...but you didn't, you knew or suspected that he didn't do anything."

"You were so sure," Stephanie told him, grabbing his hands. "You were so angry and so sure, and I didn't know what to think. I just didn't think he was the type of guy, but when it comes to taking sides, I always take my husband's side."

He ducked his head and smiled at her repeated words. If he had nobody else in the world, his wife would always have his back and for that, he was grateful. "I think we're both avoiding the other issue that pops up when we think about this."

"Yes," Stephanie said slowly.

"I don't really want to think it, but…I mean, how can we not, right?" Chris looked back up at her, their eyes locking, their shared opinion clear in their eyes and they stared at each other for a long moment, neither one breaking eye contact, but neither one saying anything either. It was too difficult to admit, too much to take in at the moment, but it would need to be addressed.

"It is the easiest solution, unfortunately," Stephanie bit her lip and looked towards the bedroom where the girls were sleeping. She couldn't hear them, but she pretended like she could. She'd seen them asleep enough to have an image in her brain. Flynn would be sprawled out across the bed, her limbs flailed and her breathing deep and rhythmic. Kensington would be in her rented crib, her head nodded off to one side as her hair fell softly into her face, her breathing just as deep as her big sister's. "I don't want to believe it."

"Neither do I, but we have to admit it, Steph, we have to admit that he is not always a good man, never really a decent man. He's ruthless. Steph, this is the man that could have prevented everything we have."

"But he's changed," Stephanie said, "he's spent so much time changing the man he is. He's not that same guy who threatened us and hated us."

"No, he's not _that_ guy, but…he's still a man who loves a woman…who was wanted by another man," Chris said. "Even when we'd been together for years, he still thought of you as his. That's what really fueled his hatred towards us. He loves Britt, who's to say he wouldn't go off the deep end for her?"

"I know you're right, but for the past six years, he's been our friend, and I have to give him the benefit of the doubt."

"I'm not saying we shouldn't, but we need to be sure about this before we do anything rash," Stephanie told him, cupping his cheek with her hand. "We can't go at this like you did with Punk, we can't go balls out."

"No, I know, I agree, we have to find out what happened, who's telling the truth, who isn't, then when we do find out, someone is going to get slapped," Stephanie smirked at him and he leaned in to kiss her, but then pulled away quickly, hissing.

"Damn it, I forgot about my busted lip," Chris winced as Stephanie brushed her thumb over the swollen lip gently. "Baby, when you do things like that, you know it drives me crazy."

"I'm not sorry," she told him, giving him a look.

"You never are," he playfully rolled his eyes. "So until we find out the truth, I think we should keep the status quo."

"What's the status quo at this point?"

"We don't tell anyone what we're doing, I mean, we should probably tell Punk that we're sorry for accusing him, but we also have to keep an eye out, make sure he isn't lying so he can get into Britt's pants. Then we tell him to keep his mouth shut and act like everything that happened between us is still going on. We can't find out the truth if people are trying to cover it up."

"You're right," Stephanie nodded. "I think that's a really good plan. I want to get to the bottom of this. I hope it's all just a misunderstanding."

"I hope so too," Chris told her honestly. He just wanted it all to be one huge misunderstanding so they wouldn't have to make people suffer the consequences.

"Our kids don't deserve this," Stephanie shook her head. "They don't deserve to be pawns in a game if that's the case. They deserve better than that."

"I know," Chris leaned forward to kiss her again, then winced again, "For God's sakes, my brain will not register that my lip is swollen and kissing you actually hurts."

"Are you sure it's your _brain_ that won't register that?" Stephanie asked light-heartedly, rubbing his knee a little bit as she slowly moved her hand up his leg. Chris looked down at her hand and then back up at her face. "I'm not suggesting anything. I know you're probably tired."

"I am," he said regretfully, wishing that sleep wasn't the only thing he wanted to do right now, but it was. "I'm sorry, baby, but I'm really tired tonight…I know that sounds like such a cop out, but you know how it goes."

"I know," she told him, standing up and then grabbing his hands to pull him up. She wrapped an arm around his waist as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders, walking together into the bedroom. "Thank you for believing me when I told you I thought Punk didn't do what he did."

"I trust your opinion of people, how could I not trust the woman who decided to take a chance on me," Chris told her, "when you say someone can be trusted, I think you have a good enough judge of character that I can believe you."

"Still, thanks," Stephanie leaned her head against him as they checked on the girls first. They were both asleep, so Stephanie and Chris left them to their slumber before heading into their own room. They were already ready for bed so they simply slipped under the covers as Stephanie curled herself around Chris's form.

"I love you," he told her, kissing her head.

"Love you too," she muttered as she closed her eyes.

Flynn threw open the door to her father's locker room and looked around, as if this being SmackDown was going to somehow to change everything. She was disappointed to find it wasn't different at all, just like all the other locker rooms her daddy had at Raw. She turned and grabbed Sawyer's hand, pulling him into the room. Her brother, used to her behavior, just followed her in.

"Daddy, why you fight Sames/?" Flynn asked as everyone started to get settled. "He my friend."

"Because I want to have his title," Chris told her. "He has the big, shiny gold belt, and I want to have it so in order to get it, I have to face him. That doesn't mean he still can't be your friend. You're allowed to choose your friends as long as they aren't mean and they don't do bad stuff."

"What bad stuff?"

"Just like, being mean to other people and doing mean things to them," Chris sanitized it down for a three year old.

"Oh, I see," Flynn said very seriously, nodding her head resolutely. "My friends are all nice, they're nice and you'll like them all."

"I know I do," Chris told her as Flynn ran to her brother and hugged him around the waist, burying her face into his t-shirt. She was very much in a clingy Sawyer mood today, and she'd spent the entire flight sitting next to him, babbling away as they watched a movie on the DVD player in the plane.

"Sawa, I wanna see Sames," she told him, like Sawyer had the power to make this happen.

"Well, I don't know, Flynnie, Daddy's going to be wrestling him tonight, maybe Daddy doesn't want to go see him," Sawyer said. "After all, Daddy has to fight him at the next big show so he can have the big, gold belt, you like that belt."

"I do," Flynn said, looking up at her brother earnestly, "but I like Sames. His hair is very red. How did it get that way?"

"Because sometimes people have red hair like how I have yellow hair and you have brown hair," he explained. "We got it because of Mommy and Daddy so maybe Sheamus's mommy and daddy had red hair."

"Oh, I get it," Flynn said, looking adoringly at her smart brother. Sawyer made a face at her and she giggled and hugged him tighter. "Can we go see him now?"

"I don't know, you have to ask Daddy," Sawyer told her, looking over at Chris. "Daddy, Flynnie wants to see Sheamus."

"Okay, hold on," Chris said, "or, um, Steph, do you think you could take them?"

"Sure," Stephanie said, "I have nothing to do, you know, just run the company."

"Yeah, like this is such a hassle…"

"Maybe it is," she joked, but stood up. "Okay, Flynnie, Sawyer, you can come see Sheamus, I think Kensy is fine here, right, Chris."

"Right," he said, glancing over at his youngest daughter, "You get to stay with me, Kensy-bug."

"Yay!" Kensington clapped, running over to Chris and letting him swing her up into his arms. "Love Daddy."

"I love being with you too."

"Come _on_, Mommy," Flynn said impatiently. Stephanie came over, grabbed Sawyer's hand and led him and Flynn (who was still clinging to Sawyer) to the door, before leaving Chris and Kensington alone.

Chris didn't know much about Del Rio, but he wasn't exactly happy to be tag-teaming with him again, especially now that he was going to be facing the man in a Fatal Four-Way match. There were no alliances in that type of match so he didn't really see the point in getting chummy with the guy. He was arrogant, glib, and thought he was better than everyone. Chris had no time for personalities like that. It was because of that reason he opted to stay in his locker room with Kensington rather than seek out Del Rio and talk about their match.

"Hi, Sames!" Flynn skipped towards him when she saw him in the hallway. "I came to see you!"

"Hello, Little Miss," Sheamus said affectionately. Whether or not he was facing the little girl's father was inconsequential. When he was back here and not in the arena, he wasn't going to ignore her just because he happened to be facing her father. "What are you up to?"

"I'm with my Sawa," Flynn held up her brother's hand, which she refused to let go of because he was her Sawa.

"Hi, Sheamus," Sawyer said politely. While not as outgoing as his sister, Sawyer was friendly with everyone and always had a smile for them. "Are you going to wrestle my daddy tonight?"

"Yes, I am," Sheamus said, "I know you won't cheer for me, but I hope that you'll still have a good time."

"I will," Flynn announced to him. "I like you."

"I like you too," he told her sweetly as Stephanie looked on.

"I like your hair, Mommy, I want hair like Sames."

Stephanie laughed, "Maybe when you're older, baby girl."

"Oh, okay," Flynn said, "I think you should be on my Daddy's team, Sames. He's a winner and you could be a winner if you were on my daddy's team."

"I bet I would be a winner," Sheamus told her, "but I think I better stick to my team, I don't think Randy would appreciate it if I decided not to be on his team all of a sudden."

"Oh, okay," Flynn nodded sagely, "yes, you shouldn't do that."

"Yeah, teams are important," Sawyer added, "we have teams at school when we play and we have to work together because that's what good teams do."

"You're very smart," Sheamus told him, smiling up at Stephanie. "I hope there are no hard feelings when I'm forced to beat your husband later."

She could tell he was saying it good-naturedly so she allowed herself a smile, "I hope there are no hard feelings when my husband kicks your butt later."

"Okay, okay, I deserved that," Sheamus told her, knowing she was joking and feeling free to joke as well. "I better go though, I've got to get ready, it's the first match, I hope you guys will be watching."

"I will!" Flynn told him. "It's my daddy's match, I always watch."

"Well then, I'm a very lucky guy," Sheamus said, "tell Chris I said good luck, he's going to need it."

"I think you're the one who's going to need it," Stephanie said as she ushered her children back towards the locker room.

The tag match wasn't the worst of Chris's problems for the evening. He thought teaming with Del Rio was bad enough, but he should have known that it would devolve into an all-out brawl. These guys couldn't be allies or friends or anything other than adversaries, at least until after their Fatal Four-Way. There was just too much at stake to trust any of them, so they were forced to trust nobody. After the way their match ended on Monday, it was no wonder the match started off with a lot of distrust. The match devolved into a brawl because they couldn't get along and shouldn't get along with such a big match coming up.

Unfortunately, this came with consequences. Eve, Laurinaitis's little girl-toy, announced that they would be in individual matches later that evening and with Chris's luck, he was going to fight against Sheamus, who his daughter liked. He was very sure this was a calculated move by Laurinaitis; it was absolutely something he would do. The man had no morals, no sense of decency.

"He's doing this because I irked him," Chris said, "I'm under his skin and he's punishing me for it."

"You don't…okay, yeah, he probably is, the both of us," Stephanie said, "I've got to do something about him, I just have to. I'm the president of this company and now he's inserting himself into matches and the Eve thing is ridiculous, just because you put glasses on doesn't mean you're suddenly so much smarter."

"Wow, catty," Chris said as he wiped himself down. "But what exactly are you going to do? I mean, really, what can you do? The Board of Directors is really holding everything over your head right now so it's not like you can outright fire him without their permission."

"You're right…but what if I get their permission?"

By the time Monday rolled around, Stephanie was a nervous ball of energy. She got out of bed early, leaving Chris lying in their hotel bed. He was still a little exhausted from all traveling he'd been doing. After SmackDown on Friday, he'd flown to Edmonton to hang out with his friends for the day before flying straight to Pittsburgh for Raw. She didn't need him to be up right now as she went to the bathroom to freshen up. She took her shower and did her hair in a neat, professional-looking ponytail before grabbing a nice blouse. She put on sweats because she was only going to be seen from the waste up and went out into the living area of their suite, sitting the laptop she'd brought on the table.

She booted it up and started up the conference meeting with the board she'd set up over the weekend. She had taken her own words to heart and was going to try and do something about Laurinaitis. Her secretary conferenced her into the meeting and the entire board was projected on her screen.

She smiled at them, "Hello, everyone, thank you so much for meeting with me today. I know this was short notice so I appreciate your presence here."

"Stephanie, what is this about?" Basil asked.

"I'm glad you asked," Stephanie started, composing herself. "I don't know how much you've kept up with the shows, but Laurinaitis really is started to let the power go to his head and I don't know how much longer I can put up with this. As the president of this company, it's my job to ensure that the WWE remains a viable and successful company and with the shows under Laurinaitis's rule, I'm not sure that's happening."

"But why?"

"For one, his constant abuse of power. He hires and fires people without my consent, which I should say is a violation, but I've let it go thus far. Now he's inserting himself in matches with our talent. What purpose could this possibly serve except to embarrass our talent, not to mention take time away from the actual wrestlers who this company is founded upon. I know he's probably been talking to you, I'm sure he has his backers, but this cannot continue."

"This is very serious," David said. "We should review this."

"That's all I'm asking," Stephanie said, "he's already made the match at the next Pay-Per-View with John Cena, one of our top stars, we can't change that, but my suggestion would be to put a stipulation on the match, that way, he can actually earn his job."

"We'll think about this, Stephanie," David told her. "We'll discuss it and we'll come to our decision as soon as possible. We reserve the right to tell John ourselves though, if that's alright with you?"

"It's perfectly fine, but I would appreciate a call to let me know what you've decided," Stephanie told him.

"Of course, you are running the company and you should be kept abreast of the situation. I simply ask you, Stephanie, if he should be terminated, are you prepared to find someone else to take over his job?"

"I always have someone at the ready, don't worry about that," Stephanie told them. She saw movement out of the corner of her eye and saw Chris sleepily walking into the room, just in his boxers. He yawned and stretched, freezing as he saw her sitting there and then laughed silently at the look on her face. "I simply want a fair outcome."

Chris started making kissy faces at her and she tried not to glare at him, "Then we will hopefully come to a fair solution."

"Thank you, all of you," Stephanie said as Chris turned around and mooned her. Stephanie averted her eyes, just about ready to kill her husband on the spot. "Once again, I appreciate all of you coming in this morning. Good day to you all." They all nodded at her, giving their platitudes as Stephanie turned off her video conference. "I'm going to kill you."

"What, you don't like seeing my ass?" Chris smacked his butt playfully. "And here I thought it was one of your favorite things about me."

"Not when I'm trying to talk to the board," Stephanie said, standing up and going to start the coffeemaker so she and Chris could get their morning cups of coffee.

"That's a nice look for you, business slob," he said, taking in her crisp, purple blouse and her ratty, gray sweatpants. She glared at him, still pretending to be angry about him distracting her, so he came over and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Good morning, baby."

"Don't try to get in my good graces now. What if I'd start laughing at you? The Board would have been furious, thinking I was disrespecting them or something." Chris just kissed her neck and she groaned. "Seriously, is having sex with me the _only_ thing on your mind when you're around me?"

"I didn't say anything about sex, but now I know what's on _your_ mind," Chris kissed her neck again. "I think it's cute you can't get enough of me. I would have sex with you this morning, but Laurinaitis might see fit to put me in _three_ matches tonight, and I've got to keep my strength up and, baby, the only thing you do is wear me out."

"Then I'm good at what I do, but you should know that by now," she told him, pouring the coffee grounds into the top of the machine. "I think you've only got the one match," she told him, "I didn't see your name anywhere else. Sheamus is going to be on commentary though, so you've got to watch out for him, not that I think _he_ is going to do anything to you, but I know you will do things to him because that's just the kind of guy you are."

"What kind of guy is that?"

"You would do anything to get an advantage," she told him.

"You like that about me."

"I like a lot of things about you."

"I know you do," Chris said.

"Thank you again for flying my mom down for Mother's Day yesterday. It was really sweet of you to have her down there, I was so happy to see her," Stephanie said, "it just wouldn't have been the same without her."

"Like I wouldn't do anything for you," Chris said, "I'm glad you had a great Mother's Day, the kids really wanted to go all out for you. I think they really love you, how crazy is that? Here you thought you'd traumatize them for life."

"I've still got time, Kensington isn't even two yet," Stephanie told him, turning around in his arms. "Good morning."

"Ahh, there's your pretty morning face," he told her.

"I have a pretty morning face?"

"Nah, you just have a pretty face," he told her, leaning over to kiss her cheek since he hadn't yet brushed his teeth and didn't want to gross her out with his breath.

"Man, that Van Halen concert put you in a _good_ mood," she joked.

"I had fun, you know, minus waking up in my cousin's closet," Chris said, narrowing his eyes as he tried to figure out how he'd gotten in their in the first place. He'd been wracking his brain trying to figure it out, but he had yet to remember how he'd ended up there.

"Better his closet than some other woman's bed," Stephanie patted his cheek as the coffee started to brew. "So what are we going to do about tonight?"

"Well, I know you're going to talk to Hunter about what we expected out of Lesnar even though he was not _our_ find. That should probably go first, right, is that what's going first?"

"That's not what I was talking about," Stephanie said, "I was talking about what we're going to do with the Punk situation and the Hunter situation."

"Oh, well, that," Chris rubbed his chin. "I think we need to go to Punk first, actually, once the girls get up, I think we should go to this hotel room, it'll be safer that way. We can talk to him, tell him about our suspicions, then when we get to the show, I'll try talking to Hunter."

"Why you?" Stephanie asked. "Why not me? Or better yet, both of us?"

"Because he'll get suspicious if it's both of us," Chris told her, "when do we ever go together to talk to him? I can be casual about you. You've talked to him about his arm recently, but I haven't. I can use that as my in when I go to talk to him. Then I can casually bring up Punk, Hunter can tell the truth, and I can beat him into a blood pulp and break his other arm, and both his legs, and then that big nose of his."

Stephanie pressed her warm hand to Chris's cheek, "You're not going to do that."

"If he was behind this, Stephanie, how can I ever trust him again? I call him my friend," Chris leaned his face into her hand."

"I do too," Stephanie said, "which is why we have to give him the benefit of the doubt. There are a million different explanations, between the both of us, we should be able to figure out the truth."

"Yeah, you're right," he said, "but let me talk to him, I think I can get a better grasp of him than you can."

"I was married to the man for two years, I think I know what he's like."

"Yeah, we'll, you've been with me for almost ten years, I think you know me better than you know him, therefore, you've probably forgotten all about what he's like because clearly, I invade your every thought, so I should talk to him."

"You don't invade my every thought."

"That's just an insult right there," Chris scoffed.

"Hello! I'm awake!" Chris and Stephanie turned toward the entryway into the living area and saw Flynn standing there with her arms folded. "You ignores me."

"I'm so sorry," Chris bowed in her direction. "I would never want to ignore you, oh Queen Flutterby."

Flynn giggled, "Kensy's waking too, come with me." Flynn ran over and grabbed Chris's hand, dragging him back to the bedrooms. He shrugged his shoulders and could do nothing but follow his daughter back to get her sister.

Stephanie took the opportunity to grab her cell phone, scrolling through her numbers until she got to Punk's. She knew he barely slept as it was so she figured he'd probably be awake right now. She took her chances and dialed his number, pouring herself a cup of coffee as she waited for him to answer.

"Stephanie?"

"Hey, yeah, it's me, look, Chris and I need to talk to you, are you free this morning?"

"Um, yeah, I already went and worked out," Punk told her.

"It's only 8:30," Stephanie said, glancing at the clock. "You've already worked out?"

"Yeah, I try to get in early. Does Chris not?"

"No," Stephanie laughed, "we both need to talk to you, so um, do you think we could meet in about an hour? Would that be okay with you?"

"Yeah of course," Punk agreed. "Do you know where I'm staying?"

"We're in the same hotel, what room are you in?"

"735," Punk told her, "I guess I'll see you in an hour."

"You will," she confirmed before they ended their call. Stephanie went into the bedroom to help get the girls ready for the day, finding Chris alternating giving morning kisses to Kensington and Flynn, much to their delight. She went over and grabbed Flynn, lifting her up and giving her, her own good morning kiss on the cheek. Flynn hugged her and Stephanie hugged her back. Yesterday, Mother's Day, she'd felt like the most pampered mommy in the universe. Even though there were some things they couldn't do, like cook, the kids had insisted on trying to do everything for Stephanie, and she couldn't have had a better day. But today was a new day and there were things to be done.

New plans to be made.

After getting everyone ready and fed, Stephanie and Chris headed down several floors to Punk's room. He must have been on edge waiting for them because he opened the door on the second knock, ushering them in. Flynn, so happy to be around her friend, immediately rushed to him while lifting up her arms. Punk took her and she hugged him around the neck, effectively melting his heart in the process. If he ever thought he wanted kids (which he did not), he wanted them to be just like Chris and Stephanie's kids.

"Hey," Punk said to Chris, an air of nervousness to his tone, like Chris would just haul off and punch him. "How'd you heal up after our last match?"

"Slowly," Chris said as he took a seat, Kensington in his lap. "I owe you an apology. I should have given you the benefit of the doubt, and I'm sorry I didn't."

"It's okay, you thought I was using your kids, I would have done the same thing," Punk told him. "What changed your mind? I mean, did Stephanie?"

"Yes, she did," Chris glanced at his wife, "but I should have seen it for myself. I mean, you never showed anything but class towards my kids, and I should have seen you weren't in it because you wanted Britt."

"You want Britt?" Flynn asked, "To do what?"

"Nothing, just be friends," Punk told her, smiling down at her as she nodded and was appeased with his answer. She was looking at the tattoos on his hands and went back to that. "I would never do that."

"I know you wouldn't, you're not that type of person, but it begs the question, who is?" Chris sighed then continued. "I hate to think it or even say it out loud, but we both suspect something fishy with Hunter."

"I did too, when I thought about it," Punk said, glad it was out in the open. He didn't want to step on their toes and accuse their friend, but it was the only thing that made sense right now. Hunter was the one to tell Chris about what Punk had supposedly done so it only made sense that he thought Hunter was the one responsible. He would not put it past the man who had drugged a woman so he could marry her.

"We hate thinking it, but it really makes sense so we're going to try and figure out the truth, which is where you come in."

"Where do I fit? What do you want me to do, I'll do anything to really clear my name," Punk told them.

"All we need you to do is act like we still hate you. We didn't want you thinking we still hated you," Stephanie told him, "which is why we're here talking to you right now. We both hate how we acted towards you, Chris more than me—"

"Gee, thanks, baby," Chris rolled his eyes.

"Anyways, but we just need you to lay low around us until we figure things out," Stephanie continued.

"I can do that, I've got Daniel Bryan to focus on anyways, I've got to deal with him, keep away all the people who want my belt," Punk sucked at his teeth a little and gave a look to Chris that was both teasing and a little bit cocky.

"Yeah, yeah, we get it," Chris said, "look, man, I really am sorry about everything I did to you and to your family, you didn't deserve it, really, I'm ashamed of the way I behaved."

"You thought I hurt your kids, your actions were justified," Punk told him seriously, "no hard feelings, man."

"Thanks," Chris said, "but if I hadn't let all of that cloud my thoughts, I would have beaten you."

"Sure you would," Punk said sarcastically, "sure you would."

"Okay, boys, put them away," Stephanie said, "so we're in agreement, Punk?"

"Yes, we're in agreement," Punk told them, "glad to have you guys back as friends, it's nice to have them in high places every once in a while."

"Likewise," Chris said.

Chris went to talk to Hunter under the guise of talking about what was going to happen when he went out there to talk. Chris was the acting Executive Vice Present of Talent Relations (though Laurinaitis loved to fight him on this every chance he got) and so it was only natural he would talk with the mouthpiece of the WWE about what was to be done about Lesnar. That was what he was telling everyone who asked (nobody really asked). Plus, if he were the one to go out there, it would be strange since nobody really knew he held the position.

Chris knocked on Hunter's door before Britt opened it with a smile, "Oh, hey, Chris, did you need to talk to Hunter?"

"Yeah, he here?"

"Yeah, I was just leaving actually," Britt said, "I've got a lot to do, Heyman is demanding to speak with me because he says he has information he needs to present."

"I figured as much, that man never knows when to shut up. He would talk forever if you just let him," Chris said with a laugh, but there was still a certain amount of respect there. Even if you hated Paul Heyman, you had to respect the guy. Chris was also pretty sure Heyman still owed him a few hundred dollars, luckily Chris wasn't hurting for the cash.

"That's for damn sure," Chris heard Hunter's gruff voice from inside. He walked inside and saw Hunter sitting there with his arm in an enormous brace. "Hey, man, how's the arm holding up? Has it fallen off yet?"

"Not yet," Hunter said, "you hear to talk about Lesnar?"

"You've got it," Chris told him, coming to sit down as Britt closed the door behind her. "So really, how's the arm?"

"It'll be okay, just have to keep this thing on for a while," Hunter lifted up his busted arm. "I can take it off when I have to change and stuff, but well, other than that. So what are we going to do about Lesnar?"

"Well, the long and short of it is he was making demands that were not in his contract. If he wanted to quit, that's fine, let him quit, but we're not going to give in. I think he's doing this because he wanted to quit because Cena beat him."

"God, once a coward, always a coward, right?"

"Yeah," Chris said, seeing an opening. "You know, sometimes I can't believe the lengths people would go to in order to make things go their way."

"What do you mean?" Hunter asked.

"Just, you know, I mean, there's this, with Brock," Chris said, "you have this guy who just quits whenever he isn't the guy at the top. I'm not much into UFC, but I heard that's pretty much what he did over there, right? Then the thing with Punk, I mean, here's this guy who just wants to use my kids to get his own way."

Hunter felt uncomfortable, but didn't show it. "Yeah, I mean, you'd think they would act like grown ups."

"I know," Chris looked at Hunter, studying him, taking in every detail, trying to decipher every movement the other man made. "I can't tell you enough how much it means to me that you told me what was going on. I mean, my kids, you know. I know you don't have any yet, but when or if you do, just knowing someone is using them, it changes you. You saved them a lot of grief and heartbreak."

Hunter gulped, "It was the least I could do, really, I wouldn't want them…to be hurt or anything."

"Yeah, I know, that's why you're such a good friend," Chris said, shaking his head, "I can't believe I ever though Punk was a good guy. I mean, the scumbag, you know what, I can't even think about it because it makes me so angry."

Hunter tried to keep his composure, but the guilt was rising inside of him. Luckily, he was used to feeling guilty about things. His life had been filled with guilt since he'd come into the company. He was not a good man, he'd never claimed to be a good man, and that had afforded him many opportunities to do things he felt guilty for now. This was included in that list, it was among the top things on the list. He wasn't just deceiving Chris and Stephanie, but Britt as well.

"I understand," Hunter said slowly, "so, um, I better think about what I want to say to the crowd. I was thinking about just addressing the situation and letting everyone know what was going on with Lesnar. I think if we paint him in an unflattering light, the fans will turn on him even more."

"That's probably the best way to go about it, get him out of their system since the guy is gone. But what about Heyman, you know he's not going to just shut up. We both know how he is," Chris said, turning to business because it was safe territory.

He didn't know whether or not he thought Hunter was just going to confess, if there was anything he needed to confess to, but there was something in Hunter's demeanor that was off to him. He didn't want to jump to conclusions, didn't want to base an opinion around circumstance, but things were not looking good for Hunter. Chris had always been a good reader of people, it's why so many people found him so charming, and his reading on Hunter right now was a good one. He had to get out of there before he did something he regret, though, if he was right, he wouldn't regret a damn thing.

"You know, I've spent so much time thinking about Lesnar and all this crap, I've completely forgotten, I've actually got to wrestle tonight," Chris laughed, "I have a match against Randy Orton, I wouldn't expect you to know what that's like since you only wrestle big matches against guys who can barely move."

Chris had to get the dig in. There was a little malice to his voice, danger lurking in it, but Hunter didn't seem to pick up on it as he laughed, "Yeah, I wouldn't want you to get knocked on your ass like I did."

"Yeah, hope the arm feels better," Chris said, standing up and walking towards the door. Chris stopped when he reached the handle and then turned to Hunter. "I consider you a really good friend, Trips, someone I can really trust, I'm glad I have that in you, even despite everything we've been through, with Stephanie and everything, I guess, I'm really glad you turned out to be someone who was cool, you know. I just needed you to know that."

Chris left then, knowing that if Hunter really was the jackass that the evidence was leading Chris to believe, then that little speech would cut him right to the bone. He almost wished he'd stayed, but if Hunter had any kind of conscience, he would confess if he was the one in the wrong. Chris might be lenient with him if he just told the truth. If he didn't and they found out it was him, then Chris would bring a vengeance down upon him the likes of which Hunter had never seen. Breaking his arm would seem like a blessing.

Hunter closed his eyes and counted down from ten. He blocked out what Chris said because thinking about it made him want to throw up in disgust. It was disgust at himself though. He was in too deep now, couldn't tell the truth, but it was things like that, that made him want to confess and just say everything he'd done, beg for forgiveness, but he had too much to lose and Punk didn't have anything to lose so it was perfect the way things were, save for the guilt eating him up inside.

Instead of letting it grow the more he thought about what he was doing, he chose, instead, to focus on what he was going to say to the crowd. Before he could even think, the show was starting and he was going to address the crowd. Stephanie had not been by, and he was thankful for that. He didn't need the double guilt trip, it was bad enough with just Chris. Thinking about his job helped deter his thoughts.

Laurinaitis met up with him as he was walking to the ring, but he all but ignored the man. He really wanted to ignore everyone right about now, but it was impossible. The crowd cheered for him, but the cheers felt cold. They weren't real. They were simply because he was in charge and could bring the hammer down on everyone, and the crowd enjoyed that. He climbed into the ring and started talking to them, acting as if he was one of them, just a fan, but he wasn't. He wasn't at all.

He wasn't part of the WWE Universe, he was just this man, who'd hurt his friends, and who was desperately trying to cover his tracks. He was just that guy and not this guy, this strong, tough guy. He pushed it away again, wondering how long he could do that before the act wore thin. He talked about Lesnar and how he was a quitter, but Hunter was no better. He was a liar, a huge one, a destructive one. At least what Lesnar projected to the world, everyone could see, nobody saw the liar when they looked at him.

Heyman eventually came out, claiming breach of contract, running his damn mouth about this and that, and Hunter was so fed up. He was more fed up with himself than anyone else, but Heyman was there and it was just easier to go for him, to take this self-loathing and direct it at a man who had been nothing but a thorn in his side. When Stephanie was with the Alliance, he'd had to sit and listen to her every week complain about Heyman, how Heyman thought he had more power, how Heyman ignored her suggestions, how she wished she'd never bought ECW in the first place. It was easy to project his hatred towards Heyman, nice even.

When Heyman threatened lawsuit, Hunter wasn't afraid. The man was mostly talk, never really bite. When he got backstage, he stormed past everyone and into his locker room. Britt wasn't there since she was at the production table with Stephanie, and he basked in the silence of the room. He had to learn to keep the feelings away, learn to tamper them down. He couldn't lose everything, not now, not after he'd worked so hard to keep it.

Stephanie's night was going infinitely better. She'd been told by David, one of the committee chairs on the Board, that a decision would be forthcoming. They'd reconvened that evening, intending to watch and assess the show without Laurinaitis's knowledge. They believed this was the only way to be truly objective, to see his natural disposition.

It could not have come on a better night. As soon as Laurinaitis was done firing Big Show, a phone call came. Stephanie excused herself from Britt, asking her to watch the girls, as she wandered a little ways away to get some privacy. "Stephanie McMahon-Jericho speaking."

"Stephanie, it's David, we've just seen all we need to see," he told her, "Effective immediately, Laurinaitis's job will be on the line at this match he's put himself in. There will be no interference, nothing of the sort, it will be a fair match. We'll be sending him an e-mail shortly. I take it his _assistant_ will give it to him."

"I'm sure she will, thank you, David, I could not be happier with your decision," Stephanie said. Now all she had to bank on was Cena not blowing the match, but she couldn't see him losing to a man that much older than he was. Cena, for better or worse, was at the top of his game, while Laurinaitis had no game.

"I look forward to speaking to you in the future, Stephanie, have a good evening."

"You too, goodbye," Stephanie told him, going back over to the production table and grinning over at Britt. "That was them."

"What did they say?"

"It's on," Stephanie grinned.

Punk didn't want to look like a stalker, but he couldn't help but watch Britt as she laughed with Stephanie. He stood there wondering, if Hunter was the culprit behind the lie, would Britt stay with him? He knew it was wrong to think about it, knew that he should really just move on, but sometimes, she was just so pretty, sitting there, doing her job, being smarter than most of the divas. She had her faults too, but that just made her more attractive.

She could be mean, bitchy, she could get in your face, she'd strung him along, but there was just something about her. He turned to walk away, needing to get her out of his mind. Alex Riley happened by and stopped to talk to him. They ended up talking about Punk's match with Bryan and the Yes lock and how that name was inherently stupid. Eventually, AJ came up to him and flagged him down. Alex, laughing, left them along, wishing him luck.

He didn't know AJ, but from what he'd seen, she was a little on the crazy side. He didn't know what she wanted with him, but for a brief moment, he wondered if she was going to try to use him for revenge against Bryan. While Punk liked women, a lot, he wasn't sure he wanted another crazy girlfriend. He'd had plenty of those before and while they were always fun at first, the crazy always won out. AJ told him she just wanted to wish him good luck, but he didn't know if that was the truth or not. She might want to be with him and just did not have the time for that right now. He was still smarting over the rejection from Britt, but AJ was not rebound material. She looked to be the kind of girl who you had sex with one time and suddenly they thought you were in a relationship. Definitely did not want to deal with that kind of crazy.

"Finally, it's time for Daddy," Flynn said as she leaned her chin on her hands and stared at the TV screen as it went dark in anticipation of her father. She'd been sitting there forever and finally, her daddy was going to be on. She was getting tired, Kensington was already asleep and in her mommy's office with her mommy, but Flynn had stayed there with Britt to watch the match.

"Do you think your daddy will win?" Britt asked.

"I do, you do too?"

"I always think he's going to win, he's the best in the world, isn't he?" Britt told the little girl.

"He really is," Flynn said, then yawned. "Up, please?"

"Okay, sweetie, are you sure you don't want to go lie down in your mommy's office with Kensington?" Britt asked as she cuddled Flynn into her arms. Flynn's small fists clutched at Britt's shirt as she turned herself in such a way that she could watch the match while lying on Britt.

"No, I wanna stay and watch," Flynn said. "I'll stay with you."

"Okay," Britt said, brushing her hand over Flynn's hair. "You just sit and watch and we'll cheer your daddy on, okay?"

"Go Daddy," Flynn said quietly and Britt laughed, kissing the crown of Flynn's head.

"Yes, go Daddy," Britt said.

"He not your daddy," Flynn told her.

"Oh, apologies, go Chris," Britt corrected herself as Flynn nodded at her for saying the right thing this time.

Chris walked down to the ring, but he was distracted. He felt like he was constantly distracted nowadays, and it didn't look like it was going to let up soon. He hoped nobody noticed, but sometimes, he just went through the motions during a match. With the Punk thing, he'd been distracted, now, he had Hunter to worry about, he had the Lesnar situation to worry about, then the Laurinaitis situation, he had his executive position, he had his band, he had his radio show. There was so much on his plate that the wrestling seemed to take a backseat.

That didn't mean he didn't put his heart into it, his head was just elsewhere. He tried to focus though, take his anger out on Randy Orton, even though Randy hadn't done anything to him. He did the same with Sheamus, for the same reasons. They were just in the wrong place at the wrong time, a time when he wanted to get every ounce of aggression out of his system. That was the cathartic part of wrestling. He could go out there and punch a guy and just act like a rabid animal. It was a great stress reliever and he needed one right now. He had a huge match on Sunday, had a chance at the title, one he desperately wanted to win, but for now, he couldn't think of it, with everything else on his mind.

He eventually won via DQ and he got out of the ring quickly, avoiding any skirmishes with Randy or Sheamus. Let those two go at it. He had bigger things to do, bigger things to take care of. When he wrestled, that couldn't be it, it wasn't the only thing. He had other responsibilities, and one of them right now was taking his very tired daughter from Britt and bringing her to the locker room. The second one was celebrating with his wife the fact that Laurinaitis might soon be gone. And with that, Vince McMahon's power would be gone as well.

It was certainly cause for some celebration.


	370. Wannabee, May 21, 2012

A/N: Thanks again for all the love, guys. I started a new story called, "Searching For a Former Clarity," so if you want something new and hopefully exciting to read, go check it out, thanks, enjoy! :D

* * *

"A marriage retreat?"

"Yes, a marriage retreat, she thinks it'll be good for us," Trish said, looking at the brochure in front of her. "She sent this to us today. She wrote a note with it that said we should think about it and it could be a good thing."

"A marriage retreat?" Christian repeated.

"I don't know, it could be something," Trish said. "I mean, we'll apparently be at this really great mountain lodge, and there's tons of stuff to do, and it looks beautiful."

"And we'll be surrounded by a bunch of other people trying to save their marriage, talk about awkward," Christian said.

Trish closed her eyes and took a deep breath before looking back over at her husband, "Christian, this is exactly what we were talking about in our last session. You don't have to be so close-minded about everything, and you don't have to be sarcastic when things are suggested."

"I'm not being sarcastic, I'm just saying what is," he snapped at her, but then rubbed at his temples, "I'm sorry, it's just, isn't it enough that everyone we know knows that we're having problems, do we really have to open ourselves up to other people who have no clue."

"But they're trying too, and I'm sure not all of these people are actually like us, which would make it something interesting to go to," Trish told him. She came over and sat next to him, pushing the brochure towards him. "Look, it doesn't look so bad and it doesn't say it's necessarily for people who are having marital troubles, it's also for people just looking to really solidify their marriage."

"Yeah right," Christian said, but then looked over at Trish and saw she was getting irritated with his behavior. It wasn't that he didn't think getting away was a bad thing, he was just embarrassed. He knew it was stupid to feel that way, knew a lot of people went through marital distress, but it was still embarrassing, especially because he was a well-known person. He didn't make it a habit of checking wrestling sites, but he could only imagine what they might say if they knew he and Trish were in trouble. John Cena had just recently filed for divorce and it was all over the place.

He didn't want that for him and Trish. He didn't want his business to be splashed all over the place for everyone to see. He'd tried to live as private a life as he could living in the public eye as he did. There were no pictures of his daughter floating around, there were no embarrassing photos of him drunk and passed out, no arrests on his record, and he wanted to keep it that way. What if they went to this thing and someone there was a wrestling fan? What if they heard about what was going on and decided to blab it to everyone? He was afraid of that. Maybe he needed to tell his wife.

"Okay, fine, we won't do anything then."

"Look, I'm sorry," he said sincerely, "but here's why I don't really want to do something like this. I'm just afraid that someone there is going to know us and they'll see we're having problems then they go and tell everyone, then they tell everyone and suddenly our business is out there for everyone to see."

"Oh," Trish frowned, "I didn't think of that."

"See," Christian said. "I just don't want some wrestling site putting up our personal information."

"Maybe…well, maybe we can go to it, but on the condition of anonymity. Like we can just…um, maybe make sure everyone there is not a wrestling fan?"

"How would we do that?" Christian asked.

"I don't know," she laughed a little. "I just think something like this could be good. We'd be surrounded by people who might be going through similar things and we can get their opinions on things, plus, it is like a vacation because look at all these things you can do."

"Yeah, I guess," Christian looked down at the brochure. "I really want to work on things, please don't take this the wrong way."

"I'm not," she told him, looking over and smiling at him. She gave in to impulse and leaned forward to press a kiss to the corner of his mouth. "I love you, Christian, I think we're doing great to be honest and so does our counselor. We're working through our issues and we're getting stronger because of it."

"I love you," he took her hand, "I really do. I know we just have issues we need to work out. I know this."

"We're working through them though, it's like Elena told us, it's not a big thing, it's a bunch of little things, but little things can easily be overcome," she told him sweetly. "We just need to get over the little bumps, there aren't a bunch of big bumps."

"Yes, little bumps, manageable bumps," he nodded.

"Hey, so as not to make you feel like you're the only person there or whatever, maybe we can invite Chris and Stephanie along. Or hell, we can invite Edge and Lita too, they're not married, but they've been together forever and it doesn't say it's _just_ for married couples."

"Like they'd want to go, those guys are all happy."

"So? I told you, it's not just for people who are having problems, it's also a place to make your already good relationship better," Trish reminded him. "Plus, Chris and Stephanie have three kids, they'd probably _love_ to get away from them for a few days."

Christian laughed, "That's true."

"I'll bring it up with Stephanie," Trish said. "The worst thing she could say is no."

The next day, Trish called up Stephanie for lunch, a lunch Stephanie agreed to. They found themselves at one of their favorite cafes, sipping iced coffee and talking lightly about silly things like new shoes Stephanie had bought, and what kind of clothes they should buy for the kids once summer started. As their food came, Trish figured it was as good a time as any to bring up what she wanted to bring up.

"So…I didn't just ask you out to lunch because I like you," Trish joked, "I also had something I wanted to ask you."

"Oh, I'd love a proposal, but I'm already married," Stephanie joked back, flashing her ring at Trish.

"That's too bad, we'd make a great couple," Trish winked at her, "anyways, you know Christian and I are in counseling…"

"How's that going by the way?" Stephanie asked. She never really brought it up when she was around Trish because she didn't know how sensitive the blonde would be about it. It took them a long time to even admit they were separated so bringing up their counseling seemed like it would be out of bounds.

"It's going well, Christian and I are really responding to it and we're getting stronger. We're still in separate bedrooms, but we're being more affectionate and I feel like our problems are really starting to get smaller and not insignificant, per se, but just less troubling."

"I'm really glad to hear that. So what was it you needed to ask me?"

"Okay, so there's this marriage retreat thing our counselor suggested we go to, it's in Virginia and it's at this lodge and everything, and it's not just for people who are having marital troubles, but for all couples, just to strengthen their bond or whatever, and Christian is nervous to go. He won't say he's nervous, but I think he's nervous, you know how he is with emotions. He tends to wear them on his sleeve, even when he thinks he isn't so I could tell he was nervous. I just thought if you guys were there, at least he'd feel like he had support."

"Oh, I don't know, Trish," Stephanie said, "I mean, a marriage retreat, me and Chris on a marriage retreat?"

"It could be a lot of fun," Trish told her, grabbing her hand. "I mean, it's not going to be all talking about your feelings. I heard there was a spa and there's hiking and other activities. It's really a getaway, and you have three kids, you need one of those, don't you think?"

"Well, that does sound nice, but Chris and I, we like our secrets and everything, what if we go there and find out our marriage is in trouble or something?" Stephanie asked, rather irrationally, but it was a concern. Sometimes she felt like her marriage was just a can of worms waiting to be opened. It wasn't, but it sometimes felt like it could be.

"You and Chris, in trouble? You've got to be kidding me," Trish told her, "there's no way you and Chris are in trouble. You guys are way too great to be in trouble. You love each other, you function well. Plus, with you there, I think Christian would feel like he had some allies."

"Well, I can bring it up with Chris, but I make no promises, especially because he's so busy. He's got that mini-Fozzy tour in the UK coming up, plus the album is coming out in August and I'm sure with the new record company, he's going to have to do some press for that. Not to mention he has the big tour this summer."

"Are you okay with that? I know it's going to take him away again," Trish said.

"Yes, I'm okay with it," Stephanie said, "at this point in Chris's career, I just want him to be healthy and happy, he's healthy, and he's so happy to be doing this tour, how can I take that away from him? I love him, and I'm so proud of him and his band."

"See, this is what I'm talking about," Trish said, "the you of the past would have been so upset with Chris leaving _again_, but you've adapted, you know what he wants to do and you're happy for him, you love him."

"Well, yes," Stephanie shrugged because it wasn't that big a deal to her. She loved Chris and she wanted what was best for him. She understood now that it wasn't _always_ going to be wrestling. Plus, she loved Fozzy, the music _and_ the guys in the band, they were almost like a second family to her after she and the kids had gone on tour with Chris the year prior.

"Well, they have a few times they're doing it, if you at all want to go, I can give you the brochure, and you can look at it, okay?" Trish asked hopefully.

"Yeah, sure, I'll bring it up with Chris," Stephanie told her, "anything to help you guys get back on track."

Later that evening, after Chris and Stephanie put the kids to bed, they were lounging downstairs, watching TV idly as they just relished in the quiet after a loud, noisy day with the kids. Stephanie thought back to what Trish had talked to her about and she turned to her husband, leaning up to kiss his cheek. He smiled at her sweetly before turning his eyes back to the program they were catching up on. He found himself looking back at Stephanie when her hand came up to his opposite cheek and his face was gently guided back towards hers.

"Yes, you're pretty, I love you, can I go back to watching now?" he told her cheekily and she just tilted her head and pretended to be angry with her. He gave her a peck on the lips before pulling away and making a funny face at her, something he would usually do for Flynn.

"I wanted to ask you something," she told him.

"Okay, ask me something," he told her.

"Well, you see, there's this marriage retreat thing that—"

"Marriage retreat?" Chris narrowed his eyes at Stephanie. "Why would we need to go on a retreat? Is everything okay with us?"

"Everything is fine," Stephanie told him, rolling her eyes as his impetuousness. "If you would have let me finish my sentence…maybe we do need a marriage retreat since you won't let me finish my thoughts."

"Well maybe we do," he told her in a silly voice.

"As I was saying," she continued, ignoring the way he was looking at her right now. He was obviously trying to look like he was so scared for her next words, but really wasn't. She shoved at him a little bit, making him laugh. "There's this marriage retreat thing—"

"If you're unhappy with me, I can change, baby, I really can!" Chris said, begging exaggeratedly. She started laughing at him, ducking her head, unable to help it. Sometimes he could act like such an idiot, but she loved that about him. She loved that he could be serious when he needed to be and then turn around and be the silliest, most easygoing guy on the planet. He grabbed her around the waist and pulled her into his lap, making her grunt with surprise. "I'll do anything!"

"Stop," she told him again. "It's a thing that Trish and Christian were thinking about going to and Trish thinks Christian is nervous so she wondered if we might want to go along."

"Isn't that for marriages in trouble, I like to think we're doing okay, we're not perfect, but we make a go of it. Unless you really do think there's a problem here…"

"She said it wasn't just for marriages in trouble, but to also strengthen good marriages, which is the category we'd fall under. You know, we could go in, be the absolute model couple, make all the other couples insanely jealous of us, then we can go home and be the coolest people on the planet."

"I do like the sound of that," Chris told her. "I mean, we are totally such a great couple…but wait, what if they ask us how we met and how we got together, don't you think they're going to start zoning in on the hate thing?

"We overcame that."

"Yeah, but they could talk about us like we're crazy or something. They could start saying that we have all these repressed feelings," Chris's eyes widened, "they'll think we're crazy, then they'll convince us we _are_ crazy, we'll get divorced, and I'll only get to see the kids on weekends at McDonald's!"

"Yes, that's exactly what's going to happen," Stephanie deadpanned.

"I knew it, I knew they were your plans!" Chris shook her a little bit, "I'll think about it though, I mean, hey, you can never have too strong a relationship, right? Plus, I feel bad for Christian and Trish, and I want to help."

"That's why you're the best," Stephanie said. "I love you."

"I love you too. Now may I watch this and then go to bed and wake up and go to Raleigh?"

"Yes, you may."

Stephanie broke away from her family as soon as they arrived at the arena. She wasn't annoyed by them or mad at them, but she really had somewhere she needed to be. She needed to talk to John Cena and see where his head was at before his match tonight. It was an important match to her, and she wanted to make sure he was at the top of his game. Laurinaitis had appealed to the board this morning, hoping they would repeal the "no superstars at ringside" ban, but it had been declined, much to her relief. She knew Laurinaitis had no chance if nobody was there to help him.

Chris took the kids out into the arena so they could watch everything get setup and so they could run around a little bit without being outside. Kensington and Flynn were running in between the chairs in front of Chris, on the floor level, not on the bleachers were there were steps, and he kept his eye on them, making sure they weren't going to get hurt. Sawyer was sitting next to Chris, leaning his head against his father's arm. Being Memorial Day weekend, Sawyer was able to come to the show tonight and Raw the next night.

"Daddy, who are you facing again, I forget," Sawyer asked his father. "I know you're wrestling Sheamus and Randy, but who's the other guy."

"Del Rio," Chris answered.

"Oh yeah, he's the one that always has the cars," Sawyer scrunched up his nose. "Daddy, is it true you're going to leave soon?"

"I'm not leaving _you_ if that's what you're worried about," Chris told him, "I would never leave you."

"Sometimes Daddies do leave though, right?"

"Well, yes, sometimes, but I would never, ever do that to you, but yeah, I was thinking about leaving wrestling soon because I've got lots of things to do with Fozzy, and I need to take care of all of that. It's something that I love, just like wrestling."

"I know, I don't mind," Sawyer said, "does that mean you're going to be at home with me on Mondays again, so that Mommy and Flynnie and Kensy go without us?"

Chris hadn't thought of that. Once he was doing his Fozzy thing, there were probably going to be down days that he would be able to spend with his son. That thought excited him because he loved to have time alone with Sawyer. They were the men of the family, and they needed time alone to spend together. He smiled and ruffled Sawyer's hair. "You know, in between my concert tours, I think we will be able to spend Mondays together, just like we used to before I returned."

"Cool, I liked it when we did that, you let us eat in the living room, even though Mommy says we shouldn't."

Chris laughed then checked in on Kensington and Flynn. Kensington was tugging around Flynn, who, for once, was being kindly and not pushing Kensington around. It looked like Flynn was pretending to be Kensington's pet dog or something. His children could be so weird sometimes. "I know, but Mommy doesn't have to know that we eat in there."

"Nope, she doesn't," Sawyer laughed. "Daddy, do you like being a rock star more than you do a wrestler?"

"No, I think it's about the same. There are two things I love outside of my family, wrestling and music. So getting to do both when I want is something that I find really fun. Not many people get to do both of their dreams, but I do so I know I'm lucky."

"But if you had to choose one forever, which one would you choose?" Chris didn't expect that answer. Hell, that was a deep question for his six year old son to ask, one he never expected in a million years, at least not at that moment. He was almost unsure of how to answer that, actually, he _was_ unsure of how to answer that. He thought for a few moments, a few _long_ moments, long enough to where Sawyer thought he'd just forgotten and focused his attention on the big screen that was showing random entrances at the moment.

"I would choose wrestling," Chris finally told his son, his voice firm with his decision.

"You would?" Sawyer asked. "Why?"

Chris looked around the arena. "There are a lot of reasons, really, I mean, this was my first love. You don't really understand that, and you won't for a while, but someday, something is going to come along and you're going to want to do it for the rest of your life. It may be wrestling, it may not be, but there is going to be some dream for you, kid, and you're going to want nothing more than to do that for the rest of your life."

"I want to wrestle," his son answered with conviction.

"Okay, you want to do that _now_, but you're six, there are a lot of years ahead of you to be able to choose what you want to do," Chris told him then said to his daughters, "You guys, not too far away, okay, and do not go near the ramp, the guys are trying to set things up. Flutterby, don't let Kensy go near there."

"I won't!" Flynn yelled back, steering Kensington away from where they were headed. Kensington just took it in stride and started pulling Flynn back towards where Chris and Sawyer were sitting.

"But I do know," Sawyer said, "it would make Mommy happy."

"Mommy would be happy knowing you were happy, believe me," Chris said, "as for why I would choose wrestling over music if it came down to the two is because wrestling has given me more than music."

"Like belts and stuff?"

Chris chuckled as he thought about that. Of course his son would think that it was simply about the belts and things. It wasn't a farfetched idea considering he was going for the World title that very evening. "No, I mean, if I never went into wrestling, I never would have met your mom, which means I wouldn't have married her, and I wouldn't have you or your sisters."

"I didn't even think of that!" Sawyer said, his eyes widening. "Who would you have married!"

Chris loved this conversation because it was constantly making him laugh. "I don't know, who would I have married? Hmm, I guess I would have met a girl while being a musician, and I would have married her."

"But she wouldn't be better than Mommy."

"You're right, she wouldn't be better than Mommy," Chris said, "that's why I'd choose wrestling, because as far as I'm concerned, there's nobody better than your mommy."

Stephanie shook John's hand, "I'm glad we're on the same page. I personally can't stand the guy, plus, I think he's secretly working with my father to undermine me."

"I wouldn't be surprised," Cena scoffed. "Seems like something your dad would do. Why can't he just accept retirement?"

"I don't know," Stephanie said, but shook her head, "no, I do know. My dad has really done nothing except build this company up since he bought it. He sees it as one of his children, and it's still his as far as he's concerned. I tried to offer him a position, you know, a consulting type thing, but he won't take it. To him, it's President or nothing."

"I can see that, I just hope that Laurinaitis is given the boot. I really am going to try everything in my power to do it."

"I'm glad," Stephanie said, "I know we don't always see eye-to-eye, John, but I'm glad to have you on my side with this one."

"Thanks."

"Good luck tonight," Stephanie said, "I hope you win."

"I hope I do too."

Stephanie walked out of his locker room with a wave and was greeted by the sight of Hunter walking down the hallway, his arm still completely wrapped up in that hideous brace. She jogged to catch up to him and fell in stride beside him. He looked over at her, startled, her presence unexpected. She threw him a smile, but it was a false one. Chris talked to him the week before, but she hadn't gotten her crack at him yet and she wanted her turn.

The thing was, she wasn't even mad at Hunter for what she suspected him of doing. Oh, that wasn't to say she wasn't burning with rage at the thought of him using her children as part of his anger, but it was like, this was who she always expected. No matter how close she got to Hunter, no matter how much she believed him to be a friend, there was always going to be a part of her that saw the bad guy. He _was_ a bad guy, sometimes in a very comic villain type way. She couldn't be mad at something she was expecting to happen all along.

There was a reason she divorced this man, a reason she'd found herself growing farther and farther apart. The main reason was he drugged her to marry her. She should have known how doomed they were from the start simply based on them having no start whatsoever. When she was with Chris, they had a real relationship, something built on trust and love. Hunter had been the bad guy, kidnapping her, drugging her, and marrying her. She'd stayed with him because he'd been charming, and she believed herself to be in love with him. She knew now that love wasn't for real, not at all because it didn't even come close to how she felt about Chris.

"Hey," Stephanie said brightly.

"Hey," Hunter said.

"How's your arm, you're still in that brace."

"I'll be fine," Hunter told her. "Thanks for asking."

Stephanie saw her in. "Of course I'm going to ask, not only are you my friend, but you're also the one who exposed Punk for what he was. I mean, if it weren't for you, if you didn't come tell us what was going on…I just don't want to think about my kids' heartbreak, you know."

"Oh, yeah, I know, look, Steph, it's a big night, you have a lot for me to do."

"Actually, I thought I gave most of the work to Britt," Stephanie said, finding Hunter's behavior suspicious. "Hunter, we're friends, right? I mean, we've overcome a lot of crap to get where we are, but we're friends, right?"

"Yes, we're friends," he stopped and turned to her. "What are you trying to say, Stephanie? I'm sensing something more."

"I just wanted to make sure we were friends, that we were actually friends," Stephanie told him.

"Of course we are."

"Good, after what happened with Punk, I just can't chance it, you know what I mean," Stephanie pressed her hand to his arm. "I'll talk to you later, Hunter, hope your arm starts to heal up really soon."

Stephanie didn't know if she'd made an impression on her ex-husband, but she hoped she did. She hoped she made him confess. She was sure, if he did confess, that it might be easier to forgive him someday in the future. She wasn't going to hold a grudge forever, but she knew she wouldn't trust him for a very long time. The person she worried about was Chris; Chris held grudges, and those grudges lasted a long time. She wasn't sure he was ever going to forgive Austin for what he'd done when she was pregnant with Sawyer and that was over six years ago.

This was still all based on conjecture though. They didn't know for sure that Hunter concocted a story about Punk to make him look bad. Still, everything pointed to him, plus he had a reputation for pulling stunts like this. Hunter could be so charming when he wanted to be, so convincing, and she knew this firsthand so it seemed like he was the culprit. She talked like it was his fault because she really did think it was his fault. She just wanted to give him the chance to tell the truth.

Chris had a love and hate affair with wrestling. Sometimes, he just wanted to walk away (he couldn't, not really) and sometimes, he wanted to stay forever in the ring. Tonight was one of those nights where he had a feeling he was going to want to step away forever. He knew the odds were not in his favor, but then, they weren't in anyone's favor. Fatal Four-Ways were the worst type of match, or among the worst. There were too many factors, too many possibilities, and he didn't even have to be pinned to lose.

His kids believed in him, and while that was all well and good, he'd told them not to expect him to win tonight. He was tired of getting their hopes up only for them to be dashed time and time again. First with the Royal Rumble, then with every subsequent chance he got at the title. Each time he went for a title, the belt seemed to get dimmer and dimmer. He didn't know if it was him age (he felt better than he had in years) or what, but something was preventing him from winning. Maybe his focus was elsewhere, though he didn't want to use that as an excuse.

Still, the fact remained, he held an executive position that did require work. He was efficient with it and on days where he was wrestling, that aspect of his job took a back seat. John Laurinaitis could claim the title all he wanted, but Chris was the one who did all the work and took none of the credit. On his off-wrestling days, he spent much of it in his home office, doing work with talent, and even before shows, he took meetings in the mornings with those that needed to meet with him. That didn't even begin his life outside the ring though. His family was first, then his music had to fit in there too.

All of this overwhelmed him to the point where matches seemed to be in a distant, well, fourth, fifth? He'd accomplished everything he'd ever set out to do, he said this a million times so seeing that gold, though appealing, was not the be all end all it was when he first broke into the company. Back then, the gold had seemed like this insurmountable goal, but now it was just another thing to add to an already long list of things he'd accomplished.

That was why, when he lost, it didn't seem like the huge deal that it used to be. When he went backstage, his kids were bummed, but they liked Sheamus so the loss didn't sting them as much. Sheamus, being the nice guy he was, actually came over, shook his hand then let Sawyer, Flynn, and Kensington look at his belt. Chris was actually warming up to the guy. He seemed to just genuinely like people, and he wanted to please everyone. If he had to be pinned by any guy, he was kind of glad it was Sheamus.

"You okay?" Stephanie asked him later on when they were lying in bed. They were facing each other, their heads on their own pillow, the long-forgotten television illuminating their faces.

"With what?" he asked.

"Losing," Stephanie told him.

"Oh, that, I don't care," he told her reaching out to rub her cheek, "Are you okay?"

"With what?" she returned his question with one of her own.

"With what happened with Laurinaitis," Chris answered. He'd seen Stephanie's reaction when Big Show helped Laurinaitis get the win. It had been one of abject disappointment and silent resignation. She'd been so sure Cena would win then it had all fallen apart right before her eyes.

Stephanie turned on her back and then back to her side, scooting over so she was sidled up next to Chris. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her in as she rested her head in the space under his chin. "I'm starting to think I should just leave it be."

"What do you mean?"

"Just let him do whatever the hell he wants. He does it anyways. He has no regard for me or my authority. He just continually bucks it, does his own thing, claiming he's the boss, he's the GM, he's the blah blah blah, and I'm just sick of it."

"Don't you think that's you giving into your father though, like letting him win?" Chris asked her.

"I'm just hoping John will somehow screw this up so much, I'll be forced to fire him," Stephanie sighed again, snuggling deeper against Chris. "I don't like that he's doing this, I don't like what he's doing, but maybe if I just completely leave him alone, let him have the power, things will get so bad, my father will be exposed, Laurinaitis will be exposed. Maybe if I just step back, let the board see all of him, they'll come to their senses."

"I hate seeing you like this," he told her.

"What else can I really do?" she asked of him, knowing he didn't really have an answer. "I figure, if I just leave well enough alone, he'll screw it up on his own. I've got so many other things on my plate running this company. Maybe I'm putting too much emphasis on this. I have to show the board they made the right decision making me President."

"Of course they made the right decision, you are the best woman for the job, hands down."

"You're biased."

"I know what I'm talking about," he corrected her, "but if you feel like this is something you want to do, I'll support you, you know that. I trust your judgment, I mean, you married me after all, so I know you have great taste."

"I'm just tired of being at odds then having him defy me at every turn. If he does his thing, I can nail him later when he screws up."

"Then do it," Chris told her, "let the show go and see what he does. If it goes to hell, you'll have no culpability in the matter, it'll actually help in the end, right?"

"Yeah, so there is a plus side to this," Stephanie said.

"Does this mean you wouldn't go to the shows?"

"No, of course not," she told him, "I'll go to the shows, I'll definitely go to the shows because I can still oversee things, I just will try to stay out of the planning as much as I could. So…that does bring me to the subject at hand, are you going to be on Raw tomorrow?"

"Um, yes, I have no reason not to be," he kissed her forehead. "Baby, I would give you more than a night's notice as to when I'm going to go. Trust me, I wouldn't leave you high and dry, I love you far too much for that."

"Thanks," she squeezed him around the middle, "maybe tomorrow will look better for the both of us."

Tomorrow was another day. That was the saying, and it was true in this case and in all cases. Sometimes you just woke up and you had a better outlook on life, or at the very least, a different outlook on life. Stephanie woke up and she wasn't going to worry about Laurinaitis or her father, or whatever it was they were planning on doing. She was sick of being manipulated by her father, and she was starting to feel like she, too, was just one of his puppets, the strings high as he made her dance, buckle under his direction even as she tried to make her own way.

"So yes, John, after your…impressive win yesterday, I think you _should _be in power," Stephanie told him, her shrewd eyes covering every inch of him. Eve stood by his side, ever the perfect assistant while Otunga stood on his other side, sipping that damn coffee and acting as his "legal advisor." "I should make note that you will be on probation, this was issued by the board, not by myself, but I'm letting you take the reins, let's see what you can do."

"What's the catch?" Otunga asked, sensing there was more to what she wanted to say.

"No catch," Stephanie said, "I'm bogged down with other things and I can't let any of the many arms of the WWE go to waste. I can't devote all my time to the show or else that neglects other parts of the business. I need to focus on being the best president I can be. Since you were not terminated yesterday, I have to think you are in this for the long haul. I can't slack off, I wouldn't expect you to either, now you three are dismissed."

"Um, thank you," John said suspiciously. Stephanie threw him a smile. This wasn't even about throwing him off his game, but the fact it did was just a bonus. Stephanie had work to do, piles of it. Being the president was not easy work. John would eventually screw up, but in the meantime, she had to make sure the rest of the business was up to par.

Chris wandered the hallways, letting the kids race ahead of him. They were mindful of other people, but excited to be at two shows. Kensington was only a couple steps ahead of him since she couldn't really run all that quickly so Chris quickly scooped her up and blew a raspberry on her stomach, making her squeal with laughter. He held her close and kissed her cheeks, just letting himself take in her laughter.

"I love you, Kensy-bug," he told her.

"Love you," she told him back. Chris looked straight ahead and Hunter was standing there, talking on the phone. Sawyer spotted him first and ran over, jumping in front of Hunter, making a scary noise.

"Boo!" Sawyer said. "Hi, Trips."

"Hey, tough guy, um, hold on," Hunter said, quickly saying goodbye to his phone call as Flynn, Chris, and Kensington caught up. "Hey, everyone."

"Hi, Trips," Flynn said, grabbing onto his hand. "Your arm is bad, is it still hurts?"

"Yeah, it's still hurting," he told her, looking up at Chris, who held an impassive look on his face.

"Will it be okay?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah, I should be okay."

"You should beat up Brock for doing that to you," Sawyer told him, "you can do it, you can do anything because you're a good wrestler, Trips."

"Not as good as Daddy though," Flynn added and Sawyer nodded too because it was true, Chris was the best in the world at everything he did. Chris simply watched Hunter's face, trying to find any kind of flinching or emotions that would give him away. He had to hand it to the man, if he was guilty, he was doing a good job of hiding it.

"I think I might," Hunter told them, "I actually have a meeting with the lawyers later this week to discuss what we're going to do, Stephanie arranged it."

"I hope you'll find out what we can do," Chris told him, "it's important because we don't want to lose a ton of money with this one. John offered him a fair deal, he really should have just taken it, but I suspect he's a coward. He didn't want to admit he wasn't as good as he said he was, and instead of just admitting that, he had to take the coward's way out."

"Yeah, he did," Hunter said, "but I'm hoping we can find a way past that so it doesn't go to court."

"I don't think it will," Chris said, "come on, kids, let's leave Trips alone. The show is going to be starting soon, and I bet you want to watch with Mommy at production, don't you?"

"Yeah!" Sawyer said.

"I do too, I do too!" Flynn said.

"I'll see you, Trips," Chris said. Chris noticed that Hunter didn't really look guilty per se, but he certainly didn't look all that innocent. They had to smoke him out. They had to smoke him out and they had to do it soon. Chris wasn't like Stephanie, he couldn't wait forever for a confession. He had to work quickly before Hunter really thought he was getting away with this. All signs pointed to Hunter, all the evidence, all the conjecture, it began and ended with him.

Chris didn't know if he could ever forgive Hunter for doing this. The man had used his kids as bait, pawns in his game. Where he thought Punk was in the wrong, Hunter was actually in the wrong, and it was somehow worse. He'd gotten over everything in their past to be friends with Hunter. The man had tried to ruin his wedding the night before it happened, yet he still called him a friend. It had been a long road, but if all it took was one bad thing for the man to turn, what kind of friend was he?

A thought came over Chris and as he walked the kids to the production table to meet up with Stephanie, it started to form brighter in his mind. When he got to the table, he left the kids with some kisses, and Stephanie with one too, before he sought after someone he needed to talk to. There were so few people he actually trusted around here, but he knew this man could be trusted. He just needed to talk to him.

While this was going on, the show was about to start and the children were having fun watching where they were watching. Sheamus wandered over and Flynn waved her arms at him. "Little Miss!"

"Hi, Sames!" Flynn said, looking expectantly at his belt. He laughed and laid it down on the table in front of her. "Thank you!"

"Anything for you, Little Miss," he knelt down next to her and gave her a wink. "How are you doing, Sawyer? I don't get to see you come round here that often."

"I get to come because I didn't have school today," Sawyer said, "I'm good though, are you okay? Are you hurting after your match? Our daddy didn't hurt because he's the best, but you won so I don't think you're hurt either."

"I feel pretty darn good," Sheamus told him. "Did you like the show last night?"

"It was okay, I wish Daddy had won," Sawyer said, "but you winning is good too."

"Sames, talk to me!" Flynn demanded and he laughed and gave Sawyer a look. Sawyer laughed at the look as Sheamus turned his attention back to Flynn, who started to tell him everything she could about the belt.

Chris knocked again on Randy's door. The man finally answered, "What the hell, Chris, I was trying to change into my ring gear, I've got a match against Del Rio and it's up early."

"I need your help."

"Oh great, another plan, dude?" Randy asked, shaking his head. "Why do I always get sucked into these things? Seriously, don't you have anyone else you can go to?"

"No, not for this, I mean, I guess I could go with Christian, but the guy just came back, and I'd feel bad including him. You would work because we had a match last night."

"Okay, you've lost me, Chris, what is going on?"

"Hunter."

"Shit," Randy said, pressing his hands together and then pressing said hands against his mouth. "You wouldn't come to me unless you had a plan, but you've got a plan against _Hunter_. That means something big happened, what is it, what did he do?"

"He told Stephanie and I that Punk was using our kids to get close to Britt, but we suspect he's lying. I think he came up with the lie because Punk was interested in Britt. I don't take kindly to someone using my kid."

"I wouldn't expect you to," Randy said, "if I like anyone in your family, it's your kids, they're less…vindictive. So what's the plan? And if I know you and Stephanie, the plan is elaborate and complicated."

"I want to smoke Hunter out, make him confess. I don't want to call him out, he'll lie, you know he'll lie, you were in Evolution with him. I have to get him to confess so I can proceed to bash his brains in."

"So…my part?"

"I want you to take the fall," Chris told him. "I want to lie and say that you were the one who came up with the lie, you were the one spreading the rumors, I'll tell Hunter, and hopefully he'll confess."

"So what do you want to do?"

"Your match tonight, I'm going to interrupt, I'm going to go ballistic, I'll take you down. I'll act like it was all your fault, can I count on you?"

"This is why I don't hang out with you, you know that, right?"

"Dude, you know I'm good for a favor."

"I know you are," Randy chuckled at him. "You keep to your word, and it's not like I don't notice the…bonuses you send my way every once in a while, paying off people, Chris, are you sure the boss would approve?"

"I think she's okay with it."

"Okay, so for this one, you have to buy me a beer, how's that?" Randy said.

"Deal," Chris shook his hand. "Thanks for this, Randy."

"I'm not doing this for you," Randy said, "your kids are about the only thing around here that doesn't take wrestling so seriously, and makes it totally fun. I wouldn't want to see anything happen to them."

"Why does everyone like them better than Stephanie and me?"

"Um, have you met you guys?" Randy asked him.

"Very funny, I'll see you later, thanks again."

"Two drinks actually!" Randy called after him.

Flynn frowned at the television as she watched John Laurinaitis talking out there in his scooter. "I don't like him," Flynn said to Sheamus.

"I don't like him either," Sheamus shook his head.

"He mean to Mommy," Flynn bit her lip, "I no like that. I like my mommy."

"I think she's a very nice mommy," Sheamus agreed with her.

"She is," Flynn told him with a nod. "She does lots and lots."

"I can see that," Sheamus nodded his head towards Stephanie, who was busy directing the show, conversing with everyone it seemed. Sawyer's eyes were glued to the TV while Kensington colored. Flynn was happy to have one of her friends to converse with.

"I no know why he so mean," Flynn shrugged. "He just is."

"Well, I think he's just a bully, he likes to be mean to everyone," Sheamus told her. "That's why he tries to make everyone do stuff for him, because he's just a big meanie who likes to take it out on everyone else because he's got a funny voice."

"He does have a funny voice," Flynn giggled. She watched as Cena was attacked from behind. "Oh no, he's being mean again! He made people be hurting!"

"You just watch," Sheamus told her, "can you watch my belt for me?"

"Uh huh, I can!" Flynn told him.

"Great, I'll be right back."

Sheamus ran out onto the ramp, pushing Laurinaitis out of the way, especially for Flynn, since she didn't like him because he was mean to her mommy. Then he went out to help Cena. He wasn't necessarily great friends with the man, but he saw a guy in trouble, and his instincts kicked in. For his troubles, Laurinaitis booked him in a handicap lumberjack match, but it was well worth it. He wandered backstage, still as happy as a clam because he was up for a good fight. He walked back over to Flynn and smiled at her.

"Thanks for watching my belt for me," he patted her on the head. "Did you see me knock down John?"

"Yeah, it was funny."

"That was for you, since he was mean to your mum."

"Wow, thanks, Sames, you're the best!" Flynn gave him a big hug around the neck.

"Any time, Little Miss, I've got your back."

Randy had Chris's back later on during his match. Randy didn't know exactly when Chris was going to come out, but it was probably better that way. It gave them the element of surprise. He should have known it would be near the end of the match. When he got the Codebreaker, he wasn't expecting it, but that didn't mean he wasn't prepared for it. He knew how to sell it, and as Chris postured above him, Randy could see the intensity on his face, the intensity meant for Hunter.

Hunter was in for a world of hurt.

Chris went backstage afterwards, and Stephanie looked at him like he was crazy. "What was that?" she mouthed to him as his kids looked on.

"You'll see," he mouthed back to her. Then he wandered over, and winked at her. "It was Randy all along, it was Randy who was spreading the rumors. He was trying to stir up trouble because Punk did something to him, I don't even know what. It was all a lie, perpetuated by Randy!"

"It…was?" Stephanie pretended to be aghast. She'd caught the smirk and knew Chris was up to something. "I can't believe this, you mean, it was Randy all along."

"Yes, it was Randy all along and he's going to pay."

What they both didn't know was Hunter was hanging around, and he heard every word. Randy had taken the fall for what he'd done. Randy had taken the brunt of everything. He didn't know what to do. This was perfect, but then, Randy was the one getting hurt. But it wasn't him, that was a good thing. It almost absolved him.

What he didn't know was Chris and Stephanie knew he was right there the whole time.

"Hi, Punk," Britt said as she passed him in the hallway. "Good job last night."

"Thanks," Punk said, "hey, so you know, I was thinking, we got started off on the wrong foot. I would really like us to be friends, what do you say?"

"Friends?" Britt asked. "Well, actually, yeah, I'd like that."

"Great," Punk said, "I'm sorry for everything I did to you."

"I am too," Britt said, reaching out to hug him, "I'm glad we can be friends."

"Yeah, I mean, who knows, maybe we can go out sometime…as friends, I promise," Punk told her. What he didn't tell her was that her boyfriend was probably a big, fat liar, who was not worthy of her, but Britt had to find that out by herself. She had to see the truth with her own eyes or she'd never believe it. In the meantime, he wasn't going to pine for her.

That didn't mean he was ready for AJ's craziness later that evening. The girl seemed to know wherever he was at all times, which was starting to border on creepy. Hell, everything about her was kind of creepy. When she told him she liked to see Bryan beat up, he could relate, there were some guys he would love to see beat up who he had been friends with so it stood to reason AJ would like to see her ex beat up. That just made her sadistic, but not crazy.

It was the crying that was crazy. The incessant crying, the endless stream of crazy tears, maybe they were tears. He couldn't tell if she was really even crying. He hated being in situations like this. He was the world's worst comforter. He didn't know how, wasn't good at it, didn't like to do it so he usually avoided it, but there was nobody around. He kind of tried to wrap his arms around her, but it was awkward. He didn't know her that well, yet he was expected to comfort her. It was all so weird.

He eventually told her to bring it in and hugged her, stroking her hair. She kind of felt good in his arms. In pursuing Britt, he'd kind of found himself not looking at other women. He didn't necessarily want AJ, but it felt nice to have a girl in his arms again. He kept telling AJ it was going to be okay when suddenly, she pulled away, happy as a clam. It creeped him out, but kind of turned him on at the same time. He kind of liked chicks who were really crazy and strange, so he threw her a bone, which seemed to delight her. Hey, if Britt didn't want him, that didn't mean someone else wouldn't either.

Laurinaitis scooted himself towards Chris. "You're in the lumberjack match later."

"What? Why?"

"Because I said so," Laurinaitis shot a look to Stephanie, but she was busy.

"I don't want to," Chris said.

"If you don't, that's subordination, I think your wife gave me full charge, and we wouldn't want that to happen, would we?" he told Chris. Chris knew he was being manipulated right now. Laurinaitis was testing Stephanie's word. If he didn't go out there, he would cry foul, and probably try to get the board to do something to Stephanie. So he had to go out there.

"Fine, that's fine, I'll be out there," Chris nodded. "You can count on me."

This seemed to take the other man aback a little bit. He'd been so sure Chris would rail against it, but he didn't. There was something fishy going on here, John felt. There was something that wasn't adding up. What he didn't know was there was nothing to add up. There was no plan, no scheme in this situation, just the God's honest truth.

The truth, which would hopefully make him slip up…and soon.


	371. Suspended, May 28, 2012

A/N: I'm not in love with this chapter. The show left me feeling really cold, and all I really had to work with was Chris's suspension, which I tried to stretch out, but it didn't feel natural. I really don't like this chapter, but hopefully I'm just being critical. If not, I may go back and revise it, hope you enjoy it nonetheless.

* * *

"You _what_?"

"Stephanie, baby, can you please calm down?" Chris asked his wife, hoping she would lower her voice. He was alone so it wasn't like anyone could eavesdrop, but her voice was threatening to rupture his eardrum.

"Calm down, you want me to _calm down_ when you were almost arrested in a foreign country over something you did at one of _my_ shows!" Stephanie was yelling again and Chris had to pull the phone away from his ear again. He knew this phone call was not going to be pretty.

Luckily, or unluckily depending on how you looked at it, Chris was the highest ranking official who was on the tour. There were some other producers, hell, John Laurinaitis made the trip, but Chris was the executive on the tour so when push came to shove, and decisions needed to be made, he was the one who needed to make them. That was why he was the one informing his wife of the incident that took place a couple hours before at the show.

He hadn't intended it to be as large an issue as it was. He and Punk were facing each other, and even though this was not being broadcast to the world, they had to keep up appearances because Hunter _was_ here, and he couldn't look like a friend to Punk. Punk had come out with the Brazilian flag, and because everyone expected him to hate everything Punk had ever done with his life, he took the flag, crumpled it, and kicked it, something he would do in a multitude of countries.

What he didn't know, and now knew _very_ well, was that this action was against the law. When the cops stopped the show, he knew he was in it too deep. They gave him the option of apologizing or getting arrested; the choice was easy. He apologized! He wasn't going to go to jail. Of course, jail might have been preferable to the fate he was facing at the current moment, which was the need to tell his wife what had happened.

"I didn't know it was illegal."

"You just shouldn't have done it!" Stephanie told him. "And jail, _jail_, Chris, I can't believe you almost went to jail, where the hell is your head? What the hell were you thinking? No, apparently you weren't thinking, you were just doing, and you were acting like an idiot!"

"I didn't know!" he argued with her. "They let me apologize, which I _did_, then everything went on as usual."

"Chris, you just _know_ my father is waiting for something like this to happen. You are the husband to the president of the company, what does this look like? This reflects on _me_!"

"I know, but it amounted to nothing, I apologized, I wrestled, there was nothing more to it."

"Nothing more to it! Oh come on, this is the age of the internet, nothing ever goes away, Chris Jericho, nothing ever does, and if you think someone wasn't taking video. This is going to get out, and we're going to look like idiots, the both of us, not just you, but the both of us," Stephanie ranted at him, her voice getting higher and higher with each word. "Do you know what this could do to me?"

"Nothing is going to happen, I will take full responsibility of everything."

"You are an executive Vice President, Christopher, do you know what that means?" Chris knew he was in trouble now. Stephanie _never_ called him Christopher. That was something reserved for when his mother was mad at him, but if Stephanie was mad enough to call him Christopher then things were bad, they were very bad.

"I know what that means, Stephanie," Chris said, but it didn't have the same cachet since he used her full name sometimes. He should have added the Marie to it to make it really pop.

"It means you are supposed to be setting the standard for what the company is," she told him, like he didn't already know. Sometimes, his wife could be so redundant, or she could act like everyone was stupid except for her. It could be frustrating when he was the one this behavior was directed towards. He knew he deserved some of the backlash he was getting from his wife, but certainly not all of it.

That was who Stephanie was though, she was quick to react. She had an explosive temper, one that could come out of nowhere. He shuddered to think what kind of wrath Hunter was going to suffer when the truth finally came out as to whether or not he had been the one to lie to them. If Stephanie was getting this mad at him about the company, he couldn't imagine how she was going to react to someone messing with her children.

"I didn't know it was going to cause such a ruckus," Chris told her, "I honestly didn't, Steph. If I knew it was such a bad thing, do you think I would have done it?"

"It doesn't matter!" Stephanie said. "Now I have to handle this and try to avoid embarrassment because my husband of all people caused an international incident. If my father…he could have me put out of office for this. He could have the board take me out and have himself put back in, or worse, he could put Laurinaitis in."

"I don't that's going to happen."

"He's probably calling them right now, I'm sure John called them. Okay, okay, tell me what happened, what absolutely happened?"

"Okay, well, Punk brought out a flag and since we're still playing up that we hate each other, I took the flag, crumpled it up, and kicked it. So then the match happened, right, and it was going fine, everything was going as planned, but then the cops started showing up—"

"Oh God, Chris," Stephanie groaned. "I can't believe you would do this."

"I didn't know what I was doing! Would you stop acting like I was twisting my mustache backstage and plotting evil! God, you know, I was the one who was freaked out and almost arrested, and you could be a _little_ sympathetic to what happened to me," he told her, starting to get annoyed by her reaction.

"I'm acting this way because I run this company, and this could hinder our future relations with the country. Do you understand what this means? This is a huge, untapped market out here, Chris, and you could have ruined it!"

"I didn't ruin a damn thing. Could you at least realize I almost went to _jail_?"

"Because you were an idiot."

"Okay, there is just no talking to you, I'm going to call you back when you calm the hell down," Chris told her. Her lack of sympathy was just downright bugging him right now and he was getting heated, which would only be a lethal combination if they both ignited.

"No, you will not," Stephanie told him, "we're talking about this now, actually, no, you're off this tour, I want you on the next flight home."

"What?" Chris asked her in disbelief. What was she trying to say here? "What are you talking about? This isn't over, the tour is not over."

"It's over for you, I've got to do damage control now," Stephanie said, "do you even understand that?" Stephanie was about to say more, but her phone buzzed with another call. She looked down at it and saw it was Laurinaitis. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me!"

"What is it?"

"It's Laurinaitis," Stephanie said, "I'm sure he's coming to tattle on you, so thank you for this too, Chris."

"It was not my fault! I _did not know_!"

"Well, you shouldn't have done it in the first place!" Stephanie yelled at him. "I need to go, I have to take this, hold on for my call, I'm calling you back in a few minutes and you better answer."

"Where the hell do you think I'm going, Stephanie, the moon?" he asked her sarcastically and he actually heard her growl, like an actual, honest-to-goodness growl, and he'd never wanted to hang up the phone more than he did right that second. He was actually glad she wasn't in front of him.

"Oh, very funny, Chris," Stephanie spat at him. "Just hold the hell on."

"Can I at the very least call the house and talk to the kids?"

"Sawyer and Flynn are asleep, Vaughn is the only one who's up right now and I don't think she's quite good enough to answer the phone," Stephanie told him, but she had no joking in her voice. "I'll call you back."

Stephanie, by now, had to call Laurinaitis back, and she was not looking forward to this, even though she was sure Laurinaitis was. "You called me back, good."

"Don't act like you're in charge, John," Stephanie sneered through the phone. "I'm still the one in charge, don't forget that. I already know about the situation, so if you were thinking you could be the little tattletale I know you would_ love _to be right now, it's not going to happen."

"Don't take that tone with me, it's _your_ husband who got himself into this mess."

"And it's _your_ job to make sure nobody goes out there and does anything illegal," Stephanie told him. She was pissed at Chris, but she wasn't going to let Laurinaitis get one over on her. She wasn't going to give this man the satisfaction. The last thing she wanted was Laurinaitis to think he was better than her.

"What are we going to do about this?" Laurinaitis asked instead. Stephanie smirked to herself a tiny bit, noting that the man didn't have a comeback for her. "We can't just let this slide, I'm sure you would love to do that though because he's your husband and obviously your favorite."

"You don't know a damn thing about my relationship with Chris," Stephanie said, "I do not play favorites, and Chris would have no respect for me if did. So go check to see how much my 'favoritism' for him has played into his career."

"There still need to be some kind of recourse for his actions. He was almost arrested tonight, Stephanie."

"I know. We'll suspend him," Stephanie said, knowing she had to do something like this so it really did look like she wasn't playing favorites. Plus, it would make the board see she was very serious about her job and everything that entailed. If that meant she had to suspend her own husband, that's what it meant. She couldn't and wouldn't treat him any differently than she would any other wrestler.

"Suspend him?" Laurinaitis has the wherewithal to actually be stunned by her suggestion. He wasn't expecting her to lay down the hammer so ruthlessly on her own husband. For the first time since he could remember, he was impressed by Stephanie.

"Yes, we'll suspend him indefinitely for now. It's getting late, we can't be so rash, I'll make a decision on the length of time later."

"Okay," Laurinaitis was so stunned, he didn't know what to say to further conversation, so he didn't. "I'm going to let you go, Stephanie. I trust you have the situation in hand."

"Of course I do, I'm the boss," Stephanie said with exasperation. She hung up on the man without another word, finding she didn't need him anymore and was glad to be rid of him and his voice. She called back Chris, waiting for him to answer as her anger level started to rise again.

"Yes?"

"You're suspended."

"Excuse me!" Chris was angry again now too.

"You heard me, you've been suspended, indefinitely for now," Stephanie said. "I'm going to set the date myself after I've had time to mull it over and talk with some people."

"Some people, who the hell are some people?" Chris asked. "Stephanie, this is ridiculous, I didn't do anything anyone else wouldn't have done. They've done this a million times and _I'm_ the one that gets punished."

"They're not the ones who had the _cops_ come out and get them," Stephanie told him. "Do you know how dangerous this situation could have gotten? What if you had been arrested, Chris? You're not a Brazilian citizen, what would I have done? I don't even know what I could have done. You could have been incarcerated and charged. What would I have done then? I wouldn't have been able to get you out of jail! You have a family, Chris!"

"I didn't know! You can't suspend me, I'll appeal it."

"Appeal it all you want, it's not going to change anything, you're going to be suspended. I suggest you stop acting up towards me or I'll make it for longer."

"So what? I'm just going to do nothing, stay home?"

"You're coming home tomorrow," Stephanie said, "you are not staying on the tour, I don't care if you were one of the men in charge, I want you out of that country and back home. I don't know what other kind of mischief you could get yourself into and I don't know what's getting out about the entire incident. You might not be safe."

"You really think _this_ is their biggest worry?" he scoffed.

"I don't know what their biggest worry is, but _my_ biggest worry is getting you back in the country. As of this moment forward, you are suspended indefinitely, without pay. You are to come home immediately, you cannot be at any shows for the rest of this tour."

"What about regular work, since I'm suddenly suspended I can't come to Raw?"

"You can come to Raw or you can stay at home," Stephanie said, "I don't really care right now because I have to go do damage control!"

"Stop it, you're annoying the hell out of me, fine, you want to suspend me, do it, see if I care, which I don't!"

"I do care that my husband is an idiot!" Stephanie said.

"Goodbye!" Chris hung up the phone before she could say another word.

He knew it was childish to hang up on his wife, but he just couldn't deal with her right now. He was thankful she was on another continent right now. He was even more childish when he turned off his phone and laid down on the bed. His kids were sleeping so they wouldn't want to talk to him. He knew he shouldn't turn off his phone when there could be an emergency, but he was angry. He threw his phone down on the other side of the bed and decided he wasn't going to turn his phone on for the rest of the night.

The next day didn't seem to get any better. He went with the crew to the next country, but he wasn't allowed to go any further. There was no point in him finishing the tour when he was suspended. By the time he boarded the plane, everyone knew he'd been suspended. A couple guys came up to him to tell him it was a rough break, but he didn't really want to talk to anyone. He was embarrassed by the entire thing, and to be suspended by his wife of all people, it only added to everyone's sympathy.

He was almost glad to be rid of them, at least for the time being. When they arrived in Ecuador, he checked into the hotel and decided to check the city out. He really had nothing better to do with his time. There wasn't a flight going out of Ecuador until the next morning, when he would leave for Miami, then go from Miami to Tampa. So essentially, he had a free day. Stephanie hadn't contacted him after he turned off his phone the night before. She didn't call him this morning either, but he figured she was busy getting the kids ready for their day.

He was actually glad not to be talking to her because he knew it would only result in a fight. None of the other guys really thought it was that huge a deal, but he knew Stephanie wasn't a typical person, she was not going to have a typical response. He picked up some trinkets for the kids so he could have something for them when he got home. When he arrived back at the hotel, a message from Laurinaitis was waiting for him.

_Your suspension is for 30 days, and you will have a police escort tomorrow._

Now he felt like public enemy number one. A police escort? He felt like a criminal, like he'd done something worse than kicking a flag. He'd never thought here would be any consequences to a silly, little action, but now he was being escorted straight out of the country, and not even the country the incident had happened in. The past day had been something of a nightmare. There was only three things that could make him feel better.

He called up the house and, thankfully, Sawyer answered the phone, "Hello?"

"Hey, kid," Chris said, the first genuine smile since the night before coming over his face. "I miss you!"

"Hi, Daddy, what's up?" Sawyer asked.

"I'm just hanging out in the hotel room. I went out and around the city earlier, but I came back and I needed to talk to you and your sisters," Chris explained to him. "How was school today?"

"It was pretty fun, we did letters for the soldiers because it's nice to do," Sawyer said, "we sent them off and they're gonna get it and be happy."

"Wow, that's really nice of you," Chris said, "I bet the soldiers are going to really, really like that."

"I think so. Miss Carper said that they like getting letters so I think they'll like it," Sawyer said. "When are you coming home, Daddy?"

"I'm actually coming home tomorrow morning," Chris said, "something happened over here so I get to come home early."

"What happened?"

"Is that Daddy?" Flynn ran up to her brother, practically pushing him into the couch he was standing next to. "Daddy, is that you!"

"I'm talking to Daddy, Flynnie," Sawyer calmly explained, pushing her away a little as she tried to get to the phone. "You can talk to him after me."

"I wanna now," Flynn argued, frowning as she stared at the phone. She wanted to talk to her daddy. She wanted to talk to him now!

"What's going on, you two?" Stephanie stuck her head into the room. "Who are you talking to, Sawyer?"

"It's Daddy," Sawyer explained.

"I wanna talk to him!" Flynn complained, turning to Stephanie and pouting.

"Sawyer answered first so he gets to talk to Daddy first," Stephanie told her, "you just have to wait your turn. When you are finished talking with Daddy, bring the phone to me so he can talk to Kensy, okay?"

"Okay," Flynn said, but it was with a big sigh because she wanted to talk to her daddy _now_.

"I'm back, Daddy!" Sawyer said when he turned to the phone. "But I think Flynnie wants to talk to you first. She's sad so I'll let her talk to you."

"You're the best kid in the world, Sawyer, let me tell you that," Chris told him seriously. He knew Sawyer wanted to talk to him, but he was always so considerate of what other people wanted.

"Thanks," Sawyer said, but he wasn't too upset. He knew that he was older so he could be more patient than his little sisters. He took the phone and handed it to Flynn. Her eyes lit up when she saw what Sawyer was doing. She hugged Sawyer around the waist in thanks as she grabbed the phone from him.

"Daddy!"

"Hey there, Flutterby, I heard you couldn't wait to talk to me."

"Daddy, I have a great day at school!" Flynn flopped onto the couch as she talked. "It was so fun."

"It was?"

"Mmhmm, I wents on the bikes outside, and I raced, and I wons because I'm a winner," Flynn said, "then I made a castle in the sand, but Katie stomped it. I no mind because it was funny!"

"That sounds like quite the eventful day. I miss you."

"I miss you, but you come home," Flynn knew he was going to come home so she wasn't too worried. She missed her daddy when he went away, but she knew he would always come back and that was a comfort to her. Besides, he was wrestling, and she loved when he wrestled so she couldn't hate him for going away.

"I am, I'm going to come home tomorrow morning and then we can spend all the time we want together, and I'm going to give you a big hug, are you going to give me a big hug?" he asked her.

"Yup, the biggest!"

"Then I can't wait for it."

"Did you wrestle good?"

"Yeah, I wrestled good," Chris lied to her. Well, it wasn't so much of a lie. When he was able to wrestle, he did wrestle well. It was just he couldn't wrestle right now, but he had to talk to his wife before he talked to his daughter. He didn't think Flynn would take it very well if he were banned from the ring.

"Good, I give you Sawa, bye-bye, Daddy, I love you," Flynn told him sweetly.

"I love you too, Flutterby," Chris said as he heard shuffling over the line, which could only mean Flynn was passing off the phone to her brother.

"Hi again," Sawyer said, "Flynnie went back to the playroom to play. Kensy is with Mommy in her office. I was playing too, but then I came for juice, that's how I answered the phone."

Chris laughed, "I'm glad you keep me updated on everything that's going on."

"So what happened?" Sawyer asked curiously.

"Well, I accidentally did something bad while I was wrestling and so I've been suspended for 30 days, so I'm not going to be allowed to wrestle, so I'm going to be staying home with you this Monday since I can't really go to the show."

"What did you do that was so bad?" Sawyer wondered.

"Well, I kicked the Brazilian flag, but I didn't know that it was illegal to do that in Brazil so I almost got in trouble."

"What does illegal mean?"

"It means it's something you shouldn't do, but I didn't know it was something I shouldn't do," Chris explained to him, "but they got mad at me so I apologized, it's okay now, but I can't wrestle for 30 days."

"That's too bad," Sawyer said, "Mommy should make that not happen."

"I wish she could, kid," Chris said.

"Oh, well, I'm glad you're coming home," Sawyer told him. "Do you want to talk to Kensy now?"

"Yes, if I could," Chris said.

"Okay," Sawyer told him. Sawyer ran into his mother's office and handed her the phone. "Daddy wants to talk to Kensy now, I'm going to the playroom!"

"Thanks," Stephanie said. She walked over to the play blanket Kensington was sitting on while she worked and handed her the phone. "It's Daddy, Kensy, he wants to talk to you." Stephanie helped her hold the phone up to her ear.

"Kensy-bug," Chris said into the phone.

Kensington gave off a little squeal of surprise and yelled, "Daddy!"

"Hey there, Kensy-bug, I miss you so much, but I'm going to see you soon," he told her.

"Whe you?"

"I'm very, very far away, but I promise you'll see me soon and then I'm going to give you the biggest tummy bite in the universe."

"No!" Kensington told him, laughing and ducking her face out of the way. Stephanie watched her with a smile. She may think her husband was an idiot, but he was still the best father in the world in her eyes.

"Uh huh," he told her.

"Bye!" Kensington said, and accidentally hung up on Chris. Stephanie laughed and took the phone from her as Kensington went back to her toys.

Chris just stared down at the phone and laughed. He couldn't believe his own daughter would hang up on him. At least this time, he wasn't angry about a hang-up. Now all he had to do was get back to the States without another incident or Stephanie might want to maim him the minute he walked inside the door.

Getting out of the country was difficult. He wasn't used to police escorts and though the guys were nice, the entire thing was so unnecessary. Then, when he finally arrived in Miami, the customs line was incredibly long, which only served to piss him off. He nearly missed his connection to Tampa, and the past few days were like something out of a horror movie, a very boring horror movie, but a horror movie nonetheless. The only bright spot was how this story would be perfect for his next book.

When he finally got home, he was incredibly weary, but so happy to be in a familiar place with familiar people. Going through the door was like finally reaching paradise after being stuck on the edge of a volcano. He dropped his bag by the door and went in search of his family. He needed hugs, lots of them, and kisses too, just to get the stink of his suspension and almost arrest out of his head.

"Hello?"

"They're not here," Stephanie said as she came into view, seemingly stepping out of nowhere. "Your parents wanted to take them out for lunch because your aunt is in town visiting them. They should be back in about an hour."

"Oh, well, okay," Chris said, feeling a little dejected because his kids weren't here.

"We really weren't expecting you for a while."

"I caught the earliest flight out of Ecuador, wouldn't want to cause any more incidents," Chris said sarcastically.

"You have no idea the damage control I've had to do," Stephanie told him, "TMZ picked up on the story so everyone and their mother knows about it. Video got leaked, and every wrestling site is trying to make heads or tails of it. Some thinks it's fake, some think it's real, some think you're never coming back, it's a nightmare."

"Yes, that was the plan," Chris pretended to twirl a villainous mustache.

"Oh, very funny," Stephanie rolled her eyes.

"You know how I am, I like to pull stunts like this to embarrass you!"

"Stop acting like you didn't do anything wrong!"

"I didn't! Not as far as I know, you act like I wanted to walk out there and act like the world's biggest ass!"

"You usually do," she snarled, her face very reminiscent of the one she'd flashed at Hunter after their botched renewal. He did _not_ want to see that face. He needed to avoid that face at all costs.

"So you're still mad at me, I'm gathering," he told her, matching her tone with one of his own. "I thought by now you'd cool down…oh wait, that's what any _normal_ person would have done, but no, not Stephanie, because she's a McMahon and God forbid they _ever_ take the rational way out."

"Rational?" Stephanie asked. "Having to field questions from investors and sponsors on an international incident is supposed to make me _rational_? Needing to apologize to an entire government is totally a rational move on my part? You just sit there and get to be suspended, I actually have to do everything else!"

"It was an accident!" he told her. "Do you not understand the meaning of the word? I did not know it was against the law, and have you thought for one second how terrifying it must have been for me to be facing actual jail!"

Stephanie's phone rang in her hand, "Oh great, more people to talk to about your stupidity."

"I'm going upstairs," he told her, stomping up the stairs and into his bedroom. He needed a shower badly, plus he didn't want to talk to Stephanie. She was refusing to see it from his point of view and until she did, she could just stay by herself. He didn't need to talk to her so he wouldn't talk to her if he could help it. He didn't care if she was mad at him, if she wanted to be mad at him, let her be mad, that was her problem.

The only problem with this plan was Stephanie could hold a grudge just as much as he could. She didn't talk to him for the rest of the day unless it involved the children, nor she did talk to him the next day either. In fact, she didn't talk to him even as she left for Raw. Chris was not allowed to be there per his suspension so he was forced to stay home with Sawyer. Because Chris was staying behind, Stephanie decided to make the trip to New Orleans alone, leaving Flynn and Kensington behind.

She had actually cooled down considerably after seeing Chris, but she wanted to hold onto her anger a little bit longer. She was just so mad at how this all came about and how everyone was reacting. People were constantly calling to get the story, people were calling Chris horrible names while she tried to ebb the tide of bad press. It was bad enough someone said wrestling was a step above porn, now her own husband had to go and prove he had no regard for foreign customs?

Everything was just a nightmare for her, but she knew it would die down soon enough, if her father would let it die down, that is. She could see him grinning with glee over all this, trying to find ways to get the company back by proving her husband grossly incompetent, but she was still holding her head high, and even still letting Laurinaitis do whatever he wanted to do. She wasn't going to let this bring her down. Her husband may have been the perpetrator, but that didn't mean he had to fry over a mistake. And when she got home, she would tell him so.

Britt slid into the seat next to Punk's, "Hey, okay if I sit here?"

"You know it's totally cool," he smiled at her, "are you sure you want to be seen with me after what I've done, whatever that may be…"

"I'm sure," Britt said. "You apologized last week. I know it's going to take Chris and Stephanie a lot longer to forgive you, but…I should have been more firm with you. The entire thing is not your fault, it's mine too for stringing you along. If you can forgive me for that, I can forgive you for what you did, even though I never want to see you use those kids again, or Chris and Stephanie won't be the only ones in line to cut your you-know-what off."

"Yeah, I just hope they someday forgive me," Punk lied. He just couldn't tell her he suspected Hunter, it wouldn't be right. If he told her right now what he, Chris, and Stephanie suspected, there was no way she would side with them. She would immediately defend Hunter, and so without proof, there was nothing he could do but play along.

"I'm sure they will," she told him, "I just wanted to come see how you were doing."

"Where's your boyfriend?"

"Oh, he's around here somewhere," Britt waved her arm around. "I don't really keep tabs on him."

Hunter could not believe what he was seeing. He went through all the trouble of spreading a lie about Punk, only to see Britt was _still_ talking to him. What in the world would they be talking about and why? This was not how things were supposed to be. He stalked away from catering, scowling and wondering how his plan failed. Maybe he needed to come up with some new way to keep Punk the hell away from his girlfriend.

"Yes, so we've got the banner all set up and everything," Britt said, "but get this, Laurinaitis thinks he's on the cover."

"Wait, what?" Punk laughed loudly. "You're kidding me, right?"

"No, he really does."

"How does he think that?" Punk asked and Britt smirked. "Oh no way, no, no, no way, you did this, how the hell did you do this?"

"Well, I'm so sick of the guy, and I know Stephanie would do just about anything to get him to quit, so I thought, why not have some fun?"

"How'd you do it?" Punk wondered, loving that she was getting one over on that tool. He was the worst kind of boss, and Punk himself loved to get him at every turn.

"I had a friend call him up this weekend, told him he was going to be on the cover. When he calls the company, they'll have no trace of it, and I'll have gotten one over on him, with your help of course," Britt told him. "You're going to go out there and reveal the real cover."

"How do you know he's going to be out there for sure?" Punk wondered, but he knew the answer. Any chance Laurinaitis got to show himself off, he'd take it.

"He already gave himself time, _plus_, he made a huge poster of this supposed cover. He doesn't even know what it looks like, but he had one made so everyone could see it. It looks good too, I saw it."

"Oh, this is going to be brilliant," Punk told her, giving her a high five.

"Hi, Punk," another voice interrupted. Punk and Britt looked up to see AJ standing there, watching the two of them, twisting her foot into the crowd, trying to look shy. AJ eyed Britt critically, as if scoping out the competition.

"Hi, AJ," Punk said reluctantly. This girl was starting to cling to him like a leech, and if there was one thing he hated in women, it was clinginess. He didn't have time for a girl to hang all over him.

"What's going on here?" she asked. "You two were laughing like you had some inside joke."

"Oh, it's nothing," Britt said, "just telling him some boring details about my job, that's all."

"I see," AJ said, still looking at Britt as if she was made of something heinous. Punk didn't seem to recognize the look, but Britt knew it all too well. She wondered if Punk and AJ were starting to have a thing going. She scooted her chair a little away from Punk just in case. She didn't want AJ to get the wrong idea.

"Did you need something, AJ?" Punk asked her.

"No, nothing, I just wanted to see you and tell you I'm going to be cheering you on later when you face Daniel."

"Thanks, hope you enjoy the match," Punk said. AJ just stood there, looking at him, as if trying to engage him with her eyes. It wasn't working though, and Punk said, "If that's it, you're free to go if you want to."

"Well, okay," AJ said brightly, "I'll see you later!"

"What is going on there?" Britt asked.

"Nothing," Punk told her, staring at AJ's back, "She's nice, but she's a whack job. I don't have time for those."

In fact, though, Punk might have to do something nice for her. While he was wrestling and seeing her walk down the ramp tentatively, he couldn't believe his eyes. Why would she even be down there? This was getting into the weird stages of stalking. She was starting to come out for his matches, trying to root him on, act as a valet he never wanted. AJ was thinking things that just weren't true. She just distracted him from the match because he half-expected her to start pulling some crazy crap.

It was, in fact, AJ who saved him though. When Kane was about to pulverize him, he looked away for the briefest of moments. This gave AJ enough time to slip the chair into the ring, which gave Punk ample time to grab the chair and slam it into Kane. AJ looked pleased with herself, and Punk knew he'd have to make it up to her somehow, he just didn't know how to do that.

But he was kind of looking forward to it.

After the show, Stephanie's first priority was calling her husband. "The kids are fine," Chris answered immediately. "So you can stop worrying about them. I didn't have them out kicking any flags over or burning any if that's what you think I do with my spare time."

"Could you shut up for two seconds, or is that too difficult for you?" Stephanie asked him.

"Too difficult, I'm constantly getting myself in trouble," Chris told her, "but you knew that, since you probably have a track record of all my indiscretions."

"I called to apologize, you jackass," Stephanie told him.

"Wait, what, my ears are deceiving me surely," Chris told her. "This must be some kind of joke."

"I know now it was an accident, you didn't mean to, and I've been acting horribly. It'll blow over, like everything does. I'm sorry I had to suspend you, but I had to take some kind of action, especially after the cops agreed not to arrest you."

"I'm sorry I reacted badly to the suspension, you're only doing your job."

"I was," she told him pathetically. "So you forgive me?"

"I forgive you," he told her, "do you forgive me?"

"I do," Stephanie told him.

"So now can I come back?" he joked.

"No, you can't, sorry, 30 days, not a moment sooner."

"Well, I guess it's time to start a whole new countdown."


	372. Drive Me Crazy, June 4, 2012

A/N: Thanks for the

* * *

reviews, guys, so much appreciated. I like this chapter much better than last week's, hope you will too. :)

"So who's flashing you their boobs, Chris?"

Chris looked up from his laptop, studying his wife in the doorway. He stared at the phone in her hand and then back up at her face, her eyebrows raising slightly. He shook his head before staring back down at his keyboard, "I swear to God, one of these days, I'm going to find out what your account is and then I'm going to block you."

"Oh yeah, you're going to locate me amongst your 655,000 followers," Stephanie said.

"Well, I've got 23 days left in my suspension, so I figure I could use the time wisely," he said smartly.

Stephanie groaned, "Can we please not bring up any suspensions?"

"_Hey, Stephanie, this is Marjorie from Titan, I'm emailing you some documents you need to go over."_

"_Okay, thanks Marjorie," Stephanie said as she ended the phone call. Apparently something needed to be brought to her attention. It was early, but she'd been up getting Sawyer ready for school and Flynn ready for preschool. She grabbed her coffee cup sitting next to her desk, leaning back and relaxing in her chair while she waited to receive these documents._

"_Hum-dee-dum, nothing to do, nothing to do," Chris walked by her door pretending to talk to himself. Stephanie knew he was trying to lay it on thick with her about his suspension. He still thought it was stupid, and she still thought it was necessary, so they compromised and just agreed to disagree._

"_I'm so sure," Stephanie said loudly, taking another sip of her coffee._

"_Oh, Stephanie McMahon, I didn't know you were here," Chris said, sticking his head back in the doorway. "I was just wandering the house, trying to figure out what to do, you know, now that I have nothing to do for the next 24 days…"_

"_I know," Stephanie told him, smiling over her coffee cup, "and your 24th birthday spanned 48 hours because of traveling between Japan and Mexico. I know what you're writing, very clever."_

"_I figured I might as well make good use of my time," Chris told her. "I mean, I can't do anything else since I'm WWE's public enemy number one."_

"_You can do some of your work for your VP job."_

"_I'm not allowed, remember. That's why you're getting all my stuff and doing my job for me," Chris told her. "I'm just sitting here, doing nothing, even though I should be wrestling. You know, Flynn is very angry that I can't wrestle."_

"_You're telling me, I had to hear about it yesterday morning after she didn't see you on Raw and this morning, I had to hear more about it. I think she's going to chastise me until you come back."_

"_That's an _if_ I come back," Chris told her with a shrug. "I haven't decided if I actually want to come back."_

"_Wait, what do you mean?" Stephanie asked as she saw the email had arrived. She ignored it for the moment though because this was more pressing. What did her husband mean when he said he wasn't going to come back? He didn't look like he was joking either. His lips pursed a little and he sat down on the small couch that occupied one wall of Stephanie's office. The couch was well-worn, with stains from the kids on it, making it show its wear, and so many things happened on that couch._

"_I'm just saying, for now," Chris amended, "I'm not sure if I'm going to come back when my suspension is over. It's just that I have the tour coming up, as you know, the US one, and that's going to take me on through to October, and I'm just not sure I want to come back for essentially a month."_

"_Oh, is that all?" Stephanie asked. "Well, I guess that would be up to you. I thought you weren't coming back ever, but if it's because of your tour then I can't really argue with that."_

"_Thanks," Chris said, "I'm leaning towards coming back though so you can unclench."_

"_Very funny," Stephanie said as she clicked the mouse over the email. She scanned the top and saw it was results of the last random drug test. "You know, this is actually your jurisdiction. You should be the one looking at this."_

"_What is it?" Chris asked her, standing up and coming around to her side of the desk. He placed a hand on the back of her chair and the other on her desk as he leaned over her shoulder to look at what she was doing. _

"_Recent drug test results," Stephanie answered. "You're the one who is supposed to keep on top of this, but since you're suspended, you can't even do this."_

"_I didn't know I couldn't kick the flag," he protested, "I mean, all I wanted to do was look like the bad guy against Punk, like I hated everything he did. Are you going to lord this over me for the rest of our lives because if that's the case, I'm going to get those divorce proceedings started right now."_

"_I will lord it over your head," Stephanie glanced up at him before puckering her lips towards him._

"_And now you want a kiss? Right after you insult me?" Chris acted aghast, but he leaned down to press a chaste kiss to her lips. "So what do we have, hopefully nobody has to be suspended because then it's going to make my suspension look even more ridiculous."_

_Stephanie just rolled her eyes as she ran her left hand under Chris's shirt and rubbed his lower back. "You only say that because it wasn't _your_ back against the wall. I needed to do _something_ so as not to look like I allow my employees to run the asylum."_

"_I'm your soulmate though," he pouted and she groaned at the term, making him laugh. "Plus, need I remind you, I'm the one who was almost sent to international jail."_

"_Thank God you didn't," Stephanie said, beginning to finally scroll down the email. The first name, in red, popped out at her. "Oh no…oh no, oh no, oh no…"_

"_What? What's wrong? Did I come up positive and now I'll have to be suspended an additional 30 days," he joked because she knew he wouldn't test positive. He'd tried the steroid thing once and just never saw the appeal of it. He wanted to get where he was on his own merits, plus, the side effects just weren't worth it. He wasn't on any other banned substance either because his wife would flip the hell out, and he had three kids who he would never hurt._

"_It's Randy," Stephanie said, turning her laptop towards Chris. His eyes scanned the email and she saw the positive result._

"_Damn it," Chris said, running a hand over his face. "Do you want me to tell him? I'm the one that had the now null deal with him."_

"_You can't, you're suspended," Stephanie reminded him. "You're not allowed to do any kind of work under that statute. I can't have you breaking it because Laurinaitis will be on my ass if I let you do _anything_."_

"_He would be," Chris sighed. "I trusted him, you know, I mean, I get that it's not a huge thing. But still, I can't believe it."_

"_This is his second violation, it's going to be for 60 days," Stephanie told Chris, turning her head to look up at him. "I hate getting this kind of news, it just feels like they were trying to cheat the system, trying to cheat _me_."_

"_You shouldn't take it personally, it's the nature of sports," Chris told her. "This happens everywhere, you can't stop it single-handedly. In this sport, it's like, you have to claw your way to the top and sometimes guys cheat. But then you have guys like Punk and Bryan who don't, and that's who you have to hang your hat on."_

"_And you," Stephanie told him, pulling him down so he was crouching next to her chair. "You've always been so…there. You've never done anything wrong and, God, I got mad at you over something so stupid. I'm the world's biggest idiot."_

"_No, we're pretty sure that's Hunter, right?" he told her, pressing the palm of his hand to her cheek. _

_She laughed, "Yeah, he is pretty stupid if he thinks we won't figure out the truth. Just thank you for always being a guy I could count on, that the company could count on before I fell for you. It means a lot to me, and I'm sorry I had to suspend you."_

"_Water under the bridge, baby, water under the bridge."_

"_I guess I have to call Randy now."_

"Sorry," Chris told her, giving her an exaggerated pout, "I know it's a sensitive subject for you right now, what with Randy and all, having to give him the news like that. Even though some one else could have done it, someone blond and handsome—"

"And apparently someone who likes to look at boobs," Stephanie said, holding up her phone again. "Don't think I haven't remembered that you tweeted that a girl flashing their boobs is just enough, which implies that you like it, which implies that girls have done it, so tell me, Chris, when are you staring at breasts?"

"Right now, during this whole conversation, pretty much," Chris told his wife, staring lecherously down the white t-shirt she's wearing, that was just see-thru enough to where her bra was visible. It harkened him back to the time Stephanie was wearing that delicious black lace top with the black bra underneath. She'd been so tantalizing that evening, and Chris hadn't even liked her, but damn, that top, and her breasts, and he found himself licking his lips unconsciously as he watched her go.

Stephanie pulled her shirt up a little bit, "Pervert, our daughter is right there."

Chris looked over at Kensington, who was lying on her stomach on her blanket, playing with a couple tiny stuffed animals, making them prance together as she giggled to herself. "She's playing with her toys," Chris said, "she doesn't even know, stop using that as an excuse."

"So I am assuming that girls flash you when you're on stage, yes?"

"I'll be honest with you, a lot of the time, it's hard to see the audience, what with the lights shining in my eyes, but I confess to there being more than one pair of panties or bras thrown onstage, so I'm guessing somewhere out there, some girl is flashing me."

"And you like it?"

"I'm a guy, of course I like it," Chris told her, "I think I would be an idiot if I didn't like seeing a girl's boobs, well, most girls, hot girls, hot brunette girls, hot brunette girls who have three kids, hot brunette girls who have three kids and is named Stephanie McMahon-Jericho."

"Buttering me up, you crazy fool," Stephanie told him, sitting down in his lap and making him grunt. "You're still not off the hook because I don't want girls flashing you just randomly if you're out, that's not cool with me."

"I can't turn off my eyes," he kissed the side of her neck.

"You could close them."

"What if I'm walking, I could run into something," he joked. "That would be very bad, just ramming into things, what if I rammed right into the breasts?"

Stephanie had to laugh at that. She buried her face into Chris's neck as he smiled at his ability to make his wife laugh, even when he knew she was stressed from everything work-related. His suspension was almost seeming silly at this point, especially after Randy's suspension, but she was just trying to keep everything together. There was so much going on and she was the president, everything ultimately fell to her. She was backed up with work, trying so hard to be accommodating with everyone, all while her father tried to surreptitiously undermine her.

"You're amazing," Chris told her, "I just needed you to know that."

"So you _have _rammed into someone's breasts!"

Chris laughed at her and kissed her cheek, "Nah, but I just want you to know I'm sorry for making your life difficult with this flag thing. I know it was stupid of me."

"It was an accident," Stephanie said, "I mean, I can't expect you to take a law quiz every time you go into another country. How would that even work?"

"I know, but it can't help," he told her, "plus I'm going on my tour of the UK soon."

"That's only like a week, extremely manageable. It's the whole Uproar tour that's going to be a bear, but at least you'll be in the States so it won't seem like you're that far away," she said, "plus, with you going around the country, on our off days, I can bring the girls to see you, or bring all three over a weekend, follow you around like a little group of groupies."

"You'll be the cutest groupies ever."

"I like to think so," Stephanie said haughtily, throwing her hair over her shoulder like she was better than everything and everyone. Chris believed that sometimes she really thought that, but with good reason. To him, Stephanie was Wonder Woman, someone he could rely on and someone who would get everything done with a smile on her face. She really did take care of him in a way nobody else could. He knew now that he would have never been able to put up with another woman for so long.

"We've almost been together for ten years," Chris said randomly, his fingertips brushing the hair now brushing past her shoulder. "A whole decade, ten whole years."

"Yes, that is what a decade is," she told him sarcastically, but she couldn't even hide the smile that was trying to break through her face. She gave into it and grinned at him then stuck her tongue so as not to look like a lovesick teenager. "My breasts must be fantastic if there still the ones you want to look at.

Chris just nodded eagerly.

"Daddy, pay!" Kensington yelled at him, looking over at her parent.s

"Look, not even suspended a week and the girl thinks she can order me around," Chris said, shaking his head. "Why did we have to have two daughters, why couldn't we have three sons who wouldn't have me wrapped around their tiny fingers?"

"Oh, because Sawyer doesn't have you wrapped around his finger, sure," Stephanie rolled her eyes as Chris stood her up then stood up himself as he went over to Kensington, lying down next to her. Stephanie sat in Chris's chair and started flipping through his Twitter account, just looking at the replies he was getting from people. He usually tweeted from his phone, but he liked to look at his replies on his laptop because it was easier to read them all.

"He doesn't," Chris said, but it was so clear he did. "What are we playing, Kensy-bug?"

"Mamimals," Kensington told him, sitting up and running the little stuffed sheep over Chris's back. "Baa, baa"

"You know your animals sounds, you're so smart," Chris laid on his side so he could watch his daughter playing. She rammed the sheep into Chris's nose and he laughed. "That's not nice, Kensy-bug."

"Yup, yup," Kensington told him. "It fun."

"It isn't fun," he pouted, so Kensington leaned forward to press a kiss to his lips. "Thank you," Chris told her, smiling at her and poking her in the nose.

"W'come," Kensington shrugged as she grabbed a horse toy and started smashing that into the sheep.

"Hey, Steph, I meant to bring this up with you," Chris said.

"I'm not flashing you," Stephanie said idly as she stared at the computer.

"I never said that, but if you were to offer."

Stephanie lifted her shirt up briefly as Chris ogled her bra-covered breasts. "There, that should tide you over."

"It doesn't, but that's okay, I can tide you over later during Kensington's nap."

"You mean when we have to pick up the kids from school?" Stephanie asked.

"Damn it, forgot about them," Chris snapped his fingers, "anyways, I was talking to Rich this morning, while you were driving the kids to school, and he thought we should rehearse before the tour next week, especially because we're going to be doing new material and everything. He wanted me to fly to Atlanta."

"For how long?"

"Not long at all, "I was going to fly up Friday night or early Saturday morning, we're going to rehearse all of Sunday then I was going to fly home either late Sunday night or early Monday morning so I could be home with Sawyer for Raw."

"Oh, that's not bad, sure, go ahead," Stephanie told him.

"You're the best wife in the world, I cannot state that enough," Chris told her, "even if you don't flash me as often as I may like."

"As long as you're here for Sawyer, I don't care," Stephanie said, "that's the most important thing."

"Kensy can stay with me too, you can take the monster," Chris said before turning to his daughter again, "You want to stay with me, don't you, Kensy-bug?"

"Uh huh, stay," Kensington nodded at him, handing him an elephant toy. He made it prance around a little before he touched its trunk to Kensington's nose and made an elephant sound. It made her giggle and fall over on her side, which only served to make her laugh more.

"I could actually take her with me to Atlanta," Chris told Stephanie, who was so engrossed in reading his Twitter account. "Stephanie, earth to Stephanie."

"Oh, I'm sorry, what did you say?" Stephanie asked. "The amount of times people say they love you is really kind of creepy."

"Creepy?"

"Well, some of them seem to love you more than the normal fan," she said, "but go on, what were you saying?"

"I was saying I could possibly bring Kensington with me to the rehearsal so you'll only have to deal with the two older ones."

"No, she can stay, I'd rather her not be around your rehearsal, too loud for her," Stephanie said, coming over and sitting cross-legged with them. "Besides, it's the first time in a while you and the guys will be together, you should go out and have fun."

"Okay, yup, definitely the best wife ever," Chris rubbed her knee.

"Well, I've got to keep you around somehow."

Even though he hated to leave the kids knowing he was going to be leaving them again very soon and wouldn't be in the same country as them, the rehearsal was a must. With the new material, they hadn't had the chance to practice, and the last thing he wanted was to go out there and forget the words or not get the right beat, which would lead to them being booed off the stage, and someplace like the Download Fest or the Metal Hammer Golden God Awards meant a lot of booing and much embarrassment.

Getting the band together was like a reunion of sorts. They all agreed their new record was some of their best work yet. Chris wished he could start selling it tomorrow he was so excited for it. It was just something he was putting out there into the universe for critiques and praise. Wrestling was entirely different. He had a skill set, yes, but it was culled from those before him. Making music was new and refreshing, exciting too. With music, you built on what you'd done before, and everything before this new record had been in preparation for this new record, and he couldn't wait for people to listen to it.

Everyone was excited for the upcoming mini tour and with Chris suspended, it actually eased some of the stress for him. He didn't have to worry about taking care of the wrestlers, dealing with personalities and expiring contracts. Granted, his wife now had more work because of him, but there was nothing stopping her from consulting him over things, information he was willingly giving. He also didn't have matches or plans he needed to think about, though he was still thinking about Hunter. There was really nothing he could do short of calling the man out, but Chris wanted to do it face to face, preferably in front of everyone so they could see what kind of scum he really was.

Chris had given up any pretense of innocent until proven guilty when it came to Hunter. He barely had concealed rage when it came to him. There was just no other explanation and until one popped up, he was going with guilty until proven innocent. It sucked that his friend had turned on him, but he should have expected this. Hunter was a greedy man at heart, had always been one (drugging someone for power pretty much put you in that category), and sometimes, people just didn't change. At her heart, Stephanie was still the bitchy woman he'd hated, but she'd grown and changed so much that her heart grew around that bitchy woman and dulled that part of her, but it was still in there. He just knew how to tame her now.

Having been suspended, he had time to focus and enjoy this tour. It was a small one, only several days, but it was serving as a warm up to the tour they were having later this year, after the summer ended. Chris was still unsure what he was going to do about wrestling during that time. Giving the executive job back to Laurinaitis didn't seem the best option, unless Stephanie was finally able to get rid of the guy as the GM. Then he could go back to squirreling away as the Talent Relations guy and keep his ugly mug and stupid voice off the shows. He hoped for that outcome soon, to get that thorn from his wife's side.

Still, he wasn't entirely sure how he was going to play the tour in accordance with his life. Tour life was not easy. It was a lot of traveling, a lot of one-night shows, not enough time to enjoy any city. It being in the United States also held the deceptive tantalization of his family. He was going to be traveling, and his family was always going to be not that far, in the same country, not across an ocean from him. It created a kind of annoying carrot dangling in front of his face. With Sawyer's school letting out on the 5th, it even made it easier for them to come along, at least to visit with him. He would cross that bridge when he came to it though.

The short trip was over before he knew it and he was flying back to Florida. He was glad he decided to fly back Sunday night because it gave him a few hours with Stephanie and Flynn before they flew to Greenville the following morning. After they came back from Greenville right after the show (Stephanie was not going to miss Sawyer's last day of Kindergarten), Chris only had a day with them before flying to the UK and he wanted to soak up all the Jericho girl goodness he could before he left.

"Daddy, are you wrestling yet?" Flynn asked as soon as he was in the door.

"I don't even get a hello?" Chris asked, scooping her up in his arms. He gave her a kiss on the cheek and she reciprocated.

"Hi," she told him, but then immediately followed up with, "are you wrestling yet?"

"Not yet, Flutterby, I've still got 20 days left on my suspension. I went to Atlanta to rehearse for Fozzy, remember?"

"Oh yeah," Flynn nodded. "Did you have fun?"

"I had a ton of fun, I was practicing my new songs, you know, the ones I let you hear when I was driving you to school the other day."

"I remember," Flynn told him, shaking her head like her father should know when she remembered things. "It was good, I liked it, and Sawa liked it, and Kensy liked it too, but Mommy wasn't there and she no hear it."

"She's not going to get to hear it for a while," Chris told her, kissing her forehead. "Have you guys eaten dinner?"

"Uh uh, Mommy's making it. Gamma made it and she brings it over so Mommy not have to cook," Flynn explained.

"Flynnie, stop giving away my secrets," Stephanie said, "besides, I'm a better cook now, Gamma is giving me lots and lots of tips, and Grandma Linda has offered to help me too so when Daddy is gone, I can cook for you guys."

Flynn scrunched up her mouth, "I no like that Daddy go away." She sighed and looked at Chris.

"I don't like it either, but I'll still get to see you a bunch this summer," Chris told her. "Where are the other two?"

"Kensington is in a Sawyer mood," Stephanie told him, "so Sawyer is doing some last minute things for his little Kindergarten graduation thing, and Kensington is 'helping' him."

"Poor kid, he can't get away from them, can he?" Stephanie shook her head and took Flynn from Chris so he could put his things away. Flynn herself was in a Mommy mood so she willingly went to Stephanie and hugged her around the neck, burying her face into the familiar scent. Stephanie gave Chris a little bit of a smug look, but he just flipped her off before leaning in to kiss her.

"Nope," Stephanie said, "luckily dinner's almost ready, how did rehearsals go?"

"I think we're ready to rock the UK like it has never been rocked before."

Stephanie sat behind her desk, looking over some of the particulars of Randy's suspension, when the phone rang. Flynn, who was actually closer to Stephanie's phone than she was, made a mad dash for it, hoping it was her daddy. She really wanted to talk to him, just because she loved him so much and wanted to talk to him. Stephanie cut her off before she could answer. "Flynnie, if you're going to answer the phone, answer it saying, 'Stephanie McMahon-Jericho's phone.'"

"Okay!" Flynn told her, grabbing the phone and pressing the button to answer the phone (that was one of the first things she'd ever learned. With the amount Chris traveled, Flynn _had_ to learn how to use the phone so she could talk to him). "Mommy McMahon's phone!"

"Close enough," Stephanie muttered to herself.

"Hi, Grandpa Vince," Flynn said with a smile, biting her lower lip like Chris did. "Uh huh, I miss you too. You can comes sees me if you want."

"Flynnie, give Mommy the phone," Stephanie said immediately upon hearing who was on the other end. Stephanie held out her hand, but Flynn ignored her in favor of talking with her grandpa. It wasn't that she didn't allow her kids to talk to their grandfather if he wanted to speak with them, but there had to be a reason he was calling her, especially on a Monday night when she had to work.

"I talks to Grandpa, you can wait," Flynn said before returning to her phone call. "Grandpa, I have fun at school. I made a sand castle, and my friend, Amie, she knocked it down. It was funny."

"Flynnie, can I _please_ talk to Grandpa?" Stephanie tried to ask sweetly.

"No, Mommy, I talk first," Flynn said in her whiniest voice, holding onto the phone protectively. "I tell Grandpa the things I do."

"I know you want to tell Grandpa all about the things you do, but I think Grandpa wanted to talk to me."

"No," Flynn shook her head, "he said he likes talking to me too. You can wait, Mommy, okay?"

Stephanie sighed. There was no arguing with Flynn sometimes, especially when she looked up at you with those sweet eyes and deceptively innocent smile. Flynn was going to get away with a lot of things in her life. She just had this air of innocence that sucked you in until you found out it was all a put on, and she was really a sassy, independent girl. She was going to break a bunch of boys' hearts.

"Okay, okay," Stephanie said as she sat and watched her daughter talk with her father. Flynn seemed to continue talking forever, but it couldn't have been more than five minutes before she was saying goodbye to her grandpa and giving up the phone to Stephanie. "Thank you," Stephanie told her daughter before watching Flynn go back to her wrestling ring and the action figures she was playing with. "Dad?"

"Stephanie, hello," her father said, his voice firm, but considerably warmer than it had been in the past. "Your daughter is quite the talker."

"Well, you know Flynn, she's my little wild child," Stephanie told her father, finding the small talk the safest thing right now.

"How are Sawyer and Kensington?" Vince inquired after his other two grandchildren.

"They're doing fine," Stephanie said, "Sawyer's Kindergarten graduation is tomorrow so he's excited for that…Dad, why are you calling?"

"Well," Vince cleared his throat, this is where things got difficult. "The Board of Directors has asked for my help in assessing things on the show, especially with the recent rash of suspensions."

"It wasn't Chris's fault, he didn't know."

"I know, Stephanie, I know," Vince said, "I'm not there to evaluate the job _you're_ doing. The Board thinks you're doing a wonderful job, as best you can with the circumstances. They were very impressed with you suspending Chris. They said it took a true leader to let go of personal business and suspend their own husband."

Stephanie beamed at that. It had been a difficult decision, but one she needed to make. "So what exactly are you assessing then?"

"John Laurinaitis. The Board has their concerns with his recent decisions and I will be evaluating him on their behalf," Vince told her.

Stephanie scoffed, "He's your little lackey, Dad, I hardly think you're going to be objective here."

"I can and will be," Vince said, "Stephanie, I know what a good job you're doing, and I'm not trying to impede that."

"You could have fooled me," Stephanie told him.

"Okay, you can believe whatever you want to believe, but I'm here doing business. I wanted to tell you I'd be here next week, not start a fight with you. I'm still your father, Stephanie, I still command a modicum of respect."

"The same respect you've afforded me?" Stephanie asked.

"I think you're doing a great job, Stephanie. I never doubted you would," Vince told her, then added, "I'm very proud of you."

That was all Stephanie ever wanted to hear from her father, but it was so unexpected, she couldn't trust it. She couldn't trust her father, and it made her sad to think she doubted him, but after everything, how could her father just change? Was there something going on she didn't know about? Maybe she was getting the ouster and her father was pitying her by telling her the things she needed to hear.

"Um, well, thank you," Stephanie told her father, "I guess I'll see you next week."

"I do hope you'll bring the kids with you, it's been a while since I've seen them. I bet Kensington is a grown woman by now."

"No, they'll be with me since Chris will be in the UK," Stephanie said wearily. She just wanted to ask her father what he was up to, but there was no way he'd tell her the truth. She just had to go along with whatever her father had planned, and try to stave off any plans he might have to take her job.

"Good, good," Vince told her, "I would bring your mother, but as you know, she's hot on the election trail."

"Yes, she is," Stephanie said for lack of anything better to say.

"I'll see you next week then, Stephanie."

"Yes, Dad, you'll see me next week."

Punk turned a corner and saw AJ standing at the opposite end. He slowly backed away from the corner, hoping he wasn't seen. AJ had taken to following him around at the shows, which was an annoying habit. It was one thing to be a fan or even a friend, but Punk had no room for crazy stalkers, under which category AJ was falling under. He could see from this far away she was wearing a Punk shirt, which only compounded his fears of her mental health.

"What's got you so scared?" Britt said, peeking over his shoulder as she carried some files to her office. She looked around the corner and nodded sagely. "Ahh, I get it, AJ. I thought you liked her."

Punk could hear the teasing in her voice and he deadpanned a laugh, "Very funny. She won't leave me alone. She seems to think she's my valet or something. She's wearing one of my shirts right now."

Britt peeked around the corner again, "Oh, it would seem she is. I wonder if that's one of your shirts, and she stole it because it smells like you then she wears it every day and to bed at night, pretending it's you wrapped around her."

"Shut up," Punk told her. "That is the creepiest image I can picture right now."

"Please, I heard about that girl who tweeted you asking about the size of your…well, you know," Britt said suggestively. "This kind of thing should be a normal occurrence for you."

"I don't have to _see_ those people who tweet me things like that. In this case, I do," Punk told her. "I wish I could get rid of her, but I have a feeling that would make her even crazier. I mean, look at how bad she got after Daniel dumped her, I'm way better."

"You're not dating her though," Britt told him.

"Yeah, you try telling her that," Punk laughed. "Actually, really, could you do that? Don't you owe me a favor since you were kind of a bitch to me? If you do, I want to call in that favor right now."

"Well, you kind of kissed me, so…I'm not sure it would apply…"

"Can I claim temporary insanity?" he asked. "Then you'll go back to owing me."

"No, you cannot," she joked, peeking around the corner again. "Besides, did you see the way she was looking at me last week when I went to talk to you? I think she was trying to shoot laser beams from her eyes."

Punk laughed, "It's nice to be friends with you again."

Britt smiled warmly at him, "I feel the same way."

"Is Hunter here tonight?" Punk asked.

"No, he's not. He said he wasn't feeling well and decided to stay home. I think his arm was bothering him. He says that when he flies, it tends to swell up or something. It's just something to do with the muscles and everything."

Punk somehow doubted that. He had no real reason to, but he just doubted it all the same. To him, Hunter was just a coward, trying to weasel his way out of things. When the truth came out (in the way he thought it was going to come out) and Hunter hopefully confessed to his wrongdoing, he didn't know how Britt was going to react. He wanted to say she would run into his arms, tell him she was so wrong, apologize, then proceed to make out with him, but there was no telling how Britt would react. She very well could take Hunter's side, but only time would tell with regards to her reaction.

"Hey, do you believe in the good in people? Like there's always good in someone?"

"If we're talking about AJ, I think there's good in her. It's buried beneath the crazy, but I definitely think there's good in her," Britt nodded. "I mean, maybe she's just really upset about the Daniel situation. It's not easy working around your ex, especially when you have to see them at work all the time."

"You're right," Punk said, pretending it was about AJ and not about Britt's own boyfriend. He didn't want her to get hurt by the guy, but it might happen. He hoped she would let him in if Hunter was in the wrong, even if it was just a friend. Being Britt's friend was better than nothing.

"I'm just saying we shouldn't be so quick to judge."

"Punk!" AJ had just turned the corner and saw him, completely ignoring Britt's presence. Punk cursed under his breath. Talking with Britt had allowed AJ time to walk down the hallway and see him around the corner.

"Sorry, Punk, I've got to go, massive amounts of work to do," Britt said, "but then she threw him a bone. Do you want to carry it for me, it's really heavy?"

He knew it wasn't heavy, but he was so grateful for the excuse, he grabbed the stack of papers from Britt while looking apologetically towards AJ. "Hey, AJ, I have to help Britt, but I guess I'll see you later, bye!"

AJ just stared at his back before she smiled and skipped away.

Chris rolled his eyes at his son. Sawyer just laughed and went back to eating his spaghetti. "So what do you think he's going to do?"

"Do you think he'd publicly fire me?" Stephanie asked.

"No, I don't' think he'd do that," Chris told her. "I don't think he has the jurisdiction to do that. He'd have to tell you first, I mean, you run the show, if there's a huge chunk of time he wants to talk, you have the right to ask what about."

"I guess, he was just so…complimentary. I haven't heard him say he was proud of me in so long. It threw me off my game," Stephanie told her husband. "I don't know what to even think. He said he's there for Laurinaitis, but there's no way my father fires him, right? I mean, that's too crazy to comprehend."

"I don't think it's out of the realm of possibility," Chris told her, grabbing a piece of garlic bread and taking a thoughtful bite, chewing slowly. "I mean, look at it this way, Laurinaitis has been given full booking power, right?"

"Yes, I handed it over to him."

"The ratings have been crap, probably mostly because I'm not there," he teased, but turned back to serious. For some reason, this made Kensington burst into laughter. Chris gave her a strange look before returning to his phone call, "but it could be blamed on Laurinaitis and his scheduling of the show, letting stupid matches happen, giving guys time who don't deserve more time. The Board is going to get worried, the stock has been low, and going lower would be a horrible thing. Maybe if Laurinaitis is taken out, you'll have the power back."

"Or my father decides to put himself in charge."

"Well, then we can have some good, old-fashioned McMahon-fueled fighting," Chris joked.

"It's not funny, Chris."

"Stephanie, I love you, you know that, but you have to calm down. You'll figure it out next week, you always do. That's what I love about you. You can always get out of a situation if you need to. Nobody is smarter than you, Steph, not even your father. You wrested the company away from him, and I know you, you won't give it back."

"Thanks, sweetie, I needed to hear that. The kids are good?"

"They're great, eating right now, how's my girl?"

"Feels like she's home," Stephanie said, "you really think I shouldn't worry."

"I really wouldn't, just let it play out and then you can go all ninja warrior, crazy chick on your father. It'll be glorious."

"Okay, thanks, I love you. Tell the kids I love them."

"I love you too, and tell Flynn I love her," Chris said, hanging up the phone. He turned to his two children, the bookends, and told them about Stephanie's request. "Mommy loves you guys."

"I love!" Kensington said loudly before going back to try and spoon some food in her mouth.

"What's Mommy upset about?" Sawyer asked astutely. He could tell from the conversation that his mommy had been upset.

"It's nothing, kid," Chris told him, "just your Grandpa Vince being his usual self."

"Oh," Sawyer nodded like he understood.

"Yeah, Mommy is just stressed, but she'll be okay."

"I hope so," Sawyer said, "I can't wait for the show to start. I like that you're here, Daddy. I like when we can watch together and I don't have to stay with Gamma and Gamps."

"I'm sorry you have to stay with them without us here," Chris told her.

"It's okay, I know why, you don't want me to be by myself, it's okay," Sawyer shrugged, once again proving how unlike his parents he was. It was like anything and everything good Stephanie had inside of them had been transferred straight to Sawyer. Flynn had obviously got all of their fire and brimstone. Kensington would hopefully end up like her big brother…but, well, Flynn wasn't so bad. Kensington could end up any way and they'd still love her.

"I know, but now that it's summer, you get to travel with us more," Chris promised him, "and you'll get to see tons of wrestling."

"I can't wait," Sawyer grinned, "and we get to see Fozzy too, right?"

"Yup, you're going to have a very busy summer."

Punk loosened himself up for his match, jumping around a little bit. "Punk?"

Punk cringed as he recognized the voice. He gave a grimacing smile and looked over at the petite brunette, "Hey, AJ, what's up?"

"Are you dating Britt?"

"Whoa, excuse me?" Punk asked her. "Where did that come from?"

"You're always around her," AJ said, her eyes widening a little bit, "so does that mean you're dating? Do you want to date her? Do you want to sleep with her? I mean, not that I care, but…I care, I want to know."

"Wow, okay, that's a lot to take in right now," Punk told her, holding his hands up in defense. "I don't think it's any of your business."

"It's not, but it is, I mean, you know, what with us," AJ said.

"AJ, I mean, there's no us, you do understand that, don't you?" Punk asked her slowly. "You're a…cool chick, I mean, you're nice company."

"I knew it!" AJ squealed, throwing her arms around Punk, but then she pulled away, her eyebrows knitting, "I like my guys to know what they want."

"I'm not really 'your guy' per se. You're cool, don't get me wrong," he said because he didn't want to wake up one night with her creepy smile looming over his face. He already got barely enough sleep as it was, he didn't need the little he got to be spent staying up hoping AJ didn't break into his hotel room. "I just…I don't really want to be with anyone right now."

"That's great, I'm not anyone! I'm AJ," she said brightly.

"You know, I've got a match," Punk said, glad for the chance to get away from her.

It was short-lived, however, because AJ took it upon herself to run down the ramp trying to help him by getting the referee's attention. Punk didn't _need_ her help, and he still didn't know when AJ had appointed her his valet. He didn't need one and didn't want one, but here she was again, trying to worm her way into his good graces he guessed. She did a good job, but it was still weird, and he wondered how much of this was fueled by AJ's need to get back at Daniel. Most of it? All of it?

After the match, he laid in the ring, trying to catch his breath after Kane left, but he'd seen the smile AJ gave the Big, Red Machine. Maybe Punk could pawn her off on him. Kane was always desperately looking for a woman, any woman. Maybe AJ could be that woman to him? He wasn't above letting this happen.

"I helped you," AJ told him as they walked backstage. "So you have to be nice, right?"

"Thanks," he told her simply. "Look, I've got to shower, but you know we're just friends, I mean, you get that, AJ, don't you?"

"I'm fine, no worries," she said, not exactly answering the question, but it was enough, he guessed. "As long as you're not dating Britt. I wouldn't want her to you know, get in the way."

"Get in the way?" Punk asked.

"Nothing," AJ trilled with a giggle. "I just wanted to make sure you weren't dating her. But you're not, so it's good, everything is, I've got to go though, I'll see you later, Punk."

Punk was starting to think he had way bigger problems than Kane.


	373. Reconciliation For Now, June 11, 2012

A/N: Doesn't it just seem like it's time to bring Stephanie back to TV? I think it is.

* * *

"Mommy, why are we here?"

"Shh, Flynnie, we're here because your brother is having a graduation ceremony because he's graduating from Kindergarten to 1st grade," Stephanie told her daughter, who was perched in her lap. Flynn had her legs dangling on either side of her mother's legs, and her back was pressed against Stephanie's chest. She leaned back and sighed. It seemed they'd been waiting forever (15 minutes), and she was bored.

"But where is he?" she craned her neck to look around. She couldn't see her brother. If she saw her brother, it might be better.

"He's backstage because they're getting ready," Stephanie told her, pressing a kiss to the side of Flynn's head. "You have to be patient. It'll be starting soon then afterwards, we'll all go out to lunch because Daddy is leaving tonight and we have to spend all the time we can with him before he goes away."

"Oh yeah," Flynn reminded herself, worrying now because her daddy was going away. She leaned across Stephanie's body and grabbed her father's hand, which was sitting on the armrest. "Daddy, I have to spend time with you!" she pleaded desperately.

"What?" Chris asked, not having paid attention to his daughter or wife while looking at the stage. Kensington was already playing with his wedding ring as she sat in his lap so having Flynn grab his other hand startled him. "What's going on?"

"You're leaving, have to spend time with you," Flynn nodded.

"I know," he brought her hand up to his mouth and kissed her knuckles gently. "But we'll see each other soon, I'm not going to be gone for that long, I promise."

This appeased Flynn as she let go of her death grip on Chris's hand. The kiss on her sister's hand prompted Kensington's jealousy and she leaned her back enough to look up at her daddy. "Dada, kiss me!"

"So demanding," Chris told her, leaning down and kissing her forehead. "There you go."

"I want that kinda kiss too," Flynn said, now jealous of her younger sister. Chris laughed and leaned over, kissing Flynn on the forehead. "Thank you."

"I want that kind of kiss, but better," Stephanie told her husband and he shook his head and leaned over to kiss her. "Okay, now I'm fine too, thank you."

"You're very welcome, are all my girls satisfied?" he asked them. Kensington and Flynn nodded, but Stephanie shook her head playfully, giving him a wink. "Well, you'll get your satisfaction later."

"Shh, it's starting," Stephanie nudged his shoulder.

They both focused on the stage where the Kindergartners were walking out in their little robes and caps. The ceremony didn't really mean anything in the long run, but it was a fun way to cap off their first year of school. It made them feel special and like their journey was really just beginning. Most of the kids walked out, searching for their families and waving vigorously. Sawyer was no exception as he walked out onstage and found his family, waving and grinning at them.

"That my Sawa!" Flynn exclaimed, making people around her look at her. She didn't know why and shrugged as Stephanie leaned down to her ear.

"Flynnie, we have to be quiet, we can cheer for Sawyer at the end," Stephanie whispered to her.

"Okay, Mommy," Flynn said in an exaggerated whisper. Stephanie kissed her again as they watched the ceremony.

The kids sang a couple songs they learned in class before their teacher handed each of them a "diploma," which, when opened up, reveal a little certificate that officially graduated them from Kindergarten to the 1st grade. After the ceremony was over, there was a little reception where everyone got to have cookies and juice, much to Flynn's excitement. It wasn't often she got cookies in the middle of the day. Sawyer ran up to them afterwards, his little blue robe flying behind him.

"Lookit, Mommy," Sawyer waved his diploma over his head. "I'm graduated now."

"I know," Stephanie knelt down in front of him. "Do I have to buy you a car as a gift?"

Sawyer laughed, "I can't drive."

"What, you can't?" Stephanie said, then slapped her forehead, "Oh, I completely forgot. Well then, I guess we'll have to get you something else for finishing Kindergarten. We'll go to the toy store in a couple days and you can have anything you want."

"You spoil that kid," Chris told his wife as Sawyer went off to grab some cookies, his hand clamped tightly with Kensington's, who wanted some cookies too. "He's going to come off as an entitled jerk."

"Sawyer? Sawyer Jericho?" Stephanie asked with a laugh. "You mean the little boy who is currently picking up his sister so she can pick her own cookie? That kid?"

Chris looked over at his son, who was indeed picking up his little sister so she could see what kind of cookies there were on the table. He was always doing kind things like that, and it never ceased to amaze Chris how wonderful a kid Sawyer was. He was lucky he had a son who was just so…nice. It was such a refreshing change from how he and Stephanie could be.

"Okay, I guess he wouldn't, but you do know that means you'll have to buy something for the girls, right?"

"What's something?" Flynn asked, tugging on Chris's hand while she ate the cookie she'd picked out. "What do I get?"

"Nothing right now," Chris told her, "don't eavesdrop on other peoples' conversations, it's not polite."

"I dunno what polite is," Flynn shrugged, which made Chris shake his head. Leave it to his daughter squirm out of that one. "Pick me up, Daddy, please."

"What is it?" Chris asked as he picked her up. Sawyer and Kensington were walking back over with their cookies, Kensington trying to make Sawyer take a bite of hers. "Do you need something?"

"No, I just gonna miss you," Flynn told him, and her voice was without malice or sadness. She was just stating a fact. That didn't mean it didn't tug at Chris's heart when she said things like that. The way she said it was so commonplace, and he realized he was at a point where his kids just kind of expected him to go places. Sure, they missed him when he was gone, but they were used to him being gone.

Stephanie took notice of his change in attitude, but didn't think now was the time to bring it up. Chris tended to get like this before he went on tour. She could tell he was going to feel guilty for leaving again. It was always an internal struggle for him when it came to their kids and being away from them. She knew he wanted to be the best father he could possibly be, but there were dreams he had, goals he wanted to accomplish that, unfortunately, took him away from the kids. What he didn't seem to understand was that kids were resilient, especially their children.

These children were born with the McMahon genes, which meant they persevered. Sure, they missed their father, they were still kids, but they understood that Chris would be back, and they loved his successes just as much as she did. They were so proud of their father, always, and she wished Chris would stop feeling so guilty when it came to going away. He was never away for a long time, and when he was with the children, he was so enamored by them.

Nobody in the world could question Chris's love for his children, not one, single person. The way he looked at them, it was as clear as day that he loved them with every bit of his being. Chris was born to be a father. Where she thought she was going to be a terrible mother, screwing up her kids in the worst way, she'd always known Chris would be a wonderful father. He had this ease about him, this charm that made everyone want to be his in his company and his children were no exception.

"I'm going to miss you too," he hugged her tightly against him.

"But you'll be okay," Flynn told him, patting his back.

"I shouldn't be reassured by my three year old," Chris told Stephanie over Flynn's shoulder.

"I think she's exactly who should be reassuring you."

"Hey guys," Emily said, walking over with Aiden. "Aiden just wanted to say bye to Sawyer."

Aiden went over to Sawyer and started a conversation with him, leaving their parents out of it. "That was an adorable ceremony, huh?" Stephanie said, laughing with Emily. They had an easy friendship now. They talked whenever they were both picking up their boys, and Stephanie had been meaning to set a lunch date with her so she could get to know her better.

"So cute," Emily laughed, "so what are your plans for the summer?"

"She's going to work, work, then work some more," Chris joked about his wife as she playfully glared at him. "What about you?"

"Well, I'm taking a couple weeks off and Aiden and I are going to Disneyland."

"Oh, he's going to love that," Stephanie said, "we might go with Chris on his tour with Fozzy, but we're not sure yet, we kind of have to see how the schedule goes."

"Yeah, I remember you were talking about that," Emily said, shaking her finger slowly like she just remembered it in her head. "I'd love to see you guys play. I've heard so much about you, and I did listen to the songs you recommended, and they were great. I have to remember to listen to more, maybe even buy the albums."

"I have no objections to this," Chris said. "Buy away. I'm not too sure of all the dates, but I'm sure we're going to have some in Florida, so you should definitely come to the show. You can just ask me for tickets and I'll set some aside for you, however many you want."

"Wow, thanks."

"Daddy, I need food," Flynn told her father seriously.

"I guess that means we have to go," Chris chuckled.

"I better go too. I've still got a lot of packing and Aiden and I are leaving in a couple days, but don't make yourselves strangers over the summer," Emily said. "I have a feeling Aiden and Sawyer are going to want to hang out."

"I don't doubt that," Stephanie said as Emily collected her son, "have a great time on your trip."

"Thanks, bye," Emily and Aiden waved.

Stephanie turned to her husband, "Totally undressing you with her eyes."

Chris just laughed at her, knowing she was joking. She liked Emily too so it was no big deal, but this was just a running joke of theirs. They were always teasing about other people coming in to invade their relationship. Both knew neither one was very serious. "How do you know she wasn't undressing _you_ with her eyes, we don't know what she likes."

"Oh, with the way she looks at you, I think we know," Stephanie winked at him before she turned to Kensington, lifting her off the ground. "Okay, Mr. Sawyer, since you are the big graduate today, you get to choose where we eat."

"Burgers!" Sawyer decided.

"Burgers it is."

Their lunch was light and fun, with Sawyer celebrating his graduation with a massive milkshake that was a special occasion milkshake since milkshakes were not going to be a regular occurrence. Even Flynn and Kensington were allowed to share one, much to Flynn's chagrin, but there was no way she could have drank one by herself. She managed to sit next to Chris the entire time, pretty much cuddling into his side. He knew it was because he was leaving, which only served to make him feel worse.

When they got home and the kids ran towards the playroom, Kensington frustratingly lagging behind, Stephanie caught Chris's hand and pulled him towards her so they were facing each other. He raised an eyebrow and looked at her suggestively. She shook her head a little, not about to give him _that_, but instead, she pressed a kiss to the corner of her mouth. "Stop feeling guilty," she told him point blank, not sugarcoating her words.

"For what?" he asked, but he knew to what she was referring.

"About leaving to go on your tour. You _always_ get like this Chris, and every time you get like this, I have to reassure you that you're doing the right thing, so you're doing the right thing," she squeezed his hand gently.

"Why does it always feel so wrong then?" he asked her, his eyes searching hers for the answer, hoping they would be in her blue gray eyes.

"Because you're a good father," Stephanie answered him, "you're a wonderful father who loves his kids and wants to spend time with them. That's why it's hard. It would be one thing if you left with no remorse, but you do. That's why I'm always here to pull you away from the brink. The kids are old enough to understand that you're not leaving them. Even Kensington knows you'll come back. Besides, I now for a fact that you forget all about this guilt the second you step on that stage."

"It does feel good to be on there," he admitted.

"I know it does," she said, reminiscing back to when she was on television every week. "It's a great feeling knowing you're out in front of a bunch of people, believe me, I know. So when you get to the UK, and when you get to do your first song tomorrow, you'll forget all about your stupid guilt."

"Thanks, baby," he told her, kissing her lightly, giving her mouth a quick sweep with his tongue. "You always know what to say. I just wish Flynnie didn't make it so hard."

"I think that girl is a manipulator, even if she doesn't know it," Stephanie joked.

"Oh, I think she knows it."

Stephanie was, of course, correct with her words. Once he stepped on that stage, any guilt he felt disappeared because he was amongst the throngs of people who loved to listen to his music. It was nice to get back on this stage. He missed it when he was wrestling. What was funny was when he was touring, he ended up missing wrestling. It was making it a little difficult to decide what to do in regards to his upcoming Uproar tour. He did have Mondays off so there _was_ the possibility he could do both. It was really up to him.

Being married to the president afforded him some luxuries it didn't with other wrestlers. When Chris wrestled, he wrestled full-stop. He wasn't like Rocky or even Brock Lesnar who showed up some of the time, didn't show up others. When he was there, he was _there_. There was really no other way to be. Stephanie was his wife. This meant, though, that he _could_ come and go as he pleased, and he could do both projects if he wanted to. It was just a matter of time, and the exhaustion levels he would go through. That wasn't going to stop him from being there though. He had Mondays off, that meant he could spend time with his family, which was absolutely what he was going to do.

Besides, there was still plenty of time to think about this. And by that time, his marriage with Stephanie would be even stronger. He'd agreed to go on the marriage retreat thing with Christian and Trish, even if he didn't really think he and Stephanie needed it. But his friends needed him, and it was a weekend away from his children, and those were always good. He just hoped his relationship with Stephanie wasn't revealed to be in the crapper. He could just see it now, he and Stephanie would be sitting there listening to everyone spout off about their perfect marriage, then he and Stephanie would take the floor and slowly jaws would start dropping when they explained all the things they went through with each other.

He wondered if there was going to be a section for happy marriages and a section for troubled marriages. He had to ask Stephanie about that. Still, if it helped Christian and Trish get back on the right track, he was going to see this through. He could talk about their relationship; it wouldn't be weird for him and Stephanie, he practically exposed everything in his book to begin with. Well, he didn't expose everything, but he spoke about her a lot and about his kids, so there really wasn't too much that he could really expose that wouldn't be terribly horrifying.

"Hey, Steph," he said one night after his concert while talking to his wife.

"Yeah?" Stephanie asked, distracted because she was just cleaning up after dinner.

"Do you think we'll have a good time at this retreat thing?"

"I guess so, why?" Stephanie asked as Sawyer helped her gather up some dishes. "Thank you, baby boy. I think I can take it from here, can you go watch your sisters in the playroom?"

"Sure, Mommy," Sawyer said, running off to go make sure his sisters weren't doing anything bad.

"Sorry, go on," Stephanie said.

"That kid was helping you with the dishes?"

"Yeah, I know, perfect kid and all," Stephanie laughed, "I think we'll have fun, and in the end, it'll probably help us. Those kinds of things are meant to help couples, however well or not they may be."

"Yeah, you're right," Chris told her, "I just had a great concert though, you were absolutely right when you said the guilt would disappear. The kids are good though, right?"

"They're perfect," Stephanie said, "they ate all their dinner, and they're all happy that they have the summer here, and Sawyer is thrilled he can travel with us again."

"Oh yeah, how are you doing with your dad coming back? I know you were nervous about that, have you talked to him?"

"No, I haven't talked to him yet," Stephanie told her husband. "I don't really know what to say. I don't know if he's being sincere or not. I guess I'll find out on Monday though. He says that he wants to evaluate Laurinaitis, but who knows, you know."

"You think he's really there to scope you out, get a firsthand look at how you're actually running things, especially because you put Laurinaitis completely in charge of the show. You think he's looking for some other reason, to see if you really did hand the power over."

"Stop knowing me so well," she groaned. "It's actually disgusting."

"I'm brushing up for the retreat!" he told her with a laugh. "If we have to play games or something where we have to know what our significant others are thinking or doing, I'm going to win at it."

"I don't think there are going to be competitions for best couple," Stephanie said in a deadpan way.

"What? No! You mean there isn't going to be some kind of awards ceremony at the end of this where they give away an award for Best Couple?" Chris asked. "Do we even get a certificate?"

"I don't think you get a certificate," Stephanie told him, "what would it even before for? Oh, there you go, your marriage is a-okay, don't come back again!"

"Yes, something like that," Chris replied. "I figured we'd get _some_ recognition for completing this."

"The satisfaction in knowing our marriage is better than it was before we went," Stephanie explained.

Chris gagged, "I don't need a bunch of 'therapists' or 'counselors,' or whatever they want to be called telling me that. I think the fact that we'll be celebrating our ten year anniversary in a little over a month is enough testament to that."

"You'd think so, but they'll probably just say that ten years is the jumping off point to forever," Stephanie snarked, and Chris loved that she was being snarky about this. It was going to make the weekend that much easier to get through if he had his wife to joke around about it with.

"Well, that's how long you're going to be stuck with me," she said as he yawned. "Now I'm boring you to death."

"That's how I plan on going."

"I'll let you go," Stephanie said, "I've got to pack for the kids anyways."

"Okay, I love you, tell the kids I'll call them tomorrow morning, okay?"

"Okay," Stephanie said, "bye."

"Bye."

Stephanie was nervous about seeing her father. It was just not her usual routine on Monday any longer. Not only that, but seeing her father at all these days was pretty volatile. She knew she and her father were on different sides. At least she'd believed them to be on different sides. After tonight, she wasn't sure if that was true. She didn't trust her father, but she was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt until he proved her wrong. Unfortunately, she expected him to prove her wrong, just like he did time and time again.

It wasn't even that long after she and the kids arrived at the arena that her father made his way to her office. He had the courtesy to knock on the door before he entered. Everyone's heads looked up, but it was Sawyer and Flynn's eyes that lit up. Kensington hadn't been around Vince enough to know who he was so it was only his older grandchildren who grinned at him.

"Grandpa, hi!" Sawyer said, rushing to his grandpa and throwing his arms around him as Vince knelt to receive their hugs. "I didn't know you were going to be here."

"Yes, I'm going to be evaluating John Laurinaitis tonight. I'm helping out the board," he explained.

"Oh, you should fire him, Grandpa," Sawyer told him seriously, nodding his head. "He's not a good man, he's mean, and he's mean to Mommy, so you should fire him."

"I will definitely take your opinion into account," Vince told him, ruffling his hair. Flynn patiently waited her turn for a hug, a little more subdued than usual because she was waiting to hear from her daddy even though she knew he had a very busy day. "Is this my Flynn? You look too big to be my Flynn."

"Grandpa, you know who I am," Flynn told him, shaking her head.

Vince laughed and hugged her. "You are too much like your mommy, you know that."

Kensington wandered over because her brother and sister were talking with this guy. He looked vaguely familiar to her, but Kensington saw a lot of people, and she couldn't be bothered remembering every person she ever met. "Hi," she said in her sweet voice, high-pitched and girly. She tilted her head to the side to look at this man, as if the different angle might give her a clue as to who he was.

"Kensington," Vince said, opening up his arms to her once they were vacated by Flynn. Kensington just looked at him like he was crazy. She didn't know whether to hug him or run away.

"It's okay, Kensy," Sawyer said, "that's just grandpa."

"Okay," Kensington trusted her brother more than she trusted anyone in the world so she walked over to him and gave this man a hug.

"You are so big, I can't believe how big she is, Stephanie," Vince said, looking over Kensington's shoulder at his daughter. He couldn't believe how old her kids were now. Kensington was walking and talking, and it shocked him how old they were getting. He remembered when Sawyer was just a baby. His daughter was doing such a wonderful job with these children. They were healthy, and happy, and beautiful.

"She's growing like a weed," Stephanie smiled, more about Kensington being such a growing girl than seeing her father. "I can't stop any of them from growing. I constantly have to buy new clothes."

"I got new shoes," Flynn held up her foot to show her grandpa her new purple sneakers. They were so new her daddy hadn't even seen them. "My feet are big."

"They look big," Vince said politely.

"Thanks," Flynn said proudly because she thought big feet were something to be very proud of, very proud indeed. She wiggled her foot around a little before she fell on her butt and then laughed it off.

"I'm just going to talk to your mommy," Vince said, "is that okay with you guys?"

"Sure," Sawyer shrugged, lifting up Kensington and bringing her back to the play blanket. "Mommy, do you think we could call Daddy now?"

Stephanie looked at her watch. "I'm not sure right now, baby boy, but in a few minutes. Let me just talk to Grandpa and we'll call Daddy right after."

"Okay," Sawyer said, sitting down to play with Kensington. Flynn went over a moment later, sitting next to Sawyer and grabbing him around the waist, feeling a little bit possessive over her brother after watching him carry Kensington. Sometime she wanted to be carried too, just because she wasn't a baby didn't mean she didn't want her Sawyer's attention.

"Hey, Dad," Stephanie actually stood up and walked around her desk to give her father a hug. It felt strained, but she was really trying. He seemed to recognize her effort and hugged her back. "It's good to see you, you look well."

"Thank you, you look as beautiful as you ever were. How's Chris? Is he treating you right? I'm sorry you had to suspend him."

"It was the right thing to do with the situation," Stephanie answered, "and he's fine. He's actually hosting an awards show tonight in London. He's having a blast over there, but he's coming back tomorrow so the kids are excited for that."

"And you two are good?"

"We're as good as we've ever been," Stephanie smiled at the thought of her husband. She loved him so much and missed him when he was away. Vince could see his daughter's emotions playing over her face and was happy she was so happy. Whatever Chris was doing for her, he was doing it right because for the past ten years, there were only a handful of times his daughter didn't look blissfully content.

"I'm glad to hear he's still treating you well."

"Of course he treats me well," Stephanie scoffed like it was absolutely out of the question for Chris to ever not treat her well.

"Good, good," Vince wanted to get down to business. "So, as you know, I'm here to evaluate Laurinaitis. I thought he would be good in the beginning, but I'm not so sure anymore. I'm not sure it was the right thing to let him have so much power."

She wanted to say something sarcastic, something biting that would put him in her place, but she refrained, using an incredible amount of self-control. "I see, so you've come here tonight to rectify the situation, or at the very least, help the board seeing as how I'm the president."

Vince smiled softly, "Stephanie, I know what you are, and I'm not here to encroach on your power. I'm here to help the board, and I'm here to help you wherever I'm needed. I know that I was taken from my post, but I do want to offer you my help where I can."

"And you won't try to take over?" Stephanie asked suspiciously. Vince knew she was justified in asking. If anything, the McMahons were a suspicious bunch and nothing was going to change that. It was ingrained in them.

"You know, you were born here in Hartford," Vince chuckled to himself. "I remember that day as if it was yesterday. You never forget the days your kids are born. We'd had Shane for a while, so when we were having you, it felt like a whole new pregnancy. Things were different then too, you know, with fathers being there and everything. It was still relatively new, but I wanted to be there with your mother."

"Where is this going, Dad?" Stephanie asked.

"Let me finish," he told her, knowing she was an impatient woman, like he was an impatient man. For better or worse, Stephanie was too much like him and not enough like Linda. "You were beautiful. You were the most beautiful baby I'd ever seen until all my grandchildren decided to come along. But I took one look at you and knew you were going to be trouble."

Stephanie laughed, "Why, was I smirking?"

"You looked like you were," he laughed, "but I think I knew from day one that you were going to be everything I wanted in a child. Stephanie, I am proud of you. You may do things as ruthlessly as I do, but I admire that in you. I admire your tenacity and your unwavering quest to be the best at everything."

"Thank you," Stephanie told him sincerely. "I'm…thank you."

He meant it. He was proud of her. Her eyes softened as she looked at her father. She loved him fiercely, but she would always fight with him. It was who she was, it was who he was. Together, they were the same type of person, the same kind of person she saw emerging from Flynn. She knew if any of her three kids was going to wrest the power from her hands, it was her fierce, fiery little girl who didn't take crap from anyone.

"I'm not here to steal your job," he told her, "I'm just here to help you."

"Dad, you don't have to act like I'm a frightened horse," Stephanie laughed.

Vince nodded his head. "I'm not liking what Laurinaitis is doing, but…I know you're going to be angry with me over this, but I'm going to give him tonight to try and prove himself. I may even give him SmackDown and the Pay-Per-View, a last week if you will. If the board likes what they see, and if I like what I see, and you too, if you are willing, then we'll let him see where this goes, but if not…"

"I think that's fair," Stephanie nodded.

"Good, I'm glad we're on the same page, now, this part, I know you're going to be especially angry with me," Vince said, and Stephanie raised her eyebrows. What was her father going to do now? "Your mother knows you're only going to be up here for a few days because you miss Chris, so she wanted to make a huge dinner for you and the kids. So I'm asking you, please, to take the night off and spend it with your mother."

"What, but the show?" Stephanie gestured around her.

"I know, but I'm here," Stephanie narrowed her eyes, looking for double meaning in her father's words, "and there's the suspicion, right back again. There are no ulterior motives here, Stephanie, your mother just misses you, and she missed the kids. I don't know when you're going back home—"

"Chris was going to fly here, to Connecticut and we were going to stay for a few days, like a mini-vacation and celebration that Chris had a successful tour," Stephanie said, "did Mom really make a huge dinner? If I call her right now, will she not be blindsided?"

"No, she won't, she actually wanted it to be a kind of surprise, but I didn't think kidnapping you and the kids was going to win you over."

"I would like to see Mom," Stephanie reasoned. "Are you sure you're not trying to pull one over on me?"

"Scout's honor," Vince held up his right hand.

"Dad, you were never a scout."

"Okay, then as your father, I'm ordering you to take one night off, you can do it, Stephanie, I know it's difficult, but if my semi-retirement has taught me anything it's that sometimes it's alright to take breaks. Besides, it would mean a lot to your mom."

"Alright," Stephanie agreed, knowing she was doing it for her mother made it easier. "But I swear, Daddy, if you are doing this to try and get my job, I will not give it up without a fight."

"Like I would expect you to just hand it over," he told her.

"I'm sorry I've been so cold to you," she apologized to him.

"I'm sorry I acted the same way. Like I said, we're too much alike. Now go so your mother can spend the evening with her grandkids."

"Okay, okay," Stephanie relented then turned to her kids. "Come on, you guys, we're going to see Grandma."

Christian slammed the door open as Trish rolled her eyes. "Would you just _talk_ to me, Christian."

"I don't really want to, Trish," Christian threw over his shoulder.

Trish grabbed his arm, effectively stopping him as she came around to stand in front of him. "We're going to talk when we get to your locker room, you got it?"

"I don't feel like talking," Christian told her, "can we just drop it?"

"No, dropping it is what causes problems, it's when we bottle things up inside that they backfire on us, remember," she hissed at him.

"Trish, this really isn't a big deal," Christian sighed, wishing she would drop this. "It's not one of those huge things we need to talk about. Sometimes we can maybe let the little things go."

"We're trying to work on our relationship. We should be open now more than ever," she told him, "I'm just asking you to let me in. I don't know what your problem is anymore. You used to let me in all the time, now you're just shutting me out, and I do not get it."

Christian closed his eyes, "I just want to find my locker room, okay? I don't even know why they wanted me tonight, oh yeah, because it's not the supershow, everyone has to be here, whether or not they're actually on."

Trish just walked silently next to him as they got to his locker room. She slammed the door behind him and sat down huffily on the couch, folding her arms in front of her. She was just glad Tilden was back in Florida with Edge and Lita and didn't have to witness her parents fighting again. Christian had been in a bad mood since yesterday and it had undone any good will the two had exhibited towards each other over the past week. With their marriage retreat coming up, it was not a good sign that they were fighting.

"Stop looking at me like that," Christian told her. "I don't need you looking at me like that."

"I'm not looking at you like anything," Trish told him with a careless shrug.

He sat down heavily beside her, "I'm just pissed about that TNA thing."

Trish eased up on her anger as Christian opened up to her. She grabbed his hand and he smiled inwardly at the contact. "What about it?"

"I don't know, I just…everything about it felt so wrong, you know. Guys were looking at me weirdly, and rightfully so, I'm the enemy. I don't even know why they agreed to let me go. I know Stephanie did it because she's my friend and she thought it was what I wanted, but it wasn't."

"Okay, but were the guys really that bad?"

"I wouldn't know, none of them would talk to me. Well, Kurt did for a few minutes, but I don't know, things are still weird with him. I know Stephanie talks to him and everything, but it's just weird now. We don't hang out with him so I have no idea what's going on in his life. I hear he has a kid and a wife, and yeah, that's weird," Christian told her, "and I talked to Rob for a little bit, but you know him, he talks to everyone."

"What about Jeff?"

"What about Jeff?" Christian asked her. "I don't want to talk to that guy."

Trish rolled her eyes in exasperation, "As if I would even want him. He's married and has a daughter of his own."

"So, what difference does that make, he was like a little puppy dog around you, always following you around, damn thorn in my side."

It was moments like these that convinced Trish she and Christian were going to be fine. They just needed to get over their minor issues and it would be back to smooth-sailing. She loved when they could banter back and forth without a fight breaking out. They just got too angry too quickly nowadays, but they'd get better, things had to get better.

"He is not a thorn in your side," Trish kissed his cheek, which delighted Christian, "you just don't like him because I went out with him a couple times over 10 years ago. Chrissy, you could have told me how you felt, you know."

"It was stupid, I mean, it's not like I have to see those guys on a daily basis."

"I know you think it's stupid, but it's not stupid to me," Trish explained to him, "I want to know these things, I'm so tired of hiding things from each other just because we're scared. I think this whole separation thing scared us into thinking we were right back at square one, where we would date for a little while then break up, then get back together, then break up again. But that cycle is over. We're married now, committed, we love each other."

"I know, you're right, you're always right."

"You don't have to say it so sarcastically," Trish told him, but she was joking with him. "And you know what, screw those guys. They're just jealous because you're a champion with a winning company."

Christian smiled at her, "Thanks, Trishy, I'm glad I told you."

"I'm glad you told me too, now come on, let's try not to keep secrets anymore, alright?"

"Alright."

Punk walked up to the catering table Britt was sitting at and slumped down into his chair. "Save me, Britt, please, just save me."

"Where's your little girlfriend?" Britt asked playfully. Punk rolled his eyes then slammed his forehead against the table. "Oh come on, Phil, she can't be _that_ bad. I mean, yes, she's got some…odd tendencies, but you have to remember, she had her heart broken by Bryan."

"Yeah, so now that he's going after me, of course she'd align herself with me," Punk sighed. "I just kind of wish she would, I don't know, be less crazy. I could really get behind her if she was less crazy, you know."

"I thought you dug crazy chicks," Britt imitated him and he just glared at her. She gave him a coy smile and he shook his head. "I'm not saying anything you didn't say yourself first. You couldn't have known how crazy she was, but you know, she's not that bad."

"She just tried to follow me into the bathroom," he told her as Britt burst into laughter. "Oh yeah, laugh it up, you don't have anyone stalking you." No, she just had a horrible, manipulative boyfriend, that was all.

"I guess I should be thankful for that," Britt shrugged. "You know, it wouldn't kill you to take her out. I mean, look, maybe she just needs some guy to be nice to her, to treat her well. It might get you off her back."

"You're a chick, you've never dealt with crazy chicks," Punk explained to her. "If you give them an inch, they will take a mile. If I give her dinner, suddenly she's telling everyone I'm her boyfriend, then next thing I know, I look at her walking away and there's my name tattooed on her lower back."

"Someone thinks an awful lot of themselves," Britt laughed.

"If you went on a first date with me, you wouldn't be saying that."

"Oh, okay," Britt said, nodding like she didn't believe him. He scowled at her, but couldn't contain his smile. "I have to go though, Vince asked Stephanie to take the night off and she somehow agreed so I'm a little more packed than usual. I hope your petite problem gets cleared up."

"No you don't, you love seeing me wallow in my misery," Punk joked with her.

Britt pat him on the shoulder, leaning down a little to whisper in his ear, "Only just a little, a smidge really."

"I'm going to get you for this," Punk said.

"Hey," she held up her hands defensively. "I'm not the one being all clingy."

"Shut up," he told her good-naturedly as she walked out of catering. She was almost immediately greeted by Hunter, who looked to be standing outside the door. She was startled by his presence, but then smiled and grabbed his hand as they continued to walk, or at the very least, as _she_ continued to walk. He stood his ground and she turned around to look at him, their arms taught as he stayed still and she pulled forward.

"What's the matter?"

"Why are you talking to that guy?" Hunter asked.

"What guy? You mean, Punk?"

"What other guy would I mean, Britt?" Hunter told her, and she furrowed her brow at his tone.

"I talked to him because he's my friend."

"Do you remember what he did with Chris and Stephanie's kids?"

"Yes, I remember, he apologized, and I believe him," Britt said, "if they choose not to forgive him, then so be it, but I'm not going to act like he doesn't exist. He's my friend—"

"He _kissed_ you, or did you forget?"

"I didn't forget," Britt spat at him, "what, you think I suddenly developed amnesia? I remember, but the fact is, he apologized for kissing me, and I apologized for leading him along. There's nothing more to it than that. He's my friend."

"I don't like you around him."

"And when did I say you could dictate my friends, oh wait, that was _never_. Don't act like that, Hunter," Britt told him, poking him in the chest for emphasis. "You're bigger than me, you're badder than me, but I will damn sure not let you dictate my life. I am friends with him, I love you, get it into your thick skull. Got it?"

"Got it," he mumbled, but he was rewarded with a kiss and a smile. He perked up at that a bit.

"I love you," she told him sweetly, but it filled him with guilt. This woman had been around Punk, friends with him, and she'd still chosen Hunter. He started to realize that even if Punk had made the moves on her, she wouldn't have chosen him. All she really did want out of Punk seemed to be friendship. There was a churning in his gut.

"Britt?"

"Hmm?"

"I just wanted to tell you something," he gulped.

"Can you make it quick, the show's about to start and I need to get to work."

"Oh yeah, I just…I love you too," he told her, kissing her forehead. She gave him a wink and she was gone.

Flynn gaped as she listened to her father speak. "Daddy, you sang on a _boat_?"

"Yup, right on a boat."

"Was it fun?" Sawyer asked as they all stared down at the speakerphone.

"Yeah, it was a lot of fun, then I hosted another awards show."

"Wow, you sound like you have a lot of fun," Sawyer told him. "I can't wait to see you though, Daddy. I miss you."

"I miss you too, kid," Chris told him, "I miss all of you."

"Hi, Daddy," Kensington came over after her grandma let her down from her arms finally.

"Hey! There's my Kensy-bug, I was starting to think you flew away," Chris told her, making Kensington giggle.

"No, here."

"Good, I'm glad to hear you haven't flown the coop."

"We were eating with Grandma Linda," Sawyer said, "Grandpa gave Mommy the night off so she doesn't have to work."

"He did?" Chris asked in surprise.

"Uh huh," Flynn answered, "I no see wrestling, but it okay, I see Grandma. I see wrestling next time."

"Yes, you will," Chris said, "hey, so I love talking to you guys, and I can't wait to see you tomorrow, but do you think I could talk to your mommy for a little bit."

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, "we want to watch wrestling anyways. Mommy said we could watch it here on Grandpa and Grandma's big, big, big TV. It's like a movie, Daddy, did you know they had this?"

"I did know they had that, but you're so lucky. I have to watch Raw on my computer."

"That's pretty small," Sawyer told him.

"I know, it sucks."

"I watch wrestling now, bye Daddy, love you!" Flynn yelled into the phone as she ran away to her grandmother, who was making them popcorn for Raw.

"Bye-bye," Kensington said as he followed her sister. Sawyer grabbed the phone and brought it into the kitchen where his mommy was.

"Mommy, Daddy wants to talk to you," Sawyer thrust the phone at her.

"Thank you, baby boy," Stephanie said, kissing his head. "Why don't you go grab some snacks and head into the other room to watch Raw with Grandma."

"I can help her with Flynnie and Kensy," Sawyer beamed. Stephanie shook her head at that kid's kindness, constantly wondering where the hell that even came from. She left the room so she could have some privacy and put the call off speakerphone.

"Hey, what's up?"

"You took the night off?" Chris asked incredulously.

"My father insisted that I do it," Stephanie explained. "My mom made this huge meal for me and the kids, hoping we'd come over and spend time with her. I couldn't deny my mother that. Besides, I think she's a little bit jealous that your parents live in Florida and get to see the kids all the time."

"Oh man, why do you tell me things like that?" Chris asked. "Now I feel bad on behalf of my parents."

"No, no, no, don't feel like that," Stephanie told him, "I'm not saying it to make you feel bad or to make your mom and dad feel bad. It just is what it is. My parents are needed up here, obviously, since my mom is running for office. Anyways, yeah, we're here, the kids are about to watch the show."

"What about you and your dad, how is that going?"

"I'm not sure I 100 percent trust him, but I'm getting there. I think we let a little of the animosity between us go tonight, which is a good thing. I guess I believe him when he says he's just there to evaluate Laurinaitis."

"And you don't think this was all a ploy to get you away from the show for the week so he could do something like publicly fire you without giving you a chance to defend yourself?"

Stephanie laughed, "I know that's what I _should_ be thinking, I really do, but I don't think it is. I don't think he's going to do that this time."

"Okay, but if he does, do you give me permission to beat his ass or will that earn me another suspension?"

"I give you permission."

Vince wasn't going to lie, being back felt great. He felt in charge without Stephanie here, and with everyone sucking up to him in various ways, it felt just like old times when he drew the fear from all his employees. He had no doubt Stephanie was doing the same thing, only in her own, unique way. He was so proud of his daughter for being the way she was. She may not totally believe it, but he was.

Various wrestlers came up to him, talking to him, congratulating him on coming back, but he was there that evening with a singular focus, and that was to assess John Laurinaitis. He had to make sure this man was right for the job, and if Vince deemed he wasn't, he was going recommend his termination to the board, oh, who was he kidding, he had the board in his back pocket and he could do the firing if he wanted to. Stephanie had given him the authority before she left to do so if he felt necessary tonight.

It was true he'd tried to use Laurinaitis for his own gains, and he knew Stephanie knew this. She was a smart girl, she'd obviously figured it out and worked it to her advantage. So when Laurinaitis had outlived his usefulness, it was time to cut him loose. It was then that Vince realized his daughter was going to be good for the company, and instead of working against her, working _with_ her would be the best option, at least for now. He never knew when his daughter might turn on him or when he might feel the need to turn on his daughter. For now though, they were on the same page.

He gave Laurinaitis the same ultimatum he'd told Stephanie earlier, demanding to be impressed. He loved taking things out on this man. It was fun. He would be watching too, seeing how the show was going. He wanted to see Laurinaitis flounder, tying to come out with something impressive when Vince knew so little would impress him. Like when Laurinaitis made the match with Punk and AJ versus Kane and Bryan, did he really think Vince would be impressed? He wasn't. It was going to take a lot more to make him a believer again.

Punk wasn't lying when he said he dug crazy chicks, he did, but he should have known better. What he was doing with AJ kind of felt like what Britt had done to him. He was dangling this false hope in front of AJ. The problem was, if he cut that hope off, it was liable to make AJ do something drastic, like start calling him at all hours of the night or send him a dead bird in the mail or something equally crazy. Sometimes the best way to dealing with crazy chicks was just to let them go into the crazy ether.

He didn't know what he was going to do about AJ during the match though. She was already on Bryan's bad side from residual WrestleMania feelings, and after that weird-fest with Kane and his eyes, and his heart, or whatever that malarkey was just now, he wasn't sure she was on Kane's good side either…if Kane had a good side. This was a punishment towards Punk, not towards AJ, and he would have to deal with the consequences. He wasn't going to let AJ into that match. She might be crazy, but he wasn't, and he wasn't going to subject a woman to either of those men.

When he saw AJ later that evening, he sought to reassure her everything would be alright. She took to him immediately, which was her hallmark, but it was when she said they really, really liked each other that he became confused. She leaned up to kiss his cheek in goodbye, and while her lips lingered on his skin, it was still her words that lingered in his brain. _We really, really like each other_. What _did_ he feel for AJ exactly? Feelings were always so confusing for him.

He was a guy who liked to live life. It wasn't even to the fullest, he just liked to live life. He liked women, yes, oh boy did he like women, but he was trying to stave off work relationships after the horrible debacle that was Britt. He would never admit to anyone that sometimes, he really hoped she would break up with Hunter so he could swoop in. Still, what did he really feel for AJ? It felt like brotherly affection for this poor, lost girl, but then, sometimes, it really didn't feel like that at all. They said the best salve for a broken heart was to jump right back into the dating scene. Okay, he didn't know anyone who said that, but it sounded like good advice.

The match with AJ was…to put it nicely, strange. He couldn't really describe it properly because it was just…like nothing he'd ever had before. He knew he wasn't going to tag AJ in, knew he wouldn't ever go there. That would be like sending a lamb to slaughter. So he would have to fight. He never backed down from a good fight so it was no problem for him to go against these two men. It would have been nice to have a partner, but one was not needed for him. He could do this on his own.

He didn't know when he accidentally tagged in AJ, but it happened, and he was groggy, and it wasn't until later he saw that she had acted crazy then kissed Kane to get him distracted. There was something in watching him later that made him take pause. Yes, there was something almost…false about her craziness. He didn't know what it was, maybe the skipping, but there was just something fake about her. He wondered if she was putting on an act, and if she was…

Why was she doing it?

Stephanie leaned forward on the seat in her parent's house. Sawyer and Flynn were sitting next to her while Kensington was upstairs in one of the guest bedrooms asleep. She'd tried valiantly to stay up for all of Raw, but she just couldn't do it. Stephanie had watched her father interacting with wrestlers all evening, usually to her and her mother's embarrassment (her father should just stop dancing altogether), but now it was time to get down to business. Now it was time to talk to Laurinaitis.

Her father brought up Connecticut and how it was special, how Hartford reminded him of Stephanie, to which Stephanie blushed a little, but then she willed him to go on. He said that it was going to be the end of someone's professional life, and she started to smirk. Her father was really going to do it. He was really going to fire Laurinaitis and get the thorn from her side. She couldn't wait to see Laurinaitis's face, and she almost wished she was there to see it live.

He called out Laurinaitis to the ring and the man himself came out. Laurinaitis tried to tell Vince he was angry with him, but he really had no leverage right now. He was on the chopping block and her father was judge, jury, and executioner, which had Laurinaitis especially terrified. She loved seeing Laurinaitis try to plead for his job, and just when it looked like her father was going to go ahead and fire him, Big Show had to come out.

From there, things devolved and they devolved quickly. One second, Big Show was there, the next second, Cena was there, then right after that, things erupted into full blown chaos. "Mommy, what's going on?" Sawyer asked.

"I'm not sure," Stephanie said, "everyone is just kind of angry."

"They gonna wrestle," Flynn supplied.

"I don't think so, Flynnie," Stephanie said as she watched them closely.

Then it was like all hell broke loose. Cena was going for Big Show, Big Show for Cena, the security guards got involved, Big Show was throwing them off, Cena was throwing them off him, then Laurinaitis and her father got involved, then suddenly her father was hit by Big Show and went down, knocked out. She leaned forward even more, her eyes widening. Big Show was showing no remorse for it, and she wanted to be there right now so she could fire his ass, but there were bigger problems brewing. Her father was down, out, and it looked obvious he was on her side.

And so Big Show and Laurinaitis's actions made her very, very angry.


	374. Finally Fired, No Way Out, June 17, 2012

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and what not. This chapter only covers up until No Way Out. It was getting kind of long and I didn't want to include Raw into it. So next week will be a double Raw chapter, which should be good since Chris is actually returning and there's now the potential for a Stephanie return. So yeah, this only goes until No Way Out, and next week, double Raw. Hope you enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

"I'm not sure I know my way around this house, is there anyone in here who could help me!"

"Daddy!" Flynn was the first one he saw, running in from the kitchen, her arms wide open. Chris took a few steps and swept her up into his arms. He gave her a kiss on the cheek, which she responded to in kind. "You're finally here!"

"I am finally here," Chris told her, giving her another kiss on the cheek. "Where's Mommy? Or Sawyer and Kensy?"

"Um," Flynn tapped her chin. "Sawyer is playing with Kensy, and I was sitting with Mommy."

"Oh okay," Chris nodded. "Where are they?"

"I told you!"

"Well, why don't you take me to them," Chris said, putting Flynn down and she immediately grabbed his hand, not wanting to let go of him. He let her lead him into the kitchen. Stephanie was sitting at the table, bemused, her cheek in her hand, propped up by her elbow as she stares at the doorway. She had to have known he would be making his entrance soon so she was waiting for him. "There's my #1a gal."

"1a, wow," Stephanie said, tapping her lips a couple times with her index finger. He laughed, walking over and leaning down to kiss her lips. "I missed you."

"I'm glad you did, even though I wasn't even gone that long," he said, sitting down in front of her. Flynn walked over quickly, trying to climb into Chris's lap. He lifted her up and sat her down on his lap so she could cuddle with him. "Where are the other two?"

"They're upstairs," Stephanie said. "I left them in Sawyer's room. Sawyer was playing and Kensington didn't want to leave."

"Oh, I guess that's why they don't realize I'm here," Chris said, looking around the house. Stephanie's house was large so he wasn't surprised his other children didn't hear him. It was even a little bigger than the house they had in Florida.

"Did you have fun?"

"Are you kidding me? I had a blast," Chris beamed. "You should have seen us at Download, Steph, you wouldn't even believe the crowd we had, it was incredible. And I'm saying this as a guy who's been in a number of WrestleManias, this was just, all these people hearing and enjoying our music, it was beyond anything."

"I'm so proud of you," she told him, and he could tell she was being sincere because her eyes were shining as she looked at him. "I wish I could have been there to see you perform. I would have loved to have heard your new song. I was looking at your Twitter feed and people seemed to love it."

"They responded really well to it, yeah," Chris told her. "So, I'm still suspended?"

"You've got just over a week left," Stephanie said, "it's just what is, Chris, plus, I was talking to my dad—"

"Now there's a sentence I'm not used to hearing anymore," Chris interrupted, which earned him a glare. "I'm just saying, you and your dad appearing to be on the same side, it's a little odd, even if you have to admit."

"I know it is, but he was saying your suspension might have helped my mom with her election."

"How so? I mean, I don't get why the two would even be connected," Chris shook his head. He wanted to help his mother-in-law where he could, but he just didn't see how this actually helped his mother-in-law with her campaign.

"Well, it shows good relations between countries, you know, we respect how the company treats other cultures, that type of thing," Stephanie said with a nod. Chris gave her a strange look, but didn't say anything. He wasn't sure that was actually a sound reason for the suspension, but he wasn't going to quibble about it. Stephanie gave him a coy look and started talking again, "Actually, since we are talking about my mother's campaign, there's something I need to bring up."

Chris looked at her suspiciously. "Why do I get the feeling I've just walked into a trap?"

"You didn't, not really, sort of did, maybe," she told him, reaching for his hand and giving it a squeeze. "I mean, you don't have anything to do for a while, right? You had your tour and the next one doesn't start for a while, you're still suspended so you can't come to the shows, so I mean, you really have nothing on your plate right now…"

"What is it, just tell me," Chris told her.

"Daddy, you're home!" Sawyer ran into the kitchen, Kensington trailing behind him.

"Dada," she whined, not able to keep up with her brother, but wanting to see her father as well. Sawyer ran up and hugged Chris around the waist. Chris leaned down to kiss the top of his son's head as Kensington came over and tugged on Flynn. Flynn sighed and got off Chris's lap, letting Kensington get her turn. Kensington tried to climb onto Chris's lap, but couldn't do it so Flynn tried to give her a boost. Chris picked up Kensington and she hugged him tightly, resting her head against his shoulder. "Hi," she breathed against his skin.

"Hey, you two," Chris told his children. "I missed you guys."

"I'm glad you're here, Daddy," Sawyer told him. "Now you can be the man of the house again."

"That's right," Chris told him, "but I really think you do a great job while I'm gone."

"I try to," Sawyer said proudly, puffing his chest out a little bit in pride.

"Now your mommy was trying to tell me something so let's all listen to what she has to say," Chris turned to Stephanie as did their children, so all eyes were on here. "So what was it that I'm probably going to get roped into, Steph?"

Stephanie sighed and put on her most charming smile, which, Chris admitted, was pretty damn charming. That smile had been his undoing for so long. "Well, it's like this, since we're here, my mom thought it would be nice if she had this kind of impromptu luncheon, you know with some of her supporters, and the whole family would be there, a united front. Shane, Rissa, and the boys will be there, and since you're home, you'd be there, and we'd be there."

"So essentially, your mother wants to parade us out and put on a happy family front?"

"Front, Chris, it's not a front, we're all happy," Stephanie said, "unless you've suddenly changed your mind about us in the last few days you've been away."

"Since it's for your mom, and since your mother made you," Chris told her, "it's fine, we'll go. Luckily I have a suit with me so I won't look like the black sheep of this family."

"You are though," Stephanie said. "Thank you for doing this. I wanted to take the kids out tomorrow to get something to wear for it. It's on Friday, so you've got time to rest up and everything, get some talking points ready."

"Talking points?"

"Oh, just brushing up on what my mom's issues are," Stephanie grinned at him. He groaned. He should have known this wasn't going to just be a luncheon. Linda was trying to present an image, and he was part of that image. It was probably going to look good to the voters that he'd been with Stephanie for ten years, family values and all that. He just wondered what they would think when they heard he was a lead singer for a metal band.

"You're lucky I love you," Chris pointed at her. "You are so lucky I'm so in love with you."

"I know," she told him, giving him a wink. "It really won't be that bad, I promise you."

Chris wished she could keep that promise, but by the time Friday rolled around, he was actually kind of dreading the entire thing. It wasn't that he didn't want to help Linda, it was just he knew that most of the people there were probably going to be conservative people. He wasn't exactly the prototype for that, and he feared he'd do something to screw it up for Linda. He knew she was constantly under scrutiny for some of the things that had made their way onto WWE television, and he hadn't exactly been an angel his entire time there.

"Do I really have to go?" Chris whined as he tied his tie.

"Yes, you do, you made a commitment," Stephanie told him, coming over and smoothing his tie down. "You look incredibly handsome. If you can't get some of those women to vote for my mom, I don't know who will."

"Your brother?"

"Please, my brother's got nothing on you," Stephanie scoffed. "He's not hot at all."

"Well, I'm…glad you don't think your brother is hot," Chris told her, kissing her forehead so he wouldn't mess up her makeup. "That would make lunch extremely awkward."

"I'm just saying if you talk to some of the people there, they will see how incredible you are, after which, you will talk about my mother, and all of the issues, and they will subsequently vote for her, it's a win-win situation if you ask me."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm pretty much a political prisoner, I get it," he told her.

"Dada, look me," Kensington said from the bed. She was wearing a light green sundress with pink flowers embroidered all along the skirt. She was matching that with pink sneakers and her hair pinned back with ladybug pins.

"You look absolutely gorgeous," Chris told his daughter. "I think you're going to get a million votes all by yourself." Kensington giggled and covered her face, shaking her head as she trembled with laughter. Chris went over and scooped her up, kissing her cheeks and blowing a raspberry against her baby soft skin. She giggled harder and tried to push him away, but he just held her tighter. "I love you."

"I love you too," Chris said.

"Flynnie, come in here so you can get dressed!" Stephanie called down the hallway. Flynn stuck her head out of her room and reluctantly walked down the hallway. "Don't give me that face, missy. You knew we were going out."

"I don't wanna," Flynn said.

"You can tell everyone there how much you love Daddy and his wrestling," Stephanie said enticingly. She figured if Flynn was her adorable self, people would love her. Plus, if she talked about how much she loved her Daddy's wrestling, it might take the edge off those who wouldn't vote for her mother based on her background as an executive for the company.

"Oh, okay then!" Flynn skipped the rest of the way into the room. "Do I gets to wear the purple dress, Mommy?"

"You can either wear the purple dress or you can wear overalls, it's your choice," Stephanie told her. "You can wear the overalls we bought you yesterday if that's what you want to wear since they're both new."

"Hmm," Flynn pinched her face. "Dress."

"Okay, dress it is, stand up on the bed," Stephanie directed her as she got the dress off the dresser where it had been sitting with the overalls. Flynn got herself undressed as Stephanie helped her get into her dress. When she was through with getting that done, Stephanie pulled her hair back into a ponytail. "Okay, go put some shoes on."

"Got it," Flynn said.

"Sawyer, are you ready?"

"Yes, Mommy," Sawyer said, walking down the hallway and into the room. He was in a button down short-sleeved shirt and nice pants. "Do I look okay?"

"You look great," Stephanie said, "we have a great-looking family."

"Thanks to me," Chris said cockily.

"Shove it, ego-man," Stephanie said. "I think we are ready to go."

Her mother had a hired car come pick them up so they didn't have to fuss with anything. The only thing they had to do was get the kids' booster and car-seats into the car. Then they were on their way. Chris felt like such an idiot going to something like this, but when Stephanie grabbed his hand, somehow, it made it all better. She pulled his hand into her lap and set her head on his shoulder.

"Thank you for doing this," she told him. "I know it's not your thing, but I just want to thank you for doing this. I'm sure my mom is just as grateful."

"You know I'd do anything for you," he whispered to her.

"I know you would, that's what makes you such a special man," she told him, snuggling up to his even more. "You are so earning points right now."

"Will these points be redeemable later?" he wondered.

"I think so," she told him, kissing his neck. "It'll be nice to see Shane and Rissa though. I feel like we haven't seen them in forever."

"It's probably because we haven't," Chris told her, "you've been busy with the company, I've been busy with wrestling and Fozzy, while your brother has been so busy getting his new endeavor off the ground. He's put a lot of work into that."

"I know, he's proud of it though. He says that it's something he did on his own without Dad's help so it's something special to him. You know, this is going to sound crazy, but I kind of wonder what that's like."

"What what's like?" he asked her.

"To build something like that," Stephanie said, "to have something that was just my own. Something my father hasn't touched."

"Well, in a way, don't you think the kids are like that?" Chris asked. "I mean, you carried them, you raise them, you have a huge part in how they'll turn out, for better or worse. Don't you think that counts?"

"Yes, but it's not the same," Stephanie said, "I mean, it's not like that's not mandatory. They're my kids. I mean just having an idea, executing it and all of that. I always wanted to have a dance studio. I'm kind of jealous of Trish because she has the yoga studio, and you have your training facility."

"I'm just an investor really," he told her. "If you want a dance studio, open one, it's not like you can't do it. Hell, it's not like you can't do this and the company at the same time."

"I guess," she shrugged. "I was just thinking about it. I love my job."

"I know you do," he kissed the top of your head.

When they arrived at the restaurant Linda had rented out, Chris helped the kids out of the car while Stephanie went on ahead. She was anxious to see her brother after not seeing him for a while. When she saw him, it was Marissa who squealed and made her way quickly over to Stephanie. She hugged her sister-in-law like it had been years since they'd last seen each other.

"Oh, you look fantastic," Marissa said as she pulled away from Stephanie.

"Thanks, so do you," Stephanie said.

"Where are the kids? I want to see those little girls so I can be deathly jealous you've got two and I've got none," Marissa joked.

"Don't tell me you want to try again?" Stephanie asked, giving her sister-in-law a look.

"God no, I think I have my hands full as it is," she shook her head at the thought of adding another child to the mix. The thought alone was frightening, she had all the children she could handle at this point.

"Hi!" Flynn flounced inside, her skirt trailing a little bit behind her.

"Hello there," Marissa said, abandoning Stephanie for her niece. Shane came over and hugged his sister.

"So I heard you were letting Dad actually do stuff again," Shane told her, "that's got to be a trip, huh?"

"Oh, yeah, believe me, he had to do some pretty hard convincing to let me do it," Stephanie said, "but in the end, I think it's for the best, if he's sincere, you know. I mean, there's no telling whether or not he's actually telling the truth. This is dad, he very well could be lying straight to my face."

"That's true, but I think he's telling the truth. I see him a lot more than you do and I think he's being sincere. He's missed it, you know. I know you had nothing to do with getting him ousted, the board did," he gave his sister a sidelong glance, which smacked of someone who knew she had a hand in this, "This will give him something to do."

"You're right, big brother," Stephanie said, with slight derision because she didn't need to be told what to do. "I'm just glad you're not around to share the power with me, that's all."

"You would be," Shane shook his head. "So are we allowed to come along to No Way Out on Sunday or are we all banned?"

"Very funny, only Chris can't come," Stephanie said, "but he's okay with it. He's going to visit some friends in New York on Sunday so he won't feel left out."

"I still can't believe you suspended him."

"_You_ can't believe it," Chris chuckled, "I'm the one who still can't believe it. My own wife, suspending me like I'm a nobody. Like I'm some kind of trash off the street."

Shane chuckled, "I know, man, she's harsh."

"I do what I have to do," Stephanie glared at them both.

"I can't even come to the shows," Chris complained good-naturedly. "I mean, do you know how awkward it is when my one year old daughter can go to the show, but I won't be let in through the door."

"You knew what you were getting into when you married her," Shane told him, which earned a big sigh and then a punch to the side from Stephanie. "Okay, you two, cut it out, it's supposed to be wedded bliss and extra careful parenting today because we have to be the perfect family."

"I am perfect so I don't know what you're talking about," Chris said.

"Oh, excuse me," Shane said.

"Oh good, you're all here," Linda said, rushing into the back. "I'm so glad you made it. You all look beautiful."

"I look beautifullest though, right, Grandma?" Flynn asked, stepping forward in her pretty dress. She was the one who looked the best, she'd declared it as soon as she walked in. Everyone else couldn't look nearly as pretty as she did.

"Very much so," Linda told her kindly. "Okay, everyone is here and mingling so it's showtime!"

"What have I signed myself up for," Chris sighed as he grabbed Stephanie's hand.

"A lifetime of McMahons, baby, a lifetime of McMahons."

Chris slogged his way through Linda's introductions and mingling through the crowd of people, a lot of whom actually knew who he was. There was a lot of stuffy people there, some who looked at him strangely when he told them he was a musician and a wrestler. The tattoo on his hand didn't go unnoticed either, though he had his wedding ring on so the other tattoo on his hand did go unnoticed. He kept trying to find Stephanie, who had Kensington with her, using her to maximum cuteness.

He had the spitfire with him, who was insistent upon telling everyone who her daddy was, which was adorable in its own way, but Flynn liked to talk and he could tell some of the people really wanted to get away from this talkative little girl. Linda had with her Declan and Sawyer, using her two oldest in each family to represent her grandchildren. She really couldn't have two more perfect grandchildren to do that with. Declan had very much the same temperament as Sawyer, probably from being the oldest child so they were representing very well for their grandmother.

"It's only a few more hours," Stephanie whispered in passing when she saw Chris looking bored out of his mind.

"I'm going to get you back for this somehow," Chris winked at her.

"I'd like to see you try."

That Sunday, Chris was off to New York while Stephanie and the kids were off to No Way Out. Because it was only an hour away, Stephanie decided to drive herself and the kids. Her father, brother, Marissa, and the boys were all taking a limo to the event, but the thought of spending an hour in a car with her family was not an appealing one so she drove herself. She arrived earlier than they did anyways since she needed to work. She was in the middle of this work when Hunter walked in.

"Hey," Stephanie said dully, pretending to be occupied with work. She had unofficially stopped talking to Hunter unless it had to do with work. He was still playing innocent so she still had no proof whatsoever to his claims. Besides, he had a contract for his job so she couldn't fire him because he was a liar. There was no due cause, but that didn't mean she had to converse with him. He hadn't seemed to notice though, which she found a little odd, but didn't say anything about.

"I wanted to talk to you about something."

Stephanie thought this was it. This was Hunter about to tell the truth. He was going to come clean, and then she would punch him in the face. She knew it probably wouldn't do a lot of damage, but it would be cathartic for her if she could just watch the stunned look on his face as her fist connected with it. The man had taken harder hits, but those hits didn't have the power she had behind it.

"Okay," she told him, setting her pen down, her fingers twitching as she regarded him.

"Where are the kids?" he asked, looking around. "Does Chris have them?"

"They're with my brother and Marissa," Stephanie explained, "they just arrived and took them off my hands for a little while."

"It's gotta be nice having the family here," Hunter took a seat across from her. "So I've been thinking about this Brock situation and I don't want to leave it as is. I don't want that guy to get one over on the company, you know what I mean."

Stephanie cocked her head to the side. _That's _what he wanted to talk about. "What did you want to do?"

"I want to challenge him to a match at SummerSlam. Call him out, or smoke him out, whatever. I just want to do this, show him we're the ones in charge, that he doesn't call the shots."

"Fine, sure, go ahead," Stephanie nodded. "If he chooses to, it'll be a great match I guess."

She knew she was acting cold, but she didn't care. She thought he was going to say something of substance, not just announce he wanted to challenge someone to a match. Hunter, for his part, thought this could be part of a self-inflicted penance. He believed, if he had this match, he might alleviate some of the guilt he felt over what he'd done. Not letting Brock get away with that he did was a step in the right direction.

He knew the real right direction would be telling the truth, but he'd never been good at that. He'd never been a good guy. He'd been a ruthless guy, yes, but never the good guy. He wasn't some goddamned hero like Chris was. Chris would do anything for Stephanie without a second though, something Hunter never did when he was married to Stephanie. He never put her first, which is why she probably left him. Wait, scratch that, he'd been the selfish one again that time, not seeing what his wife was trying to do, and instead, he'd dumped her on television, left her a heaping, crying, scary mess in the middle of the ring.

He'd never told anyone, not a soul, not Stephanie, not Shawn, not his mother, not anyone that part of the reason he'd drugged Stephanie and married her was because he was honestly attracted to her. He'd had a crush on her since the moment he met her, but he'd kept it buried, hidden, because he'd been a rookie back then, a nobody really, and she was somebody. Stephanie was always a somebody. He was a damn liar, and this was no exception. He wanted redemption, but the truth was too much. He knew how they'd react, and he couldn't risk it, wouldn't risk everything to come clean.

"I think so," he said, his guilt so overwhelming he didn't notice Stephanie's behavior as out of the ordinary. "If he's too chicken to do it, then he'll have to face the fact he's scared of me. I'm not scared of him. I think he'll take the match. If he doesn't, we'll just take him to court and he'll be out of a lot of money when we win."

"Yeah, he wouldn't stand a chance," Stephanie said. "If you want time at the show, just tell Britt, she'll pencil you in. I'm sure we can spare a moment for you to announce it."

"Thanks, I really appreciate that, and letting me have the time and the match."

"I'm sure it'll be good, a real headline event," she said with a hint of sarcasm he didn't pick up on. "I have a lot of stuff to do before the show starts. My dad is here so I want to be on top of my game, you know, just in case."

He nodded, leaving without a word and Stephanie sighed as the door closed. She moved her neck around, trying to get rid of the tension as the door opened again. She expected it to be Hunter again, wanting something else, but it was her brother instead. He smiled at her and sat where Hunter had just been sitting.

"It's weird being back," he confessed to her as he looked around the office, like it was something he was so familiar with when he'd actually probably never been in there before. "I mean, I always thought it would feel like home coming back, but it's not like that. It's almost like a foreign feeling."

"How have people been treating you?" Stephanie asked with a smile, wondering what it was like for her brother. She kind of had a sense of it, since three times she'd been forced away from work. But when she came back, it was to work, not just to observe.

"The same for the most part," he shrugged, "I mean, they kind of treat me more as an equal now rather than a boss, but I guess it's because I can't fire any of them."

"Of course you could, you're still a McMahon, you still have a stake in the company," she scoffed, wondering if people still knew that Shane owned part of the company. "I bet Dad is swaggering around."

"You know he is," Shane said, "I still think it was great of you, what you did for him. He's really getting back to his old self, for better or for worse."

"Knowing Dad, it's for worse," Stephanie laughed.

"So I just saw Hunter leave, what did he want?"

"To wrestle Brock, call him out, I said yes, maybe Brock will knock him out, who knows," Stephanie shrugged as Shane crinkled his eyebrows together.

"What's going on?'

"Oh, it's nothing."

"It doesn't sound like nothing though," Shane said, "I'm still your big brother, if someone is hassling you, I'll take care of them right now. I'm not afraid to do it. Does Hunter like, want you back or something?"

Stephanie actually guffawed, letting out a high-pitched snort as she laughed, "Want me back? Please, that ship has _so_ sailed. People need to stop thinking like it's 2002 and there's even a remote possibility I'd want that man back. I found myself a better man."

"I'd say he found you, but I guess that would be getting into semantics. Honestly, I think you're just lucky that guy has stayed with you for so long. What's it going to be next month?"

"Ten years," Stephanie beamed like she was an angel or something. Shane shook his head at his sister's delight while internally being proud of her. When she was younger, Stephanie had been impetuous and foolhardy, letting her stubbornness drive her far too often. She still carried that stubbornness like nobody's business, but Chris loved her for it, and that had to be some kind of rarity because his sister could get seriously annoying when she was stubborn.

"Wow, who knew anyone could put up with you for that long," Shane said in a way only a brother could. Stephanie frowned at him, but it was playful, like only a little sister could do. "So what's up with Hunter then?"

"Well, we think he's a liar."

"Who's the we?"

"Chris, Punk, and me," Stephanie answered. "Not too long ago, Hunter told Chris that Punk was using our kids to get closer to Britt. Punk had or has, I'm not sure if he still has it, a thing for Britt. Anyways, Chris got pissed at Punk because you don't use our children, only, Punk didn't do that…we think it was Hunter. I'm waiting for him to fess up, but he's not, but we don't know of any other explanation for what happened."

"Sounds like something he'd do," Shane said with a mirthless chuckle. "Sounds exactly like something he'd do."

"I can't fire him, I gave him a contract, but that doesn't mean I have to be happy to talk to him," Stephanie said. "I think Brock should take him out, maybe he'll take him out for a while. I don't appreciate lies being told, especially lies that hurt my kids. Flynn was devastated when she couldn't talk to Punk."

"She likes him?"

"She loves him, him and Sheamus are her two favorite guys around here," Stephanie laughed.

"Quite the taste your daughter has," Shane laughed, "Sheamus?"

"She was extremely upset when Chris lost to him, and Sheamus came to make her feel better. She's loved him ever since. He's a doll with her, with all of them really. He calls Flynn 'Little Miss,' it's adorable," Stephanie said.

"It sounds like everything is going well around here."

"You know, I like to think I'm doing a good job."

"You're not," Shane shook his head and Stephanie glared at him.

"Excuse you?"

"You're doing a _great_ job. Everyone knows it, even Dad."

"Yeah, right."

"Believe me, Steph, you haven't heard him lately. I know you took control from Dad. I know you did, I don't know how you did it, but I know you did it. There's no way that you weren't waiting in the wings, rubbing your fingers together like a spider waiting to catch the fly. How'd you do it, Steph?"

"I'm never telling," she smirked, letting her brother know he was right in his assessment, but she would never tell exactly how the company had come into her hands. "What's Dad been like though?"

"Well, you know he was kind of working with Laurinaitis, at least at first," Shane said and Stephanie nodded. Shane knew she wasn't that stupid. "Well, after he saw how you were doing, the work you put in, he couldn't ignore the fact that you were doing a great job. He talked about you a lot whenever Rissa and I came over. He would talk about how committed you were, how you took everything on, how headstrong you were. He was proud of you. We all are."

"Thanks, it's kind of different from the last time I took control, huh?"

"A lot different, all I'm saying is we're all proud of the job you're doing, and you should be proud of yourself."

"I am," Stephanie said, "I am."

Punk plunked down next to Britt, "I think you're my only friend around here. All my other friends don't wrestle, don't wrestle here anymore, or are complete douchebags now who I have to face later."

"Or you're just finding an excuse to talk to me, Phil," Britt tells him. "You constantly come find me when I'm at shows—"

"Like I told you, only friend," he purses his lips together and gives her that incredulous look of his. "So, are you as excited as I am to finally see old Clown Shoes get fired?"

"You're awfully cocky for someone who doesn't know the outcome of the match," Britt tells him.

"I know Cena will win, he's a damn superhero, don't you read the websites," Punk told her, acting all covert like this was something taboo.

"The same ones who said you were tweeting things you supposedly didn't tweet?"

He made an angry face, "I so angry, I make bad tweets. People are fools, they'll believe anything. They never look for the validity of things. Sometimes something bad is happening right in front of your face, but you're just not able to see it."

He didn't mean for it to turn into a subtle message to her, but that's what it ended up as. He wanted so desperately for Britt to know the truth, but he couldn't be the guy to tell her. They were friends again, which was fine with him, but he could guarantee that if he tried to tell Britt what Hunter _might_ have done, she will not believe him, and will possibly hate him for it. He can't do that to her, he _won't_ do that to her. Only Hunter can do that, and if it breaks her heart, then it's going to be Hunter's fault, not his.

"I'm not stupid," Britt said to him, turning towards him. "I know that even though we're friends, you don't think Hunter is right for me. I get that."

"I'm not saying a thing, not a damn thing," Punk told her. "Besides, I have AJ, right?"

She laughed at that and Punk smiled because he was able to make her laugh. There was something about making her laugh that seemed to lighten the mood. She was a little stupid, though, because she continued to love a man who would do anything to get his own way. Still, she deserved a good laugh every once and again. He didn't take Hunter for the comedy type.

"Do you?"

"Sort of, maybe," Punk shrugged. "The girl is crazy. I really think she's certifiable, but then, I kind of think she's an Eve."

"An Eve?"

"You know, manipulating the guys until she gets what she wants," Punk said, "there's just something about the way she acts."

"How do you feel about her though?"

"A little annoyed," Punk answered. "I don't know, she's young, you know, pretty young, but she is pretty, and I've dated worse, I've definitely dated worse."

"That sounds like a story."

"For another time, not when I actually have to defend my title," Punk said, "I guess I have this hero complex because I constantly think I can save a girl, you know what I mean."

"It means you care," Britt said.

"I'm just not sure AJ is someone I want to care _about_. It's not even that she's weird, which she is, I mean, she sometimes has cool moments, it's just…I don't even know, she's cute, you know."

"You sound like you like her, which would be easy if she wasn't trying to flirt with the guys you're going up against, right?" Britt said knowingly, to which Punk stared at the table in front of him. "I thought so. Here's the thing though, maybe she's only doing that to help _you_."

"How do you figure?"

"She's throwing them off their game for you," Britt said, toying with a piece of her hair. "It's kind of sweet if you think about it in that sense. She's trying to make them think about her and not the match, then, when the time comes, she'll really help you. It's romantic, a grand gesture if you will."

"It's stupid, Kane could probably literally break her in half," Punk said sarcastically.

"That may very well be," Britt said, "but in case you haven't noticed, he's intrigued by her. Now, I've gone back and watched old shows since you really can't work here and not know some of the history, and this kind of feels like what happened between him and Tori."

"Wow, what an observation," Punk told her jokingly. Britt shoved at his shoulder a little bit, but Punk hardly moved, laughing at her attempt to hurt him.

"I'm just saying, he let her in, he cared about her, and she used him to help someone else," Britt shrugged, "granted she was forced to, but that's beside the point. AJ should know this stuff, it's obvious she knows her wrestling history. Maybe she's using something she knows will work. Kane is a damaged guy, but underneath that is a sensitive heart."

"When did you turn into a psychiatrist?" he asked her.

"When it's convenient," she told him, giving him a very serious face she couldn't keep up for very long. "Now, we both have lots to do and I don't think you want to spend all evening sitting around with me when you have a big match."

"Oh come on, you know you like my company."

"You keep telling yourself that," she told him, but then she turned serious, her eyes flitting over towards him, "Hunter hates that we're hanging out."

"I don't care what he thinks, only what you think…which is?"

"I'm the same way. I just thought I'd let you know before he bores holes into your head one day," she tells him. "You should ask AJ out, show her that you're an even better guy than she first thought."

"Maybe," he said noncommittally. He doesn't want to get involved right now, even though he knows AJ would be putty in his hands if he so desired. He just wasn't sure he so desired. He knew he was waffling, but if AJ made clear her intentions…and didn't act so creepy, it would be much easier. "Maybe I'll ask her out for dinner after my match."

"Finally, progress!" Britt exclaimed, throwing her hands in the air.

"Why is it so important to you that I find someone" he asked earnestly.

"I think it'll ease some of the guilt I feel over making you think…things," she looked him in the eyes, all apologies and regret. He felt bad for her and he reached out to pat her hand rather awkwardly. "Don't be nice now, it'll only make me feel worse."

"Don't feel worse," he told her. "I think it's actually pretty sweet what you're doing. I'm just not sure about AJ, but we'll see."

"Well, either way, I just want you to be happy."

"And I appreciate that."

Flynn walked down the hallway like she owned the place. Her cousin Kenny was walking beside her, holding her hand, looking around. Flynn spotted Sheamus up ahead and she squealed happily, "Sames!" She turned to her cousin and said matter-of-factly. "That my friend, Sames."

"Hello, Little Miss," Sheamus said, coming over, "and who is this fella?"

"This my cousin, Kenny," Flynn introduced him, "he here to watch you wrestles. You gonna beat Dolphin right?"

Sheamus chuckled at Flynn's name for Dolph. "I'm sure going to try. I think if you give me a good luck wish, I'll definitely win."

"Good luck then!" Flynn told him, hugging him with one arm without letting go of her cousin.

"Thank you, now I know I'll win," Sheamus winked at her before he got up to leave.

"I friends with everyone," Flynn told her cousin very seriously.

"You are," Kenny said, definitely impressed with her.

"I know," Flynn said, "Auntie Rissa, can we go sees Mommy now?"

"Sure, Flynnie, we can, come on," she said, guiding her niece and son towards Stephanie's office while holding Kensington in her arms.

Stephanie picked up her phone on the second ring. "Stephanie McMahon-Jericho."

"Hello, Mrs. Jericho, this is Mr. Jericho requesting a moment of your time," said the very stern voice on the other end.

"What's going on, Chris?" Stephanie asked. "I'm running short on time and I have to get to the gorilla. My dad is here, everything has to go perfect."

"Okay, I'll make it quick then," Chris said, "I was thinking about my suspension and my return. You know I was thinking about not coming back until after the tour."

"Yeah, what about it?" Stephanie asked wearily, fully expecting Chris not to come back.

"Book me for next week, baby, I'm coming back," he told her.

"Oh thank God." She was so relieved. She'd feared that because of the suspension, Chris would just go ahead and take the time off until the Uproar tour. To hear that he wasn't going to leave again was music to her ears. The show needed Chris, it desperately needed him, and some nights she would stay up cursing herself for suspending him in the first place.

"Well that's the response I like to hear," he joked. "I just wanted to let you know, in case you wanted to do something for it, hint, hint."

"Actually, now that you mention it, I've got the perfect thing."

"What is it?" he asked curiously.

"That's for me to know and you to find out."

When Punk had his interview and AJ came up to kiss him, he didn't necessarily feel sparks. There was something there, but it was warm and nice, not fire and sparks and everything a kiss should be. Granted, it was pretty tame, but he didn't know, there just wasn't a lot there. There was something there though, something that might be worth exploring. AJ was weird, she was scary, she was so much, too much sometimes, but he'd grown a soft spot for her, one where, when he saw her at work, he smiled to himself over her.

That was quickly remedied when he saw her do the same thing for Bryan and for Kane. Yes, this girl was whack. He should have seen it, she was wacky, out of her mind, cray-cray as the kids might say. Whatever he felt seemed to go out the window. She was playing someone, two guys really, but he just couldn't figure out who she was being truthful with. He didn't think it was him though. He wasn't going to get caught up in another love…square this time?

His match didn't make it any easier. There she was again, interfering _again_. On his behalf no less, but then, she got knocked to the apron and Kane was the one to carry her away. Whatever Britt said about Kane might be true. No man would carry someone they didn't at least marginally want. He was confused by his feelings, but he was even more confused by whatever the hell AJ felt.

By the time the main event rolled around, Stephanie was a bundle of nerves. The kids were back with Marissa, and she was at the production table, conducting traffic so to speak. Her father, who'd suffered a concussion at the hands of Big Show insisted on being out there, and she hoped it was the right decision for her father to be out there. She'd never wanted Cena to win more than she did right now.

"Dad, you shouldn't be out there."

"I'm fine, Stephanie, don't worry about me, just worry about all of this," he gestured towards the board in front of her. "Anything Laurinaitis tries to dish, I can take it. I may be a retired, and a grandfather doesn't mean I can't kick the occasional ass."

"Fine, but be careful."

Her father wasn't exactly careful, not that she expected him to be, but by the time the night was over, something had come over Stephanie. It was calm. It was peace. It was the knowledge that John Laurinaitis was fired and out of her life. She couldn't believe it had actually worked. She couldn't believe that a match was going to be his undoing. A grin started slowing at the corners of her mouth before turning up more and more and more until she found her cheeks hurting from all the grinning. For months, she'd hated Laurinaitis, fought with him, gave into him, and through it all, he'd stayed. But not tonight, no, not tonight because tonight was special. It had ended on a high note, the highest of notes really.

John Laurinaitis was fired.


	375. Suspended No More, June 18 and 25, 2012

A/N: Just a reminder this is both Raw from last week and Raw from this week. Enjoy. :)

* * *

"Daddy, guess what?"

"What?" Chris asked.

"I get to go to Raw and you don't!" Flynn pointed and laughed at him, dancing a little bit like this was all some big joke, which to her, it was.

"Wow, you're mean," Chris pretended to pout, folding his arms across his chest and jutting his lip out.

"I'm sorry," Flynn giggled. She climbed up onto the couch and hugged Chris around the neck. "Are you comin' back?"

"Yup, I'm going to be back next Monday," Chris explained to her. "I bet you'll be excited to see me, won't you?"

"Uh huh, I like seeing you," Flynn snuggled up to him. "Are you going to wrestle?"

"I'm not sure yet." He wasn't exactly sure _how_ he was going to handle this return. It wasn't like before, when there was a lot of time between his returns. He'd never been injured badly enough that he had to take substantial time off, and he'd certainly never been suspended before. He wasn't sure how this was going to go. Did he just go and act like nothing happened? Did he address the crowd? Would Stephanie want him to? He just wasn't sure how this was going to be handled, but he was sure he'd figure out something, and if he didn't, surely Stephanie would have something for him to do.

"Flynnie, if we're going to go to the show, you have to go put your shoes on," Stephanie said as she showed up in the doorway. "Hey, so you think you and Kensy can hold the fort down while we're gone?"

"Of course we can," Chris said, winking at Kensington, who was sitting on the floor, staring up at him while she played with a stuffed animal. "Kensy and I are going to have a really great time without you guys."

"Well, we're going to have a better time without _you_," Stephanie countered, sticking her tongue out. "Come on, Flynnie, go get your shoes on."

"You wanna kiss Daddy," Flynn said knowingly, "you wanna kiss him lots and lots."

"Wow, you could not be more wrong, Flynnie," Stephanie shook her head playfully as Flynn skipped out of the room. Stephanie pat her daughter on the back of the head as she walked past her, grinning her cheesy grin, which was so reminiscent of Chris's grin when he was in the same mood.

"I think she's got you pegged," Chris said as Kensington stood up and walked towards Stephanie, whining lightly. Stephanie bent down to pick up her youngest daughter, nuzzling her nose against Kensington's soft cheek.

"Nope, this is the person I want to kiss lots and lots and lots," Stephanie said, giving Kensington a series of pecks to her cheek. "So…my dad proposed something last night and he brought it up with me and the Board of Directors, and actually, I think it's a really good idea, is it weird that my dad and I are getting along?"

"Of course not," Chris said, opening up his arms to her. Stephanie hesitated for a moment before she walked over to him and sat in his lap. He shifted to accommodate for both Kensington and Stephanie. "I think it's great the two of you are getting along. They're your family, you should try to get along. We're all adults, right?"

"Yeah, I just feel weird about it," Stephanie said, "I'm just always waiting for the other shoe to drop. It's kind of like when we were first together, and I was constantly wondering when we'd revert back to the people we were, you know, before we started liking each other."

"I get it," Chris told her, "You just think things are going too well, but I think your dad is being genuine. Granted, I haven't seen him in action since I'm _banned_ from the shows, but from what you've told me and what Shane has told me, I think he just needs to feel wanted."

"I think so too," Stephanie said. "Well, what my father was proposing, since Laurinaitis is _finally_ off our backs—"

"Hurray!" Chris gave a little cheer, pumping his fist into the air and making Kensington laugh.

"Silly Daddy!" Kensington cooed as pulled at Chris's arm.

"Anyways," Stephanie pretended to glare at both father and daughter, "my father was saying that we should invite various old GM's to fill in until a permanent solution is figured out. I thought it was a good idea and since the show is near Long Island, Mick would be the best choice."

"That's fine with me," Chris nodded. "Not that I really have a say, but that should be good."

"I thought so," Stephanie nodded. "You do know though, that at some point, Austin _may_ be one of the GM's we invite, right?"

Chris groaned, "Why do you have to invite that guy?"

Chris was never going to get over his grudge for Austin. There was no way he was going to get over it. He didn't care if Sawyer tested for the highest IQ in the world, he was never getting over that incident, and Stephanie knew better than to try. She took in the tight set of his jaw, the way it always clenched whenever Austin was brought up. Stephanie reached out and ran her hand down his face, caressing his jaw slowly, watching it as it relaxed reluctantly.

"We haven't decided yet, but the fans love him, you know this," Stephanie told him gently. "All I'm doing is warning you that it might happen, and if and/or when it does, I need you to be on your best behavior. I know you will forever hate the guy, but I just wanted to give you time now to get all the anger out of your system."

"Stephanie," he said, his voice clearly in warning mode. "You weren't the one who had to watch you crumple to the ground, okay, so please, let me just hold onto my anger."

"I am."

"Wait, if it's all the ex-GM's," a thought suddenly dawned on him and his eyes lit up. "Wait, that means at some point _you_ have to be the GM, right, _right_?" He was like an eager, little boy when he thought of it and Stephanie gazed at him coyly.

"Mommy, we're ready," Sawyer said from the door. He was all dressed up for the show, with his shoes on. Flynn came into view and it was immediately noticeable that she was wearing one purple sneaker and one blue sneaker.

"Flynnie, why are you wearing two different shoes?" Stephanie asked.

"I like it," Flynn told her with a shrug.

"My daughter is a fashion plate, get over it," Chris told her, "so as I was saying, you have to be, right?"

"What does Mommy have to be?" Sawyer asked, scampering over to the couch, eager to be included in the conversation. Now that he was out of school and was traveling, he wanted to be in on everything.

"Nothing," Stephanie said, "come on, we've got a little bit of a drive ahead of us, everyone's been to the bathrooms, right?"

"I have," Sawyer said, "I don't have to go anymore."

"What about you, Flynnie?"

"Hmm, I can go," Flynnie said, disappearing again.

"Okay, I better come help you then," Stephanie said, following her daughter. "I'll be right back, baby boy."

"Stephanie, you didn't answer the question," Chris called out to her.

Stephanie looked over her shoulder and gave a one-shouldered shrug with a sweet, but deadly smile to compliment the look. "Well, that's for me to know and you to find out, isn't it?"

"Tease," Chris called out after her with a laugh.

Stephanie stood at the doorway as Mick came in. She extended a hand and warm smile to the man, something that would have been so foreign twelve years ago. Back then, this man had been one of her then husband's biggest adversaries. The two men had fought valiantly with one another, Mick trying to take down the evil Triple H. They'd both mellowed out since then, both her and Mick, and she could greet him now with a friendly smile as her daughter stood there, wrapping a hand around Stephanie's leg and looking up at the bushy-faced man.

"Mick, it's so nice to see you again," Stephanie told him.

"Nice to see you too," Mick told her, "Wow, your kids are getting so big."

"Hi, Mr. Foley," Sawyer said politely, sticking his hand out to shake the older man's hand. Mick leaned down and shook his hand.

"You are just the spitting image of your dad, I bet you like wrestling too, don't you?"

"I love it," Sawyer beamed, loving the comparison to his father. Lots of people told him he looked like his father, but it never got old hearing it. He wanted to be just like his daddy because his daddy was the best in the world at everything he did. "But not as much as Flynnie does. She loves wrestling a lot."

"Hey, Flynn," Mick said to her. Flynn was just studying him. She wasn't a shy, little girl so obviously something was on her mind. "I don't think I've seen you since you were really little. At least littler than you are now."

"Oh," Flynn said, her face still concentrated, her lips pursed as she perused his face.

"Is she shy?" Mick asked.

"Flynnie, no," Stephanie scoffed. The last word anyone would use to describe Flynn was shy. This little girl would absolutely go out and talk to the crowd if she was given a microphone. Flynn was just thinking. "What are you thinking about, Flynnie?"

"I know you," Flynn said, which she said to pretty much every wrestler she ever encountered. Suddenly, her face brightened as she obviously remember, "You lost your tooth and it went in your _nose_."

She erupted into a fit of giggles because she remembered watching a match where his tooth was in his nose! It was so funny! Her laugh was infectious and pretty soon Sawyer was laughing too, which prompted Stephanie to laugh, and Mick smiled kindly at the little girl, amused that she would know that match. Of course her parents would show her old matches, but he figured it wouldn't be so broad.

"That's right, it did," Mick told her.

"How did it get there?" Sawyer asked.

"You know what, I don't even know," Mick told them, which made them both laugh again. "I guess it just wanted to go up my nose."

"Teeth don't think!" Flynn exclaimed.

"How do you know?" Mick asked. "Maybe your teeth are thinking right now, maybe they're thinking about…food."

Flynn was in near hysterics now, which only made Stephanie laugh harder at her daughter. "Thanks, Mick, now I'm never going to get her to stop laughing."

"Then my work here is done," Mick told her. "I just have to say, you look to be doing a really great job around here. I remember last time you were in charge, let's just say you were a little…bossier."

"I was also a lot younger and immature," Stephanie joked. "I just hope you'll do right by the show tonight. I'm pretty much giving you full reign, I'm sure you're caught up with our shows so you should know what's going on and who hates whom around here."

"I think I might."

"Also, we're going to give John the opportunity to give a little send-off message," Stephanie said smugly. That had been her own idea. She actually wanted to see if Laurinaitis would actually grovel. She really wanted to see him grovel and act like he needed a job. She knew he'd want to go back to his old Executive VP job, but she wasn't going to give it to him that easily. Her father had suggested leaving Chris at that post. Chris did a great job with handling people, and the wrestlers and divas felt like they really had someone on their side, even if Chris was married to Stephanie.

"I bet you're going to love that."

"Just slightly," Stephanie said, "but under no circumstances are you to hire him back."

"I wouldn't dream of it."

"Good, then I think we're both going to be very happy with the outcomes tonight," Stephanie said brightly.

"Actually, there is one thing I wanted to discuss. I called in a few favors and brought in a few people for the show. They're nobody terrible, actually you know them, but I just wanted to let you know."

"Oh, okay, that's fine. My dad actually invited Cyndi Lauper to the show, which is odd, but that's my dad for you," Stephanie said. Her father had been helpful towards her so she was giving him the benefit of the doubt. He wanted to help and he was doing so, but it wasn't in an obtrusive way. He was actually deferring to her when it came to decisions.

It was such a refreshing change from hating her father. Now when she saw him, she didn't feel like she had to put up her walls so they could fight. Her father wanted to help her, and she appreciated that, especially with Chris still suspended. Her father was supposed to be here tonight, but she hadn't seen him yet. She should talk to him though, but she had plenty of time for that later.

"Great, that fits in perfectly," Mick said cryptically.

"What do you have in mind?" Stephanie asked.

"Just watch the show and see."

Punk saw AJ standing in the hallway, staring at one of the pictures on the wall. He walked up to her and saw it was an old concert poster. He tapped her on the shoulder and she smiled up at him, her face brightening considerably. He wanted to talk to her about what happened the night before. It was just strange. Hell, this entire situation was strange, and he'd loved some answers to what she was up to, what her plan was here.

"So hey," Punk said slowly.

"Hey!" AJ clasped her hands in front of her and stood on her tiptoes, swaying a bit as she gave him a look that said, "I want to kill you in your sleep and then watch you for 100 years." He wasn't quite sure how to respond to a look like that.

"So, what the hell are you doing?" he asked her, not beating around the bush.

"I don't…understand," she said slowly, dipping her head a little bit as she regarded him. There was now something shrewd in her look, and it only reinforced that she knew exactly what she was doing.

"I think you do," he told her, but didn't make a move to explain, hoping she would start talking, but she just stood there, staring at him. "What kind of game are you playing with Daniel, Kane, and me?"

"Game? I don't play games, well, except for board games, those are fun," she shrugged her shoulders as if she didn't know what she was saying sounded crazy.

"You know what I'm talking about, I mean, thank God you didn't kiss me after you kissed Kane, but you do know this is weird, I mean, do you know?" he asked her. "You have to know this is weird, then last night, with Kane, what the hell was that?"

"I don't know what you mean."

"You were pretty much, well, I don't know, you made out with Kane, and you wished us all luck, and whatever, what are you doing?" he asked. "I mean, you know, do you even know what you're doing? It's kind of crazy, I mean, people think you're pretty crazy."

AJ covered her face, "Everyone hates me!"

Punk was taken aback by her outburst and he pulled away a little. Why did this woman always make him comfort her? He reached out his hand and awkwardly patted her on the back. "Uh, there, there, it's going to be okay."

She threw herself into his arms, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be like this. I didn't mean to hurt you!"

"I wasn't…hurt," he told her, patting her back again. "I just…it's weird."

"I hate myself!"

"No, no, no, don't hate yourself," he shook his head. "You shouldn't hate yourself. It'll be okay though. It'll be okay."

"No, it won't!"

"Um, okay," Punk pulled away. "Hey, so do you want to go to dinner or something? I mean, I feel bad now that I made you cry, so would you want to go to dinner after the show?"

AJ pulled away and she shook her head, "Oh no, I've got plans with Kane, but thanks, I'll see you later, bye, Punk!"

Her mood changed so quickly he was left there speechless. Had he been rejected for…Kane He wasn't sure what his ego was going to do with that one. Granted, it wasn't like he was completely into AJ, it was more like he felt pity for her, and didn't want to see her have a breakdown. Still, he thought he was much better than Kane so it really was a blow to his manliness. Besides, he probably didn't want Daniel Bryan's sloppy seconds, especially when it seemed like Bryan had broken AJ beyond repair.

"I just got rejected by AJ," he muttered to himself.

"Did you now?"

Punk looked over his shoulder, "I don't need your input, Stephanie."

"I wasn't giving input," she pretended to hate him since that whole thing was going on still, though Stephanie was going to have difficulties keeping it up. She was giving Hunter a week. She knew she'd given him ample time to give himself up already, but she wanted Chris here. The next week, they were going to confront Hunter and demand the truth from him.

"Sounded like you were," he said, "where are the rugrats?"

"With my father," Stephanie said, clutching the files she had in her hands to her chest. "So you got rejected by AJ, man, and here I thought you were actually a lady killer. I guess your reputation is going down the toilet."

Punk resisted the urge to laugh at her. He could see Stephanie's eyes shining, and he knew she wanted to laugh as well. Sometimes this thing between them, the secrets, really ended up just being high comedy. It was almost like when he played the fans for fiddles over Twitter. Occasionally he would pretend to offer tickets, and when the person got excited, he'd snatch the rug out from under them. Was it nice? No, but sometimes he wanted the fans to get a taste of their own bitter medicine. If he had to be under constant scrutiny, he didn't see why the fans couldn't be as well.

"Maybe you should go after someone your own speed next time," Stephanie said as she walked away. "Hey, I hear Mae Young is single."

Punk flipped her off, but walked away laughing.

"Grandpa, did you know Daddy's coming back next week?"

"I did know that, I bet you two are excited," Vince said to his grandchildren.

"I am," Sawyer nodded as he held onto Linda's hand. She'd taken the night off from her campaigning so she could spend time with her daughter and grandchildren. She wanted to spend as much time with them as possible and if that meant not being on the campaign trail for one night, then so be it. "Because when I get got out of school, Daddy couldn't wrestle so I haven't seen him yet."

"I just like him," Flynn shrugged her shoulders. "Do you like him, Grandpa?"

"I like him very much," Vince said.

"Did you _always_ like him, like me?" Flynn asked.

"I can't say that I always liked him," Vince said, "I wasn't too happy when he signed with WCW because I thought we were the better company."

"He was funny there," Flynn told him like she'd been there firsthand to observe the entire thing.

"But he didn't like it there because they didn't give him a chance to be a big guy," Sawyer added.

"Yes, I know, but he didn't work for me," Vince told her. "I didn't like that very much."

"But then he did," Sawyer said. "He said that he called Mr. JR and he asked if he could come work here, and then you didn't say yes yet, but then you said maybe, and he went over to your house, and Uncle Shane was there, and other guys were there, but Mommy wasn't there."

"Where was Mommy?" Flynn asked curiously, as if Vince would have known where Stephanie was on a random day 13 years ago.

"I'm not sure," Vince told her.

"Daddy said you didn't have Mommy there because Daddy would have kissed her," Sawyer said.

Linda laughed at the exchange and at what her son-in-law had told her grandson. "Well, I'm not sure if that would have happened."

"Uh huh," Sawyer nodded, "because they're married, so they would have kissed."

"They kiss lots and lots and lots and too much," Flynn said.

"I'm not sure your Mommy and Daddy want everyone knowing that," Linda joked with them. "Come on, I think you two are growing so fast, we need to get you some new t-shirts, your choice."

"Can we get one for Kensy?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah!" Flynn exclaimed. "Kensy need one too!"

"Of course we can."

Stephanie was pleased with how Mick handled Laurinaitis. It served him right to be booed, and she liked hearing the fans give it to him. It was the least he deserved. Of course he would try to pull a stunt like saying he'd made a match before he'd been fired, but she'd allow it tonight because she knew it would be the last she saw of him. She smirked to herself thinking about how nice it would be to have Laurinaitis gone. Of course, that meant she was going to deal with some strong personalities in former GM's, but they wouldn't last long if she could help it. Vickie was already angling to be the GM next week, which she'd probably do just to get it over with.

It finally felt like things were settling into place. She wasn't going to have someone trying to fight against her week in and week out, her husband was coming back from his suspension, and her father appeared to be on the same page. It was almost too good, but she was going to ride this wave until she couldn't any longer. There was no reason for her to go to her distrustful place so she wasn't going to go there. She was going to put her trust in other people for once.

Punk, unfortunately, could not do the same. He wanted to give AJ the benefit of the doubt, kind of wanted her to actually be into him so he could at least read her somewhat, but then she would show up at the end of a match wearing Kane's mask and skipping around the ring. Even Kane appeared confused (as far as Punk could tell, what with the mask and everything) and followed AJ after she decided to stop skipping around like she was on the playground.

Punk could not figure that girl out, and it was actually starting to distract him from wrestling a little bit. He was focused, sure, but when she interrupted, it was like she was interrupting his brain. He didn't like it. He wasn't even dating the girl, hadn't been on _one_ date with her, and she was invading his thoughts like she belonged there. She was just so strange, and like this weird puzzle he kind of wanted to figure out, but mostly wanted to shove back into the closet, in a dusty corner. He was kind of glad she was Kane's problem right now…and he was kind of mad he wasn't hers. Damn, he was so confused.

Kensington might have been the only one in her family not happy that Monday evening. She was extremely fussy, irritable, and just downright cranky. Chris had been walking around with her for half an hour, but nothing seemed to calm her down as she cried her eyes out. He figured it was because she was trying to stay up, but fighting sleep was making her angry. She was tired, but wanted to wait up for her brother and sister. Chris kept kissing the side of her head, but she kept pushing him away.

"I thought you were a big girl now," Chris told her. Kensington shook her head as she pouted at him, her eyes glassy with unshed tears. His daughter was so beautiful and so sad-looking at the same time. "Oh, so you're still just my baby then?"

"Uh huh," she nodded pathetically, her lip jutting out even more as she perfected that, "I'm so sad, please hug me tighter, Daddy" look.

"You have to calm down, Kensy-bug," Chris whispered to his daughter as he tried to watch wrestling at the same time. "Shh, Sawyer and Flynn will be here tomorrow to play with you."

"Now!" Kensington cried, rubbing her nose against Chris's shirt.

"I know, I know, you want them now, but they're with Mommy at the show, they'll be back later, I promise." Kensington whimpered as the strength was starting to drain out of her. She was just so tired.

"Now," she said in a considerably lower tone.

"Yes, I know you want to talk to them, but you have to sleep now," Chris rubbed her back and nuzzled his cheek against her soft, light brown hair. "You just have to close your eyes and go to sleep."

"No," she tried to protest, but it wasn't working. Her daddy was just too warm and too persuasive. She loved being able to cuddle with her daddy, and he was holding her close, and she was so sleepy, but she wanted to see her Sawyer and her Flynn. It wasn't a lot of days where she had to go completely without them, and after her naptime, there was nobody to play with, and there was nobody but her and her daddy for dinner, and there was nobody to play with after dinner, and it was all very upsetting for her.

"Tomorrow you'll wake up, and everyone will be here, and you'll be happy," her murmured against her head as he rocked back and forth. Pretty soon after that, he could feel her breathing even out, signaling sleep had finally claimed his stubborn daughter. He sat back down on the couch gingerly, turning down the volume a little bit so it wouldn't wake up Kensington. He leaned forward on the couch so he could hear it better, mindful of Kensington's sleeping form melded to his chest.

As he watched, he slowly leaned back into the couch cushions, still very much comfy and not damaged with wear and tear since they hardly used this house. In Florida, everything they owned had a worn-in feeling because there were three kids constantly bombarding the furniture like a mini-air raid. It was just when he'd finally let his body sink into the cushions that he suddenly saw his own face on the television screen. He gave a short chuckle, then hastily looked down at Kensington to make sure he hadn't woken her, but she was a heavy sleeper anyways so she didn't move.

It was a video announcing his return, but also highlighting his gig at Download the previous week. He grinned as he saw himself, and he couldn't believe Stephanie (because it_ had_ to be Stephanie) would do something like this. Fozzy had been featured a few times over the years on the show, but it was always at his insistence. This time, he'd had no clue nor did he even know how Stephanie had received that footage. He grabbed his phone off the coffee table and dialed Stephanie's number.

"I've been expecting you, Mr. Jericho," she answered in a deep voice.

"Hey," he whispered.

"Ooh, secret, sexy voice, why are we whispering?" Stephanie asked.

"Because your daughter is asleep in my arms," Chris answered and heard Stephanie laughing in response. "She's been cranky all evening without her brother and sister here."

"My poor thing," Stephanie said sympathetically. "So she fell asleep on you?"

"Yeah, she wouldn't let me put her down. She's in her pajamas so when I'm sure she won't wake up, I'm putting her to bed," he explained, but then got down to the business of his call. "Where did you get that footage? How did you get that footage?"

"Chris, darling, sweetheart, love of my life, look who I am," Stephanie told him coyly and he growled as a response. She gave up the fight and told him, "I called Mark, asked if he had some video of the festival, he said he did. He sent it over this morning, and I had the video crew whip something up, you like?"

"I loved it, Steph, thank you."

"Well, it's the least I could do since I suspended you after all," she joked.

"Well, it's almost over, so I guess I can forgive you."

"Lucky me."

Chris pulled open the door to the arena in Fort Wayne and let out a relieved sigh, "I am not a number, I'm a free man!"

Sawyer, Flynn, and even Kensington looked up at their father strangely, but it was Sawyer who spoke first, "Daddy, what are you doing?"

"I need to introduce you to more music," Chris shook his head. "I'm just saying it's good to be back."

"I'm happy you're back," Sawyer grinned at him. "Now we can be all together."

"Yeah, I like that," Flynn said.

"I like it too," Stephanie smiled at him. "How does it feel to be off suspension?"

"Like I just got out of some weird prison," Chris laughed. "After being banned, now I'm back and I'm going to wreak havoc. I'm going to do something crazy, like, I don't know, kiss the next woman I see." He turned towards Stephanie, "Oh, here's one now." He leaned over and kissed her.

"You're crazy," she giggled.

"I'm just glad to be back. So who do I beat up?" his eyes lit up as he looked around. "Who's been bugging you?"

"You know who's been bugging me," she told him, her voice turning serious. He nodded imperceptibly at what they were planning to do tonight. She gave him a soft smile, filled with disappointment and regret over where there night would take them. She wished it wouldn't come to this, but she didn't know how else this could possibly end.

"Yeah, I somehow don't think that's going to happen," he told her quietly, but it did not escape the prying ears of his children.

"What's not going to happen?" Sawyer asked, wondering what was going on. Was his daddy not going to wrestle?

"Nothing, kid, you just get to enjoy tonight, okay?" Chris told him, ruffling his hair. "You get to see me come back, how cool is that?"

"You shouldn't have been suspended," Sawyer told him supportively.

Chris leaned down a little bit and stage-whispered, "You'll have to talk to your mom about that one. She was the one who handed out the suspension."

"Mommy, that's not nice," Sawyer told her, "but it's okay because Daddy is back."

"Now I just need to figure out where I belong," Chris winked at his wife.

Britt sat down, taking a bite out of her apple as she crossed her legs, reading over the schedule Vickie had dropped by earlier, with notes about things she wanted to do. Britt read as Vickie noted that she had lifted the ban of Brodus Clay from Raw. She must have talked with Stephanie or Chris to approve that one as it wasn't necessarily a GM's jurisdiction, though Laurinaitis had been given such free reign, he thought he could do something like that.

Hunter walked into the room, and Britt glanced up him, smiling briefly before going back to what she was reading, "Hey, sit with me a while," Britt said, nodding her head towards the seat next to her. Hunter came over and sat next to her. "I'm just looking over the schedule for tonight. The good thing about having former GM's is that they know what they're doing. They're not sloppy."

"That's nice," Hunter said shortly as Britt leaned into him. "Anything good?"

"John says he has something historic to announce tonight. I'm sure he'll let Stephanie know, but who knows with him, you know what I mean? He could just be announcing that he got a new color t-shirt. He's not exactly the master of words."

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"I mean that he thinks he's great on the mic out there, he thinks that he's got all the right words, but he doesn't, he's not like you," Britt told him, smiling at him as she cuddled deeper into his strong body. "I'm so proud of you for what you did last week with Heyman."

"You are?" he asked.

"Of course I am, you defended Stephanie. That was so sweet of you," Britt told him. "Plus, you told Brock and Heyman what was what. Brock _has_ to accept your challenge now. There's no way he's going to back down from this now. The entire world would think he was some kind of coward. I'm proud that you put yourself out there like that. Besides, the man broke your arm, the least you can do is return the favor."

She believed in him so much, it almost hurt his heart to think about the things he'd done. He put it out of mind though as he kissed the crown of her head, raking his fingers through his jet black hair. "Yeah, I'll try."

"Oh, I know you. You're not going to let him win," she laughed softly. "You're way too good for that."

"Thanks," he told her. "Anything else interesting going on?"

"Not really, just your same old, same old," Britt said, "people like each other, they hate each other, they want to beat up on each other."

"Sounds like you have everything under control."

"Another week, another round of keeping things in line," she said as someone knocked on the door, "Come in!"

"Hey guys," Chris said, sticking his head in.

"Aren't you a sight for sore eyes," Britt told him good-naturedly. "So tonight will be, what, your third comeback?"

"Very funny," Chris told her, "Stephanie wanted me to tell you that the Board of Directors actually said they would choose a new GM on July 23rd, so you have to pencil that in and tell Vickie to somehow fit that into the show."

"Got it," Britt said, making a note on the top sheet of paper. "Is that all?"

"Yeah, pretty much, except…Hunter, do you think you might want to go out to dinner tonight?" Chris asked. "It would just be me, you, and Stephanie. Vince is here again, and he's going to watch the kids after the show. We just needed to discuss some business with you, you know, corporate stuff. I'm asking not as a friend, but as the Executive VP of Talent Relations."

"Yeah, sure I'd like that," Hunter said, "you can count me in."

"Great, thanks," Chris said.

He knew full well that Vince wasn't here, but Hunter didn't have to know that. It would be especially simple to just say that Vince was trying to remain low-key in case his absence was noticed. In fact, Sheamus was actually going to baby-sit after the show. Flynn had an affinity for him, and Sawyer and Kensington didn't mind him either. Sheamus was turning out to be a really nice guy, and Chris could actually see himself grabbing a beer with him at some point in the future.

He and Stephanie were going to confront Hunter about what was going on. It was time to stop acting like nothing was wrong, and time to start acting like everything was wrong. Chris knew that it might not be pretty tonight, which was why he hadn't invited Britt. When this was over, if Hunter confessed, then maybe Chris and/or Stephanie would tell Britt, but they would prefer it to come from Hunter. Britt deserved to hear it from her boyfriend.

"I guess I'll see you later then, bye Britt," Chris said as he walked out of the room again and took a deep breath. That had been harder than he thought it would be. He wasn't sure if it was anger boiling inside of him or just the devastation of knowing he might, was probably, going to lose a friend. Nobody ever liked that happening, and it always reminded him of Kurt.

Even if Stephanie and Kurt were on good terms, nothing would ever be the same again. He shoved his hands in his pockets as he walked back to Stephanie's office. The damage had been done in his relationship with Kurt. Even when he'd forgiven him, the damage had been done. It made looking at his wedding pictures a little awkward, knowing his best man no longer held that title at all, but the past was the past and he couldn't change that. He couldn't change anything that anyone did at this point. He had his family to worry about, and they would always be his number one priority.

"I did it," Chris said as he looked at his wife. She looked up and nodded sagely.

"Daddy, your boots look silly," Flynn told him, skipping over and looking at his boots, "they not even tied."

"They are tied, just not all the way," he said, looking down at her and seeing she had ensconced herself in his jacket. It was much too big for her, so big her arms were completely gone and the jacket was dragging against the floor. "Where did you get my jacket, Flynnie?"

"You leave it on your bag," Flynn shrugged, or at least attempted to because the jacket was pretty heavy. "I no turn it on."

"Well, I'm glad for that," Chris said, shaking his head as he let her keep it on.

"You gonna twip," she told him, pointing again at his boots.

Chris knelt down in front of her, "I think I'm going to be okay."

"Okay," she said in a sing-song voice, letting him know she didn't think he was going to be okay, but if he wanted to trip, that was his prerogative. "Mommy said I stay with Sames tonight. True?"

"That's true, but you'll already be asleep. He's just going to sit in the hotel room and watch TV while you guys sleep."

"Where are you going?" Sawyer asked.

"Out to dinner with Trips," Chris explained.

"I go!" Kensington said, like she was the only one invited. This made Flynn frown because if Kensington got to go, she wanted to go too!

"No, you will be in bed," Chris told his increasingly headstrong little girl. He was starting to think he had another Flynn on his hands, but Kensington was just so darn angelic-looking, not that Flynn wasn't, but there was an edge to Flynn, an edge certainly provided by her mother. Chris had seen numerous pictures of Stephanie when she was a little girl, and that glint of mischief had been there nearly from the start.

"Wha?"

"Yes, in bed," he told her. "Isn't that right, Steph?"

"Yup," Stephanie told all three of her kids.

"Daddy, can we get some juice, I'm thirsty," Sawyer asked.

"Can we go say hi to people?" Flynn asked.

"Who did you want to say hi too?" Chris asked her.

"Everyone," she said, trying to grasp Chris's hand, but couldn't because of his jacket in the way. Chris gently took it off her and put it down on the couch. He then took Flynn's hand as he stood up. Sawyer dutifully took Kensington's hand as Chris walked towards the door.

"You want anything, Steph?"

"No thanks," she smiled politely as her family walked through the door. She let out a breath as she went back to her work, only briefly pausing when the door opened slightly and John Cena's head poked in. "John, come in, I've been expecting you."

"Yeah, I heard you wanted to talk to me, but what about?" he eyed her suspiciously, something everyone did and had done for ages now. She could be the nicest person the planet and nobody would believe her because of her title.

"I just wanted to know what your announcement was. As the President, I think I should know when someone decides they want to make a historic announcement. I mean, you sounded serious when you tweeted about it so I needed to know ahead of time, is this something we need to build up to…or is it just something else?"

"It's not a big deal, not as huge a deal as I'm making it, but I thought it would get people pumped for Raw."

"Okay, so what is it?"

"I'm going to be in the Money in a Bank match."

Stephanie was stunned when he said it, not because she was shocked at what he wanted to do, but shocked that he thought that was a historic announcement. Did the guy realize that was just a normal run-of-the-mill, nothing history about it kind of announcement? It just seemed silly to make sure a big deal out of it. He was looking at her expectantly though, so she just smiled at him, seemingly appeasing him as he settled back into the chair he'd occupied.

"Well, I guess that's historic…for you," Stephanie said slowly.

"I think so, yeah. So we're cool now that you know?" He was so oblivious that she just nodded. He beamed at her, "Great, later, Stephanie."

"Later, Cena," Stephanie said, widening her eyes as he left, then allowing herself a little bit of a chuckle.

She was still chuckling when Chris came back with the kids. Sawyer and Flynn had juice bottles with straws in them, while Kensington was knocking back a sippy cup filled with what appeared to be apple juice. The three of them seemed very content and Chris let them sit in front of the TV in the room, slipping in a DVD for them to watch until Raw started. Then he got three bags of fruit snacks from the cooler they brought with them with snacks for the kids. Opening every one, he gave one bag to each kid, who took it without taking their eyes off the TV.

"You're a great father," Stephanie told him as he made his way back over to her after making sure all the kids were taken care of, nourished, and hydrated.

"What?" he asked, confused as to what brought that on.

"Nothing, just watching how efficient you were with them," she waved her hand towards her children. "It was just like, you didn't even have to think. You got them juice, you got them entertained, you got them snacks, it was just…you knew exactly what to do."

"Six years will give a guy a lot of practice," Chris laughed, "what's with you?"

"Oh nothing, I just thought it was sweet," she leaned her chin in her hand. "So remember how John tweeted about some historic announcement, he came in here and told me what it was. You'll never believe it."

"Why? Is it that good?"

"No, not at all. He's…get this, putting himself in the Money in the Bank," Stephanie told him.

"You're kidding me, that's his _historic_ announcement?" Chris let out a combination of a scoff and a guffaw. "That's what he tweeted about, that's what is going to make history?"

"Apparently."

"Oh man, and he's going to announce this, actually _announce_ this tonight, like it's something of a huge deal?"

"You are correct," Stephanie said.

"This I've got to see."

Punk plunked himself next to Britt, who was next to Stephanie, just as the show started. Stephanie was busy directing traffic, while Britt was also busy talking to someone over her headset. Punk was content to sit there and watch the show start. He was surprised to see AJ talking as the first thing Raw assaulted him with. He leaned forward as he watched the exchange, as she seemed to be talking to some unknown person. The words were too weird though, too false, and he figured out she wasn't talking to anyone before his name was even brought up.

He would have called her certifiable, but sometimes people needed to practice things in mirrors before they actually said them. It looked like she was going to cut all of them loose, and he was actually happy over the fact. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't muster up a ton of feeling for AJ. There was something, he wasn't going to deny that, there _was_ something, but it just wasn't something he felt the immense need to explore. So if she was going to tell him it was over, he was going to take it with grace.

"So…pushing you towards her, probably not the best idea," Britt said, acknowledging his presence for the first time since he's sat down. He was starting to doubt she even knew he was there.

"Not your fault, she's crazy," Punk said.

"I never said it was my fault," she joked with him. "I just said that I shouldn't have pushed you towards her. You never did really take her out, did you?"

"She seemed more interested in Kane, which, whatever," Punk said as he watched the screen. "Oh great, looks like Vickie has put me in a match because who else would be in a Triple Threat."

"I think so," Britt said, pointing to the schedule in front of her where Vickie's handwriting stood out with his name, Daniel's name, and Kane's name written down hastily. He groaned, not wanting another match where AJ would interfere, but Britt just shrugged. "Sorry?"

"Not your fault again," he told her. "I guess this is my cue to actually go do my job."

"Good luck," Britt told him.

Punk never needed luck. All he needed was his skill, which had carried him through for years. But with AJ now constantly in the picture, he really did need luck, luck that she wouldn't go ballistic and try something stupid for him…or to him. This of course didn't happen, as her music hit midway through the match, and she came down to the ring, skipping again, sans Kane mask. Punk was momentarily distracted by her, which gave Kane enough time to try to chokeslam him. Punk got his concentration back at the last moment and managed to get the GTS on Kane, giving Punk the pin, eliminating Kane. Unfortunately, he was sapped, and that gave Bryan the opportunity to come right in and finish him.

This made AJ's move even odder. What was she trying to do? Who was she trying to help? Was she trying to distract him for Kane? Was she trying to distract Kane for him? Or was it all to distract Kane _and_ him so Bryan could get the win? She was confusing him, and he didn't like to be confused. He needed to end this, and end this soon. He was so tired of the games. If he could, he needed to have a serious talk with AJ, a very serious one.

By the time Cena was gearing up to make his ridiculous announcement, Chris knew it was the perfect time to make his not-so-glorious return. There was no countdown, no cryptic videos, just him, returning, walking down the ramp, but what better time was there than when Cena was going to be blowharding it all across the nation. Maybe he could even spare the guy some embarrassment.

Except, he couldn't because Cena insisted on being an embarrassment by going out there and talking Star Wars with everyone. And Chris cringed when Cena said it was like a rotten episode Star Wars. This was not going to be pretty, and it wasn't. He guessed Cena was trying to tap into an inner geek, but as a huge Star Wars fan, Chris could do nothing but want to go out there and stop this madness. He was nearly desecrating the good names of the movie (well, at the very least, the first three). Plus, he'd insulted Vince, but that was beside the point.

Chris went out there, had to interrupt, and was glad he did. He had his fancy jacket on, but otherwise, he was just clad in jeans and a t-shirt, his normal attire because he had three children, two of whom were still getting used to utensils. He was just lucky there weren't any sauce stains after all three of his kids insisted on rigatoni for dinner. He climbed into the ring, smirking at John as he climbed inside.

The crowd was receptive towards him, which he appreciated. He started by asking John what the hell he was talking about. It seemed as good a place as any to start asking because really, what the _hell_ had he been talking about? Cena should have cut his losses, made his announcement then left. Chris talked about it being his ring, and it was, he did own the company with his wife, and it was his night to return. Cena tried to be cutesy and announce Chris's return, but it was so sarcastic, Chris wanted to wipe that stupid grin off his face.

Cena then started talking about what Chris had "missed," because surely Chris would be out of the loop after being suspended. Forget that he was married to the president, forget that his daughter was quickly becoming a wrestling encyclopedia, hell, even if he asked Kensington, she might have been able to tell him something useful with her limited vocabulary. Cena was just being condescending and he hated that.

The idea that Cena was _afraid_ of Big Show was absurd, even to Chris, especially to Chris actually. Chris had squared off against the guy, and while he would always have the size advantage, Big Show was not as good as he thought he was. Cena finally made his announcement, his rather lame announcement, and Chris started to speak, but was cut off again.

Chris listened to his little spiel, which ended with Cena saying he was going to win the whole "fudgin'" thing, which Chris had to really try not to start laughing at because if Cena was ridiculous before, he just amped it up a million times. Chris had to bring it up, and did, to which Cena responded that it was a PG show, but even Kensington, at nearly two, would have thought that the lamest way to say that. Chris asked if he was nine because who in their right mind said fugdin'? Cena said most of their viewers were around that age, which was simply an insult to the older viewers, maybe Cena's fans were nine, but to generalize kind of irked Chris.

Chris countered with the fact that he had been in Money in the Bank matches before, and the entire concept of it was his idea in the first place. For Cena's hubris to take shape in this way was just wrong. He hated this Super Cena persona the man seemed to take on. Cena brought up that Chris had won none of them, but Chris only smirked. He had experience that overshadowed Cena's on every level.

Chris attempted to wipe that stupid sense of humor straight from Cena's brain. This was a serious match, and Chris was putting himself into it. They were interrupted by the usual "Excuse me!" that accompanied Vickie. He turned around and wished Stephanie was the GM. He knew she had to take the position at some point, but she would probably keep it from him so it'd be a surprise.

Vickie started talking about the Money in the Bank matches, and how they were not allowed to enter themselves. Chris tried to interrupt her, but she cut him off. He wasn't scared of her, and made a joke asking if she was going to suspend him, scoffing as the crowd laughed at the inside joke. Vickie explained that only WWE champions would be in the WWE championship Money in the Bank, and Chris was extremely fortunate because if not for the Undisputed Championship, he would have never held the WWE Championship.

Still, he was in the match, and that was all he needed. But Vickie wasn't done. She was pitting Chris against Cena later on, and Chris relished in the chance to get to wrestle again. He was rusty, so this was the perfect way to end his evening, with a win over Super Cena. He couldn't have asked for a better return.

When Punk's eyes were covered, he for a moment, hoped it would be Britt. Instead, it was AJ. In that moment, with that conversation, she was the most normal she had ever been. Punk asked her if they could talk about what they were, and AJ thought he wanted the next level, which wasn't what he wanted, but she bounded off before he could elaborate. Tonight was going to be interesting.

After the show was over, and Chris had neither won nor lost his match officially, Sheamus was left with the children, and Stephanie and Chris were walking towards the IHOP they were meeting Hunter at. Chris squeezed Stephanie's hand as they walked inside the restaurant, spotting Hunter in the far corner, looking at the menu. He spotted them, smiled, and waved them over.

"Are you ready for this?" Chris asked.

"Yes, it's time to get answers."


	376. Raw IS Jericho, July 2, 2012

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and everything. With the site's new review system, if you want to leave an anonymous review, it always just says "Guest" so if you do leave an anonymous review, it'd be great if you could sign it or put your name on it so I know who's reviewing, thanks! :)

It was great to see Stephanie on tonight's show, even if it was just a pre-taped segment, here's hoping she's the GM! Also, I know I still have the poll up on my profile page, but that's mostly because it's been tied for SO long, so I'm taking it down on Friday, and if it's tied, I'll just have to figure it out myself, so if you want to have some input, don't forget to vote!

* * *

Chris and Stephanie kept it to business during the majority of the dinner. They'd decided on the ride over to wait until after they'd eaten to bring it up, to give them time to gather their thoughts about what they were about to say. Hunter didn't look like he was any the wiser, talking with them about business, eating his meal. It was going to make what was about to happen look like a blindside, but it was really a long time coming.

It was over their cup of coffee and a shared pie between Chris and Stephanie that things were going to come to a head. Stephanie squeezed Chris's hand under the table, and he gave her an encouraging squeeze back. "So Hunter, there's one more thing we wanted to discuss with you," Stephanie told him.

"Sure, what is it?" Hunter asked, taking another sip of his coffee. He wasn't much of a coffee drinker, but it was hitting the spot right now.

"It's about what Punk did," Chris added, which made Hunter slowly put down his coffee cup, letting it hit the table with a soft clunk.

Hunter swallowed nearly audibly, pushing down the lump in his throat, "What about it?"

"Well," Stephanie took a deep breath here, "We know it's a lie, Hunter. We know that Punk never said or did any of those things. We trust him, he wouldn't do that. The kids adore him, Flynn especially, and when he's around them, he's a big softie for them. We've allowed him back into their lives, and he's not after Britt, so he cares about them."

"He could be acting," Hunter tried to back-peddle his way out of this.

"We don't think it's that," Chris said, "I admit, I was pissed at first, but Stephanie kept a cool head through the entire thing, and she made me see what was potentially really going on. Punk isn't that type of guy. Yes, he's caustic, sarcastic, and sometimes a huge jerk, but he's never treated our kids, or any kids for that matter, with anything less than respect."

"I knew something didn't add up, but when we tried to add it up, every time, every _single_ time, it led us to one conclusion."

"You," Chris said, his voice now taking on an edge. "Every time we tried to think of a logical reason for this, for some kind of excuse, some kind of explanation, it always led us right back to…you."

"You did this, didn't you?" Stephanie asked, tearing her hand away from Chris's to lay both palms flat on the table. She was glad they'd chosen a booth in the corner. It was late and there weren't many people in the restaurant, but there was enough to where if their voices became loud, they would make a scene. Neither one wanted a scene. "You were the one who made up all these lies. You didn't hear it from anyone, you made it up."

"What?" Hunter tried to act indignant.

"It makes sense," Chris said, his tone definitely on edge now. "It all makes sense. You're an asshole, Hunter, we've known it for years. You married Stephanie after _drugging_ her, this kind of crap is right up your alley."

"Look—"

"Stop lying," Stephanie didn't let him get a word in. "I know what you're going to do, Hunter. You forget that I _was_ married to you so yes, I know some of your tendencies and knowledge doesn't go away immediately."

"I just don't get why you would think we wouldn't have found out," Chris said, "do you really think we're _that_ stupid that we wouldn't have figured out the truth? We've known for a while now."

"You guys…"

"Shut up," Stephanie seethed. "How _dare_ you do something like this, not only to our children, but to Punk as well."

"He kissed my girlfriend," Hunter growled, and that was all the confirmation they needed.

"So it was you," Chris said, his voice clipped. "You stupid son of a bitch. You used my kids, you used them in what, some damn scheme to make Punk look bad to Britt? You used them like they were some pawns in your damn game. My kids are anything but pawns. They are living, breathing human beings, and they were _devastated _when I told them they couldn't hang out with Punk. You made me hurt my children's feelings. How dare you sit there and act like any of this was justified."

"I'm not saying that," Hunter tried to defend himself.

"Then you _continued_ to lie about it," Stephanie shook her head. "We gave you out after out after out to come clean. You could have told us, it would have still made us pissed, but at the very least we would have known you had a little integrity left, but now…now you're just the jackass who lied to us, who used our children, who used Punk, who is lying to his girlfriend that he claims to love so _damn_ much."

"You don't understand," Hunter said, "you don't have to watch another person you love start to fall for someone who you know is better than you."

"Another person?" Stephanie scoffed. "You're going to try and play _that_ card? Hunter, there was nothing between Chris and I before we got divorced."

"Bullshit and you know it," Hunter told her. "You thought I didn't see it, but it was there, while I was rehabbing, it was there. I was right too because look at the two of you now."

"This isn't about us, it never has been," Chris said, "stop trying to deflect from what this really is. You thought that doing this would mean you could just have your cake and eat it too, but it backfired on you too, didn't it? Because I see that Punk and Britt are still friends."

"I'm sorry for what I did, but I did what I had to do."

"You _did what you had to do_?" Stephanie glared at him. "Which included treating our children like they were something you could toy around with? You are the scum of the earth, Hunter, the absolute lowest scum of the earth."

"She's right," Chris said, his jaw set. "You should have known better. You shouldn't have brought our children into this. There are a lot of things you could have done, Hunter, you could have…oh, I don't know, _talked_ to you girlfriend about this, told her how you felt, but instead, your first instinct was to think about how to get revenge, but our kids were just collateral damage, right? It was all about _your_ feelings, not about theirs. God, and to think I actually thought you'd changed. What an idiot I was. I considered you a friend, man."

"We _are_ friends," Hunter said. "If you saw someone going after Stephanie so blatantly, you would have done the same thing."

"No, I wouldn't have, not at the expense of my children, or anyone's children. I would not have gone there. But then, I guess I'm not a conniving son of a bitch like you are."

"Oh, get off your high horse, man," Hunter said, "we're all a brand of asshole, and you're no exception."

"I still haven't used my children," Chris spat at him.

"Look, I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking clearly. All I could think about was Britt, losing her. I don't want to lose her. I can't lose her, she's one of the only good things in my life," Hunter pleaded with them. He was remorseful, yes, but he couldn't change what he did, only try to defend himself. It was wrong of him, but he had no other options, they had to see that.

"Doesn't matter, there are a million things you could have done," Chris told him, "a million things that didn't involve breaking our kids' hearts."

"This is how it's going to go," Stephanie said, "there's no way I can fire you. You have a contract, it's iron-clad, therefore, you will keep your position in the company. Our interactions will remain strictly business. We don't have reason to fire you, but if I did, if I _could_ you better believe your ass would be looking for a new job tomorrow. We'll be professional at the shows, like nothing happened, but we are no longer friends."

"We're not going to tell Britt," Chris said, "that's your job. We're not going to do your dirty work, but you need to tell her. You can't keep stringing her along like you are."

Stephanie added, "She deserves better than to be another part of your little scheme."

"You have schemes too, how is this any different from you getting your dad ousted as President?" Hunter asked.

"My father is a grown man. My three year old daughter cried, _cried_ when she couldn't see Punk because he was supposed to be her friend," Stephanie said, "I've done a ton of bad things in my life, things I will regret until the day I die, but I never crushed my daughter's heart, Hunter, never."

"Here," Chris said, throwing a hundred dollar bill on the table, "that should cover the food."

Chris stood up, with Stephanie following, and started to walk out of the restaurant. Neither one looked back as they headed into the parking lot. They were nearly to their car when Hunter followed them out the door. "I am sorry," Hunter called out to them. "I didn't want to hurt your kids. I care about them, I really do!"

Chris looked at Stephanie for a moment, then turned around and walked towards Hunter. Chris's steely gaze pierced his skin like needles. He stood a few feet in front of Hunter, reared his hand back and punched the other man in the jaw. The force of the blow knocked Hunter back a few feet in his shock. He grabbed for his jaw instinctively, moving it around as he felt something wet and sticky on his lip. A moment later, he tasted the coppery liquid, realizing he'd cut his lip on his tooth when Chris punched him.

"You don't care about anyone but yourself," Chris seethed. "You've always been a self-centered bastard. You would sell your soul to get what you want, you've done it time and time again. I never should have believed you could be anything different. Well, congratulations, Hunter, you had the world fooled for a while. So I hope you enjoy being cheered by the fans because at the end of the day, those are the only people who will be there for you."

"Chris, come on, let's go," Stephanie called out to him.

"If I ever, and I mean _ever_ catch you talking to one of my kids again, you won't be able to speak for a week," Chris leaned down to hiss at Hunter.

Chris walked back over to Stephanie, grabbing her and kissing her briefly before opening the door for her. Stephanie got inside, leaving one more withering stare for Hunter before she got inside. Then they roared off into the night, leaving Hunter standing there, bloodied and definitely bruised.

"Do you think he's told her yet?" Trish asked Stephanie as they ate lunch over the weekend. Chris and Christian were shopping with the kids, getting some summer clothes and some necessities for themselves for their marriage retreat the next weekend.

"No," Stephanie said, "I don't think he has. He'll probably wait until his back is against the wall to do so."

"I can't believe he would do this…I mean, 2000 Hunter, yes, I could absolutely believe he would do this, but this Hunter, I didn't think he had it in him to be honest. I really thought he'd turned over a new leaf."

"I thought so too," Stephanie said, taking a sip of her margarita. "I really thought he was a changed man, but this just proved that old habits die hard. He did have a point though, I mean, we're schemers, Chris and I, we have our own schemes."

"They don't involve your kids though," Trish said.

"I said that too, but then I went back and I thought about it," Stephanie started, "and remember when I was pregnant with Sawyer? I used my pregnancy to drug Shawn. I pretended Sawyer was in distress."

"That's hardly the same thing," Trish said, "you were pregnant, it's not like you actually used the kids for anything like Hunter did. I mean, he told a lie that affected your children. Saying, 'oh, my stomach hurts,' is not the same thing as what he did."

"I know," Stephanie said, "I guess I'm just trying to rationalize what he did. I mean, I don't know, I just didn't want him to be this guy again. I was hoping he was really past it. I trusted him."

"I know," Trish said, grabbing Stephanie's hand. "We all did, we all considered him a friend."

"It feels like Kurt all over again," Stephanie sighed.

"Oh man, don't bring _that_ up," Trish said. "Look, why don't we think about good things, like…how the boys are taking the kids shopping and how hilarious that must be. I mean, maybe not for Chris, but I know Christian never really knows what to get Tilden."

"Chris is pretty good, sometimes he overindulges the girls and lets them get whatever they want."

"Not Sawyer?"

"That even-keeled kid, he never asks for anything. I really don't know where he gets this humility from, I'm starting to think we brought home the wrong baby," Stephanie laughed, thinking about her son, "he's too nice, it must be my mom's genes because it's certainly not mine or Chris's."

"He's a sweetheart, that's all," Trish grinned, "Christian is the same way with Tilde. He spoils the hell out of her."

"He just loves his daughter, that's all," Stephanie said, "you two are sounding better and better. There's no bitter face when you talk about and it sounds as if your resentment has lessened."

"It is getting better," Trish smiled. "I think it was just an avalanche of small stuff to get over, but we're doing better."

"I'm really glad to hear that."

"So am I, believe me," Trish laughed, "nobody was getting more tired of it all than I was. I think we're going to be fine. At some point, I know I'm probably going to want another kid, I'm just hoping Christian can wait for that."

"Don't wait too long though, you don't want to be an old woman trying to have a kid," Stephanie joked.

"Very funny, if that was a joke about my age, I'm not going to listen to it," Trish flipped her friend off as they both laughed. "I just, I want to carry out your original plan. I don't want to have the kids all in succession, even though I adore your kids, it would just be too much for me. Half the time, Tilden is too much for me, rambunctious little girl that she is."

"Have you met Flynn?"

"Okay, I don't think anyone is as rambunctious as that girl, but Tilden tries. At least you got Flynn to cut out the wrestling stunts."

"Oh, you'd think that, wouldn't you? Except at least once every day she acts Chris if he can put out the tumbling mats so she can do some wrestling moves. The only time she's stopped doing them is around Kensy because we've told her a million times she can't wrestle with her sister."

Trish shook her head as she laughed, trying to picture Flynn pulling out the tumbling mats. "Well, at least it's in a controlled environment, and if I remember correctly, weren't you the one who wanted all of her kids to be in love with wrestling?"

"Yes, I didn't think one of them would want to make it her entire life. I swear, her bedroom is now just a shrine to Chris. You'd think he'd have constructed it himself, even though she's branching out more and has other wrestlers now as well."

"You wouldn't trade her for the world though."

"You're right," Stephanie smiled, "I wouldn't trade her for anything."

When Monday came, Chris and Stephanie both knew that they were going to encounter Hunter. There were no two ways around it. Hunter still worked there, and he still worked pretty much directly under Stephanie, therefore, an encounter was inevitable. Chris didn't want to be there for fear he might beat up Hunter, but he knew that he might as well get seeing the other man over with because it wasn't like Hunter was going to disappear overnight. As much as he wanted Hunter to do just that, it wasn't a realistic wish, not with the contract Hunter had.

"Mommy, can I go find Punk now?" Flynn asked, looking around. "You says I had to tell him somethin'."

"You do have to tell him something, but I told you we'd go after we get settled in."

"Okay," Flynn sighed largely and then blew air out in exasperation.

"Stephanie, Chris," Britt ran up to them, "what did you guys do with Hunter?" Well, she certainly didn't beat around the bush, but she also didn't know what had happened, which meant Hunter hadn't told her, which didn't surprise Chris or Stephanie. They knew Hunter wouldn't tell her, knowing they wouldn't because it wasn't their place.

"What are you talking about?" Stephanie decided to go the innocent route.

"He came back from dinner looking all weird and disheveled and he had a bleeding lip, which he gave me some bullshit lie about, what the hell happened? He won't tell me, but there's obviously something going on, and I don't want to be the last to know like I usually am."

"Britt, look," Chris said, "yes, something happened, but it's not our place to say what that is."

"No, no, no, you can't do that! You can't just say something like that to me and not explain. You can't do that," Britt repeated. "You need to tell me right now why my boyfriend came back looking like he was in a fight. What's going on? I am asking you, as your friend, what is going on?"

"Britt, we'd tell you, but if it doesn't come from Hunter, then you won't believe it."

"Try me," Britt challenged them.

"No," Chris told her firmly, "I'm really sorry."

"I don't understand what's going on, but I don't like it," Britt told them. "I don't…I want to understand, I feel like I'm out of the loop. Whatever, it's fine, I'll try again with Hunter. Thank you for talking to me at least."

"Britt…" Chris tried to take a step towards her, but she held her hand up.

"No, I get it, this is something he needs to tell me," Britt calmed herself down with a deep breath. "I get that, I'm sorry I put you in this position."

Britt walked away with a slight wave and intended to head right back to Hunter. She'd left him in their shared office, but who knew if he would still be there when she got back. Ever since last week, he'd been strange and evasive. It started right after his dinner with Chris and Stephanie so she knew whatever was wrong with Hunter had to do with them. It was just whenever she tried to talk to Hunter, he wouldn't tell her, just saying that it was fine, he'd fallen or something and busted his lip.

She must take him for an idiot if she was going to believe that bogus story. Still, she hadn't pressed, hoping he would come to her and tell her what was wrong. It didn't turn out that way though. He'd kept it from her, so when she got to work this afternoon, the only thing on her mind was waiting for Chris and Stephanie to show up. She'd had the head of security alert her to their arrival so she'd managed to catch them even before they got to their dressing room. Even so, nobody was telling her anything.

"Hey, Britt, you alright?"

Britt looked over her shoulder and saw Nattie standing there, "Hey, Nattie."

"Hey, you look really upset, you okay?" She and Nattie weren't necessarily the best of friends, but they were definitely on good terms with one another.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Britt nodded, "just stressful with the revolving GM's and everything."

"Oh yeah, that has to be rough, a different agenda every week."

"Exactly, I better get back to work, but hey, next week, we'll go out for drinks or something, it's been a while since we've gone out."

"Cool, I'll see if some of the other girls want to go, later," Nattie smiled at her and Britt put on her best smile. She started making her way back to her office because she really wanted to talk to Hunter, and the only way to do that was to find him.

"Hey, pretty lady, where's the fire?"

Britt looked to her left and saw Punk hanging out in an open doorway, as if awaiting her arrival. She wouldn't be surprised if he was waiting for her to arrive. She turned to him and shook her head, "I don't have time for this right now, Phil."

Punk stepped up and grabbed her forearm lightly. She looked up at him with impatience, but he was looking at something else in her face. "Hey, what's wrong? You look really upset."

"Like I said, I don't have time to talk to you," she told him.

"You have a few seconds unless this is a life and death situation, _is_ this a life or death situation?" he wondered, hoping nobody was hurt or anything like that.

"No, it's not, it's just…important that I talk to Hunter, that's all," Britt relaxed in his grip. "I really need to talk to him."

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't know it was urgent," he said with actual sincerity, letting go of her arm.

"What? You're not going to try to stall me or stop me?" Britt joked lamely.

"Not when you look like you obviously need to talk," he told her, "I hope that whatever it is, you'll be okay because you do not look okay right now."

"I'm not," Britt ran a hand through her hair, messing it up from its usually coiffed style. She liked to look professional at the shows, but right now, she looked harried and old beyond her years. She usually had a youthfulness about her, so the change was striking to someone who paid attention like Punk.

"What's going on?" Punk asked, genuinely concerned. He didn't want this girl to feel badly.

"I appreciate the concern—"

"Britt, cut the crap, I hate your nobility complex," he told her, "you really don't have to deal with everything yourself _all_ the time."

"Okay, so…last week, Hunter went out to dinner with Chris and Stephanie, they said to discuss business. But when Hunter came back, he looked horrible and his lip was bleeding. I've been trying to ask him what was going on, but he wouldn't tell me. So I just went to Chris and Stephanie to ask them what was going on, but they just told me to go right back and talk to Hunter."

Punk realized what was really going on. Chris and Stephanie had confronted Hunter, and it had not gone well. He wished he could tell Britt what was really going on, but like Chris and Stephanie, it wasn't really his place to say anything. Hunter needed to be the one to tell her. He felt caught between a rock and a hard place right now, but above all of that, he needed to be there for Britt.

"I see, that's rough," Punk said, trying to sound sympathetic. "I think Chris and Stephanie have a point though. If what they're talking about is serious, then you should really talk to your boyfriend, don't you think?"

"I just don't understand what's going on," Britt sunk into the floor a little bit, her defeat weighing heavy on her shoulders. "I wish they would just tell me what's going on, one of them, any of them. Something happened, and it feels like something big. I just feel like all this stuff is happening around me, and I don't understand it."

"I know the feeling," Punk said, remembering when he didn't know what was going on with Chris and Stephanie regarding their hatred for him. "You should really talk to Hunter, insist that he tell you, don't take no for an answer if it comes down to that."

"I know, I plan on doing that," Britt said, "so…wish me luck?"

"Good luck," he told her, "and hey, if it's something really bad, you know I'm here for you, my door is always open, even if I'm getting dressed, _especially_ if I'm getting dressed."

"Pervert," Britt pushed herself away from him playfully, but then laughed, "thanks though, you're a really good guy, Punk, a really good guy. And hey, you can tell me how that dinner with AJ went, I'm assuming you went on it."

"We'll talk," Punk smiled at her as she walked away, considerably less annoyed than when he'd seen her earlier. He was glad he could calm her down, especially because he had a feeling by the end of the night, she'd be a wreck.

Stephanie stretched her neck out as she read over the statement Heyman had prepared to read this evening. Her father was back in Connecticut overseeing what Heyman had to say, but had sent forward the actual statement. She rolled her eyes at Heyman's threats of suing Hunter. Even if she was mad at Hunter, she thought Heyman had no grounds for a suit. He knew the risks when he stepped into the ring. He knew that there was a chance he'd get laid out, and he still chose to step inside. That was all on him.

She read on further, noting the part about loving father and doting husband. She couldn't figure out Heyman's motives exactly for why he put that, but she could definitely infer the meaning. He was either mocking Hunter for losing her or he was talking about Hunter's future with Britt. If it was the latter, Stephanie had to call even that into question. There was no doubt in Stephanie's mind that Britt would somehow extract the information from Hunter somehow, but she didn't know how Britt was going to react when she heard it. There was a very real possibility that she would choose to stay with Hunter, but that was her decision and Stephanie didn't want to make any assumptions right now.

"Stephanie?"

Stephanie looked up and saw one of the production assistants knocking on her door while simultaneously sticking their head in, "Hey, Alan, what's going on?"

"Just wanted to let you know we've got everything set up for the feed from Connecticut, plus, your dad called and said that you should record a moment for the Raw 1000th thing that we're doing."

"What? Why would my dad suggest that and not tell me?"

"Maybe he wanted to surprise you, but if you're going to do one, you've got to do it now so we can have the footage sent over from the archives."

Stephanie looked at herself. She'd actually put on a dress tonight, which was rare for her, but Kensington had accidentally spilled barbeque sauce on her during lunch and this was the only clean, somewhat new thing she'd brought with her. She didn't look half bad, but still, she'd need to get her makeup done because she wasn't wearing much and she wasn't going to be caught dead on camera without makeup on.

"I don't even know what I would choose."

"Well, we could give you about half an hour to choose," Alan said. "Would that be enough time for you, boss?"

"Um, sure," Stephanie shrugged, "what the hell, I'm sure I'll think of something."

"Awesome, I'll come back then."

"You do that," Stephanie smiled at him, then watched as the door closed. She sat back in her chair, pursing her lips a little as she tried to think of her favorite Raw moment. It didn't necessarily have to include her either, it just had to be something she thought was funny or interesting. The problem was she'd been around since the beginning of Raw. She'd literally seen every episode, she'd almost lived every episode. Even before she'd officially entered the company, she'd done odd jobs during the summers for her father since its inception. She could remember backstage antics from the beginning. This left her with an entire bevy of memories that assaulted her faculties.

"Howdy pardner," Sawyer said as he walked into the room with Chris, Kensington, and Flynn trailing behind him. "That's how they say things with the cowboys, Mommy."

"I know," Stephanie laughed, "Are we all settled on the snack front?"

"Everyone is well-fed and ready for Raw."

"I'm ready," Flynn bounced around, "I get to see Daddy wrestle 'cause Mr. Teddy put him in a match."

"You're going to team with Daniel Bryan, right, Daddy, but then you're going against Punk, but he's your friend, isn't he?"

"Yeah, he is my friend, but sometimes you have to go against your friends, it happens, but it doesn't mean that you don't like them anymore."

"I know," Sawyer told him. "Can I go hang out with Chrissy? I saw him here earlier, he has a match too, I read it on the schedule, do you think he'd want to hang out with me?"

"I don't see why not," Chris said, "you want me to take you over to him now?"

"Cool, yeah," Sawyer said, "I'll see you later, Mommy."

"Wait, Daddy, cans I go see Punk?" Flynn asked.

"Our kids are dropping like flies," Stephanie said.

"Sure, we can go find him and see if he wants to hang out," Chris said, "can you watch Kensington?"

"Of course, she's my daughter, isn't she?" Stephanie asked, standing up and grabbing Kensington from the floor and cuddling her to her body. Kensington, always one for a good cuddle wrapped her arms around Stephanie's neck as Chris disappeared with their other two children. "Hey there, Kensy, did you have fun with Daddy?"

"Uh huh, lotta," Kensington said as Stephanie sat down at her desk again, pushing some papers aside so she could sit Kensington on top of her desk, facing her.

"You love Daddy, huh?"

"Uh huh, love Daddy," she nodded.

"I'm trying to think of my favorite Raw moments, and I'm wondering if I should pick one that has Daddy in it," Stephanie said, "but then, a lot of the best moments of your daddy were making fun of me, and that's not nice."

"Daddy nice," Kensington argued.

"Yeah, Daddy's nice to you because he loves you so much and because you have him wrapped around this little finger," Stephanie held up Kensington's hand and pretended to nosh on Kensington's fingers, which made the little girl giggle. "But Daddy used to be not nice to me. Daddy used to be super mean to me a long time before you were born."

"Oh," Kensington said thoughtfully.

"I know," Stephanie pretended to pout and Kensington reached out to push Stephanie's lips up. "You don't want me to pout."

"No sad, Mama," Kensington told her, scrunching up her face in delight when Stephanie grinned at her instead of frowned. She held her arms out towards Stephanie, and Stephanie scooted her chair closer so she could get a hug from her daughter.

"I'm never sad around you, baby girl," Stephanie told her daughter. "How could I be with that cute face staring at me?"

"Dunno," Kensington told her.

"Hey, I'm back and childless," Chris said, "isn't it great when I can just dump off the kids with someone and then leave? Hey, Kensy-bug, is there anyone you want to go see, Sheamus maybe?"

"Uh uh, stay," Kensington said, hugging Stephanie even tighter.

"Damn," Chris said, "I was hoping for some alone time with Mommy."

"Nope," Kensington drew out the word.

"Hey, so you can help me with this," Stephanie began to say when Chris gave her a look. "Oh gross, Chris, seriously, can you go two seconds without thinking about that?"

"Sorry, I was willing to help," Chris told her, "but what is it?"

"Okay, so my dad suggested I do one of those favorite/best Raw moment things, but I can't come up with a moment and Alan is coming back in like fifteen minutes now to get me to do the segment for _tonight_."

"Easy, pick something with me," Chris told her. "There, problem solved, make out with me as a reward."

"No," Stephanie said, "I like the arms I'm in, plus, I can't choose those moments."

"Why not?" Chris asked.

"Because I hated you then," Stephanie told him. "You treated me like crap, Chris. You hated my guts, you thought I was a slut, you thought I was ugly—"

"I never said you were ugly," Chris argued, "don't got putting words in my mouth."

"Chris, you said my hair looked like a rat's nest, and you said that kissing me was like kissing roadkill."

"Neither one of those is calling you ugly though, besides, I amended the roadkill statement, now you're my favorite kisser."

Stephanie rolled her eyes, "I can't choose you, that's weird, too obvious too, but we _hated_ each other. What kind of message is that sending not only the Be a Star program, but to our children?"

"Sawyer and Flynn have seen all our stuff before, they thought it was funny."

"I'm not going to choose something from when you hated me, and I don't want anything from our business partnership because I hate reliving that."

"Uh, why?"

"Because I was so attracted to you, and neither one of us did anything, and it's embarrassing to think about how much time we lost because neither one of us would admit there was something more," Stephanie told him.

"Okay, that sounds like a bunch of crap," Chris laughed, "but go ahead, choose something else."

"I will, you know what I always thought was hilarious?"

"What?" he asked as he came and sat across from her, leaning his chin on both his palms as he gazed at her.

"When my brother was training my father. Do you remember that?" she asked. "You were still with WCW, but I know you used to watch us."

"Of course I remember that, I'll never forget your brother making your father chase a chicken around and try to catch it," Chris chuckled. "Oh man, we should show _that_ to Sawyer and Flynn, they'd really get a kick out of it."

"Oh, and Shane being in the limo and my father having to chase after it, that was absolutely classic," Stephanie giggled. "I remember my mom and I watching that and just looking at each other like they were both absolutely insane. My father drove my mother crazy with that training. Shane would sometimes make my father eat ridiculous meals to keep on his 'diet' as he put it. It was just crazy, the entire thing. Did you like it when you were in WCW, did you think it was funny?"

"I did," Chris said, "it was stuff like that, that really made me want to join the company, I mean, not that it wasn't ridiculous, but it was just like, look at that president of the company, he's willing to let himself be filmed looking like _that_, I want to someone who feels like he's just another guy…even though your father was still clearly in charge and very, very intimidating to meet for the first time."

"I know, I mean, I remember whenever someone would meet him and be scared of him," Stephanie laughed. "It was always pretty funny. He _so_ wanted to win that match, I've never seen him train so hard in my life. It was insane, I'm glad it looked the same way from the outside."

"It was one of those things that just still makes you laugh," Chris said, "who knew I'd be related to that guy though."

"Oh yeah, you didn't even know me then," Stephanie said as Kensington kissed her on the head. "I'm definitely going to choose that one for my thing. You know, they may ask you to do one too, or I may ask you to do one, so you should think of things you want to choose from, I won't even try to influence you."

"Good because I won't be influenced."

"What are you doing tonight anyways?"

"I'm going to get changed, then I'm going to wait for Cena to act like the blowhard he is because I saw that Teddy gave him time at the top of the show, and I'm going to go out and have a word with him so I don't have to listen to him being a blowhard."

"What dat?" Kensington asked innocently.

"It's when someone keeps talking and talking and talking, but they have nothing to say," Chris said. "That's what a blowhard is."

"Stop teaching our kids these words. I half expect Flynn's teacher to call us one day asking why our daughter is calling everyone a jackass."

"Hey, I curb it around the two that understand what I'm saying," he said, standing up, "now if you'll excuse me, my leather pants are not going to wear themselves, thank you very much."

"Leather pants, you say?"

"You had your chance," Chris shook his head at her. "You had your chance…"

Britt couldn't find Hunter anywhere. He wasn't in her office, and he didn't return even though she stayed in there for at least 45 minutes. She was officially thinking he was avoiding her. That pissed her off. She wanted to know what was going on, and the fact that he was ignoring her and ditching her was getting on her last nerve. After those 45 minutes, she decided to find him for herself.

"Christian, hey," Britt jogged to catch up to him and Sawyer, who were both walking with a water bottle in hand. "Oh, hey, Sawyer, what's up, kiddo?"

"Chrissy and I got some water because Chrissy needs to keep drinking water, then we're going to go talk to R-Truth, Santino, and Kofi because Chrissy has a match with them later," Sawyer explained, "Right, Chrissy?"

"That's right, little man," Christian told him, nodding his head. "Sawyer is going to help us strategize."

"Fun," Britt said, "I was just wondering if you'd seen Hunter?"

"Yeah, he was in catering," Christian said, "right, Sawyer, did we see him?"

"Yeah, we did, he was in the corner. I waved when he saw me, but he didn't do anything back," Sawyer shrugged. "We have to go, we can't miss the meeting."

"He keeps me on a tight schedule," Christian shrugged, "hope you find him."

"Thanks," Britt said as Christian and Sawyer walked away.

"Chrissy, what are you going to do at Money in the Bank?" Sawyer asked.

"I'm going to be in a Money in the Bank match too, just like your dad, but mine is going to be for the World Title and not for the WWE title," Christian explained.

"How come Trish and Tilden aren't here?" Sawyer asked another question.

"They decided to stay home."

"Do you not like Trish anymore?" Sawyer asked. "Mommy said you were having tough times, are you guys mad at each other?"

"It's something like that," Christian said, "but not really mad, more like…we're sad about some things, but we're getting through them because above all else, we love each other, and when you love someone like that, you want to work through the differences, especially when you're married."

"Mommy and Daddy don't have anything like that. They fight, but then they always kiss."

"Well, that's what I want with Trish again," Christian explained.

"Is that why you're going on vacation with Mommy and Daddy?" Sawyer wondered. "Daddy said that there were going to be shrinks there, but I don't know what they do, he said they try to make you talk about everything you don't want to talk about, but if you don't want to talk about something, why would they make you talk about it?"

Christian just laughed. Chris and Stephanie talked to their kids way too much. "They're not really shrinks, they're just people who want you to talk about your feelings, and it'll help you in the long run. Your mom and dad are going to be there for Trish and me, but they can always help themselves."

"Oh good, helping is a good thing, just like I'm going to help you with your match," Sawyer beamed. "You need to do the Killswitch."

"I love that you know my finishing move," Christian smiled down at him, "come on, you can tell me some other moves you know."

Flynn swung carelessly from Punk's hands as they walked down the hallway. He was holding both of her hands as he held her in front of himself and periodically swung her up into the air. Flynn giggled madly, occasionally peering back at Punk with a look of pure amusement on her face. Every time she looked back at him, Punk would make a funny face, which only served to make Flynn giggle harder.

"Punk, hey, Punk, wait up!"

Punk sighed and put Flynn down, picking her up so he was holding her, "Flynn, don't ever associate with anyone crazier than you are, it will only end badly."

"Okay," she said, but didn't know what that meant.

"Hey, Punk, hey," AJ said, "I just saw you and wanted to come say hey…what are you doing with Stephanie's kid?" AJ looked suspiciously at Flynn, who looked at AJ like she was some kind of odd duck.

"I his friend," Flynn told her.

"You're friends with a three year old?" AJ asked.

"I almost four, I be four soon," Flynn told her. "You are AJ."

"I know who I am," AJ told her.

"Flynn is cool with me, she's my friend," Punk said, "what's up?"

"Nothing I can say in front of _her_," AJ said, "bye!"

AJ literally skipped away and Punk looked at Flynn, "Seriously, don't be a crazy chick when you grow up, okay? Because most guys…or girls if that's your thing don't want to deal with that brand of crazy."

"I'm okay," Flynn smiled.

"You're just about the only chick in my life who is."

There was a buzz to the arena when by the time Chris went out into it to interrupt what had not just been John Cena as previously thought, but also Punk and Daniel Bryan. Daniel actually had the audacity to call out Punk for "stealing" his catchphrase. All Chris could think about was how and when did "Yes" become a catchphrase and not just a response? He called out Punk for still being a wannabe, but Punk knew it was all in jest, plus it was a little payback for Flynn saying that Punk called him a lite brite when they were talking. Punk called him Bon Jovi in return, but Chris really couldn't find anything wrong with that. Who wouldn't want to be Bon Jovi?

Then he called out Bryan for his idiotic catchphrase, a one-note thing that was just going to end up like Austin's "What?" an outdated, silly word that people would repeat ad nauseum until everyone was ready to ban it from the English language. If this kid wanted catchphrases, Chris would give him catchphrases. He had so many of them, so many in the vault that if he were to try and say them all right now, they would be here all night. So he went with a few of his better known ones, his more popular ones, just to showcase how much more superior he was than the likes of this guy.

"That's Daddy old things," Sawyer laughed as he heard Chris welcome everyone to Raw is Jericho.

"He's so silly," Flynn laughed, burying her face into her hands.

"He is certainly silly alright," even Stephanie couldn't help but laugh.

The laughter was short-lived though as Kane came to the ring and snatched the microphone from Chris. Then all of a sudden, here was Big Show, and everything erupted into a messy cacophony. Somehow he was fighting…and losing against Kane while everyone else started going at each other. He should have known this would devolve somehow. Whenever there was something on the line, and whenever there was a gathering of wrestlers all in one place, hell broke loose. It was like children who couldn't keep their fights to words, but always had to resort to fists. Then again, they were wrestlers, this is what they did.

Chris walked slowly to the back, suddenly hating that he was wearing leather pants because they had no give. His wife and kids were sitting at the gorilla, all watching him, nearly the same eyes looking back at him four times over. "I'm going to get out of this and just change into my trunks."

"Okay," Stephanie said, "we're just holding down the fort over here." Chris walked over and gave four kisses before heading back to his locker room to change. Punk caught up with him a little ways down the hallway. "Hey wannabe."

"Hey Bon Jovi," Punk said, "so you confronted Hunter?" He'd wanted to bring it up earlier, but it was hard to get a word in when Flynn was around. She dominated any conversation, plus, Punk didn't feel comfortable discussing it in front of little ears that were attached to a mouth that could and would talk.

"Yeah, we did, it was him," Chris said, "I'm so sorry I thought it was you, man, but…I thought I could trust him."

"No need to apologize, you know I forgave you awhile ago," Punk said, "I knew it was him. He's such a bastard."

"I know," Chris muttered, "I really thought he'd changed, but I guess deep down, he really hadn't. He hasn't told Britt."

"I know, I talked to her earlier, do you think he's going to soon?"

"I don't think he's going to have a choice."

Chris parted ways with Punk after speaking with him for a little longer. Then he went to get dressed into his trunks, putting on the show on the closed circuit television in the room, turning up the volume so he could hear what was going on. He decided to just sit and enjoy the show for a little while before going to talk to Bryan about their tag team match later on. He leaned back on the cushions of the couch, getting comfortable as he watched the last few minutes of Christian's match.

Afterwards, he saw Del Rio talking to Teddy about being the #1 contender. Chris thought, and not for the first time, that the Board of Directors was really starting to butt in a little too much. The thought was short-lived because the Raw 1000th segment was coming up, and he knew that meant Stephanie was coming on in a second. Her voice was what came first, talking over a couple of clips of Shane and Vince, making Chris laugh. Then they actually showed Stephanie talking and Chris was struck.

His wife was beautiful. He saw her everyday, and he thought she was gorgeous everyday, but there was just something about seeing her in that moment, breezy, amused, funny, that struck him. Sometimes it was just the little things she did that made him pause and thank every higher being there ever was that he'd somehow managed to make _that_ woman fall in love with him. It was a feat, he had to believe, because he wasn't the easiest guy to get along with. He had a lot of flaws that she overlooked, but damn, how lucky was he?

There were probably millions of men across the world who would want that woman, who fantasized about her, and Chris got to fall asleep with her head next to his or on his chest or tucked against him almost every night. It had been almost ten years and she was still under his skin in the worst way. How could there have been women before her? There could never be any women after her either, there just couldn't. He stood up as soon as it was over, grabbed his light-up jacket and went back to the gorilla.

He made a beeline for Stephanie, crouching behind her chair and grabbing her chin so he could kiss her. He actually bent her backwards a little, deepening the kiss, much to the horror of their coworkers and their children. Stephanie pulled away breathlessly. "What in the hell?"

"You're beautiful," he told you," just in case I haven't said it today."

A little while later, Punk found himself with nothing to do so he decided he'd call Britt and see if she'd found Hunter. He would have looked for her, but if Hunter had talked to her, she might have left or she might not actually want to see anyone. He dialed her number and waited for her to pick up.

"Hey, Phil, what's wrong?" she answered without hesitation.

"Oh hey, I was just wondering if you'd found Hunter."

"No, not yet, he's avoiding me," Britt said.

"He said that?"

"No, I would have had to see him for him to say that to me," Britt sounded frustrated and he wanted to give her a hug. "I just…whatever, you know, I'll find him and when I do, he's going to tell me what's going on."

"He should, you know, that's something you need to know," Punk told her.

"What is?"

"Whatever he needs to tell you," Punk said, realizing that even though he'd said nothing, it sounded like he kind of knew something and he didn't want Britt to know he knew what was going on. She would hound him for the answer, and he couldn't tell her, not like this.

"Oh, yeah, I know, whatever it is, it's bad, I can tell," she admitted. "I just don't know how I'm going to deal with it."

"Like you always do. Look at your job, you deal with crap all the time."

"That's true."

"Punk, hey, Punk!" he heard a voice behind him.

Punk turned around and it was AJ _again_. He couldn't believe he had to see her again. This was getting out of hand. He just couldn't handle this right now, not with Britt on the phone. AJ kept bugging him about his call, which was getting on his nerves. She had no right to know who he was talking about. He apologized to Britt and told her he would call her right back, then turned fully to AJ, ready to tell her off. He chose to tell her it was his sister because he knew of AJ's weird jealousy of Britt, and he didn't want to stir up more trouble for his friend. Britt was already going through something and didn't need this.

AJ asked him if he'd seen her match, but he hadn't even been aware she had one. He apologized, not really meaning it because it wasn't his job to keep track of her matches. It was his job to wrestle, not play babysitter for this girl. He did feel bad when she looked hurt, but it was one match; it wasn't the end of the world. AJ seemed to think so as she slunk off, but he couldn't feel too badly, it wasn't like she'd told him about her match. He went back to his phone, calling Britt again, but she didn't answer. He cursed his phone and AJ as he decided now was as good a time as any to talk to Cena.

The match had been fine until the end. Everything had been just a match until the end. Chris's knee was going to be sore in the morning, but he was still fighting, still fighting even when Cena knocked him down backstage, right in front of his children. Since they were no longer in front of the cameras, Chris didn't feel the need to hold back and attacked Cena with his full force, knocking _him_ down.

"You two, come on!" Stephanie yelled at them, "Not in here!" She grabbed Chris's arm and dragged him away from Cena. "The match is done for you two, Cena, go hit the showers, Chris, you stay with me."

He had no choice but to listen.

Punk wasn't sure what AJ was doing later on during his match. Chris and Cena had fought to the back, leaving him and Bryan. They fought, but then AJ was there, looking to interfere again, but he and Bryan continued to fight until they were both laying in the ring. Bryan came to cognizance first, and Punk could see him rushing out of the ring out of the corner of his eye. Then he heard Bryan pleading, but he couldn't figure out why. He turned his head and saw AJ on the ropes, Bryan pleading with her not to jump.

Punk knew she was crazy, but this was _crazy_. He got to his feet, rushing over to the turnbuckle, climbing up and telling her not to jump. She was a tough chick, he'd give her that, but jumping through a table was insane with her frame. She was still a petite woman and going through a table from this height would only result in some kind of injury. And what if she missed the table? He couldn't let her do this.

When she pulled him into a kiss, he was downright shocked. He hadn't been expecting it and when he pulled away, he was stunned, numb really. It had been too quick to assess, but it dulled his reaction time and before he knew it, he was flying through the air, knocking into Bryan on his way through the table.

He'd been duped.

Britt didn't see any of this in her quest for Hunter. She'd scoured everywhere, but he was nowhere to be found. In a last ditch effort, she went out into the parking lot. It didn't take her more than one take to see that there was a human-sized shape in the driver's seat of her rental. She went over, her heels clicking murderously against the pavement. When she reached the car, she didn't even knock on the window, instead opening up the door so fast it threatened to come right off in her hands. She flung herself into the seat and looked to the man next to her.

"You better start talking, Hunter, and you better start now."

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A/N: Just a little reminder that if you do review anonymously, please sign your name or screename or whatever you want so I can identify you, thanks! :)


	377. An Unexpected Proposal, July 9, 2012

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews and everything, everyone. This chapter is kind of fluffy, I think, but oh well, sometimes we get fluff. Next week will be a hopefully special chapter, and I have some other stuff planned for my other stories, so stay tuned, and hope you enjoy! :D

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"What do you want me to say?"

"How about you try for the truth, would that work?" Britt asked sarcastically. "I've been running around all night trying to look for you, trying to get an explanation for your behavior and for Chris and Stephanie's behavior, and lo and behold, nobody will tell me what the hell is going on. I think I'm at least deserving of the truth, I think you owe me at least that."

"Do you know how much it hurt when I found out Punk kissed you?" he asked her, his voice low and harsher than she'd heard it in a long time.

If Hunter was going to tell her the truth, she felt like she owed him the truth back, "No, I don't, I've never been in that situation, so no, I don't know, but you can try telling me."

"I've spent so long in love with you," Hunter gripped the steering wheel in his hands, and he could swear he could feel it bending under his grip. "You're the first person since Stephanie to make me feel anything other than…I don't even know. I never really wanted someone again, not like I had before-"

"To be fair, you drugged Stephanie and married her, so it wasn't like you had an established relationship," Britt cut in, but shut her mouth when he looked at her.

"Those were the actions of a desperate man, I've never told her because I never really wanted her to feel bad after we divorced, but I'd had a thing for Stephanie long before I ever drugged her. She was beautiful and innocent, and I thought she was enchanting, yes, _enchanting_. I was with Joanie, but Stephanie was just so pure, untainted. I didn't think I stood a chance."

"So you drugged her…perfect sense there, Hunter," Britt said, "and me?"

"I still don't deserve you, but I thought…when I heard about Punk kissing you, I just thought, okay, this is where I lose her, this is the part where she finds out I'm an asshole, I'm not good for her, I'm not worthy of her."

"Hunter," Britt sighed, finding his words horrible in their own way. "That's no way to think, that's no way to ever think. I don't know why you think so lowly of yourself or why you continuously think you're not good at some things."

"I've spent most of my adult life being a wrestler and that's it," he shrugged. "That's all I've really worked at. I don't have a fall back, I'm lucky Stephanie even gave me a backstage job because Lord knows I don't truly have the skills for it. I never really had any serious relationships before Joanie."

"That doesn't mean you suck at them," she took his hand. "I told you that nothing is going on with Punk and I, he's my friend. I care about him, but that's it, besides, he's got this thing with AJ, who knows what that is, but I don't think he means it when he says he doesn't care about her. So really, what is it? You can tell me, you know you can tell me anything."

He took a deep breath. He knew what he had to say wasn't something she was going to like. That was the worst part about it. She was sitting there, reassuring him, telling him how great he was, and he was going to tell her something that would hurt her. He'd put it off for as long as he could because he wasn't quite ready to lose her yet. He knew that this was an inevitability. She didn't like being deceived, but then, who did?

"It was me who said the things about Punk and Sawyer, Flynn, and Kensy," Hunter told her, realizing that beating around the bush any longer would only make her angrier. "It never happened, he never did that, I just said he did so you would stop hanging around with him, and so Chris and Stephanie would not want to be his friend."

"Wait, so…he never used them, _you_ just said that because you were pissed at him because he kissed me?" Britt backed away from him slightly, dropping her grip on his hand as she did so. He could feel the loss of her touch keenly, and he felt almost empty without it. "After everything we've been through to be together, you felt the need to lie and manipulate in order to keep me instead of coming to me to voice your concerns?"

"It was wrong," he said for lack of anything better to say. Was there anything better to say? She had him pegged, and that was all there was to it. He couldn't lie his way out of this one. He could only tell her his motives, which sounded so hollow now.

"You think?" she asked sarcastically. "I can't believe you would do that. Why didn't you just talk to me? You could have been angry, I would have respected your anger because it was wrong, but you shouldn't have just…those poor kids. You know they really missed Punk, right?"

"Yes, I know."

"Why didn't you confess? I mean, at least they would have respected you if you confessed, _I_ would have respected you if you confessed."

"Because we were already so tenuous!" he blurted out in anger.

"What do you mean?" she asked him to clarify.

"I mean, I always feel like I'm more into this relationship than you, ever since…ever since you rejected my proposal to you."

"Oh God, Hunter, I thought we talked about that, we've talked and talked and talked about that," she grabbed at her hair, fisting it in her hands as she stared up towards the ceiling of the car, wishing she could take deep breaths of the cool air right now.

"You don't know what it's like to put everything on the line and get rejected," Hunter said. "I thought I had to fight for you."

"You didn't, you never did," Britt said through gritted teeth. "You're impossible, you know that. You are just impossible. I love you, does that even mean anything to you? I have tried so hard not to give you reason to doubt my feelings, have I faltered sometimes, yes, but so have you, but I've been here, I supported you, I've fought for you. Is it marriage you really, truly wanted, so much that you resort to flimsy plans that only hurt people?"

"I want to marry you, yes," he told her, "I've wanted to marry you for such a long time, when you said no, you weren't on the other side."

"So that just gives you the right to play God? I hurt you, so you have to…act like a Neanderthal? Is that how it's supposed to work?"

"I wasn't thinking when I did it, I was too hurt, I was just acting on instinct."

"And your instinct is to hurt innocent people?" Britt shuddered in disgust. She needed to get out of this car. Without saying another word, she opened the door, then opened the backseat, grabbing her suitcase out of it, intending to pull it back into the arena and get a ride elsewhere.

"Where are you going?" Hunter asked, getting out of the car as well.

"Away!" Britt said.

"Where are you going to be staying?"

"None of your business," Britt said, "just leave me alone!"

He knew she meant business so he didn't follow her.

Stephanie sat in one of the smaller conference rooms in the large resort. It was beautiful here, peaceful even, which she figured was a good thing to have when you were working with marriages. The marina resort had separate cabins for all the guests, and it had been rented out exclusively for this marriage retreat. She wished she could just go to the spa, but that didn't seem a possibility since on top of their bed, they found a schedule of activities. Luckily there was room for downtime.

"I wish we were back in Minnesota," Chris whispered to her as he grabbed her hand and leaned his head on her shoulder. She brought his hand up to her lips and kissed his knuckles. "Can we go back?"

"Not this weekend, but sometime during the summer, sure," she told him. For the 4th of July, they'd gone up to Minnesota to visit some of Chris's family that lived up there. They'd been on a lake, which the kids loved, and fireworks over the water had been magical. Chris wished he were back there and not sitting around a bunch of people who looked like they hated each other. Chris and Stephanie had found most of the marriages around them seemed to be contentious, though they'd seen a few couples who were seemingly happy.

"I hate it here," Chris said.

"Chris, we've been here for like five hours," Stephanie told him. "We haven't even done any of the workshops."

"God, workshops, we're definitely not going to do that sex one, right? I cannot imagine anything more embarrassing than the need to talk about your sex life," Chris shuddered. Stephanie laughed and he laughed with her, causing a few people to look over at them like their laughter interrupted their serious discussions.

"No, we don't have to do that one," Stephanie said. "They have boats here tonight, so we can go out on a boat with Christian and Trish."

"Or without them," he told her, "that would be nice, kind of a pre-anniversary thing to do together, oh, at night, that would be super romantic."

"You don't have to prove you love me," Stephanie told him. "We're not here because we're in trouble."

"Yeah, that's what they want you to believe. By the time this weekend is over, we'll be in therapy ourselves," he told her.

"I wouldn't let that happen so close to our anniversary."

"Hello everyone, let's get started," a woman who looked to be in her mid-50's walked into the room. She had dark black hair peppered with gray that frizzed around her face. Her long sundress made her look older somehow, but she had a nice, calm smile on her face, meant to inviting and kind. She sat down in an empty chair around the circle the room was situated in. "Okay, so why don't we go around and introduce ourselves and talk about what we want out of the weekend. I'm Maryanne, and I want to help strengthen the bonds in this room."

"Great, icebreakers," Stephanie groaned so only Chris would hear. He bit his lip to keep from laughing. He loved his wife so much. They thought so much alike sometimes, and it was reassuring to know there was someone so attuned to his own feelings. "I'd like to strengthen my bond with some alcohol."

Everyone started introducing themselves as Chris and Stephanie tried to pay attention to everyone. The answers for why they were here varied. Some of them said they wanted to make their marriage better, some said they wanted to save their marriages, and Chris and Stephanie realized they really didn't have a reason for being here other than being here for their friends. They couldn't say that though, it would sound weird. The circle finally got around to them and Chris gave one of his winning grins.

"Hey, I'm Chris, this is my wife, Stephanie, and we just want to have a great weekend together as a couple and learn about ourselves in the process," Chris gave everyone a charming smile and Stephanie nodded along.

"That's great, a very doable goal" Maryanne nodded, then moved onto the next couple.

"Good one," Stephanie told Chris and he gave her a wink. When they were done with that, they were told they needed to go around and tell everyone how they met. This one was going to be rather easy, but complicated at the same time. "You want me to field this one?"

"We both can," Chris shrugged as they listened to other people's stories. They knew theirs was going to be unique, and it appeared as if nobody was a wrestling fan because nobody appeared to recognize either one of them. "Should I tell them you had sex with me before our second date?"

"No," Stephanie hissed at him, nudging him in the ribs.

"Chris, Stephanie, would you like to go now?" Maryanne asked as Chris and Stephanie realized that everyone was kind of looking at them.

"Okay," Stephanie said sheepishly, like she'd been caught making out with Chris and not just talking to him. "Chris and I met each other…um, almost twelve years ago. He started working at my father's company…"

Chris grinned at her, "I met her on my first day there. She was in a cardigan set with a cute skirt, and I thought she was really pretty and sweet."

"I thought he was very handsome," Stephanie scrunched her nose up at Chris.

"And how did you two start dating?"

"Oh, well," Chris laughed, "I hated her once she married her first husband. She really turned into this huge bitch."

Stephanie laughed as she looked at the surprised reactions around the room. "Well, you weren't nice to me either. He would call me names, horrible names, and I couldn't stand him, I would make my husband threaten him because he was so mean to me."

"She was horrible to me too though," Chris glanced at her playfully, "she tried making my life as miserable as I tried to make hers. I think there was always sexual tension there though, I mean, underneath it all, I think there was definitely something there."

"Then my husband got hurt, and I was out working and we grew apart, and then when he came back from his rehabbing, I realized I wasn't exactly in love with him anymore, and I kind of betrayed him, and he left me and we got divorced, but while that was going on, I befriended Chris, and well, from there, I guess that mutual hatred turned into mutual attraction."

"We didn't do anything at first, I think we were scared to," Chris told them, and Stephanie nodded, "but then, she left work for a while, taking time off to recover from her divorce, and when she came back to work, I thought we could pick up where we left off as friends."

"Except I couldn't deal with that anymore, I couldn't just be friends with him, so we mutually decided to be together, and we've been together pretty much ever since," Stephanie squeezed his hand. "It'll be ten years on the 18th."

"Wow, that is quite the story," Maryanne said.

"We think so," Chris responded, "she's the only one who gets me."

"He's the only one who can deal with my brand of crazy," Stephanie returned and Chris nodded vigorously.

"Well, I think it'll be difficult to top that, but let's see."

Nobody did.

Stephanie fell into the room later that day with a laugh, "Relationships are like a tug-of-war, there's push and there's pull, sometimes you have to push, sometimes you have to pull…has she ever even _played_ tug-of-war? You're always pulling or you're being pulled!"

Chris laughed as he sat on the bed, falling down onto his back, "What about that couple who were going through problems, the older ones who were talking about their kids leaving and how it was so empty and now they found they didn't know how to function without kids and Maryanne was like, once they leave the nest, you have to build a new nest, but it can have branches just as strong."

Stephanie giggled, "I wanted to tell them to build a love-nest, I mean, that was the obvious joke, right?"

"Thank you!" Chris said as Stephanie came over and straddled his lap. "I think Maryanne is a few eggs short of a nest if you ask me. She sounds like she came straight out of some hippie orgy or something."

Stephanie grabbed Chris's hands, "Or how about with us and how our hatred was really secretly binding us together like ribbons around a pole?"

"Yes, our hatred was just ribbons," he said, sitting up so he could face her. "My God, what have we gotten ourselves into, baby?"

"I don't know, I feel like we've walked into some alternate dimension. I think some of the other people in our group were thinking the same thing, I saw some skeptical looks around that damn circle."

"I think I did too," he said, "you don't think that'll happen to us, do you?"

"Hmm?" she asked, leaning forward to press a kiss to his neck.

"When the kids get older, do you think we're going to end up having nothing to do?"

"No, because we'll still have the company we run, plus you'll still have your music," Stephanie said, "and who knows what kind of plans we'll have then. I don't think we'll ever have to worry about sitting around at home doing nothing. That's not the type of people we are, and I don't think it's the kind of people we're going to be."

There was a knock on the door and Christian's voice, "Hey, you guys, safe to come in?"

"Yeah, hold on, the door is locked," Stephanie said, getting off Chris's lap and walking to the door, opening it up. "Hey, guys, come on in."

"Thanks," Christian said, letting Trish go in before him, "so how was your first seminar or whatever, what did you guys do?"

"Something about getting in touch with the roots of our relationship," Stephanie explained as she sat on the bed next to Chris. He wrapped his arms around her as Christian and Trish took a seat on the couch in the room. "We just went around talking about how we met, what we want out of this weekend, and then she went into these weird spiels about metaphors and whatever, what did you guys do?"

"We had our individual session," Trish explained. "The counselor was a lot like our own counselor back home, it was actually really good."

"We should see that person," Stephanie said, "at the very least we wouldn't have to hear about bird nests."

"Stay away from Maryanne," Chris warned them, "she's a piece of work that one. What do you have this afternoon? We're doing that obstacle course of togetherness thing, I'm hoping it's something physical because I would kick ass at that, Stephanie and I work great together, and if we're losing, both of us are unscrupulous enough to cheat." Stephanie nodded, her eyes glowing.

"Yeah, we're doing that too," Christian said, his eyes narrowing, "we're going to beat you."

"I'd like to see you try," Chris challenged. "You don't even stand a chance against Stephanie and me."

"I hate to look cocky, but I agree," Stephanie said, leaning against Chris, "if there's a competition, Chris and I are going to win it."

"We'll see," Trish said. She grabbed Christian's hand, which didn't go unnoticed by Chris or Stephanie. They were happy to see the two of them working as a team. "What are you guys doing tonight?"

"Well, since there are boats we can rent out, Chris and I want to take one out," Stephanie said, "we think it would be cool to take advantage of that, and Chris is still on boat time from our 4th of July escapades, he's so conveniently American when there's a holiday."

"Hey, technically, I'm an American _and_ a Canadian, so I can celebrate any damn holiday I want to celebrate, I was born in New York."

"Yeah, he only brings that up when it suits him, otherwise he's such a proud Canadian," Stephanie said sarcastically.

"You do know you're sitting in a room with three people who grew up in Canada, right?" Trish joked and Stephanie pretended to slap her forehead.

"What are you and Christian doing tonight?" Stephanie asked. "We would ask you out on the boat with us, but I'm going to go ahead and say there's going to be a lot of making out, so you probably don't want to be witness to me and Chris sucking face."

"Actually, we were going to go on a walk. They have these moonlight walk things you can do so we're going to do that, it should be pretty cool."

"Sounds like fun," Stephanie said, "you know, if you don't get anything out of this weekend, at least it's a weekend where you don't have to take care of Tilden. Chris and I are relishing in the weekend away from the children."

"Yeah, there's that, even though I miss her. I was going to call and talk to her when we got back to our cabin," Trish said, "but I think Christian's mom is probably out spoiling her as we speak."

"That's what grandparents are supposed to do though," Christian said, "they're supposed to spoil them."

"Well, I do want to call her though, so we'll see you later when we kick your asses," Trish told them, standing up and walking out of the room with attitude, Christian following with a laugh.

"They seem better," Stephanie said, looking to Chris. "I'm so happy they're back on the right track. I just wonder how Britt is doing. I told her she didn't have to show up on Monday, that she could take the week off, maybe two, but she said she didn't want to."

"It's her choice," he said, "do you want to call the kids?"

"No, we can call them later, I'm sure they're busy right now," Stephanie said, lying down next to Chris again.

"So what do you want to do then?"

Stephanie raised an eyebrow, "Let's get a start on our boat trip."

Later on, they found themselves strapped together, a length of bungee connecting them as they held hands and listened to instructions. Apparently, this was not so much a competition as it was a cooperation-building exercise. There was an obstacle course set in front of them, and they were expected to work together to get through it, the goal was just to finish, but to two people like Chris and Stephanie, this was a competition, and only a competition. Christian and Trish were standing a little ways away and Stephanie leaned into Chris.

"We're finishing this before anyone else, you know that, right?" she said, cracking her knuckles.

"I've already got this covered," Chris told her with a smirk.

"Good," Stephanie said. Nobody else seemed to be looking at it like a competition, but they didn't know what they were talking about.

"Okay, do we have any volunteers to go first?"

Chris and Stephanie's hands both shot up at the same time as they took a step forward, "We'll do it!" Stephanie announced in a voice that told everyone else to back up. She and Chris walked forward, their steps already synchronized with each other. They stood at the start of the course, the both of them scanning their surroundings. Chris winked at Stephanie, and she smirked back at him. They were told to go and Stephanie grabbed Chris's hand as they ran towards the course.

They made their way through a set of tires on the ground before having to go through an army crawl under a cargo net. Chris waited for Stephanie to finish that before they moved onto what looked like a spider's web. They stopped in front of it to look for some kind of way through it. "Okay," Chris said, "I'm going to go first and you just follow the way I go, okay?"

"No, let me go first, I'm smaller than you are."

"No, baby, let me go first, I'm bigger so any way I can find, you'll have an easier time getting through the holes that I find," he reasoned with her.

"Good thinking," Stephanie said, "okay, you go first."

Chris navigated his way through with Stephanie right behind him. They came out the other side, Stephanie falling down and laughing as she came out of the web. Chris went over and helped her up, laughing as he pulled her to her feet, giving her quick kiss before they had to navigate around some cones. They finished the course, but by the time they were finished, they didn't notice, they were having too much fun.

"Chrissy, wake up," Trish said, pushing Christian back and forth.

"Huh, what's going on? What time is it?"

"It's two in the morning, get up," she told him. He opened his eyes and saw she wasn't wearing her pajamas. Instead, she's wearing a hoodie and track pants. He sits up immediately because if she's dressed like that in the middle of the night something must be wrong.

"Is it Tilden? Is she okay? Did my mom call?" Christian asked frantically, already looking around for something to wear.

"No, nothing like that, I just wanted to sit with you."

"Sit with me?" He's back to being extremely confused.

"Yeah, it's beautiful out and it's so quiet, there's nobody up, there's nobody walking around. The tour was nice and all, but I wanted some time with you."

"Because we haven't been spending all this time together?" he asked her, giving a short laugh.

"We have, but not like this. The sky is beautiful, I want to share it with you," she tugged at his hand, and she looked so pretty in the moonlight, there was nothing he could deny her in that moment. He groggily got out of bed, pulling on a sweatshirt and some sweatpants before she grabbed his hand again and led him outside. Their cabin had a small deck that overlooked the water, and the moonlight bouncing off of it created a peaceful effect. Trish pushed Christian down into one of the seats before sitting in his lap.

"Hey," he said, watching her as she rooted herself into his lap, trying to find a comfortable place.

"Hey," she said, "look up."

He did so and saw the sky, which was looking brilliant right about now. The stars were twinkling high above their heads, their beauty shining down on them. He brought his head back down to look at Trish and she was smiling at him, taking in his face with the dim light. She leaned forward and pressed a small kiss to his lips, a chaste one, slightly longer than a peck, but it was enough.

"It's really nice out here, I think this weekend is really doing us good," he admitted, glad they went on the trip.

"You know," she started, burrowing herself against him even further, feeling more at home than she had in quite some time, "I was watching Chris and Stephanie go through that obstacle course today, and they were one of the few couples that actually looked like they were having fun."

"Is that what you saw?" Christian laughed. "I saw two people who wanted to show everyone up…then did."

Trish laughed, "Okay, there was that too, but they were having fun, they were working together, they were _functioning_, and I thought to myself, I want that back. Then, what really hit home with me was how many of those couples were beyond repair. I mean, so many of them, you could tell this was a last ditch effort to grab onto something that wasn't there anymore. I mean, remember that guy who practically dragged his wife through the course? I though to myself, no way is that marriage lasting out the year. I realized, we're not like that, we're really not lost causes, far from it. We're working on things, and we're making great strides, and I'm so proud of us. I love you, that's one thing I don't think those people have anymore, but I do, I love you so much."

"I love you too," Christian said. "Do you…maybe want to go back to bed…and not sleep?"

Trish giggled and nodded, "I'd really like that."

"Mama! Daddy!"

"Kensy," Stephanie ran towards her daughter, scooping her up and spinning her around. "Oh, hey there, baby, oh, you look so big, did you get bigger while I was gone?"

"Uh, no," Kensington shrugged as Stephanie hugged her.

"Hi, Mommy!" Flynn said, coming over and hugging Stephanie around the legs while Sawyer was hugging Chris. Flynn left her a minute later to go hug Chris as Sawyer came over and hugged her around the waist, burying his face into her t-shirt as he clung to her.

"Flutterby, I missed you," Chris said, hugging his daughter and picking her up.

"I did too, but I played with Gamps and Gamma," Flynn explained.

"Were you good?" Stephanie asked Flynn, giving her a kiss on the cheek.

"I was best," Flynn said.

"Sawyer, were you good?"

"Uh huh," he said, "Is your marriage okay, Mommy?"

Stephanie laughed and glanced at Chris. "Where did you hear a thing like that?"

"I heard it from Gamps. He was saying that you're working on your marriage, so is it okay? Did you have take a test or anything?"

"No, there were no tests, and our marriage is great," Stephanie said, "but you don't need to worry about that."

"Hello, hello," Loretta said, "I take it you guys have all reacquainted yourselves."

"Yes, we have," Chris said, kissing his mother hello.

"How was the retreat?"

"Fun, actually," Stephanie said, "I had a good time."

"I did too," Chris smiled at her, "and don't worry, Mom, nobody thought we were crazy or should get divorced, we were actually one of the best couples there marriage-wise." Stephanie nodded.

"Well, good, I'm glad," Loretta said, "Okay, so Ted is bringing the kids' things so you can put it in the trunk, then we're headed back to the airport, and we will see you in two weeks when we get back from Hawaii."

Ted brought over their bags, and after saying their goodbyes, they went inside. Stephanie just sat down with the schedule, looking it over when she saw that the anonymous GM was going to be the GM tonight. She groaned out loud. While on the retreat, they weren't allowed to bring laptops or tablets so all of Stephanie's business was through her phone. While it had all the capabilities to do business, she'd been so busy, she'd left most of the work to Britt, who was grateful for the distraction.

"What is it?" Chris asked, Kensington hanging off his neck as Flynn clung to his leg, her feet perched on top of his black boot.

"The anonymous GM is the GM for tonight," Stephanie told him, bracing herself.

"Are you kidding me!" Chris groaned loudly. "You know, I knew who it was, but I've completely forgotten now. At least I thought I knew who it was."

"Daddy, why are you mad about that?" Sawyer asked.

"Do you remember the anonymous GM?" Chris asked him.

"A little, he was a computer…oh wait, you didn't like it. You didn't like the computer…Ed hated it though, he beat it up."

"Ed beat up a computer?" Flynn asked. That sounded silly.

"Yeah, he did," Chris told her, ruffling her soft, brown hair. "I can't believe we have to deal with that crap again. Thank God my match is already made and I won't get put into something stupid with that dumbass GM."

"Language," Stephanie warned him. "It's only one night, and like you said, you won't even have to deal with them. You just go out for your match, and you win it, and then all is right in the world."

"Yeah, right," Chris said, "because facing Cena and Kane is going to be oh so peachy."

"I don't like Kane," Flynn said, "He thinks he scary, but he's not."

"I don't think he's scary either," Chris said, "okay, well, I better get to finding Big Show so we can talk about our match later. I'm hoping some of that old charm we had when we were tag partners will come back. I'd love to soften up Cena and Kane before Money in the Bank."

"You're gonna win," Flynn said.

"You think I'm going to get the briefcase?" Chris asked his daughter.

"Uh huh," Flynn said, "'cause you said you gonna win the Royal Rumble, and you not win it, then you said you gonna win at WrestleMania, but then you didn't again, then you said you were gonna beat Punk and be the best in the world, and you didn't, so you have to win, Daddy."

"She makes a very compelling case," Stephanie said, "I think she's trying to tell you, you're due."

"One can only hope," Chris said. He smirked and squinted his eyes, "You know what would be crazy?"

"What?" she asked.

"If I got the briefcase, then Rock came back and won the WWE championship and we somehow faced each other at WrestleMania. Talk about a blast from the past," Chris chuckled just thinking about it. "I think we'd give Taker and Hunter a run for their money."

"Don't even say his name to me right now," Stephanie shook her head, "I don't want to think about him."

"Sorry," Chris said, not realizing his slip of the tongue. It was hard to cut someone out so completely after you'd been friends for a while. The thing was, he'd really come to think of Hunter as a friend. It wasn't in the same way he'd been friends with Kurt. With Kurt, there'd always been an easy rapport, even when Chris didn't like him all that much. More than anything, he'd thought of Kurt as a total dweeb, so he never could really hate him.

Hunter's friends had been borne from trials and tribulations. For years, Chris had seen Hunter as nothing but an enemy, even more so than he'd ever seen Stephanie that way. With Stephanie, loath as he was to admit it, she was female and attractive, so there'd always been an undercurrent of sexual tension (something he'd never wanted to act out upon when he'd hated her). When things changed between them, they always had that sexual tension to fall back upon. Hunter, well, Chris was not attracted to him so their friendship had been difficult.

It was never going to be easy, not when they'd both been in love with the same woman. It would always fall back to the fact that Stephanie had chosen to be with Chris. Sure, there wasn't a love triangle like whatever was going on between Punk, AJ, and Daniel, but he and Hunter were forever tied by being the two men Stephanie had deemed worthy enough to marry (or in Hunter's case, _stay_ married). They had that connection, and it had been a source of anger for a while, then laughs for another while, and now it was hard to turn his back on someone he'd been friends with, someone he'd _worked_ to be friends with. All the effort was completely down the drain.

"I'm just going to find Big Show. I'll take the little girls," Chris said, his voice hard now and Stephanie just nodded. She felt the same way he did, knew what he was going through, and no words were needed.

Britt sniffled as she threw another tissue away. She'd spent some time crying over the weekend, and it had not been kind to her. She felt like she had a perpetually runny nose right now though she hadn't cried since that morning. She really didn't want to see anyone right now, but work was the best thing for her. She was actually glad the anonymous GM was back for the evening because it meant she wouldn't have to deal with someone's ego. She could just send off an e-mail then be done with it.

There was a knock at her door and she called out, "Who is it?"

"Britt, it's me, can I talk to you?" Hunter's voice wafted through the door.

"Go away!" she yelled at him, "I don't want to talk to you!"

"Britt, please," he said, trying for the knob, but she'd locked the door just in case this was going to happen. "Please let me talk to you."

"Go away, please, I just don't want to deal with you right now, okay, I'm working, please, just leave me alone."

"Britt…"

"I'm working!" she screeched at him, her voice reaching a level even she didn't think possible.

Another voice suddenly popped up from behind the door. "Hey, don't you think you should leave her alone?"

"Oh shove off," Hunter said, turning to Punk. "You just love this, don't you? Now you can swoop in and be the good guy. I bet you were just waiting for me to screw up so you could come in and take her away from me."

"There might have been a time I wanted to do that, yes," Punk nodded, "but right now, no. Right now, she's hurting because of something _you_ did, not something I did, and she's trying to work while you're standing there banging on her door. I'm her friend, that's the first thing I ever was, and I don't ever plan on changing that, regardless of whether or not you're in her life. If you can't deal with that, tough."

Britt smiled softly as she heard Punk's words. They were so kind and understanding, but forceful. She walked to the door, as if not under her own power, and opened it. The two men's heads turned sharply towards the door, one looking hopeful and the other sympathetic. She grabbed the sympathetic one's hand and pulled him into the room, closing the door on the hopeful one, dashing every last hope that may have resided there as she clicked the lock shut once again.

"Hey, how are you?" Punk asked, pulling her into a hug as she stood there in surprise. "I just wanted you to know that I knew it was him…or at least I really suspected it. I don't think anyone knew until Chris and Stephanie confronted him. I would have told you, but I know you would have thought I was just jealous and that was me acting on it."

"No, I get it, I really do," she said, finally returning the hug. "I'll be okay, thank you for taking up for me out there. I just don't want to talk to him right now."

"I know the feeling," he said, slumping down onto the couch as she joined him, tucking one foot underneath her leg. She grabbed his forearm and gave him a supportive squeeze. "Do you know what you're going to do with him?"

"I'm not sure, I have to think about it. I have to think about his motives and why he felt the need to go to such extremes," Britt said, "I'm not ruling anything out because I love him, but I'm not going to say anything definitive yet. I just need to think. It's not even so much what he did, even though I'm sick over what it did to Chris and Stephanie and the kids, but it's just more that he lied for so long and that he stooped so low. He went to a place where he didn't have to go."

"Yeah, I get it," Punk said.

"And you got the brunt of it. I mean, Chris was _so_ mad at you, he poured alcohol on you, he called out your entire family," Britt shook her head, "and it all could have been averted if Hunter told the truth. I'm having a really difficult time with that part."

"Well, that's what taking time means," he told her, "that's what it is. You get time to evaluate, you'll figure out your life. You've got a really great head on those shoulders, you'll figure out what you want, and as long as you're happy, then you're good, right?"

"Right," she said, "but…you?"

"Don't even get me started," he shook his head, "I do not want to talk about her right now."

"She kissed you but good, Phil."

"Shut up," he shook his head, "I don't want to think about it. It was disgusting, she'd _just_ kissed Daniel, it was like I was swapping spit with him, and sorry, if I'm going to go after a guy, it's not going to be him."

Britt giggled. "Well, maybe she wiped her mouth."

"Still not cool, she's trying to play both of us, I don't know what her little game is, but whatever it is, she needs help."

"You could just let her down gently, but the fact remains that you're not," she pointed out.

"Then maybe I should tell her," Punk said, "I don't want her to think I'm stringing her along."

"That's probably for the best."

He would have told her too, if he could have gotten in a word in while she talked. What started off as a discussion started veering off into the spectacularly weird, and by then, Punk wasn't sure if he could _find_ his voice. The way AJ spoke of him, you'd think they'd been dating for years, and not well…not even having a real first date. This chick needed to get a grip on reality. She was talking about hearts and love, and things that had not even entered Punk's mind when it came to AJ. Sure, he cared about her, she was a nice girl, she deserved to be treated well, but this was getting ridiculous.

She was being ridiculous. He wasn't quite grasping where this was going until she actually got down on her knee. His eyes widened and his fingers itched to stop her, pull her up, tell her to stop acting crazy. He wasn't sure that would go over well, not with her mentality. He didn't know what to do though, he didn't know what to say. He was, for probably one of the only times in his life, completely speechless. This was _not_ how he intended his evening to go. Hell, this was not how he intended his _year_ to go. _He _was getting proposed to…this was not happening, this was not happening.

Except this was happening.

He was getting a headache. He was getting a migraine, hell, maybe he had a tumor and this was just not happening. The entire crowd was chanting at him, but hell if he could understand anything right now. He was _that_ shocked. There was nothing he could say except no, he _had_ to say no, there was no other option here. He had to let her down as gently as possible.

Thankfully, Bryan was running down to the ring shouting no. Punk couldn't even process what happened in front of him, all he knew was that Bryan was talking, and he wanted AJ, and then he was asking about Bryan thinking about proposing, and his brain was beating a really weird rhythm against his skull, like it was trying to break free. When AJ said she was going to walk out with her future husband at the end of the show, he lost his train of thought, actually, he lost every though, dropped his microphone and gaped.

What the hell was he going to do?

"Hey there, Mr. AJ Lee," Britt teased as he shuffled his way backstage.

"I don't even know what just happened."

Britt laughed, and normally he would have been so proud making her laugh after the week she'd had, but he didn't even have it in him to smile. She grabbed his hand and started leading him back to his locker room. "You are going to tell her no, right? I mean, you aren't going to spare her feelings by telling her yes, are you?"

"Yes, I mean, yes, I'm going to tell her no, I mean, I have to do that. I can't just not…I can't, why did she do that?"

"Like you've been saying, she's unstable," Britt looped her arm through his when it appeared he could no longer move himself forward.

"She proposed to me, she wants to _marry_ me."

"I know," Britt said, "but you'll let her down gently, and it'll all be okay."

"Do you really think so?" he asked her, his eyes imploring her to tell him the truth.

"No, I really don't," Britt told him, "but hey, it's better than getting married to someone you don't love, right?"

"I've never wanted to get married," Punk told her, glancing over at her, his face still a mask of confusion, horror, shock, and disbelief. "I don't want to marry her."

"I know the sentiment," Britt said wistfully.

"I'm sorry, I'm completely ignoring what you're going through."

"I think, right now, you've got the bigger problem."

Chris was still looking for the Big Show and it was right before his match. He didn't know where the other man was and it was frustrating. After his peaceful weekend, he'd been hoping for a peaceful day at work, but it was proving to be anything but. He'd dropped off the girls with Stephanie and Sawyer, got dressed, and was still looking for Big Show. He went back into the general locker room, hoping to find Big Show there, even though he'd been here no less than three times.

As he was there, Santino came up to him, wondering if he was the anonymous GM. There was no way he was the anonymous GM. He hated the anonymous GM. He tried to get Santino off his back by insinuating he was trying to cover up the fact that Santino himself was the GM. The smarmy Italian almost bought it, but then realized what Chris was doing and stormed out. He chuckled to himself before turning back to see Big Show, just the man he'd been looking for.

Chris told him that it could be like old times tonight, they could dominate like they once had. Big Show did not seem on board with this, not at all. Instead, he practically yelled at Chris. Chris would never understand people. He was only trying to come up with a sound game plan, but instead was rebuffed by his former partner. Oh well, it wasn't like he needed anyone anyways, except for Stephanie and the kids.

Speaking or thinking of Stephanie, he was just passing by a monitor to get down to the gorilla when he saw his wife pop up on the screen for another one of those Raw 1000th segments. That was funny, he didn't remember her filming another segment. He stopped to watch it for a second, wondering what she was going to talk about this time. He vainly hoped it was about him, but when he saw Hunter and Stephanie, he knew it wasn't.

He narrowed his eyes as he watched the video play, nearly gagging when they showed Stephanie announcing she was pregnant with Hunter's baby. He didn't know why, but it was the same sour taste he'd had when he saw this happening live. He remembered thinking that kid was going to be the spawn of the devil. He found that feeling rising up in him again before reminding himself _he_ had three children with that woman. He'd never lifted her up like that and spun her around. Maybe, if there was ever a fourth kid, he'd have to try that. With the first three, the only reaction was shock.

He continued to watch, scoffing as he saw their stupid vow renewal. He wondered why in God's name she'd chosen this when he realized why. She was celebrating the end of her horrible marriage to Hunter. This was her way of reminding him how bad they were together. She filmed this the night they were going to confront Hunter. She knew what she was doing, she knew how this would affect him. Wow, his wife was an even bigger manipulator than he'd ever thought. It was impressive.

What it also reminded everyone, or at least him and probably Hunter, of was that this was what led Stephanie right into his arms. Sure, it'd taken nearly eight months to get to that point, but it had been the catalyst for him and Stephanie. What a nice reminder for Hunter when his life was falling apart. Chris walked to the gorilla after watching Stephanie, knowing he had a few minutes since Cena was intent on blowing off some hot air before their match.

"You are nuts," Chris crouched down to Stephanie as she sits in his chair. Flynn started running her hands over his jacket as she sits next to her mommy while Sawyer listened in on the show through a pair of headphones. Kensington was in Stephanie's lap, leaning over to kiss Chris's chin.

"What?" Stephanie asked, but with a smirk to it to let Chris know she knew what was talking about.

"You wanted to shove an extra knife in his chest."

"Do you think it worked?"

"I hope so."

Hunter was desolate. He sat there, thinking about Stephanie's video, thinking about how she had to have deliberately brought that up to mess with his mind, and it did. It brought up his failure with her, and his most recent failure with Britt. He'd wanted that with Britt, she'd turned him down, and now he'd lost her. He tried to watch Chris's match, tried to focus on something, anything, but he couldn't so he decided leaving was the best thing. Britt wouldn't talk to him so what was the point of sticking around? Nobody would miss him anyways.

He was utterly alone.

Chris's match did not end the way he wanted it to end, but what could he have expected after Big Show's speech earlier. He just didn't think it would end with him in between a ladder getting it smashed into his back. It was times like this he wondered why he didn't just stick with Fozzy…or hell, why he didn't just grab all the money he had and live the good life while his wife worked. He'd make a hell of a trophy husband.

"Daddy, is your back okay?" Sawyer asked with concern as soon as Chris slowly made his way backstage. He tried to get a good look at Chris's back as he grabbed Chris's hand, actually helping him over to Stephanie. The compassion in this kid was endless.

"I'm okay, it's nothing some ice and a good night's sleep won't fix," he said loudly enough so Stephanie could hear. Kensington was looking up at him with her mouth screwed up, "Kensy-bug, I'm okay."

"Daddy, you didn't win, but you're gonna win on Money in the Bank, right?"

"I'm really going to try," he assured her.

"Daddy, is Punk gonna marry AJ like you married Mommy?" Sawyer asked.

"I don't think so."

"I wanna marry Punk!" Flynn said, making Stephanie and Chris both stare at her with incredulous looks.

"I'm sorry, Flynnie, but you're too young for marriage."

"No, I'm not," Flynn folded her arms, "I can marries whoever I want!"

"And yet, she's more rational than AJ," Chris joked.

She was more rational than AJ. When Punk let her down, he tried to be easy with her. Bryan was talking about getting married, but Punk knew he was only doing that to get the benefit in their match. He just didn't want to see this poor girl crushed. It seemed, though, that telling her he didn't want to marry her was enough of a crushing blow because her response was a slap, one he wasn't even sure he deserved. There was only thing he wanted out of this situation at this point.

He wanted out of it.


	378. Money in the Bank, July 15, 2012

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and everything, everyone. So, like usual, this covers up until the PPV, and next week's Raw will be a double chapter, actually, it'll be a super huge chapter, so you get some warning ahead of time!

And just another short thing, apparently the site has fixed the anonymous review so you can put your name into the name box now, you don't have to be stuck with guest, thank goodness, but just a heads up! :)

* * *

Stephanie looked around then back at her husband. "I shouldn't even be here, I've got so much work to do at home. I should have left this to Hunter, tell me again why we allowed him to have the week off?"

"Because you didn't want him around," Chris reminded her. She scowled. "Steph, you can't renege now. Remember, you were the one who sent him away. You said that you didn't trust him anymore, and with good reason."

"I know, I'm just pissed is all," Stephanie said, "not that I mind being here necessarily, I'm just mad at him that I can't trust him anymore, yet here I am, forced to work with him. I just wish he would disappear, retire or whatever, but we can't. We both know though that Brock is going to accept his match, which means I'm going to have to promote this match, which means he's going to get just what he wants."

"I'm not sure that's the case," Chris told her.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, the one thing he wanted, really wanted was Britt, and I'm not sure she's going to take him back after this."

"Have you talked to her?"

"Yeah, I talked to her a little bit on Wednesday," Chris told her and Stephanie raised an eyebrow because she didn't know this, and Chris usually told her when he talked to people. "I just wanted to check in with her, as the Executive VP of Talent, it's kind of my job."

"She's not really talent though, she's part of management," Stephanie pointed out to him.

"Well, she's also my friend," Chris said, "and I wanted to check up on her. It can't be easy to find out all of that about your boyfriend. She's in Phoenix with her brother and his family. She's staying there for a while until she figures out what she wants to do. And since Money in the Bank is going to be in Phoenix, I told her to take the rest of the week off."

"Wait, so she's contemplating whether or not she wants to stay with him? She's actually considering not dumping him?"

"Stephanie, not everyone is like you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she crossed her arms in front of her. "What are you suggesting? That I act on impulse and without thought? Is that really what you want to think of me right now?"

"No, I'm just saying that you _are_ quick to act, not necessarily saying you don't _think_ about it, but you make your decisions, you stick with them, you don't take time to analyze. Look at the two of us. We decided we wanted to date, so we went in full stop, there was no, oh my God, I have to think about whether or not this is what I want. It's been months since we really talked, should I enter this relationship or not? No, you were just like, let's do this thing, then you were practically ripping off my shirt."

"That's not how it happened," she scoffed.

"It pretty much was," Chris said, "and when you saw that you and Hunter were growing apart, you acted impulsively, you knew you wanted to keep him, so you did whatever you could to make that happen. Britt is more of a thinker. She's a pro/con kind of person. She's just going to weigh her options."

"And if she actually decides to stay with him?"

"Then we support _her_ because she's our friend while casting glares of death towards Hunter?" Chris said with a shrug. "I'm not sure how to proceed with this. I just know it's going to take a very, very long time for me to ever look at Hunter without disgust, maybe forever, maybe I will just hate him like I used to."

"Yeah," Stephanie said, tapping her pen against her desk. "I have to talk to Zack about the show tonight. I'm not sure exactly what he wants. He's been sending me e-mails all week about different things he'd love to do, including changing everyone's entrance themes. He also wanted to have themed matches, but I shot that down."

"Good," Chris laughed, "I think I'm going to go find the kids, they must be around here somewhere, I'm sure Sawyer is taking very good care of them." Stephanie laughed. The kids were actually with Christian and Trish, not wandering around by themselves. Trish had originally just planned a play-date with Kensington and Tilden, but then Sawyer wanted to hang out with Christian, and Flynn was in one of her moods where she only wanted to be around her big brother. "Besides, you should be here alone when you talk to Zack, more professional that way."

"You know he idolized you growing up, he probably wouldn't care if you were here."

"Nah, it's already depressing wrestling guys who grew up watching me and were kids when they started," Chris said, shaking his head.

"Before you know it, Sawyer will be across the ring from you," Stephanie kidded as Chris made a face of horror. There was no way he was ever going to be in a situation where he'd be wrestling his son. You could not pay him enough money in the world to do that. By the time Sawyer would be old enough to wrestle, Chris would be an old man, and the last thing he would ever do is pull a Flair.

"Not a chance. He can just wrestle…someone else, anyone else. I'm not going to be _that_ guy," Chris shook his head. "I'll just come out when announcements need to be made…kind of like you right now."

"Don't be bitter just because I'm not on television right now, who knows, I could be appearing soon," she wiggled her eyebrows playfully.

"Okay, well Ms. Surprise, I'll be seeing you," he came around her desk, bending over and pressing a kiss to her lips. "Hope you have fun planning Zackdown, I'm anxious to know how you fare against his personality. Do you think maybe you can film it?"

"Oh yeah, then we'll play it on the Titantron for everyone to see," Stephanie said, giving spirit fingers.

"Hey, you got the ratings memo just like the rest of us," Chris said, "how many viewers did your video end up getting, over 100,000? If that's not an indication that the world needs to see that hot face of yours, I don't know what is."

"Shut up," she said, blushing a little when he complimented her. Chris chuckled at her face and she was embarrassed. Here she was, not even a week from her 10 year anniversary, and she was blushing like a teenage girl who'd never received a compliment.

"You look cute with pink cheeks," he told her, "I'm just saying, Steph, the people want you out there. You have got to get over this whole, 'they hate me,' thing you've had going since forever. The fans don't hate you, they love you. You look at my Twitter feed all the time, you see the people tweeting about you to me. They love you, Steph, and they would welcome you back with open arms."

"I have a lot to do nowadays, my responsibilities lie backstage and with the kids, those are my number one priorities, you know that," Stephanie explained to him. "While it would be nice to be onscreen again, it's just not feasible with everything I do around here. I'm not that woman who just acted as someone's wife."

"I'm just saying…think about it," Chris shrugged, "I'll bring the kids back in a while."

"Love you," Stephanie said as Chris blew her a kiss and walked out of the room. She thought about what Chris said about people wanting her back. She was extremely flattered, but she always felt like that ship had sailed. She didn't necessarily want to go back to being onscreen. She would probably wear out her welcome within a few days though. The fans used to hate her, what would make them change their minds long term now?

"Broski in the house!" Zack said as he walked into the room, doing a fist pump, "I am so ready to kick off this show. It's going to be off the hook."

"Hello, Zack," Stephanie said, "so what did you have in mind for tonight."

"Party, party, party," Zack told her, sitting down, "we're going to make this Zackdown!"

"Yes, we're going to make it Zackdown," Stephanie said slowly, "just…don't abuse your power, okay? That's pretty much the number one rule around here, don't abuse it because come tomorrow, you're going to be a regular employee again so whatever you do tonight, someone could request to do the same to you, but ten-fold."

"Wow, I didn't even think of that," Zack said, "dude, I have to be careful, that would totally suck if someone came after me for what I did tonight. Oh dude, that would suck even more if it were like The Great Khali, he could probably step on me. But then, he does walk totally slow, so I'd probably run away."

"Okay then," Stephanie said, "I'm just going to go ahead and give you free reign then, _within reason_, just don't forget that within reason thing. You do not have the power to fire anyone though nor do you have the power to hire anyone. Now do you have any plans at all for tonight?"

"I was just gonna go where the party took me," Zack told her. "I'll figure it out as I go along, I've never done anything like this so I didn't know how to plan for any of it. I'm still kinda surprised that I even won."

That made two of them, but Battle Royals were unpredictable, and it wasn't necessarily about being the best, it took a lot of luck on top of skill. "Well, you did, so the show is yours, since I know you're not a jerk, I don't think you'll do anything to drastic, hence the trust."

"I won't let you down," Zack nodded. Stephanie stood up and stuck out her hand. He looked at it and then looked at her, "No way, come on, bring it in, bring it in." He held his arms out and Stephanie stared at them for a second before she tentatively stepped towards him and accepted his hug. She awkwardly patted him on the back, not knowing what to make of him really. She'd not had a lot of interaction with him, but if she were maybe 20, 21, she would probably love to party with him. "Later!"

"Bye, Zack," Stephanie said as she watched him go, shaking her head at his craziness, but eagerness to do the best job he could. She had to admire that about him. He wasn't a lazy guy, not by any means. He worked his ass off to get opportunities, and you couldn't help but admire him for that.

Her quiet was interrupted again shortly after when the door opened and three children bounded into the room like a herd of elephants. Sawyer and Flynn were chattering with each other as Chris cuddled Kensington in his arms. She was talking to him about something Stephanie couldn't hear, but Chris was dutifully listening and nodding along with whatever their daughter was saying.

"Ooh, Daddy, you bringed your jacket," Flynn said as she ran over to Chris's light up jacket. "You should wear it!"

"You think so?"

"Uh huh, you bringed it so you gotta wear it," Flynn nodded her head. "You just gotta."

"Daddy, are you gonna wrestle tonight?" Sawyer asked. "Cause you brought your wrestling stuff, so are you?"

"I don't know, I didn't really plan on it," Chris said, "but maybe? What do you think, Steph?"

"Well, you're here, so technically that means you _can_ wrestle. You don't necessarily have to because Zack didn't have you planned…or anything really planned for that matter. He's just kind of winging it."

"Daddy, you should be ready just in case," Sawyer told him.

"You think I should get in my ring trunks right now?" Chris asked them.

"You should," Flynn nodded, of course agreeing with Sawyer, whose hand she was gripping like if she didn't he would float away like a balloon. "Sawa says so, so do it!"

"Oh, so you don't even care what I think?" Chris asked her, giving her a tiny, little pout.

"Sawa says!" Flynn stomped her foot on the ground, angry that her daddy wasn't listening to what Sawyer said. Sawyer was the smartest person she knew!

"The things I do for you," Chris told them, shaking his head, "okay, okay, I will put on my trunks for you, are you happy now?"

"And the jacket," Flynn reminded him.

"Oh of course, of course," Chris told her, grabbing his things and heading into the bathroom so he could put on his gear, even though he had no intentions of wrestling that evening. He had to keep himself ready for Sunday. Ladder matches were not easy, and he wasn't going to pretend they were. There was also the minor fact that he was going to be 42 in a few months, and he wasn't as spry as he used to be. Granted, Kane was older than him, but it was the principle of the thing.

Plus, he had something else on his mind. Next Wednesday was his 10 year anniversary with Stephanie. He smiled at that thought while he pulled up his ring trunks, tightening them so they fit his waist. He'd never been with someone as long as he'd been with Stephanie. He'd never even come close. The closest he'd come had been about a year, maybe two, it was so long ago he could barely remember any relationship before Stephanie. They'd agreed not to do anything extravagant, but Chris had an idea of something they could do that would be romantic and nice, and just about them. If it were up to him, he would have pranced her around all of Tampa, bragging that she was his wife, but he'd refrained from suggesting that idea.

He walked back out of the room and did a little spin. "Everyone happy now?"

"I like the view, that's for sure," Stephanie told him, winking at him.

"Yes, you can wrestle now," Flynn told him.

"Wait, was this all a ploy to try and get me to wrestle?" Chris asked.

"No!" Flynn said, but she giggled. "You should wrestle!"

"Westle, westle!" Kensington added, throwing her fists into the hair.

"Since when are you into wrestling?" Chris asked his youngest daughter.

"I tolds her about wrestling, and she likes it!" Flynn exclaimed, extremely proud of her achievement. She'd gotten her sister to like wrestling so while she didn't mind her sister before, she was really glad her sister liked wrestling just like she did.

"Wow, you've converted another one," Chris said. "I think I'm going to walk around, might as well look like I'm going to wrestle, right?"

"Yes, that's right," Stephanie said, "Don't get yourself into trouble."

He got himself into trouble. It just wasn't in his nature to keep his mouth shut. There was something about Zack that was just so annoying, but in hindsight, Chris really should have thought up a better solution to his annoyance than to go up to the guy and accuse him of bathing in self-tanner. Granted, he technically _was_ Zack's boss, but when it came to the show, he was just another wrestler, and Zack was in charge tonight. Things did not go his way when Zack decided to put him in a match with Sheamus of all people. Sheamus tried to make himself sound intimidating to Chris, but this was a man who played action figures with his daughter. How could he really take him seriously?

He wasn't looking forward to the match, but he would put his all into it like he did every match. "Daddy, why you fights Sames?"

Chris looked at her, "Well, that was just how it was booked."

Flynn scrunched up her face, "But Daddy, he your friend, he _my_ friend!"

"I know, it's not because I'm mad at him or anything," Chris told her, rubbing her head a little bit. He ended up taking out her ponytail holder and fixing it again. Over the course of the day, her ponytail had drooped and she had tendrils of hair around her face. She smiled when he fixed her hair. "We're just going to wrestle each other, and it'll be like it's practice for when I'm in the Money in the Bank."

"Oh, okay," Flynn nodded seriously, "you gonna talk to him?"

"I don't think so, why? Do you want me to talk to him?" Chris asked her.

"Um," Flynn shook her head, "I wanna talk to him, but you don't hafta. He's my friend and I talk to my friends, I miss my friends."

"Well, when we get home next week, we'll have to invite some of your friends over, how does that sound?" he asked her. Since SmackDown was in Denver again, there'd been no point in actually going back to Florida. They stayed a few days here, enjoying a short vacation, then they were flying to Phoenix tomorrow in preparation for Money in the Bank. After tomorrow night though, they were flying to Las Vegas, so there would be a lot of travel for everyone over the next few days. Luckily, the kids were used to it, and they were actually excited to go to Vegas because Sawyer and Flynn remembered the last time they were there and all the fun things they had for children to do.

"Can Sames come too!"

"He doesn't live in Tampa, Flutterby, so I don't think he can come over."

"Oh," Flynn said. "Oh well."

"Daddy, Daddy, guess what?" Sawyer burst through the door with Stephanie and Kensington trailing behind him.

"I don't know, you went to the moon!"

"No, that's not what happened, I can't go to the moon, it's really far away in space," Sawyer shook his head, "The pyro guys let me set off one of the pyros and it was _so cool_. It was really loud and it was fun because I got to press the button to make it happen."

"Wow, that is pretty cool, I don't think I've ever gotten to set off the pyros, they must really like you over there," Chris told him, "but then, I think everyone likes you."

"No fair!" Flynn said. "I wanna do that too!" Sometimes, Flynn was just your typical jealous three year old, who wanted everything everyone else had even though she'd had a great time hanging out with her daddy. Still, it wasn't getting to set any pyros off.

"I'll tell you what, Flynnie," Stephanie told her, "on Sunday, you can go see the pyro guys set up for Money in the Bank, and we can ask them, _nicely_, if they will let you press the button to set them off, okay?"

"Okay," Flynn perked up, "but what about Kensy?"

"Well, she can do it at Raw," Stephanie said diplomatically, "that way, everyone gets to see if they can test out a pyro."

"I don't see me getting any invites for this," Chris said.

"Well, you're a bad boy," Stephanie told him, wiggling her eyebrows a little bit.

"Daddy, you've been bad?" Sawyer asked. "What did you do?"

"Yes, Stephanie, what did I do?" Chris asked, smirking at his wife, trying to put her on the spot because she was obviously going for something sexual, and now she would have to explain herself to their children.

"For provoking Zack into giving you a match," Stephanie said smoothly. "You knew that something like that would happen, but you did it anyways. You have no tact, Christopher. Now you're going to have a match, which means you're going to go into Money in the Bank soft."

"I will not, I'm never soft," Chris challenged her, licking his lips a little bit.

"Be that as it may," Stephanie said, "you might not be able to…get up for your match on Sunday."

"I never have a problem with getting up for a match, you of all people should know that," he said, enjoying this little game. Stephanie laughed softly and shook her head, her hair fanning around her face.

"I have work to do," Stephanie said, gently pushing her children towards the couch. Normally she would be near the gorilla, but because this was SmackDown, and she didn't generally run the show, she already had a staff member running it. Chris stood up from the couch and caught Stephanie from behind, pulling her body against his. Her full body pressed into his own and she was so deliciously curvy against his body. He brushed some of her hair away from her neck and pressed a kiss to her neck.

"I love you," he told her.

"I love you too, but I still have work to do," she told him coyly. "Work that I cannot do when you are holding me like you will never let me go."

Chris pulled his arms away from her. "I never said I wouldn't let you go."

"Thank you," Stephanie turned to give him a smile, "I do hope you win tonight though, you know I do."

Punk pulled up to the house, checking the address again. He just hoped his GPS hadn't steered him wrong. The house had that typical Arizona feel. It looked like it was trying to be Southwestern but just didn't _quite_ measure up. It was large though, nice, and he didn't want to rag on a house. He parked his car on the street and walked up the walkway, getting to the front door and ringing the doorbell. After what only felt like an agonizingly long wait, a blonde woman opened the door. She was attractive, looked to be around his age, tall, very pretty, and she looked friendly as well.

"You must be Phil," she said jovially. "Did you find the house alright?"

"Yes, thank you, is Britt here?" Punk asked, feeling like he was on a first date with a girl and not coming to see his friend.

"Yeah, hold on," she said, "oh, I'm Kimmy by the way, Britt's sister-in-law, God, I'm rude, not even giving you a formal introduction before I start bringing you into the house. Come on in." She stepped aside and Punk walked into the house. "Follow me."

She lead him into the living room and gestured towards one of the couches. Punk sat down and she told him she was going to go get Britt. Punk sat there, looking around at the room. It was decorated nicely, but it was lived in. There were toys strewn about so it wasn't pristine and he liked that in a house. He looked to the wall where a family portrait was hanging. It wasn't just Britt's brother's family, but seemingly the entire family as Britt was in it as well. Everyone was wearing varying shades of blue, and Britt was in a white skirt that breezed around her knees with a blue halter top and she was smiling with her hair blowing in the breeze. The picture looked taken in Hawaii, which would make sense as that's where she was from.

"Phil?" Punk turned his head quickly and smiled at her, standing up as she came over and gave him a hug.

"What are you doing here?"

"Well, Money in the Bank is in Phoenix this year so I came here early, knew you were here, and decided I wanted to come see you," he told her, "You gave Stephanie your number here, and I asked her for it, well, kind of begged her, but she finally did, and I called, and I talked to your sister-in-law and she said it was cool if I came to visit, is it cool?"

"It's more than cool," Britt said, "it's nice to see a familiar face that isn't related to me."

"I figured, so come on, are you going to show me Phoenix or what? They must have some great healthy places around here."

"They do," she said, looking down at her outfit, "I was out playing basketball with my brother, Ox and the kids."

"Your brother's name is _Ox_? I thought it as something like Timothy," Punk said.

"Oh, it is," Britt giggled, "but growing up, my father would always threaten to send him away. He would always go, 'I'm going to send you straight on a flight to London, then you'll get sent to Oxford!' and my brother didn't realize that Oxford was just a school, he thought it was a prison, but it became a running joke so we call him Ox."

"That is weird," Punk told her, pointing at her. "But go on, get dressed, you need to show me around already."

"I'm going, I'm going," she said.

Punk sat back down on the couch and settled in to wait for Britt to get ready. Kimmy came back into the room and she came over to Punk, "Would you like something to drink, we have water, beer, juice, you name it, we've got it."

"I'm straight edge so the beer is kind of a no-no, but um, water would be great, thank you," he said politely.

"Water it is," she told him. She disappeared for a minute before reappearing with a glass of water, setting it on the table in front of him. He grabbed it and took a swig. "So you are Phil."

"Yeah, that would be me," he said for lack of anything else. Kimmy sat next to him, which only made him slightly uncomfortable.

"Britt was telling us about you, she said you two were friends. I'm glad she has friends right now, I know that things have gotten bad again with Hunter," Kimmy shook her head. "I like the guy, but I'm just not sure…I don't know, don't mind me."

"Britt's too good for him," Punk said lowly as Kimmy's eyes widened. "I think even he thinks that to be honest.

"Britt is no angel, but I don't know, if a guy is going to hurt you again and again, is it really worth it, you know," Kimmy shrugged, "you're good-looking, I can see why she'd want to go out with you."

"Oh no, no, no, we're just friends," Punk insisted.

"Maybe that's for the best, and maybe it's not," Kimmy shrugged, "I'm not saying to make a move on my sister-in-law, but I don't know, please just distract her from everything. I just think she needs a distraction, especially because she's going back to work on Sunday, and he could be there, and she needs this time, you know."

"No, no, I get it," Punk said, "believe me, I get it. I've been going through some…girl troubles myself so I wouldn't want to get another woman mad at me."

Kimmy laughed, "Good, I'm glad she has someone who's willing to come out and hang out with her on a whim."

"Okay, ready!" Britt said, bounding into the room. "Kimster, please do not tell me you are like, I don't know, lecturing the guy."

"Not at all," Kimmy said, "you guys have fun, okay, stay out late, party, um, don't drink, but still, have fun."

"I intend to," Britt said, grabbing Punk's hand as she whisked him out of the house.

**Sunday**

"Mommy, today I get to press the button for the pyro, right?"

Stephanie rolled her eyes, "I've told you five million times Flynnie, yes, you can push the pyro tonight when they test it. Stop asking me, okay?"

"I just wanna know," Flynn said, matching her mother's mood. If her mommy was going to be mad, she was going to be mad too. Stephanie wasn't mad though, she was just anxious for the show to actually start. It was difficult running the show _and_ worrying about her husband in a ladder match. There were so many variables that were introduced when a ladder came into a match. Those ladders were not props, they were actual ladders, and they hurt. Stephanie was bound to worry when her husband was in a potentially dangerous match.

"I know you want to know, which is why I told you," Stephanie explained to her, but her voice was snappy.

"Stephanie, calm the hell down," Chris told her, "she's just a kid, you don't have to go all bitchy on her."

"She's just been asking all the time, and it's getting on my nerves," Stephanie hissed through gritted teeth.

"Stephanie, she's three," Chris told her, his voice quiet so only she could hear. "She doesn't understand why you are so upset, okay, can you please remember that?"

"I'm just tired, okay," she snapped at him.

"And that's my cue to get the hell out of here," Chris said, his voice clipped. "Sawyer, Flynn, Kensy, come on, we're going to go find our friends, say hi to them, Flutterby, you are going to go push some pyros, then we're going to find Britt, then you guys are going to watch the show with Britt's niece and nephew."

"I don't know them," Sawyer said, "are they nice?"

"I think so," Chris told him. "Britt seems to like them and we like Britt, so I think we're going to be good. They're around your age, so you should get along with them. I'm not sure how much wrestling they watch, so you might have to teach them about it."

"I can do that!" Flynn said with a jump and a skip.

"I know you can. I think it's best we leave Mommy alone for a bit," Chris said in a stage whisper.

"How can you be so calm?" Stephanie turned to him nearly violently and he almost took a step back. "Do you know what kind of match you're going to be in later?"

"Okay, yes, I do," Chris said, "Stephanie, I've been in these kinds of matches before, you know. This isn't new territory, plus, I've been in worse matches, this is my 4th one of these."

"Yeah, well I didn't like you in any of them so sue me," Stephanie told him, rolling her eyes.

"I've been in Elimination Chambers."

"Yeah, well, you can't get hit in the face with an Elimination Chamber," Stephanie spat at him. "I just…I don't like you in these matches, I know I thought I was okay, but…"

"But what?" Chris asked. "Stephanie, but what?"

"I just feel like you're willing to take a bigger risk now, an _unnecessary_ risk," she told him, wishing they weren't doing this in the middle of the hallway. "Let's face it, you haven't won a big match since you've come back, you've come so close _so_ many times, but you keep coming out the loser. This briefcase pretty much guarantees you winning a big match later on, and it worries me because I don't know how far you're willing to go with this."

"Baby…"

"No, Chris, ugh, I just…I worry about you," she told him, "I worry about you and I worry about you, and you come in her with this lackadaisical attitude and I can't stand it!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Chris said, "come on, let's finish this somewhere else." He lead all of them to their room for the evening. He set the kids up and then pulled Stephanie into the bathroom. "Steph, I'm not going to take any unnecessary risks because I haven't won in a while."

"Yes, you will, I know you, I've been with you for ten years, I know how you work, you're chomping at the bit, Chris, you don't like it. You don't like that you haven't won. I know you, I _know_ you," she told him, grabbing his hands and holding them in both of hers.

"I know you know me," he told her, his voice trying very hard to be gentle, "but that doesn't mean I'm going to go out there and do something stupid. I'm smart, Steph, I'm a smart wrestler, you know this. Plus, I have three kids who are going to be sitting at ringside, do you think I'm going to let them see me do something stupid?"

"Yes, I do," she told him, her eyebrows furrowing together. He was touched by her concern, but it was misplaced. He wasn't a brash 24 year old anymore. He was in his 40's, with a wife, three young children, and a life. He wasn't going to go jumping off of ladders because it was _fun_. He was going to try to win this match, but he was beyond the point in his life where he thought he was invincible. What he was, was extremely lucky. In a sport where men were seemingly injured all the time, he'd escaped nearly unscathed, and he was thankful for that particular gift everyday.

"I wouldn't," Chris told her, cupping her face in his hands. "I would never do something like that. Stephanie, look at me." She turned her eyes away. "Come on, look at me."

"What?" she asked.

"For one, I know why you're so bitchy, but I love you anyways," Chris told her, looking at her pointedly.

"Oh, why?"

"I think it has something to do with the reassurance that for one more month, you are not pregnant," Chris joked with a wink. "But also, we've been together ten years, you know I would not do anything stupid, trust me?"

"Fine," she said, "I just don't know why I have a bad feeling about tonight, but I do."

"Push it aside, I assure you, it's just that, a feeling, I'm not going to do anything bad, I promise."

Britt pushed open the door as she laughed at a story Punk was telling her about his friends back in Chicago. "You can't be that crazy when you're not here, you really just can't be. You're never like that with me."

"I don't want you to _see_ that side of me," Punk joked, "then you would never want to hang out with me again."

"Okay, okay, that's true," Britt said, "I'm not sure I'd be able to keep up with all your friends, they just sound…I don't even know, but they do sound cool."

"They'd love you, trust me, you'd fit right in. They've got fire, you've got fire, you'd get along fine. Next time we're near there, remind me to invite you for the weekend…I mean, unless you're back with—"

"Can we please not go there?" Britt asked. "I'm just not ready to tackle that particular subject just yet."

"You've been thinking though?" Punk asked. "I know I'm not the guy's biggest fan, but I don't think it would be fair to leave him hanging either."

"I know, you're right," Britt told him, "I just need more time to think about what's going on, how I feel about the entire situation. I like you, Phil, I really do, you're cool and funny, and you know how to make me smile, and Hunter wanted to take that away from me because you kissed me. I'm not saying it was the right thing to do, it wasn't, you shouldn't have kissed me, but he went overboard in response when all he really had to do was talk to me about it."

"Well, guys get possessive sometimes," Phil said as he found Britt's office, going inside and setting her things down for her. "It happens, and I'm sorry I kissed you and started this mess."

"It's not any more your fault than it is my fault for letting you think it was okay to kiss me," Britt shook her head. "I was probably sending out signals."

"This discussion could go for ages," Punk said. "Come on, let's get some food because your brother and his family are going to be here relatively soon, and I know you're going to want to show them everything you do, and with good reason, you're important around here."

"You amaze me by always knowing the right thing to say," she said as she took his things. "You can keep your stuff in her for now while we eat. I don't think the men's locker room is on the way. You can just get it when we get back from catering."

"Sounds good," he said, fighting the urge to grab her hand for some reason. He was perfectly fine with being Britt's friend, but hanging out with her the last couple of days muddled things for him. There had been nothing romantic, but he couldn't help but feel that regardless of that, things had been date-like. He wasn't jumping to any conclusions, but he couldn't help what he felt like.

"So, have you thought any more about the AJ situation?"

"No, and just like you don't want to think about the Hunter situation, I don't want to think about the AJ one."

"Except you _have_ to interact with her tonight, you know that right, I mean, she is the special guest referee, there's no getting around it," Britt reminded him as he groaned. She laughed and pushed slightly against his shoulder. "I'm telling you because it's true."

"Even so," Punk said, "I don't know what to feel about it, feel about her. I like her, I care about her, but I just don't think I _like_ her, you know. I just feel like if I tell her, it'll set her off the deep end."

"Because she really has deeper to go?" Britt wondered.

"You've got a point," Punk sighed.

They continued to walk to catering when AJ nearly jumped out at them from a nearby hallway. "Punk, I was waiting for you," she told him, looking up at him demurely. "I just wanted to show you referee outfit and hope you like it."

"It's…nice," Punk told her, "I was just going to get some food though."

"Just…nice?" AJ said, trying to remain upbeat, but failing, her smile wavering just a tiny bit to reveal a kind of madness behind it. Britt never felt completely safe in AJ's presence, especially when AJ would send her these dirty looks like she wanted to spear her to the ground and rip her hair out.

"Well, it's a referee outfit, what's it supposed to look like?" Punk asked.

"I had it made special, I thought you would notice me in it, you know, pay attention to me," AJ said, her voice getting darker and darker as she continued. "So you notice it, don't you?"

"Yes, noticed, duly noticed," Punk said, "I've got to get some food now, is that okay with you?"

"You really should eat, you want to keep your strength up for your match," AJ said in a bubbly voice. "I really want you to do well, who knows, maybe someday, we can tell our kids about how you retained against Daniel and fell in love with me at the same time!"

"Gotta go," Punk said, grabbing Britt's hand and side-stepping AJ so he could get away from her. "My God…"

"You've got to put that poor girl out of her misery, Phil, this is getting out of hand," Britt said, "I thought it was funny when she proposed, but the girl is whack. Seriously, she needs help, you should just let Bryan have her and be done with it."

"I know I should," Punk said, "so why can't I?"

"You care too much, she's under your skin," Britt told him. "You care about what happens to her."

"Don't say that, saying that makes it true," he said, not realizing he was still holding hands with her. It was what he wanted anyways, so maybe unconsciously his body was willing him to keep the hold.

"It might be true."

"I just don't want anything bad to happen to her, so yeah, I guess I care what happens to her, but if you tell anyone," he told her, smirking at her as she laughed, a full, deep laugh. "I will be forced to silence you."

"Got it," Britt said as they walked into catering. "Damn it."

"What?" Punk asked, then saw Hunter was in there, sitting at a table by himself, eating dinner. Punk took in Britt's face and she looked struck, like someone had punched her right in the sternum. He squeezed her hand, realizing he was still holding it and she looked at him gratefully, like he was an anchor for her, and hey, if she was with him to deal with AJ, he could be there for her. "You want to grab some food and take it back to your office?"

"No, no, I'm not going to let him do that to me, I'm not going to let him drive me away like that," Britt shook her head. She tugged Punk by the hand, "come on, let's eat."

She wasn't going to say it was easy. As she was getting a tray, she could feel Hunter's eyes on her. He'd been trying to call her for the past several days, but she'd been dutifully ignoring his calls. She just needed her space right now. When they'd gotten their food, they took a table as far away from Hunter as they could get. She glanced over though, to see his jaw set and his eyes looking hard at Punk. She could feel the jealousy coming off him in waves, but she chose to ignore it. It would do no good to acknowledge him right now. She just wanted to forget he was there.

Just for one night.

It seemed it was a night for pretending. Punk was definitely going to pretend that AJ wasn't somehow under his skin. He refused to feel nervous for her while they were out there. AJ was a smart girl, she could handle herself. She was actually a capable wrestler so he didn't worry about her not getting out of the way. Unless she intentionally tried to get herself hurt, but he hoped she wouldn't go there.

"That's our friend, Punk," Sawyer said to Martin, Britt's nephew. "He's really cool and he's really good at wrestling."

"Cool, he was at our house," Martin said. "He was with our Aunt Britt."

"You saw Punk?" Flynn asked, her own jealous taking over. "He my best friend. He likes me!"

"He's nice," Amanda, Britt's niece said. "I like him too."

Flynn frowned, "He lets me see his pictures on his arms."

"I saw them too," Amanda said, "they were pretty cool."

"He like me," Flynn said, folding her arms in front of her.

"He said that," Amanda told her. "He said you were his friend."

"Oh okay," Flynn perked up. Now she was happy again. "He gonna win 'cause he Punk."

She wasn't too far off. The match was nothing but exceptional, but he knew it would be. He'd wrestled Bryan a number of times before, not just here in the WWE, but when they were both just indie guys trying to make a name for themselves. They could almost anticipate each other's moves at this point, but that didn't mean they were just going through the motions. Oh no, they both wanted this. He didn't know Bryan's intentions with AJ, but Punk thought he was being a fake and kind of wanted to prove that through this match.

Unfortunately, when AJ got hurt, he was actually concerned, but he managed to forget about it and focus on the match. She eventually came back and he was glad to see she was okay. Eventually, he retained, but the AJ situation was not at all contained, and Punk had no clue what was going to happen now. He'd not manipulated this girl, but he kind of figured that Bryan would and soon.

Damn his hero complex.

"Just please be careful," Stephanie murmured in Chris's ear as she hugged him.

"I will, okay, just watch and enjoy it," Chris told her, knowing she wouldn't. "I'll be fine, and if all goes according to plan, I'll have that briefcase."

"I really hope so," Stephanie said, "good luck."

"Thanks, baby, I love you."

"I love you too," Stephanie gave him a smile and then a pat to the cheek as he made his way to the ramp as the lights turned off in the arena.

"This is for my Daddy," Sawyer told Britt's family. "He's going to wrestle now, and he might win the briefcase."

"He gonna win!" Flynn exclaimed just as her daddy's pyros went off. Earlier, she'd pushed the button to make sure it worked, and it had! She'd loved it. Flynn and Sawyer got off their chairs and started cheering madly for Chris. Seeing their cheers, Britt's niece and nephew started to cheer as well. Even Kensington was getting into the act, clapping from Kimmy's arms, especially when she saw her daddy on the big screen.

"That Dada!" Kensington exclaimed, turning to Kimmy. Kensington was so used to new people, hell, so were Sawyer and Flynn, that she was just happy to point him to someone.

"He's very handsome," Kimmy said, "I bet you love him a lot."

"Uh huh, love, love, love Daddy," Kensington grinned. "I go him!"

"You can't go to him right now, sweetheart, but you probably can after his match, okay?" Kimmy told her and Kensington frowned, but seemed to accept it.

Chris smiled at his kids, winking at them as he passed by, but then putting his game face on. There were so many ladders around the ring it was pretty daunting, but he wasn't going to let that deter him. He looked up at the briefcase hanging there, picturing himself winning it. He _had_ to win it. He was tired of losing, maybe Stephanie was right, maybe he did have a proclivity for putting himself at risk. Oh well, he would try his best not to scare the living daylights out of his wife, and that was the best he could do.

The bell rang and everyone just started to fight, not caring who it was against or why, just fighting because everyone was the enemy. Chris ended up on the floor with some of the others, leaving Big Show and Cena in the ring. Eventually they landed on the outside as well, leaving Miz, who'd just come back (and he wished his wife would have told him about that), to try and climb up the ladder. Cena noticed this and ran to get him off of the ladder and away from the briefcase. It was odd how someone could be your enemy and your ally at the same time, but that's what these kind of matches fostered. You had to hate everyone, but when you were incapacitated and someone was climbing, you had to hope someone else could step in, in this case, Cena.

Chris tried to climb back into the ring, but was impeded by Show, who knocked him down again. Then the sharp sting of steel against skin assaulted him as Show threw a ladder unceremoniously onto his back. Chris winced and stayed down, trying to breathe through the stinging pain against his skin. He could hear others fighting and he pulled himself up. There was action in the ring and Chris grabbed a ladder to try to go to Show only to be knocked down again. He was not having the best luck at the moment, so he would have to change that.

He got a Codebreaker, which was great to take someone down, but not win the match. He could only stare in a little bit of awe when Cena hit the Attitude Adjustment on Big Show. Well that certainly helped his own cause. Cena started to bury Show under a bevy of ladders, and Chris wanted in on the action, feeling like a little payback was necessary, not only for Big Show's actions, but his harsh words from Raw as well. It felt good dumping all those ladders on him, cathartic even. Now Chris could feel the momentum shifting. He grabbed another ladder and decked Kane with it, hearing his children cheer for that particular move. It spurred him on and he went to take down Miz, putting him in the Walls. It was only broken up when he left him to give a dropkick to Kane, giving him a ladder in the face for his troubles.

He felt really good right now and decided to keep going. He suplexed Miz and then started to set up a ladder after knocking Cena to the ground. Miz started to climb for the briefcase, but like hell was Jericho going to let his own personal copycat win a match _he_ invented. Chris whipped Miz right into a ladder, then started to go up for the briefcase himself. Cena got to him before he could and he was knocked to the floor. Miz was his ally this time, getting Cena away from the briefcase. Kane came in and dump Miz from the ladder before trying to get himself up, which would have been a feat in and of itself.

Sensing a moment with Miz, they both went after Kane, giving him a double suplex, but that was about all the teamwork they would have. Cena made sure of that as he took both of them down and his back met the ladder again, but this time even harder. He winced and tried to move, but he couldn't at the moment. This was going to leave a mark, and Stephanie was going to need to give him a killer massage. Cena did his usual "you can't see me" gesture while Chris could see him perfectly fine. All he got for his troubles was a Five Knuckle Shuffle.

Kane decided to return, and somehow he ended up the only one in the ring. He got out there, slamming a ladder into Miz before grabbing another ladder and going for the briefcase. Show finally got out from under the mountain of ladders and he was angry. Chris could sense he was angry, like a giant bear waking from hibernation that was out for blood. He literally tore the ladder apart with Chris still on it, and Chris had to scramble to get off the damaged ladder, which he almost did without incident…almost.

Chris ended up out again and needed to catch his breath. While he was doing that, Show was getting the biggest ladder Chris had ever seen. Well, if he was going to climb a ladder and feel safe, it would be that one. Show eventually got the ladder into the ring, but Kane came in and they traded blows. Chris got up again and grabbed a steel chair. He knew that would probably be the only way he could get Show down. Chris started hitting him with the ladders, giving no mercy to the giant, who eventually fell. Chris was free to go up the ladder now, but Cena was right there on the other side. They were both fighting for it and Cena was going to try the Attitude Adjustment on him, but Chris just scoffed at the notion. Didn't Cena know Chris was great at counters, and not just that, he was great at ladder matches?

Chris reversed the move until he was on Cena's back, giving him the sleeper hold. He held it in place until he started to feel Cena fading. He kept checking to make sure nobody was around to climb up. He thought he finally got Cena down when Cena regained his composure and started climbing up again. Chris couldn't have that and kept the hold. Miz started up the ladder, but Chris punched him until he fell off. Cena came to, but he was falling to the mat, leaving Chris by himself. His eyes widened as he went for the briefcase, but there was his pesky shadow. They both tried to grab for it, Miz getting a grip and them him getting a grip, and neither one willing to budge. At one point, he was actually dangling over the ring, holding onto the briefcase.

"He swinging!" Flynn exclaimed, tugging on Sawyer's arm.

"He's okay now!" Sawyer said as Chris found the ladder once again, but it wasn't for long. Suddenly Big Show appeared out of nowhere and Chris just stared at him before he got a punch to the face and everything went sideways on him and suddenly, a whoosh of air then a cold, hard mat.

By the time Chris fully came back to the world of the living, Cena's music was playing and he groaned, trying to drown it out. Leave it to Cena to somehow find a way to win while he was a loser once again. He groaned again, just wanting to lay there, but Lillian was thanking everyone for coming and the crew was starting to come down to gather ladders. He could see Miz pulling himself up slowly, so he did the same. People were filing out so he gingerly slid out of the ring and stumbled over to the barrier where his children were now standing, though they'd been sitting a few rows back.

"Hi, Daddy," Flynn said, trying to lift herself over the barrier, but it was too high for her.

"Hey, Flutterby."

"You didn't win," she frowned, but she still held her arms open for him. He picked her up and set her on top of the barrier so she could give him a hug. "I still like you."

"I'm glad."

"Daddy?" Sawyer asked, looking even more dour than Flynn.

"Yeah, kid?"

"Are you ever going to win again?"

That was a question he needed to start asking himself.


	379. Ten Years, July 16, 2012

A/N: First off, I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who has been following this story for the past 10 years. I'm just so thankful to all the people who have stuck with it and actually want MORE. You make every week worth it, thank you for everything, the encouragement, the support, and actually liking this crazy, weird, way too long story. Thank you so much, you crazy, wonderful people.

So about the chapter, this is Raw from last week, and then it goes to right before Raw of this week. I was going to do tonight's Raw, but SO much happened that I felt it needed more time from me than just the few hours I write after Raw, so I'm going to give it the time it deserves and I'll include it in the next chapter. So many people were there from the story that I don't feel it would have done it justice just to skim over stuff, and the chapter was already nearing 10,000 words. So sorry you have to wait, but I'll make it worth it, I promise! Thanks and enjoy! :)

* * *

"Are you thinking about what Sawyer said?"

Chris looked over at his wife and smiled, "I never should have told you what he said."

"Of course you should have, he said it and he was asking about it, and he's probably just worried, and if he's worried then I'm worried," Stephanie told him, glancing over at him as he looked at his computer. Tomorrow was the release of Sandpaper on itunes and Chris was just getting word out there about it. Stephanie had just come from the living room where Sawyer had fallen asleep on the couch. Flynn and Kensington were napping in their own room after their long morning.

"Don't be worried," Chris said, not looking at her, "I'm not worried, Steph. Yes, I've been losing, but returning wasn't necessarily _all_ about winning. A lot of it was because the kids really wanted me back, and you really wanted me back, and I just wanted to come back and have fun. Yes, it was fun to challenge all these guys, but I'm not going to go all ballistic because I'm not winning."

"Because you've done everything you've ever wanted to do," she supplied for him, a tried and true statement he repeated over and over again. It was true though, they both knew it. What more could Chris possibly do that he hadn't already done. He'd been at the top of his game for years now, and it was time to maybe step aside a little bit and let some of the younger guys take the spotlight.

"Exactly, so I'm not upset."

"The kids are a little upset though, you understand that, right?"

"Upset?" Chris asked. "Stephanie, this morning we took them to Circus Circus where they went on all the rides they could go on, we had to go on the carousel three times because Kensington didn't want to get off of it, they got two stuffed animals each, they were having a _great_ time, I think they're okay."

"Yeah, but you said Sawyer asked if you were ever going to win again."

"I think _you're_ the one who's worried and you're pinning it on the kids," Chris laughed, "do you maybe want to act like it's you that's worried I'm never going to win again, I would think it would be more realistic."

"It's not me," she said, coming over to sit on his lap, pushing the laptop away. "So when are you leaving me?"

"Leaving you? Hmm, I should have left you about five years ago. I should have just bailed as soon as Sawyer was born, I think that would have been an appropriate response to that. He could have taken care of things, he's got the smarts for it."

"Very funny, I meant, when are you leaving for Atlanta so you can go hang out in the woods and…I don't know what you're going to do on this video," Stephanie giggled. "Will you roll around in a pile of leaves?"

"You're not very funny, you know that, right?" he told her.

"Well, you still won't let me listen to the rest of your album," Stephanie said, "at least you let me look at the playlist for it, that's all I get even though I'm your wife."

"You get to hear it along with everyone else."

"I'm not everyone else," she whined, jutting out her bottom lip in a championship put. Chris leaned forward and tugged her lip in between his teeth before kissing her. "I really want to know what this song She's My Addiction is all about."

Chris pulled back and smirked at her, "All in due time, baby, all in due time."

"Uh huh, all in due time," she said, glaring at him slightly. "When are you leaving?"

"Thursday morning, I'll have to drag myself out of bed after what promises to be a very long night, luckily I'm good at subsisting on very little sleep," he winked at her.

"What makes you think you'll be staying up so late on Wednesday night?" she asked him though she knew the answer. She just wanted to hear him say it because hearing it was something that would never get old. On Wednesday they'd be together for ten years, _ten_ years, a decade, an entire decade and she had never loved anyone else, never been with anyone else, and she couldn't be happier about that fact. They had lasted, they had really lasted.

For so long, she'd never believe they could reach this plateau. As time passed, she'd believed more and more, but it was still an achievement. That first night, she'd lain in her bed, thinking about the way his lips felt on hers, how different it was to get a kiss from him that wasn't fueled by hatred and disgust. It was different, so different, yet it was exciting at the same time. She'd pressed her face to the pillow, trying to ignore the smile on her face, trying not to picture what seeing him again my do to her. Her heart had beat so hard in her chest just thinking about it.

Had she thought about the future? Had she thought about where this could possibly take her? No, not really, she hadn't really, but that didn't mean it wasn't there on that first night, that it hadn't snuck up on her subconscious when she wasn't looking. She didn't remember what she was thinking _exactly_, but it couldn't have been this. If it had been all this, then she was a little bit on the crazy side for thinking up such a future as this one.

"Oh, I think you know why."

"I don't even know what you have planned."

"Nothing special, I told you," Chris told her. "Come to Atlanta with me."

"Chris…"

"Stephanie," he repeated her tone, "you know you can bring your work with you. You don't have anything too pressing—"

"Yeah, because the 1000th Raw is not pressing _at all_," Stephanie rolled her eyes.

"So much of that is already done, and you know that, plus, the kids aren't in school, so there's nothing holding you back, you should all come to Atlanta with me. You can come watch me film the music video, it'll be fun, for both you and the kids."

"We've just traveled so much, I'm not sure I want to go home for like a day after which we drag the kids to another place, then _another_ place when we go to St. Louis for Raw. Oh, your parents are coming right, because the kids are so looking forward to watching it."

"I know, they will be, I wouldn't let the kids miss it for the world, it's going to be so exciting for them," Chris grinned. "I can't wait until they get to see everything."

"Me either, but we still have tonight to worry about," she reminded him. "Do you have any idea what you're going to do tonight?"

"Not a damn clue," Chris shrugged. "Not sure where I go from here, don't really have a beef with anyone, don't really know what to do, but I'll figure something out, the show suffers without my presence."

"Okay, well, just make sure you squeeze yourself in there," she said, "this next week is going to be so busy. I've got that Twitter chat tomorrow, remember, the one I told you about?"

"Yes, the one about the mom thing, remembered that," Chris nodded.

"Then Wednesday is our anniversary, and Thursday, I guess we're going to Atlanta, after that, St. Louis, then finally, we get a small break before the girls' birthdays in August. We're swamped, our lives are too complicated."

"Don't forget Fozzy's release."

"Of course, I still want to hear that song," she told him. "I need to know who exactly is your addiction."

"Well, I think you might have met her, but we'll see," he said, leaning up to kiss her.

Punk looked skeptically outside, "Yeah, I'm not sure I want to go out into anything that could fry me in an instant."

"Oh, come on, you big baby," Britt grabbed his hand and pulled him through the doors. "It won't kill you."

"Yes, says the person who can so easily succumb to heat stroke," he groaned. "My God, are we on the sun, like literally, are we just on the sun?"

"Hilarious," Britt told him, pulling him towards the pool, "the sooner you get in the water, the sooner you can stop complaining."

"Remind me again why we're out here, dying every second and not in a cool, air-conditioned place where we won't die?" Punk asked, but didn't really care. Britt was wearing a loose cover-up over what he could see was a very, very nice bikini, and…having never seen her in anything this skimpy before, his libido was urging him to go to this damn pool.

"Because you don't gamble, and there's nothing to do."

"Remind me again why you're with me?" Punk said.

"I like you the best right now," she answered earnestly, which made him stop. She continued on, but stopped as well when she felt Punk's grip falling from hers. She turned to him and he stood there, his eyebrows furrowed together, and his eyes slightly narrowed. "What's wrong? I thought you wanted to get in the water."

"What do you mean by that, Britt?" he asked her, taking a step closer to her. "What do you mean you like me best right now?"

"I'm the best friends with you, I mean, yes, I'm friends with Chris and Stephanie, and with Christian and Trish, but they're married, they have their families, they don't have time for me. I'm friends with some of the divas, but they all have their boyfriends here because ooh, Vegas, it's party time! So many of them are staying after Raw, you know, so that leaves me, and while I know I _have_ to talk to Hunter at some point, I don't want to do that right now. You're the only one I like enough to want to be around."

"Oh," he said.

"Look, right now, we're both in really complicated situations, me with Hunter, you with AJ, so why not just…let them go for a while and have fun with each other, as friends," she added because she didn't want him to get the wrong idea. "Whenever the things that we're dealing with iron themselves out, we can…do something then, think about things then."

He didn't want to make assumptions, he hated doing that, "Things?"

"Us, whatever," she said, but she wasn't telling the entire truth. "Look, you've been there for me, I can't lie to myself and say that being around you hasn't made all this stuff with Hunter easier. I don't know what that means. He's still in my brain, so I can't say, but I'm not trying to lead you along, I'm really not, I want to be your friend right now, if, at some point, we're both…free as it were, and things kind of…happened, well, it'll happen."

"You make no sense, I think the heat is getting to your brain," he joked, sensing she was clearly uncomfortable and confused about her feelings.

It had to be difficult though because while Hunter had betrayed people, she wasn't the one he necessarily betrayed, Chris and Stephanie were. But Britt had been lied to, so there was that huge hurdle. He didn't want to make it unnecessarily difficult on her so he kept his mouth shut and let her drag him to a couple chairs. They grabbed some towels, laid them out, and started to put sunscreen on. He didn't want to think about how nice and domestic it felt when he put some sunscreen on her back and he did the same.

She looked spectacular in her bikini. He should have known she had abs because of all her martial arts training, but it was still a little jarring to see how toned her body was. She was exactly the kind of toned he really liked. He stopped his burgeoning thoughts by jumping into the pool and waiting for her to get in after her. The pool wasn't that deep, only six feet at its deepest, but it was enough to jump in. Britt gracefully slid into the water and swam over to Punk as they tread there in the middle of the water.

"So what are you doing after tomorrow, are you staying in Vegas?" she asked.

"Well, if I had a reason to," he said, splashing some water on her, earning some looks from some of the people nearby who were trying so hard not to get their precious hair wet. He did it again just to annoy them.

"Let's just have fun, stay with me," she said, "there's your reason."

Later, at the show, Punk and Britt were forced to spilt up because they each had work to do. Apparently, that gave others the opportunity to come see them, which is what happened when AJ came to find him before the show started. She faced him down for at least a minute, with Punk periodically clearing his throat, hoping she would initiate some sort of conversation instead of just standing there, staring at him. He could only guess as to what she wanted to talk about.

"I hope you're happy," she told him defiantly, her chin up as if trying to make herself look taller.

"About what, retaining, because I really am happy about that," Punk told her.

"About what happened, I mean, what is going on between us? I thought we were on the verge of marriage, but it's like you're waffling about the entire thing," AJ said, which made Punk narrow his eyes.

"AJ, look, I think you're a really cool chick, I really do, even if you are crazy, I can dig the crazy, but I think we're at very different points in this…um, 'relationship,'" he gave her some air quotes. "We haven't really even been out together so I'm not sure where you're getting this idea that I'm ready to marry you. I mean, I'm not even sure I'd _want_ to be married, let alone to someone I've only known for a short time."

"How can you say something like that?" AJ asked him, her lip trembling like she was trying to hold in tears. "After everything we've been through!"

"That's just the thing, AJ, there really hasn't _been_ anything to go through. We're really only talked to each other a few weeks ago, and we haven't really hung out, I don't really know that much about you beyond what's going on, on the show," he tried to explain to you.

"What are you acting like this to me?" she pleaded.

"AJ, I don't know what to say here," he held his hands up in defense. "I mean, I really don't."

"You've said enough," she told him, shrugging her shoulders carelessly.

"I…have?" he wondered.

"Yes, it's the words you don't say that speak the loudest, CM Punk," AJ said, turning on her heel and storming away from him. She was about five feet away when she stopped and turned, looking at him, "You're going to regret this, you know that, right?"

"I don't know what I'm really regretting," he said slowly. She screeched through gritted teeth. Punk just stared at her, wondering what the hell that girl had going through her head. It was as if everything he did was just slighting her in some way, except he wasn't really doing anything. He wasn't even sure how he'd gotten into this mess in the first place. He was kind of glad she was walking away, maybe that meant she was going to leave him alone. He couldn't help but hope she would leave him alone now, maybe get her head on straight.

Britt, meanwhile, was trying to get her work done, knowing Hunter was nearby. It was only a short while before the knock came on the door and the tentativeness of it told her everything she needed to know. It was Hunter, coming to talk to her. "Come in, Hunter," she called out, leaning back in her chair.

"How did you know it was me?" Hunter asked as he walked inside.

"It wasn't hard to determine," she shrugged. "I know you're here to talk, but can I say something first?"

"Of course," he said, knowing everything was in her hands right now. Everything had to happen in her time.

"I don't know what I'm feeling. I know you came here to try and sway me or talk to me or…I don't know, but I don't know what I'm feeling. I'm confused. I am mad at you, but it's not for what you did, I think Chris and Stephanie have that anger covered, but what I am angry about is the lying. You continuously lied to me and let me treat Phil poorly because I thought he was a bad guy. _You_ were the bad guy, and you lied to me, and for such a ridiculous reason. You could have talked to me, I would have respected you so much if you had just talked to me. But I do love you, I love you, and I'm not entirely sure what that is going to mean for us. I haven't sat down and thought about it yet, but I will. I just don't know what to think, I'm still trying to process this mess."

"Okay," he said, "I mean, what else can I say? I'm just sorry for how everything turned out."

"See, I want to believe you, but I'm not even sure I can do that right now."

"I know, I broke your trust, but I will do anything I can to win it back."

"Thank you," she said, giving him a sad smile, "I just need time right now."

"I understand, you can have all the time you need. You know where to find me."

"Yeah, so um, I'm sure he told you, but Shawn is going to be here next week, so you know, I know you've been feeling pretty alone, what with everything that's been going down, but I just wanted you to know that he'll be here, so you won't be alone."

He gave her a smile back, glad that she was at least talking to him and not giving him the silent treatment or something worse, like closing him off completely, "Yeah, he told me, but thanks for telling me."

"You guys are going to start the show next week, I set it up that way," Britt said, "even if I'm…something about you, I recognize that you are a big part of what Raw is, and that DX is an even bigger part of that. I mean, you _did_ make me watch pretty much everything you guys did."

"It was in the interest of teaching," he joked with her and she laughed.

"Oh yeah, not to prop up your ego at all?" she teased back.

"Never, I just wanted you to see everything you missed while you weren't a wrestling fan."

"Oh, okay, I get it," she told him, "You were just looking out for my job."

"That's right," he said, "I'll let you do your work though, I'll maybe see you later?"

"Yeah, maybe," she gave him another smile as she watched him leave, still as confused as ever. She wished she had all the answers, but she didn't. Her life seemed so odd sometimes. When she thought about it, late at night, staring up at the ceiling, her life had taken such dramatic turns, and she wasn't quite sure how she'd gotten to this point. But here she was, and all she could really do was try to keep up with it.

When Bryan proposed _again_ to AJ, Punk wouldn't be lying when he said he was a little relieved. This would, at the very least, get AJ off his back. Still, he wondered if this was her way of trying to get him back for what happened earlier. If it was her attempt at getting him back, it wasn't working too well, but maybe she just decided she still loved Bryan. It would make more sense loving him at least. The two of them had actually dated so to take a step like that wouldn't be so far-fetched. When he actually found out they were getting married next week, he couldn't believe _that_.

He couldn't remember a wedding in recent years that actually ended well at all. Lita and Kane, well that had been a disaster, Stephanie and Test, that had ended in her married to someone else, Billy and Chuck, whatever the hell that was, he didn't even know. There was just no way this was going to end well for her, but should he tell her? He contemplated it for a moment before deciding not to. If she was going to make a mistake, she was going to have to make her own mistake. Besides, if he did anything, she would believe he really did want to marry her, and really, that was the _last_ thing he wanted.

So he guessed he was just going to let her do her thing.

"You should have won last night," Stephanie said as Chris sat next to her at the production table near the gorilla. Chris was playing patty-cake with Kensington while he looked over at his wife, his daughter still slapping his hands. Flynn and Sawyer were listening in on the show with a couple of headsets, the microphones turned off, and they were off in their own little world.

"Tell me something I don't know."

"You should still go after the title," Stephanie told him.

"What's the point, I already tried that," Chris shrugged.

"Well, at the very least you should try to go after a briefcase. You can win one, you know, you could challenge Cena…or Dolph."

"Dolph?"

"He'd be easier to intimidate into a match," Stephanie reasoned. "So, oh, I don't know, you might want to…go out there when he's scheduled, which is in about…five minutes…"

"So you've planned this for me?"

"No, I'm just suggesting it," she told him, "that's all, just a mere suggestion."

He took the suggestion to heart when Dolph went out there with Vickie. He didn't know why he was taking his wife's suggestion because he had nothing against Dolph, but he might as well try again to get that title he wanted since he'd come back. He didn't like feeling idle in his time here, he wanted to be doing something, being someone, being _the_ someone at the top of the company. So if he had to go through someone like Dolph, he was going to do it.

What he wasn't expecting was Dolph to throw it right into his face without him even saying a word. He tried not to let Dolph's words cut deep, and they really didn't until Dolph said he was getting matches he shouldn't be getting because he kept losing. He could read between the lines, and those lines were telling him that Dolph was commenting on his relationship with Stephanie, saying without actually saying, that Stephanie was probably the one to get him matches. That didn't sit well with Chris, and that was the point when Dolph's words really touched home with Chris. Losing his touch? He hadn't lost his touch.

The Codebreaker proved that one quite effectively.

"You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen in my entire life."

Stephanie's eyes weren't even open, but she smiled nonetheless. Chris must have sensed she was awake, or else he was talking to her while she was asleep. She didn't open her eyes as she just let him see her smile without opening her eyes. A moment later, she felt his lips pressing into hers. She smiled even wider against them. "I believe that this is how it all started."

"What, us in bed, well, yes, you're kind of right about that," Chris told her and Stephanie reached out to push him away.

"You know what I mean," she told him.

"No, what do you mean?" he asked her cheekily.

"I mean that you kissed me that night, it started with a kiss."

"No, I'm pretty sure it started with a hug, but since we're both laying down, maybe a horizontal hug is in order," Chris told her and she giggled, finally opening her eyes to the morning light. The room was still in hazy darkness, the blinds closed tightly, but the light streaming through cast a soft glow on his face.

He was beautiful in that moment, his boyish charm shining through, making his face seem years younger. She loved the lines around his eyes though, the age that showed on his face, which just reminded her of how long she'd been with him. She reached blindly for his hand, not taking her eyes away from his and when she found it, she interlaced their fingers together. She knew these hands so well. They were everything to her, these hands, those arms. They were her comfort, her love, the one place in the world she felt safe.

"Is that how we're going to start the day?" she asked cheekily.

"Well, it's the summer, the kids don't get up until at least nine, and right now it's eight," Chris glanced over her shoulder at the clock. "I mean, I know we said no gifts, so I have to think of something, right?"

"I guess so," Stephanie said, "but then you also said that I was to take the day off because you were planning something, so shouldn't that mean I'm taking the day off from this as well?"

"No, I think this is something you're going to have to do to prove your love to me," Chris shrugged and hugged Stephanie around the waist. "I think you owe it to yourself to actually have sex with me right now, prove that I'm still worth it after an entire decade of just me."

"Oh, I have to prove that you're worth it? I don't prove that every time we're together?"

"Well, I could use a little more encouragement," Chris started kissing her neck. "What do you say?"

"Have I ever been able to resist?"

After going through their morning routine, Chris sent Stephanie away for the day. He wasn't planning anything huge, but it did require Stephanie to be out of the house. Then he had to contend with the kids, who wanted so desperately to help him, which he allowed in doses. There were some things he couldn't do, but there were a lot of things they could help him with. Like the decorations. The kids were very big on helping with the decorations. Chris sat at the table with them and helped them with their project, laughing along with them and oohing and ahhing at their finished work.

They couldn't help with the outside decorations nor could they really help with the food, though Sawyer did try to help by watching his sisters, which, in turn, did turn out to be an extreme help to him. All in all, for a day spent without his wife, it turned out to be a great day. Everyone managed to have fun, well, he hoped Stephanie was having fun, and everyone was happy by the end of it. Kensington and Flynn were able to go down for their naps, and Sawyer loved spending time with him alone.

"Why are you doing all this for Mommy?" Sawyer asked as he helped Chris tape up the decorations he and his sisters made earlier.

"Because I love her."

"But don't you love her everyday?" Sawyer wondered curiously.

"Well yeah, but some days are just extra special, like this day is very, very extra special for us," Chris explained to him. "It's kind of like when we celebrate your birthday, that day is extra special so we like to have a party."

"Why is this day extra special?"

"Because ten years ago today, Mommy and I decided that we wanted to be boyfriend and girlfriend," Chris told his son with a smile on his face as he thought back to that. "I hadn't seen your mommy in months after Hunter made her leave the company. Then suddenly, she was back and she was the General Manager—"

"I bet Mommy liked that," Sawyer told him with a nod. If there was anything his Mommy loved, it was to be in charge and he'd heard her saying she wanted to be the General Manager a ton of the time.

"Oh God, your mom _loved_ that," Chris chuckled, "she was so happy. I was really happy to see her because at the time, I thought Mommy and I were still friends because we'd been business partners so I figured we would be friends, you know, so I go to see her, and I went to hug her, but she didn't want to hug me!"

"That's weird because Mommy _loves_ hugs…and she likes to kiss you," Sawyer shuddered a little and made a face like a frog trying to catch a fly.

"I know, I mean, who wouldn't want a kiss from me?" Chris postured to Sawyer's giggles, "Hey, kid, don't laugh at me, lots of women like me, I'll have you know!"

"But you're just Daddy," Sawyer said, "why would anyone want to kiss you?"

"Because I'm handsome," Chris winked at him, "but Mommy wouldn't hug me, she just shook my hand, and I was so disappointed. I didn't know what I did wrong, I thought we were friends. So afterwards, I kept thinking about it and thinking about it, and I was getting angrier and angrier, until I just couldn't take it anymore. I had to go up to her and ask her why she wouldn't hug me if we were friends."

"Why didn't she?"

"She liked me, and she didn't know if she could hug me without being my girlfriend, and I told her that I wanted her to be my girlfriend, so she said she would, and that was ten years ago today."

"That's a long time, I'm only six."

"Yeah, it is a long time, so that's why we're doing this," Chris gestured around him.

Sawyer looked around and smiled at his handiwork. He declared proudly, "Mommy's going to like this."

Stephanie finally arrived home when the sun began its dip into the ocean, since that was when Chris instructed her home. The sun had to be going down. She didn't understand what that meant, but she didn't want to ruin whatever Chris was doing. She walked up to the door and went to pull out her key when she saw a piece of paper taped to the front door saying, _Go around back_. Stephanie pulled it off and looked around. She shrugged to herself, crumpling up the piece of paper and shoving it into her purse.

She walked down the pathway from the door, across the driveway and to the side of the house, past the garbage cans, to the gate. There was another note hanging there and she grabbed this one, _Come inside_. Stephanie would have figured that out on her own, but she obeyed the note and slowly pushed open the gate, unlatching it from the inside. "Hello, family of mine, what's going on?"

"Come in!" Chris called out to her.

Stephanie walked further into her backyard and then she gasped softly. The entire backyard was decorated with paper stars around them with drawings in the middle. Chris had also hung up tiny fairy lights, creating an almost surreal surrounding. Spread across a blanket in the middle of the yard was an entire spread of food and the kids were sitting there, grinning at her. Stephanie opened up her arms to him and he came willingly.

"Happy Anniversary," he whispered into her ear, giving it a little nip for good measure. "Come on, let's eat before those little monsters gobble up all our food."

Stephanie let Chris lead her over to the picnic blanket, sitting down on it as the kids all came over and crowded around her, giving her hugs like she'd been gone for years. While that was going on, Chris was making plates for everyone. He'd obviously either ordered in or had his mother cook because some of theses things seemed a little beyond Chris's capabilities, especially with the kids around.

"Daddy made it and I helped," Flynn said though, and Stephanie was impressed as she bit into her Panini.

"I'm impressed," Stephanie said as she watched Chris help Kensington get a piece of chicken into her mouth. "This is really wonderful, Chris, thank you."

"Anything for you," Chris told her. "I figured that we should keep it low-key, just us, just the kids."

"I like that," she said, glad that in their gaining maturity, they were more prone to small celebrations rather than big blowout bashes like they had been accustomed to in the past. She leaned against him as they continued to eat, watching their kids while Flynn opened her mouth to show Sawyer her chewed up food, which grossed him out, and Kensington kept trying to grab a grape that kept rolling around on her.

When the dinner had been finished, Chris and Stephanie took the plates into the kitchen before Chris led Stephanie back outside, turning off the lights as they hung out outside. Flynn and Sawyer went to the playhouse to play, but then, when Kensington started whining for them, included her when they went to play on the playground, Kensington trying constantly to keep up on her nearly two year old legs.

When the sun had really set, Chris beckoned the kids back over and they all laid down on the blanket, with the kids snuggled in between Chris and Stephanie. They held hands over their kids heads as they watched the sky, and the lights twinkling above it. The only light was coming from inside their house, casting a soft glow onto the backyard, the other lights off so they could see the stars better. Stephanie glanced over at Chris, mouthing she loved him, which he returned.

After a while, the kids started to nod off, falling asleep one by one, Kensington first, then Sawyer, and finally, Flynn, who always tried so hard to stay up with her parents. But finally, her eyes closed and stayed closed. Chris stood up and walked over to Stephanie's other side, lying next to her so they were side by side.

"Hey," he whispered.

"Hi," she whispered back.

"I remember a similar night to this one," he said, "where I gave you a key."

"Oh man, you were so cheesy back then," she giggled. "You were still trying to woo me."

"Woo you?" he asked incredulously. "I was not trying to woo anyone. I already had you."

"Only a little bit, I still needed all the grand romantic gestures," she cuddled up to his side. "Ten years, huh?"

"Seems about right."

"I love you," she said, "more than I ever thought possible."

"I love you too," he said, "best decision I ever made was to demand a hug from you. Actually, scratch that, the best decision I ever made was to become a wrestler because it all lead me straight to you. I guess your best decision is just being born since you would have ended up here anyways."

"Maybe so, but if you hadn't made your decisions, and I hadn't made mine, we wouldn't be here, and I'm happy, Chris, I'm so happy, you don't even know. I'm like bursting with it."

"You sure that's not because you've got a big show on Monday?"

"I'm sure," she told him, "although that's going to be pretty good. This is better, all of this is better. I'm just…happy."

"That's all I've ever wanted for you since we've been together," he kissed her forehead. "I just want your happiness."

"You've got it," Stephanie said. "So…ten year assessment, lay it on me."

"Three kids, a strong marriage, a wife who supports me in everything I do, you get an A+, now what about me, what do I get?"

"Hmm, husband who continuously comes back to wrestling for me, a wonderful father, talented up the wazoo, you get an A+ too," Stephanie told him, "so the kids, what do they get?"

"Solid D's for constantly cramping our style," Chris said, "can even do you in the backyard anymore."

Stephanie giggled, "Shut up, you're so gross. Isn't this where we're supposed to see a shooting star and make a wish on it. I mean, isn't that where this cheesy moment is going." Chris shook his head and turned on his side so he was hovering over her.

"Who needs wishes when you're already so blessed?"

"Why Mr. Jericho, you sure do have a way with words."

"How do you think I've kept you for the past ten years?"

"Sheer luck."

"Nope, that's how I plan to keep you for another ten."

Flynn kept looking back at her family as she skipped down the hallway. Every time she looked back though, her eyes grew wider and wider. There was a certain buzz in the air that was unfamiliar to her, something like celebration. She hadn't been alive when they had the 10 year anniversary of Raw, which this kind of felt like, so she really didn't understand the brevity of the situation, only that tonight was special. Everyone was laughing and joking, and it felt like a reunion of sorts, with people milling about, talking about different moments from all the different episodes, it was something to be seen.

"I wish I had been here for the first one," Chris mused, "I remember watching it though. I'd always wanted to be a part of the company, I was already wrestling around the world, but then there was this show, this new, crazy show, and I wanted on it so bad."

"My dad was so excited," Stephanie recalled. "I remember, he was just brimming with anticipation over it. He couldn't shut up about it. I was sixteen at the time, and the last thing I wanted to hear about was wrestling all the time, I had boys to think about."

Chris laughed, "You know you loved hearing about it."

"No, I didn't, you're mistaking me for a future sixteen year old Flynn," Stephanie said.

"Mommy, who's that?" Sawyer asked, pointing at someone.

"That's Vader, baby boy," Stephanie told him in sotto voice. "He used to wrestle for us."

"Oh okay," Sawyer nodded, even though he'd never seen anything of the guy.

"Wow, it's like I'm walking into the past _and_ the future," Chris said with a little bit of reverence in his voice.

"You're so weird," Stephanie said, "you've been in this company for thirteen years, how can you actually be in awe of something you _own_?"

"Because at the end of the day, I'm still a wrestling fan," he told her with a cheesy grin. "I can't help it. I'm always going to be one. I'm always going to champion this company, I mean, look at how many of those stupid tout things I've done for you."

"You like it," Stephanie said, "I mean, only people who like themselves so much they tout at 5:30 in the morning when they look like crap would do that."

"I didn't do it for you, I did it for my fans," he told her. "My parents will be here shortly by the way, they just wanted to settle into the hotel."

"I know, I talked to your mom," Stephanie said, "speaking of which, my father wanted to talk to me about something. I better get to that because we are _booked_ for tonight. You'll be so proud of me, right?"

"I'm always proud of you," he reminded her.

She pouted, "But you'll be _more_ proud of me tonight, right?"

Chris gleaned onto what she was doing so he nodded his head, "Yes, I will be prouder of you tonight than I am every other night of the year when I am also proud of you. I think I'll drop off our stuff and take the kids down to ring to see everything get set up and tested before the show. With all the people here tonight, they'll get a kick out of the videos."

"Sounds good, I'll see you later," Stephanie said.

"You will, also, baby, I've got to say this once again, and I know I said it when you got dressed, but you look smoking hot, you sure you aren't going to show up tonight because _damn_, you would cause the fire alarms to go off."

"Shut up," she waved him off, shaking her head as she stuck her tongue out at him before they separated. She found her father's dressing room for the evening and knocked on the door. His gruff voice allowed her entrance and she walked inside. "Hey, Dad, you wanted to see me."

"Oh, Stephanie, yes, I did," he told her, "I'm so glad you're here, where's Chris and the kids?"

"He's taking them down to see the ring go up with the new set," Stephanie explained, "so what's this thing you wanted to tell me about, what's it in regards to?"

"The General Manager position," Vince said, his eyes lighting up.

"I thought we agreed we were still going to hold that back until we could find the best replacement," Stephanie said, furrowing her brow. "We haven't even really discussed any viable candidates with the board. I was thinking about Vickie or Teddy just because of experience…Dad, what did you do?"

"I made a decision, I think it's the right one."

"Dad, when I said you could be a consultant here, I didn't mean that you could suddenly make decisions that directly affect the show! I'm still the president, I still run things around here, and I can't have you making decisions that don't fall to you. God, Dad, I thought you understood that!"

"I'm trying to help, Stephanie, and I think you can agree with my choice."

"Who is it?" she asked warily, dragging a hand through her head. She wanted to be on good terms with her father, but sometimes he made it so difficult. She appreciated his help, but she was in a position now where she didn't necessarily _need_ it. She welcomed it when she wanted it, but she was perfectly capable of running this company. She'd proved it for years, and now that it was finally hers, he couldn't help but interfere just like he'd always done, just like he probably always would.

"AJ."

She thought he was kidding at first. He _had_ to be kidding at first. She couldn't believe he wasn't laughing right now. AJ? The AJ that was a crazy loon, who strung along three men while skipping around like she was some kind of giant child? The same AJ who threw Punk's life into a weird tizzy? _That_ AJ? Surely, it couldn't be that AJ. Surely, her father was talking about some other AJ she didn't know about.

"AJ as in…Daniel Bryan's AJ?" Stephanie asked slowly, as if she were talking to Kensington.

"The one in the same, she'll shake things up."

"She's crazy," Stephanie told him, "she's a crazy person."

"Well, I already signed her on…"

"Without even telling me, this is so typical of you, Dad, this is exactly the kind of thing you do," Stephanie spat at him. "I let you in, I give you an inch, and you take a mile. How in the hell am I supposed to run this company when you constantly try to undermine me? And don't give me the helping line. You should have come to me with this. You should have consulted me and now we have…we have that crazy person running this show. Thank you _so_ much."

Stephanie stormed out of the room before she could get _really_ mad at her father. She stomped to her office, not talking to anyone along the way even though people were trying to flag her down. If she talked to anyone right now, they would only incur her wrath. She slammed open her office and let it slam behind her. She screeched as she pounded a fist onto her desk. She couldn't believe her father would do something like this to her _again_. She constantly let him in and he constantly let her down.

"Stephanie?"

Stephanie spun on her heels and her murderous eyes turned towards Hunter. "You are the second-to-last person I want to see right now. So unless you have a very, _very_ good reason for being here, I suggest you get out of my sight."

"What happened?" Hunter asked.

"That is no longer any of your business," Stephanie told him through gritted teeth, her eyes feral and scary.

"Sorry," he muttered, "you just looked upset and—"

"I said it was no longer any of your business, so what do you want?" Stephanie asked harshly, partly because she couldn't stand the sight of him and partly because she couldn't stand the thought of her father. These two men were always wreaking havoc in her life, and she just wanted it to stop.

"I just wanted to talk about the Brock situation."

"You got your time, and he'll give you your match."

"You sound very sure of that," he said, wondering how she could be sure Brock would even give him the match.

"I know he will, I will make sure of it," Stephanie looked him in the eyes and he actually gulped, just because of the look in her eye. She was frightening right now, and when she was in this kind of mood, it was just best to stay out of her way.

"Okay, well, I'm glad then, and thanks for allowing all the guys to come back, I know you're mad at me, with good reason—"

"With good reason?" Stephanie asked.

"You spend weeks by yourself, all you have are your thoughts," Hunter shrugged, "I was wrong in what I did, so wrong. I love those kids, I know you might not believe me, and you shouldn't because I've given you nothing to believe in, but I do love them. They're great, wonderful kids who brighten the hell out of this place. You should hate me, so should Chris, I deserve it."

Stephanie hated when he said things like that because it reminded her that he was a human being who still had feelings. "Well, thank you for saying that. It was no problem getting DX here, they wanted to come, you guys are still kind of friends, or at the very least, you probably will be again after tonight. I can see you all getting into trouble somewhere, making a bad name for everyone."

Hunter chuckled, "Maybe I need that for a little while."

"Don't get carried away."

"We're all too old for that, thanks for everything, Stephanie. You continue to do things I don't deserve."

"Whatever, get out of here," Stephanie said, "I need to be mad in peace."

"Okay, later, Steph," Hunter slunk out of the room, leaving Stephanie to her anger once again.

She sat behind her desk, sinking into the leather and putting her arms on the table. She leaned her forehead on her arms, her hair clouding her from the outside world. She knew her family; she knew how competitive, driven, and crazy they were. She knew she was just like her father, headstrong, stubborn, but when she butt heads with him, it always hurt somewhere deep inside her, and this was no exception. She hurt because her father hurt her.

"Stephanie, is everything okay?"

Stephanie looked up and saw Ted and Loretta standing there, "I didn't even hear you come in," Stephanie said, "I'm sorry."

"No, don't be sorry, what's wrong?" Loretta asked, coming over and brushing Stephanie's hair away from her face. "You look upset, I don't think you should be upset when it's such a big night for you. I don't know about you, but I can already tell this is going to be a good show, but how can it not with you at the helm?"

Stephanie smiled. For all turmoil Loretta put her through at the beginning of their relationship, this woman had somehow become a second mother to her. With Linda campaigning and in Connecticut, Loretta had stepped up and become someone Stephanie could go to with her problems. "Thank you," she said softly, "but my father did something to piss me off."

"Seems like he does that quite often," Ted said sympathetically.

"Yes, but he just…he never listens to me," Stephanie complained like a child.

"Well, I'm not going to defend him, but I bet it's pretty hard passing the torch, even if it's to someone as qualified as you are," Ted told her. "He probably just wants to feel wanted, and maybe sometimes he takes that too far."

"I feel like I've done everything I can to include him, I'm putting him on the show tonight," Stephanie said, "what more can I give him?"

"Don't think about that now," Loretta soothed her. "You have a show to think about, whatever your father did, you can fix it eventually. Unless he did something to you and Chris, then I might have to go to him myself."

Stephanie laughed, which was just what Loretta wanted to see, "No, he's with the kids watching the ring being set-up, but thank you, Loretta, I appreciate it."

"Any time dear, any time."

Edge looped his arm around Lita and rested his chin on her shoulder. "I can't believe you don't want to be on the show," Lita said. "You know everyone wants to see you."

"And be overshadowed by everyone who is going to be on the show, no thank you," Edge said, "when I show my face here again, I'm going to steal the show, I'm not competing with DX, Brock, Rock, and whoever else shows up."

"Will you listen to this cockiness?" Lita said, pointing at her boyfriend.

"Hey, I married his younger brother, I know how it is in this family," Trish joked, grabbing Christian's hand in her own as she glanced playfully at her husband. Things were getting so much better, and she felt their relationship becoming much more open.

"What, huh?" Christian asked. Tilden had been pointing out things to him that she liked so he hadn't been paying attention.

"Nothing," Trish told him.

"They think we're cocky," Edge said, "but hey, you get to be on the show so that makes up for everything."

"No, it doesn't," Lita said, "you _should_ be on it."

"_You_ be on it," he told her, "people want to see you more than they want to see me anyways. I just left this joint, but you, you haven't showed your hot little ass in a long time. The fans would love to see you."

"Don't change the subject."

"Or Trish," Edge said, "are you kidding me, with that body of yours, the fans would go head over heels for you."

"Do you not even see your niece at all?" Christian asked, gesturing towards his daughter.

"Hi Unca Edge!" Tilden waved.

"Hey there, cutest girl in the world," Edge said, "Hey, nobody's seen her brand of cuteness, why don't you send her and Flynn out there, new generation right there. I think Flynn would take on any challengers."

"While she would, I don't think Tilden is ready, huh?" Trish shook her head, which Tilden mimicked.

"Too bad, but sorry guys, I'm not going out there."

Punk didn't know if this was the right thing to do, but it seemed like the best thing to do. He knocked on AJ's door. She answered brightly, but then frowned when she saw him. "I'm busy getting ready for my wedding."

"I know, I just wanted to tell you, you don't have to go through with this."

"I will go through with this," AJ said, "I have everything under control, at all times, you know, at _all_ times." The tone of her voice made her seem like she had _nothing_ under control, but he wasn't about to tell her that.

"Okay, well then, I guess good luck tonight," Punk said.

"I won't need it, I don't need luck. You'll be seeing me soon, Punk, you really, really will, and it's going to be so good, and you'll like me then," she smiled at him, the twinge of crazy pinging in her eyes. "You really will like me."

"I'm sure I will," Punk averted his eyes, "uh, good luck again."

"Don't need it!" she sing-songed as the door slammed in his face.

Chris pushed open the door. "Mommy, we saw all the videos!" Sawyer said excitedly. "It was so cool!"

"I'm glad," Stephanie said, coming over and hugging him, "I'm so glad you're all here to share in this really big episode, and I know you're going to enjoy it all when you watch. You'll have to tell me all your favorite parts after the show, okay? I'm going to take your opinion very seriously."

"Really?" Flynn asked.

"Of course."

"More Daddy!" Flynn immediately said, which made Stephanie and Chris laugh.

"But you haven't even seen the show yet, baby girl," Stephanie told her, running her hand over her daughter's braids.

Flynn just shrugged, "I like Daddy."

"This girl just knows all the right things to say," Chris said. He knelt next to her, "you should be my manager."

"I want to see you too, Daddy," Sawyer said, "and everyone else that we're friends with because that's what's going to be fun."

"Okay," Kensington added for no reason.

"Well, Gamma and Gamps are going to take you in a minute when they get back, you'll go eat dinner, then you'll go watch the show," Stephanie said. "Can you guys go play for a moment, I want to talk to Daddy."

"Okay," Sawyer said, "come on, guys." He grabbed his sisters' hands and walked them over.

"What's up?" Chris asked as soon as he had Stephanie alone.

"It's my dad."

"What did he do this time?" Chris asked.

"You won't even believe it. He made the new GM, he just went behind my back and hired a new GM."

"You're kidding, right?"

"Nope," Stephanie said, "we're right back where we started, and you're not going to believe who it is."

"Should I even ask?" he wondered. By the look on Stephanie's face, no, he didn't want to ask, but now he was curious. How bad could it really be? How far out of touch could Vince be now? He knew Stephanie was seething inside, while trying to keep it together for the kids, but she wanted to let the anger out.

"You should probably just see."

It was going to be a hell of a show.


	380. She's Back, July 23 and 30, 2012

A/N: Thanks for all the reads, reviews, faves, and what not. All caught up now, so hope you enjoy! :)

* * *

"Gamma, did you watch the very first Raw? Daddy said that he watched it because he was a wrestler and he wanted to be on it, and Mommy was _here_. Were you watching?"

"I don't think I was, I'm sorry," Loretta pouted at him, and he laughed. "I don't think I was as into wrestling as your daddy was. He really loved it, and I did start watching it when he started getting time at WCW, but I didn't watch it back then. Your dad used to watch it with your great-grandma though."

"I know, he told me. But she's not alive anymore, huh?"

"No, she's not, but if she was, I think she would love you and your sisters."

"I hope so," Sawyer said, "Grandpa Vince and Grandma Linda's mommies are still here. I see them, I like Grammy Vicky, she's nice, and she gives me presents."

"I have met her, she is nice," Loretta said. "I bet you're excited for this show, huh?"

"I think Flynn is the most excited person ever," Sawyer said, looking over at his sister. Flynn was sitting on the barrier a few rows ahead of where they were. She couldn't exactly see over it so Ted had lifted her up and let her sit on top. The show had yet to start so they weren't bothering anyone and she would come back to her seat before it started. Kensington was standing on her chair next to Sawyer, pressing her hands into his shoulder to keep herself steady.

"I think that she is," Loretta said, "who are you looking forward to seeing most?"

"Daddy," Sawyer said, "he's my favorite."

"Me too," Kensington said with a grin.

"Kensy, why don't you sit down, I don't want you falling," Loretta told her granddaughter.

"I not," Kensington protested, shaking her head so hard her hair fell into her face. Stephanie had tried to put it into a ponytail earlier, but Kensington was having none of it and wanted to wear it down so it was all in her face right now. Loretta reached over and brushed some of her hair out of her face, but Kensington whined and moved her head away from her grandma's hand.

"Okay, keep it in your face then," Loretta said as Ted and Flynn walked back over.

"It's almost starting!" Flynn said in an excited whisper. She sat on the other side of Kensington, grabbing her hand and pretty much forcing her to sit down, which she did. Flynn wouldn't say she was the _boss_ of Kensington, but her younger sister definitely listened to her when she talked or did something.

"It fun?" Kensington asked of nobody in particular.

"Uh huh, it's gonna be lots of fun," Flynn nodded at her, which made Kensington grin widely. She liked having fun.

The show started a few minutes later and they showed a video on the screen highlighting past moments stemming from the last 1000 shows. The kids cheered loudly whenever they saw their mother and father or one of their friends, of which they had many. The entire video was extremely well done and when it was over, the entire arena was cheering loudly. Flynn just looked around in astonishment. This was one of the loudest cheers she'd ever heard except for maybe WrestleMania, but it was certainly on par with that. She was impressed and glad she was around so many people who liked wrestling.

Then her grandpa came out and her eyes lit up, "Gamps, it's Grandpa!"

"So it is, you should cheer for him," Ted told her.

"I will!"

Vince came strolling down the ramp, glancing over and eyeing his grandkids, who he was happy to say were actually cheering for him. He'd been afraid Stephanie would tell them to boo him or something after what he'd done earlier. He hadn't expected her to be so angry, but he really should have known. He knew his daughter especially well because she was so much like him. He should have consulted with her, and he was actually remorseful for what he did. He would have to try to make amends again before the night was over.

"I wonder what Grandpa's going to say," Sawyer said as the arena settled down a little to hear what Vince was going to say.

"I wish I was up there, Gamps," Flynn told her grandfather. "I could do it, you know."

"I know you could, I have no doubt you could," Ted kissed the top of her head, "but I don't think your mom and dad would like that.

"I know," Flynn sighed. She really could go out there if her parents would let her, but she was still too little. She wasn't entirely sure when she was actually going to be not little anymore, but she hoped it was sometime soon because sometimes being little was very annoying.

It turned out all her grandfather was going to do was introduce DX. Vince didn't know anything about what happened between Hunter and Chris and Stephanie, and there was no reason he needed to know at all. The situation had been taken care of, plus Chris and Stephanie didn't think it needed to be spread around. It was a personal issue and they wanted to keep it that way. Hunter didn't need to be publicly flogged for what he'd done, they could definitely hold their own silent grudge.

Hunter was happy to be in front of a crowd like this again. Even though he liked his job, there was something about just going out there and talking to the fans like they were his friend. When he'd been hated, he'd mostly kept to himself, but the days of DX were some of his finest, most of his greatest moments were probably with Shawn and the group of guys waiting backstage. Chyna wasn't going to be there, it would be awkward what with her current state of being, but in spirit, she was still lurking about. He thought of her whenever DX showed up, and though he knew she wasn't really okay, he hoped she would get better.

Right now though, it was time to be a goof-off, and it felt so good to do that after the past couple weeks. He'd felt so alone, his house was empty, and his friends no longer called, at least the ones he still had around here. Shawn was always going to be there for him, Shawn would always be his support beam for when he felt like he was going to collapse, and for that he was so extremely grateful. Though he hadn't kept as in touch with the other former members of DX, being around them earlier had brought back so many good memories.

When the others guys came out, it was just like old times, X-Pac being the goofball he was, Hunter and Shawn being the ring leaders, and Billy and Roaddogg coming along for the ride. They messed with each other, teased each other, but it was all in good fun, and he needed this. He didn't realize how much he needed this until the fans were egging them on. He needed looseness in his life. He was surprised Stephanie had allowed this to go through, had invited all the other guys back into the fold, but maybe, underneath all the betrayal, there was still hope he might not lose them completely. He could only hope it would be true.

When Sandow, this no-name guy that had no business being there came down to the ring, Hunter knew this guy was in a world of trouble. For all his bravado, he had no business being in the ring, and he would soon find out it wasn't going to go the way he'd hoped. There were five guys in the ring, and he was a single guy. It wasn't too long before the DX of old really came to fruition. They didn't take crap from anyone, let alone someone who barely had any experience in the ring.

"That was great!" X-Pac said as soon as they were backstage. "We are going out to party tonight, right, am I right?"

"Hell yeah," Roaddogg said, "what do you say, just like old times, we can tear this town up!"

"I'm in," Billy said, slapping five with X-Pac. "What about you, Shawn, you in?"

"Like I'd pass up the opportunity to hang out with you," Shawn said gruffly, but good-naturedly. "Hunter, what about you?"

Shawn knew of the situation with Britt as he'd told him the previous week (more like cried on his shoulder), and for once, Shawn wasn't telling him he was making the right decision. Instead, Shawn just listened to what he had to say, which meant that either Shawn didn't care or Shawn was maturing; he hoped it was the latter.

"Yeah, sure, what the hell, right?" Hunter said, "I've still got business to attend to, though, so we'll have to hold off until after the show is over."

"Oh yeah, because you work for Steph now," Billy said, "which, I can't believe you're actually satisfied with a desk job, man. I can't believe you'd walk away."

"It was better for my body," Hunter said, feeling uncomfortable with the way this direction was going. "Come on, let's go find some havoc to wreak while we're here."

Shawn could tell Hunter was trying to deflect the situation so he agreed quickly, "Yeah, come on, let's go find something to do." Hunter shot him a look of thanks and Shawn just nodded imperceptibly.

"I can't believe all I have tonight is a match," Chris shook his head, "you'd think that a guy who owned the company would have a little more presence."

"You didn't want any attention on you," Stephanie said, pulling at the collar of his jacket. "I don't know why you insist on not taking over the spotlight, but this is what you wanted. You told me you wanted the focus on all the bigger things, and the guys who were coming back, not a guy who was already back."

"Yeah, well, I didn't think you would put me with Dolph," Chris said, frowning. "I may not hate what he said or hate him, but that doesn't mean I want to tag with the guy, you know what I mean."

"It's one match. Besides, everyone wants to see you, and the kids are going to be out there so all you have to do is go out there, smile at them, act like they're the most important things in your world, wrestle, then come back, and we can relax."

"Relax, yeah right," Chris said, glancing over at her as she sat there with her headphones around her neck during the commercial break, looking like such a consummate professional. This was a big night for her, however, so she could justify her nerves. She wanted everything to run smoothly, especially because this was the beginning of what was going to be three hour shows from here on out. She was already nervous about filling that kind of time every week, and he really didn't want to compound on her worries.

"Okay, so _you_ can relax," Stephanie said with a small smile, "I will continue to freak out until the show is over, then I can spend the rest of the week freaking out about next week, how does that sound?"

"You know, you have such a driving force behind everything that even with AJ as the General Manager, you're still going to have more power, right?" he told her, wishing that at least part of her troubles were eased. He didn't know what Vince was thinking when he hired AJ. It wasn't even the hiring part that got to him because he knew Vince, he knew in his head he was still in charge, but it was the fact he chose AJ of all people.

Even after all these years being part of the McMahon family, there were still facets of these people he just did not understand, and this was one of them. Vince's other head tended to think for him a lot of the time, but even that couldn't justify his decision to hire a crazy woman to run his show. Was it some sort of revenge plot? Chris couldn't be sure, but there was something loose in Vince's head. There had to be in order for him to make this choice.

"Can we _please_ not talk about that right now?" Stephanie pleaded, rubbing her temples a little bit. She didn't want to think about it for right now. There was so much to do and the last thing she wanted to think about was the impending need to converse with AJ over shows. She could only imagine what the waif-life girl could come up with.

"Okay, sorry," he said, "I better get ready anyways. I've got a show to put on."

"You could have had a bigger presence," she muttered, "I would have given you everything you wanted."

"I know you would have, but let others shine," Chris kissed her temple again. "I love you."

"I love you too, be safe," Stephanie gave him a tiny smile before she slipped her headphones back on and started barking orders to someone about the show. Chris loved that she could be so sweet and kind one moment, and the next moment turn into something of a beast. In the opening video, they'd shown her on the night Hunter had broken up with her at their vow renewal. He remembered that night well. It was the first night he was truly intrigued by Stephanie.

There was something so feral about her, and when he watched it on the screen backstage, with his new attitude of damn the man and everyone else, she had become someone he wanted to watch more of. He knew Stephanie had a vindictive side, he'd felt it firsthand, but this was different. This was the first time he could see it to his advantage. When it became clear that Hunter would be his opponent at WrestleMania, the intrigue became a plan. A plan that had extended for the last ten years.

He went out as his music hit, his jacket shining brightly as the cheers cascaded around him. He instinctively looked for his kids, knowing the area where they were sitting. They were cheering him on obediently, Flynn waving her arms like she was on fire as Sawyer cheered. Kensington was clapping and saying something to his father excitedly, her eyes lighting up. Through everything, those three gave him strength. Not that he really needed it tonight, since this was just Raw, but it was nice to have people who loved him no matter what he did.

He knew the match would be difficult, not because of his opponents, but because of his partner. He'd given the Codebreaker to Dolph the week before, and he could feel the tension coming off the other man in waves. He was not happy with Chris nor was Chris happy with him. His words were uncalled for and untrue. Chris had done more than Dolph could ever hope to accomplish, and it was silly of him to think Chris would honestly be affected by his words. Still, you didn't mess with him. That was just a given.

The match was a regular tag match until the very end when Dolph decided _this_ was the proper time to retaliate. It left Chris open in the middle of the ring, which only gave Sheamus the opportunity to beat him. He laid on the mat, thinking about what he was going to do. If Dolph wanted to play this dangerous game, Chris would play the game, but he wasn't going to hold back. He had nothing to lose so why not go all out? He already knew Dolph would be at SmackDown, and the wheels started turning in his head.

He got out of the ring, grabbing at his back, moving around a little bit to get the kinks out as he walked around the side where his kids were sitting. He threw them a smile, to which they cheered because that was their daddy before he walked backstage. Stephanie was still working and she looked at him, her eyes imploring him over. He walked over and gave her a peck on the lips, telling her he was okay. He pointed towards her office and she nodded, understanding he was going to clean up and would be back.

"Hey, Trish, wait up."

"Hunter, hello," Trish said, folding her arms in front of her. "I wasn't expecting to see you talking to me."

"I could say the same for you actually," Hunter said. "I thought you might actually be pissed at me. I'm sure Chris and Stephanie told you what happened."

"Yeah, they did," Trish said, "I can't say I'm exactly pleased with you, but this is their fight, not mine. I can tell you though, as a mother, if you ever tried anything like that with me, I would have ripped your balls out."

"Ouch," he said, "do you think I could talk to you?"

"You want to talk to me?" she asked incredulously. Though she'd considered Hunter a friend, there were not many instances where she found herself talking to him one-on-one. They were more like friends of convenience.

"I'm a little short on female friends, so I was hoping you would talk to me about some things," Hunter was already embarrassed that he was talking with her, but he really had nobody else. Hanging around with his old friends had been great, but he couldn't get his mind off Britt. Being with his friends, wanting to go out and meet women (well, not Shawn), it just wasn't what he wanted anymore. He just wanted Britt by his side, that was all. He was getting too old to start anew with someone. He needed to know what he could do to win her back.

"Well, okay," Trish said, "I don't know why I'm helping you, but you're so pathetic, I kind of feel obligated to help you."

"Thank you," he said sincerely.

"You know, Chris and Stephanie aren't _mad_ at you, they're more disappointed," Trish told them. "It's not like you actually did something to the kids, but they're angry that you went immediately to using them like that."

"I know," he looked away, embarrassed that he was exposed like that. "Do you think they'll ever forgive me?"

"Well, it's always up in the air with those two, but no, I don't think they'll hate you forever. I do think they'll forgive you, but it'll take some time, especially to earn any of their trust back. You know just as well as I do that if you want to have friends, any friends in the world, it's those two."

"I can't argue with you there."

"Why did you do it?"

"I was desperate," Hunter said, "that's the only thing I can say. I was desperate to keep Britt, and I knew I needed to go to extreme measures, and so I did. I'm not proud of it, but it is what it is, and I can't exactly go back in time and change what I did."

"That's for sure," Trish said.

"This is mine," Hunter pushed open the door to his locker room. "I know you and Christian went through a lot when you were still dating."

"You mean the multiple break-ups, the broken engagements, the other women moving away?" Trish joked lightly. "Yeah, I would say we went through a lot."

"Yet you made it through," Hunter pointed out. "I mean, I know things have been rocky for you two—"

"It's actually getting better," Trish admitted with a smile, "we're really getting back on track, and we're doing so much better now. We're pretty much back to normal, we're going to keep with the counseling though, it's working for us…and why am I telling you all this?"

"I don't know, but I'm glad to hear you're going to be okay," he said, "I just…how did you do it? How did you guys go through all that and come out the other side intact? How are you together now after all you went through?"

"I wish I could tell you, Hunter, I really wish I could, but it was just…there were so many times I felt hopeless when it came to Christian. When I was with Carlito, I was actually really happy to be with him. I can't lie and say I didn't love him because some part of me did. And I _know_ Christian loved Tiffany. He would be married to her right now if she didn't get that doctor thing in England. She's a wonderful girl, I wouldn't have blamed him if he had married her, I've met her, she's great. It's just…everything together, all of it, every choice still led us back to each other and we couldn't get past that."

"So you just knew?"

"No, I didn't know, I didn't know at all. Part of me thought we'd never work out, that we were always too far apart, that we could never come together. Christian, for his part, he was constantly waiting for the other shoe to drop. After I had Tilden, he tried to be the perfect father, remember, because he was so scared he'd screw up and lose me. It's scary, relationships are scary, they all are, but there was some worth fighting for and others that just aren't."

"How do you know though, I'm so confused. I want to push her, I want to get her back, but then I keep thinking, should it be this difficult? Should there be so much manipulation? What if I'm just holding her back?"

"I can't know what goes on in your relationship, Hunter," Trish said, "it's different for everyone. Every relationship is different. Chris and Stephanie are like your consummate couple, been together forever, get each other, know each other so well, Edge and Lita are crazy about each other, and crazy about life in general. Christian and I are like that subdued couple that just finds their niche and sticks with it. What are you and Britt?"

"I don't even know anymore."

"Well, if you want her, really, truly want her, find that out, find out if it's worth putting actual, _honest_ effort into it. Your problem was you decided manipulation suited you best instead of just talking with her."

"She won't talk to me now, she's thinking."

"So let her think, but let her know you're still there if she needs you."

"I'm just so stressed out all the time, and nobody understands."

"Okay, okay, look, I'm going to help you out, okay, but you have to trust me."

"I trust you."

Trish nodded and proceeded to show Hunter a couple of her yoga moves. Yoga was the ultimate in relaxing exercise, and there were several positions that were specifically meant to relax the mind and the body alike. Trish had Hunter bent over and she almost laughed, half-expecting Stephanie to walk in and go ballistic like she had all those years ago. Of course, in this instance, she would be angry that Trish was conversing with Hunter at all and not because she had Hunter bent over in front of her.

Instead of Stephanie though, DX came in, taunting Hunter as only they could. She let him go off, hoping he would be okay. She might not love Hunter, but she didn't like seeing anyone hurting so much, especially after her own relationship follies. X-Pac stayed behind and tried to hit on her, which was stupid because he _had_ to know Christian was her husband, but then, maybe word got around to him that they were having problems. Still, even if she and Christian were getting a divorce and she wanted rage sex, X-Pac would be one of the bottom guys on that list.

She walked out of the office and down the hallway where a small pair of arms banded around her right leg. She smiled as she looked down, "Hi, Mama!"

"Hey, just the pretty lady I wanted to see," Trish lifted her daughter easily into the air and squeezed her into a hug. "Where's Daddy?"

"Dere," Tilden pointed to the side where Christian was talking with Mick Foley, who was dressed as Dude Love for the moment. "Mick silly."

"I know, he is silly," Trish kissed her daughter's cheek and waved at Christian when he glanced over. He excused himself from Mick and walked over, leaning down to give Trish a quick kiss. "Hey, what were you two talking about?"

"The old days," Christian said, "what the hell were you and Hunter talking about?"

"Oh, you saw that?"

"I also saw X-Pac trying to hit on you, do I have to kick his ass?"

"I could take care of that shrimp myself," Trish joked as Christian laughed and kissed her again. "I like when you do that."

"I like doing that," he returned, "but really, why were you hanging around with Hunter."

"Relationship advice," she said, leaving it at that.

"Oh," Christian said, "Britt?"

"Yup, you've got it."

"Well, at least he's going to the best."

"Shut up, come on, you've got a match you've got to get ready for."

"Will you cheer for me?"

"I wouldn't have done anything else."

Stephanie wanted to slam her face against the switchboard sitting in front of her. Her father, looking for all the world as sympathetic as he could, was standing in front f her, looking at her apologetically while she ignored him. He'd already given AJ her contract (how industrious of him) and so there was no way out of it at the current moment. Chris, sensing the unending tension between father and daughter, reached out to rub Stephanie's lower back, trying to ease her tense muscles. He could feel her softening under his touch so he kept up his ministrations.

He secretly hoped he never became like this with either one of his daughters, or Sawyer for that matter. He hated that Vince constantly stressed Stephanie out, but God help him, he loved her so much, but Stephanie wasn't exactly the easiest person in the world to get along with either. He pointed it out a million times, and so did the rest of their family, but Stephanie and Vince were much more alike than either were willing to admit. It was why they always felt themselves at a crossroads.

"Hey, it's going to be okay," Chris whispered to her, his breath combing her face. "You are still in charge around here, and you always have veto power over AJ. You know that."

"Yeah," she said, looking down.

"Deep breaths, baby, just take a deep breath," he told her, kissing her temple, letting his lips linger against her skin.

"I'm trying," she told him, "but it's hard when I want to go rip the microphone out of my father's hands."

Chris held in his laugh. Sometimes his wife could be so dramatic. "Okay, well, I don't think you're going to do that, but I just want you to remember that you're the president so at the end of the day, you are the one who runs things, remember that, I'll keep repeating it until you do."

"Then I'll do that," he told her. "I'm not doing anything for the rest of the night."

She laughed and looked over at him, "You have this uncanny ability to make me forget all my troubles."

"Years of practice," he winked at her.

AJ getting the GM job was like a stab in Punk's chest. He wasn't sure he wanted that girl anywhere near power, and he knew this _had_ to be all Vince because Stephanie never would have allowed something like that. "She's going to flay me alive," Punk muttered to himself.

"You don't know that," Britt told him.

"Are you kidding me? I rejected her, she's going to have it out for me, that's for sure," Punk sighed. "She's probably going to try and make me lose my title, stock the odds against me or something."

"And when have you ever let that get in your way?" Britt asked him. "You have never let any obstacles get in the way of what you wanted."

"You're right," he said, "she's just…such a loose canon and I don't know what to expect from her."

"Well, whatever it is, you'll get through it, promise," Britt smiled at her.

"Thanks," he said, "so have you thought any more about—"

"Hunter? No, and now is not the time to do so, there will be time for that later, when I'm not so busy."

"You're just avoiding it."

"Maybe," she shrugged, "but if I think about it too long, I'm kind of afraid of what I'm going to realize."

Punk just nodded and went back to the rest of the show.

Hunter walked up to Chris and Stephanie, knowing he was going to need to talk to them, even if it was just briefly about what was to come. "Hey, I thought I could talk to you guys since I'm about to go out there in a little bit."

"Of course," Stephanie said, keeping her tone clipped and professional.

"Well, as you know, Paul is a jerk."

"Tell us something we don't know," Chris said, his own tone angry and spiteful, but he was trying to mask that and sound as professional as Stephanie did, but she had a knack for playing the stone bitch.

"Well, I just…he probably knows we're on the outs," Hunter said.

"I think everyone suspects something except for my father," Stephanie said, "not that he needs to know."

"Okay, well, I think he thinks that it will hurt me, I think he thinks that you guys hurt me in some way."

"_We_ hurt you?" Stephanie scoffed as Chris gave him an incredulous look.

"No, you misunderstand me," he cleared his throat and leaned in a little closer. "I think he thinks I'm still bitter about you two being together. Not many people know about Britt and I, at least not seriously, whatever we are anymore. I think Heyman thinks that you guys being married and having kids somehow hurts me. It doesn't, just so you know, I don't really begrudge you for getting married, I've been over that for a long time."

"You don't say?" Stephanie told him, then cut to the chase. "What is your point here, Hunter? I mean, you came over to us, so you _must_ have a point, right?"

"I do, I'm just saying, he's probably going to do something that he thinks will hurt me, like referring to your kids as my kids, mocking me because everyone knows the truth," Hunter said, "I just wanted to prepare you for that."

"That's rich coming from _you_ of all people," Chris said, "after what you did."

"You guys, what I did was wrong," Hunter told them sincerely, "someday, I hope you'll forgive me."

"Yeah, on the first cold day in hell," Chris said.

"It won't be a problem," Stephanie said. "Whatever he says, it won't be a problem."

"Are you sure, I mean, he's going to imply stuff about the kids, he's going to talk about them," Hunter said.

"I understand that, he's trying to get under your skin by saying things he thinks are true, I get it, you better go out there, your music is coming on in a few seconds," Stephanie told him. "I hope you'll get your match…in fact, I'm sure you're going to get it."

"Thanks," Hunter said, but he narrowed his eyes a little bit at her, in disbelief she could be so flip about this. Hunter's music hit soon after and then he was out there.

"You have something planned, don't you?" Chris studied his wife's face. She was far too calm to not be up to something. He knew his wife too well, knew when she was lying. "What are you thinking?"

"If Heyman wants to go there, then he's going to go there, but he won't be coming back from that," Stephanie winked at her husband.

Heyman walked by them shortly after, sparing the two of them one of his smarmiest glances. Stephanie grabbed Chris's hand and she smirked at him. He still knew she was up to something. Heyman walked out there and Stephanie just watched, her eyes sharper than he'd seen in a while, like she was looking out for something. Like Hunter had suggested, Heyman thought he would get under Hunter's skin by bringing up the kids he didn't have. Heyman must have _loved_ when Stephanie had falsely confessed she was pregnant in 2002 because he would _not_ let it go.

Stephanie stood up, threw down her headphones and turned to Chris, "Tell them to put on my music."

Chris's face lit up, "You're going out there?" God, he _loved_ when she went out there, and the way she was looking right now, he knew it was going to be good as soon as she was out there. He was going to take her to their locker room and bang her so hard after this, he could already tell.

"Just tell them to put on my music."

Chris knew she meant business and he grabbed the headphones, "Hey, it's Chris, cue up Stephanie's music…" Stephanie flung her arm at him. "now."

Stephanie's music hit and she stalked down the ramp. Sawyer realized it first and he gasped. "It's Mommy!"

Flynn's jaw dropped as she stood up on her chair and stared at her mommy coming down the ramp and to the ring. She looked to her grandfather with a shocked look on her face then looked back to her mommy then back to Ted. She was just so shocked. She'd _never_ seen her mommy out there, not that she could remember anyways. This was something she wasn't familiar with. Her mommy _never_ came out here. She'd already seen her daddy wrestle and she thought that would be it, but now her mommy was out here, and she didn't know what to do.

"Mama, mama, mama, mama!" Kensington knew what to do as she bounced in her seat. "Sawa, it Mama!"

"I know," Sawyer couldn't believe it! His mommy was getting in the ring.

Stephanie had one purpose and one purpose only, which was to show Heyman who was boss. He was not going to come out here and talk about _her_ kids. That's where she drew the line. She didn't care if Heyman wanted to get under Hunter's skin, he was not going to get out there and say anything about her kids. He had no right. She'd just cut off a friendship for them, and she didn't like Heyman, so he was going to get worse. She glared at him hard as she thought for a moment about what to say.

"Gampa, what is Mommy doing here?" Flynn finally found her voice enough to whisper loudly into her grandfather's ear.

"I think she's angry with Mr. Heyman over what he said," he explained.

"What'd he say?" Flynn asked.

"Something that he shouldn't," he kissed Flynn's head. She wasn't satisfied with the answer, but she knew she wasn't going to get anything else because her grandpa had turned his attention back on mommy, so she was going to as well. After all, it was her mommy.

Stephanie decided with the direct approach, telling Heyman that first of all, he was never going to talk about her children. "Gamma, she's talking about us," Sawyer told Loretta. "Did he say something bad about us?" Sawyer hadn't really been paying attention because he didn't really care what this guy had to say, but had they been talking about him. He didn't hear his name.

"Don't you worry about it," Loretta wrapped her arm around his shoulder and pulled him into her side. He craned his neck though to see what his mommy was doing.

What Stephanie was doing was telling Heyman off. This guy had caused her nothing but trouble since the moment he stepped foot in her company, and now that he was out of the company, he was still a thorn in her side. When she'd bought ECW, he was always trying to talk in her ear, always trying to control everything like she was an incompetent child. She wasn't that woman anymore. She had years of experience now, she was not going to let him come out here and think he could walk all over people with his biting words.

"Want Mommy," Kensington tugged on Sawyer's shirt. "Sawa, want Mommy!"

"You have to wait, Kensy," Sawyer told her, "Mommy has to talk."

"Oh," Kensington pouted a little. If she went to where her mommy was, would her mommy come get her? She pushed herself down and started walking towards the aisle, but was scooped up by her grandmother.

"Where do you think you're going, sweetheart?" Loretta asked her, pulling Kensington into her lap.

"Mommy," Kensington pointed towards the ring and then looked up at her grandma with a charming smile that oozed Chris.

"We have to wait, okay?" Loretta whispered to her. Kensington's lip started to quiver. She just didn't understand why she couldn't go to her mommy. Her mommy loved her, and she loved being around her! She just wanted a hug, that was all! Her eyes filled with tears as Loretta cooed to her, but Kensington buried her face into her grandmother's chest as she cried because her mommy wouldn't come get her.

Stephanie, who didn't know any of this was going on, started talking about what this was really all about. It wasn't about insulting her kids or even about getting under Hunter's skin. It was about Heyman trying to bilk money from the company because he was a damn failure. Stephanie knew firsthand from her experiences, and Chris had told her enough about his other endeavors to know what kind of businessman he was.

Then, just to play along, she referred to Hunter as her husband. She might be mad at Heyman, but she knew his game. She knew what he wanted to do, thought it would hurt Hunter, hurt her to bring up their past. She and Hunter weren't so far gone that they couldn't joke about the past. She may be angry at him, but that didn't mean she completely hated him. She was just disappointed in him.

Hunter had been genuinely surprised when she went out there, but then, when he thought about it, it made perfect sense. Stephanie was like those protective lions, ready to attack crocodiles who threatened their cubs. She wasn't going to take this sitting down. He was surprised that she played along with what Heyman was trying to do. He was actually a little bit more encouraged that they would eventually forgive him, but then, this may only be business.

"Mommy's not married to Hunter," Sawyer said, confused now, "she's married to Daddy, they were together for ten years."

"I know, it's just make believe," Loretta said, not quite understanding it herself, but she knew her son and daughter-in-law; they were schemers of the highest order.

"That not my daddy!" Flynn said in disgust, making a horrified face as she looked to her grandfather. "Gampa, he not my daddy."

"I know," Ted chuckled, running his hand over her hair. "They're just playing pretend."

"I don't like it," Flynn shook his head and folded her arms in front of her. She huffed in her seat, she was going to have to talk to her mommy about this, "Daddy is my Daddy."

Stephanie went on to say that at least her kids would be proud of their father and grandfather. Well, that was half true, her kids would absolutely be proud of Chris. Her kids adored Chris, Flynn practically worshipped the ground he walked on. Their grandfather, well, that might come in time, but she was pretty upset with her father right now. Still, her father had built all of this, made it a success, and even she couldn't argue with that. Heyman couldn't say any of those things. Yes, he had a reputation, but that reputation ran hot and cold.

Then she took a phrase from her husband's (the real one) book and called Heyman a professional parasite. Chris sat backstage and smirked at his wife's choice of words. She was pure perfection, even more perfect when she reared her hand back and slapped the taste out of Heyman's mouth. It felt good, and she put a little extra sting into it because she was also mad at her father for this evening.

"Wow," Sawyer was at a loss for words over what his mother had done.

"She hit him!" Flynn was doubly shocked, her mouth dropping open again. She had only ever seen her mommy do that in the old tapes she watched, but she'd never seen her mother do that in person. She hoped she never had her mommy do that to her!

Hunter kind of wished he was still married to Stephanie _now_ because even he had to admit, that was pretty hot. Heyman appeared to leave the ring, but then stopped at the top of the stairs. Hunter didn't know what he was going to do so he went over to Stephanie and kind of put his arm on her to tell her she was there with him, and if it came to it, he would protect her. She sent him a brief glance to let him know she understood.

Heyman came back to say that if Hunter wanted the match, he could have the match, of course, he taunted them some more, but now Stephanie suspected that he wasn't trying to antagonize Hunter, but actually antagonize Chris. As angry as Hunter could get, Chris could match it. Heyman wouldn't only have Hunter to contend with, but a very angry actual husband sitting backstage, who was probably stewing there. It was disrespectful of Heyman to continue the charade.

"He not with her!" Flynn said through gritted teeth, and she looked about ready to kill Heyman herself. She did not like this man who told _lies_!

"Flynn, you need to calm down, sweetie," Ted told her.

"Gampa, I not like him!" Flynn was getting upset. Kensington was still sniffling, and the girls were getting restless, or in Flynn's case irate.

"I know, I don't like him either, but you let Mommy handle that, okay?" Ted told her, leaning down so he could look into her eyes. "Your mommy knows what she's doing."

"Okay," Flynn whimpered, but she really wanted to give a Codebreaker to that bald man.

Stephanie smirked at Heyman once she got what Hunter wanted. She knew how to get what she wanted. Hunter wanted this match; he thought it was somehow going to make everything better, and if he had something to do, it kept him out of her hair. She was fine with that. Heyman started clapping for her, telling her "brava" in a sarcastic voice. He said that he fell for it, he fell for her anger. And it was just like her father taught her, and how she was probably going to teach her children.

Heyman had talked about her kids for the last time.

Stephanie launched herself at him, knocking the stunned man down to the ground. She'd been working out so it was easy to overpower this overgrown lump of a man. She rained down the blows on him, hitting wherever she could. She could hear Hunter laughing above her, but she didn't care. She was not going to tolerate this man talking about her children. Her kids were the best kids any woman could ask for, and every single one of them was perfect. How dare this man talk about her children like he knew them!

"Mommy's beating him up," Sawyer looked to his grandma and his grandpa. "I can't believe this!"

Loretta couldn't contain her laugh. Heyman should have known better than to talk about her grandchildren. Flynn's eyes widened as she forgot all about how this man was saying her daddy wasn't her daddy. Her mommy was fighting! She didn't even know her mommy could fight like _that_! It was something of a revelation to see that her mommy was just as tough as her daddy. How had she not known this before? She wanted to ask her mommy to wrestle with her now!

Brock Lesnar's music hit then and Hunter went over to Stephanie, urging her to get out of the ring. Stephanie did so, knowing this was not the time to show any kind of bravado. She slid out of the ring, walking to the side and looking around for her kids. She spotted them and threw them a smile and a wink. She wasn't going to let anyone disrespect them. She noticed that Kensington was hiding her head and when the little girl turned it was obvious she'd been crying. Stephanie hoped everything was alright and gave a concerned look to Loretta before turning to make sure Hunter was taking care of everything. She turned back and Loretta mouthed to her that Kensington was fine. She gave them another smile before she went back to watching the action.

The two men tussled before breaking apart, with Brock and Paul going up the ramp. She stayed down there with Hunter until things cooled down and he went backstage. Paul and Brock walked through the backstage area where Chris waiting, his arms folded in front of him. "Do you think it's wise, Mr. Jericho, to get into an altercation right now?" Heyman asked him.

"I don't care what you think, Heyman, but you will not treat my children like that, you will not speak about them," Chris took a step closer with every sentence. "How dare you talk about them like that, you lowly, putrid scumbag."

"I wouldn't do this if I were you, Chris."

"Oh, believe me, I think you've been taken care of pretty well by _my_ _wife_," Chris told him, giving him the once over. "I think she's humiliated you enough for one evening. Don't mistake my size for not knowing how to fight either, I've faced bigger obstacles than either one of you, believe me. But I'll let the last thing you remember from this evening being the fact that you were beaten up by a girl."

Chris took a step back and watched the two of them stalk away like the cowards they were. Stephanie came backstage next, still fuming, her face red from the exertion of kicking ass and her hair totally askew. Chris gave her an appreciative look and she shook her head and smirked, "What's with the look, Jericho?"

"You do know how hot you were out there, right, McMahon? I mean, you do know I'm going to do such bad things to you tonight."

"You know what, Jericho," she said, stepping up closer to him.

"What?" he challenged.

"I think _I'm _going to do bad things to _you_."

**July 30**

"Turn off the light," Stephanie told him, "now it's just annoying."

"You're the one who turned it on!" Chris told her. "It's not my fault!"

"Yes, but I want it off now," she whined.

"You're the one taking showers in the middle of the night, keeping me up," Chris complained to her, "that's not on me."

"I had to clean up," she pouted as he grabbed his phone. "Now what are you doing?"

"I'm going to tout a response to Dolph's earlier tout. I have nothing better to do because now I can't sleep, what with the light being on and everything. And before that, I had some woman keeping me up, demanding I have sex with her," Chris jokingly scoffed, like it was such a burden. Stephanie turned over and straddled his hips. "And now she wants more!"

"Nope, I just want to watch you tout, that's all," she told him, pressing her hands to his abs. "You know, I really think you're getting a kick out of this thing. At first, I could tell you were resistant, but now I think you just like doing them for the hell of it."

"I do not, it's for the fans," Chris shook his head, his bed head becoming worse and worse. Stephanie reached down and brushed his hair away from his face.

"Oh yes, I mean, some of them are silly, don't you think?" Stephanie nodded as Chris shook his head. "Fine, if you want to do one, let me film it."

"You?"

"Uh huh," she said, grabbing his phone. "Here, look, I'll just stay right here and you can tweet from the bed."

"That was just the scene of our carnal inhibitions?"

"Okay, now you're just creeping me out," Stephanie told him, "come on, show me what you got, Jericho, the camera's on you now, time to perform."

"Okay, fine, when I say when, start recording," he told her.

"Got it, I think I can handle this," she said as she leaned over him so she could get a shot of his face, but not any of her. "Okay, ready whenever you are."

"Okay, go," he told her as he pretended to be asleep. Stephanie held in her laugh as Chris started to fake snore and then call Dolph a show-off. She pressed off the record when the time was up and laughed.

"Done," she told him, "you know, I did think you looked good in pink when you were wearing his shirt."

"I'm a manly man, I can definitely pull off pink. Now, let's do what my video says and go to sleep," he pulled her down as she reached out to turn off the light.

Stephanie wished she could say the rest of the day was as funny as it had started (or ended depending on how you looked at it). Unfortunately, it wasn't. The first thing she had to do when she got to the arena was find AJ. Stephanie had decided that, if AJ was going to be the GM, she would have to guide things from behind-the-scenes. She would have Britt's help so the situation wasn't that dire, but she didn't know what to expect from AJ so she was going to need backup.

When she met up with AJ, Stephanie had to do a double-take to make sure AJ hadn't raided her closet from 2002. She looked like she was wearing something very similar to the outfits Stephanie wore. Stephanie looked down at her attire for the evening, a pair of jeans and Chris's new t-shirt. She was glad she'd opted for casual and not businesslike because the last thing she wanted to appear to be was AJ's twin.

"Nice look," Stephanie told her.

"I'm a professional now," AJ said.

"Yeah, of course," Stephanie said, but then got right down to business. "Look, you don't have any business acumen, AJ, and while my father might think you were somehow the best for the job, I don't. So this is how it's going to be. I will plan most of the show, I will give you the opportunity to give input, but when the decisions are big, I want to be the one making them. It's not that I don't trust you, but I don't know your instincts, and this is my show, my company, and I need to make sure it's running smoothly."

"Of course," AJ said sweetly, but it was too sweet for Stephanie's liking and she wondered if AJ was just trying to appease her.

"Tonight, I'm going to mostly plan the show, but I'll let it seem like you're doing the decision-making. Next week, we'll really sit down and you can give me your input, and we'll see about giving you more responsibility as time goes on, does that seem fair?" Stephanie was willing to compromise with this girl, but she had to give something back in return.

"Don't worry about me, Stephanie," AJ just shook her head and gave Stephanie and overly friendly look. "I can't wait to work with you, you're one of my idols."

"Okay, great," Stephanie pushed a piece of paper across from her. "This is what we have set for tonight—"

"Oh, you gave your husband a match, how cute!" AJ gushed. "I was going to marry Daniel, but then when I saw those men he was with, I knew which way the wind was blowing. And Punk just didn't want me, but it's his loss, right?" AJ laughed in a strange manner that made Stephanie very worried about this job position.

"You're still young…"

"Uh huh," AJ shrugged brightly. "I'm going to do a great job."

"I really hope so. Now, as the GM, I have your number, and throughout the evening, as I see fit, I'll be calling you to let you know what I want you to do, alright?"

"Sure! We're going to make a great team!"

"Yes, that's a great way of looking at it, just like a team," Stephanie told her.

"I won't let you down, Captain!" AJ gave her a salute, grabbed the paper and flitted off into the hallway. Stephanie bit her lip and tried to calm down her already frayed nerves. This was going to be a disaster if AJ didn't listen to her.

Flynn tugged on Chris's hand, "Daddy, cans I wrestle Mommy now?"

"Flutterby, I told you, Mommy doesn't wrestle."

"Uh huh," Flynn nodded, "I saws it. Daddy, she beat him up."

"I know, but she wasn't really wrestling, she was just being protective of you guys."

"Oh," Flynn said. She'd been trying to get her mommy to show her wrestling moves all week, but it wasn't working. "Daddy, you friends with Sames now, huh? You help him."

"I did help him, I like Sheamus, he's a good guy. Anyone who is good to you guys, I think I might automatically like."

"Daddy, Mommy was really mad last week, do you think she's going to get mad again this week?"

"I don't think so, Paul Heyman isn't here, so I think everything is going to run smoothly this show," Chris said, "I get to team with Christian, so it's going to be fun for me."

"He your best friend," Flynn said.

"He is my best friend, who's your best friend?" Chris asked.

"Um, I have lots," Flynn said.

"Me too," Sawyer said.

"I see, that's good," Chris told them. "Okay, so I say we go find Mommy, then we go eat, then I have to go meet with Christian about our match, then you guys get to watch the show, then we go to the hotel, then we go to sleep, then we fly home tomorrow, what do you say?"

"You're silly," Flynn pushed at his legs. "Are you sure Mommy doesn't wrestle?"

"Mommy tried a lot, but she wasn't very good."

"Mommy looked good last week when she was kicking butt," Sawyer laughed.

"I know, right," Chris chuckled, "I thought Mommy was going to rip his ponytail off."

"Ouch, that would hurt!"

"It would, getting your hair pulled is no fun," Chris shook his head.

"Chris, um, we have a situation going on right now," a technician said as he ran up to Chris, Chris being the first person in charge that he'd seen.

"What kind of situation?" Chris asked, turning towards the guy. He believed his name to be Aaron.

"The set is on fire," he said, and right on cue, the alarms started sounding, which startled Kensington so much she burst into tears.

"Okay, um, God," Chris said, "hold on, I'll come out to assess the damage."

"Everyone needs to evacuate the building," a voice yelled from somewhere down the hallway.

Chris nodded to Aaron and started walking quickly down the hallway, scooping up Flynn along the way when she started to fall behind a little bit. He got to his dressing room and the door opened right as he got there. "What's going on?" Stephanie asked in alarm.

"The set is on fire," Chris said, "they need to evacuate the building."

"Is everything okay?" Sawyer asked worriedly, the alarms seemingly getting louder.

"I did not need this tonight," Stephanie rubbed at her temples. "God, I did not need this tonight."

"Here, you take the kids, get out of the building in an orderly fashion, I'll take care of assessing the damage, we'll just say it's talent-related, deal?"

"You're the best," Stephanie kissed him and took the whimpering Kensington from her husband's arms as he set Flynn down. "Come on, you guys, when there's a fire, we have to get out of the building."

Chris walked out into the arena to survey the damage. He came in from around the side, but was told he had to get out of the immediate area. He stood behind the ring, a ways away, as he watched them put out the fire. It wasn't too bad, and didn't look like it would affect the show at all. It would be a little tight getting the fans in after the evacuation, but that shouldn't' be too much of a problem. Figuring that he should at least inform everyone of what was going on, he decided to do a tout. He couldn't help it, Stephanie was right, he got a kick out of it. He was a ham, and he liked to make people laugh. He took a short video of the actual fire before turning the camera on himself and acting like the cheeseball he was. He posted it to his Twitter account and felt self-satisfied until he heard the buzz of his phone alerting him to a new text message. He looked at it and rolled his eyes.

_Way to be professional there, Jericho!_

He _had_ to find out what her Twitter account was.

Stephanie was actually pleasantly surprised by AJ. She expected the girl to be off her rocker, but she took to direction pretty well. There were instances where she went rogue off what Stephanie told her to do, but those times really only included Daniel Bryan and she had no problem seeing that guy suffer. This whole thing with AJ might actually work, which was a novel concept. If it did, if AJ actually turned out to be a competent GM, she'd actually have to apologize to her father. She would suck it up though, but still, there was plenty of time for AJ to screw this up.

"I'm not sure I like this new demeanor," Britt took notice of Punk's sour look. "Yeah, not sure it suits you."

"I'm not mean to you," he told her.

"I'm an exception, go me," Britt laughed, "so, this whole angry persona."

"It's not a persona, I'm just tired of taking the backseat to everyone. I mean, it's like I barely exist, but I'm the champion, I need to make myself exist. If that means I have to bulldoze over everyone, I'm going to do that."

"I admire you for that, you just take what you want," she said admiringly.

"Not everything," he said, glancing over at her. Britt bit her lip as she regarded him. His gaze was sharp, and it actually made her blush, her skin turning a delicate pink shade.

The moment was broken when Flynn saw him and raced over, "Punk, my mommy can beat people up!"

Punk loved that little girl so much, "Flynnie, you are just what the doctor ordered."

"A doctor? Are you sick?"

"No," Punk told her, lifting her up, "so your mommy can wrestle, huh?"

"She beat up the man who was mean," Flynn said very seriously. "She mights can beat you up."

"I don't think I'd want to wrestle your mom, she was scary last week."

"I know, she's mean, so you have to be my friend so she no hurt you," Flynn said. "Punk?"

"Yeah?"

"You coming to my party?"

"What party?"

Flynn's mouth opened in horror, "I'm being four! I'm having a party, you have to come."

"Oh, of course, of course," he nodded. "I wouldn't miss it for the world."

"Good," Flynn said as Stephanie walked over.

"Flynnie, don't run off on me," Stephanie said in exasperation, "sorry, Punk."

"It's no problem, so um, how is AJ doing really?"

"She's mostly just reciting what I'm telling her," Stephanie said. "I keep expecting for her to completely go off. Anyways, I just came in here to grab juice for the kids while they watch the show, but I've got to get back."

"I wanna stay with Punk," Flynn demanded.

"Sure, she can stay, I'll bring her by later," Punk said.

"Okay, thanks," Stpehanie left them then to go back to her job.

Chris was meeting with Christian about their match. They didn't really have much to say because they were so used to working together with one another. That would be their biggest advantage going into the match. Christian laughed as he looked at his wife's Twitter. "Trish just asked who was better for her, you or me."

"And?"

"Most people are saying you…so…um, awkward," Christian said.

"Well, I think I would win that poll with any of the women in this company."

"Very funny," Christian said, "so did you really take what Dolph said to heart?"

"Hell no, but it's fun to get one over on him," Chris said, "which is what I'm planning to do tonight."

He couldn't say the match went exactly to plan, but it ended up being great when he won. He and Christian worked well together, which wasn't a surprise since they were best friends. It brought back memories of their time as tag team partners and how well they'd worked together then. He also remembered how their personal lives were in shambles, with misunderstandings, breakups, and everything else under the sun. Their lives were better now, but it was nice to know the old partnership was still in tiptop shape.

They even got in a little heel tactic to get the win. Christian raked Miz in the eyes while the referee wasn't looking, which disoriented the younger man. Chris, having not seen this, took advantage for the win. He was just celebrating when the briefcase hit him square in the back, the abruptness of it making Chris fall to the mat. The metal case had just clipped the back of his head and he grabbed at it. Well, if Dolph wanted to go ahead and make this really serious, then Chris had no problem with that. Dolph wouldn't know what hit him. His Uproar tour was starting in a few weeks, but he had plenty of time to take care of Dolph before his focus shifted mainly to music.

Plenty of time to take Dolph down.


	381. Distractions, August 6, 2012

A/N: Thanks for the reviews/reads/faves/what not, really appreciate it. Just wanted to let you know that I may be going out of town next week so there might not be an update for this story next week. I'm still not entirely sure whether or not I'm going so I just wanted to give you a heads up that there might not be an update. Hope you enjoy, though this feels like a set-up chapter. :)

* * *

"Daddy?"

"Yes?" Chris asked.

"I gonna be four next week," he reminded her.

"I know," Chris told her sweetly. "I can't believe you're going to be a whole four years old! You're getting to be such a big girl."

"I can wrestle when I'm four, right?" Flynn asked earnestly, thinking that because she was going to be older, surely that meant she'd be able to wrestle.

"No, you can wrestle when you're 24," he told her. She looked down at her hands, counting her fingers, and they didn't even come close to twenty. She looked up at Chris aghast that he would make her wait that long. "Yes, you heard me, you can't wrestle when you're four, Flutterby, that's still too young."

"I don't like that," Flynn shook her head. "Daddy?"

He laughed because she was in a questioning mood. "What is it now, Flutterby?"

"You are my daddy, right?" Flynn asked.

Chris closed his eyes as he tried to hold in his laughter. Flynn had been asking the same question since Stephanie's impromptu appearance on Raw's 1000th show. It was like she constantly needed reassurance that Chris was indeed her father and not Hunter. What confused her though was when she watched the old tapes. Her mother _had_ been married to Hunter before so she just needed to be sure. Chris scooped her up into his arms and gave her a hug.

"You know I'm your daddy, Flynnie," Chris told her, "you know I wouldn't let anyone else be your daddy."

Flynn grinned, "I know, I just like you."

Chris kissed her cheek, "I think you're pretty likeable yourself, you know."

"When you go singing again, are me and Mommy and Sawa and Kensy going with you everywhere?" Flynn asked. She knew her father was going on another tour because he'd said so. Chris hadn't the heart to tell her it was probably going to take him away from wrestling because he didn't want to crush her heart before her birthday the next week, but he was hoping that with all her friends still wrestling, the blow wouldn't be too bad.

"Not this time, Flutterby," he told her lamentably. "We're going to be doing some shows pretty much everyday, and it would be too difficult for you guys to travel like that for how long we're going to be. It's a lot of driving, and you guys shouldn't have to deal with that."

"But I wanna be with you," Flynn pouted slightly.

"I know, but I do have days off, and on those days off, you better believe I'm going to be spending them with you," Chris told her, "and I've got Mondays off, so I can go to Raw with you and Mommy and your brother and sister."

Flynn brightened up at that, "Okay, but I have to see you."

"Are you kidding me? I have to see you too, do you think I could go that long without seeing your face?"

"Nope," Flynn said.

"Chris, there you are," Stephanie said as she walked up to him. Sawyer and Kensington were trailing behind, Sawyer dutifully holding onto Kensington's hand. "I have to have a meeting with my dad regarding the SmackDown GM. He's actually taking my input this time, though I have no doubt he's going to foist his opinion on me."

"Just keep an open mind," Chris told her, "and remember, after what he pulled with AJ, he's probably going to want to make it up to you so this choice probably won't be as strange as the other one."

"Yeah, I guess," Stephanie said, "although I have to admit, AJ wasn't _too_ bad, even when she did go rogue and make that Triple Threat match. It actually wasn't too bad an idea."

"See, your dad isn't totally crazy," Chris said in a congratulatory tone. Stephanie just rolled her eyes again. "You know he's not, you're just mad because he didn't consult you. Not that I'm saying you would have chosen AJ of all people, but let's face it, anyone he chose, you would have disliked."

"Not true, if he had suggested myself or you to the position, I wouldn't have been angry about it," she told him smartly. Chris tilted his chin down and gave her a look to which she shrugged at. "What? It's true, if it was one of us, I wouldn't hate it."

"Why do you want me to be swamped with everything?" Chris asked, but he was joking. "I mean, you want me to wrestle, you want me to do Fozzy, and on top of that, you want me to still be the Executive VP. I think I can really only do two at a time."

"Well, you're already doing that," Stephanie said, "what with you going on tour and doing the executive thing. You have underlings so it's not even as if you're doing a ton of stuff with regards to the executive position."

"But I command those underlings," Chris said haughtily. "When all is said and done, you know I would do anything for this company."

"I know," she told him, leaning in to kiss him.

"Stop, not when I'm here," Flynn said, pushing them apart.

"I can kiss him when I want to, Flynnie," Stephanie told her.

"Me too!" Flynn told her, giving Chris a kiss on the cheek to prove her point defiantly.

"I kiss too!" Kensington stomped from the ground. She didn't want to be left out. Stephanie lifted her up so she could give Chris a kiss as well.

"I don't need a kiss," Sawyer shook his head, not wanting to get in on this kiss fest. He was getting to that age where he didn't exactly want to be _too_ affectionate. Some affection was okay, but he wasn't a baby anymore and didn't need to be coddled.

"Too bad!" Chris told him as he leaned down and gave a loud, smacking kiss to Sawyer's cheek.

"Daddy!" he giggled, swiping at his cheek.

"I'm your father, you shouldn't go against your father," he said, pretending to be stern. Stephanie put Kensington back down before she pressed both her hands to Chris's cheeks and guided him back to a standing position. She kissed him again.

"I can kiss you," Stephanie told him.

"I like when you do," he whispered. "Are you sure you don't want me at the meeting, you know, at the very least to play interference? I'm head of the talent relations and maybe I could go in with you and kind of weigh in from the wrestler's perspective."

"Better that you don't," Stephanie shrugged. "My dad is going to think we're ganging up on him if we're both there because he'll think you'll automatically side with me. I think I can handle it anyways. I really don't want to fight with my dad. I'm just tired of it, and it was so much better when we just got along."

"Well, when you're inevitably arguing or disagreeing with your father, keep that in mind, okay?" he told her. She was much happier when she was getting along with her parents. Her father just needed to stop trying to take over.

"Your mom actually had a really good point about him, about how it was probably just difficult for him to let go. I'm going to try to keep that in mind as well. I just don't want my father to think he's back in charge though," Stephanie confessed. "I've worked hard."

"I know you have, even your father couldn't dispute that."

"Okay, well, wish me luck."

"Good luck," he gave her one last parting kiss before Stephanie turned and walked towards the space her father was occupying for the evening. She knocked quietly on the door and he bellowed for her to come in. Sometimes, she still felt like the little girl who was so afraid of disappointing her father. She hated that she felt like that, but her father's pride in her work was something she always strived for…okay, and sometimes she wanted to look better in her parents' eyes than her brother, but that wasn't _all_ the time.

"Stephanie, hello," her father greeted her tentatively, unsure of what Stephanie he was going to get today. Her father looked behind her, "I was hoping to see the kids."

"They're with Chris right now, but I'll be sure to bring them over later, they'd probably like to see you."

"I always like to see them," he said warmly, thinking about his grandchildren. He loved surrounding himself with his grandchildren. They were going to be the future of this company, plus, they all had such funny, quirky personalities, from Declan all the way down to little Kensington.

"So we needed to talk about the GM of SmackDown. I wanted to include you in this, Dad, because though I'm upset about what you did at Raw, I don't want this to put further strain on our relationship," Stephanie confessed. "I'm so sick of fighting with you, Dad. I'd much rather have us be a united family than a dysfunctional one."

"I would like that very much."

"I know we're going to have our fights and everything," Stephanie bit her lip, "because that's who we are, but I'd like to try and minimize that, which is why I'm including you in this decision."

"I'm sorry I didn't include you in the Raw decision."

"I'm easing AJ into it, about 95% of what happened on Monday was my doing. She did a few things on her own, the Daniel thing, I don't even know where she got that doctor, and then the triple-threat match, which I didn't so much mind, even though Punk was pissed." Punk, at first, thought Stephanie was behind the match, and he'd been furious with her over it, stalking backstage after the show ended and seeking her out.

"_Stephanie, what the hell was that!"_

_Stephanie stood up where she was, putting her headphones down on the table. AJ was playing it up to the crowd, and Chris was nowhere to be seen, so, besides those people milling about doing their own thing, he and Stephanie were alone, and he was pissed. He couldn't believe she would do something like this to him. He knew that she was the one feeding AJ her lines, giving her all the ideas, not letting her think for herself pretty much._

"_Whoa, calm down, Phil," Stephanie said, holding her hands up defensively._

"_I know this was your doing!" he told her angrily. "You told me that you were feeding AJ what to say, and you go and put me in a triple threat match!"_

"_Calm down!" Stephanie grabbed him by the shoulders and looked him straight in the eye. "I didn't do this. This was all AJ."_

"_What?" he was confused now. But how could it be all AJ? Punk thought it was Stephanie who was telling AJ what to do._

"_I didn't tell her to do that," Stephanie told him._

"_She didn't, I thought of it all by myself," AJ said proudly. "I think I was channeling you, Stephanie. I figured this is something you would have done so you wouldn't get mad at me."_

"_AJ, I told you I was going to tell you what to do. There are some things I can let you do, but there are other things I just can't let you do without consulting me. Do you understand?"_

"_But this is something you would do," AJ reiterated, her head shaking a little as she narrowed her eyes at Stephanie. "This is something you would choose to do, and I was just trying to be like you."_

"_While that's flattering," Stephanie conceded even though she thought it was more creepy than it was flattering, "I just can't let you do things without telling me first. I'm in charge, not you, I'm in charge of everything, and things need to get past me, is that understood?"_

"_I think I did a good job," AJ said, pretty much ignoring everything Stephanie was telling her. "I really do."_

"_Stephanie, please tell me you can change this?" Punk asked her. "I mean, she went against your wishes."_

"_I would be able to…if she hadn't just announced it to everyone under the sun," Stephanie said. "I'm not saying it couldn't be reversed, but with her announcing it to everyone, it's going to look bad if I pull the match."_

"_I did a good job," AJ argued, angry that they weren't paying attention to her. "People want to see the match, they do, they were cheering, that means they wanted to see it, I was just giving them what they want."_

"_Yeah, you were screwing me over because I didn't want you, admit it," Punk turned to face her angrily. "This has nothing to do with what the fans want, and it has everything to do with you feeling rejected! I'm sorry you thought we were somehow involved, but we weren't. You were way out of line when you _proposed_ to me. We aren't even dating, and I don't know what gave the impression I ever wanted to marry you."_

"_I just made a match, geez," AJ told him. "It's not even a big deal. I'll see you later, Stephanie, I did a good job tonight."_

_Punk looked to follow her, but Stephanie pulled him back. "Just let her go, Punk, there's nothing you can do right now, just let her go."_

"Well, I'm glad she's at least working out."

"Well, it's only been one week, Dad, let's give her some time. I think she's a little off her rocker, but the only thing we can do is wait and see, but if she ever gets _too_ out of line, then I'll be forced to remove her from the position," Stephanie said, "so I know you are not without your own opinion about the SmackDown General Manager, and I wanted to include you because you're my father, and you've been here for so long, you know just as well as I do what kind of talent pool we can grab from."

Stephanie had been thinking more and more about what Loretta had said about her father. She'd been right when Stephanie thought about it. Her father has spent so long in this business, had put so much work in, to think he could just walk away from it, not even of his own accord, was naïve of her. Her father deserved to have some input in the decisions around here and she regretted that she didn't let him have more say. She was so hell-bent on having all the power, she hadn't thought about how much it would affect her father.

"I was thinking Booker T might be a good General Manager. I was thinking Teddy, obviously, but then, I think he would be a little too…well, I know some people might not want him back, plus, I thought it might be good to inject a new General Manager into the scene."

Stephanie had never had problems with Booker T. In fact, the man had defended her on more than one occasion when they'd been in the Alliance. Granted, it was probably because he was Shane's lackey, but still, at the time, it meant a lot for her to have someone there to defend her. Her mind went back to a confrontation in the back where Chris had come up to insult her, but Booker stepped in to challenge Chris.

"I actually think that's a really good idea," Stephanie nodded, "He's been around here with the announcing so he knows what kind of talent he has, he knows who hates whom, I'm okay with this decision."

"Great," Vince said, obviously proud of himself, but what Stephanie didn't know was that he was just happy discussing something with his daughter that didn't devolve into fighting or yelling. He loved Stephanie, and he hated fighting with her. "I'm sure you'd like to announce that."

Stephanie was willing to make the concession. "You thought of him, Dad, I think you should go out there and announce it."

"Are you sure?" Vince asked, giving her a smile. "I know you're the President."

The words, though few and seemingly meaningless, actually meant the world to Stephanie. "I know I am, Dad, but you're here, and I want you to be a part of this. So yes, please, I would like it if you announced this, and you know what, I would also really appreciate it if you went to speak to Booker, tell him and ask him if he would take the position. I would do it, but I've got a lot of work, and I trust you."

"What about Chris?"

"Chris has a tag match tonight, he has to focus on that," Stephanie told him. She patted her father on the arm. "I'm glad you're here, Dad."

"I'm glad to be here too."

Flynn looked between Kane and Christian. "Daddy, I wish you teamed with Sames."

"Hey!" Christian said, pretending to act affronted. "What is that supposed to mean, Flynnie? I thought you liked me!"

"I do, I do," Flynn said, "but you always been my friend. Sames is my new friend and he's funny and his hair is very red. Your hair not."

"I can dye it for you," Christian told her.

"No thanks," Flynn told him, shaking her head and skipping over Kensington and plopping down next to her to play with her.

Chris continued to discuss his match with Christian and Kane. Kane was still kind of intimidating, but Chris put on his best face. They had a tag match for the evening, but he wasn't worried about it. In fact, right now, it felt like nothing could worry him. He was so excited about his upcoming Fozzy tour that wrestling seemed to just be this thing that he had to do until he could go back to his music. That wasn't to say he didn't love wrestling, he did, but the anticipation of the tour was killing him. The same thing happened when he stepped away from wrestling, he missed it when he wasn't wrestling. It was such a double-edged sword, this lifestyle. While doing one thing, he always inevitably ended up missing the other.

He had to get his head back in the game, and luckily for him, he did before the match. It was a 6 man tag, so Chris really had a lot of support in the ring, which meant he could let his mind wander just the tiniest bit when he wasn't in the ring. He thought about Dolph and what he wanted to do to that kid. He hated his cockiness, which was ironic considering Chris had almost been like that once upon a time. He could recognize what Dolph was really doing.

Dolph was trying to break the glass ceiling, the one that Chris's head crashed against time and time again before he finally broke through in 2002. He had to try so hard to get there back in the WCW days and the early WWF days. That's what Dolph was doing, but Chris wasn't going to let it be at his expense. He was nobody's stepping stone, didn't want to be, and if Dolph wanted a fight, he was going to get one from Chris, full stop.

If Dolph wanted to be the best in the world, he was going to have to go through Chris to get there.

Punk sucked at his teeth a little bit. "Do you think I was too harsh with AJ at the end of last week?"

"Um, yes," Britt told him. "I'm not trying to be harsh, but you were almost pretty much cursing her out when the show ended last week. Pretty sure she didn't deserve that. I mean, let's face it, it's not a bad match to book."

"Don't go all management on me," Punk groaned. "The last thing I need is another woman who has to act like a boss."

"Technically, I am."

"What are you even doing here?" Punk asked good-naturedly. "You told me tonight was when you were going to talk to Hunter about your epic love."

"I was going to, I had been planning on it, but Shawn is here, which means he has distracted Hunter to the point where he probably doesn't know I exist. I mean, I deserve it," Britt shrugged, "since I've been doing a very good job ignoring Hunter for a while, but you know…Shawn doesn't like me, I don't like him, it's an entire thing."

"What were you going to tell Hunter anyways?" Punk wondered. It was a little bit selfish of him asking, he knew, but he couldn't help it. If she was going to break up with Hunter, it wasn't like Punk was going to swoop in immediately. He'd give her a little time on her own and if something panned out from there, he wouldn't be adverse to it.

"I don't think that's any of your business," Britt laughed. "I don't think you should hear it before he hears it. I'm going to see if I can catch him alone for a little while tonight. I don't know what he's doing right now, but I do hope to talk to him."

"Probably slathering himself in tanner or something, oh wait, that was when he had his pose-down against Steiner, what could he possibly do to embarrass himself against Brock?"

"Would you stop acting like he's the scum of the earth, he's not," Britt gently chided him. She might be disappointed in Hunter, but she still didn't like when people disparaged him. He was a person, he made mistakes. Did it seem like he made more mistakes than other people, sure, but he was still human. He tried and sometimes he failed, but the fact remained that he tried.

"Well, I think I know what your choice is," Punk told her, trying not to sound like a bitter asshole, but that's just what he was coming across as. Britt folded her arms in front of her and stared him down. "Oh, don't give me that look. You're defending him, that's a pretty good sign that you're very willing to take him back."

"So what?" Britt said.

"So you are then?"

"I didn't say that," she said indignantly. "I told you I wasn't going to tell you first. I don't think you have the right to know before he does. But no, me saying he's not horrible is not me deciding to go back to him, it's me saying that he's not horrible."

"He made me out to be a jackass," Punk argued with her, taking his turn to glare at her. "He was the one who said I used Chris and Stephanie's kid when I didn't, when I knew I didn't. He tried to turn everyone against me, so I'm sorry if I _do_ think he's the scum of the earth."

"And I get that, I really, really do, but you have to see things from my perspective, Phil," she tried to explain. "I know a side of him you don't, that nobody does—"

"Stephanie was _married_ to the guy."

"He is _not _the same person he was when he was with her," Britt said, "nobody knows him like he is right now, not even his precious Shawn. He's not a bad guy, he just sometimes does stupid things, and this was one of his stupid things."

"Yeah, so stupid that it made me out to be the bad guy."

"Yes, it did, but…I don't know, I just…he was hurting because of what _I_ did, so really, it's my fault," she confessed. She'd been thinking about that a lot lately, and how she factored into this whole mess. She hadn't been forthright about the entire thing, and it had driven Hunter off the deep end. She had to hold herself accountable for her actions, and she knew that this was just as much her fault as it was Hunter's.

"You've got to be kidding me," Punk shook his head. "Are you serious? How is this any of your fault?"

"I didn't tell him," Britt explained. "We're in a relationship and I didn't tell him that I was kissed or kissed another guy. That's something you tell, hiding it makes it seem illicit, but it was just a poor error in judgment on our parts."

"That doesn't mean you forced him to do what he did!"

"Doesn't it?"

"No, it doesn't! He could have acted like a human being and _talked_ to you about it, but no, his first thought was revenge. Is that really the type of person you think is good for you, one whose immediate thought is to retaliate?"

"Give me a break, Phil," Britt scoffed, "you're the exact same way. You were just telling me how you were going to go out there to apologize to AJ so she would cancel your match, prompting you to ask if you were too harsh. You wanted to use her."

"Different, I'm not sleeping with her," Punk pointed out, "so it's totally different."

"Not really, look, nobody in this situation is innocent, we're just not, whether or not that equates to me giving Hunter another shot is not your business," she told him. "I know what you feel for me, honestly, I do, and I'm not discounting that or diminishing that. I'm simply saying, let me talk to Hunter."

"I wasn't going to press myself on you and like dry hump you the second you were single," he made a face. "What do you take me for?"

"I didn't take you for anything," Britt said, "can we just not fight please, not over this. I just want one relationship where I'm not on the verge of pulling my hair out."

"Okay, I'm sorry," he told her, "I won't condemn your decision either way. I'm an adult, I can handle things."

"There you go again."

"Sorry," he said, holding up his hands defensively. "I'm done talking."

"Okay, but if you can, go find Flynn, she's so excited for her birthday tomorrow, and if you want to be in a good mood, wish that girl an early Happy Birthday, you'll make her night."

"Don't worry, I will."

Sheamus knocked on the door before Stephanie called out for him to come inside. "Hey, Sheamus, what's up?"

"Sames!" Flynn ran up to him, hugging him around the leg. "Guess what?"

"What?" Sheamus asked kindly.

"I'm gonna be four tomorrow," Flynn held up her hand and waved her four fingers around as she did a little dance. "I gonna be _old_."

"Four is quite the grown-up age," Sheamus said.

"It is," Flynn said seriously. "But I not as old as Sawa, right, Sawa?"

"Yup," Sawyer told her. "I'm six, so you're still gonna be younger than me."

"I always is," Flynn said with a sigh. "Sames, you comin' to my party? I gonna have one. Mommy, you said so, right?"

"Yup," Stephanie told her daughter, "we're going to have a wrestling party! You hafta to comes, Sames, you're a wrestler!"

"I'm sorry, little miss, but I can't come," Sheamus pouted as Flynn looked sad and stricken. "But that doesn't mean I didn't remember your birthday."

"You did?" Flynn's eyes lit up. It was only that moment Stephanie noticed Sheamus had been holding something behind his back.

"I hope it's okay I got her somethin', Stephanie," Sheamus said.

"You didn't have to do that," Stephanie told him.

He shrugged, "I wanted to, she's one of the things that reminds me why I got into this crazy business in the first place."

"Well, thank you," Stephanie said.

"Here you go," Sheamus said, producing his gift to her. "I heard that you like these, so I thought I might get you one."

Flynn took the present with her mouth agape. She hadn't gotten a present yet because her parents told her she had to wait until the next day, but she had one now and she couldn't wait to tear into it. Flynn didn't even wait to ask permission to open it before she was ripping the paper off. Her eyes widened as she saw it was a Sheamus action figure. She didn't have one of these! She didn't even know he had one!

"Wow, thanks!" Flynn said excitedly. "Mommy, Mommy, look, Sames got me him!" She laughed to herself at how funny it was that he got her a figure of himself. "I didn't have this, thanks, Sames!"

"You're very welcome," he told her. "It's also kind of thank you since your Dad helped me the other week."

"He really did, he helped you with Dolph," Flynn reminded him like he didn't know. Flynn ran over to her mother, "Mommy, can you open, please!"

"Of course, baby girl," Stephanie took the box and opened it, handing the action figure to Flynn.

She ran back over to Sheamus, "Its hair is very red too!"

"Well, they wanted it to look like me," Sheamus explained.

"It does, I like it," she beamed at him. "I'm gonna go play now." She ran over to Sawyer and showed him her new action figure. "Did you see it, Sawa? Did you see what I gots?"

"Yeah, it's cool, Flynnie, now you can play with that too," Sawyer told her, smiling at her sweetly.

"Uh huh," she said, "you can play with it too, so can Kensy if she wants, but she's sleeping right now because she's just a baby."

"She was tired," Sawyer said.

Stephanie stood up and went over to Sheamus, "Really, thank you so much for that, she's going to love it. She takes very good care of her wrestling figures."

"It's okay, she's a good kid," Sheamus said. "Reminds me a little of my niece. But, I'm glad to do it."

"You're a really good guy," Stephanie told him. "I wish you could have come to the party."

"I'll be there in spirit, I better go, big night planned, as I'm sure you know," he laughed.

"Yeah, thank you again, bye," Stephanie gave her goodbyes before she went back to her work.

Tonight didn't seem like it was going to be a huge show, at least not for her. She wasn't planning another impromptu meeting with Brock or any of his cronies. Apparently, Shawn had taken over that position or was going to if tonight was any indication. There was going to be another confrontation between Hunter and Brock, and Shawn was going to be by Hunter's side, where he belonged. At least now Paul wouldn't bring up her kids. She looked at them for a moment, Sawyer and Flynn playing with her new toy while Kensington took a peaceful nap on the couch, a late nap that would take her close to the start of the show.

She didn't regret for a second what she'd done to Paul Heyman. Actually, she would do it again if he tried what he tried before. The man wasn't going to get away with what he'd done. She might be upset with Hunter, but she hoped he pulverized Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam. Hell, she hoped someone would pulverize Paul Heyman while they were at it. He didn't know her kids, and to be so presumptuous…

"Stephanie?"

Stephanie was broken from her thoughts when Chris was looking at her. "Hey, where were you just now?"

"Picturing a million ways to torture Paul Heyman," Stephanie confessed. His eyes widened briefly before he gave a nod of approval. "I'm still so angry over that, I'm just hoping Hunter actually gets in a few punches to that stupid man's head."

"Wow, vicious, I love you like this," he told her.

"I'm still livid over the things he said, with our kids in the audience no less." Sawyer had asked her after the show why that man thought they were bad. She'd wanted to rip what was left of Heyman's hair after Sawyer asked that.

"I know, I know, but after what you did, he's not going to try it again."

"So what are you doing on the show, why do you have another of Dolph's shirts in your bag?" she wondered.

"Wait, you were looking in my bag? In my personal things?"

"Hard to miss a hot pink shirt," Stephanie laughed.

Chris walked up beside Stephanie and pushed the schedule for the evening towards her. He pressed his finger towards the line that said Dolph Ziggler vs. Alex Riley. Stephanie looked up at Chris questioningly. "You're going to interfere?"

"Stephanie, Stephanie, Stephanie, what do you take me for?" Chris asked her. "You've been with me 10 years, and you can't anticipate my next move?"

"No, so tell me."

"I'm going to do a little commentary," he told her. "You know, talk Dolph up and all of that good stuff. I mean, I'm even going to wear his t-shirt, so I'm promoting the guy. He really should be thanking me."

"I'm sure he would if not for you beating his ass," Stephanie told him and he ran his fingers through her hair. "What are you thinking right now? Because you're thinking something."

"I don't know, just thinking about things. Maybe I should tout my thoughts right now."

"You're getting out of hand with that, you know that, right?" Stephanie told him. Yesterday, they'd been driving around Texas when they'd come across this cute furniture store with a bunch of rocking chairs outside. Stephanie, who had a friend who was having a baby, insisted they stop so she could look at the rocking chairs, wondering if she should buy one for her friend. Chris, who was now obsessed with touting idiotic things, made her film him rocking on one of the chairs.

"What? I'm an Executive Vice President around here if you don't remember the title you bestowed upon me. By promoting this, it really helps the business," he told her smartly. "Maybe I should tout about how my wife wants this affiliation to fail."

"Daddy, did you see what I got?" Flynn tugged on Chris's jeans as she held up her Sheamus figure. "Sames gots it for me."

"Wow, that was nice of him," Chris said. "Do you like it?"

"Uh huh, I have all my friends now!" Flynn announced. "Bye!"

"See ya," Chris waved at her retreating form. "I'm not so sure I like her having other favorite wrestlers."

"Jealous much?" Stephanie said. "She has to find wrestlers she likes since someone, I'm not naming names, is going on tour soon with his band."

"That doesn't mean she needs new favorites!" he protested.

"I hardly think she has any new favorites."

"Hey, guys, open door policy!" Punk said as he opened the door.

"Punk!" Flynn yelled, running over to him and lifting her arms. Punk easily carried her.

"You were saying?" Chris scowled, not really jealous, but pretending like he was.

"Hey, Punk, are you feeling better?" Sawyer asked, knowing Punk had been so mad last week.

"Yeah, I'm feeling a lot better, thanks buddy," Punk smiled at him. "I think I'm going to apologize to AJ."

"You were?" Stephanie asked incredulously. "Where's the punchline?"

"I was out of line, anyways, I really just came to wish Miss Flynn Jericho an early Happy Birthday, and I will see you on Wednesday for your party," Punk told her as Flynn's eyes lit up.

"Yes! You're coming!"

"I was invited, wasn't I? I don't pass up a good party," Punk told her, giving her a hug. "I'll see you later though, okay, Flynnie, I've got some business to take care of. Hey, Steph, are you keeping AJ on a shorter leash tonight?"

"No, I'm not, so this apology better be good."

It was. At least, he tried to make it be as good as he could. AJ was taking this GM thing seriously, almost too seriously. Punk wondered if it was because she was actually trying to do a good job or if she was just trying to play a part. Stephanie probably had a lot to do with the matches, but maybe she was actually letting AJ have some input. If that were the case, he would have to suck up to her a little. That's what the apology was about. He wished he could say it sincerely, but AJ had really angered him last week, and if anyone could hold a grudge, it was him. He didn't want one against the rather naïve girl in front of him, but she'd forced it on him.

She seemed to see through though, or else she just wanted to do what she wanted and disregard everyone who'd "wronged" her, but she wouldn't change the match. If Stephanie were out here or had something hooked up to AJ, maybe it could have gotten changed, but this girl was unmoving. This made him angry and instead of going back to being a nice guy, being sympathetic, he drew up a dark place where he started to get angry with her. He didn't really mean to, not totally, but she was unreasonable. So what, this girl had been hurt? Didn't she realize he wasn't that into her?

He couldn't believe AJ would still be hung up on something that wasn't even real. She was using and abusing her power in a way that was very unbecoming of her. Then to add insult to injury, the jackass John Cena himself had to show his stupid face. Punk thought it so ironic that Cena would come out here and accuse him of becoming a "that guy," when Cena was the epitome of "that guy." Cena was a suck-up, as demonstrated by his blatant and stupid flirtation with AJ. Cena never did what he wanted, it was all a put-on, an image. Punk would never stoop that low. If people didn't like him, tough, get used to it. That didn't mean he didn't deserve their respect though.

He'd held the belt for a long time, he'd fought off anyone daring to enter the ring with delusions of getting his belt. He'd _earned_ his respect, but the fact that it hardly ever came was bothersome. Why shouldn't he be pissed when some guy who wasn't even with the company came in and demanded all these things, and got a headlining match? Why was Dwayne allowed to just come right in and demand he face whoever the champion was? It was stupid and he wanted to change it. He knew Stephanie was part of the problem, that she let these guys in, but they didn't have to take, take, take. He wanted to take now, and if it meant stepping on a whole bunch of people along the way, he'd do it. He'd hold the belt for 15 years if it meant he would finally get the recognition he deserved around here.

"Hunter?"

Hunter stood up quickly from where he'd been sitting. Shawn had left a few minutes ago to get something to drink so Hunter was alone. Britt had known this when she came because she'd just walked by catering to see Shawn talking with Rey Mysterio. It gave her the opportunity to talk to him hopefully with no interruptions. She just needed to get what she needed to say out, and then from there, she wasn't sure.

"Hey," he said, noting how uncomfortable she looked. "Do you want to sit down?"

"Yeah, I do." She took a seat and he took a seat next to her, but not too close. She grabbed his hand in both of hers pressed her palms against his skin. He couldn't help but smile over the contact. Her hands looked like frail, little butterfly wings next to his own hands. She gave him an encouraging smile when he finally looked up at her face.

"I just wanted to apologize, first and foremost, about what happened between Punk and me. I should have told you right after it happened, but I guess I was a coward. I didn't want you to know. I'm sorry I didn't tell you."

"I know you are, I'm sorry for what I did," he told her. "I shouldn't have done it."

"No, you shouldn't have, but…look at us, Hunter," Britt sighed. "This shouldn't be this hard. We shouldn't be manipulating and lying and doing all this destructive stuff. I feel like we've lost what we've been about."

"How do we fix it then?"

"I'm not even sure, that's the thing," she sighed. "I've spent the last few weeks trying to figure out what was wrong, why this felt so difficult, why it felt like this conversation was the hardest thing to do."

"Because I hurt you."

"You did, but I hurt you too, I drove you to revenge," she said, "that's not right or good. It's horrible actually. We should be able to communicate, and we're not. I love you, Hunter, but I'm starting to believe that may not be good enough."

"Oh, that is _rich_ coming from you."

Hunter and Britt swiveled to see Shawn standing in the doorway. "Come to crush his heart again?"

"I wasn't…"

"Oh, sure you weren't," Shawn scoffed. "Why don't you stop playing games and go back to CM Punk? I heard you two were getting a little bit cozy."

"He's my friend," Britt said defensively. "He understands that."

"Not from what I've heard," Shawn said, "Hunter, you should hear what these two have been doing. I've heard it all while I've been here."

"You don't know anything, Shawn," Britt spat. "You have disliked me from the very beginning and I'm kind of sick of it."

"Get out of here," Shawn told her. "He doesn't need you."

"Oh, I'm leaving, but I will be back when you aren't here," Britt said, "Hunter, finish this conversation later?"

He nodded and Britt left, but not before throwing daggers with her eyes at Shawn. "What the hell, man?" Shawn asked. "I thought we agreed not to think about her."

"She wanted to talk to me, and what is your problem? You know I love her and want her back."

"Dude, she's overrated, move on, get someone better, trust me, I'll find someone better for you," Shawn said, "you've just got to let her go."

But Hunter didn't want to let her go.

Chris loved doing commentary. It gave him a forum with which to speak his mind where everyone could hear, plus gave him a great vantage point of the match. He thought himself quite witty and funny on commentary so it felt like a win-win for everyone. At this point in time, it was honestly just funny getting Dolph riled up. Chris had never really had a problem with the kid, but the fact that he could get so angry over such little things was funny to Chris.

Cole had the audacity to ask during the match if Chris was taking on too many things. Chris never believed he was taking on too many things. Fozzy was a priority, yes, so was wrestling, but he managed both. He had to because he had a family, and in the grand scheme of things, the four people who he loved the most came first. There would never be a time where he took on _too_ much because his family prevented that. He wanted to be there for his children, see them grow up, so no, he was never going to take on too much.

Chris had never believed, not for one moment, that he'd lost anything. He knew he was still good, he didn't need to "win the big one" to prove that to himself. A guy like him, titles had almost become meaningless. There was no pinnacle title he still needed to get so ribbing Dolph was about as good as it was going to get right now. And it was just so damn entertaining. There he was, sitting there, and all it took to distract Dolph was to take some video and tout about it.

Maybe Stephanie was right, maybe he _was_ having too much fun with this tout thing, but it was really convenient at the moment. He climbed up on the announcer's table to get a better look at the action, just as Alex Riley rolled up Dolph for the pin. Chris pretended to act shocked, turning the camera towards himself and making a face. This seemed to set off Ziggler even more, which only entertained Chris more. He knew Dolph was probably going to challenge him to a match at SummerSlam, and he was ready for it, but for now, he'd just have his fun.

He talked about how Dolph should maybe be concerned about beating the "little ones," before any talk of winning the big ones. Dolph just kept yelling nonsensically at him from the ring. Chris acted like he was going to throw down with him, but thought the better of it. Better to save it, for now, he was burrowing himself under Dolph's skin. And to get even further he had an idea.

"Hey, Steph," he said as he walked backstage, pulling off Dolph's shirt in the process.

"No, I'm not doing you right now," Stephanie said as she sat there, pushing some buttons.

"No, I had a thought, do you think I could call in a favor as the husband of the President?"

"What kind of favor?" He had two words for her, but they weren't suck it.

"Highlight Reel."


	382. Piper's Pit, August 13, 2012

A/N: Thanks all for the reviews and such. Sorry this is slightly late in being put up, but I had real life stuff that I had to take care of before finishing the chapter. Just a reminder that next week _may_ just be a SummerSlam chapter, depending, but since the last few PPV's, I've done PPV only chapters, I just wanted to let you know. Hope you enjoy! :)

* * *

Flynn woke up and was surprised to find herself in her room and in her own bed. She didn't remember getting here at all. Her mommy or daddy must have put her in bed, but she didn't even remember getting home. The last thing she remembered was her mommy telling her to go to sleep on the airplane. She must have really been asleep when they got home. Her eyes lit up as she remembered what the day was. It was her fourth birthday! She was a whole four years today!

She got up from bed, noticing it still seemed a bit dark out, but that didn't matter to her. It was her birthday, surely everyone would get up if it was her birthday. She climbed out of her bed, padding her way to the door and looked down the hallway. Hmm, it didn't look like anyone was up yet, but that was okay, she could get everyone up. She thought of where to go first and decided Kensington's room was about as good a start considering it was close to hers.

She pushed open the slightly ajar door and walked up to her sister's crib. Crib, Flynn hadn't needed one of those in a long time! But then her mommy had said that it was getting close to when Kensington might not need one either. Her sister was still a baby though. She peeked her head through a coupe of the bars, holding onto them as she positioned her face close to Kensington's.

"Kensy!" Flynn hissed in a loud whisper. Her sister barely even twitched. "Kensy, wake up!"

When her sister turned her head away, Flynn sighed. She was just a baby anyways, she didn't even know what four was. She left the room and decided to go find her Sawyer. Surely her Sawyer would want to play with her and congratulate her on her fourth birthday. She opened Sawyer's door and saw he was still in bed, but that was okay, his bed was like hers so she could go right up to it, which she did, shaking her brother's shoulder a little bit.

"I'm four, I'm four, I'm four, I'm four!"

"Flynnie, what are you doing?" Sawyer asked sleepily. Flynn was standing next to his bed, shaking him awake.

"Sawa, it's my birthday!" Flynn informed him brightly.

"I know," Sawyer said, rubbing his bleary eyes and looking around. "Flynnie, then sun's not even woken up yet. I don't even think Mommy and Daddy are up."

"But it's my birthday," Flynn whimpered. Why wasn't everyone up and already partying because she was turning four and this was huge for her? She'd never been four before.

"We're having a party and everything, Flynnie, don't worry," Sawyer reminded her. "You should go back to sleep because I don't think Mommy and Daddy would want you up."

"Can I sleeps with you?" Flynn asked, deciding Sawyer may have a point. He was very smart and she listened to him because he was her big brother. She didn't feel like going back to her room. Sawyer nodded and he scooted over in his bed so she had some room. Flynn eagerly climbed into his bed and pulled the covers up. "Thank you, Sawa!"

"Shh," Sawyer reminded her, "you have to be quiet, Flynnie. Mommy and Daddy would be mad if you woke them up or Kensy up."

"She's in her own room and I already went and tried to talk to her, but she sleeping," Flynn said, snuggling deeper into the covers. "D'you think I'm gonna get lots of presents?"

"Probably," Sawyer yawned as he looked at his sister, whose eyes seemed to be lighting up over the prospect of presents. "I got a lot for my birthday."

"I want lots too," Flynn said. "Sawa?"

"Yeah?"

"Were you there on my birthday?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, "Mommy let me stay with her, but I don't really remember it a lot. I remember that you were really little."

"Oh, I like that," Flynn nodded, her eyes starting to droop a little. Sawyer's bed was just so comfortable, she couldn't keep her eyes open. But she _should_ keep her eyes open because it was her birthday and she didn't want to go to sleep on her birthday! She wasn't even going to take any kind of nap, even though she still sometimes took naps. She just couldn't keep her eyes closed when there was so much to go on, even though her birthday party wasn't going to be until tomorrow.

"You were even littler than Kensy was."

"Wow," Flynn breathed, even though she could barely remember when Kensington was born. "Sawa?"

"Hmm?" Sawyer was rapidly losing his consciousness.

"Where do babies even come from?" Flynn asked.

"Oh," Sawyer didn't even know where to begin with that, but then he remembered what his mommy and daddy had told him about the subject. "Mommy and Daddy said that when two people like each other or love each other or just want to be together, sometimes they kiss and hug and do other stuff that I'm not supposed to know about, and then there's a baby sometimes when something happens inside the mommy. Then a baby grows there, and then the mommy has a baby. But sometimes, some people can't have babies, so they adopt them from the people who can't take care of their babies no more."

"Oh, but we're not 'dopted, right?"

"No," Sawyer said, "now go to bed."

"How do you know we're not 'dopted?"

"Because we have pictures of us in Mommy's tummy, so there," he let her know, "now go to bed."

"Okay," Flynn said, pulling the covers up and burrowing down into the bed. She closed her eyes as the exhaustion of her early morning conversation and excitement hit her like a ton of bricks. She couldn't fight the sleep even if she tried.

Stephanie woke up and stretched her arms over her head, "Chris," she poked him in the ribs as he groaned and pushed her hand away. "Chris, wake up, it's our daughter's birthday."

Chris smiled with his eyes still closed. "I can't believe she's four years old."

"I know," Stephanie said, cuddling up to Chris, burying her face into his neck. "Remember how we thought she was the most chill baby in the world, and how we thought she was going to be so laidback and cool about things."

"And instead we got a little hurricane and tornado wrapped up into tiny package?" Chris chuckled, the vibrations traveling through him and into Stephanie. "I never expected her to be like she is, I figured if we got one Sawyer, we'd get two of them."

"I adore the hell out of that girl," Stephanie admitted.

"Well, she's pretty much you, so of course you do," Chris told her. "She's exactly like you, obsessed with me."

"Very funny," Stephanie said. "Come on, let's go wake her up. I'm surprised she hasn't come storming in declaring that we need to start celebrating her birthday right this second or else she's going to Codebreaker all of us."

"I'm not sure she would be able to jump that high," Chris laughed. "I'll try and give Dolph one on Friday when I do my Highlight Reel. I've missed doing those. You know, I really wish I'd started them sooner so I could have had you on it. Could you imagine the two of us on one of those?"

"At what point in our relationship? After we were together? Because if that's the case, I'm not sure people would have wanted to see that."

"No, of course not, when we hated each other. I would have absolutely gotten one over on you. After you got your breast implants, could you imagine if I put it up on the Jeritron 5000, and then you were in the ring and I just outright humiliated you," Chris laughed at the memory of that particular moment. "I mean, who do you think you were fooling with getting those? Did you think people wouldn't notice?"

"Hey, you like them!" Stephanie protested. "So I don't see why you're even complaining because you love my breasts, thank you very much. You probably wanted them back then and that's why you had to point it out."

"Well…I wouldn't have said no to you back then if you came onto me. I would have taken an acid bath afterwards because I'd fear I'd catch something, and I'd swear you to secrecy, but I wouldn't have turned you down if you came onto me. I didn't like you, but I wasn't stupid."

"Why are we even discussing this when it's our daughter's birthday, number two of three I might add," Stephanie reminded him.

"Because I'm excited to do that Highlight Reel, that's all," Chris told her, "besides, Flynn is going to love that. You know how she's always responded well to them when I've showed her the past ones. She especially loved when I shoved Shawn's head into the Jeritron."

"Well, that's a personal favorite of mine too," she said, swinging her leg so it was over Chris's. She straddled him for a moment before she scooted off him and off the bed. She grabbed his large hand and pulled him up off the bed. "Come on, let's go wake up the birthday girl and ask what she wants for breakfast."

"Coming, coming," Chris said, letting his wife drag her down the hallway to Flynn's bedroom. She pushed open the door and then paused, stopped dead in her tracks. Chris bumped into her back after her abrupt stop and looked at the back of her head, confused, "What's wrong?"

"Flynn's not here," Stephanie scowled. "We have the baby gate up, but if that girl went downstairs, I swear to God…"

"Come on, she couldn't have gotten far," Chris said, "it's not like it's Christmas and she knows there's presents waiting downstairs. She's probably upstairs somewhere."

"I can't hear her though," Stephanie frowned. "She better not have climbed that gate, I don't care if it is her birthday, she'll get a timeout for that one."

"No she won't, not on her birthday, Steph, we can let something like that slide on her birthday," Chris said. This was not an uncommon occurrence. Flynn often disregarded Stephanie and Chris's warnings not to climb over the gate they kept at the top of the stairs in the evenings. Kensington was getting better at going down the stairs, but they didn't like having the stairs open at night since Kensington had a proclivity for climbing out of her crib.

"Fine, but I'm not going to be happy with her."

"Why don't we check the playroom, she could just be playing," Chris suggested.

"Flynn Jericho actually play quietly? Oh, you are asking for a birthday miracle here, pal," Stephanie laughed. "Can you go see if the others are awake?"

"Sure," Chris said, making a right into Kensington's room. He checked her crib, but she was still blissfully unaware of the world. He then walked across the hall to Sawyer's room. He opened the door and chuckled.

"Chris, she's not in here," Stephanie bit her lip.

"Come here," Chris gestured her over. "I found our little fugitive."

"Huh?" Stephanie walked over and looked into Sawyer's room. Sawyer was asleep, which wasn't unusual, especially since they'd caught a redeye last night. But Flynn was sleeping curled around him, hugging him around the waist as she slept. "Oh my goodness, that is adorable. I wonder when she came in here."

"I don't know, but let's not disturb them," Chris said, "we can just make her breakfast."

"Or we can be really bad parents and totally disturb them," Stephanie said playfully, looking at Chris with a kind of childlike giddiness.

"What did you have in mind?" Chris wondered. He could only imagine what Stephanie was thinking about.

"This," Stephanie said, running over to the bed and hopping on, making it bounce on one side, startling both children into wakefulness. Stephanie grabbed Flynn around the waist and started tickling her.

"Mommy!" Flynn screamed as she gasped for breath, the unexpectedness of her mother's presence making it hard for her to regain her bearings. Chris disappeared for a moment before returning with the littlest Jericho, tossing her sleepy form onto the bed before he flopped down on the other side of Sawyer and started tickling him.

"Daddy, no!" Sawyer exclaimed, not expecting to get tickled because it was Flynn's birthday not his. Kensington, not wanting to be left out, decided to help her mommy tickle Flynn and she crawled over just as Stephanie laid a big, wet kiss on Flynn's cheek.

"Happy Birthday, my little warrior princess," Stephanie told her daughter with all the love she had inside of her.

"Flynnie!" Kensington giggled, nuzzling her head against her sister's shoulder.

"Does being four feel different?" Stephanie asked her daughter.

"No! I'm still me!" Flynn told her nodding.

"Well good, I wouldn't have wanted four to change you."

The rest of the day was spent with just the family hanging around, pretty much doing everything Flynn wanted to do, which included a lot of playing in the backyard and going swimming. Since her party was the next day, they didn't want to do a ton of stuff so they wouldn't spoil the party. They barbequed and ate dinner outside, and Chris and Stephanie decided to give Flynn their presents today and since her family and friends were bringing presents tomorrow, she'd still have things to open.

Sawyer had gotten her a new WWE ring to play with, which he picked out himself when he'd went shopping with his mommy. She'd let him and Kensington each pick out a thing for Flynn's birthday. Kensington had decided on a bunch of lollipops, and when Stephanie tried to tell her that she could get something else, Kensington had whined and insisted on getting her sister the lollipops. Stephanie and Chris got Flynn a new bike, complete with training wheels and a step up from the tricycle she'd inherited from Sawyer.

"Kensy, you can have my trike now!" Flynn screamed at her sister in her excitement over pawing her new bike.

"Okay!" Kensington said excitedly, lifting her arms up to Stephanie. Stephanie picked up the girl and smiled at her, kissing her cheek. "Mommy, want tike!"

"We can go riding tomorrow," Stephanie said, "tomorrow morning before Flynn's party. Sawyer and Flynn can ride their bikes, and you can ride your new tricycle, okay?"

"Okay," Kensington threw her arms around Stephanie's neck and held on tight.

"Hey, Flutterby, this is from me," Chris pushed a box towards her.

"Chris, what is this?" Stephanie asked. "I thought we weren't getting her individual presents."

"Well, I'm her father, I can do whatever the hell I want to," he winked at her.

Flynn tore the paper and ribbon off the box and opened it. "Ooh, pretty, Daddy, this is pretty!" She stared down at the necklace, studying it for a moment. "Daddy, it's you!" Flynn started cracking up because her daddy was the funniest guy in the universe.

Stephane leaned over with Kensington and looked at what Chris got her. It was a necklace, dainty, obviously made for a child because though small, it looked tough enough to withstand a child's exuberance. The pendant was the real start of the entire thing though. It was the outline of a man, a man with his arms out in a very familiar pose. Underneath it were the letters Y2J. Stephanie scoffed and looked up at her husband.

"Really?" Stephanie asked.

"I'm just giving the girl what she wants," he admitted, holding his hands up in defense. "Besides, you don't like jewelry anymore, I have to find someone I can spoil the hell out of, and I've got two people I can spoil with jewelry."

"I never said I didn't like it, just that I didn't need it," Stephanie told him.

"Daddy, can I wear it now?" Flynn asked, shoving the box into his face. Chris nodded and took it out, putting it on her neck. "Wow, I'm the prettiest!"

"You sure are," Chris told her, running his hand over her head and then kissing the crown of her head.

"I'm going to play again, Sawa, come play with me!"

"Okay," he said good-naturedly, letting her grab his hand and pull him towards his fort (that she used just as much because she was Flynn and she thought anything belonging to Sawyer belonged to her).

Chris pulled out something else and he pushed it towards Stephanie. "I know a lot of the time, I keep secrets from you, I don't let you know about things, so for once, I just wanted to give you something a little bit early, so here you go, baby."

"What is this for?" she asked as she looked down at it. He shrugged, but didn't answer, leaving it open-ended and for her to fill in the blanks. "Is this what I think it is?"

"Could be," he smirked. "The only way to find out is to open it up."

Stephanie set Kensington on the chair next to her and Kensington leaned over the table to see what her mommy was opening. "What dat?" she asked, pawing at the case as Stephanie opened it. "Daddy, what dat?"

"It's my CD," Chris explained to her.

Stephanie looked up at him and smiled, "Chris, you're actually giving me your CD in advance, where I can hear it before anyone else does…by a freaking day. I know that Loudwire is going to be livestreaming it, you jerk."

"What! That's not what this is about," he laughed. "Okay, I figured you would listen to it, and I just wanted to give it to you first so you can listen at your leisure, so you know that you're the most special person in my universe."

There were times when Chris said things that she didn't deserve, or at least things she felt she didn't deserve. This was one of those times. They would always come at the most random moments, when she least expected them. That's what made Chris so special to her. He didn't say these things to get on her good side or to make up for something he did. He just felt them, and as such, he wanted to tell her whenever the mood struck him, like right now for instance. She stared down at the CD, taking in the cover, turning it over and reading the songs. She smiled back up at Chris.

"Thank you, I can't wait to hear it."

Chris flipped the alarm on and walked upstairs. It had been an eventful day. Flynn's party had been a rousing success. Her friends had all come to her wrestling-themed party, had a great time, then got the hell out, which pleased Chris. Flynn had her share of new action figures and play-sets, crayons, markers, other various gifts that she loved. It had been a great party for his eldest daughter, and most boisterous child.

He checked the kids' rooms, making sure they were all asleep. Satisfied, he walked to his own bedroom, flipping off the hallway light before closing the door. Stephanie was sitting on the bed, her laptop perched on her lap, and her headphones snugly covering her ears. Chris gave her a mock salute and she nodded to him silently. He walked into the closet, got undressed, and then did his usual bathroom routine. Stephanie was still on her laptop when he was through so he hopped onto the bed, grabbing a metal magazine on the way down.

He flipped through it aimlessly until Stephanie finished what she was listening to turned off her laptop. She got up, setting it on a chair in the corner of the room before she climbed back on the bed and right up to Chris, straddling his lap. He slowly pulled down his magazine and gave her a look. "May I help you?" he wondered.

Stephanie started pressing warm, open-mouthed kisses up his chest and along his neck, finally getting to his jaw, where she whispered, "Your addiction, huh?"

"Shut up," he told her, pulling her closer.

"I love you," she told him, before kissing him. He was lost before he could even utter a word.

Stephanie passed the schedule along to Chris. He scanned the page until he saw his name, but it wasn't what it usually looked like. He stared up at her in confusion. "I _might_ be on Piper's Pit, what does this even mean?"

"It was my idea!" AJ raised her hand. "Stephanie said I could come up with some ideas as long as I ran them by her first, which is what I'm trying to do, right, Stephanie?"

AJ looked so eager for her approval that Stephanie threw her a kind smile, "Yeah, you are trying, and I appreciate that. She thought, since we're trying to be more interactive, that instead of just scheduling someone for Piper's Pit, we would let people vote on who they wanted via Twitter. You're one of the three choices, with Miz and Dolph being the other two."

"Great idea, huh?" AJ said. "Do you like it, Chris, do you?"

"Um, yeah, sure," he said, "I'll be sure to be prepared."

"Great, Stephanie and I are working really hard, I'm even trying to find outfits that would be reminiscent of her, but I have to sometimes shop in the children's section, so it's a little hard, I'm really petite," AJ shrugged.

"Yeah, I know, I'm glad you're trying to work with Stephanie."

"She's my role model," AJ beamed at the brunette. "I want to be just like you, Stephanie, I mean, I'm trying, I've been watching old tapes of you when you were the General Manager. You were fierce, you didn't take crap from anyone, not even Chris…not that you two interacted, I mean, you didn't because he was on Raw, but you two were together, weren't you, that's what I heard, but I didn't want to like pry into your business, but I was thinking, maybe _I_ should have a secret relationship."

"Well, we only did that because we were trying to get information."

"Well, maybe I am too," she grinned and then shrugged in that way she did. "I've got to go, got lots to do, what with everything kind of going down tonight since SummerSlam is coming up, that's a huge show. Hey, you two kissed on that show! Cool beans!"

AJ skipped out of the room and Chris looked to Stephanie, "Sometimes, I just want to…I don't know, pat her on the head."

"And the other part of you?" Chris asked.

"Wants to fire her and assume the position of GM," Stephanie admitted.

"There's my girl," Chris smiled, "so essentially, I can just sit around tonight until I find out what I'm doing?"

"Yeah, think of it as a reward for being so great on SmackDown."

_Chris was having a good week thus far. His daughter had turned four and was loving every second of it. His album was getting rave reviews, the most important of which came from his beautiful wife. He was looking forward to his match at SummerSlam against Dolph, and he had his upcoming tours to satiate his need for metal. Having a Highlight Reel on top of that was just icing on the awesome cake that was his life._

_He'd traveled alone to SmackDown though, which was probably the only downside to the entire thing. Stephanie thought, what with SummerSlam coming up in the next week, and them joining him for the first city of the tour (to see their inaugural set), that it would be too much travel for the kids. He tried to argue otherwise, saying that with Sawyer starting school in a couple of weeks (1st grade! Oh how the time flew!) it would be like a last hurrah. Stephanie said they could start said hurrah on Monday, and so he complied because he loved her and didn't want a fight._

_Still, this was fun. He hadn't done a Highlight Reel on SmackDown in such a long time, and as he looked out at the crowd, who suddenly loved him again (fickle, fickle parasites), he smiled, reveling in it just the tiniest bit. He was about to introduce Dolph when his screechy manager/girlfriend/cougar/whatever came out instead. Chris was nuanced in screechy voices per his wife, but Vickie's screechiness reached new levels of annoying._

_She sauntered down to the ring, yapping as she usually do as he gave her an incredulous look. She announced that since Dolph was her "client," she would be speaking on his behalf. He should have known that something would go ahead and ruin this lovely streak he had going. Then he had to hear Vickie of all people say he couldn't win the big one. _

_It was a lot different this time around. He wanted to remind everyone that he had won not just _one_ big one as Dolph could tenuously claim, and it was tenuous because all he had to show for his winnings was a briefcase while Chris had a multitude of accolades under his proverbial belt, but that he had won multiple big ones. This was not Stephanie coming out to tell him always seemed to lose the big ones, this was not Shane coming out to tell him that if he spent half as much time focusing on winning that he did making fun of his sister, he might come up big. No, this was a naïve viewpoint from someone who had no room to talk. Although, admittedly on the former, maybe Shane had seen what he and Stephanie just couldn't at the time. But that was a diversion for another time._

_He would like to say he never devolved to pettiness, but he was Chris Jericho, half his career had been spent in childish pettiness so when Vickie kept saying excuse me, who was he to not say it back…then again…and again? She was baiting him, and he was simply taking said bait and running with it. So what if it made her angry? It's not like he had to go home with her._

_He decided to put an end to it because he was an actual adult. For a moment, that brought to his mind his children. They were probably cracking up right now. They loved when he did funny stuff and he was sure they would find this absolutely hilarious. He tried to be diplomatic, brought up their history, the years they'd known each other, which subsequently brought a quick pang to his heart when he thought of Eddie. He pushed it away because that was always a door that opened to more issues than Chris cared to cover at this particular moment in front of these many people._

_Vickie was having none of his diplomacy though. Instead, she threatened to walk off his show, like she was _so_ highly regarded that having Vickie Guerrero walk off his show was an insult of the highest form. He pretended to be insulted, but then told her to get the hell out if she wanted to. He was the husband of the president of his whole damn company, he didn't think Vickie was something to fawn over. She wasn't the one signing the paychecks around here._

_But, he still had time to fill so he called her back, at least for a few more minutes. He went to the obscenely expensive Jeritron 6000 (the 5000 model had served itself well for a while inside the Jericho household) and showed video from Monday, specifically Chris distracting Dolph. Now was the time to really send it home in only the way Chris could. He didn't get a reputation on the mic for being terrible. No, this was his bread and butter, hell, it had actually kind of, sort of won him his wife._

_Chris turned serious after Vickie's little spiel, saying he didn't have to prove anything to anyone and it was true. He'd culled a legacy for himself over the last two decades. He'd worked his ass off, and he'd made a name for himself. He wasn't just a wrestler, he was a brand. He had so many projects, so many things going for him, he didn't need to still "win the big one." The big one had been won a _long_ time ago. His 19 year old self would be shocked at what he'd made of himself._

_But there was one thing that stuck out in his mind. He had been losing lately. It wasn't something Dolph said though, that made him think. It was the words of his son that were forefront in his mind. It was Sawyer asking him if he'd ever win again. It made him evaluate what he'd been doing, and how he'd been doing, and how he had to change himself to win. He was always changing himself. Every time he came back he changed who he was, made himself better, and now he had to step it up. He had to be the wrestler he knew he was. He had to be Y2J._

_He reinforced that when he gave his daughter the necklace for her birthday. She'd refused to take it off since then, Stephanie actually had to persuade her to take it off for bath time, but otherwise, she was wearing it always. That was the guy he was, he couldn't turn his back on that. He didn't need to be something totally different this time, but he needed to remember his roots. That's what this was, remembering where he came from before everything._

_He felt Dolph's presence before he actually saw him. Oldest trick in the book, use your manager as a diversion so you could hold a sneak attack. It would have been funny if it wasn't so pathetic. He'd pulled the same thing with Stephanie over ten years ago. This was old news and he was actually a little insulted that Dolph thought his reflexes and instincts weren't as good as they were. He ducked out of the way, instead laying a punch to Dolph. He stalked his way over to Vickie and she slapped him across the face. _

_It startled him, but didn't hurt. Everyone knew Stephanie was famous for her bitch slaps, and Vickie's paled in comparison to his vixen of a wife's slaps. Paul Heyman could certainly attest to that, he smirked to himself. He should have known Dolph would get up though, but hey, he was startled, and then it all went black when the metal met his head._

"I didn't get a concussion," Chris reminded her.

"I don't care, I mean, I do care, but I'm glad you didn't," she admitted to him. "Just so you know."

"Good, thanks, I'm glad you are happy I didn't get a head injury. Hey, that reminds me of when I kissed you at SummerSlam, remember that?"

"I do!" Sawyer said, looking up from his book. Linda and Vince had gotten him a couple books as gifts because they hated to see Sawyer and Kensington get nothing while Flynn was getting presents, even though Kensington's birthday was in a couple weeks. Sawyer, who was devouring books now, was so pleased, he wanted to bring them with him.

"Me too!" Flynn insisted from where she was playing with her new Money in the Bank ring set. Unfortunately, because the actual briefcase was pretty small, they had to take it because they feared Kensington would try to eat it, so her action figures were grabbing at nothing at the moment.

"No you don't," Stephanie told her daughter.

"Uh huh, I do!" Flynn argued, slamming her Jericho action figure against Kensington's CM Punk figure. "I do, Mommy, I do!"

"I too!" Kensington exclaimed, not wanting to be left out. Sometimes being the baby of the family was no fun!

"Now I _know_you don't," Stephanie said to Kensington, making a funny face, which made both Flynn and Kensington burst into giggles.

"I do remember because I saw it," Flynn insisted.

"You were trying to distract him, Mommy, because you didn't want Daddy to win against Rhyno," Sawyer said. "You didn't like Daddy because you thought he was mean, even though you were mean to him too."

"See!" Chris said. "I told you, you were mean to me."

"You were mean back."

"You were both pretty mean," Sawyer told him, looking at them both with disappointment. "But then, you were trying to interfere and Daddy kissed you because he wasn't right in the head, that's what Daddy said."

"What?" Stephanie asked.

"He had…what was it?"

"A concussion, I thought your mommy was someone else," Chris winked.

"No, you didn't!" Sawyer laughed. "You knew it was Mommy, but you liked her, you wanted to kiss her because you thought she was the prettiest, most beautifulest girl in the entire universe and the stars."

"Hard to deny since I married her," Chris shrugged. "I guess you got me there."

"Daddy, can I go to your Fozzy thing tonight?" Sawyer asked.

"Sorry, kid, but it's too late for you guys," Chris lamented. He was holding a release party/signing after the show, but it would be much too late for the kids to attend.

"I can," Flynn nodded.

"No, you're not, baby girl," Stephanie told her.

"I never have fun! I'm four now!" she pouted.

"Four year olds go to sleep at the same time as three year olds," she told her daughter.

"No fair!"

"Way fair," Stephanie told her.

"Daddy, I like your CD," Sawyer told him.

"Well, thanks," Chris ruffled his hair. "I'm just getting good reviews everywhere!"

"Don't get too cocky now, Jericho," Stephanie warned him.

"I think you're about 15 years too late on that one, McMahon."

Britt knocked on Punk's door, biting her lip as she looked around. She kind of felt odd standing there, like she was doing something wrong even though she wasn't really doing anything wrong. In fact, she was just doing what Hunter told her to do. But that still felt weird and wrong somehow. In fact, she didn't even know why she was knocking on Punk's door right now. She should just turn around and go about her work. She had things to do. She had to make sure everything was ready for Piper's Pit, she had to make sure the contracts were all ready for Hunter's contract signing…and there was Hunter again. She was definitely about to turn around, she couldn't do this, no matter what Hunter said.

"Britt?"

"_Thanks for coming over," Hunter said, "I'm sorry we didn't get a chance to finish our talk since, well, Shawn and all of that. I wanted to see you here because Shawn is planning on being at Raw again since it's still pretty close and all that. I didn't know when we'd get a chance to talk."_

"_It's fine, I'm glad we're getting the chance to talk," she told him, coming inside of the house. "I really wanted to hear what you had to say."_

"_Yeah," he told her, leading her into the living room. She sat down on the couch and made herself comfortable like she had so many times before. Hunter sat across from her and looked at her. "I want to break up with you."_

"_What?" Britt said, totally blindsided by what he was saying. She wasn't expecting that._

"_We haven't been together for a while, and I understand space, Britt, and I understand that spending so much time apart just means you're breaking up with me, but too afraid to say it," he told her, a hard edge coming to her voice. "I think we should break up, and I think you should be with Punk."_

"_I'm…so confused right now," Britt said. "I never said that I wanted to be with Phil."_

"_I can see it, Britt. I can see that look," he told her._

"_No, you don't…we're friends, maybe there's flirtation, but I've never crossed that line, we've never, he's never pushed me into doing anything of the sort. I just…I'm trying to figure out what I'm doing here, what I'm supposed to do."_

_The wrestling business had warped her. Relationships here were so fleeting or if not fleeting, so dysfunctional. Everyone was with everyone else, gossip ran rampant. So few relationships actually lasted, survived the gauntlet. Even the good ones had problems, as evidenced by Christian and Trish's separation. The only good one seemed to be Chris and Stephanie, and they weren't sharing their secrets with anyone. _

_It wasn't supposed to be this hard or this weird. She wasn't supposed to be in this world, and right then, she wished she wasn't. She wished she'd never taken that stupid assistant's job, but she'd been so desperate for work and when Vince had told her that Chris was a new father, she'd melted a little, wanting to help a man who'd just had his first kid, who was probably overwhelmed. She thought that would be it, assistant this guy. She got sucked in though._

_Was this how it was for everyone? Did everyone get sucked into this business and spit out the other side a completely different person? Was this what life was going to be like? In that moment, she wanted to be normal, she wanted a desk job somewhere, in one city, in one building, at one desk. She wanted to go home every night, she wanted to have a partner (not necessarily a husband, that wasn't really on the table for her), maybe a kid, but normalcy. This was not normalcy._

"_And I'm telling you it's over."_

"_Why are you doing this?"_

_Maybe he was trying to protect himself, maybe he thought he would be hurt. She reached out to grab his hand, but he pulled away and stood up quickly. "I think you should leave."_

"_Hunter, please don't," Britt said. "I wanted to talk to you."_

"_And I wanted to talk to you, I've told you my piece, it stands, that's it, I don't want to be with you anymore. Shawn talked a lot of sense into me, told me a lot of things, and I thought about it and I want you to go be with Punk. I'm not stupid, Britt, don't take me for one."_

"_We're just friends!" she told him. "I've never done anything with him!"_

"_I think you're the only one who believes that."_

"_You're doing this on purpose," Britt said, "you're doing this so I'll push you away or so that you can push me away and I'll fall into your arms."_

"_If that's what you think, I've got to call Shawn."_

"_Hunter!"_

"_You can see yourself out."_

If Hunter wanted to act stupidly, she would just do what he wanted and see what he thought of it! No, she couldn't do that. She wouldn't use Punk like that, she just couldn't. She didn't want to be warped any longer. "Hey," she said quietly.

"What's wrong?" he asked immediately, pulling her inside so nobody could hear them.

"I'm just…I don't even know what's going on anymore," she collapsed on the couch. "I don't even know why I'm here."

"Well, you probably do kind of know."

"Hunter broke up with me, he said I should be with you."

"Whoa, what?" Punk was confused now too.

"He's just angry with me, but I don't know what to do anymore, I'm so confused and upset, and it's all just too much, you know," Britt said. "Nothing was supposed to be this way. I wasn't supposed to feel so confused, you know what I mean. It wasn't supposed to be this way."

"What was it supposed to be?" Punk asked her gently.

"Not this hard, I guess," she said. "I don't know, this whole business, how do you deal with it day in and day out?"

"Um, have you seen the number of divas I've dated?" he asked, trying to make a joke, but she just looked at him miserably. "Okay, not the best time to joke, but it _is_ hard around here, it's just, wrestling is an incestuous business as they say. Nothing really lasts around here unless you're both the same brand of crazy. I haven't found someone who is my brand of crazy yet."

"You mean your brand of jerky," Britt said smartly.

"Well, that too," he laughed. "It's hard, but if you're meant to be, meant to _last_ then you will. I mean, I'm not one for fate or soulmates or anything like that, never have been. I think it's kind of like religion, this made up notion that people use to make themselves feel better. Some people are just better suited for each other."

"Yeah," she said distantly.

"Look, whatever Hunter is doing, you can do whatever you want, you know," he told her, "I mean, I'm not saying, hey, let's have sex to prove a point to him, I'm not even saying he's right, but you shouldn't have to listen to him talk to you like that."

"I just think he's trying to cover the hurt. He does that, you know, I mean, I wasn't around for Stephanie, but I imagine he was a jerk to her because he was hurt over her lying to him. He pushed her away, acted like she was nothing to him because it was easier that way."

"That's a crappy way to act though towards someone you supposedly love."

"Defense mechanisms, Phil, we all have them," Britt said. "Thanks for talking with me, I don't even know what I'm really doing here, but yeah, thanks for just listening to me, you're a really good friend."

"I try to be, like I said, I dig crazy chicks."

"There's the jerk," she shoved at his shoulder.

"I'm not going to say you deserve better, but you do deserve something and someone awesome, whoever the hell that may be."

"You're going soft on me, Phil."

"Don't tell anyone."

Sawyer watched his father pace back and forth in front of him as he swung his legs on the crate he was sitting on, drinking from the water bottle he'd just gotten from catering. "Daddy, why do you look like that?" Sawyer asked.

"Huh, like what?" Chris asked, turning towards his son.

"Worried," Sawyer answered.

Chris scrunched up his face a little, "I'm not worried, I was just thinking about what I would say if I got to be on Piper's Pit."

"What is Piper's Pit?"

"Well, way back in the day, we're talking way, way back, when your mommy was really little and probably came to the shows just like you and your sisters, there was this thing called Piper's Pit with Roddy Piper. It was kind of like the Highlight Reel, but not as cool."

"Oh, why didn't you say it was just like the Highlight Reel?" Sawyer asked.

"Well, I was giving you a wrestling history lesson, so soak it up, kid."

"Did you watch wrestling then?"

"Yes, I did, with my grandma, remember? She's the one who really got me into watching it because we used to watch it together," Chris told him.

"Oh yeah, Grandma Linda likes wrestling and Gamma watches with us so it's kind of like that."

"Sort of, but you're in different circumstances."

"Why?"

"Well, because Grandpa Vince was the one who really built up the company to what it is, so it's not like you weren't born into it," he told him, "you were already in the company before you were born so of course you watched it."

"Daddy, if you're Y2J again, does that mean you're going to be mean to Mommy again like you were before when you were Y2J because that was funny."

"And have Mommy slap me like she slapped Paul Heyman, no thank you!" Chris said indignantly.

"Why did you call her a filthy, dirty ho thing?"

"Wow, I really should stop showing you old tapes," Chris frowned as his son repeated the oft-used phrase. "We shouldn't call people names like that. I thought Mommy was just…I didn't like her, and I thought bad things about her—"

"But she wasn't bad."

"No, it was a mistake, one I fixed and apologized for."

"Good, but it was still funny," Sawyer laughed. "Do you hope you're going to be on Piper's Pit."

"Yes, I really do, it would kind of be a dream come true."

When the votes eventually did come in, he was shocked to find that over half of the votes had been for him. He shouldn't have really been surprised, but he was nonetheless. He'd expected to win, but not by such a margin. It was nice to know that even after all these years, his fans appreciated him enough to want to see him at every possible turn. It was humbling to know they cared that much. It gave him hope that his event later for Fozzy would have just as great a turnout as the voters had turned out for him.

Being on Piper's Pit, such as it was in 2012, was still something of a dream. He remembered vividly all the times he'd watched it in his youth, and there was still some of the same giddiness that he remembered having whenever the anticipated segment came on his TV. He got into the ring, and immediately the jibes were flowing. Piper brought up the Mickey Rourke incident, but Chris brought up the incident right before it when Chris had beaten his ass. It was good-natured though, and it was nice to actually talk to Piper as if he were a friend and not some goon.

It was short-lived however when his recent scourges, Vickie and Dolph just _had_ to show up. It was predictable, _they_ were predictable, but here they were, coming to interrupt him again. It was getting kind of tired. Chris had already accepted the match, but now they were trying to provoke him. He really didn't know why they latched onto this "can't win the big one" thing. It was getting pretty tired. Sure, he hadn't had a great few months, but wrestling fans' memories were _not_ that short.

Then, of course, because he couldn't keep his nose out of other people's business, Miz had to show up out of nowhere and for no other reason than to run his damn mouth off again. He and Dolph were apparently some kind of weird alliance where they decided to gang up on him. What was so funny though, to him, to his fans, to everyone, was that Miz was really just Chris in a much less awesome form. Whatever Miz was trying to prove, Chris had proven a million times over.

These three ganging up on him was nothing. He'd faced tougher competitors in his sleep. So what, he'd lost a few matches, that did not matter to him, not anymore. He wanted to go out there and put on a show. He wanted to give his fans entertainment, he wanted them to go home happy they'd spent their money to see him. If he lost, so be it, but if they were entertained, if they said, "Wow, Jericho had a great match," that was reward enough. It was something he'd learned over the years. It wasn't something that came at first, when he'd still been as hungry as these two were, but he was beyond that point now.

Still, he wasn't going to just take everything lying down, and when threatened, he struck out. He was a wrestler after all. He handled both Dolph and Miz, and when the show went to commercial, he went over to the announcer's table, grabbed the spare headset and stuck it on for a minute. "Baby, I want a match right now."

A moment later, he heard her respond. "You've got it, give me a second."

Only a few seconds later, Michael Cole was announcing to the arena that AJ had tweeted there would be a Triple Threat Match right this second between the three men. Of course Stephanie would act as puppet-master, but it didn't matter as long as he got what he wanted. And got what he wanted he did.

Stephanie even went one step above as he was told by the referee they had as much time as they needed. This gave Chris the flexibility to take care of both these guys. Sure, they got the upper-hand some of the time, but he was pretty handily in control, showing both of them who was still the King of the World around here (hey, if Y2J was back why not the King of the World or the Highlight of the Night, or the Ayatollah of Rock and Rolla?). The match was back and forth, but Chris felt in control the entire way, something he hadn't felt in a while. It felt good knowing he was better than these guys, that he could beat them.

Well, he could if Vickie hadn't been her usual self. She interfered, just like she usually did, and that led to Dolph getting the pin. He was pissed off about it, but he'd get his revenge on Sunday. Oh yes, he'd get his revenge on Sunday. Stephanie sat backstage fuming, her anger only getting bigger and heavier when Vickie and Dolph sauntered by.

"You might want to try getting a new husband," Vickie sneered at her, "since this one is such a loser."

"My daddy is better than you!" Flynn announced unceremoniously, nearly standing on top of the table to yell at this woman and Dolph. "He's gonna beat you, and you will stink!"

"You might want to teach your kids some manners," Vickie told Stephanie. This pissed Stephanie off and she didn't like that feeling one bit.

Stephanie stood up to her full stature and walked over to Vickie. "Don't make me pull on you what I did to Paul Heyman, okay, Vickie? My husband may not hit a woman, but I sure as hell will."

"You can't talk to her like that!" Dolph snapped at her.

"Hmm," Stephanie said as she pointed at herself, "President of the company," then she pointed at Dolph, "Employee. You want to tell me what to do again, Dolph, because I'm sensing that you momentarily forgot the hierarchy around here. In fact, you're actually lucky you still have a job. If my husband said the word, I'd fire you."

That shut Dolph up pretty quickly, but not Vickie. "You couldn't do that."

"Oh, but see, I could," Stephanie said, "and I'm pretty protective of what I love."

"Let's just get out of here, Vick," Dolph said, pulling Vickie along, not wanting Stephanie to actually go ahead and fire him. Sometimes he forgot that Chris was actually Stephanie's husband. Dolph had to respect that Chris didn't use that for the perks, but that didn't mean Chris would never do so. He couldn't risk it.

"Always coming to my aid," Chris said as he walked backstage, grabbing a towel and drying himself off.

"Not just me," Stephanie nodded towards Flynn, who was still fuming and looked like she could wrestle Big Show right that second.

"I should have known," Chris chuckled. "So what was going on?"

"I was just taking care of business," Stephanie shrugged carelessly. "If Vickie wants to be in Dolph's corner, then I'm in yours, not literally though, I've got a show to run and everything…"

He walked over and kissed her, "Thanks for being my big, tough bodyguard."

"You're welcome, I'm addicted to you, sweetie," she told him.

"So that's going to be our thing now?" he asked.

"It would seem so."

Later on that evening, after Hunter had finally shown up and signed the contract, Britt was walking down the hallway when she was confronted by Brock Lesnar. "Hey," he said, folding his arms in front of him and staring her down.

"Hello," she replied politely before moving to get around him, but he stepped in front of her, blocking her way. "Did you need something?"

"You're really pretty," he told her bluntly. "What the hell are you doing dating a guy like Hunter?"

"What I do or whom I date is certainly no concern of yours," Britt told the man towering above her. He was probably three to four times as large as her and completely blocking her path. She didn't get a total sense of unease, but she didn't want to be standing there in front of him right now.

"I was just wondering, that's all," he shrugged. "I mean, he's not even that great. He has to get Stephanie McMahon to fight his battles for him."

"You were talking about her kids, if you expected her to sit idly by and deal with that, you obviously don't know her."

"You're feisty, I like that, maybe I can see what Hunter saw in you, well, beyond the looks."

"Thank you, now please move," she said, trying to get around him again and stopping her once again. "Please move now."

"Nah, I like it here."

"She told you to move," Hunter stepped into the conversation. "Don't make me move you for her."

"Oh, well, well, well, look who it is," Brock said. "You could see we're talking and yet you interrupt."

"Leave her alone," Hunter stepped protectively in front of Britt. "There's nobody here to stop us now."

"No, I guess there isn't," Brock said, "but I'll just leave you two lovebirds alone, see you later."

Brock walked away as Hunter turned to Britt. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, he was just acting like a huge jerk," Britt said, "You're here."

"I got delayed, you know how it goes," Hunter shrugged.

"How are you?"

"I'm good, you?" Hunter asked.

"Good," even though both of them didn't necessarily feel very good at the moment. "Thanks again for that, I'm not sure even with my ninja skills as you put it, I would have been able to move that lump of a man."

Hunter chuckled, "I'd have liked to see you try though."

"Oh, I'm sure you would."

"Hunter!" A production assistant came running towards him.

"What's going on?"

"It's Shawn!" the man panted. "Brock, Heyman, they set him up! He's missing!"

Britt started pushing him towards where the production guy had just run from. "Go!"

It was then Hunter realized he'd been set up.

Brock was going to pay.


	383. Big One, SummerSlam, August 19, 2012

A/N: Thanks for the reviews! So this is SmackDown from last week and the first part of SummerSlam. The chapter just seemed to fit with this ending, and I know there's other parts of the PPV I want to cover, so that'll just be next week with the double Raw. I'm totally going to miss Jericho for however long he's gone, but as usual, this story is just going to keep chugging along, wish me luck! Hope you enjoy the chapter, it's pretty Jericho family centric because I wanted it that way. ;)

* * *

Kensington squealed in surprise as Chris caught her from behind. She giggled as Chris pretended to chomp on her tummy. She tried to squirm away from him, but he wasn't relenting. Her daddy was the best daddy in the whole, entire world and she loved him so much. When he stopped trying to eat her tummy, she hugged him tightly around the neck. He hugged her back, just holding her as they walked down the hallway. Chris wanted a few moments with his littlest girl before she turned two. He knew it was still days away, but with his tour starting up soon, he wasn't going to get a lot of moments with just his little girl.

They were filming SmackDown on Tuesday night this week, which actually worked out perfectly for Chris. The actual reason for the switch was because of SummerSlam being on Sunday. SummerSlam, being the 2nd biggest show of the year, was starting to gain a kind of WrestleMania like prominence, so there were events for the wrestlers and divas to attend. The Uproar tour started for Fozzy on Friday so Chris would be unable to attend most of the events, but he would definitely be there for Sunday.

"Your tummy is so yummy," he growled in a scary voice.

"You not eat!" Kensington flailed her arms as she laughed.

"What, I want to eat your tummy, yes I do," he told her, giving her a kiss on the top of the head as she clung to him. Sometimes, because of Flynn's overbearing and boisterous personality, Kensington got lost in the shuffle a little bit. She was quieter (anyone was quieter than Flynn though) and she usually relegated herself to whatever Flynn was doing (Flynn kind of bossed her around), but Chris loved this little girl with every fiber of his being.

"No, don't!" Kensington implored of him, not wanting her daddy to try and eat her tummy again. Instead, she clung to him even harder.

"Are you going to be two next week?" Chris asked her.

"Uh huh," Kensington held up two of her fingers and Chris kissed them. "I be two, Daddy."

"I can't believe you're going to be so _old_," he told his youngest, and he really couldn't believe it. Kensington was his baby, but now his baby was getting older and could talk and walk, and she was her own person, and it always was kind of sad when his kids started to lose that baby about them. He was very glad not to have to deal with any diapers (Kensington was really starting to potty train), but still, there was something about holding a baby.

"No," Kensington shook her head.

"You're still my baby then?"

"Mmhmm," she nodded with a cute smile. Kensington wasn't the perfect blend of him and Stephanie, but she was definitely more of a blend than either Sawyer or Flynn. Sawyer was his spitting image, and Flynn was definitely Stephanie's daughter with a few little touches of Chris here and there. But Kensington, Kensington was kind of a mixture of both of them, though Chris's features were more prominent. Kensington was also the only one who didn't have the McMchon chin dimple. But her hair was darker than Flynn's, and her eyes were decidedly Chris's.

"Oh, well, I'm glad for that then," Chris told her. "Do you think you want to go back to the madhouse with Mommy and your brother and sister?"

"Mmm, no, stay," she said, enjoying the time with her father.

"Okay, if that's what you want," Chris said, shrugging as he plunked himself down on a crate and leaned against the wall behind it. He cradled Kensington in his arms and she snuggled against his chest. They sat there quietly, letting everyone pass them by, like they were invisible. He rested his cheek against the top of her head. Her hair smelled like baby shampoo. He couldn't believe he was going to spend so much time away from her, but at least he was going to be there for her birthday.

They had no gig next Thursday, the day of her birthday party, and the only place he wanted to be was with his daughter. He'd never missed one of his kids' birthdays, and he never planned to. Whatever he was doing, wherever he was, there was nothing that could keep him from his children on their birthdays. They were his world, and all the other stuff dropped away when they were involved. Her actual birthday, the 25th, he did have a gig though. Luckily, it was in the afternoon, so the rest of the day would be devoted to his daughter. Since the tour was in New York, Stephanie and the kids were coming up to watch the show, then they were going to Vince and Linda's for a birthday dinner for Kensington. After that though, there was a lot of touring, and sometimes he really thought he overbooked himself, but if he wanted Fozzy to get the recognition he believed they deserved, they had to go out there and make a name for themselves.

Stephanie and the rest of the band wives were extremely forgiving to their tough schedule. Stephanie had grown up in a business where travel and being away from home was prevalent so she understood more than anyone what it was like to have to be everywhere but home. Still, with Sawyer going back to school at the end of the month and Flynn going back to preschool, he really kind of should be home. But Stephanie had told him she could handle things while he was on tour and if anyone could, it was her. Besides, he had his parent's help.

"Hey, man."

Chris looked up and saw Sheamus, "Hey, what's up?"

"Nothing," Sheamus shrugged, speaking in his thick brogue. "Where's the other little miss?"

"Probably throwing your action figure off the top of a ladder," Chris joked. "She's with Stephanie. I just wanted some time with Kensington."

"I don't blame ya, hey there short stuff," Sheamus told Kensington, who didn't say anything, but smiled at him. She knew who Sheamus was because he was friends with Flynn, and whoever was friends with Flynn was friends with her, that's what her sister said.

"Wow, she really isn't very much like her sister, is she?"

"Actually, she could be, but it might be a case of Flynn just being louder all the time so she's relegated herself to being quieter," Chris told him, and he wasn't entirely joking. Everyone seemed kind of dim next to the brightness that was Flynn Jericho. She got every bit of her parent's in that department. "Tough going about your match though. I mean, It's not like Del Rio wasn't asking for it when you took his car. He's just a jerk about it, Stephanie actually tried to talk to Booker about it, you know, since she's here tonight and everything, but he was pretty firm about the entire thing."

"I'll get it back. There's no way I'm giving up a chance to beat that man into a pulp," Sheamus admitted. "I just have to think of a way to get the match back. I ain't worried about losing to that guy."

"I wouldn't either, he's not very good," Chris admitted. "Hey, maybe I can get the title match, it would be fun to wrestle against you, even though it means Flynn would have to root against you."

"You bring it, Jericho, I'd like to see you try," Sheamus said good-naturedly. "I'm going to try and talk to Booker again, try to get the match back again."

"How are you though, like health-wise, I mean, what happened wasn't pretty. Flynn actually freaked out a little bit. She does that with people she likes. She gets worried and then she gets angry. She was actually yelling at the TV when she saw it before telling Stephanie she needed to do something about this."

"Okay, that definitely sounds like something the little miss would do. I heard about her standing up to Vickie last night. Actually, I think everyone heard about it because not many people can stand Vickie."

"My daughter included," Chris said, "she really did do that though, or so Stephanie says. Flynn is like that."

"Oh, I can tell," Sheamus said. "Vickie deserves it though. I hate to think what she might do if you lost on Sunday."

"Hopefully it won't come to that. So really, are you okay to actually wrestle if the match is put back on?"

"Hell yeah, what do you think I am? I don't just lie down and take it when I'm injured, maybe that's a little stupid, but I'm a fighter, what I want to do is go out there and fight. It kind of seems cheap to win because I'm injured."

"I know what you mean, believe me."

"Oh what do you know, you ain't been injured," Sheamus kidded.

"Hey, I'll have you know I have been, just not as bad as some guys around here."

"Daddy, see Sawa."

"Okay, you got it, Kensy-bug," Chris kissed the top of her head. "Good luck tonight, man."

"Thanks, you too with whatever you plan to do here, wait, what the hell are you doing here?" Sheamus asked.

"Figured I'd bug Dolph somehow, but now I'm thinking something else," Chris shrugged. "See you later."

"Bye."

"Daddy, Sawa, pease," Kensington asked again.

"Yes, yes, I heard you the first time," Chris told her. He got off the crate and started walking back towards Stephanie's office. "Why do you want to see Sawyer so badly? Do you miss him?"

"Uh huh," she nodded with a sad pout.

"Oh, so there's a Sawyer mood coming on then," Chris said. "Do you love Sawyer?"

"Love lots," Kensington confirmed for him. Chris was convinced that Sawyer was Flynn and Kensington's hero. While Flynn loved Chris dearly and looked up to him in every way. The way Flynn looked at Sawyer was with a look of pure adoration, like Sawyer could do no wrong in the entire universe, and to Flynn and Kensington, that was probably what they wholeheartedly believed.

"He loves you lots too," Chris told her.

They arrived back at Stephanie's office and Chris put Kensington down. She immediately ran over to Sawyer, who was sitting on the couch, and lifted herself up. She got about halfway before she got stuck, but Sawyer grabbed her hand and pulled up. She instantly cuddled into his arms, and Sawyer began to read to her as Chris went over to Stephanie, who had Flynn in her lap.

"I'm helping Mommy," Flynn announced. "We're making everything. I working now."

"Wow, you got her on the payroll."

"I pay her in cookies, it's a good deal," Stephanie said as Flynn pointed to something. "That's what you want to have?"

"Uh huh," Flynn said. "You should do it there."

"Okay, well, we'll put that on the venue list and see what we can have done," Stephanie kissed Flynn's temple. She looked up at Chris and smirked, "So…you said it wasn't going to look as bad in the morning light."

"What?" he asked, wondering what she was talking about before her eyes lowered to the hickey on his neck. He chuckled and pressed his hand against the mark against his throat. Stephanie had gotten a little bit…possessive last night for some reason (he really hadn't a clue, maybe because she wanted to make sure the women coming to see Fozzy knew he was taken?) and he'd ended up with a hickey on his neck. "Oh, you mean this little old thing that Eve gave me last night?"

"Not funny, Jericho."

"What did Eve do?" Flynn asked.

"And that's why you shouldn't be funny," Stephanie pointed towards their daughter. Flynn tilted her head back to see what her mother was doing, but Stephanie quickly pretended like she wasn't doing anything and made a funny face instead. Flynn just giggled and shook her head at her mother's antics. She could always count on a funny face from her mommy. She felt her mother start to brush her hand over her hair, smoothing it down even though it was in a ponytail.

"Is it that bad?" he asked.

"You can notice it," she told him. "Great, now everyone is going to know what we were doing last night, and that's awkward."

"I think they know we're having s-e-x."

"What is that?" Flynn asked.

"Nothing," Chris told her, "but I'm pretty sure people have gleaned onto that little factoid, given that we've had three children, don't you think?"

"Either way, I don't want them knowing we did it _last night_," Stephanie pouted. "Can I use some makeup to cover it up?"

"Oh yeah, then I have a match or something and it sweats right off and all of a sudden, makeup gets all over the place and I'm left standing there explaining that my wife gave me a hickey because we're 15."

"What's a hickey?" Flynn asked now.

"Stop eavesdropping," Chris told her.

"What is it?" Flynn wanted to know what it was.

"It's when someone leaves a mark on you after kissing you kind of," Chris told her, knowing she'd probably forget soon.

"Weird," Flynn said before going back to looking over Stephanie's paperwork (even though Flynn could read some words, this was beyond her actual capabilities).

"I'll just say that I got it from my match last night, problem solved."

"Okay," she figured that if anyone thought it was that, oh well, she was married, she was allowed to have her lips, tongue, and teeth anywhere they wanted to be.

"So, I've been thinking," Chris told her, "about tonight, I mean. I was going to wait for Dolph to show up and then egg him on a little, you know, psych him out for our match, get him out of his game, especially after what he did to me on Monday."

"Yeah, what about it? Did you find out what he was going to do?"

"No, but I think I might do something else," Chris said, "I was just talking to Sheamus, and we were talking about his canceled match and he—"

"Daddy, you saw Sames without me?" Flynn was stricken. How could her daddy go see her friend without her there? She was friends with Sheamus and she wanted to talk to him and it wasn't fair!

"It was only for a little while and we just ran into him, Flutterby," Chris explained. "I will take you to see him later if that's what you really want, okay?"

"Good," Flyn was appeased now. "You can talk now."

"Thank you," Chris said, rolling his eyes a little at Stephanie. "Anyways, since Del Rio and Sheamus isn't happening, what if Sheamus and Jericho did?"

"What?" Stephanie's eyes narrowed. "But you already have a match for SummerSlam. You're already signed off to fight Dolph on Sunday, but now you want to go after the World Title? I don't think we can swing that."

"Why can't I do both?"

"Two matches?" Stephanie asked him incredulously. "After you've been on tour and you're traveling and all of that, you want to have two matches on Sunday? Chris, I love you, I would _love_ to have you be the World Champion, you know this, but I really don't want you to stretch yourself so thin. Besides, you've said that you're going to take a step back from wrestling. What if you did win the championship, what are you going to do then?"

"I just want to see if I can," he explained to her. "I just want to know that I can win it."

"Is this about winning the big one because we both know you've done that multiple times over. Hell, I helped you with the first one, inadvertent though it was, but I was there that night you got over that hump. I was sitting in the corner and you were boasting in front of me."

"You threw a chair into the ring," Flynn said matter-of-factly and Stephanie gestured towards their daughter because she was right.

"She's right."

"It's not about that, Steph, I just want the challenge. I don't need your permission for this."

She relented because he was right. "You're right, you don't…so I guess you just do what you want to do."

When the time was appropriate, Chris went out and walked down the ramp. He knew he didn't have Stephanie's support with this, but then, he didn't _need_ Stephanie's permission to do things. He was a grown man and could make his own decisions. He actually thought it would be kind of cool if he did get a match against Sheamus and then beat him (though it would pain Flynn for a short while) then bring the belt on tour with him. He could just imagine himself holding it up as he sang. That would actually be pretty cool now that he thought about it.

Another great part of interrupting was seeing how mad Alberto Del Rio got over seeing him. He'd never really interacted with the man, but he was the kind of cocky that bugged Chris. There was something to be said for being cocky and backing it up, but Del Rio was the kind of cocky who didn't back it up, and then insisted on being completely ostentatious with it. He didn't blame Sheamus for taking the car, Del Rio deserved a little bit of panic. Maybe Chris could incite that in him right now.

He nodded to Booker surreptitiously, just a small one to acknowledge their past together. There was a time when the man had actually defended Stephanie against him. Oh how the times had changed. But that wasn't what this was about. This was about proving that he could still win "the big one." If Dolph wanted to run his mouth constantly, telling everyone and their mother that he was incapable of winning any big matches, he wanted to show him, and the world if they wanted, that he was more than capable.

The thing that worked in Chris's favor, the thing that had _always_ worked in Chris's favor was that he never got seriously injured. Unlike a lot of guys his age, he wasn't as beat up. Sure, there were mornings where he woke up incredibly sore and barely able to move, he wasn't literally made of Teflon, but he figured he had it a lot better than some other wrestlers around his age. He knew that Hunter's quads left him hobbling some days, and he never had anything like that. In fact, he was pretty spry compared to guys younger than he was.

He could use this to his advantage. He could wrestler probably for another ten years (not that he would!), but he could certainly win the big one right now. In fact, he was going to win the big one tonight against Del Rio, then on Sunday against Dolph, then finally against Sheamus. This was his plan, Booker just had to give it to him. First though, he had to deal with Alberto at this very moment. The other man tried to speak in Spanish to him, but obviously didn't realize that Chris could speak Spanish well enough that he could understand what Del Rio was calling him, which wasn't very nice. Chris countered with something of his own, giving everyone in the audience a little Spanish lesson by saying that Del Rio's breath smelled like dog poop. He could almost hear his children's laughter backstage.

Del Rio was of course incensed, which gave Booker even more reason to make a match for them tonight. He wasn't stupid either, he knew who buttered his bread so to speak. He knew that Chris was Stephanie's husband, even if Chris didn't have to explicitly spell it out. Even when Chris wasn't using his power, it was still there. It didn't change the fact that Stephanie was his wife and also everyone's boss. So even when he wasn't using the power, it still lingered around him like a fog.

No matter though when he got what he wanted.

"Daddy, are you really going to go after the title?" Sawyer asked as Chris got ready for his match, pulling his jacket out of its bag.

"Well, I kind of hope I can," Chris told him as he mussed his hair up a little. He was going for kind of Mohawk tousled look nowadays. He thought it looked very cool, and was the perfect look for his tour.

"We already know you can win it though," Sawyer told him.

"Yeah, but it's still cool."

"He should win it, Sawa," Flynn interrupted. "Daddy should always win, right, Daddy?"

"Well, I can't _always_ win, but I always try to win."

"But you should win because you're the best in the world, and Punk too though because I like him too, and Sames doesn't say it, but I think he's good too," Flynn said. "I don't know much about Del Rio though, but I still think you can beat him."

"I'm going to beat him."

"Are you still insisting that you're going to have a match?" Stephanie asked as she came in with Kensington.

"Did you come in here just to cause another scene?" Chris wondered.

"No, I'm in here because I came to get the kids so we could go watch near the gorilla," Stephanie said, "I figured you wouldn't want to leave them here by themselves."

"You know, there was a time when you wouldn't have cared if I wanted two matches, actually, you would have encouraged it."

"Yes, I would have, if you weren't already doing so much, not to mention, you haven't told me you plan to _stay_, so I've been working on the assumption that you're leaving after SummerSlam, so if you were to win tonight, then go on to win the title, what would that even mean?"

"I'm not sure."

"And that's where I have a problem, not to mention that you're taxing yourself wanting two matches."

"I've done it before, and I came out of that time the champion."

"Uh, oh…let me remember that," Stephanie tapped her chin with the hand that wasn't holding Kensington. "Oh yes, I remember, you were very badly injured, hobbled yourself to the ring, got a finishing move done on you, rolled out of the ring wherein you stayed until you saw a good opportunity and then won, am I remembering correctly?"

"The match against Dolph wouldn't be as bad, I can beat him."

"Oh, I know, but then you'd go right to Sheamus."

"What about King of the Ring?"

"Chris, you never made it that far in King of the Ring, okay," Stephanie told him. "You either got distracted or just plain beat."

"Okay, what about the times I've done a match and then the Royal Rumble?"

"The only time I can recall you doing that was in 2000, and you barely lasted in that Rumble match."

"Why couldn't you just be some normal chick off the street?" he asked. "Someone who couldn't recite matches off the top of their head, I mean, who does that?"

"Someone who's been around."

"Around the block maybe," Chris told her. Stephanie raised an eyebrow at him. Sawyer, Flynn, and Kensington were just watching their parents like this was a tennis match, their heads going back and forth accordingly. "I mean, not around the block, just…you're so beautiful, you know that."

"That's what I thought," she told him. "Come on, kids, we can go watch Daddy."

"He's right here," Flynn pointed at Chris.

"I mean during his match," Stephanie said, leading them out. "Good luck, okay?"

"Okay," he said, puckering up his lips. Stephanie leaned in and attempted to kiss him, but Kensington, thinking it was her turn to kiss Chris got there first and gave him a kiss. Chris laughed and looked at his youngest child. "Thank you, Kensy-bug, but I was hoping to get one from Mommy too."

"Oh," Kensington said, pushing Chris's head towards Stephanie then. Chris gave her a kiss.

"Thank you for not locking me in here so I couldn't go out there."

"If I could have found a key…"

She lead the kids out of the room and Chris started doing some warm-ups to loosen up. He wanted to be fresh, especially since he'd had Raw the night before and it wasn't like he'd had a lot of rest. When he was done with that, and when the time was running short, he knew he'd have to get to the stage and fast. He started walking briskly down the hallway, oblivious to what was coming.

Oblivious to the briefcase that was about to hit him.

He didn't even see it coming until it was already hitting him, until he was down on the ground getting beat up by Dolph Ziggler. He was so disoriented, he didn't have time to collect himself and fight back, instead falling into a wall as Dolph continued his assault. The beating was finally interrupted when Booker showed up, seemingly out of nowhere, and ceased Dolph's attack on him. Chris coughed a couple times, his ribs burning under his skin where Dolph had kicked at him.

"Chris!" came her voice, always her voice piercing through the pain. He looked at her, trying unconvincingly to project himself as fine. She pushed Booker out of the way and knelt down beside him. "Oh my God, are you okay?"

"I'm fine," he winced just speaking.

"Bullshit," she told him, pressing her hands around his abdomen. "You've probably bruised or even cracked some ribs!"

"I'm fine," he insisted, trying to get up, but Stephanie kept him down by putting her hand on his shoulder.

"Stop being stubborn," she told him, her voice firm, like when she was admonishing one of the kids. Wait, the kids…

"Where are the kids?" he asked.

"Don't worry about them, Sheamus has them," Stephanie said, again running her hand over his abdomen. He wouldn't say it made the pain go away, but her touch always had a calming effect on him. "We have to get you to the trainer."

"No, I have a match."

"Are you kidding me?" Stephanie scoffed. "There's _no_ way I'm sending you out there for a match. Not a chance in hell, Jericho. You're going to the trainer's and you're going right now."

"I have a match," he repeated himself, stronger this time.

"No," she told him, "I'm taking a stance right now, you are banned from going out there, I'm telling you this as your boss. If you disobey me, I will suspend you again.'

"Stephanie, please," Chris told her, standing up and cringing while he did so. "You can't do that and we both know it."

"You can't seriously want to go out there," Stephanie told him.

"I can, and I will," Chris said. He gave her a short kiss and started walking.

Stephanie watched him walk a few steps and growled in frustration. One of the referees who'd tried to assist Chris put his hand on her arm as if to talk to her, but she shoved it off and started off towards her husband. She hated this man sometimes. Sometimes he was still that stupid, stubborn man she'd despised. She caught up with him easily and ducked underneath his arm.

"I'm going out there," he told her.

"I know you are because you are incredibly stupid in every way possible, and maybe that knock you just took to the head knocked a few _hundred_ screws loose, but I can't let you just hobble out there alone, so I'm helping."

"I love you," he told her simply.

"Save it for someone who wants it right now," Stephanie told him with a scowl.

"I super love you."

"Stop it," she told him as they neared the entrance to the stage.

"I super duper love you."

Stephanie had to suppress a giggle, "I'm mad at you, I will reserve the right to be mad at you until I see fit."

"I understand your terms, and I accept them."

"Good," she said as they finally arrived.

"Great, now Del Rio is talking crap," Chris said.

"Daddy, are you okay?" Sawyer asked, rushing over to Chris.

"I'm fine, thanks for watching them, Sheamus."

"It's not a problem," Sheamus said, giving him the once over. "I like them so it's all good in my book. You sure you're okay to go out there though?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Chris said unconvincingly because he was grabbing his middle.

Stephanie sighed and let him go to go cue up his music. He gave her a smile before disappearing behind the curtain and out into the arena as his music hit. He could see Del Rio was shocked to see him. He had the element of surprise at least. He slowly made his way towards the ring, fully intending to fight this man and get what was his.

The first part of the match was just him trying to survive the match. He was still incredibly sore, and he really didn't know if Dolph had done any damage to his ribs. He didn't care though as he fought to stave off defeat. Eventually, the adrenaline kicked in and he was able to get in some offense against Del Rio. He could still feel the pain, oh how he could feel the pain, but it was dulled by thinking about what move to do next, how to counter Del Rio, simple things like that.

Eventually though, Dolph just couldn't keep away. He ambushed him again, which led to Del Rio winning, which led to him being attacked _again._ Tonight was just not his night and he started to think about Stephanie's words and how maybe, just maybe he should have listened to her when she spoke.

"Daddy!" Flynn said. "He's losing and Dolph is so mean!"

"I know, it's okay, Daddy will be fine," Stephanie said, brushing Flynn's hair back as her lip quivered. Stephanie bent down and kissed the crown of Flynn's head. "Daddy is tough, you know that."

"But Mommy, there's two of them and only one of him," Sawyer pointed out.

"I think it's time to even the odds," Sheamus leaned in conspiratorially. He stood up, gave Stephanie a wink, and then rushed out there to help Chris.

"Mommy, Sames is gonna help Daddy!" Flynn's spirits instantly perked up. "He's gonna help!"

"I know," Stephanie said, suddenly finding that man extremely charming. "He's a good guy, huh?"

"He's the best!"

Sheamus couldn't stand to see Chris's kids upset. Hell, he really couldn't stand to see any kids upset. The WWE really drilled it into your head that the children were the next generation of fans, and they should be treated as such. Not that he would have hated them otherwise, but the message was there, and Sheamus believed in it. Flynn was his friend, and he couldn't stand to see her that upset.

He ran to the ring and immediately went for Del Rio. Dolph quickly made his way out of danger as Sheamus took out the man he was supposed to face at SummerSlam. Del Rio, after being pulverized by Sheamus, ran out of the ring and over the barrier. Sheamus almost followed him, but thought better of it as he climbed back in the ring to check on Chris.

"You okay, man?" Sheamus asked him.

"Yeah, thanks," Chris said, "the kids?"

"They're good, they're good," Sheamus nodded.

"Thanks, man, I owe you one."

"Nah, you really don't."

One thing to remedy a humiliating loss and attack was to go on tour with your band. The extra few days gave Chris the opportunity to clear his head before his match on Sunday. Plus, being with his band and singing in front of people was such a passion that it took his mind off of things, helped him relax. He missed his family, but he would see them soon, and it was nice to be in a non-wrestling environment. He started to think about maybe taking another short hiatus from the ring, at least until the tour was over. He would come back refreshed and ready for action.

His phone buzzed in his pocket and he pulled it out to look at it.

_I knew people would know it was a hickey!_

Chris chuckled at his wife's text. He immediately texted her back.

_I said it was from my match, no harm, no foul._

_Oh yeah, like anyone believes that!_

_Well, if they don't, then they know how much of a tiger you are in bed._

_Shut up, how's the tour?_

_Going great, miss you though, but it's amazing just being surrounded by all these music guys._

_I bet, but remember, you have a match on Sunday._

_You would never let me forget._

_Good luck tonight, I know you're going to kill it onstage. _

_Thanks!_

_Are you going to play She's My Addiction?_

…_No_

_Why not, are you ashamed of me?! Or am I not your addiction anymore!?_

_No and no, I love you, gotta go! I'll call the kids later!_

_Love you._

The first thing that happened to Chris when he got back to work was Stephanie telling him, "Your match is first on the card."

"What?"

"I figured you'd want to get it over with, beat down Dolph, then cool down. I didn't want you sitting around when your ribs are still hurt and you were probably jumping around on stage while singing, so I scheduled you first."

"Thanks," Chris said as he looked around. "Um…"

"Catering with my mom," Stephanie explained. "She and my dad are here for the show, even though my mom said she should be campaigning, but she just couldn't resist the chance to see the kids."

"Actually, I'm kind of glad they aren't here because I wanted to talk to you, can we sit?" he asked, gesturing towards the couch. Stephanie narrowed her eyes at him. "Not everything is a plot against you, baby."

"Okay," she said slowly as she sat down. "What is this about? Oh no, don't tell me you're going to try and go for the briefcase and then like…I don't know, go win the World Title in another double match situation? I thought you said that doing the double match thing was probably not in your best interest."

"No, it's not that," he bit his lip as he tried not to laugh. He grabbed Stephanie's hand and kissed her knuckles. Now she was even more suspicious. She glared at him. "I didn't do anything wrong. If I did something wrong, I'd be coming in here crawling on my knees begging for forgiveness."

"Good to know for future reference, so what is it?"

"I think I'm actually going to take the time off," Chris told her. "I know I said I wasn't really decided, but when I was away, I was really able to focus on the music, and it just felt nice to have one thing to focus on. With the album and all of that, I think I _have_ been taking on too much. Plus, you know I do have to start on my third book and this will give me time. This isn't to say I'm not going to be here, I'm still the Executive VP of Talent Relations, I will still take that on, and wild horses would have to drag me away from you and the kids, but—"

"Chris, it's okay, I get it."

"Are you sure?" he asked. "I don't want you to be angry with me."

"Chris, you know I'm proud of you, I would never begrudge you from doing your own thing. We're in a marriage, I'm not your dictator."

"Wait, you're not?" he joked.

"Well, only when you want me to be," she told him, "I want you to enjoy your tour without the worry of what's going on here. If you want to be relieved of your executive duties, I could swing that too."

"No, I'm not completely going anywhere," he told her, "but thanks for understanding. I hate feeling like I'm putting you in a lurch."

"You're not putting me in a lurch," Stephanie told him. "You're doing what you love. I love you enough, and I care about your well-being enough that I want you to be happy."

"I'm happy here, I just don't want to take on too much, like you said."

"Then it's fine, we're fine," she told him, leaning across the sparse amount of space between them so she could kiss him softly. "You're going to be great on your tours, and everyone is going to be so blown away by hearing the new material live, even if you aren't going to play She's My Addiction."

"I'll give you your own private concert," he said, nipping at her bottom lip before kissing her again. He wrapped his arms around her and started to bend her over the couch, hovering over her. "I missed you, I can't stand to be away from you for that long, that's why this tour is going to be torture."

"You'll live," Stephanie held him by the cheeks. "We'll come visit, you'll come visit…"

"You make it sound like we're divorced," he laughed against her lips.

"Mmm, that would be terrible."

The door suddenly opened and Linda walked in, then immediately apologized, "Oh my God, I'm so sorry, I didn't realize Chris was here."

"It's okay, Mom," Stephanie said, gently pushing Chris off her. "We weren't really doing anything."

"Are you sure?" Linda asked skeptically.

"I'm sure, I have to work and Chris has a match," Stephanie answered as Chris sat up. The kids came running from around Linda and straight into Chris's awaiting arms. He scooped them all up into a hug, doling out kisses where necessary.

"Daddy, are you going to win tonight like you said?" Flynn asked.

"You bet I am," Chris told her.

"Are you _really_?" Sawyer asked. "Because you haven't really won anything in a while."

"Well this time, I am definitely going to win. You guys are going to get a great match from me, and I will win, and I'll dedicate the match to each of you," he made a face, making them laugh.

"Win, Daddy, you!" Kensington told him.

"I am going to, I promise you, this time, I'm definitely going to win, I'm not going to let anything stop me, okay?" Chris told them, looking all of them straight in the eyes. "I'm going to win for you guys. But before I do, I just want to tell you something very important."

"Is it that you love us?" Sawyer asked. "Because we already know that. You tell us all the time."

"So I tell you I love you too much?" he asked incredulously.

"No, but we know," Sawyer told him.

"I know," Flynn said.

"Me too!" Kensington exclaimed, wanting in on the action.

"No, it's not that, even though I do love you. I just wanted you to know that I'm going to not wrestle for a while. I'm going to tour with Fozzy so I'm not going to wrestle, is that okay with you guys?"

"It's okay," Sawyer said, but it wasn't Sawyer Chris was worried about. He looked at his eldest daughter, gauging her reaction. She frowned a little bit, the skin between her eyebrows crinkling slightly. Her hair was disheveled as usual, falling in her face at places.

"You're gonna go sing?"

"Yeah, I am, is that bad?"

"Um, yes," she nodded morosely, "Daddy, you're a wrestler."

"I know, but I'm other things too, and I like those other things. I promise it's not the end, okay?"

"You promise, promise?" Flynn asked.

"I don't break my promises to you, Flutterby, you know this," he cupped her face in his hands. "You know I would never do that to you."

"Okay," Flynn relented. "Then you _have_ to win tonight, Daddy, you just gotta."

"That was the plan."

Having the first match on the card was something of a throwback for Chris. He hadn't really been in this spot in a while. His ribs were taped, and he was ready though. He wanted to get this over with and wanted to keep his word to his children. He could feel it though, feel it in his bones that he was going to win. Nothing was going to stop him tonight. He was still riding the Fozzy wave, and he wasn't going to let anything distract or deter him. Tonight was the night for wrestling.

Dolph actually tried to delay the match a little at the start, but Chris was having none of that. _He_ was the one still injured, and Dolph was the one trying to stall. Uh-uh, it didn't work that way. Chris started off strong, working over Ziggler. The crowd was really getting behind him, but he could hear the Dolph chants as well. Once this kid got over his cockiness and dumped that harpy, Vickie, he would probably do pretty well for himself.

Chris actually had the match in hand for a while until Dolph blocked a suplex attempt and instead dropped Chris rib first right over his knee. Chris gasped at the pain, but had to fight through it. He was not going to lose again. He wasn't going to have his son ask him again if he was ever going to win. He wasn't going to allow this to happen to him on the last big show he'd have for a while. He kicked out of Dolph's pin attempt, but couldn't get the upper-hand just yet.

The crowd kept spurring him on and he used that as motivation to get back into this. He fought back, eventually getting Dolph over the top rope. He tried to go for the crossbody, but it was a massive failure as he landed on the floor outside of the ring. Again, his ribs were taking a battering, but he had to keep going. Dolph rolled him into the ring and tried for another pin, but Chris managed to kick out of it. He still had fight left in him.

Dolph gave him a splash and another two count as Vickie was yelling, but then again, when wasn't Vickie yelling? He really didn't know how Dolph did it. If Stephanie yelled at him like that incessantly, he might have to rethink his decision to be with her. Vickie was 50 times worse than Stephanie had ever been. Dolph then got a neckbreaker and Chris could hear him saying something, but it just wasn't registering in his brain. It was acting more like white noise, and Dolph again tried for the pin, but again Chris got his shoulder up just before the end came.

Chris had to start fighting back and he did, trading shots with Dolph, but that wasn't going to win him a match. It was like in football, if you were down, you couldn't match the other team score for score, you had to prevail, you had to fight and suppress. Chris tried for a roll-up, but that didn't work, and he didn't really expect it to, but he wanted to catch Dolph off his guard. Dolph came right back with a clothesline, but Chris wasn't going to let Dolph get the upper-hand for good this time.

Chris hit Dolph with an enziguri, but Dolph went for the sleeper hold. Chris was great at counters though, and was able to break out of it to get in some more offense against Dolph. It was really starting to go back and forth, but then Chris was able to go for the Lionsault. Stephanie would hate him later because Dolph just managed to get his knees up, and Stephanie hated that move, and especially hated when this exact scenario played out. Dolph was sure he had the win after he hit the Zig Zag, but Chris managed to kick out of it again, which only angered the other man.

Chris knew he had Dolph right where he wanted him. He was angry, he was distracted. Chris took advantage of the momentary lapse and hit the Codebreaker on Dolph. Unfortunately, Dolph rolled out of the ring and onto the floor, eluding the pin. The referee began the familiar countdown as Chris pushed Dolph back into the ring. Vickie tried to grab onto Chris's leg, which gave Dolph some time to recover. Dolph tried once more for the pin, but Chris wanted to end this and end this now.

So he locked Dolph into the Walls of Jericho, putting some added pressure, almost making it a Lionsault. Then it was done, over, finished as Dolph tapped out. Chris didn't immediately let go, giving Dolph a little taste of his own medicine. The referee nearly had to pull him off, but Chris let him go before it got to that point. He could hear Vickie nearly crying and he laughed inwardly. Chris postured around the ring a bit, playing up to the crowd who had been so behind him before he slowly made his way backstage.

"You did it!" Sawyer exclaimed as soon as he saw him, running up to Chris while jumping up and down. "Daddy, you really did, you won!"

"He tapped out!" Flynn added. "Daddy, he tapped out to the Walls!"

"I thought you'd like that," Chris told her, giving her a luminous smile, which she readily matched with one of her own.

"You were right, Daddy, you said you were going to win and you were right."

"I told you," he said.

"You were great," Stephanie came up with Kensington, who was busy sipping on a juice box.

"Daddy, I like," Kensington told him.

"Thanks," Chris said, "now there's just one thing left to do."

"What's that?" Stephanie asked.

"Figure out how I'm going to leave."


	384. Hello, Goodbye, August 20, 2012

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and such. I know I said this would be a double Raw chapter, but due to time constraints, and because of Chris's departure, I just left it as last week's Raw and this week and next week will be a double chapter. It'll probably be easier that way since Chris is no longer on the show, but thanks for sticking with me, hope you enjoy! :)

* * *

"Hey there, champ, congratulations on retaining _again_."

Punk looked up smugly. "What can I say? Nobody can match up to me. So what's up?"

"I'm just assuming that you'd want some time to speak on the show since you've won," Britt told him. "I was talking with Stephanie about the schedule tomorrow, she hasn't gone over it with AJ yet, and we figured that you'd want some time, we just wanted to confirm it so we can pencil it in."

"Yeah, sure, let me guess, I'll have some segment in the middle of the show, buried somewhere in there."

"Actually, no, I think I may be able to swing it so you can have…oh, I don't know, the main event?" Britt asked him, and he raised his eyebrow. "You forget that I do have _some_ pull around here, Punk. I've been hearing what you've been saying, even if you think nobody back here is listening. I can lobby for you to get the main spot on the show, even the run-off."

"But AJ…"

"AJ, at the end of the day, is, like the rest of us, under Stephanie's thumb," Britt laughed, "she's the boss after all, and you know how Stephanie is, she embraces that with everything inside of her."

"You don't even have to know her personally to know that," Punk laughed, "is she going to be taking time off to go with Chris on his tour this time around like she did that other time when he had his tour in Europe?"

"No, she's not," Britt answered. "Since the tour is in the US, Chris does have some off days so it won't be too hard for them to see him every once in a while. With Sawyer starting up school next week, they didn't want to tax themselves with traveling so much."

"Oh, bummer, I know they hate to be apart," Punk said, "but sure, I'd love the time, it's about time I am the one closing a show, without Brock or Triple H…sorry, I shouldn't have brought him up, I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Britt shrugged one shoulder carelessly. "If that's how he wants to act, that's how he wants to act. It's better to let him cool down before I even attempt to talk to him. Plus, he kind of let me off the hook, you know what I mean. It's like, I was confused, but now it's kind of like, I can really get some time to think."

"So you clearly don't think the two of you are over."

She shrugged again, "I'm really not sure. I mean, I feel like we're in limbo."

"His match is just starting," Punk jerked a thumb towards the television in his locker room. It was on mute at the moment, but it was on. Britt looked up and saw Hunter walked down the ramp. "You going to watch it?"

"I wasn't really planning on it," Britt admitted. "What's the point, really? I don't really have any stake in this."

"Yeah right," Punk scoffed. "You know you still care about him. You're just mad that he lied to you, lied to everyone—"

"I'm also mad that he used you in his pawn," Britt interrupted, and Punk was a little bit surprised to hear that. Not that he didn't at least a little believe it because, well, he had been used. He just didn't expect her to be so blunt about it. "Yes, I am," she responded to his silent question. "I knew he used the kids, but the kids didn't know they were being used. They had no idea what was going on beyond the fact they couldn't hang out with you anymore, and while that upset them, they still don't know what happened. They're happy and fine. You, on the other hand, you had to sit there and have everyone despise you. He used you to make himself feel better."

"I mean, it's not a big deal."

"It's a big deal to me," she said, coming to sit next to him. "I guess I can watch his match."

"I didn't say you could watch it in here," he joked and she flipped him off.

"I have a higher position than you, I can watch wherever I want to."

"You know, you're like my best girlfriend on the road," he told her, "just throwing that out there, you don't have to do anything with it."

"I think that's true because most of the other girls around here you've slept with and then dumped, so I'm guessing they don't want to be your friends," Britt threw back at him.

"Wow, touché," he nodded, "I didn't see that one coming, but I should have."

"You really should have, you manwhore," Britt told him, ignoring the match now. "I mean, Kelly Kelly gets a lot of flak for sleeping around, but you, sir, don't get as much as you deserve."

"Well, I keep it to one girl at a time."

Britt nearly snorted, "Wow…okay, yeah, you've got me there."

"I figured I might," he told her. "I'm just not the type that sees the need to settle down right now. I don't know…I guess I just still think I'm having fun."

"Nothing wrong with that," Britt told him, "you just shouldn't have too much fun."

"Do you think Hunter has a chance at winning?" Punk changed the subject as he saw Britt's eyes flitter towards the screen in front of her. She just looked at it blankly before turning slowly to him, her eyes slightly worried, but trying so desperately to hide it.

"I don't know, Hunter's skill set is so much different from Brock's now," Britt confessed. "I mean, he's a _fighter_ you know what I mean."

"They're not all as tough as they seem."

"You're just trying to make me feel better, but it's not exactly working," Britt said, "but you know what, whatever, I don't care. I really don't."

"Don't be a liar, it's not a good look for you," he told her, "it's more than okay to be worried for him, it's actually to be expected. I'd think you were weird if you didn't care what was going on with him. I still don't get the point of all this. I still don't know why you'd bring Brock in the first place."

"Well, he wanted to come back for a one-off thing. I think he was a little bit jealous of Rock…either that or Paul Heyman coerced him into it."

"I wouldn't put it past him, knowing what I know about him," Punk said. "I could see him wanting to come back just to stick it to Stephanie. From what I understand, their relationship isn't exactly the best."

"I think that would date back from the Alliance, at least from what I've seen."

"Stephanie was different back then," Punk said, glancing over at the television. "Hunter is at least holding his own."

"Well, I knew he could do that. He's not just tough-looking, he _is_ a tough guy, it's just his head that's not on straight. I think wrestling has made him think this is normal human behavior, but it's not."

"You have to forgive us, Britt, wrestlers aren't really all there."

"You can say that again," Britt leaned her head back against the couch, "and now I'm one of them. My life is a joke."

"You're not a joke."

"I said my life was, but nice to know what you really think of me," she kidded, turning her head to the side to look at him. "I just want something normal, something where there aren't any head games or double talk. I just want honesty. I know I made mistakes with him too, and I own up to them, but yeah…I'm a bitch, aren't I?"

"Tiny one," he told her, "just a small one."

"Uh huh," she said, pushing herself off the couch, "I'll see you around, I better get back before Stephanie starts to wonder where I am and if I'm lost or something."

Britt got up and turned to walk out the door when Punk stopped her with his words, "Uh, Britt, you might want to watch what's going on."

"What?" Britt turned around just in time to see Brock putting Hunter into the kimura lock. She stood frozen in her spot just watching what was happening on the television. It felt like it was going on a million miles away from where she was, like it was just some TV show she happened to be watching. Punk cringed as he watched. Even he might be apprehensive to get into the ring with Brock, mainly because the guy was such a wildcard. Who knew what kind of Brock Lesnar you would get in a ring.

"My God," Punk muttered as Brock really put the move on Hunter.

"Jesus Christ," Britt incited another deity. She cringed as Brock finally let go after Hunter tapped out.

"Britt, you okay?"

Britt shook it off, "Uh, yeah, yeah, I'm okay, I better get…uh, back to Stephanie. She's going to want to know what to do with you tomorrow, I'll just…I'll just tell her that you wanted time, I'll get you the end of the show if that's what you want, you said that's what you wanted, right?"

"Britt, do you want me to walk you to where Stephanie is?" he asked, standing up in concern for her.

"No, no, no, I'm fine," her eyes darted back to the television screen. She watched as Hunter clutched at his arm. "I mean, you know, look, he's…well, it's not like he's unconscious, I mean, you know, it's fine."

"Britt, you're not fine."

"I am," she insisted, but he was hardly convinced. "That's all, I'm fine, alright."

"I still think I should walk you," he took another step closer. "Come on, it'll be a friendly thing. I can go say hey to Stephanie, and did she have the kids with her?"

"No, they were with Chris. I don't know if they're with her now. They were going to go to dinner afterwards since it's not that late, since you know, we're in California. They have a house here."

"I know, I've been there," Punk said. "Come on."

He could tell she was concerned, hell, everyone could probably tell she was concerned. He grasped her by the elbow and started walking her down the hallway. She kept glancing at him, but he didn't notice. He just kept walking forward, trying to set their pace, but she seemed to want to go slow. He couldn't really figure it out, but he just figured she was scared.

"Why don't you show people how nice you are?" she asked, and he recalled the same question from her before.

"Because it's easier being a jerk."

"You really think so?"

"Yeah, I mean, you get so many disrespectful fans, why should I deal with them, you know? I'm a nice guy, doesn't mean everyone deserves to get to know that guy," Punk shrugged. "But if I care about you, then I'm loyal as hell, it's just how I've always been. I guess I've always kind of shouldered a lot."

"Because of your family situation?"

"Yeah, a bit," he told her. "I mean, you grow up pretty quick when you're in that kind of situation. Not that I'm making excuses. I just don't feel the need to show respect to the same people who tell me what I do is fake, you know. It doesn't feel fake when I'm in the ring with someone."

"It isn't, I mean, just look at what happened," Britt said in a daze.

"Yeah, you should probably go check on him."

"No," Britt shook her head so hard her hair flew in her face. She brushed it away impatiently. "I'm not going to see him. He made it perfectly clear that he does not care about anything I have to say so I don't care about him."

"Oh come on," he told her. "That's not the way to act, not right now. The guy could be injured. I think he would want to see you."

"And what would that accomplish? Nothing," Britt said. "It would not accomplish a damn thing because he's being stubborn. I guarantee you he's probably shoving away people who are trying to help."

"Well, yeah, that does sound like him, but still, he'd want you there."

"Yeah, sure, I guess," Britt said bitterly. "He might not though, I'm okay with that though, I don't really need him to want me around because I don't really need him around. He's probably going to insist that his arm isn't even hurt."

"Well, after what we just saw, it's going to be difficult to contest that, don't you think?"

"Oh, believe me, he'd try."

"Even so, don't you want to at least make sure he's okay?"

"I just want to get back to work," Britt said, "that's all."

"Okay, I'm not going to argue with you," he said as they arrived at their destination, "it's just kind of a bitch move if you don't."

"Thanks, but…" Hunter came in through the back, limping and holding onto his arm. She sighed and knew that she couldn't just be horrible to him. She couldn't just ignore what was going on. She went over to him and touched his shoulder. "Hunter, you've got to go to the trainer."

Hunter looked up at her. "I'm okay."

"I knew you were going to say that, but we both know you're not. Look, you already lost, what's it going to hurt getting checked out, especially since this was the arm you hurt the first time. You have to stop thinking you're unbreakable."

"I've torn both my quads, I think I'm breakable," he snapped.

"Fine, I was just trying to help, but if that's the way you want to act, fine," Britt said, pulling away from him. "Good luck with the arm situation then." She walked back over to Punk. "That was a bust, I'll see you later, Phil, great job winning tonight."

Unbeknownst to her, Hunter was watching her walk away.

Chris laughed again as he looked at Dolph's Twitter feed. The man had pretty much been jawing at the mouth since the night before, "Stephanie, you have got to see what he's written now."

"Chris, I've seen it all, you've told me about it, repeatedly, you made me hold the camera as you touted the other night," she stuck her head into the room. "I think we all get it, Chris, he was a sore loser."

"He wants a rematch though."

"Yeah, so?" Stephanie asked. "What am I supposed to do with that information? If he wants a rematch, fine, it's not like you can't give him one, I guess, when you come back of course."

"That's what I was thinking about," he told her, beckoning her over with the crook of his finger. "I was thinking, what if this is the way you can just kind of write me off, give me my send-off."

"By what, giving you a match against Dolph again, but you've proven your point, you won 'the big one,' even though you've clearly won a lot of big ones and Dolph didn't know what he was talking about."

"I'm saying, what if it we did it so like I had to leave, like a 'Loser Leaves Town' match or something? Then, I kind of purposefully lose, except I let Dolph think he's won, then I tell he hasn't, he gets so pissed, wants another match, but I'm like, 'oops, I'm leaving, see ya!'"

"Now that's just cruel," Stephanie laughed. "That poor guy's head my explode. For some reason, he's so obsessed with you."

"I think it's because he wants to have what I have." Stephanie gave herself a little smug look and Chris's eyebrows knitted together. "Uh, no, I wasn't talking about him wanting you—"

"Gee, thanks," she told him, folding her arms and looking at her husband incredulously. "Who's to say he doesn't want this, huh? I mean, there are a ton of guys in the company who would take advantage of me if you weren't in the picture."

"Well, I am in the picture," he reminded her, "what I'm saying is that he's still around the middle, you know, he hasn't quite reached the top, but he knows he's not on the bottom. I was there for such a long time. I spent half my career in WCW floating around that middle. It's like no matter how hard you try, you can't quite reach that next mountaintop."

"Then why would you want to humiliate him if you see so much of you in him?" she wondered.

"Because he's annoying, that's why, do I need more of a reason than that?" he asked, holding his arms out. "He's been on my case for weeks, and I'm pretty sick and tired of it. I really don't have anything to prove to anyone anymore."

"You never have."

"Yeah, so I'm done acting like he isn't annoying me. He'll get over it, I'm sure he'll be cashing in the briefcase soon, and everyone will forget about me except for Flynn."

"Right," Stephanie said sarcastically, "like you don't have a million people who will be anticipating your return. I see your Twitter, I see how many people are already sad that you're leaving."

"They just don't understand. I actually kind of don't want to leave this time, I'm going to miss it, but I just can't do everything."

"And I wouldn't want you to, and that's speaking as the president. I don't want one of my guys to go out into a match with the distractions of a tour on their mind," she told him. "Then you just become a liability to me, and I need your head completely here if you're going to be here."

"I know, you don't have to tell me, so do you think you could actually get AJ to make the match? It would sound less like a set-up if she did it."

"Of course I can. She might not _always_ listen to me, but she does for the important things," Stephanie answered. AJ was still something of a loose cannon. While she listened to Stephanie most of the time, there were times when she just decided to go off on her own and do her own thing. It wasn't necessarily all bad, but there were moments where AJ just seemed…off. Stephanie still wasn't positive it wasn't all an act, but she had no proof otherwise. All she had were AJ's actions, and they could be off-kilter sometimes.

"Great, so I guess…I guess that's how I'm going to go out?" he nodded to himself. "I'm really actually going to miss it this time around."

"You'll be back," she told him, kneeling next to him and running her fingers through the long part of his hair. "It's not like you can't come back whenever you want to. We'll just say it's a contract thing, like your contract is being terminated if you lose, not a career match."

"Speaking of careers, what do you think is going to happen with Hunter?" Chris wondered. He'd seen the match last night, and he really couldn't figure out what happened next. He found it harder to stay mad at Hunter than he thought it would be. He wasn't sure why that was when he still held a grudge against Austin all these years later. Maybe it was because Hunter hadn't actually endangered his children, but for some reason, his anger was difficult to hold onto.

"What do you care? I thought you would be glad to be rid of him if he did retire," Stephanie said, still running her fingers through his hair, which he found a calming gesture. His nerves were kind of shot for tonight now that he thought about it. There was just still this force telling him to stay. It wasn't like the last two times, and he just couldn't figure out his emotions.

"Actually, no," Chris admitted. "I'm not…I'm not really mad at him anymore. I can't explain it, but I guess, I guess I just thought of him as a friend for so long, it's hard not to think of him like that."

"Well, if we're grading on a curve, he didn't really _do_ anything to the kids," Stephanie said, "but let's not think about him. What he chooses to do is his choice, not ours, what _you_ choose to do though, that _is_ your choice."

"Yeah, that's true, I'm going to miss wrestling," he told her, his mouth pursing a little bit.

"It's natural," Stephanie told him, "you like it here, you like the guys around here. You know what, I think I will get an interim VP of Talent Relations. I don't want to burden you with that. If you want the position later, then by all means, you can have it, but I want you to focus entirely on your music career."

"You're too good to me," he told her, turning his head to look at her.

"Only marginally. Sin and Bones is fantastic, sweetie, you should be as proud of it as you are, and it should get the recognition it deserves. You've worked so hard for this, and these tours are just further proof of how many ears you're reaching."

"You're right."

"Plus, you'll be around, like Flynn wouldn't drag you here anyways."

"Again, right."

"Yes, so come on, we'll get the kids ready and we'll head to the arena." Stephanie kissed his cheek as she got off the couch. Her phone started chirping from the table where she'd left it and she picked it up. "Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, talk to me."

Chris watched as she spoke with the person on the other line. Her brow knit as she kept saying "uh huh" to whomever was on the other end of the line. He got up and walked over to her, wrapping his arms loosely around her waist, trying to listen in on what was being said. He couldn't hear the other person on the line though. She finally hung up and he kissed her neck before asking, "Who was that?"

"Oh, it was just one of the trainers," Stephanie said, "Hunter broke his arm again, and they were simply updating me on his condition."

"That sucks, so he's not going to be there tonight?"

"No, I think he's going to lick his wounds."

"Seems like something he'd do," Chris said. "Come on, let's get ready."

The arena didn't have a different feel from any other time he entered it, but it kind of felt like it did. He was leaving again, and it always brought a little bit of sadness. He couldn't help it. He wasn't ever sure he could completely walk away from this, even if it was eventually just working backstage. There was an energy here, one he'd sought out for the better part of 22 years, and to just walk away, it always felt wrong.

"Daddy, I won't be here next Monday either so it's okay," Sawyer, ever the voice of reason, told him, "since I have to go back to school."

"Yeah, we'll both be away from our girls, huh?"

"Yeah, but then we'll see them, I'm going to stay with Gamma and Gamps, are you going to Raw next Monday?"

"I don't think so," Chris said, "I've got a signing and I don't think I can make it to the show, but I'll be there in spirit."

"As a ghost?" Sawyer asked.

Chris laughed, "No, it just means that part of me will be thinking about the show and hoping Mommy is doing a great job and that Flynn and Kensy are going to enjoy it."

"I don't think Kensy is going though," Sawyer said.

Chris turned to look at him, "Huh, how did _you_ hear about that and I didn't?"

"I was talking with Mommy when you were helping Flynnie, and I told her I could help her with them when you were gone and then she said I could help because she might only take Flynnie to the show."

"Well thanks for informing me," Chris laughed. "I guess I have to talk to Mommy about that one."

"I guess," Sawyer shrugged.

Britt pressed down some papers for Stephanie, "New stuff from merchandising. They wanted to get your stamp of approval before they put things into production. I took a look at it, everything seems pretty innocuous."

"Cool, thanks," Stephanie said, taking the files from her. "Hey, have you spoken to Hunter since last night?"

"No, he doesn't want to talk to me, so I don't want to talk to him. Why do you ask?"

"No reason, just thinking about him."

"Aren't we all?" came another voice that had entered the room without either of the two women knowing. Stephanie rolled her eyes and looked at the man in front of her.

"What do you need, Paul? Haven't you already run your mouth enough around here?" Stephanie said. "And are you sure you want to be around me considering what happened the last time you wanted to go toe-to-toe with me?"

"I'm sure your children appreciated learning that you should resort to fighting when things go wrong."

"Things didn't go wrong," Stephanie told him, "you just had to run your mouth off like you usually do. So tell me, what are you doing here? I'm sure you're here on behalf of your 'client.' You know, for someone who is doing all of the actual fighting, he sure doesn't have much to say."

"He doesn't have to _say_ anything. I think he more than proved himself last night at SummerSlam, don't you think? He made an absolute fool out of Hunter," Paul turned to Britt. "I'm sorry you had to see that…actually, no I'm not, you probably should see what kind of man you got yourself involved with. It was hard to watch, wasn't it? It was even hard to watch for me."

"Okay, that's enough, Paul," Stephanie took up for Britt after seeing how the girl was blanching at the man's words. Stephanie didn't know the logistics of Britt's relationship with Hunter, but this was obviously upsetting her, and as her employee, Stephanie had to look out for what was hers. "You came in here, you've mocked to the best of your ability, and now you're going to leave."

"I noticed that you gave Brock time at the beginning of the show, and I just wanted to thank you, Stephanie, from the bottom of my heart," Paul pressed his hand to his chest and his words were dripping with sarcasm and false sweetness.

"I figured you'd want it, and I didn't want to deal with you anymore than I had to, but oops, doesn't look like that turned out quite the way I planned because you're here," Stephanie said. "The long and short of it is, I run a business, Brock won last night therefore he deserves the time at the top of the show. That's all, that's it, it's not a personal favor to you, it's certainly not to him, and it's not even a dig at Hunter for getting hurt and not winning, it just is what it is, business, Paul, I try to run a successful one, unlike you."

"Well, I didn't have my _father_ to build one for me."

"Maybe your father would have actually kept a business to give to you," Stephanie told him, "now get out of my face before you meet the business end of my hand again."

"It's always such a pleasure, Stephanie," Paul sneered.

"The pleasure is all mine," Stephanie replied in the same tone, glaring at him until he left the room. "That man is such a slime. I don't know how I put up with him for the months the Alliance was in effect." She turned to Britt, who was staring down at her hands. "Hey, you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she shook her head of her thoughts as she looked up at her boss. "So just look over the merchandising stuff, you can contact your secretary I'm sure if you want to talk to them."

"Britt…"

"I'm fine, Stephanie, really I am, don't worry about me," she told her. "Actually, I'm going out tonight with some of the divas. Fresno's not huge on anything to do, but Nattie said she knows a place we can just chill and get a few drinks."

"That sounds like fun."

"You're welcome to come with, girl's night."

"Well, girl's night are more appropriate if you're a girl and not a mother of three with a husband."

"Oh, come on, you deserve a night off sometimes too."

"I would, but Mondays are taxing for me," Stephanie said. "I'm like an old lady, as soon as the kids are in bed, I crash. The rest of the week, I'm up at ungodly hours, but Mondays, it's like, stress over for another week."

"I understand."

"I do think it's good you're getting out and getting your mind off of…things."

"Me too, I'll be around, don't forget to look at that stuff!"

"I won't," Stephanie dutifully went back over to her desk as Britt left. She focused on some of the work, checking the merchandising. Normally, she wouldn't necessarily be looking at this branch of things, but she liked to for her own sanity, making sure there were no typos or unfortunate images like there had been with that Sin Cara shirt from last year. They didn't need a repeat of _that_. Though, she had to admit, when she first saw it, she did giggle, who wouldn't, it was funny, and Stephanie had a sense of humor.

"Yoo-hoo, hey there boss!" AJ burst through the door, skipping over to Stephanie and giving her a hug. "You are looking like such a boss today, like…my boss!"

"That's what I am," Stephanie said in as chipper a voice as she could muster. "Did you look at the schedule?"

"Of course, I wanted to be prepared," AJ nodded. "I also read your note, so what did you want to talk about?"

"It's about Chris," Stephanie told her. "It's about what's going to happen tonight."

"Ooh, is this a secret? I'm really good at keeping those," AJ leaned forward in her seat, as if preparing for something juicy to be told to her. Stephanie wondered if this was all just a trick, and one day she would just break out into this cold, calculating bitch. Maybe she already was.

"Well, as you can see, I took into account all the things you wanted to do," Stephanie told her, and it was true. Under some of her more wacky ideas, there lay a brain that did have good ideas, and Stephanie was more than willing to foster those.

"Thank you," AJ answered, and there were always some moments that AJ seemed to drop whatever façade she was working under and actually acted like a humble, regular person, and not this crazy girl she projected herself to be. Maybe this was all just an attention getter.

"You're welcome," Stephanie said. "There's really just one thing I needed you to do for tonight. You have to listen carefully because it's going to be pretty specific. Dolph, as I'm sure you know, has been clamoring for a rematch against Chris. Now, Chris wants to leave to do his tour, so what I need _you_ to do is I need you to make a match for tonight. Chris is going to…lure, I guess you could say Dolph to him, and when this happens, you're going to come in and make the match. I want you to make it a contract versus briefcase match, do you think you could do that?"

"No problem!" AJ said. "I'm on top of it!"

"Thanks, AJ, we really appreciate it."

"Anything for you," AJ said, "is that all you needed?"

"Yeah, that's all I needed."

"I'm going now, see ya later!" AJ waved and skipped back out of the office, leaving Stephanie to the silence once more.

She tried to go back to her work, but her mind kept wandering to Chris and his leaving tonight. His third tenure as a wrestler hadn't lasted long, but she'd again gotten so used to having him around. It was going to be an adjustment not to have him here and wrestling. She knew he was going to visit when he had the time, but it wasn't exactly the same. She loved having him here as a wrestler, but she understood that he had other interests, and with his age and the time he put into this business, he deserved those other interests.

Besides, and she was a little ashamed to admit it, sometimes it was good to get away from Chris, and he probably felt the same way about her. Married couples needed their time apart. She and Chris, being in the same business, tended to spend so much time together because they did the same things, knew the same people, it was them against the world. With his tour, Chris would be around some of his friends, and he'd make new friends, and well, she had her work, which she loved, and when she was home, she could go out with her friends, and she was sure it would be a win-win situation for everyone.

"Grandma, did you know that I have lots of friends?" Flynn waved as she saw Sheamus walking by. He waved back at her but didn't stop as he had somewhere to be.

"I can see that," Linda said, poking her in the nose. Flynn giggled. "I wish I could have you campaigning with me, I think you would do wonders for the vote."

"What's campanaying?" Flynn asked.

"Campaigning," Linda said slowly, "I'm trying to win something, and when I campaign, I'm going out there and I'm meeting people and I'm giving speeches, and I just bet if I had you with me, you would win everyone over."

"Daddy says everyone has to like me," Flynn told her grandma. She was sure that everyone would like her.

"I think he was right."

"And Kensy too," Flynn said, "she's almost two so she's not so big a baby."

"No, she's really not."

"She likes you, and she likes Grandpa, and she likes everyone I tell her to like because I tell her all the time," Flynn nodded. She was like Kensington's advisor. She told her what to do and Kensington would always do it. She was a good big sister like that.

"Well, that is something," Linda said sweetly to her.

"Grandma, did you know Daddy is gonna go singing?"

"I did know that, are you going to miss him?"

"Uh huh," Flynn said, "but it's okay because he always comes back!"

"Well, who could stay away from you?" Linda asked her. "I don't even like being away from you!"

"I like seeing you too," Flynn smiled. She liked seeing her Grandma and her Grandpa, even if her grandfather was a little on the weird side, and even if he fought with her mommy a lot. He didn't fight with her so she could like him if she wanted!

Chris walked into catering and spotted his mother-in-law and his daughter. He snuck over behind Flynn and leaned down to kiss her on the cheek. She gasped in surprise before looking over her shoulder and was delighted to see who it was. She immediately raised her arms up, imploring her father to hold her. Chris scooped her up and sat down across from Linda, letting Flynn perch on his lap.

"Hello, Chris," Linda said sweetly, "how are you doing tonight? Are you okay?"

"Linda, you act like I'm never coming back, this is only temporary," Chris said, and he was convinced and sure that it was. Everyone was acting like he was never going to show his face here again, but he'd be back to visit in a couple weeks. He couldn't escape the business, it was who he was now.

"I know, it's just I wasn't here the last time you left…Stephanie's not having a baby again, is she? This isn't some secret plan you two have," Linda winked at her son-in-law.

"Not another baby," Flynn threw herself on the mercy of her father. Kensington was okay, but she couldn't handle another one.

"No, not another baby, don't worry," Chris kissed Flynn's head. "This is strictly business."

"Vince got the advanced copy of the CD you sent him, I listened to it, I'm not exactly well-versed in the metal scene, but from what I heard, it sounded very good," Linda said and Chris had to laugh because he could not picture Linda ever listening to a metal album.

"I'm guessing none of them are going to be your campaign song, are they?" Chris kidded with her as Linda threw her head back in laughter that was reminiscent of Stephanie. Even though Stephanie was every bit her father's daughter, a little bit of Linda had snuck in there too, and for that Chris was grateful.

"I don't think so, but I do have to wonder if there are a few songs about my daughter in there."

"Not you too," Chris groaned, shaking his head. "Your daughter will not let up about that."

"Oh, I'm sure she doesn't, she's like her father, never forgets, either one of them."

"That's for sure," Chris said. "I'm guessing he has Kensy?"

"Yes, they're walking around. I think he said he was going to get her and Flynn every piece of merchandise in the place."

"Grandpa said I could get action figures!"

"Wow," Chris said. He felt his phone go off in his pocket. He pulled it out and read the message from Stephanie. "Oh, it looks like Mommy wants me, do you want to come with me or do you want to stay with Grandma?"

"I wanna stay with Grandma," Flynn said, reaching for Linda now. Linda's heart melted as she grabbed her granddaughter and peppered her cheek with kisses as Flynn giggled.

"Okay," Chris said, puckering his lips and leaning in, letting Flynn lean in the rest of the way to give him a kiss. He gave her an extra one and said, "Give that one to Kensy for me, okay, Flutterby?"

"I will," Flynn agreed.

"I'll see you later."

Chris gave her one last kiss goodbye before he went to where Stephanie told him to go. He stopped, pausing in order to text her that he was where she'd told him to be. Just as he sent the text, Dolph showed up, and he didn't even know how Stephanie had planned _that_, but he had no doubt she had somehow planned it so he was standing right there when Dolph would show up. But then Dolph said he'd been looking for him so he figured Dolph's first place to look had been Stephanie's office. She must have directed him to where Chris was.

Dolph congratulated him (albeit sardonically) for winning the big one. Chris just didn't understand that whole "winning the big one" thing, and he probably never would. If anything, Dolph needed to prove himself to Chris. That's just what he said to him as well. He brought out a couple old catchphrases to remind Dolph that Chris had been doing this since Dolph was a kid. Chris had established himself before Dolph was even old enough to ride a bike probably. If anything, Dolph should be going out there to prove his own worth. No matter, Chris would actually be helping him later, even if he was disguising it. Dolph could be someone if he dropped the ego down a few bits.

AJ came out of nowhere, and Chris figured either Stephanie was lurking around or she'd contacted AJ. AJ came up to the both of them, and like he and Stephanie planned, she made the match for later, the stipulations set, and everything in motion. This was to be his swan song for now. He knew the fans, most of them anyways, knew he was going to be on tour, but he still didn't want to totally half-ass a match. He would go out there and fight, but when the time came, he was prepared to lose. He was prepared to walk away.

Once Dolph and AJ left him alone, he found himself wandering back to Stephanie's locker room, going almost aimlessly, scuffing his feet down the hallways. It was like he wanted time to go slower somehow. He got like this before a tour. Stephanie called it his tour tradition. He would go into his existential crisis wherein he would lament leaving everything behind and wonder if he was doing the right thing. He would fuss and moan about leaving his family, about doing the tour, about everything and anything under the sun. It would all be too much, he would be overwhelmed, and he would fret until the moment he stepped onstage.

Then it would be like the world opened up. He knew it was coming, he knew the resolution was actually in his sights. He just had to get there. It wouldn't be too long, this tour, and it was in the States. If he truly missed his family, he could see them. They were only going to be a plane ride away. A lot of the dates were on the East Coast or Midwest, which was not that far a trip. He would be okay. He knew this, he just needed the stage to calm him down. He needed the familiar words of his songs, the crowd singing along, that's all he needed right now.

"Chris, are you okay?"

Chris didn't even realize he'd reached Stephanie's office and opened the door and was just standing in the doorway. He cleared his mind and saw both Stephanie and Sawyer staring at him like he was crazy. "Uh, sorry, just thinking."

"We'll be _fine_, you can leave us, the kids are old enough to recognize you're not walking out on them," Stephanie read his mind. She gave him a look, and he gave her a lopsided grin right back.

"How'd you know what I was thinking?"

"Because you're predictable," she told him.

"Daddy, you're only going on tour," Sawyer reminded him.

"Yeah, you're right, I'll just miss you guys so much."

"Chris, it's not that big a deal. You want this, this is something you've worked so hard for. We're not going to stand in your way."

"But you're my family."

"And we'll still be your family when you come back," she said, running her hand through her hair. "I think I can handle myself while you're gone, I mean, I beat up Paul Heyman, if I can take him, I can take anyone."

"That's true," he laughed.

"I'll help with Mommy," Sawyer told his father. "I can help with Kensy and Flynnie, and it'll all be good."

"See, I even have help," Stephanie said, "plus, none of our kids are so young that they need my constant attention. Kensy is going to be two, Flynn practically thinks she can live by herself, and we've got Mr. Diplomatic over here."

"What's that?" Sawyer asked, wondering if he'd been insulted.

"It means you're a good guy, who always does the right and fair thing."

"Oh, well I like that," Sawyer said.

"I thought you would," Stephanie winked at him. "So, see, we're all very self-sufficient. You are free to leave the nest, Mr. Jericho. Go out and see what the world has to offer."

"Are you sure you're all going to be—"

"Oh my God, I want to send you off right now!" she told him. She stood up, went to his bag, grabbed his trunks, his boots, and his accessories and shoved them into his chest. "Here, get dressed, go be useful, stop wondering if you're doing the right thing. You do this _every_ time you have a tour!"

"I'm sorry, it's how I feel," he protested even as she pushed him towards the bathroom.

"Sawyer, come help me get Daddy away from us," Stephanie said as Sawyer actually rushed over. Stephanie laughed as he tried to push Chris too.

"I think she was joking, kid, but geez, when did you get so strong?"

"I'm six now, Daddy, I can do a lot of things."

"That's true, okay, okay, I get the hint, I'm getting dressed!" Chris said, going into the bathroom and shutting the door. "You don't need to be so pushy!"

"Daddy's crazy, huh, baby boy?"

"So are you though, Mommy," Sawyer shrugged.

"Oh, come here, you," Stephanie said, grabbing her son by the shoulders and hugging him to her. "You don't need to have me or your dad's sarcasm."

"I don't know if I can help that!" Stephanie laughed and kissed the crown of his head.

"Don't you ever change for anyone. Come on, let's go round up your sisters so we can watch your daddy's match."

"But he's not going to win, Mommy, that's what you said. Since Daddy is leaving, there's no reason for him to win."

"That doesn't mean we shouldn't support him though," Stephanie said. "Chris, we're going to get the girls and we'll be near the gorilla to watch your match, okay!"

"Okay, see you out there!" Chris called out.

Chris liked that he had a few minutes alone to collect himself. It felt like time was moving too quickly now. It was like the hours had flown by and soon it was going to be all over. He knew it was silly. He'd been telling everyone all day that it wasn't going to be the end. Everyone figured he was leaving somehow, perhaps he would win the briefcase, cash it in, win the belt, and go out with a bang. Maybe that's how people thought he was going to do it. Maybe they thought he'd win, grab the briefcase and just walk out with it, intending to use it before the time was up next year. There _would_ be plenty of time for it.

Maybe people thought he would lose and be dragged kicking and screaming. He had said once or twice that was how he wanted to go out, like a petulant child being told they had to come inside for dinner. Still, everyone figured he was on his way out, and all day, everyone had been treating him with kid gloves. He knew it couldn't and wouldn't be the end, but somehow, there was still a finality to the evening. Every time someone wished him luck on the tour, he felt it, ever since the match had been made, the people coming up to wish him luck had struck a chord of "this is it, Jericho." All of it was silly, but you couldn't turn off emotions.

He went to the stage, saw his family sitting there, and he kissed each and every one of them. They all knew what was going to happen. Chris and Stephanie sat the kids down this afternoon to explain what would happen. The last thing he needed was to see Flynn crushed and heartbroken, thinking he actually was getting his contract terminated. This way, they knew going in that it wasn't going to turn out the way they usually wanted.

The match went by in such a blur, if you asked him right after what happened, he wouldn't have been able to tell you exactly. He felt the rush of the crowd, he knew that. He could hear them roaring for him, cheering him even as they knew, they all seemed to _know. _He could hear Vickie being her usual self, all his senses seemed heightened somehow. It wasn't like last time with Randy. This wasn't a favor being done for him. There was nothing like Kensington waiting for him on the other side, but there was still a sense of freedom that became stronger every second the match went on. He was closer and closer to Fozzy the further and further the match went on.

When it was time, when Dolph so clearly thought he had it, Chris gave in. He gave in and the crowd knew it, and still, he played off the shock of it all. He played it masterfully, letting Dolph really think he won. He stood in the ring a moment, just for a moment, just to take everything in. The crowd, oh the crowd was incredible, and he knew when he went on Twitter later that evening, there would be a flood of messages for him, most of them good he hoped. He walked slowly up the ramp, taking in every moment, savoring it so he could hold onto it until the next time he came down this ramp.

Maybe when he came back (and yes it was a _when_) he would just show up. For his last two returns, he'd had a build up, months of videos, cryptic or otherwise, there were clues, and planning, but maybe next time he would just show up, let his music his, and stroll down the ramp like he'd never left. He smiled at the thought as he stood on the ramp a moment, soaking it in. Until next time, he thought to himself as he walked backstage.

Until next time…

He walked over to his family, who were all waiting to hug him. Kensington managed to push everyone out of the way and he scooped her up into his arms as she threw her smaller arms around him, burying her face into his neck, forgetting or not caring that he was sweaty. "Daddy," she whispered.

"Hey, it's okay," he told her.

"Daddy, you were good," Sawyer told him.

"Oh yeah, your dad was so good he _lost_," Dolph taunted him, making Chris turn around. He smirked at the younger man. "What are you smirking at, Jericho? I just beat you, and you have to leave. I guess that wasn't how you planned going out, was it?"

"Actually, Dolph," Chris told him, "that was exactly how I planned it."

"What?" Dolph's face fell a little bit.

"I mean, maybe I let you win, did you think of that?"

"What? No, no, I beat you fair and square!"

"Did you?" Chris teased him a little more.

"No, then I want a rematch! I want one right now!"

"Uh uh, sorry, the contract's terminated," Chris shrugged. "So sit on that for a while, Dolph, think about that match, did you really win or did I just let you win?" He grinned as Dolph's brain seemed to short circuit. "Have fun, Dolph."

He was a free man.


	385. Trust, August 27 and September 3, 2012

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and what not. Caught up with everything so this is last week and this week's. Hope you enjoy! :)

* * *

"Daddy!"

Flynn ran up to her father, throwing herself carelessly into his waiting arms. Chris gave her a big hug and then hugged Sawyer as he came over to see him. Sawyer wasn't as much in a frenzy as Flynn was. "Hi, Daddy," Sawyer said with a big grin. "I can't wait to see your show."

"I can't wait for you to see it!" Chris told him as Flynn buried her face into his neck, clinging to him for dear life. "Did you miss me?"

"No, we only saw you on Thursday, and that was only a couple days ago, so you weren't even gone that long," Sawyer told him.

"Well, gee, then I didn't miss you either," Chris told him, pretending to be sad, frowning as Sawyer gave him another hug.

"But I always like to see you!" Sawyer added, not wanting his father to be mad at him. Chris looked up at the woman looming over him and she smiled and pressed her finger to her lips, pointing at the birthday girl, who was currently sound asleep in Stephanie's arms.

"Hey," Chris whispered as he stood up, Flynn still clinging to his neck. "What's with the sleepyhead? She shouldn't be asleep on her birthday."

"We woke up early for our flight since it left at 7:05, and she went to bed late last night because she wanted to sleep with me," Stephanie explained, "and then, on the plane, she just conked out, and she's been out ever since, and you know how Kensy is, she can sleep anywhere."

"That's true," Chris ran a gentle hand down her small back before leaning over and kissing her head gently. "Come on, let's get your things. It's only about a 15 minute drive from here to the fairgrounds, Kensy can sleep on our bus."

"Okay," Stephanie said as they walked to the baggage claim. They were only staying one night before they flew back to Tampa the next morning. Sawyer was starting school next week so he and Kensington would be staying at home with Chris's parents while she and Flynn went to Milwaukee for the next Raw. Flynn would probably never forgive Stephanie if she didn't let her come along to Raw with her.

They gathered their things onto a cart and then went to the taxi area, getting a van and piling in. The drive was as short as Chris advertised, what with it being a Saturday and not as much traffic as their might be on a weekday morning. Their plane arrived at 11, about three hours before Fozzy was set to perform so Chris had plenty of time to check in with his family, even though it'd only been a couple days since he'd been at home for Kensington's party.

The party was a huge success, but low key because Kensington was still little and didn't have too many friends, pretty much only the ones from her play group, which totaled four. So it wasn't huge but it had been nice. Chris took Kensington from Stephanie as they boarded the bus, with the kids trailing behind him. Paul was there, but the other guys weren't and Sawyer and Flynn were immediately drawn to the other man, loving to talk to him. Actually, they loved talking to all the members of the band, which Chris found kind of endearing. He gave Paul a nod, and then went to his bunk, pulling back the curtain and laying Kensington down on the bunk, pulling the covers over her and sitting there, rubbing her back as she snuggled into his sheets.

"Hey," Stephanie said, sitting lightly on the bunk across from Chris's.

"I can't believe she's going to be asleep for half her birthday with me," Chris felt pretty bummed out. Though the trip to Mansfield wasn't that long, he still wouldn't get to sleep in the same hotel room as his family tonight because they'd be driving through the night.

"Well, it's not like she's not here," Stephanie said, reaching over and grabbing Chris's hand. "She's a little girl, sometimes she falls asleep."

"I know," Chris said, "I just wanted to spend as much time with her as I could while she was here. It's not everyday your youngest child turns a whole two years old."

"I know, believe me, I know," Stephanie's eyes flitted over to the sleeping form under Chris's covers.

"Hey, you know what I just realized?" he told her.

"Hmm?" Stephanie asked wordlessly, turning her eyes over to her husband.

"This is the first time in over four years that one of our kids has turned two and you haven't been pregnant," Chris told her.

"Actually…I thought I could keep it from you until I was actually sure…"

"Don't even joke around with me," Chris shook his head, "because you know if you were, I would absolutely cancel the rest of this tour."

"It wouldn't be like I was having it right this second," Stephanie said, "there would be plenty of time for you to finish your tours."

"We both know you're not," Chris told her knowingly. "I know how you get when you're pregnant, and you're definitely not like that, plus, since our last two have both been born in August, I think we know when you're most fertile."

"Fine, I'm not," Stephanie said, "not that it would be a horrible idea."

"Four kids? You're out of your mind," Chris said.

"Maybe just a little, I did marry _you_ after all."

"Not funny."

"I'm anxious to see you guys perform. I've never been to one of your bigger gigs and with this tour, it actually is a pretty big gig every time you're out there, right?"

Chris beamed, "Yeah, the crowds have been incredible. You should see the lines we get when we're signing stuff, Steph, you won't even believe it. I think it's longer than most of the lines I got for my book."

"I'm so proud of you and the other guys. You guys are a success! And it's only going to get better from here on out, I just know it. I can feel it in my gut."

"Maybe that's why you said pregnancy," Chris teased her and she scowled. "Thanks though, I'm extremely proud too."

"You should be, Chris, this is amazing, I've been reading all the tweets you get sent, and all the reviews you've been posting. I know I've always been proud to be your wife, but the things you're doing right now, everything you and the guys have built from nothing, it's like, I don't know, it must have kind of been like how my father felt when he saw the WWE become such a success."

"Maybe not to that scale," Chris said. "Come on, the kids are probably bugging Paul to death, and we should let this one sleep so she's awake for my concert."

"Okay," Stephanie said. Chris let her stand up first and he followed her into the living area of the bus where Sawyer and Flynn were both still talking to Paul, but Frank had come inside and was sitting at the table with them as well.

"Daddy, Frank said I should learn the drums now."

"I wanna too!" Flynn exclaimed. "I can do it too!"

"That's what you should do as your next project, Chris, the Jericho family band," Paul joked. "I can see it now, matching outfits, choreographed dances, it'll be a hit."

"Eff you," Chris told him as Stephanie nudged him in the side. "What? I didn't say it. Do you really want to learn how to play the drum, kid?"

"It'd be fun, I think I can play," Sawyer nodded.

"See, man, he can do it," Frank said. "I'm telling you, it wouldn't even be a problem coming over and teaching him. I love that kind of stuff, we'd just need a kid's drum-set, but I think your sugar mama could swing that, right, Steph?"

"Very funny," Stephanie mock glared at him. "I could buy this entire operation and then fire you, how would you like that?"

"Wow, she _is_ scary when she's in charge," Paul joked as he scooted over so Stephanie could sit down. "So your kid is two years old today, huh?"

"Yup," Stephanie said with a slight smile as she thought about her youngest daughter. It was hard to believe Kensington had only been in their lives for two years. She made them such a complete family, Stephanie wasn't even sure how they functioned without her calming presence and adorable smile.

"And you're spending it at a music festival, glad to know you're bringing up your kids right," Frank told her and she gave him a haughty smile.

"Well, when your husband is such a huge rock star, and he's signed to a big label, and is on a huge rock tour of the country, you're kind of obligated to at least come and see one concert," Stephanie said, looking over at Chris with a smile, "I want to see him in front of that huge crowd."

"Because you've _never_ seen that before," Paul laughed, "what's the attendance at WrestleMania again?"

"It's different, with this he actually gets to talk and stuff," Stephanie laughed.

"Mommy!"

Stephanie turned towards the bunks, "I guess the birthday girl has finally decided to grace us with her presence. I'll go get her."

"That's okay, Steph, I'll get her," Chris said, "I haven't seen her since Thursday, I want to see her."

"Okay," Stephanie agreed as Chris disappeared behind the curtain that separated the two areas of the bus. Chris walked over to his bunk where Kensington was sitting up, very confused as to her surroundings. She didn't know where she was, and she didn't know what this place was, and nobody had been there when she woke up! She whimpered, looking around in fright until she saw her Daddy. She let out her tears as she reached for him.

"Hey, what's the matter, Kensy-bug?" Chris asked. "I'm here, I'm here." He pulled her into her arms as she started crying. Chris realized she must have been frightened waking up in a strange place with nobody around her. "It's okay, everyone is here."

"Oh," Kensington sniffled.

Chris pulled his face away from hers so he could look her in the face, "Hey there."

"Hi, Daddy," she told him, giving him a rather pitiful smile. "Miss you."

"I missed you too," he told her, reaching up to wipe her tears away with the pad of his thumb. "Happy Birthday."

"Oh, it is!" she giggled, remembering that her mother told her all this morning before she fell asleep that it was her birthday. "I two!"

"You are two," Chris said, "you're such a big girl now, I don't even know where the time went!" Kensington scrunched up her nose at that. "You want to know something, I got you something that you can wear today."

"What?" she asked. Chris reached down to his bag, which was lying across the bottom of his bunk and pulled out the object sitting on the top. It was a little tiara he'd picked up at a party store that said "Birthday Girl" on it. He showed it to her and her face lit up.

"It's so everyone knows that today is your birthday," Chris told her, helping her place it on her head. "I also have something very special for you as well."

"Really?" Kensington asked.

"Uh huh, but I bet Mommy would want to see you open that."

"I see Mama," Kensington told her daddy and he nodded at her, taking her through the curtain where everyone was sitting.

"Kensy, what's that on your head?" Stephanie asked.

"Daddy!" Kensington exclaimed, pointing at Chris.

"Just a little something to commemorate her day, and so everyone she meets can wish her a happy birthday," Chris explained.

"Well, Happy Birthday, Kensy," Paul said.

"Tanks!" Kensington positively beamed at being the center of attention. With a sister like Flynn, sometimes it was hard to get attention for herself. And when she did get attention, it was usually because she was a baby and didn't know as much as anyone else. But today, everyone was noticing her, and she liked it!

"Are you ready to see me sing?" Chris asked her.

"Uh huh!" Kensington told him.

The kids stayed backstage while Chris was onstage doing his thing. They all had their earplugs in, but it was still loud enough to where they could hear what was being sung. Stephanie was especially excited to hear their new stuff live. She hadn't been able to attend their rehearsals so it was really the first time she would hear their new songs live. Chris had told her that even though they couldn't play a long set-list here, that when they played New York the upcoming week, where they would be headlining, She's My Addiction would be definitely played. She was flattered he was doing that, even if she couldn't be there to see it. Or at least she wasn't planning on being there. She thought about it for a moment. The show wasn't during any of her workdays. That might actually be fun. Oh well, she put it out of her mind for now and focused on cheering on her husband while he fulfilled one of his dreams. They could iron out details later.

After the concert and signing autographs for fans, Chris took everyone to dinner, including the band. It was Kensington's special day and he wanted her to feel like everything he was doing was special. She sat happily in between her parents, who lavished her with kisses the entire time, much to her delight. She loved this so much, and she wished everyday could be her birthday, not that everyday wasn't good for her, she was two, things weren't exactly that bad. She even got a few presents, even though she'd already gotten a lot the other day.

"This is for you," Chris slid a box over to her.

"Ooh, what's that, Kensy?" Stephanie leaned over and helped her daughter with the ribbon holding the box together. Stephanie lifted the lid and Kensington leaned over to see what was inside. It was another necklace with a sturdy, yet delicate chain. The pendant was different from Flynn's though, considerably so actually. Instead of a mini-Jericho figure, this pendant was a little silver ladybug with a ruby in the middle of its back. "Wow, that's pretty."

"I like it!" Kensington said, grinning up at her daddy. "I like it!"

"What is it?" Flynn tried to climb over the table. Rich, who she was sitting next to, had to forcibly pull her back into her seat before she knocked over everyone's drinks. "Daddy, what is it!"

"Hold on, Flutterby, you'll see it," Chris told her, "just be patient."

Stephanie looked up at Chris, "This is lovely, Chris. Did you get this the same time you got Flynnie's necklace?"

"Yeah, I had them both specially made," he explained as all the guys in the band gave him an "aww," he glared at all of them, resisting the urge to flip them off, and he would if his kids weren't there.

"Daddy, I wanna see!" Flynn insisted with a whine. Chris took the box from Stephanie and held it across the table so she could see. "Mine's better because it's _you_, Daddy, see!"

"I know, it is very nice, but I think they're both nice," he told her.

"Oh," Flynn said before she turned to Rich. "I think mine's better though."

"It's very nice," Rich stage whispered to her with a wink, which made Flynn puff out her chest with pride.

"Happy Birthday, Kensy-bug."

Flynn skipped next to Stephanie as they walked into work that week. Flynn was happy that she got time with only Stephanie. She missed her Daddy, and she knew he was going to be on tour for a while and seeing him was at a premium, but she also liked to spend time with her mommy, and for once, she was going to be all by herself with her mommy, and she loved it! Her mommy was the silliest, funniest person she knew except for her daddy, but her mommy made funnier faces than her daddy, and for that, she had to love her mommy just as much, even if she wasn't a wrestler.

"Mommy! We have to work!" Flynn announced.

"I know we do, but first, I want to talk to someone," Stephanie said.

"Punk?" Flynn asked eagerly. "I like that, let's go see him!"

"No, not Punk, but we can go see him later."

"Then who? Sames?" Flynn brightened again. "I like him too! He's my friend too!"

"Flynnie, what have I told you about indoor voices?" Stephanie told her daughter. "I can hear you even when you aren't screaming."

"Sorry," Flynn said, now almost whispering. "Can we see Sames?"

"We'll go see everyone in due time, okay, there's someone else I want to see," Stephanie told her, and before Flynn could open her mouth, "It's Hunter, okay, we're going to see Hunter because I want to talk to him."

"Oh," Flynn shrugged, "I like Trips too, but not as much as Punk or Sames because they're funner."

"I know you think so," Stephanie said as she walked down the hallway with her daughter.

She and Chris had been talking recently about what do with Hunter. They'd both agreed that they were finding it difficult to stay mad at him, and since that was the case, being mad at him at all was silly. Yes, he'd done something that hurt them, but the kids were fine, nobody seriously got hurt, and they didn't want to lose a friendship they'd worked so hard to create. Even though Chris wasn't here with her, he'd endorsed the conversation all the same.

"Mommy, is Trips okay? He was hurt."

"I know, he's actually going to talk about that tonight," Stephanie said, which was part of the reason she wanted to talk to him. She didn't really have much of an idea of what Hunter was going to say. She knew that everyone considered him done after what happened, but she wasn't so sure on that front. Hunter wasn't a guy who backed down, even if he was injured. "Here we are," Stephanie said, "you want to knock."

"Sure," Flynn said enthusiastically as she pounded her small fist against the door.

"Go away!"

"He doesn't want to see us," Flynn said with a frown.

"I think he thinks it's someone else," Stephanie told her daughter, "Hunter, it's me, I'm coming in whether you like it or not because I'm your boss and you can't say no to me."

"Whatever, Stephanie."

Stephanie pushed open the door and stuck her head in, making sure he was decent, not that she didn't think he would be, he didn't have a match after all, but she didn't know what he was doing in here, and she had her daughter with her. "Hey, can we talk?"

"You're already talking," he said gruffly. He was sitting on the couch, hunched over, his good arm hanging limply over his legs while his bad arm was, well, sitting there rigidly. He didn't bother to look up at her, and his usually immaculately tied back hair was hanging like a shroud around his face.

"Okay, you've got a point there," Stephanie said slowly. Fortunately for her, she'd been married to this man, so she knew she just had to soldier through his moods. He would get like this sometimes, frustrated with everything it seemed, and when he got like that, she'd learned she had to just continue on like she didn't see how he was feeling. Flynn, on the other hand, had no prior experience with this side of Hunter so she bounded over to him.

"Why are you sad?" Flynn asked him, noting how he looked. She may not know how to deal with him, but she knew how to ask questions.

"It's nothing, Flynnie," he told her, refusing to look up at her.

Flynn looked to Stephanie with wide eyes. One thing she did not like was to see her friends sad. That just wouldn't do. Flynn, on most occasions, was a happy, little girl, and that's how she wanted the world around her to be as well. Stephanie gave a little pout and a shrug so Flynn climbed on the couch next to him and pat his shoulder comfortingly. "It's okay, you don't have to be sad, Trips, is your arm hurting?"

Hunter finally looked up and over at Flynn. He actually wasn't used to seeing a compassionate side to Flynn. Everyone saw the crazy, warrior princess, but hardly anyone ever saw the little girl who didn't like seeing people sad. Sometimes, when Chris nor Stephanie was around (but spying), Flynn would comfort her sister when she fell, giving her a hug then making her laugh with some stupid joke Flynn didn't tell properly. There were many different facets to the little girl, but like her parents, she didn't let just anyone see them.

Hunter was also surprised that Stephanie was actually letting Flynn be near him, but then, it would probably be suspicious if she pulled Flynn away from him. "It hurts a little, yeah, but I'll be okay."

"I get hurt sometimes when I'm playing too much and I fall," Flynn said sympathetically, scrunching up her mouth. "Daddy says I need to slow down, but I like having fun!"

Hunter laughed, "That's a good outlook on life."

Stephanie came over and sat behind Flynn, pulling the girl into her lap. "I wanted to talk to you," Stephanie said, "serious talk. I guess the first point I should talk about is what Chris and I have been discussing."

"What? More punishment?" he asked.

"No, nothing like that at all," Stephanie said, "you're our friend, and we worked hard for that friendship. It was borne after years of bitterness, and unresolved…well, everything. When we got divorced, it was difficult, very difficult. You know how hard it was to carve out a friendship. We realized that we can't stay mad at you."

"What?" he was honestly surprised. He knew how Chris still hated Austin for kicking Stephanie in the stomach, and that was over six years ago, not to mention, Sawyer was absolutely fine. So to hear this almost felt like some kind of joke on him. "Are you messing with me for some plan?"

"Actually, for once, no," Stephanie said, giving him a crooked smile. "What we realized is that, you didn't hurt our kids. You did hurt us, we're not going to lie and say it didn't hurt that you used them like that, but let's face it, Chris and I aren't innocent. We've both used the kids as excuses for stuff, I'm sure you remember how I used my pregnancy to drug Shawn."

"Oh yeah," he chuckled, "that was actually pretty funny…don't tell Shawn I said that."

"Like I'm going to talk to Shawn any time soon," Stephanie rolled her eyes. "Chris and I don't want to be mad at you anymore. We find we can't be mad at you, plus the kids are okay, they weren't hurt."

"I didn't fall," Flynn said, looking up at her mother.

"I know you didn't, baby girl," Stephanie kissed Flynn's forehead. "So, what do you say, do you think we can be friends again?"

"I'd really like that," he said.

"Good, and Chris knows I'm talking to you, so don't think that I'm blindsiding him. We both talked about it, but since he can't be here, we didn't want you to stew over this any longer, if you were."

"I wasn't really, but I still felt kind of lonely," Stephanie knew he wasn't just talking about their friendship, but she didn't want to go there. His problems with Britt were none of her business, and she was in no mood to get in the middle of their business.

"Well, at least this is taken care of," Stephanie said, "I also wanted to talk about what exactly you are going to say tonight, I mean, if you're going to retire, I think I have a right to know, don't you think?"

"I don't know what to tell you, Steph," Hunter told her with a shrug. "I'm not even really sure what I'm going to say at this point."

"So you haven't made a decision either way?"

"Yeah, I guess you can say that."

"Are you leaving, Trips?" Flynn asked innocently. Why was everyone leaving?

"No, I mean, I'll still be here because I work back here, just the wrestling part of it."

"Oh, but why not?" Flynn wondered.

"I don't know, I'm not sure of anything right now. I know that I can go more, you know, like, I know I have at least one more match in me, but then, at what risk? Look what happened to me this time, and we both know I haven't exactly been able to stay healthy all the time," Stephanie nodded, "so what's the point?"

"You know what the point is, Hunter," Stephanie told him, patting him on the leg. "You know you love this business, probably more than almost everyone here. That's why you're here week in and week out, that's why you fought with Brock, it's why you do the things you do. You love it here."

"I know, but I just don't want to be _that_ guy. I love the guy, but I don't want to be Ric Flair, wrestling until I'm practically stumbling around the ring. I don't want _that_ to be my legacy."

"I'm sure it's not," she said, "but it's your choice, whatever you choose to do, it's your choice. Maybe don't commit to anything just yet, and instead, give yourself an opening. You don't have to decide tonight or this second, but give yourself some time."

"Thanks, Steph, I really appreciate it…and thanks for not hating me."

"Well, while it is easy to hate you, it's just not worth it anymore," Stephanie said, "but think about what I said, yes?"

"I will."

"Good, we've got you on about halfway through the third hour, so you've got time."

"Mommy, I'm hungry," Flynn said, "can we eat?"

"Of course," Stephanie said, "we'll see you later, Hunter."

"Bye."

Flynn and Stephanie walked to catering so Flynn could get something to eat. This meant Stephanie was out in the open, which meant everyone thought it would be okay to come over and talk to her. She had various divas coming over to complain about how the hairspray was not holding their hair, and she told them to take it up with Jan. Santino came over to tell her his Cobra was fading in the wash, and could he have some new ones? She told him she'd have to go over the budget (which she didn't, they were _socks_). Everyone seemed to think their problems were her problems when, in actuality, there were a lot of people underneath her who dealt with this kind of thing.

"I hate to be too forward, but is Hunter okay?"

Stephanie looked to her left, and if she didn't know Britt's voice, she would have thought it was him. Instead, it was Alicia Fox of all people. "Um, hey, Alicia, I didn't know…you cared about what happened to Hunter."

"Well, I was just asking because I saw him walking around earlier, and he really looked upset, and I felt bad, you know," Alicia said, sitting down. "I knew you were going to talk to him, since you're the boss and everything, just wanted to ask if he was alright."

"Yeah, I'm sure he'll be fine."

"Great," Alicia said, "glad to hear it, just didn't want him to be all sad, I hate Brock Lesnar, so I guess I'm kinda partial to Hunter."

"I see," Stephanie said slowly, appraising the sincerity in Alicia's voice. She didn't really find anything insincere, so she let it slide. "Well, I'm glad to know he has people on his side back here, he could probably use it."

"Cool, cool, well, I'm sorry to bother you while you're eating, bye," Alicia gave a short wave before she was off. Stephanie turned to Flynn and made a funny face, which almost made Flynn spit her rice out of her mouth.

"Mommy, don't do that while I'm eating!" Flynn told her and Stephanie just rubbed Flynn's head.

"Stephanie, I've got a problem," Punk sat down on the other side of Flynn. Flynn held her arms open and he gave her a short hug.

"Of course you do, everyone does, what is your problem now?"

"It's a lot of things actually," Punk told her. He ticked each thing off on his fingers while he spoke, "First of all, the Lawler thing. I saw you were giving him time, and I think that's bogus, he's an announcer, his opinion should count less than nothing."

"He asked, I granted, that's it," Stephanie explained.

"He should be showing me respect, and you know, I don't feel like I've been getting the respect I deserve around here, and doesn't that fall on you?"

"I'm only one facet," Stephanie said, "and while, yes, I do get final say on a lot of things, have you dealt with AJ? That girl, though not necessarily persuasive, is annoying when she doesn't get her way, in fact, so are a lot of people around here when they don't get what they want. I have three hours of programming every Monday. While people are saying that it's a lot of time, when you have a roster as large as ours is, everyone is not going to get accommodated."

"Well," Punk was naturally chagrined when Stephanie laid it all out there for him. "Well, I don't like this thing with AJ. I don't like her being the GM, Stephanie."

"It's on the board, you _know_ she wasn't my choice," Stephanie told him, and of course he knew that, if Stephanie could, she'd probably set up the ring, build the set, light the pyros, maybe like Flynn work production, but the woman wanted to do everything herself.

"Steph, if she's not effective, I'm going to try my best to get her out of here," Punk told her seriously, lowering his voice and leaning in so only Stephanie would hear. "You do understand that, right?"

"What are you thinking?"

"Nothing as of yet, but I just want you to know, I want her out."

"Well, I can't really help you without implicating myself, I mean, I could, if it's something that isn't obvious."

"What are you doing?" Flynn asked.

"Eat your food, Flynnie," Stephanie told her. Flynn frowned upon her dismissal, but did go back to eating.

"I don't need your help with this one, Steph, just gotta do some things on my own," he told her. "I'm just giving you a little warning."

"Punk, what's going through your mind."

He just shrugged, "I guess I'll see you later, stay cool, Flynnie."

"You too, Punk!" Flynn said, getting another hug from him before he left. "Mommy, what was he talking about?"

"I'm really not sure, Flynnie," she looked to the spot where Punk had just left, "I'm really not sure."

Hunter rolled his eyes, "What are you doing here?"

"You really thought you were going to make a huge announcement tonight and I _wasn't_ going to at least come see you?" Britt said, leaning her back against the doorway. Hunter was in the same position he'd been in since Stephanie and Flynn left. He wasn't really sure he could do anything else. His arm was aching, not to mention he still didn't know what to do.

"You should go."

"Why?" she challenged him, all 5'1 of her challenged him in that moment to actually answer one of her questions.

"Because I don't want you here."

"Sorry, that's not a good enough answer," Britt shook her head. "I wanted to know what you were going to do tonight."

"Well, you'll find out when everyone else does."

"You haven't made up your mind," she told him.

"What do you know about it?" he asked her. "You don't know anything going through my mind right now so don't presume."

"I'm not, I'm just reading your face and your body language, and something's wrong, you don't know what to do. I am not here to tell you that we should be together or we should hook up for the sake of hooking up. I just wanted to come in here and find out what's in your brain. I know Shawn isn't here, and I wasn't sure if you were going to contact him, so I thought you could use a sounding board."

"How are you and Punk? You guys seem to be together all the time."

"We're friends, Hunter, you don't have to vilify him because there's nothing going on between us," Britt rolled her eyes. Hunter wouldn't just come out and say he was jealous, instead, he just kept beating around the issue. "What's going on with _you_?"

"I'm fine."

"Clearly," she said sarcastically as she came forward and sat down on the coffee table in front of the couch, just a little off to the side of Hunter. She tentatively reached forward and grabbed his hand slowly, as if she would scare him away if she moved too quickly. "Are you going to retire?"

He stared at her hand for a long moment, contemplating his words, but there were none to speak of really, "I don't know. I guess I'm just going to go out there, and kind of wing it."

"I see," Britt said. "Well, I hope whatever you choose is right for you."

"Thanks," he said, pulling his hand away, his skin burning for the return of her touch, but he resisted. "So, uh…did you talk to Stephanie or Chris about me?"

"Um, not really, Stephanie said she was going to stay out of it, why? Did she say something to you?"

"No, she just, uh, she and Chris just forgave me for everything."

"Wow, I never thought I'd see the day they let something go so easily."

Hunter actually laughed at that, "I guess with them getting older, they've finally decided to mature."

Britt made a face then laughed and shook her head, "No, no, I don't think so, not them. I'm glad they decided that though. I forgive you too, nobody is mad at you, not even Punk. I mean, underneath all that jerk is a really good guy."

"Thanks," Hunter said, "not for that, but for coming in to check on me."

"Whatever you decide, you've still got people around to support you."

"I know."

Hunter took those words with him when he went out there later as the crowd chanted for him. He still didn't really know what he was going to say. He didn't want to retire, not under these circumstances, but he couldn't wrestle right now, not with the condition his arm was in, plus his bruised ego didn't help. Perhaps, though, the ego thing would heal over soon, and he'd realize that he needed to beat Brock for his own peace of mind. He didn't want to go out like this, with a busted arm, with a loss over his shoulders, with a guy like Paul Heyman calling the shots.

Yet, on the other hand, he didn't want to be just another of those guys who couldn't step away at the right time. He didn't want to be the guy who hung on too long, who cared too much, who couldn't find a life outside the ring. That was hard enough in and of itself. Everything in the ring felt so easy sometimes. Maybe that's because it was. In the grand scheme of things, Hunter knew one thing well, just one, and that was wrestling.

He'd made a mess out of his personal life, a complete mess of it. He'd never been the type of guy to do the one-night stand thing, not even when he was in Evolution and Ric Flair egged him on every week. He'd usually buy a girl a couple of drinks, and go home for the night. He'd just never been that type of guy. Until he'd made it to the WWF, he'd barely held a girlfriend for longer than 3 months, if that, so focused was he on wrestling.

Then he'd met Joanie, and look how that one turned out. He'd loved her, thought she was one, _believed_ she was the one. They'd done interviews, a TV special, an entire video, and it'd been the two of them, and when he reflected on them now, he could see how he looked at her with complete adoration. Then he'd met power. Power had been seductive, almost dangerous, and completely overwhelming. He'd fallen in love with power, with revenge, and that's when the brunette-haired temptress entered his life.

For a while, things had been _really_ good with Stephanie, but then he'd injured his quad, ironically in a match with her current husband. The distance and the intensity of his rehab tore them apart. He'd failed miserably with Stephanie. They could have been good together, he believed, but they were doomed to fail. And seeing her relationship with Chris right now, he knew they'd never have anything half as good as that so he'd made peace with it.

Then there was Britt, and he was screwing that up as he spoke. Wrestling though, wrestling never screwed him over, not like real life. If he had a bad match, he'd just come right back and have a better one. It was as simple as that. Did he want to leave that? Did he _really_ want to leave that? No, he didn't, but right now, he was too burnt out, too broken down to really come back. So he didn't retire exactly. This would just be for now.

It would just be until the time was right for his return.

**September 3rd**

"Wow, so much has changed since I've been gone!" Chris said, looking around as if the entire world was different.

"Daddy, you were just here a little while ago," Flynn laughed.

"Oh yeah," Chris clicked his tongue like he couldn't believe he'd been so wrong. "Oh well, I guess you're right, nothing has changed at all."

"A little bit changed," Flynn said, "um…um…I don't know what, but it did!"

"Well then I will take it on good authority that some things changed," Chris said.

"Daddy, hold me!" Kensington whined from Stephanie's arms.

"Okay, okay," Chris said, taking Kensington with the arm not holding Flynn. "You happy now?"

"Uh huh, I mi you," she told him with a pout.

"I missed you too, I missed you both."

"And Sawa too!"

"And Sawyer too," he confirmed. Chris had flown home right after his concert in Virginia the night before so he'd spent the evening with his family in Florida before flying to Chicago with Stephanie and the girls this morning on a chartered flight Stephanie set up for them using her father's private jet. They were leaving straight after the show so he could spend all of Tuesday back at home with the kids and with Sawyer. He had an early morning flight to Greenville, South Carolina, which was a short drive to Simpsonville, where the concert was being held. He was lucky that Greenville was only a 3 hour flight so he could sleep in his own bed Tuesday night and still arrive in plenty of time for sound check and last minute rehearsal.

"Good," Flynn said. "Daddy, are you going to wrestle tonight?"

"Not tonight, Flutterby, I'm still away."

"Because AJ made a bad match."

"We told her to do it," Chris said. "So it wasn't her fault. Remember, I told you I was going to leave for my tour?"

"I 'member, I just hope you would come back."

"I'm sorry, not yet," he shook his head.

"We're glad to have Daddy here though, aren't we?" Stephanie prompted and both girls eagerly nodded their heads. They were so happy to have Chris back. They hadn't seen him since last Wednesday so they wanted to spend as much time with him as they possibly could. Sawyer was especially bummed out that he couldn't come to Raw tonight, even though he'd had the day off, he still had school tomorrow and they didn't want him on a redeye.

"Very," Flynn said.

"Me too!" Kensington told him, flashing him a grin. "Look, Daddy!" Flynn held up her necklace that he'd given her.

"I'm wearing mine too," Flynn said, holding hers up, "Daddy, look, see, I'm wearing mine, and mine is you so I'm wearing it!"

"I see that, I'm very glad you both like them," Chris told them, "whenever you wear it, you can think of me, how's that?"

"I do already," Flynn told him.

"Me too!" Kensington repeated herself.

"We get it, Kensy, stop copying me!" Flynn huffed, "Daddy, she's copying me!"

"No, she's not, she just doesn't know as many words as you," Chris said, "come on, you have to fill me on everything that's been going on back here. You have to be my eyes and ears while I'm gone."

"Oh, I didn't know I had to do _that_," Flynn pursed her lips, "Um…I don't really know."

Chris laughed, "I'm sure I'll have other ways of finding out."

Punk came up to them, and he flagged down Stephanie, "Hey, Steph, a word?"

"Oh, how clandestine," Chris said, "I'll just go set up the girls in your office."

"Thanks, sweetie," Stephanie waved him off before turning to Punk, "What's going on?"

"I just want you to stay out of my business tonight, okay?"

"What are you talking about?" Stephanie furrowed her brow. She didn't know what he was saying. He didn't sound mad at her, and she didn't recall doing anything to him so his words were odd.

"Just stay out of my business, whatever I do tonight, just stay out of it, okay, you know nothing, you're in the dark, that's it, okay, so don't butt in, don't do what you usually do, I know you're in charge, but remember what I said last week, about AJ?"

Stephanie wracked her brain for a moment before the moment of clarity hit her brain, "Yes, I remember."

"Okay, good, then you know what I'm going to do, just trust me, okay?"

"I don't know what I'm saying okay to though," Stephanie argued. This sounded really kind of bad. Maybe that was just her curiosity getting the better of her, but there was something up with tonight. Punk was definitely up to something, and she didn't know if she could stay out of it. Stephanie wasn't used to staying out of anything. Everything was her business as far as she was concerned.

"The less you know, the better," he said. "Steph, do you trust me?"

"Not right now, no."

Punk smirked, "Good, that's even better, later."

Stephanie watched him walk away, his hands shoved into his pockets as he looked around, as if searching for someone. Stephanie watched him for more than few moments, trying to decipher what he was doing, but she came up blank. Whatever he was going to do, she could tell it was going to impact the show. She knew he was over the entire AJ thing, but what did that mean in terms of repercussions?

She wandered into her office some time later. The girls were already off in their own, little wrestling world with their wrestling ring set up. Flynn had her usual Chris Jericho figure in hand while Kensington had decided on a Yoshi Tatsu figure. Chris looked like he was checking his tweets and Stephanie came up behind him and draped her arms around his neck. He smiled and turned his head, leaning in for a kiss.

"I missed you too," she whispered into his ear, giving it a little nip.

He smirked in her direction, "I missed you like that too."

"I didn't say anything about any ways I missed you," she lightly slapped him on the chest. "What are they saying to you?"

"You know, the usual, I'm the best, when am I coming back, how hot is that wife of yours, things like that," he told her and she made a face, "oh, come off it, you love fishing for compliments."

"You're mistaking me with some divas," she came around the couch and sat in his lap. She pulled his phone from his hand and started scrolling through his tweets. "I don't know how you do it. I mean, there are so many questions, and so much adoration…wait, now I know how you do it."

"Which one is yours?" Chris asked sardonically.

"I'm the most obsessed one, whichever that is," Stephanie told him smugly. "You're never going to find out who I am, you have _way_ too many followers, and unless you steal my phone, which is always on my person…"

"I like not knowing, it means every time I answer someone, maybe I'm answering the love of my life," he told her, wiggling his eyebrows as she gave him a soft glare. "So what did Punk need to talk to you about without prying ears around?"

"He's up to something, but I'm not sure what," Stephanie said, "he just told me to stay out of it, that whatever happens tonight to just stay out of it, doesn't that sound ominous?"

"Yeah, so what are you going to do about it?"

"He's trying to get rid of AJ, and I can't say I like her too much, so…nothing."

"So you're not going to help this girl?"

"No, I'm not," Stephanie said, "I know that sounds callous of me, but it's not like she'd lose her job. She's a wrestler, maybe she should get back to what she knows, not the business she doesn't know about."

"The same could be said for me or Hunter for that matter."

"You two have better heads on your shoulder, you're older, you have more life experience. She's practically a child."

"I'm not telling you what to do, Steph," he said when he noticed she was getting defensive.

"I know, but I trust Punk, I think I do at least."

"But you have no idea what he's going to do."

"It can't be _that _bad, can it?"

Chris shrugged, but gave her a look, "Famous last words."

The trouble started right before the show started. Lawler was just about to come out to the announcer's table when Punk attacked him. Stephanie shouldn't have been surprised given the events of the week before, but she was still caught off guard when it happened. She resolved to stay out of it, telling AJ that as the GM, this was under her jurisdiction to do as she saw fit. AJ was surprised Stephanie was giving her any kind of power, but Stephanie was staying out of it. Besides, AJ could handle something as simple as this.

"I guess Michael Cole is going to have to do commentary by himself," Stephanie said through the headphones, "at least until we know what's going on with Jerry."

"Sames!" Flynn said, running over to him as he prepared to go out there to talk. Sheamus scooped her up.

"Hello there, Little Miss," Sheamus told her.

"My daddy is here tonight, but he's not going to wrestler, are you?" she asked him.

"Well, I was hoping I might get a match, I'd love to beat up on Bertie before I have to get after 'im at the next Pay-Per-View," Sheamus told her.

"Oh, good, I hope you do wrestle, I wanna see you," Flynn said. "I'm gonna cheer you."

"I couldn't ask fer anything better," he told her. "I better put you down now, don't think yer mum and dad would want you to come out wit me, do you?"

"I could if I wanted to," Flynn said, "Mommy's the boss."

"Yeah, and I wouldn't want ter get into trouble."

"Oh, I don't want that," Flynn shook her head, "have fun!"

"I will, see you, little miss, tell your little sister I said hello to her too," Sheamus put Flynn down as she nodded eagerly, running over to her sister to presumably tell her what was going on.

Sheamus walked out into the arena to talk about Alberto Del Rio, but someone backstage had different ideas. "Punk!" Flynn said, seeing another of her friends. Tonight was the _best_ night! First, her daddy was here, then she saw Sheamus, now she was seeing Punk again! She was so happy as she ran over to him.

"Hey there, kiddo," Punk said, kneeling next to her, "I can't talk right now, sorry, kiddo, I've got a lot of plans for tonight."

"Like what?" she asked.

"Can't tell you that," he pat her on the head, "tell your mom the same thing, will you?"

"I keep having to tell everyone _everything_," Flynn heaved a sigh, "bye, Punk!"

"Later, Flynnie."

Flynn ran back over to her parents, who pretty much let her have free reign with regards to talk to wrestlers since she loved them all so much. "Mommy, Mommy, Punk told me to tell you something!"

"What is that?" Stephanie asked kindly as she pulled her headphones off for a moment.

"He can't tell you what he's doing."

"Oh, well, thank you for the message," Stephanie said, putting her headphones back on. Flynn was proud she'd remembered and climbed onto the chair next to her father. She looked to the monitor in front of them.

"Oh no, Daddy, they're not being nice, but they're my friends! Who can I cheer for?" Flynn looked absolutely stricken that Sheamus and Punk were fighting with each other. She looked to Chris with horror. She couldn't choose between her two bestest friends!

"You don't have to choose, Flutterby, this is between them," Chris said, "sometimes your friends have to work things out on their own."

It wasn't that Punk disliked Sheamus, in fact, he didn't hate the guy, didn't necessarily like him either, but he didn't hate him. He just happened to be there, and he just happened to provoke Punk on a night where he wanted to provoke everyone possible. He was needling AJ, he knew this. He knew he'd needled her just enough when she made an appearance. He'd heard that Stephanie was pretty much giving AJ the show so he knew this was her doing, which was perfect for him tonight, just perfect.

The match was scheduled for the top of the second hour. He scoffed when he found that out. He knew that it wasn't the scheduler's fault (Stephanie), they had to fit in somewhere, but he was still insulted on principle. He was the WWE champion, he deserved better. This was just another thing that was irking him. He would have had the match had it been the main event, but the top of the second hour, that wasn't going to work for him. That wasn't going to work for him at all.

So he took a personal day.

Was it a little bush league of him to do so? Sure, it was, but if he wanted AJ out, he was going to need to take advantage of everything he could. The board wasn't going to look at Stephanie. Stephanie merely ran the show from the technical perspective, telling cameras where they should go, telling announcer's things to say, that was her job here, not to be the one in charge. That was why the board put AJ in charge, and the axe would fall squarely on her neck. He climbed in the car, and he didn't look back, didn't even look back for a second.

"Stephanie, I don't know what to do!" AJ exclaimed as she ran towards the production table. Chris had taken the girls back to her office to watch the show and rest when they got tired.

"I don't know what to tell you, AJ," Stephanie said, "I can't really butt into this, not like this. This was your doing, I can't correct _your_ mistakes."

"But everyone is leaving, I feel like I'm losing grip."

Stay out of it, Stephanie, stay out of it. She would be lying if she didn't fancy herself the next GM. She was the President, if she wanted to be GM, an impassioned speech to the board might do the trick, but they had instated AJ, so they had to demote her. "AJ, you need to start handling this like a boss. You are the boss now, you are the one in charge. I've been coddling you for too long, and this is what happens when you're in charge. You have to learn to handle these things."

"I can't, I can't do it!"

"AJ, calm down," Stephanie stood up, taking off her headphones and coming to stand in front of the petite girl. She knew this was mean in the long run, that AJ would be struck down soon probably, but this girl was also really scared. "This is the wrestling world. You were asked to be GM, you have to be GM, I can't tie you to me, you have to take responsibility, you can do it."

"I'll try," AJ nodded slowly.

"Good girl, that's all you really can do."

AJ's night just kept getting worse and worse until she eventually snapped. Stephanie knew Punk was probably watching this with satisfaction, but Stephanie actually wasn't getting too much satisfaction out of it. As much as she'd love to instate herself, AJ was about to have a breakdown she didn't necessarily deserve. Punk might not like her, but she was still a person. She would have to talk to him, wonder if he was really going about this all in the best way.

"Steph, you want me to take over?" Britt came over about halfway through the third hour.

"Yeah, could you?" Stephanie asked. "I wanted to get the girls out of here as soon as the show was over."

"Of course, I've got the rest covered," Britt said, sitting down where Stephanie had just stood up from. "Tell Chris I said hi, and I'm sorry we couldn't really talk tonight, it was _so_ busy."

"Will do," Stephanie rubbed her eyes before she walked back to her office where Chris was waiting. Kensington was out like a light, her little body tucked on the couch, a light blanket thrown over her as she rested her head on Chris's lap. Flynn was still awake, but fighting sleep at this point. "Britt's taking over for me, I'll get the girls' things ready so we can go."

Chris nodded as he watched the match between Cena and Alberto. He missed the ring, and it had only been a couple weeks. Fozzy was fun as hell though, and seeing as how it had been well, forever since they'd done any kind of sustained tour of continental North America, seeing and meeting all these new people was exciting for him and the rest of the group. It was something he wouldn't trade for anything right now, even for the ring.

"Uh, Steph, our boy's back," Chris said as he watched Punk appear out of nowhere.

Stephanie stood up from picking up the action figures littering the floor and turned towards the television just in time to see Punk yelling in Cena's face. She watched as he walked towards the car he'd gotten into earlier and once again got into the car, closing the door behind him. The car then passed by Cena and showed the driver as Paul Heyman. Every action figure in Stephanie's hands dropped to the floor as they went limp by her sides. Stay out of it, he'd said, don't worry about it, he'd said, trust me, he'd said.

What the hell was he thinking?


	386. Fashion, September 10, 2012

**A/N: As I'm sure you all know, there was an incident last night on Raw regarding Jerry Lawler (whom I hope gets well soon). Most of you know I prefer to keep things like that out of the story, but unfortunately, it happened during the show. I struggled with how I wanted to handle it, and finally decided I wasn't going to write about Raw. I will touch on things that happened during Raw next week, but with the situation still so precarious, I thought it best to not write anything while things hung in the balance, especially someone's life. This story is fiction based on the fiction of the show, and this is real life, and I prefer not to fictionalize a very serious situation. Obviously, I will have to address it, but I won't delve into it.**

**So, because I'm not writing about Raw, and because Raw was such a heavy-hearted show, I decided that we could all probably use something extra fluffy. So this chapter is nothing but fluff, and hopefully it will leave you with a few laughs and a few smiles. So I hope you enjoy and that it might take your mind off of the seriousness of last night's situation. :)**

* * *

"Hello?"

"Hey, is it a bad time?" Stephanie asked, hearing a lot of noise in the background.

"Hello!" Chris yelled into the phone. "Hold on!"

He wove his way through the bar, ducking out of people's ways as he made his way outside. The cool air hit him like a punch to the face, but then it's cool, soft caress let the heat from indoors dissipate a little bit. It actually felt good. He looked for somewhere to go. To his left, a couple was making out against the side of the bar and he chuckled quietly before he turned to his right and walked a few paces to a place of relative quiet.

"Hey," Chris said.

"Hey," Stephanie said, and Chris smiled, hearing her voice clearly now. "Did I call you at a bad time?"

"No, no, the guys and I are just having a successful day nightcap, that's all," Chris said, "then we're getting on the bus and heading to the next location, which, at the moment, I can't really tell you what that is."

"Are you drunk?" Stephanie wondered, not that she would get angry with him. He was with his friends, he was on tour with a bunch of bands, and most importantly, he wasn't driving, so she didn't have to worry about his safety.

"Nah," Chris said, "I've had a few, but you know me, I can hold my liquor. It's probably about to wear off any second now anyways, what's up though? I figured you would be asleep by now, or at the very least, close to it. Did you need something from me?"

"No, not really," she answered, before she really thought about what Chris might mean by that. "Oh, _oh_, oh Chris, come on, no, that's not why I called you!"

Chris chuckled at how long it took her to catch on to what he was saying, "Sorry, sorry, I thought you just might need a little pick-me-up so to speak."

"Please don't tell me you're around the guys," Stephanie pleaded with him. The last thing she wanted was for someone to get the wrong idea and think she'd called him for some phone sex. She didn't mind the guys' good-natured ribbing, but she didn't like it when she wasn't there to banter back with them. In this position, she felt kind of helpless.

"No way, I came outside so I could hear you," he told her, "so really, what's up? It's way too late for any of the kids to be awake, everything's alright, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but it is one of the kids," Stephanie said, but continued before Chris's panic could surge through his veins. "Kensy couldn't sleep, and she's been calling for you, so I thought I could call you and you could talk to her. She's with me in bed right now. She had a nightmare a little while ago, and she's been crying. Can you talk to her?"

"Of course I can!" Chris insisted. "There is never a time when I will not help when my kids need me. Put her on."

"Okay," Stephanie turned to her side to look at Kensington. She was curled up on Chris's side of the bed, her head on his pillow as silent tears ran down her face, which was already splotchy from her crying. Stephanie reached out and ran her thumb over Kensington's soft, baby cheek to brush away her tears. Stephanie shifted so she was lying down, facing her daughter. "Hey, Kensy, do you think you want to talk to Daddy?"

"Daddy?" she whimpered, her eyes hopeful.

"Yeah, Daddy's on the phone right this second, and the only person in the world he wants to talk to is you," Stephanie told her daughter. Kensington brightened a touch more and Stephanie brought the phone to Kensington's ear. The little girl took it and held it to her ear.

"Daddy?" Kensington asked pathetically, her bottom lip pronounced as she jutted it out. Stephanie scooted closer to her, reaching out so she could rub Kensington's back. Hearing her little girl's anguished cries after her nightmare and subsequent crying for her father had dampened Stephanie's evening. She wanted to curl Kensington around her and take away all her sadness, but it seemed like the only one who could do that tonight was Chris.

"Hey there, Kensy-bug!" Chris put on his happiest, peppiest tone for her. "I heard you couldn't sleep."

"Want you," Kensington mumbled pitifully, making Chris cringe. This was the hard part of being on the road. He was here, outside a random bar, a couple making out behind him, loud music drifting out from the closed, mixed with the smell of alcohol, and his two year old daughter needed to feel his presence hundreds of miles away. They really needed to invent teleportation so he could be there for her.

"I know you do, Kensy-bug, I want you too," he told her, his voice choking up a little bit, "but I can't be right now." He didn't expect her to fully understand, but he had to try.

"Miss you," she whispered into the phone, and he could hear the tears clogging her small voice. Kensington was already probably the quietest of his three children (at least for now, who knew who she might be in a year's time), so hearing her small voice become even smaller was a gut check.

"I miss you too, so much, you have no idea how much I miss you," he told her, "but I'll get to see you on Sunday, okay, that's in just a few days. It's Thursday night, then tomorrow is Friday, and Saturday Sawyer doesn't have school and Flynnie doesn't have preschool so you'll have all day with your brother and sister, then Sunday, I'm going to be there, and I'll be there on Monday with you too."

"Oh," Kensington said. She didn't know where her daddy was exactly, but that didn't sound bad after all. She just wished he were here. "Daddy, hug."

"I would give you the biggest hug if I could right now, but you know who gives great hugs? Your mommy. She gives the biggest, most bestest hugs in the entire universe and I bet she's just waiting to give you one."

"She give," Kensington said. Stephanie had hugged Kensington so tightly, she thought she might be crushed in her mommy's embrace. Not that she minded one bit, she really didn't. She loved getting hugs, it's just, right now she wanted one from her daddy.

"Well then, she should give you another," Chris said, "now, why don't you just close your eyes, okay, and I'll keep talking to you, and you just close your eyes."

"Sing," Kensington told him, punctuating her request with a yawn.

"Okay, I'll sing," Chris let her know. He took a few more steps out into the darkness of the parking lot and started singing a lullaby to her. His voice now was drastically different from hours earlier when he'd been onstage. Where onstage he'd been loud, cocky, and powerful, here he was soft-spoken, full of love and adoration. He picked a simple lullaby he remembered from his own childhood.

"Chris, she's asleep," Stephanie's voice interrupted his singing. "Thanks."

"You know you don't need to thank me," he reminded her, "she's my daughter."

"I know, she just doesn't understand is all," Stephanie told him, "she just misses you."

"I miss her too, all of you really," he sighed.

Stephanie was quick to cut off his sigh, "We're okay, she'll be okay. The other two are perfectly fine. Sawyer is loving first grade, even though I think the whole day thing is still an adjustment for him, and Flynn is her usual model preschool self, so everything is _fine_."

"Thanks," he knew what she was trying to do, and he appreciated it.

"It's just that she's two, and at two, they just want to know you're close by."

"Yeah, I get it."

"It should be a relief to know how much she loves you," Stephanie tried to cauterize the wounds that Kensington had made to his psyche.

"I know," he said.

"Chris, talk to me."

"It's nothing," he suddenly didn't feel like talking, but Stephanie knew something was up. He knew she would know something was up, and if he knew his wife as well as he thought he knew her, she'd know exactly what was wrong.

"How was your concert today?"

Well that was a different tactic, "It was fine."

"No, I'm sure it was great, tell me about it," she implored him, and unwillingly, a smile came to his face.

"Steph, they just keep getting better and better. When I think one crowd can't top another, they do just that. It's crazy. The crowds are _insane_. We've played some big crowds, yes, but this is like every night, the crowd is huge, and they're all so excited to hear us. It's so great."

"I'm so happy," Stephanie said, knowing he was coming out of his mood. "How has the reception been for the new album? Are people singing along at the concerts, are they talking about it at the VIP meets?"

"Yes to both," he told her eagerly. "The people are _so_ into it when we get into the new stuff, and I really think the people who don't know us or come to see other bands and just happen to catch us are getting interested in our music. We've just gotten so many compliments, and the VIP things, they are so excited about the album, almost as much as we are."

Stephanie laughed, "That's great, what kind of things are they saying?"

"Well, a couple of people have asked if you were the inspiration for She's My Addiction…"

Stephanie blushed a little bit, "What did you tell them?"

"That it was a secret," Chris told her with a chuckle that she was so happy to hear, "They just think the album is great, some of them said they were not expecting it, not that they didn't think it wouldn't be good, but that it was different from our earlier stuff. They really liked how it turned out, how it's kind of mellower than they were expecting."

"It really is," Stephanie said, "but I don't think it suffers for that, it shows an evolution to your music."

"Since when are you so into music?" he asked her.

"When my husband became such a _huge_ rock star," Stephanie told him with a smirk.

"Thank you, baby," he told her softly.

"Whatever for?" she asked coyly, flirting with her husband even though he was so far away.

"You know what for," he didn't need to say the words for her to understand. "I better get back inside before they start to miss me then think some crazed groupie has kidnapped me and tied me to a bed somewhere."

"And just how many groupies are we talking about?"

"Thousands," Chris joked, "the usual ring rat type, thinking they can score with the sexy beast."

"The sexy beast will be neutered if that happens."

"You would never," he joked, "I'll call tomorrow after the kids get off from school, is that cool, did you have plans?"

"No, no plans that would require you to wait. Christian, Trish, and Tilden are coming over for dinner, but that's about it."

"Dinner, as in you are cooking?"

"Your mom has been coming over and helping me learn to cook, I'm getting pretty good, when you get home, I can make a home-cooked meal for you, and you'll like it," Stephanie told him excitedly, and he could tell she really was putting the effort into this.

"Wow, I'm going to take you up on that," he told her, "I love you, give the kids my love tomorrow morning when they wake up."

"Of course I will, I love you too," Stephanie told him, "be safe, okay, we need you back here. As you can see, we fall apart when you're not here."

"Not with you around," he told her tenderly, "bye, baby."

"Bye, sweetie."

Stephanie hung up the call and put her phone onto silent mode as she put it beside her bed. She figured turning in early wouldn't kill her so she got ready for bed, letting Kensington sleep with her for the evening. She didn't want a repeat of what happened earlier with Kensington waking up crying. She was two, it wasn't like she was too old to sleep with her mother. Hell, none of her kids were too old to occasionally want to sleep with their parents though Sawyer was very borderline with that, not that he ever came in needing to sleep in his parent's bed.

Stephanie climbed under the covers, pulling them up around her, and then tucking Kensington in a little bit more than she was. Kensington snuffled, burrowing her head against her father's pillow, perhaps comforted by his familiar smell. Stephanie turned off the light and bathed herself in darkness. At least there was one good thing this night and talking to Chris had done for her.

It'd taken her mind off the CM Punk situation.

"_Punk, would you just answer your phone _one_ time when I call, thank you!"_

"_I think you're going to give yourself frown lines in your forehead," Chris reached out and smoothed his fingers over her forehead, smoothing down the lines. She glanced over at him, and gave him a wistful smile. "I don't think he's angry at you."_

"_You think this is part of his thing with AJ, with the board?"_

"_I think so," Chris nodded. "It would make perfect sense."_

"_Perfect sense?" she wondered skeptically. _

"_Yes, perfect sense," he told her, briefly looking over at his wife before turning his attention back to the windshield as he drove them home after their flight. The girls were asleep in the backseat. "When have you ever known Punk not to do something impactful? I mean, he loves doing stuff like this."_

"_You're right, he does live for stuff like this. Maybe he's just asleep."_

_Chris chuckled, "I wasn't aware that guy actually slept."_

_Stephanie scoffed to herself, "You're probably right, he's always talking about how he's always up. But I guess you're right and this is about the AJ thing, I mean he _knows_ that we've had problems in the past, and I don't think Punk would just ignore what Heyman said about the kids. He loves them."_

"_Yeah, so it's all a plan."_

"_I just hope you're right."_

Punk had called her, but unfortunately, she'd been driving at the time, going to pick up Sawyer. Stephanie tried calling him back, but again, he wasn't answering. Stephanie understood that he had his own life, and he always seemed extremely busy when he wasn't wrestling, so she let it go, but she really wanted to talk to him. His message had basically told her again to trust him, that this was something she just needed to trust him with. She felt like she was putting a lot of trust into him right now, but what could she do but wait. She couldn't impulsively fly to Chicago and demand answers.

She was checking her e-mail when she saw it. Her eyes widened as her jaw literally dropped open. It was open so much a fly could have flown right in and she wouldn't have noticed. She blinked a few times, thinking she was dreaming, but she obviously wasn't. In all her years, she had never seen this sight, had never seen anything like that, and it shook her to her core.

Hunter had gotten a haircut.

It was more of a shock than anything else. In the entire time she'd known Hunter, and this extended well beyond the time they got married, she had never seen him with short hair. She'd seen some old pictures of him his mother had shown him once, and even then, she wouldn't say his hair was this short. It was almost a shock to her senses. It didn't look right on him, it didn't look right at all. It was like when you sensed a wrongness in the air, that was how she felt about this.

"My God," she breathed, biting her lip. She didn't even know what to think about that, but it certainly took her mind off everything having to do with Punk. "I've got to tell Chris," she muttered to herself. She checked her watch, but he was most likely busy. She couldn't wait to talk to him, but then remembered she wasn't going to be able to be at Raw on Monday.

She'd been asked to go walk the runway at a fashion show designed for mothers. Stephanie was never one to not take an opportunity to present herself and her company to the people. She was all about the WWE brand, and this was a way to get the word out there, and to hopefully get the word out there about the Be a Star program. Chris had the day off on Monday so he was actually going to come and see her show with the kids. He was so proud of her, not to mention he thought she was going to be hot. That meant Britt would be in charge of Raw.

Deciding to just call and see if Chris was busy, she dialed the phone, "What do you need, Steph?"

"Have I got some insult material for you," Stephanie said enticingly.

"You called me because you have insult material for me?"

"Well, I guess gentle ribbing is probably a better way to phrase it."

"You do know I'm on a tour right now, right?" Chris chuckled.

"What are you doing right now?" she asked.

"What are _you_ doing right now?"

"I'm doing work while watching the kids," Stephanie said, glancing up at them from her vantage point in the overlook to the living room. Sawyer and Flynn were both coloring while Kensington was pushing one of Sawyer's cars around the couch. They were being relatively quiet since she'd asked if they could use soft, indoor voice so she could work. Every now and then Kensington would push her car over Stephanie's feet, but other than that, they were being quite well-behaved.

"Okay, well, I'm kind of in the middle of a signing right now, can I call you back?"

"Hunter got a haircut, he cut off _all_ his hair," she blurted out.

"You're messing with me, right? I mean, you _have_ to be messing with me. That man would never cut his hair," Chris said. "No way."

"He did, and it looks…strange…"

"Okay, baby, I really have to go, but I will look at the pictures of it and see if I have to tease him mercilessly next time I see him."

"Oh, you will, believe me," Stephanie laughed, "you will."

Stephanie went back to her work, chuckling every now and then when she thought of Hunter's hair. She knew he was taking this loss to Brock hard, but she didn't realize he was taking it _that_ hard. Or maybe he just wanted a change, yet, if that were the case, there were other ways to do it. Was this his version of a midlife crisis? If it was, this was certainly getting off with a bang.

"Mommy, why are you laughing?" Sawyer asked, leaning his head against Stephanie's arm.

"Oh, Hunter got a haircut," Stephanie explained.

"That's funny?" Sawyer asked. He got haircuts all the time, but nobody laughed at him when he got them.

"It's just because in the entire time I've known him, I've never seen him cut off his hair like that. It's a little funny to see that."

"You shouldn't laugh at people," Sawyer said with subtle disappointment. Stephanie felt chagrined, of course her son would be the good opinion in all of this.

"You're right, we shouldn't," Stephanie said, kissing him on the head, even though she wasn't going to listen to what he was going to say. "Are you all done with your homework?"

"Yes, I'm all done, all we had to do was color in the pictures that matched the words, it was pretty easy," Sawyer said. "Flynn was pretending she was in my class even though she's not."

"I could be!" Flynn yelled from the living room.

"Don't be nosy and eavesdrop, Flynnie," Stephanie told her daughter. Stephanie's phone rang and it was Chris. "Oh, it's Daddy, hold on."

"Can I talk to him?" Sawyer asked.

"I wanna talk to Daddy!" Flynn ran into the kitchen and over to Stephanie, tugging on her shirt sleeve. "I want to talk to Daddy, I wanna!"

"Hold your horses," Stephanie said as even Kensington came into the room and came over. Stephanie answered the phone. "There are three pairs of eyes trained on me right now like ravenous wolves so you'll have to make this quick before I get mauled."

Chris laughed, "I just finished the signing, so I just…what was he thinking, Steph?"

Stephanie laughed, "I don't know."

"Why again are we not going to Raw?" Chris asked.

"Because I'm going to be hot stuff on the runway," Stephanie told him.

"Oh yeah, I get to tell everyone my wife is a model, _that's_ why we aren't going to Raw," Chris said, "and believe me, I've been telling everyone I'm now married to a model, you should see the looks of jealousy I'm getting. I'm just strutting around here."

"Well, I'm glad, but anyways, you can go see him on Sunday, we both can since we're flying in on Sunday," Stephanie said. "We can just tell him we have business to discuss with him."

"And instead make fun of his haircut?" Chris asked. "I like the way you think."

Stephanie glanced off to the side and saw all her children looking at her expectantly. "Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying. It'll be fun, like a couples thing. Besides, I would like to get to know where his mindset is after what happened last Monday with his speech."

"Yeah, come up with the excuse now, good one," Chris told her.

"So are you available to talk because if I don't let the kids talk to you right now, I'm afraid I won't be here when you get home."

"You bet, put them on," Chris said.

"Okay," Stephanie said, then turned to her kids. "We're going to do this diplomatically, Sawyer gets to talk to Daddy first because he's the oldest, got it?"

"Okay," Flynn frowned, but understood. She just wasn't older and that was bad, but she would have to live with it.

"Okay, here you go."

Stephanie and Chris were happy to see each other when they both got to Connecticut on Sunday, but the kids were even happier to see Chris. Little arms were surrounding him while Stephanie tried to get a hug in, but couldn't. He finally stood up and hovered over her lips for a second in hello before kissing her sweetly since they were in the airport and he didn't want to get kicked out for gross PDA.

"So we have to head straight to Titan. I scheduled a meeting with Hunter," Stephanie said as Chris snickered. "I know, shut up."

"It's kind of late for a meeting, don't you think?" Chris looked at his watch and saw that it was just past five. "The kids have to eat soon."

"I thought we could go have the meeting then take the kids for dinner," Stephanie said as if the kids weren't standing right beside her. Stephanie had taken Sawyer out of school (though she knew she shouldn't) so he could see her fashion show. They were taking a flight fairly soon after the fashion show so he'd only miss one day. She knew it didn't reflect well on her to just take her son out of school like that, but her life and Chris's life were not typical, and sometimes the situation called for it.

"That's fine," Chris said, picking up Kensington and helping her into her stroller as Flynn climbed onto the back of it. "I don't mind."

"Daddy, did you have a good tour?" Flynn asked.

"I had a great one, but I like when I can come and talk to you and see you guys even better," Chris said, always happy to be around his family. The next week was going to be extra great because one of their shows was in Tampa so he could have everyone come out to watch him, and he could spend time with his family. He'd probably just have the band stay over to seeing as they had the room. He was totally on board with this plan. The band was like his family, and having them stay over would be fun.

"We're cool," Flynn said with a smile as Chris pushed them out of the airport and to the private car Stephanie hired.

Before they knew it, they were pulling into Titan. The kids, who were already stir crazy from the plane, were ready to get out of the car, and the door was barely opened when Sawyer and Flynn toppled out. Chris got out after them, quickly taking both of them by hand before they went streaking across the parking lot screaming like banshees. It was pretty deserted since it was so late on a Sunday, but Chris recognized Vince's car there and shook his head. Even when he didn't have an official position, the man was still trying to work his angle.

"Hey, Steph, your dad's here," Chris gestured towards Vince's car with his head.

"I'm not surprised," Stephanie walked over with Kensington. "If he has something to do, he overdoes it…and don't say that sounds like someone you know. I do take time for other things, besides, my dad is going to be the one tomorrow taking care of the show."

"Wait, he is?" Chris asked incredulously. "I thought you were putting Britt in charge. I mean, doesn't that make the most sense?"

"Maybe, but I trust my dad to run things while I'm not there. I think it's good to have someone so seasoned and my mom said he was really happy when I asked him, so there's that. I mean, since we reconciled, I'm trying to make it easier for him to feel included. You know what this also does?"

"What?"

"It means that at some point, I can become a Fozzy groupie for a little while and still know the show is in good hands."

"Wait, you mean you'd want to come along for a while?"

"I was thinking that maybe I could take a week off somewhere, let your parents take care of the kids, and maybe just follow you around in a VW bus, buy a VIP ticket for everyday. I would buy the Roadie for a Day package."

Chris leaned over and brushed his lips against hers as he spoke, "You know that's 750 dollars a pop."

"You wouldn't give me a discount?" Stephanie pouted playfully.

"Well, maybe for you I'd go down to…700, you can call it a 'mother of my children' discount if you want," he winked at her as he pulled away. She slugged him in the arm, of which he was defenseless against because he was holding his children's hands. "Ouch, you don't have to abuse me, now it's up to 800 dollars!"

"We'll see," Stephanie said as she led them inside.

They went over to the elevators, Flynn pushing the button, as they went up to Stephanie's office. Even though she was the president now, she'd not changed offices, seeing no point since she wasn't there all the time. She didn't need the top office because she barely used her office to begin with. Her father was probably working a couple floors up and she made a mental note to speak with him if he was still here. The offices were mostly darkened in the late afternoon light and Stephanie could already see Hunter waiting for her inside her office as they walked down the hallway.

Flynn ran up ahead, skipping and flouncing around, but stopped short as she reached the door of her mother's office, "Trips!"

"Hey there, Flynnie," Hunter said sweetly, standing up from where he was sitting on the couch.

Flynn's jaw dropped open. "Trips, your hair is gone!"

"I know," he said, rubbing the back of his head, which was such an odd sensation. He hadn't had short hair since high school, and even then he'd spent most of high school growing it out. He wasn't used to this cut yet. He'd needed something new though, he'd needed a fresh start, and looking in the mirror the other morning, his hair just stood out more than anything else.

"Wow…" Sawyer's eyes widened as he looked at Hunter. "Trips, your hair is like nothing!"

"Well, it's not nothing," Hunter frowned, his eyebrows knitting together.

"You look weird," Flynn said. She took a few steps closer and studied his face, scrutinizing it like he was a lab rat or something. "I don't like it."

"Flynnie!" Stephanie said sternly. "You shouldn't say things like that…at least not so blatantly."

"Oh great, here it comes," Hunter muttered to himself.

"Trips, I'm so flattered you wanted to take after me," Chris smirked, "but you didn't have to go this far. I'm not sure Stephanie is going to fall for the old switcharoo."

"Very funny," Hunter said, "do you want to get all the licks in now or do you want to space them out?"

He knew he was going to have people talking about it. As soon as the guy had chopped off his signature ponytail, he knew there would be people who'd hate it. He didn't mind it though, he actually thought it looked kind of good, but that was his own opinion. He didn't think that it was such a bad cut, not that he'd known what kind of cut he wanted. He'd just told the guy to do whatever, but to cut his hair off.

"You look like a frog!" Flynn said, then turned back to Stephanie, "that's nice, Mommy, right?"

Stephanie tried very hard to hold in her laughter, "Hunter, what were you _thinking_?"

"I needed a change," he said, "what is so wrong with it?"

"Dude, I mean, why didn't you just ask me for my hairdresser's name. I would have personally flown you down to Florida if I knew your hair was going to turn out like…that," Chris cringed. "I mean, you know that men can have their hair styled nowadays, right? You don't just have to take a razor to your head like you're going into the military."

"Oh, and have it like yours with that Mohawk thing you've got going?"

Chris ran a hand through the long part of his hair, "Hey, I don't see any ladies calling me a frog. You could have used a stylist, I mean, come on, did someone get gum in your hair or something?"

"No, I just felt like I needed something different."

"That's _really_ different, Trips," Sawyer said. "You don't even look like you. You look like…I don't even know!"

"You'll get used to it, everyone got used to your dad's hair."

"Well, I'm hot," Chris shrugged.

"Can I touch it?" Flynn asked.

"You want to touch my hair?" Hunter asked. Flynn nodded eagerly. Hunter threw a look to Chris and Stephanie and they just shrugged. He sat down and Flynn scrambled over to him, climbing on the couch and rubbing her hand against the back of his head.

"It's like D and Kenny's kitty!" Flynn giggled. "Your hair is funny! It's like a kitty cat's!"

"Okay, I think that's enough of that," Hunter said as Chris and Stephanie practically squealed in laughter. "I'm glad you guys are getting such a kick out of this. You're going to make me feel bad about myself."

"There hasn't been a day in your life where your ego hasn't been out of control," Chris said, taking over the conversation as he sat down on the couch, "but seriously, chia pets aside—"

"Oh come on, it does _not_ look like a chia pet!" Hunter protested, rubbing the top of his head as Flynn tried to reach out to pet the back of his head. Chris pulled her against his chest as Stephanie let Sawyer lead Kensington over to a small area of Stephanie's office where they kept toys.

"I don't know, I mean, you could be inviting the comparison."

"You're a jackass," Hunter deadpanned.

"You've known this for years, man," Chris said, "so come on, what gives? What the hell made you wake up one morning and decide _that_ was how you were going to spend your day?"

"No reason, just needed a change."

"Hunter, there is change, and then there's completely changing your entire look," Stephanie said, "don't forget I was once married to you, I know how much you took care of your hair. I know how much effort you put into it. So what made you think this was needed?"

"I just felt like it was time for a change, time for me to grow up so to speak."

"Grow up?" Stephanie asked. "You thought the long hair didn't make you grown up?"

"Well, it didn't help," Hunter shrugged, "I'm kind of retired now, so I thought now that I'm working backstage, I'm going to have to look the part."

"Look the part?" Stephanie shook her head. "Hunter, you never have to change who you are to fit into some mold. Chris has been an executive here and he didn't change who he was. He changed everything around him."

"It's my hair," he argued, "I can do with it what I want."

"Hunter…"

"Stephanie, trust me, okay, I'm fine," Hunter told her.

He wasn't really fine. He didn't know what the hell he was doing anymore if he was honest. The possibility of never wrestling again had popped up a few times during his career, but he'd stamped down those notions every single time. This time, though, it felt more permanent, as if things were really ending. He couldn't explain the feeling. He couldn't even begin to describe it, but he felt he was at an end.

"Okay…"

"Look, it's actually getting late, and since we don't really have anything real to discuss."

"I wanted to discuss this change, and how you are after last week," Stephanie told him.

"I told you how I was, let's leave it at that. You guys have a good rest of the weekend. I'll see you next week."

Hunter got up and left, and Stephanie looked imploringly to Chris. He stood up, handed Flynn to Stephanie and walked out into the hallway, jogging to catch up with Hunter, who was just reaching the elevator. "Hey, man, wait up."

"What is it, Chris? What does it look like now?"

"No, no, not about that, there's plenty of time for that," Chris said, "come to dinner with us."

"I don't think so," Hunter told him. He didn't really feel like being around people right now. He wouldn't say he was wallowing, but if you asked anyone else, he was definitely wallowing. He just didn't have the energy right now, but in a couple of weeks, he'd be fine. "I don't want to impose."

"You wouldn't be," Chris insisted.

"Look, it's nice of you, but really, I'm okay," Hunter said. "I know you're both worried, but I'm okay."

"I'm not going to tell you what to do, but you know it's not over. I mean, you lost one match against one guy, it's not the end of the world. I pretty much lost every match I had since January, and I didn't cry…too much about it."

"What are your feelings on retirement?" Hunter asked of him.

"Mine or yours?"

"Yours."

"Well," Chris had never really, truly thought about it. Oh, sure, it came up in conversation a lot, but he usually gave his stock answer of keeping on until it stopped being fun. But he'd never really contemplated how the end would actually come. Jokingly, he said he'd want to be dragged from the ring, but realistically, is that how he'd really want to go out? "I'm not really sure. I mean, being with Stephanie, I know it's never going to be completely out of my life. I'm never going to go home one night and just never see another arena. I understand that. I know that one or more of my children are probably going to end up wrestling. As for me, I don't know, I just never think about it."

"Why not? I've been constantly thinking about it."

"Because that's why. I want to go out there and have fun. I want to go out there and know I'm entertaining the crowd, that's all I care about. I guess if it's my last match, I'll know it. Did you feel that way?"

Hunter took pause for a moment, just to assess his feelings, "It kind of did. I don't know, this time, it just felt different. I don't know if that's to do with the circumstances or if it has to do with me, but I just felt like this was it."

"Give it some time, man, but you don't need to pull something as drastic as _that _to have some change in your life," Chris told him, "but it's hair, it grows back or out…you might want to grow it out just a little bit."

"Thanks," Hunter rolled his eyes.

"Now come on, you're coming to dinner with us, and I promise I won't let Flynn pet your head again."

"Fine, fine, fine," Hunter walked back with him, but then stopped a short ways away from Stephanie's door. "I haven't gotten to say this yet, but thank you for forgiving me. I'm really sorry for what I did. I know it was wrong."

"You were a desperate man. I love Stephanie that much, and I would probably do something equally as stupid if I thought she was slipping away," Chris admitted to him, and he would. If the situation ever came where he felt like he was losing Stephanie to another man, there would probably be no depth to which he wouldn't go to keep her with him.

"Still…"

"Forget about it, okay, we have, the kids are cool, just forget about it."

Hunter knew that Chris wanted to end this conversation so he simply nodded, "Okay."

**Monday**

"Watch out, watch out, super model coming through!"

Stephanie pushed Chris in the side. "Chris! Stop doing that! You're going to embarrass me!"

"What? How would this embarrass you?" Chris acted shocked. "I mean, all I'm doing is alerting everyone to your incredible presence. My wife is a model, she's walking the runway in a huge fashion show."

"It's not huge."

"Hell yeah it's huge. If my wife is walking in it, it's huge," Chris said, "you are going to show those skinny model bitches a little bit about what it really means to own a runway. I bet that other designers are going to see you and _demand_ you enter their shows."

"You're getting carried away," she told him in a sing-song voice.

"Are you kidding me," he leaned forward and kissed her firmly, his lips pressing against hers. She could almost feel the pride radiating from his lips to hers. "They are going to love you. They are going to adore you. I bet you're going to get a ton of cat calls, and I'm going to have to hunt down every guy who throws them and beat them up."

"Daddy, you can't beat anyone up, that's not nice unless you're wrestling," Sawyer said.

"I can be a model," Flynn insisted. "I can be one too, right, Mommy?"

"Yes, if you wanted to be one, you could," Stephanie told her sweetly.

"No, she couldn't, I don't want guys ogling my daughter," Chris scoffed, making a face. "I do _not_ want anyone ogling my daughter."

"But you don't mind them ogling me?"

"You're different, I didn't make you," Chris told her, "that's on your dad what you do with you. But Flynn is _my_ daughter."

"I am, Daddy, but I cans be a model too, I can walk."

"If she's going to be a diva, she'll wear even less."

"That's why my daughter is going to reinstate the Right to Censor and wear long skirts and shirts to the ring."

"Daddy, what's Right to Censor?" Flynn asked.

"They were a stable, I'll show you when we go home…I mean when we're both at home," he corrected himself, reminding himself that he was still on tour and couldn't just get to go home with his children. Sobering thought.

"Oh."

"Men are going to ogle your daughter, get over it," Stephanie said as they finally got to the entrance where Stephanie going to get ready. Chris was going to take the kids to get an early dinner before the show. She was a little worried about him with three kids in the middle of New York, but with Kensington's stand and sit stroller, Kensington and Flynn would be taken care of, and Sawyer always stayed close. "Okay, well, this is it."

"Do you want me to come in?"

"No," Stephanie said, "I can go in by myself, thanks. I guess I'll see you later."

"Can we come see you get ready?"

"I'd rather you not," Stephanie said and Chris looked at her questioningly. "I don't know, it's just like, this is my thing, you know what I mean, and I kind of want you not to see me until I'm walking the runway, is that okay with you?"

"It's more than okay," Chris told her, "you are going to rock it, you know that, right? I mean, when they sent you that portfolio and it highlighted all the other women, you were clearly the hottest, it wasn't even a competition."

"Chris, sweetie, love of my life, that's because it's _not_ a competition," Stephanie reminded him. "There's not going to be some reward at the end of the night for whoever walks the best. It's just supposed to be a fun event to raise awareness for mothers and how motherhood doesn't have to change you, but how you can be an agent for change."

"Well, I'm sorry, but I'm your husband, and I'm going to look at how hot the other women are, and you are clearly the hottest," he shrugged, "that is how my male brain works. I see women, I deduce who is the hottest, and when you're in the mix, you _always_ win."

Stephanie gave him a look, but the blush rising across her cheeks gave her away. "Do not say anything like that after the show when you can come see me, okay? I don't need to be the woman with the aggressively dickish husband."

"I wouldn't say that to anyone's faces, but I'll be thinking it," Chris said, "and hey, if there was ever a Dad's fashion show, I'd be the hottest, right?"

"Always," Stephanie kissed him again.

"Good luck, not that you need it, you're Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, you make your own luck."

"I love you," Stephanie told him.

"I love you more."

"I love you most," Sawyer said with a grin.

"I love the mostest!" Flynn growled.

"Me too!" Kensington leaned back in her stroller to join in.

"And see, this is why you're a good mom," Chris said, "if this was a presentation and not a fashion show, you'd win that too."

Stephanie tilted her head but didn't say anything. She knelt down to kiss her children, giving them all a little hug too. "Good luck, Mommy," Sawyer told her. "I think you're going to be the most beautifullest there."

"You're the best," she told him, giving him another hug.

"I would think that too," Flynn told her, frowning, but then grinning when her mommy gave her another hug.

"Love you, Mama," Kensington told her, and for that, she got one extra hug too.

"Okay, going inside now!" Stephanie said, clasping her hands together and disappearing through the door.

She was immediately seized by someone, who welcomed her and told her she had to get straight into a chair. Stephanie was whisked into a staging area where a bevy of women where getting their hair and makeup done. She'd never done anything like this before so she wasn't even sure what she was going to expect. There were seemingly hundreds of people running around like chickens with their heads cut off, and she briefly thought about her ship was so much more tightly run than this was.

"Stephanie McMahon-Jericho?" a woman with a headset came up to her.

"That's me," Stephanie said.

"Great, great," she said, checking something off a list on her clipboard. "First off, I'm Valerie. So we're going to get you to hair right now, and then makeup, we may do both. Then we're going to get you into your outfit for the evening. We have a bunch of handlers around here, so don't be frightened if one of them comes up to you wanting you to do something. Just make sure they have a badge. We're also going to have interviews sporadically, you're okay with that, I assume."

"Very," Stephanie said.

"Most importantly, enjoy yourself."

"Thanks, Valerie, I will."

Stephanie never felt this pampered in her entire life. Sure, sometimes when she had to be on the show, she would get Jan to do her hair or makeup, but it was never to this scale. She hardly wore much makeup nowadays. She was married, and she didn't feel the need to impress her husband. Her kids couldn't care less what she looked like, so this was something a little bit new for her. Plus, these were professionals, so it had a different air to it. Her hair was curled, and then teased out, reminding her a little of her days being married to Hunter. She could almost picture Chris calling it a rat's nest.

Every now and then, she was asked to give an interview, and this she was good at. With spearheading the Be A Star program, she was used to giving interviews, and she thrived on them. When her hair and makeup was done, she was whisked away again to put her dress on. It was a lot sexier than she thought it was going to be, but it was absolutely something she would wear, and it fit her like a glove. She knew Chris was going to love it. Putting on the outfit itself made her all the more excited for this.

Chris ushered in his children down the aisle to their seats. "Daddy, this is my name!" Flynn exclaimed as she saw a piece of paper taped to the back of the chair.

"That means you get to sit there," Chris told her while Flynn responded by flopping down onto the seat. Sawyer took his seat on the other side of her while Chris took his seat next to Flynn. Kensington had her own seat, but she was sitting in Chris's lap for the moment. "Are you guys excited to see Mommy?"

"Yup," Sawyer nodded. "Is it going to start soon?"

Chris checked his watch, "Yeah, it is."

"I can't wait."

When it finally started, Stephanie was a bundle of nerves. A lot of the women were telling her to just walk like she normally would, but she wasn't even sure what that was like. She wanted to look good and not embarrass herself out there. She knew she wasn't a runway model, but heaven help her, she didn't want to look like an idiot either. She'd just try to walk naturally and hope for the best.

When her turn came up, she took a deep breath before she was pushed on the shoulder by one of the handlers. She walked out onto the stage and was immediately greeted by cheers and clapping. This was kind of like walking down the ramp at Raw. She knew how to do that. She walked confidently down the runway, focusing ahead of her and not concentrating on anything in particular. When she reached the end, she made a pose that she hoped was more sexy than cheesy, and turned, starting to walk back up the runway. This time, she was more relaxed, and she could hear one very familiar whistle and she smiled widely, knowing just who the loudest catcall was coming from.

Chris held up his camera to record the footage of his wife walking up the runway. He would send it to the WWE so they could tout it, but he also wanted footage of Stephanie for himself. Seeing her walk out was almost surreal for him. She looked…there weren't really any words that could properly describe how beautiful she looked. While it still paled in comparison to how she looked on their wedding day, she looked gorgeous.

After the show was over, Chris gathered the kids and they walked down the stairs to get backstage. They had to search around for Stephanie a little, but Chris finally spotted her and herded the kids in her direction. "Mommy, you look so pretty!" Flynn exclaimed the closer they got. Stephanie knelt down and intercepted her daughter's hugs.

"You were the best," Sawyer told her encouragingly.

"Thanks," she said to both of them, "I'm glad you liked it. I'm sorry if the rest was a little boring."

"It was okay," Sawyer said, "but you were the best part."

"You look spectacular," Chris told her, letting his eyes drink her in. Close-up, she looked even better. The way the makeup set off her skin tone, the hair framing her face, and that dress, dear God, that dress was making him think bad thoughts, very bad thoughts. The way it teased some skin without giving away the farm. It was sexy, but still classy at the same time. Hey, look at him, he was a fashion critic now.

"Chris? Chris?"

"What? Huh?" he asked.

"I was trying to talk to you, but you were ignoring me, what was going through your head?" she wondered.

"I was just thinking about how lucky I am that I get to go home with you," Chris told her. "Just like I thought, you were the prettiest there."

"Chris…"

"Sorry, just sometimes I'm really reminded of how blessed I am that you came into my life."

"Sweetie," she pressed her hand to her heart. "You don't have to say things like that."

"I can say it if I want to. Look at you, you put up with me going on tour, and on top of that, you take on things like this, you're damn near perfect to me. I understand you are not perfect to everyone, believe me, I hear that, but to me…perfection."

"Okay, I've got to get out of this dress before you start to think I hung the moon or something."

"Didn't you?" he joked.

"No."

"You might as well have."

"I'm going to take your temperature after this, make sure you don't have a fever."

Chris just laughed and followed her, still thinking how lucky he was.


	387. New Tattoo, September 17, 2012

A/N: Sorry for the lack of update last week. I wasn't feeling well and felt like I needed a week off from writing to recharge myself. I wanted to write at length for Stephanie's birthday, so this is just from last week, and I'll do a double chapter next week. I didn't find Raw particularly engaging so it's a little light on the actual screen stuff, but I'll make up for that hopefully. Think of this as a filler chapter, I guess. I hope you enjoy though. Sorry again for the lack of update! :)

* * *

"So how much do you love me?"

Stephanie scrunched up her face as she held the phone to her ear. "Is that really how you want to start a conversation with me? Because I'm your wife, so when you call me, and I answer, and the first thing you say is, 'So how much do you love me?' my mind immediately starts thinking of all the bad things you could be doing in Atlanta at this very moment. And I was having such a good day too."

"Oh yeah, good day, that's good, what made it good?" he wondered.

"While I know you're trying to delay the inevitable on what _you_ did, well, it's mainly the good news I heard about Jerry this morning," Stephanie answered. Her father and ex-husband, among many, many others, had been superstars on Monday, and for that, she was eternally grateful.

"I heard, it's great," Chris said, the relief evident in his voice.

"Yes, I plan to call him when he's up for it later," Stephanie said, "and the kids are off at school, Kensington is over at Trish's having a playdate with Tilden, so I'm getting a lot of work done. So now my husband calls with something to tell me, and don't derail my day, Jericho."

"I wouldn't say I was really going to _derail_ it per se. I just know that you're not going to be happy about it," he told her, "which I'm very, very sorry about, but I'm a grown man. I'm going to be 42 in November, and I think that affords me a little bit of freedom."

"Well, as long as that freedom isn't you sticking your dick in anyone else, I think I'm not going to be _too_ mad."

"When I get to see you later tonight? I don't think so, he's waiting for that though," Chris told her, "so you better be ready."

"Oh great, nothing I like more than having sex with you when your entire band is going to be staying at our house. That's not going to be uncomfortable," Stephanie laughed. She wasn't regretting inviting the band here, she loved having people over sometimes. It made the house noisy and crowded, but Stephanie liked it that way.

"We have three kids, we can be quiet."

"So then you walk downstairs the next morning with that shit-eating grin you have, and they _all_ know what we were doing the night before?" Stephanie teased, but she could already hear the ribbing they'd give her and Chris.

"Not with the kids around, besides, even if we didn't do it, they would think we did because I haven't seen you in a couple days, and I brag about you when you're not around. The guys know all about you in the bedroom."

"Oh, so that's why Frank propositioned me last time we were there…"

"Okay, that's not even funny, I'd kick him out of the band so fast, not even funny at all," Chris told her, trying to sound serious.

"But band guys are so _hot_," Stephanie told him. "I'm already planning my sluttiest outfits for when I go to all those Fozzy gigs."

"So pretty much just go into the back of your closet, yeah?" Chris asked.

"Jerk," she told him, pulling up an e-mail as she continued, "so really, what's going on? Seeing as how you're not in front of me begging for my forgiveness, I'm guessing it's not terrible."

"Well, okay, I know you're my wife, and I love you, you know this, I love you more than I've ever loved a person that I didn't have a direct part in making, but sometimes, I can't take your input."

"Okay, so it's something I would want to give my input in…you're not pregnant, are you?"

"No, I have my birth control methods in place."

"Good, that's a load of weight off my mind."

"I'm getting a tattoo," he just came out and said it. Before she could say anything, he continued with his rambling, "On my arm, it's the cover from Sin and Bones. It's not going to take up my entire arm or anything, but it's not as small as my other two, especially the one on my finger considering it's just your name…say something, Stephanie."

"Another tattoo?"

"Yeah, I know I should have told you, but I really shouldn't _have_ to tell you. I mean, you're not the one who's getting it, you know what I mean? I just am really proud of his album and how well it's doing, and I'm really proud of my band, and I wanted to have something to show for it—"

"Show for it, you mean other than the actual CD that you have and all the songs that you recorded?" Stephanie told him.

"Stephanie, I love you, but I can do what I want with my body," he told her.

"Fine."

"Wait, what, fine? Fine? You do know it's not on my body yet? I mean, I sent the guy here a picture, Rich knows him, so I knew that it would look good, but…you're fine with it? You nearly threw me out on my ass when I got the F on my hand, hell, you nearly divorced me when I got your name tattooed onto my finger, which I still maintain is a really romantic gesture."

"Yes, I'm choosing to be fine with it."

"Are you okay? Are you sick?"

"I'm not sick, I'm not anything, you're right," she told him, reading over the e-mail she'd just opened from the marketing department. There were some advertisers apparently interested in becoming sponsors. She'd have to contact marketing and see what they thought about the situation.

"I'm…right?" He furrowed his brows. "Did you do something that I would hate? Do you have some kind of plan going right now? Are you currently looking up tattoo removal places?"

"No, no, and no," Stephanie told him, "I'm just checking my e-mails at the moment."

"So you're distracted, are you sure you heard me?"

"Yes, I'm positive," Stephanie laughed, "You're getting a tattoo of the cover of your CD. Look, Chris, you're right, it's your body, you can do with it whatever you want, and I really can't say anything."

"You're never going to have sex with me again, are you?"

She laughed harder, "No, that's not on the table right now. I'm being mature. This is something you want to do, okay, then it's something you want to do. I can't really control what you do. At the end of the day, it's your choice."

"Okay, seriously, is this reverse psychology?"

"Chris, it's not anything. I'm just agreeing with you, that's it. You want to do this, it's fine, I'm fine with it. I mean, yes, I would prefer it if you didn't get a tattoo, but I can't _tell_ you what to do, and if it's something you really want, me saying no is only going to make you resent me, and I'm not going to let that happen, so if this is something you feel like you need to do, then go right ahead, it's fine."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm positive."

"Stephanie, I mean, really, I don't want you mad at me."

"I'm not mad at you, what is it going to take for you to believe that?"

"I don't really know, seeing as how you're so far away from me right now."

"Then you'll just have to take my word for it. Life is too short to get mad at you over a tattoo," Stephanie said, "I think that's something we've all learned over the past few days. So why am I going to get mad over something like this? You're a wonderful husband, the best father, you take care of all us, and you love all of us, and at the end of the day, that's all that matters, not what you ink on your arm."

"You are constantly surprising me, McMahon."

"We've been together for ten years, I've got to keep you on your toes somehow. Maybe I'm just maturing."

"You are getting up there in years."

"Well, _now_ I resent you," Stephanie told him.

"I'm going to post some pictures on Twitter, I'm sure you'll see them, but I'll send you the completed picture first, okay?"

"Okay, I love you."

"I love you too, you don't know how much I love you. You're seriously up there in the best wife category, I'm going to nominate you for Wife of the Year."

"I'll be sure to get my acceptance speech ready."

"You should, you're absolutely going to win it."

"Of course I am," she told him, "so I guess I should let you go because I'm sure you have plenty of things to do, such as getting a tattoo that is completely unnecessary on your already gorgeous body."

"So much for being okay with it," he joked.

"I'm okay with it, I just think you're perfect the way you are, and you're always going on about how I should never get a tattoo because it just wouldn't look good on me, yet here we are," Stephanie said, "besides, I've got a lot of work to do as well so it's better if I go too."

"Anything I can be of service with?"

"No, sweetie, but thanks for the offer. Please be on time for your flight tonight though, just because it's a charter flight doesn't mean you can just show up whenever you want to."

"I understand, and thanks to your dad for letting us use the private jet, it's really cool of him to do that," Chris told her, "I guess I'll actually have to thank him on Monday then?"

"It would be a nice gesture. I'll give you a call later so you can talk to the kids?"

"Yeah, please do," he said, "thanks again for being understanding, I know you don't have to be, but it means a lot that you are. I know you think it's stupid, but it actually means something to me, and knowing that you know that, and that you understand that, it really does mean a lot."

"It's not a big deal," Stephanie deflected.

"Love you, baby, bye."

"Love you too, bye."

Stephanie wanted to say she wasn't anxious thinking about Chris getting another tattoo, but she was. It wasn't that she thought he was suddenly going to be a different person if he had a tattoo, it was just something she would have to get used to is all. But she'd gotten used to her name wrapped around his finger, and she'd gotten used to the F on his hand, so she was sure she'd get used to his new tattoo as well. She chuckled quietly to herself as she thought about when he'd gotten his first tattoo.

She hadn't noticed it at first because he'd been wearing his wedding ring, but as he took it off that evening, putting his ring on his nightstand, she'd looked over to him flicking off his light and noticed the marks on his finger. At first, she'd believed it to be dirt, smudges really, and she immediately told him so. When he didn't answer, she grew suspicious and reached over to turn on her own light. She'd grabbed his left hand and stared down at it, reading her name across his skin.

"_What did you do?" she nearly hissed._

"_I was kind of drunk…" It was probably the worst way to start a story. "And I was kind of in love with this woman named Stephanie…and to show my love, I kind of got her name tattooed on my finger."_

"_You're an idiot."_

She turned over and didn't talk to him for the rest of the night, letting it bleed into the next day as well. But true to form, she'd gotten used to it, and now it was like if she didn't see her name on his finger, she would worry immensely. Her phone buzzed to life with an alert from Twitter. She would never tell Chris what her handle was on the micro-blogging site, and she knew he wasn't crazy enough to go over his over 800,000 followers to find her. And she only used Twitter on her phone, of which he was never in possession.

She knew it was from him because he was the only one she got alerts from, and she pulled up the picture he'd posted. The tattoo was still in its beginning stages. The picture had been transfigured onto his arm via the transfer paper, but only a few lines had actually been tattooed onto his arm. It looked large, much, much bigger than his other two. She cringed as she thought about his beautiful arm. She sighed and remembered that it was just an arm, just an arm that she was used to being wrapped up in. No, no, no, it was really just an arm, and that arm was still the same, and still attached to Chris, just as much as her name would always be attached to his.

If she was honest with herself, and not honest with Chris, she was kind of glad her name was on his body. In the event they ever broke up, her presence would _always_ be with him. She'd like to see some other woman try to fill in _those_ shoes.

_Finished, hope you think it's okay. Don't tell the kids, want to surprise them._

"Mommy, what are you looking at?" Sawyer asked as Stephanie leaned over the counter.

"Oh, Daddy's just sending me a text," Stephanie explained to him.

"Say hi for me," Sawyer told her.

"I will, don't worry," she said dismissively. She clicked on the picture and braced herself for what it might look like.

It wasn't that bad. There were some elements of it she didn't like, she wasn't going to lie and think it was the best tattoo she'd ever seen in the entire world, but it wasn't bad. The placement was a little weird, but maybe it was because it was just smack dab in the middle of his arm. The colors were a little bit bright, but that was probably because it was so fresh. The design stayed pretty true to the album cover. She knew he loved it. She could just tell without even looking at his face. It was a true testament to how close they were that she could tell his moods even when she wasn't near him.

_It's nice._

He responded almost immediately, _You hate it…_

_I never said that…_

_But you do?_

_I think it's nice, it's just going to take some time to get used to is all, but it's a nice design. I'll have to see it in person._

_Just say that you hate it!_

_I didn't say that I hated it! I just want to see it is all!_

_Well, I like it_

_Then that's all that matters, isn't it? I'll see you later._

Chris snuck into the room later that evening. Stephanie was already in bed, probably from dealing with three kids for days on end on top of an entire company that needed to be run. Chris knew Stephanie was letting her father have more and more input, but she still ultimately had her name everywhere on that company. It couldn't be easy for her, and he felt a little bad that he couldn't help out more. He'd gotten the guys all settled into the various guest bedrooms around the house (they'd had to set up one of the playrooms for a guest bedroom and he hoped Frank didn't mind having stuffed animals stare at him all night) and all he wanted to do was crash in his own bed, with his own pillow, and his own wife next to him.

He didn't bother turning on the lights, he didn't need them. He knew the room like the back of his hand. He set his suitcase down by the door and navigated his way towards his closet, turning on the light and closing the door behind him so Stephanie wouldn't be disturbed. He undressed and grabbed some pajama pants, slipping them on before turning off the light and padding his way to the bathroom. He closed the door again so as not to disturb her, but when he walked back out, the light was on and she was lying there, staring at him.

"Hey," he whispered, though why he was whispering _now_ made no sense. He cleared his throat, "I didn't mean to wake you. I honestly didn't think you'd be asleep."

"Long couple of days," she said, and it was true, he knew it, hell, it'd been a long couple of days for everyone in the company. He climbed into bed and she turned around to face him.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, just tired, trying to catch up on sleep."

"Don't worry about tomorrow," Chris said, "I can get the kids ready, and with four other dudes in the house, I'll have plenty of help. You should sleep in."

"Thanks," she said, her eyes falling on his left arm. He watched her looking at it, her manicured index finger running over his skin, against the slightly raised part of his tattoo that was still healing. He didn't know how she did it, but that simple touch was sending shivers down his spine. Was he so far gone for her that after only a few days without her, his body was responding in such a heated way? "So this is it, huh?"

"That's it," he told her, still watching her. She didn't meet his eyes, but he could see they were studying every line, every nuance, replacing her vivid memories of this particular arm, and modifying them, calculating the difference. He knew she wouldn't divorce him or something crazy over this, but he didn't want her mad.

"It's nice," she told him, finally looking up at him with a smile, "and as long as you like it, it's nice to me."

He gave her a lopsided grin and scooted down so he was facing her. He leaned over slightly to press a chaste, but firm kiss on her lips. "Get some rest, we can talk more in the morning."

"Mmhmm," she mumbled, already falling back asleep. He reached over her back to turn off the light. Once his eyes adjusted to the dark, he sought out her face again, tracing every line and curve with his gaze. He fell asleep just looking at her.

The next morning, Chris was the first awake, and since he'd vowed to let Stephanie sleep in, he got out of bed and started getting everything ready for the morning. He made coffee, enough for everyone before he got Sawyer's lunch ready. They had a busy day ahead of them. The kids needed to get to school, Kensington had to be taken care of, period then Stephanie and the kids were coming to the concert that evening. He smiled as he thought about them there. They wouldn't have to leave right after, there would be no flights, and with the band having Friday off, they could relax at his house after the show, maybe even get a home-cooked meal from his mom.

"Hey, man," Billy walked out into the kitchen, rubbing his eyes a little. "You're up early."

"I have to get Sawyer and Flynn ready for school, just wanted to get the coffee ready. You know where the cups are, right?"

"Yeah," Billy said, walking over to one of the cupboards and grabbing a random mug. "So how did Steph take the tattoo?"

"She didn't mind it," Chris shrugged and Billy's eyes widened, "I know, I'm as surprised as you are."

"Daddy, hi," Sawyer came in, his hair askew as he wandered into the kitchen.

"Hey, I didn't have to wake you up," Chris told him, a little surprised.

"I heard people talking," he explained. "Can I have waffles?"

"Sure you can," Chris said as Sawyer walked up to Chris and gave him a hug around the waist. Chris leaned down and hugged him back with one arm, kissing him on the head. "Nice to see you, kid."

"You too, Daddy," Sawyer nuzzled against his father. "Hi, Billy."

"Hey, kid, so first grade, huh? How you liking that?"

"It's fun," Sawyer answered before he saw the mark on his father's arm out of the corner of his eye. "Daddy, what's that on your arm?"

"Oh, this," Chris turned so he could see it, "I got a tattoo yesterday, what do you think?"

"That's the cover of your CD, right?" Sawyer asked, looking at every detail on his father's arm. Chris nodded and mumbled in the affirmative. "It's nice, I like it, it's pretty big though, it's much bigger than your other ones."

"I know, that's why I really had to think about this one."

"Did Mommy know?" Sawyer asked and Chris could hear Billy snickering behind him. Everyone he knew, knew he was pretty whipped for Stephanie.

"Yeah, I was sure to tell her before I got it, do you really think I wanted to be in trouble?" Chris asked, making a face, which made Sawyer laugh.

"No," Sawyer giggled as the frozen waffles popped up from the toaster. Chris grabbed them and stuck them on a plate, handing it to Sawyer, who took it over to the table. "Hi, Billy, did you have a good sleep?"

"I did, buddy, thanks," Billy said as Chris set down some butter and syrup for Sawyer's waffles.

"I'm going to go wake up your sister," Chris said, "enjoy your waffles."

"Thanks, Daddy!" Sawyer said brightly as he reached for the syrup.

Chris headed upstairs, passing Frank on the stairs and letting him know there was coffee on the table. Frank just grunted and nodded, obviously still very much closer to sleep than wakefulness. Chris headed into Flynn's room and smiled as he saw one of her legs hanging off the bed, just peeking out from under her butterfly-laden blanket. While her blanket was butterflies, her actual sheets were WWE sheets. Chris climbed onto the bed next to her and poked her in the nose. She snuffled slightly, but stayed asleep. Chris poked her in the chin and she shook him away unconsciously. Chris leaned over and kissed her on the forehead, which startled her awake.

She opened one of her eyes and peeked at who was bothering her, half-expecting it to be Kensington. It would be such a Kensington thing to do to wake her up. When she saw it was Chris, her sleepiness evaporated and her face lit up. "Daddy, you're here!"

"No, I'm just a dream," he wiggled his fingers and she giggled and threw herself at him. Chris hugged her back. "You have to get up and eat breakfast so I can take you to preschool."

"I get to see Fozzy today though," Flynn muttered against his neck.

"Yeah, you are."

"I like seeing you sing," Flynn told him, then, because she was Flynn, she had to add, "but not as much as I like seeing you wrestle."

"I know," he told her, "do you think you want to go downstairs and get some breakfast."

"I want cereal," Flynn told him. She pulled away from him and sat up in bed, her brown hair a mess of waves around her face. Flynn was very haircut-resistant right now. Every time they asked her if she wanted to get her hair cut, she would shake her head vigorously. It was getting past shoulder-length now, thick like her mother's, and right now it was messy and all over the place.

"Then we'll get you some cereal," Chris sat up too.

Flynn cocked her head to the side as her eyes widened. "Daddy, you got a picture on your arm! Like Punk!"

Chris chuckled and held his arm towards her, "I did, it's the cover from Fozzy's CD, I wanted to get it to kind of go with the album."

"Ooh," Flynn leaned forward and ran her hand over her father's arm. "Wow, Daddy, it's big, you never had big before."

"It hurt," Chris made a silly face as Flynn giggled, her fingers tracing all the lines. "What do you think about it?"

"I like it!" Flynn told him. "I like the picture! Daddy?"

"Yeah?"

"Can I draw a picture on you?" she asked sweetly. "I can dos it, I will make it pretty."

"Okay," he told her, "you can draw something on me for today, okay? Then everyone will see it at the concert later."

Flynn was positively a ray of light as she hugged Chris. He held her against his chest as he stood up and took her downstairs to get her cereal. The rest of the guys were down there, though Stephanie was conspicuously absent, and he was glad she seemed to be sleeping in. He set Flynn down and got her breakfast ready as he sent up Sawyer to get dressed and to brush his teeth. Flynn greeted the band jovially at the table, already engaging them into conversation as only she could.

The morning went swimmingly, Chris getting the kids ready and off to school. When he came back home, Stephanie was laughing at the kitchen table with the rest of the band, Kensington sitting happily in Rich's lap. He loved when his two worlds could merge. It felt like…well, life was actually really good. Stephanie then told him she was taking the day off so she and Kensington were going to go with them to the venue and they'd watch sound

check and everything. As if his life couldn't get any better.

"I'm so glad you're here," Chris told her as she stood in front of the stage, getting ready to see Chris do the sound check. The venue was empty right now, but it was going to be filled soon, and Stephanie couldn't wait to see the turn out. She was already in her Fozzy t-shirt and Kensington was wearing hers as well, even if it was a little big.

"Daddy, go wif you?" Kensington asked.

"Not right now, Kensy-bug, but you can watch me later on when your brother and sister get here."

"Why no?"

"Because it's going to be _way_ too loud for you up there. As it is, it's going to be too loud for you when you come later, but in that case, Mommy is going to have earplugs for you like you always wear."

"Oh," Kensington frowned. Chris leaned forward and kissed her. She smiled and turned her head to kiss him back. "Love you."

"I love you too," he told her, then kissed Stephanie, "You look hot by the way. I mean, the way you are wearing that shirt, you might even look hotter than you did at your fashion show. You're definitely more bangable."

"You're so classy," Stephanie kissed him. "I do need to go pick up the kids soon though."

"That's fine, you have everyone's passes, yes?"

"Of course, what do you take me for?" Stephanie asked.

"Oh, I forgot, you run an entire company. This is small time compared to that. I mean, usually, everyone would know who you are, but this is different, even though you've been here before, but I think they change some of the security in every city."

"I know," Stephanie told him, "believe me, we've done this before, why are you so nervous this time around anyhow? It's not like we haven't been to one of your concerts before. The kids and I have been to so many that we're kind of sick of it now."

"Very funny," Chris told her with a deadpan look on her face. "I know it's not a huge thing since you actually came to a show on this tour, but you have to remember, my mom and dad are coming to this one and they've never seen me play."

"You're almost 42 years old, not sure they're going to disapprove or anything," Stephanie rubbed his cheek as Kensington reached out to rub his other cheek, emulating her mother. Chris looked between the two of them.

"I know, I just want to make them proud."

"Think you've done that, maybe 15 times over," she assured him. "Go on, you don't want to be running behind schedule."

Stephanie watched as Chris went through his soundcheck then went to go pick up her older children, Flynn from preschool first and Sawyer from first grade. She had them change in the bathrooms at Sawyer's school so they were all ready when they arrived back at the venue, just in time to meet up with Ted and Loretta. Stephanie had everyone's passes so she handed them out and went backstage, meeting up with Chris.

The concert went off without a hitch. The crowd was large and Stephanie was again filled with pride when she watched Chris sing and play up the crowd. He was really in his element here, and she was somewhat glad he was able to go back and forth between the wrestling and this. She didn't want Chris to ever reach a stalemate in his life. He was not the type of person who would do well with a stalemate. She couldn't ever picture him retired like Ted, puttering around the house, going to various events then going right back home. That wasn't her style either though, and the two of them were bound to just keep chugging along until the very end.

It was just how they worked, it was just how they were built. It made them both perfect for each other and imperfect for each other. Their personalities meshed well together, but because they were constantly on the move, sometimes they felt like separate planets orbiting around but never colliding. Still, she wouldn't trade this for the world. The smile lighting up Chris's face was more than enough to make up for any time she missed him.

"What do you think?" Stephanie asked Loretta as they watched from backstage. "Is he what you expected?"

Loretta laughed, "I'm not quite sure what I expected."

"He's good though, right, you have to admit that," Stephanie said proudly. Loretta looked over at her daughter-in-law and could see all the emotions radiating off her face. She kept glancing towards the stage, pulling Flynn back whenever the girl got too close to announcing her presence in front of thousands of people. Her feelings were so clear, and Loretta just could not picture her son with anyone other than Stephanie. How she had ever doubted the veracity of this woman's love for her son boggled her mind at this point.

"He's wonderful," Loretta said, "I can tell you certainly think so."

Stephanie's face lit up like a firework on the 4th of July but before she could say anything else, Chris started with the next song and the kids were jumping up and down and dancing, well, Kensington was trying to dance, but it looked more like a weird spasm that kept her rooted to the floor while her body tried to twist and her arms flailed about. It wasn't like Flynn was much better, but she tried a little harder. Sawyer was actually quite lithe on his feet, but he was older, he had better coordination than his little sisters.

"He is."

Stephanie almost didn't want to go back to work on Monday, _almost_. She'd let her father take care of Night of Champions, and she was coming in on Monday. She found it easier now to let her father in to do some work and take over spots for her. He had even taken to going to SmackDown. It took a lot of the burden off Stephanie, and she was actually loath to admit it, but her father helping her out was a godsend. It gave her more time with Chris and the kids, and she sometimes wondered if her father was helping for that reason. He'd been gone a lot once the business started to pick up steam, and maybe this was his way of not letting his grandchildren fall by the wayside.

Unfortunately, this meant Stephanie hadn't had any access to Punk in over a week, and she needed to find out what was going on, especially after last night. He still wasn't returning her phone calls, at least not directly. He would call her in the middle of the night, when he knew she must be asleep, and leave a message on her phone, letting her wake up to a short voicemail telling her he still had everything under control. She just didn't know what control was, and that in and of itself was driving her crazy. She wanted to be in the know, and being outside that circle was damning her.

The first thing she did when she arrived at the arena was ask Britt where Punk was. If anyone knew where he was, it would be her, but Britt said that since he'd aligned himself with Heyman, she hadn't really had any time to talk to him. It seemed that Heyman was hanging around him pretty tightly. It was like he was Punk's new personal bodyguard, but that didn't seem right. She decided she'd just have to take care of this herself so she dragged her two daughters all around the arena to find him. When she finally located him sitting on a random trunk in a rather secluded part of the arena, she breathed a sigh of relief that he was alone.

"Punk!" Flynn ran up to him happily. "I haven't seen you in _forever_."

"I haven't seen you either," Punk told her, lifting her up and sitting her next to him. "How've you been, kiddo?"

"I'm good, I went to my daddy's concert and it was loud and fun."

"Cool," Punk said, nodding at Stephanie, "I take it you have questions."

"I understand that you have answers."

"Look, I know you don't like Heyman, I know you have reason not to like him, but Steph, you honestly can't tell me who to hang out with and who not to hang out with, you know that, right?"

"I understand that," Stephanie said, "I just wish I knew the motivation behind this."

"Look, I know it's not entirely your fault that I'm being booked like I'm some new face just coming into the company, but Brock got a lot of attention when he was with Heyman and—"

"You think this is your way of gaining that respect you think you deserve," she finished for him.

"Stephanie, I don't _think_ I deserve it, I _know_ I deserve it," Punk told her. "I'm sick and tired of getting overshadowed because I'm not some wrestling prototype that everyone has believed for years on end. Guys have worked hard to shed that image, I don't want to go back there."

"I don't really know how to respond to that," Stephanie said. "I mean, I'm sorry you feel that way."

"Heyman helps, he's a polarizing figure, yes, hell, half the time I don't even like him, but he brings the fans to me, he's making them notice me, and with that logic, you can't keep me out of the main event."

"You've got a point."

"Plus, AJ's a joke, Steph, we both know it. She needs to be out of here, and if the Board sees she's incompetent, she'll be gone. You want that, don't you?"

"I can't say I'd be sad to see her relegated back to being a diva."

"That's what I thought."

"So you think this could work then?" Stephanie asked. She wasn't necessarily climbing on board the Heyman train (she'd never been on that train before even if Chris sometimes insisted that Paul did have some redeeming qualities. She was hard-pressed to find any), but Punk did have a point about AJ. She'd never been in AJ's corner. Her father's choice had been foisted upon her, and she'd ridden the wave, but if there was a chance AJ might be sent away, Stephanie was going to take that.

"Of course, she's not a very strong person. She's a little weak-willed, and I don't think it'll take much to break her, I mean, look at her instability."

"You're right."

"So you're not mad at me?"

"I can't control you," Stephanie told him, "you're not my husband, you're just my friend, and I can't and wouldn't ever tell you who to hang out with or who not to hang out with, that's not how this works."

"I'm glad you think that."

"It is. I mean, I can tell you to be careful, but you've known Paul for a long time, so I can't really say anything there either. Still though, be careful, he can be a succubus, clinging onto anything successful."

"Like a pretty, rich girl who wants to buy her own company?" Punk asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

Stephanie rolled her eyes, "Exactly like that."

"What are you talking about?" Flynn wondered, finally getting angry for being essentially ignored. She thought this was her time to talk to Punk. She was four, she thought the world revolved around her.

"We're discussing business, Flynnie," Stephanie explained to her. Kensington had the wherewithal to be distracted by Stephanie's necklace and didn't care about the conversation. She pressed her head against her mother's collarbone and was happy to just watch the conversation as it happened.

"I can talk 'bout business. You wrestle, Punk," Flynn said, "there, done!"

"She's got a point, I would like to wrestle," Punk told Stephanie, "and hey, Flynnie, where should I wrestle, should I wrestle first like a loser or should I wrestle in the main event like a winner?" He glanced back at Stephanie with a smug look on her face and she made a face at him.

"Like a winner!" Flynn told him.

"I agree," Punk said, sending another glance in Stephanie's direction.

"I get it, I get it, well, if that's what you really want, make yourself known," Stephanie said, "I think Paul can help you in that department. Come on, Flynnie, we have to go find Grandpa, and then I have work to do."

"Oh, I can't stay with Punk?" Flynn wondered.

"Sorry, kiddo, I've got things I have to do and I have the first part of the show."

"Oh," Flynn pouted. Punk ruffled her hair.

"Maybe I'll find you later though, okay?"

Flynn brightened up, "Okay! Let's go, Mommy, so it can be later!"

Flynn hopped off the trunk and ran to Stephanie's side, seeking out her hand and holding Stephanie's free hand in both of hers. "Bye, you guys," Punk gave the three girls a wave goodbye.

"Later," Stephanie said as Flynn and Kensington waved. "Oh, and Punk?"

"Yeah?" he wondered.

"For what it's worth, I think the referee made the right decision keeping the belt on you," she winked at him, turning away as Punk shook his head. It was good to have friends in high places, but sometimes you needed to take things into your own hands when it came to things like this. Speaking of taking things into his own hands, he decided he'd go find his favorite girl backstage, only slightly beating out Flynn.

Stephanie navigated the girls to her father's office for the evening, even though they were starting to get antsy. When they saw Vince, however, their moods brightened because their grandpa usually had something for them. "Hello, hello," Vince said, hugging his granddaughters one at a time.

"Grandpa, do you have something to give?" Flynn asked.

"I'm not sure," Vince said, then reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. "Let me see what I have in here."

"Dad, what are you doing?" Stephanie asked with a scoff.

"I'm spoiling my grandchildren, what do you think I'm doing?" Vince asked, taking out a few hundred dollars and handing one each to his only two granddaughters. He handed an extra one to Flynn before saying, "Give this one to your brother."

"Ooh, Grandpa, thank you!" Flynn said before the money disappeared from her hand and into Stephanie's hand.

"Dad, are you kidding me with this?" Stephanie asked, plucking the money from Kensington's hands before she ate it or something. "You can't just go around giving them hundred dollar bills, they're two and four, they don't know what to do with this."

"I know, it's money," Flynn told her, "you buy things with it."

"Okay, so you know what to do with it, but you are too young to go around with this much money, say thank you to Grandpa, but we can't take this."

"Of course you can, give it to them and let them spend it how they want. Let them have some toys and candy."

"No," Stephanie said, looking down into Flynn's hopeful eyes and shaking her head. "You may buy _one_ thing with this money, and the rest of it is going to people who need it. Why don't you go sit on the couch and play with your sister while I talk to Grandpa."

"We don't have no toys," Flynn looked around.

"Well, go…um, just go sit down and talk to each other."

"Kensy don't talk much."

"Flynn, please," Stephanie said sternly. Flynn relented, grabbing her little sister's hand and dragging her over to the couch, helping her get up before she sat up there herself. Flynn, already bored, rested her head against Kensington's legs and Kensington pretended Flynn was a drum as she patted her face over and over again amidst Flynn's giggles. Stephanie turned back to her father once she saw her girls were occupied. "Dad, please don't give them money like this. They're little kids, they don't need this."

"They're my granddaughters, Stephanie, I want to spoil them whenever I can."

"Believe me, those girls and Sawyer are never in want for anything," Stephanie said, "they have everything they could possibly ever need, and Chris and I don't want them growing up thinking they can have anything they want whenever they want. We want our kids to realize the value of money and the value of helping others."

"Well, I can't say that's a bad thing," Vince relented.

"Thank you," Stephanie told him, "this money will be put to good use." In actuality, the girls would mostly likely forget about this in half an hour and she could give all the money to charity instead of spending on the girls when they didn't really need anything. "So, I was thinking about the show tonight—"

"Actually, I've got everything taken care of, I met with AJ, and we pretty much ironed out the evening. I even contacted Britt and we talked for a short while right when you came in so she knows what's going on as well."

"You planned the show without me?"

"I figured you'd have a lot to do since I know you missed doing things when Chris had his concert in Tampa. I didn't want you to fall behind. I thought you could do paperwork tonight and not be hassled with the show. If anyone knows how much work goes into being the President, it's me, don't you think?"

"Yeah…" Stephanie didn't know what to say to that or what to think about the entire situation. "Well, it sounds like you've got everything covered, I mean, it's not like _you_ don't know how to do things around here, right?"

"Yes, that's right, and you know what, next week is your birthday, why don't you take the night off, does Chris have next Monday off or is he singing with his band?"

"He has it off, he has Mondays off," Stephanie explained, suddenly feeling very odd man out about this entire thing.

"Then you should stay home, enjoy the time together, celebrate your birthday without the added stress of everything here."

"I like being here though," Stephanie argued, "so do the girls."

"But will Sawyer get to spend it with you?"

"We were going to do something Sunday night," Stephanie explained.

"It's better this way, you should spend it with your family."

"I guess I would like to be with Sawyer," Stephanie relented.

"See," Vince smiled. "I know you, Stephanie."

"Yes, I get it, Dad," Stephanie told him. "Thanks, I guess."

"No thanks needed," he told her and she just nodded.

"I guess I better get to that…paperwork," Stephanie sucked at her teeth a little. She turned back to her daughters, "Come on, girls, we can go back to my office and we can set up all your things and you can have some things to play with."

"Alright!" Flynn fist pumped and Stephanie grabbed her girls' hands before giving a dismissive goodbye to her father.

She was starting to feel pushed out, and her worst fears were starting to creep across her skin. She didn't want to think ill of her father, not after they just patched things up, but she was starting to get that fear she had when she'd first taken over the company. Her father was taking over so much, but then, she thought, she'd given him the power the night before, so perhaps he was just riding the wave. Maybe if she asked him about it, he would relent.

She was confused. She wanted to believe her father was thinking of her, but it was her father. He'd had her beaten before, hell, once, he'd been the one doing the beating, choking her out until she could barely breathe, sending her to the hospital. So would her father oust her if he wanted to? Absolutely he would. That was the problem; she knew her father would do so without much remorse, just as she'd done to him. That was what set them apart from Shane and Linda. They were willing to get ruthless. She was more than willing to fight back, but how could she fight back if she didn't know if this was a fight.

"Jericho's phone, he's currently with a date at the moment, can I take a message?"

"Excuse me?" Stephanie asked.

"Oh God, Stephanie, you weren't supposed to hear that!"

"Very funny, Frank," Stephanie recognized the voice, "is Chris around?"

"Yeah, he's here, he's just in the bathroom."

"What the hell are you doing?" Stephanie could hear Chris's voice. "Hello?"

"Hey, sweetie."

"Whatever he told you, it was a lie."

"I figured," she said, "can you talk?"

"To you, always, what's up? How's the show going? I'm going to watch it later, don't worry, so what's going to happen so I can prepare myself."

"I wouldn't know."

"What do you mean you wouldn't know? Isn't it going on right this second?"

"Yes, but hell if I know what's planned."

"Uh oh, what did your dad do?"

"How did you know it was my dad?" Stephanie wondered.

"Because only he could make you use that tone, so did he take over the show or something? Is that what he did?"

"Hit it right on the head. I think he's trying to get me out of here."

"Steph, you don't know that."

"But I don't know if he's not," she admitted.

"So just be cautious then."

"Cautious."

"Or make it known you're the boss, either way, you'll be doing something, and I won't have to hear that sad lilt in your voice."

"I do not have a sad voice."

"You're using it right now, it's plain as day."

"Thanks for listening to me."

"You're my wife, I love you," he told her, "and just because you're turning the big 3-6 next Monday doesn't mean that I love you any less, if that's what you were wondering. I still think you're smoking hot."

"You're such a wordsmith." Stephanie smiled despite herself. Just hearing Chris's voice was such a comfort to her. Wherever she was in the world, if she could hear Chris's voice she knew she wasn't far from home.

"Don't worry about your dad, okay, don't worry about it."

"Okay," she told him, mostly to appease him.

She _was_ going to worry about her father.


	388. 36 Candles, October 1, 2012

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and what not. Real life keeps getting in the way of my writing, so it's sort of an abbreviated chapter. I like where I ended it, it just felt like a right ending at that particular moment, but it'll be continued next week. Hope you enjoy. :)

* * *

"It's my wife's birthday! It's my wife's birthday!"

Sawyer looked at his father like he'd just been let out of the cuckoo's nest. Chris was currently dancing around the kitchen, making breakfast for him and his sisters, but his father was being really weird about it. He knew it was his mother's birthday, but he wasn't going around singing about it! "It's Mommy's birthday!" Flynn joined in on the chorus and Sawyer was startled from his reverie to look at his sister.

"You know it is," Chris came over and kissed the top of her head as he set her French toast down in front of her.

"Daddy, we never get this when it's schools!" Flynn's jaw dropped at the extravagant breakfast. Usually when they had school in the morning, Chris or Stephanie would make something easy and quick, cereal, frozen waffles, toast, scrambled eggs, but nothing fancy that required time.

"Well you don't have school today," Chris joked with her, giving her another kiss on the head.

"But we're not going to wrestling," Flynn pouted a little bit, but then remembered it was her mommy's birthday so she perked right up again.

"No, we're not because we're going to stay here and celebrate Mommy's birthday with her so she doesn't have to work today." He grabbed the two other plates and set one down in front of Sawyer and a smaller plate in front of Kensington, who dove in hands first, not bothering to use her fork. "Hey, hey, Kensy-bug, you have a fork right there," Chris told his daughter, pointing it out. Kensington grabbed it and immediately stabbed one of her pre-cut pieces of French toast.

"Dis yummy, Daddy," Kensington grinned, her mouth full of food.

"It is!" Sawyer said. "Thanks, Daddy."

"Mhmm," Flynn mumbled around a mouth full of bacon.

"Good, I'm glad you guys like it," Chris told them.

"What smells so good?" Stephanie asked, walking into the kitchen.

"Only your breakfast, birthday girl!" Chris said, coming over to her and wrapping his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him and pressing a series of kisses against the column of her neck.

"Happy Birthday!" all three kids yelled like Chris told them to do when they saw Stephanie. She beamed at them over Chris's shoulder. Truth be told, she wasn't exactly looking forward to her birthday, but then, when did anyone who was in their 30's _really_ look forward to their birthday?

It wasn't like she felt _old_; that was the thing, she didn't feel old. She didn't feel like she was 36 today. She couldn't believe that she had been alive that long, but it was true. She was now on the other side of her thirties, she was now closer to 40 than she was to 30, and it was almost terrifying. She wasn't obsessed with looks, but it was just something about getting older that felt so unwanted. She just wanted to push back the clock, redo some things, maybe a lot of things. Not anything in front of her now, but maybe how'd she'd gone about her mid-20's, when Chris was an annoying gnat buzzing around her head.

"Thank you," Stephanie said graciously as she hugged Chris. "What is this?"

"Breakfast of course," Chris said, "go, sit, I'll serve you."

"You didn't have to go through all this trouble," she said, but she secretly loved that he would go through all this trouble. Chris knew she didn't want extravagance, but he always managed to make it a special day for her. Chris was always so good at remembering how she wanted to do things like anniversaries or birthdays. Barring the time they forgot their wedding anniversary, Chris was exceptionally good with remembering dates, and always had something planned in advance.

"No trouble at all, I'm feeding my family," Chris ushered her to her chair, pulling it out for her as she sat down, giving him a smile over her shoulder. She puckered her lips as he leaned down to kiss her.

"Mommy, I love you," Flynn said sweetly as she gazed at her mother with adoration.

"I love you too!" Sawyer insisted.

"I know, I love you both," Stephanie told him, giving them smiles, "and you too, Kensy."

"Thanks," Kensington told her with a small grin.

Stephanie laughed as a plate showed up in front of her. The smells assaulted her, and she didn't realize how hungry she was, but after the first heavenly bite of French toast, she settled down into her meal. Chris showed up with his own plate a second later. He'd have to eat fast to take Sawyer to school, but he'd gotten the little boy up slightly earlier this morning so they could enjoy their breakfast for a little while.

"How old you gonna be, Mommy?" Flynn asked.

"I'm 36 today," Stephanie said, "that's old, huh?"

"Not as old as Daddy," Sawyer chimed in, instantly making Stephanie feel a little better as she took in Chris's indignant look.

"Hey!" Chris said with mock indignation.

Sawyer shrugged, "but it's true, Daddy, you're older than Mommy."

"Well you don't have to rub it in," Chris told him, giving him a wink to make sure Sawyer knew he was just joking with him. Sawyer laughed when he knew his father was joking and went back to finishing his breakfast.

"Mommy, we have to give you presents," Flynn told her. She looked to Chris imploringly because one gift was contingent upon her father.

"We're going to wait until later, Flutterby," Chris reminded her gently. "After Sawyer gets home from school, then we're going to do Mommy's presents."

"We should do them now though," Flynn whined.

"You can wait," Chris poked her in the nose.

"But Daddy," Flynn whined, drawing out the words into many, many syllables. "I wanna give it now!"

"I'm sensing something special in store for me," Stephanie hunched her shoulders as she tried to look like she was thinking very hard about what she was going to get.

"There might be," Chris shrugged, "but you can wait to see what it is."

"What if I can't?" she wondered.

"Then you're out of luck, shmuck," Chris punctuated his point by taking a big bite out of his breakfast. Stephanie scoffed and just went back to her breakfast, content in letting the chatter happen all around her. She was so lost in her thoughts, she didn't realize breakfast was over until Chris cleared his throat.

"I'm sorry, did you say something?" Stephanie asked.

"I said a lot of something, but what I did just say was could you get Kensy dressed so I can take her and Flynnie to Trish's house."

"Trish?"

"Yeah, the girls are going to spend the morning there," Chris told her, "We're just going to relax and have a nice morning and lunch, then we'll pick up the kids, and then we'll come back here, then I'm whisking you guys away to dinner."

"Dinner?'

"You act like I don't ever feed you," Chris laughed, kissing her forehead. "Of course, dinner, do you think I'm going to let my wife starve on her birthday? What kind of man would I be if I let that happen?"

"Not a very good man," she joked as Chris took her empty plate and stuck it in the dishwasher. Stephanie stood up and grabbed Kensington from her booster seat, taking her upstairs so they could get changed. Chris headed up after her to check on Sawyer and Flynn.

When Chris was gone with the kids, Stephanie helped herself to another cup of coffee and took it out onto the patio. The morning was beautiful, the sky already bright, even this early, the last remnants of morning still lingering in the slight dewiness of the air. She took a deep breath and curled herself into the cushy seat, taking in the backyard and it's general disarray. The door to Sawyer's fort blew gently back and forth as toys and bikes and Kensington's mini-jeep littered the grass and concrete. There were floating toys in the pool, and everything just looked so lived in. Getting older wasn't bad when she was surrounded by such _life_.

"Well, I guess this is just redundant," Chris told her a short time later when he placed a paper coffee cup in front of her. She saw it was from her favorite little coffee place they went to when they had the time.

She put her own coffee mug down and grabbed greedily at the one Chris set down. "There's never a bad time for this."

"I thought you would like that. What are you doing out here?" Chris asked.

"I just wanted to enjoy a quiet Monday morning where I didn't have to worry about a flight or about the show."

"So your father's little suggestion wasn't a bad thing then, huh?"

"Shut up," she told him, sticking her tongue out at him. "I guess it wasn't, but I'm still a little put out that he didn't even ask me, just kind of told me then insisted I take the time off."

"I think he had good intentions. Why would he want to ruin things with you when you guys have just gotten back on track?" Chris questioned. "I just don't think your father is the type of guy who goes through all the trouble to get back in your good graces only to ruin it a month or two later."

"You've been with me for how long and you don't think that of my father?" Stephanie asked incredulously.

"No, I don't think he would, not this time anyways. I don't know, your dad seems a little bit mellower than he did before," Chris raised his eyebrows daring her to challenge that as he took a sip of his own coffee.

"Mellower how?"

"I don't know, not as high strung," Chris shrugged, "probably because he doesn't feel like he's carrying the entire company on his back. What I'm saying here is let's give him the benefit of the doubt tonight. Beyond anything else, no matter how many times you guys fight, and it's been a lot over the years, you always love each other. You love your dad, Steph, and he loves you, so let's take this as a really nice birthday present from him. You're 36 now, I think you can afford to be the mature one."

"I don't know, maybe I don't want to act my age."

"You certainly don't look your age," Chris wiggled his eyebrows. "You know, I bet you have the conditioning of a…20 year old."

Stephanie laughed and ducked her head, burying her mouth into her coffee, looking away, "Is that how you want to spend the morning?"

"Just think of this as one of my presents to you," Chris told her, "I know how you must _hate_ having to take care of yourself while I'm gone. Let's face it, whatever you use, fingers, other things I don't know about—"

"Just my boyfriend's—"

"No, no, no, he can't compare to me," Chris shook his head.

"So this is _you_ giving _me_ a gift, yes? It has nothing to do with the fact that for most of the week you're stuck on a small bus with other guys as your only company?"

"Not at all, this is all about _you_," Chris insisted playfully. He darted his hand out and grabbed her right hand, bringing it up to his lips and kissing it chastely. She gave him a look and he let his lips linger against her skin. "So what do you say?"

"What do I have to say?" Stephanie pondered it for a moment, setting her coffee cup down and grabbing his hand, bringing it between both of hers. Chris nodded as he pulled away.

"Yes, what do you have to say?"

She licked her lips and widened her eyes a tiny bit, "I think I have the endurance of an 18 year old."

Later on, when the kids were home, Stephanie was relegated to her office as apparently Chris and the kids were planning something. She had no idea what this something was, but there was periodical banging that she was trying to ignore by checking her e-mails. She had conference calls lined up all week, and she smiled to herself about why she had so many calls and not meetings. She had a little something for Chris even though it wasn't his birthday.

"Okay, Steph, you can come out now!"

"Come on, Mommy!" Flynn yelled.

"I'm coming!" she yelled back. She read the last bit of the e-mail she was perusing before standing up, stretching for a moment and heading out into the living room.

She giggled when she saw the set up. There was a banner hanging across the fireplace that said, "Happy Birthday Mommy/Wifey!" Chris had his bass on and Sawyer was sitting behind his drum set they'd bought for him a few weeks ago. Frank had only been able to teach Sawyer some of the basics so Stephanie wasn't exactly sure what he was doing back there. Flynn and Kensington both had a tambourine in hand and Chris had put flowers in their hair.

"Sit down!" Kensington told her, and Stephanie heeded her daughter's words as she took a seat on the couch.

"Welcome to the first ever concert of the Jericho Family Band of Froot," Chris told her.

"And how did this come about?" Stephanie asked.

"Well, from our prodigy of course."

"Which one?" Stephanie said with pride.

"Well, well, well, someone's ego is through the roof," Chris ruffled Sawyer's hair, "the idea came from this one. You want to tell Mommy how you thought of this?"

"When Frank was teaching me, I said I want to play for you, Mommy."

"Then Frank told me, and I thought it was a great idea so he's been teaching Sawyer some very basic drumming, and I've been collaborating with Rich—"

"Oh God, he's not here, is he?"

"No, he kind of likes to spend time with his wife too, Steph, stop being so selfish," he playfully admonished her. "I just wanted to get some music down, and since he's the music man to my lyric man."

"You wrote me a song?" Stephanie asked.

"We each wrote a verse," Chris smirked. "Everyone wanted to pitch in. So you know how after I pick up Sawyer on my days off, I take them 'out for ice cream'?"

"Like some kind of divorced father, yes."

"Well, we've been writing things for you, haven't we, guys?"

"Yup," Flynn nodded. "We did it all for you, Mommy."

"Wow, I've never had a song written for me before."

"What! Do I have to outline every song about you?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I want, but this is a what have you done for me lately kind of universe, Chris, so I'm going to need more, plus, those guys have never written me anything," Stephanie shrugged, "so impress me."

"Okay, you ready, guys?" Chris asked them. They all nodded eagerly, almost identical grins on their faces. Kensington clapped her hands, or tried to, with the tambourine in her hand, it was a very tinkly clap. Chris started playing a simple beat on his bass, and Sawyer joined in a second later. It didn't even sound half bad, which meant Chris was working to Sawyer's only strengths at the moment.

Even so, this was all incredibly sweet. She knew Chris wrote songs for her, he'd told her, she'd heard them, but this was special. It was just for her. She clapped along to the beat, wishing she had a lighter so she could wave it in the air. Kensington and Flynn were a little erratic with the tambourines, but it was a beautiful sound nonetheless. Her family always had sweet things for her, and the best part was it took her away from the stress of her job. She was always high-strung when she was working so having this outlet was a blessing.

"Okay, Kensy-bug, go on!" Chris told her as he knelt next to her, kissing her cheek. "Just sing what comes to mind. Miss Kensington Jericho is going to do a kind of freestyle rap for you today."

"I do it!" Kensington said as Chris pulled back a little as if to let her go. "I love Mommy! I love, I love, I love Mommy! You are Mommy, love, love, love!"

Stephanie covered her mouth to stifles her laughs, but it was just so cute and jumbled and weird, and she couldn't even put into words how sweet it all was in a weird way. Chris just laughed as Kensington dropped her tambourine and ran over to Stephanie, flinging herself across Stephanie's legs. Stephanie hoisted her up into her lap, letting Kensington lean back against her and dangle her legs on either side of Stephanie as Stephanie wrapped her arms around Kensington's middle, resting her chin on Kensington's downy dirty blonde hair.

"That was very beautiful, Kensy, thank you so much," Stephanie told her.

"W'come," Kensington grasped Stephanie's hands and held them to her.

"That was the musical stylings of one Miss Kensington, and now for the second part of this concert, we have the four year old with the mostest, the cutest little rocker this side of the Mississippi, Miss Flynn Jericho!"

"Hi!" Flynn waved and danced around a bit as Chris played next to her.

"You ready, Flutterby?" Chris asked her.

"Uh huh!" Flynn started banging her tambourine against her hand. "Happy Birthday, Mommy, you are the prettiest mommy in the whole, wide world, and you are the smarterest, and you take me to wrestling because you're the boss of everyone, and you're my mommy, and it's your birthday, and you're pretty!"

"Wow, that pretty much covers everything, I think," Stephanie clapped for her daughter, Kensington emulating her as Flynn took a bow like her daddy taught her to do. She was very proud of herself for that. "That was great, Flynnie, I loved it!"

Flynn's grin threatened to break her face. "And now for man behind the vision, the sound machine, the drummer of this crazy group of insane Jerichos, Sawyer McMahon Jericho!"

Sawyer stood up and he went over to Stephanie and gave her a hug. "I love you, Mommy."

"I love you too," Stephanie told her.

"I wrote something for you, but Daddy helped me," Sawyer said. "Daddy, where's my paper?"

"Here you go," Chris dug it out of his pocket and handed it to him. "You remember how to read, right, because I'm not going to read it for you."

"I remember," Sawyer laughed, "I know how to read, Daddy."

"Just making sure," Chris said.

Sawyer took the paper and held it in front of him. "Mommy, you are 36, that's kind of old, but you are still beautiful. I'm glad you're my mommy because you're nice to me, but you're mean to everyone else, so I would be scared of you if you weren't my mommy. But you are, and you're the best, and Daddy loves you too and that's why he has your name on his finger. He told me to say that. I wanted to say that you always play with us when we want to, and you takes us places, and you let us go to wrestling. I like that. I love you, Mommy."

"So, all of this was really kind of a freestyle spoken word type thing?" Stephanie laughed, hugging Sawyer to her as he hugged her around the waist.

Chris started playing a different tune, slower and more melodic. He cleared his throat. "I call her gray eyes, she's got me hypnotized from the moment that we met. She was a pain in my ass, but that couldn't last when those gray eyes turned to mine. She's got a smile, it's filled with devastation and manipulation, but I wouldn't trade it for anything at all. She's everything, there's really nothing more that I can say…she is everything, she is everyday…she is everything…"

"You're not going to make me cry," Stephanie told him even as she sniffled a little bit. "I swear to God, Jericho, you aren't going to make me cry."

"It's a work in progress," he told her, "it was just for you, there's more."

"I don't think I can handle it," she said as Flynn came over to join in on the hug. Chris knelt in front of her.

"I love you."

"I love you too," she told him, "which I guess is the best opening to tell you what I got for you."

"It's not my birthday," he told her.

"No, it's not, but it is something else," she told him.

"What is it, Mommy?" Flynn asked.

"Well, it's Daddy's last week of his Uproar tour, so Mr. Jericho, would you mind it if the #1 Fozzy Floozy made the trip with you?" Stephanie asked.

"Are you serious?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, I want to be there with you."

"I can't believe this, you're the best."

"Well, I'm 36, I should really learn to live a little."

Of course, everything good must come to an end, and the end came when Stephanie had to go back to work. Chris was off his tour and had the next month off. He was coming to Raw tonight, but was going to skip the next few so Sawyer had someone with him at home. Stephanie grabbed Flynn's hand as she walked inside. Flynn was still enamored by Chris's new tattoo and couldn't stop staring at it, wondering why her daddy would get a _pumpkin_ of all things. Sometimes he was just so crazy!

"I go away for a couple weeks and this is what I come back to," Stephanie told her husband, "complete and utter chaos."

"I don't think it's that bad," he tried to ease the situation because it was getting pretty hostile. He wanted to go back to the last week where Stephanie was constantly at his side, flirting with him like they were dating again, kissing him whenever she felt like it, and wearing that off-the-shoulder Fozzy shirt to every concert with those shorts he didn't even know she had, but which accentuated her legs to the fullest degree.

"Oh yeah, that's what you say because you don't have to deal with this, and my dad isn't here tonight because my mom has some dinner she's throwing, so I'm stuck with the mess he left for me. I mean, first thing this morning, what happens, I get a memo talking about how AJ is incompetent and how Heyman filed a formal complaint. I've got to talk to Punk," she said.

"Okay, well, do you want me to go with the girls to your office?"

"I don't want to talk to him right this second, just…sometime before the show. I need to talk to this executive coach or whatever is being instated. I swear, I wish we could get a whole new board, I don't think those stiffs even watch the product, an executive coach, what the hell is that, whose ass did they pull that one out of?"

"Stephanie, language," Chris gestured toward their daughters.

"Sorry," Stephanie muttered, "I'm not thinking straight. I just feel like I stepped in a big pile of…horse manure."

"What's that?" Flynn asked.

"Poop," Stephanie told her as Flynn made a horrified face. "I didn't really, Flynnie, it's an expression."

"That's gross," Flynn made a face and decided she didn't want to walk with her mommy while she was being gross. She let go of Stephanie's hand and walked forward. She didn't need to be a part of this discussion.

"See, you've grossed out, Flynn," Chris told his wife, trying not to laugh.

"I don't care," Stephanie said. "I mean, I do care, I love her, but this is…I don't even know. And I thought you getting that tattoo was going to be the worst thing that happened this week."

"You were right there when I got it, Stephanie."

"I was drunk, Christopher. I probably would have let you sleep with half the groupies there."

"Why didn't I know that then?"

"You should have known I was drunk."

"_Hey, baby, what did you think of the concert?"_

"_Mmm, you are so sexy up there," Stephanie leaned forward and kissed Chris hard, her tongue snaking into his mouth. He could taste the alcohol on it, as if he wouldn't know she was drinking judging from the margarita in her hand. "I think I could just eat you up. I wanted to go up there and just let you do me right there in front of everyone."_

"_And you've had too much to drink," Chris took the glass from her hand and took a sip of it. "You're cut off, baby."_

"_I don't have nowhere to be, hot stuff," Stephanie told him with a laugh, "I heard someone calling you that and I thought it was funny. They didn't know I was here. They thought they could just talk and talk and I wouldn't hear them. They said you were hot stuff, it was hilarious because I was _right_ there, and I know what you look like naked."_

_Chris cupped Stephanie's cheeks. "You are too beautiful for words."_

"_You always have nice things to say to me, why do you even like me?"_

"_I think that would take a long time to answer," Chris told her. "Come on backstage, you need to step away from the bar."_

"_I don't have the kids. I ain't driving, we are in a bus, like a big, freaking bus. I don't even have to drive it," she told him as he led her backstage. _

"_I know, but a lot of people you don't know are here, and I don't want you making a terrible impression."_

"_I know your friends, dude."_

"_I know you know, so anyways…there's this kind of tradition thing here…do you think you'd mind if I got a tattoo?"_

"_Huh? Didn't you get one, am I living in a déjà vu?"_

"_No, baby, you're not, I was kind of hoping to get this Helloween thing, it's something you wouldn't understand, but I think you would like it, I mean, you know, it's kind of a thing, and I really want to be a part of it, and I know you said I could get this other one, but what do you think?"_

"_You are so cute," she told him, kissing him again. This one had even more tongue and it was almost like she was trying to suck all his organs out of his mouth. He pulled away and she gave him a hazy smile. "I want you to do whatever it is you want to do. I'll cheer you on. Maybe I'll get one."_

"_Not in this state you're not."_

"_Why not?" she whined._

"_Baby, trust me, okay."_

"_Fine, but I wanna watch!"_

"If I knew what you were doing, I might have had reservations about the entire thing," Stephanie said, eyeing his tattoo, "but there's nothing I can do about it now, is there? Nope, so we both just have to live with it."

"Thanks, I think," Chris said. They walked into Stephanie's office to find AJ sitting there with a man Stephanie didn't recognize. AJ looked like the chastised little kid who was sent to the principal's office. The man stood up and walked over to Stephanie.

"Hello, you must be Stephanie McMahon-Jericho," he held out his hand and Stephanie reached forward to shake it.

"Yes, and you are?"

"I'm Christopher J. Stephenson, but you can call me Christopher," he told her, "I'm Miss Lee's appointed executive coach. I wanted to come introduce myself to you and let you know what I'm here to do."

"That's fine, can I put my things down?" Stephanie asked.

"Of course, I didn't want to seem that forward, but I wanted to make my presence known. Your father and I already talked, and he said to come to you to really outline what I'm here for, and what the board wants me to do."

Stephanie set her things down as Chris set up the girls' play area, though he was keeping an ear out for the conversation. "So what exactly does the board think you're going to do here?"

"What we want is to train up AJ. We know that she hasn't had the experience of being in this kind of position, and the board wants her to better project the image of the company."

Stephanie, for one, thought it was ridiculous. This had to be Heyman's doing. She'd read the formal complaint, and it was your normal complaint, but what differed was the person filing it. Heyman was the master of double talk. He could twist your words around so quickly, making you look like the bad guy in two seconds flat. The board had experience with him from the Alliance days, and so did she so she knew what he was capable of doing.

If this wasn't handled well, Heyman would swoop in and take over. The board was trying to prevent it. "I understand."

"I'm glad that we're on the same page. I'm really just here to observe at first, but then, I want to guide AJ into being someone that we can be proud to call the General Manager. With Mr. Heyman's complaint, we can't be too cautious."

Stephanie also believed AJ was provoked. She felt sorry for the girl. She was put in a position she wasn't familiar with, and was expected to do all the right things. It didn't help that AJ had unstable moments that made her look crazy. Underneath it all, she was just a person trying to do the right thing. Heyman had blatantly taunted her, mocked her, and she was expected to just stand there and take it? It wasn't fair, but Stephanie had her hands tied behind her back. If she crossed the board, they could demote her, and she had to look out for herself first.

"That's fine, I'm glad you came to tell me and initiated the conversation," Stephanie told him. "I would like a word with AJ alone though."

"Of course, AJ, I'll wait for you in your office."

"Thanks," AJ said morosely.

When he was gone, Stephanie turned to the other woman, "Hey, you okay?"

AJ shrugged, "It is what it is, right?"

"You know, I don't blame you for what you did," Stephanie told her, "I would have done the same thing, actually, no, I probably would have kicked him in the crotch if I were in that position. He provoked you. I can try to talk to the board about it, but I don't think they'd be receptive."

"It's okay," AJ said, "I mean, really, I should have been the bigger person. Heyman can't help it if he's the worst person in the world."

Stephanie laughed, "He'll get his."

"I hope so," AJ said, "is there anything you wanted me to do on the show tonight?"

"No, you know what, I want _you_ to take care of things. I'm giving you my vote of confidence with this one, let's see what Heyman wants to do with that one," Stephanie told her. AJ's face brightened a little bit, and Stephanie was glad she could bring that to her. "You may not have the experience, but Heyman shouldn't be the one calling the shots around here."

"Thank you, Stephanie, that actually means a lot."

"I know, I wanted a chance once upon a time too," Stephanie told her.

"I better go now, bye," AJ waved at her before leaving, feeling a little better about the entire thing.

"You were really good with her," Chris came up and wrapped his arms around Stephanie. "You didn't even have to do that. You weren't the one to hire her or anything. You're a really good person underneath this constantly gruff exterior."

"She didn't deserve that last week. Her proposing to Punk, yes, it was impulsive, but I stayed married to a man who drugged me and married me, we do stupid things when we're young, and she did a stupid thing, she shouldn't have to relive that mistake over and over again."

"Man, 36 is when you finally found your maturity," he kissed the side of her neck.

"Maybe, I still need to go talk to Punk. I'm not sure I like what's going on. He can say he's just with Heyman to get AJ out, but that man…I fear for Punk. I think he's…I think he's buying into it, and that's a problem for us."

"Do you want me to talk to him?"

"No, you aren't part of this company right now, remember?" Stephanie told him, giving him a small kiss. You just play the part of father, and let me play the part of president, and we'll keep those job titles straight."

"And there's the bitch I know and love," Chris told her. "I was starting to get worried that you were getting softer as you got older, and that's just not the woman I fell in love with."

"There's no softer side to this," Stephanie told him. "Okay, so you've got the girls, I've got the nearly middle-aged man who thinks everyone is disrespecting him?"

"That sounds about right, I think I got the more mature ones if I do say so myself."

"At least yours play nice with others," Stephanie said.

Stephanie left to go find Punk, and she wondered what was going on with him. Was he really just trying to get AJ out of the GM spot or were his words becoming true? She was the president so if he was railing against authority, there was really nobody above her. She really didn't want their friendship on the line, but there was a conflict of interest here, one she wasn't sure they could get over that easily.

She found his locker room and took a deep breath, knowing the conversation on the other side was going to be difficult. She wasn't quite sure why she was so convinced of this, but from Punk's actions last week, she could surmise his tension and anger was not an act any longer. It was the truth. She just needed to hear it from him. She knocked, he answered, giving her a slight, but strained smile. Yes, she could tell he was upset.

"We need to talk," Stephanie cut straight to it because she wasn't going to be the person who stalled and hemmed and hawed around the subject. "We need to talk about what you're doing with Heyman."

"I told you, Steph."

"Yeah, you did, but I've been watching, Punk. Just because I haven't been here doesn't mean I don't keep up with my own product, you know," she shook her head, "he's getting into your head. I know you don't hate the guy, but he's putting ideas into your head, and I'm just saying I don't like them. I don't know why you would ever go with what he did to AJ last week. Did she really deserve that?"

"We got to file a complaint. Paul said that if we did something like that, she would hit him or at the very least go psycho like she does, and we'd have her gone."

"Well, you'll soon find out that's not what happened. But you know what Paul wants out of all of this. He wants to worm his way back into a position of power. He's using you as a conduit."

"Well…maybe that's not such a bad thing," Punk admitted. "I'm sick and tired of all the disrespect. You say you watched last week then you saw what Mick did, how he responded to me. I don't deserve that. I've held this title almost as long as anyone _ever_, and yet, all the word, all the buzz is still around how Cena has to have surgery or how maybe Brock is coming back again. I want the buzz about me because _I_ am the champion. You don't get it, Stephanie. You don't get the disrespect."

"You think I didn't hear this from Chris?" Stephanie asked. "You don't think he would rant about how nobody respected him! It's your choice to act this way. AJ didn't do anything wrong to you—"

"Yes, she did, she books me in matches where I don't belong, doesn't give _me_ the main event. I hold the belt, Stephanie, but you wouldn't know it if I didn't flash it in everyone's face. Paul has a good point. He says he can get me that time I want. You're not getting it for me, nobody else is. He will. He knows how. He's been here. He knows how to manipulate the system, who, in this case, is AJ."

"By going against her, you're going against me!"

"I thought I was going against your father, he hired her, right?"

"Yeah, I guess so…"

"So it'll fall on him, not you."

"But Punk, she's just a girl." Stephanie wanted him to understand just what he was doing to AJ. It wasn't fair, and it wasn't kind. It was cruel.

"She's a lot tougher than you think, believe me."

"Paul wants to be the GM, he's pretty much said as much."

"Maybe he should be," Punk shrugged, "it can't be any worse, and at the end of the day, the guys knows wrestlers. He knows talent when he sees it. He hired your husband, didn't he? Before either WCW or here…"

"That's a low blow, Punk, and you know it. Heyman is not fit to be a GM, maybe an assessor of talent, sure, he's got an eye for that, but he ran his company into the ground, and not everything was always peachy keen with him, we both know that."

"Not everything is great here."

"No, it's not, but we're still standing," Stephanie told him. "You claim to be a Paul Heyman guy, but I don't think you really even know what that means. It's not some cutesy saying."

"I know it's not, believe me, Stephanie," Punk told her, "I'm just looking out for me because I'm the only one doing it. I'm the champion, but what, because Cena sells all the merchandise to the little kids who don't know better, I get stuck being relegated to some random match in the middle of the show? If I ask for time, I have to _fight_ to get the first spot on the show, and I hardly ever get the last one. It's always scheduled for other people, _better _people according to everyone here but me."

"That's life, Punk. I'm sorry if you think you're being slighted, but grow up. Even Chris dropped the whiny thing after a while."

"I can't talk to you right now, Stephanie."

"This isn't over, Punk," she told him as he started for the door.

"Oh believe me, it's not."


	389. Disrespecting the Boss, October 8, 2012

"Wow…"

Chris just ruffled Sawyer's head and laughed, "I know it's something else, right?"

"Are we really going to go on that?" Sawyer asked, looking up at Chris.

"Yeah, we are," Chris said. "I know you've liked fishing when we went on vacation, so I thought this would be fun. I know I've been gone a lot—"

"You had your tour," Sawyer shrugged. "I knew that."

"I know you know that but that doesn't mean I don't miss you when I'm not around you, you understand that, don't you?" Chris was constantly trying to make sure Sawyer knew that he missed him and his sisters.

"I know, Daddy," Sawyer said. "We miss you too, but we know you'll be back."

Chris smiled, "I'm glad you know that, but when I'm here when I'm around, I want to be around you. So come on, get your stuff so we can get on and get the hell out of here."

Sawyer picked up his tackle box, the one Chris has bought specially for their day trip today, and followed Chris towards the boat. Sawyer enjoyed fishing, the couple times he'd been with Chris and he really liked being on the water. Chris took him out on the jet ski every now and then, and Sawyer loved it. Chris was just fortunate he probably wouldn't have to worry about Sawyer getting seasick.

They climbed aboard the boat Chris had rented and greeted the captain and the crew that were there to help them fish. Chris had only been deep sea fishing a couple times, and this would be Sawyer's first time out there. He'd been taking swimming lessons recently, though Chris wasn't about to throw him in the ocean, but he felt comfortable being on a boat with Sawyer and the kid not falling off. He couldn't really say the same for his daughters, one of the reasons he didn't bring them along. Plus, he and Sawyer needed guy time, especially after Chris spent so much time on the road.

"Daddy, can you help me with this?" Sawyer asked, breaking Chris from his thoughts. He looked over and saw Sawyer trying to put his life jacket on. Chris laughed and came over, kneeling down so he could hook the vest correctly.

He pat Sawyer on the chest when he was done, "There you go, now Mommy won't kill me if you fall overboard, unless a fish eats you."

"No!" Sawyer exclaimed. "Fish don't eat people. Fish eat smaller fish and shrimp and other small things. They don't eat people."

"Darn it, that school is making you way too smart. Pretty soon, you're going to be smarter than me, you know that?"

"I don't know that," Sawyer shook his head.

"Come on, let's sit on the deck while we go out on the water," Chris said, leading Sawyer to the back of the boat where there were deck chairs. That's where they'd be sitting when they were fishing, but it was also a great place to just sit and relax. Sawyer sat in one of the chairs while Chris lounged in the other.

The boat took off soon afterwards and they just sat there quietly for a few minutes before Sawyer turned in his chair towards Chris. "Daddy, is Mommy mad at Punk?" Sawyer asked.

"What makes you think that?" Chris asked him.

"Well, Mommy was talking about him with you, and she didn't sound very happy. I was just wondering because he's my friend and he's definitely Flynnie's friend. Did he do something bad? Is it because he's with Mr. Heyman?"

"You shouldn't worry about what's going on with wrestling, that's the first thing I'll tell you—"

"But you worry about it and you're not wrestling right now."

"But I'm Mommy's husband so I help her with stuff. I'm also a grown-up, and as a grown-up, it's kind of my job to care about things like this, but you're just a little kid, so you don't have tow worry about it, and I don't want you to worry about it. If you and Flynnie or even Kensy want to be friends with Punk, you can be friends with Punk."

"What about if I want to be friends with Mr. Austin?"

"Huh?" Chris's eyebrows knitted together. "What are you talking about?"

"Daddy, I _know_," Sawyer told him, and Chris could not believe Sawyer knew anything about the situation with Austin.

"What do you know?" Chris asked.

"I know he did something with Mommy when Mommy was going to have me, and when I lived inside her. But not her tummy, I forget what it's called, but my teacher said that babies don't come from tummies," Sawyer explained. "Ed told me."

"Edge told you?" Chris was going to beat him up. He shouldn't have told Sawyer anything about that. Sometimes Chris believed Edge thought Sawyer was a lot more mature than he actually was. At the end of the day, Sawyer was still just a little boy. "What did he say?"

"He said that Mr. Austin tried to hurt Mommy when I was living inside of her," Sawyer explained, "Ed said I was okay though, but you were really, really mad, and that's why you don't like Mr. Austin."

"He shouldn't have told you that," Chris told him. "That's another thing you don't need to worry about."

"But I can see you don't like him," Sawyer shrugged. "I can see things, Daddy. I'm not dumb."

Chris chuckled. That _had _to have been something he heard from Stephanie. They really had to start watching what they said around Sawyer because he was getting smarter by the day, and he was understanding things better than ever. Kensington, and to a certain extent Flynn, were still too young to really understand everything. "I know you're not, you're one of the smartest people I know, but yes, I am mad at what Austin did, but that doesn't mean anything to you. I know you're okay, and I'm happy you're okay, but at the time, I was really scared because Mommy was only a little pregnant with you. It was still really dangerous for Mommy, and that's why I get mad when I think about it, not because you turned out weird."

"I'm not weird!" Sawyer's jaw dropped. "Daddy, I'm not weird, _you're_ weird."

"What? I'm weird, how do you think I'm weird?"

"Because you put a pumpkin on your arm," Sawyer pointed at Chris's tattoo. "Daddy, who puts a pumpkin on their arm when it isn't even Halloween?"

"It's not for Halloween," Chris chuckled, "it's for a band called Helloween."

"That's a weird name for a band."

"Well, Fozzy isn't exactly the least crazy name out there," Chris told him, making a face at him.

"But that's a muppet," Sawyer said, "and he's a funny muppet."

"Wait, who told you that Fozzy was named after a muppet? Wait, was it Edge?" Chris asked him, scowling. Edge was like the crazy uncle who came around every once in a while just to wreak havoc. He was going to be the guy who took Sawyer to his first strip club when he hit 18, he could just see it now…not that he wouldn't tag along, but that was neither here nor there.

"Yeah, he said you liked muppets a lot," Sawyer shrugged as he turned to look out at the water. "Wow, Daddy, we're really far out." He couldn't even see any land. They had to be really far out. He'd never been out at sea before. He hoped they didn't get stuck. His daddy was telling him about a show called Gilligan's Island, and that did not sound fun.

"We still have a little ways to go," Chris told him, "and my band is not named after the muppet, it's because when Rich and I first formed the band, we only played other people's songs, so we wanted like a cover band name, and we were called Fozzy Osbourne, like Ozzy Osbourne. It's kind of a joke thing."

"Oh, well, why aren't you called that now?"

"Because we wanted to be a serious band."

"Okay," Sawyer said, "well now I know, and I can tell Ed the truth about it since he told me it was about muppets."

"I think he knows," Chris told him with a wink. "I think he was just trying to joke with you because that's how Edge is."

"He's funny," Sawyer said.

The boat slowed down and Chris took this as a sign they had reached their destination. The captain came back, and he helped them get their lines set up. Sawyer's fishing rod was smaller than Chris's so he'd be able to hold it. They cast their lines down, and almost immediately, the fish were biting. Sawyer, who seemingly had way more fishing luck than Chris did, was the first to get anything to bite. Chris helped him with his line, and they pulled up a good size grouper.

"Wow," Chris was impressed. "Look at what you caught, kid."

"It's huge!" Sawyer grinned, looking up at Chris. "Daddy, I think I'm really good."

Sometimes there was a cockiness to Sawyer that emulated both his parents. It was a recessive trait with him it seemed, since he didn't demonstrate it often, but it was there. Chris nodded at him eagerly as something caught on his own line. He went over and started to haul it in, and was amused when it was a lot smaller than what Sawyer had caught. This was par for the course though. Even marine animals liked Sawyer.

"Daddy, yours is small!" Sawyer laughed at Chris's paltry catch.

"Hey, I'm just getting started!" Chris told him as Sawyer continued to laugh. To Chris, it was one of the most gratifying sounds in the world. Having fun with his kids, knowing they were happy and healthy, it beat being cheered on by thousands upon thousands of people. He loved being on tour, loved playing the Uproar crowds, but this was better than all of that. He loved when he had time just to enjoy his kids being kids. That was the most important thing in his life.

"Daddy, I bet Flynnie would like this," Sawyer said.

"I think she would too, but I think all the fish would be afraid of her. He might give them a body slam once she caught them."

Sawyer laughed, "Or she could do the Codebreaker."

"That'd be even worse!" Chris told him. "But I think Flynn would love to do something like this. We should take her next time, what do you think?"

"Definitely," Sawyer said, "but what about Kensy?"

"I think she's still too little, she'd probably try to climb off the boat," Chris joked with him.

"I don't think so," Sawyer said, "Daddy?"

"Yeah?"

"Can I have a brother?" Sawyer asked innocently. It wasn't that he didn't love his sisters, he really did. Flynn and Kensington could annoy him sometimes when they got really clingy, but overall, he really liked his sisters. He liked to take care of them. Kensington always wanted to be carried by him, but he was bigger than her so it was okay.

Chris, if he had been drinking or eating anything, would have spit it out at this point. A brother? Was Sawyer really suggesting they bring another kid into this family? Wasn't three enough? Probably not in Sawyer's estimation. The kid loved kids, so of course he would want more, but what did he think, that his mother and father could just produce whatever kind of kid they wanted whenever they wanted? If that were the case, he would have three boys right now, and not two girls so adorable they constantly kept his heart in a vice.

"A brother?" Chris asked.

"Yeah," Sawyer shrugged. "Some of my friends have brothers, and they like them, I thought I could have one."

"Well, that's not exactly the way things work, kid," Chris explained as Sawyer got another bite on his line. Chris helped him pull up another fish, even bigger than the last one (seriously, did Sawyer's line just scream cute boy who likes to catch fish or something?). "Even if Mommy and I had another kid, there's no telling if it would be a boy or a girl. You can't really decide that."

"Oh, why not?" Sawyer asked.

"Well, okay, so like, you know, um, when mothers and fathers decide to have a kid, they do their thing, and when that happens, you see, there are two components to making a baby, there's the half that comes from the dad and the half that comes from the mom. The half that comes from the dad chooses if it's going to be a boy or a girl."

"Oh, so you choose?"

"Not really, I don't really know what my half is going to be."

"Well, that should change."

"I'm not sure it can…"

"I guess I can live without a brother, even though it would have been cool if we could have one. But I guess Flynn is kind of like a brother because she likes a lot of boy things."

"Well, she can like whatever she wants to like, just like you can like whatever you want to like," Chris told him, "right now, though, the only thing that likes you are these fish, I can't believe how much you're getting already, and we've only been out here a short while."

"I guess I'm the best in the world at what I do!"

Oh, he was Chris's son alright.

"Hi, Grandpa," Flynn said jovially as she skipped down the hallway. Vince was up ahead, talking to someone she didn't recognize. Stephanie was behind her with Kensington, but since she could still her mommy, she could run ahead to her grandpa, which was what she was going to do. "Grandpa, what are you doing!"

"I'm talking, what does it look like I'm doing?" Vince told her, pretending to be stern, but Flynn wasn't falling for it as she started giggling. Her grandpa Vince might not be as funny as her Gamps, but he was still funny sometimes.

"It looks like you're talking," Flynn told him. Vince said goodbye to whomever he was talking to and focused his attention on Flynn. He lifted her up and she gave him a hug. "I went shopping with Mommy because she said I'm too big."

"Too big?"

"I'm a big girl and I keep getting bigger," Flynn shrugged. "Kensy is wearing my shirt."

"It's not your shirt anymore, Flynnie," Stephanie came over. "It doesn't fit you anymore."

"But it could," Flynn told her.

"No, it couldn't because you're a growing girl, that's why it doesn't fit you anymore," Stephanie tried to explain again. While Chris and Sawyer were spending the day fishing, Stephanie decided it was as good a time as any to get Flynn some new clothes since she was growing like a weed. Because Stephanie was not a pretentious snob, she had no problems with giving Kensington Flynn's hand-me-downs, but Flynn just didn't seem to understand why her clothes were not her clothes anymore.

"So?" Flynn shrugged.

"So, you're a growing girl, and growing girls outgrows their clothes," Stephanie told her. "Plus, you like what I got for you, don't you?"

"Uh huh, I guess," Flynn said, "but now I need wrestling shirts."

"You can have all the wrestling shirts you want," Vince told her, kissing her on the forehead. Flynn lit up over that. All the shirts she wanted? This could definitely work in her favor. "In fact, why don't we just get her every Jericho shirt we've ever produced?"

"Dad…"

"What? It wouldn't even be that difficult, and when she's done with them, like you said, they go straight to Kensy," Vince winked at his granddaughter, who just scrunched up her face.

"Hi, Gampa," she told him.

"Hi, Kensy, you look pretty today."

"Tanks," Kensington looked to Stephanie as if she was being evaluated, but Stephanie just kissed her nose, which made her laugh. "I get tings."

"You did get a couple things, like shoes, right?" Stephanie told her and Kensington nodded, throwing out her foot for good measure. "Because you have big feet." Kensington just slapped her cheek and laughed.

"No, I don't!"

"Oh okay," Stephanie told her, "so, Dad, while I was gone, I noticed you wanted to do a 'State of the WWE' address, this has nothing at all to do with the elections, does it?"

"I thought the time was apt," Vince said, "but I like to keep our fans informed as well. It's a good way to assess the business, and you know, it also might persuade people to invest in stocks."

"Pretty optimistic of you there," Stephanie said, "but you didn't ask my permission for this, and I'm a little wary of what you're actually going to say. I mean, I know some things have been…muddled as of late, and with Heyman hanging around, you aren't exactly the most stable person, Dad."

"Are you saying I'm liable to do something that would embarrass you?" he wondered.

"Embarrass me, be detrimental to the company, tomatoes, to_ma_toes," Stephanie said. "I would just like to know what you're going to go out there and say, but if I've learned anything in my 36 years on this earth, it's to never expect anything when it comes to you, Dad."

"At least you've learned something," Vince told her. "Don't worry, we're working together now, remember?"

"I know, but I'm still allowed to worry about what you're going to do," Stephanie said, "and I don't even have Chris here as a buffer, he always calms me down, so don't do anything to piss me off."

"I'm your father, it's my job to do that," Vince said.

"Grandpa, you shouldn't make Mommy mad, she can be mean when she's mad," Flynn told him. "Nobody wants that."

Stephanie laughed, "See, nobody wants that."

"I will keep that in mind, but just for you and your sister," Vince told Flynn.

"And Sawa too. He's not here 'cause he had school," Flynn said, "ooh, ooh, Grandpa, Sawa caught a _huge_ fish when he went fishing with Daddy. I saws a picture of it and it was almost bigger than Kensy!"

"Wow, I'd love to see a picture of that."

"Go look on Chris's Twitter then," Stephanie said, "he posted a picture of it. It is huge, and Sawyer caught it himself. Chris said Sawyer had a better day than he did by far. Apparently my son was a natural born fisherman, but I don't know where _that_ came from."

"It's good he's getting outdoors and doing things. Is Chris home with him?"

"Nope!" Flynn said. "Daddy's coming in a little while. He's here because he has something, but he won't tell Mommy."

Vince raised an eyebrow in Stephanie's direction. "It's not what you think, Dad."

"Do you even know what I think?"

"I don't know, but whatever it is, it's not what you think. He has a project, he usually doesn't like to tell me about said projects until they're totally done, and yes, Dad, I trust him, and I trust his judgment. We've been together for a decade now, and he hasn't done anything to hurt me yet."

"I didn't say I didn't trust him. Glad to know he'll be here tonight," Vince told her, "that's all. So Sawyer is with his parents?"

"No, actually, because of Canadian Thanksgiving, they're in Canada visiting Loretta's sister. Sawyer is staying with Edge and Lita…or rather, Edge and Lita are staying at our house, and they're taking care of Sawyer. He's actually pretty excited, Edge always brings over comic books and stuff for Sawyer."

"Oh, well, as long as he's being taken care of well," Vince said.

"Sawa can't come because his school is making him smart, but I'm smart too," Flynn said, "so is Kensy, but she's only smart for a baby."

"I not baby," Kensington said with a frown.

"Okay," Flynn said with exasperation.

"So what is going on with Punk?" Vince asked. "I've been wondering."

"I don't know nor do I wish to discuss it with you, Dad, is that alright?"

"Of course, if that's what you want," Vince conceded, but Stephanie knew that wouldn't be the end of it. "I wouldn't be so quick to trust him though, Stephanie. I know you, I know you've invested a lot in some of the people here, and I just don't want you to be disappointed."

"I like Punk," Flynn interjected. "He's my friend."

"I know," Vince said. "I know he's your friend."

"He has lots of pictures on his arms, but now Daddy is getting more pictures too, I think he might want to be like Punk."

Stephanie smiled at that. She didn't think Chris would ever get like Punk…or at least she hoped he wouldn't. She cringed at the thought. "I can handle Punk, Dad, okay, he's my friend, what he chooses to do professionally…"

"I have noticed you're the only one he hasn't gone after," Vince said, "I don't think that's coincidence, do you? I also know he's willing to do a lot for you, I think his meeting with me played into that, didn't it?"

"I had to be sure you weren't trying to take over," Stephanie said, "as it is, I think we've fallen into an amicable niche, wouldn't you say? I run the company, and you still get to be CEO and get to be around and do whatever you want, and you don't have to worry about the logistics of everything."

"This is true," Vince said, "but Punk is volatile right now, especially with Heyman behind him. I don't want you caught in the crossfire, and I certainly don't want my grandchildren caught in it."

"Caught in what, Grandpa?" Flynn asked.

"Nothing, I just want you to be happy."

"I am happy," Flynn shrugged.

"Come on, Flynnie, let's leave Grandpa alone since he's going to go out there and talk tonight."

"Ooh," Flynn cooed, "Grandpa, are you going to talk to everyone? Are you going to wrestle?"

"I don't think so, Flynnie," Vince told her, "I'm just going to address how Raw is doing, and how the WWE is doing in general, I don't think I'm going to wrestle."

"You shouldn't because you're old," Flynn was blunt in every way, all the time. Vince knit his eyebrows when he heard that. He wasn't _that_ old. He could still do things if he wanted. He still weight trained, and he was in great shape for a man his age.

"Flynn, that's not very nice," Stephanie told her daughter.

"Sorry, Grandpa," Flynn kissed his cheek. "I go now, please put me down."

"Sure," he said, putting her on the ground.

"I'll catch you later, Dad, okay, don't do anything stupid," Stephanie pressed her free hand to her father's arm. "I know you, Dad, I know you have grand designs, just don't do something where I will have to scrape you up off the floor, got it?"

"I'll try," he held his hands up in defeat.

Stephanie knew that was as good as she was going to get.

"Britt, hey, hey, wait up!" Punk called out, jogging after the petite, dark-haired woman. Britt stopped and turned on a heel to look at Punk. "Where were you headed? You looked like you were shot out of a cannon."

"I've got a lot of stuff to do, Phil, I can't be bothered to deal with whatever you have going on," Britt said, her tone exasperated.

"We've barely talked the last few weeks, I was wondering what was up. I thought we were having a good time with one another. Then all of a sudden, it seems like you're avoiding me, care to tell me why it feels like that?"

"I'm sorry, but I don't like Heyman," Britt said. "He's sleazy, Phil, like really, obnoxiously so. I mean, I know you consider yourself a 'Paul Heyman' guy, which, I don't really get, but I think I would have to be in this business to really get it, not just on the outskirts of it, but either way, I don't like the guy."

"I'm sorry you feel that way."

"It's not your problem," Britt told him. "I just…he hangs around you a lot when you're here, and I don't like him so I don't hang around you."

"So…why don't we hang out when I'm not here and when you're not here?" he asked. "I don't have Paul hanging around me _all_ the time, you know, just when I'm here. He gets people noticed, he is getting me noticed."

"Don't you think you were doing that on your own pretty well?" Britt wondered.

"I was, but I wasn't getting the respect I deserved."

"And you think that Paul is getting you that respect? You've lost some of your fans—"

"But not _all_ of them," Punk told her, raising an eyebrow. "The ones I've lost weren't true fans to begin with, so they are no longer my concern. I want to be noticed, Heyman does that. He's doing his job for me. Plus, all of this is going to make it easier to oust AJ, which is a _huge_ plus in my book."

"I was under the impression that was the original reason for Heyman, but it seems your focus has shifted."

"A guy like me has to do everything he can to get noticed. I'm not a huge guy like your ex-boyfriend or Sheamus or Wade Barrett or God, Ryback."

"Low blow, Phil," Britt shook her head. "You're better than that."

"Sorry, look, I miss you, there, admitting it. Come to Chicago with me this week. It'll be fun, I will definitely show you a good time, and Heyman won't be there. I can show you what I'm like when I'm not surrounded by idiots, what do you say?" he asked her, leaning down a little…okay, a lot, to meet her eyes. "You could even stay at my place, save yourself some money. I could lend you a bike…"

"A bike?"

"That's how I get around," Punk told her, "come on, who do you have to answer to?"

At the moment, that was a big, fat nobody. Britt had taken to renting an apartment in Connecticut. She didn't know what she was going to do long-term, but as long as Hunter was freezing her out, it was the best option. She wouldn't say it was the most ideal situation, but it was _a_ situation. She was thinking about moving back to New York, but she hadn't made any decisions as of late.

"Okay, fine, I'll come with you, but you better show me a good time, okay, and definitely no Heyman."

"Okay, so no Heyman, and a good time, I think I can handle that. Come find me after the show, we'll coordinate."

"After the show," she nodded. "I've got to go do some actual work."

"You do actual work, that's news to me," he joked. She flipped him off and walked away. He knew that she was only coming with him as friends, but it didn't hurt to think that maybe, just maybe, things could go to the next level. It wasn't like he was actively pursuing her anymore, but if something were to happen, he wasn't going to unwelcome it.

Punk had bigger things to worry about though, much bigger things. It was no secret he was disappointed with his position in the company. He had held the belt longer than most people ever held it, and he was still being relegated to nothingness in his own mind. He never got the hype that someone like Cena did, no matter what he did, no matter how many fans he brought into the fold. It was increasingly frustrating, but for some reason, he just couldn't place the blame on Stephanie. Maybe it was the fact they were friends, or maybe he just didn't think Stephanie was a real threat to his position. Vince, on the other hand, he knew he was the antithesis of everything Vince loved in a wrestler.

Where some people saw talent, Vince saw size, and that was pretty much it. When he was hiring a wrestler, it was no secret Vince always saw size first because a wrestler should be huge, even though some of the best wrestlers in the business had been of small stature. Shawn Michaels made a name for himself and he'd never been huge, same with Bret Hart. But Vince didn't see it that way, and he was probably too old to change his mind. At the very least, Stephanie didn't look for size first, she was married to a wrestler who had never relied on size after all.

So yeah, he was ready to take his anger out on Vince. Who better than the man who started it all, the man who judged by size, who made it nearly impossible for him to look intimidating and who made it difficult for him to command the respect he deserved. That's what made it so easy to go out there and run his mouth at Vince. Vince was never one to back down and Punk _did_ respect that about him, but not enough to think about what he was saying before he said it. He didn't get to where he was by thinking about what he said before he said it.

Slapping him in the face was just an impulse. He didn't know what came over him, but he had to do it. He just had to shut Vince up. Was it the best way, no, but it was the most satisfying way and when he walked up the ramp, he was actually loving life a little bit. He was going to get it, he knew, but he didn't care. Get it he did, just a moment later, but not in the way he thought. Vince wanted to fight him. Vince wanted to _fight_ him? Well, that was an unexpected turn of events, but he should have figured. The man, despite the age, was all ego, and he wasn't about to call on someone to do his dirty work.

Heyman kept telling him not to do it, but Punk wasn't going to listen to him this time. If Vince wanted a fight, who was he to deny him that? He was going to give Vince a fight. Hell, he'd give Vince more of a fight than anyone ever had. That was the least he could do. He walked backstage and Heyman was already telling him what an idiot he was.

"I'll be fine, you just worry about…whatever else it is you worry about," Punk shrugged walking away quickly so he wouldn't have to talk to the other man.

"Punk!"

Punk winced. He could tell that tone was not going to be a good one, and he wasn't really in the mood to talk to Stephanie. Things had been…weird between them, and while he was still friends with her, he knew it was tenuous right now. He turned around slowly and gave her a grimacing smile. "Hey, Stephanie."

"What the hell are you doing?"

"I'm…walking."

"You know what I mean, what are you doing with my dad, why would you _slap _him?" she implored of him.

"Just doing what I know you want to do half the time," he told her cheekily. He could see a smile threatening to break through on her face, and he pounced on it. "Wait, wait, wait, what was that I saw? Could it be a smile because I slapped your father?"

"Don't," Stephanie shook her head, "Do not go there."

"Where? Stephanie, your father has held both of us down, you know that, why not take a little retribution while I can? I won't hurt him too much, if that's what you want, but I'm going to count it as a personal favor."

"Yeah, right," Stephanie rolled her eyes. "I just…I don't understand what's going on with you. It's not that you've changed, it's just Heyman has made you…I don't even know."

"Well, I do, he's been helping me tap into what I really want," Punk said, "Steph, I like you, but you can't give me what I need. He can. This is strictly business."

"I'm so sure," Stephanie told him, "I don't get it though, I will never get it, but I know I can't stop you from doing what you're going to do. He's my father though, you know, and despite everything, he's still my father."

"I get it, that's why I said I wouldn't hurt him too much, but it's time I get the respect I deserve, Steph. I mean, I know, if the circumstances were different, you might give me a better chance, but your dad's ways still rule around here, and that has to change."

Stephanie took his words to heart for a second. Her father's ways were still here? Punk was right, she realized. She was just carrying on as he had without putting her own stamp on things. Sure, she did have her own things, the B.A. Star program was really her own doing, and something she was very passionate about. She'd been the spearhead of the new program, WWE Main Event, and she was really trying to change the divas division, but her father's presence still permeated over most things. She wasn't sure what she could do about that, but she wanted to make sure that when she left this company to her kids, her influence would be noticeable as well.

"I have to go," Stephanie said.

"You okay, Steph, I really didn't mean to hurt _you_."

"I'm fine, just," she didn't finish her sentence, just waved her arms around in the air and disappeared, leaving Punk behind. Stephanie went back to her office, throwing her door open and storming over to her desk.

"And she's off!" Chris said from the couch. Stephanie glanced over at him before she went back to furiously typing on her keyboard.

"Hey now, what's going on, baby?" Chris asked, setting Kensington down on the couch and walking over to Stephanie. "You look mad, I mean, you look madder than you were when you left."

"What am I even doing here, Chris?"

"You mean…here as in Earth?" he wondered.

"No, I mean, who am I trying to kid here, being President, like I'm really doing anything except what my father did. I'm just doing the same thing, I'm not an innovator, I don't have the same aplomb as he did. I'm just going through the motions of it all."

"You're joking, right?" he asked her.

"No, I mean, I'm not trying to even better the quality of the show."

"Sure you are, but you're doing it subtly. Stephanie, you just took over, what did you expect to happen, that everything would be different? It's not. Your dad had a lot of years to build his product, it wasn't all great in the beginning either."

"I guess…"

"You're doing great, don't let anyone tell you otherwise."

"Thanks, crisis averted, I guess," Stephanie said as Chris leaned over to kiss her. "I love you."

"I love you too," he told her, "look, you are doing your own thing, and the results of that will be felt soon enough. Don't push it. Things don't need to change drastically, but what you are doing _is_ change."

"You sure?"

"Absolutely," Chris told her, running his hand down her face. "You're amazing at what you do, and pretty soon, the entire world is going to see what I get to see everyday I'm with you. You have amazing ideas."

"Punk is going to beat up my dad."

"Well, I know, but…I mean, what can you do?"

"I can stop it."

"Your father would never allow that. Just let it run its course. Your dad is going to fight whether you say no or not."

"Grandpa said he might wrestle," Flynn startled them both by sneaking up on them.

"Flynn, don't sneak up on people," Stephanie chastised her daughter.

"I walked over," she argued. "I didn't know Grandpa could wrestle. I thought he was too old to wrestle, but now he says that he can. Is he good?"

"Not really," Chris said.

"Oh, so he not the best in the world, that's still you, Daddy."

"That'll always be me."

"How come he's gonna wrestle?"

"Because if there's one thing you should know about Grandpa Vince, it's that he has an ego the size of the universe, and if he wants to do something, there's no stopping him," Chris said.

Stephanie elbowed him in the ribs, causing him to grunt. "Chris!"

"What," he chuckled, "you know it's true. Flynn, your grandpa just always thinks he's know things better than everyone. In this case, he felt like Punk was disrespecting him, so Grandpa needs to show him some respect."

"But Punk is my friend, who do I want to win?" Flynn asked.

"Whoever you want," Chris told her.

"Daddy, up please," Kensington said. Chris lifted her up into his lap. "Who do you want to win tonight, Kensy-bug, Grandpa or Punk?"

"Mmm, you!" Kensington told him after thinking about it for a moment.

"What! Daddy can win tonight!" Flynn exclaimed, her jaw dropping. "I want you to win too, Daddy, I didn't know you could win tonight!"

"I'm not wrestling tonight," Chris told his daughters, "but I'm glad you'd want me to win."

"Oh," Flynn said in disappointment. "I guess I don't want anyone to win."

"No?" Stephanie asked.

"I like 'em."

"Well, that's about as diplomatic as you can get," Stephanie said, pulling Flynn towards her and kissing her messy head of hair. "I just hope Grandpa knows what he's in for."

Her father had a way of getting himself into crazy situations, and this was one. Stephanie just had to let it happen because if she intervened, her father wouldn't see a colleague, he would see the little girl who didn't want her daddy to get hurt. Even though she was clearly an adult, her father would sometimes just see her in that one way. He would never back down from a fight, not her father. Her father had fought all his life, and he wasn't going to sit there and just take this.

Even if she tried.

"Dad, are you sure you want to fight Punk?" Stephanie asked. She'd brought Kensington with her to amp up the cute factor. Kensington was his youngest grandchild, and she still had a baby face so maybe her father might come to his senses.

"Of course, I wouldn't have told him he was going to fight me if I didn't mean it."

"But don't you think you could get hurt?" Stephanie asked gently.

"Are you saying I can't hold my own?"

"Well, I'm not saying it, but someone was saying it earlier," Stephanie nodded her head towards Kensington.

"Momma?" Kensington asked.

"I'm sorry, Kensy, but yes, Dad, it was Kensington. She was telling me about how it might not be in your best interests to fight, especially because you haven't been in the ring in such a long time and against someone so volatile."

"Those were her exact words, yes?"

"Pretty much," Stephanie nodded.

"I'm going out there, Stephanie, you won't stop me."

"But Dad—"

"Don't 'but Dad' me, I'm fighting because he slapped me. I'm not going to take that lying down. I'm a man who deserves respect, and just like Austin before him, he showed me a great deal of disrespect this evening. That requires punishment."

"And you're the one to dole that out?"

"I wouldn't let anyone do my dirty work."

"Not even if it was Chris?"

"Is he offering?"

"No, but if it was him, would you let him?"

"No," Vince confirmed for her, "I wouldn't even let Shane."

"Dad, this fight has no purpose!" Stephanie pleaded with him.

"Then I'll give it a purpose."

And that was how she ended up watching her father fight against Punk. Her father actually held his own after the initial onslaught by Punk. In fact, he even impressed her a little bit, but still, this wasn't the way to solve anything. In her father's mind, brute force was sometimes necessary, but it ended up meaning he was going to get hit with a kendo stick. Only in her life would her father end up getting beat with a kendo stick. Then Chris had to go and remind her that he'd been hit with one too.

"Hey, remember that time, I think it was the Royal Rumble, I got hit with one of those and I had that huge knot on my head, were we together then?" Chris asked as they watched.

"Yeah, we were, that thing was ugly."

"I think your dad has a cut near his eye."

"Great," Stephanie scoffed. "That's going to look great if he has to make any appearances with my mom."

"Well, it's his fault for putting himself into this match it's not your problem," Chris told her, grabbing her hand and giving it a squeeze.

"Then why do I feel like I should have stopped this."

"Because you're a good daughter," Chris winced as Punk kicked Vince in the crotch. "Oh yeah, that's gotta hurt the grapefruits."

"Chris, gross!" Stephanie said.

"Sorry!" he said.

They continued to watch as Ryback and Cena came out to help Vince, and then Punk ran into the crowd. Vince issued an ultimatum for him, giving him the choice on who to face at Hell in a Cell. Stephanie realized this was her father giving the fight a purpose, and she had to give that one to him. Her father was a wily bastard.

And for that, at least he had _her_ respect.

"Punk, was that really necessary, going all out like that?" Chris asked later when he ran into Punk in the hallway. Stephanie had no clue he was talking to the man, but Chris didn't need her permission.

"It felt good at least," Punk told him.

"Yeah, I mean, I get it, but seriously, who's next, is it Stephanie? Because if it's Stephanie, if you go after her, I will go after you," Chris threatened.

"No, it wouldn't be Stephanie," Punk told Chris.

Chris wasn't so sure anymore, but if it came to that, Punk was in for a world of trouble.


	390. Girl Crush, October 15, 2012

"You've got an admirer."

Stephanie looked up at Chris standing in the doorway. Kensington was sleeping against Stephanie's chest. The little girl was nestled against Stephanie tightly, her breathing even and deep. Her arms were limp against her sides and Stephanie had her arm around Kensington's waist, holding her to her as she used her other hand to check her emails.

"What is she doing napping on you?" Chris asked.

"Kensy leads the fast life. She plays hard, she crashes hard," Stephanie told him. "While you were out doing your thing, being a rock star or whatever it is you do while you're not in the house, Miss Kensington Vaughn and I went to the park. She had a very dashing play date."

"Should I be worried there's a boy in her life?" Chris asked.

"Yes, because Kensington is a wild one. She shared her crackers with him, scandal!" Stephanie waved her free arm around.

"So how did she end up in your arms then?"

"She fell asleep in the car, I picked her up, tried to put her down for her nap, but the whining began, so I figured she could just stay with me," Stephanie shrugged. "She's a deep sleeper, she must have picked that up from Flynnie because she was not a deep sleeper when she was a baby."

"She's still a baby," Chris said, plopping himself down on the couch Stephanie kept in her office, the very same one he'd had sex with her on the day she had the little girl asleep in her mother's arms. "Don't try to make her older."

"She's two, Chris, hardly a baby, more like a toddler," Stephanie kissed Kensington's forehead, causing her to sigh. "So I have an admirer, do I? Would it be my dear and loving husband? Because if so, the sentiment is sweet, but I'm not one for the cheesy."

"No, no, not you," Chris said, "you know, Steph, baby, you've got to get with the times. There's this little thing called the internet, I think you would find it fascinating. You can do lots of things on it."

"I run a company, I don't have time for frivolous things like my husband, who only works part time."

"Hey, I'm working on a book over here!" he protested.

"Yeah, which I never see you actually working on," Stephanie pointed out. "If you were really serious, you probably would be sitting upstairs in your office typing things down."

"You know how I work, Steph. I don't just sit down and start writing, I like to get my thoughts together, I like to talk to some of the guys, I like to gather notes so that I know the flow I want to set," he told her. "In fact, I could do some research right now. Let me see, so, Mrs. McMahon-Jericho, when I returned for the second time, what were the circumstances around that?"

"Very funny," she told him, knowing full well she'd been surprised by his appearance after thinking Undertaker was going to be the one showing up that evening. "So you got me, good for you, are you going to tell that to the world?"

"Of course I am, but maybe I should save that for the fourth book. I mean, I've already got so much to cover. Oh, so what do I say about the time when we were fighting, but we weren't really fighting, but we were making everyone think we were getting a divorce?" Chris tapped his chin.

"I don't care what you bring up, if that's what you're trying to do," Stephanie told him. "It's your book, not mine. You can put whatever you want into your book, I can't really protest. I mean,I _guess_ I could write a book…"

"I would read that book."

"Why? Because you think it would just be a glowing review of you?" Stephanie scoffed. Chris pretended to act hurt, clutching at his chest.

"I'm insulted that you think I would want to be canonized in a book you wrote. I mean, sure, I helped you try and get revenge on your ex-husband, and sure, I fell in love with you and married you, and sure, I gave you three beautiful children, and sure, I've come back to wrestling for you time and time again, but I would _never_ try to influence what you wrote about me."

"Uh huh, like you wouldn't be hanging over my shoulder at every turn," Stephanie told him. "Maybe someday. I can tell them all about how we fell in love and they'll make us into a movie, like _The Notebook_ or something."

"Gross," Chris stuck his tongue out.

"So who has a crush on me if not you?" Stephanie asked. "I'm not sure I really want to know given the fact that I'm not attracted to anyone that works for me, but indulge me. Is it…Alex Riley?"

"No, he better not," Chris said, "it's not anyone you're thinking of, it's your little doppelganger, Miss AJ."

"What are you talking about?" Stephanie shook her head.

"Well, I was watching some WWE video because I keep up with the product. Even though I'm not wrestling right now, I like to keep up with the current events of the company. I think it's only fair, not that anyone in my family actually cares about wrestling—"

"Okay, joke, joke, we get it, I'm in love with the company, Flynn would marry the company, get on with it, Jericho," Stephanie prompted her husband.

"She pretty much loves you," Chris said, "I'm shocked we didn't see it before. We kind of did, but not really. She hangs on your every word, and I'm pretty sure that she's constantly seeking your approval. The wardrobe doesn't help matters. Unfortunately for her, she can't pull it off. To pull off the power suit, a woman needs…curves. Luscious, divine curves..."

Stephanie smirked at her husband, "I don't believe you."

"What, that I liked your curves? I mean, haven't I pretty much demonstrated that enough?" he asked.

"No, that she has a crush on me, that's dumb. She doesn't have a crush on me. She's probably just trying to suck up, get on my good side because she's not doing as good a job as she probably could be doing."

"Then why say it in an interview you're not likely to see," Chris tapped his head. "She likes you, Stephanie. Face it, you've got a little shadow who wants to be just like you. Now I'm wondering if she didn't go to your father and implore for the job. I mean, look at her, she practically wants to be you."

Stephanie was dismayed by this information. She didn't hate AJ necessarily, but she didn't want her hanging around either. She didn't have time for a little puppy-dog following her around. She was a powerful businesswoman, and she could just see AJ trailing after her, wanting to be like her. It was one thing when it was one of her kids, she loved them, but a grown woman, albeit a young one. AJ should just go back to wrestling.

"I maintain that she was just trying to get on my good side. She knows the power I yield."

"If we're talking power, wouldn't she be sucking up more to the board than to you?" he wondered. "Since they've seemed to take over all of this stuff even though they really don't have the qualifications."

"Yes, but they go through me, so there. And she probably knew you were going to watch it and tell me about it. Or she thought I would watch it myself. She doesn't know what I watch or don't watch. For all I know, she probably assumes I watch everything WWE related."

"Could be, could be, but she was practically giddy talking about you."

"Okay, show me the video," Stephanie said. "Right now."

"So touchy. I thought you would love to have someone want to be you. Like a clone."

"I've got two, thanks," Stephanie deadpanned. "I just want to see the video."

"Don't start treating her differently. She can't help that she admires you," Chris told her as he walked over and hovered over her left shoulder, leaning down so he could get at her laptop, "there are a lot of people in this world who aren't immune to your charms. Even people who used to hate you can't help but fall for it."

Stephanie tilted her head up to him and puckered her lips. He leaned down and pressed a kiss against them. "Sometimes you say the sweetest things," she told him.

"Here we go," Chris told her, getting the video up and skipping ahead to the part where AJ was talking about her.

Stephanie watched as the younger woman gushed about her. She was a little flattered, as anyone would be when they were told they were admired. Still, she didn't know whether this was an obvious attempt at butt-kissing or a genuine feeling. Butt-kissing she could deal with, she would just tell AJ to knock it off. Having AJ actually admire her and want to be like her, well, that was like getting a really clingy pet, and Stephanie didn't have time for pets.

"So what do you think?" Chris asked as he stopped the video after AJ stopped talking about his wife.

"Well, it's nice, I think, maybe, I don't know," Stephanie said in a jumble of words. "I mean, she has always acted weird around me. I guess I just thought she was weird."

"And only someone who really, really admires and likes you would say you're something like the warmest, nicest person in the world," Chris told her. "I love you to death and even I don't think you're the nicest person in the world, far from it. Hell, the kids, who adore the hell out of you, I don't think _they _think—"

"Got it, Jericho, I'm not nice," Stephanie cut him off with a glare.

"Case in point," he told her.

"Whatever," she frowned.

"Don't treat her any differently, Steph," Chris told her. "She's just trying to find her place in this company, and for some reason, the GM job fell in her lap. She doesn't need you going around trying to make her miserable because she said she admires you. Just go easy on her."

"I never said I was going to go hard on her," Stephanie said. "I may get her actions a little bit better now, but I wasn't going to suddenly turn on her. I still don't think she's right for the job though, and I'm starting to get the feeling my dad thinks the same way, and if it comes to it, I think with the both of us talking against her, she could just go back to being a wrestler."

"That's not a bad thing, I just don't want her to get hurt. She's young, and she's really vulnerable, especially after all that stuff with Punk and Bryan and even Kane, whatever the hell that was. Hey, I just realize, she had that whole thing with Kane, and you have that weird relationship with Taker. She really does want to be like you."

"I don't know what the hell you think went on between me and Taker, but it didn't involve me jumping into his arms for a kiss."

"Well, that's lucky for me, I already have a problem seeing my wife's ex-husband on a weekly basis, it would suck if I had to see Taker too."

"No worries there," Stephanie said, "and don't forget all her recent crap with Heyman and Vickie. That girl just runs right into trouble."

"Says the woman who was kidnapped not once, but twice, both times where a wedding was involved. God…thank goodness you found me to give you an actual wedding that didn't involve you in black on a cross—"

"It wasn't really a cross, it was a 't,' you know, for Taker," Stephanie corrected him.

"Semantics."

"You weren't there."

"But I saw it on TV," Chris told her.

"How, you were probably working that evening," Stephanie said, "if I'm not mistaken, you were with WCW."

"Shows what you know," Chris told her, "I wasn't working that night. I remember because I was with my—"

"Go on…"

"Nothing," Chris told her, "Kensington is waking up."

Indeed, Stephanie looked down and saw Kensington blinking her eyes slowly and blearily. Her and Chris's voices must have woken her up. Kensington whimpered for a moment before she yawned and stretched her arms, hitting Stephanie in the throat. She looked up and around and was startled to see both her mother and father staring down at her. That was weird. Did she do something?

"Momma," she muttered sleepily.

"Hey there, sweet girl," Stephanie kissed her forehead. "You want to sleep on the couch over there or do you want to go back up to your room so you can finish your nap?"

"Couch," Kensington said. Chris took Kensington from Stephanie's arms and brought her over to the couch, laying her on it and grabbing one of the throw pillows Stephanie kept on it, putting it under his daughter's head. He covered her with a stray blanket and within a few moments, Kensington was back to sleep.

Chris turned back to Stephanie and she raised her eyebrow, "So you were watching me tied up in a sacrifice with your girlfriend?"

"You say that like you should be mad at me, but we didn't even know each other."

"I knew _of_ you."

"Yeah, because that's the same as knowing me," Chris said, "I didn't know you…I thought it was kind of funny." He glared at her and he threw his arms out in exasperation. "You've got to be kidding me. Stephanie, we didn't know each other. The only interaction we'd had was…none. Well, maybe not. I don't know, I was sending my feelers out to the company, so I don't know."

"I don't remember," Stephanie said, "That was forever ago. I'm just joking with you. I'll go easy on AJ. Maybe even take her under my wing a little more. What could it hurt, right?"

"That's the spirit," he said, "hey, um, shouldn't one of us be picking up our other daughter?"

"No, she's going over to Abby's house. Janine is picking them up, and she's going to drop Flynn off later."

"So, one asleep, two away, what does that mean for us?" he asked, wiggling his eyebrows.

"It means I'm working, and you should be writing," she told him, giving him a thumbs up. Chris was having none of that, and instead, walked over, scooping Stephanie up in his arms before he sat down and pulled her into his lap.

"No, Steph, that's not what it means."

"So what does it mean, Chris?"

He kissed her.

Stephanie wasn't exactly looking forward to being around AJ now, knowing how much the girl looked up to her. It wasn't that she wasn't flattered, but AJ's form of flattery seemed to be imitation, and Stephanie was not a person who wanted a shadow. It just wasn't her style to take someone under her wings like that. When Britt first showed up, Stephanie thought Britt was trying to steal her husband. But she was going to put it out of mind for now. She had things to do.

"This project of yours, people are going to like it," Stephanie kissed him, "but I'm not too crazy about you going to LA all the time for this."

"I know," he brushed some hair away from her face. "I'm sorry that it's going to take time away from you again. I know you hate it."

"I _do_ hate it," Stephanie sighed, "not just for me, but for the kids as well, and I'm not trying to guilt trip you, really, I'm not, I just…they miss you when you're not around, and Chris, I'm not saying you shouldn't follow your dreams, but, remember, they miss you while you're gone."

"I know," he told her sighing. He knew she wasn't trying to hurt his feelings, but it did hurt. He felt like at some point, he was going to have to choose between his kids and a career opportunity. If it ever came to that, the choice would be easy, but it he hoped it never came to that.

"Please don't be upset, the kids do understand. And as they get older, they'll understand even more."

"I get it," Chris nodded.

Stephanie nodded, hating that she made him feel bad, but she sometimes wished he wouldn't take on so many projects. She didn't want to sound like a nagging wife so she usually kept her feelings to herself, only letting it out in little bunches, trying to subtly let him know that maybe he could scale back. She knew this should be a discussion, a serious one, but whenever she thought about bringing it up, she always thought about the sacrifices Chris made for her, and how she should sometimes try and make sacrifices for him.

At some point, though, it was going to be too much, but when that time came, could she tell him. He had his new project that was constantly making it necessary for him to travel cross-country, and there was another Fozzy tour coming up of the States, then the UK, then Europe, and next year he'd be headed to Australia, and yes, she wanted to bring it up now, but she and Flynn had a flight to catch, and it was not the appropriate time to bring it up.

"Stephanie, what's on your mind?" Chris asked, sensing that there was something simmering just below the surface.

"Nothing," Stephanie brushed her thoughts away. It wasn't something they should discuss with so little time. It could wait until she got home. "I was just thinking about work and AJ," she lied and he chuckled, instantly forgetting how she'd looked.

"Don't worry, she isn't that bad," Chris reminded her.

"Mommy, is it time to go yet?" Flynn asked impatiently. She wanted to get to wrestling!

"Yeah, yeah, it is, you little, impatient girl," Stephanie told her daughter.

"Daddy, you should come too and wrestle," Flynn told him hopefully. She knew it probably wouldn't work, but it couldn't hurt to try. Maybe one of these days her father would actually say he was going to come and wrestle.

"I have to stay and take care of your brother and sister," Chris told her. "I think that's a pretty important job."

"Oh, I guess," Flynn shrugged. "We can go now, Mommy?"

"Yes, we should go," Stephanie told her daughter.

"I'll get Kensy," Chris told his wife.

Chris went and got Kensington as Stephanie gathered her things and Flynn's things. Sawyer was at school so it was just the four of them as Chris drove to the airport, dropping his two girls off. The flight to Nashville wasn't very long, even with one stop, it was only about three and a half hours. They went to the hotel first and checked in before Stephanie went to the arena with her daughter. The first person she saw when she walked in was AJ, wandering around reading what looked like a comic book. Stephanie picked up Flynn quickly and dodged into a hallway to avoid the petite brunette.

"Mommy, what are we doing?" Flynn asked.

"Nothing, just playing a game."

"I like games, what we playing?" Flynn asked excitedly.

"Hide and seek so we have to be quiet," Stephanie told her.

"Who's it?"

"Um, someone, I'm not sure who," Stephanie said lamely, and even Flynn picked up on the weirdness that was going on. This didn't seem like a very fun game of hide and seek.

"I go down, please," Flynn implored her mother. It wasn't that she didn't like being carried, she did, but she was at wrestling, and she wanted to go find some of her friends. "Mommy, is Sames here?"

"Yeah, he's here," Stephanie said as she peeked around the corner. "I'll put you down when we get to my office, okay?"

"Okay," Flynn said, still wondering why she couldn't walk on her own. She was capable of it after all. Stephanie started walking quickly down the hallway as Flynn looked around. Stephanie managed to carry her purse and her bag of paperwork in one arm while holding Flynn with the other. Flynn's backpack was bobbing up and down on her back and it was bumping into the back of her head. She was about to say something when she spotted Sheamus walking down one of the adjacent hallways. "Mommy, it's Sames, I wanna go talk to him."

"Not right now, Flynnie, we have places to be."

"Sames, hi!" Flynn yelled down the hallway, waving briefly before she couldn't see him anymore. Sheamus only had a moment to look up before they were gone. "Mommy, that not nice."

"I know, but I have work to do, you understand, right, baby girl?" Stephanie pouted at Flynn and made a funny face. Flynn giggled wildly and buried her face into Stephanie's neck. She loved when her mommy made funny faces. This allowed Stephanie to get to her office and she pushed open the door, yelping when she saw someone was in there, but then breathing in relief when she saw it was only her mother. "Mom, what are you doing here?"

"I had the night off from campaigning, and I wanted to make sure your father didn't do anything as stupid as he did last week," Linda shook her head. "As if it wasn't bad enough he has to come over here and run his mouth, he's getting into fights. That doesn't look good for my campaign."

"He was just angry," Stephanie reasoned. She would _never _tell her mother how her campaign sometimes seemed to get in the way of everyone's lives. It was kind of like her situation with Chris, except Chris could handle the harshness, her mother would probably feel a little crushed. She knew her mother was putting everything she could into this campaign, but Stephanie was actually glad she didn't live in Connecticut anymore because it meant she didn't have to attend every event her mother held.

"Yes, but you know your father, he has to take everything that one extra step," Linda said, then peered around the immediate area. "Where's Kensy?"

"At home with Chris," Stephanie explained. "She didn't feel like coming with me."

"Oh, that's too bad, I would have loved to have seen her," Linda lamented. "I haven't even seen Sawyer in a while, I miss him, how's he doing in school?"

"Wonderfully, just as you would expect," Stephanie said.

"I go to school too," Flynn said, jutting her lip out because she went to school too and not just Sawyer!

"I know," Linda said, "and I've heard that you are very smart."

"I am," Flynn nodded.

"Can I take her for the evening?" Linda asked, opening her arms up. Flynn went willing into them. Linda was a lot more petite than Stephanie was so Flynn was able to almost wrap her legs around Linda's waist. Flynn gave her a big hug, and Linda lived for these kinds of hugs. She was blessed with wonderful, beautiful, and healthy grandchildren and she loved being around them.

"Flynnie, do you want to stay with Grandma for the evening?" Stephanie asked her daughter, leaving it up to her.

"Can we go see Sames?" Flynn asked sweetly.

"Sames?" Linda looked to Stephanie for help.

"Sheamus," Stephanie supplied.

"He's my friend, Grandma," Flynn told him.

"He is?" Linda asked, again looking to Stephanie.

"She likes him," Stephanie confirmed. "After Chris lost to him, he personally came to her and helped cheer her up. He's a good guy."

"Oh, well, of course we can go see him then," Linda told Flynn, kissing her forehead.

"I wanna go with Grandma!" Flynn declared happily. As long as she'd get to see her friends, she was happy.

"Okay, then you can go with her, but you be good, you hear me, you," Stephanie poked her daughter in the chin. "I'm going to ask Grandma how you were at the end of the night, and if she gives me a bad report, then…oh, I don't know what I'd do with you…"

"Mommy," Flynn giggled, "you love me!"

"I do, but that doesn't mean I won't punish you," she tickled Flynn a little bit. "Just have her back by the end of the show, Mom. She hasn't eaten dinner so whenever she's hungry. She has her backpack on, all her stuff is in there."

"I have juice," Flynn explained.

"And a snack," Stephanie said.

"We'll be fine," Linda assured her, "you just worry about your job, I've got this."

"Okay, I'll see you later, Flynnie, have fun," Stephanie kissed her daughter's cheek, who reciprocated it with one of her own. "I love you."

"Bye, Mommy. Love you too," Flynn told her.

Stephanie was blissfully into her work when her father walked in. She should have known she thought as she laughed to herself. Her father probably planned to have Flynn out of here before he spoke with her. "Stephanie, do you have a minute?"

"What now, Dad?" Stephanie asked. "You've come to pick another fight with Punk?"

"I didn't want things to escalate to that level last week, it just happened."

"Dad, do you understand that you can't just go and make fights?"

"I'm just trying to kind of supplement what AJ can't and won't do," Vince told her.

"I'm not mad about you making matches, Dad, or you making decisions. I've long since come to terms with the fact that you're here, and you're going to make decisions, and you're going to assert your presence. I'm okay with that, it saves me the trouble of doing it myself, with far different results of course, but don't be stupid about this. I'm saying you shouldn't make fights that include _you_ in them. Look at what happened to you last week. You could have gotten seriously injured. Kendo sticks, Dad? Those hurt, you know."

"Oh, really, I had no idea," Vince said sarcastically.

"Whatever," Stephanie gave him back his own tone in kind. "I'm just trying to look out for you, Dad. I know we've got this tentative thing here wherein I let you back in, hell, I'm even pretty much letting you be in charge while I'm your paperwork person, but can you at least be sensible about this. Punk is in his prime, and he's constantly looking for a fight, why give yourself up. Look, Punk is my friend, but I understand he's pissed at the authority figures here, namely you, so if you insist on fighting with him, at least have back-up."

"I did."

"Yes, but you didn't know you would," Stephanie said, "they came out there of their own volition, probably because they're not happy with Punk. Have a contingency plan, Dad. You haven't been out of the game for that long. You're the guy who orchestrated master plans with ease. If this is the route you're going, make sure you have one."

"Thank you, Stephanie, for looking out for me."

"You're my dad," Stephanie rolled her eyes, "I don't want to actually see anything _happen_ to you. I just think your skills are better suited outside of the ring as a wrestler."

"Okay, but if Punk doesn't choose tonight—"

"You'll be on his case, I get it," Stephanie said. "Believe me, Dad, I get it."

Punk wrapped his arm around Britt as he came up behind her. "Are you sick of me yet?" he asked her cheekily.

"Yes," Britt told him, shrugging his arm off of her. "I'm so sick of you I can't stand your face."

"You had fun this weekend and you know it," Punk told her. It was incredible the mood he was in. He wanted it to last forever, but he knew it was going to vanish as soon as he actually had to focus on work. That's why he was trying to prolong it.

"It was…interesting," she conceded, trying to conceal how much fun she had.

"Interesting? All I get is an interesting? Wow, I've really got to work on that. My friends really liked you for what it's worth, not that I didn't think they would. You should have let yourself be talked into that tattoo though, you would look awesome with one."

"No," she told him. "I'm not going to get one and you can't make me."

"I'm going to wear you down eventually."

"Hey, so…since I spent the weekend with you and your friends, why don't you spend the weekend with me and my friends?" Britt asked. "I figure the least I can do is return the favor."

"Really?"

"What? You can invite me places, but when I invite you, it's suddenly taboo?"

"No, nothing like that, I'd love to, that's really cool of you."

The one thing that hanging out with Britt at the shows afforded him was the opportunity to not focus on the show and all the bullshit he had to deal with backstage. He hated going to work angry, but Britt broke that up. He really, really wished his other wrestling friends actually worked for the company because it would provide him with an outlet. Not having one caused him to get angry more easily.

"Great," she said, then held up her arms filled with papers, "Work beckons, I'll see you later, don't do anything stupid!"

"I'll try not to!"

It was impossible for him not to do anything stupid. With the company he worked in, with the constant disrespect he suffered from, there was only so much time before it was all going to fall apart. This time, it was his own stupid fault. He'd forgotten to heed Vince's warning about choosing his opponent, and when he tried to stall, tried to delay the inevitable decision he had to make, he'd sealed his own contract so to speak. In the anger he should have directed at himself, he instead directed it straight at Vince McMahon.

"You and Punk seem chummy," Hunter emerged from the shadows in front of Britt, or at least that's how it seemed. She started just a little as she stood up from Stephanie's side at the production table to walk over to Hunter.

"What are you talking about?"

"I've just heard that you went with him this weekend, you two are together now I'm guessing."

"It's not really any of your business, but no, we're not together, and why are you coming out now and saying this? I thought you were done with me," Britt told him.

"I was just making small talk," he said unconvincingly. He was actually so relieved to hear there was nothing going on.

"Seriously, that's what you're going with?" Britt said, rubbing his arm. "Hunter, let me remind you that you were the one who broke up with me, not the other way around. Punk and I are just friends, but yeah, we're close now. He's my work best friend, and I like to think I'm his, but you have no right to be jealous."

"I'm not jealous, I just wanted to know what was up, now I know. I've got to go, taking over Chris's job has been no piece of cake."

"Yeah…" She watched him walk away and went to sit back down with Stephanie.

"What was that about?" Stephanie asked as they went to commercial.

"Nothing," Britt said with a shrug, "nothing at all."

Punk was not going to take this lying down, but then, when did he ever take anything lying down. It wasn't his style. He wanted to fight Vince. He didn't know exactly where the thought came from, maybe from the residual feelings from last week, but he just had the urge to beat up on someone, and Vince was the perfect target. Vince was everything wrong with this company personified. It was with him that this fixation on size and false charisma started. Without Vince, maybe guys like him would be getting the respect they deserved instead of guys like Cena who could barely call themselves wrestlers.

Heyman tried to talk him out of it, tried to get him to calm down, but Zeus himself couldn't change his mind. Not that he believed in Zeus, but at the very least it was a better representation of authority than the mysterious "God" people were constantly going on about. He wasn't to be deterred. Sure, Heyman probably knew best in this situation, but Punk wasn't thinking about what was best. He was thinking on pure emotion, and his pure emotion wanted a legit fight with Vince McMahon tonight. He told Heyman to go tell Vince what was going on. The man was reluctant to do so, but because he worked under Punk, he really had no choice but to do so.

"Hey, Daddy, I didn't know your song was going to be on the Hell in a Cell," Sawyer told Chris as they watched the show, "that's so cool."

"You think so?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, did Mommy make that happen?" he wondered.

Chris chuckled, "You know, I think she did."

"How come Punk wants to fight Grandpa so bad?" Sawyer asked another question, curious as to why someone who was his friend would want to face his grandfather. "Does he hate him?"

"Not necessarily," Chris was trying to be polite, but it was difficult because he thought Punk really did hate Vince. "It's just, well, Punk is upset and he has to find someone to take it out on and unfortunately, that's on Grandpa."

"Oh, well, I hope they don't fight."

Stephanie was hoping they wouldn't fight either, and when she had a free moment, she left Britt in charge to go talk to Punk. "Hey," she said, pushing open the door, "can we talk?"

"What about?" Punk asked. "Where's Flynn?"

"With my mom," Stephanie explained. "I'm just…do you think you could take it easy on my dad. I mean—"

"Stephanie, he's the problem."

"I know you think that, but—"

"He is, it's his fault that I'm not getting respect. Now he's coming out here, trying to take over for me. Stephanie, isn't this what we were trying to prevent from happening. You're letting him walk all over you again. He's done what he set out to do right after you got him ousted. He's gotten back in the company and he's pushing you back, don't you see that? Don't you see that we're in the same boat here?"

"We're not, I'm still the president."

"Yeah, but look at him, look at everything he's doing. This isn't what you wanted. How long before he just takes over everything again. We fought so hard, Stephanie, to make sure this didn't happen. We worked together, and he's screwing us both over. He's showing you as much respect as he's showing me, which is none. How can you not see this, Stephanie?"

"It's not like that!" she told him.

"It's exactly like that!" Punk told her. "Look, if you're not part of the solution here, you're part of the problem. I won't go after you because of Flynn, but if you refuse to see what you're dad is doing, then we're done here."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying take your head out of your ass and take back what is yours."

"It's not that simple, we're at a really good place."

"Then goodbye, Stephanie. I'm sorry, but your naiveté is really dragging me down. Everyone painted me out to be the devil, your dad is the devil, and you're falling right into his trap."

"He's still my father, Punk," Stephanie told him, "he's my father and he's family…"

"I get that, he's still screwing you over, but don't worry, Steph, you'll see it soon enough, probably when it's too late. And to think, all that work we did, right down the drain," Punk made a circling gesture with his hands. "I've got a fight to think about."

He walked out and left Stephanie alone.

Was he right? Was her father walking all over her again? She thought they were in an easy truce with one another, no fighting, no drama. She liked it, but what was her father really doing? She was willing to give him power because he knew what he was doing, but was he taking it too far? She couldn't wrap her mind around that right now. She and her father were being nice to one another, caring about one another. Did she want to disrupt that? Not really, but if Punk was right, her father was showing her no respect.

How long could she take that?


	391. The New Regime, October 22, 2012

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews and reads and faves and what not, always appreciated! :)

* * *

"Hey there, stranger."

"I know, I know, I've been doing a lot this week, and I'm sorry," Chris said, coming over and pressing a brief kiss to her mouth. "I just have so much to do, and I know I should be more considerate and everything, I know this, it's just I'm trying to fit in everything all at once because I know at some point in the future, I'm going to go back to wrestling, and I guess I'm trying to cram everything in before I do that."

Stephanie nodded a tiny bit. "I've got some time before my flight, let's talk."

Chris bit his lip a little bit, "Where are the kids?"

"Your parents took them out for breakfast so we could talk," Stephanie said, "plus they just wanted to see them for a little bit. I know they'll probably see the kids tomorrow, but you know what I mean."

"So you sent our kids with my parents because you need to talk to me?" Chris asked, just trying to be clear about what was going on here. He'd had a hectic week, flying here, there, and seemingly everywhere in between. It wasn't going to really let up any time soon either. He had another Fozzy tour coming up, plus next month, he'd be going back to UK for Fozzy again.

"That's right," Stephanie said, patting the seat next to her on the couch. Chris sat down hesitantly. He had a feeling he knew what Stephanie wanted to talk with him about, but he was trying to block that out because he knew he would lose in any argument that would come up.

"So…" Chris just didn't know how to start this, but he knew his wife would. If anything, Stephanie was never afraid to stare something in the face and call it what it was. She was never one to dance around the point.

"Yes, so you know I'm proud of you, right? I think that's been fairly obvious," Stephanie nodded, which prompted Chris to nod along with her. "I love that you always have something to do because I can relate to that, you know I like to keep myself busy. And despite what my father says about your other interests and controlling you—"

"Wait, what did your dad say about controlling me?" Chris interjected. He'd heard some rumors about how the WWE was trying to work in partnership with him, and he'd addressed those rumors, stating that the WWE lived in its own bubble, but he'd figured they really just meant having Stephanie as his wife, and not that the WWE was actually trying to control him.

"Oh, my dad was talking to me, and he suggested that we kind of control or you know, make sure what you're doing is kind of under the WWE flag, but I told him that was silly, and you could do what you wanted because you weren't under contract to us, and you're my husband, not my employee," Stephanie explained. "I know you wouldn't want my father of all things controlling you, and I don't control you…much that is, I mean, I kind of do considering I'm your wife, but I digress."

"Okay, well, as long as your father isn't going to interfere in my career…"

"He won't, when have I ever let him do anything that affected our relationship?" Stephanie asked rhetorically. "Anyways, what I'm getting at is…you're taking on a lot of things, a _lot_ of things. You've got your book you're starting to write, you've got your radio show, and those are the two things that are really low on the totem pole because both of those you do here, but then you have your 'super secret project,' and then you have your tours coming up, and…it's a lot, Chris."

"I know, and I wish I could have spaced it out more," he started, and she actually listened, "but everything just kind of came up so fast, and I feel like if I don't take the opportunities that they're going to disappear."

"I see," Stephanie took pause for a moment, "but do you kind of see what it's doing to me, and to us, and to the kids? Chris, you're a great husband and an even better father, but…okay, for example, look at that schedule you posted on your twitter, where was the time for your family in that one?"

"What?" he had to wrack his brain trying to think of that particular tweet. It finally came to him, and he mentally went over it, but couldn't remember clearly what it had said, "Well, you know I of course had time on there for you guys, I always try and make time."

"Which has been less and less as time passes, and you're pretty much booked until March."

"Are you saying you want me to come back to wrestling so we're on the same schedule?" He completely misinterpreted her words and shook her head vehemently.

"That's not what I'm saying at all, I didn't even mention wrestling," Stephanie told him. "I've learned not to ever anticipate or beg you to come back because you're going to do that on your own, in your own time. Please don't take this as a way to get you back to wrestling. You are free to do what you want. Just because you're married to me does not mean you have to be a wrestler."

"Thanks," he told her.

"We just miss you," Stephanie said, "I miss you, the kids miss you, we all miss you. It's hard for us not seeing you. When you go on tours, we understand, we don't like it, but we understand. Even Kensington is at an age where she at least she knows you're coming back. We get it, but it's hard, you know. I don't mind taking care of them alone, they're my kids, I love them, I love being around them. But what I do not like is them missing you so much."

"I didn't—"

"Realize? Come on, Chris, even you can't be blind to it," Stephanie told him.

He wasn't blind, but he'd tried turning a blind eye to it. He could see the sadness in his children's eyes when he had to leave, but he figured they would understand. Still, he'd never been so busy in his life, and everything was taking him away from them. He didn't want to regret not taking an opportunity that could lead to big things, but he didn't want his kids to resent him. It wasn't about the money or anything, it was never about that. He was very well-off himself, and Stephanie had enough money for about 100 lifetimes, it was just this internal need to be the best at everything he did.

"I'm not," he admitted, and she was glad he did because if he was really that oblivious, it would make this harder.

"Good, I'm glad you're not," Stephanie said, "do you understand where I'm coming from?"

"I know," Chris told her, taking a deep breath. "I can't just stop what I'm doing right now. I've already made all these commitments and—"

Stephanie grabbed his hand and brought it up to her lips, kissing his knuckles, "I understand you can't just back out of all the things you have to do. You have fans who are so excited to see you, and I get that. I'm happy your fans get the chance to see you, it's just you have four people around here who want to see you too."

"I'm sorry," he told her, "I'm sorry I was so far gone from your feelings and interests that you actually had to sit down and talk to me. You're really not mad at me though? I mean, you're Stephanie McMahon, you're kind of a bitch."

"You've softened me around the edges," she told him, scooting closer to him. "I just don't want us to…drift apart. If I'm going to be completely honest, I need to come clean about this too. I'm afraid if you're gone so much that it'll…it'll be bad for us."

"Stephanie, come on," he told her, shaking his head and narrowing his eyes at her. "Baby, you know that's not going to happen."

"We've always been realistic in our relationship, sweetie," Stephanie told him, licking her lips a little bit. "We've always said that there's no promise of forever where love concerns. We don't know what tomorrow will bring or what life will be like five years from now—"

"We'll probably have like two more kids," Chris joked and she laughed. "Stephanie, if there's anything in my life that hasn't changed these last ten years, it's my love for you. There's never been a waver, not even the slightest waver in my love for you."

"That's good, but that still doesn't mean things can go south. Sometimes, love just isn't enough, you know."

"No, I know that, but I would never let it get to that point. I would catch myself, or you could slap some sense into me, whichever is easier for you," Chris told her and Stephanie scooted herself even closer so their knees bumped each other. "I wish you didn't have to go tonight. We could've spent it together."

"Flattering, but I have work, that's the consequence of living with separate schedules," Stephanie told him, and by now she really was just about in his lap so she decided she would just go ahead and climb on. "I just don't want anything here to fall apart. We've worked too hard for it."

"Don't worry," he kissed her chin then her jaw before kissing the corner of her mouth and turning it into a real kiss. "I'm sorry I've been taking on so much. I'll try to be better about it."

"I'm just asking you be considerate towards the ones that love you the most," she pressed her hands to his cheeks. "I just don't want you falling out of our lives without us knowing. Besides, if there's anything I've learned over the years it's that we shouldn't take time for granted."

"You're right, and I will be better, I'll still have to do a lot, but I will try to scale it back."

"Thanks," Stephanie hugged him, "I'm glad we had this talk."

"Me too, the thought of losing you is not one I'm willing to consider, the only way someone is taking you away from me is if they pry you from my cold, dead hands."

Stephanie laughed and leaned in to kiss him again. Stephanie's phone rang as it sat on the coffee table and she reached over to pick it up, Chris reaching his hand over and brushing it against the skin peeking out from under her top. Stephanie swatted his hand away as she looked at the phone. "It's my dad."

Chris groaned, "He has always, _always_ had the worst timing."

"Hello, Dad, what's going on?" Stephanie asked, giving Chris a little glare to tell her she didn't appreciate the comment, but he didn't care as he leaned his head on her shoulder, pressing his lips to the side of her neck.

"Stephanie, I'm glad I caught you. I needed to inform you that an impromptu meeting has been called by the Board for tomorrow morning. You are coming in tonight, yes?"

"Yeah, I am, how come I'm only just now being informed about it?"

"Well, as you know, I do sit on the Board, and so I was the first one Basil called. There's been an inquiry sent in on AJ. They want to talk to her, and they want you to be present as the president of the company. So I wanted to make sure that you were coming in tonight because it's going to be an early meeting."

"Yes, of course, but what is this inquiry about, what did she do?"

"I don't have that information yet, but there is said to be some pretty incriminating stuff," Vince told her.

"Okay, well, I'll be there," Stephanie said, "I should be there tonight, I'll see you then, Dad."

"What about the kids?"

"They're not going to be coming with me this time. I asked Kensington and Flynn and they both wanted to spend their time with Chris this week. He's been gone for pretty much the entire week, and they want to spend time with him."

"You know, if you convinced him to come back and work until the WWE umbrella, this wouldn't be an issue," Vince told her in his best persuasive voice. What her father didn't understand was that even when Chris wasn't contractually obligated to do anything for the company, he was still representing it. Stephanie listened to every interview, print or video, and Chris always spoke well of the company, always presented them in a nice light.

"Dad, that is not going to happen, okay, would you just drop it already?" Stephanie said. "Chris has already done so much for the company, I'm not about to inhibit him."

"I'm just making a suggestion," Vince said, "I know your mother is going to be disappointed she won't see any of her grandchildren though."

"I'm sorry she won't, I would love it if she could see them, but I think time with their father is more important, I'm sorry," Stephanie told him and rightfully so. "But don't worry, I'll be there, and we'll discuss this more later."

"That's fine, I'll see you tonight, I love you, Stephanie."

"Yes, love you too, Dad," Stephanie said, "later."

"What were you doing talking about me?"

"Nothing, my father just wants to control you is all. The bigger issue is that there has been an emergency Board of Directors meeting called for tomorrow morning over an inquiry about AJ. I'm sure it's probably something filed by Vickie or Heyman. They probably just want to go over it, but I'm going to be needed."

"You know, I'm not going to push you to do this, but wouldn't it be a good thing if maybe you took this opportunity to maybe take her under your wing. She just looks up to you so much that maybe it would be really cool if you kind of helped her."

"Well, it depends on what this inquiry is about," Stephanie told him. "If it's something that is unfair or unjust, I'll be in her corner, otherwise, I can't just risk everything to stick my neck out for someone who means very little to me in the long run."

"Ever the diplomat, aren't you?"

"I have to be."

The next morning, Stephanie was up early. She wasn't usually one for early mornings, but she had the meeting at Titan and she didn't want to look half dead when she got there. She didn't have much in the way of food in the house (she didn't want to spend the night at her parents) so she simply got dressed and was out the door. She went to her old coffee haunt and grabbed a large one before heading into Titan. Her office was as it ever was, clean and pretty much empty. She sat down at her desk after turning on the lights and looked around.

She knew she had work to do, but she took the moment to really take in her office again. She did most of her work from her home office, only ever coming here every so often. Still, she had tried to make a point of being here at least three or four times a month. She thought about all the things Chris was going through right now, and an idea popped into her head, but she didn't know if she really dared think it. With Kensington being the only one not in school, maybe it wouldn't hurt if Stephanie flew up to Connecticut a couple days a week to get in a day's work. The flights weren't long, and if needed, she could take the private jet. She could get in a few good hours of work here, take meetings when she needed to, and still be home in time for dinner. It was definitely a thought.

She knew moving from Florida was out of the question, and she didn't want that. She loved living in Florida now. She didn't miss living near her parents one bit. They tended to smother her sometimes, and with her mother's campaign, she could just imagine what living in Connecticut would be like right now. Besides, their lives were there, rooted her deep and unbreakable. Their friends were there, Chris's parents were there, the kids' friends were there. It just didn't feel right.

"Stephanie?"

Stephanie looked up and saw a timid AJ standing in her doorway. "AJ, hey, you're early."

"I didn't really have anything else to do," she shrugged. "I kind of just drove around for a little bit, but I really didn't know where I was going and I was afraid I was going to get lost."

"Well, come in," Stephanie gestured towards the two seats in front of her. She remembered Chris's words and how he should be sympathetic to AJ's plight. She smirked a little at the thought her husband had to be the one to remind her to be sensitive.

"Thanks," AJ said, "I didn't mean to barge in, but you didn't have a secretary, but I could see you in here."

"No, no, it's fine, I actually wasn't doing anything, I just got in myself," Stephanie told her, trying to make her feel at ease. AJ's dark hair was covering a part of her face, probably a defensive mechanism.

"You look really pretty today," AJ complimented her on, trying to sound bright and cheery. All it did was remind Stephanie of AJ's words and how much AJ actually looked up to her. She really should have seen it with the clothes.

"You look really pretty too," Stephanie complimented her, taking in her outfit.

"Thanks," AJ brightened at the compliment. "I'm really glad you're here. I don't know, it just really makes me so happy that you flew up to come here. I mean, I know you're here for Raw, but you didn't have to come to this."

"Well, I don't think you're doing a terrible job," Stephanie said, "you're new, so you're bound to slip up every now and then. The thing is to keep at it. When I was GM, at first everyone thought I was going to be a bust or worse yet, they all thought I simply got the job because I was Vince's daughter. I had to go out there and prove to them I was something bigger, something better."

"Sometimes that's how I feel," AJ admitted, "like I'm constantly trying to prove something. Like if I make one mistake, everyone is going to jump on me. I mean, so many people do, I think it's the size."

"Well, you can't let your height dictate how you act. You don't have to prove anything to anyone except yourself. If you set your goals for yourself and not for everyone else, then you're pretty much going to succeed."

"Weren't you scared?"

"No, I wasn't, I had to be confident," Stephanie said, "I knew I could do the job. I went in believing I could. I knew I'd have guys who would be against me, but I didn't care, I was going to be the best."

"I think I can do that," AJ nodded resolutely.

"So do you know what this is about exactly?" Stephanie asked. She'd asked her father last night, but he told her it was in the hands of the board and she would be informed of it in the morning. She didn't like being out of the loop, but she was starting to think maybe what they had was really flimsy and wouldn't hold any weight. Maybe they were just mulling.

"I'm not really sure, but probably when I wasn't supposed to touch anyone on the roster," AJ shrugged.

"Okay, well, I guess we'll find out soon enough."

AJ and Stephanie made small talk for a little while longer before they went to the boardroom. Stephanie actually found that AJ wasn't that bad a person. She told Stephanie a little bit about how she'd grown up watching wrestling and how Stephanie had really been a role model for her. Stephanie could hardly hate her after AJ said that when she was living with nothing, the thought that she could be as strong as Stephanie one day kept her going. A person would have to be heartless to dislike a person after that.

Everyone was already gathered in the room and Stephanie took a seat at the head of one side while her father sat at the other side. Stephanie nodded towards the seat to her left and AJ quickly sat down, looking sheepishly around the table, feeling very out of place. "AJ, we've gathered some very disturbing news about you fraternizing with one of the employees," Basil started.

"What?" AJ said, "what do you mean by that?"

"It's been reported by someone, who wanted anonymity that we've granted for the time being, that you've been having an affair with one of the superstars," Basil explained to her. "We simply can't allow this."

Stephanie decided to put her own two words in. "Since when is this a stipulation to the job of GM? Because if I'm remembering correctly, I was the General Manager while dating the man who is currently my husband. In fact, he's been a wrestler while I've been in charge."

"That wasn't a conflict of interest," Basil told her.

"It wasn't?"

"You've never shown favoritism towards him, have you?" Basil asked. "Believe you me, we have discussed your relationship at length—"

"You've what?" Stephanie tilted her head to look at the man as she scoffed. "Who or what we choose to do when in the privacy of our own homes is not company business. I am the president of this company, and with that I do wield some power, in addition to being one of the majority shareholders, there will be no more discussing of my personal life."

"We don't because we know you've never favored Chris in any way," Basil told her calmly, and Stephanie was about to hit the calm right out of him, but she managed to refrain. "In light of the accusations against AJ, it's been said she's been using her position to further the career of the man she's been seeing."

"I don't get it, I haven't been seeing anyone since…since I thought…since I thought that Punk and I were…something," AJ said uncomfortably. She didn't know where this was coming from.

"Well, the person didn't name any names, but we're willing to give you the chance to tell us who it is. The person in question said they saw you at an intimate dinner with one of the members of the Raw roster. If you could tell us the person, we can bring them in and we can figure out the nature of the relationship."

AJ wracked her brain. The only person she'd had dinner with in the last week was Cena. They couldn't possibly be talking about her dinner with John. That was nothing, that was less than nothing. It was simply a business dinner, that was it. How could anyone construe that, that had been an intimate affair? They were just having dinner to discuss the progress of his recovery after surgery.

"I really don't know what is going on."

"AJ, if you don't tell us who it is, we're going to have to have a formal inquiry. You are in a position of power, abusing that power is a very serious thing. We've fired for less than that," Basil said, and Stephanie could see her father squirming in his chair a little. Served him right, letting them do this to the poor girl.

"If she doesn't know, she doesn't know," Stephanie said again, suddenly feeling like the fierce mother lion protecting her cub. She pictured this scenario happening with one of her daughters, and she would never stand for it, and AJ was like a child, and she couldn't just sit here and let her take it. Stephanie's motherly instincts were kicking in. "And maybe there was nothing that happened. If you haven't noticed, there have been people gunning for her job in recent weeks."

"We have to take these things seriously, Stephanie," David told her. "We have to do this kind of thing to keep the integrity of the company."

"I understand, but you have to understand that people are trying to undermine AJ, have you at least investigated the person that made these allegations?"

"We haven't yet, no," David said, "but we will try to get to the bottom of this."

"No," AJ shook her head and the entire table turned to her. "No, I don't want that."

"What?" Stephanie said. "AJ—"

"Stephanie, it's okay," AJ said, "look, I think we all know I'm not great at this job. It was probably only a matter of time before I lost my job anyways. I'm just not cut out for this, and I don't want to drag anyone through this. I didn't do anything, I didn't have an affair, but I'm not going to let some innocent person get put through all of _this_ for no reason. I'm okay with not being the boss. I choose to resign."

"AJ, you don't have to do this," Stephanie told her, looking at her intensely.

"Stephanie, you're good at being a boss, I'm not. You were practically doing it all anyways," AJ shrugged. "Better to go out on my own terms than to be pushed out. Thank you for your time, everyone. Thank you for considering me in the first place."

AJ stood up and walked quickly out of the boardroom. Stephanie glared at all the people still in the room. "Since you've all decided how you were going to handle this long before she got here, I think you can carry on without me. Dad, I trust you'll be my liaison?"

"Yes, I'll fill you in later," Vince said, actually feeling sympathetic towards AJ. He'd been the one to recommend her and to see her crash and burn as a little hard to watch.

Stephanie left the boardroom, and she was actually fuming. If she'd ever been put under interrogation like that, she would have burned the room down in the flames of her righteous indignation. AJ was already at the elevator, pushing the buttons furiously, and Stephanie ran over to her, stopping her mid-push. "Hey, AJ, you didn't have to resign, things would have been okay."

"It's fine, Stephanie," AJ said, "thank you for your advice, but I think it's just time for me to be a wrestler. Being in charge is hard. I didn't think it would be that hard. You look at the job, and all you see is, 'yay, I get to make all the matches!' and that's it. That's all I really saw when I saw the job, well, that and how kick ass you were when you were the GM. I wanted to do that, to follow in your footsteps, but I'm not cut out for it."

"Who is it, AJ?"

"Nobody," she shook her head, "it's blown out of proportion. I've got to go, Stephanie. I need to get to the show tonight and…I just need to get there."

"Stick around," Stephanie said, "come have lunch with me, then we'll go to the show together."

"Are you serious?" AJ asked incredulously. "You want to go out to lunch with…with me?"

"Yes, I want to go out to lunch with you," Stephanie told her. "I don't want this to get you down, and it shouldn't, you're better than this."

"Wow, I'd…I'd love to," AJ said. "I would really love to, is it too early to go?"

"A little yeah, but come on, you can come with me to my office and hang out for a little bit. I have to make a few calls, but I won't be too boring, I promise."

"Wow…" AJ was still entranced by her and Stephanie led her back to her office.

When the meeting in the boardroom was over, Vince went downstairs to Stephanie's office, knocking on the door. Vince informed them that Vickie would be the managing supervisor and AJ soured a little at that. Stephanie felt sour too. She had a strong feeling that Vickie was the one behind this. Vickie was like a leech, wherever she saw something good, she latched herself on and devoured it. It was happening right now with Dolph. Dolph was a good enough wrestler he didn't need Vickie as a crutch, but there she was, just leeching off him. She was doing the same here.

Vince ended up coming to lunch with them and offering AJ a ride to the show. Stephanie opted to go earlier since she would have to plan at least the first part of the show. She knew once Vickie fancied herself in charge, she would take over. She knew how Vickie operated. She still couldn't believe Edge had put up with her as long as he had. When she got to the show, she tried to act as if everything was normal when it clearly wasn't.

"Hey, Britt, Punk," Stephanie said, finding the two of them in her office. "You're looking cozy tonight."

"We are not, stop," Britt said. Just then, Hunter walked into the office.

"Stephanie, I heard what happened today, your father called to inform me since I'm now heading up Talent Relations and—" He stopped when he saw Britt and Punk on the couch. Britt happened to have her hand on Punk's knee, but moved it away when she saw Hunter there. It wasn't like she and Punk were dating, they weren't, but she didn't want Hunter getting the wrong idea.

"What happened?" Punk asked, breaking the suddenly awkward silence. If Hunter wanted to act like an idiot around Britt, that wasn't his problem. "Stephanie, what happened?"

"Well, you aren't really supposed to know since you aren't an executive, but AJ resigned this morning. There was a Board inquiry over something, and instead of fighting it, AJ decided to resign."

"Why?" he asked.

"She didn't want to drag anyone into it."

"Well, I guess that sucks, I mean, I didn't want her to lose her job…I mean, I did because she wasn't exactly competent, but I didn't think it would actually work," Punk said, suddenly feeling a little bad for his part in all of this.

"That's usually how a plan works, Phil," Stephanie told him, "she's going to be okay though, she's actually pretty tough, and you know, she's really not that bad. If you would get your head out of Heyman's ass, you might see that."

"I saw that before anyone else, thank you very much," Punk said, slinging his arm around Britt without thinking. "I don't think she's a bad chick. I think she's a _crazy_ chick, yeah, but she wasn't right for the job, we all know that, right? Back me up here, Britt."

"Well, I can see where he's coming from," Britt shrugged. "We did do a lot of the planning for her, but to her benefit, she was getting better."

"Yeah, I'll give her that, she was getting better," Punk nodded. "You know, Heyman wouldn't be such a bad guy to take over."

"Vickie is taking over for now, or something like that," Stephanie said, "I wasn't exactly clear on what her position is, my dad wasn't exactly clear with it either. All I know is that she's going to manage the show until someone more permanent comes along."

"You know who'd be perfect," Britt said.

"Who?" Stephanie asked.

"Chris," Britt answered. "You know he'd be great at the job. He's awesome on the mic, he knows the people around here, he would be great at booking matches. Essentially, he'd be the perfect guy in charge."

Stephanie thought about it for a minute, well, mused about it would be a better word. She'd love for Chris to swoop in and be the General Manager. If she were to bring in someone with no experience, Chris would probably be at the top of the list even if he wasn't her husband. Chris had a way with the wrestlers because he was one of them, always had been. Even after they were married, he'd never stopped being that guy. He'd never taken to being this haughty, better than everyone guy.

Still, he had a lot of other things on his plate, "I don't think that would be the right position for him right now," Stephanie shrugged, "though I'd love it. Hunter would probably make a good one."

Hunter had yet to take his eyes off the spot where Punk's hand was resting on Britt's shoulder. "Huh, what?"

"I was saying you'd make a good GM."

"Oh, yeah right, like I did so great the last time," he muttered.

There was a sudden buzzing and Punk pulled his phone out of his pocket. "Oh, Heyman's here, I've got to go talk to him, you want to come with me, Britt?"

"Nah, I've got work to do," Britt said.

"Catch you later then," Punk pointed at her as he left, "oh, and Steph, tell the kids I said hey."

"Sure, Punk," Stephanie said. She took one look at Britt and Hunter and knew they needed to talk to one another. She stood up too. "I better go find Vickie and tell her what's going on. I'm not entirely sure if the board has contacted her yet, and she should probably be prepared for what's going to happen."

"Poor you, having to deal with her," Britt sympathized, giving Stephanie a look that told her she didn't want to be left alone with Hunter. Stephanie just smirked and left the room.

"I should probably call Chris and the kids, see how they're doing too, so I might be awhile, come find me if you need me!"

That left Britt and Hunter alone and she cleared her throat awkwardly. "You look good," and then she hated herself for acting like an idiot. When they were at the shows, she tended to stay out of his way, and she couldn't be too sure, but she figured he was doing the same.

"Thanks," Hunter said, running his hand through his hair, or at least trying. It had been a habit of his for years, and now that he had no hair, it was a bitter reminder every time he tried to run his fingers through his hair that it wasn't there anymore.

"You're welcome," Britt nodded. "I really…your hair is looking slightly better…that didn't sound nice…"

"No, it's okay, it's taking me some time to get used to as well."

"Oh, well, that's good," Britt said. It hadn't been this awkward talking to him in a long time, and she could only attribute it to the way she and Punk were around each other. She knew Hunter saw everything between them, and she also knew he was more than likely misinterpreting it. "Nothing has changed in my relationship with Punk, just so you know. I think we're proving it's very capable of having a female-male platonic relationship. Plus, I think he's back to having feelings for Lita, so you know, just clearing that up."

"You think he doesn't have feelings for you, seriously?"

"I really don't think he does," Britt said, "we're friends, we hang out, we're like work best friends. He has plenty of friends outside of this business, believe me, he has a lot of friends, but when he's here, he doesn't really have anyone, so we hang out."

"And you go to Chicago?"

"He invited me, I went, we hung out with his friends, that was all, not that I have to explain it to you," Britt told him. "You broke up with me, Hunter, I didn't want to break up with you. So what I do doesn't fall on me. I don't want to be one of those on-off couples, and that's what we've turned into so stop being the jealous boyfriend because you don't hold that title anymore."

"Who's jealous?"

"Yeah, right," Britt rolled her eyes, "this conversation is over."

Chris jogged into the kitchen as Flynn yelled, "Daddy, it's about to start!"

"I'm coming, I'm just getting snacks!" He knew he shouldn't give them more food after dinner, but they'd been so happy to see him and watch Raw with him he couldn't help himself. He had to give in sometimes, and Stephanie wasn't here. They'd had homemade pizza for dinner, as he let each of the kids make their own little pizza, and it had been a blast. Now it was Raw time. He grabbed some chips and popcorn before heading back into the living room. Flynn and Kensington were sprawled on the couch while Sawyer was stretched across the recliner.

Chris took a seat on the floor in front of the couch and both girls scooted closer to him so they could be around him, "Hi, Daddy," Kensington whispered loudly in his ear. "Raw, Raw, Raw!"

"You're excited?" Chris asked, turning his head to her as he tossed the bag of popcorn in Sawyer's direction. He caught it and opened it before turning his attention back to the TV.

"Uh huh, I watch wif you," Kensington grinned.

"I can't wait to watch with you."

"I'm going to watch too," Flynn said, dragging Chris's attention towards her. Chris kissed her cheek.

"I'm going to watch it with you too," Chris told his older daughter, "and with Sawyer."

"I know, Daddy, you're sitting right there," Sawyer said with just the right tone of smartass that reminded Chris that no matter how sweet and kind his son was, he was still the product of him and Stephanie.

"I know, I missed doing this with you guys."

"Then don't go away again," Flynn told him with a careless shrug. "We're very fun, Daddy."

"You guys are a ton of fun, and I'm going to try to cut back a little so I can spend more time with you guys. I don't want to come home one day and you're grown ups who are moving out!"

Flynn laughed, "That's not true!"

"Daddy, that would mean you had to leave for a long, long, long time," Sawyer said. "Ooh, Raw is starting!"

"Let's watch, be quiet everyone!" Flynn ordered. It started with a tag match, which actually didn't interest Flynn all that much so she amended her statement, "Okay, you can talk, I'm not friends with them."

Chris took the opportunity to talk to the kids, "Hey, you guys, I just want you to know I love you all, you know that, don't you?"

"Yup," Sawyer said, turning around a little to smile at Chris before he turned back to the TV to watch the match because even though he wasn't friends with anyone, he still wanted to watch. "You're our Daddy, you have to love us."

"Well, no, that's not true…wait, I mean," he didn't know how to respond to that because there were deadbeat dads in the world, but he wasn't one of them so that didn't really apply to him, but, no, he'd just drop it.

"I love you too," Flynn said.

"Me too," Kensington added, leaning over the couch so she was practically in Chris's face. Chris gave her an Eskimo kiss, which made her giggle.

He was reminded again of what Stephanie had told him the day before. She was right, like she always was. She knew what was best for him, even when he didn't quite see it himself. He loved his jobs, all of them, he loved when he added something new to the list. He loved sharing his life with his fans, but when it came down to it, this was the most important job he had. These faces were the only faces in the world that really mattered to him, well, and the face that was blended into these faces. Stephanie was right, he needed to divide his focus equally. He'd figure out a way, but he wasn't going to let them down. He would die before he let them down.

"I just wanted to remind you guys of that," Chris told them, "just so you know."

"We know," Flynn told him. Chris's phone rang and he picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Hey, it's me."

"Hey, you guys, it's Mommy, you want to talk to her?"

"Yeah!"

"Me first!" Chris teased, sticking his tongue out, which made Flynn give him a shocked, indignant look.

"Did you just tell your children that they couldn't talk to me first?" Stephanie asked with a laugh.

"Hey, I was first in your life, I get dibs," he told her.

"Are you guys watching?"

"You think Flynn would let me live if I didn't let her watch wrestling?" Chris wondered. "We're watching, and we're bonding, and thanks for talking to me yesterday, I needed a little kick in the pants."

"You usually do to get through that thick skull of yours. Anyways, things are going down tonight, I thought I'd give you a little bit of the scoop."

"Yeah, I was wondering what happened at the meeting, but you haven't called? You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, AJ resigned," Stephanie sighed, "she's not a bad person after all. She's had it pretty rough, and they were going to do this whole inquiry, and you know what they told me?"

"Something not good, I'm guessing."

"They said they talked about us after we told everyone we were a couple. And probably when we were married. They pretty much said that if I had shown favoritism towards you in any way, they would have put an inquiry on me as well."

"That's stupid."

"You're telling me," Stephanie said, "I just, I feel bad for her now. You should have never shown me that video. I care now, Chris, I care what happens to her. So damn you."

"I'm not sorry, I think she'll need someone right now. You could be a good mentor for her."

"Yeah, maybe."

Turned out that AJ didn't really need a mentor, well, that wasn't true, she might need a mentor, but she already had a white knight. Stephanie was genuinely surprised when Cena was revealed to be the guy she'd had dinner with. Cena was always getting himself into trouble, but he was going to help AJ, which was about as much as you could as for at this point. Vickie was already taking to the power like a moth to a flame. She'd been sitting in wait for this.

Her father had been surprisingly great with AJ, actually giving her a hug after her heart-wrenching speech. Stephanie had been standing backstage at the time, right next to Vickie. "I hope you're happy," Stephanie said coldly.

"Believe me, Stephanie, I am," Vickie said. "What I'm actually surprised at is you though."

"Me?" Stephanie asked, pointing at herself, "why in the hell are you surprised at me?"

"Because the old Stephanie McMahon would have pounced on this job before I could even take a sniff at it. But I guess you've got all soft and doughy and so I'm gladly stepping in."

"You don't know me, Vickie."

"No, I don't know _this_ version of you," Vickie gestured towards her. "But I guess the killer instinct does tend to fade after a while when you don't really have it to begin with. It was a fluke when you were hired as the GM, and everyone listened to you because your daddy was in charge. You're nothing, you couldn't handle this job now. Well, I better go out there and make my presence known."

"Don't mess with me."

"Oh, I won't, I don't like an easy fight," Vickie laughed her horrible laughed and then went through the curtains.

Vickie was making a huge mistake.


	392. Teaming Up, October 29, 2012

A/N: Thanks for everything for this story. Just a little forewarning, this chapter is a little bit short on the Smoochy, but I just wanted to further some other things that happened with Raw last night, but never fear, the Smoochy will be in full gear the next couple weeks with Halloween and Chris's birthday. So don't hate me for the lack of Smoochy, please! Enjoy! :)

* * *

It probably wasn't his proudest moment, but sometimes you just needed to take the bull by the horns and go with it. He'd like to say he was slightly out of his mind, and he could probably trace that back to the day he cut his hair, but he really couldn't. He knew what he was doing, and he didn't regret it, not much anyways. He knew it was petty, especially when he'd broken up with Britt in the first place. He shouldn't feel this angry over another person, but it was hard to break the habit of love, if it was ever truly breakable.

He'd done the same thing when Stephanie revealed her relationship with Chris. He'd felt nearly the same way, seeing his ex-wife with another man, _happy_ with another man. At the time, he felt the same way, that he had to destroy what was going on. That was the reason he went after Stephanie so vehemently. She was completely in love with Chris, so it didn't matter what he did, and boy, did he try. Sure, Punk and Britt weren't together, but he felt like it was an oncoming storm, just beyond the horizon.

He wanted to stop it, to stave it off, and that was his only real motivation for going to Ryback before his match with CM Punk. Since Stephanie had given him the Talent Relations job after Chris abdicated it, he'd not really abused his power, not really. He had no reason to; he just wanted to do his job the best he could. He never went at any job half-assed. When he started as a wrestler, he was so determined, so willing to do anything to get to the top. The same went for this. At least, it had been until the opportunity to hurt Punk came up.

"_Ryback, a word?" Hunter said, walking up to the man._

"_What?" Ryback asked gruffly, jumping up and down in place. If he was being honest, he didn't think Ryback yet had what it took to really make it to the top. Nonetheless, he was in the main event tonight, and he had the chance to be the champion. Hunter found himself a little bit envious of Ryback's position. It felt like so long ago that he was in the ring vying for the belt, but he had other things to think about now._

"_I wanted to ask you of a favor."_

_Ryback looked at him suspiciously, "What is it?"_

_Well, seemed he wasn't a man of many words. "I want you to take out CM Punk, whatever you do, I want you to make it hurt as much as possible."_

_Ryback laughed, "That's it? That's what I was going to do anyways. What did you think I was going to do, just go out there and let him win?"_

"_I don't care if you win or not," Hunter told him, "I don't care about the belt or who owns it or whatever. Even if you lose, I want you to take him out."_

"_Why's it so important?" Ryback wondered._

"_None of your business," Hunter told him, "that's my business and my business alone. You just do what I ask and I'll make sure you get a nice, little bonus in your next paycheck, and if it's good enough, all your paychecks will reflect it."_

"_You can do that?" Ryback wondered, making sure this was real and he wasn't going to get screwed over. He knew Hunter's reputation, hell, everyone knew his reputation, so it was only normal to feel very nervous about anything the man said._

"_I can make it happen, don't worry about that, just worry about Punk."_

"_Okay, if that's what you want."_

"_Thank you," Hunter told him. "That's all."_

So yes, the destruction last night had been partly his fault, but he couldn't find it in himself to care about what happened to Punk. If he had just kept his feelings to himself, if he had just left Britt alone, none of his injuries would be as severe. In fact, Ryback attacking him after the match had been because of his direct influence, Ryback had told him that much when they'd run into each other after the match. Hunter had been in Hells in a Cell, he knew the brutality that was involved. This one wasn't the worst one he'd ever seen, far from it, but it served its purpose, and he felt better about himself.

Britt clicked her tongue at Punk, "I can't believe you talked me into this."

"Like you don't like it," Punk told her with a laugh, then winced as he was reminded of his injuries. "Besides, you're the only real friend I have around here. If I could get Colt out here, then I would have asked him, but I couldn't."

"Surely you have someone else who would come out?" Britt asked him, knowing he didn't. Ever since his alliance with Heyman, he'd found that less and less people wanted to associate with him. In normal circumstances, he wouldn't care, he was used to doing things for himself, but when he was hurt, it kind of posed a problem. He could barely get up this morning, actually, he couldn't get up, but he'd asked Britt to stay in his room the night before to help him out, and she'd agree, probably because she felt so bad for him. He was downright pathetic-looking after his match.

"Who?"

"Heyman?" she laughed, knowing that no matter how close Punk was with Heyman, the man wasn't gong to watch over him like a nurse.

"Very funny," Punk said, wincing again as Brit taped up his middle. "I really do appreciate it."

"You appreciate it? Wow, I can't believe the great CM Punk is actually appreciative of another human being. If only I had a video camera with me to record this moment. I'm sure it would be more interesting than whatever 'evidence' Vickie has about AJ and John."

"God, don't remind me."

Britt came back around to the front, "Wow, don't tell me you're jealous. If I didn't know any better, I would think you wanted AJ all to yourself. Do you see fancy, romantic dinners in your future with her?"

"Not a damn chance," Punk shook his head. "She's crazy, I mean, she's mellowed out since everything that happened with me and Daniel, and even Kane, I guess, but no, she's definitely not the type of girl I want to be with, not right now at least. In the past, she was exactly the type of girl I'd want to be with."

"I know, I can tell," she told him, "so what are you going to do tonight?"

"My usual, brag about how great I am, and with good cause, don't you think. I mean, everyone and their mother thought I was going to lose to Ryback. They were all saying he was going to eat me, which in and of itself is pretty disturbing, but look who came out on top again. Do you know how long I've held my title?"

"You never let anyone forget it," Britt told him, "what's it been now, 344 days?"

"Okay, so I've said it a lot, but it means something, you know," he told her as she made sure the tape was firm against his body. She pressed her hand gently against his abdomen so the sticky side would stay down against the rest of the bandage.

"What do you mean?" she asked, grabbing the tape again and lifting his left arm, starting in on that one now that she was done with his abdomen.

"I mean, okay, so you're probably not going to get why this means something, but just bear with me, alright? I don't know how far back you've watched with all this wrestling stuff—"

"Attitude Era for sure. I mean, I haven't seen _everything_, I don't have that much time, but Hunter would show me a lot of stuff, so I've at least seen the important things, the things that were really an impact."

"Or at the very least, what he thought was an impact," Punk said and Britt glared as him a little, her blue eyes staring at him angrily. "Sorry, sorry, I'm sure he was the most objective person in the entire world."

"That's more like it," Britt laughed, "but go on."

"Anyways, I'm sure you know about Vince's fixation on the size of a wrestler. He's always been drawn to size, that's why Great Khali has a job. He thinks the bigger you are, the better the wrestler you are, which is total BS, but that's what the guy believes. So guys like me, we've have it extra tough in this business. There are guys that break through for sure, Shawn Michaels is the name that always comes to mind first because he's not a big guy, yet he made it big."

"Believe me, being with Hunter, I've learned all about the legacy that is Shawn Michaels," Britt joked, and Punk could only imagine what Hunter _and_ Shawn would make Britt watch. He was picturing _A Clockwork Orange_ scenario here.

"Anyways, yeah, he wasn't your typical big guy, and he made it. Jericho's another example. He's not a big guy, but he still made it huge, and even after he's gone, I have to begrudgingly say that people still want him around. But, and this is where _that_ comes in, I'm not like either of them. I'm different from them too. I didn't take their path, I took my own path, and I've always had my own creative way of being."

"Is that what you're calling it?"

"What should I call it?"

"I don't know, just wondering," she told him, but he could tell she was refraining from teasing him because he was actually being serious in this moment. "Go on."

"So for me, not a big guy, and not some pretty boy, good-looking, clean-shaven guy to have the title for as long as I have, I mean, that's something," Punk told her, "that means something to me and all the guys like me who are trying to get into this business, but might not think they'll get their dreams."

"Why don't you go out there and say it like that?" Britt wondered. "If you could say it like that, I think people would be on board with you."

Punk could be a very caustic personality, she was well aware of this, but there was a goodness in him that he didn't readily let show unless you were standing right in front of him. He'd told her the story of him stopping by a school he'd randomly passed because he saw a kid wearing his shirt. That was the kind of person he was, going around, doing little things because he wanted to do them. He wanted to make some kid's day special, and if he could just show that side of him all the time, how could anyone dislike him?

But then he would turn right around and act like a jerk to someone. It was all so confusing. He was confusing. He never seemed content with doing the expected thing, and maybe that's what made him so successful, but also so polarizing. He wasn't willing to go along with the pack. He was his own person, and that served him well these past 344 days.

"Nah, it would be no fun that way," he told her, "it's more fun this way."

"Until something happens and it all comes crashing down."

"We'll worry about that when it comes to that."

Stephanie leaned back in her chair, "So you're sure everything is okay there?"

"Of course," Loretta said. "Sawyer is just fine with us, don't worry. There's a high surf advisory, but other than that, we're okay."

"Great," Stephanie said, "I was just making sure, you never know what comes where and…yeah, you know, worried mom over here."

"We're okay, I'm more worried about Chris right now."

"He's okay, I'm not sure what they're expecting, he said there are high winds, but that it isn't as bad as say New York," Stephanie said, "it's okay here too, there've been a few showers, but for the most part, it's nothing like I'm sure it is at home."

"And your parents aren't there, right?"

"No, my dad and mom are both here tonight. We're donating money to breast cancer research and awareness, and my mom wanted to be here for it."

"Good, good, I'm glad they aren't there."

"Me too, well, I'm glad everything is alright there, I better go though, I'll call Sawyer in a little bit," Stephanie said.

"Okay, great, bye, Stephanie."

"Bye."

Flynn came over and she leaned against her mother's chair, "Mommy, was that Daddy?"

"No, it wasn't Daddy, sweetheart, that was Gamma," Stephanie told her, "why, do you want to talk to Daddy?"

"I do, but he doesn't call too much, and I miss him," Flynn said, and Stephanie bit her lip a little bit. She didn't want to admit it, but it was true. Chris hadn't been calling as much as he used to, and it was a little disconcerting. She knew this was an abbreviated tour and was only going to last until next Sunday, but still, the kids missed him, and it would be in his best interest to call a little more often. Just because he had to travel every night didn't mean he couldn't spare a moment.

"I know," Stephanie leaned down and kissed her forehead, "believe me, I'm going to talk to Daddy again when he gets back about this. I don't know what gets into his head sometimes, Miss Flynnie, but I think we both need to talk to him."

"I will," Flynn nodded seriously. "I wish he didn't have to go 'way no more."

"I wish he didn't too, but sometimes when you love someone, you have to let them spread their wings a little bit."

"Daddies can't fly," Flynn said.

"It's an idiom, which is just something that means something else, and you're too young to understand that," Stephanie said, "I just mean that we love Daddy, and we have to let him do what he needs to do."

It wasn't the only thing she wanted to talk to her husband about. There was something else nagging her, but it wasn't about her marriage. Instead, it was about the business, and her place in it. She kept finding herself further and further away from the product, and she wasn't sure she liked it. She'd started noticing it when her father came back, but with Vickie being in charge now, she could feel it coming at her like a fast-approaching car. She had a smaller and smaller presence on the show, to the point where she was starting to feel like she wasn't even needed here.

She knew Chris would know what to say and do to remedy the situation. Fighting with Vickie over power just didn't seem appealing to her, and that's where she was at right now. She had all her presidential duties, of course, it wasn't like she was being pushed out of her job, but the show had always been something she'd loved to work on. She was even starting to think about giving herself a demotion just so she could put her heart back into the product, but that seemed like such a cop-out. She loved her work, she just wanted to love it more.

"I guess," Flynn said, "but why can't he do it with us?"

"Well, because I think he would get pretty bored doing his concerts only for the four of us at home," Stephanie explained as best she could.

"But I like his singing," Flynn reasoned.

"I know, I like it too, but there's only so much he could do with just us around. He likes to get out there and see his fans. They love him too, and they should get the chance to see him," Stephanie said, almost trying to convince herself as much as she was trying to convince Flynn. She only thanked God she wasn't a housewife or this separation from Chris would be nearly unbearable.

"Can I call him now?" Flynn asked sweetly.

"Okay," Stephanie said, "you can call him. But Kensington also gets a turn if she wants one."

"Kensy, do you wanna talk to Daddy!" Flynn called out to her sister, who was patiently coloring on a piece of construction paper. It was just a bunch of squiggly lines that only made sense to Kensington herself, but she was working very diligently on it.

She picked up her phone and dialed Chris's number, handing it to Flynn before he answered. She could always talk to Chris later, right now, Flynn wanted to talk to him. "Jericho here, talk to me."

"Hi, Daddy!" Flynn practically yelled into the phone.

"Whoa, hey there, Flutterby, what's up?" Chris asked.

"Daddy, why haven't you called?" Flynn asked.

"Huh, what are you talking about, I've called, Flutterby, I talked to you yesterday," he actually couldn't remember if it was yesterday now that he thought about it. Wait, no, he hadn't talked to her yesterday because they'd been traveling to Atlanta for the Pay-Per-View, then there was the show, then he had his concert, and by the time he'd thought to call, it'd been late, and he didn't want to wake anyone.

"No, you didn't," Flynn told him, frowning. "You really, really didn't, Daddy, and that makes me mad."

"I'm sorry, Flutterby, it was just a really busy day for everyone."

"When are you coming home again?"

"I'll be home next Sunday," Chris told her.

"That's a long time," Flynn said, "Daddy, why do you keep leaving us?"

Well, there went his heart, "Flynnie, I told you that I had my concerts that I had to do, you said you understood, and you know I'll be home."

"But you were only home for a little while last time, and then you left again, and I wanted to see you, and you weren't there," Flynn whined. "I want you to come home, and then you can come, and Daddy, you're gonna miss Halloween, and I'm going to be Mommy because you said so! And Kensy is gonna be Goldilocks, and I forget what Sawa is going to be, but it's something, and you're going to miss it, Daddy!"

"Hey, hey, hey," Chris interrupted her mini-tirade, though he was reluctant to do so. She was adorable, even when she was angry and ranting at him. He was surprised Stephanie didn't tell them, "Flutterby, I would never miss Halloween for you guys. I'm going to be there, don't worry, you think I wouldn't come trick-or-treating with you. You really, _really_ think I wouldn't come see you in your costume of Mommy?"

"You're coming?" Flynn brightened up. "Really, you're coming home and you're gonna be there?"

"Of course I am," Chris told her, "I'm the one who's getting your costume ready because we don't want Mommy to see what you're going to look like, do we?"

"No!" Flynn turned to Stephanie, "Mommy, you can't see what I'm gonna be, it's gotta be a surprise."

"Oh, I understand," Stephanie said with a smile. She'd heard all of Flynn's rant, and she was about to tell the girl that Chris would be home for Halloween, but it seems Chris had done that for her. Stephanie, for all her pent-up weirdness over the situation with Chris, was touched that he would schedule his tour so he could be home for Halloween, a time when the kids were extra excited, and loved having him around. He always came up with the strangest costumes, and as the kids got older, they got more tickled over Chris's weird outfits.

"Daddy, I miss you," Flynn said, adding the biggest dose of pathetic she could muster.

"I miss you too, Flutterby, but it's not so bad, you're at wrestling, aren't you?"

"Yeah, but I miss you," Flynn said again.

Just as Stephanie was listening in on the conversation again, there was a knock at the door. AJ stepped inside, and Stephanie greeted her with a smile and stood up, walking over to her and offering her hand. "Hey, AJ, how are you doing?"

"Not great," AJ sighed, "I just…thought I could come talk to you about it. I mean, I know you're not supposed to really interfere because it would show bias or something, but I could really use someone to talk to about all of this."

"The Cena stuff?" Stephanie asked, gesturing towards the couch. AJ gave her a grateful look and sat down on the edge of the couch, as if she was afraid to really sit. Stephanie sat down next to her, and glanced over to Flynn, who now had climbed into Stephanie's chair and appeared to be in it for the long haul with her father.

"Yeah, I've just been going over it again and again in my head, and…I don't know what I did wrong. John and I didn't…it was just dinner, and then we went back to our hotel, and he walked me to my room, but that was _it_. Nothing else happened. I don't get why Vickie is so mad at me. I know I shouldn't have acted like I did towards her, but I don't think I deserved this."

"She's bitter and she's petty. She's been this way since she was given a modicum of power. It does that to people, you were lucky because you didn't get heady with it, but believe me, when you get ultimate power like that, it's hard not to crave it when you don't have it anymore."

"Like when you were married to Hunter," AJ said, "you were so mean to everyone!"

"Yeah, that's exactly it," Stephanie said, suddenly feeling like she was talking to one of her kids. AJ couldn't be one of her kids, she was too old for that, but AJ still had such childlike qualities, something a lot of people in the business didn't have. It was so easy to become jaded in this lifestyle.

"So you think Vickie just wants the power?"

"I know that's what she wants, but I also think she takes pleasure in making others miserable. She wants to get to you, to break you. I wish I could stop her, but the board has my hands tied. If I went to them, they would probably just tell me Vickie is doing her best on short notice. They're not the most up-to-date bunch of people."

AJ laughed, "Thanks, Stephanie, you've been so nice to me, and just, I want to thank you so much. You're just so…so you! I don't even know what I'm saying, oh God, I'm embarrassing myself now, and I can't shut up."

Stephanie grabbed her hand and gave it a squeeze, "I get it, and you can talk to me. I've been on your side of the fence too—"

"When your dad kicked you out…oh, or when you lost Survivor Series, and you were gone, but then you came back before Hunter did, and you were trying to get back on the show, but Flair wouldn't let you."

Okay, so this girl had really, _really_ studied up on her. She was flattered…and slightly scared. "Yes, those were definitely times I was where you are, but I kept at it, I kept persevering because I didn't know any better. I had to be stubborn, and that's what you have to be. You know the truth, you know what happened. If Vickie won't hire you back, I'll hire you back. You're not even really off the roster, but Vickie doesn't know that. If she thinks she can keep you away, I'll talk to her."

"You're really the best."

"Mommy, for you," Kensington presented Stephanie with her drawing. It was nothing really, just a bunch of lines, but Stephanie cooed at her daughter as if she'd been given an original Picasso.

"This is beautiful, Kensy," Stephanie kissed her cheek. "Thank you so much."

"W'come," Kensington hugged Stephanie around the waist before turning to AJ. Kensington gave her a soft smile. Kensington wasn't as outgoing as Flynn was. Flynn would have just jumped into a conversation with AJ, but Kensington just looked on shyly. "Hi."

"Hey," AJ said, "you have the coolest mom in the entire world."

"Okay, thanks," Kensington said, not really understanding, but it seemed like she was being nice to her.

"You really do," AJ talked to Kensington again, "and how cool is it that you married Chris Jericho. I've always been afraid to say it, but since I kind of, sort of don't have a job right now, I just have to say how cool it is. You two were so funny. I think I could tell there was something there between you, I used to watch all of your scenes over and over and over again. I mean, I liked Chris, he was really good, but I would've watched you for hours if I could."

"I'm glad I made such an impression," Stephanie laughed quietly.

"You have, I've always wanted to be like you," AJ said, "I mean, and people like Trish and Lita too of course, but you were always so in charge, and that was really cool, I liked that."

"I know," Stephanie said.

"So yeah, Kensington—"

"You can call her Kensy, everyone else does," Stephanie told her. "And you can call Flynn, Flynnie, if you want to as well."

"So cool," AJ whispered to herself. "Well, Kensy, you're pretty cool because you've got a cool mother."

"Don't worry about everything that's going on, you're better than that."

"I really liked being in charge," AJ started, "I mean, I really did because I've so wanted to be like you, but also…I kind of miss wrestling, so this could kind of be a blessing in disguise, once I get past this John stuff."

Kensington tugged on Stephanie's shirt so Stephanie pulled her into her lap. "That's a really great way of looking at it. You're a great wrestler."

AJ just couldn't believe all the compliments she was getting. She knew that most of it stemmed from Stephanie feeling sorry for her, but she couldn't help but like them anyways. She'd made a few friends while she was here, but then she'd alienated them, her thought wandering towards Kaitlyn. She'd made a fool of herself to Punk, Daniel, and Kane, and now she was mired in controversy with John. So many things had happened, and she hadn't even been here that long. Not long enough to make any kind of significant friendship so she was clinging to every nice thing Stephanie said to her.

"I probably should go though, Vickie said she wanted to talk to me, she called it an interview, but I'm not sure what she would ask me. I'm just tired of the whole thing. If she doesn't want me—"

"I will get you back in here, I'm the president, I do hold some of the power over this company. If it means I have to assert that, I will."

"You've been so nice to me, Stephanie, I don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything. I may be the president now, but that doesn't mean I don't care about the product or the wrestlers," Stephanie told her, reaching forward and squeezing her shoulder.

"You don't know how much this means to me," AJ said. It looked like she wanted to say more, but she just shook her head and left the room quickly. She was actually tearing up from the kind words that Stephanie had deemed worthy of bestowing on her. She wiped angrily at her eyes. It wouldn't do to have Vickie seeing her be emotional, especially if she started thinking it was because of anything she'd done.

"Yo, AJ, wait up!"

AJ turned around and saw John there. She gave him a small smile as he jogged up to her. "Hey, I've been looking for you."

"I was with Stephanie."

"Oh," Cena furrowed his brow a little bit. He hadn't known they were friends. "Well, cool, I just wanted to see how you were doing, if there was anything I could do for you. I'm going to straighten up everything tonight, okay?"

"Thanks, John, but maybe I should handle this myself," AJ told him. She appreciated his concern, but what if them working together only incited Vickie's wrath even further? She didn't want to actually risk her career here. Her reputation was already down the tubes, and had been for a while, but at least she still had a little decency left when it came to her career.

"No, you're not going to handle that witch by yourself. Whatever she has, I'm going to clear it up, I promise you that."

"Thanks," she told him, knowing she wasn't about to deter him easily. "I just hope that she'll let me wrestle. I better get to her office. Thanks again, John."

"You're welcome," he said, but she was already walking away.

Britt looped her arm through Punk's as he attempted to walk down the hallway. His injuries somehow felt worse now. It was probably because he'd had to sit in the car stiffly while Britt drove them here. Any type of sitting bothered him, made his joints stiff, and nearly immovable. Their progress to the gorilla was markedly slow, and he felt like a weakling. Ryback had given it to him good, but he had to push past that.

"He really did a number on you," Britt muttered so only he would hear.

"You can say that, I guess," Punk said, but Britt was distracted. Something didn't sit right with her in all of this. She couldn't explain the feeling, but it was there. She just could feel it, and she usually tried to trust her instincts.

"Hang in there, we're almost there."

"Do you think you could go out with me?" he joked.

"I'm not interested in being your valet, besides you have one," she laughed, thinking about Heyman who was supposed to meet them at the gorilla.

"But you're prettier," he mused.

"That's not a very high bar," she joked.

"I hope Vickie doesn't put me in a match."

"I wouldn't dare let her," Britt said vehemently.

"Thanks," he told her, "not just for walking me down the hallway like I'm an invalid, but for last night too. I don't think I could have done anything alone in the condition I was in."

"It's not a problem, that's what friends are for," she told him as they finally made their way to the gorilla area. She got him as close to the curtain as she could get and then pulled it back. He made a sour face as he saw the few steps he'd have to traverse. "I guess you'll need help getting up those."

"I can do it," he said, lifting his leg. "My legs are the least sore part."

"Okay, well, I'll be right back here when you're done."

He nodded and disappeared up the stairs to wait for the show to officially start. Britt stood back and watched for a moment before pulling away and taking a few steps towards the production table. Stephanie was already there, next to her father, but without Flynn and Kensington, who she presumed were with Linda. Stephanie raised an eyebrow in Britt's direction, but she just rolled her eyes. Stephanie knew she was helping Punk, but she did not like that smirk on Stephanie's face. She was about to walk over when Hunter sauntered over.

"Hey," he said. He'd seen Britt helping Punk down the hallway and realized he may have only driven the stake deeper.

"Hi," Britt smiled at him lightly. She wasn't going to act like a suffering fool around him any longer. She was better than that. She was living a life, and she was fine with that, he could be fine with his life now too. "How are you?"

"I'm okay, you?" he said.

"I'm doing just great. I spent the night with Punk last night because he could barely move after his match," she told him, and it wasn't to punish him, and it wasn't to rub it in, but she didn't want to have to feel like she was skulking around with Punk when there was nothing romantic going on between the two of them. She was tired of Hunter getting the wrong idea.

"I better get back to work."

"Yeah, you better, so I better too," Britt said, "it was nice seeing you again."

"You too," he said politely before turning on his heel quickly. She missed his long hair, the way it would swish away when he walked. She sighed and shook the thought from her head as she went and sat down next to Stephanie.

"I don't want to hear a word from you, McMahon," Britt told her boss, staring straight ahead and not looking over at Stephanie. She knew what she would find if she looked. She would see Stephanie giving her that look. "Nothing's going on…with either of them."

"I never said anything was," Stephanie took her headphones off for a moment. Her father was with her, and he could take care of things for a few minutes. "I just think you're starting to tread into very dangerous waters here. And you know, you _could_ be good for Punk. He's a little rough around the edges, and I don't think many people get him."

"There's nothing to get."

"You keep telling yourself that," Stephanie said, "it wouldn't kill you to give him a chance. He's been waiting so patiently."

"He doesn't have feelings for me anymore. We're just friends now."

"Don't be delusional," Stephanie said. "I spent years being blind to something great, don't make my mistake."

"You're married to your mistake, and wait, no, Punk isn't, oh, I can't stand you," Britt grabbed some papers in front of her that looked like they needed her attention. Stephanie just laughed sweetly before putting her headphones on to direct traffic along with her father. Britt was glad for the respite. She gave up the pretense of doing paperwork and instead watched the show, looking on as Punk called out everyone.

He could be so sarcastic and mean sometimes. He wasn't like that though, and she found herself wishing he wouldn't be like that out there, but then, she was a hypocrite for that because Hunter, so many times, was that same kind of guy, and she'd never felt the need to admonish him for it. Why did she want everyone to see the good in Punk when she hadn't wanted the same for Hunter, or at the very least, didn't feel it as strongly? It was just because Punk was trying so hard to be mean, she convinced herself, though the argument made no sense even to her own mind. So she just pushed it right out, and when Punk came backstage, she immediately got up and offered her arm.

"You have to get yourself into trouble, don't you?"

"He was insulting me, and I had nothing to do with what happened last night, it was all that referee's fault."

"I'm not sure I believe you."

"Well, I'm not sure I believe you," he said snidely, but it was so stupid she laughed.

"Punk!"

Punk straightened a little, and though Britt knew it absolutely killed him inside to do so, he knelt down and received Flynn's hug. Flynn, seeing that he had a lot of bandages on, and seeing him walk very slowly earlier recognized that he was hurt. She'd been around her father enough to know when someone was sore so her hug was tentative, but didn't lack in the tenacity of her usual hugs.

"Hey there, kiddo," Punk said as he pulled away, "I missed you last week."

"Really?" Flynn said, but then added, "Lots of people miss me when I'm not around."

"Cocky, I like that in a girl," he winked at her as she laughed. Kensington came up beside her sister and slightly pushed Flynn out of the way.

"Want hug too," Kensington declared and Punk leaned forward to hug her too.

"You're becoming like your sister," Punk told her, but Kensington just giggled and searched for Flynn's hand, taking it securely in her own as Linda showed up behind them. She pressed her hands to both their shoulders, but they hardly noticed her as Punk was their only focus. Kensington pushed her body into Flynn's side, but Flynn just took it. If she'd learned anything since she'd accepted Kensington into her life, it was that she just had to deal with it.

"She's good," Flynn vouched for her sister. "Who's gonna be on your team, Punk?"

"I'm not sure, I'm going to leave that up to Heyman, why, do you want to be on my team?" he asked playfully.

"I could," Flynn told him, her voice extremely serious as she bobbed her head up and down, making her light brown tendrils of hair fall in her face. "I really, really could. I can wrestle good."

Britt watched the exchange, and once again wondered why this couldn't be the Punk everyone saw. He was so kind and gentle with children, and he was funny and light-hearted with his friends. But then he put the walls right back up when he was in the ring, and while it didn't hurt to be tough, maybe he could open himself up more. But would he be CM Punk if he did that? She wasn't sure, but she felt he could be greater than he was even now.

"Britt, you coming?"

Britt realized that Flynn and Kensington had traipsed over to Stephanie and were all over her and Vince, and she'd been standing there for who knew how long. Punk was looking at her expectantly, and she shook her brain free from the cobwebs and looped her hand through his arm again. "You're amazing with kids, you know that."

"They're easy to talk to," he shrugged. "Don't start in on the good in me crap again."

"Fine, fine, fine, but it's there, I just know it."

AJ was tired. She was just tired of all this hatred spewed from Vickie. She wanted to escape it, and knowing she had an escape route in Stephanie made it easier to be defiant in the face of her new boss. Besides, wasn't this just a temporary thing? Maybe they would see how Vickie was behaving, and the board would renege on this managerial supervisor, whatever the hell it was. Anyone had to be better than the petty, selfish, vindictive Vickie Guerrero. First, she'd been subjected to a stupid "interview," that only served to humiliate her further, but now she had to watch as she harassed John in the middle of the ring.

Nothing had happened. Nothing had happened. Nothing had happened. She kept repeating it like a mantra, but nothing changed. Vickie was taunting John, trying to get a rise out of him, trying to get him to admit…something, AJ wasn't sure what because there was really nothing to admit. This is precisely why she didn't want to drag his name into it. She knew it would become like this. She knew the situation would escalate, and now everyone was speculating on whether or not she'd slept with John Cena.

She knew what people would think too. They would think they slept together. The evidence was hardly as incriminating as Vickie made it out to be. There was a picture of their dinner, but there was no stolen touch, holding hands, any kind of affection. And romantic? Cena was still dressed in his wrestling gear, so it was hardly a tuxedo and tails. Then a video of them getting into an elevator together was shown, and she wasn't sure when it became a mandate that two people climbing into an elevator was an indication of a romantic liaison. He'd walked her to her room, and that was it.

Still, with her reputation after the Daniel/Punk/Kane debacle, nobody would give her the benefit of the doubt. No, they would simply think, hey, there goes that girl, trying to chase after the main event guys, probably to get a better spot in the company. And that hurt. It hurt her more than she was willing to reveal to anyone. It hurt because she knew it wasn't true, but lacked the credibility to make people know it was lies.

Still, she had one safety net, and while she hesitated to use it (she didn't want to overstep her boundaries with Stephanie. The woman was so perfect in every way she didn't want to somehow make Stephanie hate her too), it was in the back of her mind when Vickie started acting like she was going to make AJ beg on her knees for her job back. She'd just have to take the chance with Stephanie, but before she could, Vickie was offering her job back. She was happy with that, happy until her match with Beth.

It felt good to get back in the ring, it felt right to be here in this capacity. She was able to take her anger out on Beth Phoenix, to unleash everything she wanted to unleash on Vickie onto Beth. Sure, Beth was bigger, but Beth didn't have the anger she had, and it showed when she won against the larger woman. But Vickie wasn't done with her yet, oh no, there was another match, a rematch, a continuation, whatever, there was more, and she couldn't overcome the second surge, and it was exactly what Vickie wanted, her, AJ, to be a complete loser.

When John comforted her later, took her in his arms and tried to make the world safe for her, for a moment, she let herself believe it could be. It was difficult, trying to block out everything, but John did like to try and protect the little people, and Vickie was trying to blot her out. She admired his intentions, but maybe even John Cena wasn't a match for Vickie Guerrero.

"Vickie, what do you think you're doing?" AJ's interest was piqued when she heard Stephanie's voice talking to the woman who was making her life a living hell.

"Nothing that isn't the truth," Vickie said as AJ peeked her head around a large crate to see Stephanie standing with her arms folded in front of her, her right foot tapping impatiently.

"Don't you think you've had enough fun playing Nancy Drew? Like everyone didn't see you lurking around, trying to spy on John and AJ. Did you want to slow down that footage too in order to serve your nefarious purposes?"

"I'm simply stating the truth."

"The truth is you're probably trying to do this for Dolph. You're trying to kill two birds with one stone. You're ruining AJ, and you're ruining Cena, or at least you're trying. You see, you want Dolph to be the number one guy here, and how do you do that, paint the top guy as some kind of…I don't know, person with human decency and feelings. I guess that's a pretty foreign concept to you. But don't forget your place in this company. The board may overrule me on this, but if you know anything about me, Vickie, and you do, it's that I've always got something up my sleeve or someone to do exactly what I want."

"Your husband isn't here," Vickie pointed out.

Stephanie laughed, "You think I need _Chris_ to fight my battles alongside me? Oh, sure, he's always on my side if I need him, but I have people, I always have people. It's called being good at what I do. If you had any brains, you would've had some people too, but you just have Dolph, so you just have to make yourself look bad."

"I'm just stating the truth."

"The truth is your day will come, Vickie, and watch who shows you any mercy," Stephanie said. "I'm in AJ's corner, and that should terrify you."

Vickie shook her head and leaned in closer to Stephanie, "It doesn't." Then she walked away.

AJ came up from around the corner, and she couldn't help herself. She ran up to Stephanie and hugged her like she was a long-lost friend. "Thank you so much, Stephanie," she mumbled, "thank you so much for defending me."

Stephanie felt slightly awkward, but remembered how AJ felt like one of her children earlier so she returned the hug as if AJ was just like one of her daughters. "You're welcome, AJ. Someone around here has to look out for you."

"I have John," AJ pointed out. Stephanie gave a small laugh.

"I'm the better person to have in your corner, believe me."


	393. Masks, November 5, 2012

A/N: Lots more Jericho family this chapter. The show kind of took a backseat, but there were parts I wanted to save for the beginning of the next chapter. Hope you enjoy nonetheless, and reviews would be a wonderful gift, so hope you leave one, thanks! :)

* * *

"You weren't supposed to see my dressing!"

"I'm sorry, baby girl, but Daddy couldn't get home in time to surprise me, so you'll just have to get over me seeing your costume."

"Mommy, are you _sure_ Daddy's coming home?"

"Of course I'm sure," Stephanie leaned forward and kissed Flynn's cheek. Kensington whined from beside Stephanie and she leaned over and gave Kensington a kiss as well. "He said he was going to be here, and he wouldn't hurt your feelings like that, Flynnie."

"Then where is he?"

"He's going to come while you're in preschool."

"Can I stay home and wait for him?" Flynn wondered. "Kensy gets to stay home."

"Kensy is only two," Stephanie explained.

"I'm two," Kensington held her two fingers in front of her sister's face, and Flynn swatted them away from her face impatiently. Stephanie grabbed Flynn's wrist and Flynn turned her head to give an apologetic to her mother. Stephanie made a funny face, which made Flynn laugh and see that her mommy wasn't really mad at her.

"You are two, and you will be going to preschool next year, though I don't think my heart could take all my kids in school," Stephanie pouted, which made Kensington giggle and snuggled into Stephanie's side. "But if you stay home, Flynnie, then you're going to miss your Halloween party, and do you want to miss that?"

"No!" Flynn exclaimed. "I wanna go."

"When you get home, Daddy will be here, and then we'll go trick-or-treating," Stephanie said enticingly as she combed out her daughter's hair.

"Mommy, are you sure I can't do my hair now?" Sawyer asked as he walked in the bedroom. He was in his mad scientist costume, but it was toned down for school. She was going to do his hair later so it stuck up like he'd been electrocuted, and they were going to put blood on his white smock.

"It's going to take too long, baby boy, so we're going to wait until after school to do your hair," Stephanie told him. Her kids loved Halloween, so did her husband, and admittedly, so did she, so they tended to go all out, and her kids always wanted to wear their costumes way ahead of time.

"But I don't look like a mad scientist," Sawyer pointed out, "I think I look like someone who's going to wash the dishes." He held up his hands with the green rubber gloves on them.

Stephanie tried to hold in her laugh, but couldn't. "Well, you just have to tell everyone you're a mad scientist for now. Then tonight, you can really look the part. Daddy can even help you with it."

"Do you think Daddy is going to have another silly costume?" Sawyer asked.

"Knowing your dad, I think he is," Stephanie nodded. "Now go get your backpack and everything so we can get out of here on time."

"Okay," Sawyer ran out of the room and downstairs to get his things ready.

"Mommy, my dress," Kensington asked.

"You can put that on later," Stephanie told her.

"She's gonna be Goldilocks, right, Mommy?"

"No, baby girl, she's going to be Alice, and I'm going to be the Mad Hatter, remember?"

"Oh yeah, but I'm the best because I'm you," Flynn puffed out her chest proudly. "Do I look like you, Mommy?"

"Yes, you do," Stephanie said, "even though you kind of looked like me before. Let me see you though, I want to make sure I did a good job."

"Okay!" Flynn hopped of the edge of the bed, and she turned around for Stephanie. Flynn had decided that this year she wanted to change it up a bit and be her mommy. She'd been feeling like maybe her mommy felt left out because she'd been her daddy before, and she didn't want her mommy to feel left out.

Flynn was dressed in a custom-made business suit that looked exactly like her mother's when she was the General Manager. Although Flynn had light brown hair herself, she was wearing a long wig that Stephanie had styled to look like her own. And around Flynn's waist was a replica Women's belt, mixing a little old with the new (she was not going to let her four year old daughter dress like she had when she'd been married to Hunter!) and to identify her as Stephanie, and not as some random businesswoman.

"You look beautiful," Stephanie said, "now what pose did I show you?" Flynn stuck her right leg out and put her hand on her hip, giving a very pinched look. Stephanie laughed and nodded her head, "That's perfect, now you really do look like me."

"I'm the GM, and I'm the best!" Flynn said, and Stephanie laughed more, which made Flynn want to act like her mommy even more. "Mommy, do you think I have the best costume?"

"I think you look perfect," Stephanie said, "now come on, we don't want to be late."

Stephanie dropped off the kids at school and drove back home with Kensington. She didn't have much to do, and she wasn't in the mood to do any work, not on Halloween so she decided to take Kensington out for a while. Kensington, who had just started riding a tricycle, surprising both her parents, was riding her tricycle slowly in front of Stephanie as they went around the neighborhood, looking at all the Halloween decorations. Kensington would stop every now and then and marvel at something elaborate, always talking in broken sentences about how exciting everything was. She was glad nothing seemed to scare Kensington, but her kids were generally fearless about these types of things, it was probably because Chris loved gory, horror stuff so they were desensitized, though she wasn't sure how she felt about that.

When they arrived back at their own decorated house, Stephanie noticed that someone was sitting on the front step waiting for them. Her face lit up when she saw him, and, as if sensing their presence, Chris looked up and saw two of his girls coming towards him. Kensington was so concentrated on pedaling correctly that she didn't see Chris. He stood from the step and watched them coming up their long drive.

Kensington finally looked up and her face lit up, "Daddy!"

"Kensy-bug," Chris exclaimed, rushing over and plucking her up, hugging her tightly. "I've missed you."

"I miss you," Kensington repeated, hugging him. Stephanie came over and hugged her husband. He leaned down and kissed her, and any anger she might have been harboring for him dissipated a little bit. She couldn't stay mad at him, she could never really stay mad at him, even though she did have reason to be. She knew she shouldn't get so angry that he had other commitments, but while he was away, he had to remember he had people back home who missed him. Sometimes he seemed a little inconsiderate of that fact, especially as of late.

"Hey," Stephanie breathed against his mouth.

"Hey, I came home, and you two were nowhere to be found, but your car was here so I had no idea where you were. I was getting a little bit worried to be honest," Chris told her, running his hand over Stephanie's hair, as if he had honestly thought she'd disappeared.

"We see 'oween things," Kensington told her father.

"Wow, I bet it was scary, huh?" Chris asked her.

"Uh uh, I not scawy," Kensington told him, biting her lip in the way her father did.

"Kensington thought everything was hilarious," Stephanie said, brushing some of Kensington's hair out of her face. "I'm glad you're here, we've missed you."

"I know," he hugged her tighter. "I can't wait to see Sawyer and Flynnie, are they already in their costumes? And what are you going as, you never told me, and since when is Kensy going to be Goldilocks, I thought she was going to be Alice from _Alice in Wonderland_."

"She is, Flynnie was just confused because of the blonde wig," Stephanie said, "she kept saying it was Goldilocks, even when I corrected her. And you won't know what I'm going as until you actually see me. I don't know what _you're_ going as."

"It's a surprise, but I think you'll laugh."

"Oh, with your track record, I'm sure I will."

They spent the rest of the late morning spending time with Kensington, Chris making up for all the lost time he'd missed. Then Flynn needed to be picked up, then Sawyer. When everyone was at home, the real chaos began. Sawyer and Flynn refused to get out of their costumes, though Flynn allowed her wig to be taken off, and Kensington wanted to get in her costume because her brother and sister were in their costumes.

"You created this," Stephanie told her husband.

"I did what now?" he asked as he sat there brushing out Kensington's wig of all things. He felt kind of stupid, but Kensington was being fussy and wanted all of her costume to be put on. Stephanie was pinning Kensington's hair up so she could put the stocking cap on her head in preparation for his wig.

"You with your love of Halloween, always wanting to elaborately dress them up. We could have saved a ton of time if we just got them costumes from a cheap Halloween place."

"You love Halloween too," Chris said, shaking his head. "So don't even give me that."

Stephanie smirked at him as she put another bobby pin in Kensington's hair. "Your hair is so thick, Kensy, I don't know what I'm going to do with you. Can you please hold still?"

"I am," Kensington said impatiently.

Flynn bounced into the room, "Mommy, I really look silly!"

"Well that's because you have your wig off," Stephanie said as she looked over at her daughter. She had taken the tie and the jacket off so she was just in a button down shirt and a pair of gray pants. She skipped over to Chris and stood in front of him.

"Daddy, I have no hair," Flynn said, patting her head, where her own hair was pinned up and with a stocking cap on.

"Yeah, but you're not bald like Austin."

"No way!" Flynn shook her head. "What are you gonna be, Daddy?"

"Something you won't understand," Chris winked at her, but she didn't like this answer.

"What's that?"

"You'll see, it's a surprise," Chris told her, and she seemed more satisfied with that answer.

"Daddy, I'm Mommy."

"I know you are, you're very pretty, just like Mommy, so you've got all of that covered. Are you going to be in charge when you go to Raw?"

"Mmm, I think so, I can be, I'm the president!" Flynn said proudly as she skipped over to Kensington. "Kensy, you look like me! You have no hair!"

Kensington giggled, "I funny."

Stephanie put the last pin in Kensington's hair and then put the stocking cap on. She was actually amazed Kensington was able to sit through all that. Flynn had squirmed the entire time she was pinning her hair, but Kensington was fairly easy. Every once in a while she'd try to pluck one out of her hair that bothered, but for the most part, she'd been good about it. Stephanie helped Kensington turn towards the mirror where she could see her reflection. Kensington's eyes went wide. She looked really different. She looked to Stephanie, but Stephanie just kissed her.

"You know, now that you can't see the different hair colors," Chris said, "Kensington really looks like Flynn did at her age."

"What, you mean two sisters might look alike, wow, I never would have expected that!" Stephanie said sarcastically and Chris glared at her. She blew him a little kiss and he pretended to catch it and throw it away. She acted aghast while he gave her a dirty look.

"I'm done with this, what do you want me to do with it?" Chris gestured towards the wig.

"Just put it on my vanity," Stephanie told him, and he complied, placing it there. "I'm going to do her wig last, that way she doesn't mess it up. Come on, Kensy, we'll put you in your dress, but you can't drink any grape juice while you're in it, only apple or orange juice."

Kensington loved grape juice, but she nodded at her mother. Stephanie nodded back and stood her up on the bed, helping her undress. She grabbed the garment bag and unzipped it. Stephanie had a local dressmaker make Kensington's costume. It was a blue dress with a knee-length skirt that puffed out a little with a small, white smock just like in the animated movie. Stephanie only hoped it fit because Kensington was growing like a weed. She was already bigger than Flynn was at her age, and still growing.

Stephanie helped her get the dress on, zipping it up in the back and tying the smock around her waist. It was attached at the front, which Stephanie asked for specifically because Kensington was going to be running around all night if she was anything like her brother and sister. This would be the first year where Kensington had some sort of clue as to what was going on. She knew there were costumes and candy involved, and she very much wanted to be a part of all of it.

"Wow, you look beautiful, Kensy-bug," Chris told her, brushing out her skirt.

"You do look pretty," Flynn added. "I like her dress, Mommy."

"I know, I thought it was pretty too," Stephanie said kindly. "Okay, Miss Kensington, sit your butt down so I can put your socks on."

Stephanie had flirted with the idea of putting tights on her, but Kensington was just getting the hang of asking to go to the potty, and tights just seemed like an extra hassle so Stephanie bought her some striped socks to wear with her sneakers since they were all walking. Kensington lifted her leg up as Stephanie dangled the sock in front of her and Stephanie put it on, letting Kensington pull it up her leg. She put the other one and did the same.

"Mommy, how come I couldn't wear a dress?" Flynn asked. "You wear dresses sometimes."

"I do," Stephanie said, "but when I was the General Manager, that's what I wore."

"Mommy doesn't want you to look like she did when she was married to Hunter," Chris whispered conspiratorially to Flynn.

"You mean when you called her names?" Flynn asked.

"Yes, when Daddy was super mean to me," Stephanie told her with a pout.

"We don't say bad things, Daddy," Flynn shook her head, "we have to be nice because when you're nice, people are nice back…except when they're mean, then you can be mean like you were mean."

"See, I was justified," Chris said.

"Daddy, can you do my hair now?" Sawyer came into the room. "I want my hair done, please!" His tone was so whiny, Chris nodded and rolled his eyes at Stephanie. She just gave a little shrug. Their kids were excited, and this was the kind of thing they signed up for when they had them.

"You do know it'll probably fall down by the time we go trick-or-treating though, right?" Chris tried a different tactic. He knew how to do a Mohawk so it wouldn't fall down, so he would have no problem with Sawyer's hair, but it was still a while before they'd be going out, and it seemed silly to do it right now when it would probably be uncomfortable for his son.

"It will?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah, it probably will."

"Fine, I can wait, I'm going to go play video games," Sawyer said.

"Wait a second, mister, do you have any homework?" Stephanie asked.

"No, she didn't give us any because she said we should have fun on Halloween," Sawyer said.

"Okay, then you can play video games for a little while, but only a little while, what are you going to play?"

"WWE," Sawyer answered.

"That's fine."

"Wait," Chris said, "who are you going to be?"

"You, Daddy," Sawyer answered drolly.

"Good, now you may go play, but you better win every one of my matches or else I'll have to disown you as my son."

"You wouldn't do that because you can't!" Sawyer laughed as he raced down the hallway.

"Mommy, my hair," Kensington said, pointing to her wig.

"Not yet, baby," Stephanie told her, "why don't you go play with Flynn in the playroom for a while."

"Okay," Kensington said, reaching for Flynn.

Flynn, even though she was little, was always trying to pick up Kensington because she thought she could. But with Kensington's puffy dress, there was just no way for Flynn to maneuver her little sister (they suspected she wanted to carry Kensington around because Sawyer carried his littlest sister). Stephanie put Kensington down on the ground and she followed Flynn out into the hallway and down to the playroom, giggling the entire way there.

"So what are you going to be, Ms. McMahon?" Chris asked, crawling over the bed towards his wife. He leaned her back until she was flat on her back looking up at him. "You're upset with me. I can tell."

Stephanie averted her eyes and sighed. "Stop reading me so well."

"I'm the one who knows you the best in the entire world," he told her. "This is about the kids, right?"

"It's not just that, Chris," Stephanie said, "I mean, I know we talked and everything, it's just, sometimes I feel…I feel like you care more about all of the other stuff and not…well, this is so stupid, me."

"You, specifically you?" he wondered, and it wasn't derisive or mean-spirited, he was just asking if it was specifically her. She nodded and he frowned, his head ducking down until she couldn't see his face. "Stephanie, how could you think that?"

"I told you it was dumb," she said, but then continued. "It's just, I feel like you know I can take care of myself so when you have home time, we kind of fall down to fourth, and I'm okay with that, I'm fine with being fourth, I _should_ be fourth, but even so…I would like some time with you before you run off to another gig or other commitment."

"Stephanie, you're not at the bottom of my list, you've been at the top of my list for ten years."

"I know, I know," she shook her head, "but it's so easy to be complacent, it's so easy to fall into a rut like Christian and Trish, and God, Chris, sometimes I feel like everything else is more important than us, and I know the sex is great, it'll always be great, but I just want to spend some time with you."

Chris closed his eyes for a moment, "I'm an idiot."

"You're not an idiot."

"Obviously I am."

"I just don't want to not communicate with you what I'm feeling. I miss you too, and I know the kids miss you probably more because I've lived many years without you, but still…"

"I miss you when I'm not with you. I think about you every night, how can I help but think about you when most of my songs are about you," he said, brushing some of her hair away fro her face. "I always think about you, but I guess I need to translate that better to us. I don't want you to think I'm leaving you behind."

"You're not."

"I don't want you to ever think it though."

"I know, I get that," she told him, arching her back so she could kiss him. "I love you. I just don't want to fall into a purely sexual relationship because you're barely home so all we can do is have sex."

"That's not _such_ a bad arrangement," Chris joked and Stephanie rolled her eyes as she kissed him again.

"That's how we got all those little devils."

"One year, we'll dress them all as devils," Chris said, "so what are you going as?"

"Something, I'm going as something, what are _you_ going as?"

"Something hilarious," he told her.

He stared down at her and thought about the past few weeks. It was true what she was saying. He had to be a better husband. He didn't want to be an average husband, he wanted to be the best in the world at what he did, which was making Stephanie happy in this case. His work took him a lot of places, but he didn't want his family to think he was abandoning them. He had to remember, to _really_ remember that he wasn't 24 anymore, and he couldn't just go around everywhere without thinking. He had a family to think about, and he was off playing rock star.

He loved the people in this house more than anything he'd ever done in his entire life. He had to be better. "You'll love it."

"I will."

"No, you'll probably hate it, but I have to keep you on your toes. We've got to keep this love/hate thing going, don't you think?"

"Oh, of course," Stephanie said, bringing him down to kiss her again.

They made out for a bit before the loud chatter of their children reminded them they still had things to do. After an afternoon snack, and watching _Hocus Pocus_, it was finally time for them to really get ready. Chris did Sawyer's hair, making it stick up at every angle. He remembered when he was in high school and the punk kids would use glue to get their hair to stick up. He wondered if kids still did that. With Sawyer, he just used extra, extra strength hair gel, mousse, and hairspray.

Stephanie helped Flynn get her wig back on and put on Kensington's blond wig. Once that was on, she put a headband so Kensington could see. After that, she had to get her own costume on. It was a little more elaborate than she'd had before, but it was so cool, she didn't care. She ushered Chris out of the bedroom with the kids before she got into her outfit. She had a purple leotard and some purple shorts. Over the top of the leotard, she'd had a jacket made by the same dressmaker that made Kensington's Alice dress. The jacket was cropped with a ruffled back, almost like a bustle. It was teal with purple trim, with large buttons of different colors. The material almost made it iridescent in a way.

She then did her hair next. She used her curling iron to made large, billowy curls in her hair. When that was done, she brushed it out until her hair was a crazy, bushy mess of volume. On top of that she had a small top hat that she pinned to her hair. Her makeup was a pale white powder covering her entire face with bright red lipstick and smoky purple eyes. She also had fishnet tights with high top purple sneakers to complete the outfit.

When she was satisfied with how she looked, she walked downstairs where Chris was waiting. She walked into the room and his jaw dropped. "Holy shit…"

"I take it you like what you see," Stephanie gave a little twirl.

"You look incredible," Chris told her. "Wow…wow, I was not expecting this. I don't know what I was expecting, but it definitely wasn't this."

"And you still want to go away tomorrow?" Stephanie asked coyly.

"With you wearing that, I'm not even sure where I am right now," he told her, standing up and walking over, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Mommy, you look awesome!" Sawyer burst into the room and saw his mother's costume. "Wow, you look pretty too."

"Well, you can't compete with that," Stephanie playfully pushed Chris away and hugged her son, pressing a soft kiss to his cheek, careful not to get lipstick on him. "And you look like you're a crazy scientist who wants to make a Frankenstein monster."

"Thanks," Sawyer said.

"Mommy!" Flynn said in awe as she saw Stephanie. "You look so cool!"

"Well, I wanted to make sure I looked the part," Stephanie told her. "Do you think I did a good job looking like the Mad Hatter?"

"You kinda look like the picture in the book," Flynn said, fingering the edges of Stephanie's jacket. "Can I have this, Mommy?"

"You can after tonight, we'll put it in your dress-up chest."

"Cool!" Flynn exclaimed. "Can we do go now, please, Sawa has his hair done and you're dressed!"

"Fine, we can do go soon, get your sister and go wait up in the playroom." Flynn gave a happy whoop of victory and Stephanie turned to Chris. "You're not in your costume yet."

"I know," Chris said, "I want to keep it a surprise, but now that you're dressed and looking so…um, beautiful, I can get dressed in my costume."

"What are you going as?"

"It's a surprise," Chris told her. "I'm surprised you didn't get my tweet from earlier saying what I was going to be…oh wait, I guess I deleted that text message you get whenever I tweet. Sometimes I can be a huge pickpocket."

"Jerk," Stephanie pushed him away as he left the room laughing. Sawyer just watched the both of them. Stephanie looked to her son, "can you go grab some pillowcases so we have stuff to put your candy in?"

"Sure, Mommy."

Stephanie went upstairs and helped both of the girls with finishing touches of their costumes. Sawyer came in with the pillowcases and he handed them out to his sisters. They waited in there for Chris to show up and when he did, it was Stephanie's turn to drop her mouth open. Chris was wearing a pirate's costume, more specifically, a woman's pirate costume, even more specifically, the costume she wore the year before they got married, when costumes were just the generic ones you bought at a superstore.

"Daddy, you're wearing a dress, that's so silly," Flynn doubled over in laughter, her long hair falling in her face so much she couldn't see. She pulled her head back and tried to move all this extra hair out of her face so she could laugh at her father even further.

"What _are_ you?" Sawyer asked, giving his father a weird look. His daddy didn't look like anything! Plus he was wearing shorts under his dress, which was weird.

"I'm not done," Chris said, pulling something from behind his back and putting on the mask.

This time Stephanie was the only one who genuinely laughed. "You look ridiculous."

"Oh, come on," he said from inside the mask, "I'm sexy, don't you think?"

"Daddy, who is that supposed to be?"

"Someone you wouldn't care about," Chris told him.

"Chris," Stephanie stood up and walked over to him, pressing her hands against his bare shoulders because the dress was spaghetti-strapped and rather skimpy for him. Stephanie looked at him in his face, or tried to since he was wearing the mask, and she tried to keep her face straight, she really did, but she couldn't and she started laughing, her mouth making ridiculous sounds. "I can't even talk to you with that thing on, I just can't."

"That's the point, now don't you want me to kiss you?"

"No!" Stephanie laughed harder, "Chris, you realize my mother is running for office, and since I know you're going to want to post these to Twitter, this could be used against her in the campaign?"

"Oh come on, nobody is going to care, it's _funny_, and if someone takes offense, then I'll go to their house and personally tell them to lighten up."

"I can't even take you seriously when you're wearing that thing," Stephanie shook her head then looked at his dress, "or that for that matter."

"Come on, take my picture so we can get the kids out there, get their candy, and then we're going to have our own Halloween trick-or-treating," he told her, running his hands up her abdomen where the kids couldn't see his roving hands.

"This is creepy, even for me," Stephanie grabbed his hands and pushed them away from his body. "Gimme your camera."

After Stephanie took a few pictures for Chris's followers, she gathered up the kids and her crazy husband and started around the neighborhood. She made Chris take off the mask while trick-or-treating, but he still looked pretty funny just wearing the dress. Chris couldn't take his hands off Stephanie though. The outfit she was wearing was just too much for him to take, and it was like his hands kept gravitating towards her.

"I never thought I'd be so attracted to a storybook character," he whispered to her as they watched the kids walk up to a house. Sawyer was helping Kensington collect her candy since she was still just a little hazy on the concept of Halloween, but still thought it was the coolest thing to ever happen in her life.

"I never thought I'd be so attracted to a guy who looks better in a costume that I wore than I did," she joked and he kissed her cheek as the kids walked down the walkway and back towards them.

"We got Twix," Sawyer announced as he and Flynn started walking towards the next house, Kensington trailing after them as Chris and Stephanie brought up the rear.

"Hey, so a thought," Chris said as he wrapped his arm tighter around Stephanie's waist. Stephanie glanced at him to let him know she was listening to what he was saying before training her eyes back on her kids. "Since the show is going to be in the UK next Monday, and since there's already a tour that you aren't a part of, why don't you just let your dad handle Raw and you stay home. I'll be there, and I want to try and fix things."

"Really?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, I mean, I have to record my radio shows on Monday, but that doesn't take too long," Chris told her.

"Oh, well, yeah, I'd like that."

"Great, but what's wrong?"

"I'm just thinking about AJ."

"AJ?"

"Yeah, I just hope I'm not throwing her to the wolves by not being there. I…may have threatened Vickie."

"Don't worry, I'm sure she'll be fine."

Monday morning, Stephanie's first thing was obviously to get the kids ready for school and drop them off, while dropping off Kensington at Trishs's for a playdate with Tilden. Her second thing was to get coffee, her third thing was to greet her husband as he sleepily got his own coffee then proceeded to go to their in-home studio to start planning out his radio shows. Her fourth thing, however, was to call in for a favor. She grabbed her coffee and settled into the couch in the living room. She had work to do today, but that could wait. She dialed the number as she took a sip of coffee, letting it warm her insides.

"Stephanie, what's up?"

"Hey, Punk, I need you to do me a favor."

"Aren't you tired of asking me for favors?" Punk said. "Actually, the real question is why do I keep doing them for you?"

"Yeah, I do wonder that," Stephanie mused, "but this isn't something huge, and it's not something that would require you to go undercover or alter any plans you have tonight. It's just a simple thing, and if you could do it for me, it would be a great favor."

"Would you owe me one?"

"Maybe, but that's all I'm committing to because you have Heyman on your side, and if he got wind that I owed you a favor, he'd make me promise you the moon," Stephanie said, trying to get the bitterness of Heyman's name off the tip of her tongue.

"What is this 'little' favor if I may ask?" Punk wondered. He could only imagine what Stephanie would have him do.

"I just want you to keep an eye out on AJ."

"What? Since when are you on the AJ train?" Punk asked.

"Since I found out she's just a kid who's trying to make it in this business, but everyone is trying to make it difficult for her, _Phil_."

"Hey, I did a ton of that stuff for _you_, so don't forget that," Punk said, "she's not a terrible person, I've never thought that…not much anyways, don't get on my case. I just didn't think you really cared that much."

"I do, you know, I've been working on these anti-bully, BA Star campaigns, and the amount of bullying I see, it's terrible. I hate seeing that happen to anyone. I mean, I know Chris used to bully me, but I bullied him right back so I never really got the full effects of it, but it's terrible to have someone feeling like they're lesser than someone else. I don't want that for AJ, and if I can stop it, I want to. I had priorities this week with my family, but I just want to make sure she's okay."

"Seems like Cena is taking pretty good care of her."

"I don't know what's going on there, but you don't even have to go up to her, just…if Vickie does anything to her, report it to me, I can take care of it."

"I'm sure you could."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Stephanie asked.

"Nothing," Punk laughed, "don't get so defensive, Steph."

"Why? Are you going to sic Heyman on me?" Stephanie teased back to him.

"Hey, so do you think she really is with Cena?"

"Have you seen that footage, it's barely anything, not anything to get so worked up over at the very least," Stephanie said. "I don't think there's anything going on, and if there is, well, maybe that's good for her. Cena is nothing if not an upstanding guy, or at least he tries to be. He could be good for her."

"Yeah, right," Punk said, "I'm so sure he could be good for her."

"Just keep an eye out, please? I'm asking as a friend."

"Fine, fine, fine," Punk said. "I'll keep an eye out for her."

"Thank you," Stephanie said. "Have a good show, don't do anything stupid, but then, you tend to not listen sometimes."

"I'll see you later, Stephanie," Punk said before he hung up.

Stephanie laughed to herself as she dialed another number. "Stephanie, oh my God, how did you get my number?"

"I have everyone in the company's number," Stephanie explained gently.

"I'm so stupid, of course you do," AJ said, internally berating herself. "I should have figured. I was sorry to hear you weren't going to be here this week."

"Yeah, well, some things came up, namely I wanted to say with Chris and the kids," Stephanie explained. "I just wanted to see how you were doing. Has Vickie been giving you a difficult time?"

"Not really…actually, I should probably say not yet," AJ sighed and sounded for all the world a small child. Stephanie got that feeling again where she just wanted to wrap AJ up in a hug. Stephanie's own daughters were both tough in their own ways, but there were still times all they needed was a hug, and AJ was at that point, Stephanie figured. "She said she had more footage, I'm sure you heard."

"Yeah, I heard," Stephanie said, "do you have any idea what it might be?"

"No, I don't have a clue," AJ said. "I don't know where she's getting this stuff. It's like she's out to destroy me, and I don't really want to let her, but…I don't even know why she wants to do this. She already got me to resign, and she has everything she wants."

"She gets off on the power," Stephanie said, "have you talked to John?"

"Yeah, I've talked to him a little, he says he's got my back."

"Good, I'm glad you have someone there." Chris came into the room and sat himself down next to Stephanie, watching her a little as she talked on the phone. He leaned his elbow against the back of the couch then leaned his head against the palm of his hand, smiling. "I better cut this short, but remember to call me if anything seems wrong."

"I will, thanks for checking up on me, Stephanie, I really appreciate it, and you don't have to do it, but you do."

"Just take care of yourself," Stephanie hung up and looked at Chris. "She's such a little girl, I hate this for her. Vickie is a vicious bitch."

"Yeah, but she's also pretty tough," Chris reached out and took her phone from her, putting it on table.

"I thought you had to do your radio shows."

"I've got some time, I wanted to find out what was going on with you."

"Nothing, I should get to work."

"Steph, you said that we should spend time together, now you're going to bail when I want to spend time with you?"

"I'm not bailing," she told him, "I have work to do and so do you."

"So…I'm taking a break so I can spend time with you!"

"I never asked you to! I told you I had some work to do, plus I needed to set up a conference call for later. My father wanted to discuss the Maddox situation. I don't know how that's going to go, but he wants to do a formal inquiry. We had a kind of informal one, but now he wants to really get to the bottom of this, but knowing my dad, he's going to make some rash decision nobody will understand…I have to get some work in."

"You can take a little time to spend with me."

"I've had all week, and now when I'm busy, you have time suddenly."

"I was on tour until yesterday!"

"Well, I wasn't, I was here, and I had plenty of time, but you were too busy with your stuff, now I get to be busy with my stuff."

"So now you're punishing me?" he asked.

"No, I'm saying I have a job."

"You know I have a job."

"Yes, and you did yours, and I let you, so let me do my job," Stephanie stood up, but Chris grabbed her wrist and stood up as well. "Let go of me!"

"No," he said, "you're just being petty now."

"No, I'm saying I don't have time right now."

"Make time," he told her firmly. She scoffed and broke free from his grasp, walking away. She didn't get far though because Chris's strong arms banded around her waist. "I know you're stronger now, but you're no match for me, you know."

"Oh, yeah, sure, no match at all," she said, stilling as he rested his chin on her shoulder. "You know, we're arguing about actually spending time together?"

"You started it," he told her.

"I did not, you started it by going all over the world to tour."

"You hate me?"

"Yes," Stephanie teased, but then turned her head and kissed him on the cheek. "Let me get a little work done, just a little bit. You can do one radio show in the interim, and after that, we'll spend some time together, is that okay with you?"

"Compromising? Well, I do this relationship may work after all!"

Britt came up behind Punk and grabbed his shoulders, scaring him. She laughed as she saw she'd made him jump. "Yes, I'm the Queen of scaring people! So what are we looking at, Mr. Brooks?"

"Nothing," he turned to her.

Britt peeked over his shoulder, "AJ? You were spying on AJ?"

"It's not spying, I wasn't _spying_," Punk scoffed, rolling his eyes.

"You still have feelings for her, huh?"

"I never had feelings for her, period," Punk told her and it was Britt's turn to roll her eyes. "I didn't. I mean, I liked her, but she was crazy, and I just can't deal with crazy, sorry. Look, let's go somewhere."

"Where?"

"I don't know, I want to get out of here."

"You can't, you're working," Britt pointed out, "we all are, that's what we do here. I go around and I pretty much do things for Vince, you wrestle, that's how it works around here if you haven't figured it out."

"I figured it out, after the show then, let's do something. There are so many great bands playing around the UK right now and I have to miss all of it, and I'm mad, so I want to make that better."

"How?"

"Find some random late night concert, I don't know, paint the town red," Punk shrugged.

"Maybe we can invite AJ?" Britt suggested.

"Are you saying that because you think I like her?"

"I don't know what you like, Phil," Britt shook her head, "but I'm suggesting it because after everything that's been happening, I think she deserves a little bit of a break. I mean, did you see Vickie out there?"

Punk shifted uncomfortably on his feet. "Yeah, I don't know what her angle is…but I just…she's a witch."

"Word that rhymes with it," Britt said, "I do wonder though, whose room was AJ going into? I don't for one second believe that it was Cena's, but it had to be somebody's room. Unless she had two rooms, I mean…I don't really care, but Stephanie likes AJ and she wouldn't want her to get hurt."

"I don't want her hurt either," Punk said, "she's a good kid."

"She is," Britt agreed, "which is why we should invite her out tonight. She can loosen up a little bit with this music you're going to find for us. We could all use a night out. We've been traveling so much, it's time to be tourists."

"Okay, fine, invite her," Punk relented and Britt gave him a brief hug.

AJ sat sullenly on the crate. She hated what Vickie was doing, and she felt so powerless to stop it. She wanted to call Stephanie and tell her what happened, but it just didn't feel right. Telling Stephanie would feel like tattling on Vickie, and she didn't want to appear any weaker than she did right now. She just felt so out of control, and she hated it. She hated the feeling like she was freefalling from a jet, but that's what Vickie did to her. Sure, she'd had her differences with Vickie, but enough to warrant this?

And John wasn't going to be a help forever. He was out for his own interests more than her well-being. He would get tired of defending her eventually and where would that leave her? She knew she should be able to take care of herself, but what could she do when the person in power was the one against her? Vickie could fire her, she could fire her, and then AJ would be out in the cold. She'd worked so hard to be here and it was all going to be taken away from her.

She didn't want Vickie to get the upper hand on her, and she felt if she really went out there and defended herself, the situation would only get worse. She didn't notice Britt and Punk coming up to her. "Hey, AJ, you okay?" Britt asked, Punk hanging back behind her, not really looking at her.

"Yeah, I'm okay, thanks," AJ gave a slight smile.

"Phil and I were wondering , are you doing anything after the show?"

"No, I don't think so…unless Vickie decides I'm having another romantic encounter with John Cena," AJ answered.

"Then you're coming out with us," Britt said, glancing back at Punk and grinning. "No ifs about it. You have friends around here, AJ, I hope you know that." AJ looked at the two of them. Punk was dutifully avoiding her gaze, but Britt was giving her an open, warm look. The mere fact Britt came up to her at all seemed something of a small miracle. After she'd resigned, she found that she didn't really know anyone around here, not well anyways, and the ones she had known well had been off-put by her burgeoning power and her behavior. It was why she'd sought refuge in Cena's words. Now they were in a bitter battle against Vickie, and even though Cena was helping her, she was still essentially alone. Yet she was starting to see there were people who cared about her, who wanted to see her do well. At first, she just couldn't believe anyone would care, but now, now there were people.

AJ was actually starting to believe it.


	394. Cover Up, November 12, 2012

"Your mom wasn't hubristic enough to only make a victory speech like Romney says he did, right?"

Stephanie rolled her eyes at Chris, "No, and please be nice tonight, okay?"

"Why do you think I'm not going to be nice?" Chris wondered.

"Because I know how you feel about my mom running, that's why," Stephanie looked at him through her vanity, brushing her hair. "And that's the last thing she needs tonight. She's already under a lot of stress, and things aren't looking good, and my mother isn't stupid, she can read the writing on the walls. And you, husband of mine, are sarcastic by nature."

"Takes one to know one."

"Ooh, good one," Stephanie told him then sticking her tongue out at him. "Just please don't do anything to hurt her feelings."

"The mere fact that you would think I would do that to your mother offends me," Chris said, adjusting his tie. "Why do you think the worst of me?"

"The fact you've told me a million times how big a waste of money this is pretty much sealed that deal."

"Just because that's what I think it is doesn't mean I'm about to tell your mother that," Chris told her, coming over and leaning against her vanity table. "Stephanie, I love your mom, you know this, she's pretty much the only sane person in your family, but this campaign, these last two campaigns have been crazy."

"She just wants to make a difference."

"Is it she wants to make a difference or she wants something to do?" Chris wondered.

"What do you mean by that?" Stephanie asked curiously, leaning her arms on Chris's legs and looking up at him. He reached down and brushed some hair away from her neck so it fell against her back. Looking up at him like this, with her eyes curious, she looked so much like Flynn.

"I don't know, I just kind of think of it like Shane," Chris explained. "He wanted to get out of the business and make something of _himself_, just him, nothing to do with your family or the company. Maybe this is the same thing with your mom. I mean, let's face it, she spent so much time making the WWE what it is. Yeah, your dad was the brainchild, but he would be nothing without your mom."

"So you think this was something she wanted on her own?"

"Pretty much, yeah," Chris said, "and that's great, but the money she spent on it. I know you guys are wealthy, believe me, Billion Dollar Princess tipped it off really quick—" Stephanie shoved his knee and he chuckled. "But that's ridiculous. That money is better spent elsewhere. But I can't tell her how to use her money. But if you ever think about running for office and using _our_ money, you've got another thing coming."

"I have my own money," she told him, pinching his thigh, "but I don't want to run for any kind of office, unlike my brother and my mother, I'm perfectly happy with where I am and what company I'm with."

"That's why I love you, so stalwart," he said, running both his hands over her hair before cupping her face and tilting it up towards him. "I don't know how anyone is going to be able to focus on your mother when you're going to be standing up there."

"So now you're trying to butter me up after I've been upset with you."

Chris groaned and pulled away, "Can we not get into this again? Stephanie, BloodFest is in August of _next year_. You cannot possibly get mad at me over that."

"I'm madder that you're giving people false hope on your Twitter about you coming back. It undermines what we've got going right now. Now everyone and their mother is going to hope and think you'll be back by then when as of yet, you have not told me any plans of your return."

"I didn't tell you the other two times," Chris told her, "besides, the fans know I'm mostly teasing them. I've also got an open invitation to come back. I've kind of got an in with the President, but don't tell her I said that."

"I'm serious."

"Then stop being so serious," Chris tilted her chin up towards him. "I love you to death, but you get on my nerves sometimes."

"You get on my nerves all the time," she pushed his hand away and stood up. "Don't you even care what you're doing to people?"

"What I'm doing to people or what I'm doing to you? Just come out and say it, Stephanie, you don't like that I've been touring. You don't like that I'm going away again."

"No, I don't," Stephanie turned to face him, "I don't like it at all, and I'm sorry, I know it's your dream, but I miss you, damn it, do you get that? I miss you, and I hate that I miss you so much because it makes me feel so reliant on you, and you _know_ how I hate that! And I hate you for going away and making me miss you, and I'm starting to resent your band…I really am, Chris, I'm _this_ close to…I don't know, throwing Frank's drums in the pool and smashing Rich's guitar into his amp."

"That would be pretty kickass," Chris said, then sighed when he could see Stephanie's anger. He wasn't trying to hurt her, but it hurt him to know she missed him that much. He knew the kids did, but with Stephanie…he just guessed she was always so strong and invulnerable. He knew she missed him at face value, that she missed his presence and his help, but he never figured she actually missed him _so_ deeply. "Come here."

"A hug isn't going to fix this," she shook her head.

"But isn't it a start?"

"Stephanie, Chris, you in here!" Shane's voice floated up from downstairs.

"We're upstairs!" Stephanie called out.

"Are you decent?" Shane asked tentatively. The last thing he needed right now was to see his sister and brother-in-law in any state of undress or dishevelment.

Stephanie scoffed, "Yes, Shane, we're not up here having wild sex if that's what you're thinking!" Stephanie called out to him. Chris snickered. She wouldn't have yelled that if the kids weren't with Linda and not here. Stephanie and Marissa figured that with all the stress of the election, a day spent with her grandchildren might be a nice way to take her mind off things for a while.

"Just making sure," Shane said as he came up the stairs. "I just wanted to see if you guys were ready because the limo is here waiting to take us to the hotel. I used my key to get in."

"We're almost ready," Stephanie said, "can you give us five minutes?"

"Yeah, sure," Shane looked between the both of them. He'd heard shouting as he'd opened the door, which was part of the reason why he'd announced his presence. He didn't want to walk in on a fight. "I'll be down in the limo with Rissa."

"Thanks," Stephanie said as Shane disappeared back downstairs.

"I want to talk, Stephanie," Chris told her.

"I know you do, but we can't right now," Stephanie made a move to get her coat, but Chris grabbed her arm gently. "Chris, we don't have time, we have to get to the hotel so we can start watching the results coming in, then be with my mom—"

"I know what we _have_ to do, but I don't like fighting with you, I never have…since we've been together, I liked fighting with you before that," Chris told her with a little smile. Stephanie held hers in, but inwardly, she was smiling too. "I hear the word resentment, and that doesn't make me feel good."

"It doesn't make me feel good either," she told him, averting her eyes so he couldn't pierce them with his blue eyes like he usually did when trying to find the secrets inside of her.

"I would hope not," he told her, "I know I've been busy—"

"Understatement," Stephanie muttered.

"And when I come home, my first thought is always the kids," he told her.

"I don't resent you for that."

"I know," Chris said, "but then there's you."

"Yes, there is me, and me would like to go now before you say something that's only going to upset me more," Stephanie told him. "Look, I don't begrudge all your things, all your gigs, and all your appearances and whatever, I've never been mad at you for keeping yourself busy when I work my fingers to the bone—"

"You just miss me."

Stephanie nodded, looking down at her shoes. Chris could hear her sniffle, and it pretty much broke him right then. Her wishes be damned. He grabbed her shoulders and pulled her into his chest. Her arms immediately went under his suit jacket and around his waist. He stroked his hand down her hair and then massaged the back of her neck. He let the silence wash over them for a moment before he kissed the crown of her bowed head.

"I miss you so much when you're gone. And it…"

"You can tell me anything," Chris told her gently.

"You guys!" Shane yelled. "We have _got_ to go!"

"We're coming!" Chris yelled out gruffly, pulling away and hunching down a little so he could look into Stephanie's face. He gave her a soft smile. "We'll talk later?"

"Yeah, sure," Stephanie said, nodding her head as Chris's thumbs swiped under her eyes. "Is my makeup okay?"

"You look as beautiful as you always do," he told her, kissing the tip of her nose. "You do know I love you, right? I tell you that often enough that you believe it, don't you?"

"Yes," she shoved him away with a short laugh as he leaned down and gave her a real kiss. She melted into it a little bit before she heard a retching sound from the doorway.

"Seriously, you two, you can save this for later. If we're late, Dad is going to be pissed at us. He keeps saying how we have to be there for Mom, not make out."

"Shove it, Shane, if I want to kiss my wife, I'm damn well kissing her," Chris grabbed Stephanie's hand as she grabbed her coat with her free hand and walked downstairs. They put on their coats and were out the door to the limo.

Chris held her hand for the entire ride, and she stayed by his side, but her thoughts wandered as she watched the streets of Connecticut pass her by. She did miss Chris, but more than that, she was scared. And she hated being scared. She hadn't been scared like this since the beginning of their relationship. At the beginning, she was always waiting for the other shoe to drop. She and Chris had such a volatile relationship in the beginning that she kept figuring they would implode at some point, that some big, huge fight was constantly on the horizon waiting to knock them away from each other.

Except that big, huge fight never came. It never came and in its place, only strength and happiness were built and fortified. She'd adapted and her thoughts and her actions had adapted to this ideology that Chris and her were meant for something bigger. They had that bigger now, but the fear was back. They weren't in the same place they were a few years ago. Stephanie was the president, which afforded her so many duties that she didn't have before. She worked a lot, and now Chris was really starting to get recognition with his band and with his individual talents, so the opportunities kept pouring in, and with that came the fear.

It was strange to feel it again, strange to have it creeping under her skin like an unwelcome guest you thought you'd gotten rid of before. But what if it happened, what if they drifted apart, what if their lives became parallel instead of entwining as they had for much of the past ten years? She'd briefly had these thoughts before, but now it felt like it was manifesting itself before her eyes. Chris had to put the kids first when he was home, he had to, and she knew that, but it just felt like she had to take a backseat, that she kept patiently waiting her turn that never actually came because he was out the door again before she could even make her presence known.

She knew she should talk to him, but he'd reassure her, and she'd feel good for a second, but then…then what? She and Chris were strong, she knew that it wasn't something that could break them, but then, what if she was wrong and it did? She glanced over at Chris, but he was talking with Shane and didn't notice her staring at him. She'd loved this man for ten years now, over ten years actually. They'd been married for almost eight years, she didn't know how to live without him anymore. She didn't know how to function without him there to bounce off of.

"I love you," she whispered into his ear.

Chris turned to look at her, his eyes dancing with a light she loved so much, so blue that she could get lost in their ocean-like depths. "I love you too, crazy woman," he told her endearingly. "What are you thinking?"

"Don't ever leave me, okay?"

"Done and done," he told her, and it was partly in jest, but beneath the jesting was an absolute seriousness that belied every serious emotion coursing through him. "Is that something you're worried about?"

"Not particularly," Stephanie said, "I just needed to hear it for good measure."

She knew Chris would never cheat on her, but she didn't want him to fade from her life to the point where they couldn't make it anymore. She knew it was unlikely to happen, but she just needed to make sure, just needed to squelch that damn fear that wanted to take over once again. They had three kids together, a life together, a love that withstood a decade together, and she wasn't going to let that go so easily. She wasn't going to let that go, period.

"Good, because it's not going to happen, okay, wild dogs would have to drag me away," he told her, "in fact, since I know you miss me, and I hate that I've put you fourth when you should be 1d, so for my birthday, you and me, what do you say?"

"What? No, the kids have planned something for you, we've been working on a project."

"I meant that night, not during the day, are you kidding, I want to spend time with the kids, but that night, you, me, dinner, a concert or something like that, just us, nobody else."

"But you wanted the band and Speewee and Chad and some of your other friends to come up to spend it with us," Stephanie pointed out.

"I can go out with them on Saturday, no big," Chris said, "and you can come Saturday too."

"What?"

"Hey, if I'm going to spend time with my wife, I'll do as I please, right?" he told her. "I don't want you missing me more than…well, I know you'll still miss me, but I don't want you to miss me so much it makes you cry."

"You don't have to change your plans."

"It's my birthday, I get to do what I want to do, you can't say anything because I'll be the birthday boy."

"You sure?"

"Positive," he told her, "absolutely, 100% positive."

Stephanie was starting to feel better. She only hoped it would continue.

**Friday**

Chris woke up to his children bouncing on the bed, eager to get him up. He pretended to stay asleep until Kensington came up to him and slapped him lightly on the cheek. He laughed and opened his eyes. "Shouldn't you guys be getting ready?" Chris asked playfully, sitting up and trying to gather all his kids in a big hug. They were a tangle of small arms all trying to give him a hug.

"Happy Birthday, Daddy," Sawyer and Flynn said simultaneously, with Kensington trailing behind with a, "Happy Birfday!"

"Thank you," Chris said, showering them with kisses. "Where's your mom?"

"She's downstairs getting us breakfast," Sawyer explained. "She said we could come upstairs and say happy birthday to you before we had to eat because we still have to go to school."

"I wanna stay home," Flynn whined, "it's your birthday, and I want to stay home, Daddy."

"You can't, Flutterby, you have to go to school, but when you come home, we'll celebrate for a little while, then your mom and I are going out for dinner, and you're going to have dinner with Trish and Christian."

"Oh," Flynn frowned, "but what about our present?"

"Yeah, Dad, what about our present for you?" Sawyer asked.

"I'll see it when I get home."

"How old are you, Daddy?" Flynn asked.

"Pretty old," he told his daughter.

"How old is that?" Flynn wondered still, and Chris knew she wasn't going to stop asking until he gave her a straight answer.

"I'm 42 today," he answered.

"Wow, Daddy, that's really old," Flynn said, "I don't even have 'nough fingers to count. I'm only four."

"I know, do you think you can stay four for a while, I don't think I want you to grow up anymore," Chris told her. She shook her head and laughed.

"I can't do that!" Flynn giggled.

"Okay, you guys, you said your Happy Birthdays to Daddy, so it's time for you two to get downstairs and eat breakfast," Stephanie pointed to her two oldest. "Then we have to go to school."

"Mommy, do we hafta?" Flynn asked as she climbed off the bed and followed Sawyer down the hallway.

"Yes, you do, don't worry, you can play with Daddy this afternoon," Stephanie said as she disappeared.

"I guess it's just you and me, huh, Kensy-bug?" Chris said, cuddling with his youngest child. "You're here to make me feel young, right?"

"Um, okay!" Kensington said brightly, looking up adoringly at Chris. "It your birfday."

"It is my birthday, I'm glad I get to spend it with you."

"And presumably with me," Stephanie said, coming in and jumping on the bed. "The kids are eating so I thought I'd come in here and wish you a special Happy Birthday when we were relatively alone."

Chris leaned over and kissed her, "Thanks, so what's the plan for the day."

"Well, you get to hang out with me and Miss Kensington, then we'll pick up Flynn, have a nice lunch, then we'll get Sawyer, then we'll come home, they can give you the video they made for your present, and then we're going out to dinner."

"Video?"

"It's nothing extravagant, just something they wanted to make for you," Stephanie told him, giving him another kiss. "Go ahead and relax this morning, I've got to get the kids to school. There's pancakes waiting for you downstairs though."

"You made breakfast?"

"I've gotten pretty good at it since you're away so much," Stephanie said, but she didn't mean it in a bad way, she was simply stating fact, but that didn't stop Chris from thinking about it and thinking about how she was right. He was missing a lot of time at home. "I'll see you when I get back."

"Okay," Chris said, then turned to Kensington, "Hey, Kensy-bug, do you miss me when I have to go away?"

"Yes, Daddy," Kensington nodded.

"I'm going to try to be better with that, I promise," he told her, kissing her cheek. "Come on, let's get you dressed and then get some food."

Chris spent the morning quietly with Stephanie and Kensington. They caught up on some shows they'd missed, and just lounged around the house. Stephanie wasn't doing any work, and she forbade Chris from doing any work as well. After picking up Flynn from preschool, they went to lunch, and after walking around the mall for a little bit, they went to pick up Sawyer. Upon arriving at the house, they watched this special video the kids had made.

What it turned out to be was a video journal outlining what they did on the days Chris wasn't there. The camera followed each of the kids on a separate day, and then a couple days when they were all together. The kids were the narrators, and Chris felt blessed that they'd made him something so special. Stephanie told him that it had been her idea initially, but that Sawyer had most of the other ideas, and it was because of him it turned out so cool.

Chris brought it up at dinner, "That video was great, but it just made me think about how much time I miss when I'm away from them."

"I thought the video was a way to combat that, at least a little bit," Stephanie said. "They thought it would be fun to do and a fun way to show you what they do when you're away."

"I did love it, but it reminds me that I'm away."

"Chris, I don't tell you these things or do these things to upset you," Stephanie said as she grabbed his hand. The Japanese restaurant they were sitting in had private rooms, and Stephanie had requested one so she and Chris were sitting on the floor across from each other with nobody around them to hear them talk. "I just tell you these things because they're what I'm feeling, but I don't want you to feel bad."

"But everyone missing me when I'm away _does_ make me feel bad," he said, leaning his chin on his free hand.

"I know it does, but please don't think you're a bad husband or father because of this," Stephanie didn't want him to get those thoughts in his head because they were completely untrue. "You're the best husband and father, and I love you for both, I just wanted you to be a little more aware of what was going on in my mind. I know sometimes I tend to get all control freak and thinking I can do everything all the time. I just wanted you to know that I sometimes crack too."

"I know, I just feel like I've ignored that because I was off doing my thing."

"Well, you're here now, and we're having fun, right?" Stephanie grabbed her chopsticks and picked up a piece of sushi and fed it to him. "No more of this serious talk. It's your birthday, it's a happy day. It was on this day, 42 years ago that your mother probably when through excruciating pain to have you, and the world was changed for the better the second you were born. Let's celebrate that."

"You give me too much credit."

"No, I think your followers give you too much credit, I think I give you just the right amount," Stephanie winked at him.

The rest of the meal went smoothly, and Chris was able to forget about what he was feeling, at least for a little while. Stephanie didn't ask him to change his lifestyle, she didn't ask him to give up his dreams, and for that he was grateful. Stephanie understood he was doing what he loved, and because of that, she was simply asking him to make time when he could, and maybe schedule his time a little better. He could do that, he had to do that. He didn't want to lose everything he'd worked for over something so stupid.

When they got home, it was about time for the girls to go to bed, but Sawyer was still allowed up. Chris decided to introduce him to the awesome that was Jaws, and Stephanie and he watched as Sawyer sat there enraptured by the movie. When it was over, Sawyer turned to Chris, eyes wide, and said, "I never want to go into the ocean again, Daddy, not if things like _that_ are in there."

"And we've corrupted our child even more," Stephanie announced.

"Kid, I know that was pretty intense," Chris said, "but sharks like that don't really exist." He just hoped that were true.

"Oh, well, maybe we just get a bigger boat," Sawyer said, repeating one of the lines from the movie.

Chris laughed. His son was becoming a ham like he was. If Sawyer really was going to be a wrestler when he grew up, people were going to love him. After he got sent to bed, Stephanie and him settled in for the night. Since it was his birthday, he got reign over the choice of movie, and the story of Anvil it was. Stephanie curled up into his side, laying her head on his chest as she watched. He stared down at her every now and then when she laughed over something, her body causing his own to vibrate with life and love, and it only reinforced that this was what was important. The music didn't matter, the wrestling didn't mater, his family mattered, his love mattered, and in the end, that was what would always be there.

Not wanting to be away from Stephanie, he decided he'd go with her to Raw. It felt like forever since he'd been there, but it really wasn't, and he was exaggerating. "You don't have to smother me now, you know," Stephanie joked with him as he followed her into her office. "When I told you I missed you, that wasn't an invitation to tell me you wanted to follow me around."

"Sue me, I wanted to be with you, so talk to me, who hates whom, who's going out with whom, and what's going on with you and AJ?" Chris asked.

"Nothing, I'm just protecting her. I asked Punk to do it last week, to look out for her for me, but I have a feeling he won't do that for me again."

"Because of your dad?" Chris said.

"Yeah, at least he's not here to screw things up this week like he did last week. Punk is just a ticking time bomb when it comes to authority, and I think he's about at the end of his rope."

"What about Punk?" Flynn asked.

"Nothing, go play with your sister," Stephanie said.

"But Mommy, you never tell me anything!" Flynn whined, pouting and crossing her arms over her chest. She never got to know _anything,_ and it just wasn't fair. She was four years old for goodness sakes, did that even mean anything to them? Sometimes she didn't want to just go play with Kensington.

"Because you don't need to know everything," Stephanie told her, tilting her chin down to give her daughter a stern look.

"Mommy, I want ups," Kensington said, tugging on Stephanie's pants. Stephanie picked up Kensington and let her lean against her.

"I can too know it!" Flynn said angrily, stomping her foot.

"Flynn Murphy," Stephanie said in a voice that instilled fear in many, but Flynn was not intimidated…at least not much. Chris scooped her up into his arms to distract her, and he started tickling her. She resisted at first, but then couldn't take it anymore and started laughing. Stephanie smiled gratefully as Chris as she sat down.

"So what are you going to do about Punk then?"

"What did Punk _do_?" Flynn remembered herself and her question.

"He was just upset with Grandpa last week, you remember when you watched the show, don't you?" Chris told her.

"Oh yeah, he was mad," Flynn said, "is Grandpa going to cry like he did when Grandma lost her thingy?"

"Chris!" Stephanie exclaimed as Chris laughed to himself, "Flynnie, Grandpa wasn't crying when Grandma lost her election."

"That's what Daddy said," Flynn said. "He said that Grandpa was sad because Grandma used lots and lots of monies and he can't get that back."

"Chris, why do you tell her these things? My dad wasn't crying, he was upset, but he wasn't crying," Stephanie said, both for her husband and her daughter's benefit. "Grandpa spent money because he wanted to, and so did Grandma, that's it."

"Then how come she lost and had to tell people?"

"Because in politics, when you lose, you give a speech saying that you're happy for the winner so you don't come off looking like a sore loser," Chris explained. "Grandma didn't want to look like a sore loser."

"Oh, that's good then," Flynn said, "we don't like those, but what about Punk, is he a sore loser because he was mad at Grandpa?"

"No, that's different," Chris told her.

"Is he still my friend?"

"Of course he's still your friend," Chris kissed her, "I don't think anyone wouldn't want to be your friend, that's how cool you are."

Flynn smiled, "Okay, good. Is he still your friend, Mommy?"

"Now that, Flynnie, I'm not sure."

Punk paced around his dressing room, "I don't need anyone. I didn't even need that damn team. They would have been nothing but a burden to me anyways. It's better that I'm defending the title. I _should_ be in the main event."

"You absolutely should be," Heyman said.

"Yeah, so you know what, McMahon thinks this is a setback, it's not, it's actually a gift," Punk said.

"You can definitely look at it that way," Heyman said, "but we can't forget you're going to be going up against Cena _and_ Ryback, so you can't underestimate them, or Vince's influence. If you ask me, his daughter is letting him have too much reign. You know, we could possibly get her to back us up on this."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, when I was working with her, I know this was a while ago, and now she has Chris by her side, and he's a wily one, always has been. I knew as soon as I saw him he'd be trouble."

"When, back in ECW?" Punk wondered.

"Yeah, I knew as soon as I saw him, as soon as I met him that he was going to be someone I'd have to watch out for. You and I both know he has that it factor, that he's the kind of guy that can charm his way into anything, and he's not stupid. When I worked with Stephanie in the Alliance, all you had to do was play to her ego, she ate it up."

"She's not like that anymore," Punk shook his head, "she's not that same girl. And don't tell me I didn't know her, I didn't, but I had eyes, I saw. Manipulating her won't work now, she's the master at it. She always knows what's going on."

"But you'd be playing right into her fears. Part of the reason she and Shane wanted the Alliance in the fist place was because they were restless of their father's control. They wanted the company, but he wasn't willing to relinquish it. That's why they broke free. Now Shane, I knew he'd never be able to take it from Vince, but Stephanie…Stephanie is very much like her father, but her father is the original. He knows what he's doing. If we convince Stephanie that her father is once again trying to take control, she'll feel so threatened, we'll have her in the palm of our hands."

"Don't you think she'd figure it out?" Punk felt ill at ease over this whole thing. Yes, Vince was actually starting to gain more control, but Stephanie wasn't the type of person to remain oblivious. Instead, she was the kind of person who knew the business of everyone. She wasn't a gossip or anything like that, but she had this uncanny ability to know more than anyone gave her credit for. There was also the issue of his friendship with her. It wasn't so simple anymore. He liked Stephanie.

He didn't blame her for her father's misdoings. She wasn't the one who'd hired AJ or changed his match, and knowing Vince, he'd probably suggested Vickie be in charge now. But he couldn't blame that all on Stephanie. Sure, she'd let her father back in, but she didn't go out there and tell him what to say. If anything, her father was going rogue. He couldn't understand why she'd let him in, but on the other hand, he was her family. Manipulating her didn't seem like the right thing to do, but Heyman would needle him until he gave in, and it wouldn't hurt to actually inquire about the situation and gauge how she was dealing with it.

"You're already her friend, telling her things like this isn't going to seem unnatural, especially after what you did last week. Stephanie wants to control everything. You have to make her believe that she isn't in control."

"Whatever," Punk said, "just let me think for a while. I'm going for a walk, don't follow me."

Punk left the room and started walking, wandering aimlessly. He wasn't the type of guy who betrayed his genuine friends. He considered Stephanie one of his genuine friends. Sure, they didn't exactly hang out after work or visit each other on the weekends, but he knew if it came down to it, Stephanie would have his back. He'd never needed her to have it, but if he needed someone tough as nails, Stephanie would be one of the first people he called.

Could he really do this to her? He found himself at her office, and he knocked on the door. It wouldn't hurt to see her. "It's open!"

Punk pushed open the door, "Hey, Steph, you busy?"

"No, I'm not," Stephanie said, "what did you need?"

"Nothing really, just…your dad isn't here tonight, is he?"

"No, I think he's still licking his wounds after my mom lost," Stephanie said with a laugh, "why do you ask, you going to get mad at him some more?"

Punk nodded his head, "I deserved that, but he was being an asshole, I think we can both agree your dad does tend to fall on that side of the scale. It really makes me wonder, what are you doing letting him back here?"

"He's back here because I'm tired of causing a rift in my family," Stephanie told him, "it's that simple. I know my father tends to…do things on his own, but at some point in my life, I'm not going to have my father, and I'd rather let him have a little leeway here than banish him, be mad at him, and then never make up with him. It was time I started acting like an adult, and not some kid dangling something over another kid's head."

Well, that about put Punk in his place. There really wasn't a way you could argue that without coming off like a complete tool. How could he begrudge someone who just wanted to keep their family intact? He couldn't do it. He couldn't be that person who tore that apart because he wanted a title. Even _he_ wasn't that low, and Stephanie was still a friend.

"I understand," he said, now he needed to find another outlet for his anger. There were plenty. There were the fans who terrorized him on Twitter, the ones who blamed him for everything from the bad matches to Lawler's heart attack. There was Mick Foley and his self-serving agenda. There was Vickie, who was trying to take over, spreading her screechy voice to every crevice of the show. But Stephanie, Stephanie just wanted a father who she could talk to and not find animosity with. Damn this conscience. Damn everything right now.

"I don't agree with what he's done, but—"

"No, I get it, you want him to feel included, right?" Punk said. On the other hand, she could still have her father…no, no, it was wrong.

"Yeah, that's right."

"Just don't let him get too included," well, big mouth opened up. "You don't want him doing something too stupid and costing you your job, right?"

"I like to think I can keep him in check a little," Stephanie said with a smile, but then turned serious, "I don't tell him what to do to you."

"I know you don't," Punk said, "don't worry about it." He couldn't go through with this. "Hey, where's Flynn?"

"With Chris somewhere, you should go look for her, she was very worried about how her grandpa got mad at you last week, she thought for a moment you wouldn't want to be her friend, so it's probably worth a talk with her."

"I will, thanks, Stephanie."

Chris walked around with the girls. They had a frozen yogurt machine in catering so he'd let the both of them get a small cone with some frozen yogurt and sprinkles on top. Stephanie might kick his ass for it later, but it was nice for them to get a treat every now and then. Kensington was struggling to walk and eat her cone so Chris stopped them for a little bit, picking them both up and sitting them on a crate while he stood in front of them.

"Daddy, taste," Kensington held her vanilla cone out to Chris. He took a lick of it and made a yummy sound. "It good, huh?"

"It's very good, Kensy-bug, thanks for sharing," Chris told her, rubbing his nose against hers in an Eskimo kiss.

"I can share too, I'm good at it," Flynn thrust her frozen yogurt into Chris's face. He took an obliging lick from her cone too and she nodded in satisfaction. "Mine's better, right, Daddy because chocolate is better."

"They're both yummy," Chris told them, ruffling their hair. He stood there for a few minutes before he heard AJ's voice. "Flutterby, watch Kensy for a second while I go say hi to AJ, okay?"

"Okay, Daddy, I won't let her fall," Flynn said, grabbing Kensington's left hand with her right one so she could hold onto her sister's hand while she ate her frozen yogurt with her free one.

Chris walked over to where he could hear AJ talking, but there was nobody answering. For a moment, he thought she'd gone crazy, but when he turned the corner, he saw she was on the phone. He didn't want to disturb her, so he waited a few seconds, and managed to eavesdrop a little. He would feign innocence if caught, but since Stephanie took up AJ's cause with Cena, Chris was curious as to whom she was talking to.

"No, no, it's okay, I swear," AJ said. "Don't worry about it, please, I'm begging you, don't worry about it."

Chris wondered if she was talking to Cena.

"It'll be okay, nobody has to know," AJ was talking again, "I'll make sure of it. I don't want Vickie to know either, believe me, she would only make it worse. I can handle it, I'm tough, remember…no, don't worry about me...I know, I want to see you too, but it's too risky here."

Now Chris just wanted to gag, but he really couldn't. He and Stephanie lived this life once upon a time. It seemed like a dream now, thinking back to those first couple years. Now that they were married for almost eight years with three kids, the idea of hiding what they had was preposterous. But that had been him, trying to deflect and defer, trying to hide everything. And he and Stephanie had their reasons, and he was sure AJ and John would have their reasons too. He walked back over to his daughters, deciding to leave AJ alone for now.

"Okay, you two, let's go back to Mommy," Chris said, not wanting to be caught in a situation wherein he actually had to talk to AJ now.

He walked down the hallway and happened to spot John walking down one of the corridors. He stared at him for a moment, but then went about his business, going back to Stephanie's office. He didn't say anything to Stephanie immediately because she was doing some work and she wanted to get to the gorilla so she could get on the headphones. He kept his mouth shut as she worked, and as she left, and he kept his mouth shut as he took the girls to see her while she worked.

When he couldn't keep his mouth shut was when AJ was actually out there. There was just something about the voicemails that didn't ring true to him. There was just nothing of the tone that she actually used with the person she was on the phone with. And she seemed like she was protecting someone. He thought back to her words earlier, the ones he'd overheard, and he was starting to wonder if something else was going on. Cena showed up moments later, probably to be the knight in shining armor to AJ's damsel in distress, and Chris stood up, walking over to him.

"Hey, man, sorry to bother you, but I think Stephanie lost the cell phone contact number for AJ, and Stephanie wanted to know it," he gestured towards Stephanie. "I figured you would know it, I mean, since you've been helping her."

"Sorry, man, my phone's been in my bag all evening, I don't have it on me," Cena said.

"Oh well, thanks," Chris said, going back over to Stephanie and tapping her on the shoulder.

"What is it?" Stephanie asked, slipping her headphones off. "I'm kind of busy."

"I don't think it's Cena."

"What, he's right there," Stephanie said, "why do you want him?"

"No, the guy, or whatever with AJ, I don't think it's Cena."

"You don't?" Stephanie asked. "But why?"

"Earlier, I heard AJ talking to someone, but Cena told me he hasn't had his phone all evening. I think AJ is trying to cover for whoever she's really seeing."

"But who could that be?"

"I don't know, but I say we find out."


	395. This Kiss, November 19, 2012

"_The good thing about being the boss is you have access to all the video and photography we want."_

_AJ laughed, "I guess when you're the boss you can get away with stuff like this."_

"_Of course I can," Stephanie said, "if I wasn't the boss, I wouldn't want to be here."_

"_Is it hard? I mean, of course it's hard, but when you first started, were you really scared?"_

"_Not really," Stephanie shrugged, "when I came back as the General Manager, I was more excited than anything. I'd been kicked out for so long that it felt like a new lease on life when I finally got to come back. I hated those months I couldn't be around the show. I know I brought it on myself when I put myself in that match with Chris and Hunter, but I really thought Chris would win. I believed in him."_

"_Because you loved him?"_

"_No, I liked him, but I just…I trusted him. When I got kicked out, it kind of felt like I was just wandering around, kind of lost. It wasn't a great feeling to be honest," Stephanie sighed, "so when my father approached me with the job, I jumped at it. I needed it, but I was still nervous because so many people remembered what happened when Hunter and I took over."_

"_I was terrified when I took over. But I thought about how you were the GM, and you were really good at it, and it didn't seem so scary anymore, you know," AJ shrugged. "You're really like the coolest role model there is. I didn't want to be tied down to Daniel so it seemed the best opportunity."_

_Stephanie saw an opening for what she and Chris had discussed the week before. They wanted to find out what the truth was between Cena and AJ. Things just didn't seem to add up right now, and neither one of them actually wanted to confront AJ on her personal life because it was as it implied: personal. But they didn't want to defend a girl who was going behind their back and conspiring against him. If anything, Chris and Stephanie were looking out for their own instincts._

"_Daniel not the right guy for you, huh?"_

"_Not at all, I think I blinded myself to him when we first started going out," AJ revealed, biting her lip and staring off into the distance. "He was the first real guy who ever showed an interest in me, like for reals."_

_Stephanie was once again struck by how much older she felt than AJ. She wasn't even that much older, only about 11 years, but there was such an innocence to AJ, and she looked like a teenager so that didn't help. "First boyfriend?"_

"_Sort of, there was nothing serious before that," AJ told her, "I guess, I don't know, guys never really saw me as sexy. I'm not exactly curvaceous or tall or super pretty like you are."_

_Stephanie laughed, "Believe me, there were times I felt so awkward and dopey. You just have to find that right guy who makes you feel good about yourself."_

"_Chris?"_

"_Yeah, he has this knack for making you feel like you're the only person in his universe," Stephanie said, catching a dreamy look on AJ's face. The only problem was that it was sometimes hard to distinguish between AJ's dreamy look and her crazy look. The two seemed to go hand in hand. _

"_Daniel never did that. Punk, I think he did, I mean, I think that I made myself think that he was this awesome guy, and in a lot of ways, he is, but there's just…and Kane was just a moment of insanity," AJ laughed to herself. She didn't know what she was thinking when it came to Kane. Maybe it was his physique, that big, strong, manly, insane vibe he gave off. She felt for him in that insane way. It was like he could understand the darker parts of her that she didn't even understand herself._

"_You seemed to be in a really bad place then."  
_

"_I was, it was all the attention, just…all of sudden," AJ stiffened her back a little. "I didn't know how to handle it, I still kind of don't. Every time I see Vickie or think about what she's doing to me, I want to punch her so much. That can't be normal…or healthy."_

"_If that's not normal or healthy, I don't know what is because believe me, being in this business, there have been tons of people who I've wanted to punch in the face, and some I have," Stephanie said conspiratorially as they both laughed, "but what about John?"_

"_What about him? Please don't tell me you believe the crap about him and me? It's such BS. I can't even tell you."_

"_Well, that's good to hear, but would you ever develop feelings for him?"_

"_No, I don't think so, he's my friend, you know," AJ said, "just my friend."_

"_So do you have your eyes on anyone?" Stephanie asked in what she conceived to be a friendly tone, as if they were just girlfriends talking and gossiping together. Part of Stephanie was also worried. AJ had no qualms about putting her relationships on display, and if she was hiding one, Stephanie hoped that it wasn't because it wasn't a good relationship. This girl deserved _something_ good in her life after all the crap she'd had to go through over the past several months._

"_Well, I wouldn't say that," AJ said, but then she quickly clammed up. "I mean, you know, it's hard when you're working around so many good-looking, eligible guys, but like, I don't really have my eyes on anyone, not like that."_

"_I see," Stephanie nodded, looking back to the computer screen. "It's hard to be single in this business. I mean, it's not _hard_, but it's so tempting to be with a coworker. I don't think I could've ever been with someone not in the business. Nobody gets it but someone who works with you, don't you think?"_

"_Oh, absolutely," AJ said, "plus you get to be around them all the time."_

_Stephanie was now convinced it was someone in the company that AJ was seeing. Chris walked into the room and up behind Stephanie and AJ, who were huddling together in front of the desk in his and Stephanie's hotel room. He ushered his two girls into the room, both of them wrapped in big, fluffy towels, straight from the indoor pool downstairs._

"_Hey there, what's going on?" Chris asked, coming up behind his wife and AJ and slinging his arms around both their shoulders. "Why am I looking at Vickie in a swimsuit, that's just not what I need to see right now. As if some of the people down at the pool weren't enough to look at."_

"_We're making a project," Stephanie turned her head to kiss Chris's cheek._

"_Mommy, I swim!" Kensington skipped over to Stephanie and grinned up at her. Everything was pretty much obscured with the towel except her head. Stephanie leaned down and kissed Kensington's forehead._

"_Did you have fun with Daddy?" Stephanie asked._

"_The mostest," Kensington grinned, puckering her lips for a kiss. Stephanie leaned down and pressed a kiss to Kensington's lips, making the little girl happy._

"_Daddy was throwing us around the pool, but we had floaties so we didn't die," Flynn said, shaking her head a little so little droplets of water flew all over the place. Kensington laughed uproariously as she was splashed with drops of water._

"_I'm glad that didn't happen," Stephanie told her with a laugh. Flynn puckered her own lips up this time and Stephanie gave her a kiss too. _

"_Come on you two, little fishes, let's take a bath so we can get ready for the show later," Chris picked up both his daughters in one fell swoop and escorted them to the bathroom for their baths._

"_You're so lucky," AJ said, watching as Chris disappeared into the bedroom. "Your daughters are so adorable, and I know your son is a spitting image of Chris."_

"_Thanks, they love hearing they're cute," Stephanie laughed._

"_I'd love to have kids someday," AJ said, and there was that dreamy look again. Oh yeah, there was someone alright because AJ was picturing kids with someone right this second, and if Stephanie didn't know better, she would say that AJ was falling, and falling hard for whomever this mystery man was._

"You'd think they'd roll out the red carpet for me," Punk scoffed as he opened the door to the arena.

"You think way too highly of yourself," Britt told him. "Unbelievably so, to the point where it's bordering on narcissism, oh wait, it crossed that border a while ago."

"You don't find me charming?" he asked, looking at her indignantly and pressing a sarcastic hand over his heart. "Well, there are plenty of women who want to kiss the ground I walk on."

"I'm not one of them, I can assure you that," Britt said, "is this really a huge accomplishment?"

"Uh yes, yes it is, do you know how long I've held this title?"

"I do, you don't let me, or anyone else for that matter, forget about it, but there have been longer reigns, I know there have."

"Yeah, there have been, but not for a really long time, so I'm really something special right now. Plus, I've worked hard to retain this thing, and I've turned away anyone who's been trying to get their dirty hands on this beauty," Punk patted the title slung over his shoulder. "So yes, I should be getting a red carpet, and at least I'm getting a celebration tonight."

"That should be fun," Britt deadpanned. "You know, when you're not here, your ego goes way, way down. I think I like that guy better."

"You don't like this guy? God, are you insistent on just knocking me down constantly tonight?" Punk joked with her. She gave him a little shrug, and he pulled her into a headlock, running his knuckles over her hair.

"You do know I know about five different ways I could kick your ass right now, right?" Britt reminded him and he let go quickly as she laughed. "If it came down to a real fight, Phil Brooks, I could take you any time, anywhere."

"Is that a promise?"

"It's a threat," she poked him in the chest before combing her fingers through her unruly hair. "This is the guy I like, not the one that's obsessed with being the champion. But I get it, I really do, you think that because you're not some prototype, typical wrestler, the belt is something that sets you apart."

"Don't psychoanalyze me," he warned her jokingly.

"I'm only calling it as I see it," Britt said, then jerked her thumb towards Vickie's door. "Well, it looks like it's time I go see the wench and see what kind of horrors she has planned for the evening. How did you get her to agree to your celebration thing?"

"Didn't ask her," Punk told her, "I asked Stephanie."

"Oh, so you went right over Vickie's head."

"Yup, I did," Punk said, "I know Heyman doesn't like her, and sometimes I get really mad at her myself, but I like Stephanie, I trust her, so I went to her, and she's letting me have the main event. She said that I deserved it. I think she probably just had sex with Chris when I asked her because normally, she'd turn me down."

"Gross, I don't want to think about their love life. So are you like planning to, what, denounce every other champion that's come before you?"

"Absolutely."

"And declare that you're going to be the champion forever."

"Already got the speech ready."

"Cocky son of a bitch," Britt muttered.

"Not denying that," Punk winked at her. "I have to be cocky around here, that's the only way to get what you want. If you're a pushover, you end up losing every single match you're in. You may be in the business, Britt, but you're not out there, you don't know what it's like."

"I know I don't," Britt said, "I just want you to be careful. I mean, you've got Ryback on you all the time, and I know you've got goons now, but that doesn't mean you aren't vulnerable. At some point in the future, you're going to lose your belt, I don't want you to lose your identity too."

"Who's losing their identity," Chris seemingly snuck up out of nowhere. He managed to grab Punk's belt without Punk being able to get it back, and Punk tried to snatch it back vainly. Chris sidestepped him, "come on, let me just hold her for a few minutes. You don't have to worry, I don't work here anymore so I'm not going to challenge you for a match."

"Whatever," Punk scoffed.

"Hello, old friend," Chris stared in mock love with the belt. "You were supposed to be mine, you know that. You would have loved it around my waist, all snug, plus you would have been able to hang out with your friends, my kids."

"Your kids can still see it…around _my_ waist," Punk said, "what the hell are you even doing here? I heard that you were bailing on everyone."

"Where did you hear that?" Chris asked, suddenly somber as he stared bullet holes through Punk It reminded Britt a little bit of when the two of them were pretending to hate each other. Obviously, Punk had struck a nerve.

"Sorry, man, I didn't mean to imply anything," Punk said, taking back the belt, "just stupid rumors going around about you and Stephanie, but you know I never take stock into that crap. It's all it is, crap. I mean, have you _seen_ my Twitter mentions, we're surrounded by hearsay and gossip."

"What are you hearing?" Chris asked.

Britt tried to place a calming hand on Chris's arm, but he shrugged it off and she took a small step backwards. Chris was irate now, and she really didn't want to get on his bad side. He could really get into bad moods. "Chris, it's nothing."

"Wait, so you've heard stuff too?" Chris swiveled his head towards Britt, looking at her accusingly now too. Punk looked to Britt as well, hoping she could explain what they'd heard and not him. Chris wouldn't punch Britt, but he would definitely punch Punk.

"It's nothing," Britt implored him, "I swear to God, Chris, it's nothing, please, please just drop it, for everyone's sakes. Where are the girls?"

"Don't try to change the subject, please, just tell me what people have been saying. I won't get mad at anyone, I swear," he glanced over at Punk and nodded. "Can't you just tell me? I won't fly off the handle."

"Fine," Britt said, "but I'm only the messenger, and I really don't know who started these rumors, but if I had to make a guess, I'd take Vickie because she's trying to make AJ's life miserable, and with Stephanie's newfound mentorship over AJ and her threats towards Vickie, it seems likely."

"Spit it out, Britt," Chris said through clenched teeth. If people were spreading rumors about him and Stephanie, it was only a matter of time before they got to Stephanie. He wondered if this was the source of her attitude towards him leaving and missing him. It would make sense if something had got into her brain regarding the two of them.

"Well, it's just been going around that things aren't so great between you two, and that you've been going away a lot because you'd rather be out on the road than with Stephanie. People have been saying that you finally realized that Stephanie wasn't the one for you."

"Do they think I've cheated on her?" Chris was seething. If he heard any of this, he was going on a rampage. He might not be in wrestling shape, but he was always in kick your ass shape. If it came to it, he would beat everyone around here for spreading such baseless rumors.

Unless they weren't baseless, at least on Stephanie's end.

"No, no, I haven't heard that, have you heard that, Phil?" Britt wondered.

"No," Punk answered truthfully.

"Thanks for telling me, stupid people around here," Chris muttered. "I could…thanks for telling me."

Chris stalked off, heading straight for Stephanie's office. He threw open the door, startling Stephanie and the girls. They all looked up at him, eyes varying shades of blue and gray, in confusion. Chris paced back and forth, thinking about what he'd just heard. So the rumor mill was going full force again. This was one of the things he hated about businesses in general, the damn work gossip. It was worse with wrestling to be sure. You spent most of your time with these people, and that left gobs and gobs of time for rumors and gossip.

"Daddy, are you okay?" Flynn asked, looking up from her Play-Doh, but Chris didn't answer her, just kept walking and thinking and looking odd to her.

"Daddy, you 'kay?" Kensington emulated her older sister, but even the sweet cadence and curiosity of her voice didn't deter Chris's pacing.

"Mommy, I think Daddy's sick," Flynn told her mother, looking at her worriedly.

"No, I don't think it's that," Stephanie told her daughter as she rose from her seat, walking over to Chris. "Don't worry, I'll take care of Daddy."

"Daddy, I hope you feel better," Flynn said as she nudged Kensington, "Tell Daddy you hope he feels better, Kensy."

"Fee better!" Kensington said, raising her hands, her fingernails crusted over with Play-Doh.

Stephanie pressed her hand against the crook of Chris's arm. This seemed to bring him from his pacing, but not his reverie. He turned abruptly to Stephanie, but before she could even get a word in edgewise, he took Stephanie's face in his hands and stared at her, long and hard, and in a way that make Stephanie nearly squirm. It was like he was looking straight into her soul and trying to suck it out of her eyes. It unnerved her a little, and she had to break his gaze before she was left a soulless husk.

"What's going on?" Stephanie asked him quietly, her eyes darting towards the girls, who were busy playing again, although she caught Flynn looking at them every once in a while. Nothing got past that girl. She always had to be on top of things, knowing everything she possibly could know. Stephanie took a step to her left, just slightly more out of her daughter's earshot and encouraged Chris to make the same move, which he did a moment later.

"Have you heard the rumors about us?"

Stephanie looked at him, furrowing her brows together in thought. She wracked her brain trying to think of what he could mean, and then it dawned on her, "Oh, those rumors about you and me and being on the verge of separation because I simply cannot deal with three children on my own, and who does Chris think he is dumping me with all the responsibility while he goes out and drinks every night? Those rumors?" She gave a little laugh, but Chris's frown only deepened.

"You knew there were rumors about us and you didn't tell me?" he accused.

"No, I didn't because it's not a big deal. I know what's going on, you know what's going on, who cares what other people think. Other people have never held much regard for me and my relationship with you."

"How could you let that go on? People are sitting there thinking we're on the verge of divorce and this doesn't bother you?"

"No, it doesn't because I know it's not true," she grabbed his elbows to keep his wildly gesticulating arms at bay. She took a step closer. "It's okay, their rumors mean nothing."

"Is that why you said you missed me, asked me to cut back? Because you heard what they said and thought it was true?"

"Chris, that's ridiculous. I'm perfectly capable of having my own feelings, thank you very much," Stephanie told him. "I told you I missed you because _I missed you_. You're my husband, I miss you when you're away, that's it, that's all. We're not separating unless you have something to tell me."

"How much do you love me?"

"Ridiculous question, but slightly lower than I love Sawyer, Flynn, and Kensy," Stephanie told him, rubbing his arms. "It's just rumors, probably spread by Vickie to try and put fire under the flame…is that the saying? I don't know, all I'm trying to say is that it was probably her stupid way of trying to get back at me."

"How?"

"By getting this reaction out of you, getting you to believe it, getting you to leave me as she doesn't realize that our relationship is far more stable than that. She must think we're the biggest idiots on the planet if she thought that would work."

"I guess."

"Chris," she used that tone with him, the one she used when she was right and he needed to admit it. "I don't hate you, the rumors have no basis in the truth except for the fact that I do miss you when you're gone. Vickie's out for blood, preferably mine and AJ's, especially after last night, I mean, did you see her?"

Chris allowed himself a little laugh, "It was pretty funny seeing her face after you doctored those photos."

"And remember how she reacted when she came backstage?"

"Oh man, that was too funny."

_Vickie was fuming as she stomped backstage, looking like a demented Clydesdale, stomping around and trying to buck all the people surrounding her. "How dare you!"_

"_How dare I what?" Stephanie slipped off her headphones and gave an innocently treacherous smile to Vickie._

"_Those pictures, I know you had something to do with this," Vickie slammed her fists against the table, glaring at Stephanie. "I don't think AJ is smart enough to think of something like that, but we both know someone who is."_

"_Now who's getting all defensive," Stephanie said, her voice tight and curt. "You're the one trying to destroy someone who didn't do anything to you. I mean, really, Vickie, are you so petty that you have to belittle someone to prop yourself up? Is that what your life is like?"_

"_Stay out of my business, Stephanie. The board is the one who hired me, not you, you can't do a damn thing about it."_

"_Stop it!" Flynn said, rising from her chair to stand on it. "Don't yell at my Mommy! She's better than you, and you should be nice because mean people don't get anything! They only get meanness and that's bad!"_

_Stephanie held her tongue for a second before she hooked her arm around Flynn's waist, "Flynnie, it's okay, I've got this one, but thank you for defending me."_

"_Why are you mean?" Flynn disregarded her mother's words as she looked at Vickie. "You don't have to be mean, only mean people get mean things done to them."_

"_Do you think you can keep your child in check?" Vickie asked glibly, folding her arms in front of her. By this time, AJ had stumbled her way backstage and was staring at the exchange with a certain amount of trepidation in her features. She didn't know where Tamina was, and she didn't want to get into another altercation with her._

_That was the one thing Vickie should not have done. Stephanie rose to her full height, which was considerably taller than Vickie, especially with the heels Stephanie was wearing. Sometimes when she wore heels, she was taller than her husband. She stared down her nose at Vickie, the vitriol flaring from her eyes. Stephanie's tongue felt thick with hatred. Stephanie was like a fierce tiger who protected her cubs to the death. Nobody messed with her children, nobody._

"_If my daughter wasn't standing right next to me," Stephanie's voice was slick like oil, and almost pleasant in its deadliness. But oh, there was venom there, "the things I would say to you right now would make your toes curl and then, and only then, would I slap the taste out of your mouth. I would draw blood and gladly do so. You may have been hired by the board, but I've known most of those people for years, far longer than you have, and if I have to, I will make them bend to my will, and if they won't, I'll have them all thrown off, and have people I trust appointed. I have more power than you could ever dream of, Vickie Guerrero, so you go play your little games, you try to get into people's heads. I'll just sit back and watch the carnage. You're going to take care of everything yourself anyways."_

"And I only caught the last half of it," Chris said. "You're right, she's probably the one. It just hit me because of what you said, and I don't want people trying to figure out what's going on with us."

"I know," Stephanie said, "we good?"

"Yeah, we're good," he leaned forward and kissed her, one hand snaking to the back of her neck while the other grabbed her around the waist and pulled her flush against his body. She had just enough time to grab him and hold onto him as he kissed her further, his tongue sneaking into her hot mouth, and exploring it expertly, knowing every nook and cranny already, but exploring them nonetheless.

"Get a room!" Kensington said and her parents broke apart to satiate their laughter.

"Kensy-bug, where did you learn to say that?" Chris asked incredulously, never before hearing his little baby girl say something so timely.

"Unca Shane."

"Oh my God," Stephanie blushed and pressed her face against Chris's shirt. "She must have overheard it when Shane said that to us the night of my mom's election. After, when we went out to eat and we were sitting in the corner making out, and my brother told us to get a room."

"How did our two year old daughter turn out so snarky?" Chris laughed.

"She's going to be trouble," Stephanie said, "Kensy, Daddy and I are allowed to kiss, and when we want to get a room, we'll get one."

"You have to get one for us too, Mommy," Flynn reminded her, "b'cause we're your kids, and you hafta because you're the Mommy, and that's your job."

"No, my job is to be the President of the WWE."

"No!" Flynn said. "You hafta be a mommy too."

"Do I really have to?" Stephanie asked.

"Yes."

"Fine then,"

"Oh my God, am I interrupting?" AJ asked as she burst into the room without knocking first or if she did, nobody bothered to hear it. She took in Chris and Stephanie in a loose embrace and figured she'd interrupted something important.

"No, just standing here, holding my wife," Chris let his wife go, well, not really. He let Stephanie turn in his arms and he rested his arms around her waist, leaning his chin on her shoulder as he listened into the conversation. "Don't mind me, I can keep secrets."

"Oh," AJ smirked a little. She didn't have much chance to get to know Chris beyond what Stephanie told her about him and their marriage. He had been on tour a lot and when he was here, he was usually taking the girls somewhere and he didn't have the chance to just sit around and listen to them. He didn't make her uncomfortable, she was just hyperaware that this man was Chris Jericho, and he was a legend in this business.

"Did you need something, AJ?" Stephanie asked kindly, her hand absently running over Chris's forearm.

"No, not really, it's just that Vickie says she has more evidence and I was wondering if she maybe gloated to you about it or anything. I just want to know what I'm up against _this_ time. I really don't know why she's doing this, I mean, I get that she gets some sort of sick satisfaction out of it, but to _still_ keep it up, it's weird."

"Yeah, but she's one of those people who will never let anything go, ever," Stephanie rolled her eyes, "she hasn't even come to see me—"

"From what happened yesterday, I think she might steer clear of you forever," Chris quickly kissed Stephanie's neck. "After the tirade you unleashed on her, she better fear you."

"Hi," Kensington came up between her mother and AJ and smiled up at the person in front of her. She recognized AJ, but didn't know her that well. She leaned against her mommy's legs and smiled. "What you doing?"

"I was talking with your mommy and daddy," AJ said kindly.

Flynn, not wanting to be left out, always hating to be left out jumped in front of Kensington, "You like my mommy."

"I do, she's really cool, you're lucky."

"I know that," Flynn said as if it was the most obvious thing. "Do you like my daddy?"

"Flynnie, we should let AJ go, she has things to do."

"My daddy is the best in the world at what he does, and that is everything!" Flynn threw her arms wide to signify that her father was the best in the world at everything he could ever possibly do. Chris laughed and came around, picking her up and throwing her in the air a little as he tickled her.

"Come here, you," Chris kissed her cheeks as she giggled.

"You're so lucky," AJ said to Stephanie as she watched Chris with his daughter. Stephanie bent over to pick up Kensington, who hugged her around the neck for a moment. Then she laid her head on Stephanie's collarbone. "You're just so lucky."

AJ was getting that dreamy look on her face again, and Stephanie was convinced this meant AJ was seriously falling for whomever it was Chris caught her on the phone with. "Do you want kids one day?" Stephanie boldly asked.

AJ bit her lip and bounced on the balls of her feet for a few seconds as she glanced at Kensington and Flynn, who was making funny faces at Chris and trying to make him laugh. "Yeah, someday I do," AJ said, "I mean, if I find the right guy and all that."

"Of course, if you find the right guy."

"I'm gonna go," AJ jerked her thumb towards the door, "I may know one person who might know what Vickie is doing, I'll see you later, Stephanie, bye, bye, Kensy! Bye Chris, bye Flynn!"

"Bye," Stephanie said as she watched her leave. She turned on her heel as soon as the door clicked shut. "She's in love with whomever this guy is. She's completely head over heels, I can tell."

"What?"

"She keeps getting this dreamy look on her face. She's into whoever this is. I hope he's a good guy, we should find that out. He could be using her, we can't have that, she's too naïve a person to realize if someone is duping her."

"Okay, well, maybe we'll get some hints later."

AJ was mortified when Vickie brought out her "eye witnesses." Was there no level this woman wouldn't stoop to? She'd obviously never seen either of them, but it was so easy to bribe someone to tell lies like these two people were saying. John was a friend, a good friend, one who was more than willing to cover for her, but she couldn't always rely on him. Sometimes she felt like she was asking too much of him. So when she'd had enough, she went down to the ring to take care of things herself.

She got in Vickie's face about this whole thing, daring her to fire her, daring her to do what Vickie was too cowardly to do. She didn't know why she'd incurred Vickie's wrath, but she wasn't going to back down. John eventually did come down, though she didn't need him there. His presence was nice to have though, if only because it gave her some kind of backup. What she wasn't expecting, and could not have expected was when he told Vickie he would give her something to think about.

John turned to her and did something so unexpected that AJ just froze there. John leaned in and suddenly, he was kissing her. It lacked passion, it wasn't a very good kiss for that reason and many others. John didn't want to be kissing her, that was for sure, or maybe he was just a really bad kisser. He wasn't into it, and she wasn't either, and it was tender and almost friend-like in its quality. Why was he doing this? This proved nothing but Vickie being right, but then, maybe this looked as bad as it felt and everyone was convinced they were just friends now.

"Oh yeah, the guy she's with is _not_ that guy," Chris chuckled as he saw John's awkward attempt at kissing. "If that man loved her, that kiss would not look like that."

"What would it look like?" Stephanie asked. "Would it look like someone stalking across the ring and grabbing a girl and kissing her and bending her over backwards and then dropping her on her butt?"

"That's _exactly_ what it looks like," he said smugly, playing her at her own game. "_That_ kiss out there, no."

AJ had an idea. It was a bold one, a strange one almost, but if she really wanted to protect the person she was with, if she really wanted to keep up this ruse, to keep the anonymity she had fought so hard to attain for what was turning out to be the best relationship of her young life. She had to let Vickie believe this lie, she just had to. Nobody could say that AJ had all her screws in place. Sometimes she went rogue, sometimes she was so unpredictable it was crazy, people thought she was legitimately crazy.

This was one of those times.

When John turned to talk to Vickie again, AJ defiantly grabbed John's arm and hauled him towards her. She launched herself into his arms, and kissed him for everything he was worth. _This_ was a kiss, not whatever John had tried to pass off as a kiss. This was something to write home about. When John actually began to respond to the kisses, she was a little surprised, but had to go along with it. Oh God, what if Cena thought she actually wanted him now? That would not be good, not good at all.

Before she could think about it further, John was ripped away from her and she saw Dolph going after John, and John fighting back. AJ quickly got out of the ring, watching as the two men fought each other. She followed them up the ramp, immediately noticing that John was limping. Had he been hurt in the attack? She'd feel terrible if he was because he'd only been trying to defend her. She kept a safe distance from Vickie, but when she got backstage, her thoughts turned to John who was sitting in a chair and getting examined. She spared a glance towards Dolph, who was talking to Vickie and walking away before she rushed to John's side.

"John, are you okay?" she asked with concern.

"Yeah, I'm fine," but he was wincing and she knew he was trying to be tough. "I'll be fine."

"Are you sure?" She glanced towards the trainer who was prodding his leg, specifically his knee. "You're not okay, you're hurt."

"I'll be fine," he repeated, then in sotto voice, "About that out there—"

"No, I get it, you were trying to deflect, I mean, not deflect, but you were just trying to get under her skin, and I think you did. I'm sorry I—"

"No, it was cool," he shrugged her off.

"We've got to get this taped, John," the trainer said and John nodded, standing up and trying to put weight on it, but not able to.

"Do you want my help?" AJ felt obligated to ask, but he shook his head and leaned his hand on the trainer's shoulder as he limped away. AJ felt a presence next to her and she looked to see Stephanie, who had seen the whole scene from the production table.

"You okay?" Stephanie asked.

"Aside from feeling responsible for that, yeah," AJ said morosely, staring at John.

"Why do you feel responsible? It's not like you asked Dolph to come out and attack him."

"Huh? Oh, yeah, no, it's just, if I hadn't kissed him like that, Dolph probably wouldn't have had the nerve to attack," AJ explained.

"You don't know that."

"I'm going to find Vickie, I have some unfinished business with her."

After confronting Vickie and finding out that she was going to do nothing like usual (and issuing a vague threat to Tamina), she decided she had to try a different tactic. First though, she had to make a phone call. After said phone call, she started walking down the hallway only to be stopped by Layla. Layla tried to talk sense into her, but AJ was not to be deterred. She had to go into the men's locker room, and she had to do it now.

She reached the door and she stood in front of it steeling herself for the inside of said room. It wasn't going to be pretty, she knew that. It was the men's locker room, who knew what went on in there. Still, she had to do this, she had to do it for John, for herself, she just had to do it. She threw open the door with no more hesitation, and at first, all the men were surprised to see her, as they should be. She could hear the showers running and begged the gods above not to let anyone walk out right now. Then they all parted and she could see Dolph sitting in the far corner. She took another deep breath and headed right over to him.

He looked up at her when she was close, and she asked him who the hell he thought he was. She was about to say more when Dolph cut her off with a scathing commentary on what he thought of her. No words were spared or minced, he cut straight through to the bone. AJ took another deep, calming breath though she didn't feel so calm now. They were just words, they were just words, they could not hurt her, though they were sharp, they could not make her bleed.

When Dolph was through with his diatribe, when his guard was let down, she rained blows on him, hitting him where she could with her small fists. He was too stunned to fight back at first, but before he could get away from her, Cena was pulling her off and away from Dolph. She struggled, but then Dolph hit Cena and she was thrown aside. She watched as they fought and crashed into a set of stalls, hurting John further. She rushed to his side again, kneeling there, but unable to think about what came next. She glanced up and away, but kneeled there nonetheless, trying to find where she fit.

"Oh my God," Stephanie said under her breath, making Chris look at her.

"I'm sure the stalls don't cost that much," Chris shook his head, "and maybe John just tweaked his knee. I'm sure we'll get a better assessment of that tomorrow."

"No, no, that's not it," Stephanie said, "I know who it is. I know who AJ is seeing."

"Huh?" Chris said. "How could you possibly know?"

"It's Dolph," Stephanie looked at her husband, her eyes flashing with understanding. It was all clear to her now. So much of it was clear to her.

"What? But after that? He just cut her down to size."

"Chris, think about it," Stephanie said, "think back to two people who were trying to hide their relationship, who were trying to hide their feelings so they resorted to insulting each other, and making other people think they hated each other."

"Holy…you're right," Chris snorted in amusement. "Wow, yeah, you're absolutely right."

"This is perfect," Stephanie said, "this is absolutely perfect."

"Oh no, I see the wheels are turning, what's going on inside your head, McMahon."

"Same thing that's always going on in there."

"You've got a plan forming, don't you?"

"Oh, I think I've got a plan."


	396. Heating Up, November 26, 2012

A/N: Fighting off a bad cold, and I almost didn't update, but I pushed through it and, at the very least, managed to get something out. I'm not even real sure how I actually managed to write this, but I hope you like it nonetheless. Give a poor, sick girl a review while you're at it. ;)

* * *

"Mommy, can I hang it up?"

"Of course you can, I want it where everyone can see it," Stephanie smiled through the rearview mirror at her daughter. "I think everyone is going to love it, in fact, I think we can put it right on the table, how does that sound?"

"Really?" Flynn's eyes lit up.

"Mommy, can my story go on the table too?" Sawyer asked.

"You bet it can, and maybe you can read it for everyone before dinner," Stephanie told him.

"Cool, I'd like that."

"I thought you would," Stephanie said. "Maybe you guys can help Kensy make something so she can have something on the table too."

"Like what?" Flynn asked.

"I don't know, maybe a drawing or something like that, maybe you can help her make a turkey out of Play-Doh. I'm sure you guys can come up with something, can't you?"

"I think so," Sawyer piped in, "we don't want Kensy to feel left out even if she's still only a baby. Mommy, are you going to have another baby that I can have?"

Stephanie laughed at how possessive Sawyer was over his sisters, "I can't predict the future, baby boy, but I'm not going to have a baby right now if that's what you're asking. And I don't think I'm going to have another baby any time soon, but it can't ever be ruled out."

"I don't want another baby," Flynn complained, "Kensy is 'nough."

"Thank you for your input, Miss Flynn," Stephanie said as they pulled into the driveway. Sawyer unbuckled his seatbelt and helped Flynn get out of her booster seat as Stephanie opened the door for them. They both ran out of the car and towards the front door, Sawyer opening it for his sister as they ran inside.

"Kensy, where are you?" Flynn yelled.

"Indoor voice, Flynnie."

"I'm here!" Kensington rushed out from the living room, raising her hands and grinning. Sometimes she got so bored when her brother and sister were at school. It wasn't that she didn't like playing with her parents, but it just got a little boring after a while. Flynn rushed over to her and tried to scoop her up into her arms.

"Flynn, I've told you time and time again that Kensington is too heavy for you to pick up," Stephanie told her daughter sternly.

"I can do it though," Flynn told her. "I'm a wrestler."

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean you can pick her up," Stephanie said.

"I can do it, Flynnie," Sawyer picked up his littlest sister and adjusted her in his arms. Stephanie bent over and picked up the things Sawyer had dropped in order to pick up his sister. Stephanie sighed as her children wandered off towards the playroom, with Sawyer telling Kensington, "We're going to help you make something for Thanksgiving, Mommy said we could."

"Okay," Kensington said brightly. Stephanie took the kids' things to the kitchen, putting it on the kitchen table as she saw Chris wandering into the room out of the corner of her eye.

"Man, I was playing a game with Kensy, but the minute Sawyer and Flynn walked in, I was completely forgotten about," Chris joked. "I know where I am in the pecking order around here, kind of depressing that I'm not that exciting."

"You're old news," Stephanie said as she looked through Flynn's things to see if there were any notes or anything for her. She did the same thing with Sawyer's things, finding a permission slip for a field trip to an aquarium coming up. She put it on the table as Chris's hands stilled her for a moment.

"Hey, we need to talk."

"Never has a conversation been started with those words that didn't end up a disaster," Stephanie told him, standing up straight so she could look into her husband's eyes. "I have a feeling this isn't going to buck the trend."

"I'm afraid not," Chris told her, "I just wanted to tell you now so you weren't blindsided by it when all of our family is going to be here. I know your parents and Shane's family are flying in tomorrow, and I just didn't want a potential fight to break out while they were around."

"Potential fight, okay, liking this a lot less," Stephanie bit her lip. "Is this about your Robot League thing because I'm not mad about that, I mean, I've known since you went to do it, so…is it taking you away again because I mean, that's just filming and everything, you wouldn't even be gone long."

"No, it's not that," Chris said, "but thanks for understanding."

Stephanie kissed him briefly, rubbing her thumb against his cheek as she pulled away, "I'm proud of you, you're always finding something to get your name out there, and while I'm never thrilled it takes you away from us, I'm proud of the actual accomplishments."

"Again, thank you, but it's actually about the tour coming up, the UK one," Chris told her, and his words were already feeling stilted, and Stephanie wondered what this could possibly be about. She knew about the tour so it wasn't like he could spring that on her.

"Okay, so what about it?"

"I know I said I was going to leave on Friday, but I don't think that I can actually do that. The flight I was connecting with in New York looks like it might get canceled because of weather issues, so I had to switch flights to connect through Charlotte, but in order to do that, I have to leave on Thursday."

"Excuse me?" Stephanie scoffed. "You're going to leave on _Thanksgiving_? Chris, our families are going to be here. My family is going to fly down here just for Thanksgiving, and now you're bailing on us? This is exactly what I was talking about when I asked if you could just scale it back. Now it's taking you away from us on the holidays? What's next, you going to miss Christmas too?"

"Stephanie, my flight isn't until 7:30 at night, we could just do a Thanksgiving lunch, would that be such a big deal?"

"Yes, it _would_ be a big deal, it means I would have to spend all of Wednesday cooking, and you know this is my first Thanksgiving where I feel comfortable enough to make everything, and I was going to spend all day cooking it too with my mom and your mom, and Rissa, and it was going to be special and fun, but now you have to leave."

"You know I didn't want it to be like this," Chris tried to make a grab for her, but she moved out of the way. He sighed, knowing he was fighting an uphill battle right now. He knew Stephanie would be upset, but he'd hoped, vainly, that she would be supportive about this, but he knew that was too much to ask.

It was becoming clearer and clearer that recently, he'd been taking a lot and not really giving anything back. Yes, he'd been working hard, but Stephanie worked hard as well, but she still came home and took care of three children, sometimes by herself. And while he would always contend that his wife was Wonder Woman, there was only so much she could take before she started to crack. This might be the time it was going to happen, but he didn't know what to do about it. This tour was already booked and scheduled.

"But it _is_ like this!" she told him. "So now we have to completely change all our plans to accommodate you?"

"When I get back, you can go away for a few days, take a spa weekend with Trish and Lita or something, I promise I'll make this up to you somehow," Chris implored her to understand, throwing anything he could out there and hoping something would stick.

"No, Chris, that's not what this is about. It's not about making it up to me or letting me go off and do something, it's about being here when you're supposed to be here. It's about not taking off whenever you want to without thinking."

"You know I wanted to be here for Thanksgiving. And I'm going to be here for Christmas if you were actually worried about that," he added because he really didn't know if she was joking or what, but he figured he would cover all his bases. "And I can still be here, we can even eat like in the afternoon…"

"And screw up Kensington's schedule completely? She still takes naps, Chris, you know this," Stephanie said, "she wouldn't be awake if we ate in the middle of the afternoon, plus our other kids do have schedules as well, we can't just starve them until the afternoon."

"I'm sorry," Chris told her.

"It's fine, we'll just adapt, it's fine," Stephanie said, grabbing the permission slip off the table. "I'll be in my office, we'll just figure it all out somehow."

Chris knew that even though she was giving into him, and say she would accommodate this late change that she was angry. It wouldn't take a rocket scientist to realize she was angry. She huffed a little and stormed out of the kitchen, her shoes stomping down the hallway to her office, throwing the door open and he cringed when he listened to it slam shut.

He didn't want to make his wife angry, it was never about that, but maybe he was being selfish at this point. He asked so much of her, and she took it, she always took it without question. She'd even been excited about his new hosting gig, and she rarely brought up him coming back to wrestling. She was honestly letting him do his own thing, and how did he repay her, by letting her down time and time again.

He walked to her office and opened the door, glad she hadn't locked it on him, that was something at least, "Why don't you and the kids come with me? You guys can stay for a couple days, attend one of my concerts, it'll be fun, there's room on my flight."

"And what about my family, Chris? We just going to shove them out the door as well?" Stephanie challenged him, her voice tight, but the control was stretched thin. "Because that seems a little bit rude to feed them and make them leave."

"They can go home the next day, I'm only trying to make a suggestion," he said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand. "I'm trying here, Stephanie, that's all, I'm just trying."

"Yeah, I get it," she said, her tone softer now, "it's fine. We'll just eat earlier, I'll wake up at the crack of dawn to make the turkey, and it should be ready by the afternoon, and we can just make everything else ahead of time, and eat then."

"Thanks," he said even though he could tell she still wasn't happy about it. "You know I would have tried to do it differently if I could, and I swear, I did try to find flights that would leave on Friday, but I just couldn't, and I'm sorry, baby, you know I don't like leaving you guys."

"I know, it's fine," she said again, and every time he said it, he felt even worse than he did a few seconds before. "I better get some work done since everyone is coming in tomorrow."

"I guess I'll leave you alone."

"You can go check on the kids, Sawyer and Flynn wanted to help Kensy make something to put on the table for dinner…or lunch as it may be. Sawyer wrote a Thanksgiving thing in his class, complete with illustrations, and Flynn made a drawing that she wanted to put on the table, so…yeah."

"I'll go see what's up then."

Chris wanted to say that things got better when everyone got there, but it didn't. Stephanie wasn't ignoring him or giving him the silent treatment, but she was almost overly polite to the point where it was getting on his nerves. He wanted her to be fiery, to get mad at him, to rail against him, but she just quietly accepted that plans had changed, and she went about her business, planning it so everything would be ready for their lunch so Chris could get to his flight on time.

On Wednesday evening though, Marissa and Stephanie were sitting on the patio in the backyard enjoying some wine while watching the sun set. The day had been warm, but they were still in sweaters and sitting with each other just talking with one another. Vince and Shane were talking business in the other room and the kids were all playing upstairs with Declan watching over all of them. Chris went into the kitchen to grab himself a water when he heard his name coming from outside.

"Yeah, I didn't really want to change the plans, but what could I do though, leave Chris out of Thanksgiving altogether, just go on with dinner and not have him here?" Stephanie asked.

"No, I get it," Marissa said. "It's a family holiday, and he's part of the family."

"Sometimes it doesn't feel like it," Stephanie sighed and now Chris's interest was seriously piqued. He knew he shouldn't eavesdrop, that it only brought about the worst things, but Stephanie was speaking honestly right now (perhaps aided by the wine she'd imbibed) and he wanted to know what her real feelings were after hiding them from him for days, maybe weeks if that was the case.

"What do you mean?" Marissa asked. "Are things bad between you guys?"

"No, not…not really," Stephanie said, "it's not like I'm not in love with him anymore or something ridiculous like that."

Chris breathed a sigh of relief.

"That's something at least because seeing the two of you out of love would be something…I don't even know how we'd handle that. How would we handle that?"

"I would probably lock myself into a room and cry for about a month until I started to smell so bad you guys had to pry me off the bed and throw me into a shower?" Stephanie laughed as she took another sip of wine. "Believe me, if it ever came to that, I'd…well, I'd just fall apart, I would absolutely fall apart without him."

"So what's the problem?" Marissa asked. "Because you pretty much just said there was something bothering you, so what is it?"

"It's just…he keeps leaving, and sometimes I feel like…I don't know, that he likes it better out there than here, like maybe…maybe he's…bored of this."

"Bored?"

"Yeah, I mean, before I was with Chris, he was very much into this lifestyle, partying, drinking, going out every night. And we were like that too at first, before we had the kids. We did a lot of things together, we went out a lot, we didn't have to worry about coming home or bedtimes, schedules, school, preschool, any of that. Now though, we have so much responsibility, and…sometimes I think it's too much for him."

Chris was a little taken aback that she felt that way. He'd never thought of his responsibilities as too much. He loved his family, and he would do anything for them. But that was how Stephanie saw what he was doing? He hated that she thought he was trying to run away from all this. He would never run away from the things he loved the most in this world.

"But he's been with Fozzy for years, before you guys figured things out, and he's hosted shows before, and he's done all these things for a while now," Marissa pointed out and Chris wanted to kiss her for being on his side.

"I know, but it seems like, without wrestling there as a tether to bring him back, he's taking on so much and it takes him away for so long, and it's different now, we have kids, and they miss him, and I miss him, and yet, he keeps taking things on. I'm proud of him, but how much is too much?"

"And what happens if it's too much?"

"If it's too much, then I don't really know. I don't want to drift apart."

"Well, you won't, if you love each other, you won't."

"Sometimes love isn't enough, Rissa, we both know that. I loved Hunter, but Lord knows that wasn't enough in the end."

"Don't compare your marriage to Chris to your marriage to Hunter," Marissa told her incredulously. "You were with Hunter for barely two years, and you guys didn't even date ahead of time. You've been married to Chris for almost four times as long as you were with Hunter."

"But you know what led to my divorce with Hunter? We never spent any time together. He was off rehabbing, and I was with ECW trying to fight against my father," Stephanie said, "we were never together, what if that happens again. What if one day, it's not enough?"

"But by the end of your marriage with Hunter, did you love him?"

"Not in the same way, but that could happen with Chris."

"I don't believe that for a second," Marissa shook her head. "I don't believe that could ever happen with you."

"You say that now," Stephanie sighed, leaning back into her chair and watching as the day faded into night. Chris was reeling over this. She actually thought he would let her go? She thought that he would let them ever get to the point of her and Hunter? That was not possible. He had to talk to her, but he couldn't tell her he'd been listening; it would only make her angrier. So what could he do? Still, this was not something he could keep inside.

"I know you, and I know Chris."

"I hope I know us too," Stephanie said, and Chris could hear no more.

It was when she came into their room later that evening that Chris decided he couldn't leave this to rest. Stephanie smiled at him softly as she entered, "What're you reading?"

"Stephen King," Chris held up a battered copy of some book that Stephanie didn't recognize. "Did you get everything done?"

"Yeah, we did, my mom and Rissa were a big help, we had fun," Stephanie walked into the closet and changed into her pajamas.

"Hey, before you go in and brush your teeth and stuff, can we talk?"

"Sure," Stephanie sat down on the edge of the bed, curling her leg underneath her body and place her hand on his ankle, "What did you want to talk about?"

"First off, thank you for changing the time so I could be here," he might as well start off with a compliment, "second, I heard you and Marissa talking. It wasn't intentional, please believe me, but I was getting some water, and I heard you, and I admit that I stopped to listen when I heard my name, and I heard your conversation."

Stephanie pinched the bridge of her nose with the hand that wasn't on his ankle then looked up at him, "Obviously, you were not supposed to hear that, any of that."

"But I did, and I wished you would just come out and say what was bothering you," Chris sat up and leaned forward. "Stephanie, look at me."

Stephanie looked up at him, "What?"

"I would never let things get that bad between us. I would never put our lives or our children's lives in a position where you ever had to think I'd fallen out of love for you or that my love has shifted."

"Chris, we've always been realistic about our relationship, we never state that we're going to be together forever and ever because we're two very realistic people. We know that relationships sometimes end, we know that."

"I know, and it's true, we can't predict the future, but right now, I would not let it get to that point. I know I've been gone a lot, and I know it's taken its toll on you and the kids, I just…I get so into things, and I kind of…become _too_ involved."

"That's for sure."

"But when that happens, tell me, tell me and slap it into me if I have to, and you and the kids, you are not a responsibility that I somehow bear against my will, you are all a privilege and a pleasure, and the best things I've ever done."

"Thank you."

"Talk to me when you're upset, don't let me overhear it, okay, you promise?" he asked her.

"I promise," she leaned forward and kissed him, then started pushing him down on the bed, straddling his body so she was over him. She deepened the kiss and ran her hands over his chest, letting her nails linger against his skin.

"Really? Right now? With your parents and brother in the house?" Chris's eyes lit up.

"We've mastered the art of quiet," Stephanie nipped at his bottom lip. "Unless you don't want to get any before you go away and leave us again?"

Chris grabbed Stephanie's waist, "No way, I would never turn you down. I love you too damn much."

"I love you too."

**Monday**

"Well, you guys will get the chance to explain your actions to Michael Cole. He's waiting for you, and I suggest you be as upfront as possible, we wouldn't want you three to incur any suspensions or what not," Stephanie told the three men sitting in front of her, who were referring to themselves as The Shield.

"Sure," Ambrose said.

"Okay, that's all, but be careful around here, guys don't take too kindly to surprise beatdowns," Stephanie told them. The three of them left and Stephanie was alone again. The kids had opted to stay in Florida since Vince and Linda were still down there, and they loved to spoil the kids rotten so the kids were jazzed about that. It was alright with Stephanie, it gave her a little time to herself.

She grabbed a couple files she needed to go over with regards to upcoming venues that needed to be booked and saw a post-it note sitting on top of everything, _Just letting you know I'm thinking of you, don't think I'm leaving you!_ Stephanie laughed at her husband's sense of humor. She'd found at least three other notes in various places since he'd left on Thursday. In her vanity case, there was a note that said, _I think you're beautiful without all this gunk on your face_ and in her suitcase he wrote, _I thought about packing you all lingerie, but better save that for when I'm actually there._

"Stephanie, you wanted to see me?" AJ peeked her head in the door.

"AJ, hey, yes, I did, come, sit down," Stephanie said.

"You actually wanted to have a meeting with me? Is this about what happened with John last week? I really didn't know he would attack Dolph in the locker room. I could have handled Dolph myself, it wasn't like he would hit me or anything, I don't think he's that type of guy."

Stephanie was almost positive Dolph wouldn't have actually laid a finger on AJ, but it wasn't for that reason. She was so sure that the two of them were a secret, and that's why AJ was here. Stephanie was not one to let things lie. She was a person who took charge, who made sure that everything was to her advantage and not anyone else's. That's why she was in charge. She didn't take things lying down, and this was such an occasion.

"No, he doesn't, but it's not about that."

"I haven't really touched Vickie, I mean, I know I threatened it, but I haven't actually. I know you were probably watching SmackDown on Friday, since you're the president, but I handled that, and it wasn't a big deal."

"It's not that either," Stephanie said as there was another knock on the door. "Come in!"

"You wanted to see me," Dolph said, striding into the office, already in ring gear and an especially loud shirt. "Oh, I see the crazy is already here."

"Original," AJ sneered at him, but Stephanie could tell it was a very thin veneer, one that could be easily cracked.

"Sit down, Dolph," Stephanie gestured to the seat right next to AJ. Dolph reluctantly took the seat and Stephanie leaned back in her chair a little as she looked at the two of them critically. AJ had the wherewithal to actually look sheepish under Stephanie's scrutiny, but Dolph still had that cocky look he wore with everyone else.

"Is there any reason I'm here? Are you going to punish AJ because if you are, then I _am_ glad I'm here because she attacked me last week after _she_ barged into the men's locker room, I mean, is she even allowed in there, granted, she's probably made out or more with every guy in the company looking at her track record—"

"Enough," Stephanie cut him off with a laugh, "Let me tell you a little story, Dolph, and I'm sure it's going to seem familiar to you both, but humor me. I was trying to make my way in this business. I was trying to gain some power, and I did, inexplicably, I became the head of the company with my husband at my side. I was on top of the world. Then suddenly, here comes this man whose sole purpose seems to be hating me. He insults me, he calls me a slut, he says I'm on my back for every customer that comes along, remind you of anyone."

"That's Chris, you two were so flirty with each other," AJ said eagerly. "Did you like him then?"

"Not really, but I grew to like him, and I masked it with insults and hatred."

"What's the point of this?" Dolph crossed his arms over his chest, "because I've got better things to do than to hear the story of Stephanie and Chris Jericho. It's actually pretty pointless if you ask me. Ooh, you hated each other, ooh, you love each other, whatever, _boring_."

"Is it so boring when it's you?" Stephanie countered, tilting her head and staring him dead in the eyes. Dolph sucked at his teeth a little but didn't answer. "I'm _really_ good at spotting things, I'm even better at sniffing out plans, especially when they're really bad ones. So what gives, why are the two of you hiding your relationship?"

"What?" Dolph guffawed and leaned his chair back so it was on two legs. "You're joking, right? Me and _her_, the company bicycle, that's a laugh."

"Is it?" Stephanie asked. "Seems pretty obvious when you keep bringing up her kisses, and on SmackDown, I believe you said if you kissed her, she would know what it was like to kiss a real man. Why is that, Dolph?"

"Because she's an easy target?" Dolph pointed at AJ. "Look at her, I mean, come on, I don't know where she's been."

"Is it with you? Were you that hotel room she was actually sneaking into?"

"The footage was of Cena, not me."

"You're being awfully quiet, AJ," Stephanie looked at the girl and gave her an empathetic look. "What's so wrong about the two of you being together? When Chris and I started dating, we kept it a secret. He was working with me to try and bring down Bischoff. He switched shows for me, and we kept it a secret for so long, but it wasn't without its hardships. It was hard to hate him, hard to stay away from him, hard to pretend it wasn't him I wanted."

"I do _not_ want her," Dolph said again. "You're crazy. She's Cena's little girlfriend now, poisoning him, but I'm just reaping all the benefits."

"Sorry, AJ, but your kiss with Cena was awkward and devoid of any emotion. I've kissed guys on a whim, and it never looked like _that_. I'm not going to tattle on you two either."

"Seriously, Stephanie, you're whack," Dolph shook his head.

"I would never let this get to Vickie, if that's what you're really worried about. At the end of the day, I can control her."

"I'm _not_ with AJ!" Dolph shouted, standing up and slamming his hands on the desk in front of Stephanie. She didn't even flinch when he did so. Stephanie had experience dealing with irate tempers, so this was nothing.

"Dolph!" AJ said impulsively, then gave a little squeak at her outburst. Dolph closed his eyes and tilted his head towards the ceiling. Stephanie gave a victorious smile and leaned back in her chair again. "She's trustworthy, okay, she's my friend."

Dolph opened his eyes and stared at Stephanie before slowly sitting down again. "Fine, you caught us, what are you going to do with us?"

"I just want to know why right now," Stephanie explained. "What's _really_ going on?"

"We're together, but it's in our best interest not to say anything," Dolph said, and AJ reached out and grabbed his hand. Dolph's face actually softened and he glanced at AJ. "You've seen how Vickie is, and right now she has the power, and we have to respect that."

"Do you have any plans to bring her down?"

"Not really," AJ said, "we just don't want Dolph to jeopardize anything, especially not now when he has so much on the line. He has the briefcase, and if Vickie knew about us, she'd use it against him. She'd figure out a way to make him lose his chance or to use the briefcase in a match he'd lose."

"And she'd put AJ through even more crap than she is. She'd make her life a living hell, and I already can't do anything, I don't want to see it get worse."

"Does Cena know what's going on?" Stephanie asked.

"No," AJ said, "it's better that less people know about this. We just don't want to drag anyone else into it, and if we did, it wouldn't be as genuine anymore. Please don't tell anyone, Stephanie."

"We know you'll tell Jericho, if he doesn't know already," Dolph said, "but I don't want trouble for either one of us."

"I wouldn't dream of it, but give me a week. I can think of some way to bring Vickie down," Stephanie said, "or at least try."

"Why?" Dolph wanted to know why Stephanie would help them. He'd never had a particularly good relationship with Jericho before.

"Because I consider AJ a friend, and the icing on the cake is it would get Vickie away from any position of power," Stephanie said, "but hiding a relationship, while fun at first, is not healthy. It was hard hiding, and you shouldn't have to do that."

"Thanks, Stephanie," Dolph said, even though she could tell he was saying it begrudgingly. "I better get out of here before people start getting suspicious. I'll see you later, babe?"

"Yeah," AJ smiled as Dolph leaned over to kiss her before he stood up and left the room. AJ glanced at Stephanie, "Thank you so much for keeping this a secret. It's not that we're ashamed, but with the circumstances…"

"How did this happen, AJ?"

"I'm not even really sure," she blushed, ducking her head. "I was having a bad time with everything, the whole GM thing—"

"Wait, this started when you were still GM?"

"Yeah," AJ answered, a touch of embarrassment in her voice. "I was so overwhelmed with everything, and one night, it just got to me. I was in a coffee shop at the hotel we were staying at, drinking a hot chocolate and practically crying. Dolph came over, probably to tease me or something, but when he saw I was upset, he actually slid into the booth and talked to me. It was nice, just talking with him. So we continued talking, and then he was taking me out. The Cena thing did start as a business dinner, what it is now, I think we're both just sick of Cena."

"What does Dolph think of it all?"

"He hates it," AJ said, "he hates that I have to go through with this. He thinks if he attacks me and Cena, it'll throw Vickie off our trail, and it's been working, albeit, he really had to alter that video footage because originally, you could see him, but he had it edited out at the last minute, thank God too."

"You love him?"

"I don't know what I am with him, I mean, I think I love him, but it's still so…I don't even know, I just know I've never felt like this before."

"Sounds like love," Stephanie said kindly. She could never begrudge someone for being in love, at least not someone she considered a friend. "I want to help you out because I like you, but well, you are handling it, and I'm proud of you for doing what you're doing, and being with who you want to be with."

"I do want to be with him. He doesn't want Vickie, he never really has, but he joked that since you were taken, Vickie was the next best thing."

Stephanie laughed, "And he's sincere with you, he's not using you?"

"No, no, no, nothing like that, he's perfect with me," AJ smiled. "I love being with him, he's sweet when you take him out of here, I know that's hard to believe, but he really is kind when he's not wrestling, but I like when a wrestler is aggressive. I think you can agree."

"I do."

"I better go, I don't want to miss anything on the show," AJ said, "Thanks again, Stephanie, for everything. And thanks for not blabbing it to anyone."

"I would never," Stephanie shook her head.

AJ left, and Stephanie contemplated what she could do now. They would have to think of a way this could escalate to the point where Vickie could be fired or worse. Cena was collateral damage, that was already clear. Bringing him into it could have its benefits, but Stephanie never trusted the guy. Sure, he acted like he was all about the fans, but there was still something very self-serving about him. He kept his cards close to his chest at all times, and she was a person who wanted to know what she was playing against.

She still couldn't believe that Dolph was anything but the arrogant guy he projected himself as, and the first thing Stephanie wanted to do was make sure he checked out. AJ had proven herself to not be the best judge of character, and Stephanie didn't want AJ getting caught up in a plot. She was willing to give Dolph the benefit of the doubt to a certain extent, but how easy would it be for Dolph to manipulate AJ and really act as a liaison for Vickie? It would be too damn easy. She needed someone to infiltrate and make sure Doph wasn't using AJ. But who could she trust to do that?

They'd let Jack Swagger into their little posse once, but it was hard to crack into that group. She could always get Tamina on their side, but she seemed hard as nails, and Stephanie really didn't have much incentive. She was going to need every bit of this week to figure out a plan. If she succeeded though, Vickie would be gone, and she wouldn't have someone to act as her foil. She liked that idea a lot. She liked it so much, she called her husband to consult with her.

"You do know it's late over here," Chris said as he answered.

"You're always up late when you're touring," Stephanie said flippantly. "They caved, they're dating each other."

"You're a keen observer when it comes to other people's love lives, ours, not so much," Chris joked and Stephanie made a grunting noise. "So what's going on, why the secret? I mean, besides the obvious? Are they setting out to destroy Vickie?"

"No, they're only doing it to deflect their relationship, can you believe that?" Stephanie said. "I mean, it's not even a real plan, just a way to keep themselves a secret, but secrets never last forever, naïve children."

"Isn't he only like four years younger than you?"

"Still, I'm married, I have perspective on this," Stephanie argued. "I'm trying to figure out who I might be able to use to get information on Vickie and Dolph. I just want to make sure that Dolph is on the up and up with her. But who?"

"I'm not sure, who do you think?"

"Nobody wants to get too close to Vickie, believe me," Stephanie said, "I'll figure it out, I just wanted to let you know what was going on, tell you I missed you."

"I miss you too," Chris said, "and don't forget, you have a standing invitation to visit me whenever you want to if the urge comes over you."

"I know," Stephanie said, "maybe sometime this week."

"I hope so."

"I'll let you go, get some sleep," Stephanie told him, "I love you."

"Love you too."

Stephanie hung up the phone and got back to work, walking to the gorilla when the show started. She watched with semi-disinterest until Cena came to the ring. He went about his business, talking about AJ and everything, and she wondered if Cena really cared about AJ. How crazy would it be if he developed feelings for her as well? That was actually a very big risk, and maybe Cena should be brought in on this so his heart didn't get churned up and spit out. It was a thought. Stephanie had to give Dolph and AJ credit, they were playing off their hatred well, even if Dolph kept mentioning kissing AJ. Their plan was actually working to some extent.

But Stephanie knew she could do better.


	397. Cracks in the Machine, December 3, 2012

"Momma?"

Stephanie looked up from her laptop as Kensington roused from her nap on the couch in Stephanie's office. She pushed away the blanket covering her a little as she freed her arms. She gave a loud yawn as she searched the room for Stephanie. Her face softened and brightened when she spotted Stephanie at her desk, her disorientation after waking up starting to fade.

"Hey, baby girl, did you have a nice nap?"

"Uh huh," Kensington nodded happily.

"Good, I'm glad, we have to go pick up your brother and sister in a little while so are you sure you're awake?" Stephanie asked playfully. "You can get in another good 20 minutes or so?"

"No, I okay," Kensington sat up, her hair falling around her face. She scrunched up her nose a little bit and yawned again. "Mommy?"

"Hmm?" Stephanie looked at her again.

"Whe Daddy?" Kensington shrugged. "I wanna play."

"Oh, baby girl, you know that Daddy is away on tour," Stephanie said with a slight pout. Kensington had forgotten for a second that her daddy wasn't around. Usually she didn't forget because she didn't see him, and this always made her sad. She liked playing with her daddy, he was really funny, and he always let her ride piggyback.

"I see him!" Kensington frowned, her lips jutting out in a way that made her look too much like Chris. "Mommy, I see him now!"

"Kensy, I would love for you to see him, but you can't. Daddy is in Europe right now, and he can't be here, remember? We talked about this before he left, he's going to sing for a lot of his fans, but he'll be back."

"When he back?" Kensington asked with a shrug.

"Well, it'll be a little while yet, a couple weeks," Stephanie told her, knowing this was not going to end well. She stood up from her chair and walked over to her daughter, sitting on the couch next to her. "Daddy likes to have concerts for his fans because they love him too."

"I love," Kensington whimpered as her eyes filled with tears again. "I want Daddy!" Her lips curled in towards her mouth and quivered as the tears finally spilled over. She was tired of waiting for her daddy to come around. She wanted him now and it wasn't fair that he wasn't here to play with her. She missed him, and she only wanted him.

Stephanie quickly took Kensington into her arms and cradled her daughter against her chest. Kensington was still a little girl who didn't understand why her father wasn't around, and while she was usually very good and went with the flow of things, she was still two, and at two, things were beyond her grasp, one of those being why her father could not be with her. She just wanted him, and Stephanie couldn't produce him at the moment.

"Shh," Stephanie whispered into her hair as she rocked Kensington back and forth, soothing her with the movements. "Shh, baby girl, I know you miss Daddy. I miss Daddy too, but he'll be back before you know it."

"No!" Kensington yelled in tantrum, making Stephanie wince with the volume of her cry. "I want Daddy!" she yelled again and buried her face into Stephanie's shirt as she sobbed. Stephanie could not find the words with which to comfort her distraught daughter. There was probably only so much her childish mind could take. When a child wanted her father, how could it be denied like this.

"Okay, shh," Stephanie said, "come on, let's go see if we can talk to Daddy right now, okay, we'll see if he can skype with us, alright?"

"Daddy," Kensington whimpered, her voice muffled as she refused to show her face.

Stephanie stood up and walked over to her desk, sitting down again. She shifted Kensington into her lap, but Kensington was still burrowed against her mother's blouse, her small fists grabbing onto fabric, making the top taut against Stephanie's skin. She navigated through her computer and opened up her skype program. When she'd opened it, she grabbed her phone and dialed her husband's number. It was well before his concert started so she figured he might have a few minutes to help calm Kensington down.

"Hey, baby, what's going on, you need a little middle of the day phone sex?" Chris said as he answered.

"No, do you have time to skype right now?"

"Yeah, sure," Chris told her, "what's going on, you need to see my face so you can have fun with yourself, hey, I can dig that."

"Again, no, but I'm sensing someone has a little blueballs action going on over there," Stephanie joked, thinking about how her husband was usually insatiable, and with her thousands of miles away, it must get a little bit frustrating.

"You try riding around in a bus with a bunch of guys," Chris told her, "wait, please don't do that, I know you have a propensity to lie on your back."

"Oh, back to the old well of insults, get new material, Jericho," Stephanie told him, "I'm afraid this is more serious than just me wanting to talk to you. Kensington is having a little bit of a breakdown right now because she misses you so much, and I was hoping that seeing your face and talking to you might help her."

"What's wrong?" Chris asked, his voice quieting significantly. Stephanie could immediately tell that Chris was hurting. It hurt him profoundly when the kids were hurting. And it hurt even more when he knew he was the cause of such hurt.

"She's two, Chris, we've been through this before with our other ones. She's two, and she doesn't get that you're coming back. All she knows right now is how much she misses you," Stephanie leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to the crown of Kensington's head. Kensington was still crying into Stephanie's shirt. She could feel the wetness of Kensington's tears as they soaked through her shirt and clung to her skin.

"I'll sign on, are you on?" Chris asked her.

"Yeah, we'll see you in a few."

Stephanie hung up the call and waited for Chris to call her on skype. When his call came through, she immediately pressed the button and Chris's face popped up on her screen. "Hey there, Kensy-bug!"

Kensington heard Chris's voice and her head slowly emerged from the folds of her mother's shirt. She looked around, thinking her father had suddenly shown up like magic, but then she saw his face on the screen in front of her, and she jutted her lip out in a pout. "Daddy?'

"Hey there," Chris said in a voice that was reserved for his children. It was softer and filled with this sense of love and warmth that nobody, not even Stephanie, got to hear directed towards them. This was the voice of his unconditional love for them. "I heard you missed me, Kensy-bug. I miss you a whole bunch too."

"I want you," Kensington whimpered, leaning forward so she could see Chris clearer. Stephanie watched from behind, her arms loosely wrapped around Kensington as the little girl leaned against her mommy's desk.

"I know you do, bug—"

"You come play!" Kensington implored of him. She wanted him to show up at the door and come play with her, and swing her up in the air like he did and then hug her tightly and kiss her and tickle her, and make her laugh. She wanted to hug her daddy right now. She didn't want him through a computer screen.

"I can't, but in a couple weeks, we'll play for the rest of the year, how does that sound?" Chris tried to make it sound enticing. He knew it was hard for his kids, but it was especially hard for Kensington, who really was too young to know what Chris was doing and why. Flynn and Sawyer at least had a loose grasp of things. Kensington just knew he wasn't there.

"No! Daddy! I want you!" Kensington's tears came full force again, big, fat drops falling onto the desk as she wailed with the intensity only a toddler could have. Her whole face just crumpled completely, making Chris's heart lurch as he watched his daughter cry in a place where he could not immediately take her into his arms.

"Stephanie?" Chris said, his eyes training up into hers. She gave him a sympathetic look, but he turned his eyes away at the last second. "I'm the worst father in the world."

"Chris, don't say that, it's not true and you know it," Stephanie had to speak up a little bit because Kensington's wails were loud. Stephanie went back to cradling Kensington against her as she rubbed her back, trying to calm her down, but it was to no avail. Kensington was in full-on tantrum mode. There was nothing Stephanie could do except hold her and hope she calmed down.

"Well, I feel like it," Chris said, running his hands through his hair. "Look what I've reduced my daughter to!"

"Stop it," Stephanie said, thinking quick on her feet. "Okay, here's what we're going to do. Since you can't come to us, we'll come to you."

"What?" Chris said, his eyes widening. "Stephanie, what do you mean?"

"It's Thursday, I'm sure I can find tickets to fly to Glasgow," Stephanie told him. "I can bring the kids and your parents with me, and Sawyer and your parents can fly home on Sunday, and the girls and I can stay until Tuesday since Flynn has preschool Wednesdays."

"Steph, do you honestly think you can get tickets this late in the game?"

"Yes, because I have the means to do so," Stephanie said, "money isn't a factor when my kids are involved. The other two will want to see you as well, I can't just take Kensy and not them. But three weeks is just too long for them at this age. Sawyer and Flynn may be able to handle it better, but Kensy just can't handle it. She doesn't understand, and I miss you too. Do you mind?"

"Do I…are you seriously asking if I _mind_ that you'll come see me?" Chris asked. "If you want to see me, you don't ever have to ask."

"Okay, it's settled then, we'll be there, I'll make it happen."

"Just one thing, Steph, what about Raw?"

"You and the kids are more important."

That's how Stephanie found herself on a plane to Scotland with her kids and in-laws in tow. Ted and Loretta were looking forward to watching one of Chris's concerts in the UK. He always touted how the fans there were amazing, and they were proud of their son. The kids were bouncing off the walls of the plane in excitement upon seeing their father, and Stephanie couldn't help but share in that excitement. Her father was gracious enough to go to the show for her, but she was a little upset she couldn't be there because things still needed to be straightened out.

She hadn't figured out anyone she could get to infiltrate Dolph and Vickie's relationship. She didn't trust many people in her company. There was only so far money or titles could go, and she tended to be wary before fully trusting someone. The people she did trust were not the type of people who Vickie would just allow into the fold. Punk was absolutely out of the question. He had a chip on his shoulder constantly, and she felt like if she asked something else of him, he would snap. Not to mention Punk would never be able to feign interest in Vickie, any kind of interest.

Sheamus was another one who was out of the question. She really liked Sheamus, but he was too nice to pull off something like that. He would obviously want to help, but this was something he couldn't help with. She had her old standbys, Randy being one of them, but even Randy wouldn't be able to cozy up to Vickie. The divas were of no help because she didn't really hang out with any of them. Now that she was older, she found she had nothing in common with these women. She had a husband and a family, and it was getting harder and harder to relate to the younger women who had their whole futures ahead of them, unencumbered by vast responsibilities.

Stephanie absolutely did not trust Tamina, so even going to her for a little bit of help seemed impossible. So that left…nobody. Vickie hated her so she couldn't pretend to be Vickie's friend, and Chris wasn't around, not that he'd be able to do it either. Her father _possibly_ could, but she'd never really included her father in one of her plans, so including him now was risky. She always suspected, whether it was consciously or unconsciously, that her father had his own agenda. She loved him, she loved that they could work together with ease, but she would never fully trust that he wasn't coming up with something of his own at all times. It was probably just a product of her own actions, but it was what it was.

So that left nobody, and she just hoped that Dolph was true in his feelings for AJ. That girl had been through enough, and she didn't need anymore. She didn't need to have another man in her life turn on her. Stephanie almost wished for a little more maturity for AJ, but she couldn't and wouldn't talk. When she was AJ's age, she had been married to Hunter, an impulse marriage if there ever was one. She was consumed with power and anger, and she hadn't been in a good place.

In hindsight, maybe those months between leaving the WWE and coming back as the General Manager had been good for her. She didn't just jump into a relationship as soon as her marriage was over. For those few months, she didn't rely on anyone, and she'd been single, not hanging off another man's arm like she had for those two years with Hunter. She wasn't about to suggest the same for AJ, but if Dolph was not on the up-and-up, she might actually suggest that AJ take a short break from men to clear her head. Not that she would impose her will, but she thought herself something of a mentor to AJ. Still, she didn't know the relationship between Dolph and AJ, and if he did love her, Stephanie hoped he loved her well.

AJ bit her lip as she watched Dolph pack his bag for the show. "You know, I don't really have to hang out with Cena tonight."

"No?" Dolph said.

"No. I mean, I don't think Vickie is going to waste any more of her time with us. She seemed almost done with us last week, don't you think?" she asked Dolph.

He smiled at her and flopped down onto the bed next to her. "Let's not talk about her right now, okay, or about Cena, I don't want to talk about either one of them or wrestling. I think that we owe it to ourselves not to talk about it."

"How can we not though? It's what we do," AJ pointed out.

"Well, we don't always have to. You're a lot more interesting than the show anyways."

"You're lying," AJ laughed, "because you love what you do, and so do I. That's part of what attracted me to you in the first place. I think I've always had a thing for guys that know what they want. I mean, if you look at the guy I was with—"

"You weren't with any of them," Dolph scoffed, his face souring at the thought. "None of them gave a damn about you."

"Well, Bryan did for a while," AJ tried to defend him, though she wasn't sure why. She just didn't want Dolph getting the wrong idea. Some of the stuff that happened was her own fault. She had distracted Daniel during that match.

"No, he didn't, he was a jerk to you."

"Punk comforted me and he kind of took me under his wing."

"He wasn't genuine with you," Dolph shook his head. "He was just using you. I don't want you thinking they had your best interests in mind because they didn't. If they did, they wouldn't have let you look like a fool. I hate that I have to sit back and—"

"You're doing it for a good cause. You want to win the title, you can't afford to get on Vickie's bad side, not when she's so angry with me," AJ shook her head. She could not allow Dolph to become the one who received Vickie's tireless anger. Vickie was vindictive, manipulative, and rude. AJ knew the sting of Vickie's power, and she wouldn't allow Dolph to feel any of that. Not if she could help it.

Being with Dolph was so surprising. While that cocky attitude followed him backstage, when she was around him, it faded somehow, and he used that cockiness and turned it into actual concern for her well-being. When he was with her, he was protective, careful, and downright kind in a way she never saw coming. That was what she loved about being with Dolph; she never really expected anything that came next, but all of it was exciting and good, just…_good_. When she was around him, she felt things she didn't feel when she was with Punk or Daniel.

"Sometimes, I don't care, especially when it looks like Cena is trying to eat your face," Dolph said and AJ laughed. Dolph didn't laugh for a moment, but then allowed himself a small one. When he was on the show, his laugh always sounded cruel, but his genuine laugh, the one she got to hear was like the sweetest music she could hear. She liked that she was able to get the real him out.

"Is that how it really looked?" she joked.

"Are you kidding me?" Dolph made a face, "I swear, I thought he was starving and wanted to eat you."

"Stop," AJ pushed lightly at Dolph's shoulder, but he leaned over and kissed her instead. It was brief, but left her feeling warm and giddy all over. He brushed her hair away from her face and she stared up at him. "I wish everyone could see you like this."

"Nobody will see me like this," he told her, "I can't look weak in front of everyone. I want to win the title—"

"Which is why you can't interfere with what's going on with us."

"I want to break away from her, Jeanie," Dolph used his pet name for her. While AJ was already a nickname for her real name, April Jeanette, Dolph liked having his own little nickname for her, and she melted a little every time he called her that. She'd never liked her first name, so he'd adopted one for her middle name. "I _need_ to. I can't sit back and watch as she belittles you."

AJ kissed him spontaneously as he said that. "Thank you, you don't know what that means to me."

"I like you, like a lot," he told her, struggling with how to say his feelings. He was not a touchy-feely kind of guy, never had been, so explaining and expressing his feelings had never been something he was good at, not even when he was a little kid. He was straightforward and blunt, but he didn't want to be that way with AJ. There was something in her that just drew her in.

He really couldn't explain why his feelings changed for her. At first, he'd found her as stupid and vapid as he found most of the divas, and when she'd thrown herself at three different men, he'd thought her kind of a slut. Then when she was hired as the GM, he disliked her because she'd catapulted to a position she didn't deserve, but through all of this, he didn't know her. When he'd finally gotten to know her, all he found was someone who wanted to have someone who cared. That was it, she just wanted someone to care about her.

Something lit up inside of him when he found that out, something he didn't think he could feel. Dolph was not a guy who dealt well with emotions. He was not the type of guy who was going to give a girl big, romantic gestures. That was why he hardly ever had girlfriends. He thought he was nice, but time and time again he was told to be more romantic, to talk more about his feelings, but he didn't work that way, he wasn't built that way, so he remained alone for the most part. With AJ, it wasn't like he suddenly changed, but he could be more open with her than he was with anyone else. He liked the feeling. He liked knowing she felt the same way for him.

"I like you a lot too," she told him, knowing that mushier words would only throw him off. "But right now, I think staying on Vickie's good side is your best bet, especially since you don't have a match for TLC yet."

"Damn, you're right," Dolph said, "I know I want Cena. Not only because I really don't like him—"

"But—" AJ tried to cut him off, but he cut her off too.

"I know you don't think he's a bad guy, and I'm cool with that, sort of, but I don't like him, and if I'm going to prove that I'm the best around here, I've got to start with Super Cena," Dolph told her. "After that, I can worry about the briefcase. I have to wait for the right moment with this. It's too valuable not to be sure."

"I get it," AJ told him, "I totally get it, and I'm sure Vickie will let you have your match. Just…be careful around her. Stephanie doesn't like her."

"Stephanie, let's talk about her a second, okay?" Dolph asked. "You really look up to her, don't you?"

"I do, she's the best," AJ said. "I've looked up to her since I was younger. She's always been so…you know, she doesn't really take crap from everyone, and I've always admired that."

"It's cool, it's just, I don't know, everyone is always saying she has a plan for everything, that's she's really pulling all the puppet strings around everything, and it makes me a little nervous knowing that she knows our business, and that she wants to help."

"No, no, no, you don't have to think like that," AJ shook her head forcefully. "Stephanie isn't like that. She's really not. I mean, have you seen her around her kids? She's amazing with them."

"Yeah, but those are her kids, we're not her kids. I mean, she always makes friends with people in high places, and she married Jericho—"

"If you don't think she loves Chris with everything in her, then obviously you've never been in love," AJ told him.

"No, no, I know they're in love, believe me, I think _everyone_ knows it, I bet everyone in the company has walked in on them making out at some point," Dolph actually joked and AJ laughed, "it's just, she's very much…I don't know, she likes to be in charge."

"So does Vickie, and you didn't mind her for a really long time, and at least underneath the gruff, boss exterior, Stephanie is nice. She really helped me after everything went down. She refused to let them believe that I was incompetent. She really helped, you know that, Dolph."

"I know, I know, I'm sorry, I just, I don't trust people naturally, and I just want to make sure she's not using you for some weird agenda she has."

"She's not, believe me, she's not."

Stephanie watched happily as the girls ran around the stage as Chris rehearsed with the band for their show the next evening. They'd been so happy to see Chris, and he'd been equally as happy. Sawyer had been thrilled as well because Frank had let him play a little on his drum set during sound check on Saturday. He was getting more proficient on the drums, although it still sounded like a lot of noise to Stephanie. Flynn was currently trying to help Chris sing as Rich showed Kensington how he was playing the guitar.

"You want to sing a little?" Chris asked as he looked at Stephanie standing in the empty club, looking up at him as he held Flynn in his arms. She had the microphone in hand, holding it up to Chris's mouth.

"Me?" Stephanie said, "I don't think so. Nobody needs to hear what a cat dying sounds like?"

"Why don't you go call work like I know you want to," Chris said knowingly. "I can see it in your face, you're wondering what's going on."

"It's only," Stephanie looked at her watch, "like 11 over there, it's not like the show is actually on or anything. I plan on staying up for it though, do you think you might want to watch it with me, Mr. Jericho?"

"Spending the night with my wife watching wrestling? Well, I had other plans in mind, but I think I can manage," he told her, "so do I look sexy up here or what?"

"Or what," Stephanie said after studying him for a minute.

"Well I'm not dressed up or anything, you can't even judge," Chris said, "Flutterby, are you going to be my microphone holder tomorrow?"

"No, Daddy, I'mma be at home," Flynn told him, "I gotta go home."

"You want to go home instead of watching me sing?" he asked incredulously. "But I thought you came all the way here because you wanted to see me sing!"

"Uh uh, I came here because I missed you and because Kensy was crying a lot," Flynn said, which hit that right spot in Chris's heart that always stung whenever he was reminded his kids missed him when he was gone. "Weren't you crying, Kensy?" Flynn asked into the microphone.

Kensington looked up at her name, her fingers still strumming the guitar in front of her, "I not cry!"

"She was too," Flynn nodded, "I saws it with my eyes. But it's okay, but Daddy, when do you get to come _home_, is it in forever?"

"Not forever, but the thirteenth, that's ten days away, and it'll be like nothing, and then it'll be Christmas, and we'll have lots of fun," he told her, "so come on, we have to sing a little bit of another song, and I can't think of a better back-up singer than my girl."

Stephanie smiled as she watched them sing together. This seemed to be just what everyone needed. Chris needed to see them, and they needed to see him, and it was just the salve everyone needed to endure the rest of Chris's tour. She knew tearing the kids away from Chris was going to be difficult, especially for Kensington, but hopefully with this visit, they could manage the rest of the time apart.

"Why don't you call AJ at least?" Chris said. "Since I know you won't call your father, why not call her and see what she's doing?"

Chris obviously misinterpreted her face just now and she shook her head, "I'd much rather watch you."

Stephanie smiled as Chris's head fell against her shoulder. "I wish you could stay for the rest of the tour."

"No, you don't, you need your manly time," Stephanie laced her fingers through Chris's as they lay together on the bed in Stephanie's hotel. Tomorrow they would be heading home and Chris wanted to spend every moment with his family. The girls had been asleep for hours, and they were just getting ready to watch the show. "We'll be okay."

"Yeah, that's why you had to fly all the way to Europe to see me," Chris rubbed his thumb over her knuckles.

"I know, but they'll feel better now that they've seen you," she said as the show started. "I called my dad, and we talked for a little bit about the show. He said he wanted to discuss some things with Vickie, I have no idea how that's going to go."

"Did you tell him about Dolph and AJ?"

"Are you kidding me? Do you think I want him knowing that kind of information? Knowing my dad, he would put them into a match against each other so they'd be forced to confront their feelings. Telling my dad would be the worst thing possible."

"I guess you're right," he said as he turned his eyes to the screen, "So what's your deal with The Shield? You just let them run rampant now?"

"It's not like I can really do anything, they claim to be working for themselves, and while they are interfering, how can that be punishable if they aren't actually putting anyone out of action. It's within their rights as wrestlers to interfere in matches unless told otherwise, and I can't tell them otherwise."

"You should try and mandate that."

"Oh yes, that'll go over well, I'd just be putting a huge target on _my_ back."

"Nobody would attack you," he told her.

"You keep believing that."

"If they did, they would know they were going to mess with me, and nobody wants that. But if you're so afraid, you should have Britt tell them, she's got both Hunter and Punk in her back pockets." Stephanie laughed a little and nodded, her chin bumping Chris's head. "I swear, she's so blind to how much Punk feels for her. Friends my ass, if she gave him any indication that she wanted more, he'd be on that like monkeys on a banana. Then there's Hunter, who watches her like a little puppy dog. It's pathetic is what it is. He needs to move on."

"Like it would be easy for you to move on if you lost the love of your life?"

"Different scenarios, and don't even bring up losing you," he told her, "I don't even like hypothetically speaking about it."

With the minor issues he and Stephanie had been having as of late, thinking about subjects like that terrified him. Stephanie kept him grounded in the here and now though, her soothing words and presence doing wonders for his soul. "Okay, but I can't ask her to do something like that. Maybe they'll be better tonight with my dad there."

"Yeah, because your dad has always kept things under control."

They watched quietly after that until AJ's match, "I hope she's okay. I worry about her and Dolph. I don't know much about the guy, but he worries me."

"Maybe he's really in love with her though," Chris said, "Just because we don't know much about him doesn't mean his feelings aren't real. I know he comes off really brash, but that could just be the guy he plays for the cameras. I'm not like the guy I put out there."

"You're right, I just don't want her saddled with another creep, that's all," Stephanie frowned. "I'll give her a call after the match maybe."

"Why don't you give her time to shower and change afterwards, she might want to look good for her man," Chris joked, "I know there are some women who put effort into the way they look for their men."

"You married me," Stephanie shrugged, "I stopped caring what I looked like a long time ago."

"I can tell from the pajama pants and t-shirt and the distinct lack of lingerie," Chris said, tugging the hem of her shirt. "She looks good out there, though, much better than she did before. It's like she's better focused now, maybe Dolph does that for her. Maybe he's really a good guy, and we just don't know him."

"Maybe I should get to know him since I've kind of taken AJ under my wing?" Stephanie said absently, more to herself than to Chris.

"Good idea," he said, "you may end up liking him."

"I'm not going to do well when our kids start dating. I'm going to hate everyone they bring home, I just know it," Stephanie told him, laying her cheek against his soft hair.

"Hey, that's my job. I'm going to be the one sitting there scrutinizing every girl or guy that comes into my house wanting to date any of my kids. I don't care if it's Sawyer, Flynn, or Kensington, I'm going to judge equally and fairly."

Stephanie squeezed his hand, "I would expect nothing less of you."

AJ snuck into Dolph's locker room after she'd showered and changed. He wasn't in there, and she briefly wondered if she should hide, but she didn't expect anyone would actually come in here so she sat down on the couch. It was only a few minutes later that Dolph walked in. He closed the door quickly and then locked it.

"Jeanie, what are you doing in here?" he asked her, his voice harsh, but he felt bad after he saw her face fall a little bit.

"I'm sorry," AJ ducked her head, her wet hair cascading around her face. "I just wanted to see you after my match, did you watch it?"

Sometimes AJ looked for approval from everyone, and he felt bad that she had to constantly get praised or else think she failed. "How do you think you did?" he asked her. "Do you think you did well out there?"

"I felt good," AJ told him, giving him a small shrug and a half smile.

"I think you were awesome," he reaffirmed, practically seeing her self-esteem rise by the second. She launched herself into his arms and hugged him around the neck. "But you don't need me to tell you that, Jeanie. If you know you did well, you did well, got it?"

"Yeah, so where were you? I expected you here."

"I was trying to get Vickie to give me the match," he told her, not going into the particulars of how he tried to get that match. AJ wasn't the jealous type, not really, but he didn't want her to think he had anything going with Vickie. The last thing he wanted was anyone thinking that, but he knew that people were always going to get the wrong idea. Their relationship had been beneficial towards him in the way of work not pleasure.

"Did she?"

"Yeah, she's going to give it to me," AJ grinned at him, happy he'd gotten what he wanted. "I'm happy about it, but I was not happy about tagging with Big Show. The guy's a lump, he does nothing, he's slow, he has nothing you could ever call athleticism, it's almost an embarrassment being partners with him."

"But you got your match, that's all that matters," AJ told him. "You're going to win, and you're going to show Cena that you're better than him, which you are. Cena might be a friend, but you're my boyfriend, and I like you a lot, and I know you're better."

"Thanks," he said, "actually, the little ego boosts do feel good."

She laughed and leaned up to give him a kiss. "Maybe we should both keep those up."

"Vickie said she's losing faith in me. I think it's almost time for me to break free of her."

"I have all the faith in the world that you will," she told him.

Stephanie stared at her phone, "Are you sure I shouldn't call her now? I mean, do you think she just watched what went down with Dolph and Vickie? He wanted to hug her, and she was hesitant about it, like she didn't want the world prying in their business."

"After knowing about Dolph and AJ, I think that it was actually pretty obvious he was just playing her," Chris shrugged. "I mean, I can't say for sure, but it sounded like he really wants to get rid of her, but he knows she's in power. Dolph may love AJ for all we know, but he's like Hunter, there's always going to be something slightly more important, and that's the belt. He wants that more than AJ. Has to or else he wouldn't go through the trouble of hanging around Vickie."

"Does that warrant me telling her about that?"

"No, because at the end of the day, the belt is not going to keep you warm in bed, and you can't…do things with a belt," he winked at her and she made a face. "He'll figure it out, he's still kind of young."

"I suppose," Stephanie said, "I guess I won't bothering calling her."

Stephanie didn't, and she forgot about it when her father said he was going out to the ring. She mentally slapped her forehead, wondering what kind of horror her father was going to unleash now. Chris could see Stephanie's worried face so he peppered her neck with kisses, but she was too distracted. Her father ended up making Vickie make better matches, and actually, it was kind of funny to watch. Her father was making a fool out of Vickie, and Stephanie took a lot of pleasure seeing Vickie squirm like that. She actually didn't want to make Dolph's match for the briefcase, but was forced to, that kind of made Stephanie want to tell her father what was going on, but that would be betraying AJ's trust.

"And you were worried about your father tonight," Chris said, "looks to me he's very much on your side. I don't think he likes Vickie very much, maybe this is him trying to get her to quit."

"If only," Stephanie said, "but then what, he hires me to do the job?"

"Hires you, he's not in charge, I mean, the board kind of is, but you can sweet-talk your way into the job if you wanted. But if you did, could you handle being the president as well, that's a tough job being the GM, and I remember when you were and how much work you were saddled with. If it comes to that, think about it."

"What would I do, give the entire company back to my father to run?" Stephanie asked. "He'd love that…do you think that's what he's doing!"

"No," Chris said, "I really think he just dislikes Vickie…but I do think that's partly because of you."

"Me?" she asked in surprise.

"Stephanie, why do you constantly doubt your father's love for you?" Chris asked. "When push comes to shove, your father would do anything for you, _anything_, even face off against a woman he hates and make her look like an idiot in front of the entire world. He loves you _that_ much. Someday, I hope to humiliate someone in the name of one of my kids…I figure it's going to be Flynn because Sawyer is too nice to get on anyone's bad side, and Kensy is too chill to get into fights, but Flynn, oh, Flynn's gonna have some enemies."

Stephanie giggled, "Our little warrior girl, huh?"

"She's not a troublemaker per se, but that girls is going to get herself into scuffles and whatever. She's too much like us, the other two, they ended up getting the best of us, but Flynn, nope, Flynn got everything that makes us feared."

"Stubbornness and thick-headed—"

"Aggressive and controlling."

"She's amazing though," Stephanie said, "they all are."

"Yes, they are. Are we counting AJ in that now too though because you do tend to be a little bit of a mother hen towards her," Chris told her, "not that I mind, but it's weird having a 25 year old daughter."

"Don't pull a Woody Allen on me."

"Gross," Chris made a face. "Speaking of gross, when the hell did the chip on Punk's shoulder become a boulder?"

"Since Heyman's been whispering in his ear. He has it in his head that he's so not respected by anyone. Heyman just feeds into his insecurities. I talk to Punk, but he's about as stubborn as our daughter. He wants to believe nobody cares or respects him, but he's blind because people do."

"Seriously, he needs Britt to just lay it on him," Chris shook his head. "I think if he got all that sexual frustration out, he'd be in a much better place."

"Oh yeah, let's prostitute out our friend."

"I don't think she would complain too much."

"Look at you, Chris Jericho the matchmaker."

"Speaking of matches, look at this pair," Chris pointed to the television where Dolph was once again talking to Vickie.

Dolph was angry that Vickie had put him into a match where his briefcase could be taken away. He'd been through this once before, and he'd only made it out by the skin of his teeth, and the fact that Chris wanted to leave for a while. This time though, Cena didn't want to leave, and he didn't want to lose his briefcase. He wanted to be angrier, but even in his anger, he saw opportunity. Vickie had let him down, and if she let him down again and again, there would be no justification for staying with her. If that happened, he could be free of her and free to be with AJ. The thought was appealing to him so he didn't rage against her as hard as he might have had AJ not been in the picture.

Sure, with the loss of Vickie, he would lose a lot of privilege, and for a time, she might even put him in matches against his will. But when he weighed those possibilities against the weight of AJ, AJ kept winning. He wanted to be able to walk around with her. He was proud of her, proud of the person she was becoming. Sure, she was still a little eccentric, but in a lot of ways, he found that more endearing than annoying. She had her insecurities, but it made her human, flawed, beautiful. He wanted to show people the real her, not the girl who once talked to a mirror like a real person.

He was willing to take the loss of Vickie if it meant the gain of AJ.

"What do you make of that?" Chris asked.

"I think he wants to be with AJ," Stephanie said, a soft smile coming to her face. "I think he doesn't want to hide it much longer."

Chris took in Stephanie's smile and found himself wearing a wistful one, "I know that feeling well."

"You do," Stephanie kissed him slowly. "I think he's good for her, Chris, at least, I really, really hope he is."

"Let them figure that out, we did," Chris said.

"Took us long enough," Stephanie cuddled up to him. "I hope she gets that, I hope they both get that." She wanted happiness for AJ. The girl deserved it after all the crap she'd been through with Vickie trying to ruin her, humiliate her, and constantly knock her down. AJ was a lot stronger than anyone gave her credit for, even Stephanie herself.

"I hope it too."


	398. Cling, December 10, 2012

A/N: Thanks for all the feedback, everyone, much appreciated, if you want to leave a review, feel free. :)

* * *

"Do you remember being young and in love?"

Trish laughed, "We're not that old, Steph."

"Except we're married, or in Lita's case as close to married as one can get without actually having a ceremony," Stephanie glanced at her redheaded friend, who just flipped her off. "I'm not judging. If you two are happy, great."

"I think marriage to Vickie spooked the hell out of Edge. I don't know how he was after his first marriage to Alannah, but I think Vickie messed him up."

"You think?" Trish scoffed. "That was a match made in hell if I've ever seen one. The two of them were so bad for each other. It's at least good to know that Dolph isn't actually with her. It's nice to know he might have standards."

Stephanie laughed, "I still don't completely trust him, but I do think he has good intentions towards her. Or he better have good intentions for her."

"You've really grown to like her, haven't you?" Trish asked, taking a sip of her wine. Tonight was a girl's night, and all three of them had needed one. With work and kids, and Lita taking care of Edge after his surgery, they needed a night to themselves. Christian and Edge were babysitting the kids.

Stephanie shrugged, "She's not as bad as I thought she was."

Stephanie didn't want to overstate how she felt about AJ, but she did feel something of a motherly feeling towards her. She wasn't sure if it was a byproduct of her actually being a mother now, but it would make sense. Before she had any of her kids, she was very self-centered, always thinking about herself first, but it was different now. She'd always been good at reading people though, and for all of AJ's bravado, she was extremely insecure.

"She doesn't seem horrible," Lita said, "I mean, she kind of reminds me of myself when I was starting out, minus the drama though, although Lord knows I had my share of man problems back then."

"Oh yeah, you and Matt," Trish giggled, "then with Dean Malenko slobbering all over you."

"You know, looking back, Matt was just as bad for me," Lita shrugged. "Everyone thought we were this epic love though, that we were going to be together forever, I guess I believed it after a while. Edge changed me though. You know, that kind of reminds me of AJ too. Edge and I couldn't really be together out in the open because of our significant others, she's going through the same thing."

"I never really had that," Trish said, "I mean, I guess there was the thing with—"

"No, no, no, no, no, please, please, please don't mention my father," Stephanie shook her head vehemently. "Because if that's where this is going, I don't think I can handle hearing that, nor do I ever want to hear about that. Not to mention, you guys weren't secret."

"I'm sorry," Trish said, "believe me, it was not my finest moment, alright? And it's not something I'm proud of if you're worried about that."

"I wasn't, but still, I don't think the thought of you and my father will ever be okay with me," Stephanie took a long sip of her wine, letting the smooth liquid slide down her throat and add to the heady feeling she was already experiencing from her previous glasses.

"What is AJ going to do about Cena though?" Lita asked, trying to change the subject.

"I don't know, she thinks that she has to keep up this ruse until Dolph is in a place where he wouldn't need Vickie's power. I don't think that's going to last long anyways," Stephanie shrugged, "I've been talking to my dad, who has his head in with the Board of Directors, and they're not too happy with her. My dad is having fun with it though, in only the way my dad can."

"By tormenting her. And you're allowing it because you don't like her."

"What can I say?" Stephanie shrugged. "She's been a bitch to AJ, and she's been a bitch to me for far longer than that. She thinks she's this powerful woman, except she keeps forgetting she has to answer to me."

"But she goes over her head."

"Which is why I hate her," Stephanie laughed. "I can't believe Dolph could stand to be around her for so long, even with the power she wielded. I mean, what could posses someone to do that…and again, shut up, Trish, I don't need to hear about my father."

Lita laughed as Trish scowled. "It was a long time ago, and besides, I didn't really get anything out of it. Oh, wait, except for strange muck being thrown on me."

Stephanie laughed, "I'm sorry, but that was fun, and you were a disgusting ho at the time, you can't blame me for doing that to you."

"Sure I can!" Trish told her. "That was so disgusting, I was horrified and humiliated when you did that. God, why are we even friends when our past was so spotty."

"Because of our husbands, that's why," Stephanie said. "They were friends, and that's how we became friends, and it's how you two became friends again after your falling out with each other."

"Well, like you said, Stephanie, she was a skank," Lita said.

"Oh okay, I guess it's dump on Trish night, but how about we talk about how much of an insufferable bitch one woman was when she was married to someone with an abnormally large nose," Trish pointed at Stephanie as she dropped her mouth open.

"She's got a point, Steph," Lita laughed, "I mean, you were horrible with that man. You guys treated everyone like crap, that's why we were all going to walk out on you guys. You didn't treat anyone well except for your little group of friends."

"Hunter's little group of friends, none of them really liked me, not even Tori. She put up with me, but she didn't really like me, but then, I really didn't like her much. Chyna hated me too of course, not that we hung out all that much, but in the beginning, right after we got married, she hung around a little, but she always blamed me for her and Hunter breaking up."

"Does she?"

"Yeah, she still does," Stephanie said, "Chris didn't like her either when I made them team up together as the co-IC champions."

"My God, Chris _hated_ you for that," Lita said, "I hung out with him a lot then because he was friends with Matt and Jeff at the time, and my God, the things he used to say about you. I can't repeat them here because you'd probably want to divorce him."

"I think you're safe from that," Stephanie laughed. "The decade we've been together has dulled me to his barbs."

"How are you two?" Trish asked. "I know you went to go see him with the kids last weekend, how was that?"

"It was fun. It's hard though," Stephanie sighed as she thought about it. "I miss him when he's not around. You get so used to a person, and when they're not there, somehow it feels like you're missing a team member. I can handle the kids just fine without him, but it's just not as fun. Chris is the good cop to my bad cop, I need my other half."

"Trish told me you guys hit a little bit of a speed bump," Lita said, "are you over that?"

"Yeah, for the most part, I guess," Stephanie didn't really know if they were, but she had to believe they were. "His tour is only for several more days, and then he'll be home for a while and it'll be nice to see him. I just…when he's gone, it's different, it's not like out of sight, out of mind, but it feels disjointed."

"Doesn't he have a lot of other things coming up? I saw that thing for his new TV show, isn't that going to take him away again?"

"He's already filmed part of it, and when he does film, it'll be all in a row, he won't have to spend extended amounts of time out in LA, he made sure of that when he signed up for it," Stephanie smiled as she thought about that, "he _is_ considerate when he wants to be, I just wish he would take a step back and realize how his absence affects us all. He says that he knows, but then he turns right back around and does something else."

"And that's the problem," Lita said, not really a question, but as if stating a fact.

"Yeah, that's the problem," Stephanie shook her head, "but enough about me, let's talk more about gossipy stuff like who's dating who or whatever."

Trish and Lita shared a look, hoping that Stephanie and Chris really were okay. Trish knew firsthand what it was like to feel something you'd worked so hard for slip away, and she didn't want Stephanie and Chris to go through the same thing she and Christian went through. Lita didn't want her friend to be upset either. She and Chris were the hallmark for relationships in this business. They were the gold standard, and if they crumbled, what hope was there for anyone else?

"Are you sure you're okay?" Lita asked, reaching forward to grasp Stephanie's hand. "I mean, really?"

"It's nothing that we can't overcome," Stephanie reassured both her friends. And she truly believed that. She and Chris had gone through much worse in their decade together. This was a minor blip on the radar of their life, and once he was back home, things would get easier again. "I promise, Chris and I will be just fine."

Chris threw his napkin down on the plate, "I don't think I could eat another bite."

"Pig," Rich said jokingly. "I can't believe next week we're done again. This tour seems to be flying."

"I know, but it's been fun," Chris said, thinking about all the crowds he'd performed in front of and all of the people he got a chance to meet and some he was seeing again. "I love it over here. Maybe someday, when Stephanie retires, which I'm assuming is never going to happen, but I'm going to wish for it anyways, maybe we could move over here, find a nice place and live out our days."

"With Stephanie's money, you can buy yourself a chateau or something."

"God no," Chris chuckled, "something small, nice, out in the country, but then I think about Stephanie and I think about me, and we'd never be happy with that, so maybe London or something. I don't know, I just really like it over here. I think she does too."

"Yeah, you'd have to move into a city."

"I think I'm going to take her here for our anniversary next month," Chris told his friend, "we didn't even remember our anniversary this year, so next month, I want to make it memorable. I'd love to get away with her. I feel like I've been neglecting her a little bit."

"Really? You? You, who does everything and anything his wife asks?" Rich scoffed.

"Yeah, well, I've been gone a lot, and I feel bad leaving her at home with the kids," Chris explained. "I just don't feel like I've been a very good husband since I decided to take another leave from the company."

"You have a lot of things going on," Rich rationalized.

"Yeah, I do, but that doesn't mean I can't still be there for her, and I really haven't. She's told me how much she misses me, but with everything we had planned, it wasn't like I could do anything about it. Now she probably misses me even more, and I stick her with the kids so often. Not that she doesn't love them, but I haven't exactly let her go off and do anything."

"I see," Rich said.

Chris didn't want his marriage to suffer because he had outer interests. He knew that life was always going to be a challenge, that there was always going to be conflict and resolution, but nowadays, relationships seemed so much more fickle than they did when he was growing up. People nowadays gave us easier it seemed. He would never give up on what he had with Stephanie, and it was time she really, truly knew that. He could see them traipsing around Europe for a week.

"I feel bad. I love her, I want her to be happy."

"I think we all want that out of our relationships."

"With her father back in the fold, she's less hesitant to leave for a little bit, so I think a vacation would be perfect for us. It would give us time to reconnect—"

"And have tons of sex uninterrupted."

"Definitely a perk," Chris nodded, "you've known me a long time, Rich, a really long time, tell me, have you seen me happier with anyone else?"

"What kind of question is that, you _married_ Stephanie, so of course I haven't seen you happier with anyone else because you never married anyone else. And Stephanie is awesome, we both know that, you don't have to try and rub it in how awesome your wife is."

"Sorry, I can't help it," Chris said, "I wonder what she's doing right now."

Kensington and Flynn tumbled into their grandparent's house as Stephanie followed, "Mom, Dad, we're here!"

"Oh come in, come in!" Linda said, rushing towards the door and kneeling down so she could help Kensington out of her coat. "Oh, look at you two, you look so pretty today."

"Thank you, Grandma," Flynn said as she threw her jacket off and thrust it in Stephanie's direction. Stephanie took the coat hung it up on the rack next to the door.

"Thanks," Kensington said as she kissed Linda's cheek.

"You're welcome," Linda kissed her cheek back. "They look so adorable, Stephanie, oh, I miss you two when I can't see you. It's not enough that I only get to see them every now and then, they get bigger every time I see them."

"They grow too fast," Stephanie patted both her daughters on the head. She'd braided their hair this morning so it matched with one another. She knew that kind of made her one of _those_ mothers, the ones who tried to make their kids dress the same way and look the same way. At least she'd let her kids pick out their own clothes this morning.

"You should think about having another one," Linda said sneakily.

Stephanie laughed, "Oh, Mom, as if three kids wasn't enough, you think Chris and I could handle _four_?" The thought of it made her shudder. When she was growing up, yes, she's always wanted a big family, could picture at least five kids running around. But now that she had three, the thought of even just one more was enough to send her running for the hills.

"I think you two could handle any number," Stephanie said as Flynn gave her grandmother a hug.

"Grandma, where's Grandpa?" Flynn asked as she pulled away.

"Well, sweetheart, he's in his office doing some work because he and your mom have to go to Raw tonight."

"I'm going to go too, right, Mommy?" Flynn looked back at her mother expectantly.

"Well, you can, Flynnie, if you really want to, but don't you think you might want to stay with grandma?"

Stephanie knew her mother wanted the girls to spend the night with her. While her mother would _never_ admit it, she was jealous over the time Ted and Loretta got to spend with the kids. They lived close by so they were over whenever they wanted, and they were always Stephanie and Chris's go-to option when they needed a babysitter. It was obvious that the kids were close with her, and it made Linda sad that she didn't get the same kind of time with them.

"But Mommy, I wanna see wrestling. I haven't seen it in _forever_," Flynn pouted with a deep sigh as she looked up at Stephanie with Chris's eyes.

"I know, Flynnie, but Grandma misses you," Stephanie gave her own pout.

"But Mommy," Flynn whined now, "I made a get better card for Punk, and I hafta give it to him or else he might not gets better."

"I can give it to him for you," Stephanie told her, "he would love it just as much if I gave it to him because he would know it was from you, and that's what he'll really care about. He doesn't need you to give it to him."

"I want to though, he might be sad," Flynn's face scrunched up like she was going to start crying.

"You can take her, Stephanie," Linda said, "Kensy and I will have a very nice night together, won't we, Kensy?"

"Uh huh, I fun," Kensington grinned at her grandmother. Wrestling didn't hold the same appeal for Kensington as it did for Flynn. Actually, if anyone were being honest, wrestling didn't hold the same appeal for anyone that it did for Flynn. Flynn could literally sit in front of the television for hours and just watch wrestling match after wrestling match. She'd started requesting more of Punk's matches, so much so they'd had to order some old ROH tapes, and she was starting to want more of Sheamus too.

Kensington liked wrestling well enough, and she was fascinated by it, but she was still young, and she didn't really care about getting into it. Granted, Flynn was around Kensington's age when her love for wrestling appeared, but right now, Kensington seemed to love animals. She was always watching something animal related or would choose animal related books whenever they went to a bookstore. If any one of their kids didn't go into the business, it was going to be Kensington.

"Are you sure, Mom?" Stephanie asked sympathetically.

"Yes, I'm sure, Christmas is around the corner anyways, so I'll see you guys more," Linda put on the stiff upper lip she was known for. "Come on now, I have lunch all ready."

Flynn was pleased as punch as she skipped into the show later, her hand clasped tightly with Stephanie's. She hadn't been to wrestling last week, and she missed it, but it was okay because instead of going to the show, she got to see her daddy, and if she had to choose between her daddy or wrestling, she was going to choose her daddy (actually, she would choose her daddy to _be_ wrestling). But this week, her daddy was still far away, and she wanted to see wrestling.

"Mommy, we gotsa find Punk so I can give him his card," Flynn demanded of her mother.

"You made Punk a card?" Vince asked his granddaughter. He had arrived with the two of them in a limo he'd requested.

"Uh huh, he got hurt and he had to be…Mommy, what's that word?"

"He had to have surgery," Stephanie supplied for her.

"Yeah, he had to have that, and he's my friend, and I want to make him feel better."

"He's your friend still?"

"Grandpa, you don't just say no to being a friend unless the person is mean," Flynn shook her head at her grandfather. How could he think she wouldn't be friends with Punk? Her mommy said that sometimes Punk was mean to other people, but he wasn't mean to her so there was really no reason she couldn't be his friend if she wanted to be.

"I see," Vince said, but he gave Stephanie a look that meant she should really police who her child was friends with. Stephanie gave a hearty glare back to him. She wasn't about to fall into her father's trap over something so trivial.

She was very much like her father when it came to grudges. She could hold them, oh yes, she could, but she couldn't let that interfere with her children's happiness. She liked Punk when he wasn't around Heyman, and Flynn liked him all the time. Just because her father didn't like some of the things Punk said didn't mean she had to fall into his opinion. She'd spent her early 20's doing just that, and all it made her do was act like a rebellious teenager and stay married to the first man who had the gumption to drug her and marry her.

"She's allowed to have friends," Stephanie said curtly. "Come on, Flynnie, we'll go find him right now so you can give him your card."

"Stephanie?" Vince said.

"Dad, you wanted to be on the show tonight, right?" Stephanie asked and Vince nodded, "well, then, maybe you should go think about what you're going to say and how you're going to torment Vickie tonight, and let me take care of my daughter."

Vince was properly chastised after that, and he nodded his head. His daughter was right. Flynn was not his child, and he couldn't dictate how she was raised. That was his daughter's job now. Sometimes, he just still felt like she was a little girl who needed to be told what to do. But she wasn't. She was running the entire company, making sure everything ran smoothly, and doing such a good job of it that the transition had nearly been seamless. She was also a mother who could take care of her own children.

"Yes, I will think about what I wanted to do. And you will allow me to make matches?"

"Yes, Dad, you can make matches," Stephanie said, "you don't even have to run them by me. I'm just here to make sure the show runs as smoothly as possible, not to book anything. I'll be sitting at the production table, that's it."

Stephanie walked with Flynn away from her father as they searched for Punk's locker room. When they finally spotted it, Flynn ran ahead of her mother, her card flying behind her as Stephanie walked quickly after her, "Mommy, hurry up!"

Stephanie saw Flynn going for the door and she tried to reach her, "Flynn, don't go in without knocking!" but Flynn was already throwing the door open.

"Punk, I'm so…sorry," Stephanie said as she saw Britt quickly pull her hand away from Punk's hand.

"Punk, I brought you something!" Flynn exclaimed, oblivious to what she might have walked in on. "Hi, Britt, you look pretty tonight."

"Thanks," Britt said, feeling uncomfortable at Stephanie's smirk. She wanted to bury herself into the couch, but she couldn't. Stephanie hadn't really walked into anything, but with the way Stephanie was looking at her, she felt like she'd been caught having sex.

"What did you bring me?" Punk asked, totally ignoring Stephanie's face. Giving into her would only mean humiliation on his part. Besides, it wasn't like there was anything _really_ going on between him and Britt.

"A get better card because of your ouchie," Flynn said, staring at his propped up leg for a moment. "Does it hurt bad?"

"It's pretty sore, yeah," Punk downplayed how he felt. Flynn gave him the card and he looked at it reverently. He'd never had anyone make him a card like this, well, not anyone he knew anyways. He did get fan mail, but this was personal on another level.

"It's you," Flynn leaned over the couch and pointed at the picture of him she'd drawn crudely. "I drew you and you're going to go wrestle, then I put my name 'cause I can write it."

"Wow, I'm going to treasure this always, thank you, Flynnie," Punk leaned over and hugged her. "This is the best get better card I've ever received."

"You're welcome!" Flynn said, returning the hug vigorously.

"How are you doing though?" Stephanie asked with concern in her voice.

"I'm actually doing okay," Punk shrugged, "hey, at least I can go out there and show people that this isn't fake. Do you know how many people actually thought I was faking so I could get out of a match with Ryback? This is the kind of disrespect I'm shown on a daily basis. I mean, come on, who would do something like that? I work harder than anyone around here, and still, the fans think I'm faking for what? Sympathy? Yeah, right."

"Hey, calm down," Britt told him. "You're not supposed to get worked up."

"Good luck with that later," Punk scoffed. "Britt got me some time on the show so I can show everyone just how _fake_ this is."

"We'll let you rest until then," Stephanie said, "come on, Flynnie, we should go get the table ready so we can watch the show. Maybe we can find AJ too and say hello. Or Sheamus?"

"Okay, but you hafta feel better, Punk, because you're a wrestler, and you can't wrestle if you don't feel better," Flynn told him. "You should have your mommy make you soup. Mommy makes me soup when I'm sick, but my Gamma makes it. Mommy just puts it in the mikawave."

"Thanks for the tip, Flynnie, and thanks again for the card, I think you're the only person who believes I'm really not okay."

"I have eyes," Flynn shrugged and skipped over to her mother, grabbing her hand. "Mommy, do you think that anyone else needs a get better card?"

"No, but you can make Daddy a welcome home card if you want," Stephanie said, "I'll see you later, guys, have fun."

Stephanie had the audacity to wink at them both before leaving. Punk just groaned and laughed, throwing his head back against the couch. Only Stephanie could get away with something like that. Anyone else, and he would have felt insulted somehow. Britt, on the other hand, felt like she needed to clear things up. She gave Punk a hasty goodbye and exited before he could say another word. Stephanie and Flynn hadn't gotten far as they were talking and walking slowly down the hallway.

"Stephanie, wait up!" Britt called out, jogging to catch up with them. They both stopped to wait for her, and she nearly skidded to a stop next to them. "That wasn't what you thought."

"What do I think? Tell me that," Stephanie told her, and Britt cursed under her breath. Stephanie was going to make this difficult, she could just feel it.

"You think that Punk and I are together, but we're not. I'm just taking care of him because of his knee. He doesn't really have anyone. His sisters and his parents have lives, and—"

"And you don't have one?"

"I work for the company, I have the same off days he does, so it just made sense, that's it."

"You were holding his hand."

"Friends do that," Britt tried to defend herself. "I'm just helping him out now, being a good friend, someone he can count on, someone—"

"Who's about to jump in his bed?" Stephanie suggested.

Britt's eyes widened, "No!"

"Why are you trying so hard to fight it, that's what I want to know?" Stephanie asked. "At some point, don't you think you're just going to give in? I mean, how long have you two been going through this song and dance."

"Hunter's still not okay with anything," Britt said, "It's not that he's dictating my decisions, but…"

"Hunter will be fine," Stephanie insisted. "He's a grown man. He's made his mistakes, he's acknowledged them. He's done his time, stop punishing yourself for something he did. He's not going to stop you…unless you want him to stop you."

"You don't just stop loving someone, even if it has been months and months."

"Oh, I see," Stephanie said, "you don't feel like it's right, right now."

"I guess, just, please don't go around thinking I'm with Phil, we're not," Britt said.

"Maybe you should be though, just a suggestion," Stephanie said, "you two, you're already there, right on the cusp, don't be afraid to let yourself fall over the edge."

"We'll see," Britt said, "I better go and check in on Vickie, who knows what she's gotten herself into now."

Stephanie watched Britt go, then she and Flynn started towards Stephanie's office so she could actually put her things down, her bag still slung over her shoulder. Flynn was walking next to her, smiling and saying hello to everyone that passed since she was so happy to be here. When they turned a corner, Stephanie nearly bumped into a frantic AJ.

"Stephanie, do you think I can talk to you, I've been looking all over for you, and I've wanted to find you, but you were nowhere to be found, do you think I can?"

"Of course you can," Stephanie said, feeling that motherly instinct taking over again.

"Are you okay, AJ?" Flynn asked. "Do you need a get better card? I'm _really_ good at them."

"Thanks," AJ smiled at her, "but I think I'll be okay."

"Come on, let's go inside my office," Stephanie ushered both the girls into the room and closed the door behind her. "What's going on?"

"I think Dolph is jealous of John," AJ said as she helped Flynn take her backpack off. Flynn unzipped it, grabbing her things and laying them out on the table. She immediately went for a couple of her action figures and started making them fight against each other, getting lost in her own wrestling company.

"Really, why?"

"Well, he pretty much said it," AJ told her, "said that he didn't like me hanging around him, and I don't know what to do. Is Chris the jealous type? Did he ever get jealous over anyone? What do I do? I've never had a guy be jealous over me before."

"Chris has never been the jealous type, I mean, when you look like that, I think you're incapable of it," Stephanie mused about her cocky husband. "But why don't you just try to explain that it means nothing."

"I thought that maybe I can get John to back off, but like make it seem like I'm not trying to make him back off. I don't want Dolph thinking that I'm doing it because he said so. I mean, that makes sense, right. I just don't want him to think that he has so much control over me, is that weird?"

"No, not really," Stephanie said, "I get that you don't want to tell him because you think…well, let's just think of something."

Actually, she didn't get it. She would have just broken whatever was going on with Cena, but she didn't know Dolph so she couldn't say how it was with him. He did seem like he might be the jealous type though. That might be because he hadn't yet reached the top of this company, and that always left festering jealousy around here. She'd seen it firsthand, so maybe it extended to Dolph's personal life, especially since a lot of the guys thought Cena always got everything handed to him on a silver platter.

"I don't know what to do!" AJ practically wailed. "I don't want to do the wrong thing. Things are so good between us. I don't want John get in the way of this."

"Here, why don't you just act clingy to John, like you don't want to go anywhere without him, or you want to tell him everything. He'll probably think you're so clingy that he won't want anything to do with you, then he'll dump you or something, I'm not really sure what you guys are pretending to be."

"That's perfect!" AJ said. "Stephanie, you are the most genius person I've ever met in my entire life. You are just perfection. If I could marry you, I probably would. Chris is like the luckiest person in the entire universe!"

Stephanie laughed as AJ bounced up from her seat and threw her arms around Stephanie. Stephanie gave her and awkward hug back, patting her shoulder. "It's not really a big deal, AJ. I just want Dolph to treat you right."

"Dolph wants to get away from Vickie too, he told me that he's going to try and find a way, hopefully soon," AJ smiled as she pulled away from Stephanie, even though she would have loved to extend the hug. Stephanie was her idol, and just being in her presence felt like an honor she wasn't worthy of having.

"That's great, to be honest, I don't think Vickie is going to last very long in charge. My dad doesn't like her, and he has a lot of influence over the board, much more than I have. I would say her time is running short."

If AJ's smile got any wider, it would break her face, "Everything feels like it's coming together for me. I don't even know how to feel anymore."

"Happy, AJ, that feeling you want is called happy. Now go be clingy."

AJ was nothing if not persistent and dogged. When Stephanie told her to play clingy, she could absolutely do that. But even better than the thought of getting John off her back was the fact that Vince had given her a match against Vickie. It was like the stars were aligning just for her. Since she'd had to step down from her GM position, the sole thing she'd wanted was to get a chance for retribution against Vickie. She'd had to wait months for it, but that moment finally arrived. She was ecstatic.

"Dolph, did you see that?" AJ said as he was the one she immediately went to after texting him to meet her in a secluded area of the arena. "I get to go after Vickie."

"I know, I saw," he said, kissing her forehead. "After all the things you've told me you want to do to her, I'm expecting you to be a little brutal later, right?"

"Only a little," she held up her thumb and forefinger. "What about you? Are you going to be brutal later?"

"As if there was a doubt," Dolph scoffed at the thought. He thought himself better than anyone around here, so of course he would show brutality when he could. "I have to make sure everyone knows that they have no shot at my briefcase."

"Nobody's going to take it from you," AJ assured him, nodding her head. "Nobody can match you in the ring, they have no shot, and you're going to get the title."

Dolph kissed her for her confidence in him, "And you are going to show them who the real boss is around here."

"I'm going to make you proud of me," AJ told him.

"Don't worry, babe, you already are."

Dolph's words spurned her. She had to act clingy like Stephanie said, overtly so, to the point where it was embarrassing for John. She immediately went to seek him, to tell him about her match, to be excited for him, but not as excited as she was around Dolph. She saw Aksana and Kaitlyn first, but she wasn't there to see them, although she acted like it was nice to see them. When it was known to her that John was in the men's locker room, she showed no regard for his location, walking right in, knowing it would put John in an awkward spot.

She was right in that as he nearly pushed her out forcibly from the room. It was perfect. He was trying to act angry with her, but John didn't have that in him, so he just let it go. It left her the opening to bother him later as well. John never really put his foot down. He was always trying to please someone and she knew she was taking advantage of that, but it was for a good cause. John needed to leave her alone, and this was the way to do so. She needed him to be so fed up with her that he never wanted to see her again.

Her excitement reached fever pitch when her match with Vickie was coming up. It plummeted with Maddox though, and then devolved into irrational anger when she lost. She had wanted revenge for all the times Vickie belittled her, and all she got for it was a loss. This woman who thought she had claim to _AJ's_ boyfriend was now given even more to gloat about. AJ could only see red. Her old tendencies resurfaced, and she found herself lashing out at everything and everyone. Her tirade lasted all the way backstage until John found her. But she didn't want John! She wanted Dolph! Still, John comforted her until she had her fill of him.

"I have to go," she mumbled, leaving him in her dust. She found herself back at the gorilla, hoping to at least catch a glimpse of Dolph. He had mentioned earlier that he was going to do commentary during John's match, and while she knew it was still a ways away, she hoped he might be there.

Stephanie came up to her instead, "AJ, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," AJ said, but she was sad, and it was palpable. Stephanie hugged her and AJ felt safe somehow. Stephanie cared, she had someone who cared and she wrapped her arms around here. "Why are you so nice to me, Stephanie?" AJ felt compelled to ask.

Stephanie pulled away and gave her a smile, "Because you're someone's daughter, and you've had a really rough year, and someone needed to take care of you."

"And you thought it should be you?"

"I may have heard you look up to me."

"You have no idea," AJ said, "I pretty much want to be you."

Stephanie laughed, "Well, why don't you stick to being AJ, I don't think being me is exactly what you want. Not many people could handle being me, it's a lot of hard work and I don't look this good all the time."

"Oh, but I bet you do," AJ said. "Did you see me being clingy?"

"You're doing a great job."

"I'm going to do it some more too, I'm going to make him hate me. Hey, is this kind of how you felt about Chris when you hated him?" AJ would love any comparison to Stephanie. She loved them because it meant she was doing something right. Stephanie was her idol and any way she could be like her idol was a-okay with her. "Like you wanted him to get away from you?"

"Sort of, but it was different, I never pretended to cling to him."

"Oh, that's right, well, I hope that it's like something you did because you're just too awesome for words," AJ said.

"Thanks, but really, AJ, just be your own person, and you'll be fine."

"I'm trying," AJ felt so much better now. "I'm going to go find him, wish me luck!"

"Good luck," Stephanie smiled at her, watching her walk away. AJ sometimes acted like such a little girl, all emotions and no sense, but she had an endearing personality. Stephanie looked over to her actual daughter, sometimes Flynn had more sense than anyone around here, and Sawyer _did_ have more sense than anyone around here. AJ would find her way someday, and Dolph seemed like a good guy to stand by her side while it happened. She'd have to talk to him though, thoroughly.

She didn't take being someone's hero very lightly.


	399. It's Over, December 17, 2012

A/N: As you can probably tell from the story, I started shipping Dolph/AJ a few weeks ago, so tonight's Raw was amazing! Oh my God, I marked out like an idiot during the Dolph/AJ segment, and then later on! I'm just so happy, and it all works so well for this story. I decided to end it where I did because it had the most impact, but the next chapter will include some other things from tonight's show.

And on an updating note, I will not be updating at the usual time the next two weeks considering it'll be Christmas and New Year's. I will do all my updates on December 27th (as in Thursday night/Friday morning), and there will be no updates New Year's week (unless I really, really feel like it). Also, if you are a Dolph/AJ shipper like I am, I've been thinking about writing a story about them, so if I decide that, keep on the lookout for it. Thanks, enjoy! :)

* * *

"Mommy, do you think Daddy will like the signs we made him?"

"I think he's going to love them," Stephanie kissed Sawyer's cheek. "He told me right before he left that he missed you guys more than anything."

"He did?" Flynn asked, turning her head away from Kensington to look at her mother.

"Of course he did."

"Is that why we're in Connecticut?" Sawyer asked.

"Well, yes, sort of, your dad has one more concert and it's close to Grandma and Grandpa so we decided to come up here so we could be with Daddy. Am I right in thinking you guys wanted to see Daddy a day earlier than you would have?"

"I want to see him _now_!" Flynn exclaimed.

"Me too!" Kensington jumped up and down in place. She'd missed her daddy so much, and she wanted to see him as well.

"Well, we've still got a little while," Stephanie told them. Chris's plane was supposed to land in a few minutes, but then he'd have to get through customs before coming down to baggage claim where they were waiting. Stephanie brought books with her to distract the kids while they waited, but they were children and their attention spans left a lot to be desired.

"Why?" Kensington asked.

"Because I can't control when the plane lands, Kensy," Stephanie pouted. "But if the time is right, Daddy should be landing very soon, and after that, he should be here fairly shortly if everything goes according to plan."

"Do you think he gots presents?" Flynn asked. "Cause it's almost Christmas, Mommy, did you know that?"

"I think I did, I've been talking with Santa Claus after you guys go to bed," Stephanie told her and she watched as Flynn's eyes widened.

"You have?" Flynn asked in awe.

"Yup, I have," Stephanie nodded seriously, "I have to keep him in the know about how you guys have been all year."

"I've been good," Sawyer said with a grin, and it was true. Sawyer was probably going to end up being some kind of diplomat with how charming, kind, and persuasive he could be. He had a kind streak a mile long.

"I know you have."

"I've been good too," Flynn exalted herself.

"Oh, I don't know about that," Stephanie said, shaking her head, which only made Flynn gasp in surprise. "I mean, there are times where you don't do what Daddy or I say and then you get timeouts."

"Mommy," Flynn sighed loudly, "That doesn't mean I'm bad or I shouldn't get presents. I should get them."

"We'll see," Stephanie said, "and what about you, Miss Kensington, do you think you've been good this year?"

"I been good," Kensington nodded ardently, smiling widely at her mommy before leaning forward and giving her a kiss on the nose. "See!"

"Oh, now I get kisses so that I can tell Santa how good my kids are, well, you know what, they're working," Stephanie winked at her daughter, who giggled and burrowed down deeper into her coat, leaning back into the chair and almost sliding off before she adjusted herself.

"Mommy, are we going to stay in Connecticut for a long time?" Flynn asked.

"Not really, we're just going to stay until Sunday then we're going to Philadelphia for Raw since you're on Christmas break, you all can come to Raw with me and Daddy," Stephanie explained. All three of their faces lit up. They loved going to the show, but they loved going to the show altogether more. "Now you better get those signs ready because Daddy is going to be landing soon."

Stephanie kept them distracted for about twenty more minutes when Chris texted her saying he was coming down to baggage claim. She'd rented a large van since he would have the band with them and they'd need all the space they could get. Flynn and Kensington were still in booster seats so a van was the only way to go to have enough room. They'd be stopping at Stephanie's house before heading to Hartford so everyone could drop off their things, but she didn't have any car that would accommodate all of them at once. The kids and Stephanie were going to the show tonight so they needed the room.

"Okay, you guys, come on," Stephanie led them over to the baggage claim that stated it was from Chris's flight and situated them so they could all hold their signs up. That had been their airplane project earlier this morning when they flew from Florida to New York this morning. They all had little small signs welcoming back Chris from his tour. Sawyer, ever the thoughtful one, also made one for the rest of the guys since they didn't get the chance to really go home until after tonight. It was only a happy coincidence that they were doing a concert in Stephanie's home state.

"There he is, Mommy!" Flynn jumped up and down as she spotted the familiar face through a small crowd of people. "Daddy! Daddy!"

Chris looked up as he heard his little girl calling for him. He spotted the four smiling faces through the crowd and quickly went after them, pulling his carryon behind him. He nearly slid to the ground when he reached them, but knelt down just in time to receive all their hugs. Three sets of small arms all jockeyed for position, with little Kensington getting the least amount because she was tiny compared to her brother and sister.

"Mommy," she whined as she was nearly pushed out of the way.

Stephanie laughed and lifted her up, hugging her as Kensington buried her face into Stephanie's shirt. "It's okay, let Flynnie and Sawyer hug Daddy first and then he's going to have a special hug for you."

"I made you this, Daddy," Flynn held her picture up to Chris's face. "We all did."

"I made one for you guys too," Sawyer said to the rest of Fozzy, who had just now caught up with them.

"Thanks, mini-Chris," Billy said, giving Sawyer a thumbs up.

"Hey guys, I have the van parked in the garage so you can just grab your things."

"Are you sure you can put us up for the night, Steph?" Rich asked. "We really don't want to put you out."

"Nonsense," Stephanie shook her head, "my mother's housekeeper came over to the house yesterday and cleaned it up. There'll be five spare rooms because the kids are going to stay over at my parent's house tonight. There's plenty of room. Besides, after being on tour for so long, I think you guys all need a real bed and a real shower."

"That'd be nice," Rich nodded. "I can't wait to get to my own bed."

"Just one more gig," Chris stood up, "then we are done for the rest of the year."

"Thank God," Paul said, "I'm ready to just relax for a while."

"Me too," Chris said, grabbing Kensington from Stephanie. "Hey there, Kensy-bug, what, you thought I could forget about my favorite bug in the entire universe? Give me a bug smile?"

Kensington's face lit up, "Hi, Daddy, I miss you!"

"I missed you too!" he told her, kissing both her cheeks as she squealed with joy. "You want to help me grab my bags?"

"Uh huh," Kensington nodded as they all walked over to the baggage claim while Stephanie got some carts to put their stuff on. "I cawwy fings."

"You think you can carry my stuff?" Chris wondered with wide eyes.

"Yeah, I big muscles," she told him, "like you!"

Chris pretended to squeeze her arm, "Wow, have you been lifting while I've been gone?"

"Yeah," Kensington nodded before laying her head on Chris's shoulder.

"Daddy, I want you to carry me too!" Flynn tugged on the hem of his t-shirt. "I'm your baby too!"

"You are, and I promise when we get home, I will carry you too, okay?" Chris tried to compromise because he needed one hand clear so he could grab his things. "I promise that you can be carried all you want."

"Fine," Flynn said, but she was still pouting jealously. Chris leaned down and kissed her head before quickly grabbing one of his bags. Stephanie came over with a couple cars and he hefted the bag up and onto the cart.

"Hey, so what exactly are our plans for this weekend?" he asked her. "I know we have the concert tonight, but what about until TLC on Sunday?"

"Tomorrow night, we're actually going out to dinner," Stephanie said.

"Oh yeah, with who?" Chris asked. "Your brother and Rissa?"

"No, we'll be seeing them so much over the holidays, I'm spacing it out," Stephanie told him.

"Okay, then who?"

"AJ and Dolph."

The next evening, Chris was sitting next to Stephanie, just staring at her. His concert last night had been a blast, a fitting ending to the long tour, but he was also glad it was over. What he wasn't glad about, however, was that Stephanie was dragging him to dinner with two people he didn't really want to talk with at the moment. He'd never gotten along with Dolph, especially not near the end of his tenure. In fact, the both of them hated each other, so seeing him now, in a normal setting, was not a pleasant thought.

"Would you just drink your GG and calm the hell down," Stephanie told him, pushing his drink towards him.

"You're trying to get me drunk?"

"No, I'm trying to loosen you up," Stephanie told him. "You've been antsy all evening. It's like you'd rather be at another concert than sitting here with me."

"Well, I'd like to be sitting here with you and not waiting for another couple. I hope you don't think that they are going to be our go-to couple at any point in our entire relationship. We already have two of those, Edge and Lita, and Christian and Trish. We don't need another, we're covered."

"I didn't ask them, she wanted to go out to dinner because she knew that we would be in town and you'd be here, well, she suggested it, and I thought it might be a chance for me to see the two of them and make sure he's not a huge douchebag to her or anything."

"And if he is, what are you going to do, threaten him?" Chris wondered.

"I'm the president of the company, there are so many things I can do to him. If I wanted, really, really wanted to do something to him, I could make sure he didn't win his match tomorrow," Stephanie shrugged one shoulder. "Just please try to be civil. I'm not asking for nice, but civil would be good."

"I'll be civil, I just don't want to be here. I mean, I just got back from a very long tour, one where I didn't get to see you for most of it, I thought I'd get some time to spend with my family, not with a girl who, face it, is obsessed with you."

"You were obsessed with me once upon a time."

"I was obsessed with making your life a living hell."

"Then you married me."

"So you're going to marry AJ? She's a little young for you, don't you think?"

"You're a little old for me, don't you think?" Stephanie patted his cheek and he scowled. "I'm just lucky you get better with age, not worse."

"Here comes your kid wonder," Chris said, nodding at something over Stephanie's shoulder. Stephanie turned her body to see AJ coming, but Dolph wasn't with her. AJ was missing a little bit of her usual spunk, walking over like a regular person.

"Hey, AJ, where's Dolph?" Stephanie asked.

"Vickie asked him to go out with her tonight, and he figured he couldn't come because she was the one in charge and with his match, he thought it best he just go out with her. It's alright though, I really don't mind," AJ shrugged.

"That's a lie and you know it," Stephanie said. "It's obvious that it's bothering you."

"I know, but we really can't do anything about it right now. I mean, with his big match coming up, and time is really winding down with his briefcase, he really can't afford to get on Vickie's bad side."

"Even so, you deserve better than to be ditched," Stephanie told her.

"It's fine," AJ waved it off. "I knew stuff like this was going to happen going into this relationship. I mean, he made it perfectly clear that he needed to be on Vickie's good side if he ever really wanted to get anywhere."

"That's crap," Chris said, shaking his head.

"Excuse me?" AJ turned to Chris. "How is that crap?"

AJ knew that when she started dating Dolph there were going to be rules. She knew that he had a place with Vickie. He'd said it was nothing like a real relationship, but that he had to keep himself on Vickie's good side. AJ knew that it would be difficult, but she liked Dolph so much, she felt so normal and safe with him, she was willing to do a lot to keep their relationship going. If he needed her to be something, she wanted to be it. She knew this might not seem healthy, but she looked at it as working for their relationship. Dolph had to actually be around Vickie, and AJ found that far worse than anything she was doing.

"Because he should think he's better than that, above that," Chris sat up a little. This was something he was passionate about. He couldn't care less about Dolph and AJ's budding romance. The only romance he cared about was his own with his wife. He did have two cents about how guys worked in the business though.

"Well, yes, but it doesn't hurt, right? To be on the side of management?" AJ asked. "I mean, you married Stephanie."

"Not because I wanted anything from her," Chris scoffed, "I don't know what you've heard, AJ, but marrying Stephanie had nothing to do with anything I wanted out of the business. I've never asked Stephanie for anything regarding my career."

"I know," AJ was a little timid now. Chris actually seemed angry at that. She'd heard rumors of course, that Chris was using Stephanie, but she never thought Stephanie would be the kind of woman who would let herself be used so it confused her more than anything. She didn't know their story, so she didn't want to necessarily judge.

"If Dolph wants to make to the top, he needs to do it on his own. And he can. I may not like the guy—"

"You don't like him?" AJ looked struck by the words.

"Sorry, but no, we have bad blood between us, especially with how things ended up."

"But…but that's not how he said it went down."

"It didn't, but well, just, there's no love lost there," Chris said, "but I'm not going to hate on him in front of you, but he's good enough to make it on his own without Vickie."

"It sounds like he's kind of using her as a crutch," Stephanie added. "Like he doesn't think he can do it without her, but he really can."

"Do you think I should do something about it?"

"I think you should go talk to him about it, I think you should tell him that you think he can be better than he is," Stephanie said, "it's always nice to have someone who supports your decisions. I know he's been there for you, you've said as much, but maybe this time, you can be there for him."

"I think I should," AJ nodded. "Thank you both, I definitely think I'm going to talk to him. I can do it tonight, after dinner, when he comes back to the hotel, that'll be perfect, and he'll be able to do something about it."

"Good," Stephanie said. "Now, maybe we can enjoy dinner."

"I'm up for it," Chris said, glad that he at least didn't have to sit across from Dolph Ziggler for an entire evening.

When they finally went their separate ways after dinner, Chris turned to Stephanie, "Do you really think she's going to talk to him?"

"If I told her to, yes, I mean, she's, as you said, obsessed with me, right?"

"I did say that, but you were right about one other thing," Chris wrapped his arms around Stephanie's waist, walking with her towards their car at a slow meander. The night was cool, but they were bundled up and with Chris's arms around her, she felt more than warm enough.

"Just one thing?" Stephanie teased.

"Yeah, just the one," he said after a moment's pause.

"Well are you going to tell me what that one thing was or were you going to keep me in the dark about it?" she asked, turning her head to kiss the corner of his mouth.

"I'm completely obsessed with you," Chris told her, kissing her jaw and trailing his lips up to her ear. "Completely and utterly obsessed with every single part of you."

"Well, it could be worse," Stephanie turned in his arms and pressed her hands to his face.

"Your hands are freezing," Chris said, grabbing her wrists so he could wrap his hands around hers, trying to give her some respite from the cold. He rubbed her hands between his as they stood there in the parking lot of a restaurant halfway between New York where AJ was staying and Greenwich where they were staying. The night sky was dotted with stars, and the streetlights cast weird shadows over their faces. "And how could it be worse?"

"You could be obsessed with me and not with me," she joked as she pulled away and laughed at him. "That would be such a sad existence."

"Hey, where are you going?" he pulled her around the waist as she laughed. "Hey, can I say something to you before we go back to our real lives where our children are going to need water at 3 in the morning or Kensington is going to want to sleep with us or Sawyer is going to outclass us in every way?"

"You can always say anything," she reminded him, "except you want to divorce me, then I will refuse to hear it."

"I know things have been…rough for us the past couple months—"

"Rough is the word you're going for?" she asked.

"Too harsh or not harsh enough?" he asked back.

"Too harsh," she answered immediately.

"They've been bumpy then, kind of lumpy like mashed potatoes," he said instead, "I know it's not been great, I know that you've had too much put on you by me, and I know I've been MIA a bit." She nodded her head as he gave his little speech. "But I love you, and I would never want to do anything to hurt you. I want to make 2013 better for us."

"You do?"

"I do."

"We're pretty great already," Stephanie reminded him, "And 2012, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, and 2 were also pretty darn good. Some of those were actually pretty damn good, particularly 5, 6, 8, and 10."

"Am I suddenly in a math problem?" he pursed his lips. "All I'm saying is 2013 is our year, baby, it's going to be great. We'll be celebrating a lot of things."

"Like the things we celebrate every year?"

"Would you just go with me on this?" he squeezed her sides playfully. She squealed and tried to run away again.

"Okay, okay, 2013 is the year of Jericho and Stephanie, you hear that world!" Stephanie yelled out into the night sky. "It's our year!"

"You're insane, let's go home," Chris told her, helping her to the car. She wasn't drunk, but he was a gentleman.

"I think I'll love you in 2013, you okay with that?" Stephanie asked.

Chris nodded, "I'm more than okay with that."

AJ tapped her foot on the carpet as she sat on the edge of her bed. Dolph wasn't back yet, but when he came back, she was going to have a talk with him just like Stephanie and Chris suggested. They were right, Dolph was better than needing Vickie. Vickie hadn't actually helped him in a long time. She was just an albatross around his neck. Dolph won the briefcase of his own volition. He didn't need someone like Vickie to get him matches; he was making them for himself.

"Hey, you're still up," Dolph said, and AJ hadn't even realized he'd walked in. He was throwing off his shirt and rooting through his suitcase looking for his pajama pants she presumed. "You okay?" he asked after she hadn't answered him. "Did your dinner go alright?"

"You don't need Vickie," AJ blurted out and Dolph stopped what he was doing to look at her.

"What are you talking about?" Dolph asked.

"I don't like you with her, going off with her whenever she wants you to," AJ twisted her mouth up. "She has so much control over you, but you don't _need_ her. You are doing so well on your own, and you don't need Vickie to tell you what to do. She doesn't even do anything for you."

"Jeanie…" Dolph sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "She's in charge, don't you get that?"

"Yeah, I get that," AJ said, "but if Mr. McMahon is right, the board isn't exactly her biggest fan, right? And if that's the case, she can't be in power for too much longer, then you're free. I mean, I guess you'd be free because if she wasn't in charge, you wouldn't stay with her, right?"

"Of course not. It's just, right now she _is_ in charge, and I can't change that."

"But like I said, you're better than that. She didn't win you that briefcase," AJ gestured towards the briefcase sitting on the table in the corner. "_You_ won that all by yourself. You are going to be champion soon, and when you do that, it's not going to be because _she_ won it for you, it's going to be because you won it. You don't need her."

"But if I'm against her, AJ, then she'll start to treat me like shit."

"You mean she's going to start treating you like she treats me," AJ corrected him, reading between the lines.

Dolph sighed again and came up to kneel between her legs. He placed his hands on her knees, looking up at her. "That's not what I meant. You know I don't like the way she treats you. I don't like the way a lot of people treat you. But if she finds out about us, she's going to make our lives a living hell."

"I don't care," AJ said, "I'll have you, that's all I care about."

"Well, I care about you, and I don't want that for you."

"Or you don't want it for you?"

"If I'm as capable as you say I am, why would I care about me?" he asked her with a smile. "Jeanie, I promise, things are going to work themselves out. I just need Vickie to think I'm on her side, the second she's gone."

"I hate that you're practically at her bidding."

"I hate it too, but you understand why, don't you?"

"No, not really," AJ admitted, "but fine, whatever."

"I really like you," Dolph kissed her gently. "Not her, I promise you, it's not her."

AJ had a radical idea. It was so radical, she didn't want to tell anyone about it, least of all Dolph. She thought about telling Stephanie, but even that was risky. She knew what she wanted to do, and in order to do it effectively, she would have to tell no one. If Dolph got wind of it, he would be so angry with her, but she didn't care. He was stubborn, too stubborn if you asked her. The night before, she'd started to believe that Dolph wasn't as assured about himself as he came across.

Oh, she knew that Dolph wasn't the cocky bastard he wanted the world to think, but there was still some of that arrogance when he wasn't in the ring. Still, maybe that arrogance was also just hiding the fact that he didn't really think he could be a big name, someone who carried shows. That depressed her a little bit, but it actually made sense. Dolph had had a reign as the champion, but it was so short, not even twenty minutes, and maybe he didn't believe in himself.

She wanted him to believe that he could do it on his own. She _knew_ he could do it on his own, and so many other people did too. That's probably why they were all trying to hold him down. They all knew what kind of potential he had, and they were jealous of it. Dolph was one of the best wrestlers around, and he should be recognized as such. She was going to make sure of it. That was her plan, to make sure that he came out on top tonight. That's all she wanted for him, to keep his chance.

To do that, she had to keep playing her part. She grabbed one of Cena's shirts from merchandise and then did a little creative fashioning with it. She thought she looked good, and the wristbands only completed the look. If she showed herself to be devoted to John, nobody would get suspicious when she went out there, and she had every intention of being out there with him. She knew it was wrong to do this to John, but John wasn't her boyfriend and Dolph was. John had been nice to her, but she could tell his niceness was put-on. He didn't really care about her, not at all. He was just a nice guy who constantly tried to make everyone happy. It was his curse, and she did feel sorry for him, but not sorry enough to tell him of her plans.

The match went according to plan, it was brutal and merciless. It was also not without Vickie, the scourge of AJ's life at the moment. When she saw Vickie about to raise the chair to Cena, she saw her opening. She knew what the fans would think when this night was over, but there were so many Cena haters, she figured she'd at least have some people on her side. She distracted Vickie, getting the attention away from Cena. Vickie swung the chair, but missed miserably, and AJ was able to take advantage.

AJ decided to make it just that much more dishonorable by doing Cena's moves instead of her own. The crowd was eating it up, and even Cena had an amused smile on his face. It was probably the last amused smile he'd have for her, but no matter, this wasn't about him. This was about getting Vickie away from Dolph, to make sure he kept that briefcase, and to ensure that he would eventually become the WWE or World Champion, whichever, maybe both. If other guys could have both, why not her boyfriend?

When Cena climbed the ladder, she knew this was it. She was a little girl, but she packed a lot of strength into her tiny body. With all the strength and power she had in her, she tipped over the ladder, startling Cena who only barely missed flopping out of the ring. He looked at her for a moment in shock before Dolph came in and took care of him. Dolph pulled back and he stared at AJ with disbelief. Vickie had long since gone elsewhere and Cena was laid out. It was just the two of them in the ring for all they cared.

Dolph ran his hands through his hair and continued to stare at her. He'd had no idea, she had done her job. She gave him a bright smile and left, knowing he would do this, knowing he would win. And he had. He had climbed the ladder, gotten his briefcase, and he'd won. Now she had to face the aftermath of this.

"AJ, what was that?" Stephanie asked as soon as she was backstage, "Did you and Dolph plan that because that was brilliant!"

"Even I'm impressed," Chris said, as Flynn nodded eagerly, wanting in on the conversation.

"No, he didn't know, I did that myself, you were right, he needs to be away from her, so I got him away from her…hopefully," AJ shrugged, "Is Vickie around?"

"She left," Stephanie laughed, "she screeched at me that she was getting the hell out of here. I think she's humiliated. She probably won't be back for the night. She'll probably hide under the covers."

"Good," AJ said, "it'll at least give me a night to let this all sink in."

"What are you going to do now?" Stephanie asked.

"I don't know," AJ said. "That was about as impulsive as I've ever been. I don't really know what to do now!"

Stephanie pulled AJ to the side. Dolph was still not backstage so she had a few moments. "I think you know what you need to do, AJ. You need to claim what's yours."

"I'm not sure," AJ said, "I don't even know how Dolph reacted."

"Well, we'll find out, won't we?" Stephanie looked to the side where Dolph was walking backstage. AJ skipped over to him, grabbing his arm, wanting to talk to him.

"Not now, AJ," Dolph told her coldly. AJ stood there, watching as he walked away without looking back at her, his briefcase hanging from his hand, banging against his leg. She furrowed her brow and tried not to cry.

It was the first time he'd called her AJ in a long time.

Stephanie sat on the floor next to Sawyer as he showed her all the Christmas cards he'd made for his friends. He was very much on a project kick right now, and his latest project was making cards for all his friends that he could send them in the mail. Stephanie thought it was a sweet gesture, and it was even sweeter when he saw the cards he'd made for them. They were each customized, and he even included little notes, notes that Chris helped him with, but they were in Sawyer's own words, Chris just helped with the spelling.

"And that's Rudolph," Sawyer said, showing Stephanie a deer-shaped blob with a big red dot for a nose.

"You're so talented," Stephanie gushed about him, snuggling into his side as he wrapped his free arm around Stephanie's neck. "I really think they're all going to like these. It's very nice of you to make them for your friends."

"I like it," Sawyer said.

"You really like drawing, huh?"

"Yeah, it's pretty fun," Sawyer shrugged, "it gives me something to do when we're not at home because we really can't bring our toys or anything with us because that would be too much. Are we going to stay in Connecticut until Christmas or are we going home?"

"We're probably going to go home for a couple of days to get some things we have there then we'll come back to Connecticut because we're going to spend Christmas with Grandma, Grandpa, and Uncle Shane's family."

"What about Gamma and Gamps?" Sawyer wondered.

"They're going to come up with us because Daddy's an only child so they don't have anywhere else to be," Stephanie said as Sawyer laughed.

"How come Daddy doesn't have any brothers or sisters?" Sawyer asked. "Because you and Daddy had Flynnie and Kensy after me, so I'm not an only child."

"Well, your dad likes to say that it's because he's so cool he broke the mold and nobody else could be as cool as him so Gamma and Gamps didn't even try, but I think it's because your father was such a handful, they were scared to have another one."

Sawyer laughed, "But why did you have more?"

"Because you _are_ so cool that I knew I wanted more just like you, except they came out in girl form," she winked at him and Sawyer, satisfied with the answer, went back to his project.

"I am kinda cool," Sawyer said because even if he was the kindest kid on the planet, he was still a Jericho, and the cockiness would always be there. "I'm glad I get to come to wrestling though, do you think I can help you when you sit at the table? I'm older now, so I think I can figure it out."

"I don't think you're quite old enough to know everything," Stephanie said, "but I'd love for you to sit with me anyways. I can let you push a few buttons."

"Okay," he said brightly, "I'm a little tired of drawing anyways."

There was a knock at the door and it couldn't be her husband and daughters because they wouldn't knock. "Come in!"

"Hey, Stephanie, I hate to bug you," AJ said, "I just needed to talk to someone who knows men."

"You're probably barking up the wrong tree," Stephanie said lightheartedly, but it didn't even elicit a smile from AJ.

"I'm a boy," Sawyer said, "I can help."

"You're the best boy," Stephanie told him, kissing his cheek. "What happened last night after the show?"

"Dolph was mad at me. He gave me the silent treatment for the rest of the night, and he hasn't let up yet today. We obviously came separately, but he won't talk to me, and I'm not sure what to do. I didn't think he'd be _that_ mad. I mean, I figured he'd be mad, but I just didn't think he would really be so mad he wouldn't talk to me."

"He's probably just upset that you didn't tell him," Stephanie said, "I wouldn't put it past him to give you the silent treatment today, but be over it by tomorrow. Sometimes, a person just needs some time to think. He'll probably come around and be happy over what you did."

"You really think so?" AJ asked.

"I'm sure of it."

"Sawyer?" AJ asked, and Stephanie was a little weirded out that she would actually ask her son. She knew Sawyer had said he was a boy, but AJ couldn't possibly think Sawyer knew anything about relationships. He was six years old, he'd never had a girlfriend or been in love.

"Is he really mad?" Sawyer asked and Stephanie's face looked like she'd just drank sour milk.

"Yeah, he's really mad, he won't even talk to me."

"Make him," Sawyer told her, nodding his head. "You should make him talk to you. When my teacher says that someone is mad, it just means that they want to talk and see how you're feeling. You know how they're feeling, but they might not know what you're feeling."

"That's actually really good advice, I never really did explain why I did it, I mean, I told him that he was better than Vickie, but that was before all of this went down. Maybe he thinks I was just trying to expose us."

"This girl in my class, Melissa, drew on my friend, Aiden's picture and she didn't say sorry and he was mad, but she didn't know why, that's why my teacher said that."

"She's really smart then," AJ said, "I should talk to him. Thanks, Sawyer!"

AJ skipped out of the room and Sawyer looked at Stephanie proudly for helping. Stephanie just stared at her son, "I think you got switched at the hospital because you are too nice to be my son."

"Mommy, that's just silly talk," Sawyer shook his head. "Come on, let's go to the table so I can help you."

"Seriously, whoever your mother and father are must be saints," Stephanie said as Sawyer took her hand. Sawyer shot her a glare as they walked out.

AJ nearly ran to Dolph's locker room, but she knocked quietly when she got there. The door opened and he stood there for a second before letting her in with a sigh. "Hey," he said, his voice low.

"Hey," she said back, her voice quiet. "I wanted to tell you why I did what I did last night if you'll listen to me."

"Okay," he folded his arms. "I'm not mad at you, Jeanie, I'm just confused as to why you would put yourself out there like that. I mean, you could have gotten hurt, Vickie could have hit you with a chair. I just don't understand it, any of it."

"Wait, you're not mad because of what I did?"

"I'm a little mad, but it's not like you did anything that gave us away. And frankly, I'm glad you got away from Cena, I was tired of seeing his gross lips on my girlfriend," Dolph sneered at the thought. "He can't even kiss properly. He kisses like he wrestles, sucky."

AJ giggled a little, "I did it because I wanted you to see that you could do this without Vickie."

"Do you realize that by doing what you did, it made it look like I couldn't win without some kind of help, Vickie's or yours?"

"I didn't think of that," AJ frowned. "I'm sorry. I just wanted you to win, and when it looked like John was going to win, I had to do _something_. I mean, I always planned to go out there and get at Vickie, I guess I didn't see it happening in quite that way."

"Come here," Dolph opened up his arms and AJ found herself snuggling into him in no time flat. "I'm not mad at you," he told her, "In fact, it was actually kind of hot what you did. But you're right about the Vickie thing."

AJ pulled his head away from Dolph's chest. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that I do need to get away from her. I need to get away from her, and I need to do it soon."

AJ smiled. "That's great! You are going to do so much better without her. Who cares what she thinks, she's on her way out. Stephanie is trying to make sure it happens. She said she's going to get in her dad's ear about it, and he'll take it to the board, and Vickie will be out before she knows it."

"I don't want to hide with you anymore," he admitted to her, "that's the biggest reason, I'm tired of hiding. I'll see what I can do to get away from her."

"Let me handle it?"

"What?" Dolph asked. "How are you going to handle it?"

"Just act like you'd normally act, okay? Just pretend like you're still in Vickie's pocket, and I'll handle the rest."

"What do you have in mind?" he narrowed his eyes at her, but she was just grinning at him widely. "Do I even want to know?"

"Not yet, but you'll like it! I'll see you later, I've got things to do," AJ leaned up and kissed him fiercely, making him lose his balance a little, but it was worth it to see her so happy. He knew he had to do this. It wasn't fair to AJ to sneak around like this. Vickie had more than overstayed her welcome in his life, and he had someone so much more important to him. He had a woman who was willing to throw a guy off a ladder for him. How cool was that! He owed it to her to be the best man he could be.

AJ skipped all the way to the gorilla where Stephanie and Chris were sitting with their kids. She went up to Sawyer and hugged him unexpectedly. He was startled and she smiled at him, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "You are the coolest kid I know, Sawyer Jericho."

"Thanks!" Sawyer said, not knowing what he'd really done to get all of this attention, but he wasn't going to turn it away.

"What am I missing here?" Chris said.

"AJ just hugged and kissed Sawyer, Daddy," Flynn said, "you _just_ saw it."

Chris snickered, "I meant, why are you hugging and kissing my son."

"He gives great advice!" AJ said. "Things are going to work out! I'll see you later!"

Chris turned to his wife once AJ was out of earshot, "What was that all about?"

"Well, Dolph was angry with her, but Sawyer apparently is a sage at six years old."

"He is?" Chris asked, then leaned forward to look at his son, "You are?"

Sawyer shrugged, "I'm just good, Daddy. That's all, it's okay, if you need help too, I can help you."

Chris turned to his wife, "We really are just obsolete, aren't we?"

"We're not needed."

"I need a hug," Flynn said.

"Okay, maybe we're a little needed," Chris said as he hugged his daughter. Kensington tugged on his arm for a hug too. "Oh, doubly needed."

Stephanie tugged on his arm and touched her lips with her finger. "Triply needed," Chris said, leaning over and kissing her. "What do you think was making AJ so happy?"

"I think only AJ knows that."

AJ knew ahead of time she was nominated for all the kisses of the year. It made her feel slightly sleazy to know that, but then she recalled how many men Trish Stratus had kissed when she worked here and felt better. She had nothing on Trish really, and Trish was regarded as one of the best divas of all-time so this was kind of like following in her footsteps. What was the coup de grace of this all was that Vickie was presenting the award so regardless of the outcome, she would get to come face to face with Vickie. Just what she wanted.

Vickie, to the surprise of nobody, tore her down before giving her the award, but AJ didn't care about that. She only cared about what was going to happen in a few minutes. She knew Dolph was close by. She'd seen him walking towards the gorilla just as she'd left through the curtain. Vickie went on to talk about her, crap that she'd heard before again and again until tedium was too kind a word to use. Then Vickie called her trash and said that everyone knew it, even Dolph.

This set AJ off. She was not trash, and Dolph didn't think so. She got into Vickie's face as they argued. She heard Dolph's voice, but she didn't stop arguing. Dolph stepped in front of her, facing her, but she was so angry at Vickie's assumptions that she barely noticed.

Dolph could not believe this was how she was going to go about it. She was going to pick a fight with Vickie then she was going to reveal everything. This was not how it should go down. It should be him telling Vickie it was over, not her. He couldn't let it go down like this. He could not have AJ fighting his battles. He kind of loved her for taking up his cause, but to completely destroy herself in the process? He cared about her far too much to let her do that.

"This isn't happening," he repeated to her as AJ kept trying to get at Vickie. He pleaded with her, hoping she would understand, hoping he could get through to her. One thing he knew about AJ was that when she set her mind to something, she was going to do it, consequences be damned. He just had to make sure that didn't happen, not like this. AJ glared at him, wanting to finish this. Twice she tried to get to Vickie, but Dolph gently pushed her back, not using much force.

She finally seemed to calm down, but then she was hanging on his arm and telling Vickie that while that kiss with Cena may have won kiss of the year, it was nothing compared to this…wait, to this? To what? Dolph was confused. But he was only confused for a moment before AJ was wrapping her short legs around his torso and pressing her mouth against his. He could hear Vickie screaming in the background, but they were drowned out, every sound seemed drowned out right now. He was just shocked as AJ deepened the kiss, holding onto him tightly. _This_ had been her plan all along.

God, he was falling in love with this woman.

He wrapped his arms around her, kissing her back, letting her know that he more than approved of her methods. Beating up Vickie would have cost her so much, but this, this only made him want her more. AJ was incredible. He'd known it since that night he found her slightly bent but not broken. The other men in that video, the ones she kissed before, not a single one of them even bothered to look to see what the real AJ was like.

Daniel Bryan saw a puppy dog, someone to follow him around make him feel special. He didn't see AJ's spirit at all. Kane, well, Kane was just a weirdo, there was nothing there. Punk had seen a crazy chick, and while he may have "digged" them, he didn't dig deep enough. He saw someone who was out of her mind, someone that could easily be used for gain, but not someone with true feelings. And Cena, Cena had been too nice a guy to really see anything about AJ. He saw it all though.

He saw everything she was and everything she could be. He didn't care that the world was watching him make out with his girlfriend. Let them see a guy who actually cared about AJ. They'd seen far too many guys treat her like a joke. Now it was time to let them see that someone could see past what they saw as faults in her personality to the true person underneath, a warm, funny, slightly off, but totally beautiful woman. He was proud of her in the strangest way.

AJ finally pulled away and skipped around Dolph before heading backstage. Dolph was stunned, standing there, trying to process just what he'd done in front of millions of people and children…oh man, he hoped parents had shielded their kids' eyes after that one. Dolph wanted more though, he wanted his girlfriend and he ran after her. She was waiting backstage and he scooped her up into his arms and swung her around.

"You're amazing," he told her, "I think you're amazing."

AJ laughed, "You're free, right?"

"I'm going to tell her, tonight, it's over," he told her, kissing her again. "You do realize that we pretty much just shocked the world, don't you?"

"Yeah, I know, and I don't care," AJ tossed her hair, "Do you?" Dolph smiled down at her. She was such a tiny hurricane of a person.

"Not anymore."


	400. Upon a Christmas, December 24, 2012

A/N: Thanks for being patient with the update. I hope everyone had a wonderful holidays. This chapter is just pure Christmas fluff, although I think I've kind of set up things for next year, and included some poor, neglected people. Hope you enjoy nonetheless, and just a reminder that there will be no updates next week.

Lastly, I hope you all have a wonderful and safe New Year's, see you in 2013! :)

* * *

"Mommy, what is that?"

"Egg nog," Stephanie explained to her daughter. Flynn was sitting on the counter next to a punch bowl, which Stephanie was pouring egg nog into. Flynn leaned her head over the bowl and gave a sniff. It didn't smell like much of anything, but it looked a lot like milk.

"Why are you going to drink _eggs_?" Flynn made a face, looking up at her mother in disgust.

"It's just a name," Stephanie explained to her, "it's not just eggs, there's other things too. It's just the name that makes you think it's all eggs."

"Can I try some?" Flynn asked.

"Okay," Stephanie grabbed a glass and poured some into it for Flynn. He gave it to her and she took a sip. She made a face, sticking her tongue out and shaking her head. Stephanie laughed and kissed her forehead. "You don't like it?"

"It tastes like melted ice cream or something," Flynn shook her head and pressed the glass into Stephanie's hand, "I don't want it no more, Mommy."

"Okay," Stephanie took a sip from the glass. "Mmm, yummy!"

"Mommy, you don't like it!" Flynn shook her head. "You're just faking!"

"No, I do like it," Stephanie said, "that's why I'm serving it, but I'm going to put a little something into it."

"What?" Flynn asked conspiratorially.

"Brandy."

"I don't know what that is," Flynn frowned, not liking that she wasn't in on the joke. She hated being left out of things. Sometimes, people only saw her as a little girl, but she understood things!

"It's a drink, but it's only for adults, not for kids. You can drink it when you're grown up."

"Like when I'm six?" Flynn wondered. She was going to be five next year because she was four now, and six seemed very old for her.

"No, like when you're 21," Stephanie told her, "and not a moment sooner."

"But Mommy, that's a million forever from now!" Flynn whined.

"Too bad," Stephanie lifted her daughter off the counter and handed her a bowl of pretzels, "can you please go put these on the coffee table for me?"

"Okay," Flynn said obediently, grabbing the bowl and running out of the room. Stephanie finished pouring the egg nog into the bowl and just as she set down the last carton of the stuff, a pair of arms banded around her waist, pulling her backwards into a strong chest.

"Mmm, you look sexy," Chris told her, kissing her neck.

"I'm not even dressed yet," Stephanie said, looking down at her outfit, which consisted of a pair of jeans and one of Chris's t-shirts. She'd been cooking a little bit and she tended to make a mess of things so she didn't want to wear one of her shirts. Chris's shirt was large on her and hung down low past her waist. She was practically swimming in it.

"So what? I was without you for weeks on end, just seeing you is enough for me to think you're sexy," Chris said, "do we really have to have this thing on Christmas Eve, we're seeing our families tomorrow?"

"It's fun," Stephanie said, "it's just a way for everyone to wind down at the end of the year and have fun. I like having it at our house, I mean, yes, it's nice to go to Connecticut with the snow and everything, but I like being at home with you and the kids."

"You're far too generous," Chris told her, kissing her neck again. "You smell like chocolate."

"I was making cupcakes," Stephanie gestured to the side where there was a bunch of cupcakes, decorated with green and red sprinkles. "I'm being all domestic, aren't you proud of me? I'm becoming a real homemaker, don't you think?"

"I wouldn't want you to be little Susie Homemaker," Chris told her, "I just like you being you. I can't believe it's already Christmas. It feels like this year has just flown by, where did it all go?"

"I think you were on tour for most of it," Stephanie looked at him over her shoulder with a little look. Chris rolled his eyes and squeezed her a little harder, "hey, no abuse, Jericho, I won't stand for it."

"Most of this year was spent working for _you_," Chris told her, "I wanted to be around you."

"If you want to be around me so badly, where are you going to be in 2013, huh? Are you going to come back? Oh wait, you never tell me this kind of thing so I guess I just have to wait for you to show up, right?"

"Yes, I think that's how I'm going to return this time," Chris tapped his chin with his forefinger, "I think I'm just going to show up and that'll be it. Nobody will expect it, nobody will even see it coming. The last round of return videos was too obvious."

"No, they weren't, a lot of people thought it was Taker."

"Yeah, well," he really didn't have anything to say to that. "I've been thinking about it lately."

"Wait, I'm sorry, are you actually talking to me about a return? Are you actually maybe, sort of involving me in it? This can't be, now I _know_ you're not coming back," Stephanie kidded, "because you would never tell me you were."

"Maybe it's become so commonplace that I don't feel the need to surprise you anymore," he shrugged, "and I feel like I've got a lot left in me. I just need some incentive to return, do you think you can find something to lure me back with?"

"Oh, is this you flirting with me?" Stephanie asked. "Mr. Jericho, if you want to come back, I suggest you take it up with the president of the company, you can certainly find the time to take a meeting with her."

"A meeting in bed, sure," Chris teased her as Sawyer ran into the kitchen. The two of them turned and watched as he opened the fridge to grab some orange juice. He took the carton out and put it on the counter, grabbing his stepstool to get to the cabinet with the glasses. He felt eyes on him and he turned to his parents, who were both staring at him.

"What?" Sawyer asked.

"Nothing, you just didn't even say hi," Chris said, "what are we, nobodies around here?"

"You live here," Sawyer said, "I just wanted some juice."

"That's fine, but it'd be nice if you said hello," Chris joked with him. Sawyer made a face and Chris and Stephanie laughed.

"Don't laugh at me, that's not nice."

"We're not laughing at you, baby boy, Daddy's just teasing. Are you excited for the party tonight?"

"Yeah, because I get to see Declan and Kenny," Sawyer said, "I haven't seen them in a while, that should be fun. I like having sisters, but sometimes I'd really want a brother."

"Well, I don't think you're going to get that for Christmas, sorry baby boy," Stephanie said, going over and grabbing a glass for him.

"And we get to see Grandma and Grandpa too, that's good, right?" Sawyer said and Stephanie nodded as she watched Sawyer pour some juice for himself. "I like Christmas. It's fun, and you get to see a lot of people. Plus, there are presents, _and_ we got to get all those presents for the kids that need them, I like that part."

"You would," Stephanie said.

"I wish we could see them when they get their presents though," Sawyer said, "like the bikes we got, I bet they're going to like those."

"I think so too," Stephanie said, "they're going to enjoy everything you and your sisters picked out."

"I know, but why couldn't Santa bring them stuff, how come we have to give them stuff, does Santa not like them?" Sawyer asked.

"I'm sure Santa is going to bring them some things, but we're just adding more to it because sometimes their mommies and daddies can't get them things."

"How come? You and Daddy get me lots of things, even sometimes things I don't even want. Like I didn't want that jacket you got me, I don't like it."

"Well, sometimes people can't get things because they have to take care of other things. One thing you need to understand is that me and Daddy do have more than some people, which is why we like to do things like give presents to kids who can't. It's called being charitable."

"I like being that," Sawyer smiled. "It's fun."

"And that's what makes you Sawyer Jericho," Stephanie kissed his cheek.

"We should do it all year though, not just Christmas," Sawyer said, "maybe for my birthday, we can give presents to all the kids on my birthday that don't have things for their birthday!"

Sawyer sounded so excited about it and Stephanie hugged him around the waist since he was still standing on his stepstool. Her little boy was the best, the absolute best of everything she and Chris ever had. He was the sweetest thing and that deserved a hug. She kissed his cheek and helped him down to the ground so he could get his juice and leave. Stephanie turned to her husband and he chuckled.

"I still think sometimes he was switched at birth with someone. I mean, yes, he looks like me, but maybe I just got some other woman pregnant and she happened to give birth at the same hospital you did. It could happen, right?"

"You'd be out on your ass if that happened," Stephanie said, "he's going to be one of those people who just helps everyone. He's going to have the means to do it, and he's going to change the world for the better. I can't say the same for either of us, but him, yeah, he's going to be so great."

"We're lucky," Chris said, "I mean, we broke the mold with that one, that's why Flynn is aggressive and Kensington, well, actually, Kensington is a lot like Sawyer, so maybe Flynn is the one that broke the mold."

"No, Flynn is the one that decided to be exactly like us," she said, "I'm going to get changed, my family should be here in a little bit, and your parents are arriving soon too. Plus, I've got to see if Kensington is up from her nap yet."

"Nah, I checked on her before I came down here, she's out like a light, all the excitement of Christmas conked her out," Chris told her. Stephanie made a move to leave the room, and Chris called out to her, "Hey, Stephanie, I wasn't lying about the return thing."

"No?"

"No, I think this time around, I might want to include you, if that's alright with you."

"And how long would you stay this time?" she asked. "I'm not asking you to return full-time, I get you have a lot on your plate, and we both know how I feel about that, but you know, just in general?"

"I'm not sure, I like to play it by ear, that's how I roll, baby," Chris pretended to dust off his shoulders like he had swag or something. Stephanie just gave him an incredulous look. "Okay, I don't know, as long as I'm wanted, I guess."

"If that were the case, you would be wrestling right now and would have been wrestling straight through the last 23 years," Stephanie told him, "I want you back, Chris, but when you do, make sure it's for yourself, and not for me. I'm at the point in our lives where you wrestling is not one of my priorities."

"Wait, what? Excuse me, pod Stephanie, who the hell are you, and what have you done to my real wife?"

"That joke isn't funny anymore," Stephanie rolled her eyes, but she smiled. The thing was, once upon a time, a long time ago, wrestling was _their_ thing. It was how they met, it was how they were pushed together when they became business partners, and it was how they started dating. So much of their lives were predicated on him wrestling.

At one point, she feared him leaving wrestling. The thought of him leaving was akin to leaving her behind. The first time he left, yes, she'd instigated it with being pregnant with Sawyer, but he took so long to come back, she thought he never would, that this would be it, he'd just left and was never coming back. It scared her because it always felt like maybe if he left wrestling, he would leave her. She was insecure in those days, the scars from her marriage to Hunter were still very much visible, and she was terrified of losing what she and Chris had.

But after ten years together, and almost eight years of marriage, those fears had waned. "Sorry," Chris said, "next time, I'll try harder, but really, what gives, baby?"

"Nothing, you know I was okay with you leaving, what makes you think I wouldn't be okay with you not coming back?" Stephanie asked him. Chris shrugged, which wasn't a good enough answer and she stayed silent until he did.

"It's just, I know you love having me there, do you not want me around?" he asked, feeling a little hurt now.

"It's nothing like that," she took his hands in hers and kissed his knuckles. "I just understand us better now, and I know that sounds weird, and it is hard to explain, but it's just like, I'm not worried about it, I know you have other things, and I'm proud of you, that's all."

"Thanks, I guess," he said, "you better get dressed though, unless this is the look you want for tonight…"

"It's not, I love you," she leaned up to kiss him, reassuring him of her love, not that he needed much reassurance.

Chris kissed her back, but he was still a little taken aback. Yes, Stephanie never begrudged him totally for all the things he did, but it was still strange to see her so nonchalant about the idea that he might never come back. She was angrier over the fact that he did so much that took him away, so he thought that him being with the company would make her happy, but maybe she just needed him around her and the kids, and not even around wrestling, for her to be happy. Maybe he was just stupid…actually, yes, it was probably that one.

* * *

"You'll be back soon enough, why don't you take a break?"

Trish leaned in the doorway of her husband's old workout room in his mother's house. It was kind of sweet seeing him here, amongst all the old equipment that surely was catching dust when Judy's sons weren't here. Edge couldn't really work out yet with his neck being in the shape that it was so it was only Christian down here, lifting weights and being away from the family upstairs.

"I just needed to get in some lifting today, I feel like I've been eating for five people," Christian admitted, sitting up and wiping at his face with a towel. Trish stepped further into the room, her fingers brushing over the various items in the room.

"I know, but it's the holidays, and you can't even return for another few weeks."

"Have to keep in ring shape," he shrugged, "I don't want to go back totally rusty."

Trish ended up in front of him and she sat down on the bench in front of him, "You won't. You're not going to go back rusty, in fact, you should just go back and win the Royal Rumble, go to WrestleMania, and get your championship back, show them all what's what."

Christian smiled at her crookedly, "I like the sound of that."

"You know, with all this AJ and Dolph stuff, people have been tweeting me telling me it reminded them of us," she scooted a little closer to him on the bench so their knees were touching as they both straddled it. "Someone even sent me a picture of that WWE magazine cover we did, remember, the one where we went shopping for those crazy outfits."

Christian laughed, "We were so naïve then, thinking the world couldn't touch us because we were out in the open. We didn't know anything about life."

"We did, we just didn't realize you really have to work for things like that," Trish told him, "you know what I said to them?"

"No, you know I hardly have time to get on Twitter nowadays, what with the rehabbing, and dealing with my brother and his girlfriend who he won't just marry already, and our almost three year old daughter who is just a bundle full of energy that we both have trouble keeping up with her."

"Then let me tell you," she told him, scooting even further towards him so that he had to widen his legs to accommodate her legs on the thin bench. "I said that if there was a Slammy award for best couple, we'd win it."

Christian licked his lips a little, "You think so?"

"Yes, I _know_ so," Trish said, "nobody in the history of this business had anything on us. We were something special then, and we're something special now. We've come through all the crap and we're good, we're better than good, and yes, we would win best couple."

"Over Chris and Stephanie, the model for relationships in the business?"

"Those two idiots have never actually _been_ together onscreen. They think the entire world doesn't know about their private lives except people aren't stupid," Trish scoffed, "and since they've never revealed themselves publicly, we win by default."

"We did kind of break up though," he said, "and we never got back together onscreen."

"We were great," she brought her hands up to his cheeks and brought his face down to hers. It was a lot easier to kiss her when they were sitting down, the height difference was negligible when they were sitting, her petite form a lot easier to maneuver around.

Christian loved Trish for things like this. She always brought him back to the ground when things seemed to get too difficult for him. He hated sitting at home, it wasn't in his bones. Sure, he loved being able to spend the time with his wife and daughter, but there was a wanderer inside of him. Every wrestler was a wanderer, that's just the kind of person you had to be. The guys that weren't cut out for it were the guys that didn't last. You had to have a taste for that kind of life. He needed to have that sense of freedom. Complacency was suffocating.

But Trish was able to ground him, remind him why being settled for a while wasn't a bad thing. He'd have wrestling back soon enough. He couldn't believe he could ever have contemplated losing this from his life. Sure, things had been rough for the better part of this year, and sometimes it seemed easier to give up, but he and Trish had been through too much just to let it go. Life was filled with ups and downs, the downs made the ups that much better.

"So, I've been thinking," Trish told him, and he raised an eyebrow, "don't act like it's a bad thing."

"Thinking can be bad sometimes," he replied and she tilted her head, her dark hair falling over her shoulder. He never really told her, but he actually kind of preferred her with her darker hair. There was something so naturally beautiful about her and the way she was looking at him at the moment compelled him to lean forward and kiss her again. "What were you thinking about?"

"What do you think about…maybe trying for another baby?" Trish asked, biting her lip.

"Are you serious?" Christian asked. He loved Tilden with everything inside of him. The thought of another child was nothing less than exciting. Trish nodded eagerly. "What brought this about?"

"I was watching Tilden with Edge today and she was yelling and running around outside burning off her energy, and she's almost three, and I miss having a baby," Trish shrugged, "and I remembered how precious she was when she was little, and I found myself just wanting another one. I love Tilden, I love her to death, and don't you think it'd be nice for her to have a sibling?"

"Yes, I do," he pulled her almost flush against him and kissed her passionately, his tongue snaking into her mouth like he wanted to start trying right then and there.

"Oh gross, come on, you two!" Edge walked downstairs, Lita right behind him, who was laughing. "You're both disgusting."

"No, we're not," Christian mumbled against Trish's lips, but pulled away to shoot daggers at his brother, "What are you even doing down here?"

"Tilden didn't know where you were so I said we'd come get you, luckily she didn't have to see whatever this was, I don't want my niece to be traumatized," Edge shuddered, "I don't think _I'll_ ever recover."

"Like I haven't seen you and Li making out like two horny teenagers," Christian shot back at him.

"We're hot though," Edge shrugged, "everyone wanted to see us having sex, can you say the same?"

"Aren't our significant others great?" Lita said sarcastically.

"I don't want to picture your sex life," Christian said, "I already know enough about it to last me a million lifetimes."

"Ditto," Edge told his brother.

"They're great," Trish responded to Lita, sharing a look between the two of them.

"I think our women hate us," Edge said, "do you hate me, babe?"

"Completely," Lita said, "I'm getting my niece and we're going somewhere far away from this madness."

"Is there something you want to tell us, big brother?" Christian asked, noting how Lita had just referred to his daughter as her niece. Despite Edge and Lita's insistence that if they ever did get married, they would elope, Christian felt like his brother would go the traditional wedding route if they were ever to settle down with each other.

"What are you talking about?" Edge asked, not even realizing what Lita had said. Trish noticed as well, but she wanted to see how this played out. She wouldn't believe anything until it was confirmed, and she wasn't sure her brother-in-law would do that, actually, she could believe he would.

Despite their claim that things were always kind of casual between them, they'd been together for years now, and lived together for the better part of God, it had to be five years at this point. They were as serious as you can get, Lita even took care of Edge after his recent surgery, putting everything on hold just for him. They were devoted to each other, and it only made sense to Trish that they should get married.

"Um, your girlfriend just called our daughter her niece, did you marry her?"

"God no!" Edge started laughing hysterically, throwing his head back in laughter. Without his long hair, it didn't have quite the dramatic effect it used to have, but the sentiment was the same. "Lita and I get married, ridiculous."

"Didn't you guys say you had something to tell us?" Trish asked. "Or did that not happen last night at dinner?"

"Oh, that, yeah, we do, but it's not marriage, and it's not a kid, it's not even that big a deal, we just decided that we don't think marriage is for us," Edge shrugged. "After the disaster that was my marriage to Vickie, I don't think I want to go through with that again, and Lita is cool with that, in fact, I think she's been kind of jaded on it since, you know, her dad left her mom when they were younger, she doesn't think marriage is all it's cracked up to be."

"But you guys are in it for the long haul?"

"Yeah, pretty much, we're having fun, like we always have, like we hopefully always will," Edge's look softened as he thought about the woman in his life, "I didn't risk a friendship to be with her for nothing. It was worth losing the Hardys from my life to gain someone like her in it. But yeah, she should consider Tilden her niece since we're going to be together forever and ever."

"Edge," Trish started, "if that's the case, why not just marry her?"

"I don't know, just doesn't seem right."

"Do you think it'll ever seem right?"

Edge thought about it for a long moment. The thought of marriage right now didn't appeal to him. Tying himself down to someone like that, it felt almost like being tethered to a rock and throw into the ocean. It wasn't that marriage was bad necessarily, but it got messy. Things always seemed to get messy for him, and he didn't want that with Lita. He never wanted that to happen with her. If there was anything in his life right now that he wanted to work, it was them, it was her. He did not want to screw that up. But someday, maybe, just _maybe_ he could see her walking down the aisle like she had that one time, but maybe not in a dress as revealing, yeah, maybe.

"It could happen, I'm not ruling it out."

* * *

"Now you're calling me?" Britt asked.

"I'm here with my family, and they are driving me _crazy_!" Punk said. "They make the fans seem normal."

"Oh God, do I even want to know what they're doing?" Britt wondered as her gaze meandered to the people across the room, all of whom were staring at her. Her family was not subtle and she widened her eyes and tried to look intimidating.

"Who you talking to, Auntie Britt," her niece, Alessandra, asked, leaning over the chair and trying to get into her face.

"A friend of mine," Britt placed her hand over her phone so Punk wouldn't be able to hear. "He wanted to talk to me."

"Is he your _boyfriend_?" Alessandra asked, her eyes dancing. The thought of boyfriends and love and princesses was so very interesting to the little girl nowadays. She loved princesses and true love, and all of that.

"No, he's not."

"What happened to your other boyfriend?" Alessandra asked. "He was here before on Christmas, I remember, Auntie Britt, where did _he_ go?"

"Things didn't work out with him," Britt said, forcing a kind smile even though she didn't want to think about it. Hunter was never much of a Christmas person to begin with. She would force him to do Christmassy things with her, and he would do them grudgingly, but underneath, she would always believe he was just a big softie who didn't want to show emotions.

She wondered briefly what he was doing for the holidays. She was sure that he would be at his parent's house in New Hampshire, with his sister and her children. She hoped he was happy, but she couldn't be too sure. They didn't really talk anymore except when it involved business. In that capacity, they were forced to see each other and converse with each other, but it never extended beyond that. She was convinced that Hunter thought she was dating Punk, but they were just friends. She wasn't necessarily thinking she and Hunter should get back together, but she certainly wasn't with Punk.

Sure, they had been getting closer, and she'd been integrated into his "real" life, meeting his friends, hanging out with them. She was at the point where she felt included in their little group, and she genuinely liked them, and hoped they liked her the same way. But that's all there was, she was friends with him, and he hadn't given her any indication lately that he needed it to be more. Maybe whatever it was he wanted with her had somehow dulled around the edges.

"Oh," Alessandra frowned, "I liked him."

"I know," she kissed her niece's cheek, "go bug your brother."

"I will!" she flounced off, leaving Britt to finish her conversation even though some of her family was still scrutinizing her.

"Sorry about that," Britt said, "my niece."

"She sounded disappointed that I wasn't your boyfriend," Punk teased.

"God, I should have muted that," Britt laughed, "so seriously, it can't be _that_ bad with your family, you like them, remember?"

"I know, I do, but I'm with extended family, and that's where the trouble starts."

"Be nice," she told him gently, "it's one night, that's it, what are you doing tomorrow morning?"

"Just my family."

"Okay, so it's one night, a few hours, and then you're done with it," she told him, "you can survive, just…just pretend they're your friends…or I don't know, your fans that hate you and you can just fake it, I don't know what I'm saying."

He laughed, "That's what I needed, one of your ramblings."

"Glad I could help," she said, "I better go though, my family is glaring at me. I think they think we're together, and I'm just not telling them…or bringing you over to meet them."

"Well, if you ever need a guy…"

"No, thank you," she laughed, "They'd like you though, if they met you, they might think the tattoos are a little much, but they'd like you."

"Nobody likes me, and that's just the way I like it."

"Because you're such a big baddie," Britt teased, "I'll see you later, Phil, don't turn around and start insulting your family now."

"I'll try," he said, "oh, hey, what are your plans for New Year's?"

"None as of yet."

"Come to Chicago, spend it with me," he told her, almost demanding that she come.

"Only you?"

"It's never only me, you know that, at the very least, Colt will be there."

"Fine, you've twisted my arm," she laughed, "it'll be nice to have plans."

"Great, we'll iron out things later, Merry Christmas, Britt."

"You too."

* * *

"Do you think they'll like me?" AJ bit her lip as she looked up at her boyfriend.

"They'll love you," he told her enthusiastically. "Besides, you already know my brother, Briley."

"Yeah, but that's your _brother_, who cares about what brothers think?" she asked with a shrug. Dolph just laughed at her because sometimes she was so fucking cute he couldn't stand it. How had he overlooked all her good qualities for so long? He really didn't know. Maybe he was too self-involved, that's what his parents told him. He loved them to death, but they never minced words with him or his brothers. If he was acting cocky, his mother would not hesitate to tell him to cut it out. His ego did not fly in his parent's house.

"My parents will like you, I promise," he told her, rubbing her cheeks with his hands.

"I don't have the best track record," she admitted.

"Hey, hey, look at me, babe," Dolph pulled her closer by the lapels of her jacket. "I don't care about any of that, you know that, and my parents won't either. None of those guys ever treated you right. They strung you along and they treated you like crap. They're the ones that have the bad track record, not you. You couldn't help that you wanted someone, but none of them were good enough for you."

"Thanks," AJ said. It was nice to have someone who didn't think you were crazy. She'd really liked Punk, but when he called her a crazy chick, it hurt. She'd masked it, like she masked a lot of things. It was easy to act loopy, to make it seem like nothing affected her because then it made people stop calling her names. She'd thought Cena would be different. He had a nice guy image and she thought, believed, hoped it all to be true, but it wasn't.

"Don't thank me for telling the truth, people suck," Dolph kissed her lightly, "plus, I told my parents how we really started dating. They know it wasn't that you kissed me out of the blue and I _had_ to have you."

"Good, I'm glad," she told him, "I don't easily embarrass, but I want to make a good impression on them. I really like you and—"

"I like you too," he confessed, "a lot, which is why they're going to be nice to you. They know how much I care about you, babe, don't worry, got it?"

"Yeah, I got it, thank you again for inviting me."

"I wanted you here, I wanted some more mistletoe too," he smirked at her, and she giggled as she pulled him down for a kiss. It wasn't as frenzied as their kisses onscreen tended to be, but that was more for show. People didn't believe them when they said they were together, so it seemed a good thing to try and show everyone how real they were. "Mmm, no tree branches in my back this time."

AJ full on laughed as she pulled away, "You always seem to make me feel better about myself."

"That's what you need in a guy, someone who makes you feel better, you definitely make me feel better than Vickie did."

"I don't think that's hard," AJ shook her head and scrunched up her face as she thought about that relationship."

"Okay, from here on out, we're not going to talk about anyone from our past. No Daniel, no Kane, no Punk, no Cena, and no Vickie. It's just you and me, babe, and my parents, and my brother…but mostly just us."

"I like that," AJ beamed at him, her smiling lighting up her face.

Dolph couldn't believe he ever thought of her as trashy. There wasn't a trashy bone in AJ's body. She was just a person who wanted people to love her for who she was, but when that didn't work, she tried to overcompensate, tried to be whatever she thought people wanted her to be. He only ever wanted her to be herself, and when she was herself, she was probably the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen in his life. Screw the guys that didn't see it, their loss was certainly his reward, and AJ made him happier than he'd been in a long time.

She made him feel like he was already a champion, but she also made him feel like he really could be champion. There was always something about Vickie that felt like she was holding him back. She never really encouraged him in the way that AJ did. He was sure he was going to cash in his briefcase and win. With AJ by his side, it felt like an inevitability. She'd already proven how far she would go for him, and though he didn't need it, to have someone believe in him that much was a blessing. AJ was a blessing.

"Dolph, you get your butt inside now!"

Dolph looked to his right and saw his mother standing the doorway, her arms wrapped around her trying to keep warm. "Hey, Mom, we're coming." He turned back to AJ, "You ready for a Ziggler Christmas?"

"I don't think so, but I don't think I have much choice, do I?"

"Not anymore, come on," Dolph gave her an encouraging smile before grabbing her hand and leading her towards the door, both of them pulling their bags with their free hands. When they approached, his mother gave AJ the once over before she pulled her son into a hug.

"You are too tan, would you stop going to those booths or spray things?" his mother said first off. "Otherwise, you are looking well, and I missed you."

Dolph laughed and shook his head, his mother cracked him up sometimes. He gave her a hug, "I missed you too, Mom." He pulled away and grabbed AJ's arm, pulling her forward a little bit, "Mom, this is AJ, my girlfriend."

"I know," she glowered at her son, "as if I haven't seen you two making out like the world was ending tomorrow." AJ was a little scared of her, but his mother came forward and gave her a bear hug, pulling away and pressing her hands to AJ's shoulders. "Any woman who makes my son smile like that, and act like a carefree teenager and not like the workaholic son I've had to deal with for the past 32 years, is always going to be on my good side. Now get yourself in here so I can talk woman-to-woman with you. I'll tell you how to really deal with my son."

AJ had a feeling she was going to like his family.

* * *

"_One_ present each!" Stephanie called out to her children as they perused the mountain of gifts under the tree. Shane and Marissa intimated the same thing to their kids. "And Sawyer, help Kensington find one since she can't read her name."

"Okay," Sawyer said as he plucked one of his gifts from the pile and set it aside to open it while Flynn furiously went through all the presents to find the ones that bore her name. She wanted to open the biggest one she could find, but what she didn't know was that her parents hadn't put the big gifts out yet.

"Daddy, where mine!" Kensington pouted as she looked to Chris, leaning over his legs.

"Your brother is getting you one, Kensy-bug, don't be impatient," Chris kissed her nose and she kept on pouting until Sawyer came over with a box in his hands.

"This one is for you, Kensy, I thought you might like to open this one." Sawyer set the box on the ground next to her feet and Kensington's face changed completely from sadness to one of delight and excitement.

"Tanks, Sawa!" Kensington threw her arms around her brother's waist and hugged him tightly.

"You're welcome, Kensy," Sawyer said, watching as Kensington sat down quickly to open her present. He went over to get his gift while Flynn finally found a big one and was tearing into it. All the adults just watched as the children cooed over their presents. Kensington had opened a whole activity center that had special paints that would glow-in-the dark. Sawyer had opened a remote controlled car, while Flynn opened up a pottery wheel for children. They were all excited about their presents while Chris saw Stephanie pull something out from beside her and handed it to him.

"What's this?" It was a flat box, with some nondescript Christmas paper on it.

"A gift for you," she told him.

"It better not be something like a positive pregnancy test or anything," he told her jokingly and she looked at him seriously, "Oh God, that's what it is, isn't it?"

"Well, I thought it would be a surprise…no! It's not that, are you kidding me, not a chance," Stephanie told him, "it's just something I wanted to give you."

He opened it up, "Plane tickets."

"I was thinking, you, me Vegas, New Year's, you like the sound of that?" She knew he was doing something special for their anniversary since they'd forgotten it last year, so she wanted to do something special for New Year's.

"I like it very much, thank you," he kissed her. "I love you."

"I love you too, and I figured what better way to start the Year of Jericho and Stephanie."

"Then let's start it with a bang."


	401. New Year, New Changes, January 7, 2013

A/N: Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a great holidays, and week off from the story. Anyways, here's the next part, the show was really quite good tonight, so I hope you enjoy the chapter, and I hope everyone saw Chris's tweet where he mentioned Stephanie because well, Smoochy is awesome.

And, if you like the AJ/Dolph stuff as much as I do (and I do!), I'm thinking of starting a new story about them, so be on the look out for that. Enjoy the chapter, reviews would be lovely. :)

* * *

"_Come on."_

_AJ swiped at her eyes even though there was still mud on her face. There was no way that whatever was dumped on her was actually what Cena claimed it to be. Even though it was just mud, it was still disgusting and since it had dried, it clung to her skin, drying there in streaks. It was all over her, her hair, her face, her arms, legs. Her dress was ruined, and she'd bought it specifically for tonight. She wanted to look pretty for Dolph, and now it was all ruined._

"_Jeannie?" Dolph said, testing the water in the shower in their room. They'd ridden uncomfortably from the arena, and they were in their room now. Dolph had run a shower for them while she sat on the couch, trying not to get it dirty. He stuck his head out of the bathroom and looked at her, "Hey, you want to climb in, I figured we could clean each other off."_

"_I'm sorry," AJ told him, taking a big, heaving breath._

_Dolph was confused and he walked out of the bathroom and over to her. He didn't see the tears in her eyes until he was close to her, the mud on her face making them difficult to see. He narrowed his eyes and came over, kneeling in front of her. "Hey, what's wrong? Why are you crying? We'll get cleaned up, it's okay."_

"_This is all my fault," AJ's lip quivered as she looked at him. _

"_What are you talking about? It wasn't like you had all this crap dumped on us, right?" he joked, but she wasn't joking back. Dolph wasn't great at feelings, he never had been, but with AJ, there was something different. Ever since that night he found her by herself and upset, all he wanted to do was make her happy. After the string of horrible guys she'd been interested in, she deserved someone who wouldn't use her and abuse her._

_Essentially that's what they did to her. All of them put her down at some point, calling her crazy or just acting like she was crazy. How could she not believe that about herself when everyone in the entire world was so hellbent on making her see it? He didn't think her crazy. She _was_ passionate, and her loyalty was one of the best things about her. He hated that she had to question her own qualities instead of celebrating them._

_He'd never felt so protective over a person in his life. With Vickie, it had been a mutually beneficial thing. There'd never really been "feelings" as one would call them. They did things that suited their needs, and that was all. She'd helped him a lot, and he was grateful, but wanting to be with her, no, that was not something he ever envisioned long term. It wasn't the age thing, it was just they weren't right for each other._

_AJ, on the other hand, he fell hard and fast, and maybe that helped him understand her when she would fall hard and fast for someone. He regretted, deeply, what he'd said to her before he got to know her. He hated that he'd called her trash and pathetic and a whole bevy of things that didn't at all describe her. She wasn't what he thought, and the person that she _was_, was someone he was rapidly falling in love with._

"_Come on, babe, talk to me," he told her, pressing his hands to her knees._

"_It's my fault that Cena did this to us," she gestured towards the two of them, "If we weren't…if I hadn't used him, none of this would have happened. I'm the reason he did this, I'm the reason he wants to feud with you. All I do is get in the way."_

"_Whoa, whoa, whoa, stop that," Dolph shook his head. "I don't want to hear any of this coming from your mouth, okay, don't do this."_

"_It's true, and I'm the one who had to expose us to the rest of the world. I'm the one who didn't even tell you what I was planning on doing. I didn't even know if you were ready for us to be public, but I just forced it on you."_

"_You didn't force it on me, and I was happy you did that. I mean, sure, I was a little shocked at first, but wouldn't you be if I came out there and started making out with you? Not that I could do it in the same way, you're strong, babe, but if I jumped up on you, I think I'd just go right over you," he laughed, hoping she would too, but she still wasn't ready for laughter. _

_He wracked his brain trying to think of something eloquent to say. The problem was that he wasn't an eloquent guy. He did not have pretty words. "I'm just sorry," she whispered, looking down, her hair covering her face, but he could hear the tears clogging them again._

_Dolph was going to get Cena back for this. He didn't know how yet, but he was going to, and he was going to make it hurt. Dolph tipped up her chin so she was looking at him. He brushed her hair behind her ears and smiled at her. "Jeannie, I don't want you to feel bad about this. This just John Cena and his stupid, childish behavior. It's all his fault, not yours. He's the one who has to resort to stupid pranks like this."_

"_But if he—"_

_Dolph leaned forward and captured her lips. They didn't taste as sweet as they usually did, but he still liked them. He pulled away and stared her right in the eye. "Nothing is your fault, stop believing that shit. He just wants to put you down because he's a bully and he can. Come on, the shower's still running, and I don't know about you, but I don't want to stay covered in this junk all night."_

"_Thank you," she told him, her lips quirking up on the side. "I don't know what I'd do without you here."_

"_I don't' know either," he said with that light-hearted cockiness she loved so much. "So…come on, you wash my back, I'll watch yours."_

_AJ just laughed and let Dolph lead her to the bathroom._

"Tell me why I haven't stayed at your place before?" Dolph asked as he turned on his side in AJ's bed, looking at her as he leaned his cheek on his hand.

"Because we always go to your place," she told him.

"Oh yeah, well, I like it here," he looked around, "it's not as eclectic as I might have thought your place would be like, but I like it."

"You thought I'd, what, have tons of stuff around, nerdy, geeky stuff?" she teased, poking him in the stomach.

"Yeah, pretty much," he flopped his head back down on the pillow. "So it's a new year, new everything, what do you want to do with this year?"

"I don't know, make it count, I guess," she told him, pursing her lips. "I want to be the Divas champion, and I want you to be the WWE champion. Maybe both at the same time, then we'd be like Hunter and Stephanie when they were married…with a better outcome of course."

"I would hope so," Dolph laughed, "unless you've got some guy on the side who's completely in love with you that you're going to marry and have three kids with."

"I don't think so," she shook her head. "Are you ready for tonight?"

"Yeah, I'm ready," he said as she ran her hand over his cheek, her fingers grazing over his mottled skin. He winced a little bit, but only because it was still tender. Her touch actually made him feel better. "I'm sure Cena has something to say about what happened last week, but don't worry, I've got some things to say as well."

"Don't fall into his games," AJ told him, "you're better than that."

"Oh, I know," Dolph said, "I know I'm better than that. I'm better than him, and he should just acknowledge it. 2012 sucked for him, and I want to make sure 2013 starts off the same way. He can't treat us like that. He's just an asshole with a complex."

AJ nodded, "I think so too. He never even had feelings for me, he always saw me as a burden. At first, I thought he was sweet, that was before you, of course, but he doesn't care about people. He cares about his image."

"Absolutely, he's all about himself," Dolph said, "that's why nobody likes him. People are blinded by him, but see, we care about each other, he cares about himself, we're better than him."

"We are," AJ said brightly. "You are really good at this."

"The sex, well, I've been told I'm pretty athletic," he smirked, and she scrunched up her nose. He laughed and leaned down to kiss her. She ran her hands through his hair, letting him hover over her for a moment before she pulled back.

"I meant at the boyfriend thing." Dolph made a little bit of a face at that. "I mean it, you're good at this."

"What is it I'm good at?" Dolph asked. "I'm kind of not good at protecting you from flying mud."

AJ rolled her eyes at that, "If you had known that was coming and still let me get dumped with that, then yeah, I would be a little put out, but you didn't know, and you know, you make me feel happy, you make me happy, and…look, I know we haven't discussed what I said last week, when I was toasting you—"

Dolph covered up her lips with a finger, "Look, it's not a big deal, it was the heat of the moment and it's okay, we don't have to talk about it, alright. Tonight, I'm going to make Cena look like the idiot that he is, and that's going to make the both of us feel better, okay?"

"Of course," AJ smiled, "we better actually get out of bed though, you promised to take me on a run, right?"

"I can think of other ways to work you out, but we should probably stick with the less…physical," he hopped out of bed and smiled at her before disappearing into the bathroom. When the door clicked shut, AJ pulled her knees up to her chest and bit her lip, leaning her chin on the tops of her knees.

She couldn't stop thinking about what Dolph just said. Why would he shut her down so quickly when she wanted to discuss loving him? She hadn't really meant to say it last week, not like that anyways. She wasn't exactly one for huge romantic gestures, but she did want to tell him in a more private setting. Still, he'd seemed receptive, if not surprised, when she'd said the words. He hadn't instantly rebuffed her or tried to deny her feelings.

She wasn't really in love with any of the guys she'd been with recently. She bandied around the word love a lot, but she knew this was different. She felt different, and she wanted to share those feelings with Dolph, but it was like he would rather talk about anything else. She wanted to tell him what she felt, but those old fears started to creep in. All the guys who had come before, who had strung her along, let her hang out in their periphery, but never really invited her in.

What if Dolph was starting to see what they saw in her? What if she was already becoming a burden to him? He'd stuck with Vickie for so long, was it wrong of her to want something like that. These thoughts plagued her, her past coming in to haunt her again. Usually Dolph was really good at keeping those fears at bay, but his almost insistent refusal to discuss this was making them come at her with a vengeance, their icy tendrils trying to wrap their way around her.

"You getting dressed, babe?" Dolph asked as he slipped out of the bathroom, his hair neatly combed and she was sure he had minty, fresh breath.

"Yeah," she put on the smile she had used for so many guys before, the fake one that pretended she was okay, but really wasn't. Dolph didn't notice because his back was to her, but hoped if he was looking at her, he'd see it.

Or maybe he just didn't care anymore.

Stephanie packed up her things for the arena. She was heading over earlier than everyone else, and Chris would follow with the kids. He was leaving tomorrow to do some press for his new show, but since the show was in Tampa tonight, he wanted to be there. He would fly to California tomorrow. Chris walked into her office with Kensington on his hip, watching Stephanie get ready.

"Hey, I thought you said you were leaving already," Chris told her.

"I was," Stephanie said, "but I wanted to make sure I had everything. You know what you're doing today, right?"

"Um, yes, I think I can find the way to the arena on my own," Chris told her, "I'm going to pick up Flynn from preschool, go to lunch with my girls, pick up Sawyer from school, then we're heading over to you."

"Just making sure," she came around her desk and gave Kensington a kiss on the cheek before she pecked Chris on the lips. "I'm booked solid today, I think it's because we're pretty much in WrestleMania season." She tickled Kensington a little when she said that, which made her baby giggle and bury her face in Chris's shoulder.

"Your mommy always gets happier around WrestleMania time," Chris pretended to whisper to Kensington. "You'll soon find out how crazy she gets too."

"No, Mommy no cray," Kensington responded.

"See, she knows the truth," Stephanie smirked at Chris. "The Rumble is just around the corner, and then from there, it's WrestleMania time, and it's going to be great, and everything is going to go so well, and I'm in charge, and it'll be spectacular, even if you aren't there."

"I never said I wouldn't be there, I plan to be there."

"Yes, backstage," Stephanie stuck her tongue out, "just like yesterday when you tweeted that you were so excited about Raw in Tampa, you _know_ a lot of people who follow you don't get your sarcasm, right? So there are going to be a ton of disappointed people when you don't show your face."

"But I will be _there_," he pointed out, "so they can't call me a liar, I just never said I would actually _go_ out there. And who knows, I may just show up when you least expect it, you've never expected me back either of the times I came back, did you? No, no, you didn't."

"There's no return videos."

"Maybe I won't use one this time," Chris said, "I really think that would be the best way to show back up. I think I'll just show up one night, just walk out there. I mean, I can find ways to do that without letting you know."

"I know you can, but I hope you won't," Stephanie told him. She wanted Chris around, sure, but she didn't want him to feel forced to come back. She was beyond that point now. Chris could feel free to pursue what he wanted, and she wasn't going to feel threatened by it. It would be nice if you made an appearance next week, but I won't hold my breath."

Chris pinched her nose then kissed her, "Maybe you should, it'll come true faster."

"God, you're such a tease, even to me," she said, "and now I'm going to be late. I've got meetings up until show time!"

"With who? Who is in such desperate need to see you?"

"Well, AJ for one, she called me earlier asking if we could talk, I figure hers is not business-related, not from her tone. She's upset about something."

"I would be too if I had all that crap dumped on me, we're positive it wasn't actually—"

"It was just mud," Stephanie confirmed. "Believe me, there are some production people who are going to get an earful from me. Just because I miss one week of work..."

"Oh, about that, thanks for being so cool with changing our plans last second, it's just with the guys—"

"We've already discussed this, I had fun, I like skiing, and the kids had fun with your parents, so it all worked out," she pressed her hand to his arm. "I like your friends, so I didn't mind being with them, they like me too, I hope?"

"They think you're hot, and they would all like to bang you given the chance."

"If the price is right…"

"You filthy, dirty, disgusting…"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, ho," Stephanie told him, "with an h and an o, not h-o-e because that's not even how you spell it. Anyways, no time for bantering, after AJ, I have to meet with Rocky since he's back tonight, then Punk wants to talk to me about something, I think he's angry again. He's so unstable sometimes, but I have to talk to him, and again, I need to discuss that Cena thing last week, he's such a child."

"A child who brings you money."

"But a child nonetheless, even Sawyer didn't think that was funny, and he's at the height of his 'poop jokes are funny' age, so what does that tell you?"

"Our son needs a better sense of humor?"

"It means Cena is not funny, I need to meet with him too, and I'm gone, you never saw me, until you see me later," she told him, winking at him. "I love you both."

"We love you too, don't we, Kensy-bug?"

"Love you!" Kensington waved as Stephanie was out the door, heading into a day full of meetings and talks and whatever else the show was going to throw at her this week. Next week was going to be even worse with everything they had planned, but she thrived on it.

Punk paced back at forth and Britt wanted to calm him down, but she couldn't. She'd tried and failed, and now he was back to pacing. "Can't you do something?" she hissed in Heyman's direction.

"What are you, his girlfriend?" Heyman countered, giving her a derisive look.

"No," Britt sneered, "I'm a friend."

"You spend an awful lot of time with him when you claim he's just your friend," Heyman shot back at her.

"Shut up," Britt folded her arms in front of her and leaned back on the couch, diverting her eyes away from Heyman. He was right, and that bugged her. Her feelings and relationship with Punk were so undefined, and she was making no move to change that. She wasn't even sure she wanted to change that. She wasn't sure what she wanted, but Punk _had_ been her New Year's kiss, and it…wasn't horrible. That only made this entire thing even worse. She didn't know what she wanted, and Paul Heyman calling her out on that, of all people, made her skin crawl.

"Would you both try being quiet?" Punk snapped at them, "I'm thinking."

"Sorry," Heyman said, "you really should try and calm down a little."

"Paul is actually right," Britt said, sending Heyman a look, "you have a big match, don't you think you should try to calm down so you don't wear out all your energy before said match? We all can agree it's going to be brutal."

"Yeah, I can handle that," Punk said, "Britt, why did you schedule the match in the middle of the show?"

"Well, it wasn't just me, I confer with Stephanie, who _has_ to confer with Vickie, and it was agreed upon that Rock should probably get the last—"

"Do you not see the flawed logic in that?" Punk asked her. "I mean, do you see why that is the absolute worst thing you can do?"

"He's coming back—"

"And I've been here!" Punk cut her off again. "I have been here, and I've been the champion over _400_ days, over a year, the longest reign in ages, and yet, my match, this match that everyone has been waiting for is relegated to the middle of the show!"

"Phil," she said softly, "look, it's not about you—"

"But it should be! I've worked my ass of everyday for this damn company, for this belt, and this guy swoops in, probably just wanting to promote his stupid movies, and he gets to run the joint pretty much."

"You can take this up with Stephanie," Britt said meekly.

"I am, believe me, why do you think I came early. I got the memo yesterday about the schedule, and I'm going to talk to her about it, but I know what she's going to say already. He's a big star now, and I love Stephanie, don't get me wrong, shut up, Paul, I can like her, but this is BS. This whole thing is BS. They're just doing fan service at this point."

"People do like you, Phil."

"Yeah, right, they like me because I tell the truth, but then they don't even realize what the truth is. I'm so anti-everything, but you know what, they're all hypocrites, I'm actually starting to see what Chris saw in them. Oh my God, Chris and I are actually on the same page about something, the world is ending, this is disgusting."

"Are you feeling better now?" she asked.

"Better, you think this is _better_?"

"I think you need to get this all out of your system, yes," Britt told him. "I get your anger, I do, but…you know the way this business works too. You've played this game for year, you _chose_ to come back, re-sign that contract, yet…you kind of aren't holding yourself accountable because you've been playing the game, and even better than everyone."

"Excuse you?"

"I'm sorry if this is hard for you to hear, but someone has to say it," Britt told him, "and if I have to be that friend, I will do it. You play this game better than most people, Phil, and you know you do because you've held that belt for as long as you have. You've gone out there, and you've cut your promos, and you've gotten people on your side, more than you know, except I think you do know. You're on Twitter, you get the messages, you hear the people who are so gung ho about everything you say. You aren't blind. You aren't dumb or deaf or any of those things. You play this game just like the rest of them, you're just better at hiding it."

"What's your point, Britt?" he asked in exasperation.

"You're going to go out there tonight, and you're going to look good, you know you will, I know you will. You're going to figure out some way to upstage everyone because that's what _you_ do, that's how _you_ play the game."

He smirked at her, "You know me too damn well."

She grabbed his face and held it between hers. "I know you've got something cooking in your head. And we both know whatever it is, Stephanie's going to let you do it."

"You think so?"

"She loves you too," Britt winked. "I've got to go, think of something good, play the game like the master you are."

Britt left then and Heyman looked at Punk critically, "Do you have any idea what the hell you're doing there?"

Punk stared at the door, "Not a damn clue."

"Do you know what you're doing tonight?"

"Not yet, but I will."

Stephanie was just finished with setting everything on her desk when the tentative knock came to the door. AJ walked inside after Stephanie called for her, and Stephanie smiled and gestured for her to take a seat. AJ sat down across from her idol, and then just sat there. Stephanie stared at her for a long moment before clearing her throat and speaking. "What's up, AJ?"

"How did you know Chris was in love with you?"

"Well, he told me," Stephanie answered.

"How long had you been together?"

"Um, probably about a month or so, but Chris and I had known each other for years before that," Stephanie said, "what's the matter? Is everything okay with you and Dolph?"

"I thought so, but then…well, I wanted to talk about me saying I loved him because I said it…and I kind of meant it, and I know I've said it a lot, and that I kind of have a spotty track record, but this is real, this is it, and he's it, and then he told me not to worry about it," AJ sighed, her face making that worried look again. "So I don't even know what that means."

"Well, maybe he thinks that _you_ didn't mean it so he doesn't want to put the burden on you."

"But it's not like I said I didn't mean it."

"Still, it could just be that. Look, I'll admit, when you first told me about the guy, I was wary because of your spotty track record, but I've seen the way he looks at you, AJ, and it's the real deal."

"You really think so?" AJ asked. "I don't know, maybe I'm pushing too hard, I have a habit of doing that. With Daniel, it was kind of different from the others, but the others were…a lot to take in, I don't know what I'm saying."

"You're just confused, it's alright," Stephanie said, "you know, I never thought Chris could love me. For probably the first year of our relationship, I kept waiting for it to all go to hell."

"Really?" AJ asked in wonder.

"God yes," Stephanie told her, "With our history, I kept thinking, okay, when is the other shoe going to drop. When are we going to get in a huge fight or when are we going to realize we're kidding ourselves or when is he going to realize that I'm not good enough for him."

"You thought you weren't good enough! You're Stephanie McMahon!"

"Yes, and with that comes a bitchy attitude and more flaws than you can imagine. I kept thinking that there was no way Chris would ever stick with me because I'm me, and we hated each other and there was no way he could ever really love me."

"But he does."

"Yes, he does, so perhaps you're being the same way with Dolph."

"I guess it's possible," AJ tried to fight a smile, "I love him."

"I think he loves you."

"None of the other guys have ever really told that to me. They always kind of tolerated me because I hung around them."

"They weren't worth your time, but I think Dolph is, you should tell him again, see what he says," Stephanie encouraged her. "I think you'll find that what you were worried about really isn't anything you should be worried about."

"Thanks, Stephanie, I really appreciate it," AJ said, "you know, before I knew you, you were already my idol, but after knowing you, I think you reached like hero status."

Stephanie laughed, "Get out of here, AJ."

AJ left, a bounce back in her step. As soon as the door closed, it seemed to swing open again as Punk strode in, alone thankfully, and Stephanie looked up at him. "Britt already told me why you're mad, and you have every right to be, I get it."

"Then change it."

"I can't."

"Stephanie, you are _killing _me!" Punk ran his hands over his head. "Why does this guy, this guy who only comes maybe once every six months, _if that_, get more attention than I do? What the hell do I have to do around here!"

"I'm not saying it's fair, but look, I work under constrictions too. The Board is on my ass just as much as it is Vickie's. The Rock is a draw, he brings in ratings, he brings in merchandise sales, you know that's important to them. And I'm not saying I'm totally against it," Stephanie shrugged. "I'm a slave to it all, and I have to go where the money is. This is my family's company, Punk, and it is under my direction. My dad is here, yes, but seriously, I have to work where the money is, and the cross promotion with Rocky is just too much, and I know you do it too, I know you go out and you do things as well, but I'm sorry."

Punk let out an exasperated breath, "It must suck being you sometimes."

"It does, sometimes, but other times, most of the time, I'm pretty happy," she told him. "Look, if I had my way about things, Chris would have been glorified as the best thing to ever come into this company. I would have given him the world, and all my friends here would dominate and have all the titles. I would love that. But I can't do that. I have to give time to the money-makers, it's unfortunate, but I deal with the business end."

"I wish you could understand my side, and I wish I could understand yours," Punk told her, "I think I'd get it more if I did."

"I probably would too."

"We're at one of those impasses."

"Look, Rock has the end of the show, but nobody said anything about what happens right before that," Stephanie said, "go out there, say what you want, _whatever_ you want, it's the only way you'll come out feeling even the least bit satisfied, and you _are_ our champion, and you deserve that."

"This is what makes you different from your dad," Punk told her, and she smiled at that, "he wouldn't be so understanding."

"Maybe I need to be less."

"No, no, don't say that," Punk shook his head. "What if I go out and say a bunch of truths, Stephanie, are you going to hate me?"

"No, I'm not," Stephanie said, "when it comes down to it, when it comes down to the person you are…my daughter adores you, I can't hate a guy who my daughter adores."

"So as long as I'm in Flynn's good graces…"

"You're golden."

"You're friends with Rocky though."

"No, I'm _friendly_ with Rocky, but I would not consider us friends. I don't call him to talk. Chris is friends with him, but I'm not, and even then, they have this weird friendly rivalry thing going on," Stephanie shrugged, rolling her eyes, "whatever you say to him, I'm not going to hate you for it, if anything, it'll make people want to see you two wrestle even more."

"And there's the business mind again."

"It never leaves."

"Anything, right, I can say anything?"

"Within reason, you know your limits, you know what's off-limits."

"Yeah, I know," he told her, "you're kinda cool when you want to be, Steph."

Flynn laughed as she walked through the entrance, "Daddy, it's kinda silly when we don't get to go on the plane to the show, we just stayed at home!"

"Well, sometimes the show isn't going to be somewhere else, sometimes we can just drive there, like tonight," he told her as Sawyer walked beside him holding Kensington in her arms. She was in a mood where all she wanted was her brother so Chris indulged her and let Sawyer hold her while they walked inside.

"Daddy, my friend is coming too, right?" Flynn asked.

"Uh huh, you get to watch the show from the audience tonight with your friends, excited?"

"Yup, I'm gonna show him all my friends, can I, Daddy?" Flynn asked, tugging on his hand.

"Of course you can, you can show your friend everything and everyone when he and his daddy come to see you," Chris told her and she skipped her steps.

"You know what would be even better, Dad?" Sawyer said as he pulled his hair away from Kensington's prying hands.

"What?"

"If you were there to wrestle."

"Ooh!" Flynn cooed, "Daddy, could you do that? I wanna see that."

"Sorry, kiddos, not going to happen tonight, but Punk is going to be wrestling," he said, "and you guys like him."

"Oh, I do, he's my friend," Flynn nodded. "But I still like you better, Daddy. You're still the best in the world."

"Daddy, you best," Kensington added.

"I'm certainly feeling the love," he told them as they made their way inside and down to Stephanie's office. Chris opened the door and saw Rocky was sitting there talking with Stephanie about something. "My arch-nemesis."

"Now is that any way to talk about your wife?" Rocky said.

"I put her in the former arch-nemesis pile a _long_ time ago," Chris winked at his wife. "You on the other hand…"

"You can't handle my fame, I get it, it's alright, Mr. Big Show Metal Guy," Rocky joked with him.

"You wish you could sing like me," Chris jested back.

"Hi, Mr. Rock," Sawyer said as he put his little sister down on the ground. She whined and clung to his leg so he picked her up again, hefting her into his arms. She happily banded her arms around his neck, not letting him go. "Kensy, you're gonna have to let go of me sometime."

"Uh uh," Kensington shook her head.

"Your kids keep getting older, what is _with_ that?" Rock asked.

"It's called time."

"Dwayne was just leaving," Stephanie said, "I was just welcoming him back, letting him know what was going on now."

"Okay," Chris said, walking over and shaking Rocky's hand. Flynn stuck hers out to shake too and Rocky obliged.

"So what's the plan with you two? What have you got going on now? Who are you trying to overthrow or screw over?" Rocky looked between the two of them.

"Nobody," Stephanie shrugged, "we don't have anything planned.

"Now I know that's crap," Rocky said, "the two of you always have something cooking."

"No, actually we don't," Chris said, "there's nothing really going on. We're just showing up, hanging out, Stephanie does her work, kicks some asses around here while I watch, totally impressed by my wife, and then we go home."

"Okay, sure," Rocky said, "something is going down, I'll figure it out."

"Really, there's nothing," Stephanie said, "trust us."

"Not on your life," Rocky said, "I'll leave you two alone now, but there's something going on."

"If you say so, man," Chris shook his head as he took the seat Rocky vacated. The kids were already finding something else to do, grabbing their things from their backpacks. "So…meetings, how did they go?"

"All in all, successful."

AJ didn't get to talk to Dolph before the show. It was like he was avoiding her, but she didn't want to jump to conclusions. That was the old her, that was the her before with Daniel, and Punk, and Kane, and Cena. She would constantly just jump to conclusions about their relationships, and that had her once ending up in a wedding dress. So she wasn't going to just go and assume that Dolph was avoiding her somehow. He probably just wanted to catch up with people. Yeah, that was probably it. It wasn't because he now hated her.

She was standing there, thinking about where to go next when she heard someone behind her making a weird sound, it sounded like…sniffing? She turned around abruptly and saw Cena standing there. "I thought I could smell you from a mile away."

AJ huffed and started walking away. She didn't want to deal with him. She was just turning a corner when a hand slipped into hers. She was startled until she turned and saw it was Dolph. She smiled in relief, hand holding was a good sign. It had to be a good sign, unless it was just him trying to be nice because he hated her now. Maybe he was lulling her into a false sense of security.

"Babe? Jeannie?"

AJ shook free from her thoughts and saw that Dolph had been trying to talk to her for at least a few minutes, "Sorry, was thinking."

"About?" he asked.

"Nothing," she told him, "nothing, just John was being a jerk just because you found me."

Dolph stopped in his tracks and turned around so he was facing her. "What did he do?"

"Just being a jerk, he was just being a jerk and sniffing me and telling me I still smelled."

"I swear, you know what, he has the top of the show, we're going out there."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"It's a great one, come on, it's starting soon."

AJ just followed Dolph, not wanting to disrupt their relationship. If she spoke up, there was always a chance he would crush her like every guy who came before him. She should just drop the love thing, there was no need to bring it up. Maybe he was right in just letting it lie. Maybe he just didn't want to hear it, and if he didn't, she should just keep it to herself.

He was certainly one to defend her and them when they went out there to berate Cena for what he'd done. What she liked about Dolph was that he let her speak her mind. He let her go out there and talk and say what she needed to say. Cena made it difficult though, taking everything for an innuendo. She didn't know what went through his mind sometimes. Why was everything so…childish with him? She skipped most places and she wasn't even as childish as he was. Dolph said he was insecure, and she was starting to believe it.

Things devolved even further when Cena wanted a match, Dolph didn't want one, but Big E suddenly found his voice and volunteered Dolph for the match. AJ's mind went into overdrive. What if Dolph blamed her? She didn't tell Big E to do that, but she was the one who brought him to the team, she could easily be to blame for a match Dolph didn't want. Dolph had no choice now, so she went down to the ring with him.

He didn't do any of his customary pre-match things because of the abruptness of the match and she was forced to sit there. She could see Chris and Stephanie's kids sitting in the audience, and she smiled over at them. Sawyer waved at her, and that made her feel a little better because it made her think of what Stephanie told her earlier. Maybe Dolph did love her, and maybe she was overreacting.

He dropped some elbows on Cena and he looked over at her, winking and drawing his fingers between her eyes and his, telling her to watch what he was doing. She smiled shyly at him. She loved him, she loved his so much. She had to help him win this match, she had to do what she could to make sure he won. It was sad that she associated him winning with his affection, but that was how it had seemed with the other guys. If they were happy, they saw no reason to find her faults, but if they were unhappy, it was her fault.

When she got the opportunity, she slapped the hell out of Cena, but the referee caught the movement out of the corner of his eye and saw her. Then he sent her and Big E away, under protest of course. This was even worse than she thought. If Dolph lost this match, surely he would blame her. As soon as she got backstage, she was like a dart, running back to the women's locker room, somewhere Dolph wouldn't dare go. She needed to clear her thoughts.

"What was that about?" Chris asked as he wrapped his arm around Stephanie's waist.

"Huh?" Stephanie asked, looking up from the monitor. "What?"

"AJ just ran out of here."

"She's having a crisis, but she'll figure it out," Stephanie said, pulling off the headphones for a moment, "she just needs to realize it."

"What?"

"That Dolph loves her."

"Oh, okay," Chris shrugged, not wanting to get into it. "I'm assuming that was the meeting between you two."

"She was worried that he didn't love her, I said he did, told her about how I didn't think you really loved me back when we first started dating, how I was waiting for it all to end, how I saw us just being there for a while, but not like long-term, no matter how much I wanted it to be."

"That's pretty heavy to lay on me," he leaned forward to kiss her neck. "What did she think?"

"Well, I had hoped it would help, but once again, seems like we're the only normal ones around here. Do you really have to go tomorrow?"

"Gotta do the circuit," Chris said.

"Yeah, I understand," Stephanie said, putting her headphones back on.

"Hey, you understand this, right? I mean, I have to do press to get people interested, it's not like I chose this."

"I know," Stephanie nodded, "I'm just getting back to work."

"Stephanie, tell me you understand," Chris looked in her eyes.

"Chris, I can tell you and tell you, but it seems like you're not going to believe me," Stephanie said, "why do you suddenly feel guilty about this? Because of what I said about you being gone so much? I told you that I understand that you have things to do and I do. That's it, end of story."

"I don't want you mad at me."

"Who's mad?" Stephanie said. "Are you _trying_ to pick a fight with me?"

"No, of course I wouldn't do that, why would I do that?" Chris asked. "I don't know, I keep worrying about it, I'm sorry. I just keep thinking, is this much too much, is it too much that I'm doing this? Should I want to go on tour again?"

"I'll tell you when it's too much," Stephanie patted his cheek, "and when it's way, way too much, I'll kick you in the groin, that's how you'll know."

"You're the best wife."

"Well, you pretty much told the world you loved making fun of my boobs yesterday so I don't know if you're the best husband."

"I said that I thought that was funny, I wasn't making fun of your boobs, I happen to like them very much. I actually liked them very much back then too. I remember you were wearing this short dress, green like camo print or something. Your hair was down, and you looked so indignant that I brought up the implants. You were so embarrassed, but you were so cute."

"I remember later that evening when you put me into the Walls of Jericho while wearing said dress."

"I wanted a peek at the goods, you can't blame me," Chris kissed her neck, tickling her skin.

"Get off of me, jackass," she giggled, "I've got work to do."

"Tonight, I want you to work on me."

"You wish."

Anything. Stephanie said he could say anything. Punk took that to heart and he said exactly what was on his mind. Was it what the people wanted to hear? No, of course it wasn't, but he was done playing their advocate. He was a winner, they were losers, and Dwayne was a loser too. It was fine for him to come back and think he was going to win the title because Punk would shut him down like he'd shut everyone else down for the past God, he couldn't even keep track anymore, that's how good he was.

He didn't need the fans to think he was a good guy. He wasn't a good guy. He was a guy who didn't play by the conventional rules. Britt was right when she said he played the game, but he didn't play by the same rules. He wasn't supposed to be champion. He wasn't supposed to be the guy the company revolved around, but yet, here he was, talking to them as the champion. The WWE "universe" as they were so blithely referred to were the ones who pretty much put the money in his pocket, but he didn't owe them his dignity.

He wasn't going to be like some of the guys who did everything they could to win the fan's approval. His approval was not measured in dance steps that he could do or imaginary friends he could conjure up, not even in the t-shirt sales. His approval was measured in how many days he got to be the champion, and in that category, he was doing pretty damn good for himself. So what if the fans didn't see him as their anti-hero anymore. He didn't want to be anyone's hero. He didn't want to come out here and find some kid, giving him a hat or a t-shirt and a shake of the hand or pat to the head. He wanted to dominate.

He was the best in the world for a reason. That reason manifested itself every day he was champion. He didn't play by their rules and he was still the best. He wasn't languishing backstage, twiddling his thumbs with nothing to do. Let those guys eat their hearts out. He was CM Punk, and his truth was not their truth. He stayed true to himself, and he never compromised, and you'd never find him doing a damn jig or hyping up some town they were at. He was never going to be that guy, and he didn't care, and the fans, whatever, the people needed to know that.

Rocky came out of course, and gave the same speech he'd been giving for years now, of course, and none of it mattered to Punk. He'd seen the way this was going. Rock was going to come in here, spout off nonsense, make up a name, use it over and over again, get the crowd to love him again, and then he'd get a Rock Bottom. He knew it all.

So when it happened, just like he thought it would, he was happy to see it. That meant Rocky was predictable, and that meant Rocky was beatable, more than beatable actually. Hell, Punk might be able to watch any of Rocky's old matches and then know exactly how their match was going to go. That might be a benefit. He wasn't going to lose to this guy, no chance. He wasn't going to lose because Rocky was better, he was going to win because Punk was the best in the world. He wasn't predictable, he was his own force, and he was going to keep his title.

He wasn't worried at all.

"You said anything," Punk told Stephanie when he got backstage. She was just standing, waiting for the kids to come backstage.

"I did," Stephanie told him.

"You mad at me?"

"No, I'm not," Stephanie told him. "Nothing I didn't expect."

"Oh, come on now, you couldn't have expected it all," Punk told her.

"I don't know, when I hear the word pipebomb, I know that I'm going to hear something pretty scathing," Stephanie said.

"I even got included!" Chris said, "I felt so special, Punk."

"You should," Punk said, "I mean, beating you felt pretty damn good."

"I'm sure it did, you drunk," Chris joked with him. "So you really hate everyone and everything, don't you?"

"Yes, not you though, you don't even work here anymore."

"Punk!" Flynn ran over to him, throwing her arms around his leg. "I saw you out there, you were kinda mean though."

"What? Me? Mean?" Punk clutched his heart. "I was mean to everyone except you and your brother and sister."

"And my friend," Flynn reminded Punk.

"Him too," Punk told her, lifting her up. "But I don't like those other fans, they don't like me the way you do."

"They don't know you."

"I thought you looked cool until you were Rock Bottomed," Sawyer added.

"Gee, thanks, after that I looked bad?"

"Just a little," Sawyer said. "But I know you're not mean."

"Man, I've got to work on my reputation around these kids of yours."

"You're a good man, CM Punk," Stephanie said, "I respect you, even if I can't do as much as I can for you."

"Thanks, now I just need to convince millions of people to feel the same way, wish me luck!"

AJ hung out in the women's locker room until the show was over. She heard from some of the other divas that Dolph was looking for her. None of them really gave her the time of day, but they at least told her he was looking for her. She asked them not to tell him where she was, and that she would find them, but she sat there, in a corner, all night long. Eventually the room emptied out and it was just her and her thoughts.

Maybe she just wasn't good enough for love. Daniel rejected her, only wanted her when he had power. Kane was…weird, and she'd kind of felt like he could be a kindred outcast spirit with her, but he'd tamped that down quickly. Punk dug the "crazy chick" until she'd overstepped her boundaries and he dumped her like a hot potato, and Cena, well, she'd found Dolph by that time, and Cena was a childish jerk. Maybe there was just nothing lovable about her.

"Hey."

AJ looked up and saw Dolph standing in the middle of the women's locker room, fully dressed, obviously showered, and with their bags with him. "Dolph?"

"I'm pretty sure I'm me, yeah," he told her. "I've been looking for you all night and nobody had seen you. I was actually getting worried. I came to this locker room four times, but they said you weren't here, did you…did you have them lie for you?"

"Yeah," AJ shrugged, "I just needed time to think."

"Seems you've been doing a lot of that lately. Have you been talking to mirrors again?"

"That's not a joke," she said, but she did smile a little bit.

"Duly noted, no mirror jokes," Dolph said. He came over to her corner and he slid down the wall to sit next to her. He bumped her shoulder with his and sat there next to her. "They will turn the lights off eventually. Are we going to sleep here tonight?"

"No, I guess not."

"Come here, you," he grabbed her by the waist and pulled her into his lap. She leaned sideways and stretched out his legs. She was so petite that she felt feather light in his lap. He wrapped his arms around her waist and leaned his chin on her shoulder. "Something has been bothering you all day. I'm not blind, Jeannie. I'm not like those other guys who didn't notice a damn thing about you. What is it?"

"I just thought you'd be mad about losing."

"Well, yeah, I'm mad about losing, but you didn't pin me so I'm not sure how that translates into me being mad at you."

"I wasn't out there, I got thrown out, it was Big E who made you have the match, and I'm the one who brought him into our little group thing—"

"And you thought I'd somehow translate that into getting mad at you," he finished for her and she nodded miserably. He studied the side of her face before pulling away from her shoulder and tilting his head so he could look at her face more head on. "Why would you think that?"

"Because it's something that would have happened to me before…I mean, when Daniel lost to Sheamus…it was because he kissed me first."

"It was because he was an idiot who couldn't pay attention to a ring bell, you had nothing to do with that. Besides, who loses in 18 seconds?"

"I shouldn't have kissed him, and then I get tossed out of your match, and you lost. You didn't even _want_ the match."

"Big E thought he'd be out there to help, and even after he was thrown out, he tried to help, it was the damn referee for not being in the ring. I would have won, and babe, I can't win every match."

"That's not all," she admitted, looking even more miserable now.

"I figured it wasn't," he waited for her to speak.

"You didn't want to talk about what I said last week, but…I love you," AJ tossed her head back as if she was trying to play it off. "I love you, Dolph Ziggler, and there it is. That's it. You didn't want to talk about it, but I did. I did want to talk about it, and I should have told you, but I do that, I move too fast, and I read too much into things, and I didn't want to say it then, but it came out, and I understand if you."

"I love you too," he told her, his voice matching hers. She stopped babbling and turned her face to him. Her look kept going between shocked and happy then almost dubious. "Do I have to do the whole name thing too? I love you, April Jeanette Lee."

"Really? I mean—"

"Yes, really, why shouldn't I?"

"Because I'm me."

"And you're awesome, babe," he told her.

She shrugged, "Nobody's ever really told me that and meant it."

"I mean it. I've been falling for you since the moment I realized you were amazing. That's why I brought you to meet my parents, I don't really do that a whole lot. So…does this mean we can get off the floor?"

"Yeah," she got up and gave him a hand, pulling him up too. He brought her closer to him, wrapping his arm around her waist and bending down so he could kiss her.

"When I steal someone's girlfriend, I make sure they're the right one."

"You're crazy."

"Wait, now _I'm_ crazy. Wow, so you just throw that word around now?"

"At you, yeah," she said seriously.

"Let's just go home, babe, I'm exhausted."

"Okay," she said, "home, that sounds nice." AJ watched as Dolph bent over to get their things, not letting her carry her bag. Instead, he threw both their bags over his shoulder and then reached his free hand towards her. She skipped to him and grabbed it tightly, letting him lead her out of the building.

She was loved.


	402. No Steph, Outrage, January 14, 2013

A/N: Where was Stephanie!? Argh, that was disappointing, but then Dolph hugged AJ, and that was like, aww! I love those two so, so much right now. Anyways, people have been torn on that, some want more AJ/Dolph, some want more Chris/Stephanie, so I tried to accommodate both.

This chapter is a little different in that I did a few flashbacks to different Raw periods based on little clips they showed, so yeah, it's a little bit of a crazy chapter. I hope you enjoy it anyways, and if you like the Dolph/AJ stuff in here, I started a new story with them called, "You Are the Ocean," so check it out if you're interested. Enjoy! :)

* * *

He'd pulled her shirt down.

She didn't know why she was still so touched with the gesture, here, days later, but she was. It was such a small moment, but it meant something to her. After he'd reciprocated her love last week, actually told her he loved her, said the words, meant them, she'd been ecstatic. But in true form, she'd also been wary. She'd been here before. She'd been in this situation, albeit, it was slightly different, but still, the situation remained the same. She was scared that any moment, he would take it all back.

She'd been proposed to by Daniel simply because she was something he couldn't have. She'd loved him, and he'd treated her like she was some trophy. Her past scars were constantly coming back to haunt her, prickling at her with thin needles, reminding her that guys had claimed their feelings before then left her like trash on the side of the road. Dolph may love her, may say the words, but she wanted to crawl into his mind and see if he was sincere.

Then he'd pull her top down. And suddenly, so many of the fears dropped away. She couldn't even really explain why it mattered to her, why such an insignificant thing for so many people meant _so much_ to her. She hadn't been embarrassed by what happened, it happened sometimes, it was a shirt, she was wearing a bra, nothing was showing, she'd worn less. She'd barely even noticed when it happened, so concentrated on winning. It was only when she walked over to him, when his arms fell around her that she really remembered to pull it down.

Except his hands found her top first. She and Dolph weren't prudes, far from it. With someone like Dolph, physicality came naturally. This was different though. His fingers ghosting across her skin made her skin feel like it was on fire, burning, scathing fire. And then he'd tugged on her shirt, just as she herself was going to adjust it, and she'd thrown her head back to look happy at her win, but she just stared at him for a long moment. It was such a long moment he had to grab her wrist and lead her towards the ropes so she could get out while he decimated Khali.

While he was going about his business making sure Big E took care of business, she stared at him lovingly. That gesture had meant the world to her, it meant that even in the smallest moments, he was thinking about her and her comfort. He, in even the smallest ways, put her first. His first instinct upon getting to her had been to pull her top down. He was by her side again soon enough, and she wanted to be close to him. She always wanted to be close to him.

"You have been staring at me like every five minutes for the past 48 hours," Dolph told her as they ate lunch. The arena was already crowded because it was such a huge show tonight. Dolph already told her he wanted to make an impact. The world would be watching, celebrating, and he wanted to make sure he was the first thing they thought of during the next 20 years of Raw. "What gives?"

"Nothing," she told him brightly, and he looked at her suspiciously, trying to figure out if she was telling him the truth or if he was lying. She seemed sincere so he gave her a crooked grin and went back to his food.

"You sure?" he asked for good measure, just in case something was bothering her. She didn't have to put up a front with him, he hoped she knew that.

"No, really, I'm fine," she grinned at him. "I am really, really fine."

"Great, I'm glad, you deserve it," he told her, raising his eyebrows a little and making her laugh. "Hey, where's Big E? I haven't seen him today."

"He said he was arriving later," AJ shrugged, "probably just bumming around Houston or something. I'm sure we'll see him later."

"I hope so, especially with that cage match I have scheduled."

"You didn't have to do that, you know," AJ told him. "I mean, I know you want John as much as I do, but it kinda, sorta, maybe seems like you did it for me."

"Of course I didn't it for you, well, partly," he said, flipping his hand up carelessly, "the other part is that he's a jackass, and I don't like him. I think that's all the reason I need to have a match with him. Besides, I need to get back at him for my loss last week."

"In a steel cage?"

"The thought of ramming his head into a steel cage is really appealing," Dolph grinned, "and maybe grinding his face back and forth against the cage. Hey, maybe you can kick him if I shove him against the cage."

She laughed, her nose scrunching up a little bit, "Well, as long as it wasn't all for me."

"No, of course not."

He was lying.

"_Stephanie, hi," Dolph said, walking into her locker room. "Are you busy?"_

"_Hey, Dolph," Stephanie said tentatively. Although she really liked AJ, she didn't know much about Dolph except that he'd been an asshole to her husband. He'd changed since then, it didn't take a genius to see it, but still, they weren't exactly close. "No, I'm not really busy."_

"_We're having fun!" Flynn said from Stephanie's lap. "Tonight is the 20 years of wrestling."_

"_Of Raw, baby girl," Stephanie corrected her._

"_Oh," Flynn frowned, "what about SmackDown?"_

"_That didn't start until later," Stephanie explained to her._

"_Oh, okay, I think I see now," Flynn nodded, "Sawa came tonight, he was 'llowed to because it's special."_

"_That's cool," Dolph said. He was definitely not used to being around kids. Most of his fans were women, not that he could blame them, he was pretty hot, and even though he had a girlfriend, it was nice to feel admired by the entirety of the female population. "Where is he?"_

"_He's with my daddy," Flynn explained, "my daddy has been here forever."_

"_Not forever, baby girl," Stephanie corrected her again, "Daddy only debuted in 1999, but that is a long time ago, so you're kind of right."_

"_Told you," Flynn said to Dolph even though he hadn't really said anything._

"_I'm sorry, she's chatty when she's happy…or sad…or mad," Stephanie kissed the crown of Flynn's head as she gazed up at Dolph, "but really, what did you need? And take a seat, geez, you standing there makes it seems like you're intimidated by me."_

"_Not at all," he said, but he was, she was the president, and while he was not exactly in awe of her, she wielded power, and she could crush him like a bug if she wanted to do so. "I just wanted to ask you a favor."_

"_A favor?" Stephanie raised an eyebrow in curiosity. She would never have expected Dolph to ask a favor of her. In fact, she always thought of him as someone who took charge of things themselves. "I guess it depends."_

"_Well, I mean, it's not hard or anything," he told her, "I just want a match against Cena tonight, that's all, and I know that you are the one in charge, and I know you help Vick schedule the matches, and I can't exactly go to her anymore."_

"_Have you talked to her since—"_

"_No," Dolph shook his head. "I don't really want to interact with her at this point." He'd dropped Vickie like a hot potato, and he didn't care what happened to her now. He knew people were giving her a hard time and she no longer had anyone to back her up, but really, it wasn't his problem anymore. She hadn't really cared about him, so why should he care about her? Was it callous? Perhaps, but he had something much better in his life now._

"_I understand, I never wanted to interact with her," Stephanie said, "you've got your match."_

"_Can you…make it a steel cage match?"_

"_Ooh," Flynn's eyes widened. "Those matches are scary! But not as scary as Hells in Cells, those are the scariest! My daddy climbed up on one and he hit Trips with a stick, but the stick had stickies on it!" _

_Dolph had to laugh because she was so enthusiastic. "Yeah, that was a pretty cool match."_

"_Daddy should have won, right, Mommy?" Flynn looked up at Stephanie._

"_Yes, I think so," Stephanie said, but then turned back to Dolph, "What's with the wanting a brutal match like that? Is it because it's the 20__th__ anniversary tonight?"_

"_Not really," Dolph said. He looked down a little as if he were embarrassed, and that was a new one for Stephanie. She had never seen Dolph embarrassed. He was brassy and cocky, and people like that didn't often get embarrassed; she should know, she was married to a guy like that. "It's because of AJ."_

"_AJ?" _

"_Yeah," he smiled a little bit, and Stephanie tried to hold in her laugh. She knew that look. That was the look of a guy who'd finally found a girl worth keeping. She was extremely familiar with the look. "John is a bastard. He cost her, her job, and with the whole anniversary thing tonight, she's kind of reminded about how she was GM, and he was just a jerk to her last week too, and I don't want to see her like that. She was _so_ upset last week…please don't tell her I told you this, and please don't tell her I'm asking for this match for her."_

"_Of course," Stephanie nodded seriously._

"_I just don't want her to think that…I just want to get John Cena in a steel cage so I can bash his head against it repeatedly. He hurt AJ. You weren't there when she was upset. You didn't see her that night, and I never want to see her like that again."_

"_You love her," Stephanie said matter-of-factly._

_Dolph nodded, "A lot. I know it seems weird that a guy like me could suddenly fall for a girl like her, and I'm not even really sure how it happened myself, but it did, and well, here we are."_

"_You have your match."_

"_Thanks, Stephanie, I really appreciate it."_

"You're staring at me again," Dolph said playfully, and AJ chewed her food and looked away. "Do I have something on my handsome face? You can tell me, or is it just because my looks are so dashing."

"No, it's…it's because you pulled my shirt down," she told him, a slight blush creeping up on her cheeks. God, he'd reduced her to blushing, she couldn't believe how this man made her feel. She liked real love, she liked it a whole lot.

"Pretty sure I pulled your shirt _up_ this morning," Dolph winked at her and she buried her face in her hands as she heard him chuckling. She bit her lip and tried to glare at him, but she couldn't contain her smile.

"At SmackDown, you pulled my shirt down."

"Your bra was showing," Dolph shrugged, "I didn't want anyone ogling you like that."

"See, that's just it."

"You _want_ people ogling you?" he tilted his head and furrowed his brow. "I'm going to develop jealousy issues, and I've never had those before."

"No," she dropped her voice down an octave, "that's not what I meant. I meant that…the gesture was just…unexpected."

"You expected me to leave your top down?"

"No, I expected to pull it down myself, and for you to not notice," she told him, "I expected for you to not even care."

"Why?" he asked. "Of course I cared. Your top rode up, I pulled it down. I'm not getting what the big deal is here, babe."

"It's a big deal because nobody else I've ever been with would have done that for me so unconsciously. Nobody would have even cared enough to do that," she confessed. "That's all, I just love you."

"Well, I love you too, babe," he reached across the table and squeezed her hand. "And if your top ever comes up again, I'll always pull it down for you, okay?" She laughed and swatted his hand away.

"Okay."

* * *

Chris pulled Stephanie into his side. She rested her chin on his shoulder and studied his profile. "I can't believe it's been 20 years since Raw debuted. What were you doing 20 years ago? Did you watch?"

"Did I watch? Of course I watched. The WWF was always my dream and suddenly there's a show every week, I watched because I wanted to get there," Chris told her, "I think I remember I was staying with Speewee, it was downtime for me, man, 1993, I can't remember much of it—"

"Is that because it was so long ago or because it was such a blur of chicks and partying?"

"Long ago," he told her, "but I remember just wishing I could be there, were you there?"

"Yeah, my dad wanted all of us there, he was so proud," Stephanie laughed, "He wanted to show us off, and he was strutting around like…well, like he owned the place, which I guess he did, but he was acting even crazier than he does now. He wanted everything to be perfect, and he would settle for nothing less."

"And you?"

"I was 16, the _last_ place I wanted to be was there," Stephanie said, "but my dad said it's a huge deal, and we had to put up a united front. I hated going back then."

Chris looked at her as she shuddered, "Okay, what's with that reaction?"

"I got hit on all the time," Stephanie told him. "Every wrestler wanted to try and date me, even though I was a minor. It was gross. They were gross."

"I would have tried to hit on you," he told her with a smirk.

"Well, you I might have made an exception for, but only because I probably would have thought you the hottest guy ever…even with the bleached blonde hair, the earrings, and the fringed tights," Stephanie pressed her lips to his.

"Mommy, you gotta watch the show because it's an annibersary!" Flynn sighed in exasperation. She looked to her left and saw that Kensington was whispering in Sawyer's ear. "Sawa, Kensy, you gotta watch too!"

"My father would have _loved_ having her back then," Stephanie whispered to Chris. "He would have used her to get everyone in line. I have a feeling she would have been an asset."

"If any guy here hits on her or Kensy when they're 16, I will kill them," Chris told her.

"Daddy, it's starting, and Grandpa is talking," Flynn said through gritted teeth.

"God, sorry," Chris told her, "if I want to talk to your mother, I can talk to her."

"But not while wrestling is on," Flynn whined. "Daddy, since it's the annibersary, you have to go out there and talk."

"I do?"

"Uh huh, it's the law."

"Where did you learn about the law?"

"At school we talked about rules and rules that are big are laws, and since you are a wrestler, you have to do the law, which is the rule, which is that you have talk because I said so," Flynn told him very seriously, nodding her head solemnly as she spoke.

"I don't think so, Flutterby, I'm not under contract, plus, there's lots of stuff going on tonight, and I don't think I'd have time to talk," Chris shrugged. Flynn shook her head and went back to watching.

"Mommy, how about you?"

"I want to watch with you guys," Stephanie said, "that's why we're here, so we can celebrate together."

"20 years tonight, eight years tomorrow," Chris kissed down Stephanie's jaw. "That's really quite the milestone, you know, we're getting closer and closer to the big 1-0. So what exactly are we doing tomorrow?"

"Going away forever, leaving the kids, saying to hell with it? At least that's what you have me thinking we're going to do."

"Perhaps," he told her, "so, the last eight years, they've been pretty good, haven't they? I mean, you're happy, right?"

"Of course I am," Stephanie said, "I'm at work."

"I hate you," he told her, pulling her into his lap as Flynn shushed them. "Shush to you too!"

"Grandpa is out there, Sawa, tell them!"

"She wants to watch," Sawyer said, "being loud while other people are doing things is rude."

"Man, what a bunch of lame-os," Chris said, standing up and hefting Stephanie into his arms. "We're just going to go over here now, thank you very much." He brought Stephanie over to her desk, sitting her top of it and standing between his legs, "finally, we can talk freely without those things over there."

"Yes, because they're such a nuisance," she cupped his face and brought it down to hers so she could kiss him. "I'm glad though, about tonight, about the 20 year thing, about Raw being a thing that has been existing."

"You do love what you do, and I can't imagine you anywhere else, I mean, you're not cut out to be a housewife, but if you weren't here, I think you would be in some other high profile job, something that is befitting of you, something like…ruler of the world."

"I still want to be that when I grow up," she winked at him. "But Raw gave me you."

"Pretty sure that we got together at a SmackDown," Chris joked with her, rubbing his chin. "I mean, ten years ago is easier to remember than twenty."

"We did, but you debuted on a Raw," Stephanie reminded him. "And you wanted to be on the best show, and you always strived to be here, so…it gave me you, and that's something I'll always be grateful for."

"I'm grateful for you too," Chris told her, kissing her again.

"What was it like for you?" Stephanie asked.

"What was what for me?"

"Your debut, you've never really told me what it was like."

"You were there," Chris said, "you saw me out there, you knew what happened."

"Not like that, I mean, what was it like for you? What were you feeling?" Stephanie asked. "I don't even remember if I met up with you that night, I know we'd met before, but did I even wish you luck or anything?"

"I think you were too caught up with your relationship problems at the time," Chris said, "I think that was when Shane was still against your relationship with Test. Thank God he got all that out of his system, I would hate it if he tried to block my way to you."

"I never would have let him. I'm sorry I never said good luck or anything."

"Yes, because _that_ would have made a difference."

"You never know! You could have thanked me, we'd have an awkward silence, and then we'd start making out, and then I would never let you go," Stephanie fisted Chris's shirt right at his chest and pulled him towards her.

"You were with someone at the time."

"If I had known you, how could I have resisted you?"

"The same way you did the two years after that."

"But then I was a goner…can you please just be romantic with me?" she wondered.

"Oh okay, yes, we would have fallen in love on the spot."

"_Make your mark, Jericho, just make your mark," he muttered to himself. "This is your time. You're going to go out there and you're going to change this show forever."_

_He wished now that he didn't have his own dressing room. Vince wanted to keep him a secret though, so he was in a private locker room away from everyone else. He was a coup, that's what Vince told him. He'd never been referred to as a coup before nor had he ever been considered one. When he'd sighed from ECW to WCW, he'd had promises up the yin-yang, but never had he been a coup. Now, with the ratings war raging with WCW, he was considered a major factor. Vince made some big promises, and he hoped to fulfill them. He took a deep breath and tilted his head back against the couch he was on._

_He wrung his hands a little bit as he stared at the ceiling. He knew he was good enough to do this, and Vince told him that he had to make an impact. He'd looked at the schedule and Rock was given some ring time in the middle of the show. That's where he'd decided to make his move. He'd thought about what he was going to say about a million times, so many times it sounded rehearsed, but he knew once he was out there, the words would flow._

_The Rock was the biggest star in the company. He was the guy you had to go after. If Chris wanted to go to the top, Rock was one of the guys that he had to go through, him, Austin, Undertaker, they were all guys that stood in Chris's way. They were all huge stars, but he wanted to be a huge star now. He wanted to be the one that everyone chased. That was his goal here in the WWF. _

_By the time Rock went out there, Chris's hands were shaking. He kept wiping them against his pants, but that did nothing to help. Maybe if he were wearing jeans or something, but no, he'd decided the only way to be flashy was to dress flashy. He looked down at his shirt, maybe he went _too_ flashy. No, there was no such thing. He had a persona he wanted to project. He had to look the part. He bounced on his heels a little bit as other people stared, some eyes widening as they saw who it was._

"_Hey, you're Chris Jericho."_

_Chris turned around. "And you're Triple H."_

"_Yeah," Hunter sized him up. "Good luck out there, if you ever need anything, feel free to ask me."_

"_Thanks," Chris said, but he was too nervous to carry on the conversation so he just nodded and turned around as Hunter wisely left. Guy seemed kind of nice. He licked his lips as Chris heard the countdown clock start its final descent. He glanced at Vince, who was sitting at the production table with his daughter, who was looking over something and didn't look up. Vince gave him a thumbs up, and suddenly Chris was coming through the curtain as the crowd cheered._

_His words flowed. Just like he'd hoped they would, they came out, and they sounded firm and believable, and if it wasn't for the Rock cutting him off, he was sure that he'd have really gotten the crowd going. He'd watched a lot of The Rock's stuff before deciding he would be his first target in the company, and he knew Rock could verbally beat down anyone, but he'd thought himself better than that, but apparently he wasn't. Apparently he was just as susceptible to Rock's barbs as anyone else._

_By the time it was all over, he was seething. The Rock had humiliated him, but he was not deterred. This was only the beginning, and yes, Rock got the better of him this evening, but this was only the first of many evenings. He could do this. Going out there and proving everyone wrong, that was his bread and butter._

_He was going to make it to the top if it was the last thing he did._

* * *

"Dad?" Sawyer asked, handing over Kensington to his father. Stephanie had had to go attend to Eve. Her quitting had come out of nowhere, and Stephanie was trying to find out what the hell was actually going on, leaving Chris with Sawyer and Kensington. Flynn insisted she go with Stephanie because she wanted to see Sheamus.

"Hey, Kensy-bug, you have to give Sawyer a break," Chris kissed his daughter's cheek. She'd been very clingy with Sawyer for the past week, but sometimes the kid needed a break. "What's up, kid?"

"Dad, what was your favorite Raw thing? Cause they showed you with Mr. Barker, but you weren't happy that night, and then they showed you when you were saying all your things that you say, like 'Welcome to Raw is Jericho,' but is that your favorite? What was your favorite time?"

"Wow, I'm not sure," Chris said, "I've done so much, maybe it was putting Shawn through a TV, that was pretty fun, I liked that."

"What about you and Mommy?"

"What about us?"

"What was your favorite thing with her? I know you guys did a lot of stuff with each other before I was born, what was your favorite?"

"I'm not sure I had a favorite."

"Then what one do you like? Did you like Mommy? I know you said you hated her, but you didn't really, did you?"

"No, I did, in fact, there was this one time…"

_Chris cackled, actually cackled, when he licked the pie off his fingers. He was waiting for Stephanie to come out of the bathroom she'd been in for the last fifteen minutes. He was not going to miss a second of this. The satisfying splat of the banana cream pie in her face was still ringing in his ears. After all the grief she'd been giving him over the past weeks, the guys she'd commissioned to beat him up, this was just the payback he needed._

_He smirked to himself as he thought about how confused she'd been, how disgusted she'd been by those gorillas. She hadn't seen it coming in the slightest, but she took it like a champ, other than the screaming, crying, and throwing a hissy fit. She was just too easy a target, especially since her husband was gone. Although now, with her owning ECW and her brother owning WCW, she had a whole arsenal of men to fight him, but none of them had even made a dent thus far. She was pathetic and so was her company. She could keep sending whomever she wanted, he would gladly take all comers. Chris suspected Stephanie too would take all comers._

_Did he really think her a slut? Well, she certainly didn't help her image with the way she acted. The rumors were always abound about her, but he didn't care about her personal life. She could be doing the entire locker room for all he cared. As long as she kept her skanky hands off him, he was fine with it. The door finally swung open and Stephanie stepped out into the hallway, still drying her hands with a paper towel. Her hair was damp and pulled back into a ponytail he suspected she'd taken out and put back in because her hair wasn't straight anymore, but slightly curling._

_Her dress was soaked through from her wiping her shirt free of whipped cream, and her makeup was completely gone. If Chris didn't know what a bitch she was, he might fight her beautiful in this natural state, but her ugly personality made everything else about her ugly too. "Did it taste good?" he asked smugly._

_Stephanie's head shot up, even her eye makeup hadn't survived. Her eyes turned a smoky gray, and she turned on him like an angry hawk seeking its prey. "How…dare…you!"_

"_How dare I what? You were looking hungry, I thought you might like some dessert, plus, it was a consolation gift for not getting the Rock on your show," he shrugged._

"_I'm going to get you back for this," she poked him in the chest with her finger. "You think you're so slick, Chris Jericho, but you're nothing, do you hear me, you are _nothing_! You have to resort to petty jokes and pranks to even get your name out there, but where are your WWE titles, huh? Isn't that what you wanted, but where are they? Oh, that's right, you'd rather be throwing pies in my face!"_

_Chris sucked at his teeth for a moment. She'd struck a nerve, but he wasn't about to let her know it. "Well, I'd rather be pulling jokes and pranks than be one of your little boy toys, how many are you working on right now, Steph, five, six…hundred?"_

"_Why so obsessed with who I may or may not sleep with?" Stephanie smirked. "You wishing it was you?"_

_He guffawed, "I wouldn't want to catch the stew of diseases I'm sure are partying in your panties right now."_

"_Like I'd let you anywhere near me anyways," she countered, "I'm sure your hand would be very upset if you were to find a real woman."_

"_Are there any around here? I don't see any in the vicinity," he told her, "just filthy—"_

"_Don't you dare!" Stephanie spat at him._

"_Dirty," he told her, nodding his head._

"_Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!"_

"_Disgusting…"_

"_You're a jackass!"_

"_Brutal…"_

"_I will kick you in the crotch!"_

"_Skanky…"_

"_Stop it!"_

"_Bottom-feeding, trash bag…ho!" he finished, giving her a wide grin._

"_I hate you! I hope you fall off a cliff, you're the worst, Chris Jericho, if I never see you again, it'll be too soon!" she stomped off to the sounds of Chris's laughter._

Sawyer laughed, "Daddy, you were so silly with Mommy, you loved her, but you just didn't know it because you thought you had to be mean because Mommy didn't work for you anymore."

"Well, she was kind of mean to me first."

"But you don't have to be mean back, that just makes everyone in the world mean," he explained, proving once again how much better a person Sawyer was than pretty much everyone Chris had ever met.

"You think that, you always think that, okay, I love that about you," Chris told him. "I will always love that about you."

* * *

"Oh my God," Lita draped her arms over Edge's shoulders. "Look at us, what am I wearing!"

"The sexiest thing I've ever seen you wear," Edge told her, pulling her arms down so he could kiss her cheek. "And I've seen you in lingerie. You looked smoking hot that day, how come you don't wear stuff like that anymore."

"Because I have you now, I don't have to impress you," she told him, coming around the couch and snuggling up next to him, "what about what you're wearing, cowboy?"

"I looked great, you have no taste," Edge told her, wrapping his arm around her. "God, I can't believe we did that. I can't believe we were on the verge of getting married to each other. How crazy is that? I mean, I'm not even ready to get married right now, and yet then, I was like, sure, let's do this!"

"We were impulsive then, whether you like to admit it or not, we've matured since then," Lita told him. She loved what they were now. Back then, they were still riding high from their affair. Everything was wrong and bad, and they reveled in it. The both of them had lived on such a straight and narrow, and just to be bad and own it, they both needed it at that time.

Of course, that couldn't be sustained. Relationships like that didn't work. They eventually broke up, he eventually married Vickie, and through a twist of fate (no pun intended) they'd found their way back to one another. They'd been together for years now, and they had their groove. They were happy with one another, they loved one another, and they understood one another. Their relationship now was based on mutual trust and love, and those people on the screen had none of that.

"Slightly, maybe," Edge gave in. "I like us better now."

"I do too."

"You know, I think it was a Raw the first time we—"

"Really?" she mused to herself, thinking back to a time she didn't like thinking about. She'd hurt Matt, someone she'd loved dearly, and she didn't relish in it. If she could go back and do things differently, the first place she'd go was that night when she and Edge gave in to one another. She didn't regret being with Edge, but it should have been under better circumstances. It should not have been the way it was.

"_Can I walk you to your car?" Edge asked._

"_You're being nice to me now?" she laughed, referencing their troubled past._

"_Well, you're not trying to jerk me off a ladder, so I figured I could be nice," he smiled at her as he took her bag. She returned his smile with one of her own. They walked quietly towards the parking lot. "Besides, most everyone is gone right now, and it's not great to walk out there alone. You never know what fans are still hanging around."_

"_You're right," she said, "it was a good show tonight, huh?"_

"_Yeah, I had fun, like I always do," he told her._

"_How are you and your brother?"_

"_Oh, you know, same old, same old, we love each other, we hate each other, we're brothers, it's what we do. So…uh, how's Matt?"_

"_Good, good, he's recovering well."_

"_That's good to hear."_

"_Yeah, it is," she responded. They stayed quiet again until they reached her car. "Well, this is me."_

"_So it is," Edge said, then laughed at himself, "okay, that sounded a little ridiculous."_

"_A little, so um, what are you doing now?"_

"_Nothing, you?"_

"_Nothing, did you want to go grab a bite?"_

"_Yeah, sure, I'd like that."_

"And then we ended up sleeping together, remind me again how that happened?"

"You had too much coffee," he answered her, "and you couldn't resist my charms, still can't. I put you under my spell, and you can't break free."

"I wouldn't want to," she said, snuggling up to him a little bit more. "I know we said we don't wan to get married, that we're happy the way we are, but…would you ever really consider it, somewhere down the line?"

"Sure, I mean, we can't rule it out, we're _in_ a committed relationship," Edge shrugged, "if it's what you wanted, and what I wanted, I would go through with it. But I don't feel the need to actually declare it in front of the world, as long as you know it, I'm good."

"Me too, but…well, if we do, remind me to find a better dress."

* * *

Kensington looked between the screen and her mother then she looked back at the screen. "Mommy, monster!" she pointed to the screen and then turned wide, stricken eyes towards Stephanie. Chris snorted as he tried to hold in his laughter.

"Kensy, I was very, very angry," Stephanie said.

"You're the scariest," Sawyer shuddered, "Mommy, I've _never_ seen you that mad, not even when Flynnie was going to do the Lionsault off the couch."

"Well, that was a very…dark time in my life," Stephanie said, "I was just…I was just angry."

"Mommy, how come you wanted to marry Trips again?" Flynn asked. "Didn't you love Daddy?"

"No," Stephanie laughed then off of everyone's looks, "I just didn't know Daddy was a good guy then, but I was going to learn soon. Because soon after that, Daddy offered to be my business partner, and that's when I fell in love with him."

"Then you had us!" Sawyer said.

"That came a little later."

"How come you never had any kids with Trips?" Sawyer asked. "You have us with Daddy."

"It just wasn't in the cards with me and Hunter," Stephanie shook her head wistfully, thinking back to that wedding, how her life and everything else seemed to be falling apart.

_She felt alone. Everyone backstage was staring at her like she was a wounded animal. Nobody talked to her, nobody wanted to talk to her. They all hated her for various reasons. She was used to it though. Ever since she'd married Hunter, she'd always gotten those derisive stares. It was different now because she was utterly broken and humiliated. Hunter had done that to her, had broken her. She didn't know why she'd thought this fake pregnancy was a good idea._

_She just wanted…she didn't even know. Everything with Hunter was abnormal. They were not a good relationship, and they never had been. Oh, yeah, sure, it'd been fun and games for a while, but so much of that was an illusion. They barely knew each other then, skipping all the important parts of a relationship, and trying to be normal after that. It didn't work, they didn't work, but she loved him, and she wanted him to love her back too, love all of her._

_A baby was not the right way to go, and deep down, she knew that it would backfire, and maybe she wanted that to happen, maybe subconsciously she'd sabotaged herself. She just wanted…normalcy. She ripped the veil from her hair, her curls tousled and unkempt. She threw the damn thing away, not caring where it landed. Let some other poor sap pick it up. She wanted to get out of this dress, out of this arena, out of this whole damn state. She wanted to go home, curl up on the couch, and lament the end of her marriage._

_Who would want her now? She was tainted, and everyone knew the lengths she'd go to, to get what she wanted. No man would ever look at her without seeing what she'd done with Hunter. Maybe she just wasn't meant to find a guy to be happy with. She'd been so happy with Test, but Hunter was so enticing. His words, his persuasiveness, she'd bought into it all. She'd put all her faith in him, and now, now her faith was shaken, broken._

"_What the hell are you staring at?" Stephanie sneered as she saw Chris Jericho looking at her from where he was leaning against a wall. Why was it this damn man always seemed to show up when she least wanted him to? _

"_I'm just standing here."_

"_Come to laugh at me?" she wondered. "I bet this is your dream come true. Stephanie McMahon gets humiliated in front of the world. I'm sure if you would have known, you would have gotten a front row seat to this."_

"_I never said that."_

"_Oh, give it up, Jericho, I know you hate me, everyone knows you hate me, you've_ always_ hated me, ever since I made you a co-IC champion—"_

"_Hey, it wasn't then that I hated you—"_

"_Yeah, right," she scoffed, "don't act like that wasn't the best thing you've ever seen happen on Raw. So go ahead, kick me while I'm down, you might as well, I mean, what else is there?"_

"_Stephanie—" His voice actually sounded sympathetic and that only angered her more._

"_God, you're pathetic," Stephanie told him, "you know what, you're even worse than me because nobody believes you as the champion. Nobody thinks you're worthy of those two damn titles. You're not going to keep them, if you think you are, you're so stupid! Nobody thinks you can handle the belts, it was a fluke that you won!"_

"_Are you finished?" he asked her._

"_Yeah, whatever," she told him._

"_Do you feel better now?" he wondered, and her eyes widened at the question. Feel better? _Feel better_? What the hell was he talking about, feel better? She'd just been dumped by her husband, how in the world would she feel better!_

"_What!"_

"_I mean, you know, you obviously want to take all your frustrations out on someone, and well, I'm me, and since you hate me, I guess I was an easy target."_

"_You…you deliberately sought me out so I would yell at you so I would feel better?"_

"_Who knows?" he shrugged._

"_But…but why would you do that?" she asked. "What's your angle here, Jericho?"_

"_Why does there always have to be an angle with you?" Chris wondered. "Why are you so…like the way you are?"_

"_Well, why are you like the way _you_ are?" she wondered. "You know what, never-mind, I have a headache and I want to go home. I'll see you around, Chris."_

"_Later, Stephanie."_

"You liked her!" Flynn yelled. "You liked Mommy!"

"Did you?" Stephanie asked.

"Did I what?" Chris asked.

"Do that on purpose? Did you actually wait for me so you could take the brunt of my anger?" she asked, studying her husband's face. Was he something more to her even before she knew it? She could remember the show right before Christmas, the night where she'd tried to give her father a gift. She'd seen Chris that night, and she'd expected a barrage of insults, but instead, he'd simply looked at her, taken aback, and left, nary a nasty word on his lips.

"The world may never know," he shrugged.

"You did, didn't you? You saw I was hurting, and you wanted to help me," she told him.

"I saw an opportunity when Hunter was out of the picture to maybe befriend you and use information for you."

"No, no, you loved me."

"Wow, way to jump to that conclusion."

"Okay, okay, you didn't hate me," she amended her statement.

"You liked her, Dad," Sawyer said knowingly.

"Uh huh," Kensington added.

"Me too!" Flynn said.

"Maybe a little," Chris said, leaning in to give her a peck on the lips. "But I'm only saying it because there's no way I can deny it the day before our 8 year anniversary."

"Happy Early Anniversary."

* * *

AJ felt her emotions overwhelm her as she thought about everything she'd given up for John Cena. He'd been so kind at first, saying he'd take care of everything, saying he would take care of _her_. She'd believed him, how stupid could she have been, why did she give up everything for him? The General Manager job had been a dream job, an absolute dream. She'd worked with Stephanie McMahon, her idol, but it'd been ripped away from her just as quickly as it was given.

Suddenly, arms were around her, comforting her, and they were the only arms she ever needed. Dolph was gently holding her, and she could feel his chin on her head. He was her anchor when things seemed too rough to handle. He was the one who held her together when she felt herself slowly breaking apart. She loved him so furiously that he drowned out any other man who came before him. She rubbed her face into his shirt as he spoke to the camera, spoke to John Cena, vowing revenge on him, vowing to make sure that he gave everyone a moment to remember. And it was for her, he was doing these things for her. All the other men (and she needed to stop comparing) said they'd help and never really did. Dolph was different, so different.

"_If it isn't what the trash man—" Dolph stopped mid-sentence as he looked at a weepy AJ. "Oh, um, sorry…I didn't mean to…"_

"_It's not you," AJ said morosely, "so don't flatter yourself." Dolph hated to see a girl cry, it was like the worst torture in the world. He slid into the booth next to her. "What are you doing?"_

"_I'm being a gentleman, what does it look like I'm doing?" he asked uncomfortably._

"_What, so you can take this information back to Vickie? So on Raw next week she can use it against me, more 'evidence' for her?"_

"_No, I wouldn't do that," he told her sincerely. "You're upset, and I know you've been upset with me especially, sort of, with Vickie, but I'm with her, not like _with_ her, but I'm with her. I just know that you look upset, and I'm not the type of guy who will kick a girl while she's down."_

"_Yes, you are," she told him, "you're _exactly_ that!"_

"_Okay, I'm sorry, I'll rephrase it, I'm a jackass at work because it works for me, it distinguishes me, but here, I'm just Dolph, and I'm just sitting here trying to make you feel better. If you want to talk about it, I listen pretty well, not great at the advice for chicks thing, but I'm good at listening."_

"_I thought he cared," AJ said. "I thought he cared about me, but he didn't, he doesn't. He's just like the rest of them."_

"_The rest of the guys?"_

"_You make fun of me," AJ told him, "but have you ever stopped to think that I'm not just some slut going around kissing everyone. Sometimes I just don't want to be lonely, and yeah, I'm probably not going about this the right way, but…they're there. When you haven't had someone in so long, the littlest bit of attention is like feeding bread to a starving man. I didn't have a lot growing up, maybe I'm just screwed up, but there it is, I'm lonely."_

"_You don't have to automatically go to some guy," he told her._

"_I know, I just liked feeling special. They all made me feel special for a while, and I liked it, I still do," she laughed, "which is why I'm pathetically sitting here with you."_

"_I don't think you're pathetic," Dolph told her, "I haven't looked at it from your perspective."_

"_They hurt me, in their own ways, and I never tried to do anything to them, I never thought…you know, it's stupid, I'm sorry, I'm going to go."_

_Dolph grabbed her hand, "No, please stay, come on, you haven't even let me buy you a coffee."_

"_You're going to buy me a coffee?"_

"_Well, if we're going to sort through your many, _many_ issues, we're going to need a few cups."_

He lost and she couldn't help him. He did things like pull her shirt down, and she couldn't even help him win a match. She sat on top of the cage, feeling like the loneliest person in the entire world, and she felt helpless. What was she to him? She was useless to him. She should have climbed sooner, faster, she should have been stronger. But no, she'd had to watch him lose, and not even Big E could help.

"AJ, babe, come on down," Dolph called up to her weakly. He was hurting because of her. He wanted a steel cage to hurt Cena because of her. She was slowly breaking him. The crazy thoughts overtook her brain and she suddenly felt a tugging on her foot. She looked down and saw Dolph standing on the rope, tugging at her foot. "Can you get down?"

"What are you doing?" she asked him. "You're tired from your match!"

"Well, I don't want to have to come up there and get you, so can you come down? Do I have to catch you?" he threw her a wicked smile, and how could he smile at her when he'd just lost? He was so atypical. How could he love her that much?

"I'm coming," she said, tentatively climbing down as Dolph spotted her. When she was close enough, he scooped her into his arms and swept her to the floor.

"I'm starting to think you really are nuts, babe," he told her as they stepped towards the entrance to the cage.

"What?" she asked, snapping her head to his, stricken by his words.

"Because only a crazy woman would climb a cage for me," he told her, kissing her and not caring if the whole world saw. They watched him make-out with his girlfriend every week, one peck on the lips wouldn't cause a riot.

"I wanted to help you," AJ confessed.

"Just be there for me, that's all I need."

"But—"

"I love you, but I don't need you freaking me the hell out by climbing to the top of a cage," he told her, "what if you had fallen?"

"Well…"

"Exactly, I would have been so upset if you'd fallen, God, I don't even want to think about it," he shook his head as they finally got backstage. She didn't deserve him. He was way too good for her, to her. It was the little things, all the little things that made her so unworthy of his love, and yet…here he was, brushing her hair out of her face and giving her a proper kiss, telling her how worried he would have been if she'd been hurt, wanting to have matches so he could get revenge for her…

Pulling her shirt down.


	403. Too Cute For Words, January 21, 2013

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and everything! I'm so completely smitten over this Dolph/AJ storyline. I think they may become my 2nd favorite all-time WWE couple (Jericho and Stephanie are untouchable), which is huge. But I love them together, absolutely LOVE them, and my God, last night, they were so cute, I could hardly stand it. When he sang to her, I was just like, yup, I'm done with these two.

Anyways, enough gushing about them. This kind of feels like a set-up chapter, which I guess it kind of is, and it seems appropriate with the Road to WrestleMania starting soon. So I hope you enjoy the chapter, and any kind of feedback would be wonderful. :)

* * *

"I thought we weren't going to discuss work."

"I know, but we can make one exception, can't we?" Stephanie wiggled herself out of Chris's arms and turned to face him. "I was just thinking about what Rocky said when we were talking to him the other week."

"He says a lot of things, most of which don't even make sense…and yet, the crowd loves him, go figure," Chris chuckled. He was used to being on the end of Rocky's verbal sparring. They'd had some major disagreements back in the day. He was just glad he acted like an adult now, something Rocky was still trying to figure out.

"I meant what he said about us having plans," she reminded him, and Chris had to wrack his brain thinking about what she meant.

"Wait, you mean when we told him we actually didn't have anything planned? What's that got to do with anything, unless you have something going on that I don't know about. I mean, not that I totally care, but what's going on?" he asked, reaching out with his right hand to trace the line of her shoulder. This was the honeymoon they never got to take, and like newlyweds, they'd spent most of it in bed.

Since they had shows in California, and they didn't want to fly too far, they'd gone to Colorado for some skiing and snowboarding, but they never got around to doing that much. They'd spent one day on the slopes, and the rest of the time in the cabin Chris rented for the two of them for their anniversary. The cabin was large and extremely luxurious because he wasn't going to get anything less than the best for his girl.

"That's the thing, I don't have anything planned!" Stephanie told him, and he laughed. "What's so funny?"

"You act like it's a bad thing," Chris told her, "don't you think that it's actually kind of good that we aren't doing anything right now? I mean, we're not planning and plotting, it's kind of nice not to hold grudges."

"Speak for yourself with regards to grudges, I'm always holding some kind of grudge," Stephanie told him, "I just don't have anything plotted against anyone right now. And it feels kind of weird."

"Only you would feel weird if you didn't have something secret going on."

"I just don't hate anyone enough. I mean, there's Paul, of course, I hate him, I will always hate him, lingering resentment from the Alliance—"

"You are still really bitter about that, I kind of love you for that," Chris told her. She glared at him, "I'm sorry, it was just so funny to watch you during that time. It was like you were a kid in a candy store."

"Oh God," she covered her face, "why do I feel like you are going to call me a ho right now?"

"I wasn't, I was going to say you had an arsenal of wrestlers, but now that you mention it," he laughed and pulled her towards him so she was hovering on top of him. "It's been a great week, let's not ruin it by bringing things up that don't matter right now. We matter right now, the fact we've been married for eight years, that matters, but anything else, doesn't matter."

"I know, but eventually we'll have to get back to our real lives. We can't spend our lives on vacation."

"Actually, with how much your worth and how much I've managed to squirrel away—"

"Chris, you're almost worth 20 million on your own," Stephanie reminded him, "I'm not sure that qualifies as squirreled away some money anymore, you're a brand now."

"Yeah, a brand that pales in comparison to how much you're worth," Chris told her, "but we could really live the rest of our lives, and our kids could live the rest of their lives on vacation if they really wanted. Wouldn't it be nice to spend an extra day or two away from it all? We really haven't got to ski or, in my case, snowboard, the entire time we've been here."

"Your fault," she pointed out, "I would have been perfectly happy spending some time skiing. I mean, yes, it would have been murder on my knee, but I would have liked it nonetheless. There's nothing like the wind in your face."

"Can I help it if I wanted to see you naked?" he asked. "I mean, you're better than any ski slope. Your mountains are much more glorious than any I would have seen out there."

"You and our…you-ness," she teased him leaning down to kiss him then trailing her lips along his jaw line. "I don't think anyone should be born with as much charm as you have. I can't believe you booked another tour."

"This one is a ways away though," Chris said, I'm going to be here for the most part, we just have that short tour of Australia, which is so nice, and we haven't been there in such a long time—"

"I get it," Stephanie shrugged. "I do, I just hate that we have such separate things now. I was so used to the wrestling thing being both of our things and I'm still adjusting, and sometimes I get bitchy when I'm adjusting."

"I'm sorry you get bitchy too," he told her and she shoved at his chest as he laughed. "You're always welcome to come on tour with me. It's not like I'm over there having sex with a bunch of women, so you're more than welcome to come with."

"I know, I love that about you, I just love you," she told him, smiling wistfully. "I remember walking over that hill and seeing you, just standing there waiting for me. I'd been so nervous when you came into our room to talk me down, but I don't know what for. Once I saw you, it was all over. I just knew that it was perfect."

"You should have seen me," Chris chuckled. "My palms were sweating, I couldn't sit still, I couldn't think. Then I saw you, and I couldn't breathe. You were so beautiful that day, I didn't even know you could _be_ that beautiful. I think I forgot my own name."

"And now I'm old and I've had three kids so I do not look like her anymore."

"And this is where I bestow compliments on you, yes?" he told her. "Oh, Stephanie, I find you more beautiful today than I did yesterday!"

"Oh, my love, mon cœur, j'taime," Stephanie told him, falling on her back beside him and clutching at her chest.

"Very funny," he turned this time and looked down at her. "I'm going to do such bad things to you that you will forget you ever thought having a plan was a good idea."

"Bring it."

Unfortunately, the real world always beckoned, and before they knew it, California was calling for them. Their vacation couldn't last forever no matter how much they joked that it could. The Royal Rumble was this Sunday, and that was the real beginning of the Road to WrestleMania, Stephanie's favorite time of year. Stephanie wished Chris would be in the Rumble, but he had other things, so many other things she wasn't sure adding wrestling to the plate was the best idea.

"Stephanie, I've been waiting for you." Stephanie just walked into her office, and Vickie was already there. Stephanie looked around, hoping that there would be signs that Flynn and Kensington were here, but there were no signs of them. They were flying in with Trish and Christian. Christian was rehabbing, and he wanted to get in some ring time to get some of the rust off before he returned.

Stephanie looked to Chris, who just shrugged and set Stephanie's things down on her desk before disappearing from the room, presumably to see if their kids were here or to talk to someone. "What do you want, Vickie?"

"Well, I've noticed you've been trying to gain a bigger presence in the making of this show," Vickie told her, "and that concerns me."

"I'm the President of the company," she reminded the raven-haired woman with the sneer on her face.

"Oh, I'm well aware, but nowhere in those duties does it say you get to plan the show. In fact, you really shouldn't be doing that because you should have better things to do with running your company. That's why I was put in charge."

"How about you get to the point?" Stephanie hated when people beat around the bush, and she hated it even more when people did it to deliberately irk her as Vickie was doing. She'd accepted that the board put her in place, but she didn't have to like it or her. Vickie would always be a self-serving bitch, and she'd actually liked seeing her get a little comeuppance when Dolph dumped her ass for AJ.

"The point is that _I_ run this show, and _I_ am the one who plans the show. That is my duty, and you are encroaching on it. You answer to the board, yes?"

"I do, to a certain extent."

"Well, they agree that you should focus on the whole of the company, not just one show. So, I just wanted to let you know that you don't have any more say in what I do. This job is mine, not yours, and since you can't fire me because I was hired by the Board of Directors, I think it's in your best interest to stop interfering."

"Wow," Stephanie clapped her hands slowly, "it only took you how long to figure this out? I guess now that you're alone, it's easier to think?"

Vickie narrowed her eyes, "I don't know what you're talking about."

"You don't know what I'm talking about? So you don't remember that a guy you were with completely dumped your ass and upgraded?" Stephanie pointed out, knowing that this was petty, but Vickie was petty, and yes, sometimes she stooped to people's levels. She wasn't perfect and never claimed to be.

"Upgraded? Please, Dolph and I were strictly professional, and AJ is _not_ an upgrade."

"I beg to differ," Stephanie said, "I mean, maybe right before it ended, you and Dolph were professional, maybe he thought so, but I don't think you thought so, no, I don't think you thought so at all. And AJ is younger, prettier, I'm sure she's got a lot more…well, I don't have to tell you about that. It's only normal to feel bitter about it."

"I'm not bitter, and how dare you think so," Vickie glared at her, but they both knew Stephanie was right.

"So you can keep your little threats because I'm sure those are the only thing keeping you warm at night," Stephanie pouted exaggeratedly at her. "I'm sure you'll do fine with the show though, I mean, how bad can you be? I'm kind of hoping bad enough to be fired, fingers crossed."

"Just do your own job, and I'll do mine," Vickie stood up. She turned to walk out the door, but Stephanie was feeling malicious. This was her company, this was her family's company, and Vickie Guerrero had no right to tell her where she could put her stamp.

"Oh, and Vickie?" Stephanie stopped her as Vickie turned around, one hand on her hip. "You know Dolph and AJ are in love, don't you?"

Stephanie's laugh was the only thing that echoed after Vickie slammed the door shut.

"Daddy!" Flynn screamed as she ran down the hallway and straight into Chris's arms. "I missed you so much!"

"I missed you too," Chris kissed her cheek and then grunted when another pair of arms engulfed him. "I missed you too, Kensy-bug."

"I love you," Kensington told him as he picked them both up to see Trish and Christian walking over, Tilden walking beside Trish, her hand gripping her mother's as she toddled over, happy to see her friends were happy. Tilden loved spending time with Flynn and Kensington, more Kensington than Flynn though. Flynn could be kind of loud.

"Were they good or were they hellions?" Chris asked the couple.

"They're your kids, hellions of course," Christian told him, "but hey, thanks for helping me out with the ring rust thing."

"I don't know how much help I'm going to be, I've been out of the ring longer than you have," Chris told him. Christian asked him the night before if Chris would be willing to help him in the ring since Chris was one of the guys he really trusted in the ring. Chris had so much experience, and he knew how to handle a guy coming back from injury.

"Then we'll both be sluggish and bad," Christian said, "I'm not really ready to go full out, and if I ask one of those young guys, they'll probably run on me, and I'll get reinjured."

"Hey, wait a second, young guys, wow, ouch, way to hit a guy in the stomach," Chris told him as they all started walking towards Stephanie's office. "I'm not that old, thank you very much, I'm in the prime of life."

"My daddy's not old, Chrissy," Flynn added, "my grandpa, he's old. But I'm not 'pposed to tell him that because Mommy says that it will injury him."

"It'll injure his vanity," Chris corrected her.

"I don't know what that is, but I don't want my grandpa to get hurt," Flynn shrugged.

Christian laughed, "How can you argue with that logic?"

"You can't, she's really good at that," Chris said, opening Stephanie's office. She was sitting at her desk, typing away on her laptop, but her typing was aggressive and hard. Chris's eyes widened as he looked at Trish and Christian, who knew Stephanie's moods as well. "Hey, baby, we're here."

"Mommy!" Kensington screamed, squirming in Chris's embrace until he set both girls down on the ground. They both made a beeline for Stephanie, Flynn reaching her first and hugging her while Kensington threw herself across Stephanie's legs. "Mmm, Mommy."

"Hey there," Stephanie's mood instantly lightened. "There are my girls."

"Mommy, you missed _everything_!" Flynn told her. "We made ice cream in school, we _made_ it, and we got to bring some home, and everyone loved it, and Sawa said it was the best ice cream ever, Sawa liked it best!"

"Wow, did you save some for me and Daddy?" Stephanie asked.

"Yup," Flynn nodded, "and Mommy, Chrissy taught me wrestling!"

Chris and Stephanie turned questioning eyes to Christian. He held up his hands in surrender, "I just taught her the figure four leg-lock, nothing major. There was no flipping or jumping or anything. She wanted me to teach her a wrestling move, and I figured that besides the armbar, which you're an expert at, Chris, the leg-lock was easiest."

"I put it on Sawa," Flynn grinned, "he tapped out."

"She not do it me, Mommy," Kensington shook her head. "I no tap."

"That's because you're a baby, and I couldn't do it on you because you would get hurt," Flynn told her, "but if I did, you would've tapped out, Kensy."

"Uh uh," Kensington shook her head.

"Uh huh! Daddy, tell Kensy she would tap out!" Flynn said with gritted teeth.

"I think both of you need to drop the argument," he told them, getting right back into full-time Daddy mode. He'd had a nice vacation from that as well, but now it was back to being stern yet caring. "Christian, let me just put some shorts on, and we'll get in the ring."

"Cool, I'll meet you there, I have to get changed too," Christian said, shouldering his bag.

"Trish, you want to chill in here?" Stephanie asked.

"Actually, I'm going to go see Kaitlyn, congratulate her on her title win," Trish said, "I'll come by after, we can hang out for a while, while our men pretend like they're wrestlers."

"I still am one," Christian told her, "it's that guy who's not a wrestler anymore."

"I haven't retired, I'm just not active, which is really the same distinction that you are," Chris said before disappearing into the bathroom. Christian and Trish left shortly afterwards while Stephanie listened to her daughters babble on about the things they did with Trish and Christian while they were gone.

Chris came out and listened for a bit, "I think they get the talking from you."

"Please, Mr. Windbag, they get that from you," Stephanie said, "so remember that talk we had…about the plans?"

"Oh great, we're here for less than an hour and already you've found a new project. Lay it on me, you know I never deny you anything because I'm so pussy-whipped for you."

"Daddy, what's pussy-whipped?" Flynn asked and Stephanie glared at him so hard that he felt her stare go right through him like a laser. He gave her an awkward grin before turning to his eldest daughter, who was looking at him curiously.

"It just means that you do things for other people because you love them."

"Oh, so I can be—"

"We don't say that though," Stephanie's laser eyes got even worse. "We just say that we do things for people because we love them, none of the other stuff need be involved. We just don't say that word."

"Is it a bad word?" Flynn whispered loudly, as if she were being punished.

"No, but we don't like it, do we, Daddy?"

"No, we don't," Chris nodded along.

"Oh, okay," Flynn shrugged.

"Anyways," Stephanie continued. "I was just going to say that Vickie came in here and she told me she'd talked with the board, and they agreed with her in saying that I should have nothing to do with the show because I'm not General Manager, and I'm not whatever bogus title Vickie has. They said that I should focus on running the company and keep out of the show. She practically banned me from my own show."

"And you're pissed," Chris concluded.

"No, Chris, I'm not pissed, I'm angry, do you get me, _angry_. I don't take orders from her. What's next, she's actually going to ban me from the show? You know she's banning Rocky because of what he did last week?" Stephanie said. "Rocky called me, told me he tried to get in, but wasn't allowed. And I can't do a damn thing about it."

"You want to get even," Chris responded.

"I want her gone," Stephanie said, "now more than ever, but what can we do? Dolph can't be used as an asset—"

"His hair is really yellow," Flynn said, "it's even yellower than Daddy's."

"I know," Stephanie said, "he dyes it."

"He kills his hair!" Flynn's jaw dropped. How could he do that?

"No, he colors it," Stephanie explained.

"With crayons or markers?"

"Markers," Stephanie said to get Flynn to stop asking questions. "She's all by herself now, nobody to even talk with. Who the hell would want to infiltrate that, she's lucky she even got Dolph on his side—"

"So now you're a Dolph advocate?"

"He makes AJ so happy," Stephanie said, "but that doesn't help us. What can help us?"

"We can make sure she does a horrible job?"

"How?" she wondered.

"Well, I don't know, but I'm going to go fight Christian, maybe I'll think of something, I do my best thinking in the ring, that's why I was always able to make you so mad at me. I think if we were to interact in the ring again, you'd hate me so much you'd divorce me."

"No!" Flynn said. "Divorce isn't good!"

"I was joking," Chris said, "I'll see you three beauties later."

Chris found Christian already in the ring, running the ropes and lightly jogging. The arena was still empty of fans, and only the sound guys were hanging around, rigging everything up. Chris slid into the ring, and he and Christian held a couple mock matches before it became clear that Christian was struggling. That's when Chris knew they had to stop. They took a seat at the announcer's table and leaned back, catching their breath.

"I can't believe how out of form I feel," Christian said, "I've been working out, but man, there's nothing as brutal as getting back in the ring."

"I know what you mean."

"Are you kidding me, you're barely even breathing hard," Christian said, "you're probably more ready than I am."

"You were injured, you were limited, you'll be fine," Chris told him, "So Stephanie's pissed at Vickie, do you think Edge would be willing to take her back so we can take her down?"

Christian laughed, "Yeah, I don't think so. Vickie is probably just pissed because she lost her boy toy in Dolph. Speaking of which, what the hell is going on there? I know Stephanie is close with AJ, but really, Dolph and AJ?"

"They love each other," Chris shrugged, "you can't really choose who you love, man, I learned that lesson."

"Well, you know, you could drive Vickie crazy, that's what happened with her and Edge. Well, he didn't necessarily drive her crazy, but he definitely drove her to the brink of it with all the other stuff he was doing, with Alicia Fox, was that Alicia, I think it was."

"I don't know or care, but you might be onto something," Chris nodded. "If we drove her crazy somehow, she would want to leave. But if Stephanie were to interfere in the show, Vickie would find some way to retaliate."

"Well, you could go to wrestlers and ask them to make crazy demands of her or do it that way," Christian suggested. "I mean, I'm just throwing stuff out there, I don't really have a mind that works like yours or Stephanie's, you know, with the crazy plans and what not."

"You've had the best idea so far."

"So, serious question," Christian swiveled in his chair to look at Chris, "are you done with all this?"

"In case you haven't noticed, man, I kind of have a stake in the company, what with me being married into the owner's family," Chris joked. "I will always have a stake here."

"No, you know what I mean," Christian gently chastised him for trying to skirt away from the subject. "Are you done with the wrestling thing? You have that robot show coming up, which I'm sure you'll have to do some press for, and I know you've got Australia, and then you have a new tour later this year, so…this, all of this, is it in your rearview mirror?"

"It's not," Chris shook his head, "when it's time, I'll know it, but…you know what's funny? I always said to myself, I'll never be one of those guys, the ones who don't know when to hang it up. I'll never be a Flair or a Hogan, and I'm not, but it's so hard to walk away from the ring. Even just now, getting in there, it felt good and right, and don't tell Stephanie I said that because she won't push me towards the ring, but she'll have Flynn try to do that dirty work, and I have a hard enough time not giving into any of them."

"It was just a question since you have so much on your plate," Christian told him, "you could always be part-time, like Rock."

"I couldn't do that though," Chris shook his head as he stared at the ring. "I like Rocky, he's a friend, but I couldn't do that."

When Chris was here, he had to be here, body, mind, and soul. There was just no other way for him to be. When he wrestled, he was a wrestler; that was his embodiment. He didn't begrudge Rocky for having a career outside of the wrestling world like some people did. He had his own things so he couldn't judge, but his heart never left this place. And it wasn't because his wife owned the company or because his kids loved wrestling, but because _he_ loved it here. He could never truly leave, even if he did retire from the ring. Wrestling was in his blood.

"I get what you mean."

"I hate to say it, but it feels…I don't know, it's kind of wrong that he gets a title shot," Chris shrugged, "I like Punk though, he's my friend, I think he can keep it, the guy is a machine."

Christian nodded, "Once you're in this business, you kind of never leave, do you?"

"I don't think you're allowed to, I think it's like the Hotel California, you can check out any time you like, but you can never leave."

"I don't think anything has ever been so true."

Stephanie had feared Vickie would even ban her from the production table, but apparently that was on-limits since she wasn't banned from there. If this was the only way she could help with the show, so be it, but she wasn't happy about it. Chris told her of Christian's idea of driving her crazy, but that was such a broad plan, and it needed focus. But she liked the basis of it. Driving Vickie to quit wasn't out of the realm of possibility. At the very least, she might take an extended absence. Stephanie would take that if it was all that was offered.

"So you aren't completely banned," Britt said as she sat down next to Stephanie.

"Not yet anyways," Stephanie said, "what has she reduced you to?"

"I don't get any say in what happens, I'm only supposed to coordinate the show. She gives me what she wants, I fit it in," Britt rolled her eyes. "She says I'm loyal to you and I can't be trusted, like I'm a spy."

"You could be," Stephanie turned to her, an idea popping into her head.

"I always did think I had that Mata Hari look," Britt threw her hair over her shoulder as she laughed. "Don't you think?"

"Well, dark hair, slight look of being capable of espionage…"

"What do you need?"

"I just want to know what she does. At this point, I don't even think she'll give me a schedule, and I just want to know everything she says."

"Easy enough, but why?"

"Because I might be able to use it, and let's leave it at that. The less you know, the less likely you are to be executed for being a spy."

"Around here, the only execution I can think of is being forced to hang out in a room with Paul Heyman alone," Britt said, "I swear to God, it's always so uncomfortable when I'm hanging out with Punk and Paul is hovering around like some weird chaperone. We never see eye-to-eye. He thinks he knows Phil, but he only knows the Phil that exists in this world. He's so different out of it."

"Paul is a nightmare to deal with in any situation," Stephanie made a face full of disgust. "I couldn't even stand him when we were working together. He's so slimy."

"That's a good word for it. He has that used car salesman thing about him. He's slippery."

"And good at what he does."

"Which makes him even worse," Britt told her. "I'll be your spy, Steph, you always knew I would."

"I knew I could count on you, Britt, luckily I already know two people who would be more than willing to annoy Vickie."

AJ watched as Dolph pulled his ring tights up. "I know you're going to beat Randy's time," she told him with a smile. "I believe in you."

Dolph glanced over at her, "Thanks, babe, I know I am."

"What number are you going to choose?" she asked him.

"I don't know, I mean, 30 is always the most appealing one strictly from a time advantage, but more men have won at number 27, so you know, one or the other," he shrugged, "I'm good with either one, I think."

"I can go out there with you on Sunday, right?" she asked.

He cringed a little at the thought, "I don't know, babe, those are always so unpredictable. I'd hate to have you out there and then something happens to you. I'd probably end up worried the entire time, like when you climbed the cage last week, it was distracting."

"I'm sorry."

He came over and kissed the crown of her head, "Stop apologizing."

"Sorry," then she groaned, "I've got to stop doing that."

He laughed and held out his wrist tape, "You want to wrap me up?"

"Sure," she took the tape from him as he held out his left hand. "I could help you though. I know that Big E is probably entering, I'm pretty sure of it, and he'll be there, but I can help from outside the ring."

"How?"

"I can pull down guys who may have gone over or if you're over, I could push you back in."

"Babe, I love you, but you're kind of tiny," he told her, leaning his forehead on hers. She gave him a mock glare and he laughed, "What, it's not like your height is something that isn't noticeable. But good things come in small packages."

"Nice save," she told him, pretending to act stern, but she faltered when he sent her one of his smiles. His smile was so genuine and warm towards her. It wasn't like the stilted, polite smiles of men past. "I've got muscles and washboard abs, if you were falling, I could at least push your cute butt back up."

"So you're never going to let me live that down now?"

"It's a cute butt," she said, giving it a pat.

"Okay, hold up there, I'm not a piece of meat to you," he told her with a smirk. "Just get with the taping already."

She giggled and started putting the tape back on his wrists, stopping every so often to give his knuckles a kiss, telling him they were for luck. He continuously told her he didn't need luck, but she'd just raise an eyebrow at him and he shut up pretty quickly. She liked the quiet moments where they were just there together. She never had that. She'd always felt like she needed to compete for attention, be loud and big and, well, _crazy_ in order to gain attention. Never quiet, but here, she could relish in it.

"Done," she told him when she was finished.

"Thanks," he flexed his hands before looking at her, his eyes roaming up and down her outfit. "You look hot, babe."

"You look hot too," she returned the compliment.

"Hey, what's this?" he asked, his eyes going to her belt buckle, pulling on the bow that was clipped to it. "You made a bow with my picture on it?"

"Too much?" she asked suddenly, wondering if he would make fun of her like Cena had when he'd found the bows she'd had made of him. If Dolph didn't like it, she'd throw it away right now.

"I think it's awesome," he nodded towards her, "and great picture you chose, I look like any woman would want to eat me up in that picture."

She beamed at him, "I thought you looked good in it."

"I look good in every picture, let's be honest," he told her as he kissed her, "but not as good as you look. Thanks for that, I love when my girl supports me."

"Come on, if we don't go now, you're going to be late for your match."

"So no time for me to like, take you right here?"

"Ziggy!" AJ said, making a face and bursting out laughing. "You can't do that, I mean, you could, but you want to win the Beat the Clock, and I'm not sure the clock is going to wait for you."

"Well, I'm not sure the cock is going to wait for _you_," he told her and her jaw dropped open. He laughed at her expression, pulling her into his arms and kissing her. "You're cute when you're scandalized."

"I'm not scandalized," she told him indignantly, "you're just gross."

"Oh, I'm gross? Why do I put up with such abuse from you?"

"Do you think I'm abusing you?" she asked, frowning.

"Babe, I'm joking," he told her gently, "you're not doing anything wrong with teasing me, it's okay. I'm not going to get mad at you or take things the wrong way, okay, Jeannie?"

"Okay, I love you."

"I love you too," he said, "I want to talk to you later, okay?"

"About?"

"Stuff, not bad stuff," he told her, "but we really are running late, come on, I've got a time to beat!"

Kensington pushed the button in front of her that started up Dolph's music. "I did it!" Kensington said as she grinned at Stephanie. "Mommy, 'ook, 'ook!"

"I know, you did it!" Stephanie kissed her temple, "I'm so proud of you."

"I can push buttons," Flynn said, "I did it too, Mommy, not just Kensy!"

"I know, Flynnie, you're so smart too," Stephanie kissed her too, which appeased the jealous girl.

"What do you make of those two?" Chris nodded his head towards Dolph and AJ. Dolph was whispering something in AJ's ear that she was smiling about.

"I think they're in love and they just found this love and they're happy," Stephanie said, "it reminds me of us when we first started dating. We were so crazy about each other. I remember right after you told me you loved me, it was like the world was perfect."

"Glad to know that you think that's over."

"I never said that," she said, "it's just different now. I mean, when love is new, you kind of roll around in it, like you've won a lottery, but now it's like, well, you've had the money, and it's really great to have, but you're not as fanatical about it."

"That's a horrible analogy."

"Sue me then."

"Then _I'll_ be rolling around in money," he told her with a laugh. "So about those two, weren't you going to have a talk with the two of them?"

"I'll find the time when he doesn't have a match and they aren't looking at each other like nobody else exists. Besides, if he wins this Beat the Clock challenge and gets to choose his number, I think that'll be easy to mess with Vickie's mind tonight."

"Always thinking ahead."

Stephanie tapped her forehead. "You have to when you've got wheels turning in your head."

AJ watched as Dolph went up against Miz. She was glad he was getting another chance to get his hands on Miz. He'd been such a jerk to her, and he deserved another round of comeuppance. She didn't appreciate being called crazy anymore, and with Dolph at her side, and _only_ Dolph at her side, that word had started swirling around her less and less. She gazed at Dolph's fluid movements, reminded of how graceful he could be at _other_ things. Her mind wandered a bit, and she smiled up at him as he landed a neckbreaker on Miz.

The match continued on and she watched the clock, getting increasingly worried as it continued to count down. It was getting dangerously close, and if she had to help him, she would. There was a moment when they did. She distracted the referee as Big E physically pulled Dolph to the ropes to break the hold Miz had on him. After that, it was pretty smooth sailing, and before she knew it, Dolph had beaten the clock. She grabbed the briefcase and practically ran over to him, jumping into his arms. He hugged her, rubbing his hand up and down her back.

"Told you I didn't need luck," he told her.

"It was _because_ of the luck I gave you that you won," she teased him and he just pulled away and gave her a sly look before they all continued celebrating up the ramp. She was so proud of him. Whenever he won, it felt like she was winning, and it had nothing to do with him treating her better after a win. So many times she'd gauged someone's reaction to her on whether or not they were winning. Not anymore, not with him. "I'm so proud of you," she hugged him again as they got backstage, giving him a kiss on the lips.

"Thanks," he told her, "but I'm gross right now, let me go take a shower, and then we'll watch the rest of the show to see if I win."

"I was hoping to talk to you about that," Stephanie's voice broke through the little group celebration. "In my office, fifteen minutes, is that enough time to shower?"

"Um, can you make it twenty?" Dolph asked. "I like to take my time."

Stephanie gave him the once over, "Okay, twenty minutes then."

"I wonder what that's about," Dolph said as Stephanie walked away, "do you have any idea, babe?"

"No, I haven't talked with Steph today," AJ shrugged, "she probably just wants to tell you what a great job you're doing. I know that's what I would tell you if I were still GM." Her face went a little sour at that. She tried not to think about losing her dream job, but every now and then it would sneak up on her.

"Nope, nope, nope," he said, popping the 'p' sound. "We're not going back there. You're better than that, it wasn't your fault, that was Cena, and you know what I'm going to do to him on Sunday. I'm going to grab him by his stupid shorts and throw him over the top rope."

"I can't wait!"

Chris pushed at Kensington, making her fall on her butt on the couch. She looked at him in surprise and anger as he shrugged and acted like he didn't do it. "It's kind of nice being here and knowing that we can go out to dinner after this and it won't be so late, California shows are the best."

"We're not moving out here," Stephanie said, checking her watch. "Where can they be? Sheamus and Wade's match is about to start."

"Well, it's going to be a long match if they want to win," Chris said, "they're probably…what was it, rolling around in their money from the lottery of love?"

"Shut up, I don't need any lip from you," she said. "I get enough lip from Flynn."

"Hey, you shouldn't talk about your daughter behind her back," Chris said. Flynn saw Punk after he'd gotten the skybox seats, and Flynn was with him now, watching the show from the box. She'd been in awe that you could actually go up there and watch since she was used to ringside seats. Punk promised to bring her back at the end of the show. Kensington did not want to sit up there. It was so rare she got alone time with both her parents, what with two siblings so she was taking advantage of it.

"As long as neither one of you is a snitch, we'll be fine," Stephanie said, checking her watch again. "If they're having sex in the shower—"

"Eww, I don't want to think about that, gross!" Chris said, "God, thanks, now the image is in my head, and it doesn't help that the two of them keep having wardrobe malfunctions as she calls it."

Stephanie laughed, "That's not my fault."

"It's your fault this is in my head!"

"Hello?" AJ stuck her head in, "sorry we're late, okay to come in?"

"Of course," Stephanie waved her hand and AJ brought Dolph into the room. "Come sit down."

"Okay," AJ said, walking over and sitting down.

"Hi!" Kensington waved at them.

"Hey," AJ said as she sat down, Dolph just nodded at her. He always felt like he was being called into the principal's office whenever Stephanie wanted to talk to him. It was just weird being around her, not uncomfortable, just weird.

"I wanted to ask you guys a sort of favor," Stephanie said, "see, Vickie is making my life hell because you two made her life hell."

AJ giggled, "It was fun."

"I'm sure it was, but I want her gone, I'm sure you can agree that her being around makes things bad for you, or potentially bad. I know you've been avoiding her, but that can only last for so long when she's in charge. I think there's a way to drive her out. If we make things so bad for her, maybe she'll want to leave. I know it's not the most complex of plans, and certainly, it's not my best, but she's banned me from having much to do with the show. I hate that, I don't like her, and I want her out."

"So what do you want us to do?"

"Just annoy her, trust me, I'll make sure you aren't the only ones, but I know that she's especially upset about you two," Stephanie said, "with good reason."

"I didn't love her," Dolph shook his head. "It was strictly a power play."

"I understand, but I don't think she felt that way, not deep down," Stephanie said, "do you think you guys would be up for it?"

"Sure, what do you think we can do?"

"For one, go make sure you win the Beat the Clock."

"How?" AJ wondered. "It's not Dolph's match."

"But surely you can figure out a way to make sure he wins. Go out there, get in the ring, be a distraction, but not enough to be disqualified. Just do things you would know would make Vickie angry, you winning would drive her insane."

"Okay, I mean, sure," Dolph said, "I guess I wouldn't mind having her not lurking around. I don't want her to say anything hurtful to AJ. She's said enough."

"Great, you better get out there though, the match is going on right now. And thank you," Stephanie said, "I appreciate this."

"No problem," AJ dragged Dolph back out of the room.

"And that's how you do that," Stephanie said, "now, to get back at Paul Heyman for his little tirade earlier."

"Stephanie?" Chris could see that things were going at warp speed in his wife's mind. That could only mean she was hitting her stride. When Stephanie had a plan, the woman had a plan. She was a master, and once upon a time, he had dubbed himself the Master of Manipulation with Kurt Angle, but this woman, she was the queen.

"Vickie banned me from doing things, but not the Board's darling…my father."

Dolph and AJ managed to get out there during the last minute of the match after searching around for Big E. When they got out there, AJ ran into the ring, just walking through it, but it ate up time on the clock, and that was the objective. They didn't need to do much, just be there, make sure the threat of something was looming over Sheamus and Wade's head. In doing so, they ensured Dolph's victory.

That led them straight into her office, and AJ saw another opportunity to drive Vickie wild, and that involved shoving her tongue down Dolph's throat. Truthfully, this wasn't all because of what Stephanie asked. A lot of this had to do with Vickie and AJ herself. She'd suffered through weeks upon weeks of Vickie trying to uproot her from her job. She'd had Vickie accuse her of vile things. So she kind of felt like Dolph's shirt, she'd stolen Vickie's boyfriend in a sense, and she loved rubbing it in Vickie's face.

Vickie was not amused (even when Dolph sang to AJ, which made her melt a little), and instead of letting Dolph pick his number, he had to choose between one and two. He scoffed as she left. "I will end her," AJ said, trying to keep it all in. Dolph immediately took her into his arms.

"It's okay, don't let her get to you," Dolph said. "You know what, it's cool, it's fine. Winning from that number will only cement how amazing I am. I'm the show off, and what better way to show off than to be first in the ring and to win the whole damn thing?"

"She's not supposed to do that. That's not how it works!" AJ was about to go after her and really end her, but Dolph's strong arms banded around her waist.

"Babe, it's not worth it!" he told her. "I'll win Sunday, okay, this is just a minor setback, I will win, I'm going to, doesn't matter what number I am, I'm going to steal the show."

"I hate her though, I hate her so much!"

"Calm down," he said before looking over at Big E. "I got this one, big man, you don't have to hang around."

"AJ, you gonna be okay?" Big E asked her.

"Yeah, thanks," AJ put on her best grin as Big E gave her a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder before leaving. Dolph pulled AJ towards the couch and sat her down. She looked to him, trying to calm down and he brushed her hair behind her ears so he could see her face.

"It'll be fine," he comforted her, "I'm the show-off, I'll be fine."

"29 other men to go through though," AJ said.

"It'll make my win that much more impressive," he said, "but, remember, I wanted to talk to you."

"Oh yeah," she steeled herself for whatever was coming. What was bothering him about her? She knew it was something.

"Stop worrying about us," he told her, looking straight into her dark eyes. "You're always wondering if you're doing something wrong, and I know, I _know_ that you constantly compare us to your past relationships, but we're not the same, and I'm not those guys."

"I know, and I know I shouldn't, but it's hard not to compare or wonder when I'm going to screw up."

"You're not going to screw up. Just be yourself with me and you couldn't, okay?" he told her. "I love you, and I hate seeing you questioning everything we do. If I'm teasing you, tease me back, I can take it. My ass was just on display to the entire world, I think I can take some light-hearted teasing from my girlfriend, not that I minded my ass being out there, but I fear that the male population is going to get jealous."

"You're so cocky," AJ said, rolling her eyes before Dolph raised his eyebrows suggestively at her. "You're horrible!"

"You set that one up," he kissed her. "So, no worrying anymore?"

"I can't promise that, but I'll get better," she promised. "I'm just still getting used to a guy who _wants_ to be seen in public with me."

"Guys are jerks," Dolph shook his head. "I should know, I'm surrounded by them. I mean, they all have to be to not want you. Idiots."

"You're gaining so many points."

"Would dinner get me even more?"

"Yes, I think it would."

Stephanie smirked as she watched her father onscreen telling Punk that if The Shield was to interfere in the match on Sunday, Punk would be stripped of the title. Stephanie was starting to believe that Paul was really behind The Shield and that Punk might even be in the dark about it. Even so, this was more of a punishment to Paul than to Punk, but this was collateral damage. When she planned, there couldn't be hesitation.

"She's really kind of scary when she gets like that," Trish said. "It's like I can see every evil thing going into her brain."

"I know, it's brilliant," Chris said. "Steph, what do you get out of this? I mean, I know you wanted to get back at Paul, but what do you get?"

"If Punk loses, what need is there for Paul?" Stephanie said, "if he's behind The Shield, and he uses them, do you really think Punk is going to stay with him. And if Rock somehow wins, I'd like to see how Punk will keep Paul. I'm just figuring this could be a way to kick his slimy butt out the door."

"See, brilliant," Chris smirked at his wife. "And using your father too."

"I know, it was kind of great of me." Stephanie picked up her phone and dialed her father. "Thank you, Dad."

"It was my pleasure, Stephanie."

When Stephanie McMahon has a plan, watch out.


	404. Complete Surprise, Royal Rumble, 2013

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and such. So okay, who else was completely gobsmacked by Jericho returning? I know I was. I was honestly not expecting it to happen, not then, not like that, but I can't say I'm disappointed, I have stuff to write about! And by the looks of it, I'm going to have Steph stuff too, you don't know how pleased I am!

Anyways, so this is the usual procedure for PPV's, this chapter is all Royal Rumble, at least up until a certain point. Next week will be a double Raw chapter covering tonight and next week. Hope you enjoy, and I can't wait to really write about my favorite couple again since they're actually doing stuff! Reviews would be lovely as well. :)

* * *

Stephanie felt her daughter's hand press into her cheek. She looked down and Kensington was half-turned in her lap, looking at her mother with that deceptively sweet smile on her face. Actually, it might just be Flynn whose smile was deceptively sweet. While Kensington had a mischievous streak in her, it wasn't as long as Flynn's. Stephanie looked down at her and made a face, which made Kensington scrunch up her nose and giggle.

"Mommy?" Kensington asked in her sweet, high-pitched girly voice.

"Yes, Kensy?"

"I cans have pony?" she asked nicely, grinning brightly at her mother, almost too brightly, like if she grinned as hard as she could, her mother would give in.

"A pony?" Stephanie asked. "You want a pony?"

"Uh huh," Kensington nodded. "Cans have?"

"Sweetheart, you're only two years old, I think a pony is a little too much for you. I know you like to watch shows with ponies, but I don't think you're quite ready for one. But when you're older, if you like riding, I think Daddy and I can manage to get you a pony."

"No pony?" Kensington's lip quivered. She thought her mommy would get her anything she wanted. She liked getting what she wanted.

"Not right now," Stephanie kissed her head, "but I'm not ruling it out. But you're little, sweetheart, and I'm not sure riding a pony at this age is the smartest thing. I wouldn't want you to get hurt."

"I not," Kensington shook her head, grinning again. That grin was so familiar to her. She saw it on her entire family's face when they wanted something. They got it from Chris, she was sure of it.

"You don't know that, and if you did, I wouldn't get over it. I'd be the saddest person on the planet, and I couldn't deal with that, do you understand?" Stephanie asked her, knowing she probably wouldn't, but Kensington was two, she would get over it soon enough.

"No!" Kensington said, but she was interrupted when Sawyer ran into the room.

"Mommy, we're done with our blanket fort, it's the coolest! Come on," he grabbed Kensington, plucking her from Stephanie's lap and adjusting her against his hip. Kensington looked excited and happy that Sawyer was there. That was just the distraction she needed from this pony business. Sawyer waited expectantly for Stephanie and she followed him into the playroom, which had been converted into a huge blanket fort.

"Wow," Stephanie said, looking around. They'd taken all the chairs from the dining room and kitchen, putting them in her so it covered the entire room. Every blanket was confiscated and used, and there was even an entryway. Stephanie could hear Flynn giggling from inside, and Sawyer was pulling the curtain open as he set Kensington down so she could crawl inside, even though it was just about big enough to where she wouldn't have to duck.

Sawyer started to follow her before he turned to his mother, "Come on, Mommy, you have to come inside too. Daddy got us snacks and everything!"

Stephanie crawled in after Sawyer, glad she'd worn pants today, and she could see that Chris had really set up quite the spread. There were some toys scattered around, but Chris had put down pillows in her for everyone to sit on, and there was a blanket in the middle with a spread of snacks and juice boxes, one of which Flynn was already sipping on. Stephanie crawled in behind Kensington and Sawyer, taking a place around their little picnic.

"Well, this is one way to get away from it all, though it's not as secluded as our place last week," Stephanie kissed Chris's cheek as he grabbed an apple slice and fed it to her.

"Mommy, why is Daddy feeding you?" Flynn asked. "You're not a baby."

"It's romantic," Chris answered, winking at his wife.

"What's that mean?" Flynn asked, making a face. Only babies should be fed, and she certainly wasn't a baby so that meant her mommy wasn't either.

"It means that it's something that people in love do," Chris told her.

"I love you," Flynn shrugged.

"_In_ love," Chris said, "there's a difference."

"Oh, well, Mommy's still not a baby, don't feed her," Flynn shook her head, grabbing a couple Goldfish crackers and chomping down on them. "Mommy, I can't wait to see the Rumble, I can watch it from the people, right?"

"Yes, you can."

"I wish I could go," Sawyer said, frowning a little, "I like the Rumble, it's really fun to watch. I think it's my favorite show. I just like it."

"Me too," Flynn said, her eyes lighting up. "You have to throw people over the ropes, and you almost won last year, Daddy, you were very close, but then Sames won! Daddy, you should try again."

"Believe me, Flutterby, I've tried very hard to win that, last year was the closest I ever got," Chris said, "but I think this year I'm just going to be a fan like you are. Who do you want to win?"

"You!" Flynn said, completely ignoring what her father just said.

"Okay," Chris said, "what about you, kid?"

Sawyer shrugged, "I don't know, um, I guess Sheamus. He's our friend, but I don't really know."

Stephanie looked at Sawyer, who was looking down now that everyone was talking about the big show on Sunday. She hated that he had to be left behind so much. If only there was some way to have him travel, but not give up on school. She didn't want to get him a private tutor. She wanted him to get the full school experience like she had when she was younger. Sawyer had so many friends, and she knew he'd hate to be away from them, even for wrestling.

"Hey, baby boy, why don't you come with us on Sunday?" Stephanie told him. "Well, I mean, why don't you fly with us to LA on Friday to be with Daddy when he has his thing on Saturday then we'll all go to Phoenix for the show on Sunday."

"Really?" Sawyer immediately perked up.

"Really?" Chris added, giving Stephanie a look of confusion. Stephanie hardly ever bent the rules for the kids, especially when it came to Sawyer going to school.

"Yeah, I mean, he's really good with attendance, we hardly ever let him miss school. I can just call in for him, and he can fly back on Monday, you don't mind missing Raw, right, baby boy?"

"No, that's okay if I get to go to the Rumble!" he said enthusiastically.

"Are you sure this is my wife talking?" Chris asked and she shoved him a little. "Hey, no fighting in the blanket fort!" Chris told her. He leaned over and kissed her.

"No kissing in the fort!" Flynn told them.

"What if I wanted to kiss you?" Chris asked.

"Um…that's okay, but just me," Flynn said with a smile.

"Wow, someone is the queen of the fort," Stephanie whispered loudly to Chris, making Flynn frown and glare at her mother. "Wow, so is that what I look like when I glare?"

"Yes, but scarier by about…a million times," Chris answered.

"Good, that means I can hopefully intimidate Vickie right out of her job," Stephanie told him.

"No work in the blanket fort," Chris shook his head, "this is family time, we are surrounded by blankets, we have snacks, and apparently we're all going to the Rumble. Maybe I should sit out in the audience with the kids."

"Yeah, because that would work," Stephanie scoffed, "Everyone knows you, everyone would recognize you, and everyone would expect you to just jump right into the match. I'm not sure that's the greatest idea."

"I could be low-key," he argued, "I'd wear a hat, I don't have the long hair anymore so that's not an indication that it is me. I don't know, don't you ever think it would be really cool if you got to actually watch a show like a normal fan. I haven't been able to do that in so long."

"Well, you can't do it now, people know you, Chris, even if you're not active right now, you're still one of the biggest names this business has ever known," Stephanie said, "leave the fan watching to the children."

"Fine, but you're no fun, Stephanie."

"It's almost WrestleMania time, I'm never fun when I'm that stressed."

"I'll take care of the Hall of Fame again, you don't have to worry."

"Don't you think you'll be too busy?" Stephanie asked. Chris smirked at her, knowing something she didn't, but not about to say anything, not right this moment. In fact, nobody knew about what he was planning except for his father. And his father only knew because he was helping with something pertaining to his surprise.

"I think I can manage."

AJ sighed and turned the channel on the television, trying to find something, anything to watch, but it was futile. She couldn't stop thinking about Dolph and what he was doing. She was trying so very hard not to be clingy and call him all the time, but she was lonely, and she just wanted to know what he was up to, if he was having fun, how many fans came out to see him; she just wanted to hear about his day. She hadn't realized just how much he'd ingrained himself into her life since they'd been together.

They spent their time off together usually because they liked being around each other, and they would go back and forth between her apartment in Tampa and his house in Phoenix. With the Royal Rumble being in Phoenix, Dolph had actually told her she could stay at his house without him even there. It showed her that he had a level of trust in her that she'd never experienced before. He trusted her to be among his belongings by herself without him there. He was on the other side of the world, yet he wanted her to feel at home. She'd even tried to insist that a hotel would be fine, but he wouldn't hear of it.

The phone rang and she took pause. She wasn't sure if she should answer the phone or not. It wasn't her house, but would it be rude of her to answer. Yes, it would be rude. She grabbed the phone and picked it up, "Hello, Dolph Ziggler's house, this is AJ speaking."

"AJ, hello, this is Kelly."

"Oh hey, Mrs. Ziggler," AJ said.

"What did I tell you?"

"Kelly, sorry, force of habit," AJ said, "Dolph's not here if you wanted to talk to him, he's in Australia."

"Oh, I know, you must be missing him, huh?" Kelly laughed. "He told me you were staying at his house since the show on Sunday is there. I was just hoping that you could tell him to call his mother. He doesn't really answer my calls, he's the worst at that, and his father's birthday is coming up, and I wanted to talk to him about it and see if he could come home, the both of you actually, we'd love to have you. I just figured if he was going to answer anyone's calls, it would be you."

"I'll definitely let him know, I've been looking for an excuse to call him."

"You don't need an excuse to call him, I think he'd liked to hear from you whenever you want him to."

AJ loved Dolph's mother. She told it like it was, and she did it in a way that made you feel better and loved. She was funny and kind like her son, and she loved the time she spent with them. "I guess you're right. I would love to come up with him for your husband's birthday, I mean, if we're still together and everything."

"Trust me, from the amount I hear about you from him, I don't think that's something you need to worry about, but don't you dare tell him I told you that."

"I won't," AJ beamed.

"I'll let you go talk to our boy, take good care of him."

"I always try to," AJ said, "bye, Kelly."

"Bye, love."

AJ felt better after the conversation and so she dialed his phone number. It took a few minutes to get through the international channels, but she could hear the ringing soon enough. "Hey, babe, what's up?" His voice alone made her break out into a grin.

"I miss you," she said immediately, "I wish the company sent me to do promotional work with you too."

"I miss you too," she could hear the smile in his voice. "You get to do cool stuff too, you're doing that Axxess thing tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah, but it won't be as fun without you there," she told him. "I just wish you were here. It's lonely without you, especially because I'm surrounded by your stuff."

"Well, wear my clothes, they smell like me, it'll be like I'm there, holding you," he told her with a laugh.

"Oh, and wearing your clothes is really going to help my reputation for not being crazy," she told him.

"You're not crazy," he told her, "and don't worry, I'm coming home soon, and then you'll have to put up with me."

"You act like that's a bad thing," she responded. "It's never a bad thing. I love you, I love being around you…do I sound too clingy right now? That kind of sounded stalkerish."

"Well, if that's stalkerish then I'm going to be your stalker because I love being around you too," he said, "it's nice over here, I wish you could have come, next time, we'll make sure they schedule us to do stuff together then we can just hang out."

"You're half way around the world."

"I know," he laughed, "but I'm coming home soon. It'll be fine, and then I'm going to win the Rumble, then we're going to celebrate in Las Vegas. Champagne showers for me and sparkling cider showers for you, it'll be disgusting."

She laughed, "And sticky."

"You're giving me ideas," Dolph told her, and she could practically see the smirk on his face. It helped stave off some of the worry she had over him being alone and on another continent. She couldn't help the feelings that welled inside her, the worry that he would find someone better. And there were so many better women out there. She was trying to get better at this relationship stuff, but there were still doubts in her mind, sometimes they overwhelmed her, but being around Dolph pushed them down. The problem was she wasn't actually around him right now.

"Well, I didn't mean to."

"It's okay, I can take care of myself for the short time I'm away from you."

"What?" she asked.

"Babe, do _not_ make me explain that reference," he told her as he started laughing. She started blushing when she figured out what he meant.

"Oh, I didn't…"

"I love you so much, Jeannie" he told her.

"I love you too. Oh, before I forget, your mom said to call her to talk to you about your dad's birthday. She wants you to come home for it if you can, she said I could come too, if you want me there, not that I have to go or anything."

"Why wouldn't you?" Dolph shrugged. "I'll talk to her and we'll talk about it when I get home, I better go though, this phone call is costing me an arm and a leg I'm sure."

"Oh God, I'm so sorry!" AJ bit her lip.

"It's okay, it was worth it," he told her, "I love you, and make us proud tomorrow at Axxess, got it?"

"I will."

Flynn looked up at the stage as her eyes widened. "Daddy, this looks so cool! I want my own video!"

"You want a Flynn Jericho video?" Chris wondered. Flynn nodded eagerly. "But you'd need entrance music."

"I can use yours," Flynn reasoned.

"Well, I don't think you're old enough to join the Rumble match," Chris told her, "even though I bet you could eliminate some guys with just your cuteness."

"I can throw things!" Flynn told her daddy as she pulled away and started skipping down the aisle to the ring. Sawyer was behind Chris, walking with Kensington as she looked around in awe. Chris was still keeping his secret, and he hoped that he could see his kids faces when the time came later. He was going to see Stephanie's and that was going to be a treat. He loved pulling one over on her.

"Wow, everything looks really nice," Sawyer said as he and Kensington caught up with Chris, who waited for them halfway down the aisle. Flynn was already at the ring, sitting on the ring steps because she wasn't allowed to climb in the ring by herself yet. "Where are we going to sit?"

"Right over there," Chris pointed to a section on the camera side of the arena. "You'll have a great view of the show."

"We always do," Sawyer said.

"Punk! Hi!" Flynn stood up on the ring steps and yelled, seeing Punk sitting high up in the seats, seemingly thinking to himself. He waved at her and she waved back eagerly. "Daddy, I hope Punk wins tonight!"

"Smart kid!" Punk yelled at Chris, throwing him a thumbs up.

"Takes after me!" Chris called back as Punk laughed and went back to whatever he was doing.

"Daddy, I can go in the ring now," Flynn said as Chris got close and she crawled into the ring, standing in the middle and jumping up and down a little. She loved the way the ring bounced when you stepped on it. She jumped up and fell on her butt, giggling the entire time. "Daddy, I took a bump!"

"You're already more impressive than me," Chris told her.

"No way, you know how to flip," she told him, shaking her head. "Run the ropes, Daddy."

"I can't with you in here, you'd have to sit in the corner," he told her. She ran to the corner and sat down. Kensington was crawling up the ring steps while Sawyer watched her, making sure she didn't trip and fall. Chris ran the ropes a couple of times to appease Flynn and gave an elbow drop to an invisible opponent. Flynn clapped and stood up, trying to run the ropes too, but Chris grabbed the back of her jeans and picked her up.

"You're too small to run the ropes," he told her, "come on, we aren't even supposed to be out here."

"I want to be out here though," she argued. "Daddy, I want you to come back _now_."

"Why?" Chris asked her, and he had to admit, if anyone wasn't going to be surprised tonight, it would be Flynn. Instead, she was probably going to think that she'd done it all. Let her think it, though, because he wanted her happy.

It was part of the reason he was coming back at all. In actuality, he missed it. He knew he had an open invitation to return whenever he wanted, but he wanted it to be the right time. It was the right time right now. He only had a few tour dates scheduled, and he wanted to do something physical again. He didn't feel himself getting out of shape or anything, but he just wanted to get in a ring and kick some ass once again.

But yes, the other reason was his family. He loved making them happy, and he had a feeling he hadn't been doing a great job of that as of late. He knew Stephanie was forgiving and she liked that he had other interests, other projects, but he felt like he was letting her down somehow. Not by not wrestling, he knew at this point, she didn't care if he did or not, but just…not being around. And what better way to be around her than to be working with, wait, _for_ her?

He didn't want to lose everything he and Stephanie worked for because they drifted apart somehow. That wasn't how the two of them worked. The two of them worked because they understood each other, and they were perfect for each other, and he wasn't about to lose that. He was not willing to give it all up because they couldn't meet on the same page. He loved Stephanie. Stephanie was the only woman he'd ever loved as far as he was concerned. Any that came before her were blotted out the moment he fell in love with her. Stephanie and her personality and her spirit were enough to blanket the whole world let alone his singular life.

"I run too!" Kensington said, rushing the ring and running straight for Chris. She bumped into his leg and fell down on her butt, laughing as the ring shook a little bit. "Daddy, I funs!"

"Daddy," Flynn whined from where she was still hanging in Chris's arms, "She can't take bumps, she's too little."

"She's fine," Chris said, picking up Kensington with his other hand. "Both of you, no running in the ring, that's how Sawyer broke his finger, and if that happens with either one of you, Mommy is going to give me a permanent timeout!"

"Daddy, no, we can't have that!" Flynn shook her head in terror. She was well-versed in timeouts, and a permanent one just sounded downright frightening.

"I don't remember breaking my finger," Sawyer told his father.

"You were really young, I was letting you run around the ring and you tripped and fell. Mommy was very mad at me, and remember when we saw Mommy in that video a couple weeks ago when she was mad at Trips?"

"That was the scariest," Sawyer said, shuddering a little.

"She was a little like that," Chris said. "Come on, we've got to go backstage because you guys should eat lunch so you're not hungry during the show."

"Gamps said we can gets popcorn if we want," Flynn said.

"Oh he did, did he?" Chris wondered. "He didn't tell me he was going to do this. I don't know if I want you guys eating popcorn, it might get stuck in your teeth and then a corn cob is going to grow in your mouth."

"Dad, that's not true," Sawyer said, "plants need light."

"Too smart, you," Chris put his girls down and ruffled Sawyer's hair. "One day, you're going to be smarter than me, and you'll make me feel dumb."

"I'd never do that," Sawyer said seriously, "I wouldn't want to make you feel dumb, Daddy, it wouldn't be nice of me to do that."

Chris sighed, "You're the best kid a guy could ask for."

"Daddy, elbow drop!" Flynn dropped an elbow onto the ring like he'd done a few minutes earlier. Flynn rolled around in the ring, acting like she was in pain. Chris walked over to her and put his foot on her.

"1-2-3, Flynn you lost the match," he said, pulling his foot off her.

"Not fair!" Flynn said as she crossed her arms, "I didn't get to do a move on you, and you can't pin like that, that's not fair, Daddy! I gets another match!"

"No, you don't, Flynn Murphy Jericho," another voice sounded and four varying sets of blue eyes turned to the front of the ring.

"But Mommy, make Daddy give me another match!" Flynn cried, running over to Stephanie and leaning at her through the ropes. "I gets one, Mommy, you always gets one if you lose!"

"Baby girl, you're not having a match in the ring, I don't even know why you're in here."

"I'm keeping them busy," Chris said, "and we weren't doing anything. We were just standing around."

"Do we have to have this discussion a million times over, Chris?" Stephanie asked him. "I tell you and I tell you and I tell you not to bring them in here. They are too young, and we've already had one accident in this ring with Sawyer, I don't want Flynn or Kensy getting hurt!"

"I'm sorry," he said sheepishly. "I was watching them, I swear."

"He was, Mommy," Sawyer explained. "And I was helping with Kensy, I made sure she wouldn't fall."

"Thank you, baby boy, I'm glad you were helping," Stephanie said, "but I want you guys out."

"Mommy," Flynn whimpered. Stephanie plucked her off the apron and through the ropes, holding her to her. She shook her head and Flynn started tearing up.

"No, Flynnie, those tears are not going to work with me. You get to watch the show later from here, that's good enough. Come on, Sawyer, be careful when you're coming out. Chris, do you have Kensy?"

"Yeah, I have her," Chris said, following Sawyer out of the ring. He walked up to Stephanie and kissed her temple. He could feel the tension in her face when he did so. "What's wrong?"

"Not here," Stephanie said, eyeing the kids, "I'll tell you in a bit."

He nodded and they went backstage. Chris's parents had arrived while they were in the ring so Stephanie and Chris dropped off the kids with them. They were going to take the kids out to lunch so they wouldn't be cooped up in the arena. Once they were gone, Chris pulled Stephanie into her office, pulling her into his arms and banding them around her waist. Stephanie gave a half-hearted tug away, but Chris was stronger and he wasn't going to let her budge.

"Okay, come on, what's going on?"

"Just stress," Stephanie rubbed at her temples. "Everything is beginning again, and I'm just stressed is all. You know how I get when it's time for WrestleMania to start, we have so much to do, and then I'm remembering that you're going away for a while right before and right after WrestleMania, and it's so much to think about right now. I'm actually glad my Dad is here tonight, and even worse, I'm kind of glad Vickie is taking care of the wrestlers who need helping. What does it say when I'm _glad_ for Vickie Guerrero?"

"It says that you work hard around here, and don't be hard on yourself because sometimes things get a little overwhelming. You haven't been in charge forever. Your dad has done this most of your life, and you're still adjusting."

"Chris, it's been a long time," Stephanie pointed out.

"Not really, not truly," Chris said, "not in the grand scheme of things. You're allowed to sometimes think it's a hard job because it is. You're my Wonder Woman, but even she needed a break in her invisible airplane. Add onto the fact you have three kids. When your dad really took over, you guys were older, Sawyer is only going to be seven this year—"

"Don't remind me that my baby is going to be seven," Stephanie pressed her face into Chris's shirt. "Why did we have three kids? Why did you let me become the president? Why did you marry me?"

"We didn't have much choice in the kids. I didn't _let_ you become president, you wrestled control from your father, and I was just an innocent bystander in your coup, and I married you because there is no other woman in the world that could even match what you are to me."

"Don't be sweet, be mean and knock me into shape, do something that will make me happy."

He knew what he was going to do, but for now, he just hugged her, "I love you."

"I love you too," she mumbled against his shirt. "Do you want to do my work for me?"

"No, do you want to do my work for me?"

"Host a robot show, a radio show, and front a band, yes, please, let's trade."

"I'm not sure I want to see any band that has you as a front-woman."

"Hey!" she slugged him in the stomach, making him grunt. He held her tighter and kissed the crown of her head as she snuggled her face into his neck. He felt her soft lips pressing against his pulse point. "I can feel your heartbeat against my lips."

"How romantic."

"I thought it was," Stephanie kissed him there. "You always make me come down from the ledge I'm constantly teetering on."

"Now you're just being dramatic."

"A little," she told him, her arms pulling him closer, like she wanted to merge with him. "Do you think the show is going to be good?"

"I think it's going to be great."

"Who do you think is going to win the Rumble?"

"I don't know," Chris said, "I haven't given it much thought." He had, but he couldn't tell her that he thought it would be him.

"Stephanie?" the door opened. "Oh, sorry, guys, I didn't realize you were about to jump each other's bones right here in the middle of your office. I must say, risqué with the door unlocked."

"Shut up, Trish," Stephanie said good-naturedly, turning her head, "my husband is just making sure that I know that stress does not control me. But I'm glad you're here, I really wanted to talk to you."

Trish looked between Chris and Stephanie, both of whom started grinning widely. Trish looked at them strangely as they eyed her. "Okay, you guys are officially weirding me out. What's going on and why are you looking at me like you're going to eat me?"

"Trish, I would like to tell you something."

"What would that be?" Trish narrowed her eyes. "I don't know if I like where this is going. I don't trust either one of you."

"I want to formally and officially ask you to be a part of the WWE Hall of Fame," Stephanie told her, turning to face her best friend.

"Do you even have to ask?" Trish said as Stephanie came over and hugged her. "Oh my God, Steph, this is going to be awesome. I have to tell Chrissy that I'm officially in, and before him, well, he still wrestles, but still, he'll be so jealous, his wife and his brother already in. Thanks so much."

"Are you going to have Lita induct you?" Stephanie asked.

"I really don't think there could be anyone else, you know," Trish said, "I mean, Christian, but that'd be weird because we never really interacted onscreen besides that time when you know, well, back then."

"Oh yes, back then," Stephanie made a face. "But I think you'll be great, and we have a video package ready for you and—"

"Here you are," Christian said, "I thought you were going to wait for me."

"Sorry," Trish said, smiling at her husband. Their daughter was with her parents in Toronto for the rest of the week visiting. "I just wanted to see what was up, and guess what?"

"I have a spot in the Rumble?" Christian asked.

"You're not cleared yet," Trish said, "so no, you're not going out there, and if you think you are, you'll have to go through me, and I don't think you'd want to harm a Hall of Famer."

"But—wait, what are you talking about? Oh, so you finally decided to put the best diva that ever lived in there? It's about damn time," Christian said, coming over and giving his wife a hug. "I'm proud of you, Trishy, but it was just an inevitability. How could they keep you out?"

"We couldn't," Stephanie said, "and it was a no-brainer for me."

"We couldn't have a Hall of Fame without you, Trish," Chris told her, "it just wouldn't be right. I mean, you worked your ass off to get where you were. When you started—"

"Can we not talk about that?" Christian, Trish, and Stephanie all said at the same time then laughed at each other.

"That's all your guys' problem," Chris said, "at that time, I just thought the boss's daughter was a slut, that's all."

"Very funny," Stephanie said, "when you get inducted, will I get to do your speech?"

"Fat chance," Chris told her, "when you get inducted, will I get to do your speech?"

"Not on your life."

"I'm going to do yours, right, Trishy?" Christian said.

"No," Trish shook her head, "sorry, Chrissy, but I don't think you were exactly one of my most memorable opponents in that, what was it, one match we had, wasn't it me and Lita against you and Chris."

"Don't remind me, wasn't that when you hit us with roses?" Chris chuckled.

"I think so," she laughed, "Man, this is going to be fun. I can't wait to write a speech, and I can't wait to see everyone, I mean, I see everyone when I come with Chrissy, but it's different in that setting, and I'll get to be a part of WrestleMania, and hopefully, Chrissy, you'll be there, and Steph, you'll be in charge, and I guess Chris will just be the lone outcast with nothing to do."

God, it was like everyone was getting on his case for not wrestling, but he was trying to keep in this secret. He just shrugged it off, "Well, you know, I've got a lot of WrestleManias under my belt, it's not going to be the end of the world if I take one off."

"Of course not," Stephanie patted his stomach. "It's fine that he's not."

"I guess, but you're going to be missing out," Trish said.

"I better start getting to work," Stephanie said, "Vickie is in charge theoretically, but I like to sit there and actually conduct the show with my dad. I'll see you, later, sweetie?"

"Yeah, of course, you always do," Chris kissed her briefly, not making a scene in front of his friends for once. Stephanie waved goodbye to her friends, giving Trish one more hug before she left to actually do work.

"So what do you guys want to do?"

Trish shrugged, "Celebrate."

AJ grasped Dolph's hand. "You're going to be great out there, I just know it. I can feel it in the air tonight, you're going to go out there, and you're going to win."

"You have too much faith in me," he told her, "not that you shouldn't, I'm really good at what I do, but you have it in like over-abundant amounts. It's cool though, you like me, can't really help it."

"Show off," she teased him, poking him in the stomach. "Are you sure you don't want me out there with you for the match?"

"No, I'm positive," he told her, "I don't want Big E out there either. I want to do this the right way. If I'm going to win this, I'm going to win this on my own, not with anyone's help. That way, when I do win, nobody can say a word about it. They won't be able to say I cheated or whatever, I'm going to earn it."

"I could just go out and sit there and watch," AJ suggested. "I wouldn't even do anything, even if you were hanging on for dear life, I wouldn't."

"I don't want you getting hurt. There are going to be guys flying out of the ring. Who knows what could happen. You're petite, someone might not see you, suddenly there's a 200 pound man flying at your face, and I don't want you hurt, babe."

"I guess I'll stay back here," she said, "can you believe Striker earlier with you, acting like you couldn't win."

"And you stepped in like a tiger, uh yeah, that was hot, babe," he told her, leaning down to kiss her. She leaned into the kiss a little bit. "He doesn't know what he's talking about. Anyone that's seen me wrestle knows I can win this."

"I know, what a jerk," she told him. "Still, I'm worried about you because you're going to have a _huge_ target on your back, and what if it's John that has the number two spot. He's going to be gunning for you, they all are."

"I can take anyone and everyone, and I really only have to wait four or five guys and everyone will be so preoccupied, they won't even remember how long I've been in there, you know," he shrugged.

"Yeah, again, you're right."

"I've been in these kinds of matches before, don't worry."

"But I've never been with someone who's been in one of these matches before," she told him. "I was injured last year so I didn't even get to come to the show, and Daniel was in a title match, not the Rumble match, so I have no experience here."

Dolph came over and hugged her. "I'll be fine, I promise you, even if I don't win, which, let's face it, is not going to happen, I'm not going to get hurt."

"Promise?"

"I promise." She threw her arms around him. He held her against him tighter. "The only thing you need to think about is how we're going to celebrate, alright? That's all you need to think about."

"Movies all night long?"

"Well, maybe not all night, we do have Raw tomorrow."

"Other things all night long?"

"I like the way you think, Jeannie."

Stephanie tapped her fingers against the table until her father put his hand on top of hers. "Stephanie, you have been doing that for the past ten minutes, and you're driving me crazy."

"Sorry, Dad," Stephanie said, "I'm just focused and didn't realize I was being annoying. I just haven't seen Chris yet tonight, and I'm wondering where he could be. He went out with Trish and Christian earlier, but I haven't seen him since and he said he would come sit with me, and he calms me down, okay, Dad."

"Okay, got a little snippy at the end there," Vince said, "you know, Stephanie, I would not be against taking on some of your responsibilities."

"You're not taking my job!" Stephanie told him, her eyes wide as if she'd been struck in the face. She was not going to relinquish control. This was _her_ job now. Her father had the board, she was the president, this was what she did now. She couldn't go back.

"Stephanie, I'm not suggesting I take your job, calm down," Vince told his daughter. He couldn't blame her for her reaction, he would have reacted the same way. She was his daughter, and she took after him more than she was willing to admit. Growing up, Stephanie wanted to be so much like her mother, but it just wasn't in the cards for the feisty woman in front of him. "I was just suggesting I take _some_ of your duties off your hands. You have three children, you can't be expected to do everything all the time."

"I'll think about it, Dad," Stephanie told him. "I appreciate your offer, but…Dad, you know me, you know I don't like doing that, just like you didn't like it."

"I understand, but the offer is on the table."

"The Rumble is about to start, and there is still no sign of Chris," Stephanie brought it up again. "He's not answering his phone either, and I'm starting to worry a little bit."

"He's around, I'm sure, it's a big show, lots of people are here, you know he's probably helping out with coordinating people. It's hectic with all the guys waiting around for their numbers to come up, you know."

"I guess so," Stephanie said, "I hope the kids are having fun."

"I'm sure they are," Vince said. "Come on, it's time to focus."

Chris was pulling on his trunks, and it felt so familiar, and he always felt so at home. Nobody expected him to wrestle tonight, he knew, and he couldn't wait to see the reactions coming soon. The only people who knew he was coming back were his father, who had brought his light-up jacket from home, Jake, the pyro guy who'd he'd had to tell to set up his pyros for, and Mark Henry. Henry was here because he was about ready to come back from injury, and Chris asked him to pretend like he had the number two spot in the Rumble to throw Stephanie off. He was probably waiting at the gorilla right now.

"You ready?" Big E asked Dolph as they stood there.

"As I'll ever be," Dolph jumped in place a few times.

"You sure you don't want me out there?"

"Yeah, take care of my girl back here, I'll be fine out there," Dolph nodded his head towards the curtain where he could hear the explanation of Rumble rules happening. "I need to do this on my own."

"Whatever you say," Big E shrugged.

Then Dolph's music started and the three of them walked out in front of the crowd. Dolph took a deep breath as he stopped to do his signature butt shake that drove the ladies (and probably some men) crazy. He turned around as AJ came over and tipped his face to her, kissing him. She only meant it to be one of her good luck kisses, but it took on a life of its own and suddenly he was bending her over, and she was nearly hooking her leg around his waist, and finally, they needed air and pulled away.

"I love you," she whispered to him as she pulled away.

He turned towards the ring, but back to her and mouthed that he loved her too. She stood there for as long as she could before Big E escorted her backstage. Dolph got into the ring, grabbing the microphone and laying it all out there. He was going to win, and it didn't matter who was coming next. He fully expected it to be Cena, that's exactly who he was expecting, and he was ready for him. He'd never been readier in his life.

"Mark, are you ready?"

"He's not going to make it."

"What are you talking about, Chris?" Stephanie asked, not looking up from her clipboard, "and where have you—" Stephanie looked up to chastise her husband for missing most of the show already when she did a double take. Chris was in his wrestling trunks and his light-up jacket. "What's going on?" Stephanie stood up, her eyes frantically searching his face, roving over his body as her mouth dropped open.

"Cue my music, I've got a Rumble to win," Chris told her with a grin.

"I don't, what, _what_!" Stephanie stood stock still, her hands curling into fists as she stared at her husband in something akin to horrified wonder. "You're…wait, what?"

"Baby, cue up my music, I've got to go out there," Chris told her, but seeing as how he'd rendered his wife catatonic, he turned to his father-in-law. "Vince, do a guy a favor and cue my music and pyros?"

Vince just shook his head in amusement, "What the hell am I going to do with, Jericho?"

"Nothing because we're family," Chris told him. He leaned across the table and kissed Stephanie's still shocked lips. "See you after the match, baby."

Stephanie sputtered some kind of response, but she was so incoherent Vince had to gently push her shoulder so she would sit down. She turned to her father, as if staring through him, "Did you know about this?"

"Nope, not a clue."

Flynn pursed her lips as she watched Dolph speak in the ring. "He's kinda my friend, Gamps," Flynn explained. "But only kinda. He's not like my Punk friend or Sames, but he's kinda my friend."

"Is he nice?"

"Um, sometimes," Flynn nodded. "I wanna see who the next person is because there's gonna be a lot of guys, right, Gamps?"

"Yes, 29 other guys actually."

"That's so many. I could do that," Flynn said, "I wish Daddy could wrestle."

"Well," Ted kissed her head and whispered into her ear, "maybe he will."

Suddenly, the pyros exploded and Chris's music hit the arena. People everywhere started freaking out, but none more than the three children sitting with their grandparents. Sawyer acted like he was startled as he sat up straighter in his chair. Kensington didn't actually recognize the music, but everyone was going crazy so she grabbed her grandmother's hand and tugged on it, wondering what could possibly cause a crowed to riot like this. Flynn's jaw dropped open and she looked to her grandfather, back to the stage, then back to her grandfather.

"You did it, Gamps! You did it!" she said in awe of her grandfather's magic. Then the Jericho flashed across the screen and Flynn started yelling, her arms flailing everywhere. "He's wrestling! He said he wasn't, but he's wrestling!"

Sawyer turned to his grandfather as well, "Grandpa, Daddy's wrestling, I didn't know he was going to do that! I don't think anyone knew, he surprised us!"

"He really wanted to," Ted told his grandson.

The lights went out as Chris's jacket lit up, and Flynn clapped her hands, "He has his jacket, he has his jacket!"

The lights came back up and Chris turned towards the ring. The reaction was more than he'd ever expected. The crowd sounded like they were suddenly lit on fire. He'd never heard this kind of reaction from the fans before. He'd always told Stephanie when he came back, he wanted it to be a total surprise; one day, he was just going to show up and that'd be it. He never expected he'd get this kind of reaction. He was shocked, surprised, and humbled.

Finally, Kensington could see who it was and she started shaking and dancing. She turned her surprised face towards her grandma, "Dat my Daddy, dat my Daddy!"

Loretta hugged her from behind. "That is your daddy, he came to wrestle for you."

"Daddy!" Flynn was still freaking out, jumping up and down on her chair so much that Ted had to pick her up and hold her so she wouldn't fall down. Sawyer was cheering, and there was just general pandemonium.

Chris got in the ring amidst the cheers and he walked around, just taking it all in. He spotted his children sitting a few rows back and their varying degrees of shock made him grin. Sawyer was cheering, but Flynn and Kensington looked to be in such shock. Flynn, especially, was going nuts, just like he thought she would. His feisty, little girl never disappointed.

Dolph couldn't believe this guy. He and Chris had a tentative truce going since AJ idolized Stephanie, and Dolph idolized AJ, but he'd never really thought much of the guy. Okay, that wasn't true, growing up, he'd looked up to Chris in a lot of ways. They were around the same size height-wise, and they'd both had to claw their way to get where they were. That was admirable, but Dolph had taken a lot of pride in ending Jericho's career. While he didn't necessarily hate the guy, he didn't like him either.

He liked him even less that he was here now. He thought it would be Cena, had been anticipating it even, but now he had to deal with his boss's husband? How could this ever end up in a win-win for him? Unless this was all part of their stupid plan to get Vickie out of office, which, actually, it wasn't so stupid because after what Vickie pulled on him last week with the whole entry number business, she could leave for good for all he cared, but this part of the plan was dumb. And if it was part of their plan, and he and AJ hadn't been told (because if AJ had been told, she would have told him), then he liked Jericho even less now.

Either way, he didn't care what the motives were behind Chris entering right now. This was the Rumble, there were no friends. He remembered the year Matt and Jeff Hardy were forced to fight each other, and they were brothers. Chris Jericho was really nothing to him other than a guy who came and went as he pleased because he literally owned the joint. Eliminating him would actually be kind of fun.

The two locked up and started fighting with each other. Chris got the first blow when Dolph was thrown over the ropes, but he landed on his butt on the apron and managed to get back inside. Chris dominated for those first few minutes, getting Dolph on the ropes again as the crowd chanted that Chris still had it. He enjoyed that, but had to yell back that he'd never lost it. And it had only been several months, not years this time. He hadn't had time to lose it.

"Stephanie, are you alright?" Vince asked his daughter, who had yet to say a word since Chris went out there.

Stephanie stared at the screen. She was staggered by this. She hadn't expected it, not in the slightest. She hadn't even hoped for it. There was not even one spark of hope that he might actually show up tonight. Yet, here he was. She knew it was for her too, at least partly. She knew he'd taken it hard whenever she talked about him being away so much, and now here he was, without a thought, without a care, coming back, wrestling, being a part of this, and no, she didn't know how long, but he was here.

This man loved her, and when this man loved, he loved with his entire heart. And somehow, someway, she'd gotten his entire heart. She was so lucky, and she hated herself for sometimes wondering if he found the great out there better than what he had. He never thought that way, and she was lucky, and God, she needed to find some way to say thank you. Thankfully, Chris was an easy guy, and she knew all she had to do was take him to the bedroom.

"I'm okay," Stephanie said softly. And she was, she was more than okay.

The match dragged on, and both Chris and Dolph found themselves in the thick of it. Both were tired, and sometimes they were so thankful for the rest they managed to get while other wrestlers focused on each other. They were going toe to toe even though they didn't really pay attention. Well, Dolph paid some attention, but Chris was so focused on winning that he didn't care what Dolph was doing. Dolph was the one with the chip on his shoulder, not Chris. For Chris, this was just another day at the office. When you've accomplished everything you could accomplish in a business, everything was a piece of cake.

Dolph was still trying to grab that brass ring. He'd held the title, sure, but for a measly few minutes. Chris could actually relate to that, except he'd had his title reign totally expunged from the record. He wanted his name to be in the main event all the time. Winning the Money in the Bank was one thing, but to win the Royal Rumble would catapult him straight to the top and straight into the main event at the biggest show this business had ever seen. He salivated at the thought of winning the title at WrestleMania.

Forty minutes in and both men were exhausted. They were mentally worn down, but still trying to fight. Then Dolph saw the opportunity, and he had to take it. Truce be damned. He was out to win this match, and if he had to eliminate Jericho, so be it. And so he did, and he didn't regret it one bit. Chris fell to the floor in a heap, worn out beyond belief. He couldn't believe Dolph had eliminated him. That little shit was going to get it next time he saw him, but he had to admit, the kid put up a good fight, a damn good one.

One that ended a few minutes later when Dolph was eliminated. Whereas Chris was resigned to his loss, Dolph was irate by his. He couldn't believe it, all that hard word, all that time spent and for what, nothing? Nothing! He was angry. He should win, that was his spot, his time, he was going to do the next to impossible, and now it was gone. He'd been so close, and now it was over.

No, it was not going to be over. He was not going to stop until he was the champion.

Chris walked backstage. Stephanie was right there waiting for him. "You are the craziest, most wonderful, most everything man I've ever known."

"Well, I try," he said, but before he could get out the last word, Stephanie's arms were around him. "Baby, I'm seriously gross over here. I've been in the ring for forty minutes, fighting off 29 other men."

"I don't care" she told him. "I don't care at all."

"Okay, if you want to stink…I don't think Dolph is very happy with me. Probably because he's been telling everyone that he retired me."

"He'll get over it," Stephanie said, pulling away. "You didn't have to do this for me."

"God, Stephanie McMahon, can you _be_ any more conceited," he joked, "it's not just for you. I'm here because I want to be here."

"So it wasn't just tonight."

"Worried?"

"No…a little," she admitted.

"We'll see what happens tomorrow at Raw."

"You're going to be at Raw?"

"That is usually where wrestlers are on Mondays."


	405. Name in Lights, February 4, 2013

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and everything. So this is Raw from last week and tonight. I was very uninspired by tonight's show. It was just so bland. I thought Stephanie might show during the Vickie segment, but nothing. Then there was no Dolph/AJ (which I know they were there physically, but because they didn't show up onscreen, I took liberties), and while Chris's match against Punk was awesome, it sucks that was all we got to see of Chris in a show filled with recaps. Needless to say, I didn't like much tonight. I stopped it at a fitting part I think, and the chapter was getting super long. So, here's hoping next week is better, but hope you enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

"Daddy, I'm still excited you were on the Rumble!"

Flynn jumped up and down, shaking her butt and dancing even if there was no music. Chris had never seen someone so excited for his return, and he'd seen Stephanie practically go catatonic the night before. But even that couldn't trump Flynn's surprise at seeing him the night before. The moment the show ended, Flynn nearly ran backstage. Chris was back there, showered and dressed and she slammed into his legs, throwing her arms around him, chattering on about how he was a wrestler again.

"I'm still excited I was at the Rumble too!" he told her, starting to dance with her as she laughed heartily.

"Daddy, you're the silliest!" she said, giggling with him.

"What, I'm just happy to be back too."

"You didn't even tell me!" Flynn told him. "I didn't even know you were going to be back and then you showed up, and Daddy, I knew your music. I knew it was you and then I saw you, and I knew, knew it was you. And you came down, and you lasted a really, really long time, but you didn't win, but that's okay, we can't win them all!"

"You have a very positive attitude about all this."

"Because you're going to be on the show tonight, right?" Flynn told him, looking at him sternly, like if he was to say no, she would force him onto the show. He didn't doubt he would either. Flynn could be very persuasive when she wanted to be, probably because she looked like her mother.

"I don't know, maybe I won't be," he shrugged as Flynn stopped dancing and glared at him.

"What? No, Daddy, you're gonna bes on the show," Flynn nodded her head.

"Maybe not, I don't know, maybe I don't want to talk to anyone. Maybe I should just keep my appearance at the Royal Rumble, and I won't come back to wrestle at all."

"Daddy!" Flynn whined, coming over and pushing against his legs. "That's not nice. You can't do that, you're a wrestler now, you can't do that!"

"Maybe I can," he told her, egging him on.

"I'll tell on you," she folded her arms in front of her.

"Tell on me to who?"

"Mommy," Flynn said, "I'll tell Mommy, and she can make you because Mommy can make you do anything because she's the mommy, and she is the boss of everyone!"

"Wow, you're right," Chris rubbed at his chin. "She really is the boss of everyone, and I don't think I would want her to be mad at me, that's no fun, right?"

"Uh uh," Flynn said, "she makes you sit and time out, and when you're in time out, you don't get to do anything, 'cept one time Mommy made me lick stamps for her, but that was boring too."

"Mommy made you lick stamps for her?" Chris asked as Flynn nodded. He laughed, but tried to hold it in. He picked up Flynn and kissed her cheek. "I'll show up tonight, for you, and Mommy, and Sawyer, and Kensy."

"But Sawa is at home because he had to go to school."

"I know," Chris said, "but he's going to watch, don't you think?"

"Oh yes," Flynn responded, "he wouldn't miss wrestling because he loves it too, and he's going to be a wrestler, and I'm going to be a wrestler, and Kensy's going to be a wrestle too, but I'm gonna be better than her because I'm older."

"You're all going to be wrestlers, what if Kensy wants to be something else?"

"She can't," Flynn shook her head, "she just can't."

"Wow, are you going to be Flynn Jericho or are you going to wrestle under another name?" he asked amusedly.

"Daddy, my name is my name," she told him, shaking her head and she hugged him. "Daddy, you should wrestle tonight, and you should win the WWE title, and then you can be the champ. I don't think Rocky should win it. Punk is my best friend."

"He is? I thought Kristy was your best friend this week," Chris said. It seemed like every week Flynn was calling someone else her best friend. He was glad his daughter got along with a lot of different people, but it was hard to keep up with who she thought was her best friend. He was still also shocked that his daughter was actually cooperative and not bossy when she was around her friends. It seemed that trait only extended to her family.

"Punk is my grown-up best friend," Flynn explained. "You can have both. Kristy is my little kid best friend, but Punk is my grown-up one. Like Chrissy is Sawa's grown-up best friend."

"I see," Chris said, "well, I'm sorry he lost last night then."

"I was too, I should see him tonight, and I can tell him I still think he's good," Flynn smiled.

"I think he would really like that," Chris kissed her head again. "That's being a very good friend that you want your friend to feel better."

"I thought so," Flynn told him. "Daddy, are we going to hockey this week?"

"Yup," Chris told her, "I get to spend all my time with you guys, and that makes me very, very happy. I'm taking you and your brother to the Jets game because you have to like the Jets, right?"

"Because that's where you lived when you were little," Flynn supplied for him. "With Gamma and Gamps, right?"

"Yup," Chris said, "we lived there, and your grandpa played hockey, and we're going to go with Gamps to the game because he knows his hockey stuff."

"He was the best hockey player in the world at what he did," Flynn said, "just like you, and just like Mommy in what she does, which is the boss of everyone."

"Did I hear boss of everyone?" Stephanie asked as she walked into their suite. Kensington was walking in front of her, sipping on a juice box. I swear, it was so hard finding a store that had juice boxes, but that's what happens when your hotel is near the airport I guess. None of them had the kind Kensy likes."

"I got juice," Kensington said around her straw.

"So, word on the street, and by street, I mean, the hotel, is that Dolph is angry with you for being number two," Stephanie said, "which thanks, Chris, because he was an asset."

"I'm not sorry, I never said I was friends with the guy, and before I left, he was going around saying I lost it, which I didn't," Chris said, "and if he needs me to prove that to him again, then I will."

"He reminds me a lot of you," Stephanie told him, and Chris scoffed. She shook her head, taking her light coat off, and placing it on the chair. "You scoff at me, but it's true, you guys have a lot in common, which is probably why you don't like each other."

"That makes no sense, if he was like me, I'd like him because I love myself."

"Lord knows that's true," Stephanie rolled her eyes, "but it's because you're both incredibly stubborn, which serves you both well a lot of the time, but not _all_ the time. It's like this, your both around the same size, yes?"

"What's that got to do with it?"

"It's got to do with the stylized version of what a wrestler should be. Neither one of you exactly fit that bill, so you have to work twice as hard for what you want. Why do you think Punk has a such a chip on his shoulder, he's not your prototypical wrestler either. You guys all have tow work extra hard. That gives you guys an edge. When you feel threatened, your receptors go up. Dolph has his receptors up. He thought you were gone, here you are, he wants the spotlight, and let's face it, sweetie, you stole it."

"I what?"

"You stole his thunder," Stephanie said, "and I'm not saying I'm not thrilled you did because I _love_ that you came back, I'm ecstatic, but he doesn't see it that way. Here he was, the number one spot, ready to prove to the world that he could do this. He's never really had the chance to be in the spotlight. Then here you come, returning, surprising everyone, and he has to feel like you stole his spotlight. You heard the cheers for you out there."

"I cheered loudest," Flynn piped in.

"I know, I could hear you," Stephanie winked at her, "but everyone else, Chris, they were going nuts. I haven't heard a reaction like that since…God, I don't even know when. Nobody expected it, least of all me. He's angry over it."

"So you're siding with him?"

"No, I'm saying I see things from his perspective as well," she shrugged. "You can try to talk to him tonight, but I don't know how receptive he'll be."

"Well, I suppose I could try."

Dolph continued doing his sit-ups, breathing through his mouth as they became harder and harder to do the more he did. AJ was sitting on the couch in front of him, her feet on top of his feet to ground him to the floor as she watched some television. She'd found an episode of the Office and was pretty enthralled with it.

"I can't believe he pulled that on me last night," Dolph panted out as he ended his regimen and laid on the floor, staring up at the ceiling as he tried to catch his breath.

"Maybe he didn't have any other choice?" AJ shrugged, trying to find some reason for why Chris came in when he did. "I don't think anyone would have wanted number two, especially not with you out there."

"Babe, I love you, but you can't possibly think he didn't go out there on purpose. I knew he was bad news."

"He's nice though," AJ argued. She hated arguing with him, but Stephanie had been so kind to her, and she didn't want to think ill of her husband. She couldn't be friends with Stephanie if AJ didn't like her husband. Stephanie would probably hate her if she did, and that was the last thing she wanted.

"Yeah, to you, to his wife, to his kids, but he's a wrestler," Dolph said, "and how did he even get a number anyways? I thought Vickie banned Stephanie from the show operations. I thought she was only supposed to do business stuff."

"I don't know," AJ shrugged, "I guess if she really wanted him in it, she could override everything. She _is_ the president."

"Exactly, hubris is what this is," Dolph shook his head. He lifted his head up and looked at AJ. Her face was furrowed with worry, and she was tugging at her bottom lip with her teeth. "I'm sorry, babe, I'm getting carried away. I don't want you to worry about this."

"It's okay, you have an opinion."

"But Stephanie is your friend, and I know you don't want to hear this," Dolph said. "I can call my brother and talk to him, he'll understand."

"I don't mind," she told him, "I like when you vent to me, it makes me feel like less of a weirdo to know you have issues too. I constantly feel like I'm piling all my baggage on top of you while you hardly ever do so for me."

"I'm good, Jeannie," he said, his voice soft.

"No, you're not, you're mad, and I wish you would just talk to me. That's what girlfriends do, right? We're here for you, right? Let me be here for you."

"Before, when…well, when Chris and I were feuding before," Dolph started, sitting up so he could face his girlfriend, "when I said I thought he'd lost it, I didn't really think it. I mean, he's Chris Jericho, right, I'm not stupid. I just thought, hey, if I can get one over on this guy, I'm going to look so good. Then he lost, and I was the guy that retired him, you know, and that felt good, I felt like I'd accomplished something. He washed it away last night."

"I get what you mean," AJ told him. "You put it down as a mark in your career. It meant something to you. I get what that means, Ziggy."

Dolph looked over to her, to the expression on her face. "The GM job?" AJ nodded, looking off. Her face made Dolph's own heart ache. He couldn't believe the emotions this woman could elicit in him. It was so deep, and he'd never been much of a deep guy. Shallow, for sure, but deep, never. He and Vickie were never totally exclusive, whatever it was they had. When they weren't together, he was flirting with any chick that came along. But AJ, man, she was different. He never wanted to be away from her.

He crawled over to her, kneeling in front of her and grabbing her hands in his. She looked over at him for a moment, bravely attempted a smile, failed, and went back to looking out the window. Thinking about that job still hurt. It hadn't been that long since she'd given it up after all. Dolph made it easier, but it was still a sting that failed to heal.

"I'm sorry," he told her, making her face him, cocking her head to the side and studying him, trying to figure out what he meant.

"Sorry for what?" she inquired curiously. Dolph loved her for not knowing off the bat.

"For my part in that" he told her quietly. "For making your life a living hell when you were in charge, for not doing enough to help you keep the job. We were together when you resigned. I should have come out there, stopped them, stopped you from doing it. I shouldn't have gone along with it to what? Save my briefcase?"

"I wouldn't have wanted you to," AJ told him, grabbing his hands. "That means something to you, that's your ticket to getting the title, my job wasn't worth giving up what you have earned."

"You loved that job though, I knew it," Dolph said, "I was such a jerk to you. God, I was horrible to you."

"Well, you weren't very nice," AJ agreed, but she gave him a smile, "but I wasn't nice to you either. I didn't like you much either."

"We were both idiots," he told her, shaking his head. She reached forward and fixed his unruly hair. "Thanks," he told her as she pulled her hands away.

"I remember a long time ago, someone telling me that their hair was always messed up," AJ told him with a smirk, "and that…everyone should know that?"

"What are you…oh God," he closed his eyes and hung his head down. "That wasn't my finest moment."

"Did you really like Kaitlyn?" AJ asked.

"Are we really going there?" Dolph groaned.

"I'm just wondering, no judging," AJ said, "because I think I'm the last one who would be able to judge you for kissing someone while technically being with someone else."

"You're not crazy," he reassured her, just in case her thoughts went there again. "I don't know what that was really. It was nothing. She was there, she was cute, she liked me, and it was just easy, I guess."

"She was easy?"

"That too," he shrugged, "I mean, I bet she was doing it because she thought I could get her to the main roster or something, not that I could. It was just…I don't know."

"You wanted to get in her pants," AJ finished for him. "I'm a cool girlfriend, I don't judge…but did you?"

"No, I didn't," he told her, "so there's that."

"Good," AJ said, "I would have had to kick your ass if you had."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, but I just wanted to say, I'm with you 100% with this thing with Chris. You're my boyfriend, you're the man I love, not him. I want what's best for you, and I want you to beat him up or whatever you plan to do to him, and I'm going to be by your side. He's officially enemy number…"

"Three?" Dolph threw his hands up. "One is Cena, we hate Cena, two is probably Vickie because well, we hate her too, but then Chris, definitely Chris."

AJ placed her hands on his shoulders, "Okay, then we're going to take down enemy number three. But afterwards, I'm going to be friends with Stephanie again because she's amazing."

Dolph laughed, "Babe, you can still be friends with her now."

"No, we're in a war," AJ nodded, "and I'm on your side. You're going to beat him then you'll be whoever is the World Champion, and you'll be the champ, and I'll be with you, and we'll celebrate."

"You're thinking too far ahead, let's just focus on tonight, okay?" he framed her face with his hands. "You know what I remember from NXT?"

"Me slapping you multiple times in the face?" she answered cheekily.

He gave her a mock glare, "No, but it's not like I didn't deserve it, I _was_ kind of stalking you in the ring, probably because I thought you were so hot. I was thinking about that little talent competition where you kind of showed everyone how flexible you were."

AJ smirked at him, "Oh, so you remember that?"

"I do remember that, and I don't know, I thought I could help you do some of those stretches, right now, on our bed…I mean, if you could…"

AJ giggled, "I think I can manage."

Flynn hugged her grandfather, "Gamps, did you see Daddy last night?"

"Yeah, you see?" Kensington piped in, getting a hug from her grandfather as well. Vince was crouched in front of the girls so they could hug him. They both reminded him of Stephanie in different ways. He felt the same way about them as he felt for Stephanie when she was a little girl. These were his only two granddaughters, and he felt overprotective of them both. He could only imagine how Chris felt.

"I did see last night, I was watching," Vince told them.

"My daddy is the best, right, Gamps?" Flynn asked.

"Well, he would be if he stuck around more," Vince glanced up at Chris who rolled his eyes. He could never catch a break with his father-in-law.

"He's gonna be on tonight, he promised," Flynn told her grandfather, "so you better be read for it, Gamps."

"Oh, I'm sure we will," he told her seriously. Flynn was going to be more like Stephanie than anyone else, Vince already decided. Kensington was more laidback like Chris and Sawyer, but Flynn had a fire underneath her, the same fire that propelled him forward. He thought all his grandchildren were going to go on to do great things, but Flynn was going to take after him and Stephanie; he could feel it.

"So what are you going to do about Heyman, Vince?" Chris asked as Vince stood up to face his son-in-law.

"I'm kicking him out, I have all the evidence I need to make sure he doesn't come back," Vince explained to him.

"You sure that's smart. Do you really want more of Punk's ire, the guy hates you."

"Yet he doesn't hate my daughter, I don't understand his confusing reasoning."

"Vince, we both know Stephanie, could you hate her?" Chris said, "I hated her for two years, called her a slut on national television, put her in the Walls of Jericho…and now I've been married to her for eight years and have three kids. You hate things she's done, but you still love her."

"I'm her father."

"Yeah, hasn't stopped you from treating her like crap before," Chris said, "face it, Stephanie is charming and likable, even when she's being a bitch. It's why we love her."

"I love Mommy," Kensington chimed in.

"Hey, I do too," Flynn told her little sister.

"Punk's not going to be happy about you firing Heyman either," Chris told him, "especially after what you did last night."

"I did what I had to do, Chris, I gave them the stipulation, and he's lucky I didn't just end the match right then and there. We all know what happened. I don't care if Punk knows or not, by being with Heyman, he's guilty by association."

"It has nothing to do with your personal grudge for Heyman."

Vince gave a half-smile, "I never said that had anything to do with it."

"I know he's a sleazeball, believe me, he still owes me money for some shows I never got paid for, but he's got a way with words. He can sleaze his way out of anything," Chris said. "I'm just saying be careful."

"Thank you for your concern, but I think I know what I'm doing," Vince said.

"If you say so," Chris held his hands up in defense. "Come on, girls, if you want to see your friends, we better see them now because Mommy and I are going to be busy during the show."

"I gotta go, Gamps," Flynn said, "I gotta lotta people to see."

"You do?"

"I have lots of friends," Flynn said with an exasperated sigh like her life was so difficult. Flynn grabbed Kensington's hand as they walked down the hallway. Chris gave Vince a thumbs up before he followed his girls, bending of a little to say something to them before they continued down the hallway.

Stephanie clipped some papers together and stuck them back into their file folder before her phone buzzed with a new text. She smiled, seeing it was from her brother. She'd expected him to contact her last night, but he must have been busy. His company was taking up a lot of time nowadays so communication between them was sparse. It made her a little sad, but they were both busy people.

She opened it and her eyes scanned the message:

_So how much did you have to pay Chris to come back?_

Stephanie rolled her eyes and responded:

_I didn't have to, he surprised me._

Shane took a few minutes to write back:

_Tell him I said good luck, it's good to see him again. Now all the show needs is your ugly face._

Stephanie immediately responded:

_I think your return would be more shocking_.

Shane's response was also immediate:

_Fat chance_.

She missed having her brother around here. Sometimes she was sad he was gone. Yes, it would have meant sharing duties, and there was a possibility he would have been President (not that she would have given it up so easily), but it also would have meant her brother would be here. And she missed having him as a sounding board. It got lonely around here without him. Not that she didn't like the people around her, but it was different.

She was broken from her reverie when there was a tentative knock on the door. "Come in!" Stephanie called out. AJ stuck her head in the door, and Stephanie beckoned her in with the wave of her hand. "Come on in, AJ, what's up?"

"I needed to talk to you real quick," AJ told her, scurrying in the room. She was wringing her hands a little, but when she realized what she was doing, she stopped, wiping her palms on her jeans.

"Okay, that's fine," Stephanie nodded gently, hoping to put the girl at ease. She looked like she was terrified.

"We can't be friends anymore," AJ said gamely, throwing her chin up.

"We can't?" Stephanie asked.

"Dolph is mad at Chris for what he did last night, for being number two, for stealing his spotlight. He was really proud of what he did, and I know, I know that Chris threw the match, the one that sent him away. I didn't have the heart to tell Dolph. He's really proud of beating him that night, and I didn't want to take that away from him. But now Chris is back, and Dolph really, really put a lot of pride in that win, thinking Chris wasn't going to come back. He's my boyfriend, I love him, I'm on his side, and that means we can't be friends."

"Okay…" Stephanie didn't exactly know what to make of this.

"That's all…oh, and if it comes to it, I'm going to pound your husband into the ground," AJ told her, "sorry though, I hope we can be friends after!"

She skipped out of the room as Stephanie stared at the door. "Well, okay then…"

Chris stopped the girls in front of Punk's door. "Knock first," Chris told Flynn as she went to open the door without knocking. She dutifully knocked and waited.

"Go away!" Punk shouted from the other side of the door.

"Daddy," Flynn whispered, "what do I say?"

"Hey, Punk, it's Chris, can we come in?"

"Who is we?" Punk asked.

"The girls," Chris answered. They waited a moment with no answer before the door swung open. Chris gave him a grateful look, but Punk ignored him and knelt down, smiling at the girls.

"Hey, you guys, I wasn't expecting visitors," Punk told them, changing his entire demeanor for them.

"I wanted you to win last night, Punk," Flynn told him, jutting her bottom lip out a little. "I really, really cheered for you."

"Me too!" Kensington butt in, grinning at Punk. She wanted to be acknowledged too because she _had_ been cheering for him. Flynn said that he was nice, so she wanted him to win as well.

"Thanks, you guys," Punk said as Flynn threw her arms around his neck. Punk hugged her with one arm as Kensington went in for a hug too, getting in right next to her sister. Punk closed his eyes, wanting to hold onto his anger, but damn was it hard when he had two of the cutest girls in the world trying to comfort him.

"You can win again, I know you can," Flynn said, "unless my daddy wins, then I hope you lose forever."

Punk started laughing, "Darn it, you guys, I'm supposed to be pissed off."

"But you'll win it back," Flynn said. "I know you can because you are not the best in the world, but you're almost the best."

"And your dad is the best, right?"

"Uh huh, I'm sorry, but he is," Flynn shrugged.

"He best," Kensington told him.

"Okay, I get it, I get it," he said, "thanks for coming over here and cheering me up, I really appreciate it. No matter how mad I get at some people, I could never get mad at you guys, got it?"

"Okay," Flynn said. Chris wondered what he meant by that, but he figured that Punk was a ticking time bomb, just waiting to unleash this anger on everyone. He was glad it wasn't directed at him although Punk had yet to even acknowledge his presence. "Oh no, I almost forgetted!"

"What?" Punk asked.

Flynn looked to Chris, "Daddy, do you have it, do you!"

"Oh yeah, here you go," Chris said, handing Flynn the paper he was holding in his hand. Flynn thrust the paper at Punk and he took it, opening it up and seeing a couple pictures, well, okay, it was one sort of picture, and then a bunch of scribbles.

"It's an okay you lost card," Flynn said. "I made it this morning, and Kensy helped, that's her drawing, but I don't really think it's anything," she finished with a whisper.

"Uh huh," Kensington pouted. "I did for you."

"Wow, this is really nice," he told them both in the most sincere voice Chris had ever heard Punk use before. "This means so much to me that you guys thought of me."

"You're my best friend, Punk," Flynn told him, smiling lightly.

Punk sucked at his teeth a little and finally looked up at Chris, "I hate you."

"They're pretty hard to resist," Chris nodded. He'd been there. He'd been there so many times. Some days he wanted to hold onto his anger for something, but then he had three kids who could light up the darkest of places, even the ones inside of him, and he couldn't stay angry. They were too sweet, too wonderful to keep being bitter for any reason.

"I will cherish this," he told them, pressing the paper to his chest. He stood up and faced Chris. "I hate your father-in-law."

"I know," Chris said.

"I hate what he did, I hate what happened, it shouldn't have happened. He's not here, Chris, he's not here, and it's not fair, and it's not right."

"I've been there," Chris told him, "I had it stripped away from me after 15 minutes, and I'd never even held the title before. I lost it before I could relish in it."

"Almost 450 days, man, I'm pissed, I can't help it, I'm so angry," Punk said. "The only way I'm not going to explode is if they come out with me." He eyed the girls. "But I'm telling you now, I'm not going to play nice with your father-in-law. Also, I don't know what's going on with Paul, but…I don't know, man."

"Okay," Chris didn't know what he meant by that, but it left him feeling uneasy for some reason. "We'll get going, let you get that anger back."

"I need to do that," he told Chris, "but seriously, you have the best kids."

"Thanks!" Flynn piped in.

"Yeah, tanks," Kensington copied her sister again.

"I know," Chris smiled, "come on, girls, let's go find Mommy!"

"I know where she is!" Flynn started running down the hallway, stopped, then ran back, hugging Punk's leg. "Bye, Punk, I love you!"

"I love you too, Flynnie," he said as Flynn took off again. Kensington gave Punk a quick hug too before she tried to run after her sister. Chris waved before he ran and scooped up Kensington, much to her delight.

"You look better," Britt said as she walked by Punk's still open locker room door. She was carrying her trusty clipboard and checking something before letting the papers fall onto the board and looking up at Punk. Punk just jerked his thumb in the direction where Chris was walking way with the girls. "Ahh, you got the Jericho treatment. I swear, I think they had those kids on purpose to make it impossible to hate the two of them."

"Seems right up their alley. I just recognize that Stephanie isn't her father. Plus, word is that Vickie threatened Stephanie or something to stay away from anything show-related, so I can't really hate her for something she can't even do."

"It's true, Vickie said that she'd go to the board. Stephanie is just hoping she'll crash and burn eventually," Britt shrugged. "How are you doing otherwise?"

"I hate everything and everyone. I wish you would have come to see me last night," he leaned against the doorframe.

"I figured you might want to have some alone time by yourself," Britt told him. She had contemplated going to see Punk, but she'd been hesitant. Things between them were getting weirder. She still wasn't completely over Hunter, and she wasn't sure she ever would be, but they hardly spoke anymore, unless it was something to do with business, and Punk was here, and he was her friend, and she liked being around him. Beyond that, though, things got hazy. She was wary of putting herself out there again, especially for a known womanizer like Punk.

"It would have been nice to have someone there," he shrugged carelessly, like it didn't matter to him whether she'd shown up or not, but she knew him now. Punk was something like an enigma…unless you got to know him. Then it was easy to tell which mask he was putting up that day, and she was at that point. She knew all of his friends back home knew him, and she knew they'd probably all called him at some point last night.

"I'm sorry," she squeezed his shoulder companionably, the only contact she would allow herself. "I will remember that for next time."

"There's not going to be a next time, I'm getting my title back and it's going to stay with me, period."

It wasn't that long before the show actually started and Chris was getting ready for the show. He felt like he had to put himself out there again so he'd asked Vickie for time on the show. She'd agreed to it, but it seemed far too easy, especially for someone who despised his wife. He felt like there might be something up her sleeve, but he couldn't be sure what. Either way, it was too late to find out what, and so he put on the new trunks he'd had made (Stephanie really could be pretty oblivious sometimes), and his light-up jacket.

When he got to the gorilla, his daughters' eyes both lit up. "Daddy, are you going out there now?"

"Yup, you better watch."

"I'm not going to do anything else!" Flynn assured him. "Mommy, can I say Daddy's music!"

"Okay," Stephanie said, putting a pair of headphones on, "go ahead."

"Put on Chris Jericho's music, please!" Flynn said into the headset.

"Sure thing, Flynn," said the voice on the other end. Everyone around here knew who Flynn Jericho was, and it wasn't hard to deduce who was on the other end when it was clearly a child's voice.

"I did it," Flynn said as the music started up. Chris winked at her before he disappeared behind the curtain.

Chris walked out to the cheers of the crowd, turning around and doing his signature pose. The reception was loud and ruckus, but it was still nowhere near last night. Last night had to have been the biggest reaction he'd ever had, even more so than when he'd debuted in 1999. He still couldn't believe the outpouring of love he'd received since last night. It wasn't just the people in the arena that gave him so much love last night. Once he'd gotten back to his hotel room with Stephanie and the kids, he'd checked his Twitter, and there was an influx of messages.

He and Stephanie both had to go through them just to get to most of them, and even then, they didn't get to them all. They'd laughed over the shocked ones and the funny ones, and tried to see how many people had "called" it so to speak. Chris was shocked at the response. Everyone was happy to see him, and Stephanie kissed his cheek while he grinned, reminding him that people loved him and always wanted him around.

It was one thing to see it, and another thing to feel it though. He could feel it tonight, and he could almost feel the arena shake as people cheered him. He got into the ring, intending to speak this time. There was no time for the silence that surrounded him last year. After last night, he wasn't sure he could even keep the words in. He wouldn't have wanted to either. The fans deserved his praise after last night, and they were going to get it.

"Babe, you don't have to go out there with me," Dolph said from backstage.

"I want to be out there, you need me, I mean, you don't _need_ me, but you like me out there, right?"

"Of course, I love having you by my side, but this is my fight, and I don't want you caught in the crossfire."

"I'm with you, remember, this is the both of us," she told him, grabbing his hand. "We go out there together. I want you to get back what you lost with him coming back. I told Stephanie what was going on, how I felt, where I stood, and that's with you, always."

He smiled and kissed her. "You're the best, you know that, right?"

She ducked her head a little, biting her bottom lip, "Thanks."

"I love you, just follow my lead, and we'll be fine."

Chris addressed the crowd with his usual demeanor, fun, exciting, loving every minute of this. But he also wanted to thank them, and he did so. He thanked them for always making him feel so welcome in front of the crowds. He knew how easy it was to be turned on if you left and came back; he saw it happening with Rocky. But these people always loved to see him here, and he loved to be here. He was always here, technically, he owned the joint, but it was different in front of the crowds. He was humbled and thankful.

That all ended when Dolph's music started up. Chris chuckled silently to himself. He knew this was bound to happen, especially after Stephanie told him of AJ's bizarre confrontation earlier. Dolph was pissed at him, but he'd never said that he was going to retire. It wasn't his fault Dolph put so much stock into that. Chris wasn't even sure he would ever say he was retired. Sure, it would be clear when he was older, much older, but it wasn't something he felt any time soon. He was having too much fun.

Dolph and his entourage got into the ring, and Dolph asked him what he was doing here. Chris wanted to laugh because Dolph actually sounded incredulous, like this had never been a possibility at all. AJ, since she was on her boyfriend's side now, even acted like she'd wanted Chris out even though they'd planned it this way. He figured AJ hadn't told Dolph, and he played along because while he thought the two of them a little ridiculous right now, he wasn't the type of guy who was going to intentionally ruin someone's relationship. The two of them were happy, they were a crazy couple, but he and Stephanie were a crazy couple, and he couldn't talk.

That didn't mean he was going to take what they were saying lying down. Was the shot at AJ a little cheap? Yes, but the fans ate it up, and that was important to him. He even got in some good shots on Big E, who was a little intimidating, but Chris wasn't the type of guy to let intimidation get in his way. That got him into a lot of trouble some of the time. Dolph kept asking why he was back here, and before he could answer, Vickie swooped in and said she'd reinstated him. Dolph looked at Chris in disgust, but Chris stared at him, at least letting him know _that_ wasn't true. Chris could do whatever he wanted, he didn't _need_ anyone to reinstate him. He could walk into Titan, go to the people who handled contracts, and do it himself. His name had a modicum of fear attached to it when it came to the company, just a little bit, not as much as McMahon though.

Vickie was obviously doing this because she was still bitter Dolph left her for AJ. That woman could be so petty. Ever since she'd declared herself a "cougar" it was like her personality completely changed. Either way, she was in charge, and now he and Dolph were going to be put through the Raw Roulette treatment. Because the world was a funny place, they got put into the Strange Bedfellows match. Of course it would land on that one, of course he'd have to team with Dolph.

The match went about as well as Chris could have hoped. He was willing to put things aside, but Dolph didn't want to, he wanted to show Chris his place. Chris knew he shouldn't let himself get caught up in petty arguments like Dolph was trying to perpetrate, but the kid was insistent and kind of annoying, so Chris decided to give as good as he got. If Dolph was so hell-bent on really "ending" his career, Chris might as well make him earn it. When Dolph finally allowed him to get a tag in, Chris went up to Kane, hit him on the back, then tagged Dolph back in, letting him face the consequences as he left the ring. He shrugged and watched as Kane chokeslammed Dolph.

He may be older, but that also meant he was wiser.

Chris was already back in her office with the girls. So when Stephanie saw Brock Lesnar walk by her, all she could do was stand up. He sent her a sadistic smile, but Stephanie wasn't the kind of person who backed down and she just stared at him as he disappeared through the curtain. A few moments later, Chris rushed to the area, looking for her and rushing over to her.

"Thank God, you're okay, I thought he might do something to you," Chris told her, running his hands over her hair.

"So you ran here?"

"I jogged," he told her with a shrug.

"The girls?" Stephanie asked.

"Sheamus was walking by, I asked him to watch them for a second," Chris said, "I just wanted to make sure you were alright."

"I'm fine," Stephanie said, but her statement was cut short when she glanced at the screen and saw Brock giving her father the F5. Stephanie gasped as she watched her father get decimated in the ring. She started to run out there, but Chris grabbed her arm. "Chris, let me go!"

"Not on your life, McMahon," Chris told her, "I'm not letting you out there with Brock out there, you're crazy!"

"But my dad—"

"Is getting tended to," Chris told her, gesturing towards the paramedics already heading out there. "Wait for him here, do not go and look for vengeance, alright? I know you, Stephanie, I know how you work, do _not_ go looking for trouble. Promise me you won't."

Stephanie moved her jaw back and forth, "Fine, I won't, I'll just wait for my dad, I want to make sure he gets to the ambulance, you never know around here."

"I'll go back with the girls, we'll wait for you there. You going to be okay."

"Yeah," Stephanie said, "but Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman are going to pay."

**Monday**

"Thanks, Mom, I appreciate the update," Stephanie said as she closed her eyes.

"Stephanie, promise me you aren't going to do anything stupid tonight," Linda told her daughter. She was just as impulsive as her father was, and she wouldn't be able to handle it if her daughter was injured too.

"What is it with you and Chris?" Stephanie asked. "Both of you keep making me promise all these things, and I'm not going to do anything. I'm not going to get in any situations. Why do you both keep thinking I am?"

"I seem to recall you having a run-in with Randy Orton that didn't end well…and a run with Steve Austin that didn't end well at all…and a run-in with—"

"You don't have to elaborate, Mom, I got it, I tend to get myself into trouble, but it's not going to happen tonight, I'm not going to do anything. I can't really. I mean, I could—"

"Stephanie," Linda reprimanded her.

"But I'm not," Stephanie amended. "I already promised Chris that I wasn't going to do anything, and I'll say the same to you, I promise not to do anything. That doesn't mean that I don't want to do something, but Chris would be furious with me if I did, and I don't want that."

"Thank you," Linda said, "your father is just as ornery in the hospital as he is in real life. Actually, he's probably worse here. He demanded that they get the USA network to him so he could watch the show tonight. Never-mind that he's jut come off surgery, he wants to know what's going on."

"I've got things under control, as much as I can anyways. Apparently Miz requested to have Paul Heyman on his show tonight so he could explain himself. I'm sure Dad is most interested in that one. I don't really believe that Heyman had no clue what was going on, but I guess tonight should shed some light on it."

"Don't fire him, I don't want you to fire him, at least not yet."

"I had no plans to, not until he gets what's coming to him," Stephanie told her mother, "I believe he has a lot of somethings coming to him. Just tell Dad that I hope he gets well soon, and the kids are all going to make him get well cards tomorrow, and we'll be sending them up."

"He'll love that," Linda said, "it may give him something to smile about rather than the scowl he's been wearing."

"You know how Dad gets when he's sick, and I'm sure he would love to be the one taking care of Brock himself."

"That's what I'm worried about. I worry that your father isn't going to heed the doctor's orders and he'll show up there, way before he's ready, and do something to injure himself further."

"I would prevent that from happening," Stephanie told her mother. And she would. She'd been so worried about her father last week. Seeing him there, in pain, it was not something she wanted to repeat. Yes, there were times when she wanted to cause her father pain, but those times were few and far between, and she never actually wanted to see him physically hurt. There was just something inside of Stephanie that told her it was wrong.

There was something very strange about seeing your parents frail like that. Her parents had always been so strong, such commanding presences in her life. She'd always looked up to them, and now that she was an adult, there was the very real possibility that she was getting to the point in her life where she had to actually cherish the time she had left with them. That's why she put away this stupid grudge with her father. She ultimately loved him, and didn't want to see him from her life again, not if she could help it.

"I hope you would, but you know your father."

"I do," Stephanie sighed, "I better go, Mom, the show will be starting soon, and I need to get to the station."

"Alright," Linda said, "give my love to the kids and to Chris as well."

"I will, I'm sure they'd return the love," Stephanie said. "Bye Mom, I love you."

"Love you too, Stephanie."

Stephanie hung up the phone and went back to looking at the plans for WrestleMania's Axxess weekend. They had the venues booked, now it was a matter of getting in some designers for the various events. The biggest was of course the Hall of Fame, and she needed to start looking into people who could help with the set-up. There was so much to consider, and while she missed running the show like she had, taking a step back was actually something of a relief. She'd never tell Vickie, not in a million years, but Vickie was actually helping. Her plan had failed because she was doing something good for Stephanie, not punishing her. So Vickie could stick that up her pipe and shove it.

"That's a look of a vindictive lady," Chris said as he ushered the kids into the locker room. Since the show was in Atlanta, Sawyer was able to attend since Stephanie and Chris made use of the private jet. The flight was only about an hour and a half, so they didn't feel like Sawyer would miss too much sleep if he slept on the plane, which he was most likely to do.

"Did you guys enjoy your dessert?" Stephanie asked. She knew it was bad to give them desserts this late, but the sugar would at least let them watch some of the show. She knew Sawyer and Flynn would probably try and stay up, but Kensington was sure to fall asleep during the show.

"They had frozen yogurt," Sawyer said as he held up the small bowl that contained the sweet treat, "and they had a toppings bar so Dad said we could put in anything we wanted. I put in gummy bears and oreo cookies."

"That's quite the combo," Stephanie said, "what about you, baby girl?"

"I gots chocolate chips and sprinkles. Kensy got sprinkles too."

"Yum," Stephanie said as Chris came over and gave her a sample of his frozen yogurt. "Are you sure you should be eating that? You may have a match later."

"I will have a match later," Chris said, referring to the maybe match he had scheduled for later. "I don't think people want to see Punk/Randy or Punk/Mysterio. I _just_ came back, people want to see me, people want to cheer for me, they love me."

"You're too cocky," she told him, "it's a fan vote, you don't know what's going to happen. You very well might not have a match tonight."

"I'm _going_ to have a match tonight."

"Daddy is _going_ to have a match tonight," Flynn parroted. "I'm gonna vote for him."

"Since when do you have a phone or an iPad?" Stephanie asked her daughter.

"I can use yours, Mommy," Flynn said, "I know how to answer a phone, I can do it."

"See, with her voting for me, how can I lose?"

"I can vote too, Dad," Sawyer, said, "just so you know."

"He's calling you Dad a lot nowadays," Stephanie whispered to her husband. It was just something she'd taken notice of over the last month or so. Sawyer was starting to transition from that little kid phase to the big kid phase. He was going to be seven in a few months, a sobering thought for her.

Chris just shrugged, "He's growing up."

"Daddy, when you wrestle Punk, will you be nice to him?" Flynn asked.

"No, I won't."

"Good," Flynn agreed, "He's my friend, but you're better."

"Always believing in me," Chris said, patting her head, "now I know why we had kids, we just needed people to boost us up."

"Yes, _that's_ why we had them," Stephanie scrunched her mouth up.

"So how's your dad?"

"Recovering well enough, wants to watch the show, is probably thinking of ways to get back at Brock as we speak," Stephanie stood up and started gathering a few things. "He'll probably come back before he's supposed to, probably get himself into trouble somehow, just like he always does."

"Sounds like your dad," Chris said, grabbing Stephanie's things from her. "We'll walk you out there."

"Thanks," Stephanie said, picking up Kensington since she always lagged behind. Kensington held up a spoon of frozen yogurt for her mother and Stephanie took the bite, licking her lips as Kensington kissed them right after.

"Come on, you guys, let's walk your mom to the station. My only worry about the match tonight is that Dolph is going to come and interfere, screwing me over somehow."

"Not to worry about that, he's out sick tonight."

Dolph groaned as his head hit the pillow. He covered his eyes with his forearm and tried to get his head to stop pounding. He'd never missed a show like this, not once, not ever, but this damn flu. He couldn't work through this damn flu, and he'd been sent home after SmackDown when he nearly threw up over everything after his match with Del Rio. He'd blamed it on the match, but then everything hit at once: sore throat, headache, fever, the works.

"Hey, I'm guessing you still feel like crap," AJ said.

"Babe, get out of here," he told her, his voice rough and thick with sickness. "I don't want to get you sick."

"If I'm going to get sick, I'm going to get sick, we slept in the same bed before all of this, and you making me sleep in your guest room is kinda dumb," she told him. "If I get sick, you can return the favor."

"You don't have to even stay here," he told her, "I can take care of myself."

"You're stuck with me," she told him, coming over and sitting on what was now her side of the bed. She scooted over to where he was, placing her hand gently on his stomach. He moved the arm off his face and looked over at her. He looked like a miserable little boy in that moment, and she felt so sorry for him. She reached her other hand up and pressed it against his forehead. "Well, you're still warm, but not as warm."

"You make a good nurse," he told her, "I just wish I had a nurse's outfit I could make you put on."

"What makes you think I'd put it on?" she asked. "I'm not crazy, remember."

"Yeah, but I can be pretty persuasive," he lifted his eyebrows playfully.

"Sick with a temperature and still finding time to flirt," she shook his head.

"Come here," he opened up his arms, and she crawled into them, laying her body half on top of his as she cuddled with him. She never would have figured it, but Dolph was an excellent cuddler. His body was completely solid and well-cut, but it was somehow so comfortable. She loved falling asleep next to him, and it was getting to the point where she didn't like the times they had to go to their separate places when they weren't working. She didn't want to seem too clingy though so she always said that she had to go back to her place every few weeks. She only wished Phoenix and Tampa weren't so far away from each other.

"This is nice, even if you are sick and I can hear you wheezing," she told him.

He laughed, but it turned into a cough, shaking both their bodies. "Thank you for taking care of me."

She smiled, though she knew he wouldn't see it. It was just the fact he was thanking her at all. "No thanks needed."

"I know," he told her, "but that doesn't mean you don't deserve it. I know I'm not the easiest patient."

"Well, you weren't so bad," she told him. "I haven't had to take care of anyone but myself for a long time, I thought I might be rusty."

"You're pretty perfect," he said instead and she felt him kiss the top of her head. "Is it wrong that I really like you here?"

"Here where?" she wondered, "Like in bed?"

"Well, yeah, but I just mean here, as in my house, here, like in Phoenix here. Would you um…would you ever consider moving here?"

AJ sat up abruptly, staring down at her boyfriend. He wasn't looking his best, far from it. His hair was messy, flying out in every direction, his eyes were red-rimmed because he was having trouble sleeping, and his lips were chapped. He was still the most handsome man she'd ever known, and it wasn't just his looks. She was so wrong about him, and so many other people were so wrong about him.

"You would want to be around me all the time?" she wondered incredulously. Nobody, save for maybe her mom, ever wanted to spend all their time with her. Certainly nobody ever wanted to _live_ with her. Living with her meant they would actually be in the same house, together, all the time, with no escape.

"Um, yeah," he said, coughing a little as he answered, his voice scratchy. "It's just a thought, for the future, I'm not saying we're there yet, but we could be there at some point. I hate when you're in Tampa, hell, I'd move there if you really wanted to stay there."

"I love you," she threw her arms around him. Moving in meant long-term. It meant he was thinking of the future. She'd never had a future with anyone. Nobody wanted a future with her except this wonderful, perfect man. He wasn't perfect all the time, they did fight, they argued over stupid things sometimes, but he was turning out to be perfect for her, and that was all she could ever ask for.

"I love you too," he croaked. "I just wish we could be at Raw tonight, I'd give Chris Jericho a piece of my mind."

She laughed, "You would too. You could be the new Best in the World at what you do, as he claims to be."

"Of course I could," he told her, making a face. "God, my throat hurts."

"I'll go get you some cough drops," she told him, "turn on Raw while I'm gone, we can watch together in bed."

"I'm all for that," Dolph smiled as he grabbed the remote.

Punk was so sick and tired of hearing people blame him for The Shield and being in collusion with Heyman. He hadn't been in the video and yet everyone kept asking him if he was behind it all. Everyone kept berating him for his part in all of this, but he had no part. This wasn't on him, nobody could pin this on his head. Yet, here everyone was, just ready to place judgment on him. These people were such hypocrites, blind, delusional hypocrites. They were nothing, but they saw fit to judge him?

"I don't even know what to do with those people," Punk slammed his fist into the door when he got back to his dressing room. "Did you hear them out there, booing me, booing me like I had anything to do with the damn Shield! Like I have that kind of control over him!"

"Calm down," Britt ran her hands up and down his back. "You're getting too worked up."

"No, I'm not!" he turned to face her, yelling, but not really at her, just yelling in general. "I'm so sick and tired of this. I'm getting my belt back, I'm getting it because it's mine, I deserve it. Is Rock here tonight? No, of course he's not, he's got better things to do despite the fact he's the champion, he's supposed to be representing the damn company, but where is he, huh?" Punk waved his hands in the air. "Where is he!"

"Okay, seriously, you need to calm down before you work yourself up into a frenzy," she told him.

"And Booker T? What the hell was up with that?" Punk asked. "Oh, so Vickie told him he could be here and do whatever he wanted, oh, so I'm supposed to listen, so I'm supposed to go into a match not knowing who my opponent is until like 10 minutes before! It's like a damn conspiracy."

"Phil…"

"Who does everyone think they are? You know, things have really been terrible the past couple weeks. I never thought much of what Stephanie did around here, but if _this_ is Vickie is like when she's in charge, solely in charge, I want Stephanie back. She might even be with Heyman, that's how much I don't know. I mean, who's to stop her, ever since Dolph decided that he liked crazy chicks more than I did—"

Without warning, and without any fanfare, Britt's lips were pressed against his in a kiss so unexpected that Punk froze with his eyes wide open. He was silenced. "Calm down," she whispered against his lips.

"But—"

She kissed him again, harder this time, more insistent, and this time, he did kiss her back, although the kiss itself was brief. "Calm down," she told him again.

"Why did you do that?" he asked. "Why would you…why?"

"You're cute when you're angry."

Stephanie pushed herself away from her station as soon as Vickie was backstage. She started giving her a slow clap. "Brava on the performance out there, Vickie, for about…no seconds did I believe you."

"How's your father doing, Stephanie?" Vickie asked, tilting her head to the side as if that made her any more sincere. It didn't.

"You gave quite the performance out there. I should have known it was you who hired Brock," Stephanie told her. "It's just the kind of weaselly thing you would do. You completely don't consult me on business matters, you pull the rug right out from under me and my father—"

"Ah, ah, ah, Stephanie, remember, I don't answer to you. As the managing consultant, I answer to the Board of Directors, I thought you'd remember that by now," Vickie told her.

"You're such a petty woman, Vickie. Is this how you think you're getting back at me? I didn't even do anything—"

"You know what you did."

"What did I do then?"

"You made AJ your little clone, and then she took Dolph from me," Vickie said, her eyes narrowing as Stephanie laughed. "He was my client, now he's running around with some girl—"

"That is better for him, prettier than you, younger than you, and who he loves," Stephanie said, "yes, that's right, Vickie, he's in love with her, and I had _nothing_ to do with that. In fact, I had nothing to do with them at all. They figured that out on their own, but I guess you can say you moved on too if that embrace with Paul meant anything. I must say, the two of you make a wonderful couple."

"We are _not_ a couple!" Vickie said. "I know you want me out of this job, I know you're trying your best to get me out of here. I know you somehow used Dolph against me, to try and get me out, but I'm one step ahead of you, Stephanie. I'm not going anywhere, you can't make me go anywhere because you don't control me. And I heard that Dolph is mad at your husband anyways, so you have nothing and nobody."

"You keep thinking that, Vickie, you just keep thinking that."


	406. You're In, You're Out, February 11, 2013

"Daddy, am I gonna get lots of valentines?"

"No, you're not," Chris told his daughter, "in fact, you shouldn't have any valentines, you're too little for valentines, I don't want any boys asking you that, got it?"

"But what if they do?" Flynn asked. "I gotta lot a friends."

"Then you tell them no," Chris told her.

"But Daddy, what if they really want to, and what if I want to?" Flynn wondered. She was expecting a lot of valentines. She'd gone shopping with her mommy for valentines for all her friends, and she'd found WWE ones, but there wasn't any with her daddy on it, and that made her a little mad. She did have some with Punk on it, and that made her happy.

"No, you're not."

"Daddy, I'm gonna have lots of boyfriends," Flynn declared. Chris could hear Stephanie snicker behind him, and he turned to glare at her, but she wasn't looking up at him.

"No, you're not," Chris told her, folding his arms. "You're not going to have any boyfriends."

"I am," Flynn nodded, "lots and lots and lots."

"Not if I can help it," Chris shook his head. He was going to guard his daughters like they were in the Tower of London. No guy was ever going to be good enough for his daughters, and he was going to grill any guy who dared want either one of them. He was a wrestler, he could intimidate with the best of them.

"Did Mommy have lots of boyfriends?"

"No, Mommy didn't. She married Hunter, then she married me, and that was it, just us two, nobody else," Chris told her.

"Mommy, did you have lots of boyfriends?" Flynn asked, looking around her father so she could see Stephanie. "I don't think Daddy is telling the truth."

"I had lots and lots of boyfriends," Stephanie told her with a smile, winking at Chris who gave her the evil eye. "Sometimes I would have more than one boyfriend at the same time."

"God knows that's probably true," Chris muttered to himself.

"What was that, Chris?" Stephanie asked.

"Nothing, dear."

"See, Daddy, Mommy had lots of boyfriends, so I can too," Flynn grinned. "I'm gonna give everyone a valentine though because I don't want anyone to feel sad and left out. That's not a good feeling, right?"

"No, it's not."

"Daddy, what are you going to do on the show tonight?" Flynn was curious to know if her father was going to wrestle. She wanted him to wrestle because she liked to watch him, and if he was here, that's what he should be doing. She didn't think anyone could just come here and not want to wrestle. Well, that wasn't true, Hunter didn't seem to like to wrestle anymore, but she remembered that he used to wrestle.

"I don't know, what do you think I should do?"

"Oh, that's nice, let your daughter decide your career now," Stephanie told him.

"I let my wife do it for years, I don't see what's so different letting my daughter," Chris told her and he could see her smirking to herself as she continued to write something. "In fact, with all the knowledge Flynnie has, I wouldn't be surprised if she steers me in a better direction than said wife."

"I steered you in the right direction."

"Yeah, right into losing my Undisputed Title," Chris told her. "_Someone_ said that they knew all of Hunter's weaknesses and that she could make sure that I won, and that we'd be an unstoppable force."

"We could have been if you hadn't turned on me."

"I didn't turn on you!" Chris protested. "Hunter hit me into you, but you were the one who wouldn't even let me explain before you were slapping me in the face."

"It was a harried environment," Stephanie defended herself. "I couldn't have known what was going on, I was trying to preserve my livelihood if you didn't know."

"I was trying to help you preserve it if _you_ didn't know," Chris told her.

"Daddy, stop fighting with Mommy, you were both dummies," Flynn told him with a pretty smile that lit up her whole face. "'Cause you both should've beaten up on Trips, but you didn't, and then you didn't love each other."

"Oh, I loved your mom," Chris told her, smiling over at Stephanie who glanced up at him and gave him a smile. "I just didn't know I loved your mom, that's the difference. But I definitely loved her alright."

"Okay," Flynn dragged out the word, tired of hearing her parents talk about things she didn't know because she hadn't been alive. She could have been alive if her parents had her earlier, but they hadn't so she was stuck being four, but she was going to be five this year, and five was a whole hand! "Daddy, you should be in the Emimimation Chamber. I think that's where you should be."

"You think so?" Chris asked, raising his eyebrow. It wasn't a bad idea, but he hadn't really put much thought into what he was actually going to _do_ at Elimination Chamber. He'd originally thought Dolph might want to challenge him to a match, but Dolph was sick last week so no challenge had been set forth, and it didn't look like Dolph was going to challenge him.

"Yes, because then you can go to WrestleMania and you can win," Flynn told him. "And you can take the big, gold belt, and you can take it with Fozzy, and you can sing with it."

"That would actually be really funny."

"You're not taking that belt on tour with you if you win it," Stephanie told him, "that's just ridiculous. Do you know how much that belt is actually worth, Chris Jericho? There's no way I'd let you do anything with that thing."

"I didn't say I would, that was your daughter!" Chris said. "But she's got a good idea, don't you think, I _should_ try to get into the Elimination Chamber. What have I got to lose, right? I mean, it's not like I'm in some huge match already and I don't hate anyone right now, not enough to want to face them. Yeah…I think that's actually a good thing. Can you get me in?"

"And incur Vickie's wrath, no thanks," Stephanie leaned her chin on her hand. "If I make one wrong move, she's going to be all over me. I think it's better that I lay low right now. That way, when she screws up, she can't blame it on me. My father is pissed at her though so she's already on thin ice, I might as well let her fall in."

"You're vicious," he told her, but it was with a glint in his eye that told her he admired her. "So if I want into the World Title Elimination Chamber, I guess I just have to go to Booker and Teddy then. You know, as I get older, I see the advantage in having you as my wife, and I'm starting to regret this whole, 'I want to do things on my own,' thing, when can I start the, 'my wife said so and she's the president,' thing?"

"Too late for that now, you had your chance," Stephanie said, "but I'm sure that you'll at least get a match to get in the chamber—"

"And Daddy can beat everyone, so he'll be in it," Flynn interrupted.

"I swear, we have the smartest daughter in the world," Chris leaned over and gave Flynn a loud, smacking kiss, which made her giggle and wipe her face. Chris only leaned in and kissed her again, but she pushed him. He leaned in to give her another kiss and she kissed him first. "I love getting so many kisses, if only I could get some from my Kensy-bug and Miss Stephanie."

"Mommy's working and Kensy's sleeping!" Flynn pointed to the couch where Kensington was still asleep. They'd woken up early today and Kensington's nap had extended itself by an hour.

"Oh, well, I guess I can get one more from you since you gave me such a good suggestion," he leaned in for one more kiss.

Dolph sank his head into AJ's lap, staring up at the ceiling before closing his eyes with a groan. AJ laughed and stroked his mussed hair against his head. He'd taken off his blazer, but he was still in his pink shirt and dress pants. The two of them had a long morning that extended into day, that was now extending into the evening. He was fully recovered from his flu, but he was still a little weakened because of it.

"That heart-shaped pizza was hilarious," AJ told him as he laughed quietly.

"How do people come up with that kind of stuff?" Dolph asked, taking comfort in AJ's fingers continuously running through his hair. "Like, who the hell wakes up and says, 'I'm going to get a heart-shaped pizza for these two wrestlers'?"

"I don't know, but it was a nice gesture, you were hungry after all."

"Yeah, for Chipotle, like I asked, but did I see any burritos, nope," Dolph joked and she laughed. "It was nice, but I'm so tired, today was long. And those guys that interviewed us, could they know any less about wrestling?"

"Don't get irritated," she told him, "you're still not fully recovered."

"I'm fine," he insisted. "Don't worry about me. But those guys, hitting on you like they were."

"They were hitting on you too, saying you had that chiseled jaw," AJ ran her fingertips down her jaw, making him smile. She loved his smile when it was real. It lightened up his face, and it was perfect. "I almost had to set down some ground rules."

Dolph opened his baby blues, and wiggled his eyebrows at her, "Like you have to worry."

"You do tend to steal girlfriends though."

"Like I said, I catch and release," he shrugged one shoulder at her. "Then when they asked if our relationship was legit, what did they expect me to say? No, this is about as fake as they come, I just hang out with this random girl and make out with her for fun?"

"Well, they could have asked two random people to interview," AJ reasoned, "who have no relationship whatsoever, like…um…Layla and…Wade Barrett."

"I walked into the studio with my arm around you," Dolph laughed, "plus I held your hand through most of the interview, so it seems a little like they should have known we were together, and the fact they didn't know we were together onscreen as well, I hate talking to people who have no idea what we do."

"Don't be angry," she pressed the crease that formed between his eyebrows.

"Then all they want to ask about is The Rock. The Rock this, The Rock that," Dolph rolled his eyes, "no, don't talk about the guys who are there week in and week out, who put their bodies on the line _all_ the time. If my briefcase were for the WWE title, I would go after him."

"I know you would," AJ said, "and you'd win, but come on, tonight is about being here, and it's about challenging Jericho, remember?"

"Yeah, I want to make sure he doesn't come back again," Dolph said, "that's all. I'm sure he'll get time on the show, unlike us, who have to deal with petty Vickie Guerrero. You know, I gave her a lot of time, a lot of time she didn't deserve. There were numerous times I could have left her high and dry, and I didn't. Now she treats me like this. In the end, we were totally professional, but God, she holds a grudge."

"Don't worry, she can't stay in power forever," AJ said, "at some point, someone is going to take her down a few notches. I just hope I get to participate."

"That would be hot," Dolph told her, winking at her as she pouted playfully at him. "What? I just like to see you get assertive. You know, you don't _just_ have to be my girlfriend, right? You don't just have to hang around me."

"What are you saying?" she asked, her turn to furrow her brow. Was this his way of breaking up with her? Telling her he needed space? Was she smothering him? She was trying so hard not to make the same mistakes she'd made with Daniel. She was too clingy with him, she tried too hard, but she was working on herself so much so she wouldn't be that girl.

"Hey, no worries," he grabbed her hand and held it in both of his, resting it on his chest. "I'm just saying that you're a wrestler too, and a damn good one too. If you want to wrestle, you can wrestle, you're not just my girlfriend. I'll even accompany you."

"You would accompany me to the ring?" AJ grinned.

"Um, yes, and if you had an AJ shirt, I would absolutely wear it, probably not as well as you wear my shirts, but I would absolutely support you, supporting my girlfriend is probably like the first best thing I do," he told her cheekily. She leaned down and gave him a short kiss. "But whatevs."

"Maybe the second best thing you do," she giggled.

His eyes widened as he grinned, "You're right, you're right, it probably _is_ the second best thing I do. And how good am I at the first best thing I do?"

"The best. But then it's not like I was with many guys before you, I may have kissed a bunch, but I'm not a slut."

"You're not, and anyone who calls you that will have to answer to me," he kissed her knuckles. "So the plan is to go out there whenever Chris goes out there. That's the only way we can get around Vickie's stupid ways."

"Yeah, and you can challenge him for Sunday, and you can show him who the new best in the world at what they do is, which is you, just in case you thought I was talking about someone else or something."

"Very funny," he told her.

"I like to think so."

Britt stared down at her hand that was linked with Punk's. She bit her lip. This was still so new to her, and it felt…strange. Not bad strange, just…strange, strange, that was all. They were "trying" things out. That's how they phrased it. It wasn't that they were together, they were just trying to see how it would be if they were together. So it was like a trial run to see if things could work out between them. She hadn't slept with him or anything like that, but if things went well, she could see it happening.

"You okay?" he asked.

"I should be asking you that," Britt said, "you're the one with the match on Sunday, and Heyman just called you a little while ago to tell you he had something big to say. You don't know what that something is."

"No, I don't, but we're going to find out right now," Punk said as they walked to the gorilla. "We'll see what's up with him, and I'll assess the situation. And if he needs to be talked down off the ledge, I'll do it."

"You don't honestly believe he's innocent, do you?" Britt gave Punk a look that said he better not try to pull one over on her. She wasn't stupid nor was anyone else around here. It was so obvious that Paul had a strong hand in a lot of things. He was stirring a lot of pots, but he was being obvious about it.

"No, of course I don't, but I like him here, he gives me a kind of…leverage."

"Leverage? Really?"

"Yeah, I mean, the guy is a slime but he gets things done," Punk shrugged as they finally reached the gorilla. He gave a short nod to Stephanie and Chris, but turned back to Britt. "You sure you're okay with me here, I know you were a little nervous about doing this whole together thing while at work."

"It's a trial run, if we can trial run it at the place where we both work, around the people we see every week, then it's not really trying, is it?"

"I just know there's someone here who—"

"He's not my boyfriend, and it's been a long time since _he_ decided to be selfish," Britt said, "I don't want to talk about him."

She didn't. Whatever was Hunter's problem back then was going to stay his problem. He didn't expect her to stay faithful to him, and she wasn't going to play the girl who pined after a man. She was better than that. Hunter would understand, Hunter was the one that drove her away. She was ready to spend forever with him, but he wasn't willing to do the same and that was the long and short of it. Her feelings for him were…well, they were undefined at this point.

She still loved him, but she couldn't really say she was in love with him. She was so far out of his realm, she didn't even know how he was doing. They were reduced to curt nods and the occasional short conversation. There was never need for more, and she didn't want there to be any more. Maybe one would say she was running away from her problem, maybe they _did_ need to talk, but she wasn't going to be the one to initiate that after he was the one who drove her away.

"Fair enough, but we should probably address the elephant in the room at some point," Punk said, "Elephant is a really apt animal to use to describe him."

"Wow, you went there, huh?" she laughed. "Shh, your guy is talking."

Britt nodded to the screen where Heyman was talking. She gripped Punk's hand tighter, as if claiming him right then and there. He had to let go soon after when Heyman was saying he was going to leave for Punk's sake. Punk gave Britt a kiss on the cheek before he went out there, probably to talk Heyman out of it. Britt was only alone for a second before an arm slid through hers.

"You two are looking awfully cozy," Stephanie whispered to her.

"Stephanie," Britt groaned.

"What! I want to know how this happened. Last thing I remember about you two, you were still in the friendzone, and now suddenly, you two are sharing kisses and holding hands, and being a couple. What the hell happened?"

"I'm not even sure," Britt said. "One second he was angry, and I wanted to calm him down, and my brain short-circuited, and I kissed him."

"Oh my God," Stephanie nearly squealed. "Wow, just…wow…so you two are together?"

"We're doing a trial run to see if we can be together," Britt said, "so it's only semi-official, not totally official."

"Matter of time," Stephanie told her and Britt wished she wasn't friends with her boss because she hated getting teased. It was already such a delicate situation. She was embarrassed eough as it was. "So has…you know who seen?"

"No, he hasn't," Britt said. "I don't know whether I want him to see so we don't have to explain or if I don't want him to see so he won't be…do you know if he's seeing anyone?"

"Not that I know of, but he's always been personal about that kind of thing," Stephanie said, "I don't know if he'd tell us if he was."

"But you don't think he is?"

"You think it would be easier if he was with someone," Stephanie said knowingly. "Like if he's happy, you could be happy with no strings attached?"

"Something like that, I guess," Britt said, "I just…he deserves someone. He always thinks he doesn't. He thinks he's horrible, thinks he doesn't deserve to have someone. I don't know where he gets those notions, but he pushes people away. I couldn't deal with it anymore, but I still feel horrible about it."

"Hunter has always…I don't know, he's hard to explain. After we broke up, when I started dating Chris, he was so angry," Stephanie sighed. "I think he was just mad that I moved on first. I think he wanted to be the one to move on first, to show me that what happened didn't affect him. Except it did. I mean, I lied about a baby, which wasn't my finest moment. Then suddenly, here I am, so happy with Chris. Then we get married, and it's all bad news for him."

"Yeah, I feel bad, but I don't, it's all so confusing."

"Just be happy, if he's not happy, you can't do anything about that. He turned you away," Stephanie said. "I better get back to work. Heyman's a greaseball though, I can't stand him."

"Neither can I," Britt laughed, "I should really talk to Punk about that."

Chris had both hands occupied by the smaller ones of his daughters. Flynn was holding onto his left hand while Kensington held onto his right. They were just walking down the hallway when Chris saw Booker and Teddy talking up ahead. He caught a snippet of their conversation, heard they were talking about the Elimination Chamber, and saw a golden opportunity to get into that match. He knelt down and brought the girls in front of him.

"You guys, I have to go talk to Booker right now, so I want you to stay right here, _right here_," he looked squarely at Flynn, "and don't go anywhere so I can talk to him okay? If I so much as see you wander off, you get to sit in time-out for the rest of the night, and you don't get to watch the show, got it?"

"Uh huh," Flynn nodded, her face pinched with worry. She wanted to watch the show!

"Okay," Chris gave Flynn Kensington's hand. "Hold your sister's hand, and don't let her wander off, okay, Flutterby?"

"Okay," Flynn told him, holding her sister's hand tighter just in case.

"Kensy-bug, stay here with your sister, okay, do not wander off."

"Yes, Daddy," Kensington told him.

He kissed both their cheeks before he walked over to Booker and Teddy. Booker didn't see him at first, but then both men turned to him. Chris laid it out there for him. He was a former World Champion, he'd been in more Elimination Chambers than anyone, and if someone deserved a spot, that would be him. He was ready for this, ready for the opportunity, and the chance to go to WrestleMania. He'd love to main event two WrestleMania. It was about time he got the World title back in his clutches.

Booker wasn't going to make it easy for him though. Apparently everyone needed to impress him. Chris wanted to roll his eyes and pull leverage, but that wouldn't work this time. He was a wrestler, he couldn't do that, he hated doing that. Although, Booker should have known he was good, Chris had beaten him a bunch of times in the past. Instead, Booker gave him a match against Daniel Bryan, which, if he won, he'd get in. Sounded easy enough, but Daniel was good.

Once he got the match set, and he made fun of Booker a little (it was just like the old days, all he needed was Rhyno, Rock, and Stephanie to make it complete), he walked back over to his girls, who had hardly moved a muscle, probably in fear of getting in trouble. "I helded her hand the entire time, Daddy," Flynn declared the second he was within earshot.

"Thank you, Flutterby," Chris told her as he grabbed both their hands again. "I have to get back to Mommy's office so I can change for my match.

"Daddy, you were so silly when you were talking to Mr. Booker."

"You think so?"

"Uh huh, were you making fun of him?"

"No, I was just imitating him," Chris explained.

"I thought it was funny. Daddy, when can I go on the TV with you?"

"When you're way older."

"How old?"

"At least 22," Chris told her.

"Daddy, I'm not even five!"

"I know, but you have to go to school, then high school, then you're going to go to college so you have a degree in something else just in case you don't want to be a wrestler or you can't be—"

"I will be one."

"Well, after you go to college, I'll train you myself, and Trish can help, and Lita, and Ed, and Christian, and Trips can help too, and I bet you can coerce Punk into helping as well."

"I'll be really good."

"The best," Chris told her as they reached Stephanie's office. Chris let the girls sit on the couch and watch the show as he got dressed for his match. Once he was dressed and had his jacket on, he and the girls made their way down to the gorilla where Stephanie was waiting. The girls ran over to their mother, who pulled up a seat for both of them as Chris walked over.

"Mommy, Daddy gonna win," Kensington told her mother.

"I bet he is," Stephanie said as Chris leaned down to kiss her. "Make me proud out there. I mean, how else am I going to worry endlessly for you on Sunday when you're in the Elimination Chamber? I mean, you've only, what, gone through the chamber once or twice, right?"

"Stephanie…"

"What?" she shrugged. "Good luck out there, you'll win, but still, good luck."

Chris went out for his match, ready to face Bryan. He hadn't gone against the young man a lot, but when he had been in the ring with him he saw all the potential in the world. Bryan could have a good match, he knew this. Bryan could have a great match actually. They were both around the same size so Chris knew that Bryan could go toe-to-toe with him, and go toe-to-toe with him, he did. They started the match, and as always, it started out with them sending feelers out, trying to get in their rhythm.

Chris got Bryan into the corner as he tried to go for a big move, but Bryan moved out of the way, making Chris end up on the floor. After getting back into the ring, Chris tried to get a springboard dropkick on Bryan, but again, he moved out of the way, making Chris once again land on the floor. Bryan then hit the suicide dive, which ended up hurting them both. Chris clutched his knee, that damn old injury flaring up for a second. It wasn't bad, but it stung a little.

Once again, the match ended up in a back and forth, neither one really gaining the upper-hand, just showing how well-matched they were. Bryan would get a boot to Chris's face, but then Chris would counter and try for the Walls of Jericho. He managed to get Bryan into it once, but Bryan was able to break out of it and go for his own submission maneuver. Chris was able to block that from happening and try again for the Walls of Jericho, back and forth the two of them were, until Chris finally managed to get a Codebreaker on Bryan for the win. Chris's hand was held up in victory, and it felt good to know that he was going to be getting a shot for the World Title, even if he did have to go through five other men to get it.

Dolph frowned, "Well how the hell am I supposed to get him in a match now?"

"There's still one spot left in the Chamber," AJ said. "I know you don't need the match since you have the briefcase, but that doesn't mean you can't get two shots, right? I mean, if you look at it like, you get the two shots, and if you should lose, you can cash in the briefcase and win."

"That's true," Dolph said, "actually, that's really true."

"Exactly," she told him. "You get in the chamber, and you can beat up on Chris in there."

"I could end him in the Elimination Chamber," Dolph's eyes lit up. "That would actually be perfect. I mean, it's a high profile match, _and _it's brutal. He shouldn't even _be_ in that match. I mean, he just swoops back in here, he shouldn't even be wrestling since I got his contract terminated, Stephanie probably should have made it more iron clad, and he gets to get a shot at the World Title? No, not on my watch. I'll take him out in there."

"Yes!" AJ said.

"Okay, settle down there, I don't need to be reminded that you were with Daniel Bryan," Dolph told her jokingly, "although I would like to point out how many steps up you took when you got with me because well…look at me."

"Okay, settle down there, I don't need to be reminded that you are the cockiest man on the planet," AJ taunted him as he pulled her into his side. "Let's just go find E and we'll go talk to Booker, got it?"

"Got it."

Chris came backstage, rumpled and sweaty from his match, but his girls were there, and they were all grinning at him. He went over to Stephanie's table and took a little bow. "Thank you, thank you, I couldn't have done it without the support of my favorite females on the planet."

"You're going to win in the Emimination Chamber!" Flynn exclaimed. She stood up on her chair and jumped into Chris's arms. He barely managed to catch her and she slung her arms around his neck. "Daddy," she growled, making a face that was as fierce as it was cute. "I'm going to make you win!"

"You are?" he asked.

"Uh huh, because we are not quitters!" she told him.

"Where did she get that from?" Chris asked.

Stephanie shrugged, "Probably my dad," Stephanie said, "did you hear him? He's so angry right now, it's actually funny to see Vickie squirm. Everything I could do to her, my dad is already doing. I don't even have to actually plan anything. How refreshing for a change."

"I could beat up anyone!" Flynn yelled to nobody in particular. Chris and Stephanie looked at her then at each other.

"Did our daughter turn into the Hulk or something?" Chris asked. "What did she do between the time I went out there and now?"

"I'm not Hulk Hogan!" Flynn made a face, sticking her tongue out and looking grossed out.

"This girl," Chris pointed at his daughter before hugging her and putting her back on the chair. "I've got to shower, then I'll come back for you two, little hellions."

"Okay, Daddy," Flynn said.

"Bye, bye!" Kensington waved as Stephanie blew him a kiss.

Dolph and AJ eventually found Booker and told him they wanted Dolph in the match. Booker wasn't going to make it any easier for them than he did for Chris, especially since Dolph balked at the idea of being in the Elimination Chamber initially. As punishment, he'd have to fight for his spot with Kane of all people.

"It's okay," AJ said, "I've got this."

"You've got what?" Dolph asked as he pulled on his ring trunks. He glanced over at his girlfriend who looked determined. That was a scary face because AJ was passionate, and this was the kind of thing that led her to climb cages.

"Kane, I know how to handle him," AJ said, "like before."

"Um, no, not like before," Dolph told her, turning to face her. "Not at all like before, nothing like before, never again like before."

"What?" AJ shrugged. "It would work."

"I don't want my girlfriend to kiss another guy, I'm sorry, babe, but I have to draw the line somewhere, and that's the line, I'm drawing the line at kissing some other guy that's not me," Dolph told her. He wasn't going to let the woman he loved sacrifice herself like that, not for a match he didn't really need.

"Ziggy, no!" AJ said, but then giggled, "although, you jealous is really cute. I meant like I can wear his mask again, confuse him, I'm sure I can dig up a spare."

"No, don't," Dolph said, "babe, I love you, but you need to stop thinking you're only self-worth is as someone who can interfere on my behalf. Just be there, I mean, sure, if something is going to happen, try and help, but I don't need big gestures. Just you, that's it."

"Why are you so different from all the others?" she asked him. "I mean…none of them paid attention to me like you do. I mean, Daniel did for a while, but he always put me down and everything."

"Because they refused to see how cool you were, but whatevs to them, their loss is my gain," he shrugged as he grabbed his vest. "By the way, babe, I didn't get to tell you earlier, but that outfit is smoking hot. I approve."

AJ sat up straighter, "Really, you like it?"

"Uh, yeah, you look so hot I think I might get distracted by you out there," he shrugged with that smirk on his face. She giggled again, scrunching up her face in happiness.

AJ stood up and walked over to him, pressing her hands on his shoulders and stepping on her tiptoes so she could kiss him. "I love you."

"I love you too," he told her, "but really, no kissing Kane, okay, gross."

"He wasn't that bad a kisser," she shrugged, but then laughed when she saw his face, "I'm kidding, I'm kidding!"

Dolph went out there in a good mood, and why shouldn't he have? He had his best girl on his arm, who gave the best kisses, and he was getting a match for a match he didn't really need. It was nice to know that even if he lost, that didn't spell the end of his hope for the World Title. His motivation was to get into the chamber to get at Chris Jericho. Winning would just be the icing on the cake. AJ tilted him towards her and he kissed her lightly.

"Love you," she whispered as she pulled away. He winked at her in response. Now it was time to focus.

Going against Kane was a difficult task. Dolph was not one of the bigger guys on the roster, and so Kane was almost a foot taller than he was. Dolph wasn't intimidated though. You couldn't be in this business. He just had to go about his business. They went back and forth for a while until Kane got the upper-hand. Kane was about to go for the chokeslam before Dolph rolled out of the ring and made his way over to AJ.

"You're doing great, Ziggy," she told him, "you can do it."

"Thanks, babe," he told her as he got back into the ring.

Admittedly, Kane had the upper-hand during most of the match, but Dolph was still holding his own, kicking out of everything. It was just a testament to his determination. His mind was on one focus, get in the chamber, take out Chris Jericho, reclaim the title of Y2J retirer. He wanted to lay claim to that again, and he had to get into that chamber.

AJ was worried, Dolph wasn't getting the moves he needed to end this. Now he was down and Kane was climbing to the top. AJ scrambled to the apron and started begging for Kane not to do it, hoping he would get distracted. He did, turning his head to her, looking at her with the same annoyance he once had. But then he turned back and tried to nail Dolph, but Dolph moved out of the way just in time. But as he hit the rope, AJ was knocked back and she could feel herself falling off the apron. She never touched the ground though as Big E's strong arms came around her.

Dolph heard her squeal first, and he turned quickly, thinking she was hurt. He started towards the ropes to make sure she was okay and saw she was. His heart nearly stopped when he heard her scream, but she was okay. He turned around to get back into the match and walked right into a chokeslam. It was all over after that.

AJ ran to get Dolph, helping him up as she and Big E helped him get backstage. "I'm so sorry," AJ pleaded with him, "Ziggy, I'm so, so, so sorry, it was all my fault, I can't believe I did that, it was my fault you lost!"

"Hey," he said, wincing as he tried to stand up straight. His neck was stinging right now, but his girlfriend was in distress. He grabbed her and pulled her towards him, hugging her tightly. "Hey, shh, it's okay, it's okay."

"No, it's not! I ruined everything."

Dolph pulled away so he could look her in the eye, "Jeannie, babe, look at me."

"I'm so sorry, I distracted you."

"Jeannie," he told her, capturing his attention this time, "look at me. You didn't do anything. You were trying to help me, and you did. It was my own worry for you that cost me that match, not you, okay, _not you_."

"But you wanted in that chamber to take out Chris, and I cost you that," she said, starting to cry. Dolph took her back in his arms and hugged her, whispering comforting words to her as he repeatedly kissed the top of her head. "I'm so sorry."

"Babe, it's okay, it's okay."

"It's not okay."

"Trust me, we'll figure something out."

"But—"

"No, believe me, it'll be fine."


	407. Can He Just Win? February 26, 2013

A/N: Sorry for the lack of update last week, there was a couple of reasons for it, but I'm back, and this is all caught up. I was completely underwhelmed by tonight's show, and I wish WWE would stop using Dolph as a glorified jobber, and treat him like a future champion. Blah. Anyways, this covers Elimination Chamber, Raw last week, and Raw this week. I hope that you'll like it, reviews are lovely, so think about leaving one, but as always, enjoy! :)

* * *

"There has to be a way to get you on the show."

"Well if you come up with one, tell me," he snapped at her and she winced. She looked down at the table in front of her and Dolph sighed in defeat, "I'm sorry, babe, it's not your fault. I shouldn't take it out on you."

His apology was so forthcoming she was actually startled by it. That didn't mean she felt any less responsible for what happened though. "It _is_ my fault though. I cost you the match on Monday, the one that would have gotten you on the Pay-Per-View. If it wasn't for me, you would have won."

"Babe, don't do that, we've been over this, it _wasn't_ your fault."

She started to tear up again because she was still so upset about the entire thing. She was also upset because Dolph had done nothing but reassure her that it wasn't her fault. He was perfect, and she couldn't feel any worse about it. She felt like the failure in their relationship. It was like the opposite of what Daniel did to her. Daniel berated and belittled her, making her feel like a failure. Dolph always tried to prop her up, but she still felt like a failure.

"Jeannie, come on," Dolph quickly lifted himself out of his seat, and scooted over to sit next to her. He hugged her to him, her head pressing against his t-shirt covered chest. "I would much rather lose a match than see you hurt in any way. I don't regret checking up on you."

"But I do," she told him.

"You didn't want me to check up on you?"

"No, it's just…why are you so _nice_?" AJ lamented. "Why are you always so nice to me? Why don't you get mad at me?"

"I do get mad at you, I got mad at you the other day when you stepped on my sunglasses," he told her.

"But I deserved that."

"No, you kind of didn't, it was an accident," he shrugged, "plus, that pair was like five dollars anyways, I don't know why I even got mad."

AJ moved her face so she was flush against his shirt, her voice muffled as she spoke, "This is what I'm talking about, even when you're mad at me, you don't stay mad at me."

"Jeannie, babe, I'm failing to see what the problem is here," he told her, stroking her hair. "You're upset because I don't get mad at you and I don't stay mad at you? You're going to have to explain this one to me because I'm lost."

"What I mean is…you're too nice to me. You're too nice, and I keep doing stupid things and costing you matches, and you don't get mad at me."

"Because I was more concerned about your well-being, you could have gotten hurt if E wasn't there," Dolph told her, his fingers threading through her dark hair. It was funny, he'd never considered brunettes his type. He used to date blondes exclusively, but he loved AJ's hair. He especially loved it when it was splayed across his chest before they fell asleep.

"I would have been okay, you lost."

"Yeah, I lost, it sucks, but you're worth more than that," he whispered into her hair.

"Stop it, Dolph," AJ pushed him away.

Dolph just looked at her. Sometimes, beyond his own will, he did think her a little screwed up. But it wasn't her fault. She'd been through enough, and all of that, every single time someone put her down or called her crazy, it got in her head. And how could it not? She went months having every single person in her life calling her crazy or messed up or worthless. His girlfriend was among the strongest people he knew, but everyone had a breaking point. She couldn't be tough all the time.

"Babe…"

"Just stop being so nice," AJ told him, her lip quivering. "I don't want you to be nice to me anymore."

Dolph squinted a little, "I'm…not sure how I'm supposed to proceed with that…"

"Be mad at me for costing you the chance at a match tonight, be mad at me for that," AJ told him. "Yell at me, tell me that I shouldn't have been out there, tell me that I shouldn't have been on the apron. Tell me that you don't want me interfering in your matches!"

"Well, the last one I'm in agreement with a little bit because I don't want you hurt," he told her, but she covered her face with her hands and shook his head. He was glad they were just eating their breakfast in the room because he would have been a little embarrassed if they were out of doors. He silently cursed Daniel Bryan, CM Punk, and John Cena. Actually, no, it wasn't a silent curse, now it was an actual curse. "Sons of bitches," Dolph muttered out loud, making AJ look over at him in curiosity.

"What?" she asked.

"All of them, those idiots," Dolph sucked at his teeth a little bit. If he were in the ring with all three of them right now, it wouldn't matter that he was outnumbered, his anger would have fueled him into decimating them all in one fell swoop.

"Who?"

"Bryan, Punk, and Cena," Dolph answered. "I hate them. I _hate_ them."

"But…but you and Punk have been—"

"Convenience," Dolph said, referring to the little truce they had going on right now. "I can't stand the guy, I can't stand any of them. They hurt you, they continually hurt you to the point where you can't even accept that I care more about you than anything—"

"Your briefcase—"

"Who cares about it," he gestured towards the battered thing sitting on the couch.

"You do, it's all you've wanted."

"Yeah, professionally, who wouldn't, but if it came down to a choice, you'd win," he leaned into whisper to her. "You'd win hands down. In fact, you'd win so many times, people would think you were Goldberg, and you know what I love?"

"What?"

"That you absolutely get that reference," he winked at her. She laughed through the tears still accumulated in her eyes. Dolph knew when he got involved in her that she could have mood swings, that one minute she could be fine while the next minute she could be throwing things. He didn't care. He didn't care about what other people thought of her.

It hurt them both though, to hear what people said about her. They would go home after a show and watch it through because above anything else they were wrestling fans, and they'd have to listen on commentary about how AJ was crazy, how Dolph was an idiot for falling into her trap. Every week it was the same. Nobody understood her, everyone was so quick to judge. She'd usually squeeze his hand when she felt him tense over the words, and that brought him back to life.

"I love you," she told him, saying it as if she didn't expect it back. She got that way sometimes. She would sound like he was suddenly going to renege on his love for her, like one day it would just evaporate into thin air.

"I love you too," he responded in kind, with no hesitation or pause in his voice. He said it with the same conviction he used when he said he was the best pure athlete in the business. "Now, can I worry about you again…or is that still off-limits? And can I be nice? I mean, I can pretty much count the people I'm nice to on one hand, so I'd like to keep you on that list, but whatevs."

"Yeah, I'm sorry, I'm such an idiot," she shook her head. "You must think I really am crazy some of the time."

"I bleach my hair, I've got no brain cells left," Dolph told her, smirking as he leaned down to kiss her. "Now, I need to eat, we need to get to the arena, and we're going to figure out a way to get on the show."

"We are?" she asked in delight.

"I'm Mr. Money in the Bank and you're Ms. Money in the Bank if your Twitter was accurate—"

"_Mrs._ Money in the Bank," she corrected him, puffing her chest out a little bit. Dolph raised an eyebrow. "Not that we're there yet."

"I didn't say anything," Dolph just took another bite of his breakfast, but he was smirking.

"I didn't say we were there yet!" she told him, grabbing her orange juice and taking a sip in order to hide her smirk. "I just think it sounds better than Ms. Money in the Bank, that implies that I'm not with you."

"And Mrs. does?" Now he was just full out grinning and she stuck her tongue out at him. "Oh, real mature, babe."

"I think it does."

"Fine, you're Mrs. Money in the Bank," he told her. "You think we might cash it in tonight?"

"Only if we're sure you'll win," AJ told him. "But we should focus more on getting you on the show."

"Yeah, that's objective number one."

Flynn shrugged off her cardigan. "Daddy, I don't wanna wear this one. I wanna wear my light up one! Like you! I want to wear it like you!"

"I know you do, Flutterby," Chris told her, kneeling down and grabbing her cardigan again. "But that coat isn't made to keep you warm, and you're going to need to keep warm when we go outside."

"Daddy, don't make me!" Flynn told him, pouting.

"Kensy is wearing her sweater."

"See!" Kensington said, jumping next to her sister. Flynn shoved her in the shoulder, making her fall down on her butt. Kensington was a wrestler at heart and just took the bump, laughing as she pushed herself back up.

"Flynn Murphy, you do not push your sister like that," Chris said, "now you definitely can't wear your jacket."

"Daddy, no!" Flynn's face scrunched up as she started to tear up, but Chris knew they were crocodile tears. Flynn could be an actress with the kind of things she could pull as such a young age. Crying was one of her many triumphs. "I wanna wear it!"

"Stop crying," he told her in his fatherly voice, the one he tried to use rarely, but when his children needed a stern hand, he was there for that. "You know you're not that upset. You can wear your cardigan, and you get to go see the show tonight, that should be enough."

"But—"

"No buts," Chris told her, leaning his forehead against hers, "no buts. Now apologize to your sister for pushing her down."

Flynn dawdled for a second, swaying her body back and forth, frowning and scrunching up her mouth. She was so like her parents, never wanting to apologize if she could help it. They really created a little monster with Flynn. She wasn't the worst parts of them, but she was definitely their daughter through and through. It would serve her well later in life, but for now, they had to rein it in lest she become a problem child.

"Sorry, Kensy, I didn't…shouldn't have pushed you down…even though you're a wrestler!" Flynn added quickly. Chris caught her around the waist and growled into her neck, pretending to bite it. "Daddy, no!"

"She's not a wrestler," Chris grumbled into her neck, "and neither are you."

"Yes, I am!"

"No, you're not."

"I know all the moves," Flynn tried to get Chris into a headlock.

"Oh no, I think I'm going to tap!" Chris told her.

"Sawa!" Kensington said as Sawyer came into the room after brushing his teeth. She ran over to her big brother and hugged him around the waist like it had been years since she'd seen him and not minutes.

Flynn, not to be outdone by her recent foe, ran over and hugged him too. "Sawa, I'm glad you get to watch wrestling because you don't have school!"

"I'm glad too, Flynnie," he told her, hugging the both of them.

"Why don't you give your brother room to breathe, you two," Stephanie said, brushing Sawyer's hair out of his face. "You need a haircut, baby boy. Chris, remind me to do that…oh wait, you'll be in Australia."

"Stephanie…"

"Just an observation," she shrugged at him, grabbing Kensington's backpack and sticking some juice boxes inside.

"I didn't know I was going to come back when I booked that so you can't really blame me, alright?" Chris said. "I couldn't change it, it's a huge deal, so you're just going to have to deal with my absence."

"If you win tonight though," Stephanie said, "you'll be the number one contender and—"

"And I'll contend for the title, got it," Chris saluted her. "Don't worry, it's like, one week."

"I know," Stephanie was now putting snacks into Sawyer's backpack, "doesn't mean we're not going to miss you though. Hey, you guys, did you want to sit in the crowd tonight or what? Daddy is going to be in the Elimination Chamber, and I'm not sure I want you guys there for that. Not with your father's penchant for going through chambers."

"It's not like I wanted that," Chris told her, "and they can if they want. Do you guys want to?"

"Yeah!" Sawyer and Flynn said while Kensington shook her head.

"Kensy," Flynn told her, "you want to watch too."

"Nuh-uh," Kensington said. "I stay wif Mommy."

"Okay, she can stay with me," Stephanie said while Flynn scowled. "Flynnie, if Kensy wants to stay with me, that's her choice, alright. You guys can sit in the audience with Britt. I'll give her the night off."

"I'm sure Punk is already giving her—"

"Chris!"

"I wasn't going to say anything," he held his hands up in defense. "Are we ready to go? I kind of have a big match tonight that could put me into one of the main events at WrestleMania…"

"I know," Stephanie dragged out her voice. "Yeah, I'm ready, are you guys ready?"

"Yeah," the three of them said. Kensington grabbed one of Sawyer's hands while Flynn grabbed the other. The two of them were not about to let go of their brother. He looked slightly put out, but he was used to it by now and they started for the door and the show where Chris would hopefully gain a spot in the World Title match.

Britt laughed and grabbed both of Punk's hands, holding them in her own. "You're so jittery, I've never seen you so nervous."

"Nervous?" Punk scoffed. He couldn't believe she actually thought he was _nervous_. He didn't get nervous. Nervous was not in his vocabulary. "I'm not nervous, are you kidding me, if anything, I'm anxious. I want to get this match started so that my championship reign is recognized by the dumbasses running this company."

"I help run this company," Britt pointed out.

"You're you, you don't count," he told her.

"I do kind of count," Britt shrugged. "I mean, I help run the shows, don't I?"

"But you aren't like the rest of them, you don't control people and bring in people like The Rock. Hell, you know, I'm not even on board with Brock. I know he's Heyman's buddy, but nope, uh uh, he's just like Rock."

"Because he only comes back once in a while?"

"Yeah, what's with that? At least with Jericho, I can kind of respect it because when he's not touring, he's still here, he helps Stephanie do whatever Stephanie does that doesn't include me being champion or getting respect. And when he wrestles, he's here, you know what I mean. I can at least sort of respect it, but the other two, no, and you know, same way I can kind of respect Hunter."

"Wow, really?" Britt asked. "You respect him now?"

"I can respect the guy."

"Uh huh," Britt wrapped her arms around his waist because she couldn't reach his neck. She leaned up to look at him. "So you respect him because he works here all the time too, or you respect him because you don't have to compete for my affections anymore?"

"I don't have to answer that question," he told her, leaning down and giving her a short kiss. "I want my match_ now_!"

"You'll win. You wrestle all the time, Rock doesn't."

"I just don't get this guy. He left it, he left it all, and he thinks he can just pick right back up and wrestle again? Why is he even here? Why does he even bother? If he's such a big movie star, why come back? Why not leave the wrestling to the professionals?"

"Do you really want me to attempt to answer any of those?" Britt asked. "Or are you just asking?"

"I don't know, can you?"

"I think he sees it as a challenge," Britt responded thoughtfully. "I mean, I haven't spent a lot of time with him, but I've been around him when he's been around Chris and Stephanie, and I don't know, he seems kind of...bored, not of this, but maybe of the other stuff, and he saw this as a challenge. Maybe it's the whole roots thing."

"No, he just wants the title because he thinks he's better," Punk wasn't going to buy into Rocky's act. The guy was selfish. How else could you describe someone who only came back to get the title, and when he did, didn't even have the decency to show up every week? This was all about his hubris, his ego. This had nothing to do with the prestige of the title. Punk brought prestige to the title, and he would again when it was rightfully his again.

"Okay," Britt said, not wanting to get into an argument. She really didn't know Rock's reasons, but it wasn't worth getting into a fight over them. "I have to go, I have to talk to Vickie, make sure the ring is set up, and see how pyros are doing, you going to be okay?"

"Yeah, I need to warm up anyways," he kissed her, "find me before my match, I want a good luck kiss."

"You got it, big boy," Britt teased him with a laugh as he walked her to the door. "I wouldn't want you to go out there thinking I want you to lose or anything. Don't be stupid before your match though, alright? I don't need to discipline you…and that sounds dirty."

Punk snickered, "I wasn't going to say anything, I swear to God."

"Yeah right," Britt told him, "you were going to say something."

"Just a short thing, just a few comments," Punk said as he opened the door. "See you later then?"

"Yeah, but if I'm working, please don't try and distract me like you've been trying to do lately. Like I'm not onto you," she winked at him. "Okay, I'm off." She leaned up on her toes to kiss him and he let her lips linger against his before she turned around and walked to her left, right into the view of Hunter. Britt stopped for a moment, swallowing hard. Hunter had seen her and Punk together, but never kissing, and Britt held onto a small pretense that maybe, just maybe, Hunter didn't think they were actually together.

"Hey," Hunter said as Britt walked closer to him.

"Hello," she said politely, but her body language was tense.

"You look really nice tonight."

"Don't do this, Hunter," Britt pleaded with him. "Don't pretend you didn't just see me kissing my…boyfriend." She tested the word out, and it felt flimsy in this moment, like she was a little girl with a pretend boyfriend and not a grown woman with a very grown man.

"I'm not," he told her, "glad to see you finally figured it out."

"Don't act like I wanted this the whole time, Phil and I moved very slowly, it was not a rash decision, you know that, you _know_ that."

"Well, as long as you're happy right?"

"Don't get sarcastic with me. You don't get to do this. You do not get to judge me for being with someone else when you sent me away," Britt shook her head. "You left me. _You_ discarded me, remember that, okay, remember that."

"Britt…"

"No, Hunter, stop, alright," Britt's eyes closed briefly as she tried to compose herself. "I would have loved you until the end of time if you had just let me. You sabotage yourself. You're scared, you are scared, and you know it, but you won't admit it. I'm happy now, and the pain of you has dulled."

"I'm sorry."

"What are you sorry for? That you broke up with me or that you hurt me?"

"Both," he shrugged, "because everything you said, I know it. I mean, I know what I did, and how stupid it looks now, but…you didn't see things from my side."

"And you didn't see things from mine, so end of relationship, right? Instead of talking it out, trying to figure out where things could get better, where we could go together, you just decide to quit. Then, after _all_ this time, you decide that now you get to apologize? Hunter, I don't get you. I thought I did, but every time we talk, it's like you've become this stranger, and I'm so tired of trying to figure you out."

"So you settled?"

Britt laughed, "No, not at all. I've got work to do and so do you Mr. Ambassador Miracle Worker."

"Impressed?" he asked and it was like he was his old self for a moment.

"Very," she smiled at him, in a hope that one day they could be friends. She smiled at him, not as warmly and full of love as she used to, but it was a smile nonetheless, and then it was back to what they were doing, back to ignoring each other for the most part. It was for the best after all.

AJ dangled her legs over the crate she was sitting on, her heels banging into the side softly as Dolph leaned back against said crate and her, her breasts pressing into his back as she draped her arms over his shoulders, leaning her face against the back of his head. His hair didn't have the softest texture to it, but you got used to it after a while. She closed her eyes as she let the sounds of everyone pass over her.

"We'll figure out a way," she mumbled as she could feel the growing frustration in her boyfriend.

"We keep saying that except we have no way," he reminded her. "What are we even doing, Jeannie?"

"We're brainstorming," she told him, inhaling the scent of his shampoo. It was such a comforting smell. She could stay wrapped around him for days on end and be perfectly content. She felt better after this morning, and she just had to remind herself that she did deserve someone who loved her and treated her well.

"We are?"

"What do you think we're doing?"

"Foreplay?" he answered and she laughed.

"What!" Her mouth dropped open a little bit. She knew Dolph was attracted to her but sometimes it still surprised her how open he could be about their physical relationship. She'd always been kind of shy, not necessarily a prude, just…shy.

"Your boobs are pressed against my back, that's kind of hot," he answered and she giggled. "What, I'm sorry, I think you're hot, doesn't help that you are wearing like the smallest amount of clothing ever without being in lingerie or a bikini."

"You like the way I look?" she asked coyly.

"Babe, I liked the way you looked before I found out you weren't crazy."

"Yeah?"

"You have boobs, of course I'd think you were hot."

"Jerk," she said playfully, jabbing him in the side. "Hey, I've got it."

"You've got what?" he asked, turning a little so he could look at her face. She had a smile on it, but it was a calculating one, not the kind she had when she was just genuinely happy. He liked that one the best. This one was pretty good though.

"An idea," AJ said and Dolph's face lit up as he stood up fully to turn around and face her. He looked at her expectantly, "We have to attack someone, Chris even, maybe, I don't know, but someone in the Elimination Chamber match. You have them attacked, you take over the spot. But we have to make it look like it wasn't us because then you'd never get the spot."

"Oh my God, you're a genius, babe!" Dolph hugged her tightly as she happily hugged him back.

"Excuse me," another voice said and Dolph let out a breath. He would recognize that voice anywhere because it was the voice he'd been stuck with for two years. He pulled away from his girlfriend slowly to look over at his old ally. Vickie was standing there, glaring at the two of them. Dolph felt instantly protective over AJ and he moved his body so it was in front of hers. "Oh, look at you two, so cute and in love."

"What do you want, Vick?" Dolph asked her.

"I just wanted to see how you two were doing, you know, since you're still in the newlywed phase."

"You know what, _Vick_," Dolph told her, "AJ and I have actually been together for a while now, way before she ever pushed Cena off the ladder, how long has it been now, babe, four months?"

Vickie's face dropped at that, "Something like that," AJ said, and it was the truth, they had been together for that long. Vickie looked seriously put if the face she was making was any indication. Dolph was very familiar with the look, he'd seen it so many times over the years, just never directed at him. It was sour and annoyed, but he couldn't care less. Vickie was nothing to him now. She'd been a stepping stone, nothing more.

Dolph shrugged, "Whatevs, time flies when I'm with you."

"Well, I hate to break up the love fest here," Vickie waved her hand over them trying to act like this didn't affect her, "but I just came to tell you I overheard your little plan, and if anything happens to anyone in any of the matches, I'll look straight to you and have you suspended. I don't think you're on Stephanie's good side right now, right?"

"You bitch," Dolph told her.

Vickie shrugged, "Maybe, but at least I'm not crazy."

Dolph was about to lunge at her, but AJ's small hand pulled him back, "Not worth it, Ziggy. It's okay."

Dolph calmed down after her touch, watching as Vickie left, "What are we going to do now, babe?"

"We'll figure it out."

Flynn sat down and looked around, "Britt, I'm going to have fun tonight!"

"I know you are, and I got the night off because of you so I'm doubly happy!" Britt told the little girl. "I get to sit her and watch all the wrestlers, and we're going to have fun, aren't we?"

"Yeah, we are!"

"Britt, are you really looking forward to Punk's match because he's your boyfriend now?" Sawyer asked from her other side.

"Britt, Punk is your boyfriend!" Flynn gaped. "I can't have boyfriends, Daddy told me I never can, but Mommy said I could but I don't really know what one is because I have a lot of friends who are boys."

"Do you really, really want Punk to win?" Sawyer asked her.

"Well, yeah, I do, and yes, Punk is my boyfriend," she told them.

"He's my best friend," Flynn tugged on her arm. "Did you know that, Britt?"

"I did know that, and you're his best friend too," Britt said, "are you okay with my going out with your best friend?"

"Uh huh," Flynn nodded, "I like you, you're my friend too, but not my best friend because that's still Punk."

"Chrissy is my best friend," Sawyer added, "but with Ed too. What if Punk gets in trouble, are you going to climb in the ring, Britt?"

"No, I'm going to stay out here, but I'll be very worried."

"If Daddy needs help, I can't go in the ring," Flynn said, "Mommy told me that. She said she would get really mad at me, and I don't want to get in trouble."

"That's a good thing, your dad is going to be in the Elimination Chamber, and that's pretty dangerous, especially for a girl your age," Britt told her, kissing the top of her head. "Nobody would ever forgive themselves if they saw you get hurt."

"I won't," Flynn scooted her butt around her seat as if getting comfortable. "I want the show to start!"

It started soon enough and Britt let herself sit back and enjoy it. She couldn't say she wasn't anxious because her boyfriend was in a very important match later, but she was just trying to enjoy the show. Flynn and Sawyer on commentary always made for a good time, and they didn't disappoint. They were still young enough to be excited about everything, but they both knew the business well enough to where they knew who was who and who didn't like whom, and they were a good distraction for her while she waited for the main event and Punk.

"Please be careful out there," Stephanie squeezed Chris's shoulders as he waited for his entrance. He was going last, not being locked in one of the chambers this time around. He looked at his wife, whose gray eyes were clouded with worry. He kissed her forehead and she brought his face down so that she was cradling it with her hands. "Promise me you won't try or do anything stupid?"

"What kind of stupid things can I get into? I'm in a cage for God's sakes."

"Plenty," Stephanie told him. "I'm glad you're back and everything, and I'm so happy you're back, but just please? Don't come out of there in more than one piece, and don't come out on a stretcher and _do_ come out as the #1 contender, alright?"

"I'll try, I don't have it easy being one of the starters of the match, but I'm going to try."

"Okay," she leaned up to kiss him, "that's for luck."

"Thanks," he kissed her again. "That one I just wanted to take from you. I love you."

"I love you too," she said, kissing him quickly just one last time before his music hit and he was gone.

As soon as their father's music hit, Sawyer and Flynn were ecstatic. They were cheering him on and waiting for him to appear. Their father didn't pay much attention when he came out though, not that they really noticed because they were so engrossed in cheering their father on that they didn't really notice he didn't even look in their direction. Instead Chris was focused on his match.

He'd been in too many of these matches to not know what to expect. He knew what to expect and then some. The chamber itself was like its own opponent, except that it always won. When your back hit the outside of that ring, right onto the grating, it was unforgiving and cold. Everything hurt in that match, and the only refuge you actually had was the ring, and that wasn't exactly a walk in the park. Your goal wasn't just to win, but to survive. He remembered one year where RVD landed on Hunter, nearly crushing him. It was that kind of thing that made Stephanie so frightened.

The match was brutal, as he expected it to be. Being one of the ones to start only meant that every other guy in those chambers had a slight advantage over him. He couldn't think about that though as he and Daniel started the match. All he could think about was winning, and he had to let that propel him through the match. He had to focus on that, try not to feel the eyes of the other four men on him, just waiting until the moment they could decimate him.

"Daddy's good!" Flynn hissed in Britt's ear, her eyes never tearing from her father. "He's gonna win I hope, Britt."

"I hope so too," Britt hugged Flynn around the waist and let the little girl lean her head on top of Britt's. She pulled Flynn into her lap and Flynn leaned back against the older woman as she continued to watch the match.

"The time's almost up!" Sawyer said, pointing to the screen where the timer graphic was counting down.

As each man entered the ring, the fray became more and more dangerous, but also advantageous because there were a few moments where Chris was able to gather his bearings. It didn't help that much, but any time where he could roll away from everything and catch his breath was a good thing. But things were soon thinning out. First Daniel Bryan was eliminated, then Kane, and then Henry (although Henry came back illegally).

When it was down to just him, Randy, and Jack, Chris started to believe he really had a shot at this. Until he walked right into an RKO and was eliminated. He was actually way too tired to move, but it didn't matter because suddenly he heard that Jack Swagger had won. Jack Swagger? Chris covered his eyes with his forearm. He couldn't believe Jack Swagger had won a match at WrestleMania.

"I wanted Daddy to win," Flynn pouted.

"I did too," Sawyer said, equally bummed out.

"I know, you guys, but he did a really good job, are you proud of him?" Britt asked them. They both nodded their heads. "Then that's what _really_ matters. He tried his best and he made you guys proud. Your dad is still going to wrestle so don't worry, alright? You just have to worry about seeing him later and telling him how you thought he was the best out there."

"And tell Punk too when he wins," Flynn added, "because he's your boyfriend."

"Yes," Britt kissed her forehead, "we'll tell that to Punk too."

Chris hobbled his way backstage where Stephanie was waiting for him. "You almost won."

"Yeah, but almost doesn't count," he winced as she grabbed his arm. "I'm sore, but nothing is hurt, just so you know, so you can get that look off your face."

"I'm going to walk you to the trainer to get checked out either way," she wrapped her arm around his waist. "Sometimes I wonder why you come back at all. I mean, all you do is endure this punishment, and for what?"

"I don't just do it for you, baby," Chris told her as he straightened out his already tightening back. "You'll have to give me a massage tonight."

"Already planned on it. So why do you do it? For the kids?"

"Partly, but mostly for myself. I like it here, this is where I came from, you know, this is where I belong. I love it here. Even if I wasn't married to you, even if I'd never even met you because you worked somewhere else, I would feel the most at home right here, with this company. Since the moment I stepped in the doors I've never wanted to be anywhere else. This was the pinnacle. I love it here, and not just because you're here."

"So if I were never here, if I never existed, you would still come back?"

"Yeah, I think so," he told her, "It's in my blood now…actually, it's in my kids' blood for sure, so yeah, it kind of is in my blood."

Stephanie laughed, "We'll get you on the WrestleMania card, Chris."

"Oh, I have no doubt about that."

Dolph was ticked off. AJ hated seeing him like that. She liked her light-hearted, quick-witted, cocky as hell boyfriend, not this sullen angry guy. She sighed. This wasn't how things were supposed to go. He wasn't supposed to just sit around and do nothing for an entire Pay-Per-View. He was a star, not one of the guys who could never win. He was the Money in the Bank champion, he was a future World Champion.

"Come on," AJ stood up and tugged on her boyfriend's hand. She looked to Big E and nodded at him. "You too, E, let's go."

"Where are we going?" Dolph asked, looking strangely at his girlfriend. Did she really want to leave right now? He didn't necessarily feel like sticking around with nothing to do, but he wasn't sure if they were allowed to go just yet.

"The ring," AJ said, pulling Dolph along as he trailed in confusion.

"Babe, I hate to break it to you, but I don't have a match, remember? Plus, it's not like I can cash in," Dolph tried to reason with her.

"I know, but we're going out there. Vickie said you could take anyone's spot, and you're not," AJ told him, "but that doesn't mean we can't go out there and complain about the lack of respect you're getting right now."

"But—"

"No, no arguments, we're going out there," she told him, determined now. Dolph found her very attractive at the moment. It was kind of like when she was General Manager and making matches and not caring what anyone thought of her. He never would have openly admitted it at the time, but he found her kind of attractive when she was in her business suits.

"What am I going to say?"

"Whatever you want, we're commandeering the show," she said, grabbing a microphone as they walked out there. "Cue Dolph's music, please!" she called out to the person working the production table. She was lucky Stephanie wasn't sitting there (probably off with Chris after his match) because the person complied. She handed the microphone to Dolph.

"You're the best, babe," he kissed her quickly, "love you."

"I love you too," AJ told him, "now go show them what they're missing."

Dolph's music hit and he walked out there with his girl and friend by his side. AJ followed him as he talked about how Jack Swagger could waltz in here and claim a title shot just like that, but he wasn't guaranteed a damn thing. Dolph was sick and tired of people overlooking him when they should be fearing him. AJ watched as Dolph told everyone in the arena and everyone in the back why they should pay attention to him. She was proud of him, always, and never more proud than right now.

Booker interrupted them and made an impromptu match for Dolph. He was already ready for a match though, and as Kofi Kingston came out as his opponent, he turned to AJ to give her his vest. She kissed him once for luck and slipped out of the ring. She had complete faith that her boyfriend would win the match…which he did. It wasn't with her help, though she'd tried to help by slapping Kofi, but instead, it led to her almost getting hit again. This time Dolph was able to stop himself, but just barely.

After he won, she ran to his side, hugging him as he cradled her against his body. Big E came to their side as well, but then decided Kofi needed to pay for jumping on him. Dolph wrapped his arm around AJ as they watched Big E nearly tear Kofi apart. They both smirked as they walked back up the aisle after E was done. AJ hugged Dolph one more time as they got backstage.

"I'm so proud of you," AJ told him, "that's how you show everyone you're the best. They tried to put you in a match, Booker tried to make you look stupid, but you wouldn't let him. That's why you're Mr. Money in the Bank and why you're the future World Heavyweight Champion."

"And you pushing me out there is why _you're_ Mrs. Money in the Bank," he told her, leaning down to kiss her. "What would I do without your devious mind?"

AJ giggled, "Be very lonely?"

"Well," he smirked, "I don't know about that, I mean, my t-shirt does say I steal girlfriends." AJ glared at him playfully, "but that's only if you weren't around. Come on, the night is young, and we're in New Orleans, let's go to Bourbon Street, we'll let E buy us dinner."

"Excuse me?" E said from beside them.

"What? It was just a thought," Dolph slapped his back as they walked down the hallway.

After the show was over, Britt dropped the kids off with Stephanie and Chris before finding her boyfriend. He was upset, she could tell, and he was going to be a nightmare to deal with. He always was after he lost. She walked without knocking into his locker room, and thankfully he was alone. Unfortunately, with nobody to unleash his anger on, he took it out on the room, and things were overturned and his stuff was all over the place. Britt quietly went about and picked up his things, putting them back into his duffel.

"You don't have to do that," he mumbled to her as he sat among the ruins.

"I know, but if I don't, nobody's going to do it," she said as she flipped the coffee table back into its upright position.

"I had it won, you know," he told her, but maybe it was just to the air.

"I know you did," Britt told him, still putting his things away, just like he liked them. "Flynn was so sure you were going to win. I'm pretty sure she was about to declare herself the referee and count to three for you. She's four, counting to three is nothing for her."

"She was cheering me on?" Punk asked.

"Are you kidding me? She kept yelling that you were her best friend, people were starting to stare so I had to calm her down before everyone figured out that was Stephanie McMahon and Chris Jericho's kid and bombard her. She was your biggest fan out there," Britt told him. She glanced at him and he had a small smile on his face.

"And Sawyer?"

"You know how that kid is, he cheers for everyone," Britt said, "but you had the edge for sure. He wanted you to win, we all did, you should have."

"It's so frustrating seeing someone you _know_ shouldn't have the title holding onto it. The guy can't even bother to show up every week, but he gets a shot at the title, he doesn't do a damn thing, and yet, here he is, getting to be the champ, a title _I_ should be holding again."

Britt finally finished with his stuff and walked to the couch, curling up next to him. She hooked her arms around his bare waist and leaned her chin on his shoulder, watching his profile. "To me, and to so many others, you're still the champion. You come here week in and week out, and you're a wrestler, and I'm proud of you for sticking to your convictions, for not backing down. You'll get the title back, maybe sooner rather than later—"

"Cena gets the shot."

"Well, maybe you just need to find a way in."

"Into the match?"

"Yes, let's get you in."

**Monday**

"Daddy!"

Chris looked up from his tour itinerary and over at Flynn, who was running over to him. "Flutterby, indoor voice, and what is the matter?"

"Kensy drew on me!" Flynn thrust out her arm where there was indeed a purple streak running down the length of Flynn's arm.

"Kensington, come over here right now," Chris crooked his finger towards Kensington. She walked over, and she already had a defiant gait to her step. She stopped in front of Chris and next to Flynn, not looking the least bit sorry. "Did you draw on your sister?"

"I not mean it," Kensington tried to argue in her defense.

"Uh huh, you did!" Flynn told her angrily, frowning at her sister. "Daddy, make her scrub a toilet!"

Chris snickered, but didn't laugh, "Flutterby, your sister is much too young to be cleaning toilets, but what she did wasn't nice. Kensington, why did you draw on your sister?"

"She draw my picture," Kensington admitted.

"Is this true?" Chris asked his older daughter.

"She needed help," Flynn argued. "Daddy, she was coloring the grass purple, but grass isn't purple, it's green. Nobody ever heard of purple grass."

Chris loved his kids dearly, they were little characters, all of them, and they always kept him laughing, "You know, when you're drawing something, you can use any color you like. You shouldn't have tried to boss Kensy into making the grass green. If she wanted the grass to be purple, she was allowed to do that."

"I was just trying to help," Flynn pleaded her case. "I didn't know you could draw grass purple."

"Okay, I understand," Chris told her, "now just say you're sorry for bossing her around."

"Do I hafta?" Flynn jutted out her bottom lip while her father nodded his head. "Sorry, Kensy, you can draw grass purple even though grass is green."

"Okay, go back to your coloring," Chris said, turning to his youngest child. She gave him a look that screamed innocent, but he knew better. "Kensy-bug, you know better than to draw on people. That's not a very nice thing to do, even if Flynn was being mean. You could have told her no or you could have come to me, but you chose to draw on her instead—"

"You have draw," Kensington pointed to her father's tattoos. Damn it, his kids were too smart for their own good.

"These are different, these are tattoos, and they don't come off," he told her, realizing how flimsy an argument that was because it meant they were worse than what Kensington did to Flynn. "Anyways, they're different, you don't draw on your sister, or anyone for that matter. You get a time-out, get on the couch."

"Daddy," she sniffled.

"Don't do the crime if you can't do the time," Chris lifted her up and sat her down next to him. "You get to stay up here for ten minutes, understood?"

"Uh huh," she said, but it wasn't so much a punishment because all she did was tip over and lay her head in Chris's lap, watching her father read his magazine while she looked at the pictures. Any time she got to cuddle with her father, it was a good thing.

"Daddy, this isn't fair!" Flynn stomped over. "In timeout, she can't just stay with you."

"Uh huh, I can," Kensington nodded.

"No, you don't get to stay with Daddy!" Flynn's voice was rising again. "Daddy, she can't do that, she's not allowed, that's not how timeout goes."

"Flutterby," Chris clamped the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger, "you cannot possibly be mad about this. But if you are, which is dumb if you ask me, you can come up and join me too."

"Okay," she said happily, climbing onto the couch and sitting on his other side, cuddling into his body.

"Better?" he asked once she was settled in.

"Uh huh," she told him happily as he went back to looking at his magazine. Sometimes his children could be exasperating. Luckily, they had the cuteness factor to offset their craziness. He shouldn't' be surprised with their attitudes though, they were his children with Stephanie as their mother.

He just didn't think he would be playing peacemaker for a couple of grown men later that evening. He was walking down the hallway, minding his own business, just enjoying a few minute's peace after the bickering between his daughter, when he saw Sheamus and Ryback fighting. He sighed; it was like everyone was a little kid around here. Knowing that he was technically an owner, he felt obligated to stop the fight. He got into it with both of them, making them angrier because they should be angry, but not with each other.

He really didn't have any real beef with The Shield, but if they were threatening the company he loved, he wasn't going to let it happen. He'd seen what the nWo did with WCW, and he didn't want to see that happen again. The nWo had been a blight on the company. He remembered when they broke up into a million factions, and it didn't benefit anyone. He'd never joined in on those shenanigans, and he was thankful he'd stayed out of it. If he had, who knows where he'd be right now.

He sometimes thought about what it would be like if he hadn't signed when he did, if he thought himself happy with WCW and signed an extension. He might have come over in the Invasion, and he might have worked with Stephanie, but would he have stood out to her? What would he have thought of her? Would she have even noticed him? Probably not, and that thought sent shivers through him. One little change, and it could have all been different.

He told them that they had to strike back at The Shield. He included himself because he did love this company. It was in his family now. His family was the McMahons, as weird as it would _always_ be to say that. But Vince McMahon was his father-in-law, and Stephanie McMahon was his wife, and so he loved this company. This company had given him every one of his dreams, and if he could not give back to it then nothing was worth it.

"Daddy, you're going to team with Sames!" was Flynn's immediate, and happy, response. "He's my friend!"

"I know," Chris told her as he looked at his wife, who raised an eyebrow. "What now, McMahon?"

"Nothing," she smirked at him, going back to her work.

"You and I both know it's not nothing, so what do you mean?" he asked.

She just shrugged, not looking up at him, "I just thought you were cute out there."

"Cute? I wasn't going for cute," he told her with a groan. "I want to take care of The Shield, but I also wanted to keep the peace since things were getting out of control."

"I just thought it was cute how you said you loved the WWE and how you would never wrestle elsewhere."

"Mommy, Daddy wouldn't wrestle anywhere else because you're the boss," Flynn told her mommy matter-of-factly. "He can't do it anywhere else or you'd get mad and you'd be mean."

"I'd be mean?" Stephanie asked.

Flynn nodded, "You get mean sometimes, Mommy, but it's okay, we still love you."

"I love you!" Kensington echoed.

"Nice to know," Stephanie said.

AJ watched helplessly as Dolph lost to Alberto Del Rio. Despite his win the night before against Kofi, her boyfriend kept finding himself on the short end of the stick. At the very least tonight wasn't directly her fault like it had been with Kane. That didn't mean she didn't feel bad about his loss though. Big E apparently felt worse as he climbed into the ring and did what he did best to Del Rio, pulverize him and leave him in a heap.

Dolph sat there for a moment, looking over at Del Rio and then at the briefcase sitting next to the timekeeper. Del Rio looked complete out of it, and Dolph contemplated. Would he win if he used it now? Could this be the moment he'd been waiting for? He glanced over at Del Rio again and he wasn't movie. Big E was still right there in case Del Rio came to and…yes, this was it! He threw himself out of the ring, AJ getting out of the way so he could go retrieve it.

He sent her a brief smile as he got into the ring, beckoning the referee over. He started saying that he wanted to cash it in, but before he could officially do it, Ricardo snatched the briefcase from his hand and Dolph looked confusedly after him, in shock. AJ turned towards him, and she would have made a run for him if Big E hadn't done it first. He started chasing after him, following him up the ramp, just as Ricardo dropped the briefcase.

Dolph saw the briefcase drop, and he looked to Del Rio who was still out. "Jeannie, get the case!" he screamed to her.

AJ started running up the ramp, getting the briefcase as Dolph yelled for her to hurry. She rushed as fast as she could to the ring, handing it to him through the ropes, but it was too late. Dolph turned around and was hit with an enziguri by Del Rio, effectively ending Dolph's chance to cash in. AJ glared at Del Rio as she stroked Dolph's hair. She helped him out of the ring and they headed backstage.

"I'm sorry I didn't get it to you sooner," AJ told her boyfriend.

"If you for once second blame _that_ on you, I'm not going to forgive you for it," he told her quietly. "Rodriguez took my briefcase."

"Yeah, we hate him," she said with a small smile, and he nodded his head. "I'm sorry you didn't get to be champion."

"It'll happen, it wasn't the right time right now," he told her, kissing her lightly. "Thank you for trying to get the briefcase to me. You're the best, babe, and when I do win, when it happens, we're going to celebrate like crazy."

"Oh yeah?" she wondered playfully.

"Yes, I'm talking full-stop, champagne and drinks for me, iced teas and virgin margaritas for you, dancing, taking pictures of the belt together, then when we get back to our hotel room, you know what for hours on end."

"I can take pictures with the belt?" AJ's eyes lit up.

Dolph laughed, which kind of hurt right now, "I love how all the activities, that's the one you really want to do."

"Daniel never really let me even hold it, I mean, he did, but it wasn't like, do you think I can put it around my waist and take pictures with it?" she wondered.

"Of course you can, in fact, you know, I think if you wore that and nothing else, it'd be the sexiest thing I've ever seen, and that includes you in my t-shirt," he wiggled his eyebrows at her, grinning lecherously.

"What if I want _you_ to wear the belt and nothing else?" she asked him, looking up at his face.

"I can definitely do that," Dolph nodded, "but what would you do with me?"

"Well, sometimes I _can_ be a crazy chick," she said, glad that he felt better after what just happened, and glad they could banter like this back and forth without him feeling terrible.

"I like the way you think."

"What if…what if I won the Divas Championship?" she asked shyly. Her wrestling had taken a backseat to Dolph for now, but he did encourage her to get back to that.

"Whatever _you_ want to do to celebrate," he told her, "since it would be your belt, I would want to do what you want to do. Please don't make me wear it though, pictures like that always get leaked."

She laughed, "You'd be proud of me?"

"I'm proud of you now," he told her, staring into her dark eyes with his light ones. "Winning the belt won't change that. It would only make me prouder."

She'd never wanted the belt more.

Flynn eagerly pulled Sheamus into the locker room, "Hi, Sames, did you come to talk about your match with my daddy?"

"I did, you're really perceptive, little miss," he ruffled her hair.

"I don't know what that means, but okay!" she said jovially as she led Sheamus over to the couch, "you can sit here and talk to my daddy, and I can listen because I want to listen."

"Well, there's not much," Sheamus said, sitting down nonetheless, "just 'ere to tell ya that they're a buncha sneaky bastards and to be careful during the match. I trust in ya ability, so I don't want to step on your toes or nothing."

"It's fine," Chris said, "I've been around guys like these, I know what's up, but really, don't worry about me."

Chris was not the weak link in that group. For all his strength and impressive physique, Ryback was the weak link. He just didn't have the same kind of mobility, and strength could only take you so far, especially with The Shield. They had agility and precision, something that Ryback, and to a certain extent Sheamus couldn't keep up with that. Sure, they had their strength moves, and that was fine, it worked for them, but it just wasn't going to match up well with what The Shield could do.

In the end, Ryback _was _the one who practically disappeared. Sheamus he could see brawling on the outside, but where the hell was Ryback? Had he really been taken out by one of The Shield? This is why they lost at the Elimination Chamber. He wasn't an impressive wrestler, and Chris was certainly not impressed when it was suddenly three against two and he was getting pinned. He was actually pissed about the entire thing.

He stomped backstage and Stephanie intercepted him, "I'm so glad that I'm going away tomorrow."

"Why?" Stephanie asked.

"Or else I'd probably take on all three of them at once."

**Monday**

"Hunter, can I talk to you?"

Hunter looked up, but the dark hair wasn't the right color, and the eyes were gray instead of pure blue, "Oh, hey, Steph, what's up?"

"It's my dad," Stephanie said. "He's insisting on going through with this crazy match-up, and I'm worried. He's in no shape to wrestle, not after his surgery, yet he wants to put up a fight, and it's stupid, and I don't want him to go out there, but you try telling him no."

"Are the girls with him?" Hunter asked since Stephanie came to him alone. She nodded. "What do you want me to do about it?"

"I want you to watch out for him, look, I know in the past, with Brock, you kind of pretended that you were my husband since Brock and Heyman could never seem to get over that fact. And we could go with that if they still insist on getting under our skin and Chris's skin, but it's just, you guys do have history together…and I have word that Brock is here tonight."

"He is?" Hunter perked up, "you know that?"

"Yes, I do," Stephanie said, "Heyman used his own funds so it wasn't a company expense to bring him here, but you can't sneak someone into the arena without me knowing. Vickie tried to do so, but people work for _me_ not for her."

"Well, I would love to get my hands back on him," Hunter said, "and I've been itching to get back in the ring."

"Is it because of Britt?"

"Why would it be because of her?" Hunter snapped at Stephanie, who just folded her arms over her chest. Sometimes he forgot he and Stephanie were even married. It was so long ago now, over ten years had passed since their divorce, and it almost felt like a dream. But they had been married, and Stephanie had been a person who knew him better than anyone, and things like that you just didn't forget. "It's not because of her."

"It's because you want a distraction. Come on, Hunter, don't act like it's not killing you to see her with Punk."

"Does she talk about them a lot?" he inquired, not even being subtle.

"Some," Stephanie admitted. She wasn't about to reveal all the details, but she could tell him some general stuff, stuff that wasn't invading their privacy.

Hunter nodded a little, "Is she…living with him or anything?"

"No, she still has her place in New York, but I know she spends a lot of weekends in Chicago when he has the time off," Stephanie said, "she really likes his friends."

"Oh, well, I mean, it's not because of her, there's bad blood between Brock and me," Hunter shrugged. "I'll look out for your dad…if Chris were here, would you ask him to do it?"

"I don't know, maybe," Stephanie shrugged, "Chris is a different breed though. He's not the type of guy who wants to get into a physical fight. He can, believe me, I mean, you've heard the Goldberg story, but that's not the type of guy he likes to be."

"So you're saying I'm violent?" he chuckled.

"I'm saying you will do whatever it takes to win," Stephanie said, "and my dad needs that right now, and Brock needs to be taught a lesson. I can't believe Vickie thought bringing him back was a good idea. I hope this is the sword she falls on."

"So you can swoop in," Hunter said knowingly.

"I wouldn't talk about swooping in if I were you," Stephanie said, "because we both know if you had the balls to do so, you would absolutely swoop in."

"You don't think I have balls?" Hunter scoffed. "We've had sex a number of times, Stephanie."

"Yeah, but that was like 11 years ago, I don't know what's happened between now and then. All I'm saying is there once was a guy who married a girl by kidnapping her and putting her through a drive-thru chapel."

"You want me to kidnap and marry Britt?"

"No, I'm not saying you should do anything, just…don't be a sap or a fool. And for the love of God, don't pine."

"She's different, Steph, even from you. You…you I came to love, slowly and with great difficulty because you were annoying at first, but I did love you. With her, it was natural, like I couldn't not love her. She was the first person after you that I truly felt like I could be me with and I blew it. We both know it was my fault—"

"You practically shoved her away," Stephanie reminded him, not that he needed reminding. He knew what he'd done to Britt, he knew the mistakes, he knew the misunderstandings. She was willing to fight for them, and he gave up.

"I know what I did, Steph, and it wouldn't be fair of me to start chasing her now."

"Very mature of you."

"Is she happy?" Hunter wondered. "I can deal with all the hurt if she's happy."

"She seems it, I'm sorry," Stephanie added, feeling kind of sad for him, okay, a lot sad for him. After she and Hunter became friends, right around the time she had Sawyer, she wanted nothing more than for him to be happy and content with his life.

Her life worked itself out. Unbeknownst to her, she was falling in love with Chris Jericho, and she continued to fall until the day he barged back into her office to demand an explanation for her not giving him a hug. After that, it was Chris and her, it was marriage, it was a child, then another, then another, and every day she was so blessed with her life, then she would look at Hunter's, and it was so vastly different.

"I wanted good for you," Stephanie confessed to him, sitting down next to him for a moment. Getting the girls from her ornery father could wait a few more seconds. "When you stopped being a hateful jackass who was hell-bent on destroying me and Chris, I wanted you to have the best, like I did. I wanted that for you. I still do."

"Thanks, Steph," he told her. "I'm really glad we could be friends after our disaster of a divorce…and me being an asshole to you and Chris…and me using your kids to hurt Britt."

"I'm glad too," she said, grabbing his hand and giving it a squeeze, "I like being your friend, I think we probably should have just been friends the entire time, but then I can't hate it because you changed me, and you partially brought out the woman I could be, and you made me hated, and you made me hated by one man…"

"Who later became your husband, look at me go, bringing together true love for everyone but myself."

"It'll come," Stephanie nodded, "I promise you, it'll come."

"I'm nearing my mid-40's, Steph, let's face it, if it doesn't come soon, it might not ever come. And what do I have to show for myself, oh, a bunch of belts, a two-year failure of a marriage, and a string of broken relationships. I wanted it all. I want what you have, and I'm jealous you got it and I haven't."

"Keep the faith," Stephanie said, "Chris didn't think he'd get anything he has."

"You guys got married when he was, what, 34, 35, not the same, Stephanie."

"Okay, sorry," she told him, "but I still think it'll happen. I better go though, my dad is on his crutches, and Flynn and Kensy aren't exactly docile creatures."

"They're more like hellions sent here to wreak havoc," Hunter said, "don't worry about your dad, I'll take care of it. It'll be good to get a chance to take out my frustrations on someone, especially someone who deserves a little payback."

"Thank you, Hunter, I really appreciate it."

"What are friends for?"

AJ bit her lip anxiously. Dolph texted her twenty minutes ago saying he was arriving at the arena soon. She'd flown up from her house in Tampa this morning, but by the time she arrived, it was just more practical to come straight to the arena. That meant she had to go an extra few hours without her boyfriend. He'd been part of the overseas tour, and because of constrictions against women, she wasn't allowed to go. She missed him while he was gone, and his absence was always felt so acutely.

She couldn't wait to see him and hug him, and just be around him. Vickie's reign of terror was continuing tonight as she put Dolph in a match against Ryback, but they could deal with that later. Vickie seemed absolutely hell-bent on making Dolph look bad. AJ wished she could tear every single hair off Vickie's head. Sometimes she did have crazy thoughts and that was one of them.

Finally, the doors opened and she spotted familiar bleached blonde hair. She squeaked in happiness as she ran over to him, throwing her arms around his neck and holding on tightly. He dropped his bag and hugged her back. "God, you smell good," he said as he buried his face in her neck. "You smell like home."

"I missed you so much," AJ told him, pressing a kiss to his neck, not loosening her hold at all. She jumped into his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist, like he was a tree and she was a koala bear hanging on for dear life.

"I missed you too," he muttered. "You would not believe my trip home, it was terrible, I was awake for 30 hours, I got a middle seat, I couldn't fall asleep, finally arrived in Dallas, and I didn't have my best girl to cuddle with."

"What would people think if they knew you liked to snuggle?" AJ joked with him.

"That's why we keep it to ourselves," he told her, not even caring that people were staring at them wrapped around each other like crazy people. When he was around AJ, the entire world seemed to shrink to just the two of them. She was everything he never realized he wanted in a woman. For so long, he thought he had a type, a blonde, leggy, busty, outgoing, really busty woman. He never thought everything he wanted was in a petite brunette with a six pack and awkwardness that stretched a mile long.

She broke every type he thought he wanted. Where his ex-girlfriends wanted to go party all the time, AJ loved to stay in and play video games. While his exes always had to get the newest fashionable martini, AJ didn't drink and preferred hot tea. Where his exes would dress in skintight dresses meant to show off pretty much everything, AJ preferred to be comfortable. She was such a contrast from every woman he'd been with seriously before, and yet, everything she was, was something perfect about her.

AJ finally let go of her death grip and found her feet to solid ground. That didn't stop her from staying close to him though, and she reached up to place her hand on the back of his neck before pulling him down for a kiss. It was almost as frenzied as their kisses in the ring, but not quite. He pulled away first, licking his lips, but then dove in for one more quick peck.

"I needed that," Dolph told her, "how are you so under my skin?"

"I'm under your skin?" she asked sweetly.

"You have no idea. I missed you so much. Everything I saw, I kept thinking how cool you would have found it, and going to the ring just wasn't the same without you by my side. I love having you around."

"Nobody's really ever wanted me around so much before," she shrugged awkwardly.

"I don't know why, you're so amazing," he said, bending down to pick up his bag. "I _cannot_ wait to get home to my own bed with my girlfriend and my pillow."

"You wanted me to go to Phoenix with you?" AJ asked.

"Absolutely," Dolph said, "unless you had to go to Tampa, I don't care, I like your place too, I just need a bed that is not a hotel and that has you in it, so either one of our houses."

"No, we can go to Phoenix," AJ told him, "I was home all week, and let me tell you, I was so bored. I don't really function well alone."

"Well, when you have me around, of course it's hard to function when I'm not there," he joked, wrapping his arm around her waist. "So what do I have tonight, have you looked?"

AJ sighed, and Dolph didn't like the sound of that sigh. "Vickie is still on her jealous rampage. She's so bitter, I swear to God, if I could just get my hands on her…I would just…" She screamed a little bit.

"So I'm guessing I'm in a match that will clearly be to my disadvantage," he scoffed. He knew Vickie was a petty woman, but _this_ petty? It was mind-boggling.

"Ryback," AJ told him with a growl. "I don't get her. I don't get what she gets out of this. I mean, isn't she with Brad Maddox now or something, he _is_ her assistant, whatever that means, I mean, what did it mean when she said you were her client, is it the same thing?"

"I kissed Vickie a couple of times, but that is _it_," Dolph assured her, "I don't know what Brad is meant to be, but I'm guessing suck-up is one of them, at least when I was with Vickie, it was pretty even footing. She gets this way though, she holds grudges, and let's face it, I traded up. You're younger, prettier, you can wrestle, you're cute, you're lovable, you have a lot going for you, babe."

"Well, it's still not fair, I wish we could do something about her," AJ sighed, "but we can't, we're not in with the Board of Directors."

"We'll figure out what we're going to do later. All hope is not lost, it's going to be hard, but I'm still going to show off."

Stephanie listened as her husband spoke, "I'm really sorry I couldn't be there to be the guy defending your dad."

"Better Hunter than you, if we're being honest," Stephanie admitted. "I don't want you getting hurt."

"But Hunter getting hurt is okay?" Chris asked. "Great friend you are, baby."

"I'm sorry, but you're my first priority, not him," Stephanie said, "I care about him, but I _love_ you, there's a big difference there. Besides, like I said, there's already bad blood between them. My dad will be fine, Hunter will make sure nothing happens to him."

"What's going to happen with Grandpa?" Flynn asked, wandering over and laying her arms across Stephanie's lap. "Is Grandpa going to get hurt more? He's already on those stick things because he can't even walk."

"He needs those to help him because he hurt his hips," Stephanie explained to her. "And Grandpa will be fine, Hunter will take care of him."

"Oh good, Hunter is nice for that," Flynn told her. "Daddy, I love you!"

"Tell her I love her too," Chris said.

"Daddy loves you too."

"And Kensy," Chris said.

"Kensy," Stephanie called out to her other daughter, "Daddy says he loves you."

"Love you, Daddy!" Kensington screamed as she made a very excited face, her grin almost looking maniacal. Stephanie eyed her daughter a little bit and laughed at her complete enthusiasm.

"She loves you too, very much, almost to the point where I think our daughter just turned into a mini-serial killer," Stephanie told her. "Did you call Sawyer?"

"Yeah, I called him before I called you," Chris said, "we had a nice, long talk. He told me all about his day. I miss them."

"You're only gone until next Tuesday," Stephanie told him, "barely a week, you'll all be fine."

"Daddy, I miss you wrestling!"

"Did you hear that?"

"Leave it to our girl to be like that," Chris said, "be safe tonight, okay, I mean, Brock is on the loose, and let's face it, Stephanie, you sometimes walk headfirst into trouble. Just stay out of his path, alright?"

"I don't go looking for trouble!"

"You and Flynn are the same type of person, you do not care who gets in your way. If there's something you feel like getting into, you don't even think about it, you just start doing it, that's how our daughter continuously climbs the furniture to try a move. You're the same way. I don't want you getting hurt, I don't want you getting in Brock's face. If he gets his hands on your father, you do not go after him, okay, Steph. I love you too much, and I don't know what that guy is capable of, and I'm halfway across the world, I can't protect you."

"I won't do anything, I have the girls," Stephanie said, "I wouldn't do that, not with them here."

"Okay," Chris said, "just…be careful, alright?"

Stephanie didn't need to be careful because Hunter had it all taken care of, and boy did he take care of it. The bad blood had been festering for a while now, ever since their last encounter, and both men found themselves unsatisfied with how things turned out. Brock wanted to crush Hunter and vice versa. It wasn't even really about Vince, just about revenge. Sure, he was doing Stephanie a favor, but it was just…the last pretty much year of Hunter's life had been filled with a lot of downs. Now, now there was an up.

He couldn't control a lot of things in his life right now. He had to watch his ex-girlfriend, who he now considered the love of his life, be with another man, and not just any other man, but a man he practically drove her to in the first place. And she was happy. She was happy, and he was unhappy, and he had to watch them hold hands and be stupidly cute, even though they weren't like a normal couple. He didn't even know what they were, and the anger surged inside of him.

Yes, this he could control, hurting Brock, attacking Brock, that was something he could control. He could control how hard he beat him. He could control how hard he smashed him. He couldn't control much, but he was going to unleash all the control he had on this son of a bitch. Brock was the personification of everything he hated right now. He was all the hatred he had inside for the circumstances, for his life, for Punk, for everything, and when he saw the blood gushing from Brock, the only thought, the only word that came to mind was:

Good.

AJ tried to remain positive while her boyfriend was thrown around the ring, but it was difficult. Her anger was welling up inside of her like water pressing against a dam, begging it to burst. All she could think about was slamming Vickie's head through the announcer's table and then DDT'ing her through it. That would make her feel better. Actually, no, it wouldn't, but it would be satisfying. It wasn't fair what she was doing to Dolph. It wasn't fair that Vickie couldn't keep things professional.

It was ironic, really, because AJ was forced to leave her job over a dalliance that wasn't even real, now Vickie was using her power to hold a grudge over Dolph. AJ sometimes wondered how deep Vickie's feelings were for Dolph. She knew Dolph, and when he told her he didn't have those kind of feelings for Vickie, she believed him because the way he behaved around Vickie was not the same way he behaved around her. But that didn't mean Vickie hadn't felt something, and if the way she was treating Dolph now was any indication, it was a significant amount.

When Dolph lost, he could barely get up, and she was at her boiling point. Her teeth clenched as Big E practically dragged Dolph backstage. She stood there for a moment, just trying to rein in the rage, but it ended up with her fists balled up ready to punch something…or someone. She looked around, seeing Stephanie for a moment, but she wasn't focused on her. No, she was focused on something else entirely.

"E…can you take Dolph to the trainer?" AJ asked through gritted teeth.

"Where are you going, AJ?" E asked.

"I have to talk to someone," her voice was taut, but her control was slipping. "I'll be there soon, just make sure my guy is okay."

"Okay, sure," E started dragging Dolph along. AJ could hear Dolph calling out for her, which only spurned her on.

"AJ, are you okay?" Stephanie actually came up to the smaller woman. She looked to be in actual distress, and Stephanie, despite AJ's claims that they could not be friends any longer, still cared about what happened to her.

"I'm fine," AJ said, "I'm just fine."

"You don't look it."

"I will be," AJ said, "I've got to go."

AJ stalked down the hallways, avoiding everyone, ignoring the glances sent her way. She walked up to her destination, and without even knocking burst into Vickie's office. Brad was sitting on the couch while Vickie leaned against a desk. AJ glared at Brad, who just lifted an eyebrow and looked away. AJ turned murderous eyes to Vickie. She cracked her neck and walked over to him.

"You once called me trash, Vickie, but you know what, you are the only trash around here," AJ told her. Vickie made move to speak, but AJ held her hand up, effectively shutting up the older woman. "You couldn't handle Dolph leaving you. I don't know how much you love him, but I know you do. I know that it's killing you to see him in love with me, but you a petty bitch."

"Excuse me?" Vickie said.

"You thought I was trash, Vickie, you're trash. You're trash because you want to punish Dolph. Well, you know what, go ahead, he's _still_ going to be the World Champion, and you're still going to be nothing to him, just like you were before," AJ told her. "You called me all those names, well, at least I didn't treat someone I cared about like crap."

"What about John Cena?"

"Oh, don't be stupid," AJ said, "Dolph and I were together, Cena didn't want me. Don't use him as an excuse. What killed you the most, Vick? The fact that you never got to have Dolph or that you had to watch him with _me_ of all people?"

"You don't know what you're talking about. I suggest you leave."

"Oh, I'll leave, but you're a piece of work, Vickie," AJ shook her head. "Dolph was right, you're petty, and you're sad, and you're jealous, and you're _all alone_. I hope that putting him in matches like tonight makes you feel better, keeps you warm because at the end of the day, that's all you have. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go make sure my boyfriend is okay."

AJ left Vickie's office feeling better, but not good enough. She couldn't get physical with Vickie, and that burned, but at least her words were out, and she hoped that Vickie replayed them as she laid alone in her hotel. She walked to the trainer's room and slipped inside. Dolph was sitting there, acting irate and pushing the trainer away.

"I'm _fine_," he insisted, "where's AJ?"

"I'm right here," she stepped forward.

"Where did you go?" he asked. "I was worried about you."

Things like that were what made her love him so much. He was feeling terrible, yet he was worried about her. She stepped up to him, standing between his legs and rubbed his thighs. He leaned down to kiss her. "I'm fine, I just needed to do something."

"What?" Dolph wondered, rubbing his forehead.

"Nothing, just taking a page out of Stephanie McMahon's book," AJ told him cryptically. "Is he okay, Jim?"

"Yeah, he'll be fine, just a little roughed up, take some ibuprofen if you need it," he explained.

"Maybe get a killer massage?" Dolph whispered to AJ and she nodded slightly. "You sure you're okay? You look flushed."

"I'm fine," AJ told him, "I just want to go home, how about you?"

"I would like nothing more." AJ smugly smiled at him, thinking about how Vickie would probably love to be in her position right now. But she wasn't, and she never would be, and if AJ had her way, she would take Vickie down.

AJ really wanted to have things go her way.


	408. Fluff On Top of Fluff, March 4, 2013

A/N: Raw was underwhelming tonight. When they say "throwaway" show, boy, did they mean it save for a couple things. Anyways, without Chris there, and him gone all week long, I decided to make this primarily an AJ/Dolph chapter, which, if you don't like them or don't want to read them, this might be the chapter you want to skip.

It's also just ridiculously fluffy. I felt like they should have a fluffy chapter, and boy, this is it! Anyways, I love them, people have told me they wouldn't mind a chapter dedicated to them, so I thought, okay, here you go. Next week, when Chris is back, you can expect our favorite couple and their crazy family once again (they ARE still in here), but seriously, this chapter is just fluff, and it doesn't even really move the plot all that forward. It kind of concerns me that so many matches aren't really there for WrestleMania yet, but what can you do?

Anyways, hope you enjoy, and if you want to leave a review to tell me how this gave you a toothache, go right ahead. ;)

* * *

"I kind of love you for getting me so many different kinds of cookies."

Dolph smiled, but didn't look up from the book he was reading. "You're welcome. I know that you have a weird love for cookies. I also got you pudding in the fridge if you didn't see that already."

"I did, but I figured if I started dipping my cookies into the pudding, you might think I'm really, _really_ crazy," she told him, sitting herself down on the opposite end of the couch. He continued to read and she just sat there, munching on her snack as she watched him. He didn't really pay her much attention, but that was fine. She tucked her foot underneath her body as she continued to watch him.

"Watching me is creepy, you know," he smirked, still not looking up, but it was clear he wasn't paying attention to whatever he was reading.

"I know," she said in a sing-song voice. "I should tweet a picture of you right now, all into your book, everyone would see how intellectual you are."

"They already know I'm smart," he responded with a smug smile now. "Sure, they could use reminding, but why make them feel bad about themselves since they can never, ever be me, not to mention how you'd make all the girls jealous for being with me."

"I'd believe that attitude more if I hadn't seen you practically do everything your mom told you to do when we saw her over Christmas."

"Whatevs, she's my mom, that's totally allowed, you can't even hold me responsible for that one."

AJ just shrugged her shoulders, moving them around, "I don't know, she kind of knocked that cocky attitude right out of you."

"Am I going to have to break up with you?" he asked her, but then quickly added, "Jk, jk, you know I love you, babe."

"Mmhmm," she stood up and was proud of herself for not going into a mini-freak-out after he said that, "I'm going to put the cookies away, I wouldn't want to spoil my dinner, I'll let you get back to your reading."

"What are you going to do?" he asked.

She shrugged, "I'll just bum around the house, I know you have a housekeeper, but I can clean or something. I know that Nacho has been making kind of a mess with the shedding and everything."

He made a face, "Babe, you totally don't have to clean my house, you're my girlfriend, not my slave. Actually, this is perfect, sit down, well, go put the cookies away and then sit down, I'll be right back."

"Where are you going?" she asked as she watched him put his bookmark back into his book, place it on the coffee table and hop up from the couch with such grace that she kind of hated him because sometimes she was such an awkward klutz.

"To get something, cookies, Jeannie, cookies!"

"Okay, okay," she laughed as she went into the kitchen and put the cookies away. Nacho was hanging out in there and decided to follow AJ around. "Hey, what are we going to do for dinner? Takeout? Go out? Cooking?"

"We'll just order in," Dolph called out to her, "Oh, hey, I forgot to mention my younger brother, Donny, is coming in tomorrow to hang out while I have a few days off, so I invited him to stay with us, that's cool with you, right? Then we're all just going to fly back to Ohio on Saturday."

"Yeah, of course, I really want to meet him," AJ told him as she sat back down on the couch. Nacho tried to jump up on the couch, but couldn't make it so she lifted him up and set him down next to her. When she'd spent Christmas with Dolph's family, Donny had been on a ski trip with friends. "What about Briley?"

"He has all his junk to do, I don't know," Dolph came back empty-handed, and she looked confused.

"So what is it you wanted to show me?" she asked. "If it's invisible, we're going to have to go to the big building where all the doctors live."

"I got you a present," he told her with a smile, his eyes lighting up.

AJ's face blanched and she looked stricken, "Oh my God, did I forget something? Was it an anniversary or something? Oh my God, I'm so sorry, Ziggy, I didn't mean to forget—"

"No, babe, no, you didn't forget anything," he told her with a laugh, shaking his head. "I just wanted to get you something. I hope it's something you'll like, actually, I _know_ it's something you'll like."

"You didn't have to," she told him. "I mean, I've never been one to get a lot of gifts…Daniel got me a dress once, but he said it looked better on the mannequin and that I didn't really fill it out."

Dolph rolled his eyes, "That guy wouldn't know good looks if it smacked him across the face, which incidentally, haven't _you_ slapped him across the face?"

"Once or twice," AJ said bashfully, "I'm not really a jewelry person though, I mean, I love the thought of it, but I'm not really big on that, I mean, I know that's what guys usually get girls they love, and I will love whatever you give me, but um, I'm just not big on it. I wear necklaces only, really. Plus my bracelets, but those are like five dollars."

"Well, luckily I didn't get you jewelry because I pay attention," he grabbed something he hid behind the wall and it was a big wrapped box. Her eyes widened as she looked at it. "I actually bought this like a week ago, I had my neighbor keep it at his place."

"That was nice of him," she said as he came over and placed the box next to her on the couch. She stared at it for a long moment, not really sure what to do with it, though logically, she knew she should unwrap it. "I don't have anything to give you though, I feel bad."

"Don't, I swear, this is a just cause gift. Go ahead, open it," he told her, his eyes dancing with anticipation. "If you don't, I'm going to open it myself."

"Okay, fine," she said, grabbing the wrapping paper and unwrapping her gift. She tore at it until she saw what it was. "You got me a PS3? But I have one at my place."

"Yeah, I know, this is for here," he told her. "Babe, I know that sometimes you're bored here because you don't have all the things you have at your place, so this is my way of making you feel like this could be kind of like home. Not that it's home, I mean, it is my home, but not that you have to make it your home, I'm losing so many cool points right now."

"I love it!" she threw her arms around him, practically crawling into his lap as she peppered his face with kisses. "I love it, thank you so much."

"I didn't know which games you played, but I got the WWE game, I wouldn't hate it if you wanted to play as me…"

"Or myself," AJ said.

"I just know you like video games, and I know you're good because you beat a bunch of guys at it," he said proudly, "and this will give you something to do when you're completely bored of me, or sick of me, but look at me, who gets sick of this?"

She kissed him again, "You're the best boyfriend ever! Where should I put this?"

"You can put it in here or you can put it in our bedroom, but I like to think we can do other things in there," he winked at her as she froze. "What's wrong, babe? I wasn't suggesting we have sex right now, I mean, not that I'm opposed to it because with my brother coming in tomorrow, alone time is going to be at a premium, but I can at least buy you dinner first."

"You said it was our bedroom," she told him quietly. "You didn't say it was your bedroom, you said it was _our_ bedroom."

"Did I?" he assessed it for a minute. "Well, you've been sharing it with me for months now, when we're not at your place, so sure, it's your bedroom too; it's our bedroom. I don't see the big deal."

Dolph may not see the big deal, but AJ did. It was just another thing she could add to the long list of things that made her love this man to distraction. For him, he just saw his girlfriend in his bed, and it was great and all was well, but AJ's life had been on the periphery for so long. Even when she was with Daniel, he made her live in his margins. She'd only ever been to his place a couple of times, and it never felt like home. Dolph made her feel at home wherever he was.

"I know," she told him, "but it is to me."

"Okay," he kissed her briefly. "I was thinking we hit up the store, grab some video games you love and whatever else you need to have fun, we grab some food, and play video games all night. You're obviously going to kick my ass, but whatevs, I can take defeat like a man. I do it practically every week."

"You're going to be champion soon," AJ insisted, "not tonight though because I'm going to kick your ass and I'm going to be the World Champion."

"Vicious, I love it," he told her. Dolph turned to Nacho and smiled at him, "Don't worry, Huevos Rancheros, I thought of you too." AJ giggled every time Dolph used the nickname he had for Nacho. He winked at AJ as he went back and grabbed something else. He held it out in front of him and it was a massive dog bed.

"What _is_ that?" AJ laughed.

"Well, since his mommy spends so much time here, and since the poor guy's been sleeping on our bed or on the couch or on the floor, I thought he could use a dog bed. We can put it in our bedroom, but little dude, when I'm doing things with Mommy, you gotta leave."

AJ covered her face and laughed, but then she picked up Nacho as Dolph brought the bed over, "We love what step-daddy did for you, don't we, Nacho?"

"I have to get in good with the kid," Dolph told her as she set Nacho in his new bed, which he immediately smelled then laid down in. "If I'm in with him, then I'm golden."

"Come here," AJ said, grabbing Dolph's face and kissing him. "You don't even know how much this means to me."

"What can I say, I show off with the boyfriend stuff too."

AJ didn't think she'd ever had an evening as fun as this one was. After buying a few games and other accessories that were must-haves, she and Dolph grabbed some Thai food and headed back to his place where they set up shop on the floor in front of the couch. They set up the game system and spread out all their food. And the night was just games and eating and some kissing, and eventually falling into bed together. She felt at home here, with him,

The next morning, she was woken up with his hand running down her hair, "Babe, I have to go to the airport."

"Hmm?" she forced one eye open to look at him. He was already dressed in a hoodie and some basketball shorts. "What time is it?"

"8:20," he whispered to her. "My brother's plane lands in about 45 minutes, so I've got to go. I just wanted to let you know where I'd be so you didn't wake up alone. And I brought Huevos Rancheros out for a short walk so he's good. He's downstairs camping out on the couch."

"Okay, thank you," she mumbled, closing her eye again. "Have fun."

She could hear him laugh, and she tried to feign a mad face, but it didn't work. They'd stayed up until 1 am playing video games, and who knew how long they'd spent together in bed having sex. She wanted to sleep in, and her boyfriend was laughing at her. She reached out blindly, hoping to slug him, but she only slapped him lightly on the arm.

"You're not a morning person, babe, that is so clear to me now," he told her, reaching out and rubbing her bare back. "I have to go though, sleep in, I'll probably take Donny out to breakfast before we come back here. I'll pick you up something, is there anything you want to eat?"

"Pancakes," she answered. "Bacon."

"Okay, pancakes and bacon it is," he said as he bent down and kissed her shoulder-blade. "Just so you know, you _might _want to not be naked when he gets here. I mean, it might be awkward, plus nobody gets the privilege of seeing you naked except me."

"I'll be clothed," she told him, "go away now, I want to sleep and you'll be late, and your brother will hate you."

"I'm going, I'm going," he pressed another kiss to her shoulder before he pushed himself off the bed, "Love you, babe."

"Love you, Ziggy," she said, but her voice was already fading fast.

By the time Dolph and his brother got back, AJ had…not gotten out of bed. Dolph led his brother to one of the guest rooms before he made a detour to his own bedroom. He opened the door quietly and saw AJ still in bed, but in one of his t-shirts. He snickered at the fact she actually got dressed to get back in bed. It was 10:30, but he didn't want to wake her up. He snuck back out of the room and bumped into his brother.

"She's sleeping still," Dolph explained.

"You know, I was on a ski trip over Christmas, and so I'm starting to doubt that AJ is even your girlfriend," Donny said. "I mean, she's sleeping is a convenient excuse. Next thing I know she's in the shower or she just stepped out or she had to go back home. I think she's all for show because you had to get away from Vickie."

"Very funny, jackass," Dolph shoved his younger brother towards the stairs. "She exists."

"Oh, I know she exists, and she's hot, so I'm really wondering what the hell she's doing with you," his brother joked. Dolph shoved his brother again. "What, are you going to put me in a sleeper hold? I can hold my own, dude."

"Not against me," he told him.

"So how did you guys even get together? I mean, I met your ex-girlfriends, and she doesn't look like _any_ of them, plus, I mean, she kissed _all_ those guys."

"They were terrible to her," Dolph said as they settled on the couch, Donny grabbing the remote to find something to watch. "None of them deserved her. I found her crying one night over one of them, I talked to her, I asked her out, yada yada yada, here we are."

"And you bought her a PS3, romantic as hell," Donny laughed, "Mom seems to love her though."

"I think Mom is just glad to know I wasn't actually dating Vickie," Dolph kidded.

"I think we were _all_ relieved by that one."

"I was never with her!" Dolph insisted. "Not really. She was good for the power."

"Well, you took a step up, I mean, who wouldn't tap AJ?"

"Seriously, you're my brother, I love you, but don't talk about her like that," Dolph said, his voice taking an edge into it. Donny looked at his brother in surprise. He'd never seen him turn so quickly over to seriousness before. His brother was cocky, kind of a jerk sometimes, but never like this.

"Wow, you're really in love with her, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I am," Dolph said. "So, we don't talk crap about my girlfriend because that makes me mad."

"Alright, sorry, just saying she's attractive, and if you don't want her anymore, I'll take her."

"You couldn't handle her," Dolph said.

"And you can?"

"Yes, I can," Dolph punched his brother in the shoulder. Nacho wandered in from the kitchen where his food and water bowl were (they'd bought those the first time AJ stayed at his house) and bounded over to Dolph, who picked him up and set him down on the couch where he rested his head on Dolph's leg. "Huevos, this is my brother, so this is your Uncle Donny."

"Huevos? Uncle Donny?" Donny asked, tilting his head and looking at his brother.

"His name is Nacho Cheese, he's AJ's dog, but he and I, we're close so I call him Huevos Rancheros, right, little guy," Dolph scratched his head.

"Hey there," Donny said, giving the little dog a pet, "my dogs would probably eat you for a snack." He looked back up at his brother, who was back to petting the dog. "You are so far gone for this girl. You're hanging out with her _dog_, bro."

"He's her dog, it's not a big deal. So what do you want to do while you're here? I'm up for anything. AJ doesn't drink though, so I try not to do any of that around her. I mean, she doesn't mind being a designated driver and she wouldn't care if we drank, but getting wasted, not really something I want to do. I don't want my girlfriend to have to drag my drunk ass anywhere."

"Wow, so what _is_ she like?" Donny asked. "I'm not in the mood to get drunk, but going out would be fun. She doesn't drink at all?"

"Not at all, it's cool," Dolph shrugged, "she just doesn't like it. I respect that. She's amazing. But she's not like my other girlfriends, I'll say that right now, she's not like how they were."

"I can't say that's a bad thing, bro," Donny told him, "not that your other girlfriends were bad, but I don't know, just…I don't know."

"You didn't like them."

"I'm a lot more low-key than you are, so, they weren't necessarily girls I'd hang out with," he shrugged.

"Ziggy?"

Dolph and Donny turned their heads as AJ appeared in the doorway. She was still in Dolph's shirt, but she'd tied it in the back so it was taut against her skin. She was also in a pair of long shorts and flip-flops. He grinned at her and lifted himself off the couch, walking over and kissing her cheek quickly before wrapping his arm around her shoulders. AJ wrapped her arm around his waist as he led her over to the couch.

"I want you to meet my brother," Dolph said. "AJ, this is my youngest brother, Donny. Donny, this is the chick who is making my life miserable, AJ."

AJ snuck a glare up at him, but then she smiled and stuck her hand out, "It's really nice to meet you, Dolph has told me so much about you, and I've been waiting to meet you, and I'm glad that I get to meet you now."

"Me too, I've heard about you a lot from my mom and this guy over here," Donny jerked a thumb at Dolph. Dolph rolled his eyes, "He can't shut up about you, all over breakfast it was AJ this, AJ that, and it's weird because I'm so used to him talking about himself all the time."

"Very funny," Dolph rolled his eyes again, "Babe, you hungry, I can heat up your food, I think it got cold."

"You don't have to do that," AJ told him quietly.

"No big," he shrugged, "you can talk with my brother, just…don't believe a word he says, he's a known liar, big, huge, fat liar."

"Okay," she smiled shyly at him

"Come on, Huevos, I'll let you go out back," Dolph said, picking up Nacho as he disappeared into the kitchen. She sat down on the couch and smiled at Dolph's brother. She wanted to make a good impression because she knew that Dolph and his youngest brother were close. "I'm sorry I didn't dress up, I mean, I'm dressed, just…it was a long night last night since Dolph gave me the video games."

"It's okay, it's actually refreshing to see one of his girlfriends dressed like a normal person and not in something they look like they were sewn into."

"Oh…"

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought up his exes. I'm kind an asshole right now, aren't I?" he laughed nervously. His brother was serious about this girl and as much as AJ wanted to make a good impression on him, he wanted to make an equally good impression on her.

"It's okay, we've talked about it," AJ said, "Dolph and I were unexpected anyways, he's not my type, I mean, he wasn't my type, he is now since I'm with him—"

"He really loves you," Donny interjected. "I wasn't lying when I said he couldn't stop talking about you. You were pretty much all he could talk about. It was actually kind of funny because he's never done that before. You're pretty special, I mean, my brother bought you a video game system _and_ he played with you, which says a lot. He made sure that I knew to treat you well."

"He's like that, he's kind of really protective of me."

"Yeah, I knew that when I saw he was more concerned about checking on you rather than winning that match with Kane," Donny said, "he actually didn't care about winning, and this is the guy who wants to win everything in life."

AJ laughed, "He's sweet like that to me."

"It's pretty rare, so you should know that you're something special to him," Donny winked at her. "Just so you know, and so I can embarrass him a little bit, that's all. So, what should I know about you?"

"Um, I don't know," AJ bit her lip, "I'm kind of geeky and awkward, and you're probably going to wonder what your brother sees in me by the time this week is over."

Donny laughed, "And you've just proven yourself way cooler than any of his girlfriends before. They would all start talking about themselves and how they like, wanted to be models and stuff, and I'm just sitting there looking at them because well, that's not stuff I like."

"Dolph told me that you have a pitbull rescue, which is amazing," AJ said, "I love animals. I wish I could have more dogs, but with our schedules, it's just not possible. Nacho is great because he travels well, but someday, when I get the wrestling out of my system, I want to have like five."

"Yup, number one," Donny laughed as Dolph came in with AJ's breakfast, handing it to her. "If you don't want AJ, bro, I'm going to take her."

"Not happening," Dolph shook his head, "What did you say to him?"

"Just that I want a lot of dogs," she answered as she cut into her pancake and took a bite.

"Oh okay, yeah, you hit him right where it hurt," Dolph said, laying his chin on her shoulder as she ate. "So we never did decide what you wanted to do while you were here. I know we have to hit up the comedy club, there's supposed to be this really great comedian, and I want to check that out, but other than that, we're free."

"You don't have to include me," AJ said, "I mean, not with everything. I'm fine with sticking around here so you guys can do your brotherly thing. I have video games, you could leave me for days, and I might not even notice."

"Keep her, keep her forever," Donny joked.

"We're including you," Dolph told her.

"You don't have to though, I'm just saying," she told him, holding up a piece of bacon to his mouth as he took a bite. "Didn't you say you wanted to get a round of golf in?"

"Oh yeah, I do, you up for that, man?" Dolph asked.

"Totally," Donny said, "I can kick your ass."

"Well, before that, how about I kick both your asses at a little bit of WWE '13?" AJ said as she set her plate down on the coffee table.

"Definitely a keeper."

Flynn walked up next to Stephanie's desk and leaned her chin on it. "Mommy, what are you doing?"

"I'm working," Stephanie told her.

"Mommy?"

"Yes?" Stephanie asked her.

"Why is Trips here?"

"Because he's staying with us for a couple days."

"But why?" Flynn asked. "Are you married again?"

Stephanie laughed, "I couldn't be even if I wanted to, baby girl, because I'm married to Daddy, and I don't think Daddy would appreciate if I married someone else."

"Me neither," Flynn said, "but why is he here?"

"He needed a vacation from his life," Stephanie said, and it was true. Hunter was adjusting to Britt being with Punk now, but that didn't mean it didn't hurt. He was making no move to sway her or get back together with her, but Stephanie could tell it still hurt so she'd invited him. It was actually nice to have him around because it meant someone was here to help with the kids.

"Oh," Flynn nodded as if she could understand the concept. "He doesn't play right though."

"How do you play right?" Stephanie asked her, turning to look at her brown-haired little girl.

"Like Daddy does."

"So Daddy plays right?"

"Uh huh, but Trips doesn't play like Daddy does, he doesn't know _any_ voices and he doesn't play moves on the wrestlers with me when I play with my action figures," Flynn said, "and he _should_, Mommy, because he was a wrestler, but he doesn't know how."

"He's not used to playing with action figures, baby girl, you just have to be patient and show him."

"I'll do it later, I don't wanna now, I wanna stay with you," she told her mother. "Can I sits on your lap, Mommy?"

"Sure, come on up," Stephanie said as she helped Flynn into her lap. Flynn smiled happily as she watched Stephanie work. Hunter came in about fifteen minutes later and Stephanie and Flynn both looked up at him.

"Wow, and the resemblance between you two has never been clearer," Hunter said, "I swear, you have the same look on your face."

"She _is_ my daughter," Stephanie said. "What brings you in here?"

"I just put Kensy down for her nap, is she usually so angry about it?"

"Yeah, she gets that way when she wants to play instead of take a nap, but then you put her down, and she's out like a light."

"I don't take naps no more," Flynn said matter-of-factly, "except sometimes when I do."

Hunter laughed as he sat down on Stephanie's couch. "I thought I'd just come in here, see what you were doing, you know what I mean, just…hang out."

"You're bored," Stephanie said as Hunter pulled out his phone and started becoming very interested in it. "What are you doing? Are you texting someone? Is there someone you're in contact with?"

"Get that predatory look out of your eyes, Stephanie," Hunter told her, "I'm just checking out Twitter, you know I joined, right?"

"I can't imagine you doing anything that requires you to be social."

"What's Twitter?" Flynn asked. "Wait, I know, I know, it's that thing with Daddy, right? He does it and he talks to people who like him, right?"

"You are so smart," Stephanie kissed the crown of Flynn's head as she beamed.

"Trips, do you have a lot of friends on it?" Flynn asked.

"Well, I just started, still trying to navigate my way around it, you know," Hunter said, "you should join, Stephanie."

"I'm already on it."

"Oh yeah, your mystery account so you can keep tabs on your husband," Hunter nodded, "but how about a real one? You'd like it, a lot of people are asking about you, and if they're asking _me_, you must realize how much they ask Chris."

"Yeah, your point?"

"It's not as bad as I thought, and your husband obviously loves it."

"So?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, so?" Flynn mimicked her.

"So, it's fun, come on, join for real. You can do it. It's actually a little life-affirming because a ton of people actually like me, who knew!"

"Maybe you can find a wife on there," Stephanie said, "because Chris gets people wanting to marry him _all_ the time."

"You're a bitch," he told her, but it was good-natured. Stephanie pointed at Flynn and gave him the stink eye, "Sorry, didn't mean that, don't repeat me, Flynnie."

"Okay," she said, not knowing what she wasn't supposed to repeat.

"I'm just saying, you can find love in very mysterious places."

"People love you, Steph, they'd love you even more if you were on there," he said, "they would praise you. They would love you. You could do a lot of stuff on there, like talk to fans, and you're always saying how we should all reach out to the WWE universe."

"Don't use my arguments against me, you jerk," Stephanie said.

"I'm not! Flynnie, don't you think your mommy should join Twitter? Your daddy is already on there…"

"Do it, Mommy, Daddy's there too!"

"Using my child to manipulate me, not cool, Hunter," Stephanie said, but he was giving her that look that meant he knew she was going to give in. And what would be the harm in it? Her husband liked to be on it, so why not just give in, "fine, fine, fine, I'll sign up, but I hate you for that."

"I know, and I'm okay with that, it's familiar territory. Are you going to tell your husband?"

"No, he can find out on his own," Stephanie said. "Not that he'd follow me."

"You don't think your own husband would follow you?"

"Why would he need to?" Stephanie asked. "He lives with me, he sleeps in my bed, I think he knows what I'm up to."

"Are you going to follow him?"

"Well, of course, he goes away a lot, so I like to see what he's doing over there, I don't go away a lot, what am I going to tweet that remotely interests him? Oh, I'm doing paperwork, oh, I'm giving lunch to my kids."

"You have no concept of Twitter."

"Oh, and you, Mr. I've Been On For a Day, you do?"

"More than you, he'll follow you."

"Doubt it," Stephanie said, "Flynnie, you can help me set this up. I'll just use my laptop."

"I'll tell everyone I got you to sign up."

"Forced me is more like it," Stephanie shook her head as she went to Twitter. "I can't believe I'm doing this." She went to the site and actually signed up for an account. She felt silly doing this, felt silly that she'd given in, but Chris liked it well enough so why shouldn't she at least try it. If she didn't like it, she didn't have to tweet. "Okay, I set it up, I'm at StephMcMahon."

"Clever," Hunter said, "and I've just tweeted about you."

"And here, I'll tweet about you," she said, putting it up that Hunter was the one who now added another responsibility to her life.

"You did good, Mommy," Flynn nodded.

"Now where's my list of wrestlers on Twitter," Stephanie said, looking through the documents on her computer. She found it and started following them as she went down the list. "Maybe I shouldn't follow Chris, I mean, I already follow him on my other account, would it be weird of me to follow him?"

"You're going to follow him anyways, Steph, he's your husband," Hunter rolled his eyes. "Just do it."

"Fine, but I'm not going to tweet him," Stephanie said, "that would sound too desperate and like I'm stalking him or something."

"Can you even stalk your husband? Is that a thing?"

"What's stalking?" Flynn asked.

"When you act like a weirdo," Hunter told her.

"A weirdo?"

"You're a horrible influence on everyone," Stephanie told him.

"And I'm the one willing to pick up your son from school, you'd think you'd want to be nicer to me."

"I have no less than six people who would pick him up at a moment's notice."

"Why _do_ you all live down here?" Hunter asked.

"Because we're cool."

"Maybe I should move down here, get some distance between me and Britt."

"Distance? You live in Connecticut, she's in New York, but she spends most of her time in Chicago."

"The house has memories," he shrugged. It was difficult living in a place where everything conjured up something painful inside of him. He was going to move on, he was not going to pursue Britt. He was going to let her be happy with Punk, and he wasn't going to sit around waiting for her, but that didn't mean he wanted to be surrounded by memories of good times past.

"Then move," Stephanie said, "there's nobody to tell you, you can't. If you feel like it's something you want to do, go ahead. If you want to move down here, that's fine. We don't' do things with everyone _all_ the time, but we do stuff together, it might be good for you to be down here. Plus, Trish and Lita stay down here a lot so they have a lot of friends if you want to meet someone."

"Stephanie, why do you keep trying to pawn me off to someone?" he groaned.

"Because," she told him, "I want you to be happy. And I don't want you pining over Britt anymore!"

"Britt has a boyfriend and that boyfriend is my best friend," Flynn said. Leave it to a child to not mince words and tell things exactly as they were.

"Flynnie, let's not talk about Britt, okay?" Stephanie whispered in her daughter's ear.

"Stephanie, I'm a grown man, I think I can hear about her, and I think I can handle my own love life."

"Because you've done so well thus far?" Stephanie asked. "Let's go over your track record. You date Joanie, and you love her, and you care about her, but then you kidnap me and marry me. We stay married so Joanie is out of the picture. We drift apart and get divorced. You have a string of girlfriends for a really long time including Victoria and I think Gail was in there somewhere maybe, then you meet Britt, and I thought she was it for you, but nope, you sabotage everything. Grow a pair. Even Chris got over his reservations towards me and gave me a chance."

"I'll figure it out."

Stephanie's phone rang and Flynn picked it up. "This is my mommy's phone, hello?"

"Excuse me, is Mrs. McMahon-Jericho available to talk?"

"Daddy! You know Mommy's name, why are you being silly?"

"Oh, is this my Flutterby? I thought it was Mommy's secretary!"

"You're the silliest," Flynn said, "Daddy, you're coming home soon, right?"

"Next week, Flutterby."

"Okay, I miss you though."

"I miss you too."

"Do you wanna talk to Mommy?"

"I do, do you think that would be alright?" Chris asked, willing to stay on the phone as long as his daughter wanted him to be.

"Uh huh, I'm with Mommy, and I was helping her with work, but bye now, Daddy, I love you," Flynn told him sweetly.

"How much do you love me?" Chris asked.

"Um, to the moon and back and then to the Sun," she told him, repeating an oft-repeated phrase from a book she'd read. The Sun part was her own addition.

"I love you that much too." Flynn handed the phone over to Stephanie, who took it and put the squirming Flynn down on the ground. Flynn raced over to Hunter, grabbing his hand and demanding for him to follow her so she could show him the right way to play with her action figures.

"Hey, what's up?"

"So after years and years of me being on Twitter, apparently it's your _ex-husband_ who can convince you to join?" Chris asked.

"How did you know? I barely joined. I have one tweet to my credit," Stephanie told him. "How could you have possibly known so fast, you don't even follow Hunter."

"Because I looked at my mentions, where it seems everyone wanted to inform me that my wife had joined Twitter, and there were demands I be cute with you. So he convinced you to do it, but I couldn't?"

"No, because I don't like you," she sassed him, "it's not a big deal, and now that I think about it, it's good for business. I can use it to promote our projects and other things of WWE import. I like the idea of it. I'm not using it for cutesy tweets to my husband."

"I'm not going to follow you."

"I'm already following you," Stephanie said, "because I like to see what my husband's up to."

"You already did follow me under your mystery account, which I guess is no longer a thing since you can spy on me in plain sight," he told her, "because you're a spy."

"I trifle in it," Stephanie told him with a laugh, "you don't have to follow me, it would be pointless for you to follow me anyways. You're my husband, you know what I do, when I do it, and why I do the things I do. You have the connection to me, but you travel so much, I like to have a little connection with you."

"Well, when you put it like that…maybe I should follow you."

"You don't have to, really, I just want to use this as a platform. Anything I say, you'll already know, don't bother. You can, however, follow Hunter on it."

"How did _he_ figure out how to tweet?" Chris said. "The guy barely knows how to turn on a computer, you're telling me he's sitting there typing things out with those fingers of his."

"Actually, no, right now, he's being taught the correct way to fight with action figures."

"Let me take one wild guess which of our kids is doing that," Chris said, "the one who has a temper?"

"You are correct," Stephanie said, "anyways, I'm on Twitter, you're no longer the only one, _and_ I'm going to have more followers than you are, and I'm going to have the family bragging rights."

"You wish," Chris told her, "though I do love the mention in the bio, not that it needed it, but I like the subtle reminder to…every guy that exists that likes girls, that you're mine. It's very territorial and I like it."

"I thought I would just include it, give you an ego boost and remind all the girls out there that think they can sleaze their way into your pants that I'm always lurking right there."

"Lurking? Should I be worried you're in Australia?"

"Yes, I'm in the room right next to you," Stephanie said, "I left the kids with Hunter, and now I'm there with you."

"Don't make promises you can't keep, McMahon," he told her with a laugh, "because you being here would just be the icing on the cake. I don't think you've ever even been here."

"I haven't," Stephanie said, "it's alright, I mean, if someone had extended an invitation towards me, I might have come, but as it is, I guess I just continue working. I sent out a bunch of feelers for guys for the old school Raw on Monday. You should be there, I wish you could be."

"I'm not old school enough," Chris told her, "I didn't join until 1999, that was not old school."

"I know, but still, I miss you, I can't wait until you get home, and I loved your show, I didn't get to tell you that, and I know you gave me the sneak peek and everything, but the kids and I watched it again, and we loved it. I'll give you one guess as to which child liked it the most."

"I'm going to have to say…Flynnie," Chris told her.

"You'd be wrong," Stephanie laughed, "the correct answer is Kensy."

"My Kensy-bug, you mean my bug loved it the most?"

"Oh my God, she was giggling the entire time," Stephanie told him, "she was so fascinated by all of it. She wanted to know how they made everything, how they fought, she was talking through the entire thing."

"So we're going to have an engineer on our hands is what you're saying?"

"Looks like it…or…a ring technician."

Chris chuckled loudly on the other side of the world, "I see what you did there. I hope you guys won't be too upset without me at Raw next week."

"Are you talking about the company as a whole or our family?"

"Both," she told him, "but I'm glad that you'll be back for the next shows, and I'm glad that you're wrestling, so I can't complain about this, and I'm not going to," she told him. "We're holding down the fort here anyways. You'd love it, it's like I'm the mom and Hunter is the dad, and I'm kind of getting a glimpse into what my future could have been."

"Yeah? And how is that going for you?"

"Well, considering Flynn is teaching how to play and Kensy was angry with him for putting her down for a nap, I'd say he's not doing the best job."

"But he's going to do his best to take down Brock."

"That's correct, better him than you, and I'm sticking with that philosophy."

"Okay, well, I guess I'll just have to find my own match for WrestleMania. I can't defend my father-in-law, oh woe is me."

"Don't sound so broken up," Stephanie told him, "I love you."

"I love you too, does this mean I should let you go?"

"Well, yes, probably," she told him. "We'll Skype later so the kids can talk to you, is that alright?"

"Yeah, I'll be up I'm sure, I'm always up, don't do anything stupid like fall in bed with Hunter, that I might not be able to forgive."

"I'll try my best."

Donny laughed as he looked in the rearview mirror at his brother, who had his head on AJ's shoulder, fast asleep. "What the hell did you _do_ to my brother? Wait, don't answer that, I probably don't want to know why he's so tired."

"You _know_ why he's tired," AJ told Dolph's brother, who she absolutely loved. With Briley and Dolph there was a very obvious rivalry there between them, since they were both in the business, but Donny and Dolph were close, and they were funny together, and she liked hanging out with him. "He had a match last night."

"Seems kind of silly for you guys to have extra matches when you're leading up to the biggest show of the year."

"You've got to hype things up somehow," AJ shrugged with her free shoulder. Dolph snuffled a little in his sleep and AJ ran her fingers through his hair, which made him practically mewl in pleasure.

"Nacho, your parents are disgusting back there," Donny turned to the front passenger seat where Nacho was lying down. "I hope they don't do anything in front of you."

"No, we have the decency to send him out of the room," AJ said.

"You had a match too, why aren't you tired?"

"I'm a vampire," AJ told him and he snorted in laughter. "Unlike some of us in this car, I do reserve a little in the tank."

"My brother has always been that way," Donny mused. "I don't think he knows the meaning of dial it back. He's just lucky it's never bit him in the ass."

"I know," AJ said, still running her fingers through Dolph's hair in a soothing manner. "It was good to get back in the ring though. I haven't really been wrestling since Dolph and I got together…not because he doesn't let me, it's just the opportunity hasn't really been there, and I feel like I needed to be there for him."

"And now?"

"Now I know that he's not going to abandon me."

"What do you mean by that?" Donny wondered. He knew from the shows that AJ had issues, but Dolph was always reluctant to talk about his girlfriend behind her back. "If you don't mind me asking."

"I don't have the best track record, which I'm sure you know," she gave a mirthless laugh. "Whenever a guy would show me a little bit of interest, I would cling to it because I felt like it was fleeting. The problem was I think I just clung too hard and drove them away. Dolph isn't like that though. I felt like I was clinging too hard, but he's never thought so. I was so scared I was going to screw up with him."

"But you're not worried now?"

"He loves me," AJ said it like she was still in awe of it. And in a way, she was still surprised that Dolph loved her and continued to love her. She'd never done anything special for him, she didn't have any power to give him, and yet, here he was. That was one of the things that really stood out for her. Dolph very easily could have stayed with Vickie. It benefited him, having her there. She could get him matches, do whatever he wanted, yet he chose her. He wanted her over that.

"That's for sure," Donny told her. "It's pretty obvious."

"Shut up," Dolph muttered before closing his eyes again. "Feels so good, babe."

"Gross," Donny made a face and shuddered.

"He's back to sleep, he has that amazing ability to fall asleep anywhere, I kind of envy him for that. Things are just different with him. I don't feel like if I don't live up to his expectations he'll leave me. I felt that way with the others."

"My brother's a good guy when he wants to be."

"I think he's a good guy all the time."

"We're here," Donny said, pulling into their parent's driveway. "You need help with him."

"No, but can you bring Nacho inside?"

"No problem, come on, buddy," Donny picked up the dog and got out of the car.

AJ turned to Dolph and kissed the crown of his head, "Hey, Ziggy, get up before I leave you in the car all night."

"You wouldn't dare," he told her, sitting up and stretching his arms. "Here already?"

"Time flies when you're the one sleeping," she moved her shoulder around. "Come on, I'm tired."

AJ found Dolph's old bedroom kind of funny. It was covered in wrestling posters, except a lot of the guys were guys that were still around, whether it was in the ring or backstage, and it felt funny being surrounded by people you knew. So when she woke up in the morning, she was actually greeted with Kane's face, the same face she'd once kissed.

"Your room creeps me out," she said when she turned over and saw Dolph was awake.

"What?" he asked with a laugh. "Why?"

"Because I just woke up to Kane's face, and I've made out with him."

Dolph started laughing so hard he had to cover his face. "I love you, babe."

"Stop," she pushed at him, "you can't tell me it's not weird!"

"Hey, I didn't kiss Kane, so no, it's not weird for me."

She rolled over so she was half on top of him. "You shouldn't make fun of me. I'm your girlfriend, I can make your life a living hell."

"I know you can," he winked at her. "Just don't look at it, then you won't think about how you once wore a mask to the ring…what were you even thinking before you were with me? God, I think I've been the best influence on you."

She rolled back off him after giving him a peck on the lips. "We better get downstairs before your parents think we're having sex up here like they did last time. Your mom eyed me all through breakfast. I think she wants us to get married even though we've only been dating several months."

"Oh my God, you know what would be hilarious?" he asked her.

"What?" she asked.

"If we played a little prank on my parents."

AJ couldn't wait for Dolph's match tonight. She and Dolph had planned the perfect prank. Not only would the crowd hate them for it, but Dolph's parents would get a little prank done on them. She was practically skipping through the halls she was so ridiculously happy today. It was such a testament to Dolph and their relationship because she hadn't felt this happy since the early stages of her relationship with Daniel, except she wasn't worried things would go sour with her and Dolph. Maybe it was naïve, but she refused to believe it.

AJ burst through the doors and saw Dolph still doing his interview with one of the local news guys. She hung back, letting him have his moment. He didn't even see her as she stood there, but as soon as the camera was moved away from them, she jogged over and jumped on his back, leaning over and kissing his cheek.

"How was your interview?"

"Great," he said, "what's up?"

"Nothing," she said, turning to the other guy, "Hey, I'm AJ."

"I know," he said, shaking her outstretched hand. "Chris."

"Did he say nice things about me?" AJ asked.

"Only the best for you, babe," Dolph said.

"Good," she said, just hanging onto him as he talked with the guy for a few more minutes. Then Dolph carried her to their locker room, going inside and letting her down.

She had to get dressed in her ring gear, and it felt good to get in it again. She felt rusty though, and that was just from lack of wrestling. Dolph kept encouraging her to get back to it, and if she wanted to really, she needed this; she needed to get back into practice. Dolph watched her appreciatively as she pulled on her shorts and her wrestling boots. She still hadn't put her top on so her boyfriend was ogling her.

"My eyes are up here, Ziggy," she told him, giving him a look.

"I know," he continued to stare at her breasts. She pretended to glare at him as she pulled on her custom-made Dolph shirt. "So sexy that you're wrestling in my shirt. You sure you don't want me out there? I can interfere on your behalf…although I shouldn't really slap a woman like you slap guys…"

"I want to do this on my own, but you're cute for asking," she told him lightly, bending over to kiss him. "Watch it though?"

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

Whenever she wrestled, she remembered why she came into this business in the first place. She loved running the ropes and doing moves, and making her opponent want to beg for mercy. She was a whole lot of viciousness wrapped up in a teeny package, and she wanted to storm out and seize the world. She saw Dolph's parents in the audience, and they were just about the only people cheering her on. Everyone else was yelling that she was crazy, but she ignored them. She wanted to impress Dolph's parents, even though she knew they liked her, it was actually kind of nice to have people there who cared about her outside the ring. It made her feel special.

Unfortunately, she lost, and she was angry about it, but she just knew that she had to continue to get back into wrestling. She'd been just supporting Dolph for so long, now it was time to maybe focus on her too. Dolph wanted that for her, and she was starting to want it for herself. She smiled at Dolph's parents as she walked past them towards the back, and straight into his arms. She remembered what they were doing later, and she grinned.

When it was finally Dolph's match, she was beside herself with glee. She walked out behind him, letting him do his signature butt wiggle before she kissed him. He winked at her and they walked the short trip down to the ring. He grabbed a microphone and asked them to cut the music. He started by saying he was from Cleveland and his parents were here. He pointed them out to the crowd before he said the last couple week had been amazing, and he asked AJ to come over to him.

AJ walked over and she waved at Dolph's parents. Dolph continued to say that tonight was a special night as he pulled a box out of the briefcase (they'd cleared out the jellybeans). AJ looked over at Dolph's parents and his mother's eyes were bugging out of her skull at this point. Dolph said he wanted to say something in front of everyone and he turned around and walked over to the spot right in front of his parents. His mother looked to be in shock and he had to hold in his laughter as he called AJ over again. AJ walked over, acting like she had no idea what was going on.

He told her the last couple weeks had been amazing, which they had, but they always were, and he pretended to stumble on his words as he got down on one knee. It wasn't until that moment that it hit him that he could actually, honestly see himself doing this. Not any time soon, not until they were both ready, but it was still something he could see. That thought startled him for a second, and where he had pretended to be choked up before, he was actually a little choked up now. Did he really love AJ _that_ much? He looked up at her as she pretended like this was the best moment of her life, and it hit him.

Yes, he did love her that much.

The words that came out of his mouth at this part were mostly sincere. She was the world to him. That wasn't a lie and AJ gave him a secret smile that told him she knew he meant it. The wind beneath his wings was cheesy, but hey, this wasn't real! AJ snuck a peek at Dolph's mother, who was leaning forward and anxiously awaiting this moment. Now AJ felt a little bit bad, but in the end, she knew his mother would laugh about it with them. Dolph then nervously asked if she would wear his wristband. She yelled yes, and he picked her up to twirl her around as they both looked at his mother, who looked deflated, shocked, and a little pissed.

It wasn't until after the match his mother finally got backstage. She walked straight over to Dolph and shook her head. "I hope you're happy."

"Oh come on, Mom, you knew it was funny," Dolph laughed. "You're the one who was always bugging me about marriage."

"And you," his mother said, pointing at AJ. "I expected better from you."

"It was all his idea!" AJ laughed, pointing at her boyfriend.

"When you two get married, I'm not coming, that'll show you," she said jokingly. "Either way, you almost gave me a heart attack, you two can pay for your own dinner tonight."

"Aww, come on, Mom," Dolph pouted as his dad walked over. "Dad, talk some sense into her."

"Not on your life."

**Monday**

"I don't have a match at WrestleMania."

"You've said that, honey," Britt told him, looking up at him. "Actually, you've been saying that all week long…pretty much to everyone and anyone who'll listen. I'm pretty sure the guy at the grocery store heard it about 15 times."

"I want Taker."

"Because you just saw him?" Britt asked, as Taker was still on the screen, just standing there. She'd known he would be there, she saw him earlier, scary man that he was. It was like, when he was here, he got this weird intensity. She knew he wasn't supernatural, but it was like you almost wanted to believe he was.

"Yeah, I mean, I didn't have any match I wanted, none that were worthy of me until that one. I'm going to get that match," Punk nodded, more to himself than to her. In fact, he looked lost in his own world right now. He got like that sometimes. When he was extremely focused on something, he got this look in his eye like he wanted to strangle someone. She usually just went with it. It was easier than trying to bring him back from the brink.

"You should," Britt said resolutely, grabbing his hand and holding it in both of hers. "If anyone can break that streak, it's you."

"I can, can't I?" he nodded, the gleam in his eye dangerous. "I held the title for 434 days, he's never even held it that long I'm sure. He has his streak, so what, streaks were meant to be broken, weren't they?"

"Absolutely."

"20-1, that sounds about right," Punk nodded. "Yeah, that's going to be me, I'm going to give him that loss."

"If anyone can, you can," Britt agreed. "Honey, you are so much better than he is right now. He's injured, he's not completely ready for this. You're always ready, you go out there week in and week out, and you prove how good you are."

"Stop being the best girlfriend," Punk told her, rolling his eyes, but kissing her anyways.

"When that happens, you can tell me off," she told him, touching her lips to signal she wanted another kiss. "You go out there, and you do what you do. The fans may want to hate you, but when you speak, they listen. They know you're speaking every word of the truth. I think everyone before you has been a little intimidated by that streak, no matter how much they said they weren't, but I know you. You're not afraid of anything."

"That's right," Punk scoffed, like it should be obvious to everyone. "I'm doing it, I've found my match."

"Okay, good luck," Britt told him, standing up on her tiptoes so she could kiss him. "I better go wrangle up some old-timers because they probably don't know where they're going."

"Especially Mae Young, I don't know why they trot her out all the time," Punk rolled his eyes.

Britt pat him on the cheek. "Be nice."

"Not on your life," he told her, smirking at her.

His plans were derailed when not just Randy, not just Big Show, but Sheamus showed up as he was trying to challenge Undertaker. Who the hell did these guys think they were? _He_ was the best in the world, _and_ he'd just come off a 434 day reign. If anyone was entitled to a match, it was him. But then Vickie of all people had to come out and make it a Fatal 4-way. He wished AJ were still the GM, at least she could probably be manipulated, but she was off living her fairy tale life or whatever it was the hell they were doing.

Regardless, the Taker match was his.

"So what horrors did Vickie impart on us this week?" Dolph asked as AJ looked at the schedule.

"You against Miz, that's not so bad," AJ said. "You've beaten him before, you can do it again."

"She must have something up her sleeve," Dolph was suspicious. He knew Vickie well, and when she wanted vengeance, she set her mind upon it. Hell, AJ knew it too since she'd been in Vickie's path at the end of last year. "I don't trust her to _just_ give me a match."

"Maybe she has bigger concerns."

Dolph was right. Just when he thought he'd get a straight match, here Miz had to come with Ric Flair. This was exactly something Vickie would do, invite Ric Flair, who was friends with Miz. The Miz had even been granted special permission to use the figure-four leglock or whatever. He had Big E and AJ still, but this evened the playing field, and they didn't call Ric Flair the dirtiest player in the game for nothing.

His losing streak was starting to get to him a little bit. He tried to play it off, but it was getting to him. When he lost to Miz, it made a rock drop in the pit of his stomach. He was Mr. Money in the Bank, so yes, he was always in the picture, but he needed to start winning or when he cashed in the briefcase, he was going to lose, and he _never_ thought he might lose with that briefcase.

"She's just doing these things to get to you," AJ told him. "Remember last night, remember how much fun we had driving in here, remember? We were telling each other jokes, and googling stupid pictures. Oh, remember when I showed you that baby picture of me in the Rockers shirt?"

"Thanks, babe, but…what if I lose with the briefcase?"

"No, we are _not_ thinking like that, got it," she told him, grabbing his hands. "We're not even going to entertain that thought. You're a future World Champion, that is it, that's all. Do not let Vickie Guerrero get in your head, this is what she does. It's what she did to me, and it cost me my job. Don't let her do it to you."

"Maybe I'm not as good as I think I am."

"That's BS and you know it," she told him, hugging him. "I love you, and I believe in you, and you're going to be the champion. We're just waiting for the right moment, Ziggy, and when it comes, we'll know it."

"Sorry, I shouldn't put this on you."

"You're not putting anything on me, that's what I'm here for, I can't be the only one with issues in this relationship," AJ smiled at him. "It would make it pretty boring."

"I meant what I said last night, you do mean everything to me," he hugged her.

"Likewise."

Flynn was angry when Hunter walked backstage after addressing the crowd. She hopped down off her chair and stalked her way over to Hunter. He looked down at her and smiled, but she had a big frown on her face. "Flynn, what's wrong?"

"You are not my daddy!" Flynn seethed at him through gritted teeth. "You are not my daddy, my daddy is my daddy and you're not him!"

"Flynnie," Hunter tried to start, but Flynn huffed and walked back over to where Stephanie was sitting, snickering. Hunter had to keep up the ruse, well, okay, he didn't have to, but he kind of…liked it. It wasn't that he wanted Stephanie, God no, that ship sailed long ago. It was just kind of nice to say his wife and his kids. He had nobody, he was grasping as straws, and it was sad, but it was…something.

"No!" Flynn said, coming over and throwing her arms around Stephanie, burying her face in Stephanie's shirt. "Mommy, tell him to go away!"

"Flynnie, it's alright," Stephanie spoke soothingly to her. "Hunter was just playing pretend. You see, Brock said some things, and we're just playing pretend over it, it's like how Undertaker pretends like he's really scary. We're just pretending with this. Hunter is going to help defend Grandpa's honor."

"He's not my daddy, tell him, Mommy, tell him!" Flynn demanded, sniffling now. "He's not my daddy!"

"Hunter, you're not her daddy," Stephanie told him, appeasing her daughter. She lifted Flynn into her lap and she hugged Stephanie harder as she started to cry. "It's just make believe, baby girl, Daddy is still your daddy, don't worry."

"I don't want another daddy," Flynn cried, her voice muffled, but clear in its intent.

"Nobody else is your daddy," Stephanie told her, "you know that, and Daddy loves you."

"Trips, you just don't say that!" Flynn told him. "You don't lie!"

"I know, I'm sorry," Hunter knelt down, "it's just acting, alright, I just wanted to remind Brock of what he did when we last fought, that's all. He was just trying to make fun of me because you're not my daughter. If I could be your Daddy, I would be so proud of you, just like your real daddy is."

"My daddy is the best in the world," Flynn said.

"I love Daddy," Kensington added.

"You're not Kensy's daddy either," Flynn informed him.

"I have Daddy," Kensington smiled. "I like you."

Flynn sniffled. "You shouldn't lie, Trips!"

"I know, but it's not really lying, it's just…make believe, like when you watch a show or when you play dress-up…or action figures, you pretend to be wrestlers, it's like that. I'm just pretending."

"Okay," Flynn said, "but don't do lots, and I didn't cry about Grandpa."

Stephanie laughed and Hunter felt free to laugh too. "I know, you're very brave like that. I was just trying to make people hate Brock more after he tried to hurt your grandpa last week."

"Oh," Flynn sighed. "Then you'll beat him up?"

"Yes, Flynnie, I'm going to beat him up."

Punk, in the end, didn't really have to beat anyone up. The opportunity pretty much fell into his lap, but he'd take it. He'd won after all so why wouldn't he? He was getting his WrestleMania match, and as far as he was concerned, this was better than the title. Taker had been Mr. WrestleMania for a streak of 20, and it had become the stuff of legends. But Taker had come back one too many times. He should have rest in peace as he liked to put it. Because the streak was about to become as relevant as The Rock's newest movie.

He was, after all, the best in the world.


	409. He Actually Won! March 11, 2013

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and everything. Man, WrestleMania still feels so incomplete right now, like, there seem to be so many matches just unresolved, and I don't like it, it makes it difficult to write when I don't even have a clue who Chris and/or Dolph are facing. So I guess I'm just biding my time until they give me something to work with! Anyways, hope you enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

There was a poke to his nose, but he merely twitched.

"Daddy," Kensington hissed, peering over the top of the mattress. She was tall for her age, but still not tall enough to be able to completely clear the mattress so it was really just a pair of blue eyes and the top of a dirty blonde head. "Daddy!"

"Hmm?" he mumbled, but didn't open his eyes.

"Daddy, up now!" Kensington whispered very loudly, reaching over the top of the bed again to poke Chris in the face.

"Kensington Vaughn," Stephanie rushed into the bedroom, "what did I tell you about coming in here? I told you not to wake up Daddy."

"But Mommy," Kensington turned to her mother, biting her bottom lip. "I wanna see Daddy."

"I know, shorty, but Daddy was very far away and the time was different," Stephanie lifted up her daughter. "And so when it was nighttime here, it was daytime for Daddy, so when it was daytime for us, it was nighttime for Daddy, that's why he's so tired right now."

"I wanna play," Kensington whispered in her mother's ear, cupping her small hands around her mother's ear like she was telling her a big secret. Kensington pulled away and gave a big smile to Stephanie, quickly planting a kiss on Stephanie's cheek. Kensington was probably their most affectionate child. Kensington was always available for a hug or a cuddle.

"We can go play together, I was just finishing folding some laundry while you snuck away from me, you naughty girl," Stephanie told her daughter. "I told you to stay out of here, but where's the first place you go?"

"Umm, I dunno," Kensington shook her head and Stephanie narrowed her eyes at her daughter.

"I think you know very well where you went," Stephanie told her daughter.

"To her favorite parent," Chris said, rolling over on his back as he stretched his arms over his head. He opened his eyes and stared blearily at his wife and daughter. He gave a lazy, sleepy smile in their direction.

"I'm sorry, I tried to keep her out of here. I told her you were sleeping, but she got away from me," Stephanie explained. Chris just shook his head and opened his arms. Stephanie walked over and handed over the two-year old to her father. Kensington squealed in delight, cuddling up to her father and hugging his chest, laying her head on him as she sighed happily.

Chris pointed to his little girl, "Totally her favorite."

"She just missed you," Stephanie argued, but she looked at them in both amusement and endearing love. Chris pointed to the spot next to him. "I have things to do."

"Not right this moment, you don't, come on, join us," Chris said, patting the spot next to him. Stephanie thought for a moment, thinking about all the things she wanted to get accomplished today, but a moment later she was kicking off her flip-flops and climbing on the bed, settling in next to Chris. She tucked herself into his side, resting her head on his shoulder blade. She felt him kiss the top of her head and she smiled. "See, you didn't have anything to do."

"I do have things to do, but I missed you and I miss lying in your arms, so I'm giving myself a moment."

"Where's Flynnie?" Chris asked.

"Play-date with Kristy," Stephanie explained. "Sarah is going to drive her home before dinner. Sawyer has his carpool today so he'll be dropped off after school. So we're good for a while, you should try and get back to sleep."

"No, I need to get back into my patterns, but maybe I'll take a nap with one of my favorite girls."

"I don't wanna nap," Kensington said, her voice angry about the entire thing. She hated naps. She always felt like she missed out on everything when she took naps. She tried to stave them off, but every day, her mother would put her in her crib to sleep. It was a vicious cycle.

"Of course you do. You can nap with Daddy if you want," Stephanie told her daughter. "That way I get a lot of peace and quiet."

"Hey!" Chris said, pretending to act offended. "I'm not sure I like what you're implying here."

"I'm implying that I get a lot more done when everyone is either sleeping or out of the house. I do have a company that I run, you know."

"And you run it very well, but today is your day off," Chris told her, "so you can afford to sit down for once in your life, and enjoy my company, and Kensington's company as well because she's here too."

"I am here," Kensington lifted her head and grinned. "I miss you, Daddy."

"I missed you too," he told her, rubbing her back. "And your mommy and your brother and sister, I missed all over you very, very much."

"You stay now," Kensington ordered him.

"I'm going to stay now," Chris told her as Kensington laid her head back on her daddy's chest. Stephanie gave a silent laugh next to him as he could feel her shoulders shake a little bit as she lay there. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing," she said, but then added, "She's just cute is all."

"You ever think about having another one?" he wondered.

"Excuse me?" Stephanie asked with a scoff. "I have no idea what you're asking me here."

"You know, another kid, do you ever think about having another one?"

"Well, if it were to happen, I don't think I'd necessarily hate it," Stephanie admitted. "I mean, yeah, sometimes I really do miss having a baby around, I mean, for just the obvious reasons, but then I think about how much work a baby is and how we have three other children, and it doesn't seem like a good idea."

"I don't know, another little boy, doesn't that sound kind of cool?" he mused. "Of course, with my luck, we'd have another girl, and then I'd have three times the trouble I do right now."

"Four I'd say, Flynn has double the trouble," Stephanie laughed, "Wait, are we actually discussing _trying_ for a child? We're not just having one out of the blue like the other three?"

"Is this what it feels like to have a rational discussion about children?" Chris laughed. "Like when a normal couple decides they want to have a child, this is what it feels like?"

"I think so, it's weird," Stephanie said, "I'm not holding a pregnancy test telling us to get ready because another one is on the way."

"I kind of like it," he joked, "but either way, it's a thought, maybe?"

"Well, yeah, it's a thought, it's always a thought, and I do love babies, I mean, I love our babies. We make great children," Stephanie brushed away some of Kensington's hair. "She's asleep on you by the way. I knew she would conk out eventually. She thinks she can go without a nap, I swear…why don't you get some rest with her."

"I really should stay awake and get back into the regular schedule."

Stephanie sat up and kissed him on the cheek, "Then keep this a nap. I'll be folding laundry then I'll probably be in my office."

"Okay," he yawned.

"Hey, just so you know, I'm glad you're home," she smiled down at him, leaning over and kissing him. His hand came up and wove its way into her hair, letting her hair fall in between his fingers. She pulled away first and make a short little moaning sound, one that was pure satisfaction. He knew her sounds well enough.

She gave him one more peck for the road before she stood up from the bed, going over to the curtains and making sure they were pulled shut so the room was dark enough for the two of them to sleep. She glanced back at the bed and Chris's eyes were already closed, his hand protectively covering Kensington's back. It was a sweet image, and she left them like that.

AJ threw her shirt at Dolph, hitting him in the face. He peeled it away only to see her glaring at him. "How could you possibly think that was funny!"

"I'm sorry, I mean, I was concerned at the time, but looking back, it's kind of funny, babe, I mean—"

"Did _you_ get a bucket of water dumped on you, huh?" AJ glared at him. "I was only trying to help, to not get Big E kicked out of _your_ match, and you think it's funny that I was soaking wet. And I guess you thought it was _hilarious_ when Daniel was making fun of me?"

"He shouldn't have done that," Dolph said, "or insult me when I'm not there to defend myself, 18 seconds, I mean, come on, you know I like to take my time."

AJ folded her arms over her chest. She was just in her bra right now so she kind of cut an appetizing picture for him, but there was such fiery anger in her eyes. "Oh great, now we're just going to focus on you and how your sexual whatever was insulted, not how I was humiliated, which you thought was hilarious."

"I didn't think it was _hilarious_, I thought it was funny, I mean, babe, come on, let's look at this objectively, it's kind of funny," Dolph bit his lip and tried to laugh forcefully. For someone so tiny, she was an imposing presence.

He was wishing now he'd never brought up the incident from earlier. If he'd kept his big mouth shut about how it was kind of funny to watch later, he wouldn't be in this mess right now. He'd seen AJ angry, and while it _had_ been directed at him a number of times before they were together, now that they were, now that he loved her, it all felt a little more precarious. He'd never thought of what a break up between him and AJ would be like, and he didn't want to start thinking about it either.

"Yeah, being humiliated is funny…being out there in what amounted to a wet t-shirt contest was funny," AJ's head swung around, and Dolph cleared his throat. "I'm so glad you take such pleasure in my misery, just like old times, is Vickie waiting around the corner?"

"That's not cool, Jeannie," he told her. "You know she meant nothing to me, and I didn't like what she was doing to you."

"Yeah, not after we got together, but you were pretty into her plans before we were, I guess that guy would find it funny that I was out there and…you know what, no, whatever," she held her hand up as if stopping him when she was really stopping herself. "I don't want to talk about it anymore, this is going nowhere, and you don't understand me, and you know what, fine, whatever, we'll just act like it never happened!"

Her voice continually got higher and angrier as she ranted, and then he said the worst possible thing he could probably say to her, "Okay, you don't have to get all crazy over it."

"What did you just say to me?" AJ asked, her face turning pale as she stared at him. "Did you just…did you just say I was acting crazy?"

"Babe, I didn't mean it like that," he backtracked, trying to get out of this situation before it imploded on him, but he knew it was probably too late. "You know I would never call you crazy—"

"Except you just did," she told him, scowling as she blinked back tears. "You were supposed to be different, you were supposed to be the one that didn't…I hate you!"

"Okay, now I _know_ you don't mean that," he told her, not wanting her to think that, not wanting to hear it quite frankly. It pulled at his stomach, gnawing at it in a way that didn't feel good. "Babe, this is getting out of control—"

"I'm out of control now!" she said, grabbing the nearest object, which was a pillow and throwing it at him. He ducked out of the way of it. "I'm sorry if my boyfriend would think it horrible that I was doused in water, if that was water, I don't know, it could have been anything!"

"But babe, we both know it was probably just water, and if you look at it from you know, someone else's point of view, it was funny, I mean, we have to laugh at ourselves, if I just looked at how many times I've lost recently, I'd get kind of depressed, but I'm just like, whatevs, I think about how I still have the briefcase, and how I still have you…"

"You didn't even defend me," AJ yelled at him, ignoring everything he just said. She was irate and irrational, and he wanted to go over and hug her, but he knew she wouldn't want that right now, and he'd probably get a punch to the gut for his efforts. "You sat there, you just sat there and watched me, and you didn't even try to help me, and you didn't even come find me afterwards to see if I was okay. Daniel probably wouldn't have come up to me if you'd been there!"

"Jeannie—"

"Don't call me that!" she screamed at him, throwing a tantrum now, and the situation was getting out of control. He walked over to her and tried to take her in his arms, but she flung herself around, making it difficult for him to get his arms around her. "Don't touch me!"

"Okay," he backed off, holding up his palms in defeat.

"I don't even want to look at you right now! If I'm such a joke to you, if something like that, which hurts my feelings is funny to you, well, you can just laugh by yourself," she told him. "It wasn't funny to me, Dolph, it wasn't funny, not after everything I've had to go through."

"Babe.."

"Don't!" she held her hand up to his face and walked around him. "I'm not staying here tonight."

"What?" he spun around quickly. "What? No, no, no, you're not leaving."

"Yes, I am," she started to pack her things, but he went over to her suitcase and tried to stop her.

"Where are you going to go?"

"I can stay with E," AJ ignored his hands and kept packing. "He has two beds in his room, I'll be perfectly fine, and if I can't stay there, I'll get my own room!"

"Babe, please, come on, don't be like this," he told her.

"Go away," she told him, grabbing Nacho and putting him in his carrier.

"Fine," Dolph said, thoroughly fed up with her behavior. If she wanted to be petulant, then so be it. She was an adult, he was an adult, and he didn't have to put up with this. He thought it was funny, it was slapstick really, but if she wanted to act like he personally threw acid on her, fine. He really didn't mean it deep down, but there was only so much temper a guy could take.

"Okay, fine," AJ shrugged. She grabbed Nacho's carrier and her bag and she started to walk out. "Oh, and I won't be coming to Phoenix with you this weekend, so you can just stay by yourself!"

"Whatevs!" Dolph said to her. "I don't really care if you did come, actually, it might be nice to have a weekend without you hanging around."

AJ looked like he'd hit her and she stormed out. As soon as she was gone, he hated himself. Why had he said those things? They didn't fight. Okay, so maybe it was good to get this first fight out of the way, but then…what if this ended up being their last fight? He sank down onto the edge of the bed and thought about what just happened. Was she being a little annoying, yes, she was, but was that worth a fight, not really. He kind of felt awful, but they were bound to fight. Couples fought, you couldn't always be happy. Yeah, he wasn't going to back down on this.

He figured the next morning, he could find AJ, they could talk, and they could get over whatever this was. She was upset, she overreacted, he probably shouldn't have laughed about something that so obviously hurt her. He should have been more sensitive than that. AJ was not damaged, but she was a little bit bent. Her prior experiences shaped her into this person that she was, and he wished that she could free herself from those invisible and unnecessary bonds those past relationships had imposed on her, but he knew it would take time, and last night, he had shoved that all in his face.

He went to E's room to talk to her, but E told him she checked out early and was headed back to Tampa. Dolph cursed at himself for not coming sooner. He knew his girlfriend though; she wouldn't appreciate if he just showed up. So he tried calling her, but he was apparently getting the silent treatment because she refused to answer any of his calls. It got to the point where he had to call E just to make sure she was okay, which she was, just not talking to him. He was starting to get antsy, and he was starting to think that his voicemails were getting more and more desperate as the days passed. Still, he heard nothing for her.

So it was on Monday that he literally sat near the door, just waiting to see her. It wasn't like she couldn't show up, this was her job, she had to be here. He got to the arena early just so he wouldn't miss her entering and avoiding him all evening. He didn't have a match on the card, he didn't have anything on the card (thanks, Vickie), but he could deal with that when he saw AJ. He just needed to see her, that was it. He needed to talk to her, and he needed to hug her, and he needed to apologize, and he just needed her.

She'd become too ingrained in his life, and it was getting a little scary now. Not scary in a bad way, but scary in a way he'd never felt before. He was in his 30's, a lot of his old high school friends had already settled down, but that urge never came over him. He didn't know if he was different or if he just wanted to wait until his wrestling days were over, but it just never occurred to him that he might want to settle down…not until AJ.

She wasn't crazy, and she wasn't weird, and she wasn't demented or a freak or a witch or any other name people called her. She was a passionate, beautiful person who didn't deserve the world dumped on her. He loved her, plainly and simply, and without frills. AJ could offer him nothing but her support and her love, and it was all he needed. He didn't need power or money or anything like that, just her.

He felt her presence before he even looked up. It shot at him like a bullet, and he looked up. She'd already seen him, and she was staring at him. He looked over at her and took a deep breath. He thought she might run away, but to his relief, she walked over to him. He stood up from where he'd been sitting, and he waited until he came over to take a deep breath. He had Nacho in his carrying bag and Dolph could already hear the dog whimpering for him.

"Nacho missed you," AJ said lightly, almost flippantly, but he could tell she was still hurt.

"I missed him too, and his mom," Dolph added. "I'm an idiot."

"I'm a bigger one," AJ told him. "I let it get to me."

"What?"

"Everything, I let it get to me, I let everything just…get to me," she sighed and rolled her eyes. "Do you think we could talk somewhere else, I really don't want everyone hearing our conversation."

"Yeah, of course, we can go to my locker room," he told her. He tentatively reached out to take her hand and to his relief, she let him.

"Good, we need to talk."

Stephanie eyed a couple papers before she cleared her throat, "You know you don't have a match for WrestleMania, right?"

"Well, I don't have any plans this year," Chris shrugged as he came over to lean against her desk. "Nobody is threatening me or my family, nobody hates me, nobody wants to wrestle against someone who is the best in the world at everything they do. I can't blame them, I mean, have you seen me wrestle, it's like I stepped into a time machine."

"Wow, do you have to check that ego on the plane or do they let you get away with carry-on?" Stephanie asked.

"Let me remind you, you're the one that actually married me, so what does that say about you?" Chris asked. "Oh wait, you have a bigger ego than I do. You're the one with a plan, not me."

"What plan? I don't have any plans."

"You weren't conspiring with your ex-husband…oh wait, your husband because Heyman thinks it's going to get under my skin, but he doesn't realize I worked for him, and he stiffed me regarding payments so if I'm going to be angry about anything, it's that. Saying that you're Hunter's wife and those are his kids, what is that supposed to do, make me question my entire existence?"

"It's not to get to you, sweetie," Stephanie told him, "it's to get to Hunter. It's to get under _his_ skin because your life, it's supposed to be Hunter's life. So when Paul Heyman says that, it's a constant reminder that Hunter wasn't good enough to keep me, and I didn't think he was good enough to have children with, that's what it is."

"You think so?"

"If you insist, it might be about both of you, all of us, to bother me, to bother you, to bother our families, but I think the real root of it is to bother Hunter. I mean, Paul's not stupid, he knew Hunter was with Britt, and being so close to Punk, he has to know Britt is now dating Punk, so it's obviously he wants to rub it in that Hunter is totally alone."

"So everyday, we're essentially rubbing our lives in his face?"

"According to Paul, yes, we're constantly showing Hunter up. But Paul wants Hunter to see that this is what he could have, but doesn't, it's all to get under Hunter's skin, and it's working," Stephanie said, "I mean, Vickie is working with the whole contract thing, she let me see it, but she was talking with the lawyers drawing it up and what not, but Heyman said the caveat is that he and Brock get to name a stipulation, and that stipulation won't be revealed until after Hunter signs it."

"Wait, so it could be anything, it could be a Buried Alive match?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, it could," she said, then gave a little laugh, "Paul Bearer always creeped me out, you know. I mean, when I was kidnapped, he was just such a creepy presence, I always felt uncomfortable around him, you know what I mean."

"I know," Chris said, "I remember that wedding of yours, your almost wedding. I remember watching it, seeing you strapped to that cross, in that long, black dress. I remember feeling sorry for you, that you were being held against your will…maybe I should have let Taker marry you…"

"Oh, very funny," Stephanie flipped him off. "You know it was Austin who came to my rescue, if not for him, I very well could have married Taker, and I never would have interacted with you."

"Still not going to forgive him for what he did to you, sorry attempt, Steph," Chris said, sliding down a little so he could kiss her. "I love you, but I hate him, he hurt you, and he could have hurt our first child."

"Who is fine, who is at home, waiting for the show to start, probably finishing up his homework because he's so smart."

"I'm not talking about this with you. I'll tell you what, though, if Austin were around, maybe I would have a plan against him, and I could get him in the ring for WrestleMania. I guess the only guy who has a beef with me is Dolph."

"So challenge him?" Stephanie shrugged. "You know, that would be a good match, you two are alike, like I've said before."

"Or maybe I should go after a belt."

"Well, Swagger has the shot at Del Rio, and Cena has the shot at The Rock, so those two aren't available," Stephanie pointed out. "And you don't have a tag team partner so that's out, and you have a penis, so the diva's title is out."

"What about the Intercontinental belt?" Chris wondered.

"You're better than that," she laughed.

"Am I, Stephanie?"

"Yes," she nodded, "you're a top guy, you don't need that kind of title."

"If you say so," he shrugged, not seeing what the big deal was. Sure, he could and should go after the bigger titles, but why should he? Why not just get a belt? He wasn't the type of wrestler right now who felt like he needed titles to be validated. He wasn't twenty years old striving for perfection. He was a grizzled veteran who'd held every title imaginable. "But I don't see it that way."

"I can't tell you what to do," Stephanie said, "but you do have the Highlight Reel with Miz tonight, that's what you need to focus on, that's what you need to plan for. You're there to hype his movie."

"So that's a better use of my time than going after what you deem a lesser belt?" Chris wondered.

"The Miz's movie is putting food on our table," Stephanie leaned back in her chair. "It's a WWE movie, you are part of the WWE, you own part of the company, you should be invested at least somewhat in every aspect."

"You're getting too corporate for me," Chris told her. "I'm going to go retrieve the kids from Sheamus's clutches, and we're going to hang out because I'm not sure I want to hang around you right now."

"Chris, if you want to go after a belt, I won't hate you for it, I would love to see gold around your waist, I just…I don't know, I always have grand designs for you," she told him, her face softening. "I guess I just always want better for you."

"Steph, I know you do, that's why you're _my_ wife and not Hunter's."

"It's sad that Heyman feels like he has to go there. It's bad enough Hunter has to see Britt every week with Punk, but to have the salt rubbed in the wound with our relationship. He's been over it for years, but it's the symbolism."

"If you were meant to have children with Hunter, you would have. We've established you're very fertile, so you know, if you were going to have a kid with him, it would have happened, you can't change the past."

"I just hate that Heyman is pulling this crap. He knows the right buttons, he _always_ knows the right buttons. He played into my insecurities when I owned ECW, and he's doing it again to someone I care about, you'll have to excuse me for being angry over it."

"I get it," Chris came back over to her and leaned down to look her in the eyes, "but Hunter knows what he's doing, let him take his anger out on Brock. I fear that you're somehow going to get involved in this because I know you, baby, I know the way you think and—"

"He keeps mentioning our children," Stephanie said, "you didn't see Flynnie last week when she was so upset that Hunter pretended like he was her daddy, you didn't see that, Chris. If Heyman upsets my children, I will not hold back."

"Not even if it's Brock you're staring down?"

"Not even if it's Brock," Stephanie said.

"You're an absolute nutcase, you realize that, right? I mean, you're pretty much telling me if you're provoked, you're going to face down Brock, a guy who could probably sit on you and crush you if he wanted."

"He wouldn't," Stephanie said, "that's the thing, he wouldn't touch me. I'm his boss, I could find a loophole, and I'm not afraid of him."

Chris closed his eyes, but he was smiling, "Why do I love you so much right now? Why do I love you when you will do things that put you in danger, when you've always done that? Why is that somehow lovable when it's you?"

"Because you love me," Stephanie said, "I just don't like Brock or Heyman, and the fact Vickie thought this was a good idea to bring him back…Heyman better watch what he says about our children. I mean, Flynnie will at the very least punch him in the crotch given the chance."

Chris smiled as he thought about his daughter, "Yeah, she would, but I still better go get them, I wouldn't want Sheamus to need to bring them out if he has a match. I love you, don't get into trouble."

"Oh, Chris, sweetie, I never go looking for trouble."

At the same time, in another part of the arena, the silence was palpable. Neither one knew quite where to begin so they sat there, staring at each other. Nacho, who had missed Dolph was cuddled up against him like the traitor he was. AJ had been a little bit flustered that her dog suddenly liked Dolph more. Maybe she needed to start buying him spontaneous presents too.

"You said you wanted to talk," Dolph pointed out.

"I did," AJ said, "I'm sorry."

"Wait, _you're_ sorry?" he was confused because that wasn't the way this was supposed to go. He was supposed to grovel, that's what he was supposed to do. "I'm sorry though."

"I overreacted," she said, "it's just that…Daniel used to…he used to do that to me. I'm not saying he was abusive, not really, he just…he kind of put me down, didn't make me feel good about myself, so when he said all those things, when he made fun of me again, it brought that all back, and I felt as defenseless as I did back then. Then you thought it was funny, and suddenly, I see everything."

"What's everything?" he asked.

"Everything as in, okay, so he thought it was funny I got a bucket of water dumped on me. What if he turns on me like they all did? What if I can't help him one day and he just decides I'm worthless like the rest of them thought? I think these things, and I keep them in a lot of the time because I am trying to be better at this, but then it's like the domino effect, one falls, they all fall."

"I was an idiot," Dolph said, "Daniel hurt you, he hurt you on Friday, and I should have remembered that he hurt you in the past. Dumping a guy at the altar can heal some wounds, but I don't think it can heal all wounds. And I was stupid for not remembering that."

"We were both pretty stupid, I mean, it _was_ just water."

"But you've been through so much," he told her. "I hate that I called you crazy."

"I was acting a little crazy," she held up her hand, holding her forefinger and thumb together, "Just a little, tiny bit, not too much. I missed you this weekend, and I know I was being a bitch by not answering any of your calls or texts—"

She was cut off by Dolph's mouth pressing insistently on hers. She gasped in surprise, which allowed her mouth to open enough to for him to deepen the kiss. Nacho, sensing his presence was unwelcome, jumped off the couch and went back to his carrier like he'd been trained to do at shows. AJ crawled into Dolph's lap, trying to get as close to him as possible. She'd missed his presence over the past couple days, and as much as it scared Dolph to be without her, it scared her to be without him.

The niggling thoughts abounded when he was away from her. They'd never fought like that before, all their arguments before this had been small things, things they could get over in a few hours given time. This one hurt, and it hurt both of them. But when he was at home, all the way in Phoenix while she was in Tampa, she kept thinking about their status. What if he thought they were broken up, what if he found another girl, what if, what if, what if? They'd plagued her, and she'd nearly given in so many times, but tried so hard to cling to that anger.

"I love you," she mumbled against his lips.

"I love you too," Dolph said, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry."

"I am too."

"From now on, we don't let ourselves be angry and apart, angry and together, yes, apart, no," he told her as he pulled away, leaning his forehead on hers.

"I don't want to ever be angry with you again," she admitted, but then added, "I know that's not going to happen, but promise me that we won't."

"I promise," he told her, knowing he couldn't keep it, but wanting to anyways.

"So what do we have tonight?" she asked.

"Nothing…yet," he told her, and she frowned. "Don't worry though, give me ten minutes, fifteen tops, I'll get us something, alright?"

"What are you talking about? What are you going to do?"

"Do you trust me?" he asked. She nodded immediately. He kissed her for that, "I'm just going to do something, I'll be back."

AJ crawled out of his lap and he sent her a smile before he walked out of their locker room and down the hall. He didn't want AJ with him for this because she was still fragile from their fight. It didn't take a genius to see her insecurities were out in full force right now. Vickie would only exacerbate the issue, and the last thing he needed as an upset AJ after they'd just made up. He hadn't even gotten his makeup sex yet.

He knocked on Vickie's door and she screeched at him to come in. He sure as hell didn't miss that voice. He pushed open the door and Vickie's smile turned to an instant frown. "Oh, it's you."

"What are you doing here?" Brad Maddox spoke up from beside Vickie. "We're very busy people, Team Brickie doesn't have time for this."

"Team Brickie, nice one, good thing you got to keep that Cougar necklace, eh, Vick? I guess they almost made you give it up?" Dolph told her, and Vickie was fuming now. He knew that wasn't going to help his cause, but he didn't care. Vickie was obviously trying to strut around Brad for everyone to see like she'd done with him, and it was laughable to think this would get under his skin.

It didn't get under his skin at all. He loved his girlfriend, and he'd never loved Vickie. Quite frankly, he'd traded up. If this was meant to bother him, it was failing. Vickie was the one who had the problem. "You're so funny, where's your little crazy girlfriend?" Brad asked.

"Call her that again, and we'll see what's funny," Dolph threatened Brad.

Vickie stepped in, "What do you want, Dolph? I don't think you came in here to talk, right? Or are you here to grovel back?"

"Not on your life," he scoffed, "and don't think I don't know what you're doing, putting me at a disadvantage, screwing me over like you are. I knew you were petty, but you really are getting pathetic."

Brad looked like he wanted to step in, but Vickie put her hand on his chest to back him off. "Say what you want, Dolph, and get out."

"I want a match with Bryan, tonight, on the show, I want a match," Dolph told her.

"No, why should I after you insulted me?" Vickie asked. "I mean, why should you just get what you want…oh wait, I know why you want the match. It was because Daniel hurt your little girlfriend with his mean words? Could she not take it after she got wet?"

Dolph sucked at his teeth a little. "You're giving me the match, Vick."

"No, I'm really not," Vickie shook her head. "You and your girlfriend can just sit this one out, that sounds fair, right, Brad?"

"Team Brickie approved, hey, did you and Vickie have a name, Team Dickie? Yeah, that just doesn't sound as good," Brad smirked.

"Vick, do you really think that I don't have enough on you to use against you. Like how you actually acquired that videotape of AJ supposedly going into John Cena's room, which was actually my room, but remember how you got that? Remember how I was with you, do you remember how I was filming it…oh wait, you probably don't remember that last part," Dolph told her. Vickie blanched.

"Fine!" Vickie yelled at him, and he smirked in victory. "You can have your damn match! I hope you lose!"

"Thanks, Vick, you're the best."

Punk constantly went looking for trouble, and it was something his girlfriend was not yet used to. When she'd just been his friend, she'd cared, but somehow, now it felt like there was more at stake. When he went out there, interrupting Taker's tribute to Paul Bearer, Britt was filled with unease. It wasn't that she was surprised Punk would go there, it was just the gesture itself. It was the way she was comparing Hunter to Punk in her head. She didn't want to go back to Hunter, she didn't want him back because he didn't want her enough to make her stay.

But Hunter never would have done this. Even on his worst day, Hunter would have at least given pause. Punk had no hesitation when he went out there, had no hesitation in interrupting what was a sad and serious moment. She knew this was who he was, but she didn't have to like it. She didn't have to agree with it. She wasn't mad at him, but she was slightly disappointed that he was so driven he felt the need to even interrupt this.

She made herself scarce when he came backstage, which was easy because she had things to do. With WrestleMania around the corner, there were a lot of events to plan, and a lot of rooms to book, and just a general sense of chaos that Britt needed to oversee. She didn't handle much of the actual booking, but she kept on top of the people that did. She was just calling to check in on the lawyers drawing up various contracts when she felt two arms pull her into a body.

"Hey, missed you," Punk kissed her neck. "Wow, that came out a lot sappier than I thought. I guess I can blame it on being pissed."

"Why are _you_ pissed? If anything, I figured Taker would be."

"He is, it's great," Punk basked in his accomplishment. "But then Kane got pissed at me, and now I have to have a match against him, but you make me feel better…seriously, where the hell is this coming from?"

She found it hard to be mad at him when he was like this. She turned in his embrace and looked him in the eye. "I don't agree with what you did out there."

He cupped her chin gently with his hand, "You wouldn't be you if you did agree with it? I knew you wouldn't agree with it, but I also know you let me do my own thing out there, and I appreciate that about you."

His voice was slow and deliberate and she nodded in recognition of what he said, "Okay, so long as you know I don't like it and I'm a little disappointed you would go there. But that's not for me to judge."

"Thank you," he told her, "you know that's one of the reasons why I like you so much."

"Well, good to know," she said, "walk with me?"

"Yeah, it'll get my mind off things, can't believe they put me in a match."

"They who?"

"Team freaking Brickie, what the hell is that even about? Who calls themselves that, why would you do that? I don't go around saying we're Team Brunk or Pritt, that's stupid, that's beyond stupid, if anyone ever called us that, I'd punch them in the face."

"Calm down, we don't have a name," she pat him on the cheek. "Walk around with me, calm down. You'll be fine."

"I guess," he said, "but it's against Kane, so unfair."

Britt just laughed at her whiny, but cute boyfriend.

AJ looked at Dolph, "A match with Daniel?"

"Hey, the guy insulted my girlfriend, plus he insulted me, luckily people know I'm pretty athletic," he joked, "but nobody goes around insulting you. I'm going to beat him, and he's going to understand why he can't talk like he did to you."

"But—"

"You're my girlfriend, you were disrespected," he kissed her forehead.

She couldn't say anything else because his music was hitting and they had to get out there. She did put a little extra into her customary good luck kiss to him and he winked at her before they made it to the ring. He knew he had a losing streak going, but this was about so much more than that. This wasn't a match Vickie set up in order for him to lose. This was a match he wanted, this was a match that meant something to him. Daniel hadn't just insulted his girlfriend last week, but he'd insulted AJ in the past, and Dolph never had the chance to thank Daniel properly for fueling AJ's insecurities. A nice Zig Zag would be a great thank you for that.

Sure, he hadn't known much about AJ at that point. They'd only ever interacted a couple times, but he knew her now. He knew how she'd changed, how so many things had hardened her, and she was only now softening up. Daniel had started the spiral. This was his chance to make sure Daniel regret everything he did to AJ. Dolph was her boyfriend now, and he didn't go around letting people talk about his girlfriend.

Their match was back and forth at first, slow almost, but the tension picked up and so did the pace. Dolph was more determined than he had been in some time, and this served him well. Maybe this was what was missing the last few weeks or months he'd been losing. There was something so inherently personal to this match that he really gave it his all. Daniel did manage to get in his offense, he was a good wrestler, Dolph had to give him credit, but this was just a match to him, a random match that they'd given him shortly before the show. Not so for Dolph, when he dropkicked Daniel, he wanted it to sting, when he countered Bryan's suplex into a crossbody, he wanted it to hurt. This was personal, this was not just a regular match.

Yes, he got some help, but his girlfriend loved him, and Big E was his friend, and that's what they were there for, they were there supporting him because they all cared about each other. And in the end it was him that won. It was him that got the Zig Zag on Daniel, it was him that got the pin. AJ ran into the ring and Dolph caught his breath as AJ ran her fingers through his hair. She loved to do that, he found, which he found odd at first because his hair wasn't exactly his best feature, but she loved to run her fingers through it.

He stood up, and the only thing he wanted was to feel her arms around him. It had been two long days since he'd really gotten to hold her. He hugged Big E for a moment, but then his arms were back around his girlfriend. He just needed to feel her close. She pulled away and looked up at him, all the fears from the past few days gone because this man had gotten a match simply to make sure that Daniel paid for what he said to her. They kissed, shortly because they could save the more later. Dolph pulled them away and AJ looked to Big E. She gave him a look and a nod, and she and Dolph pulled away.

She could feel Dolph resting his chin on her shoulder and she smiled smugly as she saw Big E take Daniel out. She laughed as Dolph reached out to rub her head. She could tell he didn't want to let her go right now, he needed her touch. He wrapped his arm around her and they basked in the much-needed victory. It felt good to win. And if it felt this good right now…

How was it going to feel when he was World Champion?

Stephanie shook her head, "What did I tell you about bringing up my kids, Heyman? Didn't I kick your ass once over this?"

"Stephanie, Stephanie, Stephanie, I wasn't talking about _your_ kids, I meant the kids you have with Hunter, those kids."

"Oh, you think you're _so_ funny, you're not, you sniveling son of a bitch and I am going to—"

"And that's enough of that," Chris's voice suddenly said as two strong arms banded around her waist. "We'll be seeing you, Heyman, don't get any slimier while you're gone, someone's going to mistake you for a snail and pour salt all over you."

"Watch your back!" Stephanie screamed as Heyman and Brock walked away. She huffed and pulled herself from Chris's grasp. "Why did you do that?"

"Because you were going to get yourself into trouble, just like I knew you would."

"Mommy, you're trouble," Flynnie said, showing up right next to Chris. "You were going to get mean!"

"I was going to get mean, and I would have let you get mean with me," Stephanie said. "That man...that goddamn man!"

"Okay," Chris pressed his hand over Stephanie's mouth. "Steph, I love you, calm down, we can't have this."

"I want this, I want to fight him, I want to punch him in the face and in that big, disgusting gut of his. Then I want to kick him where it hurts, you know where, Chris, the cup place, the place where you wear a cup," Stephanie was just rambling right now.

"Daddy, I think Mommy needs a time-out," Chris said.

"Mommy!" Kensington yelled from where she was sitting.

"I think so too," Chris said, bringing Stephanie over to her station and sitting her down. He sat with her. "Stephanie, let Hunter handle this, got it?"

"If he brings up the kids one more time, Chris, just once more, I'm going to lose it!" Stephanie said, her eyes wild and darting around, her breath coming out in heavy gasps. "He will get everything I've got if he tries that again."

"Okay," Chris said.

"What?" she turned abruptly to him, her hair flinging in her face. "What did you say?"

"If he does bring up the kids again, I'll let you do what you want."

"Really?"

"There's only so much I can hold the mama lion back."

Chris knew there was a chance Stephanie would actually go off on Heyman, a very good one. He couldn't hold that back, he couldn't hold her back. Stephanie wasn't just strong physically, but she was strong enough mentally to tear anyone down, and if Heyman dared to do what he did again, well, he wasn't going to hold her back again. The next time Heyman would be on his own.

Chris didn't really have to focus on much for his Highlight Reel. In fact, there wasn't much to focus on in a bare ring. The entire time he was interviewing Miz and then Barrett, it all felt strange, and then it became stranger when Brad Maddox came out to announce and impromptu match. Knowing the penchant for them, Chris had been dressed. The match itself was just as strange though.

He had just been talking about the IC belt with Stephanie, so for him to suddenly be thrust into the picture was potentially a sign that this was meant to be. Maybe a tenth reign was just around the horizons. It seemed fate was even intervening in his matches. Wade tried to interfere, meaning nobody won so he was going to get his shot. This was…unexpected, but not unwelcome. His wife may think it was beneath him, but he didn't think so.

Maybe he could be a champion once again.


	410. First Birthday, March 18, 2013

A/N: Thanks again for all the feedback and what not for this story. Just wanted to say that the ending of this chapter was inspired by one of my fellow Dolph/AJ fanatics, Carly (cjpunkx), and thank you so much for the awesome idea, I hope I did it justice! Hope everyone enjoys, and leave a review if you feel so inclined! :)

* * *

She loved seeing him in his element.

The wrestling ring was kind to him, and she loved watching him there, but this was different. This was him stripped down, just a guy who loved his own brand of life, a life that he made for himself through hard work and dedication in spite of setbacks. She smiled lightly in his direction even though he was talking with the man across the table they were having dinner with at the moment.

He was talking animatedly with his left hand waving wildly in the air as he tried to make a point. His right hand was gripping hers, their fingers laced together as he held it pressed to his cheek as he spoke, like he just needed to feel her against him. It was a sweet thought when he wasn't exactly the epitome of sweet.

"You're quiet," he told her as their companion got up to use the bathroom.

"I'm just watching you," Britt said, smiling at him, "I think I just like watching you when you're not at work."

"You sure you're not bored?" Punk asked her. "We can find something else to do after this if you want."

"No, no," Britt shook her head, "I'm having a good time, you know I love Colt, he's hilarious, and you two together are like a buddy movie or something, good cop/bad cop type movie, with you being the grizzled vet."

"I'm not sure I like this movie," he told her with a laugh, "you sure you're okay?"

"Absolutely," Britt reassured him, "you know I like your friends, they're very much like my friends, who like you I should add. They fit, we all fit together. One day, we'll have to have a huge party for everyone, I think it'll be fun."

"Did you ever do that with Hunter?" Punk asked. He wasn't the type of guy who shied away from the difficult questions, the ones that made people squirm in their seats. Luckily for him, his girlfriend was the kind of girl who didn't shy away from hard questions.

"No," Britt laughed, shaking her head. "Hunter has his small group of friends, and that's it, he says that he doesn't need more friends than he already has. He's always so hesitant to let anyone in, I don't know where he got that from."

"He never struck me as insecure."

"He's not, probably a little bit of his arrogance and not liking things to change," Britt shrugged her shoulder. "We'd go see Shawn, but he never liked me to begin with, and other than that, maybe a few friends here and there, but they were just like…I don't know…"

"You can say it, they weren't fun like me and my friends," he smiled at her, biting his lip ring a little bit. Sometimes when she was kissing him, she loved to run her tongue around it and nip at it a little bit, which he loved. She pressed the index finger of her left hand under his chin, tipping it up a little bit as she kissed him sweetly.

"Oh my God, you two are gross!" Colt dropped down into his seat. "I swear, one day, I'm going to walk in on you guys having sex."

"Then stop walking into our bedroom," Britt told him. "Took you long enough in the bathroom, what the hell were you doing, rubbing one out because you keep giving the waitress the Colt eyes."

Punk burst out into laughter, as Colt responded, "I hate her, dump her right now."

Britt pouted, "You're no fun. Actually, you should give her your number, I think she'd be receptive to it."

"Oh, is this your way of getting me rejected? I'm not falling for that," he shook his head.

"No, I really do," Britt nodded. Punk just smiled at his best friend, nodding his head like a little kid. "I can go talk to her for you. I'm very persuasive, I mean, look at this guy over here, he's totally domesticated now. How long did you pine for me, honey?"

"Seriously, harsh, that was harsh," Colt said as Punk turned to glare at her, but she diffused it easily by a peck on the lips. Punk smiled at her as Colt gagged, "Seriously, you two are gross. So, where are you hiding the urn, you know you have it."

"He's keeping it in his apartment," Britt said, rolling her eyes. "I don't know what he plans to do with it on Monday."

"I have plans for it," Punk nodded, wiggling his eyebrows a little bit. "Hey, I have to get him off is game, not that he's _on_ his game, I mean, the guy's practically in a scooter as it is. I could have hit his brother five more times before he even got to the ring. He's not scary. The streak is just that a streak, completely arbitrary and meant to be broken."

"Don't get worked up," Britt told him quietly.

"Nobody could beat him because they went in thinking they couldn't beat him. I'm different, I always have been."

"You are," Colt just nodded along and he looked to Britt, who understood that when Punk got like this, it was best just to agree with him before he went on a rant. "I absolutely think you're going to win, right, Britt?"

"Yes," Britt brought their joined hands to her lips and kissed his knuckles, "you've got this in the bag, honey. Taker can't keep up with you, you're the best in the world, and every streak comes to an end at some point."

Punk was ready for 20-1.

Sawyer grabbed his juice and looked around catering where the wrestlers were eating, "Dad, how come you don't have a match yet for WrestleMania, aren't you going to wrestle on it?"

"Yeah, I just haven't decided who I want to wrestle yet," Chris looked around too as if the answer would jump out at him.

"Your father is just indecisive because he doesn't hate anyone this time around," Stephanie said as she cut up some chicken for Kensington. "Since he doesn't hate anyone, he can't decide who he wants to fight."

"You can wrestle anyone," Flynn shrugged. "That's why you're the best in the world, Daddy."

"Thanks, Flutterby," Chris told her, "I mean, I could challenge Dolph I guess, and I do have the match on Monday so I might be going against Wade—"

"Dolph is too busy avenging AJ," Stephanie said, "I mean, on Monday, he went after Daniel, and Britt told me that Dolph specifically asked for that match after what Daniel said to AJ last Friday."

"How did Britt find that out, I can't think she and Vickie are on such good terms that Vickie would give up that information, especially not when she's pretty much burying him in matches that aren't to his advantage."

"It wasn't Vickie, it was her big-mouthed assistant, Brad," Stephanie nodded towards the man in question, who was eating while talking on the phone, probably to Vickie. "She found out from him, but I think this is something he's going to pursue. You didn't hurt AJ, Daniel did."

"So you think he's going to…what? Challenge Daniel to a match at WrestleMania?"

"Tag match maybe," Stephanie shrugged. "He loves her, Chris, if you didn't see that on Monday, then I don't know what to do with you."

"I was too busy wondering where all the stuff from the Highlight Reel went," Chris said smugly as Stephanie glared at him, pushing Kensington's plate back to her.

Flynn giggled, "Daddy, you didn't have _anything_ when you went out there, it was funny."

"I'm glad you liked my misery," Chris leaned over to kiss Flynn's head and she beamed.

"Dad, if you win on Monday, you'll have to wrestle Wade, right?"

"Yeah."

"Even though your father is above that title," Stephanie said, "he should really be going after the World Title or the WWE Title—"

"Are we still on that?" Chris asked. "Stephanie, I don't mind going after the IC belt, holding it for the 10th time is unprecedented. I already hold the record, why wouldn't I want to extend that, make it even harder to beat? That title was the only one I wanted when I came into this company."

"Yes, but that's only because nobody saw your potential in WCW so you set your expectations so low."

"Daddy, you were good in WCW, but you weren't the big guy," Flynn told him. If anyone in their family had extensive knowledge of his wrestling career it was Flynn, with Sawyer being a close second, and Stephanie coming in third. It was like they all took classes on his career.

"They didn't let him be, Flynnie," Sawyer said, "I remember, Dad, you said that they didn't let you go after any of the big titles because they didn't think you were a good guy."

"Well, they thought I was a good guy, but they just didn't think I could compete with the big guys, that's why Goldberg didn't want to fight me even though I was better than him in every way," Chris said, "and look at the two of us now, I married your mom and I own the company."

"You were underappreciated, when you came here, you probably thought everyone would do the same, but that's not the case, it wasn't the case."

"Well, no because I managed to land your hot…face," Chris tried to finish as Stephanie laughed and pushed Kensington's glass towards her so she could get it. "I'll find someone to fight, even if it's a friendly rivalry, I'll let Dolph take care of his girlfriend."

"Chris, you know you've done the same thing for me," Stephanie told him, the corners of her mouth turning up in a smile.

"You're different," he rolled his eyes. She tucked her chin against her chest and looked at him. "It is different, you're my wife, you've given me three children, that makes me have to take care of things. Besides, I'm not taking things on for you right now, Hunter's doing that for me."

"Are you jealous?" Stephanie said.

"No, what's there to be jealous of, he gets to fight Lesnar, no thanks," Chris said, "besides, you take care of yourself, you don't even need me."

"Daddy, Mommy needs you because you're the daddy," Flynn interjected. "That's how it works."

"Well, that's how it works in our family," Stephanie said, "but families can be different, right?"

"Uh huh," Flynn said, "some families have two daddies, I don't know what I'd do with two daddies though. What if one of my daddies wrestled and the other didn't, and then I didn't like my daddy!"

Stephanie laughed, "I think if you had two daddies, you'd love both of them like you love me and Daddy."

"I hope so," Flynn sighed. "Daddy, you need to wrestle forever."

"Forever?" Chris asked her.

"Uh huh," Flynn nodded.

"He can't wrestle forever," Sawyer told her as she frowned. "He'd be too old someday, Flynnie. But then you can wrestle because you'll be older and you won't even miss Daddy's wrestling because you can wrestle."

"Oh okay, I like that," Flynn grinned at her brother and went back to her food.

"You're going to have to be like Sawyer for this WrestleMania," Stephanie told her husband. Sawyer looked at her and wondered what she could possibly mean by that. "I just mean that everyone likes you, baby boy, so if you become a wrestler, you might not have anyone who wants to fight you."

"I think they'd want to fight me because of you guys," Sawyer said, "that's what Ed told me."

"Why does he insist on informing our son things like this?" Stephanie addressed her husband who just laughed. "I swear, one day, we're sitting him down and discussing the things he cannot discuss with a six year old."

"Mommy, I'm almost seven."

"I know what you're almost," Stephanie said, "believe me, I know, I was there when you were born."

Sawyer laughed, "You had to be, you're my mom, your mom's have to be there when you're born."

"I know," she stuck her tongue out at him, "now what did Edge tell you?"

"He just said that people would be jealous of us because you're our mom and dad and you guys own the company so it's going to be easy for us to be wrestlers because we can just tell you that we want to be wrestlers, and when we tell you that, then we can be them."

"Well, it's a little more complicated than that," Stephanie said, "your dad and I wouldn't just throw you out there. We want all of you to get educations so you have something to fall back on, and when you finish with that, then you can wrestle and Daddy can help teach you."

"I want my best friend, Punk, to help me!" Flynn declared.

"Yes, and then you guys can wrestle," Stephanie told them.

"And Flutterby, you'll wear lots of clothes," Chris said.

"I westle too!" Kensington grinned, taking a sip from her juice box, staining her lips purple in the process.

"Then you're going to wear a bunch of clothes too," Chris told her.

"Okay," Kensington agreed readily.

"Dad, what if you don't have anyone to fight at WrestleMania, will you just not do anything?"

"Oh, I'm going to do something, believe me, I'm definitely going to do something."

Dolph kissed his girlfriend's forehead, "You look beautiful tonight."

'Thanks," she smiled at him, but it didn't hold the usual glow. "You ready for your match, it's coming up soon."

"Yeah, of course, I'm always ready for a match, that's a given, but what's bothering you?" he asked. "Ever since we got here, you've been acting weird. Did something happen that I don't know about?"

"No," she shook her head. "It's nothing, just one of those days."

"One of those days?" he asked.

"Just one of those days where I feel blah, that's all," she leaned up to kiss his cheek. "But thank you for recognizing that."

"I know you," he shrugged. "So what's got you down? Anything me and my incredibly handsome face, body, and general personality can fix?"

She smiled a little, "No, I was just thinking about you beating Daniel on Monday and how it's so convenient that you have a match against Kane coming up so soon. It feels like…you know, it's nothing, just me being paranoid like usual."

"You're not paranoid," he said as he slung his arm around her. He led them out of his locker room and down the hallway to the gorilla. His match was coming up next and they had to get out there. They were meeting up with Big E as usual, but it gave them a couple minutes to talk amongst themselves. "What is it, really? You can tell me, you can tell me anything you want, like how hot I am, how great in bed I am, how I'm the best boyfriend you've ever had…"

"You are all those things," she told him. "I just, it still bothers me how Daniel can get under my skin like that. I thought I was over that, but I guess I wasn't. I thought with you beating him on Monday, it would somehow make me feel better, and it did, but not like I thought it would."

"I'll beat Kane tonight too," he wiggled his eyebrows at her, and she giggled.

"I have no doubt about that. At least Kane was blunt with me," AJ said. "He didn't string me along, he didn't propose to me. You know, I knew I probably wasn't going through with the wedding, but a part of me wanted to, you know, I sound silly, don't I?"

"No, you sound like someone who's been through a lot. How about we don't think about it, just for a few days? We put it out of our minds, I go out there for my match, I win, we celebrate, then we grab Nacho and Big E, take one of them out for dinner, and we drive the few hours to Cleveland so my parents can fall in love with you a little bit more."

AJ gave a soft laugh, "You give me too much credit."

"And you don't give yourself enough. Everything's fine, I won on Monday, that felt good, didn't it? I did that for you, didn't I?"

"You did, but for you too," she said as they reached the gorilla. "I know you'll win tonight as well."

"That's why they call me the show-off," he told her, giving her a quick kiss before he had to get into his match mode. She stood off to the side as he did his ritual before the match. Before they knew it, he was out there.

It wasn't a terribly long match, but long enough to where AJ was convinced he might lose, despite her best efforts to cheer him on. Her mind wandered to her Saturday Morning Slam match, and how her boyfriend had gone out of his way to make sure she was alright after her match. It was actually her first solo match since they'd been open about their relationship, and the mere fact he'd insisted on being there for commentary meant the world to her. He supported her so much, and that made her so thankful.

The man she stared at across the ring, her ex-boyfriend, who was there for his tag team partner, never really supported her singles matches. He would pretend to, but it was all about him. Yes, the hurt was still welled up inside her. It made her hurt sometimes, thinking about how much she'd given Daniel. She'd been so innocent then, so uncorrupted. She'd believed that the world was great, and Daniel loved her, and she wanted to punch him in the face right now.

Luckily Big E took care of that without her even having to ask him to do so. She took a great satisfaction in seeing Big E toss Daniel like he was nothing. Kane got to him eventually, but then Dolph made sure he took care of him when he got back in the ring. AJ crawled into the ring once her boyfriend won and celebrated with him briefly before he went to talk trash to Kane.

AJ was horrified when Kane sat up and grabbed her boyfriend's throat. She was about to try and stop Kane when Big E made the save and took out Kane. AJ stared in appreciation before Dolph pulled her over and to him, running his fingers through her hair to calm her down. She didn't want a repeat of this ever to happen again. But this did give her a thrill. She looked to Dolph to see if she could see what he was thinking, but she was guessing it wasn't the same thing she was. Not the same thing at all.

"You know you're in this country illegally if you can't produce me a birth certificate," Zeb said as he and Jack walked up to Chris. "I still think you should be taken back to Canada."

"I have duel citizenship, I told you this when you asked me about it on Monday," Chris scoffed. "You remember, right, when you were going around inquiring about everyone's status in the company."

"It wouldn't even matter, sweetie," Stephanie held up her left hand where her rock was sitting. "I'm married to him, therefore, he can stay in the country, plus he has three American-born children, so even if he were here illegally, which he isn't because he was born in New York, he still could be here, next question please? And also, for the record, I'm the president of this company, nice to meet you, employees of mine."

"Come on," Jack said, "I'll settle this matter with him in the ring."

"Idiots," Stephanie scoffed under her breath. "Even my father wouldn't be that militant. I swear, that Swagger kid has it all wrong."

"You're really mean around WrestleMania."

"Yes, I am," Stephanie said, "because I don't have time for someone questioning your citizenship, you've been living here for, what, a million years, yeah, you're just on TV all the time, but you're here illegally, I'm so sure."

"Mommy, you need to be calm," Sawyer told her.

"I know, but I'm not," Stephanie said, "I wish I could be. Insert yourself into that match. Take out Swagger, that's what you should do for WrestleMania."

"I'm not sure that's going to work, you've already signed the Del Rio/Swagger thing, haven't you?"

"So what, you deserve to be in that match, just to crush him."

"Yeah!" Flynn pumped her fist and leaned over to look at her father, "Daddy, you should crush him!"

"Okay, well, I'm going to try tonight."

"No, at WrestleMania," Flynn said, clenching her fists and looking like she was going to burst. "I want you to beat everyone!"

"Did you give her sugar?" Chris asked his wife and she shook her head. "What is with her?"

"She just wants you to fight."

"Well, I will, I promise, I will find something for WrestleMania."

**Monday**

He still hadn't found anything for WrestleMania.

He was getting antsy too. He didn't have a match, he didn't hate anyone, he didn't have a plan, his wife didn't have a plan. It almost didn't feel like WrestleMania at all. There was really nothing he needed to do except, well, tonight he had the Intercontinental Title match, and that was something. He figured if he won, he might have Wade to deal with. Even if he and Wade were on opposite sides, there was still a little bit of mutual respect there between them. He didn't even feel ill-will towards The Miz, and he usually detested that little copycat.

"I feel like I don't fit in," Chris told his wife, who was typing away on her computer. "Are you tweeting?"

"No, I tweet from my phone."

"You know, that video you posted yesterday was gross, what even was that?" he asked, making a face. "As if we haven't seen enough puke with three children."

"I thought it was funny," Stephanie shrugged. "I mean, sure, it was gross, but it was still funny, don't you think?"

"My wife is into puke humor, I feel like I don't know you at all."

"Well, my husband only just recently followed me so maybe he just doesn't know me at all anyways," Stephanie shrugged as she gave a coy look to her husband.

"Hey, you should be glad I followed you at all, this means that I care about what you're doing throughout the day…but I think we both know I only did it so I could see hot photos of you. I mean, you in that dress you wore to the USO thing, yeah, I wouldn't mind seeing that on our bedroom floor."

"You see me naked all the time, is this really a thing?" Stephanie asked. "I walk around naked after I take a shower, I walk around naked before I go to bed—"

"I'm a guy, pretty much any time I can see you naked, I'm going to want to see you naked," he told her with a cheesy smile. She shook her head before looking back to her computer screen. "Besides, what if you were flirting with someone and I didn't see it. I would look like an idiot."

"I'm not flirting with you through twitter, I'm not being one of those gross people who does that."

"Then what's the fun in being married to you if I can't claim my territory over a completely random social media site? Can I tout about you? I'll just say that you're my woman, and anyone who sends you any creepy or really gross tweets will have to answer to me."

"I don't think that will stop them."

"Wait, you mean to tell me people are sending you gross tweets? What are they saying?"

"The same kind of things they say to you."

"Who are these people!" Chris said, standing up and walking over to her. "Hand over your phone, I want to see what these perverts are saying to you. I will hunt them down, and I will give them the business end of my fist."

"Okay, hold up there, Thor—"

"Thor?"

"You dressed up as Thor…it's an appropriate joke!" she told him and he laughed. "See, see, you knew that was a good one."

"I give you all the credit in the world for that one, that _was_ a good one, go on, I will go Thor on all of them even though I'm not the one who usually carries a hammer around here."

"That man has his sledgehammer ready. He made sure we kept one out there for him. He thinks that things are going to get really bad tonight, so he wanted to make sure he had some kind of back-up plan. I think it's stupid for him to sign this contract sight unseen, but when has he ever listened to me? He didn't even listen to me when we were married."

"Well, to be fair, I don't listen to you either."

"Yeah, sure you don't," she told him.

"Don't think I haven't forgotten about your Twitter, I want to see what people are saying about you and _to_ you. I may not be going after the big, bad Brock Lesnar, but I think I can go off on some internet geeks."

"Is that going to be your WrestleMania match?"

"Don't remind me that I have nothing to do," Chris said, "it's worse than when I wasn't working on the show because then it was like I had other things to do so wrestling took a backseat, but here I am, sitting here, doing nothing."

"You could win the Intercontinental title later."

"Which is what I'm banking on, but I have a target on my back because I'm the oldest one in that match. They think I'm going to be the weak link, I wouldn't be surprised if they both went after me, I know Wade will, I taught him well."

"Because you haven't proven how good you are since you've been back?" Stephanie asked sarcastically, "Chris, let's face it, you're in the best shape you've been in, in years. You're schooling those younger guys, you have a chance tonight, even if I do think that belt is beneath you. Either way, you can seriously come out of tonight with that title."

"I could, but I'm not going to get my hopes up, I don't know, maybe nobody hates me, nobody cares about me—"

"Not true," she told him, "if anything, everyone is afraid of you."

"You believe in me too much."

"Yes, I do, that's why I married you," she shrugged. "Besides, I'll fight you myself if you don't have a match at WrestleMania."

"Is that a promise?" Chris raised his eyebrow as he gazed at his wife. "Because if you haven't forgotten, we've faced each other in a match, and it didn't end well, not for either one of us. But if you want to go again…"

"I can fit into that outfit, so try me, Jericho," Stephanie looked up at him again, but this time she was wearing a decidedly wicked smirk, one that made him grateful his daughters were out of the room right now because he was having dirty thoughts about their mother. Dirty, nasty, disgusting thoughts that made him lick his lips.

"We should have won that match."

"We should have," Stephanie agreed, "if you'd just laid on top of me like we planned."

"I can lay on top of you now?" he suggested. "But if I don't have a match and I wrestle you, I'll be ruthless, you know that, right?"

"I wouldn't want you any other way," Stephanie looked at him in that way that drove him crazy. He bent down and captured her lips in a kiss, pulling her up out of her seat and pressing her against the wall. Stephanie broke away to pepper kisses along his jaw. "I'd pin you right there in the middle of the ring."

"I'm about to pin you right here."

"Do it."

Flynn sat on the couch in Punk's locker room, staring down at the urn that sat on the coffee table. She'd been staring at it for at least three minutes, turning her head and looking at it over and over and at every angle. She was completely enraptured by the sight. Punk sat next to her, watching her as Britt sat on her other side, playing patty cake with Kensington, completely oblivious to all that was going on around her. She just kept staring at the thing in front of her, wondering why this thing was so valuable, and why everyone seemed to want it.

"Are you okay, Flynnie?" Punk asked the little girl. He didn't believe the urn had any powers whatsoever, but with the way Flynn was staring at it, he was getting a little bothered.

"Why did you want this so much?" Flynn asked, turning just her head to look at Punk curiously.

"Well, it's symbolic," he told her. She looked confused, so he explained further, "it means that it means something else. You know who Paul Bearer was, right?"

"Uh huh, he came with Taker and he tried to make Mommy marry Mr. Taker, but Mr. Taker was not good, and Mommy loves my Daddy, and that's why she married him and not Taker, but Mr. Guy that you said, he was there."

"Okay, you do know then, well, he died—"

"Oh, that's really sad," Flynn interjected and Britt gave Punk a look.

"What's with that look?" he asked her.

"Nothing," Britt shrugged, being tugged back into her game with Kensington before she could explain further.

"Well, yeah, it was, but see, he used to carry around this urn—"

"Is he inside it?" Flynn went back to looking at it, wondering if there was a person inside, and if there was, how could he live in there? Was it like when there was a wizard that lived inside and he could make himself small?

"No, but he carried it around so it's kind of like having him around."

"Why did you take then? Isn't it Taker's?"

"Well, see, I want to end his streak, and this throws him off his game, it's just like I'm borrowing it."

"But you took and you didn't ask," Flynn explained, "I saw you, I watch the show, Punk, I know what you do, you can't do stuff like that because I watch. You're my best friend."

"You're mine too, but this is bigger than us, Flynnie, you know that Taker has a really long winning streak, 20 times he's won, that's five times longer than you've been alive. That's a big deal, so I want to end it, and to do that, I've got to get an advantage."

"Well, I guess that's okay," Flynn said, hugging Punk around the waist. "I want you to win."

"Thanks, I want to win too, and sometimes, when you want to win, you have to do things you might not be proud of," Punk looked to Britt when she said that, and she sighed. She could only imagine what that might mean.

She was watching what that meant on a monitor she happened to walk by while on her way to talk to Vickie. She stopped as she watched her boyfriend tossing around the urn and she closed her eyes and counted to ten. She liked Punk (was well on her way to loving him, she could tell), but sometimes he could be so exasperating. He was always so over-the-top with everything he did, but that's what made him who he was, and that's how he made it to the top. She couldn't begrudge him that, even if it annoyed her sometimes.

"Pretty disrespectful boyfriend you have there."

"Really, Hunter? That's how you want to start a conversation?" Britt looked over her shoulder at him. "Aren't you the guy who climbed inside a casket and pretended to have sex with a mannequin that was supposed to mimic a dead girl?"

"Touché," Hunter said, "still, that's pretty classless."

"Again, you have no room to talk about things like that," Britt told him. "Why are you even here?"

"I just happened by, thought I'd watch what he's doing. Did he tell you about this?" Hunter wondered.

Britt turned on her heel. "What are you trying to do? What is this? Is this you trying to act like you're any better than he is, that anyone in this company is any better? We'll all messed up, all of us, that's probably how we found ourselves in this place."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Hunter held his hands up. "I'm just a little on edge tonight, what with the contract and not knowing the stipulations, I mean, it's nerve-wracking being completely in the dark about things, you know?"

"I understand, but it's still no need to go after my boyfriend."

"I know," he said, "look, is that friend thing still on the table because I could really use one right now. I'm just…tonight is really weird. Stephanie isn't really there for me, Chris has his match so she's focused on him and the girls of course, and there's WrestleMania, and yeah."

"I'm sure the stipulation won't be anything you haven't done before, you've been around," she told him, tearing her eyes away from the screen to look solely at her ex-boyfriend. If they were going to make this friend thing work, they would actually have to try to be friends, and in order to do that right now, she was going to lend him some support. "You'll be fine."

"I guess," he said, remembering a time when she'd be a lot more reassuring, but he fought to keep that feeling at bay. "I just, going in blind, you know."

"I know," she pat his arm, "but really, you've been in Hell in a Cell, nothing can be worse than that, right? I mean, even if he chooses that, you're used to it, you've done it before. You'll be fine."

"You're right," he shrugged, "I just wish I knew what it was."

"After tonight, you will, and you can train accordingly," Britt said, "I know you are, I've seen your Twitter, I've seen how you've been training, and you'll be ready, I know you will."

"Hey," a new voice said, "thought I might catch up with you, I thought you had to meet Vickie…"

Britt looked to her right and saw her boyfriend standing there, the urn under his arm. She didn't focus on that though as she gave his face the once over. But leave it to Punk to look like he couldn't care less who she was talking to at the moment. He leveled a glance at Hunter, but then just walked over, kissing Britt's cheek casually. She wasn't even sure if it was meant to be a territorial thing because it was just something he did when he saw her.

"Hunter is thinking about what the stipulation for his match will be."

"That's rough," Punk said, "I would go in preparing for the worst though. Just so you know, I heard Heyman and Brock talking earlier because I was going to talk to Heyman, and it sounded like it might be something like No Holds Barred, I swear I heard Barred in there somewhere, so you know, just a heads up."

Britt looked at Punk, and in that moment she knew she was falling in love with him. The way he said it wasn't malicious or sarcastic, it was honestly a helpful hint to someone who was once considered his greatest obstacle to her. Hunter had pitted people Punk cared about against him, had tried to take away the affections of a little girl who saw Punk as her best friend, yet here he was, helping him.

"Thanks," Hunter said in surprise.

"Nobody should go into a match blind," Punk shrugged before turning to Britt, "did you want me to walk you to Vickie's or you know, I think I'm done here tonight, so I can hang around you. Or I can just go put this baby back in a safe place and hang with Flynn the rest of the night, she's the only one around here who doesn't hate me."

"I don't hate you," Britt said, "give me a second?"

"Sure, I'll be," he pointed a few feet away and walked over to a spot just out of earshot.

"He didn't have to do that," Hunter said.

Britt looked at Punk, who had his back to her. He was looking at something, she didn't know what, but was giving her some privacy. "He's like that, he surprises you sometimes…all the time. So now you know, and you can be prepared for later, not so scary, huh?"

"I think I'm better prepared, yeah," he laughed, "I'll see you around."

"Of course, bye," Britt waved genially before jogging over to Punk, lacing her arm through the one that didn't have the urn and they walked down the hallway.

Hunter felt better after that conversation. It hadn't been as weird as he expected it to be, and the pain of seeing the two of them was down to a dull ache. He could move on, he knew this, he just needed to somehow do it, find someone. Maybe asking Stephanie wasn't the worst idea in the world. If Britt could be happy, he could be happy, and he deserved that. Maybe tomorrow he would change his life, and he would just go for it. He wasn't getting any younger and it was time to really start a life that didn't consist of the squared circle.

He needed to take that scary first step.

AJ skipped backstage and right back to Dolph's locker room. Dolph didn't have the TV so he didn't see her go out there. It was probably for the best because, well, she didn't want her boyfriend to know she'd been out there. It wasn't because he would be jealous, he wasn't the type to get jealous, but it would ruin things for later. Being out there, provoking Kane _and_ Daniel, she had a feeling it would pay off later. It was just Dolph didn't need to know about it, not right now.

"Where've you been?" he asked, pulling up his ring trunks. "You missed the show."

"Was just…around," AJ smiled at him, walking over and zipping his trunks up the rest of the way. "And I think I can catch the show later, don't you think?"

"You mean when we arrive at my parent's house?" Dolph said, "in the middle of the night after driving for three hours? That's when you want the show?"

AJ nodded, "Uh huh, right then, right in their living room."

"Oh, well, okay, you're in for a surprise because I'm going to do that," he leaned forward and kissed her. "You're in a better mood. You've kind of been down in the dumps this weekend, and I hated it!"

"Why?"

"Because you were boring. I didn't sign up for a boring girlfriend, I signed up the crazy chick," he winked at her and she leaned up on her tiptoes to kiss him. "I figured being at work would put you in a better mood. Plus, you look hot."

"Thanks," she said, grazing her fingers against his torso. "You're going to win tonight, right?"

"I'm on a streak now, I think I'm going to win," he told her with a nod. "Plus, this is Kofi, the guy is so predictable, I know I'll take him. He thinks he's so innovative, but he's no show-off."

"Okay, I just…I want you to win, I like you winning," she told him.

"I do too, come on, we have to show-off, me, with this body, you with that body, do you know how many people are probably jealous of us, I mean, I bet there are millions of guys who want to be me, and not just because I'm me!"

"Yeah, well I know one girl that wants to be me," AJ told him as she reached up to slick his hair back. Dolph would never figure out why she actually liked his hair. Nobody but her liked it, hell, half the time he didn't even like it, but AJ's hands were constantly drawn to his bleached blond tresses. It was actually really nice whenever she'd fix his hair, her slim fingers threading their way through and reaching his scalp, her touch making him want to purr.

"Are we still on that?" he asked, looking at her and trying to see if she was still angry. He hadn't told her about the interview he had with a Serbian model because he knew his girlfriend would unnecessarily worry if he knew that a model interviewed him. AJ didn't necessarily get jealous, she just got worried. She had this innate fear that he would suddenly discard for what he deemed "better." The problem was, the better he always saw _was_ AJ.

"You could have told me."

"I was going to, I just didn't know how."

"Likely story," she told him, pulling her hands away from his head. "She wanted you to touch her breasts, Ziggy, do you know how not okay that is?"

"Baby cakes," he said in a sugary sweet voice.

She made a face, "Don't call me that."

"Babe, I didn't touch her boobs and I told her I didn't want to touch them. I definitely said no to that one," he told her. "I've got boobs I can touch whenever I want to."

"You mean this flat chest that makes me look like a pre-pubescent boy?" she gestured towards her chest. "All your past girlfriends were very…blessed."

He laughed and kissed her temple, "I do not care about how big your boobs are, you have boobs, I'm good with that, that's all I need."

"She touched your chest," AJ pouted.

"Yeah, well, a lot of people touch my chest."

"I should be the only one," she pouted even further, which made Dolph stop and lean down to gently nip at her bottom lip before pulling her into a kiss. She slung her arms around his neck and he lifted up, actually taking her with him as she laughed against his mouth.

He pulled away but she stayed hung around his neck, hoisting herself a little so she could wrap her legs around his waist. "I like everything about you, especially your boobs."

"That's the grossest compliment I've ever received, but why did she have to bring up how you were in the bedroom, she was practically throwing herself at you. I half-expected her to just sit in your lap or something," AJ said, pushing herself back to the ground and looping her arms through his right one as they continued walking.

"Well, because she probably was throwing herself at me," Dolph said, "but she couldn't keep up with me, she wouldn't even have a chance. I need a girl who's a little bit on the wild side."

"Okay, I believe you," AJ said, "but if I ever meet that girl, I'm going to rip that stupid braid off her head."

"And that's why I love you."

Stephanie watched as her husband lifted up Kensington and took her seat, sitting the little girl in his lap. Kensington, beaming from the attention snuggled into Chris. "Fandango?" Stephanie scoffed.

"I think it's Fan-trumbo or Fan-gumbo, delicious with a dash of oregano I might add," Chris said as Stephanie playfully rolled her eyes. "What? He started it, he's the one that came up to me. Can you believe that guy? I mean, his form and technique were atrocious."

"Uh oh, looks like we've got something brewing," Stephanie shook her fingers in mock fright.

"What are you doing, Mommy?" Flynn asked.

"Daddy was saying that Fandango was a bad dancer," Stephanie answered.

"Mommy, no, it's Faaaaaaaan—daaaaaaaan—goooooo," Flynn told her mother.

"Flynnie, I just think you got Fandango's first match," Stephanie kissed Flynn's head. "I think you're the only one who has come remotely close to getting it right."

"I listened," Flynn nodded. "Daddy, are you ready to wrestle?"

"What do you think?" Chris asked, pointing to his ring trunks. "Did you think I was going out for a bike ride?"

"No!" Flynn giggled, "You're the funniest Daddy ever!"

"As opposed to her other daddies of course," Chris said as Dolph and AJ walked by. "Those two still seem pretty good. Are you friends again?"

"I think she's preoccupied," Stephanie shrugged. "They've got a lot on their plate."

"So do you," he reminded her.

"So do you," she reminded him back. "Like winning the IC title."

"Daddy, you're going to win and I get to keep your belt," Flynn told him.

"Daddy, I get it," Kensington said.

"No, Kensy, you don't get it because I already said I got it!" Flynn told her sister.

"Okay, nobody is getting it, if Daddy gets it, it will be his," Stephanie made her two daughters back off. Heaven help them if one day they wanted the same guy. That was going to result in bloodshed, she could just see it now.

There was no bloodshed in Dolph's match, just wrestling, good wrestling at that. Her boyfriend was exceptional in the ring, and he proved that week in and week out. It was time it was recognized, and she wanted nothing more than her boyfriend to have everything. She had to give a little push earlier, one he didn't know about, but it would be worth it when her boyfriend, the man she loved was truly on top of this company. She was willing to do almost anything to get him there.

After the match, she was distracted momentarily by Dolph kissing her in celebration, but when he pulled away, she anticipated what was going to come next. And they didn't disappoint. As soon as she heard Kane's music, she stepped away to grab a microphone, knowing what was coming. When Kane said he wanted to see Big E in the ring, she stepped in between the two men, ignored her boyfriend's protests against any such match and accepted on their behalf. But it wouldn't be just _any_ tag match, it would be for the titles and it would be at WrestleMania.

"Babe, what are you doing?" Dolph asked after Daniel and Kane accepted the match. "What are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking that you win the Tag Team titles," AJ told him, "because you deserve it, you are a great wrestler, and this is a great step for you."

"But you just made the match without consulting with me," he ran his hands through his hair as they made their way up the ramp. "I think I would have liked to be consulted before I was volunteered for a match."

"You didn't have one," AJ told him, "and now you do. Now you're going to be on the biggest show of the year, and it's all thanks to me."

"Thanks to you, what did you do?" He turned to Big E. "What did she do?"

"She went out during Kane and Bryan's match," E answered.

"Jeannie, what?" Dolph closed his eyes, "You what?"

"I needed to make sure they knew we meant business," she shrugged, "but now they do, and you have a match."

"Babe…seriously, next time, you need to talk to me about these things. I can't believe you wouldn't even tell me you went out there. What were you doing out there? What if you'd gotten hurt! I'm so mad right now I don't even know what to respond to first."

"Mad?" AJ looked hurt. "I was just trying to help."

"By putting yourself out there during someone's match?"

"I was just skipping around the ring."

"Then making a match you had no business making."

She blinked back tears. "I was just thinking that you guys could be the Tag champions, and you could cash in and you could be the World Champion too. Everyone would have to respect you then, everyone would know you were the top guy because you'd have two belts."

Dolph's demeanor changed, "Two belts?"

"Yeah, that's all I wanted for you, I just want you to have everything," she sniffled. Dolph immediately took her into his arms.

"I love you for thinking of me like that," he told her, but then pulled away and bent down so he could look into AJ's eyes, "but let me in on the secret beforehand, okay?"

"You're not mad?"

"No, because you're right, it would be cool to have two belts. I guess we'll accept, I know you're in, E, right?"

"I'm ready to crush some bodies."

Chris tried to go out there every night and win. Some nights he failed, some he won, but in the end, he always put on a good show. As soon as he lost (but wasn't pinned!), he knew he'd put on the best match on the show. He felt good after it, but obviously he'd have felt better winning. He still didn't know where his plans lie for WrestleMania, but it was a good place to start with the Intercontinental Title. Maybe he _would_ challenge Wade to a match. Former mentor against his protégé, it would be a great way to gauge just how much Wade took from him when they were teacher-student.

"Well that was a bust," Stephanie said as Chris wiped his face with the towel and sat down, taking an empty seat instead of lifting up one of his daughters. He was gross and sweaty, but that didn't prevent Flynn from grabbing his hand and holding it in hers.

"Not necessarily, I may know what I'm going to do for WrestleMania."

"Do you?" Stephanie raised an eyebrow.

"I think I do."

Chris stayed with Stephanie to watch the end of the show, which consisted of the contract signing between Brock and Hunter. Hunter seemed a lot calmer than she would have thought, almost like he knew what would eventually come. Maybe he knew what match it was going to be. She perked up a bit when she was mentioned as the stipulation. Winner gets Stephanie? Loser gets Stephanie?"

"Um, should I be going out there right now?" Chris asked. "Because if the stipulation is winner gets you, I think I should probably throw my hat in that ring. It would be kind of awkward if I suddenly lost you because of a match."

"I can't believe that man," Stephanie shook her head. "Loser gets me? _Loser_ gets me! He's just baiting Hunter at this point. God, why don't you just parade pictures of our kids out there so that this humiliation can be complete?"

"I think he's got that taken care of," Chris nodded towards the screen where Hunter was going ballistic on Heyman.

"Serves him right," Stephanie scowled. "Winner gets me, I can't believe he would go there, especially with Hunter single, it's like, doesn't he know provoking Hunter is only going to motivate him more?"

"Better Brock doesn't know that actually," Chris pointed out. "Hey, you know, if it was the stipulation, I would absolutely put my name in there. Like, I would run out there and tell them I'm in."

"I know," Stephanie said as they turned their attention back to the screen.

Hunter knew he was signing up for No Holds Barred, that was fine, he could do that. But what Punk failed to hear or failed to mention or lull him into a false sense of security with was that it would be for his career. This match would be for his career, and nothing could have been on the line that was bigger than that. Heyman knew about Hunter's personal life, he knew everything because people talked, gossiped, saw with their own eyes that the woman he'd loved for years was now on Punk's arm. Yes, Heyman knew that, and yet, he dug Hunter's hole deeper, a grave now. Because it wasn't just for something Hunter loved, it was for something more.

It was for the only thing Hunter had left.

"Babe, wake up." AJ pushed at whatever was touching her arm, but Dolph was persistent and shook her arm again. "Jeannie, wake up."

"Ziggy, stop it," AJ said, "If you even want me to drive at all, leave me alone."

"It's okay, I can get us to Cleveland just fine, I'm not that tired, I just want you to wake up," he told her.

"Why?" she asked, moving to sit up and stretch her arms. She looked around and saw they were in some deserted parking lot. "Ziggy, where the hell are we? Is this where you're taking me to murder me?"

Dolph laughed, "Yeah, that's exactly it because nobody saw us leave together or get in the same car together or you know, date each other."

"Did Nacho need to use the bathroom?"

"No, Huevos is asleep in the back," Dolph said, "well, for right now he's asleep, he was keeping me company a little while ago."

"So can I go back to sleep now?" she asked. "Oh wait, did you need some cash to get food, are you hungry?"

"No, I just wanted to be the first."

"The first what?" she looked around blearily, one of her eyes still closed. "Is there a sale or something going on? Are we staying here?"

Dolph laughed again. Waking up AJ from any form of sleep was usually guaranteed humor. "No, I wanted to be the first to wish you a Happy Birthday," he told her and she snapped her gaze to the clock, which read 12:08. They'd left soon after his match, just grabbing some fast food and starting their drive to Dolph's parent's house a few hours away.

"Ziggy," AJ pressed one of her hands to her heart.

"It's our first birthday together since mine's not until July," he shrugged, trying to play it off. "I wish I could have done something better, but I promise, later, I'm taking you out to dinner, the works."

"Thank you, babe," she said, taking off her seatbelt so she could give him a short kiss, "can I go back to sleep now?"

"Not just yet," he said, holding out a box for her. "This is gift one, but it's the best gift because I couldn't wait to give it to you."

"This one isn't an X-box is it?" she joked as she took it from him. It was a medium sized flat box with a simple red bow around it.

"Sorry, not this time," he told her. "Go ahead, open it…why do I always have to tell you that you can open gifts?"

"Because I don't get them that often," she admitted and he ran his fingers through her hair as she started to untie the bow.

"I'll have to keep that in mind," he whispered, turning on the overhead light when the streetlight started to flicker. He also wanted her to get a good look at his gift. "I thought about what to get you, and I know that you tell me all the time you don't need gifts, but it's your birthday, and you're 26 now, and that's a pretty cool age. Plus, I'm your boyfriend, it's my job to get you things."

"I don't get you anything."

"Didn't we have a whole discussion about your boobs earlier?" he asked with a smirk.

"Gross," she muttered as she opened the box. "Ziggy, what did you do?"

Inside was a necklace, and she remembered how she'd told him she pretty much only wore necklaces. This was a skull necklace like the one she always wore, but it was different. The chain was a cable chain necklace and the pendant was a silver skull with what looked like diamonds for eyes. She carefully pulled it out of the box and stared at it for a moment before looking at her boyfriend.

"I know you like skulls, and I know that this necklace has meaning," he fingered the necklace currently around her neck, "but I thought mine could have meaning too. I mean, if you want me to get deep with it, I could say something cheesy like my bones ache for you or something, but I just know you like skulls and macabre, and this seemed appropriate. You don't have to wear it, I mean, it'd be cool and—"

She cut him off with a kiss, pulling his closer even though the car didn't really allow it. The necklace dangled from her fingers and thumped against his back as she deepened the kiss, trying to maneuver herself closer to him. Finally, it became too hard with the console between them and they had to pull away.

"I love it," she told him, "it's perfect and beautiful…"

"I probably wouldn't wear it to work," he told her, "I mean, it's just, it's probably not something you should be wrestling with, the opportunity for it to get lost is too easy, and you should maybe save it for special occasions?"

"It's expensive, isn't it, these are real diamonds, aren't they?" she asked.

"You're worth it," was all he said. "You mean a lot to me and I never expected you to be…who you are to me. I just hated seeing you sitting there crying. I had to sit down, I felt worse knowing I played a part in getting you upset. I didn't think you'd be…you. I've been looking for you for a lot of years, babe."

She smiled at him and hugged him again. "Put it on me?" she asked, handing him the necklace as she unclasped the one she was wearing. She turned a little in her seat and pulled her hair away from her neck, letting him clasp the necklace around her neck. She let the pendant fall against her chest and it looked stunning on her. She turned back to him and asked, "How does it look?"

"Perfect."

"This is the best thing I've ever gotten, well, behind the video games," she told him, "wait, did you say this was gift _one_?"

"I'm full of surprises," he shrugged.

"Let's get out of here, crazy man," she told him, putting her seatbelt back on. Before she could think, he leaned over and kissed her cheek before resting his forehead against her temple.

"Happy Birthday, babe."


	411. The Match is Set, March 25, 2013

Dolph scrolled through his timeline when he felt something hit the side of his head. He looked over and saw his girlfriend staring innocently at the performers in front of them, some kind of contortionist act to tide everyone over during halftime. He stared at her suspiciously, but she just sat there eating the popcorn he'd gotten her in the middle of the 2nd quarter. The game's attendance wasn't great so there was hardly any line for concessions. Even though he was taking her out afterwards, she'd insisted on popcorn.

He went back to looking at his phone, this time going to his texts and returning any he hadn't yet. He was just returning a text to his Briley when he felt something hit his head again, but this time he saw the piece of popcorn fall next to his shoe. He turned back to AJ, who was back to watching the action in front of her, but her smile was decidedly wicked as she dutifully ignored him glaring at her.

"Really, babe? We've devolved into throwing popcorn? I paid for that popcorn, you owe me for those kernels."

"That's for you being such a flirt," she told him, throwing another piece at him, but he was too slick and caught it in his mouth, eating it as she huffed.

"You knew that when you met me," Dolph winked at her.

"Oh yes, because you were simultaneously seeing Vickie or whatever and kissing my best friend," she responded with a nod as she shoved a mouthful of popcorn in her mouth, "just remind me of that."

He chuckled. "I wasn't flirting…well, not flirting with any intent, and besides, you were flirting with that guy during your birthday dinner when I took you out for a really nice dinner and everything. I gave you five gifts for your birthday and you couldn't even get through dinner without flirting with the waiter."

AJ shrugged, "He was cute."

"You're lucky I'm not the jealous type," he told her, "so why are you throwing popcorn at me?"

"Because you're not paying attention to me. If this were a first date, I would have asked to go home by now," she told him, tossing him a piece to catch in his mouth again. "You asked me out on this date, shouldn't you be making more of an effort?"

"Like you made an effort to talk to me about a Tag Title match?"

AJ rolled her eyes, "Are you ever going to let that go?"

"Maybe, maybe not. Depends on if you ever let go of that interview," he told her, "the one where I didn't even do anything wrong, but you can't get over the fact that someone would throw themselves at me."

"Are we fighting?" she asked, frowning at him.

"Are we?" he countered. "I mean, we're supposed to be at a basketball game."

"We are at one, what better place to fight than in a place where nobody is paying attention to you?" AJ asked. "I did what I thought was best for you. You needed a match at WrestleMania, and I got you one."

"Yeah, by lying to me," he said. They hadn't really talked about what happened because the day before had been her birthday, and he didn't want to bring anything up on her birthday. After having three hours driving by himself, he started to really think about what she did, and he really didn't like it, despite the idea of having two belts at once.

"I didn't lie to you."

"You didn't tell me you went out during Kane and Daniel's match," Dolph told her, "and while you were in the shower, I watched it, what were you trying to pull, Jeannie?"

"I was baiting them because I knew if I annoyed them, they would give in easier," she told him, "because I love you, and I want what's best for you."

"I don't need you to go out during other people's matches and act like a weirdo. I thought we were past that. You don't need to impress me," he told her, lowering his voice when the people around them started to return to their seats in order to watch the second half of the game. "When will you understand that I'm not with you because of what you can do for me?"

"I _do_ understand, but that doesn't mean I'm not willing to do everything possible to make sure you get everything you want! It's what I can give you."

He rubbed his temples a little bit as the horn for the third quarter started. He suddenly didn't want to be here. He wanted to be at home, duking this out there where he could raise his voice and not embarrass himself in front of thousands of people. He just didn't get her sometimes, but they'd only been dating several months so there was still a lot to learn about each other. Relationships were constantly changing, and you just had to change with them.

"You don't have to _give_ me anything," he hissed, "don't you get it? You're enough. I know you think you were helping me, but you didn't include me, so that doesn't really help. All I see is the girl I love putting herself at risk for nothing."

"It was for you."

"Yeah, for a match, just a match, I care about you far more than I do about a match," he told her.

"Well, fine," she said, going back to watching the game and shoving popcorn in her mouth, sloppily now, not caring if any of it even made it into her mouth. She was just angry again. He didn't get her, and he was just so easily dismissing what she thought. She knew that he cared about her more than a match, but that didn't mean she wanted to just sit back and do nothing. She was just as much a part of their team as he was, as Big E was, and she wanted to carry her weight.

"So now you're going to be mad at me for the rest of the evening?" he asked her. She turned to him and stuck her tongue out childishly before she went back to watching the game. He thought about extending the argument, but decided against it. It would just be easier to just wait to talk until later. He sat back, folded his arms and drew his attention back to the game.

Their fight could wait.

Chris walked into her office and held up his phone. "So you're just…what, trying to kill me?"

"I don't know what you mean," Stephanie shrugged carelessly, sitting back in her chair and looking at her husband. "I'm about to take a video meeting so you might want to make this quick. Where's our daughter?"

"My mom wanted to take her shopping for spring clothes," Chris said, "I dropped her off after I dropped off Flynn at preschool. Then I had business to take care of regarding me going to NXT tonight, but now I repeat, are you trying to kill me?"

"Kill you, now why would I do that?" she asked innocently, resting her elbows on the desk then resting her chin on her palms. "And what would I use to kill you?"

"This video," he told her, tapping the screen. "I'm pretty sure if I had been driving when I looked at it, I would have swerved off the road. You never let me into your sessions, and _this_ is what I've been missing?"

"What?" she asked. "I told you I've been learning to box, this is not new information for my _husband_."

"You didn't tell me how hot you looked while doing it, _wife_."

"Hot? Really, Chris?" Stephanie asked. "I'm just boxing, I wanted to intimidate Paul. He thinks he can continue to talk to Hunter like that, to talk about our kids like that, no, uh-uh, I want him to know as badly as Hunter beat him up on Monday, I can do ten times worse."

"You don't realize how hot this is?" Chris asked. "You run a multi-million dollar company and you don't realize how hot this is? Come on, Steph, you know how hot this is."

"I really don't, I mean, I think it's cool, and I look really tough, but hot?"

"Hmm, let me see, tight clothing, check, sweaty, check, boxing like the bad-ass you are, check. So yeah, I'm going to say this is pretty hot. If I had watched this around a group of guys, I might have had to punch some faces to stop them from drooling over you. As it is, I bet if I look at your mentions, there's going to be a lot of perverted ones."

"No," Stephanie said, but then she smirked, "you really think so?"

"This is not amusing."

"It's not like I'm flashing anyone," Stephanie told him, "although the urge is coming over me right now, I think I might get wild any second now!"

"You're only say that because you have a meeting and you won't do it," Chris flipped her off. "I know how you think, you can't fool me anymore, but nice try. I think I'll go read your mentions and fume for a while. Late lunch?"

"Yeah, I shouldn't be too long with this meeting, meet me here in an hour."

"That should give me enough time to have fun with that video," he winked at her and she made a disgusted face. "I'm just showing you what people are probably thinking once they saw that video."

"You're disgusting," Stephanie called after him.

"Maybe, but you're the one that posted that!" he called back without turning around to look at her. "It's your fault for all the dirty thoughts around the world!"

"You know you're married to me, right? You don't have to watch videos of me!" she told him, tilting her head so she could see out the door and down the hallway he was walking down.

"Oh, I know, but this will tide me over until I decide to nail you to the bed," he told her, disappearing from her sight as she laughed. She knew exactly what that video might do to him, but she was always a little bit flattered that he still thought of her that way. She knew he would love her any way she was, but she loved that her husband still lusted after her so much. One thing she never worried about was Chris's fidelity to her. It'd taken a long time for that trust to happen (she was just naturally suspicious after her father's many indiscretions), but she knew he would never stray. That just wasn't the kind of person he was.

AJ smoothed her hair down as she licked her lips. "Stop staring at me."

"I'm not staring," Dolph said.

"Would you just _get over it_," AJ said, "it's not like you aren't happy about the match."

"It's not the match I'm unhappy about."

"Okay, I'm sorry I lied to you," she told him, "now can you just stop staring at me?"

"I can stare at you if I want to, you're my girlfriend, I'll stare all night if I want," Dolph said.

"You're annoying."

"You're annoying too," he shot right back at her. She rolled her eyes and assessed her appearance in the mirror. "You look beautiful, stop staring at yourself like there's anything wrong with how you look."

The corners of her lips quirked up ever so slightly, almost imperceptibly, but she was smiling. Even if they fought, he still said sweet things like that. It reassured her that this was just a dumb fight, and they would get over it. It was a new feeling since the past year, whenever someone got angry with her, she got even clingier, more scared, and desperate. A fight with Dolph was just what it was, a fight, that's all. It didn't affect who they were as a couple.

"Thank you," she told him quietly.

"Please, you know you're gorgeous." She could still hear the annoyance in his voice, but now he was calling her gorgeous. "You should win tonight, you're a better wrestler than Kaitlyn will ever be. I should know, I was partly her pro when you guys were in NXT."

"That was two years ago though. She's gotten better," AJ reasoned.

"You're still better," he shrugged as she turned towards him.

"So you're still mad at me?"

"Yeah," he told her, "not as much, but I just don't want you—"

"I know, I know, you've said it a million times, but sometimes, I'm going to do things for you, and it's not because I'm scared, not anymore," she told him. "I'm not scared you're going anywhere, Dolph, I know you're not. I just—"

"Want what's best for me," he finished for her, "at the expense of yourself and your reputation."

"My reputation was ruined long before you came into my life," she told him. "People keep expecting me to drop you for some other guy. That's how they see me. They keep waiting for the other show to drop. Are you waiting for that?"

"No," he shook his head, "but I know you."

"Yeah," AJ said, "okay, well, I guess I'm ready for my match."

"About time," he said, walking over and giving her a hug. "We'll compromise, you can do what you want, but tell me first, okay? And I'll judge, but I won't get angry, unless you do something that puts you in danger."

"I can handle that," she said with a nod. He nodded too as she pulled away from the hug and started walking towards where the entrance was. Dolph slung his arm around her waist, tucking his hand in her jean shorts a little bit. She nudged him in the side, but he just chuckled, not moving his hand at all. They got to the entrance, and Kaitlyn was already waiting there. AJ glared at her, but Kaitlyn just rolled her eyes and turned away.

She felt Dolph lean his forehead against the crown of her head, "Remember our match when you were in NXT."

"You mean where you stalked me in the ring?" she told him, not turning to look at him, but she could feel him smile. "What about it?"

"I kind of liked how much of a spitfire you were," he confessed and she laughed, scrunching her nose up. She knew he was trying to get her to relax, and it was working. She felt a lot of tension leave her body. He stepped behind her and started massaging her shoulders, further releasing the tension. She liked having matches, it kept her fresh and competitive, and if it ever came to it, she could interfere in Dolph's matches like Lita did when she was with the Hardys.

He gave her a kiss for luck and she went out there to face Kaitlyn. Dolph stood by the monitor and could feel the annoying presence before they stepped next to him. "Mom is telling me I need to find a girl now too, so thanks for that."

"I thought you had a girlfriend," Dolph turned to his brother.

"We broke up," he shrugged. "I think Mom loves her because she always wanted a daughter, but was stuck with three sons. I mean, how else could her standards be so low?"

"Very funny, don't make me fight you," Dolph told him. He loved his brother, but he could be a jerk sometimes, but it was usually good-natured. That's how they operated, they razzed each other, pranked each other, but at the end of the day, they were still brothers. "I didn't bring my gear."

"Your girl looks good out there," Briley said as they watched AJ start up the match with Kaitlyn. "She's actually kind of getting back to her old self with you, the one I knew from a long time ago, before Daniel."

"Why didn't you tell me about her?" Dolph joked. "I would have swooped in."

"Oh yeah, when? In between your fling with Maria, your whatever that was with Vickie, or making out with Kaitlyn?" his brother said.

"In between Maria and Vickie, duh," Dolph told him as Briley laughed.

"I didn't know I had to," Briley responded. "So you're what, like, staying here now?"

"No, I mean, I'm staying here right now, as in this weekend. We flew in this morning, then we're flying out to Cincy tomorrow, then we're coming back here until Raw. We switch off."

"Never thought I'd see you settle down."

"We're not settled down."

"I mean you're invested, look at you, you wouldn't have done this for anyone else. You wouldn't fly to Tampa just to be around her, it's nice, you're growing up."

"Shut up, you're my younger brother, you don't know anything."

"Oh, I think I know pretty much all there is to see here."

**Monday**

"You know, I still don't get it," Chris said, "I still don't get why he came after me on SmackDown."

"This again?" Hunter asked. "You know that I'm fighting for my career right, and you're kind of angry over a guy named Fandango."

"Yeah, what's your point? I would fight Brock if you wanted me too, there's nobody around here he could target that he isn't already targeting. He goes after my wife, so does Heyman, so there's that, he makes remarks about my kids, there's that too, I could fight him, I didn't do anything to that idiot, Fandango, and it's like, we know you're Johnny Curtis, you dumbass."

"Seriously, you're pretty pissed."

"I don't like being ambushed. I'm better than that."

"You also used to be smarter than that," Hunter pointed out, "like when my wife tried to set you up after you kissed her at King of the Ring."

"Yeah, well, I could read her back then just as well as I can do now," Chris dismissed that. "It's just a name, guy's delusional if you ask me, thinks he's can just come and attack me, what's that about, you know?"

"So attack him this time, seems easy enough, maybe you're just not ruthless enough to think about it," Hunter shrugged, "you're probably already thinking about your tour."

"No, I'm not, but you're right, I'll give him a taste of his own medicine, stupid weirdo idiot, he's not even a real dancer, and I know ballroom dancing, I've learned it, I've competed with it, I should just go off on his form or something, bring in Cheryl," Chris ranted as Hunter chuckled. "Yeah, laugh it up, Chuckles. Your hair still looks stupid."

"That's all you've got, man, you are slipping, I think your daughter gives better insults, and I'm not talking about the wild one."

"Kensy is too cute for insults, so what the hell are you doing here? Stealing my wife to play your wife again?"

"I was waiting for her, but um, well, I've spent the past week thinking—"

"You think? Wow, congratulations," Chris told him as Hunter sucked at his teeth and glared at him. "What, are you going to throw me over a table and beat me up too?"

"I saw your wife's response to that," Hunter said.

"Yeah, I think the whole world has seen my wife's response to that," Chris said with a scowl, thinking about how he got a whole bunch of tweets asking his opinion on the video. His opinion on the video was he didn't want his wife to be the masturbatory bait for a zillion guys across the world!

"Man, it reminded me of some fun times."

Now it was Chris's turn to glare, "Please don't remind me that you've seen my wife naked."

"I've seen a lot more than just her naked," Hunter baited his friend, who practically had steam coming out of his ears. "I'm sure you knew that though."

"Gross, but it's okay, you'll forget about her in your old age soon enough while I still have my hot wife," Chris told him. "So really, what did you want to see her about? If you want time or whatever, you've got to go to Vickie, she still won't let Stephanie have any control over the show."

"No, it's just…I spent the week down with Shawn, training, hanging out, and well, I talked to him, and in talking to him, I just kind of found that maybe I'm ready to put myself out there again."

Chris raised an eyebrow, "You mean dating?"

"No, Jericho, I mean putting myself out there to hit people with sledgehammers, of course with women," Hunter said, "Stephanie said she knew some women up in the Connecticut area, and I thought, what the hell, it can't be any worse than being alone, not that you would know anything about that."

"Well, I did before I was with Stephanie."

"No, believe me, you don't because you were still in your late 20's and early 30's, you married Stephanie when you were 34, but you've been together since you were 31, so no, you don't get it. It's different when you're approaching your mid-40's, and nothing turned out like you seemed. Stephanie and I were supposed to have it all, we were supposed to start that family and have that perfect life…and she has that…with _you_."

"Sorry, man," Chris shrugged, "she does know a lot of women, believe me, the woman is connected, she'll find you someone. It's good that you're moving on though."

"Britt's happy," Hunter said, "I won't lie and say it doesn't hurt, it does, but at the end of the day, that's what I wanted for her. Maybe I just saw it before anyone else saw it, before she saw it. I prefer to think of it that way before you tell me that she was in love with me. It's just easier to think that I saw it before she did."

"Okay," Chris wasn't going to argue with his friend over that.

"And if she's happy with him, she's happy with him, but I want to be happy too, and if it's not with Britt, I've got to believe it's with someone, right?"

"Absolutely, before I got to know Stephanie, I mean, I thought there has to be a woman out there who wants me for me, who'll love all of me, and there is for you too…oh my God, I sound like a chick flick."

"And we both know Stephanie isn't exactly a big fan of those, so what's up, man?"

"Shut up, she's got the hook-up though, she'll get you someone, I practically guarantee it. Whatever you like."

"I think I might go for the complete opposite of Britt, just to you know…"

"Yeah, I know."

Britt stared at that stupid urn. She wished she could chuck it out a window or something, but someone was bound to find it and return it, or it did hold some kind of special power and would haunt her for the rest of her life. It was certainly haunting her boyfriend. She'd had to have that urn surrounding her the entire time she spent with Punk this week, and it was weird.

"Can't you just let Heyman take care of it?" Britt asked. "He's slimy, he's used to handling things like this."

"Don't trust him, not when Brock's lurking about," Punk said, "besides, this gives me the advantage. I'm going into WrestleMania with all the mental advantage in this match, all me. He's on the ropes, he's _pining_ for this urn, and you know what else, Kane is still distraught over it, and because he's distraught, his big brother has to take care of him now that daddy's dead—"

"Phil," she sighed.

"Sorry," he apologized immediately. There were lines around her that she didn't want him crossing. "Anyways, he's preoccupied while my mind is clear."

"Yeah, I'd say your mind is something alright," Britt told him and she rolled her eyes as he kissed her cheek. She hated when he would make a sweet gesture to try and diffuse the situation because she was so powerless to them. They were her kryptonite because when this man went sweet, it was _sweet_. "Don't do that, you know I hate when you do that."

"I know you_ love_ when I do that. Don't worry about the match, it's _my_ match, not yours," Punk told her, "you just worry about running the show from your end, and I'll worry about it from my end. Once I beat the streak, my respect level will rise, and I'll do something like make sure you get a raise or more vacation time—"

"What would I do with vacation time?" Britt wondered. "I would want to take a vacation with my boyfriend who already works all the time, so that's pointless."

"I'm just saying once I beat him, it'll be good. It'll all be good. I'm already inside his head. He's running scared, and once I get the streak over, we'll celebrate, you, me, nobody else around, I promise," he brought her hand up to his mouth and kissed her knuckles. "I'll tell Paul to scram and everything."

"You'll tell Colt not to hang around the apartment?"

"I can't promise he won't hang around, but I will try, we'll kick him out."

"He walked in while you had me on the counter with your hand on my breasts," Britt said, "it was so embarrassing."

"Well, to be fair, that isn't the first time he's done that when I'm with a girl. He immediately left after apologizing."

"He did," Britt said, thinking back to the hilarious apology, "but I would like just a few days alone with you, just us, do you think you can do that?"

"When this is all over, when I'm the winner, that's exactly what we're going to do."

Dolph tapped his fingers impatiently against the arm of the chair he was sitting in. AJ grabbed it and held it in her lap, trying to get him to calm down. He looked over at her and smiled, their fight forgotten about. He couldn't stay mad at her after the things she'd said while giving commentary during his match on SmackDown. They'd long forgiven each other before that, but listening to her speak about him, worry about him, and dare he think it, plan a future with him, there was no way he couldn't look at her and not fall in love a little bit more.

Babies and things were a very distant want, but a want nonetheless, and he wanted to share that with her. To think she might want the same thing was a blessing. "Stop," she told him gently. "Everything is going to be fine."

"I wish it would, but this is getting out of hand." The door opened and Vickie walked inside. Dolph stood up, AJ immediately following suit, and Vickie frowned at their still joined hands. "Vickie, what the hell is your problem?"

"I have no idea what you mean," Vickie shrugged, walking past them and acting as if they didn't affect her. She wasn't going to lie to herself though, it was. Even when she'd believed Dolph might be something more to her, he'd always held himself back, always kept himself away from her. She couldn't help but fall for him bit by bit, but all the while, she was next to nothing to him, and it wasn't his fault, but she believed once that maybe she could have him look at her the same way he was always looking at AJ.

"You do, and I'm sick of it, I'm sick of you putting me in matches where you think I'm at a disadvantage or matches with people I once might have considered them friends."

"I thought you hated Chris, I mean, you did say that, didn't you?"

"You're doing this on purpose," Dolph said, "you put me in matches like this on purpose, you know I wanted to stay away from Jericho, _everyone_ knew that because AJ wanted to be friends with Stephanie again, but no, you had to bring him in on a night where he's already pissed off, so what, so he can beat me up because _you_ can't stand that I dumped you."

"Dumped me, you didn't dump me, I let go of you."

"Come on, Vickie, we all know that's not true," AJ said. "I think he saw something…better come along."

"Better?" Vickie scoffed. "You think you're better, really, AJ, do you really think you're better?"

"Yeah, pretty much," AJ nodded as Dolph laughed with her. "You're not going to get him down, you know, not him or me, not either one of us. We do what we want, we say what we want, and when WrestleMania comes, Dolph is going to have the Tag Team title around his gorgeous waist, aren't you, Ziggy?"

"That's the plan," Dolph told her.

"Then he's going to cash in and become the World Champion, and you won't get to be by his side because you blew it, not him," AJ said. "Actually, well, I like to think that I helped sway his decision a little bit. After all, we've been together for months and months now."

"Whatever you want to throw at me, Vick, even if it's a guy who's on the verge of losing it, I'll still go out there and steal the show, do what I do, and look so damn good doing it. But feel free to watch me walk away, I know you miss it, but it's alright, can't blame you, come on, babe, I've got a match."

Dolph slung his shoulder around AJ protectively as they strode out of the room. It felt good to tell her off, but it would feel even better at WrestleMania when he won. He wanted to overcome every obstacle that was in his way, he wanted it all, and the Tag Titles would be a start, a definitely good start.

"Fandango's got the first match," Chris sucked at his teeth a little bit.

"Daddy, you're saying it wrong, it's Faaaaaandaaaango," Flynn told him sweetly.

"I love you, Flutterby, but right now, we don't like him at all," Chris told his daughter, kneeling in front of her. She leaned in and gave him a kiss on the cheek. Kensington, not one to be outdone, came over and kissed Chris on the nose. "Now I feel like a superhero, thank you guys."

"So what if he has the first match?" Stephanie asked. "What does that even mean?"

"It means that I'm about to get some retribution," Chris told her, standing up, even as his daughters tried to tug him back down again.

"Daddy, what's that mean?" Flynn asked.

"Remember how Fan-dumbo attacked me on SmackDown, and you were really mad at him?" Chris asked his eldest daughter.

"Uh huh, Sawa was mad too, and Sawa never gets mad," Flynn said, "he was really mean, Daddy, because you weren't even wrestling him, and he came out there and he tried to hurt you, and that's bad because when you're wrestling, you shouldn't go out there if you're not wrestling."

"Well, that's sort of true, but I'm mad at him."

"So you're planning to ambush him?"

"Yeah, that's exactly it. He wants to fight with me, he'll get a fight, believe me."

"So your big plans are…to attack Fandango?" Stephanie asked. "Instead of, oh, I don't know, inserting yourself into a match of great importance, like the World Title because Swagger keeps beating up on you, you're going after…Fandango?"

"Stephanie, I love you, but you don't understand, okay, it's a matter of pride and principle. That's what this is about. He insulted me by doing that. I didn't get his name right, and he decides he wants to assault me, not going to happen."

"Mommy, he _has_ to get back at him because he was _mean_," Flynn said like she was trying to implore Stephanie to agree.

"Maybe you can box him…or that woman he drags around with him," Chris suggested, "since Hunter is kind of fighting one of my battles for me, why don't you take the other?"

"I can do it!" Flynn said, raising her hand.

"I can too!" Kensington raised both her hands.

"Yeah, we both can!" Flynn said. "Mommy, Mommy, I saw your thing where you were punching the guy and I saw it, and I can do that because I'm a wrestler, and Kensy can do it because she's a little wrestler, but she doesn't really know anything, but I tell her she knows everything."

Stephanie looked at her daughter, trying to decipher what she just said. "I don't think you could box him, baby girl, you and Kensy are too short, you would only reach his knees, and boxing at someone's knees doesn't really work."

"I can kick too!" Flynn argued, scrunching up her face.

"Thank you again, Flutterby, and you too, Kensy-bug, but I got this one. I can get in a nice assault before I have my match with Dolph later tonight," Chris said, "that should be fun, having to worry about Big E."

"I would say be careful, but with your luck, you're going to get it," Stephanie rolled her eyes. "You better get out there, Fandango is next. But still, what's the principle of the thing, Chris?"

"The principle of the thing is that I'm a former champion of everything—"

"You _did_ win everything," Flynn exalted.

"I saw, Daddy!" Kensington added.

"Because I showed you," Flynn bragged.

"And I deserve the respect, and not to be blindsided," Chris finished with Stephanie.

"Get him, Daddy!" Flynn yelled.

"Yeah!" Kensington added.

"See, I've got the cavalry behind me on this one," Chris said. He bent down to kiss the crowns of their heads before he headed out of his wife's office.

He stalked down the halls with one singular purpose. He was Chris Jericho, Chris freaking Jericho, and if this guy didn't realize that, he was about to get a rude awakening. Chris's fire had officially been ignited. Thus far, this go around, he'd kind of wandered aimlessly, having a match here and there, but not really _doing_ anything. Now he had something, or rather someone, that he could focus on. This guy wanted to come into his company and attack him? Chris just wasn't going to stand for that.

When that idiot came out for his match, Chris was ready. Stephanie was already at the production table so she was able to start his music whenever he wanted. He wasn't exactly sure how she got there before him, but he had stalked around for a while, collecting his thoughts into one huge ball of anger. He was ready to reclaim the pride he'd lost letting that loser attack him in the first place. When Fan-dillhole or whatever he wanted to be called was down in the ring, he pushed his way through the curtain as his music hit then broke out into a run to the ring, immediately bashing right into Fandango and taking him out. He unleashed a flurry of punches and hits to the man, unrelenting and without care.

He gave him some chops to the chest and threw him against the ropes, but Fandango slipped through the ropes and scurried up the ramp. He was a coward, didn't want to actually face Chris, which was fine. Chris knew he wasn't actually prepared to face him. Chris had wrestled for over 20 years, he could school that punk on what it meant to be a real wrestler. He stared a hole through the man until Dolph's music hit. That would be just like Dolph Ziggler.

Chris had to hand it to the bleached-haired man, he was an opportunist. It would serve him well when he eventually cashed in that briefcase. He wouldn't pull what Cena pulled with the briefcase, telling everyone when he was going to cash it in. Dolph was a good wrestler, a really good wrestler, and Chris couldn't really hate him, and he didn't really hate him. Sure, he was annoying, but lots of people were annoying, his kids could be annoying sometimes, and Dolph was kind of like a kid in a lot of ways, but Chris understood it.

Dolph was the same size as he was, so Chris knew the challenges that came with being not one of the biggest guys in the world. It gave you a chip on your shoulder, and Dolph had that chip in spades. Chris understood the chip, he'd had the chip for a really long time. It had long since left, but that didn't mean the feelings didn't linger somewhat. He was looking forward to a good match, even if Dolph had his posse out there with him.

And it was a good match, in fact, it was a great match. He was in the zone from his earlier beat down of Fandango, so he was on top of his game. Even with Big E and AJ lurking about, Chris was able to get the upper-hand, and once he laid out Big E, it was a cakewalk from there out. Locking in the Walls of Jericho, he knew he had Dolph right where he wanted him, and it was only a matter of moments before he won the match.

He lifted his arm in victory, but was quickly shut down by the wrath of Big E. He should have known better, should have known it would happen, but he didn't, and pretty soon, he was hitting the mat and the impact was enough to crash some sense out of him as he heard Dolph crowing above him. He clutched his head as he heard them leave the ring and he tried to get up, only to have someone else come into the ring.

Then he was attacked again, and something inside of Chris broke as he tried to get his bearings back, but was unable to in the face of such a hard move by Big E. When he finally managed to get backstage, Stephanie was right there to help him over to the production table, sitting him down. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"He's going to pay," Chris told her, seething.

"We have to get you to the trainers, okay?" Stephanie said as Flynn and Kensington looked on, both with worried looks on their small faces.

"I'm okay," he told her, "I swear it."

"Chris, please, will you just go see the trainers, for me?" she asked, looking at him and running her hand down the side of his face. "It would mean a lot to me. You already have a black eye, and I just want to make sure you're okay."

"I'm fine," he insisted, looking over Stephanie's shoulder at his daughters, "hey, you two, I'm fine, alright."

"Okay, Daddy," Kensington said, but Flynn was stewing in her anger. It was the same thing he usually did, but couldn't because his family was always needing him. She would cool down her anger after a while.

"You should call Sawyer and tell him you're okay, I'm sure he's worried about you," Stephanie told him gently, still stroking his face. "You worry me out there, always, but it's a bad feeling when I'm helpless to go out there. I mean, I know I could, but I have a feeling if I did, Vickie would cry foul somehow, say I was taking over her show."

"I don't want you out there, I'm fine, I've been doing this for a long time without you. I never need you to fight my battles, Steph, I've never needed you for that, and it's not why I'm with you. I'm going to go to Vickie, I'm going to demand a match for WrestleMania, and I'm going to teach that guy a little respect."

"Is that what you really want for the show? To go against him?"

"Yeah, it's time he stops acting like such a dweeb," Chris told her and she leaned forward to press her lips to his. He tilted his head to deepen the kiss, completely ignoring their daughters behind them, which, luckily for them, Kensington and Flynn had already turned their attentions back to the show. "I love you for letting me do what I want."

"Like I had any chance of stopping you," Stephanie said, "you've never exactly been totally under my thumb."

"Throw me a right hook and I might be," he told her, tucking some of her hair away from her face. "Are you sure you're not going to challenge Heyman to a match at WrestleMania? I mean, he does deserve one after the way he treated you, but he might not since you can obviously kick his ass."

"The thought is tempting," Stephanie told him, "but I might just leave that to Hunter too. He's proven to be a pretty good lackey, plus, I'm doing him huge favor of exposing my friends to him. It's not going to be awkward at all when they realize he's my ex-husband."

"You're doing a good thing. He needs this, and I know you have a lot of friends who would probably find him attractive, I mean, I don't get it, but they will."

"He has a certain…way about him," she told him, "but it is good and hey, maybe he'll even get a date for the Hall of Fame?"

"Wow, that'd be something, but knowing him, he'll want to sit by you again," Chris sighed, "okay, I'm going to Vickie, I'm getting my match, and then Fandango will be Fan-done-zo."

"You really like doing that don't you?"

"I never had a nickname for you though, you weren't Vance McMahon or Trash Stratus, you were my little filthy, dirty, disgusting, brutal, skanky, bottom-feeding, trash-bag ho and you always will be."

"Only you could say that with any kind of affection," she said, then pushed him away. "Go get your match, Jericho."

"I plan to, McMahon," he said, but first went over to his girls, "hey, you guys, I'm going to get myself a match for WrestleMania."

"Against Faaaaandaaaaango?" Flynn asked.

"Yup," he nodded, "are you guys going to watch me at WrestleMania?"

"Yes!" Flynn said, with Kensington's voice trailing right behind hers.

"Then I better win."

AJ watched as Dolph rubbed his knee, "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, don't worry about me," he told her, throwing her a smile. "Little worse for the wear because Jericho is good, but Vickie didn't get the better of us, and she won't for the rest of the evening. We're going out there for Kane and Daniel's match."

"We are?" she lit up.

"Yeah, this time, you're not going out there alone," Dolph told her, "it's going to be _us_ that messes with them."

AJ loved that Dolph was so into this with her. She knew he loved her, but loving her meant loving her past, and sometimes she thought it would be hard for Dolph to be around so many of her exes, especially Daniel. He was the only one she would have called her serious boyfriend, but she had to face facts that said she'd flitted around from man to man for a while, and all these men came in contact with her boyfriend now. She knew sometimes it was hard for him to see them around, so him being out here, being in this match, it meant a lot to her. It was him saying he supported her in the downfall of the men that came before him.

"We're definitely better than them," Dolph whispered to her as she leaned in close. "They don't stand a chance, babe."

"You're going to look so good with that belt around your waist, Ziggy," she told him.

"I was thinking about wearing it on my shoulder while I wore the World Title around my waist," he told her, winking at her as she grinned.

"I like that even better."

What AJ didn't like, however, was being called crazy. Dolph's knee was more bothersome than he let on so she offered to go to the trainer to get him an ice pack. Little did she know Kane and Daniel were in there, but they weren't alone. Her former best friend was in there as well, talking about how they used to be friends, but now AJ's wheel was turning, but the hamster was dead. AJ was amused that Kaitlyn would talk trash about her. It wasn't like Kaitlyn was without her own faults. After all, she'd made out with Dolph while he was with Vickie, even going so far as to dress like Vickie for Halloween.

Kaitlyn had been so blatant with her crush on Dolph, hell, maybe she still had one, wait, no, she liked Cody Rhodes with his hideous mustache. Except now Cody had one of the Bellas so Kaitlyn was angry and turning her anger wherever she could find it. That's probably why she was badmouthing her. It was so petty of Kaitlyn to do that, so tired and sad. She watched as Kaitlyn insulted her, and she was going to come up with a witty comeback when Kaitlyn called her crazy.

Nobody called her crazy.

AJ was launching herself at Kaitlyn before she could think, daring her to call her crazy again. She would show her crazy. Everyone would think it, probably, but she was provoked. Kane and Daniel grabbed her, but she was tiny and broke free, attacking Kaitlyn again. They pulled her back again as she kicked and screamed for them to let her go, but they didn't until she was out of the room and they closed the door on her. She glared at the door, breathing heavy, her hair all over the place, and she was about to walk away when Vickie came striding down the hallway.

"Hello, little girl," Vickie said, leaning down to talk to AJ. AJ wanted to spit in her face.

"What do you want?" she asked through gritted teeth.

"Since I'm sure Kaitlyn wants to get her hands on you, you two have a match later," Vickie said. "Good luck with that."

"Don't worry, I will," AJ said, giving Vickie a sardonic smile before she stomped her way back to Dolph's locker room. She threw open the door and he was sitting there, staring at her. "Save it, Ziggy."

"I was just going to say that was hot," Dolph held his hands up in defense.

"Hot? You're not mad?"

"No, she was talking shit about you," Dolph told her, beckoning her over. AJ sat next to him, reaching over and massaging his knee. "You were justified in doing that. She shouldn't have said those things about you, and they're not true."

"Thank you," she smiled, "it just made me so angry."

"It should have," Dolph reached out and fixed her hair. He loved her hair so much. He would probably comb it for her if he could, hell, some morning he would pull it back for her. "She's such a weirdo, I mean, she has a thing for Cody's mustache, I think that alone says all you need to know about her."

AJ laughed softly, still feeling bad. "You know, I missed her, I was actually thinking about getting her with Cody just so she'd be happy."

"You can still do it, babe, just to show her that you are a good friend, not like she was to you," he told her. She shrugged. "Well, it's something to think about at least."

"We have a match later, Vickie made it so Kaitlyn could beat me up for what I did."

"Ahh, Vick, bitter forever, huh?"

"I'm glad though, I want the match…you said, well, remember when you said I should get back into wrestling, that I don't just have to be your cheerleader?"

"Of course, I want you to wrestle, you're amazing at it. When I did commentary on your match, I was in awe of you. You're a great wrestler, Jeannie, don't let anyone tell you otherwise, it's like the 5th best thing you do."

She smiled, "I think…maybe…if I can, that I might…want to go after the Diva's title at WrestleMania…"

"Really?" his face brightened. "You would look so sexy with that belt around your waist."

"And you would have yours…"

"Jeannie, I like the way you think."

Chris plopped himself down beside Stephanie, "The match is set."

"I saw," Stephanie said, kissing his cheek. "You sure this is what you want."

"Yeah, this is what I want."

Stephanie always wanted better for him, but if this was what he wanted, she would want it for him. "I guess I have to start my anti-Fandango campaign, right? I'll bring him down a few notches, remind him I run the company, intimidate him, the usual spiel."

"People do really fear you."

"With the boxing video _again_, Chris, seriously, I think you're obsessed with it."

"I was going to say in business," Chris told her and she blushed. "But you're right, there's a lot of fear spreading now that the world knows what you can do."

"Heyman should be afraid…and I guess Fandango too," Stephanie rolled her eyes. "It's just, you're going to win that match, and you're going to win easily."

"It's not about winning, love of my life, it's about teaching him a lesson."

"And you're going to teach it?"

"Who better than the master?"

AJ looked down at her pink wristband, the same one that Dolph "proposed" with. It meant something to her now, and since his knee was still bothering him, she'd insisted she go out to her match alone. She'd put on the wristband to keep him close. And maybe it would give her a little bit of luck too.

It did…in the form of Kaitlyn's face smashing into the barrier.

AJ climbed into the ring then, laying on her stomach and watching as her former best friend tried and failed to crawl back in the ring, giving AJ the win by default. She would take it, traipsing back up the ramp as Kaitlyn looked on, stunned. AJ could imagine the same look on Vickie's face when she realized her plan failed. She liked this, she remembered how good it felt to kick ass, and it did. Dolph was right to encourage her to wrestle again because she loved it. But it wasn't enough.

She wanted the Diva's title.

She wanted her boyfriend to have half of the Tag Titles.

She wanted him to have the World Title.

She wanted it _all_.


	412. That Time of Year, April 1, 2013

A/N: Thanks for the reads, reviews, what not, so glad you're all enjoying this still. WrestleMania is upon us, which is awesome, and I feel like this is the most balanced chapter in a while. Anyways, kind of setting up for the big day Sunday, here's hoping everything works out in our favor, whatever that may be! Enjoy, review, whatevs! :)

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"You know, it's really pretty convenient that you have WrestleMania the same week Sawyer is out for spring break."

"Is it?" Stephanie looked at her husband, giving a shrug. "That is pretty convenient now that I think about it."

"Yeah, it is, there's no chance you would have planned this, is there?"

"Chris, how could I have planned this when we plan WrestleMania so far ahead of time?" Stephanie asked. "It's not like I went to his school and asked the secretary to give me the school schedule that much in advance, what kind of person do you take me for?"

"The same kind of person who would go to a school secretary and ask her for the school schedule in advance so she could make sure her son got to be here for the entire week of WrestleMania, the most important event in his family's company," Chris told her. Stephanie scowled as Kensington came up to her and tugged on her hand.

"Come see, Mommy," Kensington implored her, walking over to the tables where the kids were doing arts and craft projects. Since WrestleMania was a week-long event at this point, Stephanie and the kids decided to get an early jump on it. They were all there in Washington DC for Raw tonight, then they would drive to Connecticut where they would stay with all the WrestleMania festivities going on during the week. It was fortunate that Sawyer was out on spring break, and they'd taken Flynn out of preschool for the week as well.

"Okay, shorty," Stephanie let Kensington show her the arts and crafts she was making. They were making dinosaur toys out of some paper or something artsy that Stephanie hadn't really paid attention to. Since there was so much to do in Washington DC, she and Chris were taking their kids to the National Children's Museum for a little while. Sawyer and Flynn were excited, but Kensington ended up being in heaven with all the Sesame Street stuff they had in here.

"Wow," Stephanie knelt down next to Kensington's station. "This is great, Kensy, I'm so proud of you."

"Sawa helped her," Flynn said, already done with her dinosaur and instead coloring a picture of some of the animals they had exhibits about in the museum itself. "She was too little to do it on her own."

"I do it, Finny!" Kensington told her angrily, not liking the way her sister told her she didn't do anything. She'd made it, she only needed a little bit of her big brother's help, but not much.

"No, you didn't," Flynn told her, "you needed help. I didn't need help, Mommy, not even a little bit."

"It's okay to ask for help sometimes, Flynnie," Stephanie told her daughter gently. "At school, your teachers help you, don't they?"

"Yeah, but that's what they're 'posed to do," Flynn shrugged.

"Do your friends ever help you?" Stephanie asked her, looking at her and Flynn huffed before going back to her drawing. Stephanie looked at her and smiled a little bit. That was the exact way she ended an argument, she'd huff and pretend like it didn't happen. Sawyer was busy with some clay, looking like he was making a dinosaur out of that. "Sawyer, thank you for helping your sister."

Sawyer just shrugged, "She's my sister."

That was all that needed to be said about that. That was just Sawyer's way. Stephanie took him in a little bit. In a month, he was going to be seven years old. The baby in him was completely gone at this point, and she missed that. She sighed and smiled at him before kissing Kensington's head as Chris came over and sat down next to Flynn, leaning his chin on her head, making her giggle at her father.

"Daddy, you can't sit in the chairs, your butt's too big," Flynn told him.

Stephanie snickered and Chris sent a glare at her, "Where am I supposed to sit then?"

"Um, on the floor?" Flynn suggested, "these are kid chairs because we're kids, but you're a daddy so you're not a kid."

"I'm Gamma and Gamps' kid though, so I am a kid, so I can sit in the kid chair," Chris reasoned with her. Flynn widened her eyes as she realized her father was right, he _was_ someone's kid, but he wasn't a kid, kid.

"But no, Daddy, your butt's still too big," Flynn shrugged and went back to her drawing as Chris drew her into a hug. "Daddy, no, you can't hug me when I'm coloring, I'll mess up."

"I'll still think your picture is beautiful though," he told her, "are you excited because of WrestleMania?"

"Uh huh," Flynn brightened. "I gotta lot to do though."

"You have a lot to do?" Chris asked her. "Really, I wasn't aware that you were going to have a lot to do, what exactly is it you have to do? Stephanie, did you schedule our daughter for the events? Are we going to do a VIP meet and greet together, Flutterby?"

"No, but I'm gonna see all the things, Daddy, I'm gonna see all the things that you can do, and…um, Mommy, am I going to the thing with all the old people? Am I gonna go to that again or not?"

"Well, if you want to, you can, you don't have to, but if you want to, sure, I don't see why not," Stephanie looked at Chris and he shrugged. "Yeah, you can come, Sawyer, you can too."

"Me, Mommy," Kensington turned to smile up at Stephanie.

"I still think you're a little too little, shorty," Stephanie told her daughter with a pout, which just made Kensington lean over and kiss her mother's pouted lips. Stephanie grinned at her and returned the favor. "I don't think you would have a good time, but maybe next year."

"I'm gonna go," Flynn said, "and I gotta go to WrestleMania, and Mommy, we're going to see with the people, right? We're going to sit there because I have _so_ many friends that I have to cheer for and make win with my cheers."

"Me too," Sawyer said eagerly, "I want a lot of people to win."

"Like who?" Stephanie asked.

"Daddy!" Flynn yelled, to which Stephanie gave her a look. Flynn lowered her voice to a whisper, "Daddy."

"I want Dad to win, duh," Sawyer said, sticking his tongue out, "he's my dad, I want him to win, but I want Punk to win—"

"Me too," Flynn said, "he's my best friend, and my best friends have to win because that's what best friends do, and Punk is my best friend because he likes me the best in the entire world, right?"

"That's right," Chris laughed, "who else?"

"Sames because he's my friend too, but not my _best_ friend because Punk would be sad if I wasn't his best friend, wouldn't he, Daddy, wouldn't he be the saddest person in the entire world?"

"I think he would," Chris said, "because who wouldn't want you as a best friend?"

"I know, I'm really cool," Flynn nodded and shrugged because she thought she was the best in the world at what she did. "Punk is really cool too, that's why he's gonna win on Sunday, I don't even care if Mr. Taker is a big winner because that's what he is, he tried to make Mommy marry him, but Daddy, she had to marry _you_."

"I know, what a heel," Chris shook his head, "would you want Taker as a daddy?"

Flynn's mouth dropped open as she stared up at her father in horror. "No, Daddy, I don't want Taker as a daddy, he's not a good daddy, he's a scary daddy because he's _scary_, but not too scary. But I don't want him as my daddy."

"Good thing he's not or you'd have to live in a graveyard."

"Mommy," Flynn whined, "I don't wanna live there."

"You don't have to, baby girl, Daddy is just trying to make you worry," Stephanie looked at him pointedly, "and don't worry, I'm sure Punk is going to do everything he can to win, he wouldn't want to disappoint you."

Britt blinked her eyes a couple times as her jaw dropped slightly, "You're going to _what_? I'm sorry, I must have heard you wrong, you're planning to do what tonight? Surely I heard you wrong, I mean, I'm sure I heard you wrong."

"No, you didn't," Punk said, "I think it's actually pretty brilliant if you ask me."

"Wow…I'm not even sure what to say to that," Britt told him. "You know, when I tell you ahead of time what things we're planning on doing, that's not really a privilege you're supposed to take advantage of…"

"Why not?" he asked her, "I mean, you tell me, and I'm just using the information to better myself. Look, Britt, I like you a lot, I may even love you soon, we'll see, I may even love you now, but I haven't looked too deeply yet, but here's the thing, you haven't been a wrestling fan for long, and the only reason you are one is because you work here. Tell me this, how much old stuff have you watched that didn't include Hunter?"

"Plenty," Britt said, "don't underestimate how much I've caught of the past, Phil. I've done my research."

"Okay, see right there, I'm not trying to dump on you, okay, you're my girlfriend, and I care about you," Phil grabbed her hand, which kind of saw as an empty gesture at this point because his plan was almost painful to hear. Sometimes he made it so difficult to care about him, but she couldn't stop. "Here's the thing though, Britt. You kind of have to have grown up with it, know it, know everything about this streak. People revere it too much, they've built it up into something that is somehow unreal, but it's not. It's just a bunch of wins strung together. That's it."

"But you know he's beaten tough guys—"

"Yeah, who were intimidated, but I'm not, I'm getting under his skin, I'm wearing him down, beating him down really," Punk's eyes were a little crazed at the moment. "You don't get it, Britt, but that's okay."

"Phil, calm down," she told him, grabbing his other hand and bringing it into her lap with the one she was already holding. "You're getting completely worked up now, and you should know better. Look, I'm not saying that it's not a good idea to get under this guy's skin, I'm not, but…how far is too far, you know what I mean?"

"This isn't too far, Britt, it's not like Bearer is actually _in_ the urn, right?" Punk asked, trying to get her to see his side of things, but he knew the second he told her what he was planning that she wouldn't be for it. He understood that, and he was okay with that.

Britt let him make his own decisions even if she didn't necessarily agree with them. There was a modicum of independence in their relationship that went hand-in-hand with the trust they had for each other. They could disagree about something vehemently, but they talked about it, talked it out, and they were left better for it. It was something he loved about her, something that he needed to have because he was just not the type of guy who could be totally at the hands of someone else. He'd spent too long being on his own, doing things his own way to cow-tow to anyone.

"I know, but you have to look at it from a different perspective," Britt told him calmly, her hands stroking his and making it difficult to concentrate. "Okay, I'm going to be the different perspective. You see it as getting under his skin, other people see it as disrespecting the honor of a man who was important to him. What if Heyman died unexpectedly—"

"Well, you wouldn't mind that," he joked, but shut up when she turned her icy eyes to him, "sorry, I was just trying to break up all the crazy tension in here!"

"People are going to look at what you did and they're going to hate you, are you ready for that?"

"So what, I've never cared what they think. I can sleep with myself at night, that's all I care about. If I can sleep at night, if I can look myself in the mirror, I don't see anything wrong with what I've done, but do you? I know you hate what I'm going to do, I know you, Britt, I know you like taking the moral high-ground when you can, so…is this something that's a deal-breaker?"

"No, it's more like, my boyfriend is a dummy who should get taken to task, but because I love him, I let him get away with crap like this even though it really is crap."

"Really? That's how you choose to tell me you love me, while you're telling me I'm also a dummy, that's how this relationship is going to go?" he asked, looking at her, but smiling because she'd just said she loved him.

"Yeah, pretty much, you should have known by now, where's that killer CM Punk instinct of yours."

"I can't predict this kind of thing," he leaned forward to kiss her, "so you won't hate me later tonight?"

"Oh, I'll hate you a little, but don't worry, you aren't in danger of losing me."

Shawn slapped Hunter on the back, "Good to be back around here, I feel like I'm back at home. I'm so glad to be here."

"Okay, tone it down there," Hunter rolled his eyes, "you sound like you just got out of prison."

"That's a little bit true, you know, family life…"

"No, I don't know, but thanks for rubbing that in, it's not like I don't get that from Heyman everyone week, rubbing it in, acting like I have Stephanie when I don't."

"But you're over her," Shawn said, "plus, you finally don't have to worry about Britt anymore, am I right or am I right because I heard she was dating Punk, which means you were right all along, which means you got rid of her for a really good reason, she was obviously into someone else, and you're over her, man."

Hunter wasn't sure if he was _over_ her, no matter what his best friend said. Shawn never cared for Britt, so of course he would just assume that out of sight meant out of mind. He wasn't going to say the sting was still sharp, but it was still there, dull and shapeless. His feelings for Stephanie were completely gone, and when he thought back to their past, the only thing left was nostalgia. He knew he'd get to that point with Britt too, but it wasn't here yet. Even though he'd left her a while ago, you just didn't get over that kind of love, you just didn't.

"I'm not over her—"

"Oh my God, give me a break!" Shawn crowed, covering his eyes with his hand. "You're done with her, move on, please, for me, I'm tired of seeing you be so mopey all the time."

"I'm not mopey, plus, Stephanie's lined up some dates for me," Hunter said, "with some of her friends that live up here. So I'm moving on, and I'm going to find someone, all hope is not lost for me."

"Hope she'll be better than the last one," Shawn said, holding his hands up in defense when Hunter threw him a look that told Shawn to back off of Britt. They weren't together any longer, his insults were childish. "Although, I mean, come on, Hunt, do you really think that you should let your ex-wife try and pick anyone for you, there's a reason she's married with three kids to _another_ guy."

"She's my friend, she knows people."

"Hey, Becca knows people too, she has a lot of girl friends you could raid if you wanted to," Shawn told him, thinking he knew best for his best friend, and he did. He knew Hunter better than anyone, if he could just find a girl for him, everything would be great.

"Yeah, people that live in Texas," Hunter rolled his eyes, "let me see who Stephanie brings to me first, and I don't know, I may hit it off with one of them."

"Yeah, because Stephanie's been known to do what's best for you."

"Would you lay off her?" Hunter asked. "Please. It's been years since we got divorced, we're both different people now, not to mention, get over whatever happened with you guys, yeah, she drugged you, but you've treated her like crap since, it's been over seven years, get over it like you tell me to get over things."

"Oh, like your career?" Shawn said. "We haven't even brought that up."

"I know what I'm doing," Hunter said, "go…walk around or something, I want some alone time."

"Don't ignore me, Hunter, you're being an idiot."

"I know what I'm doing!" Hunter called back at him.

AJ rested her elbow on her knee and then leaned her chin on her hand. "Are you almost into your ring trunks?"

"Yeah," he said, coming out of the bathroom, "why the long face?"

"Nothing," she said, "just thinking back to the match on Friday, and don't you dare tell me to stop thinking about it. I just hate that she got one-up on me, and I'm allowed Ziggy, okay? I'm allowed to still be angry over it."

"I didn't say anything," he sat down next to her, leaning his chin on her shoulder to study her profile, her jaw clenched and eyes staring unblinkingly forward. He reached around her and his fingers found the cuts in her shirt. He let a few of them trail inside the fabric to her side, brushing his fingers against her skin, making her skin tense up as he hit a ticklish spot. "Tell me what you're thinking about the match, and I'll tell you what I think about what you're thinking."

"I'm thinking that I can't believe I let my guard down enough for her to get the spear on me," AJ said.

"I think you dominated that match and she won by a fluke, and what does that say about the champion if she can only win by fluke?" Dolph asked. "You would make a much better champion, I mean, I wish you could have seen yourself out there. Double neckbreaker, awesome, all your offense you got on her, you were amazing, babe."

"I want the belt," AJ said, "I really, really want it."

"You'll get it, I believe in you," he told her, kissing her shoulder-blade, "just like you always believe in me. You think I'm getting the Tag Titles on Sunday, right?"

"Of course," she turned to him, "I expect nothing less, and it's not even because I want Daniel to lose, I really want you guys to win. It's been far too long since you've had a belt around your waist, and we can start with the Tag Titles, and we can work our way up. I want that for you."

"I know you do, that's why we love each other. Don't worry about that match, I know that you said don't say that, but don't worry about it, look, I know Kaitlyn isn't here tonight, but maybe we can work something out, maybe there's some way we can get you a match, let's not give up hope, alright?"

"Did you like kissing her?" AJ asked. "I mean, I know you've said you didn't have feelings for her, not deep ones, but did you like kissing her?"

"This sounds like a trick question," he told her, looking down at her. He looked over at Nacho, but the guy was too busy with the bone Dolph had bought him that afternoon. "Huevos, you're supposed to have my back!" Nacho looked up for a moment, but then ignored his step-father.

"He loves his mommy," AJ said, "no trick question, I'm just wondering. I mean, didn't you and Vickie have you're…uh…thing back then."

"Our thing was me using her for power."

"So you say now," AJ giggled, feeling better because she could tease her boyfriend and know that he wouldn't get mad at her. "But I mean, then Kaitlyn comes along and she's pretty and younger—"

"You're prettier, and aren't you younger too?"

"Nice one," she told him, "but did you?"

"Yeah, I mean, it was nice, I guess," Dolph said, "a little on the awkward side, but yeah, it was nice."

"Oh my God, you were supposed to say it was horrible!" AJ told him, furrowing her brow and looking at him, but she couldn't keep up the façade and started laughing. He deadpanned a look to her, but hugged her to him. "I love you."

"I love you, crazy lady," he told her, kissing her neck. "These pants look like you painted them on, I can't wait to peel them off later. I think I'll like the prize underneath."

"You're disgusting," she said, "I got them because they reminded me of your shirt."

"Ahh, even when my girl isn't around me, she thinks of me," Dolph pretended to dust off his shoulders. "I would say that's got to be a little bit show-offy if I do say so myself."

"You and your ego," she said, standing up and grabbing his hand, "come on, we have to meet up with E, you've got a match tonight, and it's a warm up match, so you've got to get all the beating you can in so you can soften Daniel up for Sunday. Hey, maybe you'll win in 17 seconds."

"I wouldn't want to give that goat-boy any more material, maybe I'll beat him in three hours—"

"Three hours?" AJ asked incredulously.

"Hey, if I wanted to, yes, we could go for three hours."

"Let's just get through tonight," she told him.

Dolph and Daniel had chemistry in the ring, he wasn't going to deny that. They matched up well together, and it made for good matches, but it also made for difficult wins. Whenever he tried something, Daniel had a counter for it. If he was softening up Daniel for their match on Sunday then Daniel was doing the same to him. That didn't mean he wasn't better; he was _always_ better, it just meant that he had to work a little harder to win.

Having AJ and Big E there was always going to be a factor, but Kane kind of evened them out, well, he evened it out with Big E, but his girlfriend was a clever, little thing. Nobody gave AJ enough credit, but the girl was smart, she was more than smart even, she was brilliant. She always knew just how to get under everyone's skin, in good ways and bad. Before him, she had a habit of getting a guy to care only to turn on them, and people said that was crazy, but it wasn't, AJ could manipulate, and she did that to people, and he loved it about her. At this point, he loved everything about her.

He and Daniel fought to a stalemate, that was the only way he could describe is his body collided with Daniel's as they both tried crossbodies on the other. His stomach could already feel the sting, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw his girlfriend start to skip around Kane, causing him to be distracted. This perfectly set up Big E to take him down, making the numbers in favor of Dolph. Daniel, also having seen this, quickly ran and baseball slid into Big E, but this gave Dolph the opportunity to roll-up Daniel and keep him down for the win.

Dolph ran out of the ring and away from Daniel's anger, but he saw that Big E was up again so he ran over to his girlfriend, making Daniel think they were going to ambush him from the front, but that left his back exposed. Big E made quick work of him and Dolph climbed into the ring, ready to crow over his win. Kane had other ideas and he got in a few licks to Dolph, causing him to roll out of the ring. Dolph looked up to see Big E about to get choke-slammed only to have Big E actually power out of it and hit his move on Kane. Dolph was honestly impressed as he climbed back into the ring.

He didn't have time to marvel over his future tag-team partner before AJ came up with the belts, handing one to Dolph and the other to Big E. Dolph held the belts up for the world to see. Come Sunday, they would be his, and he would be half of the Tag Team champions. He liked the sound of that, he liked it a lot.

"You're going to win, Ziggy," AJ whispered to him, "I know it."

"Yeah, babe, we're going to win."

Chris propped his feet up on the end of the couch as Kensington sat on his chest and played with Chris's ipad. The other two were sitting, watching the show intently, absorbing it all in, but Kensington's attention span still wasn't focused enough to sit for three hours of wrestling without becoming bored. There were a few kid games on his ipad just for this occasion, and Kensington was having fun pushing the buttons as Chris scrolled through his phone.

"Aww, my wife and her BFF are tweeting each other," Chris cooed at his wife, turning his head to watch her. "I thought you weren't at production tonight because you were finalizing WrestleMania stuff, this doesn't look like you're finalizing stuff."

"We're talking about the Hall of Fame, it counts," Stephanie shrugged smugly.

"You guys talk all the time, you know, I mean, you seriously talk all the time and you practically see her every other day. They came over to our house for dinner on Saturday night."

"What's your point, Jericho?" Stephanie asked. "I can talk to whomever I want on _my_ Twitter, you certainly do on yours…"

"What's that even supposed to mean?" he laughed. "And can I just say, it's an insult to me that you're talking with her like this when…oh, I haven't even gotten a tweet of acknowledgement. I mean, not even a, 'Hello, love of my life.' What an insult."

"I like her better," Stephanie smiled at him. "And I don't see you tweeting me even thought you follow me now."

"Sorry, what am I going to tweet about, how my wife apparently has a sense of humor that I didn't even know about?" Chris asked.

"Well, just for that," she went back to her phone and tweetesd something.

"Wait, could it be my wife is…what, _she_ was your favorite person to slap, are you kidding me with this?" Chris looked over at her with an incredulous look on his face. He couldn't move because Kensington was extremely engrossed in her game or puzzle or whatever she was doing. "Now you're just insulting me."

"I didn't enjoy slapping you," Stephanie jutted out her bottom lip, "I enjoyed destroying you."

"You mean the…one time you did?"

"What one time?"

"The gore through the set that you orchestrated."

"That was fun, but please, I had you more times than that, like the time I threw water on you or the time I had Edge and Christian hold you down so I could hit you."

"Yeah, and you say you don't love to slap me," Chris said, shaking his head, "but go ahead, talk with your best friend more than me, just go ahead."

"I am," Stephanie said, continuing her Twitter conversation with Trish, until Trish asked her to induct her into the Hall of Fame. Stephanie's face went blank and she read her best friend asking her if she would do the honors.

"Baby, aren't you going to answer her?" Chris asked his wife, and he was suddenly beside her, and she was startled by his presence. She looked over to the couch and Kensington was lying on her stomach, still playing her game. She hadn't even heard her husband move towards her. "She asked you a really nice question."

"I know, I'm…I really thought she'd choose Lita. I don't even know…I'm a little overwhelmed right now."

Chris took her phone and answered on behalf of Stephanie. He sent it and put the phone back in her hand. It rang a few second later, indicating that it was Trish. Stephanie was still kind of sitting there in awe, so Chris took the phone back again. "Hey, Trish, you've managed to do the impossible, my wife has no words for you!"

Trish laughed, "Put her on, you goofball."

"I'm not kidding you," Chris said with a laugh, "but here you go anyways."

Chris handed the phone to Stephanie and she put it up to her ear, "Hey, Trish."

"Steph, you cannot be surprised that I asked you to induct me into the Hall of Fame, I mean, you were the one that asked me to be in it after all, but on top of that, Steph, you've been my best friend for almost ten years, what did you really expect?"

"I don't know, I mean, I thought you would choose Lita?"

"Well, yeah, I was considering her, and I love her, we both do, but you've been with me through thick and thin, you've been with me through break-ups with Christian, through that failed relationship with Carlito, when I finally got married, when I got pregnant, everything, Steph, because you're my best friend, and I would love nothing more than for you to be up there with me."

"I'm going to cry, you know, you're going to make me cry," Stephanie told her best friend.

"I know, maybe that's the goal, I want to prove to the world you're not a heartless bitch," Trish joked. "Christian thinks you're the perfect choice, and I already called Li, and she's cool with it, she said Edge might not be able to come, but she'll be there, she wants to see me, anyways, yeah, Steph, you, I want you, and you shouldn't be this shocked or surprised."

"I know, but I am, I mean, I don't know, it's just, you don't expect it, and now I have to come up with a speech!"

"It'll be great, I believe in you, and I know you, and Chris can watch you from the audience with my husband maybe and think about how hot we both are."

"They would think that," Stephanie said, "thank you, Trish, you know I love you, right?"

"Hey!" Chris said from beside her.

"Tell Chris, I'm going to steal you away from him," Trish kidded.

"Trish said she's going to steal me away from you," Stephanie turned to her husband to tell him.

"Over my dead body," Chris kidded back.

"And I love you too, Steph, now make me look good, you hear me?" Trish told her, "we'll see you on Wednesday."

"Okay, bye, Trish," Stephanie said.

"Bye," Trish told her before they ended their call.

"You're cute when you're speechless."

"I'm not speechless, just…it's nice," Stephanie beamed up at him.

"Can I induct you when you go in?'

"I'm not going into the Hall of Fame, talk about hubristic," Stephanie said, "I think I'll go check on production for a while though. Bring the kids with you when you have your match against Cesaro, I'll see you later?"

Chris kissed her, "You always seem to find your way back to me, no matter how many times I ditch you. Something tells me I need to start trying harder."

"Yeah, probably should move out of our bed to do that," Stephanie told him, kissing him again.

"Are you really just going to go scream and be happy somewhere else where I can't see you and make fun of you?" Chris asked her, staring her straight in the eye.

"No, I'm really going to make sure my company is running well," Stephanie patted him on the chest. "Now, maybe you should start warming up."

Chris did warm up, then he took his kids to Stephanie, then he had his match against Cesaro. Well, he tried to at least. One thing he did like about his tenure right now was that he was getting matches against guys he'd never faced before, and it was always fu to get in the ring with really good wrestlers, and he felt privileged in that way. Halfway through the match though, he was distracted by his newest nemesis, Fandingo. How anyone could get so upset over a name, he would never understand. Even Vance McMahon hadn't gotten that upset.

Fandumbo was doing something that Chris couldn't really pay attention to, but it looked like he was holding up numbers, perhaps to score him. Chris didn't let that get to him though, he was a consummate professional. Did Fandill-hole think this was his first match? He'd been in so many matches where distractions were a factor. He'd had matches where Stephanie, the most clever of his many foes, stalked around like a lion waiting for its prey. So when the opportunity came to get at Fandish-towel, Chris took it, taking him out before locking on the Walls of Jericho to Cesaro and causing him to tap out. He was immediately charged at by Fandick-head.

Chris was now angry, he was just angry now. That was it. After getting beat down _again_, he was just angry. When he finally got out of the ring, he stomped backstage, and he was pissed. He was so pissed he walked right by his entire family until he felt someone grabbing at his hand. He turned a sharp turn of his head to the left to bite the head off whoever it was, but nobody was there. He looked down and saw it was Flynn, smiling up at him.

He sighed. There was no way that he could stay mad when that face was looking back up at him. "Daddy, you didn't stop and see us," Flynn said, giving him a smile. "Are you awful mad?"

"Yeah, I am," he said, lifting her up into his arms. Although she was light to him, having lifted more than her every day at the gym, she was getting gangly, and she wasn't the little girl she used to be. Still, she wrapped her legs around his torso and held onto him.

"You won your match though," she reminded him, "and it's okay about Faaaaaaaandaaaaaaangooooo. You're gonna beat him because you're the best in the world at what you do, Daddy. Remember?"

"Yeah, I remember," Chris nodded as he leaned his sweaty forehead against hers. "You're always there to remind me, how can I forget it?"

"I don't know," she smiled as he gave her a kiss. "He doesn't wrestle much, but you do, so that's what you'll win."

"I hope so, Flutterby," Chris told her, walking over to Stephanie, who sensed his mood was better, but she let him talk first. "Did you send her?"

"No," Stephanie said, "but how can you stay mad at these faces."

"I can't, it's a dirty trick," Chris said.

"Chris, you have so much more experience than him. So he throws a nice leg drop, you've got moves he's never seen, and Sunday, you're going to show him who can dance…wait, that doesn't sound right," Stephanie laughed, "you'll give him a new name, Loser? Does that work better for this dramatic moment?"

Chris laughed. He loved his family.

Britt saw Hunter as he walked past, and though he was with Shawn, she stopped him. "Hey, Hunter, I just wanted to wish you good luck on Sunday, you know, if I don't see you between now and then."

"Thanks," Hunter smiled at her as Shawn made a bored face, like he'd rather be anywhere else but right there, and he probably did want to be. He thought he'd be rid of her forever, but she just kept showing up.

"I know your career won't end," she told him. "You wouldn't let it end when it wasn't on your terms."

"Yeah," he nodded, "remember how we talked about that?"

She laughed, "What was it, green fire drops raining from the sky as you were escorted out on a caravan of women or something ridiculous like that?"

"On a throne with a crown," Hunter laughed. "Not like this."

"It won't be," she said, turning her attention back to the screen where her boyfriend was about to concoct his plan. She sighed, "My boyfriend is a little bit of a douchebag tonight."

"I'd figure he was every night," Shawn cut in, "seems about right for you."

"Oh Shawn, how I _haven't_ missed you," Britt told him in a cheerful tone. "Nice of you to finally show up to support your friend."

"Well, he did have this girlfriend—"

"Okay, both of you, stop it," Hunter cut in. "We don't need to rehash this. Britt, thanks for the luck, I'll need it, and I really hope I don't lose. Shawn, just shut up."

"I believe in you," Britt touched his arm genially. "Stephanie also told me about how she's going to set you up. I think that's great, and I hope you have a great time on that, and that's sincere, like, I really want you to be happy."

"Thanks, Britt, that means a lot."

"I better go make sure Phil doesn't get himself killed by Taker, bye, Hunter, Shawn," she said before she wandered off. That was one aspect of her relationship with Hunter she didn't miss at all. Shawn never liked her, and she'd tried with him. On the other side of things, Colt liked her, and she thought Colt was hilarious and dorky and such a nice guy. It seemed she was better off in a lot of ways.

Except when her boyfriend came backstage covered in sand. She walked over to him and started to dust him off, "We're going to be finding sand everywhere now, you know?"

"I know, but won't it be fun to find out where it stuck?" he asked her.

"You look like you fell in a sandcastle," she told him with a laugh, brushing off his shoulder. "You're cute, but my goodness, you like to get yourself into trouble."

"Just so you'll touch me," he winked at her and she rolled her eyes, but found herself giggling airily. "I got my message across, you still love me?"

"I still love you," Britt told him in a dopey voice, "but just barely."

"I'll take it. Sunday, it's over, Britt, it's totally over."

"20-1, I get it, honey."

WrestleMania week had officially begun.


	413. The Teaser, WrestleMania Week 2013

A/N: So I had a plan, I really did, my WrestleMania chapter surprise ending was going to be Trish being pregnant...and then Trish ended up being pregnant, so that was nixed. Then Dolph had to go and cash in and completely derail my entire night. I'm so happy for him though, perfect everything tonight on Raw.

Anyways, I was so distracted, I couldn't write, so think of this as a teaser, and you are going to get a monster, super awesome, super fluffy triple chapter next week. I didn't want to post nothing, so this is what I had before my night was completely shot. You can like it if you want, you don't have to if you don't, but I do hope you enjoy. Reviews would be awesome, even if it's just to fangirl over Dolph's win! :)

* * *

"You sure you don't want me to stay, babe?"

"It's okay, you don't have to," she told him, glancing over at the cameras that were already following her around. "You have an early day tomorrow, and you need to be in Jersey, and besides, it's not going to be fun for you."

"Why wouldn't it be?" he wondered.

"I'm just going to be wandering around places that mean next to nothing to you," she told him, trying to play it off lightly. "It's not a huge thing, I mean, I'm going to go to some old spots, then I'm going to take some pictures, and I'll be with you before you know it."

"I'd like to see where you came from," he told her, "I mean, I'd love to see all your old hangouts."

He smiled at her, hoping it would get her to change her mind, but she wasn't about to budge. She, if she was honest with herself, didn't want to take Dolph around to where she'd grown up. It wasn't the most ideal situation, and when asked about her past, AJ tended to gloss it over or make it more glamorous than it actually was. When she told him she was homeless, she would pretty it up by saying they stayed with family. She'd never actually told him some of the more dire circumstances she and her family were forced to live in.

She wasn't sure why she wouldn't tell him. Dolph had such a different upbringing than she did. His family had a nice home, he and his brothers all went to private school, all went to college, and they were successful, and sometimes, she just felt like her life was inadequate compared to that. It was nothing that Dolph did that made her feel that way, if anything, Dolph made her feel like a queen, it was simply a part of her insecurities.

"It's boring, I swear, and you have a big match on Sunday, and I wouldn't want to cut into your schedule," she told him. "You go on to New Jersey, and I'll be fine going tomorrow, I think we can spend the night apart, right?"

"I like cuddling with you," he pouted comically and she laughed. Some nights, he hated cuddling and wanted his side of the bed. She was okay with that because it meant she could curl up in the tiny ball she was used to sleeping in. Somehow though, during the night, one of them would inevitably invade the other's space.

"You'll have Nacho to keep you company," AJ reminded him. Dolph was going ahead with Nacho to the hotel because the thought of traveling to all those places tomorrow with a dog in tow was not her idea of a fun time.

"He's a bed hog," Dolph told her.

She laughed as she could feel the cameras taking pictures of the two of them. "I'm going to let you go, I don't want you driving too late, be safe, alright, and if you get tired, pull over or something, don't be a hero."

"I'll be fine," he told her, cupping her face in his hands. "You be careful tomorrow, okay, drive safely, and if it gets overwhelming driving in a bigger city, just ask one of the guys with you to drive, alright?"

Having only really driven for the past couple years, AJ usually didn't drive much, and if she did, she tried to avoid traffic-heavy areas. When she and Kaitlyn were friends, Kaitlyn would drive the two of them between shows then she traveled with Daniel, then she would bum rides from whoever she could, now it was Dolph who did the bulk of the driving. She nodded her agreement, "I will."

"Okay, I love you," he whispered so none of the people taking pictures would hear. "Do you want me to help you with your things?"

"No, they thought it'd be better if I did it myself, make me look tough or something," she shrugged. She opened up her arms and he stepped into her embrace, cradling her head in his hands and letting his fingers ripple through her hair. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yeah, of course, you see me every day of the week," he reminded her. He pulled away and leaned down to kiss her, glad when he didn't feel the flash of the camera. This was a private moment, or it was supposed to be, and he didn't need their private lives splashed all over the place. "I better get out of here before Nacho gets mad at me."

"He's pretty vicious when he wants to be," she nodded, wishing she could wrap herself up in Dolph's arms for a few more hours.

"You sure you don't want me to stay?" he tried one more time. "Our room is obviously still going to be there tomorrow."

"I'm sure, really, it'll be boring, and I'll have a break in the middle of the day where I'll meet you in our room, probably around three, okay?"

"I'll be in the room then," he gave her one last kiss and a wistful look before he left. AJ watched him go, sighing when he turned the corner and disappeared from sight. Her boyfriend and her dog were leaving her, and they were her family now, and she felt really lonely. She turned towards the cameras, already feeling like a nuisance and went back to her locker room to grab her things. She had four huge suitcases with her, two of them she would have normally kept in her hotel room, but she hadn't the time to go to the hotel before now.

Dolph would have normally gotten at least two of these, but without him there, she had to pull them herself with no assistance. It took her a little while, but she managed to get her things into the rental she'd had dropped off, and headed towards her hotel. She almost dreaded the next day because she was opening up a part of her that she rarely let show.

So many people saw the crazy girl, the girl that kissed a bunch of guys then clung to them harder than a barnacle on a ship. They didn't see her past, they didn't see where she came from, but now they were going to see, and she was going to let them judge her, and that was just such a scary prospect. She knew she should have told Dolph about all this, should have let him come with her, but she just couldn't. She was getting better, more comfortable with this real relationship thing, but she wasn't _that _comfortable. She wanted to keep a little bit from him, the darkest parts.

The next day dawned early, too early for her. She was exhausted from tossing and turning the night before. It was a mixture of things: Dolph not being there in bed with her, her thinking about WrestleMania, and this damn diary. It all weighed heavy on her mind and made it difficult to sleep. Before she drove anywhere, she walked to the nearest Starbucks, getting a cup of life-affirming coffee before meeting up with her film crew. They greeted her politely as they walked out to AJ's rental. This time one of the sound guys helped her with her things, and she checked her phone before she got in the driver's seat.

_Hey, it's me, wanted to wish you a good morning before I head to the gym so I can keep this body looking as hot as it always does. Missed you last night, Huevos missed you too, he told me to tell you that or he'd chew up my shoes. Drive safely, see you this afternoon, love you, babe._

She smiled to herself and was glad the cameras weren't taking any pictures. She climbed in the car, and started it up, apologizing if her driving was crappy because she hadn't been doing this very long. In fact, Dolph had taken her on some pseudo-driving lessons around Phoenix, letting her get used to city driving, but she always got nervous. He was as patient with her during driving as he was everywhere else.

"Do you and Dolph like the same music? Do you play music while you're driving?" Rich, the photographer asked from the passenger seat, probably because he was trying to pass the time.

"God no," AJ laughed, "We're total opposites. It's funny actually because he likes pop music, which is so girly, while I like stuff with a harder edge. He always lets me listen to what I want to in the car, he says that he's too focused on driving to care what I play, but I suspect he just lets me because he loves me. Sometimes we don't listen to music though, just depends on our mood, sometimes we just talk. We always seem to have the best debates in the car."

"Debates?"

"You know, politics, religion, why Andre the Giant is or isn't the best big man wrestler of all-time," AJ joked.

Her crew (as she was calling them) actually made the ride tolerable, asking her about where she was going to take them, learning about her. It was nice to know there were people out there who remembered she was just a person, not some kind of black widow of a woman.

As Union City drew nearer though, her stomach started to form knots that were getting tighter and tighter. She confessed that she was uncomfortable driving in the city, and so Rich took over the driving while she switched places with him, directing him on where to go. They arrived in the city and decided to walk around a little bit. AJ pointed out a few of the places her family stayed while they lived here, places where friends and family took them in, or where they were able to scrape by rent for a few months before being evicted.

They eventually ended up at her first wrestling school, which was no longer in existence, much to her surprise. The place was in disrepair, but it was the first place she felt really at home. It was nothing more than a small building, but it was where she learned the basics, where her career started, where all of this began. She wouldn't have been where she was today without the building behind her, without the people inside who took her in, made her one of their own, and made her believe that she could really be a wrestler.

It was really sad to see that the place was closed, that nobody else's dreams could possibly start there, but she was used to this kind of thing. This was what she grew up seeing, things changing around her, a world that sped by too fast while she and her family struggled to hang on. AJ sent her parents part of her paycheck every month, feeling like she was repaying them for all the things they did just to try and keep a roof over her head. It didn't always work, they lived out of their car for a while, but they did their best, and now that she was doing her best, she wanted to give that back to her family.

She tried to let it all go, tried to close that chapter, but the day was still difficult for her. After visiting the school, making a short video, and taking some pictures of her walking around, they headed over to the hotel so AJ could at least settle in. She knew the room number from a text Dolph sent her, and she lugged a couple of her bags (the essentials, she could get the rest later) upstairs. She knocked on the door and waited for a second. She could hear Dolph telling Nacho to behave himself before the door opened.

"Hey," Dolph said, leaning down to kiss her briefly before he grabbed her bags like the gentleman he was. "Glad to see you made it safely."

"I had my photographer drive once we got into the city, didn't like it," she admitted as she bent down to pick up her dog and give him a hug, holding him in one arm as she sat down on the couch and inspected her room. Dolph was pretty neat so it was still not cluttered. She toed off her sneakers and curled her legs underneath her as Dolph put her suitcases in their bedroom. He came back into the room and sat down next to her, letting her curl into his side.

"How was your morning?" he asked, his lips brushing her forehead in a kiss, but he kept his cheek against her head.

"Rough," she told him, "I went to my first wrestling school, which wasn't there anymore, and it was just sad, you know. I didn't know that they went out of business. Then I walked around a bit, showed some of the places I lived and everything, I mean, it was still pretty boring."

She closed her eyes as she felt his hand massage her scalp. "You sound tired."

"I didn't sleep much last night."

"Miss me that much?"

"You're too cocky, but a little, yeah," she said, "going back to those places today, I don't know, it kind of brought an old part of me back, a part that I thought died a long time ago, it was weird. It was like, so many things changed, I've changed, but I'm still sort of that girl."

"Of course you are, you carry parts of you with you," he shrugged, his hand moving to her neck and relieving it of the tension there. "Where are you going this afternoon?"

"Um, just a place where my family lived," she said, being deliberately vague, "then I think we're going to a park or something to take some introspective pictures so I look kind of sad or whatever. Oh, and they're going to be in here tomorrow morning, so you need to be _out_ of here by 9:00."

"Why do I have to be out of here?"

"Because they don't want you here because it'll look a little bit non-PG," AJ explained.

"You're serious?"

"That's what I was told," she shrugged. "So don't leave your underwear laying around either."

"Babe, you know I don't wear underwear," he joked, but kissed her temple, "I'm working out tomorrow morning, I'll just go super early, no big, you can pretend like you aren't sleeping with me."

"I don't think anyone will buy it," she said, cuddling up to him even more. "You're so comfortable."

"Yeah, all my girlfriends seem to think that," he told her and she slugged him in the stomach as he laughed. She settled in even deeper and he kept massaging her scalp until he felt her start to drift off. He didn't know how much sleep she got last night, but it must not have been that much because she hardly slept during the day, especially if she had her coffee.

He sat there with her for an hour, letting her sleep against him. Nacho bailed on her after about twenty minutes, but Dolph just picked up the remote and turned on the TV, finding something to watch while she slept. She looked like she'd need it, and with this being WrestleMania week, there was just no time to rest. Tonight they didn't really have anything to do, but they were going to a comedy club around 10 to see a friend of theirs. But tomorrow was going to be hectic, especially for AJ. She had her diary, and she had a signing, while he had the charity auction. He lamented the fact AJ couldn't come with him (he wanted to show her off), but her fans would be thrilled to see her.

When the show he was watching ended and he checked his clock, he shook AJ a little bit to get her up, "Babe, I think you're supposed to meet up with your crew in a little bit."

"Hmm?" she asked, sleepily looking up at him.

"You were going to visit your old house," he said, and she tensed. He thought she'd lived in a house. "You don't want to be late, I'm sure you're on a schedule."

"Oh, oh yeah," she said, "I better change really quick."

"Okay, but um, do you want me to come with you?" he asked. She looked over at him, ready to immediately say no, but he was looking at her with such an open gaze that she felt herself falter just a little bit. "I mean, I really wanted to see these places, where you came from. I know your family doesn't live here anymore, but I still would like to see where you came from."

"But it's boring."

"Not to me it isn't," he told her. "Please? I showed you all around my hometown."

She wanted to say no, but he was just trying to know her better, and while she was still uneasy about opening herself up to him so much, she didn't want to shut him out either, "Okay, but…yeah, okay."

"Great," he grinned, "I'll throw on some warmer clothes, and we can head downstairs."

She tried to give him her best smile, but he was already brushing past her to grab one of his coveted hoodies. She walked to her suitcase, hefting it up and placing it on the suitcase rack. She changed her outfit as Dolph grabbed Nacho and pretended to give him a headlock, which was kind of like a bodylock on a dog so small. One thing she loved about him was that he didn't even care if her dog's hair got all over his clothes, which he loved in the first place, but he just loved her dog as much as he loved her.

"Huevos doesn't want to feel left out and if we're going to a park, he's going to be jealous and hate us if we don't take him," Dolph said, pretending to cover Nacho's ears, "I don't want to ruin the weekend with a cranky dog."

"Okay," she laughed, feeling slightly more at ease, but not by much. Dolph had no idea what she was taking him too, and the nervous feelings were pitting in her stomach. She didn't want to ruin what they had, and for some reason, showing him this felt like she could ruin everything.

Dolph waited for her to get ready before they headed back downstairs, meeting up with her crew. After some pleasantries and hearing the itinerary for the rest of the afternoon, they headed off with Dolph driving and AJ giving him directions as she pet Nacho reflexively in her lap. She kept staring at Dolph, wondering what he was thinking as they delved further and further into the city. He came from an affluent suburb, and this had to maybe, sort of, kind of be a jolt to his system.

"Um, pull up here," AJ said quietly as she pointed to a motel.

"There?" Dolph asked, looking at her briefly as she nodded. He pulled into the nearly deserted parking lot and parked the car. "Are we walking from here?"

"No, we're, uh, we're kind of…here," she told him, turning away as she quickly got out of the car, making sure the window was down for Nacho as she got out, not looking behind her. The crew, and she guessed Dolph, got out of the car as well, and she looked up at the old place. The name had changed, but this was it. The crew started to set up and she looked around. It was as dumpy as it was back then.

"Did you want to tell us a bit about this place?" James asked.

"So…this is it," AJ said, staring straight at the crew because she didn't even want to look over at Dolph. She could feel his presence off to the side, but she didn't dare look at him, "we…we um, lived here for a few years when we didn't really have anywhere else to go. It was cheap and it let us save money for other things, food, and just, you know, everything. We kind of…didn't have anywhere else to go."

"Seems a little scary, were you scared or anything?" James asked.

"All the time," AJ said, looking down, "this is a really bad area, and uh, there were a lot of break-ins, and thankfully we had a pitbull, which usually scared people off when they saw us with him, and yeah, we all stayed in one room, my parents, my brother, my sister and I. My parents let the kids have the bed while they slept on an air mattress, and I shared a bed with my older sister, and just…yeah, I mean, it was rough, but it was better than living out of our car, which…we also did…and…um…it's just, being back here, I didn't think…"

AJ looked down because she could feel the tears that sprouted the second Dolph parked the car start to actually fall, one, then two until her eyes were flooding faster than she could even try to hold them in. She wrapped her arms around her midsection, but it was only for a moment before another, stronger pair of arms wrapped around her tightly.

"You guys, can you give us like a minute? Seriously, just a few minutes over here," she could hear Dolph saying and she heard mutters of agreement and the sound of footfalls as the crew walked away, theoretically meaning they left them alone. Dolph's arms wrapped tighter around her and she stood there, like an idiot, crying into his hoodie. "I'm right here, Jeannie, I'm right here."

"I just didn't expect to feel like this anymore." She thought the past was in the past, and she was in a better place, but this is why she didn't let people in, this is why she kept things at bay, why she let people think she was crazy. She didn't want to let them completely inside.

"It's not something a lot of people would be brave enough to relive," he told her, and for some reason, that made her cry harder, but not for the wrong reasons. Dolph had this uncanny knack of knowing what to say to her. He never just said it would be okay, he gave her reasons why it would be okay.

"I didn't want to show you, I didn't want you here," she told him, finally pulling away so she could look up at him in shame. He simply reached out and brushed her cheeks free from tears. "I was so ashamed. I mean, how do you tell your boyfriend that you lived in your car or a motel in with one room and all those people?"

"You just tell me, what were you so worried about?" he asked her.

"I don't know, that you'd see this and you would really think I was trash or something, like I was some…I don't even know, that you'd somehow think less of me, and I couldn't stand you looking at me like that."

"Wow," Dolph said. "Wow…"

"What?" she asked.

"You really think I'm that shallow?" he asked her.

"No, I just, I got insecure," she told him, "it was nothing you did."

Dolph leaned down so he was eye-to-eye with her. "I love you, I don't care where you came from, I care about you, I _love_ you, and this, this is just part of your past, and it doesn't change anything about you. In fact, it makes you kind of kick-ass to see how far you've come. You're amazing, babe, never doubt that."

"I love you too," she told him, sniffling. "I'm glad you came."

"Me too, I feel like I know more about you, and I love it," he hugged her and she banded her arms around his waist. "You good to go now?"

She nodded happily, glad he was here, glad he knew about this part of her, glad that her boyfriend was pretty much perfect and loved her no matter what. "Yeah, I'm good."

Chris sat down and let Kensington sit down next to him with Sawyer on the other side of her. "Okay, kid, you've got your hot dog, Kensy-bug, you have your chicken fingers, do you want me to help you with those?"

"No," Kensington told him.

"Okay, fine then," Chris told her, "okay, and you guys share the fries, and then you've got your soda, kid, and I've got your juice, Kensy-bug when you're thirsty."

"Tanks, Daddy," she said as she took one of her chicken fingers and took a big bite out of it. Chris did not trust her with the food in her lap so as she was eating, he gently took it away from her. She didn't really notice and this way he could regulate how fast this girl at.

"Dad, did Gamps really play here?" Sawyer asked, looking around.

"Yeah, he did," Chris smiled wistfully, "you know, I would come here when I was a kid, and I would sit right about here and watch him play. Gamma and I used to cheer him on like crazy, and if he got a goal, I would yell and scream."

"Just like we do when you win matches."

"Exactly like that, exactly like you're going to do when I beat Fandango on Sunday, right?" Chris asked them. Kensington nodded eagerly, trying to grab at some of her food and Chris held the basket towards her so he could grab a few fries with her chubby hands. "Chew your food, Kensy-bug."

"Duh, Dad," Sawyer rolled his eyes, "we're not going to root for Fandango, he's weird, who dances to the ring like that? Plus, he doesn't even wrestle because he's probably scared of you."

"I like the way you think, kid," Chris laughed.

"And if you don't win, I think Flynnie is going to beat him up herself."

"Well, you'll have to hold her back, won't you?" Chris told him.

"Yeah, I can try, but she can kick really hard."

"She's been like that even before she was born," Chris joked with him. "Okay, the game is starting soon, so we better pay attention."

"Dad, if I wanted to be a hockey player _and_ a wrestler, do you think I could be?"

"The sky's the limit, kid."

Flynn grabbed onto her mother's hand as she skipped down the hallway of the building they were in. Her daddy asked her earlier if she wanted to go to a hockey game, but then her mommy said she was going to check out some of the exhibits and things for wrestling, and that was immediately where she wanted to go. She would choose wrestling over everything in the entire world.

"Not everything is set up yet, Flynnie, so we have to be careful, no touching anything unless I tell you that you can, and no running away from me, and do not lose sight of me, and do not talk to any strangers."

"I _know_, Mommy," Flynn said with exasperation. "I know what goes on."

"I'm just warning you now, you will get a massive time-out if any of these rules are broken," Stephanie told her daughter. Being surrounded by wrestling stuff, Flynn was bound to want to break away and that's where she got into trouble.

"How big?" Flynn asked.

"You will not be able to sit in the crowd at WrestleMania, I'll make you sit backstage with me while Sawyer and Kensy get to sit out there."

"I won't do anything bad!" Flynn promised, her eyes widening at the prospect of being so left out of everything. "I promise, Mommy!"

"Thank you," Stephanie said, giving her a wink to let her know that things weren't that bad. They walked inside, and the space was large, and a lot of the exhibits were already up. They walked around, looking at everything as Flynn tried to take it all in. She loved everything, and she kept pulling her mother in every direction, making Stephanie explain everything to her that she could. She absorbed the information like a sponge, fascinated by everything.

"Hey, there's two good-looking girls."

Stephanie and Flynn both peered over, very much looking like mother and daughter. Sometimes the resemblance was uncanny, even though their eyes were slightly different, and Flynn's hair was lighter than Stephanie's. "Hi, Trips!" Flynn said jovially.

"Hey, you guys, I thought the rest of you would be here," Hunter said.

"No, Chris got tickets to a Rangers game, and he took Sawyer and Kensy, Flynn wanted to stay with me."

"I wanna see the wrestling stuff."

"Of course you do," Hunter laughed, "I wouldn't expect anything less. Have you seen the Andre statue yet, it's amazing."

"I haven't, come on, Flynnie, let's go look at that."

"That interviewer is over there too, you know, the one who just wanted to get a general idea of everything," Hunter said, "so you should get your business face on."

"Mommy, carry me, please," Flynn whined.

"Here, I got you," Hunter carried her easily. "I think you're a lot easier for me to carry than your mom, don't you think?"

"I don't know, she's pretty strong, she boxes," Flynn whispered to Hunter.

"So I heard, could she kick my butt?"

"Yup," Flynn nodded as they headed over to the exhibit. Flynn took one look at the statue and exclaimed, "Mommy, I know him, I know him, that's Andre the Giant!"

"Wow, how did you know that on sight?" Flynn asked her daughter. While Flynn had been watching Chris's matches since infancy, she hadn't delved too far into the actual history of the business. Occasionally she would see a match, but if it didn't revolve around Chris, she was a little reluctant to watch it.

"Because when I was with Grandpa, Sawa asked if he had wrestling stuff at his house, and Grandpa showed us all his stuff, and he had a picture of him, and he is Andre the Giant, Mommy, and he was big, bigger than even Mr. Big Show, and he was a wrestler, and he was really big, and I know, Mommy because Grandpa told me."

"Well, I've underestimated you," Stephanie laughed. "Oh my God, what is this?"

Stephanie walked over and saw a picture of herself with Andre. "I didn't even know my mom gave this one over, oh my God. Look at me!"

"Mommy, you're so little," Flynn said as she made a grab for the frame Stephanie picked up. "Trips, look at how little my mommy is."

"Wow, she's young, probably a little older than you."

"I think I was around Sawyer's age, actually," Stephanie said, "Andre was the most lovable guy there was, he was just the sweetest man, never made you scared even though he was so big."

"Did you know Mommy then, Trips?" Flynn asked.

Hunter laughed, "No, not at all."

"Oh, did my Daddy?"

"I don't think Daddy did either," Stephanie told her, "Daddy would have been…wow, Daddy would have been around 14, I don't think he would have wanted anything to do with an 8 year old."

"Oh, well, Daddy loves you now so that's good," Flynn chirped happily. "I like that picture, Mommy, you look very nice."

"Suck up," Stephanie kissed her cheek. "Someday, when you're a big wrestler and you hold all the belts, we'll have pictures of you with all the old wrestlers, and you can tell your kids all about how everyone was your friend."

"Like Punk because he's my best friend," Flynn grinned. "He's going to win on Sunday and beat Mr. Taker, did you know that, Trips?"

"I heard that's what he wanted to do."

"Don't worry, I still think you're going to win too and beat that guy because he's really mean, Trips, and he doesn't like Mommy, and I want to kick him, but Mommy said I shouldn't kick people."

"Not even bad people," Stephanie said as she continued to look at the picture. "God, I can't believe how small I was. I mean, I look even younger next to Andre, but…I was my son's age in this picture, my son is turning seven and just…where does the time go?"

"Who the hell knows, think about it, 13 years ago, you were in my corner at WrestleMania."

"And two years later, I was in Chris's," Stephanie laughed. "God, how times change. Take a picture of me with this?"

"Of course," Hunter said, taking a picture of Stephanie standing front of the statue while holding onto the picture. It was a little tricky with Flynn still in his arms, but he managed. As soon as they finished that, the interviewer came over to them and introduced himself as Jon.

"Is this your daughter?" Jon asked.

"No!" Flynn said, her eyes starting to water immediately, "He's not my daddy, stop saying that!"

Then she burst into tears. Flynn was already on edge about that issue as it was. She was very sensitive about other men being called her father, and she'd already been at the end of her rope when it came to Heyman. She wasn't anyone else's daughter, and the thought of her daddy not being her daddy terrified her. Their fearless girl was fearless because she was part Chris, and if Chris was gone, therein lied all the fear.

"Flynnie, it's okay," Hunter told her.

"My daddy is my daddy," Flynn sobbed.

"Here, come here, baby girl," Stephanie took Flynn from Hunter's arms and cradled her in her arms. Flynn was getting lanky, but she clung to Stephanie like a baby and Stephanie had to excuse herself from the two of them to get a second alone with her. It was times like this that reminded Stephanie that Flynn was still four years old, and she had a lot of emotions. Stephanie found a bench and she sat down on it, letting Flynn curl up against her and cry it out.

"Mommy, he's not my daddy, why do they keep saying that," Flynn's face was red and tear-stained. Stephanie just brushed her loose hair behind her ears. "Daddy's my daddy, why do they do that, Mommy? Why are they saying that Daddy's not my daddy!"

"Shh," Stephanie kissed her forehead, "baby girl, shh, you know Daddy's your daddy, okay, the man just made a mistake because you were in Hunter's arms, and he didn't know. He just thought Hunter was your daddy, but now he knows that he's not your daddy."

"I don't want Trips to be my daddy, I want Daddy!" Flynn just kept on crying.

"Okay, okay, baby girl, it'll be okay," Stephanie cupped Flynn's cheeks, "I'm going to call Daddy right now and you can talk to him for a minute, alright? Then we're going to clean ourselves up like the ladies we are then we'll go look at everything else, alright?"

"Mommy, don't make other Daddies," Flynn hung her head down.

"I don't even know what that means, Flynnie," Stephanie said as she pulled out her phone, calling her husband, and just hoping he had his phone on vibrate because she figured he would not be able to hear it over the sounds of the game.

"What do you need, baby?" Chris asked as soon as the call was picked up. "I'm at the game, so any work stuff, it's going to have to wait."

"No, Flynn just kind of had a breakdown and she needs to talk to you."

"Flynn…our Flynn? Flynn Jericho? That Flynn?"

"Yeah, that Flynn—"

"A breakdown, but our Flynn doesn't break down, what happened? Is she okay? Is she hurt or something?" Stephanie could tell Chris's voice was getting a little frantic now. He was probably sitting up straighter in his seat.

"She's fine, it's just, Hunter was holding her and someone came up and asked if she was his daughter, and she freaked out. You know how she's been with the Heyman thing, and this just really hurt her feelings. I think she needs to talk to you."

"Of course, put her on," Chris said, then Stephanie heard, "Kensington, sit down, you are not allowed to go bang on the glass."

"Daddy, I wanna!"

"Not happening, Sawyer, can you watch her for a second?"

"Sure, Dad."

"Sounds like you have your hands full," Stephanie laughed.

"I think our youngest daughter is going to turn out like our oldest daughter," Chris joked, "speaking of which, put her on."

"Okay," Stephanie said, turning to Flynn. "Flynnie, Daddy wants to talk to you, here you go."

Flynn took the phone and held it up to her ear, "Daddy, they keep saying that you're not my daddy!"

"I heard," Chris said, "but you know the truth, Flutterby, you know I'm your daddy."

"But why won't they stop saying it! Daddy, they won't stop, and I tell them, and…" She dissolved into tears again because it was just too much for her to handle. It confused her, all these people trying to say her daddy wasn't hers. She didn't understand why they would do that, and it was taking a toll on her. Sawyer knew it was fake, he had the wherewithal to understand that, and Kensington was too young to care, but Flynn was at that age where everything was too much or too big or too dramatic.

"Flutterby, it's just pretend, Mommy and I have told you that."

"But I…I don't like it," she sobbed sadly. "Make them stop, Daddy."

"Okay, we'll try to make them stop, but you gotta stop crying, alright? I don't like to hear you so sad. When Sawyer, Kensy, and I get back from hockey, I'm going to give you the biggest hug in the world, alright?" Chris told her.

"Yeah, Daddy," Flynn sniffled, trying her best to stop crying. "You promise to tell them to stop?"

"I promise to try, okay?" Chris told her.

"I love you, Daddy."

"I love you too, more than anything and anyone in the world except for Mommy, Sawyer, and Kensy."

"Okay," Flynn said, "bye, Daddy.""

"Bye, Flutterby, I love you."

Flynn handed the phone back to Stephanie, who quickly said goodbye to Chris. Stephanie put the phone back in her pocket and leaned down to look into her daughter's red-rimmed eyes. She brushed her tears away, grabbing a tissue from her purse and inciting her daughter to blow her now. Stephanie hugged Flynn to her and kissed the top of her head.

"Are you better now?" Stephanie asked her gently.

"A little," Flynn admitted, and Stephanie smiled against her daughter's head. She knew this was difficult for her, but it was still kind of cute. All her daughter was doing was fiercely loving her daddy.

"Do you think you want to go back out there or are you so embarrassed that you have to hide for the rest of the week?"

"Mommy, I'm not gonna hide!" Flynn told her with a little laugh. Stephanie pulled away and made a funny face at Flynn, which, to this day, was the one thing that could pull her out of her mood. Flynn giggled and threw her head back. "Mommy, you're being silly."

"I know," Stephanie stuck her tongue out, which only made Flynn laugh harder. "Okay, you, let's go get you freshened up a bit and we'll go back out there, alright?"

"Okay," Flynn sniffled, "but Mommy?"

"Yeah, baby girl?"

"Daddy's going to be my daddy forever, right?"

"Of course he's going to be your daddy forever," Stephanie said, "nobody can take that away from you, alright? Nobody is going to take Daddy away, I mean, come on, he's stuck around with me for almost eleven years, and we both know I'm crazy."

"Mommy," Flynn hugged her as Stephanie stood up and headed towards a bathroom to clean her daughter up. She was just glad the little girl was feeling better.

Maybe she'd have to have a talk with Heyman.

**Thursday**

"Don't make me get up."

"You have to," Britt said, kissing Punk's neck. "Come on, you're supposed to be there, I'm dressed and showered—"

"Because you get up early and you have a lot to do this week," he said, pulling her into the bed, making her squeal and rumple her blouse. "You need a few days to relax."

"I'll relax next week when I'm not so hectic, you have a press conference, Phil, and you can't just show up in boxers," Britt told him, lifting the blanket for emphasis.

"I wear less to the ring," he reminded her.

"Different situations," she told him, pulling herself out of his grip. He made a half-hearted attempt to grab her, but he couldn't reach her as she slipped out of bed. He turned over on his back, flinging the blanket away from him. Then he rolled over until he crashed to the floor, getting himself up on one knee and standing up. "I don't even know how you manage to make getting out of bed look like a wrestling move."

"Skill," he told her, grinning, but not facing her, "give me five minutes."

"You've got five and then we are out of here, no exceptions, I'll drag your butt out of here even if it's bare as the day you were born," she told him, walking into the other room of their suite. She snatched up her binder for the week's events and sat down on the couch to start thumbing through it, checking her watch occasionally.

"I think I have a minute to spare," Punk said as he walked into the living area of the suite.

Britt looked up and she laughed, "That's what you're wearing?"

"Yeah, I don't see the reason to dress up, I'm not focused on impressing people."

"Of course you're not," Britt said, grabbing her purse. She walked to the door, but Punk grabbed her binder, holding it up for her to see that he was going to carry it. She smiled and waited up for him. He jumped a little to the door, kissing her on the cheek as he passed. "I shouldn't even let you go like that, you know that, right?"

"But you're still going to let me," Punk told her, grabbing her hand and holding it firmly in his. "Because you love me, I'm using that as the go to excuse from now on so get used to it."

"I intend to."

When they got there, everyone else in the press conference was predictably dressed up, even Cena had dressed for the occasion. She looked at her boyfriend again, but he was standing there, not giving a care in the world. "Hey," she pulled him down so she could kiss his cheek. She was an inch shorter than AJ even so getting him down there was a bit of work. "I'm going to actually work, but behave, don't be an idiot, alright?"

"I love that you warn me about that kind of thing, but you never really can tell me what to do."

"I know, I'm just saying," Britt said, "and be nice to Hunter if you see him, I don't know how you'll act around him when I'm not there, but—"

"It's not a competition anymore," Punk said, "not that it ever was, I was just your friend…who you thought was hot…who you decided to kiss…and who rocks your world every night."

"Every night? Really? Every night?" Britt asked, patting him on the cheek. "Honey, just keep dreaming that's true, pipe bomb."

"You can't do that!" he told her as she walked away laughing. He laughed at her though because she was a tiny package of sarcasm and wit. He turned back and could see Hunter eyeing him so he turned slightly away, feeling more uncomfortable now.

Stephanie glanced over to see what Hunter was looking at. She sighed and pressed her hand to his cheek, pulling his gaze back to her, "Don't look at that, don't even get into that mind-set. Hunter, for the first time in your life, Shawn and I are on the same page. We both know you need to move on. That's why you have a date for the Hall of Fame."

"Don't remind me."

"Hunter, it's easy, it's not even a hard date. You meet up, you tell her she looks beautiful because I picked one of my gorgeous friends, you sit next to each other for a couple hours, then you go out to eat with me and Chris, no pressure, no nothing."

"What about Sawyer and Flynnie?"

"They'll head back to the hotel, probably with Lita."

"Oh, well, when you put it like that—"

"Hey, Steph, you need me to do anything?" Britt walked over. She looked up and smiled at Hunter. "Looking sharp today, Hunter, you look good, I think the gym has been suiting you, the website is not shy about showing you off."

He smiled, wishing that her compliment was more than friendly, but he had to move on, like she was, like she _had_, "Thanks, I just want to make sure I can kick Brock's ass on Sunday."

"You will, no doubt, I believe in you," Britt told him before turning back to Stephanie, who gave her some instructions. The casual way she turned away to speak to Stephanie and end her conversation reinforced that he needed to change. The date was going to be good for him on Saturday, and he was going to look forward to it.

Christian embraced his wife, "Hey, I missed you."

"I missed you too," she gazed secretly up at him as they both grinned. They couldn't say anything though because Lita was right behind Trish, holding Tilden in her arms. "Tilden missed you too, didn't you, Tilde?"

"Daddy, I go ups, please," Tilden asked, holding her arms out to her daddy. Christian took her and kissed her cheek. "Thanks."

"You're welcome," Christian said, glancing over at Trish again. She just giggled and turned towards Lita. "So when are Stephanie and Chris getting here?"

"Should be here in a little while," Lita said. "I know they had to get the kids with his parents, so they'll probably be a little while. "How was your signing session?"

"Fine," Christian said, "but everyone kept asking me when I was coming back, and I should be making an impact, you know, but I don't know where to insert myself, that's the problem, plus, you know, there's life and stuff like that."

Trish gave him a pointed look, but then dismissed it as she patted his cheek (a move Tilden emulated a moment later), "You'll find your place, and hey, maybe I have some clout around there now, you know, what with being a Hall of Famer, surely that means I can help my husband who still wrestles."

"You're not going out there," he told her, shaking her head, reminded of a time when his wife did go out there while pregnant, and he wasn't going to relive that one again. Not this time, this time was going to be a completely easy pregnancy.

Pregnancy. He still couldn't believe that word. They'd been thinking about it for months before it actually happened, but because of the long time it took for them to conceive Tilden, they decided to keep it to themselves. After the troubles in their marriage, and them overcoming them as a stronger couple, a baby just seemed right. The quickness with which it took them to get pregnant this time surprised the both of them, but being cautious, they didn't want the world knowing just yet.

"Okay, fine," Trish said, "is that what you're wearing tonight?"

"Yes," he looked down at his suit, "I'm not going to change suits, that's too much work, when is your mom getting here anyways?"

"Chrissy, she's in the next room over, she's here already, we just have to bring Tilde to her."

"I no go, Momma," Tilden shook her head, "Stay with Daddy, please."

"You can't, sweetheart, I'm sorry," Trish kissed her cheek. "But you and grandma will have fun, I promise you that, okay."

"Fine," Tilden said. She was an easygoing child, usually going along with whatever was going on. Trish could only hope her next one was the same way, but she knew from Sawyer and Flynn that personalities were definitely on an individual basis. There was a knock at the door and Lita went over to answer it.

"Holy smoking hots, Steph," Lita told her

Stephanie rolled her eyes, "Come on, Li, I do not look that good."

"She does, right?" Chris said from behind her, wearing a purple shirt and vest combination. "I tried telling her, her rack looked magnificent, but she seemed to think that was rude."

"Your boobs look great, Steph," Lita winked at her and Stephanie covered up her chest for a second, "you look beautiful as always, Li. I can't believe Edge isn't going to be here at all this week though."

"I know, he wishes he could be, but he had the prior engagement that he couldn't get out of. He sent a basket though. Said that Trish couldn't open it until Saturday, but I told her she can just open it now."

"I shouldn't!" Trish said as they walked further into the room.

"Damn, Stephanie," Christian said, "are you sure you didn't feel anything that one time we kissed because if that's how you would dress around me, I think I need to rethink my decisions."

"Hey!" Trish said, slapping him in the stomach, "Your wife and the mother of your…child is here."

"And that's my wife," Chris said, "but yeah, fantastic rack." Chris made a gesture towards his wife's chest."

"Okay, that's it, I'm never wearing this dress again," Stephanie said jokingly. "So we're all looking good, Tilde, are you coming tonight too?"

"No," Tilden giggled, "I stay wif Grammy."

"Oh, well, I bet you're going to have a lot of fun," Stephanie told her and Tilden nodded. "So, are you going to open this gift basket from Edge or what?"

"He said I should wait," Trish said, "and he's my brother-in-law, which means he's practically my brother, since I only have sisters, and so I think I should wait."

"Just open it," Lita said, "he doesn't care."

"Fine," Trish said, giving in before she knew she would get ganged up on. She walked over to the wrapped gift basket and tore off the paper. She looked down and saw a ton of assorted soaps and lotions, but among them were baby books and other baby toys. Trish turned on her heel and glared at her husband. "Okay, so when did you spill the beans, Chrissy?"

"What?"

Trish plucked one of the baby books out and showed it to her husband, "Explain this."

"He's my brother," Christian shrugged, "I was happy, damn him, I guess that's why he said not to open it until Saturday because we were planning on telling everyone."

"Guys, I'm pregnant," Trish said, turning to her friends, "I'm about 16 weeks along and I'm due in September!"

"We kind of knew," Stephanie said, "but we're so happy for you!"

"Wait, what you knew!" Trish said, glaring at her husband again. "How!"

"Well, you've kind of been obvious," Chris shrugged, "I mean, even I could tell and I'm kind of clueless, plus, Stephanie told me."

"Lita told me," Stephanie pointed at her friend.

"Edge told me, he couldn't keep it in, he's so excited to be an uncle again," Lita said, "but can we freak out with you now?"

Trish laughed, "Yes, freak out with me!"

Stephanie and Lita squealed and rushed over to hug their friend. Trish was just starting to show, finding out how it was with a second child. Stephanie and Lita both wrapped their arms around the smaller woman as she tried to hug them both at the same time. They started giggling together as Chris and Christian looked on, a little wary of their wives and Edge's girlfriend acting like schoolgirls.

"Why didn't you tell me you knew?" Trish asked them as they pulled away.

"We didn't want to rob you of your moment," Stephanie said.

"Well, you could have told me, we still could have had it," Trish said, trying not to cry. "Christian and I are so happy, aren't we, Chrissy?"

"Of course, and I promise everyone, I won't get as crazy over this one as I did over _this one_," he said, pointing at Tilden, who was still nestled in her daddy's arms. "I'm an old pro at this now."

"Yeah right," Chris said, "just you wait, man, having two, it's going to be different, and if it's a girl, heaven help you because if you think one girl is a lot, try having two."

"I don't even care, man, I'm too happy to care," Christian looked at Trish, smiling softly. It wasn't their secret anymore, but that made it better. Now they could revel in this and share it with the people they loved the most.

Soon, it would be time to share it with the world.


	414. The Rest, WrestleMania, April 7, 2013

****A/N: Ugh, I'm still behind and I hate it. Unfortunately, real world stuff keeps getting in the way. This is the second part of the WrestleMania chapter, and it's really long, and I felt like I should stop before it got out of hand. I'm really going to try to update again tomorrow night to catch up, so thanks for bearing with me. Hope you enjoy. :)

* * *

**Friday**

AJ blearily opened her eyes and groaned. Dolph was on his side of the bed, which was good because she was about to slide out of bed, and she didn't want to shove him away, which was what she usually did when she had to wake up early. That always led to him waking up, they would argue somehow about waking up in general, then they would either go back to sleep or get up, and she didn't need that right now because technically it wasn't even morning, it was the middle of the night.

She slid out of bed, literally, just letting her body slip out from under the covers until she was sprawled out on the floor. "Why me?" she moaned to nobody in particular, but Nacho, hearing her up, woke up himself and walked over, licking her face. "Nacho, I don't want kisses."

She finally pulled herself off the floor and stood up, looking jealously at her boyfriend who was still sleeping. He had to get up at five, and she actually envied him. She thought, for just a second, about waking him up so he'd have to suffer with her, but he had a match on Sunday and could probably use all the sleep he could get. It didn't stop her from glaring at his bare back and wanting to rip some of his blonde hair out.

Instead, she padded her way into the bathroom, closing the door and turning on the shower. She might as well get that out of the way now. She had radio row to deal with today, which would take a while, and with Dolph on another shift, it meant she wouldn't get to see him until this afternoon. The one bad thing about this week was she hardly got to see her boyfriend. Their off days were usually spent in either Phoenix or Tampa, but they were spent together. This week, although they were together, they both had different schedules so time together was at a premium.

She showered and dried her hair, checking periodically to make sure Dolph was still asleep and she wasn't disturbing him (she was being a considerate girlfriend this morning). She let it hang loose about her shoulders, and did her makeup, minimal, not much, just enough to make sure she didn't look like death. Then she walked out of the room, grabbing Nacho and his leash, and taking him downstairs to the coffee shop in the hotel that was thankfully open 24 hours a day. She got a coffee to go and took Nacho on a short walk around the hotel grounds (they were on complete lockdown so there was security 24/7), sipping her coffee and letting it take the chill out of her.

The night was quiet, and the sky still dark, but somehow, it was actually comforting being in the little courtyard behind the hotel. With all the signings and appearances, it was hard to think. She sat down on a bench, letting Nacho get as far as his harness would let him, and letting him wander around the little grassy knoll. She took a deep breath of the cool air and just reflected on being back here. After she let it all out on Tuesday, she'd spent most of the evening talking with her boyfriend about her past.

It was cathartic, getting it all out there, crying into his arms when the memories got tough, and through it all, he sat there, listened, didn't try to tell her that everything was okay, but just listened and let her let it all out, and by the end of it, she felt better, and relieved, and like he finally knew a part of her that she'd been hiding this entire time. Dolph just had a way of putting her at ease that no man had before. Maybe it was because no man ever really tried. She took another sip of her coffee before her thoughts wandered to WrestleMania that Sunday.

She wanted her boyfriend and one of her best friends to win the Tag Titles. She was going to try everything in her power to assure that happened, and she was willing to do whatever it took. Daniel and Kane were a formidable team, they'd had a long time to work together. But E was good, and nobody knew that. She did, and that could be the deciding factor. She just didn't want a repeat of last year. She could remember the horror of Daniel's loss, the way her stomach dropped as she saw everything he cherished go down the grain in 18 seconds.

Daniel had never been good to her, never been good _for_ her, but she'd still been devastated for him. Then he broke her. Her biggest fear right now was a repeat situation. What if she was somehow cursed, and she ended up costing Dolph his match? Would he turn on her like all the other men in her life? She didn't think he would, but she didn't think Daniel would when she first started dating him. She needed to get out of her own head sometimes.

She stood up and she and Nacho wandered back upstairs. The first strains of light were just starting to lighten the sky when she got back to her room and she knew she should probably wake up Dolph so he could get ready for his shift before she left for hers. She set her half-empty coffee cup down, took Nacho's harness off, and walked into the bedroom. Dolph was still face down in his pillow, lying on his stomach, his bare back tantalizing. She walked over and shook his shoulder a little. He let out a grunt, but that was it.

She shook him again, but he didn't even move this time. She knew she'd have to bring out the big guns. She climbed on the bed and laid herself right on top of his back, hugging herself around his waist. "What the hell, babe? Are you trying to mount me?" he grumbled as he turned his head to look at her out of the corner of his eye.

She kissed his shoulder-blade. "It's almost five, you have to get up because we have radio row."

He groaned, "Babe, I have second shift, I don't have to be up until ten."

"You don't?" she asked, lifting her head from his back.

"No, I don't," he told her, "any other morning, I wouldn't mind being woken up by you naked on top of me like this, though, just for future reference."

"I swear, if you could, you'd want us to be nudists," she nuzzled her face into his back. "I better head out though, I have interviews to do."

"Are you going to talk about me?"

"I'm pretty sure you'll come up in conversation at some point," AJ told him, "that's just a hunch though."

"Only say good things, no trashing me."

"Oh, I was going to say you were the worst boyfriend in the world. I guess I'll have to scrap that," she leaned up and straddled his back for a second, massaging his shoulders. "Go back to sleep."

"I plan to, where's Huevos?"

"He's sleeping probably, or wandering around, looking for something to chew on," AJ said, "I took him out, he should be good to go."

"Okay, I'll play with the guy before I leave."

"This is why he likes you better," she told him, "you spoil him, you're the fun parent while I have to be the one who punishes him when he does something bad."

"Well, I have to make sure I win him over," Dolph yawned.

"I'll let you get some more sleep," AJ kissed the back of his neck and down his spine a little bit. "I guess I'll see you later when we go to the reading challenge?"

"Yeah, you will, if not before then," Dolph said, "I might have to come find you."

"Okay, I guess I'll be around." She stood up, but his hand shot out and caught her wrist. "What is it?"

Dolph started making kissy noises, turning his head towards her. She giggled and leaned down to kiss him goodbye. He tried to deepen the kiss, but she had to go so she pulled away with one last peck. Today was just going to be a long day, and it was starting now.

Flynn ran into the bedroom, "Mommy, I want to go now!"

"Flynnie, it's not time yet," Stephanie told her. She was sitting on the bed combing Kensington's hair and pulling it into a short ponytail. "You have to be patient, alright?"

"But Daddy already left!" Flynn came over and tickled Kensington's bare feet, making her giggle and pull her feet away. Flynn laughed and tried to do it again, but Kensington moved her feet away. "We have to go see Daddy!"

"We will, baby girl, but Daddy has a signing, alright," Stephanie explained to her, "and Mommy has to go to the stadium to check on the progress, alright, then we can go see what Daddy is up to, alright?"

"But Mommy, that's not fun!" Flynn whined. "I wanna go see all the things we didn't get to see before and Daddy too!"

"We will," Stephanie told her, "did you finish your breakfast because last I checked, you still had some orange slices on your plate."

"I ate them, promise," Flynn said, coming over and laying her head on her mother's leg, "are you _sure_ we can't go see Daddy right now?"

"I'm positive," Stephanie leaned down and kissed her daughter's nose. "You know that WrestleMania is a big thing for us, Flynnie. We won't stay long at the stadium, alright, but it'll be really cool for you to see the stage, right?"

"I guess," Flynn said. "I'll go put on my shoes."

"Thank you," Stephanie said as Flynn ran out of the room. Stephanie went back to Kensington, who was leaning back to look up at her, a sweet smile on her face. Stephanie leaned down and gave her an Eskimo kiss before giving her a peck on the lips. Kensington smiled before putting her head down so Stephanie could finish her hair. "Are you excited to go see everything, Kensy?"

"Uh huh, I have fun," Kensington nodded sweetly. Stephanie pulled her hair back and pulled into a ponytail and tied it up.

"You are going to have fun," Stephanie said, hugging Kensington from behind, "because you get to see all the things that you like about wrestling, don't you?"

"I want no teef," Kensington stood up and hopped off the bed and ran off in search of her brother and sister. Stephanie's eyebrows knitted and she stood up, walking into the living area of their large suite. Sawyer was tying Flynn's sneakers for her as Kensington ran up to Sawyer and threw her arms around his waist. Sawyer looked over his shoulder and smiled at his littlest sister, who just looked up at him in adoration.

"Kensy, baby, what do you mean you don't want teeth?" Stephanie asked her daughter.

"I no want teef!" Kensington repeated, grinning a grin at her and Stephanie just shook her head. "Okay, well, I want you two to put on your coats, and Miss Kensington, I will help you with yours."

Stephanie helped them into their coats and they went downstairs. The hotel was on lockdown, but that didn't mean there weren't industrious fans who got in. She tried to dodge them since she had her kids with her, and she at least managed to only get stopped twice for pictures. She smiled and was polite, but excused herself because she had a lot to do. She got outside where the driver was waiting and she ushered in the kids first. She climbed in after them and helped Kensington into her car-seat while her other two kids found their own seats.

The drive to the stadium was fairly short, with only a few traffic jams. Luckily for her, her kids were used to traveling so they were patient and not cranky like she imagined most kids would be in traffic. When they arrived at the stadium, Stephanie ushered them back out of the car and lamented the fact that she told Chris's parents that they could spend the day sight-seeing because herding three kids was always a challenge.

"Wow, Mom, that's so cool!" Sawyer said as they walked out onto what was usually the field. She looked at her son, but he was staring up at the large Statue of Liberty being constructed over the ring.

"Ooh, Mommy, I like it," Flynn said, taking a few steps as if to see it better.

"What do you think, Kensy?" Stephanie asked the little girl in her arms.

"I like it," Kensington told her, kissing her cheek in a sign of approval.

"What are they doing over there, Mom?" Sawyer asked, pointing towards the stage.

"They're going to build a kind of Brooklyn Bridge set-up when the wrestlers walk out, they'll walk underneath it," Stephanie explained.

"I want to do that, Mommy, can I?" Flynn asked.

"You can because we'll be here early, but not by yourself," Stephanie said, "you can walk out with me or Daddy, we can have them play Daddy's music to test it out, how does that sound?"

"Cool!" Flynn exclaimed happily.

"Where are we going to sit?" Sawyer asked.

"Probably near the front so you can see everything, and you can cheer Daddy and make sure he wins, but you can't go help him, Flynn Jericho," Stephanie told her daughter playfully as Flynn giggled and hugged her mother's leg.

"But what if I did?"

"I think Daddy would toss you out of the ring and you'd land on the announcer's table," Stephanie told her.

Flynn's jaw dropped and her eyes widened, "But Mommy, that would really hurt! Daddy wouldn't hurt me!"

"But I thought you'd want to take a big bump."

"No, just a little one because I'm little," Flynn explained.

"Oh, okay, but you guys will have fun with Gamma and Gamps when you're watching the show. You'll get to see all your friends and you can cheer for them, and you can make sure you boo for the people you don't like."

"It's not very nice to boo though, Mommy," Sawyer told her, "even if you don't like someone. It's better to just cheer for who you want to win."

"Oh, of course, excuse me," she told her diplomatic son, who was always so considerate. He must have been where all her and Chris's compassion was stored because they never thought the way he did. He was actually a lot like her own mother if she had to try and make family comparisons. Her mother was the same way, always thinking of everyone's feelings, but she could still be sharp, and sometimes Sawyer was sharp.

One of the foremen came over to brief Stephanie about the progress and she talked with him for a little bit as he went over what still needed to be done. Things were on schedule, but she pushed for them to try and finish early, within safety precautions. After squaring that away, they headed back over to the arena where Axxess was being held. Chris had an afternoon signing, and she was dropping off the kids with Chris's parents so they could take them around the festivities. Stephanie would have loved to do it herself, but she would be swarmed with fans, and she didn't want that for her or the kids.

She also had a lot to check up on, especially with the Hall of Fame the next night. She had her speech already done, but she wanted to put a few finishing touches on it so it was perfect. They arrived at the arena and went in through the back. Chris was already at his signing, but his parents were waiting inside his green room and the kids ran over to tell them about the set-up for the show. She said her goodbyes and headed back to the hotel for meetings.

Chris signed another picture and smiled while taking a picture with another fan. He loved meeting his fans, whether they be here or with Fozzy. He was leaving next week to start another leg of his tour and he was excited and sad all at once. He was having such a blast wrestling, taking on all these new, younger guys, but the music was calling him back again. He couldn't think of a better way to start off the tour with a win against Fandango under his belt. He was sure he'd win, not because he was cocky but because he knew he was better.

"Chris, you got a ten minute break," the handler said. He nodded and stood up, stretching a little bit and walking away. He spotted his kids with his parents a little ways away, looking at some of the exhibits around. He walked over them, knowing the crowd could see him, but not really caring. His kids were known nowadays, at least they'd been seen by people so he didn't feel weird going up to them. He saw some people eyeing him about to go over, but he ignored them and went up to his family, whisking his older daughter into his arms (his younger daughter was in his mother's arms).

Flynn squealed, promptly scared until she saw who was kissing her cheek. She flung her arms around her father and he led them over to a restricted area where he was out of the limelight and away from the flashbulbs. "Hey, you guys having fun?"

"Daddy, we were gonna come see you, but your line was really long," Flynn explained to him.

"They said we had to wait in it, but I figured we could just wait until you were finished," Ted said, "the kids kind of know who you are."

"Dad, we saw the set and it's really cool-looking, there's a big statue and a bridge and everything," Sawyer said excitedly. "It's so cool, and you get to wrestle with that."

"Thanks for the sneak peek of that," Chris ruffled his son's hair. "I better get back out there, I've got a lot of people to meet, but you guys have fun and I'll see you when I'm done, alright?"

"Do you really have to go, Daddy?" Flynn pouted.

"Yeah, I'm sorry, Flutterby, but it's only an hour, then we'll spend some time together, okay?" he said. He hated that he had to spend the week before he left for his tour doing all these things for WrestleMania, but he was trying to make as much time as possible for his kids. Luckily, there were a lot of distractions this week for them too so his and Stephanie's absences weren't as acutely felt.

"Okay, Daddy, we love you," Flynn said as he put her down. He kissed each of his kids and went back to the hectic Axxess area.

AJ spotted the tell-tale sign of her boyfriend up ahead of her, his blonde hair a dead giveaway. She ran up behind him and grabbed his butt with both of her hands, giving him a playful squeeze. He turned around abruptly, shocked until he saw it was her then looked at her weirdly. "What the hell are you doing?"

"You'll never guess what?"

"Um, you grabbed my butt," he told her, "I was about ready to tell whoever it was that my butt is not for touching."

"It's nice though, better than mine, which is kind of sad, I don't have any junk in the trunk," she told him, "but come on, guess, guess!"

"What is it?" he wondered. "You're going to tell me anyways, so you might as well get it over with. Besides, we should actually get up to our room and change for the reading challenge."

"That's not for a while yet," she told him.

"Yeah, but I want to take you out to lunch and in order to do that, we should be dressed so we don't have to rush," he reasoned. "Also, you didn't even ask about our dog, who did get to doggie daycare this morning. I really think he's making some friends there. He probably has better social skills than his parents."

AJ let herself have a moment to take in the fact that Dolph called Nacho their dog and included him in the talk of Nacho's parents. But there was no time to dwell on that, she had such wonderful news!

"I'm glad he's having fun on his mini-vacation, but stop being logical and efficient and talk to me about what happened to me after I did radio row."

"What happened after you did radio row?" he asked patiently, seeing how excited she was.

"I just had a heart-to-heart with Trish Stratus!" AJ squealed, hugging Dolph for a moment before pulling away happily. "I never thought that I would get to do that because well, she's Stephanie's best friend and we're still mad at Chris so therefore I can't really be friends with Stephanie so I thought Trish would hate me, but we talked and it was wonderful, and she told me she's pregnant, but I have to keep it a secret, she let me in on a secret!"

Dolph laughed good-naturedly and pulled his ecstatic girlfriend into a hug, kissing the crown of her head. He loved the way he could envelope her entirely into his side. "What did you guys talk about?"

_AJ sat on top of the trunk, looking at her watch. Her radio interviews were done and she was sitting in the staging area of the arena, eating a bag of animal cookies she'd gotten from catering. She spotted Trish Stratus walking towards her and she gulped, pressing the cookie bag under her purse as Trish approached her._

"_Hi, Trish," AJ said tentatively when she passed._

_Trish smiled and looked over, "Oh, hey, AJ, how are you doing?"_

"_I'm actually doing really well."_

"_So I've heard."_

"_I can't believe you're talking to me," AJ admitted, "I mean, I know you're best friends with Stephanie, and we're kind of in a fight right now."_

"_She doesn't hate you, AJ, she understands where Dolph is coming from, and you know, she wouldn't even mind talking to you," Trish said, knowing it was the truth. Whatever was going on with Chris and Dolph wasn't even really a blip on Stephanie's radar, especially not this week. AJ was probably too scared to talk to Stephanie, so Trish hoped this would open a door for her._

_She'd always thought AJ was just misunderstood. She'd been that girl a long time ago. When she first arrived in the company, she wanted to make a splash, and she'd been willing to do whatever it took to do that. She'd given up a huge part of her life to fulfill this WWE destiny, and she wanted to make it worth her while. Unfortunately, the entire world seemed against her for a long time, even her now best friend. She'd had to crawl (sometimes literally) out of the crap to get to this Hall of Fame status._

_AJ was young and still trying to find herself. She didn't know enough about her and Dolph to make an assessment about their relationship, but they seemed happy, and maybe AJ was on her way to being less scorned. "That's kind of a relief," AJ admitted, "congratulations on your Hall of Fame induction, I really, really wish I could be there, but Dolph and I have a signing at the same time, well, not exactly the same time, but it ends with the Hall of Fame starts so I can't really be there, and I'm really bummed, I'm sorry, I'm rambling."_

"_It's okay," Trish patted her on the arm, "thank you for the congratulations. You know, you're well on your way to heading there too."_

"_Me? I don't think so, I'm nobody," AJ shook her head. The mere thought of her ever being in the Hall of Fame was just…well, she wished it could be true, but there was still so much ahead of her._

"_You're making an impact, that's important, people see you—"_

"_As the girl who kisses everyone," AJ said "and they seem to forget I've been together with Dolph for months and I've never wanted to stray, I love him."_

"_And people will see that," Trish reassured her, "do you know how many men I've kissed who have come through this company? I mean, there's Vince, there's Christian, best kisser right there, Chris, Rock, Carlito, Jeff, and probably more I can't even think of right now. People forget."_

"_I hope so," AJ said, "thanks for that though."_

"_I know what it's like to be looked at, to have that spotlight shining on you. Believe me, I know how hard it can be, but hang in there, things change, people change, this business is crazy, but you're not."_

"_You're like…just so nice," AJ told her, wanting to cry a little. _

"_Come here, give me a hug," Trish said. AJ hopped off the trunk and hugged her idol. Trish hugged her. "Believe me, things will change for you too, I thought everything would be horrible until I found Christian, and you've already found Dolph, and it looks like he treats you well."_

"_He's the nicest person in the world to me," AJ admitted._

"_Good, I'm glad you have that, when you find that person, hold onto them," Trish said, "and since you won't be attending the Hall of Fame tomorrow, I'll let you know a little tidbit before almost everyone else…I'm going to be having another baby."_

"Aww, babe, I'm glad you got to talk to her."

"Me too, I feel so good right now," she said as her phone buzzed in her pocket. She took it out and looked down at it. "Oh shoot."

"What?"

"I have to cancel on our lunch date," she pursed her lips, "they want me and E to go to Carlos' Bakery, you know, the Cake Boss people, I guess for another segment for my diary, but I'll see you for the reading challenge later?" she leaned up to kiss his cheek.

"This week sucks because I hardly get to see you."

"I know, but don't worry, tonight we have the reading challenge then we have the signing tomorrow, and Sunday, you're going to be one-half of the new Tag Team champions!"

"I like the sound of that."

**Saturday**

"Mommy, my dress is prettier than yours because yours is just boring!" Flynn pranced around the room in her light blue dress. It had lace around the bodice and a vintage-type look to it while Stephanie opted for a little black dress.

"It is?"

"Uh huh, I'm the prettiest!" Flynn said, running over to where Kensington was playing, "You don't even get to wear a dress, Kensy!"

"I don't wanna!" Kensington countered, staring at her sister defiantly.

"Flynn, don't rub it in your sister's face. She's going to have a good time with Gamma and Gamps."

"But I gets to see everyone and be fun and have happy times," Flynn said, running to Stephanie and hugging her legs before she danced around. "And I get to see Trish be 'ducted, right, Mommy? Mommy, how come Tilden's gonna be there if she's little like Kensy?"

"Because of Trish, that's her mommy so she's going to want to see her mommy get inducted."

"But you're talking too, so why doesn't Kensy come?"

"Because I'm not being inducted," Stephanie explained patiently as she put in an earring.

"Here are your men, how do we look?" Chris asked as he and Sawyer walked into the room. Sawyer was in a suit for the occasion, and he was looking sharp. Chris had taken him to his own personal tailor's, and the man had done wonders because Sawyer's suit fit him perfectly. It highlighted how big he was getting because he looked like such a little man at the moment. Actually, it was more like a little Chris with the way the two resembled each other.

"Wow, you both look amazing, but I think Sawyer edged you out on this one," Stephanie said.

"I like your dressings," Flynn said, "Mommy, I wanna look like that."

"You want a suit?" Stephanie asked.

"Uh huh," Flynn said, nodding her head.

"Okay, next time we do something formal, you can wear a suit, alright, but you can't tonight because that suit took weeks to make, and we only have about an hour," Stephanie told her. "So do you think you can stand the dress for one night?"

"I guess," Flynn sighed, but she wasn't exactly happy about it. She wanted to look like her brother. Stephanie came over and smoothed her hair down.

"We are one good-looking family," Chris said, bending over to pick up Kensington. "I mean, if we were to rate ourselves on how good we look right now, I would say we're a 5 million."

"I can't dispute that we look good," Stephanie said, coming over and straightening his tie. "Are you sure you can handle both of them during the ceremony?"

"Why do you act like I'm such an incompetent father?"

"Sorry, sorry," Stephanie said, "come on, we better go so we can drop off Kensy and still get there in enough time."

Trish ran her hand over her stomach. "I think it looks fine, don't you think?"

"I think you look stunning," Christian told her. "You look absolutely stunning."

Trish turned around and looked at her husband. He'd been giving her looks of awe since she'd taken the pregnancy test, but this one was different. She could tell he liked the dress, one she hadn't let him see yet, and he was staring at her like she'd grown another head. She walked over to him, her dress swishing, and cupped his face in her hands. "Chrissy, you can put your tongue back in your mouth now."

"I'm speechless, you look beautiful, and everyone…everyone is just going to love you, and you're definitely going to be the most beautiful Hall of Famer, this class and any class, and every class from here on out," he told her, gathering her up in his arms and kissing her lightly so as not to mess up her makeup. "You ready for your big night?"

"Yeah, I'm going to try and get through it without crying, we'll see though, the pregnancy hormones might just kick in and leave me a bawling mess. Stephanie will have to drag me offstage."

Christian laughed and hugged her, cradling him against her. "You're going to do great up there. I can't wait to hear the fans' reaction to you. They're all going to be cheering and it's all just going to be for you. I'm going to be so proud, and Tilden is going to be so proud, and your parents will, and your sisters will, hell, everyone is going to be so proud."

"It's still so strange to me," Trish told him, her arms slinking around his waist. "I mean, who would have thought, right? When I started, I never thought I'd be here, I thought it would be some fun adventure, something I could tell my grandkids one day, and now I'm here, and it's been more of an adventure than I could ever have planned."

"Good, because I'm part of that, and I'm proud of it," he said, glancing at his watch over her shoulder. "We better go though, you wouldn't want to be late to a ceremony to honor you."

"There are four other people being honored, you know."

"Yeah, none of which I care about as much as I do you, Trishy," Christian said. "I mean, are any of them carrying my child? Huh?"

"I would hope not," she said, grabbing her purse. "I would hope there's not a single person else that's carrying your child."

"Just you, I promise," he told her, grabbing her hand.

"Do you think I can see Tilden before the ceremony starts?"

"I'll bring her backstage," Christian told her, "she'll wish you luck."

"She's our lucky charm."

"Now let's go get you inducted."

Flynn looked around and smiled. This was nice in here and _all_ her wrestling friends were here. She saw Sheamus and Christian and Hunter, and just everyone! There were also a lot of other people she didn't know here, but that was okay, she didn't have to talk to them. She turned to her Daddy and climbed on the seat next to him. He looked at her and stuck out his tongue, making a funny face as she giggled.

"Daddy, it's fun already," she told him, hugging him around the neck.

"Well, I'm glad you're having fun already," Chris told her.

"Dad, I'm going to clap the loudest for Trish," Sawyer said, "since she's our friend."

"She'll love that," Chris smiled at his son.

"When are you going into the Hall of Fame because you are, right, Dad?"

"Someday, but not any time soon probably, I'm still wrestling, and generally, you're inducted when you stop wrestling," Chris explained to him. "And when I do, I expect you guys to cheer the loudest."

"Duh," Sawyer told him, making a face, "will Mom give your speech?"

"No way!" Chris told him. "Do you think I want Mom to get up on stage and say something like I don't put the laundry away or that I sleep in too late? Mom knows way too much about me."

Sawyer laughed, "But she's not going to say that, she'll say nice things even though you were really mean to each other when you were first here. I don't know why because you love her, right?"

"I love her now, the person she was then was a little bit harder to love, but then we both changed, and sometimes that happens."

"Don't change again, Daddy," Flynn told him.

"Okay, I won't go back to hating Mommy."

"Ooh, Daddy, I'm gonna go see Trips," Flynn said as she saw Hunter arrive with some of his family. "Can I go see him?"

"Sure, but you stay in front here, you do not run off without telling me, and you stay in my sights," Chris put his index and middle fingers pointing up to his eyes and then swung them to her eyes. "It still isn't WrestleMania yet, and you can still get in trouble and not watch from the crowd."

Flynn nodded eagerly in agreement before she ran over to Hunter and tapped him on the leg. "Trips!"

Hunter looked down and saw the light brown hair of one of his favorite girls, "Hey there, Flynnie," he lifted her up into his arms. "What's going on?"

"I know you're not my daddy and I'm not gonna cry anymore because I got BNA," Flynn explained to him as Hunter studied her for a moment.

"BNA? Wait, do you mean DNA?"

"From my daddy, he gave it to me, and you can't ever, ever change it because it's not even little, it's littler than little so he will always be my daddy, so it's okay, we can be friends again and people can say the bad stuff, and I don't mind," Flynn hugged him around the neck. She pulled away and looked at the people with him. "Hi, who are you?"

"This is my sister and her daughter," Hunter introduced Flynn, "and this is my mom."

"Hi," she waved brightly, "I don't know you, but Trips is my friend so we can be friends too."

"It's nice to meet you," Hunter's sister said. "I can see you're really good friends with my brother."

"Uh huh, he was married to my mommy, but not anymore because she loves my daddy," Flynn told her in a sing-song, happy voice. Flynn was totally oblivious to the stern glare of Hunter's mother, and he chose to ignore it. There was only so long someone could hold a grudge, and his mother was working on his last nerve now.

Hunter just laughed, "Yeah, she is, are you excited to watch tonight?"

"Uh huh because Trish is gonna get 'ducted by Mommy! She looks pretty and she said I could wear a suit next time!"

"A suit?" Hunter asked.

"Like Sawa's," Flynn said, "Mommy said I could and I like it."

"You would look adorable in a suit," Hunter told her and she would, she would look just like her mother when she was a GM."

"Oh! Punk is here, can I go down, Trips, I'm going to say hi to him," Flynn said, "but I gotta ask Daddy first, have fun!"

Hunter put Flynn down and she ran back over to Chris, "Daddy, can I sit with Punk?"

"Now you want to go sit somewhere else?" Chris asked. Flynn nodded and gave him a look that pretty much meant he was going to bend to her whim. "Alright, you can go over and _ask_ him if you can sit with him, if you can, come and tell me, okay?"

"Okay!" Flynn ran over to Punk, Chris rolling his eyes. It didn't matter if Flynn was in front of one person or a million people, she was just the light of the room. Chris grabbed Sawyer into a headlock and gave him a noogie as Sawyer laughed.

"Your sister is too much, kid."

"Well, isn't that kind of your fault?" Sawyer asked and Chris laughed. Sometimes he was definitely reminded that these were his children. Sometimes even Sawyer was too sarcastic for his own good.

"Shut it, kid."

Flynn threw herself across Punk's lap. "Hi, Punk, can I sit with you?"

"Hey, Flynnie, thanks for just throwing yourself at me," Punk told her.

"Daddy said I could sit here if you let me, please!"

"Yeah, sure you can," Punk said. "We don't really have any seats though."

"It's okay, I can sit on your lap, I have to go tell Daddy, be right back," Flynn said as she ran over to Chris. He told her something and she ran back over, lifting her arms to Punk, who pulled her up and let her sit in his lap. "Daddy said I could, but I have to be nice and say thank you, but I was gonna say that _anyways_."

"You're welcome."

"Hi, Li-Li," Flynn said to Lita. "Where's Ed?"

"He couldn't make it, remember," Lita said, kissing Flynn's head. "He had commitments before he knew Trish was going to get inducted so he couldn't make it."

"Ed is her boyfriend, Punk, and Britt is your girlfriend, right?"

"Yeah, that's right," Punk said, "but Britt has to be backstage because she's helping out your mom back there."

"I _know_," Flynn said, "are you friends with Li-Li because I am too. She lives near me and she and Ed come babysit us a lot when Mommy and Daddy want to go out, and we get to have pizza sometimes, and Li-Li plays us music."

"Yeah, we're friends," Punk said as the ceremony started. "Okay, we better be quiet now, it's about to start."

Mick's induction was up first, and as always, Mick was funny, entertaining, and jolly, just like he was in the ring when cutting a promo. He even went so far as to bring up the fact that he'd never beaten Chris Jericho once. Chris chuckled and yelled out to him in agreement, telling him it was never once. Sawyer laughed beside him, and Chris decided to do one favor for Mick. He got up on the stage and laid down, letting Mick get in a free one.

Punk gave Flynn to Lita and ran up to the stage as Mick dropped an elbow on Chris. Punk counted the 1-2-3, and the crowd went wild. Chris laughed and got up, letting Mick have the moment. Everyone was cheering except for someone to whom wrestling was a very big deal. "That's not fair, Li-Li, Daddy should get a rematch!" Flynn turned her head to look up at Lita.

Lita kissed her temple and hugged her to her, "It was just a pretend match, Flynnie, your daddy didn't really lose."

"Oh, okay."

"Dad, that was great," Sawyer laughed as soon as he sat back down, "even though you would have won if it were a real match."

"I like to this so too," Chris winked at him.

Stephanie stood backstage, standing with Trish and talking for a bit before it was her turn to go out. The crowd cheered as her new music started up and she walked across stage. She could hear Flynn screaming because it was the highest pitched. She saw her men in the audience, and she smirked at Chris for what he'd just done. She looked again and didn't see Flynn and her eyebrows knitted until she saw her sitting on Punk's lap.

She started off her speech talking about how Trish had torn her family apart, but at the end of the day, she was proud to call Trish one thing, and that was her friend. Trish came out next and the crowd went wild for her. She smiled and waved as she took the podium, letting out a sigh as she let the cheers wash over her. It was an overwhelming moment, and she hadn't uttered a word yet.

"First of all," she started, "I want to thank the fans. In my career, nobody has been more important. You guys have stood by me through everything, and without you, there is no Trish Stratus Hall of Famer. You have motivated me to do better, to be better, you have told me when you loved me, and let me know when you couldn't stand me." The crowd cheered her now. "This journey hasn't just been my own, but yours as well because you took me through it in however way you saw fit."

Trish took a deep breath.

"When I started in this business, I was just trying to find a place, unfortunately, that place led me to some very dark, very strange places," she laughed, "doing things I wasn't proud of, sorry, Mom, for having to watch that. But then I found my place, and I found out that I could do this, and it's been the most rewarding experience in my entire life. Stephanie, thank you for the wonderful introduction and for being one of my best friends for the past ten years because without your friendship I wouldn't be here today. I also want to thank you and your family for giving me the opportunity. I know I sometimes caused you all grief, but you still welcomed me into your business family, and I appreciate that.

"I also have to thank all the divas who brought me to the best matches I could ever have, there are so many to name that I know I'm going to forget people, and if I do, I'm so sorry because without you, I'd still be a girl escorting a guy to a ring with no clue what the hell I was doing in the ring without them. Women like Gail, Beth, Mickie, Jazz, and so many others, you made me better. And Lita, you and me, we've had our share of disputes, but you know at the end of the day you're one of my best friends, practically my sister-in-law, and I love you to death."

Lita grinned at her before blowing her a kiss.

"Thank you to Vince as well, just, for the career. Thanks for the career and taking a chance, and thanks for not firing me after we…um, had our tryst. I'm not proud of that, but thanks for not getting rid of me! And thank you to my family for supporting me, for telling me it was okay to follow this, to pursue modeling when I was supposed to be a doctor. You didn't think I was crazy, and you didn't have me committed, so thank you for that, thank you for watching me and loving me."

Trish wrung her hands together a little as she got to this last little bit. "When I started this, I didn't know what wrestling would bring to me. Not totally anyways, not completely. Above my amazing career, above all my matches, my title wins, the fun I had, wrestling gave me one thing better than all of that. It gave me you, Christian."

Christian beamed at her from the audience, their daughter in his lap, though she was looking a little bored at the moment. Christian grabbed her wrists and clapped a little. He could not be prouder right now. He thought he was proud when his brother was inducted, but it didn't even compare to seeing his wife up there, looking as radiant as she ever did accepting a title that he himself strived for every single day. The crowd started chanting his name and Trish laughed.

"Yeah, tell him to get his butt back to wrestling, I agree," she told them all. "Christian, you were a jerk to me, but little did I know that it was because you liked me so much, and you were so patient while we messed up with other people, thinking they were what we wanted when they weren't, and when we crashed, we crashed hard, and we had some of the hottest kisses on TV, right?"

"Damn straight!" Christian called out to her as she laughed.

"You are my everything, you are the love of my life, and without you, I am not me," she told him, biting her lip. "You are crazy and lovable, and you make me laugh and you love me even when I'm probably not that lovable. You are just…you're it, Chrissy. And I wanted to take this opportunity to tell you that I love you. I know we said it at our wedding, but the world wasn't watching, but just so they know, I love you so much. And while this Hall of Fame thing is awesome, you have given me a couple things that are irreplaceable, and one of them is sitting in your lap. Tilde, baby girl, I love you so much, you are the light of my world."

"I love you, Momma," Tilden whispered, throwing kisses to Trish.

"And…because we're here, and because we thought this was the perfect moment, Christian and I have a little announcement to make. There's going to be another peep in this world to give you all a little Stratusfaction. Our second child is due in September," Trish said, stepping away from the podium to show off her stomach. The crowd gasped and cheered for her and Christian as she blew her husband a kiss. "Thank you again, everyone, and who knows, maybe you'll see me again in the future."

After the ceremony ended, Trish came down and walked over to her husband, throwing her arms around him and Tilden. Tilden was half-asleep, but sleepily smiled at her mother. Trish puckered her lips and Christian came down for a kiss a her family came around for hugs. "I have to go get my pictures taken, but I wanted to come see you guys."

"You were beautiful up there, everyone loved you and was jealous of me, just as it should be," Christian said.

"Everyone is congratulating me now."

"And nobody has congratulated me," Christian scoffed, "you'd think I'd had no part in this."

"They will, I'm sure they will," she patted his cheek, leaning up and kissing him again. "I better go though, but you'll wait for me."

"I did for years, what's a few minutes," Christian told her.

Trish turned her to her family and hugged all of them. Christian watched as she went back onstage to go backstage to get her ring and everything. She was stopped multiple times, probably for congratulations on both the Hall of Fame and the baby. She deserved this, and he was going to just watch her revel in it because seeing her like this, it only made him happy.

His wife was a Hall of Famer.

**Sunday**

Stephanie kissed Chris's bare shoulder, then his neck, then the corner of his mouth. "Wake up, wake up, wake up."

"Again? Seriously?" Chris opened one eye. "You didn't get enough of me last night."

"Nope, come on, the kids will be up soon, and I want one for the road," Stephanie licked her lips as she threw her leg over his and straddled his lap. She was already pulling her top over her head, leaving her in nothing but her panties. "Besides, don't you want to start your morning with a workout."

"I swear to God, what the hell do you eat during WrestleMania week that makes you so horny?" he asked, sitting up wrapping his arms around her waist. His question didn't stop him from running his lips across her collarbone. "It's like every night you're making me work, not that I mind, but we have to think about chafing…and the fact I can get you pregnant sometimes without even trying."

"We're good on that front," Stephanie said, grabbing Chris's hair and pulling his head up so she could kiss him. "So are we going to do this or are we going to not because I have probably an endless list of guys who will help me out."

Chris growled and turned them over s she was underneath him, "Well, this WrestleMania is starting off with a bang."

'That was cheesy," Stephanie told him, cupping his cheeks. "You're so lucky I love you so much that I'm willing to overlook that…and that I'm horny enough not to care, now will you or will you not satisfy your wife's needs?"

"_You're_ lucky I like a lady in charge."

Punk cracked his neck as he stood up from doing his morning push-ups. Britt turned over in bed and looked over at him on the floor. "You're up already?"

"Didn't really sleep much," Punk told her, "I'll take a nap at the arena or something, I just needed to get up and get moving. Who knows what Taker is doing right now. He could be, I don't know, raising people from the dead or something, maybe building a coffin, I don't know how he trains."

Britt buried her face in her pillow as she laughed, "You're ridiculous."

Punk looked over at her and smiled. "So what? We really don't know what he's doing, maybe he doesn't even sleep."

"Well that's where you two are the same then, how much sleep did you really get? Really?" she asked, giving him a look that told him to tell her the truth or else he was going to get it.

"I don't know, three and a half hours, maybe."

"You promise to take a nap at some point today, do you promise?" she asked him.

"Yes, mother," Punk made a face. "I've been going on little sleep for a really long time it's not something that bothers me. I'm used to it, you don't need to worry."

"I worry because at least one day every couple of weeks, you end up sleeping for like 20 hours straight, that can't be good for you, and I love you and worry, and I'm super worried for tonight because you have a huge match against a man who has never lost at WrestleMania—"

"Until tonight," Punk said, "until tonight."

Brit nodded and her lips just turned up slightly, "Until tonight."

AJ stretched her arms over her head. She was excited and it made it difficult to sleep, but she'd finally managed. She laid in bed for a moment, staring up at the ceiling. By the end of tonight, her boyfriend would be one-half of the Tag Team champions, and who knew, if the opportunity presented itself, maybe even the World Heavyweight Title. She reveled in the moment, the thought that tonight could be the best night of her life. It was her first real WrestleMania, and it was in her home state.

She didn't consider last year's disaster anything of a WrestleMania. Walking down the aisle last year lasted longer than the actual match, and she felt it ended before it even began. This year was better too because she was with Dolph. He wasn't going to make her feel horrible if he lost, even if she somehow played a part in it. She knew he would want her out there through thick and thin, and she wanted to help him in any way possible. "What's with the grin?"

AJ jumped a little bit, turning onto her side and seeing Dolph sleepily looking up at her. His hair was a mess and she reached out to smooth it down. When he wasn't doing anything, he tended to just let it frizz out and in the mornings, it could be a mess. "I didn't mean to wake you."

"You didn't, I have an internal clock better than a regular one," he smirked, "or I could hear you practically squeaking over there, or is that Huevos?"

"No, he's in the other room I think, he's probably mad that today is the last day he gets to go to see his new friends," AJ joked.

"Well, maybe we should adopt him a sibling," Dolph yawned, "so, you ready for tonight?"

"Yes, I'm so ready, you have no idea, it's a dream come true."

He leaned up to kiss her quickly before slamming back into the pillow, "Then let's get this done."

The day passed too slow for everyone. The anticipation for the big show kept rising and rising, and it was hitting a fever pitch backstage. Everyone was buzzing and running around, most of all Stephanie, who was trying to make sure everything was running smoothly up until the show, but not even just the show, they had the entire pre-show to deal with as well, so to say things were hectic was an understatement.

"Stephanie," Ted caught her as she was rushing down the hallway. "We're going to take our seats now."

"Oh, oh, of course," Stephanie turned towards her children, all bundled up in coats and she walked over, kneeling in front of them. "Behave yourselves, you know the drill, right, kiddos?"

"Yeah," Sawyer and Flynn said while Kensington nodded. Stephanie kissed them all and sent them on their ways.

Even though they'd sat in the crowd dozens of times and had multiple WrestleManias under their small belts, there was nothing like walking out on the biggest stage in the world to see a mass of people around you. Kensington cooed in awe as her grandfather lifted her up so she could see better. They found their seats, which were very nearly ringside and sat down, the kids just looking around and taking it all in.

"These are the best seats we've had, I think," Sawyer said.

"I think so too, your mom really hooked you up," Ted said. "You'll definitely be able to cheer your father now."

Chris's match wasn't first though so they had to wait a while for him to show up, but that didn't mean they couldn't cheer for other people. When there was a crowd this big, it made everyone's adrenaline rise, and they fed off each other until it was just a cacophony of sound. This was what everyone could hear backstage.

AJ jumped up and down, trying to keep warm as Dolph ran in place beside her. "Should I be this nervous?" he asked, wrapping her arms around herself.

"Nope," Dolph told her, "we're walking out the champions, don't worry."

When the time came for their match, she walked out into the arena with her boyfriend and Big E. The crowd was loud and the sound carried, and she couldn't help but grin. This was her dream right here, this was it, everything she'd really worked for and it wasn't going to end in 18 seconds. This was for real and she wanted nothing more than to grab her boyfriend's hand, but he was currently shaking his butt for everyone. She followed him down to the ring and took it all in. It was surreal this moment, and she closed her eyes to take in the sights and sounds, and just live in this moment.

It all ended much too soon when Kane and Daniel's music hit and then it was time for business. They came to the ring and the match started, but before it could actually start, Dolph stopped everyone in the ring, in the arena, and turned towards the ropes, looking down at her. He crooked his hand towards her and she smiled up at him as she climbed up onto the apron. She stood there as he told her to lay it on him. She leaned forward and kissed him, jumping off the apron just in time to see him get kicked to the head. She screamed, fearing it was all over again! But instead, Dolph kicked out, which let her breathe again.

In the end, though, despite her attempts to help, they were unsuccessful, and she had to watch as the man she loved lost the match. She scrambled to his side, checking on him, but the damage was mostly to his ego. They weren't champions, they were losers, and they had to walk backstage as losers. And of all the times, this was one of them where they wanted to interview her for her damn diary. She tearily made her way through it, saying she wished they could all be happy, but they weren't. She wasn't happy, E wasn't happy, Dolph wasn't happy.

She somehow felt like she failed him, but said nothing because Dolph would simply reassure her that it wasn't her fault, and she didn't want that right now. She wanted to burden herself with guilt because it felt right in that moment. Later, maybe, she would confess, but or now she wanted to hold onto the hurt.

Stephanie kissed Chris quickly, "Don't lose."

"Not a chance," Chris said, kissing her again. "I'll see you when I come back here a winner."

"Or don't come back at all, really," she told him, "okay, you have to go, and I have to go, and make sure the children are still in their coats."

"What am I going to do if they're not? Go into the crowd and put their coat on for them while I'm in the middle of the match?"

"Exactly," she pat his chest and sent him away.

Chris would never get tired of WrestleMania, not in a million years. It was pretty convenient, then, that he was married to someone who ran the business. He wanted a million more of these. He wanted to hear the cheers of the crowd. He wanted everyone to be on their feet just to see him. This was where he belonged first and foremost, and no matter where the world took him, it would always lead him back here. His entrance was pretty extravagant, Stephanie going all out and giving him fireworks and everything. He loved it.

He climbed in the ring, ready to face off against this loser with the weird name. He looked over at his kids as he got into the ring and he smiled at them as they cheered and waved at him. He smiled wider, but then turned focus when he saw his opponent. He had to go to work now, and it was no time for fun and games, everyone else might be underestimating this man, but he wasn't.

Fandango decided to start the match by striking a pose and dancing, which, that wasn't how Chris played his matches. This wasn't Dancing with the Stars. Chris tackled him and started to chop him across the chest, but Fandango got out of the ring to collect himself. Chris wasn't in the mood to stand around waiting so he went out to get him, but Fandango got back in the ring. Chris was able to get in a lot of offense, probably because Fandango almost seemed reluctant to fight. Chris wanted to take him to task, and he was. It wasn't even really personal, Chris just wanted to win the match.

He didn't.

It was almost as much of a surprise to him as it was to everyone in the arena. He thought he'd had the match won and to have it suddenly lost was confusing. He looked at Fandango who was staggering away and Chris could only give him an incredulous smile because he wasn't even sure what happened. All he knew was that he wanted his revenge still, and he would have it any way he could get it. This was going to be considered and upset, and to take everyone's minds off of that fact, he would have to make Fandango pay.

And soon.


	415. Cashing In, April 8 to 22, 2013

A/N: Okay, caught up, finally! Read, enjoy, review, like, favorite, read some more, whatever it is you want to do, go for it. :)

* * *

**April 8th**

"Steph, hey, I just need to let you know that Phil isn't going to be here tonight."

"Is he okay?" Stephanie asked a harried-looking Britt. "Are _you_ okay?"

"Not really, rough night," Britt said, pushing some hair out of her face. She'd pulled it up into a messy bun, not caring what she looked like tonight. There was that air to this show, like it was a release after the opulence that was WrestleMania. It didn't mean they didn't care about this show, but that it wasn't as heavy as WrestleMania was.

"Did you sleep?"

"Not really, the loss, it just, it took everything out of Phil," Britt rubbed at her eyes. "He was sore and tired, and he was just, he's not in a good place tonight and I know I don't have the authority to do so, but I just told him to stay at the hotel. I'm not sure being here would be good for him right now."

"Is he that bad?"

"He put all his eggs into one basket so to speak. He does that," Britt sighed, "He thinks he's so much better that when something doesn't work out, he kind of internally freaks out, and he's there right now. He's just really upset, and I didn't want him here where he's bound to go off on someone."

"Yeah, well, I mean, if he's that bad, I don't really want to have him here if he doesn't want to be, but I mean, thanks for telling me," Stephanie said, "we have a lot of stuff tonight so his absence probably won't even be felt."

"Thanks, Stephanie, I appreciate it, this will be a personal favor to me, and I will repay you back. I just, the loss really took it out of him, he really thought he was going to win, and I think he really banked on being the one to break it."

"I understand," Stephanie nodded, "I think I would be the same way. Chris is actually taking the loss a lot better than I thought he would. He's not even that angry, bemused, really, but not angry necessarily."

"So he's not going to do anything retaliation?"

"Oh, I wouldn't say that."

Chris chuckled as Christian recounted watching the match last night, "I should have gone out there and helped you, if I would have known you couldn't even beat a rookie, I would have."

"Very funny," Chris said, "it was a lucky win, a fluke even, he won't be getting another win if I can help it. And to think, this is all because I refused to say his damn name. It's stupid anyways, who the hell or what the hell is a Fandango?"

"Someone who beat your ass last night," Christian said.

"Shut up, you don't get say around here just because your wife is a Hall of Famer, I do get my say because my wife runs the company."

"She couldn't run into your match last night so you could win?"

"Just shut your mouth," Chris said, "I'm leaving."

"Oh, come on, are you that mad, do you want to tango it out?" Christian asked as Chris shoved him in the shoulder. Christian's laughter was the last thing her heard before he stalked back to Stephanie's office.

"When is Fandango going on?" Chris asked his wife.

"Not until later, why?"

"Just making sure I know when his act comes on," Chris told her.

"So you can…"

"Give him a taste of his own medicine."

"Talking in clichés now?" Stephanie asked. "You're bitter you lost. You've been playing it up like you don't care, that you know it was a fluke win, but it really bothers you that he got one over on you, doesn't it?"

"Of course it does," Chris told her. "Do you know how angry it makes me? I'm a seasoned veteran, I'm a 6-time World Champion, and I let some rookie beat me, God, this feels like Cena all over again."

"Cena?"

"Oh yeah, that was before the two of us started dating, and it was while you were gone from the company. Cena, I had to fight him when he was a rookie and he got the better of me, and I hated it. I think I might have done something to him, but I don't remember. I'm not letting this go, I'm going to fight for it, I'm going to fight him tonight."

Stephanie just nodded as she looked at something, "I know you will."

"You're not even paying attention to me," Chris said.

"I run a company, do you expect me to hear every wrestler's complaint?" she asked, looking back up at him. She was wearing her glasses and she pushed them up her nose as she stared. He couldn't get mad at that face though. When she wore her glasses, she just looked adorably his, and it was difficult to get mad at that.

"I'm not just any wrestler though."

"Oh, I know, you're the guy who lost to someone who has never been to WrestleMania in a match before," Stephanie shrugged her shoulders as her husband fumed. She giggled a little bit. "I'm tempted to go overseas with the crews just so I might cross paths with Fozzy, how pathetic does that make me?"

"Groupie," he told her, coming over and hugging her shoulders, leaning down to do so.

"I believe the term is Floozy."

"And in all the time I've known you, you have always, _always_ lived up to that word."

Stephanie elbowed him in the stomach and he grunted as she made comment. He laughed and stood up, ruffling her hair a little bit. "I shudder to think what you would have done with a normal wife, one who stayed at home and cooked and cleaned for you. There's no way she'd put up with you."

"I wouldn't be around enough for her to bug me, that's why I married you," Chris said. "So I don't believe I got the exact time when Fandango is coming out…"

"Because we don't have schedules lying all over the place."

"You're awfully catty tonight, I don't like post-WrestleMania Stephanie, she's kind of frigid. Pre-WrestleMania Stephanie is hot as hell," Chris told her with a wink.

"Yeah, well that's over," she laughed, "and it's back to business, and it's back to being a single parent for a while."

"You know—"

"I know, I know," she told him, "you had this planned, but go ahead, go out there and beat Fandango or whatever it is you plan to do with him so I can get some work done."

Chris grabbed a stray schedule she had lying on her desk. "He's not even on until later in the show. Whatever shall I do with my time until then?" Chris set down the piece of paper and lifted a protesting Stephanie out of her seat, taking it in her stead and pulling her into his lap. "Much better."

"I'm doing work here," she said as he nuzzled into her neck. She wrapped her arms around his neck nonetheless as he kissed her just under her chin. "I'm trying to run a company and my husband can't keep his hands off me."

"Would you rather I be one of those husbands who _can_ keep his hands to himself?" Chris asked against her. She rolled her eyes though he couldn't see and ran her hands through his short hair, letting her fingers massage his scalp.

"I suppose not. But once you're done with Fandango, what then?"

"Oh, I don't know, I mean, I'm not going away forever, maybe I'll challenge Del Rio or Cena for their titles, become a 7-time champion."

"I would love to see the gold back around your waist," she said, "and the kids would love to see that too, you know they love when you're the champion."

"It's something to think about, I think I have a few good runs left in me, I feel better than I have in years, but it'll have to come until after the tour, not sure I want the same flak Rocky got when he was champion and not showing up."

"You're different, everyone knows you're pretty much here even if you're not wrestling," Stephanie pointed out. "That's different. They know you still love it here, and that you're all about the business."

"Be that as it may, people will always find something to criticize. It's something to think about anyways, kind of like that other kid issue…"

"We're not going back there, are we?"

Chris laughed, "I guess not, it's just with Trish and Christian _finally_ coming out about their pregnancy, it was making me think about how another little boy would be really cool, I mean, our son is turning seven in less than a month."

"Don't make me think about that because then I will want to have another baby. And there wouldn't even be a guarantee that it would be a boy, we could have another girl, and then you'll have four girls who can get you to bend to their whim."

"Four? Since when are you included in that?"

"Um, almost eleven years I'd say," Stephanie told him, pulling back and tilting his chin up. "Kiss me."

"Oh, so now you're ordering me to do things?"

"I'm proving a point, kiss me," she ordered again. He obliged this time, leaning up just that tiny bit to kiss her. She moaned against his mouth in pleasure while he smiled into the kiss. She pulled away and opened her eyes to look down at him, a soft, loving gaze hazing over her eyes. "No more kids right now."

He breathed a laugh, "Okay, okay, I guess I'll have to find someone else to have a son with me, but that's fine, I mean, I'd prefer it with you."

"I have to go."

"Oh, so I'm free to go find that woman _now_."

"No, you're not," she tapped the bottom of his chin with her index finger. "But the show is about to start and I have to get to the production table, and you…well, you don't really have to do anything since the kids are already out in their seats, right?"

"Yeah, I think my dad mentioned getting them nachos or something."

Stephanie frowned, "I hate when they eat junk food, why didn't they go to catering, there's plenty of food there and they don't have to pay for it."

"I don't know, they're grandparents, they spoil their grandchildren, it's like when your dad tries to give our kids hundred dollar bills whenever he sees them, I mean, who does that? I was lucky if I got a quarter from my grandma when I saw her."

"You know how my dad likes to show people up, this is just an extension of that. He wants to be the best grandfather."

"And of course, who thinks of giving the money to people who need it?" Chris said. "Our kid is so thoughtful, I wonder where he got that from, maybe he had a personality transplant when he was born, like, we got the right kid, but the wrong personality."

"He told me the other day that he wants to get presents for kids that don't have any for their birthday," Stephanie said, "that kid is going to change the world, and we're just going to sit back and act like we actually played a part in it."

"Oh yeah, I'm definitely going to revel, gloat, tell everyone that's my kid," Chris nodded. "This is all while denying that I even know Flynn. Kensington, she's still developing so we'll see."

"Yes, like Flynn is going to be anything but kick-ass."

"Okay, yeah, she will," Chris nodded. Stephanie got up off his lap and he pouted. "Now my lap is all cold, who will I get to sit in it?"

"If it's all about warmth, I'll go get Mark Henry."

"And I'm up, and I'm gone, I've got to…I don't know, plan my attack."

"Um, how about running out there and beating him up? That usually seems to work when someone wants to attack someone," Stephanie grinned at him before she slipped out the door. Chris just shook his head as he watched his wife leave.

Dolph slapped E on the shoulder, "You're going to break Bryan in half. It's not even going to be a match, you're going to tear him limb from limb."

"Make sure the first thing is his beard," AJ laughed.

"I'm getting revenge for last night, we should have won," E scoffed. "It's just a shame we didn't. Maybe I'll grab the belt and beat him with it."

Dolph laughed, "He deserves it after everything, I'm just sorry I didn't get you a little bit of revenge, babe."

"It's okay," she told him, brushing her hand over his shoulder. "I got a WrestleMania moment finally, it wasn't the best, but I got to take it all in. I got to stand there and listen to 80,000 people and hey, some of them were cheering for us." Dolph kissed her forehead.

"Don't worry, AJ, tonight, it's going to be all about us," E told her and she smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, tonight, we're going out there, E is going to win, and we're going to look stronger than ever. Hell, maybe we'll challenge them for the belts again, who knows."

"That'd be nice," AJ said, "that'd be really nice."

Soon enough, it was time for E's match where Dolph and AJ would be accompanying him. Dolph's music hit and E made his way out first (a new one for the three of them since Dolph usually led them out there) while Dolph and AJ followed. They stopped at the top of the ramp to pose for a second and Dolph's hand sought out AJ's. She smiled as she took it, loving that for once, she could just hold hands with her boyfriend while out there (not that she minded the Ziggle Wiggle).

They walked down the ramp, right behind Big E, maybe a little _too_ close to Big E as he flung his arms back and hit her right in the sternum. She was thrown back about a foot and Bit E looked guilty for a moment before he patted her on the back. Dolph was horrified as he heard the loud smack and looked over to see his girlfriend shaking it off. He pulled her into his body as if to shield her.

"I'm okay," AJ told him, but that didn't stop him from worrying about her. She seemed okay, but he was going to keep a close eye on her.

Big E climbed in the ring while Dolph and AJ stood on the outside. Dolph stayed close to her for a moment, wanting to make sue she was okay. "I'm fine," she insisted.

"He hit you hard, and I have to imagine that's like getting hit by a mack truck."

AJ threw her head back and laughed, "I'm fine," she told him, and he let it go for now as the match started.

Big E hardly needed their help, and they knew it would be the case. He was a lifting champion, and he tossed around Bryan like he was a little kid trying to play with the older kids. Sure, Bryan was able to get in a little offense, but barely, and he was always rebuffed. The one time he did manage to get somewhat of an upper-hand, Dolph and AJ were right there with the assist. AJ jumped on the apron like she would have for Dolph, while her boyfriend ran over to Bryan and tripped up his foot so he cam crashing down onto the turnbuckle.

Dolph laughed as he sauntered around the ring, unaware that Kane was stalking towards him. He turned around, and Kane was right there with a hand clasping around his throat. Dolph knew he was in trouble, but it wasn't for long as Big E literally threw Bryan at Kane, causing them both to fall down and Dolph to scamper away. Seeing that Kane was incapacitated, Dolph grabbed Bryan and threw him into the ring. This allowed Big E to hit his finisher (not that it was necessary really) and get the pinfall as Dolph and AJ celebrated on the outside.

That wasn't how things were backstage, however, because as soon as they got there, Dolph grabbed AJ's hand again and started pulling her down the hallway, "Wait, Ziggy, where are we going?" she asked.

"Trainer's."

"What?" she said, following him because he had a death grip on her hand as Big E trailed behind them. She looked over at her friend, but he just shrugged and followed Dolph. "Why?"

"I just want to make sure you're okay."

"Ziggy, I told you I was fine."

"Better safe than sorry."

"I'm sorry for that AJ, I mean, you took that like a champ, but I didn't mean to hit you."

"I know you didn't, if anything, I should have hit you back, I think that's only fair," she told him with a laugh. "I'm going to have a wicked bruise tomorrow though, but I'll wear it proudly."

Big E smirked, "You're going to take pictures and never let me live it down, aren't you?"

"Oh yeah, definitely, for sure," AJ nodded even as Dolph continued to pull her down the hallway. "Then I'll bring it out every once in a while to guilt you into things."

"Why don't I just offer to be your butler right now?" he asked. "I'll even do laundry, but if you find some bras missing…"

"Please, like you could fit into my bra," AJ said as they reached the trainer's room.

"Yo, Jim, can you look at AJ, please," Dolph said, pulling her forward.

"He's just being paranoid," AJ explained, "it wasn't even that hard a hit."

"I wasn't even looking at you and I heard it," Dolph said, "it was an accident, of course, but I just want to make sure she's okay."

"I've taken worse in the ring, I promise," AJ told him, but her boyfriend wasn't about to be deterred. She gave him a look, but he just shrugged and shook his head. They were at the point in their relationship where they could just talk with their eyes, and he wasn't about to lose this argument. AJ finally sighed and got onto the trainer's table and sat there, her legs swinging back and forth. "I still think he's being ridiculous."

"I'm being precautious, sue me," Dolph folded his arms as he watched.

"Well, you're probably going to have to take your shirt off," Jim said.

Dolph turned to Big E, "Sorry, big man, this is probably where you have to wait outside. I like you, but I don't want you seeing my girlfriend in her bra."

"Like the whole world hasn't seen that," AJ said.

"It's the principle of the thing!" Dolph argued.

"Don't worry, I'll go stand outside, look intimidating, see how many people run by me, it's fun when I intentionally start to go after them a little to see how fast they start going."

"That's what we pay you for," AJ said as Big E left the room. AJ took off her top and there was redness along her collarbone, it was faint right now, but it would probably develop into at least a small bruise tomorrow. Dolph looked at her appreciatively for a moment, licking his lips unconsciously. AJ caught him though and gave him a disgusted look. Jim poked and prodded along her skin and she winced just a tiny bit.

"It's just bruised," Jim told her, handing her, her shirt back. AJ slipped it back over her head. "If you want you can ice it later, but there's really not much you can do for bruises except to let it go away."

"So nothing is broken or anything."

"It was an _arm_, Ziggy," AJ hopped off the table, "thanks Jim, but I think we're done here, and my overprotective boyfriend thanks you too."

"What's so wrong with being protective of you?" Dolph asked as they walked out and met up with Big E again.

"Nothing, it's sweet," she leaned up and kissed his cheek, "but I'm fine, both of you, fine, totally fine."

Britt rubbed her forehead as she yawned. Today was just tiring, and with the lack of sleep, it only meant the night was dragging on. She passed by a hallway to the parking garage and saw Hunter just entering. He was limping a little bit and his hand was completely wrapped up and looked to be in a splint. She'd watched his match last night, and it was brutal to say the least. He'd gone through the gauntlet, but he'd come out on top, and that had to be great for him.

She'd been dealing with Phil most of last night, so she'd had no time to congratulate Hunter on his win, but this was a new day so she wandered over to him. "Hunter, hey!"

"Britt, hey," he smiled at her, walking over to her slowly, "you look…tired."

"Wow, when you're commenting on it, I must look bad," she laughed self-consciously. "It's been a long night, what with Phil losing and everything, I mean, you've been there with the Undertaker, you know how it is, I mean, we know how it is, I guess…man, I'm tired."

"Yeah, kind of makes you question yourself and why you ever thought you could beat him," Hunter chuckled.

"God, and I'm so mean, but how are you?" she asked, looking at him critically. "Last night was crazy. I heard that you really got hurt from your entrance."

"Yeah, I was burned, second degree," Hunter turned and lifted up his shirt a little, showing the gauze taped to his side. Britt's eyes widened as she took it how much of him was covered. "My God, Hunter."

"I know, it was a bitch trying to sleep on this," he said as she reached out and ran her hand over the gauze. It was such a soft touch he didn't even feel it really, but the fact she was touching him still did get him going."

"Oh, remind us to never try an entrance like that again," she told him, looking up at him. "Or at least to make sure that you're safe."

"It'll be fine, I have instructions on how to care for it, and my sister is actually staying with me for a while so she can help and all that."

"Good, I'm glad Lynn is there to take care of you although I'm surprised it wasn't your mom," she said.

"Oh, she wanted to, but she and I kind of had a fight over the weekend, and I'm not in the best place to deal with her right now."

"Is everything okay?" Britt asked. Hunter was one of the biggest mama's boys she'd ever seen so for something to go wrong in that relationship, it had to be pretty big. Pat had never liked her very much, that didn't stop her relationship with Hunter.

"At the Hall of Fame ceremony, Flynn came up and she was introducing herself and she's four so she has no filter and she was just saying how I used to be married to her mommy, but now she was married to Chris because he loves her, and my mom was convinced that Stephanie degrades me in front of her children, and it was this whole thing, and my mom just can't stand the thought of anyone not wanting to be with me."

"Oh, well, I hope everything gets sorted out soon," Britt said, "what about your arm, I heard that you were going in for an MRI soon?"

"Yeah, they want to see if I did any damage, it's painful, but it's more of a dull ache, hence the splint, they want to keep it immobilized as much as possible before I get it done."

"Are you happy you won though?"

"More than happy," Hunter said, "I know it's probably not over, I know that Brock is probably going to retaliate somehow, but I won this round."

"Yeah, I'm glad you did, it'd be weird without you," Britt shook her head, "since I don't know the extent they would have made you carry out that mandate, and I like having you around."

"I like being around, believe me."

"Well, I hope that you feel better, and I hope that nothing is seriously wrong with your arm, but if there is, let me know, I like to keep tabs on you," she said before her radio buzzed. "Such is life, gotta go."

Hunter was definitely getting used to this friends thing, and it was actually easier than he thought. The dull ache he got whenever she was near was starting to fade, and with time, he knew it would heal over and there would be no ache. He was proud of his progress, and though his body felt beaten and torn, his spirits were high, and he was taking today as a victory.

Dolph watched the match between Del Rio and Swagger carefully, just like he did every match Del Rio was in. He never knew when an opportunity might strike, and with time running out on his briefcase, if he even saw the smallest window for victory, he had to take it. He could hear the fans yelling, "We Want Ziggler," during the match, but he wasn't about to cow-tow to the fans, no matter how hard they yelled for him.

AJ was hung off his arm at the moment, her cheek pressed against his shoulder as she watched. Big E was perched on the arm of the couch in their locker room, and they were all silent as they watched the match. He could feel AJ's fingers running up and down his arm. She probably wasn't aware she was even doing it, but it distracted him from the match. The night before, right before they went to bed, she'd whispered to him that something good was going to happen for them, that their time would come, and her words were playing on repeat through his head.

Then it happened, the moment he'd been waiting for happened as Swagger twisted Del Rio's ankle like he wanted to rip it off. When the match was over, it was clear that Del Rio was hurt. Dolph pulled away from AJ's grasp and grabbed his briefcase. The other two people in the room stared at him and he turned to them, "Let's go, it's time."

"Are you sure?" AJ asked anxiously and he nodded. This was their moment. This was going to be their time to shine, he could feel it.

"You told me last night something good was coming our way, it's right now, babe, let's go."

They walked down the hallway with purpose. Eyes were all on them as they walked past, Dolph leading them as AJ and Big E trailed behind him. This was ultimately his moment. AJ hadn't been with him when he won that briefcase, but she knew how much it meant to him to win it, how it had really cemented him as a future champion. They walked past and AJ could hear Stephanie yelling to play Dolph's music, and she happened to glance over, and even Stephanie was smiling. Dolph deserved this.

They walked out and Dolph strode down the ramp. All he could see was Del Rio lying in the corner of the ring, vulnerable and ripe for the picking. He sped up as he got closer to the ring, not wanting to waste a second that could be spent winning. He didn't know the severity of Del Rio's injury so he had to take advantage quickly. He shoved the briefcase towards the referee and demanded his match.

The briefcase, long in his stead, was finally removed from his custody as Justin Roberts took it from him. He was not sad to see it go because he wanted the other object in Justin's arms, the World Heavyweight title. He wanted it and he stood back, beckoning, taunting Del Rio to get up. Del Rio struggled to his feet, unable to really find any solid ground, but when he took that first tentative step, the referee called the match, and Dolph immediately targeted the injured area.

He was relentless, making it so Del Rio couldn't even get up. That didn't matter to Dolph; he just grabbed Del Rio and hauled him up to his feet, hitting the Fame-asser. He covered Del Rio for the pin, hearing the entire crowd counting, he felt like he had it, but Del Rio kicked out at the last moment. Dolph sat up, angry that it hadn't been enough. Del Rio was going to put up a fight, was he? Well, Dolph would just have to go all out then.

AJ shook out her hands because they were shaking so hard. She'd never felt like this before, like she might have a heart attack or something. Her heart was pounding so hard in her chest, and it didn't feel like it was going to stop any time soon. She wanted to help Dolph, she wanted to grab Del Rio and hold him down so her boyfriend could get the pin, but she knew he wanted to win this on his own, and she understood his need to do that. It didn't make this any easier though. Her heart was with him, pounding in time with him, hoping against hopes that this night would render last night moot.

Dolph ran at Del Rio, trying to hit him, but Del Rio moved at the last moment, making Dolph hit the turnbuckle. He turned around, trying to get his bearings, but Del Rio mustered up whatever strength he had and hit an enziguri as Dolph dropped to the mat. But Del Rio was too injured to make the immediate cover, and by the time he got over to Dolph, he was able to kick out. Dolph struggled to his feet, as did Del Rio, but before Dolph knew it, he was locked into the cross armbreaker.

Dolph couldn't let it end like this. He couldn't let the briefcase he'd worked so hard for, the one he'd worked so hard to keep, he couldn't let it go to waste. He could hear AJ screaming for him, cheering for him, and he couldn't let his team down either. He couldn't let AJ leave New Jersey again with a bad taste in her mouth. He could not let the last nine years, the times when he'd had to be a caddy, when he was a cheerleader, he couldn't let that be for nothing. He'd worked too damn hard for this for too damn long.

He mustered up his strength and wrenched Del Rio's ankle, making the other man scream in pain. He did it again, freeing his other arm so he could twist Del Rio's entire leg. He got out of the hold, Del Rio staggering again. Dolph got up, breathing hard, all this attention on Del Rio. He was beckoning him to get up, to give him his chance. It was coming, he could feel it. It was so close. The dream was about to come true, everything he ever wanted was about to be right in front of him, and the tears of nine years were pricking at his eyes. Del Rio finally got up.

Zig Zag.

1-2-3.

World Heavyweight Champion.

AJ started crying the second he broke the hold and she stood back, almost near the barrier as he hit the Zig Zag on Del Rio. When the referee called the match and Dolph won, she jumped up and down, her hair flying around her as she flew into the ring. She covered her eyes for a moment as she watched Dolph drop to his knees. The crowd was going wild around them, a mishmash of sound that enveloped the three of them in the ring.

Dolph grabbed the belt he'd strove for, for so long and he looked at it. It was beautiful, it was historic, it was a hundred different champions rolled up into one and it was his, it was all his. He couldn't believe it, and he climbed up on the turnbuckle to celebrate. When he turned around, she was the only thing he could see, the only thing he wanted. She opened her arms, and he nearly ran into them.

He lifted her up as she cried into his shoulder, whispering nonsense words of praise that neither one could really ascertain. Big E hugged the both of them, getting in on the moment, but AJ and Dolph were too wrapped up in each other. E, recognizing they were having a moment, broke away from the two, and he was feeling emotional in his own way. AJ didn't want to let go of Dolph. She just wanted to hold onto him forever.

"I love you, I love you, I love you," she whispered into his neck.

"I love you too, this is our time, babe, ours," he told her as he pulled away to stare at the belt. AJ didn't want to let him go though, and she held on for as long as she could, leaning up to impulsively kiss his cheek because she was crying and proud.

They showed a replay on the Titantron and they turned to watch it again. AJ still couldn't believe it. So many times, being in New Jersey resulted in disasters for her, but they were all gone now, every bad memory of this place was instead replaced by this one, singular moment that she was sure to tell her grandchildren about.

Dolph couldn't believe this was real. He kept looking at the belt to make sure it was really his, and this time, nobody could strip him of it. Nobody was going to come in eleven minutes later and tell him that it wasn't his any longer. He walked back over to AJ and took her in his arms again as she cradled his head. They shared a moment right there in the ring and neither one cared that this was an intimate moment that everyone could see.

He finally broke away and hugged E as well. He never wanted to leave the ring, but there was still show to be had, and so he and his crew finally left and walked backstage. He wanted to celebrate with AJ, but everyone was actually standing back there and clapping for him, a response he never expected. But he'd worked hard for this, so hard, and they all knew it, and they could appreciate that.

He was about to celebrate with AJ, but she was being pulled somewhere and she gave him a wistful glance. He stood around as various people, including Stephanie of all people, came up to him to congratulate him. He wondered where AJ had been whisked off to, but before he could think about it further, he was being called into an interview with Matt Striker.

He walked over and started to give it, but out of the corner of his eye, he could see movement, and he was distracted as he saw AJ come running over, "Get in here, babe," he told her, and she squealed as she buried herself into his embrace. He took a moment to cradle her body against his and revel in the moment.

AJ could not contain her happiness and pride. She'd just given an exclusive interview of her own, and she planned on letting Dolph do this interview, but when he beckoned her over, there was no chance she wouldn't go to him. She wanted to hug him forever, but she eventually pulled away so he could talk. They were pulled away in the middle of the interview for another interview and Dolph tucked AJ into his side. He just wanted a moment alone with her, but it would just have to wait.

After his interview, and another interview, another body came into view and he smirked, "So how insufferable are you going to be at family holidays now?"

"Twice as insufferable as I am now," Dolph told his brother.

"I bet Mom and Dad are freaking out right now," Briley laughed, coming over and hugging his brother once AJ let go of him, which she didn't seem to want to do. "Don't worry, AJ, I'm not going to whisk him away."

"Shut up," AJ said good-naturedly.

"I'm proud of you," Briley said, "you may be a jerk brother sometimes—"

"You're my younger brother, it's practically the law that I treat you like crap," Dolph said as he pat his brother on the back. "One day, this is going to be you, except with another title because I'm not going to give this one up any time soon."

AJ beamed beside him as Briley rolled his eyes, "I'm glad I got to be here to see you win it, I may have gone a little, you know what, the thing that your girlfriend isn't."

"Don't say it around her, she's a little packet of dynamite," Dolph turned to his girlfriend.

"Oh, I know, and I'm getting the vibe that if I don't end this conversation soon and let you go off with your girlfriend, she's probably going to maim me."

"It's true, I'm going to, I'm thinking over the scenarios right now," AJ nodded.

"Okay, but after this, I'm buying you two dinner," Briley told them, "as long as it's under five dollars."

"Fine," Dolph said, as AJ started to pull him away.

"You're all mine now."

Chris waited patiently for his moment to arrive, and it didn't disappoint. Fandango hadn't expected him, and that made for the perfect ambush. Chris just couldn't let the upset last night be the lasting image of him against this man. He was going to get his revenge and it started tonight. He beat Fandango all around the ring, even taking the time to put JBL's hat back on. It was fun, and it was merciless, and that was just how he liked it. When it was over, he walked up the ramp, looking at the heap he'd left behind. His smirk was smug when he walked backstage and saw his wife sitting there. His children were with his parents again, watching the show from the audience and she just beckoned him over. He plopped down next to her and kissed her cheek.

"Did you have fun out there?" Stephanie asked him even as she continued working. She shot him a glance and he grinned. "I'm guessing that's a yes."

"What? The guy deserved it for all the times he did the same to me, payback's a bitch, just like my wife," he told her affectionately.

"So is that going to be your swan song before your tour or what?"

"No, you know, I think I have a couple tricks left up my sleeve before I leave," he told her, "I mean, we are filming SmackDown tomorrow, right, so it'll be before the tour, yes?"

"Yes, because then the rest of the week is going to be off for the company after this hectic week," Stephanie said, "and before we go overseas to do the tour."

"Where my wife will be traveling to be with her handsome husband."

"It's only a matter of coincidence," Stephanie told him.

"Oh, just coincidence that a tour was booked months and months ago to coincide with a tour _I'm_ doing?" Chris made a face like he was thinking very hard about all this. "Well, that is a big coincidence. I wish Sawyer could come though."

"He wishes he could too, but with summer coming up, he'll be back to traveling every week, you'll have to make do with your daughters."

"You know, we haven't sat Flynn down and told her that she can't travel starting next year because she's going to be in Kindergarten," Chris said as Stephanie started getting a little misty even thinking about two of her children being in school. Pretty soon, Kensington was going to be in preschool. Maybe that next kid thing wasn't such a bad idea after all. She missed having a baby around the house.

"I know," Stephanie said, "that's not going to be a fun conversation to have. She loves going to wrestling so much."

"I know, but she loves her friends, and I'm not really sure about the tutor thing, I mean, if she really hates it or something, I would get her a tutor, but we have to make sure she at least tries school."

"I think she'll be okay, we worried about Sawyer over the same thing and he loves school," Stephanie said, but she knew it was going to be different for Flynn. The only thing Flynn truly loved in this world was wrestling. Still, she could be around it, it was just going to be in between school. She'd loved wrestling when she was little, and she managed, although she wasn't sure anyone in the history of time was as obsessed with wrestling as her little girl.

"Yeah, we'll cross that bridge when we get to it," Chris agreed, "for now, I think we should go celebrate…after you finish your work of course."

"Celebrate how?'

"I don't know, we'll be cute, I'll take you out for ice cream."

"And the kids?"

"Oh, who needs them, they can go back to the hotel, and we can act like we just started dating," Chris told her and she laughed. "You think it's funny, but when is the last time we just did some silly, cute date."

"Two weeks ago when you took me out for pizza," Stephanie said, "and I got tomato sauce on my chin and you had to be all cutesy and wipe it off for me. I think if we'd been eating spaghetti, you would have pushed the meatball over with your nose."

"We watch too many Disney movies with our kids," Chris shook his head. "Okay, so you got me, we still do cute things, but indulge me, I just beat up a guy named Fandango."

"Okay, you're indulged."

Dolph sat on the couch staring at the belt that was now sitting on the coffee table. He'd lain it there as soon as they walked inside, and hadn't moved it. Big E had stayed for a while, but told them he was going to head on out so they could have their moment. He didn't leave without hugging the both of them and congratulating Dolph about a million times. Dolph was grateful, but once he left, he'd sunk into the couch. He hadn't showered nor had he changed out of his ring gear. Instead, he just sat there, his hair hanging over his eyes and his hands clenched together and held over his mouth. He hadn't said a word since E left, but it was as if he didn't need to.

AJ was next to him, her mascara smudged as was her eyeshadow. She'd started crying the second they entered his locker room, throwing herself into his arms and sobbing against him. He had black smudge marks on his chest because of her, but he didn't seem to notice them. Now she was just staring at him staring at the belt, her eyes flitting every now and then to the belt that laid before them. It still said Alberto Del Rio on it, but they'd been assured that tomorrow morning, his name would be put on it.

Nine years of hard work had culminated to this moment. Actually, no, it was more than that. It was the five year old who declared that he wanted to be a professional wrestler, it was the first wrestling class, it was working and working so hard to get better, to be the best. It was all the records he'd held in high school and at Kent State, it was all of that, and it was all the crap he'd had to wade through to get to this title. And he'd gone through a hell of a lot to be here, so much, and his journey was not marked with ease, it was with a constant chip on his shoulder.

"It's beautiful, huh?" he finally said.

She nodded eagerly, "And it looks gorgeous around your waist, like it fits there."

He laughed and turned to her, "You haven't even tried it on yet."

"Me?" she giggled. "It's yours."

"It's ours," he told her.

"No, you already had the briefcase before we even started seeing each other, and you worked so hard before we were together to get this, and you'll work hard long after we aren't."

"I'm not planning on that happening," Dolph pulled her into his side. "I'm still a little in shock. I don't…it's crazy."

"You're losing your voice," she ran the back of her hand over his stubbled cheek. She laughed and kissed his shoulder. "It'll sink in at some point. I don't think it's even sunk in for me, and I'm not the one with the belt. I just…it was all a blur, I was standing out there, so worried that you wouldn't win, but knowing somehow that you would, and just, I don't think I've ever been happier in my entire life."

"Me neither," he reached for her hand, lacing their fingers together like they were earlier that night. "Oh God, how's your chest?" He looked over at her and down at her chest, as if he could see through her shirt. She found it incredibly sweet that on a night where he was clearly overwhelmed with emotion, he still wanted to make sure she was okay.

"Fine, it's a little tender, but it's fine," she told him, "tonight is about you, babe."

"Still, you got hit, and—" She cut him off with a kiss, which he fell into easily. She pulled away and smiled lovingly at him. "Your makeup is all smeared."

"I don't care, you're the champion, I'm Mrs. World Heavyweight Champion."

"You were with Daniel when he was the champion, this isn't new territory for you," he laughed as she shook her head so violently her hair flew into her face. He brushed it out of the way so he could see her.

"It's different, he didn't even want to include me, I was just an accessory to him, kind of like the belt."

"You want to try it on?" his eyes lit up as he asked her.

"You've barely even worn it yet, you should put it on," she insisted.

"I'll get to wear it a bunch, go ahead, try it on, it won't fit you, but hey, you could try putting it around your boobs, see if that fits."

"You're mistaking me for some of the other divas," she said, staring at the belt.

"Go ahead, pick it up, babe," Dolph told her. She still wasn't reaching for it so he grabbed it and thrust it at her.

"I've held it before, it's just…different this time."

"Yeah, well, I'm not going to make you dance around me," he told her, smiling with no teeth in that way of his. She took the belt from him and it was as heavy as she remembered it, but this time she wasn't holding it above her head. She stood and put it around her waist, but even at the smallest setting it was too big on her, and she didn't have the hips to carry it. Dolph laughed as she held it in place.

"Do I look like a champion?" she asked, making what she hoped to be a tough face.

"Yes, you definitely look like a champion, in fact, it probably looks better on you than it does on me."

"Yeah right," she took it from around her waist and sat down with it, laying it in his lap as she hugged his arm. "So, you said once that when you won this, we were going to celebrate with champagne for you and sparkling cider for me, what are your plans now? Have they changed?"

"As long as you're there, babe, it doesn't even matter."

**April 15, 2013**

Dolph lost, and it sucked, and he was champion, and this was not going to happen again.

**April 22, 2013**

"_Your face looks cute."_

"_I've never seen the Eiffel Tower at night, I mean, I saw it during the day today, but I've never seen it up close and at night and…shut up," AJ said, turning her attention back out the window. "Oh, and Vickie keeps glaring at us."_

"_What?" Dolph said, turning to the front and seeing that indeed, Vickie was staring back at them like she wanted to kill them. "We should have just taken our own taxi there."_

"_No, we have to stay coordinated, especially after what happened with Rosa, not that it would happen with us," AJ grabbed his hand unconsciously as she went back to staring out the window. "Vickie's just jealous, did you see that interview she gave Striker?"_

"_Babe, I was sitting right next to you when we watched it."_

"_Oh yeah, I forgot, anyways, jealousy doesn't become her…not that much does," AJ said, in a tone that was just catty enough for Dolph to laugh. They went quiet again as the monument loomed larger and larger. When they finally parked, everyone was anxious to get off the bus and Dolph pulled AJ away from the mass of people, wrapping both his arms around her and leaning his chin on her head._

"_It's beautiful," AJ said with a deep sigh, "and romantic."_

"_Very," Dolph said._

"_Just the kind of place that you would…oh, I don't know, feel inclined to be proposed at."_

"_And me without a ring," Dolph told her and she giggled. "Did you know some chick married the Eiffel Tower?"_

"_What?" AJ turned her head so she could look up at him, "Married it?"_

"_Yup, it was on some documentary, she even uh…consummated the marriage," he laughed as AJ made a disgusted face. "I know, I know, at least I know the only tower you need is in my pants."_

_AJ covered her face with her hands and started laughing, turning around and burying her face into his hoodie as he hugged her. "You're so gross!"_

"_I'm just saying," he told her, but he hugged her tighter. "Come on, let's take some pictures because if I'm in the most romantic place in the world with my girlfriend, I'm going to take a picture to commemorate it."_

"_I just wish Nacho were here then we could take a family portrait, put it on our Christmas cards."_

"_A little early for that, babe," Dolph said as they walked over to where E was hanging out. They got him to take a couple pictures of them and AJ looked at them on her phone. "We're so awesome-looking."_

"_Yeah, we are," she said as she got an idea. _

"_What are you doing?" he asked, seeing her going into her Twitter app._

"_I'm sharing with the world."_

"I think you caused a Twitter explosion, all I see in my timeline are tweets about you, it's like I don't even exist anymore," Dolph said, scrolling through his phone. "Now everyone wants so much more of us all over the place, at least we did that photoshoot."

"Yeah," AJ said, looking over at him. "So…tonight you're going to face Chris again, you ready for that?"

"I know you want to be besties with Stephanie again, go ahead, babe, you guys can be friends and I just won't hang out with you when you're with her or if he's there, but you want to be friends with her again, so be friends with her."

"You wouldn't be mad?"

"No, I'm not going to choose your friends, that's just weird," Dolph made a face. "Be friends with whoever you want, babe, hell, if you wanted, you could be friends with your exes, but I don't know why you'd want that."

"I wouldn't," she said, "it doesn't matter tonight anyways, Stephanie isn't here."

"You kept tabs?" Dolph chuckled a little.

"She's usually in charge of these things, you keep tabs on who's going to be your boss during the evening," she tried to brush it away, but she kind of knew Stephanie's schedule, but only because Stephanie was her hero.

"You should be focusing on that battle royal later that you're in."

"I will, don't worry."

"You're at a disadvantage though with your size, I love you, babe, but you're tiny, which is convenient for me because I'm not the tallest guy, and you make me feel really tall," she made a face at him and glared. "I'm just wondering how you're going to fare."

"Very well thank you," she told him, folding her arms and sitting down next to him, looking over his shoulder at his mentions. "Wow, they do ask about me a lot."

"They love you, maybe even more than I do, which is weird because I totally get to see you naked…which means I've got more to love about you…"

"You're such a perv," she told him, shoving his shoulder and getting up. "I'm going to grab something from catering."

Chris sighed and looked at the floor, "I wish you could be here."

"I know, sweetie, I wish I could too, but you have to understand—"

"No, baby, I get it," he told her, "this is something really special for your mom, and I think it's absolutely cool that you and your mom and your grandma are there. I get it, this is important to your mom…I just miss you."

"I know, I miss you too, and I was really looking forward to seeing you, but, I mean, we'll see you soon. It's only until the 28th, and that's only about 5 days away then you'll be home, and you'll be here for at least a little while, right?"

"Yes, for a little while," he said, "I just really was looking forward to seeing my girls. You get really lonely on the road, and when you have someone like you in your life, and like Flynnie, and like Kensy, it makes it a little brighter."

"You're killing me over here, Chris," Stephanie said.

"I'm sorry," he apologized again, "I just miss my girls and Sawyer of course, but I know he couldn't come here no matter how much I wish he could. Are the girls with you, I didn't even think to ask?"

"Actually, there should be something arriving for you…right…about…now," Stephanie said. Chris was about to ask her what would be arriving when there was a couple knocks on the door.

"What is going on, Steph?" Chris asked as he stood up.

"Well, I couldn't be there, but…"

Chris gleaned onto what she meant in an instant, and the instant after that, he nearly raced to the door and threw it open. In front of him were his little girls, both of them grinning widely up at their father. Chris nearly dropped his phone as he knelt down and hugged them both to him as they threw their small arms around him. They were still in their coats so they must have just arrived and he kissed both their cheeks repeatedly.

"Daddy, we came to see you because Mommy couldn't come," Flynn explained.

"I can't believe you're here," Chris said, finally looking up to see who exactly brought his daughters. "Oh, hey, Dad. I didn't, I didn't expect you."

"It was Stephanie's idea, your mother is back with Sawyer in Florida while Stephanie is in Connecticut, and I'm retired, what better things do I have to do than to bring my granddaughters to see their father."

"We came yesterday, Daddy, but we had to keep it a surprise," Flynn explained, "were you surprised? Mommy said you would be."

"I'm so surprised," he said, hugging them both again. "I missed you too."

"Daddy, I miss you!" Kensington said, trying to push her sister out of the way. Flynn didn't like this and tried to push her back, but Chris broke it up before they could erupt in a fight.

"I missed you too," he told her, kissing her nose, making her giggle. Flynn made a very angry sound and he turned to her and kissed her nose as well, which made her brighten instantly. "I think I'm going to have a much better time tonight knowing you two are here."

"And we get to see wrestling," Flynn beamed, "and Daddy, Gamps said we can watch Fozzy and so did Mommy, but only if you want us to see you then we can."

"How long are you guys staying?" Chris asked his dad.

"Until Friday when we leave," Ted answered and Chris grinned. "Yes, yes, your wife thinks of everything, she got Flynn out of her classes before this, and she said that you'd probably like it if the girls got to stay a few extra days."

"I do," he said, picking them both up. "Have you guys eaten, do you want to go to catering?"

"Yeah, I hungry!" Kensington declared.

"Okay!" Chris said, "let me get you something before I have to wrestle!"

Dolph sat on the crate, just admiring the belt in front of him. He still couldn't believe it was his. Well, he _could_ believe it because he'd held it for two weeks. Even if it was just two weeks, it still meant so much to him to even be holding it. Every time he looked at it, he was reminded of all the trouble he had to go through to get to this point. The belt represented so much, and his name being on it, being in a place where names like Ric Flair had stood, it was amazing.

He gazed at it, not taking his eyes off it. He wasn't sure where his girlfriend was at the moment, maybe warming up for her match later, but it meant he could take a moment to just tell the belt how much it meant to him. That is until his girlfriend walked up and caught him. He nearly blushed at being caught talking to his belt. She asked if she should be jealous of it, but he'd seen his girlfriend naked wearing only that belt so no, there was nothing to be jealous of at this point.

He did tell her though that he really wanted her to win her match, to win the Diva's title because there was nothing better than the thought of the two of them together and holding the belts at the same time. This company needed a real power couple and Kaitlyn was no match for AJ. He'd teamed with Kaitlyn before, albeit that was a long time ago, and surely she'd probably improved since then, but AJ was better. He saw it back when he didn't like her very much, he could see she was talented.

He started to kiss his girlfriend, but suddenly her finger was on his lips and he opened his eyes, wondering what was going on until she pointed behind him. He looked and was startled to see Big E standing there. How the hell did he just show up like that? He told E that he was trying to have a private moment with his girlfriend and to stop creeping, which made E leave, thankfully. He turned back to his girl and started to kiss her again. Ever since Paris, everything felt slightly more romantic between them. He was about to deepen the kiss and _maybe_ cop a feel (he'd already been grabbing her ass while they were talking) when that voice was suddenly in his ear.

He should have known that Vickie would somehow ruin this moment, just like she ruined so many moments since he'd revealed his relationship with AJ. He couldn't believe how petty Vickie was, well, actually, he could believe it because she'd been petty towards others when he'd been with her, but that was always other people. Now it seemed he and his girlfriend were her number one target. Vickie's life was extremely sad if this was the only form of entertainment she had available. It made her pathetic, and Dolph wondered what her end-game was here. Did she think he and AJ would suddenly break up and he'd come crawling back to her because that wasn't going to happen.

She informed him, in the most disgusting, annoying way possible that if he should lose tonight, it would be a Fatal Four-Way for his title at Extreme Rules. Vickie really did get off on making his life hell. He couldn't help it if Vickie was in love with him and he didn't want her. He'd upgraded in every way with AJ, who, at this moment, looked like she really was about to go smash Vickie's face in.

"It's okay, babe," Dolph wrapped AJ up in a hug. "I'll win tonight, it'll be fine, I don't want you to worry about it, I want you to worry about _your_ match. I know you've got something up your sleeve, I just know you do."

AJ took a deep breath, "Why is she so insistent on trying to ruin our lives?"

"Because she's jealous," Dolph said, "she's jealous because you're younger and way prettier and hotter than she is, and she's jealous because I chose you, and I would choose you a million times over. That's all, that's why. It's on me."

"I can't stand her, Ziggy."

"Me neither, she's annoying," Dolph shook his head. "We'll just worry about me winning then we'll worry about you winning, alright?"

"Okay," she nodded. "Okay…"

Chris was feeling high right now. Not only did he get two good luck kisses from two of his favorite girls, but they were going to stay here until Friday. To top that off, he was getting a shot at a title shot, and he couldn't be happier about that. He wanted to win and take that title home. It would look nice around his waist again. He watched as Dolph and AJ walked down the ramp. He was happy they were happy, but he was still going to beat Dolph Ziggler into a pulp and win this match.

When it finally started, it went back and forth for a while, both men gaining their footing. They were so evenly matched at this point that neither one could really get any kind of upper-hand. At one point, Dolph slid out of the ring and beckoned AJ for a kiss, a little make-up for their constant interruptions from earlier. Unfortunately, that gave Chris the chance to get in a baseball slide to the back of Dolph's head. He would have to remember to focus on his match because he did not want a Fatal Four-Way.

Chris wanted one though. He wanted another shot at the glory, and to get that, he'd have to get through Dolph, and he could, he'd beaten him before, a number of times actually. Even though he had about a decade over the younger man, Chris felt better than he had in years, and he could go toe-to-toe with him. That wasn't necessarily a good thing though because Dolph kept kicking out of everything, plus Chris had to contend with his two little accomplices.

Chris had never been one to run in packs, so he didn't really know about how a group dynamic worked. He'd been with Chyna, but that was weird and he'd never really felt totally at ease with her. Then he'd been alone for so long, only tagging here and there with different people. Then there was Stephanie, and she tried to help, but Stephanie had a way of sabotaging herself, not to mention the entire time they were falling in love so they were kind of distracted. He'd never had an AJ or a Big E so any moment, they could pounce, and E got one on him, but not again. Fool me twice and all that. Chris continued to try and get the one over on Dolph, something he knew could happen, and he almost had it…until that damn Fandango's music hit.

Chris was expecting him, which gave Dolph the opportunity to capitalize on Chris's distraction. Before he could think about getting back into the match, Dolph hit the Zig Zag on him and won the match, sliding out of the ring quickly to get to AJ, who helped him walk after the tweaked knee he suffered during the match. Chris seethed. That Fandango was getting on his last nerve, and Chris was feeling any good will he may have had towards the guy disappear.

"Daddy, you didn't win," Flynn said sadly when he came backstage. She opened her arms to him and he lifted her up. "Because Faaaaaaaaaandaaaaaaaaaaango's music played, but Daddy, it didn't happen here, Britt said so."

"She's right, Chris," Britt said from where she was sitting. "He must have sabotaged the production truck or something because the music wasn't told to be hit on my end because why would I do that."

"It's alright, Britt, I should have expected it."

AJ just need a moment to herself. Tonight was a big match for her. She'd been wrestling here and there since she'd been with Dolph, but tonight was a huge step. After Nikki and Brie were disqualified after using "Twin Magic," there was an opening for the #1 contender for the Diva's title. Dolph told her time and time again to go for it, and she'd been so scared of it, but she couldn't figure out why. Why would she be scared of a lifelong dream? Maybe it was the failure, the thought of failure that got to her, but she wanted something to be proud of, she wanted a moment like Dolph's.

He fought so hard for that title, and she wanted to fight too. She wanted to fight and get the title and wear it proudly. It would mean so much to her to get that title. She heard a camera flash and looked up to see someone taking her picture, she frowned as they walked away. She was trying to think, to get into a mindset. She caught more movement out of the corner of her eye, and like the knight in shining armor he was, Dolph came over and wrapped his arms around her, leaning his head down on top of hers.

"You smell good," she told him.

"I showered," he responded. "What are you thinking about?"

"The match."

"I figured, you're going to do great, I know you are, I know you'll win."

"Such faith," she whispered.

"I've watched you wrestle, Jeannie," he told her quietly, "probably for a lot longer than you realize. It's going to be tough, but you can do it. You're better than all of them combined. Plus, how are we really going to be a power couple unless we both hold the belts?"

"I'll try my hardest."

"You always do."

Chris bided his time, and when it came, he pounced. He was done with Fandango and his stupid name and his horrible dance moves. When he walked up the ramp after his brief match against Regal, Chris went out there and took care of business. Fandango never should have even been on his radar, but the guy insisted, so Chris was only doing what Fandango wanted. He was making people talk about him, and what better way to do that than to throw him off a stage? He couldn't think of one so he did throw him off the stage.

He was about to walk backstage, but instead, he turned to Fandango's dancer, who was standing there, unsure of what to do. Chris walked over to her and extended a hand. She looked at him tentatively, frightened almost. It was probably a combination of him just throwing her partner off a stage and his wife being this girl's boss. She eventually took his outstretched hand, and he twirled her and pulled her in close. He winked at her before he dipped her, pandering to the crowd before he sauntered backstage.

"Daddy, you threw him!" Flynn said, running over to him and grinning this time, his earlier loss forgotten because her daddy got revenge. "Then you danced because you were a dancer!"

"I did," Chris told her. He grabbed her hand and let her twirl under his as she jumped up and down. "Wow, you're the best dance partner I've ever had."

"No, Daddy, that's Cheryl, duh," Flynn said, "Daddy, can we watch the rest of the show with you?"

"Of course you can, but it's getting late, so we have to think about bedtime and all of that," Chris told her, walking with her backstage. "You don't get to stay up all night just because Mommy isn't here."

"I know," Flynn said as Ted and Kensington came over. Kensington reached for Chris and he took his daughter into his arms, kissing her because she loved the affection.

"Daddy, you the best," Kensington told him, hugging his neck.

"For throwing a guy off a stage?"

"Uh huh," Kensington nodded.

"Okay, well, I guess I'll take that, it's not the belt, but it'll have to do," Chris laughed. He might not have gotten the title tonight, but he did get some revenge, and that would have to do…

For now.

AJ was having none of this bullshit walking down the ramp and preening like a peacock. This match was serious, and if they didn't want to take it seriously, she could use that. She was already in the ring before these other girls were even up the ring steps. Her boyfriend taught her work ethic, not that she didn't have any before, but he was the most dedicated man, and she couldn't help but pick up on that. As soon as the bell run, she sat back, hoping nobody would notice her, but there weren't a lot of people in the match to begin with.

She thought of her strategy and jumped up into Tamina's arms, looking at her like she was going to kiss her. Tamina shoved her off and instead, super-kicked her to the face. AJ dropped like a rock into water and sprawled out unconscious on the mat. Except she wasn't. She was perfectly fine. Yes, the hit hurt, she just got kicked after all, but it wasn't anything she hadn't taken before, but this was perfect. When her boyfriend said be smart, use strategy, this is what he had in mind.

So she laid there, completely aware of her surroundings. She knew when someone was eliminated when the crowd reacted, and it wasn't long before she could only feel one set of footfalls in the ring. Whoever it was, was coming towards her, and soon she was being dragged, presumably to the ropes. It wasn't Tamina because Tamina could pick her up so it had to be someone she could easily overpower. She let herself relax and become deadweight, playing up her unconsciousness.

She was lifted up and hoisted onto the rope, and she hung there before she turned the switch and stood back, seeing it was Layla who was dragging her. She promptly kicked her in the stomach and sent her flying through the ropes. AJ spun around the middle of the ring as she was declared the winner. She walked over to the ropes where Kaitlyn was sitting and blew her a kiss. Dolph was right, she wanted the title, and she wanted to hold the titles with her boyfriend, and she was going to make damn sure that happened.

"I knew you were faking!" Dolph swung her into his arms the second she was backstage. She hung around his neck as he nearly sent her flying. "For a second, I was about to run out there and check on you because I thought you really took it to the chin, but then I was like, no, my babycakes wouldn't go down that hard after a super-kick, I knew you were faking it."

"Strategy, right?" she lifted an eyebrow.

"God, there are so many reasons I love you, but right now, that win is number one," he leaned down and kissed her. "I'm so proud of you, when you win that belt from her, I'm going to be just as happy as you were for me."

Her face lit up like Christmas with joy unbounded. "I've never held it before."

"So we're with each other for our firsts," he winked at her and she threw her arms around him again. "I'm so proud of you, babe, you have no idea how much."

"I'm proud of me too, but I'll be even prouder when I hold the title."

"It's only a matter of time."

Chris yawned as he went over some song lyrics he'd just written. The light was on the lowest setting so he had to strain to his eyes to see his writing, but he couldn't turn it any brighter. The girls both wanted to sleep in his bed tonight, taking advantage of the space and the fact they hadn't seen him in a while. As a result, Flynn was sprawled over on the far side of the bed while Kensington was curled up in the middle. They were both fast asleep, but he wasn't that tired although it was technically the middle of the night. He ran a weird schedule with his tour so this wasn't unusual for him.

His phone rang, which was a little unusual until he saw the caller, "Yes, Stephanie?"

"So when am I getting the divorce papers?"

"What?"

"You know, the papers for our divorce," she told him, "I hope you'll be very happy dancing off into the sunset with your new wife."

Chris realized what she meant, "You just saw, huh?"

"Oh, you mean the heat and chemistry between you and Summer Rae? Oh yes, I just saw it," Stephanie told him.

"Summer Rae, is that her name?"

"You didn't even know her name before you extended your hand to her," Stephanie cooed. "Oh, Chris, honey, that's not how you woo a girl. Rule number one, you should really know her name before you dip her like that. And did my eyes deceive me or did you almost kiss her?"

"No," he told her.

"Are you sure, I was detecting vibes," Stephanie said, "I mean, I always knew you'd want to upgrade, but a blonde, a blonde who dances with a guy named Fandango? I always thought your second wife would be a step up?"

"It's not a hard step up from what I've currently got," Chris shot back, "plus, you traded way, way up from your former husband, or is this not where I remind you that only one of us has been married more than once? I found my soulmate on the first try."

"Soulmate? When was the last time you pulled me into your arms and dipped me?"

"Do you want me to give you tango lessons?" he asked.

"No, save that for your next wife, she's pretty, do you think the kids will like her?"

"There's no room for her in my bed, it's already occupied," Chris told her, "two girls, be jealous now, baby."

"Two girls, oh man, I bet they're gorgeous, right?"

"Only the two most gorgeous girls in the world I'm afraid," Chris said. "There's no room for you anymore. You've been replaced."

"Well, I think I can make the concession if their names are Flynn and Kensington."

"Wow, you sure are good at guessing, but I think my next wife will just adore them. I'm planning drawing up those papers tomorrow, quickie ones because I'll be getting married when I'm in Paris later this week."

"Ahh, romantic city without me."

"I'll have the girls with me, they'll be enough."

"Lucky girls."

"Lucky me. Thank you for that," Chris told her, "Thanks for sending them here, they were just what I needed, and just, thank you. I love you for that, but then I love you for a lot of things."

"I love you too, but don't leave me for any dancers, got it, I mean, I've got moves you've never seen, Jericho."

"No, you don't, we've been together for almost 11 years, there are no moves left I haven't seen, I just happen to like your moves the best."

"Better than Summer Rae's?" Stephanie asked coyly.

"Well, no, that's why she's the 2nd wife," he told her with a laugh and he loved hearing her laugh on the other end, even though she was thousands of miles away. "Don't worry though, I'll always think fondly of our time together."

"That's all I ask. So…are you ever going to think title again? Because I'd love it if you would."

"We'll see, baby, we'll see."


	416. The Admirer, April 29, 2013

A/N: Thanks for reading, I know a lot of you read, I can see you out there! :P Anyways, got distracted by baseball, pushed this out, hope it's okay, enjoy! :)

* * *

Britt ran straight into Punk's arms, hugging him tightly as he swung her around. She couldn't believe how much she missed him while she was in Europe. She had a great time coordinating and running the shows, and an even better time hanging out with some of the divas and superstars, but it was a long tour and she was glad to be home. Punk held her small form against him and kissed the top of her head.

"I missed you," she admitted against his neck and he laughed. "Shut up, I'm allowed."

"I didn't miss you at all," he told her and she kicked his shin. "Hey, hey, hey, I'm not ready for any matches yet."

"I'll give you a match," she told him, pulling away from his grasp and putting her feet down on the ground. It gave her the distinct height disadvantage since Punk was more than a foot taller than her, but she tugged on his hand and pulled him down for a kiss. "How are you feeling? Better?"

"Well, no, my girlfriend was gone for almost two weeks, how do you think I feel?"

"Unsatisfied?" she joked. "But really, how are you doing? Stephanie said you didn't have to go back until you were ready—"

"A perk of being friends with the President, finally, being friends with her pays off," Punk scoffed. "Well, except that she has the coolest kid to walk the planet."

"You should call her, she would be so happy to hear from her best friend. Last I heard, she was worried about you. That's what Chris told me when I saw him at Raw. Flynn was there, and one of the first things she asked was where you were."

"I think I will, maybe I'll even give her a visit," Punk said with a shrug, "if anything would make me feel better, it's her. That's so weird, someone's kid actually makes me happy, I usually hate kids."

"I know you do, I mean, you're not exactly nice to all kids," she pointed out, "so, I have work, will you be coming with me when I go to Columbus on Monday?"

"I don't think so," he told her.

"Phil…"

"I'm burnt out, Britt, I'm burnt out and I'm just…losing to the Undertaker, I didn't even take it into account. I know who I am, I know what I do, and I know I'm better than a crotchety old guy with knees like Jell-o, that's what gets me, I know I'm better, he got the best of me _one_ time and suddenly he's the best ever. _I'm_ the best in the world."

"And people still see that," she told him, bringing her hands up to cup his face. "Losing one time doesn't define you, just like losing to Rocky didn't define who you were, in fact, I think more people saw you as heroic after that."

"What?" he scoffed. "Britt, come on, don't insult me."

She gave a little snort, "I'm not, people were angry Rocky won because he's not around, people rallied behind you, they know how good you are, nobody can deny that, _nobody_."

"I'm not even sure—"

"No, no, we are not having you fall into an existential crisis," Britt told him firmly. For someone so small, she could seem so intimidating. "No shame spirals here. There's a long list of guys who lost to Taker at WrestleMania. You aren't the first, and I've got a strange feeling you won't be the last either. You're going to take it in stride, but if you want to take your time, do it, but do it for yourself, do it because I know you have injuries you're hiding—"

"I'm not—" He interrupted her.

But she interrupted him right back, "No, I wake up next to you, I see how you are, and I can only imagine how you were when I wasn't here because you didn't have to pretend like waking up wasn't difficult. So rest up, Stephanie gave you time off, take advantage of it. I wasn't saying you had to come back and wrestle, in fact, I'd rather you not until you're healed up from whatever is bugging you, multiple things if my eyes don't lie. I was just wondering if you wanted to be there."

"No, I don't want to be there, I'm still…not in the right frame of mind."

"Okay, that's all I needed to hear, have you at least been out, doing stuff, being yourself again."

"Yeah, of course."

"I'm going to call Colt, and I'm going to ask him, now are you telling the truth?" she asked coyly.

"You're the worst," he said, "yes, I did go out, yes, I went out with Colt, yes, he tried to cheer me up in the way only he could, which is to act like my idiot best friend, even when it doesn't make me feel better."

"I get it, you're still surly and cantankerous," she made a face at him. "At some point though, you will come back, and you'll be fine and better than ever, and everyone will quake in your presence, is that what you need to hear?"

He rolled his eyes, "No…"

"Yes," she grinned at him, "now, my hours are incredibly screwed up, so I was going to take a nap unless someone could think of something better to do in bed than sleep…if you find someone who might know what that is, tell them to come find me…in bed…where I will be."

Punk could take a hint.

Dolph helped AJ inside the car where she promptly fell across the backseat. "Just leave me here to die, Ziggy," she mumbled into to the seat cushion.

Dolph held in his laugh as he tugged on AJ's hand, making her sit upright. She groaned unsteadily as Dolph hooked her seatbelt. He looked to the front seat where his dad was chuckling. "Thanks for picking us up, Dad."

"I'm guessing jet lag hit her pretty hard," his father nodded towards his girlfriend, whose head was leaning all the way back as Dolph clicked her seatbelt before closing the door and climbing in the front seat.

"She only got an hour of sleep last night, actually, I'm not even sure you can call it last night, I'm a little disoriented too. She only slept one hour at the hotel, and she barely slept on the flight, she's pretty much dead on her feet."

"And you?"

"I managed to get some sleep, not a lot, but enough, we'll probably both crash when we get home, well, I'll crash, she's pretty crashed already." He looked into the backseat as his father started to pull away from the curb and start home. They landed in Cleveland, but they would drive the couple hours to Columbus tomorrow for Raw with his parents coming to the show, along with his brother. AJ was already leaning against the window, fast asleep.

"So where's the belt, I want to see it," his father asked eagerly. "I've been bragging to pretty much everyone I know, they have no clue what I'm talking about, but they seem impressed either way."

Dolph laughed, "It's in my bag, I don't walk around with it all the time, Dad. I mean, I totally could and I'd look good doing it, but I hold it back every once in a while."

"Nice to know you've humbled yourself since your win."

"Dad, you knew I wasn't going to change for anything," Dolph told him, glancing back at AJ again to see if she was okay. He should have given her a hoodie to put her head on, but she seemed okay so he turned back to his father, who was smirking. "What?"

"You keep looking back at her."

"I'm just trying to make sure she's comfortable," Dolph shrugged, "she needs the sleep, we have to go to Raw tomorrow, and she's going to be exhausted because we're not going to be over the jet lag."

"And won't you have to wrestle?"

Dolph shrugged, "I can handle it."

"But your girlfriend can't?" his father asked knowingly.

"She can, but I'd rather she get some rest," Dolph looked back again to check on her, but she hadn't moved since the last time he checked. "She had a good time though, there were places she hadn't seen, that I hadn't seen, it was cool to get to be a tourist a little bit. We got an off day a couple times."

"And I'm sure you took full advantage."

"Well, sure," Dolph shrugged, "getting to see the world with my girlfriend, what could be better? I mean, being the World Champion, sure, that's the best part, but it'll be even better when she gets the Diva's title."

"You really want that for her, huh?" his father said, still with that knowing look on his face.

"Of course I do, she deserves it, she's amazing in the ring, people don't get to see it too often, but they'll see. She's actually picking up things from me, and that's awesome, she's totally dedicated."

His father nodded, "So when are you going to make an honest woman of that girl?"

"Excuse me?" Dolph stared at his father like he'd grown another head. His father just glanced over at him, tilting his head slightly before going back to looking at the road. "What makes you suggest I'm even there? We've only been together for like six months."

"Sometimes it only takes minutes to know."

"Dad, we've only been together for six months, that's a _little _ahead of where we are right now. I mean, we're having fun, we're doing our thing. I love her, but let's not get ahead of ourselves with that."

"Yeah, sure, sure…"

"Okay, maybe I've thought about it," Dolph rolled his eyes as his father laughed at him. "I love her, whatevs, it's not a big deal or anything."

"Of course it is."

"How's Nacho? Was he okay with you guys? We missed him," Dolph tried to change the subject to something innocuous. It wasn't like he hadn't thought about marrying AJ, he had, but it was still not anywhere near where they were right now. He knew AJ was special to him, but he had to make sure she was the one. She was well on her way there, and he could picture her being the one, he just needed to be sure.

"Subtle on the subject change. He didn't get eaten."

"Well, good," Dolph said, once again checking to see if AJ was awake and heard that their dog was alright. She was still sleeping though. He went back to his seat and saw his dad glancing over at him again. "Stop it, Dad, it's nothing."

"We'll see."

"You won't see because—"

"I'm not saying now, but I am saying she makes you happy, that's obvious, and I think you should remember that when you think about things. Think about who makes you happy."

"Oh God, Dad, come on," Dolph nearly gagged, "cut it out with the deep stuff. AJ is…she's AJ, she's…well, just…I can't explain her, but that's what she is. She's mine, I love her, yes, I've thought about it, but it's a discussion I'm having with her,"

"I couldn't agree more. But I will expect an invitation to the wedding."

Dolph just groaned and closed his eyes, falling to sleep a few minutes later.

Flynn ran to the front door and tried to peer through it, but she couldn't quite reach. Her daddy was coming home today and she wanted to see him, but he wasn't here yet. She missed him even though she saw him a couple days before. She felt someone next to her and looked over to see her sister standing next to her, on her tiptoes as well.

"What you doing, Finny?" Kensington asked, trying to peer over the glass too, but, being considerably shorter than her big sister, couldn't even get close to glass so she ended up with her nose to the door.

"I'm waiting for Daddy," Flynn told her. "He's coming home and I wanna see him."

"I do too," Kensington tried even harder to see over the door, but she couldn't will herself to be taller. "Put me up."

"I can't pick you up, I'm not allowed," Flynn said, but Kensington looked at her so she sighed and went to her sister and tried to hoist her up. Her sister was getting bigger and unwieldy so Flynn's attempt at picking her up was not exactly successful.

"What's going on here?" Loretta asked as she came into the foyer.

"I'm helping Kensy try to see the window," Flynn explained in exasperation. "She's bigger now, she's not a baby, but except she is a baby because she's littler."

"Why are you trying to look out the window?"

"For Daddy," Flynn said, putting Kensington down. "He's 'pposed to be here today and he's not here yet, and Mommy is gone too."

"I know, but she had business," Loretta said as Sawyer wandered downstairs from his room.

"Sawa, ups!" Kensington said, extending her arms towards her brother. He came over and picked her up.

"What's going on, Kensy?" he asked her.

"I wanna see there," she told her brother, pointing towards the door, which opened as if magically and her jaw dropped as her daddy came into the room, dropping his bag before looking up and seeing four people standing there.

"Whoa, what are you all doing in here?"

"We were waiting for you, Daddy!" Flynn skipped up to him. He picked her up and hugged her. "I missed you, but I think Sawa missed you more, didn't you, Sawa, because you didn't see him for days and days and days."

"I did miss you, Dad," Sawyer came over and tried to hug his father, but with Kensington in his arms, it made it difficult. Loretta came over to help, grabbing Kensington from Sawyer so he could hug his father. "Dad, guess what, I know what I want to do for my birthday party on Saturday."

"You do?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, I'm going to give all my presents away. I was talking with Mom, and I wanted to do something nice for all the kids who don't have nice things because Mom was telling me about all the things John Cena does even though she doesn't really like him that much because she said he's kind of not nice to grown-ups, but he's nice to kids and he does lots of nice things, and I want do nice things too."

"I know you do, you always want to do nice things," Chris ruffled his hair. "You want to give your presents away, all of them?"

"Uh huh," Sawyer said, "Mom also showed me this video about a kid who started this big project and it became a charity, and the girl was only five years old, and she helped a lot of homeless people. That means I can do it too because I'm going to be seven."

"You sure can, if you want, but are you sure you don't want anything?" Chris asked his son.

"Nope. I already have a lot of things," he shrugged, "and you and Mom buy me lots of stuff anyways."

"I'll take his presents," Flynn declared. Why wouldn't her brother want presents? She loved presents! She was kind of hoping her daddy had presents with him right now that she could have. He tended to bring them things when he was away from them.

"I think that's really great of you, kid," Chris told him, giving him another hug. "That's what makes you such a special kid, and all the children you're going to help are really going to appreciate it."

"Mom said we could also go shopping for more things."

"Absolutely we can do that, I'm proud of you, you know that, right, like, I think I'm more proud of you than I was of myself when I won the Undisputed title," Chris told him, leaning down so he could kiss the top of his son's head.

"Wow, Dad, that's a lot because you talk about that _all_ the time," Sawyer said, which made Chris laugh and his mother snicker.

"I know, but this is even better," Chris told him, "so come on, I've been gone for a while, I want to hear everything I've missed!"

Dolph studied his girlfriend as she chose the outfit she was going to change into. She kept staring at her tops, not knowing which one to wear for the show. He came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her bare waist. "Go with the pink one, I like that, plus, if you decide tonight is the night you want Kaitlyn, you're ready to go."

"Tonight?" AJ said. "No, God no, I need to get the mental edge over her."

"The mental edge?" he wondered.

"Of course," AJ said, turning around in his arms. "It's kind of like the mental edge we had over Cena and Vickie before we turned on them, well, at least when I turned on Cena, you didn't exactly have a choice when you turned on Vickie, and in hindsight, we probably should have mapped that one out better."

"You mean you shouldn't have leapt into my arms and made out with me in front of her and everyone in the arena?" he asked, pretending to be incredulous.

She giggled and covered her face, "Probably not, but it worked, didn't it? I mean, not so well because she's _still_ trying to make your life a living hell. I don't understand here, you guys weren't intimate, you guys weren't together, why is she so obsessed with making you pay for something when all you did is get with your girlfriend?"

"Because she thought of me as her property."

"That's it?"

"Does there have to be more?"

"I'm surprised she let Teddy Long make this match when it's so clearly in E's favor," AJ mused. "He can crush both Ricardo and Zeb, he can do it in his sleep if he wanted to, and we both know he's a pretty heavy sleeper if driving with him is any indication."

Dolph laughed, "Yeah, I know, but maybe she thinks they'll gang up on E, like that would stop him, do they know how much he presses?"

"What kind of match do you think you'll ask for if you win?" AJ turned to look at him. "Maybe something like a Tables Match? I'm really good at putting guys through tables."

"Yeah, I'd rather you not kiss Del Rio or Swagger before you do that though," he told her and she frowned at him before he caught her lips in a kiss. "I'm just saying, Punk and Daniel might have been fine with you kissing the other, but I'm not, keep that in mind."

"Okay, no kissing Del Rio or Swagger," she nodded her head, hugging him around the neck. "What if I want a match at Extreme Rules, maybe Kaitlyn and I can have a street fight. I think I'd love to hit her in the head with a trash can, that would be for kissing my boyfriend."

"We weren't exactly together at that point, babe, in fact, I kind of didn't like you…plus, you were the one who caught me so that was kind of awkward."

"It was awkward because I was probably going to make out with Primo, like what was I thinking, right?" she giggled and turned to grab the pink top, "I've got to get dressed if we're going to be out there. I really hope I get to see Kaitlyn tonight, I'd love to rub my win in her face a little bit more."

"I'd love to see that."

"Maybe you will if you're lucky." She pulled the top over her head and got it situated over her small chest. God had not been kind enough to give her much in the way of endowment, but at least it meant she wasn't bouncing around. She grabbed Dolph's hand as they went to meet Big E before his match.

Dolph didn't need to give E any encouraging words because the man didn't need it. He was a monster, and there was nothing Dolph could say that would change what he was going to do out there. They entered the arena behind E, letting him use his own music as Dolph took AJ's hand, making sure they were a respectable distance from E this time around. She didn't need a repeat bruise on her chest from him.

"You're too overprotective," she whispered as they held back from E.

"I'm just making sure your sternum never really gets shattered," he told her as they walked around the ring to the announcer's table. Swagger was already out there and Dolph sent him a dirty look. He'd once been good friends with the guy, but that relationship soured once they had to fight over who got Vickie's attention. He should have just let Swagger have it.

"You're so kind," she said, pulling her hand away as she stalked the sidelines like a cat looking for a nice, little mouse to play with. Something he had to admit was this girlfriend was independent and could more than take care of herself. He liked to be the kind of guy who could take care of his girlfriend, but AJ kind of obliterated that in some ways.

When they first started dating, she'd been so broken down, he kind of felt like a savior to her in a way, which was probably not a very nice thing to think about his girlfriend, but she'd never been treated nicely before. He was happy to be the guy who treated her like an actual human being, to treat her well and make her feel wanted because he wanted that. It took a long time, but he was seeing she was finally at the place where her confidence was getting higher by the day, and as such, her independence and her killer instincts were taking over. He was happy to see it. As much as he loved taking care of his girlfriend, he loved seeing her take care of herself.

"Get your head in the game," AJ told him as she breezed past him and he smirked at her as Del Rio's music hit and the man and his sidekick came down to the ring in the most annoying looking pants he'd ever seen. Dolph rolled his eyes at the duo and pulled his girlfriend closer by the hand the next time she walked past.

"My head is in the game."

"Good, we want you to be able to choose the stip," she said as the match began. Swagger looked like he was going to come over to them and Dolph protectively put AJ behind him, but Swagger thought better of it.

Watching a match was never as fun as being in a match, especially when the match meant something to you. Dolph could see the merit in making the match, but still thought it was stupid. Why not just let him choose the stipulation because he was the champion? Still, he was confident in E, and it was evident from the start that he would dominate the match, and he did. Colter was a chickenshit, and pretty much did nothing but stand on the apron, and Ricardo was _too_ foolhardy, trying to start something up with Big E.

E was no match for him though, and E immediately went in for the kill. It was only because Ricardo managed to get out of the way that E was brought down, which allowed Ricardo to get in some offense, and Colter actually got some in as well. It was very soon after when everything started to unravel. Suddenly, Colter was grabbing at his knee, Swagger jumping in to check on him. Then Ricardo was throwing buckets at E, which only made him angry and didn't affect him at all.

Del Rio ran in to try and head off E, but Dolph saw this, and ran into the ring, throwing Del Rio out of it. Swagger, not to be outdone, grabbed Dolph and threw him over the ropes. E, seeing this, clotheslined Swagger out of the ring, but not without taking himself out too. Colter, seeing Ricardo lying there, crawled over to try and get the pin. AJ, who was on the outside, threw herself into the ring and into the referee's arms in order to stop the count. She gave the innocent look and was just getting out of the ring when Ricardo got the pin. She turned incensed eyes to the ring, but Ricardo was hustling his ass out of it faster than she'd ever seen his stupid face run.

AJ was the angriest when they got backstage. She was a little fireball, and when she was let loose, she couldn't be contained. She grabbed the nearest chair she saw and flung it as hard as she could down the hallway. Dolph raised his eyebrows and grabbed his girlfriend's arms before she could find any more furniture to throw. "Babe, babe, calm down."

"That's not how it was supposed to go!" she cried angrily, staring up at him with her dark, doe-like eyes. Right now they were reflecting fire.

"It's okay, any stipulation I'm going to win, I'm too damn good, remember?"

"I'm pissed."

"I can tell," he told her, pulling her into him and hugging her. "It'll be fine."

She nuzzled into him, "If you say so."

"I do say so."

There wasn't a lot of time to rest for the trio, not with Dolph being put in a champion vs. champion match against his old nemesis, Kofi Kingston. Dolph was so used to being in the ring against Kofi that he didn't even feel the need to think about the match. Besides, you couldn't really predict what a match with Kofi would be like, not with the man's move-set. He could break out something nobody had ever seen before and that made him dangerous, but there was a reason he was the World Heavyweight Champion.

He proved the reason every single week.

The match was back and forth for a long time, but with his crew there, his girlfriend and one of his best friends at this point (E was a great guy when you took him out of the ring, he was just ferocious inside of it), Kofi was just no match for him. At one point, he was pinned, but he felt small, familiar hands grabbing his foot and putting them on the rope. He smiled to himself during his match, right there in the middle of it because his girlfriend was cunning and smart (and really cute, that's why he had to have a kiss from her right in the middle of his match).

In the end, he won, of course, because he was the World Champion, and he was going to eventually win matches like this. AJ climbed in the ring, and attempted to give him the belt, but he hugged her first because she was always more important than the belt. AJ beamed as her boyfriend hugged her. They were about to climb out of the ring when E, who was still pissed from earlier, decided to take out his frustrations on Kofi, not once, but twice. Dolph and AJ didn't care, and walked up the ramp with E, happy as clams.

They started backstage, exchanging pleasantries when they ran into Natalya and Kaitlyn. AJ made a crack about the size of Kaitlyn's man arms, and Kaitlyn retaliated with a crazy joke. Dolph was about to say something when his girlfriend took care of that for him, sticking up for herself and telling Dolph to hold her back. He grabbed her small arm and held it just tightly enough to think he was really holding her back. If AJ got into a fight right now, he might not stop it because well, he was a guy, and it didn't hurt to see his girlfriend all hot and bothered.

Kaitlyn tried to rip into AJ, but her arguments were so flimsy, and Dolph knew that Katilyn was running scared. She put on all this bravado, but everyone standing there knew AJ was the better wrestler. One of the production guys came over with a gift and AJ took it from the guy and told Dolph he shouldn't have. Dolph didn't and he told her as Kaitlyn snatched it from her hands. AJ gave her a dirty look, but walked off with Dolph and Big E, glancing back every now and then.

"You're not supposed to watch," Dolph told her, grabbing her hand and dragging her away. "You're supposed to make her think that you have no clue what could possibly be in that package."

"You mean the ugly hat that matches her ugly bracelet," AJ scoffed, "I knew she would like that, she would, she's always had really tacky taste. I think that's why she likes Cody of all people, talk about doing things in poor taste."

"Not everyone can be as hot as me, babe," he said cockily, grabbing her hand. "You really think this is going to throw her off her game?"

"Mental edge, remember?" she said, winking at him. "If we make her think that she's got a poor, little secret admirer, hell, maybe if she actually thinks it's Cody…"

AJ stopped for a moment and closed her eyes. "Maybe you know, if things weren't so bad, I would be doing this to get my best friend someone to make her happy."

"Babe, don't dwell on that, just dwell on the title that's going to be around your waist sooner than you think," he told her, "you had to do what you had to do, alright? And hey, if this gets to be hard for you, or you don't want to do it, you'll find someone to pawn it off on, that's the great thing about this company, you can always point the blame elsewhere and people will believe you. Look at the Ryback, he keeps blaming Cena, but it's really his own fault."

"Don't let him hear you say that," AJ giggled, back into a different frame of mind. She'd come up with the idea to mess with Kaitlyn's head. She wanted to throw her off her game, and this seemed the best way to do it. Still, Dolph was right, if it got too hard, she would find a real secret admirer for Kaitlyn, and who knew, maybe that could actually bridge the long standing gap between them.

She wouldn't hold her breath though.

Stephanie walked in, exhausted and tired, but happy to see her family sitting on the couch, well, sitting might not be the right word. Kensington was lying down on one cushion, curled up while Flynn was sprawled out on the floor, her head in Chris's lap as she watched wrestling, and Sawyer was sitting in the loveseat. "Hello, family!"

"Mommy, you're finally home, come watch," Flynn said as Stephanie came over and watched the screen for a moment. She saw the Great Khali and Natalya and wondered what was going on. She'd had a big summit this morning over an agreement with Yahoo to have a Raw pre-show, so Raw wasn't an option. Chris opted not to go without her, so the entire family was home on a Monday for once, something Sawyer looked to be appreciating. It had to be difficult for him to watch his family go off without him every week.

"What's going on?" Stephanie asked, sitting next to Chris and leaning her head on his shoulder.

"Hey, how was the thing?"

"Great, met a lot of great people, got some new connections, I was your regular run-of-the-mill lady in charge. So what's been going on with the show now that I let the inmates run the asylum. I expect that Vickie has nearly burnt everything my family ever stood for to the ground?"

"No, although I wonder why she hasn't put the moves on Maddox yet, you'd kind of expect her to, what with still wearing the 'Cougar' necklace."

"Very funny, wait, is this…is this a dancing thing?"

"Dance-off to be precise. I think it's pretty clear now that the show needs you in its presence. There was also a tug of war that you missed."

"There was a _tug-of-war_ during my show? Who could have possibly…Vickie, I swear to God! What is she doing? This is incredibly stupid. Have there been good matches?"

"Yeah, some good ones," Chris said as Fandago was asked about him. "What the…"

"Daddy, they're talking about you!" Flynn pointed out. Fandago went on to say that Chris was clumsy on Dancing with the Stars. Chris scoffed and looked at his wife, who just shrugged. He sucked at his teeth a little bit. "Daddy, he didn't say you were good at what you did."

"Yeah, Dad, he insulted you," Sawyer piped in.

"He did at that, I didn't think you were clumsy, for the record, and you can dance circles around him if you were given Cheryl. He's a pretender, you were the real deal, sweetie," Stephanie reminded him, hoping to get that look off his face. It was like he was ready to explode. "I'm guessing that whatever this thing is between the two of you isn't over."

"I thought it was over when I beat his ass down, but he keeps on coming back like a really gross fungus that grows in your shower. What the hell do I have to prove to this guy? He beat me once, and it was a fluke win, and he's riding that all the way through the company. I'm pissed what he said, what gave him the right."

"What are you going to do? Are you going to pursue this? You're technically signed for the rest of the year so you can actually come and go as you please, that is if you want. But really, do you think you want to come back and go after Fandago again? Don't you think you'd be better served going after a title or something?"

"This guys is making it personal, I have to defend myself against his stupidity."

"So no belt then?"

"No, I want to teach this guy a lesson once and for all."

"How, though, how are you going to do that?"

"I haven't figured that out yet, but when I do, it will be something alright, it'll take him down for good."

"Go, Daddy!" Flynn exclaimed.

"You're going to really show him how to say his name," Sawyer giggled.

"He won't forget me any time soon, believe me."

A ladder match.

Del Rio was stupid enough to choose a ladder match.

Sure, Del Rio and Swagger both won ladder matches, but Dolph won a ladder match last December against Cena and the Money in the Bank ladder match in July. His match against Cena was fresh on his mind, the brutality of it, the gash he suffered on his leg, he remembered the thrill of seeing the briefcase remain in his possession, and the confusion of AJ showing up. But either way, Del Rio was stupid to choose that kind of match.

Del Rio probably didn't even take AJ into account.

That was another stupid move. AJ was a girl not afraid to push a guy off a ladder. And the man she pushed, Cena, was someone she'd actually liked for a while. She'd never had any reason to like Del Rio or Swagger, so pushing them off the ladder would be easy for her. She was strength in a petite form, and she would use all of it to push someone off a ladder if Dolph was at risk of losing his title. AJ was willing to do anything to get her man the win. She was going to lie in wait. She was more clever than anyone gave her credit for.

She was not going to watch her boyfriend lose his title.


	417. In the Seventh Year, May 6, 2013

A/N: Quick note, obviously the office said Paul Levesque, but we'll just pretend it said Hunter Hearst Helmsley or something. Thanks for reading, hope you enjoy! :)

* * *

"_He definitely has your eyes."_

"_When your age can be measured in hours, I don't think you can definitively tell," Chris laughed, "Besides, they said that a lot of babies will be born with blue eyes, they could darken up, become more like yours."_

"_He has your eyes, I'm telling you," Stephanie told her husband as she peered over his shoulder towards their little boy. "He's going to look like you, I bet. I always wanted a little boy who looked like their father."_

"_Even before you married me?" he asked, glancing over at her with an incredulous look. "Oh God, you're going to tell me that you pictured little boys with Trips, aren't you? Then I'm going to gag, right?"_

"_I loved him once," Stephanie shrugged. "And yes, I did, this was before he turned into such a huge jerk—" Chris cleared his throat and threw her another glance. "Fine, a jerk to me, better? Anyways, I guess I thought a little boy should look like their father."_

"_Why would you want to punish a kid and have him look like Hunter?" Chris scoffed. "I can think of a million guys better looking than him. You're looking at one incidentally."_

_The left side of Stephanie's mouth quirked up, "Well, yes, I do think you're better looking, but I'm biased now, and biased me thinks that our son is going to look like you. He'll be so handsome, Chris, don't you think?"_

"_Well, I hope so, he's cute now, but who knows, we could end up having a really ugly kid, which would really blow because we're really good-looking people," Chris told her. She laughed and leaned over to steal a kiss from him. Sawyer whimpered from Chris's arms. "Oh no, I hope our kid doesn't hate to see us kissing because then we'll have a _huge_ problem."_

"_Baby boy, you have to understand Mommy is totally hot for Daddy," Stephanie told her son with a pout. He just whimpered a little more and Stephanie took him from Chris, cradling him against her. This seemed to be what he wanted because he quieted down again. "He's going to be greater than the both of us combined."_

"_Steph, he's like 12 hours old, don't make the kid live up to unrealistic expectations already. We have 18 years to screw him up, let him have some peace right now," Chris told her, grabbing Sawyer's hand because he didn't want to lose contact with his son. He was completely enamored with him, but who wouldn't be when you just had your first child. Everything was different now, scary, and yet it was all wonderful._

"_Nope, sorry, I'm going to make him live up to every expectation I've ever thought of having for a child of mine. He's going to have to live up to them and exceed them."_

"_And just what are these lofty expectations."_

"_To be the happiest kid in the entire universe of course," Stephanie told him, sticking her tongue out. "Is that too much? Oh, and maybe to be a wrestler as great as his father, no, better because he wouldn't just leave and not come back even when his wife wants him to come back."_

"_Okay, now you're getting too lofty, let's stick to the happy part."_

"_Fine, we'll stick to the happy part."_

"Hey you, time to get up for school," Stephanie ran her hand over her son's blond hair as he opened his eyes. "It's your birthday today, lucky guy."

Sawyer sat up and rubbed his eyes, "Thanks, Mom."

"You better get dressed and get downstairs, Dad is making you a special breakfast, and I'd hate for you to have to miss it because you were too slow," Stephanie leaned down to kiss his forehead. "So hurry up, okay?"

"Sawa, you gotta come downstairs!" Flynn raced to his bedroom and flung herself on the bed, "Mommy and Daddy—"

Flynn was cut off by her mother's hand on her mouth. She looked up in surprise at her mother. "Flynnie, come on, we'll go downstairs and let Sawyer get dressed." Stephanie scooped up her daughter and proceeded to take her out of the room. "Flynnie, it's a surprise for your brother and you almost blew it."

"Oops, I didn't know, Mommy," Flynn shrugged, "but it's okay because I didn't tell."

"Yeah, because I stopped you, you're a secret-blower, Flynn Jericho," Stephanie said, making a face, which made Flynn giggle like mad and bury her face into Stephanie's neck.

"Mommy, no I'm not!" Flynn laughed against her as Stephanie set her down at the table. Kensington was sitting down as well, waiting patiently for her breakfast that her daddy said she couldn't have because they were waiting for Sawyer. She wished he'd come down already because she was hungry. She didn't even know why she was up so early in the first place. A lot of Kensington's life seemed to be following what grown-ups told her to do. She wasn't quite sure what to make of this.

Sawyer came down a few minutes later, and as soon as he could be heard on the stairs, Stephanie helped Kensington out of her seat so they could go stand in front of Sawyer's surprise. Stephanie helped situate her daughters in front of it as Stephanie stood up and Chris came over. Sawyer walked into the kitchen a few moments later and looked confusedly at his family all standing there, staring at him.

"What's going on?" he asked suspiciously.

"1-2-3," Stephanie said for the benefit of Flynn and Kensington.

Both of them yelled at the same time, "Surprise!" Chris pulled Kensington out of the way as Stephanie pulled Flynn out of the way of the new bike they got for their son. He was getting bigger and needed a new one, and this was the perfect opportunity to get him something.

"A bike!" Sawyer said. "But you didn't have to get me anything!"

Stephanie came over and knelt down in front of him, cupping his face in her hands. "Baby boy, we _love_ that you want to give stuff to kids who don't have anything, that's the best part of you, but your dad and I, well, we like to give you things, and if we didn't get you just a couple things, we would have felt horrible, so will you please accept our gift?"

"Thanks, Mom," Sawyer threw his arms around Stephanie. He ran to Chris after hugging her and hugged him too, "Thanks, Dad."

"Sawa, I want a hug too!" Flynn said, opening up her arms. Sawyer hugged her too, and also hugged Kensington because if Flynn got a hug, Kensington was going to want one too. "I helped pick out the color!"

"I like the color a lot," Sawyer told her kindly.

"Kensy helped too," Flynn said.

"I did, Sawa!"

"Thanks, Kensy, I really like it," he told his sister.

"Okay, come on, breakfast, guys, we have to eat," Chris said, "Sawyer, me and your mom made you cupcakes last night, so you can bring those for your class, Flynnie, you have preschool, and Kensy, you have nothing to do because you're little so you get to just chill with me."

"And after you guys get out of school, we'll head to the toy store and we'll start shopping for all the things you guys want to get for the kids who don't have much," Stephanie said as she sat Kensington in her booster seat while Chris served everyone breakfast. "And tonight, Gamma and Gamps are coming over for your special birthday dinner that Gamma is making for you. So eat up because you've got a long day ahead of you."

"Okay," Sawyer said, digging into his pancakes. Stephanie stood back and watched him for a moment as Chris came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his chin on her shoulder.

"You should eat too."

"I'll eat after you take them to school," Stephanie said.

"What are you thinking?" he wondered, watching her watching the kids eat noisily, words jumbled as they all tried to speak at once with each other, passing syrups and butters among themselves.

"The expectations we had for him," Stephanie said. "Seven years ago, we sat there and looked at him with all the hopes and everything that new parents have with their first kid. They want everything in the world for them, we wanted him to be happy."

"I think it's safe to say he's that."

"I never thought he'd be so good," Stephanie admitted and she laughed at herself. "I mean, think about that, I didn't expect my son to be good."

"I don't think either one of us saw him coming," Chris told her. "I mean, how could we? What the hell were we doing when we were seven? Not thinking about every other person in the world, I'll tell you that. I would have gobbled up presents."

"That's why he's so much better than we are," Stephanie said. "We really did a good job with the sex that night. I mean, me with that optimal egg, and you with whatever super sperm you had going on."

Chris laughed and buried his face into his wife's neck. "That's the best compliment I've ever received, thank you."

"You're quite welcome," Stephanie told him. "You better eat something before you go though, just grab a pancake and a piece of bacon or something, but you better eat. And don't even think about doing you know what today because I will not do anything that disgusting on my son's seventh birthday."

"God, so strict," he told her, giving her a squeeze, "hey, you know, thanks."

"What for?" she asked as she watched him get another cup of coffee, holding out her own cup for him to pour some in. Chris glanced over at the table where breakfasts were still being chewed up and eaten.

"Giving me that."

Dolph rolled out of bed much like his girlfriend did most mornings. It was rare that she ever got up before him, but when he reached across the bed, there was nothing to be found, not even Nacho was curled up there, and he usually sought out any kind of warmth once they got up. Once, he'd tried to make the bed only to find Nacho buried underneath the covers. So for the little guy to not be next to him, Dolph knew that AJ was up and about.

They'd filmed SmackDown early this week so it was airing pre-taped on Tuesday to air on Friday. It gave everyone overseas a few days to regroup and recharge their batteries. Dolph was grateful for it because he'd wrestled on both Monday and Tuesday so any kind of break could only do wonders for them. Tampa was their destination of choice for this week (though Dolph was starting to wonder if AJ might actually consider moving in with him!), so he was on her turf, and yesterday was spent mostly with her video games, which is what he suspected his girlfriend to be doing right now.

He stood up and stretched, throwing on a pair of shorts over his boxers and padding his way down her short hallway to her living room. Her place was considerably smaller than his place, a tribute to their differences in personalities, but it was spacious and bright. He found her already on the couch, her feet propped up on her coffee table and a game controller already in her hand. Nacho was on the couch next to her, again wrapped up in a towel cocoon.

"I got you a frap, it's in the fridge, you iced coffee in the morning drinking weirdo," AJ said without looking up at him, too engrossed in her game was she. Dolph gave a silent laugh as he walked into her kitchen, which had a counter that overlooked the living room. He actually liked that she could be like that with him. In the beginning, she'd been so afraid of insulting him, of making the wrong move with him, of him turning on her like all the other men in her life.

Now that they'd been together for nearly half a year, any pretense was dropped, and she could be herself, and he liked the she that she was when she had confidence. A confident AJ was the prettiest AJ, he found. When she exuded the confidence he always knew she could have, when the insecurities started to fall away like leaves during the fall, she was by far the most beautiful woman he'd ever laid eyes on.

"Thanks for thinking of me," he said, grabbing the plastic cup from the fridge and taking a sip. Dolph leaned against the counter and watched her play for a second. "Huevos, why did you let her wrap you up in a towel again? Have some self-respect."

"Hey! He likes it," AJ argued, patting the towel next to her. "I don't think your mom wrapped him up in a towel while we were gone so I had to catch up."

"My mom probably treated him like a dog," Dolph said, walking over and sitting on the floor next to her legs. He turned to Nacho and shook his head. "I can't believe our dog is wrapped up in a towel again right now. Huevos, you can't tell me you actually like this."

Nacho scooted over so he was next to Dolph, who reached up to pet him as the dog wanted to cuddle with him. AJ looked over in disgust. "Nacho Cheese, you are such a traitor. I'm your mommy, you should be cuddling with me."

"He's got taste," Dolph said, "I'm going to head to the gym later, thanks for the membership by the way, babe—"

"I just put you on mine, it wasn't even a big deal," AJ shrugged as she continued to play her game, only intermittently paying attention to what he was doing.

"Did Huevos go with you this morning?"

"Yes, so he can stay with me," AJ said, "you can go do your thing, it's fine."

"You don't even care because you're so into that video game, aren't you?"

"Uh, yeah, what?" she asked, not even bothering to look at him.

"Huevos, we've been replaced," Dolph kissed the top of Nacho's head before getting up and going to the kitchen to grab something to eat. Normally, he would do some empty stomach cardio, but he was probably going to do weight today, and he wanted to eat first. He dared to walk in front of the TV and turn to her at the last moment, "Babe, do you—"

"Ziggy, get out of the way!" AJ yelled at him so loudly he jumped out of the way.

"What is it! What's wrong!" he said, wondering what the hell was happening.

"Cut scene, shh!" she told him, waving her arm as she watched the TV intently. He turned to look at the TV then back at his girlfriend, who looked mesmerized. Sometimes he was very much reminded that his girlfriend was a bit of a geek, but never more so than when she was engrossed in her video games.

"Okay," he backed away slowly, knowing he was treading some very thin ice. Maybe leaving for the gym early and just picking something up on the way to the gym would be a better option than potentially facing the wrath of his girlfriend.

Maybe that was the plan.

"Wow, Mom, we got a lot of stuff," Sawyer said as he walked with Stephanie towards the counter. They had two shopping carts filled to the brim with toys. The kids had gone around the toy store, just picking out anything and everything they thought someone would like. They were each allowed to pick one toy to keep because being in a toy store was tempting for a little kid, but they were actually really good about it. They each picked out something and that was it, no whining, no crying for more. Stephanie was surprised because they had a Chris action figure and a Punk action figure that she didn't have, and Stephanie was so sure Flynn would whine for both, but she simply picked up her father's action figure and was done with it.

"I know," Stephanie said, "you are making so many people happy, you know that, right?"

"I hope so, and we got them bikes too, I wish we could see them when they get it," Sawyer said. "We're dropping the stuff off on Saturday, right, after my party?"

"That's right," Stephanie told him as Chris brought up the rear with his own cart and Flynn flanking his side while Kensington rode in the cart. "We're going on a special run to drop everything off, I already called them to let them know we were coming."

"I really like doing stuff like this, Mom, I want to do more too maybe."

"We'll have to see what kinds of things you can get yourself into," Stephanie told him, wrapping her arm around his shoulders. "I know we tell you this a lot, but your dad and I are really proud of you."

"I know," he shrugged, "I just like doing nice things, it's fun."

It took a while to sort through everything, but by the time they were done, they'd ended up spending close to five thousand dollars. They bought ten girls' bikes and ten boys' bikes, which took up the majority of the money, and everything else were regular toys they picked out. For Stephanie and Chris, this wasn't too big of a sacrifice, and knowing that all this would go to children who really wanted and needed something to brighten their days was worth every cent. They understood how easy it was to provide for their own children, and both of them grew up in households where money was never a real issue. They wanted to know they were putting something out there into the universe, knowing it was their son's idea only made the entire thing better.

"Mommy, are all the kids gonna like the toys?"

"Yes, they're all going to find good homes, and I bet a lot of them are going to enjoy all the wrestling action figures you picked out," Stephanie told her daughter.

"Daddy, I got you most of all!" Flynn told her father, who looked at her and smiled from the rearview mirror. "Because maybe you're their favorite, Daddy, and they don't have any, and I have lots so they can have lots too."

"That's really true, I bet they'll like it."

"They _have_ to, it's you, Daddy! Ooh, Daddy, Daddy, you're gonna be on wrestling, right?"

"Yeah, that's right, I've got a little idea in store for Mr. Fandingleberry," Chris told her with a laugh. Flynn giggled as Stephanie rolled her eyes. Her husband was still obsessed with getting one over on Fandango. She wanted him to go for something bigger, but this WrestleMania loss was messing with his head a lot more than he was willing to let on. He wasn't outright saying it to her, but Stephanie knew Chris like the back of her hand. She knew they way he thought. If they ever broke up and some guy was facing him, she could give the same speech she gave Chris once upon a time.

"Daddy, it's Faaaaaaaandaaaaaaango," Flynn corrected him, "you have to let the a's breathe!"

"Should I be concerned that my daughter can quote that guy?" Chris asked.

"Your daughter can quote a lot of wrestlers," Stephanie said, "Flynnie, what does The Million Dollar Man always say?"

"Everybody has a price!" Flynn said happily.

"And Undertaker?"

"Rest in peace, but he says it really slow and scary."

"I know that!" Kensington claimed.

"I didn't say you didn't, Kensy."

"Well, I do," Kensington argued.

"I _said_ I knew that," Flynn, snapped at her sister, but Kensington just made a face at her, and because it was always funny when someone made a face, she giggled. She reached over her booster seat and shoved her sister in the shoulder playfully.

"Finny!" Kensington laughed and pushed her back, or at least tried to seeing as her reach wasn't as far as her big sister's. Flynn just laughed and tried to get away. Stephanie turned around in her seat and gave them both a look. "I not bad, Mommy."

"I never said you were, but don't fight in the car, either one of you," Stephanie told her rambunctious daughters. They were always getting into skirmishes because Flynn thought herself a wrestler, and it seemed she was trying to make her little sister believe the same thing. Kensington wasn't one to back down either. When Flynn wanted to tussle with her, Kensington was always for it, which made their parents' lives a little more difficult.

"Fine," Flynn said.

"Okay," Kensington agreed.

"Daddy, are you going to fight Faaaaandaaaango on Monday?"

"No, I'm going to do something a little more…fun."

Stephanie rubbed at her temples. Today was turning into a disaster. It started off fine. She, the girls, and Chris flew into Virginia the night before. On Saturday they took all the toys and the bikes to a local charity found through some friends, and the reception to their donations was overwhelming. Sawyer took pictures with a bunch of the volunteers along with his parents, who were recognized by more than one person there. The best part was Sawyer's face though because every picture he took he was beaming wider and wider. Their son had a knack for charity, one they were more than willing to foster.

But today was not a good day. Flynn woke up with a cough and a sore throat, probably from the plane, and she was cranky and upset, clinging to Chris so much she was still in his arms right now. She probably wasn't even that sick, but she always took the opportunity to become the world's biggest Daddy's girl, as if she wasn't already. Kensington was ordered to stay away from her sister, which made her cranky too. She was currently sitting in Stephanie's lap, fiddling with Stephanie's iPad.

"I cannot believe they let them into the building," Stephanie said into the phone. "This is precisely why we have security. All these people saw them, and nobody thought to contact security? I mean, they obviously thought they should tweet about it, but they didn't think security might want to know?"

"Stephanie, it's okay, I mean, some of the stuff was unsalvageable, but for the most part, nothing is totally ruined save a few things," Hunter said from where he was sitting next to Chris. He'd been the one to inform her of what happened, and she was livid. She immediately took to the phones to try and get to the bottom of this. They could sense someone was going to get fired.

"Trips, come on," Chris said from next to him, "you were married to her, you really think interrupting her when she's on a tear is going to help you at all?"

"I thought maybe she would just listen to me…" Hunter's voice trailed off, but Chris was right. Stephanie was not about to let this go. She never did, she never just let bygones be bygones, and he wished he could say that wasn't a good thing, but he was the same way, which got him into this mess in the first place.

"You thought Stephanie McMahon would listen to you when she's pissed? Have you met her before?"

"I thought the Jericho at the end of her name would help curb that?"

"No!" Stephanie said. "This is on someone's head. We had a man, who was unauthorized mind you, come into the building and trash our property. He's going to pay for the damages, I hope he and Heyman know that. Get the lawyers on that. There was also memorabilia that was damaged, and he'll pay for that too, I'll make them both pay through the nose!"

"She's really kind of hot when she's mad, I remember that well," Hunter said, staring at his ex-wife, whose fiery personality was shining through right now, actually, no, it wasn't shining through, it was bursting out of her like an erupting volcano.

"Don't look at my wife that way," Chris shook his head.

"Don't look at Mommy that way," Flynn echoed her father's sentiments.

"You could have been my daughter, you know that, Flynnie?"

"Nuh-uh," Flynn shook her head as she coughed. "You couldn't be because I'm Daddy's, sorry!"

"Well, if I stayed married to your mom, I definitely could have been," Hunter nodded. "Really, I only need a few things replaced."

"She showed me the pictures, man, I think you need more than just a few things replaced, there was even a hole in the wall. Plus, I saw what happened to Susie, let me be the first one to give my condolences on your loss."

"Shut up," Hunter wanted to punch Chris in the shoulder, but Flynn was resting her head against it. "Sorry I couldn't make it down to Sawyer's birthday, did he get the gift I sent? I sent two since you said they were for charity."

"Yeah, he thanks you for it, and the kids that are getting them are going to be really thankful too."

"I still don't get how you and Stephanie ended up with a kid like him," Hunter shook his head. "He's way better than either one of you."

"We know that, and it's dumb luck."

"No, I am the President!" Stephanie exclaimed loudly, which made Kensington bring her head up to look at her mother, but she was used to her mother being a little angry sometimes because she hung around her office a lot at home, so she just put her head back down and went back to the Dora thing she was watching. "I'm sorry you didn't know that. I'm coming into the office on Wednesday, schedule me an appointment with head of security, I want to talk to them, and yes, my father will be attending as a member of the Board, thank you."

Stephanie ended the call and Chris looked over at her, "I take it that didn't go well."

"I wish we still used phones we could slam down to prove our point," Stephanie said, putting her phone down. "Security was completely lax because they recognized Brock. So they let him in because they were probably scared of him. So he gets to terrorize _my_ employees while the guys whose job it is to protect the building stood idly by. Heads are going to roll. I hope you don't have anything scheduled this week because I have to go to Connecticut."

"Um, not until SmackDown, no, I can stay with the kids."

"Thank you," Stephanie looked relieved. "Hunter, I'm sorry about your things, that's on our end, you'll be compensated for any of your personal items that were destroyed—"

"Stephanie, you're one of my best friends," Hunter interrupted her, "don't worry about it, alright? Nothing that was damaged was anything I couldn't replace, alright?"

"But I know that sledgehammer was special because it was the one you used when—"

"It's just an object, it's fine, really, stop worrying about the impact on me, an office isn't important, and I heard that Heyman is going to be here via satellite, so I'll have some words with him later," Hunter told her.

"He's such a coward, won't even show up here to face what he did," Stephanie said with disgust, wanting to spit on his name. "I can't believe this day."

"Stephanie, don't worry about it, really," Hunter got up and went over to her, kneeling down next to her chair. Kensington looked over at him for a moment before darting forward and kissing him on the cheek.

"Hi, Trips," Kensington told him with a smile.

"Hey, Kensy," Hunter said. "Stephanie, I will take care of this, and I'll take care of Brock Lesnar again."

"I know, I know you will," Stephanie smiled at him.

"Hmm, my wife and her ex-husband sharing a moment while I'm sitting right here with one of my three children in my lap. I'm not sure how I feel right now," Chris narrated loudly, rubbing his chin. "Should I feel jealous or not?"

"Shove it up your…you know what," Hunter caught himself before he swore in front of the girls. He pushed himself up. "I'm going to go, leave you alone, but Stephanie, stop, don't beat yourself up over this, you weren't there so it's not like you could have stopped them. Actually, it's fortunate for both Heyman and Brock that you weren't there. You would have torn them both a new one. I could picture you stalking down the hallway on a rampage, picking Heyman up and throwing _him_ through the wall."

"And her husband still sits here as he watches his wife's ex-husband consoling her," Chris said loudly again. Hunter flipped him off since neither girl was invested in the conversation. Flynn's head was turned away on Chris's shoulder and Kensington was preoccupied.

"I'm leaving, I'm leaving," Hunter said, "Steph, really, it's okay."

"It's not, but it will be."

AJ turned to Big E, tucking her leg underneath her, "So then he walks right in front of the TV while there's a cut scene, and he's lucky it's not a Harley one or else I would have probably ripped his head off."

"I said I was sorry!" Dolph told her from where he was rooting through his bag for his tape. "I didn't know that it was such a big deal."

AJ jerked her thumb towards her boyfriend, "Sometimes I wonder why I'm with that guy," AJ said loudly.

"You don't cut in front of a girl's cut scenes," E shook his head.

"It's a wonder I put up with you two nerds," Dolph said, eyes widening happily as he found what he was looking for. He came over and sat on a folding chair, starting to put wrap on his hands. AJ stood up and came over, sitting on his lap and grabbing the tape from him. He held his hand out as she started to wrap it for him. "If I left you two alone for a weekend, I'd come back and I'd find half-eaten fast food, candy wrappers all over the place and empty coffee cups while two zombies played video games."

"We only played for 6 hours," E said, "that's barely anything." On Friday, E came over to play video games with AJ, leaving Dolph to once again find something else to do. He just wasn't as into video games as the two people who comprised this little, dysfunctional family.

"Oh, and what did _you_ do while we were playing video games, huh, Ziggy?" AJ asked him. "Oh, that's right, you were watching a whole marathon of comedy specials from the 70's…tell us who the nerd is now?"

"Those are of value, and they're classic, and they help me write stuff for my standup routine that I will eventually get around to doing," he told her smugly as she finished with one of his hands and grabbed the other.

"Face it, we're all nerds," E said, "embrace it, man, it's better to just let yourself give into it."

"I like it better when you don't talk," Dolph said, "also heard you're going at Kaitlyn pretty hard on Twitter, should we be worried that you're here secret admirer?"

"You mean when you send her things?" E said. "Am I going to take the fall for this one?"

"Maybe," Dolph shrugged, "we have decided who is going to take the fall. Either way, it's getting into Kaitlyn's head, you know it is."

"I think someone is going to take our credit to be honest," AJ said. Dolph raised an eyebrow. "I think there are some guys who like her. I _was_ her best friend. If we never come forward, someone will. Someone will tell her they like her, maybe it'll be Cody, I don't know."

"Yeah, what's he going to do for a first date, take her into the back of his windowless van?" Dolph asked with a chuckle.

"You two are the ones who need a windowless van so people don't have to watch you two," E told them as AJ glared at him a little bit.

"Only if there's a bumper sticker that says, 'If the van is a rocking, don't come a-knockin,'" Dolph answered.

"Ziggy!" AJ said.

"It's a Seinfeld thing, babe," he told her as she finished up with his wrist. "Come on, we've got to do that interview before my match. Who knows what Striker is going to bring up now. He always asks the dumbest questions. Of course I'm going to beat Del Rio tonight, like, come on, of course I am, especially when I have you guys, not that any of us need each other."

"We're a family," AJ said.

"Yeah, a really weird family with different parents, obviously," E said, "I mean, Dolph and I look like brothers, but you, AJ, you're the odd one out."

"That's usually how it goes," AJ said, grabbing Dolph's hand.

Although it was a non-title match, that didn't mean Dolph thought losing was acceptable. During his interview with Striker, Matt brought up how he'd tapped out last week during SmackDown, and it was true, he had tapped, but you know what, he still stole the show, and he still was better. Not everyone could win all the time. He joked a lot about being a perpetual loser, but it was true that you couldn't always win, but you could always put your best effort forward. If that resulted in a win, great, if not, at least you gave it your all.

That weighed on his mind as he started his match with Del Rio. They'd been facing each other so much over the past few weeks that they felt comfortable in the ring. There was something off about Del Rio's game tonight though, and Dolph tried to take advantage of Del Rio's sloppiness. He managed to several times, but Del Rio was tough, and he didn't give up. Dolph admired that, but still didn't want to give up the match.

It didn't help when Swagger and his handler, Zeb, came out during the middle of the match. His immediate thought was to AJ, but E was still out there, and if need be, AJ had the title. She was independent and clever, nothing would happen to her, and if Swagger or Zeb even so much as threatened to hurt her, neither one of them would make it to Extreme Rules. Zeb and Swagger were intimidated by E though, so AJ was safe, and Zeb went on commentary while Swagger sat there like the bland stone he was.

Still, that added another element of danger to the match, and Dolph was forced to keep one eye open while trying to deal with Del Rio. Eventually, Del Rio was able to get the cross armbreaker on him, but before he could even think about tapping, he could hear AJ yelling and himself being pulled. He looked over and could see that E was pulling Del Rio out of the ring, which called for the DQ. He wasn't too upset about it, but then there was a commotion on the outside of the ring. He tried to stagger to his feet, and he heard AJ screech right before the ladder hit him and knocked him down again. He groaned, his eyes closing, and it was only her hands on his that got him to open them.

"Ziggy, are you okay?" AJ leaned down to whisper, her hands running through his hair. She surveyed the ring around her, the carnage, Del Rio laying stagnant across the ring and E and Ricardo lying by the wayside. She glared at Swagger. She had the urge to go up to him and jump on him, not to kiss him, but to beat him up. She was about to when Dolph groaned. She helped him sit up then get out of the ring. He held the belt in one hand while E came over to them. Ricardo was helping Del Rio out of the ring and they all staggered backstage.

"Let's go to the trainer's," AJ told him gently, pulling him along. "E, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, just stunned me is all," E said, and she knew he was telling the truth because he looked stalwart. AJ led Dolph to the trainer's, knowing that Del Rio was going to show up soon.

"Here, lie back, babe," AJ helped ease him back and he winced when the back of his head hit the headrest. AJ winced in time with him and ran her hand down the back of his head. "Jeff, I think he hurt his head. He could have a concussion."

"We'll check him out."

Stephanie narrowed her eyes at Chris as he pulled his light-up jacket on. "Daddy, I wanna stay with you," Flynn whined from where she was lying on the couch. "Don't go without me!"

"Flynnie, you can't come out there with me," Chris told his daughter, crouching by her head, "I have work to do, and you have getting better to do. That's what you should work on. Mommy is going to be right here, she didn't even go to production because she knew you didn't feel well."

"Really, Mommy?"

"Really," Stephanie nodded, and it was true, she didn't want to pawn off her sick daughter to anyone. "Daddy will be back shortly, he's just doing something odd with Fandango. I mean, Chris, really, you're _judging _him?"

"He judged me, so why not?" Chris shrugged. "He wants to play a game with me, I'll play it right back at him."

"Sweetie, you aren't the first guy to ever get upset at WrestleMania. I'm just afraid because I give you such a long leash—"

"I'm not your dog, baby."

"That's not what I meant and you know it," she scowled at him, "I'm simply saying that perhaps you should let this one go. I mean, what do you get out of it?"

"The satisfaction of a good beat-down?"

"But to go through all this trouble, WrestleMania was last month, it's May now, it's a new month, it's a new time, and don't you think it would be nice if you went after something else, someone else. Your fixation on Fandango, it's just—"

"Baby, remember how you were relentless with Trish and remember that time you hated Debra, or how about when you hated Sable? They all got one up on you and you didn't let it go until you were the one making sure they knew who the dominant female was, don't you think I can do the same here?"

"Well, how can I argue against that?" Stephanie told him. "Fine, go…do your thing."

It wasn't his normal thing by any means. He was used to fighting, not sitting behind a desk and holding up numbers. But Fandango wanted to play mind games? Chris could play mind games better than almost everyone. His wife was the master, and she rubbed off on him, sometimes literally. He went out there, gave a little spiel, but got right down to business. He didn't actually want Brodus and Sweet-T (Tensai? Albert? The Hip Hop Hippo?) out there, but he needed someone and they volunteered and it worked, so hey, what was the big deal?

Fandango came out and looked put out by Chris's presence. He tried to make Chris feel bad by bringing up his loss with Dancing with the Stars, but Chris was nonplussed. Fandango eventually had to start the match, and Chris made sure to assess every movement. This got Fandango so riled up, he eventually just left, letting himself get disqualified. This was exactly as Chris hoped. Fandango was back on his heels, and Chris was on the offensive. So what if he _was_ holding a WrestleMania grudge? That didn't mean anything. Well, it did, just one thing.

He would get his revenge.

"Are you sure he doesn't have a concussion?" AJ asked, still running her hand over Dolph's hair and through his hair.

"He's fine, AJ, trust me, I know what I'm doing. He just needs to rest for a little while, take it easy tonight, and he should be fine by tomorrow."

"See, babe, I told you," Dolph said, sitting up but feeling a little dizzy.

"See!" AJ said. "He's hurt, do something!"

"I just sat up too fast, I'm okay."

"Do you have a headache, Dolph?" Jim asked.

"A little one."

"Okay, well, stay here for the rest of the show, and if it gets worse, maybe I'll recommend you go to the hospital," he said, mostly to appease the irate woman glaring at him.

"Babe, you better get out there for your match," Dolph told her. "I'll just stay back here while you go out there."

"I'm not going out there," AJ shook her head, "I'm staying right here with you. I don't care about my match, I care about you."

"Babe, you can't do that, Vick will kill you," Dolph tried to prod her. "She'll fire you for breach of contract or something."

"Stephanie will hire me back, she can't just fire me," AJ shook her head, "I'm not going to, okay, I don't want to, I want to stay here and make sure you're okay."

"I will be, please go out there."

"I don't want to team with the Bellas either. I don't like them, they don't like me, and I don't want to team with them. You know why Vickie did it, don't you? It was because they've been insulting me because I won the battle royal and I get to face Kaitlyn. They hate me."

"Who cares about them? You're good enough to win on your own, babe, please?"

"But Ziggy…"

"Babe, I stole the show earlier, but the show needs to be stolen by someone better than me."

"Better than you?" she wondered.

"Well, okay, on par with me, wrestling is the 5th best thing you do too," he told her, grabbing her hand. "Come here, I'll give you a kiss for luck."

"I really don't want to—"

He kissed her, cutting her off, "Go out there, and get it done for the both of us."

She sighed and gave in. When she got to the gorilla, the Bellas were already there. She didn't bother talking to them and they extended the same courtesy to her. When her music hit (she smiled smugly that it was her music that came up and not theirs), she skipped out there like usual while the twins sauntered out behind her. AJ didn't want to associate with them and left them in her dust. She got to the ring well ahead of them and sat on the ropes as was her custom. She watched as the Bellas did their usual entrance. There was showing off, like she and Ziggy did, and there was the Bellas, who bragged, even without words.

Kaitlyn, Cameron, and Naomi came out next, appearing like a real team, and they got into the ring. AJ was going to see who wanted to start the match, but the Bellas both deferred to her, probably because they were scared their skills would be exposed for how lousy they were. AJ started the match against Cameron, getting in a double neckbreaker and some submission holds. She completely dominated Cameron, who wasn't as skilled as she was. Dolph kept her on her toes when they would map out mock matches, so she was always better prepared than any other diva and it showed.

Eventually, she went for the tag, but the Bellas both pulled away, getting off the apron, and leaving her like a lamb to slaughter. She turned around, only to meet a spear by Kaitlyn, and she felt angry, betrayed, and ready to kill those damn twins, but her middle was hurting, and she laid there for a little while, wishing Dolph wasn't relegated to the trainer's room. She might need it too.

When she walked back into the trainer's room, well, walked was a bad word, staggered maybe, Dolph hopped off the table and swooped her into his arms. "What are you doing?" AJ asked.

"I'm making sure you're okay."

"We're not having a good night, are we?"

"No, no we're not."

Stephanie stared a hole into her husband's head. "A dance-off, you want to have a dance-off against Fandango?"

"Next week, me, him, Raw, I'm going to bring it up to Vickie since you're still banned from the show."

"Are you sure? Is this the mid-life crisis I've been dreading?" Stephanie asked. "I mean, we never had that, but is that what this is? Because I'm all for you putting all the earrings back in your piercings and getting a sports car, but a dance-off, really?"

"Stephanie, this guy is a fake, I'm set out to prove that, to prove that he's a nobody."

Stephanie sighed, "Well, I mean, I can't tell you no, but if you're sure."

"Oh, I'm sure."

Stephanie was starting to worry for her husband.


	418. Concussed, May 13, 2013

A/N: Thanks for the reads, reviews, and everything else. Obviously, I had to address Dolph's concussion, blah, poor guy, so it's Dolph/AJ heavy, sorry if that doesn't float your boat, but that was a pretty big deal. Either way, I do hope you enjoy, leave a review if you feel so inclined. :)

* * *

She couldn't immediately tell something was wrong.

Looking back, she felt like she should have, but at first, she didn't think anything of it. He rolled out of the ring, but he got back inside, and she thought he looked fine. It wasn't until he tried to pull off his t-shirt and struggled that she thought something might be wrong. It wasn't like him, and it was a true testament to how much she knew him that something as simple as taking off his shirt would tip her off, but it did. There were many nights where he would be hovering over her, and he could pull his shirt off one-handed in one lithe movement, so to see him struggling with both hands when he wasn't even horny and hurried, something was not right.

Still, he kept going, and she was trying to ascertain what was wrong with him. He finally rolled out of the ring and she rushed to his side, kneeling down next to him, "Ziggy, are you okay?"

"AJ?" he said foggily, and now she really knew something was wrong.

"Yeah, of course, baby," she ran her hand through his hair as she leaned in closer, being mindful that Del Rio was still in the ring. Surely, he wouldn't come over here to do anything to Dolph if she stayed by his side.

"What are you doing here?"

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Why are you here?" he asked, his eyes narrowing just a little bit. "Where are we?"

"Dolph, babe, we're at SmackDown," she told him slowly and clearly, the worry growing in her eyes by the second. She swallowed hard as Del Rio continued to posture inside the ring. She looked around for E, but he was down on the other side of the ring, so she brought her attention back to Dolph. "Babe, do you know what day it is?"

"Why are you calling me babe?" he asked her, and her breath started to quicken. "Why am I down here?"

"Okay, okay, we've got to get you backstage," AJ said, panic starting to rise in her throat or maybe that was bile rising up in there, she couldn't tell, but her stomach felt like it was twisting in her gut. "Come on, Dolph, can you stand up?"

"Of course I can stand up, what kind of question is that?" he wondered as he struggled to get to his feet, but was having trouble getting his footing. AJ tried to help him as much as he can, but he was so much bigger and practically dead weight. Finally, Big E made his way over as he saw AJ struggling with Dolph.

"E, help me, we have to get him backstage," AJ said, as E picked up the slack and slung Dolph's arm over his shoulder. He took the load off AJ and she grabbed Dolph's hand and held it in hers. "He doesn't know where he is, he doesn't know why I'm with him."

"Shit," E mumbled under his breath as they hurried their pace backstage.

"Aren't you in NXT?" Dolph asked. "What month is this? Isn't it Christmas?"

"Oh God, oh God, oh God," AJ muttered to herself as they made their way backstage. "Trainers, we need the trainers, doctors, we need help over here!"

Almost immediately, Dolph was ripped away from her and he was told to sit down in a chair, she tried to make her way to him, but a lot of personnel were hovering around him as she started to shake a little bit. Dolph didn't remember where he was, and he didn't even know what day or month it was. Her panicked eyes turned to panicked breathing, and she wrapped her arms around her bare torso and tried to calm herself down, but now she could hear Dolph trying to ask questions that nobody was answering. Tears started to well up in her eyes and she was trying so hard not to let them fall because she wanted to watch what they were doing with her boyfriend with complete clarity.

Suddenly, two arms were wrapped around her and she didn't know whose they were, but she looked up and saw it was Stephanie hugging her. "Hey, shh, it's okay," Stephanie told her, running her hand over AJ's hair as the smaller woman sunk into the embrace of her idol. "He's going to be fine, alright?"

"He didn't know why I was with him," AJ mumbled into her shirt, the tears spilling over now. Stephanie was here because her husband was here, and seeing AJ standing there, looking completely lost, alone, and broken, there was no way Stephanie could stand idly by. Everyone was tending to Dolph, but nobody was paying attention to the person most worried for him. Stephanie, her motherly instincts kicking in, went straight for AJ and hugged her to her.

"He'll be fine, alright, he's awake and that's something," Stephanie told her, having some knowledge when it came to concussions. You weren't in the business this long without gaining some knowledge.

"Mommy, does AJ need a hug?" Flynn asked, coming up with her sister in tow. Chris was off warming up for his match later so the girls were sitting with their mother. Kensington was dutifully holding onto Flynn's hand like she had to when her mommy was doing something and she had to sit with her sister for a second.

"I think she'd like that a lot," Stephanie told her daughters. Flynn threw her arms around one of AJ's legs while Kensington took the other.

"Thank you," AJ said, pulling away so she could smile down at the little girls. "A hug is just what I needed." She wiped at her eyes as she looked back over to her boyfriend who was still getting checked on. They were looking at his eyes with a light right now and feeling around his neck. "What if he doesn't remember we're together, Stephanie? What if I lose him over this?"

"You're not, okay," Stephanie bent down a little to look her in the eye. "He's probably just disoriented."

"What if he goes back to Vickie?" AJ apparently didn't hear or care what Stephanie just said. "He could think he's still with her, and I'll be alone. She'll take him back because she thinks I stole him, and if he doesn't remember, she'll take him back." AJ started to rock back and forth, pulling at the strands of her hair falling around her face.

"He's not going back to Vickie," Stephanie assured her. "He's not going to go back to her, he loves you."

"He didn't know why I was out there, he didn't know E, he didn't know anything."

"He knew who you were though, right?"

"Yes, but he might just remember me as that girl from NXT or Daniel's girlfriend or that crazy chick, maybe he'll believe I'm crazy, and…I can't lose him, Stephanie, I can't, he's the only one who's ever loved me for me," AJ said, wiping the tears from her eyes again.

"AJ, shh, shh," Stephanie tucked her hair behind her ears like she did for her daughters when they were upset. "AJ, look at me, okay, look at me." AJ looked up at her, her eyes sad and doe-like. AJ could feel Flynn taking her hand and she couldn't believe how nice the entire Jericho family was. "Breathe, okay, just breathe. Everything is going to be alright."

"But—"

"But nothing," Stephanie cut her off and shook her head. "He's going to be alright, and he's not going to fall out of love with you, and he's not going to forget you. This isn't a movie, this isn't going to end up with him getting his entire memory erased, alright?"

"He looked so scared, and like he didn't want me out there, like I wasn't supposed to be with him," AJ sniffled.

"AJ!" AJ's head whipped around as she heard her name being called. "Where's AJ? I want AJ! Where is she?"

"You better get over there," Stephanie winked at her. "Seems like someone didn't forget after all."

AJ rushed to her boyfriend's side, pushing through people to get there, not caring who she might have shoved. She knelt by the chair he was sitting in, and she grabbed his hand, "Hey," she told him, sniffling still, but so incredibly glad he wanted her near him. She ran her hand over his hair, "I'm right here."

"Nobody would tell me where you were," he scowled at everyone looking at him. "They wanted me to go away, but not without you."

"We need to take him to the trainer's room for a more thorough evaluation," one of the doctors explained. AJ nodded, and she turned to her boyfriend again. He still looked completely out of it. His eyes were glazed over and not sharp like they usually were. He looked off in his own little world, and she sighed a little.

"Ziggy, come on, the doctors have to see you, but I'll stay right with you, alright?" AJ told him and he nodded vaguely to her as he was helped up. His hand immediately sought hers out and she grabbed it tightly, giving him an encouraging smile as he leaned on her. He lurched a little while walking, but they made it to the trainers and she helped him sit on the table.

"What happened?" Dolph asked her, turning around, "I don't…was I not on Raw?"

"You were, babe," she told him, reaching up to run her hands through his hair again. She knew he must have a headache so she gently massaged his scalp. He closed his eyes and savored her touch against his head. She leaned forward and pressed her forehead to his shoulder, just wanting to make sure he was still there with her.

"I don't…I don't remember getting here, I remember we flew to Virginia from Tampa on Sunday, but that's all," he told her, "what…why am I here? What is here, is this SmackDown, right?"

"Yeah, this is SmackDown, it's Tuesday, we're taping it early," AJ explained to him. "We drove from Virginia last night, we stopped at a gas station, we took a silly picture and I posted it on Twitter."

"What happened though? Why can't I remember?" he shook his head, looking down as if trying to figure out what was going on and why he couldn't remember.

"Swagger kicked you in the head a little while ago."

Dolph looked up and rolled his eyes, "Classic Swags."

AJ allowed herself one small laugh because at the very least the sense of humor wasn't knocked out of him. "He wasn't careful, he was reckless because you wanted to grab a ladder, he's an idiot and if I could, I would beat him senseless right now."

Dolph laughed, wincing when his head hurt, "You could, you're the toughest chick I know."

"I try," she told him.

"I love you so much," he told her hazily, and even if he was saying it because he was concussed and had no filter right now, it was just nice to know he did remember that, that he remembered their relationship and her. It was still bad, none of this was good, but at the very least, he knew her.

"I know, I love you too," she said as the doctor came over.

"I'm going to need to do some tests, so if you want to leave for a little while, it's probably better I just examine him."

"She shouldn't have to go," Dolph said irately. His concussion was also making him a little aggressive.

"I'll be fine, Ziggy, I'm just going to get cleaned up," she told him, cognizant of the fact that she probably looked like a mess. Normally Dolph would have noticed and commented, but he was so out of it, he didn't even seem to care.

"I don't want her to go," Dolph told the doctor, "you can't make her, I'll go with her."

"Ziggy, I promise, I'll be back, alright," she told him, kissing his cheek. "I promise, but you've got to get checked out."

"Okay," he told her, looking at her imploringly for a moment. She kissed his cheek again and slipped out of the room, leaning back against the wall for a second. She closed her eyes until she heard footsteps and saw E stalking her way towards her.

"How is he?" E asked.

"They're checking him out, he remembers me at least, so he'll remember you, I think Stephanie was right, he was just dazed, but yeah, he definitely has a concussion," AJ said with a sigh. "This is not how the night was supposed to go."

"You're telling me, so who was it, Del Rio, Swagger? Who do I have to kill?" E asked, already flexing his arms and going ahead with cracking his knuckles.

"It was Swagger, but let's not get into that right now, alright," AJ said, "I just want to make sure he's alright first and foremost, revenge or anything that resembles it can wait until later. I feel drained."

"Come here," E opened up his arms and she stepped into his hug. "Nothing's going to get him down, I mean, come on, he's the show-off, he's probably showing off how he can do a concussion better than anyone ever."

AJ laughed, "You're right, he has to do everything better."

"Exactly," E said, "You want me to walk you to your locker room, I figure you wanted to clean up."

"Do I look that bad?" she wondered.

"Your boyfriend was just hurt, you look fine," E told her and she smiled at his attempt at cheering her up. AJ let him walk her to her door, and she pushed it open to go assess the damage in the bathroom mirror. It was far worse than she thought. Mascara streaks slashed across her face as if she was going to war. She looked and felt terrible. She went about washing the makeup from her face, feeling a lot better once it was gone. That didn't mean she could just leave it off though, she never knew what might come up, and besides, she didn't want to look as haggard as she felt so she put some makeup back on, checking herself out.

Her eyes were looking better since she'd washed her face, not as red-rimmed, but you could tell she'd been crying. She leaned back against the wall and tried to calm herself down. The initial fear was gone, thank goodness, and all that was left was raw nervousness. She didn't know everything about concussions, but she knew enough to know that memory loss was never a good sign. She rubbed her hands over her shorts while trying to regain her composure. Dolph was going to need her right now, and she couldn't be there for him if she was a nervous wreck.

It took her about twenty minutes to calm down and when she left, she was going to make a beeline for the trainer's room to check on her boyfriend. On the way there, she nearly ran into Kaitlyn, getting into a verbal tussle with her. Kaitlyn even dared suggest that Dolph might be her secret admirer (which was sort of true, but only sort of). Clearly, Kaitlyn didn't hear about what happened to her boyfriend, but she didn't want to get into that with her former best friend. Natalya came in to make the save for her friend, and AJ left because she had better things to do, well, she would in a second. After a few minutes, she stalked back over to Kaitlyn.

"You know, it's not Dolph, just to tell you," AJ said, "he's very happy with me, thank you very much."

"And why wouldn't he be, you have the experience, right?" Kaitlyn shot back at her.

"Just because Cody wouldn't give you the time of day, doesn't mean my Ziggy wants you. And in case you're blind, he got a concussion earlier and can't even remember today or yesterday, so thanks for making me feel horrible. It's already been a rough night for me having my boyfriend almost not remember he was with me, but you know, whatevs."

AJ turned on her heel and walked away, not even listening when Kaitlyn called after her. She didn't need people like that in her life. She didn't want to surround herself with people like that any longer. She wouldn't. Now, someone else needed her, and she was going to take care of her boyfriend because he was hurting, and when he hurt, she hurt. She planned to go to Tampa this weekend without Dolph (sometimes they needed a little time apart), but there was no way she was letting her boyfriend be alone now.

Stephanie walked out onto the patio with a couple bottles of water, "Hey, you two, thought you might want something to drink, you guys look thirsty."

"Thank you, Stephanie, you're nice," Edyta said as she came over and grabbed one of the waters.

"Don't you think this would be better indoors?" Stephanie wondered as she watched Chris trying to remember a couple moves. "It's pretty warm out here."

"More space," Edyta said. "I think it's better. Besides, we are only doing the basic of moves. There's not much room in that ring, and yes, I don't think we'll be dancing long, no?"

"No," Stephanie sighed, "thanks again for doing this. He really, really wants to beat Fandango."

"I don't know much from what he showed me, but Chris will win, I'll make sure of it," Edyta said. "Cheryl put him in good hands."

"It's too bad she couldn't be here, I know she'd love to see the kids and everything, it's been too long since we've gotten to catch up with her."

"With who?" Chris asked, wandering over. Stephanie took in her husband's appearance. He was completely rumpled and sweaty, and yes, he was hot too, but she was trying not to get distracted and fan herself or anything like that. But she really was getting a little too turned on by her husband at the moment.

"Cheryl," Stephanie answered. "We haven't been out to California in a while, at least the whole family hasn't, and it'd be nice to see her again, don't you think?"

"We'll be out there for SummerSlam, we can arrange something," Chris said, "now, we should probably get back to work."

"Sweetie, you know we're not going to give you an hour or anything, right?" Stephanie said. "I mean, I know Vickie is running the show and has it in a stranglehold, but I still know how the show goes and what's planned, and you're probably not going to have to do an entire choreographed number."

"I know," Chris shrugged, walking away and starting to do his steps over again, "I just wanted to be prepared."

"It doesn't hurt, it's not problem," Edyta told Stephanie with a shrug. She had her own competitive husband at home so she knew what it was like. "I don't mind, I like dancing."

"You're sweet, Edyta, but you have no idea what you're getting into, this guy you're kind of facing, well, let's just say, he's a little dramatic, and he's not above doing something really bad to get a win, that's how he's been beating Chris after all," Stephanie sighed, "but again, thank you for indulging my crazy husband."

"I heard that!" Chris called towards her.

"Maybe you were supposed to!"

Dolph shook his doctor's hand again. "Hey, Dr. Fiel, you remember my girlfriend, AJ, she insisted on being in here because she's a worrywart."

"Don't listen to him, he's the one with the concussion," AJ shook the doctor's hand as he gestured for them both to take a seat. Dolph waited for AJ to sit first before taking a seat next to her.

"So give me the news," Dolph said.

"Well, the good news is it's not going to take that long for you to recover, and you should make a full recovery. You might not get those two days back, but you've been retaining memories and your headaches are better, right?"

"Yeah, now it's just like a dull ache," Dolph responded.

"And we've done the scan, and there doesn't appear to be any lasting damage," Dr. Fiel said, "which is a great sign. But the bad news is, I can't medically clear you to wrestle, especially not as soon as this Sunday. I also recommend that you not travel this week. I know you traveled home, but you probably felt bad the entire flight, yes?"

"He had to take some nausea pills," AJ answered for him. "He was still pretty groggy from the night before."

"Yeah, so I wouldn't recommend you travel, and I want to get another scan midweek to make sure nothing has changed in the interim, for precautions sake of course. We don't take these kinds of things lightly nor does your employer."

"Don't worry, Dr. Fiel, I'll make sure that he doesn't go anywhere," AJ said. "I'll take away all his keys if I have to, lock him in the closet if it's a must."

Dr. Fiel laughed. "You're on the road to recovery, Dolph, but we want to make sure that you are 100% well before you do anything strenuous like that. Take it easy, rest, try and relax. You'll be back to your normal life in no time."

Dolph sighed, "Thanks, doc, I really appreciate it."

He was upset, of course, but tried not to show it, especially not in front of his doctor. He really wanted to wrestle this Sunday. He'd been hoping (but he was also realistic) that he might get cleared to wrestle, but it wasn't to be. This was going to be his first big title defense, the show where he was going to show all the naysayers that he deserved that belt, that he'd more than earned it. Now that was all down the drain.

And his belt, what was going to happen to the belt? Was he going to be stripped of it? He'd barely held it for a month, and now it could be taken away from him because of Jack freaking Swagger! How was that even fair? He'd worked so hard, and it was starting to feel like those eleven minutes again. Everything would feel tainted if he was stripped of the title now. That night, that epic night where all the stars aligned, where his dreams came true with his girlfriend by his side, it would amount to nothing but a pipe dream, a second where he got the glory and nothing else.

"Ziggy, come on," AJ gently led him out of the office and down the hallway to make his next appointment. He was in a bit of a daze thinking about how he would surely be stripped of the title, and what did that mean? Who was he if he didn't have the World Title or the briefcase? He wasn't even sure anymore. AJ made his next appointment for him, making sure it was a time she could take him, and they walked outside into the afternoon sun. "Is your head okay, do you feel foggy?" AJ asked him, stopping him on the sidewalk and walking in front of him so she could look him in the eyes.

"No, it's not that, it's nothing, Jeannie."

"No, what is it? Dolph, if something is wrong with you right now, you need to tell me, we're here at the doctor's and if it's something with your head, please don't try to play the show-off and act like it's nothing and—"

"I'm just thinking about how I'm going to get stripped of the title. They'll do it, and God, you know Vickie has just been waiting for something like this to happen so I'm sure she'll be whispering in Teddy and Booker's ear to get the belt off me."

"No, no, no," AJ shook her head. "No, Dolph, that's not going to happen. I will _not_ let that happen, do you hear me?"

"What can you do, Jeannie, I love you, but you don't have the power," Dolph shrugged helplessly. "All those months waiting for the right moment, all the times spent working so hard and being so damn good at being so damn good."

"They can't!" AJ said passionately, "they aren't taking that belt away from you, I will do anything to make sure that doesn't happen."

What that ended up entailing was AJ going to Raw. She hadn't planned on it, but she had to make sure they didn't take her boyfriend's title away. Whatever she had to do, whomever she had to go to, she didn't care, they were not taking away that belt from her boyfriend. Even if she had to beg on her knees to Vickie Guerrero, she was willing to do it if it meant that Dolph could keep his belt. There were no limits to her love for him, and she wasn't going to see him give up something he'd worked so hard for.

Flynn scrunched up her nose, "You look really pretty, Edyta," Flynn complimented her, "but that's not good to wrestle in. You're wrestling, right?"

"No, I'm dancing with your father," Edyta explained to her.

"Oh yeah, I forgetted," Flynn sighed, "because he didn't dance for a really long time, you know that. He didn't win his thing, and I saw him dance, but I don't really remember because I was just a baby like my sister."

"He was very good, he still is," Edyta said kindly.

"He's a better wrestler though," Flynn nodded. "And he's a better Fozzy person too, but still that's not as good as wrestling, and I got to see my daddy play on Friday when he was with Fozzy, and tonight, I gets to see him in wrestling, maybe, and all that is good. He's good."

Stephanie came over and picked up her eldest daughter, "I'm sorry, Edyta, when she gets on a Chris tangent, she starts to get a little wordy."

"I'm just talking," Flynn pouted, jutting out her bottom lip. Stephanie made a funny face and Flynn instantly perked up. "Mommy, are we going to the gorilla now so we can watch the show and Daddy because he's first!"

"Yes, we are, that's where we're headed. Edyta, good luck, and be careful out there, alright, things could get…dangerous," Stephanie said, "if that happens, just get out of the ring as fast aso you possibly can."

"I'll be fine," Edyta said, but Stephanie worried for the woman. She had no idea the lion's den she was walking into. She had no doubt that Edyta would be comfortable in front of the crowd, but this was not the same crowd she was used to. Wrestling crowds were a different beast altogether, and Stephanie couldn't see this ending well.

She tried to tell her husband over and over again that this was a dumb idea, but he refused to listen to her. It was something about pride he told her over and over again, so much so that she might as well get it tattooed to her forehead, or maybe he could add it to the growing tattoo on his arm (she missed his arms). She didn't care what he thought it was, she saw it as it _really_ was, and it was Chris trying desperately to get back at Fandango for the WrestleMania loss, but her husband wasn't being her husband. Maybe he'd become too lackadaisical since returning, thinking this was all fun and games, but that wasn't who he was, not really.

Chris was a former champion, a man who said the fans were nothing, lower than nothing really, that they were parasites and beneath him in every way. That was the man that could beat Fandango with one of his hands tied behind his back. He needed to stop with the funny stuff and get to the beating up people stuff. That was Chris's bread and butter, and what would dancing accomplish, nothing really, not in the end. It wasn't like you could win a match dancing, well, not for some people. Scotty 2 Hotty had the worm, but that was beside the point.

Chris's phone rang on her desk and she looked at the number, smiling as she answered it, "Hey, Cheryl, what's up?"

"Oh, hey, Steph, is Chris around, I just wanted to wish him luck with this crazy thing."

Stephanie laughed, "You have no idea how crazy it actually is."

"Knowing your husband, I figure it's really bad, right?"

"You got that right," Stephanie said, "Chris and I were talking about you over the weekend, next time we're all in California, we're all going out, our treat."

"That'd be great, I miss you guys, how are the kids? Chris sends me pictures sometimes, they look like they've gotten so big, Kensy doesn't even look like a baby anymore."

"She's getting so big and independent."

"And Flynnie is adorable, is she still the craziest girl in the world?"

"Crazier. And of course I'm sure Chris bragged about Sawyer."

"You mean what he did for his birthday, oh yeah, I think he told everyone he knew," Cheryl laughed, "did you get the gift I sent then?"

"Yeah, we're sending out thank yous when we're actually at home," Stephanie said as Chris walked out of the bathroom after changing. "Oh, here's Chris, talk to you later, Cheryl."

"Bye, Stephanie."

Stephanie handed the phone to Chris and walked over to grab Kensington's hand, "We'll be at the gorilla, which is where the production table is, where I run the show," Stephanie explained to Edyta, "so I'll see you before you go out there, but good luck."

"Thank you."

Stephanie led the girls out to the gorilla and waited for the show to start. Vickie, in an actual smart move (Stephanie would be remiss to say that Vickie wasn't at least competent at her job), put the dance-off first to get it out of the way. She was grateful that her husband would be on first so that they could get to the real show afterwards. She still thought it was dumb for her husband to even try this, but she wasn't in his brain, she didn't know his motives, so she would just let it go, even if she thought her husband was walking into a trap.

Chris practiced for this. He practiced for this, and he wanted to win this. Nobody could ever say he wasn't competitive. After good luck kisses from his favorite girls, he and Edyta make their way out there and to the ring, which was covered in parquet to mimic a dance floor. Chris led her into the ring and stared down Fandango in his ridiculous outfit. That should have tipped Chris off to how silly this entire thing was, but he pushed it out of his brain. It was the principle of the thing really. He wanted to beat Fandango at his own game, and if that was a dance-off the so be it.

Before they danced, Chris decided to remind people that when it came to ridiculous things on Raw, he was the one who always came out on top. When he was forced to play musical chairs, he won at that, when he was forced to be on the WWE version of The Price is Right, he did that as well. He was a master as this kind of thing, and this time would be no exception. If he was going to dance, he was going to _dance._ Fandango was first, and his music started up and he did…nothing.

Chris should have known, but before he could continue with his dancing, Fandango and Summer Rae started their dance, well, they did until Summer Rae crumpled to the floor. Edyta, not being used to this kind of thing, went over to check on the girl. Fandango acted disgusted with his partner, and Chris, seeing that Fandango was leaving, went over to check on her too. This gave Fandango the opportunity to jump him and beat him senseless around the ring.

It would be the last time.

When Chris finally made his way backstage, Edyta helping him the entire way, very much confused by what was going on, he was pissed off. Stephanie walked up to him and he put his hand up, "Save it, Stephanie."

Stephanie never saved it. She grabbed the hand in her face and kissed his palm. "Sweetie, I think it's time to go back to being Chris Jericho. This is not Chris Jericho. You know who you are, you know what you've done, you know all the things you've accomplished, and dancing on a wrestling show, sweetie, come on. Do what you have to do, do what you _know_ you can do."

"Wrestle, Daddy!" Flynn told him, pounding her fists against the table.

"Usually, I'd tell her to be quieter and use her indoor voice, but I think she's telling you what to do better than I ever could. Wrestle him, Chris, break him, you know his name, you know how to be serious. You know how to kick ass, so go and do that. Be Chris Jericho."

"I think I need to take a walk, Flutterby, do you want to take a walk with me?" Chris asked.

"No! I'm watching wrestling," Flynn told him, shaking her head. "I'm helping Mommy run the show."

"Kensy-bug, do _you_ want to take a walk with me?" Chris wondered. Kensington nodded enthusiastically and Chris lifted her and held her against his hip. "Come on, Edyta, I'll walk you to your dressing room and I'll get one of the limos to take you to the airport."

"Thank you, Chris, I'm sorry that happened to you," she said sympathetically.

"Believe me, it happens more than I'd like to admit."

AJ paced around her locker room, her phone buzzing with her boyfriend's tweets every so often. He was making light of the situation, and she loved him for it, but she was dead serious. Teddy was set to make the announcement soon, and she was on edge. She knew Dolph was too, and he was trying to mask it with comedy. She didn't even need to be near him to read him. That was another new thing for her. With Daniel, he was always so standoffish that she could never get a read on him. The other men in her life kept her at arm's length, but Dolph let her in so completely. This past week, taking care of him, she saw a vulnerable side she'd never seen before.

AJ was about to leave when she heard her phone ring. She went over to it expecting it to be Dolph, but it was actually his mother. She answered immediately, "Kelly, hey, is everything okay?" She was already on edge, she didn't need even more on her plate.

"No, sweetheart, I just wanted to make sure you were alright, I was just talking with Dolph, making sure his head was in the right place, and he mentioned you were there to make sure he didn't lose his belt. I just wanted to thank you for that. He's worked so hard."

"I know," AJ told her, "I'm making sure he keeps it, I don't care what I have to do."

"He appreciates it, we all do, I like your tenacity."

"Thanks, Kelly," AJ told her, "I just don't think it would be fair, and if they do try to strip him, they'll have to pry that belt from my cold, dead hands."

"My son is in very good hands," Kelly laughed, "I'll let you go, I just wanted to wish you luck, and I know you can do it."

"Don't worry, Kelly, I will."

The brief phone call helped calm her down some, but she was still anxious for the announcement and decided to go wait at the gorilla for it. She could at least talk to Stephanie and thank her again for what she'd done for her the week before at the SmackDown tapings. She'd already called her over the weekend, but she felt like she should say it again. AJ was distraught and Stephanie was there for her, and it meant something to her.

"AJ?"

AJ shuddered as _that_ voice pierced her thoughts. She turned around and looked at the older woman. "I'm really not in the mood for you tonight, Vickie."

"How is he?" Vickie asked, her voice calm, normal, and not condescending. AJ knew she looked haggard tonight, she didn't need a mirror to tell her. She felt like she'd aged 10 years over the last week, and it was reflected in her tonight. She was dressed in her Dolph shirt, a tribute to her boyfriend, but she was anything but happy. Vickie could only spell trouble for her, but this wasn't the Vickie she was used to, so she couldn't be the AJ Vickie was used to.

"He's doing better," AJ said, "he still has some slight headaches, but it's more like a dull ache in his head. He's getting another scan this week to make sure things are okay. He'll be fine, his memory of those two days is still patchy at best, but other than that he's doing okay."

"Thanks for letting me know, I hope he feels better," Vickie told her genuinely, and their affections for one man connected them in that moment. It wouldn't be fair to say that Vickie wasn't someone who once had importance in Dolph's life.

"I'll tell him you said so."

"I also gave Teddy the authority to decide what to do with the title, I don't think I could have been unbiased," Vickie told AJ.

AJ was stunned. She was so sure that Vickie would want him stripped of the title, but the odds were looking better now, "Thank you, we appreciate that."

Vickie just nodded, and AJ turned to walk to the gorilla, taking a deep breath. When she got there, E was already there, waiting for her, jumping in place. He cracked his knuckles as she came near, and as much as she knew the tiredness was rolling off her in waves, the rage was rolling off E. His reaction over Dolph's injury was just pure rage. She touched his arm and he nodded to her before she went over to where Stephanie and Flynn were sitting.

"Stephanie?"

Stephanie looked up from what she was doing, "Oh, hey, AJ, what can I do for you?"

"I just wanted to thank you, both of you actually, for what you did last week when I was upset, I just…I probably didn't deserve it because of what Dolph has done to your husband, but thank you."

"Hey, it was nothing, and AJ, we can still be friends, you know," Stephanie smiled at her and AJ gave her as strong a smile as she could muster, but not knowing Dolph's fate as champion made everything feel strained.

When Swagger and Zeb thought Dolph should be stripped of the title, she and E had no choice but to go out there and make sure that didn't happen. E intimidated first, but she got on the microphone and told Swagger that it was him that should be suspended and fired for what he'd done (all while getting in a little shout-out to her boyfriend at home). She wasn't letting Swagger swoop in and take it from her boyfriend. She would fight them both before doing that.

Dolph turned to Nacho on the couch next to him, "Look at your mother, Huevos, she's kicking ass and taking names. That's why I love her, she doesn't go down without a fight, we're lucky to have her, aren't we?" Nacho just looked up at him. "Well okay then, I'll just tweet about it!"

When Teddy said that the title wouldn't be stripped from Dolph, AJ felt it was a victory. Everything felt better, the air felt cooler, and Teddy even gave E a match, telling the world to pick the opponent. She could only hope E would get his hands on Swagger. She would like to see the carnage.

Chris looked at Kensington, "You think Mommy and Flynnie are right, Kensy-bug? Should I go back to being Chris Jericho?"

"Uh huh," Kensington told him, "Be Daddy!"

"Well, I guess I could, I suppose I should. I want to beat him, this time I really want to beat him."

"Do it, Daddy," Kensington smiled sweetly at him.

"Okay, Kensy-bug, I think I will."

The vote went exactly the way AJ wanted, with Swagger winning, and E able to take out his rage on the man who injured her boyfriend. The match didn't exactly go the way she wanted though, at least not with the outcome. She wanted to see Swagger bent and broken in the middle of the ring, and while E was able to get in some good shots, he was counted out. She supposed it wasn't as bad as a pin, but she wanted E to get in even more offense. After the match, Del Rio came down to the ring, and she watched in anger as the two men who wanted Dolph's title fought it out. Neither one of them were worthy of getting in the ring with her boyfriend, but either way, Dolph would win. He just needed to be cleared first.

Her match was on right after E's so she simply climbed into the ring and sat on the ropes. The whole peanut gallery was coming out for the match, Nattie had Kaitlyn, Hornswoggle, and Khali with her, and then the Bellas had to join in on the fun. AJ scowled at the two of them, not forgetting that those two left her high and dry the week before. They were petty and mean, but of course, people thought they were pretty and let their snide behavior slide. No matter though, she wasn't out here to wrestle them, just Nattie, and she was looking forward to it.

She had a little rage to get out herself.

Dolph scowled as he watched the match. He'd never seen the show from this side before. Usually when he watched a show, it was after the fact, and he would fast forward through the things he wanted, and he never paid attention to things like commentary, but right now, it was hard not to, what with all the voices talking all at once. He was getting a bit peeved because nobody was calling the action in the ring, and it was disrespectful to the women in the ring. He may not necessarily like Nattie, but he respected the hell out of her wrestling ability and talent in general. And AJ, well, that was the woman he loved, and to have the announcers and the other divas talk over this match, well, he hated it.

So he tweeted about it.

Yes, it was snarky of him, but it pretty much said all it needed to say. He missed his girlfriend, that was a given, Kaitlyn needed to shut up because she was being petty because AJ happened to be a different person now, and the Bellas, well they were just jealous bitches who were trying to make his girlfriend out to be something she wasn't. Yes, she'd had a rough summer the year before, but he and AJ started dating in October of last year. She was hardly passed around the locker room, and he resented them for saying something like that. It was the announcer's jobs to keep tabs on the in-ring action, and these three dumbasses were pretty much hitting on the Bellas. Was this how it was always like? He finally had to mute them as he tried to watch his girlfriend.

Nattie was throwing her in the ring before climbing in herself. Nattie then picked up AJ and looked like she was about to do a backbreaker, but AJ came to life and locked Nattie into an octopus hold, what AJ was now calling the Black Widow. Dolph grinned as he watched his girlfriend make Nattie submit. He almost immediately tweeted about it, knowing she'd read them later and be happy.

AJ was thrilled she won, and she watched in amusement as Kaitlyn tried to help Nattie out of the ring. That was quick and dirty, just like she liked it. She sent a glare to the Bella twins before she climbed out of the ring and made her way quickly up the ramp. Tonight she'd kicked ass, but she had bigger things to think about.

She had a boyfriend who needed her.

Chris Jericho was tired of playing by the rules. He was tried of letting Fandango dictate how this was going to end. So he decided to end it himself, that Sunday at Extreme Rules. Chris was done joking around. Stephanie was right, he was a wrestler, he was not a professional dancer, and he wasn't going to let this punk rookie get the better of him once again. He needed to remind himself and the world of who he was and what he was about. He'd held every belt you could imagine he'd accomplished everything he ever wanted, he was a rock star, he had a radio show, a TV show, and a family who meant the world to him. He would win this Sunday, he would teach Fandango a lesson, and there was really only one reason people needed to believe that he was going to win.

Because he was Chris Jericho.


	419. The Basics, Extreme Rules, May 19, 2013

A/N: As usual, this is Extreme Rules, and double Raw next week. Enjoy! :)

* * *

"Mom, really, this was not necessary."

"Nonsense," Kelly told him, "besides, it gave me an excuse to come see you. I never get to see you."

"Mom, are you kidding me?" Dolph asked. "I've been by to see you every time we've been within like a 300 mile radius of Cleveland. You cannot tell me that you haven't seen me because you have. And I'm doing better, I promise you."

"Well, after I saw that replay on Monday, like hell I wasn't going to come and see you," Kelly shook her head. "I had to make sure you were okay with my own eyes. Sorry, that's a mother's privilege, and I am exercising it."

"But I'm going to be okay," Dolph answered her, rolling his eyes. The day after Raw aired, his mother informed him she was flying out immediately. She'd arrived Tuesday night, much to his chagrin, and said she wasn't leaving for a few days. He figured it was just her excuse to come make sure things weren't falling apart in Phoenix. She always hated that her sons were so far away from her.

"That remains to be seen," she told him as she started to put dishes in the dishwasher. "You have another scan this week to make sure that you're okay, and you still can't remember what happened over those two days."

"Well, it's not like anything monumental happened. I watched Raw and SmackDown, and AJ filled me in on the rest of the time, which was spent mostly driving, sleeping, and working out. There wasn't much time for anything else. So it's not like I lost a ton of stuff."

He still wasn't crazy he'd lost any time at all, but all things considered, at least nothing important happened. What he hated more was being kept off the Extreme Rules card, but he understood why. It was just the fact that would have been his first title defense, and now he'd have to wait. It cut into his full-time worker proclamation, but the moment he was cleared, he was going to be back out there. Until then, he'd just have to live vicariously through his girlfriend and his protégé.

"When is AJ coming here again?" Kelly asked. "I didn't like the idea of you being alone."

"Neither did she, but she had to go there and take up for me. We didn't know the situation with the belt, and she wasn't going to let me lose it," he told her with a small smirk. "She had to take care of some things in Tampa, but she's coming in soon. My car is at the airport so she can drive herself here. I'm not allowed to drive."

"I'm well aware, thank goodness I rented that car," his mother told him. "Now answer me this, why does she still have a place in Tampa to begin with? Why hasn't she moved in with you? Have you _offered_ your home to her?"

"Offered my home? What, like on a silver platter?" Dolph wondered.

"Don't get smart with me," she told him. "I just think it's silly for you two to have two residences."

"It's like we've got two houses," Dolph shrugged, "actually, it's really convenient because depending on where we are in the country, we can go to either house."

"But don't you spend most of your time here?" Kelly asked. "I thought you spent the majority of the time in Phoenix anyways, are you afraid to commit to her because she so obviously loves you. Did you see her on Monday—"

"I did see her, I think I would watch the show my girlfriend is on, besides I was live tweeting it," he told her.

"I don't know what that means, but I'm saying that she was like a little fireball, I thought she was going to take down that Swagger boy by herself, and not that I blame her, and her face after they showed the replay…"

Dolph frowned, "She had it rough."

"I imagine so."

"She won't tell me about it, she said not to worry about it, but," he took pause. If he could talk to someone about this, it was a good thing it was his mother. She always did know the right things to say to him, and she probably knew more about relationships than he ever could. His schedule didn't allow for much of a traditional love life. "I know that she was probably distraught. I wish she'd talk about it, but the thing with AJ is you have to let her initiate that conversation."

"If it was anything like the way she looked on Monday, I'd say so," she patted his hand, "but like you said, you'll be okay, and that girl…she's amazing, Dolph, and I have never even thought that about any other girl you've brought home. Don't screw it up with her."

"Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence," Dolph told her. "I can handle her."

"You still should ask her to move in with you," his mother turned back to the dishes sitting in the sink.

"She pretty much is," Dolph answered, "it's just not in one house, but we spend our weekends together. It's the most I've ever spent with one girl, but the thing is that I don't get tired of having her around. I miss her when she's not, and it's weird because before, whenever I'd go back on the road, it was kind of a relief."

His mother looked over her shoulder at him knowingly, but he just groaned and lifted himself off his stool, grabbing Nacho along the way. He gave the dog a short noogie before grabbing Nacho's harness off the hook near the door. He wasn't allowed to work out, but he was allowed to walk, and because it was the only exercise he was allowed to do, he made sure to take two walks around the neighborhood a day. He wasn't allowed to go any great distances either so it was this or nothing. And he'd rather take this than nothing. He sat down on his front step and hooked in Nacho's harness.

On these walks, he would try to clear his mind and see if any of the memories would worm their way back into his brain. It was nice having people who cared about him, but with everyone hovering around him like his head was going to explode, it got a bit old. Even AJ, love of his life, was too overprotective sometimes, and if he felt she was smothering him, what chance did anyone else stand? Nacho was the only one who didn't try to make sure he was alright every second of every day, although those first few days, he knew that something was wrong because he was extra cuddly with his daddy.

It was still strange having that void of Monday and Tuesday in his brain. There was a mental block he couldn't push through, though he tried as hard as he could. AJ informed him of everything she could remember, and it wasn't like he did anything exciting, just his normal routine, but it was the mere fact that he couldn't remember it himself that bugged him. And he wished he could have known how AJ was. He'd talked to E, but apparently AJ swore him to secrecy or bribed him with whole chickens or something because he was keeping mum about it.

He worried, probably a baseless, unwarranted worry, that he'd said something to hurt her. She didn't necessarily act like he was hurt, but maybe his brain was so fried right after that he said something he would regret under normal circumstances. What if he could only remember the old AJ, the AJ he knew before he got to know her? What if he said something hateful or mean to her? What if he told her to get her crazy away from him? More than the memories of what he might have done between Raw and SmackDown, it was this failed memory that bothered him the most.

He circled the block, stopping every now and then to wait for Nacho, who could sometimes be as stubborn as his mother was. They finally made it back to his house and he sat on the front step again, just so he wouldn't have to talk to his mom again. It wasn't like he hated talking to her, but he just needed a few more moments where he didn't have to talk or share space with his mother. Nacho smelled around the grass in his front yard for a second before hopping up the step and taking a seat next to Dolph. Dolph pet his head, taking comfort in the soothing motion. His head still had a small dull ache to it, but it wasn't something he couldn't bear.

He sat there for a while until a car pulled into the driveway. He smiled as he watched AJ get out, nearly stumbling out of the car. She hadn't seen him yet and he watched as she opened the back door and pulled all her bags out of the back. Because she had to bring so many outfits she had two big bags this time around (although with the both of them, there was always more), and she set them on the driveway before she closed the door and turned the alarm on. She grabbed the handles to both suitcases and turned to go up the walkway when she jumped.

"Oh my God, I didn't know you were sitting there!" she said, pressing her hand to her heart. He laughed and stood up, going over and grabbing the handle to one of her suitcases. "I can handle it."

"Babe, I'm recovering from a concussion, my arms aren't broken."

"You aren't supposed to strain yourself," she said, but leaned up to give him a peck on the lips. He frowned and leaned down to kiss her properly. She giggled against his mouth and wrapped her arms around his neck. He lifted her up so her feet were dangling off the ground. She loved when he kissed her like this, and she couldn't even explain why. She pulled away and turned their kiss into a hug as his hand came up to cradle her head, a move that had become his signature.

"Oh, well, someone is watching us."

"Please don't tell me it's my mom because that's where I draw the line," Dolph told her, hugging her tighter.

"No, just our dog," AJ said, "I think he's getting jealous, but I'm not sure if he's jealous of me or you since you decided to practically steal him with me."

"So should I add, 'and your dog too,' after the, 'and your girlfriend' part of my t-shirt?" he wondered. This caused her to squeal and squirm out of his arms, and he took a step back because he didn't understand why she was suddenly so freaked out. "What? What is it?"

"I forgot to tell you, I'm so stupid," she giggled, pulling him down for another kiss, "wait, before I get to my news, how's your head, how are the headaches?"

"Very dull, almost nonexistent, and no, I haven't gotten the memories back," he told her and she looked a little downtrodden. "Babe, before we get into your news, which, judging by your reaction is something really good, can we talk?"

"Oh God, something's wrong with your head, isn't it?" she asked. In the past, she would have wondered if he was breaking up with her. He knew her well enough to know how long that fear carried serious weight with her, and knowing that wasn't where her mind immediately went anymore made him flush with warmth. "How could you not tell me!"

"It's not my head," he told her, "I mean, it's not about my head right now. Why don't we take a walk in case my mom is peeking through the blinds or something? Nacho can come with, he just took a walk, but he can take two."

"Okay…" AJ looked a little apprehensive.

"Or we can let Nacho stay with my mom, come on, let's put your suitcases inside, never can trust the neighbors," he told her and she gave a short laugh as he pulled one suitcase in while she pulled the other. Dolph opened the door and let Nacho jump inside first. He took AJ's suitcase and put it next to the door, grabbing the one she had and putting that next to her other one. "Mom, AJ's here, we're taking a walk, Nacho is in the house."

"Okay, I'm getting dinner started!" she called back. "I hope AJ likes tacos!"

"Yes, I do!" AJ called out.

"Good! Enjoy your walk, welcome home, AJ!"

"Thank you," AJ said as Dolph grabbed her hand, linking their fingers together and starting back down the driveway. "Okay, so what's going on? Do you have to have more tests or something? I'll go with you."

"No, I just wanted to talk about, well, I guess I wanted to talk about what happened right after I was kicked in the head. I saw what they showed from SmackDown, but well, I could see myself talking to you when you were with me at ringside," he said, trying to weigh his words so he wouldn't offend her or upset her or anything. It was tricky because he wanted the truth, but didn't want to dredge up the memories of it.

"Oh, well, um, yeah, you were."

"And I saw your face after they showed the replay, babe, you looked like someone killed Huevos," Dolph told her.

"I just didn't want to watch it again," she told him, staring up at the sky. "I didn't want to see it, I saw it once when I was there live when it happened, it was enough, I just…I didn't want to see it again."

"I'm sorry," he told her, stopping on the sidewalk to give her a quick hug. She banded her arms around his waist as they continued walking. Twilight was descending, the hot Arizona sun sinking into the horizon, turning the sky a hazy purple. The air was still warm, but spiced with the cool tinges of evening.

"It wasn't your fault," she told him, her voice soft as she cuddled against him. It made walking a little weird, but he'd missed her too so he was fine with the situation.

"I know, but…what was I saying?"

"Just nonsense things," she told him.

"AJ?"

"Hmm?" she even sounded sleepy now, she like could fall into his embrace and never look back.

"Did I say…did I say anything to you that was mean or rude or hurtful?"

It was her turn to stop. She froze, looking up at him, searching his face with her shrewd eyes. He stopped too, his blue eyes open and questioning. AJ's mouth was a straight line, but then they quirked up into a small smile. "Ziggy, you didn't say anything, okay. You knew who I was, don't worry."

She knew without him saying a word that he was worried he'd hurt her while his memory was in shambles. He breathed a sigh that belayed all the worry expelling itself from his body. "I was really worried I said something to you that was…well, the old me."

"No, you actually kept telling me how pretty I looked, that's how I knew something was wrong," she giggled as she hugged him around the waist again.

"Damn, even with a concussion I can ooze out the charm, what chance do other men have against me?" he said cockily as she pinched his side. "I'm just glad I didn't forget you, that would have sucked."

"For us both."

"Well, more for you since you wouldn't have all of this," he gestured to himself, "Jk, jk, I'd be at a loss too. So what's this news you were dying to tell me?"

"You know how you're getting that new t-shirt, the pink one that I can't wait to wear?"

"Yeah, they should be arriving tomorrow then you can send them out to get Dolph and AJ-ized…that sounded a lot better in my head, I promise you."

"Well, I might have to hold out on that for a little while because I was told at Raw that…I'm getting my own t-shirt!" AJ squealed as Dolph's jaw dropped.

"Babe, that's the best thing I've heard all day!" he told her, hugging her again and lifting her up again.

"Ziggy, you have to stop picking me up, your head!" she reprimanded him, but he didn't care.

"What does it look like? I bet it's cool, oh man, I really bet it's cool, do you think it's going to come in guy sizes because if it does, I mean, I should have one, don't you think? And this is just like I said, we're going to rule this company, the two of us, it's already starting, when's the last time a diva got a shirt?" Dolph told her, and she loved him for being just as excited, maybe even more so than she was.

"It's going to have a spider on it because I'm the black widow," she told him excitedly, "and it's going to be black and it's going to say 'Love Bites,' because I'm awesome and love kind of bites until you get the right person."

Dolph took her face in his hands and kissed her again, "You are the most powerful diva in this company. It's only a matter of time before you get that belt, and we are going to look so hot with the titles around our waists. I cannot wait for that moment."

"I love you," AJ told him. "I'm glad you didn't forget that."

"I love you too."

Chris arched his back up, but was interrupted by a small form standing next to him. "Daddy, what you doing?"

Chris stopped and moved so he was sitting cross-legged on his mat. "I'm doing yoga."

"I no know dat," she shook her head and grinned at him. Then she threw her small arms around him and giggled, going in for a cuddle. Chris grabbed her around the waist and gave her a bear hug, complete with growls and kisses. Kensington laughed loudly, her tiny hands trying to push her father away. "Daddy!"

"What?" Chris said hugging her tighter and falling back so she was cuddled against him. "Stephanie!"

"What!" Stephanie called from somewhere upstairs.

"There's a bug on me, can you come get it and take it off, it's really big!"

"Swat it away!" Stephanie called back at him.

"I don't think that'll do it, I think you need to come and put it in a jar or something," he told her as he sat back up and kissed the top of Kensington's head, her light brown hair getting in his mouth a little bit. He brushed it out as he pulled away, letting Kensington play with his wedding ring on his hand.

"Then let it fly away."

"I think its wings are broken," Chris told her, looking down at his daughter, "Kensy-bug, are your wings broken?"

"I ladybug, I spots!" Kensington laughed as if she made a joke and Chris laughed at her happiness. Kensington was such a happy kid, always going with the flow. It made him think she wouldn't completely turn out like Flynn, not that Flynn was a bad kid, she was the best kid, but two Flynn's running around would give Chris and Stephanie gray hair way before their time.

"You have spots? Where?" Chris asked, tickling her and pretending to look for them. "I don't see spots!"

"Daddy, no!" Kensington squirmed out of his arms and ran towards the door where Stephanie suddenly appeared.

"I see the bug finally flew off you?" Stephanie said as she bent over to pick up Kensington. She kissed her daughter on the cheek then gave her a stern look. "Kensy, I thought I told you, you needed to leave Daddy alone while he was in here because he has a match on Sunday to prepare for."

Kensington just shrugged as Chris took up her defense, "She just wanted to see what I was doing. Give her a break."

"Should I give you a break, Kensy?" Stephanie asked and Kensington leaned forward to give her a kiss on the cheek. "Bribery, I like it."

"Wait, _that's_ considered a bribe now? So what the hell was I doing last night, giving you all the bribery you can handle?" Chris asked as Stephanie frowned at him. "Just saying, give me my daughter, it's time to pick up my other daughter from preschool."

"I can go."

"I want to," Chris told her with a shrug. "This was a bust anyways, I can always do it later. You pick up the kid?"

"Yeah, I've got him covered. I've got a conference call in a few, so when you get back, maybe leave me alone."

"Wow, so it's not even going to be like, 'Sweetie, I love you, but I need to work'? It's just, stay the hell away from me!"

"Yeah, pretty much," Stephanie told him.

"That's fine, we won't even be here anyways because you told me I had to take the girls' shopping for bathing suits because summer is coming up and they're getting too big," Chris turned to Kensington, "Kensy, you're too big—"

"She's gangly," Stephanie gestured towards her daughter's legs. "She's like me, she's leggy. I think she's going to be taller than Flynn when everything is said and done. Flynn will probably hate that, but by the time she notices, hopefully she won't care."

"I like how you think our daughters are going to hate each other."

"I never said hate each other, but if you don't already see the rivalry between them, you're not looking hard enough," Stephanie shrugged.

"You mean how they constantly want to wrestle each other, I think I get it," he said, standing up. "Let me get dressed, and then I'll go so you can take your precious conference call."

Chris got dressed and took Kensington from Stephanie, heading down to his car and putting the little girl in her car-seat. He put on her favorite CD while they drove even though it wasn't exactly his cup of tea (but kids' songs never really were). He enjoyed watching her dance in her car-seat though, so that made the trip a lot easier. Kensington liked to dance, and he liked to think she had rhythm, but she was two, so that was probably just a parent thinking their child was the best at something.

They arrived at Flynn's preschool and he got out of the car, grabbing Kensington along the way before heading inside to sign Flynn out. The moment she saw him, she instantly dropped whatever conversation she was having with her friend, Kristy, and ran to get her things. Chris laughed and made small talk with her teacher before Flynn was pulling on him to leave.

"Daddy, Daddy, guess what?"

"What?" Chris asked nicely as he helped Flynn get into the car, watching as she climbed into her booster seat before he went around and put Kensington back in her car-seat.

"Hi, Finny!" Kensington waved.

"I saw you already, Kensy," Flynn said with a deep sigh, "but hi."

"I play wif Daddy."

"I _know_," Flynn said, giving her sister a look. It wasn't fair that Kensington got to stay home and play with their daddy while she had to go to school. Luckily, her mommy and daddy told her that next year, Kensington would be starting school so she wouldn't get to stay home all the time with their mommy and daddy. That made Flynn happy.

"Okay, no fighting," Chris said, reminded of what Stephanie said earlier about sibling rivalry, "what did you want me to guess, Flutterby?"

"Oh, oh, oh," Flynn said, going into her backpack and pulling something out. "We made drawings about what we were going to do over the weekend, and I made a picture of you!" Flynn held up the crudely made drawing. She was good enough at drawing that he could ascertain it was him during a match because he appeared to be standing on the top rope and someone was lying on the ground. The someone in question was wearing apparently every color Flynn had at her disposal, and that could only mean one thing.

"Am I beating up Fandango in that picture?" Chris asked.

"Uh huh, this is when you win, Daddy, because you're going to win, and you're going to beat him, and I get to see it, and so does Kensy, but I'm going to cheer louder because Kensy's just a baby—"

"No, I not!" Kensington growled, glaring at Flynn.

"Uh huh," Flynn said then continued with her spiel, "Daddy, I bet you you're gonna win, and Mommy is gonna kiss you lots and lots and you _like_ that, Daddy, because you like kisses from Mommy."

"I _do_ like kisses from Mommy," Chris nodded, "is that all I'm going to get?"

"Um…no, but I don't think it's for a belt, Daddy, but I can give you hugs if you want," Flynn shrugged. "I don't know what else you can get."

"I think hugs from you is a great way to celebrate actually," Chris told her. Flynn puffed up her chest a little bit, happy she'd found something her daddy would like when he won.

"Okay, Daddy, I'll give you lots of hugs."

Stephanie pulled Hunter into her office. "Well, hello to you too, Stephanie."

"Sorry, I saw you walking down the hallway and had to talk to you," Stephanie told him, closing the door behind her.

"Closing the door, wow, are we going to have sex again? Did you miss me that much?" he asked with a smirk. "And don't wear me out, I've got a huge match later that I really should be preparing for."

"Very funny, I'm very, very satisfied, thank you very much."

"And that's where I draw the line over this friendship," he told her, "I don't need to know about your sex life. I prefer to live in the delusion that I was the best you've ever had."

"The three kids in 6 years might prove you wrong on that front, but I want to know how your date went with Lindsay," Stephanie pushed him down on the couch and sat across from him. "She said she had a good time, did you?"

"She was nice, I liked her," Hunter nodded, but Stephanie frowned. "What?"

"That's not the face you make when you actually did have a good time. That's the face you made when I would drag you to some concert you didn't want to go to because you didn't like jazz music," Stephanie said. "You didn't like her?"

"I liked her, but I don't know, maybe I'm not cut out for dating. I never have anything to talk about, I'm not interesting."

"Not interesting? Sure you are, you managed to keep me around for a couple years, so obviously you're somewhat interesting. Did you talk about your job?" Stephanie asked, thinking his job was fascinating because of course she would.

"Yeah, but it's not like I'm wrestling full-time anymore," Hunter shrugged, "how did you do it? How did you go out after everything and get Chris?"

"Chris and I are different, we just…we had the build-up, it's not like other couples, but I guess you just put yourself out there, and see what happens. I'll find someone else for you, someone with the same interests as you. I know a lot of women, there's bound to be someone out there for you."

"Yeah, sure."

"No, don't talk like that. I hated my husband for two years, but it worked out. Sometimes things surprise you, you know, but beyond that, we'll drop it for now because I know your mind is elsewhere tonight. Are you ready for this?"

"Stephanie, I've been ready. Tonight is it, I'm putting an end to this, I'm putting an end to him. He thinks he can just come here and run roughshod over your company, he can't. It's not even really about you anymore or anything Paul has said about you, it's about pride at this point. It's about proving that I'm still the best."

"Good luck," Stephanie said, patting him on the knee. "I better get to catering, Chris wanted to get in a meal before the show and I wanted to see the kids before they go out to watch. Be careful tonight though, Brock knows about fighting, not just wrestling, but fighting, and in a steel cage, he can get away with a lot. Paul with him is even worse. That sleazeball will do anything to get the upper-hand, I know better than most."

"You mean when you abandoned me to buy ECW?"

"You were rehabbing, and I'm sorry I couldn't sit around watching it," Stephanie said, "if Chris were in the same situation, I would have done the same thing. I'm not the kind of person who just sits around."

"I know," he told her, "don't worry about me, I've got some tricks up my sleeve."

"You do?"

"Yeah, Britt helped me secure some stuff," Hunter said. Stephanie raised an eyebrow. "We're trying the friends thing, well, _I'm_ trying the friends thing. She doesn't talk about Punk when she's with me, but I know she's happy, I can tell. I was with her for so long, I know when she's happy. She _is_ happy, yes?"

"Well, she wishes he would come back, but she knows he's having fun traveling around like he is. He's reconnecting with old friends, healing up, emotionally and physically. He'll only come back better than before, and healed, which is important."

"That didn't answer my question," he said smartly, smirking at her. "Well, not directly anyways. I'm okay, Steph, you can tell me she's happy, I'm not going to fly off the handle, and I can actually use it as motivation later."

"She's happy," Stephanie said.

"Good, I'm glad," he told her, standing up, "go, go have dinner with the little hell-raisers that you and Chris put on this earth."

"Hey, only two have the potential for that, the other one is a humanitarian at age seven."

"Oh yeah, your anomaly child."

"Exactly," Stephanie said, "we're still not sure what happened with that one. He must have gotten the best genes Chris and I had to offer."

"Must have."

Dolph felt restless. He'd traveled pretty much all the time since 2006 when he was a male cheerleader with only a few breaks here and there when he was sent back down to the developmental territory. So sitting at home for the past couple weeks was torture for him. Tonight should have been his first title defense, but instead, he was stuck here, alone, watching the show from his couch. He still wasn't allowed to work out and he felt lazy.

His mother left on Friday while AJ left yesterday, so he was truly alone again save for Nacho. He loved Nacho's company (he'd wanted a dog for so long after growing up with so many), but it wasn't the same as being out on the road and wrestling, and he missed it desperately. He cursed Jack Swagger both internally and externally for kicking him in the face. He missed his job, he missed being in front of the crowd. It wasn't the same showing off for his dog.

"Huevos, next time you see Jack Swagger, I want you to bite him, okay?" Dolph said to Nacho, who was lying on his newest bed in the living room. Dolph hated to admit it, but he spoiled the hell out of that dog. Their house was littered with dog toys and dog beds, and he shuddered to think what might happen if he and AJ ever had a child.

He sat back and watched the show because he wanted to watch it, but he hated it at the same time. He wasn't there, and this was not how he wanted to spend his Sunday. He was already bitter over his brother's firing, wondering how they could do that. He knew it wasn't directly Stephanie's fault, that ultimately some underling decided his brother wasn't worth it, but it still stung. His brother was a great wrestler, and to see him cut like that was disheartening. He'd practically had to hold his mother back from flying off the handle when Briley called her.

In fact, the next place his mother went after leaving him was to Florida to see Briley. If something happened to Donny, they'd be going for the trifecta. But Donny led a relatively normal life so at least one of his brothers was stable. He should call his brother soon and see how he was doing. Maybe after this show, maybe during this show because he wasn't exactly in the mood to even watch everyone doing what they loved while he was stuck here, sitting here, doing nothing and hating the world.

Maybe he just wouldn't watch at all.

Chris warmed up backstage, jumping up and down in place to keep his blood warm. He could see Fandango and Summer Rae across the room, and he snickered when Fandango obviously got upset over something Summer Rae said. Maybe she deserved his wrath, but it was still funny to see her get so upset after the stunt she pulled during the dance-off. In a way, though, he was thankful because it brought out the old Chris Jericho.

"You ready?" a pair of arms snaked across his back and cam around to rest on his pecs.

"For this? Yeah. He caught me once, yes, it was on the biggest stage possible, but he caught me on a fluke. His tactics are cheap, and he can't really beat me in a match," Chris told her. Stephanie kissed the side of his neck. "I'm going to win."

"Don't even come back here if you don't," Stephanie joked with him. "If you lose to him twice, it's over, you might as well steal his girl because I won't want you anymore."

"Just like that?" he asked her.

"Yup, just like that, our entire relationship is based on you being a good wrestler, once you start to decline, I'm going to go looking for husband number three, what do you think of Seth Rollins?"

"Well, if you go for guys with two different hair colors, and ones that like to tumble to the ring, then I really think you're headed for a lifetime of happiness." Stephanie giggled and leaned up to kiss his cheek. Sometimes all his girls giggled the same way, with a lightness and airiness that belied their happiness. He turned to his wife and smiled, leaning down to kiss her.

"I think I'm going to do just fine tonight, call it a hunch or just killer instinct, but I feel more like me than I have in a while. I've got this one in the bag, I just know it, bank on it, bet on me if you want."

"I already bet on you," she said, pointing to her wedding ring. "Now go out there and show that weirdo what a real wrestler is like."

Chris went out there intending to win. It was time to focus. He didn't even look for his dad and his daughters in the audience, so focused was he on wrestling. Finding them could wait until later, but he had bigger things to worry about. He was not going to let what happened at WrestleMania happen tonight. This was his payback, his redemption, and him getting rid of that stupid Fandango.

They locked up to start the match, with Jericho pushing Fandango into a corner, but the referee intervened. Again, they ended up in the corner and Fandango tried to shove him, but Chris slapped him instead, which obviously made Fandango unhappy, but his offense lasted a short moment before momentum became Chris's again. He hit Fandango with a dropkick and an elbow. Before Chris could really get in any offense, Fandango rolled out of the ring to collect himself. Chris shouldn't have been surprised at his antics. Fandango was stalling because he could read the writing on the wall, and that wall said Chris was going to win this match.

Eventually the action moved back to the ring, and Chris was able to gain the momentum back. Fandango ended up on the floor again, and Chris leapt from the top rope onto the other man, taking him down, but not without costing Chris as well. It was a brutal move, and onto the floor made it even worse. Still, Chris was unphased as he got to his feet and climbed atop the announcer's table to posture a little bit.

"Daddy silly!" Kensington pointed from where she was sitting.

"He is," Flynn giggled. "He has a match and he's being silly."

"I think your father is just confident," Ted said. "Let's see what happens before we celebrate."

"He's gonna win, Gamps."

Unfortunately, Ted was right because Fandango started to get in some offense, but Chris was eventually able to turn the tides again, hitting the running bulldog, and trying to finish Fandango once and for all. It didn't work, but Chris was then able to hit a crossbody from the top, but that too only got a 2 count. Fandango tried to come back with a leg drop, but Chris moved out of the way.

He was able to get a Lionsault, but it only got another 2 count. Finally, when Chris was almost out, Fandango tried to go from the top, but Chris caught him in midair with a Codebreaker, counting him out for the pin. Chris got to his feet, hand raised in victory and it was then and only then that he allowed himself to look for his daughters. He walked over to the ropes, leaning on them, spotting his girls cheering for him loudly, their hands raised and happiness flitting across their faces. He winked and smiled at them before turning to leave and go backstage.

As soon as he was back there, Stephanie jumped into his arms, forgoing the show for a moment, "I'm going to put a gag order on those divorce papers I drew up."

"I didn't want to be stuck with Summer Rae. Blondes aren't my thing. I prefer brunettes with killer bodies who have three children."

"Wow, I'm lucky because that's what I have," she hugged. "Does it feel good?"

"Yeah, I felt like me, I did what I had to do, I won that match like I knew I could. I was me for the first time in a while. I didn't give in to his stupid tactics this time, I was me, and I liked it, I like this me."

"Does this me want a title?" Stephanie asked hopefully.

Before he could answer, there was a squealing and yelling from behind him. "Daddy, I knew you were gonna win! I knew it, I told you, I told you, and I drew a picture because I knew it!"

"You did know it, now where is my hug?" Chris knelt down so he could receive hugs from his daughters. Flynn threw herself at him while Kensington hugged him. "Did you guys like my match?"

"Uh huh," Kensington said sweetly, "you win."

"I did, what about you Flutterby?"

"Daddy, you did the Codebreaker from the sky," Flynn said in awe, "from the _sky_!"

"I like to think I have skills," Chris winked at her.

"You did, and he didn't even know it was going to hit him, and he's silly for thinking he can beat you, Daddy, I knew you could win!"

"Thank you for believing in me."

"You're my daddy," Flynn said.

"Me too," Kensington added.

"That's why you cheered for me, right?"

"Uh huh, and you're the best wrestler even if Punk says so, but he's my best friend, and he knows that he's not as good as you even if he says so," Flynn nodded, "I miss Punk, but he's having fun, he said so, right, Daddy?"

"Yeah, he did, now did you want to go watch the rest of the show? You're going to miss it," Chris told her, only now thinking about how they weren't out there watching the match.

"No, Daddy, I want to stay here and be happy with you."

Chris stood up with Flynn in his arms as Ted picked Kensington back up. Stephanie gave the girls some kisses before she turned to Chris, "I'm proud of you, sweetie, I knew you had it in you, so what's next?"

"Just being Chris Jericho."

Dolph wanted to throw something at the wall, but didn't because he didn't want to clean up a mess or make a hole in his wall. It was just so frustrating not being there and being here, sitting here with nothing. He watched some matches, but he knew he could do better than them, but he was sidelined because of an errant kick to his face. He grabbed his phone and dialed his girlfriend.

"I hate the world," he told her gruffly.

"Ziggy, what's wrong?"

"I want to wrestle, and I'm sick of being stuck here, I want to go back on the road," he insisted.

"Dolph, you know that's not a good idea," AJ told him sternly.

"I don't care, my head feels fine, I don't know what the hold up is. They should just let me wrestle and be done with it."

"So you can get another concussion? No, I'm not going through that again. Look, you'll be back before you know it, so please, just relax and take care of your head because that's what's important. E and I are holding down the fort."

"Babe, you don't get it!" he complained like a petulant child.

"Ziggy, you forget that I was ran into by the Big Show, a man who is like four times my weight. I was in a neck brace, I had to stay at home, but it got better, I got better, and you will too. You just have to be patient. Getting worked up about it isn't going to solve anything, and it's only going to set you back."

"Stop doing that," he told her.

"Doing what?"

"Being right," he sighed. "I'm just ready to get back in the ring, and it sucks being on this side of it. I wish I could just be there, if I could just be there, you know, it might be easier, but then it might be harder, who knows, it beats sitting here all by myself with nobody but Huevos."

AJ told him that it would be okay, that he was getting better, and when she got home, she'd play nurse. That made him at least somewhat happy because he liked it when she played nurse (the naughty kind, not the actual kind). He suddenly heard another voice while AJ was trying to hang up, and he wasn't about to hang up, so he stayed on the line. He could hear AJ saying he wasn't on the phone any longer, but he was. He watched onscreen as Kaitlyn started to make fun of his girlfriend.

Kaitlyn had a lot of room to talk. She was a weirdo and he couldn't believe he ever let himself kiss her. He could remember that kiss, and it was more awkward than anything. She'd just been young and there, and…not Vickie. Otherwise, she was clingy and strange, and he didn't much care for her then, and he certainly didn't like her now. Plus, she couldn't insult him with something as lame as saying he was an adult Coppertone baby (whatever that meant), then she had the audacity to call AJ a headache in his life. AJ was anything but a headache.

He watched in awe as Kaitlyn attacked AJ from behind, his girl not taking that lying down and fighting back as much as she could. The Bellas and Tamina came out of nowhere, cheering them on, and he couldn't stand the Bellas coming over just to cheer. They were so jealous of his girlfriend, though they had good reason, AJ was amazing at everything she did. He could actually hear the fight still on his phone, which was pressed against his ear. Finally, he could shear a heavy breathing on the other end.

"I'm sorry, Ziggy."

"Sorry for what, being a badass?" Dolph asked her. "I'm watching, and you were amazing. You're going to take her down when you fight here, there won't even be a contest. She had to cheap shot you because she wouldn't have been able to fight you if things were fair. She's running scared, also, are we still sending her things?"

"No, we're not, which makes this even funnier, someone _is_ sending her something, and it's getting to her. She's going crazy trying to find out, I wonder who it is. I hope it's the worst guy on the roster."

"Me too, for what she just did to you, do you want me to do anything to her?"

"No, trust me, Ziggy, her time is almost up."


	420. The Challenge, May 27, 2013

__A/N: Thanks everyone for reading and everything. Anyways, next Monday is my birthday, and while I'll actually be celebrating over the weekend since my birthday is on a Monday, there may or may not be an update. There probably will be as I try to write a lot ahead of time, and I'm not really doing anything on my actual birthday, but I just wanted to give you a heads up in case there isn't an update. If I don't update next Monday, I'll do a double Raw, but again, I'm probably updating.

Enjoy this chapter. :)

* * *

_Chris wasn't sure what Summer Rae thought he was going to do._

_Did she really think he was going to…what? Kiss her? The thought itself was ridiculous to him. Didn't this girl know he was married? His wife's name was on his ring finger and, well, you know, she just owned and ran the entire company, no big deal. Did Summer Rae think that he was going to ignore all that, and ignore that his wife was actually sitting backstage, watching this all go down? Did this girl honestly think he was going to kiss her? She looked like she wanted it, but could he blame her?_

_There were a lot of girls who wanted him._

_The thing was, they weren't going to get him, and for her to actually stand there, nose-to-nose with him, and think he was going to kiss her, no wonder this girl was with Fandango of all people. Chris looked like he was going to take her up on her very obvious offering of herself, but instead, he brushed her away and laughed as he walked away. He could see her indignant face on the TitanTron, and he laughed even harder as he made his way up the ramp and to the back, where his wife was sitting and directing the show, where his daughters were sitting, one of them enraptured by the screens in front of her while the other was playing with a train car._

"_Should I even ask?" Stephanie wondered as Chris lifted up Kensington and took her seat, letting Kensington kneel on his legs as she pushed her train around. Kensington had recently developed a love of trains, probably because the whistles always made her giggle so they'd brought Sawyer's old train toys out of retirement for her, and she was enraptured. _

"_No, you should never ask," Chris told her, wiggling his eyebrows a little bit. "That girl has got the hots for me though, I could tell."_

"_I think the entire world could tell," Stephanie said before she spoke something into her headphones. "I think blind people could tell."_

"_Now, I know you're not jealous because we've been together almost eleven years so the jealousy boat has sailed, I'm going to go for annoyed, is it annoyed?" Chris wondered and Stephanie frowned at him. "Oh, I hit it right on the head, didn't I? Wow, you know, I am really good, it only took me this long, but I think I can read your mind now."_

"_I'm annoyed she thinks that you'd kiss her because I know that was going through her mind. Is she stupid enough to think you would kiss her on national television with your wife sitting backstage, the wife that can fire her very easily?"_

"_I think she didn't care because I'm so handsome," Chris made a cheesy pose, leaning his chin on the top of his hands and giving her a wide grin. Stephanie snickered and laughed, turning her face away because her husband was trying to make her break and it was working._

"_Stop," Stephanie laughed, "I get it, I get it, you're so good-looking all the girls want you."_

"_Mommy, Daddy, please, I'm trying to watch wrestling over here," Flynn said in annoyance as she huffed and turned herself away from her very annoying parents. Stephanie looked at the back of her daughter's head and laughed a little bit harder._

"_Well, I think we've been chastised," Stephanie said, "but that girl has got another thing coming to her if she thinks she even has a chance with you."_

"_Speak of the devil," Chris nodded his head up to the curtains, which were fluttering behind Summer Rae and Fandango as the former helped the latter get backstage. Summer Rae lifted her head, saw Stephanie, looking at her, and quickly ducked her head down again, her long, blonde hair cascading over her face, but Stephanie caught a touch of red. She laughed even harder at that. "You're going to make that girl uncomfortable for the rest of her career here, aren't you?"_

"_I never said that," Stephanie told him, shrugging her shoulders. "Have you ever known me to be that petty?"_

"_Just…all the time," Chris told her, leaning over and kissing her cheek. "There's the real kiss I wanted. You know, if you were out there and you were Fandango's partner, I would have kissed you."_

"_And what? Dropped me on my ass?" Stephanie asked._

"_I would have gently let you go, like I did last time I did that."_

"_Oh, gently, yes, that was so gentle," she rolled her eyes before saying something into the headphones, having a conversation with whomever was on the other end. Chris waited patiently, kissing Kensington every now and then, making her giggle and wonder when the next one was coming. Stephanie finally ended the conversation and looked back at Chris._

"_I thought I was being gentle, besides, you were the one kissing me back at that point."_

"_I was not."_

"_You were cupping my face," Chris told her then looked around her, "Flynnie, when I kissed Mommy at King of the Ring, did Mommy start to kiss me back?"_

_Flynn tore her eyes away from the screen where wrestling was happening and looked to her father, "What, Daddy, I didn't hear you because I was watching wrestling like I said I was going to."_

"_I get it, we're interrupting your precious wrestling time," Chris told her, "anyways, what I'm saying is when I kissed Mommy at King of the Ring, did Mommy kiss me back at the end, yes or no?"_

"_Yes," Flynn said immediately._

"_What? Flynnie, that's absurd," Stephanie told her daughter, shaking her head and making her ponytail nearly hit Chris in the face. "I didn't kiss him back. I was married to Hunter at the time, and I loved him."_

"_Nope, Mommy, you loved Daddy, you just didn't know you loved Daddy because you thought you loved Trips, but you just didn't, that's it, but it's okay, Mommy because you made your mistake right," Flynn nodded. "You kissed him, Mommy, because you like kissing Daddy, duh!"_

"_You coached her to say that, you weasel," Stephanie pinched him in the arm, making him yelp a little bit._

"_I did no such thing, and I'm a little insulted you would think I would coach my daughter to say something. Just because she happened to see you start to kiss me back is just that, she happened to see. She likes watching that scene because she thinks we're silly for not being married at the time."_

"_Uh huh," Stephanie said, "just be glad you didn't kiss Summer Rae or she didn't kiss you, Mr. Jericho."_

"_Well, I think I'm owed some kisses with other women, seeing as how you've kissed other guys while married to me," he shrugged, resting his chin on Kensington's head as he grabbed her train and made it bop into her nose._

"_You knew about that though, totally different situation," she told him, leaning forward and giving him a kiss for good measure. He made sure she didn't get away so easily when he pressed his hand to the back of her neck and deepened the kiss until Kensington poked Stephanie in the throat. She pulled away with a last, lingering kiss. "So you're still not allowed to kiss anyone else that doesn't have the name Sawyer, Flynn, or Kensington."_

"_I could easily find girls with those names."_

"_No," she said, poking him in the chin._

"Britt, I know that you are his girlfriend and you have that whole responsibility thing, but you also work for the company, can you at least tell him that he can't take months off, _months_, I can't believe he's thinking months," Stephanie said, "I thought he'd get bored after a couple weeks, but now you're telling me it's going to be months?"

"Stephanie, I don't know what to tell you," Britt said, "I mean, he's willing to walk, you've always known that, everyone has known that Punk has never been one to be tied down unnecessarily. He'll walk because he's having fun right now."

"I can't have him do that," Stephanie rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Does he not understand what his presence means here? There are people who pay to see him, who come specifically to the shows to see him. Not having him there is detrimental to the company!"

"He doesn't care," Britt shrugged though Stephanie obviously couldn't see this over the phone. "He's out there and traveling and going to baseball games, and he said he's having a great time, and he wants me to come with him."

"You're not, right?"

"I don't have that much vacation left, so no I can't join him. Colt is with him most of the time," Britt said, "I go wherever they are when I have my days off and I spend them with him, but he loves me, Stephanie, he wants me around. He doesn't _love_ the company like you do."

"He should," Stephanie cursed under her breath. "You can't talk him into it?"

"You've met my boyfriend, right?" Britt told her, "you can't tell CM Punk what to do. If you tell him what to do, he'll do the opposite, that's the way he works. He doesn't like doing the norm, and if he doesn't want to come back, nothing will convince him…and Stephanie, do not even suggest I use sex as a way to convince him, I don't know if you do that with Chris, but I'm not doing it."

"I never said you should use that nor did it cross my mind," Stephanie told her. "I'm strictly business now, but if he's going to be stubborn and continue to act like a petulant child, fine, but he's abusing his friendship with me. That's one of the worst things about this. He knows that he's my friend, and he knows that Flynn adores him, and I would never fire him."

"I know," Britt said, "look, I'm with you on this one. I love him, but he's…well, he's not someone you can boss around, not even me, and I can make him do some pretty crazy stuff."

"Okay, well, thank you for even trying," Stephanie said, "I'll see you on Monday."

"I'm really sorry, Stephanie."

"It's okay."

_AJ felt Layla slapping her ass and knew she won. She didn't quite let go just yet, making sure to wrench her arm back a little bit more, just to make it hurt that much more. Was it necessary? Of course it wasn't, but after Kaitlyn's attack the night before and her boyfriend's still missing presence, she wanted to take her aggression out on someone, and Layla was unfortunately put in a match against her that evening. AJ finally let go and her first thought was about who was next. She was tearing through the women's division and she would tear through Kaitlyn when the time was right._

_She wanted Dolph to be there._

_She didn't care when the match was, Raw, SmackDown, Main Event, a Pay-Per-View, she didn't care when it took place, but she cared that her boyfriend was there. She'd never held the Diva's title, and it was a life-long dream to be the Women's champion (although she really preferred the old belt), and when she won, she wanted him there. So she kept stalling, but until then, the other divas were ripe for the picking. She'd love another shot at the Bellas if at all possible. Those girls needed to be taken down a notch._

_Before she left, she sent Layla, and by proxy Kaitlyn, a message by blowing her a kiss. She wasn't about to be mocked. A few weeks ago (it felt like centuries ago now that her boyfriend was actually with her), Dolph said that she would bite anyone's face off, and she would. She would take down anyone who got in the way of what she wanted. Her boyfriend being injured only put more of a fire underneath her. It was evident earlier when she helped Big E get the win over Del Rio. She wanted him Del Rio softened up for when Dolph came back._

_Until then, she would simply pulverize every diva that crossed her path._

AJ sighed and Dolph looked down at her, "What's your deal, babe?"

"Nothing's my deal, I just miss you on the road, and I was thinking about you."

"I'm right here," he told her, squeezing her hand. "And I'm watching, believe me, the only matches I watch as intently are E's, and even then, I'm not as in awe. I know that guy's skills, but you continue to impress me, and I've been locked in the Black Widow enough times to know how much it hurts."

She smiled and ducked her head a little bit, "Well, you did help me perfect it. All those long hours, making sure I could capture it on someone bigger than me, locking you into it until you tapped out…sometimes harder than others, and you were a little more grabby than Layla was."

"I can't help it, my hands have minds of their own," he told her as he breathed in the deep, salty air. "Remind me again why we're leaving awesome San Diego to go to Cleveland to see my parents who I _just_ saw when my mom was hovering over me?"

"Because you wanted to go to that show on Friday," AJ reminded him, "and I'd feel better if you weren't home alone until your headaches went away. I know you're capable of being alone, I know it, but indulge me, please?"

"Okay," he said, not even putting up a fight because he was going to give in anyways. He gave into her today with the picture she posted on Twitter of the two of them. He didn't want to take one, not feeling like having his picture taken while he was still unable to look and feel normal, but she insisted on making sure everyone knew he was okay, and like most of the times in his life when it came to her, he gave in. "You have no idea how much I love you, do you?"

"Probably not," AJ shrugged, "I'm okay with that, I don't need you to say it all the time. There was a time I would have. There was a time where I would have asked you every day to tell me you loved me at least five times a day, but I'm not that girl anymore, that's not who I am, and it's all on you for that."

"I'm not taking credit for anything you do on your own, babe," he told her, kissing the crown of her head. "You are you because of you, not me."

"You've given me my confidence back, I never thought I'd get that back after the things Daniel did to me, after Punk kept me at arm's length, after all that, but you did," she beamed at him briefly, "but no more talk of that. We'll have fun in Cleveland, I like you parents. It makes not seeing mine very often a little easier to take."

"I can't believe my dad is taking _you_ to the Penguins game on Friday. You don't even watch hockey, and my dad isn't even a fan of the Penguins."

"It's only because he had the extra ticket he got from his work, and you are going with your mom to that wrestling show—"

"You should come with me," Dolph told her.

"Your dad invited me, he thought it would be a good opportunity to get to know me," AJ told her boyfriend, "since your mom does kind of take over my time whenever we visit with her, plus, Donny is going to be there with us, and so if me and your dad fall into any awkward silences where he starts to think about how I'm sleeping with his son, and how we aren't exactly shy about saying that."

"My parents don't look at my Twitter because they don't know about it," Dolph told her, "and that's how it's going to stay."

"Oh, please, Ziggy, they know about it, you really think your parents don't know about it, that's cute," she patted his cheek as she leaned up to kiss him. "We'll have fun, they can teach me about hockey, and you can tell me all about the Monsters because I know you love them, and I love you so it all works out. I just wish you were on the road again because that's where I really miss you."

"Believe me, babe, I miss it too."

_Stephanie looked at Trish and her pregnant stomach some more. "Don't tell me you're jealous."_

"_What? No, ridiculous," Stephanie said, but then made a face, "A little bit. It's just been more than two years, almost _three_ since I had a baby in the house. I just miss it."_

"_Okay, Angelina Jolie," Trish scoffed, "You have three kids, Steph, one of whom is still partially in diapers, your kids are still small."_

"_I know, but babies are different, you know this," Stephanie said, "speaking of different, your husband, what's up with him?"_

"_That's not a smooth transition," Trish picked up a fry off her plate and dipped it in ranch dressing. She shrugged, "I think he just kind of wants to stay away until the baby is born. My guess is that once the baby is born, he won't feel bad leaving, you know. With Tilden being as active as she is, and me getting bigger now, I think he feels obligated to stay at home."_

"_We're just missing so many guys right now," Stephanie sighed, "Dolph is out with his concussion, Hunter has his concussion or whatever issue he has going on, Punk is touring the country, and now Christian is MIA, but I guess I can't blame him because well, you're pregnant and I get it. I asked Chris to do the same thing when I was pregnant with Sawyer."_

"_As I recall, you came back after a few weeks, but it took him two years, let's hope the same thing doesn't happen with my husband because he doesn't have a band or other things to do and sometimes he drives me crazy," Trish laughed, "thank God he's better this time around than he was with Tilde."_

"_He was extremely annoying then."_

"_Extremely so," Trish shuddered._

"_So you're really not going to find out the sex of the baby?"_

"_No, we want to do it like you did with Kensy. There are so few true surprises in this world, why not make this one of them? Wait, Punk is touring the country?"_

"_And going to baseball games," Stephanie added. "He posts pictures of them, and it's like he's trying to mock me at this point. Britt said he's not, and I'm sure I'm reading too much into things, but this is what it feels like."_

"_Well, you're you, Stephanie, you'll think of something. You always do."_

Stephanie tapped her fingers against her desk, just sitting there thinking. Chris was with the girls, having spent the weekend with his friends meant he wanted to spend his time with the girls. He was scheduled for just a Highlight Reel tonight so he could take care of the girls for most of the evening. That left Stephanie time to think of what to do about the Punk situation. The problem was she couldn't think of anything. It'd been so long since she had an actual plan for anything, she felt rusty. Doing her job, and only doing her job, made her brain melt apparently.

"Thinking hard or hardly thinking?" Chris asked when he walked back into her office with the girls, each one sipping on a juice box, which could only mean Chris took them to the store and bought them juice because they didn't pack any that evening.

"Daddy let us get cookies," Flynn said around her straw.

"Mine was good," Kensington added.

"You guys weren't supposed to tell Mommy that," Chris told them, pretending to be angry.

"Oops, I thought we could because you bought her one too," Flynn shrugged, going over and sitting on the couch, not a care in the world.

"Well, I did," Chris set the bag down on Stephanie's desk before he lifted Kensington into his arms. She held out her juice box to him and he took it and took a sip of it from her. She smiled and kissed him on the lips before she went back to her juice. "So, nothing yet?"

"Nothing, I'm dead in the water," Stephanie said, "I've lost all ability to scheme. I'm about ready to call my father in here and ask him what to do. Do you know how desperate that makes me? Calling my father in, he'll think I lost it or something. But I just can't have Punk taking advantage of me like this."

"What about Punk?" Flynn's interest was piqued and she knelt up on the couch to try and get in on the conversation. "Is he here, Mommy, can I go see him? I have seen him in _forever and ever_, and I want to see him 'cause he's my big best friend, but not my little one."

"No, he's not here, baby girl, I'm sorry," Stephanie said, looking back to Chris, "I'm not using her, that's a last ditch effort. If everything fails, that's when you bring out the biggest guns of all, and if Punk is going to say yes to coming back for anyone, it's going to be her."

"I still love that you're willing to use our kids for your own personal gains, some things never change," Chris grinned at her. "That's the woman I know and fell in love with. I mean, if you could make your boyfriend switch shows and keep his relationship a secret for years, then making your children pawns is just how you operate."

She smirked sarcastically, "You knew that when you married me, plus, I said it was a last ditch effort. I'm not going to use that unless everything else fails. I just have to figure out what everything else is. I can't think of any way to bring him back, especially not since he's going around watching baseball and doing whatever."

"Mommy, you sound annoyed," Flynn popped up out of nowhere next to her mother. "But Punk is my friend, don't be mad at him."

"I'm not mad at him," Stephanie lifted Flynn into her lap. "I'm just upset that he's not here because he's a really good wrestler, don't you think? He's one of your favorites, and he's a lot of people's favorite wrestler, and they would really love to see him again, you know what I mean."

"Oh," Flynn said, pursing her lips a little bit, "but Mommy he's not _the_ best in the world because that's Daddy. Daddy is the best in the world even though I know Punk said it, but he didn't really mean it, right?"

"Well, I kind of think he meant it," Stephanie explained.

"Daddy, he didn't _really_ mean it," Flynn implored of her father, dragging out the word to emphasize that Punk was probably joking because everyone knew that her daddy was really the best in the world, he said it a lot and he said it before Punk, so that made it true. It just did!

"He meant it, Flutterby," Chris said. Stephanie watched as Chris's eyes narrowed, and as much as Chris could read her faces, she knew her husband well enough to know something just occurred to him. She licked her lips in anticipation because she knew whatever it was, was going to benefit her greatly.

"What's going through that head of yours?" Stephanie finally asked.

"I think I might have a way to get him back," Chris's eyes lit up, and Stephanie's did too because if anyone could come up with a plan that could rival her plans, it was her husband. She was just glad to know that someone in their family wasn't rusty.

"How?"

"Oh, you'll see, and you'll think it's genius, baby," Chris winked at her.

She hated when he kept her in the dark, but it was something he loved to do. She'd known about none of his returns after all, keeping them all hidden from her because he loved to see her face as he walked backstage. He loved the shock and the awe. Her husband just liked to surprise her, and she knew he found it romantic, but when it involved business, she'd rather be in the know.

"Come on, just tell me."

"No," Chris shook his head.

"Daddy, I know?" Kensington asked. Chris leaned in and whispered something in Kensington's ear, cupping his hand around it so nobody else could hear. Kensington laughed and smiled, "I know, Daddy!"

"What do you know, Kensy?" Stephanie asked.

"Daddy say loves me!" Kensington scrunched up her face and giggled.

"I love you too, Daddy!" Flynn pouted. Whenever Kensington got something, Flynn wasn't far behind in wanting it too. He was sure if Flynn wasn't in Stephanie's lap, she'd be clamoring to be picked up by Chris too. Kensington was the same way though, always wanting what her big sister had, but for different reasons. She just looked up to Flynn so much she wanted to be like her.

"I love you," Chris said.

"I want to know what you're going to do too, Daddy," Flynn said.

"Yes, tell her," Stephanie said, knowing Chris wouldn't, but he came around the desk and whispered something into Flynn's ear, something that made her jaw drop.

"Daddy said to mind my own beeswax," Flynn frowned and folded her arms, looking just like her mother in that moment. "Mommy, tell Daddy he has to go into a timeout because he's _mean_. I don't like you right now, Daddy."

"Oh, well, that's too bad, I was going to go get dinner, but if you don't want to eat…"

"I do, I do!"

"Okay, well, would you two lovely ladies like to accompany me and this lovely lady to dinner?" Chris asked. "Because if there's anything I like to do, it's be around my girls."

"And Sawa when he's here, and he's gonna be here next week, isn't he, Daddy?"

"The week after next, Flutterby, his school ends next week, just like yours does," Chris told her, "and in the fall, you're going to be in Kindergarten, aren't you?"

"Uh huh, I'm gonna be, and it's going to be fun, but I can't go to wrestling, and that's going to be bad, really bad," Flynn said. Chris and Stephanie sat Flynn down a couple weeks ago to tell her that when she started Kindergarten, she wouldn't be able to attend wrestling shows. She cried for about fifteen minutes, wailing that she couldn't miss wrestling, but Sawyer managed to calm her down by telling her she would be with him, and they watched wrestling with their grandparents, and it was fun. Flynn was still not convinced, but at least it didn't make her burst into tears anymore.

"It might not be so bad, Flynnie," Stephanie told her, "I can't say the same for whatever your daddy's planning though…"

"Don't worry, you'll like it."

Dolph sucked at his teeth a little bit. "I hate my life."

"You're just as dramatic now as you were when you were a teenager."

"Shut up, Donny," Dolph said, glancing over at his brother who was sitting on the floor of his parents' living room, playing with their dogs. "I don't need your commentary, thank you very much."

"Bro, look at your life, you're the World Heavyweight Champion, a dream you've wanted since forever, you make a lot of money, you have tons of fans, and your girlfriend is hot and can bend in really crazy ways."

"Was that necessary, man?" Dolph made a face.

"I'm just saying, that submission is killer, the way she kind of swings around your neck and wraps herself around you, and the way you have to tap out—"

"Stop thinking about my girlfriend's butt before I beat you up just like I did when you were little," Dolph said, covering his eyes with his forearm. "The headaches aren't even that bad, and I can travel, but AJ said that I should stay off the shows until I was cleared."

"And you listened to her?"

"Yes, you've never been in an argument with her, she has these eyes, and you look at them, and you just kind of give in because well, she's pretty," Dolph shrugged. "She said that it would be too tempting for me to get involved, and that if I did that, it would leave me vulnerable, and I'm not fully recovered, and if anything else happened to me she'd kick my ass, and she could too. She's really strong for being so small."

"You're so pussy-whipped," Donny laughed, "I mean, I love you, you're my brother, and I love AJ, I've never seen someone get so excited to see guys bashing into each other at a hockey game, but you are so whipped for her. It's actually kind of funny because you always had the girls chasing after you, but now you have this girl who you are so completely whipped for, and she's like half your size. She fits in your pocket, man."

"Yeah, but she's fiery and passionate about everything she does, and…she took care of me, you know. Those first few days were rough, and she just, she cares about me, and she loves me, and I'm lucky I found her, I'm lucky I overlooked my own damn ego and saw she wasn't crazy."

"Mom said you're going to marry her."

"Oh my God," Dolph gagged, "I told her we're not there yet, and I'm not planning on it any time soon. Mom doesn't know what she's talking about. AJ and I haven't even been dating that long, I don't know why mom is so on my case about this. I mean, yes, I picture getting married to her because I love her, but I'm not there yet."

"Mom probably wants grandchildren."

"Even if we got married tomorrow, grandchildren are a really, really long way off," Dolph said, "she wants to wrestle right now and she's doing a damn good job of it."

But E wasn't. AJ was proud of Big E when he managed to get the win from Del Rio on Raw. The loss to Del Rio on Main Event stung a little bit, but now was the chance to show Del Rio again that Big E, and subsequently Dolph, were not to be messed with. That was the plan anyways, that was what she wanted to project, and she was more than willing to do whatever possible to achieve this.

What she didn't count on was Big E falling into a trap she set for Del Rio. He should have known and avoided what she'd set up. She didn't know why this set off like she did, but maybe it was just not having Dolph there that made her so upset. Everything was kind of coming to a boiling point right now, and she felt herself teetering on an edge that Dolph was always able to pull her back from. Without him, though, it didn't feel like she could keep herself from falling off that edge. She'd never yelled at E before, and it didn't feel good to do so, but it was enough to just let her emotions spill over.

How could she keep it together when things were different without Dolph around? He kept her grounded, and right now she felt reckless. She saw him when she was home, but it wasn't the same, and she missed him, and the world almost felt like it was caving in on her. Dolph was the only one who could remedy that, but he wasn't here. She got backstage and she wanted to throw a hissy fit, but E was gripping her by the shoulders, and she was looking up into his dark eyes.

"Hey, what's going on?" he asked her.

"Nothing," she lied. E just raised an eyebrow because he knew she was lying, but he was a man of few words sometimes. "I just miss Dolph, and I hate this, like, I hate that he's gone and not here wrestling because it hurts him. And it hurts me to see him hurt, and I just, I'm sorry I yelled at you out there."

"I've been yelled at by worse," he told her and she laughed. "I'm used to it."

"You're a good friend," AJ gave him a hug, "and you tried your best and our plan backfired, well, my plan actually but thank you for being here for me. If it wasn't for you, I'd feel really alone, and your presence at least keeps me a little sane."

"Sane? AJ, we've left sane a long time ago."

AJ laughed, "I guess we have."

"Go back to the women's locker room, I bet there's a call from him already. He probably saw you lose it then he lost it, now you're going to go talk to each other, use gross, cutesy language, and make everyone with a five foot relationship gag over it."

"And puke rainbows?"

"Until they turn into a rainbow. Then we'll have to search for a cure, it'll be like _The Odyssey_."

"Thank you," she hugged him again, knowing he was only trying his best, and she needed to remember that. When she got back to the women's locker room, there was a message waiting for her on her phone. She went to her voicemail and played it.

_You almost had it, babe, but it's not E's fault, not yours either. It was just one of those fluke things. You know I love when you get mad, but also, I want you to be happy and safe. Get mad when I'm there. Call me, love you, babe. Oh, and what the hell is up with the app saying that I'm hitting on your friends? I'm not hitting on your friends, I barely even know them!_

AJ laughed and dialed his number, "Babe, you okay?"

"Now that I'm talking to you, I am."

Stephanie watched with rapt attention as her husband went out there for the Highlight Reel. She still couldn't figure out exactly what his plan was, but with Heyman out there, she knew that it was all about to go down. Chris knew Heyman, had known him longer than Stephanie knew him, so she knew it would have to do with Heyman's bravado and CM Punk, but the logistics of it were about to unfold.

Chris welcome Heyman to his show, letting the man get acquainted in the ring before he started to talk. Heyman, at first, thought this was going to be about Curtis Axel or Triple H, but Chris knew how Hunter was doing, he didn't need a rehash of what happened there. When Chris informed Heyman this Reel would be about his other client, Heyman automatically jumped to Brock Lesnar, and while Chris hated the part Stephanie played in the Brock story, that _still_ wasn't whom he was talking about. Oh no, there was one man that he did want to talk about…

CM Punk.

Chris knew Heyman, knew his ego, knew that he could get worked up into such a frenzy, Chris could get him to do anything. So that's what he did. He called out Punk, who he knew wasn't watching tonight. Once they'd fought over the term Best in the World, and he knew, he _knew_ this would get under his skin. If he knew that Chris was taking back the phrase, it would irk Punk. Punk was nothing if not someone who believed himself to be the best, but Chris was calling that into question. He was doing so, and he was making Heyman titter with anger. Chris could even see the man shaking with the anger he felt at Chris's taunting words.

Paul Heyman was still as predictable as ever. Chris challenged Punk to come out of his funk or hiatus or whatever he was calling this. He challenged Punk to a match at Payback, saying that he couldn't be the Best in the World if he sat on his ass for six weeks. Chris was here, he was ready for a fight. His wife was being taken advantage of by a friend, and that wasn't acceptable to him. Stephanie was willing to give Punk time off, but now it was like he was rubbing it in Stephanie's face, and he wasn't going to take that lying down. Nobody messed with his wife, not even his daughter's best friend.

When he challenged Punk to a match, he knew Heyman would give in. If you riled up Heyman enough, you could get him to agree to anything. The funny thing was everyone thought that Heyman was this great negotiator, always finding some kind of way to manipulate a situation, but everybody had their flaws, everybody had that one little twinge of weakness, and after knowing Heyman as long as Chris did, he knew right where to strike, and that's why he was shaking hands and agreeing to make the match. But he did have one more message for Heyman and for Punk.

Punk would never, ever be the same again.

Chris walked backstage after the segment and Stephanie stood up and walked over to him, hugging him around the neck. "You did that for me."

"I did that because the guy is taking advantage of your friendship. He's not a guy who backs down from a challenge. He doesn't know who he's messing with. You were willing to give him time to heal, time to get regrouped, not time to do whatever the hell he wanted and make you look like an idiot by going around on vacation."

"This is why you're the best husband a girl could ever ask for," she said, hugging him again. "It's not that I'm mad at him, I guess I thought he'd be back by now and just…I guess I didn't think he would use this time to go on like, a dream tour of every stadium in the country."

"Heyman accept the challenge, we'll see what Punk thinks soon enough, but I bank on him coming back, then I'll destroy him on your behalf too."

"And take back being the Best in the World?"

"I never lost it, baby."


	421. She's in Charge, June 3, 2013

A/N: Yay, who was excited to see Stephanie? She is always missed, but it was glad to have er back. Just a slight note, I know Stephanie called H "Paul" a couple times last night, but let's just ignore that, shall we? I know there was more to Raw, but I liked where it ended, hope you enjoy. :)

* * *

"I think you looked cute out there."

"I looked stupid," Chris said, watching the video again. "Why did you make me do that? Your dad went out there so it wasn't like the McMahons weren't represented, and I'm not even a real McMahon, I just married into your crazy circus."

"That's the point, you were representing the Jericho part of the McMahon family—"

"I'm not sure I even like that," Chris shook his head, making a face. "You make it sound like I'm a branch of your family—"

"Hate to break it to you, sweetie, but you are a branch," Stephanie reminded him "plus, I think what you said was nice. You were genuine, and you were your usual funny self, so I can't think that you were bad out there."

"I just felt out of place, that's all."

"You weren't out of place, you're the only guy on the roster who went through the Dungeon, you knew the family, you know Bret, I mean, you used to draw pictures of you and Owen as tag team champions, I think you did a great job."

"I always get called out for these, even if I don't know what to say. Like remember—"

"Stop, you were great, and Bret even thought so too."

"_Chris, thanks again for the words out there," Bret came over and shook Chris's free hand. His other was holding the sleepy Flynn in his arms. She smiled at him blearily, squinting her eyes trying to figure out how she knew this man. He'd been around all night, but she couldn't quite place him. "I really appreciate it."_

"_Oh, it was nothing really," Chris said sheepishly. It wasn't like he'd never been around Bret before, but Stephanie didn't give him enough advance warning that he was going to be part of the Bret Hart appreciation night. If he'd known, he would have prepared a better speech. As it was, Stephanie gave him about ten minutes to think of something. He hated what he'd said, it felt rushed, contrived, and forced, and that wasn't what he wanted to say at all._

_Bret was an inspiration to him and was to so many different wrestlers. The fact Chris had come up in the same way Bret did, with essentially the same people (sort of) was something Chris was so proud of, even to this day. It didn't matter if he part-owned the company, it didn't matter that his wife was the president, yes, he had things good now, but they weren't always good. He'd had to start somewhere, and that somewhere was with the Harts._

"_It still meant a lot."_

"_I don't 'member you," Flynn said, finally giving in to her frustration over not knowing who this man was._

"_I'm Bret, Bret Hart," Bret stuck his hand out and Flynn leaned forward to shake his hand. "I used to wrestle, a long time ago."_

"_With my daddy?" Flynn wondered curiously. If he did wrestle with her daddy, she'd need to see those matches right away. She didn't like knowing there were videos of her daddy out there that she couldn't see._

"_Unfortunately, no, I wrestled before your father really started to wrestle."_

"_Oh," Flynn made a face. "Were you good?"_

_Bret laughed as Chris intervened, "He was very, very good, Flutterby, a lot of people, myself included, think he was probably the best wrestler ever."_

"_Uh uh" Flynn said, "that's you, Daddy."_

"_You've got her pretty trained," Bret laughed. "She likes wrestling."_

"_I _love_ wrestling, it's my favorite thing in the entire, entire world!" Flynn suddenly perked up when wrestling came into question. She loved wrestling more than she loved anything except her mommy and daddy and her Sawa and, okay, she guessed she could include Kensington in that too, if she _had _to._

"_She reminds me of Stephanie when she was younger. She'll tell you she didn't love it that much, but that girl was so in love with everything around here, I knew she'd be running the place someday. I wish she'd have come out too."_

"_She sent me out, I'm really sorry I didn't have anything better to say."_

"_You were fine, it was good," Bret assured him._

"_Thanks, man," Chris just accepted it gracefully because he really didn't want to get in an argument. He could have done better, but he got to talk about one of his idols in front of everyone, so the night wasn't a total wash._

"So what are you going to do about this Punk thing?" Stephanie asked.

"Wait for him to answer. You know what I found interesting though?" Chris turned to Stephanie and she raised an eyebrow. The house was quiet right now seeing as all the kids were with Chris's parents for the evening, giving Chris and Stephanie a bit of a respite. Stephanie was using the time to get all her paperwork finished while Chris sat writing lyrics with his ipad. He was taking her out to dinner later, but for now, they were doing their own thing while still being around each other. "The fact that Heyman had no clue where Punk actually was."

"Oh, you mean how he was at a baseball game?"

"Exactly. I'm thinking that Punk wasn't even aware of anything at the time, let alone having Heyman speak for him. Just kind of interesting that Heyman is so out of touch with Punk, you know. Doesn't seem like everything is going well in Paul's paradise."

"It's because he's a blowhard," Stephanie said, "do you think Punk actually will accept the match?"

"Well, Heyman said he would," Chris shrugged, "we'll let them hash that out, now won't we?"

"You're evil," Stephanie gave a small chuckle as she thought about Punk taking a verbal hammer to Heyman. It wasn't like the guy didn't deserve it. Stephanie would always think of him as a slime, and it was even worse now that he had Curtis Axel. "You know, Hunter is still loopy from that Axel?"

"Loopy how?"

"Well, not loopy, but he can't be by himself, his mother is down from Vermont to take care of him."

"Oh, I bet he loves that."

"What else can he do? He doesn't have anyone else to take care of him so it's her or nothing," Stephanie shrugged. "He's the pickiest man in the universe. You'd think at this point in his life, he might just go ahead and settle."

"Would you have settled if you were his age and didn't have anyone?" Chris wondered.

"No, of course not, I settled at 28," Stephanie told him nonchalantly, but ducking her head to smirk to herself. Chris growled and stood up, rushing over to Stephanie and lifting her forcibly out of her chair before sitting in it and pulling her down so she was curled up against him. He playfully nipped at her shoulder as she laughed and hugged him around the neck, enjoying the closeness of him. "He's getting tested on Sunday to see if he's medically cleared, but I don't think he should wrestle."

"Yeah, well, you don't think anyone should wrestle except me."

"Yeah, about that, what do you think Punk is actually thinking right now about this?"

"You know, I don't even know, but I don't really care."

Britt grabbed Punk's phone from the counter. "You know, you could answer your phone when it's ringing."

"Life's too short to answer phones," Punk said, kissing her neck as he passed by her. He went to the fridge and grabbed a bottle of water, coming back over to her and looking over her shoulder. "Heyman, what does he want?"

"Probably to talk to you about Chris and that situation."

"Whatever, let Paul handle it, the only thing I'm discussing is hockey right now. I mean, Blackhawks, Kings, that's where it's at, and Bruins, Penguins, I mean, come on, but it's the Blackhawks all the way."

"Phil, do you even want to discuss what's going on?" Britt asked her very stubborn, very frustrating boyfriend. "I mean, there's this whole wrestling thing happening, and Chris is pissed at you."

"When _isn't_ Chris pissed at me? You know, I don't ever want to be as whipped as he is. I love you, I'd do anything for you, but sorry, I'm not going to be whipped," he made a face, "it's just not my way. I mean, it works for him, but he shouldn't have to take up his wife's battles."

"He's going to want a match, he wants a match, he said so, and he's going to get it because he's the boss," Britt said, "don't you think you should at least take this seriously? You're still under contract, and Stephanie feels like you're abusing your friendship."

"She said take as much time as I want, I'm doing that. If I don't want to go back right now, I won't go back right now," Punk told her. "Come on, let's watch some TV before you have to leave for that thing you do, whatever your job is, it's totally slipped my mind."

"Very funny, so what do you want me to tell Heyman?"

"Tell him to do what he does," Punk told her, walking by her before heading to his couch, hopping over the back of it and sitting down. He grabbed the remote and turned it on. Britt watched his back for a second. When Punk had his mind set on something, he was determined to do it. She loved it about it, but she hated it about him. It was quite the dichotomy sometimes. She grabbed his cell phone, unlocking it and dialing Heyman's number back.

She walked over to Punk as she waited for the portly, bald man she so despised to answer the phone. She ran her hand over his head and his short hair that was growing by the day it seemed. Punk was so put out about it though, commenting on how creepy it was that people were noticing his hair growth. He just didn't realize how many fans he had that loved him and kept up with him. He leaned his head back a little as she massaged his scalp.

"Ahh, Punk, it's finally nice to hear from you," Heyman's voice was so slimy Britt felt like she needed a shower then and there.

"No, sorry to disappoint you, Paul, but it's his girlfriend."

"Oh," and Britt could hear the sneer coming at her from down the line. "I thought I'd get a chance to talk to Punk."

"Yes, well, believe me, I'd rather it be him talking to you than me, but he doesn't want to talk to you or anyone associated with wrestling right now," Britt thunked Punk on the head with the knuckle of her index finger. He leaned his head back further and gave her the stink eye. She held up her finger like she was going to poke him in the eye and he sat up and lightly bit it. She made a face at him.

"Well, we have a situation, as you know."

"I do know, Paul, I'm there every week, but I cannot force him to go," Britt said, "he told me to tell you to whatever it is you have to do."

"Chris won't back down, we both know that, we've both known him for a long time, me longer than you because you're basically a wrestling baby," Paul mocked her, "didn't you only start watching when you were hired?"

"I know my stuff," Britt argued. "Do whatever it is you have to do? That's what he said, so go ahead, handle the situation as you see fit."

"Okay, if that's what Punk wants, but we both know what that's going to entail, Britt, don't we?"

"We do, Paul, so just book it."

Stephanie stomped furiously into Vickie's office. "Vickie, what the hell is the meaning of this!"

"The meaning of what?" Vickie asked.

"Hunter vs. Axel for tonight's show," Stephanie waved her copy of the schedule around. "What are you thinking? The guy couldn't even finish his match two weeks ago. He looked like he was dying out there, and you're putting him in a match!"

"He was cleared to wrestle," Vickie explained calmly, "plus, it was Hunter himself who requested the match. He said he had unfinished business against Curtis Axel and wanted another shot at him. The match sounded like a good idea, people are clamoring to see Hunter wrestle again, so I made the decision to go ahead and book it."

"Vickie!" Britt stormed into the office. "Are you kidding me? You did not even discuss this—Stephanie, what are you doing here?"

"I think for the same reason you're here," Stephanie said as Britt's eyebrows furrowed together just above her nose. "Hunter's match, right?"

"He can't go out there, he's still feeling weird, he told me himself a couple of days ago when I talked to him," Britt said. Stephanie raised an eyebrow at that. "We're still friends, Steph, and yes, I check up on him once in a while. You've got to call this match off, Vickie."

"I'm not calling off the match, it's been announced, and I made sure that he was cleared to wrestle."

"I'm furious with you, and if you didn't have jurisdiction from the board, I swear to God…"

"You're awfully punchy for someone who divorced the guy," Vickie pointed out then turned to Britt, "and someone who left him for CM Punk."

"He's still my friend," Stephanie said.

"Mine too," Britt told her.

"Uh huh," Vickie responded, but it was directed more towards Britt. Everyone knew Stephanie wasn't in love with Hunter anymore. That ship didn't just sail, it sailed, was torpedoed, and sank to the depths of the ocean.

"Britt, I think you have other work to do," Vickie made a shooing motion, and Britt glared at her a moment before she turned on her heel and stomped her way back out of the room. Stephanie took a few more moments to glare at Vickie, but if this wasn't Vickie's idea, she needed to talk to the source. She knew Hunter wasn't here, she'd _thought_ he would be at home resting, but it was obvious he wasn't planning on that.

She grabbed her phone and scrolled through her contacts to get to his number. "Hello?" he picked up on the second ring.

"What the hell do you think you're doing tonight?" Stephanie asked him. "What in the hell is your problem? Do you not remember two weeks ago, do you not remember how you nearly collapsed at ringside? You didn't feel well a few days ago, but suddenly you're ready to go?"

"Yes, I'm ready to go, and I want Curtis Axel. I didn't get to finish my match, so I'm going to finish it tonight, do you have a problem with that because frankly, I don't care, Stephanie. I may not be able to get at Brock, but I'll take the next best thing. I'm ready to fight, the doctors said so."

"Yeah, they did, but that doesn't mean that you are ready to go out there," Stephanie argued with him. "If you go out there, you're going to get hurt again. You're not ready, I know, you Hunter, I know how you work, okay, you push yourself, and you push yourself, and you're willing to sacrifice everything, and for what, revenge?"

"What the hell else do I have, Stephanie?" Hunter asked her. "Huh? My desk job, which is practically a paper title that you've given me? Stephanie, let's face it, you run the show, and you just let people think they're doing a job around here, that's how _you've_ always been. I don't want to sit around, I sat around last week, and I'm not doing it again this week."

"No, I'm not going to let you do that," Stephanie said, "I forbid you."

Hunter started laughing, something Stephanie didn't understand. "What are you laughing at? What in God's name is funny about this situation?"

"You can't tell me what to do, Stephanie. You're not my wife, you have no say in anything that I do. If I want to go out and wrestle that's my prerogative, and you can't do a damn thing about it. I'll see you in a while. I'm coming over in a limo, I can probably even catch the show on it. I'll see you later while I wrestle."

He hung up the call and she pulled the phone away from her ear, staring down at it in disbelief. He was so hard-headed, but he was going to get himself in some real trouble this time. He was not playing it safe, and he wasn't at an age and in a condition where he could be reckless anymore. She knew part of that recklessness was due in part to him being single, but he was still her friend, and she wasn't going to let it happen. She stood there for a long moment, wondering how she could pull this match from the show tonight. Vickie would have her head before the Board of Directors if she pulled a coup on the show, and she couldn't afford that.

Then an idea popped into her head.

It was a wicked, manipulative, underhanded idea, but those were the best kind. She smirked to herself and strode back to her office, pulling open the door and walking inside. Chris was sitting on the floor playing trains with Kensington while Flynn sat with them, but played with her action figures instead of the trains, which she found completely boring. Chris looked over his shoulder and smiled at his wife, but the smiled faded when he saw the glint in her eyes.

"Chris, sweetie, love of my life," Stephanie said sweetly, "how would you feel if tonight I went back…to, oh, I don't know, being married to Hunter?"

Chris turned so his whole body was facing Stephanie, "Stephanie, baby, soulmate, what do you even mean by that?"

"Hunter, he has a match, he's cleared, yes, but he's not ready, you talked to him, you saw how he was, he's going to get himself hurt, or worse. He's putting himself out there, all of himself, and he's going to kill himself, Chris, we can both see it, right?"

"Yeah, you've got a point," Chris said. Anyone who knew Hunter knew he was pushing it to the very limits at this point. He was only a year older than Chris, but with all the injuries, and the time off, life wasn't being kind to Hunter, and it was taking its toll. It was evident two weeks ago, and Chris could share some of Stephanie's concern.

"He said there was nothing I could do, that I wasn't his wife so I couldn't tell him what to do. But we've lied to the fans before, I'm taking a preemptive strike. If he doesn't care about his own well-being, I'm going to do it for him."

"Mommy, you can't marry him, you're married to Daddy," Flynn looked up.

"It'll just be pretend."

"Oh! Pretend, I cans pretend that Trips is my daddy because I know he's not anymore because Daddy said so," Flynn finished, grinning over at her father. "But I can do it, Mommy, if you want me to!"

"No, baby girl, but thank you for the offer."

"So if you say you're his wife…then what?" Chris wondered.

"Well, I'll have trapped him, if I say it front of everyone, I've trapped him, for however long he continues to be stubborn. People already have believed it, I mean, they know about us…I guess some do, but then a lot of people think we've gotten divorced—"

"Yeah, I really, really love that by the way," Chris told her. "If I let you do this…"

"I'll reward you in any way I know how," she told him sweetly. "I mean, you're already doing the Punk thing for me, and I know there's no _real_ way to repay you for all the crap you put up with when it comes to me. I know I'm not the easiest wife to have…"

Chris pushed himself up from the floor and walked over to Stephanie, wrapping his arms around her waist. "If I wanted easy, Steph, I never would have gotten involved with you. I knew what I was getting into when I started dating you, when I married you. You forget I saw how you were before I was with you. You're not easy, but neither am I, we make it work, but we're not easy people."

"So you don't mind?"

"Kane's not a monster. Undertaker has no supernatural powers…that I know of, 3MB isn't actually a band, I think you can be Trips' wife if you need to be. I'm not crazy about it, mind you, but…the guy is killing himself out there. He's one bad move away from blowing it all. If you have a way to actually stop him, you have to take it, right?"

Stephanie leaned up to kiss him, making it worth his while as her tongue entered the equation, deepening the kiss. She pulled away breathlessly, "You're too good for me."

"Let's not start that up," he shot down the notion that she would ever actually owe him anything. This woman married him, gave him three children, and put up with his insane schedule; she didn't owe him a damn thing.

"But—"

"Nope, not going to hear it," Chris said.

"Can I at least say you look hot tonight?" Stephanie told him. "Because you do. I mean, sometimes I just look at you and I think to myself, yup, that's all mine."

"That you may think," he told her, kissing her again. "Now go, I know you've got plans to file away in your mind. You're already getting those wheels turning, I can see them. Me? I have to think of what I'm going to say to the slug that represents Punk."

"Like you can't own him in any verbal argument," Stephanie told him. "I'll talk to you later?"

"Yeah, I'll talk to you later, I'll keep the girls with me until your mom inevitably steals them for the evening, deal?"

"Yeah, deal."

"Mommy, are you _sure_ you don't need my help?" Flynn asked. "I'm gonna be a graduamant soon, and that means I'm bigger than anything."

"You're going to graduate preschool, Flynnie, I don't think that's quite a doctorate," Stephanie told her, leaning over and kissing the crown of her head, "but if I do need help, any help at all, I'll let you know, got it?"

"Okay, Mommy," Flynn beamed at her.

"What are you going to do now?"

"Get reinforcements," Stephanie told her husband, giving him one last kiss before she left her office and went in search of another. She walked down the hallway, only a few short doors down before she knocked on the door, not bothering to knock. She walked in and saw her father kissing her mother. She groaned and made a face. "Is this really what I need to see?"

Linda laughed, "Think of it as payback for all the times we have to walk in on you and Chris."

Stephanie made another face, "Mom!"

"What? I'm simply saying your husband can't keep his hands off you."

"Okay, gross, are you going to go get the girls?" Stephanie asked. "They're with Chris in my office if you're looking for them."

"I am now," Linda said, "I want to spend some time with my babies. I bet they're all grown up now, that's how often I see them."

"Mom, don't guilt trip me, you know where I live, come see them," Stephanie said, "but Dad, I need to speak with you about something."

"Sounds serious."

"It kind of is."

Talking her father into joining her crusade so to speak wasn't as difficult as she thought. Her father was even more observant than she was, and he could tell that Hunter was taking things over the limit. When Stephanie explained what she wanted to do, her father was on board. She knew it was more because he cared about her than cared about Hunter, but Hunter _had_ been one of his most loyal employees for a very long time. That had to be commended.

Because she was who she was, the time at the top of the show was hers. Vickie didn't put up any fight when she found out Vince was behind Stephanie on this. She walked out amidst the raucous cheers of the crowd. She knew they'd be happy to see her, they always were, which she still found funny to this day. They hated her so very much in the past, booed her out of the building, chanted slut at her, but if she went away for a while, suddenly she was some kind of hero. It was kind of sickening in a way.

She climbed in the ring and looked around. Oh well, she wasn't here to please the fans. She was here to help someone she cared about, someone she once loved. She greeted the crowd, but wished it were under better circumstances. She talked about Hunter, and then absolutely put her foot down. That was the real part of it all, she was putting her foot down on the match, right here, in front of everyone so everyone could see she was being serious. She was looking out for his best interests, and the fans would just have to understand.

Her father came out then to back her up. If they didn't want to listen to her, they would listen to her father. He walked into the ring, and he said the same thing, that Hunter was giving up too much, risking too much of his own health. He played his part to perfection, so much so Stephanie almost believed she was still married to Hunter. Still, her father had her back on this one, and she was grateful. She knew that Hunter would be livid, and she was prepared for that.

She just didn't care.

Dolph rarely got mad at his girlfriend. He loved her and respected her too much to ever truly get mad at her, but he was mad right now. "I can go out there, Jeannie!"

"No, you're not!" AJ yelled at him.

"I may not be medically cleared to wrestle, but I think I can handle walking," he told her, leaning down a little to look her in the eye. "I'm going out there, you can't stop me."

"No, you're not," AJ said, "you're going to act like you're at home so nobody knows you're here. That way nobody can get mad that you didn't show up if you were backstage. _That's_ what you're going to do."

"You're bossing me around now?" he asked her incredulously. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, I don't think so."

"You don't think so, well I know so," AJ countered, folding her arms in front of her and taking on a defiant stance. If he wasn't so angry, he would think her beautiful in that moment, standing there in her wrestling gear with her new t-shirt on. But he was mad at her, and that didn't matter. "You're not going out there."

"I _am_ going out there, you aren't the boss of me," Dolph told her. "You can't tell me what to do."

"Well too bad, this time, I am," she told him. "And what you're going to do is you're going to stay back here. I'll accompany Big E to the ring, I will have my match, and you will stay here. You've got a whole battery of tests, Dolph Ziggler, and you're not going out there to put undo stress on yourself, I'm not letting you!"

"You cannot do that to me. I don't care what you say."

"You're still light sensitive, you jerk," AJ said, "what do you think is out there, a whole bunch of lights? You're not going to feel well. Plus, you've only been in front of small crowds of people, and this is a large crowd. When we were signing autographs yesterday, you started to feel dizzy by the end of it. And you think I'm letting you go out there? Uh uh, buddy, not going to happen."

"How are you going to stop me? You weigh 115 pounds, I can lift that in my sleep."

"You forget that I can wrestle, Dolph," AJ narrowed her eyes at him, "and correct me if I'm wrong, but you've tapped out to me before, do not make me do it to you again. You are not well enough to be out there. I'm forbidding it."

"No, you can't do that."

"But I am," she tilted her head.

"No."

"Yes."

"No," he said emphatically.

"Yes," she returned just as emphatically as his.

"No, infinity."

"Yes, infinity plus one," she told him. "I'm not budging on this one."

"I could break up with you and do what I want then," he told her. She rolled her eyes. There was a time where that would have sent such a bolt of panic through her, she would have given in to all his demands immediately. Now she just rolled her eyes at him like his threats were empty. The sad thing was they were. He loved her far too much to break up with her even if she was being annoying.

"Then I would have the match cancelled because what would be the point of having E wrestle Del Rio if we weren't aligned with you anymore?" AJ pursed her lips and shrugged her shoulders up in an exaggerated manner.

"I'm not happy."

"I never said you had to be," she stuck her tongue out a little bit. "You can do your little video, and that will be fine—"

"Jeannie, they're going to forget about me," he told her, allaying his bigger fears about the whole thing. He'd barely been champion before it felt like it was ripped away from him. He was supposed to be a fighting champion. He wasn't supposed to be the guy sitting on the sidelines. He felt useless, forgotten, like being the champion didn't even matter. AJ softened considerably and came over to her boyfriend, hugging him around the waist.

He caved and hugged her back, bending over and burying his face into her neck like he did after matches. She was so tiny compared to him, but sometimes he felt small next to her fierceness and tenacity. She brought her hands up to his head and ran her fingers through his hair comfortingly. "Ziggy, nobody is going to forget you. How could anyone forget you? You're the show-stealer. You are so missed. Everyone misses you."

"I miss everyone," he said, "I mean, I really don't because I don't care, I pretty much just miss you when you're not around…"

AJ smiled into his neck. "Look, just wait until the doctors clear you. I know you've been acting like the bright lights and stuff doesn't bother you, but you forget we've been together since October, I've gotten pretty good at knowing you, and I know you're still a little bit on the mend. Just for tonight, please?"

"I'm only giving in because I love you. I'm not whipped either, this is me making a decision to listen to you."

"Okay, you're not whipped, got it," she told him, but she didn't sound convinced. He made a rumbling noise, but didn't say anything. "You're getting better, okay, but we have to play it safe. You didn't remember why I was with you, babe, okay, so clearly, it was serious. We're just playing it safe, and when the time is right, you'll be back, and everyone will be happy until you tell them all what losers they are."

"Yeah, but I'm still not happy about it."

Hunter was livid. Actually, no, that was an understatement. He'd never wanted to Pedigree two people more, and he hadn't Pedigreed Stephanie in a long time. How _dare_ she try to dictate his life! How _dare_ she go out there and act like his wife so he couldn't do anything about it? She was sneaky, manipulative, calculating, and conniving, but this was too much. This was his livelihood, his career to do as he chose, and she gave up the right to her opinion the moment she lied about her pregnancy.

He found where they were and threw open the door where Vince and Stephanie were waiting. Stephanie stood up and kissed his cheek (she wasn't really married to him after all), and Hunter had no choice but to play into this ruse. He did so through gritted teeth until Stephanie and he were alone. That's when the anger bubbled over.

"You've done a lot of despicable things in your day, Stephanie, I was part of them for a while, but this, how could you do this to me?"

"How could I do what? Make sure you actually live to remember today? Dolph Ziggler has been out a month because he had his bell rung, you did too, but here you are," Stephanie scoffed, "acting like you're fine. Do you want to happen to you the same kinds of things that happened…you know what, you know, and I'm not letting that happen to you because I care about you, because at one point I loved you. Hunter, I don't care that you're mad at me, I care about your safety and your health."

"You did not have the right to do that."

"No, I didn't, but I did it anyways, and I would do it again in a heartbeat," Stephanie told him, not the least bit apologetic. "If you think that I'm not going to protect the people I care about, you've got another thing coming to you. I love you, no, it's not the same kind of love, but I love you as a friend, and I'm not going to let you put your entire being on the line for one damn match against some rookie."

"Why does everyone think I'm so done? I'm not done."

"No, you're not, and I didn't believe you were," Stephanie said, "but until you calm the hell down, and recognize that you're not 100% healthy, I don't want you in that ring. That ring is _my_ ring. I own that ring, I run that ring, that's my ring. And you're not competing in it tonight. I hold the power here, Hunter, and you're not. You're not going in that ring, not this week, maybe not even next week."

"You've got a lot or nerve, McMahon."

"Yes, I do," she told him. "You're not wrestling in my ring tonight."

"What about your daughter? Huh? The one that bawled her eyes out at the mere thought I was her father. Did you stop to consider your lies and what they'd do to her?"

"She volunteered to be your pretend daughter. Don't act like my kids aren't aware of some things. This has nothing to do with them anyways. Flynn would pretend in a heartbeat, Sawyer would agree because he doesn't want you or anyone hurt, and Kensy just goes along with everything because she's two."

"Fine, your entire family is manipulative."

"Extremely, and you're not wrestling."

"Try and stop me."

"I'll fire you."

"You wouldn't…"

"I suspended my own husband for thirty days. You don't think I'd fire you? Try me. I'm Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, and if you think you're going to intimidate me, you're not. You're not wrestling tonight, so…that's that," Stephanie told him, making for the door.

"This isn't over, Stephanie."

"I believe it is."

AJ resolved not to help Big E during his match tonight. On SmackDown, she helped him, but received no kind of recognition. If that's the way he wanted to play it, that's how she would play it. So she didn't help, and he lost. She felt a smug sense of satisfaction over that fact, and although she had to stand by his side, she was kind of glad he lost. Now he wouldn't devalue her. She went backstage, and went back to her boyfriend, who was lying on the couch, his arm over his eyes. She didn't tell him she told him so, instead, she just went over and laid down on top of him. He rested his hand on her lower back.

"How'd it go out there?"

"He lost, I didn't help," she told him. "You weren't feeling well."

"Overexerted myself, that's all," he told her. "So he lost?"

"He didn't want or appreciate my help, he got what he deserved."

"Babe…"

"He got what he deserved."

Stephanie eventually won out because she pretty much banned Hunter from the ring. He had no choice but to leave, and on top of that, keep up the ruse she'd set up for him. All in all, it was a pretty successful day for her, and she was proud of herself. She was proud she'd gotten Hunter out of a really bad situation. He had far more people who cared about him than he thought. He just needed to realize that putting everything on the line at all times wasn't the way to go. There would be time for revenge later.

"Thank you," Britt said, walking up behind Stephanie. "He wasn't prepared, and I'm glad I won't see him in the ring."

"It was no problem, so about that other guy of yours, what's his deal?"

"I wish I knew, but I don't even think Punk knows what's going on."

Chris knew what he wanted, he knew what was going on. He knew he was doing this for Stephanie, but also for himself. He'd wanted to get back at Punk ever since WrestleMania last year. There was just a sense that he had to really get at him this time. He knew they'd had matches after that, but that was the big one, on the biggest stage, and he wanted to avenge that, at least a little bit. Unfortunately, Chris had to deal with his representative and not the man himself. He didn't even know if Punk saw last week's show, let alone this week's show.

But Heyman seemed to think he knew what Punk wanted. The contract was laid before them and Heyman signed them before passing the contract over to Chris. He was about to sign it when Heyman tried his usual scare tactics towards Chris. It was ridiculous of Heyman to even try to intimidate Chris. Chris had dealt with Heyman in the past when he had a lot more power that he had right now. If one were to look at the two of them, people would find Chris more successful 100% of the time. He _owned_ Heyman at this point. It wasn't even a contest.

Chris signed the contract, and yeah, maybe Chicago would be biased, but he didn't care. Punk was not on a vacation, Punk was given time off, and he was abusing that power. He had to be brought back to pay. That's what it was about, that's what the match boiled down to, not the fans. It was him reclaiming something and him taking up for his wife. That's why he was going to beat Punk.

If Punk showed up.


	422. His Return, June 10, 2013

The door to the hotel room flew open and AJ was startled from the TV show she was watching. Dolph bounced in the room, flying a piece of paper behind him. AJ smiled up at him and put the remote down. She was about to open her mouth to say something, but before she could, Dolph was rushing towards her, lifting her up by the armpits, and pulling her into a bone-crushing hug. She was again about to ask what was going on, but he was now spinning her around, her bare feet and legs flying in every direction.

"Okay!" AJ said as her boyfriend put her down. "What is going on? I'm going out on a limb and saying it's good news though."

"I've been cleared to wrestle, no more of this staying at home crap," he told her, kissing her on the cheek then the jaw, then her lips. She giggled against his mouth before she pulled away to look up at him in excitement. "You better get used to having me on the road."

"What? You mean I have to stop my illicit affair with Big E? Well this certainly puts a damper on _my_ mood," she joked with him, leaning on her tiptoes so she could press her forehead against his. She laced his fingers together behind his neck. "I've missed you traveling with me so much, I think my panties may drop just from the thought of traveling with you again."

"What about when I actually wrestle?" he asked her.

"Oh, then all my clothes will just magically fly off my body," she told him with a smirk. He stared at her for a moment before she spoke again, "You do realize I'm joking, there are no scenarios where my clothes can fly off my body."

"I'm sorry, I was just picturing that, and it was a pretty good picture," he said, "And you know what, I'm going to defend my title, _finally_, at Payback, and that's when you're going to…"

"Yes, I want my match, I'm ready for it, I'm more than ready for it," AJ nodded, staring off into space a little bit. "Kaitlyn isn't going to know what hit her. She's so primed and ready for her secret admirer, thinks they're going to come in and whisk her off her feet. But I'm not feeling nice anymore, Ziggy, not after the things she's said, not after the way she acted. I'm tired of it. I'm tired of her, and I'm going to break her."

Dolph smirked at her, "I can't believe what you're going to do. I mean, I can believe it, I know you're capable of it, but I can't wait to see you take her down. I can't wait until you get that belt around your waist, even though it's ugly."

"But it'll be mine," AJ said as her face soured a little bit, "you know, it's just…last year when everything was going wrong in my life, she never even stood by me. She just…kind of thought…she kind of thought I was crazy too and she gave up on me. I thought I was her best friend, and she just kind of gave up on me. It hurt then and it still hurts now. And I love my life right now, I do, I love you, and I love E, and I love Nacho, I love sort of, kind of living with you, and I love that I get to do what I love, but she left this hole in my life."

"I know she did," Dolph hugged her. "And that's why you're going to show her that you were worth it, that you are worth it. I knew it, I knew it when I saw you sitting there, crying into that cup of coffee."

"Well, before that, you thought I was crazy too."

"I changed my mind for the most part," he joked, taking her face into his hands and running his thumbs over her cheekbones. "You're going to go out there and show her who you are. You're going to show the world who you are. They've all thought you were crazy, but you're not, you're smart."

AJ smiled warmly at him, "And you're going to show the world that your title win wasn't just a fluke, and you are definitely worthy of being the champion. People are going to see it, they're not going to overlook you, not anymore. You're here now, and you're going to prove it."

"_We're_ here now, and I think it's safe to say we're going to steal the show, right?"

"I think it's very safe to say."

Stephanie walked into the building the happiest she'd been in a while, and the sole reason for that was because her family was complete. Sawyer had finished up school the week prior, so all her kids were available to travel with her. She loved it when Sawyer could travel because it meant she didn't have to miss him, and he didn't have to miss wrestling. He was walking ahead with Chris, talking about Chris and Punk's match while she hung back with the girls. Kensington was dawdling like usual while Flynn was talking her ear off.

"And Mommy, we get to tavel for a long, long time until we gots school, huh?"

"Yup, until you and your brother start school," Stephanie explained, "and Kensy is going to start going to preschool soon, and I don't even know what I'm going to do with my day without any of my babies around."

"You gotta work too," Flynn explained, "because Daddy said you win bread when you go to work, and that he doesn't gotta do nothing because you have lots of money, but that he does stuff because he likes it, like he's gonna wrestle Punk on Sunday because he loves you, Mommy, did you know that?"

"That Daddy loves me or that he has a match with Punk?" Stephanie asked her daughter.

Flynn huffed, "That he has a match, I know you know Daddy loves you."

"I love Daddy," Kensington piped in, only listening to fragments of the conversation as she held her mother's hand walking down the hallway. Everything else was more fascinating than this conversation right now.

"Kensy, everyone knows that," Flynn said in annoyance. Sometimes her little sister was just so annoying, and sometimes she wished she didn't even have a little sister, but then sometimes, she liked playing with Kensy because Kensy would play wrestling with her, but that was only sometimes.

"Well, I know you know I know Daddy loves me," Stephanie said back, which only confused Flynn, "and I know Daddy has a match with Punk on Sunday, Daddy is doing the match for me, so of course I know."

"But Punk is my best friend," Flynn scrunched up her mouth a little bit the way Stephanie did sometimes, "but I still want Daddy to win, but I hope he doesn't really, really hurt Punk, can I watch from the people, Mommy?"

"Of course you can watch from the people," Stephanie told her, "you have to watch Daddy wrestle, and you have to cheer for him because I think a lot of people are going to cheer for Punk because he's from Chicago, where the show is going to be held. It's like when we go to Canada and Daddy is cheered loudly."

"Daddy gets cheers everywhere because he's the best in the world at what he does," Flynn said before skipping off to join Chris and Sawyer. She grabbed Sawyer's hand and he looked down at her and smile before going back to his conversation with Chris. It was a testament to his patience for his sisters. This gave Stephanie the opportunity to scoop Kensington into her arms and walk a little faster. She was just about to catch up to Chris when Hunter showed up out of nowhere to her right.

"I have my match first, I asked for it first," Hunter told her with no greeting or pretense at all. Stephanie stopped, glancing briefly at her retreating husband and two children, who were oblivious to her stopping right now. She turned to Hunter and looked at him, waiting to see if he'd say anything else.

When he didn't, she responded finally, "Okay."

"Okay, that's it? After last week, I thought you might put a ball and chain on my leg because that's what you felt like last week," he told her. "I still don't appreciate what you did, especially when I was cleared to wrestle."

"We're taking precautions, Hunter," Stephanie reminded him. "Look at what happened with Fandango on SmackDown, he got a concussion and he had to be pulled from the IC title match as a result, and he is cleared as well. It's nothing personal."

"You made it personal when you said I was your husband."

"I did what I had to do because you were too stubborn," Stephanie said. "You're not invincible, Hunter, and if you're not going to look out for yourself, I will. I care about you, I don't want anything to happen to you. We know what concussions can do, we've seen what the brain damage can cause, alright? Sue me for taking the measures I did, I'd do them again."

"What if it was Chris?"

"Chris would listen to me," Stephanie said without thinking. "Chris would not be as stubborn."

"Because he's whipped?"

"Because he knows better," Stephanie said, but then relented, "and yes, because he's a little whipped, but you've been cleared for two weeks now, so I'm not going to stand in the way of your match, alright?"

"Really, do you mean that?"

"I mean it, go ahead, beat Curtis Axel, actually, you'd be doing me a favor since he did beat my husband on SmackDown, so if you want to beat him up, I'm all for it, plus, he's one of Heyman's clients now, and you know how I feel about him, so really, you're doing me two favors."

"Okay, but you're sure there won't be anything fishy or suspicious?" Hunter asked her. "It's not that I don't trust you, it's just that I really don't trust you, not with this, not when it's something you have to gain."

'To gain? Yes, your mental health is something that I have to gain, sorry about that," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes. "I'm looking out for you, maybe this is something you haven't had in a while, but that's what it is, and I'm not the only one who feels this way, just so you know. Britt cares about what happens to you as well."

"Lot of good that does me."

"You're the worst, you are so stubborn," Stephanie made a face. "Just go have your match, do what you do best, be the game, the cerebral assassin, the king of kings, whatever else you nicknamed yourself."

"I remember a few things _you_ called me, wifey" he told her, grinning at her as her mouth dropped a little bit. He nodded at her, smirking, knowing she probably didn't have a comeback for that.

"Shut up," was all she said. "I have go find my actual husband, go have your little match."

"I will," he told her. "I will definitely have my match."

"Great," Stephanie countered. "Don't hit your head while you're out there."

"I wasn't planning on it," Hunter said.

"Bye," Stephanie said, walking away from him. She turned to Kensington. "That guy could have almost been your dad, aren't you glad you dodged _that_ bullet, Kensy? What would you have done if you had to deal with that all the time?"

"I like Daddy," Kensington told her.

"I like Daddy better too," Stephanie told her daughter, kissing her on the nose. "We both lucked out on that one, especially because Daddy didn't even like me for a really long time. Thank goodness he saw I wasn't all bad, huh?"

"Uh huh," Kensington said as they finally reached Stephanie's office. She pushed open the door and was surprised to see her father waiting for her on the other side.

"Dad, what are you doing here?"

"I just wanted to see my grandchildren, is that a crime?" Vince said, opening his arms and taking Kensington from Stephanie. Kensington gave her grandfather a hug and Vince pulled out a crisp hundred dollar bill from his pocket and handed it to her. It was promptly snatched away from her by Stephanie.

"Dad, how many times do I have to tell you they are children, they don't need this kind of money. Most grandparents will give them a dollar, tell them to put in their piggy bank," Stephanie said, pocketing the bill. She looked to Sawyer and Flynn, but neither had any money on them and Chris waved the two bills and she was glad her husband was on the same page.

"This is what grandfathers do."

"No, it's really not," Stephanie said, "but this money will be going to charity in my children's names."

"That's a great idea, Mommy," Sawyer smiled, "can I help choose one?"

"Of course you can," Stephanie told him, "now Dad, is that the only reason you came to visit or is there something you really needed?"

"I heard that Hunter is going through with his match this week."

"Yes, he is, and I'm not going to stop him. He has been cleared to wrestle, and I'm not going to stop him if this is what he wants to do. I really can't stop him, I'm not actually his wife, and it is his decision to wrestle or not."

"He's also an asset."

"Yeah, I guess if you want to look at him that way then he is an asset, but other than that, you know he's really kind of a person, Dad, and he'll make his own decisions, I've got other things to worry about," Stephanie sidestepped her father and walked over to her desk, kicking her husband out of it. "So, I'll just let Hunter do his own thing."

"So you're not thinking at all about his own longevity?"

"No, I'm not, I think about my husband's, but not my ex-husband's, no," Stephanie informed him. Trying to stop Hunter was like trying to stop a hurricane. You couldn't do it, you could only hope to lessen the impact some. And there was only so much time you could keep Hunter away from the ring. She wasn't about to step in front of the hurricane.

"Hey, you know, I've got a good thing going over here too," Chris interjected, looking at Vince. "I'm bringing back one of your biggest draws, you should be thanking me and looking out for my well-being."

"Oh, please, you never get hurt," Vince dismissed him easily.

"I resent that," Chris told him.

"Resent what, the truth? Tell me one time you were seriously injured? The most time you've ever missed while you were active is when you were suspended by your wife for what you did in Brazil, was it?"

"I still resent that," Chris said, "just because I have been pretty good at protecting myself doesn't mean I'm not worth the worry. I know I'm not one of the big guys in the company, not the big guy that you wanted."

"You're my son-in-law, I treat you differently, you're family, you're not going anywhere."

"I could go somewhere."

"Yeah, on another tour with that band of yours. When I heard them, all I hear is sound."

"Grandpa, Daddy is the best singer at what he does," Flynn informed her grandfather, "just so you know."

"See," Chris said.

"Well, I'm looking out for the product, and that dictates that I look out for it, and I intend to do that," Vince said, setting Kensington down on the ground with a pat to the head. He said his goodbyes to his grandchildren before he left.

"Your father is up to something," Chris told his wife. "He's up to something big."

"Mommy, Grandpa said I should get to keep my money because I graduated from preschool, he said I should buy myself a graduation present, so can I?"

"We'll see," Stephanie said, staring at the door. "Yes, he's definitely up to something."

Hunter was glad to get into the ring. After the debacle last week, he just wanted to return to normal. Wrestling for him was normal. No, he didn't do it as often anymore, but if there was any place on earth that he felt comfortable, it was in the ring. This was where he shined, and Curtis Axel nee Michael McGillicutty was still relatively fresh. His father had been one of the greats, but he still wasn't anywhere close to his father's skill level or experience, and he was ripe for the picking. After last week, Hunter was ready to go in for the kill.

Well, at least he would have been if Vince didn't swagger down to the ring acting like he owned the place (he did, but he didn't have to act like it _so_ much) and stop the match, citing that Hunter was disqualified. Hunter stared at him in disbelief. He should have known Stephanie would try something like this. She was a sneaky, wily woman, and she could manipulate with the best of them. He should have seen this coming.

He went back over and told Justin to start the match again. He went back in the ring, but again, Vince came down to end the match. Hunter was on his last nerve now. He started the match again, but this time, in his most defiant voice, said that it would be an Iron Man match. He knew it wasn't going to happen, but he still wanted it to just to stick it to Vince _and_ Stephanie. He would screw up their own show. Vince came down once again and took the ring bell and everything. This time it was personal. This time…

Hunter stormed backstage, and Stephanie was the first person he saw. She wasn't with Chris or the kids so he felt safe in going up to her. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"What?" Stephanie turned to him.

"Don't play dumb with me, Stephanie," he snapped at her. "You don't think I don't know what that was out there? You don't think I know you pulled this!"

"I didn't pull anything!" Stephanie argued with him.

"Where the hell is your dad? You know what, no, this was all you and your stupid, little plan. You want to pretend we're married, fine, let's pretend we're married and I'm going to beat up my father-in-law, that's pretty real, right, great family I married into."

"You're completely out of control right now," Stephanie told him.

"Where's your father, _Mrs. Helmsley_," he said tauntingly.

Stephanie couldn't believe he was going there, that he was actually going to try to fight fire with fire. Two could play this game. She wasn't going to let him win this game he wanted to play. She really had nothing to do with Hunter and her father and whatever the hell happened out there. She'd been backstage, trying to talk her daughter out of buying a hundred dollars worth of ice cream. She wasn't paying attention what her father did, but if Hunter thought he was going to win at this game, no, he wasn't. So she played it up even further, bringing out tears.

She was a daddy's girl, and faking tears was one of the first things she learned to get what she wanted. It worked just as well this time when Hunter softened when she started crying, even bringing her kids into this. They hadn't been swimming with her father over the weekend, but it did bring up a sad picture for Hunter, which made him feel bad. She told him not to hurt her father, pleaded with him, making him out to look like the bad guy and not her. Hunter was an amateur. Everyone said he was The Game, but if anyone could play games, it was Stephanie, and she proved that time and time again.

Stephanie walked away and wiped the crocodile tears from her eyes. She knew that there was going to be some tension with her father and Hunter, and she actually wondered what her father was up to, so she knew she should probably go find him and see what was going on. Before she could do that though, she should actually go see what her husband was doing. That ended up being easier than she thought when she happened to catch them in catering. She walked over and Chris looked up at her.

"You've been crying, what's up?"

"Hunter thinking he can outsmart me," Stephanie explained to him. "When are you going on?"

"Not any time soon, well, sort of, there's a match, just finishing up with these monsters," Chris jerked his thumb to his kids finishing up their food. "What are you going to do because if you were fake crying and you're trying to outsmart someone, that means you have something up your sleeve."

"I'm just going to try to mend this rift _after_ I find out what my father is up to. He went out there during Hunter's match and kept stopping it, I should have paid more attention to what he was saying earlier, but I was still mad over the money thing," Stephanie said, kissing Chris's cheek. "What are you going to do with the hellions?"

"I can have Britt watch them," Chris told her. "I'm just cutting a promo on the absent Punk. I hope he's watching, he should be since the Finals haven't started yet. You'd think maybe he'd watch the show this week?"

"He may catch a few minutes," Stephanie said, rounding the table and pressing a kiss to everyone's heads.

After that, she went in search of her father, eventually finding him in his office. She spoke with him, wanted to know why he did what he did. He said he was looking out for the business, that Hunter meant money for them, and he was trying to protect that because business came first. Stephanie took that as a veiled insult as to how she ran her life. Sometimes she wondered if her father wanted to wrest control back from her, but she dismissed that because she wouldn't allow that to happen.

When the cameras left, and her father walked away, that wasn't the end of it for her. She went and caught up with him, grabbing him by the arm, "Dad, what are you trying to pull with what you did earlier? Why are you trying to pick a fight with Hunter?"

"Like I said, it's merely business, Stephanie, you wouldn't understand because you think of your family first."

"That's crap, Dad, you're up to something, you just don't want him to wrestle for whatever reason. I don't even know why you wee so insistent, it's like Chris said, he's family, not Hunter."

"Stephanie, your husband is beloved, and he's always here when he wants to be, but Hunter needs the protecting before he does something stupid and can't be on the show at all anymore, I'm protecting one of my investments. I saw what you were saying about me, and I'm old, he can bring it and I would take him on."

"He'd crush you."

"Maybe so, but I wouldn't not put up a fight," Vince said. "Keep him in check, Stephanie."

Her father walked away and she stood there, seething over the stupidity of this entire thing. "He's not even my family anymore," she muttered to herself. Why all this trouble over a guy she'd divorced over ten years ago? She knew why, it was because she cared about Hunter, God knew why, but she did care. This was stupid though, all of this.

She just needed to fix this before the night was over.

Chris stood in the ring, waiting for the crowd to die down a bit. He started talking about all the people he'd faced in the past, but the one performer that always pushed him to the limit was Punk. There was just such a great chemistry in the ring with him. Maybe it was because they were friends or maybe because they were sort of enemies, but when he stepped in the ring with Punk, he could feel himself rise to the next level, that upper echelon that consistently put their matches into contention for Match of the Year. It was one of the reasons he liked fighting Punk. He knew he'd get everything from the other man because they were both so good at what they did.

Although technically they both couldn't hold the Best in the World title, they both kind of did. They were both great at what they did, and that was what would make their match on Sunday what it could be. Yes, it was ultimately an underhanded attempt at getting Punk back to the ring because his wife was getting impatient and taken advantage of, but there was only so much time Chris could languish against the likes of people like Fandango. He wasn't necessarily better, but he was…well, okay, maybe he was slightly better. Punk would bring out that fire in him, he just knew he would.

He was about to say one of his catchphrases when one of the constant thorns in his side came out and made his triumphant return. Chris had to hand it to Dolph, he knew when to interrupt, and part of him could respect that. There was a time in his career when he made a living off interrupting people and stealing the show. It's why he couldn't begrudge Dolph for constantly interrupting him, plus, he was kind of glad the guy was alright. Concussions were nothing to balk at, not anymore.

Still, he didn't need to hear Dolph Ziggler talk.

He didn't need to hear Dolph say that he'd almost had the title taken away from him. He didn't need to hear Dolph Ziggler say that he was better than everyone else in the locker room. He didn't need to hear about how Dolph Ziggler was so gifted, how everyone was jealous of him, how he'd beat Chris Jericho or Del Rio or whomever else Dolph Ziggler had ever beaten. Chris didn't need to hear any of it.

If Dolph wanted to prove something, he could prove it in the ring against Chris right now.

Dolph was not going to give in to that though. He was smarter than that. He was much smarter than that. He knew that he might be rusty, but he also knew that he could get hurt again, and he wasn't chancing that. He was going to defend his belt, and he wasn't going to get potentially hurt days before it like he did with Extreme Rules. Chris Jericho wasn't worth it. So he sent E to do his dirty work. E was chomping at the bit to do so. Dolph could watch safely from the side of the ring.

Which he did, until Del Rio attacked him from behind.

AJ rushed to Dolph side, watching him closely to make sure he was alright. She scooted close to him and knelt by his side, running her hand over his hair. "Ziggy, is your head okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, babe, don't worry, I'm perfectly fine, just pissed."

Nobody but his girl and E were behind him, at least that's what he felt like. They wanted to take his title from him, everyone thought he lucked his way into a victory, completely discounting that almost every other Money in the Bank winner got their titles the same way, and when they did try to win it the honorable way, like Cena had done, well, it ended up like Cena's attempt. He earned this title from the years and years he spent trying to get it. That's how much he earned it.

Chris was celebrating on the other side of the ring. He was having a blast, unlike the couple in front of the ring. He'd won, gotten the better of Big E (which didn't happen too often) and why not celebrate. He owned the company, and he was going to have a great match on Sunday. Things couldn't get better…oh wait, plus he had huge Fozzy news for everyone. Things could get better for him. He was on cloud nine.

He wished the same could be said for his wife.

AJ was about to be on cloud nine.

"You know what to do, E, right?"

"Act like I really do like Kaitlyn? I think I can manage," he told her. "I can force myself if the need arises."

"Yeah, I mean, I guess you would have to force yourself to like her or you know, kiss her or something like that," AJ exaggerated. "I'm really not sure what kind of guy would want to go out with her…or you know, make out with her in a large crate…"

"I was stuck with Vickie for a long time, Kaitlyn was there, it was nothing, God," Dolph said, "judgmental girlfriend. So what if I kissed her once, it was nothing, and it was years ago, I was naïve and idiotic and didn't realize that my girlfriend, the woman I love was the one who was going to catch us…wait, what were _you_ doing back there again? Weren't you and Primo…"

"No, I was not," she told him, "I can't believe Kaitlyn thought someone would buy her that ugly hat. And you know, I _was_ going to be nice about this and maybe set her up with Cody at the end of it because I know she likes him, and he liked her, but after she attacked me at Extreme Rules…like hell I was going to do that for her, she doesn't deserve it. She deserves to be alone."

"She should have been there for you. You shouldn't have been alone."

"You came along and helped put me back together," AJ said, smiling at him.

"Are you guys going to start making out again?" E asked. "Because if that's the case, I'm going to leave right now."

"No, we're good," AJ said, taking a deep breath. "Are you going to watch me?"

"You think I'm going to miss this? This is part of the reason I came back tonight…not really, but I really do want to see this, and see you, and see her get crushed by you."

AJ beamed as she and E walked out of the room. They parted ways shortly thereafter to make it look like they weren't working together. She was so looking forward to this. The words she wanted to say to Kaitlyn had been on the tip of her tongue for ages now. All last year, while she was hurt and upset, while every man in her life didn't want her, her best friend was preoccupied, uncaring, absent. She could have used a friend when she was being harassed as the GM, when she was trying to win anyone's affections, when she wanted someone to pay attention to her. But Kaitlyn wasn't there. Why was everything AJ's fault when the people around her were the ones that treated her like crap?

She watched as Kaitlyn went out and asked her admirer to reveal himself. She looked so awkward and dumb out there. When E's music hit, Kaitlyn looked stunned, and AJ held in her laugh at Kaitlyn's stunned face. Kaitlyn probably was hoping it would be Cody despite what happened when she stole his phone. E walked down to the ring, getting inside and handing Kaitlyn the flowers, telling her that he'd always noticed her, that he was so much more than just Dolph's heavy, and Kaitly still stood there, confused and weary.

She should be.

E proceeded to look like he was going to kiss Kaitlyn, even going so far as to dip her. Then he dropped her on her ass like Kaitlyn dropped AJ as her friend. E pulled back as AJ skipped out to the ring, giving E a high five on the way. She climbed into ring, talking about how Kaitlyn must feel. She wanted Kaitlyn to feel as broken as AJ felt last year. She talked about how when her life went to pieces, Kaitlyn only worried about the title.

It was clear what Kaitlyn cared about, and no, AJ wasn't the greatest friend sometimes, but she owned up to that. She hadn't been great all the time, but she held no pretenses about that. Kaitlyn acted like she was perfect and nice, and not like a woman who insulted her supposed best friend, Natalya, the week before. Kaitlyn was as fake as her hair color, but she still pretended like she wasn't. AJ had no respect for that. She had no respect left for Kaitlyn. AJ was happy now, happy she'd finally seen the truth about her former best friend. It would make her easier to beat.

She was lucky she had Dolph, so lucky, she even used some of his words. His words weren't meant for her once upon a time, but they cut deep to Kaitlyn. She wanted to laugh in her face so she did. She wasn't crazy, she was smart. Everyone thought she was crazy, but it wasn't craziness at all, she was just like her idol, Stephanie, she was manipulative. She was going to knock Kaitlyn from the pedestal she thought she was on. Sunday, she would take the title from her, and she would have it all. And Kaitlyn would truly know how AJ felt when she was all alone. Kaitlyn didn't take it lying down, and AJ didn't expect her to. She fought back, but then rolled out of the ring, falling to her knees. She stood up though, stood tall, blowing a kiss to Kaitlyn in the process.

They would have a date on Sunday.

AJ went backstage, and Dolph was waiting for her. He opened up his arms and she ran into them. He hugged her, almost as tight as he had when he was cleared to wrestle. "You were amazing out there."

"You think so?"

"Are you kidding me? That was hot!" he told her.

"You're proud of me?" AJ asked.

"Babe, I'm so proud, and I'll be even prouder on Sunday."

"Yes, Sunday…"

When she got the title.

Stephanie felt accomplished when she got a group hug out of Hunter and her father. She never thought that would happen, but since they were all forced to play this silly game, she was going to win, always. When would people learn that she always got what she wanted? So many times people tried to go against her, tried to tell her that they were better, that they could get the one up on her, but it never worked. She was Stephanie McMahon-Jericho.

"What are you, some kind of miracle worker?" her husband asked.

"No, I just know that they're both fools," Stephanie said, "but this isn't over. With those two, my dad sees him as an object, hell, he probably sees us all as objects. He's not going to let Hunter win, and Hunter isn't going to let my dad win. Something is brewing, and I probably shouldn't have pretended to be his wife."

"You think?" he laughed. "Wait, why am I laughing, I'm wrestling CM Punk for you? Are you a witch or something, having us all here doing your bidding? I mean, I wasn't even doing anything with Punk, and you ask, and here I am. You don't want Hunter to wrestle, he doesn't, you want your dad and Hunter to group hug, and it happens, what did I marry?"

"The most crafty woman on the planet?"

"You must be," he told her, "want to get our kids and get out of here?"

"Yeah, I better get out now."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I have a feeling I'm going to be in the middle of something…and it won't be good."


	423. Jam Packed, June 17, 2013

A/N: I hated some of the outcomes of that PPV last night so I skipped over it, and I ended it where it felt organic, so there's still a few things I want to address, but that will have to wait until the next chapter. Hope you enjoy this one, review if you want. :)

* * *

She couldn't help but start crying.

She curled herself into a ball, the title hugged tightly against her. Dolph was asleep behind her, but she couldn't sleep for a myriad of reasons. For one, this night was the culmination of so many years of hard work. Fourteen years ago she said she was going to be the Women's champion, and she finally had it. She just wanted to look at it for a little while longer. It felt like she had everything she ever wanted.

Except one thing.

She tried to be silent in her tears, not wanting to wake her boyfriend. He needed the sleep after his match, and that was the main reason she couldn't sleep. When she closed her eyes, she could see it playing out in her mind over and over again. Something she didn't tell Dolph when he got his concussion in the month before was that she had nightmares about it. She didn't want him to worry about her unnecessarily, but those first few night she would close her eyes, and she would see him lying on the floor, not knowing what day or month it was, not knowing why she was out there.

Tonight, it was the same. It was three in the morning, and she and Dolph had an early day for media tomorrow, promoting the show, how ironic that they would want someone they treated so poorly to represent their company. Dolph had been asleep practically the moment his head hit the pillow. His head was throbbing, and sleep was necessary, and she was glad he was getting some right now, but she couldn't. Every single time she closed her eyes, she could see him getting kicked in the head over and over again, she could hear each blow as it landed on the head she'd so carefully cradled that first night home when his vertigo was especially bad, and the room span so much he nearly started to cry.

She couldn't keep her eyes shut for too long. She licked her wet lips, tasting her tears as she scoot off the bed carefully. Her tears were coming harder now, and she didn't want to wake Dolph with her crying. She snuck into the bathroom, sitting down on the edge of the large tub that took up nearly half the bathroom and cried. She didn't even bother turning on the light, letting herself wallow in the darkness of it all, trying to keep quiet, but failing. She couldn't think about tonight, but it kept invading her mind.

_Her mascara was running and the stupid false eyelashes felt like they weighed ten pounds each, and she wanted nothing more than to rip them off. She looked down to her title, and it felt heavier now, almost unwanted, yet wanted at the same time. Tonight was supposed to be a celebration. Those fifteen minutes were the best fifteen minutes of her life. Running backstage, seeing him there, warming up for his match, and his face turning towards her, bright as the sun. She'd run into his arms as he spun her around, kissing wherever his lips could find a spot on her body._

_He couldn't stop talking about how proud of her he was, how great she'd done, how perfect she looked with the title. He'd had his with him and they took pictures, just them, the belts and smiles a mile wide. It was perfect, and plans were made for the rest of the night. They would grab some fast food, pig out, eat whatever they wanted without guilt then fall into bed and let things get…heated. It was all they wanted to do._

_It wasn't the both of them crying as he staggered up the ramp._

"_We have to take him to the training room," the doctor with them spoke to her. _

"_I'll be there in a second," AJ felt something welling inside of her. She could tell what it was, and she'd tried to keep it at bay for so long, but she couldn't any longer, she just couldn't hold it in any longer. She turned to her left, and it was unfortunate that Stephanie would be the target, but essentially, wasn't this Stephanie's fault._

"_I'm fine!" Dolph tried to tell them, pushing away at them, but too weak to put up a real fight. Instead, they led him away. AJ watched him go and she was about to turn to Stephanie when Stephanie came up to her._

"_I'm really sorry—"_

"_Save it, Stephanie," AJ told her, her hair mussed, her face a mess, and every bit of fury on her face. "You claim to run this show. You claim that it's yours, that you know everything, that you have a plan for everything. How about a plan when someone gets kicked in the head so much they can't even walk straight? How about a plan when someone is brutalizing someone beyond any match? Was it no DQ out there? Was that the stipulation we weren't told about?"_

"_AJ, I don't think—"_

"_You could have stopped it! You could have stopped it when the referee wouldn't, when the doctor's wouldn't, you could have stopped him! He's too stubborn, he wouldn't do it, but _you_ could have! You could have done it! This is your company, but you weren't in charge enough to see my boyfriend was hurting. You saw him when he had his concussion, you were there! You saw him not know who I was, I thought you were my friend!"_

"_AJ, please—"_

"_NO!" AJ screamed at her. "If that was your husband, you would have called that match! If that was Chris, you would have done everything in your power to stop it, but you don't care about anything or anyone except your little plans, Stephanie. Face it, you only look out for yourself and your friends. Dolph didn't deserve that, and you know it, but you didn't do anything! I hope you're happy with yourself!"_

She still couldn't believe she'd talked that way to someone she looked up to, but she felt no differently now. Dolph's match should have been called, someone, anyone should have called that match. After the third, fourth, fifth kick, someone should have come out there and said enough. Her boyfriend just got cleared, and she had to witness him get kicked in the head like that, beaten like he'd stolen something. She wasn't okay, she was mad, she was mad at everyone. She covered her face as she continued to sob, biting her lip to keep from crying out.

Suddenly, the lights turned on and her eyes had a difficult time adjusting to the sudden brightness. She looked up pathetically and saw Dolph standing there, his hair mussed, and his face flushed. She could see bruises on his upper body and even one on his neck. She started to sob harder, her face crumpling as she hunched over, her tears coming in torrents as the pain ripped through her.

Dolph had never seen her like this, not even on that first night when he'd walked up to her teary face in that café. He rushed over to her, nearly sliding across the tiled floor until he was kneeling next to her. He grabbed her curled form and burrowed it against hers as she continued to cry, her arms blindly reaching out and banding around his bare torso. He could feel her tears wet his skin, burning her pain into him.

"Jeannie, babe, what's wrong?" he whispered. "This is your night, you won the title, you won!"

"Everything," she told him, "this wasn't supposed to be like this, you were hurt, and they wouldn't call the match, she wouldn't call it. She wouldn't call it, and you were so hurt!"

"It's okay, I'm right here, no hospital, and look, I know who you are!" he told her, trying to ease her tension, but it wasn't working. Instead, he kissed her temple and pulled her down so they were sitting on the floor, well, he was sitting on the floor while she was in his lap. He rocked them back and forth, waiting for her tears to subside, occasionally running his hand through her hair like he always did.

"They should have called the match, you wee hurt, you wouldn't listen, they should have made you listen."

"Jeannie, it happens, and I'm disappointed, but I have my rematch, remember," he told her. He tipped her chin so she was looking at him. Her eyes were red-rimmed and blood-shot, which made him wonder how long she'd been crying, and there was snot running from her nose. Her lips were chapped, and her cheeks were flushed so much she looked like she had a fever. "God, you're gorgeous."

"Now I _know_ you're really injured," she told him.

"Nah, I mean, yeah, things are a little gross right now, and I might not be cleared tomorrow, whatevs, but I know when you look beautiful, and do you know why you look so beautiful?" he asked her, that cheesy grin of his taking over his face, and making his blue eyes sparkle. She loved his eyes. If she ever had kids with him, she hoped they got his eyes. She shrugged. "Because these tears are for me, and even though they shouldn't be, they are, and you love me, and that's pretty great. I didn't lose that tonight, did I?"

"No," she shook her head.

"And you've kind of, sort of always been more important than the title," he told her, kissing her forehead.

"I have nightmares," AJ confessed. "I had them when you got the concussion the first time, and I can't sleep. I keep seeing you getting kicked and I can't sleep."

"Okay, well, it's probably because we weren't cuddling, so come on, I'll hold you, and you'll sleep, and we'll both sleep then we'll wake up in a couple hours, grab us some caffeine, and we'll wow the pants off the local media, and we'll show off your title, it'll be fine."

"I love you," AJ told him. "You're just…you're the best thing that's ever happened to me."

"More than that title you were cuddling instead of me?" he asked incredulously.

"Way more."

Flynn ran into Punk's awaiting arms. She cooed as she hugged him while he hugged her back tighter than tight. "Hey there, Flynnie, I missed you, did you get cuter while I was away or did you get tougher?"

"Tougher!" Flynn exclaimed to him. "Lots and lots."

"I also heard you graduated from preschool and now you're going to leave me?"

"Never, but I gotta go to school, but not right now," Flynn shrugged, hugging him again. "I didn't gets to see you last night, Punk, because you had lots of friends, but I'm your friend too, and you didn't come see me."

"I didn't know what the forecast would be, are your mom and dad mad at me?" he asked loudly, knowing Chris was standing right there a few feet away.

"No, don't be silly, Punk, they're not mad, even though you beat my daddy last night, it's okay because your match was really good, and Daddy almost won, and sometimes you just have to try your best, even if you don't win, but you won, and you're my best friend, so I'm happy," Flynn shrugged.

"Really, he's not mad at me?"

"Look, blowhard, I'm not mad at you," Chris came over. "Flynn wanted to come see you because she missed you, and look, you know why I had to do what I had to do, right? You know how Stephanie is—"

"And I'm well aware how whipped you are for her, yup," Punk smiled at him, "it was a great match last night though, wasn't it? God, I love getting in the ring with an opponent who knows what he's doing. Any reason for you hating me that cropped up overnight?"

"Not that I can think of," Chris said.

"Damn it," Punk muttered with a laugh, "oops, don't repeat that, Flynnie, so where's the rest of the gang."

"Stephanie is in a power struggle with her family and her ex-husband, so I'm walking around. Sawyer is, I don't know, saving the world or something and he dragged Kensy along…or they might be with Trish."

"Trish is here?"

"Because her husband is here and he finally decided to make his presence known, novel idea, huh? Actually wrestling after being gone for a while, you'd think some people would think of that and not force guys to make matches with them."

"It was worth it," Punk said, "you mind if I steal your daughter for a while, we have to catch up. I feel like I've been away and I like hearing about wrestling from my favorite girl because I have to catch up on what's going on around here, and who better to tell me that then the person who knows the most about the show."

"I know _everything_," Flynn said seriously. "I watch it all, and sometimes I watch it more, but just Daddy because he's my favorite."

"You can't mess with the best," Chris shrugged, "bring her by later whenever?"

"Sure, I'll bring her by."

"Punk, I can't be your favorite girl though because you have, you have Britt, and she's your girlfriend, and she's a girl, so isn't she your favorite girl?" Flynn asked.

"You both can be my favorite girl. So come on, tell me what's going on with Daniel Bryan," he said as they started to walk away down the hallway together. Chris looked at the pair, Punk was not the type of guy who liked children on the whole, but Flynn, and to an extent, Sawyer and Kensington were exceptions, and it made for a really silly, and also cute, picture.

"Oh no, Punk, he's really mad at everything," Flynn's voice floated to Chris as they went out of earshot. Chris turned on his heel, wondering what he could do on the show when he almost smacked into the tiny AJ.

"Sorry, AJ," Chris said.

"Oh, I'm sure you are," AJ sneered.

"Look, AJ, Steph told me what happened yesterday between the two of you, and really, don't you think you're going a little overboard, I mean there were trainers and doctors out there checking on him, and—"

AJ took a page from Stephanie's book and slapped Chris across the face. AJ's voice turned low and deadly, and for the first time in his existence, Chris was actually afraid of someone he could probably lift with one hand. "Don't you _dare_ tell me that he was fit for that match, don't you even dare tell me that! He was hurt, this was his first match back, and he was hurt, and he shouldn't have had to continue, all of you disgust me!"

AJ turned around and stormed off. Chris licked his lip, tasting a little blood. She must have nicked him with her nail. "What was that about?" a voice said from behind him.

Chris turned to see his best friend, "AJ's pissed, Stephanie's pissed at her for her outburst, and if she finds out AJ slapped me, I don't think Stephanie is going to have any sympathy left for her. She thinks AJ is out of control with this Dolph thing."

"What do you think?"

"I think that I felt the same way AJ is when Austin gave Stephanie a stunner," Chris shrugged, "but like hell I'm getting in the way of my wife, sometimes it's better if you just let her be, like when you see a bee and you don't want to be stung, you just kind of stand very still. I'm sure Stephanie can handle it, she can handle anything."

"Like her father and husband…oh wait, wait, wait, I'm sorry, she's not married to him anymore, right?" Christian said with a smirk as Chris flipped him off.

"That wasn't even the tiniest bit funny. I don't know what's going on with them nor do I care to know. McMahons are crazy, and yes, yes, I know, I've been part of that family for over eight years, but I'm not as crazy as they are, let them all implode, Stephanie is always the one left standing."

"How does she do that?" Christian asked as they started walking down the hallway to knew where.

"She's Stephanie McMahon."

"That's it?"

"Yup, that's about it," Chris nodded, "so what the hell are you going to do tonight on the show? I mean, I'm assuming you will actually appear even though you've been cleared for really long time now, dude. If Trish wasn't pregnant, I think you'd be my next match."

"So you're kind of like the fixer for your wife?"

"Whatever she needs, so really, where you starting out?"

"I was thinking about starting low, working my way towards the IC title, but then aim for bigger, but I have to ease into it, I'm rusty, I know we've bee training together, but there's a difference between training and actually being in the ring."

"Look, I've been there and you've been there before too, you know the only way to get back into this crazy game is to actually go out there and do it, jump into the deep end," Chris shrugged, "that's what I always do."

"Yeah, we know," Christian rolled his eyes, "but what are you doing tonight?"

"Hanging out, watching my wife's family implode probably, so pretty uneventful or me."

"You really aren't going to help her at all?"

"Not at all."

Trish rubbed her stomach as Sawyer sat next to her and watched, "Trish, do you know what it's going to be?"

"No, Christian and I wanted to be surprised this time around," Trish explained to him, "kind of like how your mom and dad wanted to be surprised when Kensington came along. It's so easy to know so why not keep it a surprise?"

"I guess so, but what do you want it to be?"

"A baby," she winked at him as he laughed, "I don't know, another girl might be nice, but a boy would be nice too, but only if he turns out like you do because you're pretty great."

"Thanks," Sawyer said, "I'm excited to see Chrissy on the show, it's been a really long time since he's wrestled. Do you think he's going to win?"

"I always think that, you should know that by now," Trish said, then brightened when she felt a kick against her stomach, "Hey, you want to feel something really cool?"

"Sure!" Sawyer said as Trish reached for his hand and pulled up her shirt so he could feel her stomach. He felt the baby kicking against it and smiled, "Wow, that's so cool, I don't really remember doing this with my mom because I was still pretty little, do you feel that all the time?"

"Pretty much just when the baby is awake, I know when it's awake because they move a whole lot in there."

"I wish my mom was going to have a baby because I think babies are pretty cool, and it would be nice to have a brother. I like Flynnie and Kensy, but they're girls so sometimes they like girly things, but only sometimes. A brother would be cool to play with."

"You should ask your mom about that, see what she says," Trish winked at him.

"No, he shouldn't," Stephanie said from the desk. "Baby boy, I'm sorry, but there isn't going to be a little brother, you'll just have to make do with Flynnie and Kensy, I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Mom, I'm okay with having two sisters. Dad even says I have to protect them." Sawyer was about to say more, but the door opened and Vickie walked in, Brad trailing behind like the puppy dog he sometimes seemed.

"Vickie, I'd say it's a pleasure, but it's not," Stephanie said, "what do you want?"

"I just wanted to tell you I've booked a night full of surprises. I think you'll find yourself really impressed."

"I love how now that you know the Board is willing…make that _more_ than willing to consider your immediate removal, you suddenly want to suck up to us and make the show impressive. Vickie, you're so blatant it's sad."

"I know the show will impress you, I promise you that it will, alright, just watch the show, and you'll see how much of my signature handprint is on it," Vickie said brightly, too brightly for Stephanie's liking.

She found it pathetic, and what was sad was she found Vickie pathetic before. Now it was just downright painful to watch…for most people. Vickie treated Stephanie like crap any and every chance she got, and Stephanie was not one to revel in her enemy's downfall. She'd been through too many wars with too many people, and she'd come out on top time and time again; she believed that afforded her a bit of reveling.

"You'll see," Vickie promise again, "just watch the show."

"Okay, Vickie, just this once, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt, and we'll really see what you have to offer, does that sound fair?"

"That sounds more than fair, thank you, Stephanie," Vickie said with enough falsity that Stephanie felt like Vickie was going to tell her she was the Queen of England next, that was how believable Vickie was playing this. But Stephanie instead gave a bright smile back and watched the woman go, her grin turning into a scoff as soon as the door clicked shut.

"Can you believe her?"

"She's crafty, you have to give her that. I mean, she's like, a turtle," Trish said, "You can put it on its back, but it'll roll right over…wait, do turtles even do that?"

Stephanie laughed, "I don't think so, I think they die if they stay on their backs."

"Oh, well, I have no idea what I'm trying to say, but I guess we'll see on the show."

AJ smiled at her boyfriend, giggling madly, "I slapped him right in the face, and it felt good, and I was doing it for the both of us too. Stephanie could have called the match, if it was Chris out there, but she can't do that anymore. I won't stand for it, I'm not going to stand for anything anymore. I'm the Diva's champion now, and you know what, I _should_ have, this, and I have a target on my back, but I'm not going to take anything lying down."

Dolph smiled softly, "I know you will, you're going to take the divas division by storm, I'm so proud of you. I don't know if I've told you that, but I am."

"Only a million times," she smiled, leaning forward to kiss him. "Mmm, I can't wait until you take Del Rio out later tonight. He's never going to know what hit him. It really pays to be tiny, you know, you can really sneak into those small spaces."

"I was in the small space with you though," he told her, leaning forward to kiss her this time. She giggled against his lips as she thought about earlier.

Dolph wanted the element of surprise when it came to his next encounter with Del Rio. The doctors did not give him medical clearance to actually compete, but that didn't mean he couldn't be there. They decided, though, that he should sneak into the arena while AJ would make everyone think he wasn't here that evening. That way Del Rio was lulled into a false sense of security, and that's when Dolph would attack. Doing the media circuit this morning only served as a reminder that he'd lost his belt, and while he was so proud of AJ, he was disappointed as well.

When they snuck him into the arena earlier, they had to do it stealthily lest he get caught and word get out to Del Rio. From what AJ managed to gather from others was that they were all genuinely shocked by Del Rio's actions, and many thought Dolph didn't deserve that. It warmed her to think people actually cared about him. While they were hiding in one crevice, they happened across Britt and Punk.

"_I'm going to talk to Del Rio," Punk told his girlfriend, "so he's on the top of the show, yes?"_

"_Yeah, but what are you going to say?"_

"_He said he was best in the world, and you know that doesn't fly with me. I want a match with him this evening. I know Dolph has his rematch, but he can't have it tonight, right? That guy deserves it though, after what happened last night."_

"_I'm surprised nobody called that match to be honest," Britt shrugged, pressing her hands on his shoulders, "but either way, you stole that show last night, not them."_

"_Babe…okay, say it some more" Punk corrected himself as Britt stood on her tip-toes to peck him on the lips. "So you will challenge him to a match, he will accept, main event? But wait, what if he doesn't accept?"_

"_Don' t worry, he won't have a choice. I talked to Vickie, and she'll make it if she has to. It's good to know people in high places, like…oh, I don't know…you?"_

"_Oh, me—"_

AJ shuddered, "Didn't need to see my kind of ex making out with his girlfriend."

"You and Punk, just can't picture it."

"What? You might be the _only_ one who can't," she told him.

"I'm also the only one of us who's seen you naked, so…I think I know what I'm talking about when I don't think you and Punk would be good for each other," Dolph shrugged. "You need someone like me."

"Cocky much?" she asked him.

"I definitely need someone like you," he shrugged. "You know, yin and yang, opposites attract kind of thing. So…um, you know, I wanted to talk about something really quick, it might not be quick, but we'll see, um, you and me and…well, marriage."

"Oh my God, are you proposing!" AJ asked, sitting up straighter.

"What? No, no, no!" he held his hands up in surrender. "God, no, but um, with all the talk today in our interviews…proposals and things like that, I felt like it should be brought up…maybe…"

"Okay," AJ nodded. "I was joking though, earlier when I said that you should have done it yesterday, and I know you were joking when you said we decided to wait because we've never actually talked about it, but um, I just wanted you to know that I'm not like, planning our wedding in my head or anything like that."

He laughed, "Good, because we'd probably have to talk about what we want, but I just wanted to put it out there that the notion of it, it's not far-fetched."

AJ blinked a little bit, stunned by what he was essentially saying. "I…don't know…it's on the table?"

He nodded, "It's definitely on the table. It might get a little cold on the table, but it's there, and I just wanted you to know that when I picture myself getting married, whenever that is, it's with you, okay, it's with you, and I've never thought of marrying anyone in my entire life until now."

AJ tried not to beam, but she was glowing. Now she really did have everything she ever wanted. "Okay, well, if you're putting it on the table, I will put it on the table too, so maybe I'll propose someday."

"I want to see that, I look forward to it," he laughed. "Oh, and move in with me."

"What?" Now she was dumbfounded again.

"And by that, I mean, let's keep both places, but I don't want to say your house and my house, I want my house to be yours, and yours to be mine, and basically nothing changes, just how we say things. I know you like Tampa, and I like Phoenix, and it's nice to have options."

"Okay, I'll fake move in with you."

Everything went like clockwork during the first segment. Dolph and AJ watched as Del Rio came out with Dolph's title over his shoulder (it would always be his, no matter what happened with it), talking about how he was injured or something to that effect, but it wasn't the same. AJ had to anchor herself against Dolph to remind herself that he was alright. He held her tightly as Punk walked out and did what he said he was going to do earlier.

When Del Rio refused, they got an unexpected assist from none other than Vickie Guerrero. She was hell bent on impressing the McMahons, but this worked in their favor. The match was set, Dolph was ready, and he was going to start his revenge on Del Rio. He was going to get that title back if it was the last thing he did.

"Christian!" Vickie said, "I hope you'll allow me to reintroduce you to the audience!"

Christian looked taken aback, but an introduction couldn't hurt, could it? "Sure, whatever, Vickie."

Agreeing made him look stupid because Vickie took full advantage of the situation. She actually had the nerve to say he was _her_ surprise. Last time he checked, it wasn't Vickie that brought him back. She was just trying to save her ass. But he put it behind him because there were bigger things to take care of, there was his match, his _match_, and damn did it feel good to say that again. He missed this. He missed walking out to the crowd, pumped full of adrenaline as he sought after his opponent.

No matter who he faced tonight, he was going to win. Life was going too well for him right now. He was on top of the world. He had a match finally on the show he loved with the job he loved. His beautiful, gorgeous Hall-of-Famer wife was pregnant with his second child, and his daughter was going to be starting preschool soon. Things were looking up, and this last puzzle piece was falling into place.

Christian was back, and he was going to take what he wanted, starting with Wade Barrett.

Stephanie laughed when Vickie came backstage, "Nice try, Vickie, but Christian, you think that I'm going to be impressed when you brought out one of my husband's closest friends, try better and harder next time."

"The night is young," Vickie shrugged as she walked off quickly and sheepishly.

"Taunting gives you wrinkles."

Stephanie didn't even bother turning her head, "_You_ give me wrinkles."

"I resent that statement, and seriously, me and Heath Slater, really?"

"You said you weren't really in the mood for a match, and you wish it could be easy, Britt made it easy for you."

"But really, _that_ easy? I mean, is that even a challenge?"

"Maybe, maybe not, we'll see later, won't we?"

"Yeah, see me pulverize him like you just pulverized poor Vickie."

"Bite your tongue," Stephanie kissed his cheek. "I'm simply having fun, if it's at her expense, what can you do? She brought this all upon herself when she pretty much told me that I had to stay away from the show."

"So she deserves it?"

"In a manner of speaking, besides, Britt does so much of the work as it is."

"Where is that girl?"

Britt slammed into her boyfriend, glad that Flynn was actually by his side and not in his arms. "Oh my God, oh my God!"

"What? What's going on?"

"You and Paul are no longer an item, there's no third wheel in our relationship anymore! I'm so happy you aren't his client or whatever anymore," she peppered his face with kisses. "I'm sorry, honey, but he was creepy, and I didn't like him."

"I know, I know, we're friends though still."

"I don't trust him though," Britt worried her bottom lip. "He doesn't seem like the kind of guy who likes to be abandoned."

"Trust me, I know Paul, I've known him longer, we're cool," he kissed her, "Flynnie, how about you go with Britt because I've got some things to do before my match later, I had a really great time talking with you."

"I did too, stay now forever," she hugged his leg before grabbing Britt's hand and walking off.

Punk thought about Britt's concerns for a moment, but dismissed them. Paul was fine, he would have Axel, and things would be just fine. Still, he had that nagging feeling that his girlfriend might be right. Heyman did pretty much convince a rather naïve Stephanie that buying ECW and turning on her father, but he wasn't Stephanie, and Paul was his friend. He would never do something like that.

When AJ skipped out to the ring, it was simply in triumph. She really did have everything she could ever want, and tonight, she was going to celebrate that. She was always the best, stealing the show, being better than everyone else, her belt was just the evidence she needed. She'd used everything to beat Kaitlyn, her brains and her brawn. There was nothing let but to live it up, and let the fans look upon the new face of the Divas division.

She kept up the ruse with Dolph, saying he wasn't here tonight before she talked about how she the greatest diva right now. She was on cloud nine, and the only thing that could have been better would be if Dolph were out here with his belt. She was sure it would happen soon enough, and she couldn't wait because that's how it was meant to be. It was meant to be the both of them with titles around their waists. She wanted that picture back. She would do anything to get it.

But right now, it was about her own title, about any and all comers who wanted to take her down. She would get rid of them all just like she got rid of Kaitlyn. She dared someone to come out and try and challenge her. She may be the smallest diva, but she was also the most conniving one of all. She had the full package, plus she had E in her corner and Dolph by her side. She was so much more than any other diva. Nobody was going to come out.

Except the one person who did strike fear in AJ.

Stephanie was thoroughly sick of AJ. After seeing Chris's lip, asking him what cut him, and his confession, little Miss AJ Lee needed to remember that she was representing the company. She couldn't go ballistic on anyone she wanted. She could not just lash out and expect to keep that title. Stephanie strode down the ramp to tell her that.

AJ's eyes widened when Stephanie entered the ring, immediately trying to be nice, act like this wasn't Stephanie being friendly and congratulatory, but this was Stephanie, someone who could maybe, kind of beat her up. She'd idolized Stephanie, but last night was too much. Last night, Stephanie wasn't a friend to her but an enemy, but still, this could end badly, so she tried to kill Stephanie with kindness first. It did not work, but then something happened. As Stephanie told her to act with more responsibility and to stop degrading women, AJ came to one single conclusion.

It was a line of hypocrisy from Stephanie that AJ couldn't stand.

Stephanie must have forgotten that she once tortured Trish, made her believe that Vince was interested in her only to have her covered in slop. She'd humiliated people all the time, she'd treated people like dirt, and this woman had the nerve to come here and tell her what to do. No, that was not going to happen. If Stephanie wanted a fight, she would give it to her, after all, AJ was a student of this game called wrestling, and she knew Stephanie could be taken down if need be.

AJ took it a step further and agreed that she should be more like Stephanie, she should just marry a superstar instead of dating one. It conjured up her angry words from the night before, and how Chris would have gotten special treatment. Stephanie scoffed and reminded AJ of who she was. The McMahons were crazy, yes, but they were also in charge. If AJ thought she could just walk all over this ring, she was so very, very wrong. She needed to be put in line, and that's where Stephanie was sending her. AJ would just need to grow up.

Kaitlyn and a bevy of divas interrupted Stephanie, and she turned in disgust. Nobody interrupted her. She just hoped AJ would get the message to grow up. She couldn't go around slapping people, and yelling at her bosses. Before Stephanie left, she told Kaitlyn and the other divas to never interrupt her again. This was after all, her show, and she was not going to have anyone interrupt it. She knew it was another case of her being a hypocrite, but as the boss, wasn't she allowed?

"What are you going to do to that poor girl?" Chris asked his wife as she arrived backstage. "I mean, you pretty much just put her on notice, you know that right?"

"I'm simply teaching her a little respect."

AJ wasn't learning anything because as soon as Kaitlyn entered the ring, the brawl was on, and it couldn't be stopped…except it was…by Big E. She felt herself being pulled out of the ring, and lifted into the air. She screamed at Kaitlyn, screamed at them all she would remain the champion. When backstage, she glared at Stephanie before stomping off, leaving E in her wake. She didn't need them, she didn't need Stephanie to like her. She had Dolph, the title, E, she had everything she wanted.

And even Stephanie McMahon couldn't take that away from her.

And later, her boyfriend would not let Alberto Del Rio take what was his. When Del Rio was getting counted out (and he had the audacity to call Dolph a coward), Dolph saw the perfect opportunity, and with AJ looking on in the back, Dolph attacked Del Rio from behind. He slammed his fists into the other man's defenseless body as Del Rio tried to curl up in a ball to protect himself from the raining blows.

Ricardo and some other people, he couldn't even tell you who when it was all said and done, came out to try and help Del Rio, but he couldn't be contained. This man kicked him in the head over and over. This man took his title away from him. This man took advantage of an injury. This man made his girlfriend cry. This man made her have nightmares.

Nobody gave his girl nightmares.


	424. Boiling Over, June 24, 2013

A/N: There's been some crazy reading going on with this story lately, so thanks to all you crazies who have been reading, but pace yourselves, and if you ever want a general recap without having to read, just PM me, and I can let you know what's going on. But again, thank you so much for reading. Anyways, hope you enjoy and review if you want. :)

* * *

"Are you going to break up with me?"

"What gave you that idea?"

"Everyone thinks so," AJ told him, running her fingers through his hair as he lay it in her lap. He was still smarting from the kick to his head the night before from the likes of Del Rio with an assist from a Codebreaker. AJ knew the latter was her fault, that her words to Stephanie probably spurned on Chris. He couldn't have been _that_ mad about losing via DQ, but he could be that mad about what AJ said to Stephanie, especially the part about marrying a superstar.

"Who's everyone?" he opened his eyes to look at her, his blue eyes piercing hers like they always did.

"All the WWE fans," AJ shrugged. "They think that you're going to be so preoccupied with chasing the title and having the fans like you then there's me, and I get a little bit…well, you know what I get."

"You were angry because Kaitlyn attacked you," Dolph told her, reaching for one of her hands. When he found one, he brought it to his mouth, kissing her knuckles before holding it next to his head as her other hand wove through his tresses. "Who could blame you for that really? She's the one who's off her rocker. Did you see what she did to Aksana, I mean, I'm taking my loss badly, but she's taking it even worse."

"I did make her look bad on Sunday."

"You made _everyone_ look bad on Sunday, you stole the show," he told her with pride.

"Was it really one of the best diva's matches you've ever seen?"

"Hell yeah it was, but I know you can wrestle," he wiggled his eyebrows at her, and she playfully pinched his shoulder. "Ouch, come on, guy who's been kicked in the head about 500 times over the last week over here!"

"I'm sorry, you poor baby," she leaned down and kissed his forehead.

"You're not going anywhere," he told her, his voice losing the lilt of amusement it previously held. "I wouldn't let you. We're both embroiled in our own stuff right now, but you know I'm here for you, and I know you're here for me. We know what we are, the fans don't, the other wrestlers don't, I mean, if they did, Punk wouldn't be asking if you give good head."

"That's not what he was asking!" AJ's mouth dropped open. Dolph raised his eyebrow. "Okay, it was what he was asking, but you didn't have to answer."

"Neither did you, although if we're being honest, yes, yes, I am."

"I don't know whether I believe you because you probably do know or whether to think you're absolute the cockiest—yeah, that was not my best way to continue that sentence," she said as he laughed heartily, his face lightening up as he tried to stop laughing, but couldn't. "Ziggy, stop laughing at me!"

"I'm sorry, first, I'm bigger, now I'm the cockiest guy in the world, hey, not so bad for not even touching you sexually today. Maybe I should press my luck and grab a boob right now or something."

"What boobs? Who around here has boobs?" she asked.

"Oh yeah, that's right, you're a 2x4, flat," Dolph told her, but he winked at her.

"I think this is the first time I've seen you really happy all week," she told him, the side of her mouth quirking up into a small smile. "I know that it's been a really rough week for you, but it's going to get better. I know it is. I know you're frustrated, but you will get your title back, I just know it. Del Rio is a one-trick pony right now, but you outmatch him in every way."

"You're the best, babe, and I know I've pretty much been neglecting you, not that you even need me around since you pretty much kick ass all by yourself, but I feel like I've been a bad boyfriend."

"You're the best boyfriend," she corrected him.

"The competition isn't all that stiff, babe," he told her. "Pretty much me not calling you names or acting like you're nuts is enough to make me your best boyfriend."

"You have your thing and I have mine, like you said, we're in this together, but we don't have to be attached at the hip." He stared at her for a moment, and she looked down at him, wondering why he was looking at her like that. "What's with the face? Are you actually going to break up with me? I mean, you're not right because I was joking earlier."

"No, not at all," he told her, "I just like that you're independent now. That's all I wanted for you. When Cena was…in the beginning, when they all treated you like…when you clung to them."

"Babe, are you having like a really weird concussion side effect because you need to pick one sentence and go with it."

"You were broken by your own account when we started dating. And you were broken because of them, partly because of me who didn't let up on you when I should have seen it, and…you clung so hard to guys because you were so desperate for the attention. You're not that person anymore, not even close to it. You're independent, strong, everything I always thought you could be."

"You helped me," she told him.

"Nah, I didn't help you, you helped yourself," he told her, "I have no plans to break up with you. I love you too much for that. So that can stay a rumor or whatever, but you're stuck with me, face it, you're never getting rid of me. I live with you, I'm going to marry you, I'm going to probably have really awesome-looking kids with you, and then you'll really be stuck with me forever—"

"Hold your horses," AJ interrupted him, "I'm not ruining these abs any time soon, you know."

"Of course not, wouldn't want you to."

"But speaking of being together, Ziggy, we've got to do something about this hair, seriously, don't you think it's time for a touch-up?"

"I'm going for tortured right now."

"You can be tortured with blond hair, we've got to do something about it."

"Why do you always talk me into things?"

"Because you love me."

Britt kicked a little at Punk's leg, "Is it time for my daily 'told you so' yet?"

"No, because it wasn't time for that before, and it's sure as hell not time for that now, thank you."

"Okay, okay, but what are you going to do Monday? Call out Paul and Lesnar because I really want to see that," Britt's eyes glowed at the thought. "Can you make it extra pipe-bomby, you know, just for me? I'd love it if you could because he deserves it. I knew he was shady, I didn't know he was that shady."

"I should have seen it coming," Punk shook his head. "Well, it's the last time I don't see something coming. Paul made the biggest mistake sending Brock out there. I'm not called the Best in the World for nothing. You just don't poke the bear."

"Oh, the bear?"

"Yes, the bear, I'm going for dramatic effect here."

"I'm sorry, but you know people think you look more like Wolverine, so don't you think poking Wolverine would have been a better saying."

"Don't make me put you in a headlock," Punk smirked at her.

"Sorry, sorry," Britt teased, throwing her arms around his neck. "But you will say something extra nasty to him, right?"

"Have you met me? When am I ever nice?" he asked her. She kissed him on the cheek, which made him smile. There was something about her that did that to him. No matter how angry he was, or how much he wanted to punch someone in the face, she could always bring him down. He grabbed her around the waist and pulled her into his lap, burying his face into her neck. "He shouldn't have poked the Wolverine."

"Yeah, because the Wolverine could just tear him to shreds…and that's what I've been waiting to say all day," she told him, running over cheeks over his new, slightly stupid mutton chops, but she knew Punk would never let her dictate how he chose to shave. He was a man who loved her, but wasn't going to be bullied by her.

"I'm glad I set you up for that incredibly lame joke."

"I'm glad too," she told him, "Brock's going to be tough to beat, but if anyone can d it, I know it's you."

"Such faith."

"I love you, that's why, it comes with the package."

"Pretty dope package." He gave her the once over, and she smacked him in the shoulder. Before she could respond, he captured her lips in a kiss, effectively shutting the both of them up.

Kensington kicked her small legs around the pool like a little motor. "Daddy, I'm swimming!"

"Yeah, you are," Chris said as he tread water near her.

"I am too, Daddy," Flynn said as she splashed her father.

"Oh, that's how you want to play it?" Chris asked. He drew his arms out and skimmed the water, "Tidal wave!" The small wave of water hit Flynn and made her float away as she laughed. Chris went underwater and headed towards Kensington, grabbing her chubby legs under the water before popping up in front of her, much to her delight. She giggled and held her floatie-covered arms out to him. He hugged her and kissed her cheek as she laughed.

"Sawyer, no swimming in the deep end, get your butt back to the shallow end!" Stephanie yelled at her son. Chris glanced over to where Sawyer was swimming. He'd been taking swimming lessons for 2 years now and was like a fish in the water, but Stephanie still insisted he stay out of the deep end, and Chris couldn't necessarily argue with that. He swam over to his son, grabbed him and tossing him towards the shallow end playfully.

"Dad!" Sawyer laughed as he came up.

"What, I'm just following Mom's orders," Chris shrugged at him as he swam to the side of the pool and hung off the edge. "Hey there."

"Hello," Stephanie told him.

"Mommy, come swim with us!" Flynn yelled at her.

"No thanks, Flynnie, I'm fine here," Stephanie said from her lounge chair.

"What are you even doing?"

Stephanie looked at him, "I'm getting a tan, what do you think I'm doing?" She lathered on some more sunscreen. She was wearing a bikini, and she looked fantastic, and Chris knew that she was loving every second of him ogling her.

"You're wearing like SPF 50, Steph," Chris pointed out.

"Light tan, I don't want to get too dark," she said, "plus, I gotta say, I like the attention."

"I knew you put that on to make me drool," Chris smirked at her.

Stephanie shrugged, "I'm sorry, should I take it off?"

"Later, yes, now, that'd be pretty weird, considering our kids are in here," Chris told her, "so, Monday?"

"What about Monday?" she wondered. "Are you thinking about what happened on SmackDown. You were annoyed—"

"You know why I hit him with the Codebreaker, I was putting him and his girlfriend in their place, how dare she yell at you like that, it's not like you were the one out there, you know what I mean, that's the referee's job to stop a match, and to say that I get preferential treatment, then he makes me lose."

"I don't think his intention was to make you lose specifically. Remember when Christian lost his title and went a little…psycho on us, only thinking about getting it back, feeling like he barely had it before it was taken away from him? I feel like the same thing is happening or has happened with Dolph. He was the Money in the Bank winner then he was the World Heavyweight Champion, so what now that he doesn't have anything? He's looking for an identity, he's pissed."

"So I should give him a pass?"

"I'm not saying that, I'm just saying keep it in mind, you were never happy when you lost any of your titles, and this was his first real reign," Stephanie told him.

"I'm not cutting him or her any slack. They don't deserve it after the way she treated you."

"I think I'm okay."

"It's just that she shouldn't have said any of that, it pisses me off, and Dolph irritates me too."

"Because he's you," Stephanie scoffed at him. "You see so much of you in him, and you know that bugs you because you think you're so special."

"That's stupid, you're stupid, that doesn't even make any kind of sense," Chris shook his head. "Maybe I'll challenge for the World Title, who knows? What do you think?"

"Daddy, go for it!" Flynn said, popping up by his side out of nowhere. Chris was surprised to see her there, and jumped a little. "You should have the big, gold belt because then I can have it."

"Oh, you'll take it?"

"Uh huh."

"Will you defend it too?"

"Yup."

"Well then, if that's the case," Chris said with a shrug. "Can you imagine Dolph's face if I get in that match and take the title from Del Rio, he'd probably flip his lid, actually that'd be pretty funny to see, don't you think?"

"You just don't like him, do you?" Stephanie laughed.

"The guy went around bragging that he retired me when he did not, in fact, retire me," Chris explained. "I don't take too kindly to that."

"Too…bragging? Mr. I Beat Stone Cold and The Rock In One Night?"

"Shut up," he smirked at her. "What about you? Oh, I'm the one everyone should be listening to because I'm so clearly the voice of reason, oh wait, let me just go and tell off every one of the divas and make sure everyone knows that I'm the boss."

"I _am_ the boss," Stephanie said, pretending to dust off her shoulder. "Everyone would do better to remember that when they're around me. I don't know what power push my dad and Hunter are trying to pull, but I'm the boss, I'm the only boss."

"You are the boss, Mommy, it's because you're the President," Flynn nodded.

"Mom, you're the boss of everyone," Sawyer added as he swam over to them.

"I'm loving the adulation," Stephanie pretended to bask in it.

"No, what you love is that you have our children conditioned to think you're the best of everything," Chris said, pushing himself out of the pool and walking over to her, "I think we need to change that, don't you think?"

"Don't you even dare, Chris Jericho!" Stephanie pointed at him warningly. "I swear to God, don't you even think about doing what you're thinking about doing."

"Do it, Dad!" Sawyer yelled, knowing what Chris was going to do.

"Sawyer McMahon Jericho, do not encourage him!" Stephanie told her son as Chris crept even closer. "Chris Jericho, you better not even think about it, I swear to God, I'm going to kick you where it hurts, do not even do it, don't do it."

"You just look warm is all."

"I'm fine," she told him, "come any closer and—"

Chris swooped in and grabbed Stephanie, lifting her easily into his arms despite her protesting. She gave some half-hearted thumps to his chest, but she knew this was happening. She quickly grabbed her sunglasses and threw them back on her chair before Chris unceremoniously threw her into the deep end of the pool. Stephanie screamed as she entered the water, coming up sputtering as she glared at her husband. Her children started cheering as Chris followed her with a cannonball that only served to splash more water into her face. Chris swam over to her and locked his arms around her waist as they tread water.

"I love you," he told her cheekily.

"No, get away from me," she told him, pushing her hair away from her face. "I didn't feel like going swimming."

"You looked too delicious in that suit not to get wet," Chris told her, resting his forehead against hers.

"Hi!" Kensington floated over, her little legs motoring right in between her parents, breaking up the moment before Stephanie could even look at her husband. Stephanie grabbed her little girl's hands and started pulling her around the pool, while Kensington giggled away. Sawyer was splashing with Flynn in the shallow end of the pool so he swam over to them and grabbed Flynn, kissing her cheek.

"This isn't over, Jericho," Stephanie called from the other end of the pool.

"What isn't?" he challenged her.

"I'll get back at you, don't worry."

Dolph sighed, "I can't believe I have to see the company doctor _again_."

"Well, you _did_ get kicked in the head _again_ on SmackDown, not to mention, Chris gave you the Codebreaker to your face, which is such a douchebag move to do, especially since he knows what it's like to have a concussion, like the on he got at SummerSlam in 2001 when he kissed Stephanie, I don't think he knew what he was doing but—"

"You're cute," he told her, leaning down to kiss her. "I love that you know that."

"Shut up," she blushed, looking up ahead and seeing Stephanie. "Oh look, there's enemy #1."

"Hey, hey, hey, don't even think about last week, everything you did, you did for a reason. You weren't doing anything that Kaitlyn didn't do to you. She betrayed you first. And she's not a good kisser so I don't even know why she'd think she'd have an admirer anyways."

"I love you," AJ said, leaning up to kiss him, not quite reaching, and pulling him down instead so she could give him a kiss on the cheek. "Stephanie shouldn't have poked the bull last week, it only makes me madder, she should have known better, and she's exactly like me. Exactly."

Stephanie sucked at her teeth a little bit. She didn't know what her father and her ex-husband were doing, but it was like they each wanted to have some sort of power play against each other, but the only problem was that she was the one in charge. It was grating on her last nerve that these two men were fighting for power that rightfully belonged to her. Did they not know what she was capable of?

It was getting increasingly worse every week too. They were starting to go behind her back, and it was frustrating. People were forgetting that she was the one in charge. She was the president, not either of those two. She cared more about this company than they ever did, but at every turn, they were contradicting her.

She felt a couple arms wrap around her tightly, pulling her back against a chest she was extremely familiar with. "You know what next month is, right?"

"11 years," Stephanie told him, feeling some of the tension leaving her body.

"Yup, 11 years of you being the luckiest woman in the entire universe, must be so difficult being you, baby," he told her. She relaxed even further as she felt Chris's fingers grazing her sides. "You know, you could just kick them both out."

"Yeah, a lot of good that'd do me," she told him, "they'd just come right back in because who's going to deny Vince McMahon and Triple H entrance? Wait, how did you know I was upset about that?"

"You walked into your office without saying hello to me or the kids," Chris nodded to the terrible threesome. Sawyer was reading a book on the couch while Flynn and Kensington were pushing cars around the floor, with Flynn's car having a CM Punk figure sitting on top of it. "I figured I might not warrant the hello, but when the monsters don't get one, something's wrong."

"You know me too well, I hate that."

"Did you not hear the aforementioned 11 years thing," he leaned his chin on her shoulder. "You're the one in charge, they'll figure it out when you kick their asses, actually, I'd pay good money to see that. I think a lot of people would pay good money to see that."

"I could take them, with these new muscles, I can take anyone," she said, flexing one of her arms as he laughed and snuggled closer to her.

"See, I don't get in the way of business Stephanie because I know she'd crush me," Chris told her, "because according to our children, you're the boss of everyone."

"It's true," she told him, turning in his arms to lace her fingers behind his neck. "I wish they would stop waving their dicks around like they were in charge."

"Well that's a visual I never needed to see," Chris nodded, "luckily, I have my beautiful wife in front of me, who looks gorgeous tonight, if I may say so."

"You may," she said, "why don't they ever listen to me? I've been working for this company for over 10 years, I'm the President, I allow my father to work here and come here, and I hired Hunter so he wouldn't feel like he was completely useless now that he's old—"

"Baby, he's only a year older than me," Chris pointed out.

"Please, you look at least 10 years younger than he does," Stephanie dismissed him easily, "and yet, they don't respect me, you know. The only satisfaction I get out of trying to cut off these two at the head of the pass is that I get to lord my position over Vickie. That's the only perk."

"I know you like doing that, but give it time, baby, at the end of the day, they will defer to you, if it's by choice or by force, you're in charge, I don't see your father breaking his back every day to make sure a company is running. And you work three times as hard because you do your work from Florida. And I know you do that not because of me, but because you know that's where the kids like it, that they have all their friends there, and wouldn't want to move."

"It's our home," she said, closing her eyes. She felt Chris's fingers come up and rub at her temples. "Thank you, I needed that."

"Mom, are you okay?" Sawyer asked, looking up from his book to his parents in the middle of the room.

"Yup, I'm good," Stephanie opened her eyes and gave him a smile, "I just have a lot to do with the show, of course."

"Hey, why don't I take the kids and get out of here for a while, they could eat, and you could get some work down in peace and quiet, something our children are not."

"Thank you, I love you so much sometimes I don't even know how to express it."

"By saying I love you?" he shrugged and she turned her nose down on him, but he kissed her before she could make a smart remark. He pulled away and gave her one last peck on the lips. "And kisses, those are very good rewards."

"Thanks for being so understanding, I'll come find you when it's time for you to warm up, sound good?"

"We're a well-oiled machine, that's what being together for eleven years will do to you," he told her, giving her a wink. "Okay, the three crazy people under the age of eight, who's hungry?"

"Me, me, me!" Kensington jumped to her feet and waved her hands around. "I want nuggets!"

"Chicken or dirt?"

"Not dirt!" Kensington laughed, loving a good joke. She ran (well, more like toddled very quickly) over to her father, who picked her up easily, sitting her on his shoulder while she pat his head.

"Daddy, no fair, you always pick her up!"

"She's little, Flutterby," Chris told his older daughter, but he adjusted Kensington in his arms and picked up Flynn when she came over. "You know you're getting too old for me to carry you everywhere, right?"

"Nope, that's not right, Daddy," Flynn shook her head.

"It's not? Okay, how old are you going to be when I stop carrying you around?"

"Fifty million," Flynn decided as Chris snickered. "Daddy, don't laugh!"

"Okay, then I'll stop carrying you when you turn fifty million, Flutterby," he kissed her cheek, which prompted a whining sound to come from Kensington. "Oh my goodness, okay, Kensy-bug, here's a kiss for you two." Chris kissed her on the cheek. "Anyone else in the room need kisses."

"No thanks," Sawyer piped up, climbing off the couch and going to the door, "I'm hungry though, I'm like Kensy, I want nuggets too."

"You know I only specially order them because of you guys," Stephanie said with a wink. "I'll take one of those kisses though."

"I knew you would," she came over and was about to kiss him when her daughters both kissed her on the cheek. "Oh, well, actually, those are better, I don't need yours anymore."

"Wait, Mommy gets a kiss and I get nothing but your heavy butts to carry around?" Chris pouted comically.

"Daddy, you're so weird, here's a kiss," Flynn gave him a kiss.

"Me too," Kensington said, giving him a kiss.

"Ladies, ladies, please, I'm only one man, I can't handle all this love," Chris said, "okay, enjoy working, try not to get in the crossfire of your father and ex-husband…oh wait, he's still your husband, right, according to the show, right?"

"Get out of here," Stephanie said, tossing one of the errant nerf balls lying around (why did they pack nerf balls?)

Chris walked with the kids to catering, where Punk appeared to have a whole set-up going. Chris walked up behind him and widened his eyes, "Hockey, man?"

"Hell yeah," Punk glanced over his shoulder. "Oh, it's you, guy who made me come back and that's why I'm not in Boston."

"Hey, at least I didn't give you an F5," Chris shrugged, putting Flynn down as she squirmed in his arms. She raced to Punk's side, putting her hands on the table and peering at the screen.

"Oh, that's hockey, Punk, I like hockey," Flynn turned to him, "my gamps was a hockey player, did you know that? He played for the New York Rangers, and he was good."

"I did know that," Punk said, "this is the Finals."

"I know, Punk," Flynn said with an exasperated sigh, "It's the Bruins and the Blackhawks, and they play for the Stanley Cup, but I'm a Jets fan, right, Daddy? Because _you're_ a Jets fan."

"I'm impressed, I'm glad to see you've started them out early," Punk smirked at him. "You want to watch?"

"Yeah, sure, but these guys need food first," Chris gestured towards his kids. "Come on you guys, let's get food and you can watch hockey with Punk."

"Ooh, fun," Flynn said, hugging Punk around the waist once before running for the buffet line.

"Finally, I'm cleared!" Dolph shook his fists in the sky when he and E walked out of the trainer's room. "I mean, again, after I was kicked in the head about a million different times."

E just laughed, "If you would have just let me come out there on SmackDown."

"Thanks, E, but you've got your hands full taking care of our girl," Dolph said with a laugh, "this is my fight, I want to end it. So where the hell is she? Like, what's this surprise? Is it for me? Is it sexy? Is it a sexy surprise for me?"

"Look, I get enough of you two being all over each other when I drive with you guys, please don't tell me about any sexy surprises she might have," E shook his head. "There's only so much a man can take."

"Who said she's the one with the sexy surprises," Dolph said, just to rile E up. "Okay, so is it for me?"

"Not really," E said as they walked down towards the gorilla. "She should probably be there by now, if she got everything on right."

"Got everything on right?" Dolph asked. "Okay, my girlfriend doesn't wear skimpy clothing so I know it's not going to be something that will make me want to go out there and pull a Right to Censor on her. What is she doing?"

"Trust us, it'll be funny."

"Oh, funny?" Dolph asked. "I like funny."

"You'll like this," E assured him as they reached their destination. E's eyes flitted over to AJ and Dolph turned to look at what E was looking at and saw his…girlfriend? His girlfriend who looked like a puffed up…oh, _oh_! Dolph started laughing as he walked over to AJ dressed as Kaitlyn.

"Oh my God, babe, what? Oh my God," he tried not to laugh, he really tried, but it was so funny. "You look ridiculous."

"I thought you might like the buff look? You did once," AJ smirked.

"You look like one of those old WWF dolls, you know, the ones that were like pillows. God, you look hilarious, and cute all at the same time, how did you manage to pull that off?"

"Because I'm cute as a button?" she asked, "Come on, don't you want to kiss me now?"

"Um, I'm not sure," Dolph asked her, "is this a test? Like if I do kiss you, it really means I want to kiss Kaitlyn because if that's the case, come and give me some sugar, baby."

"Jerk," she said, hitting him in the stomach.

"Oh man, you gained some strength," he laughed, "so what's the plan? What are you doing?"

"E's going to help me recreate the scene," AJ wiggled her eyebrows. "Stephanie McMahon doesn't intimidate me, and you know what, I'm the champion, and I'm the champion because I used the same tactics Stephanie uses in business, I manipulate, plan, and defeat the enemy. She's such a hypocrite if she doesn't think she does the same thing as me. I won because I had the mental edge, and she always wins because she does too. I'll show her."

"I like this side of you, I mean, not the puffed up suit or anything, but I like that you're so badass now," Dolph nodded approvingly.

"Yeah?"

"Hell yeah, my girlfriend is tearing up the divas division, what's not to like?"

"Well, my boyfriend is going to show Del Rio who the true champion is," AJ leaned up to kiss him. "Oops, that's my cue. I sweet-talked someone in production to turn on Kaitlyn's music for me so I didn't even have to go ask Stephanie. I'll be back in a bit, you ready, E?"

"Yup."

Dolph looked at E once AJ went out there. "You let her talk you into this, didn't you?"

"How many things has that girl talked _you_ into, man?" E asked with a smirk.

Dolph frowned and muttered, "Shut up."

"That's what I thought."

AJ going out there, dressed ridiculously she might add, really wasn't just for Kaitlyn. Oh sure, she got a certain satisfaction out of seeing her former best friend go a little wacky. When AJ was broken, when she felt like there was nobody in the world who understood her or wanted her, Kaitlyn had made her feel even more isolated. She couldn't forget that. She wouldn't forget that feeling. She was happy now, happier than she'd ever been. She had an amazingly hilarious best friend in Big E, she was the Diva's Champion, and she had a boyfriend who loved her for everything she was, and didn't try to change her, and wanted her, simply wanted her.

But she still couldn't forget that feeling.

This was also for Stephanie. She'd tried to humiliate AJ the week prior, and AJ was not going to take that. She'd learned so much from Stephanie, she'd looked up to her for so long, but when you were around Stephanie, you couldn't help but pick up some of the less desirable traits. AJ was headstrong now, stubborn, and she was putting that to good use in ignoring what Stephanie said. She was bringing this title back to prominence, and if she had to step over every single diva to do it, so be it. Stephanie stepped on her own father to get to be the President. All she was doing was dressing up like Kaitlyn.

AJ reveled in the way Kaitlyn nearly lost it on Layla while watching her little display with Big E. She was so close to losing it. It was not without concern, of course, Kaitlyn, after all, _was_ bigger than she was, but bigger didn't always equal better. AJ proved at Payback that she could take on the former weightlifter. Maybe she might poke the bull a little too hard, but AJ could take it, AJ could take anything.

AJ could take on anyone, even if that anyone was Stephanie McMahon.

Flynn ran up to Stephanie, "Mommy, I was watching hockey with Punk, but then he had to go for a little bit, but then he came back and we watched hockey, but his team isn't winning right now, he likes the Blackhawks, Daddy said that I can't like them because I like the Jets, but it's okay if Punk does."

"Wow, that's a lot to take in, in 30 seconds," Stephanie told him. "But you wanted to watch Daddy's match more than wrestling?"

"Uh huh!" Flynn said. "I wanted to watch it more than anything because I like Daddy more than anything, well…maybe not more than _anything_, but more than a lot of things, I know that."

"Oh good, I was going to say, you like Daddy more than me?" Stephanie pouted, jutting out her bottom lip.

"No! No, because that's not nice, I like you both," Flynn said, "but Mommy, you don't wrestle, so maybe that makes me like Daddy more when he's wrestling, but just then."

"I think I can live with that, now get up here," Stephanie pulled Flynn into her lap while Chris helped Kensington onto her chair as Sawyer sat down. "So are you going to beat Del Rio fair and square this time?"

"Yeah, after Ziggler's damn run-in, I deserve this match. He better not show up again. His little girlfriend gave me a fat lip, plus, he's a jerk, I don't care what happened to him, he's still a huge jerk."

"Yes, they both are jerks, but so are we," Stephanie said, "I just understand it better, but you, you always go out there and just…well, win, okay, so I don't have to hear you complain for the rest of the evening that people shouldn't interfere in your matches. If you win, I'm sure Vickie will put you in the title match."

"You think so?"

"How could she not if you beat the current World Title holder?"

"That's true."

"So go out there and win."

It wasn't as easy at that, but it never was. Chris knew that going into the ring with anyone on this roster was going to pose a challenge in some way or another. That's why this was considered the marquee program. It had the talent up and down the roster. His wife's family knew what they were doing, but that didn't help him right now as he fought Del Rio. He also had the disadvantage in that nobody was out there with him. If he had Stephanie by his side, that would more than equal the playing field because he was positive his wife could take down Ricardo, but that wasn't how he operated.

There was a great back and forth in the match between Del Rio and Chris, but then, before he could blink, he was put in the cross arm-breaker. Chris, though, was better than most of Del Rio's opponents, and knew counters and how to deal with being in a hold. He got to the ropes, breaking the hold while turning the tables on Del Rio, locking him into the Walls of Jericho. He could feel Del Rio about to tap, and he almost had him…

When a buck hit him in the back.

Chris was forced to break the hold to see what the hell was going on and Ricardo was hitting him with that damn bucket. The bell rang, ending the match, and Chris was pissed. He deserved that win, and he was about to get it. He charged at Ricardo, taking him down with a Codebreaker as he saw movement out of the corner of his eye. He groaned inwardly when he saw it was Dolph again. This guy would just not leave it alone. Yes, he knew he had a match with Del Rio at the next Pay-Per-View, but this was getting tiresome.

Dolph hit Del Rio with the Zig Zag, feeling good about it. Then he looked up and saw Chris staring back at him. There was no love lost between them, and now there was no love lost between AJ and Stephanie. It felt like it was a pass to do whatever he wanted with the man standing across from him. Dolph and Chris just stared each other down.

"Tell your girl to stay away from my wife," Chris told him. "She doesn't want to mess with her."

"Oh yeah?" Chris nodded. "Fine."

Chris pushed past Dolph to leave, but Dolph wasn't having any of that. He grabbed Chris and gave him the Zig Zag too. Chris rolled out of the ring, still staring at Dolph. Oh, it was on now. The two of them had been circling each other and circling each other, but it felt that soon, maybe very soon they would really butt heads on a really big stage, and their significant others seemed destined on the same course.

"Oh, look, your husband is holding his head," AJ said, back into her regular clothes. "Bet you would have called the match if he was hurt."

"AJ…" Stephanie sighed. She didn't want to get into it.

"Just saying," AJ walked away as she waited for her boyfriend to come backstage. When he did, she hugged him tightly. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"I could tell you were sticking up for me."

"But—"

"Women's intuition."

After giving the kids back to Chris, Stephanie had one more thing she needed to take care of regarding Vickie, but Vickie was incompetent so she took over announcing the participants of the Money in the Bank ladder match for the WWE title. Actually, she probably _could_ have let Vickie do it, but because her father and Hunter were both trying to garner control, she would assert her own power by actually taking over the reins for Vickie. While her ex and father tried to tell Vickie what to do, Stephanie would just take it for herself.

She went out to the ramp and announced each of the participants. When she went backstage, Chris was glaring at her. "So this was my punishment, huh?"

"Huh, for what?"

"Throwing you in the pool."

"Wait, what?"

"Not putting me in the match," he said, arms folded. "You know I should be in that match, hell, I invented that match, but I'm not in it? Come on, this is you punishing me."

"Chris, I literally forgot about that, you can't think I was seriously going to punish you because you threw me in the pool? If anything, the participants are of Vickie's choosing, take it up with her. I love you, don't you think I'd want you to go after the title? I wouldn't hold that back from you. It's Vickie."

And to Vickie he went. He deserved a spot in that match, hell he deserved a spot in the match with Del Rio and Dolph from all the grief he was receiving from the two of them. What he didn't deserve was Ryback. Who the hell was this guy, coming up to him, acting like _he_ was the big shot? Chris was a six-time World Champion, he was the first Undisputed Champion, and his wife was the President, Ryback needed to respect him. Vickie, being Vickie and knowing just how to put the screws into someone, gave him the last match he ever wanted. Him and Ryback at Money in the Bank? Chris looked at the other man. It would have to do, he guessed.

Getting even with Dolph Ziggler would just have to wait for another day.


	425. Plans to Come, July 1, 2013

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and the reads and everything, I really appreciate them. And I know things are looking confusing and weird between Dolph and AJ, but yeah, this is my universe, so I write things how I like them, so we'll see, anyways, enjoy, review if you want. :)

* * *

"You, me, California, mini-vacation."

"What are you talking about, babe?" AJ looked up at him from the comic book she was reading and started laughing. "What are you…why are you still wearing that?"

"Wearing what, I have no idea what you're talking about," Dolph shrugged.

"That hat," AJ pointed to the top of his head where that silly sombrero was still sitting. He'd taken it back to the hotel with him as some sort of trophy after the beat-down he'd administered to both Ricardo and Del Rio. "You are not wearing that to bed."

"I thought we could bring the fiesta to the bedroom," he shrugged and she pulled the comic book over her face as she started laughing. "Oh, come on, I thought that was good. I mean, probably not my best, but certainly good enough."

"No," she told him, laughing still. "Take it off, you look so silly. I'm not going to look at you for the rest of the night if you keep wearing that thing."

"I look amazing."

"You look like it's Cinco de Mayo and you got drunk somewhere."

"I don't get drunk anymore," he told her, flopping down onto the bed next to her. She slowly lowered the comic book from her face and peeked over the top, seeing him still in the hat. He wiggled his eyebrows at her and she started laughing as she brought the comic book back over her face.

"Take it off!"

"Oh, well, if you insist," Dolph told her.

She pulled the comic book down, "You know that's not what I meant."

Dolph took off the sombrero and put it on her head, "Wow, I think you just managed to look even cuter than you normally do, how'd you do that?"

"Magic," she told him, taking the hat off and tossing it off the side of the bed. "So what's this about mini-vacation?"

Dolph pulled AJ around the waist until she was lying on top of him. He smiled up at her and she laughed, "What's so funny now? I mean, yeah, I'm a funny guy, probably the funniest guy you've ever met, but…"

"You're happy," she told him, straddling his hips and sitting up. He rested his hands on her thighs as she pressed her palms into his bare chest. "You're happy, and I'm so glad for it, plus, you didn't come out of tonight looking like you'd need another check with the trainers."

"That is a good thing," he nodded slightly. "I just wish you could've been out there, but with what I had planned, I didn't want you anywhere near where Del Rio or Ricardo could get at you."

"They may be jerks, but they wouldn't hurt me, plus, I can handle myself. If Kaitlyn hadn't…if she hadn't been so stupid tonight, and she was stupid, I would have won my match."

Dolph reached up to brush some of her hair out of the way, "Of course you would have."

"You know, it's so dumb. Stephanie told me that I needed to act like a champion, and I am, I'm wrestling all the time, I'm a fighting champion, just like you were, but Kaitlyn doesn't get condemned for anything. Stephanie was wrong about me."

"She was," Dolph agreed, "you're doing a great job, you're the best women's champion in a long time, and definitely my favorite. Also definitely hottest. I may be biased though with that one, so I'm not totally sure…"

AJ slapped at his chest a little bit. "I'm proud of us."

"You are, I mean, I'm always proud of us, but why are you proud of us?"

"Because we're both handling our business like the champs that we are, you'll get the belt back and we'll rule the WWE world," she said confidently, "and then we'll show both Stephanie and Chris what it means to be a power couple."

"Okay, calm down," Dolph told her. "So…I think we got sidetracked. I want to take you to California for a little vacation because we haven't been able to really spend a lot of time together during shows."

"You do remember we live together, right?" AJ asked. "Because we do, is this a concussion thing? We already spend all our time together. I thought we were going to Tampa."

"Let's detour, let's go to California," Dolph said, "it also has the dual purpose that I was invited to do a stand-up set, and I really want to do it. I've got the bug, and I would really enjoy it if you were there."

"You want me to come?"

"Yeah, I do, I want you to see me, and laugh, and make me look good."

"Of course I will, babe," she leaned down and hugged him, wrapping her arms around him as she rested her head on his chest. "I would love to see you do your stand-up, I mean, I get it every night—"

"You _get it_ every night? From whom? Because I can go every night, but we're not going at it every night. So who's the other guy?"

"Oh, you know you're the only one for me, Ziggy," she told him, kissing his chest. I would love to see you do your stand-up, just as long as there aren't any, 'So my girlfriend…' jokes."

"I'm better than that."

"We'll see."

Stephanie stared up at the ceiling even though she couldn't see anything. The lights were out, the kids were in their bedrooms fast asleep, and her husband was next to her, not asleep, but she knew he was getting there. "Do you think I'm power-hungry?" she asked.

"Yes."

"Do you think it makes me a bad person?" she asked, still staring up at the blankness of her bedroom ceiling. Anything could be up there right now and she would have no clue.

"Not at all. I think it makes you strive to be better, and that can't ever be a bad thing. It's the same thing that made me fall for you. I mean, who doesn't love a woman who knows how to take charge?"

"So…if I were to…oh, I don't know, play my father and fake husband against each other in an attempt to make myself look good and like the sane, rational one in order to drive Vickie crazy and possibly take over her job, that wouldn't be a bad thing."

The light turned on next to her as Chris sat up in bed, staring down at his wife. "Holy, wait, no, you couldn't have been planning this from the very…no way, _no way_, you could not have been planning this from the very beginning, Stephanie, tell me you didn't think this whole thing up from the very beginning?"

"I'm not saying it'll work, but…it certainly looks like Vickie is incompetent at what she does, doesn't it?"

Chris ran his hands through his hair. "You're kidding me, you have had this, but you acted like you didn't even want to fake Hunter as your husband, he was the one who tried to get back…you knew how he'd react. You were married to him, and you knew how he'd react, I cannot believe you. You, Stephanie McMahon, wait a second, if you're…so you are doing all of this to—"

"Get more power," Stephanie said, "if I can. I mean, the Board may recommend someone else if I'm President, and they might not want me, but if I can pit Hunter and my dad against each other, they're too busy fighting to notice me swooping in. And I did not have this planned from the beginning. It's just the opportunity presented itself and I've been taking advantage. When Hunter told me he was getting back at me by seeing this through, and when he and my father were at each other's throats, I knew I had something."

"You're insane," he laughed at her, scooting down so he was lying on his side, his face lying against his palm. "So what everyone thinks is just them going at it because they're Vince McMahon and Hunter Hearst Helmsley is really just Stephanie McMahon-Jericho doing what she does best?"

"It would appear so, wouldn't it?" Stephanie smirked at him. "I may have been whispering little things in their ears, little nuggets of information that…oh, I don't know, were in direct conflict of one another."

"You were telling your dad what was good and you were telling Hunter the very same thing was bad, that's it, isn't it?"

"Does that make me a bad person?"

"Yes, yes it does," Chris nodded at her. Stephanie just smiled and laughed. "It also makes you the woman I love most in the world, so what is your end game here, Stephanie? You want everything, don't you?"

"I can't help it, they went into this thinking they were ones in power, and they're not, Chris, and they need to learn that, and Vickie needs to learn her place, and it'll come, it'll come very, very soon."

Dolph looked around pensively, making note of the people around, of which there were a lot since he was at the gorilla where all the action was happening, searching for his girlfriend. Usually she would be around, ready for him during his match, but she was nowhere t be found. Neither was Big E, and that was unusual. It was his first match since Payback and he was kind of counting on her being there with him. He looked at the clock and he was set to go out there in about a minute, and still, she was nowhere to be found. That was really weird for people to see, he was sure, and he tried not to look panicked, but there was a twinge of it on his face for people to see. AJ was a grown woman, and she was tougher than she looked. He thought back to their mini-vacation the week before.

"_Okay, let's stop," AJ put her hands on her knees as her boyfriend jogged around her. "Stop that."  
_

"_What? Stop what?" he jogged backwards a little bit away from her than jogged towards her, "just keeping the heart rate up, you know, it's important to keep that heart rate up."_

"_Shove it," she told him as she stood up, placing her hands on her hips. "Let's end the jog and just walk, we worked out earlier at the outdoor facilities, I mean, we have proof, I took pictures of you. You cannot possibly want to work out more, babe, please, for me, let's just walk?"_

"_I never thought you would give up so easily," he jogged towards her and picked her up, throwing her over his shoulder and starting to jog with her. AJ started laughing, slapping him on the butt. "Hey, watch the hands, lady, we're in public!"_

"_Doesn't seem to bother you when we're on Twitter," she told him._

"_It's only because you are so dirty that I have to be too," he said, taking them over to a bench and depositing her on it. She straightened her shirt and looked over at him. _

"_I'm glad we came, or at least, I'm glad I came with you," she told him, smiling at him. The sun was just beginning its slow descent into the horizon, and the light made her boyfriend's eyes bluer than they normally were. "I love it out here."_

"_I love you out here," he told her and she blushed a little bit. "I know things have been weird…"_

"_Yeah, but it's okay, I understand," she told him._

"_Yeah, but nothing changes the way I feel about you, you know that, right?" he asked her. "I mean, whatever I'm doing on the shows, whoever I'm going after, the title is never more important than you."_

"_I know, babe," she told him, "you didn't come out with me when I wasn't the diva's champion, it's okay, besides, it makes me look stronger not hiding behind my boyfriend."_

"_You would never hide behind me," he told her, leaning forward to kiss her. "Come here."_

"_What?" she asked as he grabbed her hand and pulled her into an open space. He grinned at her and pulled his phone out of his pocket. "We're going to take a picture, why do you feel the need to commemorate everything? We took the pictures earlier, and we take pictures when we do interviews, and so many pictures!"_

"_Because I like looking at pictures of me…I mean us," he told her, smirking as he pulled her in close._

"_Wait, why aren't we asking someone to take our picture?"_

"_We'll do it ourselves."_

"_A selfie? You expect me to take a selfie? Uh uh, let me go," she tried to squirm away, but his arm had a firm grip on her waist and she couldn't get away. "Dolph Ziggler, you let me go right this instant, I swear to God, I'm going to kick you in the shin if you don't."_

"_Because my shin is all you can reach," he leaned down and kissed her, effectively silencing her. "Just one picture, for me, your boyfriend, who loves you, who flew you all the way out to California just to spend time with you, who wants you to come to his stand-up show, who wants to hold the titles with you?"_

"_Don't guilt trip me with your…everything," she stuck her tongue out. "You know I am firmly against selfies."_

"_I know this, but it wouldn't really be a selfie if we're both in it, then it would just be a very cute picture of two people who love each other and are really, really good-looking."_

"_If I give you one…"_

"_Yes!" he pumped his fist and pulled her to him. She couldn't help but smile because her boyfriend was happy, something she didn't think possible immediately after he lost the title and wasn't medically cleared to wrestle. But here, right now, in this moment, he was happy, and she wanted to preserve that, and if it meant taking a stupid selfie with him, she'd do it. "God, I have to hold this up high just to get your face in it."_

"_Shut up, no height jokes," she told him, wrapping her arm around his waist and getting closer. She smiled for the camera as he took the picture, pulling the camera down so he could look at it._

"_God, have you seen a more beautiful couple than the two of us?" he asked. _

"_No, I don't think I have," she told him, but he was too busy admiring himself in the picture, "Okay, okay, Ziggy, we get it, you're beautiful."_

"_What, I was staring at the other person in the picture, the hot one."_

"_Hot one? _Now_ I'm the hot one."_

"_You've always been. We need to share this with the world, we are far too hot together not to make other people jealous."_

"_Great, now I'll never live this selfie down."_

She wasn't here. His music was starting and she wasn't here. For the first time in…God, had it been more than six months already, she was not out there with him. He felt…weird. In fact, before AJ, he'd barely ever gone out there without Vickie, so this was really very strange. He hoped his girlfriend was alright, and he tried to put it out of his mind as he did his signature Ziggle Wiggle. He turned around and unconsciously expected AJ to come sidling up to him to grab his chin and press a soft kiss to his lips.

But there was none. He strode his way down to the ring, feeling naked almost without his girlfriend by his side. He climbed in the ring and waited for his opponent, Jinder Mahal. He had to give Vickie some credit, it seemed like she wanted to ease him into competition again because Mahal was not a challenge. Mahal was just someone standing in his way that needed to be disposed of, and quickly.

Dolph was not without his usual showing off because that's who he was and that's what he did. He showed off. Mahal actually thought he had a chance, but one Zig Zag and it was all over. Dolph was feeling pretty good about himself until Heath and Drew started closing in on him. Did these two idiots who couldn't even form a real band think they had any shot against him? He got out of the ring only to have them follow, but a little quick maneuvering and he ducked under Heath then took down Drew. It was too easy and to celebrate how easy that was, he got on the announcer's table and celebrated.

When he got backstage, he felt good. It felt good to be back in action, and he felt loose. He just wondered where the hell his girlfriend was. He grabbed a water bottle and a towel and started walking towards his locker room. Out of nowhere, AJ and Big E came over to him, AJ gushing about something to do with Kaitlyn. He acted like it was cool, but everyone could tell it wasn't, and there was a camera right there, so everyone at home could tell it too. AJ dismissed Big E and traipsed after Dolph, asking him what was wrong.

He turned to her and told her that she was the diva's champion, and she didn't need to pull these pranks on Kaitlyn, that she was better than that. She _was_ better than that. AJ was one of the best female wrestlers he'd ever seen, and with her size disadvantage, it only made that fact more impressive. He told her they needed to focus on being a power couple, which was their goal all along. Those twenty minutes had not satisfied him. They were amazing, those twenty minutes (that's what she said), but getting just a taste and not the whole thing was not fair. He wanted it all.

AJ gave him a sad face, like she was disappointed that he both didn't like her plan and was chastising her. He leaned down to kiss her before he walked off, leaving her standing there, staring at him. She looked around to the people who were staring at them. They all looked like they knew what was coming because they'd seen it before. They all looked like they did before, like they did when Daniel hated her, when he berated her and belittled her. They looked at her like they did when Punk and Kane rejected her, when John Cena didn't want her around.

She walked off sullenly, her head hanging down, knowing everyone must have seen what happened. There was a camera there, there was no way the word wasn't spreading like wildfire that her boyfriend thought her childish, thought her actions were that of a little girl who wanted to have her way. They were probably whispering, all of them whispering about her, how once again AJ managed to screw things up, how she took the best thing in her life and managed to sully it, dirty it, make it so nobody wanted her.

Or maybe she was taking a page out of Stephanie McMahon's book.

AJ opened the door to her private locker room (she was a champion now after all) and Dolph was standing in the middle of the room. He turned around and smirked at her as she locked the door. She gave him a pouty face, her lip jutted out before she giggled and launched herself towards him. He only had time to toss away the water bottle before AJ tossed her title on a chair and launched herself into his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist.

"You were great," she told him, pulling the towel around his neck so he was forced to kiss her. She deepened the kiss as his right arm wrapped around her waist and his left arm rested across her butt.

"You looked so sad, I almost picked you up bridal style and brought you back here," he mumbled against her lips. "Never, ever give me that look again because I will do whatever you want me to do if you give that to me."

"Good, I have ammo," she said, "wow, that felt good. I'm sorry I didn't come out for your match, but well…you know."

"Of course I know," Dolph said, "and everyone bought it. When I was walking back to this area, everyone was giving me looks like they felt sorry for me being stuck with you."

"And everyone was looking at me like they felt sorry for me that I screwed up another relationship. You know, Stephanie was right in one thing, when she said that I should grow up, that I should be setting an example, and I am, I'm just setting the one she sets for everyone else. She's not the only one who can play games around here."

"Your plan is as brilliant as you being Kaitlyn's secret admirer."

"I think so," AJ told him, kissing him again. "Mmm, nobody suspects a thing, but Kaitlyn is going to think I'm weak. She's going to think that I'm on the verge of another breakdown and that it's going to affect me, and you're so mad at me, and you hate me so much for everything I'm doing, and she's not going to be the wiser, and neither will Stephanie if things go really, exceptionally well. And she can think she broke us up, if we take it that far—"

"I hope we don't," Dolph said, "I mean, I'll do anything you want, babe, because I love you, but I hope…look—"

"Ziggy, nothing's wrong with us," she told him. "I love you. I love you so much, and the mere fact you were willing to go along with this…it means so much to me."

"I don't care what you do with Kaitlyn, hell, you know I think it's really hilarious, and this is from a stand-up comedian here—"

"Part-time," she reminded him, "although you could make a career out of it, that's how good you were on Thursday."

"Thanks, babe," he told her, kissing her again. "You okay, though, I mean, what I said wasn't too bad or harsh or anything?"

"No, you were perfect, you just want us to be a power couple, and I want it to, if it comes to pass, which it will because I think you're definitely going to beat Del Rio and get the title back and our celebration will last longer than twenty minutes."

"If I had a nickel…"

"You'd have no nickels."

"Hey, now I _am_ going to break up with you, I'll have you know that I'm very athletic, I mean, we've been talking here for the past like seven minutes, and I'm still holding you upright, although now that I think about it," he carried her over to the couch and dumped her on top of it. He came down so he was hovering over her, and she became keenly aware he was still only in his ring trunks. "Oops, guess I couldn't hold onto you any longer."

"Something tells me you have some designs on me right now," she told him. "You also need to shower, you just had a match."

"Care to join me? I need someone to get those hard to reach places," he told her, giving her a smirk.

"I have a thing later, remember?"

"Oh yeah, what are you planning anyways?"

"Remember when I made those pictures of Vickie?"

"Yeah, what about them? Oh no, you made pictures of Kaitlyn, are you kidding me?"

"Just one, and it's silly, more silly than hurtful really," she shrugged, "just to get under her skin, and it makes it look like I didn't listen to you. It works both directions. I'm getting under her skin, and at the end of this, I want her broken."

"I love it when you get all passionate," he leaned down to kiss her, his hand skimming up her bare side, "and your shirt is barely there tonight, you're killing me here, between that and your shorts, and your evil plans, what's a guy to do?"

"I don't know," AJ shrugged, "you tell me."

Meanwhile, during Dolph's match a short time ago, another plan was in full swing. Stephanie hefted Kensington into her arms because with Kensington there, it made her seem more innocuous. "Hunter, hey!"

"Oh, hey, Steph," Hunter turned around, "how's my favorite fake wife?"

Stephanie groaned and shifted Kensington so she was more comfortable. "You know I hate that you kept this going, right?"

"It was your fault in the first place, I'm just going along with it," he shrugged, but Stephanie could tell he was being smug. Little did he know she was fine with him thinking that this was something with which to tease her. When she hired him, it was more out of pity than anything else, now he thought he ran the joint, nope, that wasn't happening.

"Well, if that's the case, let me ask you, what do you think of the match tonight with Cena and Del Rio?"

"I don't know, I mean, it's a good match."

"Yeah, it is a good match, Vickie did a good job with that one," Stephanie said, "I mean, putting the champion versus the champion, supposedly the two best wrestlers in the company, although I'm biased. She could probably use some positive reinforcement, right?"

"Oh, like you would give that to her," Hunter laughed.

"No way, but I don't know, maybe it would be something to tell her, but that's up to you, I guess," Stephanie shrugged.

"Trips, Mommy's the boss."

"I know she is," Hunter said, "I think she proves that every week."

"She knows the truth, that's all," Stephanie said, smiling, "I'll see you later, I better get back to the show. Chris is on commentary soon. I'm not even sure how this thing developed with Ryback, but leave it to my husband to get himself pulled into the thick of things."

"He does have a knack for that, doesn't he?"

"The worst knack for it," Stephanie said, "bye, Hunter."

Stephanie knew Hunter would go to Vickie, if for nothing else than to look like he was in charge. She detoured to her father's office, knocking on the door. Stephanie turned to her daughter, "Kensy, can you act like you wanted to see grandpa?"

"Uh huh," Kensington nodded.

"Okay, thank you," Stephanie said, kissing her daughter's cheek. Her father opened the door a second later and was surprised to see them there. "Hey, Dad, Kensington just wanted to come say hi to you."

"Hi Grandpa!" Kensington said with a wave and a grin. Stephanie was impressed with her daughter, but knew that Kensington was just always genuinely happy to see anyone. She was not as outgoing as Flynn was, but she was more personable than the loud Flynn Jericho. Kensington's smile was disarming, and left people charmed by the little girl.

"Hello there, Kensy," Vince started to reach into his pocket, but Stephanie held a hand up.

"Dad, no, okay, no money," Stephanie told him. "I just came here to ask what you thought about the match Vickie made with Cena and Del Rio?"

"Oh well, don't get me started on that one. I can't believe she would give that way for free. That's a Pay-Per-View quality match right there."

"You know, I heard that Hunter kind of liked that she booked that, in fact, he might be telling her, oh, yeah, he is," Stephanie pointed to the screen behind her father. That didn't take long at all. Did Hunter even think about not going?

"Dear God, that man has no business sense! What did you ever see in him?" Vince muttered to himself. "I need to think, leave me be for a while."

"Okay, sorry, Dad," Stephanie said.

"It's not your fault the man is incompetent."

"I guess not."

Except it kind of was.

Stephanie turned and closed the door behind her. She was a few steps away before she giggled and rubbed noses with her daughter. "Kensy, what you just saw was your mother taking control of the situation. Sometimes when you want things done, you have to do them yourself. Don't let anyone tell you, you can't do something."

"Okay, Mommy, if you say it," Kensington shrugged.

"Someday, you're going to rule this company. I think your brother and sister are going to be wrestlers, but you, I don't know I think with that charm, you're going to run this place and look especially innocent doing it, but I know underneath that cuteness is a…oh no, tickle monster!"

Stephanie started tickling her daughter as she walked down the hallways, Kensington screaming as she tried to get away to no avail. Stephanie went back to the gorilla where Chris was sitting with Sawyer and Flynn. Flynn was in his lap giving him commentary on the match between Kane and Randy like he was going to give commentary later. Sawyer was just sitting, enraptured by the match as Stephanie sat down next to her husband.

"Thanks for covering for me."

"When evil is afoot, I'm just your lackey," he pecked her on the lips before Kensington puckered up and he kissed her too. "So I see one part of your plan has already worked, you work quick, which is the opposite of how you are in the bedroom…"

"I take my time where it counts, but Hunter didn't even hesitate to tell Vickie. I think he thinks it makes him look like he has any kind of authority. My dad was livid though, so those two are once again butting heads while I will come by and drop the bomb on Vickie."

"So you're hoping to take it all over next week?"

"I may let her stew for a while, lull her into a false sense of security, it just depends."

"Mommy, what are you talking about?" Flynn asked. "I'm watching the match and you're talking."

"I'm talking about business things, go back to watching," Stephanie told her daughter.

"Don't talk so loud, please," Flynn sighed. "Even though Daddy's not wrestling tonight, I still like wrestling, but Daddy, you're talking, right?"

"Yup, I'm talking, making Ryback look bad."

"He looks like an Easter egg," Flynn decided. Chris started to snicker then laugh. "Daddy, that wasn't funny."

"It was a little funny, trust me," Chris laughed, kissing her head, "watch your match, Flutterby."

"Okay, Sawa, who do you want to win?"

"I don't know, they're both okay."

"Oh, me too," she said, smiling at her brother as Chris went back to his conversation with Stephanie. "So you're going to go in there, tell her she's going to be evaluated and then cackle as she flounders?'

"I'm not going to cackle until after I leave, maybe in our hotel room, I'll just throw my hands up and laugh evilly."

"You do know you could drive this woman insane, right?"

"Like she drove me insane, like she banned me from running my own show?" Stephanie asked. "Vickie's had it coming for a long time. I'm only trying to speed up the process, and get in a little revenge on Hunter and my dad while I'm at it. I wouldn't be surprised if those two decided to have a match at some point. Then they can destroy each other while I act like it's tearing me up inside."

"When in fact, you're a gleeful, evil woman."

"Who you've been with almost 11 years, so what does that make you, Chris Jericho?" Stephanie asked him, leaning forward to press a slow, soft kiss against his lips. He smiled against them as she pulled away, letting their touch linger for just a moment.

"Whipped."

AJ laughed as she went backstage. She knew she should probably look remorseful, but she was having too much fun. It didn't go with how she acted earlier, but there weren't as many people around now so she let herself have a little giggle. Not even E knew of her and Dolph's plan, so she tried to keep it so she was feeling guilty for laughing so much.

It was a stupid joke, she knew that, and yes, actually, what Dolph said earlier was correct, she _was_ better than that, but it was still funny! She couldn't help what she thought was funny or not, and while it was mean-spirited, the old Kaitlyn, the one who _had_ been her best friend, would have laughed at it. She missed that Kaitlyn so much sometimes, but the bridges were burnt, and there was no rebuilding effort in place.

"Um, I better find Dolph and explain," AJ shrugged, wandering off, but unbeknownst to her, there was someone watching and someone who knew her game all too well.

"She and Dolph are up to something," Stephanie said, turning to her husband. Kensington was now resting in his arms, her eyes drooping and sleepy.

"What makes you think so?" Chris wondered. "Not that I don't believe you, but what makes you think it?"

"She idolizes me, Chris, and AJ Lee just took a huge page from the Stephanie McMahon handbook because remind me, who was it that acted like they turned on me to join another GM?"

"Oh, so you think she's…oh! Yeah, she would pull that, I mean, when she was GM, she wanted to be you, this is right up her alley."

"And thanks to her, I now have a reason to see Vickie, if you'll excuse me," Stephanie walked the few feet to Vickie's office. She would be lying if she didn't say she was just standing there waiting for the opportunity to talk to Vickie.

By this time in the night, Vickie was cowering in fear of her presence, until Stephanie put her at ease, for all of three seconds. Vickie was not her friend, was never her friend, and was never going to be her friend. So for her to even act like they were friends was stupid on Vickie's part. Stephanie brought up Vickie not dealing with AJ, even though Stephanie never said to deal with AJ in the first place. She was just trying to trip up Vickie before she laid the bomb on her.

It was fun.

It was fun watching Vickie squirm and knowing she'd have to be evaluated. Stephanie reminded her that it could mean a promotion to a full GM position, but that wasn't going to happen if she could help it. No, Vickie getting a promotion would be the last thing to happen to her. If everything went the way Stephanie wanted it to, and it was going her way so far, Vickie would be gone, leaving a position open for General Manager of Raw.

And if she'd said it once, she'd said it a million times.

This was her show.

"I can't believe we had sex in our locker room tonight," AJ giggled as she climbed into bed. Dolph climbed in after her, shooing Nacho towards his carrier first. The dog wanted to get into bed with them, but he was not in the mood to have a dog between him and his girlfriend.

"I can't believe we've never done that before, I mean, not all the way like that."

"You didn't even have time to take a shower after your match, you went out there all…God, you might have even smelled like me!"

"Well, I did have time to clean up a little bit. Luckily I was able to find another shirt," Dolph laughed as he pulled AJ into him. "That was some good sex, I mean, not to say that I hate you or anything, but the kind-of-secret sex is really hot. I mean, not that I like hiding that things are great between us, but still…that was hot."

"Only you would think sex at work is hot."

"Like we're the first ones to do that, please, I'm sure tons of people have, I mean, Edge and Lita practically did in front of everyone, at least we locked the door," Dolph joked.

"True, true, it would have been really awkward for Big E to walk in on us…again…"

"Okay, let's not bring up that other time, and thank God we were only on the couch and you still had your bra on."

"Yeah, that was horrifying for all of us," she laughed, but then pursed her lips. "I…I guess this is as good a time as any to say this, but um…thank you."

"For what, babe? The hot sex, yeah, I figured I'd give you my best."

"Get your mind out of the gutter for two seconds, Dr. FeelGood. Without you, I'd probably still be that broken girl, clinging to any kind of affection I could get, trying to find someone to fix me, to give me everything, but you did, except you did it in a way that didn't make me rely on you. You don't know what that means to me. And I know I'm asking a lot of you right now, and I know things could get rough, and weird, and I don't know…bad, but everything I am today is because of you."

"Jeannie…"

"No, please, just, you can stop talking for two minutes, Ziggy, I know you can," she told him, shifting so she could look at him. She cupped his face in her small hand and smiled. "I got your love. I never had Daniel's, Kane, Punk, Cena, they never even offered. You gave me your love, and you gave me your everything. You gave me a home, and family, and a life, and a PS3 and an X-Box, don't think I didn't notice the purchase."

"Damn it, that was supposed to be a surprise."

"Well, thank you for it anyways," she said, "what I'm trying to say is…I don't know if we'll get to be that power couple, who knows, I could lose, you could lose, you could win, I could lose, I could win, you could lose—"

"I think that's all the scenarios, babe."

"And we might not last forever, that's always a possibility," AJ told him, "as much as I love you and you love me, someday it might not be enough, and I just want you to know that…I love you for bringing me back from an edge I thought I plunged over."

"Hey, hey, hey," Dolph stared at her with intense blue eyes, "what brought this on? Honesty, okay, what brought this on?"

"Well, just, I know the fight or disagreement was fake, I know it, but, I don't know, it felt real, and I just needed to get that out I guess."

"Babe, let me tell you something right now, you gave a great speech, top notch, give it an A, you can do the teacher later to make it an A+, but here's the thing, you know when you're going to leave me?"

"Huh? I don't understand."

"No, I'm asking do you know when you're going to leave me?"

"No, I don't…I didn't—"

"When they pry you from my cold, dead hands, that's when."

"Ziggy…"

"You're not going anywhere."


	426. Takeover, July 8, 2013

"You're mad at me."

"Nope."

"Yes, you are," AJ said, rushing to his side. "I'm so sorry, you know I would have been out there, but she was chasing me, and if she caught me, well, the man-arms and everything, she probably would have twisted me into a pretzel, and not the good kind of pretzel, you know…"

"Yeah, that'd be bad."

"You're so mad at me," she frowned. "Ziggy, I'm so sorry, I'm so, so sorry, but we had to leave, but I came back, I texted you, and we came back as soon as I knew it was safe. I mean, I'm just…I just want to get in her head, and I know that you're on board with that, but I should have been out there."

"It's fine," he told her, getting into the car. "Let's just go back to the hotel, okay?"

"Okay," she said, slipping into the driver's seat. She didn't always feel comfortable driving, but it was clear he was too mad to drive. "Did you…did you win?"

"Yeah, easily," Dolph said shortly, and she nodded once before she turned the engine on in the car and pulled out of the space, a little too quickly, jerking the car a little.

"Sorry," she said. Her driving was already bad, but add to that the anxiety of an upcoming fight, and she was going to be a mess. "I mean for the stop right there, but also for ditching you, but you know, I mean, I had to go, you understand, right?"

"Sure, I understand."

"You're not less important," she tried to tell him, but the words wouldn't come out the way she wanted them to and she cursed herself out for sounding like an idiot when all she wanted were eloquent words. "I'm just sorry I wasn't out there, and I'm sorry I've been so distracted with beating Kaitlyn. I know I've not been the best, and I'm asking so much of you—"

"Yeah, you are, when I have my own things."

"I know," she told him, "I know you do, and I know we have a lot coming up, I mean, we have the NXT thing, and later this month, you have Comic-Con in San Diego, and your birthday is coming up at the end of the month then we have Comic-Con next month, and SummerSlam, and we're both up to our ears in things, and I know it's been weird, and I know we keep saying this, but…I love you."

"I know, babe, I love you too," he told her.

"You do?"

"Jeannie, I could be mad at you for a month, but I'd still love you," he told her, rolling his eyes. "I'm just slightly mad you weren't there, and you ditched me."

"I know, and I'm sorry, but if you'll notice, I didn't do any kind of practical joke this time. I mean, I know you said the things on Monday because I told you to, but I did take them to heart. I just distracted her like you have been distracting Del Rio. So, I listened."

"I noticed."

"Baby, please don't be mad at me, I'm so sorry, I wanted to be out there with you, and I'm such a bad girlfriend, I know, and just…I know I've been bad."

"You're not bad, please stop putting yourself down, _that_ is something you're definitely better than. You've been better than that for a really long time," he told her. "Just let me stew around for a bit, alright? I'll be better soon, but just let me be mad for a bit."

AJ didn't like the sound of that, but right now, she really had no choice. "Okay, okay, I won't push anything, but just know that I'm sorry, and I love you."

"I love you too."

Flynn cooed as she held the sparkler in her hand, "Look, Mommy, I'm holding it, and it's on fire, I'm holding fire, Mommy."

"I know, but be sure to hold it far away from you," Stephanie told her as she sat down on the driveway of her parent's house. Sawyer and Flynn were twirling around sparklers while her mother helped Kensington with hers. Her husband was overseas wrestling so she decided to take the kids to Connecticut for the 4th of July.

"I know, Mommy," Flynn said as Vince came over, beer in hand. Her father drinking beer was always so odd to her, but then, she'd grown up with a very different father from most. He sat in a lawn chair someone put outside, and again, it was all very…domestic.

"So, Dad, on Monday, with Vickie…what do you think?"

"Well, I think she's been doing a good job for the most part, but we'll have to see what she has to say. Do you know what Hunter's thoughts are on the matter? I'm sure he has some crazy opinion that he'd love to share with the world."

"I don't entirely know," Stephanie said, though she did. She and Hunter talked the day before by phone about the situation. She didn't want to tell her father that because it would give him time to think about what Hunter thought, and that might sway his decision one way or the other.

Monday was going to be her playing it by ear. She wished her husband was here to be her sounding board, but she could hardly be mad at him for not being here because he was wrestling for her company overseas. Still, Chris knew everything about her, about her family, and he was friends with Hunter. He could have some insight into how the proceedings would go Monday, and she needed all the different scenarios she could get. She wanted to make sure her name was at the forefront for the GM position. She knew her fake husband might have something to say about that, but she held a higher position and if he challenged her, he would be shot down…fast.

Her father was a different story. She sometimes thought her father forgot she was in charge. Yes, he was still Chairman of the Board, and with that came a lot of power and responsibility, but she was the one who ran the day-to-day operations. Her fingerprints were over everything except the show. Vickie made sure to keep it away from her, dangling it like a carrot in front of her face, and Stephanie was going to make sure it was taken away from her, for good this time.

Was it petty? Yes. Was it mean? Definitely. Was it all perfectly Stephanie McMahon-Jericho? 100 percent absolute.

"I just don't think we should be hasty in picking a new GM should Vickie come out of this without her job," Stephanie said, "not that I'm swaying the argument either way."

"What are you talking about, Mom?" Sawyer came over, his sparkler pretty much out as Stephanie took it from him and put it on the cement to burn the rest of the way. "Are you talking about Miss Vickie?"

"Yeah, we are, what do you think about the situation? Do you think she should keep her job?"

"She wasn't nice to you, Mom, and that's really, really not good because you're my mom and I like you a lot, and when people aren't nice to you, it makes me sad."

"Aww, baby boy," she hugged him with one arm. "Thank you, we'll just have to talk to her, and see what she has to say. She might have a compelling argument. This is why I gave her so much time to think of one or two."

"See, that's nice of you," Sawyer said, coming over and sitting down in Stephanie's lap. Stephanie wrapped her arms around her son's waist and rested her head on top of his. "That's why you're the boss."

"You think your mother is the boss because she's _nice_?" Vince asked, glancing at his daughter and wondering just how she'd brainwashed her son to believe that one.

"Yes, she is," Sawyer said. "She always takes care of everyone, and when I want to do charity stuff, she always helps me with it, and she does lots of things with me, so does Dad because we like to do stuff like that."

"We've got the best kid," Stephanie gave him a hug, kissing him on the crown of his head as she took the sparkler from Flynn, who wandered over to give her sparkler to Stephanie. "He thinks I'm nice, I'm nice, and I'm going to be fair to Vickie on Monday. I'm not going to immediately go out there and fire her, I like to think I'm better than that, Dad, I mean, really, come on, don't you think I'm better than that?"

"You're a McMahon, no, I don't think you're better than that," Vince told her.

"Either way, I don't think we should be hasty about a new GM should the need arise. I'm not saying let's do the revolving door thing, but I think that we should get some good candidates, and pick from them."

"Candidates?"

"We can discuss that later, let's just enjoy the rest of the holiday."

Dolph pulled into the parking space and got out of the car without saying another word to AJ. That was just how it had been all weekend. It was very awkward sharing a bed with someone who barely said two words to her. It was moments like this that made her wish she still had Kaitlyn as a friend. She hated herself for even thinking that she'd want that ungrateful woman back in her life, but with a lack of friends, she really didn't have anyone to turn to when things like this arose.

She was about to get out of the car when Dolph opened the door for her. He still did stuff like that. They went shopping on Saturday for some household items (they needed new sheets), and he held open all the doors like he usually did, and carried all the bags like he usually did, but he was still upset with her, so all the little nice things he always did made her feel worse because he did them because he still loved her.

"Thanks," she said, hoping it would get more than the one or two word answers he'd been giving her.

"No problem," he told her, "I'll get your things, you just get the kid."

"Okay," she said, glad it was an entire sentence. She went around the car and grabbed the traveling carrier that Nacho was in. She opened the top of it so he could stick his little head out, and she gave him a rub. For all Dolph's anger at her, he never took it out on Nacho. It was safe to say Dolph was definitely Nacho's daddy now, through and through.

He grabbed their bags and brought them inside. Being the diva's champion, she got her own dressing room, and he brought their things in there. "I'm going to walk around," Dolph told her, "you want to come, Huevos?"

"I think he's tired," AJ said, pulling him out of his carrier and setting him on the couch. Nacho immediately curled up into a corner.

Dolph laughed, "Okay, I get the point, dude. I'll be around."

"Okay, but maybe you can stay, and we can talk," she said, walking over to him and pressing her hand against his chest. "I mean, I know you're still angry, but maybe we can talk and make things better, or at least just talk…"

"I'm not having angry sex with you…again," he added because sometimes they couldn't keep their hands off each other, no matter the state of their relationship. "I just need a few moments to think, okay, like, I'm glad you didn't go to Tampa, okay, I'm glad you stayed in Phoenix with me—"

"We live together, there's nowhere else I'd rather be."

He gave a small, tiny, barely there smile over that one, but still was not happy, "I just need some time to myself because we live together, and that means we're always in each other's space. I know that last week I said that it was cool if you didn't come out, but you ditched me on Friday, and that's where I'm upset, you basically said you didn't want to be out there with me."

"I know," AJ nodded, looking sad. Dolph sighed, and walked over to her, kissing her on the forehead before he left. She didn't like that kiss. It reminded her of Daniel. But Daniel didn't love her, he never said it, not sincerely, and she knew she and Dolph would be okay. Whenever she did tell him she loved him over the weekend, he would say it back, so it wasn't like he fell out of love with her. She really wished she had someone to talk about…well, there might be one person.

AJ had to suck up all of her pride when she knocked on the door. "Come in!"

She pushed the door open, and stuck her head inside. Stephanie was alone, and she was glad for it. "Um, hi, boss lady."

"AJ, I didn't think I'd see you here, what did you want?"

"To talk? I know we're in this really weird place, and I was really mad at you, and part of me still is, although if Dolph wins on Sunday, I think I'll be over it a little bit, but um, I just, I don't have…many…friends that are women, at least not here, in New Jersey, I do, but we're here in Baltimore, and I just…"

"Come in, AJ," Stephanie gestured towards the seats in front of her. AJ scurried into the room and took a seat. "You're lucky you caught me, I was just about to leave."

"Oh, great, um, where are the kids and Chris?"

"They're around somewhere, they were happy to see him since he was in Japan, so they're catching up, and let me guess why you're here, Dolph?"

"Yeah," AJ said, "I've really messed things up, not just with him, but with a lot of things I guess. I know why you put me in my place. I know why you think I need to be put in any place, but I'm not like that, Stephanie. I'm not, and I know everyone thinks I'm crazy, but I'm not."

"I know," Stephanie said, "sometimes though, you do get a little overboard, but I probably could have handled the situation better, and you were worried about your boyfriend, and I've been there, believe me, many times with Chris."

"Yeah, I know, I mean, you are kind of my idol," AJ said sheepishly. "I just don't want to mess things up more, how do I fix this?"

"You know, I must say, you have changed. The AJ of old would have gone crazy, would have done everything she could to try and get her boyfriend or any guy who showed her some affection to forgive her, but where is Dolph now?"

"He needed some space, I gave it to him."

"There you go," Stephanie said, "you're more mature now, he's mellowed you out, being with someone for a while has changed you."

"He's changed me."

"Don't sell yourself short, AJ," Stephanie told her. "This is actually what I meant when I said you should act like a champion. You should be mature, and you are. You aren't clinging to him, and you aren't following him around like a puppy dog."

"He's the one who encouraged all this," she told Stephanie. "He's the one who wanted me to have the title, he's the one who wanted to be a power couple, he always saw the potential in me. I don't know, I just…I hate that he's mad at me."

"I've had so many fights with Chris, you learn to deal with the fight then move on. If you really love someone, there's always a way. And it's very clear that you love Dolph, and that he loves you. I think he would do anything for you if you simply asked him."

"I think so too, but don't tell him that, I think he likes to think he wouldn't," AJ giggled. "I'm sorry I got mad, I mean, I know I'm still mad, but I mean, I shouldn't have yelled in your face like that. I could have handled it better."

"Yeah, I could have too," Stephanie intimated again. "He'll come around, they always do then comes the best part, the making up part of it all."

"That is the best part," AJ blushed, "Dolph is just…well, I guess you can say the ring isn't the only place he shows off."

"And I didn't need to know that, but thanks."

When Stephanie left AJ, finally, it was to find Hunter. She knew that she needed to get his opinions today on what was going to happen later. She located him in his office, texting someone. "Who's the lucky girl?" Stephanie asked as soon as he put the phone down.

"How did you know it was a woman?" Hunter asked.

"Your stupidly goofy grin," Stephanie told him. "Did you tell her that if she watches the show, I am not your wife?"

"No, because she's not going to watch the show. I haven't really told her about it."

"Who is she?"

"This woman I met the other day at the grocery store…don't judge me, Stephanie," Hunter said, "you do not know how it is out there, and apparently the grocery store is a great place to meet people. I learned that firsthand."

"I'm not saying anything," Stephanie held her hands up. "In fact, I'm glad you met someone. You deserve someone, and I'm glad for it. Now, onto actual things that I care about…I mean, I will be interrogating you at some point if this goes anywhere, but right now, Vickie Guererro, has your opinion changed?"

"Not really, I'm not sure she's doing a great job, and I think maybe firing her would be the best option, what about your dad? We both know he's going to have a lot to say."

"I haven't talked to him today, so I'm not really sure about his opinion on things."

"You know, for all your talk, I never really heard your opinion on it."

Stephanie was trying to keep her opinions out of it for now, though her opinion might actually be quite obvious. It was no secret she despised Vickie, and the same could be said of Vickie's opinion of her. When you had two females who were in direct competition for power, there were bound to be clashes, hell, when you had two people in direct competition for power there were going to be clashes. She and Vickie were both alpha females, and neither was willing to give an inch.

Still, she didn't want to reveal her cards just yet. If she acted like she was going to remain objective, she wouldn't look like she was trying to oust Vickie from power. That's where another branch of her plan came in: the fan vote. She was going to open up the polls to the fans, telling them what to make of Vickie. She knew how they would vote, it was glaringly obvious when you took into account the reactions Vickie got in arenas around the country. If things worked out like she thought, nobody would even think her culpable when in reality, she was the puppet-master.

Her father was going to want Vickie to stay, she knew that now. Her father told her this morning that whatever Vickie was, she got a reaction, she was controversial, and she could be useful. Hunter, now, was telling her that she should be fired. When they were out there, she would be the deciding vote. Her father and Hunter would both look to her because she wasn't going to say a damn thing. The two men were so full of themselves, they would snipe at each other like cats, while she would be the tiger to take everything down.

And she wouldn't even look like she was really doing it.

"I'm going to hear what she has to say," Stephanie said with a shrug. "I mean, I know we've had our differences, but in the interest of fairness, I don't think it would be wise of me to pre-formulate my opinion until I hear what she has to say."

"There's nothing that can convince me she would be an asset," Hunter scoffed, "I thought you would feel the same way."

"I'm the President, I can't afford to be bias, if she's going to get fired, I have to make sure there's damn good cause because I'm the first one she'll go after if she thinks she was wrongfully terminated."

"That's actually a good point."

"I guess we'll just have to wait until later," Stephanie said, "I'm glad I got your opinion on it though, I'm going to take your thoughts into consideration too. I really want to make sure this is objective so I don't get sued by her. You know she would."

Hunter laughed, "Sue you? Yeah, she would definitely do that."

"Dad, do you think you'll beat Curtis Axel?"

"Yeah, definitely, I mean, do you know how many years of experience I have over him."

"Daddy, his daddy is Mr. Perfect, huh?"

"Yeah, that's right," Chris said, "wow, by the time you're an adult, you're just going to be a walking wrestling encyclopedia."

"I know," Flynn said with a smile. "You can beat Curtis though because you're better. You're better than everyone, and he's not fun, and Paul Heyman is stinky."

"He's stinky?"

"Yup, because he doesn't like Mommy, and Punk, he won't leave Punk alone," Flynn said. "Even though Punk told him and told him and told him that he needed to not be there, but he was there, and then everything happened and Punk doesn't need that."

"Have you talked to Punk today?"

"With Mommy, but only for a second because then he had to go and find Britt because Britt is his girlfriend, and I'm just his best friend, but that isn't as big, but I don't have any boyfriends, Daddy."

"Good, I don't want you to have any for the rest of your life until you get married."

Flynn giggled, "Daddy, I can have them, but just not now, I'm little. Kensy is even littler, and that's why she doesn't have a boyfriend either, but Sawa, you have a million girlfriends, right?"

"No," Sawyer said, "I don't a girlfriend, I'm seven."

"Daddy has a girlfriend."

"Daddy has a girlfriend?" Stephanie asked, coming up behind Flynn and kissing her cheek and looking at her husband. "I was not made aware that Daddy had a girlfriend, this is quite the news for me, especially when Daddy and I have been together almost eleven years."

"He does," Flynn nodded eagerly.

"I do?" Chris asked with a laugh. "Wow, are you spying on me, Flutterby? Who's my girlfriend?"

"Mommy!" Flynn started laughing uproariously like she made the funniest joke in the universe, sending little bits of food flying all over the table. Stephanie grabbed a napkin and wiped her daughter's mouth, which only made Flynn indignant as she grabbed the napkin and wiped her own mouth. Stephanie worked her way down the line, kissing Sawyer and Kensington's head before she came to her husband. She sat down next to him and leaned her chin on his shoulder, kissing his jaw.

"So how is your evil plan going?"

"Perfectly. Everything is falling right into place," Stephanie told him. "I mean, it took some planning, but really, it's everyone else acting predictably, and me taking advantage of it. I better go though, the show is starting, and Vickie wanted the top of the show, I better watch what happens."

Stephanie did end up watching Vickie, and she had to hand it to her, she did book a pretty solid show for the evening, but it was better to go out on a high note so she felt no remorse for what she was planning later. Vickie would just have to find something else to do. Surely she had some skills that would suit her in the real world. It wouldn't be Stephanie's problem.

Her only problem would be what to book at next week's show.

AJ told Big E that if he could listen for Kaitlyn that would be great because she knew Kaitlyn was still looking for her. Kaitlyn made that point abundantly clear on Twitter, and AJ would rather she survive the night in one piece. Sunday was going to be brutal enough, and she wanted to go into her match being as close to 100 percent as possible, and that included not getting broken in half by Kaitlyn.

Dolph walked up to them, and she turned and hugged him, hoping that his time to cool off had indeed given him time to cool off. When Dolph asked E to leave, she knew he was still upset. He proceeded to air their dirty laundry for everyone to see, and accuse her of thinking only of herself. His walk and time alone obviously did not go well, and she wanted to know what happened, but she had to diffuse the situation first.

She told him that her only priority was them, was being the power couple they so desperately wanted to be. Those twenty minutes were not enough, they would never be enough and she wanted more. It was greedy of them both, but neither cared. He still wouldn't budge, barely looking at her, even when she wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned up on her tiptoes to get to him. She appealed to the dirty side of them, the ones they had no problem tweeting out to the world, and it softened him a little bit.

She could feel him breaking, and by the time he responded in kind with her little dirty innuendo, she knew he was breaking down, and his smile, the first smile she'd received all weekend was now her favorite thing in the universe as he leaned in to kiss her. She kissed him back, grinning when she pulled away.

"I love that smile," she told him.

"I can't stand mad at your stupid face," he told her. "I'm sorry, I mean, I shouldn't be mad at you for not being out there with me, and last Monday, we agreed to that, and I don't know, I was just angry, I'm dumb."

"No, I shouldn't have ditched you, that was wrong of me," AJ told him. "I love you so much."

"I love you too," he told her. "You're…you're the best, I'm just the dumbass who gets mad at things."

"No, you're not," she kissed him again.

"I'm just preoccupied with Del Rio…you do know the title is not more important than you, right?"

"Of course, and you do know _my_ title is not more important than you, right?"

"Yeah, I know, we're just…I felt ditched, and it wasn't fun getting ditched by your girlfriend, it's never happened before because look at my face, I mean, whatevs, it's just really good-looking, and people don't normally ditch this face."

"I'll never ditch that face again if I can help it, I mean, if Kaitlyn is in fact chasing after me again during one of your matches, I will run out in the middle of your match, jump in the ring, kiss you or grope you, one or the other, then run back out."

"Grope me? You mean like how you just grabbed my butt when you wrapped your arms around my waist?"

"I haven't gotten to grab it in a while," she pouted. "I really am sorry for leaving you high and dry like that."

"I'm sorry that I got mad about you and Kaitlyn, it's stupid, I do the same thing with Del Rio, and I know all the things you're doing with Kaitlyn, you tell me these things."

"So we're good."

"We're always good, babe."

Chris really couldn't care less about his match. Oh sure, he cared on some level, he still wanted to win after all, but what he really wanted was to see what his wife was going to do later, and that semi-distracted him during his match. Curtis was good, but he wasn't Jericho's level of good yet, so in the end, he came out of the match with a win, much to Heyman's chagrin. But what did Heyman expect, a Goldberg-like streak? It wasn't going to happen, not if Chris could help it.

But as soon as he was backstage, his attentions turned to Stephanie. She winked at him as he came over and gave her a brief kiss before going back to his locker room to take a quick shower and change. He didn't want to miss his wife's latest coup. She was amazing to him. She took on the world and she won every, single time. She wanted to be President, she took it, now she wanted to be the GM, she would grab that too.

And she still made time enough for him and their kids.

As far as Chris was concerned, Stephanie could do anything and everything. That's what made her special. She was always on top of everything, and half the time, he didn't know how she did it, and he was married to her. Once he was done dressing, he quickly made his way back to the gorilla, sitting down next to Flynn, grabbing Kensington along the way and setting her on his lap so he could steal her seat.

"So how long until you go out there?" he asked eagerly.

"After this match between Del Rio and Sin Cara," Stephanie gestured towards the screen. "Oh, look who's here."

"I know you don't like me," Dolph said, looking at Chris then Stephanie, "but if you could just do me a favor, maybe because you like my girlfriend."

"Did you two go at it on that staircase?" Chris asked.

"Did you and Stephanie go at it in your dressing room?" Dolph asked.

"No, we have kids."

"Well, we have…E around."

"You want me to cue up your music?" Stephanie asked before this turned into some weird contest.

"And a microphone?" Dolph asked. Stephanie handed him one. "Thanks, I know you talked with AJ, and just thanks."

"No problem, but Dolph, take care to remember that what you're about to do is exactly what you complained about your girlfriend doing, don't be that guy."

"Oh," Dolph said, "um, yeah."

Dolph couldn't tell her that at least last Monday, that was all planned, and that what he was really angry about from Friday was not her being chased, but her leaving. No matter now, he had things to do, things like become Del Rio's new personal ring announcer. It was actually fun getting out there and acting like a total geek like Ricardo was. He could never understand how Ricardo put up with Del Rio.

His fun and games were put to a halt when Del Rio attacked him, taking him down again. Sin Cara luckily made the save and let Dolph escape to the back where his disapproving girlfriend was standing. "Really, the head, do you have to leave that thing exposed? That helmet hair is only going to protect you so much."

"I'm fine," he told her, kissing her lightly. "Don't worry."

"Um, I'm going to worry, did you see your match at Payback?"

"Yes, I did, and I've learned from that. I won't let him get to me that way again."

Later on that evening, AJ was in the same way. She tried so hard to stay away from Kaitlyn, even going so far as to stand on the floor and not the apron during her match. When Alicia, her partner, who actually didn't hate her for once, had Layla down, tagged her in, she was ready to do some damage. Well, she was until Kaitlyn attacked her unprovoked. AJ managed to get to the floor, but then Kaitlyn speared her.

Things went hazy after that.

Big E picked up AJ and carried her backstage. Dolph was right there, rushing over, taking AJ straight from Big E's arms. AJ groggily came back to the world, "Ziggy?"

"Babycakes, you've got to stop doing this," he told her, kissing her forehead, this one a sharp contrast from the one he gave her earlier. She wrapped her arms loosely around his neck in a far less arousing way than she had earlier to try and mend things with him. "Do you really have to leave your midsection exposed like that, those abs are only going to protect you so much."

"Shut up," she told him.

"Come on, let's go back to the hotel with Huevos, he can take care of us, make sure his parents don't fall apart before Sunday."

"I don't think he'd be a very good nurse."

"Okay, then we can just play doctor together."

But wait, let's go back to earlier in the evening. Stephanie stood in between Hunter and Vince, waiting to go out to the ring where Vickie was waiting. Her father's music hit, but they all walked out to it. She walked beside her father while Hunter acted like an idiot behind them. She climbed into the ring first, going over and making a move to sit down while Hunter and Vince postured around. She didn't have time for those kind of shenanigans, she was on the cusp of getting everything she wanted.

When they were finally done, Vickie was asked what she actually brought to the table. Vickie rattled off a list of people she purportedly brought back. Stephanie was glad she didn't say Chris's name because like hell she brought Chris back, even though Vickie took credit for it when it happened. It was also ludicrous to take credit for Taker. Stephanie wanted to know, though, if bringing Brock back was a good idea because he'd attacked both her father and her fake husband. Vickie waffled for a while before her father began to speak.

Just like planned, her father acted like he wanted Vickie to stay, to become permanent GM. To Vince, Vickie was weak, something he could bend to his whim, and someone who would do his bidding. He liked that kind of minion in his grasp. He said Vickie was entertaining, and while that was true, Hunter didn't think that meant she was good at her job. Stephanie sat back and watched the two go at it, taking opposite ends of the spectrum like she knew they would. It was creating tension until Hunter brought her into the equation.

This was all too easy.

Hunter proceeded to tell them how she called the meeting, how the decision should be hers. Vince was all for it because he thought that she would choose his side, and Hunter, faking being her husband and acting like he had any place in her life, thought she would side with him, but that's not how it was going to be. Vickie was looking at her like she already knew her fate, but Stephanie wasn't going to decide Vickie's fate.

Not really, anyways.

Stephanie told everyone it would be up to the fans to decide, and that was how it was going to play out. All evening, people had voted, and if Stephanie was correct, the vote would not even be close in favor of firing Vickie. She knew how the fans saw her, knew how they reacted to her. There was not a lot of positive to Vickie Guerrero, and the fans would recognize that, and Stephanie could almost feel the results before she saw them.

She was right, it wasn't even close.

Upon seeing her fate, a fate Stephanie had no hand in (not to the naked eye), Vickie promptly went…well, a little crazy. Stephanie kind of hoped AJ was watching backstage so she could see this display. Vickie was AJ in that moment, stripped of something she so desired, and Vickie kind of deserved this. She'd torn the position away from AJ, and now the WWE fans had torn it away from her. Vickie got up, climbed on the table and begged. Stephanie tried not to laugh, tried to keep a straight face, but it was difficult.

The job was as good as hers. She and her father and Hunter, and the Board would all discuss the candidates eligible, but she would subtly thrown her name in there, and there was no way they could turn her down when she would make the most compelling arguments. "Come on, Hunter, Dad, this is getting pathetic."

Her father did not follow, presumably to comfort Vickie, so Stephanie walked backstage with Hunter. "I guess this means we find another GM, huh? I wonder who's going to want that job," Hunter looked at her. Stephanie stared at him blankly. "Come on, Stephanie, you want the job, we all know you do, I'm surprised you didn't fire her yourself."

"I had to remain objective, honestly, she could have kept it for all I cared," she lied smoothly, taking a few steps forward as her father tried to comfort Vickie, addressing the crowd for their wrongful termination of Vickie. "What is he doing? Why is he still out there?" she was about to turn to ask her husband when her father did something unimaginable.

He made Brad Maddox the GM.

Stephanie stood there, mouth agape as she watched her father help Vickie from the ring. She couldn't believe this. What happened to waiting, what happened to brainstorming good candidates? This was not supposed to happen. She was supposed to be the GM! She was supposed to get her show back! She was supposed to have everything! She'd so carefully planned it and she stood there, fuming, ready to punch her father in the face. When she heard her father's footsteps coming backstage, she turned on her heel, standing there, her hands in fists, her nails digging into skin.

Her father walked with Vickie, helping her along, barely acknowledging anyone else's presence until he came to Stephanie. He stopped briefly, just to say one thing, just to say the one thing that made Stephanie's blood run cold.

"I'm your father, Stephanie, I invented mind games." And in that moment she knew.

He'd figured her out.


	427. Over, July 15, 2013

A/N: First of all, this is a VERY Dolph/AJ heavy chapter, I'm sorry, but after Sunday and last night, you had to have known it would be. So if they aren't your thing in this story, I suggest you not read it, and wait for next week. Next week, being the anniversary chapter, will be extremely Jericho/Stephanie heavy, so you might want to wait for that one.

On tonight's front, yes, I'm kind of heartbroken because my OTP broke up. However, this is MY universe, and in my universe, I fix things I don't like. Anyways, I'll say it upfront, I'm not breaking them up. It wasn't even a thought. Every couple in this story has broken up at least once, and that's too cliche at this point, so yup, not happening. Anyways, enjoy, hopefully it makes you feel better after that crap last night! :)

* * *

She screwed up.

She knew she screwed up as soon as it happened. Maybe she shouldn't have gone out there, but she'd told him, she'd promised him that she would do whatever it took to make sure they could both be champions. She should have listened to him when he told her to go backstage. She really should have, but she didn't because being with him made her confident and headstrong. She wanted to be out there when he won. She wanted to celebrate with him when they were both champions.

But she screwed up, and she screwed him over, and not the good kind of screwing either.

She panicked. She wished there was some better explanation, wished she had some sort of excuse better than that one, but there was none. She panicked, and as she could see Del Rio about to hit her boyfriend in the head with his knee brace, she couldn't let it happen. It wasn't about the title, it wasn't about being a power couple, it was her not wanting to see her boyfriend out of action for another month because of a concussion. It was pure instinct running in there.

She'd had to see him before with a concussion, with the memory knocked out of his brain. She'd had to stand there and watch as he couldn't remember why she was out there with him. She had to watch as his dizziness rendered him immobile, the light piercing him as if he were some kind of vampire. She had to see all of this, nobody else, she was the one who took care of him at his lowest, and she couldn't see that again, she couldn't do it all over again, and that's all she saw. It was all she cared about.

But she screwed up.

She stood there in the ring, pleading with him, pleading with him to understand her point. She wanted them to be the power couple, but she needed to protect him. He yelled at her that she didn't need her to protect him, that they had it, that he had it in his grasp, and that they were going to be champions. She tried apologizing, but he wouldn't hear of it, leaving her there, standing there in the middle of the ring as everyone booed and chanted that she screwed him over, as if she didn't know. As if nothing burned her.

She stood there as he walked away from her, leaving the ring and walking up the ramp. He spared her one glance, looking at her, but she couldn't see him as her eyes started to swim with tears. The crowd noise was ringing in her ears, and she'd never felt more alone in her life. He kept walking, just walking up the ramp and away from her and leaving her there, alone, broken, and so very, very sorry.

He was the only that ever loved her.

He was the only man who wanted her. As she stood there she thought back to WrestleMania of last year when a kiss to Daniel crumbled her world. She'd screwed up everything then and she'd done it again. But this time it hurt in such greater intensity she thought she might collapse right there in the ring. Every man in her life left her heartbroken, and she never thought Dolph would be the one that did her in. It never even crossed her mind that they would not last forever because they were supposed to last forever. But it seemed like forever may have just ended.

She slowly grabbed her title and slid out of the ring. The crowd ceased to exist any longer as she hung her head down, walking up the stage and to the back. She didn't look up, didn't look at anyone though she could feel eyes on her. Some she could tell were sympathetic, and some bore into her like lasers. She ignored them all as she made her way towards her private locker room, _their_ private locker room. He wasn't going to be in there, she knew, but when she pushed the door open, she still hoped he would be.

"Hey," Big E stood up and she looked up at him, dull eyes, her hair half hanging in her face, and her title dragging in her hand. Why had they let the thought of power consume them so much?

"Hi," she said, and even her voice had lost any and all of its vigor.

"I've got all my stuff with me, you can get yours and we'll get out of here, okay?" he told her, and she nodded. He was obviously trying to make this easier on her, and she appreciated that.

"What about—"

"He's getting a ride with someone else," Big E told her, and Dolph must have been in here before her. She looked around and noticed his stuff was gone so that must have been the case.

"Okay," AJ said, "I can shower at the hotel, can you get Nacho?"

"Of course," Big E said, going over and grabbing her dog, who was completely oblivious to everything, and put him in his soft carrier. AJ grabbed her bag, shoving everything in it, not even bothering to change as she stuffed her title in there as well. When she was done, she slung it over her shoulder and followed Big E out to her car. People still stared at her, but having E with her made it a little easier. They arrived at their car, and she put her things in the trunk as E put Nacho in the backseat, strapping the bag in. "Do you want me to drive?" he asked, and she nodded, throwing him the keys.

The drive was silent for the most part, no music, no talking, just an occasional sneeze from Nacho. AJ stared out the window into the dark sky, looking at nothing as she sighed and wished for this day to start all over again. She would have done everything differently. She would have stayed away, let him win, she would have done anything to prevent what she did do. She would have done everything in her power not to screw up.

"He'll come around, he's just upset," E tried vainly to comfort her.

She scoffed quietly, "No…no, he won't."

She didn't say another word until they were at the hotel. E walked her to he room door, but she told him she'd rather be alone right now, and walked inside. There was nobody there, as she expected and she sighed deeply and dropped her bag down. She put Nacho's carrier down and let him out. He ran around for a few seconds before he settled down on the floor near the couch. He was still happy even if she wasn't. She hoped Nacho would be okay. He'd become so attached to Dolph that a sudden disappearance would be noticeable.

She noticed Dolph's things were still there, and she wondered if he would at least text her to know when he would get his things. She decided to take a shower, hoping it would wash away the stench of rejection from tonight. They should be celebrating, hell, if they were celebrating, he'd probably be in here with her. She shook her head free from those thoughts, they would only make her sadder, and quickly showered and changed into some pajamas.

Her hair was still wet, but she curled up in bed anyways, pulling the covers over her and staring at nothing again. Why was she the way she was? Why was she always doing the wrong thing? She always tried to have the best intentions. She tried her best to make people happy, but she always ended up making a mess of things. She messed up everything in her life at some point. Even the good things were poisoned by her. Dolph should be the World Champion right now, and instead, she'd humiliated him.

At least she got almost a year out of him. It was the longest relationship she'd ever had, the longest someone had not been poisoned by her. Black Widow? It was apt because that's what she was. She cost men what they wanted. All of them, somehow, had been screwed over by her. She was worthless. What did Dolph ever see in her to begin with? He should have just walked away that night he saw her upset in that coffee shop and never looked back. It would have saved him a lot of trouble.

It was then that the first tear fell, and she didn't stop it. She didn't stop the second or the thirds one either, and by the hundredth, she stopped caring and buried her face into her pillow as she sobbed. They had plans. They had so many plans, and for the first time in her life, she could feel them all coming true. She could picture a future with him, she could picture a really dumb, corny proposal, and a really fun wedding, and maybe some of those future, beautiful babies they talked about, and she wasn't going to get any of it. She was never going to get any of it.

Dolph sucked at his teeth a little bit as he finally got to his hotel room. He'd bummed a ride off Cody Rhodes of all people, who was feeling as upset about things as he was. At least AJ hadn't meant to screw him over, unlike Damien, who knew exactly what he was doing. Still, it was a ladder match, Cody should have expected it. Dolph made his way up to his hotel room, and stood outside the door for a few moments, wondering if he should go in.

But of course he should go in? It was his hotel room, and he had no doubt AJ was in there. The thing was…he couldn't hate her. He could never hate her because everything inside him loved every, single part of her. Even as he stood there, upset, even mad at her, her face nearly caused him to crumble. He almost took her into his arms and just hugged her, but something stopped him. Maybe it _was_ the hurt and anger over the situation, but he just couldn't forgive so easily in that moment.

She'd been trying to protect him though, and God, how could he hate her for that? How could he possibly hate his girlfriend for thinking of his safety and health above anything else? Therein lay the problem. He was mad about losing the title because he knew he had it, but he couldn't hate his girlfriend for wanting to protect him, even if he could protect himself. The mere thought that his 5'2, 115 pound girlfriend wanted to protect him against a guy twice her size was sweet, and kind, and so uniquely AJ in thinking. Only she would think she could take on the world. Hell, if it was Big Show he was facing, he had no doubt in his mind AJ would have done something like jumped on the giant man's back. That was just who she was, and that was part of the reason he fell in love with her.

He opened the door then, seeing all the lights were still on, but it was quiet. Nacho, hearing the door open, lifted his head, and happily bound over to Dolph. Dolph easily lifted him up and gave him a head rub. "Hey, Huevos, hope you've been out to do your business, did Mommy take you out? Is Mommy okay?" he asked, knowing there'd be no answer. He set the little guy back down, putting his own things down in the process before going into the bedroom.

AJ was in bed, still with all the lights on, and it was obvious she'd been crying, and crying a lot. His heart broke at the sight, just like it had when he looked back at her earlier this evening. He was almost beckoning her earlier, telling her to come to him because he could not bear her face. He was an asshole leaving her there like that when the crowd was mocking her. God, he was the biggest asshole for not even talking to her afterwards, but everything had been such a blur of disappointment.

He thought about waking her up now but he didn't know what to say or how to act right now. He'd taken his shower at the arena, so he simply went to his suitcase in the corner and grabbed his sweatpants, slipping off his pants and putting them on, basking in finally being comfortable after a long evening. After brushing his teeth, he turned off the lights in the other room, making sure Nacho was settled then went back into the bedroom and climbed into bed.

He turned on his side and stared at AJ. Even in her sleep, her lips were turned down in a frown, and the tracks of her dried tears were more visible now that he was closer. His heart hurt for the both of them. Every now and then she would breathe in through her nose and he could hear it still stuffy from all her tears. And every single one of those tears was over him, and that killed him a little inside. Tonight was not supposed to end this way. He reached out and brushed the hair hanging in her face over her ear.

He closed his eyes a moment, hearing her plead to him, "I'm sorry, I love you!" and he was a jerk. He always knew he was a jerk, but he walked away when she needed him. Why would she even put up with him sometimes? He leaned over, pressing a kiss to her forehead before turning over and turning off the light to end this horrendous day.

Stephanie ran her fingers over Chris's hand. "You could have gotten out of that."

"Maybe."

"You didn't try very hard."

"Thought I did," he told her and she laughed. "Forget about it, it's one match. I'm over it, the kids are over it, you should be over it too, especially since McMahon vs. McMahon 5000 is about to begin again."

"It's not, I won't let it, I mean, my plan was perfect, but I'm not going to let it get to me."

"You're not?" he asked incredulously. "I know your 37th birthday is coming up in a couple months, but this doesn't seem like you going through some kind of midlife crisis, so what's up?"

"Nothing's up, this week is about us, and I don't want to make it about my father, that's all," she told her husband. The room was dark so she didn't turn to him, but she squeezed his hand. "Because on Thursday, this Thursday, it will be eleven years for us."

"I'm well aware."

"Eleven _years_, Chris, do you even know what that means? We're working on our second decade together. We passed that decade mark and we're into our second decade. It's unbelievable to me that we're here."

"And happy."

"Well…"

"Hey!" Chris pretended to act scandalized. "I make you pretty happy, admit it."

"No," she told him, giggling.

"You're kidding me, I gave you three kids."

"You mean three monsters," Stephanie corrected him. "It was a bear getting them into bed tonight by the way because they were so crazy after the show. I don't know what got into them. I think it was the ladder matches. I swear I thought Kensy was going to start climbing a ladder or something."

"She could climb those little baby ones."

"No, she's not going to even do that," Stephanie said, "she's becoming just like her sister. Flynn is a terrible influence on her."

"And who is a terrible influence on Flynn?" Chris wondered.

"CM Punk," Stephanie joked as Chris laughed, "Did you see Flynn's face when she saw he was hurt when he came backstage. She nearly started a riot."

"Yes, but then she grabbed Punk's hand and told him that he had to see the doctor to help with his owwie, so I guess she's not that bad an influence. And hey, our daughter doesn't have a fear of blood…actually, I probably shouldn't be praising that, should I?"

"No, because she's vicious. So what's next for you, sweetie? Your tour is coming up, so what next for you here?"

"I don't know, we'll see what kind of trouble I can come up with."

AJ didn't so much wake up as she jerked awake, breathing heavily. Her eyes hurt from crying so much the night before, and she could tell they were puffy. She just hoped she looked semi-normal for Raw tonight. God, Raw tonight, did she really have to go? Did she really have to face everyone while they probably chanted at her like they did last night? She buried her face into her pillow a moment, willing the tears back even though she could feel the burn of them still. She pushed her face away from the pillow and sat up slowly.

The other side of the bed was empty as she expected it to be, but it was messy so she must have been tossing and turning in her sleep, which didn't surprise her. She was stressed, sad, and broken, so why shouldn't her sleep reflect that. She rubbed at her eyes a little bit, trying to decide how to approach the day. Should she go about it like she did any other day? Or should she curl up into a ball and cry some more?

It couldn't be the second because she had to drive to New York soon. She should probably text Dolph (he probably wouldn't answer her if she called him) to see if he was going to be able to get to New York since he probably didn't want to spend even five minutes in a car with her let alone an hour and a half (and that didn't even include traffic). She took a deep breath and grabbed her phone from her nightstand. She vainly hoped there would at least be a text from him, just telling her if he was okay, anything, even if it said, "I hate you, we're broken up, lates!" at least it would mean he was okay.

There were no texts, no missed calls, nothing from him.

She bit her lip, willing herself not to cry again. She didn't want to be that weepy girl again. She didn't want to go back to the way she was before Dolph, but without him, what was she? When she was with him, he always made her feel like she could do anything. Her confidence stemmed straight from him. Now without him, how could she find that again? And she was expected to do it quickly because she was still the Diva's Champion, and with that came responsibilities.

"You'll be okay," she whispered to herself.

She was just about to get out of bed when the door opened and she could hear the jingling of Nacho's dog collar, "Damn it, Huevos, you are not getting any more treats, you're already spoiled."

AJ blinked a couple times as she heard Dolph's voice. She couldn't understand it for a few seconds, thinking she was going crazy or something, but he was here! He was in the room, and she wanted to cry again, but for completely different reasons…unless he was here to break up with her. Oh God, what if he was going to break up with her right this second, right when she wasn't prepared! She steeled herself for it as he showed up in her bedroom door.

"Oh hey, you're up," he said, walking over and thrusting a coffee cup at her. "Took the kid for a walk and got us some actual coffee, none of this hotel crap."

"Thanks," she said quietly, looking down at the cup for a second before taking a sip. It was just like she liked it because he remembered the details.

"Look, we should talk," he said, sitting across from her.

"I think we should break up," she beat him to the punch. If they were going to go down, she was going to go down swinging and with the upper-hand. Daniel had broken up with her, Punk, Kane, they never really wanted her, neither did Cena. She was always the loser, but not this time.

"What?"

"It was nice of you to come over this morning—"

"Come over this morning, what are you talking about? I slept here last night hence my side of the bed," he pointed over to the empty space next to her. So she hadn't been tossing and turning? "Did you think I slept elsewhere?"

"Yeah…"

"Um, no, remember what I said, even when we're mad at each other, we don't leave," he told her. "I just needed time to settle down because I'm a jerk."

"_You're_ the jerk?" she asked incredulously. "I screwed up last night, so much, I cost you the match, I cost you everything."

"When are you going to get it through that thick skull of yours that _you_ are everything to me, God, Jeannie, you'd think you'd have figured that out by now," he rolled his eyes at her.

"But the title, and the power couple that we were supposed to be, I screwed that up."

"Well, after I got over the disappointment, I realized that I was wrong," he told her, "and I don't say that very often so relish it, babe, but, I was because you were trying to protect me because you're the only one who knows how I was with my head."

AJ looked down at her coffee again because she hated being reminded of that time. "I hated it."

"And I know it gives you nightmares," he told her, lifting her chin with his finger. "That's why you did what you did. Was it dumb? Yeah, it was dumb, but it was so you to do that because you think you can do anything."

"Only with you," she told him. He nodded. "I'm so sorry, baby, I didn't mean to cost you the match. I just…he was going for your head, and I had flashbacks to Payback, and…I couldn't do it again…" Her eyes welled up with tears and she sobbed a little. "I couldn't do it again, baby…"

Dolph took their coffee cups and put them on the nightstand before he scoot closer to AJ and took her in his arms. He felt like a jackass getting mad at her the night before, leaving her there in the middle of the ring when her nightmares were the reason she did what she did. She sunk into his arms and started to sob, crying so hard her entire body was starting to shake. Dolph couldn't help but get a little emotional himself, the sound of his girlfriend's tears getting to him in a way that nothing else in this world could.

"Shh, babe, it's okay, shh," he whispered into her hair. "Everything is going to be alright, okay? Everything is going to be just fine."

"I cost you the title, I'm the worst!" she muttered into his shirt.

He had to laugh at that. "You're not the worst, you're the best. And I get it, I get why you did it, but…when I took Huevos out, I got to thinking, and I thought about us and everything, and I thought about the situation, what happened last night, everything that's happened since Payback really, maybe everything that's happened since my concussion, I thought about it all."

"God, how long a walk was this?"

"Huevos has little legs, he couldn't go very fast, I had to carry him half the time," Dolph joked, pulling away to look into her face. "So, I was thinking…"

"Okay…"

"I think we need to separate—"

"But you said you weren't breaking up with me!" AJ cried, her eyes widening.

"This is usually where you let a guy finish his sentence," Dolph told her, leaning down a little so he could look her in the eyes. "I think we should separate during the shows."

"During the shows?"

"Look, when I was away with my concussion, babe, you were doing incredible without me, E was holding his own, you don't need me out there, you never really have. Yeah, you say I give you confidence, but you had that all on your own. And since I've been back, you've still been holding your own without me, and I like to think I've been doing okay without you, although I miss our kisses, but then I get to kiss you whenever I want."

"So you don't want me out there with you is what you're saying?"

"What I'm saying is that you are the diva's champion, and I'm eventually going to be World or WWE champion again, but we're letting it blind us, get in the way, and I think it's actually hurting _us_. The way you were standing in that ring last night, the feelings we both had, I don't want that for us. I don't want work to get in the way of this," he gestured between them, "and I can feel it happening. And that's not what I want. Not from us. I love you. I love you and I've never really loved anyone before, not like I love you, and I'm not going to let work get in the way of that."

"I get what you mean," she nodded. "I feel like…when I can't be out there with you that I'm a bad girlfriend. And I get upset with myself."

"I don't want that for you. That's not us," he told her, "we fight, but we don't do things like that. We don't run out on each other, and we don't ignore each other, and that's not us. I don't want our relationship to be defined by the things we do at work. I'm not losing you."

"I don't want to lose you either," she told him.

"Good, we're on the same page with that. We still have so much left to do, babe, so much left to achieve, I would like a title reign where I can maybe retain a championship just once, and you're the best diva's champion ever."

"Well—"

"Ever," he insisted, "and you should focus on that, and I should focus on my stuff then we get back to our hotel room and screw like rabbits."

"Ziggy," she chastised.

"Nobody's here," he told her.

"How do we do that though? I mean, after last night, everyone thinks you hate me," AJ said, "I thought you hated me, I thought you were going to break up with me, that's why I said I wanted to break up with you because I wanted to get the upper-hand for once."

"Well, that's where I think we can have some fun."

"Fun?"

"Yeah, everyone thinks we're going to break up, and essentially, we kind of are, onscreen at least, so why not give it to them?"

"Give what to them?" she asked confusedly.

"Fireworks."

Stephanie looked at the two of them, the same people who months and months ago she was calling out for a secret relationship, now they were telling her they wanted to break up, but not really. "I'm sorry, I'm confused, why are you even telling me this?"

"Well, we just kind of wanted you to know that we want to pull out all the stops," AJ looked over at Dolph and smiled. She actually liked their plan. It was them, and it was ridiculous, which was even more them.

"Okay," Stephanie said, "so…you want to interfere in his match?"

"Well, yes, cost him the match because it's non-title, I would never cost him another title match," AJ bit her lip and Dolph reached out to grab her hand. Stephanie was actually glad to see it. She was worried for AJ after last night, hoping that she wasn't going to have another breakdown. The girl had been through enough and didn't need another setback.

"Okay, again, you don't really need to be telling me this," Stephanie told them. "But…um, good for you?"

"It's just kind of like how you and Chris kind of don't interact on the shows. Like, you guys really good together, but you have your own stuff."

"Well, yeah, I don't interfere with him, he's never wanted anything from me…but that's us, and it works for us."

"The thing with us being together is just, it's been taking its toll lately, as I'm sure you and everyone else could tell, and I just didn't want that anymore…she dragged me in here," Dolph said.

"Dolph…"

"Sorry, babe, but well, um, thanks," Dolph said with a shrug, "come on, Jeannie, we better go hash this out with E."

"I hope he won't be too upset."

"He gets to crush me tonight, it'll be payback for all the times he walked in on us making out, he'll love it," Dolph said as they left the room.

Stephanie made a face as they left. Those two were crazy, and she and Chris were crazy so to call another couple crazy really meant something. The door opened again, and she expected AJ to be back to tell her of some other crazy plan they had. She could see the merit in separating business from their real lives. She might not be with Chris if she constantly interfered on his behalf. He always wanted to go it alone, and Dolph was very much like Chris, and to gain his footing, he might need to be on his own. It was something Dolph really never had before.

"Mommy, we're here!"

Stephanie grinned, now this was more like it, "Hey, you guys, I thought you were never going to get here."

"We hit some traffic," Linda said, ushering in the kids.

"Where's Dad?" Stephanie asked.

"Your father has decided to not come tonight, he said something about leaving you to the mess you both made," Linda told her with a shrug.

"That he made," Stephanie said, "he's the one that hired Brad, not me. It's on him. But I'm not worrying about it, this week is for me and Chris, not for me and Dad. So what did you guys do today?"

"Mommy, Kensy and I made you a bracelet," Flynn grabbed Kensington's hand and pulled her over to Stephanie. "See, Mommy, it's blue because you like blue. We made it for you, Sawa made a cup because you could make cups there, but the cup is not here because it could break, and that'd be sad."

"I painted a cup for Dad while they made you the bracelet," Sawyer told her. "Where is he?"

"I think he's talking with some people, who knows with your dad," Stephanie made a face, which made Flynn giggle. Stephanie took the bracelet from her daughter and smiled at the both of them. "I'm going to wear this right now because it's the most beautiful bracelet I've ever gotten, thank you so much, you guys."

"You're welcome!" Flynn cooed.

"W'come!" Kensington added. "I put yellow on it."

"I love the yellow on it," Stephanie kissed her daughter's cheek, "and I love the blue," she kissed Flynn's cheek too. "And I bet Dad is going to love whatever you painted on that cup."

"Fozzy and wrestling," Sawyer grinned his gap-toothed grin. He'd lost a tooth a couple days ago and was wearing that silly grin proudly.

"Oh, your dad is definitely going to love that."

"I thought so, Dad really likes himself a lot," Sawyer shrugged as Stephanie laughed.

"I think that's true," Stephanie said, "you know, I don't even know what your dad's going to do tonight, I think that's up to the new GM."

"Mr. Maddox?" Sawyer said, plopping himself down on the couch. "Dad should go after the title. He really should get it before Fozzy, at least for a little while. Don't you think so, Grandma? Dad is the best."

"Punk is the best too," Flynn said, "if you don't say that, he gets mad, I think he's really, really mad after last night, he had such a bad owwie, Mommy. And Mr. Heyman was supposed to be his friend, and friends don't hurt friends."

"They really don't," Stephanie shook her head.

"Do you think Punk is going to punch him?" Sawyer asked.

"He could, I don't know, it's not like what he did was nice."

"I'd kick him for Punk because Punk is my best friend, and I would never hurt Punk ever," Flynn told her mother very seriously.

"I'm sure he would appreciate that, Flynnie."

Punk was going to kill Heyman. He was going to get him and twist him into a pretzel and throw him into the Atlantic Ocean. He had that briefcase, he was only a few steps from guaranteeing that he got his title back, _his_ title, the one that Cena thought was his. He was so close to it until Heyman, a man he considered his friend screwed him over.

"I'm going to kill him," Punk said to his girlfriend.

"Yeah, I know, you've only said that a million times," Britt barely even looked up from the paperwork she was doing.

"You don't even care."

"I care, but you've been pacing for thirty minutes now, muttering the same thing over and over again. If you're really going to do something about it, do something about it. Call him out, demand answers. There's a spot on the show I can squeeze you into. Brad is kind of a pushover to be honest. Go ahead and call him out."

"I'm going to then, I'm going to demand to know what the hell he was thinking. That jackass cost me everything. He thinks he can get away with that, that he can get away with screwing up my chance to get _my_ title back!"

"Okay, calm down," Britt said, putting down her things and walking over to him, grabbing his hands. "Oh my God, you're actually shaking. Honey, you've got to calm down before you give yourself a heart attack or something." Britt led him over to the couch and gently pushed him down. She bent over and unzipped his hoodie. He looked at her in surprise, "Get your mind out of the gutter." She stood back up and walked around the back of the couch, reaching into his shirt and starting to massage his shoulders. "You carry way too much stress for a guy your age."

"Do you know the business I'm in? Did you see what happened last night?"

"You're also the supposed best in the world," she reminded him. "The best in the world doesn't get intimidated. The best in the world doesn't back down. The best in the world goes out there and proves it. Brock is here tonight, Phil. Brock is here with Heyman. I'm not supposed to know, but Brad has loose lips, and he told me. I don't know why since he knows we're dating, but now you know. That's got to give you a leg up, right? Call them out, make them your bitches."

"I should."

"Yeah, you really should," Britt told him. "You're the best in the world for a reason. Heyman didn't make you the best in the world, you did that all on your own. Don't let him win." She kissed the top of his head. "You're better than the both of them."

"I'm the best in the world."

Big E looked between both his friends. "So you want me to…beat you up?"

"Yeah, go for it," Dolph said, "I mean, obviously, maybe not as hard as you would someone you really hate, but still, go for it, I've taken worse."

"Because you two don't want to be together anymore?"

"Onscreen," AJ said, "it's taking its toll on our relationship, and after last night, it's better than we don't let work get in the way of our relationship. It's too volatile, too many factors, I was stupid—"

"I was a jerk, and I don't want to be a jerk to her."

"I don't think you should be a jerk to her either, she's pocket-sized."

"I'm tough," she told him, "but after last night, everyone expects something huge, something really big, so why not give it to them? I mean, it's better than me going, 'Hey, Ziggy, let's be together, but not in front of the cameras, later, baby!'"

"So you want us to have a match at SummerSlam?"

"Yeah," Dolph said, "what better way to go our separate ways, it'll be fun, you can pretend to hate me."

"Who's pretending?" E told him and Dolph tilted his head and gave him a look. "Hey, if it gives me a match for SummerSlam, I'm all for it, but who's going to win that match? Is that going to be rigged?"

"No, we go out there, we have a match," Dolph said, "I kind of want to see how I'd do against you anyways."

"You'd lose."

"Please," Dolph said, "and look, we're still friends, AJ and I are still dating, and you don't have to watch us make out so much anymore."

"Now I'm definitely on board with this plan."

"We want to go out with a bang," AJ said, "not like a live sex celebration bang, but like…we want to explode, just make everyone think we hate each other. Afterwards, who cares what they think about us. I just…I don't want a repeat of last night." She looked over at Dolph and sent him a small smile. She didn't want to feel like she'd screwed up so badly her boyfriend was going to dump her.

"Me neither," Dolph said. He never wanted to walk into a hotel room to find his girlfriend with tears streaked down her cheeks after crying herself to sleep because of something that happened in the wrestling ring. That wasn't what their life was supposed to be. They'd put too much of themselves out there. It was time for that to end.

He'd seen what happened when onscreen relationships got difficult. He'd seen Triple H and Stephanie practically implode on television, leaving her a bitter, broken woman for a while. He'd seen how easily it was for people who loved each other to completely turn on each other. He'd even experienced it himself. Many moons ago, he'd really liked Maria, but he couldn't separate his professional life from his personal life, and he'd had to break it off with her.

Lives got ruined when you were in front of so many people, when you were expected to kiss and make up, fight, be on all the time in front of people. It never ended well. It never ended happily. He could think of no relationship that survived, not a single one. Even the iconic Randy Savage and Miss Elizabeth couldn't survive, and their love was epic in this business. He didn't want to be that couple. He didn't want to share that same fate. And if that meant he had to quit having AJ out there with him, he'd do it because he would do anything to make this relationship survive.

He was not going to lose her.

His future was with this woman. Every time he thought of himself five, ten years down the line, she was there, right there with him. He wasn't going to let this business tear them apart. Relationships were difficult, always, but they were magnified here, and he wasn't going to risk that future he saw when he could have it all with her. They weren't going to hide, they weren't going to pretend to be broken up in the real world. They were going to give the fans a show, the show they wanted to see after last night, and he was going to go home with the woman he loved, their dog, and he was going to be happy.

The first part of their plan involved him making the clean break. He almost broke though, seeing her standing there, looking so beautiful and sorry even though they talked earlier about what happened, even though he knew her actions last night were to keep the nightmares away. He had to remain strong though, and when her small arms were around his neck, he had to use all his strength of will to pull her off him. It was even worse telling her they were over because he never wanted to utter those words ever.

As soon as he knew the camera was gone, he hightailed it right back to her, and hugged her, "Don't you ever, ever let me say those words, got it?"

"Okay," she giggled, hugging him back tightly.

"Okay, and since you can no longer give me kisses out there for luck, I guess we'll have them back here."

"I can use tongue back here, so it's probably better," AJ said, kissing him and running her hands through his hair.

"You know what you're going to do out there, right?" he asked her.

"Yup, I know, be careful though, Del Rio is going to aim for your head again and just…please protect yourself. I'm not going to be out there anymore, and nobody is going to be with you, and I worry. That's the only part I'm really going to be upset about is you out there alone."

"Babe, I've been out there alone before. I'm a professional wrestler, I know what I'm doing."

"Okay, okay, but still, just be careful," she told him, giving him another kiss.

AJ walked to Stephanie's office and she knocked on the door. Chris answered and she looked up at him tentatively, "Hey, Chris, Stephanie here?"

"Yeah, she's here," Stephanie walked to the door.

"You ready?" Stephanie asked. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

"Stephanie, was displaying your entire relationship with Hunter on TV worth it in the end?" AJ asked. "I mean, announcing that pregnancy, having that vow renewal, was that worth it all just to try and keep him?"

Stephanie blinked a couple times, "Okay, come on, let's go."

Stephanie walked side-by-side with AJ, who had on a hoodie at the moment. "I don't want to lose him," AJ admitted, "and he's right, I mean, when I ditched him the other week at SmackDown, I felt like a horrible girlfriend, and he felt abandoned by me leaving him high and dry. Last night, it could have broken us if we didn't talk things through. You know how it is, Stephanie, you've seen how it can be so taxing on a relationship to just be out there."

Stephanie did know. She remembered when she and Hunter were having problems, when Kurt was pursing her. She remembered announcing that she and Hunter were going to try for a baby, and feeling like the pressure was on her to deliver. She remembered Hunter growing apart for her, and her desperately trying to cling to him by saying she was having a baby. God, AJ and Dolph were smart for doing what they were doing. If she had thought of it, maybe she'd still be married to Hunter.

Okay, maybe it was better she didn't do it _then_.

The only reason she and Chris weren't together onscreen now (barring her stand-off with Hunter right now) was because Chris liked to do things on his own. But maybe it was a good thing they didn't influence each other. Dolph and AJ were good together, even strangers could admit that. If the ring was putting a strain on that, the ring needed to go.

"Okay," Stephanie said as they reached the exit. "I'll have a security guard casually escort you over, okay, be discreet."

"Thank you, Stephanie, this means a lot to me."

"You love him, I can't stomp on love," Stephanie said, leaning down and giving her a hug. "This is actually mature, thinking smart now."

"Someone told me to," AJ made a face and Stephanie laughed.

AJ waited for the security guard in plain clothes to come over. He nodded to her and they walked surreptitiously out through the crowd. There was a couple seats waiting for her that Stephanie had reserved earlier when they were telling her of their plan and she sat down, keeping her head down and trying not to draw attention to herself. She hadn't been in these seats in years, and she snuck a glance up at her boyfriend, flying through the ring.

She knew deep down he hated that he was going to intentionally lose this match, but he told her that it was okay, he lost all the time, what was one more. She'd never been able to appreciate him from here before, and she could see what others saw now, the way he flew through the air with ease, how natural his movements looked. Everything about him was beautiful. She'd miss being out here to watch him firsthand, but it would be okay, they would be okay.

When it was time, she climbed over the barrier, surprising the people around her, ringing the bell, and causing both men in the ring to look at her. She uncovered herself, showing her identity, and it was time for Dolph to react. The loss was quick and swift and AJ went ringside, trying her best to glare at him. When Del Rio left, she climbed in the ring, and it was going to begin now. The fans wanted to see them crash and burn.

So they would go out in a blaze of glory.

Dolph looked at her like he was confused as she climbed in the ring. She paused for a moment before she started wailing on him. To his credit, he never stopped her from it, though she wasn't really putting much into it if she was honest. She was pretty much just slapping him, something he could take (and sometimes liked, but that was neither here nor there). He pretended like he wanted her to get away from him, but when he saw Big E rushing down, he made sure she was out of the way so she wouldn't get hit by E again.

She wasn't going to lie, it hurt her to see her boyfriend get the Big Ending from E, but she knew he could take it. He was a wrestler, and he'd taken worse, that's what he said. She walked over to him pretending like this was it, like it was all over, and in a way, it kind of was. It hurt to know that she would have to act like she hated him now, at least for a little while then people would forget about them, and they'd move on to liking or hating something else, and she and Dolph would go dominate their own divisions.

Right now though, it still kind of hurt.

She knelt down next to him, stroking his hair for a moment before she grabbed him by said hair, pulled his face up and kissed him. Her dumb boyfriend started to kiss her back so she quickly slammed his head down before she stood up and walked out of the ring. The crowd reaction didn't hurt her like it did the night before and when she was backstage, she waited for Dolph to show up.

When he did, she hugged him tightly, "I'm sorry if I hurt you."

"With your tiny, tiny hands?" he laughed. "E, on the other hand…"

"I will punch him if he hurt you."

"No, no, I'm good."

"Also, good job kissing me back out there," she gave him a little slap on the shoulder as they walked to their locker room. "You weren't supposed to start kissing me back when I'm supposed to be getting my revenge on you for dumping me."

"I couldn't help it, you kiss me, I kiss back, it's like instinct," he protested. She laughed and shook her head as she took his hand. "We're going to have fun with this, you know. It'll be like before, when I pretended to be with Vickie, except we're not hiding our relationship, but I can't wait to fight with you again. I love seeing that fire in your eyes."

"I don't know if I said it, but when I look at my future, you're in it too," she told him, "I'll miss being out there with you, but this right here is more important than that."

"Hey, maybe we'll be the next Chris and Stephanie."

"Let's hope so."


	428. Eleven Years, June 22, 2013

A/N: Thank you so much to the people who have stuck by this story for the past *mumbles* years. It really means a lot to me that you're still on this crazy journey with these crazy people and their crazy lives. So thank you again, and hope you enjoy. :)

* * *

"Mommy, whatcha doin'?"

Stephanie looked up from the photo album she was flipping through and saw Kensington standing next to her legs, looking up at her with her sweet smile. She smiled like her father sometimes, so innocent and sweet, but with mischief lurking beneath. "I'm just looking at pictures of me and Daddy."

"Oh, canna I see?" Kensington asked, coming closer and peering over Stephanie's legs to try and look at the pictures.

"Of course you can," Stephanie said, watching as Kensington used all her strength to climb up on the couch. It was still a little high for her, but she was getting the hang of it. She was taller than Flynn was at her age, and getting lanky. Stephanie grabbed her arm and helped her on the couch fully. Kensington crawled to Stephanie's side and looked down at the pictures.

"Ooh," Kensington cooed, running her fingers over the pictures. "I like pictures."

"You do? Since when?"

"Forever," Kensington told her, "That's you, Mommy."

"I know what I look like," Stephanie joked with her, "and that's me with Trish and Christian, right?"

"Uh huh, where Tilde though?" Kensington leaned over the picture as if to search for her best friend. She didn't see her anywhere, but she always saw Tilden with her mommy and daddy so where was she?

"She wasn't born yet," Stephanie said, "and this was before Trish and Christian broke up about a million, zillion times."

"But they have to have her."

"They didn't have her yet though, I didn't have you yet either," Stephanie explained.

"They gonna have anoder baby. Finnie said so."

"Yeah, they are going to have another baby," Stephanie said, "and they're going to have that pretty soon and Tilden is going to have a little brother or sister, just like you are Sawyer and Flynn's little sister."

"Where mine?" Kensington held her hands out and gestured around, wondering where her little brothers or sisters were. She didn't know much about babies, but everyone seemed to think she was a baby, but she wasn't really, she was pretty big she thought.

"Well, if you were going to have your own little sister or brother, I would have to get pregnant like Trish is, and my tummy would get really big like it did with you and your brother and sister. But right now, Daddy and I don't think we need any more babies because we have you and Sawyer, and Flynnie, and we like you guys."

"I like dem too, dey my friends."

"Well, I want you to stay friends because it'll be easier when you're older," Stephanie said as she flipped the page. "There's me and Uncle Shane. This was just after Daddy proposed to me and we told everyone we were getting married."

Kensington looked, "Dat no look like him."

"Well, he's gotten older since then, we all have, do you think I still look like that?" Stephanie asked her daughter.

"Um, you pwetty, Mommy," Kensington turned the charm on like she was going to get a cookie for this. Stephanie just laughed and kissed her forehead as Flynn came tearing into the room like she was a mini-tornado. She made a dinosaur-like roar as she crashed into the couch.

"Kensy, you gotta come back and play!" Flynn bossed her sister around.

"Uh uh, I'm staying wif Mommy," Kensington said.

Flynn made a sound of disapproval before she too wanted to stay with her mother. She climbed on the other side of the couch and put herself at Stephanie's other side, squishing her between her daughters. "Mommy, what are you looking at? I want to look too! You can't just show Kensy!"

"I wasn't just showing Kensy," Stephanie said gently. "I was looking at them, and Kensy came in here to look at them as well, that's all. You are very welcome to look at them too."

"Where am I?" Flynn asked. "Mommy, these pictures don't even have me in them."

"That's because all these pictures were taken before even Sawyer was born, and a lot of them were taken before Daddy and I were even married, so it was a while ago," Stephanie explained to her. "We have all your pictures in other albums. So don't worry there are lots and lots of pictures of us with you in them."

"But they're not _these_ pictures, Mommy," Flynn said. "Don't you like pictures with me in them?"

"I _love_ pictures with you in them, crazy girl," Stephanie told her, making a face and causing Flynn to laugh uproariously, "I'm just looking at these because Daddy and I are celebrating our anniversary tomorrow, and I was thinking back to when we first started dating."

"Momm, you're married to Daddy, he's not your boyfriend," Flynn corrected her.

"Yes, but before he was my husband, he was my boyfriend, it was when he asked me to go out with him."

"I know that, because you wouldn't hug him," Flynn explained to her, "because you didn't want to like Daddy because Daddy is the best, and you didn't think you were the best."

"Did Daddy tell you that?"

"Um, yeah, but I seen it," Flynn told her, "Daddy wanted to hug you, but Mommy, you didn't, you just shaked his hand. Even though, you hug him all the time, Mommy, so I don't know why you wouldn't hug him then because now you kiss _all_ the time. I never get kisses from Daddy because you're always doing it."

Stephanie held in her laughter at her daughter's impassioned words. "So I'm stealing kisses from Daddy that should be yours?"

"Uh huh, so why wouldn't you hug him?"

"Because I was scared," Stephanie answered her.

"Of Daddy?" Flynn made a face of incredulity. She couldn't imagine anyone really being scared of her daddy. He was so goofy and nice, and he was the best in the world at what he did, so why would anyone be afraid of him if they weren't fighting with him? Other wrestlers should be afraid of him, sure, but that was in the ring where he was really, really good. Outside of the ring, everyone loved her daddy.

"Of what I felt for Daddy," Stephanie said, thinking back to those months where she sat at home and thought about him, thought about that brief time they were together and on the same page, how different it felt, how easy it was with him. It was completely unexpected because she thought they would degrade to the point where the WrestleMania would be her versus him and not him versus Hunter.

But those months she was gone gave her time to really think about Chris, to think about how he was nothing like she thought. He treated her with such kindness, something she didn't even think he had in them. Her feelings grew for him in those months, she went back over everything they'd been through, and she found that a lot of the time, yes, he was cruel, but funny, and it was more just teasing than really, truly trying to hurt her. He could have hurt her more, much more, but didn't.

"But Daddy is great," Flynn gave her mother a look of disbelief that she could ever be afraid of what she felt for her daddy.

"I know that now, I just…I didn't think he felt the same way."

"Oh, but he loves you."

"I didn't know he loved me, I don't even think Daddy knew he loved me," Stephanie said.

Flynn was about to say something else when Sawyer walked by the living room from the kitchen. "Sawa, come look at pictures!"

Sawyer stopped in the doorway. "What pictures?"

"It's of Mommy and Daddy, but we're not there, not even you, Sawa!" Flynn exclaimed. "That means they're really, really old, you weren't even there."

"Oh," Sawyer said, "well, I'm only seven, Flynnie. That's not that old."

"It is to me," Flynn shrugged.

"I only two," Kensington held up her fingers with a grin.

"That's cause you're a baby," Flynn said and Kensington growled in frustration. Sawyer walked over and sat on the couch next to Kensington, who immediately switched allegiances and grabbed her brother by the waist and hugged herself to him. Sawyer pat her on the head as she cuddled in closer.

"Love you, Sawa," Kensington told her big brother.

"I love you too, Kensy."

"I do too," Flynn had to add.

"I love you too, Flynnie," Sawyer said and Stephanie laughed a little. Sometimes, she knew Sawyer got a little exasperated by his sisters, but he always acted kindly towards them, even when they annoyed him. She could tell her son's moods though, and that's why, when they were bugging him, she tended to corral her girls away so he could have some time away from their endless love. "What kind of pictures, Mom?"

"Oh, well, these are mostly from when your dad and I got engaged to get married. Your dad wasn't going to ask me, we were actually going to break up, but I found the ring your dad bought for him, and he asked me."

"Break up, why?" Sawyer asked.

"Well, I had some stupid ideas about some things," Stephanie said, "I didn't realize I was just being really silly, and your dad, well, he loved me, and he just wanted me to be happy, so he went along with it even though he wasn't happy about it."

"You bet your butt I wasn't happy about it," Chris said, walking into the room, "What is this, a family meeting I wasn't invited to?"

"Daddy, you can come look too," Flynn beckoned him over.

"I can? Wow, thanks, that's so nice of you to invite me," Chris told his daughter as he walked over to the couch and sat down next to Flynn. He pulled her into his lap so he could sit next to his wife. "So why are you showing our kids old pictures? Telling them how much better it was without them because that's just cruel."

"I was looking at the pictures by myself before I was assaulted by all these little bodies," Stephanie said, turning so she could give her husband a kiss. "Making sure all your travel plans were finalized?"

"Yeah, so far so good," he said then looked down at the album. "Oh God, look at my hair!"

"Daddy, it's long," Kensington said, staring at the picture then up at her father. He just didn't look right in the picture. "Why so long?"

"I grew it out for a long time, but then decided it was time to look like an adult. Your mom was so mad at me though, she yelled at me and wanted me to grow it back because she missed it so much. Sometimes, Mommy would do my hair like a girl's."

"But why?" Flynn giggled.

"I think Mommy just really, really liked my hair," Chris said.

"I do miss it sometimes," Stephanie said, reaching up and running her fingers through his hair, "it's just not the same."

"Oh, here's a picture we took the day after we got engaged," Stephanie said, pointing to a picture in the album. Their faces were squished together to get in the shot, and they both had the biggest grins on their faces. They also looked so young. "We look like we just won the lottery."

"Kind of did," Chris winked at her, and Stephanie rolled her eyes.

"What do you do when you get engaged?" Flynn asked.

"Well, for us, I threw the ring-box at your father, and he asked me to marry him, usually, you have a ring you want to give the girl or guy, whichever, it doesn't really matter who proposes, sometimes it's a thing where both decide it, but in this case, Daddy asked me, and he had a ring for me that he bought."

"That one, right, Mommy?" Flynn asked, pointing to the large ring on her mother's hand. "Daddy bought you that one, right?"

"Yeah, that's the one Daddy bought for me, and he spent _a lot_ of money on it because he's kind of crazy, don't you think?"

"Daddy, you _are_ silly," Flynn agreed.

"Well, I've been known to be both," he told her.

"Did you like it better without us?" Sawyer asked.

"Yes," Chris nodded. "We liked it a lot better because it meant I could kiss Mommy whenever I could, and we didn't have to feed all of you, and we didn't have to take you to shows, and Mommy and I could stay up as late as we wanted, and we didn't have to drive you around anywhere, so yup, we hate you."

"Daddy!" Flynn buried her face into her father's shirt and started laughing, "You're lying."

"I am?" he asked as Flynn peeked her head up at her.

"Daddy, you no do dat," Kensington added.

"You _have_ to love us because you're our daddy, and you are the one that is our daddy forever, so you have to love us."

"Who says?"

"Mommy," Flynn said seriously, "because Mommy's the boss."

"Oh, really, do I have to like it better with them around?" Chris wondered. Stephanie nodded. "Oh, well, in that case, if I _have_ to, I guess I like having you around because you are my kids, and I do sort of, kind of like you."

"Dad, you love us because you had us," Sawyer didn't know the concept of accidental or unwanted pregnancies because he was not an accident or unwanted. Unexpected, sure, all their kids were unexpected, but never once were they ever unwanted.

"That's true, that's true, it was fun when it was just me and Mom," Chris explained, "but if we didn't want you guys, you probably wouldn't be here, but we love you, and you are ours, and we love you, and we're very happy we had you."

"Yup, we're very happy, and Daddy and I have been happy for the last eleven years," Stephanie looked at her husband, who smiled, "Right?"

"Oh, yes, definitely."

The next morning, they did get a reprieve from the kids since they were lying in bed, and the kids were still asleep. Chris ran his fingers up and down Stephanie's side, letting his fingers linger on her bare skin. She smiled at him, serenely, knowing that this face was the one she'd woken up to for the last eleven years. She reached up and caressed his cheek, which made him scoff a little bit, and she glared at him. He leaned over and kissed her gently, which was a sharp contrast from the kind of kissing they'd been doing moments before.

"I love you," she told him. "Please tell me you don't have anything planned today. I just want to spend it with you and the kids, no parties, no elaborate plans, just you, me, the hellions, and our house. With you going away soon, I don't want anything else, just you."

"I promise, we're not doing anything. I thought we'd do it like last year, just a picnic in the backyard, I'll cook, or we'll both cook since you can actually work yourself out in the kitchen now. The kids can do whatever they do, and we'll just have a nice day."

"I like that idea, we can go swimming, the kids love that, and we can lounge in the backyard, and I just want you," she told him, pressing herself closer to him, kissing him softly. "I love you so much."

"I love you too," he told her, "so last year, give me an assessment."

"Okay, well, you came back again, and you're planning to come back after your tour, so A+. Now do me?"

"Again?" he raised and eyebrow, growling and turning her so she was on her back, "if you really want me."

"I mean," she punctuated her point with a kiss, "what do you think of me the last year?"

"You always get an A+ because you run the world, Steph," Chris told her. "Every year, you make my life better, you make the kids' lives better. You are the glue that holds my world together as far as I'm concerned. I would be a mess without you."

"You always say that, and I always doubt it."

"Are you kidding me? I would be living in a pigsty, spoiled food in the fridge, I wouldn't know what to do with myself. I'd probably bed a million women but have a connection with none of them, and those monsters asleep down the hallway, what would my life be without them? God, I don't even want to think it."

"They are pretty great, aren't they?"

"We did good with them, they're the best thing about the past eleven years. Everything else pales in comparison to them…maybe except the sex, that's always been fantastic, speaking of which," Chris started to kiss her neck and she giggled and pulled him down over her body.

"You always have been insatiable, how are you not tired of me yet?"

"Have you looked in the mirror?" Chris asked. "That's why I've never seen the allure of having an affair. I mean, you've always been gorgeous, you're great in bed, you're everything to me, why would I ever want to ruin that?"

"Probably not your best move talking about affairs when you're naked on top of me," Stephanie giggled. "That's not a mood-setter, sweetie."

"But I'm saying an affair doesn't have any appeal for me, that's a compliment," he told her, moving his mouth down her body. "I'm saying that you're the only woman for me, and you have been for a really long time, and I don't want to toot my own horn, but do you know how many women would want a chance with me?"

"Yes, for looks alone, how many would stick around when they see this ego you have?" she asked as his fingers found a sensitive spot, and she bucked up a little. "Jerk."

"Well, I _can _say this…one stuck around."

"Against her better judgment I'm sure," Stephanie smirked.

"We'll see."

Dolph threw the bag on the bed, "Look what I bought!"

"Me comics since I'm pretty sequestered here?" AJ asked with a pout. "What if I put on a blonde wig or something, I can be the girl that you're rebounding with. It's just not fair that I can't go down there. I want to go down there."

"So cosplay something…oh my God, my girlfriend probably does want to cosplay. What happened to the days when I would date models and aspiring actresses? You know, the girls with low self-esteem."

"Maybe I could cosplay, it would mean I could go around and get some comics, and I really want some, it's not fair! Why did we have to break up, now I'm sad," she folded her arms and pouted.

"You're going to be down there tomorrow with the auction winner, you can't wait?"

"No, I can't," she shrugged, grabbing the bag. She opened it up and saw it was a pink shirt. "Is this for your panel later? Is my boyfriend trying to look like a comic geek? That's so cute, Ziggy. You're actually trying."

"I want to fit in," he pretended to pout before he launched himself onto the bed, lying next to her, "Hey, you can cosplay as Harley Quinn! You love her."

She loved her boyfriend for actually knowing that, "That is an idea, but do you know how many girls are probably cosplaying as her right now, and would look a million times better than I do—"

"But you're the hottest girl I know," he told her and she giggled and patted his cheek.

"No, I mean some people plan all year what their outfits are going to look like, they go through a lot of work to do it, and I'm going to go out there and look terrible? No, if I were cosplaying Harley, I'd put in the work."

"Um, that break up…is that still on the table?" he asked, biting his lip. She smacked him in the side. "But aren't you proud I remembered? And the shirt looks cool, I'm going to look really hot in it…like everything else I wear, whatevs."

"Um…is that break up still on the table for me?" AJ asked and he pretended to act aghast. "I really do want to know when you would have dumped me sooner though…"

"The day I met you," he told her and she laughed and leaned over to kiss him.

"You know, if you wear some baggy clothes and one of my baseball caps, I bet you could do down there. Hell, you can come watch the panel too, everyone is going to be so focused on me and…me, they won't notice you, I bet. Or you can walk around, buy all your geeky stuff, and get that all out of your system before I get back, which could be a while, and I'd hate for you to have to stick around here."

"You're right, I guess I could maybe borrow one of your hoodies?" she asked.

"Really, you want to contaminate my hoodies with your pretty smell."

"You are so dorky," she told him as he got off the bed and started pulling off his shirt to change into the one he bought. "Ooh, take it off."

"God, clingy ex-girlfriend who almost kissed my former friend."

AJ shuddered and fell against the pillow, "Don't remind me! I can't believe you suggested we do that! People are going to be so weirded out…at least I hope they are, oh God, what if people want me with E?"

"Then I will punch them in the face before they kick me in mine," he said, pulling his shirt over his head. "It's such a shame I have to cover up this body. I know everyone wants to see me."

"Yeah, action figures, whatever, who cares, you clearly don't know your audience today," she said, standing up on the bed and walking over to the edge. He walked over and grabbed her around the waist, resting his head just under her breasts. Even standing up on the bed didn't give her a huge height advantage. She kissed the top of his head, resting her hands on his shoulder as he buried his face into her middle.

"There's just so many nerds, babe, as far as the eye can see, nerds!" he told her, his voice muffled by her shirt. She giggled and leaned down to rest her chin on his head, even though his hair was filled with product.

"You realize you're hugging one, right?"

"But I love you, that's the difference."

"You'll make it through, you won't turn into one of them, being nerdy isn't a disease, besides you're a dork," she said, pulling away from him. He leaned his face up and she leaned down to kiss him. "I like having the height advantage on you, makes me feel superior."

"Don't get any ideas," he told her. "I better go, you want to come down? I'm going the back way because I'm kind of a big deal so nobody's going to see us together, we can sneak you in."

"Okay, it's better than sitting around here, wishing I was down there," she said. He lifted her up and off the bed, putting her down on the floor. She walked to his suitcase, pulling out a hoodie of his and throwing it on the bed. She took off her sweatpants, which made Dolph whistle and she put on some jeans. She grabbed her boyfriend's hoodie and slipped it on. The sleeves ran down long, but she didn't adjust them. Suddenly, a hat was pulled down over her eyes. She leaned her head up so she could see.

"You look adorable," he laughed at her while she glared. Her hair was in a ponytail, and she tucked it under the large hat so it would fit better. "Wow, I wouldn't date you…not that I'm dating you now, but you look horrible, you are taking this break up hard, wearing my clothes, hanging around me…"

Come on," she said, grabbing his hand through the sleeve of his hoodie. There was a knock on the door, which had to be the handler for them. They walked to the door, and Dolph opened it, seeing the handler and Miz standing there.

"What are you doing here?" Miz asked, looking at AJ.

"She's coming down, she's just going to watch," Dolph said. "Don't worry, Miz, she's not going to be on the panel, so you'll still be the prettiest one there."

AJ laughed, "I just want to watch and walk the floor, that's all."

"You two are so strange," Miz said as they walked downstairs. "Oh, hey, Maryse and I are having a pool party if you two wanted to come, it's going to be on Saturday."

"Thanks, but we're going to Cleveland after AJ's auction thing tomorrow."

"Ahh, going back to the ol' home state."

"Stop being a weirdo, Miz," AJ threw it back at him, which made Miz make a sour face while Dolph laughed.

Dolph and AJ walked the back way towards the hall where the panel was. AJ snuck inside, taking a seat in the back and in the corner so nobody would notice her. She kept her head down until the panel started and everyone's attention was towards the front. She wondered if anyone would even notice her at all, and it was kind of funny that nobody knew that one of the divas was sitting there with them.

When Dolph came out, she smiled, and smiled wider when some people yelled that they wanted her there. She couldn't take her eyes off her boyfriend. He was so handsome, and so personable, and even if some people booed him, he was just perfect. When Miz slipped up and called her his girlfriend and insulted her for being flat-chested, Dolph was quick to tell him to be a star, and she smiled.

She was just lucky.

Stephanie giggled as she looked at the tweet notification she just received. Her husband was just being a dork, and she didn't know why, but she saw an opportunity. He said he didn't want to be called Bubba under any circumstances. _Any _circumstances? What about if his wife, the woman he'd loved for eleven years now were to call him that? Was that a circumstance that he would accept? She quickly typed out a tweet and sent it. Chris was getting lunch for the kids in the other room while she got some work done.

She put her phone down and went back to the paperwork in front of her. She forgot about everything else until her husband walked in with a sandwich on a plate for her. He smiled and walked over, putting the plate down on the desk in front of her, leaning down to kiss her temple, "I said under _any_ circumstances," he whispered to her as he pulled away.

"I'm your wife, Bubba!" Stephanie told him.

"I don't care, and don't you even dare start calling me that, I know where you sleep, McMahon," Chris pointed his finger in her face. Stephanie tried to look innocent. "No, don't try and give me the Flynn innocent look—"

"I invented that look."

"Still not falling for it," Chris said, "enjoy your sandwich."

"But you love me!" Stephanie cried after him.

He turned around, "Yeah, so?"

"We've been together for eleven years!"

"Do you want it to be _only_ eleven years?"

"But, Bubba!"

"I warned you, McMahon," Chris came back into the room and she stood up and grinned cheesily at him. He didn't stop though, and she tried to back up, but there wasn't much room, and he grabbed her around the waist as she squealed in surprise. He threw her over his shoulder and grabbed her food before bringing her into the kitchen.

"Daddy, what are you doing!" Flynn asked around a mouthful of ham and cheese.

"Mommy is being mean," Chris said, putting Stephanie down at the table. He put her food back in front of her and sat down at his own place.

"How were you mean?" Sawyer asked his mother.

"I wasn't being mean."

"She called me a name I didn't want to be called," Chris told her, watching as his wife smirked at him.

"Mommy, that's bad," Kensington told her, shaking her head in disapproval, "we gotta be nice."

"Hear that, baby, our two year old daughter knows better than to treat me like that, she wouldn't call me names."

"It's not a name," Stephanie said, looking around the table, "I didn't call Daddy a bad name, just something he didn't want to be called, but it wasn't bad, was it, Bubba?"

"I'm going to dye your hair green when you're sleeping," Chris told her.

"Mom, you'd look good with green hair," Sawyer told her.

"See…"

"No," Stephanie said, winking at her son, "not happening, baby boy."

"Don't be mean to Daddy," Flynn said, taking another bite of her sandwich.

"He shouldn't be mean to me," Stephanie told him, "he picked me up without me telling him to, what about me, Flynnie?"

"Don't be mean to anyone!" she ordered, taking a big bite out of her sandwich.

"I guess we should listen."

AJ opened the door and squealed. "Oh my God, Donny, you brought your babies!" AJ immediately squatted down and started hugging all the dogs that recognized her immediately. In a family full of guys, it was easy to remember AJ. She sat cross-legged as the four large dogs surrounded her and started trying to pet them all at once. "Hello, guys and gals, you all look so cute today, are you all here for a play-date? Are you going to see your aunts and uncles that live with your grandma and grandpa?"

"You are one-of-a-kind, AJ," Donny said as she sat next to her on the floor near the door. One of his dogs, Cassie, ended up trying to sit in his lap even though she was a huge Labrador.

"Oh, shut up," AJ said, hitting him in the shoulder as she went back to petting his dogs. AJ was at a point in being with Dolph that she felt comfortable with his family. They were all so welcoming to her from the very beginning, and they already made her feel like she was part of the family, even if she technically wasn't. His brothers were just as funny as he was, and they were all animal lovers, and his mother was warm and friendly, as well as his dad. Being here was becoming like second nature.

"So…I can't believe you didn't take the golden opportunity to break up with my brother on Monday, I mean, you had the chance and everything, and yet you stuck with him? I mean, I like you AJ, but you can do better."

"You, Donny?" she joked and he shrugged. She shook her head and focused on scratching Freddie's ears. "Nacho is upstairs with your parent's dogs, I think they're napping, we should bring them all outside so they can all chase my poor baby around because he's the smallest."

"Whenever you and my brother actually settle down, will you get bigger dogs?"

"Probably, depends, we're obviously going to adopt, so whichever dog suits us the most," AJ said, "but that's a discussion for much later since both of us have so much left to do in our careers. Your brother needs a title reign that doesn't last a few months."

"It's been hard for him?"

AJ shrugged, "Yes, and no, it's been kind of hard for both of us, which is why we're doing what we're doing now. It was taking its toll on us and straining our relationship."

"So you guys are okay?" Donny asked.

"Yeah, we're fine, we talked about it, he understood why I did what I did—"

"Which was…"

"Just…the head thing, it was a really difficult time for both of us, and I just…seeing him like that," she said, her voice trailing off as she tried to finish her sentence.

"Sorry, I get it," Donny squeezed her shoulder, "You don't have to go on anymore. I know that it was a pretty sucky time, what with him actually losing his memory of two days, and you had to be right there when it happened."

"Yeah, it just…yeah…"

Dolph grabbed a water from the fridge and nodded at his mom who was sitting at the table balancing her checkbook and paying bills. He sat down next to his mom and watched her for a second, "Grab a camera and take a picture, it lasts longer," she told him, which made him laugh.

"God, Mom, welcome to the present, we don't take pictures with cameras, we take them with phones," Dolph told his mom.

"Where's AJ?"

"We're not attached at the hip. She and Donny are in the back with all the dogs, I think she's probably in heaven right now, there's what, seven dogs out there, definitely in her own AJ heaven, plus, she bought a bunch of comics yesterday, and some action figures, so she's having a good weekend."

"And you two are really good, right?" Kelly asked.

"Yeah, we're fine."

"Really?" Kelly asked, putting her checkbook away as she stared at her son. "I know you said things were okay, but I don't know, things have seemed weird between you for a little while now."

"It was," he said, "with us doing different things, with both of us consumed by this idea of being a power couple, it was weird, but we talked it out, and that's why we're doing what we're doing. Our relationship is more important."

"You're going to marry her, aren't you?"

"What is it with you?" Dolph gave her a look. "Stop bringing that up, when it happens, it'll happen."

"You said when," Kelly said knowingly, glancing up at her son.

Dolph had no response to that.

Flynn ran up to her best friend and threw her arms around his legs. Punk laughed and lifted her up. "I love your hair, Flynnie."

"Mommy said I could have a Mohawk!" Flynn said. Her hair wasn't exactly in a Mohawk, but it was piled high in the middle and slicked at the sides, so it at least looked like if it was spiky, it would look like a Mohawk. "I saw it on TV, and I asked, and she said yes, I look good."

"You do, it's very punk rock, I didn't think your mom had it in her," Punk said, giving her a hug. "Oh man, I needed a hug from my second favorite girl."

"Because Britt's your favorite!" Flynn said as she hugged him back. "How's your owwie, Punk? Did it get better yet?"

"Yeah, I'm going to be okay, no more blood, thanks for asking," Punk told her, "so what have you been up to? Are you being the coolest little chick on the planet like I tell you to be every week?"

"Uh huh," Flynn nodded. "Mommy and Daddy were together for eleven years, that was fun, we had a picnic in the backyard, and we had lots of good food, and have you ever been with someone for eleven years because it's pretty much forever."

"Wow, I can't say that I have," Punk told her, "but that's pretty cool for your mom and dad, I bet they were happy…wait, where are they?"

"Um…oops," Flynn said, looking around. "I just saw you, and I wanted to see you, I forgot to ask, I'm gonna get a time-out!"

"Well, maybe I can talk your mom and dad out of giving you one," Punk said as he started to walk down the hallway. "I'm sure your mom and dad know you're okay, I mean, who would dare mess with you?"

"You're my best friend, Punk."

"And a best friend gets you out of time-outs, and you're my best friend too."

"My mommy let me watch a video with you, and you were throwing a box out a window, and it was your friend's video, I forget his name."

"Colt?"

"Oh yeah, that was his name, is he your boy best friend?"

"Yeah, he's my boy best friend, and you're my girl and little kid best friend," he said, turning a corner and seeing Chris standing there, holding Kensington and not exactly looking worried that his other daughter was missing.

"Hi, Finnie," Kensington said as she looked over her father's shoulder and saw her.

Chris turned around and Flynn immediately exclaimed, "Daddy, I didn't do anything wrong!"

"What?" Chris asked. He'd been talking with one of the production assistants.

"She kind of wanted to come see me," Punk explained.

"Oh, I know, I saw her," Chris said, "she's kind of hard to miss, four year old with a fauxhawk, stomping her way down the hall towards the guy with the tattoos, yeah, I don't think I would miss that."

"Oh okay, well, see, Flynnie, you don't have to have a time-out."

"Oh good, that would've ruined everything," Flynn said seriously.

Chris and Punk both laughed, "What would it have ruined, Flynnie? Did you have big plans for tonight?"

"Yup," Flynn nodded, "I'm gonna watch the show, and are you gonna kick Brock's butt?"

"I was hoping to, yeah."

"Kick Mr. Heyman's too," Flynn ordered him, "he's not a good friend. He's a really bad friend, and I would kick him. I would kick him a lot because I would because you're my best friend, and I would help you."

"This girl," Punk pointed to her, "this girl is my hero."

"I'm a hero!" Flynn grinned.

"You are, you rock, I mean, look at her, she's wearing an Iron Maiden t-shirt, she's got a Mohawk, she's willing to kick Heyman repeatedly for me, if I ever have a daughter, I want her to be exactly like this."

"I make good children," Chris kissed Kensington's head as she stuck her tongue out.

"Can I steal her for a while, I think I need the motivation after last week."

"Sure, take her forever if you want."

Flynn gasped. "Daddy, I can't live with Punk, you and Mommy and Sawa and Kensy would all miss me too much."

"And self-esteem through the roof," Punk said.

"Be good for Punk, don't run off, got it?"

"Got it," Flynn nodded. She leaned over so Chris could give her a kiss on the cheek and then walked off with Punk, talking the entire time.

"Okay, your brother is with Mommy, you're with me, what do you want to do, Kensy?"

"Um, watch da ring!"

"You got it."

Stephanie fiddled with her engagement ring as she stared at Hunter, "We both knew my father was going to do this, right?"

"Yeah, I figured as much," Hunter nodded.

"Sometimes Grandpa just does what he wants and he doesn't think about anything," Sawyer added, and Hunter looked incredulously at Stephanie's son. He didn't expect her to be so astute.

"Wow, who knew that Vince came off so transparent to everyone," Hunter said, "and you haven't talked to him since last week?"

"He wouldn't return my calls, and when I tried to have Flynn call, you know, to look like it wasn't me that wanted to talk to him, she was told he was busy but that he would call her back," Stephanie said. "He knows that he went against my advisement. He did it on purpose too because he knew I was trying to get Vickie out so I could get back my GM position, and this is him getting back at me."

"He is the master, Stephanie."

"Yeah, he thinks he is, but that doesn't mean that I can't get one over on him every once in a while. I need you on my side though, yes, I tried to pit you against each other for my own gain, and I thought it worked, but now, I think maybe we need to get on the same page against him. I need to get in his head, make him think I have something up my sleeve."

"But you won't?"

"Not as of yet, but if he thinks I do, he'll start to plan whatever retaliation, and when he does, I can find that out, and I will counter what he thinks is a count to me, do you get what I'm saying."

"No," Hunter shook his head, "Sawyer, do you even get what your mom is saying? I figure if anyone in the room might get it, it'd be the one who is related to her."

"I don't really get what you mean, Mom."

"Well, it makes sense in my head, I just need you to be on the same page as me," Stephanie said.

"It's not like I was going to choose your dad's side."

"I think he's feeding stuff to Brad. Brad will want to do anything he can for him because my dad is the one who hired him, so he's going to want to be on his good side, plus my dad is on the board, so he has that influence. I mean, look what he did with Vickie. I still can't believe he did that. I'm not saying Booker or even Teddy were necessarily better, but they were better than Vickie. Anyone is better than her."

"Okay, well, whatever you want to do, I'm on your side, and I'm not a double-crosser."

"Thank you," Stephanie said, "and I guess thanks for faking like my husband and going along with that even though I was suckered into it now—"

"Mom and Dad have been together for eleven years," Sawyer interrupted and Stephanie pinched him in the side. "It's true, Mom!"

"Yeah, I know, but it's my place to brag about that, not yours," she leaned over and kissed his cheek.

"How long were you with my mom, Trips?"

"Not that long, I could only stand her for a couple years. I'm the one that did the dumping, don't let your mom tell you otherwise," Hunter winked at him. "I don't know what she tells you, tough guy, but don't believe half of it."

"She said you stopped caring."

"I didn't stop caring, your mom faked like she was pregnant," Hunter answered, his gaze moving up to Stephanie's. She just shrugged. It was funny now, looking back at that. How desperate had she looked that night when she said she was pregnant? Probably so desperate that everyone could see through her act.

"Mom, why would you do that?"

"Because Hunter wasn't nice to me," Stephanie said, "end of story, let's move on!"

"I don't know how your dad puts up with her," Hunter whispered loudly to Sawyer so Stephanie could hear.

"It's probably because he thinks he's the best in the world."

Britt walked into catering and saw Punk hanging out with Flynn. The two were sitting at a table playing with some cards that Punk had with him, she guessed. She walked over and saw they were playing Go Fish, which made her smile. Only Flynn Jericho could make Punk play something like Go Fish. She sat down next to her boyfriend, placing her hand on his cheek and giving it a kiss. Flynn ooh'ed and aww'ed over it and Britt laughed. She was getting to that age where romantic things made her coo like a little pigeon.

"You like him," Flynn giggled.

"I do," Britt said, "so hey, I have some kind of disappointing news for you."

"What is it?" he asked, sparing her a look before he turned to Flynn. "Do you have any eights?"

"Punk," Flynn said through gritted teeth as she grabbed a couple cards and handed them to him. He laughed and put them into his deck as Flynn looked like she was going to combust on him. He could tell this one was just as competitive and driven as her parents.

"Sorry, what is it?" Punk said as Flynn asked for any twos. He grabbed one out of his deck and handed it to her, which calmed her some.

"Heyman and Brock aren't here tonight. They're only available via satellite," she gave him a sympathetic look and started to rub his shoulder. She knew how much he wanted to get his hands on the two of them tonight, and they conveniently weren't here.

"That's just like Heyman," Punk said, "oh well, I'm still going to call him out, believe me, he's still going to know exactly how I feel."

"Good, you should tell him, and when he and Brock are here, you can take them to task," she kissed his cheek again. "You're going to beat him at SummerSlam, I know you will. He may be bigger, but you're CM Punk."

"Best in the world—"

"But not as best as my daddy," Flynn added.

"Okay, Flynnie, not as best as your daddy."

"I should have recorded that, let Chris hear it," Britt said, "I'll catch you later, be good, don't get in trouble."

"She won't," Punk said.

"I meant you," Britt said playfully as she stood up to walk away. She leaned down to give him a quick kiss before she did so.

"You got in trouble, Punk," Flynn giggled.

"Yeah, well, you're always in trouble, Flynnie, it's more fun that way."

Dolph looked up to the ceiling and back down at his girlfriend, "I don't really want to say that."

"What's so bad about it?"

"I don't want to call you a slut," Dolph shrugged, "I'm sorry, babe, but I'm not calling you that. I don't feel comfortable saying that when I know it's not true. I mean, you've heard what they say about you on commentary as it is. I'm not adding to that."

"I don't care what they say, you know that, water rolling off my back," she shrugged.

"You might not, I do," Dolph said. "I don't like it, and I'm not going to say it."

"Okay," AJ let it go because she could tell Dolph wouldn't let it go. She'd simply suggested he call her a slut in the interview he was scheduled to do for the app. "So what are you going to say then?"

"I'll just say that I'm disgusted by it, which is true, it was disgusting," he told her, making a face and pretending to shudder violently. "I never want to see my girlfriend sucking face with anyone else, not ever."

"Not even if it was a hot chick…"

"Oh, you _had_ to go there, huh?" AJ nodded. "Nope, nobody gets you but me."

"Okay, caveman," she made some Hulk-like movements. "I'll see you out there, I'll be the girl who is plotting your demise."

"I feel like you've been doing that since we started dating…"

"Very funny, is that a marriage joke, like I'm trying to trap you in my web?" AJ asked, folding her arms in front of her.

"I think I've walked into a trap here, one that I may have built myself, so I'm just going to go," Dolph jerked his thumb towards the door and slowly backing towards it. He opened it slowly, like any sudden movement would make her pounce. He started backing out of it as she watched him then closed the door only to open it again. "Oh, and I love you, I don't mean anything I am about to say, and at some point, I am going to marry you, so…be prepared for that someday."

AJ just smiled.

It was a lot harder not to smile when she and E ran down after Dolph's match. She was so proud of his win, but had to act like she hated it. She didn't nor did she hate him, and she tried hard not to let it show. It was easier for her because she had yet to even give any kind of verbal response to the break up, that was all Dolph right now, and she knew he was practically spitting his words out, but they could make this work. Fireworks, they wanted fireworks.

Stephanie wanted total domination. When Hunter went to talk to Brad, and insinuate that he was listening to Vince, she was right in the wings, ready to execute the first part of her plan. When Hunter was finished with his spiel about Daniel Bryan (who really was going to be the future of this business), she walked straight to Brad, telling him of her secret plans, the one forming in her brain, the non-plan that would smoke out her father's retaliation.

She had to be vindictive to counter her own father's vindictiveness. He'd found her out before with Vickie, but she couldn't allow that to happen again. This was just another power struggle in the struggle she'd been in since she was in her early 20's. Her father would never take her 100 percent seriously, so until he actually retired, it was going to be like this, push-pull, one of them planning, the other plotting. It kept her on her toes, made her shrewd, and maybe one day, she'd actually miss the fights with her father. For right now though, her sole priority was putting her father back in his place.

And like her father, she was willing to do anything it took to do so.

"Hey, Stephanie?"

Stephanie looked up from the screen in front of her to see AJ. After her confrontation with Brad, she'd come back to the gorilla to direct the rest of the show. AJ had been out in the ring earlier, and Stephanie saw her and Dolph walk back to presumably their locker room, but now she was alone and here. "Yeah, AJ?"

"Can I talk to you for a second?"

"Sure, what's going on?" Stephanie asked. AJ noticed her kids weren't with her except for Sawyer, and she wondered where they were but didn't ask.

"What's your secret?" she asked.

"Secret?"

"How have you and Chris lasted so long, like, what do you guys do? How do you guys go about things?"

"Um, I'm not sure."

"Do you guys have sex a lot?" AJ asked.

"Oh, wow, um, yeah, I'm not going to answer that," Stephanie said, glad that Sawyer was wearing headphones right now so he could hear the show.

"Dolph and I do, and it's good, he's really good, I was just wondering if that was like a thing, like if you guys had lots of sex and that like helps?"

"I'm still not going to answer that, AJ," Stephanie told her.

"You and Chris have just been together for a really long time, and you're both in the wrestling business, and I know that you two kind of keep out of each other's ways when it comes to work, and Dolph and I are doing that soon, and like, what else is your secret?"

"I don't know, AJ," Stephanie shrugged, "I wish I could tell you. I just…I love him. It was unexpected and out of the blue, but when I knew, I just…knew, you know. I just knew that he was the one. I don't know how to describe it, but you just know."

"I know," AJ smiled secretly, her head ducking down a little, "I mean, yeah, I know."

"Then it'll all work out, you just have to believe that."

"_This is exactly where we were last year," Stephanie said as she could feel Kensington's rhythmic breathing against her stomach. She turned her head to the side to see Chris staring up at the sky. Flynn was tucked into his side, also asleep, and they could both hear Sawyer's soft snoring from near their feet._

"_This should be our tradition from now on," he told her quietly, reaching over to grab her hand and hold it, trying not to smash his arm into his daughter's face. "We just lay in the grass until the kids fall asleep. It'll be weird when they're teenagers, but we'll make it work."_

_Stephanie laughed airily, "Today was perfect. This is definitely how I want to spend our anniversaries now. We don't ever need anything elaborate, just us and this."_

"_Okay, I'll agree to that," he told her. "Can you believe it, right now, eleven years ago, we were talking about going on our first date? I was saying that I would plan something for us—"_

"_Bowling as it turned out," she added._

"_Yeah, because I didn't want to go too fancy because I wanted it to be us, you know, not so cliché. And I had kissed you for the first time where it really meant something, and I was still buzzing over that hours later."_

"_I kept touching my mouth like some kind of idiot."_

"_And who knew you would give up the farm just a few short days later."_

"_It'd been two years in the making," Stephanie admitted, "like we weren't going to fall in bed. We've never bent to conventions, so of course we slept together before our second date."_

"_You were as easy as I always thought you were."_

"_And yet…"_

"_I'm glad I went back. I'm glad I didn't take it sitting down. I'm glad I barged into your office, I'm glad I confronted you."_

"_Me too," she told him, "everything might have been different if you hadn't. I might not have this, I might not have any of this or it wouldn't be the same, and I don't think I can even picture that."_

"_So don't, simple as that."_

"_I love you, Bubba."_

"_You're lucky Flynn is right next to me," Chris told her. "Or this second decade of the McMahon-Jericho Era would get off to a really bad foot."_

"_Second decade," Stephanie said dreamily. "So nine years until 20 years together, think we'll make it?"_

"_Without a doubt."_


	429. Turn the Corner, July 29, 2013

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews and stuff everyone. Anyways, so there's no confusion, I'm writing this as the actual tapings went, with the tapings being on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. As such, I've written parts of Raw in flashback, and next week, I will do the same with SmackDown. I hope it's not too confusing for you, if it is, PM me, and I'll explain. Essentially, all you need to know is that I act like all of the stuff is pre-taped as it actually was.

What also sucks is the complete lack of Jericho right now, it sucks that he's gone and that Steph is on so little. I kind of hope her role increases soon, so I'm just working with what I'm given, which isn't a lot, I'm sorry. I will definitely try and include Punk/Britt more next week (there was a lot of Dolph/AJ stuff I had to cover) And with Flynn's birthday coming up, I promise there will also be more Punk/Flynn (which honestly, I think is most people's actual favorite relationship in this story lol) One more thing, if you like Dolph/AJ and you haven't seen the video of their cake fight, you're missing out! Hope you enjoy! :)

* * *

_Where are you?_

_Sitting, where are you?_

_Way to be vague, babe, I'm in our locker room._

_Why?_

_Because I'm naked, duh_

_Very funny, I thought you were going to catering_

_I'm taking some stuff out of my suitcase for later_

_Stuff out?_

_Yes, because babe, there's some stuff I don't want the world to see_

_You don't have any sex toys in there, do you?_

_No, I left those back at the hotel for later._

_Gross :P_

AJ laughed as her feet dangled off the side of the crate she was sitting on. Her diva's title was sitting next to her, keeping her company while she texted her boyfriend. Every now and then the heels of her feet would bang against the crate, which echoed through the hallway, but nobody was paying much attention to her anyways. She, Dolph, and Big E had planned a hilarious little treat for the fans tonight, and she couldn't wait to implement it.

The car ride with her, Dolph, and E had been among the best from the show the night before to tonight. Because they were going to South Africa next week, all the shows for the next two weeks were going to be taped, so she and her boyfriend and best friend had to come up with some stuff very quickly to further this most sad break up they were experiencing.

"_We haven't even really interacted though, we should change that," AJ said, shifting in her seat so she could watch her boyfriend driving and see E in the backseat. "Something really crazy and funny."_

"_Do you want to look crazy?"_

"_I don't care, sure," she told him, "I mean, people think I am already after what happened last week in the back, sorry, E, but you and me, it's just not happening."_

"_Don't want it to," Big E told her._

"_Hey, what's wrong with me?"_

"_You're kind of dating him," Big E jerked his thumb towards Dolph._

"_Aww, thanks, man, bro code, I respect that," Dolph nodded. "How about you steal my stuff?"_

"_Steal your stuff?"_

"_Yeah, I mean, like, I don't know, you have the keys to the house, since you live there too, and so you take my stuff, or like, since we're supposed to be broken up and everyone thinks you're probably back in Tampa, and I'm still in Phoenix, you just say you stole my suitcase, you're pretty familiar with the men's locker room."_

"_Shut up," she smacked him good-naturedly. "What would I do with your stuff, destroy it?"_

"_Yeah, sure, but not really, just kind of like…throw it around because I don't really want my stuff too trashed, and maybe you can steal my wallet, and hey you can like cut up my driver's license because I had to get it renewed for my birthday anyways—"_

"_Or your passport since we're going overseas next week, and it'll be funny if it looks like I'm trying to prevent you from going," AJ giggled. "I mean, we'd obvious get a fake one, I don't really want to actually destroy your stuff."_

"_And I'll just stand around," E said, "you know, look menacing."_

"_That's what we pay you for…hey, if we pay you, why aren't you driving?" Dolph asked._

"_I can't fit behind the wheel of this vehicle," E said, "that relinquishes my duties. Plus, you don't actually pay me."_

"_And I'm a bad driver," AJ shrugged, "I wouldn't want anyone to get really hurt."_

"_And so stick the good-looking guy with the driving," Dolph shook his head, "I'm starting to think this relationship isn't equal at all."_

"_If E weren't here, I think it'd be equal."_

"_You two are disgusting," E rolled his eyes, "I don't need to hear this, you know, I have delicate sensibilities."_

"_Is that what's showing every week when you wear that singlet?" Dolph asked as AJ's jaw dropped and started laughing._

"_I don't have to take this, now if we have that match, I'm going to crush you," E told him as Dolph and AJ looked at each other, having a conversation with their eyes. "Okay, stop doing your stupid couple eye thing, like I can't see it back here."_

"_Sorry, E," AJ pouted at him, "but you know you love us."_

"_Debatable. Hell, nobody even thinks you love each other anymore."_

"_I don't even know if I love her anymore."_

"_That concussion knocked it all out of you," AJ shrugged, "but it's okay, I'll give you some reminding later."_

"_I'm not listening!" E said from the backseat. "I hate you both."_

"Aww, look, Layla, look at the poor crazy girl who has nobody except an overgrown lump of a man," Kaitlyn said as she walked closer to AJ. AJ narrowed her eyes as she stared at Kaitlyn. What was Kaitlyn going on about now?

"Excuse you Miss Can't Decide on a Hair Color?" AJ asked.

"I knew Dolph wouldn't be able to stand you for too long, and wasn't he supposed to be the wuv of your life?" Kaitlyn gave AJ an exaggerated lip pout, and AJ just stared at her, confused. Was Kaitlyn implying that she didn't know she and Dolph were only breaking up onscreen because everyone believed they were to begin with? Did she not know that Dolph and her were still together? But she thought everyone knew.

AJ looked to Layla, Layla had to know, she saw Dolph, AJ, and E arrive at the arena today. AJ saw Layla getting out of her own car and walking by as Dolph grabbed her bags from their trunk. She stared at Layla for a second, but the British diva didn't say anything, and the look on her face was unreadable. If Layla knew, why wouldn't she tell Kaitlyn? Kaitlyn had pretty much isolated herself from the other divas, losing their friendship after Payback, but Layla stuck by her. So why not now?

"What do you mean?" AJ said simply.

"I mean that you couldn't hold onto him, just like you couldn't hold onto Daniel…or Punk…or Kane…or Cena. Have you ever thought, AJ, that it's not them, but you? Maybe you're the one with the big problem. I don't blame Dolph though, nobody wants this kind of crazy in their life, I know I didn't," Kaitlyn waved her hand all around AJ. "In fact, I should go compliment him on his great taste in dumping you. I know the feeling. Now that he's single, I wonder if he'd be up for rekindling what we had, you know, that time you caught us making out."

AJ sucked at her teeth a little bit. She wanted to tear the blonde out of Kaitlyn's hair. People thought she was this really nice chick, but this is what she'd dealt with since she'd started dating Daniel Bryan. How was it okay for her supposed best friend to treat her like trash, but everyone thought Kaitlyn was right.

"Kaitlyn, maybe we should go," Layla said.

"No, I want to hear Crazy AJ over here try and talk her way out of this one," Kaitlyn said, and Layla stared at her critically.

AJ was about to tell her off, tell her that Dolph was still her boyfriend, and still loved her, but…where was the fun in that? She had the opportunity now to have something over Kaitlyn. If Kaitlyn thought this was a source of power for her, why not let her have it? AJ was not bothered by the fact that Kaitlyn once made out (awkwardly she might add) with her boyfriend. That was almost three years ago, and if Dolph didn't get mad about guys she made out with three weeks before they were together, why would she be mad about a woman he kissed three years before they were together?

"Oh yeah, I'm torn up about it," AJ pretended to sniffle. "You're so mean, Kaitlyn, God, I can't…I can't…"

She hopped off the crate and pretended to start sobbing as she ran away, hearing Kaitlyn laughing behind her. When she turned the corner, she rolled her eyes and straightened up. She almost ran back to her locker room, but managed a fast walk before she threw open the door and the first thing that greeted her was her boyfriend's trunk-clad butt. She gave a little cat call and he stood up and frowned at her.

"I was enjoying the view," she told him, "but oh my God, oh my God, you will never believe what just happened."

"I'd say you became the Diva's Champion, but I know you already are so…they are having a sale on Chucks somewhere, and you want me to take you tomorrow?"

"That'd be amazing," AJ said, "but… no. Kaitlyn doesn't know we're still together!"

"What, is she stupid or something?" Dolph asked, squinting his eyes. "We've been together backstage, we've been around each other, how does she not know?"

"I guess because nobody likes her anymore, nobody told her, but it was weird because Layla was with her, and Layla saw us today arriving together, so she has to know, something weird is going on there, but I can use this to my advantage, make Kaitlyn think that I'm just another dumped crazy chick. So I'm going to grab my stuff, wait, why am I grabbing my stuff, get your stuff out of here, and go to the men's locker room or something."

"You're kicking me out?"

"She doesn't know we're together, she's going to target that, don't you get it, baby? She'll think she has one over on me, but she doesn't, so yes, I'm kicking you out."

"I can be discreet, is she going to come in here?"

"I don't know, she could want to ambush me, it's kind of her thing."

Dolph walked up to AJ, wrapping his arms loosely around her shoulders. He leaned down and pressed his forehead against hers, "Babe, I love you, but she's not going to come in here, and I'm not leaving. She won't find out, I'll be extra, super mean to you when we're out there so it looks like I really hate you."

"Will you?" she batted her eyelashes.

"Yes, super, super mean, just rubbing everything in your face mean."

At least he prepared her somewhat. She went out there and slipped back into a person she used to be. It was easier to act crazier than she thought, in fact, all she had to do was think about what an actual break up with Dolph might do to her and that scary place she'd left last October was suddenly right back in front of her. Dolph finally made his appearance, and he didn't hold back. In fact, he didn't hold back at all, and it was actually a little disconcerting, even if she knew his words were false.

He never told her he was going to act like he'd been with other women in the time since they "broke up." That wasn't something they had discussed, and the thought of him with other women was enough to get a real reaction out of her. She knew Dolph loved her, but the thought of them breaking up and him being with other women that weren't her actually did make her angry. She shook it off, knowing that his feelings lied with her, and proceeded with the plan, grabbing his suitcase and pulling out his wallet. She put the scissors in her mouth, looking up at her boyfriend, and she could practically see him salivating as she gave him the business with her eyes. He told her to take those out of her mouth, and she pulled them out seductively. That should get him back for those other women comments.

She grabbed his driver's license with his goofy picture on it, and started to cut it up (he'd receive his new one in a few weeks, which had an equally goofy picture). Dolph continued to rag on her, so she grabbed the fake passport (his real one was in her purse for safe-keeping), and started to cut it up. Dolph talked about a girl at the passport office who he taught a leg trick too, and she almost dropped everything in her hands because she knew exactly what leg trick he was talking about, and she could not believe he brought that up.

For Dolph, it was payback for the scissors because he knew she was doing that on purpose, and it was like she was trying to get him to come down to that ring and make out with her, which is what he wanted to do. She looked beautiful tonight, and sexy, and all he wanted to do was slam her onto their bed, and…he had to focus, not think about something other than those scissors in her mouth. He continued his tirade as she threw his cash around the ring. Someone better pick that up and return it, he didn't expect her to throw that around.

What he did expect was for her to throw around the things in his suitcase, and this was going to be good. AJ opened the suitcase angrily, and she pawed around, looking for something and her hands landed on his…underwear. She wanted to start laughing because she didn't think he'd leave his underwear in here, and she threw them away from her, trying not to giggle. She pulled out the next picture, which was a picture they took when they were in Venice Beach, with him doing a David Hasselhoff run down the beach, and she had been laughing the entire time trying to take the picture. He did this on purpose. He purposely tried to put the funniest things in here, and she could barely throw things she wanted to laugh so hard. At the bottom was her shirt, the coup de grace, and at least he remembered that.

She pretended to be upset, crying, throwing a hissy fit as E tried to calm her, but she got out of the ring, and was about to leave when suddenly Dolph was telling her to watch out. She wondered what that was about before her back hit the mat and she was speared. Dolph couldn't believe what he was seeing, and he started walking down the ramp, wanting to make sure his girlfriend was alright. E got to her first and started to check on her, and Dolph had to remember the plan and he gave the Fame-asser to E. The plan was for AJ to come storming towards Dolph, but E trying to stop her and Dolph hitting E.

Kaitlyn was not in the plan anywhere. Dolph wanted desperately to check on AJ because she was clutching her middle and writhing around on the mat. Except he couldn't. He couldn't check on her, and with Kaitlyn thinking they were broken up too, he couldn't do anything but give a sarcastic, "Is she okay?" that he actually meant. He would just have to find out later if she was alright.

**Saturday**

"Wake up," AJ leaned over and kissed her boyfriend's cheek. Dolph groaned and rolled over. AJ rubbed his shoulders and kneaded the knots out of them. "Come on, wake up, you're 33 today!"

"Don't remind me," he muttered to her, burying his face in his pillow.

"But baby, it's your birthday, and your first gift is right here," she said saucily. He smiled without opening his eyes. He reached out and felt that she still had her tank top on.

"You're not naked, not worth it," he told her.

"Oh, come on, baby," AJ said, kissing his bare shoulder, "Don't you want me…"

"Yes, but I like sleeping too, besides, we've got that show tonight, you know, those live events we're doing before we go to South Africa tomorrow."

"I know, I know, because we did all those tapings this week, and I know you need your rest, but you like sexy times with me, and I'm offering sexy times since we haven't done it since Monday because we've been too tired, but I'm not tired now…"

"Baby…it's already afternoon…I let you sleep in, I've already had breakfast, I already went down to the gym, and worked out, and now I want to get sweaty with you."

"Well, when you put it like _that_," he turned over and stared up at her. She did have that just worked out glow to her, and it made her even sexier. He glanced over at the clock and was taken aback. "It's already 1:20, what the hell, babe?"

"You were really tired, I wanted you to get rest, and sleep in as long as you wanted because it's your birthday. Your gift is at home though, so you'll have to open it when we get back."

"Score, you got the sex swing, didn't you!" he joked with her as she gave him a playful slap to the chest. "Okay, so not the sex swing then."

"No, not a sex swing, gross, Ziggy, ugh, I don't even want to think about that," she said, "I know we have our…things, but I'm not into making entire rooms in our house designed for sex."

"You're no fun," he said, pulling her over him, "So…that birthday present still available for check out."

"That was lame," they both said at the same time and she leaned down to kiss him. "I tweeted you happy birthday."

"You did? How mean were you?"

"Not mean at all."

Stephanie glanced at her phone, willing it to ring, but it wasn't. "I just know that my father is probably feeding all these lines to Brad, and now that little punk isn't returning my phone calls. I swear, it's like my dad is not happy unless his fingerprints are all over the show. You know my family lives a long time, he's probably going to be this way when he's 97 and comes out in a wheelchair with an oxygen tank, just to tell old me how to do things.

"That's a really weird picture," Chris said. "And you do know that a corporate makeover thing for Daniel isn't going to work, right?"

"Yes, Chris, I'm well aware that it won't work," Stephanie rolled her eyes at her husband. "You know, sometimes, after eleven years, you're annoying, sorry to break it to you, but I know, I don't need him to get a makeover, that wasn't what that was about if you were paying attention."

"You just want to make it so your dad looks bad for his weird reverse psychology?"

"Something like that, I don't even know what I'm doing anymore," Stephanie put her head down on her desk. "Where are the kids?"

"My parents took them out to lunch, remember?" Chris said, coming over and physically lifting his wife out of her seat and bringing her over to the couch in her office. He sat down and pulled her into his lap, hugging her tightly. "You are too stressed right now. I knew this would happen once you asserted your presence once again. Stop worrying, stop trying to outsmart your dad. Let him do his thing, and then you do yours, okay, you correct his mistakes, stop trying to come up with something covert because your brain is frazzled."

"It does feel that way, oh man, I haven't even called Hunter to wish him a Happy Birthday," Stephanie pinched the bridge of her nose.

"It's the afternoon, baby," he told her, "You've got plenty of time to call him, and wish your ex-husband a happy birthday."

"Stop," she said, "I know I shouldn't want to constantly one up my father, but did you hear the aforementioned 97 years old and still trying to control everything? My father is never going to rest. He'll never retire because he's incapable. I'm doing a good job, right?"

"The best, you always do."

"Yet here I am, like always, like it's always been, being overshadowed by my father because everyone still thinks he's in charge, that he's the one running the show, and it bothers me that I'm never the one looked with authority. If my father ever truly retires or when he dies, people still won't respect me I'm sure. They'll suddenly want Shane back or something."

"Baby, this is the stress you don't need in your life, alright. You can talk to Brad when everyone is back from the tours, you can talk to Daniel, you can do a lot of things, but for the next week, you are not responsible for any more shows. So you should just take a breather from it. What happened, happened, you've got a week to come up with something to blow everyone out of the water. And you can talk to Hunter about it, and he can help you."

"Why do you have to go away again?"

"Because I love my music."

"I know, and you know I never want to inhibit you. We'll miss you for those couple weeks though."

"Except you're coming to Europe because there's no way in hell that I'm missing Flynn's birthday," Chris said, "I've never missed a single one of my kids' birthdays, and I don't intend to start now, so really, it will only be like a week and then a few days because you'll be coming."

"Yeah, true, I was trying to make it sound worse than it was to make you feel bad," she said, cupping his face. "I know you would never miss any of their birthdays. Our daughter is turning five soon, and our other daughter is turning three, where does the time even go?"

"We're not having another kid if that's what you're asking."

"I didn't say we should," Stephanie said, "I mean, not now, but maybe another wouldn't be terrible, I'd love another little boy—"

"Who adores you?"

"I never said that was a bad thing to want," Stephanie joked with him. "But maybe we kind of broke the mold with the boy we have."

"I think we did…you know, someday you're going to be your father, clinging to the company while our kids try to run it, so you really shouldn't talk too badly about your father."

"Don't side with him, you get to stick in _me_, and I don't think you want to lose that privilege, especially when you're going on tour for a while," Stephanie pressed her finger into her husband's nose as a warning.

"If that happened, do you know how many women on this tour would be willing to help me out," he told her, which simply caused her face to darken to the point he felt the need to add, "I'm obviously joking."

"I know," she said brightly, "but I was just giving you a taste of the face you'll see if you ever do that to me. I would follow it up with me clawing your eyes out, but we'll save that for it if ever happens."

"Which it won't, I like my eyes."

"I like them too, so let's not ruin them," she said, leaning over to kiss him. "With the kids out to lunch…"

"I thought you were angry."

"I need a stress reliever, is there one nearby," she said, her hands going lower on his body.

"Oh yeah, there's one nearby."

AJ huffed as she went backstage, angry that she'd lost to Kaitlyn. She was the champion, and she was sick of getting speared. "Not on top of your game, AJ?" Kaitlyn asked as she walked backstage after her victory. "I bet it's because your boyfriend…oops, I mean your _ex-boyfriend_ is happier without you."

"Shut up," AJ said, more angry over her loss than Kaitlyn's words. She was trying to stay calm because it was Dolph's birthday, and she had a surprise for him after his match. She would not let Kaitlyn ruin it.

"Do you think he's had anyone over for his birthday? I mean, with him single now, you'd think he'd want to get laid on his birthday."

"I will eat your face," AJ said, stepping up to Kailtyn, breathing heavily. Luckily for AJ (or maybe for Kaitlyn), E was nearby, and he came over and stepped up next to AJ.

"Oh, hey probable new boyfriend for AJ because she needs to go from guy to guy. Don't worry, E, she'll somehow go crazy and you can dump her, later," Kaitlyn said, walking away from the two of them.

"She really is getting cocky," E said, looking down at AJ.

"Yeah, she is," AJ said, "she's just mad because her last friend turned on her. But that's okay, let her bitterness rule her life, and I will live happily with everything I want, which is my title, my dog, and my boyfriend."

"Was that in order?"

"No," AJ said, but then added, "maybe…"

"I know why you're so happy today, and it's disgusting, so quit it."

"What? Please, E, like you didn't know we were going to do stuff today of all days, it's his birthday, and this is Dolph Ziggler—"

"Okay, you just stop right there," E held his hand up. "I have a match, and I don't want to spend the time between now and then dry heaving over the thought of you two."

"Sorry, E," she patted him on the shoulder. "It's okay if I don't go out with you, right?"

"Yeah, of course," he said, "you've got to take care of your cake."

"Yup," AJ said, but good luck though.

Waiting until the end of the show was like torture. She just wanted it to be over. When Dolph's match was on, she stood backstage with her cake for her boyfriend. She knew they'd have to play it up like they hated each other, but really, she was so excited to be out there with him. They'd asked him if he wanted an entire locker room celebration, and he didn't, so most of the wrestlers had already left because they all had an early flight to South Africa. Kaitlyn was gone too so she wouldn't even get to see that she and her boyfriend were fine. Oh well, it's not like she cared.

When she saw Del Rio run backstage and away, she knew it was her chance to go out there. She grabbed the microphone handed to her and stepped through the curtains, singing badly for her boyfriend. He told her at home that she really shouldn't quit her day job whenever he caught her singing. She returned the favor because he wasn't a great singer either, any children they had was sure to be tone deaf. She climbed into the ring and told him that even though they broke up, she would take him back as a present. Actually, she'd probably give him more sex as a present, but that wasn't going to happen in this ring.

Dolph acted like he was contemplating actually kissing her just once, and AJ nodded like she wanted it. "You know what I have to do, right?" he told her as she nodded her head, giving him a look that said she wasn't happy, but knew what was coming. He counted to three to give her time to prepare then smashed the cake in her face.

"At least it's yummy," she told him.

"Well, I'll clean it off you later," he whispered to her, leaning in before he made a move to leave. AJ knew that everyone wanted to see her get the cake smashed in her face, but…well…maybe she should have some fun. Before Dolph knew what was happening, AJ smashed the cake into his face. The startled Dolph was pushed back into the ropes by his petite girlfriend and as she pulled the cake back, it all fell in between them.

"Sorry, Ziggy, but tit for tat," she said, wiping the cake in her face. She grabbed a chunk of it, and fed it to him. Despite coming off his body, he ate the cake she offered.

"Not bad," he told her and she smiled up at him, grabbing the chunks left and dropping any pretense that they hated each other. She couldn't do it. It was her boyfriend's 33rd birthday, and it was his first birthday she was actually celebrating with him. Last year at this time, she was a mess of a person, someone who couldn't find her place in the world, who clung to any scraps a guy threw at her. She was not living a life, she was a sad, desperate woman.

Now she had this man who made her a better person, who loved her for everything she was and didn't hate her for everything she wasn't. Who took her moods in stride, and who saw her mistakes as just that, mistakes, not something to be reviled nor turned away from. He loved every part of her, and she, in turn, loved every part of him. She wanted this to be the start of many birthdays together.

She chased the referee away with the cake before walking back over to her boyfriend, smashing the leftover cake into his chest and smearing it down his perfect body. He just watched her as she moved her hands lower, and his eyes widened as she started to rub her hands around his waist and wrap them around to his butt. He thought she might grab a handful, but instead, she just leaned in and gave him a spontaneous hug.

"I love you," she told him quietly.

She pulled back and left the ring so the rest of the crowd could sing to him. When he got backstage, he started stalking towards her, crooking his finger at her. "Come here, you."

"No," she said.

"Get your tiny butt over here," he said, grabbing her around the waist and leaning down to kiss her. "We did not plan cake for me."

"It was your birthday, it was appropriate," she told him as she wiped some of the cake from his face. "You had to have some of the cake."

"I'd rather eat it off your body than mine," he said, licking up her jaw, "Yum, much better."

"Happy Birthday, baby."

**Monday**

Stephanie settled into the couch, letting Flynn's head fall against her leg. "Mommy, how come we're not at wrestling, it's Monday."

"Because all the wrestlers are overseas, so we taped everything last week, remember?"

"Oh, but then I already saw the wrestling and everything," Flynn said, disappointed that she wasn't going to see new wrestling tonight. "I want to see the wrestling now, where is everyone?"

"Some of them are in Australia, and some of them are in South Africa," Stephanie explained as Chris came into the room with Kensington in one arm and a bowl of popcorn in the other. Sawyer trailed behind him with a bowl of pretzels. Chris and Kensington settled on the couch next to Flynn and Stephanie while Sawyer took one of the loveseats. Raw started and everyone quieted down for it to start.

"Grandpa is weird," Sawyer said as he watched his grandfather walk down the ramp.

"Grandpa _is_ weird," Flynn giggled.

"I agree," Stephanie said, brushing her fingers through Flynn's hair as she watched her father start to talk about Daniel Bryan and John Cena. Then Bryan came out and had words with her father, harsh words too, and she was actually glad to see Daniel standing up to her father. That's the kind of thing he actually liked. Her father liked seeing tenacity in someone, strength of character was always something he appreciated.

"Why Grandpa mean?" Kensington wondered in her small, girly voice.

"Because he sometimes doesn't think what he's doing is mean," Chris explained to her. "Sometimes, he thinks he's doing the right thing, but he's not really doing the right thing. Daniel is a good wrestler, huh?"

"I think he is," Sawyer said, "he's really good when he does matches."

"I agree," Chris said, "I think he's going to be champion."

"Not if he my dad has anything to say about it," Stephanie said, "he can't see talent in some guys. He's so used to the standard huge guy, sometimes he overlooks the better, smaller ones. That's where I come in."

"Because Dad's not huge," Sawyer added.

"Hey! Way to insult your father," Chris said, pretending to be upset.

"Sorry, Dad, but you're not, sometimes you're shorter than who you face, but that doesn't mean you're bad, you're the best in the world at what you do."

"Yup, even Punk said so," Flynn told him.

"Punk said that?"

"Yup, he said that when I was with him last week, I miss him, he's my best friend, and he should live here and not in Chicago, I know where he lives, Mommy, because he told me, have I ever been to Chicago?"

"Yes, you have, multiple times, baby girl," Stephanie told her.

"We should visit Punk's house then, he might have really cool things to play with," Flynn reasoned.

"Maybe," Stephanie laughed, glancing over at Chris, who just shrugged and went with it. "He might not have many things you'd like though, you have to remember that Punk is a grown up, and he doesn't have any kids, so he probably doesn't have a lot of toys that you would like."

"Oh, that's okay, I like him."

"I know, baby girl," she said.

They fell into silence again, just watching the show until AJ's match came on, and she lost. "Mommy, AJ is nice, but I don't think she's not with…um…Dolph, that's his name, it's so silly a name."

"It is a pretty silly name, but Flynn is kind of silly too."

"No way!"

"Mom, how come they're together, but not on the show?" Sawyer asked. "I saw them kissing each other, but they're pretending to hate each other on the show, is it like you and Dad when you hated each other, but you really liked each other?"

"I really didn't like your dad," Stephanie said, "how many times do I have to explain that? I hated him, he was mean and horrible to me."

"And your mom was the same to me, she threw water on me."

"You hit me in the face with a pie."

"You had me gored through a set."

"You put me in the Walls while I was in a skirt."

"You cost me my chance at being King of the Ring."

"Because you kissed me."

"And you liked it," he returned.

"Lies."

"Mommy, you like Daddy's kisses though."

"Not that one."

"She kissed me back," Chris said.

"I was grabbing onto you for dear life," Stephanie huffed.

"So…Dolph and AJ are just pretending?" Sawyer asked, bringing the conversation back to his question as he watched Dolph and E start their match. Stephanie nodded. "And he really doesn't hate Big E, right, they're friends too?"

"Yeah, they're all friends."

"So why pretend like that? Is it like when you and Hunter pretend like you're married even though you're not anymore, and you're married to Dad, which is kind of weird that you would pretend like that."

"I agree, it is weird, and they're pretending because they want to do something for the fans because they all thought they were going to break up, but they don't want to be together onscreen anymore because it's hurting their relationship," Chris explained.

"I think I get it," Sawyer said, "but it's still kind of silly to pretend."

"_AJ, can we talk?" _

_AJ turned from her phone to E. "Sure, what is it?"_

"_I've been thinking, when all of this is said and done, between you and Dolph and all that, I don't…and don't take this the wrong way, I don't think I want to stay just your bodyguard/lackey/dude that hangs around you. I want to compete…"_

"_So you want to break up with me?" AJ asked._

"_Well, I was hoping to avoid that because I know how you act around your exes, and I fear for my life and my singlet because you get grabby sometimes, but…yeah, I guess I do think it might be in our best interests—"_

"_Okay," AJ said, "you'll always be my friend, E, someone who actually stuck by me through everything and didn't judge, but I've seen you wrestle, and I know what you can do, and you should get that chance."_

"_I'm glad you see it that way, I was afraid you might not."_

"_No, of course I do," she said, "and we'll do something tonight, something that can set that in motion. I'll plan something, you'll see."_

_And so she did. It was going to be sad seeing all of them breaking apart, but it was going to be better for their careers in the long run. Dolph could go after the elusive championship he so desired to hold for more than a couple months, she wanted to ensure the title stayed around her waist, and E deserved to dominate everyone and anyone that stepped in his path._

_Her match with Kaitlyn did not go according to plan. She was in control, and Kaitlyn speared her again. She didn't even know why she had to face Kaitlyn again. She'd had her chances at the title, and it was now time to relinquish her wish to get her title back. She just wasn't going to win the big matches against AJ. Let her have the small matches, they meant nothing when the title was on the line. Still, she had to play up her craziness for Dolph because he was just about to come out here and challenge E for a match. They would think of it as a teaser for something bigger since Dolph and E planned to have something at SummerSlam. She wasn't sure what, letting them talk about it, but something was going to happen with them._

_She was just getting helped up by E when Dolph came out to tease her and berate her and not mean a single word of it. She learned to tune it out for the most part because she knew he loved her, even as he mocked her. He made the match, and she was forced to the sidelines, forced to watch as two people she cared about, one she loved, were going to face off._

"_Don't hold back," Dolph whispered to E._

"_Wouldn't heard of it."_

_And boy did he not hold back. It was actually concerning AJ. She wanted to help Dolph, but couldn't, and he would not appreciate that, so she stood there and watched. She knew she should act like she hated Dolph, but right now, she couldn't. Time could come for that later, but right now, she couldn't smile. The match wore on, with Dolph only getting in offense here and there. She was not surprised by E's domination, and she knew Dolph wouldn't either, but selfishly, she wanted her boyfriend to win._

_Then it came to her. _

_The seeds, the seeds to let E be free were right in front of her. Dolph was going to probably be so mad at her later, but she'd deal with it. When Dolph got E out of the ring, she ran in and charged at her boyfriend. She jumped on him, clawing at him and startling the hell out of him. Dolph didn't know she was going to do this so he flailed around, although, to be fair, his face was right in her breasts so he didn't flail too much, but eventually, the referee tried to pull her away, and she accidentally grabbed his hair. She let go as he crawled out of the ring. _

_E climbed back in and he was actually kind of mad she would cost him the match like that, until he realized just why she'd done it. She was trying to let him go slowly. He appreciated that until Dolph came out of nowhere with the Zig Zag, and he should have realized his friend would get back at him. AJ stared at her boyfriend, wanting to smile, but she just glared._

_Things were going according to plan._

"AJ is scary," Flynn said.

"Well, she's just pretending, remember?"

"Oh yeah," Flynn said, "just pretend."

Later on, Stephanie watched as she was pretending too. Pretending it wasn't funny that her father burned Hunter pretty bad with his younger opponent comment. But she knew her father was pretending to pull this reverse psychology stuff on Daniel Bryan. He didn't want Daniel to win. Cena was a cash cow. Her father loved cash cows, and therefore he loved Cena.

"_What do you think my father is really doing?" she asked Hunter._

"_I think what your father is doing is making Daniel angry actually. It's not reverse psychology if your father really doesn't think he can win."_

"_Yeah…"_

"_A corporate makeover!" Daniel Bryan stormed into the room, a bundle of indignation. "No! No! No!"_

"_Daniel, I just said it to get my dad off your back…how did you even get here so fast?"_

"_I saw it on a monitor," he said, "so you…won't try to give me a makeover."_

"_No."_

"_Do you think I can win?"_

"_My husband is like two inches taller than you are and was the first ever Undisputed Champion, what do you think?"_

"_Okay, well…I guess I'll leave," Daniel said, sneaking away._

"_My dad is just lighting a fire under him. He's going to be champion, I think, what about you?"_

"_I think he is too, but let your father think that he won't be, it'll bruise his pride when Daniel does win. And the guy deserves it, he's worked hard, hearing your father hate him is only going to spur him on more, I know it did for me."_

"_Okay, so let my father fall into his own trap? Then watch as he crumbles in anger when it backfires on him. I think I can do that."_

"Mom, do you think Grandpa is right when he says Daniel won't win? He was kind of mean about that too," Sawyer said. Stephanie looked at him, straight in the eye.

"No, I think Grandpa is very, very wrong."


	430. Intersection, August 5, 2013

A/N: Again, sorry for the delay, I'm just still exhausted from my trip. Anyways, not much happening this chapter, next chapter will include Flynn's birthday, which should be fun.

Anyways, I started a new HaK-related poll on my profile. Since one of the things I always get asked or is always brought up is H/Britt vs. Punk/Britt, I'm leaving it up to you. So enjoy, and vote! :)

* * *

"Seat taken?"

Britt tried to shove her boyfriend off, but he sat down on her lap anyways, completely covering her because he was so much bigger. Britt was strong though, and it didn't even phase her. "Excuse me, but you're blocking my view."

"Oh, really, I'm sorry," he said, getting up and off her. She stood up and he sat down in the chair previously occupied by her. She slid in the back of the chair and situated her tiny body behind his in the small space left, her legs on either side of him.

"You sing really well, I didn't know you had that talent, when are you going to start singing me to sleep?" she asked. He pinched her leg and she giggled as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Oh, come on, you really weren't that bad. Did you want to go back down to our seats after you give your interview?"

"Yeah, sure, we can watch the rest of the game," he told her with a nod. "You're having fun, right?"

"I love baseball, I'm having a blast, even if this isn't my favorite team."

"Your favorite team is the Mariners, hardly anything to write home about," he scoffed.

"I lived in Washington for a time," Britt leaned forward to kiss his cheek. "You better go for your interview, commercial's over."

Punk stood up and Britt situated herself back down in her seat as she watched her boyfriend go to the booth and put the headphones back on to do his interview. She smiled and watched as he talked with the announcers, her eyes occasionally flitting to the game playing on the TV screens in the room, but her eyes just wouldn't leave Punk for very long. She was happy here, with him, happy and content, and she hadn't felt that for a long time.

Her relationship with Hunter felt too tumultuous. It was breaking up and making up, and just too much sometimes. She loved him, she loved him enough to want to be with him the rest of her life, but in the end, that just wasn't enough. Her love wasn't enough for him, and maybe his devotion wasn't enough for her. She didn't know, but she was over that now, as over it as she was going to get, and she was happy. Punk made her happy, and their life together made her happy too.

"Hey, seats?" he said when he was through, breaking her from her reverie. She nodded and took the hand he offered, pulling her up out of her chair and slinging his arm around her shoulder. She was so petite next to him, she probably looked like a little kid tucked in his side, but she wrapped her arm around his waist and leaned into him as they walked back down to their seats. Punk could very easily get a private box, but he liked being in the action, and she respected that about him.

Occasionally, someone would come over and politely introduce themselves and want to say hello. Britt was used to it by now, even with Hunter it was the same thing. She would take a step back and let Punk do his thing and they would proceed further down until someone else stopped him. A lot of people would simply wave to him though, knowing that he was not the type of guy who liked rude people horning in on his off-time, but her Punk was more gracious than people gave him credit for.

They eventually made it back to their seats, and she leaned her head on his shoulder as they watched the bottom of the eight inning start (they'd missed the top of the eighth walking back to their seats). He reached down and grabbed her hand, giving it a squeeze as his eyes trained on the field. "You're having fun, right?"

"Yes," she insisted, "God, sometimes you are annoying."

"I am God, thanks for noticing that."

"Jerk," she said to him. "I'm having fun. Stop asking."

"Sorry, sorry," he told her.

"I'm glad you're having fun though," Britt told him. She pulled away and looked up at him. "I really am. I know things have been…annoying for you since the Heyman thing, and I know you like leaving work at work with this crazy new rule of yours, but I just want to say that I'm happy to see you happy."

"I am happy," he told her, "well, I would be happier if you did one thing for me."

"Okay, but I'm not having sex with you anywhere in this stadium, sorry, I know it's historical and all that, but I have my limits."

"While it is tempting to take you against the ivy in the outfield—"

"Who knows what's in there," she joked, and he laughed, "okay, sorry, what is it? Is it bad? Do you want me to do you a favor? Oh, and don't forget to bring Flynn's present with you to Raw because she is not going to be here on her actual birthday—"

"I know that," he told her, "and I am. Move here."

"What?" Britt shook her head.

"Britt, you practically live here as it is. But you keep that place in New York for some unknown reason, and I'm saying move here. You don't have to move in with me, that's not even what I'm asking, but if you wanted to, sure, why not? But move here. I like you here, Chicago likes you here, it suits you. New York doesn't suit you. I have never seen anyone pack away a deep dish pizza like you can—"

"I'm a trained eater, I've been doing it my entire life," she kidded.

"So you belong here."

"So I don't have to move in with you?"

"Nope," he told her, "you could get yourself a mansion if you wanted, as long as you're here."

"I think you grossly overestimate how much Stephanie pays me," Britt laughed, "I'll think about it."

Punk groaned and threw his head back, "You think too much, sometimes you should just do."

Punk was being selfish and he knew it, but there was a part of him that always was selfish when it came to Britt. He knew, at the beginning, he went about this the wrong way, he went about getting her in the absolute worst way possible. He knew he should have backed off. And to a certain extent, he did, but probably not enough, but he knew what was there. He could feel that it was right with her, and it just made him not want to give up on her, not ever.

So he didn't, and this was another time he didn't want to give up. He wanted her here with him, he wanted her to call this home. If she didn't want to move in with him, that was fine, but her being in Chicago would be more than enough. He was always kind of afraid of pushing her too hard. Even though she was hesitant to say it, and never really did come out and say it forthrightly, he knew that the commitment Hunter tried to foist upon her was the reason for their split. She wasn't ready, and he was.

"I know, I said I'll think about it," she told him, "I'll think about whether I want to move in with you or whether I want my own place."

"Well…wait, does that mean you'll move to Chicago?"

"There's nothing tethering me to New York," Britt told him, "I have friends there, but no family, I work from home anyways when we're not traveling, relocating wouldn't be a big deal."

"Just like that? You give in just like that?"

"There's no giving in, Phil," Britt rolled her eyes, "I like it here, like you said, I just need to think about the living arrangements, give me a few days, the last time I lived with someone, well, you know what happened, but give me a few days, alright?"

"Okay, cool, great, I will give you all the time you need," he kissed her temple, "now if only the Cubs could actually score, this day would be amazing."

"Oh, honey," Britt leaned her head back on her shoulder, "as a Mariners fan who has suffered as well—"

"Not nearly as long."

"Of course not, not with these lovable losers around," she jerked her thumb towards the diamond, "but you should just get used to the suffering."

"Believe me, I am."

Flynn craned her neck around the room. She thought she heard Punk's voice, but she wasn't sure she heard it. She'd talked to him on the phone the night before, and he told her had a present for her, and she just couldn't wait to get it. Her mother said no presents before her birthday, but she might make an exception for her best friend. Flynn felt a tap on her shoulder and looked over at her mother.

"Flynnie, please sit down and finish your food," Stephanie told her daughter. Chris was already overseas so it was just her with the kids. Sawyer was at an age where he could help though, and he was making sure Kensington was doing alright with her food while Stephanie tried to rein in her unruly daughter.

"I was just looking for Punk," Flynn explained, "I thought I heard his voice."

"I don't think he's here, you're probably just wanting him to be here," Stephanie ran her hand over her daughter's hair. "He'll be here, he's probably already here, but he'll come find you, I'm sure."

"I'm not gonna get to see him for my birthday, Mommy, because we're going to be in Europe," Flynn said, "but he can come to my party on the weekend, right, Mommy, he's coming to that, isn't he?"

"He said he might, he has to see," Stephanie told her daughter, tucking some of her hair behind her ear now. Her hair was always some kind of mess. No matter how Stephanie styled it, somehow it would come loose and make her daughter look unkempt. She figured it was just the way her daughter was meant to look.

"I hope he does," Flynn grabbed her apple juice and took a sip. "You only turn five once, Mommy."

"I know," Stephanie told her with a wink.

"Sawa, you were five forever ago," Flynn told him as she went back to her food. "Now you're seven, but Kensy isn't even three yet."

"I gonna be," Kensington told her sister, frowning at the implication that she would never be old.

"You are going to be," Stephanie immediately diffused the situation, "and Flynn, you're going to be five, and Kensy is going to be three, and we're going to have great parties, and we're going to celebrate."

"Mommy, I don't gotta give my presents away to anyone, right?" Flynn asked again. Ever since her birthday started drawing closer, Flynn would ask her parents repeatedly if she was expected to give up her presents like Sawyer did.

"For the five thousandth time, Flynnie, no, you don't, you can keep all your presents if you want, unless you get duplicates, if you get the same toy twice then one will go to charity, but otherwise, you're good," Stephanie told her. Her daughter was trying her patience tonight, but it was a show night, and she knew most of the stress came from the show, and not her daughter.

"Okay, Sawa, I'm going to keep my toys, is that okay?" Flynn sought the approval of her big brother. While she loved him more than anything, she really didn't want to give up all her toys. She always got a good haul, and she really wanted them.

"Yeah, sure," Sawyer shrugged, "I just like doing things like that, Flynnie, but it doesn't mean you have to too. You can keep them, and that's okay."

She beamed at him, "Okay, I'm keeping them, but maybe I can give a couple, is that okay?"

"Yeah," Sawyer said for lack of anything better to say.

"I think that sounds like a wonderful idea, Flynnie," Stephanie leaned over and kissed her head. "Now all three of you, finish your dinner because I've got the first thing on the show, and I can't have all three of you with me."

"Just me, Mommy," Kensington grinned at her mother with the biggest, cheesiest grin she could. It looked exactly like her father's, and Stephanie leaned over to the other side and pressed a kiss to Kensington's slightly messy cheek.

"What!" Flynn exclaimed. "Uh uh, if I can't go out there, Mommy, Kensy definitely cannot go out there!"

"Nobody's going out there with me," Stephanie shook her head, "you will all be backstage watching, nobody gets to be there but me. Got that?"

"Okay," Flynn said, but she was slightly disappointed. Well, she was until something was set down in front of her. She turned her head and squealed when she saw it was Punk. She turned around and knelt on her chair, throwing her arms open. Punk lifted her out of her seat and hugged her. Her legs were getting long and gangly, and they dangled as she threw her arms around his neck in a giant hug.

"Hey there, kiddo," Punk said, "I missed your stupid face."

"I missed _your_ stupid face," Flynn giggled.

"Oh great, thanks for teaching her that," Stephanie told Punk.

"I'm teaching her to cut killer promos," Punk shrugged. He turned to the other two, "Hey, you two, you keeping this one in line?"

"Uh uh," Kensington shook her head.

"Good, that's what I like to hear," Punk said, "but, since I can't be there on your birthday Wednesday, I brought your gift tonight so you can open it when you're with your dad…or if your mom lets you, you can open it now." Punk sent Stephanie a persuasive yet goofy smile.

"Go ahead," Stephanie gave in and Punk grinned and set Flynn back down on her chair. Stephanie moved her nearly finished plate of food out of the way as Punk pushed the gift in front of her. It was a long flat box, and Stephanie wondered what Flynn was receiving. She trusted Punk's judgment though, even though his interactions with children were limited at best. It wasn't going to be something dangerous.

Flynn ripped open the paper like her life depended on it, and she opened the box, throwing the lid carelessly to the ground. Stephanie groaned at the thought of cleaning up after her daughter, but looked keenly on as Flynn gasped, her jaw dropping almost comically. "Punk!" Flynn turned to him, throwing her arms around his waist as he stood there. "You're my best friend!"

"I better be," Punk told her, ruffling her head as he returned the hug with one hand patting her on the back.

Stephanie looked over, as did Sawyer and Kensington, trying to get a peek of what was in the box. Flynn pulled it out and Stephanie saw it was a replica WWE Championship belt, but that wasn't the unique thing about it. The unique thing was that it was considerably smaller than the actual one, in fact, it looked to be the exact size for Flynn's waist. And where the plates were for Cena, there was a couple new plates. One was Punk's 'Best in the World' logo, and on the other side was a Y2J logo.

"Punk, this is the coolest thing ever!" Flynn told him, gawking at the belt some more.

"Punk, how did you do this?"

"Well, I just got the template, and asked the dude who made the actual belt make one for her," Punk shrugged one shoulder. "I figured I'd include her dad since he's her favorite wrestler, but I really should have just kept it me."

"I love it!" Flynn said, "I'm gonna wear it all the time, ooh, Mommy, can I wear this to Kindergarten!"

"I'm not sure that's dress code appropriate," Stephanie told her daughter. "Punk, you really didn't have to—"

"Stephanie, she's my best friend, I treat my best friends well, thank you very much," Punk explained to her. "It wasn't even a huge deal. It's just a replica, it's not like I went out there, beat John Cena, took the title back, and gave it to her. I should do that though, once I'm finished with Lesnar."

"And you'll give it to her? You wouldn't cradle it like a baby?" Stephanie asked.

"I'm not AJ," Punk scoffed, "but better on me than on Cena, I really hope Daniel wins that thing then I can win it off him. He's only the 2nd best guy here."

"My daddy's the best," Flynn said, running her fingers over the belt.

"Yeah, well, you're biased," he told her, "do you like your gift?"

"I love it, thank you," Flynn grinned up at him, but tore her eyes away soon after to go back to admiring the belt. "Punk, can I hang out with you?"

"That would actually help me out," Stephanie said, "I have top of the show for my Daniel thing."

This immediately caused Punk to sit down on the other side of Flynn. "Okay, spill the beans on this one, Stephanie, and don't even try to play me or beat around the bush with me, what the hell are you up to with this one? Everyone knows you always have a plan."

"What?" Stephanie guffawed, acting like she was in shock. "I do not, people don't even get me half the time."

"But I do because I know you," Punk raised his eyebrows and stared at her critically, "what is it you have planned? I have a feeling you're not on either side in this fight. In fact, I think you're the one who's controlling it."

"Punk, _Phil_, you overestimate my abilities around here," she shrugged. "I'm merely trying to bridge a gap between the two of them. My actual husband, he doesn't care what happens in the business, he loves it either way, but I'm trying to play referee in a tug-of-war between two men who breathe this business."

"Steph," Punk laughed at her. "_Stephanie_, I've been your friend for how long now?"

"You're not my friend," she shook her head, "you're my daughter's friend."

"Very funny, but I know you," Punk said, "I guess I just sit back and watch?"

"I guess you could do that."

"You know Daniel is not going to go with this corporate makeover…or are you banking on that?" Punk finished, giving Stephanie a stare. She shrugged and turned to make sure Kensington finished her broccoli. Punk just shook his head. "Flynnie, you finished with your food?"

"Mommy, am I finished?" Flynn asked.

"Sure, you can go. Do you want to bring your belt?"

"Uh huh, I'm gonna wear it," she hopped off her chair and grabbed her belt. "Can you help me put it on…please!"

"Sure," Stephanie said, grabbing the belt and putting it around Flynn's waist. It fit her perfectly and she turned to grin at her mother. "Wow, you look like a champion now. I think you'd make a better champion than anyone, don't you?"

"Except Daddy because he's the best."

"Daddy _is_ the best," Sawyer said, "sorry, Punk."

"No offense taken, you're probably paid to say that," Punk told him as Sawyer laughed. "Come on, Flynnie, let's go find something to be angry at, and you can tell them that you're the WWE champion. Maybe we can even find John."

"Or Mr. Heyman."

"I don't like him," Sawyer piped in. "He's really mean, and he was mean to you, Punk, do you think you're going to beat Brock?"

"Yeah, I do, I'm better than him in the ring," Punk said. Sawyer looked encouraged. "I'll even dedicate a little bit of it to your mom since I know she doesn't like Heyman."

"I think Mom would like that, don't you, Mom?"

"I'd appreciate that."

"Punk, let's go find Mr. Heyman, and I'll kick him!" Flynn said. "Champions kick sometimes when they're wrestling, so I'll wrestle and kick him, it'll be fun!"

"Flynnie, no kicking," Stephanie reminded her. Her daughter, for all her good qualities, still tried to pick wrestling fights. It wasn't that she wanted to necessarily fight someone, she just wanted to wrestle someone and show off her skills. She could never remember that maybe not everyone liked wrestling as much as her.

"One kick?" Punk asked nicely, holding up his finger. "It'll be funny."

"I'm trying to teach my daughter not to be aggressive."

"It'll be teaching her how to kick properly."

"No, okay," Stephanie pointed at him.

"Fine, but you're no fun, Mom," Punk said, pretending to be exasperated, "you know, I could take one of the others if you wanted, I'm not on until later with my match against the newest Heyman guy. He's like a prize collector at this point."

"I'm going to hang out with Chrissy," Sawyer explained.

"And Kensy wants to stay with me," Stephanie said, "but you guys go, have fun, watch my daughter or it's your head on a platter."

"I wouldn't dream of losing her," Punk stood up, lifting Flynn up and onto the ground. Flynn immediately took Punk's hand, walking off, her little voice fading as she told Punk about all the things she wanted from her birthday. Stephanie was just about to turn to her other kids when Christian sat down next to Sawyer.

"Hey, kid, you ready?" Christian said. "Edge bought you some comics, we can go check those out."

"Okay," Sawyer said, "how's Trish?"

"She's good, thanks for asking," Christian said. "She wishes she could be here, but traveling just isn't her thing right now. She seems bigger now than she did with Tilden, I don't know why, but oh well."

"We're going for lunch when I get back from Europe," Stephanie said, "she's making me want another baby, I have to admit."

"Does Chris know about that?" Christian asked.

"Maybe," Stephanie said, "we've discussed it, but then it's like, we have three children already, do we really want four? It just seems insane when you think about it. Four children? I've always wanted a big family, but after three, it felt done, you know, like three is a good number, but then I see Trish, and I see how excited Tilden is, and I want that again."

"Maybe you will, you two seem to get pregnant without even trying. I'm sure if you actually _tried_ to have a baby, he'd just have to touch your hand, and you'd be pregnant," Christian told her, and Stephanie resisted the urge to throw him the middle finger.

"Where do babies even come from?" Sawyer asked. "I mean, I know that moms have them, but how do they get there?"

Christian stifled his laughter, "You want to field your son's question, Steph?"

"Ask your dad when he comes back," Stephanie slickly maneuvered her way out of that one. "Did you want to go with Christian now?"

"Yeah, sure, I'll see you later, Mom," Sawyer barely managed a wave before he was off too. Stephanie turned to the baby of her family, leaning he chin on her hand and staring at the dirty blonde-haired little girl with the blue-gray eyes, more gray than blue now. Kensington smiled at her again.

"I guess it's just you and me, huh? When are you going to get yourself your own WWE best friend, and I'll just dump you off with them? Who do you like around here?"

"Um…" Kensington looked to the ceiling, smiled, and came back down. "Everyone?"

"Oh, so you're one of those," Stephanie said as she grabbed all the plates at the table, bringing them over to the bus station. She came back over and lifted Kensington from her booster seat. "You have to be more discerning, baby girl. Pick favorites, that's how it's done around here. That's what's happening with Grandpa and Hunter, they both think they know what's best and who's best, and instead, they don't realize that _I'm_ best.

Stephanie wasn't used to starting off the show anymore. It'd been a long time since it was just her in that ring, but it felt like home. If her father wasn't such a dick and let her run things like she wanted to, this could have been a regular occurrence. Instead, she was here to introduce the new corporate version of Daniel Bryan. She'd put Bryan through the ringer today, and he still didn't exactly look the part, but she tried…tried to make it so he'd hate every second of it.

He did. He did exactly what she'd hoped, revert back to his old ways, hate everything about corporate Daniel Bryan. It would put more distance between her father and Hunter. Yes, she was playing a game with them both, one they knew she was playing, but didn't at the same time. Her father expected her to pull something sneaky, not something that was so blatant. She was playing this out in the open. She didn't know why this thing escalated so quickly between her father and Hunter, but she figured somewhere along the line she had something to do with it, and for that reason, she'd take the credit.

When she left Daniel there, she saw her father backstage, "You tried, Stephanie, but I think I need to talk to him," he told her.

"I mean, I don't think he looks too bad," Stephanie said, which he didn't. He wasn't the most well-kept man, that was for sure, but he was definitely looking more…put together so to speak. Her father would rub it in his face that he wasn't the typical wrestler, which would incite her ex-husband, who saw something in Daniel. She did too, but she'd never subscribed to her father's assumptions about a wrestler's worth based on size. If she did, she would not be married to the man she was married to.

"Oh, come on, look at him out there, he looks like a damn fool," Vince said, "a damn fool."

Punk snuck up behind Britt and wrapped his arms around her waist, kissing her neck. "Really, at work?"

"Sorry, couldn't help myself."

"Punk, how much do you like Britt?" Flynn piped in.

"I love her a lot," Punk told her as Britt looked down at the little girl.

"Oh, you got your gift, Flynnie!" Britt gushed. "Do you like it?"

"I love it," Flynn brushed her hands over her belt. "Punk has a match against Curtis Axel tonight, and he's going to be the best. And kick Mr. Heyman for me because Mommy said I couldn't."

"You are?" Britt asked her boyfriend.

"Yup, do you want me to do anything particular for you? A GTS, a roundhouse kick, anything?"

"Just win," she kissed him, "and get me a key for your place."

"You already—oh, oh, okay, wow, cool, I am…awesome," he nodded, smiling at her. Flynn stared up at them, wondering what the hell was going on. "I will see you later…not at home, our home, but later as in tonight."

"Aww, did I render CM Punk speechless? I'll have to record this moment," she pretended to hold up a camera and clicked the picture. "I'll see you later, bye, honey, bye Flynnie, you look gorgeous."

"Punk, you look funny, are you sick?" Flynn asked her best friend.

"No, Flynnie, just happy."

AJ giggled and shook her head, "No, I'll go out and distract her, and you'll definitely be able to win, it'll be amazing. She'll never know when it's coming, that's the surprise of it all."

"Oh my God, ladies, we have _got_ to go get mani-pedis together!" Dolph knelt in between them, clapping his hands. "It's going to be so much fun, and we're going to look like hot bitches!"

"Baby, only one of us in this relationship gets mani-pedis, and it's not me," AJ reminded him.

"Hey, I'm trying to look cool in front of our new best friend," Dolph nodded his head towards Layla. "Stop making me look bad."

AJ leaned forward and kissed him lightly, "Are you getting out of here?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'm going to go be nice to people and stuff, you know how it goes," Dolph shrugged, "I'm trying to make friends and allies around here, I think that's what you do when people like you, I'll figure it out somehow. Besides, I have a feeling some planning is going down around here. Will you be out there for my match with E?"

"Yup, I'll only secretly love you though," she kissed him again. "I'll see you later."

Dolph nodded, "I'm not easy to get rid of, like herpes after being with Kelly Kelly."

"Wow," AJ said as Dolph shrugged and left. She turned to Layla, "Sorry for him, he gets like that when he's hyper for his match."

"It's cute," Layla said, "he really loves you, huh?"

AJ glanced towards the door her boyfriend just walked out of, turning back to her new old friend, and nodded, "I sometimes don't know why, but he does. He really, truly does, and I'd…I'd forgotten what that was like."

Layla smiled at her. "Kaitlyn was wrong about you, I mean, I knew she was, but I just couldn't take her anymore. I couldn't take her attitude. You're not like how she says, you're not like how anyone says, and you have power around here, you've obviously tapped into it."

"Maybe, not without Dolph though, he encouraged this."

"You would have had it without him," Layla insisted, "I think he just helped you find it. I still don't understand why you're breaking up onscreen over this, why you're doing any of this."

"It was putting too much strain on us, too much pressure to be something in front of everyone. This way, we can just be ourselves, but I still can't believe Kaitlyn hasn't figure it out. She's blind if she hasn't realized Dolph and I are fine."

"She thinks too much of herself," Layla said, "right after she lost the title, she lashed out at everyone. She thinks that it belonged to her, that we were just expected to accept that. I don't think so. She needs to be put in her place."

"And I want to be the one to do that."

Distracting Kaitlyn wasn't even an art form anymore. It wasn't a masterpiece like her secret admirer plot, no, it was just her skipping around the ring. That was where Kaitlyn's mind was. After Layla's betrayal the week before, Kaitlyn was so thin-skinned, so easily distracted, and AJ was able to take full advantage. Kaitlyn would chalk it up to AJ being crazy over her break up with Dolph, and Kaitlyn could take that thought right to bed with her, and wake up with it, and let it keep her cozy. Let her think she was as alone as Kaitlyn was, if it made Kaitlyn feel good about herself. Then AJ could tear that away from her too.

After Layla won the match, she joined AJ and they skipped around the ring. When they got backstage, they parted amicably, deciding to do lunch the next day before they headed home for the week. She passed by Kaitlyn, who was just getting backstage and glared at her. AJ just pouted at her, making Kaitlyn glare harder, but walk past her.

It was all too easy.

Punk's match, on the other hand, wasn't easy at all. Curtis was a good wrestler, but with Heyman coming back out (he'd run away beforehand), it added that other element to the match that he didn't need, the element of Heyman attacking him at any moment. He tried to go after Heyman himself, but with the pressing match, he wasn't able to get his hands on him.

When he finally did get his hands on Heyman, trouble was just around the corner. He should have known Brock would be here, but this time he was ready for him. He wasn't going to be blindsided again. Punk was on the offensive, and he went after Brock like he was desperate man. He wasn't backing down, he never backed down. It wasn't in his genetic make up to take anything lying down. He'd been through far worse than Brock freaking Lesnar.

And for a long while, Punk held his own. He really did, but he was outnumbered, and eventually, he wasn't able to break out of the F5, which connected his face with the canvas. That wasn't it though. There was a chair, and the chair delivered blows to his back, and he knew he'd be bruised the next night. He lay there on the mat until someone helped him backstage, and Britt rushed up to him.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," Punk told her before she could start asking the questions. "I just need ice and to lie down, that's it."

"I'm going to kill him, Phil. I'm going to find Heyman, and I'm going to wrap my hands around his throat and squeeze!"

"While I appreciate that, you have to let me fight my battles, Britt, Brock Lesnar is bigger than you are—"

"Hey, he's not the only one who's trained for stuff, I can at the very least intimidate the hell out of him. He wouldn't expect it either, that's the thing, element of surprise," Britt said, then noticed Punk had blood on this throat. "Honey, where are you bleeding?"

"I'm bleeding," he felt around his face.

"Your chin, come on, we have to get you to the trainer's," she told him in exasperation. "I can't believe how reckless you are sometimes."

"Don't go up to Brock, Britt," he told her, "I can take care of this myself, I'm the Best in the World, you know this, that means I can take care of myself."

"You're my boyfriend, and I love you, if you expect me to just sit back and watch this happen, I can't do that, that's not how I do things, Phil," she told him, "you should know this."

"I do, which is why I'm asking you nicely," he told her.

"Fine, but I'm not happy."

"And yet you chose to move in with me."

"Clearly, I've gone insane."

Stephanie nearly bumped into her father, and she was going to walk past when she was stopped. She wanted to get Kensington, Sawyer, and Flynn from Christian, but her father needed to tell her something. "Your idea was stupid, Daniel Bryan as champion, I don't want. How could you let something like this happen!"

"Me, I'm not the one in Brad's ear!"

"Stephanie, as the person in charge, you've got to make sure that we make money by putting the best quality programming and—"

"I didn't tell Cena who to choose!"

"Well, make sure this doesn't happen!"

Stephanie went to tell Hunter of the small altercation with her father, but she wasn't expecting Hunter to blow up over it. She'd made herself look sadder than she actually was over her father's few cruel words. It set something inside Hunter off, talking about how her father lost it, how everything was going to be terrible because of her father. She could barely get a word in edgewise. She stared agape at how her ex-husband said he would take care of her father's complete hubris over the direction of their company.

She might have started a bigger fire than she anticipated.

AJ watched pensively as Dolph and Big E got going into their match. The two of them were under the agreement that anything in the ring was fair game. Neither were going to hold back or take a dive. Their matches were two talented men showcasing that talent. It didn't ease AJ's worry about her boyfriend's safety, and most time she was unable to hide that concern. It wasn't the same as before, she couldn't cheer him on, but she was there, and desperately wanted to be that girl again, but knew this had to be the way. If they wanted just them, they would have to sever these ties.

AJ should have expected Kaitlyn to show up during the match. There was really no reason for her to be out here as her beef was with AJ, not Dolph or Big E. AJ tried to launch herself at Kaitlyn, but Kaitlyn easily overpowered her, slamming her into the ring. AJ let out a grunt as her back hit the ring, toppling them both over as Kaitlyn wailed on her. AJ escaped to the ring, and thought about hiding behind Dolph for a minute, but nixed that as Kaitlyn grabbed her and started to beat her up again.

Dolph looked over and could only see a blur as Kaitlyn hit his girlfriend. He went over, staggering, trying to get in between them. He pushed Kaitlyn away, and was about to check on AJ, pressing his hand into her shoulder when he turned into Big E's massive body. He was thrown down, and AJ slid to the corner as she watched Big E get the win. She tried to act like she was happy about it, but couldn't. She looked up at Kaitlyn, and she stared at her.

This was not over.

Dolph wandered backstage, knowing that AJ was probably in their locker room. Kaitlyn was waiting for him. "I'm really sorry about that—"

"Don't even worry," Dolph dismissed her.

"Look, I know they've both screwed us, and with our past—"

"Save it, Kaitlyn, we have no past. That was nothing, that was a whole lot of nothing," he told her, reminding her that it was years ago, and it meant less than nothing to him. If he was willing to keep Vickie to stay away from Kaitlyn, what would make now any different.

"Oh, well, I was hoping—"

"Hoping?"

"Maybe get a cup of coffee, complain about AJ, you know, fun stuff."

"No, Kaitlyn, no thanks," he said, grabbing his water bottle on the way out. He walked back to his locker room with one thought…

Maybe it was his turn to mess up Kaitlyn's head.


	431. Turning Tables, August 12, 2013

**A/N: Okay, so important author's note here. I've been getting a lot of feedback from all sides about Dolph and AJ in this story. A lot of you like the addition and that's awesome, I'm happy about that, but there are also a lot of you that don't, which, you are entitled to that. As it stands, this story has a lot of characters, and trying to fit them all in has always been an issue, and one that actually stresses me out. I try to fit in who I can where I can, and I know that makes some people unhappy when they don't see some people and see a lot of others.**

**So, after a lot of careful thought, I'm making an executive decision, and I'm spinning off Dolph and AJ from this story. I like writing them, and I feel like they can actually probably carry their own story. So, they are getting their own story in the HaK universe. That's not to say you won't see them in this story, but I'm going to try to fit in the characters I've been neglecting and the characters you have told me you want to see. And if you don't like Dolph and AJ then you don't have to read the other story (although the characters in here will also appear over there and vice versa).**

**Anyways, so this is still kind of an experiment, but I'm thinking that I will start that new story this week, and its weekly update will be on Friday mornings. Please do not expect the chapters to be as long as these chapters because they won't be (probably, hopefully, oh God, what if they are?). So I hope that will make everyone happy, and I hope that you'll read both stories because essentially they will be the same story, just featuring different people. Thanks for reading this insanely long note, thank you for reading this insanely long story, and I hope you enjoy the chapter. See you Friday! :)**

* * *

"Baby girl, you have to get up, just for a few minutes."

"Mommy, no," Flynn whined as she slumped back against her seat.

"I know, I know," Stephanie kissed the top of her head, "but you have to, baby girl, the plane is deboarding so we have to get off, and Daddy is waiting for us."

"Oh, I wanna see Daddy," Flynn reluctantly stood up and Stephanie helped her strap her backpack on before moving her towards the aisle. Sawyer had his back pack on and Stephanie shouldered Kensington's things as well as her purse. Sawyer was holding onto the sleeping Kensington as Stephanie ushered Flynn off the plane. When they were in the terminal, a sleepy Flynn turned towards her mother, "Mommy, carry me."

"Okay, come here, you," Stephanie said, lifting Flynn into her arms. Flynn wrapped her legs around her mother, and she was getting so lanky and big, but she was still her little baby. Stephanie kissed her head softly, "Happy Birthday, baby girl."

"Thank you, Mommy," she whispered as they caught up with Sawyer and Kensington. Sawyer was in better shape than his sisters, and so he was okay to carry Kensington down to baggage claim while Stephanie handled the bigger Flynn. Stephanie shifted the birthday girl in her arms as they made their way slowly towards baggage claim. Knowing she'd have all three kids with her, she checked most of their things. When they got to baggage claim, they were met with the private driver she'd hired to take her to where Chris was staying.

He managed to get their things, and Stephanie managed to get the kids to the limo. She helped Kensington into her car seat while Sawyer laid across one of the seats to try and get more sleep, his lap seat belt making it slightly easier for him. Stephanie was going to put Flynn down too, but she made a keening sound that indicated to Stephanie she didn't want to move. Stephanie sighed, and put her own seatbelt on while shifting Flynn in her lap. Flynn sprawled herself over her mother, her legs flailed over the seat next to her, and her head tucked against Stephanie's breasts.

Stephanie ran her hand over Flynn's light brown locks, and heard her sigh. Stephanie kissed the top her head, "I can't believe you're five today, baby girl. I remember when I found out about you, and how upset I was. Little did I know how you'd be."

"Mommy, quiet," Flynn mumbled to her, and Stephanie laughed. She cuddled Flynn closer to her as they started the drive to the hotel. She'd never been to Austria before, so everything was new for her too. It was beautiful though, green, and rolling hills, and she wished she could stay a few weeks here instead of just through the weekend. She didn't relish in the trip back because they would be going all the way to California, and it was going to be rough for her children and for her too.

They arrived at the hotel, and she saw Chris waiting outside for them already. They must have driven through the night because Chris originally told her they'd probably not get to the hotel until the afternoon. It pulled up in front of the doors, and Chris was practically shooing away the driver to open the door. "Hey!"

"Shh, three sleepy kids," Stephanie hissed at him. He peeked his head inside and saw all of them dead to the world. He mouthed sorry to her and climbed inside so he could take Flynn from her, since Flynn was heavier.

Chris pulled Flynn out of the limo as Stephanie went for Kensington, shaking Sawyer awake. Chris adjusted Flynn in his arms so he had a secure grip on her. Her arms sleepily came up and instinctively wrapped their way around her father's neck as her legs dangled carelessly, one shoe untied. Chris started walking into the hotel. They'd gotten an early check-in (doors opened when your wife was a multi-millionaire), so he had the room all set up. He waited for Stephanie and his other two kids before leading them up to the room, a bell-boy with their bags right behind.

After getting all the bags settled, Chris put Kensington and Flynn on a bed, and led Sawyer to another before he went over and scooped up his wife in a hug. He spun her around a little as she rolled her eyes and leaned down to kiss him. "You weren't even gone that long."

"I'm not allowed to miss you?" Chris asked. "Wow, I never thought I'd see the day my wife was actually _happy _to see me leave on a tour. I thought we were in this for the long haul, but it seems like you've lost interest in me."

"Oh, well, no, maybe I still have a little interest."

"So…how are you, how are the kids?"

"We're all fine," Stephanie said, "Flynn was a little put out that we were postponing her birthday party until next week, but then I told her that this way Punk would be able to come since he had Comic Con this weekend, and she was right back on board with postponing it."

"Oh, so seeing me for an extra couple days wasn't enough to entice her? I think I need to have a long talk with that little girl," Chris nodded his head as if thinking about what he was going to say to her.

"No, that was definitely something she liked too, but Punk is her best friend, and ever since he got her that belt on Monday, she's been so ecstatic about it. I had to put in one of our bags because she was dying to show you in person, and she cannot stop talking about how it has your name on it, which means you _have_ to go after the title when you come back."

"I'll think about it," Chris told her, tucking a stray hair away from Stephanie's face and just looking at her. "I miss you when you're not around."

"Not my fault, buddy," Stephanie reminded him, "you're the one who likes to do all these tours that I can't come with you on, not me. I'm back where you really, truly belong."

He laughed. No matter how accepting Stephanie was of his rock 'n roll lifestyle, there was always going to be a part of her that wanted him to come back to wrestling, always. "I said I'll think about it. So how are work things? It's hard getting the full Stephanie McMahon-Jericho body language thing when I can only see your face when we talk."

"It's going…" She let her voice trail off, and that was about all Chris needed to know.

"Those two still swinging their dicks around?"

"Can we not put that image in my head?" Stephanie asked, grimacing and making a face. "But yes, they are still having their little tug-of-war, and I'm in the middle, but not really because I'm getting lost in the shuffle between their egos."

"But that's when you're most dangerous, when you're underestimated. You planning something for SummerSlam, I know you usually have some trick up your sleeve."

"Not as of right now, I'm kind of thinking I want to see how this thing plays out between Hunter and my father. You know, I don't think Hunter really wanted to involve himself in this, I mean, he was so mad at me when I said I was his wife, you know, but now it's like, I think he really did take offense to the things my dad was saying, and now it's turned personal for him. I just don't know what his end game is here."

"Haven't you talked to him?"

"Yeah, and he gives me the cookie-cutter answer of it being for the betterment of the company, and while I'm sure a lot of that is true, I'm not sure it's completely true. I think Hunter misses competing more than he lets on. I just think…a part of him still feels like he's in his prime, and when he's reminded that he's not, some part of him has to lash out."

"Midlife crisis?"

"Wrestling crisis, I think," Stephanie said, "and you know we've both seen this before. Look at Flair, look at Terry Funk. They can't quit, they don't know how, and I think Hunter thought he could take the desk job and be happy, but I think it's becoming clear to him that he's really kind of not so he's taking it out this way."

"Wow, when did you get your psychology degree?"

"I studied while you were away doing tours," she teased him.

They heard a gasp from the doorway and Flynn was standing there. "Daddy, I forgot that it was my birthday because I was sleepy! But it's my birthday!"

Chris chuckled as Flynn looked so mad at herself for forgetting for even one second that it was her birthday and cursing sleep on her special day. Chris knelt down and Flynn ran into his arms, hugging him tightly. He could hear her yawn, and he knew she was still tired, but today was her birthday, and she just didn't care. Chris stood up with her still wrapped around him, and he hugged her again. Stephanie watched on with a smile, glancing into the bedroom to make sure Flynn didn't wake up her brother or sister.

"Happy Birthday, Flutterby!" Chris told her, pulling away so he could look her in the face. "Well, you certainly look like a five year old."

"I do?" Flynn brightened considerably.

"Yeah, you do, I see some laugh lines, a few wrinkles, some gray hair starting to come in," he told her as Flynn giggled.

"Daddy, I don't have any of that. I'm not an old person, only old people have that, I'm still a little kid," she told him, holding out her hand. "I'm only one hand, that's not even two hands yet. Sawa isn't even two hands yet either."

"I know, you're all so young compared to Mommy," he teased. "So, I heard that you got a belt…"

"Punk gave it to me, you saw it when I showed you on the video, Daddy, but you didn't see it up close and it fits me and everything! It's the coolest!" Flynn squirmed out of Chris's arms, and he set her down. Flynn ran into the bedroom, realized that she had no clue where her belt was and ran back out. "Mommy, I don't know where my belt is!"

"It's in a suitcase," Stephanie explained as Flynn tore back into the room, probably to rummage through every suitcase she could get her small hands on. Stephanie looked to her husband, "That girl is going to crash so hard later."

"I hope she'll take a nap at some point," Chris said as Stephanie followed Flynn into the bedroom before she could rip things apart Hulk-style. A few minutes later, Flynn was running back into the room and holding up her belt. "Wow, Flutterby…wait, wow, that's actually really nice."

"It's a complete replica scaled down to her size," Stephanie explained.

"I can't believe he went through all this trouble," Chris ran his hand over the face of the belt. It was exactly like the new WWE Championship belt. Chris knew that Punk cared about Flynn, but he always kind of thought Punk just appeased Flynn when he called her his best friend. But this belt was definitely something a best friend would do, it was above and beyond anything Punk needed to do. A hug from him would have made Flynn happy.

"I think our daughter is a charmer," Stephanie whispered as Flynn took the belt back from her father.

"Daddy, see, that's you," Flynn pointed to the side with the Y2J logo and his outline behind it. "Punk did this all by himself, he thought of it all by himself. The other side is him, but this is you because you're my favorite, but it's because you're the best in the world, and so is he."

"This is really cool, Flutterby, I think I need to steal it and be the champion."

"Daddy, this wouldn't even fit on your leg, it's for little kids," Flynn shook his head. "Mommy, tell me about my birthday, you promised!"

"Her birthday?" Chris asked.

"On the plane, she was getting antsy and impatient, so I told if she was good for the rest of the flight, I would tell her the story of finding out about her and when she was born," Stephanie explained.

"Yup, and I was really, really good, Daddy. I stayed in my seat, and I didn't yell or use my outdoor voice, and I didn't talk to any strangers, not even to tell them that you were my daddy, and I just watched DVDs. Mommy got some old matches of Punk when he was in…um, what was it, Mommy?"

"ROH."

"Yup, she got me matches from that, and I'm watching them because I've seen _so_ many of yours, Daddy, that I thought I would watch some of Punk's, and he looks very different, and his wrestling is still really good."

"Well, he's a really good wrestler, just not as good as I am."

"Never!" Flynn said like that was the craziest thing she could ever think of. "Now the story, Mommy, like you promised."

"Okay, okay," Stephanie said, grabbing Flynn's hand and taking her over to the couch. Stephanie sat down and Flynn crawled into Stephanie's lap, still clutching her belt in her arms. Stephanie got situated so Flynn could cuddle into her again.

"Daddy, come tell me too," Flynn said, pointing to the seat next to her and demanding her father sit with them too. "You were there, right?"

"Well, considering I'm your dad, yes, I was there," he said, sitting next to Stephanie. He lifted Flynn's feet and let them rest in his lap as he leaned his shoulder on Stephanie. He missed her more than words could say sometimes. Stephanie reached up and patted his cheek a little bit before he settled in one spot.

"Well, when I found out about you, I didn't even want you," Stephanie said.

"But I'm so nice," Flynn said in disbelief, which made Stephanie gently laugh.

"Oh, I know, believe me, I know how nice you are, but when Sawyer was born, I wanted to wait until he was about four years old to have another baby. But then, when Sawyer wasn't even two yet, I found out about you, and I was shocked because you were a surprise."

"A good surprise though," Chris said. "We weren't expecting you, but you never listen to reason anyways, you always like to do what you do."

"Yup," Stephanie said, brushing her hand over Flynn's hair rhythmically. "You were that way from the start, barging in places, demanding things. Daddy and I weren't sure about you. We weren't sure if we could handle you. We were doing a pretty good job with Sawyer, but we didn't know if we were going to be a good mommy and daddy for both of you."

"I like you both," Flynn said plainly.

"We like you too," Chris told her. "We just weren't sure, but we loved you from the moment we knew about you, and that hasn't changed, even when we put you in time-out, we still love the heck out of you."

"Well, you have to," Flynn said.

"We thought you were going to be great," Stephanie said, "and we were right. You're so like me and Daddy, it's crazy. It might be a little on the bad side sometimes because Daddy and I are sometimes not the most sane people, but you're headstrong and you take no prisoners, and we both think you're going to be great. We think you and your brother and sister are going to be great."

"Great wrestlers, even Kensy, Mommy, because she can take a good bump."

"Don't remind me," Stephanie said, thinking about the other day when Kensington fell off the couch (though Stephanie wasn't convinced that Kensington didn't _throw_ herself off the couch) and landed on her elbow. Stephanie rushed to her side, but found Kensington giggling and wanting to do it again. Where Flynn liked to try moves, Kensington loved to fall and take bumps. Her and Chris _might _have let their kids watch too much wrestling.

Chris laughed, "Did you know that Sawyer was there when you were born?"

"Really? Sawa was there?" Flynn asked eagerly.

"Yup," Stephanie said, "Daddy was in New York on a meeting, and so it was just me and Sawyer, and we were playing outside and my water broke and he thought I peed my pants!"

Flynn bust into laughter, "Oh no, Mommy, but did you?"

"No, that's just something that happens when you have a baby," Stephanie explained. "I was supposed to get a ride from Christian and Trish, but they were nowhere to be found, so I had to drive myself and Sawyer with me to the hospital. He stayed with me until Daddy got there, but then he didn't want to leave because he wanted to stay and help me. He held my hand when I needed it, and he was right there when you were born, except he was asleep."

"Oh, that's funny that he was there," Flynn said, starting to yawn and close her eyes, the sleepiness taking over again. She only had so much energy in her after the long flight.

"He was so happy to see you, and you were his from the very beginning. He loved you so much," Stephanie said as she watched Flynn fall asleep against her. "Our baby is five years old, Chris."

"I know," he said with a sigh.

"She's starting school soon, and then it's just me and Kensy, and I…I'm not prepared for our kids to get older. Do you remember her as a baby? We thought she was so chill, we thought she was going to be a calm girl."

Chris laughed at that, "Yeah, we thought she'd be just the calmest, sweetest, quietest little girl in the world, and look what we ended up with…"

"The best and worst of us both, all in one amazing little girl."

"Nobody can argue that."

Punk lifted Britt and turned her so he could try and bench press her. "Put me down, you crazy man."

"I can lift you, I dead lift way more than you," he told her, actually starting to lift her over his head. "Man, your butt is nice from this angle."

"Stop or I'm going to take you down."

"The scary part is you can," Punk said, putting her back on solid ground. She fixed her hair, but he reached out and mussed it up before kissing her. She let herself fall into the kiss, and wrapped her arms around him. When he least expected it though, she wrapped her leg around his, pulling back and making him fall backwards onto the floor of their apartment.

"That's what you get when you lift me, buddy," she said smugly.

"That was hot," Punk told her, looking up at her. "That was seriously hot."

"Thank you," she told him.

"You forget one thing, you aren't the only one who's taken martial arts," he said, grabbing her leg and pulling her down so she fell in a heap next to him.

"You're a jerk," she laughed, turning on her back. "One of these days, I want to go against you. You and me, one on one, for all the marbles."

"Isn't that what we did last night?" he asked, smiling down at her as he turned on his side. "I like when we're face to face, shorty."

"Who you calling shorty?" she leveled him with a glare. "We have to go though, you have Comic Con and we can't be late to that, alright? I know you were running late yesterday, and we can't run late again today. I make my career on being on time."

"You run my life so well."

"I try because it's so disorganized," she kissed him, brushing her hand down his cheek, rolling her eyes at his mutton chops, which weren't even mutton chops anymore, they were so long. She'd long learned to let him do what he wanted though because he wasn't going to change for anyone, and well, she loved him that way.

"Organized chaos," he said, lifting himself up to a standing position. He reached out his hand and she took it, letting him pull her up. She hugged him briefly and he hugged her back. He couldn't remember a time when he was happier. Even with all the drama surrounding Heyman and Brock, Punk was still content and happy with his personal life. And that was more than he ever could have hoped for, especially because for so long, Britt seemed like something that would never come true, the forbidden fruit so to speak.

"Yeah, well, we'll order the pizza—"

"Pizza coffin!"

"I'm not calling it a pizza coffin unless it is actually the size of a coffin."

"Please, you'd eat the entire thing."

"I would, you're just getting a bunch of pizzas—"

"Pizza coffin!"

"I'm going to punch you in the stomach," she told him, pinching his side.

He leaned down and kissed her, "Pizza coffin," he whispered against her lips.

"I hate you," she giggled because she couldn't help herself.

"You love me."

"Nope, you can go love your pizza coffin."

"You called it a pizza coffin, success," he raised his arms in victory.

"Jerk," she said, grabbing her purse and starting to walk out of the apartment. Punk just laughed and wrapped his arm around her as they left. For today, he was going to be happy, and he was going to be around the fans. Monday though, Monday he'd be focused, and he had some tricks up his sleeve. Some tricks that Heyman was not going to be ready for.

Stephanie rolled her eyes at Christian, even though she understood better than most where he was coming from. "Christian, I was only gone for like half a week," she told him, "I know how Trish is doing."

"I know, but still, you didn't get to see the latest ultrasound," Christian said. "I mean, my second kid is so close to being born. It's almost go time. The doctor said she's about a week removed from being in the clear for labor, and it's amazing."

"So what are the names again?"

"Garrett for a boy and Brynn for a girl," Christian told her again. He and Trish had only really finalized the names a couple weeks before. There was much debate over it, but they finally came to a couple names they could be happy with.

"I love the name Brynn," Stephanie said, "if Trish has a boy, I may have to steal that name if I ever have another daughter, and I can tell you really want a boy."

"It's not that I really want one or anything, it's just that I have Tilden, and she's my little girl, and I love her to death, so it'd be nice to see what a boy would be like. You had Sawyer first, so when you got pregnant with Flynn, weren't you hoping for a little girl?"

"It crossed my mind, yes," Stephanie said, "there's nothing wrong with wanting one more than the other. Chris wanted Kensy to be a boy, but when she came out and was a girl, he was still thrilled. It's not like you're going to love your child any less."

"Fine, I really, really want a boy. I want a boy because, well, you know—"

"You want to do the typical boy things with him."

"I mean, I love Sawyer," Christian said then turned to Sawyer, who was playing with his Nintendo DS on the couch. "I love you, kid."

"Thanks, Chrissy," Sawyer said, barely looking up.

"And I think that'd be cool."

"If you win on Sunday, do you think you'll have the time to focus both on being champion and on being father to a new baby? I mean, both come with responsibilities, you know. You don't want to overtax yourself. I mean, Trish is going to be there all the time, so you know, when you're at home, she's going to want you to do a lot."

"I know, and believe me, I wouldn't have wanted this one more match thing if I didn't think I could handle it. I know that with Tilden, I came off crazy, and I pretty much was because she's my daughter, and I love her, and she was my first, and I just…wanted to be the best dad in the world, and that was probably not the right way to go about doing that, but it's different this time. You know it was different with Flynn than it was with Sawyer, and it was probably even more different with Kensy than it was with either of the other two."

"Yeah, you're right, I just want to make sure. Del Rio is a strong guy, tough opponent, but the Ricardo thing has to be playing on his brain. Despite his ego, you know it hurt him to do that, use that as a mental edge against him."

"Thanks, Stephanie, is this what you do for Chris?"

"No, I analyze everything for Chris, this is just some friendly advice for you since your wife is stuck at home carrying around your spawn, and mine is being a rock star overseas."

"Daddy play really good," Kensington said, coming up and smiling at Christian. "Chrissy, where is Tilde?"

"She's at home, Kensy, sorry," Christian said with a pout.

"I wanna play wif her," Kensington told her. "She my fwend."

"I know, she thinks you're a great friend too, maybe I'll bring her with me next week," Christian turned to Stephanie, "it couldn't hurt, could it? I mean, it would give Trish a day off without running after a three year old with that stomach of hers."

"I thought her mom was down?"

"No, she had to go back to Toronto, _my_ mom is coming down for a week or two," Christian said, "well, with us, she said she'll spend a week with Edge and Lita just so we don't get sick of her. I think she's going to try to convince them to get married or have a kid or something."

"Yeah, that kid thing lasted all of three weeks," Stephanie said.

"Until the four of us went for dinner that evening and left all four kids with them. I thought they were going to throw our kids at us," Christian laughed as he pulled Kensington into his lap when she held her arms out for him. She leaned over and looked at the ultrasound pictures in confusion.

"What dat?" she asked, staring back at Christian.

"That is my new baby, but it hasn't been born yet," Christian said.

"Oh…hmm…cool," Kensington shrugged, not really caring what it was.

Christian gave her head a little noogie. "That's exactly how Tilden responds to the new baby too. I don't think she gets it yet. I think she'll get it more when the baby is actually born, but until then, she just likes to point out that Trish's stomach keeps getting bigger and Momma needs to stop eating so much, and I need to stop feeding her so much. I think our own daughter is giving Trish a complex."

Stephanie laughed, "Well, kids are cruel."

"Stephanie!" Hunter stormed into her office, and she opened her eyes. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't know you weren't alone. Hey, Christian."

"Hey man, what's got you worked up?"

"Did you see what Brad Maddox is planning on doing?"

"I looked at the schedule and didn't see him doing anything."

"Last minute change, he's made himself the referee for Daniel Bryan's match tonight. This is obviously, _obviously_ your dad. Stephanie, you're the President, right?"

"Hunter, my dad is still on the Board, the Board that can have me fired, I have to toe a very fine line here," Stephanie said, and that was the truth. While she wanted to blatantly tell her father to stop, he did have a lot of people who were willing to go along with him, and if he wanted to take her company, he just might pull it off. Everything she did for now, _for now_, had to be covert until the right possible moment.

"Stephanie, he's trying to take over, I can't believe you're just going to sit back and watch it happen."

"I'm not sitting back, I'm trying to do my job," she said, although she was sitting back and letting this play out, but she couldn't insert herself more now. Her father and ex-husband were about to come to a head, and when they started striking blows at each other, that's where she came in. She couldn't step in a moment sooner, she had to look like the sane one, she had to look like the true one in charge.

"Yeah, well, look, if I have to do something about your father, I'm going to do it, just so you know. You might want to let him do whatever he wants—"

"Hey, last week was a compromise, okay?"

"Stephanie, that wasn't a compromise, that was trying to shine a turd up."

"That's gross," Flynn interjected, looking up from her toys. "Don't be gross, Trips."

"Sorry, Flynnie," Hunter sighed. "Stephanie, I may take this into my own hands, just so you know."

"Hunter, please—" Her words were half-hearted at best, but Hunter was so fired up over this, he didn't seem to notice.

"I'm sorry, but I have to," he stormed back out without another word.

Christian turned to Stephanie with a knowing look on his face, "What are you up to?"

"Why does everyone constantly think I'm up to something, maybe I'm not up to anything, did you think about that?" Stephanie asked. "Sometimes, I don't have a plan, sometimes I just let things take their course."

"Oh, so your actual plan is not to have a plan, which is kind of weird because that is a plan."

"I'm just seeing where things go," Stephanie intimated. "Why does everything have to be complicated? Sometimes the people that you want to get one over do all the work for you."

"Ingenious, so you're going to let them destroy each other?"

"If they want."

Hunter wanted. After Brad and his terrible job at officiating, her father had the audacity to bring Brad back out there and make him "redeem" himself for the earlier fast count during the match. Everyone knew that this was Vince's doing though. It had his fingerprints all over it. Sometimes, her father was about as subtle as the suit jacket he was wearing. This was one of those times. It was all a ploy to get Brad to officiate the WWE Title match on Sunday. Hunter figured it would go this way, so he was waiting backstage for it.

"I told you," Hunter turned to Stephanie.

"Hunter, look—"

"No, Stephanie, maybe you don't care, but I do. This is my life now. Being here, making sure things run smoothly, that's my job. My job now is to make sure your father doesn't run this entire thing into the ground."

"Then take him out," Stephanie said. Hunter stared at her and nodded, like they were commiserating on this, like he hadn't long before decided that he'd be willing to do whatever it took to make sure Vince didn't win. He was doing the dirty work without Stephanie having to even lift a finger; she didn't even need to ask. It was kind of nice letting things take their course, and it made her wonder why she didn't do it sooner.

Hunter walked out there, pissed. His personal life was kind of in shambles right now, and so this was his everything, but then, maybe that's why his personal life was in shambles. For so many years, he put this business in front of everything. He made sure that getting titles, tearing people down, being the best was the only important thing in his life. It was why he lost Stephanie, it was why he lost Britt, it was why he couldn't manage to really keep any relationship.

And instead of thinking that maybe he should take a step back, this only made Hunter that much more motivated to be the one to carry this company. For starters, that meant taking things away from Vince, like the power to make Brad Maddox the guest referee for the WWE title match. That could only spell a horrible bias for Cena. Vince was lying when he said he didn't want Cena to win. Of course Vince wanted Cena to win. Cena brought in money, and anyone who brought in money hand over fist was sure to be Vince's favorite.

The only thing he could do was make himself the referee, and that's just what he did. He knew he could call the match fairly, he knew Daniel would get a real shot at being the WWE champion. Vince was furious of course, but Hunter didn't care. He was going to make sure the match happened the right way, not in the way Vince wanted it. This time Vince wasn't going to get what he wanted.

"That's how you take charge of things," Hunter told Stephanie when he finally got backstage.

"Well, I'm glad the match will have a fair official on Sunday," Stephanie told him. "I know you'll do the right thing and call it right down the middle."

"I'm just not going to let your father take over."

"I wouldn't expect you to," Stephanie said. Stephanie was actually glad Hunter did that. It saved her the trouble of trying to further this feud they had with each other. Her father and Hunter could destroy each other, and neither one would ever lay a hand on her. And she was going to let them do that while she watched like the spectator they wanted her to be.

This was going much better than expected.

Britt grabbed the back of Punk's pants and pulled him into a side hallway. He was startled at first until he saw the petite form behind him. He turned and smiled at her, "Hey, not that I mind getting pulled around by you, but what's—"

"This is serious," Britt said, looking around. "You better love having a girlfriend who is in the know."

"Okay, well, I love you, so yeah, I'm glad you're in the know, whatever that means," he told her.

"Stop, we don't have the time, well, we do, but this is important because we need to figure out what to do."

"We? So there's something going on?"

"Brock is here. Paul won't have the match with you unless Brock is in the match too. He's going to try to make it a handicap match, he's going to call you out, and I know you, Punk, I know you'll want to try, but I don't want you to."

"Well, I mean, I don't want to either, not before our match on Sunday, I'm not giving up momentum," he said, "how do you know all this by the way?"

"I help run the show, remember?" she said. "I know Brock had to get clearance a little while ago, and I'm tiny, I go unnoticed a lot because everyone is thinking only of themselves. That's how you can stand behind a crate and hear entire plans."

Punk smirked, "You do come in handy."

"Well, it's a gift," she said, "so what are we going to do?"

"_I'm_ going to take care of my business, and _you_ are going to go about your own business because you're tough, hell, you are one of the toughest chicks I know, but I have a problem with my girlfriend fighting my battles."

"So if it wasn't your battle?"

"Then I'd say use your considerable amount of skill to take both of them out," Punk told her, cupping her face in his. "I would pay to watch it, I would charge tickets, and I would bring snacks and everything."

"Even pizza coffins?"

"_Especially _pizza coffins. Two of them to be exact, one for Heyman, and one for Brock, after you beat them up, they'd have to eat their way out."

"I like the thought of that," she told him. "I won't get involved, but I will help you get the upper hand."

"How?"

"I'll do what Stephanie did for AJ the other week, when she and Dolph started their phony break up."

"Those two are insane…they're perfect for each other," Punk laughed. "I mean, I knew AJ was already crazy, we both know that—"

"They're happy, don't tread on that," Britt said, grabbing his hand. "Leave them alone. What I'm saying is, we can get you into the arena, and when we get you into the arena, Brock and Heyman will think that you'll be coming from the ramp, but you won't be."

"Oh, _oh_," Punk nodded, "man, it does pay to have a girlfriend who works here."

"Told you," she said, "and you will get to exact a little revenge, and if luck is on your side, you might be able to get your hands on Heyman. I know you're going to get Brock. The guy is dumb as a log, you have every advantage over him but size, and that can be compensated with speed. You're faster, more agile."

"I like that you've studied this."

"I know what kind of skills you have," she winked at him. "I know what kind of skills Brock has. If you take the mental advantage and gain some leverage, there's no stopping you."

Britt was right. Brock and Heyman were completely directed towards the ramp while he climbed into the ring and grabbed a camera from the nearby cameraman. Even as he stood there, waiting for Brock to turn, he thought about how the dumb oaf didn't realize the crowd was reacting to him standing there. When Brock finally turned around, Punk clocked him one with the camera, and again and again for good measure, taking the bigger man down. Heyman was freaking out, but Punk wasn't done. The camera was just the start.

As Brock rolled out to the floor and tried to gain his bearings, Punk ran the ropes then dove through them right into Brock, knocking him down again. Punk went and got a chair, unloading it onto Brock some more. When he was sure Brock was down, Punk set his sights on Heyman, who looked terrified, and with good reason. Heyman thought he was the best thing to ever happen to Punk, but he wasn't. Punk was his own man, and everything he had, he earned himself. Heyman could never fully claim him, not ever because at the end of the day, Punk was just one thing.

He was a CM Punk guy.

Heyman ran out of the ring and up the ramp with Punk in pursuit. He was about to reach him when Curtis Axel came out. Punk should have known this guy would show up, but it didn't matter. Punk nailed him with the chair to the stomach, breaking the intensity of the other man. Punk easily gained the advantage on him, taking him to the stage and ramming him into the bottom of the Tron. And then it was time for Curtis Axel to go to sleep.

Punk stood tall. He might not have gotten his hands on Heyman yet, but this was just as good. He was showing the Heyman guys that he was better than they were. They could hide behind Paul all they wanted, but he wasn't hiding anywhere. He was right here, ready to take on everyone, just as he always was willing to do. He was CM Punk, the best in the world, and Heyman needed to recognize that he would not be intimidated or run out of that ring.

He would prove that once and for all on Sunday.


End file.
